Chapter 11
By Crystal
*Screw the disclaimers ^^;;*
I looked back at Tatsumi with the emotionless eyes that I haven't used for a month. I was hoping he didn't see the worry I had for Kenshin. I knew Kenshin could kill them with no problems... But can he now, when his mind is in turmoil? Can he? "If you want to kill yourself, it is your decision. But have you not forgotten the beginnings, as to why Kiyosato had to die." I gritted my teeth. Hearing them say this wasn't exactly making me too happy. "Who was Kiyosato to you? Was he not the one you cared for dearly? At least you were the one that he cared for deeply." I did care for Kiyosato... But he had to leave...
He didn't understand me. I cared a lot for him... But Kenshin understood me better. The person coming to get me is my husband. I am his wife. Kiyosato is my past, this is now. And Kenshin is now and hopefully the future. Mother... She would be proud of me. I cared for him... I still will. But he is not my husband, nor was he ever. "Otherwise, having no confidence in his martial skills, he would not have come out to the capital in the midst of anarchy. He risked his life to make you happy."
Finally, I couldn't stand it. What kind of crap was that? He risked my life to make me happy? Why would I be happy if his life was on the line? Why? "I just wanted him near me... Just to be near me." I said quietly. I didn't want him to go to the war... But he did. Did Kiyosato ever thought that he could have died? Did he ever think what was on my mind? Did he ever know I was worried for him? Did he ever? No, of course not. He only had one thing set on his mind. And that was to make me happy. At the end, what he did didn't make me happy... It made me sad.
"That is the fate of man. To make his woman happy, he must secure his home, his village and finally this world of the Tokugawa clan. There can be no family bliss without a peaceful world. Thus we have supported the 300 years of the Tokugawa lineage of great peace... That even if it were the slightest disturbance, we would quell it. That is our fate... We are protecting the happiness of the people, with our very lives." A pause. "Do you understand? All of us men with deep fates... And by virtue of this predestined fate, we live or we die." We live... or we die... Is just like you kill or be killed... The very philosophy Kenshin thinks of now... Or before... "It is the fate of men. Thus to protect the Tokugawa lineage, we will defeat him." If you want to defeat him, then you'll have to go through me.
"He himself is under the sway of fate. There is no one who doesn't make a mistake." Of course there's no one like that. No one's perfect. "Remember the one who you cared deeply for... Remember Kiyosato." I doubt that I will forget him. I don't think I'll forget Kenshin either, since he did promise me he was going to come back to me after the whole revolution is over and after he stops killing... He even said he was going to protect people. 'I want to protect the happiness of each person I see and rid myself of my sins' was what he said. I remember well. Suddenly, another loud explosion was heard and I turned my head towards the sound. Nearer this time. At least I knew Kenshin was safe... For now.
I looked back at him, "It has taken eight months and many victims. But all this is understood. I will assuredly get him." I won't let you... No way... "This is the way to make amends for Kiyosato... For the feudal government and for the many who have given their lives... This is the only way that their deaths would not be in vain. You witness this with your own eyes." No... I refuse to let you kill Kenshin... The only thing I will want to witness with my own eyes... Is when Kenshin stops killing and starts to protect. That will be the only thing I want to see right now. I don't want to see any more deaths then there is. But I guess... The war is unavoidable... After the war... I will make sure Kenshin doesn't kill anymore. Kenshin could beat this guy in front of me. Of course he can... Of course... "Such would do honour to Kiyosato, who dies trying to protect your happiness." But... he failed and ruined it instead. The only person who tried protecting my happiness was Kenshin...
I hear footsteps from outside the cabin and I look out. Flaming red hair, bleeding scar... Blood all over him. Injuries all over. The hope I had in Kenshin winning had vanished and was replaced with fear. Fear that he would die in front of me. Pure fear. He looked weak, using his sword and sheath for support. He even had trouble standing up. I saw Tatsumi walk out and I glared at his back.
"Your appearance as I see it, is that of a man who has used up all his strength to arrive here. You might be the Battousai, but fighting with no one to protect is indeed cruel. You had no one to protect from the beginning anyways... But we do." Tatsumi was a sadistic bastard... Saying that before a fight... Now, I had more anger than fear. Kenshin had already been in turmoil, his heart already been torn, yet, Tatsumi had to tear it up more. As if he wasn't hurt enough. "In the name of our feudal government, I must now conclude this matter and at the same time, I will avenge my losses. That would be the one way I can make amend for not being able to protect them. I see him holding that shawl... My shawl and for some reason, I'm happy. He must be hurt badly... All the blood... That very second, I wanted to run over to him and embrace him...
