Greetings, dear readers! This chapter is like a hectic interlude between big events. Includes one of the rudest Okita's pranks (alas, one of my favorite ones), further development of certain relationships, and some Oni intervention…
As always, thanks to ImpracticalDemon for beta reading!
Chapter XI. The spider and the fly.
Chizuru's sensitive morning sleep was disturbed by the sound of the main door opening and the staircase cracking under someone's feet. She jumped up and hurried to wrap herself in a bathrobe.
Hijikata-san was standing in front of Okita's door, sipping coffee from a paper cup.
"Morning, Chizuru-chan. You can stay in bed. I've come to get him."
"Morning… But he must be sleeping. You know… he's tire-ed." mumbled Chizuru, suppressing a yawn.
Hijikata-san twisted his lips into a wry smile. "Souji had enough time to rest in jail." That simple thesis seemed to have become Hijikata-san's new guideline. He opened the door of Okita's room.
Chizuru peeked into the room over his shoulder. Of course, Okita was sleeping, his bare, bruised back turned to the visitors. She could hear his steady breath. Cold didn't seem to bother him. The girl frowned when Hijikata-san knocked at the door frame. Okita twitched and slowly sat up in bed. He shot an annoyed glare at Hijikata-san. Chizuru turned back to the hallway.
"G'morning, Hijikata-san, I'm so-o glad to see you out of all of humanity," mumbled Okita in a low voice, still half-asleep.
"Morning?!" exclaimed Hijikata-san. "Barely. I won't have time to fill you in later, so get up and go to the basement. Time to work."
"Aye, sir!" said Okita, raising his right hand to his brow in a derisive salute. "Gimme ten minutes." Surprisingly, he didn't argue.
'Damn workaholics', thought Chizuru.
Ten minutes later, Okita went down to the first floor, washed up and running his hand through still-disheveled hair. He ignored breakfast and obediently followed Hijikata-san to the basement to discuss current work issues.
Chizuru heard his sarcastic remark, following Hijikata-san's grumbling. She got dressed, feeling herself dangerously close to the deadliest secret of the Shinsengumi. Meaning, how on earth they all managed to work together. Especially those two, considering their roles in the creative process. Chizuru's curiosity won over her better judgment and she went to the basement.
…
"Souji!"
"I kept quiet!"
"Tch. I can hear you thinking. This new approach should work."
There they were, at each other's throats again.
"Have you ever thought that you should care just a bit less about approaches and rules and tactics?"
"And you could use some discipline."
The sound of giggling made them turn their heads towards the entrance. Chizuru saw their vexed faces and doubled over in laughter. Her laughter seemed to be contagious, as Okita smirked and the corner of Hijikata-san's lip rose.
"Hey! We are trying to work here!" said Hijikata-san.
"I see how you work," Chizuru said breathlessly. "I wonder how you managed to release the whole album with this approach."
"Well, Hajime is usually here, but he's busy right now," explained Hijikata-san.
So that was the secret, thought Chizuru. If it hadn't been for Saitou-san to keep them at bay, the work would have been paralyzed.
"Wanna join us, Chizuru-chan?" Okita smiled at her. "We are pleasantly wasting time here." He was sitting at his synth and Chizuru noticed that his damaged fingers were trembling slightly over the keys.
"With pleasure," answered Chizuru. The fingers were long and agile. Chizuru suddenly thought of a pair of tricky white ferrets.
Hijikata-san explained that he had used to bring a number of lyrics to Okita and Saitou-san so they could choose which texts were suitable for writing music. That was where Saitou-san's ability to mediate came in handy. But given the nature of the new album, Hijikata-san came to think that writing music before lyrics would be more effective in order to set the mood. "Lyrics after music" was their usual way to work with Sano-san, because Okita was more flexible and cooperative with him.
Since the new album was expected to have an overall concept it was decided to change the approach and elaborate the musical drafts first. Okita was currently balking at Hijikata-san's idea because it meant more interaction between him and the person he persisted in disliking.
Thus, their writing and composing department was a very fragile structure. Partially, it worked because of Hijikata-san's iron will. The other parts were Saitou-san's diplomacy and Sano-san's modesty. Nobody doubted Hijikata-san's leadership except Okita. As the latter didn't go so far as to bother himself with responsibility, so Hijikata-san's position was uncontested.
...
"I have an idea!" said Hijikata-san when they finished finished struggling with drafts, sadly unproductive.
