Archive of Our Own

As soon as Naruhodō Ryūnosuke woke up in the morning, he just had this feeling in his gut that something wasn’t right. He had to prepare himself for a trial that he was to participate in that morning after tending to his two young sons, but something was screaming at him mentally that things weren’t going to be falling into place as he and his family had initially planned, even though he wasn't yet sure why that was happening.

His husband, Asōgi Kazuma, and his sister-in-law and judicial assistant, Mikotoba Susato, had both left the house the evening before in order to be away from the courtroom for a little bit and spend a full day together as siblings, so Naruhodō had his good friend and Susato’s fiancée, Murasame Haori, staying with him for company and to help him out while he was working in the courtroom. They had made a lot of plans to try to make sure that this day would go off without a hitch, but in typical fashion for their little group of people, Naruhodō now had a worry that Plan A wasn’t exactly going to come to fruition.

Trying to ignore his gut feeling for the time being though, Naruhodō got out of bed and stretched out his limb before turning over towards he and Asōgi’s sons, Naitō and Kyosuke, who were both surprisingly still sleeping nearby. He supposed it was normal for Kyosuke, who was only a year old and still loved his naps, but two-year-old Naitō typically had a lot of energy even for a toddler and was almost always the one waking him and Asōgi up in the morning. However, Naruhodō wasn’t going to not accept this momentary blessing of quiet from the gods, so he picked up little Kyosuke and gave Naitō a little shake.

“Wake up, Naitō-kun,” Naruhodō said in his best morning voice, “Breakfast time.”

As was much more normal for him, Naitō was up pretty quickly at the promise of breakfast, and he was suddenly transformed into the very lively and talkative toddler that he usually was. But as they all went out into the kitchen, he seemed confused. “Where Papa?” he asked Naruhodō as he turned back to look at him, looking a little sad.

“Papa’s out with Aunty Susato today. They went to go spend some time together in the city,” Naruhodō answered as he started gathering cooking materials, “He’ll be back later though. So there's no need for you to worry, Naitō-kun.”

“Okay…” Naitō said, though he didn’t sound very happy about what he had been told, which Naruhodō understood. In part of his and Asōgi’s charade of not letting anyone outside of their close friend group know they were married, Naitō was legally only Asōgi’s son, so he tended to hold him and be with him much more often in public. Naturally, this resulted in Naitō being a lot closer to him and only recognizing Asōgi as his father. In that same vein, Kyosuke was legally only Naruhodō’s son and was therefore closer to him due to the act they put up. The hope was that both children would come to understand why things happened the way they did once they were older, but for the time being while they were still so little, they each only really knew their one respective Papa, and the other was just a close friend who looked after them from time to time.

Once he had breakfast for the little ones ready, Naitō was happily munching away at his porridge while Naruhodō went back and forth between preparing his own breakfast and giving Kyosuke little spoonfuls of the cucumber mesh that sat in front of him. Naruhodō was now starting to feel a little confused himself, as he thought that Haori would’ve been awake at this point due to her having agreed to take care of the boys for the day while he was at the trial. However, he figured it was still a little early since the trial didn’t start until 9:00 AM, so he could spare her a few extra minutes of sleep, especially if she was going to be watching two children all day.

Eventually, Naruhodō was eventually settled down with his own breakfast and entertaining the boys as they ate. But he was beginning to grow more and more worried about Haori when she still never showed herself as the minutes passed. He knew that Asōgi would likely tease him to no end about what a worrywart he was if he was there, but when it came to anything that had to do with his children, Naruhodō didn’t like taking any chances. Especially with Asōgi being away for the day and Naruhodō himself being determined to do everything in his power to not contact him or Susato about anything so as to not spoil their day of relaxation.

A little *thud* could then suddenly be heard from another room, and Naruhodō immediately felt his worries start to boil over. So he picked up little Kyosuke and walked over to where Haori was supposed to he staying in their house's guest room, and his heart immediately went into his throat when he saw her. Haori was laying on the floor, propped up weakly on her elbows like she was trying to get up after having fallen. Her face was pale and she was breathing heavily and audibly, though it also sounded like she was restraining cries, as she seemed to be whimpering in pain.

“Haori-san!” Naruhodō exclaimed as he quickly ran over and knelt down beside her, but he also tried to hold his son at something of a safe distance, “Are you alright? What’s wrong?!”

Haori let out a few more labored breaths before she picked her head up the best she could, and Naruhodō could see tears in very clearly unwell and baggy eyes. “I-I’m sorry, Naruhodō-kun…” she said weakly, “I was perfectly fine last night…Really I was…But I…”

“Oh gods…” Naruhodō said anxiously, as Haori truly didn’t look so good right now. He was almost glad that Susato wasn’t there at that moment, as she’d likely be on the verge of hysterics to see her fiancée in such a state, “Don't worry. I’ll send a telegram to Professor Mikotoba and get him over here right away. You go back to bed, Haori-san.”

