Disclaimer: I do not own Gintama.
As Abuto stared blankly at the rowdy men inside the room, more than half of them already drunk as hell, his mind tried to process how this event came about. It had been a week since him and his idiot of a captain had come to Earth an formed an unholy alliance with the Kiheitai.
He cocked his head to the side as an empty bottle came zooming at him from somewhere across the room. His eyes tried to discern the culprit among the men who were now openly brawling at the center of the room. A few Yato clansmen and some really, really brave or insane humans. Seriously, fighting a Yato in a drunken frenzy? The human fellows were either completely drunk or have a death wish.
Abuto likes drinking in peace, like while watching the moon, or stars, when he's in space and having calming music is an added bonus. And with him living a greater portion of his life with pirates, he really preferred to drink alone. He tossed back his drink and the courtesan beside him eagerly poured him another one. He looked at her and thought that he wouldn't mind sharing his bed with her later in the evening.
Gunshots echoed and Abuto could already guess that the lone woman in the room who wasn't a prostitute had had enough with all the jeers at her skimpy outfit. Abuto worried about the holes she's boring in the ceiling and floors. He'd have those covered up later. Yoshiwara is still a business. There was a crash and he made a mental note to replace the windows, too. The idiot captain should really learn how to take care of his property by himself.
Speaking of the devil, he was at the head of the room still locked in a silent battle of endurance with the leader of the Kiheitai, Takasugi Shinsuke. Abuto looked at the bottles littering the floor around the two. How many of those were Kamui's? He's still smiling innocently, as per normal, so maybe not that much. But there's around thirty bottles in there, and Takasugi looks as composed as ever. And they were talking, like were waiting for the other to slur.
Abuto wondered if he could consider that as Kamui's way of making friends with the guy. He wondered if he'd get killed for that thought. He just shrugged and decided to have a couple more drinks before enjoying the courtesan in his room in peace.
Takasugi has no worries about the amount of alcohol he had taken and it seems that Kamui can hold his own. The brat was clearly trying to upstage him, how childish, but Takasugi won't let him win that easily that easily. And they were nowhere near finished.
"There's really not much to do here. The food is the best, though."
Takasugi reminded himself never to let the guy stay for prolonged periods of time on his ship. The guy was worse than the plague.
"I'm sure you'd find something to do. It wasn't called a Shangri-la just for the simple pleasures it offered." He said. He knew how powerful Yoshiwara really was. And it's worth being associated with the younger man beside him.
"My men are quite glad to stay here after a drought of women when we were in space. But the pleasures women offer holds no interest for me. I have my own master as a reference."
Takasugi sipped his drink. So the kid isn't as stupid as he made him out to be. He's so simple-minded that Takasugi believed he could control the guy in no time. If he could harness Kamui's power, he could effectively destroy everything he wanted. But he'd make sure, he'll be the one to kill that man with the silver perm.
"Ah!" Kamui suddenly perked up, "There is one! I met her a few days ago. Aside from that woman with the scar, there's another one. She's quite a sight when she fights."
"She must be if she managed to catch your attention," Takasugi said. But he must have killed her already because clearly, Kamui would have tried himself against the woman if she even came off to him as someone who can put up a fight.
"Yeah. But Abuto refused to let me fight her. Said she's too much of a waste dead. She's worth a king's ransom, you know."
Now Takasugi was curious. He was talking about a mere courtesan?
"I did tell her there's someone I want her to meet. Mind showing us a bit more of your skills, Samurai-san?" Kamui's eyes glinted mischievously. Takasugi suddenly had an idea as to why the other man was trying to get him to drink. Did he think Takasugi would let himself be defeated by a woman?
"I won't be accountable for the damage," he agreed.
Kamui nodded and glanced at the wall clock, "She should be arriving any minute now."
As if on cue, the front doors opened and in came a small procession of courtesans. Kamui's men immediately broke up their fights and scrambled back to their seats, trying to make themselves look presentable while the humans just followed suit and wondered what's going on.
When the last person, whose face was covered with a veil, entered, the women in front of her moved out of the way and let her walk to the front, before they all bowed down on their knees while the veiled woman simply lowered her head before Kamui.
