In Memories: Ko-To-Wa-Ri By: P.P.V.V.

Disclaimer: The Standard Disclaim applies…

AN: I know, I just updated. But I want to update while I have the chance and while I am inspired. "Yubikiri Genman" is a song usually sung by children as two people lock pinkies together and make a promise. 指切りげんまん、うそついたら針千本飲ます － 指切った. (Yubikiri genman, usutsuitara harisenbon nomasu, yubikita.) I didn't want to put the Japanese down below, so I put the English translation down instead.

Onward.

Chapter 10

The Eyes of a Warrior –

His fingers were cool against my forehead. They slid to my cheeks, the fingers of one hand unconsciously tracing the cross-like scar I had gotten many years ago.

I guess I wasn't reacting the way he expected me to, because the next thing I knew, Yahiko was kneeling in front of me, his wide eyes peering into mine.

"Kenshin?"

"I'm here, Yahiko," I assured him, knowing that those were the words he wanted to hear rather than words of my well-being. He hadn't been asking if I was okay. He had been asking if I was present, both in mind and in body. I couldn't blame him. Especially not after I had withdrawn from all of them.

He seemed to relax slightly, but the worry did not leave his eyes. "Why are you just sitting here on the dojo's floor?"

"I was just resting," I said, but I could tell that he did not believe me. I guess the half-truth would have worked had he not felt the way my skin had been burning up.

His glare was quite menacing. "You know, if you're not feeling well, why don't you just say so?"

I opened my mouth to protest, but closed it again promptly. Protesting now would only seem petty and childish. Yahiko may have been young, but he wasn't stupid. I felt bad that I'd worried him to begin with. "You're right. I'm sorry."

The way his eyes widened told me that he hadn't been expecting me to agree with him. He was like that; always ready to fight back if he knew he was in the right. He huffed, "Honestly! Why can't you ever admit something?" His face took on a petulant look and he scooted himself backward a little. "Kenshin...is it because you still think of me as a kid?"

The question was blunt, but pierced like a well-sharpened sword. I was many years his senior and since circumstances had led him to my company, I'd found myself in the role of his mentor. Compared to before, he'd tempered down, his uncoordinated movements starting to show signs of discipline. He'd grown into a very handsome boy, his features becoming sharper, more defined. After years of training, his senses had become more attuned to his surroundings. Most of the young ladies turned their heads his way. Even my son adored him and wanted to be just like him when he was older. But there was always going to be a part of me that would see him as the child who I had rescued off the streets.

The child who'd stolen my wallet.

The child with the warrior's eyes.

"Yes," I replied, truthfully.

A scowl started to form on his face and he spluttered, "What? How? I'm practically an adult! I even have a place to call my own. At my age - "

"-At your age, I was enlisted in a war, assigned to assassinate targets that were chosen for me," I interrupted. "I was still so very young. So very inexperienced and yet, I thought I stood on top of the world." He seemed to pale at my harsh words, but I didn't care. It wasn't often I spoke about my past. I tried to soften my tone a bit. "I wish I could go back and re-do those years and live my life as a child should have.

"Yahiko, you are still very young. Don't be in such a hurry to grow up. Experience life...don't rush it."

He regarded me solemnly. His fingers went up to ruffle through his unruly black hair. "I just want people to take me seriously."

I nodded, letting my head fall back to rest against one of the walls of the dojo. It was the one where all the names of the students who were learning swordsmanship were posted onto wooden blocks. My eyes wandered to Yahiko's name, remembering the past – had it been that long already? He'd always wanted us to take him seriously and I always had. I said so aloud and he gave me a doubtful look, allowing me, for a moment, to glimpse the child that was still within him.

"You'll have to forgive me," I told him. "After years of being alone, I learned to take care of my problems on my own."

He read right through that phrase, the smart kid – young adult, excuse me. "In other words, you don't want to be a burden on other people." I had to give him credit. Disappointment coloured his cheeks. "And once it gets out of hand, you become even more of a burden," he said. "Like that time when you just shut down on us."

I could not hide my flinch.

Yahiko was proving to be a worthy opponent with words. "Fair enough," I allowed. I was certain he didn't like talking about that time any more than I did my past.

The resentment in his eyes dissipated and he blinked up at me. "Make me a promise. Man to man."

I hummed uncertainly. I did not make promises lightly.

"Don't give up." The cutting edge to his tone was back, and I knew that if I disappointed him in this, I'd lose all the respect I'd garnered from him. "No matter how hard it gets, don't you ever give up on yourself again."

Oh.

Oh!

He hadn't been upset that I'd withdrawn from them. He'd been upset that I'd lost the will to live.

My eyes were so wide it hurt. I almost the missed the fact that he was talking again. His voice was low, harsh, full of tears that I knew he would never shed in front of me. "Promise me."

It was a children's ritual, a secure thing that even I had indulged in when I'd been younger. Once done, it gave assurance that words would be kept and taken seriously. I held out my pinky finger.

He recognized it for what it was, and he reached out to wrap his own pinky finger around mine, tugging at it slightly. It was like he was tugging at my heart and my mouth spilled the two words that he was looking for. "I promise."

To my surprise, he began to sing.

"Pinky promise: if you tell a lie, drink a thousand needles and cut my finger."

And with that, the promise was sealed.

To Be Continued…

AN: The chapter was written with the intention of it happening sometime after the Jinchuu arc. Yahiko was referring to the time when Kenshin shut himself away in Rakuninmura. Even after years, Yahiko still has that fear that Kenshin would do it again. I hope it wasn't too confusing. Do cheer me up with some reviews and let me know what you thought!

Thanks for reading,

-P.P.V.V.