A/N: Alright!!! This is chapter 4…. I'll try to make it long like the first 2 unlike chapter 3. Sorry for the cliffhanger (I love cliffhangers ^^) but I just think it's more fun^_^ Anywho, I'd like to ask you guys if I should end this fic with a TWIST ending, or just leave it in peace? Well… tell me in your review or e-mail me alright? ^_^
Warning: A LOT of talking… also known as dialogue, so if you don't like those… SORRY!! =o\
Angel of Mine
Chapter 4
By Ang3l Momo
Previously on A.O.M:
"Who... WHO ARE YOU?! AND WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"
Ignoring my question, this…Mr. Watanabe cackled, and the locks on the doors slammed down…locking me in.
"That's for me to know… and for you to never to find out."
I tried to unlock the door, but nothing happened. "WHAT THE FUCK YOU CRAZY BASTARD!! LET ME OUT!!"
"Hmm… I see you're going to be a problem… how about shutting up now?"
Unable to respond, I saw his fist going towards my face, harshly making contact.
I was consumed my darkness.
***********************
Amidst the groggy darkness… I could hear voices.
"Hey Hiro…what'd we do now?"
"I dunno…"
"What do you mean 'I dunno'?! You're the one that knocked him out."
"Well it wasn't my fault Takeru! He wouldn't shut up!"
"Uh-huh, sure… you and your excuses…"
"THEY'RE NOT EXCUSES!!"
Needless to say, although I was 'unconscious', the screams and arguing weren't exactly helping my already throbbing head. It didn't take long for me to decide to lay still on the hard ground, trying to 'play dead', hoping that these burly men would leave me alone in silence. Unfortunately, my wish wasn't granted…. in fact, it felt as though the world was against me as a new voice joined the conversation. A feminine one.
"Will you two shut up! It's already bad enough one of you punched him!"
"Sorry Makimachi-sama." The goons rang in unison.
Makimachi? …It couldn't be…but that voice…
"M...Makimachi? Makimachi Misao?" I groaned. I couldn't remember the last time the sound of my voice made my head feel like it was going to explode. I tried opening my eyes… but was immediately blinded by a bright fluorescent light. I moaned as the sudden light seemed to stab my already painful head.
"Kenshin! You're awake!" I felt someone rush over to me and help me up into a sitting position.
"Uh…Sorta." Damn that driver…I ought to let him have a taste of his own medicine.
Through my second attempt at opening my eyes, I could make out a woman smiling at my response. "Sorry about the punch to the face you received earlier Kenshin, Hiro was being a shithole." She glared over her shoulder at one of the two burly men.
I rolled over enough so that my hands could support me as I tried to stand up. As I did so, I loss my balance and ended up falling back down only to have the woman break my fall with her arms. Considering it was obvious I was in no condition to even hold my own weight, she called the two men to carry me to a foreign room, where I was then placed on what felt was a bed.
"Kenshin…I'm sorry about this. I'll explain everything when you're feeling better. But right now," she pulled the blankets over me, "just rest."
I nodded, or at least I think I did. It's strange how I can deal with so much emotional pain, but one punch could put me in the state I was in.
****************
Makimachi Misao walked out of the room, shutting the door quietly as she did so. Misao was at a loss for words, 'It's been so long…I wonder if he'll be okay…That stupid Hiro, I told him to bring him here… unharmed. He'd better have one hell of a good reason for punching Kenshin out.'
The twenty-six year old woman, due to her lack of interest in change, still had the same long ebony braid that reached her lower back and her bangs framing her face. She wore a dark sand-blasted denim jacket, with a white tank top underneath, and a pair of low-rider pants that matched perfectly with her black boots.
As Misao walked back to the main room in the large abandoned building, her boots clanked powerfully against the cement floor. She loved how the boots' not only gave her the feeling of authority, but they also boosted her height.
Before long Misao was back in the room, and although he tried, Misao still saw Hiro fidgeting nervously in his seat on one of the leather couches.
"Hiro." The way Misao hissed would send chills down anyone's spine; which it did…as Hiro reluctantly stood up, head bowed.
Misao made her way to Hiro; and, as he nervously bought his eyes to hers…he felt as though he was hyperventilating.
"Now…Please explain why you punched out my dear ol' friend when I had precisely told you not to harm a single hair on his head?!" She growled.
"I…I… He… He wouldn't…" Hiro stuttered.
"He wouldn't what?!"
"He…He..."
Misao began to circle around him, like that of a vulture. "Let me guess…. He wouldn't 'shut up'?"
"I….I…"
Misao stopped her circumambulating and glared evilly at the taller man. "I'M TIRED OF YOUR EXCUSES HIRO!!"
