WARNING: Rated R, for just about everything! Again, nothing terribly special to warn against in this chapter. If you want details on warning for the fic, see Chapter One, it has a warning list as long as my arm. (Well, I suppose that would depend on the size of the font I printed the wanring out with.)
Author's note: Well, it's 2003. Yay. In my opinion, 2002 wasn't that crash hot anyway. This is unfortuantely another short chapter, but like I usually say, it's either a shorter chapter or a week long wait while I tack two chapters together and then prepare them for posting. It's also another of the less eventful chapters, so I hope it doesn't become boring. I hope you review anyway - I need your feedback to keep it up! Ta muchly, I love you all.
Response to Reviewers!:
Crazy Girl Person: Don't let it go to your head.... Nah, I'm not so mean (usually) to hold out on you, but you admit, it did get you working on it! I have been called evil many times before so I'm afraid that does not affect me (it was probably because I sent everyone mobile phone messages on New Year's saying that 2003 will be mine and that resistance is futile). Hmm, that always is a problem with writing - John Marsden himself (no one in States probably even knows who he is) used to re-write everything so he never finished a book until he said he'd finish it before he re-wrote, and then when he did finish he never re-wrote it and it became a best-seller! Go figure. Fight scenes can be bitchy, though. BTW, good luck with your yaoi - if I can do it surely you can! ...... Cool, the reviews page is turning into a forum! Both you and MsJadey have a point - I already had a motivation figured out, but both of you gave me some more perspectives (you've become a muse, how about that?) that I hadn't really considered before. Keep reading and all will be revealed..... Personally, though, "A Butt is for What?" made perfect sense to me.
MsJadey: Aha, the first person to pick up on a connection between the fic and title!- though I'm not usually prone to choosing titles that have nothing to do with the fic. Ever since I did a course in semiotics at University I seem to keep going for the deeper meaning stuff a lot more (or pretending to). Well, like I said in Crazy Girl Person's response, some of Kenshin's motivations will be revealed in another... two, I think, chapters. Well, it will be revealed pretty soon, anyway. I'm still a couple of chapters ahead of updates in writing, and I know it's in there, and you're absolutely right, Kenshin is not entirely selfless. Thank you very much for your Evangelion-esque review. My New Year was safe and sober thanks very much (though I did hand out more slaps than what one usually does amongst drunk friends - I'm awfully lucky they're all so un-co.), I hope yours was too.
....... (COMPLETELY anonymous reviewer): Hiko's not really dense.... just immensely accepting. He's starting to get more suspicious, though. Hope I keep your curiosity. Thanks for your review! (whoever you are).
Emz: Woohoo, it's Emz again! Thanks a mil for the praise, your feedback means a lot to me! You should get an account, if you get it without the add-ons it's free! (I plugged FF.net! They HAVE to be nice to me now!). Hope to keep hearing from you.
Well, that's everyone. Uh oh, a drop in the number of reviews, never a good sign. This is one of the more boring (in my opinion) chapters, but next chapter will be great, I promise! (I must stop making promises, they always come back to bite me in the ass). It's way too short, too, but I hope you like it all the same. Don't forget to review!
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Routine
Chapter 6 - Questions of Senility
By Sinnatious
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The sun rose, and with it, came Hiko Seijuuro, 13th successor of the Hiten Mitsuryugi Ryu. It was an old story by now.
Shaking off the last vestiges of sleep, the swordmaster shook out his futon, donned his white mantle for the day and slid his katana into its rightful place at his side. He paused for a drink in the kitchen before moving to go wake up his once-again-sleeping-late baka deshi. He was hoping he wouldn't have to put together another repeat performance of the previous morning - if his student was going to be stubborn again, he'd be woken up by the blunt end of a Ryu-Tsui-Sen instead of being shaken awake.
These thoughts quickly fled his mind, though, when the teen's room and futon were most decidedly empty.
Hiko suddenly began to wonder fervently if it wasn't as hard to surprise a master of the Hiten Mitsuryugi Ryu as everyone liked to think. His baka deshi was certainly making a good effort at dispelling that particular legend recently - the little urchin was probably doing it on purpose. But where by Kami-sama could the red-head in question be? His apprentice might have been rebellious from time to time, but even a young upstart like him was still dutifully obedient to the point where he wouldn't abscond from the mountain without at least saying goodbye!
Maybe making the kid train the night before until late had finally been the straw that broke the proverbial buffalo's back. Come to think of it, the night before....
Striding fast enough to move quickly but not bely his concern, the swordmaster made his way outside, heading in a somewhat direct line towards where he had left Kenshin training the night before. Surely not.....
The answer was, unfortuantely, yes. A glimpse of red caught his eye a mere moment before he sensed the boy's presence, and there was Kenshin, resting against a tree, katana propped against his shoulder and apparently fast asleep.