Kamui waved at the new arrivals, "Yo! I thought you wouldn't come."
The ladies stood up and slowly backed out of the room. The other prostitutes in the room seemed to be in awe of the veiled woman.
"There were some pressing matters that needed my immediate attention. Forgive my tardiness, Lord of the Night." She answered softly.
By now, the room was buzzing with hushed conversations. The humans were asking their Yato acquaintances who the woman was and the answers were met with whistles and sounds of awe.
Kamui leaned close to Takasugi, "If you win, I'd let you do whatever you want with her, take it as a partial payment of my debt."
"Oi, stupid captain, what do you think you're doing?" Abuto piped up from his seat. He should protect his captain's assets and this one was one hell of an asset to lose.
"Just having a little fun. Aren't you bored out of your mind too?" Kamui smiled at his subordinate.
Abuto scratched his head and sighed, not wanting to admit that he's also itching for something like this to happen. He himself lost to her yesterday when he tried to fight her. The lady had a lot more spunk than she let on. Abuto hopped Takasugi isn't too buzzed to kill the woman, though.
"I'll be fine, Abuto-sama." The woman said.
"The lady said she'll be fine, Abuto. Don't worry." Kamui stood up and Takasugi followed suit, "Then I'd like you to meet Yoshiwara's finest courtesan."
The woman slowly lifted off her veil and looked straight at the guest. Her gasp of surprise was swallowed by the cat calls, wolf whistles and appreciative sounds that erupted when everyone saw her face. Nor did they notice Takasugi take a half-step back and his eyes widen in surprise for a moment before they returned to their normal piercing stare. He was no longer smiling.
But their reactions were not lost to Kamui, who raised an eyebrow, "Oya, do you know each other?"
The woman fell out of her stupor, "I…I…My name is Miwa."
"Or perhaps not? You do have wanted posters everywhere."
Takasugi was not paying attention to him. His gaze was fixed on the woman still staring at him but not with the initial surprise he saw on her face but, he thought, with the same look he probably had on his face. There was nothing there to give him a hint of what's going through her head.
Her hair was longer than he dared to remember, cascading beautifully along her back in straight golden threads. She used to flaunt its straightness at her brother, who has a perm. She did not wear her hair in a tight up-do like the other courtesans, but just adorned it with a jeweled comb he was equally surprised she still had in her possession. He had thought it was lost to the ages, just like she was. The clothes she wore made her look like a princess, just like she had secretly dreamed about when she was younger.
Her eyes.
Her lips.
Exactly the way she looked like in the memories he thought he had locked away forever at the back of his mind. They were now re-emerging unbidden, the memories he thought he had destroyed before he walked down this path.
She, on the other hand, wasn't shocked by his appearance. She knew how he looked like after all these years. She had his wanted poster framed in her private room after all. Miwa silently cursed Kamui but she knew it was her fault. She never really gave a damn about names, especially of men who comes down to Yoshiwara for her. She knew better than to get attached to them. She had seen too many women ruin themselves for men who give them even a sliver of hope for a life outside this hell-hole. It's better not knowing anything about such men.
But damn, she should have known better than to blindly obey Kamui. She shouldn't have let Takasugi see her this way. What she had to stoop to in order to survive. In order to be able to wait, and wait and wait.
"Shinsuke-sama will wipe the floor with your face, bitch!" Makoto called over the din of noise.
Her two companions, however, also saw Takasugi's initial reaction upon seeing the woman and thought better than to say anything at the moment. Whatever's about to happen will be a first for them. They could already guess that the woman and Takasugi had a past, but what exactly? He seemed to hate anything concerning his past, like his two Ex-Joui comrades they had plenty of run-ins with.
Kamui observed the two samurai at hand. He wanted to fight them both but they were both quite valuable to certain groups of people. He's not really afraid to incur these people's wrath and he'd gladly welcome more fights but even he knows he had to control his urges. He's Yato. It's easy to get what he wants anytime so if wouldn't matter if he'd had to wait for a few years. Kamui turned back to Miwa. She was beautiful alright. And despite looking so damn fragile and vulnerable right now, he knew she's hiding some strength within her body like he saw when some of his men tried to barge into her room yesterday. The first time he saw her, she was soaked in blood, with a feral look in her eyes. That was when his men knew better than to toy with prostitutes. Miwa reminded him so much of Takasugi, he was itching to see who would win if the two ever fought.
