Book III

Llanura

Plains

Chapter XXI

Converge

"May your journey overflow with hope and despair."

Let justice be done through humanity's fall from grace.

Megumi was silent as she felt her back stiffen from sitting on the backless chair that she had pushed into the corner of her expansive bedroom, the family's maid having been through her quarters earlier and straightening certain things. The Takani family, one of the bastions of wealth in Tereré, had been spared the brunt of the fire and their large stone house had been untouched in the attacks on the village. They had sheltered their family maid, whose house had been one of the first to burn, who seemed to be over compensating in her cleaning and cooking to ensure that the household was aware of her gratefulness towards the family of medics for taking her in under such precarious condition.

When Megumi had been scouted to be taken to Central to study, she had been nervous and she had withdrawn into her room for a short period, unwilling to speak to her parents. Most of her family had been trained and served as apprentices in the North, prior to Central's toppling of the Northern stronghold, and they were unable to empathize with her fears and concerns for being spirited away to the nucleus of the country that was so despised by the lower classes in her native lands. She had confided in her maid, the kindly woman an emigrate from the same village as Sanosuke, and the older woman had given Megumi a bracing hug and told her that she would do her best to support the youngest Takani even if she could not be present with her in the restrictive circles of the Capital.

Upon enquiring as to what she was referring to, the maid had given her a sly smile but patted her hand with light encouragement as she shook her head and requested that Megumi wait for the following day to understand the meaning behind her words. Megumi had been baffled by the normally complacent woman's seemingly scheming personality, unsure as to if the the many years tenured in the Takani household were worth the risk of her actions. The young doctor-to-be simply nodded, thanking the maid before the older woman left the house to return to her own residence for the evening.

The following afternoon, three days prior to Megumi's departure from Central with another Northerner who had also been scouted for medical training by the government, the maid had beckoned for Megumi to close her bedroom door. Megumi had sat neatly upon her bed, littered with clothes and other necessities for the Capital, and the maid flashed her a wide smile as she reached into her satchel that she habitually carried for the weekly shop—a true luxury in a society that depending on government rations—and pulled out a tightly wound bundle of cloths that were decorated with the typical geometric patterns of the North.

"This is for you," The maid crooned as she presented the bundle to the young Takani with two hands, her head bowed. "You're a fine woman and you must know that you need to know how to protect yourself in Central. This is all I can offer, but I hope that my lady finds some use of this gift." Megumi's mouth opened and closed like a fish as she tried to encounter the correct words, but she looked down at the bundle that was pushed into her hands by the elder who stepped back and waited for Megumi's hands to begin to tug at the material to reveal its contents. Megumi's nimble figures undid the simple knot, the first layer of cloth falling to the floor, and as she began to work on the second layer, she felt her fingers bump against something that seemed to have a moving part as well as a cylindrical nature to it.

"How did you get this?" Megumi asked in a hissing tone as the second layer dropped from her hands, her fingers grasping at the tool carefully and with hesitation as she had never handled one before. It was a small firearm, manufactured in Tereré forges, that had a barrel that would be able to handle six bullets and had an elegantly carved wooden grip that seemed to be made of local trees. The hammer was delicately curved but comfortable, almost feminine in an inexplicable manner, and the barrel was not extremely long but still intimidating to those unused to such things.

"My husband worked in the forge for many years and this was his retirement gift from the head smith," The maid replied in a low voice. "I have no use for it here, my lady, but you may need it given that Central is a big city compared to this village. It just gathers dust in my home." Megumi gaped down at the highly illegal weapon, knowing that if she was caught carrying it, it would implicate her and bring a devastating punishment to her as well as the maid who gifted it to her. Perhaps it had been the pull of manners and education, but she wrapped them up in their clothes and she tucked it neatly within the bag that she would carry on her person—a theatrical act to not give off the impression of ungratefulness—and she sighed heavily as she hugged the maid and thanked her for worrying about her safety.

When Megumi left Tereré for the first time to travel to Nantia to catch the train to Central, she had ensured to hide the firearm in a nook where she knew neither her family or the maids could access and had tossed a variety of clothes and books to mask its existence even more. Despite the good intentions in giving her such a potent gift and weapon, Megumi had not mustered the courage to carry the illegal weapon out of fear of the government and being caught with it—despite her intentions to never fire the blasted thing—and she fell back on the philosophy of 'out of sight, out of mind', forgetting that it was squirrelled away in her room as she threw herself headfirst into her studies.

