Tapestry of Lives Chapter Four
Explanations Anonymous
Aya began humming as she pulled Kaoru along behind her. The small Warrior was in a good mood which was altogether strange for her but understandable under the circumstances. Not only had she been given the simple job of escorting this namby pamby group around to a couple of worlds, she was going to start it out with a good meal. *sigh* Being a Warrior and getting good meals did NOT go hand in hand. Normally it was just eat what you can when you can, and hope it wasn't spoiled. Why, right now she could smell lingering wafts of lemon, ginger, and fish. !?FISH?!
The Warrior stopped in her tracks and whirled to face Coralie who started up at her with wide eyes. "I smell fish."
Coralie nodded and took a step forward. "Nadine read up on it and found that their society eats fish quite regularly so she decided to offer them something more common to help soothe their wandering minds." The Priestess touched a fingertip to her nose. "I think there's a whitefish and a red fish and something that didn't really look like a fish, but it was definitely water based, but I'm sure they're all good." Aya's hopeful expression feel into the darkest depression as Coralie recited her list.
"Well, come along," the little Priestess chirped as she began walking again. "Kaoru, do you think you can manage leading him on your own?"
The little group walked past Aya as she stood with a sickened expression on her face. "Fish," she muttered. "Why is it always fish?" Why can't they just cook a good chicken, or maybe a fruit pie, but no... it's gotta be fish."
"She's a Warrior," Coralie began to explain to Kaoru's quick question. "They have food issues. Some Warriors can't eat meat, some can't eat vegetables. There's a famous story of a Warrior who had to survive on bread and water because his stomach just became for too delicate for anything more flavorful." She shrugged and continued. "Aya's big food problem is fish; she can't eat any at all. There's something about fish oils that just sends her stomach into a frenzy. She was probably looking forward to a good meal, too. Maybe Nadine had them cook something else up for her."
Hiko grunted. "What kind of warrior has a weak stomach?"
"Well, you have to understand how our Warriors work before you understand about their weak stomachs, Hiko."
The entire group stopped walking and looked forward to see Nadine waving at them beside an open door.
"Hiyas!" Nadine grinned and pointed through an open door to her left. "Right this way, sustenance for both the body and the mind, umm... why is Kenshin floating?"
"He fainted," Hiko explained quickly before Coralie could start.
Kaoru bristled and turned to Hiko. "He did not 'faint'."
"Oh," Hiko took a step forward and peered into Kenshin's passive face. "What else can you call it when your Baka-Deshi falls to the floor asleep?" Hiko poked his shoulder.
"He's not feeling well," Kaoru cried out. "He's just taking a little bit longer to recover than we did."
Hiko lifted an eyebrow at Kaoru. "Baka-Deshi fain..." Before Hiko could finish he was interrupted by a tortured scream.
Aya steamed past the two arguing companions and ran right into Nadine which seemed to be what she meant to do since she grabbed onto the Guardian's loose top and slammed her into the nearby wall. "You did this on purpose, didn't you?" She began screaming. The rest of the one-sided conversation was yelled at Nadine in a harsh, guttural language which seemed more composed of grunts and spitting than any other real sounds.
"Oh dear," Coralie grabbed Kaoru's hand. "We should really step in; they're going to be at it for a while." She led the staring group into the room quickly trying not to listen to Aya's rant. The Priestess nodded her head to the four that were already seated in the room. "I'll just go tell the servers that we're ready."
The unsettled group looked around surprised at the sudden change of decor. They had just been walking down a curving hallway of what seemed to be smoothed over stone with no visible light source. Now they stood in the entryway to a large room that looked to be straight out of the Kamiya dojo. The tatami on the floor were a bit newer looking and the walls were devoid of any of the wall hangings, but it was nearly exactly like the room that opened out onto the garden, except larger. Kaoru immediately let go of Kenshin's hand o walk over to one of the shoji doors. After several tries she sighed and realized it wasn't going to open.
"I guess we should find a place to sit." She thanked Misao as she handed her a cushion form a nearby stack and fluffed it slightly before placing it on the floor. With a sigh she knelt down and looked around. Saitou and Toki were seated at the far end of the room with Megumi nearby having a quiet conversation with Tokio. Sano and Yahiko were looking miserable seated as close as they were to Saitou. Misao had placed her and Aoshi's cushions almost directly across form Kaoru leaving the entire area to her right open for Hiko to sit down. As she looked to her right she saw only Kenshin's slightly moving Hakama.
