This is basically a continuation of my vignette "Rainy Dawn" and is a
greatly expanded retelling of episode 1 from Kenshin's POV. This fic was
actually suggested by someone on the RKFF mailing list; they made the valid
point that no one's covered the time between Kaoru fainting and Kenshin
making breakfast at her dojo. I sort of took it from there, and it just
kept getting longer and longer…anyways, I really tried to make this more
than a rehash of episode one and tried to stick to the holes in the
timeline that neither the anime or manga cover. It's nice to be writing
again, though I seem to only have time for shorter stuff -_-;; Oh well,
enjoy! This whole story is completely written and has three parts, I'll be
sending the other two parts along shortly. Please please review!
Of Love and Circumstance
Part 1
By Calger459
~*~
I think Buddha gets great amusement from me, though why the gods would want to toy with my life I can't honestly fathom. Maybe it's closer to a comment my master made to me long ago, when he'd said that I was "a magnet for trouble." I'd innocently asked him what a "magnet" was. A disgusted "Stupid *and* ignorant!" was my only response to that one. Such was life with my master.
Shishou…it's strange that I would think of you on a day such as this. Only a few hours after my arrival, I am standing in the gentle light of the early morning sun in Tokyo, a young woman in my arms. This has only happened to me once before; the last time a girl fainted in my embrace, my life changed forever.
This situation has already become hopelessly complicated. I've now seen the man claiming to be Battousai, and I curse the pain he's caused this young girl, using her family's style to shed more innocent blood in *my* name.
I look down at the girl's sleeping face, and I can see the lines of exhaustion around her eyes. How long has she been chasing after that man- giant? I could hardly believe my eyes when I rounded the corner to find her squaring off against the swordsman, who is more than twice the size of either of us, armed only with a bokken. He was using a katana, and she'd somehow gotten herself backed against a wall, a serious cut on her arm. "Reckless," I remember thinking, "no matter how skilled you may be in your budo, no wooden sword can last long against a real one."
With the lightning speed that had once made me a legend, I swept her from under his blade before he could cleave her in half. He had fled at the sound of the police, screaming all the while that he was the Hitokiri Battousai of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu school.
You fool. You probably haven't realized that you've attracted the attention of the real hitokiri, and he is *not* pleased.
I crush my dark thoughts ruthlessly, ordering Battousai to be quiet. Now is not the time for battle. First, I have to figure out what to do with the girl.
She is light and warm in my arms, and I find myself again staring at her face. An instant later I realize how inappropriate this situation is. I blush a little as I head back in the direction of the run-down dojo I'd passed earlier. I presume she came from there, though I can't be sure. If it's not her home, then maybe the residents can tell me where she does live.
The sign on the gate says "Kamiya Kasshin School". This must be the right place. I nudge the unlocked gate open with my shoulder, announcing myself loudly. There is no answer, and as I carry her through the grounds I become convinced that she lives here alone. One of the larger rooms contains a neatly hung kimono and a folded futon in the corner; this must be her room. Laying her down gently, I prepare the bed for her. She is bleeding lightly from her arm; the least I can do is clean and bandage it for her. Leaving her on the soft futon, I go in search of the kitchen. It's a small affair, with a modest-sized stove. I find the pantry to be decently stocked, with fresh ingredients for miso. At least breakfast is doable, I reflect ruefully as I boil water to cleanse her arm.
Back in her room, steaming towels in hand, I find myself suddenly reluctant to pull down the sleeve of her gi. Watching her sleep, I'm reminded forcefully of the first night Tomoe stayed in my room at the Ishinshishi's inn. I had refused to touch her, even to clean the blood off her face and clothes. I knew nothing about women and I was still in shock over the events of the evening, so I'd had Okami-san, the innkeeper, take care of everything. Such a kind woman.
This time though I have no Okami-san, and I'll be damned if I'll let this poor girl lie here bloodied. I'm twenty-eight years old now for heaven's sake! I shouldn't be nervous about such things. Steeling myself, I pull her sleeve down and breathe a sigh of relief when I see that her breasts are well bound. I'd half expected her to be naked under there...my nose tingles at the very thought. Forcing myself to concentrate on the task at hand, I quickly clean and dress the cut, which fortunately for her is quite shallow. It could have been much worse, given the size of her opponent. Was it skill, or just luck that let her avoid further injury?
