Ronin Warriors Fan Fiction ❯ Koi wa Kurushimi ❯ I know the voices dying with a dying fall ( Chapter 7 )

Koi wa Kurushimi
By Djinn Hashiba-Maxwell

And indeed there will be a time
To wonder, "Do I dare?" and, "Do I dare?" --
Time to turn back and descend the stair

- The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
- T.S. Eliot

* * *

"Sister Mary, two men are here to see you."

The sister in question looked up in surprise, and then bowed slightly to the sour faced nun who regarded her with tacit disapproval from the doorway of her cell. "It has been a rather busy week, ne, Sister Catherine?" She offered with a tentative smile. The old woman merely huffed and motioned for her to hurry. The young nun pinned on her whimper as she shuffled towards the large wooden doors of the convent.

She caught a glimpse of blue hair as she entered the sitting room and gasped. "Tou- ... Rowan!"

The two figures stood from the western chairs, Touma much more easily. Shuu smiled. "Sister Mary Francis." He bowed.

Touma crossed his arms, leaned back against the wall, and muttered "Salut, Sister Mary. Comment-allez vous?"

"Trés bien, maintenaut, mon cher ami. Et vous?"

"Ça va."

Shuu did not understand what was said, but he could recognize the coldness of Touma's tone.

"Er ... Shuu-san, won't you sit and tell me how you came upon Rowan-san?" She smiled slightly. "I am so interested to hear what has been going on with you ..."

"I cannot stay I am afraid, Sister. I have drills to do." Shuu bowed. "But I know Rowan-san will entertain you." He bowed once more, and left.

"Well ..." Sister Mary Francis blushed. "Perhaps you would come up to my cell. We might speak? I'm eager to hear of your journeys ..." She spoke in French, the words soft and hesitant on her lips.

"Fine." Touma pushed away from the wall. "Lead the way."

* * *

Ryo reined in the roan horse, eyebrows hitting his hairline as he saw Touma disappear inside the convent. Touma? In church? He did know in the back of his mind that Touma was raised a catholic, but the other boy had never practiced his faith, and Ryo had rather got the impression that Touma was Shinto if he was anything.

Well, this was a puzzlement. Ryo settled in to wait for Touma to reemerge.

* * *

"Please sit, Thomas ..." In French, the name was pronounced almost exactly like 'Touma', but it wasn't close enough for Touma's taste.

"It's Touma now. I'm Japanese." He muttered.

"Of course. Of course." She murmured quickly as she poured the tea. "Touma. Touma-kun. I won't forget again." She spoke softly to herself, lips barely moving. "N'oublie rien. N'oublie rien." It was obvious how nervous she was from the way her hands shook, and the complete and utter lack of stability in her voice. "Touma-kun. It had been two years. What have you been doing?" She offered him tea; he took the cup but set it aside.

"Qu'est-ce j'ai fait?" Touma only ever spoke in French when he was mocking her, though he was probably still as fluent as she was. "I killed people. What did you suppose I did?"

She sighed. "I supposed that you killed people." But still, she persisted. "Perhaps as you passed through Kyoto, a geisha stole your heart? Or maybe you stopped in Ise to ring the bell at the famous jinja to Amaterasu? These are the things that I wish to hear, Touma-kun. Have you done nothing pleasant in two years?"

Touma considered that. "I went to Edo and drank saké with the empress, as her request. I barely got out alive, though." Actually, it hadn't been Edo, it had been Kyoto, and it hadn't been at he empress' request, although she certainly hadn't complained.

"The empress ... is she very beautiful?" the nun asked.

"No." Touma replied succinctly. "She's old and dull. Like the lady who answered the door, but with a sweeter voice. And the empress smiled."

"Oh my. Please go on, Touma-kun."

Touma laughed. "She wore this elaborate kimono. It was so heavy that she could barely walk. And there was so much wax in her hair that it looked as if it were made from the stuff!" The nun giggled in delight and moved to kneel beside Touma as he continued. "And she talked of nothing but the British. England this and England that ... I was tempted to just yell 'shut up!!' and see what she did."

"Old women seldom have people to talk to. The Mother Superior will talk your ear off if you let her." Sister Mary offered carefully.

"Ugh. The Mother Superior." Touma made a face. "I still can't believe you became a nun. I mean, I know that you love Kurisuto and all that, but to shut yourself away in this dull place and wear black all the time? Doesn't it depress you?"