"Y-yes m'am, I'm sorry…"
"AND I'M TIRED OF YOUR 'APOLOGIES'! I SEND YOU OUT TO DO YOUR JOB, AND EVERYTIME YOU ONLY CAUSE MORE TROUBLE THAN I INTEND!! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH PATIENCE I HAVE LEFT??"
Misao was now screaming inches away from his face, while Hiro was still frozen in place with all the color drained out of his face.
"HMM?! I'M ASKING YOU A QUESTION AND I'M EXPECTING AN ANSWER!! TODAY!"
"Uh…. Uh…n-not much?" He squeaked.
"DAMN RIGHT 'NOT MUCH'! I'M UP TO HERE WITH YOUR BEHAVIOR! YOU THINK YOU CAN BE COCKY AND GO OUT THERE PUNCHING PEOPLE AND SCARING THE SHIT OUT OF THEM?!! WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!!"
"I..I--" Hiro stuttered.
"I OUGHTA RIP YOUR---" Misao felt her blood boil, and noticing the anger emerging from his employer… Takeru cut in.
"Sorry to interrupt Makimachi-sama… although you are upset, would it not be wise to lower your voice? You might wake your friend." Takeru cooed formally.
Realizing her employee was right, Misao inhaled deeply…before returning to face the terrified Hiro. Takeru grinned. 'You owe me BIG time Hiro."
"Now I'm going to say this nicely and I'm NOT going to repeat it again, understand?" Hiro nodded rapidly, "If you EVER hurt or threaten anyone or fuck up a SIMPLE job by acting cocky and badass… you WILL be fired! Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-yes m'am…."
"Good. Now that I've given your umpteenth and FINAL chance to redeem yourself from your stupidity, here's your new job." Misao handed him a pair of keys, "Go pick up Minaku-san's Cadillac XLR from Nobutoshi-san, and bring it to this address." She handed him an envelope. "These are the keys, and Takeru will be going with you to make sure you get this right."
"Y-Yes m'am"
"Alright, now get out of my sight."
Misao waited till the two scurried out of the building before throwing herself onto the leather couch. She sighed into the armrest.
'Is it too much for me to ask to NOT be surrounded by imbeciles?'
"M…Misao?"
Misao jolted herself up into a sitting position and looked over to see who had addressed her so informally.
"K-Kenshin? You're awake."
Her old friend was so much of what she remembered…yet, wasn't. The long unruly hair, his soft lavender eyes, his well-chiseled appearance, his cross-shaped scar, and… of course, the strange aura of sorrow that surrounds him. All that has become his signature traits. But something had changed… something had transformed Kenshin so much that over ten years, though his eyes were still glazed with indescribable sorrow, he was able to wake up in the morning and find something to live for. This was something Misao was not used to… the gentle Kenshin her once-best friend loved was long gone, but now…. Now that was gone too. Kenshin had grown up and no longer was vulnerable; he had become his own man. These changes…. These differences… Misao was no longer sure if Kenshin was or is really the Kenshin from Midorikawa High School.
A sudden realization hit her.
'That… That must be why Kaoru has finally… she's finally…'
A voice broke her thoughts. "Misao? Are you alright?"
"Y—Yea…umm… Look Kenshin, before you get pissed at me… let me explain about…"
"The punch?" Kenshin made his way next to Misao, and sat down. "You already apologized. There's no need to waste your time for another." He turned to her and smiled.
"Are…Are you feeling better already? You seemed pretty…beat up." Relief or guilt seemed to be plastered on her face.
"Don't worry about it, old friends have to stick together right?" Kenshin wrapped his arm around her and gave a friendly squeeze on her shoulder. Still sensing her unease he continued. "If you want the truth…… Ever had those moments where you felt like you've been sleeping for hours when in reality you've only been passed out for a few minutes?"
Catching his drift Misao smiled, "Yeah? Why?" The red-head looked at the floor shyly, almost comically, "Well… I just had one of those moments… that's why I'm…okay now."
Misao guffawed. "Oh c'mon Kenshin! Stop with the joking around! Are you really alright?"
The truth was Kenshin's head still felt as though it was screaming for him to just lie down and spend the next week off. But something had disrupted his slumber; in fact, it was the loud booming voice of his friend that had woken him up. He had always remembered his friend as being a 'little' loud but never to the extent of that monstrously loud noise he had heard through the room's walls.
"Really Misao, I'm alright. Ol' friends gotta stick together don't we?"
"That's not exactly the impression Soujiro got."