I straighten her gi and tuck her gently under the covers, taking care not to wake her. Actually, I'm amazed she's stayed asleep this long. She must be exhausted. I leave her and set about making breakfast. The kitchen is actually quite a jumbled mess; she's left things lying out in the open everywhere. I get the feeling that it's not because she's messy, but because she's had more important things to worry about. From what I could see from the rest of the dojo, she has not been doing well. In general, everything I saw was neat and orderly, but the house is covered in a fine layer of dust and one room is filled with a veritable mountain of laundry. I haven't seen another soul since I brought her here. Does she really live alone? I can't even imagine trying to maintain a house, a dojo and grounds all by myself. No wonder this place seems so neglected; it has probably become so despite her best efforts. Where in the world is her family? Very, very strange...
Studying the kitchen, I decide it might be better to make the miso outside. She may not take kindly to me being here, and I don't want to seem as if I'm taking advantage of her in any way. Through long practice I prepare a fire and set a large pot of miso to boil. While I wait I take another, more thorough tour of the grounds. Near the house is the dojo building, a good-sized storage shed, a large well, a lovely little garden and pond...she has a nice home here. I halfway entertain the thought of doing her laundry, as I have to earn my keep countless times in the last decade, but am interrupted by a soft knock at the gate.
"Kaoru-neesan? Are you home?"
Kaoru? Is that the girl's name? Well, I suppose I should answer the door. "She's asleep right now. May I ask who this is?" I open the gate and find myself staring down at a pair of young girls, perhaps five and seven, dressed in simple kimono. They're quite adorable actually, and I find myself smiling warmly at them.
The girls stare back, eyes wide with shock. "Who are you?" the older one asks. "We've never seen you before!"
"Our sister lives alone!" the younger one adds, confusion on her face.
Oh dear...I have to think quickly. "I...helped her this morning. She asked me to make breakfast for her. I'm sure she'll be awake soon, would you like to join us?"
This provokes the most interesting reaction from the girls. They seem almost...delighted. They exchange excited looks, and then the older one gives me an appraising stare. "Are you a good cook, then?"
A gruff, choked "baka deshi!" echoes in the mists of my brain, related to my first horrid attempts at making breakfast for my master. I'd like to think I've improved a bit since then. I can't stop a smile spreading across my face; this is the most pleasant morning I've had in a long, long time. "So I've been told, yes."
"No one's gotten sick from your food?"
"Uh....no, I don't think so."
"You mean they really don't die?" This comes from the younger one, who's looking happier by the minute. I must be missing a very funny joke.
"Are they supposed to?"
The older one starts to giggle, followed by the younger. Now I'm really confused. "I'm glad you're making breakfast! You'll have to make some for Grandpa too later!"
"Grandpa"? Their caretaker, I guess. Is he Kaoru's grandfather as well? It strikes me as odd that she would live apart from her family, if indeed these girls are her sisters. I don't think they live with her, as I saw little evidence of young children around the dojo. I'm still a bit confused, but I imagine all will be explained later. I invite them inside again and this time they agree without hesitation.
I've always been amazed at my ability to get along with children. Even when I was still a hitokiri hiding in Otsu, the village children would always come to play at our house. They feel at ease around me, which is something I don't understand. After all that I've done, all the pain I've caused, how can I possibly be deserving of the trust of children? It just doesn't make sense.
I invent a little game for them where they have to dance around the yard with a broom (learning to sweep as they do), and they tell me their names: Ayame and Suzame. As they play I prepare the soup and some onigirii, and within a few moments they're excitedly helping me get ingredients from the kitchen. They seem to know this place well; when I ask the older girl to get a spoon, she runs inside and is back less than a minute later, utensil in hand. Handing me the spoon, she looks me over thoughtfully. Her sister meanwhile has found a paper ball and is busy chasing it around the yard.
"You haven't told us your name yet."
