Hello Everyone!
I'm back! Please forgive me for my lengthy absence, life seems to get in the way of the things I truly wish to do such as writing another chapter of this story. I love this pairing and am dedicated to completing this story, slowly but surely. Not to worry, judging by my progress thus far we won't be seeing this story ending anytime soon.
Warning: There is some very harsh language in this chapter, I apologize if it offends anyone but you know how our Sanosuke can be -_-; In this chapter we will see what the results are, if any of the exciting activities from last chapter, we will catch up briefly with Kenshin and Sanosuke will get in trouble... as usual. So, please read on, if you still love me please review and let me know if you're still with me! Thanks so much!
Fire and Ice
Yahiko turned over, away from the light that filtered through his bedroom window. 'Just five more minutes' he told himself as he kicked one of his long, gangly legs out from beneath his sheets. His forehead creased in his sleep. He could not smell breakfast cooking which was odd, since Kenshin had left Sano always made something for all of them before he left for work. The young man grumbled before finally opening his eyes and rolling out of bed. He donned his yukata, getting irritated when his first attempt to get his arm in his sleeve did not work.
He shuffled down the hallways towards the kitchen, his mouth was dry from what the could only assume was him snoring all night, he needed a glass of water. He filled his glass with the cool, crystal clear liquid and downed it quickly. A small, satisfactory sigh fell from the boys lips as he placed the glass back down on the counter. It was then that he noticed the small piece of folded paper that lay on the table. Yahiko leaned down and picked it up, he unfolded it to see the haphazard script of Sanosuke etched across the paper.
'Yahiko,
I'm positive you're the one reading this because there is no way Kaoru is awake yet. Do me a favor? Don't wake her up. She had a rough night, just let her sleep. You might want to call off her class for the I didn't have time to cook anything this morning, I woke up late for work. I left some money so you guys could go out and get something to eat if you wanted, go somewhere nice. I'll see you both when I get home.
Sano.'
"What does he mean she had a rough night?" the boy wondered aloud. He shrugged his shoulders and put the note back down where he found it next to the envelope that held the money he left. He knew Sano had asked him not to but he was interested to see what exactly had happened, he just had to know.
Yahiko crept silently back down the hallway towards his sensei and adopted sisters room. He slid the shoji back slowly and the first thing he noticed was the almost overpowering scent of alcohol. It took him no time to realize what must have happened. Kaoru was a competitive person by nature but when she drank that quality was exacerbated. If there was one person in the world Yahiko would never want to get into a drinking challenge with, it would be Sano but he was sure that did not stop Kaoru and now she was paying the price for it. He did not necessarily want to be around when she woke up. The headache alone she was sure to have would be enough to make her insufferable.
He turned to leave so that she could sleep off the rest of her liquor, he would have to leave a note on the dojo door to let everyone else know that there would be no class today... unless... Yahiko was certain that he would be able to conduct classes on his own. Kaoru deserved a day off anyway. with that thought in mind the boy returned to his room to dress, he grabbed his shinai and headed out to the dojo.
"Oi! Sano! You okay, man?"
The aforementioned youth spun at the sound of his boss's booming voice.
"Uh... yeah. I'm fine, just a little tired today. Nothing to worry about." he said, rubbing the back of his head nervously. It was true, he was tired but that was hardly the reason he was unable to keep his focus today. No, that had everything to do with the beautiful girl that he left at home this morning and the activities they had engaged in the night before. Sano couldn't sleep last night at all. All he could do was remember what it was like to kiss her. He had kissed Kaoru, felt her soft full lips pressed against his. He had tasted her very essence and now it was all he could do to try to remember anything that happened before that moment in time. She had let him kiss her willingly and she had liked it. She had told him so but as the euphoria of the moment began to wear off and the beautiful haze of alcohol burned away an unsettling anxiety began to take its place.
What would he do now? What would he say to her if she confronted him about it? Surely she would not be pleased if he were to tell her that he loved her, that he had been in love with her for the past year, possibly even longer. He was no fool, he knew that even now she still loved Kenshin more than any other despite his absence. It had only been a few weeks since he had left but Kaoru's heart was bound to him and there was nothing Sano could do to change that.
It was all he could think about, his head was swimming. Would she even remember? His heart clenched in his chest, he could not decide which would be worse. If she did not remember the moment they had shared together or if she did remember and told him it was a mistake. The tall youth felt sick to his stomach, he was just barely functioning but he didn't want to take a day off from work. The guys needed him to get this track laid down and the railroad finished.
Shouta's forehead creased in worry, he had never seen Sano act in this peculiar manner. Something was certainly wrong but it did not seem like the young man wished to speak about it. He placed his massive hand on the boys shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze.
