The Red || Kyojuro Rengoku

Chapter 4

~Setsuna's POV~

He always wears a smile on his face. I don't think it's disingenuous, he's trying to convince himself that everything will be alright. Raining positivity even when something is wrong. What made him like that? Even nearly dying hasn't seemed to dampen his spirit. He burns so brightly. My gaze fell on him as the three of us walked. Him and Kaen chatting about the upcoming sumo matches in Kyoto. His face turned back to me, the evening sun bathing him in a golden glow, and he flashed a gentle smile at me. I felt my face blush and I quickly looked away, hoping he didn't notice. My mind is preoccupied as is. I don't need to be trying to sort out why his smile made me blush. I was going to his home. Likely meeting his father again. I doubt he'd even remember me.

"Senjuro!" I looked over to where Kyojuro had called out. A boy stood sweeping outside, maybe fourteen? He was unmistakably a Rengoku, with hair and eyes that looked like flame. He had a different aura from his brother and father. So gentle that were it not for the familial identity I would not think he was from the same bloodline.

"Brother, I'm glad you're home." He placed the broom down. Turning to Kaen and me he bowed slightly, "I'm Senjuro Rengoku, it's nice to meet you."

Our introductions returned Kaen stated the obvious, "Wow, you guys look almost identical." Senjuro smiled sheepishly.

"Yes, we get that often," Kyojuro beamed with a chuckle. Kaen slunk a familiar arm around Senjuro and leaned in, "Bet the ladies can't keep their hands off you." Senjuro flushed pink with embarrassment, Kyojuro laughed again, but I noticed the slight shift in his body language. Tense and irritated. Senjuro slide out from underneath Kaen and motioned to the door, "Please, come with me, dinner will be ready shortly."

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Senjuro placed a tray of tea down for the four of us. Kyojuro explained that his father would regrettably not be joining us for dinner. "Please, make yourselves comfortable," Senjuro said as he popped back into the kitchen. I followed behind. He ladled curry into five bowls, one being placed on an individual tray. I grabbed the tray off the counter, determination in my voice. "Which way is your father's room?"

Senjuro looked at me with big eyes, "Oh, I can bring it to him. Please, you're a guest, and he's not really fond of company." He was stammering slightly. I looked into his eyes and he almost seemed to shrink away. I softened my gaze to him, "Please, Senjuro. It's important." Senjuro nodded with understanding and pointed me down the hall. As I was walking by I noticed a small shrine, a photo catching my eye. Three people stood, soon to be a fourth, a happy family. Kyojuro stood smiling at his mother's side, heavy with child. Shinjuro, the man I would learn who pulled me from my ruined life, beaming with pride. My gaze fell to his mother, beautiful. I took the entirety of the photo in, the happiness and love of this family. Kyojuro had a perfect childhood. Should I be jealous? Resentful? My fingers brushed the frame delicately. He grew up wealthy, in a beautiful home with two loving parents. Father and I were poorer, but happy nonetheless. In an instant, he was gone, and I was placed to an orphanage. Fighting for my place to belong. I looked around and noticed the emptiness of the home. Clean, but lacking in some way. A woman's touch. My eyes fell back on the photo and I realized, his mother was gone.

I continued down the hall to my destination, stopping at the closed door. I placed the tray down, and took a deep breath, before rapping my knuckles on the door. Silence. I waited a moment before knocking again, met with a gruff response from the other side. "Senjuro, I'm not coming to socialize. Let me know when they leave." I stood still, debating, before I knocked again. The shoji opened finally.

"Senjuro, I told you I--" He stopped mid-sentence as his eyes met mine. Shinjuro blinked, not fully comprehending my presence. He seemed different. Older, obviously, and his features were roughly the same. Though I didn't recall the stubble. But he seemed worn, his aura didn't hold the same power as it once did. Sadder. His wife, I realized. Would he remember me?

He smirked and narrowed his eyes, "Hey, brat."

~Kyojuro's POV~

"Hey, brat," My father called out. Senjuro had come to me once he told me where Setsuna was going. Why would she need to see him? I froze when I heard his words as I rounded the corner. Oh no. To my surprise, he was smiling. Bemusement and shock etched onto his features. Setsuna was bowed before him, "I never got the chance to thank you." He held his hand up, stopping her.

I interjected myself, "Father, you know her?"

Father nodded at me, holding up his hand. He tapped his thumb to a jagged, ringed scar. "Not many people who bite me end up living to see the next day." He chuckled wryly and my mouth hung agape with shock.

"Yo-you bit him?" I stammered, incredulous.

Setsuna blushed lightly, gazing down at the floor. "I thought he was a demon." Her eyes flicked over to my father momentarily, a shared look between them. "He took me out of my home after my father was killed. My entire village was wiped out." My eyes widened at her admission. I remembered, I was only a boy. Hiding around the corner listening to my father speaking with my mother late into the night. I should've been asleep, but curiosity had gotten the better of me. A demon had destroyed an entire village. Only one survivor. A girl, locked away in the closet, coated in wisteria oil and petals as a final desperate attempt to spare her by a loving parent.

~Setsuna's POV~

"Tasty!" Kyojuro took another bite of his food. It was jarring at first, hearing his repetitive declaration. "Do you always do that?" Kaen asked bemused.

"Yes! I was taught to savor every meal in case it was my last."

Shinjuro grumbled, taking a drink of sake from his cup. "I didn't think he was going to take it so literally." A small smile graced my lips. In the short time that I've known him, Kyojuro took everything literally. I could not imagine him as a child. I was glad that Shinjuro had decided to join us after all. He rarely spoke throughout the evening, but I was glad to have him around. His presence provided me with a security that I rarely felt. Maybe because he was a father himself. Maybe because he rescued me. I wasn't sure, and in all honesty it didn't really matter.

"Senjuro, are you planning on becoming a Demon Slayer as well?" Kaen asked, taking a bite of his curry. The air felt tense as soon as the words left him. Idiot. Don't you think Kyojuro would've already taken him on if that was the case? My eyes shifted around the table to the Rengoku family. Shinjuro glared into his cup, but kept silent. Kyojuro was smiling, always smiling, but I could see his discomfort. My eyes fell to the youngest Rengoku. Senjuro seemed pale, miserable by the question.

"No," he said softly. "I was unable to change the color of my sword." He worked his mouth, trying to find the right words. "I'm going to find another way to be useful. I was thinking, of maybe studying medicine at the Butterfly Estate. To help the injured Slayers."

Kyojuro reached his hand across the table to his brother's. "Senjuro, that's a wonderful idea!" He was beaming, and Senjuro blushed  with the embarrassment of the attention.

"Kyojuro, it's getting late. We should be on our way." I caught Senjuro's gaze and he silently mouthed out his thanks for turning the focus off of him.

"You're right," his usual enthusiasm present as he stood. "Please, let me walk you both to the door." Kaen and Kyojuro walked off together, Senjuro cleared the bowls from the table. As I stood, Shinjuro grabbed the fabric of my sleeve and pulled me down. He leaned in, whispering a gruff warning into my ear. "Watch Kaen. I don't trust him."