Kaoru almost jumped in surprise. "I almost forgot!" Misao looked at her inquiringly. "Kenshin, He's floating. How do we get him down?" Weasel Girl looked at Kenshin and began giggling.
"That is a question, Kaoru," Nadine said as she stepped away from her place hugging the wall and between the two girls to face Kenshin. "Hmmm... Dammit, he's asleep again. Aya..?"
"NO!"
"Sheesh, you don't have to be so sharp, I said I was sorry."
The Warrior continued to glare at Nadine who finally shrugged. "Coralie will fix him; she can wake a dead man." Nadine looked around and saw that everyone, with the exception of the floating Kenshin was comfortably seated and watching her expectantly.
"Well, like I promised, an explanation." Nadine grabbed a cushion and seated herself between Saitou and Sano. "I'm thinking you don't want to wait until Kensh... Coralie! There you are, will you please wake up sleepy- head over there. He's gonna need to hear this."
The Priestess nodded her head and walked over to Kenshin. "Umm... He might fall over, so...." Hiko got up and stood nearby while Kaoru scooted out of the way. Coralie lifted her hands, palms upwards until they were at her shoulders. She kept her eyes trained on Kenshin's face as the soft aura around him began to deepen. Slowly he opened unseeing eyes and began to whisper along with the soft words Coralie was singing. As slowly as she had raised them, Coralie lowered her hands and watched his eyes close. She turned to Nadine with a worried expression. "He's fallen deep. I need to use a higher power than what is allowed here."
"What do you mean?"
"I think, I think his mind slipped its thread. I think he's gone off wandering." Coralie touched a limp hand. "He responded, but I don't think he was talking to me. I could feel him, but..." She shook her head slightly. "I'll lower him to the cushion, but he'll need to remain resting until I can take a further look."
"Is he in any danger?"
Coralie shook her head as she lowered Kenshin to the floor with a wave of her hand. "Oh, no. Actually I think I know exactly were he is. I'm pretty sure I know who he was talking to." Coralie grinned at Kaoru. "Don't worry. He's perfectly fine. We can't lose him now that we have him." She turned to Nadine and curtsied. "I'll be going to the Well of Souls quickly. Please excuse my absence."
Nadine nodded. "Call me if you need me,"
Aya's eyes followed the bouncing Priestess out of the room. "Now why in the world would she need to go see the Well?"
~: ~~~~ chicken head (tiny)
Kenshin felt the darkness closing in even as he watched the floor reach up to grab him. Without a doubt he was going to hurt when he woke up, but then he was still awake, wasn't he? He couldn't feel anything around him and his eyes were refused to open just like before, but he could still hear, and his ki sense told him something or someone out there was very powerful and very close by. He shook his head surprised as he felt his bangs brush against his cheeks. He could move, but he couldn't open his eyes.
A soft laugh sounded form his right causing him to turn his head. "You should have seen your face just then," a gentle voice explained. "You looked to be readying for quite a fine pout."
"Oro?" He could talk!
"Yes, speech is still an ability here in the Well, any type of speech."
"Is Sessha able to open his eyes?"
Again the laughter tickled his ears. "Only if you wish sir, but there's not much to see. I fear my home is dreadfully boring. Even I find it so, sometimes."
Kenshin felt his eyelids protest but raised them anyway. "Your home is dark, that it is. Are there no lights here?"
"Wrong eyes silly, but I forget."
"Oro? Forget?"
"You're not like me, but I'll make it easier for you. Watch carefully now."
Kenshin's eyes widened as strands of milky white began writhing in front of him, thickening into a lithe shape. From the darkness around him erupted a multitude of many colored ribbons that encircled the form until not an inch of the wispy white light was seen. The darkness around him lessened until he could make out shapes, a low table, two cushions placed on the floor. The ribbon covered figure in front of him lifted a multi-colored arm and opened its fingers wide. The ribbons began disintegrating in quick sparks revealing normal colored flesh. The low flying sparks died quickly but traveled fast as first an arm emerged, then a shoulder, then a neck and... Oro! Kenshin gulped and shut his eyes fast; too many bokken influenced headaches had sharpened his life preservation instincts around females.
