A/N: A shower of flowers and confettis for the ever-lovely DarkAngelLida, animefairy299, Crystalpxhlqt, Rosedust13, Guest and Baneofmexistence for leaving reviews! ❁💓❁
So only one of you (namely DarkAngelLida) cared to give me their two cents on my MitsuYuzu ship proposal last chapter, which isn't very Hapi Hapi Hapi of you guys *side-eyes ya'll* but I guess that's only fair enough. They're one of the not-so-popular pairings to begin with in the fandom and as much as I adore these two, them being a couple wasn't really in my original plans. I also agree with what DarkAngelLida shared about how we already have three main couples I'm doin' the work on so while it kinda stings...I'm gonna have to let MistuYuzu go *sighs and nudges Mitsuya back into Reiya's not-harem* (but who knows? Maybe I'll let MitsuYuzu have their something more in some other timeskip 😉😉)
And we're back to 2005! The mini intermission arc was fun but I missed my babygirl Rei 😞 and we're on to some really fun times starting with this chapter, where Reiya learns some unexpected facts about her stepdaddy, BAJIEMMA FRIENDSHIP‼‼, and Mikey develops a crush 💗✨
For this chapter's tidbits:
※ An Exploratory Laparotomy or Ex Lap, is an open abdominal surgical procedure for the purpose of diagnosis and treatment, and can be performed either electively or emergently. In Draken's case it's definitely the latter. I don't think Kiyomasa (the complete amateur thank God) got any of his organs when he stabbed him. It was never clarified anyway and Draken would've died in seconds just like Reiya did if that was the case, but I'd like to think that the trauma surgeons didn't just look at his stab wound and go "Yeah we just need to stitch this up". They totally would've checked if he sustained any internal damage before stitching him up and clearing him of any hurdles.
※ Tokkō-fuku, literally translated as "special attack clothing", is the name of the elaborately embroidered jumpsuit uniforms our favorite delinquents wear.
BTW! Exciting announcement #1: I've added some graphics in the previous chapters! Some GIFS and strips of manga panels I put together to add a bit of visual to the scenarios, and I bid those who hadn't seen it yet to check it out! (So if you happened to download this story I advise you to download it again ^^). Unfortunately FFNET doesn't have the same function as AO3 and Wattpad so you're gonna have to do a little skippity-skip over the fanfic site fence to view it. You don't have to of course but just know it'll always be accessible for your curiosity.
Exciting announcement #2!‼: Always, All ways readers rejoice! The second installment, Carnelian Sky, is now officially available °˖✧ As promised it's twice as long than Moonlit Obsidian, twice as steamy and twice as sweet 💓 I'm hoping to beat the "Mikey Worst Boyfriend" allegations with that one so if you wanna get into some type of ReiJiro feels with none of the main story's stress, you know where to find it ;)
〖 Chapter Fourteen 〗
A Three-way Foray
AUGUST 04, 2005
Instinct. An innate disposition of any and all living organisms towards a particular stimulus. For many it's simply this built-in fixture, a guiding force necessary to one's survival, and having it was simply as ordinary as having a brain.
But for a few self-aware—and daresay gifted—individuals, instinct wasn't just a tool to be honed. It wasn't just something to be put away and left to dull, eventually bypassed in the monotony of everyday existence until it eventually reasserts itself purely out of convenience.
And for Mikey, Sano Manjiro, instinct was who he was.
He had been extraordinarily conscious of these...impulses...since he was very young, and he ran with it from the day he could walk—Go there. Do this. This one. No, not that. Trouble. Strike here. Wreck this asshole—and so far not once, not ever, did listening to his gut ever fail him. It never made him weak. Even if these instinctual urges went dark after a certain time, making Mikey feel more animal than human.
But for all his compulsive strength, there were times where Mikey's instincts would direct him to a state of instability, emotion. Pure and wholly his. And sometimes, feeling that way meant unleashing tears.
Mikey usually didn't like it when that happens but a tiny, tiny part of him would always feel relieved because that meant he was still himself. Unconsumed by this sinister force growing inside, still its master and not the other way around.
Instinct. To him it was light and darkness, his weakness and his strength.
It was who he was, seeing him through a number of challenges, not a single one unconquered. Instinct grounded him.
But now...
Mikey had no words for the fluttering in his stomach, in his chest, in his pulse. His instincts told him he was safe, that he had no cause for worry with the girl he was currently with but it wasn't grounding him at all.
His instincts were on edge in anticipation but it wasn't because of a threat. Mikey knew that from the moment he met her. That this girl—Cherry-chan, Reiya—would never cause him harm. On the contrary, his instincts told him otherwise.
This one, they claimed. This one, this one.
But also trouble.
Mikey was in trouble with this one. That much he understood when she smiled at him with those eyes after saying she liked the nickname he gave her and her dimple showed, but it was the kind he had never known. It made his blood rush, made it sing.
And Mikey didn't know what to do.
It took all of his residual strength not to let it slip when Reiya was right there beside him, the two of them about to cross inside the bright halls of the hospital. They were bound to part ways soon, Mikey realized, and he didn't like that one bit. He was exhausted but truly content right now, and looking at Reiya told him she was too.
She looked positively buoyant, long-lasting relief and lingering amusement from when they laughed together suitably replacing the vague but constant nervousness in her posture. She muffled a yawn with both hands and glanced at him with a drowsy smile, one finger bent as she rubbed it lightly below one eye. She blinked suddenly upon seeing how he was already looking at her (and had been for a while now, she noticed), her smile turning a little shy.
"It's gotten quite late, hasn't it?" she queried, her hand descending back to her side.
Small talk. It seemed that Reiya was suddenly conscious of him and Mikey found that he liked that, but not necessarily conscious in a way that he would've really, really liked.
They both knew how late it already was—past midnight by Mikey's estimation—but Mikey responded anyway even though he didn't really like small talk.
(And it was...new.
Because anybody else and he wouldn't have bothered.)
"Un," Mikey said simply. Not really knowing what else to say but knowing that he wanted to hear more from her.
"Are you going to be in trouble for getting home so late?" she asked, concern sliding across her face.
It was Mikey's turn to blink in surprise. Home was a thought that would cease to exist the very second he'd step out the door. In part it was because all of the trouble he'd get into happened outside of it, not in it.
