With the afternoon came a cold breeze, bringing clouds above the city. He had just joined his men in the courtyard before the patrol. They all had their blue haori on and this sight made him proud as always. He felt himself honoured to wear the colours of the Shinsengumi, reminding him of the Makoto he vowed to protect. He was ready to give the signal of departure when Harada joined him.

“Oye, Saitō, can I go with you for a part of your round?”

“Of course. You don’t have other things to do?”

“No, I must fulfil an important task in the city,” he smiled, “and the place where I’m going is on your way.”

“Feel free to join, then.”

“Thanks! You won’t mind if I don’t fetch my haori?”

“No. Besides we’ll be late if we don’t go now.”

“Okay, let’s leave!”

The group went outside the compound and started following the streets of Kyōto at a slow pace. Snow surrounded everything like a soft blanket, making the capital seem quiet and peaceful. Everyday rumours vibrated from afar in the light air, even the activity of the townspeople sounded muffled, and the only clear sound they could hear was their steps cracking in the snow. After a few minutes walking in silence Harada spoke:

“Today feels special, don’t you think?”

“If you say so. It’s true the weather is particularly beautiful.”

Some time passed then the tallest one added:

“Have you planned anything?”

“No, why do you ask?”

Harada looked slightly amused before sighing.

“Nothing, forget it. Anyway, I arrived, I’ll leave you here.”

“Goodbye, then.”

“See ya’!”

Saitō watched him disappear into one of the side streets and resumed with his walk. Somehow, he was feeling intrigued. Some of the officers were acting a little strangely since the morning, and he couldn’t figure out why. He wasn’t very curious by nature but still… He decided to stop thinking of it for the time being, he had more serious matter to care about. The city needed to be protected and it was his duty to do it as efficiently as he could.

His round went without any problem, thus his men were in quite high spirits as they ended their mission. They had almost reached the headquarters when one of them exclaimed:

“Look, it’s snowing!”

The captain lifted his gaze to the sky and noticed the small iced flowers falling towards them. Everyone stopped for a moment to witness the simple beauty of this instant. As the snowflakes grew bigger, the young man could discern better their finely chiselled patterns before they melted in the white depth on the ground. He had a furtive smile. He loved snow and felt glad to be able to marvel at it each year. He turned to his patrol and announced:

“We shall be back earlier as usual, you’ll have a bit of free time to enjoy all of this.”

A joyful exclamation responded and they started walking again in a merry atmosphere.