A/N: Yay! The re-appearance of Kenji and Souta! I love these two kids. They're just so… CUTE!! Do they remind anyone else of Trunks and Goten from Dragon Ball Z? They remind me of those two. School's back in… gods, that is just so depressing… exams in five weeks. What do they think we are?!

VERY IMPORTANT: Now, for the next chapter, people… do you want more like this one, following the adventures of Soujiro and Reiko? Or just Soujiro? Or Reiko, if the fancy takes you. I have in mind a sort of like an extra- a separate adventure, you know? For Soujiro in some little town somewhere…let me know what you think and any ideas ^_^v. Because if not, then stay tuned for the final chapter (possibly two chapters, but I'm not sure. I'll have to see when I write it.) of Shades of Grey! And if you DON'T REVIEW THEN YOU DON'T GET A SAY, SO THERE!

I believe in fanservice. When it suits me, of course, but this is fun, but I can't drag this story out too much, obviously. It would ruin it.

Shoji- rice paper door/s

Oyasumi- good night. Only said when going to bed.

"Soujiro-san, genki desuka? Watashi wa genki desu." – "Dear Soujiro, are you well? I'm fine."

~yori- from~

Chapter 6:  Zettai Wasurenai

I'll Never Forget

'- yours, Reiko.' Madam lowered the letter and leaned back. Kenji took the letter off his mother and his clever brown eyes flicked through the writing again, as if confirming everything. He smiled, and passed the letter to his younger brother.

'She sounds happy enough.'

'Reiko never had an opportunity to feel that it was all right for her to be adventurous during her time with us.' Madam said, watching Souta grind his way through the kanji with the determination of a rock.

'Speaking of adventure,' Kenji said, standing up and wandering over the door opening out onto the veranda. He slid one open. 'I wonder if Soujiro-niichan will come soon?'

Madam raised an eyebrow at her eldest son's back, and glanced at Souta, who was still concentrating on the kanji with a frown. One finger traced the lines. Soujiro… he had visited after he had dropped Reiko off at Yokohama, to let the family know she was safe. And they hadn't seen or heard from him in four years. Madam was a little surprised her sons still remembered the boy; children had a way of breezing past the people they encountered in their lives more than they got attached to them. Especially in the space of two days. Soujiro… seemed to have made quite an impression. Madam had to admit she herself had found herself unusually attached to the boy. She would have liked him to come back, so she knew he was all right. She shook her head. Soujiro had some serious issues to work himself through; issues that most people learnt without trying before they reached his age, or never learnt at all. Wishing he would just "drop in" seemed rather selfish.

'Kenji, Souta, why don't you two take the rest of the day off and go into town?' Madam suggested. 'You can take-'

'Mum.' Kenji said, rolling his eyes. 'I'm old enough to take care of both me and Souta, okay? Come on, kiddo.'

'I'm not a kid!' Souta protested, shutting the door after them. Madam smiled warmly, and picked up Reiko's letter again. The girl seemed to be getting much better… and if she was any judge, Kyoko had been helping her with her writing. Kyoko's letter, four years ago, had mentioned the goodbyes… Madam shook her head. There was no point in getting uselessly romantic. The Europeans had a saying, one of her business associates who was more open-minded when it came to a woman running the business, had told her. It was "absence makes the heart grow fonder". This was, Madam knew and to borrow an Expression, a load of bull. It was romantic nonsense, just like happy endings.

Madam put down the paper and glanced out at the garden. It would be so nice, though, if that romantic nonsense could be real…

'Kenji, don't walk so fast!' Souta complained, grabbing the sleeve of his brother's shirt. 'I've got shorter legs than you, niichan- niichan?' Souta felt the fabric slip past his fingers, and his brother disappeared between the crowd, not noticing. 'Niichan! Come back, I can't see you! Kenji! Come back!'

Souta trembled.

'N-niichan?'

He'd never been alone in the marketplace before. Everything seemed so big, so alien. The buildings and people all loomed up above him, blocking out the sun. Voices boomed and rolled around him, and- someone grabbed the back of his shirt.

'Well, what do we have here? You're the youngest son of the Madam, aren't you?'

Souta turned and took a shaky step back, unable to make out the face of the human mountain behind him, still gripping his shirt. Souta felt it twist across his body. His voice became stuck.

'N-' he choked.

'Come on, kid. Your brother doesn't love you, I saw how he just ran off like that.'

Souta couldn't take another step back, and the people just kept going past, grey, noticing. Terror glued his tongue to the roof of his mouth.

'Your tone isn't exactly convincing, you know.'

The voice wasn't threatening. It could have been making a comment over tea and riceballs. It was smooth, almost cheerful, but there was something… Souta staggered as the grip on his shirt loosened, and the mountain turned around.

'What's it to you?'

'What I don't understand it why you guys can't come up with some more original lines.' The voice went on. The crowd, without apparently altering their tracks, began to move in a way that left a circle around the three of them. Souta tripped over his own feet and scrambled to the edge of the circle, where spectators were now gathering. Souta craned to have a look at his rescuer… his eyes widened.

