Written: 11 July 2009
Posted: 11 July 2009, rev. 0
Category:Drama
Summary:Kenshin finally notices a difference in the condition of two women.
Disclaimer: The characters and story of Rurouni Kenshin are the property of Nobuhiro Watsuki, Shonen Jump, et al. Used without permission. This work is for entertainment only, and no profit is intended.
Notes:Inspired by Sueb262's Time to Wander Again
Glossary:At end of document.
Might Have Beens, Might Be Agains
The Revolutionary
In the night, he ached for her arms.
In the cool of evening, he hurt for the quiet click of her hashi as they ate.
In the sunlight, he missed the curve of her shoulder and arm as she worked in the crops.
Each day and hour, his sword dropped through her life again, and made his life one long absence of might-have-beens.
------ ------ ------
Under the sword lifted high
There is hell making you tremble.
But push on,
And you will enter a land of bliss.
—Unknown samurai on kufu
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The Rurouni
He did not, could not, look back, but her sobs and her presence went with him.
He saw her every step of the road: when the fireflies rose, when the rice was done, when he spotted iris blooming by a waterpath.
He felt her in every woman's laughter.
Her body filled his arms again as he lay warming in his blankets.
One day, he remembered two things. One could travel a road in two directions. His sword had not fallen on her.
For her, for him, it might be again.
Owari
Glossary
Hashi—known in English as chopsticks
Kufu—In martial arts, finding one's way out of a quandry by resorting to intuitive means. Strategy, in a specialized sense.
Owari—The end