Silence falls upon the room right away after Umibozu's words. It does not stay for long, however.
"I'm not going to marry anyone." She looks at her father in the eyes and replies, a resolute gleam in her gaze. Following after her prompt reply, she attempts to leave the hall, though the servants take this chance and run up to her - fussing over her hair that's flying all over the place from all the running and crinkles in her qipao. The princess holds up a hand to stop them.
"I'll be in my room now, if you'll excuse me."
The stunned maids step back, looking worriedly after their master. One of the newer maids walk up to Umibozu and is about to ask him about chasing after her, but he picks his cup.
"Leave her be." He does not turn to face his maid, instead facing the General. "I'm sorry, Great General. My daughter can get out of hand sometimes. I'll talk to her later." In return, Tokugawa gives him a sympathetic smile.
The balding father thinks he might have looked pretty cool then, but the constive look he unknowingly wears worries everyone else in the room. It's a dead give-away, and even the Shogun can't find it in himself to say anymore words of consolation in fear of hurting the Yato's paternal pride. He imitates the father and chooses to occupy himself with tea instead.
The sounds of clashing wooden swords greet a Shinsengumi morning like how birds' chirping would to civilian mornings. Shinsengumi's demon vice-commander, Hijikata Toushiro, sits on the wooden patio with his default stance of folded arms and frown, though it might just be a neutral expression of his. He watches the men that stand on the open space before him closely. They're all sparring, and since Kondo attends to paper work at this timing, he's stuck with the task of facilitating morning trainings with the other members.
He doesn't mind it much though. The mornings entitle him to several things that he can enjoy, before the day spirals into inevitable chaos like always from late noon onwards. For example, he does not need to worry about being killed, since Sougo is nowhere in sight due to his habit of sleeping into afternoons and that lessens any assassination attempts directed at him. Also, mornings give him a chance to rest from his own training done at the crack of dawn. He doesn't find mornings all that bad like how the men find it to be when they wake up looking like they were drugged the night before. In fact, when not with a hangover, the vice-commander enjoys waking up early and starting a new day at his own pace.
Hijikata continues to survey the groups of men engaged in a struggle against their swords when he's interrupted.
"Good morning, Toshi!" A cheerful Kondo arrives to stand beside Hijikata.
"Good morning, Kondo-san."
"Ah, you could tell I had something to say? You really do understand me."
"I didn't say anything… But I do know that you wouldn't be here without a particular reason."
At Hijikata's words, the commander gives a sheepish smile. His cheerful voice drops to a whisper, as if the busy Shinsengumi men will hear him.
"Yeah, I received some pretty big news, but I don't want the rest of them to know anything about it yet."
"News?"
He gives an affirmative nod. "The news came from the Shogun this morning. We have some things we need to take care of, and a person we need to protect. It's not the Shogun, though. It's going to be somebody else with a status that's as high as the Shogun. We'll have to be as careful as we can on this one, Toshi."
'Some as important as the General?' Hijikata thinks, and wants to ask about the details, though someone beats him to the punch.
"Why are you behaving so suspiciously in the morning, Hijikata-san?" Another voice cuts in; a voice that makes Hijikata cringe inside. A young man with sandy brown hair and a distinct eye mask strapped to his head appears from the shadows of the corridor, a hand casually holding on to the hilt of his sword. He holds it casually, so casually that it feels dangerous to the vice-commander. If Sougo were to whip out his sword and stab him right there and then, it might really be labeled as accidental homicide. The thought of it makes him cringe again.
"We won't tolerate insiders betraying the Shinsengumi. You really ought to die."
"Good morning, Sougo!" Kondo, painfully oblivious to the tension between the two, greets him with a bright smile.
"Morning, Kondo-san. Hey, do you need me to get rid of this guy over here?" Sougo points to Hijikata with the hilt, causing him to scowl.
"No, no! Toshi and I were just having a little chit-chat. About the weather and stuff like that. I still have other things I need to do, so I'll go first. You guys have fun!" The commander looks down at the seated vice-commander. Then, he says to Hijikata in a hushed tone, "We'll have a meeting tonight."
"Hn."
