Author's Note: Hello all! My original story Requiem of a Redemption has finally passed 10,000 hits and this story commemorates that achievement! This story mainly continues events that I didn't have the time to finish putting into my original story or scenes that I wanted to showcase to you guys when mentioned in over chapters!
There will also be distressing themes throughout, such as depression, suicidal thoughts, PTSD, alcohol abuse, child abuse, and alcohol withdrawal to name a few.
Anyways, please enjoy the story! ^^
Chapter One: A Meeting
Takada Naho along with Sumi Nakahara and Kiyo Terauchi watched from the corner of the hallway as a middle-aged man, similar in appearance to the Flame Hashira, was brought into the estate by a few Kakushi. Kochou-sama lingered over the unconscious body of the man, eyebrows pierced together as she stared at him with both confusion and bewilderment. Takada inched closer, trying to get a better view of what was occurring, and the Insect Hashira waved the Kakushi in, pointing in the opposite direction to where the three girls observed the action going on.
"Will he be ok, Kochou-san?" A deep young man's voice called out from the entrance, causing intrigue in Takada as to who journeyed with the middle-aged man. Kochou sighed and put on a smile, turning back to the entrance.
"It looks like you were lucky to reach out to us, Senjurou-kun. Your father's condition improved since we picked him up but I am still cautious about what caused his blackout." Kochou informed the young man who then emerged from the entrance, causing the three girls to blink at the sight of him. He too paralleled the Flame Hashira but he had his hair tied up in a small ponytail in the back and his eyebrows drifted downwards unlike the Hashira's who pierced up. He wore a plain white yukata and juban which looked stained with dirt and sweat along with dark hakama pants. He stood just around to Kochou's shoulders, thus causing him to look up at her to talk about who was presumed to be his father.
He bit at his lip and his gaze drifted down as if he was unsure how to respond to Kochou. Then he glanced over to the three girls, blinking and directly locked eye contact with Takada. Her breath froze at this, not expecting the young man to look at her, and Kochou blinked to see what he looked at. She chuckled at this and smiled.
"Ah, please do not mind the girls, Senjurou-kun." Kochou said and snapped his gaze away from her to look back to the Hashira, "They are helping out around the estate so you will see them frequently."
He merely nodded at this, looking back at Takada for a second then up to Kochou again.
"May I stay by my father's side?" He asked and she nodded before waving a hand to the girls who stepped forward as the three of them offered a smile to the young man.
"They can bring to where your father will be staying, Senjurou-kun. Girls, you can introduce yourself." Kochou explained and Senjurou merely nodded, again staring at Takada for some reason.
"I am Sumi Nakahara!" Sumi exclaimed with delight and Kiyo stepped forward a little bit to offer a wave.
"I am Kiyo Terauchi. It's a pleasure to meet you." Kiyo said and Takada offered him a smile, being able to tell he probably needed it.
"I am Takada Naho. It's nice to meet you." She spoke and he nodded before blinking, possibly making the realization he should introduce himself.
"Ah, I'm Rengoku Senjurou. It's nice to meet all of you." He said and Kochou clapped her hands together.
"Alright, I will be off making the tests your father needs. If you have questions, please tell the girls and they will let me know." She told him then directed her attention to the girls, "Please watch over Senjurou-kun, girls. I trust that you can do that."
They all agreed with her and she stepped away, waving goodbye to head towards one of her many offices to solve the issue his father had. The girls turned back to him and he looked frozen, unsure of what to say and do.
"We can take you to your father's room now, Rengoku-san." Sumi spoke and he nodded, offering a soft smile of gratitude to them.
"That would be great. Thank you." He appreciated and the three of them all began to make their way towards the stairs, where the Kakushi had brought his father. Takada glanced behind her to watch the young man who shifted his head away as if he was caught staring at her, and she looked back.
Why would he want to avoid staring at her?
"Are you related to the Flame Hashira, Rengoku-san?" Kiyo politely asked, not wanting to assume anything, and the young man nodded.
