Chapter 2 ~Fate?~
The old man's first impulse was to pray. Curse, cry, scream, pray—people did such things in their last minutes of life.
Toshi's first reaction to that was an absolute distrust after lowering his sword. "What the hell are you talking about?" That mean streak he was known for showed up again.
But praying struck the old man as absurd given that his problem was the angry man twenty feet away from him..
He had heard whoever he was, wasn't known for their tolerance of humans and this one for sure appeared on the verge of striking him dead.
Chizuru hurried over and tugged at his arm. "Calm down please, there's no need for this."
The old man pulled a wrinkled parchment from his pocket, his hand trembling like he was going through a seizure. A motion made Toshi flinch slightly and for his anger to subside.
He took the parchment and was immediately shocked by what he saw.
"My name is Akira." The old man whispered. "It was foretold, the sun would vanish on the day a man arrives with his wife." He continued.
Toshi seemed like he fell into a contemplative stupor. She was about to ask something when he immediately cut her off.
"Chizuru, escort him inside and get him something warm to drink." Toshi finally spoke.
Chizuru didn't understand what was going on. The look in his eyes was the same as when Sanan and Heisuke , other commanders of the Shinsengumi, died on that fateful day, filled with a hidden sorrow.
This was so typical of him trying to carry the burden alone. Later, she will ask him about this.
He went to their bedroom to fully check the parchment under the light of the candle. This cannot be real, there has to be something to explain this.
He closed the door behind him and took the candle that was left near their futon. The light illuminated the parchment with its orange glow.
The drawing was a silhouette of a man with short white hair, hunched over the body of a girl with a long silver mane. What brought a slew of even more unsettling thoughts was the red color smeared all over the woman.
It's them. There is no mistaking it.
So this couldn't be a simple superstition. There could be some truth about the old man's warning. How come fate wants to screw them over again?
Anger bubbled up. He will never allow this to stop him again. He will create his own fate no matter what it takes.
With a heavy heart, he dangled the parchment over the candle and watched the flame eat it up slowly. Whatever was foretold, he would never allow it to happen. They will live the life they deserve.
Once he made sure the parchment was turned into absolute ash, he threw it outside.
"I'm trying to help you two." He heard their muffled conversation from behind the door. "Perhaps it's better to leave and find another home."
Most of the time, superstitions and beliefs in them are only due to the fact that humans believe in some power beyond their comprehension. However, many of them are just that, beliefs.
He slid the door open and spoke. "I appreciate your concern. Go home, we will decide about this."
The old man didn't need to hear it twice, he cleared his conscience. He warned them and it's in their hands now to deal with this.
He trembled slightly before he went on his way back to his residence.
Toshi closed the door and laid his weight upon it. This has ruined his mood to no end. They didn't need superstition to hunt them, not as if he believed in everything immediately.
"What are we to do with this?" Chizuru asked. "He speaks like he knows some things about us even though we just moved here."
"I don't know what to make of this." He replied. "Let's just go to bed, okay? Leave this issue for tomorrow." He didn't wait for her to answer, he turned on his heels and walked away to their room.
That answer did not satisfy her. Something has changed within him ever since he saw that parchment.
She placed her hands on her hips, shocked that she had to deal with this again. She followed him in a huff. .
"Toshi what's going on?" She asked. "Didn't we promise that you would talk to me and you won't carry the burdens alone anymore?"
Still silent, he snuffed out the candle and the room was engulfed in darkness. The light no longer peaked through the screen of the door.
It gave the room a somber mood.
He heaved a long sigh and beckoned for her to come. Still a bit angry, she snuggled in his arms and felt him push the blanket over them.
"That paper had a drawing of us. I'm not sure if I should tell you what I saw."
Chizuru felt her blood freeze within her veins.
"Are you sure?" Her voice broke slightly." I mean . . . it could be something else. I think you're making too much out of it. We are not part of any prophecy."
Toshi's arms tightened around her trembling body.
"I promise, I will fight for us, we will live together no matter what. I will never let anything happen to you as long as I am around. Do not be afraid."
Truth is, what he'd seen unnerved him, made him coarse and brackish. He would do anything to prevent it and a man of his stature was more than capable.
Chizuru promised herself that day that she would look death in the eye and say that they were able to make the most of whatever time they had left.
However, the mention of trouble so soon rattled her. It was absolutely unexpected.
No, she cannot keep thinking about this. After a while, she decided to close her eyes, sleep is better.
In the ten hours she laid in bed, she must have woken up at least six times.
Not for that long each time,but enough to break her sleep into un-refreshing chunks.
With every disturbance there is a new nightmare.
They get attacked and she sees Toshi's lifeless body in front of her.
Sees herself attacked and injured and also losing their home for whatever reason.
The house is burning and Toshi is outside unable to get to her.
At last she opened her eyes, Toshi's hands were holding her close to him. With a slight smile she pulled herself off of him, careful enough to not wake him. She left the bed.
