(Asato)
“Oh god, what did you do?” I whispher at him, furiously. Bringing me a bloody woman… she’s alive, at least.
“My dear… I do get carried away,” he giggles, and then gives me that boyish smile… he did it! He really did it, and to -her-! I reach over and squeeze his hand, and he turns his over in mine, squeezing it back, and meets my eyes. His gaze is then serious, “I just saw her, at that house with -him-, a man who was like a brother to me…” he takes a shuddering breath. “Forgive me, for my darkness, darling.”
I touch his face, the good side. “You did well – she’s here, and you said that nobody noticed?”
He shakes his head. Ever since he found out that Yagi Hide’s man was another Shinsengumi captain he’s alternated between being very, very sad and also… gleeful? I remember him talking about this Saitou Hajime, back in the old days, but not as much as Hijikata or Kondou.
“Well I guess I won’t need that opium I smuggled out of the clinic to sedate her,” I say, trying to sound stern but I can’t… “But we can travel easier with her now,” I say, cleaning up her head wound, and tucking up her chopped off hair into the badages I’m wrapping around her head. “Our poor sister, she’s ill and we’re taking her home…” I pull open her eyes, one at a time… it’s quite the concussion he gave her, she’ll be out for a while. He nods. It works as a story.
“Come on, we don’t have long to catch the overnight to Kyoto,” I tell him.
He picks her up and makes a face. “Ew, did she wet herself?” I look at her – the front of her kimono has wet spots, from her breasts. She did just give birth back in September… but I set my jaw. It’s too bad for that child, perhaps her father will take care of her. The clinic usually has wet-nurses on call, or the import shops sell a powdered infant food. But no matter this. We have what we want, and there’s no use being sad now. She didn’t stop to take care of him, so why should we care about her brat?
(OOC – Will continue this in the AM)
(Kenshin)
“Kenji-kun, shouldn’t we go home now?”
“Not yet!” He says, running up and down the platforms. It’s been over an hour since my Kaoru-dono left. This one is glad that she’s having this “girl’s trip” to Yokohama to see the seashore with Tae-san and Tsubame-chan, since the Akebeko closed while it’s finally getting a complete new roof. All these years since Enishi struck, the roof that stood has finally had it. Yahiko-kun is staying behind, both to cover the dojo and with some plan to dragoon Eiji-san to help him scrub every inch of the Akebeko, with an eye to impressing Tsubame-chan…
And now there’s my son, who likes to watch the trains, and has already had me buy an ekiben for him. But this one like the trains, too – so many wonders in this new era. And if Kenji-kun is very tired, maybe he won’t fight bedtime… with his mother gone I’ve been dreading the battle! We’re near the last train of the night.
“Lookit!” He says, pulling at my sleeve. I see what he does – a party of three getting on the overnight eastbound. A middle aged woman with a drawn face, and a thin, slight man in an old-fashioned straw hat. And between them, a short woman, I see bandages cover most of her face, her head covered by a scarf. They’re basically having to carry her along…
“Don’t point at people, Kenji-kun, it’s rude, that it is,” I chide him, but then I look at them all again and I shiver. It’s not ki, not pure ki, and it’s like… one I know well, from all of our encounters, but more ephemeral, faint. But he’s not here – or his son – that I could feel. The man turns to look down the platform, and his profile, for a moment, it seems familiar …
“LAST CALL! ALL ABOARD FOR ALL POINTS EAST TO KANSAI- SHIZUOKA, HANAMATSU, NAGOYA, KYOTO, OSAKA AND KOBE!” Then there’s a rush as travelers, loaded with ekiben and omiyage rush the platform, and I lose the trio. I narrow my eyes and search but there’s nothing…
It must be nothing. This one is already missing Kaoru-dono badly, and it’s only been a few hours.
“Let’s go home, Kenji-kun.” If this one is lucky, my son will fall asleep as I carry him home…
(OOC – Close train station thread)