(But that wasn't to say that home didn't have its own battles. It was only that his adversaries were irregulars, immaterial. Manifesting from the very walls in the form of mischievous laughter and the tinkering of steel, the faint scent of cigarette smoke and the soft, motherly brush of a hand.)
Home became more of a sensation to Mikey these past few years, a feeling he associated out there—in the roar of his engine and the wind in his veins. The sky around him, the ocean beneath him, the sun in the palm of his hand.
And soon, the world.
But still home was home. A place where Mikey was truly safe with his family, a place that guarded his most favorite thing in the world—his raggedy towel. Waiting for him with his grandfather.
A wry smile touched Mikey's mouth at how the spry old man would most definitely scold him and Emma for staying out way past their curfew, but it was always short-lived and more on the lines of "be careful" rather than "don't do it again".
They had an understanding, Mikey and his grandfather. Unspoken but there, grounded within the void caused by Shinichiro's death and the fact that he never once went home not a victor. The responsibility to uphold the honorable Sano name belonged to Mikey now and he would prove to preserve that honor through the rise of Toman. His grandfather might've never vocalized his approval of said undertaking but he wouldn't stop him, either.
He was cool like that. They were cool like that.
"Not really," Mikey answered, flashing her a quick smile before looking up ahead. "I've got a pretty good reason tonight too so Gramp's has to cut me some slack."
Reiya's regard shifted, going from lighthearted to intent. "Your Gramps?" she reiterated curiously. "What about your parents?"
Mikey nearly paused in his step.
Oh, right.
She didn't know he was an orphan.
Mikey didn't know why it suddenly mattered, but it did, and a hollowing weight started throbbing in between the fullness of his chest as he met Reiya's gaze. He wondered how she'd react. If she'd feel sorry for him, pity him...
But there was only patience and tender curiosity in her ash-lavender eyes, like every word he had to say was something she wanted to horde.
Mikey was suddenly confused as to why he was hesitating at all. At the end of the day it was simply a fact. Something she should know as his friend, right?
"Mn. My Gramps." Mikey kept his tone neutral and matter-of-fact. But what he couldn't keep on doing was to hold onto her gaze, so he averted his just right before he casually revealed, "My parents died when I was just a kid so he had to raise the rest of us in their place. He did that with my older brother, but Aniki died, too."
He heard Reiya's breath catch—soft but impossible to miss—and perhaps it was a good thing that Mikey wasn't looking at her for he hadn't seen the way her eyes widened, or the way that anguish filled them.
"I'm sorry to hear that," she said gently.
"It's fine," Mikey replied, and he sent her a smile to show that he meant it.
It'd been years since Shinichiro and their parents died, and living with that reality was becoming easier now, so long as he wouldn't dwell on it. Mikey had that strength; the ability to put up walls in his mind so nothing crippling would ever get through, a state where nothing else mattered save from achieving his goal. Everything was absolutely fine.
Until tonight. Until death, yet again, came for a visit and threatened to take someone he actually gave a shit about out of his life.
Mikey bit on his teeth to keep his frown from showing. He knew he couldn't help it back there but it'd been goddamn embarrassing breaking down the way he did, and worst of it all was that instinct dictated it. It wasn't wrong, Mikey knew that, and he'd learned a total of three times that every time that was the case, when you've been brought low, to escape and to hide was the wisest recourse.
But it didn't change the fact that he'd shown weakness.
At the turn of his thoughts, Mikey turned his head to look at Reiya again. She was the first who had ever seen him cry, the last he would've wanted to see. She'd grown silent after he spoke, the soft concentration in her lucent gaze now clouded with a pensive touch, something he knew he caused. He liked it better when she was smiling, because then that meant he was going to see her dimple, which he liked.
Mikey liked it a lot and he liked her, no doubt.
And so he decided to tell her something. Something he didn't, not until that moment, even wanted to admit out loud.
"I was lame back there though," he started ruefully, hoping to restore the previous ease between them with his playful approach. "So don't tell anybody okay, Cherry-chan?"
"Oh I wouldn't!" she instantly assured, finally smiling again before studying him with a grave sort of gentleness, her head tilting forward a little. "But you know...it wasn't lame at all, Mikey."
Mikey's smile turned small, the tightness in his face loosening as they decelerated to set a much slower pace along the empty corridor.
Reiya brought her gaze forward and continued, her tone soft but relentless. "Your friend almost died and it hurt. I think it was only right that you cried. It's the most not-lame thing in the world. Besides..."
She smiled and it was very warm when she gave it to him, but the light in her eyes shone with something wistful, an overlap of sunshine and shadows.
"No one else in this world deserves our tears more than the people we care about."
The words stunned him, settling deep. And in a flash Mikey remembered that day in the park once more when she presented her callused fingers, her voice quiet with a stroke of tender pain when she answered his question and said, "Enough to let it break me."
Such a statement couldn't have come without its costs and even then Mikey understood that she already lost something, or someone. But that alone didn't fully account for that extra something about Reiya. The thing that invoked something in him from the very first time he saw her, when she looked at him as if they'd already met before. That day had been a glimpse of what Mikey already instinctively knew but now it was clearer than ever before.
She was an old soul, held within those angel eyes. Carrying secrets as opaque as the halo around the moon.
Instinct and curiosity meld into something unstoppable. Mikey closed a hand around Reiya's left wrist, halting both of them in place. She jerked a little, confounded eyes meeting his but he spoke before she had the chance to, his own intense and resolute.
"Cherry-chan...you..." He drew it out, searching for the right words. Not wanting to frighten her the way he did Takemichi with the same supposition, when someone else suddenly called out to her, someone older and male. Someone close.
"Reiya-chan!"
Reiya flinched and Mikey pressed his mouth shut. He turned sideways just as a tall, very tall silver-haired man carrying a fluffy white towel and a pair of black indoor slippers burst out from the end of the corridor. He looked like he'd been running all over the place—his plaid blazer looking rumpled over his white dress shirt and tie—but he smiled the moment his gaze connected with Reiya's, the fatigue on his face visibly melting away as he approached with the contained excitement of a fan about to meet his favorite idol.
Frowning, Mikey instinctively took a step forward and pulled the black-haired girl a little further behind him, carefully readjusting his hold on her wrist but not letting her go as he asked, "Do you know him, Cherry-chan?"
Her reply was quiet, a bit flustered and a little resigned, and it was not at all what Mikey expected when she said, "Yes. He's my stepfather."
