Chapter 16: Moving On and Moving Up
A/N: Well, It's me again. I've finally updated! YES! Anyhow, there's not much I can say, except sorry and I'm glad you've all stuck with me so far. I only need 17 reviews to get 100, and I want you all to know that every single one anyone has sent me has been read and pondered and...whatever else I did with them. I love all you guys so much, and I could stop writing right now and be very happy with myself and the response my writing has gotten so far. BUT, the show must go on. So, here's the much anticipated and much awaited 16th chapter of Against All Hope!
Disclaimer: I don't own Rk, but I DO own Hitomi, Fjork, and Flewrind. Oh and the ideas and situations I've put the characters in are mine to claim. So I do claim them. RIGHT NOW. MINE!
~*~*~
*CRASH!*
'Breakfast-time again.' Kenshin thought. After the last episode he'd had, something had finally clicked inside him. He knew he couldn't just kill himself and get it over with; he had much too much to live for. The scene unfolding before him only proved his point more. Sano held Yahiko in a headlock while Kaoru pounded the both of them with her bokken, screaming "THIS IS KENSHIN'S FIRST BREAKFAST AND LOOK HOW INSENSITIVE YOU ALL ARE BEING YOU IDIOTS!!!!"
After a particularly large whomp, Sano let go of Yahiko and rubbed the back of his head gingerly. "Ow Jou-chan...you don't have to be so brutish all the time." he groaned. "MOU?! BRUTISH!? I'LL SHOW YOU BRUTISH YOU POMPOUS FREE-LOADER!" And with that Sano receive several more large steaming bumps on top of his head. A large vein popped out of Kaoru's head; her breath came heavily in short gasps and growls.
Kenshin smiled. For the first time in a long time he smiled a real smile. It wasn't just a smile for making someone else happy; it was a smile of true happiness. He didn't need his mother, whether she be alive or no. He was happy the way it was...well almost. "Kaoru-dono?"
Kaoru stopped mauling Sano at the sound of Kenshin's colorful voice. "Hai Kenshin?" "Would you like to take a walk with sessha de gozaru yo?"
Kaoru nearly gasped. Was Kenshin asking her to walk with him? 'No, that's only what he said...Kaoru no baka.' she thought. Putting on her happiest and brightest smile she grinned at him. "Sure!"
Now that Kenshin had actually said something about GOING somewhere with Kaoru, he was having second thoughts. He knew someone with sins as great as his could never be worthy of someone as pure as Kaoru, but he loved her so much! Surely it couldn't be wrong for him to love her...now it was just a matter of did she love him back.
But...what if she didn't?
Kenshin felt a surge of timidity. He berated himself fervently, but couldn't get rid of it. He knew she loved him, it was evident in her beautiful sapphire eyes when she asked him to "Please pass the sushi..." or "Would you like some more wasabi, Kenshin?"
He knew what her eyes were really asking him...
"Will you ever care enough to love me?"
"Can I ever earn your love?"
"Do you feel the same as me?"
"Does this feeling eat you alive, like it does me?"
It pained Kenshin to see such anguish in her eyes when time after time he had perhaps a little less than obliviously avoided her questions. He had known how she felt; he had known and hadn't done a thing about it. He knew he should rot in hell for the things he'd done in his life, but somehow this seemed the worst of all of them. The look in her eyes pained him more than seeing Tomoe's bloody body lying in the snow, more than watching himself slaughter victim after victim during the Revolution.
So he must get rid of it.
He was over the pain his memories had brought with them; he was over the self-doubt, the self-loathing. It was time to move on, and the only forward he could see, no, that he would ALLOW himself to see, had Kaoru in it. He was going to do this, and he would do it right.
"After breakfast, ok Kaoru?" Kenshin asked. Sano and Yahiko had resumed their bickering, but Kenshin didn't mind at all. He had eyes only for Kaoru. He looked up from his miso soup to see Kaoru staring at him, a wondrous look of hope and disbelief in her eyes, misting her eyes with crystalline sparkles of love.
"Hai..." she said quietly, shyly almost. Kenshin grinned at her. This would be their first date, whether she knew it or not. He knew he couldn't simply propose to her without warning, too much at once would likely cause the girl to faint! Not that he doubted Kaoru's strength...but he knew how much she could handle. He'd push her limits to take her this far.