Naruhodō didn’t even wait for Haori to give him an answer before he left the room to get right to business like he had just said he would, but then another line of thinking suddenly hit him. He could bring Professor Mikotoba to the house to care for Haori or his two sons, but trying to have him do both likely wasn’t going to be a good idea. Objectively, Haori being sick and Professor Mikotoba trying to look after both her and the boys only increased the chances that something bad could maybe be spread to one of his two children, even if they were all being as careful and dutiful as possible. He trusted Professor Mikotoba and Haori very much, but his paternal instincts were screaming at him that he just couldn’t take the risk.

“Naitō-kun!” Naruhodō then called out, and the little toddler thankfully came right over to him without any hesitation or complaint, “I’m going to take you and Kyo-kun to where your Papa and I work today so you can see what our lives are like. Doesn’t that sound like fun?”

Just the mention of his papa made Naitō’s eyes brighten somewhat. “Weally?!” he asked, “Papa's work?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Naruhodō said with a smile, not wanting to show any signs that anything was wrong, “And if you’ll be good for me today, not only will I buy you a dango for a treat, but I’ll tell your papa about how good you were and convince him to buy you something extra special as a reward. How do you like that?”

“Yay!” Naitō cheered, and Naruhodō let out a sigh of relief when he heard this. Maybe he was spoiling his children a little too much by framing things like this, but this was an emergency situation. So if promising treats was the only way for him to get things done at the moment, then it was a price that he was willing to pay.

With that matter settled, Naruhodō was now in a bit of a rush as he made sure Kyosuke was freshly changed and dressed, that Naitō was dressed, and that all of the breakfast dishes were put away. There unfortunately wasn’t any tea put on for Haori since Naruhodō hadn’t expected this situation to play out the way it did, but Professor Mikotoba’s tea was way better than his anyway, and he wanted Haori to have the best possible care. He then packed an extra satchel with every supply he could possibly need for taking the kids out for a day, and part of him felt that he was really going to show Asōgi that his over preparation had its merits in times like these, even if he wasn’t around to see it.

Once he had everything for both his children and the trial all as organized as best as he could possibly get it to be, Naruhodō walked back into the guest room to check on Haori. She had managed to crawl back into bed just barely, so he pulled the blankets up for her and placed a cold compress to her head in order to help her the best he could while waiting for Professor Mikotoba to arrive. “Naruhodō-kun…” Haori tried to say, but she was still too weak to really say that much.

“It’s alright, Haori-san,” Naruhodō reassured her gently, “You just rest up and don’t worry about anything. I’ve taken care of everything else.”

“Okay…” Haori exhaled, though she didn't seem all that convinced, “I’m really sorry though…”

“Like I said, it’s alright. This kind of thing has happened to all of us before in some capacity,” Naruhodō said, “Professor Mikotoba should be by for you in about 20 minutes, so try to rest long enough for him to get here in case you need help with anything else.”

Haori nodded her head to the best of her ability and then she closed her eyes, so Naruhodō backed off in order to give her some space. He had every faith that she would ultimately be just fine, especially if Professor Mikotoba was watching over her. So he needed to shift his focus towards himself and his sons for the time being, as they were due to have a long day of their own.

“Bwaaaa!” Kyosuke exclaimed as Naruhodō picked him and settled him within the onbuhimo that he had set on his chest. “Da da!”

“Yes, that’s right. You’re coming out with Dada today,” Naruhodō said as he ruffled his younger son’s hair, and then he called out again, “Naitō-kun! Time to get going!”

“Rawr!” Naitō exclaimed as he surged forward and grabbed onto Naruhodō’s leg as fiercely as a two-year-old really could, giggling all the while.

Naruhodō giggled as well, and he couldn’t help but wonder if this was what his deceased in-laws had had to deal with when they were raising his Asōgi way back when. Needless to say though, he didn’t have the time to reminisce on what might've been. So he simply pried Naitō off of his leg and fit him snugly into the second onbuhimo that was set on his back, which would thankfully help to keep him in place for a while. Once he double checked to make sure that he had everything he needed for court gathered, Naruhodō took a deep breath to brace himself for what was coming, and then finally found the courage to take the first step out of his house to face the day.

When Haori finally opened her eyes again, Mikotoba Yūjin was at her bedside, and it seemed that he was examining her. “P-Professor…” she tried to say, but her voice was still quite scratchy and weak.

Hearing her voice, Yūjin looked down at her and gave her a little smile of reassurance. “There, there, Murasame-kun. It’s alright,” he said as he gently placed his hand on her head, “You’ll be alright. Naruhodō-kun’s telegram told me everything about what was going on, and I tried to get here as fast as possible as soon as I heard.”

