Well, it has been a long time. Heh…looks at fans apprehensively. Hi… Anyways, I had this idea come to me. Sorry for not finishing the other fics. Life has been REALLY hectic for me. Anyways, hope you enjoy, DHM
Warning: Strong language is used. Don't go crying to your mommies if you didn't read this warning…duh.
Disclaimer: I wish, I wish, I wish I could say it was mine. But alas it is not.
Chapter 1: Past Pains
The darkness set in over the landscape as the sun made its final descent. The small house where the Kamiya family lived was lit by a fire and several candles. The atmosphere was warm and happy inside, while outside the cold darkness and beings moved in. The house was a tiny light in the darkness, the nearest town being a good four miles off. Inside Izayoi Kamiya placed a pot on the low table. The soup smelled and looked delicious as she called her husband and two daughters to the table.
"Mama, why can't I help papa in town?" Asked the seven year old Kaoru Kamiya. Her blue eyes looked pleadingly at her mother then her father.
"You know you are too little." Izayoi spoke, her soft brown eyes smiling at her oldest daughter. She looked to Misao who was sitting next to her older sister, watching the conversation with intelligent eyes.
"We want to go…!" Whined Misao as she finally spoke up. The four year old looked at her parents with a pout. Her attention soon drifted to the bowl which her mother placed infront of her.
"Eat your supper." Izayoi said, placing one infront of her husband and other daughter. She saw the resemblance between father and daughter. Kaoru was more like her father than anyone really realized. Although both girls loved to watch their father practice swordsmanship and afterwards would try to mimic his moves, it was Kaoru who stood out. She had mastered several of his moves. She could see him do something and would in turn practice until it was perfect. Misao on the other hand would grow bored eventually and move onto something more fun.
"It's not fair." Mumbled Kaoru as she pushed at her food with her chopsticks. She finally stabbed a piece of meat angrily and stuffed it into her mouth, glaring at them both with deep blue eyes.
"Soon girls, soon." Their father said as he began to eat his own dinner.
After dinner Izayoi put her two daughters to bed in the next room. Their tiny house had only three. A living room and two bedrooms. She smiled as she kissed her daughters good night and tucked the single, large blanket around them making sure they were warm.
"What's wrong dear?" Izayoi questioned her husband as she entered the living room again. He sat moodily by the fire, glancing now and then to the door and three windows. He seemed agitated and she had no idea why.
"They're coming. They'll be here tonight or tomorrow." He spoke as if in a trance, his expression worried.
"You can't mean…" Izayoi was interrupted.
"Yes. They're coming to kill me because I betrayed them. The girls are not safe here. He will kill them if they are found. As will you. At midnight we must wake the girls. You will take them to town. Just go and don't look back. They'll be here soon." His saddened reply filled the quiet room.
"I won't leave you." She spoke, tears filling her eyes.
"You must." He said, standing and going to his wife. He embraced her and let her cry against his shoulder. This would be their last night together. Then it would all be over, for good.
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Blue eyes snapped open as the young woman sprang up in bed. Her body was soaked in perspiration as she glanced around the room. She hated having these dreams. They always reminded her of her past. The night her life changed for the better and the worse.
Taking a deep breath eighteen year old Kaoru Kamiya stood up from her mat. She changed into day clothes, a simple light blue kimono, and walked out of her bedroom. In the main living room she glanced around, her dream still bringing unease to her mind.
Sighing Kaoru walked outside and stretched. Last night had been tough but she had completed what she had set out to do. Having arrived home late she had gone straight to bed after washing, only to have a nightmare. Aqua eyes looked up at the storm clouds over head. For once the sky matched her mood. She was always angry, sad, and alone. She loved storms and the rain.
She yawned momentarily as she combed her fingers through her dark, black hair. She pushed it up into a ponytail and grabbed a ribbon from her kimono pocket, tying her hair up and out of her face.
She would have to hurry if she wanted to get some tofu before it started raining. Slipping her shoes on, she walked out of her house and onto the dirt road. She was only a mile from the town. It was easy for her. She was in excellent shape and didn't even consider this a workout.
Once she arrived in town she saw few people on the normally crowded streets. The weather for once was an advantage. She hated people. It wasn't that she despised the human race completely, just the insignificant fools who continually got in her way and annoyed her day after day.
Making her way to the tofu stand, she smiled at the young woman working there. Tsubame was a sweet girl, yet naïve. She was constantly living in a dream world. She bought the tofu and turned to leave. Her eye caught a flash of red hair which soon disappeared. Shaking her head she dismissed her panic.
