A/N: Many thanks to everyone who reviewed!! I apologize for not having been able to update this sooner… I guess there hasn't been too many problems with it, as I haven't had anyone really critique or flame it. :) (cheers) Special thanks to those who said they enjoyed my writing! Hopefully this chapter won't disappoint anyone.
Both iluvchocs and Himura-Goyle have seemed to been talking to my runaway muse, as they hit on some ideas for the story. (grins) Brilliant minds think alike and all that… or was that merely intelligent minds? Ah well, we're sticking with brilliant. Double-chocolate chip cookies for both of you!
Warning: Time skipping. Lines between paragraphs show when it skips to a different time—varying between a couple hours, days, and years. If you become lost, please forgive me for being so confusing. OC's may occasionally appear, but will not have romantic entanglements with original characters.
(I forgot to put a disclaimer in the prior chapter… ehem, do note that the following disclaimer applies to the other chapter as well.)
Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or its lovely characters… I just twist and use them for my many mad plots. Err, fun plots.
: Chapter 2 : Of Weasels and Shopping :
For everything you have missed, you have gained something else; and for everything you gain, you lose something.
--Quote from Emerson--
Kaoru Kamiya was known as the Kenjutsu Princess of the school. Meaning she usually hung out with the boys that made up that class, unless Misao or the twins dragged her away. The knowledge didn't bother the sapphire-eyed girl in any way. It was just how she was made. She wasn't overly hyper or cute like Misao—Kaoru thanked God daily for that blessing; sweet, kind, and compassionate like the twins-to a certain extent-and she definitely couldn't cook like them. There was absolutely no way she could even compare herself to Tomoe. That would be like comparing a potato to a strawberry. Two completely different worlds. Well... she'd find something a little more flattering to compare herself to later, but the difference was there.
While she dearly loved all of her friends, she also loved the feel of the smooth bamboo shinai in her hands; the polished, often sweat-covered wooden floor of the dojo; the warm ache in her muscles that resulted from long hours of practice. To her slight dismay, Aoshi rarely sparred with her--on the grounds of his preference of kodachi over shinai.
Too bad.
She could just practice on... errr, with the boys here. The fact that she was the reigning kendo champion of the school didn't do wonders for her dating career. In fact, while she had her fair share of admirers, they were usually too afraid of being beat up to ask her out. Add in Aoshi's threatening glares and she was bereft of the opportunity of getting a boyfriend until she went off to college. Though—she pursed her lips in thought as she moved into a different, slightly more difficult kata; knowing her brother, he'd probably have some way of keeping an eye on her there too. Joy.
He hadn't always been so over-the-top protective. When her mother was alive, everything had been okay—but within a few months after her death, her father had turned to drinking as a way to ease his pain. This had resulted in harsh words and beatings to put it simply. Aoshi had suffered through most of it, resolutely protecting his little sister from their father's fury. Kaoru often thought that was perhaps why he was so silent. He had learned at a young age to keep his words and emotions to himself, it was his way to survive.
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Aoshi staggered into the tiny room he shared with his younger sister, ice blue eyes darkened with myriad shades of pain. The boy closed the door softly behind him in hopes that Kaoru wouldn't wake up.
"Aoshi?" the girl's voice, filled with sleep, called to him softly.
He flinched slightly, jarring several bruises on his back in the process. "Yes?" Aoshi nearly bit his tongue at the rough tone he had used to answer his half-sister.
The small bed creaked and groaned as the child's weight shifted. Bright blue eyes, dimmed by sleep, blinked owlishly up at him from under the shadowed safety of the dark blue Spiderman blanket. It clashed oddly with the bright pink Hello Kitty pillow nestled under her head, the monstrous thing (in his mind) being revealed upon her sitting up. He almost winced as her eyes widened with horror when she finally noticed the dark, ugly bruises mottling his arms and face. Tears streamed silently down her pale cheeks as she quickly crawled out of bed.
"Don't worry about it." the boy stated sharply, turning to avoid her tearful gaze. It hurt even more to see such an expression on her face.
"Why, Aoshi?" her voice trembled with anger and sorrow, "Why does Dad hit you? You didn't do anything, did you?"