Fast forwarding to the present moment, she found herself staring down at the cloth bundle that had accumulated a neat film of dust and seemed to be taunting her for the coward that she was to not be brave enough to accept such a heated gift. Megumi herself was not proficient in weapons or self defence, that always having been Kaoru's arena to fight in, and she was barely considered in-shape by most standards of the imagination. She could not run the distances that Kaoru could without being winded, she could not hold a bokken or a weapon without fear, and she could not stare down her own death everyday without her knees trembling. She had little qualms about saving those whose lives were on the cusp of passing over yet she was skittish in her own right. Sanosuke accompanying her home at night from his and Kaoru's home was a blessing for her given that she felt a sense of security standing next to the rooster haired patroller as they walked through the darkness of their village.

Her fear and reservations about the firearm and its potential use had never gone confirmed, thankfully living in a quieter district of Central where there were significant quantities of police roaming the streets at all hours, but she always wondered if she would be able to pull the trigger if needed. Kaoru's fighting spirit was something that cost her immense amounts of energy to understand to a working level and had watched as Kaoru as well as Ro become the first two women in the North to take on the role of patrollers. Vizinhos were a daily danger for them and they had seen gruesome things, lost comrades, as well as had to kill with their own hands with the purpose of killing as opposed to her not being able to save a patient.

Even then, she wondered if Kaoru would accept the firearm or if she would have the same misting of doubt as she did a few years ago.

Slipping the cloth bundle into her bag and piling a few other things on top of it, she reached for a hair pin and fashioned her hair into an elegant up-do before deciding that she would only receive the answer to that very question if she went to seek it for herself.

"How are things back home?" Ro's voice was soft as she slowly uncapped a bottle of rare coffee grinds that Yahiko had graciously brought her from the plains. He watched as she eyed the measurements, dumping them into two chipped cups before pouring hot water over them. They had reached Ro's house but neither was sure as to what to do: Ro had suggested that Yahiko rest from such a long journey but he refused, saying he would not be able to sleep through the night. Ro had not insisted and she offered to brew some tea, to which Yahiko tossed the small container at her and elicited a bright smile from the blonde. The two of them were content with speaking amongst each other in their dialect, not having to use the standard tongue that Central imposed so that the Northerners would comprehend them, and they seemed at ease as they settled into the dinky living room of Ro's lonely house.

"The harvest was good this year, they pulled in big numbers," Yahiko replied. "We won't see even an eighth of what we grew, so a lot of people are angry about that. Central's official explanation was the flooding in the East had ruined the fisheries and they needed to compensate in that district. No one believes that, of course, but it's what they threw together in terms of an official statement." Yahiko made a noise in his throat at the memory of listening to the Delegate who came to visit on occasion and said that their contributions were a national pride to Central and that their efforts were spread throughout the nation.

"The violence has died down?"

"There's still some activity from vizinhos, but it's more or less controlled, there's not a permanent patrol division so we have to get crafty from time to time because they take forever to arrive," Yahiko answered. "The entire area has changed a lot and it's not the same as it was a few years ago—it sucks, Ro, we were better off before Central decided to go berserk. Even if Chotororo is small and shitty, there was a medical clinic and there were more villagers. A lot have moved to other areas because there's no survival there. Nothing. I think Misao and I are some of the youngest villagers, not counting the kids from down the road."

"Misao?" Ro's face clouded with confusion at the same but it quickly dispersed as she remembered Yahiko introducing her to the spirited girl briefly. "Ah, yes, how is she? You two still talk quite a bit, I imagine."

"She's fine, still vanishing from time to time but she always comes back," Yahiko remarked as he reached for the coffee that Ro was offering him. "She helps out with the store as well as the rations office, but I don't know what else she does. I know she goes around and talks to people for information, but it ain't much good if there's no one to spread it to so far South. Besides, a lot of the information that we both receive is usually out-of-date because the communications are so bad between the cardinal civilizations. We did not hear about what's happening out West until two weeks after it started and only then we could understand why there was a spike in vizinho activity."

"You had it in the South as well?"

"Yup," He said with a nod. "They were getting really close and even coming into the village at night. They managed to mangle an old man who was in the wrong place in the wrong time, another villager found the body the next morning." He shrugged indifferently and Ro breathed out through her nose at the mere thought of a half eaten corpse being discovered by a civilian.

"You're helping the village I take it?"

"I do what I can," He answered warily. "Misao does as well, but she's not really a big fan of it. She said she felt bad hurting the vizinhos."

"Just like Kaoru," Ro said with a dry chuckle. "She hates clubbing them over the head." Yahiko continued to sip the boiling coffee, mindful of his tongue, and Ro sipped at hers steadily as she leaned back into the ratty old chair that belonged to her husband.

"You're not one for violence either," Yahiko commented.

"You're right," Ro said in light agreement, not oblivious to the younger boy's blatant observation. "I loath it, as a matter of fact. Unfortunately, it's what puts food on the table for me." Yahiko was silent, Ro unsure as to if her answer was satisfactory to the boy, and the ticking of the clock on the wall was the only discernible noise that punctuated their interaction.

