"Come on, let's go!" she said as she ushered the
boy and the redheaded swordsman through the gate.
"Hey,
you're the one we were waiting on, Kaoru, so how come you're acting like we're
the ones holding you up?" the boy complained.
"It's
too early to ruin my mood, Yahiko."
Kaoru's brows knitted while she shook her fist at the boy.
"Now,
now… let's not fight… oh look!"
Over the horizon, red and yellow fireworks flared across the sky. "That means we'll be right on time,
right, Kaoru-dono?"
Fascinated
by the display in the sky, she quickly forgot her anger and unconsciously
tugged on the redhead's sleeve.
"Let's hurry, it's going to be so much fun!"
"Well,
I'm out of here. I promised Tsubame I'd
escort her during the festival. See you
guys later." With that, he ran to
the town square.
It was
fabulous; the town square was filled with life: colorful lights, music playing,
people laughing, and children playing with sparklers. Two familiar figures strolled along the toy stand with two little
girls gleefully pointed at the pretty dolls on display.
"Look,
it's Sano and Megumi-dono," the redhead motioned. "Sa-mph!" Finding her hands clamped over his mouth,
Kenshin turned his head towards the dojo master, her index finger to her lips
"No,
Kenshin! Let's leave them alone."
"But
why?"
"Take
a look at them and you'll understand."
He did as
she told him and he saw a picture worth painting: Sano, who looked to both
sides to see if anyone was watching, handed a small bouquet of flowers to Megumi,
who was somewhat taken aback by the tender gesture. The two little ones were oblivious to the scene occurring behind
them.
"Woo-hoo!
Way to go! I knew it, man! That lady doctor IS Sano's woman!"
The shout
came from the neighboring yakitori stand, where a handful of Sanosuke's friends
were eating.
"Yeah,
man! Go for it! We wish you lots of happiness!"
Slapping
his palm to his forehead, Sanosuke muttered a curse under his breath while the
doctor tried her best to hide her flushed face. They left the scene in a hurry with the two children in tow.
The two
other onlookers laughed and giggled at the amusing drama that took place. "Kaoru-dono, I'm glad I didn't call
Sano."
"No
kidding! Did you see the look on
Megumi's face?" Chuckling, the
samurai nodded.
How
wonderful for her, she thought.
When the
laughing subsided, she looked around at the stands to decide which one she
should visit first. There, at the
corner of the square not too far from the bridge, was a fortuneteller booth. She smiled.
"Kenshin,
I'd like to go to that booth," she smiled as she pointed to its
direction.
"All
right." She led the way and something playful in him asked, "Was
there something you wanted to know about your future?"
She laughed
nervously. "Um, not really… I just
want to know if and when Yahiko will stop calling me ugly."
It was
mean-spirited of the boy to say such a thing to her when she was any thing but
that in his eyes. At times he himself
wanted to reprimand him for saying mean words to her, but with her unyielding
spirit and her wooden sword in tow, it was easier to feel sorry for the
boy.
He walked to the
stand with her and found an old woman with a crown of lustrous gray hair
artfully pinned on her head. "I'll
wait over here, okay?" he said as he sat down the bench adjacent to the
stand. "Thank you. Hopefully it'll all be good
fortunes!" She gave him a cheery
smile that made him smile back.
"Come in, dear.
I've been waiting for you."
"You have?"
Of course she has, they all say that…
"Yes, now please have a seat."
As she sat down, she wondered what her future had in store
for her, eager to hear what the old lady would say. Will I be rich? Will Yahiko ever stop calling me ugly? Will I get married? And with that last thought, she sighed as
she hopelessly thought of the redhead waiting for her outside. This matter between them was like a ship
that set sail into an unending field of blue and never finding a shore to throw
its anchors. It was going somewhere and
nowhere at the same time.
Frustrating. Perhaps
hopeless… There was really only one
person she'd like to marry.
The fortuneteller looked for a minute at her face then
tactfully asked, "My dear, what is bothering you?"
Her eyes widened.
"N-nothing. What makes you
think so?"
The old
lady took Kaoru's hand and held it for a long time without speaking a
word. She finally withdrew and said,
"You worry much about his affections toward you, that he has not told you
how he feels . . . that you grow older in your days and are afraid things would
just stay the way they are."
She
gasped. 'How could she know my
thoughts? Can she read them?'
"Fear
not, my dear, your youth and beauty will not betray you. Listen to a woman of great age like me. I advise that you keep your mind and heart
clear of worry. There are far more
complicated things you can worry about.
Someone will realize your worth soon," she said, and she stood to
usher her outside. "That is all I
can tell you."
Rather
stunned at her words, she allowed herself to stand and be led outside. As she turned to gaze at the clairvoyant one
last time, she heard her say, "My dear, you can do something about
it." The old woman smiled at what
she said, something incomprehensible to the girl standing before her.
He saw her
emerge from the booth, and turned to greet her. "So . . . was it a good fortune, Kaoru-dono?"
She was
staring out into the distance and scarcely heard him ask.
"Kaoru-dono?"
Coming back
to reality, she shook her head slightly, eyes now stared at the ground and brow
slightly furrowed. "No… it wasn't
a fortune, really…" she mumbled as she set pace forward, the gentleman
walking with her. "It was more
like a revelation."
He noticed
the sadness in her voice. 'This was
supposed to be for fun. Why isn't she
happy?'
Then as if
some happy spirit possessed her gloomy countenance, she said, "Let's go
find the others, Kenshin."
Surprised,
he nodded and followed her as they wove through the street full of happy,
merry-making people. The display of
fireworks in the sky elicited words of amazement from the crowd; the yellow,
green and blue flares erupting and blooming out into enormous flowers of fire,
with the red one being the final and the most elaborate flare of all.
She saw none
of it.
