Chapter Four
An old habit that I don't think I could ever get rid of was my habit of always waking up at dawn. It was something I brought with me from my previous life as I had always been a firm believer that 'the early bird always caught the worm'. It really didn't help that I was now named after a bird.
Ignoring the chill that came with the sun not having risen yet and the coming of winter, I set to prepare breakfast while making sure the fire had already started in the chimney. Usually Koshiro took care of the fire, but it seems the man has slept in today as the wood has not been lit.
"Must've stayed late at Wally-san's." I murmur to myself, making sure that the fire is going before reentering the kitchen. It really shouldn't surprise me to see the head of green hair trying to fit through the window above the sink. "What are you doing?"
I don't try to stifle my chuckle as Zoro's head hits the window pane upon being startled by my voice. He jumps down from the counter and turns to face me, cheeks red and a glare in place.
"I- I- "
"You could've used the door like a normal person." My smile must cause him even more anger, but I don't care as I continue to tease the boy. "Scared to face me, Roronoa?"
"You should be the one scared!" He means to storm past me, but I shove my hand out and grab hold of the back of his shirt.
"You're not leaving until you have some breakfast at least." There is another scuffle, one that reminds me of last night, but once again I win, and the young boy sits to the kotatsu with his arms crossed firmly across his chest.
He doesn't once look at me even when I place an English styled breakfast in front of him, looking to the side pouting. I pay him no mind and instead dig into my eggs and bread.
By the time Koshiro appears, Zoro has grown weak in his attempt to ignore the food in front of him, and my father is greeted by the sight of the ravenous boy shoveling food into his mouth.
"Good morning, Tou-san," I greet the man who spares the young boy another glance before taking a seat across from us.
"Good morning, Kuina. I didn't know we had a guest." Zoro momentarily pauses in eating but soon continues after a grumble of acknowledgement that makes my hand twitch to smack him at his rudeness.
"I hope it's okay." I murmur as I set down breakfast for the smiling man who shakes his head at my questioning tone.
"Not at all. I'm glad you're making new friends." Koshiro's words have both me and Zoro pausing.
"We're not friends." We say simultaneously, before turning to look at each. Zoro gives me a glare which I merely roll my eyes upon seeing.
"I'm still gonna defeat her and then I'm coming for you." Zoro turns his attention to Koshiro, lips pulled back a bit to reveal his teeth. It is quite a feral look for someone so young.
"I look forward to it." Koshiro is still smiling, not at all perturbed by the look directed to him by Zoro.
The rest of the morning passes with Koshiro excusing himself to go open the dojo, leaving me with the annoying boy who tries to escape once again.
"Let me go already!" He snaps, batting my hand away from his wrist but I don't let go. "Why won't you let me go?"
"Because you need help." I say simply, tugging and surprising him with the strength I have which causes him to nearly topple over. "Let me help you."
"Why are you even helping me? You think this'll change anything? I'm still gonna defeat you!"
"You're a broken record." I sigh, shoving the satchel to the boy who looks ready to snap at me again. He pauses as he surveys the bulky bag, expression turning into one of confusion.
"What's this?"
"There's a blanket and a pillow in there with some other stuff for the shed," I answer, crossing my arms across my chest. "I'll get Tou-san to carry the futon over later today seeing as you wouldn't want to sleep here. But you gotta promise to come here every morning and evening for breakfast and dinner. If you don't I'll come and drag you back here and you'll sleep here. Got that?"
It's the most I think I've ever said to him, and I can see the surprise on his face along with something else that reminds me much of the look he had during dinner last night. His face scrunches up, but I can see the blush that spreads from ears to his cheeks and laugh softly.
"Whatever." He turns around and leaves, sliding the door shut. For moment, I pause and appreciate the silence before moving to the window that Koshiro often sat beside of to watch outside.
Staring at the young boy who had put the satchel on make his way out of our compound, I purse my lips in thought.
"He's going to need a scarf."
.
.
"What do you mean you let him eat at your house?!" I give my best unimpressed look to the two baffled boys, who somehow seem to be perfect sync today.
Later that day after some domestic work is done around the house, I had changed into some sturdier clothes and made my way to the dojo.
As Anthony and I had advanced in the past two years, our class had moved up and was scheduled to be at the dojo three days a week; Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. It is much different from our beginners' class with techniques being more difficult and even small sparring sessions with each other that Koshiro made sure he looked over. These sparring sessions were of course used with protective gear we had learned of in our first year and our wooden swords.
Class had just ended after Koshiro basically drilled us on our stances, not giving us a chance to recover from the sparring before. All the while, his smile intact on his face.