"I think you ought to go home for the day, huh? You've done enough, they can carry on without you for one afternoon. Take the rest of the day off and rest over the weekend. You can pick up where you left off on Monday."
Sano looked at his boss for a short moment before he ran his hand down his face and nodded his head.
"Thanks, I guess I could do that. I just have a lot on my mind." he said, sounding more weary than he had felt in years.
Without another word Sano began packing up his tools and equipment, he threw his bag over his shoulder and gave a short wave towards his coworkers and his boss.
"Sano!" Shouta shouted as the man began to walk away.
He turned around but did not say anything.
"Is it woman trouble?" Shouta asked, knowing that he probably already knew the answer.
Sano let out a short laugh and shook his head, "You could call it that... but she isn't mine." he said before walking away heading in the direction of his home and for the first time he could remember he was not looking forward to seeing the woman he loved.
Kaoru began to stir early in the afternoon, the sun coming through her window was now too bright to ignore. Her head was pounding and her stomach was feeling extremely unsettled. Where the hell was she? What had she done last night?
She threw her elbow over her eyes and forced herself to recall what the cause for her discomfort was. She had spent her afternoon reading in her little piece of paradise that she discovered in the warmth of the sun until that rooster head had intruded, picked on her for her reading material and then they had gone to the Akabeko.
That's where it all started!
Sano had started drinking and insulted her drinking prowess. Kaoru was not one to back down from any challenge so she had readily fallen into a drinking challenge and now she could tell she was no where near up to par. How much had she had to drink? She had consumed at least two bottles on her own which considering how little she usually drank was a massive amount. No wonder she felt like death warmed over.
Though she wanted to, she knew she could not rightfully blame Sanosuke. She had gotten into this mess all on her own and in all honesty he had shown her a wonderful time. He had taken her out to a beautiful meal and then he had introduced her to a bar that completely demolished her preconceived notion of what a bar should be. She could just barely remember the walk home. Had she fallen?
No, she almost had but he had been there to catch her. In spite of herself she smiled, it seemed every time she went to fall lately Sano was there to catch her, to lift her up and put her back on solid ground. Removing her arm from where it lay across her eyes she opened them, blinking several times in order to try to get them to focus. Kaoru felt as if there was still some crucial event that she was failing to recall but it hurt to think so she did not push herself to remember right now. Everything would come back to her in good time, she had excellent drunken recall. Right now she needed to focus on getting her day started. It was going to be a serious undertaking to even get out of bed.
A sudden realization hit her forcing her to sit upright, the action caused her to become dizzy. She had a class to teach today and now she was late! Her students were probably sitting in the dojo right this minute confused as to why she wasn't there yet.
She dressed as quickly as she could manage with her head pounding the way that it was and soon she found herself rushing down the hallway towards the dojo. She could hardly believe how irresponsible she had been, this was not really like her but she could not deny that it had been fun. Kaoru turned the corner into the dojo and to her surprise all of her students were in attendance but they were not just sitting idly waiting for their sensei, instead they were all sparring with one another and Yahiko was at the head of the class, shouting instructions and corrections as necessary. Everything was running as smoothly as if she had been here the entire time conducting class. To say she was impressed was an understatement, she was astounded that Yahiko was able to instruct the class without her guidance completely.
She took a seat next to him without a word, she just watched their pupils fight one another, taking note of their form.
Yahiko was the first to break their silence, "How ya feeling?"
A small smile cracked the young woman's face, "How did you know I wasn't feeling well?" she asked with genuine curiosity.
The younger boy shrugged, "Sano left a note. He said not to wake you and that I should probably cancel class for the day but I figured I should try to handle it." he said off handedly. In truth, he was rather impressed with himself for doing so well.
Kaoru let that information sink in. Sano had taken the time to write Yahiko a note before he left not to disturb her so that she could get her rest. He must have known how awful she would feel this morning. It was very considerate of him.
"He didn't make anything for lunch but he left us some money. Are you hungry? Do you want to go to the Akabeko later?" Yahiko asked, he knew Kaoru may not feel like eating right now but it was the best thing for her.
Kaoru grimaced, the thought of food made her stomach turn violently.
"Maybe... I think I should try drinking some tea to calm my stomach first."
The boy nodded, agreeing that it would probably be the best course of action. "Why don't you go do that? Take a bath too, I've got this under control."
She smiled widely at that, "Thanks, I guess you really are worth something!" she said as she rose from her place on the floor.
The boy growled a warning at her but did not say anything further. Yelling might cause her headache to get worse which meant she would be more violent than usual. He didn't need her to beat him down in front of everyone.
