Author's note: Hi everyone, this is my first story to post on this site! I'm not really sure where I'm going with it yet, but so far I'm having fun writing it because it combines my two favorite things--Rurouni Kenshin and music! I should warn you that this story is going to have a lot of alternate pairings, which I love. If you don't love them, maybe you should try reading them?
Disclaimer: I don't claim to own Rurouni Kenshin. I should also mention that I don't own the OC, Naruku, featured in this story. I am borrowing her from a really talented author named White Rabbit Tale, who has a whole series and some other fics with Naruku in them. Thanks White Rabbit for letting me use your wonderful character!
Chapter 1
Nineteen year old Kaoru burst through her front door. She had just run six miles and was very tired, not to mention sweaty. I need a bath, she thought faintly. She trudged upstairs and ran a warm shower for herself. She stepped into the steamy shower and let the warm water run over her, caressing her skin and washing away the remains of her day's toil. The water that swished down the drain was a faint blue color, a remainder of her last attempt to dye her hair.
She sighed and began singing, she was one of those stereotypical people who did that, though she sang rather well unlike most others.
"Come in
Come in
Come in to my world I've got to show, show, show you
Come in to my bed I've got to know, know, know you
I have dreams of orca whales and owls but I wake up in fear
You will never be my, you will never be my fool."
Her voice became more passionate as she launched into the chorus. And though she was only singing in the shower, with only hair-care products as an audience, it was important to her, as important as singing in a concert, or singing to her loved one might be.
"Floaters in my eyes
Wake up in an hotel room
Cigarettes and lies
I am a child, it's too soon
I have dreams of orca whales and owls
But I wake up in fear
You will never be my
You will never be my fool
Will never be my fool
A little bag of cocaine
A little bag of cocaine
So who's the girl wearing my dress
I figured out her number
Inside a paper napkin
But I don't know her address I wade downstairs--eep!" she yelped when she noticed a shadow moving around outside her window, which she had foolishly left open. She quickly reached around the shower curtain and grabbed a towel and wrapped it firmly around herself. She heard rustling outside. It could be a pervert! Yuuch. Or—oh no—maybe a serial rapist killer?! She didn't want to think about that. It could be just a cat too…but now she had to find out.
She went over to the window sill and stuck her head outside. "Hey! If anyone's out there be careful to read the 'beware of dog' sign!" she shouted into the night. "'Cause if your trying to steal from me or something you're not gonna get away with it!"
Suddenly a man popped out of the bushes. "Sorry to startle you miss!" he said, a bright smile on his face. He went on before she could respond, "I just heard you singing and I came over—you have a really pretty voice. Sorta got tangled in you're shrubs there—sorry. Oh, by the way, I'm Soujiro Seta from Arista Records. You've got some talent and I think you would do well if you considered becoming a singer. A professional singer, you've defiantly got potential." Kaoru, wide eyed at this proclamation, did the only thing a girl would do in her situation. She punched him.
Eighteen year old Misao was just about ready to tear off her green and gold embroidered apron and call it a day. Unfortunately she had promised Mitchan she would work over time. She needed the extra money anyway. She finished filling a steaming hot cup of hot chocolate and gave it to the lady, smiling pleasantly.
It was a gloomy day, a perfect day for coffee, so why did they have so few customers? It was probably that new coffee place over on Granger Blvd were all the hip teens hung out. They were taking all of Café De LeMarke's business with their trendy frappaccinos and luxurious sofas. Why hadn't she gotten s job there? She looked around the café, it was old, dusty and very cramped. She looked around at the few customers. Most of them were really old guys, or really old ladies. One old guy had a dog—maybe he was blind? Her attention shifted to a man sitting at a table, looking bored. Now that she looked more closely, he didn't look so much older than her—he looked about nineteen.
Just then, two girls came over to him, both of them wearing very little, considering it was a cold day. The first one was blond and very pretty, and she looked like a complete drip. The other had unnatural red-hair color and looked as though she was trying to pass as classy.
Bet they don't have anything better to do than flirt with that guy. And sure enough, they sat down across from him and started giggling and flirting with him.
Misao smiled to herself went into the cupboard to polish some of the old coffee mugs that were collecting dust. She hummed to herself as she did this, her little tune soon turning into a song.
"I look out of my bedroom window pane
Every day, but the view just stays the same
I was young I would run straight from this place
Come back home and then start it all again…
I know just what I want, I know just what I need
It's a big old house and it's coming back to haunt me
We'll be alright, we'll be easy
Dont look back, dont look back
Just c'mon, c'mon, c'mon!"
She tapped her foot to the beat absent-mindedly. She longed to be home in the stuffy basement with her drums.
"Look around at the people in this place
I'm afraid that we'll end up the same way
So let's rise, dye our hair, and change our names
Make a wish and just blow it all away—Oh, hello!" She stopped mid-verse as she spun around to come face to face with that man. "Can I take your order?"
"Er…no thanks, I just heard you singing," he replied.
Misao titled her head to the side as she set the coffee mug down.
