Yokugetsu...
She was in his room again. Kaoru had been doing that alot lately. Sneaking
into Kenshin's room to watch him as he slept. Why did she do this?
Everyone slept at one point or another, why was it so important that she
watch Kenshin do it? It wasn't really that it was important, it was her
heart's way of making sense of everything that had happened over the past month.
He had bought her a new kimono to replace the one she ruined to make a bandage
for him, which was shock enough. But, something made her think that this
betrothal was based on something more than what he made it to be. Did he
really mean any of the things he told her that day? And his past. His past
was something she would have to get used to. Yukishiro Tomoe was a woman she
would now have to compare to, or at least that's how it appeared to Kaoru. It
was somewhat painful to Kaoru to know that she couldn't be the first love of his
life, but even amidst that fact, he loved her differently than Tomoe;
wouldn't that make her his first love in some way? How was she going to make
herself into the wife he needed, instead of being held down by the ghost of the
first wife he lost because of his need for her [Tomoe]? She couldn't make
sense of it, she almost feared that he would lose her if they began needing one
another too much in the end. She had positioned herself so that she was sitting
with her back against the wall, legs curled under her body, with her hands lying
loosely in her lap. He was so tranquil, she wanted so much to picture him this
way forever, she loved to see him this way.
"Kenshin...waga koi..." she whispered to
herself, and him, as she tilted her head to rest on the wall behind her. Her
tender blue eyes moved over Kenshin's sleeping form as she smiled softly. This
man had asked her to marry him no less than a month ago. All those times it
occured in her mind, the real thing commited a sort of treachery to her dreams.
Kaoru began believing that she couldn't dream quite enough to equal the beauty
of reality, Kenshin had sincerely asked her to be his wife. But Kenshin had
become a little distant as of late, and she had no idea what was going on.
What happened in Kyoto before he returned from his trip? She wanted to be
closer to him, closer than anyone had ever been; as selfish as that sounded, she
needed him. Gently, and almost soundlessly, she pushed her body from the wall.
She placed her hands softly on the floor, and stretched her legs out slightly as
she began quietly crawling toward her sleeping Kenshin. As she came to a stop at
his immediate left, her breath almost caught in her throat as she gazed at him.
Those soft, fiery-red tresses that were normally tied back had fallen all around
his body. His left hand rested above his head, mingled inside the amber shine of
his hair; while his face had the most innocuous look. As she briefly watched his
chest rise and fall at a steady rate of breathing, her eyes went back to his
hair. The resplendent shade was almost begging her to touch it, but she held
herself back. She was still partially unsure if he would awake, only to end up
attacking her again. She placed a palm over her heart to reassure herself that
this wasn't some crazy dream of hers, and when she felt the unfaltering rhythm,
she released a sigh of relief.
"K-Kaoru-dono..." Kenshin whispered almost out
of nowhere. Kaoru nearly jumped out of her skin as her eyes fell down to
Kenshin's face. She pulled a hand up and waved it in front of his eyes, as if
she expected him to react to it. When the room had fallen silent again, he
turned his face away from her view and resumed his sleeping state. He was so
beautiful when he slept, unaware that she was there, her watchful eyes remaining
on him. She never knew how to quite explain how he made her feel when she saw
him this way. The innocence and calmness of the atmosphere around them seemed to
singe her heart deep inside. He made her feel so tangible, yet, she could barely
tell what he was thinking more than half the time.
"Kenshin, why do you want me?" She
couldn't help it, even though she whispered the words to him, they seemed to
bounce off the walls of the room and echo through the whole dojo. It was almost
time for everyone to wake up, she sighed lightly as the faint glow of the rising
sun penetrated through the small window in the room. She arose to her feet as
quietly as she could, taking a little longer to watch the first rays of the sun
circulate through his hair. As the sun highlighted the long, thickness of red
and orange strands, they seemed to glow in caustic reply to her gaze, causing
her to turn from him. Then, she silently made her way toward the exit, and as
she slipped out, she giggled lightly to herself; gently sliding the door closed
behind her. She almost fell for it, which was funny because it was like
Kenshin's hair alone had a mind of its own when it called to her that way.
