A/N: italics = thoughts or emphasis on certain words. I think you can
tell the difference.
" " = Talking
Disclaimer:
Sango: Me owning Kenshin is about as likely as me getting Sheik83 to try Dance Revolution (a totally awesome game, I might add, oh yeah, I don't own that either)...
Sheik83: Hey!
Sango: ... Seeing as neither of those things will EVER happen...
Sheik83: *mutters* I can't help it if I don't like dancing.
Sango: ... I never have owned Rurouni Kenshin and likely never will. I certainly don't own it now.
Sheik83: That she doesn't!
Kenshin: That's my line!
Sango: Jeez... thanks for rubbing it in guys, you can't even let me dream. *sulks in corner* Stupid disclaimer, always having to go and make us authors feel all depressed...
Kenshin: Just get on with it! We're tired of waiting!
Kaoru: Yeah, no one ever reads these things anyway
Sango: On with the fic!
A History of Change
By Sango Himura
Chapter 1: The Meeting
"Stop in the name of the law. This is the police! You are under arrest!"
He heard the shouts following him accompanied by the shrill whistles of the police. Just keep running, he thought to himself. Even while he was wearing a dark cloak that concealed him quite well, the police had still been able to figure out who he was. But how? His long orange-red hair was securely tied in a ponytail under the long hood of his cloak. Maybe it was my scar that gave me away, he thought as he sprinted through the streets, changing directions and streets often, trying to disguise the paths he had taken. The cross-shaped scar on his left cheek had often betrayed him in situations when he had tried to keep his identity hidden.
Today was a bright, sunny day so there weren't many shadows that might have given the perfect cover in different weather situations. The people in the streets began to move to the side of the road to clear a path for him to run down without bumping into anything, but he was sure they were not doing it out of kindness. This kind of chase happened often that everyone knew just to get out of the way if they didn't want to be charged with interfering with the capture of a wanted criminal. If a policeman accidentally ran into one of the townsfolk, the government could find a way to accuse them of helping the criminal or being associated with the above cause or say they were an Imperialist plotting against them like the Ishin Shishi already tried to. After the Imperialists lost the revolution, the government became too powerful and the important figureheads who had assisted the Imperialists were thrown into a game of hide and go seek, always running and hiding from the law. Most of them had gotten used to it by now and were very good at evading getting into positions like he was. Even though the revolution had failed almost five years ago, all police units were still looking for any Imperialists that were still alive. At least, they were alive until they were caught. It was all part of the governments' plan to prevent another revolution from happening.
A shot rang out, shattering the man's thoughts and encouraging him to run faster. More bullets followed soon after, singling him out as a target since he was the only one running. He was usually fast enough to avoid bullets thanks to his training in the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu style of swordsmanship, but he was already tired from running so hard and made no effort to evade the flying bits of steel. The sound of the guns became louder and he felt something graze his shoulder.
The man quickly ducked into another alley to catch his breath for a moment, hoping his pursuers didn't see him turn. He was gasping for breath and sweating heavily when he noticed that his right shoulder had been shot and was now bleeding profusely. Now I can't even use my sword to protect myself, he thought to himself as he remembered the katana he had hidden beneath his cloak. By now, his wounded arm was rigid in pain and his vision was becoming less and less clear, both from heat and loss of blood. I didn't know that such a small wound could bleed so much, he thought as he pondered what to do. He needed to get to a doctor fast, but what doctor would treat him? As far as he knew, everyone wanted him dead. All his allies were either dead or in hiding.
He felt a delicate hand clutch his left arm. His first instinct was to draw his sword, but then he remembered that he couldn't use any of his sword techniques when his arm was paralyzed. He also felt that this person was somehow a friend. The hand was small, perhaps that of a woman or child. Maybe they could help him. He turned to face the figure hidden by some of the few shadows.
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---------------------------
Kamiya Kaoru sat on the steps leading up to the entrance of her former dojo, fiddling with her long raven black hair that was kept up in her usual ponytail. She had had to stop her training sessions since carrying swords had been banned ever since the revolution was tried. Even the bokken she had used to train her students in the style of Kamiya Kasshin Ryuu style was banned. All schools that taught swordsmanship had been shut down all across Japan and if the owner refused, they were killed.
Wow, it's almost lunchtime already, she thought to herself before remembering that she didn't have any food left. She hadn't found a new job yet and was relying on the money she had saved up for emergencies, which was already running thin. Getting up from her position, she grabbed her cloak out of her bedroom and got her small amount of money out of her purse. She had no use whatsoever for the cloak so she hoped she could sell it for enough money to have a decent dinner and maybe breakfast the next day. Time to go grocery shopping, she thought gloomily. One meal would wipe out almost half of what she had left. (AN: I don't know if they called it grocery-shopping, gomen if it's inaccurate.)
