The Taisho fire

Finished

Phew, I just wrote the most serious piece of smut I ever dared. All for you my dearest readers ! It shall come in a few chapters. First, we have to go through this, and serious drama.

A few months passed, random meetings called by the Captain whenever he needed to clear out his thoughts and make sense of his dreams. He never pressured Gwen to use the sight, and the more she offered her visions, the less anxious she became; she was slowly getting used to the gift functioning again.

Now that the floodgates were open, she caught herself brushing away memories that her colleagues would probably never admit to. Another consequence was that she could now feel the Captain's presence. When strong emotions took hold of him, his indigo aura swirled around him.

They debated, at length, whether this was demonic energy – yōki – or not, and how it was possible for it to exist in the first place. Gwen didn't see anyone else's aura. On the bright side, she now knew he could never surprise her; her perceptions were attuned to his presence. It was an odd sensation, as if a wave caressed her skin, a soothing feeling that tingled against her sixth sense.

The moment she walked into the common room, shaking droplets out of her hair, she knew he was there, hidden amongst the other recruits about to take their shift. Lifting her eyes, she found him in his usual spot; at the very end of the table.

The Captain sat there as if he owned the world, with the confidence of those big dogs aware that know nothing can challenge them. But there was always an edge in his eyes, awareness. That kind of confidence could only come from experience, not from a man with PTSD. Her research had taught her he should be more nervous, always on the lookout, paranoid, even.

"Ohayo, Taishō," she greeted him, grabbing the teapot for their morning brew.

"Ohayo gozaimasu," he responded, a look of smug satisfaction written over his features. Gwen wondered what had put him in such a good mood, but surmised he would share should he wish to.

"Ohio whatever," Jolyne grumbled as she strode into the room, wiping mascara from her cheeks. Her hair was so drenched that the curls that usually reached her chin now fell upon her wide shoulders. Taishō raised his signature eyebrow. Even though he lived on the base, he couldn't possibly ignore that the sky had chosen to split and drench them this morning. The downpour almost covered the whistling of the boiler.

"Where's your fluffy umbrella ?" he teased.

The matronly woman whirled around, glaring daggers at her Captain.

"I think someone hid it."

"To her defence," Gwen started as she measured up the right amount of sencha tea and rinced it, "it is raining cats and dogs." By her side, Jolyne grabbed a mug, filled it with coffee and endeavoured to pour an insane amount of milk inside of it.

Lost in the preparation of her tea, Gwen didn't notice anything amiss until his overwhelming presence was right behind them. Bracing for impact, she almost jumped when he proceeded to bark playfully.

"Woof !"

Jolyne started with a yelp, nearly spilling her mug onto herself. The Captain just laughed at her ire, his eyes flashing golden in delight.

"You...", Jolyne berated. "I can't believe a grown man can be so childish."

The accusation caused the room to still; the Captain was held in such high regard that the young ones tended to forget he was also a human being. Only a few team leads had the guts to talk back to him, and it caused no shortage of attention. Jolyne's blue eyes looked at Gwen, pleading for support. The young woman just shrugged.