Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue.
Title: Against the Laws of Time
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Starting now the stars will stop...
All nature is silenced,
With the ticking of the law and its measure.
F. Nietzsche
Aoshi ran through the movements with his kodachi, both blades spinning and slicing through the air in perfect unison, obeying the commands of his body with precision. He moved without fault, without sound and without hesitation... the blades an extension of himself. They were one. He loved practicing in the woods, alone, only the forest to keep him company and bear witness to his flawless movements; he wanted no audience to the skills that gave him an advantage over his enemies. Each night that the moon granted him the ability by filling the sky with light, Aoshi would leave the Aoiya and head out to the forest. Often staying for hours as he ran through every technique and maneuver he could, all without disturbing the quiet with his movements.
After two hours, every technique performed multiple times and his body spent Aoshi halted his movements. His breath visible in the cool spring air as he fought to control it, the sound filling the forest, his chest heaving as his lungs fought for more oxygen. If he could but repress this one shortcoming he would be perfect, unstoppable, maybe even the strongest ever. Aoshi almost laughed; to think of breathing too loud as a shortcoming was truly something only he would dream of.
"Even at seventeen you are this remarkable." Came a soft, female, voice from behind him. Before she could finish her sentence he had spun around, his two kodachi crossed at her throat, the tips pressed lightly into the tree that the spy, about to become his victim, was leaning against. He could not believe someone had actually surprised him and wondered just how long she'd been there. Aoshi's eyes narrowed as he instantly took in the girl's appearance, noting her distinctive clothing, her age near his own and the casual way she spoke to him. She seemed vaguely familiar yet he did not recognize her, was certain they had not met.
"You are Oniwabanshu?" His question was really a statement as the uniform she wore clearly indicated she was what he asked. He stepped back, watching as he waited for her reply.
"As you see." She bowed slightly and offered no further explanation, which was textbook Oniwabanshu; Yes or No without being too direct, she'd captured that theory perfectly.
Still it did not explain who she was and he could not for the life of him recall seeing her at the Aoiya, although it was clear she knew who he was. Trying to cover his discomfort over being at a disadvantage in this girl's company, Aoshi sheathed his kodachi and turned to fetch the small flask of water from the ground where he'd left it earlier. After taking several gulps he offered it to her which she declined. He cursed silently as he was hoping to buy more time and perhaps figure out who she was. It appeared that he would have to resort to conversation for that discovery.
"Have we met?" He asked after several moments of silence. She seemed to eye him with a look of what he could only call incredulity for several minutes before straightening against the tree where she was now leaning, her eyes boring into his as she spoke.
"We have been in each others company many times, Aoshi-sama." Her soft voice delivered yet another textbook answer, affirmation without details; one he was certain could not be true.
He let his eyes roam over her petite frame, noting the almost indecent amount of her legs exposed. His eyes traveled up, missing nothing, making quick note of the long braid of black hair that hung over her shoulder, finally coming to rest on her face. Her features matched the rest of her, petite; a tiny mouth and small nose. Everything about her was small, except her eyes… wide, blue eyes, the color of the clearest summer sky… one could easily lose themselves in them. They were beautiful. She was beautiful and he doubted very much that he would have forgotten her, no matter how brief their meeting.
"Perhaps you are confused because like Hanya, I do not always appear as I am now." She offered. Surprising him with her answer because he had not realized he'd spoken aloud or maybe he'd simply revealed himself without speaking, something he'd struggled hard to over come. Something he'd performed without fault until now…
Always good at reading people Aoshi tried to get a sense of her chi, not difficult as she made no attempt to hide it, which he thought rather strange, considering her profession, even more strange however was the sense that she was somehow… familiar, yet not. Stranger still was, although he could sense nothing but the truth from her, he was certain that they had never met.
"You are not wearing a mask." He stated plainly as the possibility of her words sank in and were quickly dismissed. To make certain, he raised his hand and brushed his fingers lightly across her cheek, her soft skin confirming that she was definitely not wearing a mask. She gasped in surprise and Aoshi, suddenly aware of what he was doing pulled his hand back immediately, not sure what had tempted him to take such liberties with a stranger, with anyone for that matter.
She smiled in response to his obvious discomfort and Aoshi's breath caught as he stared transfixed at the metamorphosis of the girl in front of him. Her smile did not merely touch her mouth but appeared in her eyes, her face glowing radiant and if he thought her rather beautiful before, she was breathtaking now. The light from her smile did not contain itself completely within her, it reached out and gently bathed everything surrounding her, including him. Much as he had been compelled to touch her face earlier he was now compelled to offer her his own smile in return for the honor of allowing him to see hers.
Aoshi watched her face change again from disbelief to wonder and finally settling into a kind of contented hopefulness.
"What a nice smile you have Aoshi-sama." She surprised him again, not merely with her words but also the wistful quality with which she spoke them. She stepped closer to him, crossing into a nearness that was too close for his comfort he stiffened and narrowed his eyes. She did not miss the sudden change in his manner or the severe look and advanced no further, still she made no attempt to move back outside his personal space she had invaded and he wasn't entirely certain he wanted her to.
"Who are you?" He demanded growing uncomfortable with the unwelcome and disquieting feelings plaguing him. "What is your name?"
"Mi… " She began, then hesitated several seconds before continuing. "Mirai." Aoshi didn't miss the hesitation and felt a slight, if only momentary change in her as she did so.
"That's a rather unusual name." He commented not believing it to be her name at all, he was sure she had her reasons for calling herself that but he did not question her on it. For one, it was late, his work out had been strenuous enough without all this extra emotional stuff exhausting him further. All he wanted right now was to collapse onto his futon and sleep, he turned and took a few steps until he was at the edge of the clearing and stopped.
"I am going back to the Aoiya, you are welcome to join me." He turned back to look at her as he spoke, witnessing again that lovely smile of hers as she shook her head in refusal.
"Thank you but I want to enjoy the night for a few more minutes." She sounded wistful again. "You go on ahead." He hesitated, not sure why he did not want to leave her there, unprotected and alone, then silently reprimanded himself for being so foolish. She was Oniwabanshu after all and did not become so because she was helpless and unable to take care of herself. Still… he hesitated a moment longer before dismissing his uncertainty as ridiculous.
"Oyasumi Mirai."
"Oyasumi Aoshi-sama." She whispered and he nodded before turning and disappearing into the darkness of the forest.
Misao marveled at the power of the full moon as she made her way to the Aoiya, she hoped no one would notice her sneaking back inside at such a late hour, if so she would simply tell them that she had gone outside to get some fresh air. The one who had granted her this small miracle had told her that time would pass at different speeds in both places, while she was experiencing hours there, this place, the Kyoto of her time, would only gain a few minutes.
As she climbed the few steps leading to the door and neither the overly protective Okon or Omasu appeared to reprimand her, Misao decided to sit and reflect for a bit on the events of the last couple of hours in that other place, that other time.
"Aoshi-sama." She whispered gazing up at the full moon, a thoughtful smile on her lips.
