Apprentice
Chapter 12
(AN: Just a warning: someone wrote me they hated Yuki (which I truly count as a compliment, because you're supposed to hate her, at least for now, so I've done well, ne?) , and this chapter will have a healthy dose of Yuki. Stay with me, though, because I think that like her daddy, you might end up finding something you like about her. I hope that's not too much of a spoiler. I've tried to write her as a blend of her parents without making her a total schizophrenic, because they're exact opposites. And you wonder why she's such a brat? This is one confused kid! LOL
Also, to clear up some questions about the Hiko/Kenji/Kenshin relationship. I see Hiko as Watsuki-san defines him in his author's notes and other sources. He was not conceived as a one dimensional "meanie" and he has other qualities that balance out his arrogance, wicked sarcasm, and general antisocial tendencies, such as compassion, courage, honor and humor.
How many single 24 year old men do you know who would adopt an orphan out of nowhere and give him a home and a purpose in life?(That's about how old Hiko was when he came across Kenshin.) And you have to admit, Hiko is too funny for words. His sense of honor is absolute and he doesn't back down from anything.
I don't know if you are aware of it gentle readers, but Hiko's training of both Kenshin and Kenji is quite typical of kenjutsu. An apprentice was subjected to a multitude of seemingly mindless tasks, along with lots of physical and mental discipline. Some of it seems very harsh and demanding by our standards, but it serves a purpose. One is the simple desire to learn. The philosophy of bushido sees anything but total commitment as an impediment, and so it is basically a test of the students desire to commit himself to the path. It's not really any different than learning any intensive art/athletic form, such as gymnastics, one must be willing to sacrifice many other things in life to perfect one's skills, both mentally and physically.)
Fire and Ice Yuki was throwing stones in the river. They made a satisfying plunk as they hit the surface. At least this was more interesting than the day had been so far. She had been brought as a playmate for Kenji-chan, who was only NOT her favorite person, but had succeeded with his outrageous behavior in getting what Yuki desired above all things, her father's undivided attention.
It seemed to her that Kenji had a special talent for that. Every year when he and his parents visited, Kenji had taken her father's total attention somehow, be it with his antics, or just by sheer force of personality.
She hated him with a passion that could only spring from a little girl's intense desire to be the center of her father's affections.
Each rock she threw into the river she imagined as being thrown at Kenji's stupid ugly red head. She smiled.
Kenji awoke several hours later in the hot summer afternoon. He came to consciousness gradually, first noting that his left arm throbbed painfully in time to his heartbeat, and he felt vaguely sore all over. He swallowed. His head felt better, but he was terribly thirsty and maybe little hungry. And he definitely needed to relieve his bladder. He went to sit up and noted he had only a sleeping robe on. Oh well, he thought, and attempted to stand.
The room tilted a moment, then righted itself. Kenji broke into a sweat, groaned, and decided standing was not such a great idea, so he knelt back down on the futon.
He heard a noise at the entrance to his room, covered by a curtain. The curtain swept aside and his Uncle Aoshi came into the room. Kenji suddenly remembered the events of earlier in the day, and exactly why his arm hurt.
Aoshi watched him carefully, saying nothing, but Kenji was used to that. Uncle Aoshi was not one for talking much, which suited him fine. A good deal of their time together in the past was spent in companionable silence, which Kenji found soothing. Most adults he knew talked a lot about very little, so Uncle Aoshi was a pleasant break from that.
"Tried to stand yet, Kenji-chan?" Aoshi finally asked him.
"Hai, Uncle Aoshi, but when I did, the room moved," replied Kenji hoarsely.
"I see," Aoshi said, "perhaps you should try again, and I'll help you." "All right," Kenji said, gritting his teeth as he went to stand again. Aoshi came over to stand alongside the boy, who grabbed his arm just in case.
This time, things went a bit better. He still felt weak, but the room had decided not to move this time.
"Better?" Aoshi asked him, looking down at the top of Kenji's head.
"Hai," replied Kenji, "the room is still now. Uncle Aoshi, I need to GO!"
A faint smile came to Aoshi's face. "Let's go, then."
Yuki saw her father slowly walking Kenji outside to the privy, and scowled. Kenji had once again captured what she desired most. She started to wonder how she could wrest her father's attention away from the red-headed baka.
