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“You’re out in the rain I see.” A familiar voice spoke, the loud rain almost drowning it out. Mary Sue glanced to the side to see a young blonde looking at her emotionlessly. She shook her head lightly at the sudden guest ruining her peaceful night.
“How long has it been?” Tanya von Degurechaff, the Devil of the Rhine, the enemy of all nations, smirked at her as if they’ve been friends for a long time. Mary’s jaw tightened and she couldn’t help but glance the opposite side. “I repeat: how long has it been?”
“...Stop asking foolish questions, you know the answer to it anyways.” Mary mumbled before taking a cigar and a lighter out of her pocket. It didn’t take long before a whip of smoke came into her view.
“Hm, what is this I’m seeing? What would your Daddy say if he caught his sweet little princess smoking?” The daredevil mockingly asked, chuckling darkly like she always had. It annoyed Mary and comforted her at the same time.
“If you’re gonna bother me then do it some other time. Rather, don’t bother me at all.” The older woman scoffed as she looked at the night sky and the pouring rain that came with it.
A full blown laugh interrupted the noise of the rain. “You say that but I know deep down you appreciate me being beside you. If only you were as honest as you were back then.” Tanya sighed, a cheeky grin still on her face. The woman beside her stared at the beauty that history didn’t deserve.
Mary let the rain count the seconds that passed by. She paid attention to the smoke that passed her and evaporated into thin air. As she opened her mouth, she then decided to speak, “I wonder why you still show up.” Her voice was quiet.
“I wonder too.” Her voice was also quiet.
Mary couldn’t handle it anymore. And so she walked into the rain. Her hand threw the cigarette away, her ears flooded with the noise. She let the droplets of water drench her clothes, her face, her everything. Wash it all away and perhaps the girl pestering her as well. But when she looked back, the young blonde simply looked at her with a conflicted expression.
Of course she would.
Mary knew.
She knew why the girl would always show up in the rain yet never bother to be in it. She knew what emotions those blue eyes reflected. She knew it all and she knew why she hated it.
Mary slowly raised her arm, offering a hand. “Join me, won’t you?” With a slightly bent back, she kept her eyes glued to the young girl on the porch.
The blonde that once seemed to be the fated enemy of God, the descendant or even the Devil himself, looked hesitant. Her brows were knitted and her mouth formed a thin line of disapproval. Mary smirked just a bit in satisfaction seeing that face with mixed emotions. That doll-like figure seemed human, not just a simple tool of the Great War.
Without a warning, Mary grabbed Tanya’s hand. It was cold - colder than the night - yet softer than any hand she ever held. The widened eyes of the girl made the woman chuckle as the droplets of rain rushed through their heads. She then clasped the blonde’s other hand lightly as their steps on the ground were accompanied with splashes of rain.
Each of their feet danced along the silent beat.
Each of their every move went along the rhythm of the dripping rain.
Each of their gazes stuck onto each other.
Mary stared at the girl that was inches smaller than her, observing her features. She always knew how beautiful Tanya was yet she wouldn’t want to dwell too much on it. But now, with a small mistake and a little tumble, she was holding her closer than ever. Her eyes wandered from Tanya’s curious gaze down to her nose and finally...
“You’ve grown to be quite romantic.” The girl’s voice still didn’t make the woman flinch. She kept her eyes on her, slowly making them both stand uprightly. “And here I thought you would retreat and possibly blush like an idiot.”
Mary’s lips curved to a small smile. “... You and your sharp tongue. You haven’t changed.” As she said that, she could hear the rain pouring harder. Long strands of hair soon covered her eyes and she wasn’t able to see what kind of expression the girl showed.
“You have.” Mary was taken aback by the sudden drop of Tanya’s voice. She felt her breaths become uneven and her pulse rushing. Within that moment of uncertainty, a hand brushed over to push her bangs to the side. The clear face of the girl made her gulp. A smirk came to her view. “Did that scare you?”
Mary’s jaw was slightly dropped before she forced herself to smirk back. “I wonder.”
The girl giggled. “You wonder huh? I suppose I wonder too.” Droplets of rain streamed down her face, her hair, her everything. Her drenched body was cold yet she didn’t show any sign of discomfort.
Without any explanation, Mary embraced her tightly. She clung to her hard and didn’t know if she was seeking warmth or trying to radiate warmth. She knew that Tanya was trying to say something or was whispering whatever to her ear yet she couldn’t hear it. What she heard was the rain and what she felt was coldness.
Without any question, she closed her eyes and soon felt heat from it. She couldn’t tell if it was rain or if it was her tears rushing down to drench the girl’s clothes even more. Her body started to shake and she hugged Tanya like she was her lifeline.
A small sniff.
Another tear.
Another chuckle.
“I wonder when you’ll let go.” The hushed voice of the girl made Mary snap her eyes open.
She was clinging onto thin air. With drenched clothes, she felt even colder than ever. Her tired eyes stared at a distance where she knew full well a girl was just standing on moments ago. Her tears were now uncontrollably flowing, flowing even harder than the rain. Her pain, her agony, her suffering - she poured it all out and cried it off to the distance as well as the sky above her.
Memories of that day flashed. The enemy, her gun, her shockingly precise aiming, and the blood that splashed endlessly like rain in that stormy night. She could still see the little girl giving her a distasteful smirk.
She killed the Devil.
She lived with the word of God.
Yet the guilt and trauma would never go away.
Mary felt her knees drop to the ground, “I wonder too,” she whispered onto nothing.
And so the ghost of the girl she once considered her rival for years would haunt her for decades. After all, within those years of fighting, they swore that they would clash even in the after life. Even if she ran away by herself, that ghost would never leave her. Even if she knew what kind of person Tanya truly was and found comfort. Even if her hatred vanished. Even if she learned that she grew fond of the girl. Even if she saw her own two hands land those rounds of bullets. Even if the war has ended.
That day would never wash away. Just like her feelings that bloomed and never seemed to decay.