'Energetic, as always', thought Chizuru. 'What now', thought Okita.
"Yeah?" she answered hesitantly.
"We've nearly lost the battle on TV, but the war has just started. Your positive image should be maintained."
"I'd say it should be constructed, for a start." Chizuru grinned. She heard Okita smirking behind her back.
"Whatever! I want you to give a thorough interview to our reputable ally. No personal life and dirty laundry, just your work. Thinking of which, do you know any alternative fiddlers of your skills and background in our city?"
"At most, they play dull covers of metal classics. Stuff like that." Chizuru started to get the idea.
"Indeed, Chizuru-chan is not your common case," agreed Okita. Chizuru flushed at the sound of his rare (alas!) praise. "That fact has already drawn us some unwanted attention. But I see no reason to back off: idiots must be educated."
"Why won't you get a degree then?" snickered Hijikata-san. Okita pouted. It was a when-pigs-fly event when Hijikata-san managed to shut him up. "I want a completely professional talk. You'll tell about your ghost harmonics and other stuff."
"And who's our reputable ally?" asked Chizuru.
"Sannan Keisuke," Hijikata-san answered.
"Why him?" moaned Okita. He immediately forgot about being offended. "We must have someone guard Chizuru-chan."
Things were getting pretty interesting. They all fussed over that person too much to leave Chizuru indifferent.
"Why not join her then? You'll make up some crap about our new sound." Hijikata-san was glowing with enthusiasm.
"Hajime-kun is better with words than me."
"You are perfect with words when you want to be," mumbled Hijikata-san, making notes in his tablet. "We also need a photographer. A youtube stream. And a couple of viral-type announcements in social media."
"You wanna hire Ibuki again?" Okita asked with displeasure.
"You may dislike him as much as you want, but you can't deny he has a good eye. Just like Sannan-san has a talent for staying on top of trends. Don't be a kid. I may not like everything about you either, but we work together nonetheless."
"Same here," muttered Okita. Success of their common case had a higher priority for him than one or two (or more) personal dislikes.
"Alright, I'll set the date then." Hijikata-san offered them a contented smile.
…
I hadn't seen this coming. My involuntary vacation probably gave me a bit of perspective. When Hijikata-san struggles to find something in his paper hell, Chizuru somehow knows where to look. When Heisuke feels down (something he does pretty often these days), she tells him some stupid joke or gives him some simple praise. The boy smiles. She's on good terms with Sano-san, which is the least surprising, since it's difficult to be on bad terms with Sano-san. She exchanges music with Shinpachi-san - the girl made him curious about her industrial stuff. The oddest thing is that Chizuru has found her way with Hajime. She has no idea that she's probably the third girl he's ever been able to speak to freely, in addition to his sister Katsu and his ex.
"What about you, Souji?" Heisuke waves a hand in front of my face.
Damn. When did I become so unaware?
"Hmm?"
"We're ordering Chinese now. You want something?"
I have some of yesterday's leftovers stored in the fridge, so I refuse.
Indeed, what about me?
I remember her sitting quietly in the corner, observing us as if we were a bunch of amusing animals in the zoo. Little savage, heh. Sometimes she was clearly bothered by what she was seeing. Said nothing, of course, but she's really bad at covering her emotions - something I've mastered through years of practice. I noticed her frowning over the places we'd visited or people we'd met. She seemed to be just another snob from Marketplace. When did she become everyone's friend I wonder? Now she's laughing about something with Shinpachi-san. So fervently, as if it's her last chance to laugh. Now that she lives on her own, she somehow rushes to live: to laugh, to marvel, to work. Who'd have thought that breaking up with one's family could be such a relief?
"What are you smiling about, Souji?" Heisuke stares at me suspiciously. I must have trained them all well if they are so alarmed to see me smile.
"Can't you just mind your own business, please? Thank you!"
He pouts and turns away. Well done, Souji, another soul is violated. Heisuke acts strangely today. He doesn't fight Shinpachi-san and often gets zoned out.
Everyone has come to see me today and now they are ordering food. Someone will have to drive to the Crossroad to meet the courier. I could use a break.
An hour later I find myself driving between the potholes and washouts on the roadway. I insisted on going alone. Just me and my thoughts... I bet Chizuru expected to have a fresh start. But now the whole city seems to loathe her for no particular reason. In other circumstances, I would have gloated about it. Serizawa-san gets what he deserves. He wants to mess with us - he receives this batshit crazy show. And the girl… it's her fault for inserting herself into situations she knows nothing about. However, this logic just doesn't work for me anymore.