"Why don't you start?" Kamui asked, taking a seat.
A courtesan stood up from among the sidelines and helped Miwa shrug off her outer garments revealing an outfit much like the women of the Hyakka wore. Another courtesan tied her hair into a neat bun for her. At her side, a sword was sheathed. Takasugi wasn't surprised to see the sword at her side, he knew it could never be separated from her.
He picked up his own sword and stepped towards her until there was just five feet between them.
"There's no time limit. We fight until one of us surrenders. Just drop the sword if you want to give up." Miwa automatically laid out her rules. 'This isn't a customer I'm talking to, this is Shinsuke, for God's sake, calm down, Miwa, don't embarrass yourself. Oh sheesh…' she suddenly thought her outfit was too skimpy. 'Why the hell am I wearing fishnet stockings tonight? I look like a goddamed prostitute! Oh wait, I am one.' She blamed herself for getting Tsukuyo choose her casual clothes. She suddenly regretted not giving enough care about her clothes before.
Takasugi smirked when her cheeks reddened. She had always been a creature of habit and he knows she can't help it, that's why she embarrasses easily when she catches herself doing something again and again unconsciously. She never changed. And he remembered something Bansai said about Gintoki.
"Right now and back then, the only thing I've been fighting to protect hasn't changed one bit!"
"You never change, like your stupid brother." He said.
She barely had time to react to his statement before the glint of his drawn sword swinging towards her head entered her vision. She jumped back and all other thoughts flew out of her mind except for the fighting instincts and the desperation, always the desperation. She must win.
And Kamui watched transfixed as she transformed from a fragile lady to a dangerous killer, her eyes losing their innocent gleam in exchange for a sharp look that seemed like nothing can escape her gaze. He thought she was more beautiful this way.
Nobody in the room moved as the two clashed, their frenzied movements felt like they were dealing death blows with every swing. The men who hadn't seen her fight before had their libidos crushed instantly. They quickly realized that she'd sooner chop their balls off than even think about pouring them a drink.
For the first few minutes they thought it was an even fight but a few moments later it seemed like Takasugi was beginning to own her. Then she started swinging more violently with such force that Takasugi was forced to defend and move back.
Miwa panted, tired out not because of fighting physically but from the mental battle she was fighting with herself. She wanted to stop fighting but her instincts were making her body move on its own, in a stern refusal to lose. After years of playing with high stakes, her body was driving her to leave no chance of her opponent winning.
'But this is Shinsuke…this is Shinsuke!'
With a shaking hand, she dropped her sword just as he was bringing down his own at her. The blade stopped an inch before cutting through her left shoulder. He raised an eyebrow.
The room was silent. Kamui pouted, 'Ah. She threw it.'
And then, tears fell down her cheeks as she stood there staring at Takasugi.
Takasugi watched the tears travel down her face. He sheathed his sword and went back to his seat, tossing back a cup of sake as he sat down. She was still standing there, silent, casting off a pitiful figure like a kicked puppy. He had seen her cry…made her cry so many times he can't even count. He clenched his fists and pretended to ignore her. She's no longer any concern of his.
"And you were almost at the good part," Kamui piped beside him, "But a win is a win. She's yours."
"Not interested. I'm leaving." After another swig of sake, he stood up and walked out of the room, passing her without sparing her another glance. She was still crying silently.
The Kiheitai members piled out of the room after their leader. Miwa wiped her tears with her sleeves. Some prostitutes walked over to comfort her.
"Nothing's going to change if you just stand there and wait," Kamui said out of the blue. He seemed surprised such words came from his mouth so he just kept his gaze away from her.
Then suddenly, as if light had dawned on her features, Miwa ran out of the room.
Abuto looked after her then at Kamui who was pretending to be asleep on the floor. "Oi, what was that about?"
