Enishi lied on the futon bed, feeling contented. His sister was near him, fast asleep in the room next to his. He could hear her soft rhythmic breathing with his sharp ears. He could still feel the gentle caress of his sister and her warm words filled his heart. He could not remember the last time he felt joy and happiness. He was never truly happy after the day he witnessed the killing of Tomoe. He went through hell and hated the faces of the people smiling around him. He could not stand the thought of people enjoying life while his sister was deprived of that. He kept the image of his sister smiling at him as a reminder of his revenge. It was only at those moments when he sees his sister's smiling at him did he felt happy, that he was not alone. That his sister was still looking out for him.

He turned his head to the left and glanced at the bottle of perfume on the bedside. It was the bottle of plum blossom, his sister's favourite perfume. It suited his sister, who was elegant and calm. He felt surprised that Tomoe did not wear the perfume anymore. He already knew that Tomoe did not have any memories of her past. It made him sad but he was relieved as his sister promised that she would remember one day. He wanted to help his sister, desperately. Though Tomoe was kind to him, he could feel a transparent distant between them. He wanted her to treat him like family again, to love him as her younger brother. And for now, he would do anything to help her remember. Maybe, just maybe, the scent of plum blossom would make his sister remember something.

He opened the cap of the bottle and allowed the scent of the plum blossom to diffuse across the room. He breathed in slowly and closed his eyes, taking in the smell of the sweet plum. His body relaxed and his mind was calm.

"Nee-chan, it hurts," Enishi cried as his sister gently cleaned the wounds on his knees. He had fallen down onto the road as he tripped on a rock accidentally. The cuts were not deep and he was still able to walk freely. He was five years old then.

"Don't be upset, Enishi. The pain will stop, and the wounds will heal," Tomoe said softly as she began to apply some ointments.

"But-but I want to play. My knees hurt and it is going to be nighttime," Enishi complained and winced at the painful feeling as the ointment was applied onto his knees.

"Silly Enishi. You will need to rest your knees for the night. The sun will shine tomorrow, and I will always be here to take care of you," Tomoe chided gently as she smiled at her younger brother, who looked upon her as his mother, even though she was still very young.

When Enishi saw his sister's smile, he beamed. He felt his pain and worries were washed away by his sister's tenderness.

That is right - Tomorrow would be a better day.

…...

For the next few days, the Kenshin gumi were busy restoring the Kamiya Kasshin dojo. The Kenshin gumi were surprised that Enishi actually lend a helping hand in moving the furniture and heavy debris. Kaoru was most grateful when Enishi paid for all the damages caused.

He is not a bad person, after all. Kaoru thought as she walked towards the training room with a few trays. It was lunch time and she had prepared meals for everyone who stayed back in the dojo.

"This is for you," Kaoru said as she placed a tray next to Enishi, who was wiping his hands clean. Enishi mumbled a thank you and glanced at the content of the tray. There was a bowl of rice, two plates of side dishes and a bowl of miso soup. A typical Japanese cuisine set lunch. It was a long time since he tasted his hometown food.

"You are not going to poison him nor me with your food," Yahiko, who was sitting in the dining room said immediately and turned to Enishi, "Yukishiro san, I know a place where they sell delicious beef rice. Let's go there to have lunch." It was obvious that Yahiko had decided to go to the Akebeko restaurant.