Kaoru set off to the kitchen to fix herself a cup of ginger tea in an attempt to settle her stomach. After that she headed over to the bathhouse to scrub herself clean and hopefully try to salvage the rest of her day.
The dimunitive samurai walked down the bustling city streets of Shanghai doing his best to go undetected which was nigh impossible considering his bright red hair made him stick out like a sore thumb. Saitou had decided it would be best if the two split up since he would be unable to do any detective work with a shining beacon like Kenshin around. So now he found himself walking alone in a city he did not know searching for someone who likely had eyes and ears all over the country let alone the main bustling cities.
He took note of everyone he saw and though things in this country seemed strange, he had no run across anyone he would deem a suspicious figure.
Kenshin was beginning to think this entire operation was worthless, perhaps all of the intelligence the police had gathered had been a cleverly planned ruse by the syndicate. It was Kenshin's understanding that the police had tried to gather information from Enishi but he wouldn't talk, he was still lost to the world trying to reconcile the feelings he had now that he had found out the truth about the love his sister had once held for Kenshin.
A gentle smile settled upon his lips at the thought of Tomoe. She had not crossed his mind very often since the incident with Enishi, the battle had brought a small bit of closure to him. He missed her gentle nature, the pure femininity that exuded from her being. How ironic that he had fallen for a woman so completely different years later and yet he still could not let himself get too close to her. Too many times already he had put Kaoru's life in danger. He made that mistake once before, he refused to repeat it.
Kenshin gave an inconspicuous nod to a man lurking in the shadows near a soba shop. For being one of the most famous samurai in the Bakamatsu Kenshin was impressed by how little attention Saitou could bring to himself. Had he not faced the man in battle multiple times in the past he would not even have given him a second glance not that many people here in Shanghai would be able to identify him. However, those few who could identify him, those unsavory individuals that they were pursuing wouldn't notice him either.
The small rurouni wondered if his letter had made its way to the loved ones he had left behind yet. He knew that sending the letter could prove to be a grievous error but he just couldn't bear the thought of Kaoru brooding and worrying herself to death over him. At least it would prove to set her mind at ease, that he was alive and well.
Kenshin walked down the alley to his left, hoping to find whatever it was they seemed to be searching for...
The walk home took Sano's bad day and made it much worse. His walk home was taking twice as long as it usually would not only because he was nervous about facing Kaoru but also because for the first time in a long time he had run into some trouble along the way.
As the youth walked across the bridge into Tokyo's main marketplace he had accidentally bumped into a rather large, burly man who was none too pleased to have some scrawny kid jostling him. Sano tried to continue on his way but he was stopped.
The other man growled, teeth clenched he grabbed Sanosuke by the front of his shirt. "Ain't you gonna apologize for that you runt?" he said, his putrid breath fanning out across Sano's face.
The youth turned his head to the side in an attempt to get away from the other man's stench. "Ugh... have you ever heard of a toothbrush buddy? You could knock out a horse with the breath you've got."
Shock and rage flittered across the other man's face in quick succession and Sano took this opportunity to dislodge himself from the grasp on his shirt.
"What did you say you piece of trash?" he roared at Sano, his face becoming red as his anger continued to build.
His two cohorts that were flanking him, were unusually quiet, Sano noticed. Usually when he ran into these sorts of guys they were all boisterous and obnoxious, each one would make snide remarks and comments to goad each other on, but these two were completely silent and they looked extremely uncomfortable. Sano wondered if they might have run into them before.
'Good' he thought to himself, 'at least they learned their lesson the first time if I beat them.'
The taller of the two finally spoke up, "Hey Hiroshi, I don't think you should mess with him." his voice was quiet.
The massive man laughed, "You asking me to back down, Kano? That just ain't gonna happen. I gotta teach kids like this a lesson."
Sano was trying to keep his temper under control but this guy just wouldn't quit and he certainly didn't have any qualms putting someone in their place, especially considering the mood he was in today. It might even help a little to blow off some steam. Maybe beating this guy down was just what he needed to get his mind back on track.
He cracked his knuckles as his cocky grin slid into place on his handsome face, "I can assure you, my man that I'm no kid. The name's Sagara Sanosuke but you might know me better as Zanza." he said, his old moniker sliding off his tongue feeling as natural now as it did then.
Sano noted the glint of understanding that lit up the other man's eyes, "So you're the one everyone used to make all the fuss about. Where ya been? Rumor is you've gone soft, that you went straight again."
Sano shrugged at the man's clear accusation, in the underworld it was a very big deal if you left the life of a gangster and tried to live straight again, like a normal person. It was considered a betrayal.
