K – Seven Stories - Chapter 19

Pink apparently decided to make all her pieces angsty. The original text is provided by .

K ~ Seven Stories: 24 Pieces
Piece 19: Kushina Anna (Roses and Smiles)
by Raikaku Rei

Kushina Anna was no good at smiling.

Before coming to Homura, she had gone through a lot. She had been made wear clothes of a color she could not see – blue – and had experienced more than her fair share of suffering.

Under the impression that crying would only amplify her emotions, Anna had become a doll that felt nothing. And when she did, before long, she forgot not only how to cry but also how to smile.

But she had mostly overcame her inability after coming to Homura, she believed, because the Homura members showed her so many fun and happy things.

“I happen to believe that by smiling your can happiness grow, and by crying your sadness will shrink, flowing out with the tears you cry,” Totsuka said once upon a time. “No need to force yourself, but I hope that eventually you will learn to express your emotions.”

…The night on which Totsuka had died was over.

Anna woke up from a short nap and descended down to the bar with the blank face of a doll. She found no one there. Most likely, Kusanagi ordered everyone to leave.

For a while, she simply gazed at the empty bar space, standing stock still, until she heard heavy steps coming down the stairs behind her.

“Mikoto.” When she turned, Suoh came in sight.

He started at her for a few moments, then held out his right hand. In it was grasped a single red rose.

Gingerly, Anna reached out and took it.

“No matter what happens, today is your birthday. So stand tall and proud,” said Suoh in a soft voice.

Dazed, Anna stared at the rose in her hand. To her eyes, the red of the flower appeared vivid and so beautiful it was almost enough to make her cry.

“Happy birthday.”

Anna managed a tiny smile.

…I would give this rose to Tatara.

And along with the rose, she would offer Totsuka these warm and happy feelings flickering in her chest at the moment. While the sad feelings she would keep to herself, holding them close so that they wouldn’t show more than what was already showing, she decided.

Chapter end