Love and Longing: Midori's Passion
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Himeno Family Training Grounds, Tokyo, Japan
A tired groan escaped Midori's lips. Before her eyes began to flutter
open she remembered what she had been through. Because the aches of her
body just saw fit to remind her of it. The first pain she noticed was
the one across her chest and stomach. Obviously she had been slashed
there. Though she didn't remember much about that. The second pain that
made itself known was the dull throb at the back of her head. She had
been smashed into a wall by that second wave. That wave was the one that
knocked her out. And won that guy the fight. The third and arguably most
hurtful pain came at Midori's heart. She had lost the fight. But that
wasn't the fact that hurt most. What gave the situation such a sting was
the fact that she could have won the fight if she had just kept up her
guard. Sougetsu had always said that Midori held too high of an opinion
of herself. Was he right all along?
"...Ugh..." The tomboy groaned a little and looked upwards now that her
eyesight was coming back to her. Midori's eyes widened as she saw where
she was. In her own room. She could tell from all the messy piles of
clothes and the fighting paraphernalia. She was in bed. And most
apparent of all, was the idea that she was not alone. Midori looked over
her right and took a glimpse at the girl who stood at her bedside. It
was Setsuna. She didn't seem to be aware that Midori was awake now, so
the redhead just took the time to stare and appreciate her. The shorter
girl stood over the small coffee table by Midori's bed. She was
straining out a damp towel over a small bowl of water. She then took
the towel with her as she turned to Midori's side.
Her uncharacteristically grim face was soon uplifted. "Midori... you're
awake..."
"...Y-Yeah," She struggled and faked a smile for Setsuna's benefit,
"...I guess I am. But what are... you doing here? How did I even get
here?"
Setsuna's face fell again. But she still worked, moving over Midori's
face and placing the damp towel over the fiery teen's bruised forehead.
Setsuna nudged back and replied. "...I came across you and... saw you
hurt... I just... took you home... I didn't think that you... would be
okay... as you were. So I..."
Midori didn't need her to say anymore. There was a firm bandage around
her waist. The girl could feel it from the moment she had awoken. That
had been applied by Setsuna and none other. When Midori put thought to
that, she realized that the only thing she was wearing aside from that
was her underwear. A small blush appeared at her face when she realized
that Setsuna had actually undressed her to fit those bandages. But the
fact that Setsuna had done this begged another question. "...Uh...
where's my Dad...? Is he here...?"
From that surprised expression on Setsuna's face, this wasn't the
comment she was expecting to hear. But she replied anyway. "...Mr.
Himeno...? I don't know where he is. I thought that he would be back by
now but he hasn't come home yet."
Midori laid her head back on her pillow. "Thank God. I wouldn't like to
explain myself to him of all people."
"Then maybe you should explain yourself to me." Setsuna retorted
forthrightly.
And Midori could not help but take note of the politely firm tone of the
normally composed Setsuna's voice. "W-What are you... talking about?"
"Why did you fight like that?!" Setsuna's brow creased, "you could have
gotten seriously hurt by fighting such a man! You could have been
killed! Do you realize that?"
As much as Midori was surprised by such an outburst, she couldn't help
but naturally be in defence of herself and her actions. "...It was
just... something that got out of hand. I thought I could handle it, but
obviously I couldn't. That's all it amounts to, Setsuna."
"That's not what I asked," Setsuna stated, "why did you fight him?"
Midori ran a hand through the bangs of her strawberry-blonde hair,
sighing. "...It was a mistake. I guess at the time... I just thought it
would be good training for the Keisho Ritual or something. Who knows?
What's done is done, alright?"
Setsuna's eyes narrowed. "No, it's not alright! You promised me that
you'd tone that down! Why do you keep doing this to yourself? Why do you
keep fighting like this? What possible reason could you have?"
Now Midori really was getting defensive. "I said it was a mistake,
okay?! Now would you just back off?!"
Setsuna was effectively silenced. Leaving behind a thick, irritating
silence in that room. Throwing her eyes to the other side of the bed,
Midori looked away. While Setsuna clammed up inside herself. Her long
waterfall of jet black hair spilled over her shoulders as she fixed her
palms into her knees, looking downwards.
"...I'm... I'm sorry," She spoke in hushed tones, bangs falling over her
eyes "...maybe I... should just go..."
Midori said nothing.
