"I am not what you see,
I am what time and effort and interaction has to unveil."
Chapter Two : Closer to you
No matter how much Rokuro tried to forget it, the conversation with Shimon kept playing in head again and again like a broken tape. Rokuro had never been good with families since he never had one of his own and he knew that his way of talking was a little, well..harsh.
And here he was, having to go to the house of his 'could be - would be' wife, without the said person with him. The closer he went to her past, the lonlier he felt and now he was heading straight down the road to hell. Rokuro turned to look at Mayura, who looked equally lost in her thoughts. Though there was a hint of something else on her face.Fear.
Rokuro had been told by Jisamma once before that since Seigen married a woman from the mainland who didn't belong to any noble family,so his marriage was never accepted by the Amawaka clan, and so they had never even seen Mayura, but they disliked her anyway. To Rokuro it all just seemed foolish. Fake families, fake relationships, fake dreams. Everyone on the island just seemed to live a life with no actual motivation. It made it hard to believe that people like Benio, Seigen and Shimon were born and raised here.
He sighed as he continued to exorcise impurities, hoping his time at the island wouldn't end in disaster .
It had been a week since Rokuro and Mayura left for the island. And in that time all you could say about the Seika Dormitory was.Quiet. Ryogo had often wondered if it was alright for Rokuro to leave Benio-san behind in this state. She barely ever came out and kept practicing till early morning hours. But it was all in vain. She had completely lost her spiritual powers and with everyday, she kept looking worse.
She ate less, barely ever came down and only left her room at midnight when every one was asleep. He felt like talking to her, telling her it was alright, as usual feeling like a responsible elder brother, but he knew that those weren't the words she wanted to hear. She wanted to go where Rokuro was and that was something he couldn't help with so he didn't ever tell her anything, just watched her in silence,praying she'd be fine, though he knew she was anything but.
Benio lay on the ground huffing and puffing, tired after practicing non stop for 6 hours. She rested on the floor of the gym, sweat dripping down her exhausted and malnourished body. She remembered everytime she came here before, in the middle of the night to check for an idiot and always found him sleeping on the cold hard floor, passed out from rigorous practice. She never understood how he could sleep there. The thought of it was chilling. She always felt horrible even sitting there. Memories of Rokuro passed in front of her eyes. 'Tell me, Rokuro, do you miss me too?' she asked, not expecting an answer. Oh,how weak she had become! Just his memories brought tears to her eyes. Benio curled herself on the cold hard floor,in the warm memories of a boy and shut her eyes. Maybe for this one time in her entire lifetime,the cold didn't affect her. Perhaps this once, she could fall asleep on that floor. She could sleep soundly, protected by the warmth that his memories brought to her.
Rokuro got up in the middle of the night, walking out of his room and aimlessly into the hall. Tomorrow, first thing in the morning, he would have to depart for the Adashino house. He had mixed feelings. There was a thirst in him to know more about her and then a slight fear that the knowledge would only make it all worse for him.
He stood on the wooden floor that led to the central garden of the guest house , seemingly oblivious to the two people standing at a distance, looking right at him.
"He really does miss her, doesn't he?." Mayura said to Shimon, as they watched Rokuro from a distance, looking at his sad face as he looked at the red coloured flowers in front of him. It had become a kind of a ritual for Rokuro to look at those flowers every night with sad eyes and it intrigued Mayura to the point where she had to know why. And then she found out."I think we really should have waited for Adashino-san and then come together." Mayura completed her sentence.
" Missing someone is a part of loving them," Shimon said, leaning against the wall of the guest house with his eyes shut. "If you're never apart, you'll never really know how strong your love is."
"The reason he looks at those flowers so sadly, do you know?" Mayura asked Shimon, who then opened his eyes to look at Rokuro lovingly stroke one of the petals, a nostalgic look in his eyes. He didn't utter a word, waiting for her to continue. "Those flowers are called "Scarlets". There is a word in Japanese for it too. The word for scarlet girl is a name in Japanese." She said. Shimon no longer required an explanation. He didn't need to be told who's name it was. It was obvious.