However, that explanation did little to put Haori’s worried mind at ease. “The boys…” she gasped out, “I promised that I would care for them…”

“Ah that…” Yūjin said somewhat uneasily, and then he frowned, “Naruhodō-kun told me that he had a plan in regards to their care and that I didn’t need to worry about it, but given how they aren’t here right now and he purposely didn’t tell me what his plan actually was…Well, I can only assume that he’s taken them out with him.”

This made Haori’s eyes widen in shock. “O-Out with him?!” she asked, and her voice raised despite the struggle it caused her, “But he has a trial today! What could he possibly be planning to do?!”

Yūjin sighed. “I can’t say that I know for certain, but I have a feeling that it’s going to end up being exactly what we’re thinking,” he said, though he couldn’t hold back something of a morbid chuckle, “I bet that this will end up becoming quite the story once we hear all of the details at the end of the day. Though I’m not sure if Kazuma-kun will praise Naruhodō-kun’s ingenuity or just want to slap him after he hears about all of this. So I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”

Haori also couldn’t help but chuckle when she imagined the scenario in her head, but she was still worried about Naruhodō, Naitō, and Kyosuke. Even if no one was mad at her and understood how her circumstances were truly unpredictable and out of her control, she still felt a sense of guilt about everything. She always felt a sense of responsibility about anything she agreed to do, and she hated feeling like she was letting people down. Haori could now only hope that everything would be alright even with how the plan they had made before had ended up falling apart. However, she supposed there wasn’t anything else she could expect from her family at that point. So like Yūjin had said, they would just need to wait and see what would happen. And hopefully it would make for a good story.

As was typical for any trial that Naruhodō attended in any country's court, the proceedings all started with the familiar pounding of the judge’s gavel that echoed through the enclosed room. And every trial that passed without Jigoku Seishirou in the judge's chair was a trial that Naruhodō could feel the slightest bit better about in general. “Court is now in session for the trial of Maeda Keitaro!” The judge announced, “Are both sides prepared for these proceedings?”

“The defense is ready, Your Excellency!” Naruhodō announced, trying to make sure that he acted as normal as possible even despite his current situation.

“The prosecution is also ready, Your Excellency,” said prosecutor Auchi Taketsuchi, who had more than worn out his welcome in regards to Naruhodō’s patience at this point, and this annoyance was only made stronger by the way the old man was looking at him at that moment, “But ummm…I feel that I really must ask. What on Earth is the defense thinking having two small children with him at his professional legal bench? Surely there must be rules concerning such things, no?”

Naruhodō sighed, as he knew that the old donkey of a prosecutor was going to give him whatever trouble his small and limited mind could think of create. Though to give credit where it was due, he did have to admit that it definitely wasn’t the most orthodox thing to see an attorney in a courtroom with a baby strapped to his chest and a toddler strapped to his back. But he had done everything he needed to do in order to try and make this work, so he was just going to let the judge answer for him so that he wouldn’t get too angry about anything. Being a lawyer and a father simultaneously was going to be a hard enough job on its own, so he needed to avoid letting his emotional buttons be pressed by a man who had clearly peaked in life before the university he probably hadn’t finished with any sort of real honors.

Thankfully, the judge did indeed answer the question prosecutor Auchi had posed, and he spoke in a much more calm and collected way than Naruhodō would’ve been able to. “The defense spoke to me in the judge’s chambers before this trial began and informed me that these children are with him due to the overlapping of emergency circumstances,” he explained, “He has also reassured me that he will do absolutely everything in his power to help keep the little ones as quiet and controlled as possible. So I have given him my permission to have them here in the courtroom on just this one day.”

“Well…I suppose there’s nothing else to be done about that then. But hopefully such a promise can indeed be kept by the defense so as to maintain the level of prestigious dignity that this high court of law deserves,” Auchi said, but then he strangely smiled as he leaned forward to address Naitō and Kyosuke, “Why hello there, little ones. Surely it’s not too early for your young faces to become familiar with the Auchi clan and all of its glory?”

Naitō was looking around the courtroom in awe and promptly ignoring the old prosecutor’s words, but Kyosuke had seemed to hear him and looked in his direction for a moment. But then his little body started to tremble as he turned back to Naruhodō. “Waaaaa!” Kyosuke cried as he buried his face in his father’s chest.

“Shhh, Kyo-kun. Shhh,” Naruhodō said as he bounced his son ever so slightly and rubbed his back, “It’s okay, it’s okay. No need to cry.”

The judge cleared his throat when he saw this. “Do pardon me, Prosecutor Auchi,” he said in a rather flat tone, “But perhaps it is in this courtroom’s best interests that you don’t speak to the children anymore. We want to prevent ruckuses from happening, not cause them.”