He glanced at her with mild surprise. Emma had mentioned that Reiya actually did have a half-brother, and knowing that didn't faze Mikey in the slightest. Not only because it was a family circumstance he could relate to, but because it wouldn't have changed anything—not his prior interest, and definitely not his current budding one. But he hadn't expected to meet a member of her family so soon, and definitely not like this.
Meeting his gaze, Reiya smiled and touched a disarming hand on his shoulder.
"It's all right," she murmured, moving to stand beside him. "He works as a doctor here, actually. And we happened to meet earlier but I took off before I got to explain why I'm here tonight. I call him Tetsu-san."
Mikey glanced back towards her stepfather and instantly understood just who the towel and slippers were for. His hold on her wrist grew soft.
And he reluctantly drew his hand back just as the tall silver-haired man, Tetsu, stopped right in front of them.
"I finally found you!" he enthused. "I was beginning to think you left already."
"I'm sorry for worrying you, Tetsu-san," Reiya began sheepishly. "I was just outside with a friend." She looked to Mikey, her smile turning deep. "This is my friend, Sano Manjiro-kun."
Hearing her say his full name felt like a prelude to a well-loved song, stunning Mikey anew. It felt so special somehow, so endearing. And in light of the current circumstances, of who this man was in her life, Reiya introducing him by his full name couldn't have been anything but.
"It's nice to meet you, Sano-kun," he heard Tetsu say, and Mikey had to drag his gaze away from hers to meet her stepfather's.
The older male smiled, his sharp honey-brown eyes momentarily falling quick on the towel around his neck before jumping back up to meet his own. "I am Natsukage Ittetsu, Reiya-chan's stepfather. I think I saw you at the general operations lobby earlier. I reckon you're friends with our toughest patient tonight as well?"
Seeing his incomprehension, Tetsu chuckled and added, "Ryuguji-kun, I mean. I was the attending neurosurgeon at his operation tonight and I have to say—" the older male shook his head with a wide smile. "That boy's a fighter. He took a blow to the head, a cardiac arrest and subsequent Ex Lap surgery like a champ, and won. It's nothing short of miraculous! His road to recovery will be smooth and short for sure."
Mikey dipped his head to hide a growing smile. Draken was—and always will be—one tough motherfucker, he knew that. But he liked this reminder too, this concrete reassurance that his best friend was going to stick around no matter what the odds might be because he's as stubborn as a weed. Fuck was Mikey ever glad the asshole was going to live.
He steadied his expression and looked at Tetsu in the eyes. Then he lowered his head and bowed at the hip, showing his sincerity in a way he wasn't above to give.
"Thanks for fixing him up." And Mikey meant it. Every word.
"My," Tetsu exclaimed. "You're very welcome! I'll be sure to tell the whole team as well."
He switched his grin to a stupefied Reiya and bent to set the towel around her damp head and the slippers at her feet.
"And here you are, young lady! Your mother's been calling me nonstop since you ditched, you know. About thirty-seven times!"
Reiya clutched at the towel and winced. "I completely forgot," she uttered worriedly.
And watching her, with the way she was pressing the fluffy towel against her cheeks, Mikey suddenly felt the urge to hide her away; take her far from the trouble she was about to face for getting herself involved in the trouble she just got out from. He didn't even want to think about what might happen once Reiya got home.
(He didn't want to think about what she might think about once she got home. That maybe it was too much trouble after all. That she shouldn't have come. That she shouldn't have gotten herself involved with Toman in the first place. That he shouldn't have made her his friend—)
But then she looked at him and smiled, wry but bright as if there was nothing to be worried about.
"I hope my mom will cut me some slack too," she quipped ruefully.
There's her dimple.
Mikey released a discreet exhale and with it, the errant weight encroaching in on his chest.
"Don't you worry about that, Reiya-chan. I got your back!" Tetsu chimed in with a thumb's up.
"I'd appreciate that," Reiya returned, her smile slipping into a slightly sardonic one. "Thanks, Tetsu-san."
"Consider it my compensation for winning the concours tonight." He winked before making to leave. "Now we must hurry. I think my phone's vibrating again."
As Tetsu felt for his phone, Reiya began replacing Mikey's slippers one by one. She glanced at him, murmured "Thank you," with her face a little pink-cheeked in appreciation, and it made the blond's own face grow warm.
It felt more than just instinct. And Mikey knew, as he retrieved his yellow slippers, that he wouldn't mind doing this for her again.
He stiffened.
Again...
When was he going to see her again?
"Phew. Turns out it's just a text message," Tetsu announced as he dipped his phone back in his pocket. He met eyes with his stepdaughter, his smile tempered with something grave. "As expected, that was Sora-chan. She wants us home in an hour."
Reiya nodded. She heaved a tiny sigh before turning to Mikey. He looked at her, locking gazes. Saw how she wavered and Mikey felt it, too.
"I have to go now," she bade quietly, polite and yet soft in a way that tugged at his chest.
She was going, leaving. The thought making his hands twitch with the need to reach out, make her stay by his side for a little while longer—
"I know!" Tetsu suddenly piped up, watching the two of them with smiling eyes. "Why don't you come with us, Sano-kun? It's pretty late and we always have room for one more in the car. Let me drop you off."
The sudden callback to reality felt like a record scratch and repeat. Mikey glanced at the older male in surprise, completely not expecting it, while Reiya stared at her stepfather as if she'd never seen him before.
But there was only sincerity in the silver-haired man's eyes, the look of an adult wishing to look after the young.
"That's okay, I got my own ride," Mikey answered with a smile.
"Alright, if you say so." Still contemplating him, Tetsu wore a look of concern. "You look a little roughened-up, however. Do you want to get checked first before leaving? I got a colleague on overtime," he offered.
Still smiling, Mikey shook his head. "I'll be fine. I got a little sister waiting for me outside and our gramp's is probably expectin' us to be home by now, so I'm kind of in a hurry to leave too."
"Understandable," Tetsu said. "You kids take care out there, alright? Until we meet again, Sano-kun."
The two exchanged short smiles and nods. Tetsu turned in a half-circle, gesturing for Reiya to join him by his side.
"Come along now, Reiya-chan. We still have to treat that knee."
She dithered, looking distracted. Seeing his chance, Mikey drew close to stop her one last time.
"Cherry-chan," he started, anchoring her and her stepfather in place. He held onto her curious eyes, his calm smile morphing into one with purpose, one he intended only for her. "Once Ken-chin recovers and leaves this place...we're going to throw him a party, okay?"