"I wanted to ask something, but not with Ugly around," Yahiko said suddenly as he pulled his head up from his coffee and met Ro's eye. "And I want an honest answer, Ro, so don't try to pull any vague shit with me." The blonde battered her eyes at him innocently, feigning hurt at such a blistering accusation but she nodded, prompting him to speak freely before her in Southern confidence.

"What does this Kenshin mean to her?" Ro's eyebrows formed a questionable expression as she eyed the younger boy with a semi-surprised stare that he would go against the grain of normal conversation. "Why is she willing to write off her life and risk it all for someone who just left her behind in a burning field? Going to Central? She's crazy." His dark eyes were sharp and Ro sighed, she herself unsure as how to tastefully answer the question without jeopardizing Kaoru and her more personal affairs.

"I suppose because he makes, or made, her happy when they were together," The woman began to explain as she moved the cup of coffee around in her hands. "He has been a significant pillar of stability in a period in which she was just starting to transition away from grieving her father. Kenshin's got a soothing personality and he was very easy-going and accepting of her and she of him. I think he also unintentionally made her begin to question certain things about herself and a lot of them went unanswered, which is cruel to someone like Kaoru who thrives off information."

"What sorts of things?"

"I'm not sure, I was never able to get an answer from her… not like I asked straightforwardly, but she was very concerned with what he thought about her and her choice of profession. I think, deep down, she was afraid that he would vanish out of being disgusted and she was trying to self correct a few things to avoid driving him away," Ro explained with a soften look of empathy on her tired face. "Kenshin came to her in a very vulnerable state and she helped him mend as well as rekindle an interest in the world that he was brought into. Without knowing where he comes from, we don't exactly know how he lived, but I think Kaoru was subtly determined to help him build meaningful memories in the absence of anything else. Showing him an abridged version of our world.

"I also believe that by helping him, she was repenting the loss of her father," Ro continued. "Although she and Sanosuke live together and have a very close relationship, the blow of losing her only remaining family was devastating, I imagine. She might have found a healthy distraction in him to slowly re-ground herself."

"Do you think she loves him?"

"I'm not sure, but she cares enough to go through with something like this," Ro replied truthfully. "This stays between you and me, obviously, but I would sometimes see how he looked at her and there was something there that, if I had to put my finger on it, goes deeper than an appreciation of giving him shelter and hiding him away. I think that even he was becoming more aware that there was an emotional bond that formed between two very misguided individuals."

"So why won't you go with her to Central?"

"It's not like I don't want to," Ro protested as she gave Yahiko a blistering look. "But they were right: they know my face and that would make it more difficult in the long run." Her blue eyes were glassy as she stared into the inky gaze of Yahiko. "I'm not rallying around the idea of being left behind, but I'm not so short-sighted as to ignore it."

"I see."

"Are we burdening you?" Ro enquired as she tilted her head at the youth. "We are asking you to assume quite the task: it's hardly fair, considering you don't know her, but we don't have many options."

"In a way, yes, calling me up here out of nowhere and expecting me to help Ugly? Someone I don't know and isn't even from the South?" Yahiko's eyes flared with something that resembled a begrudging hint of anger at the older blonde whose face was neutral. "Yes, you are burdening—but hell, it's kind of hard to back out when you have four against one, you know?" He crossed his arms angrily as he sighed and gave Ro another irritated look that spoke volumes to the temper that he often let fly.

"I apologize for the hastiness of my call for help," Ro said slowly. "Unfortunately, there's very few people we can trust and I know that you have the same reservations about Central as the rest of us. Besides, you've proven to be a skilled fighter and you handle yourself well." Her frame was showing her age as she winced as a spike of pain infiltrated her back and she bit back her sigh. "I know your family prided itself on helping the people and resisting state backed oppression—that's a noble trait. Kaoru needs that type of support and she needs someone with a warrior's spirit."

"You're not a warrior?" It was mocking in nature and Ro gave him a sad smile that aged her significantly as he realized she was wrinkling around the eyes and was barely in her late twenties.

"I'm the daughter of two poor farmers who saw an opportunity to escape from what I thought had been a pre-written destiny, doomed and castigated to the fields," She answered slowly. "I was tempted by the forbidden fruit of uprooting myself and I think, mostly, that I made the correct decision—but being a patroller is not gratifying or admirable. Working for the hand of the government is a far greater pain knowing that it is the same hand that inflicts pain on everyone not deemed worthy of their time. Losing the support of my husband has magnified that sense of dread and guilt that I live with every time we are sent out." Yahiko was stilled by her words as his eyes rounded at the sincerity of such a brutal confession.

