Tokio had wedged her slender frame into a safe niche. Himura seemed very uneasy and she sensed it wasn't completely about her presence. Something else was making him twitchy. He kept touching the old sword at his side, rubbing the hilt with his fingertips. He never did care to use guns. Something she never could figure out.
"What's bothering you?" Tokio asked getting nervous herself. Her palms were sweaty and she rubbed them on her black pants feeling the coarse fabric scrape away the moisture. When he didn't replied right away she licked her dry lips and swallowed feeling her mouth as dry as if it were stuffed with cotton.
He glanced down after a few minutes. His eyes had tinges of yellow and they had shifted from disarming violet to a dangerous blue. She had seen him as battousai before. A sight few could brag about. He had never scared her overly much because she always fixed the cheerful doormat when he switched personas.
"Shinsengumi." His voice was dispassionate and he was hardly watching the cars as they pulled up. His narrowed gaze was fixed on the space adjacent to her hiding spot.
Then suddenly he had shot forward and another dark blur sprinted to meet him. The two clashed with a muted crash. The blades and bodies darted gracefully probing and prodding. It was a violent, deadly dance filled with breath taking grace.
She was so fascinated with their duel she hardly paid attention to everything else going on. She tore her gaze away for a mere instant before it was drawn back.
She was so enthralled that she didn't see the small figure. Not until a very clear voice rang out on the mini battle field did she lurch with horror.
That was her little baby. Her little girl in the middle of a bunch of grown men fighting. They could kill her without a second thought. They would kill him. If she accidentally stumbled between Himura and the other man neither one would hesitate in the slightest. She knew that deep down. They weren't fighting as men. They were so caught up in primal lust that they were mere animals.
She couldn't hear the name Megumi called out, but the larger man stopped his assault on the drug dealer.
She started down before hearing Himura's voice ringing wanly in her head. She had promised. Promised to not interfere, to stay out of sight no matter what. He had extracted a fully detailed promise, which she swore on the small, gold cross her mother had given her as a child.
That only slowed her. Almost immediately she shoved it to the back of her mind. If she was going to hell then so be it.
Purposely she pushed off the wall and strode down. She doubted anyone would see her. Their attention was fixated on the drama playing out below. If they did she would be dismissed as irrelevant. Either way it didn't matter. She was going down regardless.
Keeping her eyes on her baby she tuned her ears to the fight. As she had expected neither of the two men had even paused. The large man, the one who had hold of the drug dealer before, was murmuring in a low, desperate voice to the other man holding twin blades.
She realized too late to look for the drug dealer. The man had slunk around using his car as a shield. He circled behind the girl and had grabbed her. Tokio caught her breath as she saw the glint of metal. The dirt bag was holding a knife to her baby's throat.
Cold, deadly anger filled her. She hadn't gone through all of this just to have some man use her child as a hostage. He was obviously planning to use Megumi against the pinned man.
Pulling out her personal gun she leveled it at the lowly scum's head. She would rather aim lower, where she would have a surer shot, but he had Megumi situated so that she could be flung in the way. Her shot would just have to be true.
She had never killed before, the thought had always made her uneasy, yet somehow she was rock steady. The thought of pouring this guy's greasy brains over the cement didn't make her queasy. She felt no stirrings of sympathy or compassion. Nothing was holding her back. He was using her baby and that was what computed. In fact she almost hoped that he wouldn't die outright. That he would linger in indescribable agony before picking up a reserved one-way ticket to hell where he would burn forever.
"Leave my daughter alone." Tokio hardly heard the coldness in her voice or how she had her gun trained on him even though she had never been able to lock on in practice sessions.
A/N: Okay, you people are owed some explanations O.- I couldn't post much during the holidays because I was spending "family" time (translation: everytime I so much as sat down in front of the computer I'd be chased off -__-). Then I was sick, which is why there was no author's note or html last time. You're lucky to have gotten replies O.o;;; I don't know how coherant they were either! Anyway, this is winding down here, just a few more chapters then kaput. And I should work on the sequel *glances around nervously*.
Reviewers:
Fyyrrose: Oh, just you (:| I do know who you are ^^ I'm kidding. Saitoh will live forever! Mwahaha, no, not really, but once again I'm writing as me. I should try to write as someone else. Might scare a few less people. Gummy bear? LMAO. So BSR is popcorn? I worked my ass off for the scene!
MissBehavin: A creepy, rat-y man with big features and stringy hair (and I'm not saying they all look like that! It's a stereotype ^__^;;;). No *braces feet*I refuse to get close enough! *runs*
eriesalia: Oh yes, pesky family. I relearned about those over the holiday. Now I'm home in my room, with MY computer, which I only have to share every once in awhile. Yes, but I think I've played with the timeline so much you can't tell up from down ^.~ Poor Aoshi, so disgruntled about the whole thing. *cough*Shinsengumiwouldwinsorrybuddy*hack*. It's a matter of numbers :D still some serious therapy there! Oh, and you're reply on the other one amuses me to no end. I thought, when I posted that chapter, that everyone would hunt me down and drink my blood X_X;;
Wistful-Eyes: Yes, Battousai ^.~ But not like the western one. Just another facet of Kenshin's persona, nothing more.