Dome of Heaven -Illness-
"Talking"
¨Talking¨ in the minds of the winged people
*Thinking*
Disclaimer: I do not own RK.
Chapter 05: Questions and answers
The palace was truly huge and impossible to fully know without wings. Misao knew this but she hadn't bothered to explain it to her friends as Kenshin had asked if they could see Kaoru. The small Bathing room was so high up that without help from her people they would never get there. Actually their moving was largely limited by the fact that they didn't often use stairs, since there was no need, they were not built. Perhaps Kenshin, Hiko and Aoshi could since they could jump well and high.
The room Misao had Bathed in to create her wings was the only one that was actually connected to other levels with stairs. Simply because the ceremony involved with the Bathing required them to walk to the future. But the other rooms were disconnected for a reason. Although the possibility that the wingless (as they often called the ones that live on the ground) would ever get here was pretty much zero, they had prepared for an event where it would be possible. They would not give their blood to them. Never again!
Misao flew up and up greeting the ones she encountered. They all seemed wary and Misao knew it was because of her friends. So soon their presence had robbed the feeling of safety from her people. Of course they trusted her, but the fear was so old and deep that she knew her words of comfort could not take it from them.
She landed gracefully on the stone floor covered with dark red carpet. The carpet led to a door on which was written Ichi [one]. She stepped closer and the door opened before her. Yukiko nodded and made way for Misao before she pushed the door closed and locked it.
There was no room to undress here. The door led directly to the pool-room. Yukiko and Moriko had brought Kaoru here and she was now laying on the floor with Moriko watching over her. The blanket was still tightly around her.
With Yukiko's help, Misao took of her cloak and all of her clothes. She walked to Kaoru and knelt beside her, refusing to wince at the coldness of the floor. With the help of the sisters, she gently unwrapped Kaoru, but left the blanket under her to shield her from the cold. The room itself was warm, but the floor was stone and that was always cold. That was why most of the floors were covered with carpets.
Kaoru didn't move at all, nor did she show any sings of regaining consciousness. Misao checked her pulse and while weak, it was there. Gently they took off all of her clothes and piled them to the corner of the room. They would need to burn them later.
Moriko and Yukiko helped Misao carry Kaoru near the pool and Misao walked into the water. She extended her hands and they gave Kaoru to her. She was almost frighteningly thin. The disease must have taken her appetite.
Misao laid her above the water and slowly she started to sink. Misao sat down and then sank with her into the water. Once again she could hear the gentle music fill her with peace. Now she knew that it was the blood that sang in happiness and of those beautiful times before they had had to encounter the cruelty of the wingless men.
She took Kaoru in her arms, refusing to listen to the music long enough to fall asleep. Instead she searched with her thoughts for the consciousness of the people whose blood still lived here. They were surprised at first and then they started to talk to her with enthusiasm. Misao smiled.
¨What is wrong with this woman?¨ She asked silently and the voices stopped. She could feel the blood moving around them and then she received her answer. Many voices spoke and what one started, another continued. But she could connect them rather quickly.
*As I thought.*
The blood that was used to create wings for Hideki had with time became a part of him, his blood. And so his bitterness and his experiment with different poisons had polluted it. He had created resistance to most poisons so even though his blood was not healthy, it didn't bother him. But when Kaoru had came in contact with the feather, which was merely his blood, she had been handling poison. Slowly it had penetrated her skin and mixed itself with her blood.
Since Hideki's wings were made of blood, the blood knew its mission. It was meant to create wings and so it had tried to do. But since it was poisonous and Kaoru's own blood and body were not ready for such change, it had failed. Her body had still tried to get rid of the blood and had failed in it's attempts to repel it away. It would try again and that time it would be her life on the line.
¨Why didn't my blood work?¨ Misao asked then. Again the blood moved, this time around her as well.
*I see.* She thought after the voices had ended again.
A drop of her blood was enough to halt the poison from spreading more than it already had. It had also stopped her body condition for a moment, but it had not been strong enough to heal her. The blood was partly theirs, partly hers and partly poison. She had stopped the poison, calmed their blood, but been unable to heal them all. Not even all of her blood poured would be enough to heal her. The mixture was more complicated than anything they had ever encountered before. It could not be healed in an instance. If she had been of their race, it would have been possible.
¨How can she be healed?¨ She refused to ask if she could be healed at all. There had to be some way! There simply had to be!
