To Not Give In

Six || Part 1: No Biting--Oops

"Thank you! Thank you!" I called out, after twirling around in two full circles with the tray of food balanced on my head. I served it to the customers and gave them a radiant smile, swooping down into a low bow. "Enjoy your food!"

I met Chise-san, one of my fellow waitresses, at the counter at the front of the restaurant.

She smiled warmly at me. "I remember when you first started working here--you might as well had been a mouse!"

Blushing, I sighed contentedly as I surveyed the restaurant. It had a cheerful aura to it, with the chattering of its customers and the sizzling and thwacking sound of Kyousuke-san chopping something up at the back of the restaurant. Sweet aromas of cooking food drifted from the kitchen to the eating area."It's simply wonderful working here, isn't it, Chise-san?"

"You said it," she agreed, and then out of nowhere got a broom and tossed it to me. It barely whacked me in the nose and I caught it before it hit the ground. "Now, another wonderful thing about working here is sweeping. Now shoo fly, shoo!"

I looked at her with mock offence and she stuck a tongue out at me. Giggling, I marched to the front door and started sweeping away. Honestly, I didn't see the point. Everything was already so clean. There was barely even a leaf or two lying around.

"Suzuran-chan!"

I looked up from my work to see a familiar girl running to me from across the street, one hand waving while the other held together the royal-purple shawl wrapped around her arms. Her sunset-magenta eyes sparkled with excitement as she made her way to me.

"O' Sen-chan!" I exclaimed. It had been a while since I saw her too! "Konichiwa!"

"Long time no see!" she exclaimed, clasping my hands in hers. The broom fell against the crook of my arms.

"Yeah!" I agreed, then pointed an accusing finger at her. "Where have you been, huh?"

She laughed a tinkling laugh, and her mouth hovered in front of her mouth daintily. "Sorry! I hope you didn't run into that much trouble without me. I was out of town visiting my relatives. Have you been well?"

I nodded. "I'm starting to get use to Kyoto now, thanks to you."

She smiled, and a waved a hand at me. "No problem."

My heart warmed at her. I really was grateful towards this girl. She was the first one to reach out to me and give me a helping hand when I arrived to this time period. Without her, I would've barely survived here.

"Hey, why don't you have a meal here at Miyazawa right now?" I pointed a thumb at myself. "It'll be on me and I'll personally serve you!"

"I can pay my own meals," she said kindly, but then held up a finger, tilting her chin up in a mock-pompous manner. "However, you have to be the one to serve me."

I laughed and did a small curtsy. "Yes, yes, your majesty."

I managed to get away with saying that I'd finished sweeping the front door area to Ryo-san, and was able to serve Sen a meal at Miyazawa. Chise, who saw how good friends Sen and I were, offered to cover for me, giving me the opportunity to sit with Sen and talk.

"I heard about the fire," Sen said, referring to the Hamaguri Gate Incident about a year ago. She took a sip of her tea. Her voice had gone grave, and she set down her cup. Her brows knit together concernedly as she looked across the table at me.

I nodded, and the memory of that day appeared clearly in my mind.

"Fire! Fire!"

The city was ablaze. Heated orange-and-yellow tendrils were everywhere, on the ground, the walls, the insides of shops and restaurants, on the roofs. They twisted and writhed upwards to the sky, which was darkened by ashes and the thick plumes of gray smoke rising from the flames. Chaos ran amok on the streets as people rushed about, trying to save themselves, their loved ones, and possessions.