Disclaimer: Hakuouki is a visual novel game by Idea Factory. (They make a bunch of cute guys! Drools. So I always look up new series just so I can stare at them~) Hakuouki then was adapted into an Anime by Studio DEEN. And today, the Anime series is licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America. (I got this information from Wikipedia and I believe the information is accurate. I wouldn't know though!)

To Aen Silver Fire: I hope you had a great weekend! I looked at our messages and I'm like, "Gosh, I miss you!" By the time you come back home, I hope you will enjoy reading this chapter! Thank you so much for reading and leaving your thoughts in the reviews!

To Everyone: And I want to thank those who took the time to read, follow, and favorite as well!

"Forever" will not keep us connected

Chapter 12

The sun was already setting in the sky. On the roof of a three-story inn, Kyou watched the clouds go by while standing up. Slightly to the left below him, Sanosuke was leaning forward on a small wooden balcony of the third floor and his golden eyes were glowing, glancing from right to left. Saburo was sitting on the wooden railing, kicking his legs back and forth to shake off his worries.

"How's it looking, Harada?" Kyou brought his eyes down below feet.

In Sanosuke's eyes, he adjusted the light of the townspeople's presences to a minimum to search for bandits around the area. All the buildings were dark in his vision and the lights of the bandits gathered up ahead. He had already noted most of them were going to the brothel, which was only filled with bandits and women. "Looks like the 'party' is in the town's only red light district," Sanosuke's eyes stopped glowing and he closed his eyelids with a sigh. "There are a few groups of bandits patrolling the streets too."

"You okay?" Saburo blinked to him. Sanosuke was using his power for a long time. "Don't overdo yourself. We can't constantly use our power like that."

Kyou was sneering and Sanosuke rubbed between his eyes. "I just…" Sanosuke mumbled. "I'm worried for Hajime and the others…" He was keeping an eye on them at the hospital, which was only two miles away. "At least they're still safe…"

"Well, where's Yuma?" Kyou bent his knees, looking down to him. "And do you think that man named Ren is here too?" Those two men should feel honored since Kyou was bothering to remember their names.

Frowning with unease, Sanosuke nodded once, "Yes. They're both here." It made him wondered, but maybe the two of them were just resting in town. But how would that explain Yuma talking to the bandits? Nevertheless, they should all be careful and Sanosuke would make sure to keep Yuma and Ren in check with his power.

"Are those two at the brothel?" Saburo questioned out of pure curiosity.

Sanosuke shook his head, "No. But they're next door… Not sure what that house is though." Yuma and Ren were staying in a one-floor house, but there was no one else with them. "I can't locate who's the leader either…"

Kyou smirked, grabbing his gun into his hand. "At least you found their weaponry," he said, content enough. "Saito and Yumeko should already know we found it too. We'll just wait for the sky to get darker and then BAM!"

Flinching, Saburo sighed heavily, "Violence… why must it be the only thing people have to do?"

Glancing to him with a chuckle, Sanosuke said, "I have to agree with you, Saburo. But it won't hurt to clean up the bandits a bit. Peace is still far off." Saburo nodded and stared blankly at the dark sky silently. Sanosuke looked up too and wondered about Souji and Kanon. The last time he checked the two of them headed to the back gates of the town. They should be sneaking in soon because the town gates were closed and locked shut.

[…^…]

The crescent moon was in the clear sky. Souji and Kanon walked toward the gate quietly. They heard faint voices echoing from the town and there were dogs barking. Just about some meters from the gate, Kanon put her hands on her hips as she lifted her chin to the high wall. It was tall indeed. Could Souji actually throw her up there?

He pressed his hand on her back and pushed her forward. "Are you ready?" he asked with a smug smirk on his face.

Stumbling, she balanced herself with her arms waving and then she quickly looked at him with light glare. "Of course I am," she said. "But can you really lift me up all the way up there?"

"Yeah," he nodded, smirking wider. "I'll go closer to the gate. Why don't you go over there and then run to me? I'll prepare myself to give you lift… so you better not break a bone when landing on the other side."

She had to laugh, "Haha! Really, you're that strong? Must be convenient to be a 'Rasetsu' now that you have me around." She proudly pounded on her chest.

