Disclaimer: This is just for fun. Shameless, shameless fun.
Authors Notes: This story is intended as an alternative resolution to the series, in place of the Jinchuu arc. In the interest of characters staying in-character I may include scenes and dialogue from the English translation of the manga, which will be incorporated into a plot of my own design.
Prologue
"I wandered lonely as a Cloud…" —William Wordsworth
The late-summer sun blazed, hot and merciless in the cloudless sky: its heat effecting a lethargy that extended into every corner of Tokyo. Even the cicadas were exhausted, sounding their choruses in jittery sighs. Life at the Kamiya Dojo had come to a standstill by mid-afternoon. Kaoru was seated on the shaded porch, reclining against a wooden beam drifting in and out of sleep—a fan held loosely, useless in her left hand. She had not even considered training that day: by mid-morning the heat was already so intense that neither she nor Yahiko wanted to move, let alone do exercises. Yahiko had gotten over his laziness however, when Sanosuke came by and suggested that he, Kenshin, and Yahiko go for a swim down at the river. Yahiko had readily accepted—anything to get some relief from the scorching sun—but Kenshin, claiming that he had chores to attend to, declined the offer.
"C'mon Kenshin! You aren't seriously considering doing laundry in this weather! I mean, it's like a million degrees out—" Sanosuke had argued.
"Yea Kenshin, let's go. Ugly can do the laundry this time—plus we can grab lunch at the Akabeko and we won't have to eat her awful cooking. We're suffering enough as it is in this heat wave." Yahiko's remark earned him a death stare from Kaoru, but nothing more. It was too hot to argue.
"I appreciate the offer, that I do, but I think I really would rather stay here today. There's too much to do around the dojo, and I need to go to the market later to buy some miso and tofu for dinner. If it's this hot again tomorrow I will go swimming with you, I promise," replied Kenshin.
"Well, suit yourself. But I don't wanna hear about it if you get sick from working in this heat. See ya later Missy." And with that, Sanosuke and Yahiko left the dojo.
Two hours later, Kenshin had indeed done laundry, which was drying rapidly. For awhile at least he had lost the energy to do anything else. He joined Kaoru on the porch and now sat, legs crossed, near its edge, just a few feet from her. Large beads of sweat dripped from his hair and down his face, but, having slipped into a quiet reverie, he failed to notice.
Kaoru, who had drifted off again, opened her eyes slowly but did not stir. She saw that Kenshin was seated by her and studied his profile for a few moments. He looked quite handsome, as usual, but for the moment Kaoru was more concerned about the look on his face. He did not have a particularly definable expression, but Kaoru could tell that he was deep in thought. She wondered, with great curiosity, what he could be thinking about that would absorb him so. Debating only briefly whether or not to disturb him, she called his name quietly. "Kenshin?" He seemed not to have heard her; "Kenshin?" she spoke a little louder this time, being careful not to startle him.
Kenshin awoke from his stupor, seeming confused for a short moment. "I'm very sorry Miss Kaoru, I thought you were asleep," he said, shifting his gaze from the dojo's yard to Kaoru. They stared at one another for a brief instant, and then Kenshin smiled at Kaoru who returned the gesture with a smirk before turning her gaze to the yard. The two sat in comfortable silence for a few moments before Kaoru spoke again. "Kenshin, what were you thinking about just now," she did not turn to face him.
"Oh, nothing important. Just memories I suppose. I try not to think about my past too much, but it is difficult sometimes…" Kaoru seemed to be thinking this over before she replied.
"Do you ever think about the future? I mean, do you have hopes about what the future may bring?"
Kenshin paused. This question took him off guard. It was an unsettling question for him owing to a multitude of yet-to-be-overcome inhibitions. He decided to reply with cautious abstraction and pray that she would not press him too much for his thoughts on the issue. "I do think about the future sometimes. And I have hopes for what it will bring, I suppose. But I have learned, through many hard lessons, that the future is always uncertain. So I try not to dwell on it, just as I try not to dwell on the past…" Kenshin paused for a moment before going on; "Change always comes—perhaps it will soon come to the Kamiya Dojo. But what that change may be I do not know, that I do not." Kenshin said with tentative finality.
Both he and Kaoru knew that he was avoiding a certain topic: their future—together. Kaoru had tried to discuss this with Kenshin several times, but to no avail. She tried to ask subtly. It was such a delicate topic that she was afraid to be too direct, and each time Kenshin avoided the subject. He was not avoiding the discussion because he wanted to; he simply could not find the words to tell her how he felt. He knew that when the right time came he could tell her he loved her—that was not the problem. But he had other feelings: concerns that he could not put into words…
Sensing that Kenshin was being deliberately vague about the question, Kaoru decided that it was time to drop the subject. She would force him (sometime soon) to sit down and talk to her, but the hottest day in August was not the appropriate forum. His words had unsettled her a bit though, and she wasn't entirely sure how to proceed. All she could think to say was, "I wonder, too."
They sat in silence for a few more minutes, not looking at each other, until suddenly Kaoru realized that they had not eaten anything for lunch and that Kenshin had yet to go to the market. "Kenshin, we haven't even eaten lunch!" she exclaimed, shattering the contemplative mood completely—she now had food on the brain.
"Oro! You're right Miss Kaoru—at this rate I'll be returning from the market after Sano and Yahiko get back."
"Well, if we make lunch together and then both go to the market and split up we should have plenty of time! Besides Kenshin, if you hadn't been so lazy this morning we wouldn't be in this pickle," added Kaoru smugly.
"Oro? But Miss Kaoru I at least did the laundry—you took a nap that lasted the whole morning—"
"What did you say?! Are you calling me lazy?" Kaoru gritted her teeth and pushed Kenshin before he had a chance to reply. Kenshin smiled and scratched the back of his head nervously as he rose and went inside to get his satchel. Kaoru narrowed her eyes impishly before setting of to grab parasols for the two of them. They met at the dojo gate before setting off for the market—together in the late August heat.