A Storm in Autumn
by Sparrow
Chapter Two
The afternoon passed quickly and happily. Recca had no luck in getting Yanagi to lend him his sweater, but by the time our food arrived, he'd forgotten about the cold outside anyway. After a while, I managed to forget about the scene earlier and go back about my normal ways. What a relief.
We talked and joked and goofed and generally had a good time. Even Mi-chan was getting into the spirit of things, laughing whole-heartedly at some jokes, though he remained untalkative, as usual. I would have worried if he'd talked more.
Finally though, as all good things must, our outing came to an end.
I was just noticing how dark it was getting out when Koganei turned to Recca and said, "Ya' know, we should probly be going home soon…"
Yanagi nodded, "Yeah, after all, there's school tomorrow and everything."
And I hadn't finished my homework… I sighed. "Guess we aughta call for the tab… hey, who's paying for this anyway?"
We all looked at each other. Apparently no one had thought of that.
Mi-chan shook his head disapprovingly, "Why don't we split it?" Ah. Ever the voice of reason. I knew there were things I didn't like about him!
We ended up doing just that, and each contributing to a big tip for the waitress, at Yanagi's insistence.
As we headed for the door, I couldn't help but notice the odd look Mikagami wore. Like he didn't want to leave… which is ridiculous, of course! He probably just didn't want to go out into that weather. The wind had picked up while we were inside and was now blowing fallen leaves in gusts down the street. It looked like it was snowing leaves.
Gah. Waxing poetic. Note to self: stop that.
It was cold outside. I was more glad than ever that I'd brought my jacket. We stood outside in a huddle, trying to block ourselves from the wind with each other.
"Hey, Fuuko," Recca yelped, "can't you make it stop? Or at least slow down a little?"
I shook my head. "Sorry… I didn't think to bring my fuujin." Things were quiet now, and he'd caught me doing my homework! I hadn't even thought of fuujin until this minute.
He snapped his fingers disappointedly. "You suck."
I stuck my tongue out at him.
"Children, children," Mikagami said, rolling his eyes.
"Ano… how long are we going to continue standing here? We really should be heading home," Yanagi interrupted.
"Hey, Ni-chan, did you bring your car?" Koganei asked pointedly. D'oh, why didn't I think of that? Mi-chan had just recently gotten his license and rights to his parents' car.
"Yeah, did you?" Domon asked excitedly.
Mi-chan shook his head. "No, I walked. And even if I had, do you really think I'd let you all in it? Besides, there wouldn't be enough room."
Domon began to growl in that way he does when he's insulted and wants to start a fight.
"Anyway!" I quickly intervened, "Obviously, we've all forgotten important things that could have been useful to us! Why don't we stop fighting about it and go home!" I picked up Ganko, who'd wisely decided to stay out of this entire conversation, and started heading in the direction of home, hoping the others would get the hint.
I guess they did. A few minutes later, Koganei ran past us and then Yanagi and Recca caught up with us. To my surprise, so did Mikagami. Yanagi's house is near our neighborhood, but Domon's and Mikagami's are in other areas. Domon, it seemed, would be the only one walking home alone. I'm sure he was pissed about that; probly just didn't want to make another scene.
I let Ganko down and she instantly sped off to chase after Koganei. Then I slowed my pace until I was matching strides with Mi-chan.
"Oi, Mi-chan, aren't you going in the wrong direction?" I teased.
He glared at me, but his blue eyes were laughing, "Just felt like taking a walk before going home, Kirisawa." His eyes darted around furtively, to Yanagi, me, the street; his long fingers tugged at his bracelet as though he was nervous about something.
"Uh-huh. Suuure."
He didn't deign to answer, simply glowered, thrust his hands into his pockets and continued walking. Trying to hide my disappointment, I mimicked him as we walked. I figured he would turn around when we got to Yanagi's street. But again he surprised me by continuing on past Yanagi and Recca saying their goodbyes on the corner. Ganko and Koganei had disappeared from sight, but ours was a quiet neighborhood, and it wasn't like they couldn't fend for themselves or anything. We continued walking in silence. I don't know what he was thinking; I was wondering about it the whole time, but also enjoying the night. Now that I'd gotten used to the weather, it really wasn't all that bad. Rather refreshing, actually.
Finally, we reached mine and Recca's street. Recca still hadn't caught up with us. This time Mikagami didn't surprise me and kept going when I turned the corner. He did give a slight wave though, which was a little weird, but I forgot about that when I saw the unfamiliar car in my driveway. After about a minute of staring (and probably looking like an idiot!) I realized who's it was. A grin spread on my face and I ran up the walk and through the front door.
Sure enough, there was my brother in the living room, admiring Kondo as Ganko showed off. Yotomi had been to visit once since Ganko had come to live with us (before the UBS though), and they got along really well. Like I said, Yotomi is my honorable older brother. He's also the greatest in the history of older brothers.