The spirits moved and seemed to observe Kaoru with great interest. She could hear them murmuring, perhaps even arguing, but she couldn't make out what it was until they limited the amount of speakers from hundreds to ten.
Relief filled her as she listened them explaining this to her. There was a change. A real change. It would require time and much care, but Kaoru could be completely healed. They would need to heal her blood and replace their blood with healthy. Then remove their blood entirely and let her own blood increase and fill her. That was the only way.
She smiled as she stood up and walked out of the pool leaving Kaoru there. Moriko offered her a robe and she took it gratefully. While the blood she had first though to be water did leave her skin without a trace, it was common that they still bathed in water to clear any possible remains away.
Yukiko and Moriko smiled at the sight of Misao's smile. ¨She can be healed.¨ Yukiko said and Misao nodded. ¨It takes time. She will have to spend weeks there and she may have some sudden seizures, but if she is carefully watched, she should fully recover.¨
They didn't say more. Automatically Yukiko took her clothes and left with her, while Moriko stayed to watch over Kaoru. There was no need for words, since they understood each other so well. Misao walked with Yukiko for a while before she turned to take Kaoru's clothes to be burned and gave her hers. Misao nodded and continued her way to the bathroom.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile elsewhere in the castle Sanosuke was having a hard moment, again. They had left to get to know the place, but all the time they encountered dead ends. They could see that above them was another level, but there were no stairs that led there. So Sanosuke had tried to convince Kenshin to jump there. He had refused, again.
As said, Sanosuke was having hard time.
Kenshin was staring up. He had considered jumping when Sanosuke had asked for the first time, but he had seen how their guards had stiffened. Obviously they didn't wish for them do such things. And so Kenshin had said no. They had agreed to let them see their world and from the way they spoke, he had came to the conclusion that they were the first allowed to enter it. It was a privilege and he had no intentions of angering them or disappointing Misao. She had warned them after all.
Hiko had only given Sanosuke a long look as he had turned to ask him. Sanosuke had backed off almost immediately and returned to staring up. He had considered asking Aoshi, but since both Kenshin and Hiko had said no, there was no reason to believe he would say yes.
Yahiko was staring out from one of the long windows and Kenshin felt tempted to join him. There had been windows in their bedrooms and what they had seen had amazed them. It was as if they had travelled to another world all together. There were almost no signs of the modern world that was slowly filling theirs. The land was green and the trees were so magnificent in their form that Kenshin had doubted immediately that they were no longer in Japan. Still, what had surprised him the most was the air of pureness that surrounded everything.
The others had been amazed as well. Not only about the scenery, but also by the fact that they were quite high up. One of the reasons for their journey was that they wanted to see what it was like outside. Now they could only see through windows.
Sanosuke seemed to have had enough and they turned around to return to the last intersection and to try another way. Megumi spoke quietly with the guards and they seemed to get along. Yahiko was staring out of every window they passed by while Aoshi merely walked along seemingly uninterested. But Kenshin saw his eyes moving and taking in everything around him. Kenshin could understand it.
They were in a strange place and while they were not enemies, they couldn't be said to be friends either. They had made their dislike of them clear the moment they had arrived. Especially the woman Misao had called Chieko. She hadn't even tried to hide her dislike.
Kenshin still could not understand what had made them hate them so much. Senritsu had spoken of some "dark days" at Hiko's and back after the battle with Hideki, Misao had spoken of pain, death and exile. What had happened to them?
"Lucky!" Sanosuke yelled suddenly and as Kenshin looked he saw that for once there was an opening that led down as well.
"All right! Here I go!" He said and had already jumped, when one of the guards blocked his path. He and the woman were both thrown back by the impact as their bodies hit. The woman disappeared to the hole, but soon they heard wings flapping and she rose from there and stepped to the floor calmly. Usually they pulled back their wings immediately after landing, but this one didn't do so. Her wings, black and huge, gave her an air of danger.
"Please. Refrain from such actions. You can travel around this level as much as you wish, but the others are denied from you. You must not jump up or down." She said with calm face, but her hand was on her sword.
"What?!" Sanosuke complained. "But I want to see--"
"As you wish. Please forgive Sano's rush actions." Kenshin interrupted and the woman nodded her hand leaving the handle.
"Hey! Kenshin!" Sanosuke started, but Kenshin gave him a sharp look that quieted him.