"Yes, he is my older brother." He informed them and rubbed the back of his neck as if he was embarrassed about the fact.
"Rengoku-sama is always very nice when he comes to be treated." Sumi continued and bounced up the stairs as Takada fell behind the two other girls since the stairway was only wide enough for two. She walked next to him, noting he was at least a head taller than her, and he tried to keep his gaze forward but ended up making eye contact with her.
"Is something the matter, Rengoku-san?" She asked and he shook his head, now trying to avoid staring directly at her.
"Nothing is wrong, Takada-san." He said, his voice hitting an octave higher when answering her, and he cleared his throat. The two girls glanced at each other, wondering what the young man seemed to be embarrassed about, and shrugged as they reached the top. Takada joined back up with them, still wondering why he seemed nervous around since it was their first time meeting.
He followed behind them and the three girls noted the open door, along with a small written plaque informing them of who was staying in the room. Kanji was written for Rengoku Shinjurou, making the connection that the man was his father, and they stood outside it, directing him in. Kakushi surrounded the man, measuring his heart rate, taking his temperature, along inserting an IV line into him to possibly feed him nutrients.
"Here you go, Rengoku-san. If you need anything, we'll be around so don't hesitate to call for us." Sumi spoke and he nodded, his gaze now sadden and filled with worry at the sight of his father. He stiffened a nod and offered them a bow, walking into the room and hovering over his father in concern. The girls frowned at his apparent nervousness, and glanced at each other, pitying the young man as he gripped his pants tight, observing the Kakushi take care of him.
"Um, Rengoku-san," Takada began and his head swiveled in her direction, "You can help us prepare for lunch if you would like."
He blinked and glanced back to his father, unsure if he should accept her offer before nodding.
"If you don't mind my presence, I would like to help." He said and she nodded, as he stood up and looked back at his father and released a breath.
"Rengoku-san will be within the kitchen if something happens. If Kochou-sama drops by as well, can you please let her know where he is?" Kiyo requested, smiling brightly at the Kakushi who normally refused to get close to the Hashira but their hearts softened at her plea. They merely nodded and she glowed at this, bowing to them and thanking them for her help. The four of them walked away, now heading further down the hallway towards the kitchen and the young man looked around in interest as they passed by multiple rooms.
"Thank you for letting me help you in the kitchen." He said and the girls blinked at his comment, being able to tell his nerves were getting to him while watching the Kakushi take care of his father.
"It's not problem, Rengoku-san." Takada answered and he nodded, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, "It seems like this could get your mind off of everything."
He smiled at this, much softer than his brother's normally wide grin, and replied, "Yes, thank you for noticing."
His pace quickened as he now stood next to Takada, looking over to her and asked, "What you will be preparing today?"
"We will be making tempura shrimp with rice, miso, and pickled daikon." Kiyo answered and he nodded.
"Let me know what you would like help with and I will do it to the best of my ability." He responded and Kiyo hummed at this, as they had finally reached the kitchen. The door was closed and Kiyo opened it up, revealing a more western-styled kitchen. He looked at it with some scenes of wonder as he stepped in, noting that a center table was lowered to possibly help the girls properly work on it. A wooden countertop lined the wall and overlooked the courtyard and already lined were multiple cutting boards and a knife set as well plus it looked like some of the ingredients were already out.
"If you can cut up the daikon, Rengoku-san, that would be very helpful." Sumi spoke as she already made herself gather up the ingredients for the tempura shrimp. He nodded and allowed the girls first to collect themself so he could figure out where he could work without being in their way.
Takada was up for preparing the shrimp today while Sumi was making the rice and Kiyo was to make the miso. Takada brought over the knife set for him and he walked over to the table, staring at the elements before him seeing at least ten daikon ready for him to peel and cut.
"Let us know if you have any questions, Rengoku-san." Takada told him and he nodded, rolling up his shelves and approaching the table. She watched him for a moment as he picked up a blade and steady and swiftly began to remove the skin. She looked at him in amazement at his concentration and directed herself back to her own task, knowing she should be paying attention to her own dish.
