Jirou rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, while he watched Hinata tearfully express his sadness over losing his parents. He knew the sadness all too well, but there was nothing he could do about it. His parents may not be alive anymore, but they would always be a part of him. Even though it was getting harder to remember their faces, Jirou would never forget looking back and seeing how his father fought the bandits. That day was his birthday and it should have been a happy day. One part of it was since his mother had given him Kashikoi on that day. It did not remain happy with the appearance of the bandits. It became a struggle for survival and a day that he would never forget. Jirou had never really had a birthday celebration since, but he did have a goal to be someone that they would be proud of. Looking at Hinata he says, “You know your parents aren’t really dead as long as you remember them. They will always be in your heart. You have good memories with them and you can still hold onto those memories, even if you have to put the coat that you have outgrown away. I have had to put my coat away too. It is too small now and like you said there is only so much mending that one can do. I am sure your parents will understand if you wear a different coat.”
Jirou nods in agreement when he hears Karasu mention about them being family and how those bonds can sometimes be stronger than even blood relations. “Family is more than just blood. Kashikoi and I are family too even though he has a different mother and father. He is my brother from another mother. So you got us as family too.” When he hears Karasu start bossing them into the kitchen to make the cake Jirou lets out a groan that turns into a laugh, “I thought Kashikoi was going to supervise. How did you get to be the boss all of the sudden?” Kashikoi moves behind them and attempts to move the three of them into the kitchen by pushing them forward. Jirou looks towards Kashikoi and says to him, “Easy there Bossy.” It looked like he would have to help with making this cake. He hoped he wouldn’t do anything to mess it up. He could boil water but other than that he was not very experienced with cooking.
[WC: 418]