June 5
There is an unnatural hush over Kyoto right now. All I can hear now is angry murmurs of the men and soft crying of a maid, all outside my room. In here, the light from the candle makes my shadow large, distorts it into a monster.
Himura's not here. He's outside, and a part of me hopes that he comes back alive.
This all began early this evening. Tonight is the Gion festival. All day, the maids with the night off were excited for the festival. Even some of the men were relaxed.
But I didn't go out. I didn't feel like celebrating this year, so I stayed at the Inn, and continued repairing some kimono. Himura stayed in also. He was sleeping while I worked.
A few hours after sunset, Iizuka-san dropped by our room.
"Hey Himura!" he said, opening the door. "Let's go hit the festival! Then we can hit the brothels, and…"
He stopped when he saw me in front of him. For a moment, I wished that I was able to glare at him.
"Please be quiet." I said. "Himura-san is sleeping."
Iizuka-san looked surprised, and closed the door without another word. I went back to my sewing, satisfied. Maybe it would have been more polite to wake Himura for Iizuka-san, but that man irritates me too much to have good manners.
Suddenly, Himura's eyes snapped open.
"What's the matter?" I asked. "Iizuka was-"
"Shh!" he interrupted, and stood. His eyes were fixed in their battle glare. And then I heard pounding on the stairs and the tatami. The door slammed open, revealing Katakai-san, Katsura-san's second-in-command. Iizuka-san was close behind.
"Why are you here?" Himura asked. "You're supposed to be guarding Katsura-san at-"
"The meeting at Ikeda-ya was attacked!" Katakai shouted. "It was the Mibu Wolves! The Shinsengumi!"
"The location was leaked!" Iizuka-san shouted.
"What about Katsura-san?" Himura asked.
"He was running early, so he ran an errand at Tsushima Party Headquarters," Katakai-san explained. "He was taking a catnap when Ikeda-ya was attacked! But Yoshida-san, Miyabe-sensei, and the rest of them…"
Katakai-san was hunched over, gritting his teeth with worry. Iizuka-san looked shocked. But Himura's face became a mask of fury. He ran to the door.
"Himura! Wait!" Iizuka-san held out an arm and caught Himura.
"It's too late! You'll never make it if you leave now!" he shouted, restraining Himura. "There are already 3,000 Shogunate soldiers heading that way! Attacking now will only hurt the Choshuu Party!"
Himura struggled some more, then finally stopped. Iizuka-san reluctantly put his arm down as Himura stepped away from him.
"So what are we supposed to do?" he asked.
Katakai-san furrowed his brow and thought for a long time. Finally, he said, "We'll wait."
Katakai-san left shortly after that, probably to go check on Katsura-san or some other politician. Iizuka-san stayed in our room for a little while, but left when it became clear that Himura and I wouldn't talk to him. And Himura paced back and forth, his eyes still narrowed. Finally, after half an hour he stopped.
"I can't sit still like this," he said. "I have to go."
I wasn't surprised. Himura's not the type of person who can sit still when he thinks he can help someone in trouble. But I couldn't suppress my worry for him.
"Be careful," I said. He nodded and left.
After he left, I went downstairs to talk with the other maids. They were going back and forth with gossip. Apparently, the Shinsengumi are a group of Shogunate soldiers from Mibu. Like the Mimawarigumi, but stricter and tougher. The girls are all scared and confused. What if the Shinsengumi find out about the Kohagiya and attack us?
I feel the same way, but for different reasons. If Akira were still alive, we'd celebrating this victory for the Shogunate. But now, I'm scared and frightened of my fiancé's comrades. When did this change come over me?