"Yeah I'm trying to clean my life up, got someone I want to be good for..." he stretched his arms high above his head then brought them back down and rolled his shoulders, "As for whether or not I've gone soft, you can be the judge of that. I'll even give you the first shot."
An uproarious laugh escaped the other man's throat and he nearly doubled over as it shook through his entire body.
"That's just great kid, you really are a riot. You're not going to be so cocky when I smear your face all over the street for all these people to see." he said, looking around at the crowd that had begun to gather around their little group.
"Che, we'll see. Now put up or shut up old man, I've got places to go and people to see."
The smaller, fatter man who had yet to speak finally spoke up "Don't do it boss, he's the one. That's the guy that took us out last month." he whispered urgently and his voice shook.
Sano was just barely able to make out what he had said and it only took a moment more before he recognized both of those goons. They were the same guys that had assaulted Kaoru the night he had gone to the bar.
He laughed bitterly, "I didn't even recognize you over there! I got you good, didn't I? Didn't your nose used to be in the middle of your face? You bastard." he said to the little man before turning to address the man he was currently dealing with. "Well, if you're anything like those two were this will be a walk in the park."
"So you're the asshole that did this to my guys? You're in for it now." Hiroshi swung at Sano, landing a devastating blow to the side of his face. Sano was pushed backwards about a foot or so but was able to stay on his feet.
Sano righted himself, he turned his head to spit and ran the back of his hand across his mouth. He brought the appendage to his face and scoffed, "Seriously? You didn't even make me bleed and I gave you a free shot. Just pathetic..." he taunted.
"No, you know what's pathetic is a street fighter like you going soft for some girl. That's right the boys told me how worked up you got over that little piece of tail. Would be a shame if something happened to her, wouldn't it Zanza?"
"If you, or any one of your goons lays a finger on that girl you're all dead. Every last one of you, you got that?" Sano grit out, his body beginning to shake with the rage that boiled up within him. It was low for this guy to drag Kaoru into this. It had nothing to do with her. It never had anything to do with her, she was the innocent in all of this, always had been. She was the one that had been assaulted while trying to walk the streets of her hometown, she had never done anyone harm.
"Sure, sure, I hear ya... but you know they did tell me she was a looker. What was her name again? I think they said it was Kamiya Kaoru, that girl that owns the dojo on the other side of town. She could fetch me a pretty penny on the black market. I might just have to ignore that little warning you..."
The man's taunt was cut short as Sanosuke kicked him square in the face. Several teeth fell to the ground and blood began to run from his ruined mouth. Sano was on him his hands fisted in the fabric of the mans shirt, his face just a hairs breath away from the other man's.
"If you don't fucking shut your mouth right now I will tear out your tongue and you'll never be able to threaten another person again." he hissed unable to control his fury a moment longer. He was tired of everyone threatening to hurt Kaoru. She had never done anything wrong to anyone. It wasn't right, they should be threatening him, not her. "You keep her name out of your fucking mouth do you understand? You aren't worthy to speak it."
The crowd gawked at the scene before them and it seemed that the older man refused to give up without a fight. He obviously did not want the people present to go off and tell their friends what they saw today.
He was able to dislodge Sano from his perch on top of him and he landed another direct hit to his face. This time Sano's lip was was busted open.
Sano exploded, "Dammit! Assholes like you just don't quit do you? Why can't you leave good people in this world alone? I'm gonna kill you!"
Sano tackled the man again, unfortunately he used a little too much force and he sent both of them toppling over the railing of the bridge. Both men fell down towards the river, still grappling on the way down.
A massive splash was all anyone saw for several moments, the spectators waited with bated breath to see if either man would surface. Finally Hiroshi broke from the waters surface, his right hand gripped the hair on the top of Sanosuke's head as he hoisted the boy out of the water only to punch him in the face again.
The tawny haired youth sank into the murky water once again and this time he did not resurface. some of the women in the crowd began to cry, unable to truly believe what they just witnessed. Hiroshi threw his arms into the air and let out a celebratory victory cry. His two henchmen clapped vigorously, thoroughly impressed by their boss's fighting prowess. He had accomplished what they had been unable to do. He had defeated Zanza.
"It's a little early to be celebrating, don't you think?"
Hiroshi turned to look behind him, his eyes wide in disbelief. How had this kid not drowned?
Sanosuke grabbed one of Hiroshi's arms with his own and brought his leg up, kicking his arm right at the elbow. A sickening snap was heard before Hiroshi began to scream, a guttural, blood curdling sound that caused several people to cover their ears.
