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Disclaimer: I don't own Kenshin. Lots of people and companies with lots more money than I have do. This was written for fun (well, maybe not fun, considering the content), and I receive no profit for it besides the comments of the readers (Review :nudge nudge hint hint: ).
On with the fic!
thoughts>>
{[flashbacks]}
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READ THE WARNING BEFORE PROCEEDING FURTHER
By Lady Shorinai
She couldn't see.
She was fairly certain blindfolded, but couldn't check. Her arms had been tied above her head, her legs tied so she could barely bend them. She was stretched out between soft sheets—she could wiggle enough to know that much—but was naked otherwise. There was a rag in her mouth, which was removed twice a day when silent hands fed her and put a pot beneath her for her waste.
It was the third day she'd spent like this.
Alone, her mind wandered down a now-familiar path. Kenshin. I know you're looking, but can you find me? I don't even know where I am.>> She heard the door open, and footsteps entered the room. What? It hasn't been a day yet.>> Someone walked across the room and lifted the sheet off her. She shivered as the cool air touched places not normally exposed.
A male voice made an appreciative sound.
She heard the rustle of fabric, then something warm and solid settled between her legs, pushing her thighs apart. There was hot breath on her skin a moment before his mouth enveloped her left nipple. At the same time, a calloused hand sought out her womanhood and began rubbing her center. Kaoru moaned. It didn't feel bad, exactly, but it did feel wrong. She vainly tried to ask him to stop, but the gag kept her from forming words. A hot, needy sensation grew low in her belly, and she soon had to fight the urge to rock her hips and get more pressure from his hand.
What's happening? I don't want this. Stop! Please, stop. Please…>> She felt tears welling up in her eyes.
She moaned again and shuddered as a wave of pleasure rolled through her body.
His mouth disappeared from her breast.
The next thing she knew, something large was moving in and out of her womanhood. It hurt; she couldn't keep herself from whimpering.
His large hands, one slick with liquids, slid over her skin from elbows to breasts to hips and back again. He was leaning over her—she could smell his breath—but thankfully he wasn't kissing her.
She could feel the wave building again, much as she hated it. When it washed over her this time, she vaguely felt something explode from him, flow into her.
She felt sick.
He pulled out and covered her again. Once more she heard the rustle of fabric, them his footsteps as he left the room.
That night, the silent hands washed her and changed the sheets.
After she cried herself to sleep, a vision of a redhead with sad, disappointed, violet eyes haunted her dreams.
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Kenshin was helping the police search. He wasn't certain what had happened to make him be invited to join them, but he had a feeling he owed Mibu's Wolf a thank-you. It at least gave him something to do. Yahiko was staying home, in case someone went there looking for them. Kaoru had been missing for nearly a week. He was losing sleep. Too tired, distracted, and anxious to worry about his mental state, his eyes were flashing amber more and more often.
That morning he was walking down a side street not used by most of the residents of Tokyo. A gleam caught his eye from a small pile of rubbish no one had gotten around to cleaning up yet. He went over to check it out.
A dragon-shaped, silver hairpin, in the midst of what looked like the smashed-up remains of take-out buckets. What food there may have been was long gone, no doubt eaten by the animal scavengers that live in all cites. After briefly going through the small pile he came across a piece of one of the buckets with writing on it. If you made assumptions for the missing pieces, it said "Akabeko".
"What's so interesting, Battousai?"
"I think this is where Kaoru-dono was taken from." He held up the pin. "This looks like what Yahiko described."
Saitoh examined the piece of jewelry, then the street. "The only signs of trouble are the broken buckets. The Akabeko makes sure theirs are in good condition; they would not have come apart easily."
"Aa."
"Nothing on this street. Used as a shortcut, probably. I'll have my officers ask around on the ones this connects to. Maybe someone there's seen something." He took a long pull from his ever-present cigarette, then flicked it to the street. "You may, of course, accompany them."
Kenshin nodded his affirmative, tucking the pin into his sleeve as the taller man want to get some more policemen. The redhead, after following the taller man to one end, scanned the street, his eyes soaking in the details. It was neither crowded not deserted, with most of the traffic moving purposefully in one direction or another. It was close enough to the main marketplace for the shopping stalls on it to not be out-of-place, but far enough away to be cleaned not nearly as often. Still, it was surprising the hairpin had gone unnoticed as long as it had; the silver in it would have been worth a great deal to someone who hadn't eaten in days. That the human scavengers which haunted every city seemed to avoid the area evidenced that that something unpleasant was going on.
It was a matter of minutes before two officers showed up. Saitoh must have told them to look for him because they came up to him and bowed. "Himura-san desu ka(3)?" one asked.
"Ee, Himura desu(4)." He bowed in return.
"Koshin desu."
"Hashimoto desu."