I had been catching my breath along with Anthony when Chris had appeared, and as we talked I just happen to drop the news of Roronoa Zoro to them.
Patting my face dry, I look away from their stilled expressions of shock and take to another sip of water from my canteen.
"I said what I said, so can you two close your mouths? A fly might just go into them." I state dryly.
"B-but Kuina, that kid is- "
"A kid. He's a kid just like us." I interrupt Chris, lips set in a firm line as I frown up at him. "He needs my help, so I'll give him my help."
"He stalked you for a whole week, Kuina-chan. Are you sure you want someone like that around you?" Anthony's young voice still shocks me as he is quite articulate for his age when he wasn't often making a fool of himself. He said it had something to do with his father being a lover of books, and he just so happens to read a few of them that he can understand. He might just be a writer when he's over his obsession with swordsmen.
"He has his reasons." I defend, not quite over the week of annoyance I suffered through because of Zoro. "You guys don't have to like it. I'm not going to stop just because of you."
"We know." Both say with differing levels of exasperation; Chris with the rolling of his dark eyes and Anthony with a small smile that slightly brings out his dimples.
Class ends with me seeing the two boys off and saying goodbye to my other peers. Standing in front of our compound, I find myself looking right to where I knew leads to the old shed that the old blacksmith used to store his metal. He lived not too far from it but had abandoned it after his son had made one right in his yard.
"Thinking of visiting your friend?" Koshiro's voice doesn't startle me as I heard his steps coming to join me.
"He's not my friend." I mutter, looking up at him. "Tou-san, could you carry that futon to the old shed? He sleeps there – I don't know why – and needs something better to rest on."
"Okay," there's amusement coloring his tone, but I ignore it and instead towards our home.
"I'll get dinner started. You can carry it in the mean time while also bringing him back here to eat." I find myself being lifted off the ground and I cannot but release a gasp of surprise.
"My own little daughter ordering me around," I laugh as I cling tightly to his chest, wrapping my legs around his torso and arms around his neck. "What'd I do to deserve that?"
"Nothing." I giggle, burying my face into the side of his face and releasing a sigh of content.
Koshiro hardly ever found the time to do this with me ever since I got older – it could be due to me now being bigger and him becoming older, or it could be he just didn't see the cause of doing it so often. I liked this, so I try my best to convey it right now; cuddling is a favorite pastime of mine after all.
"Tou-san, will you really not fight Zoro?" I do not remove my head from its place, wrinkling my nose when a loose strand of hair tickles my nose.
"It all depends on Roronoa." Koshiro says after a while, his pace not slowing as he continues to walk with me in his arms.
His words confuse me a bit, but I decide not to continue my questioning instead enjoying the warmth he provides from the chill of late autumn. An idea comes to mind, something I know most persons wouldn't agree to, and I raise my head from Koshiro's shoulder.
"What if he joined the dojo?"
"That's an interesting idea…" Sliding the door to our home open, Koshiro sets me down and I move back while taking my shoes off.
"I think you should ask him." I mumble, removing my scarf that I had haphazardly thrown on my shoulders while leaving the dojo earlier. "He and I wouldn't be able to talk without me trying to smack him."
I roll my eyes as Koshiro chuckles before heading straight to the kitchen. I'm soon immersed in making dinner, only giving my father a quick okay as he leaves for the old shed.
Something Japanese for dinner is picked – Gyudon, which is basically just beef, onions, eggs and rice in bowls – which I had learned from visiting our neighbor's.
Cooking had always been something I had enjoyed – that many had complimented me for – and it is only natural that it'd leak over to here. I even get to try new recipes now, some I'm sure my youngest would've been excited to try.
Thoughts of crooked smiles, a pretty voice when singing and awkward gestures has me pausing in my ministrations of filling the bowls with food.
"You always watch all these cooking shows but never try anything new!"
"Oh? Why don't you try then, Jay?"
"'C-cause I'm not as good as you, mom."
"You should learn. I won't be here forever, you know."
"I know… but you're here now!"
That familiar burn in my chest and eyes comes and I release a sigh, trying to calm my emotions.
'By now she must be a Head Mistress… or she could've finally gotten that chance to teach abroad like she wanted…'
The thought has me chuckling softly, setting the table and taking a seat. Koshiro should be back soon with Zoro, so dinner can take place.
"I do hope you learnt some recipes, my baby."
.
.
The following week passes with the surprise of Zoro agreeing to join the dojo, which of course everyone in the dojo protested heavily against once they found out about it. This didn't bother the young boy who had just scoffed at the glares directed at him – or so Chris claims as Zoro had been bumped up to his class.
"He really must be talented," I murmur upon hearing the news of the boy being in the advanced class. "Or Otou-san wouldn't have put him so high up."