The large man positioned himself in front of his sleeping pupil, and said, "Baka Deshi! How long are you going to sleep?!" When that solicited no response, Hiko reached out to shake him awake for the second morning in a row, forgetting his earlier promise to treat him to a Ryu-Tsui-Sen.
The instant he touched Kenshin, though, those lavendar eyes snapped open and almost as fast a balde was whistling though the air. His student's reaction speed was impressive, but at this stage didn't even come close touching Hiko. Another lesson well worth remembering - try not to startle awake a swordsman in an unfamiliar surrounding, unless your reflexes are fasted than theirs. If Kenshin kept getting faster, though, that might not be a lesson the student had to bother to memorise.
Mere seconds later, Hiko a good couple of stretches away until Kenshin got himself sorted out, those lavendar eyes turned on him again in apology. "Shishou! Gomen, you surprised me."
"Baka deshi!" he growled, walking back towards the tree and stopping so he could tower over the youth. "....Ah, never mind. I suppose I can't blame you when you were half-asleep. We'll have to do some more work on your ki awareness."
"Yes, Shishou."
"Now," he continued, straightening his distinctive white mantle - irritating thing, it might look majestic but it was so darn impractical! "Would you mind telling me what exactly it is you're doing out here, sleeping against a tree?"
Raising a hand to the back of his head in an embarrassed gesture, Kenshin made an effort to nervously smile, pulling it off with a somewhat practiced ease. "You didn't give me your permission to come in. I tried to keep practicing as long as I could, and I only stopped and rested for a minute, but I suppose I fell asleep. My apologies, Shishou."
Now the Hiten Mitsuryugi Master usually believed his apprentice, but this was becoming incredulous. He knew his teaching methods might have been considered harsh by some, but even he didn't cross some lines, and making a young teen stay out all night to practice without dinner when it had only been an excuse for some alone-time was over that line. Maybe if Kenshin's Ryu-Shon-Sen had actually been a mess it would have been within his reasoning, or if he actually had some reason to punish the boy...... "Are you saying that I never told you to come in?" Come to think of it, he didn't recall going out to collect the boy at all.
Kenshin ducked his head to hide his expression. "That you did not. Perhaps you forgot to?"
"Of course I wouldn't, baka, how would I forget something like that?" he snapped, harsher than he intended. The young swordsman didn't flinch. "Your Ryu-Shon-Sen needed the work! I'll expect it to be perfect from now on!" Better to let his student think he was being harsh rather than think his master was going senile.
"Osumimasen. Forgive me, Shishou, I'm very tired."
Hiko frowned. He supposed was true that he had forgotten to tell his baka deshi to come in for the night, and the boy was too obedient to defy even an outrageous order such as that one. It seemed odd, though, that he'd completely forget to fetch him. Then again, he admitted to himself, he had been used to Kenshin being asleep and thus absent while he drunk sake previous to this recent trend, so it was entirely possible that it HAD slipped his mind, and when he had retired for the evening he must have assumed the boy was already inside asleep. He was impressed with the boy's fortitude, however; training well beyond dark until exhaustion had forced him to sleep outside wasn't something he thought the kid had in him. It couldn't be good for his health, though. Perhaps from now on it would simply be better to endure the teen's annoying habit.
"I suppose you'd better come in for some breakfast, then," he grunted begrudgingly, walking away, Kenshin hurrying to keep up with his master's long stride. He struggled to keep his feet dragging from his exhaustion - his rest the night before had been insufficient for his tiredness and also somewhat fitful. When Hiko had awoken him he had reacted as if it were a predator, the same semi-altertness keeping him from getting any decent amount of sleep. He was lucky Hiko was preoccupied with his own guilt. "We'll train this afternoon, but you have to chop some more firewood and do the laundry this morning. I'll be going to do some pottery down near the base."
Kenshin didn't respond - he was so grateful to at last be getting a meal that he wouldn't have even cared if his master was going to go buy some more sake. Also, he reminded himself, it was never wise to crack jokes about his Shishou's pottery. Whilst in his opinion in didn't seem like the kind of craft a master swordsman like Hiko would partake in, the man seemed to enjoy his strange hobby and it was far from Kenshin's place to ruin any sort of non-sake-related fun the man ever decided to take part in.
Hiko noted his student's lack of response disappointedly, but was more concerned with why he had completely forgotten about his pupil the night before. They were each more-or-less the only other person the other had in their lives. It was no small thing to completely forget about the youth for any significant amount of time.
How could have have completely forgotten? Even when he enjoyed his quiet time drinking sake, his baka deshi was never that far from his thoughts. Hiko struggled to recollect more clearly, but he could not remember ever considering his pupil before going to sleep. This was truly disturbing.
The swordmaster sensed without looking his pupil's tiredness - he had pushed him too close to exhaustion again. He'd have to go easy on him in training that afternoon. It was the least he could do.
The two entered the small hut and sat down to breakfast in an uncomfortable silence.