The Devil's Workshop
MysticShadowWanderer
Disclaimer: Am I too lost to be saved?
*****
Chapter Twenty Four: The One I Love
Kaoru flung herself upright with a deep gasp, pressing her hand to her heart as if to still its wild beating as she panted, desperately trying to obtain much-needed air. Battousai was at her side in an instant, wiping the sweat from her forehead and holding her tightly to him. She cried quietly into the material of his gi at his shoulder, clutching at him as if she might never let him go, even if the world crashed to the ground in pieces around them. He breathed soothing words into her ear as he stroked her hair, letting her release all of her tears.
After a while, Kaoru pulled away to look into Battousai's face, to run her fingers down his scar, to touch his chest and assure herself that he was still among the world of the living. Satisfied that he was whole and in relatively good health, she hugged him to her body with a sigh.
"Tell me, love," he whispered. "Tell me everything."
"Oh Battousai..." Kaoru whimpered. "I was alone, and I was so scared. I heard voices, and I ran away, I didn't know what to do. And then you were there, but it wasn't you, it was someone different. He looked like you, but he had no scar." Her fingers trailed across his cheek. "And he had blue eyes; they looked like mine, but darker. Then you really were there, and the two of you began to fight, and he killed you. Just... slaughtered you and walked away without glancing back once."
"Shh, I'm here Kaoru, I'm here," he murmured to her as she began to cry again. "It was only a dream, it was all a dream. Nothing can hurt me or take me away from you. Ever."
Kaoru sniffed and blinked her tears away; raising her head to look into Battousai's eyes. He seemed concerned, much unlike the last time she remembered seeing his face.
"What were you so angry about?" she asked tentatively. "Before I... fell asleep..."
Battousai paused. She didn't need to know all the details, did she? He could gloss over a few parts of the story. "The fight between Jin-eh and I was somewhat noticeable, lovely. The captain wanted to have me arrested and locked away in the bowels of the ship. I don't suppose I need to tell you that I wasn't terribly pleased by the idea. That's all."
Kaoru knew he was lying; she had been with him long enough to be able to recognize when he wasn't giving her all the information that he had. Glaring at him, she meant to force him to tell her what else had happened when she was interrupted by the loud rumbling of her stomach. Battousai immediately left to get her something to eat, using her hunger as an excuse to keep from divulging the rest of the tale.
***
'She doesn't need to know that,' he thought as he walked down the corridors. The memory of the day flashed before his eyes. To say that he wasn't pleased by the idea had been one of the greatest understatements of the Meiji era to date, and possibly of all of history. Not only had he been irked, he'd been infuriated, enough so to kill. But he wouldn't have killed those men if they hadn't forcibly tried to detain him. Before they had even had the chance to finish tying the knot on the cords around his wrists, they had lain dead in pools of their own blood. It was a just reward for their actions, Battousai decided. They had, after all, dared to lay their hands on him. To him, that was an offense punishable by death. Then again, to him, almost every offense was worthy of the highest form of punishment. Death was an art form to him, and he couldn't help the fact that his art must be practiced frequently. Could anyone blame him?
***
Kaoru sat in the room that felt so cold and empty without Battousai by her side. Part of her ached to tell him more about the dream, and what she thought it could possibly mean, but she knew that she bore no likeness to a clairvoyant, so she thought that perhaps it was best to leave that particular region of an already sensitive subject until a later time. This was going to be hard enough news to break to Battousai as it stood, without adding any more complications.
Inadvertently, Kaoru rested a hand on her lower stomach, as if to reassure herself that all was still well. She closed her eyes and leaned back into her pillows; despite all the rest she'd gotten, she was still very tired, and still slightly nauseated. With a sigh, she wondered how well Battousai was going to take her tidings.
"What will Battousai say when he finds out..." she mused aloud.
"When I find out what, love?" Her eyes flew open when she heard his voice. He eyed her curiously, trying to read her expression. "When I find out what?" he repeated.
"When you find out..." Kaoru's voice failed and she pressed her hand to her eyes with a sigh.
Taking a seat at her side, Battousai lifted her hand away from her face and moved it to his lips, gently caressing each of her knuckles with his mouth. His eyes declared nothing but love and desire for her, urging her to tell him anything and everything. Sucking in a deep breath, she gathered her courage and let her words spill out, say what she might.
"I love you so much, Battousai," she said softly. "More than anything I've ever loved in all my life. I don't know what I'd do without you, and I hope against all the gods that this doesn't upset you. What I want more than anything is for you to be as pleased as I am."
Battousai's brow knitted in confusing; she looked anything but pleased, she was pale and sickly. "What are you trying to tell me, precious?"
"Battousai... I'm... We're... You're going to be a father."