This statement clearly made Auchi quite embarrassed, as he was quick to bow his head. “O-Of course…Your Excellency,” he said, though he clearly wasn’t the happiest about having been put on the spot in such a negative way.

Thankfully, Naruhodō managed to calm Kyosuke down relatively quickly, which helped to put off anything bad from happening at that moment. After that, the judge asked Auchi to give the initial report about the crime and its alleged happenings, which meant that the trial would finally start progressing as normal. As Auchi talked, Naruhodō couldn’t help but let out another sigh of relief, as he had made it past the first hurdle in terms of the day’s strange circumstances. So now he needed to make sure that he kept his head on straight and kept his focus where it needed to be. Just so long as neither of the boys started crying again.

Asōgi Kazuma and Mikotoba Susato hadn’t expected to meet such a big crowd while walking around the city on a Thursday, but they had found themselves dealing with that very surprise as they tried to get to the restaurant that they had booked for lunch that afternoon. The two siblings were spending a day together out in the city in order to take some relaxing time away from their normal busy lives working with the law, and even though they had run into more people than they originally expected, they were still having a good time so far.

“Ooo, Kazuma-sama! Look at these!” Susato said as she walked up to a flower stand in their current path, “Do you know what these are?”

Asōgi, who was surprisingly knowledgeable regarding all sorts of flowers and plants, smiled at his sister’s enthusiasm. “They’re called Hydrangeas,” he told her, “They typically don’t start blooming until the rainy season, but it’s been quite wet as of late with all of the extra rain we've been getting. So I guess people are trying to take advantage of this early blossoming and make the most of it.”

“Oh yes. I think I’ve seen them in grandmother’s garden before. She always loved their blue color,” Susato said, but then she frowned as she studied her brother’s face, “Kazuma-sama, are you alright? You look a little bit troubled about something.”

Asōgi frowned, but he knew that he couldn’t hide his feelings from his sister. “I admittedly don’t know why I feel this way,” he said as he folded his arms, “But I just have this weird knot in my stomach about something not being right.”

Susato’s lips pursed together. “Do you have ANY idea about why you might feel that way?” she asked uncertainly, "Certainly there must be something you might be able to point towards."

Asōgi shook his head, but then his face softened to show his feelings of vulnerability. “Honestly, I think I might just not be used to being away and breaking from my routine like this,” he admitted, “Though I really do hope that everything is alright back home.”

Susato put her hand on her brother’s shoulder. “You needn’t worry too much about home,” she said to him reassuringly, “Plans were made in order for everything to go smoothly today, and we must have faith in our family members to take care of everything while we're away. This day is meant to be stress-free for us, so let’s try to take advantage of that.”

Asōgi thought about her words for a moment, and then he nodded. While the responsibilities of fatherhood and his duties as Chief Prosecutor always made him feel a bit on edge whenever he wasn’t sure what was going on with his two sons or the prosecutor's office, he trusted both things to be in caring hands while he was away. And even though Naruhodō had a trial to go through that day, his future sister-in-law and adoptive father would be there, so he didn’t need to let himself stress too much when he was only taking one day off. “You’re right, Susato-chan,” he finally said aloud, “So let’s try to not think about that anymore.”

“That’s the spirit,” Susato said with a pleasant smile, “Now then. Should we continue on our way to the restaurant?”

“Yes, definitely,” Asōgi said, as he was starting to get a little hungry and they were on something of a time limit due to their reservation that had been made. So he offered his arm out for Susato to take, and she accepted it as they started making their way down the busy street once again with the goal of making the most of the time they had.

As Naruhodō spoon-fed Kyosuke the lunch of mushed sweet potato he had prepared for him, he found himself reflecting on his life choices and wondering how he had gotten to the point he was. Somehow, he had managed to keep up with the typical courtroom proceedings despite having two small children strapped to his body, and they were now having a recess in order to bring in another witness. Naitō and Kyosuke had been relatively good during the trial, but their nature as babies led Naruhodō to have to keep an eye on them at almost all times, and that wasn’t always pleasant when he was trying to also focus on helping his client. And there had been plenty of hair pulling and fussing to drive that point home.

While he had the time to do so, Naruhodō was letting Naitō waddle around the defendant’s antechamber in order to have some time in a more open space, and he was thankfully too short to reach anything of any importance, so everything would be fine as long as Naruhodō was keeping an eye on him. Meanwhile, he and his client were trying to relax on the couch, though Naruhodō was now feeding Kyosuke after having changed him. It made Naruhodō relieved that Asōgi had been so diligent in getting Naitō potty trained as soon as possible, as that meant that he had one less thing to worry about.