Kaoru fumed and scolded, "Yahiko, how dare you insult my cooking!"
"This could hardly be called food, ugly!"
"Why you!" Kaoru shouted back.
Heeding neither the warning nor the argument, Enishi picked up some rice and pickled vegetable with his chopsticks and ate them.
Both master and disciple stared at Enishi with disbelief in their eyes. There was a pregnant silent as the two awaited for the reaction of white-hair young man.
"It tastes bad," Enishi commented shortly after he swallowed it, breaking the tension in the air.
"I knew it!" Yahiko grinned in triumph.
"You don't have to say that! Fine, I don't care if you eat elsewhere. It is the feelings that count, I just want to thank you for helping out in the dojo," Kaoru said with frustration as she leaned forward to remove the tray from Enishi's side.
However, Enishi stopped her, "I did not say that I would not finish this. I have eaten worse. Next time, try adding a teaspoon of pepper into this," Enish pointed to the pickled vegetable.
"Huh?" Kaoru exclaimed, her eyes looked at him in surprise.
Then Enishi took a sip of the miso soup and said, "The tofu taste alright but you added too much salt into the soup."
It took a moment before Kaoru realised that Enishi was not refusing her food but he was pointing out the mistakes she made in preparing the dishes. No one had done that before, not even Megumi, who knew how to cook well. "Th-thank you," she muttered gladly; a warmth feeling filled her heart. There was finally someone who appreciated her cooking, no matter how bad it was.
"It's nothing," Enishi said, gulping down the miso soup as if nothing tasted unusual.

Meanwhile at the Yamanoya inn…..
"I believe this belongs to you, Tomoe sama," Misao said as she held out a handkerchief wrapped with the diary to Tomoe. It was the item which Kaoru had requested in the letter.
"Thank you, Makimachi chan," Tomoe smiled gratefully as she held onto the diary in her hands.
"You are welcome. By the way, call me Misao, that will do."
"Yes, Misao chan."
"So, you really don't remember anything at all?" Misao asked, out of curiosity. She heard from Kaoru that Tomoe had no memories of her past.
"I am afraid the answer is yes."
"Well, I hope the diary will help."
"Yes, thank you," Tomoe replied. "Would you like to have lunch in the inn?"
"Of course! I would gladly like to," Misao squealed happily and followed Tomoe into the dining area. Her stomach was growling from the long journey she had to come to Edo. She skipped into the dining area, knowing that Aoshi would arrive shortly. However, her eyes almost popped out when she saw the man with the Meiji policeman uniform sitting at the dining area, eating a set meal.
"What are you doing here?" Misao exclaimed, standing across the table which Saito was seated.
Saito lifted his head up and answered blissly, "Oh, it's you, weasel."
"Fujita sama is a regular customer of the Yamanoya inn," Tomoe explained. "Where would you like to sit, Misao chan?"
"There!" Misao immediately pointed to the furthest table from the Meiji policeman.
"Alright, what would you like to eat?"
"Udon, please!"
"Yes, it will be prepared shortly," Tomoe said and passed the order to the kitchen. As she walked past the dining area, Saito called to her and Misao looked on as the two had a short conversation. When Tomoe left for the kitchen, Misao literally jumped and sat on the seat across Saito.
"What is it, weasel?" Saito said, his voice annoyed as he drank some sake.
Misao replied, "Why don't you call me by my name? It's not hard to remember. I am Mi-sa-o. I heard you address Tomoe sama by her name."
"It is troublesome to remember names and Tomoe is different, weasel," Saito explained curtly.
"How so?"
"A wolf may leave its pack but it will protects its pack members when they crossed path."
"Huh?" Misao tilted her head to the side, thinking about what Saito had just said.

Tomoe sat under the wisteria tree, glancing at the beautiful stretch of wisteria. She had read the diary, which was supposedly written by her during the Bakumatsu period. She could not help but felt weird and anxious reading it. It was like reading another person's life, another person's thoughts. However, those words written in the diary held much meaning to her. It was her thoughts during the war. It was her inner thoughts, which she caste away in her mind, buried deeply in her memories. It was buried so deep that even those words could not awaken those memories.
"It's getting windy, isn't it?" Kenshin said, looking at the scenery before him. He was leaning against the bark of the tree beside Tomoe.
"Yes," Tomoe agreed, a bright smile lightened up her face as she felt the breeze brushed her face smoothly.
It was not surprising to find Kenshin following her out for a quiet walk. In fact, it had been three consecutive days since he walked with her to the outskirt of Asakusa. She normally took a short walk along the streets in Asakusa after work. She thought she would mind his presence because she preferred to take these walks alone, however, he was reserved and respectful to her. She could not deny the fact that she felt comfortable with his presence.
Sensing the eyes of Kenshin peering at her, she looked up at him, "Is there something on my face?"
Kenshin shook his head immediately, "No, it's just that I love your smile."
Tomoe titled her head to the side and placed a hand under her chin, "Hmm, I don't get it. But Enishi mentioned about my smile too. He said he love to see my smile."
"I see," Kenshin said. Yes, Enishi would definitely felt the same way as he did. During the Bakumatsu, Tomoe's smile was rare, she put on an expressionless face and her eyes were sorrowful. Kenshin was only fully aware of the reasons behind her sorrow after he read her dairy. He felt miserable and ashamed. He was the one who took her happiness away. He could never forgive himself that. Looking at Tomoe now, she was so different. She smiled often and talks more freely. She seemed so much happier without the burdens of the memories of her past. Sometime, he wondered if it would be better for Tomoe to remain unaware of her past. He was unsure how she would react when she regained her memories, or part of her memories. There were so many uncertainties and it made him anxious.

