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Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or any of its characters at all. I only own my character Yukimura Sorano, but seriously, if I owned them wouldn't I be too busy playing with Saito?
Of The Sky
Prologue
The moon shined brightly as a group of slave traders walked down the road. It was quite silent except for the sounds of the horses and the wagons. Each person was silent, knowing that the road was long and far.
The slaves knew that their life had little meaning now. They now only serve. The grim and expressionless faces walked by.
But, among them, the laughter of two small children could be heard. These two children were sitting on the edge of a wagon. One was five and had bright red hair. He was small, but had extraordinary eyes. They were blue mixed with purple. It was a sight to see.
The girl sitting next to the young boy, had hair as black as night but had eyes that lit up the night. They were bright blue. She was eight and was like an older sister to the boy. She smiled at the young boy.
"Shinta-chan! You shouldn't laugh so hard! You'll fall off." the girl said worriedly.
Wiping a tear from his eye, Shinta-chan said, "Don't worry, Sorano-chan!"
"Shinta-chan! Sorano-chan! Please quiet down a bit." said Rei, joining to the two children.
Rei was a woman who has taken care of these children for a long time, ever since they were sold into slavery.
"I'm sorry, Rei-san, but it was entirely Sorano-chan's fault!" said Shinta pointing at Sorano.
"What?! Shinta-chan!" said Sorano hitting Shinta on the head.
"Ow!"
Rei started laughing very softly at the sight of the two children. They've gotten awfully close together since they first met each other.
"Stop it you two. You don't have to be silent, but at least quiet down." said Rei smiling.
"We've made Rei-san smile!" said Shinta smiling proudly.
"Shh! Didn't Rei-san just tell you to quiet down?" Sorano said.
"Oh. Yeah."
Rei just smiled once more, but hid it behind her hand.
As the two children laughed, little did they know that someone out there was watching.
"Shinta-chan, it's awfully quiet today." Sorano said carefully.
"It is." said Shinta, looking around.
Both were quiet for a moment.
"It probably isn't anything." said Shinta reassuringly.
Just as Shinta said this, the group of slave traders was surrounded by bandits.
Rei realized this and quickly got the two children down.
"Sorano-chan! Shinta-chan! Get under the wagon!" she whispered as she pushed the two under the wagon.
Screams were soon heard.
Just as both children looked away to see the others fall, they noticed that Rei-san had fallen.
"REI-SAN!" screamed both children.
"Please. You two must live." whispered Rei as tears escaped her eyes, and as she breathed her last breath.
"NO!" yelled Shinta.
The bandit turned around at the sound of Shinta's cry. His cruel black eyes finally settled on the two children. He saw them under the wagon and started to advance toward them.
"You thought you two could escape?" asked the bandit with a nasty grin.
The bandit was about to reach the two terrified children when he suddenly stopped. A cold look of realization and shock was on the bandit's face as he fell. The two children holding each other watched as the man died in front of them.
Now in front of the two children was a very tall and muscular man. Handsome, but dark and had a white cape on him.
The man looked over at the children and walked away without a word.
"Wait!" Sorano said with tears running down her face.
"What are we to do?"
The man stopped for a moment. "Anything" he replied and kept on walking.
"Sorano-chan." said Shinta holding on to Sorano.
"Please let us leave."
Sorano looked into his eyes and saw the shock and emptiness.
The Next Day.
Hiko Seijuro was walking through the forest thinking deeply. He walked with a jug of sake. Bringing the jug to his lips he recounted last night's events.
"Bandits. No matter how much blood I spill... It never seems to cease." he muttered as he walked on into a clearing.
He saw the two young children from the night before, but what astounded him were the graves they built.
"You built graves for the bandits too?" he asked standing next to the children casting a look at the graves in front of him.
They were not built with grace, but would do.
"It wasn't right to let them rot on the road." answered Sorano.
"..."
After a silence, Hiko decided.
"You two will become my apprentices. I will give you my precious knowledge."
It was not a question, but rather a statement.
"Knowledge? Of the sword?" Sorano asked looking surprised.
Shinta breaking his long lasted silence said, "I accept." The young boy looked up at Hiko.
"Your name?" Hiko asked.
"Himura Shinta."
"And yours?" moving his gaze to the girl.
"Yukimura Sorano."
"Himura Shinta... hmph. Shinta. You will change your name to Kenshin. Shinta is too softhearted for a swordsman." he said. "But Yukimura Sorano. Of the Wind. Fitting."
Hiko said no more except, "Come." With this word Hiko turned around and left. Not checking whether the two followed, simply knowing. To be stripped of everything you once held dear…