"Yet there is a part of me that wants to rectify what has been a long term injustice towards the people of this country, regardless of their cardinal civilization, and I refuse to bow my head to Central," Ro continued as she clenched her fists together. "You are still young, Yahiko, the world can still change in your lifetime. My generation, and that of Sanosuke and Kaoru, has been saddled with this heavy sense of fear and disappointment because we have been unable to right what had been wronged. I cannot call myself a warrior because I, many times, am unsure as to what is the right path to take other than we need to go in a different direction. Kaoru seems to already be ahead of me because she is playing a risk game to pursue what she believes has changed her own personal landscape and ultimately the world around her. Whatever Kenshin may be is key to many changes on so many levels: that's why I'm asking you to help—forge the path that is not the one of destruction that we're tearing down right now."

Yahiko felt the blood drain from his body as such reverent words that spilled from the bubbly blonde's mouth and he could only rest his hands on his knees, head inclining as he tried to reason with Ro's view of how the world was functioning. Although they did not exchange another word that afternoon, Yahiko felt him pledge his support to a cause that he himself felt was already on wavering ground in the already floating world between myth and reality that was slowly being erased as they eclipsed each other more and more.

Her body was sinking deeper and deeper into the inky and wet embrace of the water and she sighed, tilting her head back as she felt her newly cut hair brush against the nape of her neck as it fanned below her. Her tired body, one that had healed and had been healed, seemed to whine in mild protest as the icy water drew her further and further, her back finally hitting the shallow ground so that only the peaks of her body broke through the surface of the water. She could make out the luminous green lights that zig-zagged through the water slowly, criss-crossing and making paths over the blackened water.

Kaoru closed her blue eyes to the darkness around her as she tried to still her agitated mind, heaving itself against the gilded cage of her body as the warmth seemed to escape from her existence and vanish into nothingness. It was that bizarre place where she had seen the once again amnesiac Kenshin yet there was an apparent absence of him in this undetermined plain that was not her own dreamscape. She felt weightless in the cold waters, despite her shoulder blades and the backs of her knees resting on the smooth bottom of whatever body of water she was in, but she did not feel the panic of becoming hypothermic set in as she found the cold water relaxing and almost soothing over the metaphorical burns that had been inflicted on her life recently.

"I will come find you," She said into the nothingness, her lips barely moving and her eyes remaining closed. The water lapped at her coyly, as though it understood what she wanted to communicate, and it brushed against her with tendril like fingers that kissed the lingering superficial injuries that remained. Kaoru was still as she allowed the water to move over her in its own way, her mind finally settling into a much more comfortable pace as her thoughts seemed to empty from her mind as she welcomed the blankness of thinking about emptiness.

It had been an eternity where her mind had not been racing at breakneck speeds: the emotions and the heavy cross she carried seemed to be drifting away in the gentle waves of the water as she felt truly at peace in the sanctuary of the damp darkness. The greenish lights zoomed around her lightly, swirling and curling into curious shapes around her suspended form, but she paid them no heed as she felt everything come apart and scatter into thousands of directions with no intention of pursuing them for the time being. She wanted to collect her thoughts properly and reorganize her priorities as she was given the rare moment of tranquility to do so where she was not interrupted by anyone or anything.

"Miss. Kamiya," Kenshin's soft voice seemed to ripple on the water as it was distorted and she yanked her eyes open, forcing herself to sit up as her head whirled around and tried to peer into the darkness.

"Are you there?" She called out softly, her mind once again accelerating as though the brakes had been lifted and she was brought back to animated life as the water seemed heavy against her and she could now feel the chill. "Kenshin?" A sloshing of water caught her attention as she dragged her gaze to her left and found the hunched form of Kenshin crouching in the same pool of water, his eyes blank and his face void of any recognizable emotions as their eyes met over the rippling water that seemed to grow anxious around them.

"Miss. Kamiya, this one…" He trailed off as he watched as she slowly rose to her feet, her sopping garments clinging to her frame in the oddest of places. He averted his eyes, modesty taking immediate priority for him, as he cleared his throat and continued, "…this one is glad to see that Miss. Kamiya is doing well."

"Likewise," She said not unkindly. "You are unhurt?"

"Yes, this one is fine," He replied slowly, his voice dripping with caution as though tip toeing around what he truly wanted to ask. Kaoru herself was weighing the consequences of letting her first name slip and reminding him of who she was but she knew that, that would be foraging into dangerous territory without knowing where he was or how she could reach him immediately. "This one is just a bit lost… the haze that clouds all memories is quite troublesome, that it is. The time this one has had to reflect and try and recall any semblance of detail has been quite extensive."

"But are you safe?" She asked carefully as she took a halting step towards him before bravely taking another. "You are not in immediate danger?"

"Quite the contrary," He replied mutely. "Is Miss. Kamiya in danger?"