Reiya stared at him with a touch of awe.
And when she smiled, brilliant and affirming and sweet, Mikey found himself praying for Draken's fast recovery on the spot. He absolutely couldn't wait.
"Oi, Emma."
Without even looking at him, Emma instantly knew just who that particularly deep voice belonged to. She turned away from Hina, who she had just exchanged quick smiles and waves goodbye with when the latter girl finally caught sight of her pensive boyfriend.
"Hey Ed," Emma greeted back, unable to hide the smirk on her face when she saw the nascent scowl on his.
"I thought I told ya not to call me that when the gang's around, pipsqueak," Baji carped as he bent to poke her on the ribs.
She snickered and narrowly escaped. Emma refrained from pointing out how it was impossible for anyone to hear her anyway, what with the revving chorus of motorcycle engines funneling out of the lot. The rest of Toman had already left, homebound but vibrant in the wake of victory and their vice-commander's survival.
"Oh, come on. Loosen up a little. All of them left already anyway, Edward," she said instead, laughing and twirling away when he clicked his tongue and aimed to do it again.
It felt good to be silly like this, Emma thought. When all the relief and blissful hope she contained came surging out in unguarded laughter. She couldn't think of a better way to decompress and who better to share it with than Baji Keisuke, her childhood friend, who she hadn't seen in weeks.
"Where's Chifuyu?" Emma asked before darting quick looks over his shoulder. It felt kind of weird not seeing the blond tailing right behind his captain, when he was always more or less joined with Baji at the hip.
"I sent him home already," he answered. "Since his mom kept on blowin' up his phone." Then he spared a quick glance to the side as if to make certain that his vice-captain was, in fact, not by his side.
Emma raised a brow at him. "In that case shouldn't you be heading home too?"
Knowing Baji's mother, she totally would've done the same thing. Nearly all of Toman's captains had curfews, including Mikey, and Emma began to deflate at the thought of their grandfather.
'We've never been out this late before,' she fretted. 'Jii-chan's going to be so mad...'
On the other hand, Baji looked completely at ease and even smug. "Nah. 'Cause I turned my phone off before that can happen," he revealed.
At that, Emma's face turned blank.
"Dumbass," she deadpanned. "She's going to greet you with a frying pan."
He frowned at her, confused. A few seconds passed and Baji's face blanked in the same way.
"Shit," he muttered flatly. "I'm dead."
Emma broke into hissy giggles.
Baji groaned and raked a hand through his unbound hair. "Agh, whatever. Just tell me where Mikey is so I can go. Where is he?"
The question swayed the blonde into stillness. "I don't know," she answered, incipient worry wiping the smile off her face. Now that he mentioned it, when was the last time she saw her brother? "I didn't see him come out with us."
"I think he disappeared right after the doctor's announcement," another voice put in. It was Mitsuya, his strides long and unhurried as he made his way over to join them.
"Where the hell is he then?" Baji demanded. "His Babu's still around but he's not outside, so he's gotta be somewhere inside the hospital, right?"
Mitsuya parked beside him and shrugged. "He could be." He buried his hands in his pockets and began studying the other boy with placid curiosity. "Do you have something you wanna tell him? I don't think now's a good time, Baji."
The taller teen narrowed his eyes, the golden-brown irises gleaming with an accusatory spark as he got right in Mitsuya's face.
"You know damn well what I'm about to tell 'im, Mitsuya," he fired lowly. "This whole mess wouldn't have happened if he just listened to us about that fucking snake."
Alarmed, Emma quickly got in between the two. It was doubtful whether they'd brawl right here with her around (especially when the other teen happened to be Mitsuya, thank goodness) but the masculine challenge crackling in the air—with its intended target not even in the vicinity—was proving to be too dangerous for Emma to ignore. Not to mention the word "snake" and what Baji seemed to imply...
What the hell was going on?
"Hold on." Emma placed a hand on either boy's arms. "What the hell are you two talking about?"
"Toman executive matters," Baji answered, sliding her a strict glance. "Nothing for you to worry about."
"It's alright, Emma-chan. Baji's just being paranoid," Mitsuya added, drawing a pointed scowl from his fellow captain which he prudently ignored.
Unconvinced, Emma crossed her arms. "I don't think so," she retorted. "And don't think I'm letting up just 'cause you added the word executive in there, Ed. I beat my fair share of Moebius ass back there when they ambushed Draken after the festival, so I think I got the right to know about what's going on this time around, don't you think? I know what I'm getting myself into. I know Mikey banned me from getting into gang fights but I just couldn't stand by and watch." She heaved a breath and expelled it shortly, steeling against the memory of Draken getting slugged in the head before carrying on. "The point is, I'm involved now. And now that I am I gotta know just what the big picture is, so I need you guys to tell me. You can't keep me in the dark forever."
The two Toman captains swapped a loaded glance, looking unprepared (and impressed) in the face of Emma's tenacity. She was right and they knew it, Emma believed it to her very bones. She might've broken her older brother's seemingly iron-clad rule of not butting herself into Toman's affairs but she regretted nothing. Nothing if it meant she could protect her loved ones and friends. And if what happened tonight was going to be the new norm for the gang then so be it. That just meant she had to change, too.
"So." Emma placed her hands on her hips. "What happened back there? Why did Moebius suddenly turn up taking orders from Peh-yan? And who is this snake you're talkin' about?"
Mitsuya's gaze drifted down to a nearby cluster of grass while Baji looked to the sky, which was now a deep plaintive blue. A few stars were visible, blinking restlessly alongside the full moon.
"Well?" Emma prompted impatiently.
Baji tipped his eyes down to Mitsuya. Don't look at me you started it, the silver-lilac-haired teen's responding look seemed to say.
With a sigh, Baji scratched a hand behind his head and locked eyes with Emma, his jaw hard with forced capitulation. "Look, Mitsuya's right. I was just bein' paranoid. It was all on Peh-yan for being a fuckin' dumbass and us captains for not noticing it. But it's all over now, Em. So take my word for it—it ain't anythin' for you to worry about anymore, alright? I'll make sure of it."
Emma's face softened, her searching gaze holding his in doubt and affection. Baji was still hiding something, she could see it, but he also meant what he said and she could see that, too.
"Aight enough about that." Baji hauled her in with an arm around her shoulders. "Tell me about your first gang fight! Did you get 'em with the haymaker I taught ya?"
