TBG's Notes: Maa maa.... What a mess ff.net has become ne? Anyway, heres the next chapter of the fic. a bit confusing, very bad, but I haven't written this type of fic for a while ne? I promise the next chapter will be WAY better. This song is from teh Ayashi no Ceres soundtrack and it's the openning song, "scarlet" VERY pretty! ANYWAY! Reviews?
Watching the rain spiral downwards from the clouds, Misao let a silent sigh escape her lips. The rain was just so peaceful, so perfect, so calm and untroubled. If only her life could be like that now... But she was only human, with a life as complicated as a ball of yarn. She didn't notice the time till the clouds had suddenly parted and let the stars shine through. She smiled and held her hand towards the stars. Before her father had died, she remembered, faintly, that she did this and told him that she would catch the stars and then she would give them to Aoshi-sama so he would like her better. She frowned at that... Aoshi....
"Misao-san?" Kenshin's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she turned her eyes towards him.
"The bath is ready Misao-san." He smiled as she nodded, standing up, heading towards her room. After she had left though, his smile disappeared.
haruka na hoshizora ni yume wa mada miemasu ka?
osanai ano hi yori azayaka desu ka?
Can you still see your dreams in the distant, starry sky?
Are they more vivid than they were when you were little?
Once again, she stared up at the stars, but this time she was in the courtyard, the rain long past. The moon lit the ground in it's pale light, leaving few stars left. But those which were left were as bright and as beautiful as the sun or a candle left in a old temple... Aoshi, did he stay in the temple a lot now? Shaking her head, she clutched her head. WHY? WHY COULDN'T SHE... why couldn't... she forget Aoshi?
"Misao-chan?" A soft voice tickled her ear as she turned around to face Soujirou. Tenderly he brushed a tear away from her cheek.
mune ni afurete tsunoru omoi
nemuri wasurete jounetsu no iro
When one forgets to put the emotions that overflow in her heart
to rest, they burn the color of passion.
Misao closed her eyes and then sighed softly before launching herself at Soujirou, wrapping her arms around him. Soujirou just stood there, either from being surprised or understanding Misao's problems.
*Soujirou.... He always is there, but he hides behind a mask... but still....* She sighed and let Soujirou just hold her. But her mind wouldn't rest, it kept spinning, kept threading, and kept getting more and more knotted. *Why can't I love a normal man? Why do I always get attracted to the ones who would most likely break my heart. Oh god... why....* Misao began to sob as she clung onto Soujirou's hakama, her knees giving way.
tatoe tookute mo kitto tadoritsukeru tsuyoku shinjite'ta
ano hi no watashi ga ima mo kokoro de nemutte-iru
I used to believe without a doubt that I could reach my dreams, no matter how far off they were.
But that me from long ago now sleeps inside my heart.
Soujirou held Misao as he felt her knees give way, her tears soaking into the cloth of his hakama, but it didn't matter. He had the strength to kill the strongest of men (minus 1), the will to break the sternest of men, and a skill unrivaled, but none of this mattered, none of it could help Misao now. He could feel her aura, flickering and torn, reflecting the pain he saw in her eyes when he caught the emotions in her eyes. He was one of the strongest, but he was useless. All he could do was hold her.
"Misao-chan...." He tipped her head up, forcing him to look at him. Tears glittered in her eyes and she bowed her head again, holding her cheek to his chest. Soujirou knew he should leave before someone caught them, but it was just so peaceful... so perfect... so flawed...
GARASU no bara yori mo hakanakute moroi no ni
yume miru koto wa naze sadame na no deshou
Dreams are more fragile and fleeting than a glass rose,
so then why are we destined to dream?
Aoshi watched coldly from his place, then stopped himself. He had no right, no point in denying Misao from having happiness. Soft footsteps which only belonged to Kenshin alarmed him and he barely grunted is acknowledge.
"Misao-chan looks troubled." As if it wasn't obvious.
"Battousai..."
"Kenshin, Aoshi-san."
"Kenshin, You know I cannot do anything. It is her choice and..." Aoshi trailed off.
"Did you love her?" Kenshin questioned, only to blink as Aoshi chuckled, a sad, sarcastic smile on his face.
"Did? You should know better Kenshin..."
