AN: I'm back! ... Ah, but school starts up again in two weeks, so things are going to get even more INSANE! Thanks so much to everyone for all your reviews/favorites for my last chapter! Love ya'll!
Revised 8/18/12 (Because I'm just that nitpicky)
Chapter Six
XXXXXXXXX
Misao
Ami's hair is so pretty …
In one swift motion, I wrap a ribbon around the girl's smooth, glossy tresses and tie it up into a bun. Her hair is still damp, fresh out of the bath, the scent of Kaoru-san's favorite jasmine shampoo filling my nostrils as I smooth it out. When I peek around at the girl's face, I can't help but smile. Her once sickly pallor has now been flushed with color, the effect nicely offset by the lavender kimono Kaoru-san lent her. She looks better than just pretty now – she looks as fresh as a daisy. In this moment, she's not some sickly child prostitute constantly haunted by fear and the memories of her horrific past. She's just a girl, as sweet and innocent as any other fourteen-year-old, getting her hair done before dinner.
"Hey, Weasel!"
I glance up to see Yahiko's shape silhouetted against the shoji screen. "Hai, Yahiko-kun?"
"Tsubame and Tae are here, they brought food from the Akabeko. Let's eat!"
"Okay, we'll be right there!"
As Yahiko's footsteps scamper off down the hall, I stand to my feet and crouch down in front of my companion. "Hop on, Ami-chan."
"Wait, Misao-san." I feel her fingers run themselves through my long, curling mane. "Do you want me to braid your hair for you first?"
Oh yeah. I'd jumped into the bath right after Ami-chan and my hair was still wet and loose. "Sure Ami-chan, that would be …"
Wait.
I pause, glancing over at the mirror situated on the other side of the room. Unlike Ami-chan – or pretty much all normal Japanese girls with their smooth, bone-straight locks – my hair tumbles down past my knees in a shapeless mess of kinks and curls. I run a hand through my unruly bangs, thinking back to the night before …
Perhaps you should do so more often.
"Uh … on second thought …" I blush lightly. "I think I'll leave it down tonight."
I hear Ami let out a soft giggle before she climbs onto my back. I hoist her up easily as we venture out to join the others in the dining room.
XXXXXXXXX
Megumi
"Well …?"
I nearly choke as my captor presses the knife until I can't take a breath without the blade grazing the skin of my throat. My heart is hammering out of my chest, but I refuse to give this thug the satisfaction of seeing me squirm.
"I won't ask again, lady." He leans in closer until his jaws are mere centimeters away from my face. "Where. Is. The girl?"
I swallow back my fear and focus on a point on the far back wall. "I don't know what you're talking about …"
"Don't lie!"
I stifle a yelp as the knife bites sharply into my skin, a chill sweeping over me as a warm trickle of blood dribbles down towards my clavicle. I close my eyes, collect myself … Easy, Megumi. Stay cool. You're going to be fine. You've been in hairier situations than this before. This thug is small potatoes compared to that.
"Fujii!"
I open my eyes and see a dark shape move into my line of vision, just past the giant's snarling face. There's two of them. The second thug is another large, bearded man; not as massive as the giant, but just as menacing, and he's sneering at me in a way that turns my stomach.
The giant turns his head. "Search this dump!" he barks.
His partner nods and disappears as the giant turns back and bares his teeth at me in warning. I refuse to look at him, refocusing my attention elsewhere as I hear the slamming of a door and footsteps tramping their way through the examining room. In spite of my perilous predicament, I feel a surge of anger as a series of thuds and clangs and smashes rings out from behind the door. He's ransacking the place! After a few minutes, I hear the brute storm out and up the stairs to the top floor, where the noise of mindless wreckage commences once again. No! My stuff!