"You mean the haymaker I beat you with?" Emma playfully shot back. Baji ruffled her hair in retaliation and she cried out, "Agh—knock it off! Reiya just fixed that for me!"
"Who?" he asked, letting the blonde escape his grasp.
"Come to think of it, I haven't seen her come out with us either," Mitsuya commented, a small frown notching in between his eyebrows as he looked back to where they came.
"You're right." Emma steered her gaze to follow his. "I didn't even notice. But I think I stopped seeing her around the same time as..."
She trailed off, realization enlightening her that very second. Emma sought to link eyes with Mitsuya, who smiled a knowing smile the moment he reached the same conclusion as her.
"I think I know why Mikey isn't here yet," he hedged amusedly.
Emma laughed and touched her hands to her lips. "I think so too!"
"Huh? What?" Baji swept his puzzled gaze between them both. "Who are we talkin' about?"
"Oh, just our cool new friend," the blonde cheerfully supplied. "You haven't met her yet but her name is Reiya. She can play the violin and she actually won this contest today! And then she went straight to the festival after knowing we were in trouble, and she helped in keeping Draken's wound from bleeding too much and—"
"Wait a minute, wait a minute," Baji interrupted incredulously. "You mean this new friend of yours showed up at the brawl?"
"Yup! And she electrocuted that jerk from the Third Division with this really cute stun gun with the Jello Kitty prints—"
Mitsuya erupted in chuckling laughter while Baji went, "Hah?! A Jello what?" And then he started laughing too, making Emma smile even wider. She hadn't heard him laugh like that in so long.
"That's fuckin' nuts!" Baji hollered.
The silver-lilac-haired teen's laughter subsided as he sighed with a shake of his head. "I knew that girl was something else." He looked at his fellow captain. "You could've met her, you know. If you just went inside."
Grin disappearing, Baji scoffed and folded his arms across his chest. "And risk decking the shit out of Peh? I don't think so. I ain't got your kind of patience, Mitsuya."
"Hey, at least you're aware."
"Shut up."
Baji dealt Mitsuya with a half-hearted blow, which the latter blocked, before pausing and straightening up as if he just understood something.
"This friend of yours..." Baji started, his dubious eyes wandering towards Emma. "She plays the violin, right? Was she wearin' a white dress? Short hair? An' looks like she saves earthworms in her spare time?"
"Oh?" Mitsuya grinned as he put Baji's fist away. "So you did meet her."
"You forgot the cherry earrings but yeah, that's Reiya," Emma added with a bright smile. Then she pitched forward to hit Baji with a left-handed smack on the arm. "And did you just call Draken an earthworm!?"
"Ow! I didn't say that!"
"Everyone."
The trio paused at the sound of Mikey's voice, the tone smooth and nonchalant, just like the smile on his face. Mitsuya's quiet chuckles faded and Baji pulled away from trying to pinch Emma on the cheek. She hurriedly drew away from them, meeting her brother halfway.
"Mikey!" There were so many things she wanted to ask him; Where were you? You were with Reiya, weren't you? Where is she? Are you two okay? Are you okay?
But all of her questions fizzled down in solemn compassion when she saw a bit of redness over his nose, and some minor swelling around his eyes.
Her brother cried.
Mikey cried.
But it didn't surprise Emma as much as the post-cry aura that surrounded him now. It didn't feel heavy or apathetic, like he was trying to force something down the way he always did right after he disappears, just like that time at Shinichiro's funeral or that time after he testified in court. His smile actually felt sincere this time, maybe even a little sated, like he just had a warm snack. And seeing him this way without the dull void of misery lingering in his eyes after what could've been the second worst night of their lives comforted Emma beyond the formation of words.
He was okay.
And Emma felt, almost instinctively, that she knew exactly who to thank that for.
"Took you long enough," she remarked, trying to look stern but failing.
Mikey's smile turned sheepish. "Sorry, did you guys wait long?"
"Mikey."
Baji's voice spearing right over her head nearly startled the blonde out of her geta. He sounded wrung, angry. But it didn't startle Mikey at all.
"What?" he rejoined while Emma pulled herself aside, feeling a torrent of dismay at what was about to unfold.
It scared her. How her brother looked completely disinterested in the face of Baji's simmering hostility, how fast the wholeness in his face dissipated into a callous sort of blankness in the blink of an eye.
But what scared and perturbed Emma the most was the look on Baji's face. He hadn't tried to pick a fight with Mikey ever since Shinichiro died. That night had put a rift between them, seeming almost to never be repaired. And although Emma tried to act as the bridge she always, always, somehow fell short.
The damage was deep even when neither deigned to show it. They never even talked about it. And, if Emma was going to be completely honest with herself, she didn't want to talk about it, either.
All was forgiven and it was seemingly accepted that what happened that night was nothing more than an accident.
But it was never forgotten. Will never be.
Especially by people like Baji, when guilt wasn't just an emotion but an entity, a living thing. It grew with him, making a home in his heart and his mind. Going with him wherever he went, hand in hand.
But now for the first time since, Emma couldn't detect even a smidgen of that guilt.
Their childhood friend was mad, his expression unyielding and almost...
Righteous?
'Why are you doing this, Ed?'
When he didn't respond, Mikey stifled a yawn and looked around. "Were the others here?" he asked. "I heard a bunch of exhausts from down the hall."
Mitsuya came forward, confirming it as he moved. His manner was relaxed but alert, always the ready middleman. "Some of the guys ended up following us after the fight," he said. "But everybody packed up and left after we told them the good news."
"Hm." Mikey smiled. "We ought to do that too."
He turned to face Baji once more, ignoring his boiling scowl as he regarded him with the dispassionate benevolence of a rich man about to grace a beggar with some spare change.
"Thanks for comin' out tonight, Baji. Time to get some rest." He moved past him, barely sparing Emma a glance as he said, "Let's go, Emma."
The blonde straightened to comply but she found herself rooted. And so Emma could only watch, petrified, as her brother lifted a hand to pat his First Division Captain on the shoulder, only for their childhood friend to catch his wrist in midair.
The sound was loud, sudden. The echoing clap of skin digging against bone seeming to drown any other noise around them.
"Baji," Mitsuya cautioned.
"Ed!" Emma cried.
But Mikey looked completely unimpressed. Completely not surprised at all.
"What are you doing?" he asked, a hint of annoyance underlying his indifference.
