"Wow, I can't believe how busy it is, considering it's still the middle of the day!"
Tohru stepped off of the bullet train and onto the platform, looking around her with an awed smile. Even though she'd lived in Tokyo for almost her entire life, it still amazed her just how active it could be and how many people there always were at any given time. People going to work or school, people going to visit family, people on vacation; happy people, sad people, nervous people, grouchy people. So many people, all moving around in the city like ants in a giant ant farm.
It was something she'd always accepted as normal, back when she'd lived here. But now, a year after moving to rural Aomori, returning to Tokyo felt like stepping into a strange and chaotic foreign land.
"Well, it's better than it could be, right? There's a reason we wanted to get back now, instead of later today. Or did you forget what evening rush hour looked like?"
Kyo stepped down right after her, carrying their bags. He was less excited about the crowd than Tohru, but couldn't help but be amused at her surprise. It was Tokyo, after all; it wasn't like they were back home, where they knew every person in town by name. And it wasn't like they weren't used to this, even if it had been a while.
This was the third time they'd come back to Tokyo since moving to Hibe last spring. They'd been back in the fall to attend Ayame and Mine's wedding, and then back again to celebrate New Year's. It was March now, and they were back for Momiji and Hatsuharu's graduation, almost a year to the date since they'd graduated and left Tokyo themselves. Their third time stepping back off of this train, and the third time Tohru had been almost staggered by just how crowded it was.
She was turning around slowly, taking in the familiar-but-not sights and sounds. "No, I haven't forgotten, it's just...it just all seems so much more crowded whenever we come back. I swear that this station is getting busier each time we visit, Kyo, there can't be any other explanation!" She looked so determined that Kyo had to laugh; she wasn't fooling him any more than she was fooling herself.
"I can think of one explanation, that you've forgotten and now you're acting like a goofy tourist standing in the middle of the platform. We should move out of the way, Tohru, unless you feel like getting run over."
Tohru sighed herself and tried to take her bag. She hated that he was probably right; definitely right about the 'standing in the way' part, but sad about the forgetting part. She didn't want to forget; just because she didn't live here anymore didn't mean she didn't love her time here, and want to remember every last part of it. All the simple, unimportant daily habits and details, those were what made a place a home. It was remembering the small things; the face of the person who staffed the paper booth, the type of bird that liked to live on the tree on the corner, how many people usually walked the same route as her...all of those little things that helped make memories.
If she couldn't remember something like how crowded the train platform could be, what hope did all those other small, unimportant details have in her memory?
Kyo held onto the bags, brushing off Tohru's attempt to take them. "Nah, I'm good. It's only a couple blocks, and I'll be able to manage them a lot easier than you. You've got your purse, right?" He sure hoped so, since the train was already pulling away behind them.
She gave Kyo a stern look, but gave up on the bag and instead held up her purse. "Yep, I've got it! Don't worry, Kyo; ever since I lost it on the bus, I've been a lot more diligent about keeping track of it."
He chuckled as they headed out of the station and down the sidewalk. "What, you mean since last month? I'm glad you're being careful, but I think it'll take longer than three weeks for those good habits to start sticking, Tohru."
Tohru stuck out her tongue at him. "Now you're just being mean. It was a really big hassle after I lost it, so I'm extra incentivized to keep track of it now."
"Well, as long as you're sure. I've gotten used to checking for it now, but I can't always remember it right away. I get too distracted by other things," he added with an affectionate smile at her.
She smiled back, dropping any pretense of being annoyed with him. Even if he was wrong, she was in too good a mood to be annoyed with him, or anything right now. It was a beautiful March day, and they were back in Tokyo! And very, very shortly, they were walking up to the open gate of the Sohma family dojo.
It made Tohru's heart swell to see the familiar sight. In the past year, she'd come to view Kazuma's dojo as her second home; it was here that they stayed whenever they were back in Tokyo, and here where they always came first after getting off the train. Kazuma had told them when they left last spring that they'd always have a home with him, and he'd meant it; Tohru had never felt like a guest there, but family. So while she was excited to see lots of old friends while they were here in town, she was happy to start here, with Kazuma.
She glanced over at Kyo, who was also smiling at the sight of the dojo. "Did you tell Master Kazuma what time to expect us?"
