I'll make this short and sweet, because I'm tired and I have to put up with five year olds, early tomorrow. This is the Third, count it three, chapter of Captain Sagara's Daughter, I'd like to thank my readers for… well… Reading, and my (Currently) Three wonderful reviewers, you have no Idea how wonderful it is for me to have another story out that people actually like. Also thank you to my editor, Syldoran-chan, you've been a big help.
(Bows) Thank you for reading so far I hope you enjoy the next chapter, and please remember to review at the end.
Hirari was standing in front of a rather poor-looking dojo. She could tell, just from looking at it, the owners loved this place, but barely knew how to take proper care of it. The faded sign read Kamiya Kasshin-Ryu Kenjustu Dojo. She sighed. Why do I always go for these poor places? She wondered. The answer came as quickly as the question had. Because these poor places can't afford to hire full contractors. Hirari walked through the front gate, calling out as she had at the clinic, "Is anyone home?"
She walked into the front courtyard and continued to look around the small dojo. There was no way she was going to get much money, if any, from this place, but she'd already decided to fix the place up if it was the last thing she did. This place had a lot of spirit, if little money. "Hellooo!" She called out again, before taking the few steps to the front building. She removed her sandals before stepping on to the deck. Opening the door with some sense of respect, the room was a simple, but nice, dojo.
Figures, she thought.
There was a woman sitting in Hakama, watching as a spiky-haired kid ran through his attacks.
Hirari waited silently for the two to finish. She knew better than to interrupt a lesson. While she waited she looked around the quaint room. The walls had been repaired several times, but needed to be leveled and re-painted. The floor had also been repaired in more than one place. Hirari shifted her weight over to her other foot, and heard the weak boards in the floor. Along one wall was a list of students and teachers. Hirari's sharp eyes could read it well. Kamiya Kasshin-ryu, Master- this was blank, Instructor-Kamiya Kaoru, Students- Myojin Yahiko, Tsukayama Yutaro (reserved). The others were blank; Hirari wasn't really surprised. But still, only two students and no master? What horrible things had happened to this dojo?
Hirari turned back watching as the session end. The boy's stance was good, for one so young, his movements were just the same, but Hirari could see gaps the size of cities in both his attacks and defensive moves. Her eyes narrowed. I wonder if I could teach this kid something about defense while I'm here? For an instance she forgot how much like her father she looked like when she was studying something, and realized the instructor, Kamiya Kaoru, was looking at her oddly. She changed her expression to one of amused but brainless, keeping her eyes looking at the wood work or stone work of the building. Everywhere she looked she saw things that needed repair.
Kaoru ended the session with the spiky-haired boy, who begrudgingly bowed to her, and then both of them faced Hirari. Hirari bowed to them and said, "I'm sorry for the interruption, Miss. I was wondering if the owners of this dojo were looking for someone to repair their roof."
They both blinked in surprise.
"I'm a fairly good contractor. I can replace the entire thing in about five months by myself," Hirari said as she gave a lopsided grin. "And if you don't mind me saying, your roof has seen better days, I'm sure."
The woman glared at her. "I'm sure you've lived in palaces."
Hirari smiled apologetically. "I didn't mean to be rude, ma'am."
The boy spoke next with, "How did you know the roof needed to be repaired?"
Hirari's grin changed, slightly as she said, "I'm sorry, I've repaired lots of roofs in worse condition. I figure you started having some leaks around the end of the rainy season?"
The boy frowned, but the woman blinked in surprise. "How did you . . . ." she started, trailing off.
Hirari just grinned wider. She rubbed the back of her head, trying her hardest to look like a man. "Like I said, I've fixed a lot of roofs." She looked toward another door. "If you like I can take a closer look."
The boy looked apprehensive, but Kaoru hesitated only for a moment. "How much would that cost?" he asked before the woman could say anything.
"For a look?" Hirari continued to smile, "Not a thing. I'm pretty cheap."
The woman clapped her hands, "Alright then, lets go find you a ladder!"
Hirari let her smile drop and said, "I don't need a ladder, if you'll just show me outside. . . ."
The boy and woman both looked at her like she was crazy, but lead her outside.