Without another second, I heard the sound of battle. I couldn't stand it. Kenshin was being beaten up. I put my hands to my ears, blocking all sounds out and shut my eyes closed, not wanting to see anymore nor see anymore. I didn't want him hurt. When I closed my eyes, I saw flashbacks... Of the past months... Since I've met him. In the restaurant with the moronic drunks, in the alley where he made it rain blood, when he held his sword at my throat, at the Gion Festival... The soft kisses he gave me, the warm embraces, the words that could melt my heart. He innocent glow in his eyes when he was thinking of me... The intense amber eyes that scare me, even now. And yet... I promised to myself that even if I put myself at risk. I will protect him. He had promised to protect me and in return, I will protect him.
I watch from the door... The final blow... Both of them getting ready, and I pushed the door open hard. I heard Kenshin scream his war cry and then... My decision was made a long time ago and it was made again now. There was no way I would back out of it. I was going to protect Kenshin... Or die trying. Either way was fine. I didn't want to feel guilty with Kenshin. I put him in this mess and I was going to get him out. I ran up to my husband as fast as my legs could carry me and stood in the middle of the two of them with my back turned to him. Tatsumi brought my tanto down and I held his hand above my head with a bit of difficulty. I'll be damned if I let him lay a finger on Kenshin. At that very moment, I felt more pain that I ever had... It was coming from a little below my left shoulder. My husband stabbed through my heart to Tatsumi's heart...
I saw blood gush out and I felt numb. "I don't understand women..." Was Tatsumi's last words. Then I fell back, my legs could no longer carry my body and gave up. I fell back towards Kenshin's leg. Here, I fainted and the last thing I heard was Kenshin calling my name out non-stop.
A little while later, I woke up, staring up at the face of my beloved. His scar was bleeding and tears were leaking out of his eyes freely. He didn't look like he wanted to stop them. I wiped both the blood and tears off his face while humming a song my mother taught me. It was painful. Really. He stabbed through my heart, yet, I was still living. And surprisingly, I wasn't mad, but happy. I felt myself get weaker every second. I saw his scar... The scar Kiyosato gave him. I took my tanto from the snow, the blood dyed snow and crossed Kenshin's scar. Completing a cross scar. Telling him that Kiyosato was wrong. I wasted to tell him that so much and that Kiyosato was wrong. But... I was so tired. I looked at the pure white snow falling down. Soon, it would be dyed in my blood.
I remembered reading a book like this when I was small. A romance novel. It was called 'Blood and White Plums'. Fits us well, doesn't it? At the end, the woman's beloved killed her by accident... It ends with telling the readers that the woman saw darkness. I assumed she died anyways. Maybe she didn't? I don't know. Perhaps, I see. If I survive, then I'll definitely think that the main character in the book survived. If I die... Well, I was right all along. I think I saw that book in Kenshin's room too. That day when he held his sword by my throat. You know? I grimaced inwardly. This hurt a lot. I wonder if Kenshin ever read that book?
"Blood... and... White Plums..." I see his eyes widen a bit. I knew, he read that book. Was our love going to end like that? Most likely. I knew my time on earth was almost up. How I knew? I don't know. I just felt it, I guess. I took a breath, the freezing air made it painful. "Anata... It's... it's better this way... Gomen... na... sai... A...na...ta..." I wanted so much to wipe the fresh tears from his eyes... Instead, he wiped my fresh tears. My eyelids felt so heavy I could barely open them up any longer, let alone wipe the tears away from his face. The last scene I saw was Kenshin with snow slowly coming down behind him, towards me. I knew that was going to be the last thing I ever saw. As I have said before. It felt right. Then, slowly, I smiled at him... And I saw him smile back. A sad smile, nonetheless, a smile. A smile through his tears. "Ai...shi...te...ru... Ken...shin..." Finishing the thing I wanted to say most, I closed my eyes slowly... I closed my eyes one... last... time... I heard Kenshin say...
Aishiteru, Tomoe. Zutto.
Darkness...
XenoMark – Arigatou!
Blueraingurl – Thanks!
(no name) – Yeah, Tomoe always dies in other fics.
Heaven's Child - ...*coughs* We'll see.
Tomoe Ayanami – Thanks for the reviews!
Author's Notes: I know I changed the whole story line from 6 to 8 months. And that was so depressing. I almost cried while writing this! Well, not really, but near it. I think I've decided on a sequel... I'm pretty sure it'll be a sequel... Later all! And this chapter took me less than a day to finish because I had so many ideas for it. Anyhow, later all!