"Are you even listening, Kuina!?" Chris yells and I give the young teen an amused look. "You should be on our side! I don't know how you came to like him so easily!"
"It's not that I like him," I restrain my laughter, allowing Anthony to hug my arm. The young boy has been quiet throughout our conversation, only nodding very vigorously to whatever Chris says. "It's that I guess I understand where he's coming from now."
"He only cares about himself and he's a pain," I continue, looking down at where our feet hang off from the flooring of my home and swinging my legs back and forth. "He's also very rude and doesn't know how to speak to his elders – "
"Exactly! So – "
"– but he also has no one to teach him those things." I continue, cutting Chris off meeting his gaze with a frown. "Lord knows what happened to his parents or the people who looked after him, so he needs help."
"Is that why you like him all of sudden, Kuina-chan?" Anthony asks innocently, and I refrain from once again bursting out that I did not like the boy. (Maybe I did now?) "You wanna be Roronoa's mom?"
I give the two my best unimpressed expression as Chris bursts out into laughter, slapping his knee as he nearly falls off the walkway.
"You do behave like a mom." Chris says between his laugh.
"If you didn't behave like a child half your age I wouldn't have any reason to!"
My words are drowned out by more of Chris' laughter, so I just release a sigh as Anthony uses this time to further his grip on me and snakes his arms around my middle while shoving his face into chest.
Zoro himself seems to have cooled down a bit, his ruffled feathers smoothed out some and he tries not to scowl so much while in my company. Conversations still however end with the two of getting into some sort of argument which Koshiro tries his best to calm down. Some time along the way, Zoro became an ordinary occurrence in my day which brought my days back to normal.
"Not bad." Hamilton rubs his chin while surveying me as I do a dramatic spin. "Not as good as I could do it, but good enough."
"Can't you just give me a proper compliment, old man?" I come to stop, giving the store owner a slight glare as I smoothed down the cloth.
"You'll get a proper compliment when I say so." Huffs Hamilton, slapping his fan close as he comes closer and pinches at the long satin sleeves of the kimono. "Your stitching is pretty good, but you have a long way to go, child."
The comment hits home and I refrain from letting it show on my face, but I can feel my hand twitch. Knowing that the steadiness of my hands hasn't come back just yet as Kuina still irritates me, the only thing keeping me from complaining over it was that it had taken me at least a longer time as Kimberley to get my hand that steady as it is now.
"If you had let me use the sewing machine, it would've been perfect." I grumble out and immediately regret it as I'm smacked with the closed fan.
"You need to know how to make a proper kimono without the use of a sewing machine." Hamilton snaps as I scowl at him for the hit to my arm.
My apprenticeship – as I like to call it – with Hamilton has matured just a bit over the years as we no longer snapped at each other at every given opportunity and at least tried to appear civil especially whenever Hamilton had customers.
"This is really pretty, Kuina-chan!" Hitomi Silvers, one of the many village women that often found it nice to pet my hair whenever they saw me, says upon entering the store. "When you're older I'll have to let you sew a few for me and Layla!"
"It'd be my pleasure." I give her my best smile as she smooths my shoulder length hair down, trying not to bat her hand away from my head.
I soon escape the store, bundling up in my winter wear and walking briskly home.
With December comes the brunt of winter; cold winds and slicked walkways. Later down in the month we might even get snow, something that not only the kids looked forward to but myself as well. Winter was one of the reasons why I had moved away from my tropical home country when I was Kimberley. I didn't mind the scorch of the sun much as it never proved a problem for my dark skin then but had always found the white coldness that came with winter beautiful.
"What're you doin' here?" Zoro's voice greets me as I stop just in front of his usual spot – a tree a little away from the shed has still takes residence in.
"I come bearing gifts." I say dryly, throwing the garment that I kept in my coat at him. The young boy splutters as the sweater smacks his face and hurriedly removes it to glare at me before glancing down curiously.
"I had found some yarn and made it for you seeing as it's going to be getting quite cold since winter is here. You can wear it with indoors so that you don't have to carry that big coat all over the place." I was pretty much just talking for talking sake, but Zoro ignores me and instead examines the garment.
"Why's everythin' you give me green!?" He finally says, and I blink at his words, trying to think of a proper way of responding without –
"Just be happy I'm even making stuff for you, you ungrateful brat!"
Ah, whatever. He's a total brat.
And I'm back! Thanks to SilvesterWulf and arapyanime for reviewing! (If I didn't answer your questions it's more than likely because I want you to come up with your own answers lol XD)
For everyone who favorited and followed also, thanks a bunch! See you guys next time :)