Stronger than the embers. [Aki Fujiie's project 'Summer Embers' until 8/25 (Sun) 23:59] Participation Article

The pasted article follows below.

I apologize for quoting Aki-san's tanka, 'Remaining Embers'.

The following is my own work.

I want to do fireworks, sparklers. You said that suddenly.

“Even sparklers have a certain depth to them, you know. From the moment you light them, the shape of the fire changes one after another, and you can't take your eyes off them for even a moment. First is the Peony. Next is the Pine Needle. The Peony is the beginning of the flower, where sparks scatter with a crackle. When that becomes round, it's the Pine Needle. That is the peak of the sparkler's bloom.”

From the firework that had changed into the shape of a round flower of fire, petals suddenly scattered. Red wrapped in yellow shone brightly, blooming in full glory.

Tracing the form of the sparkler, I spoke to her. When I added, “Your face looks beautiful when illuminated by the fire,” she replied with a face that looked a little angry from embarrassment, saying, “Don't say such silly things. Look, the shape of the firework is changing. Next is the Willow. If you don't watch closely, it'll be over.”

The petals of fire trailed long tails. Drawing lines of light in the pitch black, scattering and then fading away.

“The last one is the Chirigiku (Falling Chrysanthemum), right? The fireball becomes round, and the petals of fire become like a single line.”

The petals drew trajectories, melting into the darkness. And then, only the fireball remained.

With a soft sound, and as if to stop, the light also vanished.

I cleaned up the extinguished sparklers and put out the fire. I called out to her, gently placing my hand on her slender shoulder.

“...Shall we go back to the room before it gets cold? You'll catch a cold.”

I placed my palm over her white hand and spoke. Her white palm overlapped mine once more,

“...You don't have to worry about that, do you? Because you're here—”

You'll warm me up, won't you?

Her black eyes answered with a smile.

“...I don't know about that, saying things like that. I can't take responsibility, you know.”

I returned the words, not to be outdone by the smile returned to me. Upon hearing that, those dark eyes deepened that smile even further.

"Heh. Let's see what you can do, then."

I could only let out a wry smile at your competitive retort.

That was what happened on a certain night that heralded the beginning of autumn.

Title of this piece: Stronger than the embers.
Total word count: 779 characters

Aki-san. I have woven this piece around a tanka poem (which you allow in the project) and the theme of sparklers. Thank you for your consideration.

I am linking an explanatory article about subote-botan here.

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