'I'm going walking...with Kenshin...like...a real date...' Kaoru blushed at the mere thought. 'Silly...it's not a date...Kenshin would never do something that spontaneous.' she sighed. 'Oh but I can dream can't I?' Kaoru stood. "I'm finished with breakfast, I'm going to..." she trailed off, realizing how silly it would sound if she said she were "going to get ready" to go walking. Even though that WAS what she was going to do. "I'm going to change clothes." she finished lamely.
Sano grinned smugly to himself. This could get interesting.
Kaoru left the room and Kenshin stood. "If you two are finished," he said, gesturing to Sano and Yahiko's empty plates, "would you mind helping sessha by carrying these to the kitchen?" Sano groaned. Housework! "Kenshin, when are you going to realize that MEN aren't SUPPOSED to do this kind of thing?!" Sano muttered under his breath. "When YOU learn that you're supposed to PAY people for food." Kenshin hissed back. "WHY I--yeah you're right." Sano shrugged.
Yahiko remained blissfully unaware of anything. "What?"
Kenshin shook his head. "Nothing Yahiko, but would you mind doing sessha a favor and taking your dishes to the kitchen?" "Sure Kenshin!" Yahiko chirped, just as happy as ever to do something to aid such a great swordsman. Kenshin chuckled to himself. He could tell the kid to jump off a bridge and he would, not that Kenshin would ever ask Yahiko to do something that mundane.
Kaoru sat indecisive in her room. What to wear! Amid the sea of kimonos, obis, and even hair ribbons, she sighed. 'Well let's see...' she thought to herself. 'Kenshin's gi is magenta...so...that means pink is out...or is it? Yes, I don't feel very pink today.' Kaoru set the pink kimono aside. The remaining kimonos were deep blue, light orange, buttercup yellow, and jade green.
Kaoru peeked outside. The sky shone brightly; the wind made the flowers quiver ever so slightly. 'Orange is an ugly color.' she thought, tossing the orange kimono to rest beside the pink one. 'Blue is for rainy days or night.' The blue kimono now rested with the orange and pink kimonos. 'I wear this yellow one all the time...' she thought. 'So I guess that leaves the green one...but I don't want to wear that one!'
Kaoru let out a cry of frustration. She would never be able to decide! Kenshin was just too perfect, too...Kenshin. A walk with him warranted something special. What did she have that was special...
Kaoru thought hard for about 30 seconds, then it hit her. She'd put one kimono away a long time ago, and had never worn it in Kenshin's presence. Now would be a good time to bust it out of confinement. She didn't even remember why she'd put it away in the first place.
Kaoru pulled the precious golden kimono from her chest. It was just as beautiful as it had always been. She grinned. Wouldn't Kenshin be surprised! She quickly dressed and realized she was faced with another decision. The kimono had it's own obi, so she hadn't had to worry about that. She'd tied the silk, cerulean ribbon in an ornate fashion, so it had taken care of itself. But what color ribbon would she wear?
Frustrated, Kaoru spread all her ribbons out and closed her eyes. She waved her hand over the ribbons vigorously, and just as she started to pick one, a deep voice startled her near out of her wits. "Indecisive?"
She let out a small yelp of surprise before opening her eyes. She stared uncertainly at the looming figure before her. "H-hiko?" she said incredulously. "In the flesh!" Hiko chuckled. "Just wear the silver one." he said, his amusement evident. "But I don't have a sil-" Kaoru noticed the shimmering silver ribbon under her hand. When had it gotten there? She glanced back up, only to find Hiko gone.
"How strange..." she murmured, fixing the beautiful ribbon in her hair. She stood and examined herself in her mirror. "Well, I suppose I look presentable." she sighed before walking out of her room.
Meanwhile, Kenshin had finished the dishes and was on his way to Kaoru's room to see if she were ready yet. He already knew she wasn't, but it would give him an excuse to see her. He smiled to himself at the glorious day Kami had provided for him to commence his courtship. He found himself daydreaming and then suddenly...there was an angel in front of him.
