Bluff
Chapter Two:
Half-Faced
Jack
A rouge cloud hid the sun from view as Kaoru walked to Doctor Genzai's, keeping up the pretense of contentedness. She had figured if anybody could cheer her up, it would be Ayame and Suzume. When she reached the clinic, Kaoru was told (quite frankly), "Shhhhh! Grandpa is very busy in the backroom!" by Ayame.
"Backroom!" repeated Suzume in her cheerful, candid way. For the first time in the past two days, Kaoru cracked a genuine grin. "Well, I guess I'll have to play with you two until he finishes, isn't that right?"
"Yes, yes!" shouted the girls in unison apparently forgetting their vow of silence. Laughing, she followed them into the larger part of the yard.
"Tanuki-chan!" called a sly voice from the steps.
Suddenly, Kaoru felt her anger rise. "Don't call me that!"
"Ohohohohoho! Don't get so angry, tanuki-chan... where is Ken-san, anyway?"
Gritting her teeth, the younger woman only scowled as she bit back an angry retort. That would only make her seem more childlike in Megumi's eyes, and that was the last thing she needed right now. "Why is Genzai-sensei in the backroom? I thought he only used that for storage." She right out ignored the Megumi's request for "Ken-san". The other woman shrugged. "I don't actually know. All I know is that he asked me not to disturb him until he came out." Kaoru frowned. That was quite unlike him – usually, he would make sure that his patients had access to him at all times, and that would mean Megumi could talk to him at any time she needed to.
"Well, that is unusual..."
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Six hours passed. It was dusk, and still no Genzai-sensei.
Now this is just ridiculous, Kaoru thought with a frown. Megumi had already fixed dinner, and the girls were about ready to go to bed – they had tired themselves out early on. As they each hefted a child into their arms, Kaoru told the older woman straight out that she was going to right to that room and find out what the hell was going on. Megumi was reluctant – she held a great deal of respect for Genzai, being the man who took her in like a father would a daughter – but she agreed in the end. As long as it was Kaoru who did the deed. Stepping gingerly over the sleeping Suzume, Kaoru glanced back and smiled gently at the lightly snoring children.
Sighing, she quietly shut the shoji behind had with a quiet –click- sound. Treading gently as not to wake the girls, Kaoru padded gently over to the storage room and pressed her ear against it.
Nothing.
For another five minutes she listened intently, if just for the sound of clothes rustling, or even breathing. Still nothing. Sighing in annoyance, she knocked gently on the door. "Doctor Genzai? Are you in there?" she called softly, ear still pressed against the frame of the door. "Doctor Genzai, I'm coming in," Kaoru 'suggested' firmly. She shoved against the side of the sliding door, and it hit its own framework with a loud snap.
She fell on her rear with a soft thump and stared at the scene in front of her before silently rising to get Megumi.
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The next day, Kaoru was at Tae's home with Tsubame, staring into space as the Megumi sobbed into Tae's shoulder. "Doctor G-Genzai was a-a good person... he d-didn't deserve w-what happened-d to him! Who c-could've done this-s-s?" she wailed. The restaurant owner made comforting noises in the back of her throat as she rubbed the small of her back soothingly. Tsubame just stared with wide eyes. This was the first time anyone had seen Megumi this distraught. Kaoru was taking the whole situation as if she wasn't a part of it. It was as if she was an outsider, and all of these events that were happening were beyond her jurisdiction. The man who had taken care of her since she was just a small child... the man who had delivered her into this world, in fact... the very last person who knew, who really knew her parents, was dead. She was numb.
It was Genzai Jomei's body Kaoru had found in that room, resting in a pool of his blood and dead five hours. His throat had been slit.
Suzume and Ayame were staying here until Genzai's sister came for the funeral. It was at that time that they would decide what to do with the girls. Though Suzume was sleeping untroubled in a spare room, Ayame had her arms locked around Kaoru's neck. She knew something was wrong.
"Kaoru-nee," she whispered into the older girl's ear. "Is grandpa... dead?" Tae froze. Even Megumi stopped wailing to look at the young girl with simultaneous wonder and sorrow. Nobody dared speak to her.
"...Yes, Ayame-chan." answered Kaoru quietly. The young girl buried her face in Kaoru's shoulder. The female doctor looked at her, rage clearly shining in her cinnamon colored gaze. Megumi nearly shook with anger. "Kaoru! How could you say something like that!" She spat, looking at her with contempt. "She's just a child!"
"Are you suggesting I should have lied to her?" asked the younger girl sharply. Kaoru stood up, the little girl still clinging to her. "Told her everything was all right, that everything was going to be fine, that her grandfather was out for a nice stroll! You – of all people – should know that prolonging the truth makes it hurt more when it is finally discovered." She finished hotly. Tears stung her eyes but Kaoru brushed them away hurriedly. "Ayame-chan, I think it's about time you took your nap, don't you?"
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After that, she went to the train station to pick up Jun'ko-san. The elderly woman fell into her arms, sobbing, and Kaoru was forced to walk her all the way back to the dojo. She was quite sure the poor woman wouldn't want to visit the place where her brother had died – at least not yet.
It was nearly nine in the evening by the time she exited Kenshin's room – temporarily, Jun'ko's – and collapsed into her own, trying but failing to keep her sobs silent. She cried and cried, all into the small hours of the morning. When she did stop, Kaoru couldn't hear the steady sounds of sleep from next door, but rather, a blissful sort of silence that comforted her in a way she couldn't describe. Vowing the write Kenshin and others in the morning, she fell asleep and didn't wake up until much later.
Reviews... Honest to God, you guys make my day. Especially MiraResQNU! She's my fav! Just WAIT until you see the next chapter! You're absolutely gonna DIE!
nilnil: Hehehe, I can be a little evil like that. I do tend to make things a little confusing at first. Just because I can!
cleo: You really think so? I'm flattered!
blooded wyngs: Poor, poor desk... It's a great thing? (blushes) Why thank you! Is this soon enough for you?
MiraResQNU: Like I said, you're my favorite! You review everything... Yeah, I did pull a fast one on ya, but never fear! The next chapter for Wages is almost done, and I'm working on Rosebud. I'm über-glad (Kenshin: über? Me: Shut up...) that you like my heroines... it seems like in some stories, they're just snivelling cowards! I am aboslutely, positively can't stand it! It makes me want to do something rash... like wearing blue shoes with a black belt. (Which is, apparently, a fashion faux pas.) That'll show 'em.
