[It's quite surreal, sitting here and putting words to such a personal story, in this small room far away from home. Especially since he'd been holing up in here because he was embarrassed and awkward only a moment ago, and now Kashuu has somehow coaxed him out of that and right into this strange and hesitant storytime session. Honestly, sometimes the effect they have on each other must seem quite amusing to any observer to their interactions.]
We found out later for certain that my father died, and with his last breath he gave the sword to a little boy who had found him on the road. Right then, we only knew that we were parentless and alone in the world. My oldest sister had to take responsibility for us, and married soon thereafter, at fourteen.
[There is a definite distance in Souji's voice as he speaks of being orphaned, because he can't really make himself feel much of anything for parents he doesn't remember. What guilt he still feels is centered around his sisters, and the burden he'd laid on Mitsu in particular.]
Because of what I'd done, they kept me isolated, fearing repercussions. I grew up pretty strange, though I have a feeling I would've been anyway. [He laughs softly.] When I was nine, they decided that I would be safer still if they handed me over to a certain dojo, let them take care of me while I did the chores there and became invisible. That's how I met the heir to that dojo, a kind and thoughtful young man... oh, and his smoking, womanizing and quite disrespectful best friend.
[He grins, eyes fond.]
He picked on me for being such a girly, meek son of a samurai, and I didn't like him at all. But as it turns out, he was the boy my father had given that sword to all those years ago. So when rumor started going around that someone who was the size of a child was going around killing samurai, and that they were looking for a sword with an inscription of a chrysanthemum on the tang, you could say it got him worried. It scared me senseless, because I knew it was coming for me, and I was terrified that I was going to draw down this misfortune on Kondou-san and his family as well. So I ran away into the forest, hoping the thing would come after me and leave them alone.
[He pauses, and he can still remember the terror of the dense, shadowy vegetation all around him, the sounds of wildlife large and menacing to a sheltered and already frightened child. Needing a point in the now to focus on, he runs his thumb over one of Kashuu's earrings, eyes on the soft shifting of light over the gold surface.]
Of course the two of them ran after me. Kondou-san got stuck fighting some outlaws that worked for the creature hunting me, and Hijikata-san and I ended up alone with it. I... [He shakes his head slowly.] I still don't know if it had started out human or not. It was my size, but powerful, and it seemed like the only thing that drove it was to finally fight and kill me so it could take back that sword. And I don't think it's a coincidence that we ended up right by the place where Hijikata-san had hidden it. So when he was hurt too badly to fight the creature, I had been digging it out for him, and... what was I supposed to do? I couldn't let that thing kill anyone else instead of me.
no subject
We found out later for certain that my father died, and with his last breath he gave the sword to a little boy who had found him on the road. Right then, we only knew that we were parentless and alone in the world. My oldest sister had to take responsibility for us, and married soon thereafter, at fourteen.
[There is a definite distance in Souji's voice as he speaks of being orphaned, because he can't really make himself feel much of anything for parents he doesn't remember. What guilt he still feels is centered around his sisters, and the burden he'd laid on Mitsu in particular.]
Because of what I'd done, they kept me isolated, fearing repercussions. I grew up pretty strange, though I have a feeling I would've been anyway. [He laughs softly.] When I was nine, they decided that I would be safer still if they handed me over to a certain dojo, let them take care of me while I did the chores there and became invisible. That's how I met the heir to that dojo, a kind and thoughtful young man... oh, and his smoking, womanizing and quite disrespectful best friend.
[He grins, eyes fond.]
He picked on me for being such a girly, meek son of a samurai, and I didn't like him at all. But as it turns out, he was the boy my father had given that sword to all those years ago. So when rumor started going around that someone who was the size of a child was going around killing samurai, and that they were looking for a sword with an inscription of a chrysanthemum on the tang, you could say it got him worried. It scared me senseless, because I knew it was coming for me, and I was terrified that I was going to draw down this misfortune on Kondou-san and his family as well. So I ran away into the forest, hoping the thing would come after me and leave them alone.
[He pauses, and he can still remember the terror of the dense, shadowy vegetation all around him, the sounds of wildlife large and menacing to a sheltered and already frightened child. Needing a point in the now to focus on, he runs his thumb over one of Kashuu's earrings, eyes on the soft shifting of light over the gold surface.]
Of course the two of them ran after me. Kondou-san got stuck fighting some outlaws that worked for the creature hunting me, and Hijikata-san and I ended up alone with it. I... [He shakes his head slowly.] I still don't know if it had started out human or not. It was my size, but powerful, and it seemed like the only thing that drove it was to finally fight and kill me so it could take back that sword. And I don't think it's a coincidence that we ended up right by the place where Hijikata-san had hidden it. So when he was hurt too badly to fight the creature, I had been digging it out for him, and... what was I supposed to do? I couldn't let that thing kill anyone else instead of me.
So I fought it. And I killed it.