…
November was nasty. And if the Marketplace inhabitants preferred to move by car, the Slums' folk were doomed. The district became a total mess. Chizuru had acquired rubber boots to spend the evening measuring puddles with Okita, before they froze completely. Local kids were happy to see Okita back. Chizuru envied them a bit because she couldn't bring herself to call him Souji.
"You get too amused about the world," Okita observed thoughtfully, helping Chizuru to get out of the puddle. "You're so alien." He added with a sly grin.
"Whoever gets to that fence first is free from dishwashing today!" Chizuru dodged his teasing and pointed at the hedge on the opposite side of the large puddle. Night was beginning to fall. When Okita hurried there with enviable speed, she started cracking up and followed him. It was something vitally important about fooling around together that she couldn't put into words.
They ended up slipping in the cold water at the finish line and had to hurry home.
Dealing with the upcoming winter couldn't be postponed any longer. On the fourth of November, early in the morning, Okita had finally adjusted the heating by starting up the boiler in the basement. Chizuru had been freezing the whole previous week and now she could finally move about the house without a sweater.
The girl was gradually getting used to living in the motley underside of the city. Do-it-yourself architecture, broken roads, vegetable gardens (now covered with snow). That evening Chizuru also discovered the smoky insides of the old red-brick basements turned into bars.
She found herself sitting in the so-called non-smoking area of yet another establishment where Shinpachi-san had decided to celebrate his birthday. During the night, the temperature had dropped below zero again and Chizuru was glad that the stuffy basement was warm. Shinpachi-san had gone off, greeting his numerous friends. Just by looking on his shining face, her lips involuntarily tugged into a smile. There were several familiar people drifting in the background, including Toyotomi, but all in all Chizuru felt a bit lost. She had just started to understand the extent of her social isolation. Her nervous fingers were tapping the edges of her teacup.
Saitou-san was sitting on her left, peacefully sipping his whiskey. He didn't interrupt her thoughts, but his presence was reassuring in itself. Okita had moved away to greet someone. Chizuru spotted him near the bar counter, surrounded by a couple of laughing and smoking women. His lips were pulled into a smirk, which she knew very well. It was always served with a cold gaze. Back then that dry smirk had been a source of her prejudice towards him. His indifference was annoying. Okita seemed to treat everything with perfectly measured neglect, seasoned with mockery. By now Chizuru had learned that he was very skilled at constructing his façade. The smirk had nothing to do with the small and almost shy smile he had given her on the evening of his return. That smile was now saved carefully in her memories.
Her train of thought was interrupted by voices from behind her.
"What did the cops forget here? They didn't even bother to change out of uniform."
"Probably sniffing around the Underground. Have you heard about the Water of life? My buddy from the IT department..." Chizuru tensed. Shinpachi-san hadn't booked the entire bar, so occasional visitors continued to come in. Most often, they looked around, noting jamming musicians on stage, tipsy punks and the raving Shinsengumi Trio and left, mumbling "Those asians…" Several daredevils, however, had stayed, including a couple of cops.
"And there's a cute girl near them!" Wheezing whisper from behind added.
Chizuru looked at the bar counter and indeed, a nice girl was sitting beside the cops, gracefully sipping her drink. She was totally indifferent to both roaring music and flashing lights. The cops were throwing more than curious looks at her. Long shiny black hair half-hid the girl's pale face. Her clothes had obviously been picked with care, every item of the multilayered outfit matching the others. Matchy-matchy, Chizuru noted mechanically.
Okita appeared out of the smoky darkness and fell onto the couch on her right. He followed the direction of Chizuru's glance and froze.
Suddenly Okita bent in a half, desperately trying to suppress giggles. After a moment of struggle, he burst out laughing madly, slapping his knee. Chizuru was completely baffled by his behaviour and so was Saitou-san. Finally, breathless, Okita mumbled "Awesome!" and jumped up. Chizuru watched him departing towards the bar with an unfamiliar springy stride, maneuvering deftly between the tables. Even his usual slight stoop disappeared. He bent down towards the girl and Chizuru could only hear flirting overtones of his voice. Her mouth went dry as she sat as though turned to stone in her seat.
"Yukimura-san, it's fine," Saitou-san muttered into her ear. Chizuru twitched. "Excuse me, I didn't mean to startle you." Saitou-san was looking at her with awful awareness.