The seconds it took for Setsuna to wait for a reply went swiftly. They
couldn't be drawn out. Nor could the argument. The Guardian Angel held
back another slip of a tear and stood upright. Her book bag was slung
down at the edge of Midori's bed. She walked over to it and grabbed the
article, then slowly moved to the door. The second she reached the door
frame she looked back for a sign. A sign that might suggest that Midori
wanted her to stay. She didn't want to leave. But no sign came. Midori
just continued to look to the other side of the room, out of the window
overhanging the gardens of the Himeno household. Setsuna sighed and
stepped out the doorway. The very same second that Midori turned back
around to look. But Setsuna was gone. The Fuin Fighter nudged up the bed
and cursed.
"...Dammit!" She expressed angrily, "...Why... do I... fight...?"
Such questions become easy to answer when you recall a simpler time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There was a babbling brook just a metre ahead. The fireflies gathered
around it. By now it was getting late. The beautiful red sun sinking
into the night. Grass fading in brightness with the fall. Sweet scene as
it was; it was marred by the sound of sobbing. A soft chain of sobs that
could be traced back to only one person. The innocent little girl who
had felt pain. She was to have been no more than six or seven years of
age. She sat at the bank of the brook, her knees drawn against her
chest, head buried in her arms. Her mop of dark black hair prevented the
sight of her crying. But not the sound. A slightly taller young girl
stood beside her, scruffily dressed, with a bunch of bruises on her
cheeks and hands, and a scowl on her face.
The taller girl looked down at the sobbing youth, ruffling her spiky red
hair. "Stop crying. I beat them all up. And your nose'll get all snotty
like that. So stop all the crying."
The shorter girl finally looked up, tear tracks all over her face.
"...I-I can't help it. I wish..."
"You wish what?"
"I wish they'd all just leave me alone," She replied, "I hate it."
A cute but stern expression crossed the redhead's face. "...They won't
hurt you again, Yuki."
"H-How do you know?"
The tomboyish child flexed her cute little muscles, grinning at the girl
sitting beside her with childish zeal. "'Cause I'll always be there to
look after you, Yuki. When my Dad finishes teaching me the Fuin style,
I'll be the strongest girl in the world. Then nobody'll be able to beat
me! And I'll protect you from everything."
Finally a smile came to the young Setsuna's face. "..Midori..."
"I mean it," Young Midori proclaimed, "you don't worry about a thing.
I'll be there 'ta beat the stuffing out of anyone who even looks at ya!"
"You'd really do that... for me...?"
She nodded her truth. "Uh huh."
"W-Why?" Young Setsuna asked timidly.
"Well that's a stupid thing to say!" Midori jabbed playfully, "'cause I
like ya!"
The younger version of Setsuna closed her eyes with a genuine smile.
Something that made the young Midori's tummy roll in itself with the
sensation of butterflies. She blushed a deep crimson, digging the toe of
her little red left trainer into the soil of the grassy area. Setsuna
gave another look to the now bashful Midori, and her smile faded a
little when she saw the gash at Midori's arm. It looked bad. From a
child's point of view, anyway. Setsuna stood up quickly from her
position and reached under the hem of her blue dress. Midori watched
this, confused, as she heard a ripping sound.
"What..." Young Midori began, "...are you doing, Setsuna...?"
From under her dress came a torn piece of white fabric. She walked up to
Midori and took her arm in hand, then slowly wound the torn part of her
dress around her friend's arm. Even at that age... Little Setsuna had a
good sense of caring and talent for treatment. She knew not to apply too
much pressure or too little. Little Midori watched her friend patch up
her arm, all the while, her blush growing in hue.
Setsuna smiled privately. "...I like you, too..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That was such a long time ago, from Midori's current point of view. She
looked down at her arm. The piece of Setsuna's dress that had been tied
around her arm that day was still there. It made Midori happy to see it.
It reminded her of those good old days. And reminded her of how much she
valued Setsuna. Not that she ever really needed to be reminded of this.
"That's my reason, Setsuna..." A sad smile came from the teen, "I wanna
fight. So that I get stronger. And I wanna be strong... so I can protect
you. You're the reason I want to win."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Setsuna's Room, Mikamuro College Dorms, Tokyo, Japan
{I don't think she's all that angry with you...}
But now, night had fallen on Tokyo. It had been four hours or so since
Setsuna had taken Midori to her house. Four hours since she treated her
wounds. And four hours since their little argument. Although to Setsuna,
it didn't feel so little. The young woman sat on a small chair just
beside the windowsill of her dorm room. From this point she could see
the college gates and the cars buzzing by along the road. Though she
stared at this sight endlessly, none of it was on her mind. Karin could
sense that. She floated beside her host with a worried look on her face.