"Nothing," Kamui answered, yet his mind was contemplating why he told her so. But all that came to mind was the memory of a gentle voice and an equally gentle pat on his head.
Outside the room, Miwa pushed herself to the front of the small crowd of Kiheitai people until she reached Takasugi and his officers. The woman admonished her instantly.
"What are you chasing us for, you lowly-," her mouth was instantly covered by Bansai, who pulled her away from the two.
"Shinsuke…Shinsuke…" she found that she doesn't know what to say. She has a ton of things to say she doesn't know where to start. After waiting for her to say something and she still didn't, Takasugi turned around and continued on his way.
"Do what you want, it's your life."
She watched his back as he walked away from her. His small group followed closely after him.
Matako escaped from Bansai's grasp, glared at her then went to walk beside Takasugi.
Bansai and Henpeita observed her as she looked sadly at their leader's back.
"That must mean you want to follow him, I daresay." Bansai said.
Miwa nodded.
Bansai and Henpeita shrugged and decided they could just kill her if she poses a threat. They were both curious about her relationship with Takasugi. Besides, having the greatest courtesan of Yoshiwara can prove to be beneficial if they use her right.
Miwa was given a small room inside the Kiheitai's ship. It was bare except for a small dresser and a table. A futon was folded at a corner and a bathroom and toilet was shared with the next room which she figured was Matako's seeing the scented soaps and shampoos in the bathroom cabinet. It suddenly had a lock on her second day there.
Miwa thought about Matako. She doesn't seem to be romantically involved with Shinsuke, though it's obvious she's open to the idea. Matako hates Miwa more than anything on the ship, that much she knows. She can't remember how many times the girl had come into her room and tried to kill her or just came to throw insults. She seemed to be more fired up when Miwa just stares blankly at her.
And in the past three weeks, Matako wasn't the only one who frequented her room. There were also plenty of men. Men who should have known better than to try and grab her. They were sent flying out her door with broken limbs. She made it a point not to kill them. They were, after all, Takasugi's subordinates. And with the rate they're going, she would have wiped out half his men already if she was serious.
That was another reason she barely touched any food not brought to her by Bansai or Henpeita. But both of them hadn't been to her room in a day and a half now. She's hungry and a little bit thirsty. And she wasn't about to start wandering outside her room, she's already dubious enough as it is.
She had not seen any sign of Takasugi at all. She wasn't even sure of he was on the ship. She wondered about what he was doing. Did you go to kill again?
She fell asleep on the tatami from hunger and fatigue.
She woke up the next day because of a light rapping at her door. She straightened herself and beckoned the visitor to enter. The door slid open to reveal Bansai with a breakfast tray. Her stomach growled at the sight of the food.
"I was told that you haven't eaten anything for two days and you haven't left the room at all." He placed the tray in front of her and sat down.
"When they stop coming here with erections, I'll consider eating what they bring me." She answered, "Thank you for the food," and she gobbled it up happily.
Bansai sighed. Some men really needed to be taught tougher lessons. "I'll show you the way to the kitchen when you're done so you won't have to starve yourself waiting for me," he said.
"I'd appreciate that," she finished the bowl of rice. She had always been a fast eater, "Where have you been?"
"We were in space for a firearms deal with the Kaientai." Bansai answered as he stood up and picked up the tray to return to the kitchen. Miwa followed him into the hall. It was the first time she walked out of her room since she entered the ship. It's not the first time she'd stayed in a room for prolonged periods of time. She remembered her younger days when Hosen ruled Yoshiwara. He locked her up quite a lot.
As they toured the ship, Bansai pointed out places like his room, Shinsuke's room-which she memorized, the mess hall, laundry area, training room and finally, the kitchen.
There were three men running the kitchen and they were all family. The oldest man was the grandfather while the two younger were his grandsons.
"My son was executed for being Joui patriots. I want to see change, that's why I help in the way I can. The people here are like my family." The old man said. He was well-mannered and gentle. Miwa doesn't know what to make of his willingness to be involved with terrorists.
"You make all the food for the people in this ship everyday?" Miwa asked.
"There's really not that many that had to eat here. Most of them have homes to go back to and only come up here occasionally."
"I see. Can I help? I like cooking."
