Let's Get Down to Business [Closed]

[fox_shuuichi]

WHO: Kurama (fox_shuuichi) and Hitachiin Kaoru (poetryinfashion)
WHAT: Long-awaited training.
WHERE: Paradise Blossoms. Or, rather, the clear lot behind the shop.
WHEN: Day 90, dusk.

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[poetryinfashion]

Flipping through his journal on his way over, Kaoru mulled over just how long it had been. He was such a stickler for details... he'd memorized the captive list, he could remember little things he told people, enough to make poetry out of it, and now here he was counting the days since this promise had been made.

It had been the day before the Queen's Ball. That made it 77 days today.

A lot had happened in that time. Strangely enough, Kaoru had actually been through enough in the interim that he had the barest advantage over his old self. Practicing with Yusuke and Riku that one week, running around in the jungle, and trying to maintain his few, barely existent skills had left him in much better physical condition than the boy who'd first arrived in Rivelata.

And it had been 63 days since they last saw one another. It occurred to Kaoru then that Shuuichi may very well be one of the few people he'd known that long to be able to see the difference in him.

Kaoru walked more confidently now, carried himself more seriously. He had a rapier in a holster at his side and he acted like it was natural for it to be there. He had never tried it, but chances were good he could actually jog the full length of the main thoroughfare - the one where the pirates had parked their ship - without exhausting himself.

It wasn't until he got to the door and ran a hand along the base of his neck that Kaoru recalled another thing: he'd been forgetting to trim his hair lately. As a result, it had actually gotten to the point now where he had started to tie it back in a short ponytail. Depending on how things go tonight, I may have to make sure I get this cut tomorrow, he decided.

When he walked into the store and saw Kurama standing there, Kaoru knew he'd made a good choice of clothing for the evening. That same day the promise was made, Kaoru had presented Shuuichi with an outfit to wear to the Queen's Ball the next day. Now, Kaoru was wearing a similar outfit, based on that design. Where the original design called for white, Kaoru's outfit had pale orange - his favorite color - and the black had been substituted for a deep brown. The accent, which was originally golden yellow, was now bright green while the sash was cyan - Hikaru's favorite color, a gentle reminder of why Kaoru had become the way he was now in the first place.

"Konbanwa, Shuuichi-kun. Hisashiburi da nee...*"

That was also a hearkening back to their first meeting, in which Kaoru had greeted Shuuichi in Japanese out of habit.

All the same, Kaoru was smiling. He knew quite well, based on the training with Yusuke and Riku, that he would go home sore tonight, but he also knew it would be worth it.

[[OOC: *"Good evening, Shuuichi. It's been a while, hasn't it?"]]