I'll do my crying in the rain I'll Do My Crying in the Rain

Chapter 4 -- Tears Know: Can't even protect her from the rain

By Gabi

The girl who had tackled Kuri was tall, taller than Soujiro by almost half a head. She was trim and fit, and he could see from the muscles in her exposed arms that she was in very good physical condition. There seemed to be a tense and wiry strength to her, and something about her crooked smile told him that she was not a woman to be messed with. She stood casually, one hand on her hip as she gesticulated with the other, but Soujiro could tell, even from the sinuous moves of her hand that she had been trained in some discipline. She moved too smoothly for there to be any other explanation, although he wondered at who in their right mind had trained a member of Kuri's family in a martial art.

As if to back up his assumption that she had been trained in some form of physical combat, he noticed that her hands and wrists had been wrapped in tape, a common practice of street fighters. The rest of her clothing did little to contradict his placement of her. She wore a navy blue cotton haori tied at the waist over a cream colored yukata. The haori even sported tied back sleeves, so her arms were bare and totally free for movement until well above her elbows. Her ankles, much like her hands, had also been taped, and she wore simple black Chinese shoes.

Still, despite their obvious differences in body type, Soujiro had no trouble identifying the assailant as a member of Kuri's family. Her eyes were the same clear and unmistakable green and her hair was the same deep and lacquered shade of brown, although the tall girl wore it in a high ponytail, tied with a very simple blue ribbon, one of her only nods to a gentler style. There was even something similar in the poses they struck, although Soujiro could still very easily differentiate their stances. The taller girl, Hina, was more experienced, more used to looking after herself. She was confident, and friendly, but still always broadcasting a warning of her strength. She reminded him very much of a loyal temple dog, for reasons he couldn't entirely place. This classification struck him immediately as one not to inform others about. He had the distinct feeling that for some reason she would not take it as a compliment, as he had intended. Unlike certain wolves, he reflected, he had the presence of mind to keep his mouth shut about certain things.

Briefly, his eyes shifted back to Kuri and he felt gratified to see her so ecstatic, gesturing wildly in happiness. She had certainly overcome her former sluggishness and testiness, although he found himself feeling rather queer about it. He was still somewhat distressed that he personally had not been the one to bring her out of her funk, but he knew, of course, that this was an extremely silly way to feel. He felt it anyway.

Kuri, on the other hand, felt like dancing. Here was her older sister, 'neechan, someone she loved, but hadn't seen in years met through a totally random chance occurrence. She couldn't help but squeal.

Almost in unison, both girls spoke:

"What are you doing here?" asked Kuri, clasping her hands in front of her and fidgeting with ill-suppressed glee.

"How did you get here?" echoed Hina at almost the same moment, an obvious grin plastered on her face.

Kuri hopped slightly at this, unsure of whether to demand her sister answer first or attempt to explain her own situation. Her sister's reaction was one she had expected, a friendly unrestrained laugh. Hina had never been one to bottle her emotions. After she recovered and before Kuri could volunteer her lopsided story, she offered her own explanation.

"Well, you may remember, when you were about ten, I ran away from home."

Kuri nodded, "Yeah, they kept threatening to send you to the Three Snakes Inn because they said you cost too much to feed."

Hina nodded and rolled her eyes at the same time, "Boy, what great times those were. Anyway, I wasn't about to let myself get sold to that nasty inn, so I ran away from home. I've been watching my own back ever since, although I did have some help along the way," her crooked grin intensified, even as she spoke, "Now what about you? I haven't heard anything about any of our family since I left home. What happened after I left?"

Kuri felt somewhat disgruntled for a moment, and it showed. Those were distasteful things that she would have rather not remembered. Still, she owed Hina an explanation.

"Well, things got a lot worse after you left. For a while they were better because otou-san and okaa-san were happy that you had disposed of yourself, and they didn't have to worry about feeding you any more. Then it occurred to them just how much work you had done on the farm, and they got really cranky. Otou-san even went so far as to calculate exactly how much money he'd have gotten if you'd stuck around long enough for him to sell you to the inn."

Hina grimaced sympathetically and after a moment, Kuri continued.