Kaoru slipped out the front gate and headed for the market. As the main street drew nearer, the sound of police whistles could faintly be heard but she paid no attention to them. This happened every other day; the police supposedly find another surviving Imperialist and chase a usually innocent person through the streets. Only a handful had actually committed a crime or was the person the police were actually looking for. Everyone knew it was wrong, even the police, but no one was brave enough to confront them for fear of being charged with crimes against the government. Some of the residents of the town, like herself, tried to help the "criminals" knowing they probably just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time or were somehow related to an Imperialist through their neighbor's cousin's wife's second child's distant relative's grandma twice removed who happened to know an Imperialist. In other words, the police used crack-and-bull stories to execute anyone who was suspicious looking or happened to annoy them.
Now moving quickly towards the commotion, she wondered who they were after this time. As she was got closer, she heard the sound of gunfire and hoped she wasn't too late to help if she could. Usually when the police used guns, they thought the person was especially dangerous and usually met the targets they were aiming for. Their victims had no chance, especially since the police usually chased the unfortunate person first, until they were out of breath and couldn't run or dodge bullets very well.
Kaoru arrived just in time to see a cloaked figure duck into an alley. All the other people had cleared to the sides of the street, minding their own business as was normal, so it was easy to tell that the person she had seen was the one the police were after. Following the person down the street they had turned into, she immediately noticed that he was hurt. She grabbed a hold of his uninjured arm to get his attention.
"We have to get out of here, come on, I can help you," she urged.
The voice that replied was stern and masculine. "I'll wait here." As he spoke, she felt a shiver go down her spine. It was not so much the actual words that were being spoken, but the way he said them and the tone of voice he used. "If you don't go now you'll be caught, too. You know what happens if they catch you. I'm all right, really." Kaoru noticed that even as he spoke this there was a note of pain in his voice.
"Not with that arm you're not, we have to go now; do you want to die?"
He looked at her sternly. Those eyes. They were a deep purple and seemed to portray his mood and character perfectly. She sensed a hint of sadness hidden behind them. Suddenly, Kaoru felt as if she had known him her entire life and wondered what his name was.
The man started to turn back to the street, apparently determined to keep running, but she firmly grabbed his injured arm. He winced and let out a gasp of pain. "Let me go," he said angrily. Again, the girl felt an air of authority in his voice. "No, I can help. I'm not a nurse or anything, but I can at least bandage that up," she hesitated, "and you can stay at my place until this whole mess has cleared up. They'll forget about it in a day or two." Pondering this for a second, he yanked his arm free, wincing once more, and Kaoru was afraid that he was going to try and leave again when he turned towards her, apparently wanting her to lead him.
Kaoru took his bloodstained cloak, folding it carefully to hide the stain and put it under her arm before replacing it with the one she had been hoping to sell.
Seeing his face fully for the first time, she guessed that he was in his early twenties but his eyes seemed full of too much anger and wisdom for someone that young. She only had a quick glance before he used her cloak to cover his face again so she couldn't study his features more. She did, however, notice that a cross-shaped scar covered his left cheek and flaming red hair. He somehow seemed familiar, like there was something important about him that she should remember.
"Now follow me," she commanded, figuring she better not waste any more time trying to figure out what he looked like or who he was. It will come to me eventually and probably at the most inopportune time, too, she thought and almost grinned but remembered that this would be the wrong time to do that. They cautiously made their way back into the street, trying to blend with the crowd that lined the edges of the street. Kaoru could see the police now. They were holding swords along with their revolvers. Kaoru began to guide him down the side of the street towards the road that lead to her home, pausing to look at something displayed at a stall whenever a policeman ran by. The police passed them with shouts of confusion as to where the man they were chasing had gone. Smiling to herself as they passed, Kaoru looked up at her companion's face. He wore a blank expression under the hood of her cloak. He apparently noticed her staring and met her eyes. "Thank you for the help. I'm sure I can get along on my own now, though." He started to walk away. "Hey, wait a minute! Where do you think you're going! You still need treatment for that wound of yours!" She yelled as quietly as possible so as not to attract the still-running police.
"It's fine, really."
"No, it's not fine, you need help and quickly. You'll probably die if you don't."
He didn't reply.
Kaoru started walking again beckoning him to follow her. He did silently.
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Like it? Hate it? Think I should never write another fic as long as I live? Please review! I'm sure you all know how good it feels to get a review. And I know Kenshin is OOC, I can explain why he's like that in the next chapter, it anyone even cares... Oh yeah, flames are accepted as long as you don't mind if I yell back at you. ^_^x
~Sango
" " = Talking
Disclaimer:
Sango: Me owning Kenshin is about as likely as me getting Sheik83 to try Dance Revolution (a totally awesome game, I might add, oh yeah, I don't own that either)...