I grit my teeth in frustration as I imagine my trunks being overturned upstairs, that barbarian ripping through my belongings … the sight of medicine jars and medical kits lying smashed open and instruments strewn about the floor in the next room …
These animals! Who do they think they are making a mess of my clinic like this? Okay, technically it's not my clinic, but Dr. Genzai left it in my care, so it's my responsibility. How dare they! I swear, once I get out of this, I'm going to …
And then the noises stop, followed by heavy, angry footsteps plodding over to the top of the stairs. "She's not here!"
Well, duh … I let out an involuntary cry as the giant roars and slams me against the wall, banging my head so hard that stars explode before my vision. I'm fighting to catch my breath when the knife flies up from my throat to my cheek, the tip of the blade pressing just below my eye.
"Talk …" the giant growls. "Where did you hide her, wench?"
I'm trembling now. I can feel my shell of proud, brave-girl resolve crumbling in the face of the giant's glare. My mind's reeling backwards … back into the dark abyss of memories of my time in Kanryuu's lair … memories of torture and imprisonment and endless fear. It's been so long since I felt this helpless … so completely and utterly at someone's mercy. I can't stand it. I'm fighting with all my might against the urge to flinch. To whimper. To break down in tears.
I open my mouth and struggle to keep my voice steady. "I told you … I don't know what you're talking about. Please … let me go."
Everything freezes. I can hear nothing but the blood roaring in my ears and the giant's heavy breathing as he glowers at me, his eyes roving over every inch of my face.
"Well then …" I watched, horrified, as his jaws stretch wide into a hideous grin. "I suppose we'll just have to persuade you to talk, now won't we?"
I can scarcely breathe as I feel the knife's tip slide downward, tracing a line along my chin and down my neck. The giant's eyes follow hungrily along the knife's trail until they finally rest upon my breasts. And then my gut clenches as I feel him slip the blade into the opening of my kimono, slowly pulling it open …
No.
"Get off of me!"
I swing my arm up and smash my fist into the giant's jaw. I rush forward as he lets out a yell of surprise, but in an instant he's grabbed me roughly by the arm and shoved me back, slamming his blade against my throat once more.
"Feisty little wench, aren't you?" he taunts, and I give an involuntary gasp of pain as he twists my arms within his fist. "Last chance, doll. Feel like talking?"
A single, helpless tear trickles down my cheek. I can't betray Ami-chan. I won't.
"N-no …"
"No?" I choke in revulsion as his sweaty hand slides down my arm and grasp at my kimono. "Fine. Let's have some fun then, shall we?"
I clench my eyes shut, fighting back the urge to cry. No … please … no!
"You have exactly three seconds to let her go before I skin you alive."
That voice …
My eyes blink open and I gasp aloud, my heart thrilling with relief as I make out the shadowy shape of my Rooster-head standing in the doorway.
"Oh, and who's this punk, huh?" the giant snarls, whipping his head around. "You this little hussy's boyfriend or something?"
CRACK!
The giant flinches. The deadly crack of knuckles rings out through the room like a gunshot as Sanosuke marches forward into the light.
"I warned you …" he hisses, his fists clenched and ready. "Get your filthy hands off the lady doctor before I rip you apart."
Oh my …
Now I've seen Sanosuke pretty angry before. I probably know better than anyone how hot this Rooster-head's temper gets when he really loses it. But I've never, ever, seen anything like the blinding fury searing through his eyes right now as he glares down my captor, his teeth bared, his whole stance emanating with deadly, explosive rage.
I can hear the slight unease in the giant's voice as he lets out a short bark. "Ha! So whatcha gonna do, punk? I'm the one who's got your pretty little girlfriend by the neck here."
I stifle a whimper as the blade digs deeper into the nick it had already cut into my neck, drawing more blood. "So how about you just turn around and get your skinny butt on the road? I promise I'll leave her in one piece for you once I'm all done with her."
Sanosuke lets out a snarl and lunges forward. "I said get off of her, you son of a - !"
"Sano! Behind you!"
I scream as the second thug leaps onto the unsuspecting Sano with his knife raised, but in an instant the Rooster-head has whipped around and grabbed the thug by the shoulders, slamming him down – head-first – into the floor with a bellow of rage, the floorboards snapping and splintering upon impact.
