Fairy Tale - Happily Ever After 3
Nov. 25th, 2024 09:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iridesenescenceSeason: Spring
[One afternoon, a few more days later]
Eichi: Whew...
Tori?: Ooh, Eichi-sama~ ☆ What a coincidence that you're here too!
Eichi: ... Wataru. I don't really find a prank like that funny.
Wataru: Amazing! I'm impressed you could tell — I thought I was able to mimic Himegimi's voice perfectly.
Eichi: While you can mimic his voice perfectly, you didn't manage to mimic his behaviour, I guess.
With how things are between us right now, there's no way Tori would approach me so casually. He would be more hesitant and wary of the mood I'm in, and that's if he dared approach me at all.
Wataru: Oho, just as I would expect, Eichi. You know Himegimi very well.
Eichi: ......
Wataru: From the looks of it, I'm guessing you have yet to reconcile with Himegimi?
Eichi: Reconcile...?
Wataru: I don't know just what sort of proposal Himegimi put together, but...
Don't tell me you intend to make the exact same mistake you did during Starfes?
When Himegimi brought a proposal to you of his own accord, and you brutally cut him up and tossed him aside.
Though you did try to make up for it later on... Wounds may fade, but they never truly disappear.
Think of how an imprint is left if an object is dropped into concrete before it's fully hardened.
If you intend to knowingly make the same mistake, I will have to point out your foolishness, you know?
Eichi: From the way you're talking, it would seem you aren't here on Tori's instructions. I wondered for a second if he had sent you upon learning that I was here in this cafe.
Wataru: Not at all. I simply decided to stop by after happening to see you enter.
Eichi: Is that so. Do you have time to spare, Wataru? What do you say to having tea with me? I'd also like to clear up the misunderstandings you seem to have.
Wataru: If that's what this is about, then I shall happily accept.
Eichi: How much do you know? I'm sure you've gotten some information from Yuzuru, haven't you?
Wataru: Well, yes. But it wasn't much...
I know Himegimi brought his proposal to you, and that you two have been out of sorts ever since — that's about all.
Butler-san didn't seem to know any more than that either.
The situation seemed similar to Starfes, so I was under the assumption that you had criticised Himegimi's proposal once again.
Eichi: Ouch, that stings... It's true, I did criticise Tori's proposal. But there's a big difference between what happened during Starfes and this time.
— It wasn't Tori who ran away this time. It was me.
Wataru: Pardon...? It was you? Why, yet again?
Eichi: That's my question, really. How did we get here? How did Tori come up with a proposal like that?
Wataru: I'm afraid I don't understand. Was Himegimi's proposal really that poorly done?
Eichi: The opposite, actually. It was filled with a mixture of dreams and enjoyment, as if embodying the wishes and hope I had dreamed up as a child.
I'm sure Tori's been working even more diligently since then. It was much better than what he had created during Starfes.
How nice it would have been to just shower his proposal in praise and end the discussion on a positive note.
Wataru: If you think that way, then you should have just done it, no? Why didn't you, and end up running away?
Eichi: That proposal was quite literally the embodiment of my hopes and dreams from when I was a child.
Do you have any idea what I felt that day, Wataru?
It was like having an old diary that had been lying tucked away and forgotten in a drawer, suddenly thrust in front of me with the expectation that I'll unabashedly praise it and call it wonderful.
I thought the embarrassment was going to do me in.
Human memory is strange — you might think you've completely forgotten about something, but once your memory is jolted, it all comes rushing back to you.
I'm sure of it — that is exactly what my wish was.
Eichi: I think I might have to stop teasing Keito about the manga he's drawn in the past. Maybe there's some truth in the saying that "what goes around, comes around"—
Wataru: ...... (Shoulders shaking silently)
Eichi: ... Look, if you're going to laugh, you might as well just do it out loud.
Wataru: Ahahahaha ☆ Hee... hee... Oh, my, I had no idea the situation was this interesting!