The old man raised an eyebrow at her and then turned to Bansai who just nodded. The old man smiled, "Then I'd appreciate the beautiful help. Welcome to the kitchen family." He and his grandsons bowed at Miwa. She bowed in return.
"Thank you. Please guide me accordingly."
When they left the kitchen, she was ecstatic. Maybe she can use the pretense of serving him food in order to catch a glimpse of Shinsuke? She was so looking forward to making him dinner. She wasn't trained to be a first-rate courtesan just for show.
"You seem to be in high spirits, if I may say so. Do you like cooking that much?" Bansai asked.
"Yes, I do. But that's not the only reason." She grinned, "Hey, are you going out today?"
"I have a meeting at the recording company before lunch. As you know, my day job is to produce music."
She eyed the instrument strapped to his back, "Can I go out with you? I have a few errands I want to do." She pleaded with him. Her personal necessities were running out and she doubted Matako would ever share. She sometimes locks her out of the bathroom too and Miwa had to learn how to pick a lock.
"I can. Where do you want to go?"
"Supermarket." And then she got to thinking, "Ramen house…pizza parlor…family restaurant…ice cream parlor…" she count
d on her fingers, "I haven't tried that frozen yogurt too…and I'd like to sit in a park bench." She finished with an excited gleam in her eyes.
Bansai raised an eyebrow, "Have you ever been to the surface before you came here?"
Miwa shook her head like a child.
Bansai smiled and patted her head, "I don't know if you have enough time for all of that today, but you don't have to hurry, I'll just take you again next time."
"Really?! Then the amusement park too! Oh, and the cinema! Is ********* still playing right now? I want to watch that one!" she said giddily.
Bansai thought he must have misheard her. Did she really just say what he thinks she said? "I…I doubt the theaters here have that. Sorry to step on your parade."
"Eh? Then how about ********? And *********? My favorite movie is ***********!" she said in a voice so innocent, Bansai felt his mind crack.
He laughed nervously, "Thor 2 is playing right now. Everybody likes that. Why don't we watch that?"
Miwa's eyes sparkled. "Ooh? Is *********** in there? She's my favorite actress!"
She's definitely not in there. "Ice cream sounds good right now. Why don't we head there first?" his head was throbbing. The woman was a Yoshiwaran through and through.
"I'll go grab my money real quick. Wait for me at the deck." With that, she turned and ran back to her room where she just grabbed the purse on the small table.
She was running back to Bansai when she saw Takasugi walking towards her. She stopped and opened her mouth to say something, maybe a greeting or a dinner invitation. But before she could even find the right words, he had passed her, pipe in mouth, like she wasn't there at all. He didn't even bother sparing her a glance. She closed her lips tightly as she watched his back disappear at a corner. She didn't how long she stood there after he's gone until Bansai called out to her to hurry up.
She enjoyed the afternoon tremendously. While Bansai was at the meeting, Miwa got her things at the supermarket. They arranged to meet for lunch in the family restaurant across Bansai's office building. After that, he took her to the ice cream parlor and then they sat at a park bench all afternoon, pranking random passersby and Bansai teaching Miwa how to ride a bicycle.
It was Bansai who was exhausted by the time they made it back to the ship before sunset. She was still full of energy, a little worn and scratched, but extremely happy.
"Can you teach me rollerblading next time?" she giggled excitedly.
Bansai groaned. Taking the woman out was like taking a new puppy for a walk. She tended to follow weird things, ogle at random people, and eat anything remotely edible (Bansai had a harder time wresting such things from her hands). When he was teaching her to ride a bicycle (she actually insisted on the unicycle first), she 'accidentally' steered into a steep hill and he chased after her in a panic. The bicycle threw her off when it hit the pavement at the bottom of the hill. She was laughing heartily when he pulled her out of the bushes.
"Wow! Again! Again!" she had exclaimed but found the bike was broken beyond repair. The man at the rentals screamed at them for a good ten minutes. Bansai was still paying for the damages when she started rattling about rollerblades.
The self-proclaimed feminist-not-pedophile greeted them at the entranceway, "I'm glad to see the lady happy, but may I inquire why you are coming home in such a state?" he threw Bansai his normal creepy blank look, his jaw set.