He shook his head. "Nah. Since you didn't even know until Monday if we'd be leaving today or tomorrow, I figured we'd just surprise him. He wasn't going anywhere this week, so even if he's not home right now, he should be back later tonight. But..." Kyo pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time. "Since it's just after 2 on a Wednesday, he should be around and doing an advanced class, unless he's changed the schedule without telling me." He paused, then grinned. "Actually, Tohru, do you mind if I run and change really quick?"
She already knew what he was thinking, and she waved him ahead. "You go and have fun. I'll get everything hung up and then I'm going to go find Hanajima!"
Her friend had been working as a cook at the dojo for the past year, and as far as Tohru knew she'd been enjoying it. Though the job had initially stemmed from Hanajima wanting to make Kyo sweat as punishment for moving away with Tohru, she had stayed on and proven herself more than adequate for the task of feeding the karateka. It helped that Kazuma was extremely generous with the meat budget; martial artists needed a lot of protein! But Hanajima had also liked the environment, and while she been lying about loving Kazuma in order to mess with Kyo, it turned out he was an excellent employer.
Kyo gave Tohru a kiss on the cheek, then raced across the dojo courtyard and over to their room. It was a handy room, opening out to the courtyard deck instead of being inside the dojo proper. This had been their room for the past year; Kazuma had said it was to allow them a bit more privacy and the ability to come and go if they didn't want to have to stop and talk to him. Both Tohru and Kyo had found that last bit of reasoning ludicrous, but they couldn't argue with how handy the room could be. Especially if they were trying to be sneaky!
Tohru followed Kyo at a much slower pace, and by the time she stepped into their room he was already wearing his gi and tying his belt. She smiled at the sight; he always looked so handsome in the black that he favored. With one last tug he straightened out his belt, then smiled back at her.
"Think Dad's going to notice?"
She laughed, reaching out and touching the newly attached fourth bar on his belt, the one that told of his recent promotion to 4th degree black belt. "I think he's going to notice, and wonder why you hadn't told him."
"Probably, but I think he'll understand why I waited. It's not like it's been that long, anyway."
"That's true. Well, you hurry up and go, otherwise you won't get that much time to practice."
Kyo nodded, then took off out the door again. Tohru loved his enthusiasm; she wished she could be a fly on the wall seeing his reunion with Kazuma, but she wasn't going to crash an advanced lesson. Instead, she set right to work unpacking.
"Hai!"
"Hai!"
"Hai!"
"Hai!"
As Kyo made his way to the large practice space where Kazuma held most of his group lessons, he smiled as the familiar calls got louder. He could hear Kazuma's voice, then the class repeating back; they were probably doing drills right now. It would be fun to join them; while he liked his new dojo and had made a lot of excellent training partners, most of the people in this class were men he'd known for most of his life. It would always be nice to see them, and to get to train with them.
And of course, there was his father.
Quietly as a mouse, Kyo slid open the side rear door of the practice space and peeked in. There were five students currently running through the kata, including Kunimitsu. He didn't see Kazuma at first, but then he found him, standing on the far side of the group and observing their form. The sight of Kazuma's serious face brought a big smile to Kyo's; it had been three months since he'd last seen his father, and that last visit had been short. He was glad Tohru had been able to get an extra day off of work so they could travel down today instead of tomorrow; every extra bit of time to see their loved ones was precious.
He wasn't going to waste any more of it.
Kyo stepped into the room and bowed to the space, then knelt down silently on the floor by the door to wait for Kazuma to notice him. Much as he would have liked to sneak in and just join the group of students, the rules of dojo etiquette were too engrained to ignore, even in the name of a good surprise.
It didn't take long.
Kazuma noticed the open door and glanced across the group to see why it had been left open. It only took a moment for his gaze to alight on Kyo's orange head, and his face broke out in a huge smile. Kyo returned the smile, then quickly moved to join the group as Kazuma gestured to the end of the row of karateka. Neither one of them said so much as 'hello' at the moment, but for now their faces said it all.
"Hai!"
Tohru made her way through the dojo halls, looking around happily. She obviously hadn't spent near as much time as Kyo here, but thanks to Kazuma's welcome efforts she'd long since gotten comfortable enough to wander around on her own. Navigating could sometimes be a trick, but in this case, habit remained her friend and she made her way quickly to the kitchen.
Hanajima was there, just as Tohru had hoped, with her back to the entrance as she serenely peeled vegetables. Tohru had to fight to resist the urge to race across the kitchen and hug her, but no one needed a surprise hug when they were holding something sharp! Instead, she just stood in the doorway, smiling at her friend with a big goofy smile and debating how best to surprise her, safely.