"Fujii!" the giant cries as his friend falls and lays there limp as a fish. "GET UP, you idiot! Get up and kill that scrawny – AHHHHHH!"
Ha, don't forget about me, fool! Taking advantage of the giant's momentary distraction, I wriggle loose and slam my knee straight into his crotch. In an instant the giant is howling in pain, staggering backwards as I fall the floor from the sudden release of his grip.
"Fox! Run!"
I stumble to my feet only to be wrenched up roughly by the hair, screaming as the giant towers over me, snarling furiously like a rabid dog. I see the glint of the knife swinging down at me and instinctively raise my arm to shield my face …
And then I let out a cry as steel slices through skin and flesh, the pain exploding in a fiery path from my wrist to my elbow.
An animalistic roar fills my ears and suddenly the giant is gone. I fall to the floor, the sounds of furious grunts and yells and smashes echoing through my ears as I grasp at my arm, gasping as I feel the warm blood dribble out from beneath my fingers. I see nothing but a tear-soaked blur of red through my stinging eyes and I fight back the urge to vomit.
Ahhh… oh, Kami, this hurts!
There's one final cry followed by a mighty crash that seems to shake the entire building. And then my ears are filled with the frantic pounding of footsteps and I feel a strong pair of hands grasp me gently by the shoulders.
"Megumi …"
Sano … I look up and swallow a sob of relief as his handsome, grizzly face fills my vision. He searches my face, the rage completely emptied out from his eyes and replaced by uninhibited concern as he rips the bandana off of his head and wraps it around my wounded arm to form a tourniquet. I wince from the sudden pressure and a few more tears slip from my eyes. I'm still shaking and hyperventilating from the whole ordeal. It's all I can do not to weep openly as I gulp and gasp for air.
Seeing my distress, Sanosuke reaches forward to pull me gently – and somewhat awkwardly – into his embrace, careful to leave some space between us so that he's not pressing up against my wounds.
"It's okay, Fox ..." he whispers, rubbing a hand up and down my back. "It's okay. You're okay. It's over. You're going to be okay."
You're okay … I sniff and swallow back my tears, feeling my racing heart gradually return to a steady rhythm. As my vision clears, I spot a giant-shaped hole smashed through the far wall of the clinic, exposing the dark empty street and what looks like a huge, unmoving lump lying on the ground on the other side.
"Ha …" I can't help but let out a laugh. In any other situation, I would be screaming at him for this. But then the laughter dies upon my lips when I catch movement out of the corner of my eye and see the second thug regain consciousness and stagger to his feet.
"Sano!"
The Rooster-head spins around in time to see the man stumble once before breaking into a sprint and dashing out the door.
"Sano!" I cry, pushing roughly against his shoulder. "Go! You have to stop him!"
He spins around to face me, his jaw set. "No. I'm not leaving you here alone. We've got to get your arm fixed or else …"
"It's fine." I take a breath and collect myself, pressing a hand against the makeshift tourniquet. "There's some blood, but not much, so it shouldn't have severed the brachial artery. I'm not going to bleed to death."
"You don't know that, Fox. Let me …"
"Dangit, Rooster-head, I'm a doctor! I know what I'm doing!" I screech. "You've already wrapped it all up. I can take it from here. Now go stop that guy or else he'll try to hurt me or Ami-chan again!"
For a moment, Sanosuke just stares at me with such a torn expression that I don't know whether to kiss him or slap him across the face. And then, finally, he leans forward and presses his lips against my forehead, gently cupping my chin with one hand as he pulls away.
"I'll be right back, Fox," he says, staring me straight in the eye … sending shivers down my spine as heat floods my cheeks.
And with that he stands and takes a running leap through the open hole in the clinic wall, reaching down to grasp the insentient lump of a giant with one hand and dragging his body along behind him as he disappears off into the night.