"Well, we're guys. And besides, Sano's with me in New York… he needs some anxiety once in a while." Kenshin winked at his old friend, which sent the two of them back into more chuckles.
Misao smacked his back and smiled, "Well, I can't say it isn't nice to have you back in Tokyo."
"Yeah, yeah...I know."
Reality seemed to break through the peaceful merriment he was sharing with Misao as an awkward silence overcame them. He looked around at his surroundings and realized…
*****************
With the exception of my migraine, it felt really nice to see Misao again. I can't really remember why we lost touch, but after all those years...we lost all contact. I actually felt relaxed; since I got back everyone was filled with some sort of mysterious 'aura', I guess you could say. But with Misao, she was nice and I could joke around with her…it was like I had regained a lost friend. Unfortunately I couldn't say the same for my surroundings. As I looked around, I remembered was kidnapped and was now sitting on a leather couch in this HUGE warehouse that was apparently changed into some sort of hideout. I also noticed that black seemed to be 'their' favorite color, whomever 'they' were. Totally unaware that Misao had noticed my curious eyes, I was a little shocked to hear the sound of her voice.
"Big place isn't it?"
I diverted my eyes from their original task and looked at Misao. She sighed as she seemed to brace herself for something; she got up and walked over to the wall. She pressed some sort of invisible button that was on the wall, and before I knew it the wall opened up a small section and some taps came protruding out. Misao reached behind them and pulled out two wine glasses.
"Wine?"
"Uh…sure…" Was my only response, it's not everyday you see beer taps or in this case, wine taps, appear through a wall.
Misao handed me my glass of white wine and we drank in silence; my comfort long gone.
"Listen…Kenshin… The reason why I've brought you here is because Soujiro had called me and told me you were heading towards Chito."
How…how did they know? Am I in some sort of Truman Show*?
"Considering you've been here for only a couple days, I doubt you'd have any idea of how to get to Chito." I couldn't argue with her on that one. I was so anxious to get to Chito I totally forgot I had no idea where it was besides being in Hokkaido.
"How did--"
"Kenshin… you don't' remember anything from ten years ago do you?" I stayed silent, hoping that'd answer her question. "Well I do, and unlike Soujiro and Sanosuke… I took the lost personally and extremely to heart. That's why I know how you feel. Don't worry…I'm not going to tell you what happened, it's too much for even me to bear." She sighed and looked up toward the warehouse's ceiling.
"I never told any of you my past, except for her. She was like my sister." Misao sighed and turned to face me. "This place Kenshin," she spread her arms open as she referred to the warehouse, "is where I grew up, and it was what I gave up a long time ago."
"Th…This?"
"Yes Kenshin, I was born into a mafia by the name of Oniwabanshu. My father was the 'head honcho' before he passed away, and they serve under the black market. I gave up this lifestyle a long time ago when I was given the chance to live a normal life and go to school... that's when I met you all."
"Your family's with the black market?"
Misao sighed. "Yes and no, we're not with the black market, we just work for them because they give us everything we ask for. This warehouse is our 'head-quarters'. We 'import and export products' out of this warehouse."
"So what exactly does this have anything to do with me going to Chito?"
She walked over to where I sat and knelt in front of me and… You can't believe this, but she FLICKED MY NOSE! Who the hell does that? Not bothering to hide my irritation, she laughed. "No matter how much of a sarcastic asshole everyone thinks you've become, I know you're still that crazy red-head that I've grown to love as a brother……… Now," Misao reached into her back pocket and pulled out an envelope, "obviously you have no idea where Chito is, or how dangerous it is to get there."
"Dangerous? It's just a small town in the outskirts of Hokkaido."
"It used to be just a small town. But recently," Misao moved over to sit next to me and opened the envelope. From the envelope, she pulled out what seemed to be documents and newspaper articles. "The criminal rate in Hokkaido has increased dramatically. Many residents have moved here, to Honshu, and more precincts have sent their officers to Hokkaido but there's still no improvement."
"Do they know why this is happening?" I asked as I flipped through the many articles.
"They don't, but we do. We, the Oniwabanshu, have recently started to move our headquarters to Hokkaido. We feel as though our hideout would be more secure in a place like Hokkaido and that there would be more space for us to do our 'business'. Unfortunately one of our own, who we will not disclose information about, had let this piece of information leak out. Although not many know of the existence of the Oniwabanshu, those that do are keen in destroying our organization."
"Why are they trying to destroy you guys?"
