damned_institute | Day 28: Morris Park

With most of the rocks cleared away, Okita stuck one of the little brightly colored candies into his mouth and was delighted to find that it was more like what he remembered. It had a subtle flavor and was hard on the outside. He picked up a thin branch, testing it against the ground and turned to Heiji, smiling. "Am I? What sort of things do people in the future learn about us?"

If Heiji was willing to impart more knowledge of the past to him, Okita wasn't going to argue. Kenshin hadn't told him how certain events happened, just that they did. Despite Captain Jack's warnings, Okita wanted to change the past. He didn't want Hijikata's plans to fail, for everyone to die, for his own unknown fate to roll around. He didn't want any of it. At all.

Leaning down again, he picked up a second branch that was close to the first - a little thicker - and tossed it over to Heiji. "Catch!"

"Just um, bare facts," Heiji said. "Y'know, so-and-so did this, such-and-such battle happened here, Sakamoto went to the other side, things started to fall apart after Toba Fushimi... stuff like that." Heiji wasn't going to go into much more detail than that. It was insensitive and probably against some kind of time-space-continuum law to talk about Okita and the rest of the Shinsengumi's death and defeat. He wouldn't want to know about his own death, or the death of any of his friends--especially concerning his line of work. He made a lot of enemies.

Heiji caught the branch and tested it out. It was a bit heavier than he was used to, but he could manage. Heck, if he could swing around a three-foot pipe, he could swing a branch.

How exactly were they going to start, though? Heiji was used to Rei, Sonkyo, and Kamae--and then waiting for the go ahead. No doubt Okita had never heard of such a thing. So he just stood there, watching Okita, waiting for some kind of signal.

Of course, he should have expected that answer. It was the same answer everyone had given him since arriving at this place. His disappointment barely registered, however, and he turned his attention to the match. Heiji seemed hesitant, meaning this fight might be quite a bit like when he fought Tetsu the first time. He had to take it easy on the kid or he could end up spitting blood.

Bowing deeply to Heiji, he smiled again and stepped into the receiver's role. He'd let Heiji try and hit him rather than take the chance of Okita attacking. "I look forward to this match. I'll take the receiver's role, so don't worry - I won't hit back unless I have to. I'd love to see what style you have."

Heiji nodded. A teaching match then... Well, it was better than being pounded into the ground in three seconds flat. Maybe this would actually be fun!

"Right!" Heiji said, kicking off his shoes and grinning. He returned the bow. "I look forward to it as well." The teen detective settled into his normal stance, his eyes unfocused, 'shinai' at the ready.

Heiji wasn't the captain of his school's kendo team for nothing--his footfalls were nearly silent as he raced up to Okita for a low side strike. He almost made a call, but caught himself before it could leave his mouth. There wasn't really a need for it here...

Removing his own shoes, he fell into his usual teaching stance and waited. While most would have found Okita's lax stance rude, those who knew him could see that he was leaving no visible openings. Heiji was a captain of his team, but Okita was a master in his field. He watched for any clues the boys gave for when he moved and as Heiji raced up to deliver a side blow, he stepped aside and rapped his 'sword' across Heiji's arms.

Keeping his blows light and swift, he was still smiling as he noted the boy's stance and what dojo he probably trained under. It was good to see such things still in practice even in the future. Okita pivoted and came around behind Heiji, taking a few light steps back before bringing his branch around again. "Good, again."

Heiji was lunging again before Okita had spoken. He was aiming to make this as much of a fight as possible, so he wasn't about to wait for encouragement or instructions. It was too bad though--Heiji's style wasn't suited to attacking an opponent head-on, but waiting for an opportunity to present itself. Unless he was fighting against that guy who looked like Kudo.

He didn't want to hurt Okita by poking at him with his stick, so that limited his options from this point. Also, neither of them were wearing any protective gear, so that made Heiji even more nervous. Hand and head strikes were completely out of the question.

Mid-charge, made to strike Okita's side again, but pulled down suddenly, aiming for Okita's leg.