'What's this?' the young man asked, looking around. 'I wasn't planning to make such a scene, but I suppose that was just a set-up for street theatre…'

'Shut up!' the man growled. The boy opened his eyes and fixed the man with an icy blue gaze. There was a small chink. As one man, everyone who could looked at the boy's left side. His thumb had pushed the first inch of his sword free. Memories began to boil over the crowd, and several people backed away in a hurry.

The huge man growled. 'I was conducting business!'

'With a child younger than ten?' the young man asked, looking amused.

'I don't appreciate being interrupted!' the huge man yelled, charging forward with one huge meaty fist raised. The boy gracefully took a step to the side, watching amiably as the man's fist thudded into the ground in front of him.

'Are you drunk? No one sober would be stupid enough to attack an armed man, surely.'

'I think you're giving humans a bit too much credit, lad.' Someone muttered from the sidelines. The swordsman laughed.

'Yes, perhaps I am. Oops, you missed me again.' He added, sliding out of the way of another charge. Then his feet skidded to a halt, steadying the swordsman. His right hand raised slightly as he watched the huge man yell in frustration and round on him again.

'Stop running, midget!'

'I'm not running.' The boy whispered, gripping the hilt of his sword. 'You are the one who should be running.'

There was a flash of light, a strange twist as sunlight glinted off the blade. There was a collective held breath as the huge man hit the ground. The swordsman glanced at his sword, and smiled faintly.

'Oh. I remembered to turn the blade over this time.'

'Niichan!' Souta yelled, covering the distance between them with two bounds. Soujiro blinked as the child flung his arms around him. 'Yay! Thankyou for saving me from that guy! He was really scary!'

I'm the one holding the sword, Soujiro thought, and he thinks that drunken idiot is scary?

'What happened, Souta? Are you here by yourself?' Soujiro asked, pulling the boy off him. Souta shook his head, his big eyes becoming watery.

'No, I was with Kenji-niichan, but…'

'You got separated in the crowd,' Soujiro said understandingly. Souta nodded. 'Well, don't worry Souta. That happens all the time.'

'It… it doesn't mean niichan doesn't like me anymore?'

'Of course not.' Soujiro said, lifting the boy onto his shoulders. 'Now, I'm not very tall, but perhaps you can see him. Can you see Kenji?'

'NIICHAAAAN!' Souta yelled. Soujiro winced. 'KEEEENJIIIII! IT'S MEEE!  WHERE ARE YOOOOOU? KEEEENJIIII!'

'Uh…' Soujiro muttered, trying to ignore the ringing in his ears. Yet, despite the discomfort, he found himself trying not to laugh as Souta continued yelling. For some reason… there was a warm feeling here. Not like he got anywhere else.

'MOTHER!'

Madam blinked, hearing the shoji slam back several rooms down.

'MOTHER!' Kenji yelled again, sounding much closer. Another shoji slammed back. Madam managed to put down her tea before the shoji facing the inner house was slammed back, revealing three people where there should have been two. Madam's eyes widened.

'Soujiro?' she murmured. The boy hadn't changed much at all. Perhaps he had grown taller, just a little, but other than that… 'You haven't changed.' She smiled. The young swordsman laughed, and put his hand behind his head.

'Oh, really? You're looking well, Shiori-san.'

'So do you,' Madam said, standing up and padding across the floor to him. She took his hands in hers absently noticing the hard sword calluses on his palms. 'But you look a little tired, Soujiro. Why don't you join us for a few days? The boys would love your company and you have quite a bit of reading to do.'

'Reading?' Soujiro asked, and followed Madam's glance at a small chest in the corner of the room. Soujiro's lips drew upwards a little more, but something about the smile seemed a little sad. 'Oh, of course.'

'Come on, lunch should be ready soon and I want to show you the house!' Souta said, tugging at the older boy's hands. 'Come on, come on!'

'Souta, be gentle.' Madam scolded, following her children at a more sedate pace as they dragged Soujiro along behind them. 'Soujiro's probably very tired.'

'Aa, daijoubu Shiori-san-' Soujiro said, smiling.

'I'll just go and ask the cook to prepare for one more for lunch.' Madam said, leaving them at a corner. Soujiro reflected on this as the energetic Souta dragged him down the hall. Why did they always try and feed him? Was he too thin or something?

When it was too late to be called night and too early to be called the morning, Soujiro looked up at a tap on the shoji of his room.

'Yes?' he asked. Kenji slid open the door.

'Shouldn't you go to sleep soon, Soujiro?' the boy asked. 'It's really late.'

Soujiro glanced at the small pile of letters next to him, and then at the lamp he was using to read by. He looked again at the letter in his hand.

'I'll be all right, Kenji.' He said finally, knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep until he found out what the deal was with this "Kurt" that kept popping up. Reiko completely failed to mention, most inconsiderately in his opinion, just what her relationship with this man was. Kenji nodded

'I'll tell Souta not to wake you up.'

'Thanks.' Soujiro grinned. 'Oyasumi.'

'Oyasumi,' Kenji agreed, and looked at the letters. 'Or perhaps not.' He added. Soujiro laughed quietly, and looked back at the letter. He was unaccustomed to the… jealousy? That the mention of this Kurt character stirred in him. Reiko said he had been helpful during her now very rare attacks. Soujiro was relatively sure this Kurt man couldn't protect Reiko like her could.

