Mmm. I am utterly pleased with myself. I hold my newly bought package in my arms as I walk down the streets. This should be enough to last me a while....

When suddenly, I catch a glimpse of someone familiar*.

... Very familiar.

(Of all the people!)

"Yamazaki, care to explain what the hell is going on with the fucking ninja stalkers?"

Well, I'm not THAT angry over that incident yesterday morning.

But I'd like to know exactly what's going on.

* permission given to spot susu

After leaving the home of Yukiko-san, I go to pick up dinner and then make an unscheduled stop at a particular store.

It seems they don't have the seven-shot gun things, so I take what they have, as well as the bag that Kakunoshin-san gave me, and head towards the hanamachi district, hoping when I get home that Shin-san will be there.

With the wind blowing, I clutch the coverlet around my hair and walk quickly, still mindful that there might be people about looking for me or my brother.

I wake with a start from a dream of ducks. Ducks, ducks, ducks, swimming around my head in circles.

She will come to me again, I know. If I were still the man I was, I would go to her instead. But now -- I do not know.

One thing has not changed, however. I am not a man who likes to wait.

The empty future lies before me -- no, not empty. There is Ayu. There is our son. Yoshi and Sayuri.

Is it enough?

I think of the village, and my flock of ducks and children. I am no teacher. Ika-sensei... what a ridiculous thought. Did I think I could replace Sensei, carry on his legacy? What a fool I was.

The children loved me, yes, but I am no teacher. I have no patience. I am not Sensei. I, of all of us --! Kusaka or Yoshida, perhaps! But they are dead, as Katsura is dead.

Of course I am being a fool still. The list of those who live is longer: Kyousuke, Matsu, Himura, Yajirou... quite a few of those damned Wolves...

But to Kyousuke and Yajirou I might as well be dead. And men change. I have changed. Himura has found his happiness.

And where am I?

What now, Sensei?

*exits to wander*

The dirt crunches under my feet, as I walk through the streets, the straw hat poised over my face to guard it against the curious.

From Ueno Park, where the Shogitai fell, fighting against the end of the era -- one that would eliminate the shogun and hand power back to the man who we all bow to and call Emperor... from there I wander the streets looking for things of Edo past, and the man who was sensei.

His death triggered the beginning of this world, in a way. And so I must walk his path, and think his thoughts, and wonder if this world that has come into being is indeed, righteous.

To Demmacho I must walk, and contemplate, whether his death was also righteous.

After walking Sekihara-san home, I sit down under a tree, and unfold the note I've been carrying around since yesterday morning.

Did you think you could replace those whom you lost so easily?

There is a doodle of a duck paddling around some reeds at the bottom of the paper. And, as always, the scent of orange blossoms, vague but unmistakable.

I think of fear and birds and wonder what happened to all those missing hours. I do not worry -- no blood will be shed, if only for the sake of old memories. But I think of darkness and fear.

Is she waiting? What is she waiting for? No one can wait forever...

And when it comes, what then? What does the future hold for us now? I am old, and Katsura is dead.

I am old, and I am tired...

I fall asleep, and I do not dream.

(ooc: is sleeping until someone wakes him up or i move him elsewhere...)

The Kamiya Dojo is a festival of lights tonight, with every lantern in the dojo lit to welcome guests to the celebration of the marriage of Kaoru and Kenshin.

The Front Gate is open, and Yahiko is stationed here as a position of honor to greet guests and keep their weapons for them while they are in attendance at the party. (The other gates are locked.)

Welcome to the Wedding Reception!

(Time: 12 - 2 am
2 to 4 am - Unless you live at the Kamiya Dojo, time to call it a night! )

No characters are in the courtyard at midnight.

Read the Oct 8 Courtyard Wedding Thread here.

Sit and look at the stars, or eat your dinner here if the dojo is crowded. Visit with old friends and make new ones. Laugh, talk, flirt, argue, and steal a kiss under the moon.

(Time: 12 - 2 am
2 to 4 am - Unless you live at the Kamiya Dojo, time to call it a night!)

Aoshi and Misao have also moved with this thread.

Read the Oct 8 Engawa Wedding Thread here.

More food and drink are here. If you don’t find what you want in the Dojo, come and look here in Hiko’s private stores. Make some fresh tea. Help out if it’s needed. Or just talk and enjoy the warmth of the Kaymiya Dojo kitchen – the heart of the newlywed’s home.

(Time: 12 - 2 am
2 to 4 am - Unless you live at the Kamiya Dojo, time to call it a night!)

Tae has also moved to this thread.

Read the Oct 8 Kitchen Wedding Thread here.

Finally I find a bookstore that is actually open. A certain scroll painting catches my eye. It's unsigned, but seems to be based on a Hiroshige work depicting a pair of mandarin ducks.

Perfect.

I buy it, as well as preprepared ink, an inkstand, a brush, and extra paper. And well. I also request a book of shunga by Yanagawa Shigenobu* when I think Ayu isn't looking.

Then I look for somewhere with some space to kneel down and a relatively smooth surface, preferrably with not as many people around....

And start setting up the ink and the rest of my materials. Should be quick --

When I am done, I dip the brush in some water, softening the hair. Then I pour some ink into the inkstand and test the darkness on the extra paper. Only when I am satisfied do I unroll the scroll, pinning it flat with a few heavy rocks.

In the upper left corner, I write, in thick, bold strokes: **

I almost sign it with a doodle of a squid... but instead write いか. (Ika)

I sit back to survey the results. My calligraphy may not be as nice as Katsura's... but, it'll do.

"What do you think?" I ask Ayu.

* link not appropriate for kiddies!!!!
** http://www.zein.se/patrick/chinen11p.html

Taking the two boys with me shopping for presents should have been a relaxing repose. Now I'm beginning to regret my decision.

Souji, what the hell were you thinking?

An hour into it, and I feel like I've aged three-fold from running around trying to get them to stay in one place. First, leaving Chiriko-chan to clean the whirlwind they left with all the different paper flora and fauna strewn about, then the splashing mess they made during bathtime, and now I'm eating dust from their shuffling slippers. I was--I AM--the First Captain of the Shinsengumi, the best sons Japan has ever bred. I've hunted down the scum of the streets...and here I am at my prime unable to keep up with two children. Children.

...Where did they run off to this time?!

"Tsutomu! Tsuyoshi! Wait! Don't go in there!"


[ children are going crazy! read: help wanted ]