As Heiji came at him, Okita kept moving back, striking his stick against the young detective's to push it out of the way. He was young, but he had talent and Okita respected that. He noticed that Heiji, too, was avoiding what would be almost instinctual attacks because neither were wearing gear. He hoped the boy could keep that control - it was a good thing to have.

When Heiji went for his side again, Okita knew something was off. The balance between his left and right was different from before. Most people wouldn't notice such a thing, but when your life depending on reading your opponent's body like a manual on their attack patterns, it was clear. Okita jumped to the side, bringing his branch across and against Heiji's own. The sound of the branches connecting was sharp and echoed in the clearing. As soon as he was certain the branch wouldn't touch his leg, he arced it around to snap against Heiji's upper arm. "You shift when you're attacking down - be aware of that."

With the lesson given, he laughed and put some distance between them. "I can take more than a poke of a stick, you know."

"Agh," Heiji let Okita back off, rubbing his arm. It didn't hurt, it was more out of instinct. He didn't like being hit. "C'mon, cut me some slack. I'm used to fighting a guy in full protective gear. I don't want to accidentally do anything that'd hurt you."

Okita's smile disappeared and he lowered the stick, giving Heiji a look of mild disapproval. He'd gone into his teaching mode and he had quite the reputation as one of the strictest at the dojo before moving to Mibu. Was Heiji not showing him his true form just because he didn't have a chestplate on? It would be truly disappointing to learn that such things kept a captain from performing to his best.

"Trust me, Heiji-kun, you cannot hurt me with a stick," he said as if his words were the things that mattered. Yoshida had nearly crushed his chest even when he had been wearing armor. If he could withstand that, he could stand to be hit in the chest by a branch once or twice. "Now come at me like you mean it or I'll come at you."

Heiji was now caught between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, he didn't like hurting anyone who didn't deserve it. Sure, he'd chased down murderers and criminals and beat the daylights out of them, but he wouldn't do the same to someone who was innocent. But on the other hand, he was disappointing Okita, which wasn't something he wanted to do either. He didn't know what to do.

Maybe his problem was that he was thinking too small. This wasn't a formal kendo match. He could fight freestyle--nothing that would be dirty, but things that he would get penalized for doing in a match.

"Okay," Heiji grinned, "If you say so~"

The teen detective charged again. However this time, instead of choosing a more traditional (and less ridiculous) move, he rolled past Okita before he was within striking rage and swung at the swordsman's back.

He readied himself again and when Heiji charged, he was starting to sigh. The same thing again? Why was it that the descendant of Hattori Hanzo wouldn't think--

He swung and suddenly Heiji wasn't there anymore. The boy rolled and came up behind him, aiming for his now unguarded back. It would have worked, too, if Okita hadn't seen this sort of thing before. Tetsu had gone between his legs the first time, and now Heiji was opting for a side approach.

However, one thing changed.

Heiji was a threat.

As the branch swung up at his back, he pivoted quickly and swung down hard. With a dull crack, he felt the branch connect solidly against the side of Heiji's head. The detective's own blade was only a hair's breadth away from hitting Okita's back, but now that didn't matter so much as the sound of the branch connecting with the boy's head.

He hoped he hadn't hurt him.

Normally Heiji had time to block the follow up attack that always resulted when he used this move... but he'd never used it on Okita. He barely had time to turn his head away before the branch connected, knocking him off his feet and onto the forest floor.

"That HURT!" Heiji shouted, regaining his footing swiftly and launching himself back up into Okita's personal space. Guarding his left side with the branch, Heiji made to knock Okita over by shoving into the man's chest with his own shoulder. Pushing--yet another thing that would have earned him a foul.

"Heiji-kun, I--"

He was sincerely sorry that he'd hurt Heiji, but before he could apologize, the boy attacked again. His focus had been on confirming Heiji's injuries, so when the detective jumped up and slammed into him, he was hit fairly solidly in the chest. Taking the blow, Okita let himself get pushed and jumped back, using the momentum to put distance between the two of them again.