“If I may, Naruhodō-san,” said Maeda, who was Naruhodō’s current client, “I really can’t thank you enough for still taking my case even with everything else it seems you had on your plate today. I apologize greatly if my trial has caused any unnecessary trouble for you.”

“Oh no, it’s perfectly alright,” Naruhodō reassured him, “It was all just a strange compilation of unusual circumstances that brought us here, and I still have a duty to my client that I intend to fulfill to the fullest.”

“Oh, well…Thank you very much then,” Maeda said with what seemed to be a relieved sigh, but then he smiled, “Your children are very cute, I must say. They’re very lucky to have a father like you.”

Naruhodō had to stop himself from instinctively saying “thank you” right away, as he had to remember that Naitō was only Asōgi’s son when they were out in public, so he needed to make sure he responded in accordance with that information. “I’ll have to tell Chief Prosecutor Asōgi you said that,” he said with a smug look, “Maybe he’ll have to owe me something for taking care for his son alongside my own.”

This surprised Maeda to hear, and the two had a brief conversation about Asōgi in a professional manner as well as the “friendship” that existed between their two respective sons. The bailiff then called at them that the trial was about to resume, meaning it was time for them to gather their bearings and go back into the courtroom. “Naitō-kun!” Naruhodō called out to the still wandering toddler, “Come on back here!”

“Awww…” Naitō pouted since he knew that meant he would need to go back into the onbuhimo, but he still did what he was told and walked back over to Naruhodō since he was trying to be good that day in order to be rewarded for it.

As Maeda helped Naruhodō secure Naitō back onto his back, Kyosuke was burped as was necessary and then secured against his father’s chest once more. “Ma ma ma ma ma!” Kyosuke babbled as he beat his little hands against wherever he could place them, which helped Naruhodō to smile somewhat through his stress. There was still quite a battle ahead in terms of what he needed to handle in the courtroom, but he had a certain level of confidence that he would be able to manage the rest of his day. After all, when he had already managed to make it this far, he couldn’t start slipping up now.

“Here you are, Murasame-kun. Be sure to sip slowly,” Yūjin told Haori as he handed her a cup of freshly made tea.

Over the course of the day, Haori had been resting under Yūjin’s watchful eye, and she was finally at a place where she could sit up in bed without support. So Yūjin had now made some tea for her in order to keep her going on a good path of recovery. Haori was able to hold the cup without any trouble, but she was still clearly very unhappy about the whole situation they were in. “Thank you, Professor Mikotoba…” she said in a raspy voice, her physical weakness making her unable to hide her emotions very well.

Yūjin frowned upon hearing her tone of voice. “Murasame-kun, I think you’re being a little too hard on yourself in regards to all of this,” he told her as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, “What happened today couldn’t have been predicted by anyone, and beating yourself up about it emotionally may hinder your recovery.”

Haori sighed as she set the teacup down on the ground. “I know that I should probably know that…” she admitted, “But I still feel so horrible about all of this. Naruhodō-kun is likely doing so much work all by himself, and it’s still technically my fault that our plans for today fell through the floor, even if it’s not seen as too big of a deal…”

“No one is considering any fault for anyone in this scenario, Murasame-kun. No one would want you to take too much of that burden on yourself,” Yūjin told her in his calm teacher voice, “And let’s be honest. Naruhodō-kun is always taking on more than he should whenever the opportunity arises for him to do so. Nothing would’ve stopped him from doing what he did today, especially without anyone else around to question him when he made his decision."

Haori looked at her mentor and soon-to-be father-in-law with a silent stare, and he then smiled at her to tell her that he was serious in regards to everything he was saying. Yūjin always had a strong trust in his future daughter-in-law and he knew how dependable she was, so one day where she was suffering from an unfortunate twist of fate wasn’t going to reflect badly on her in any way. And no one was going to be disagreeing with him on that account.

“Well…thank you, Professor Mikotoba,” Haori said once she found her voice again, as she seemed to be able to accept his words, “I just hope that the boys will be alright in an unfamiliar environment."

“I’m sure that they’ll be just fine. Naruhodō-kun has always been very serious with his duties as a father regardless of any other circumstances,” Yūjin told her, but then his face became a bit more serious, “With that said, Murasame-kun. I think you should finish your tea and then try to rest some more. The more you take it easy now, the sooner you’ll be able to be back on your feet, which I know is what you want most of all.”

Haori nodded in response, as it seemed that Yūjin really did know her well after so many years of them working together. Because of this, she reached for her teacup in order to finish it like was suggested to her, though she was now curious to see who would be coming home first: Naruhodō and the boys or Susato and Asōgi. Because either way, there was going to be a very interesting story to tell once this was all over.