Shaking his head in answer, Aoshi barely kept himself from leaning against the wall for support from the sudden wave of pain that over-swept his lean body. Another week of long-sleeved shirt and loose jeans. Another week of dodging questions from friends and teachers. Another week that he had succeeded in protecting Kaoru.
His lips thinned into a firm line as controlled waves of frozen anger raged within his eyes, there was no way he would let that man hurt his sister. Often, Aoshi would allow himself to indulge in memories of the life he had had before his mother had married into the Kamiya family. Vague, blurred images of his real father were always like shadows—hard to grasp and just as fleeting. His mother, on the other hand, was always there in his memory. Her sparkling sapphire-blue orbs, the very same shade Kaoru had inherited, shimmered like the ocean waves when she laughed. In his black leather wallet, the boy carried a picture of the three of them: his mother, Kaoru, and himself. It was one of the few possessions he had that Aoshi held near and dear to his heart.
Kaoru's soft touches stirred him from his brief reverie as she carefully applied a healing ointment to the mottled bruises. "Aoshi?"
"Hm."
"Misao said we could come over to her house tomorrow night. Do you want to come?"
A tiny smile curled up the corners of his mouth into one of the rare smiles Kaoru always worked so hard to get, one of the few who could incite such an expression. "If you'd like."
She beamed up at him, her rosy face aglow in childish pleasure. "We're gonna eat popcorn and watch movies all night!! Mr. Okina said we could." the girl added, as if she felt that an adult's permission was needed.
Aoshi nodded periodically, his blue eyes lost in memories of long ago.
He had been almost two years when Kaoru was born. Never before had he seen a child so small, and curiosity had overtaken him for the first time in his short period of life. After his mother had smilingly explained that Kaoru was his new little sister, the boy had peered down at the squirming bundle. "I will protect her." he stated calmly, causing both his mother and adopted father to stare at the solemn faced boy before bursting out in laughter. The training he was currently undergoing with his grandfather, Okina, was apparently rubbing off. His mother felt some relief at the knowledge that her son was too withdrawn to follow the elder man in his perverted path.
"Such big words from a young child." the woman laughed delightedly, knowing her son would grow up into an honorable young man.
Little did she know that in just seven short years would she be taken from the earth.
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Kaoru shook her head, causing her long blue-black ponytail to swish along with the movement, breaking the graceful flow it had kept while she practiced her kata. She really didn't want to think about that right now.
The girl had enough on her plate at the moment without the past coming back to haunt her mind. Like, overly hyper, brother-infatuated, weasel girls coming to pick her up in twenty minutes.
Twenty minutes?!
Kaoru did a quick double-take, her sapphire-blue orbs narrowing as they studied, with a small measure of hope, the face of an old analog clock that hung on the far wall of the school's small dojo. Nope, her vision had not failed her, it was indeed that late. With a muffled curse as she skidded slightly on the polished wooden floor, she dashed over to the left side of the room to replace the weapon amongst the neat rows of its fellow shinai hanging temptingly on the wall. Resisting the powerful urge to pick it back up and practice some more, the girl turned sharply on her heel as she ran off to the locker room to quickly shower and change.
Fortunately, years of kendo and Misao's absurd schedule had forced her to learn how to take short showers. As soon as she had stepped out of the shower stall dripping wet and pleasantly warm from the steamy mist that surrounded her form, Misao's voice could be heard in the dojo next door. Usually you couldn't hear much through the walls, but the petite girl was known for being loud.
Heaving a sigh, Kaoru toweled off and dressed quickly, opting to braid her hair on her way out rather than have Misao burst into the room to drag her out. Once had been more than enough. The boys who had been present in the dojo that day still sported dark bruises from when they had laughed at the sight of Misao dragging a half-dressed Kaoru out of the locker room.
Kenshin sighed quietly as he followed Misao into the practice hall for those in kendo, knowing if she caught the unpleasant sound he would be in for an earful. His eyes roved critically over the rows of shinai hanging neatly upon the far left wall, moving on to the floor-length mirror that constituted as the opposite wall. He wondered absently what it would be like if his uncle had bought into the whole "you shouldn't use real swords when training kids" idea. The teen shook his head and snorted, yeah, right. Then, after noting that it was smaller than his uncle's dojo, he belatedly realized that Misao was actually requiring a response to what she was rambling on about.
