This chapter is not an actual part of the story, more like back-story, and was written in case of a situation like this – I'm going away for a month, will have no opportunity to update, and only have two half-finished chapters in the wings. So, please accept this as a stop-gap, and a Christmas gift from me to you. Merry Christmas everyone!
-CHAPTER FILLER; (a scene from our heroes' childhood.)
"Shinya! Kenji-nii!" The two boys looked up from the pieces of string they had been watching intently, to see a little girl, short hair flying out of the lacquer comb holding it off her face as she tumbled down the grassy slope, gata and obi tangled around her as she rolled to a stop at the bottom. "What are you doing?"
"Fishing, Kenji-nii's showing me." Shinya said proudly, holding up his empty string.
"I saw Uncle Sano doing it last time he was here – I wanted to see how he got all those fish bones." Kenjis said quietly, his hakama rolled up past the knees to keep them out of the silty water, and his socks and sandles neatly placed on the bank.
"Oooh, you can catch fish with a piece of string? I wanna try."
"Can't. There's only two fishing rods." Shinya said loftily, as he waded around looking for fish, soaked to the waist.
"That's not fair Shinya, I wanna go!"
"Can't." Shinya stuck his tongue out at his sister and turned around. "Should have been there when we got ready this afternoon – instead of doing stupid girl stuff for stupid girls' day."
Shinko's face screwed up and she looked like she was about to punch her twin or cry.
"You can have my string if you want." Kenji said, wading to the bank and sitting down beside the girl, holding it out for her to take.
"Don't want no stupid string. I don't need it. I bet I can catch a fish faster with my bare hands than you can with your stupid string." She pouted at Shinya, tugging at the hem of her delicately painted kimono and trying to wriggle it away from her ankles as she prepared to wade into the river as well.'
"Hah, no way. You'll be as old as Auntie Kaoru before you catch a fish." Shinya replied.
"Shouldn't you take your kimono off?" Kenji suggested, catching Shinko's shoulder just as she was about to step into the river.
"Why?"
"...You can't chase fish in it – it's too restrictive." Kenji said after a moment. Shinko paused to think about that for a moment, her six-year-old face pensive.
"You're right. Help me untie it." Kenji smiled slightly, and began undoing the complex knots of the obi while Shinko shifted impatiently from foot to foot. "Hurry up, Kenji-nii."
"Nearly there." The heavy silk obi slid into the boy's hands and he laid it on the bank, before starting on the sash beneath it, as well as the one that held the under-robe closed, as Shinko got increasingly impatient.
"I wanna go fishing!"
"All done." The linen under-robe was laid on the pile with the rest of the kimono, the gata and the comb as Shinko laughed with delight and hugged the red-haired boy.
"Domo arigato goazaimas, Kenji-nii!"
"... Here, wear this." Kenji said after a moment, tugging his gi off and slipping it around Shinko's shoulders. It came down just past her knees, and flapped around like a sail until he tied it with his 'fishing line'.
"But now you can't go fishing!" She protested, eyes wide.
"I'll try and catch them with my hands too then." Kenji said, shrugging. Shinya, who had been sulking while Kenji paid attention to Shinko spun around when he heard that.
"What about me? ...I don't need a string either. I'll catch one with my hands first!" He scanned the river frantically. "There's one!" He leaped for the flash of silver, bellyflopping into the river with a huge splash, his hands closing around mud as he came up spluttering.
"You're all wet now!" Shinko laughed, pointing, "And your mouth is all open and round like a fish!"
"I bet you can't do better." Shinya challenged. Outraged, Shinko plunged into the river, thrashing as she tried to find a fish along the bottom.
"Here fishy fishy fishy! You'll like being caught by me much better than by stinky Shinya... fishy!"
Kenji hesitated for a moment – after all, this was hardly the way for a future kendo-master and hero to behave – before he jumped into the river too. The fishing competition devolved into a splashing competition, and then became just a very wet and muddy brawl.
"Two on one isn't fair!"
"But you're bigger than us!"
"Shinya-kun said you couldn't catch fish as well as he could, Shinko-chan."
Another splash rippled the golden water as the three children played, laughter disrupting the lazy silence of the afternoon.