"My dear Tohru, I'm so glad you came to see me so soon."
Tohru just about jumped out of her skin. She knew she shouldn't have been surprised, though; Hanajima had always been able to sense her. If she'd been able to hear Tohru crying across the city, then of course she'd know when Tohru was standing behind her, fighting the urge not to start crying!
"Oh, Hana-chan!"
Hanajima had put down her peeler and turned to Tohru, holding out her arms welcomingly, and Tohru rushed into the them. The two hugged, rocking back and forth, and Tohru cried happy tears on her friend's shoulder. It was so good to see her, after all this time!
Stepping apart, the two surveyed each other happily.
"You look so well, Tohru! And so happy. I trust this means that Kyo is still doing a good job taking care of you."
Tohru laughed, wiping the tears away from her eyes. Even now, a good year later, her friends could still be so protective! "Thank you, Hana-chan, and yes, Kyo is still wonderful. Everything has been going really well, lately, and that's helped, too." She sat down on one of the kitchen benches beside Hanajima, who had sat down with her hands neatly folding in her black apron. "And you! You look so well too! I hope this means you've been keeping happy, and busy."
Hanajima smiled. "I have, thank you, dear Tohru. I have yet to find any friends nearly as dear as you and Arisa, but I've found things to keep me busy and occupied. This job continues to satisfy, I've joined a shoijo manga club, and I've started giving lectures on wave-reading down at the local community center."
Tohru was impressed; Hanajima was certainly making good use of her time these days! "And how is your family doing? Megumi should just be finishing his first year of high school, right? How has he liked Kaibara High?"
Hanajima steepled her fingers together, considering. "Well, he's liked it well enough, I suppose. I wish he'd be more involved, though." Turning to Tohru, she said in her deadpan way, "He's proving to be quite the loner, if you can imagine it."
Tohru could indeed imagine it. "And the rest of your family?"
"Mother, Father, and Grandmother are all doing well, and they send their greetings. I told them you'd be coming back to the city for graduation, and Mother told me to remind you they'd love to see you, if you aren't too busy to stop by."
"Oh, I'd love to stop and see your family! Kyo and I initially thought we'd have to wait and come down tomorrow, but I was able to get an extra day off of work, so we should have a little more time to see people."
"Ah, how lovely. Are you still enjoying the clinic, then?"
Tohru beamed happily. "I am! I know it's not a very exciting job, being a receptionist, but I really love getting to be around so many happy women and look forward to so many babies! And I really love it when they bring the babies over after they're born, they're always so cute and tiny!"
Hanajima smiled fondly at her friend. It was a perfect job for Tohru, working at an OB/GYN; her sunny personality, excellent communication skills and natural desire to help made her an excellent receptionist, and working in an office where she got to be around pregnant women and babies helped satisfy her natural maternal instincts...and keep them at bay at the same time. While pretty much everyone felt Tohru would make a natural mother someday, no one felt that day should be soon!
"I'm glad to hear it, Tohru, and glad to hear you're still enjoying yourself. I'd hate to think of you slaving away at a job you despised."
"Nope, no despising here! But I'm happy to have a little break, and to get to visit here. It's so strange to think that Momiji and Hatsuharu are graduating, but it's also hard to believe it's already been a year since ours!"
"I know. It's certainly been an eventful year, hasn't it?"
The karate class continued, and finished, exactly as normal. Kyo easily joined in the routine, finding his space on the floor and seamlessly picking up alongside the other students. After the drill was some sparring, and Kyo felt the familiar sense of exhilaration as he pitted his abilities against another skilled opponent. He was often aware of Kazuma watching him, and he hoped his father was proud. Then it was time to close the class and Kyo took his place at the head of the line, hyper aware of Kazuma's attention to his belt. One more bow, and class was over.
Almost the moment he straightened up, Kyo was being swallowed up in an enormous bear hug, and he laughed as he returned Kazuma's hug. "Hey, Dad!" In the year since he'd started calling Kazuma 'Dad' the word had gotten easier and easier, and now it was second nature to both of them.
It was hard to say who liked that change better, Kazuma or Kyo.
"It's so good to see you, Kyo! I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow evening, but I'd hoped you'd be able to come earlier." Kazuma smiled and stepped back, his hands still on Kyo's shoulders as he looked his son over from top to bottom. "You're looking very well, Kyo, very well. And I see congratulations are in order," he added, gesturing to his belt. "I feel like I should be a little offended, though; you're a yodan now, and you didn't think I'd want to know?"