"Truly? How funny, she's seems very lively." He felt soft hands framing his face. "It's safe, I'm clothed."
Kenshin opened his eyes quickly and stared at the smiling female in front of him. "How did you know what I was thinking? Sessha said nothing, but you spoke as if he had, that you did?" He squinted slight and peered up and down. "Ano, why do you look so much like Sessha, even your hair is red!"
"Not seen many to match your hair, have you? Well," the female twirled prettily in the gi and hakama that had appeared on her. "I actually find this rather comfortable." She grinned and motioned towards the table where two steaming cups of tea had appeared.
Kenshin found himself able to move easily from the darkness onto the small tatami floored room. He eased himself onto a cushion and studied his companion again. Upon a second look she had a strong resemblance to him but there were major differences. Her hair was darker for one, a deeper shade of red with the top half tied in two tails that hung down and blended with the freely hanging bottom half. Her clothes were almost an exact match in color but looked newer, a brighter white, a deeper pink.
His eyes returned to hers and found mischievous orbs as violet as his own watching him silently. "Ano, Sessha was wondering, where exactly am I?"
The violet eyes crinkled as the girl grinned wide. "You are in my home, here where I live, which isn't anywhere easily described to you so just leave it be."
"Oro?" Kenshin was surprised at the hostile words said with such a cheerful voice. Were she and Soujiro from the same family?
"But don't you worry a bit about it, Kenshin. Someone should be here soon enough to save you. You're really not supposed to be here." She took a sip of tea then returned to talking. "What I will do for you though is to give you a short explanation of the way things are right now that I would like you to keep to yourself."
Kenshin nodded. She seemed so serious now.
"There are many worlds out there, Kenshin, yours is the original that everything is based on. When someone messes with your world, they mess with them all. Obviously someone has messed with your world, but there's more to it than that. This is the part that is for your ears alone. "She twisted her tea cup in a circle while staring down into its murky depths. "There were problems with the worlds before this ever happened, little things that only people like I were able to notice. Things were happening before their time, people were dying that shouldn't." She looked up at him with narrowed eyes. "They were sent to their deaths by a demon we know as Battousai."
Kenshin's eyes widened. "But Sessha..."
"It's one of your mirrors, but there's still more. He's being controlled. Someone is ordering him to destroy certain things, certain people and even certain worlds. They are slowly changing the shape of the worlds to something that scares me, and Battousai is their puppet."
"The one who destroyed your world did it because of anger at Battousai for destroying his. That one has since been punished but when I spoke to him he gave me great insight as to the problem." She sighed and took another sip of tea. "It seems that even there in the Central Web evil still lurks in the hearts of those chosen to protect the worlds. Not all who are there to help are there to help the worlds it seems, but themselves alone."
"You will soon commence your travels, from world to world finding the pieces of your destiny that will bring you back to your own. You will not only be up against the evils that have suddenly erupted in these worlds, but also the evils that will be sent out against you to make sure you fail. Right now the ringleader had his puppet where he wants him and the original is no longer needed. You have a great power over your mirrors, Kenshin. All of you do. Remember that when the time comes, for surely you will need that strength."
The redheaded girl smiled and took a deep breath. Now it's time for you to go, I can hear someone coming to collect you."
Kenshin frowned; he couldn't hear a thing, only his own breathing. He couldn't even hear her breathing. His eyes widened as he tried to sense her energy, not a drop of ki came from her direction. He watched as she stood up and faced away form him. Slowly one of the shoji doors surrounding the room slid open to reveal a black haired man.
"Keeper," the female nodded her head at the man. "I assume you're here for our little lost one."
The man stretched his neck slightly to get a better view of Kenshin sitting on the floor behind her. "Umm. yes. Coralie is here to collect him. She says his body is beginning to die without the soul and was wondering if she could have it back. He really wasn't supposed to have come here." The man stepped to the side so that Kenshin could see him fully and bowed towards the swordsman. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Himura. If you would please follow me."
"In just a moment, please give us some time. We just sat down." Kenshin gulped at the lie but remained quiet. The man nodded and stepped out of the room.
"I will return for him shortly."