"... so I think you should come too." she finished excitedly, not noticing that her friend had periodically tuned in and out of what she was saying. Her cerulean eyes narrowed into an intense glare, "And don't you dare say no!"
"Oro?"
Fortunately, Kenshin was saved from another bout of Misao's ceaseless chatter when the girl he noticed earlier that morning came out from the locker room. Her face looked decidedly irked as she plaited the long, damp strands of ebony hair while walking towards them. "Misao," she grumbled as she wrapped the end of her braid with an elastic band, "I really don't have time to go shopping, and-"
"Kaoru!"
Kenshin took a discreet step backwards. It was almost comical how easily the girl's mood changed. Sometimes, both he and Sanosuke wondered if she was bipolar. The others had been disinclined to offer an opinion, as that might have reached the petite girl somehow. Bodily injury usually resulted from expressing personal opinions on such things.
The petite teen waggled her finger at the Kenjutsu Princess, "You are so not getting out of it! Now stop complaining and let's go!!"
Offering Kaoru a sympathetic look, the red-head turned to follow Misao. He was mildly curious as to what she had bought for him this year, and more than a little wary. Last year, she had somehow managed to find an extremely rare, extremely valuable, ancient tanto—and had given it to him for his birthday. Uncle Hiko had nearly died of laughing when he saw the weapon, causing a small rift between the man and Misao for a couple days. Not like his uncle had minded the break.
A corner of his mouth quirked upwards as he thought of the tiny weapon. A tanto wasn't very useful, considering the harsh practices he was forced to endure, but he had thanked the girl for her kind gift—even if he was still unsure whether or not he wanted to know how she had come across it. Eventually, he had decided that some things were just better off not being known.
As they walked through the almost empty hallways of the school, Kenshin paused for a second as he heard the low thudding sounds of someone running. Kaoru noticed and turned to ask the boy what was wrong when a shout echoed down the hallway, "Oi! Kenshin, wait up!"
Sanosuke dashed down the hall at a breakneck speed, rounding the corner and almost colliding into a group of girls in his hurry to get to Kenshin. With a brief apology, he ignored the indignant looks they all shot him as he came to a halt in front of the trio. "My little brother's got a kendo match, and Dad wants me to go watch him since he can't. Sorry, man."
"That's okay," Kenshin grinned, "Hope Yahiko does well. Wish him good luck for me."
The taller boy saluted playfully, his chocolate eyes filled with amusement, "And here I thought you were gonna say 'break a leg'."
Kaoru grinned at him, immediately liking his demeanor and the fact that his little brother was apparently into kendo, "You're already trying to do that."
"Yeah, and trying to kill people in the process, bird-brain." Misao agreed, laughing at the slightly chagrined expression on his face. She looped an arm around Kaoru's, and wrapped her other arm around Kenshin's. "We're gotta go now, otherwise the store'll close. Later, Sano!"
"See ya." He winked down at the girls and clapped Kenshin on the back good-naturedly, "Don't let the weasel run you ragged." He loped off, leaving behind an aggravated girl struggling to break free of Kenshin's and Kaoru's restraining hold.
"I'm gonna kiiiill you!!" she hollered at his retreating back, causing the tall boy to laugh and wave cheerfully back to Misao as he left.
"Whadd'ya think?" the cerulean-eyed girl bounced up and down, nearly exploding with her barely contained eagerness. "It took forever to find!! Do you like it?"
Violet orbs stared down at the sakabatou in his right hand, the metal sheath firmly held in his left. He had no clue how his uncle was going to react to this one. He didn't even quite know how to react to it himself. After having practiced with a katana and wakizashi for the vast majority of his life, it felt odd to hold a sword that appeared to be upside down.
The silvery blue blade winked brightly in the yellow light that filtered down from the overhead lights in the antique weapons shop. It was an amazing piece of work, Kenshin noted as he scrutinized the weapon. The blade had been made by a master's hand, and even with his minimal knowledge of such matters, he could see the professional craftsmanship clearly.
