Tea and Dango

[golden_peony]

WHO: Kondou Isami, and possibly you as well~♥
WHAT: Isami is new hereabouts and is just taking tea. Wanna chat her up?
WHERE: Somewhere around the main camp.
WHEN: Early afternoon.
WARNING(S): Just the confusion, hilarity, or possible angst that might ensue.





[Isami not feeling boisterous for the time being, and after being told how it is that she ended up in this world after being in the modern era with modern appliances, she decided that she'd get to it whenever she'd get to it. If there was a battle to be waged, she'd fight and do her part to survive and help out this main camp.

Otherwise, she was now occupying herself with a nice, hot cup of tea and some sweets. Dango to be exact. She has a good pile of it on a large enough dish, and was happily enough munching on some after she had taken a sip of tea.]

Ah~ That sure does taste good~♥

Comments

[sadistsword]

[Dangos were a smell that attracted Souji pretty fast - aside that he had a weakness for sweets it had been also always a good opportunity to spend time with the Kondou of his world.

So when he smells the dangos this time around he follows the smell again to find a blond woman eating them.]

Oh, you managed to make dangos?

[golden_peony]

[She doesn't know who he is, but he sure does seem to recognize the dango. She just offers him a smile.]

Mm! I only thought that a small taste of home would be what I needed, especially after coming here.

[She raises a skewer of it, and holds it out for him.]

Want some?

[sadistsword]

Yes, I would love some.

[It feels like it has been forever since he had dango in the first place. He takes the skewer she handed him.]

Thank you very much. So you are from Japan as well?

[golden_peony]

Yes, I am. Only that I came from a different version of Japan before coming here.

[Her own world is very special, you see. She munches on a bit more of her dango before speaking yet again. She already knew he was from Japan himself, but she forgot to ask something:]

Mind if I can ask you for your name~?

[sadistsword]

A different version of Japan? What do you mean?

[He's so free to sit himself next to her.]

I'm Okita Souji. And yours?

[golden_peony]

My friends and I were made to go into a version of Japan where apparently technology had advanced. It was a nice place to live in, though~

[Okay, that skewer she had in hand has just dropped to the floor.]

My name is Kondou Isami.

[She's trying to make sense of this, but to try to be polite:]

Souji? No, you can't be... why would you have her name? As far as I know, Souji is back home with Toshi.

[sadistsword]

Advanced technology? Like with Western things?

[Souji... is probably not as polite and he gives her a suspicious glance.]

That is what I want to say. I haven't seen Kondou-san around here.

[golden_peony]

[She shakes her head.]

I don't know exactly, but it was nothing like anything I had seen before. Even so, their "appliances" were very useful.

[She gives the young man a serious look, one that she only does when she feels is really necessary, and right now felt like one of those times.]

You're looking at her. I'm Kondou Isami, leader of the Shinsengumi under the Aizu domain, proudly serving the Tokugawa Bakufu in Edo.

[Only if she knew where the hell they WERE, then she'd probably go straight to them. As it stood, she only had herself here, and while she didn't like it, she had to suck it up.

Besides, last time she was back in her home world, she had followed the Shogun back to Edo.]

[sadistsword]

What did you do with those?

[Oh no, he can't stand such a long from someone who is even supposed to be Kondou. He doesn't want Kondou to be angry with him. And her words spoke a detailed truth. And now that he thought closer about it - he did meet a version of himself here, but not.. a woman. Huh.]

If you are truly Kondou-san... then when was I given to your dojo?

[golden_peony]

[Automatically, and with a smile:]

When Souji was nine.

[sadistsword]

Then you are truly... Kondou-san.

[He is not sure how he feels about that yet, but he picks up the skewer that had fallen down and looks a little sheepishly on the ground.]

Sorry for not believing you earlier.

[golden_peony]

[Oh, now he believes her. Well, if he says he's Souji, and if he says he believes who she is, then she finds no problem with that at all.

Stranger things have happened, and in the world she had come from, everyone said that historically speaking, they were male. Perhaps this was something like that?

Whatever, she was going to give this Souji one of her best smiles.]

As long as you understand that I am who I am, I won't have a problem with you at all, Souji~♥

[With this, she gives him a reassuring pat on his shoulder.]

[sadistsword]

[For some reason her smile and her gesture made him feel all warm. It was really almost as if his Kondou was here. His expression turns into a smile of his own.]

Yes? Then I'm glad.

[That meant he got to eat dango together with Kondou all alone. Without Hijikata butting in for once - hopefully.]

It has been a while since I spent time with Kondou-san like this.

[golden_peony]

[It hadn't been all too long for her. But then again, this Souji might've been here all alone without anyone to give any sort of thought to the boy.

Mm, whether her Souji or not, Souji had been entrusted to her by Mitsu-san, and even though not related by blood, they were still related. That, and no matter what, she thinks she can get along with this young man as well as she had her own Souji. It's settled, then.]

Then I think you can spend a whole lot more time with me like this if you want~ Between fighting in this war we seem to both be into, that is.

[sadistsword]

Really?

[Souji perked up a little more, just like from an energetic little puppy. Even if Kondou was around, he was usually too busy to spend a few quiet moments with him. The opportunity to change that sounded nice.]

Is it alright if I am by your side then? I will do my best to protect you, even during the battles.