"Let's get started. The trail isn't getting any fresher." Kenshin led them to a small jewelry shop. Shopkeepers see a lot of people, not just customers. Still, she might have bought that pin here—it's a good place to start.>>
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Hands were gliding over her skin. It wasn't a painful touch, or hasty, or angry , or erotic. It was… clinical. Even when they touched places she could no longer call "private" for lack of say she'd been allowed in their exposure, they merely seemed to be examining her. She felt vaguely like a horse that was for sale. Something, it felt like a thumb, pushed inside her, and she grimaced—well, as much as she could while gagged. She wasn't at all wet, so it wasn't very comfortable. After it wiggled around a bit, it was pulled out and run over her anus. For a moment she thought it would go in there too, but the hands left her then.
Blankets were carefully tucked around her, and she heard the person leave the room. Well, what was that about?>> The question turned over in her mind until she found sleep that night.
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"In a yellow kimono, you say?" The little old lady who was the innkeeper at the Shinkirou thought for a minute. The ryokan was a few streets away from where Himura figured Kaoru had disappeared. "There was a young woman in a yellow kimono who came by last week. She showed Nakada-san here. She wouldn't stay for tea, though."
"Is Nakada-san still here?"
"Yes, actually. Would you like me to get him for you?"
"If you would, please."
"All right, then. I'll be back in a minute."
Kenshin didn't say anything as the officers asked their questions. While those two had gotten used to him silent, watchful presence at their backs, the people they were questioning were generally more inclined to cooperate under his hard-eyed gaze.
Not much time had passed before the landlady showed a man into the room and went to get tea. The man sat in front of the officers. He was fairly young, fairly tall, and had fairly long hair.
"Nakada-san desu ne?"
"Hai, Nakada desu. What can I do for you?"
Could you describe the lady who brought you here, please."
"Certainly. She was kind of short—didn't even come up to my shoulder. She had long black hair tied into a ponytail, and big blue eyes. She was wearing a yellow kimono, the ribbon holding her hair was green, and she was carrying food from a restaurant, but I can't remember the name that was on it. "A"… something. Um… why do you ask?" The landlady brought a tea tray, poured four cups, and left again.
Hashimoto ttok one cup and sipped from it. "A woman, matching the description you just gave us, went missing last week." Nakada looked genuinely shocked. "Had you met her before?"
"No."
"How is it she came to show you here?"
"I was walking down the street when we ran into each other. Since she was already stopped, I asked her for directions here. She insisted she show me the way."
"And this was the last you saw of her?"
"Yes."
"You remember it very well."
Nakada shrugged. "I have been told I have an extraordinary memory."
"Is this your first time in Tokyo, Nakada-san?"
"Yes, it is."
"And what brought you to the city?"
"My employer owns an import shop in Kyoto and is thinking of opening one in Tokyo. I was looking for a locations that might by suitable."
"So you have completed you business here."
"Yes; I was going to return to Kyoto tomorrow."
"We would like you to stay in town for a while longer yet, as you seem to be the last person who saw her."
"Of course."
"Thank you, Nakada-san."
"Doo itashimashite (5)."
After exchanging bows again the trio left the ryokan. The officers settled their hats on their heads and started down the street. Koshin looked at the sky. "It's getting late. At least we've finished this area. Let's go make a report and get something to eat."
"Sounds good," Hashimoto replied. "Care to join us, Himura-san?"
"I will go to headquarters with you." We found something. Perhaps Saitoh did as well. Something more productive.>>
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Mibu's wolf was sitting in his office, reading the day's reports as the smoke from his cigarette curled around his head. Though Kenshin knocked, he didn't bother waiting for an answer before entering. It was a few minutes before Saitoh acknowledged his presence. "Battousai. Did you find anything today?"
"We found a man who saw her. She showed him the way to a ryokan—it explains why she was where she was."
"Did he have anything to do with her disappearance otherwise?"
"No." Not unless he can control what is in his aura. He was genuinely shocked.>> "Did you find anything?"
"A beggar who says he's seen a lot of unconscious girls being carried around. We have someone going with him tomorrow to verify it."
"Where?"
"No."
Kenshin's eyes narrowed dangerously as he gripped the sheath of his sakabatou. "No?"
"He seemed abnormally paranoid. When I entered the room he froze up. I don't doubt you would have the exact same effect on him. Neither of us will be going tomorrow; a statue can't lead you anywhere."
After a pause, "Anything else?"
Saitoh pulled on his cigarette leisurely before answering. "No."
"I'll be back tomorrow."
"Of course."
The twilight was beautiful, with the sky fading from a deep orange to a rich purple that the stars were just beginning to pierce. Kenshin noticed none of it as he walked, his mind filled with thoughts on how to get Kaoru back.
Yahiko looked up as he came in the gate. Unable to look at the emotionless face of the redhead, his gaze dropped away. Neither spoke as the swordsman crossed the yard or as the boy followed him inside. Since the adjutant master had disappeared, the night which flowed over Tokyo was met at the Kamiya Dojo only by silence.
To Be Continued
Please, Review!!! Onegai shimasu!
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You're probably wondering what the title means. I don't know if
it actually makes sense in Japanese, but I can tell you the translations
of the individual words.
tatsu - dragon
rokujou - the six emotions of joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure &
love, and hatred
ryokan - Japanese hotel/inn
shinkirou - mirage
(3) "You're Himura, right?"