But Baji's reply was to ask him back. "Where were you? You were supposed to be at the festival with Draken and Emma, but you got there just before the rest of us did. Don't tell me you..."
"What I do with my time is none of your business," Mikey parried coolly.
He yanked his wrist free and Baji let him, but he wasn't done.
"It is when Toman's concerned," he rebutted, shifting on his heel to face him fully. "It is when this entire mess could've been avoided in the first place. Draken wouldn't have had to know what it's like to get holed in the guts and you know it."
"Baji—" Emma started, appalled that he was crossing the line and not missing the way her brother's patience diminished word for word, but she was silenced by Mitsuya's firm hand on her shoulder.
"Don't, Emma-chan," he said in an undertone, his eyes never leaving the two. "I'll stop them if it gets down to it but right now, there's nothing we can do."
Emma gazed at him in disbelief. Mitsuya of all people should know that now was the time to stop the two. But she also sensed an intent in him, some unnerving tolerance backed by knowing something that she wasn't privy to.
Baji relentlessly continued. "You should've been there, Mikey. This wouldn't have happened to Draken if you didn't—"
Mikey had had enough. He snapped, quick as a whip. His arm harsh and swift as he twisted a hand in Baji's tokkō-fuku, pulling him down by the neck so they were level.
"Let. It. Go." Mikey's command was wrought with growling inflection, his pupils blown but blank like the depths of a lifeless sea. "I don't think I need you to remind me...that what's done can't be undone, Baji."
The taller teen twitched as if he just took a punch to the face. And as she watched, Emma felt her heart sinking in conflicting weights. She didn't even know whose side she should take.
"This will be the last time we're going to talk about this," Mikey said as he released him, his expression calm but implacable. "You pull this shit again, and I'm going to suspend you. Am I making myself clear?"
Baji huffed, looking just as unapologetic but he didn't contest.
"If that's how you wanna play it then fine by me," he spat. "But I ain't gonna stay quiet about this forever, Mikey."
They walked away from each other. Not even brushing, not looking, but both were connected by some cold understanding.
"Ed..." Emma whispered in sadness, in dread. Beside her, Mitsuya let out a quiet sigh.
"Aaa-ah, I'm sleepy," Mikey suddenly pronounced. And just like that, the tension had gone. Overpowered by his whimsical whims. He yawned and turned to pin Mitsuya with a weary pout. "Mitsuyaaa. Take us home."
Mitsuya responded with a wry smile. "Then who's going to drive your Babu? Besides, I still have to drop by Draken's place on my way back. Gotta let Masawei-san and the girls know about the situation, so I'll be taking my leave now too, Mikey."
Mikey stilled as he listened. After a moment he yawned again and waved him off with a dismissive flick of his hand. "Yeah, alright. Thanks for your hard work."
They bumped fists, saying nothing more, but there was a whole conversation taking place behind their shared glance.
Mikey smiled, unreadable. And Mitsuya smiled too, resigned.
"Take care, Mitsuya," Emma bade as the silver-lilac-haired boy threw her a farewell smile on his way to his Impulse.
His gaze was kind. Evidently Mitsuya was telling her not to worry about what just went down between Baji and her brother, but trying to ignore the schism between the two was like seeing a ticking bomb and going Yup, nothing to see here.
"Mikey?" Emma ventured as they headed towards his Babu. He tilted his head her way but didn't look at her.
"Hm?"
"What just happened with Ed back there?"
They halted on either side of the motorbike, Mikey casually grabbing his keys and mounting his seat without so much as a pause, no sign of a rankled nerve if Emma struck any.
"You know how he is," he answered as he turned the ignition on. "He found somethin' he didn't like and struck while the iron's hot. Typical Baji."
Which wasn't really an answer but Emma didn't press. Her hard-won ability of always being able to discern her brother's mood told her not to pry on the things he clearly had no appetite to talk about anymore. She could only hope that whatever issue the two had would resolve itself in due time. Baji had assured her that it wasn't something to worry about, after all. He'd make sure of it.
And so Emma let it go as she grabbed unto Mikey's shoulder with her left hand, keeping the wince from fully showing when she had to carry her bag with her right. The pain had become dull but persistent, aching deep beneath layers of muscle, bearable unless agitated. It was going to take more than half a tub of Liger Balm to get rid of it, that's for sure.
"By the way," Mikey called as she settled behind him. "What happened at the festival, Emma? Did you get hurt?"
She blanched. 'Crap. He noticed!'
"You aren't using your right hand, and you didn't use it on Baji earlier, either. What's wrong with it?"
She blanched even more. 'Crap, he saw!'
Mikey shot her with a sidelong glance, prompting Emma to sheepishly reply, "A-a little...But I took care of it already so there's nothing to worry about!"
Her brother narrowed an eye in suspicion but Emma was quick to divert the topic. "Did you see Reiya on your way out by the way?" she queried. "She suddenly disappeared!"
Mikey blinked, and something about him changed the very second Emma mentioned the tall girl's name. It wasn't sudden like a sunbeam bursting out after the storm, but it sure reminded Emma of one when the low glow of warmth took the suspicion right out of his face. It shouldn't have surprised her when she hoped for it and yet, it still did. And when her brother finally answered, it had the same effect.
"Yeah, and she didn't disappear." Mikey brought his focus back on his bike and they zipped out of the lot with moderate speed. "Cherry-chan found me, and then her stepfather came to pick her up. He works as a doctor there."
Emma's eyes went huge and she couldn't contain her smile. So they were together. And stepfather...
"What a coincidence!" Emma exclaimed. "So that's why she sounded nervous earlier," she added as she remembered the way Reiya reacted once she knew just where the paramedics were planning on taking Draken to.
Worried, Emma scooted closer until she was leaning over Mikey's back. "Did she get in trouble when he picked her up?" she asked as he turned to head for a shortcut.
He shrugged. "Nope. He's actually pretty cool about it."
And, as if sensing her curiosity, Mikey launched into a quick summary of how Reiya's stepfather, Tetsu, found them while he was looking for her with a towel and a pair slippers on hand (making Emma coo at how unbelievably sweet that was), before concluding it by relaying what the neurosurgeon confidently expressed; that Draken was tough, and that he was going to recover real soon.
By this point Mikey was smiling a huge smile, and Emma's bright heart brightened even more when he said, "Once Ken-chin's discharged, let's throw him a party."
"Yeah!" she raved. "Let's do that!" She clapped her hands on her brother's shoulders and leaned back to grin at the moonlit sky. "I can't wait!"
