Soujirou watched Saitou leave, giving a small wave and pleasant smile. He was descended upon by two of the girls, one filling his cup of tea so he couldn't escape the other assaulting him with a list of questions. He laughed, although a bit strained, unsure of how exactly to answer without revealing anything. Women made a habit of being nosy, and anything he said would no doubt be used as fodder for their gossip.
His encounter with Saitou however had started bothering him. A seed of doubt, curiosity and confusion was firmly planted in him. Instead of teasing the girls as he might normally have done, he turned their tactics back to them, asking useless questions about Kyoto that he already knew the answers to.
But he distracted and bored them enough that they eventually wandered back to their jobs, thinking him dull, which perhaps he was anyway. Just before leaving, to take a walk around, learn the neighborhood (that couldn't be considered wandering too far… he decided) he caught hold the nosiest of the girls, pulling her aside. The one whose giggles had been the loudest.
"The boy… Okita Souji… do I really resemble him that much?" he asked. The girl's eyes widened and she nodded her head. "Quite a bit actually." She replied. "Although you're perhaps a bit older. But you even wear your hair the same…"
He smiled, thanked her and then slipped out of the tavern. Once in the streets, he wandered about, getting a feel for the area. It was a busy part of town, and the police officers he encountered eyed him with suspicion. But they didn't club and arrest him this time, so he gave them pleasant smiles.
Once back at his room, belongings tucked away, he sat by the window, resting his arms on the frame of the lattice watching people in their pairs and trios until the pain he'd associated with the word loneliness drove him away from it. The ponytail brushed the back of his neck, having grown since he'd taken his leave of Shishio. His swords were set aside, but he drew a small knife and with a quick motion, sliced it off, before going to his bag and searching for the small mirror he kept, so he could fix it. He ended up having to go bother one of the girls downstairs to even it out, but in the end he had his short hair back, the style he'd had it before Kenshin had unlocked his emotions. But he couldn't be Kenshin… he didn't have the knack for making friends that the former battousai did. But he wasn't Soujirou the Tenken either anymore. He also wasn't this Souji Okita that people mentioned, and felt a bit lost as to who exactly he was supposed to be.
His encounter with Saitou however had started bothering him. A seed of doubt, curiosity and confusion was firmly planted in him. Instead of teasing the girls as he might normally have done, he turned their tactics back to them, asking useless questions about Kyoto that he already knew the answers to.
But he distracted and bored them enough that they eventually wandered back to their jobs, thinking him dull, which perhaps he was anyway. Just before leaving, to take a walk around, learn the neighborhood (that couldn't be considered wandering too far… he decided) he caught hold the nosiest of the girls, pulling her aside. The one whose giggles had been the loudest.
"The boy… Okita Souji… do I really resemble him that much?" he asked. The girl's eyes widened and she nodded her head. "Quite a bit actually." She replied. "Although you're perhaps a bit older. But you even wear your hair the same…"
He smiled, thanked her and then slipped out of the tavern. Once in the streets, he wandered about, getting a feel for the area. It was a busy part of town, and the police officers he encountered eyed him with suspicion. But they didn't club and arrest him this time, so he gave them pleasant smiles.
Once back at his room, belongings tucked away, he sat by the window, resting his arms on the frame of the lattice watching people in their pairs and trios until the pain he'd associated with the word loneliness drove him away from it. The ponytail brushed the back of his neck, having grown since he'd taken his leave of Shishio. His swords were set aside, but he drew a small knife and with a quick motion, sliced it off, before going to his bag and searching for the small mirror he kept, so he could fix it. He ended up having to go bother one of the girls downstairs to even it out, but in the end he had his short hair back, the style he'd had it before Kenshin had unlocked his emotions. But he couldn't be Kenshin… he didn't have the knack for making friends that the former battousai did. But he wasn't Soujirou the Tenken either anymore. He also wasn't this Souji Okita that people mentioned, and felt a bit lost as to who exactly he was supposed to be.