Disclaimer: you know it, I know it, the owners of RK know, it. That all rights belong to them, not me. Just borrowing the character, nothing else.
"YAHIKO-kun!!!!" Tsubame's terrified scream echoed through the house and Yahiko instantly dropped his pen at the sound.
He dashed out of the room and down the hall straight to Kaoru's room, panic surging though his veins. In the opening of the shoji door he saw a spilt cup of tea on a serving tray and Tsubame kneeling, watching the empty futon.
He stared at the medicine cup sitting gently in the middle of the futon.
"Kaoru!!!" He shouted down the hall. He was awe struck. Kaoru did not have the energy to walk, much less sit up on her own for a few months now.
"Megumi! Kenji!" He shouted as well, but before he finished calling their names, they appeared before him
"Yahiko, what happened?" Megumi questioned with worry filling her eyes.
"Did you talk Kaoru anywhere? To bathe, for a walk, anything just now?" His words were frantic and his hands were clenched at his sides in efforts not to grab the woman by the robes and shake her.
"No, I haven't." Megumi put a hand to her chest and peered inside the room. "Impossible." She whispered quietly to herself.
Kenji shook his head as well, offering suggestions for her whereabouts.
Quickly as they could, the four of them covered every inch of the Kamiya compound, crying out Kaoru's name. They met back at her room, faces all dejected from failure.
How long had she been gone from sight? Not more than fifteen minutes now. She could not get so far, not in her condition. Unless, something happened. Could someone have taken her? There were no signs of such a thing happening.
"I'm going to go look for her. She can't be far." Yahiko began to leave when Kenji ran to his side.
"I will go too."
Yahiko shook his head. "No." He pulled Kenji aside and explained to him, "What if she didn't walk off. I hate to say it, but what if someone took her? I don't know why anything like that would happen, but I have to think of everything possible. Its also possible that they could come back, someone needs to stay and watch the place. I won't leave Megumi and Tsubame here alone."
With that said he went to the dojo, grabbing his shinai and expecting the worst.
Yahiko began walking through town, asking local people on the street if they had seen a woman with long dark hair, probably unbound, in a sleeping garment. He highly doubted that if she walked off on her own, she bothered to change. They all told him no, and soon he felt all there way to do was return to the dojo. Maybe she was back by now. Maybe she just got some air at the river and went back.
The river. He did not think to go there. Then as fast as his feet could carry him, he ran to the river not far from the dojo. Upon reaching the shore, he stopped quick at the sight before him.
Kaoru sat underneath a cherry blossom tree and a man wearing a familiar red gi rested against her.
He stepped closer, carefully silencing his steps so not to disturb their moment. It was then, by closer inspection, he could see Kaoru caressing a familiar cheek which once bore a cross shaped scar.
Yahiko watched the man for long moments. His eyes were closed and his face adorned a smile that was unknown to Yahiko. In his hands there lay a familiar blue ribbon and a stack of papers. Yahiko smiled to match the man's. He was about to call out to him when he realized that the man did not react to her touch or fallen tears. After long moments, Yahiko realized the man had no movements. His chest did not rise and fall with each breath. He was still except for the wisps of hair that traveled with the wind.
Yahiko moved towards Kaoru and placed a hand on her shoulder.
She looked up at him with glazed sapphire eyes for only a moment before returning her attention to her husband's face in her lap.
Yahiko sat beside her and she made no sound of protest or acknowledgement. So he stayed there with her, sharing her pain. Together, they sat for hours, silently saying goodbye to the man they all loved.