Utawarerumono Fan Fiction ❯ Watching ❯ Watching ( Chapter 1 )

Watching

He doesn't know it, but she is always watching him. Of course, she can't always be at the battlefields where he frequents whenever dealing with hostiles. But she's always thinking about him, how he's holding out in combat, whether or not he'll return home victorious or utterly defeated. She's always worrying about his safety, his health, his well-being. She's always worrying about him.

She doesn't remember when she began to fret for the stranger-come-big brother (so he tells those upon first acquaintance - or at least, that she's like a younger sister to him), or as much as she does now. When they first met, back in the village she and Aruru used to live in, he was a foreigner with a peculiar, irremovable mask. Nowadays he still wears the mask, as it remains obstinate, but at the time it made him look mysterious, even threatening to those he didn't know. However, he was kind and considerate, if a little curious (she blushes when recurring the “tail” incident). He was, and is completely unlike first impressions one would get upon meeting the stoic, serious masked man - if your first impressions were of a cold, sinister, calculating individual, which she knew him not to be.

He is different from Nuwangi, her (former?) best friend. The latter is now corrupted with power, cowardly and dastardly, while the former is compromising, forgiving and audacious. Even when faced with powerful foes, or the deathly end of a spear or a sword, the former refuses to back down, instead speaking eerily calmly in his attempt to understand the situation. When faced with the same situation, the latter either tries to wheedle his way out with bribes or threats, cracks under the pressure or scampers away without a fight. They are different in several ways, yet she cares for both, even if Nuwangi has changed for the worse. However, her heart jumps more abruptly whenever she thinks about the dangers he may be crossing.

He's always supervising political meetings, speaking with his subordinates (namely the equally composed Benawi and the impulsive, short-tempered Oboro), or overlooking training sessions, when he's not risking his life against those who mean him bodily harm. She cannot have alone time with him anymore like she used to, back in the village before all hell broke out (she still mourns the death of her and Aruru's grandmother from time to time), knowing that he had to govern an ever-growing society. However, she still wishes to catch him by himself, just to talk, to reminisce, to wonder about the future, if there is one to be had after all the conflict.

Maybe, when everything is said and done, she will have that opportunity. When the dust is settled, the conflicts have been resolved, and every villain (even Nuwangi if it comes to that) has been brought to justice, she will be alone with him on that starry night. To talk, to share memories, to ease each other's worries (or mainly just hers). To console in each other like no one else.

She continues to watch him until that day comes. Even if she cannot do anything else to help him, she will watch his struggles, whilst avoiding her own.

The End