Slowly, she opened the door to the backyard and a gust of wind rushed in. Standing outside in the misty dark, she felt immersed in a blanket of stillness. The clouds were alive with flashings of light, but for now the wind had stilled. It had been raining for hours now, the steady patter of water against the rooftop of their house slowly faded to the back of her mind. Her thoughts were just too occupied tonight.
Maybe it was better for her if she didn't know what he saw in that parchment.
Worrywart. Toshi called her one time and he was right.
"Why are you still awake?" She was startled by his voice.
With her hand on her heart she glanced back at him. "Don't do that again."
A wide smirk broke across his face. A devious look she has known all too well.
"What do you say if we go visit the shrine now?"
It felt like he read her mind and obvious worries.
"Wouldn't that be wrong?" She asked.
"Shrines are public property, we will not be intruding on someone else's business. Nothing disrespectful about that."
His logic was sound, it was a chance for her to put her worries to rest.
Still, something in her heart warned her about this and she couldn't explain why she felt like this.
"Let's go." She replied at last.
Once they stepped outside of their home they felt a great chill. Toshi brought her closer to him for warmth and started walking down the road.
The whole village was silent, everyone was asleep in their homes. Chizuru could swear she was able to hear her own heartbeat echoing the more she walked, tightening her hands around her husband for comfort.
Vapor escaped their lips with each breath they took. It was the type of coldness that reached into their bones, as if their hearts were a door left wide open to the icy wind, slamming only to open again. The only thing to do is keep moving.
The sky now is a rolling blanket of clouds the color of blood, and the ground its dank reflection.
"My God," Toshi whispered as the shrine was finally revealed before them.
Chizuru blinked to make sure she was seeing this for real, not some kind of hallucination.
The statues clung to the shadows. Crouched high on the gate columns, scattered across the mossy flat plains. Crumbling and festooned with lichen, they were crafted to be grotesque.
Eyes bulging, oversized ears unnaturally pointed, and grins evoking notions of sadistic pleasure, they looked like immortalized devils all their own.
Hunched, disfigured, and leering downward toward the parishioners, they were as cold as the otherworldly beings they represented built into these walls.
The courtyard itself belied the building's beautiful walls, multicolored stained-glass windows depicting what it looks like hell on earth.
"What is this place?" Toshi asked no one in particular. "Could it be that man thinks we are the same as whatever those creatures are?"
Chizuru went ahead of the double door and slowly slid it open.
Inside, numerous candles were lit, chairs were placed on both sides of the hall in an organized fashion.
In the end, something was drawn on the wall with charcoal, the silhouette of a boy with a large black horns protruding from his head. His mouth wide open and a shadow spread everywhere from within him. To the boy's side, were what looked like bats hiding within his own great shadow.
"Is this a god this village believes in?" Chizuru asked.
"It could be." Toshi replied and looked her in the eyes. "You never heard anything about this from Kazama or Sen?"
She shook her head in response.
Something in this place has awakened a deep-seated fear within her. Oddly enough, something about that demon boy feels strange yet familiar at the same time.
"I don't want to be here anymore. Please let's go home." Chizuru tugged at his sleeve.
He was frozen for a moment, his eyes focused on what was on the wall.
"Yes. Let us go back now," He replied.
A gust of wind sneaked through making the candles flicker nonstop. Just like that, the drawing at the wall vanished into dust particles.
"What?" Chizuru whispered. Toshi got closer towards the wall again and the drawings were visible once more.
Toshi tried to sift through what just happened and yet he couldn't understand any of it. This was too strange even for him.
Chizuru tugged at his sleeve again, urging him to leave already. Stay far away from whatever it is.
…
Chizuru awakened first. Her eyes took in every ray of light. A slight storm was passing by.
She knew the horrifying night had passed her by though she wasn't sure what to make of it whether it be real or just a nightmare.
The silence stroked her skin like a cool summer breeze, smoothing her passion, taking away from her jagged edges. It had been one hell of a strange time, these past twenty four hours.
Still, however bad she felt, she was not able to be intimate with him. Her luck to have such a patient husband that won't pressure her into anything.
She pulled herself into a sitting position and stretched her arms. She felt her bones creek in several places.
It has been awhile since she slept in a futon. Most of the time, all they had was a few blankets, a cold hard floor and each was nice to finally have something to call a home.
Peeking outside in the backyard, everything was still, apart from the slight drizzle. Maybe it was time for her to go outside again and talk to the locals.
Toshi yawned loudly as he stirred awake from his slumber.
"Good morning," Chizuru said with a smile.
However, the look on his face was something else. His hair was disheveled and he looked like he was about to burn someone alive.
"You are never a morning person aren't you?" Chizuru smirked.
"Shut up," He replied as he threw the blanket off of him. "I need a shower. You should join me."
Chizuru's face turned red as a tomato within seconds.
A loud chuckle broke through the silence. His shoulders were shaking all over, laughing at her expanse.
"That look in your face is hilarious. Thank you, I needed a laugh."
Chizuru pouted in disbelief. Since when does the demon commander tease like that? This was a dilemma - should she be mad at this or feel happy that he softened up to the point he could laugh like that?
"Here I thought a shy girl is cute to men, apparently not to you." she grit her teeth."I hate you."