Kyo grinned and ruffled his hair. "Well, I thought about calling you. But I just got it two weeks ago, so I figured it would be more fun to show you." He ran his thumb over the new bar on his belt, looking at it proudly. He was proud of all of his karate experience, and his skill. He owed so much to Kazuma, for getting him started, and for setting him on this path. And he was grateful to his current master, Sensei Kenichi, for taking the risk on him and helping him grow even more.
"I've learned a lot this past year with Sensei Kenichi."
"So I see. Well, I'm very proud of you, Kyo; that's an excellent accomplishment, and I'm sure that you've earned it. You've always been a credit to me, and now to Sensei Kenichi as well. But," Kazuma said, looking around at the other advanced students who were chuckling and nudging at each other, "I'm sure you'd like to talk to your classmates for a bit, and take a shower. You and I can talk more later." He gave Kyo one last hug, then looked out of the room. "Is Tohru here, too?"
"Yeah, she was going to see if Hanajima was here today." Learning that Hanajima didn't have romantic designs on his father had been the one of the biggest reliefs of Kyo's life. The relief was so pronounced that he almost forgave her for messing with him like that in the first place, especially since he could understand her motive. But knowing that she worked here just because she liked working here had made him charitable to Hanajima, and he could finally talk about her in the context of the dojo without cringing.
It had only taken several months...
Kazuma laughed. "Oh, of course. I'm sure the two of them will have a lot to catch up on. I'll just stop down to say hello and then leave them to it." Backing out of the practice hall, Kazuma bowed, then slipped out.
Tohru and Hanajima were in the middle of an animated conversation when Kazuma walked into the kitchen, and both of them immediately rose to their feet.
Hanajima was slightly apologetic. "I'm sorry, I allowed myself to become distracted. But have no fear, Master Kazuma, dinner will still be ready at the appointed hour."
Kazuma waved off her apology. "No need to worry, Miss Hanajima. This is a special occasion, and I'm sure we can all afford to make allowances on special occasions." Turning to Tohru, he gave her a wide smile. "I hate to interrupt and I'll only be here for a minute, but I wanted to come and say hello, Tohru!"
"Hello, Master Kazuma!" Smiling in return, Tohru gave the karate master a big hug. It had felt strange initially, giving him hugs, but as more time had passed she'd come to love it. In many ways, Kazuma was her father now as much as Kyo's; he gave advice, provided a home to return to, gave moral and emotional support, and occasionally made painful jokes. She was always happy to see him, and always happy to give him a hug. "Sorry that we dropped in on you without notice, but we weren't sure I'd get today off until this Monday. And Kyo wanted to surprise you," she added with a giggle.
"Well, I assure you I was very happily surprised. It's always a good thing to be surprised by either of you, and with you both looking so well!" He looked her over too, pleased with how happy and healthy she looked, just like Kyo. "And I look forward to getting to spend some quality time with you both. But for now, I'll leave you two to your conversation."
As he left, Hanajima looked after Kazuma with a fond expression that she then turned to Tohru. "It's sweet, really, how much of a doting father he is. Both to Kyo, and to you."
Tohru beamed. There was once a time when she would have blushed and felt awkward about that statement, felt like it wasn't her place to have anyone like Kazuma dote on her. It had been hard for her to accept things for so long; attention, affection, compliments, gifts. But she'd come to learn the value of accepting, and trusting that her friends and family did things because they cared for her, not because they felt they ought to. It was a nice feeling.
"Yes, Master Kazuma is wonderful! We always come here first thing whenever we come to Tokyo, and it's always so nice to see him. I'm pretty sure Kyo would be happy if we never left the dojo in all the time we were here," she added happily.
"Maybe, maybe not," Hanajima said, looking thoughtfully at Tohru's face. For a moment, Tohru wondered if Hanajima was trying to tell her something, but then the thoughtful look was gone and Hanajima was simply smiling at her again. "My dear Tohru, how would you feel about helping me finish these vegetables?"
"Oh, I'd love to!"
Author's Note: This is a follow up to my story "Easing into the New" because I have a thing for continuity. And I'm such a fan of these two, I can't let them go just yet! Obligatory "I don't own these characters" and "please forgive any Japan-centric errors, I've never been there'