Legacy
An RK Fanfic: i.e. the author
doesn't claim rights to the anime used.
Chapter 14- Second Chances.
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Forgive me…
-Collective
Soul
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Kaoru looked nervously up at
the man who had but months before been her bridegroom. Any other man would have
lost his temper by now and demanded to know what she had been hiding form him.
However, Kenshin's violet eyes were as warm and kind as ever as he patiently
waited for her to find the words to match the secrets in her heart.
Kaoru's lip quivered and the
corners of her eyes stung as fresh tears threatened to appear. Casting her
glance downward again she began to speak softly.
"There…" she
whispered, "There is something you should know about my…Hideki and I, our
past."
Kenshin took her hand gently in
his; "Yes?" he softly encouraged her.
Kaoru inadvertently shook her
head from side to side, "Kenshin, " she said looking up into his face
again,
"When did my mother
die?"
Kenshin was taken aback by the
question, "What do you mean?" he asked.
Kaoru fixed him with an
unwavering stare, "When do you think she died?" she asked again.
Kenshin shifted uncomfortably,
"Well," he said, "From what you and Dr. Gensai told me, I
assumed it probably happened when you were Suzume's age."
Kaoru gave him a rueful smile,
"That's not true." she said simply, "My mother actually died
when I was twelve going on thirteen."
Kenshin's eyes widened at the
revelation, "Then why…" he began to ask when Kaoru stood up and
leaned against the doorway's frame gazing at some secret spot over the horizon.
"My mother was the child
of immigrants smuggled into Japan while the ban on foreigners was still in
effect. Chinese immigrants." she said looking down at his face. "Even
at home in China they were never really settled so no one suspected them of
being foreigners. They made a point of appearing the same as those around them
and Hikaru, my mother, was brought up to be completely Japanese in nature.
Apparently, life in their native country was too dangerous for them, Mama never
really said why they took such a huge risk in the first place though. I always
assumed that perhaps the civil unrest there became too much for them to handle
and for Mama's sake they were willing to risk it all for a shot at some
stability."
Kenshin couldn't help but allow
his mouth to hang open a little at Kaoru's confession. This was all so much to
swallow, and it seemed as if there was still much more that was still unsaid.
How could his, sweet, innocent, uncomplicated Kaoru have such huge secrets in
her past?
Kaoru's eyes glimmered and her
lips pressed themselves into a thin bloodless line, "There's something
else," she said quietly.
Kenshin felt his stomach twist
at her saddened words, "What?" he managed to ask.
Kaoru closed her eyes and
leaned her head against the doorframe. "My mother's parents
were…gifted…." She allowed herself to trail off as she tried to pick her
next words carefully, "They could do things, see things that other
people couldn't. It was a part of them and they passed it on to their children
along with their blood. Then, years later, it was passed on to Hideki and
I."
"So you see," she
said sadly, "I'm different, Kenshin."
"What do you mean?"
Kenshin asked now utterly confused.
Kaoru looked at him silently
for a moment, "Close your eyes Kenshin." she finally commanded.
"What? Why?"
"Please Kenshin, just
trust me."
Obediently, Kenshin closed his
eyes and waited for…what? He wasn't sure, but the pleading in his beloved's
eyes was enough for him to do it. There was a gentle rush of air, and the soft
scent of jasmine before he felt Kaoru's lips pressing against his own. Her kiss
was earnest yet gentle, a physical appeal for him to have faith in her. So he
gave in, offering what comfort he could with the caress of his own mouth. She
was so…sweet, he soon found himself lost in the kiss, feeling as if he were
floating on air.
Kaoru pulled away but kept her
arms draped around his neck. Kenshin almost felt as if he were drowning in
those sapphire pools that were her gorgeous eyes when he opened his own.
"Kenshin," she
whispered in a hypnotic tone, "Look down."
As if compelled to do so,
Kenshin obeyed and let his gaze drop to the floor.
Which happened to be three full
feet below them.
Kenshin looked back at his wife
with a childlike combination of fear, wonder and excitement. "Did
you…?" he asked breathlessly.
Kaoru nodded and smiled,
"There's a lot about me that I want you to know." she said willing
them gently back to the ground.
"This is just so
unreal." he said, his fascinated gaze never leaving her face.
Kaoru giggled at that comment,
"That's exactly what I said." she chuckled.
A choking noise snapped them
out of their reverie and both lovers turned to find the child they had adopted
as their own staring at them as if they were a pair of spirits come back from
the dead.