Her mother came up behind her and placed her hands on Yuki's small shoulders. Misao was no fool and she had noted the scowl that had passed over her daughter's exquisite face as she watched Aoshi's attentions to Kenji. She sighed. She understood full well the nature of Yuki's anger. After all, for years, pining for the attention of her "Aoshi-sama" had been her raison d'etre, her purpose in living.
She hoped that Yuki had in some way inherited her own irrepressible nature and would never give up on seeking her austere father's deep and profound love for her. It was there, Misao knew better than anyone, but sometimes difficult to reach.
"Yuki-chan," Misao began, gently kneading her daughter's shoulders, "why so unhappy?" "I'm fine, Ha-ha." Yuki shrugged under her mother's soothing hands.
"Little girls with huge scowls on their pretty faces are not 'fine', Yuki- chan," Misao gently corrected.
She felt Yuki's resigned sigh under her palms. Yuki knew full well that there would be no letting go of the matter, her mother was not one to ignore something once she got wind of it.
"Why does Otosan like Kenji better than he does me?" she asked plaintively. "Is it because he's a boy?"
"No, Yuki-chan, it's not true," said her mother, "and your to-san does not like Kenji-chan better. I know for a fact that he doesn't love anyone more than he loves you and me. Why do you worry so about this?"
"I don't know," admitted the little girl, toying with the end of one of her long braids nervously. "But don't all daddies want a boy instead of a girl?"
"I'm not sure about 'all daddies', but I know your father is pleased with you just as you are." Misao smiled at her daughter. "Do you know that when I was a little girl, just as you are now, that there was no one in the world your to-san would rather be with than me? So, I'm sure he doesn't feel that little girls are not worth his attention."
"Really?" asked Yuki, peering up into her mother's smiling face.
"Why don't you ask him yourself, Yuki-chan?" asked Misao.
Yuki said nothing and studied her sandaled foot intently.
"I know sometimes your father might seem distant, but he is truly aware of everything that goes on around him, never doubt that. He would not want you to feel sad on his account." Misao lifted her daughter's chin and looked directly into those beautiful cool, clear eyes that were so much like her husbands.
"I think that perhaps you are too much your father's daughter, Yuki-chan, and don't realize who truly loves you."
Yuki looked up and smiled at her mother. It was the same smile that sometimes graced the lips of her father in rare moments, and Misao then knew that her daughter's fears had been laid to rest.
Aoshi held Kenji's arm again as he made his way to the cabin door. Already the boy was much steadier on his feet than a few minutes ago.
"This child is like his father," thought Aoshi, "made of sterner stuff than one would guess."
"Otosan!" Yuki's voice reached him as he looked up and saw Misao and his daughter coming towards them.
Yuki approached her father with a rare genuine smile on her face. "Is Kenji- chan better now," she asked shyly, absently digging her toe in the ground.
"I'm fine, Yuki-chan," Kenji replied, although somewhat mystified by her sudden concern for him. "I only hurt my arm a little, see?" He lifted up the sleeve of the yukata so she could see the bandage there.
"Were you scared, Kenji-chan?" asked Yuki, still working her sandal in the dirt.
"Not really," Kenji lied through his teeth, "I'm really a very good swimmer, but the water was too fast."
Aoshi almost snorted out loud at that. "Already lying to impress girls," he thought. Out loud he said, "Come Kenji-chan, inside, I think your Okaasan would have my head if I didn't put you back in bed."
Yuki and Misao followed them inside and sat down on the tatami mats in the common room and Aoshi guided Kenji back to bed. He came through the curtain partition and asked his daughter, "Bring Kenji-chan a cup of water please, Yuki-chan."
She complied, her mother getting a cup and helping her carefully pour from the dipper in the water bucket.
"Come in if you wish," Aoshi said, holding the curtain open for her. She saw Kenji laying pale upon the futon, eyes closed, and all of a sudden, he didn't seem like such a demon after all, just a hurt and tired little boy.
"Here, Kenji-chan," she said, kneeling and offering the cup. "Arigato" he said as he took it and drank thirstily. "Would you like more?" she asked him, and he nodded.
"Hai," he said tiredly.
She went and Misao helped her pour another cup of water. She carefully carried it back to Kenji's side.
"Here," she offered and he took it and drank again. Kenji suddenly smiled at her shyly and handed her the cup back.
"I didn't know you could be so nice, Yuki-chan," he said, blushing a little.
"I'm always nice," Yuki said coyly and ran out of the room.