The guard woman pulled back her wings and walked past them. "We better return to your rooms. The dinner will be brought there shortly."
This seemed to brighten Sanosuke somewhat. Yahiko seemed honestly glad, since he was one those who had been too worried at the breakfast to eat much. Megumi wondered aloud what kind of food they were served here and the woman started to explain some basic foods.
They followed her meekly back to their rooms to find food covering the entire table. Seeing this Sanosuke started to smile widely and then he attacked the food mercilessly. They soon came to the conclusion that the food was excellent. Everyone ate their fill.
"So, why did you agree with the guardswoman so soon? Aren't you in the least curious?" Sanosuke asked with a content look on his face.
"Idiot." Hiko said and sipped his tea.
"I wasn't talking to you!" Sanosuke yelled and Kenshin sighed. "Please calm down Sano."
Sanosuke lowered his fists and Hiko smirked.
"Do you remember what Misao-dono told us before we left? She said that if we wished to come here, we would need to be prepared to face some restrictions and we could be considered as prisoners. We agreed to these terms as we came here. I have no intentions of acting against their will, because doing so we break those terms. We may be taken away and if they decide the worst, Kaoru-dono won't be healed." Kenshin explained calmly and could see Sanosuke realizing his point.
"I see. But since Yuuki really is the weasel, she wouldn't do such a thing. We are her friends." Sanosuke said and saw Hiko shaking his head.
"What?" He asked the other man, but he didn't answer.
Kenshin shook his head as well. "Don't you remember Sano? Misao-dono or Yuuki-dono or whatever you wish to call her was close to leaving us on our on. And after coming here, we have been treaded with distrust and dislike. These people obviously are not pleased. From what I have heard, something has happened to them to make them hate men without wings."
"A war."
Everyone turned to look at Hiko. He had a cold expression as he stared at the cup in his hands. "Long time ago, the ancestors of these people lived among the people like us in Japan. They were peaceful people so they had no weapons or fighting styles. Then a war was sparked close to them and they were suddenly considered enemies since they didn't pick a side. It was a slaughter, in which most of them were killed."
Megumi gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. Yahiko stared at Hiko with horror in his eyes, while Sanosuke had disbelief in his eyes. Kenshin and Aoshi both stared at Hiko with eyes showing no emotions.
"But they are the masters and creators of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu." Sanosuke said and Hiko shook his head.
"Do you remember the code of the style?" Hiko asked and Kenshin answered. "'Protect people around you using your sword without any boundaries. Fight for the right to live.' So the style was created after the war, after they had been denied of the right to live."
Hiko nodded. "The first Queen of the Sky started to develop the style after the war. She and her children and grandchildren worked to make it what it is today. Style filled with different techniques every single one of them strong. That was their devotion."
Silence followed his words.
"What a sad fate." Megumi said with sorrowful expression. Kenshin was a little surprised since Megumi didn't usually show that much emotion.
"Can you now understand their dislike of us? Even though this happened a long time ago, they have not forgotten or forgiven." Hiko said and placed the cup on the table. His eyes searched out Sanosuke's and the man started at the power of his look.
"I guess I can..." He murmured and that seemed to satisfy the bigger man.
Aoshi moved from his seat and walked to the door.
"Where are you going?" Kenshin asked and without turning Aoshi answered. "For a walk." Then he had already left the room. The others looked at the door and then Yahiko sighed. "I am never going to understand how his mind works."
Kenshin smiled.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Aoshi had hardly left the room when a guard was already present. The woman had black short hair and brown eyes. She was tall and lean, but he could see hidden strength. Still the woman would probably lose to him were they to fight.
"Can you ask Yuuki to come here?" He asked bluntly. It was better to use the name Yuuki, since he was sure that not all her people knew the name she had used when she was still living on the ground.
The woman seemed surprised and then nodded. She seemed to concentrate on something, before she nodded. "Yuuki-sama will be here shortly. Have all of you already finished eating?"
Aoshi nodded. The woman went distant again and then said that someone would soon come to take the dishes.
Aoshi leaned against the wall waiting for Misao. Many thoughts travelled around his head, most about this place and Misao. Both were a mystery. He had always thought that he knew Misao. Still seeing her now had proven him that he didn't know much about this new Misao. How much had she changed?
