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It all had started when Walter said “Well, hearing you ruminate about luck and fortune, I thought that fate too would have some things she’d want to say to you.” on the bridge of the Ulysses when they were in a scuffle with Imperial forces. Dusty at that time had no idea what he meant from it. This wasn’t the first time where Walter said something oddly poetic to him as some sort of code for him to decipher. But fate? The concept of fate and destiny seemed to be foreign to the two men, or so Dusty thought. If they had blindly followed fate’s orders when Yang was captured. They too would’ve been arrested at best, or dead at worst. Besides, as much as a romantic Walter was, the idea of “destined lovers” was something he would cringe at.
It could very well have been fate which brought them together in the first place. What started out as an act of rebellion became a revolution. What started out as a one night stand, became a "I can't even count the amount on my fingers" night stand.
Regardless of what Walter’s words meant. They made their way to Dusty’s utilitarian, but cozy quarters on the Ulysses. The two men sat on a small couch, which left not a lot of legroom, but they didn't care if their legs touched. They shared a bottle of whiskey. Which was their typical go-to drink for their simple chats that would become more than just a chat.
“So what are your plans for when the war is over?” Walter asked.
“I’ll work on finishing my memoir, getting it published, and then living my life in peace and quiet. That is if the media doesn’t try to shove cameras in my face 24/7. Although I wouldn’t mind a bit of publicity. After all, It is hard to sell a product if nobody knows of its existence.”
“That’s quite the dream you’ve got there. Although living in isolation to run away from the press sounds quite depressing. Would you say there’s any room in your dreamscape for me?” Walter pulled out a small black box from his pocket, and opened it to reveal a small silver band.
“So you really are after my cash cow, you leech.” Dusty laughed, as he picked up the box. The ring was simple. There were no diamonds or anything engraved, but it wasn’t like Dusty sought out flashy jewellery. The ring was perfect, and he slipped it onto his finger, feeling the coolness of the metal on his skin.
“Besides, I’m surprised that a lady-killer like you would want to settle down, let alone with a man like me.”
“Well, two pensions are better than one. Money aside, you’re one of the few lovers I’ve had where I didn’t always have to play the part as the knight in shining armour. I’d rather not live the rest of my life playing a part. Besides, my life seems to be more eventful and interesting when you’re involved.”
“So not only do you want my money, but you also see me as just a play thing. Got it.” Dusty sarcastically retorted. “Jokes aside, would it even be a possibility for us to get married? Homosexual marriages are illegal in the Empire, and I doubt they’d want to make an exception for two enemies of the state. But then again, it's not like we ever gave a shit about the law.”
“We could always push Frederica or Julian to negotiate a deal with Kaiser Reinhard to make it legal. Along with making Heinessen its own independent state of course.” Walter wrapped his arm against Dusty’s shoulder, pulling him close. “I doubt he’d veto it, as he and that red-headed confidant of his seemed to be awfully close, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Honestly I wouldn’t blame Reinhard for keeping Kircheis to himself. If I had a hunk like him, I’d do the same.” Dusty straddled Walter’s lap, staring into his lover’s deep, dark eyes.
“So is that a yes?”
“What do you think?” Dusty whispered, grabbing his lover, now fiancé by the collar, and pulling him up to kiss him.
It was quite easy for Dusty to recall what happened after their “first time” as an engaged couple. The room was dark, and the two men laid in Dusty’s bed. The bed itself was large enough that the two men could fit in it with some room to spare. Although most of the time they did not use that extra room to their advantage. Dusty laid on top of Walter, using his fiancé’s chest as a pillow.
“So what will we do for our wonderful little wedding?” Dusty queried.
“In order to keep the journalists out, we’ll keep it small. Just friends and family. Kind of like what Yang and Frederica did for their wedding, but even smaller. Besides, it would keep the drama to a minimum.” Walter rubbed his hand through Dusty's woolly cyan-silver hair.
“Then there’s no way in hell my father’s getting invited. But it would be lovely to see him try to keep his composure as he sees his pride and joy marry a middle-aged scoundrel.” Dusty laughed as he rolled off of him. “How do you think Karin will react? She’s still pissed at you for leaving her mother, and she’d probably be even more pissed about you marrying someone else.”
Walter rolled to face his groom-to-be. “Well it’s not like I can marry a dead woman, even if she’s still beautiful as a rotten corpse. Karin will be excited to know that she won’t have to worry about getting a little sibling for the rest of her life.”
“Unless another illegitimate child sends you a letter notifying you of their existence.”
“Well in that case, she’d have to learn how to deal with it. Either way they’d be about the same age as her. Once I was in my mid-twenties I started going about my conquest of beautiful women in a safer manner.”
“You know, back in ancient times it was common for people to wait until marriage to do the deed.”
“Your point?”
“Oh it’s nothing. You look handsome when you’re annoyed.” Dusty ran his fingers down Walter's cheekbone.