"You like Guster?" he went on.
Misao nodded. "I love their songs. Great drumming."
"You play the drums?" he asked.
Misao beamed. "Yup! I'm thinking about starting my own band! I'm Misao by the way," she exclaimed, sticking her hand out for him to shake.
He looked down at her and smiled. "I'm Sanosuke Sagara."
"Hajimemashite Sano!" she replied cheerily. "Come around her sometime and maybe I let you have a free cappiccino!"
"You're allowed to do that?" he asked incredulously.
"If I don't get caught!"
Sano stared at her and then laughed. "Well, I gotta go. See you some time?"
"You can count on it—I work here!" she smiled.
He backed out of the café, laughing again.
Ninteteen year old Naruku lay sprawled on her bed with various books and school supplies strewn about her. With a concentrated look on her face, she studied the history book, laid out flat before her. Her eyes darted across the page, occasionally looking down so she could scribble notes onto her notebook.
Her eyes slid over to the phone on her bedside, as though daring it to ring. As if on cue, the phone began ringing, a loud, siren-like sound. Naru rolled her eyes and reached for the red phone, picked it up off the hook and dropped it non-chalantly back down. A few seconds later it rang again. This time she shouted "NO ENIZU!" before dropping it back down to hang up.
An hour later Naru was in the same position on the bed. By the time, though, she had realized she wasn't going to get any work done with her ex-boyfriend calling her over and over so she had unplugged the phone. After a few more minutes of scribbling down on a piece of paper she sat up.
"I'm done," she declared with satisfaction. She reached for the phone and held it up to her ear. Remembering she had unplugged it, she decided just to go over instead of calling.
She grabbed her long navy blue jacket and pulled it over her. She stepped out into the cold night air and headed over to the condominium on Westchester ave.
She walked into the lobby, which was completely empty at this time of night. Stepping into the dank elevator shaft, she sifted through her pockets until pulling out a glimmering silver key. When the elevator came to a halt at floor seven, she stepped out and went directly to room 706. Without pausing she stuck the key in the lock, turned it and stepped inside, as casually as if it were her own home.
"Aoshi-nee I'm here!" she called into the condo.
She sang softly to herself as she entered the room.
"I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth the fifth, the minor fall the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah…"
She flicked on the kitchen light and began rummaging around in the refrigerator. She emerged with an apple in one hand, a bucket of kentucky-fried chicken in the other and a bag of dried cranberries clenched between her teeth.
"Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelu-u-u--ujah
Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to the kitchen chair
She broke your throne, she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the hallelujah"
Her voice built up power as she walked into the living room and started munching on her snacks. She was now completely absorbed into the words that floating out of her mouth
"Baby I have been here before
I know this room, I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you.
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
Love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken—"
She stopped singing when she heard someone coming into the room.
"Oi! Aoshi-nee I'm here to make dinner for you!" she called. "And can you go to the store again and buy me some tampons? You know how embarrassed I get about that stuff."
She expected to hear an no answer, or maybe a 'get your own tampons Naru-chan, I'm not your errand-runner.' What she most certainly did not expect to hear was,
"Oro!" Thump.
Twenty-one year old Megumi was finding it extremely hard to stay upright with all the groceries in her hands. She could barely see in front of her. She knelt down next to a park bench to re-position the bags in her arms. She hummed as she did so, her humming finally breaking into song.
"And it's only doubts that we're counting
On fingers broken long ago
I read with every broken heart we should become
More adventurous
And if you banish me from your profits
And if I get banished from the kingdom up above
I'd sacrifice money and heaven all for love
Let me be loved, let me be loved—"
She cut herself off, as at that moment she had crashed into someone. She scrambled for her groceries which were already thrown around the street.
"I'm so sorry!" she cried to whoever she had crashed into. "Really sorry it's just that I couldn't see over the groceries and…" She stopped and looked up at the guy she had crashed into. Ice blue eyes stared back at her.
He was really hot. Like, really. He had classic good-looks, dark hair, and piercing blue eyes. So shocking blue that is almost scared her.
Wait, hadn't she seen him somewhere?
He might be a model. Maybe she had seen him on a billboard or something.
Or and actor…what movie was he in…?
No, it wasn't any of that…
"Hey, aren't you Aoshi?" she blurted.
There was no visual change in his expression but she could tell he had no idea who she was.
"Um…you know Naru, right?" she tried again.
"Hai."
"Yeah, I'm Megumi, her friend…from a long time ago," she stuck out a hand for him to shake, which he did.
"Nice to meet you Miss Megumi."
"Nice to meet you too."
Author's Note: The songs featured in this chapter are: "Hotel Song" by Regina Spektor, "C'mon" by Guster, "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen (but I like the Rufus Wainwright version) and "More Adventurous" by Rilo Kiley. Sorry if my music taste is kind of unknown--I will try to incorporate songs that everyone knows, but I liked these songs to introduce each character. Anyway, if you enjoyed this chapter, or didn't enjoy it, drop a review please! Summer's ending so flames will be used to keep warm.