Sheik83: Hey!
Sango: ... Seeing as neither of those things will EVER happen...
Sheik83: *mutters* I can't help it if I don't like dancing.
Sango: ... I never have owned Rurouni Kenshin and likely never will. I certainly don't own it now.
Sheik83: That she doesn't!
Kenshin: That's my line!
Sango: Jeez... thanks for rubbing it in guys, you can't even let me dream. *sulks in corner* Stupid disclaimer, always having to go and make us authors feel all depressed...
Kenshin: Just get on with it! We're tired of waiting!
Kaoru: Yeah, no one ever reads these things anyway
Sango: On with the fic!
A History of Change
By Sango Himura
Chapter 1: The Meeting
"Stop in the name of the law. This is the police! You are under arrest!"
He heard the shouts following him accompanied by the shrill whistles of the police. Just keep running, he thought to himself. Even while he was wearing a dark cloak that concealed him quite well, the police had still been able to figure out who he was. But how? His long orange-red hair was securely tied in a ponytail under the long hood of his cloak. Maybe it was my scar that gave me away, he thought as he sprinted through the streets, changing directions and streets often, trying to disguise the paths he had taken. The cross-shaped scar on his left cheek had often betrayed him in situations when he had tried to keep his identity hidden.
Today was a bright, sunny day so there weren't many shadows that might have given the perfect cover in different weather situations. The people in the streets began to move to the side of the road to clear a path for him to run down without bumping into anything, but he was sure they were not doing it out of kindness. This kind of chase happened often that everyone knew just to get out of the way if they didn't want to be charged with interfering with the capture of a wanted criminal. If a policeman accidentally ran into one of the townsfolk, the government could find a way to accuse them of helping the criminal or being associated with the above cause or say they were an Imperialist plotting against them like the Ishin Shishi already tried to. After the Imperialists lost the revolution, the government became too powerful and the important figureheads who had assisted the Imperialists were thrown into a game of hide and go seek, always running and hiding from the law. Most of them had gotten used to it by now and were very good at evading getting into positions like he was. Even though the revolution had failed almost five years ago, all police units were still looking for any Imperialists that were still alive. At least, they were alive until they were caught. It was all part of the governments' plan to prevent another revolution from happening.
A shot rang out, shattering the man's thoughts and encouraging him to run faster. More bullets followed soon after, singling him out as a target since he was the only one running. He was usually fast enough to avoid bullets thanks to his training in the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu style of swordsmanship, but he was already tired from running so hard and made no effort to evade the flying bits of steel. The sound of the guns became louder and he felt something graze his shoulder.
The man quickly ducked into another alley to catch his breath for a moment, hoping his pursuers didn't see him turn. He was gasping for breath and sweating heavily when he noticed that his right shoulder had been shot and was now bleeding profusely. Now I can't even use my sword to protect myself, he thought to himself as he remembered the katana he had hidden beneath his cloak. By now, his wounded arm was rigid in pain and his vision was becoming less and less clear, both from heat and loss of blood. I didn't know that such a small wound could bleed so much, he thought as he pondered what to do. He needed to get to a doctor fast, but what doctor would treat him? As far as he knew, everyone wanted him dead. All his allies were either dead or in hiding.
He felt a delicate hand clutch his left arm. His first instinct was to draw his sword, but then he remembered that he couldn't use any of his sword techniques when his arm was paralyzed. He also felt that this person was somehow a friend. The hand was small, perhaps that of a woman or child. Maybe they could help him. He turned to face the figure hidden by some of the few shadows.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Kamiya Kaoru sat on the steps leading up to the entrance of her former dojo, fiddling with her long raven black hair that was kept up in her usual ponytail. She had had to stop her training sessions since carrying swords had been banned ever since the revolution was tried. Even the bokken she had used to train her students in the style of Kamiya Kasshin Ryuu style was banned. All schools that taught swordsmanship had been shut down all across Japan and if the owner refused, they were killed.
Wow, it's almost lunchtime already, she thought to herself before remembering that she didn't have any food left. She hadn't found a new job yet and was relying on the money she had saved up for emergencies, which was already running thin. Getting up from her position, she grabbed her cloak out of her bedroom and got her small amount of money out of her purse. She had no use whatsoever for the cloak so she hoped she could sell it for enough money to have a decent dinner and maybe breakfast the next day. Time to go grocery shopping, she thought gloomily. One meal would wipe out almost half of what she had left. (AN: I don't know if they called it grocery-shopping, gomen if it's inaccurate.)
