Disclaimer: RK and PMK are not owned by me. Neither are their characters.

This is based on An Assassin's Tale. It is over. Sorry for the looooonnggg hold-up.

Back to the Meiji era.

3. Reminiscence

Saitou took a swig of his tea before continuing. "Hn, so you were the one who arranged his funeral and signed off your purchases as Okita Akira. No wonder Mitsu was so freaked out when she came to Edo to arrange her brother's matters and found them already taken care off. You never contacted her or your other sister." Saitou lit a cigarette.

"I don't want to upset their lives. They have thought of me as dead all these years. No point raking up the past."

"You took Okita's sword, didn't you?"

"Guilty as charged. Mitsu was going to sell it to some curio collector from the States, so I flinched it. They say a sword is a samurai's soul. It didn't seem right for Mitsu to sell it for a quick buck. It's in a quiet shrine in Kyoto now," Akira grinned. "But really, the era of the sword's nearly done… I wonder what will become of my sons and their sons. Kendo with bokkens is different, isn't it?"

The grin faded and Akira turned to look at his sons. Saitou followed his gaze. One boy was lying against a pillar, legs sprawled out and his hands behind his head. His sibling was curled up next to him with his head resting on his lap. Which was Soujirou and which Ryouma? It didn't really matter. They were children born into this new Meiji era, a promised era of peace both Sakamoto Ryouma and Okita Souji failed to live to see. What would they make of the men they were named after when they grow up?

"Yes, bokkens are lighter. They do not have the full weight of a katana, but I might be mistaken," Saitou mused. "Few have lived through that bloody era and emerged unscathed. Of the great Ishin leaders, only Lord Okubo remains. Katsura's dead. So's Saigo."

"You forgot Sakamoto… His death was a loss to the nation," Akira chuckled fondly at the memory of a large man with his dreadlocks and loud guffaw.

"Yes, I forgot you admired him enough to name one of your boys after him. But some folks have the tenacity of a roach. That harridan from the Kyoto morgue still runs the place. I had some official business with her some time back. She was one tough nut. Your previous boss, Osu, went into a nunnery," Saitou paused to blow a smoke circle.

"I never knew that old witch had a religious streak."

"Shoved one too many rivals into the Kamo river, I suppose… And that Katsura's sister's lost whatever marbles she had in her head to start with. Your wife worked for her once, you know."

"Umeko-dono's mostly harmless. She's just gone on a long journey to sort things out." Akira replied. Umeko had passed through Nagasaki and stayed a few days with them sometime ago. She was eccentric, but harmless.

"Does mostly harmless include threatening random policemen with her naginata? If it weren't for Okubo…" Akira sweatdropped. Maybe Umeko had really been unhinged by her brother's death. It was time to change the topic.

"Saitou-san, is what they say about you true? That you can see things of the spirit world…" Akira ventured. Saitou nodded. "A little bit. In this era, my powers aren't as keen as they were back then…"

"Do you see him?" Akira probed. Saitou focused. There was a slight tingle in the air. A hazy outline of a young man was sitting next to the sleeping boys. The ghostly apparition turned and winked at the former Miburou, before fading away with a smile. "Yes, I did. Okita is very pleased with what you have made of your life. So stay out of trouble."

"Oh, I will," Akira promised his late brother.

"I must be going…" Saitou put on his cap and got up. "You probably wouldn't be seeing me around here, if you know what's good for you."

"Definitely." Akira walked the policeman to the gate. Officer Fujita Goro left without further ado.

(Owari)