-Yumi-
She was still fuming internally at the audacity that Haruka had to subtly signal for her to leave and even more angry at herself for taking the que instead of ignoring it as she should have. She was the tea master and this was her tea house and not Haruka's playground. Shinobu must have noticed her irritation as she was massaging Yumi's stiff shoulders and added a few more soothing touches, as if to appease Yumi.
The atmosphere in the tea room had been anything but relaxing and the only thought that comforted Yumi was that nothing in that room would escape it without her permission. It was surrounded by some of the Myamotos' finest after all.
She watched and listened on the monitor in front of her how the meeting was progressing and noticed how everything seemed to be going sideways the moment Katashi led the late arrivals in and the blonde's eyes first met Hiroko's and then Seiya's.
The moment Haruka raised her hand, Yumi moved out of reflex to come rush to her side, but Shinobu held her back.
"Yumi-sama…please stay…let Noriko-san do what she is here for." Shinobu tried to mollify Yumi, who knew too well that if she would turn up that there would be issues with Katashi and, even worse, her grandfather.
What happened next was unexpected for the both of them that Shinobu even stopped her massage for a moment as Seiya cut off his hair and handed it to Haruka.
Yumi watched how Haruka's eyebrows furrowed even deeper and she knew all too well that Haruka was trying hard to keep her composure, but internally just wanted to throw a giant tantrum right then and there. Instead the blonde just left.
Yumi got up and pulled her Kimono hastily back in place to see the blonde out, but just as she reached the door and opened it, her husband had caught up with the blonde and stood between her and Haruka.
"Did you know?" Haruka just asked in direction of Yumi, but Katashi stepped even more squarely between them.
"Of course, Tenoh-dono, my wife naturally anticipated that you would like this sweet particularly well and prepared for you and your daughter a special serving to share." He replied without missing a beat and handed Haruka the package that Yumi had indeed prepared for the blonde earlier that had rested at the small table at the door.
"Very well." Haruka replied, still clearly displeased, but more mellowed. "I'll be leaving now. Take care." The blonde half growled and half gruntled.
"Have a safe trip, Tenoh-san, take care." Yumi managed to reply.
"I will be seeing you to your car, Tenoh-dono." Katashi indicated that he would be carrying the package to the car since the blonde already had both of her hands full with her cane and Seiya's hair.
For a moment Haruka looked at Yumi, then passed her before turning away.
"Very well." Haruka nodded and walked ahead out of Yumi's sight, head held high and back as straight as only someone with inherent pride could carry them self.
-Satomi-
She had barely ushered the others out and returned to Sumiko's room when Takashi Tenoh stepped through the door to join her at the observation window.
"I am sorry that I could not join you sooner Mizuno-sensei." He greeted her.
"Nothing to apologise for, Tenoh-san, I know how busy you get in your position." Satomi played it calm.
"Let me be frank then and ask you to tell me exactly what happened." Takashi came to the point.
"On the day that I sent out the request for backup, that morning Myamoto, Katashi, had driven Tsukino-san into the ER just when I was about to leave…" Satomi started but was interrupted by Takashi.
"Katashi Myamoto?...Was he alone?" Takashi asked, frowning as he looked through the window.
"Yes, he was." Satomi confirmed.
"Did he say how he found her and why he was there in the first place?" Takashi continued.
"He said he had troubles sleeping and decided to go and look for a Christmas present for his wife, a new signet ring or amulet. He knew that Sumiko was famous for opening her store at the crack of dawn and so he made his way there so early. By the time he arrived, Sumiko had lain collapsed at the front door of the shop and he had picked her up and driven her straight here." Satomi proceeded to explain.
Takashi had started to frown even deeper and scratched the beard on his chin.
"I took immediate care of Sumiko and he left. It is not clear what she has and she has not woken up since she has been hospitalised. We are running tests but none have been conclusive so far on what she might have. Most common infections and poisons have been ruled out so far." Satomi continued, hoping that he would stay focused on Sumiko, rather than looking around and noticing that there were more protective gowns in the bin than there should be if there were only her and her daughter taking care of Sumiko.
"I see." Takashi just mumbled, more to himself than to her. "When Tsukino-san passes, I want her to be kept here and preserved until I decide to release her,… which might be never." He instructed to the horror of Satomi.
"But sir…" Satomi started to object.
"She has been here a few days now and you are one of the best doctors that we have. I see it in your eyes Satomi-chan, I know you are very close to Sumiko-chan and that you would move heaven and earth for her if it would save her. You do not look hopeful, so I am just preparing for the worst case." Takashi replied steadfast as he turned to her and looked her deep into the eyes. "We must do what we must do for the people that we love. I trusts your judgement." He continued as he patted her on her shoulder before he took his leave, leaving behind a slightly perplexed Satomi.
-Michiru-
She woke up in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar surrounding after an eventful 48h. Her body ached, but it was the good kind of pain, the sort of pain that was manageable, that confirmed that she was alive and that all of this had not been a dream.
She looked around the room and only found an already made field bed in the otherwise empty room. The smell of freshly made coffee lay in the air as she sat up and the tall blonde woman that she used to know as Ms. Jensen passed her a steaming mug of coffee.
"Drink, you'll need it. You slept rather restless." Kumiko told her before she sat down on the other field bed and sipped her own coffee.
The coffee was good, with almost too much milk, but Michiru was grateful for it, since a completely black coffee would have probably only agitated her stomach.
"Where is…." Michiru started to ask after her first sip, that seemed to embrace her whole body with warmth, but Kumiko cut her off.
"Riko is out on an errand for Yuuko." Kumiko replied, her eyes already focused on a message that she had just received on her phone.
