#veraspromptchallenge2018

“We’ve been ordered to go to Liberty Hall to receive our assignments. Rumor has it we’ll be under the command of Seán Connolly.”

“Do we have numbers?”

Kondō shook his head. “MacNeill’s order seems to have caused some confusion. Heisuke asked if everything was canceled all together.”

Hijikata scoffed. “MacNeill’s an idiot. He was just waiting for an excuse to delay, and once he found out the weapons didn’t make it from Germany...”

“He has a point. It does make our position difficult.”

“That’s why we just have to destroy their arms and take over Dublin Castle.”

Kondō sighed. “We’ll have to see if that’s even possible. Who knows how many will turn out.”

“I’m glad we can rely on our men.”

The conversation ceased as the two continued their trek to Liberty Hall. The enormity of the their undertaking hit Hijikata. The Irish had spent decades utilizing political means to peacefully gain independence with the introduction of the Home Rule Bill. Twice it had been defeated, but it seemed the third attempt would be successful. It had passed in 1914, and it appeared to Hijikata that it would be the beginning steps to independence, even if the Northern Irish weren’t on board.

But Home Rule never came. Shortly before its implementation, Britain declared war on Germany, and Parliament decreed that Home Rule would not come into effect until the end of the war. Hijikata had watched in dismay while the majority of the Irish supported the British war effort and even called for men to join the British army. All he could see was yet another delay tactic—another effort of Parliament to deny the Irish what they had been wanting for centuries.

It was disgust that led to Hijikata jumping at the opportunity to participate in armed rebellion. He knew that many of the Irish Republican Brotherhood and the Irish Volunteers didn’t agree with the timing, as they were waiting for a good reason to call for insurrection. Hijikata couldn’t understand why they wouldn’t want to take advantage of a time when Britain was distracted and had pulled the majority of their forces out of Ireland.

Cowards…the whole lot of them, he inwardly growled. Short-sighted, risk-averting…

Hijikata’s thoughts abruptly wandered to the woman he left behind, and he felt a twinge of guilt at that. He had come to terms with the very real possibility that he could die, and he had done what he could to be sure Chizuru would be provided for. He knew that she understood his desire to take part in the rising, but he was also aware that Chizuru yearned for him to remain at her side. She loved him, and she didn’t want anything terrible to befall him.

Little flashes of their last moments together came to his mind, and Hijikata found comfort in the memory of the feel of her naked body pressed to his as she cried out her release. If anything, he was grateful he had that opportunity to show her how much he loved her before he left. He wanted to live so that he could return to her, but Ireland had to come first.

Kondō and Hijikata reached Liberty Hall, and a young boy no more than ten was seated on the front stoop dressed in uniform with a rifle clutched in his arms. Based on the boy’s hold on the weapon, Hijikata wondered how much training the lad had in its use. The boy was listless—probably from staying up late into the night—making Hijikata smile fondly at the sight of the slumped over figure. Kondō crouched low in front of the boy.

“How long have you been out here?”

The boy sat up, his spine completely straight and his eyes more alert. “I don’t know, sir. But I was awake, sir! I swear!”

Kondō chuckled. “I know. I’ll see if we can find a replacement for you so you can get some rest.”

The boy’s frame slumped once more with relief. “Thank you, sir!”

Kondō ruffled the boy’s hair with some affection before he rose to his full height, and the pair made their way into the building. Up the narrow stairs and to the left was a wide, open room. In the center was a table where six men sat. Others were gathered in groups around the room either talking or resting against the walls. Off in the corner was a crude mattress where a man lay sleeping. Hijikata knew that the man was Joseph Plunkett, who probably needed the rest before things got underway. He had to give the man credit for wanting to fight despite the worsening of his tuberculosis. Hijikata briefly wondered if Plunkett—as someone who would understand the young man’s similar feelings about the illness and desire to fight—had spoken to Souji at all.

