Disclaimer: Yet again, no, I do not own Kenshin. I am far too poor to. I apologize to any hearts in which this fact breaks.

Author's Notes: Okay. I didn't forget this time, the story just never crossed my mind… too much has been going on at the moment for me to really pay attention to writing (not to mention I'm in a Kenshin rut right now). So yes. My grandmother died June 10th, and we've been dealing with her medical problems for a few weeks now. I just haven't had the ability to write while I've been worrying over her and fixing problems with friends and such. You'll have to forgive me.

The Legend of Himura Kenshin

EPISODE 12- The Birth of a Boy Swordsman: The Battle of First Apprentice, Yahiko

Tsubame's View

I never meant for him to get involved in this; I didn't want anyone else to have to deal with the things I am. Why did Yahiko-chan make my misfortune his own?

Why did he try so hard to protect me? I don't like seeing anyone injured on my behalf; they wouldn't stop beating him. All that hitting, kicking, all the violenceand all Yahiko-chan was trying to do was get them to leave me alone. I had to give them the key. I couldn't stand to see Yahiko-chan like that any longer; he was in so much pain.

I've never seen a face laced with so much regret, anguish and disappointment. I've disappointed him so much, I know. He has a problem with hiding his emotions; they're in plain view from his eyes.

He was never supposed to get involved; this is my own problem, and no one else needs to carry the burden of it for me. I didn't ask for help, therefore I didn't need it. A slap is nothing to me, and it seems so selfish of me to cry because of it after watching how hard they beat Yahiko-chan. They would have continued if I hadn't of given them the key to Tae-san's home. I don't think he would have gotten out of there in very good health if I hadn't of requested them to stop.

And he's still fighting for me. Yahiko-chan isn't going to give up, and why he feels as if he has no choice but to protect me and stop them, I'll never understand.

As long as he tries, I will support him. He's gotten this far with wood against metal; there is no reason why he can't continue. This is his fight just as much as it is mine; if anything goes wrong, he has his friends close by to stop it. Until this fight is over and he has defeated his final foe, I will support him.

"You can do it! You have to, so please win Yahiko!"

Author's Notes: Yes, I did kinda skip around in the episode (I apologize) but Tsubame is so hard for me to write. I guess my skills aren't that grand. And you all have to forgive the shortness of my chapters. They aren't meant to be sixteen pages long—1 to 2, at the most. The whole story is going to have 95 chapters at least. I think that's long enough.

Love and hugs—

Crystal Renee