Gamma's Valentine Letters 2023

Well, she hardly expected to be here. Nao sat quietly amongst her room, kneeling at a small table with parchment, a letter and some assorted pottery. A finger foldly tracing over the golden veins in the ceremic. It was the first thing she had really done after reading the letter of confession, this ceremic was special after all.

She could still fondly remember making the vase's origins. She had spent weeks at the old potter's place who was willing to let her try it, it was the result of so much hard work. The amount of broken and deformed ceramics before she made one that she wanted to show her father proudly.

On the way out she'd bumped into him, the old man's son. Her vase had become a collection of shatter fragments. It was such a disheartening moment for her to see all that hard work become nothing that she considered for a faintest of moments what was the point of it at all and wept to see all her hard work in pieces.

He told her it was all right, gathered the pieces and said that he could fix it. Well, she didn't believe him. Was he going to do some kidou nonsense despite being a regular soul? No, he could never fix it but he transformed it into something she thought was more splendid and beautiful than the original. She fell in love with that vase which is why she kept it in her room and never bothered to present it to her family.

It was their vase.

Kotaro (虎太郎).

I appreciate your gesture, I deeply enjoyed the time that we spent with one another and the wonderful techniques that you've taught me but I cannot accept your love.

Truthfully, if you had not been so compassionate I felt like I had hit a wall. My work in trying to make pottery being for nothing as it all broke into pieces, I wondered to myself if that was the same thing that was happening everywhere in my life.

I've always been better at breaking things than making things and in that moment it it caught up to me. You showed me that even a broken thing can be made into something beautiful, that I was too quick to give up and I don't want to let that happen again. I want to pursue my dreams wholeheartedly but those dreams aren't ones that we share.

I'm sorry.

Nao.

She stared at it for a long while, leaning forward to rest her chin on her hands while looking at their vase for a bit longer. She could relent, she could accept the confession and they could live happily ever after and have children together.

However, that wasn't her.

She wanted to do more before settling down, she had to do more or she felt that she was doing exactly what she was feeling like doing when she met him. Giving up. It just made her a little solemn that she felt that desire, the impulse to surrender all her values and rationalities to do something spontaneous except she was just too frustratingly disciplined for her own good.

So Nao leaned back to lay on her floor and stare at the ceiling. Allowing her one night to wonder about what the life she was denying herself looked like before committing herself entirely to the dream she had as a little girl.

It didn't seem that bad.

Freakin' hell. He didn't have nothing to write on or write with. He would need to get a bit creative, overcome the trial to do what he wanted to do. Instead of ink he had opted to cut his finger on a sharp rock to use his blood and instead of paper he had opted to use... her spirit that he had been allowed to keep. It seemed the most appropriate thing to do. He would write his conviction onto the piece of herself that she entrusted him.

Life's tough but we're tougher.
One day I'll be as tough as you Kizuna.
Then I'll grow even tougher than that.

He looked at the fabric which he had scrawled his blood onto. It wasn't really much but it'd do for what he wanted it to accomplish, he didn't need her spirit to drive him onwards or her encouragement but it was nice to have you know? Kind of like a trophy. He loved having things which were memories of a triumph, that's why one day he'll figure out an even better trophy to take from her.

That'll be a good day but until then, this'll do for him. He'd give her it back and it'd have all his own conviction, like a stupid pact between them or something. Whatever, it was really convenient having a weirdo like her around to give him opportunities to test himself and get better.

It wasn't exactly unheard of to get Valentine's. Most people were too scared to actually attach their names to it though but two lucky ones didn't get tossed aside, fortunately for their owners she was at least acquainted with them. One was a poem and the other was some fan mail.

Really reading them just tired her out more than anything, her heart didn't leap with excitement at men being interested in her enough to go to the effort of showing interest in her. It didn't frustrate her at the fact that having read them now made her under an unspoken tradition that she'd be required to reciprocate the gesture.

#1

I don't like poetry and have no talent for it.
Thank you for patching me up, I'll return the favour one day.
Just don't die pathetically before I can patch you up.

Masamune Erika.

#2

I don't like store chocolates so you can have them back.
I've attached chocolates I made so that you can taste the difference.
Keep that in mind for next year, and continue to do your work or I'll be disappointed at you.

Masamune Erika.

She had gone out of her way to make some chocolates from scratch, it wasn't a romantic gesture but she was a cook of unparalleled skill, well not really that proficient but she was pretty good at it. He'd hopefully taste the difference and learn from this.

Well, she had haiku to write. It was the festive season after all and her first anniversy of dating. She felt a little sorry for Yuujin, he and her teacher would probably spend it alone if given the chance. No harm in giving them a little push to spend it together, right? It might even do her teacher some good to let her hair down even if it's just for a day but Shaoling would never be forward enough to bite. The responsibility was entirely on the young man and so she gave him a little haiku to encourage him.

#1 - Yuujin

Shitei nama
Ichi undameshi。
Eh, yuujin?

師弟生
一 運試し
え 遊人?

Master and student as they are
One shot to try your luck.
Eh, playboy?


Maybe that was a bit too aggressive but she thought it was funny to imagine the blush he'd get from reading it so it could stay like that.

She was not going to stop there though, she had another one to write for her boyfriend and so she made sure to very carefully write it and seal it away for when they saw each other next. Somehow she'd need to arrange making a chocolate or forcing him to take her onto another grand date like he did last time, or she could drag him along by the arm and do whatever she wanted. That could be fun too.

#2 - Fuuen

Yuudachi ga
Neko amayadori,
Koko masaru。

夕立 が
猫 雨宿り
此処 勝

Rainstorm
The cat takes shelter from the rain
Here's a scenic spot.