"Mn," Mikey concurred. "Me either."
A different kind of smile colored the softness in his voice. It almost went unheard in the blend of noise around them, but Emma heard him loud and clear, and she heard the implication even clearer.
"Naturally," she pulled herself over his back again and grinned fit to rival the Cheshire Cat's, "we're going to invite Hina and Takemitchy, and especially Reiya to the party, right~? Draken would want them to come, you know!"
"I know, and back off a little," Mikey chided over his shoulder, waiting for her to do so before sharing, as a matter of fact, "And I already told Cherry-chan to come. So all you've got to tell her is the time and place."
Emma's grin turned pleased at the revelation, and then she snickered at how smug he sounded.
"I bet you invited her on the spot before you even thought to plan the whole thing, didn't you, Mikey?"
"Un," he admitted without a shred of hesitation. "What's wrong with that?"
Emma laughed and brought her wry gaze upwards. "Why am I not surprised?" she said to the sky.
They swerved into a lonely well-lit street. And as her honey-golden eyes slid down to watch the light pass over her brother's pale-blond hair, Emma discovered that she actually was surprised.
Because finally, for the first time in his life, Mikey was starting to fall for someone.
Reiya had never liked her stepfather.
She was nine when she first met him, when he first came to work in Shibuya and her mother had invited him out to dinner, just the three of them, for Kaname was away on one of his gigs. Even as a child Reiya had found that situation off-putting. She remembered asking her mother in an aside, "Mommy, why are we taking this stranger to Daddy's favorite restaurant with us?"
And Sorako replied, "Tetsu-san is not a stranger. He's my most respected senpai, and a very good friend from medical school."
Overhearing them, Tetsu had laughed. It was a soothing sound, rich. The kind that makes you want to join in. Reiya didn't like it.
"Don't worry, Reiya-chan," Tetsu had said. "Your Mommy loves your Daddy too much to be stolen by me."
He smiled at her, all warm and sincere. And for a moment, Reiya believed him.
"Then may I count on your chivalry to pay for the meal tonight?" Her mother imposed, to which Tetsu readily accepted.
He was a strange but fairly charming silver-haired man, an eccentric neurosurgeon who dressed like a dermatologist. He was a little out-there with his gesticulations, a little bright-eyed as if he hadn't been outside in so long, and he tended to speak like some rambunctious youth, reminding Reiya a little of Kaname, who had the temperament of an adventurous teen.
But, for what it's worth, Tetsu shared her mother's sense of humor. He made her laugh, heedlessly. Something Reiya hadn't seen her do around her dad lately. Something her dad hadn't accomplished with the same ease in the past year after Reiya got sick.
But as unsettling as it was, little Reiya eventually made herself understand that maybe, the affinity between Tetsu and her mother was just the result of them belonging to the same field. She hadn't seen nor heard of him again until a few months later, when Kaname brought Viomaru home and her mother threw up after getting a whiff of its varnished scent.
The realization between her parents had been thunderous, even when neither had uttered a word.
And then Kaname smiled a soft, selfless smile.
"It's Akashi-san, isn't it?"
Little Reiya didn't understand anything then. But not long after she began to feel the weight of her mother's betrayal, and the breaking of what was supposed to be a constant guarantee in her life.
By ten her parents had gotten divorced.
By April, her little half-brother was born.
By June, her mother remarried.
Married to none other than Tetsu, who for some reason decided to take her mother's last name.
"You're a liar," Reiya informed him the second time they met. "You will never be my dad."
Sorako had been appalled but Tetsu was calm. He kneeled on one knee before her, and little Reiya had enough self-control to refrain from smacking him in the face.
"I'd never dream of taking your dad's place, Reiya-chan," he told her gently. "I can't even play an instrument to save my life. But, I can guarantee...that you can depend on me for anything else."
That day, Reiya vowed; she would never depend on him for anything.
Her resentment was passive, relegated to the furthest parts of her mind for she had other things to occupy her time with. Viomaru was finally hers and she had never felt closer to Kaname than in the moments she'd play. She had her passion, a purpose, a dream...and that had been enough for Reiya to bear it all.
But, try as she might, Reiya couldn't ignore Tetsu completely. Although he wasn't always home, he became somewhat unbearable once they started living under the same roof. He kept his promise; he didn't try to be a dad. But anything else?
He cooked, he cleaned. He made sure to keep their pantry filled with Reiya's favorite snacks. Sometimes he made them, and sometimes they were made with her favorite fruit. He'd shown his support as opposed to her mother when it came to her musical pursuits, which in turn influenced Sorako into allowing her to pursue it. And, even though he had never seen or heard her play, Tetsu liked to identify himself as one of her biggest fans.
So yes. Tetsu respected her boundaries and didn't try to pose like a father, but as a really annoying, overly caring godmother.
He liked her, a lot. Maybe a little too much in spite of—or maybe even because of—her evident dislike. Reiya did try to be respectful regardless that she didn't like him, however. She was proper if nothing else, and nothing much changed between them in the past month after she returned to the past.
She was already convinced that there was nothing to change, and it helped that Tetsu worked late hours and was mostly on-call, so the times where they actually had to see each other were very, very few.
So this...to find herself walking side by side with Tetsu practically gushing over what he just witnessed as they headed for the parking lot...was not how Reiya expected her very long night to end (and considering how the rest of it went, that was saying something).
"You two were sooo cute! I could barely hide my excitement back there when Sano-kun called you 'Cherry-chan'! He made that nickname just for you didn't he? Are you sure I didn't ruin a moment? Are you really just friends!?"
Reiya suppressed a sigh. She made it clear already—twice—when Mikey was out of earshot and again when she had her knee treated. The cut turned out to be nothing more but a scratch (which she expected), with some mild bruising around the patella (which she hadn't expected), but fortunately it wasn't anything some ice, compression, and a few days' rest couldn't fix.
"For the third time," Reiya stressed, not even looking at him. "We're just friends, Tetsu-san."
"Mmhmm, you might think so," Tetsu puttered in amusement. "But I don't think that was the case for Sano-kun at all."
He paused, momentarily turning away to respond to a passing nurse. So far (and Reiya counted), that had been the fourth personnel to greet Tetsu with open warmth. The hospital had about only half of its employees milling about at this hour, but the few ones they passed never failed to show their respects.