Kaoru was lucky to have made it home before the rain. It had started to fall just as she stepped onto the front steps of her home. Smiling to herself she entered and put the tofu away. It was by now early afternoon and the rain had begun to fall outside. She suppressed a yawn as she went to her room. She would take a quick nap and then make dinner.
Laying down without removing her kimono she drifted off to sleep.
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Rain soaked the woman and two children as they walked quickly through the rain. Misao clung to her mother as the Izayoi held her. Kaoru held her mothers hand looking around at their dark surroundings unhappily.
"Come Kaoru we must hurry." Izayoi said over the harsh pounding of rain. More than once the two walking slipped in the mud. Their clothes became dirty and wet. Kaoru shivered against the cold wind. Her parents had explained nothing as to why they were woken in the middle of the night without any explanation. She wanted to know why papa was still at home, looking worried and aggravated. He had looked at his daughters and wife sadly and kissed his children on the forehead. He had kissed Izayoi and then they had left.
Suddenly Izayoi stopped. She seemed to be trying to listen around the rain. She grabbed Kaoru by the arm and dragged her to the bushes on the side of the road. A few feet in she knelt down and told the girls to be quiet.
They were silent for a few moments and then were surprised to see a group of riders come galloping up the road. It was hard to see the group through the rain and darkness, but Kaoru had excellent eye sight.
Blue eyes locked onto a head of flaming hair. She watched the group ride past. They seemed in a hurry and did not notice that the three females were there. Kaoru felt her mother stiffen and looked into the kind brown eyes she had known all of her life.
"Kaoru, there's something important that I want you to do." Her mother's voice was soft over the harsh pound of rain.
"Mama?" Kaoru asked, concern clouding her eyes.
"I want you to take Misao to town. Go to see Tae at the Akebeko. She will see to it that you are taken care of." Izayoi said her eyes still trained on the path the three of them had just come from.
"What about you Mama? Where are you going?" Kaoru asked, fear for her mother seeping into her. What was going on? She didn't understand. What was happening to her family?
"I'm going to help your father. You must promise me to take care of Misao. She needs you more than ever. Take this." Brown eyes finally shifted to her daughter's. She placed Misao on the ground where the exhausted girl sat beneath a tree which was sheltering them from most of the rain. Izayoi took an envelope from her pocket and placed it inside Kaoru's jacket. It was thin material but it kept her dry for the most part.
"Mama please do not go." Kaoru cried as tears fell down her young face.
"Kaoru, I love you. You and Misao. Take care of eachother and remember that your father and I will always love you." Without a second thought Izayoi left their hiding spot and ran back up the path they had come. Kaoru quickly lost sight of her, her eyes being blinded by the tears that threatened to fall.
"Kaoru what's going on?" Asked the ever questioning Misao.
"We're going to town." Kaoru spoke, her eyes turning from the previous direction and looking down the road towards town. "Come Misao let's get going."
Misao took her sister's hand and the two trudged to town through the thick mud.
Almost a half hour later the two girl's arrived cold, wet, and miserable at the Akebeko. Tae answered the pounding on the door and let the girls in without a moment's hesitation. She had them remove their soaked clothes and wrapped them in warm, dry towels.
Tae asked the girls what had happened and Kaoru told the older woman as best as possible. The nineteen year old girl looked sadly at the shivering girls. She did not know what was going on but she would do what she could until she found out. She brought the girls sleeping clothes from her younger sister and took them to her room upstairs. Putting them to bed she looked out the window with a worried expression on her face.
---------------------------------------------------
Kaoru was relieved to wake up. This storm had brought on many bad memories of her past. She rubbed a calloused hand over her face, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Why were these thoughts and feelings coming back now after eleven years? She did not know, nor did she want to continue reliving them.
Scowling Kaoru sat up and moved to stand. She found her legs weak beneath her. Finally getting her strength back she walked to her kitchen. It was dark outside and now it was drizzling. Kaoru decided to make the simplest thing possible and settled on noodles.
As she sat there contemplating her dreams and eating her noodles her mind moved towards tonight. She had another job to do. Her blue eyes deepened and her mind thought about what would happen. She didn't do the dirty work of others or get paid. It was something she had set out to do after the deaths of her parents. She had been hunting down the ones who had killed them and anyone associated with them.
