WOW! It took me a long time to update! Sry guys! Reviews, as always, are appreciated and will win you chappie 3 ;)
THIS WILL NOT BE A KAORU GETS CAPTURED STORY! Solely because I think they're overdone and I wanted to do something new and original. I'm just making that clear now. (:
I want to reply to my lovely reviewers who ROCK my BEiNG!!
CEEGEE- *dances* THANK YOU! you have reviewed every RK thing I've ever posted and it means SOOOOO much, seriously!! Even some of my worst stuff *believe me, I know that some of it was horrible* you supported me on! Thanks again for being there ^_^
ShilviGrl/Amyjenc1- Yes mam! It's a little strange, I know… but I have a reason. Hope you like the chappie and thanks for the review! ^____^
Elizabeth-
Thankies! I have long been an admirer of your writing
and I thank you whole heartedly for reviewing my work! You da
Grrrrl!
Someone's been busy updating too, good gosh
girl!!!@_@
Quist- Why thank you! I hope you like the next
installment, and your review was much, much appreciated!
Crystal Renee- YOU RULE! Hehe, thanks for the neverending support my amazing authoress buddy! ^____^
Fanfiction Wanderer- Awwww, much thanks! Your continued support means muchos! And you know, you can update your story any time now!! I'm dying for the next installment! ;)
Clemen- thanks bunches!! Here's hoping you stick around to read this chapter, too ^_^
Dark Mave- Your wish is my command! Thanks for the review!!
Koishii Sweet- you make my day! And write such lovely reviews!!! Thanks so much and I hope you enjoy this chapter also ^____^
ToHeLlWiThThEnIcKs- WOW! That was hard to type! Hehehe, I know I'm wicked, thankies for noticing! And don't worry, more drama on the way! Thanks for the review :)
MZ. AMbER EYES- Kaoru and Kenshin fighting! Hehe, hope you like this chapter!!
Momo girl- Happy to oblige! Thanks so much for the nice review!
Silver Goddess1- *bows* why, thank you ever so much! Hope this chapter is as
fun to read as it was to write!
Reviews, as always are MUCH appreciated!!
The parasol was gone from the stand in the hallway.
He didn't have to physically see it to know that it was missing, he felt it disappear. But why should he care? If she decided to leave without telling him, why should he make any effort to-
Because he was Kenshin and she was Kaoru and it was dark, stormy, and raining. That's why.
And because he'd kill himself if anything ever happened to her. Take his katana and drive it straight through the heart of the matter, literally. But of course, that's what love will do to you…
He put on his tabi socks and sandals, padded softly down the hallway to avoid waking Yahiko, and tried to follow the muddied, faint tracks out front leading away from the dojo.
But if anyone asked, he was NOT whipped. Not in the least…….
**********
Kenshin's hair was thick, so when it got wet it was almost heavier than his Katana that hung about his slender waist. And as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop, it snapped on his back like a whip, a driving force. He wondered slightly whether the people sleeping below the blue tiles were startled awake by his pouncing on their roofs, but then again, he really didn't care too much. The only thing he cared about was….
At any rate, the footprints led on through twisted alleyways and down roads that had since turned into creeks with the recent rainfall. Then, the tracks became further apart, possibly because the owner had sprinted into a run. They took a direct turn through an iron gate, up a sloppy slope, past a few oddly shaped rocks, and then…
The parasol wavered lightly in the falling rain. Kenshin looked down at her from a nearby rooftop, her hair loose and hanging off her shoulders. She hadn't even bothered to put on her kimono, and so, she stood in her white night frock over what appeared to be… yes it was…
A grave.
A chiseled granite stone bore a name and a date which Kenshin could not read from where he was standing.
He watched her knees collapse under her.
He watched her sink to the ground, hands covering her face, and drop the parasol by her side. Mud marred her white night shift and mist collected in her finely combed hair making it appear dipped in silver.
She merely sat there in the earth, her shoulders shaking with the intensity of her emotions, her tears mixing with the rain.
**********
Kaoru knew her knees had given out, knew she was laying in the equivalent of a mud bath, she just didn't know how long she had been there. And she couldn't exactly tell if those were tears or raindrops streaming down her pink cheeks.
Not that it mattered all that much.
Finally, she reached into the folds of her nightshift and pulled out a pearl hair comb.
"Mother," She started, her voice at less than a whisper. "you would have been forty today… I have nothing else to give you but this."
With her alabaster hands, she dug a little hole in front of her mother lonely grave. "There! Take it back!" With one swift movement, she buried it and drew her knees up to her stomach, rocking back and forth.
Her voice turned icy.
"I am NOTHING like you!" with this, she hit the ground hard with one fist.
"But, dammit, I could have been…. I could have been everything like you, a real woman, like Megumi!" a sob escaped into the night air.
"Wh…why did you have to leave me? Why did you have to leave me?!"
No answer came.
**********
'So the comb had been her mothers,' Kenshin thought. 'And that's why she's mad…' At least it was somewhat of an explanation towards her outburst.
'I should really go hold the umbrella over her.' His mind continued working on its own. 'It would be the Rurouni thing to do…' Kenshin shook his red mane causing water to fly off in 1000 different directions and began to slide off the rooftop.
It pained him to see her hurting so. Maybe his quiet eyes could help her… at least, that's what he hoped.
**********
The coldness was getting under her skin. She just knew she was going to be sick in the morning. And then, Kenshin would lightly scold her for going out on such a night. Any minute now, she felt she would find the courage to move, to stand and walk away. If she only sat here a minute or two longer.
Just a few more seconds, really….
A few more….
But, suddenly, the rain seemed to stop. Well, at any rate, she couldn't feel it on her back anymore. However, the sound of it hitting the gravestones and bouncing off onto the ground was all around her.