Chapter 12
(AN: Just a warning: someone wrote me they hated Yuki (which I truly count as a compliment, because you're supposed to hate her, at least for now, so I've done well, ne?) , and this chapter will have a healthy dose of Yuki. Stay with me, though, because I think that like her daddy, you might end up finding something you like about her. I hope that's not too much of a spoiler. I've tried to write her as a blend of her parents without making her a total schizophrenic, because they're exact opposites. And you wonder why she's such a brat? This is one confused kid! LOL
Also, to clear up some questions about the Hiko/Kenji/Kenshin relationship. I see Hiko as Watsuki-san defines him in his author's notes and other sources. He was not conceived as a one dimensional "meanie" and he has other qualities that balance out his arrogance, wicked sarcasm, and general antisocial tendencies, such as compassion, courage, honor and humor.
How many single 24 year old men do you know who would adopt an orphan out of nowhere and give him a home and a purpose in life?(That's about how old Hiko was when he came across Kenshin.) And you have to admit, Hiko is too funny for words. His sense of honor is absolute and he doesn't back down from anything.
I don't know if you are aware of it gentle readers, but Hiko's training of both Kenshin and Kenji is quite typical of kenjutsu. An apprentice was subjected to a multitude of seemingly mindless tasks, along with lots of physical and mental discipline. Some of it seems very harsh and demanding by our standards, but it serves a purpose. One is the simple desire to learn. The philosophy of bushido sees anything but total commitment as an impediment, and so it is basically a test of the students desire to commit himself to the path. It's not really any different than learning any intensive art/athletic form, such as gymnastics, one must be willing to sacrifice many other things in life to perfect one's skills, both mentally and physically.)
Fire and Ice Yuki was throwing stones in the river. They made a satisfying plunk as they hit the surface. At least this was more interesting than the day had been so far. She had been brought as a playmate for Kenji-chan, who was only NOT her favorite person, but had succeeded with his outrageous behavior in getting what Yuki desired above all things, her father's undivided attention.
It seemed to her that Kenji had a special talent for that. Every year when he and his parents visited, Kenji had taken her father's total attention somehow, be it with his antics, or just by sheer force of personality.
She hated him with a passion that could only spring from a little girl's intense desire to be the center of her father's affections.
Each rock she threw into the river she imagined as being thrown at Kenji's stupid ugly red head. She smiled.
Kenji awoke several hours later in the hot summer afternoon. He came to consciousness gradually, first noting that his left arm throbbed painfully in time to his heartbeat, and he felt vaguely sore all over. He swallowed. His head felt better, but he was terribly thirsty and maybe little hungry. And he definitely needed to relieve his bladder. He went to sit up and noted he had only a sleeping robe on. Oh well, he thought, and attempted to stand.
The room tilted a moment, then righted itself. Kenji broke into a sweat, groaned, and decided standing was not such a great idea, so he knelt back down on the futon.
He heard a noise at the entrance to his room, covered by a curtain. The curtain swept aside and his Uncle Aoshi came into the room. Kenji suddenly remembered the events of earlier in the day, and exactly why his arm hurt.
Aoshi watched him carefully, saying nothing, but Kenji was used to that. Uncle Aoshi was not one for talking much, which suited him fine. A good deal of their time together in the past was spent in companionable silence, which Kenji found soothing. Most adults he knew talked a lot about very little, so Uncle Aoshi was a pleasant break from that.
"Tried to stand yet, Kenji-chan?" Aoshi finally asked him.
"Hai, Uncle Aoshi, but when I did, the room moved," replied Kenji hoarsely.
"I see," Aoshi said, "perhaps you should try again, and I'll help you." "All right," Kenji said, gritting his teeth as he went to stand again. Aoshi came over to stand alongside the boy, who grabbed his arm just in case.
This time, things went a bit better. He still felt weak, but the room had decided not to move this time.
"Better?" Aoshi asked him, looking down at the top of Kenji's head.
"Hai," replied Kenji, "the room is still now. Uncle Aoshi, I need to GO!"
A faint smile came to Aoshi's face. "Let's go, then."
Yuki saw her father slowly walking Kenji outside to the privy, and scowled. Kenji had once again captured what she desired most. She started to wonder how she could wrest her father's attention away from the red-headed baka.