Battousai's eyes widened in shock. Kaoru buried her face in the crook of his neck, waiting with fear shaking through her veins. She wasn't sure what he thought of children; what if he didn't want the baby? Uneasy silence permeated the small room for several tense minutes before he eased her back to look in her eyes, his hands gripping her shoulders. Kaoru peered at his face; his eyes were soft and his lips were twitched upward in a small smile.
"Me? A father?" he finally.
"Yes, you," Kaoru said with a smile.
"I didn't know..." he began. "I didn't know that was even possible... I don't... I don't know... how to be a father..." His speech was broken, for once he didn't know exactly what to say.
"And I don't know how to be a mother," Kaoru said comfortingly. "But I know that we can figure it out together, no matter how difficult it is. We have no choice, we'll have to discover parenthood on our own."
"A child with a semi-mortal hitokiri for a father, and his captive-turned-lover as a mother," Battousai mused aloud. "What kind of person are we bringing into this world?"
Kaoru closed her eyes in contemplation. "I suppose we'll find that out along the way, as well. I can't say how exactly we're going to raise him. I know you can't give up killing that easily, just as I can't give up on my ideals on the sword that protects life, even if you've forbidden me to practice it."
Battousai groaned. Back to that again, were they? He decided it didn't matter terribly, as she certainly wouldn't be practicing swordsmanship in her condition. They could discuss the issue later, after she'd had their child. He didn't know what to think about how the baby would be raised, and what morals they should impart upon him, but that would all come in time. Battousai wondered if there were any benefits bestowed upon the offspring of a semi-mortal and a human. All in time, he concluded. With time, the questions they had would be answered well enough for them to raise the child.
After a moment, Battousai realized that Kaoru had referred to the baby as 'him', as had he in his thoughts. He voiced this to Kaoru, who smiled and said that she 'could simply feel, by sheer intuition, that their child was a boy.'
Lying down and tucking Kaoru to his side, Battousai closed his eyes with a contented sigh. "What should we call him, lovely?"
Her answer was given instantly and without the slightest hesitation.
"Kenji."
***
Battousai laid awake while Kaoru slept in his arms, her calm and even breathing him soothing the tangled feeling in his soul. He thought back on the conversation they'd had such a short time ago. Could he be a father?
'That explains the difference in her ki that I felt at times, at least. I should have known she was pregnant; I let my worry cloud over my judgement.'
He shifted to lie on his side and trailed his fingers over Kaoru's belly. A small smile crept onto her face as she slept when he pressed his palm firmly to her abdomen; she was warm and soft as always, the thought made him smile as well. How he loved this woman. Lifting himself to rest his weight on one arm, he gazed at her face before lowering his head to gently kiss her forehead. A sigh of relief passed his lips as they skimmed over her temple; he had been so terrified and couldn't help but worry still. Never in his life had he known fear like that he'd felt when Kaoru had been unconscious and he had no way of knowing if she would come back to him. Pressing his lips to her chin, he silently worshiped her skin while she slept. Touch reassured him that she was still there with him, he needn't get a response from her save the sleepy sighs that she quietly exhaled. His lips roamed down her chin to her throat, his tongue dipping into the hollows of her shoulders.
'All of this is mine,' he thought as his eyes slid half-shut. 'I would give anything to stay in this moment forever. How beautiful she is, how at peace...'
Pushing away the fabric of her yukata, he bent to plant a loving kiss to the skin on her lower stomach, then moved to lie again at her side. Her hands came up to cradle his head to her breast as he flung one arm lightly over her body and carefully placed her legs over his so that he might tuck himself around her.
He loved to hold her while she slept, just to be able to watch the shadows dance across her delicate features as she lingered in the realm of fantasy and sweet illusion. Tonight her dreams seemed to be much more pleasing; he sincerely hoped that he had something to do with that. Lips curved upward in a gentle smile, she looked to be completely lost in the tranquility of peaceful repose. From where they lay under the warm fabric of her yukata, his long fingers stroked the skin at her hip, solacing both her and himself.
'What an odd pair we make. Completely opposite in outlooks on the world, yet I love her more desperately than I would have ever known I could.'
With that strangely comforting thought, he allowed his eyes to fall closed and with one last whispered "I love you," he slipped away to chase his own demons with the knowledge that he had someone at his side who could save him.
*****
A/N: Yes, yes, it was short. My apologies, but I'm working through a massive writer's block and a lovely bout of apathy. I decided to go with fluff, as you can never go wrong with fluff, ne? Anyhow, there's not much to say about this chapter except that the title is the name of a kickass song by The Rasmus. If you don't know who they are, but you like rock, I strongly recommend checking them out... Anyhow, enough of my advertisement stylings. I don't know when I'll have the next chapter written... My head hurts... so does my toe...
