Hello world! I present to you the second and the last chapter of this little story. I had a lot of fun writing those (maybe I'll write some more one day?). But I admit that it was more like an exercise before I start writing something longer.

Stay tuned, the first chapter of an actual story is coming very soon! You'll see our beloved bishie squad there, so don't worry about their temporary absence

For now, enjoy!

One of the things she liked the most was watching Father's lessons. She could spend hours looking just at his stance, which he practised throughout the years to the point of perfection. Even while immobile, his entire body was giving off the feeling of an immense power. He was like a wild animal, staying still in an elegant pose and waiting in anticipation to start the hunt. And when he finally set off... Shizuka was sure that she'll never be as good as Harunosuke. His movements were excellently aimed, quicker than a wind and incredibly dangerous. But there was something more, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it. While watching Father, she would always find herself unable to look away, as if bewitched. His every step, every swing – exquisite. It almost looked like a dance. A beautiful and deadly dance.

His students seemed to share her opinion, as their eyes shined with similar fascination. However, there was a major difference between them. This was actually the other reason why she enjoyed Father's classes so much. His disciples were clearly scared of him. She couldn't stop laughing at his pupils, they were just too funny with their fear of Harunosuke. Every word of his was making them shiver. True, they all made a lot of progress while attending Father's dojo, but Shizuka wondered if that was because they were simply too afraid to show their teacher poor skill. Either way, when she didn't need to practise herself, she'd always appear in front of the sparring room and watch the spectacle.

Recently there was an uproar among the students, since new disciple joined Father's dojo. He was a tall and handsome young man, most likely Shizuka's age, but that was not why she took an interest in him.

It was because he didn't seem to be scared of Father.

He wasn't flinching like the rest and was always meeting Harunosuke's hard stare without a hint of fear. She was really surprised at the beginning and, seeing their reaction, so was the rest of the group. After the lesson, they circled around him, clearly impressed and started an excited discussion. Sadly she didn't get to hear it, because Father spotted her and called out to her.

"Shizuka, what are you doing here?" he asked with a stern expression. "Have I not told you to not walk around the quarters so leisurely? If you have free time you should help in the house or practise. Do not waste your time."

"Yes, I'm sorry," she answered absentmindedly while looking back at the men, them still absorbed in a lively chat.

"I cannot let you be bored like this. Come with me," Father said and headed down the corridor, towards the other practise room.

"But... Yes, Father," she muttered at his back, only now hearing him properly. She had to train now. With Father. And he seemed convinced that she's been slacking off. Great. Just great, she thought.

She began to walk behind him, already feeling sore from just the thought of practise with him. But before... She couldn't stop herself. She turned around one last time to look at the new student. To her surprise, she noticed that his gaze was already fixed on her. Upon eye contact he smiled, not minding the commotion around him. Shizuka was taken aback for a second, but then she smiled back, suddenly feeling a little shy. A moment passed, and just as Harunosuke hurried her, the young man turned away and focused again on the conversation he had with the others.

Shizuka on the other hand found herself strangely energetic. Even though she was going straight to hell, her mood mysteriously brightened up. She continued to follow Father, the grin that crept up on her face not leaving.

After that day, as Shizuka continued to come to Father's classes, she kept catching that guy at looking at her. Soon they began this little game of stealing glances and both had a lot of fun with it. However, even while playing with her, the young man didn't lose his concentration during lessons and he still didn't seem to mind Father's scary demeanour in the slightest. Actually he was getting more and more bold. Not only his fighting, his skill of adaptation was also remarkable. She really liked his attitude, so different from the cowardice of the rest (who made the boy some sort of leader of their group). And honestly, it was pretty hilarious to see Father having someone to talk back to him, probably for the first time in his career as a teacher.

One day after Father's lessons, as she was sneaking out before getting caught, she heard an unknown voice calling out to her.

"Hello, young miss." Shizuka turned around and found herself facing him. Woah, how did he exit the room so fast? she thought, completely stunned. He smiled at her and she realized she still haven't answered, instead she was just staring at him. Crap, I need to relax.

"Hello," she answered, smiling back.Okay, this is good enough... or maybe not, she concluded, observing his expression. He looked like he was waiting for her to continue, slight uneasiness visible in his features. Say something more, dammit!

"C- can I help you with something?" That was the best she could come up with, but it seemed to be enough for him. His frown vanished and his lips turned upwards again.