“Ah, welcome, gentlemen!” a man with dark hair slicked back, large nose, and serious eyes greeted as he stood. Hijikata immediately recognized Padraic Pearse, the leader of it all. “I’m glad you came.” A pause. “Where are the rest of your men?”

“We decided to come in waves in order to avoid suspicion,” Hijikata reported.

“Smart,” Seán Connolly replied with an approving smile. “I’m fortunate to have men like you under my command.”

“How is he?” Kondō inquired, jerking his head towards the sleeping Plunkett.

Pearse glanced Plunkett’s way before shaking his head. “Some days are better than others. Who knows what he’ll be like in a few hours.”

Hijikata acknowledged the statement with a nod. Souji was in a much better spot in terms of his tuberculosis when compared to Plunkett—the man’s illness being far more advanced than Souji’s—and Hijikata was sympathetic to the man’s suffering. He hoped that Plunkett would feel well enough to fight. At this point, they needed every man they could get.

He stepped away from the table to allow Kondō to talk among the leaders. Hijikata wandered to another corner where some rifles were stored. He decided to go through them and be sure they were in working order. As he dug through the long wooden boxes, he realized just how short they were on arms, and a sort of resignation settled within him. While a very small part of him hoped for victory, he knew the odds were stacked against them.

Soon, he was joined by Saitō, who took a keen interest in caring for weaponry. Hijikata greeted him with some enthusiasm, though exhaustion was beginning to creep in.

“The others?”

“Shinpachi, Heisuke, and Harada are on their way up. I think they were debating who would relieve the child at the front door. Sannan, Gen, and Souji are over with Kondō discussing the plans.”

Hijikata’s attention returned to the rifle he had just pulled out of the box, finishing his inspection. “Did you see anyone else coming?”

Saitō shook his head. “But it’s early.”

No more was said between the pair as they continued their task. When all the weapons had been checked, Hijikata and Saitō returned them to the boxes. By this time, Kondō approached them with a wane smile on his face.

“We will be under Seán Connolly. We are tasked with going to City Hall to overtake the Castle. We will be joined by some of the Cumann na mBan,” Kondō reported.

“Do we know when?”

“Close to midday. Pearse wants to wait a few more hours before making any major moves. He wants to give people more time to get here. We’ll follow Pearse and some of the others to the GPO for the proclamation and then we will march to City Hall.”

Hijikata sighed, running a hand over his face in an attempt to chase away his fatigue. When he peered up at Kondō once more, he saw the fond smile on the man’s lips. He gave a quick smile in return before looking away.

“You should get some rest.”

Hijikata originally planned on telling Kondō no, but he could barely see straight, and his concentration was waning. He sighed and glanced over at Saitō. The young man was looking to him for guidance, but he also suspected Saitō was expecting Hijikata to give in to Kondō. Hijikata sighed and returned his gaze to Kondō.

“Yeah. I’ll get some sleep.”

Hijikata shifted so that he was leaning against the wall. Kondō walked away, and Hijikata presumed it was to tell the others to rest as well. He stared out into the hall, suddenly feeling a burst of energy that would make it difficult for him to fall asleep. He forced himself to close his eyes, and his thoughts drifted to Chizuru, who was probably still curled up in their bed. The mental image of her in peaceful slumber made his breathing slow.

How he wanted her near! She was a steadfast presence in his life—she never failed to calm him when he was overwhelmed—and he wanted that now to ease the knots that had twisted his stomach. But, he was also aware that it was selfish for him to want that when what he was embarking on was dangerous. And the last thing he wanted to do was put Chizuru in harm’s way.

His thoughts continued to swirl around her, and he realized after some time that his body had relaxed and his stomach settled. He drifted into a light sleep. He was vaguely aware of what was going on around him, but it wasn’t enough to disturb him too much. As the hours ticked away, he was dimly aware of an increase in the buzz of conversation and the footsteps of more people on the wooden floor.

He finally opened his eyes, squinting as bright sunlight assaulted him. He blinked a few times until he was used to the light, and he peered around the room. There were definitely more people like he had suspected, which was a small relief. He continued to take stock of the scene to get a better idea of how many people were there. Some were preparing their rifles while others were receiving instructions from leaders.

