hitsuzensei | it's always raining; the present will continue into the future

Marius is out on a walk, still with his cane, but moving as swiftly as the rest of the crowd. The air is chilled, on the verge of the night, and even under his jacket, he shivers a bit. He hears the train in the distance like a long forgotten lullaby as he continues down the street.

Marius stops abruptly when he catches sight of the young boy, moving about to get the crowd's attention. No one stops to talk to him. Marius is struck by the boy's age, the fact that he is alone in such a large city. He is determined to help him, but he does not want to frighten him. He approaches him slowly.

"Hello," he almost whispers. "You look lost. How can I help you?"

A hand immediately flies up to cover the patch that stretches over the left side of his face, smoothing it out. Don't lift it, he thinks, watching the man who approaches him with a wary look. The attention, once earned, closes around him — but whether as a threat or as a blanket of safety, the boy doesn't know.

This just isn't where he's meant to be.

"Hello," he murmurs back, staring up with wide eyes, his hand dropping back down to clutch at his shirt. "You... look lost. How can I help you?"

He waits, wondering if the man will understand. Listen to the tone, and look past the words.

Marius' concern increases as the young boy's hand moves to cover a part of his face; he wonders what the child is trying to hide. He looks as lost as Marius felt when he first arrived in Darrow.

He starts a bit when the boy repeats his own words back to him. Still, as he watches the child clutch at his shirt, he wonders perhaps if mimicking is his only way of communicating.

"Are your parents here?" He asks, gently, not wanting to scare him.

The young man remains. And the softness of his tone suggests both consideration and an absence of fear. It's enough that the young boy reaches out imploringly, the hand on his shirt loosening and reaching out for the man's hand. Please, don't ignore me. I know you're listening.

With a softly wavering breath, the boy shakes his head.

"Are your parents here?" he asks, giving the man's hand a small tug. A few other individuals pass down the street, not a single one of them glancing at the pair. This is what his world has been since he arrived. Like he's invisible. Just another detail in the setting.

The young man's gaze, sad and imploring, tugs at Marius' heart. When he reaches out for Marius' hand, he does not hesitate in gently grasping it. Marius still does not comprehend what the child is trying to say, but he listens regardless.

He sees him shake his head even as he repeats Marius' words.

With the tug on his hand, Marius wonders what he can do to help.

"Would you like me to help you find them? Your parents? Or your home? Do you live around here?" He keeps the volume of his voice soft, barely above a whisper so as not to frighten the boy. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the citizens passing them by and he wonders how so many people can ignore a lonely child.

The warmth of a hand seems to embolden the young boy, his cheeks flushing slightly in embarrassment over his own boldness. Surely, this man has other places to be, other things to do. The boy doesn't want to take too much of his time, doesn't want to abuse his kindness.

But he yearns for a home he can't seem to find on his own, and so he squeezes back, breath pulling through his teeth in a slight shudder.

"Do you live around here?" he murmurs, tugging the man towards the opposite end of the street and doing his best to pull him along. It's cold. He feels it, and surely this kind stranger must as well.

He knows of a place where they can both sit and rest for a spell. A woman who may know how to help. There have been whispers of it in this city for weeks now, and with his free hand, the boy grasps tightly at his shirt, trying to pull it closer to his body. They're slightly too large for him, meant to help trap winds in his sleeves.

Marius takes in the young boy's flushed cheeks and the way he shivers more than breathes. He catches how he desperately pulls at clothing too big for him, and his heart again goes out to him.

"Here, you must be cold." He shrugs off his own jacket and offers it to the boy, even as he pulls them along down a street Marius has yet to familiarize himself with.

From the determination of the boy's grip, Marius thinks he must have a destination in mind. Whether it is a home to return to or a vehicle to take him home, Marius does not know, but he follows willingly, determined to help this young child the way he could not help poor, young Gavroche.

After a few seconds of having his hand enveloped in the broader warmth of the stranger's, the boy's grip relaxes. The shiver in his shoulders abates. His cheeks flush slightly, a mix of gratitude and bashfulness, as he pulls the heavy jacket closer around his own shoulders.

"You... must be cold," he says, glancing up apologetically, though he doesn't stop moving. The shop is close. He can feel its presence, with an energy that thrums squarely against his chest.

By the time they arrive at the tall, wooden fence, there's a woman standing by the gate, just inside.

Yuuko's chin raises slightly when she sees the pair of visitors, her gaze focusing longer on the taller of the pair. He's dressed far too lightly for the weather, and the coat that the boy wears over his shoulders is broad, loose, the sleeves left empty.