"I'd like to see you touch her now, you bastard!" Sano yelled, grabbing the man's injured limb again and twisting it. "Does it hurt? I hope it does. Next time you think about hurting someone innocent you remember what this feels like, you remember my face and you remember what I can do to you!"
"Stop!" a very loud, commanding voice shouted over the rest of the noise.
Both men stopped what they were doing and turned to see several police officers and the police chief surrounding them by the riverside, their swords drawn.
"Don't move, you're both under arrest for disturbing the peace. Surrender quietly or we will be forced to take drastic measures."
Sano stood still but cursed under his breath, this wasn't going to be good. He didn't even want to think about how pissed off Kaoru was going to be. It had been nearly a year since he had gotten into any sort of trouble for street fighting outside of the night he defended her.
Hiroshi grunted from his place next to Sanosuke, "All this over some stupid little cunt..." he said.
"Shut up!" Sano's hand flew from his side before he could realize what he was doing and knocked out the rest of Hiroshi's front teeth. In the next moment he felt a searing pain in his right shoulder and he fell to his knees in the shallow water.
He watched as drops of crimson began to fall to the murky water below and he knew without looking that it was his. He had made a sudden move and the police had reacted, they were only doing their job but they were manhandling the wrong guy in his opinion. He wasn't the dangerous party here, it was Hiroshi.
"Now we can add resisting arrest to your charges." said the police chief.
"I wasn't resisting! Look, I'll come along quietly if you just tell that bastard to keep his mouth shut."
"Watch your mouth son." one of the policeman said as they hauled Sano up and on to his feet none too gently. Both men were escorted from the scene and soon they were on their way to the police station.
One small girl among the throng of spectators bit her lip nervously as she watched the two men get carted away. She twisted her hands in front of her, she knew what she had to do now. Turning away from everyone else she began running to the dojo, she had to tell them what had happened.
Kaoru glanced impatiently at the gate for what she could only imagine was the hundredth time that evening. It just wasn't like him and as much as it confused her to think of that man as reliable, he was. She almost scoffed, she never thought Sanosuke could be reliable but he had proven himself to be so.
Sanosuke had not been late getting home once since Kenshin had left them all which only made her anxiety grow stronger as the minutes ticked by. What if he had decided that he did not want to be around as well? Kaoru didn't think she would be able to withstand two of the men in her life walking out on her. The longer she sat the angrier she got as well. Why would he keep her waiting like this?
'He better have a damn good excuse.' she thought as her eyes trailed to the gate again. She never wanted anything more than to see his spiky hair from over the tops of the gate and watch his boyish smile as he walked through them, apologizing all the while for being as late as he was.
She turned back to the needlepoint she was trying to focus on to pass the time. Although she was not very good at it she found it a welcome escape, a calming activity she could do while letting her mind wander but she could barely make any progress with the way her hands were shaking.
She took a deep, cleansing breath in an attempt to soothe her jagged nerves. She closed her eyes as a sweet breeze drifted across the porch and it was then that she heard someone fumbling with the locks on the front gate. Kaoru stood and rushed to the gate, in moments she had the locks dislodged and she threw the door back, hoping that it would be her wayward friend finally home. She just wanted to know he was okay.
However, she was greeted by a nearly breathless Tsubame. The young girls chest heaved with her breaths and her bangs stuck to her forehead and the sweat that collected there.
"Tsubame-chan! What are you doing here?" She asked while ushering the young girl through the gates. "Is everything okay?"
Tsubame shook her head in the negative, that everything was certainly not okay but she had yet to catch her breath to relay her message.
Kaoru guided her to the kitchen table and into a vacant seat. She got her a glass of water and set it down in front of her small friend. Yahiko walked into the kitchen not a moment later and instantly he was by Tsubame's side.
"Tsubame! What happened? Are you okay? Is everything alright at the Akabeko? Are you hurt?" The young man asked several questions in rapid succession, all his words running together as his hands searched her person for any injuries.
The brown eyed girl shook her head again and now she finally felt she would be able to speak.
"I'm fine, nothing happened to me... but... Mr. Sanosuke..." she began, then faltered, unsure of how she should proceed in breaking the news. She was frightened of Kaoru's reaction but she was also worried for Sanosuke. He had been injured by the policeman, she had seen his blood.
Kaoru was on her knees in front of the girl, on the opposite side of Yahiko. She grabbed Tsubame's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "What about Sano?" she asked much calmer than she actually felt, "What happened to him? Where is he?"