She still remained unsure of it herself, judging by the way she had acted after she had been asked to heal Kaoru. She had hesitated, something the old Misao wouldn't have done. Then again when she had explained them that they could not see Kaoru, she had held such power in her voice that the old Misao couldn't have reached it no matter how she tried. It was the voice of a leader.
He could no longer say how much of Yuuki was from the old Misao and how much of her new experiences as a leader of nation. It was obvious that they were no longer in Japan and here she ruled above all.
His sharp ears caught the sound of steps, before Misao had even reached the point she could be seen.
She had changed inside as well as outside.
She had grown taller and looked much more like a grown woman now. Her hair was tightened on the top of her head and from there on it was braided. It was a change as well. As long as Aoshi could remember she had held her hair in braid that started from her neck, even she was still a child. Her eyes held seriousness that had not been there before.
Still her lips curved into a smile as she saw him.
End of Chapter 05.
To be continued in chapter 06.
Tiian
Again a little shorter chapter, but this seemed like a good place to end this chapter.
This is going to be longer than the first part (-Hideki-). Definitely. I think it soon is if you count pages. If you count chapters, not yet. Still this will be longer than 8 chapters.
I dislike the people that say that Megumi has no emotions. She has plenty, but they are hidden behind her cheerful mask of playfulness.
A little while ago I saw for the first time RK in good quality. And now I am forced to agree that Misao's eyes are green. At least in the scene where Aoshi tells her he never wants to see her again.
Still, since I have always written her with blue eyes, I will continue doing so in the unfinished fics.
While I was writing this, my boyfriend called and told me that he was now a corporal!
I am so proud of him! He is very intelligent and hardworking person! Much more than I am.
Also, I need to warn you. This was the last ready chapter. ch06 is almost ready, but this means that I won't be able to update as often as I would like.
And answers to the reviewers:
the nutty imp: Thank you. I hope this was soon enough.
Cat H: I know. So many names that I myself sometimes get confused and forget some.
zhoujen: I actually try to avoid showing Misao as some kind of a super-warrior. She is better now, but that doesn't mean that she is much stronger than any of the others. I may put in some sparring scene, but I don't think I will make it into some battle which Misao easily wins.
Thank you to all!
Since I am out of ready chapters, getting reviews may help me speed up in writing more...
"Talking"
¨Talking¨ in the minds of the winged people
*Thinking*
Disclaimer: I do not own RK.
Chapter 05: Questions and answers
The palace was truly huge and impossible to fully know without wings. Misao knew this but she hadn't bothered to explain it to her friends as Kenshin had asked if they could see Kaoru. The small Bathing room was so high up that without help from her people they would never get there. Actually their moving was largely limited by the fact that they didn't often use stairs, since there was no need, they were not built. Perhaps Kenshin, Hiko and Aoshi could since they could jump well and high.
The room Misao had Bathed in to create her wings was the only one that was actually connected to other levels with stairs. Simply because the ceremony involved with the Bathing required them to walk to the future. But the other rooms were disconnected for a reason. Although the possibility that the wingless (as they often called the ones that live on the ground) would ever get here was pretty much zero, they had prepared for an event where it would be possible. They would not give their blood to them. Never again!
Misao flew up and up greeting the ones she encountered. They all seemed wary and Misao knew it was because of her friends. So soon their presence had robbed the feeling of safety from her people. Of course they trusted her, but the fear was so old and deep that she knew her words of comfort could not take it from them.
She landed gracefully on the stone floor covered with dark red carpet. The carpet led to a door on which was written Ichi [one]. She stepped closer and the door opened before her. Yukiko nodded and made way for Misao before she pushed the door closed and locked it.
There was no room to undress here. The door led directly to the pool-room. Yukiko and Moriko had brought Kaoru here and she was now laying on the floor with Moriko watching over her. The blanket was still tightly around her.
With Yukiko's help, Misao took of her cloak and all of her clothes. She walked to Kaoru and knelt beside her, refusing to wince at the coldness of the floor. With the help of the sisters, she gently unwrapped Kaoru, but left the blanket under her to shield her from the cold. The room itself was warm, but the floor was stone and that was always cold. That was why most of the floors were covered with carpets.
Kaoru didn't move at all, nor did she show any sings of regaining consciousness. Misao checked her pulse and while weak, it was there. Gently they took off all of her clothes and piled them to the corner of the room. They would need to burn them later.