The morning sun had finally come out, and Kaoru had many things to do that
day. She lightly pushed the thin wood and paper doors open at the entrance of
the dojo, and stepped onto the deck outside. The birds were calling to one
another from various places all around her, she then took a breath and closed
her eyes, savoring the semi-stillness for as long as she could. She felt as if
the birds even knew about her and Kenshin, with that thought, she blushed
lightly. As she opened her eyes slowly, she felt that she wasn't alone on the
deck anymore, and it was then that she felt the light pressure of someone's hand
on her shoulder.
"Ohayou, Jo-chan." It was Sanosuke. The moron
had to stay the night at the dojo because he was being chased by some gambling
partners of his for a bet that he backed out on. For one reason or another, the
bet must have been crooked or rigged because Sanosuke never backed out on a bet;
it wasn't his style. Regardless, he needed some place to stay. He couldn't
follow his newly acquired 'crash here, crash there' routine with his friends
anymore now that they were after him. But even though his friends were looking
for him, they weren't out for blood, they merely wanted to bicker and complain
at him for his cop-out.
"Sano? When did you get up?" Kaoru turned around
to find that he was wide-awake, he had not slept at all.
"Those idiots are still after me, I've been up all
night."
"Honestly Sano, why don't you just go tell them why you
backed out?" Kaoru waved a hand of disapproval as she passed Sano while
heading back into the dojo.
"That never occured to me, but...I wouldn't do that
anyway if it had occured to me. I have a reputation to uphold!" At that
short speech, Kaoru turned to face the wide awake ex-gangster. His eyes slanted
as the corners of his mouth moved into a sly grin.
"You're only making it worse, running from them is only
going to make them think less of you, you know." She felt the pressure
growing between them, as innocent as her little game was, she knew she had
better stop before he blew up. As she headed toward her room in the back of the
dojo, she heard Sano scoff lightly at her words before he took off to find
Megumi. She walked past the dojo practice room first, then slowly down the small
hallway to her room, she heard Yahiko lightly snoring as she passed his door.
She held her breath as she made ready to pass Kenshin's room, she didn't want to
wake him up yet. She had almost passed his door when she felt the light grasp
around her right wrist.
"Ohayou de gozaru, Kaoru-dono." Kaoru's jaw
dropped slightly as she froze in mid-step, the air felt like it was knocked out
of her.
"H-How..." she began to protest. But he answered
her before she could fully question him.
"I heard the floorboards move," Kenshin
whispered as he pointed downward with his free hand. Without another word,
Kenshin pushed his door open lightly with the heel of his foot, gently pulling
Kaoru inside with him. Her eyes grew wider with thought as he stuck his head
outside, looked around quickly, then slid the door shut in front of him.
"K-Kenshin..now isn't--"
"Oro?" He turned to face her as he heard her
beginning to question him.
"Yahiko-chan hasn't even left to help at the Akabeko
yet..." Kaoru whispered as low as she could. Kenshin finally realized
what she was talking about, and if it wasn't for the sun that had splashed over
him, the color of his face could have matched that of his hair.
"Eh..Kaoru-dono...sessha.." He couldn't find the
words to explain that she had his intentions pinned wrongly.
"You mean...y-you didn't..." Kenshin simply
shook his head, letting his eyes fall to the floor in sheer embarrassment. They
both stood there for the longest time, trying to tell what each other was
thinking. Kenshin lifted his head, wanting to break the silence, he cleared his
throat and began to explain himself.
"I just wanted to ask you something..." He
scratched the back of his head, releasing a deep sigh as if that was the hardest
thing he had ever said.
"Demo...I thought..." Kenshin saw the big
imaginary waves of embarrassment all around her. He took that as his que to move
closer to her, reassured that she was too shocked to notice. Before Kaoru
realized that he had moved at all, both of his hands were resting lightly on
either side of her face.
"Actually, I think we should wait for that until we are
married. Don't you agree?" Kaoru nodded a few times, then went completely
still. Her eyes were fixed on him, she was captivated by how serene he seemed to
be about everything now. He watched silently as her hands moved up, then his
eyes gently fell closed as he felt the warmth of her fingers encircling his
hands.
"Kenshin. What did you want to ask me before?"
He jumped to attention at the sound of her voice, opening his eyes to begin his
small questionaire.
"Well..." he began, "remember when I told you about my past?"
"Hai. What part of your past?"
"Tomoe..." as his words trailed off, her eyes
never moved. She had to deal with this, even if he still found it hard for
himself, but it was almost as if he was ashamed to speak his first wife's name.