XXXXXXXXX
Misao
"… Aoshi-sama? … Aoshi-sama, what's wrong?"
I watch and wait as Aoshi slowly emerges from his trance and turns his face towards me. He'd been staring off like that for the past five minutes, his mouth grim and his eyes piercing straight through the walls. His expression now is neutral, but I can see that his eyes are churning with foreboding like the gathering clouds before a storm. He stares at me for a brief moment before his eyes lower down to his bowl.
"It's nothing, Misao. Everything has been taken care of."
And with that he lifts up his cup of sake and takes a long, silent sip.
I let out a quiet huff and shove a handful of rice into my mouth. Oh, for crying out loud, Aoshi. Can't you try to give me a straight answer once in a while?
"Ami-dono …" Himura suddenly calls from across the tatami. "How are you enjoying the food?"
I glance over at the blushing girl as she swallows down her beef teriyaki. "Oh ... I-I've never eaten anything so wonderful!" she gasps. She turns and bows toward Tae-san. "A-arigato, Tae-san, for cooking this wonderful food!"
Tae-san smiles warmly. "Oh, you're welcome, Ami-chan. Please eat as much as you'd like. Have you tried the tempura? That's my personal favorite."
"H-hai!" Ami-chan exclaims, reaching over to refill her bowl.
Ami … I've been watching this girl the whole time we've been eating, watching the way her eyes lit up in wonder and amazement with every single bite of food that she consumed. When I first carried her into the dining room, I felt her arms suddenly tense about my neck as she gave an audible gasp. And when I set her down, she was gaping at the spread with her mouth hanging open as if she had never seen such a thing before in her life.
I smile as Ami takes another bite of the teriyaki – clearly her favorite dish – and her face scrunches up in pleasure. You can't even tell that she's sick. You can't tell that there's anything wrong with her. It makes me ecstatic, seeing her so happy.
"Hey, Yahiko," Kaoru-san calls out. "Can you pass me some of the miso soup?"
She waits. Silence. I glance to my right to see the teenager sitting still as a statue at my side.
"Hey, Yahiko, you deaf? Kaoru-san asked you to pass you the –"
But then I stop, stunned by the peculiar expression on the boy's face as he stares across the tatami.
I follow his gaze and immediately spot exactly what has got this boy stuck in a frozen stupor. Seated on the far end, oblivious to his spellbound gaze, an utterly adorable-looking Tsubame is picking delicately from her bowl of rice. I look from Tsubame to Yahiko and back to Tsubame. Ah … well, it looks like Yahiko's childhood crush on this girl has only deepened now that they've both grown up. I try my best to not to snigger out loud as the Yahiko's cheeks slowly turn a noticeable shade of red.
When I first saw Tsubame again earlier tonight, I was impressed by the physical changes in the girl. They're more subtle than Yahiko's but definitely noticeable. She's still petite but gradually growing into her figure, the old baby fat in her cheeks virtually gone. She's shy and just a little bit awkward … cute rather than strikingly pretty. But it works just fine for her. And clearly it works just fine for Yahiko as well.
"HEY BRAT!"
And then suddenly a bowl of noodles comes flying across the room and smacks Yahiko right in the face.
"Ow!"
Gasps and "Oro's!" resound around the tatami as Yahiko falls backwards and an irate-looking Kaoru-san snarls, "Quit gawking at Tsubame and pass me the soup, idiot!"
"Eep!" I glance over to see Tsubame cover her mouth and stifle a squeak, the blood rushing up to her face. Meanwhile, an infuriated Yahiko has risen back to an upright position, noodles dangling all over his hair and a large red mark stamped on his forehead.
"Y-Y-You didn't have to throw a BOWL at me, STUPID!" he growls.
"You don't come between a pregnant woman and her food, BRAT!" Kaoru snarls back.
"K-K-Kaoru-koishii …" Himura stammers nervously. "P-P-Please, calm down …"
"UGLY!" Yahiko screams. "UGLY! FAT! PIG-SHAPED! UGLY!"