"No," She replied with a shake of her head, "I'm not, thankfully. For the moment, it seems as though there is tentative peace." It was a bitter lie that bit at the tip of her tongue and she winced inwardly at the guilt of lying to such a forgiving and gentle man who was more vulnerable than he was. She came to a halt before him as she kneeled down into the water, her knees sinking into the soft bottom, and she folded her hands together as she considered his averted gaze with her own inquisitive stare.

"This one has been trying to find Miss. Kamiya," Kenshin said lamely as he voice shrunk. "Miss. Kamiya seems to be key in understanding who this one is: now that the opportunity is here, this one is unable to even think of anything to ask." Kaoru's face fell at such defeated words and she wanted to do nothing more than bunch him up in her arms and embrace him, dragging him into the same headspace that she had just exited where she felt nothing but peace. Her hands remained firmly planted where they were as she tilted her head at him and gave him a sympathetic and apologetic look.

"There are some things I know… but I don't think that I can tell you right now," She said quietly. "I do not want to rock the boat—not right now—especially because you are safe. There are some very bad people trying to find you and if they were to get their hands on you, there would be many problems—probably grave ones." She bowed her head at him in stark apology as she murmured the next words quietly: "And the best place for you to be is a safe place."

"Is this one's truth a burden to Miss. Kamiya?"

"A burden," She replied with a ghostly look to her eyes as she locked them with his almost empty violet stare. "You've never been a burden, Kenshin, not when we were together." She gave him a flicker of a smile as she tried to blink back the tears at the memories of their nightly strolls and their dancing at the festival that ended in a way she would have never bet money on happening. "But right now, please, listen to me."

"Miss. Kamiya will not give this one her name then?" His question was disarming and she could almost hear the pleading for her to provide him anything to cling onto in the interim. These two bizarre encounters in this floating world of water and green lights seemed to have neither rhyme or reason and there was no apparent logic to when they would see each other on this plain. Kaoru felt her heart patter uncomfortably at the thought of depriving him of the thing that most wanted: information. Information was crucial in understanding the context of a situation and to begin the arduous process of piecing together the fragments of puzzles to make a workable image to begin to comprehend what had occurred.

"I cannot, not right now," She said in a near whisper. "I don't know what it would do to you and it's too risky. I'm sorry, I know it's cruel to withhold such details… but it's for your own good." She felt one of her hands unfold as she so desperately wanted to reach out and touch him but she decided against it.

"This one can understand the sentiment and retain patience," Kenshin replied in a calmed voice that did not seem disappointed to Kaoru's human ears. "If Miss. Kamiya has taken such judgement, there is nothing to do but invest in the fact that these decisions are based on good faith." His eyes softened significantly and Kaoru nearly whined in her throat as the gentle nature of the red head that had occupied a space in her home seemed to bleed through the forgotten shell of a man that stood before her.

"When the time comes, I will tell you as much as I know," She whispered as she finally worked up the courage to reach out and tentatively rest her hand on his shoulder. He felt so real, the cords of muscle that hummed with life below his thin garment, the warmth of his body seeming to fend off the chill of the water. "None of this is done to hurt you—I promise."

"This one will take Miss. Kamiya's word," He said, the apprehension evaporating from the air. "However, please permit one question?"

"If I can answer it," She relented, feeling his right hand crawl up and cover the hand resting on her shoulder. She could not see the runes that were emblazoned on his palm but she immediately recognized the gentleness and the warmth of his touch: his fingers were still the same, his skin was still textured as she remembered it being punctuated with callouses and tiny bumps. He allowed himself the moment to cradle her hands as he took a deep breath and looked her in the eye, contenting himself with the azure gaze that regarded him patiently.

"Were the two of us happy? Miss Kamiya said that we lived together, and…"

"—Yes, we were," She replied as a small grin replaced her tightened lips although it still did not fill her eyes with the corresponding feelings. "It was an unconventional relationship, but, yes, we were happy. And we will go back to it soon, I hope." She felt his hand tighten over hers and she saw the broken stare of purple seemingly come alive momentarily as he tugged her forward, tumbling her body ungracefully, and wrapped her into a protective embrace as he refused to cede her hand back to her.

"K-Kenshin?"

"This one will stay put because Miss. Kamiya has requested it," He said quietly into her ear. "This one may not be able to do much, but please… count on whatever support this one may be able to provide." His tone was serious and Kaoru felt chills travel down her body despite his warm embrace holding them together. As they broke apart, he realized that she was fading away into nothingness as her body became transparent and he could see the darkness bleeding into the palette of colours that lightened her soul.

"I will," She managed to say as she vanished into the air with a pop, her hand outstretched and reaching for him before she was yanked away from him once again.

"I need a favour from you, 'though I ain't happy about asking for it," Sanosuke said gruffly as he propped his feet up on the Captain's table, Aoshi casting him a disdainful look as he prodded at Sanosuke's shoes with the dull end of his pen. They were in Aoshi's private quarters, isolated from the rest of the village as the man preferred a solitary life to one being constantly bombarded with encounters with his subordinates, and it was unusual for him to have a guest.