MysticShadowWanderer
Disclaimer: Am I too lost to be saved?
*****
Chapter Twenty Four: The One I Love
Kaoru flung herself upright with a deep gasp, pressing her hand to her heart as if to still its wild beating as she panted, desperately trying to obtain much-needed air. Battousai was at her side in an instant, wiping the sweat from her forehead and holding her tightly to him. She cried quietly into the material of his gi at his shoulder, clutching at him as if she might never let him go, even if the world crashed to the ground in pieces around them. He breathed soothing words into her ear as he stroked her hair, letting her release all of her tears.
After a while, Kaoru pulled away to look into Battousai's face, to run her fingers down his scar, to touch his chest and assure herself that he was still among the world of the living. Satisfied that he was whole and in relatively good health, she hugged him to her body with a sigh.
"Tell me, love," he whispered. "Tell me everything."
"Oh Battousai..." Kaoru whimpered. "I was alone, and I was so scared. I heard voices, and I ran away, I didn't know what to do. And then you were there, but it wasn't you, it was someone different. He looked like you, but he had no scar." Her fingers trailed across his cheek. "And he had blue eyes; they looked like mine, but darker. Then you really were there, and the two of you began to fight, and he killed you. Just... slaughtered you and walked away without glancing back once."
"Shh, I'm here Kaoru, I'm here," he murmured to her as she began to cry again. "It was only a dream, it was all a dream. Nothing can hurt me or take me away from you. Ever."
Kaoru sniffed and blinked her tears away; raising her head to look into Battousai's eyes. He seemed concerned, much unlike the last time she remembered seeing his face.
"What were you so angry about?" she asked tentatively. "Before I... fell asleep..."
Battousai paused. She didn't need to know all the details, did she? He could gloss over a few parts of the story. "The fight between Jin-eh and I was somewhat noticeable, lovely. The captain wanted to have me arrested and locked away in the bowels of the ship. I don't suppose I need to tell you that I wasn't terribly pleased by the idea. That's all."
Kaoru knew he was lying; she had been with him long enough to be able to recognize when he wasn't giving her all the information that he had. Glaring at him, she meant to force him to tell her what else had happened when she was interrupted by the loud rumbling of her stomach. Battousai immediately left to get her something to eat, using her hunger as an excuse to keep from divulging the rest of the tale.
***
'She doesn't need to know that,' he thought as he walked down the corridors. The memory of the day flashed before his eyes. To say that he wasn't pleased by the idea had been one of the greatest understatements of the Meiji era to date, and possibly of all of history. Not only had he been irked, he'd been infuriated, enough so to kill. But he wouldn't have killed those men if they hadn't forcibly tried to detain him. Before they had even had the chance to finish tying the knot on the cords around his wrists, they had lain dead in pools of their own blood. It was a just reward for their actions, Battousai decided. They had, after all, dared to lay their hands on him. To him, that was an offense punishable by death. Then again, to him, almost every offense was worthy of the highest form of punishment. Death was an art form to him, and he couldn't help the fact that his art must be practiced frequently. Could anyone blame him?
***
Kaoru sat in the room that felt so cold and empty without Battousai by her side. Part of her ached to tell him more about the dream, and what she thought it could possibly mean, but she knew that she bore no likeness to a clairvoyant, so she thought that perhaps it was best to leave that particular region of an already sensitive subject until a later time. This was going to be hard enough news to break to Battousai as it stood, without adding any more complications.
Inadvertently, Kaoru rested a hand on her lower stomach, as if to reassure herself that all was still well. She closed her eyes and leaned back into her pillows; despite all the rest she'd gotten, she was still very tired, and still slightly nauseated. With a sigh, she wondered how well Battousai was going to take her tidings.
"What will Battousai say when he finds out..." she mused aloud.
"When I find out what, love?" Her eyes flew open when she heard his voice. He eyed her curiously, trying to read her expression. "When I find out what?" he repeated.
"When you find out..." Kaoru's voice failed and she pressed her hand to her eyes with a sigh.
Taking a seat at her side, Battousai lifted her hand away from her face and moved it to his lips, gently caressing each of her knuckles with his mouth. His eyes declared nothing but love and desire for her, urging her to tell him anything and everything. Sucking in a deep breath, she gathered her courage and let her words spill out, say what she might.
"I love you so much, Battousai," she said softly. "More than anything I've ever loved in all my life. I don't know what I'd do without you, and I hope against all the gods that this doesn't upset you. What I want more than anything is for you to be as pleased as I am."
Battousai's brow knitted in confusing; she looked anything but pleased, she was pale and sickly. "What are you trying to tell me, precious?"
"Battousai... I'm... We're... You're going to be a father."