"Oh, yes. Actually, I... " he paused, his face flushing suddenly and his gaze wandering sideways. So. Cute. She chuckled quietly, her own nervousness somehow disappearing.

"Yes?" she encouraged him with a gentle voice.

"I... If I may... I would like to kn..." the rest was said so quietly that she couldn't hear it. Comparing his daring persona during practise and the mess he was now, she found him even more adorable. Let's tease him a little.

"Excuse me, could you repeat? I didn't hear you."

"I... your na..." he mumbled, his cheeks redder than before.

"Come again? A little louder."

"Can you tell me your name?!" he exclaimed loudly, the outburst surprising them both. She giggled openly, making him look up at her.

"Of course. I'm Shizuka. And you are?"

"My name is Shinomiya Ryouma, nice to meet you," he greeted officially and bowed.

"Nice to meet you too, Ryouma-kun," she said and followed his movement, clearly catching him off guard with the instant use of his first name. Fortunately, he recovered quickly. She also noticed that initial awkwardness passed and their conversation flew rather well. Ryouma was now looking her straight in the eye, his flush long gone, and she wondered how in the world he'd calmed himself down so quickly. This guy really adapts fast,she thought with a smile.

They were chatting for quite a while, somehow feeling very comfortable, despite the very short period of acquaintance. When he finally excused himself and left, she realized that she wanted to talk some more. With a sigh she headed towards her room.

The rest of the students wondered where Shinomiya was disappearing to lately. They didn't know that the man in question, as soon as classes ended, was rushing towards certain part of the garden surrounding the dojo, to see a certain person. As few weeks passed, their meetings became a daily occurrence. They'd spend time on talking, even if it was just a brief moment. They came to really like each other's company, since they had a lot in common. They could go on for hours about sword fighting, sharing and learning new things from one another.

At the beginning Ryouma was quite surprised that a pretty and polite young lady like Shizuka could be interested in such an unwomanly thing like swordsmanship. But talking with her, he realized how well oriented she was. It was really impressive. He tried to find out about her teacher, but Shizuka wasn't very eager to share the source of her knowledge, so eventually he stopped prodding.

She was more than happy with that, since she knew that the moment she mentions Father's name their little rendezvous would come to an end. It happened before with many boys. Once they knew about her family, they would cut all ties, simply too afraid to continue associating with her. So this time, even if Ryouma seemed to not mind Harunosuke, she decided to hide the fact that she was his daughter. Because of that she sometimes had to balance on the verge of lie, but she believed it would be better this way.

Some days later, because of an errand she had to run, Shizuka was late for Father's lesson. She peeked out, looking for Harunosuke, and when she didn't see him around she glanced towards the students, searching for Ryouma. She spotted him almost immediately, he was surrounded by the others. Popular as always, she thought, looking at him fondly. She decided not to make her presence known for now and eavesdrop a little, as she realized she had no idea what they were always talking about so excitedly. She wanted to know more about the young man and thought that maybe she'll be able to overhear something interesting.

"Shinomiya, you were so bold with Kurai-sensei today. Aren't you afraid of him at all? I can't even imagine talking back to him like that," one of the students, she remembered his name was Keiki, said with admiration. Ryouma laughed loudly, then showed an expression that was new to Shizuka's eyes. It was well known confidence, but strangely, under the surface something else was visible and she didn't like it one bit. He looked mocking, almost cruel.

"That old geezer is too full of himself." Ryouma smirked and her jaw slacked down. "He might have some skill, but his lessons are such a pain. Seriously, how long are we going to practise the same shit over and over? When it comes to teaching, he totally sucks."

He was becoming more and more intense with each word, clearly savouring in the attention he was getting. Shizuka on the other hand was so dumbfounded that she barely registered other people's voices. Only new insults directed at Harunosuke were heard loud and clear, as if piercing her ears.

Where was the boy she'd spent hours talking to? Was it a scam? Did he enjoy making a fool out of her?

Slowly, the shock subsided and was replaced by the fury, and it took all the self-control she had to not just go there and beat the hell out of him. She stopped herself only because she decided that it's not good enough of a punishment. For now she chose to leave. In her daze she didn't even notice that her cover had been blown. Ryouma was looking intently at her retreating figure, mixture of surprise and worry evident on his face.

As she was passing one of the rooms, she spotted Father. Even after classes were finished he continued training by himself. The rage blinded her again. Full of himself? I'm seriously going to kill that idiot!

