Zenyuki Week 2017, Day One: Connected
Title: Feelings Are the Lights That Never Fade
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing in this fan-fiction except my horrible grammar and writing skills. All the characters or cities mentioned in this fan-fiction belong to Akiduki Sorata unless said otherwise. Any references to real people or places are purely coincidental.
Synopsis: When Shirayuki is assigned to be Ryuu's assistant during his stay in Lilias, she begins to feel homesick. Zen, after a failed attempt at being a workaholic, inevitably ends up thinking about her. Will their connection be severed, or will their feelings reach each other no matter how far the distance?
Shirayuki shut yet another book, turning to Ryuu. "Have you found anything so far?"
Her past mentor merely shook his head. "Unfortunately, no."
Yuzuri let out an exasperated sigh. "All these books, and yet none of them hold the cure for this mysterious disease...!"
Shidan waved her off with a flick of his hand. "There's no helping it. We should just call it a day and retire to our living quarters."
They all took his advice and went their separate ways, sans Shirayuki and Ryuu. The two loitered behind for a short while, cleaning up everyone else's mess. After they finished, they both made their way to their shared room.
"Good night, Shirayuki," Ryuu wished her after they had dressed into their nightwear and settled into their bed to go to sleep.
"Night to you, too," Shirayuki chirped back to him, switching off her light and pulling her blanket over her chest. After a few minutes of fidgety movement, she realised that she wouldn't be getting any sleep anytime soon. No turning, shifting, or fluffing of her pillow could help that.
She eventually gave up any hope of going to sleep and decided to occupy herself with something quietly so as to not wake Ryuu up. As she bent down to look under her bed, her hands wrapped themselves around a box. Not just any box; the box she kept all her most precious things in.
I forgot I brought this with me until now!
Zen sighed before pushing his chair back. All this work isn't helping me at all...!
He had spent the entire day trying to distract himself with paperwork, never allowing a moment to let his thoughts drift, but realised that he didn't have the resolve to do so. It was a mistake from the very beginning; he and paperwork didn't get along very well.
His eyes unconsciously darted around the room, finally resting on a vase. The vase held a beautiful assortment of flowers, no doubt carefully orchestrated to be pleasing eye candy. Lilies and magnolias alike flowed towards one another, forming a lovely pattern.
Some noble or another gave that to me to try and win my favour, He mused. How zealous of them.
Suddenly, his eye caught sight of something unusual inside the vase. As he recalled, only lilies and magnolias contributed to the carefully thought-out design. Why would another type of flower be carefully tucked away?
His hand involuntarily started reaching for it, and before he knew, it was clutched inside his hands. Upon closer inspection, he realised that the flower was a yura shigure; the flower that reminded him and Ryuu alike of Shirayuki.
His mouth subconsciously formed itself into a frown. Obi must have been behind this, trying to make me think of her!
He spun it between two fingers for a short while, finally letting his thoughts drift away from his obligations. I wonder how Shirayuki is doing?
Shirayuki threw open the box's lid eagerly, tentatively shifting its contents about to find what she was looking for. She let out a sigh of relief as her hands clasped around the aforementioned article gingerly before bringing it towards her face.
The item she held so dear to her heart was a broken watch. Zen's old watch that he lent to her on her trip to Tanbarun, to be more specific. Since she had accidentally broken it during the voyage, she had bought him a new watch in replacement of his broken one. As thanks, he gave her his broken watch to keep. She treasured it deeply.
Her thumb brushed against its metal surface, back and forth, back and forth. It reminded her of all the things Zen had done for her; be patient, help her when she needed it, and give her the freedom to do what she pleased.
He's done so many things for me, I could never even begin to repay him...
Tears started brimming in her eyes as she thought back. All I've ever done is force Zen to save me, never doing anything for him in return. "Sorry" wasn't enough when it came down to it.
Her chest had tightened tremendously without her knowledge, considerably so that she couldn't breathe. Her gaze suddenly flicked towards the doors to the balcony.
I have to go outside!
After twirling it about between his two fingers for uncountable minutes, his chest tightened with every passing thought. They were gut-wrenching and stifled him so much he could hardly manage a breath in or out.