"You – !"
And then Kaoru-san's eyes widen, tears suddenly gushing down her face, her lips trembling. "You …" she chokes out. "I-I-I know I'm fat, okay? You don't have to … you don't …"
And then she falls forward, covering her face in her hands as she breaks down into sobs.
Woah, what the heck! I watch, shocked, as a frantic Himura quickly wraps his arms around his weeping wife and begins whispering to her soothingly.
What the … yeah, that was rude of Yahiko, but it's nothing different from how they've always bantered. What's the deal with Kaoru-san?
"Yahiko!" Tae-san yells from across the tatami. "Shame on you! You know Kaoru-san's hormones are on over-drive right now. How could you be so insensitive?"
I blink at Tae. Hormones …?
Okay. There are clearly some aspects of pregnancy that Jiiya never told me about growing up.
"What!" Yahiko starts, his eyes wide. "But … but she … she threw …"
"Yahiko." Himura says sternly, his expression one of the utmost seriousness. "Tae-dono is right. You should have known better than to say such offensive things to Kaoru."
"What … but …" Yahiko stutters for a few moments before letting out an angry growl and standing to his feet. "Fine. Whatever! I need some air."
And with that the teenager stomps his way out of the dining room and slams the door behind him.
"Oh …" Kaoru-san lifts her head, sniffling as she wipes away a few tears. "Oh no. I ruined our dinner."
"No …" Himura soothes. "You didn't ruin anything, Kaoru, that you didn't. Yahiko …" He sneaks a glance at Tsubame. "He's just a little embarrassed, that he is. But he still should not have said those things to you."
We all just sit there in awkward silence for a few moments, too tense to so much as even touch our food. Then Tae-san speaks up. "I wonder where Megumi is. Sanosuke went to get her almost an hour ago and there's no sign of either of them yet."
Himura smiles gently. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about, Tae-dono. Perhaps Megumi has an emergency case at the clinic."
I freeze. The clinic. I glance over at Megumi's empty seat and my mind suddenly seizes with dread.
She's not here …
"Um …" I stand to my feet. "I think I'll go head to the clinic and check on Sano and Megumi-san."
Himura gives me a confused look. "Th-that shouldn't be necessary, Misao-dono. You should stay and finish your …"
"I'm already finished." I bow hastily towards Tae-san and Tsubame-chan. "Thank you, the both of you, for bringing us food. It was really delicious! I'll just go make sure everything's alright at the clinic, okay?"
"Misao-san …" I glance down to see Ami-chan giving me a fearful look, her face pale. I can tell she understands exactly what I'm thinking.
I pat the girl gently on the shoulder. "I'll be right back, Ami-chan. Don't worry."
"I will accompany you."
I turn, stunned, as Aoshi-sama rises to his feet beside me. He stares back at me evenly and his stance brooks no refusal.
"H-hai …" I whisper, suddenly too worried at the moment to give a happy dance about the fact that Aoshi wants to go walking with me. "Sure, Aoshi-sama."
I let out a long exhale as I step out the door and onto the veranda. I've got a bad feeling about this. At that moment, Yahiko appears from around the corner heading towards the front door.
"You going back in?" I ask.
He grumbles. "Yeah … I'm going back in to apologize to Kaoru."
I smile and step forward to squeeze the boy's shoulder. "You're a good kid, you know that?"
"Don't call me kid," he snorts. And then he spots Aoshi behind me. "Where are you two going?"
"We're just going to check up on Sano and Megumi. They haven't come back from the clinic yet."
He stares at me a moment. "Oh. So you and Aoshi are going off together." His eyes get big. "Alone … in the dark … AGAIN."
That boy only gets one laugh out before I grab him up by his spiky hair and Monster-Bird-Fling-of-Fury him down, face-first, onto the veranda. I wipe my hands off as he moans and writhes in pain and then march off with Aoshi-sama following close behind me.
