A Demon Born

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own the rights to Kenshin. Although, I do hope to own a real sakabato someday.

Because this is a fanfiction, I felt that I was allowed to portray the characters as I wanted. So this is OOC (or at least it seems that way right now.) It all has a reason of course... And part of that is that I disagree with the storyline in the manga at this part. And I may have exaggerated a bit. But enough with my rambling, and on with the story...

Chapter One

His words still rang through my head.

Sayounara.

I couldn't really believe that he was gone. That one simple word tore me apart. He left me in pieces. But it wasn't as if he would know this. He was a wanderer, a rurouni. He had to be used to leaving people. It was all he had done for the last eleven years.

"Kaoru…"

I heard a distant voice. It was telling me to wake up, that I needed to get back to training my students. Well, student. Yahiko. There wasn't really a point though. I knew that he joined the dojo because of… Him. Only he could attract people just by having a name.

Hitokiri Battousai.

Even that name of his pushed me further into the black abyss that had become my life. There was no escaping it. I had my chance to try to convince him to stay, after all that time. He even stayed in my dojo, and I couldn't tell him the thing that was most important to me. I couldn't even think to tell him that I loved-

"KAMIYA KAORU! GET OUT OF BED! There's no reason to waste the rest of your life away here! You can help everyone. You aren't the only person to be hurt by him leaving!"

I could not ignore anyone anymore. As I opened my eyes, I saw Megumi standing in my doorway. Everything slowly began to come back into focus, and I could see that her eyes were bloodshot. She had been crying. Although, hearing the hurt in her voice, seeing through her façade of composure, I knew. I knew that she couldn't have been hurt as badly as me.

"You couldn't possibly feel the pain I'm in right now…" I muttered. She ran up to me and simply slapped me. It was completely silent in the room, even my self-pity would not want to disturb this moment. I was shocked. I could not believe anything that had been happening. I saw it all so clear now; I saw all of the different faces of the people trying to help me recover. I saw each of them leave, frustrated, defeated, all feeling the same thing that I've been drowning myself with. I wasn't the only one hurt by this. And as all these thoughts formed and organized themselves in my head, one thing became clear. The one emotion that I should truly be feeling right now… Betrayal. My thoughts were once again put on hold though, as the woman in front of me fell on her knees, and her mask crumbled.

My instincts as a good friend kicked in, and I held her. I felt every tear, every sob, letting her feelings bring me back to a reality that I had been trying so desperately to ignore. I could hear her struggling to speak, her words blending together, mixed with the weight of all the emotion in the room.

Night… Leaving… Fight… No goodbye…

Wait. No goodbye? Surely… He couldn't have only said goodbye to me? If he cared that much, he wouldn't have left…

I shook my head quickly, making these thoughts flee from my mind. The sudden movement startled Megumi, and she looked up at me questioningly.

"He never told you goodbye?" I asked incredulously. She had to be mistaken.

She looked me in the eyes, and I saw a fierce determination. She spoke slowly, as if to make sure I heard the weight of her every word, "No. You were the only one who he saw as important enough to see one last time."

There was no way I could believe this, and yet… My thoughts raced as they jumped from one memory to the next. Him, fighting to clear the name of my father's sword style. Him, fighting Sanosuke. Him, saving me after I was kidnapped. Him, being the cause of all of these. As I relived the part of my life that I had spent with him, my feelings morphed into something dangerous. What I felt now was a force that was completely unstoppable, and would push anyone past their limits until their goal was finally fulfilled.

All I felt now was pure hatred.

I stood up, leaving Megumi speechless as she saw the sudden change in my eyes. The dull lifelessness was shoved out of my expression, leaving raw emotion right under the surface. My movements were stiff; I had to guess that I haven't really moved in at least a few days. I marched to the chest I kept in the corner of my room, which had not even been looked at since it was placed there.

As I cracked the lid open, my late father's words rushed back to me, as if he was just saying them now.

Kaoru… I know you may not like this, but not many people will believe in swords that give life. I certainly do not want you to be chained by my beliefs. Before you protest, I know that you strongly believe in them too. But I have a wisdom that you are yet to gain. You will meet much opposition in your life, more than the average person. And I know, with the restraint of no killing, you will be hurt. Or worse. My priority is not that my style will survive to generations in the future. It is that you will. Protect yourself, my daughter. And remember, that no matter what, I will always love you.

I paused, my resolution wavering for a second. But I had to do this. I remember looking at my father as if he was speaking a different language. The problems he spoke of seemed absolutely impossible in the perfect world I had with my family. It only took a day for his words to come true. The next night, my family was attacked. These people thought that a sword that wouldn't kill would only exist in a fairy tale, and they challenged him. They told him, that if he could protect his family with his sword that gives life, we would be left alone and no one would bother us anymore. If not… Then he would die from the very thing he hated. And with the loss of my father, the possibility of any respect for Kamiya Kasshin Ryu was also lost.

My mind blanked for a moment, and I saw a glint in the chest cracked open in front of me. I shoved the lid open, remembering my cold purpose. When I pulled the finely crafted katana out of the chest, I left my identity behind.

No longer was I Kamiya Kaoru. I was an assassin, a hitokiri. And I would kill the man who had caused me so much pain.

I would kill Himura Kenshin.

And this is all I have written. Of course, I could write more, but I have no idea where the story will go. If anyone likes it enough, I'm sure I'll be able to continue. Please review?

-StoryDweller