"Himura san," Tomoe called, catching his attention and he turned to look at her. Tomoe continued, "Was I really, you know…" She paused, as she was unable to find the words to phrase her questions. What Kenshin told her the previous time tallied with those written in the dairy. However, she was still unable to relate with those events.

Kenshin seemed to understand her concerns. He answered truthfully, "This one could not answer that. I-I never understood you until you left me."

"I see," Tomoe murmured. The smell of wisteria filled the streets in Asakusa as the flowers blossomed in the season. As if remembering something, Tomoe reached out from her sleeves the bottle of perfume that Enishi gave her the other day.

"Plum blossom?" Kenshin exclaimed as the faint smell of plum blossom reached his nose. The smell was nostalgic and he could never forget about the scent of it.

"Hmm?" Tomoe was caught surprised that Kenshin knew about the smell of the perfume in the bottle. She had not even opened the bottle yet. "Oh, Enishi gave this to me. He said I would like it."

"Aa. This one agrees," Kenshin said with a smile.

"I do like the scent of plum blossom. But it is not the season to wear it."

The sun was setting and Tomoe stood up to walk back the inn. Kenshin followed beside her quietly. A gust of wind blew by and Tomoe shivered slightly. Her eyes widened a fraction when she felt something warm covering her.
"You will catch a cold," Kenshin said as he put an overcoat over her kimono.
"Thank you very much," Tomoe said as she pulled the overcoat closer to her body. Her head lowered as she tried to hide her blushing face, she stopped her track and spoke, "Himura san, there is something that bothers me…."
"What is it?" Kenshin asked in anticipation.
She lifted her head and looked into his eyes, "Why….Why are you so nice to me?"
The question was unexpected. The answer was obvious, and Kenshin knew the answer very well. "You are my wife, Tomoe. I will protect you."
The way he proclaimed her as his wife blatantly made her heart beat quickly. A wave of happiness showered over her. She was stunned she felt this way. Was she in her right mind? she wondered. How could she accept this man so quickly? No, she was definitely not thinking about that.

She bit her lips nervously, "Even though I forgot about you and could not remember you?"

"Yes." His answer was short and quick.

"What if I never regain my memories?"

"Then I will wait for you, Tomoe." Yes, he would wait for her. He waited to join her for more than ten years. He would wait for her for as long as it takes, even forever.

"What if… I fall in love with someone else?"
This question startled him. He never thought Tomoe would leave him again, or fell for another. Yet, there was Kiyosato Akira. And then, there was Kazuno, the son of a merchant. He had seen Kazuno once talking to Tomoe in a distance when the merchant's son came to the inn. It seemed they were in good terms and Natsuo mentioned that Kazuno was a good man.

He did not know what would happen if Tomoe leave him once again. The truth was he never thought of the possibility. Maybe he was too naive. However, he knew he would not interfere with her choice. He took away her happiness once. If Tomoe found her own happiness without him, then he would respect her wishes. All he wanted then was for her to be happy.
Kenshin took a deep breath before he answered, "I – I don't know. All I know is that no matter what, even till now, I regard you as my wife. My only one."

…...

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