We're barely out the gates before Yahiko's pained voice reaches my ears. "Just don't take all night again, you two …"
XXXXXXXXX
"Aoshi-sama?"
"… Ah."
"You don't think something's happened to Sanosuke and Megumi-san … do you?"
We're halfway to the clinic now and I can't shake the feeling of unease that's been badgering me since the moment we left the dojo. Upon hearing my question, Aoshi halts in his tracks, staring up into the stars in contemplation.
"I believe …" he says after a long moment. "That they are no longer in any immediate danger."
And then he resumes walking.
Oh, come on … what the heck is THAT supposed to mean? I follow after him, desperately hoping that "answer" means there's nothing to seriously worry about. But when I look up at into Aoshi-sama's face, his dark eyes are glinting with a hidden secret. There's something he's not telling me. Something bad.
Sigh … how could someone's presence feel so comforting and yet so utterly frustrating to me at the same time?
I start, my ninja senses suddenly on high alert as a jolt of warning pierces through my brain. Somewhere, some feet away, a sinister presence is making his way through the streets at an unsteady pace. My highly-sensitive ears pick up stumbling footsteps, blood trailing along the ground, a muttering of curses … and then these sounds are immediately followed by a frantic cadence of hot pursuit, this second presence feeling strangely familiar …
"Sano!"
I'm off like a bullet. I have no idea where I'm going. I just follow my senses like a pack hound as I race at top speed through the moonlit streets. I finally round a corner in time to spot my target – some bearded brute staggering through the streets as fast as his gimpy leg can take him and an all-too-familiar Rooster-head following several feet behind him.
"Sano!" I call out. As he comes closer, I see that the Rooster-head is being slowed down by this huge lump of … something that he's dragging along the street behind him.
"Weasel!" he yells out. "Stop that guy!"
You don't have to ask me twice! With a loud cry, I race forward and swing my leg up and Monster-Bird-Kick the brute right in the chin, snapping his head back with a loud crack!
"Ha!" I yell, flipping backwards and landing gracefully back onto my feet. "How do you like that, you piece of …"
SPLAT!
"… Augh!"
GAH! Stupid hair!
I stumble blindly, yanking the hair aside, but not soon enough to duck completely out of the way as the brute's fist comes flying, slamming into my forehead just above my eyebrow. "Ow!" I stumble back for just a moment, and then I get mad. With a yell of fury, I leap into the air and slam both my fists down onto my attacker's skull. His cry of pain chokes off as his knees crumple and he collapses, unconscious, onto the ground.
"Misao." I'm still fighting to catch my breath when I hear Aoshi-sama race onto the scene, coming to a halt behind me. (HA! The one leg up I've ever had on the guy was that I'm WAY faster than he is.) I turn to see his kodachi drawn, his eyes sharp as he surveys the scene. But his stance immediately relaxes as he detects that all danger has passed.
"Good work, Weasel," Sanosuke says as he hobbles over to join us. I glance down and gasp as the thing he's been dragging along finally comes into view. It's actually a man. A mammoth-sized ogre of a man lying unconscious with his jaws hanging open, his ugly face smashed and half of his teeth knocked out of their sockets.
"Who is that!"
Sanosuke's face darkens. "This punk broke into the clinic and tried to put his filthy hands on Megumi."
"Megumi-san?" I gasp. "I-Is she okay? Is she hurt?"
Sanosuke releases a breath. "She'll be fine." And then he reaches down and grabs the second brute by the collar. "I'll just drop these good-for-nothing scumbags off at the police station and I'll be getting back to her."
"The police station." I turn to see Aoshi-sama raise an eyebrow disbelievingly. "Given the warrant still out for your arrest, Sagara, isn't the police station precisely the sort of place you should wish to avoid?"
"Oh, I'm slicker than that, Shinomori!" Sanosuke retorts. "I'll just tie them up to the fence on that street corner when no one's looking and leave a nicely worded note and be on my way. Piece of cake!"