She smiled. "Well, I don't wear black all the time ... they let me keep mama's old kimono, you see. As keepsakes."

Touma made a face. "She had kimono?"

Sister Mary smiled again. "Apparently." She rose gracefully to her feet. "Would you like to see? They fit me quite well, though I can't tie an obi properly to save my life."

"Surely." Touma shrugged. The nun turned to a small lock box at the foot of her bed, and opened it to remove a brightly colored kimono.

"Turn around, please." She requested, and Touma turned to the blank wooden wall. Some rustling, a few moments of silence, and then an almost embarrassed cough. "You may look now, Touma-kun."

The kimono was dark blue, the detailing white cranes stitched into the fabric. The obi was soft silver-grey. The nun looked rather out of place in it, but still pretty, in a sort of naïve way. She folded her hands demurely. "How do I look, Touma-kun?"

"Jolie." Touma said rather noncommittally.

"You think so?" She turned in a circle. "It is a little large, but I would rather not alter it."

"No." Touma agreed.

"The color compliments my hair rather nicely, I believe." She murmured.

"Yes." Touma agreed.

"Je t'aime, Touma."

The blue-haired mercenary started violently. "You what? Shi-"

"I know you don't love anybody, least of all me. " She said quickly. "But it's true. I love you, Touma."

"I don't believe this." Touma muttered. "You say you love me because I am the only person you know, that is all." He told her clinically.

"I love you because you have saved my life more times than I can count!" She protested.

"I can count them. Three times, Sister. I have saved your life three times. And I don't begrudge you those, so do not act as if you are indebted to me." Touma replied harshly. "If you are going to behave like this, I am going to leave." He stood.

"My Lord! Touma-kun, has life treated you so harshly that you cannot even bear a kind word anymore?" She demanded. Touma scowled as he pushed open the door to her cell and headed for the staircase in a huff. The nun followed, stumbling slightly, unaccustomed to the kimono. "Touma you are being childish!"

"No!" Touma spun, startling her. "You're being childish! What did you intend in writing me that letter? Talking about leaving the convent - that would be suicide and you know it! This is the only place you're safe!"

"I wanted to help you!" She cried, eyes tearing up.

"I offered to let you help me once before." Touma growled. "I seem to recall that you rather emphatically declined."

The nun paled, gathering her sleeves in front of her face. "That is not the type of help I wanted to give."

"Perfect." Touma turned and stomped off again, the nun still insistently following, even out onto the front steps of the convent.

"Touma please! Are you just going to disappear for another couple years and then only return because Shuu drags you? I care about you! I think you can do better! I love you!"

It was just about then that Ryo spurred his horse and emerged from the trees. Touma saw him immediately, and rather beside himself broke into a smile.

//Let's see how he reacts to this one ...//

"Touma! What are you doing here?" Ryo demanded, completely foregoing the greeting or explaining his own presence portion of their conversation.

Touma shrugged. "Visiting." He gestured to the young girl in kimono who stood behind him in the doorway.

Ryo glanced up at her, and then did a double take. There was really no way to mistake her, with that ice blue hair and silver-grey eyes. She glanced at him nervously, face half-hidden behind the wide sleeves of her kimono, shrinking back towards the convent with small steps.

"Touma ... is that ... ?"

Touma yanked himself onto the horse with a little bit of Ryo's help, sliding arms around the older man's waist. "She's nobody. Let's go back, all right?"

The young nun turned and ran, the heavy wooden doors slamming shut with an ominous 'thunk' behind her.

"Touma!" Ryo turned just enough to look over his shoulder at the other boy. "I thought your sister was dead!!"

"She is dead." Touma muttered against Ryo's shoulder blade. "That girl is Sister Mary Francis. She's a nun. Not the sister of a mercenary."

* * *

"Good morning, Date-san."

Seiji attempted to sit up, but quickly found that he was being held down by the shoulders onto his futon. He was a light sleeper, so it was shocking in itself that someone had been able to get into his room without waking him. He blinked his eyes a few times, adjusting them to the darkness, and then looked up to see who held him.

To his right, a man with dark green hair and a sharp, glinting fangs. To his left, a man with long white hair and a black eye patch on white skin.