It must be Kenshin. It must be Kenshin being a dear and holding the parasol over her.
"Oh….Kenshin……" It was almost to herself, but loud enough for him to hear. The person beside her kneeled down.
"Is this…Kenshin?" they said, pointing to the gravestone as if the man she spoke of was buried there.
Kaoru snapped her eyes open at a voice that was unfamiliar.
She jumped sideways, her eyes wide and turned towards the tall figure beside her.
It was definitely…not…Kenshin.
The man stood up, a tall figure with dark hair and a prominent jawline. He handed the closed umbrella to Kaoru and ran a hand through his wet short locks. His fancy western-style buisiness suit was soaked through. Something about his eyes made Kaoru's heart leap, the kindness contained in them radiated through and warmed her.
"Here you are." He said, smiling, his voice deep and masculine yet comforting. "You know, pretty young women really shouldn't be out alone at this hour. What are you doing out here?"
Kaoru let a little half smile grace her lips as she took the umbrella out of his hands. "I could ask you the same question, mister. And not that it's any of your buisiness, but I can take care of myself much more effectively than you assume."
He laughed, and his eyes shone brighter than before. "I have no doubt. But you see, it would make me feel much better if you would allow me to escort you to wherever you're headed next… only for me to know that you arrived safely, you see."
"Well…. I can't exactly stop you." She stood up and opened the umbrella, twirling it over her shoulder. This caused water to fly everywhere, even all over him. He laughed again, a happy laugh, and jumped to catch up with Kaoru, as she was already walking away.
"I'm Takahashi Kazuo." He held out his arm for her to take, a strong arm clad in the finest fabric.
"Kamiya Kaoru."
"Charmed, I'm sure."
Kaoru smiled to herself.
'So there is heaven in a graveyard….' She thought.
**********
"So there is hell in a graveyard." He murmured, under his breath. Who was this man and why did he have his arm wrapped around Kaoru-dono like that? And why was she smiling? Did she actually like that? Did she actually think that this guy was handsome or something? He was the exact opposite of Kenshin! Surely, this guy with his gorgeous raven hair and domineering features, his 6 foot stature-
Okay… so maybe she did.
But certainly, this little half-wit prick couldn't-
Was that jealousy filling Kenshin's mind? Or was it Battousai? No, it wasn't Battousai, but a Rurouni plagued with something akin to a green eyed monster.
The man wasn't even a swordsman, Kenshin knew. He was a buisiness type, no katana about his waist, and his ki was so damn pleasant…. His muscles weren't built in the right places to hold a sword either. Still, if he was with Kaoru…
He would follow this man and his Kaoru from the rooftops.
And one wrong move,
One wrong move and that fancy little suit of Mr. Takahashi's was going to become very, very bloody.
**********
The walk back to the dojo seemed to take no more than a couple of seconds.
Stupid dojo.
Why couldn't you have been even a little bit farther away?
Kaoru had even deliberately taken a wrong turn just to spend more time with this enchanting Kazuo man. She was so rattled and her mouth was moving so fast that she barely even knew what she was saying. But, he seemed to overlook her flighty, bubbly ways.
Now she knew how Misao felt with 'Lord Aoshi'.
"And then," she heard herself say, "Kenshin spilled beef pot stew all over me!"
Why was she telling him that?
What kind of an idiot was she? She gave herself a mental smack. But Kazuo chuckled again and smiled for the millionth time that night.
"Aa. C'est la vie, no?" He stated matter-of-factly. Too bad Kaoru had no idea what he had stated.
"Erm… yes…?"
His eyes were sweet as he stopped in the street and turned her towards him. The dojo gate was just up ahead and yet, Kaoru was resisting the temptation to enter and leave Kazuo behind.
"Surely, you've heard French?"
"Iie." Kaoru blushed at her stupidity.
"Oh! Well, we'll have to fix that. Repeat after me. J'accompagnerai l'indigne Kazuo…"
"Juh acoump-ahh-gerai luh indine Kazuo…"
"Sur un promenade autour de la ville…"
"Sourr un pro-meh-nahde aou-toour de la viuelle…"
"Demain après-midi."
"Deh-man app-ray mi-dih."
"Excellet, Miss Kamiya!"
Kaoru donned a look of confusion. "Eh… what did I say?"
"You said that you would accompany the unworthy Kazuo on a walk around the city tomorrow afternoon." Kaoru's face lit up when she heard his words. "You will, won't you?" There was a pleading quality in Kazuo's eyes as he asked her.
"Hai! Of course I will!"
"Great. I'm down here from Hokkaido on oil buisiness and I'd love to see a bit of the city before I leave. Shall I pick you up around one then?"
Kaoru could feel the blush creeping up her cheeks. "That would be… delightful…"
With one fluid motion, he took her hand in his and kissed it gracefully. "I am deeply honored. Until tomorrow, mon petite chou." And with that, he turned to walk away.
"W… what does that mean?" Kaoru managed to choke out.
"I'll tell you tomorrow!"
He tipped his black fedora to her and with that, he was gone.
Surely, surely this can't be what love feels like, can it?
**********
Battousai and Kenshin were both very angry.
"The 'unworthy' bit's ours, Rurouni."
"Sessha knows this… sessha just doesn't know what sessha is going to do about it…"
"Well you better think of something fast… otherwise…"
Somehow, by the expression on the delighted Kaoru-dono's face, both Rurouin and Battousai knew it was just a bit too late to do anything at all.
THIS
WILL NOT BE A KAORU GETS CAPTURED STORY! I REPEAT! NO! so
if you want one of those, you better look elsewhere. Hehehe,
anyways, next chapter: a crazy jealous Kenshin and a giddy Kaoru finding the man
of her dreams!!! That is, if you review!
Please?
Till next time
-o-
Kawaii Lara-chan