She kept her back to him as she spoke. "I was once called Keiko, Himura- San. Please think of me fondly. For we will not see each other for a long while, this I promise." She sighed and sat down at the table again. "You should leave now. The Keeper will come back. He is one of those whose heart has been turned. I don't like him very much. The last Keeper was ever so much nicer." She looked up as he remained sitting. "Well?"
"Sessha is still confused."
She smiled sadly at him then reached her hand across the table to lay it on front of him. "Sessha will remain so for some time," she told him softly. "But the fog will clear and you will have your answers. I will tell you this. One of those who has been called to help you is not what she seems, the other exactly as she is, the third a dark soul who has been touched by Battousai recently. I do not know which, but I know it's one of those three. Be careful where you tread, Himura-San the snake bites here are deadly." With that said she pulled back and watched him until he stood up.
"Sessha enjoyed sharing teas with you Keiko-Dono, that I did. I will take your words to heart and hold them close." He saw her bob her head slightly as she faced the floor. "Thank you for the conversation." He walked up to the shoji he had seen open earlier and found it very easy to slide. Just beyond it he saw a torch lit room made of grey stone. He looked behind to see the difference and nearly fell at the change. It was not a small tatami covered room anymore but a deep well that dropped off just behind him.
"Orooororor."
"Noooo... don't fall back in." Tiny hands grasped his arm and pulled with a surprising amount of strength. Kenshin looked down to see the blue cloth covered head of Coralie as she grabbed him around the waist. She looked up at him and grinned. Do you think you can stand?"
"Hai," he whispered out still shaken from the depths he had seen behind him. "Where did that hold come from?"
Coralie stepped back. "That's the Well of Souls. It holds those who are waiting to return or those who just don't feel like living again." She looked him up and down then sighed. "Speaking of souls, we will need to travel back to your body rather quickly, follow me."
Kenshin took a step then looked down at the unfamiliar feeling of air underneath his foot. "Oro?"
"You're just a soul right now, Kenshin-San. Hurry now, your body is waiting."
Author's Note: well, I'm trying to just spring along here, but my pogo stick stopped working.. this fic just doesn't want to move fast it seems.. but I'll get to the action as soon as I can. Love you all!
Explanations Anonymous
Aya began humming as she pulled Kaoru along behind her. The small Warrior was in a good mood which was altogether strange for her but understandable under the circumstances. Not only had she been given the simple job of escorting this namby pamby group around to a couple of worlds, she was going to start it out with a good meal. *sigh* Being a Warrior and getting good meals did NOT go hand in hand. Normally it was just eat what you can when you can, and hope it wasn't spoiled. Why, right now she could smell lingering wafts of lemon, ginger, and fish. !?FISH?!
The Warrior stopped in her tracks and whirled to face Coralie who started up at her with wide eyes. "I smell fish."
Coralie nodded and took a step forward. "Nadine read up on it and found that their society eats fish quite regularly so she decided to offer them something more common to help soothe their wandering minds." The Priestess touched a fingertip to her nose. "I think there's a whitefish and a red fish and something that didn't really look like a fish, but it was definitely water based, but I'm sure they're all good." Aya's hopeful expression feel into the darkest depression as Coralie recited her list.
"Well, come along," the little Priestess chirped as she began walking again. "Kaoru, do you think you can manage leading him on your own?"
The little group walked past Aya as she stood with a sickened expression on her face. "Fish," she muttered. "Why is it always fish?" Why can't they just cook a good chicken, or maybe a fruit pie, but no... it's gotta be fish."
"She's a Warrior," Coralie began to explain to Kaoru's quick question. "They have food issues. Some Warriors can't eat meat, some can't eat vegetables. There's a famous story of a Warrior who had to survive on bread and water because his stomach just became for too delicate for anything more flavorful." She shrugged and continued. "Aya's big food problem is fish; she can't eat any at all. There's something about fish oils that just sends her stomach into a frenzy. She was probably looking forward to a good meal, too. Maybe Nadine had them cook something else up for her."
Hiko grunted. "What kind of warrior has a weak stomach?"
"Well, you have to understand how our Warriors work before you understand about their weak stomachs, Hiko."
The entire group stopped walking and looked forward to see Nadine waving at them beside an open door.