Tetsu was, after all, a well-known figure among staff and patients alike, not only because of his position as head chief for the Neurosurgery department, but because of his prestige as one of the nation's most celebrated doctors.
He had been featured in magazines and was a long-standing favorite when it came to the Neurosurgery sector (although Reiya suspected that was because of his face and not solely his skill). Tetsu was a celebrity on all accounts but he wore his fame with sagely grace, tempering his reputation with humility and humor. For all that he had the right, Tetsu didn't have the humongous ego that usually came with the job. Inside the OR might be a different story but outside, he was amiable and quick to laugh. It wasn't just a front, either, as much as Reiya had wanted it to be.
And it was why she understood how the people were able to forget so quickly—the fact that Tetsu built his home with another man's wife.
"As I was saying," he carried on, slipping Reiya a grin. "It was why I offered to take Sano-kun with us, because he looked like he didn't want to be away from you just yet."
She colored but said nothing more. On one hand, Reiya lamented the manifestation of Tetsu's annoying auntie ways in this aspect of her life, but on the other, how could she rebut when she clearly saw the same?
She wasn't blind and nor was she obtuse. And after tonight, Reiya was sure, that Mikey's interest in her was turning into something even deeper, something she wasn't prepared for. She remembered the look on his face when they stopped in the corridor, the way he held her wrist, the sudden focus in his eyes, the intensity, as if he could read her secrets. As if he could see her.
Reiya couldn't explain the perplexing emotion thumping in her chest that very moment, and she wondered what Mikey had to say if Tetsu hadn't shown up.
Yet she also couldn't explain the catch of relief when Tetsu did show up, because a little more and she could guarantee...that Mikey was getting suspicious of the truth. A truth that, bears without saying, he must never know of. Not in this timeframe, and definitely not at this point in their lives.
The cold midnight wind brushed through her damp hair and legs. Reiya shook out of her thoughts, almost surprised to find herself outside. She clutched the towel around her tighter and brought Viomaru's case bag closer against her chest, while Tetsu pulled his keys out now that his dark-gray Camry was finally on sight.
He went ahead of her, tossing his brown leather bag in the backseat before hurrying over the passenger side to open the door.
"Here we go! Come sit right over here, Reiya-chan. Otherwise I'd feel like a taxi driver!"
She complied with a resigned nod, too exhausted to fend from being shepherded like a prodigal sheep.
Thankfully it was very warm inside the car, the sleek space fragrant with the sweet freshness of morning dew, and Tetsu had the AC set at the lowest mode once he brought the vehicle to life. He placed his phone in its designated dashboard holder, syncing it to the car after turning the audio system on.
"I saw your performance by the way," Tetsu shared as he began fiddling with the controls. "Sora-chan sent me a video earlier, and I very nearly cried!"
A smile of astonishment appeared on Reiya's face. The thought of moving her stepfather to tears with her performance wasn't exactly a shock, but her mother for actually recording her was.
It was a new experience, to say the least. Enough to make up for Sorako's lack of support in her previous life.
'And now she's going to give me the scolding of a lifetime,' Reiya thought glumly.
"You absolutely deserved that standing ovation," Tetsu added. He pressed one last button and grinned as her winning rendition of The Swan began streaming through the speakers.
Reiya jerked and paused from strapping in, her face turning red and rattled. "You're going to listen to it again?"
Tetsu's answer was an unapologetic "Yup!" kind of smile. He strapped his own seatbelt on and took hold of the wheel and the shift.
"I had it converted into an audio version," he cheekily revealed before rolling them out of the lot and into the main driveway. "I didn't get to see you live. So at least let me play it over and over again until I'm satisfied!"
Reiya sank back in her seat with a muted groan. It was a flattering gesture, really. But after listening to the same song countless times—oh, she just knew Tetsu didn't watch her performance just once—you'd think he'd opt to listen to something else on the way home, not a sleep-inducing melody. She could tell him stop and he would, Reiya knew that, but strangely enough she couldn't find it in herself to rain on his parade tonight.
It wasn't just because of what he did for Draken, and not even because of what he did for her. But mainly because, on the inside, Reiya wasn't a teenager anymore.
Tetsu began to hum along to the tune, producing a smooth, soothing baritone. Reiya tried to block him out but she couldn't stop the sound from stealing over her completely. And despite her reservations, she found herself settling more comfortably on her side, her right temple pressing deep against the headrest. Soft balms of nighttime illumination floated through the tinted windows, casting colors and shadows in liminal turns across her face, playing over her long lashes, weighing them down.
Reiya's eyes began to close slowly, and she was about to doze off when Tetsu spoke up, just as the song began its final phrase.
"So, briefing time," he chimed softly, his eyes fixed in front. "Sora-chan already told me the gist, but I want to hear the whole story from you. You became friends with quite the interesting bunch back there, didn't you Reiya-chan?"
She tensed in her seat. Her lashes lifted and she slid wary eyes towards Tetsu. Of course he'd figure it out. He must've seen Peh-yan in his tokkō-fuku or rightfully deduced as much when he saw Draken's temple tattoo. Both weren't exactly hard to miss.
Reiya had never really given much thought on what her parents might think about her less-than-stellar choice of friends in the eyes of society (although her past self definitely would've done the opposite) and she wondered whether Tetsu also happened to share Sorako's stance on delinquents.
But his face held no censure, and he chuckled as if he could hear her troubled thoughts.
"Ah, don't worry. That sort of thing's alright with me." Tetsu threw her a quick glance, his expression changing into a self-deprecating one. "After all, I used to be a delinquent."
Reiya gaped at him as if she'd gone deaf.
The words didn't fully sink in until they encountered a red light, when Tetsu brought the car to a stop right behind a short line of traffic.
She blinked her eyes slowly, and uttered an even slower, "Um...what?"
"I used to be a delinquent," Tetsu graciously repeated, seeming to enjoy her unabashed astonishment. And so he had no qualms of telling her more, this time with more cheer. "I even had my own gang."
Reiya's lagging disbelief stuttered. If the first reveal hadn't derailed her, the second one most definitely did.
She scrambled to speak, to make certain. "You...you used to be a delinquent, Tetsu-san?" Her voice was tight and high-pitched. "With your own gang?"
The cars in front began to move. Tetsu pulled at the shift and followed at a leisure pace, maintaining his distance.
"Yes," he replied, shooting her a huge smile. His eyes gleamed with past glories, enhanced further by the glow of ambulant lights. "We called ourselves Brahman."