Apparently he had been quiet for far too long. "I'm sorry! I knew I should've got that katana so you could've practiced with it!" Misao's eyes watered slightly. She had really hoped that he would like it better than he had the tanto.
"It's perfect, Misao." the boy reassured her, his mouth curving up into a pleasant smile. At least it hadn't been anything horribly dangerous or explosive. You had to be most grateful for the little blessings in life.
Kaoru couldn't help but notice that even though Kenshin was a little puzzled with the gift, he went out of his way to make sure her friend felt as though she had given him the thing he wanted most in the world. Okay, more than a little exaggerating on her part, but he was still really nice about it.
And really cute.
Her interested gaze left his face to the red flame of his hair, and was almost disgusted when she noticed that it looked much more silky then hers did. 'Highly unfair.' the girl groused mentally. 'It's pretty, it's shiny, and it's about as long as mine. I wonder...' shaking her head to clear sudden bad thoughts, she continued in her blatant perusal, 'Nah, can't be gay. Hopefully. That would totally suck if he were.'
As Misao started to reassume her normal, cheerful self, Kaoru was startled to find Kenshin's amethyst eyes glancing curiously into hers and realized dimly that she had been staring at him for far too long. Clearing her throat self-consciously, she smiled at him. "That's a really interesting gift, isn't it?"
"Yes, it is." he agreed, curiosity passing briefly over his expression.
Misao grabbed the two by the arms and tugged them out of the shop, the wind chime tinkling merrily as they exited. "Come on! We've got some shopping to do!"
Kaoru groaned loudly, causing Kenshin to smirk.
"Have fun!" the red-head began in a cheerful tone as he untangled his arm from Misao's.
"I don't think so, Himura! You're coming along with us!" she declared resolutely, the look on her face daring him to say no.
Debating the pros and cons of taking off or sticking around, Kenshin decided he could spare an hour or so. Hopefully less, but this way he would definitely become acquainted with Kaoru. She had definitely seemed interested. An amber gleam flashed briefly in his eyes before he bent his head forward a little to allow his long, slightly messy bangs to cover the tell-tale sheen.
He heaved a dramatic sigh for the girls' benefit, earning giggles from both of them. "I'm coming, I'm coming." Misao then looped her arm about his, and Kenshin couldn't help but think as if he had suddenly acquired a human ball and chain.
An hour and a half later found Kenshin bored out of his mind, waiting outside the girls' dressing room on the uncomfortable light blue plastic seats, along with all the other unfortunate males that had been dragged along by their respective female friends. It had been a little difficult getting into the mall with his new sword, but the three of them convinced the security guard they had been doing some early shopping for Halloween. Between their innocent faces, and Kenshin's slight appearance—which Misao had played up, much to the teen's discomfiture—the guard had finally left them alone, walking off muttering about crazy kids.
"What do you think of this one?" he heard Misao ask Kaoru, and slumped further in his seat. Perhaps it would've been wiser to have snuck off. The boy was starting to lose circulation in his lower limbs from all the sitting he had been doing.
"Misao, you look good in everything. Can we go now?" Kaoru complained loudly. The male occupants waiting along with Kenshin grinned widely upon hearing this. It was a definite oddity to hear a female want to stop shopping, and Kenshin was pretty sure they were wishing that the other women were like that.
"Not yet. You've only found a couple of things!" Misao reappeared, the clothes she was planning to purchase filling her arms.
"I don't need a ton of clothes." came the flat retort as Kaoru followed sulkily, her petal pink lips pursing into a full-blown pout. Tracing the contours of her mouth with his eyes, Kenshin leaned back against the chair with an easy smile. Definitely a good different.
"You don't own a ton of clothes." she paused to pick a pale blue shirt up and admired the scrolling beadwork done in varying shades of complementary blue tones. "I do." With a contemplating expression, she held the shirt up to see if it might look good on her friend. A pleased smile caused her lips to quirk upward as she shoved the said shirt into her friend's arms. "Go try that on with the beige capris."
Kaoru rolled her eyes, "Yes, ma'am."
As the taller girl stomped off to the dressing room, Misao flopped down on the free seat beside Kenshin. "I don't know what to do with her!" she groaned loudly, pulling at her long bangs in exasperation.
"I heard that!" Kaoru's muffled yell caused the girl to squirm slightly in her seat.
