What's Wrong With A Little Rain?
"This is why I hate traveling!" Kaoru announced.
"Huh?" Sanosuke turned to look back at her.
"Once again we're caught on the road in the middle of a rain storm! We're half a day from the nearest village if we turn around and a whole day from the next village if we keep going forward! We're getting soaked and we're going to stay soaked like we've been all week. Dry clothes are a day dream, being warm is a fantasy, and-"
"It's just a little rain," Sanosuke gave her an amused look. "What's wrong with a little rain?"
"A little rain?!" Kaoru demanded. "A LITTLE rain?"
"It's barely sprinkling," Sanosuke grinned. In truth it was raining so hard that Sanosuke's spiky hair was plastered against his head. His clothes were so soaked that they clung to his body like a second skin, and he had to wipe his forhead constantly to keep the water dripping from his headband from getting into his eyes. If only the rain would wash that annoying smile off his face. . .
"Barely sprinkling," Kaoru repeated, making a face. "And the roads are so muddy that we sink knee deep because of those sprinkles!"
"Isn't it wonderful?" Yahiko's smile was just as annoying as Sanosuke's.
"No it's not wonderful! It's disgusting! I can't believe I insisted that we go on this trip!" Kaoru carefully picked her way across the road, around deep mud puddles.
"I always knew you were crazy as well as ugly," Yahiko teased.
"I am not ugly!" Kaoru shouted at her student and slipped. A strong hand caught her by the back of her kimono only an instant before her face hit the mud, and pulled her back to her feet.
"Sanosuke, what did you do that for?!" Yahiko demanded. "She was this close to looking like a mud pie!" He pinched his thumb and index finger close together.
"Thank you Sanosuke," Kaoru glared at Yahiko and kicked up muddy water at him.
"Hey! You stupid ugly!" Yahiko kicked water back at her. Kaoru dodged aside just in time, but Sanosuke was not so lucky.
"Hey!" he growled, staring at his pants. From the knees down they were soaked with muddy water.
"Hay is for horses, straw is cheaper, grass is free!" Yahiko sang. "And Kaoru's ugly!"
Both Kaoru and Sanosuke kicked water at Yahiko. "Who're you calling ugly?!" Kaoru screamed.
"Ugly, ugly ugly! Hey!" Yahiko's chant was interrupted when Sanosuke unceremoniously clamped a handful of mud in Yahiko's hair.
"Hay is for horses, straw is cheaper, grass is free, but mud is more abundant," Sanosuke ruffled Yahiko's hair, spreading the mud in it.
"Damn you!" Yahiko pulled some of the mud from his hair and made to slap it on Sanosuke's shirt.
"Watch your language!" Kaoru grabbed Yahiko from behind while Sanosuke got out of the way (His leg still bothered him a little, though he wouldn't admit). As soon as Sanosuke was out of the danger zone, Kaoru shoved her student and jumped clear of him, herself.
"You ugly!" Yahiko kicked at the ground again, this time sending mud Kaoru's way instead of just muddy water. It soaked the front of Kaoru's kimono.
"YOU!" Kaoru charged at Yahiko. Yahiko ran and Kaoru followed. Then one moment he was running straight for Sanosuke, then next her darted to the side. Kaoru tried to mimic his movement, but her sandles slid in the slick mud and she found herself unable to stop. She collided with Sanosuke, her arms canceling her momentum against Sanosuke's chest and her face stopping just against his throat. She could feel his chin resting against the top of her head, his heart beating underneath her hands, and something else inside herself, something that Kaoru couldn't begin to describe. It felt. . . right. 'I fit just under his chin,' Kaoru realized, not moving a muscle. 'It's a perfect fit. . .'
"Kaoru? Are you okay?" Sanosuke asked, putting one of his hands on her shoulder- but he didn't step away.
"I'm alright," Kaoru told him. 'More right than I've felt since Kenshin left.' When she spoke her lips brushed against Sanosuke's throat so gently that she doubted he could have told the difference between that soft touch and her breathing. She didn't want to step away.
"You sure?" Sanosuke put his other hand on her other shoulder.
"Yes." Her lips brushed against his flesh again. His skin was so cold.
"Of course she's alright!" Yahiko scoffed. "All she did was run into you! It can't have hurt anymore than running into a wall would have!"
"It's not running into a wall that stuns you," Sanosuke told Yahiko. He still hadn't moved away. "It's the shock that comes a split second afterward."
"Well it's been more than a split second and the shock should have worn off if there was any!" the boy jeered.
"There was shock," Kaoru said, still not moving.
"Oh come on! You didn't even run into him that hard! You're not hurt, stop being a baby, ugly!"
Kaoru found that she really did not want to move away. But if she didn't, Yahiko, and maybe Sanosuke, would start to get ideas. So Kaoru stepped back and turned around slowly, trying to school her features into a look of serenity. She needn't have bothered. Yahiko hurled a handful of mud into her face. "YAHIKO!"