"I got thrown off a bicycle earlier into some thorny bushes," Miwa explained.
"Hm. You better get cleaned up then. Lord Kamui is here and would like you to join him for dinner."
Miwa, who was getting her bags from Bansai, stopped, "Eh? But I'm cooking dinner."
"Dinner preparations are complete. Please freshen up and proceed to the hall. This ship is leaving port for a while." The feminist turned and walked away.
Miwa was frustrated at the missed opportunity to get closer to Takasugi and with her shoulders slumped she told Bansai to go ahead while she deposits the food in her bags in the kitchen, "Don't bother waiting up. I need a bath." She projected a sorry figure as she headed to the kitchen.
Bansai sighed and headed to the hall.
Almost an hour later, Miwa, dressed up in one of her more formal kimonos, her hair combed straight and her scratches covered with light make-up, entered the hall. She gave a customary bow as she passed the doorway and another bow when she approached Kamui.
"I'm happy to see you well, King of the Night." She gave Kamui a smile, "It's an honor that you took the time to visit."
Kamui waved at her dismissively, "No, it wasn't me. Abuto won't stop yapping about you since you left so he dragged me here to check on you."
"Oi, oi, look at the pot calling the kettle black." Abuto said beside him.
Miwa turned to Abuto, bowed and smiled, "I'm sorry for worrying you, Abuto-sama. But I'm fine, as you can see."
"Weren't you listening to me? I said it wasn't me!" Abuto said.
"It's okay, we understand. She's your Genesis, right?" Kamui piped.
"Is that so? I'm so sorry, Abuto-sama, I can't return your feelings." She covered her mouth with her fan and turned her gaze away. She seemed like she's trying to cover up her shyness though there's a really dead look in her eyes.
"Oi, why am I getting rejected? When did I confess to you?"
"Ah. I think you broke his heart." Kamui added.
"But to compare me to a Genesis, how old does he think he is?" Miwa said indignantly.
"Okay…now you're breaking my heart. Will you stop it? You want to see this old man cry? For two idiots who dislike each other, you sure work together quite well. Did I miss some kind of crazy development?"
"Abuto isn't old. He's still at that stage where he has weird dreams about the girl he likes every night."
"He has weird dreams about me every night?! I'll call the cops!"
"Oi! Haven't you heard a word I said? Listen when others are talking, you unfeeling bastards!"
Kamui continued to eat and Miwa giggled. She then turned to Takasugi who was ignoring their tirades. He was just sitting there silently eating his dinner and occasionally swatting Kamui's chopstciks when it wanders into his food. 'I wish I made his food. At least then we'd have something to talk about.'
From the other side of the room, Bansai saw Miwa watching Takasugi for a long moment with that sad look of hers, with her mouth slightly agape as if desperately wanting to start talking but she can't. But like all her other tries, she just ended up turning away. 'What does she want to tell him so badly?' he wondered.
Since then, Bansai found himself counting the times she'd see Takasugi and would start to say something but hesitate in the end. It happened everytime the two met.
It took him three weeks to find enough time to take her out again. Three weeks that things seemed to suddenly get hectic around the Kiheitai. Jobs that wouldn't normally go to him were finding their way to him. Well, the reason was always because they were short-handed. It seems the number of idiots pissing off Miwa is still quite substantial, and they were getting more persistent lately.
"Ha! They can't even compare to the perverts I fend off at Yoshiwara every day! But they're good practice though." She ate a spoonful of frozen yogurt Bansai bought for her, "Oh, this is great! Anyway, they can't blame me for not showing any mercy. If they were doing this to any other woman, I would have cut their balls off and fed it to them, "she said with a face that made Bansai suspect she's done it before.
"It's a good lesson for the men, I daresay."
They were currently resting for a while in the park, sitting on a bench across a sunglasses wearing homeless guy Miwa was chatting up earlier until she realized the man was asleep the whole time.
Miwa nodded, "Hm. I can't even imagine what a nightmare it must have been for Matako when she first arrived there. Must be why she's always so angry and pushy." She chewed on the strawberry on her yogurt.
