:: Dancing after the Morning Rain ::
by Shadow.of.Illusion
Disclaimer: Don't own Rurouni Kenshin or any of the characters. Am absolutely addicted to this series though, does that count for anything? Errr... if that gets me one of those doctors holding a tranquilizer, forget I said anything.
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"Happiness in this world, when it comes, comes incidentally. Make it the object of pursuit, and it leads us a wild-goose chase, and is never attained. Follow some other object, and very possibly we may find that we have caught happiness without dreaming of it." –Nathaniel Hawthorne
The scent of rain lingered long after the morning's deluge, a fresh, enticing fragrance that demanded an active body be out of doors. Kaoru could not help but move to obey the call. Her crystal-blue eyes shimmered with childish glee as she snuck outside, her tabi covered feet moving almost silently against the polished floor of her home. Pausing near the entrance, the young woman peered left and right to make sure no one had spotted her yet. No need to be berated for foolishness if it was at all avoidable.
Her long hair swung freely down to her slim waist, dark as a raven's wing. The wind seemed to adore the shade as Kaoru stepped outside, for tendrils of wind snaked through the ebony strands to tease the yielding locks.
Cherry petal lips eased into a happy smile as she spotted her bokken, forgotten last night due to a certain circumstance, lying neatly on the porch. With skilled ease, she bent to pick it up—years of training in swordplay apparent in her graceful movements. Though she would never be at ease in a kitchen, Kaoru could hold her own with this in her hands.
With the smallest of sighs, the woman looked down at her hands. They were calloused, not smooth, the complete opposite to the average lady. The small hands had gone through too many years of training for them to ever be completely soft again. Tell-tale calluses would always mark her as a swordswoman.
Her petite feet moved into the yard, moving into a kata with ease—replacing the unhappy thoughts of her unladylike appearance with a peaceful emptiness that came with the swordplay. So long had she practiced this dance, she slid like water from movement to movement, her long, dark hair following her movement like a second shadow.
Droplets that still covered the ground flew up to greet her as she danced within their midst. To the viewer, it seemed as if she was surrounded with stars. A not-so-perfect angel dancing in the heavens' morning.
Kenshin leaned back against the wall, his violet colored eyes filled with mirth and something else as he watched his tenshi dance.
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:: End Notes ::
Hope you liked it a little, at least. :) I wrote it early in the morning, but found it to be somewhat appealing. Minorly. Sort of, but w/e. I had fun with it, and that's what counts.
--S.o.I.