"Welcome," she says, tilting her head and pulling back the gate door, "to my shop."

Marius himself feels more at ease when the child's grip grows more lax in his own; he glances to find that he has stopped shivering, and he smiles down at him in his turn.

"Do not worry about me," he assures the apologetic look on the boy's face. "I have been colder."

He looks up when they reach a tall fence and sees the lovely, kind looking woman standing beside it.

"Hello," Marius greets, following the child inside the gate, "he seems to have lead me here. Is this his home?"

The child pauses for a second longer when he sees the smile on the man's face. In some ways, it warms him even more than the jacket on his shoulders, the expression worming its way to his chest, soft like rays from the rising sun. His cheeks tinge pink and he takes a step closer, lessening the space between them.

"Do not worry about me," he repeats, chewing his lower lip as he glances up to meet Yuuko's gaze.

She leans against the fence, long and lean like the boards that form it. "He led you here because you were meant to come here, as was he," Yuuko explains, a slight lilt in her voice as she steps closer, crouching slightly to better meet the young spirit's gaze.

"This is my first time meeting him. But I've heard of this little one before. Sometimes our reputations precede us."

Marius glances beside him when the young boy moves closer to find the child's cheeks suddenly pink. He appears cherubic, almost at peace with the world as he chews on his lower lip while repeating Marius' words. Marius finds himself in awe of the boy.

He turns when the woman addresses him in a lovely voice with an accent he cannot place.

"We were both of us meant to come here?" Marius asks, not quite understanding. "And you know this child?"

"He is an amefurikozo," Yuuko says, which cause the boy to stand tall, drawing himself to his full height and tugging on the man's hand. "A spirit, and one who doesn't typically live in cities like these. I imagine he looks out of place because he feels... a little bit out of place."

The boy's free hand tugs at the jacket again as he steps closer to Yuuko's gate. She reaches out with a long finger, drawing it briefly down the bridge of the boy's nose, before carefully standing up to full height again.

"But yes, it's exactly as you said. Both of you were meant to come here. Why don't we step inside my shop and have a cup of tea so that I can explain?"

"A spirit?" Marius says, uncertain as to whether or not he believes it. He supposes, considering the fact that he traveled from Paris into the future and Darrow, he cannot rule the impossible out. And the boy by his side does have an ethereal glow about him, or so it seems to Marius. "I suppose this city really does have everything."

"Tea sounds absolutely lovely, merci," he bows his head to her as he follows the child tugging him forward closer to the woman and her shop.

Once the young man and the child accompanying him have passed the edge of the gate, a pair of girls run out from the shop, keeping the heavy doors of its entrance open for the procession heading inside.

"Welcome to Yuuko's shop!" they chirp in unison, both wearing broad smiles. The pink-haired girl, also the shorter of the two, fidgets slightly in excitement. Neither looks much older than eight years of age, and both have been longing for new customers for a while. The shop's been less lively with only Yuuko consistently about.

"These are Maru and Moro," Yuuko says with a proud smile, waving her hand in their direction. "Can the both of you prepare the tea room for our guests, please?"

"Hai!" both of them sing in unison, before giggling as they trail off into the shop.

"And I am Ichihara Yuuko," she adds as they step into the shop, carefully removing her shoes before stepping onto the clean wooden floor. "You may call me Yuuko-san."

Marius starts a bit at the appearance of the young girls, but he smiles nonetheless at their abundant enthusiasm. They both appear full of energy and life, and he finds himself intrigued by their oddly colored hair.

"They certainly seem energetic," he comments with a smile as they run off into the shop. He appreciates the warm welcome, but keeps glancing at the child whose hand he still holds to take in how he reacts to the current happenings around him.

"My name is Marius Pontmercy," he says with a bow of his head, before following her example and taking off his shoes as well. "It is very nice to meet you, mademoiselle Yuuko-san."

"They are my pride and joy," Yuuko says, her tone slightly teasing, but no less sincere. She cherishes Maru and Moro for the way that they are accurately able to capture childhood, and for the fact that both of them are happy to remain in that state, constantly curious about the customers that enter Yuuko's gates.

It's the most symbiotic relationship she's managed with spirits yet. They are art nearly elevated into a life form of their own.

But Yuuko doesn't care to extol her own virtues with those who enter her doors, and so she leads the two young men through her halls instead. The layout of the house is fairly open, with wide hallways and sliding doors leading into rooms, grid-like with sturdy paper to maintain privacy. Pushing one of them back, Yuuko hardly has the time to step aside before the young boy takes his own shoes off, leaving them politely by the side of the room, and rushes inside.