"How old are you, Rengoku-san?" Kiyo wondered and he blinked, his focus fading to answer her question. He offered up a smile to her snd answered, "I just turned fourteen a month ago."
The girls all blinked at this, expecting him to be sixteen from his appearance and voice, and Kiyo nodded at this.
"You act more mature than your age, Rengoku-san." Sumi noted and a flush of color washed onto the back of his neck, which Takada noticed.
"Eh, you think so?" He said and they all nodded, as his grip on the knife loosened. He gulped and briefly shook his head to clear his thoughts, his attention-drawing back to cutting, "How old are you all?"
"Sumi and Kiyo are both ten and I turned eleven just recently too, Rengoku-san." Takada answered him and he briefly locked gazes with her at this before drifting back to the daikon.
"You are only older than us by two months, Naho-san!" Kiyo complained and Takada smiled at this, gathering up the tempura sauce ingredients.
"Two months is still two months, Terauchi-san." Takada said with a light chuckle and the young man smiled at this, enjoying the conversation. The other girl stuck her tongue at this and Takada turned back to the prawns sitting in a bowl of water, noticing she was missing the shredded daikon. She glanced back to Rengoku and then down to her food, knowing she needed it for the recipe.
"Do you need some daikon shredded, Takada-san?"
The sound voice of the young man caused her to blink and didn't realize that he had stepped closer to her, looking over the countertop to see the missing ingredient. She gulped and curtly nodded as he smiled at her, heading back to his station. She stood next to him as he took a grater laying nearby and began to shred one of the daikons for her. The two other girls briefly shared a look at how kind he acted towards Takada and shrugged, paying attention back to their own dish.
He was probably just being nice.
He finished shredding the daikon and slide it into a small bowl before holding it out to her. She arched her head to look him in the eye and he looked down at her with a similar smile his brother would share when he would be grateful for the food they would make. A small blush crossed her cheeks and she took the bowl from him, muttering, "Thank you, Rengoku-san."
"Of course, it's no problem, Takada-san." He responded and turned back to chopping up the daikon. She stared at the prawns again and shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts of the young man.
She had to focus; Kochou depended on all of them to make food and she needed to make sure that all of the patients got the proper food they deserved.
"Thank you for all your hard work." The three girls thanked the young man who rubbed the back of his neck from their praise and he merely smiled.
"It was no problem. Thank you for letting me help." He replied and Sumi and Kiyo glanced at each other before Sumi nudged Kiyo.
"Would you mind helping us carry some of the food to the patients, Rengoku-san?" Sumi suggested snd he blinked before nodding, not minding helping out even more.
"Sure, I do not mind." He said and Takada blinked as the other two girls rolled out the two carts for each of them to help deliver food.
"Sumi-san and I will go deliver the food in the east wing while you and Takada-san can deliver the ones to the west wing. Once you are done, you can rest up with your father." Kiyo spoke and the two other girls began walking away, "Good luck and thank you again, Rengoku-san!"
The next thing Takada and Rengoku knew, they were left alone.
Did they purposefully leave the two of them alone?
Takada twiddled her thumbs and looked over to the young man who glanced back in the kitchen.
"Well, I guess we should go deliver the food then, Takada-san." He said with a bright smile and she nodded, her feet padding on the floor as she watched him take control of the cart. She returned the smile and he began pushing it forward, heading it in the opposite direction of the two other girls.
Silence filled the air as they made their way across the manor. Takada was unsure what they would even talk about since the only things she know about him were directly from his brother.
"So…did you not want to be a Demon Slayer, Rengoku-san?" Takada asked and once she saw the sad look on his face, she realized she may have asked the wrong question. A frown of apparent on his face and his gaze feel downward, trying to avoid eye contact with her.
"…Well, I trained and practiced my family's Breathing technique…" He began and released a harsh breath, "But I haven't been able to change the color of my nichirin blade just yet."