"Kenshin? What about Tomoe?" Their gaze met, and
the violets of his eyes penetrated the blue depths of her own. He found it
almost impossible to ask her what was on his mind at that moment, but he had to
do it before his chance never came again. He leaned in closer to her, resting
his forehead against hers. He lifted her face up toward him slightly, keeping
their eyes focused on one another. He wanted a real answer from her this time,
nothing that could mean yes or nothing that could mean no.
"Promise me...that you won't compare yourself to
her," with the question posed, she felt that his gaze was slipping away
from her; like he knew he shouldn't have asked her to do such a thing. But she
allowed her hands to move away from their grasp on his so she could keep his
face in line with hers. As the palms of her hands touched either side of his
face, he realized that she didn't want him to falter on her. She held him
steadily, dark violet unable to find refuge anywhere else but in the dark blue
that patiently waited for him to relax. She felt the muscles tighten in his jaw
as she began to speak up.
"I..I promise, Kenshin," she whispered in reply.
Her long black lashes fell and rose as she watched him process what he had just
heard. When neither of them had said anything for a few moments, she pressed her
promise further, wanting him to be as certain with her answer as she was. "Kenshin...I won't--"
"Arigatou de gozaru, Kaoru-dono." She heard him
breath a sigh of relief as he released his hold on her. With that, they both
dropped their hands to their sides. But their eyes remained still, never moving
from their places. "I wasn't...sure that you would answer
that quickly, but you sounded a little skeptical."
"I can do this Kenshin. I know how different I am from
Tomoe...I have to be able to live up to what you want, without having to be the
woman you first fell in love with over 12 years ago." She no longer
needed to cry, although she felt the urge welling up behind her eyes. She wasn't
going to cry anymore, she had to grow up and face reality.
"I've watched how strong you've become since my return
from Kyoto, and I know I can trust you to be true to your promise." He
nodded gently as if to question her further, and he watched her nod in
confirmation.
"I had better go wake Yahiko-chan. Tsubame-chan will be
upset if he isn't there today." Kenshin felt her delicate hands close
around his, squeezing them gently. Then, as she turned to leave, he felt her
fingers sliding away from their grip on his hands. But before she could get any
further than a few feet away, he grasped her closest hand, as if he prohibited
her from reaching the door.
"One more thing, Kaoru..." his heart skipped a
beat at what he was about to do, but mostly at the use of her name without the
honorific attached.
"Kaoru..?" Before she could get a single thought
in her head, Kenshin had silenced her from speaking and thinking. He slowly
pulled her toward him, resting her back gently against the wall. His hands felt
hot against her cool skin, she also noticed that his breathing had mildly
accelerated. She watched as his eyes looked over her for a few seconds. She
could almost hear her own heart beating ferociously against her ribcage,
threatening to break through. What was he going to do? "Kensh--" before she could find out on her own, his mouth
consumed hers with an almost zealous passion. Surprise. Shock. What could
have described her feelings then? She wasn't about to fight back, even if
she wanted to, so she returned his enthusiasm with equal fervor. As his tongue
roughly entwined with hers, she felt his hands on her waist as he lifted her
slightly, holding her up against the wall. She pulled away from him long enough
to warn him that she heard something, but he huskily laughed it off as he took
possession of her mouth once again. Why was he doing this now? Not only
was she still trying to get over the reality of being a real wife, but she was
trying to keep her chastity as long as she could before she would have to lose
it. The hardest part about this whole situation was that it was pleasuring her
beyond imagination, she didn't want it to end. She never felt that she could
meet a man who could satisfy her in this way. But she knew they were going to
get caught, someone would walk in on them. This wasn't the time to be doing
this, especially since they didn't have the dojo to themselves. She had to act
quick, no matter how much she wanted him to continue. Placing her hands lightly
against his chest, she slowly pushed him away from her. "Ken...shin..." she whispered in between breaths, "this isn't--" she was interrupted again. When Kenshin
moved back toward her to finish what he had started, Kaoru had foreordained his
actions and she placed a hand over his mouth; derailing his attempt to silence
her once more.
"Yo! Kenshin! Are you awake?" The sound of
Yahiko's voice had made both Kenshin and Kaoru heave deep sighs of annoyance.
But Kenshin knew that Kaoru was right before, he should have waited until the
dojo was empty.