"If it is regarding Kamiya, there is very little that I can do to provide substantial assistance without compromising the little stability remaining amongst our ranks," Aoshi said dryly. "But please, what can I do for you?" Sanosuke and Aoshi had very little correspondence and they were unsure of their rankings given that Sanosuke was a more autonomous patroller who was called upon for the more grotesque jobs that did not seem to bother him as much as it did the other patrollers who were significantly more inexperienced. The rooster haired man gave Aoshi a harsh look as he crossed his arms over his exposed chest and leaned back in the chair, putting it on two legs.

"It's information," Sanosuke finally said. "Or rather, your opinion—I'm sure that you're aware that Kaoru had touched something she was not supposed to have been touching in the forest." Aoshi did not nod or shake his head, an obvious confirmation to those who knew how he operated. The report had come in from Kanryuu and the forges had also reported that the damages to the weapons that the two women had been carrying did not coincide with the story that the Southerner had told him while Kaoru was in the medical building. He had never heard Kamiya's side of the story nor had he had any particular interest in pursuing it given that as long as the precautions were taken, he was unlikely to throw his own subordinate to Central's wolves.

"And you know that there are a lot of vizinhos coming from the West because of whatever the hell is happening over there given that we are seeing a lot of species that just don't come from these parts," Sanosuke continued as he rocked the chair back and forth on its two legs. "Plus the fact that Enishi literally tried to smoke out whatever it was he was looking for in Tereré and destroyed half the village with zero remorse for the victims. A tried and true tactic when it comes to Central's campaigns."

"Get to the point," Aoshi cut in as he jabbed Sanosuke's foot again with his pen.

"The point," Sanosuke snorted gruffly, "is what is your opinion on all of these things? It's got me thinking about lots of things." Aoshi's stare was blank as he stared down the rooster-patroller with his narrowed eyes, unsure as to how much he himself was willing to divulge to the patroller. Sanosuke was an honourable patroller—crass and brutish—but dignified and capable of being trusted. Aoshi was aware that Sanosuke had his dealings in the underbelly of the village and was probably hiding more things than he was willing to share but Aoshi's philosophy of 'out of sight, out of mind' was stronger than his own interest in trying to correct Sanosuke's illegal behaviour.

"My opinion is hardly valid considering that there are many things to have an opinion on, but I believe that we are entering into a period in which the other side and this plain are dangerously overlapping," Aoshi said stiffly. "We do not have the means to make such statements but if common sense were to have her say, that is what it appears to be through my eyes. The Captains of the other patroller details share a similar sentiment in their communications but even then there is heavy disagreement as to the degree to which this will escalate.

"Word of what occurred in Tereré has already reached the East and parts of the West from what the telegraphs indicate and there is great unease growing with regards to how Central handled the situation," Aoshi resumed as he tapped the bridge of his nose. "From what I can tell, Enishi's envoy's motives were to try and locate the man that had been illegally residing in your domicile."

"So, you did know," Sanosuke ascertained.

"Of course, there are eyes everywhere," Aoshi said as though it were basic and common knowledge. "It was brought to my attention but given that it did not interfere in Kamiya's conduct at work to a significant degree, I was not going to be the one to raise the alarm to the government."

"So you think that these sorts of coincidences are not really coincidences," Sanosuke egged on the Captain who tilted his chin at him. "They're a sequence of events leading towards something bigger."

"I will not refute your claim," Aoshi replied simply. "We have been investigating significantly, but the leads are not as hot as we would like them to be to be able to make a concrete decision in terms of how to utilize the patrollers to the benefit of the village."

"Not Central."

"Interpret that as you wish," Aoshi retorted. "Please tell Kamiya that, upon reaching Central, she should try to find Okina. He will be able to help her fill it some gaps in information that I myself do not have the right to do so." Sanosuke's eyes widened at the mention of Kaoru's journey to Central and the Captain gave Sanosuke an annoyed look before saying, "I know my patroller: she will have mulled over the options and have decided to go the root herself. It's not difficult if you've been paying attention. Part of my job as a Captain is to be aware of my subordinates' movements and what may hinder them from exercising their profession correctly."

"I see," Sanosuke said warily, understanding the subtle hint that Aoshi was aware of his movements between the legal and illegal sides of his own side affairs. The Captain watched with a bored expression as the rooster haired patroller scraped the chair against the floor and rose to his feet, giving him a firm nod as he tightened his robes over his body before braving the cold night air of the Northern winter.

"Whatever decision Kamiya takes will be one that she has thought through," Aoshi suddenly spoke. "But she is governed by her emotions and she will hesitate when presented something on moral grounds that may be problematic. That is the only thing that puts a chip in her armour. She admirable and has decent potential, but she weakens herself because she cannot be indifferent and use a cold calculus to make snap decisions."