"Oh! Hi...Kenshin..." Kaoru said shyly, a slight blush spreading across her cheeks. Why was he staring at her like that? Did he not like her outfit? Kenshin was speechless. He had never seen anyone look more beautiful in his entire life, not even Tomoe could rival Kaoru's beauty. He knew he was staring, but heaven help him, he couldn't tear his eyes from her. The golden kimono seemed to ignite a certain spark within her, as if she were liquid fire racing through his very veins. The blue of her obi was almost the exact shade of her eyes, and the silk made it seem alive, fluid. Finally he tore his eyes from her to notice she had a new hair ribbon. Her ebony tresses were contrasting sharply with the shimmering silver of her ribbon. Where had she gotten such a prize?
Kenshin found himself wondering what would happen should he REMOVE that hair ribbon. He couldn't stand to see her hair confined so, not when he knew what it looked like free. He wanted, oh he wanted so much, but he could have...not just yet. He knew things would be better should he wait, and wait he would. Finally breaking free of his reverie, he made eye contact. His eyes must have said what he'd left unspoken, for Kaoru broke into a bright smile.
"Wow..." he said. Then he grinned. "May sessha assist the lady on her early morning stroll?" he offered his arm. Kaoru beamed. "Hai, my bodyguard be none other than the feared hitokiri Himura Battousai!" she put on an evil smirk with the words 'Himura Battousai', to imply that Battousai vastly enjoyed his evil endeavors. Kenshin grinned, choosing to take the reference to his past as playful flirting.
"The mighty Himura will thwart fate for his lady, that he will! Back down inevitability! Make way for Kaoru, but don't touch her, lest the Battousai grind your hands through his portable meat-grinder!" Kenshin brandished his sword. The reverse edge gleamed in the early sunlight. "Oh my..." Kaoru said, wide-eyed. "I do believe that man just eyed me rather lewdly..." she gasped out, pointing to an overgrown bush near the dojo gate.
Kenshin gasped. "Foul fiend! How dare ye set your filthy eyes on the woman of Battousai! Feel his wrath, taste his blade, fear him! FEEEEAR HIM!"
Kaoru collapsed with helpless giggles. 'Who knew Kenshin had such a sense of humor...and I think I like being called his woman...' She giggled slightly as she walked out of the dojo, Kenshin at her side. He whistled merrily, some old Japanese folk song that she didn't know. Restraining her winces (A/N: Remember you guys, Kenshin is not the most musical person you know.) she contented herself with being near the one she loved.
~*~*~
"There she goes." Mercury whispered to his partner. "Yes, she seems to be the Battousai's woman all right. We have our orders remember. No time to play with the little lady." Orion reminded. "Orion, you always have had the most perverse mind." Mercury sighed. "Shall we do this the easy way or not?"
Orion thought briefly. "Well, the easiest way will ideally have the least risk, and I know your taste for risk Mercury, so please do remember that our hostage must be returned to Others HQ by midnight or the illusion will be broken. A sacrifice must be made to keep our sanctuary hidden. Please be sure that she doesn't get exploded or hacked to bits if you would."
Mercury frowned. "Sometimes it's a curse to know someone so well." he grumbled. "So we go the BORING way." he growled, putting special emphasis on BORING, to really bring his point home. He checked to see where the couple was, steeled himself and then Kaoru was looking very frightened in his arms. "...w-wh-who are you?!" she croaked. Orion sighed. "We, my dear lady, are your ticket to another world."
"KENSHIN!"
~*~*~
Kenshin stopped. He felt another ki, a strong, battle-worn ki...and yet unlike any other he'd felt before. It was far superior to his own, even that of Battousai's. He reached his hand out to pull Kaoru back, but before his very eyes she vanished. "Kaoru!" he cried, but his voice was lost in the vacuum of sudden air. His eyes blinked amber as he spun in a circle, but he felt no ki anywhere. The strong, other ki had also vanished.
To his right, a slightly muffled cry arose: "KENSHIN!"
He leaped into action, drawing his sword and hacking the shrubbery to pieces in one swift movement, only to find...
Nothing.
He bent to the ground. He was not as good a tracker as Saitoh, but one of a hitokiri's many required abilities was the ability to track. He found slight signs of a brief scuffle, and then two marks that puzzled him very much. They were deep indentions in the ground, like someone had dug four deep trenches very quickly. The leaves remaining around the trenches were scorched and curled; the scorches were new, for they still smelled of fire.
Despite these signs, he found no reason why his Kaoru was gone. He walked back to the clearing and found two similar scorch marks, but no Kaoru. He knew something was going on, and he was willing to bet anything that it wasn't something good.