Harunosuke was her only family and the most important person in her life. His hard-working, honest and righteous personality, though it could sometimes be a real bother, had long ago earned his daughter's greatest and unwavering respect. She wouldn't let anybody talk badly about him. Especially some moron who didn't know anything about Father and simply spits insults just to impress others. She felt very apologetic towards Harunosuke and regretted hiding their relationship just to associate with somebody like Ryouma.

She looked at him again. Harunosuke finished practising and was now cleaning his katana, Sagami Kaneyasu. It was truly a masterpiece in the art of swordmaking, a very dignified and clear blade. Kaneyasu was this kind of sword, that if held in right hands, it was becoming unrivalled. And seeing the way Father handled it, the blade certainly had a perfect owner. The katana was like an extension of his arm, allowing him to strike enemies with deadly precision, but also in a very graceful way.

She heard that he was given Kaneyasu by an older friend from Yukimura clan, the man he looked up to since he was young. It stayed displayed in the room Father was now practising in and he didn't use it very much. This sword was his greatest treasure and he didn't let anyone touch it, not even Shizuka. Some time ago she tried holding it once, out of curiosity, but when Father caught her she was thoroughly scolded. It was one of those rare times when Harunosuke was seriously mad and just the memory of it was making her shiver.

Suddenly, she got an idea. You'll be sorry for this, Ryouma. Just you wait, Shizuka thought, an evil smile appearing on her face.

She set her plan in motion the very next day. She sneaked out and went to meet with Ryouma. Lessons just ended and he was waiting at their usual spot.

"Hello there, Ryouma-kun," she called out sweetly and he turned around with an uncertain smile.

"Hello, Shizuka-chan, it's good to see you. Actually, I wanted to talk with you about..." he started but then noticed what she was holding. "Oh, what is..." he pointed at the sword she was carrying, but as he took a closer look the words caught up in his throat. She could see his eyes widen and smirked to herself. She expected him to react that way, it was one of the things she learned about him. He was crazy about rare swords. Got you. Now, onto the next stage.

"I wanted to show you this blade, since I know you like this stuff. It belongs to someone I know. Isn't it amazing?" she chirped excitedly, dulling his vigilance.

"Yes, it is." he answered, still staring at Kaneyasu, barely understanding her talk.

"Would you like to try it out?" There it is. Now fall.

"Oh, I don't know..." he trailed off, though his expression was betraying him.

"Don't worry, just try it. I believe the room on the right is free now," she said encouragingly.

"May I?"

"Of course. There." She flashed him a smile and handed him Kaneyasu. He took it slowly, but as he gripped the hilt his eyes sparkled with thrill.

And you're done for.

Ryouma then headed towards the practise room, not even noticing that Shizuka didn't follow. And she could already hear Father's footsteps echoing on the corridor. Perfect timing, Father.

She hid behind one of the large bushes and watched how Shinomiya was testing the blade. Then she saw Father, and as he was getting closer, she started trembling slightly in anticipation. This is going to be good.

Harunosuke recognized the sound of sword swinging and peered inside.

"Ryouma, what are you still doing here?" he asked his student, making him turn around. However he didn't get to answer, as Father's gaze fell upon the sword in the young man's hands. And with that, all the hell broke loose. It got even better than Shizuka expected and she couldn't hold her laughter in. Ryouma's face - she was sure she'd never forget it.

When the time for the next practise has come, she rushed towards the dojo to see the aftermath of her revenge. And surely enough, Ryouma was now the same as the rest of the students, frightened expression and flinching included. Harunosuke was more rough than usual, especially on Shinomiya, most likely because of what happened.

As Shizuka had the time of her life watching him squirm under the teacher's vicious glare, Father suddenly turned around and looked straight at her. His eyes were saying one thing.

You are screwed.

She made a movement, trying to evacuate quickly, but the force of Harunosuke's stare made her unable to continue, as if she was glued to the spot. He finished the classes and while the students started leaving, he called out to her.

"Shizuka, come here for a second," Father said, his voice ominous. Upon the mention of her name Ryouma looked up, finding himself face to face with her. He didn't know what to say, still confused about what had happened before. She didn't even give him a chance to talk.

"Yes, Father. I'm coming," she answered, emphasising this one word and looked straight at Ryouma. The young man paled a great deal and simply gaped at her, lost for words. She passed by him and stood next to Father.