By the time the unsuspecting Kondo turns around to head back to his room, the sheathed sword in Sougo's hand is unsheathed, and he holds it steady and pointed at the back of Hijikata's head.
"Don't fool around, Sougo." The man refuses to turn his head and says flatly, as if he's repeating instructions for the nth time.
The Sadist has a mischievous glint in his eyes that rival the devil's. "I'm not fooling around."
A maid tentatively knocks on the pink door and calls out with a quivering voice.
"P-Princess… Can I come in?"
She waits for a response, and there is none.
She's growing worried – it's been a few weeks since their princess has locked herself up in her room. The meals placed at her door are the only things to assure them she's alive. She finishes them up and leaves it outside in a record speed of a few seconds, which gives them little chance to see her face. The other servants who surround the maid are just as worried.
In her room, Kagura lies on her bed, staring up blankly at the frills of her canopy bed. She doesn't bother to turn on the lights - her eyes are long adjusted to the darkness in her room and the sounds of the rain outside tapping on her windows. Turning over to her side, she grabs a bunny and pulls it closer to her.
She has that feeling again. The princess sinks her head into the softness of the bunny and curses, though it comes out muffled..
How dare he?
She chucks her Sadaharu number 6 plush across the room, taking it for Umibozu. She has been so mad with that baldie that she refuses to come out to even see his face or anyone's face, at all. Even at the age of eighteen, she hasn't gotten over the whole teenage drama phase. She's knows she's supposed to act more of her age, be more of a princess…
"Screw it!" Another Sadaharu plush flies across the room. Just then, there are knocks at the door again.
"Princess!" She hears the chef calling her, and she lies on the other side so that her back faces him. The servants don't know how much she wants to open that door and let them in. Alas, she can't. She looks straight ahead at the windows facing her, willing herself to not turn and walk over to the door.
"I really hope you're alive and well in there. How's the food? Master told us to prepare your food before he left, he's really sorry about it."
He left? Something stirs in Kagura, something that reminds her of some bad memories, but she doesn't move. Her eyes watch as the raindrops slid down the window panes, and she hears the sounds of the rain getting louder. It's chilly in her room - like the rain outside is affecting her room.
"We are all very worried about you, Princess. So if you would please, just let us in…" More voices join the chef at the door.
"Yes, princess, please…"
"The master's already gone, and we've prepared your favourite bubble bath for you."
"Please?"
The wooden pink door suddenly slams open and Kagura, whom is in a mess, stares at the servants crowded around her door. They stand back at her appearance and smell. Now that they've realized, the princess hadn't bathed for two weeks and they had to hold their breaths.
Walking past them, she headed down the hall that led to the bathroom and the servants looked back and forth at the princess and at her room. Some then scurry down to fetch new clothes, while others look at the toys that are scattered about everywhere.
Only the first Sadaharu plush sits in the middle of her bed.
With her whole body submerged in the warmth of the bubble bath, Kagura lies her head on the corner and slings a hand over the edge of the tub. Warm waters feel so different from cold ones. It doesn't count as bathing, but she puts her hand outside the window sometimes just to feel the cold droplets hit her skin when she locked herself up. It makes her fingers pruney afterwards, but she likes the cool feeling of it.
She's soaked in the bath for too long, especially when she feels her skin starting to get all wrinkly. Standing up, the Yato comes out of the waters and heads to the stands that hold her dress. It's a pink one this time, and unlike the others is a plain one. Kagura puts on the dress quickly, leaving her hair down to dry.
She opens the door and steps out, taking a few steps and then –
… a strong arm wraps around her neck and pulls her back, trapping her into a tight grip. This shocks the Yato, and she struggles, though the attacker is much stronger than her. It seems as though the more she struggles, the tighter the grip becomes.
When she remembers that she can bite their hand, it's too late. Her vision starts to fade into black.
In a tropical paradise somewhere, Ogetsu hums along to a joyful tune. Her eyes are covered by shades and she sits under the huge umbrella that is shading her from the blazing sun. With her iced drink and servants beside her, she's definitely having a good time on Para Para planet.
"Do you need anything, your Highness?" One of them asks, and she shakes her head.
"No, thank you. Though, I think I will need to make a call to Earth later," Ogetsu gives them a knowing smile. "my dear daughter should be there already."