"Well, after a little while, otou-san and okaa-san got their wish. They had a boy. They had a whining, sniveling, bratty little boy named Roku. For me, it was the beginning of the end. You see, otou-san and okaa-san had been angry at me ever since you'd left. I tried to fill up your place and do your chores, but no one ever really showed me how. They said I was lazy and stupid," at this point, Kuri's voice developed a peculiar edge that Soujiro would later wonder about.

"Anyway, after a few months, they started again with the 'you cost too much to feed' line and before I knew it, they sold me to the Three Snakes."

Hina's eyes had widened considerably and she seemed spellbound, "What happened next?"

"Well," Kuri scratched the back of her head, "I stayed there for a long time, scrubbing floors, cleaning muck, anything and everything that that old bastard innkeeper could think for me to do. It was worse than at home because he hit me a lot."

Behind her, unnoticed to her, or even to himself, Soujiro's hand played idly over the hilt of his katana.

"But then one day," Kuri brightened, "When I thought it couldn't get any worse, Soujiro-kun came and saved me," she lowered her voice and whispered conspiratorily to the elder girl even as she giggled quietly, "I think he stole me."

Hina laughed at this herself and Kuri waited for her to finish before she continued.

"And I've been with him ever since. We're traveling around, looking for something or other. I think it's important. A lot of other stuff happened to us too, but that's basically it," Kuri nodded, as if affirming it to herself. She was pleased with her story and she was fairly certain that she had finally told in such a way that someone other than herself could follow it.

Hina reached out and ruffled her hair before enfolding her into a tight, brief hug, "Listen, Kuri-chan, I'm really sorry that all that awful stuff happened to you because of me. I never meant it to, I just had to get out. I would have taken you, if I could."

Kuri shook her head, "I know. It's not your fault, it's just the way things happened. Besides," Kuri felt her eyes widen inadvertently as she made a connection, "If anything else had happened, then I would have never met Soujiro-kun."

Hina laughed again and Kuri realized it was because of her expression and then blushed. She hadn't meant it like that. Well, yes she had, but she hadn't meant to state it aloud and then gape like a fish over it. Kuri mentally bonked herself in the forehead. She was going to have to learn to control her astonished revelations.

"Ah," Hina folded her arms behind her and looked smug, "So that's why you're at Tanabata."

Behind her, Kuri heard Soujiro cough as if he had something in his throat.

"What are you talking about?" Kuri demanded. Everyone was acting so weird, like they knew a bunch of stuff that she didn't.

Hina opened her mouth to answer when suddenly, a yell made itself heard over the bustle around them.

"Oi! Hina, where are you?"

Hina turned her back on them for a moment and then bellowed in a way that Soujiro was sure that only members of Kuri's family could accurately mimic, "I'm down the street! I'll be right there."

"Well hurry up, there's some people you need to clean up back here!"

"Yeah, I hear you!"

Hina turned back to the two of them and then shrugged, "Duty calls."

"Duty?" asked Kuri curiously.

"Yeah, that's why I'm in Sendai Town. I live here. I'm a bouncer at a sake house back there, and we're having a boom today because of the festival," Hina explained, and Soujiro wondered. He'd never heard of a female bouncer at a sake house, although he had met a girl ninja briefly, he reflected, so it was all basically the same thing.

"Hey!" the taller girl cried, punctuating her burst by punching her fist into her palm, "I have a great idea. You guys go off and enjoy the festival."

Kuri got the distinct feeling that Hina was looking over her head and behind her. Soujiro coughed again and Kuri wondered if he needed a drink of water or something.

"And then later tonight, after we're closed, you come back by here and we can go and talk some more. I can even put you up at my house for a night, if you don't mind it being really cramped," Hina finished, looking quite pleased with herself.

Kuri nodded, "That sounds like a great idea!" She turned back to gauge Soujiro's reaction to the plan and found that he looked somewhat ruffled, although he nodded as well.

"We'll do just that, Hina-san."

Hina opened her mouth to make another comment, but just then the voice from down the crowded street bellowed again.

"Hina! We could use some help! Get your ass down here!"