"H-Hai, Yahiko, one moment..." Kenshin called
out in between light gasps of breath. Kenshin's hands were still on her waist as
he slowly let her back down. They both decided to fix the atmosphere so it would
appear that they were only conversing, not acting upon their pent up emotions.
They rushed around the room, moving a table into its place, putting pillows and
blankets around the table, and fixing their appearances so they wouldn't look
too out of sorts. Kenshin reached for the thin silk strip that he usually tied
his hair with, and Kaoru began to pout. "Doushita no, de
gozaru?"
"Leave your hair..." Kaoru begged quietly.
"As you wish, koishii..." Kenshin stiffled a low
laugh at her plea, recognizing her pouty expression. As they both sat on either
side of the small table, Kaoru smiled happily and proceeded to tell Yahiko to
come in.
"Geez! It took you lo--" as he flung the door
open, he noticed Kaoru and stopped in mid-sentence. He stood there for a few
minutes, trying to figure out why she was in Kenshin's room. When a reason
finally came to him, albeit the wrong one ( kind of ), his hands immediately
covered his mouth so he wouldn't burst into laughter. Kenshin and Kaoru
exchanged an inert glance, then turned their attention to Yahiko.
"Nani?/Oro?"
"Were you two..." Yahiko couldn't bring himself
to finish his own accusation. He was concentrating too hard on keeping himself
from laughing.
"Iye." Kenshin and Kaoru both answered Yahiko's
obvious question, their reddened faces falling downward in complete
embarrassment.
"Then what were you doing?" Yahiko's eyes were
slanted in that of an 'I'd-like-to-see-you-get-out-of-this-one' manner.
But neither Kenshin nor Kaoru could come up with a logical answer. Yahiko
probably wouldn't believe the real reason because he was still too immature to
let himself believe something that serious.
"Eh...er...Yahiko-chan..." Kaoru stuttered,
trying to create some time for Kenshin to think up some answers.
"Don't call me CHAN! Were you talking about the
wedding?" Yahiko's eyes slanted in anger for the 'chan' statement and then went back to their
normal state for his second question.
"W-Well...actually, we were--" Kaoru was cut
short when Kenshin brought a hand up to lightly cover her mouth, simply nodding
his reply to the young boy.
"Ah. Well, I was just going to leave for the Akabeko, I
just wanted to make sure I was on break from training today." Then Yahiko
looked to Kaoru in regard to that last question. Kenshin still held his hand
over her mouth which didn't allow her to speak, so she merely waved him away,
silently reassuring him that he was indeed free for the day. Both rurouni and
teacher relaxed as they heard the fading sound of Yahiko's sandals padding
against the floorboards.
Kyuushuu...
A group of six men were seated around a large rectangle shaped table. They
were in a heated debate about 'a man with an X
scar' and 'red hair.' A dark
figure sat at the head of the table, listening intently to the discussion as it
echoed through the small, dimly lit stone hideout.
"I saw him! He came out of nowhere when the door
opened!" cried one of the men, obviously frightened out of his wits.
"You can't be serious. After so many years since his
disappearance..you can't expect him to still be alive!" replied another
man, unconvinced.
"The Meiji Era has finally approached, and there has
been talk of a rurouni somewhere in Tokyo. Of course he's still alive you
idiots." A deep voice rumbled from the front of the table, and all men
bowed in agreement and respect. "You say you didn't get
ahold of Seijuro Hiko's body, eh?"
"N-No...we couldn't. That red-headed samurai kept us
from getting close enough to see a body at all." The men jumped to
attention when the dark figure's fist slammed onto the table, leaving a rather
deep dent in the already splintering wood.
"You will address him as the Hitokiri
Battousai!" All eyes turned to him as if to question why, but he
immediately put their minds at ease. "Why? Firstly,
because I demand it. Secondly, because we're going to bring him back to his
senses as the Hitokiri. I want to see him suffer for what he did."
"Hai Tora-san," answered the six men all at
once. Then, they all began to chant their leader's name in supreme fellowship.
"Hikage Tora! Hikage Tora!"
Kamiya Dojo...