She closed her eyes, thinking back to that night. There had been a total of ten riders. She had killed three. Among those three were also their servants and anyone who might have known about it. That was a lot of people considering the fact that one man hadn't even been human. A shiver went down her spine at this thought. These creatures weren't human. A few were human but from the information she had gathered most in that group that had killed her parents, were not. What exactly they were she did not know.
She didn't fear the death that she consistently dealt out. She feared only one person. Battousai. He was the one she feared. He was one of the abnormal ones. His reflexes and chi were not human. She had seen him only three times in her entire life. The first time on that cold lonely road in the rain. The second the day her sister was taken. The third about four years ago when she first started her hunting. She would not stop until they were all dead. Or, if she herself was killed which would be very likely if she faced Battousai.
She sighed knowing it was time to get to work. She cleared the table and went back into her room. In the corner she unlocked a large chest. Upon opening it she looked at the katana. The gold inlay made it beautiful and extremely deadly. She had perfected her own style of fighting over the years and had become very dangerous.
She removed the black outfit. It fit her body extremely well and she had been able to lull many of her victims into a false sense of security. She smiled lightly as she undressed and slipped the black pants on. They hugged her waist nicely and became wider down her legs. The black top that went with it covered her arms. She had black gloves as well, but she never put those on until she was about to fight. She hated having blood on her hands.
She stretched out her tired muscles, and grabbed the mask sitting on the bottom. Slipping it over her head it covered the top portion of her face, the only thing visible being her eyes, nose, and mouth. Her sea blue eyes scanned the assortment of weapons, finally resting on a pair of small hand knives and two sai. She enjoyed having several types of weapons available to her. It allowed her to keep in shape with different weapons and learn new tricks and moves.
She put her soft padded shoes on. The material was soft and thin, making little noise on many surfaces. She placed four of the little throwing knives there, placing two in each of her shoes which ran all the way up to mid calf.
She stood from her sitting position and grabbed her katana, closing the trunk behind her. Time to go to work. Exiting her house she looked up at the sky. It was clear now, the rain having subsided and the clouds had drifted away. She looked sadly at the stars. They seemed so beautiful and pure. The opposite of her. Shaking her head she looked at the nearly deserted streets near town. She could see the moving figures with tortures although she was still a mile off. The man she was going after lived two miles past the limits of town. She walked towards the woods. Her mind had switched gears. She was no longer Kaoru Kamiya. She was Kaoru the assassin. Every sound she heard made her cautious.
After about two minutes of walking she came to an empty field. It was only a few acres, but it resided on her lands. Whistling she listened quietly. She heard the sound of hooves as a black mare raced from the trees on the opposite side. She slid to a stop as Kaoru raised a hand. She smiled at the mare she had bought two years ago. She refused to walk more than two miles after any prey. She walked to a nearby tree, the mare following calmly. She pulled on a knob and opened a hidden opening. Inside sat a bridle. It was all she needed. Her father had taught her to ride when she was only three, and they had never been rich enough to afford a saddle.
She slipped the bridle on the mare and grabbed a bit of mane. In a swift movement she was up and grabbing the reins. "Let's go Ayana." The mare leapt forward onto a nearby deer track and the two headed in the direction of Yamaguta Kochi's home.
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Kaoru dismounted a few hundred yards outside Yamaguta's property. She let Ayana free graze knowing she would not wander far and would come instantly if Kaoru called. She hid in the bushes as two guards patrolled the perimeter.
"He's making this too easy." She whispered a glint in her eye as she silently slid her katana from its sheath. Without any noise she snuck up behind the two men as they talked about whores. Disgusted she slit both their throats in one swing. She didn't spare them another glance as she entered the grounds of Yamaguta Kochi.
Kaoru made it to his large three story house with no problems. She peeked in through a window. No guards. What was this man just plain stupid? She lifted the window hesitantly and was surprised when it opened. He didn't even lock his windows. Muttering to herself about boring targets she dropped quietly to the floor. She hated not having a challenge. This was ridiculously easy.
Kaoru made her way quietly down the hallway, katana ready in her hand. She let her chi extend through the house, identifying any threats. She felt Yamaguta's upstairs. She felt another, stronger one with him. Very strong. She remembered feeling something similar a while ago, but passed it off as a brief encounter. She immediately toned her chi down, not wanting to be noticed by anyone with a stronger chi. She had noticed several other chi below in the basement, they weren't as strong as the one upstairs but they were stronger than Yamaguta. Of course, the idiot had freaking body guards. That's why he didn't care about safety precautions.