~*~*~
A/N: WOOHOO! All done! I'll see you guys later, lemme know what you think about this chapter! It didn't take me that long to write once I got started, and I think I can keep going. I gave myself initiative. Yay!
Shaolin And Amakakeru: Thank you for thinking my story is good, and I'm sorry I couldn't update sooner. I'm pretty sure you know what I mean when I say I got a BAD case of writer's block. Thank goodness I got rid of it!
Falling_from_the_sky: *sigh* Well, Fjork is one messed up little dude. At first, he was supposed to be the good guy. Oh well that went out the window. You were supposed to hate Hitomi at first; it was a necessary thing to make the surprise of her being Kenshin's mother...more surprising. And Chapter 14 was supposed to make you underestimate Fjork's dedication to the Others. Despite what he says, and feels, he keeps staying with them because he believes that eventually it will be for the best...and because he can't get out. In his own way, Fjork is A LOT like Kenshin. Yay! You gave me my teddy back! I couldn't sleep for a week! *scowls* ^-^ But now he's back and I'm happy yay! *sigh* Don't you just wish that sometime you could just...*closes eyes and wishes Kenshin was hers* *waits 5 minutes to see if it worked* *opens eyes and...Kenshin is still not hers* Darn! But wouldn't that be cool! You said you had imaginary RK plushies, well I have to hand this over to you...*hands over miniature but amazingly life-like Battousai plushy* Can anyone say SEXY?
Brittanie Love: Glad you like, sorry I kept you waiting so long. Hopefully you stick with me!
Aoshi'sgirl: *sigh* Alas, this is the question I feared I would get the most. Fjork is basically brainwashing himself with what he once believed is right. He thinks that the Others will correct what the Gods and Goddesses are doing wrong, when in fact the Others are just as bad if not worse. He is their hired assassin, and he has no choice but to do what they say, under the threat that if he doesn't everyone he knows will die, including himself. He's a confused individual; remember his life was very messed up. The only mother he ever had he eventually fell in love with and...*sigh* I'm confusing myself.
Sofa-chan: Yes, Fjork is really odd and kinda evil. He can't help it though. He's misunderstood and confused. Oh well, maybe things will get better. It seems that everyone wants him to be a good guy.
A/N: Well, It's me again. I've finally updated! YES! Anyhow, there's not much I can say, except sorry and I'm glad you've all stuck with me so far. I only need 17 reviews to get 100, and I want you all to know that every single one anyone has sent me has been read and pondered and...whatever else I did with them. I love all you guys so much, and I could stop writing right now and be very happy with myself and the response my writing has gotten so far. BUT, the show must go on. So, here's the much anticipated and much awaited 16th chapter of Against All Hope!
Disclaimer: I don't own Rk, but I DO own Hitomi, Fjork, and Flewrind. Oh and the ideas and situations I've put the characters in are mine to claim. So I do claim them. RIGHT NOW. MINE!
~*~*~
*CRASH!*
'Breakfast-time again.' Kenshin thought. After the last episode he'd had, something had finally clicked inside him. He knew he couldn't just kill himself and get it over with; he had much too much to live for. The scene unfolding before him only proved his point more. Sano held Yahiko in a headlock while Kaoru pounded the both of them with her bokken, screaming "THIS IS KENSHIN'S FIRST BREAKFAST AND LOOK HOW INSENSITIVE YOU ALL ARE BEING YOU IDIOTS!!!!"
After a particularly large whomp, Sano let go of Yahiko and rubbed the back of his head gingerly. "Ow Jou-chan...you don't have to be so brutish all the time." he groaned. "MOU?! BRUTISH!? I'LL SHOW YOU BRUTISH YOU POMPOUS FREE-LOADER!" And with that Sano receive several more large steaming bumps on top of his head. A large vein popped out of Kaoru's head; her breath came heavily in short gasps and growls.
Kenshin smiled. For the first time in a long time he smiled a real smile. It wasn't just a smile for making someone else happy; it was a smile of true happiness. He didn't need his mother, whether she be alive or no. He was happy the way it was...well almost. "Kaoru-dono?"
Kaoru stopped mauling Sano at the sound of Kenshin's colorful voice. "Hai Kenshin?" "Would you like to take a walk with sessha de gozaru yo?"
Kaoru nearly gasped. Was Kenshin asking her to walk with him? 'No, that's only what he said...Kaoru no baka.' she thought. Putting on her happiest and brightest smile she grinned at him. "Sure!"