Naruhodō knew that he was getting really close to the breakthrough he needed. He had managed to press the current witness, a barber running a rather illicit business through his shop, nearly into a corner, and he was sure that this man was the true killer of this case. He just needed to find that decisive piece of evidence that would help him prove that once and for all. That’s why he was going back through all of the crime scene photos once more, as he knew he just had to find that one critical detail that would explain everything and blow the case wide open.

Suddenly, Naruhodō felt a tug at his clothes, and he looked down to see Kyosuke tugging at him rather incessantly. “Not now, Kyo-kun,” he said to his son, but that’s when he realized just how wide his eyes currently were. He was staring over Naruhodō’s shoulder, and that’s when he could see Naitō peaking over his shoulder, trying to look at the photo he was currently looking at. Despite how strange it seemed, Naruhodō actually held the picture closer for his son to see, curious to see if his son could potentially see something he was missing due to his current intense emotions.

After a few quiet seconds and thinking he should give up on the idea, Naitō finally spoke up. “Wed!” he said rather loudly, which confused everyone in the courtroom that heard it.

However, that did actually tell Naruhodō something. He had moved his thumb slightly when he held the picture up for Naitō to see, and that’s when he noticed what he had been missing all that time: A small amount of blood on the edge of the barber shop’s broken mirror. And when comparing that to another glass shard that Naruhodō had in his possession as evidence, that gave him exactly what he was looking for.

“TAKE THAT!” Naruhodō then shouted as he showed both the photograph and the broken piece of glass in question, “If you look in this photograph, you can see the blood-stained broken mirror I speculated about earlier. And this piece of glass matches up the shattered section perfectly!”

“Whaaaattt?!” Auchi exclaimed in shock, though Naruhodō had stopped valuing his input long ago.

“Yes, I can see the connection now,” The judge said, “Please continue, Naruhodō-san.”

Naruhodō was all too happy to take the judge up on that proposition. “If we recall each version of this witness’s testimony, he confirmed every time that he had cut his hand on the mirror before fleeing the scene,” he explained, “But when we consider other parts of this testimony and recalling the layout of the crime scene, then there’s no way he would’ve been able to keep himself hidden from the authorities as he previously claimed!”

This made the man on the stand draw back angrily, and a small knowing smile appeared on the face of Inspector Hosonaga, who was standing nearby as another witness. With this, Naruhodō continued his pursuit of logic. “The moment you confessed about how you cut your hand is what doomed you, Rihatsu-san. You couldn’t have been anywhere else at the scene with that aspect of things being true,” he said as he felt determination surging inside of him, “You thought you could blame a loyal customer of yours to save your own skin and illicit business practices, but your whole plot has been turned on it’s head! You’re finished now!”

As the barber, Mr. Rihatsu, let out a loud scream of frustration, Naruhodō made sure that he was covering little Kyosuke’s ears in time so he wouldn't be too scared. Naitō looked confused about everything currently happening, but Naruhodō was very proud of his little boy. It seemed that he had quite the eye for detail already at such a young age, and he had helped to point out the truth a few seconds faster. In his mind, this was a victory for both his client and his family, and he now knew that he didn’t regret a damn thing about anything that had taken place that day, no matter crazy it was deemed to be. Sometimes things fell into place in strange ways, but oddity didn’t always determine the favorability of the circumstances, which Naruhodō felt he understood now more than ever.

As Asōgi helped Susato out of the rickshaw, he couldn’t help but glimpse back at his dimly lit house fondly, as he was glad to finally be home. He and and Susato had had a very long and fulfilling day, walking around town, going out for lunch, and even going out to some of the more natural areas around the city. That was where they had somehow ended up in a sparring match as part of their supposedly relaxing excursion, and Asōgi was once again no match for his sister. But he was glad that she didn’t hold back on his account, even if it did leave him with stiff joints and sore muscles at the end of the day. But now the sun was setting and all of their energy had been spent, so it was time to return to the comforts of home and prepare themselves to settle back into their normal routines. And Asōgi felt a warm feeling in his heart to see the place that had become his home after so much time away.

“Good evening, everyone!” Susato called as she slid open the front door of the awaiting home, “We’re home!”

Inside, Yūjin was sitting on the couch with Naitō on his lap. However, the minute they were in sight, the little toddler’s face lit up. “Papa!” he exclaimed, and he wiggled out of Yūjin’s grip so he could run to his father.

“Hey! There’s my little man!” Asōgi said as he knelt down and scooped Naitō into his arms as soon as he was in reach, lifting him above his head. Naitō giggled as his little legs kicked in the air, but then Asōgi brought him back down and held him normally, affectionately bopping him on the nose.

Susato reached over and ruffled her nephew’s hair with a chuckle. “It’s wonderful to see you, Naitō-sama,” she said with a smile, “Were you a good little boy today?”

