[Hijikata quietly closes the door behind him. He stays on the veranda for a moment and takes a deep breath - muscle memory, like so many things. He doesn't really need to breathe anymore, does he? He takes out his mayonnaise bottle lighter and cigarettes (his body doesn't really need this anymore either, but his mind does). For him it's still early; his work shift only just started... but he can tell that he'll have trouble focusing tonight. For as much of a pain in the ass as Sougo is to deal with on a daily (now nightly) basis, for as many times as Hijikata yelled and screamed at him in total infuriation, for as often as Sougo fired that goddamn bazooka at him, Hijikata just should not have done that to him.]
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