[golden_peony]

Yes~ Really~♥

[He seemed to have completely changed his tune, even more so than her own Souji who would like nothing better than to have some peace and quiet when she was sick. She didn't know about this young man's propensity for illness, but she was just going to tread carefully with him about that regardless.

But that's for later.]

I think that if we are to fight such things as "demons" here, then I think it would be better for us to protect each other rather than you laying down your life for me.

I'm responsible for you, remember?

[sadistsword]

[Yes, only Kondou got that kind of special treatment from Souji. And it is probably better not to bring the illness up just yet, he's trying his best to fight it down for now.]

Each other... but I want to repay Kondou-san. [Since Kondou had done so much for him when he was a child. Still, it wasn't as if her words didn't make him happy, because they did. Being cared for was always... such a strange but nice feeling.]

You are the leader of the shinsengumi, right? We can't allow to let you fall.

[golden_peony]

Hm~ I could say the same thing and say, "Souji, you're my First Division Captain, I can't allow you to let you fall either." In battle, nothing is assured you know. The best we can do is help protect one another. As the modern saying would say, "I'll have your back, and you'll have mine."

Besides, my sword skills haven't dulled one bit. Or what, do you doubt them, Souji~?

[She inferred that this Souji had to have the same abilities, and prowess with the sword as the one she knew. As for the modern sayings, it was a bit difficult to explain, being thrown into a different world and into the "modern era." She's been there for quite a while now and got used to things.]

[sadistsword]

[Alright, that really sounded like Kondou, kind of. He gives her nod.]

If that is what Kondou-san wish... then we will fight and protect each other.

[He actually hesitates a bit at the question. Kondou had been shot in the shoulder from what he remembered so he wasn't anymore able to hold a sword or fight properly.]

That's not it - [Not at all, Kondou was the best swordsman around, after all] - but... is your body alright?

[golden_peony]

[She gave him a bright smile as she heard his words. Yes, he's a good kid for listening to her~♥

Only when he asked about her health, her smile faded a little.]

Yes, I'm completely fine and in top shape. Why do you ask?

[And with the way she's dressed, he could probably see that her skin around her shoulder is nice, clean, and smooth. She prided herself in maintaining her hygiene exceptionally well.]

[sadistsword]

[He's always listening to Kondou. Well, almost always. The exceptions are when the wishes clash to hard against each other.]

Since...

[He hesitates a little, thinking if he should tell her the truth, but he disliked lying to Kondou, so...]

Since the Kondou-san of my world was wounded here.

[He points at his right shoulder, and let his gaze drift over hers. It did seem fine, no scar, nothing.]

[golden_peony]

[She looks at her right shoulder, just where he's pointing at. That she would get injured wasn't unthinkable, but it could be possible if she weren't careful enough. That's a truth, and that's not something that she would shy away from.

Injuries sucked, but one had to live with them. But in this case, her other self had somehow gotten injured. She didn't know the -- oh.

Circumstances. It all boils down to that, doesn't it? One action taken, one action not taken. She could have done something differently and she would have gotten injured just like this Souji's.]

I don't know what circumstances led your version of me to have an injury here, but I might have taken a different step somewhere along the line to allow me to stay unscathed.

Your Kondou is a man, yes? Difficult as it is for me to believe, but if there is a slight difference such as being a man or a woman, there might have been some small differences as to how we led our lives.

[But apparently not enough changes to make them completely different. She, and her male counterpart, were leaders of the Shinsengumi. She, and her male counterpart, had apparently done much of the same, and was even leader of the Shieikan when Souji first arrived.]

I wonder what happened that made my other self get injured...

[She blurted this last part out in idle thought.]

[sadistsword]

Yes, perhaps you would have been more careful. Perhaps the Hijikata-san of your world might have cared to put up better protection for you.

[But he had heard it himself - or that was what Hijikata had claimed - Kondou didn't want to take too many men with him that day since they had been kind of short on them anyways.]

That... it was a trap. Some people wanted to get revenge and they shot him on his way back to our headquarters from the woods. It was good he did not fall from the horse or else...

[Or else Kondou would have been done for. Though Kondou wouldn't be Kondou if he wasn't so stubborn and pulled of the stunt to ride all the way back home on the horse nevertheless. His life had been on the line that entire night.]

[golden_peony]

[Evidently this was weighing much on Souji. She couldn't help but want to give him a hug and give him reassuring pats on the back.

Which she did.]

I'm sorry that this happened to him, Souji...

[And with that tone of voice that he used:]

It must have been hard on you when news reached you, didn't it? I'm sorry.

[She soothingly strokes his back as she does this, because really, she wouldn't know how she'd react if she'd known any of her close friends, the closest subordinates, were to have been shot. She'd probably even be on vigil to take care of them if need be. She wondered if Souji here had probably done the same for him.

She couldn't offer any sort of consolation aside from this, and she only hoped he could accept it.]

[sadistsword]

Ah...

[He didn't really expect a hug right now - in fact, it had been some time since he had been hugged last, but it wasn't unwelcomed. It felt almost like the first time when the Kondou of his world had hugged him.

He hesitantly reaches up so that his hands could rest on the back of her shoulders.]

Yes.

[In fact, he went on a rampage afterwards and killed a lot of people he thought were responsible for this, but he is not going to tell her that. He didn't know what she would think of him if she learned that particular fact.]

I'm sorry.