"Sanosuke …" I wring my hands nervously. "What are we going to tell Himura and Kaoru-san? I don't want to worry them, especially Ami-chan."
The Rooster-head nods, his face grim. "Yeah. And there's no chance we're going to make it to the dojo for dinner. Just … just tell them Megumi's had an emergency case and … I decided to stay and help her." He gives a rueful smile. "That's sorta the truth, anyway."
I nod once. "Okay." I glance down at the Rooster-head's slightly bruised, battered knuckles. "Are you sure you're going to be alright, Sanosuke?"
"Oh yeah, it's all good, Weasel. You two head back and just worry about keeping Ami good and happy, okay?"
I let out a laugh. "Okay. You take care of Megumi, then, Rooster-head."
Aoshi and I stand together and watch as Sanosuke disappears down the street, dragging his heavy cargo behind him. My head is still spinning from this sudden turn of events, worry still nagging at the back of my mind.
"You are hurt."
Startled from my reverie, I glance up to see Aoshi-sama staring down at me intently, his eyes uncharacteristically tight with concern as they focus themselves upon my face. I have never seen him look so troubled. It is nothing glaringly obvious … just the slightest hint of disquiet looming behind the icy surface. With trembling fingers, I reach up to feel along the throbbing place above my eye, wincing at the sting of contact and stunned as I feel a thin spot of blood along my eyebrow.
"Oh …" I hold my fingers in front of my face, staring curiously at the faint red stains. I smirk jokingly and try to make light of the situation. "Well if anyone asks, Aoshi-sama, we'll just say my hair got in my face and I accidentally ran into a wall, okay? Heheh."
Aoshi-sama doesn't laugh. Naturally. He stares at down at my blood-stained fingers, as grim as ever.
"Hmph." Not to be deflated, I put my hands on my hips and stick my nose up high in the air. "Well, it's going to take more than a little scratch to keep this ninja down! I took down that oversized punk down pretty good, dontcha think?"
I freeze at the sudden, gentle brush of ice-cold fingers against my forehead.
"Yes … yes, you did."
Aoshi ...? Utterly incapable of breathing, my eyes travel up to meet his gaze. The eyes staring back at mine are as unreadable as always, but I've never seen them look so soft. My gaze remains fixed on his as I feel his hand ghost over the sore spot above my eyebrow before gently tracing the bone of my cheek, sending electricity dancing along my skin from beneath his fingertips. Every inch of me feels exposed to him as his hand pauses in its path, just past the corner of my mouth.
It's when his fingers glide over my lips that I finally come undone.
Lights burst before my eyes and I gasp, the wind suddenly and violently knocked from my lungs, and I fight to keep my knees from buckling. When I straighten up and the spots clear from my vision, Aoshi-sama is gone.
"Come Misao," I hear him say. I whip my head around to see him walking away, his back to me. "We must return to the dojo before they worry about us …"
XXXXXXXXX
Normal POV
Later that night …
From far away, they appear to be two huge, shapeless sacks discarded on the street corner. One would have to take a few steps closer to spot the smears of blood painted across the street in a trail leading up to these strange shapes. And finally one would have to step even closer before realizing that these two "sacks" are actually human – or at least, they appear to be, though their faces have been so viciously brutalized that they look as though they'd been run over by a steam train before someone bound their meaty wrists to the wrought iron fence with thick rope.
One of the disfigured thugs – the one called Fujii – blinks a swollen eye open as a carriage pulls up next to the corner. The tiny, insect-like head that sticks out of the box looks all-too-familiar through his bleary vision.
"Hmph … pathetic …" the voice sneers. "You failed."
The brute coughs once and spits out a tooth. "Not yet. I overheard something real … interesting."
Sanosuke, what are we going to tell Himura and Kaoru-san … There's no chance we're going to make it to the dojo for dinner… You two head back and just worry about keeping Ami good and happy, okay …
Fujii smiles cruelly. "I know where they're hiding the girl."