Yahiko's mouth hung open as he
pointed at the pair with a look of absolute terror on his pale face, "You
guys…you…I…" his sentence was never completed as the child fainted dead
away.
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Sweat poured from her brow as
she practiced without a thought to relent. Her body was so tired; every muscle
ached as if the tendons themselves were tearing away from the places where they
were anchored to the bone. Still she pushed herself farther and faster than
ever, one thought fighting off all temptation to stop and give her body the
relief it screamed for…
"It would hurt more if you
failed to keep your promise."
Swing. Parry. Twist. Block.
Jump. Flip. Thrust. Each action was punctuated by whatever self-depreciating
comment that came to mind, further fueling the desire to punish herself.
"Kusokube-san?"
The husky inquiry hung in the
air as Hideki froze in mid-kata. The first thing she thought was, "There's
only one person in Tokyo who calls me that," the second was, "This
practice outfit is really indecent."
Quickly grabbing her kimono off
of the sapling she had draped it on, Hideki turned to face what had recently
become one of her most dreaded scenarios to date. "Hello
Shinomori-san." she said with a fake smile on her face.
Aoshi blushed inwardly at the
way Hideki tried to hide what seemed to be some kind of sleeveless cut-off
dress with slits up both sides and a pair of close fitting pants that ended
just below her knees. Of course, Omasu, Okon and Misao's ninja outfits were
equally, if not more, revealing but he wasn't as accustomed to seeing Hideki's
form as he was theirs. Averting his eyes his gaze fell to the place where
Hideki had dropped her weapon. Walking over, he picked it up and examined the
blade carefully. "This is a beautiful sword," he mused out loud,
"Where did you get it?"
Hideki mumbled as she struggled
in vain to retie her he obi. "China." she snapped in a frustrated
tone of voice. "Of course he would be more interested in a damned
sword," she muttered under her breath, "Goddamned Flower card
leading me on like that I outta slice it to pieces and throw it in the fire
mumblemumblecursecursegrouse."
"Rrrr! Forget this!"
she snapped throwing the obi to the grass at her feet.
Aoshi turned his gaze back to
the woman who owned the sword he had been admiring so well. She had folded her
arms and had this irritated pout on her face that seemed almost…cute?
Walking over, Aoshi picked up
the discarded obi off of the ground. "May I?" he asked coming up
behind her.
Hideki froze again at his being
so close to her. Fear and desire battled bitterly for supremacy in her mind as
she considered his offer. Deciding that if he tried anything at all she could
and would beat the crap out of him she nodded slightly.
Aoshi's deft fingers smoothed
the cloth around her waist as he wrapped it around her once, twice and then
tied the ends in the large butterfly knot of a single woman. Hideki looked down
to examine his handiwork, "Not bad," she said appreciatively,
"You did it even better than I would have," her eyes narrowed as a
thought crossed her mind, "You aren't femmy are you?"
Aoshi was taken aback at the
inquiry, "W-what?" he asked in a soft but surprised tone.
Hideki smiled mischievously at
her little joke. "Never mind," she said with a wave of her hand.
"Thank you for your kind and gentlemanly deed." she said with a touch
of scorn in her voice.
Aoshi was no fool. He picked up
immediately on her meaning, she must have thought pretty badly of him after
that episode at the market the day before. Not that he could blame her;
sometimes he did try a little too hard.
She bent a picked up her sword
from the ground where Aoshi had laid it while helping her with her belt.
"What where you doing coming all the way out here anyway Shinomori-san?"
she asked curtly, "I've been coming to this spot ever since I was a child
and you're the first visitor I've ever had."
Aoshi looked around the
clearing with an unreadable expression on his face. "I was just following
the river I guess." he said thoughtfully, "It's really beautiful
actually."
"I'm glad you think
so," she retorted, "I going home so I'll just leave you here to enjoy
it. Goodbye." she said with a brief bow before she turned around to walk
off.
"Kusokube-san?"
Hideki turned slowly with one
eyebrow raised in question.
"I would like it…if you
stayed." Aoshi said softly.
Somewhere deep inside Hideki's
subconscious, her romantic side was doing cartwheels at the offer. However her
reply was calm and mature as she nodded and indicated a soft patch of grass
where they could sit as they tried to enjoy each other's company.
.
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Japan Speak
Kimono-Japanese robey-thing
with the belt
Obi- the belt that goes with
the robey-thing
Kata- martial arts routine
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