~Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or Rurouni Kenshin characters. This story was not written for sale or profit. Don't forget to review.



A Reason for Love



*End of Last Chapter*

Soujiro looked confused at her extended hand.

"It's a western custom to shake hands," she explained, waiting for him to place his hand in hers.

He hesitantly touched her hand, returning the same grasp. Feeling a small piece of paper in the palm of his hand, he looked into her face.

Then she was gone as quick as she had appeared.



Chapter 3: Absence of Love



~Soujiro waited several minutes before leaving the restaurant. With the piece of paper safely tucked away, he found a secluded spot next to a creek on the outskirts of the village. Opening the small piece of paper, he read:

*Soujiro, please meet me at our usual place, I will be there one week from today, Chiko.*

The name was one that he knew all to well, as she had always gotten him into trouble every time he was around her. And now she expected him to just drop everything and run to meet her. She knew him to well, for he could not ignore her request.

For a brief moment, he wondered how she had managed to get Kamatari to deliver the message to him, and then dismissed further thoughts of that nature from his mind as unimportant.

One week, it didn't give him much time. He calculated that it would take him six days to get there if he walked continually. Letting out a deep sigh, he neatly folded the paper putting it with the rest of his belongings then started walking towards Kyoto.



~After the initial shock of Aoshi agreeing to accompany her to Tokyo, Misao forced herself to calm down. She needed to find Okina and tell him her good news.

Finding the old man in the garden, she tried to walk towards him but her feet refused to obey, so she ran the remaining distance throwing herself at him, giving him a bone crushing hug.

"Misao," the old man squeaked, "I need. . to breathe."

She quickly let go of the old man, putting her hand to her mouth, giggling as she watched him slump to the ground.

"Aoshi has agreed to come with me to Tokyo for Himura's wedding," she exclaimed, trying to contain her excitement while helping the old man back on his feet.

"That's wonderful, Misao," the old man smiled, his thoughts turning to chasing girls now that both Misao and Aoshi would be away from the Aoiya.

"I have one week to get everything taken care of so that we can go together," her words running together, not giving the old man a chance to say anything. Grabbing his hand, she pulled the reluctant Okina into the Aoiya to begin planning for her trip.

The week went by fast for Misao, checking everything over to make sure that her presence would not be required while she was attending the wedding in Tokyo, yet still keeping her afternoons free to have tea with Aoshi.

But on the day before they were to leave, Misao woke with a premonition. I just know that something will go wrong and we won't be able to make the trip, she thought, putting the finishing touches in her hair before glancing into the mirror one more time.

It wasn't until afternoon that she began to think her premonition was all just nerves. A meeting with a local politician at a tea house had gone well, leaving her free for the next three weeks.

Returning to the Aoiya, Misao noticed Omasu just inside the doorway, waiting as a beautiful woman opened her parasol. Misao remembered the face but the western clothes didn't fit the person she thought it to be, her hair had been different and she had worn a kimono and carried a rather large weapon the last time they met.

"Good-afternoon," the woman softly said, smiling as she gracefully walked passed Misao, her parasol tilted back to keep the sun off her head.

"Is that who I think it is?" Misao asked Omasu, once the woman was out of site.

"Yes and she just had a meeting with Aoshi," Omasu said, sliding the door shut after Misao walked into the Aoiya.

Her curiosity peaked, Misao headed into the kitchen to make the afternoon tea she shared with Aoshi. Somehow she would find out what was going on between Aoshi and Kamatari.

Holding the tray with their afternoon tea, Misao quietly opened the shoji, slipping through before closing it again.

Aoshi was in his normal position when she entered the room. Her emotions were in a turmoil, she felt like she should be jealous but her desire to know what had prompted Kamatari to visit Aoshi was greater.

She started their usual ritual of pouring the tea while mulling over in her mind just what her motives were in wanting to know why Kamatari had visited Aoshi. Sitting across from Aoshi, she handed him a cup of tea then waited until after he took a sip to see if he would initiate the conversation. She let out a sigh and taking a deep breathe was about to ask.

"It was personal," Aoshi softly said, looking into Misao's eyes. He wanted to let Misao know that the matter was closed for discussion without hurting her feelings but he was afraid that his abrupt manner only heightened her curiosity.

Giving him a slight nod of her head, she took a sip of her tea relieved that there wasn't a new problem to keep then in Kyoto but on the other hand the nagging premonition from this morning was still there. She decided to let it go for now but to keep a close eye on her Aoshi-sama.





~Walking into Kyoto at sunset, Soujiro forced himself to go directly to the meeting place Chiko had specified in her note. Having stayed away from Kyoto all these months, he didn't want to chance running into anyone from the Aoiya. Just to know that Aoshi was alive was enough for now.

