MaruMA:loveletter

Comiket 2016, Doujinshi - Love Letter

cover:
I couldn't MAke it in time
Winter
Project Apollo

Shin Makoku wasn't built in a day
If there's a next time, I'll try my best...
Special Thanks to Matsumoto Temari

Fist page:
I'm sorry... I couldn't MAke it in time....
Takabayashi Tomo

Love Letter

by Takabayashi Tomo

Since Greta wasn't there, the room was quiet.

After dinner she would almost always be playing in our room for one reason or another, but unfortunately, she's been a little feverish since last night so she's staying in bed.

"I can't let my fathers catch a cold from me."

So praiseworthy, it's really praiseworthy. My body is stronger than hers, and if I were to catch a mild cold from my cute daughter, I'd laugh and gladly catch it. After all they say that if you make someone catch a cold from you, you'll get cured.

Wolfram was writing something using the COFFEE TABLE near the fireplace. His blonde hair shone brightly while orange flares illuminated it. The weather had been really cold recently, and it had been hard to stay away from the fire these past few days.

"What are you writing?"

"You finally came, sit over there"

There were a bunch of CARDS on top of the TABLE, and they looked just like a deck of playing cards. He was writing short sentences on the back of the pictured cards.

"It's Greta's homework. It seems the Hyscliff's household teacher gave it to the kids on vacations"

Parents should not help their kids do their homework, the only exceptions are the summer and winter vacations' homework. How many honor students are in this world who haven't asked for their family's help on August 21st?

"You're in charge of half of it"

"In charge of what....?"

"On the backside of these playing cards, you write the things that you like about your important person"

Huh?

Wolfram picked up a CARD, similar to a playing card, next to his face and said:

"The task is the following: 'What do you like best about the most important person in your life?' Write something behind each of these cards". In other words, write things like " How brave he is " , or " I like his strong sense of justice", that kind of thing.

A red line was on the back of the cards. On it, a sentence was written already. His pupil reflected the flames, and his EMERALD GREENS got a little red imprinted in them.

"How many cards are there?"

"52. Which means that you have to write 26 of them"

"That's a ton"

"Once you finish, you cut a hole in them and bind them together, so that they can be read any time. Also, so that you can give them to the other person."

This is a PRESENT with a lot of hard work and feeling put into it. Furthermore, receiving them also takes a lot of guts. The first couple of pages are fine, but there's no way you wouldn't get embarrassed after reading 52 praises. If it was me, I'd probably be ready to faint after about 15.

"But well, if I were to write about how cute Greta is, I'm sure I'd be able to write 26 things rather fast."

As soon as I said that, Wolfram's brow furrowed, and the hand holding the pen stopped at once. For a second the bishounen looked like his older brother.

" Wait, you're misunderstanding"

"Why? I should write about how lovely Greta is, right? Her cuteness, or how the way she speaks is also cute? Or how cute the tone of her voice is, or how cute her strong will is?"

"Listen, this is Greta's homework. You can't write about how cute Greta is in Greta's homework. That's not how it works"

In one of the cards the phrase " His black hair is magnificent (gousha)" was written.

Magnificent (gousha)? Doesn't that mean something like GORGEOUS? My reading ability is still at elementary school level.

"Black hair, isn't that about me?"

"That's right. I told you already, didn't I? Since this is Greta's homework, you have to write it from Greta's point of view. The things she likes about the most important people for her."

"From Greta's point of view"

"That's right, you have to become her. The most important people in her life are her parents, right? Beatrice also chose her father. In other words, we have to write the things she likes about you and I. I will write the things that Greta likes the most about you, and you will write the things she likes the most about me."

"Become her?"

"Become her"

"Seriously? Then from here on I have to write 26 good things about Wolf one after another? What do I write? Uh... 'How tsundere he is'?"

That would be weird. There's no way girls would like a tsundere bishounen, and it's not like Wolfram has that sort of attitude towards Greta anyways. This is hard. If I could at least do something like understand the feelings of elementary school girls, I wouldn't have spent 16 years being an unpopular guy.

"However, it doesn't need to be praises, for some reason people sometimes like others' bad habits. What's do you call it? 'Cross and skulls?' "

"What's that? It sounds like a dangerous tattoo."

"Then, 'batter Kokubo'?"

"No way.... but that person is already a 'Samurai Japan'. On earth, I guess we would say "Love is blind"?

While we were talking Wolfram wrote " How brave he is" in easy to read characters on the red line. Does he mean that I am brave and such? Although I can put on a brave face, people probably see through it.

"Well, I guess I should start with your fated appearance " How good looking he is" , and " How his green eyes are like gemstones", and then, "How even his eyelashes are blonde". Something like this?"

"What's that ? Greta is not someone who would choose her parents by their appearance."

That's obvious. In the first place, you don't chose your parents.

"Well, then I'll write, "How well he gets along with his spouse"

"Wait! We get along well? Or rather, we're not spouses, we're fiances, right!?"