Her mother came up behind her and placed her hands on Yuki's small shoulders. Misao was no fool and she had noted the scowl that had passed over her daughter's exquisite face as she watched Aoshi's attentions to Kenji. She sighed. She understood full well the nature of Yuki's anger. After all, for years, pining for the attention of her "Aoshi-sama" had been her raison d'etre, her purpose in living.
She hoped that Yuki had in some way inherited her own irrepressible nature and would never give up on seeking her austere father's deep and profound love for her. It was there, Misao knew better than anyone, but sometimes difficult to reach.
"Yuki-chan," Misao began, gently kneading her daughter's shoulders, "why so unhappy?" "I'm fine, Ha-ha." Yuki shrugged under her mother's soothing hands.
"Little girls with huge scowls on their pretty faces are not 'fine', Yuki- chan," Misao gently corrected.
She felt Yuki's resigned sigh under her palms. Yuki knew full well that there would be no letting go of the matter, her mother was not one to ignore something once she got wind of it.
"Why does Otosan like Kenji better than he does me?" she asked plaintively. "Is it because he's a boy?"
"No, Yuki-chan, it's not true," said her mother, "and your to-san does not like Kenji-chan better. I know for a fact that he doesn't love anyone more than he loves you and me. Why do you worry so about this?"
"I don't know," admitted the little girl, toying with the end of one of her long braids nervously. "But don't all daddies want a boy instead of a girl?"
"I'm not sure about 'all daddies', but I know your father is pleased with you just as you are." Misao smiled at her daughter. "Do you know that when I was a little girl, just as you are now, that there was no one in the world your to-san would rather be with than me? So, I'm sure he doesn't feel that little girls are not worth his attention."
"Really?" asked Yuki, peering up into her mother's smiling face.
"Why don't you ask him yourself, Yuki-chan?" asked Misao.
Yuki said nothing and studied her sandaled foot intently.
"I know sometimes your father might seem distant, but he is truly aware of everything that goes on around him, never doubt that. He would not want you to feel sad on his account." Misao lifted her daughter's chin and looked directly into those beautiful cool, clear eyes that were so much like her husbands.
"I think that perhaps you are too much your father's daughter, Yuki-chan, and don't realize who truly loves you."
Yuki looked up and smiled at her mother. It was the same smile that sometimes graced the lips of her father in rare moments, and Misao then knew that her daughter's fears had been laid to rest.
Aoshi held Kenji's arm again as he made his way to the cabin door. Already the boy was much steadier on his feet than a few minutes ago.
"This child is like his father," thought Aoshi, "made of sterner stuff than one would guess."
"Otosan!" Yuki's voice reached him as he looked up and saw Misao and his daughter coming towards them.
Yuki approached her father with a rare genuine smile on her face. "Is Kenji- chan better now," she asked shyly, absently digging her toe in the ground.
"I'm fine, Yuki-chan," Kenji replied, although somewhat mystified by her sudden concern for him. "I only hurt my arm a little, see?" He lifted up the sleeve of the yukata so she could see the bandage there.
"Were you scared, Kenji-chan?" asked Yuki, still working her sandal in the dirt.
"Not really," Kenji lied through his teeth, "I'm really a very good swimmer, but the water was too fast."
Aoshi almost snorted out loud at that. "Already lying to impress girls," he thought. Out loud he said, "Come Kenji-chan, inside, I think your Okaasan would have my head if I didn't put you back in bed."
Yuki and Misao followed them inside and sat down on the tatami mats in the common room and Aoshi guided Kenji back to bed. He came through the curtain partition and asked his daughter, "Bring Kenji-chan a cup of water please, Yuki-chan."
She complied, her mother getting a cup and helping her carefully pour from the dipper in the water bucket.
"Come in if you wish," Aoshi said, holding the curtain open for her. She saw Kenji laying pale upon the futon, eyes closed, and all of a sudden, he didn't seem like such a demon after all, just a hurt and tired little boy.
"Here, Kenji-chan," she said, kneeling and offering the cup. "Arigato" he said as he took it and drank thirstily. "Would you like more?" she asked him, and he nodded.
"Hai," he said tiredly.
She went and Misao helped her pour another cup of water. She carefully carried it back to Kenji's side.
"Here," she offered and he took it and drank again. Kenji suddenly smiled at her shyly and handed her the cup back.
"I didn't know you could be so nice, Yuki-chan," he said, blushing a little.
"I'm always nice," Yuki said coyly and ran out of the room.