"Anyone could have told you that after living with her for a few years," Sanosuke grumbled as he gave the Captain an irritated look. "She can barely handle the oven when it breaks."

"Despite the questionable nature with regards to Kamiya's cooking, I will offer my support in line with the circumstances that we have at the moment," Aoshi said curtly, dismissing Sanosuke from his office as his penetrating gaze followed the form of the rooster haired patroller through the door.

As the sky transition to the nighty gradient of blackness, Megumi, Ro, and Yahiko found themselves standing at the same fork in the road that would lead them to Kaoru and Sanosuke's house. The blonde Southerner was sporting her wide brimmed hat, her blue eyes firm and serious as she and Yahiko stood next to each other in similarly tense stances. Yahiko's head was covered with a simple knit cap, his ears unused to the biting cold night air of the North, and they seemed to be bothered by something as they regarded Megumi with equally intense gazes.

"Shall we go together?" Megumi proposed neutrally as Ro nodded, motioning for Yahiko to fall into place with the two older woman as they slowly made their way towards the house. There was a faint light in one of the second story windows and they could make out the hearth's glow as the home's fire burned as it had been since memory could recall. Ro muttered to Yahiko that the Northerners relied on the fires to stay alit through the night so that they occupants would not freeze or suffer from the plunging temperatures of the unforgiving nearly eternal winter. Megumi added a few nuances here and there, to which Yahiko nodded along out of respect more than interest, as they glided over the ground in the faltering light of the day.

"It's true that the sun never shines here," Yahiko remarked as his head tilted upwards.

"The cloud coverage and the mountains make it difficult," Megumi explained as she gave an unapologetic shrug. "It builds character: however, I remember the first year in Central was bizarre given that there were four distinct seasons." Yahiko snorted at the mention of the capital but he refrained from commenting further as he looked over at Ro, whose gaze was resolute as she seemed calmer than what the situation dictated her to be.

"It's this one," Ro said to no one specifically as she pushed by Megumi, much to the vulpine doctor's surprise, and knocked heartily at the door, withdrawing her hand after the fourth as she glowered at the door. Sanosuke opened the door, his shirt open and exposing the plain of muscles of his upper body as he gawked at the trio that were standing on his doorstep.

"You said at nightfall," Yahiko drawled as he drew up next to Ro, Megumi hanging behind the pair as she eyed Sanosuke and tried to comprehend as to what would possess him to answer the door in such a state of dress. The older patroller nodded as he gave them an irritated look, but pushed the door open a bit more for them to have safe passage from the street into the confines of the house. Megumi's eyes widened, Ro's jaw dropped, and Yahiko stared as they came face to face with what looked like a storm that had passed through the house and had scattered everything from documents, to clothes, to random knick-knacks that seemed to have been knocked from the shelves. Kaoru was sitting in the centre of the entire mess, scouring loose leaf documents that were covered in handwritten notes.

"What's the meaning of this?" Megumi demanded as Yahiko closed the door behind them, sliding to the side to avoid any potential crossfire. Kaoru looked up in surprise at the arrival of the other three but she resumed her reading of the papers, seeming to ignore them as Ro removed her hat and rested it on an unoccupied chair, she herself speechless at the disaster of a mess that had been made.

"Sanosuke?" Ro looked over at the taller man. "What the hell happened?"

"When I came home, the Missy had already pulled all our books and documents out of storage and was reading through some texts that her father had left behind," Sanosuke explained as he flopped down on the sofa, scattering some papers about as he watched as Yahiko moved to join him while Megumi and Ro crouched down, each taking a few pages of notes into their hands. "Said something about trying to find her father's last diaries or notes or somethin' like that. Hasn't stopped."

"My father dedicated his life to understanding things that we ourselves cannot understand and I have a feeling that he might have left some sort of clue or something in his notes," Kaoru replied quickly as she ripped her eyes away from the texts once more. "A lot of them we don't have because they were destroyed when they came to our house, but… the ones that I was able to save might have something useful… at least that's what I thought." Her lips turned down into a sliver of a frown as she set aside what she was reading and reached for a beaten leathered bound book that did not have any indication as to what its contents could be.

"We can do that on our end," Ro spoke quietly as she reached for the book in Kaoru's hand. "We can't go to be with you in Central, not yet, but we can try and help you with what we have here, remember? You've got the journey to Nantia tomorrow to worry about—"

"—And you certainly haven't packed correctly," Megumi sniffed as she gave Kaoru a disapproving look. "I can see that your sack is lacking in quite a few things: you're going to Central, anything that you need there, you can get. Pack practically." Kaoru opened her mouth to protest but she snapped her jaw shut as she knew that Megumi, someone who spoke with the voice of authority on the issue, would not let her defend her lack of materials. "Besides, I have a gift for you—not medical supplies, you've got enough here—but, well, I think it will help someone who tends to attract trouble in spades."

