Katsu walked calmly away from Kijou, not speeding up or slowing down, just walking steadily on a path that would – eventually – lead out of the city.
Only when it did that, did he run.
Across fields and gardens, through streams and puddles – he ran without any thought but one: get away.
Finally, he reached his sanctuary.
It was not a particularly special or secret place, but it was his place, and Katsu had gone to great lengths to keep it so. Ever since he has stumbled onto this place as a child, he had been protecting it – not by hiding it, but by making it unattractive. There was beautiful countryside around here – no one in their right mind would choose Katsu's place over anywhere else.
Which was just fine with him – Katsu could deal with discomfort. It was the solitude he needed, though a casual observer would no doubt say he got quite enough of it without needing to seek any more out.
How wrong they were.
No matter how remote and unvisited his place was, it had never been as lonely as that broken-down old house in the middle of a busy city.
Katsu flung himself down on the barren ground, and pulled his knees up to his chest.
Not even Kijou knew where this place was, and they had been all but married …
Katsu shuddered, and swallowed back an upheaval of bile that rose in his throat at the memory of his time spent with the woman. Really, he was lucky he was as sane as he was now. Just one more year with her, even, and Tsukioka Katsuhiro would not likely exist.
But that didn't explain why she was here now.
He could confront her, perhaps, see what she really wanted … besides him, obviously.
Katsu thought back on the brief few minutes he had spent in her "company," and shuddered. No. no, he did not have the strength to face Kijou again. Talking back to her like that was the hardest thing he had ever done in his life, and, quite frankly, Katsu was surprised he wasn't hyperventilating by now.
Because, after all, Kijou …
Was …
Back …
Oh shit. There it goes.
Katsu placed his forehead on his knees and managed to croak out one weak prayer before giving in to the terror.
She was back.
**********************************
Okay, I need you guys' help. *sighs* I've finally broken down and accepted the fact that it would probably be a better idea for me to start my own site than stay fettered to ff.net and it subsidiary for the rest of my internet-writing career. Now I just need to go about the process of getting a site. If anyone can recommend a good server, preferably a free (or at least very cheap) one, as a) I'm broke and b) if you think that my parents have the inclination or the ability to pay big bucks for me to have a site just because I don't like the one I'm on (ff.net), then man oh man you have never met my parents. I think I'd rather get a boiling-oil enema than ask my dad that one. (Well, fine, he's not that bad. Make it saltwater.)
Oh, and anyone who can guess what Japanese word I based Kijou's name off of gets a cookie. Here's a hint: I only added one letter.
Kuroiyousei: Um, I never really say who asks Aoshi to keep an eye on Sano (I probably should have), but it's not Katsu, 'cause this is Aoshi making sure Sano doesn't do anything stupid like run off in the middle of the night to try and find Katsu, who has been gone all day, and who could not possibly have anticipated this happening. So the best guess is probably Kenshin – though he'd never say "don't do anything stupid" in so many words. And the guilt thing doesn't work if I can see through your plot, only when I actually do feel guilty, so nyah nyah. ^_^ I will catch up on that one missing one eventually, though, I swear!
Anaii: Interesting. Some of those I probably would have guessed, but about half of them would have been my last guesses (or almost-last). *ponders* *shrugs* Cool.
sawdust monster Thanks! Ill try not to disappoint! (Oh, and I love the name. It rox. Hehe. Sawdust. ^_^)