Now this was a fight. Emotions had been stirred and now Heiji was coming at him not with the formalistic moves learned in a dojo, but with his true style. He could see that the boy was strong, a good fighter, a smart opponent - but he also saw a threat worth taking seriously.

His control was wearing thin, but it was still there. Rather than attack Heiji again, he stepped into a defensive position and tried his hardest to keep that "other" self from coming out.

Heiji wasn't at all aware that Okita was losing his control--the thought had never occurred to him. He jumped after his opponent, bringing his stick down for a blow to the head--which he knew Okita would block. It was a simple enough move.

"Hey, no hard feelings!" Heiji said with a grin, beginning a quick string of jabs and strikes. Shoulder, knee, side, other side, shoulder. "I just figured you'd rather see this--" Two quick steps back. "Than, 'owwie, it hurts Okita-kaa-san'!"

He lunged forward, his body pulled into itself so as to not present a bigger target. His body was finally starting to fall into form and loosen up. This was good news for him--he could only get faster as time wore on.

He had to admit, the boy could fight. It was a relief and it meant that perhaps he didn't have to stay on the defensive the entire time. Laughing again, he caught each attack and pushed the branch away from his body. The clearing was filled with the sound of wood striking wood, bringing back memories of the Shiekan and of Mibu. The grassy floor was an ill substitute for the nice wood of the dojo, but it was better than the ugly linoleum at the Institute.

"Good - I was worried for a moment you were going to tell on me," he teased, dancing back and away from Heiji's lunge. Their swords tapped against each other as Okita began to circle the clearing, maneuvering away from the trees. He wasn't about to get pressed up against the "wall." "But now that you're loose, shall we really begin?"

In an instant, his stance shifted and he attacked, aiming for Heiji's right arm and left side in two quick movements. He knew the boy would be able to block them if he had been paying attention.

Heiji was taken off guard for a moment--he'd been the attacker for a while, so suddenly switching roles meant he had to reboot his system. He just barely leaped away in time to avoid the strike to his arm, and blocking the side attack came a bit too late. Okita's stick tapped his side before he could get the block in place, but it didn't follow through. That was a close one...

He was perfectly positioned for another shove, but Okita would probably be aware of that. Instead, he used his block to protect himself as he ducked under Okita's weapon. As fast as he could manage--hopefully before Okita caught on--he shot his leg out in a sweep kick. Nothing that would completely knock him to the ground--just take one of his legs out from under him.

This was what he lived for - a good bout, the sound of weapons clashing. When the branch tapped Heiji's side, he barely managed to keep from pushing him harder, hitting his side with his full force. He had to constantly remind himself that Heiji wasn't wearing anything to keep him safe. It was so hard to pull his strength, but he was proud of himself for doing it.

When Heiji dropped down, Okita knew he had to move fast. He freed his stick from Heiji's block and barely avoided the sweeping kick - feeling his foot catch - as he leapt to the side. It threw him off balance, causing him to turn slightly as he landed, but he didn't fall. Taking two steps back, he grasped the branch with both hands and opened his stance, waiting for another lunge - waiting for his chance.

Heiji fell back to the other side of the clearing, the hairs on the back of his neck prickling. He didn't like how Okita was standing now--it was different. Part of him said the reasonable thing to do know would be to drop the stick and stop the fight. Whatever came next was surely a can of worms he didn't want thrown at him.

Unfortunately that part of him was very small, and practically mute. Heiji charged forward again, suddenly skirting to Okita's left, stick extended defensively. If he was going to get attacked, he would at least be able to do something.

Heiji had proven to be a better opponent than Okita had imagined him to be. Whether that was a good or bad thing remained to be seen, but it had been so long since he was given the opportunity to feel the exhilaration that only came from facing another human being. Institute monsters were stupid, motivated simply by the desire to kill - no grace, no style, easily predicted.

Heiji was different.