Eichi: You only find it funny because you're not involved, Wataru.
Wataru: Ahh, how truly fascinating ♪ But I do understand how you feel, Eichi.
If, in the present, I were to watch one of the clumsy performances I had put on when I was just starting out, I have no doubt I would hide my face and begin writhing in agony.
So the proposal you were handed is akin to a notebook of your embarrassing past, then?
Surely there's nothing wrong with acknowledging its worth? The mortification from doing so will only last for a moment.
Eichi: That may be so, but...
Wataru: ......
Well, it seems that isn't the only reason behind you running away.
Eichi: ... And what's that supposed to mean?
Wataru: I'm sure that deep down, you sense this too.
You're trying to maintain the status quo, while Himegimi is striving for change. And because of that, the two of you simply don't mesh.
Himemiya Tori-kun has grown quite a bit, you know. I daresay more than either of us could imagine.
Our prejudice and ego as adults makes us think that children remain as they are, when in fact, they've matured far more than we expect, thinking hard for themselves.
I do understand wanting to cling to the notion for a little longer...
But don't you think it's about time to face him properly?
Eichi: ......
If we're talking change, then you and Yuzuru have both changed too. You've become so very human. That's not fair, you're always leaving me behind.
Wataru: It's nothing that dramatic, really. I've just learned how to get a little closer.
Why not join me, Eichi? You're no longer standing on a battlefield all by your lonesome — it's perfectly fine to join hands with others, isn't it?
Eichi: Is it really? I think I'm tainted and warped beyond the point of saving.
Wataru: ......
(To this day, you make yourself out as a villain and choose to fight alone.)
(No doubt it is impossible for me to truly, fully heal you.)
(Because no matter what I may say, you'll always harbour some feelings of guilt. But it's really all just your imagination.)
(After all, I harbour no feelings of hatred towards you, Eichi.)
Wataru: (But if there were, perhaps, any one person capable of healing the parts of you that have been warped...)
(Surely, that person is—)
Happily Ever After 2 || Happily Ever After 4
[One afternoon, a few more days later]
Eichi: Whew...
Tori?: Ooh, Eichi-sama~ ☆ What a coincidence that you're here too!
Eichi: ... Wataru. I don't really find a prank like that funny.
Wataru: Amazing! I'm impressed you could tell — I thought I was able to mimic Himegimi's voice perfectly.
Eichi: While you can mimic his voice perfectly, you didn't manage to mimic his behaviour, I guess.
With how things are between us right now, there's no way Tori would approach me so casually. He would be more hesitant and wary of the mood I'm in, and that's if he dared approach me at all.
Wataru: Oho, just as I would expect, Eichi. You know Himegimi very well.
Eichi: ......
Wataru: From the looks of it, I'm guessing you have yet to reconcile with Himegimi?
Eichi: Reconcile...?
Wataru: I don't know just what sort of proposal Himegimi put together, but...
Don't tell me you intend to make the exact same mistake you did during Starfes?
When Himegimi brought a proposal to you of his own accord, and you brutally cut him up and tossed him aside.
Though you did try to make up for it later on... Wounds may fade, but they never truly disappear.
Think of how an imprint is left if an object is dropped into concrete before it's fully hardened.
If you intend to knowingly make the same mistake, I will have to point out your foolishness, you know?
Eichi: From the way you're talking, it would seem you aren't here on Tori's instructions. I wondered for a second if he had sent you upon learning that I was here in this cafe.
Wataru: Not at all. I simply decided to stop by after happening to see you enter.
Eichi: Is that so. Do you have time to spare, Wataru? What do you say to having tea with me? I'd also like to clear up the misunderstandings you seem to have.
Wataru: If that's what this is about, then I shall happily accept.
Eichi: How much do you know? I'm sure you've gotten some information from Yuzuru, haven't you?
Wataru: Well, yes. But it wasn't much...
I know Himegimi brought his proposal to you, and that you two have been out of sorts ever since — that's about all.