And standing above him was a small, violet haired girl in scant body armor, with a sai - a dagger with three points - held in each hand. She crossed her thin arms and tapped one moccasin-clad foot against the tatami mat on the floor. "Jaa, Date-san, for a man with a reputation such as yours, it was startlingly easy to get in here." She commented.

Seiji growled. "The security has been more lax since Mikitsuna's death. There's nothing to protect anymore."

"So you say. But I come here for business." She flipped her ponytail haughtily. "Where is Hashiba Touma?"

Seiji blinked. "I have no idea what you're talking about." He replied.

"Don't be silly, Date-san. Anubisu told us that he was here. He thought that he could handle Hashiba-san himself, but he was obviously mistaken. So I have been sent to do the job right. Now, where is he?"

"Ah, I see." Seiji's grin flashed white in the darkness. "You are Akuko. And who are these two, your bodyguards?"

"No." She replied. "My assistants. Naaza! Rajura!" The two men raised their eyes. "Let him up."

The two men released his shoulders, moving to stand just behind the young girl. Seiji judged her no older than thirteen, if even that, but her stance was confident and her eyes were hard. "So you want Hashiba Touma? I'm sorry, but he is no longer here." Seiji informed her calmly, sitting up on his futon and stretching the cramps from his shoulders. "And I don't have the faintest clue where he's gone. So if that is all?"

"I'm afraid that's not all." She replied, sai spinning in her hands. "You see, it has come to our attention that you were rather close to Hashiba-san."

Seiji glared, violet eyes going gun-metal silver in the faint lantern light. "I believe you are mistaken."

"Nonetheless." The girl replied. "I'm afraid that I will have to ask you to join us. Rajura, Naaza, if you would."

The two men obediently moved to lift Seiji from the floor, but the blonde was much two fast for them. One leg shot out, tripping the white-haired man, while Seiji reached out and wrapped his hands around the hilt of his wooden bokken. He spun back, slamming the hard wooden sword across the green-haired man's cheekbone, sending him reeling towards the other side of the room. The white haired man was beginning to stand; Seiji slammed the bokken down on his throat, causing him to choke and sputter blood.

Then almost before he had seen her move, the young girl held one of the silver sai against the hollow of his throat. "Very amusing, Date-san. I knew that we were right in not under-estimating you. But I'm afraid the game is over now." He eyes darted to the side just long enough to see Naaza getting to his feet. "Idiots, the both of you. Tie his hands, quickly now. I haven't got all day, and the longer we wait, the farther away Touma gets!"

The green haired man nodded silently, and a length of rope appeared out of his dark kimono. He bound Seiji's hands roughly behind him, the coarse rope biting into Seiji's delicate skin. But Seiji didn't make a sound.

"My, my. You are pretty, Date-san. Almost as pretty as Touma himself. I'm not surprised that he fancied you." She smiled. "The question is, does he fancy you enough to save you? I certainly hope so. It would be so ..." She sighed dramatically, "... romantic."

"I don't need anyone to save me." Seiji growled as the green haired man dragged him to his feet. The white haired man was also stirring, he noticed with some dismay. He must not have hit him as hard as he thought.

"No?" The girl replied conversationally. "You will."

* * *

Kaiya: Enter - Kayura!! Dun dun DUN!!!!

Djinn: And now, to clarify my usage of Japanese, Kunou Nai!! *applause*

Nai: *ahem* Wakarimasen means 'I do not know'. A ryou is a gold coin with a high value. Technically the monetary unit, based on the time period, should be the yen, but Djinn isn't that big on historical accuracy. Niisama or niisan literally means 'brother' but is commonly used as a polite form of address for a young man whose name you do not know. Niisama is more reverent. A wakizashi is a short sword, somewhat longer than a dagger, carried by samurai. The word chotto, like the word matte, means 'stop' or 'wait a minute!'. Oyasumi simply means 'good night'. Tsuukou tegata was a wooden pass, issued by the government, and somewhat comparable to a passport. It allowed the holder to travel from city to city. They were near impossible to fake. I'm sure I missed some things, but whatever.

Djinn: And now, with a word on suffixes, Rairakku Kaiya!

Kaiya: All right, -san is the everyday address, like 'Mister' Or 'Miss'. Simply polite. -sama is an address of great reverence. -kun implies familiarity, although less so than -chan, and is only really used for males. -kyo best translates as 'lord', and it is a title.

Djinn: I hope this has been enlightening for you. Ja!