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This is how the regular day goes nowadays. He gets ready for work, getting up early, making sure to wait for Kagura to arrive before he sets off. A long and draining ten hours later, he comes back to Kabuki-cho, where he immediately runs up to greet the twins and ask them about their day with their big sister, and pray to God that they didn’t participate in any of her brutal showdowns with the sadistic Shinsengumi captain. He then takes the kids down to Gran Otose’s bar downstairs, where she treats them all to dinner every day. They sit together in their special designated booth, and the old lady joins them too. The kids have fun, Gintoki and Otose enjoy some booze. Sometimes Kagura leaves for Otae’s place soon after Gintoki comes back, sometimes she stays the night like the old days. Shinpachi occasionally visits at this hour, and so does Hasegawa, with Hatsu accompanying him. This period of time is usually the best part of the day, as he gets some friends and liquor to keep him busy.
The weekends are slightly different. He’s got all the time in the world to savour, and he makes it his top priority to spend it with the kids as much as possible. The first day of the weekend is usually taking the kids out to wherever they wanted to go for the day. Be it the amusement park, the desserts cafe, Aunt Otae’s place, Hinowa’s place. Or maybe even just a calm day at home, arranging for special takeout from Ikumatsu’s. It’s hilarious to see Katsura still moonlighting as a delivery man for her, despite holding such a high rank in the government. The kids appreciate Uncle Zura, although Gintoki always remains wary, scared if Zura’s senile tendencies rub into them. The other day of the weekend is spent more in decompressing and getting ready for another grinding week.
It’s a memorized schedule that he’ll be using for the next couple of years to come. It’s been this way ever since the kids were born. The shock and pain of the events that had unfolded since that day are still etched deep. Another large scar inflicted among a mass of other smaller ones.
But today is special. Which is why, after he puts the kids to sleep, he goes to retrieve a bottle of sake, a tobacco tin and the black kiseru, and heads out to the veranda. He draws up a chair to sit on and silently looks up at the midnight sky, hoping to see a starlit night. To his delight, he sees a mass of constellations adorned on the midnight blue, with the shining silver moon at the centre of it all. A perfect night to celebrate her life.
He drinks a couple glasses, sipping slowly, deep in recall. He remembers how they had spent sleepless nights like this, relishing each others company, losing themselves in the bliss of their fiery love. He recalls her beautiful face, her eyes filled with compassion, understanding, acceptance. He indulges in all those memories spent together, how it all seemed to have flown by so fast in the passage of time compared to the current monotonous drag. He remembers their joy and elation upon finding out that they were welcoming new members to their growing family. And then he feels the teardrops slowly rolling down his cheeks as he recalls the day when time stood still for him. He had lost so many close ones over the years, and yet this one had hit the hardest, the closest to home.
He sees her everywhere. He sees her in the discipline displayed by the Hyakka recruits he trains at work. He sees her in the visits to Hinowa’s place. He sees her in the strong work ethic adopted by Seita. He sees her in the kids. He sees her in Yoshida’s eagerness to learn, in his purple eyes. He sees her in Tsukiyo’s quiet demeanour, and her blonde hair. More than ever, the kids are his life, his soul. He will always make sure that they remember their mother, who loved them dearly, who had wanted to watch them grow up, who had eagerly awaited their arrival. She will never be forgotten.
He blames the tears on the blinding light of the moon, and lights the kiseru after putting in the tobacco. He takes a couple puffs, and immediately starts coughing, red-eyed and panting after the cough subsides.
How did you ever manage to keep this habit up… Guess I’ll never know.
He keeps smoking, with the coughing much more subdued than before, tears flowing freely, as he looks up to adore the silver moon.