Moriko and Yukiko helped Misao carry Kaoru near the pool and Misao walked into the water. She extended her hands and they gave Kaoru to her. She was almost frighteningly thin. The disease must have taken her appetite.
Misao laid her above the water and slowly she started to sink. Misao sat down and then sank with her into the water. Once again she could hear the gentle music fill her with peace. Now she knew that it was the blood that sang in happiness and of those beautiful times before they had had to encounter the cruelty of the wingless men.
She took Kaoru in her arms, refusing to listen to the music long enough to fall asleep. Instead she searched with her thoughts for the consciousness of the people whose blood still lived here. They were surprised at first and then they started to talk to her with enthusiasm. Misao smiled.
¨What is wrong with this woman?¨ She asked silently and the voices stopped. She could feel the blood moving around them and then she received her answer. Many voices spoke and what one started, another continued. But she could connect them rather quickly.
*As I thought.*
The blood that was used to create wings for Hideki had with time became a part of him, his blood. And so his bitterness and his experiment with different poisons had polluted it. He had created resistance to most poisons so even though his blood was not healthy, it didn't bother him. But when Kaoru had came in contact with the feather, which was merely his blood, she had been handling poison. Slowly it had penetrated her skin and mixed itself with her blood.
Since Hideki's wings were made of blood, the blood knew its mission. It was meant to create wings and so it had tried to do. But since it was poisonous and Kaoru's own blood and body were not ready for such change, it had failed. Her body had still tried to get rid of the blood and had failed in it's attempts to repel it away. It would try again and that time it would be her life on the line.
¨Why didn't my blood work?¨ Misao asked then. Again the blood moved, this time around her as well.
*I see.* She thought after the voices had ended again.
A drop of her blood was enough to halt the poison from spreading more than it already had. It had also stopped her body condition for a moment, but it had not been strong enough to heal her. The blood was partly theirs, partly hers and partly poison. She had stopped the poison, calmed their blood, but been unable to heal them all. Not even all of her blood poured would be enough to heal her. The mixture was more complicated than anything they had ever encountered before. It could not be healed in an instance. If she had been of their race, it would have been possible.
¨How can she be healed?¨ She refused to ask if she could be healed at all. There had to be some way! There simply had to be!
The spirits moved and seemed to observe Kaoru with great interest. She could hear them murmuring, perhaps even arguing, but she couldn't make out what it was until they limited the amount of speakers from hundreds to ten.
Relief filled her as she listened them explaining this to her. There was a change. A real change. It would require time and much care, but Kaoru could be completely healed. They would need to heal her blood and replace their blood with healthy. Then remove their blood entirely and let her own blood increase and fill her. That was the only way.
She smiled as she stood up and walked out of the pool leaving Kaoru there. Moriko offered her a robe and she took it gratefully. While the blood she had first though to be water did leave her skin without a trace, it was common that they still bathed in water to clear any possible remains away.
Yukiko and Moriko smiled at the sight of Misao's smile. ¨She can be healed.¨ Yukiko said and Misao nodded. ¨It takes time. She will have to spend weeks there and she may have some sudden seizures, but if she is carefully watched, she should fully recover.¨
They didn't say more. Automatically Yukiko took her clothes and left with her, while Moriko stayed to watch over Kaoru. There was no need for words, since they understood each other so well. Misao walked with Yukiko for a while before she turned to take Kaoru's clothes to be burned and gave her hers. Misao nodded and continued her way to the bathroom.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile elsewhere in the castle Sanosuke was having a hard moment, again. They had left to get to know the place, but all the time they encountered dead ends. They could see that above them was another level, but there were no stairs that led there. So Sanosuke had tried to convince Kenshin to jump there. He had refused, again.
As said, Sanosuke was having hard time.
Kenshin was staring up. He had considered jumping when Sanosuke had asked for the first time, but he had seen how their guards had stiffened. Obviously they didn't wish for them do such things. And so Kenshin had said no. They had agreed to let them see their world and from the way they spoke, he had came to the conclusion that they were the first allowed to enter it. It was a privilege and he had no intentions of angering them or disappointing Misao. She had warned them after all.
Hiko had only given Sanosuke a long look as he had turned to ask him. Sanosuke had backed off almost immediately and returned to staring up. He had considered asking Aoshi, but since both Kenshin and Hiko had said no, there was no reason to believe he would say yes.