"A gift?" Kaoru replied and even Yahiko sat up a bit further on the sofa as he peered over the back of the piece of furniture, his eyes alert and curious as Megumi set the bag she had been carrying on the floor in front of Kaoru. Ro and Sanosuke exchanged glances, they themselves unsure as to what could be in the bag that sat ominously before Kaoru.

"Open it," Megumi said simply as she tilted her chin at the younger woman. Kaoru gave Megumi a perplexed expression, but she reached into the bag and felt her fingers brush against an oddly shaped object wrapped in cloth. She fumbled around within the bag, trying to get her grasp on the object, and she pulled it slowly from the bag as the cloth loosened and fell from the object partially, allowing Kaoru and the rest to fixate their eyes on the small firearm that Kaoru was holding in her right hand.

"That's some sort of joke, right?" Yahiko said suddenly as he felt Sanosuke move next to him, rising to his feet as he stalked closer to Kaoru. "That's extremely—"

"—Illegal and will bring her problems," Ro finished Yahiko's statement as she turned to Megumi and asked, "What were you thinking? Why do you have this?" Sanosuke crouched down on the floor next to Kaoru, debating if he wanted to pluck the firearm from her hands but he decided against it for the moment as Kaoru stared down at the weapon in her hand.

"Why do you have this, Fox?" Sanosuke's question was reasonable as all eyes sans Kaoru's went to the lingering form of Megumi who seemed unbothered by the heavy blanket of skepticism surrounding her questionable gift.

"It was given to me by someone with good intentions and I am passing it on to the next person with the same attitude," Megumi replied sharply as she refused to bow her head at the grave nature surrounding such a dangerous gift for someone about to attempt to breach Central.

"If she gets caught with that it's immediate execution!" Ro protested loudly as she gave Megumi an incredulous look.

"If she gets caught sneaking into anywhere in Central it's immediate execution," Yahiko pointed out as he gave his blonde Southern counterpart a hard look. "If anything, it gives her a chance to do something about it—although Ugly probably will use it wrong."

"And you know how to use it, runt?" Sanosuke grunted.

"—If you all wouldn't mind, please stop shouting for two minutes," Kaoru grumbled as she found three pairs of eyes on her and she shrunk away as she held the weapon to her chest protectively. "We know a bit about them because of our work, but I've never used one myself—and I doubt that trying to use it so close to the village is a good idea either." She pushed her feet underneath her as she rose to her full height, her shorter hair brushing against her cheeks as she turned to Megumi. "I think, despite the illegality, it's practical: it's small, I can hide it, and if I need…" She trailed off, unable to finish the last part of her utterance, not wanting to have images of bullets ripping through flesh haunting her already damaged conscious.

"You can't be serious about carrying that," Ro sputtered as she ran a hand through her hair and gave Kaoru a nervous look.

"If she's walking around with her normal choice of weaponry, it's bad news," Megumi tried to reason. "It's a natural choice—besides, once within Central, there are no vizinhos and the only threat to her will be other humans. It's hardly practical for her to wave around a wooden sword."

"That's a valid point," Yahiko said in deceptively easy agreement with Megumi. "We're not getting anywhere with this argument though."

"He's right," Sanosuke raised a valid point as he crossed his arm. "If the Missy wants to take it, it's her decision to make a stupid mistake." Kaoru frowned at the hint of her blundering what she was setting out to do and she knew that the ride to Nantia the following day would be uncomfortable but she nodded at Megumi, folding the cloth over the weapon once more as she drew a halting breath before turning to the other two patrollers and the young fighter.

"I'll take it," She said firmly. "I don't like it, but it's better than nothing."

"That's fine," Megumi replied with an arched eyebrow. "Use it well, that is, if you need to use it."

"I will," Kaoru affirmed as her eyes adopted a strangely determined glimmer to them that had been shockingly absent. "This will be the last time I pick up a weapon—it's decided. After, I'm swearing them off." Ro and Sanosuke exchanged cautious looks before bobbing their heads, Yahiko was silent as he leaned against the sofa, and Megumi gave Kaoru a tentative smile at the realization that even Kaoru had grown weary of such mindless violence that seemed to contribute to more suffering as opposed to easing the pain of the people.

"It's time to find the answer to all these questions."

A/N: Hello~ it's been a hot minute! Work keeps me busy, but I was able to get an update in. :D

The interaction between Kenshin and Kaoru is roughly inspired by the song 'Spirit in the Sky' by Keiino (the Norweigan representatives in this year's Eurovision). Very interesting blending of Sami culture and folklore into a pop song.

As usual, don't own Rurouni Kenshin, just the plot. Don't forget to review!