"Oh!" Chizuru went numb. She hadn't intended to wear her feelings on her sleeve.
"It's fine." He repeated reassuringly, meaning that her secret was safe with him.
"Thank you, Saitou-san," mumbled Chizuru, at a loss for better words. Meanwhile, Okita went on about 'having the happy good fortune to encounter such a magnificent belle.' Something was odd about it. Chizuru had never seen him approaching any other girl before. He always demonstrated an odd lack of interest in love affairs and a total unwillingness to discuss the topic. On top of that, she thought that a strange and thrilling thing was happening between them, which gave her a hope of…
The girl, tomato-red to the tips of her ears, grabbed her coat and stormed out of the bar. Okita, unable to hold back anymore, burst into uncontrollable laughter, grabbing his chest. The cops glared at him and left too. Chizuru glanced at Saitou-san. A confused smile was plastered across his face. The whole scene didn't make sense at all.
Shaking with laughter, Okita approached their table and collapsed onto the seat. His laughter went down to chuckles and soon he calmed down.
"My, my, that was too good," he muttered under his breath. "Yamazaki's gonna hate me forever for this."
"Yamazaki-san?" exclaimed Chizuru, but Okita hushed her.
"Shhh, Chizuru-chan, do you want to reveal classified information? Keep your voice down or I'll have to take measures."
"He occasionally cross-dresses to spy for Hijikata-san," Saitou-san explained quietly. Chizuru's eyes widened. "That was how we knew about the conditions of your imprisonment, Souji, you cement head." That was the rudest thing Chizuru had ever heard from Saitou-san.
"Hajime-kun, have mercy! Besides, I saw you smiling too." Okita snickered.
"I have to admit, it was a bit funny. However, I am ashamed and you should be too. And… Yukimura-san did not smile."
"Hmm…" Okita turned to Chizuru with a mischievous grin on his face.
"Don't say anything!" Chizuru blurted helplessly.
To her surprise, Okita smiled playfully. "Your wish is my command," he replied.
…
A few hours after the celebration had started, Hijikata-san appeared, shaking the snowflakes off his coat. A gust of cold wind followed him into the basement.
"Gracing our humble abode with his presence," noted Okita.
Hijikata-san congratulated the birthday boy (already heavily buzzed) and immediately proceeded to their corner.
"What happened to Yamazaki?" he asked curtly. His eyes were fixed on a certain someone.
After a short pause, Chizuru and Saitou-san answered simultaneously.
"Nothing," said Chizuru.
"Souji," said Saitou-san.
Chizuru felt herself flushing. Hijikata-san frowned.
A victorious smirk appeared on Okita's face. "Shame on you, Chizuru-chan," he said censoriously, but his eyes were laughing. "We're partners in crime now." Chizuru smiled wryly.
Hijikata-san rolled his eyes and sighed. "He said that someone was harassing him and he had to leave his vantage point. Ah… To hell with it for today!" The joyful atmosphere of the celebration did its job: Hijikata-san gave up further lecturing. He looked around the club as if waking up from a long sleep, put a cigarette in his mouth and then gazed at Okita.
"And you actually tried to flirt with him?"
"Bared my jaded heart." Okita stared at him with his brazen eyes.
Hijikata-san made an inarticulate sound that could pass for a chuckle. "Tongue of a wasp," he muttered with a sudden smile. Okita's gaze warmed a fraction. Hijikata-san lit a cigarette and departed to the bar to choose a drink.
"Psst! Souji!" A tousled Sano-san approached their table. "You'd better thank him, not add new troubles. You know, he nearly buried those cops and their department the evening you were detained. And then, on TV…"
"You are the voice of my long-lost conscience, Sano-san," sighed Okita.
"Oh, that vile Souji!" retorted Sano-san. "Why don't you give him a rest once in a while."
"Well, Hijikata-san doesn't change, does he?" Okita bit back. For some reason, though, his words were less certain than usual. Everyone turned to him.
"You're probably not looking closely enough," answered Sano-san. Saitou-san nodded.
Hijikata-san returned, armed with a bottle of wine and a plate of cheese. "This new lawyer of Kondou-san's, Itou-san, is trying to worm his way into our business. I had to meet with him today. On top of that, Serizawa-san kept me damn long in his office." He poured dark liquid to the glass. Registering their anxious faces, he continued. "He still thinks that we've never had a better chance in our freaking lives before this shit started. We're trying to organize another concert."