Grinning, I ran at him, tackling him before he could react. "You're back! How long are you staying? And--"
Yotomi laughed, cutting off my questions. "Hi Fuuko! Lemme up, will you?"
Sighing, I got off him and gave him a hand up, taking a minute to fully look him over. Like me, he's got green eyes and purple hair, but he wears glasses and keeps his hair fairly short. He's also at least a foot taller than me, favoring our father's height, but much more soft-spoken. Mom jokes sometimes that he got my femininity, so I was left with his masculinity. I occasionally wondered why he wasn't married yet, but then, since he got out of college mostly all he's done is travel and collect books. Hasn't had much of a chance for meeting anyone, ne?
"Hey, Yotomi-san," a male voice interrupted our reunion from the kitchen. There was something oddly familiar… I noticed Ganko pale and begin to sidle out of the room. "You're mom says—oh, is this your sister?"
"Aheh, where have my manners gone?" Yotomi grinned embarrassedly and turned to the guest. "Fuuko, allow me to introduce Himura Raiha, a friend I met while traveling through Edo."
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Commento:
Now see what you reviewers have made me do?! I had no plans whatsoever to finish this fic any time soon, but as soon as you started reviewing, Fuuko started talking to me again! you're ruining my reputation for being a lazy slacker bum! ;p (thanks!)
Again, I have read very little of the manga, so I'm thinking this'll probly be completely AU to the manga past the UBS and what little I do know. Like, for instance, I *do* know that Raiha has no last name, and if he did, it in all probability wouldn't be Himura. But, I also know that Raiha is a skilled spy; he's very likely to come up with a last name whenever he needs one (and would probly give a fake first name as well...), and well... truthfully, I've come to a few conclusions: a) I've read waaay too many Joker-centric fics recently, so I've lost touch with Raiha's character (time to watch my subs again!), b) Raiha reminds me of Kenshin, and c) I've been reading waaay too much RK manga recently. ;p so there's the name explanation.
I dunno when this'll continue; soon maybe, maybe not. My muses are ficcle. While I was reviewing my subs (purely for fic-fodder, of course!), they kept saying "write a Yanagi/Recca fic!" or "you're really got to work on that Domon fic you started two years ago..." and so on... so, those might be coming out soon; then again, maybe not. depends on how my muses are feeling. ;p
jesus, what is this, a free-talk? I hate rambling authors notes!
-Sparrow, who is actually in a very good, bouncy mood and means the entirety of the note to be read with the thought in mind that she's probly had too much sugar today. ;p
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review?
by Sparrow
Chapter Two
The afternoon passed quickly and happily. Recca had no luck in getting Yanagi to lend him his sweater, but by the time our food arrived, he'd forgotten about the cold outside anyway. After a while, I managed to forget about the scene earlier and go back about my normal ways. What a relief.
We talked and joked and goofed and generally had a good time. Even Mi-chan was getting into the spirit of things, laughing whole-heartedly at some jokes, though he remained untalkative, as usual. I would have worried if he'd talked more.
Finally though, as all good things must, our outing came to an end.
I was just noticing how dark it was getting out when Koganei turned to Recca and said, "Ya' know, we should probly be going home soon…"
Yanagi nodded, "Yeah, after all, there's school tomorrow and everything."
And I hadn't finished my homework… I sighed. "Guess we aughta call for the tab… hey, who's paying for this anyway?"
We all looked at each other. Apparently no one had thought of that.
Mi-chan shook his head disapprovingly, "Why don't we split it?" Ah. Ever the voice of reason. I knew there were things I didn't like about him!
We ended up doing just that, and each contributing to a big tip for the waitress, at Yanagi's insistence.
As we headed for the door, I couldn't help but notice the odd look Mikagami wore. Like he didn't want to leave… which is ridiculous, of course! He probably just didn't want to go out into that weather. The wind had picked up while we were inside and was now blowing fallen leaves in gusts down the street. It looked like it was snowing leaves.
Gah. Waxing poetic. Note to self: stop that.
It was cold outside. I was more glad than ever that I'd brought my jacket. We stood outside in a huddle, trying to block ourselves from the wind with each other.
"Hey, Fuuko," Recca yelped, "can't you make it stop? Or at least slow down a little?"
I shook my head. "Sorry… I didn't think to bring my fuujin." Things were quiet now, and he'd caught me doing my homework! I hadn't even thought of fuujin until this minute.
He snapped his fingers disappointedly. "You suck."
I stuck my tongue out at him.
"Children, children," Mikagami said, rolling his eyes.
"Ano… how long are we going to continue standing here? We really should be heading home," Yanagi interrupted.
"Hey, Ni-chan, did you bring your car?" Koganei asked pointedly. D'oh, why didn't I think of that? Mi-chan had just recently gotten his license and rights to his parents' car.
"Yeah, did you?" Domon asked excitedly.
Mi-chan shook his head. "No, I walked. And even if I had, do you really think I'd let you all in it? Besides, there wouldn't be enough room."