"Oro?"
"I still do... I still love her..."
futatsu no yume ga ai ni natte
ai ni narenai koto mo atte
Sometimes two dreams can turn into love,
but there are also times when they can't.
Soujirou slowly let Misao go, forcing her to regain her wits and stand up. Her eyes glittered with unshed tears and she rubbed her cheeks with the back of her hand. When she looked up, however, she was caught in his blue eyes. She felt like she was drowning within their depths and she couldn't rip her eyes away.
Soujirou was shocked when her sea green eyes locked onto his, trapping him within their brilliance. The shadows within his soul felt like it was melting away, leaving him a weak, mortal man. One who, he believed, Misao could truly love.
hito wa hitori da to wakariaitai
no ni nante muzukashii
kotoba wa muryoku de toki
ni wa gin no NAIFU ni naru
Even when they're alone, people want to share their feelings,
but it can be so hard.
Words are powerless to express one's feelings,
and sometimes they become a silver knife.
Neither one knew who had moved in, they never realized that they were leaning in closer and closer. All they knew was the passion which exploded when their lips touched. Eyes closing, their mental barriers and layers were stripped away until all that remained were 2 bare souls reaching for comfort from each other. The kiss continued as Soujirou drew Misao closer and allowing Misao to drape her arms around his neck. Slowly breaking, Soujirou gazed down at Misao, a smile on his face. Nuzzling the top of her head, she softly whispered.
"Misao... Anata... Aishiteru..." This however, snapped Misao back into reality.
hito wa hitori da to wakariaitai
no ni nante muzukashii
kotoba wa muryoku de toki
ni wa gin no NAIFU ni...
Even when they're alone, people want to share their feelings,
but it can be so hard.
Words are powerless to express one's feelings,
and sometimes they become a silver knife.
She broke free, fear in her eyes.
"Sou..." she barely whispered, her vocal cords slowly regaining their use. She then turned and began to run to the guestrooms. Soujirou, however, was floored. Why? Why did Misao run away from him? Was it because... of his past?
He was about to run after her when a voice stopped her.
"Soujirou-san, I'd give her time..." Karou smiled as she placed a hand on his shoulder. "This is all too painful I think. You know, with Aoshi being here and all."
Karou was trying to cheer him up, but she wasn't helping... not one bit. Soujirou began to walk away and passed Misao's room when he heard her sob.
"Why... WHY???????" She was crying again and each sob was tearing at his hear more and more. Staring at the thin paper separating them, he frowned. He knew of Misao's troublesome nights, but somewhere in his mind, he knew this was one time that Misao wanted to be alone. Frowning, he stood there and then began to move.
tatoe tookute mo kitto tadoritsukeru tsuyoku shinjite'ta
ano hi no watashi ga ima mo kokoro de nemutte-iru
I used to believe without a doubt that I could reach my dreams, no matter how far off they were.
But that me from long ago now sleeps inside my heart.
Misao curled up in her futon, staring at the ceiling. What did she just do? Why did she run away from Soujirou? Sitting up, she touched her lips, remembering the feeling on his lips on hers. It wasn't her first kiss, she didn't remember her first kiss actually, but it felt like none of the other kisses she had received before. She heard Karou talk to Soujirou in the yard where she had left him. "Aoshi..." She rasped, and then shook her head. HE was a hopeless case... then why did she linger?
"Why? WHY?" She sobbed and curled up in a ball, trying to hold what little sense she had. The shoji door opened and she rapidly turned, only to see Soujirou standing there. She scuttled back a bit as he closed the door and kneeled beside her. She closed her eyes tightly, afraid, for some reason, that he would hurt her for rejecting him.
"Misao... It's alright." His warm voice calmed her as he placed his arms around her. She froze and lay like that for a while, but slowly, she relaxed. Soujirou... She closed her eyes tightly and grabbed his Hakama shirt, sobbing into the cloth as Soujirou whispered soothing words of reassurance and understanding.
TBG's Notes... #2!: Think Aoshi is out of the picture? Not a chance. In fact the next chapter will explain aoshi's viewpoint. I don't really know which way it'll really go, though from this point, It looks like Sou-chan and Misao... Oh well.... *grumbles about too much fluff* Reviews?