Kenshin, Kaoru, Sanosuke, and Megumi were seated on the front deck of the
dojo. Megumi watched Tsubame and Yahiko play fight with their bokkens, while
Sanosuke napped, as usual. Kaoru's head rested against Kenshin's right shoulder,
while one of his arms hung limply over her own shoulder, his fingers laced
between those of her right hand. Her left hand lay in his lap, the fingers of
his own left hand mingling playfully with hers. Kaoru's eyes fluttered around
the yard in front of her, it was a dream come true. She never expected to become
such a lucky woman, to have met these people. She already considered them
family, since her father's death, she wasn't sure of ever finding refuge in
another family again. But this moment, right then, it proved her wrong. What
made her soul most at ease was the fact that Kenshin wouldn't compare her to his
first love, and she wouldn't have to compare herself either. She looked down at
their hands laying together in his lap, his hands had been through more than he
could have ever explained to her. From the day Seijuro-san had taken him in as
his student, to all the murders and assassinations, and finally to the time he
declared himself a rurouni; he had been through hell, possibly reaching beyond
hell itself. Her glance turned toward his right hand, which had healed
considerably well in the past month considering the work she had done with it.
She gently pulled his hand closer to her, making his grip around her grow
tighter. She wanted it to freeze right then, just capture that moment and save
it forever. Everyone was together, and everyone was happy.
"Sanosuke! Baka!" Megumi lightly slapped the
sleeping Sanosuke, her voice was a tell-tale sign that he shouldn't sleep so
much.
"Che fox! I was having a nice dream until you ruined
it!" He was in his usual bad mood that day, so Megumi knew just how to
push his buttons.
"You may have to come to the clinic later so I can
diagnose your sleeping disease," Megumi giggled playfully.
"I'm not goin' anywhere! The only thing you're going to
diagnose is Kenshin and Jo-chan's love sickness!" He pointed hintingly
toward the couple at the other end of the deck, obviously too wrapped up in one
another to notice that they were the subject of a joke.
"Kenshin no baka!" Megumi whispered toward the
red-head. When she recieved no reply, she shrugged and sighed lightly. "Hopeless."
"Hey fox, whaddya say you, me, Tsubame-chan and
*Yahiko-chan* go get some dinner for tonight?" Sanosuke purposely put
emphasis on Yahiko's suffix, knowing that he would be outraged.
"Don't call me CHAN!" he screamed over the
smacking of wood against wood, "Tsubame, you're getting
better!"
"Dinner? It's barely past lunch-time!" Megumi
protested.
"Oi, I have been napping too much...I can never sleep
long enough between meals..." Sano's hand stretched behind him to scratch
his head.
"Baka. Let's go anyway," replied Megumi's
charmed voice. As the raven-haired ex-opium maker and the former-gangster pulled
Yahiko and Tsubame along after them, their forms disappeared behind rows of
trees and hills. Kenshin noticed the quiet, lifting his eyes from their gaze on
the woman who held his attention to survey his surroundings. Finding that they
were indeed alone, his eyes fell back down to look at Kaoru, her head now
resting gently in his lap.
"Did they say where they were going?"
"Hm? I don't think so...I mean, I didn't hear
anything."
"Hm. Oh well. Where were we?" Kenshin's eyes
playfully gleamed in different shades of violet and blue as he stared down at
her. She smiled, blinking a few times, then she closed her eyes lightly.
Kenshin's fingers softly played across her lips, up and down the bridge of her
nose, and over the soft curves of her temples and cheeks. She sighed calmly as
she drifted off to sleep, not realizing how tired she really was.
Kyuushuu...
"Give Tetsuya-san and Kazuki-san the word to take
action!" ordered the deep, shadowed voice.
"Hai! They will be arriving in Tokyo shortly, correct?
We will need some time to contact them..." replied the equally deep voice
of a roughly built, but much older man.
"I want you to reach them within a few days, am I
clear? I don't want this plan falling through like the last one. Although, that
was mostly due to my error, I hired complete morons to do a job I could have
done in seconds." The shadowy figure clasped his hands together, placing
them in his lap as he leaned back into his chair. "I don't
care if he is 'good' and 'peaceful' now. That can't erase what he did in the
past. I will redeem Kiyosato Akira's death by bringing death myself. I will kill
the Battousai." With a low, husky laugh, he nodded toward his comrade to
begin his work.
Kamiya Dojo...
