At All Costs - Reader/Shinobu Kocho(FxF)

Market

Shinobu was already finishing breakfast by the time you had finished getting ready. 

"Shinobu! I was going to make breakfast. You should've woken me up."

She gives you a smile and motions to the empty plates. 

"It's fine. I woke up a little earlier than usual and figured you needed the extra sleep. Why don't you help me set up the plates before the girls come down"

You nod and the two of you quietly finish getting the table ready. Just as the two of you finish everything, everyone piles in one by one. Kanao is the last one to join the table. 

"We'll be going to market if anyone would like to come?" They all quickly agree, with the exception of Kanao. "Would you like to join us Kanao?" Rather than answer, she pulls out her coin and flips it. As it lands on tails, she nods. "Perfect! Maybe we can eat in town?"

You ask Shinobu. She pretends to think about it before eventually nodding. 

"That's a lovely idea. I know exactly where we can go."

X

When you arrived to the market, everyone split off after setting a time and place were you would all meet. Aoi went with the Sumi, Kiyo and Naho. Kanao went on her own and you stayed with Shinobu. 

"So where to?"

She asks while you're looking around. You let your eyes roam down the various vendors to see what you might need to buy. 

"Come on. I need some pajamas."

Shinobu follows you down the street, only stopping in stores that sell medicine and herbs. It isn't until a few hours later when you both have your hands full of your purchases that you decided to call it a day. 

"I'm really sorry for making you carry everything. Just hand them over. I can carry them."

Shinobu looks down at the bags she was carrying and then back to you. She was sure you would fall over if she gave you was she had. 

"That's alright. I can carry them. I'm sure the girls will help us when we head back. We should probably meet up with them. They must be waiting for us."

X

Just like Shinobu had said, the girls were all waiting for you. Once you had arrived, they all quickly ordered their food. As you all waited for your food, they remained quiet. They all looked sad and you couldn't understand why. They had been in good spirits before they all split off. 

"Kanae used to bring us here when she wasn't too busy."

Shinobu whispers to you when she sees the worried look you had. 

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea. I wouldn't...."

"It's okay. I don't think I would've ever stepped foot in here. I'm sure the girls appreciate coming back here."

You just nod and remain quiet until the food arrives. Once it does, you do your best to help them feel better by telling them embarrassing stories of you. It was worth embarrassing yourself when you saw them smiling again. 

X

It's dark when you all arrive back to the estate. After dropping off your bags, they all headed off to their rooms after bidding you goodnight. Shinobu stays as she watches you unpack everything. She looks as if she wants to say something so you just stay quiet to let her gather her thoughts. 

"Today was nice...It almost felt like things were back to normal....I honestly thought Kanae would be home when we arrived." You turn around when you hear her sob. She quickly wipes her tears before you could see them. "I try to pretend that nothing has changed but it has. K..Kanae is gone." You kneel in front of her and take ahold of her hands. She grips them tightly making you wince but you don't say anything. "I need to be strong for the girls but it's so hard. It's hard to not fall apart when I remind myself that Kanae was killed."

"You don't have to be strong. I'm here for you. Let me help."

"They're my responsibility. Maybe you moving here was a mistake. I need to do this on my own. I can't depend on others." She rips her hands off of you and stands up. "I'm sorry. I'm just being emotional. I'll let you get some sleep."

She bids you goodnight and heads out. You don't bother to chase after her, afraid she'll just push you away. It hurt that Shinobu didn't want you help. You understood that she wanted to do this on her own but she was still grieving. She still needed some time to process what happened. 

You couldn't sleep that night. You kept tossing and turning as you thought about Shinobu. 

X

You wake up in the time to join the girls in breakfast. At the kitchen, breakfast was made but Shinobu was nowhere in sight. 

"Did you see Shinobu?"

"I heard her in the training room when I passed by it."

Sumi tells you as she takes a bite of her food. You nod and excuse yourself to find Shinobu. 

X

You make your way through the estate, the sound of wood hitting wood getting louder as you got closer to the room. You opened it to find Shinobu in the middle of training. She was sweaty with half of her uniform on. You averted your eyes away from her as your cheeks turned a bright. shade of red. 

"Morning, (y/n)!" 

She says out of breath after hitting the dummy one last time. She places her sword to the side and grabs a towel to clean herself. 

"Good morning, Shinobu. Another sleepless night?"

You nearly cry out when she suddenly appears in front of you. She just smirks when she sees you look down. You quickly look up when you realize you were staring. You're unsure if she had caught you but she doesn't say anything, making you think she hadn't noticed. 

"I actually slept like a baby. I woke up early with a lot of energy and decided to start my training again."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Why wouldn't it be? Kanae and I would always train in the mornings. Shouldn't you be encouraging me to train."

"Well yes but...."

"Excellent! I'm glad we agree with one another. Maybe you can train with me? It's not the same to train on my own."

You were relieved when she finally stepped back to give you space to breath. You watch as she pulls out another sword and then hands it to you. 

"I'm not at your level. Kyojuro, was just barely teaching me the basics."

"Don't worry. I can teach you everything Kanae thought me. I'm sure he'll be surprised when you continue your training with him."

You weren't like your brother or your friends, you had no desire to join the corps. You only trained to spend time with your father and brother but it wasn't something you liked. You would tolerate training again just to spend time with Shinobu.