He looks hopeful, curious, glancing at the paintings that line the walls.

"Marius. What a nice name. Either named after the Roman god of war, or otherwise a plain and simple nod in Latin to your masculinity," Yuuko observes, walking over to the inner half of the room and sitting down on one of the many cushions available in the space. "Named by your parents?"

"Marius," the boy echoes, his smile brighter as he glances up at Marius.

Marius senses the true affection underneath her teasing tone, like that of a mother; she speaks of them as if they are her children, and he smiles at that.

He follows her through the building, eyes wide as he takes in the open spaces and intriguing doorways. He watches the child by his side take his shoes off, notes the optimism in his expression as he glances at the art along the walls. The sweetness of his voice as he pronounces Marius' name makes his heart swell.

"Thank you," he nods, cheeks coloring with blush at the mention of his parents. "I'm never known the exact reasoning for my name; my parents are both dead, you see, and I've never thought to ask them for the reason of my name. But, yes. They did name me, as far as I'm aware."

"Mmm," Yuuko says, eyes briefly falling to the way that the boy's hand is still wrapped tightly around Marius', then drawing back up to the flush of Marius' cheeks. The sympathy that he's shown the amefurikozo makes more sense knowing his background, and it tempers Yuuko's tone. Makes it softer, more considerate.

There are some people more easily driven by being aggravated and having the foundation shaken under them. Others fare better with a gentler approach.

"I'm sorry to hear of your loss. Though you have clearly grown into an upstanding young man, and very thoughtful for having cared for this spirit when many others passed him by." Yuuko glances up as the girls return to the room, carrying between them a simple Japanese tea set, both of them humming quietly as they set it out between Yuuko and her guests. "I can tell you more of the history behind this young spirit, if you like. Why it is that he repeats your words, for instance, which you may have noticed. But... information like this does carry a cost."

"Thank you," Marius says, startled by the compliments. "I couldn't ignore a child in need." He glances down beside him to find the child still all but attached to him. It makes his heart glad that the young boy finds comfort in him.

"How much?" He doesn't hesitate in asking, because he does truly want to help the young child by his side and he is also curious as to the reasons for the repetition of words. From the way she pronounces 'cost,' Marius wonders if she means a price beyond money. Regardless, he is willing to pay it, if he can help this child.

Although she doesn't say it, Yuuko's well aware that there are plenty of people who would ignore a child of need. Doubtlessly, plenty of people who already did, for the amefurikozo to take such a liking to this young man. Spirits weren't always the most trusting of humans, and so humans who behaved outside of the norm were always lent a certain amount of credence.

Yuuko certainly doesn't want to lose contact with this one.

The cost for helping to return a spirit to its natural habit isn't too great of one. Yuuko gives Marius a thoughtful look, then leans down to start preparing the tea. A small spoonful of bright green maccha powder makes it into the large cup, and then the boiling water, before she whisks it quickly until the top enjoys a thin layer of foam.

"You can repay me by bringing me a dish. Could be made by your hand, could be made by someone else's. But a dish that specifically reminds you of your home," Yuuko decides, glancing up with a smile. "Anytime in the next couple of days would be sufficient. It's more important that it evokes a sense of home than for it to be timely."

When she remains quiet, Marius wonders if he'd said something wrong. Perhaps it was presumptuous of him to ask for a specific amount in payment. He says nothing, however; he observes her making the tea, the way she seems to bring it to life in her hands. Marius finds himself in awe of her, unable to look away from the motion of her hands.

"Do you mean a dish as in a plate or as a meal?" He asks her finally. Since arriving in Darrow, he has come to find that many words contain more than one meaning, and it is another thing for him to learn as he settles in. But as a form of payment, it does not sound overly difficult, and so Marius has no problem agreeing to it. He just wants to make sure he gets it right. "I will be happy to bring it to you, mademoiselle Yuuko-san, as soon as I am able."

"I mean a meal," Yuuko says, chuckling under his breath as holds out the first cup of tea for Marius. It's bound to be bitter, but also full and warm, a tea that Yuuko has always appreciated for its complexity and the almost velvet-like smoothness in the mouth when prepared correctly.

And she's had many years to hone that craft.

"One of the first things to learn about me is that I love good food. Good clothing too, as you can probably tell, but good food is something you can never learn fully, no matter how many lifetimes you're given. There is always someone who will cook with a type of heart that you can't replicate on your own. Food is as varied as the people who walk this earth." She watches as the amefurikozo sits himself down, dropping slowly to his knees. "And it's just Yuuko-san, Marius. The -san is an honorific. It's how you respectfully address someone in Japan, and is ubiquitous across all people. Male, female, old or young. All with -san."