As he skirted to the side, Okita shot forward, moving as if possessed to catch Heiji before he got the chance to flank him. Bringing his sword against Heiji's own, he pushed hard and felt the last bit of his control slip. He needed this fight to get out the frustration he couldn't inflict upon the Choushu assassin. He needed to be bruised and deal out pain to release his anger over Hijikata's disappearance. In the back of his mind, he just wished Heiji wasn't the unfortunate receipient.

Whipping the branch around, he struck hard for Heiji's shoulders - first left, then right - and dropped back, ready for another attack.

Whatever Heiji had been expecting to block, it certainly wasn't what happened. The look on Okita's face made Heiji's stomach seize in terror, and suddenly he was seriously defending himself.

Fortunately, the fear that had caused most of his organs to freeze helped Heiji move faster. He quickly blocked the strike to the left, then lashed out wide to the right, knocking the stick away. He winced, realizing that he was starting to lose his discipline. Reeling it back in, he followed close to Okita as he dropped back. He wasn't trying to get a hit in, just trying to get in Okita's face a bit and limit the room he had to work with.

As Heiji kept close, Okita felt the change happen. The boy wasn't attacking, but he wasn't letting up either. He wanted to keep Okita from getting anymore hits in, reign him in - make him stop. Shinsengumi never stopped until someone was dead or the fight was over, and usually the two coincided fairly well. Hijikata's own rule was to never let the enemy go unless you died trying to stop them. All or nothing, it was the only thing Okita knew.

So when Heiji kept closing in, Okita's real demeanor appeared. His face was cold and hard, a warrior's mask - a demon's face. If only Heiji had backed away or called it off, but they were both followers of the sword and they weren't going to give up. With such limited mobility, Okita did the only thing he could and turned his stick around, using the shorter "handle" area in a quick jab to Heiji's chest. He aimed to push the boy back and give himself more room, a trick he'd used in the cramped quarters at the Ikedaya quite a few times.

Heiji took the strike in full, feeling his lungs suddenly compress against his back. He coughed, trying to get air back into them while taking a step back. That wasn't something that he was used to defending against.

He couldn't hang back and catch his breath, though. That last escapade had at least made Okita a little nervous. This match was getting more and more serious, and there was no telling what would happen if he let his guard down for even a moment.

And dammit, now Okita had enough room to shake... a stick at. Ugh, bad pun. He'd have to kick himself later for that one. Now, there was closing in to do.

He walked slowly and deliberately, straight at Okita. There went that little part of him again, wailing that Okita's face was scary. His own probably wasn't much different--stoic and focused. This was going to hurt...

His knee suddenly buckled and he made a low lunge for Okita's legs, tucking his chin behind his shoulder. It looked like Heiji was aiming to hit both of Okita's shins at once.

There was no one to stop them but themselves, and it was obvious neither of them were giving up. Heiji's coughing and the momentary retreat just gave Okita enough time to prepare his next attack. Heiji lunged and Okita ran forward, bringing his weapon around again. Rather than use it to attack, however, he tucked it close to his body and jumped high, hoping to spring over the detective and land behind him.

Well that had backfired. Okita had completely forgone the obvious target of Heiji's back, and now was directly over him. Crap. Crapcrapcrap.

Heiji rolled out of the way as Okita's stick came down where his back had previously been. Close one. He turned quickly on the balls of his feet and lunged again, swinging the stick one-handed and wide at Okita's ribs. Just a bit closer...

Unpredictability - this is what swordfights were supposed to be like. When his stick hit the ground, Okita was quick to take a few steps back and bring his sword back up at the ready. It was good he did, too, because Heiji had the sort of speed that made the Hattori clan famous. Okita snapped the branch against Heiji's attack, pushing the one-handed attack away from anything vital and saw his opening.

At least, he thought he did. Heiji was getting too close again and he'd lost his window of opportunity. Damn it all! He needed to put more distance between the two of them so as Heiji drew close, he dropped his branch low and kicked hard, aiming for the boy's stomach.

Day 28: Morris Park

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