Bansai stared at her and then decided against saying something. In his mind, he can't remember a time when Matako had the same problem as Miwa.
She stood up and stretched, "What a nice day!" she relished the warmth of the sun on her face, "Let's go walk around some more!" and she was already walking away before he could even process what she said.
"Oh? What's that?" he heard her exclaim before he caught up to her.
"It's a skateboard, Miss." Was the dreaded answer.
Bansai froze. Did Miwa's eyes just glint at him evilly when she turned back to him with an equally wicked grin on her face?
Later that afternoon, Miwa and Bansai were just walking around the streets of Kabuki-chou, watching the bars come to life for the coming of the night.
"It's just like Yoshiwara, I guess." Miwa observed the people and places they passed by. It's just like Yoshiwara, but there was more freedom in the air.
Bansai's phone rang. "It's from the recording company. Why don't you walk ahead while I take this? I'll catch up with you later." He told her.
"Take your time. I think I want to stop at that snack bar ahead."
He nodded and walked away.
As she approached the Snack Bar, her heart was racing and her palms were sweating. She twirled her umbrella faster, as if that would calm her. Otose's Snack, the sign said. And above that would be…she dared look up, "Yorozuya Gin". She stopped in front of the building, just staring at the sign.
She had heard so much about this place from Tsukuyo and Hinowa. She knew he was there for a long time now. But she didn't run out to see him. Even when he'd saved Yoshiwara and she had been freed from Hosen, she didn't show her face to him. She wondered how he'd react if she suddenly showed up. Would he recognize her? Did he think she was dead? Did he ever look for her, wonder where she was?
Did you hate me for not keeping our promise? She knew he wouldn't.
"Excuse me, Miss. Is there something we can help you with?" a voice said.
Miwa averted her eyes from the sign to see a glasses wearing teenage boy and a bright haired girl with a giant dog, 'Oh…Shimura Shinpachi and Kamui-sama's little sister, Kagura-sama. The dog is Sadaharu…I think.'
The boy blushed when her gaze lingered a little longer on him and she smiled, "Is Sakata Gintoki here?" she asked.
The girl snorted, "That good for nothing lazy perm, what did he do this time? And to a lady, nonetheless! Tsk. Adults these days are so hard to control."
"For someone who was trying to beat up a policeman not even ten minutes ago, you can talk," a dead pan voice said.
"Ah. Okita-san." Shinpachi greeted.
"Shut up, Sadist! Want another beating?" Kagura aimed her fists at him.
Sougo just eyed her nonchalantly, "As much as I like our little throwdowns, I'm quite busy right now." He walked past the irate girl who puffed her cheeks in annoyance. Sougo stopped before Miwa, "Heard you're looking for Danna. Did he refuse to pay you after last night or something? You know, I can throw him in the slammer for you."
Only Miwa could see his expression, but right now, there was a menacing aura about the guy she can't place. He was looking at her like a predator waiting for his prey to walk into his trap. She tapped the sword concealed in her clothes and smiled innocently at the young officer, "Nothing of the sort, officer."
He smirked at her, "I doubt Danna can afford to catch even a glimpse of you anyway, " then he inched closer so only she could hear, "So I'd be very careful if I were you, lady. Terrible things happen to pretty little things like you in prison." And he walked away with a wave, "Not that I would mind, of course."
Miwa clenched her fists, shaking with silent rage. How dare he insult her like that? How much does he know about her?
"Tsk. That stupid sadist."
"Now, now, Kagura-chan," Shinpachi calmed her down before turning to the woman, "Gin-san is upstairs right now. Would you like to come up?" he offered.
Miwa found herself shaking her head. Now's not the best time. Now that she knew she could get out of Yoshiwara anytime, she could just see him anytime. But right now, she had other things to do. Gintoki would have to wait until she settled things with Takasugi. No matter how long it takes. Then she'd come running as fast as she could to see him.
"No need to. Just tell him Miwa is going to see him soon." She bid them goodbye and went her way.
Shinpachi watched her disappear in the crowd, "I wonder who she is."
