Disclaimer: Standard disclaimers apply.
Author's Notes: Sorry for the wait. Only found time to write now.
Chapter Three: Interrogation
Kyou continued to pace around the room, his socked feet shuffling softly against the tatami mat. He could never stay still during reports. It always made him edgy, and this feeling of restlessness usually led to him becoming more irate than he usually is.
The only problem was that this report was different. This report involved a civilian – a civilian who somehow got out of the Souma household.
"Maybe you should calm down, Kyou," said Hatsuharu nonchalantly, shifting slightly against the wall. It seemed like he had reverted back to his usual calm self not too long ago.
"How can I calm down?" replied Kyou, his voice rigid. "Someone got out!" He turned, and flung out a hand, emphasizing that he was talking about the servant girl who sat quietly in the middle of the room.
After realizing who had approached her in the rain, the girl refused to answer with anything more than a nod or shake of the head. Somewhere in her mind the frantic thought of losing her job played over and over as if taunting her. She cringed at the thought that she hadn't even been in the household for two weeks yet she may be kicked out onto the streets just like that. She was practically at the edge of her seat. All the waiting made her more anxious with each passing second.
As if on cue, the door slid open to reveal a tall, dark-haired advisor, and another figure, clad in the same samurai uniform as Kyou and Hatsuharu.
"It's about time you came! What the heck took you so long?" spat Kyou.
"Temper, temper, Kyou-kun. You must remember to keep that under control or you may find yourself dead during one of your battles. It is your biggest flaw after all," chimed the advisor, mischief evident in his voice. He would never pass up a chance to tease the boy. Especially because of the rule stating samurai were forbidden to lay a hand on any of the advisors.
"Feh! You're just saying that because you aren't on-field like us!" Kyou edged closer to the advisor, his fist merely inches from the other man's face.
"You're making a fool out of yourself again," said the second figure.
"Shut up! What made you a part of this conversation!"
"No one. It's just usual for you to pick a fight with someone who is of higher rank." The speaker stood still. His voice didn't falter. It remained calm, but the tone of sarcasm did not go unnoticed.
The orange-haired samurai reached for his sword, ready to draw the weapon. "You want a fight? I'd gladly give you one." His eyes narrowed. "Now," he hissed.
"Now, now, Kyou-kun, Yuki-kun. Now's not the time for a fight. It is already past the twelfth hour and I'm sure that we all need to get some rest after this report. I suggest we begin right away."
With a disgusted grunt, Kyou threw himself back on the floor, and dropped his sword on his side.
"Kyou-kun, right side," said the older man.
Kyou grunted once more, and moved his sword to his right. (1)
"Now, are we all settled?" asked the advisor, as he made himself comfortable on one of the cushions. Hatsuharu remained still by the wall, while Yuki took a seat by the advisor.
"Explain, what happened?" asked Yuki.
"Kyou found this servant girl walking near the graveyard after he pursued the enemy," replied Hatsuharu.
Shigure flapped a hand at the unmoving servant girl. "May we have your name?"
The girl hadn't noticed this. She continued staring at her hands, having developed a strange curiosity for them. She had blocked out everything that began happening around her, and kept her mind focused on the possible consequences to her actions.
"E-to… Ano," began the advisor.
"Let me handle this, Shigure," Yuki said to the advisor. He turned to the girl. "Excuse me, miss. Would it be all right if we asked for your name?"
The servant girl had heard that, and looked up. "H-h-hai! Ho-Honda T-Tohru desu!" She did not like the atmosphere of the room. It only made the anxiety build up faster than before. She could feel her sweat beading at her forehead. Were they talking to me before that? Oh, 'Kaasan, I didn't notice! Will my punishment worsen because of my negligence? I'm only making this worse…
"Honda Tohru-kun is it? How long have you been working here?" Shigure asked, a grin growing on his features.
"Shigure, I suggest that you cease that nonsense immediately. You're only going frighten Honda-san more than she already is." Yuki's voice was stern.
Shigure put on a mask of mock sadness, small waterfall tears streaming down his face. "Yuki-kun, you're so cold. I'm just trying to be friendly. It seems that Tohru-kun is a newcomer, after all."
"Sensei, you're only making yourself look like a half-wit by doing that." Hatsuharu turned to look at the advisor, then to the girl. "Sensei only acts like this. He's really harmless."
"Haa-kun, you too? Is this some conspiracy of you younger men to overthrow us? What has the society done to today's youth? The outcome of this is blasphemy, or, possibly, mutiny? It truly has become such a depressing era." Shigure emphasized his last few words by opening his fan, and dipping his head low behind the cloth and wood.
"Shigure…" It was no secret that the older man was testing the patience of the gray-haired samurai at his side. Since the swordsman had to cope having to be around the advisor so often, he was almost thankful for the unending tolerance he had gotten due to the long years of dealing with uninvited family relations. "Weren't you the one who said we needed to get some rest after this?"
"I kid, Yuki-kun, I kid," replied Shigure, waving the fan warily at his companion.
Tohru wasn't sure whether she should comment at the exchange that had begun unfolding before her. She stifled that laughter that threatened to escape her lips. She was somehow enjoying the noise. She was slowly beginning to feel at ease with them. Maybe working for the Soumas would not be so bad after all, 'Kasaan.
However, she noticed that there was someone who hadn't said anything for a while now. The servant girl craned her head to face the orange-haired samurai, sitting languidly, obviously paying no heed to Shigure's odd monologue, and the attempts to pacify the advisor coming from the other samurai.
"So, Tohru-kun. How long?" asked Shigure, repeating his earlier question.
