[That's right. Mitsuzane had yelled at him, said something about being haunted by him when he'd first seen him. ... was that his guilt, somehow, or something deeper than that? There's a brief moment where he senses an unpleasant connection, something he doesn't want to think about too much, but...]

It's difficult to tell how you might feel. ... I believed Ryouma to be a dear friend of mine as well, though it makes me wonder if he ever regretted what he did to me.

[Takatora has no idea where all of his relationships went so wrong. Ryouma had been such a strong, comforting presence in his life for so long. And Mitsuzane, his precious younger brother...

He's willing to take a chance on being hurt more, because right now Mitsuzane isn't the only one who feels as though he's lost everything. Cautiously, he reaches up to grab Mitsuzane's shoulder, tugging him in the rest of the way to hold him securely against his chest, one arm wrapped around his back.]