A Lifetime Forgiven
Chapter Three: What Is To Be
An hour before dawn was when Kenshin made his decision. At the same time he finally drifted into the unawareness only sleep can bring. It was times like these he loved, when he could find peace. Even if the peace lasted only a moment, he still cherished the sliver of time.
Just as the sun peaked over the horizon was when bushes to Kenshin's sleeping form's left began to rustle. Arami appeared not a split-second later and a show of great surprise played across her otherworldly beauty. Obviously she hadn't thought when she made her return the swordsmen would still be here. But inwardly she was grateful. She was used to being alone, but a friend once every so often was nice.
Because she was half demon she didn't need near as much sleep as a human. So instead she went to work on preparing breakfast. Without much effort she caught a passing rabbit and with the same amount of effort skinned it. She did this all in a matter of minutes, and when she'd finished building a second campfire, one only large enough to cook such a rabbit, the sun had barely moved from it's place half hidden by the horizon. And by the time the rabbit had finished cooking Kenshin had reawaken.
He gave his new alliance a lazy smile before standing to stretch. Once finished stretching he reseated himself closer to the fire Arami had prepared and noticed the fully cooked rabbit just finishing. Instantly his mouth began to water and his mind began creating images of cooked rabbit chopped into small pieces, littering the top of a full bowl of white rice with few added spices. Arami smirked as drool dripped to the ground off his chin. Without burning herself, she took the rabbit from the fire and pulled it off the stick then tore it in half before offering some to the swordsmen.
Without being asked he took it and with a goofy/happy smile bit into it hungrily like he hadn't eaten properly for days. He spoke with his mouth full, small pieces of well cooked rabbit flying everywhere.
"This is wonderful!" The swordsman paused to take in another mouthful. "Delicious!" Again he paused for another bite. "You're a wonderful cook, that you are!"
Arami could only watch in shock as he finished the rabbit and began nibbling on the bones like a true animal. She ate more slowly, taking her time to finish. All the while keeping an interested watchful eye on the swordsmen, her newfound alliance. Once both had finished Arami proceeded to clean up. Kenshin sat for another moment, basking in the lingering wondrous taste of the cooked rabbit.
"Are you planning to rest for much longer?" Asked an annoyed half breed once she'd finished cleaning the small clearing, removed any traces of their having been there. Already she had put out the fire and stirred the ashes in with the dirt so they would not alight again. Kenshin seemed to come-to and looked about a bit disturbed.
"How long have I been resting?" He asked after a moment of confusion.
Arami rolled her eyes. "Too long." Then she sniffed the air and frowned. "There's a storm blowing in from the west. Unless you plan on spending the night here in the forest and getting soaked through, I suggest we get a move on." Kenshin stood, his face set in determination.
"Kyoto awaits." He said back to his deep voice. At this Arami rolled her eyes once more and began walking ahead of him. His face fell and he whined after her as he ran to keep up. "Can you slow down?"
AUTHOR'S NOTE: … thanks for reading, special thanks to those that reviewed.
Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin™. Although I do own any of my original characters.