"Jackass…" Kaoru muttered making her way into a large area, and saw the main staircase which led upstairs. Her senses sharpened as she approached and began to walk up. All of a sudden she heard a door opening upstairs and two male voices coming her way. Fuck!
She leapt from the stairs and around a corner. Desperately searching somewhere to hide so she could see who it was. She found herself a closet and ducked into as the men appeared at the top of the stairs. From her position she could see a portion of the stairs and room. Who she saw walk down the stairs made her sick to her stomach.
Battousai.
She was screwed, beyond screwed. If she panicked anymore he would be able to sense her. Fucking abnormal freaks. She watched the red headed man turn his direction to another hallway where voices were coming from. Four people entered and once again Kaoru felt sick to her stomach.
Misao.
No, she couldn't believe it. Her sister was alive, and with these creatures no less. She had thought her dead years ago. She knew it was her sister. She had their mothers' soft face and her own beautiful dark hair. How could this happen? Her sister had probably forgotten about her, having lived with these things for the past eleven years. Taking a few calming breaths she looked at the other three men. They were all tall, taller than her. Great, she felt like a midget.
"There's Sagara Sanosuke, that one is Aoshi, and the other is just a boy. I don't remember seeing him before or hearing anything." She whispered to herself as she watched. She had been too loud.
"There's someone here." Came a cold, icy voice from the direction of the Battousai. "Come out or I'll come find you." He said menacingly, his hand resting calmly on the hilt of his katana.
"Fuck, crap, shit. I'm screwed." Kaoru said, trying to keep her fear from her body and face. He could probably smell it on her. Without another moment she slipped from the closet and came to face the group. Her aqua eyes darkened more as she faced Battousai, the glare she sent him would have killed Yamaguta had he not been hiding behind Battousai now.
"Well, what do we have here? A little girl playing dress up? How cute. Now, if you don't mind tell me who you are and remove your mask. I won't ask twice." Came the cold voice.
Kaoru glanced from his deadly amber eyes towards where her sister and three other men were standing. Her shoulders slumped. She had to at least tell her name, if Misao didn't remember, then there was nothing else she could do.
"My name is Kamiya Kaoru. You killed my father and mother eleven years ago and took my sister Kamiya Misao as well." She spoke, her voice strong as she removed the black mask from her face she tossed it to the ground. If she survived the night she had another one at home.
Battousai laughed at her. His amber eyes showed no amusement though. Kaoru could hear the gasp come from Misao and she looked sadly at her younger sister. The one she had sworn to protect.
"So you're the one who's been killing off my business partners?" Battousai stated more than asked. "What, decide to get a little revenge? I'm afraid little girl you're not yet big enough to handle me." His cold smile revealed two elongated teeth.
"Fuck you, you bastard. I'm not afraid of you. I could take you in my sleep. You're just a freak with an over inflated ego." She snapped, and could see his face become more serious. He stopped smiling and walked towards her.
Kaoru raised her sword slightly, pointing it at him. His glare sent shivers down her spine. She was afraid, but she would never admit that. She hadn't dreamed of taking him on for at least another couple of years. Now she was in over her head and sinking quickly.
"Well, if you say so." He spoke.
Kaoru hadn't even seen him move, but in a moment she had thrust up her katana in a block as he swung down quickly at her. She leapt to the side, her eyes watching his movements, trying to predict the next one. She watched her with an impassive face as he jumped and swung at her again, using his superior speed to keep her off guard. She had barely dodged that attack when she was jabbing at her. She dropped to the ground in a split as she blocked his next thrust with her sword. She rolled out of the way as the next one slammed into the wood flooring, damaging it with a loud crack.
Kaoru leaped to her feet and faced him, her dark blue eyes boring straight back into Battousai's own.
She was good. He had to give her credit. He had never come up against such a unique fighter. He had never seen the moves she performed. Her eyes are what caught his attention. They were deep, dark and held a deep hatred in them. He was toying with her. She was not to his level yet, but she was giving him a good workout. He smirked as he cut her upper arm, a thin trail of blood seeping from it. Her anger seemed to intensify and he was taken aback at how quickly she was attacking him now.
Kaoru spat out curses beneath her breath as she swung and hacked at him angrily. If she was going to die, she would go down kicking, screaming and making it difficult for him. She hadn't been paying attention to where they had been going while fighting, and now realized she was about two feet from one of the walls. Crap.
"I hate you!" She screamed as she flipped to the side and got a few feet away from him. Her body slid into an attack stance. This was one of her most effective moves. She had never tried it on a living person, or creature in his case, but there was a first for everything.