"Now you're really ugly!" Yahiko howed with laughter and started to run again.
"Oh you BETTER run!" Kaoru wiped the worst of the mud away with her sleeve and took off after her apprentice again. She vaguely noticed that Sanosuke hadn't move at all, but didn't let herself think about what that might mean. Instead she focused only on exacting reveange from Yahiko. When she got through with him. . .
"Ugly! Ugly! Raccoon girl!"
"That's IT!" Kaoru sprang and tackled Yahiko. He went down face forward in the mud, Kaoru on top of him, using him as a shield from the worst of the muck. "Take that, oh infidelic and disrespectful student of mine!"
"Damn you, ugly!"
"What have I told you about your language?!" Kaoru pressed Yahiko's face into the mud. "Now your mouth is truly dirty! Not enjoying it now, huh?"
Yahiko managed to roll out from under Kaoru and jump onto her back. "Take this, ugly!"
"I am NOT ugly!"
"Says you!"
By this time they were both covered in mud. Figuring that they couldn't get any muddier if they tried, the two continued to wrestle for some time, exchanging insults, as Sanosuke looked on, amused.
"I heard a foreigner telling a story once about a woman so ugly she turned whoever looked at her into stone! That story must have been based off you!"
"You wouldn't know beauty if it bit you!"
"You better not bite me! I mean it!"
"Don't tempt me!"
"I mean it! If you bite me I'll-"
"You'll what?"
"I'll- I'll-"
"This is all wonderful and everything, but the rain has stopped, so you two should change clothes so we can start travelling again," Sanosuke finally had to interrupt them.
"Are you changing too, Sano?" Yahiko asked, glancing at Kaoru a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
"I don't need to," Sanosuke said, not suspecting a thing. "The only thing muddy I'm wearing is these pants, and all the dirt if from the knees down. If I put on a clean pair they'll just get dirty in the same place again."
Kaoru caught Yahiko's eye and nodded. At the same instant the both rammed into Sanosuke's legs, knocking them out from under him. Sanosuke fell forward but managed to throw out his arms before he hit the ground, catching himself on his palms as though he was doing a push up.
"Nice try," he told them.
Yahiko slapped a handful of mud into Sanosuke's hair. "But this is even nicer."
Sanosuke shot Yahiko a glare. "You little-"
Kaoru laughed as Sanosuke began chasing Yahiko around, much the way she had been a few minutes ago. "I changed my mind Sanosuke," she called to her friend. "There's nothing wrong with a little rain after all!"
"This is why I hate traveling!" Kaoru announced.
"Huh?" Sanosuke turned to look back at her.
"Once again we're caught on the road in the middle of a rain storm! We're half a day from the nearest village if we turn around and a whole day from the next village if we keep going forward! We're getting soaked and we're going to stay soaked like we've been all week. Dry clothes are a day dream, being warm is a fantasy, and-"
"It's just a little rain," Sanosuke gave her an amused look. "What's wrong with a little rain?"
"A little rain?!" Kaoru demanded. "A LITTLE rain?"
"It's barely sprinkling," Sanosuke grinned. In truth it was raining so hard that Sanosuke's spiky hair was plastered against his head. His clothes were so soaked that they clung to his body like a second skin, and he had to wipe his forhead constantly to keep the water dripping from his headband from getting into his eyes. If only the rain would wash that annoying smile off his face. . .
"Barely sprinkling," Kaoru repeated, making a face. "And the roads are so muddy that we sink knee deep because of those sprinkles!"
"Isn't it wonderful?" Yahiko's smile was just as annoying as Sanosuke's.
"No it's not wonderful! It's disgusting! I can't believe I insisted that we go on this trip!" Kaoru carefully picked her way across the road, around deep mud puddles.
"I always knew you were crazy as well as ugly," Yahiko teased.
"I am not ugly!" Kaoru shouted at her student and slipped. A strong hand caught her by the back of her kimono only an instant before her face hit the mud, and pulled her back to her feet.
"Sanosuke, what did you do that for?!" Yahiko demanded. "She was this close to looking like a mud pie!" He pinched his thumb and index finger close together.
"Thank you Sanosuke," Kaoru glared at Yahiko and kicked up muddy water at him.
"Hey! You stupid ugly!" Yahiko kicked water back at her. Kaoru dodged aside just in time, but Sanosuke was not so lucky.
"Hey!" he growled, staring at his pants. From the knees down they were soaked with muddy water.
"Hay is for horses, straw is cheaper, grass is free!" Yahiko sang. "And Kaoru's ugly!"
Both Kaoru and Sanosuke kicked water at Yahiko. "Who're you calling ugly?!" Kaoru screamed.
"Ugly, ugly ugly! Hey!" Yahiko's chant was interrupted when Sanosuke unceremoniously clamped a handful of mud in Yahiko's hair.
"Hay is for horses, straw is cheaper, grass is free, but mud is more abundant," Sanosuke ruffled Yahiko's hair, spreading the mud in it.