“Yeah! I good!” Naitō said enthusiastically, “Went to castle!”

“Castle?” Asōgi asked in confusion, and both he and Susato looked at Yūjin to see what that was supposed to mean.

However, Yūjin had a much more serious look on his face than they were expecting, and it seemed that he had more to explain than the simple imaginative sayings of a child. “Are either of you perhaps interested in food or tea?” he asked, “There’s quite a lot to speak about in regards to what happened today, so you might want to be braced for it.”

“Tea is fine,” Susato said politely, and Yūjin nodded his head in response. With that said, three fresh cups of tea were poured for everyone and they all sat down in the dining room in order to prepare for their conversation. Asōgi allowed Naitō to stay in his lap for the time being, but he made sure he would have the space to wiggle away if he ever wanted to.

Once all of them were settled in, Yūjin told them the entire story from the whole day, and both Asōgi and Susato were both instantly shocked by what they were hearing. They were told about how Haori had abruptly fallen ill that morning, how Naruhodō had sent Yūjin a telegram to bring him over, and how when Yūjin had arrived at the house, Naruhodō had taken the boys out of the house and to the Supreme Court with him so that they wouldn’t be around the sick Haori and potentially risk anything. All the while, Asōgi and Susato listened with wide eyes and open mouths, barely able to believe what they were hearing. They had gone through so much trouble to try and have a plan for the day, and yet it seemed that fate had other plans for them and had done whatever it took in order to make things more difficult for everyone.

Eventually, Yūjin came to the end of his explanation and just calmly sipped his tea as though he wasn’t even remotely shaken in regards to the story he had just told. “Anyways, that’s what happened here for all of us,” he then said to his two children, “What about the two of you though? Did you enjoy your day off away from it all?”

“Oh! Ummm…” Susato exclaimed as she was snapped out of her momentary stupor, but then she smiled, “We had a wonderful time. I have not had a relaxing day like this in a long time, so it was a welcome change of pace.”

“Agreed. I definitely needed a day like this,” Asōgi said as he ruffled Naitō’s hair, which made the toddler giggle again, “It was nice to have a day with so few worries for once. But now we’re back and things will be normal again.”

Yūjin nodded as he smiled in a pleased manner, glad that his children had gotten what they had been looking for. However, the peace and quiet was then interrupted by the sounds of somewhat distant crying, and everyone could easily figure out what that was. “Naruhodō-kun retired to your room pretty much immediately after dinner,” Yūjin said to Asōgi, “I think Kyosuke-kun was asleep at that point, so he might’ve just woken up.”

“What about Haori-sama?” Susato asked, unable to hold back the worry she was clearly feeling, “Is she doing better?”

“I certainly think she is. She was slowly starting to look better bit by bit as the hours of the day passed,” Yūjin explained, hoping to ease his daughter’s feelings even if just a little, “She’s still in the guest room, and she might be asleep right now.”

Susato nodded in acknowledgement, and then she quickly scurried off towards the back area of the house, as she was clearly concerned about the well-being of her fiancée. Meanwhile, Yūjin offered to take Naitō off of Asōgi’s hands for the time being so that he could go see his husband and other son. It seemed that Naitō was starting to fall asleep by that point anyway, so there was little resistance from the toddler while he was transferred back to his grandfather’s hands. With that matter settled, Asōgi went towards the back of the house as well, though he was going to the room on the opposite side of the hallway.

Inside the main bedroom, Naruhodō was sitting on their futon with Kyosuke in his arms, bouncing the little baby slightly to try to calm him. The little one’s cries had been reduced to little whines thanks to his efforts, but it was very clear that Naruhodō himself was quite tired and the day had taken visible a toll on him. However, once he took notice of Asōgi standing in the doorway, his face brightened immediately just like Naitō's had. “Kazuma…” he said with a smile, “Welcome home.”

“It’s good to be home,” Asōgi said as he walked over and knelt down by the futon, “Here. Let me take him.”

Naruhodō thankfully didn’t argue and just let Asōgi take little Kyosuke into his arms, where he continued the routine of rocking and shushing to help calm his little baby emotions. Eventually, Kyosuke was quiet again after letting out a big yawn, and he then snuggled up against Asōgi like his broad chest was a pillow for him. “There we go. All settled in,” Asōgi said in a pleased tone, but then he looked up, “Now then, how are you doing, Ryū?”

Naruhodō rubbed his eyes. “I’m alright. Just tired,” he said, “It was a long day.”

“Yes, so I’ve heard,” Asōgi said with a bit of a playful smirk, “Professor Mikotoba told Susato-chan and I all about your little courtroom escapade with the boys today.”