Battousai's eyes widened in shock. Kaoru buried her face in the crook of his neck, waiting with fear shaking through her veins. She wasn't sure what he thought of children; what if he didn't want the baby? Uneasy silence permeated the small room for several tense minutes before he eased her back to look in her eyes, his hands gripping her shoulders. Kaoru peered at his face; his eyes were soft and his lips were twitched upward in a small smile.
"Me? A father?" he finally.
"Yes, you," Kaoru said with a smile.
"I didn't know..." he began. "I didn't know that was even possible... I don't... I don't know... how to be a father..." His speech was broken, for once he didn't know exactly what to say.
"And I don't know how to be a mother," Kaoru said comfortingly. "But I know that we can figure it out together, no matter how difficult it is. We have no choice, we'll have to discover parenthood on our own."
"A child with a semi-mortal hitokiri for a father, and his captive-turned-lover as a mother," Battousai mused aloud. "What kind of person are we bringing into this world?"
Kaoru closed her eyes in contemplation. "I suppose we'll find that out along the way, as well. I can't say how exactly we're going to raise him. I know you can't give up killing that easily, just as I can't give up on my ideals on the sword that protects life, even if you've forbidden me to practice it."
Battousai groaned. Back to that again, were they? He decided it didn't matter terribly, as she certainly wouldn't be practicing swordsmanship in her condition. They could discuss the issue later, after she'd had their child. He didn't know what to think about how the baby would be raised, and what morals they should impart upon him, but that would all come in time. Battousai wondered if there were any benefits bestowed upon the offspring of a semi-mortal and a human. All in time, he concluded. With time, the questions they had would be answered well enough for them to raise the child.
After a moment, Battousai realized that Kaoru had referred to the baby as 'him', as had he in his thoughts. He voiced this to Kaoru, who smiled and said that she 'could simply feel, by sheer intuition, that their child was a boy.'
Lying down and tucking Kaoru to his side, Battousai closed his eyes with a contented sigh. "What should we call him, lovely?"
Her answer was given instantly and without the slightest hesitation.
"Kenji."
***
Battousai laid awake while Kaoru slept in his arms, her calm and even breathing him soothing the tangled feeling in his soul. He thought back on the conversation they'd had such a short time ago. Could he be a father?
'That explains the difference in her ki that I felt at times, at least. I should have known she was pregnant; I let my worry cloud over my judgement.'
He shifted to lie on his side and trailed his fingers over Kaoru's belly. A small smile crept onto her face as she slept when he pressed his palm firmly to her abdomen; she was warm and soft as always, the thought made him smile as well. How he loved this woman. Lifting himself to rest his weight on one arm, he gazed at her face before lowering his head to gently kiss her forehead. A sigh of relief passed his lips as they skimmed over her temple; he had been so terrified and couldn't help but worry still. Never in his life had he known fear like that he'd felt when Kaoru had been unconscious and he had no way of knowing if she would come back to him. Pressing his lips to her chin, he silently worshiped her skin while she slept. Touch reassured him that she was still there with him, he needn't get a response from her save the sleepy sighs that she quietly exhaled. His lips roamed down her chin to her throat, his tongue dipping into the hollows of her shoulders.
'All of this is mine,' he thought as his eyes slid half-shut. 'I would give anything to stay in this moment forever. How beautiful she is, how at peace...'
Pushing away the fabric of her yukata, he bent to plant a loving kiss to the skin on her lower stomach, then moved to lie again at her side. Her hands came up to cradle his head to her breast as he flung one arm lightly over her body and carefully placed her legs over his so that he might tuck himself around her.
He loved to hold her while she slept, just to be able to watch the shadows dance across her delicate features as she lingered in the realm of fantasy and sweet illusion. Tonight her dreams seemed to be much more pleasing; he sincerely hoped that he had something to do with that. Lips curved upward in a gentle smile, she looked to be completely lost in the tranquility of peaceful repose. From where they lay under the warm fabric of her yukata, his long fingers stroked the skin at her hip, solacing both her and himself.
'What an odd pair we make. Completely opposite in outlooks on the world, yet I love her more desperately than I would have ever known I could.'
With that strangely comforting thought, he allowed his eyes to fall closed and with one last whispered "I love you," he slipped away to chase his own demons with the knowledge that he had someone at his side who could save him.
*****
A/N: Yes, yes, it was short. My apologies, but I'm working through a massive writer's block and a lovely bout of apathy. I decided to go with fluff, as you can never go wrong with fluff, ne? Anyhow, there's not much to say about this chapter except that the title is the name of a kickass song by The Rasmus. If you don't know who they are, but you like rock, I strongly recommend checking them out... Anyhow, enough of my advertisement stylings. I don't know when I'll have the next chapter written... My head hurts... so does my toe...