"Don't forget, this is from Greta's point of view"

"Oh right, that's how Greta sees it..."

Trying to understand the feelings of my daughter is hard. For example, how does she perceive Wolfram deep loyalty?

"Uhm... is it okay if I write "He never abandons his PARTNER?"

"Fifteen ' I also like that he doesn't snore'. Yuuri, you need to hurry up"

"I'm making notes first, you're writing quite freely, huh?"

By the time I had written 12 of Greta's feelings, the hand I was holding the brush with stopped. Only my left cheek was hot due to the flames of the fire.

"Say, after these cards are drilled a hole in, eventually they'll be returned to us, right?"

"That's right, she will give it back to the people she likes best"

"So that we can read them many times and remember how much Greta likes us."

"Of course"

But since we wrote it ourselves, I have a feeling that it would be somewhat pointless .

"Even without something like this, I'm sure that the feelings would be conveyed, but having it is convenient. It's like a vocabulary notebook."

In those times when you're suddenly in a distant place all alone, you could turn the card around, and feel, even if just a little, your heart get stronger. In helplessly sad and painful moments, your heart would get somewhat warmer.

"In that case these playing cards are needed by people who live apart."

I silently wrote a few of them after that. He seemed to be almost done. The 20th thing I liked about Wolfram " He tells me thing going right to the point", the ink rubbed and got on my fingers. When he realized I had stopped writing, he who was organizing the cards he had finished writing, said shortly.

"By the way, are you going out tonight?"

".... Yeah, just for a bit"

He didn't ask where. He didn't ask why. While in silence, Wolfram simply wrote on his last card "How honest he is".

And so I wrote, in one of the cards I had left " How kind he is".

*                        *                        *

It's not snowy season, said one of the guards I was already used to. They are now behind my back, in the shadow of a post, or on a tree, somewhere. They are more like ninjas than the Japanese ones. The snow is dancing in the air, and I don't know if it will start piling or not.

The lights in the stores of the city haven't been turned off yet, and I've come all the way to a bar that's a little far from the castle. The signboard with the picture of a cat, makes sounds and shakes. From the door, you could hear the singing voices of drunk men.

I stood blankly before the gray stone steps.

Only when a customer was leaving the venue, did I think "maybe I should go in". Someone opened the door making a "you came to visit" face. However, before the drunk customer wobbling started leaving, a man from behind grabbed my shoulder and made me walked through the door. He hid me with his cloak, and walked me to the first floor of the bar.

"Conrad"

Very quickly we went upstairs, to the corridor of the second floor, that also worked as an inn.

"Conrad, even if you don't do that, I'm covered by a hood"

I was almost dragged into the room.

"I told you, you can't see my face"

"Yuuri"

After closing the door, he looked at me with a troubled face. He wasn't smiling.

"Your majesty, you shouldn't be standing in such a cold weather"

Looking at his cloak, the snow had already started piling on it. My hood on the other hand, wasn't even wet yet. At any rate it seemed like the one who had been standing in the cold for a long time was him.

"Greta caught a cold, but I'm fine."

"Greta? Poor thing."

"Right? That's why I brought you this."

From my pocket I took out a squared piece of paper. While grabbing it my fingertips were so cold it hurt, it was colder than I thought.

Since the simple wooden desk by the window seemed cold, I emptied my pockets on the bed. The binding broke and all the cards with the red line spread.

"Playing cards?"

"Yes, but it has more pictures than a playing deck on Earth. Here you write what you like about another person, or why you like the other person. Then you make a hole in it, and you bind them together. Then you give it to the other person as a present, so that they can read them any time. I thought I would let you write one to."

After putting his seemingly heavy cloak on a chair, Conrad tried to start a fire with a heating device like those in cheap motels. Judging by the size of it, it won't make much of a difference.

But after hearing the reason why I was there, he made a small smile.

"Don't take your coat off just yet, it will take a while to get warm"

"Do you think you can write something?"

"I wonder. If you'll let me I'll try"

He picked up one of the cards that was on top of the sheets and looked at me.

"Ah, no that's not it!"

I realized he would make the same mistake. He picked up pen and was already writing something.

"You have to write what you like about Greta. We all.. and by all I mean, me and Wolfram, you too, Gwen and Günter, everyone, will write what they like about Greta, and we'll give it to her when she goes back to school"

"This is not for you."

"No, it's not! Even if you're a popular man, you're making mistakes at my level"

Because that was the case, he had to think what he would write, and brought the heater closer to the desk by the window. Surely he could quickly think words that would make Greta happy, but for him too, I'm sure she must be a special person.

And when that thought crossed my mind, I pretended to look outside the window.

"The snow is starting to pile up, I wonder if the guards are all right"

Even though the snow had piled up, it wasn't deep enough for my shoes to sink in. The wind was cold, but not cold enough to freeze your heart.

When I looked up, the clouds were hiding the moon, and only a faint light remained.

I pulled out the card at the bottom of the pile, and placed it gently in my chest pocket.

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