Hirari stood outside again, this time staring at the roof to the dojo. She had her hands on her hips, studying the old, worn-out tiles like they were a painting or another fighter. She dropped her arms and walked towards the deck. She used her toes to grip the edge of the deck, and put weight on that one foot. Her strong feet gripped the sharp edge of the deck as her hands and arms lifted up, to find perches on the edge of the roof, just under the tiles. Hirari lifted herself up by the tips of her fingers until her chin was just above the tiles. She lifted one leg to grip the edge of the roof with her heel, moving gingerly until she could be sure that the roofing was going to support all of her weight.
It was five whole minutes until both her feet were on the roof, and she was crouching close to the edge. She didn't like the way the roof was dipping inward in several places. Still, carefully she stepped forward, ready to jump of the roof if it came to cave. Despite the broken tile here and there, most of them had weathered through the years well. With some fresh paint and a few new tiles it could look brand new, but that didn't mean anything for the wood underneath.
Standing precariously next to one of the stooped parts of the room, she removed tiles from both the bad-looking spots and the good. The wood was almost the same dark, rotting color in both places. Hirari stiffened a little at this sight, but slowly and carefully replaced the tiles before turning and making her way back to the edge, trying to step in the same places she had only a few minutes ago.
At the edge she eased her self down rather than just jumping; she wasn't sure how the rotting wood would react to the sudden relief of her weight. Kaoru-san and the boy were waiting under the eaves, when Hirari let her feet meet the earth again.
"So," Kaoru-san asked, "how is it?"
Hirari gave her a weak smile. "Don't let anyone shy of a professional up there." The statement was short and rude, but the truth. "Listen, if you'll pay for the first part of the materials, and let me sleep in one of the spare rooms until I've finished my work, I'll fix it for free. If that doesn't work for you, I suggest you get a good, brave contractor to fix it this week. I don't want to think about how much longer some places up there are going to hold." Hirari sighed to herself; the roof was a six month project for a lone worker.
"Was it really that bad?"
Hirari didn't even bother being polite anymore as she continued, "Worse. I've seen bad before, lady, and while you're not the worst the roof won't hold up another year. When was the last time you had it fixed?"
The woman put a finger to her chin. "I think Kenshin repaired it a couple of months ago . . . ." she mused.
Hirari put a hand to her own forehead. "That would explain the good parts in the mix of bad," she sighed, "Miss, honestly, you need to get that roof fixed now. I'm willing to do it for a low price, but you do need to get it repaired. If you don't have someone up there by the end of next week, you could start having major problems with the rest of the building."
Oddly enough the boy nodded in agreement, "I still think we need a second opinion, but if this guy knows as much as he's acting like he does, he's right. Damage to an essential part of a complex can have major ramifications on the rest of a structure."
Kaoru looked at him, surprised, and asked "Wow, Yahiko, where did you learn all those big words?"
The boy looked angered by this question. "Despite what some people seem to think, I do spend some time talking to smart people."
Hirari shifted slightly uncomfortably, listening to them bicker. That mere movement drew the attention of the two sword-fighters. She cleared her throat after a moment and offered, "If you like, you can call another carpenter to look at the roof, and then you can come get me once you have had someone look at it. I'll be staying in the woods outside of town." With that, Hirari threw a wave over her shoulder and headed back through the building toward the front gate.
Kaoru stopped her before she'd exited the dojo, "Wait, a minute!" she called. "You don't have a place to stay?"
Hirari shook her head, "No roof and four walls, if that's what you mean. I have a tent to use as a lean-to, and someone who needs me to take care of him, but other than that, not a thing."
Kaoru looked suddenly determined. "Alright then, you're staying with us," she insisted.
Hirari stared, shocked. No one had ever insisted she stay in their house right after they'd met. Finally she found her voice. "I wouldn't want to intrude. . . ." she said sheepishly.
"Nonsense," Kaoru said, "You don't have anywhere to stay. Besides, you aren't intruding if I invited you."
"Really," Hirari held her hands up, "I don't think it's appropriate for a man to stay with a woman and child, he barely knows… What would your neighbors think?"
"The same thing they do about Kenshin," Kaoru answered easily.
The boy had dropped his jaw disbelievingly. "Kaoru… You're going to trust this freak?"
"Now 'freak' is a little bit harsh," Hirari said.
The two continued to argue ignoring her comment. "Why not? I trusted a pickpocket, an ex-assassin, and a fighter for hire! A man who wants to fix our roof sounds more trustworthy than any of those."
Yahiko countered, "He hasn't even told us his name yet!"