Hijikata stretched, his muscles feeling tight and heavy from his slumber. He looked to his left and saw Saitō was already alert. Hijikata wasn’t the least bit surprised by that. He stood and straightened out his clothes, wondering what time it was and where they all were in the planning stages. As he gazed around the room, he realized that their numbers were still small.

He then went searching for Kondō, eventually finding him toward the back of the room with Seán Connolly. Souji stood off to the side, his arms crossed against his chest and his eyes narrowed. Kondō turned and acknowledged Hijikata.

“Toshi. We’ll soon be marching to the GPO for the declaration. We’re handing out what weapons we have. Make sure you get one, and gather our men.”

Hijikata felt the knots return to his stomach. This was the moment—there was no turning back. He went back to the spot where he had been sleeping to pass on the orders to Satiō and to distribute weapons. He took deep breaths through his nose to calm his stomach. Now wasn’t the time to show fear. Now it was time to do what he had set out to do.

Everyone prepared quickly, and shortly before midday, the group of about 400 marched across the street to the GPO. Along the way, several members of the group broke off to paste copies of the Proclamation of the Republic for the citizenry to read.

Hijikata was looking forward to hearing Pearse read the Proclamation with their flags flying above them. He imagined the great impact it would have on everyone around them, and he felt his heart swell in his chest at how inspiring it would all be. When they drew close to the GPO, Hijikata caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see Seán Connolly breaking off from the group. The man motioned for the rest to follow. Hijikata was confused but followed the unspoken order.

“We’re going to start heading toward City Hall. We need to catch them unawares as much as possible!”

Hijikata waved for the rest to follow him, and soon the relatively small group was crossing the bridge over the River Liffey. As they passed by people in the streets, Hijikata could see a mixture of surprise and fear on the countless faces. He heard some shout at them, wondering where they were going with their guns.

Soon, City Hall loomed before them, and Hijikata could see that it was quiet. He immediately grew suspicious—where were the British troops that were left to guard Dublin? They should’ve known the rising was coming! 

“You men, over to City Hall!” Seán called out as he pointed to Kondō, Hijikata, and the others. “Set up for a siege of the castle!”

As they split off from the group, Hijikata looked back to see Seán with about half of the group charge at the gate. Hijikata heard the distinctive pop of gunfire as he returned his attention to where he was going. They continued to hear gunshots as they gained entry to City Hall. Hijikata stood by the door to be sure each of his men made it safely in. He then remembered that there were supposed to be members of Cumann na Ban joining them, and he wondered where they were.

At that moment, Hijikata heard the sound of masonry cracking and caught the movement of flying debris and dust out of the corner of his eye. He immediately looked around to see where the shot came from while crouching. He began to prepare to fire off his own gun if need be. It was quiet for a few seconds before he heard more gunshots coming from above him. Hijikata glanced upward, wondering who was firing, and if the British had taken over City Hall before they had.

The change in his attention was a mistake.

More gunshots rang out, and Hijikata heard a bullet whizz by his ear. Hijikata dodged to his right and took a bullet to his left bicep. He let out a cry as he instinctively dropped his rifle so his right hand could cover the wound. He could feel the warmth of his blood slide down his fingers to his wrist to soak into the cuff of his sleeve. Hijikata swore under his breath as he looked up and caught sight of a few British soldiers heading his way with their guns poised to fire.

He heard more gunshots come from behind him, and the shout of a female voice. “Get in here!”

He couldn’t quite make out the voice over the ringing in his ears, but he knew if he wanted to stay alive, he needed to move indoors out of the line of fire. As he scrambled to get up, he felt a pair of tiny hands grab him by the right arm and drag him backwards.

Hijikata let out an indignant shout as he was pulled through the doorway, and his body was slammed up against the wall. The surroundings were dimly lit, and it took some time for his eyes to adjust to his new surroundings. He let out another moan as he slowly slid to the floor. More gunshots sounded from beside him, and he looked that way to see who had come to his rescue.