"Damn you!" Yahiko pulled some of the mud from his hair and made to slap it on Sanosuke's shirt.
"Watch your language!" Kaoru grabbed Yahiko from behind while Sanosuke got out of the way (His leg still bothered him a little, though he wouldn't admit). As soon as Sanosuke was out of the danger zone, Kaoru shoved her student and jumped clear of him, herself.
"You ugly!" Yahiko kicked at the ground again, this time sending mud Kaoru's way instead of just muddy water. It soaked the front of Kaoru's kimono.
"YOU!" Kaoru charged at Yahiko. Yahiko ran and Kaoru followed. Then one moment he was running straight for Sanosuke, then next her darted to the side. Kaoru tried to mimic his movement, but her sandles slid in the slick mud and she found herself unable to stop. She collided with Sanosuke, her arms canceling her momentum against Sanosuke's chest and her face stopping just against his throat. She could feel his chin resting against the top of her head, his heart beating underneath her hands, and something else inside herself, something that Kaoru couldn't begin to describe. It felt. . . right. 'I fit just under his chin,' Kaoru realized, not moving a muscle. 'It's a perfect fit. . .'
"Kaoru? Are you okay?" Sanosuke asked, putting one of his hands on her shoulder- but he didn't step away.
"I'm alright," Kaoru told him. 'More right than I've felt since Kenshin left.' When she spoke her lips brushed against Sanosuke's throat so gently that she doubted he could have told the difference between that soft touch and her breathing. She didn't want to step away.
"You sure?" Sanosuke put his other hand on her other shoulder.
"Yes." Her lips brushed against his flesh again. His skin was so cold.
"Of course she's alright!" Yahiko scoffed. "All she did was run into you! It can't have hurt anymore than running into a wall would have!"
"It's not running into a wall that stuns you," Sanosuke told Yahiko. He still hadn't moved away. "It's the shock that comes a split second afterward."
"Well it's been more than a split second and the shock should have worn off if there was any!" the boy jeered.
"There was shock," Kaoru said, still not moving.
"Oh come on! You didn't even run into him that hard! You're not hurt, stop being a baby, ugly!"
Kaoru found that she really did not want to move away. But if she didn't, Yahiko, and maybe Sanosuke, would start to get ideas. So Kaoru stepped back and turned around slowly, trying to school her features into a look of serenity. She needn't have bothered. Yahiko hurled a handful of mud into her face. "YAHIKO!"
"Now you're really ugly!" Yahiko howed with laughter and started to run again.
"Oh you BETTER run!" Kaoru wiped the worst of the mud away with her sleeve and took off after her apprentice again. She vaguely noticed that Sanosuke hadn't move at all, but didn't let herself think about what that might mean. Instead she focused only on exacting reveange from Yahiko. When she got through with him. . .
"Ugly! Ugly! Raccoon girl!"
"That's IT!" Kaoru sprang and tackled Yahiko. He went down face forward in the mud, Kaoru on top of him, using him as a shield from the worst of the muck. "Take that, oh infidelic and disrespectful student of mine!"
"Damn you, ugly!"
"What have I told you about your language?!" Kaoru pressed Yahiko's face into the mud. "Now your mouth is truly dirty! Not enjoying it now, huh?"
Yahiko managed to roll out from under Kaoru and jump onto her back. "Take this, ugly!"
"I am NOT ugly!"
"Says you!"
By this time they were both covered in mud. Figuring that they couldn't get any muddier if they tried, the two continued to wrestle for some time, exchanging insults, as Sanosuke looked on, amused.
"I heard a foreigner telling a story once about a woman so ugly she turned whoever looked at her into stone! That story must have been based off you!"
"You wouldn't know beauty if it bit you!"
"You better not bite me! I mean it!"
"Don't tempt me!"
"I mean it! If you bite me I'll-"
"You'll what?"
"I'll- I'll-"
"This is all wonderful and everything, but the rain has stopped, so you two should change clothes so we can start travelling again," Sanosuke finally had to interrupt them.
"Are you changing too, Sano?" Yahiko asked, glancing at Kaoru a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
"I don't need to," Sanosuke said, not suspecting a thing. "The only thing muddy I'm wearing is these pants, and all the dirt if from the knees down. If I put on a clean pair they'll just get dirty in the same place again."
Kaoru caught Yahiko's eye and nodded. At the same instant the both rammed into Sanosuke's legs, knocking them out from under him. Sanosuke fell forward but managed to throw out his arms before he hit the ground, catching himself on his palms as though he was doing a push up.
"Nice try," he told them.
Yahiko slapped a handful of mud into Sanosuke's hair. "But this is even nicer."
Sanosuke shot Yahiko a glare. "You little-"
Kaoru laughed as Sanosuke began chasing Yahiko around, much the way she had been a few minutes ago. "I changed my mind Sanosuke," she called to her friend. "There's nothing wrong with a little rain after all!"