Now that Kenshin had actually said something about GOING somewhere with Kaoru, he was having second thoughts. He knew someone with sins as great as his could never be worthy of someone as pure as Kaoru, but he loved her so much! Surely it couldn't be wrong for him to love her...now it was just a matter of did she love him back.
But...what if she didn't?
Kenshin felt a surge of timidity. He berated himself fervently, but couldn't get rid of it. He knew she loved him, it was evident in her beautiful sapphire eyes when she asked him to "Please pass the sushi..." or "Would you like some more wasabi, Kenshin?"
He knew what her eyes were really asking him...
"Will you ever care enough to love me?"
"Can I ever earn your love?"
"Do you feel the same as me?"
"Does this feeling eat you alive, like it does me?"
It pained Kenshin to see such anguish in her eyes when time after time he had perhaps a little less than obliviously avoided her questions. He had known how she felt; he had known and hadn't done a thing about it. He knew he should rot in hell for the things he'd done in his life, but somehow this seemed the worst of all of them. The look in her eyes pained him more than seeing Tomoe's bloody body lying in the snow, more than watching himself slaughter victim after victim during the Revolution.
So he must get rid of it.
He was over the pain his memories had brought with them; he was over the self-doubt, the self-loathing. It was time to move on, and the only forward he could see, no, that he would ALLOW himself to see, had Kaoru in it. He was going to do this, and he would do it right.
"After breakfast, ok Kaoru?" Kenshin asked. Sano and Yahiko had resumed their bickering, but Kenshin didn't mind at all. He had eyes only for Kaoru. He looked up from his miso soup to see Kaoru staring at him, a wondrous look of hope and disbelief in her eyes, misting her eyes with crystalline sparkles of love.
"Hai..." she said quietly, shyly almost. Kenshin grinned at her. This would be their first date, whether she knew it or not. He knew he couldn't simply propose to her without warning, too much at once would likely cause the girl to faint! Not that he doubted Kaoru's strength...but he knew how much she could handle. He'd push her limits to take her this far.
'I'm going walking...with Kenshin...like...a real date...' Kaoru blushed at the mere thought. 'Silly...it's not a date...Kenshin would never do something that spontaneous.' she sighed. 'Oh but I can dream can't I?' Kaoru stood. "I'm finished with breakfast, I'm going to..." she trailed off, realizing how silly it would sound if she said she were "going to get ready" to go walking. Even though that WAS what she was going to do. "I'm going to change clothes." she finished lamely.
Sano grinned smugly to himself. This could get interesting.
Kaoru left the room and Kenshin stood. "If you two are finished," he said, gesturing to Sano and Yahiko's empty plates, "would you mind helping sessha by carrying these to the kitchen?" Sano groaned. Housework! "Kenshin, when are you going to realize that MEN aren't SUPPOSED to do this kind of thing?!" Sano muttered under his breath. "When YOU learn that you're supposed to PAY people for food." Kenshin hissed back. "WHY I--yeah you're right." Sano shrugged.
Yahiko remained blissfully unaware of anything. "What?"
Kenshin shook his head. "Nothing Yahiko, but would you mind doing sessha a favor and taking your dishes to the kitchen?" "Sure Kenshin!" Yahiko chirped, just as happy as ever to do something to aid such a great swordsman. Kenshin chuckled to himself. He could tell the kid to jump off a bridge and he would, not that Kenshin would ever ask Yahiko to do something that mundane.
Kaoru sat indecisive in her room. What to wear! Amid the sea of kimonos, obis, and even hair ribbons, she sighed. 'Well let's see...' she thought to herself. 'Kenshin's gi is magenta...so...that means pink is out...or is it? Yes, I don't feel very pink today.' Kaoru set the pink kimono aside. The remaining kimonos were deep blue, light orange, buttercup yellow, and jade green.
Kaoru peeked outside. The sky shone brightly; the wind made the flowers quiver ever so slightly. 'Orange is an ugly color.' she thought, tossing the orange kimono to rest beside the pink one. 'Blue is for rainy days or night.' The blue kimono now rested with the orange and pink kimonos. 'I wear this yellow one all the time...' she thought. 'So I guess that leaves the green one...but I don't want to wear that one!'