Souji rolled his eyes, smiling, "Yeah, whatever. Come on." She nodded and jogged over to him. He was walking too, but before she passed him, he grabbed her arm. "Hey, tie your hair up," he told her, raising an eyebrow.

"Why?" she looked back at him, confused.

He let her arm go and flicked her hair off her shoulder. "Because it'll get in the way," he said, frowning. "You're good at close range fighting, aren't you? Keep your hair short if you're not going to tie it up." He noticed she NEVER tied it up. Even Hijikata would tied his long hair up.

Kanon gave him a strange look. "…No. I'm not going to cut it."

"Then tie it up," he said again, putting a hand on his hip. His eyes were a bit cold and he felt as though he was handling with a child.

"But I don't have a hair bind," she blinked. Souji looked at her with irritation and grabbed something between his stomach and his waistband. When he pulled something out, she realized it was the cloth she tore from her sleeve to tend to Souji's wound when he told Hajime to practice his power on him. Souji held it up to her and she pouted. "…I don't know how to tie my hair…"

"Are you serious?" Souji had a big frown. He grabbed her arm and forced her to twirl around. When he was about to grab her hair, she turned back and glared. "Just stay still," he pushed her shoulder to have her back turned to him.

She felt him taking her hair with two hands. "Why do I have to tie it up for?" she questioned, a bit upset. "It's not that big of a deal. I can fight just fine. And did you even wash that thing you're going to tie my hair with?"

"Man, your hair's all tangled up," Souji sighed tiredly, ignoring her remarks. His hand smoothed against her head and with the strip of cloth in his hand, he begun to tie it high on her head. "You should start carrying a comb around too." She loved to move around too much, so it was only necessary to have a comb nearby. But why would he have to tell her that?

"No need," Kanon flattened her eyes. When he was done, she turned around and touched her high ponytail. He looked at her with a satisfied grin and nodded in approval. "You weirdo."

Souji had a vein on his head, "If Yumeko-chan was here, I'd take her knife and cut that hair of yours right now."

"You wouldn't!" she retorted to his threat. She moved her left foot to stomp on his right foot, but he stepped away as if he knew what she had in mind. "I like long hair!"

"If you do, then take better care of it," Souji snickered. Kanon cursed under her breathe and he asked, "May I ask why you like your hair long? Sure, it's pretty, but you keep it in a mess. And you're not the type to have long hair."

While folding her arms to her chest, she turned away angrily with a pout. Her long hair moved and touched against her back for a second. "…Because Aunt Akiko had long hair," she mumbled a bit shyly, fixing her glare to the darkness around them. Souji blinked and had a long pause. "And I feel a little closer to her if I keep my hair long… okay?!" she snapped her head at him.

Souji was a bit stunned and she was still glaring. What she said reminded him about his old hairstyle, which imitated Kondou's hairstyle back then. When Kanon softened her expression into a puzzled look, Souji chuckled, "I see. Didn't know you actually had that kind of a reason. It's almost cute."

She blushed with embarrassment, "Whatever! It's about time we hurry and get into town!"

He watched her walk further away and he smiled. Turning around, he made his way to the gate. Standing close enough, he made sure there would be extra room just in case he felt like throwing her into the wall for the fun of it. Souji turned around and she was standing ten meters away, ready when he was. Then he bent his knees a bit, his palm over the other, arms straight down his chest. Being all set, he said, "Okay."

Kanon soon dashed toward him. Within four meters, she stared at Souji's hair color that changed to white and his eyes becoming red. The moonlight made this hair glow a bit and the soft beauty of the light captivated her. And then her body ran right into him, almost making him fall back. "OW!" she rubbed her nose that slammed against his chest.

Her foot slipped too and he helped her stand up. "What are you doing?" Souji quietly looked at her annoyingly.

With her arms slipping away from his aid, she stood up on her own and rubbed her nose. "Sorry, sorry," she said, turning around to jog off.

Souji dryly stared at her back and wondered what got her to make her first complete fail. When she distanced herself, she rubbed her nose and gave him thumbs up. "You better do it right this time," he told her, preparing with the same position again.

"Yeah, I got it!" she blushed a bit. Afterward, she giggled at herself for a second and started to dash once again. His hair was still white and she tried to focus on jumping. The moment she was close enough, her right foot rose and stepped on Souji's palms. He used his strength and easily gave her the lift into the air. Her body flew up quite fast and she narrowed her eyes to the top of the wall. The wind felt nice too. A random thought, but Kanon made sure to paid attention.