"I am a rurouni de gozaru."
"Rurouni?" she asks, with a puzzled look. "What kind of a name is that?"
I just smile and wink at her. I adopted a sort of policy with regards to my true name a long time ago. For my own protection and the safety of those around me, it's best that I remain anonymous. "It is a little silly, isn't it? That's what I'm called though."
She giggles. "Okay, Rurouni-nii!"
I laugh at the way she's changed my "name". "Older brother Rurouni". They're so trusting, so kind. They set my troubled heart at ease, and it isn't long before the three of us are laughing easily together. I hardly notice when the porch door slides open behind me, revealing the very startled face of the girl. "What are you doing?"
Is she angry with me? I can't really blame her if she is; I've practically made myself at home without her permission. Nevertheless I smile disarmingly up at her, Rurouni mask firmly in place. "Just making a little breakfast. Would you like to join us? Your sisters are very cute; we've become good friends already." Almost as if we'd rehearsed it, Ayame and Suzame run to my side, each hugging an arm.
"Friend, friend!" They chant together, beaming up at their older sister.
The look on her face is priceless as one of the sisters grabs the tray of onigirii and runs up to her with it. "Would you like some onigirii?" I ask hopefully. Please forgive me, I want to say. For saving you, bandaging your wound, cooking with your food, and for lying to your little sisters, because I am just a stranger and you don't know me at all and if you did you'd probably want me dead, or at least as far away from your family as you could comfortably send me without killing me...
It takes all my will to keep my troubled thoughts from showing on my face. I must smile for her, I must look innocent for her so that she will trust me, because I have to find out about this swordsman and stop him before it's too late. She stares at me for a long moment and I force myself to meet her gaze. She picks up a rice ball, which I decorated for the girls to look like a rabbit, and takes a cautious bite. A look of shock crosses her face and for a moment I'm genuinely afraid that I messed something up and that it tastes bad, which is exactly what I ask her, my eyes wide and panicked.
The strangest look crosses her face, an odd combination of emotions that I can't quite describe. "Actually...it's that you cook better than me."
I promptly keel over in relief.
~*~
On to part 2…
Notes: Yeah I know, Ayame and Suzame are useless balls of fluff that weren't in the manga, but this fic was spawned from a Vignette challenge piece, which had to be placed in anime context, so I stuck with it. Besides, I think they function as rather nice foils for Kenshin, even if they weren't in the original version. So there ;)
Of Love and Circumstance
Part 1
By Calger459
~*~
I think Buddha gets great amusement from me, though why the gods would want to toy with my life I can't honestly fathom. Maybe it's closer to a comment my master made to me long ago, when he'd said that I was "a magnet for trouble." I'd innocently asked him what a "magnet" was. A disgusted "Stupid *and* ignorant!" was my only response to that one. Such was life with my master.
Shishou…it's strange that I would think of you on a day such as this. Only a few hours after my arrival, I am standing in the gentle light of the early morning sun in Tokyo, a young woman in my arms. This has only happened to me once before; the last time a girl fainted in my embrace, my life changed forever.
This situation has already become hopelessly complicated. I've now seen the man claiming to be Battousai, and I curse the pain he's caused this young girl, using her family's style to shed more innocent blood in *my* name.
I look down at the girl's sleeping face, and I can see the lines of exhaustion around her eyes. How long has she been chasing after that man- giant? I could hardly believe my eyes when I rounded the corner to find her squaring off against the swordsman, who is more than twice the size of either of us, armed only with a bokken. He was using a katana, and she'd somehow gotten herself backed against a wall, a serious cut on her arm. "Reckless," I remember thinking, "no matter how skilled you may be in your budo, no wooden sword can last long against a real one."
With the lightning speed that had once made me a legend, I swept her from under his blade before he could cleave her in half. He had fled at the sound of the police, screaming all the while that he was the Hitokiri Battousai of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu school.
You fool. You probably haven't realized that you've attracted the attention of the real hitokiri, and he is *not* pleased.
I crush my dark thoughts ruthlessly, ordering Battousai to be quiet. Now is not the time for battle. First, I have to figure out what to do with the girl.