As he waited for Chiko to arrive, he remembered their last meeting. She had talked him into posing as her husband to help her leave Japan but her father had caught them. He had been "talked" to by her father, a conversation he will never forget, while she had been sent to live with her Aunt. Chiko's father had made arrangements for her to marry with the intent of having heirs to his power and position. He had often wondered what became of her but her father was not one that he could challenge.

After that with the position he held in Shishio's group, he had been kept very busy and soon forgot completely about the girl. Now he wondered if she had married but knowing Chiko, he figured that she had somehow gotten away.

Standing safely inside their meeting place, Soujiro tried to hold back a yawn as he surveyed the abandoned building. The last six days of walking were taking their toll on his body. Arriving early, a short nap sounded like the ideal plan while he waited for Chiko to arrive.

Going into the back room, he pulled out the rolled up futon that he had stashed there several years ago. The remote location of the cabin assured him that no one would bother him while he slept. He lay down with his hands clasp behind his head looking up at the ceiling knowing that he would soon find out what she wanted.

He woke up just as the sun was setting, giving a small part of the room a golden glow from the last evening rays as they filtered in through the window. At the first sounds of someone approaching, Soujiro was up and in the shadows poised, ready.

As she entered the room, Soujiro watched her take off the shawl that had been covering her head. He noticed the worn tattered kimono and wondered if her clothes were for show or if she was indeed that poor. He stood, waiting until she found him, standing in the shadows, a game they had played as children.

Chiko closed the gap between them, wrapping her arms around his neck, waiting for him to return her embrace. When he just stood there waiting, she whispered into his ear, "Thank you for coming."

Taking her arms from around his neck, he held her hands, and took a step back to see her face before he said, "I'm sorry about your father."

"It's ok. Somehow I knew that he was destined to fail. I think that his downfall started just after mother was killed. I was too young to understand exactly what happened but I knew that he changed," Chiko stated, a somber tone to her voice.

"How have you been?" Soujiro asked a smile returning to his face.

"I'm all right, still trying to leave Japan. How about you, what have you been doing?"

"Wandering mostly and trying to find some answers to life in general,"

"Are you disagreeing with father's philosophy? That is so unlike you," she looked at him coyly.

"I was shown another way of life and told that I should find my own way," he responded thoughtfully.

"I would love to meet the person who could do such a thing for you," she said, noticing the change of expression on his face.

"Why did you ask me to meet you here?" he asked, walking over to the window. She always managed to give him an uneasy feeling. He knew that he would have a hard time telling her "no" to anything.

"I have something that needs to be taken to Tokyo and given to my Uncle. Can you deliver it to him for me? Please?" she asked, moving behind him, she reached out to him, then let her arms fall to her sides.

"Why are you asking me?" he asked, turning around to face her once again. He tried to remain calm but there was something about the girl that always meant trouble. She was like a bad luck charm for him.

"There is no one else that I can trust to do this for me. My Uncle will trade the contents of the box for enough money for me to leave Japan," she explained, her dark eyes filling with moisture, "Will you do this for me?" she pleaded, "I know that I have no right to ask but... ." was all that she was able to say before Soujiro cut her off with his raised hand.

"I will do this for you, but you must promise me that you will leave Japan as soon as the trade is made," Soujiro said, the uneasy feeling he had earlier just turned into a gut wrenching nightmare. He had always made it a point to stay away from females but this one was special.

"Thank you. Meet me at the train station tomorrow and I will have the box for you," she said. Placing the shawl back over her head, she gave Soujiro a small bow then disappeared into the night.

Giving her a few minutes to leave the area, he too left the building. Tonight he preferred to sleep out under the open sky, thinking that it may be his last peaceful night until she was safely on a boat leaving Japan.



~Standing on the platform, Aoshi waited patiently as Misao stood arguing with Okina over the new colors that would be implemented in the restaurant when they returned to Kyoto after the wedding.

The train whistle blew, signaling that it was now time to board, and halting the ongoing argument between them.

Okina picked Misao up, giving her a bone crushing hug before letting go of her. Unable to get her feet wide enough because of the kimono she was wearing, Misao had a hard time keeping her balance after Okina's hug. She grabbed the closest solid object, that being Aoshi's sleeve, to keep herself from falling over.

Aoshi looked down at her, making her blush. She smiled, then looking behind him, she saw Soujiro looking directly at Aoshi. Her eyes opened wide when she saw Soujiro's face. His eyes sparkled, where before they had been dull. The smile that seemed painted on was now soft and his face glowed.

She knew that look for she had seen it many times in the past. She herself had worn that same expression when she looked at her Aoshi-sama.

How could that be, she thought, could he really love Aoshi-sama? She looked back at Aoshi.

Aoshi felt someone watching him. The last time he had felt like this it had been Soujiro following him trying to convince him to come to Shishio's stronghold.

"Misao, what were you looking at?" Aoshi asked, returning his attention to her.

"I thought." she started, and then looking back behind Aoshi, seeing he was gone, she said, "nothing."



TBC.

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