Tohru hesitated. "Eleven days, Souma-san." She had thought that it felt odd calling the advisor Souma-san considering that everyone in the room besides her was a Souma.
It seemed like Shigure's grin did not have any plans on leaving the man's face anytime soon. "Tohru-kun, there's no need to confuse yourself. This one wouldn't mind such a delicate flower as yourself calling this unworthy one by name."
Tohru could feel her eyes widen. Never was anyone so quick in allowing her to call them on first name basis. "H-h-ha-hai, S-Sou…" She paused. "Sh-shigure-s-san."
The grin remained on his face.
"Shigure," Yuki said through gritted teeth.
"I kid, Yuki-kun, I kid," repeated Shigure.
Yuki decided to continue the report himself. If he left the job with Shigure any longer, he was certain that the other would just stray from the issue at hand. "Eleven days, Honda-san? That explains why you were wandering this late into the night."
"Eleven days without a position yet?" Hatsuharu muttered. He turned to the girl, a blank look on his face. "A mystery…"
Shigure decided to bring himself back into the conversation before Yuki could object to anything. "It seems that Tohru-kun is two moons delayed if she hasn't been appointed anyone yet." He began rubbing his chin as he said this. "It is unusual for her not to have been assigned at this time."
The advisor pondered on this for a while. He took a good look at the girl. It looks to me that she is of the same year as Yuki-kun or Kyou-kun. His grin widened. "Tohru-kun, would you mind telling us your age?"
Tohru made sure was answer the question immediately. "Counting sixteen, Shigure-san." (2)
The advisor began muttering in soft tones. "Haa-kun already has one. Yuki-kun has more than enough. So, that would leave." He shut his fan closed, and pointed the object at the orange-haired samurai. "Tohru-kun, as of now, you are to answer Kyou-kun's every beck and call!"
Tohru eyes opened wider in shock. "T-to Souma K-kyou-san, sir?" the girl stammered.
"WHAT!" yelled Kyou from across the room. Tohru's stutter was drowned by the boy's complaints.
Kyou got onto his feet, quickly making his way to the advisor. "You're dumping her on me? I have no use for someone who has to answer my every request!" He was suppressing the urge of throwing his fist at the dark-haired man before him.
"Kyou-kun, I do remember my saying something about your temper," replied Shigure confidently.
Kyou reached out to grab the man's robes, but a scabbard coming against his wrist prevented him from going any further. Kyou withdrew his hand, and glared at Yuki.
The look on Yuki's face was unreadable. He held his still sheathed sword tightly in his hand. "Though Shigure may be saying this in jest, I actually think that doing something for you against your will may grow to be quite amusing."
Kyou was beginning to advance to the other samurai, his foot slamming loudly against the tatami mats. Before he could get any further, Shigure stood in between the two. "Twelfth hour. Twelfth hour," he chimed, reminding the two about what he said before the report had even began.
Kyou bit his lower lip, and bent his head to stare at the floor. His fist remained clenched.
Yuki fastened his sword onto his belt, and excused himself from the room. He walked to the sliding door to be greeted by eavesdroppers.
"It seems we have company," said Shigure from where he stood.
Yuki suppressed an exasperated sigh, "Minagawa-san, Minami-san, Mio-san, haven't we talked about this before?"
"But Yuki-san, we are to follow you no matter where you go," said one of the girls.
"Within Souma property, of course," said another girl.
Yuki shook his head. "But, haven't I already asked that you stay elsewhere during the reports?"
There was a pause before the three bent down low and asked for forgiveness. "We shall make certain not to defy your wishes again, Yuki-san," they said in unison.
Yuki just nodded in affirmation, and proceeded walking down the hall, the three servants not far behind.
Shigure's grin returned onto his face, only now it had turned into a somewhat triumphant smirk. "Now that everything seems settled, it would be best that we retire for the night. I will see you all in the morning." And with that, the advisor walked out of the room.
Hatsuharu moved his sword to his left to refastened to his belt, similar to what Yuki had done earlier. He got back onto his feet, and walked over to Kyou who still stood motionless. "I wish you the best of luck," he said half-jokingly. "It might do you some good, Kyou," he added, before leaving the room as well.
It was just Kyou and Tohru now.
"A-ah… E-eto…" Tohru began stammering. The anxiety was beginning to build up again. She hadn't met Souma Kyou before that night, but it was hard not to have heard about him from gossip that fluttered about in the servant's quarters. She had grown to be frightened of the man from these stories, but she didn't expect that he would seem so intimidating.
Tohru snapped out of her reverie when she saw Kyou grab his sword on the floor, and begin marching to the shoji doors.
"A-ah, I look forward to working with you," she said hastily, bowing low before the samurai had reached the door. She remained in that position for a few moments before looking up. She almost jumped in surprise at the sight of his glaring red eyes staring down at her.
Kyou refused to say anything to the girl. He slid the doors open, and walked out of the room without another word.
Tohru began pulling nervously at the hem of her servant's grab. She tried to reassure herself, I hope that Kyou-san is more of a morning person. Maybe that way, he'll be easier to approach. She walked over to the candlelight lamps and dimmed them for the night.
To be continued…
Author's Notes: Even though there was a long wait (Sorry, for that.) I think I did pretty well for a comeback. Please review.
(1) "On your right, Kyou-kun" - It's customaryfor the sword to be on the side one uses most often as a sign of trust. This is so because that person can't easily pull out his sword from its sheath with out holding the sheath with his less dominant hand. Kyou's right-handed, thus the sword had to be on his right.
(2) "Counting sixteen"- the Japanese add one year to their current age during the new year instead of on their birthday.