Tsubame cleared her throat, "He... he got into a fight, Ms. Kaoru... but it wasn't his fault! This big man just started yelling at him and then they were fighting. Eventually the police came and they both got arrested. The police..." she began sniffling, trying to fight back the tears. "They told him not to move and then he did... they stabbed him."
Yahiko's breath caught in his throat. He took Tsubame's free hand and ran his thumb across the back of it in slow circles, he hoped it would prove to be reassuring for her. "How badly was he hurt? Is he still alive? " he asked her.
"Yes, yes! He's still alive but he was bleeding..."
"Why did they start fighting? What happened?"
She just shook her head, unable or unwilling to speak about the incident any further.
Kaoru said nothing but moved to the front door and began to slip on her shoes.
"Kaoru, where are you going?"
"Someone has to go bail that stupid roosterhead out." she said as she grabbed the pouch of money she had that contained all of her savings. She was certain that when she returned home none of it would be left but at least she would have the one person that still cared about her back.
Sano sat against the far wall of his cell on the cold, concrete floor. He stared up at the leaking ceiling his eyes unfocused and unseeing. He didn't know if it was better or worse that the wolf wasn't around right now, he knew he would have had to deal with far more taunting but at least he could have interrogated him about Kenshin. Sanosuke knew that Saitou's absence meant he was with Kenshin, he had known all along what sort of mission the filthy government had Kenshin trying to do. Now he did not know how he could obtain the information to find Kaoru's wayward Rurouni. He hated the idea that the words he spoke to her that day may have been a lie. Sano would not allow that to happen, if he could not find Kenshin then he pledged to stay by Kaoru's side until he returned. He would not leave her, he would not abandon her, even if she were to spend every single day screaming at him that she hated him he would not go.
He wondered if she knew by now where he ended up today. For once, Sano could honestly say the fight had not been his fault. Hiroshi started that one all on his own and it would not have escalated as far as it had if he had just shut his mouth when Sano told him to. If Kaoru's name had never passed the other man's lips Sanosuke would never have lost control in the way he did but he just could not sit back and listen as Hiroshi threatened the woman he loved.
The man absently fingered the gauze wrapping around his shoulder, the blood had begun to soak through. The injury still stung but it was not terrible. Sano was aware he had been lucky, had the police truly wanted to debilitate him they could have tried to sever a tendon or something worse. Then he would never be able to properly defend Kaoru. He shook his head, he did not want to imagine a world in which he could not care for her. He refused to allow that to happen.
"Sagara, you've got a visitor." the policeman that guarded the prisoners called.
Sano got to his feet and brushed the debris from his pants. His heart was beating wildly in his chest. This was the first time since their kiss the evening before that he would see her. Did she remember? Was she angry with him for getting himself thrown in jail? Would she want anything to do with him?
His breath caught in his throat when she rounded the corner heading towards his cell. She was wearing her light purple yukata, the one that had delicate pink butterflies adorning it and he noted instantly that she had left her hair down. It was not in the customary ponytail that she usually wore, instead her ribbon was wrapped around her head, creating a bow that was off center and slightly to the right. She looked beautiful and sweet, innocent in a way. The set of her mouth let him know that she was definitely angry but for what he could not determine. Was it the previous evenings actions or the fact that he had been arrested?
The young woman gave a short bow to the policeman then turned to face Sano. He saw her look to his injured shoulder, somehow she had already known about it. "What were you thinking roosterhead? You aren't a kid anymore, you can't just get into a fight every time you have an argument with someone." she began by chastising him.
Sano's expression went from unsure to indignant in a second flat, "I didn't start it! I tried to keep walking but the asshole wouldn't budge. What else could I do?" he yelled, his hands flying into the air. He instantly regretted the gesture as the searing pain in his shoulder reminded him of his injury. "Damn." he hissed against the pain.
Kaoru's heart clenched in her chest at the sight of his pain. She did not want to see Sanosuke in pain but she was very cross with him. He needed to grow up, he couldn't just beat everyone to a pulp every time he disagreed with them.
"It doesn't matter, Sano. You need to stop being so immature, think before you act." she continued, she was honestly disappointed in his behavior. She thought he was beyond this, everything had been going so well until now.
The young man's mouth twisted into an angry frown, "Why are you always so quick to judge me, Jou-chan? You call me immature, you tell me to stop fighting but you don't ask me what happened. You don't care to know why I felt the need to fight. If it were Kenshin in here I doubt you would be doing the same thing." he grit out, hurt and angry that she was treating him this way. It had been for her, was he supposed to just stand there while the other man spouted off at the mouth about selling her into some sex ring. He couldn't and he wouldn't.