Naruhodō’s eyes widened for a moment, but then he just let out a sigh. “I guess I should’ve known that cat would be let out of the bag pretty fast,” he said sheepishly, but then he frowned, “I’m sorry. I just didn’t know what else to do this morning when it was all happening, and I didn’t want to risk the boys getting sick.”

However, Asōgi shook his head. “I’m not mad or anything, I can assure you of that,” he said as he placed a hand on his husband’s shoulder, “It was just quite the story to hear secondhand, and I’m curious to hear about any extra details you may have to share.”

Naruhodō chuckled, though Asōgi wasn’t sure if he was amused or embarrassed about everything. “It was a lot to handle. But we made it through in the end,” he then said, “Kyosuke was fussy for quite a bit and I kind of had to bribe Naitō with you doing something special for him later if he would be good for me. But I ultimately managed to keep them in line long enough to focus on the trial and win.”

“Ah, I’m glad to hear that,” Asōgi said, relieved but also not ignoring what his husband said about bribing Naitō and knowing he'd need to remember that for later, “No wonder you seem so tired though. I know the boys can be quite a handful sometimes.”

“It’s alright. Everything worked out in the end,” Naruhodō said like he was trying to dismiss it, “If it helps, the boys already hate Prosecutor Grouchy. So I guess that means we’re raising them right.”

This comment made Asōgi laugh heartily, particularly due to Naruhodō's clever name-calling, though he quickly had to stop himself from being too loud since he didn’t want Kyosuke to potentially wake up and start crying again. “Well, then I would say that today was ultimately still a success,” he said proudly, “I guess I owe Naitō a big treat now if he kept his promise to be good for you.”

Naruhodō smiled back. “Not only was he good, but he showed me his own little lawyer skills today,” he said, excited to be talking about this, “He helped me to catch a detail that I was missing and gave me the clue I needed to wrap up the case.”

“Ah, so he takes after you then,” Asōgi said unabashedly, “Natural talent for the courtroom.”

“Actually, I was going to say that he takes after you,” Naruhodō corrected him, “You may have switched over to prosecuting later on, but you were still the first law student between the two of us and the one with all the bombastic passion. And you were always incredible.”

“I suppose that’s true enough, though you're definitely still flattering me too much with that description,” Asōgi said, but then his face became a bit more serious, “Alright then. Time for you to get some rest. You’ve had a very busy day and I can see how it’s weighing on you now.”

Naruhodō wanted to protest, but he then let out a big yawn before he could say anything, which essentially shut down any argument he might’ve been thinking about giving. “I might be a little sleepy…” he admitted, though he was acknowledging that more for his own sake than Asōgi’s, since it seemed he was already well are of that.

“Clearly,” Asōgi said, and he then lightly pushed Naruhodō back, guiding him down to the futon so that he was laying down. Once there, he started arranging the blankets for him so he could get comfortable. “Now get some rest. It’s your turn to have an off day now.”

“Are you sure?” Naruhodō asked, not wanting to be too lazy if there was work to be done both around the house and around his office.

Asōgi nodded. “It’ll be fine. Susato-chan would’ve stayed here all day tomorrow anyway for Haori-san’s sake until she was completely better, so she can help you look after the boys and take a day away from the office,” he reassured his husband, “Besides. You deserve it after today.”

Naruhodō nodded to the best of his ability. “Okay then,” he said, and he could already feel his fatigue catching up to him. Thankfully though, it was already dark outside by that point, and that darkness was already trying to do whatever it could in order to lull him to sleep, “You’ll be by later, right?”

“Yes, of course,” Asōgi said as he gently stroke Naruhodō's hair, “I can manage putting the boys down for bed on my own, and I’ll be in a bit later. But you just worry about relaxing now, as like I've said, you’ve earned it.”

“Thanks, Kazuma…” Naruhodō said, but the blessing he’d received to relax was allowing for sleep to take hold of him even faster at that point. And the minute he rolled over to his side, it was essentially all over.

Seeing this, Asōgi smiled once again, and he scooted close enough for him to be able to lean down and gently kiss his husband’s cheek. “I love you, Ryū…” he whispered, and though Naruhodō could really only be heard mumbling something unintelligible in response, he knew exactly what he was trying to say.

With that, Asōgi stood up with Kyosuke still in his arms and made his way towards the door. Naruhodō never ceased to amaze him when it came to the ridiculous stunts he would sometimes pull, and it seemed not even fatherhood could limit him on that. However, that was all simply a part of what helped to ensure that their lives were never boring, and Asōgi himself was quite happy about that even though he knew that some people would probably disagree with him on that point. However, Asōgi wasn’t worried about who was agreeing or disagreeing with him in that moment, as he was the one currently at peace with everything he could ever need in life. An amazing husband, a wonderful family, and his two beautiful sons, and that was what gave him the most happiness of all.