"Hiyas!" Nadine grinned and pointed through an open door to her left. "Right this way, sustenance for both the body and the mind, umm... why is Kenshin floating?"
"He fainted," Hiko explained quickly before Coralie could start.
Kaoru bristled and turned to Hiko. "He did not 'faint'."
"Oh," Hiko took a step forward and peered into Kenshin's passive face. "What else can you call it when your Baka-Deshi falls to the floor asleep?" Hiko poked his shoulder.
"He's not feeling well," Kaoru cried out. "He's just taking a little bit longer to recover than we did."
Hiko lifted an eyebrow at Kaoru. "Baka-Deshi fain..." Before Hiko could finish he was interrupted by a tortured scream.
Aya steamed past the two arguing companions and ran right into Nadine which seemed to be what she meant to do since she grabbed onto the Guardian's loose top and slammed her into the nearby wall. "You did this on purpose, didn't you?" She began screaming. The rest of the one-sided conversation was yelled at Nadine in a harsh, guttural language which seemed more composed of grunts and spitting than any other real sounds.
"Oh dear," Coralie grabbed Kaoru's hand. "We should really step in; they're going to be at it for a while." She led the staring group into the room quickly trying not to listen to Aya's rant. The Priestess nodded her head to the four that were already seated in the room. "I'll just go tell the servers that we're ready."
The unsettled group looked around surprised at the sudden change of decor. They had just been walking down a curving hallway of what seemed to be smoothed over stone with no visible light source. Now they stood in the entryway to a large room that looked to be straight out of the Kamiya dojo. The tatami on the floor were a bit newer looking and the walls were devoid of any of the wall hangings, but it was nearly exactly like the room that opened out onto the garden, except larger. Kaoru immediately let go of Kenshin's hand o walk over to one of the shoji doors. After several tries she sighed and realized it wasn't going to open.
"I guess we should find a place to sit." She thanked Misao as she handed her a cushion form a nearby stack and fluffed it slightly before placing it on the floor. With a sigh she knelt down and looked around. Saitou and Toki were seated at the far end of the room with Megumi nearby having a quiet conversation with Tokio. Sano and Yahiko were looking miserable seated as close as they were to Saitou. Misao had placed her and Aoshi's cushions almost directly across form Kaoru leaving the entire area to her right open for Hiko to sit down. As she looked to her right she saw only Kenshin's slightly moving Hakama.
Kaoru almost jumped in surprise. "I almost forgot!" Misao looked at her inquiringly. "Kenshin, He's floating. How do we get him down?" Weasel Girl looked at Kenshin and began giggling.
"That is a question, Kaoru," Nadine said as she stepped away from her place hugging the wall and between the two girls to face Kenshin. "Hmmm... Dammit, he's asleep again. Aya..?"
"NO!"
"Sheesh, you don't have to be so sharp, I said I was sorry."
The Warrior continued to glare at Nadine who finally shrugged. "Coralie will fix him; she can wake a dead man." Nadine looked around and saw that everyone, with the exception of the floating Kenshin was comfortably seated and watching her expectantly.
"Well, like I promised, an explanation." Nadine grabbed a cushion and seated herself between Saitou and Sano. "I'm thinking you don't want to wait until Kensh... Coralie! There you are, will you please wake up sleepy- head over there. He's gonna need to hear this."
The Priestess nodded her head and walked over to Kenshin. "Umm... He might fall over, so...." Hiko got up and stood nearby while Kaoru scooted out of the way. Coralie lifted her hands, palms upwards until they were at her shoulders. She kept her eyes trained on Kenshin's face as the soft aura around him began to deepen. Slowly he opened unseeing eyes and began to whisper along with the soft words Coralie was singing. As slowly as she had raised them, Coralie lowered her hands and watched his eyes close. She turned to Nadine with a worried expression. "He's fallen deep. I need to use a higher power than what is allowed here."
"What do you mean?"
"I think, I think his mind slipped its thread. I think he's gone off wandering." Coralie touched a limp hand. "He responded, but I don't think he was talking to me. I could feel him, but..." She shook her head slightly. "I'll lower him to the cushion, but he'll need to remain resting until I can take a further look."
"Is he in any danger?"