Soujiro's eyes widened slightly, and then softened as he stared at the wall. He laughed softly at himself, shaking his head. Then he kept on reading.

Reiko laid down her pen and absently rubbed her hand.

'Finished?' Kyoko asked, putting down a cup of tea in front of the girl. 'That was a long letter.'

'Yes,' Reiko said. 'Madam and the boys told me Soujiro-san stopped by and read my letters last month.'

'Oh really?' Kyoko asked, raising her eyebrows. 'Sou-chan did?'

Reiko's cheeks flushed slightly at the older woman's use of the nickname she had come up with for the boy, and nodded.

'Well, well…' Kyoko mused. The world was full of surprises. She had expected the boy especially to move on. Perhaps she had underestimated the bond the two had forged between them. She had never actually asked Reiko about it, but maybe she should…

No. If Rei-chan hadn't told her, it was something she wanted to keep private, even if she didn't realise she was keeping it to herself. Kyoko made a mental note to tell that pompous, overbearing Kurt whatever-his-name-was about a certain young man back in Japan. It would make life more interesting, at any rate. Kyoko was fairly sure, she mused as she left the room, that on some level Reiko was aware of the man's attempts to seduce her. It was just that the rest of her personality got in the way. The part that liked to believe the best of people… and also the hope that perhaps, if she just acted normal and like she didn't know, he'd get over it. Reiko was too nice to say his intentions were unwanted and at any rate, she had never been in a position to say such a thing. That wasn't how she'd been raised. Being sick in a foreign country had not helped the girl's self-assertion.

Kyoko, on the other had, had no such qualms. The woman interlinked her fingers and stretched her hands out at arms' length, and grinned. It was not a particularly nice grin.

"Soujiro-san, genki desuka? Watashi wa genki desu. The weather here is lovely and warm right now. What is it like over there? Kenji-san told me you weren't eating properly and then almost died because you tried some blowfish. While I would like to believe Kenji-san does not lie, I feel this statement is him being mischievous. However, if it is true, please look after yourself and refuse all suspicious-looking seafood. I generally find that anything offered by someone with a grin cannot be trusted."

Soujiro bit down on his finger to stop himself from laughing aloud. This had been written a little more than a year beforehand, but still… Soujiro reminded himself to have a word to Kenji, when the kid had a free moment. He was up to his ears in trade agreements at the moment. Soujiro read a few more months' letters before coming to the previous month. The usual greeting, some information abut the weather, some celebration in the city, and Kyoko…

"Today Kyoko behaved in a rather peculiar manner. It was actually quite embarrassing. We went to the doctor as usual, but we met Kurt on the way. He has been acting a little strange lately, like he isn't sure how to treat me anymore. Sometimes he seems afraid, and he gives Kyoko very nervous looks. I do not understand this."

Soujiro did, and had to stop himself from laughing a laugh that did not really insinuate that what he had found amusing could be told to children under ten years of age without them having a strong grip on how the world worked with adults. He had written a letter to Kyoko when he had stopped in Yokohama for a day or two… he'd written one to Reiko of course, but Kyoko's had also contained a small query and an insinuated request. Reiko's writing about the woman's actions was quite strange; you could never tell if the girl knew Kyoko was scaring Kurt off or not. Soujiro kept on reading.

"Anyway, Kurt offered to accompany me to the doctor's office to save Kyoko the trouble since she is not as young as she used to be."

Soujiro winced. Kyoko's "PS" on Reiko's last letter had instructed him to call her "Kyoko-neechan". Calling someone like that "old" in a roundabout way…

"Kyoko got very angry at him; she slapped him in the middle of the street and demanded to know what his mother had taught him about manners! And then she marched me off, saying at the top of her voice how she couldn't allow me, a poor and innocent girl, to be alone with such a man! I could hear some other gentlemen behind us talking about Kurt suspiciously."

Soujiro was feeling rather smug as he stared at the wall. He reminded himself to find something nice to send Kyoko the next time he was in a city.

"The doctor said I am doing well, but it will still be several years before I am healed well enough for me to make the trip back home."

Soujiro nodded to himself. The trip to Germany had not been kind to Reiko. Kyoko had been the only one writing to Shiori-san for about a year, and her letters indicated Reiko had very nearly died. Soujiro found himself tensing up just thinking about it.

"Kyoko said you were interested in what Kurt was doing, so I will tell you more about the time we spend together in my next letters. I don't know if we will see him that much anymore, since Kyoko seemed to have scared him off very well. She seems quite pleased with herself. I have to say that he did seem a little smothering. He treats me like I am a paper crane, made from beautiful origami, meant for viewing. I did tell him this once; he seemed puzzled that I made it sound as if I didn't like the idea. I have to go now; Kyoko is nagging at me to go to bed. I hope I can see you again. Genki de ne, Reiko yori."

 Soujiro smiled. She always said those last three sentences.

'Genki de ne, Reiko-ch…san.' Soujiro murmured to himself, sliding the letter into the chest and flipping the latch shut.