“Anyways, what do you think we should wear for our wedding? You’ve always had the better taste in fashion out of the two of us.”
“I was thinking that us wearing matching white tuxes would look elegant. For the flowers, I think red roses would do the trick. They're simple, elegant and fitting. I am getting married to a Knight of the Rose, after all.”
“And here I was thinking that you’d want me to wear a dress.”
Dusty rolled his eyes.“Look, if you so desperately want to wear a dress I will too. An invitation with us wearing pretty frilly gowns would be sure to keep my dad from attending. But then again, I wouldn’t want to make this special occasion look like a joke.”
“From what you’ve told me about your father, the simplest way to piss him off would be for you to change your last name.”
“You’re right, but Dusty von Schönkopf doesn’t really have the same ring to it."
"And Walter Attenborough doesn’t roll off the tongue. What about Dusty von Attenborough?”
“That sounds a bit better, but at that point we might as well keep our last names.”
“So how about the honeymoon? It would be fun to hit up Fezzan’s casinos. Although I’ve heard that a lot of the good ones shut down after their owners left the planet. I guess one's industry becoming nationalised can be quite the scare. Especially if they're making a lot of money."
“I don’t care where we go, and what we do as long as there’s a beach. It's been ages since I’ve smelled the cool salty breeze of the ocean and felt hot sand on my skin.”
“If you love the feeling of sand so much, I’d be happy to get it onto every corner of your body.”
“Shut up.” Dusty jokingly elbowed Walter.
They laid there in silence for a while. Just soaking their time together while they could.
Dusty was sitting at a table in the mess, silently eating his meal. Time seemed to fly by since that fateful day. It had been a week, and he was kind of disappointed that nobody noticed the ring on his finger. He was quite surprised that nobody told him news about one of Iserlohn's lady killers deciding to settle down. He wasn't too surprised as it was usually himself who would spread those rumours in the first place. It was his duty as a wannabe journalist to bring information to the people, even if the sources were suspect. It was at that moment that Poplin sat beside him, and made his wish come true.
“Yo Attenborough! How come you never told me that you had a girlfriend?”
“I already told you her name. Her name is Ms. Celibacy, and I plan to never leave her until the day I die.”
“Well it looks like she'll soon be Mrs. Celibacy-Attenborough” Poplin smirked, pointing at the silver band on Dusty’s finger.
“Haven’t you heard? Silver rings are back in style.”
“Look I’ve never been into fashion trends, and I ain’t no historian like Yang was. Even I know that for thousands of years, having a silver ring on your finger was a symbol of tying the knot.”
“The best fashion trends are the revolutionary ones.” Dusty crossed his arms.
“There you go again, caring more about revolution than a girl in your bed. If you love the revolution so much, why don’t you go and fuck her?” Poplin pointed.
“It's bold to assume that revolution would take the form of a woman.”
“Of course she would! After all, a good woman knows how to get my inner wheel revolving.”
“Now you’re starting to sound like Schönkopf.”
“Speaking of that middle aged scoundrel, do you know that he’s getting married too?”
“I’d never expect a man like him to settle down.”
“Yeah, it is quite the shocker. When I asked him who the lucky lady was, he told me that she’s someone I know quite well. As if that somehow lowers the candidates for who this mystery fiancé could be?”
“Either way, she’ll probably have the best sex life a woman could ask for.”
“Nah, it’ll be an utter disappointment, as she’ll be wishing it was me the whole time.”
“I don’t think anyone would want to think about you when they’re getting fucked.”
“Why are you defending Schönkopf so hard? Are you sucking his dick in secret or something? At that point you should propose to him instead of letting some nameless chick steal your man.”
"I’d marry him just to piss you off.”
“Look if you are successful, I better be your best man. Wait, would you have two best men? Or would there still be a maid of honour?”
“I guess that would be something for Schönkopf and I to decide.” Dusty laughed. If only he had the guts to tell Poplin the truth. After all, he had left Ms. Celibacy a long time ago.
The last time that Dusty ever saw Walter goodbye was bittersweet. It was just the two of them on the bridge of the Ulysses. For a while they could forget that this could’ve been the last time they’d see each other again.
“Try not to separate yourself from Julian alright? I need a primary source who could tell me what happened when he met the Kaiser.”
“I’ll try my best, but I can’t promise you anything. In the end I could be the man who pulls off a heroic sacrifice so the mission can succeed.”
“I’d rather you come back in one piece, even if you don’t give me first-hand accounts.”
Walter put his hand onto Dusty's shoulder. “I'm joking. You shouldn’t worry about me, after all, I haven't even lived a third of my lifespan.”
Dusty was about to lean into Walter for a kiss, before backing off. It wasn't like Dusty cared about someone walking in on them, as they've had quite a few close calls before. However it seemed like he couldn't tell his dirty little secret to the world, just that once.
