| [Jul. 8th, 2012|04:52 am] |
She thought she’d gotten over it years ago, but the snap of fire jutsu and the acrid tang of cigarettes made something in her curl up in fear. Maybe it was having the whole mess with her seal brought up anew at the hospital appointment. Maybe it was the conversation on the roof, that silent moment of understanding with Genma of what it was like to be broken down and forced to heal crooked. The old scars on her arms throbbed at the memory of ugly laughter, the reek of burnt flesh as the orderly ground the still-glowing end of his cigarette into her skin—
No. No. Think of something else. Anything else.
Katsuko shrugged with forced nonchalance and lowered herself into one of the floor chairs, leaning back with a sigh. “You one of those tea experts?” she asked, eying the traditional iron teapot on the counter. “Can’t say the same. Dump enough sugar in it and I’m good to go.”
Genma gave her an unimpressed look. "You put sugar in your tea?"
She grinned at him, surprised when it came out mostly genuine. “I put sugar in everything.”
He snorted, arranging assorted tea paraphernalia on a tray. “You need to meet my friend Ginta. You're clearly two of a kind.” He glanced around his kitchen, looking for something.
Katsuko blinked. “Ginta? Sakamoto Ginta? You know him?”
“Yeah.” Genma glanced at her in surprise. “You too? He and I hook up sometimes. Used to hook up. Before Raidou and I…” he winced. “I should probably talk to him about that.”
Katsuko raised an eyebrow. “Haven’t told him you’re a one-man man, yet?”
His eyes widened in alarm. "”I… I don't know. Is that what I am? I mean, I haven't talked to Ginta yet, but it's not like we have an arrangement. And Rai and I haven't really talked it over, either, it just sort of all happened.”
She cackled. “Let’s put it this way. Would you be upset if Raidou hopped into bed with someone else right now without telling you?”
Genma’s expression darkened, but all he said was, “I wouldn't like it, but it would be his business, not mine.”
“Congratulations!” Katsuko crowed. “You are feeling the pangs of committed monogamy. It’s official: you are now solely a one-dick man.” She paused. “Unless you count your dick. Then that makes it two.”
The expression on his face was pure consternation. After a second, he shook his head and laughed. “I can't believe we’re sitting here talking about my dick and who I share it with.”
“I can,” Katsuko said, cheerily. “Now where’s my tea, tea-slave?”
“Don't you think if we're going to play a slave and master game, we ought to establish a safe-word first?” Genma brought the tea tray and a box of rice crackers over, setting them on the table before plopping a bowl of sugar down in front of her with a flourish.
“Please,” Katsuko scoffed. “We’re not wearing nearly enough leather for a scene.” She dragged the bowl of sugar closer, possessively.
“You need to think more creatively. Leather is so pedestrian.” Genma laughed, a little edgily, and looked away.
“You don’t have to show me those charts, you know,” Katsuko said, taking a wild guess as to what was making him so uncomfortable. “We can hang out, I can steal all the food from your fridge and bother you until Raidou comes back.”
“No. I mean. I'll show them to you,” Genma said. “I want you to trust Rina. I want you to let her help you, so you need to see what she can do.” He stood up and went over to his dresser, pulling out the bottom-most drawer and lifting out a sealed box. He palmed the seals, lifted the lid, and started to take things out: some photographs, a stuffed toy donkey, a broken ceramic bowl, and several scrolls. He put everything away again except for one of the scrolls, which he brought back to the table. “I haven't looked at this in a long time, really.”
Katsuko folded her hands in front of her on the table and looked up at him, studying his expression. “Thank you,” she said at last. “It just— it means a lot, that you’re willing to show me this. Thank you.” |
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