He offered her a wistful smile and she frowned at this, saddened that he looked so defeated at this. She breathed in, ready to give him support in his endeavor, and smiled as bright as she could.
"I'm sure that it will happen to you one day, Rengoku-san!" She exclaimed and he stared at her before a blush stretched over his neck again, nicking the tips of his ears as well. His gaze snapped forward as if he was trying not to stare at her, and he gripped the bar of the cart tight.
"Thank you, Takada-san." He said, not looking at her at all, and she giggled at this, reminding her of his brother. They continued forward until reaching the end of the hallway and he took out the few prepared trays, handing them over to her. She walked into the room and the patients looked relieved and happy to see the young girl with food. She offered them smiles and they thanked her, eagerly enjoying them. The pair continued this as moved back through the hallway, and minor comments would be shared between the two. Time passed by seamlessly and Senjurou smiled at her as she handed the last patient their tray and they thanked her while offering a courteous nod to him as well.
"Thank you for your help, Rengoku-san." She expressed and he nodded, a blush rising up on the back of his neck.
"It was no problem, Takada-san." He returned and pushed the cart back to the kitchen, noticing that the two others had not returned yet.
"You can eat in your father's room, Rengoku-San. We saved some food for you as well." Takada told him and he blinked, shaking his head in gratitude.
"Thank you, Takada-san." He said and then silently gripped his hands, as she walked over to fetch him some food.
"Would you mind eating with me?"
She paused putting the miso soup in a bowl and looked to him, seeing him offering the calmest of smiles and golden eyes staring deeply at her.
He looked so happy to see her.
She turned around, her heart beating faster at seeing him, and she nodded, pouring more of the soup in a bowl.
"I don't mind Rengoku-san." She said and finished his serving before moving on to her own. She tried to calm her beating heart, hoping that he wouldn't notice her fluster, and she finished fixing her own food. She turned back to him and offered his tray while she took her own."Where would you like to eat, Rengoku-san?" She asked him and he glanced out to where his father was resting.
"If you wouldn't mind sitting near my father's room…" he began and she nodded, following out and smiled at him.
"That is fine." She answered and the pair walked to it, awkwardness sticking out as Takada could hardly believe that he wanted to spend more time with her. They stopped outside the room and Senjurou stopped to place his tray down so he could fetch the two chairs in the room. He placed them opposite sides to each other and grabbed the table as well so they could properly rest their food too. Takada thanked him and she placed her tray down opposite of his, sitting down and staring at the food they had made. They clapped their hands and thanked for the meal before partaking in eating. He took his time eating while glancing over at his father, mostly hoping to see him awake, and Takada watched him with intrigue. Normally his brother would make comments about the food but he ate the food with patience and enjoyed every bite.
"…thank you again for letting me keep busy so I wouldn't have to worry over my father, Takada-san." He said and she blinked, offering him a smile.
"It was no problem, Rengoku-San. We could tell that you needed it. You are pleasant company to be with." She said and again he flushed, curious is he was getting flustered all over their compliments.
"You can call me, Senjurou, if you would like to Takada-san." He said, while his gaze wavered to the ground, and she stared at him before nodding curtly.
"That would make it easier if you and your father in the same room. Thank you, Senjurou-San! She commented and he deflated a bit at the explanation but he accepted it, still smiling in ease.
"Of course, Takada-san." He returned and continued to eat the food prepared in silence.
Perhaps he would be open to helping out more around the estate as well?
"Senjurou-san," Takada began and snapped his gaze to her, eyes blown wide at already being addressed by his first name, "Would you be open to helping out in other tasks as well? We would all really appreciate it."
He stared for a moment before nodding and saying, "I would be honored to, Takada-san. Thank you for thinking I can be of more help. I won't let any of you down."
She nodded and deep in her heart, she somehow knew that he would follow through his word.
EndNote: Thank you guys for your continued support for the Pendulum Keeps Swiming series! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! This story will be updated sporadically, as ideas come and go and I will be focusing more on the two main stories.
Anyways, stay safe and take care everyone!