Yahiko was staring out from one of the long windows and Kenshin felt tempted to join him. There had been windows in their bedrooms and what they had seen had amazed them. It was as if they had travelled to another world all together. There were almost no signs of the modern world that was slowly filling theirs. The land was green and the trees were so magnificent in their form that Kenshin had doubted immediately that they were no longer in Japan. Still, what had surprised him the most was the air of pureness that surrounded everything.
The others had been amazed as well. Not only about the scenery, but also by the fact that they were quite high up. One of the reasons for their journey was that they wanted to see what it was like outside. Now they could only see through windows.
Sanosuke seemed to have had enough and they turned around to return to the last intersection and to try another way. Megumi spoke quietly with the guards and they seemed to get along. Yahiko was staring out of every window they passed by while Aoshi merely walked along seemingly uninterested. But Kenshin saw his eyes moving and taking in everything around him. Kenshin could understand it.
They were in a strange place and while they were not enemies, they couldn't be said to be friends either. They had made their dislike of them clear the moment they had arrived. Especially the woman Misao had called Chieko. She hadn't even tried to hide her dislike.
Kenshin still could not understand what had made them hate them so much. Senritsu had spoken of some "dark days" at Hiko's and back after the battle with Hideki, Misao had spoken of pain, death and exile. What had happened to them?
"Lucky!" Sanosuke yelled suddenly and as Kenshin looked he saw that for once there was an opening that led down as well.
"All right! Here I go!" He said and had already jumped, when one of the guards blocked his path. He and the woman were both thrown back by the impact as their bodies hit. The woman disappeared to the hole, but soon they heard wings flapping and she rose from there and stepped to the floor calmly. Usually they pulled back their wings immediately after landing, but this one didn't do so. Her wings, black and huge, gave her an air of danger.
"Please. Refrain from such actions. You can travel around this level as much as you wish, but the others are denied from you. You must not jump up or down." She said with calm face, but her hand was on her sword.
"What?!" Sanosuke complained. "But I want to see--"
"As you wish. Please forgive Sano's rush actions." Kenshin interrupted and the woman nodded her hand leaving the handle.
"Hey! Kenshin!" Sanosuke started, but Kenshin gave him a sharp look that quieted him.
The guard woman pulled back her wings and walked past them. "We better return to your rooms. The dinner will be brought there shortly."
This seemed to brighten Sanosuke somewhat. Yahiko seemed honestly glad, since he was one those who had been too worried at the breakfast to eat much. Megumi wondered aloud what kind of food they were served here and the woman started to explain some basic foods.
They followed her meekly back to their rooms to find food covering the entire table. Seeing this Sanosuke started to smile widely and then he attacked the food mercilessly. They soon came to the conclusion that the food was excellent. Everyone ate their fill.
"So, why did you agree with the guardswoman so soon? Aren't you in the least curious?" Sanosuke asked with a content look on his face.
"Idiot." Hiko said and sipped his tea.
"I wasn't talking to you!" Sanosuke yelled and Kenshin sighed. "Please calm down Sano."
Sanosuke lowered his fists and Hiko smirked.
"Do you remember what Misao-dono told us before we left? She said that if we wished to come here, we would need to be prepared to face some restrictions and we could be considered as prisoners. We agreed to these terms as we came here. I have no intentions of acting against their will, because doing so we break those terms. We may be taken away and if they decide the worst, Kaoru-dono won't be healed." Kenshin explained calmly and could see Sanosuke realizing his point.
"I see. But since Yuuki really is the weasel, she wouldn't do such a thing. We are her friends." Sanosuke said and saw Hiko shaking his head.
"What?" He asked the other man, but he didn't answer.
Kenshin shook his head as well. "Don't you remember Sano? Misao-dono or Yuuki-dono or whatever you wish to call her was close to leaving us on our on. And after coming here, we have been treaded with distrust and dislike. These people obviously are not pleased. From what I have heard, something has happened to them to make them hate men without wings."
"A war."
Everyone turned to look at Hiko. He had a cold expression as he stared at the cup in his hands. "Long time ago, the ancestors of these people lived among the people like us in Japan. They were peaceful people so they had no weapons or fighting styles. Then a war was sparked close to them and they were suddenly considered enemies since they didn't pick a side. It was a slaughter, in which most of them were killed."
Megumi gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. Yahiko stared at Hiko with horror in his eyes, while Sanosuke had disbelief in his eyes. Kenshin and Aoshi both stared at Hiko with eyes showing no emotions.