Coralie shook her head as she lowered Kenshin to the floor with a wave of her hand. "Oh, no. Actually I think I know exactly were he is. I'm pretty sure I know who he was talking to." Coralie grinned at Kaoru. "Don't worry. He's perfectly fine. We can't lose him now that we have him." She turned to Nadine and curtsied. "I'll be going to the Well of Souls quickly. Please excuse my absence."
Nadine nodded. "Call me if you need me,"
Aya's eyes followed the bouncing Priestess out of the room. "Now why in the world would she need to go see the Well?"
~: ~~~~ chicken head (tiny)
Kenshin felt the darkness closing in even as he watched the floor reach up to grab him. Without a doubt he was going to hurt when he woke up, but then he was still awake, wasn't he? He couldn't feel anything around him and his eyes were refused to open just like before, but he could still hear, and his ki sense told him something or someone out there was very powerful and very close by. He shook his head surprised as he felt his bangs brush against his cheeks. He could move, but he couldn't open his eyes.
A soft laugh sounded form his right causing him to turn his head. "You should have seen your face just then," a gentle voice explained. "You looked to be readying for quite a fine pout."
"Oro?" He could talk!
"Yes, speech is still an ability here in the Well, any type of speech."
"Is Sessha able to open his eyes?"
Again the laughter tickled his ears. "Only if you wish sir, but there's not much to see. I fear my home is dreadfully boring. Even I find it so, sometimes."
Kenshin felt his eyelids protest but raised them anyway. "Your home is dark, that it is. Are there no lights here?"
"Wrong eyes silly, but I forget."
"Oro? Forget?"
"You're not like me, but I'll make it easier for you. Watch carefully now."
Kenshin's eyes widened as strands of milky white began writhing in front of him, thickening into a lithe shape. From the darkness around him erupted a multitude of many colored ribbons that encircled the form until not an inch of the wispy white light was seen. The darkness around him lessened until he could make out shapes, a low table, two cushions placed on the floor. The ribbon covered figure in front of him lifted a multi-colored arm and opened its fingers wide. The ribbons began disintegrating in quick sparks revealing normal colored flesh. The low flying sparks died quickly but traveled fast as first an arm emerged, then a shoulder, then a neck and... Oro! Kenshin gulped and shut his eyes fast; too many bokken influenced headaches had sharpened his life preservation instincts around females.
"Truly? How funny, she's seems very lively." He felt soft hands framing his face. "It's safe, I'm clothed."
Kenshin opened his eyes quickly and stared at the smiling female in front of him. "How did you know what I was thinking? Sessha said nothing, but you spoke as if he had, that you did?" He squinted slight and peered up and down. "Ano, why do you look so much like Sessha, even your hair is red!"
"Not seen many to match your hair, have you? Well," the female twirled prettily in the gi and hakama that had appeared on her. "I actually find this rather comfortable." She grinned and motioned towards the table where two steaming cups of tea had appeared.
Kenshin found himself able to move easily from the darkness onto the small tatami floored room. He eased himself onto a cushion and studied his companion again. Upon a second look she had a strong resemblance to him but there were major differences. Her hair was darker for one, a deeper shade of red with the top half tied in two tails that hung down and blended with the freely hanging bottom half. Her clothes were almost an exact match in color but looked newer, a brighter white, a deeper pink.
His eyes returned to hers and found mischievous orbs as violet as his own watching him silently. "Ano, Sessha was wondering, where exactly am I?"
The violet eyes crinkled as the girl grinned wide. "You are in my home, here where I live, which isn't anywhere easily described to you so just leave it be."
"Oro?" Kenshin was surprised at the hostile words said with such a cheerful voice. Were she and Soujiro from the same family?
"But don't you worry a bit about it, Kenshin. Someone should be here soon enough to save you. You're really not supposed to be here." She took a sip of tea then returned to talking. "What I will do for you though is to give you a short explanation of the way things are right now that I would like you to keep to yourself."
Kenshin nodded. She seemed so serious now.
"There are many worlds out there, Kenshin, yours is the original that everything is based on. When someone messes with your world, they mess with them all. Obviously someone has messed with your world, but there's more to it than that. This is the part that is for your ears alone. "She twisted her tea cup in a circle while staring down into its murky depths. "There were problems with the worlds before this ever happened, little things that only people like I were able to notice. Things were happening before their time, people were dying that shouldn't." She looked up at him with narrowed eyes. "They were sent to their deaths by a demon we know as Battousai."
