Chapter 3
What now?
When the raven-haired girl exited, Kenshin sat up from his position on the floor and scrutinized the room with his now golden eyes.
'So I'm in the future now…' Kenshin thought and walked out of the open door of the closet, with the tri-coloured ball in hand.
He propped down on the chair where Kaoru formerly sat on. 'That means that it has been thousands of years since the Bakumatsu…' He pondered in confusion, his eyes switching to amethyst.
'Why does that girl, Kaoru-dono, know sessha then, de gozaru na?' He eyed the History textbook sitting on her desk. "It's because of this, de gozaru yo!"
He dropped the volleyball and flipped through the pages of the textbook, searching for something about the Bakumatsu. His eyes landed on a page which had the name "Hitokiri Battousai" bolded on it.
After reading the paragraph about himself, he glared at the page with scorn, as if challenging it to say more. He continued to do this for 10 minutes until he sighed in boredom.
"When will Kaoru-dono come back, de gozaru na?" Kenshin asked, slouching on his seat.
He turned his head to the side, and spotted the ball lying on the floor. Picking it up, he got off the chair. "Sessha wonders how to play this so-called 'Volleyball…'" He poked the rubber material and examined it from all angles.
He rolled the ball on the floor until it reached the other side of the room. Blinking he crawled toward the ball and sat down next to it.
"Hmm…" He murmured, lifting it up from the ground. Kenshin then dropped it on the wooden floor and watched it bounce a bit.
"Oh! It bounces, de gozaru yo!" Smiling at his new found knowledge, Kenshin lifted it higher then released it. The round object bounced 4 times before rolling on the ground again.
He stood up and walked to the volleyball and picked it up. With a little snicker he wondered, "Sessha wonder what will happen if…?" The tri-coloured ball was tossed into the air until it hit the ceiling. It rebounded from the ceiling and bounced off the floor, then the wall, then the door.
The amethyst-eyed red-head chuckled at the chaos created by the rubber ball.
Suddenly, the door opened and the raven-haired girl poked her head in the door.
"Ah! Kaoru-dono!"
But, too late. The volleyball collided with her head and fell to the ground.
"ITE! Iteiteiteiteiteite!"
Massaging her sore head, she cursed under her breath and made a mental note to keep the volleyball a safe distance away from the man in front of her. Glaring at the red-head, she picked up the volleyball and hid it in her closet.
Once she left the closet, Kaoru sat down on her chair and contemplated the havoc that he made with an innocent volleyball.
Kenshin watched her twitch in anger as she studied the room. Her books were disarrayed; her alarm clock fell from its place; the little group of anime plushies she had were scattered all over the floor.
"Okay…" Kaoru started through gritted teeth. "First, we have to find out what happened then you have to clean my room while I eat dinner."
Kenshin nodded thinking that she was trying to make him stare to death since he hadn't eaten anything for hours. He sat on her bed and faced her.
"You first, Kenshin." Kaoru spoke up. "After all, if you're gonna stay hidden in my bedroom for a while, I should know more than your name and the fact that you're a hitokiri."
At first taken aback that she called him by his first name, Kenshin's eyes turned amber again at the word 'hitokiri'. Kaoru's eyes narrowed slightly at the change.
"I was a hitokiri in the end of the Bakumatsu. But after the war, I became a rurouni and I carry with me a sakabatou now- to atone for my sins." Kenshin replied and glanced at Kaoru. "Anything else you want to know?"
Kaoru nodded. "Out of curiosity… How old are you?"
Blinking in surprise, Kenshin's eyes switched back to its purple hue. "Eh… Sessha is 17 now, de gozaru yo… Sessha will turn 18 in January, de gozaru."
"EH? You're the same age as me!" Kaoru exclaimed in astonishment. Kenshin blinked at her then shrugged.
"Anyway… What happened before you appeared in this time?" Kaoru interrogated the rurouni.
"Well…" Kenshin began, reflecting on what happened. "Sessha was in the Fireworks Festival in Tokyo, de gozaru yo… Then, all of a sudden, there was a bright light and sessha came here, de gozaru."
"There was a bright light in the book too…" Kaoru added.
They sat in silence for 2 minutes before Kenshin feigned a cough.
Glancing at the crimson-haired rurouni, Kaoru questioned, "Nani?"
His now golden orbs glittered curiously. "I told you about me. Now I want to know about you." He leaned sideways on the bed and propped his chin on his palm.
Arching an eyebrow at him, she pondered on what to say. "Well… I'm 17. And… ano… I go to Ajisai Gakuen; in 3rd year high school."
"What's high school?" Kenshin asked.
"It's a place where you learn stuff… But you have to be 15-17 years old to attend high school. There are different schools for different ages." Kaoru explained.
"Do I have to go to high school?" Kenshin inquired, pointing at himself.
"Oh! I forgot!" Kaoru muttered in irritation, slapping her forehead lightly. "Hai… Demo… We still have to find out where you're gonna stay and junk…"
Kenshin tilted his head to the side. "Can't I just stay here? I don't have anywhere else to go."
The raven-haired teenager shook her head hastily. "Iie. Someone will find out and I'll be dead meat!"
The male in front of her was about to say something but there was a call heard from downstairs. "Kaoru! Time for dinner!" As she stood up from her seat, Kaoru replied, "I'm coming, okaa-san!"
She turned to the hungry samurai on her bed and declared, "I promise I'll bring you back some food. But you'll have to clean up the room first." And she exited, leaving the hitokiri to mourn over the fact that he couldn't eat just yet.
Kenshin gritted his teeth in anger when he heard a loud growl come from his stomach. "Hmph… This is so annoying." He mumbled. A few minutes later he asked out of the blue, "What does she mean by dead meat?"
Kenshin leaned against the white wall, facing the bedroom door. The room was now tidied up and he collapsed on the bed when he finished the chore assigned to him. There was a faint growling sound in his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten for two days now.
'Why didn't I eat in the festival?' He cursed himself mentally when his abdomen ached from hunger.
Grumbling in his mind, he didn't notice the soft click of the door knob. The first thing he noticed was the floating aroma of teriyaki and tempura.
His mouth watered with famine and turned his head to the direction of the familiar delicacies. He saw the plate full of food in the hands of his new female acquaintance and his lavender eyes twinkled in anticipation. Kaoru snickered inwardly at the sight.
"Ah! Domo arigatou, Kaoru-dono!" He said excitedly as she laid the plate on her desk. He rushed to the chair and clasped his hands together. "Itadekimasu!" Kenshin declared before he began to dig into his food.
"So… Kenshin?" Kaoru inquired as he chewed his meal. Kenshin turned to face her and swallowed his food. "Nani, Kaoru-dono?" Kaoru paused before saying, "You're gonna stay with my uncle. I called him a while ago. You're going to his place next week but you're going to meet him tomorrow."
"Hai!" Kenshin said with a smile and gulped down more food. "What's his name, de gozaru yo?" He questioned before chewing more of his food.
"Seijuurou Hiko." Kaoru replied. At the name, Kenshin spat out the food in his mouth.
"NANI?"
