The cruelest month. [Gintama]
GINTAMA and all characters/ideas/concepts/places therein are not mine, although the writing certainly is.
Title: The cruelest month.
Characters/Pairing(s): the Shinsengumi
Rating: G
Summary: It's the right of the one who's lost everything.
Warnings? Spoilers apply for episodes 86-87 of the animated series.
Notes: Happy Birthday, Pris! '^'
The cruelest month.
The whole division wanted to be at the funeral, of course. The core group of the Shinsegumi had known Okita Mitsuba personally: they had all come from the same village, walked the same roads, played in the same rice fields as children, drawn from the same well. The rest had become acquainted with her over the years, through the letters she sent her younger brother and the stories their officers told on slow evenings, over good food and even better sake. Edo, however, needed its protectors, and honoring one dead girl wasn’t nearly as important as keeping the streets of the capital clear of criminals. As such, Okita Sougo and Kondo Isao were the only people who accompanied the body back to Mibu Village. Kondo stayed for part of the wake: Sougo stayed in the place of his birth for the customary mourning period and then some, heading the funeral services.
Vice Commander Hijikata Toshirou did not come to the funeral. The low-ranked soldiers on the team muttered among themselves. The officers, who knew better, did not comment on his decision.
No one expected Sougo to come back as soon as matters were settled: he and his sister were all that remained of their line, but surely there were matters to settle, especially in light of the fact that Mitsuba had married into a rich clan before her death. That, and even with his sterling record as a captain of the force and a killer par excellence, Sougo surely needed time to mourn. As such, his comrades in the Shinsegumi made the arrangements for a quiet dinner on the pretense that he would be absent, and they would be able to remember Mitsuba over sake while discussing how they were going to help Sougo deal with her loss upon his return. They were surprised, then, when the young man arrived at headquarters on the night of their gathering: a shadow in the doorway, with the dirt of travel still fresh on his sleeves and the soles of his shoes.
An uneasy silence fell over the room, taking hold until Sougo quietly walked in and took up a place between Kondo and Hijikata. Kondo greeted him with a soft smile and a pat to the back. Hijikata only lifted his sake cup up to his lips. The conversations around them started up again.
Later, when Kondo called on Yamazaki to fetch another bottle for him, Sougo asked for a cup for himself. Kondo’s hesitation was obvious; Hijikata made the decision for him by sending Yamazaki on his way. Once the bottle came, the vice commander poured for Sougo first, and then for himself. They raised their glasses to each other and drank.
Nothing was said. Nothing needed to be.
Title: The cruelest month.
Characters/Pairing(s): the Shinsengumi
Rating: G
Summary: It's the right of the one who's lost everything.
Warnings? Spoilers apply for episodes 86-87 of the animated series.
Notes: Happy Birthday, Pris! '^'
The cruelest month.
The whole division wanted to be at the funeral, of course. The core group of the Shinsegumi had known Okita Mitsuba personally: they had all come from the same village, walked the same roads, played in the same rice fields as children, drawn from the same well. The rest had become acquainted with her over the years, through the letters she sent her younger brother and the stories their officers told on slow evenings, over good food and even better sake. Edo, however, needed its protectors, and honoring one dead girl wasn’t nearly as important as keeping the streets of the capital clear of criminals. As such, Okita Sougo and Kondo Isao were the only people who accompanied the body back to Mibu Village. Kondo stayed for part of the wake: Sougo stayed in the place of his birth for the customary mourning period and then some, heading the funeral services.
Vice Commander Hijikata Toshirou did not come to the funeral. The low-ranked soldiers on the team muttered among themselves. The officers, who knew better, did not comment on his decision.
No one expected Sougo to come back as soon as matters were settled: he and his sister were all that remained of their line, but surely there were matters to settle, especially in light of the fact that Mitsuba had married into a rich clan before her death. That, and even with his sterling record as a captain of the force and a killer par excellence, Sougo surely needed time to mourn. As such, his comrades in the Shinsegumi made the arrangements for a quiet dinner on the pretense that he would be absent, and they would be able to remember Mitsuba over sake while discussing how they were going to help Sougo deal with her loss upon his return. They were surprised, then, when the young man arrived at headquarters on the night of their gathering: a shadow in the doorway, with the dirt of travel still fresh on his sleeves and the soles of his shoes.
An uneasy silence fell over the room, taking hold until Sougo quietly walked in and took up a place between Kondo and Hijikata. Kondo greeted him with a soft smile and a pat to the back. Hijikata only lifted his sake cup up to his lips. The conversations around them started up again.
Later, when Kondo called on Yamazaki to fetch another bottle for him, Sougo asked for a cup for himself. Kondo’s hesitation was obvious; Hijikata made the decision for him by sending Yamazaki on his way. Once the bottle came, the vice commander poured for Sougo first, and then for himself. They raised their glasses to each other and drank.
Nothing was said. Nothing needed to be.