Kenshin's eyes widened. "But Sessha..."
"It's one of your mirrors, but there's still more. He's being controlled. Someone is ordering him to destroy certain things, certain people and even certain worlds. They are slowly changing the shape of the worlds to something that scares me, and Battousai is their puppet."
"The one who destroyed your world did it because of anger at Battousai for destroying his. That one has since been punished but when I spoke to him he gave me great insight as to the problem." She sighed and took another sip of tea. "It seems that even there in the Central Web evil still lurks in the hearts of those chosen to protect the worlds. Not all who are there to help are there to help the worlds it seems, but themselves alone."
"You will soon commence your travels, from world to world finding the pieces of your destiny that will bring you back to your own. You will not only be up against the evils that have suddenly erupted in these worlds, but also the evils that will be sent out against you to make sure you fail. Right now the ringleader had his puppet where he wants him and the original is no longer needed. You have a great power over your mirrors, Kenshin. All of you do. Remember that when the time comes, for surely you will need that strength."
The redheaded girl smiled and took a deep breath. Now it's time for you to go, I can hear someone coming to collect you."
Kenshin frowned; he couldn't hear a thing, only his own breathing. He couldn't even hear her breathing. His eyes widened as he tried to sense her energy, not a drop of ki came from her direction. He watched as she stood up and faced away form him. Slowly one of the shoji doors surrounding the room slid open to reveal a black haired man.
"Keeper," the female nodded her head at the man. "I assume you're here for our little lost one."
The man stretched his neck slightly to get a better view of Kenshin sitting on the floor behind her. "Umm. yes. Coralie is here to collect him. She says his body is beginning to die without the soul and was wondering if she could have it back. He really wasn't supposed to have come here." The man stepped to the side so that Kenshin could see him fully and bowed towards the swordsman. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Himura. If you would please follow me."
"In just a moment, please give us some time. We just sat down." Kenshin gulped at the lie but remained quiet. The man nodded and stepped out of the room.
"I will return for him shortly."
She kept her back to him as she spoke. "I was once called Keiko, Himura- San. Please think of me fondly. For we will not see each other for a long while, this I promise." She sighed and sat down at the table again. "You should leave now. The Keeper will come back. He is one of those whose heart has been turned. I don't like him very much. The last Keeper was ever so much nicer." She looked up as he remained sitting. "Well?"
"Sessha is still confused."
She smiled sadly at him then reached her hand across the table to lay it on front of him. "Sessha will remain so for some time," she told him softly. "But the fog will clear and you will have your answers. I will tell you this. One of those who has been called to help you is not what she seems, the other exactly as she is, the third a dark soul who has been touched by Battousai recently. I do not know which, but I know it's one of those three. Be careful where you tread, Himura-San the snake bites here are deadly." With that said she pulled back and watched him until he stood up.
"Sessha enjoyed sharing teas with you Keiko-Dono, that I did. I will take your words to heart and hold them close." He saw her bob her head slightly as she faced the floor. "Thank you for the conversation." He walked up to the shoji he had seen open earlier and found it very easy to slide. Just beyond it he saw a torch lit room made of grey stone. He looked behind to see the difference and nearly fell at the change. It was not a small tatami covered room anymore but a deep well that dropped off just behind him.
"Orooororor."
"Noooo... don't fall back in." Tiny hands grasped his arm and pulled with a surprising amount of strength. Kenshin looked down to see the blue cloth covered head of Coralie as she grabbed him around the waist. She looked up at him and grinned. Do you think you can stand?"
"Hai," he whispered out still shaken from the depths he had seen behind him. "Where did that hold come from?"
Coralie stepped back. "That's the Well of Souls. It holds those who are waiting to return or those who just don't feel like living again." She looked him up and down then sighed. "Speaking of souls, we will need to travel back to your body rather quickly, follow me."
Kenshin took a step then looked down at the unfamiliar feeling of air underneath his foot. "Oro?"
"You're just a soul right now, Kenshin-San. Hurry now, your body is waiting."
Author's Note: well, I'm trying to just spring along here, but my pogo stick stopped working.. this fic just doesn't want to move fast it seems.. but I'll get to the action as soon as I can. Love you all!