In general, Kumiko's phone seemed to ring or receive messages non stop when she had it on her and the woman was very fast at replying, if she wished to do so, but that did not mean that she did not have her surroundings out of her sight, which Michiru was reminded of when a small package zoomed passed her just millimetres away from her face and Kumiko caught it without even looking up from the phone, unpacked it and started to munch on the still steaming hot meat bun.
"Here kid, this is yours." Yuuko dropped her a bag with a hot meat bun onto her lap.
"…thank you." Michiru managed to reply before Yuuko just continued to ignore her and moved to sit down next to Kumiko to eat her own share.
While they were eating, Yuuko handed Kumiko a small piece of paper that the blonde seemed to read intensely before she immediately burned it after she was done.
"So, everything is prepared for the move?" Kumiko asked Yuuko.
"Yea. Everything has always been ready. She was highly irritated last night so she is taking some time to catch some fresh air with the dogs." Yuuko replied.
"How bad was it?" Kumiko continued to ask as she finished her first bun and reached for a second one.
"She brought a box of tea sweets home and didn't even touch it." Yuuko answered after she reached for Kumiko's coffee and practically finished it.
Kumiko seemed too lost in thought to notice as she stared blankly out of the window and ate.
"Very well then. When will the little bear be out?" Kumiko asked Yuuko between bites.
"She picked up Hotaru at the break of dawn and should be in the sky right now." Yuuko replied as she stood up to get more coffee. "That should take the eyes off us for long enough considering what news broke last night and how the gossip is running like wildfire."
"Is nothing private anymore?" Kumiko asked rhetorically and absentminded as Yuuko passed her a fresh cup of coffee.
"Not when Minoru is crowing drunkenly from the top of every bar he can reach." Yuuko was unmissably disgusted.
Kumiko sneered something unintelligible before she drank the coffee.
"Haruka is being ridiculously confident that she will be safe there." The blonde eventually stated.
"You'd do the same to prove your strength in this time of weakness." Yuuko noted.
"False. She is not doing it to prove anything. She knows that a Tenoh never proves strength. We use strength." Kumiko chuckled.
-Yaten-
The snow was already metres high and the wind was ghastly. He felt like he was freezing his toes off despite the many layers of clothes he was wearing and his eyes strained looking for the blonde.
"I really don't understand why we had to come here while Kakyuu is allowed to stay home." Yaten whined as they stood outside to wait for Haruka's return.
"You know that Kakyuu never comes here in the middle of winter unless Haruka is unwell." Taiki replied dryly next to him.
"The way she goes, it would not be surprising if Haruka would come down with pneumonia tomorrow, or worse, Hotaru would catch it today." Yaten continued.
Just in that moment, dog sleighs could be heard coming closer and Taiki and Yaten moved behind the barrier to avoid the snow that was whirled up.
Hotaru was sitting in front of the sleigh while Haruka was steering it. Akira was on the other sleigh with Hiroshi while Hanzo was alone on the third. All five of them looked like they had the time of their life, not to mention the excited dogs.
"Nothing like a quick round the property to get reacquainted. You kept this place pretty well Hanzo-ji" Akira teased his uncle who only returned a playful sneer.
Just in that moment a small, a little rounder, lady burst out of the house with a giant Akita to her side.
"Shame on all of you to take little Hotaru out in a weather like this." Yuzuki scolded all the adults.
"Yuzuki-ba, I was the same age as Hotaru now when dad took me out for my first ride." Haruka laughed in her defense.
"And I told him off just the same." Yuzuki continued her scolding as she helped Hotaru out of her seat, who was grinning from ear to ear.
"I had fun." Hotaru chimed in and Yuzuki softened and rubbed the child's cheek.
"Of course you did. Now come inside, the food is ready." Yuzuki lifted Hotaru onto the big dog who carried Hotaru back into the house.
"Yaten, you go ahead with Hotaru." Haruka instructed him while she and the rest of the guys got moving to unleash the dogs for them to rejoin their pack.
Yaten gladly joined Hotaru back in the warm house and helped Yuzuki to get Hotaru out of her snow suit, but kept an eye on the happenings outside.
Hanzo and Haruka had their way with these dogs. They listened to all their commands and there was only love to be seen between them. From the big guard Akitas to even the small Shibas, their word seemed to be their gospel.
"Can I go and see the puppies before we eat?" Hotaru asked Yuzuki who happily led Hotaru to the back of the house where the dogs were kept who just had their pups.
Excited, Hotaru stood outside of the pen while the small puppies were nursing on their mother and watched with keen interest.
"Yuzuki-ba, do you think Haruka-papa will let me have a puppy?" Hotaru eventually asked.
"Dogs are no toys Hotaru." Haruka cut in before Yuzuki could respond as she entered with the other guys behind her. Hanzo had one of the smaller dogs in his arm and put it into another pen.
"What happened?" His wife asked him stern.
"Only injured his foot a bit. He still needs a lot of training before I can put him to full use on a sleigh." Hanzo replied as he cleaned the dog's foot and bandaged it.
"See Hotaru? A dog is a big responsibility for life." Haruka continued as the biggest and oldest Akita of the lot sat down silently next to Haruka. "Isn't that right, Otto?" Haruka caressed the obedient dog behind his ears. "This is what those puppies turn into, Hotaru, and even then, they will still be your puppy."
Hotaru was slightly scared of Otto as he had a few battle scars on his face and half of one of his ears was missing.
"No need to be scared of Otto. He will not bite you." Haruka assured Hotaru.
"A good dog with good training will neve bite its owner." Akira added encouragingly. "He is one of the bravest that we have and he defended your papa from a bad bear when she was attacked."
"What happened with the bear?" Hotaru asked carefully.
"He is in front of the fireplace in the living room." Haruka chuckled.