Kaoru's mouth dropped open at his words, "Kenshin only fought when he had to Sanosuke and you know it. How dare you try to put your street fights on the same level as his battles. He fought when it was a life or death situation, you fight anytime you get the chance!" she yelled back, she didn't care what his reasoning was it surely was not as justifiable as any of Kenshin's reasons.
Sano shook his head, if she only knew the sick twisted things that Hiroshi had said about her, the names he called her then maybe she would understand but he could see from the set of her jaw and the fire in her eyes that she would not even try to listen. "Why are you here?" he asked, his patience now paper thin. If she only came down here to chastise him then he wanted her to leave, he'd be more than happy to spend a few days in the slammer if it meant not having to listen to this nonsense.
"What do you mean why am I here? I came to bail you out, stupid. Trust me, it isn't going to be cheap either. They told me that you resisted arrest."
"I did not! The bastard I fought with wouldn't shut up so i did it for him, they thought I was resisting and that's where I got this nasty little trophy." he said, removing his shirt to show her the bloody bandages that covered his right shoulder.
Kaoru was slightly disturbed when her temperature rose at the sight of Sanosuke's bare chest. She was being an idiot, she had seen him without a shirt on countless times so why was she reacting like this? She let out a shaky breath, "Whatever, I'm getting you out of here. Just stay here and be quiet!"
The young man made the gesture of zipping his lips shut before allowing his cocky grin to slide onto his face. Sure, Kaoru was mad now but she wouldn't stay that way. She rarely held onto her anger and he would certainly pay her back the money she was using to bail him out. After that, they would be squared away and things would get back to normal.
The raven haired woman walked away feeling rather unsteady on her feet, when she had looked upon him just then, even though he was bloody and filthy, even though he was hardly apologetic for what he had done she had felt the almost overwhelming urge to kiss him. She grimaced, she could not imagine what that would be like. She shook her head, banishing the thought as she walked back into the lobby so she could pay his bail and then they could leave.
"Here you go." The boy said as he handed a steaming mug to the young girl, "Be careful, it's hot."
"Thank you." she said, smiling sweetly at the dark haired boy.
Yahiko and Tsubame sat on the front steps of the porch awaiting the return of their older friends. He had prepared her a cup of tea to calm her jagged nerves. It seemed witnessing the fight between Sano and the street thug was a bit too much for her to handle.
"Was it really that bad, Tsubame?" he inquired, Yahiko knew she had witnessed countless bar fights before, that came with the territory when you worked in an establishment that served alcohol but he had never seen her react in this way.
She nodded her head, "The things that man said about Kaoru-dono, they were awful. He called her terrible names... he said... he said that he could make good money if he sold her on the black market." tears began to trail their way down her cheeks.
Yahiko's fists balled into fists by his side, he could see why Sanosuke had done what he had. If Yahiko had heard someone speaking that way about Kaoru he knew he would have done the same thing.
Tsubame continued, "The other man said it was pathetic that Sanosuke-san had gone soft for some girl, he got so angry every time he talked about her. Yahiko-kun, I think... I think Sanosuke-san may be in love with Kaoru-dono."
Yahiko could not contain the incredulous look that settled on his youthful face. Sano in love with Kaoru? It just didn't make sense, it went against everything he understood about the world. Kenshin loved Kaoru, Sanosuke just made fun of her a lot.
"No way." he said, waving a hand in a dismissive gesture in the air. "All he ever does is call her ugly or a racoon girl. He teases her all the time about her gross cooking, there is just no way Tsubame."
The young girl downcast her eyes, looking into the murky liquid that was held in her tea cup. Even though Yahiko completely disagreed, she did not doubt her assumption. Whether Yahiko realized it or not, Sanosuke-san had a fire inside of him that burned solely for Kaoru-dono and the thought only made her heart ache for him. He did not stand a chance against Kenshin-san, his absence didn't mean anything to Kaoru-dono, she only had eyes for him. It seemed no one could truly be happy in this scenario.
Yahiko frowned when he realized he must of hurt her feelings, "Hey, I'm not saying you're wrong... I just can't see those two ever having feelings for each other Kaoru's head over heels for Kenshin."
"Maybe you're right, Yahiko-kun..." she said just to appease the boy.
The two youths looked up as they heard some rustling at the gate followed by Sano's boisterous voice.
"Geez, woman! Will you stop nagging me already? I said I was sorry, I'm gonna pay you back, now can you please be quiet?"
"Excuse me! Don't you dare, Sagara Sanosuke after all I have done for you. I came all the way down to the station to bail your sorry butt out of there and this is the thanks I get? If you would start listening to me for once this kind of nonsense wouldn't happen." she shouted, pushing past him into the courtyard, stomping her feet the whole way like a child having a temper tantrum.