The walls were probably about five-story high. When her body slowed in the air, her hand reached to edge of the top wall and she moved to get up on of it. It was wide enough for her whole body. Glancing back, she saw Souji waving to her. Kanon hurried and looked around for a safe landing. Her eyes caught sight of Saburo to the right, who was down a block and she smiled when he waved his hand joyfully to her quietly. Kanon got up and ran along the wall and Saburo begun running over to her from the street.

The back gate opened and Souji was surprised to see Sanosuke, who was smiling rather mischievously. "Um… Sano-san?" Souji narrowed his eyes.

"Did you give her a proper thank yet?" Sanosuke smiled wider. Kanon leaped from the top of the wall and Saburo jumped into the air.

"…You set up me?" Souji smirked, snickering. He walked through the door and passed Sanosuke. "I didn't thank her at all. Your plan failed."

Sanosuke laughed lightly and closed the gate. "Oh well, I tried," he grinned, locking it up.

Souji blinked when he saw a shadow heading off in his direction. He looked up just as Saburo caught Kanon into his arms and Saburo landed safely a few ways to Souji's right. 'I still can't believe this,' Souji frowned. For him to fall for Sanosuke's plan, Souji could not help but want to hit his own head over and over about it.

Saburo let Kanon's feet reach the ground and she looked to Souji and Sanosuke. "Kanon-san, why did you put up your hair?" Saburo smiled with curiosity. It made almost made her look a bit of a tomboy. Or a samurai even. And he was trying not to laugh at her.

Looking as if she read Saburo's mind, Kanon ignored him and her eyes questioningly stared to Sanosuke, who was blinking with a grin. "Wait, Sanosuke if you were going to open up the gate yourself…" she slowly pointed. Did they just waste their effort to sneak into town?

"Shh," Sanosuke's eyes glowed. He glanced to his right and he saw the three lights of the bandits' presences. Right after, Sanosuke looked back to his friends. "The night patrols are coming from over there. Let's meet up at the inn down west."

"Later," Saburo winked to Kanon.

"Wha…" Kanon blinked. Sanosuke and Saburo both ran off at the same time.

Souji was staring dryly to Sanosuke's back. There was no point in splitting up, though it would be easier to hide than to be in a group. Yet Souji felt Sanosuke was doing this on purpose. 'Whatever,' Souji thought. He and Kanon should get into hiding instead of looking where Sanosuke and Saburo had run off. Souji hurried to Kanon and took her hand. "Just don't stand there," he whispered loudly, dragging her a bit. She soon got her pace to match his and they ran into a dark alley together.

[…^…]

Kyou jumped through the opened window and landed in a hospital room. He stood up as Yumeko closed the window shut. "We already located their weaponry," Kyou smirked, his eyes looking around the room.

Hajime was standing by the door of the room and Ayumu was lying down on a mattress with a white blanket over his body. Ayumu was shirtless and there were bandages around his chest. Some blood had leaked a bit, but he seemed to be breathing a little more with ease. "When do we strike?" Yumeko asked, walking to Kyou as quietly as possible.

"Whenever you're ready," Kyou nodded to her.

She nodded back and went to kneeled down by Ayumu. Patting on his forehead, she told him, "I'll be right back. Rest well for now."

Hajime glanced to the door and slightly opened it to take a peek. He recalled back when Ryunosuke met up with them in the hospital earlier today, but Hajime advised that they should not been seen together too much. Or Yuma or Ren would notice and could possibly harm Kosuzu. "Lead us there, Shiranui," Hajime glanced to him.

"Alright," Kyou smirked, readying to start up the action.

[…^…]

In a small house, which seemed abandoned and emptied, Kanon peeked through a small opening of a window. She saw more bandits at the far end on the left and closed it. She moved to the table nearby and sat across from Souji, who seemed completely bored. The two of them could not even make their way to the inn Sanosuke told them about. The bandits seemed to be patrolling almost every corner in groups of three all of the sudden. As easily as Souji could take them out, he had a feeling there were too much bandits.