The word for 'scarlet girl'. Benio
Morning was coming soon. The morning where Mayura and Rokuro would go to face their fears. And Shimon could only hope for the best.
Rokuro stepped out of his room. All ready for going to the Adashino family house. He wasn't supposed to take all his luggage with him for the visit, though once he was welcomed in, he'd have his luggage sent to him. But unlike him, Mayura had already taken her luggage with her,since she was going to her own father's house.
"Are the two of you ready? " Both of them turned their heads in the direction of the sound. Standing there, in his traditional clothes was Shimon. Rokuro was wearing a grey coloured hoody and black jeans. He had spent all morning wondering what he should wear but ended up deciding on a simple attire. Mayura was more formally dressed , with a white button down shirt,a black blazer and a plaid skirt. You could sense the fear emanating from the two of them. The two of them nodded, not knowing what other response to give.
"Otomi Mayura, an attendant from the Amawaka house has come to take you." Mayura gulped. "Uhh. Ok ." she looked at the worried expression on Rokuro and Shimon's faces. She quickly masked her fear, smiled and said, "Well, then. I'll be off! Take care, the two of you!" She turned around to leave.
"Mayura!" Came Shimon's voice from behind her. She turned around to look at him, visibly confused. "Can I have a minute?" He asked. She nodded and he walked towards her. She maintained eye contact with him all the while and he handed out a twice folded paper to her. She took it in her hands. "What's this? " She asked him.
He looked away from her to nowhere in particular and replied in a small voice. "If you ever need help, you can use that. Oh and... take care of yourself." Mayura opened one fold and saw digits on them. A phone number. His phone number?! She gasped. "Is this really alright? Aren't you always busy? Also giving such an important number to someone unimportant like me?"
"You're not unimportant!" Shimon snapped.
Realising what he said, he looked away from her once more, and added while scratching his neck. "You're going to be one of us soon, so might as well give it now. " He was waiting for a reply,when he felt something warm touch his cheek. His eyes widened.
Mayura smiled at the surprised boy and waved goodbye to Rokuro. With that, she got onto the car with a playful expression on her face. Shimon put his hand where her lips had made contact with his skin.
"What's with that disgusting smile?" Rokuro said from behind Shimon. Shimon jumped in surprise, unable to reply. Rokuro smirked and patted Shimon's back ,a sign of 'congratulations'.
Mayura opened the second fold on the paper when she was in the car. There was an address. The Ikaruga house address. She smiled. Maybe it wasn't going to be so bad .
"Are you ready. Enmadou?" Shimon said, entering the car ready for them. Shimon would accompany Rokuro till the gate of the Adashino house and then Rokuro would have to manage on his own after that. God alone knew what was happen after that. Rokuro was quiet throughout the car ride and Shimon didn't dare say a word. When they reached, Rokuro silently got out of the car and walked towards the gate without looking behind even once.
"Rokuro!" Shimon called out to him. He stopped walking. "Behave yourself there!" A worried Shimon yelled. Rokuro waved goodbye to Shimon without turning around. Although it didn't show on his face, Shimon was so worried that if he had not been taught the 'poker face' by Seigen, he would have exploded by now . He quietly thanked Seigen and continued to the Exorcist union.
'God help those two.' he thought to himself.
It was a normal morning at Narukami prefecture in Tokyo. According to the news he saw in the morning, Ryogo was certain today would be a clear and bright day. Baaya had gone out for grocery shopping,Atsushi and Shinnosuke were lounging near the dining table and Ryogo was making fried eggs for breakfast and Benio was in her room. Just the usual.
Ryogo was just about to break the egg, when the doorbell rang. "Coming!" He said, while running to get the door.