Instead of speaking, Hina simply grinned, shrugged and wrinkled her nose before turning on heel and dashing off down the street in the direction of the voice. She looked over her shoulder even as she did and yelled back, "I'll see you then!" When she turned back around, she had to dodge around to one side to nearly miss a man with his arms full of baskets of apples.

Kuri giggled even as Hina disappeared from view. Her sister certainly hadn't changed much.

"Well," remarked Soujiro after a moment, "She's . . . unique."

"Isn't she just?" she nodded enthusiastically. She was about to make further comment when all the sudden Soujiro's gaze jerked sharply to the left and something about his expression became very distant.

Before she could ask what was going on he gripped her arm tightly for an instant and murmured, "Walk back along the street the way your sister went. I'll be right there."

Kuri turned as he brushed past her, but he was gone down the street before she could do or say anything. There it was. He had done it again. She balled her hands into fists and stalked down the street the way her sister had gone. Was it ever going to get any better?

*

Soujiro scanned the crowd even as swept along with it, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. One second he had been pondering the knowing looks from Kuri's elder sister, and the next his mind had been jerked so efficiently back to Kyoto that it frightened some part of him, and it was all because out of the corner of his eye, he'd seen someone brush by in the crowd and duck into the shadows of an alley.

It had to be him. There was no mistaking the shock of blonde hair that stood straight on end and defied gravity, or the crisscrossed katana strapped across his back. Soujiro was absolutely sure it was him. But why was he here? It could not be a coincidence. Things like that simply didn't happen. What did he want?

Katanagari no Chou.

*

Kuri's anger had receded and she was no longer feeling so cross. In fact, she was beginning to wish fervently that Soujiro were back with her. She decided that she must have gone too far down the road because there were far fewer people about, and the ones who were about looked seedy. Several men had followed her with their eyes, making her feel unclean in some way. One even went so far as to make a lewd comment, but she ignored them the best she could and tried to continue walking. She wanted to turn around and walk straight back the way that she had come, but maybe Soujiro wouldn't be able to find her then, and she didn't want to turn her back on the men in front of her, even for a moment.

As she walked steadily forward, she gripped the sleeves of her yukata to keep herself calmly composed so she wouldn't turn and run like a rabbit. Soujiro would be there soon. He would be there soon. There was nothing to worry about. He would be there soon.

Kuri was so caught up in establishing this as a fact that she didn't react fast enough and stumbled into a man that stepped right in front of her.

She bowed quickly and apologized, hoping to be away from the large man as soon as possible, "Sumimasen."

She tried to side step around him, but found herself jerked backward by her hair when she tried to move. She cried out in surprise and hurt and tried to turn around to see who was behind her when a large hand clamped over her mouth. Her eyes went wide and she tried to scream but it only came out as a muffled crying sound. This couldn't be happening. It couldn't be happening. He was coming. He'd protect her. Still, it was good to be on the safe side, so she squirmed and wiggled and tried to flail her way out of the situation, only to have her arms pinned behind her by someone she couldn't see. The man in front of her, that held his hand tight over her mouth began to laugh and he was joined in by four other separate laughs, that she could count, all clustered behind her. Desperate, terrified, she bit at the hand clamped across her face, but the dirty pockmarked man was too fast for her. He jerked his hand from her mouth and backhanded her hard across the face, so that her teeth cut into her lip and it began to bleed. She reeled back, as far as she could go, and her eyes teared up of their own accord even as she let out an earsplitting wail that terminated in a fearful whimper as the man in front of her backhanded her again.

"You do that again," he said, bringing his face very close to hers, "And I'll break your neck, do you hear me? No sound, or we kill you now."

Kuri nodded, blinking back tears. No sound. He was going to come. He'd be there soon. The man in front of her reached for the sash of the yukata and Kuri prepared to thrash again, but a new voice stopped them cold.

"Put her down now. If you touch her again, I swear you'll regret it."

The voice was icy and controlled and sounded very menacing, although there was a deadly softness underneath. Kuri could only piece together one thing before she blacked out from another blow to the head.

The voice was almost nothing like Soujiro's.

--

Author's Note:
I deserve a present for getting this one out so soon after the last chapter.

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