Hijikata’s heart stuttered at the sight of a familiar woman dressed in a man’s uniform standing in the open doorway, firing at the incoming British soldiers.

“Chizuru!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Shuichi had just barely managed to set up the “date” in time, opting to go for dinner at home with some light music playing in the background. It was too cliched, what with a candle lit in the center of the table, and a bottle of cider left open on the kitchen counter, but it was all he could manage so he had to work with it.

“Did you actually get champagne?” Rantaro asked, lifting his glass and eying it curiously. Shuichi shook his head, and chuckled in response, eyes once again falling over his attire. Shuichi never explicitly told Rantaro what to wear, he just fumbled out the date, time and address and quickly changed the subject. The fact that he came, dressed cleanly handsome in a black suit made Shuichi’s heart leap in his chest at the first sight of him. Gone were the piercings in his ears, and the rest of the jewelry he usually wore. The suit fit him well, wrists cuffed neatly, tie resting from his neck down to his mid-chest. Shuichi couldn’t bring himself to look away.

Rantaro slipped quietly at his drink, eyes never once breaking contact. Shuichi felt a gulp trail down his throat. This is a date, you have to be a gentlemen! Think of something to talk about!

“Did you make this yourself?” Rantaro questioned, as he reached for his fork and knife.

Shuichi shook his head again, embarrassed, “no, I had Kirumi make it. I’ve been taking lessons from her but I don’t think I’m good enough to cook food for two.”

Rantaro’s eyes lit up, “how long have you been taking lessons?”

“Just a little over a week. I only call her over whenever she’s free and you know Kirumi’s tight schedule.” Shuichi managed to look away for two seconds to bring a small piece of food up to his mouth. He shyly reached for his napkin as he chewed, the room suddenly feeling very hot.

“I won’t call myself as gifted as Kirumi, but I could probably teach you a few things, if you’re interested. I used to cook all the time for my sisters and they’d always tease me saying I’d be one of those chefs on tv, traveling the world making new foods.” He laughed, lips curling up to make a smile. Shuichi chuckled to himself, thankful he finally found a topic to bring the conversation to him.

“I didn’t have any siblings growing up, what’s it like?” Shuichi asked, taking a quick sip of his drink before reverting his attention back to Rantaro. He smiled, curling a small green strand of hair behind his ear.

“It’s…crazy. Sometimes they’re loud, sometimes they can get a bit annoying. But they’re family, I wouldn’t trade them for the world.” Rantaro seemed to chuckle wistfully to himself, fingers tracing circles on the tablecloth. He looked up, as if he was going to say more but quickly caught himself and changed his tone.

“I’m sure with a family like that, you must have plenty of stories.” Shuichi knew he was being a little too direct but he couldn’t stop himself once he had said it.

Shuichi looked on, watching Rantaro take another bite of his food. The room went a little quiet, only the sound of a faint piano — complements to Kaede who had recorded herself playing specifically for their date —echoed across the room.

“I feel like I should be the one asking you for your story. I mean, you’re a detective. You have plenty of more interesting things to talk about than me and my family.” Rantaro’s hand went behind his head as he chuckled.

Shuichi stiffened, “but I asked you on the date, I want to learn more about you.”

“Well, what if I want to learn more about you?” His voice came out smooth and the smile he cracked afterward made Shuichi’s heart flutter.

“This is…just a practice date. Aren’t I suppose to…you know, learn more about my partner. Ask them questions about what they like and their life?” Shuichi felt his cheeks heat up. He timidly took another sip of his drink.

“Yeah, but your partner’s also going into this a little blind too. You’ve got to throw them a line once and a while and let them ask about you.”

Shuichi looked up as he realized Rantaro had gotten out of his seat and was walking toward him. Shuichi flinched, but relaxed a little when he felt a small kiss at his forehead. Rantaro smiled, face a light shade of pink.