Staring at the moonlight on the paper window, Souji leaned his chin in his palm, elbow on the table. Kanon turned to look at him as she stared at his brown hair. And then she recalled his white hair. "What?" Souji questioned, though he did not look at her. His eyes only gazing to the paper window. He was actually thinking about when Saburo caught Kanon in the air. They seemed really close when that happened.

"Can I see you as a Rasetsu again?" Kanon blinked, leaning forward. The table was only half a yard long and wide.

Souji glanced as their eyes met. She was staring rather innocently. He could only frown in return. "If I use it, my life span shortens," he told her. "And from what it seems, you don't like to heal me often."

She smiled, "Aw, don't worry about that. When it looks like you're about to die, I'll heal you before it happens." Souji rolled his eyes. After a few seconds of waiting, she figured he would not do it for her amusement. "Come on. I promised!"

"Why do you want to see me as a Rasetsu for?" he let out a dull sigh.

Failing to notice his troubled expression, Kanon chuckled, "I think your white hair looks beautiful in the light of the moon."

Beginning to call to mind, he strangely looked at her. She smiled, blinking a couple of times. She thought his hair looked pretty in the moonlight? Was that why she missed the first step when he was going to give her a lift over the wall? Kanon eyebrows slowly narrowed and she was about to be disappointed. "You owe me," he smirked.

She nodded and he gave her a quick dry look. He was probably hoping for her to shut up, but it appeared she really wanted to see his white hair. "As long as it's not impossible to do, then I'll owe you," she gave her word.

Once again, Souji sighed and his eyes closed. "I'm kidding, you don't have to owe me," he said. She had done a lot for him and his friends already. Souji had not forgotten his illness being cured and walking in the daylight as a Rasetsu. There was another silence and she patiently waited. "…Does me looking like a monster pleases you?" he inquired, still resting his eyes closed.

"What monster?" she snorted, shaking her head. He opened his eyes and leaned more weight on his palm to hold his head. "Oh, did I call you that before? I don't think I actually did. Besides I do think your white hair looks beautiful in the moonlight, so it's okay to like a monster's beauty."

Giving her an irritated look, he was quiet again. She was still smiling like a child and then slightly moved her shoulders from side to side, as if she needed to go to the restroom. Souji's eyes closed halfway. And then after another moment, his eyes turned red and his hair turned pure white. Kanon laughed a little, as if she won a conversation, and she moved her arms on the table. Bringing her palms to rest her chin between them, her fingers tapped her cheeks and she stared at the faint moonlight on his hair. He stared at her eyes, which only watched his white hair. A small breeze forced its way through the window's crack and made his bangs tickle his eyes, but he did not bother to move them away. He was too busy staring at her blue eyes.

But then her question disturbed his silent thoughts, "Souji, can I touch your hair?"

He blinked, "Mm?"

Her right hand moved and she raised it in midair. "I want to touch your hair," she grinned, her fingers waved to him.

How much of a kid could she get? Shrugging, he said, "Sure, go ahead." Her hand did not hesitate and he slightly watched where her hand was going. She softly tapped her two fingers on his bangs on his left cheek. And then her hand patted on his head while she squealed quietly and her feet tapped on the ground excitedly, but slowly. "Weird brat," he smirked a bit.

Kanon snapped her eyes at him, "Stop calling me that, Souji. I'm not a brat."

"Oh, really?" he snickered. Her hand ran through his hair a bit and he felt a shiver around the back of his neck. "…Kanon."

She looked at him, "Yes?"

He just wanted to call her name, but it made him wonder. When did they both started to use each other's first names without any honorifics? Was it out of disrespect? He felt like he had forgotten when and how. And where. She frowned when he did not answer her and she retreated her hand. However, he seized it with his free hand and tugged it a bit. Kanon stared at him blankly. Souji's eyes widened a bit and he let her hand go.

"Want me to pat more?" she chuckled, her hand moving back closer. Her fingertips almost touched a strand of his hair.

Souji took a moment to respond when he seemed puzzled when he had taken her hand. "I'm good," he said quietly. His hair and eye color returned back to normal and she suddenly wore an upside down smile. He grinned at her expression, "If you want to see it again, tell me what my power is." Maybe that would shut her up given that she did not want to tell him what it was.

"Huh, never mind then," she stick her tongue at him.