It had been a year since Walter had left him for Valhalla, Hell or wherever he was now. All that Dusty could muster himself to do on this day was to make his way down to the kitchen to fetch himself a drink. He grabbed an unopened bottle of whiskey, but didn't bother to get a glass. Whiskey was his go-to drink to remember the good old days, even if sometimes he'd rather forget them.
“One third of your lifespan? Yeah right.” He sighed at the damned silver ring. Dusty didn't even know why he still wore it. It wasn't like Walter would be coming back to see him anytime soon.
“I know that you wanted to die a heroic death, but you should’ve never proposed to me in the first place, if death was all that you desired.”
"I know you're a heartbreaker, but breaking the heart of your soon-to-be husband is quite cruel you know?"
He sat in silence, waiting for an answer from anyone, or anything.
“Who am I kidding? You’re not Walter. You’re just a ring."
"I guess I should give him a visit. He's probably been wondering where the hell I've been all day." Dusty sighed, as he started to get himself ready to visit his fiancé’s final resting spot.
It was in the evening, and the sun started to lay low in the sky as Dusty’s car pulled up to the cemetery. Despite today being a national holiday of remembrance, the graveyard had no visitors. Even in the lot for the high ranking officers, not a single soul was there. Dusty grabbed a bouquet of flowers, and his bottle of whiskey from earlier. It wasn’t like this was the first time he was visiting him since that day. Dusty would often visit him just to have a chat as if it were the good old days. As he slowly made his way up the hill, he spotted the tree where his fiancé resided. Walter’s gravestone wasn’t anything too fancy. It had the necessities, and an epitaph which Dusty had written himself.
"A man like a rose, his thorns piercing, and his beauty enticing." Dusty read.
Honestly I don’t get how I let you get away with leaving me at the very last second. Yet here I am, at your grave on the anniversary of your death with a bouquet of roses.”
“I’m surprised nobody else has left flowers. I guess that goes to show how insane I was for saying yes to marrying a heartbreaker.”
“I know red roses are a corny choice for flowers, but you can’t call yourself a knight of the rose if you don’t have a rose on your grave.” Dusty stood up, as he felt a gust of wind fly through his hair. He just stood there in silence, waiting for Walter to give some sign of an answer. Maybe the breeze was the dead man's way of saying thanks.
“So you finally decided to show up to pay your respects to the dead?” Poplin grabbed Dusty's shoulder
“My original plan of getting wasted all day would’ve been a waste of time.”
“It's freaky seeing you be the irresponsible one you know? I was thinking about skipping the remembrance ceremony too, until I had thoughts of Yang looking down at me in shame.”
“Yang would’ve preferred it if you skipped.” Dusty laughed.
“Either way, you missed quite the afterparty. The drinks were great, and the women were even greater.” Poplin grinned. “So which heartbroken chick left those flowers?”
“Schönkopf’s fiancé did.”
“I feel bad that I wasn’t able to meet her. I would joke about trying to comfort her in a way that he never could, but even that feels like too low of a blow you know?”
“His fiancé wouldn’t be your type anyways.”
“Wait, you got to know his fiancé before I did? No fair!”
“Lucky for you, I know his fiancé better than anyone else.”
“Are you fucking Schönkopf’s girl?”
“No, but I was his man, and he was mine.”
The two men stood there over Walter’s grave in complete silence.
“Holy shit. So that ring was?” Poplin fumbled, staring down at the silver band on Dusty’s hand.
“Yeah.”
“Did you tell Karin about it?”
“Yeah. She took it well, although it made her more pissed at her dad for dying.”
“Is there anyone else you’ve told about this?”
“No. But I assume that Karin told Julian and Frederica about it.”
“So how long are you going to keep that ring on your finger?”
“Until I’m ready to move on.”
“I see. Well, I’m going to give you more alone time with your sweetheart. See ya later Attenborough.”
With Poplin gone, Dusty kneeled down and rubbed his thumb through the etched letters on his lover’s grave.
"Honestly I don’t know how I’m visiting you without being a drunken mess.”
“Ok I’m not completely sober, but it's not like we were ever completely sober back then.”
"Yeah. I'm still wearing the ring, but don’t worry, I doubt I’ll be clinging onto your corpse until the day I die. At least I hope I don’t.”
“I have another gift for you. I drank most of it today, but I thought it would be best if I shared it with you.” He poured what was left of the bottle onto Walter’s grave. The setting sun made the whiskey look as if it were liquid gold.
"I guess I should get going soon. As much as I'd like to stay, I'd rather not get kicked out of here and get banned from visiting you."
"Don't worry, I'll come back sometime soon. At the very most I won't miss our anniversary next month."
"I still remember our first date, you know? One wouldn't think rebellion could be so romantic, and yet it was."
"I don't know if I'll ever forgive you, but a part of me will always love you." Dusty stood up, and walked away.