She is light and warm in my arms, and I find myself again staring at her face. An instant later I realize how inappropriate this situation is. I blush a little as I head back in the direction of the run-down dojo I'd passed earlier. I presume she came from there, though I can't be sure. If it's not her home, then maybe the residents can tell me where she does live.
The sign on the gate says "Kamiya Kasshin School". This must be the right place. I nudge the unlocked gate open with my shoulder, announcing myself loudly. There is no answer, and as I carry her through the grounds I become convinced that she lives here alone. One of the larger rooms contains a neatly hung kimono and a folded futon in the corner; this must be her room. Laying her down gently, I prepare the bed for her. She is bleeding lightly from her arm; the least I can do is clean and bandage it for her. Leaving her on the soft futon, I go in search of the kitchen. It's a small affair, with a modest-sized stove. I find the pantry to be decently stocked, with fresh ingredients for miso. At least breakfast is doable, I reflect ruefully as I boil water to cleanse her arm.
Back in her room, steaming towels in hand, I find myself suddenly reluctant to pull down the sleeve of her gi. Watching her sleep, I'm reminded forcefully of the first night Tomoe stayed in my room at the Ishinshishi's inn. I had refused to touch her, even to clean the blood off her face and clothes. I knew nothing about women and I was still in shock over the events of the evening, so I'd had Okami-san, the innkeeper, take care of everything. Such a kind woman.
This time though I have no Okami-san, and I'll be damned if I'll let this poor girl lie here bloodied. I'm twenty-eight years old now for heaven's sake! I shouldn't be nervous about such things. Steeling myself, I pull her sleeve down and breathe a sigh of relief when I see that her breasts are well bound. I'd half expected her to be naked under there...my nose tingles at the very thought. Forcing myself to concentrate on the task at hand, I quickly clean and dress the cut, which fortunately for her is quite shallow. It could have been much worse, given the size of her opponent. Was it skill, or just luck that let her avoid further injury?
I straighten her gi and tuck her gently under the covers, taking care not to wake her. Actually, I'm amazed she's stayed asleep this long. She must be exhausted. I leave her and set about making breakfast. The kitchen is actually quite a jumbled mess; she's left things lying out in the open everywhere. I get the feeling that it's not because she's messy, but because she's had more important things to worry about. From what I could see from the rest of the dojo, she has not been doing well. In general, everything I saw was neat and orderly, but the house is covered in a fine layer of dust and one room is filled with a veritable mountain of laundry. I haven't seen another soul since I brought her here. Does she really live alone? I can't even imagine trying to maintain a house, a dojo and grounds all by myself. No wonder this place seems so neglected; it has probably become so despite her best efforts. Where in the world is her family? Very, very strange...
Studying the kitchen, I decide it might be better to make the miso outside. She may not take kindly to me being here, and I don't want to seem as if I'm taking advantage of her in any way. Through long practice I prepare a fire and set a large pot of miso to boil. While I wait I take another, more thorough tour of the grounds. Near the house is the dojo building, a good-sized storage shed, a large well, a lovely little garden and pond...she has a nice home here. I halfway entertain the thought of doing her laundry, as I have to earn my keep countless times in the last decade, but am interrupted by a soft knock at the gate.
"Kaoru-neesan? Are you home?"
Kaoru? Is that the girl's name? Well, I suppose I should answer the door. "She's asleep right now. May I ask who this is?" I open the gate and find myself staring down at a pair of young girls, perhaps five and seven, dressed in simple kimono. They're quite adorable actually, and I find myself smiling warmly at them.
The girls stare back, eyes wide with shock. "Who are you?" the older one asks. "We've never seen you before!"
"Our sister lives alone!" the younger one adds, confusion on her face.
Oh dear...I have to think quickly. "I...helped her this morning. She asked me to make breakfast for her. I'm sure she'll be awake soon, would you like to join us?"
This provokes the most interesting reaction from the girls. They seem almost...delighted. They exchange excited looks, and then the older one gives me an appraising stare. "Are you a good cook, then?"