"Oh," Marius says, blushing as he gratefully accepts the tea, trying not to let his nervousness show. The way she talks about food makes him want to cook for her himself. To bring her a dish made by someone else doesn't feel right to him. He is able to cook, but only just so, and he doubts he'll be able to come up with any kind of complicated meal. He hopes he will be able to create something that pleases her, serves as a worthy payment for the help she is about to give. "I see."

He takes a careful sip of the tea, not wanting to burn his tongue, and he does flinch, at first, at the initial bitterness of the drink. But then the bitterness gives way to an encompassing warmth, deep and wonderful as it helps him to relax.

"This is amazing," he tells her. "The most wonderful tea I've ever had the pleasure of drinking."

He listens to what she tells him about food, about how it is the act of crafting it, the way an individual pours oneself into the making of it, that defines the meal, and Marius feels slightly less on edge about preparing a meal for her. He also notices the child as he sinks slowly to the ground, on his knees.

"So you favor food that tells a story?" He asks her before taking another long sip of his tea. "Food that has meaning, rather than perfect craftmanship?"

"Oh, my apologies, Yukko-san." He says, blushing again in embarrassment. He dislikes misusing proper titles and mistaking forms of etiquette.

"There's no need to apologize for breaking rules you couldn't have had any way of knowing," Yuuko replies fondly, raising a brow at the boy's clear earnestness. "Instead, it's my place to thank you for honoring niceties from my culture, even though they must seem foreign to you."

Yuuko leans back over the second chawan, preparing another cup of tea for herself. Some might have flinched at the bitterness, but Marius' expression is genuine in its delight. She notices the spirit brightening as well, though he makes no move towards the tea he can't drink.

This echo might be one that follows Marius for some time.

"I favor stories that are genuine over stories that are crafted towards a certain, perfect outcome," Yuuko nods, crimson eyes flickering up to meet Marius' gaze. "You're a perceptive young man for picking up on that detail. To me, the journey is as interesting as the outcome, if not even more so. And the people we journey with, the most important of all."

"Thank you," he tries again, still red about the ears a bit. "I try to be respectful of all people's cultures, no matter how foreign they may be."

He watches her make a second cup of tea as he continues to sip from his own, each gulp bringing a new burst of warmth and life within him. She moves gracefully, like a woman out of a painting, and Marius finds himself growing more at ease the longer he spends in her presence.

He also takes care to glance beside him at the child, who appears to grow happier as well. Marius smiles at that, glad the boy is more content than when he first found him alone in the night.

"I think it is the people we journey with who make the outcome worthy altogether," Marius confesses, meeting her crimson gaze with his own, considering all of the people he has met so far in his life and the way that Darrow has introduced him to many more.

Yuuko smiles knowingly, seeing how her request has resonated with the young man. When he pays the price for the information she gives him today, it will be with heart and with consideration, both valuable in their own right. Enough to make the exchange equal between the both of them.

"A journey, coincidentally, is what this young one needs," Yuuko says quietly, sitting up straighter and watching the amefurikozo carefully. "This spirit is a type of youkai — which has been translated as ghost, apparition, phantom. I tend to prefer the use of the word 'spirit' because it seems the most broadly encompassing in the English language. Or les spiritueux, in your language."

Turning her tea bowl in her hands, Yuuko takes another sip, then lowers the bowl back to the floor, letting it cool a little further.

"He is one of the children who support Ushi, the rain god, in bringing precipitation to the land. You'll find, if you watch closely enough, that there are many such spirits in the city who find themselves not yet accustomed to the relative newness of the industrial age. These high rise buildings, the straight, paved streets... are not the landscape that amefurikozo are accustomed to," she says, watching the boy shift closer to Marius again. "And until he's of an age to navigate that, the best option for this young boy may be to be returned to a more natural setting."

"A journey for a young spirit?" Marius asks, contemplating what such a journey might entail. As she explains further, he relaxes, as it sounds relatively easy enough. He feels odd thinking of the child by his side as a kind of spirit, especially when she mentions les spirituex, at which point he thinks of his dead friends, - he seems so lifelike to Marius. But he also wants to be able to help make the child comfortable, and it seems returning him to nature is the best way to achieve that. There's something almost poetic about returning a child to nature, like something out of the Romantics.

"I can imagine," he comments. "I felt like that myself when I first arrived here. So he should be taken into the country side, then?"

"That's right," Yuuko says, her smile easier and content, grateful for the fact that the mission is not a difficult one. Embarking by oneself on a journey can be daunting at best, and Yuuko doesn't want to do anything that discourages Marius from further visits to the shop.

