Utena Rosebush
Once upon a time, there was a little girl, and she was very sad, for all her friends had moved away. She sat on the curb by her house, crying. A prince walked up and knelt down before her, wrapping her in a rose-scented embrace. He kissed her tears away.
"Little one," he said, "So brave, yet so bored. Have you not considered a hobby?" Saying this, he gave her a packet of rose seeds to remember him by.
So inspired by the prince was she, that she decided to become a prince herself one day. Albeit one who planted roses.
But was that really such a good idea?
Once she reached the age of sixteen, young Utena decided to see the world and leave a trail of roses as she went. She took the packet of rose seeds and a spade and left home. Utena saw many sights as she travelled the country, going from town to town, always leaving a rose seed planted in each one.
When she came to the town of Ohtori, she met a girl named Anthy. Anthy said that she was the Rose Bride and destined to be engaged to the one who could pull the Shovel of Dios from her torso.
Utena thought it to be a bit weird to be engaged to a girl, but shrugged and attempted to pull the Shovel from Anthy. Utena figured that it would be easier to plant roses with a shovel. Her eyes grew wide as Anthy intoned, "Power of Dios, heed your master and come forth!" There was a bright light and an ornately decorated shovel handle sprung out of Anthy's torso. Utena meekly took hold of the shovel's handle and pulled.
A gasp escaped from Anthy's lips as Utena pulled the Shovel of Dios out of her. Utena looked at the shovel she held in her hands. The blade of the shovel was very bright and shiny, and surprisingly light in weight.
Anthy beamed at Utena. "It was destiny, Miss Utena! We're a team."
"Uh, sure, Anthy."
From then on, the two of them continued to travel, planting roses and beautifying the country.
Utena never did quite figure out how the Shovel of Dios stayed so sparkling and clean, or how Anthy put it away when she was done using it for the day. Utena did ask Anthy if she kept anything else in there once and all Anthy did by way of response was to smile beatifically and say, "Perhaps."
Utena didn't mind the company Anthy provided, because she was someone to talk to. Anthy was always glad to give Miss Utena a massage after a hard day of planting. If that massage led to more, it was no one's business but that of Utena and Anthy. On cold nights, Utena was particularly grateful for Anthy's presence. The two of them were able to stay warm in many ways, some of which did not involve sleeping bags.
Someone, no one is quite sure who, dubbed Utena "Utena Rosebush" because of all the roses she had planted. Utena wasn't fond of the name, but it stuck.
Long after she and Anthy were gone, their trail of roses remained. And so did the legend of Utena Rosebush.