Shizuka could hear the voices of the students outside, questioning Shinomiya about today's lesson, but he remained silent. At least he has a little decency in him, she concluded. She soon stopped listening to the talks though, as she realized that she had bigger issues to deal with at the moment. Like quiet rage of her Father, for example. She knew she has been caught.

"You know why you are here, do you?"

"Umm... because I was slacking off again?" she said, trying to play dumb, but it didn't seem to work. Actually, he looked even more irked.

"Shizuka..." he loomed over her threateningly and she couldn't handle the pressure anymore.

"Alright, alright! I admit, it was me. I took Kaneyasu."

"Why would you do something so foolish?! What was your purpose?" he prodded her, clearly not understanding his daughter's motives. He considered the possible reasons for a minute and then continued, a sudden thought giving him an idea. "Was it because you liked..." he started, but she cut him off quickly, outraged at the idea.

"No! I wanted to punish him!" she exclaimed, breathing heavily. The quarrels with Father were always an exhausting experience. Her outburst surprised him, his eyes widened at the words.

"Punish? Why would you punish that boy?" he asked, genuinely confused. He still suspected some problems of a romantic nature, even though he couldn't think of Shizuka ever having incidents involving young men. But he could easily imagine her being vengeful towards such a boy, if wronged in any way. Her confession however, took a completely unexpected for Harunosuke turn.

"It's... It's because... he insulted you," she said finally in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

"Is that so," he muttered pensively after a long pause. He looked at his daughter with gentle eyes, his earlier anger disappearing.

"Yes," she answered simply, her head down.

"It does not trouble me though, so why does it trouble you?" She looked up at him, astonished.

"How could it not?"

"Why should I mind somebody who cannot even voice his opinion about me straight to my face?" he asked rhetorically and gazed at her. "There are a lot of people in this world that one day will try to hurt you, be it by words or actions. You cannot fight all of them."

"Why can't I?" she asked boldly, making him smile at her spirit.

"You would get too exhausted, Shizu. You should instead learn to identify those who pose a real threat."

"So you're saying that I shouldn't mind small fry?"

"Exactly," he assured. She acknowledged Father's words and visibly pondered over them, her concentrated frown earning Harunosuke's quiet chuckle.

"I understand. But still, if somebody says something bad about you I won't just sit back and watch. I can't," she stated, her eyes full of conviction. He sighed at her, though he expected this answer. His daughter could be very obstinate sometimes.

"This is why you are not an adult yet."

"Wha? What do you mean? I'm almost eighteen! I'm not a kid anymore," she huffed annoyed.

"Yes, but you are not an adult either," he repeated, now purposely igniting her irritation. She was incredibly fun to tease. She pouted at him and turned her head away with a loud "hmph", making him laugh loudly. Seeing that she became the source of Father's amusement, her sulk deepened momentarily. His happy expression melted her anger very soon though. She couldn't be mad when he was like this and he knew that very well. Sly man.

After a minute he coughed up and looked at her again, his face serious this time.

"I will tell you one more thing that will help you become a splendid adult. You see, Shizu, adults take responsibility for their actions." He took one step closer. "Always." Crap, I thought I'll get away with this! she cursed, glancing at Harunosuke's approaching figure.

"Is that so?" she said, taking a little step back, which Father of course noticed.

"Yes, that is so," he concluded and before she realized his hand was already around her shoulders, a strong hold preventing her from escaping. When did he?

"Are you going somewhere?" he asked nicely.

"No, of course not, Father," she smiled at him, her grin weak. Damn it!

"Good, because I was thinking about having an additional practise, just the two of us. And since you are saying you are not busy, we might make it as long as we want, is it not amazing?" he asked, tightening his grip on her arm.

"Ha ha, yes, Father. It's amazing," she whined.

"After all, another thing you need to become proper adult is healthy body, you know, Shizu?"

He was now openly making fun of her and enjoyed it greatly. She didn't answer, instead offered Father a look that could only be described as "bloodthirsty". Not minding her hidden (or not) killing intent, Harunosuke started to push his resisting daughter towards the practise room. They were walking down the corridor when Father turned to Shizuka.

"His face... You saw it, right?" Harunosuke said suddenly and her head shot up. They looked at each other for a moment and then Shizuka burst out laughing, tears in her eyes.

He smiled at her hunched figure lightly. This daughter of his was always keeping him out of the boredom's way. But he didn't mind. Actually, he was really fond of it.

Aaand that's it for this little story! From now on I will focus completely on the main story.

Thank you very much for reading, and see you soon!