Chizuru couldn't say no to that. As a new member, she didn't receive any fees for the records and her savings were about to end.
Shortly after that, Shinpachi-san got tired of mild rock music and launched Angerfist. The club started to shake. On the safe periphery, Hijikata-san was preaching to Chizuru and Saitou-san. Okita and Sano-san had quickly disappeared when their manager started to crack strange jokes. He had clearly exceeded his alcohol limit and had started to vent the pent-up anger he had been holding within for a long time. Chizuru felt sorry for him as his burden was the heaviest.
"Dreariness and desolation! There must be some curse on these people… Idiots are coddled, idiots are nurtured, they are cultivated; idiot has become the norm; a little more and he would become the ideal!" Hijikata-san banged his fist down on the table. "And this guy wants us to waltz with idiots! Oh how skillfully you can solve your crossword, dear idiot, now go listen to our music! Don't worry about a thing: all science, art and literature are at your service! And all I write with the blood of my soul must be wasted on them! ..."
"This is the city of the dead," stated Okita, appearing by Chizuru's side. The girl twitched. "Sorry, Chizuru-chan!" He purred the words into her ear, making the skin on the back of her neck crawl excitingly. "Don't waste your time on the pitiful ones, Hijikata-san."
Not only Hijikata-san had exceeded his alcohol limit that night.
"We are the pitiful ones now, Souji! We are seditious skeptics and troublemakers! We are complaining, we dare to say that it's not okay! The idiots believe that everything is fine with this country and these people! They think we're show-offs. How dare we have more needs than they do?!"
...
The pack was strolling up the Bar Mile. Despite the late hour the street was full of people. The air was tense with the Friday vibe. Gaudy storefronts illuminated the fresh snow. Everyone sobered up a bit in the cold air of the night. Hijikata-san's pace was unsteady, but he was determined to reach the headquarters on foot.
Shinpachi-san had just learned about the harassment case, but due to his merry condition, he failed to sort out the essence of Okita's prank.
"S-ji! Yu're not skilled with ga-als. I'd teach you hawto handle th-m!" Shinpachi-san exclaimed. "But whatta'bout Chizuru-chan?" It was evident that the thought had suddenly crossed his mind.
Okita cursed under his breath. Hijikata-san exchanged glances with Saitou-san.
"Let's go, Sh-shinpachi!" Sano-san dragged his friend further ahead.
Heisuke-kun mumbled something about Souji being a blockhead ('bluckhe-ed', if being accurate) and moved after them. They were followed by Okita and Chizuru. Closing the procession were Hijikata-san and Saitou-san.
Saitou-san deftly made a remark about the crowd being so lively that evening. Indeed, the cheerfulness of the faces around them was refreshing. Chizuru made an amused comment. She perked up a little, watching joyful, Friday-evening party-goers.
"You really are something else," noted Okita. "What's so amusing about those homeless?" He pointed at the group of men in the distance. "Or those hookers? And those gypsies are junkies, I've hung out with them before. Their veins are all rotten."
"Yu-u lift the spirits!" grumbled Hijikata-san from behind them.
"Sorry." Again, Chizuru felt ashamed for being so unaware. "I didn't know." She wasn't accustomed to the image of misfortune. She saw diversity instead of misery. Laughing faces instead of lit-up grimaces. Affection instead of lust. Okita studied her face for a bit before his lips formed a small smile.
"So-ji, wha'were you doin' at Gypsies' aga-n? Haven' you quit gambling?" Hijikata-san interrupted, concerned.
"Do you expect me to starve considering we have no concerts? I tried to sell the beat I'd recently made, but the deal fell through."
"Hijikata-san, you visited the Swamp too," said honest Saitou-san.
"Indeed! Physician, heal thyself," said Okita. "By the way, your speech about idiots wasn't bad. Why don't you remake the album's concept in that direction?" It turned out that Okita had recorded Hijikata-san's preaching.
"So you are also a gambler," remarked Chizuru, after the new wave of bickering went cold. "A poker-face master, I guess."
Whether it was the alcohol or the celebration to blame, Okita was more open than usual. "I earned my first money doing that. Back at the House."
"The House?"
He only smiled in response.
…
Chizuru was extremely upset when she watched the recording of the notorious talk show and saw her parents in the front row. Kaoru had thoughtfully provided her with a link. Her father didn't say a word, but her stepmother was rather active.