"The Oniwabanshu are always wanted by many underground companies due to our constant success. This, of course, causes turmoil for other mafias as they are forced into being our shadow. That is why we keep ourselves very secretive, not only because of the police, but of other rivals. Since this individual let facts of our move to Hokkaido, many mafias have purposely been causing trouble there in hopes of getting us caught by the police." Misao paused and snorted…dripping with sarcasm, "Yea, like they can stop us. All of them have underestimated the Oniwabanshu and we are not about to be taken off the map."
Wow… with all this information going on, I felt as though I had been pulled into some James Bond movie. "So…wait… what does this have to do with me? Isn't this stuff top…..secret?"
My voice slowed down as Misao smirked; and it wasn't one of those cute friendly ones… this one was almost cynical. Before I knew it she had me shoved up against the cold cement floor, with a sharp dagger against my neck. This can't be happening…
"Misao?? What the fuck are you doing?!" The fact that her grin never faltered made me panic; which I instinctively replaced with overflowing anger. She pressed the dagger even harder against my skin, making me immediately regret raising my voice to her.
"Remember this dagger Kenshin?" She hissed evilly, "Of all things you MUST remember this dagger…after all," Misao tormented me as she softly brushed the edge of the blade from my jugular to my left cheek. "This is the blade I found in your room a day after the incident… This is the blade that gave you these scars."
I…I couldn't believe it. I did that to myself? The scars? The blade? With all the anger drained out of my face (replaced with disbelief) I could only stare…stupefied… with a blank face. Misao softly snickered at my bewilderment.
"Yes Kenshin, you did that to yourself. And why, you ask, did I tell you such confidential information?" She brought the blade back down to my jugular and I could feel my skin at its breaking point as the blade went under more and pressure. "Ever thought of why no one ever spoke of the Oniwabanshu?"
Oh shit… this was how I was going to die… lying on the hard cement floor in a warehouse of one of the world's most elite mafia, all because of some stupid phone call Soujiro made. It was obvious who I was going to haunt.
I could almost feel the blood trickle down my neck when Misao suddenly rolled off me… laughing her ASS OFF!! LITERALLY! Needless to say, I was a 'little' perturbed. "What the hell are you laughing about? That wasn't funny!" The fact that she only laughed harder made me more pissed off… "WILL YOU SHUT UP AND ANSWER MY QUESTION!!!"
Misao stopped her fit of guffaws, though not dropping her ear-to-ear smile, and stood up. She flipped the dagger as if it was nothing and placed it in its leather sheath which she had kept in her denim jacket. I was still, of course, pouting and sitting on the ground PISSED OFF as ever.
"OH C'MON!! You have to admit that was pretty damn funny! You looked like you were going to shit yourself!" She chuckled at my expense, AGAIN.
I scoffed and hoisted myself up. "That was NOT funny Misao, and YES I was going to shit myself, I haven't seen you in ten years and you are in Japan's most ruthless mafia." Understanding my point, she dropped the subject of her DISGUSTING 'joke' and led me to the room I was to stay for the next couple of days as Misao and her 'posse' figured out a safe route to get me to Chito without running into any of the other rivaling groups. It was in my small quaint room did I realize…
This is only the beginning.
Misao had given me back my belongings; and so, to ease my boredom, I couldn't help but read over and over the last part of this 'girl's' entry in her diary.
'So here I am, explaining the whole story to you. I can't really tell you how I'm feeling…besides overwhelmed, shocked, confused…and any other related synonym. I'll be taking you with me on the journey of course; I need you to vent my emotions and thoughts. But I'm sure hoping we'll be back before the twenty-second, that's the four year anniversary with him and I. Well, I think I'm going to call Misao before I go to bed. So as always…. Yours Truly…….'
That's when, for the first time…. It hit me. I couldn't believe I was so stupid to not see it before.
Well, I think I'm going to call Misao before I go to bed.
Misao knows this girl!!
I jumped out of bed and ran to the foyer, as it is there Misao would most likely be before she left for some 'business' she said she was going to.
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The Truman Show – It's a movie a couple years back starring Jim Carrey, it's where a man spent his whole life as a reality TV series without him knowing it. Interesting movie...lol
A/N: Hey guys, sorry that dragged ON AND ON and that it was just pure crap…. But I've got finals all week and I've had nothing but homework and studying since school started. Unfortunately, the three snow days we had didn't help me because that just meant I lost three studying days. Due to my lack of brain power since it was all sucked out by my teachers, I couldn't think of much to type in this chapter (WRITER'S BLOCK). So, once again, SORRY! But now you Misao-fans have her in the story!! *cheers!* Oh! And to you impatient readers, everything will be revealed soon… but now… I'd like you all to Review this chappy, tell me what you think, and answer this question for me "Should I have a twist ending?" Till next time… TTFN!
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