Kaoru had been disturbed in her sleep by movement, which, inevitably woke her
up. She didn't really recognize where she was until she rubbed her eyes long
enough. She was in Kenshin's room. But why would he put her here instead of
her own room? As she sat up to re-adjust herself so she could go back to
sleep, she noticed that he was sleeping soundly next to her. She felt her heart
begin to race, her face blushing slightly. At least she knew that what she was
experiencing left her knowing that she was alive. She eased her way back down,
making sure not to touch or move him in any way. She didn't have to sneak into
his room this time, and she smiled happily, proping herself up on one arm. She
watched as he breathed slowly, the covers over his chest going up, then coming
down. Her eyes moved upward to rest on the scar that remained on his left cheek
as a reminder of his past. With careful movements, she bent over him, sliding
her fingertips over the scar in an almost futile attempt to understand what his
past was like. What went on in his mind back in Kyoto all those years ago?
How could he leave something behind that he knew would always going to be a part
of him? She felt his body begin to shift its position, and she pulled back
quickly to let him get comfortable. She smiled again as she saw that he turned
his body toward her, like he knew she was there. She decided against going back
to sleep for a little while longer, and instead she tried to lose herself in the
array of amber and gold that displayed itself around Kenshin's body. His hair
amazed her, it was the second best thing about him that burned her soul when she
looked at him. He looked heavenly in the moonlight, like a warrior angel who
slept only to escape the reality of his life as a swordsman. She knew how much
Kenshin wanted to be as normal as some of the town merchants deep down inside,
but his life had been with the sword, he couldn't truly escape that.
"Kenshin..." she whispered lightly enough for
herself to hear. Reaching toward him, her fingers spread apart, she caressed the
softness of the velvet waves that cascaded around his head, and fell around his
shoulders. For a moment, she almost felt jealous about the beauty of his hair
over her own. As she began to mesh her fingers in between the thick red strands,
he sensed, even in the deep sleep he was in, that he was being touched. She
gasped softly as she saw his eyes flutter open. She almost wanted to apologize
over and over for waking him, but when she saw the sedated look in the deep
violets of his eyes; she knew she didn't have to say anything.
"Kaoru-dono...if you want to go back to your
room--" Kaoru placed a finger over his lips before he could finish.
"Shhhh. I'm fine, Kenshin. Let's just go back to sleep,
ne?" She let her body fall lightly next to him, reaching up to pull his
loose arm around her. Kenshin laughed lightly, taking the hint, and complied
with what she wanted; wrapping both arms around her as tightly as he could.
Thus, Kaoru fell asleep effortlessly in Kenshin's arms, lulled by the sound of
their hearts beating together in perfect rhythm.
Translation Notes...
The meanings vary for how the word is used, so I'll just use the
definition for the way I've used them here.
Yokugetsu:
Can mean "the following month."
Waga koi: Could be translated as "my
love."
Ohayou: Literally translates to "good morning."
Demo: Literally translates as "but."
Koishii: Can be
translated to "beloved," "darling," or "dear."
Iye: Literally means
"no."
Nani: Literally translates to "what."
Kyuushuu: Can
mean either "bitter enemy" or "revenge." Either one suits this.
Baka:
Literally means "stupid" or "idiot."
Che: An interjection, similar to
"shit!"
Hai: Literally means "yes."
Author's Notes...
1. I know I probably
emphasized Kenshin's hair more than it was necessary in this chapter. But here's
the deal behind that, basically, I really love Kenshin's hair. It's like a
symbol of who he is and his personality, I think it's a nice change to have
Kaoru notice it that way and to have it also be something more to her than that.
Even if it is just hair...
2. If the name Hikage Tora doesn't make sense,
it's as close as I could get to the meaning ( which I will reveal in the next
chapter ). And I probably didn't talk enough about him in this chapter. But.
There's a reason for that. I'll reveal him completely in chapter 5. I just
wanted to hint towards the entrance of a new enemy, and yes, I will describe who
he is, his appearance, and his past involving Kenshin and Akira.
3. This
chapter may have been a bit too waffy or there wasn't enough waff in it. But
crap, I wanted to make a fluff chapter, I love fluff, so here is my fluff in
chapter 4. Oh yeah. Everyone may think it's kinda weird that Kenshin just jumped
Kaoru like that in his room, but look at it like this: it was the heat of the
moment for both of them, and, I'm going to make a have Kenshin make a crack
about his reason for doing it in the next chapter. ^_^
Comments? Suggestions? Did you like it? Go
ahead and email me. ^_^