She never liked to see Setsuna looking so down.
Again she prodded. {Setsuna? Did you hear what I said?}
"I heard you, Karin," Setsuna said softly, sadly, "I just don't want to
talk about it."
A silence fell between those two now. And Karin hated it. After all, she
always rested easy knowing that the bond between herself and Setsuna was
strong enough for them to be completely honest and open with each other.
Such silences undermined those beliefs. And there were other issues to
contend with. Like the fate of the man whom had defeated Midori,
Linedwell Rainrix.
Talking about him was better than not talking at all. {...I think things
will be okay now that we stopped that man. The sword was troubling...
but if we find a way to destroy it...}
Karin doubted that Setsuna would have even answered that. But the issue
never came up. The second she finished what she was saying, the phone
rang. Setsuna looked from her window to her table. She really didn't
feel like talking to anyone right now. But it could be her parents or
something. Best to answer it, lest they get worried. Heaving a sigh,
Setsuna shifted herself from her windowsill and walked over to her
bedside table, picking up the receiver of the phone.
"Hello?" She spoke.
A voice came that she was not expecting to hear. "...H-Hey, Yuki..."
"...Midori..." The raven-haired angel tightened up, "...look... I'm...
sorry about before..."
"...Forget about that, Setsuna. I have. I just need you to come out and
meet up with me. Is that okay...?"
Setsuna blinked. "...Uh... sure..."
"Great. Meet me at the park across from Mikamuro in about ten minutes."
'Click' went the phone when Midori put it down at her end. This was a
bit sudden. What did Midori want to tell her? And was it so important
that she couldn't do it over the phone? Well it had to be significant,
if that was the case. Therefore she couldn't keep things waiting. It was
getting a bit chilly out there so Setsuna put down the phone and walked
over to her wardrobe, pulling out a small winter coat and putting it on.
Without uttering a word, Karin re-assumed herself into Setsuna's form,
and the Japanese girl grabbed the key to her dorm as she strode through
the door.
Ten minutes later, Setsuna stood beside one of the tall trees that
filled the park opposite Mikamuro College. Not many people came here
this late at night, but it was never closed either, allowing most to
come and go as they pleased. She held her own arms and shivered a
little. It could get surprisingly cold this time of year. It made her
wonder why Midori couldn't have picked a better place to meet up. But
the wait melted away into nothing like so many others, as Midori
approached from the gates of the park, walking inwards, catching sight
of Setsuna by a tree. Setsuna gave a little smile to Midori from the
slight divide between, as if to probe for any lingering resentment or
tension. A small, unhappy smile was given back to her. Quite
unconvincing to be perfectly honest. But Setsuna could plainly see that
there was more to this situation than a little argument between them.
Which was when she started to get a bit worried.
Midori slowly inched her way towards the shorter girl, with a sheepish
look on her. "...Look, Yuki... I'm... sorry about what happened. I'm
such a moron. I haven't even thanked you for takin' care of me."
Setsuna smiled softly. "So... you aren't mad at me?"
"Why the hell would I be made with you?" Midori said, ruffling a hand
through the hair at the back of her head, "if anything, you should be
the one who's mad at me. I really shouldn't have yelled at you...
especially after all you did... with the report and all that... I just
wonder how you can put up with me sometimes..."
"Yeah... I wonder." She replied.
Midori put on another weak smile and looked downwards. Setsuna's eyes
followed her actions and body language. Something was still bothering
Midori. Or at least there was something important on her mind. It was
obvious. But what was it? What was the problem?
"Midori...?" Setsuna questioned, "...Something's wrong, isn't it?"
The tomboy squirmed, trying to look anywhere but into Setsuna's eyes. It
was going to be harder than she thought to put all this out there. But
she had been feeling it for over eleven years, how much longer could she
keep struggling with it?
"I'm fine..." Midori answered, slowly, "really. It's just that it's...
kinda complicated... and I wanna tell you so much, but... I get all...
worried and... nervous, I guess. I can't really... say this as good as I
wanna say it... I'm not as poetic as the stuff I read, but... I want you
to know... that... um..."
Setsuna could see that whatever Midori had on her mind, it was more than
her mouth could express. But if it was that important to say, then she
had to give the fighter some support. The Guardian Angel reached out and
held Midori's gloved hand in her own, locking eye-contact.
