Song: 'Meaning of You'

Artist: IU

Each word you say, each laugh

They have such big meanings to me

Aoshi's eyes find her again as she almost dances beside him, so light, despite the large bag of rice on her shoulder. Light - not weight, but a beautiful glow - somehow both words describe her. She turns to look at him and grins. "What's next on the list, Aoshi-sama?"

He blinks, trying to ground himself in reality and find himself again. "Vegetables." he says quickly.

She laughs, seemingly for no reason. "Great! Let's get a lot of cucumbers, okay?"

Even your smallest glances

Even your lonely back is a difficult promise to me

Misao surreptitiously looks over the top of her book at him, not hiding her involuntary smile that always seemed to appear when she looked at him. His back is perfectly straight as he writes, his brush gliding so smoothly over the paper. "Are you bored?" he asks, turning slightly.

She blinks and quickly looks down, the blush on her cheeks betraying her. "O-oh - no!" she stammers.

He nods, looking back at her for a few moments. "Do you want to come and look?"

All of you comes to me

The tea she brings him is somehow different, better than anyone else's. Every afternoon, she is at his door, once more, balancing a tray, smiling happily. Today, he reaches out and ruffles her hair, going beyond fleeting glances at her over the rim of his teacup. Her flushed cheeks and stuttering words almost make him smile.

An unsolvable riddle

His strange attitude towards the delivery boy who she had chatted with this morning puzzles her. Sure, the boy was flirting with her - as he always did. But did that warrant such a frigid glare? Later, she rests her flushed cheek on her hand as she watches him train, across the yard. Maybe he is jealous? Or is that just fancy - wishful thinking on her part?

Sadness blooms like cosmos flowers by the train station

You're the aromatic wind that blows by

Misao stands on the platform with her suitcase, the slight breeze blowing her hakama. It is the few early weeks of spring when the cherry blossoms bloom. Amid the hustle and bustle of the train station, he only sees her and he looks at her, unsure what to say, everyone else having said their tearful goodbyes already. He looks at her, not wanting her to leave. As if knowing his thoughts, she smiles at him. "It's only for a year. It'll be gone before anyone knows it, and I'll be back with loads of stories to tell." she says.

Stiffly, he nods. "Of course." Suddenly, he steps forward. He feels as if he should do something, but he is at a loss, and instead says something stiff again. How can he just say, 'stay' like that? So he says something else. "Take care of yourself, Misao."

A mischievous smile appears on her face. "Will you miss me?"

He lets his face relax into a small smile. "I will." He will.

Suddenly, with another breath of wind and the smell of cherry blossoms, she moves quickly forward and just as quickly back, blushing slightly. "Bye-bye, Aoshi-sama!"

The feeling of her soft lips brushing against his cheek does not leave him even as the train departs.

I will build a castle on top of the fluffy clouds

I'll open my windows to you, the windy windows

Aoshi sits on the engawa, a motionless fan in his hand and his usually clear, sharp icy eyes seem misty and far away. He has that kind of look more often now, she thinks that it may have something to do with the fact that he's been writing more and more. When she comes to him, he smiles very slightly, the kind of smile only she can see, and she grins back and she, resting her weight against him, lets his arm encircle her shoulders. "When you look up at the towering clouds..." he says. "What do you think?"

She frowns slightly, looking up at the sunset sky and the clouds Aoshi spoke of. "They're like faraway lands, huge castles made of wind up in the sky." she says. He nods. They stay like that, in silence until Misao speaks again. "The kids'll be coming home from Tokyo tomorrow." she says quietly.

"They'll be wanting to leave as soon as they come back." Aoshi says, shaking his head. "They like Himura more than us." he quietly jokes.

"He spoils them and they're kids. Staying home is boring to them." she shrugs. "Who do they get that wanderlust from, I wonder?"

"I wonder too." he looks down at her.