Kaoru let out a cry of frustration. She would never be able to decide! Kenshin was just too perfect, too...Kenshin. A walk with him warranted something special. What did she have that was special...
Kaoru thought hard for about 30 seconds, then it hit her. She'd put one kimono away a long time ago, and had never worn it in Kenshin's presence. Now would be a good time to bust it out of confinement. She didn't even remember why she'd put it away in the first place.
Kaoru pulled the precious golden kimono from her chest. It was just as beautiful as it had always been. She grinned. Wouldn't Kenshin be surprised! She quickly dressed and realized she was faced with another decision. The kimono had it's own obi, so she hadn't had to worry about that. She'd tied the silk, cerulean ribbon in an ornate fashion, so it had taken care of itself. But what color ribbon would she wear?
Frustrated, Kaoru spread all her ribbons out and closed her eyes. She waved her hand over the ribbons vigorously, and just as she started to pick one, a deep voice startled her near out of her wits. "Indecisive?"
She let out a small yelp of surprise before opening her eyes. She stared uncertainly at the looming figure before her. "H-hiko?" she said incredulously. "In the flesh!" Hiko chuckled. "Just wear the silver one." he said, his amusement evident. "But I don't have a sil-" Kaoru noticed the shimmering silver ribbon under her hand. When had it gotten there? She glanced back up, only to find Hiko gone.
"How strange..." she murmured, fixing the beautiful ribbon in her hair. She stood and examined herself in her mirror. "Well, I suppose I look presentable." she sighed before walking out of her room.
Meanwhile, Kenshin had finished the dishes and was on his way to Kaoru's room to see if she were ready yet. He already knew she wasn't, but it would give him an excuse to see her. He smiled to himself at the glorious day Kami had provided for him to commence his courtship. He found himself daydreaming and then suddenly...there was an angel in front of him.
"Oh! Hi...Kenshin..." Kaoru said shyly, a slight blush spreading across her cheeks. Why was he staring at her like that? Did he not like her outfit? Kenshin was speechless. He had never seen anyone look more beautiful in his entire life, not even Tomoe could rival Kaoru's beauty. He knew he was staring, but heaven help him, he couldn't tear his eyes from her. The golden kimono seemed to ignite a certain spark within her, as if she were liquid fire racing through his very veins. The blue of her obi was almost the exact shade of her eyes, and the silk made it seem alive, fluid. Finally he tore his eyes from her to notice she had a new hair ribbon. Her ebony tresses were contrasting sharply with the shimmering silver of her ribbon. Where had she gotten such a prize?
Kenshin found himself wondering what would happen should he REMOVE that hair ribbon. He couldn't stand to see her hair confined so, not when he knew what it looked like free. He wanted, oh he wanted so much, but he could have...not just yet. He knew things would be better should he wait, and wait he would. Finally breaking free of his reverie, he made eye contact. His eyes must have said what he'd left unspoken, for Kaoru broke into a bright smile.
"Wow..." he said. Then he grinned. "May sessha assist the lady on her early morning stroll?" he offered his arm. Kaoru beamed. "Hai, my bodyguard be none other than the feared hitokiri Himura Battousai!" she put on an evil smirk with the words 'Himura Battousai', to imply that Battousai vastly enjoyed his evil endeavors. Kenshin grinned, choosing to take the reference to his past as playful flirting.
"The mighty Himura will thwart fate for his lady, that he will! Back down inevitability! Make way for Kaoru, but don't touch her, lest the Battousai grind your hands through his portable meat-grinder!" Kenshin brandished his sword. The reverse edge gleamed in the early sunlight. "Oh my..." Kaoru said, wide-eyed. "I do believe that man just eyed me rather lewdly..." she gasped out, pointing to an overgrown bush near the dojo gate.
Kenshin gasped. "Foul fiend! How dare ye set your filthy eyes on the woman of Battousai! Feel his wrath, taste his blade, fear him! FEEEEAR HIM!"
Kaoru collapsed with helpless giggles. 'Who knew Kenshin had such a sense of humor...and I think I like being called his woman...' She giggled slightly as she walked out of the dojo, Kenshin at her side. He whistled merrily, some old Japanese folk song that she didn't know. Restraining her winces (A/N: Remember you guys, Kenshin is not the most musical person you know.) she contented herself with being near the one she loved.