"Midori, you know you can tell me anything," She spoke sweetly, "Just
say it."
A blush appeared at Midori's face from the sudden contact. "...It's...
not so much... what I have to say... but... what I feel... um... before
you asked me why I fight... why I wanna be strong... and it's... you..."
Setsuna blinked in her confusion. "...Me?"
Crunch time.
Midori spent over a decade wrestling with these feelings. It was time to
be honest with her. The teen shut her eyes, took a deep breath, then
pulled her hand away from Setsuna's. She reopened her nervous eyes and
quickly brought her hands straight up to her friend's cheeks. Setsuna
blinked at the touch, a wave of realization spreading over her like
wildfire. After giving a brief lick of her lips; Midori lowered her head
through the slight gap between herself and her angel. And with trembling
conviction, pressing her lips against Setsuna's. Rather than logically
probe Setsuna for her reaction to it, Midori lost herself in the amazing
softness of her love's lips, enjoying a closeness to the girl she had
long since believed would be denied to her. Then she became aware of
Setsuna's shock. Just as Midori felt herself reluctantly pulling away
from the kiss, a hand wound around the back of her head and kept Midori
in place. The hand belonged to Setsuna.
Considering that this was a dream come to for her, Midori showed no
signs of emotional frailty. Her two hands slipped from Setsuna's cheeks
and grasped at her waist and hips, in clumsy but lovingly possessive
fashion. For too long she had waited for this. It just couldn't be
disturbed with her ill-conceived words or misplaced fears. And the two
remained like that for a good few moments, until finally, Setsuna pulled
herself from Midori's kiss, still half-charmed and half-shocked. An
expectant, sheepish look was reflected in Midori's eyes when she finally
opened them and looked at Setsuna. But that was met with a
problem-solving smile, quelling all her worries. Setsuna rested her head
upon Midori's shoulder afterwards, just holding her, enjoying her.
Of course, Midori couldn't help but speak. "...So then... you..."
"Yeah..." Setsuna replied, gently, "...I wanted to tell you... but..."
She understood. After all, Midori had the same concern. Another smile,
this time one of pure joy, overtook Midori's face as she held her 'Yuki'
in her arms at last. This was why she fought. To protect the girl she
cared most for. Fighting and training in Midori's way might not have the
most graceful, but, it was completely justified...
...If you have a reason.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Midori: Now that's a result I can get on board with! Of course, I can't
really picture myself being so cagey about my feelings or whatnot, but
this is Setsuna we're talking about, right? Speaking of which... Yuki!
Say hello to everyone!
Setsuna: ...Eh... Hi?
Midori: Stop being so fragile! Everything's great now, right? Of course,
I'm a little upset that the Passionate Midori OVA is over now, but hey,
my future exploits are sure to be screened! I hear PM gets killer
ratings! So don't worry about a thing, guys! We'll be back before you
know it! So, if you'll excuse us, Yuki and I have a little 'thing' we
need to take care of...if you know what I mean...
Setsuna: Look, Midori, I know you're excited about this OVA thing, but I
don't appreciate you telling other people about our... private
moments...
Midori: *Snigger* Heh, heh, heh!
Setsuna: I'm serious, Midori!
Midori: Hey, chill out, the viewers at home don't mind, so why should
you? Anyways, this is it for us, guys. Seeya!
Setsuna: Look, if you won't take me seriously, then I'm going home.
ALONE.
Midori: Ah, cut me some slack, Yuki... geez...
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kaiser's Afterthoughts
* Ah. My second Evil Zone fic. And my longest fanfiction in about a
year. This one was a bit different than the first. Mostly because it was
written in third-person, and I added all those 'Midori Speaks' moments,
like in the game. But I also switched around first names with second,
Japanese style. I don't do that often, but, it suited the climate of
story, I guess.
* As much as I hate those contrived stories where the protagonist spends
4/5ths of a fiction worrying about their feelings, only for their love
to be suddenly 'returned', I really didn't want to end this story
unhappily, like I do with most of my other romance stories. But if I
write any more Evil Zone Fanfiction in the future then I assure you, it
won't be as cheerful or as unlikely.
* I'm not sure if Midori attends the same college that Setsuna does
(Mikamuro), but for an easier time writing this fic, I went on the
assumption that she does.
* Got any comments about what you just read? Tell me about them!
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