[That smile is like a stab right in the heart. It takes him straight back to that failed escape, to yelling and arguing and begging Kondou to come with them, to fighting to hold back tears as all of his pleas fell on deaf ears, to his shock as Kondou shouted him down...and then the smile that had followed. The last one Hijikata would ever see - or the last one he thought he would ever see, at least.
He hadn't cried when he found out about Kondou's execution, after that; despite his best efforts otherwise, some part of him had known it was coming. He hadn't cried when Heisuke and Sannan died. Hijikata hadn't thought he had tears left, after leaving Kondou behind.
But here he can feel them, coming on again, and his mouth suddenly feels so dry he almost can't get words out of it when he tries to answer.]
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He hadn't cried when he found out about Kondou's execution, after that; despite his best efforts otherwise, some part of him had known it was coming. He hadn't cried when Heisuke and Sannan died. Hijikata hadn't thought he had tears left, after leaving Kondou behind.
But here he can feel them, coming on again, and his mouth suddenly feels so dry he almost can't get words out of it when he tries to answer.]
...yeah. It has.