"You're born, raised and then torn down," was Okita's comment on it. His eyes were sharp with venom. "Seems that your folks abandoned you after all." He stated it bluntly and Chizuru had to make an effort to hold back tears. She was overwhelmed with emotions and didn't notice a twinge of grief in his eyes.
Surprisingly, she felt her sorrow channeling into rage. Her stepmother must finally be at ease, lamenting about the 'poor child' on TV. "I'm not giving in," Chizuru told Okita.
"That's the spirit!" he praised her. 'It's quite amusing to see how the pain of the break-up is contradicted by the unwillingness to feel sorry for yourself,' Okita thought, studying her scowling face. 'There are far too many people whose miserable natures are always triumphing.'
As if Chizuru didn't have enough troubles with her family, old acquaintances kept ignoring her en masse. The girl had grown accustomed to that, so she was astonished to unexpectedly make a new one. The day after Shinpachi-san's birthday Chizuru was startled by a morning courier - a freaking courier in the Slums! - who had struggled to get to their door through the impassable autumn roads. He handled her a letter. A paper envelope with several densely written sheets inside. The handwriting was tiny and delicate. Just who writes paper letters these days? she thought.
It turned out be Okita's former cellmate, a person famous in certain circles and frequently going by the nickname 'bastard-sama'. Okita made a strange face, keeping his eyes fixed on the letter but for once in a blue moon, he didn't say anything. Chizuru was taken off-guard by the sudden sign of attention, unsure what to do.
The letter was part detailed introduction; part gentle compliments that embarrassed the hell out of Chizuru; part reflection about this and that; part compassion towards a fellow musician and a bit of mysterious veil. If Okita had seen the letter, he would have told her that the ingredients of the conquest plan were decently balanced. The mysterious veil was well-calculated too. Had he not seen things like that before?
Chizuru made up a short answer and sent it via e-mail. The intimidating Oni 404 vocalist made her wish to stay away from him. However, he appeared more human on paper. Several points piqued her curiosity and their bizarre conversation began. Kazama Chikage was an active young man with vast resources to fulfill his fads. At the same time, there was a slight sorrow hidden between the lines of his letters. The feeling of fleeting time and the finiteness of her current intense life, struck Chizuru hard.
Courier boy must have cursed the quirks of his employer, but he appeared every day without delay, after the morning traffic jams on the Crossroad had eased up a little.
"So, how is he?" Okita asked lazily, after a week and a pack of letters. They were sitting in the kitchen, preparing for the interview. It went without saying that he knew her correspondent's identity. Chizuru pretended that she was not surprised.
"He's - hmm - an interesting person," she said cautiously.
Okita looked at her with scornful disbelief.
She continued. "He's well educated and thoughtful, as far as I can judge. He has his issues, but so have I. And you." Chizuru didn't like the conversation.
"So he's worth his weight in gold."
"You don't like him, do you?" The prospect of a verbal duel with Okita was not tempting, but Kazama didn't deserve to be treated with prejudice.
"It doesn't matter if I like him or not." Okita stood up. "Have fun." He left the room.
Chizuru stared at the closed door, motionless. Sudden tears of hurt started to creep down her cheeks.
…
The nerve of that bastard…
…
Author's outro (really long this time). Well, I don't know where to start about this... =) But I was overwhelmed by the support the previous chapter had received. Thank you all very much! I'm very attached to this story myself, but your attention and praise keeps me even more motivated to continue. I didn't expect it, really. Thank you, ImpracticalDemon, Eliz1369, Hakusaitosan, Shell1331 and Shadow Cage!
To Shadow Cage: I was glad to see you again and to know that you continue reading the story! =) It was very flattering that you created a role-play violinist! I'm curious about it. It would be great if you could contact me somehow and tell me more about it.
…
The chapter is named after the song 'The spider and the fly' by London After Midnight.
…
Hijikata-san's preaching was heavily inspired by the well-known fragment of russian sci-fi book 'The Final Circle of Paradise' by Strugatsky Brothers (two of the most significant russian authors of the 20th century).
…
For this chapter, I've drawn a comic stripe illustrating Okita's prank at the bar. I've never done any comics before so I'm satisfied with my drawing and disappointed with the structure of the stripe and with the lines. But I'll definitely do better next time. Feel free to check the comic on my Tumblr.
…
Unfortunately, my life is going to become very hectic soon (starting later this week) because I'm moving to another city. I don't know whether I find time to write. Anyway, I'm determined to continue despite all the RL obstacles.