"It's Hirari, Fudo Hirari," Hirari managed to interject.
"He has now. I don't see what the problem is," Kaoru replied.
"I still don't think Kenshin would approve!" Yahiko said.
"It doesn't matter if he approves or not! This is my dojo I'll invite anyone I want to stay here!" Kaoru yelled.
"Well, what if I don't want to sleep here?!" Hirari shouted, finally drawing their attention back to her. The two blinked like her, silently saying that was the most absurd idea in the world.
"Yes," she continued to their silence, "I have someone waiting for me at the edge of town. I can't leave him alone for the night. He may be able to defend himself, but he doesn't know the first thing about building a camp, or where to find clean water. I have to go take care of him, so I can't stay here tonight anyway." Hirari bowed to Kaoru and politely said, "Thank you for your offer, Miss. I'm sorry to be a rude guest but I have to leave."
"Wait a minute." Kaoru stopped Hirari before she'd even moved to leave. The woman looked to the spiky-haired boy nearby. "Take Yahiko, then you can bring your friend back here and both of you can stay here. Really, it's no problem. Right Yahiko?"
"Yeah . . . ." The boy sounded none too happy, but accepted that he wouldn't be able to change it. "We can't just let you sleep on the streets. Even I never had to do that."
Hirari felt backed into a corner; she sighed, nodded in agreement and led the boy to the edge of town, where her 'friend' was waiting.
Hirari and Yahiko had traveled into the shopping district, before they did more than exchange names. It was Yahiko that spoke first, "Why do you want to fix our roof so bad?" He asked, still not trusting Hirari.
Hirari didn't look at him, but was memorizing landmarks so she'd know her way around next time she was in town. Still, she answered truthfully, "Your dojo needed to be repaired. I was looking for some place that didn't have enough money to hire a real contractor, and . . . ." She turned looking at him before continuing, "I guess it was the spirit I saw in the building . . . I'm not sure . . . something else just kind of drew me in . . . ."
Yahiko had stopped in his tracks, amazed by the calm expression that was looking down at him, instead of the happy-go-lucky look she had been sporting. He swallowed, hard, then realized they'd both stopped. He blushed and hurried on, leading the way again, and Hirari looking around her for more landmarks, and to get to know Kyoto better. After several more minute he spoke again. "So, what happened to your face?"
"Just some thugs," Hirari said as though it were no big deal.
Yahiko looked her in a surprised manner. "What?"
That goofy look was back on her face. "I kind of stuck my foot where it shouldn't have been. The tugs got angry and attacked me as a group. They got a few lucky swings before I could make a break away . . . ." She didn't continue after this.
"Then what happened?" Yahiko asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
Hirari grinned as she answered, "I ran into a tea house and hid along the ceiling and wall. I'll show you how some other time," she offered as an afterthought.
For a minute Yahiko had thought Hirari was actually cool, then it turned out the weird guy had hidden instead turning and fighting like a man. He murmured his opinion; "What are you a man or a mouse?"
Hirari heard him and just smiled wider.
Yahiko rolled his eyes, and asked another question, finding the silence uncomfortable. "What brings you to Kyoto?"
Hirari paused a while before answering, "I . . . I'm looking for some old friends of my father's."
Yahiko looked over his shoulder with a face that said he didn't believe her. Hirari was just smiling, though.
They'd finally reached the edge of town, and the forest was visible beyond the rice paddies. Yahiko stopped, expecting Hirari to make some sort of signal, When she didn't he asked, "Where's your friend?"
Hirari smirked, "I'll call him." She put her middle finger and thumb into her mouth and blew. A sharp, long, and loud whistle passed over the area, drawing the attention of everyone in the fields. Yahiko blushed for a few seconds, embarrassed by this call to them, until he heard something large crashing through the brush that was now just a field away. Hirari seemed undisturbed, but Yahiko reached for his shinai. A horse jumped over a shrub and jogged over to the waiting carpenter. Hirari put up a single hand and the horse bowed its head. Hirari began to rub the horse's nose in a knowing way. The horse leaned into her hands.
She smiled at the surprised boy. "Yahiko, meet my partner and best friend, Katsu."
And finally to end this chapter I remind you to REVIEW, it gets the chapters up sooner.
In the famous words of every rockin' roller worth their salt, "THANK YOU!! Good night!!!"