"I love you too," He waved as he went out to check for water.
Right at the corner of the backyard, there was an average wooden rectangle room used for bathing and cleaning.
Toshi indeed hated mornings. He always felt like something was suffocating him - the sounds of chirping birds somehow made him almost want to stab his own ears. He usually needed a shower and then a cup of tea to ease his irritation and get through the day.
Of course, not every morning was like this. Today, Chizuru made him laugh and feel better. He's looking forward to many mornings with her like this. Maybe she'll change his mind about mornings after all.
He heaved a sigh and started stripping down from his white Kimono. His broad shoulders has scars in them from the many battles he participated in. Even though he is a demon now, those scars won't vanish. Battle scars are an honor he gladly embraced.
His lean athleticism and purple eyes alone with his strickenly black hair made him quite the looker. However, his stoic behavior and reputation as the demon commander made women stay away from him.
He chuckled to himself, thinking about the past and all these people who knew him. Deep down he wondered what they would say about the fact he was married now?
…..
Chizuru stood in the small kitchen, preparing their breakfast. Rice balls she makes with her hands instead of placing them into a bowl. She whispered a song her late father had taught her from her childhood.
'Raise your eyes, look up at the cloudy sky. The full moon makes your blood run wild. At the time I understood, I was your sole existence, your reason to be. And I felt, there is something that must be lost within me.'
Chizuru spread the peas lightly over the bowl and laid slices of tomato on top as if it were a cake layer.
"What is it with that eerie song?" Hijikata leaned over the threshold looking at her. A towel was wrapped around his hair and he wore a dark blue kimono.
At first she was silent, She eyed him up and down without realizing it.
"Does something look off?" He asked with a slight smirk. "or should I take that as a sign that I look nice?"
The dark colors always made him look best, it complimented the paleness of his skin.
"You look really nice."
Her answer took him by surprise. Did Chizuru finally let go of the shyness and chose to be blunt about her thoughts?
"That was very bold of you. Who are you?"
A wide smirk grew on her face however, her cheeks were growing slightly rosy.
" I think I'm allowed to compliment the man I love. Wouldn't you say?"
Confused, he scratched the back of his head." Sometimes, I don't understand you at all."
Still, Chizuru felt very awkward, a bit embarrassed and shocked by her sudden boldness, so she chose to shift the subject as she carried the tray of their breakfast to the living room. Having gone from not even dating a single man to a married woman is taking a lot of getting used to. Luckily, Toshi has been very patient with her and has never pushed or put it over her head how inexperienced she is at relationships let alone the intimacy shared between a man and woman, especially a husband and wife. How did she get so blessed as to find a husband like him she wonders? Does he feel the same about her?
"What is going on through that head of yours, my dear wife?" Toshi questions, taking her out of her head and bringing her back to reality. She couldn't let him worry about her own insecurities.
"What do you think we should make of the statues we saw last night?" She asked. "Demons are not supposed to look like that, if that is what they were supposed to be."
He sighed as he opened the door for her to enter. Chizuru slowly placed the tray down on the table and waited for him to join her.
"Don't be a worrywart. As far as we are concerned, that was nothing more than a costume and a belief for the people of this village."
"But…" Chizuru tried to say something but he touched her lips with his fingers.
"Relax, beautiful. I promised as long as I'm around, no one is stopping us from living our lives together."
She felt it in the pit of her stomach. This was all too familiar. Instead of acting harsh to her worries however, this time he sweet-talked her to avoid making her worried.
"You are not trying to carry problems upon your shoulders alone again are you?" She asked.
He couldn't help but smile at her answer, she knows him all too well.
The truth is, he felt something odd and familiar about the boy in the drawing. He couldn't explain why though.
Something about him that just…felt a tug and familiarity in his heart.
His smile turned bitter for the barest fraction of a second. He wondered if he should change the subject and tell her about this now or leave it as a surprise. Then again, every poor soul needs to know about this, so they can be prepared.
"My sister Aiya is coming. I thought I should warn you so you can be prepared." He broke the silence.
His sister. He mentioned her only once before. Then again, everything moved fast. She probably wasn't paying attention.
"Back on the road I asked our friend who gave us this house to send a message to her on his way." He sighed, there is obvious bitterness there to the point she wondered if he has a complicated relationship with her or even hated her for some reason.
In a way, she understood complicated sibling relationships. She thought she was an only child for the longest time and when she eventually found out she had a twin, that same twin plotted to kill her, her husband, and the rest of the Shinsengumi, all because he felt that she had a better life than he did.
She still couldn't wrap her head around it but she pitied her brother, the poor soul.
She hopes that Toshi and his sister have a happier relationship and that her sister-in-law likes her and accepts her.
From what little he told her, he was raised by his sister since he lost his parents at a young age.
"Okay, why the long face?" She asked, weirded out by his sudden change of attitude.
"Because Aiya is a real joy and the fact I got married without her. I will never hear the end of it. You will understand soon enough when she arrives."
….
Thank you for reading. More excitement is coming, I promise. I just needed this setup first.
Thank you, Lilc77 for your help.