A gruff, choked "baka deshi!" echoes in the mists of my brain, related to my first horrid attempts at making breakfast for my master. I'd like to think I've improved a bit since then. I can't stop a smile spreading across my face; this is the most pleasant morning I've had in a long, long time. "So I've been told, yes."
"No one's gotten sick from your food?"
"Uh....no, I don't think so."
"You mean they really don't die?" This comes from the younger one, who's looking happier by the minute. I must be missing a very funny joke.
"Are they supposed to?"
The older one starts to giggle, followed by the younger. Now I'm really confused. "I'm glad you're making breakfast! You'll have to make some for Grandpa too later!"
"Grandpa"? Their caretaker, I guess. Is he Kaoru's grandfather as well? It strikes me as odd that she would live apart from her family, if indeed these girls are her sisters. I don't think they live with her, as I saw little evidence of young children around the dojo. I'm still a bit confused, but I imagine all will be explained later. I invite them inside again and this time they agree without hesitation.
I've always been amazed at my ability to get along with children. Even when I was still a hitokiri hiding in Otsu, the village children would always come to play at our house. They feel at ease around me, which is something I don't understand. After all that I've done, all the pain I've caused, how can I possibly be deserving of the trust of children? It just doesn't make sense.
I invent a little game for them where they have to dance around the yard with a broom (learning to sweep as they do), and they tell me their names: Ayame and Suzame. As they play I prepare the soup and some onigirii, and within a few moments they're excitedly helping me get ingredients from the kitchen. They seem to know this place well; when I ask the older girl to get a spoon, she runs inside and is back less than a minute later, utensil in hand. Handing me the spoon, she looks me over thoughtfully. Her sister meanwhile has found a paper ball and is busy chasing it around the yard.
"You haven't told us your name yet."
"I am a rurouni de gozaru."
"Rurouni?" she asks, with a puzzled look. "What kind of a name is that?"
I just smile and wink at her. I adopted a sort of policy with regards to my true name a long time ago. For my own protection and the safety of those around me, it's best that I remain anonymous. "It is a little silly, isn't it? That's what I'm called though."
She giggles. "Okay, Rurouni-nii!"
I laugh at the way she's changed my "name". "Older brother Rurouni". They're so trusting, so kind. They set my troubled heart at ease, and it isn't long before the three of us are laughing easily together. I hardly notice when the porch door slides open behind me, revealing the very startled face of the girl. "What are you doing?"
Is she angry with me? I can't really blame her if she is; I've practically made myself at home without her permission. Nevertheless I smile disarmingly up at her, Rurouni mask firmly in place. "Just making a little breakfast. Would you like to join us? Your sisters are very cute; we've become good friends already." Almost as if we'd rehearsed it, Ayame and Suzame run to my side, each hugging an arm.
"Friend, friend!" They chant together, beaming up at their older sister.
The look on her face is priceless as one of the sisters grabs the tray of onigirii and runs up to her with it. "Would you like some onigirii?" I ask hopefully. Please forgive me, I want to say. For saving you, bandaging your wound, cooking with your food, and for lying to your little sisters, because I am just a stranger and you don't know me at all and if you did you'd probably want me dead, or at least as far away from your family as you could comfortably send me without killing me...
It takes all my will to keep my troubled thoughts from showing on my face. I must smile for her, I must look innocent for her so that she will trust me, because I have to find out about this swordsman and stop him before it's too late. She stares at me for a long moment and I force myself to meet her gaze. She picks up a rice ball, which I decorated for the girls to look like a rabbit, and takes a cautious bite. A look of shock crosses her face and for a moment I'm genuinely afraid that I messed something up and that it tastes bad, which is exactly what I ask her, my eyes wide and panicked.
The strangest look crosses her face, an odd combination of emotions that I can't quite describe. "Actually...it's that you cook better than me."
I promptly keel over in relief.
~*~
On to part 2…
Notes: Yeah I know, Ayame and Suzame are useless balls of fluff that weren't in the manga, but this fic was spawned from a Vignette challenge piece, which had to be placed in anime context, so I stuck with it. Besides, I think they function as rather nice foils for Kenshin, even if they weren't in the original version. So there ;)