DISCLAIMER: I do not own RuroKen! But I do LOVE it!!!!!!!
She took small, timid steps toward his room.
"Kenshin?"
"Hai, Kaoru-dono?"
"Could I come in?"
"Of course."
She reached out to slide the door when Kenshin's hand came out and pushed the screen aside gently. As she made her way past him she tripped over his futon and !!CRASH!! she knocked over his bureau! She had come in to try and nurse him back to health and here she was hurting him even more! Kenshin had been sprawled on the ground in his futon and had crawled out of his out of the blankets to open the door for her.
"Kenshin!! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?"
"Hai, Kaoru-dono. I am fine, are you okay?"
"I'm fine! But... this bureau isn't..."
He turned his head to see one of the drawers had cracked and fallen out, along with some of this belongings. Kaoru began to clean it up when something caught her eye. She picked up an envelope addressed to "Himura Kenshin" in childlike writing.
"Kenshin, what is this?"
As soon as he saw the letter Kaoru saw a flicker in his eye. He reached out his hand and she placed the envelope in it. He opened it and began to read the letter inside. His eyes smiled.
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Sounds of two pairs of footsteps walked through the street. The stench of spilled blood filled the quiet night. One pair of footsteps could be heard walking through the street.
After washing the blood off his sword he entered the room at the inn.
"Hey Battousai! How did it go tonight?"
"Fine."
"Talkative as usual, I see."
The comment was met by a glare.
One of the men in the inn room cut in "Hey Iizuka, leave the kid alone."
"Alright, alright." But Iizuka was in a talkative and fun mood (he had a hearty supply of sake) and he didn't want to let his mood get spoiled just because the little red-headed hot-shot wasn't responsive. His eyes lit up. He knew what would cheer his spoiled mood. His favorite subject to talk about. Women.
"Hey everybody! Let's play a game!"
Even the sulking teenager in the corner looked up curiously.
"Here's how it goes. We go around in a circle and tell what kind of girl is our ideal! I'll start! A girl with creamy skin!" Some of the men hooted.
"A girl with long, silky black hair!" More hoots.
"A girl with a lot of make up" Some hoots and a lot of laughter.
"A girl with a great body" Many of the men made noises of agreement.
"A girl who is smart" Some of the men laughed and booed, while some pondered the thought.
"A girl with beautiful eyes" The men swooned noisily.
Then it was silence. They had reached the corner where the red-headed teenager was crouching. The next man didn't know if he should just start or if the boy would say anything. The room was still, anticipating what would happen, and then–
"A girl worth fighting for."
Even Iizuka's eyes went wide. He had spoken. The Battousai had compiled more than two words, and had made a complete sentence that had nothing to do with the Ishin Shishi, the Bakumatsu, or anything! It was simply amazing.
The next man couldn't even say anything. Well, until the Battousai looked up at him, and he stammered a trait for his ideal woman. But nothing compared to a girl worth fighting for. This girl had everything and nothing revealed. She was enough for a man to bruise for, to bleed for, to die for. Did she have creamy skin? Long hair? A great body? Brains? No one knew, but she was worth fighting for.
The Battousai didn't say anything for the rest of the night and nobody bothered him about it. It was an unwritten code not to aggravate a man who had come back from a killing assignment, especially if it was the Battousai. He didn't know it but he fell asleep in the little corner in the room at the inn. When he awoke he found a note tucked into a fold in the blanket wrapped around him. It was from Iizuka. It read: "Himura- I was pleased to hear you talk about something people your age should be talking about. Of course, you came up with the best and most mature answer, even though you are the youngest among us. But however mature you are, I know that deep inside you are just a regular 15 year old with dreams of his own. I hope that you will remember about your girl who is worth fighting for, and maybe when all of this is over you will find her. Even when there is no more bloodshed, and the war is over, I know you will find a girl worth fighting for. -Iizuka"
The Battousai didn't know whether to crumple the note or keep it. He did both. Later on after the next killing assignment he felt the all-too-familiar feeling of hopelessness, and of despair when thinking of his future. How could he live on after this was over? With all the blood spilled in the name of the new era? All he did was think about that girl. She wasn't there yet, but she was all he had to hold onto. All he had for the future. Soon he started a list. Or something of that nature. It was very short, to the point, and had only a few things written on it. Nonetheless it was something he looked at frequently. Until he met a woman. A woman who had seen him make it rain blood. He thought he didn't need the list anymore, but he couldn't throw it away. So he sealed it in an envelope and tucked it away. It had always been there among his few belongings, whether he remembered it or not was another thing.
And then it came back to him. Placed in his hand by the next woman who entered his life.
"Kenshin?"
Kaoru had been watching him for the past 5 minutes in silence. She had seen his eyes light up at reading the letter. He seemed to stare at each character on the paper, soaking in each stroke of the marks.
He looked up as if in a daze. He smiled gently.
"Yes, Kaoru-dono?"
"What is that letter?"
He looked down at it and neatly tucked it away into the envelope.
He opened his mouth to explain, when Kaoru spoke up.
"Oh! What am I doing? You don't need to tell me!" She was stammering and embarrassed by how nosy she had been with her questions. She had seen the way he had responded to the letter, obviously it was important and most likely private for him.
Kenshin's eyes looked back to the letter, and he smiled. Kaoru thought his response seemed like it came from what she said, but his eyes on the letter made her wonder.
"Oh, yes. Kaoru-dono, what was your reason for your visit?"
Kenshin seemed to wake up from his reverie and come back to her visit.
Kaoru's cheeks turned pink. She started to wring her hands and she finally looked up at him.
"I just wanted to thank you. Your wounds that you have right now. They're because of me. They're because you fought for me. I can never thank you enough for the hurt you bear because of me..." she trailed off as her voice became silenced by her pounding emotion.
"Kaoru-dono"
She looked up, startled by his strong tone. Their eyes met.
"You are worth fighting for."
The phrase and the words weren't so much as strong, but the feelings behind his voice and his eyes were powerful.
Kaoru's eyes were shining with tears and happiness as she stood to leave. The touch of Kenshin's hand on the back of her leg as she was leaving was warm. She turned around to look back at him. "The letter.."
Kaoru's eyes went wide. She had almost forgotten about it!
Kenshin continued. "The letter was about you."
Remembering his serene and happy face as he read the letter, Kaoru gave a sweet smile. She didn't need to know what it said. All she needed was to know how he felt. With that, she left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.
After she long been gone, Kenshin still held the letter between his fingers. He had taken it out of the envelope again. He smiled to himself as he added one last thing to it. He noticed how low the candlestick had gotten and decided it was time to go to bed. Sleep came to him as he gave one last thought to the list he had started 13 years before and had finally finished.
"A Girl Worth Fighting For
- doesn't care about my past
- someone with whom I can build a future
- Kaoru-dono"
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THE END!! Please review if you have time [Or even if you don't! Hee hee!!]
Un sourire pour tout le monde! =)