Kaoru slipped out the front gate and headed for the market. As the main street drew nearer, the sound of police whistles could faintly be heard but she paid no attention to them. This happened every other day; the police supposedly find another surviving Imperialist and chase a usually innocent person through the streets. Only a handful had actually committed a crime or was the person the police were actually looking for. Everyone knew it was wrong, even the police, but no one was brave enough to confront them for fear of being charged with crimes against the government. Some of the residents of the town, like herself, tried to help the "criminals" knowing they probably just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time or were somehow related to an Imperialist through their neighbor's cousin's wife's second child's distant relative's grandma twice removed who happened to know an Imperialist. In other words, the police used crack-and-bull stories to execute anyone who was suspicious looking or happened to annoy them.
Now moving quickly towards the commotion, she wondered who they were after this time. As she was got closer, she heard the sound of gunfire and hoped she wasn't too late to help if she could. Usually when the police used guns, they thought the person was especially dangerous and usually met the targets they were aiming for. Their victims had no chance, especially since the police usually chased the unfortunate person first, until they were out of breath and couldn't run or dodge bullets very well.
Kaoru arrived just in time to see a cloaked figure duck into an alley. All the other people had cleared to the sides of the street, minding their own business as was normal, so it was easy to tell that the person she had seen was the one the police were after. Following the person down the street they had turned into, she immediately noticed that he was hurt. She grabbed a hold of his uninjured arm to get his attention.
"We have to get out of here, come on, I can help you," she urged.
The voice that replied was stern and masculine. "I'll wait here." As he spoke, she felt a shiver go down her spine. It was not so much the actual words that were being spoken, but the way he said them and the tone of voice he used. "If you don't go now you'll be caught, too. You know what happens if they catch you. I'm all right, really." Kaoru noticed that even as he spoke this there was a note of pain in his voice.
"Not with that arm you're not, we have to go now; do you want to die?"
He looked at her sternly. Those eyes. They were a deep purple and seemed to portray his mood and character perfectly. She sensed a hint of sadness hidden behind them. Suddenly, Kaoru felt as if she had known him her entire life and wondered what his name was.
The man started to turn back to the street, apparently determined to keep running, but she firmly grabbed his injured arm. He winced and let out a gasp of pain. "Let me go," he said angrily. Again, the girl felt an air of authority in his voice. "No, I can help. I'm not a nurse or anything, but I can at least bandage that up," she hesitated, "and you can stay at my place until this whole mess has cleared up. They'll forget about it in a day or two." Pondering this for a second, he yanked his arm free, wincing once more, and Kaoru was afraid that he was going to try and leave again when he turned towards her, apparently wanting her to lead him.
Kaoru took his bloodstained cloak, folding it carefully to hide the stain and put it under her arm before replacing it with the one she had been hoping to sell.
Seeing his face fully for the first time, she guessed that he was in his early twenties but his eyes seemed full of too much anger and wisdom for someone that young. She only had a quick glance before he used her cloak to cover his face again so she couldn't study his features more. She did, however, notice that a cross-shaped scar covered his left cheek and flaming red hair. He somehow seemed familiar, like there was something important about him that she should remember.
"Now follow me," she commanded, figuring she better not waste any more time trying to figure out what he looked like or who he was. It will come to me eventually and probably at the most inopportune time, too, she thought and almost grinned but remembered that this would be the wrong time to do that. They cautiously made their way back into the street, trying to blend with the crowd that lined the edges of the street. Kaoru could see the police now. They were holding swords along with their revolvers. Kaoru began to guide him down the side of the street towards the road that lead to her home, pausing to look at something displayed at a stall whenever a policeman ran by. The police passed them with shouts of confusion as to where the man they were chasing had gone. Smiling to herself as they passed, Kaoru looked up at her companion's face. He wore a blank expression under the hood of her cloak. He apparently noticed her staring and met her eyes. "Thank you for the help. I'm sure I can get along on my own now, though." He started to walk away. "Hey, wait a minute! Where do you think you're going! You still need treatment for that wound of yours!" She yelled as quietly as possible so as not to attract the still-running police.
"It's fine, really."
"No, it's not fine, you need help and quickly. You'll probably die if you don't."
He didn't reply.
Kaoru started walking again beckoning him to follow her. He did silently.
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----------------------------------------
Like it? Hate it? Think I should never write another fic as long as I live? Please review! I'm sure you all know how good it feels to get a review. And I know Kenshin is OOC, I can explain why he's like that in the next chapter, it anyone even cares... Oh yeah, flames are accepted as long as you don't mind if I yell back at you. ^_^x
~Sango