I should go get a breath of fresh air outside, He reasoned with himself. The Second Prince found himself involuntarily getting up and throwing open the doors to the upper tier that adjoined his office.
The wind plastered his hair against his face for a millisecond before releasing its grip and lying it flat.
The doors shut themselves after a short while, leaving Zen to his thoughts alone.
Shirayuki cautiously opened one of the doors to the balcony, trying not to wake her cotenant up. A light breeze brushed her cheeks as she pulled the door slowly behind her. Zen's watch was residing in the palm of her hand.
She subconsciously let her breath that she didn't know she was holding out, the cool night air relaxing her lungs and bringing a sense of peace to her mind.
The moon glistened brightly, creating a blurry white hue around itself. Once her eyes adjusted to the dark night, she noticed all the stars that flanked the moon protectively, as if making a ring of protection around it.
Shirayuki smiled at the sight, her chest slowly but surely beginning to untighten itself. The night sky cast a dark blue glow on the snow around her, making it look similar to a snowy wonderland.
Her gaze went upward as she stared at the moon in awe. I wonder if Zen is staring at the same sky?
The Second Prince looked up at the night sky, wondering the same exact thing without knowing.
The night was not unlike a blanket covering up everything, but it was softer. It was a blue so dark it almost appeared purple to the naïve eye.
Zen suddenly realised that he hadn't set the flower down and still had it clutched tightly in his hand. He brought it to his lips, closing his eyes for a second.
A gentle breeze swished the flower petals, flipping the petals over themselves. It eventually let up and the flower assumed its original position.
When something tries to deter it, however that may be, it reassumes its natural position, unfaltering.
Just like Shirayuki...
He abruptly tilted his head upward, staring up into the endless abyss that was the night sky. Stars twinkled and gleamed from all over, their numbers too great to count.
He titled his head back downward, letting the gentle wisp of the wind envelop his every sense. It didn't surprise him that by during so, Shirayuki immediately came to mind. He closed his eyes and pressed the flower to his lips once more.
One wish came to mind, and though he knew it was childish, he still wished it. Wind, please make Shirayuki appear in front of me, if only for a moment!
Zen opened one eye, but a brief look about proved that his wish was too zany to truly be heard. He resolved to make one last attempt at a wish.
If you cannot make Shirayuki appear, at least let my feelings reach her. That'd be enough.
Proof that the wind had heard hit him instantly when the flower he was holding was plucked clean out of his hand and whisked away, out of his sight. Wind, I sure hope you know what you're doing...
Shirayuki clutched the watch close to her heart, her eyes squeezed shut as her eyelids trembled with the will to not cry. She only opened her eyes when she realised that the wind was circling around her, whishing her hair gently about. Though the wind normally made her cold, she didn't feel the slightest in the least. In fact, she felt warmed; even touched. She finally noticed that a flower was twirling about and knew it was trying to convey something to her.
She chuckled softly as the wind playfully brushed against her cheeks, wrapping itself around her fingers to give her the sense that someone was holding her hand. The flower she had seen earlier was placed into the palm of her open hand, and after a quick inspection, she concluded that it was a yura shigure.
She realised that the feelings the wind was trying to convey reflected Zen's own. She felt his eagerness to hold her as the wind whisked itself about her, felt his patience as the wind slowed down to match her pace, and even felt his affection for her when the wind lifted not only the watch but her heart alongside it. It gently took it out of her grasp, coaxing her fingers open, before opening its band and wrapping it snugly around her neck. To finish it off, the wind positioned the flower beautifully onto her hair before blowing itself away.
Even now, Zen lets me know of his feelings...
She turned in the direction of the sky, clutching her fists as a resolute look spanned her face. No matter what, our feelings will always reach one another!
A/N: Okay, this may not come out as much of a surprise, but I was watching Pocahontas whilst in the middle of writing this. It's where the idea of including wind in this fan-fiction came to me. While I do admit that the idea of wind connecting them together seems a bit zany, it is a nice thought, isn't it?
No? Okay.
If you want me to make another one-shot concerning the Obiyuki or Zenyuki pair, feel free to ask or request me for it! I'll be glad to do it, granted that I have any free time. xD