"Anyway, after Kaoru's done, we're gonna hit the food court. You want to come?"
With casual grace that comes with many years of training in a field that requires calculated precision in the body's moves, Kenshin fluidly rose from his uncomfortable seat and smiled. "That'd be great, Misao, but I have to go home."
"Hiko's making you cook again?" her blue eyes winced in sympathy.
The boy grinned at her look, "If I didn't, we'd be eating takeout every night."
"Good point. You guys would start looking like this!" Misao held her arms out as if pretending her stomach had bloated to the size of a giant pumpkin and puffed air into her cheeks.
Kaoru stalked back out of the dressing room to where the two were seated. She tossed her head and put a hand on her hip after raising a questioning eyebrow at Misao's new look, "Well? Will this do?"
Her friend looked at her appearance critically for a moment, then nodded. "I like it, it really pops out your eyes. Whadd'ya think, Himura?"
A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth even as he fought to hide it. "I agree with Misao. But..." he stood up slowly, and neared Kaoru. She eyed him warily as his hand moved to her hair, the last time a boy had touched her hair (aside from Aoshi's tugging at the mass to get her attention) she had found a nasty large wad of faded green gum. Needless to say the jerk who had done the foul deed had severely regretted it within the next few seconds. Detention had not even taken away from the victory, as the wuss had had to go through it as well.
He smoothly removed a price tag that had lodged itself into the top of her braid, allowing the smirk to finally cross his lips at her blush upon seeing the paper. "I don't think you're for sale."
Misao smiled, mischief twinkling merrily in her eyes, "She's still single, Himura, so name a price. We might be able to work something out."
Kaoru flushed darkly, the hot pink hues spreading like wildfire upon her cheeks and eartips from both embarrassment and anger. "Don't make me hurt you!"
With a glance down at his watch, Kenshin looked back up to see Kaoru attempting to strangle the weasel. With a feeling that it would be near impossible to break this one up, the boy decided it was time to go. "Later, Misao. Oh, and Kaoru?"
She paused long enough to look up, her face still cutely flushed and eyes flashing with barely restrained temper.
"Make sure to get that shirt." he smiled briefly, amber sparks glinting in the deep pools of violet, before turning around and leaving the dressing room. His movements were unhurried as he exited the store, knowing full well that the girl was in a state of shock and would not be able to think of doing anything to him before he was long gone.
"Why I ought to!!" the girl growled, face flushing even more furiously, her fist raised and shaking in the direction Kenshin had disappeared from.
"You heard the man!" Misao cheered, pushing her recalcitrant friend back towards the dressing room. At the blank stare she received from her statement, she shook her head with a mournful sigh. How on earth could someone get so riled up about something so simple? It's not like he had asked what size jeans she wore. "So, let's buy it!"
Ignoring Kaoru's protests, despite the increasing volume, the quick-minded girl soon had the Kenjutsu princess standing outside the store with a loaded bag of clothes in each fisted hand.
Death threats could easily be ignored at this point, especially when she could defer the chewing out with promises of food and sweets.
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As he walked the several blocks back to the high school, where his car was parked, Kenshin pondered whether or not it would be wise to ask Kaoru out within the next 48 hours. As these thoughts crossed his mind, he jumped slightly as his cellphone both vibrated against his thigh where it was snugly residing in his jeans' pocket, and rang a decidedly feminine song.
Sano was definitely going to die.
Slowly and painfully, if Kenshin had anything to do with it. And he would.
Digging out the offending cell and flipping it open, he didn't bother to check the number before answering somewhat sharply. "Hello?"
"Kenshin?"
His world immediately stopped spinning on its axis and stopped with a jarring thud. His mother had called him.
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End NotesHmm, not as long as the previous chapter, but I kind of (almost… sort of) like how it turned out. To provide a little inside as to where the story is going… (to somewhat quote Mrs. Q from Ceres Celestial Legend—the manga—"I'm not going to tell!") J/k, but we will be seeing a little into the character's various pasts within each chapter's opening. I'm not going to do the whole ruroken cast's past, just a certain few.
Thank you for reading! The authoress lives off of reviews, so do feed her. :) See you guys next chapter!