Outside, stood a very strangely clothed man, who looked about in his early 30s. He wore a green yukata and tied his long hair in a neat bun. But the clothes weren't even the highlight. On top of his head, stuck in the bun, was a single peacock feather. Ryogo's jaw dropped. What the heck?
"Is this Seika Dormitory?" Asked the man, with authority in his voice. "Yes, it is. How may I help you?" Ryogo asked,still baffled by his appearance. The man looked at Ryogo with judgemental eyes. "Where is Benio-sama?" He asked. "She's busy right now. Do you want me to convey a message?" Ryogo asked politely. The man didn't answer. Just stood by the door staring.
"Who the heck is this? And what's with that feather?" Atsushi asked from behind. "He's looking for Benio-san." Ryogo answered. "Benio-chan? And why should we tell a creep like him? Oi you, what do you want with our Benio-chan ?" Atsushi asked.
"Our Benio-chan?"
The man's eyes turned cold. He scoffed and looked away. "I only answer to Benio-sama." He said,stubbornly not moving. There were thirty seconds of silence.
Then Ryogo spoke. "Atsushi,go and tell Benio-san someone is here for her." Atsushi grumbled all the way to the top. Why would Ryogo-san agree to this guy's request? Helooked suspicious from all angles.
"Benio-chan? Are you in ?" He asked while knocking. "Yes,come in." Came her voice. He opened the door to see Benio reading something. "Some strange man with a feather in his head is here to see you."He said.
He was sure she'd say no. He was sure she'd send him straight home. She shut her book and put it down. "I see. Please send him in. " Atsushi openly gaped at her. He didn't dare question her, just walked out and told Ryogo.
"Please come in. I'll take you to her room." Ryogo said politely. He didn't look around, merely followed Ryogo in silence. Ryogo led him to Benio's room and turned to leave.
"Nagitsuji-san." He heard Benio call. He stopped and turned to face her. "Yes?" He asked. "I have a favour to ask. Please do not let anyone enter this room right now. " She said. He blinked,nodded and left. What the hell ?
About 10 minutes later, the doorbell rang again. This time, it was Baaya. She called the boys to help her put the groceries in their place.
"You know, Baaya, while you were gone,something really weird happened." Atsushi said. "A strange man with a feather in his head came to see Benio-chan."
CLANK! The bowl in Baaya's hand fell to the floor. The old woman was trembling.
"...when did this happen..?" She asked, looking like she just saw a ghost. "About 10 minutes ago. He's still there right now." Just as Atsushi completed his sentence, the old woman ran up the stairs to Benio's room. She slammed the door open.
But in place of a man and a girl was a small note. She picked it up with shaky hands.
'I'm leaving' was all it said.
"What happened? Where did they go? " Asked Ryogo, searching the room. "Baaya what's going on? Who was that man?" He asked worried.
"That man, he swore his loyalty to only one person in the world and that's Benio-sama. But to think Benio-sama would require his help... what must I do..?" Saying so, the old lady crashed to the floor. "Let's look for her then! We'll surely find her. They wouldn't be very far right now!" Atsushi yelled.
"There's no way you'll be able to find him. Also,I am not worried for Benio-sama's safety. Till she's with him, she's safe. What worries me is that his coming here means she asked for his help. He maybe a brilliant person, but his methods are extreme and Benio-sama is aware of that fact. To think she still had no other choice..." She said. "How can you trust that man so much? He looks so suspicious! I was against him meeting Benio-chan too! And yet you're saying shell be safe? How can you trust that person!" Atsushi screamed in frustration. None of this made any sense.
"Because," Baaya said,sighing.
"That man, is my son."
There was complete silence in the room.
Today's weather, as the news said was supposed to be clear and bright. But to Ryogo, it looked anything but. To him, it looked like a large storm was brewing.
And they might just be the epicentre.
There you go! Chapter two done! Hope you liked it! Please R&R ! Ciao!