'Such a brat,' he thought indifferently. When her hands went down to her lap, his heart dropped for a second. Just thinking about how he grabbed her hand made his mind raced a bit. '…Are you kidding me?' he looked away, squinting his eyes. No way. His head leaned more weight on his palm. There was no way he was having that particular feeling toward Kanon. Just as his eyes blinked out the window, he saw shadows of black smokes going up in the air on the paper window.

Kanon stood up first and leaned close to the window to open it. There were smokes in the distant. "Looks like Yumeko started," she narrowed her eyes.

"Alright then," Souji chuckled, moving his hand and placing it on the table. Pushing himself up lazily, he stretched his arms. Letting out a relieved sigh, he turned his body away and looked to her. "Let's hurry and go find Sano-san at the inn." She nodded at him with a glance. "Don't mess this up now."

She flatly stared at him and he walked off first. Going around the table, she hurried after him without trying to feel offended.

[…^…]

Dreaming of the past again, Ayumu tried hard to wake himself up. His eyes saw a scene he had also forgotten. In the nameless village, there was Kanon, Yumeko, Saburo, and Ayumu and they all sat around a campfire. While they were doing most of the talking, Ayumu was quiet and only stared at the flames. But shortly, his sister raised a subject.

"How do you make babies anyway?" Kanon blinked, glancing to Saburo who sat to her right. Across from her was Ayumu and Yumeko was to Kanon's left.

"Gah—Wha?" Saburo slightly blushed, snapping his head back and forth to everyone. He did not desire to answer such a question. Nor did he want to even go further into the conversation.

With an emotionless expression, Yumeko gladly explained, "Well, you will need to marry first."

Kanon nodded, "Oh. Okay."

Saburo pouted to her, "Why are you asking such a question, Kanon-san?"

She was not able to understand why Saburo was uncomfortable with them talking about making babies. "Because I want this village to grow again," she blinked at him. Kanon was a bit clueless though, which was why she bothered to ask them. "Saburo, do you want to marry me someday to make this village grow?"

He blushed harder and could not utter a word.

Ayumu frowned, "Ba-Kanon, stop being such an idiot."

She glared to him, her feelings hurt. "What's wrong with marrying and making babies?!" she restored. "I want a family again!"

"Do you even know how a husband and a wife produce a baby together?" Ayumu squinted his eyes at her. Obviously, Kanon shook her head 'no' and Ayumu had a long sigh. "You do more than just sleeping next to each other. Much, much more."

Yumeko glanced to Ayumu, "And how would you know?"

"Shut up, Yumeko," he lightly glared to her. Yumeko had a short chuckle and looked away, pretending to be innocent.

Puzzled, Kanon turned her had back to Saburo. His face was still as red as an apple and he kept his mouth shut. She started to snicker and Saburo pouted again, keeping his eyes on the fire. "Saburo, when I'm ready to get marry, will you let me be your princess?" she smiled, teasing a bit.

He stared at her blankly while Ayumu and Yumeko glanced over to them. There was still a long pause until Saburo felt comfortable enough with the idea. "…Okay," Saburo grinned happily. "…Kanon-hime!"

With a smile, Kanon shook her head at him like he was a child and moved her eyes over to Yumeko, "When Saburo and I get married, why don't you and Ayumu get married too?"

"Who'd marry her?" Ayumu gave his sister the evil eye. Kanon pouted childishly in return.

Yumeko flatly stared at him, "And who'd marry you? We're seven years apart. I'm not interested in a little boy."

"…You hag," Ayumu shot her an annoyed glare.

"Hey, that's not nice, Ayumu!" Kanon raised her voice, getting up from her seat. "Yumeko's still young!" She almost looked as young as Kanon too.

Soon, the dream of the memory was interrupted. Ayumu started to hear a familiar voice. Ryunosuke's voice? Ayumu was not certain, but he remembered he was Sanosuke's friend. And it sounded like Ryunosuke was yelling up on the second floor. And it sounded like he was in trouble. Shortly after that, Ayumu heard a girl's alarming voice.

'Get up,' Ayumu told himself. He felt his eyelids and his finger twitching. His body was in pain and his left leg, the wound where Yuma inflicted on him, as well as the wound over his cheat, was hurting because his muscles stiffened to move. '…Get up!'

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