[Dawn and Dusk] Day 787: The Longest Night

Osamu sat outside on the front steps of the porch, a full moon hanging over his head. The wind whispered in his ear as snowflakes slowly drifted from down from the clouds. It was another one of those nights where he just couldn't sleep. He seemed to be having a lot more of those in recent days.

The reason was obvious. Isabella wasn't going to last long. Her condition was miserable, and all the poor girl could do was wait for death. Pancreatic cancer is an especially ruthless disease. So many people who are diagnosed with it never notice the symptoms until it's too late. It can spread to other areas in the body far before you ever have the chance to catch it. Osamu had looked up the mortality rates of the disease before and couldn't bear to look at the numbers for more than a second. Most people don't survive pancreatic cancer.

Tonight though, he worried less about the disease and more about Isabella. He recalled what he felt as made his death march towards Tsukiakari during the incident a year ago. He remembered how he counted every breath he took. He remembered the chills and sheer dread that flooded his body as he approached the abandoned school. As brave as he may have acted that day, Osamu was terrified of dying.

Having had the experience, Osamu knew exactly what kind of emotional turmoil Isabella was going through. That's what he worried about, and he could do nothing about it.

Yoko went out to check on him, stepping out in her pink night gown with her hair tied into a bun. "Hey."

"Ah, hey." Osamu responded.

Yoko sat down next to Osamu. "You know...I think I might want to move away from here soon."

"Really? Why?" Osamu asked.

"Honestly, I don't think I could handle being in this house for much longer after the New Year. Thanks to my late father, I still have a lot of saved up money. I'll probably buy a second home in a different prefecture, maybe something more rural and secluded. I'll still keep this house, but...I just want to get away, I guess. At least just for a while."

"Well, I don't blame you. I'd really miss you though, Yoko. I can't even imagine being somewhere far away from you."

"That's why I want you to come with me. I don't want to be apart from you either."

(A secluded home with Yoko?)

"Well, I did end up saying I'd probably have kids with you, didn't I?" Osamu chortled.

"Excuse me, but there was no 'probably' back there." Yoko corrected.

"You remember every word?!"

"Of course I do. What else would I threaten you with? Men buckle down when they realize they're being hypocrites."

Osamu smiled. "Hey, Yoko. Would you ever end up marrying somebody else? You're smart, beautiful, and even though you've got some fire to you, your heart is as deep as an ocean."

"True, I could probably have any man I wanted." Yoko admitted. "Even over the years we were apart, I got quite a few offers from several different men. But I refused every time, and I'd refuse even now. I can't imagine waking up next to anyone else but you, kissing anyone but you, and putting up with anyone but you."

"Even if I died?" Osamu questioned.

"You won't die. I'll protect you from anything and everything. Because I love you." Yoko declared.

(Not a drop of doubt or uncertainty in her voice.)

"You really are determined, Yoko."

"Of course. A wife is always faithful, determined, gentle, and modest. At the same time, a wife is a woman, a lover, a partner, and a fighter alongside her husband. Any woman unable to provide those qualities isn't worthy of being a wife, especially not the wife of Osamu Ashikaga."

"Hmm...it strikes a question though."

"What?"

"Would our kids bear the Ashikaga name or the Akiyama name?"

"Ashikaga, of course. However, I would like it if both clan crests were up in our home and our children were educated on both of them. Along with Izanami, Tsukiakari will also put in her divinity into the bloodline, so I guess they should also learn about the Senkumo clan."

"Geez, you're wrapping Gekko up in this too?" Osamu snickered.

"I'm only allowing it because genetic benefits often translate into social benefits, and the fact that those two are close to us anyway. Besides for them, you're forbidden from thinking of any girl romantically or sexually." Yoko declared.

"Yeah, yeah. I get it."

Yoko kissed Osamu's cheek and stood up. It looked like she was just about ready to go to bed. "Come to bed soon, okay? Don't catch a cold out here."

"I won't. Thanks."

(Two years ago, I wasn't even thinking about such things. But, here I am, already agreeing to a marriage with Yoko. Aika and Akatsuki were right. We have to think towards the future at some point. Unfortunately, we can't stay young forever, and we can't stay here forever.)

A rather strange sound echoed in the distance. It was the sound of a speeding car coming down the street, even though this neighborhood was empty. Osamu stood up and looked down the street as a black sedan pulled up right in front of the house. Aika rolled down her window and stuck her head out.

"Osamu!" Aika shouted.

"Aika? What are you doing here?" Osamu questioned, completely taken aback.

"It's Izzy! She's unconscious!" Aika cried.

(What? Unconscious?! Does that mean she's...)

Yoko and Izanami heard the noise outside and ran out to see what was happening. Though, in reality, Izanami already knew. Her low-hanging head told Osamu everything he needed to know.

"Osamu, we have to hurry!" Aika said.

"She doesn't have long, Osamu." Izanami said.

(Time only permits the smallest windows of opportunity to act, and that opportunity may never come up again. Osamu, you have to decide right now what you want to do. You have to be a man and act when time calls upon you.)

Osamu put aside his initial shock and worry, and simply gave the two girls a fearless look. "I know, Izanami."

"Go to her. She needs you." Yoko said.

Osamu nodded. "I'll be back soon. Wait for me."

Osamu jumped in the car with Aika, and they raced down the streets towards the hospital. The whole way through, Osamu clasped his shaking hands, trying to compose himself. They parked and ran inside, where Rei and a few of Isabella's men sat at her bedside. Isabella really did hang the American flag up on the wall across from her. She held the picture of her brother in her right hand, close to her heart. She looked like she was in immense pain, like she was fighting off the clutches of death with all of her might.

Rei looked to Osamu, her face stained with tears. "Osamu...Izzy's..."

Osamu placed his hands on Rei's shoulders. "I know. Thank you for keeping your eyes on her."

The doctor assigned to Isabella came in, a woman with short, brown hair. "I'd say good evening, but things are far from good right now."

"Is she going to pull through? She'll survive, right?" Rei asked.

"Unfortunately, the odds are against her. It's ultimately up to her and her body whether she survives or not, but...I don't want to get your hopes up. Hope for the best, but we should be prepared for the worst. She's stable for now, but it's up to her to survive the night. I'll leave you some privacy. Call if you need anything."

After dropping the dismal news like an atom bomb, the doctor bowed and left the room. Osamu, Aika, and Rei almost wished she would've just lied to them instead. Nothing hurt more than knowing that not even the hospital staff expected Isabella to pull through in her condition.

(It felt like the whole world melted away, and it was just all of us in this room together, hoping Izzy would survive. We had already been told she probably wouldn't make it. ‘She won't live past the New Year’, they said. Izzy was told a lot of things in her life. People who thought she couldn't assimilate to the lifestyle here were hushed when she made friends, and had me as a boyfriend. She was told she wouldn't be able to walk for a long time, and she still got up on her feet sooner than anyone expected.)

"Izzy, just like how you stood up from your wheelchair back in the summer, you have to fight through this and wake up." Osamu said

Osamu held onto Isabella's left hand while Rei clasped the right.

"Please, Isabella! Please wake up!" Rei cried.

One of Isabella's soldiers took off his military cap as he stood at Isabella's bedside. "You gotta wake up, chief."

As Isabella fought for her life on that bed, the Shoku Twins sat with Yoko on the front steps of her house. The three of them clasped their hands and bowed their heads, praying that Isabella would be able to pull through. Izanami stood behind them, knowing what she would have to do soon.

(Isabella...please don't leave us.)