Butler-san didn't seem to know any more than that either.
The situation seemed similar to Starfes, so I was under the assumption that you had criticised Himegimi's proposal once again.
Eichi: Ouch, that stings... It's true, I did criticise Tori's proposal. But there's a big difference between what happened during Starfes and this time.
— It wasn't Tori who ran away this time. It was me.
Wataru: Pardon...? It was you? Why, yet again?
Eichi: That's my question, really. How did we get here? How did Tori come up with a proposal like that?
Wataru: I'm afraid I don't understand. Was Himegimi's proposal really that poorly done?
Eichi: The opposite, actually. It was filled with a mixture of dreams and enjoyment, as if embodying the wishes and hope I had dreamed up as a child.
I'm sure Tori's been working even more diligently since then. It was much better than what he had created during Starfes.
How nice it would have been to just shower his proposal in praise and end the discussion on a positive note.
Wataru: If you think that way, then you should have just done it, no? Why didn't you, and end up running away?
Eichi: That proposal was quite literally the embodiment of my hopes and dreams from when I was a child.
Do you have any idea what I felt that day, Wataru?
It was like having an old diary that had been lying tucked away and forgotten in a drawer, suddenly thrust in front of me with the expectation that I'll unabashedly praise it and call it wonderful.
I thought the embarrassment was going to do me in.
Human memory is strange — you might think you've completely forgotten about something, but once your memory is jolted, it all comes rushing back to you.
I'm sure of it — that is exactly what my wish was.
Eichi: I think I might have to stop teasing Keito about the manga he's drawn in the past. Maybe there's some truth in the saying that "what goes around, comes around"—
Wataru: ...... (Shoulders shaking silently)
Eichi: ... Look, if you're going to laugh, you might as well just do it out loud.
Wataru: Ahahahaha ☆ Hee... hee... Oh, my, I had no idea the situation was this interesting!
Eichi: You only find it funny because you're not involved, Wataru.
Wataru: Ahh, how truly fascinating ♪ But I do understand how you feel, Eichi.
If, in the present, I were to watch one of the clumsy performances I had put on when I was just starting out, I have no doubt I would hide my face and begin writhing in agony.
So the proposal you were handed is akin to a notebook of your embarrassing past, then?
Surely there's nothing wrong with acknowledging its worth? The mortification from doing so will only last for a moment.
Eichi: That may be so, but...
Wataru: ......
Well, it seems that isn't the only reason behind you running away.
Eichi: ... And what's that supposed to mean?
Wataru: I'm sure that deep down, you sense this too.
You're trying to maintain the status quo, while Himegimi is striving for change. And because of that, the two of you simply don't mesh.
Himemiya Tori-kun has grown quite a bit, you know. I daresay more than either of us could imagine.
Our prejudice and ego as adults makes us think that children remain as they are, when in fact, they've matured far more than we expect, thinking hard for themselves.
I do understand wanting to cling to the notion for a little longer...
But don't you think it's about time to face him properly?
Eichi: ......
If we're talking change, then you and Yuzuru have both changed too. You've become so very human. That's not fair, you're always leaving me behind.
Wataru: It's nothing that dramatic, really. I've just learned how to get a little closer.
Why not join me, Eichi? You're no longer standing on a battlefield all by your lonesome — it's perfectly fine to join hands with others, isn't it?
Eichi: Is it really? I think I'm tainted and warped beyond the point of saving.
Wataru: ......
(To this day, you make yourself out as a villain and choose to fight alone.)
(No doubt it is impossible for me to truly, fully heal you.)
(Because no matter what I may say, you'll always harbour some feelings of guilt. But it's really all just your imagination.)
(After all, I harbour no feelings of hatred towards you, Eichi.)
Wataru: (But if there were, perhaps, any one person capable of healing the parts of you that have been warped...)
(Surely, that person is—)
Happily Ever After 2 || Happily Ever After 4