Domon began to growl in that way he does when he's insulted and wants to start a fight.
"Anyway!" I quickly intervened, "Obviously, we've all forgotten important things that could have been useful to us! Why don't we stop fighting about it and go home!" I picked up Ganko, who'd wisely decided to stay out of this entire conversation, and started heading in the direction of home, hoping the others would get the hint.
I guess they did. A few minutes later, Koganei ran past us and then Yanagi and Recca caught up with us. To my surprise, so did Mikagami. Yanagi's house is near our neighborhood, but Domon's and Mikagami's are in other areas. Domon, it seemed, would be the only one walking home alone. I'm sure he was pissed about that; probly just didn't want to make another scene.
I let Ganko down and she instantly sped off to chase after Koganei. Then I slowed my pace until I was matching strides with Mi-chan.
"Oi, Mi-chan, aren't you going in the wrong direction?" I teased.
He glared at me, but his blue eyes were laughing, "Just felt like taking a walk before going home, Kirisawa." His eyes darted around furtively, to Yanagi, me, the street; his long fingers tugged at his bracelet as though he was nervous about something.
"Uh-huh. Suuure."
He didn't deign to answer, simply glowered, thrust his hands into his pockets and continued walking. Trying to hide my disappointment, I mimicked him as we walked. I figured he would turn around when we got to Yanagi's street. But again he surprised me by continuing on past Yanagi and Recca saying their goodbyes on the corner. Ganko and Koganei had disappeared from sight, but ours was a quiet neighborhood, and it wasn't like they couldn't fend for themselves or anything. We continued walking in silence. I don't know what he was thinking; I was wondering about it the whole time, but also enjoying the night. Now that I'd gotten used to the weather, it really wasn't all that bad. Rather refreshing, actually.
Finally, we reached mine and Recca's street. Recca still hadn't caught up with us. This time Mikagami didn't surprise me and kept going when I turned the corner. He did give a slight wave though, which was a little weird, but I forgot about that when I saw the unfamiliar car in my driveway. After about a minute of staring (and probably looking like an idiot!) I realized who's it was. A grin spread on my face and I ran up the walk and through the front door.
Sure enough, there was my brother in the living room, admiring Kondo as Ganko showed off. Yotomi had been to visit once since Ganko had come to live with us (before the UBS though), and they got along really well. Like I said, Yotomi is my honorable older brother. He's also the greatest in the history of older brothers.
Grinning, I ran at him, tackling him before he could react. "You're back! How long are you staying? And--"
Yotomi laughed, cutting off my questions. "Hi Fuuko! Lemme up, will you?"
Sighing, I got off him and gave him a hand up, taking a minute to fully look him over. Like me, he's got green eyes and purple hair, but he wears glasses and keeps his hair fairly short. He's also at least a foot taller than me, favoring our father's height, but much more soft-spoken. Mom jokes sometimes that he got my femininity, so I was left with his masculinity. I occasionally wondered why he wasn't married yet, but then, since he got out of college mostly all he's done is travel and collect books. Hasn't had much of a chance for meeting anyone, ne?
"Hey, Yotomi-san," a male voice interrupted our reunion from the kitchen. There was something oddly familiar… I noticed Ganko pale and begin to sidle out of the room. "You're mom says—oh, is this your sister?"
"Aheh, where have my manners gone?" Yotomi grinned embarrassedly and turned to the guest. "Fuuko, allow me to introduce Himura Raiha, a friend I met while traveling through Edo."
-----------------------------------
Commento:
Now see what you reviewers have made me do?! I had no plans whatsoever to finish this fic any time soon, but as soon as you started reviewing, Fuuko started talking to me again! you're ruining my reputation for being a lazy slacker bum! ;p (thanks!)
Again, I have read very little of the manga, so I'm thinking this'll probly be completely AU to the manga past the UBS and what little I do know. Like, for instance, I *do* know that Raiha has no last name, and if he did, it in all probability wouldn't be Himura. But, I also know that Raiha is a skilled spy; he's very likely to come up with a last name whenever he needs one (and would probly give a fake first name as well...), and well... truthfully, I've come to a few conclusions: a) I've read waaay too many Joker-centric fics recently, so I've lost touch with Raiha's character (time to watch my subs again!), b) Raiha reminds me of Kenshin, and c) I've been reading waaay too much RK manga recently. ;p so there's the name explanation.
I dunno when this'll continue; soon maybe, maybe not. My muses are ficcle. While I was reviewing my subs (purely for fic-fodder, of course!), they kept saying "write a Yanagi/Recca fic!" or "you're really got to work on that Domon fic you started two years ago..." and so on... so, those might be coming out soon; then again, maybe not. depends on how my muses are feeling. ;p
jesus, what is this, a free-talk? I hate rambling authors notes!
-Sparrow, who is actually in a very good, bouncy mood and means the entirety of the note to be read with the thought in mind that she's probly had too much sugar today. ;p
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review?