Kagura shrugged and trudged up the steps to the Yorozuya, "I dunno. Probably the mysterious girlfriend in Gin-chan's love-love arc he'd been wishing for a long time now."
"Eh?! What are you talking about? We're doing a Gin-chan love-love arc?" Shinpachi raced after her.
"What's all this talk about Gin-chan's love-love arc? Is it starting? Am I suddenly going to be popular? If this is going to be a repeat of that prank you guys pulled last year, I'm going to make gorillas extinct!" Gintoki poked his head in the doorway. He seemed to have come fresh from the shower.
"Oh, Gin-san, there was a really beautiful woman looking for you earlier," Shinpachi said as he pushed back Gintoki's head and entered the house.
Gintoki immediately followed them to the couch, "Beautiful?! We're talking about a woman, right? A real woman?"
"She said she was going to see him soon, yes?" Kagura picked her nose nonchalantly as she flipped through channels on their tv.
Gintoki was in a whole new world, "This must be it, isn't it? Gin-chan's love-love arc for real?! Gin-chan's finally going to be popular?!" he posed dramatically, "Did she say anything about me?"
"Hm..she just said to tell you that Miwa is going to see you see. I'm not sure if that's her name or—Gin-san?" Shinpachi did not even notice when Gintoki stopped listening and ran out of the house.
The two raced after him and watched from the balcony as Gintoki looked left and right through the crowded street frantically, "Shinpachi, which way did she go?" he shouted.
"Eh? Ah. There. But-," before he could finish again, Gintoki was already running in the direction he pointed.
"Oi! What's that idiot's problem?" Otose came out of the bar. The two upstairs shrugged.
They waited for Gintoki to come back, but he was dead drunk when Madao lugged him back to the house at three in the morning.
"Miwa…" he murmured as they laid him on his futon.
"Who's Miwa, Gin-san?" Shinpachi asked almost to himself.
Then came the answer the two of them didn't expect to hear that caught them and Sa-chan-san(who was hiding in the ceiling waiting for a chance to strike at the drunk Gintoki) in surprise, "My precious sister….Miwa."
She made her way back to the docks, this time more vigilant. Whether the policeman is bluffing or not, she can't risk getting caught. She had so much to do now that she could live the way she intended to right from the very start.
Bansai was waiting for her at the walkway connecting the ship to the harbor, "Had to take a rain check, I daresay," he walked her to the ship.
"I figured after the policeman accosted me that we're not meeting up again,"
They had rounded a corner when they saw Takasugi approaching. Miwa stopped. Takasugi was smoking his pipe and seemed nonchalant about his surroundings, or maybe just her in particular.
"Good afternoon, Shinsuke," she greeted, "Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?" she asked.
Takasugi just kept walking, "I'm going out tonight," was all he said to her, or more like to Bansai or even to the air.
"But…I have so many things to tell you about and I would be happy if you could spare me even a little bit of your time," she insisted.
"I have no time for your frivolities. Go back to Yoshiwara,, courtesan."
"How…how about tomorrow night? Or the next night? When are you free?" she pressed on. We can't go around in circles anymore, Shinsuke. Gintoki is waiting for me.
Takasugi was gone.
Miwa slumped her shoulders in defeat, "Ah…I screwed it up."
Bansai slid the door to her room open for her, "Forgive me for prying, but what is your deal with Shinsuke?"
Miwa sat on the windowsill and fanned herself as Bansai sat down on the tatami, "Shinsuke and I…we were childhood friends," she answered as she looked out at the sunset making the sea glisten orange.
Bansai raised an eyebrow, "Now, this I'd like to hear, I daresay,"
Miwa smirked, "It's quite a long boring story. Sure you won't fall asleep on me?"
Bansai smiled at her reassuringly.
She sighed and started her story, "I was orphaned at a young age, you see. Then my mother's twin brother, Ishida Shouyo, came for me. I met Shinsuke when I was nine and he was eleven. He was studying under the tutelage of my uncle with Katsura Kotaro and Sakata Gintoki…my adoptive brother."
So how was it? :) This has been stuck in my head for a really long time. And I'm stressed out right now so I thought I'd write to declutter my mind. Thanks for reading. Reviews are appreciated. ")