By
Sugikawa. The original can be found
here!
Jenon→Siskier, fluffy.
On a day so bright that the blue skies seemed clear all the way to heaven, Gram Blaze was in the midst of training its soldiers. Bright sunlight bore down on them from the fair skies, but due to the cool breeze it didn’t take away from their energy, making this the perfect day to train.
During a spare moment in an intermission, Jenon and Siskier came to a nearby field of flowers. Jenon had invited Siskier for the sake of relaxation.
“You’ve got time for a walk, right? The flowers should be in full bloom, after all.”
Because the flowers were located on a gentle hill, the wind felt especially good. Siskier stretched out her arms to wear off her tiredness from training.
“Hah, I’m back to life now! We’ve been so busy with training lately that I haven’t had any time to see the flowers. It feels like being healed after so long!”
She took a deep breath and walked to and fro looking around, and Jenon followed her. At first they walked slowly while sightseeing, but eventually Siskier started running towards a certain place.
“Oh! Jenon, c’mere!”
Jenon approached Siskier, who had something in her hand. When she turned back towards him after judging the time was right, she blew out hard. She’d been holding a downy dandelion. Its fuzz took to the air on her breath, swarming Jenon.
“Uwah!”
“Ahaha, you’re all fuzzy, Jenon!”
Jenon smiled bitterly at Siskier’s joy. Little dandelion seeds had gotten stuck to his clothes here and there. While Jenon turned casually windward and plucked them off, Siskier blew her dandelion clock again. This time, the little bits of fluff flew far away, as if they might even reach the other side of the hill.
“We used to play like this a lot, didn’t we. Back when we were all little.”
“That’s right. If I remember correctly, you had trouble getting Garlot to play with you, so you’d blow dandelion seeds all over him like you did to me just now, and he’d get angry and do it back to you.”
“Yeah, that’s right! We’d all pick lots of dandelion clocks and then blow on them. In the end everybody got covered in fuzz.”
As Siskier spoke cheerfully of their memories, Jenon had an idea again. He picked a dandelion himself, and wove it with the guidance of his memories.
“Siskier. Here, this is for you. It’s an engagement ring.”
What Jenon was trying to hand to her was a simple ring made from a fluffy dandelion. Siskier smiled at the round shape that the stalk had been bent in.
“Jeez, you’re always joking around, Jenon!”
“Haha, I thought this one was pretty well-made though.”
Even though he forced a smile, Jenon couldn’t help but be saddened that his words had been interpreted as facetiousness. She might not even remember that he’d tried to give her a handmade ring like this back when everyone had still played together. It was a lonely feeling, realizing that the wish he’d always hoped would reach her still hadn’t gotten across.
At that moment, a breeze a bit stronger than the ones before it blew. A few seeds detached from the ring that was still in Jenon’s hand.
“Gotcha!”
Siskier suddenly reached out her hand. When Jenon blinked at her, she opened her fingers; the flyaway seeds were pressed against her palm.
“I did it! Look, it’s the fluff that came off the ring. Aren’t I awesome?”
Siskier beamed pridefully at the seeds she had caught, and Jenon smiled peacefully. Those seeds had not been crushed in her hand; their white fluff still swayed proudly in the wind. Someday, his feelings would reach her too.
Someday, for sure.