~*~*~
"There she goes." Mercury whispered to his partner. "Yes, she seems to be the Battousai's woman all right. We have our orders remember. No time to play with the little lady." Orion reminded. "Orion, you always have had the most perverse mind." Mercury sighed. "Shall we do this the easy way or not?"
Orion thought briefly. "Well, the easiest way will ideally have the least risk, and I know your taste for risk Mercury, so please do remember that our hostage must be returned to Others HQ by midnight or the illusion will be broken. A sacrifice must be made to keep our sanctuary hidden. Please be sure that she doesn't get exploded or hacked to bits if you would."
Mercury frowned. "Sometimes it's a curse to know someone so well." he grumbled. "So we go the BORING way." he growled, putting special emphasis on BORING, to really bring his point home. He checked to see where the couple was, steeled himself and then Kaoru was looking very frightened in his arms. "...w-wh-who are you?!" she croaked. Orion sighed. "We, my dear lady, are your ticket to another world."
"KENSHIN!"
~*~*~
Kenshin stopped. He felt another ki, a strong, battle-worn ki...and yet unlike any other he'd felt before. It was far superior to his own, even that of Battousai's. He reached his hand out to pull Kaoru back, but before his very eyes she vanished. "Kaoru!" he cried, but his voice was lost in the vacuum of sudden air. His eyes blinked amber as he spun in a circle, but he felt no ki anywhere. The strong, other ki had also vanished.
To his right, a slightly muffled cry arose: "KENSHIN!"
He leaped into action, drawing his sword and hacking the shrubbery to pieces in one swift movement, only to find...
Nothing.
He bent to the ground. He was not as good a tracker as Saitoh, but one of a hitokiri's many required abilities was the ability to track. He found slight signs of a brief scuffle, and then two marks that puzzled him very much. They were deep indentions in the ground, like someone had dug four deep trenches very quickly. The leaves remaining around the trenches were scorched and curled; the scorches were new, for they still smelled of fire.
Despite these signs, he found no reason why his Kaoru was gone. He walked back to the clearing and found two similar scorch marks, but no Kaoru. He knew something was going on, and he was willing to bet anything that it wasn't something good.
~*~*~
A/N: WOOHOO! All done! I'll see you guys later, lemme know what you think about this chapter! It didn't take me that long to write once I got started, and I think I can keep going. I gave myself initiative. Yay!
Shaolin And Amakakeru: Thank you for thinking my story is good, and I'm sorry I couldn't update sooner. I'm pretty sure you know what I mean when I say I got a BAD case of writer's block. Thank goodness I got rid of it!
Falling_from_the_sky: *sigh* Well, Fjork is one messed up little dude. At first, he was supposed to be the good guy. Oh well that went out the window. You were supposed to hate Hitomi at first; it was a necessary thing to make the surprise of her being Kenshin's mother...more surprising. And Chapter 14 was supposed to make you underestimate Fjork's dedication to the Others. Despite what he says, and feels, he keeps staying with them because he believes that eventually it will be for the best...and because he can't get out. In his own way, Fjork is A LOT like Kenshin. Yay! You gave me my teddy back! I couldn't sleep for a week! *scowls* ^-^ But now he's back and I'm happy yay! *sigh* Don't you just wish that sometime you could just...*closes eyes and wishes Kenshin was hers* *waits 5 minutes to see if it worked* *opens eyes and...Kenshin is still not hers* Darn! But wouldn't that be cool! You said you had imaginary RK plushies, well I have to hand this over to you...*hands over miniature but amazingly life-like Battousai plushy* Can anyone say SEXY?
Brittanie Love: Glad you like, sorry I kept you waiting so long. Hopefully you stick with me!
Aoshi'sgirl: *sigh* Alas, this is the question I feared I would get the most. Fjork is basically brainwashing himself with what he once believed is right. He thinks that the Others will correct what the Gods and Goddesses are doing wrong, when in fact the Others are just as bad if not worse. He is their hired assassin, and he has no choice but to do what they say, under the threat that if he doesn't everyone he knows will die, including himself. He's a confused individual; remember his life was very messed up. The only mother he ever had he eventually fell in love with and...*sigh* I'm confusing myself.
Sofa-chan: Yes, Fjork is really odd and kinda evil. He can't help it though. He's misunderstood and confused. Oh well, maybe things will get better. It seems that everyone wants him to be a good guy.