"But they are the masters and creators of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu." Sanosuke said and Hiko shook his head.
"Do you remember the code of the style?" Hiko asked and Kenshin answered. "'Protect people around you using your sword without any boundaries. Fight for the right to live.' So the style was created after the war, after they had been denied of the right to live."
Hiko nodded. "The first Queen of the Sky started to develop the style after the war. She and her children and grandchildren worked to make it what it is today. Style filled with different techniques every single one of them strong. That was their devotion."
Silence followed his words.
"What a sad fate." Megumi said with sorrowful expression. Kenshin was a little surprised since Megumi didn't usually show that much emotion.
"Can you now understand their dislike of us? Even though this happened a long time ago, they have not forgotten or forgiven." Hiko said and placed the cup on the table. His eyes searched out Sanosuke's and the man started at the power of his look.
"I guess I can..." He murmured and that seemed to satisfy the bigger man.
Aoshi moved from his seat and walked to the door.
"Where are you going?" Kenshin asked and without turning Aoshi answered. "For a walk." Then he had already left the room. The others looked at the door and then Yahiko sighed. "I am never going to understand how his mind works."
Kenshin smiled.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Aoshi had hardly left the room when a guard was already present. The woman had black short hair and brown eyes. She was tall and lean, but he could see hidden strength. Still the woman would probably lose to him were they to fight.
"Can you ask Yuuki to come here?" He asked bluntly. It was better to use the name Yuuki, since he was sure that not all her people knew the name she had used when she was still living on the ground.
The woman seemed surprised and then nodded. She seemed to concentrate on something, before she nodded. "Yuuki-sama will be here shortly. Have all of you already finished eating?"
Aoshi nodded. The woman went distant again and then said that someone would soon come to take the dishes.
Aoshi leaned against the wall waiting for Misao. Many thoughts travelled around his head, most about this place and Misao. Both were a mystery. He had always thought that he knew Misao. Still seeing her now had proven him that he didn't know much about this new Misao. How much had she changed?
She still remained unsure of it herself, judging by the way she had acted after she had been asked to heal Kaoru. She had hesitated, something the old Misao wouldn't have done. Then again when she had explained them that they could not see Kaoru, she had held such power in her voice that the old Misao couldn't have reached it no matter how she tried. It was the voice of a leader.
He could no longer say how much of Yuuki was from the old Misao and how much of her new experiences as a leader of nation. It was obvious that they were no longer in Japan and here she ruled above all.
His sharp ears caught the sound of steps, before Misao had even reached the point she could be seen.
She had changed inside as well as outside.
She had grown taller and looked much more like a grown woman now. Her hair was tightened on the top of her head and from there on it was braided. It was a change as well. As long as Aoshi could remember she had held her hair in braid that started from her neck, even she was still a child. Her eyes held seriousness that had not been there before.
Still her lips curved into a smile as she saw him.
End of Chapter 05.
To be continued in chapter 06.
Tiian
Again a little shorter chapter, but this seemed like a good place to end this chapter.
This is going to be longer than the first part (-Hideki-). Definitely. I think it soon is if you count pages. If you count chapters, not yet. Still this will be longer than 8 chapters.
I dislike the people that say that Megumi has no emotions. She has plenty, but they are hidden behind her cheerful mask of playfulness.
A little while ago I saw for the first time RK in good quality. And now I am forced to agree that Misao's eyes are green. At least in the scene where Aoshi tells her he never wants to see her again.
Still, since I have always written her with blue eyes, I will continue doing so in the unfinished fics.
While I was writing this, my boyfriend called and told me that he was now a corporal!
I am so proud of him! He is very intelligent and hardworking person! Much more than I am.
Also, I need to warn you. This was the last ready chapter. ch06 is almost ready, but this means that I won't be able to update as often as I would like.
And answers to the reviewers:
the nutty imp: Thank you. I hope this was soon enough.
Cat H: I know. So many names that I myself sometimes get confused and forget some.
zhoujen: I actually try to avoid showing Misao as some kind of a super-warrior. She is better now, but that doesn't mean that she is much stronger than any of the others. I may put in some sparring scene, but I don't think I will make it into some battle which Misao easily wins.
Thank you to all!
Since I am out of ready chapters, getting reviews may help me speed up in writing more...