Battousai stopped and watched the girl go into a fighting stance. He did not know the move she was planning, but sensed her ki rising. It seemed to take on a life of its own and smacked against his with feelings of disgust and anger before subsiding into an aura of calm. He watched as the girl's eyes glanced at Misao. He kept himself from smiling. She still cared for her sister, but her sister knew nothing of her. He saw sadness take over her eyes briefly but they flashed back to anger in a moment.
Their father had broken a deal and betrayed Battousai. He never accepted betrayal. He had the man killed. His wife had tried to stop him, but he had killed her too. He knew that he had two daughters and that they were now gone. He had found them in town, with the owner of a restaurant, the Akebeko. He had seen only one girl, Misao. He had told Aoshi to grab, yet not harm her while he searched for the other one. At that moment she had appeared before him, same bright blue eyes as the woman before him now, yet she was innocent and kind then. He had tried to go after her, but a group of hunters had arrived. They knew what he was and he did not want to stay around and deal with the impudent fools, so he had settled with Misao.
Kaoru reached a hand down into her boot and removed to of the throwing knives. Holding them between her fingers, she sprang from her crouch and flew at Battousai. She tossed both knives, following with her own sword.
Battousai knocked the knives away with his sword, but did not anticipate to see her flying at him. He was too slow to completely deflect her attack, and a slash cut away part of his shirt. A little bit of blood seeped from the scratch across his chest. His amber eyes moved to meet Kaoru's own, challenging her to try that again.
She smirked, and sheathed her sword. Her arms reached behind her and brought out the two sai from earlier. She twirled them around in her hands and then crouched into another fighting stance. Her smiled faded as the two engaged eachother again.
She was even better with the sai that with her katana he noted as she narrowly missed his neck. Without warning Kaoru ducked below his swing and rolled back out of the way. She came up with her other two knives and tossed them at him.
The blur of movement was what caught her attention. Misao was running to stop the knives. She could be killed. Without thinking, Kaoru dove forward, dropping her sai and taking out her katana as she reached out to alter the path of the knives away from her sister.
Battousai watched the split second decision as Misao jumped infront of him, and Kaoru threw herself forward to stop her attack. She managed to knock the knives from the air and they clattered to the floor. Kaoru fell on her side with a loud 'umpf', pain lacing through her right side.
"Shit…" she mumbled, as she struggled to sit up. Her gaze turned to Misao who was approaching her with a sword in hand. Kaoru leapt to her feet, shock apparent on her face as she faced her little sister.
"What are you doing Misao?" Kaoru questioned. She never would have expected this from her sister, even if Misao had forgotten her.
"You tried to kill him." Misao ground out advancing towards Kaoru. Battousai motioned for the other men to stay where they were when Aoshi made a move to grab Misao.
"Let the sisters fight." Battousai said, stepping back. He watched Kaoru's face grow pale.
"I won't fight you Misao." Her voice was soft, but full of pain and confusion. Battousai grinned.
"Then you will die." Misao said as she charged at Kaoru. Kaoru could already see her sister's mistakes. She had been poorly trained. She was wild and unpredictable with her movements, yet missing almost completely each time.
Kaoru ducked a swipe, and thinking fast she flipped over Misao and cringing as she did so, slammed the hilt of her katana into the back of her head. Misao collapsed unconscious. Kaoru looked at Battousai, pain and anger showing in her eyes as she ran quickly from the house straight out the front door. She whistled frantically and was met with the sound of Ayana's hooves as the mare raced towards her. She leapt on, still running and the two disappeared down the road.
Aoshi, Sanosuke, and Yahiko ran towards Misao's fallen form. Kenshin walked out onto the front porch, his eyes following the sounds of the horses foot falls as they raced towards the tiny village two miles from there. He would find her. She had drawn blood, and now he was intent on finding and playing with his new toy. That's what she would be. A toy.
He walked back inside. Misao's head wound was minor, and Aoshi was already picking up her unconscious form.
"So that was the other sister?" Sanosuke asked, his eyes watching Battousai intently.
"Yes. I'll find her tomorrow." He stated and that was the end of the conversation. They had the carriage pulled to the front of the manor, and piled in. Misao would awake by morning with nothing more than a headache, and the other men had a feeling Battousai would be bringing home a new friend tomorrow evening.
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Well, I hope you all enjoyed it. All 11 pages.lol. Anyways, hopefully I'll update again. I have the next 3 days of freedom yayness for me...-
Enjoying Freedom, DHM
