Memories that Got Buried

MEMORIES THAT GOT BURIED

The forest, where a young man lays underground, was shrouded in darkness. The stars and the moon were the only source of light.

The gentle sound of wind is audible inside the forest. It is pleasant to anyone's ears, which makes you to calm down. But even with the calming environment, it does not stop the tears of the group of people on it. Only a certain girl was not crying but instead was confused and she even looked at them with contempt.

Why were they crying to a man who is not even dead? Are they treating his brother as a joke? Clearly, he is still alive!

The girl looked at the man who was beside her, "Brother, why are your name is written on the ground?"

The man didn't respond but gave a small smile instead. He pats her sister's head.

---

A few days passed, coincidentally Von and Esperanza passed through the area of the Kira family. A girl shots them with an arrow from a distance. Luckily, Von and Esperanza was fast enough to evade the attack.

"Who are you?! How dare you trespass into our territory?!" A girl's voice was heard by Von and Esperanza.

Esperanza held his hand up high to show that he means no harm. Von however just crossed her arms.

"We are an adventurer. We didn't know that this is your territory but this is the only path we need to take in order to get into our destination" Esperanza explained.

"Brother, what do you think? Should we let them in?" The girl whispered at his brother who was believed that it was on her side.

After some minutes, the girl walked out from where she was hiding. "My name is Mionne Kira. My brother just came back from war and was too tired. He already returns to our house thus he can't show up to you. His name is Dino Kira."

"It's okay. I'm Esperanza, this is Von. Please excuse us for trespassing" Esperanza introduced themselves while apologizing.

"It's fine as long as it does not happen again. You must be aware that walking into someone else's territory without permission is a crime, right?"

"Yes. We are sorry"

The girl who introduced herself as Mionne sighed. "Where do you plan to go? I'll escort you out to make sure you don't do any fishy"

Esperanza told her the location and Mionne led the way. They were considered to be lucky to meet Mionne along the way or else they might really got lost in the forest. Mionne seemed to be really familiar with the area, thus Esperanza and Von saved a lot of time figuring out how to get to their destination.

Along the way, they stumbled on a tomb. Both Esperanza and Von have read the name of it's owner. Their eyes went wide in surprised. Mionne seemed to notice their shock.

"Don't mind that. It's not real. My brother is alive and well. But my family was convinced that he is dead and I don't even know why" Mionne said as she continue to walk. Von and Esperanza followed her.

Von asked to know more about the details, "Why do they think he's dead? I thought he was with you when you ambushed us earlier?"

"I don't know. They said that he was killed in the war and a group of soldiers brought his corpse to us. That is also why they buried him. I bet that corpse is fake! My brother is with me! He's not dead! Argh! They are just spouting useless things! They might have some hatred towards my brother or something!" Mionne was boiling mad as she express her thoughts.

Von and Esperanza went silent after that. It didn't took them too long to reach their destination. They bid farewell and gave their thanks to Mionne before they continued to their journey.

"What do you think about Dino?" Esperanza asked Von's opinion in curiosity.

Von shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe Dino is indeed alive and the Kira family is feigning ignorance about Dino's real presence, or Dino is really dead already and Mionne just buried the thought that he was already dead thus making her create her own version of brother"

Esperanza felt sad about what he heard. He somehow could relate to Mionne after all. He also tried to make excuses and believed that what happened that day was only a dream. He could not accept it and he knows that Mionne probably felt the same way as he did before.

---

Mionne opened his brother's room, then lie down on his bed. She sniffed the bed trying to catch his brother's scent. She sniffed once again until she could feel that her cheeks were wet. She was crying.

"Brother, you're alive. You're not yet gone, right? I know you are still here" She sobbed.

A man who was in front of Mionne sadly smiled, "I'm sorry, Mionne. I've let you down... I hope you could accept that I'm not alive anymore..."

Mionne continued crying until she fell asleep. The man, Dino, slowly walked closer to Mionne. He brushed her hair with his finger.

"I wish you well, my dear sister"

Dino kissed Mionne cheeks before he slowly disappears into thin air.

"Brother..." Mionne mumbles in between her dreams as a tear fell down from her eyes.