------------------------------------------------- Just Another Rainy Day - by Marron *Placed somewhere after Nakago runs into Soi for the first time. ------------------------------------------------- Again, yes again, it was another droll evening spent by the cadets of Kutou's army. Their travels had been, as the past few nights, hampered by the soft, yet overwhelming, fall of the rain. Nakago looked out of his tent, and up into the dark sky. As the rain continued to pour down, billowing black clouds rolled across the sky, blocking out the radiance of the stars, the soft glow of the moon. The rain pitter-pattered against the ground quietly, the onlysound which interrupted the still, heavy silence. Nakago ran a hand through his thick blonde hair, pale blue eyes blinking through the rain, staring off into the distance. His thoughts wandered back to a few days ago, when the cadets had been in a nearby town. He recalled the young girl whom he had saved from being a part of a brothel; his mind wandered over her features, her face in particular. She had been so young, and he had seen such innocence in her eyes. Innocence that he had once possessed... His fist clenched, a wave of anger passing through him for a brief moment. It subsided quickly, however, as another memory passed through his mind. The memory of the last time he had been truly angry. "Mother.." He whispered, voicelessly. Though the word was more of a thought than anything else, it carried a tinge of sadness. Anger had killed his mother. Anger had taken her away, and replaced her with the fat, disgusting, and cruel emperor. Anger had... Anger had helped him to kill those men who were so sick, so perverted that they would have their way with even a little girl. He nearly shuddered as he fought with himself for control. Emotions. Emotions had helped to cause him misery. Now, he knew, it was time to put emotions aside. "I'll make things right again, Mother. You will see." He murmured softly to himself. Nakago's gaze lifted into the sky again; the rain had subsided, and the moon had broken through the black clouds. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting the pale orb's light reflect onto his face. Somehow, he was calmed by this. He opened his eyes after a moment and turned, crawling under the sheets, and settling in his tent. There was so much chaos in the world, but somehow, he would find a way to make everything right again. As his eyes drifted close again, he could hear the soft patter of the rain resume. It soothed him so, and he slowly fell to sleep. He shouldn't think so much of things that usually didn't bother him. After all, There was not any reason to do so; it was just another rainy day. by Marron-chan