Sano rolled his eyes and let go of an exasperated sigh, she had chastised him the entire way home. He didn't understand how she could keep talking without her jaw getting tired. He was this close to tearing off his own ears so he didn't have to listen to it anymore. He was dirty, tired, hungry and in pain. All he wanted was some food and sleep, she would not even grant him that.
"Just shut up..." he muttered under his breath before he came to a stop next to her.
Though she heard him clearly, she acted as if he did not hear his snide remark. Rearing her hand back she smacked him on the back of his shoulder. "Why don't you go get cleaned up, hm?"
The tall ex-gangster ground his teeth together against the sharp pain that tore through him. He didn't dare open his mouth again, for all he knew she might do something worse and he didn't have the energy to fight off a rabid raccoon after the day he'd had.
He silently walked off in the direction of the bath house, a hand gingerly rubbing his shoulder the whole way.
The spiky haired boy grimaced, "You weren't too hard on him were you Kaoru?" he asked hesitantly, he knew the truth behind Sano's little street fight today. He had been defending her honor and he would hate to know that she yelled at him after all he had done for her.
Kaoru puffed her chest out, "He deserved it Yahiko! He needs to grow up, all he ever does is fight and I'm tired of having to bail him out every time."
The boy exploded, rising to his feet he shouted at her, his irritation with her hitting an all time high. "No, why don't you grow up Kaoru? You act more like a child then he ever does, moping around when you don't get your way and constantly pointing the finger at others. Take a look at yourself for once, he was defending you today. Those thugs threatened you, that's why Sanosuke lost his temper because they were going to hurt you! You think all he does is think about himself? Sorry, but you're the only one around here that seems to do that." he finished pushing past her to walk out the gates. He needed to take a walk to cool his head before he said anything else. The teenager was positive he had hurt her but it was necessary for her to hear.
Tsubame looked at the gate wide eyed for a moment before her eyes met Kaoru's. The older woman didn't seem to be seeing though her eyes were focused on the gate, looking after the place where her adopted brother had stormed off. Tsubame rose to her feet, gave Kaoru a short nod and followed after Yahiko.
A cold breeze swept across the courtyard, even though the day had been warm a chill ran through her body as her longer, ebony hair swirled around her.
Maybe Yahiko was right and in a way so was Sanosuke. She was the one that still acted like a child, she was no more mature than any of them. Kaoru still acted like a little girl, making excuses for herself and for the one she favored the most, Kenshin. She still stood by what she said in a way, Kenshin did not engage in simple fist fights just for the fun of it but Sanosuke had not done that in quite some time either. She had just assumed that was what had occurred before she ever gave him a chance to explain and what had Yahiko said, that Sano had been defending her? Who cares what some thug said about her, he could have just walked away. However, if it were her and someone had insulted Kenshin or any one of her friends she would not have been able to do so. She would have stood her ground, she would have fought and for the first time she was able to recognize just how much she and her volatile friend had in common.
Kaoru reached to the top of her head and pulled at the bow, releasing her ribbon allowing her hair to be completely free. She retreated into the house in search of bandages and antiseptic, the prison doctor had done a terrible job of dressing his wound but to them, Sano was just an outlaw, why would they bother to care about him? She would help him bandage the wound, just as she had the night he had badly injured his hand. That had been for her sake as well. Had she always been this inconsiderate when it came to Sanosuke? Did she always put Kenshin above him? She felt ashamed of that now, it seemed that Kenshin clouded her thoughts quite often, and it was all her fault.
Retrieving the items that she was in search of she headed back out to the bathhouse, by now Sano was probably washed up and she could bandage him up before he went to bed. When she reached the door to the bathhouse she hesitated, what if he did not accept her help? He would be justified, of course, but she hoped he would at least let her do this much, to try to make up for the trouble she had caused him today and for all of the complaining she had done.
She knocked on the door sharply, "Sano, are you finished in there?" She received no response and felt a dull ache begin in her heart. Maybe he was really angry with her. She knocked again and still he did not respond.
Now she was angry, at the very least he should be thankful that she had come to bail him out, whether he was going to pay her back or not. "That's it! I'm coming in!" she shouted before shoving the door open and entering.
Every time I think of letting up on the tension between these two I tend to make it worse but I'm such a fan of angst. I know it's easier for me to leave it with Kaoru not remembering the kiss between them but it seems like her subconscious is trying to give her a few clues.
Kenshin seems to still be wandering around aimlessly... O.o
And poor Sanosuke, will I ever just let him be happy? Who knows! Please review! It's my only real motivation in life. Thanks for all who read!