Quite frankly, she's pretty sure that he'll need to be a customer at some later point. The young man is destined for many hardships, some which can be fought with sheer fortitude, and others which may need a little help.

Like a plant unfurling before its bloom.

"He needs to be taken to the countryside, preferably a place that sees much rain. Close to the river, I imagine, would be a good place for him to go. You're welcome to stay the night, if it's too far of a trek for today, but I would recommend taking a taxi to the edge of the city, then walking the rest of the way. Or, perhaps, renting a bicycle so as not to put too much strain on your feet," Yuuko says, brushing her fingertips along the silken fabric of her robes. "As long as he finds the mountains, this one will know where to go. And will be a happy spirit, indeed."

"I haven't seen the countryside here yet, it shall be an adventure!" He turns to smile at the young boy at his side, the way he imagines his father must have smiled at him, once.

"And by the river sounds like a lovely place," Marius says, thinking of the immensity of the River Seine. He imagines this river to be more tranquil, out in the country perhaps surrounded by trees and away from the business of city life.

"I think I can manage the journey tonight, if he can," he nods to the child.

The boy immediately perks up and gets to his feet. "Tonight," he says brightly, so enthusiastic that Yuuko can hardly keep herself from laughing lightly herself.

They're a good match, these two individuals. Fated to have met and bound to bring one another happiness.

"He shouldn't be a spirit who tires easily, considering his job is to support the rain god. I'm sure he'd love to venture out tonight. Unfortunately, I won't be able to make the journey with you," Yuuko says, sitting straighter and brushing her long tresses of black hair over a shoulder. "But I can lend you a lantern to help keep you safe for the journey. Not that this little one would let anything happen to you."

Marius lets out a laugh, a rare sound from him in the past few months of his life, at the boy's sudden eagerness. Clearly, an adventure out to the river is just what he needs, indeed.

"Thank you," Marius turns to her, grateful. "Thank you for all of your help and telling me about the spirit and what he needs. The lantern will be of a great help, I am certain."

He pauses as a thought strikes him.

"Will I be able to see this child again?"

He finds himself saddened by the thought of never seeing the little spirit again.

Before Yuuko even manages a reply, the little boy nods his head vigorously, tugging on Marius' hand and looking up at him in earnest. Yuuko knows well that there are many spirits in the world with more tenacity than the average human, and in many cases, more power as well to act on their whims and impulses.

She wouldn't be surprised if Marius found himself with a frequent visitor from now on in the city.

"Once he finds his way to the countryside, I'm sure this one will feel more comfortable about venturing into the city again. Show him the way once, and he'll be likely to remember, with the kind of impression you've left on him," Yuuko says, her mouth curved in a faint smile. "The possibility will always be there for a reunion."

Marius beams down at the child in response, heart gladdened by the thought of being able to visit with this spirit again.

"Oh, wonderful!" He grins, truly happy at the thought. "We'll just have to make sure we get you to the river and then we can see each other again when the possibility allows it."

"Again," the boy agrees, straightening his shoulders. Yuuko wonders if the spirit will grow over time, if this experience has emboldened him to rise above his station.

There have been stranger things she's known in her time.

"Well, I should be sending the both of you off," Yuuko declares, clapping her hands together once with a broad smile. Moro rushes back into the room, her short pink hair bouncing with every step as she raises a lantern with both hands, offering it over to Marius. "So that you make your way before it gets too dark. I'll be expecting you back at some point, Marius. And hopefully then, we'll have greater leisure for a conversation."

Marius can't help but smile again at the spirit as he repeats that single word, 'again.' The way he says it sounds so full of hope and promise. It gladdens Marius' heart.

"Thank you," he bows his head to Moro as he takes the lamp gratefully from her.

"And thank you again, Yukko-san, for everything." He bows his head to her in his turn. "Would you like me to return right after I send him back to the country? Or on another day?"

Yuuko smiles at the pair of them, and as she takes a deep breath, she can already sense the water in the air. The rain god is likely to visit upon the city in short order, she thinks.

It'll be a nice reprieve from the heavy pollen.

"I think you'll find that you'll want to spend longer with your new friend once out in the countryside. Don't rush back on my account," says Yuuko with a sly smile, leaning with all the smoothness of a cat. "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon."

"I'll be happy to spend as much time with him as possible," Marius assures her before grinning back down at his friend, and his heart warms at the word. He feels less lonely with this spirit, and he is happy to show him back to his home.

"I'll return when I am able!" He assures her, before taking the child's hand and heading towards the countryside.

it's always raining; the present will continue into the future

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