:: Remembrance of the Bakumatsu ::
by Shadow.of.Illusion
Disclaimer: Don't own Rurouni Kenshin or any of the characters. Am absolutely addicted to this series though, does that count for anything? Errr... if that gets me one of those doctors holding a tranquilizer, forget I said anything.
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"I've dreamt in my life dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas: they've gone through and through me, like wine through water, and altered the color of my mind."
He woke abruptly, gasping for air, fighting to escape from the dark clutches of his dreams. Streams of sweat rolled down his shaking body, the madness desperate in its attempts to control him, to release itself from the inner prison of his mind whence he had struggled to keep it.
Heavily, he breathed in and out. Composure was long in coming, but finally he regained the elusive state-of-being. Long strands of fire-bright hair stickily clung to his face and neck, due to the chilling sweat. Violet orbs peered about the room, as if searching wearily for a ghost.
The ghost that always haunted his dreams.
"Tomoe." His breathy whisper sounded loud to his sensitive ears in the quiet gloom. Dawn had not yet come, and the moon still ruled the sky with tentative ease.
They all came back to haunt his dreams at night, to plague and to curse him for his deeds. And the only one who had helped ease away the madness was there no longer, slain by his own hands.
Tears began to pool in his almond-shaped eyes, blinding him momentarily before the scalding drops fell down in a blistering rain upon his thin face. It had only been two months since her death, no—since her murder, and the young man still felt it keenly. It was like a constant thrust in his heart, ripping open the already sorely wounded appendage with callous strokes.
He raised his arm to wipe away the tell-tale drops, letting them instead soak the thin sleeve of his yukata. It was shameful to still mourn for her like this, as he was a warrior, an assassin. No emotions were supposed to rise to the surface. His enemies would kill him for this weakness.
Gathering his scattered control, Hitokiri Battousai sat in amber-eyed silence, waiting for the grim dawn of the heavens to appear.
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:: End Notes ::
Whoot! I love writing about Kenshin (Battousai days), it's just a lot of fun. I'm a freak, hahah. Hope you caught Kenshin's steady transition to Battousai in this, I wanted it to be clear, but not overiding the story. Also, don't get me wrong, I like the TomoexKenshin pairing... buuuuuuuuut, seeing as how Kaoru is living and married to him in the end, I have to side more with the KxK pairing. Besides, Kenji is just too kawaii! I think any kid of Tomoe's would be kind of odd, anyway. Just think of her reclusive nature. Ne?
--S.o.I.