If I loved you and didn't tell you, would you believe me?
Would you tell me if I answered yes?
Aoshi wanted to go back inside.
His hands were red and chapped, protesting at the frigid winds that slapped at them through the fabric of his well worn trench coat. He wouldn't even really be out in the town, not if it hadn't been for Okon and her incessant nagging for honey to go with the tea the Aoiya was serving . He had a sneaking suspicion that the sudden need for honey had come from the fact that everyone wanted him to get out of the house for a while. They were worried about him.
He snorted. They were wasting their time.
Well, somebody has to, Aoshi - sama.
He closed his eyes to the voice, finding it too soon in the day to hurt so much.
"Fresh fish!"
He recoiled slightly from the face of a mackerel shoved in his path, its eyes bulging, its mouth forever open in a hopeless gasp for its non existent air.
It had an infinite supply all around, and still couldn't breathe.
He nodded his head no to the hopeful merchant, turning away from the ugly sight. Shaking slightly to rid himself of the lingering smell, he turned and eyed the line of shops skeptically. Where in the seven hells was he supposed to find anything in this mob of people?
Sighing heavily, Aoshi squared his shoulders, took a deep breath and entered the fray.
"Pretty lady." Beady eyes followed the slim girl through the restaurant, focusing particularly on the way her hips moved while she walked. His smiled, showing his few remaining teeth. They were conveniently stained yellow to complement the tapestries of the teahouse.
The girl in question turned, eyes narrowing into ice blue slits.
Not a man, she mused, whom you would take home to your mother.
She smiled at him nonetheless, sparing him an inviting glance over her shoulder as she settled in for a drink at the counter. With one look, the bartender had a mug of steaming tea in front of her before he scurried away.
The girl shrugged off her heavy coat and warmed her hands around the cup. She sipped slowly, taking in the people who were watching her.
Strange... it is as if they know me from somewhere.
Amused, she shook her head. But that was impossible. She had never been to Kyoto before.
She caught snatches of conversation.
"It couldn't be, could it....?"
"It would....five years..."
"The Aoiya ....Shinomori..."
Shinomori...
She set her cup down with a snap, tossing some yen on the counter before picking up her coat and stalking out the door.
Shinomori Aoshi was not a happy man.
Considering murder, he looked down once more as another elbow poked him in the stomach.
It seemed impossible that the one day he was stuck doing household chores instead of being out there and looking, the one day that he was shopping of all things, everyone else in Kyoto had decided to do their shopping as well.
Sighing as he scanned the row of stores in disgust, he walked to the nearest shop and browsed the aisles. How many possible types of honey could there be?
Picking a bottle at random, Aoshi took it to the store owner while reaching into his pocket for the yen he had placed there.
A movement out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention.
A long black braid...
"Misao?" he whispered quietly, almost afraid to believe. Bowing a quick apology, Aoshi slammed the money in front of the bewildered shopkeeper, grabbed the jar and sprinted after the elusive vision.
I bet you can't catch me, Aoshi- sama!
"MISAO!"
He ran, shoving people out of his way with a few quick muttered apologies. The braid seemed to be dancing just slightly out of reach. Every time he was close enough to catch a glimpse of the girl's face, some innocent person stepped in his way and risked being cut down by twin kodachi. All he could see was the braid and flashes of her blue kimono.
'It couldn't be, Shinomori' he argued with himself. 'She's been gone for five years! Surely you wouldn't just find her walking the streets of Kyoto in front of your very eyes!'
But, oh, how he wanted to believe in foolish hopes again.
He ran faster, urging people out of his path as the girl turned and headed towards the train station. She disappeared from sight as the gates swung open to admit her in. She must have a ticket, he realized with a sinking heart.
With a last burst of speed, he burst through the gates of the station ignoring shouts of protest, and looked wildly around.
People turned their gazes away and whispered to each other behind their gloved hands, but Aoshi saw none of it. All he could see was that black braid.
There she was! After all of this time, he finally had hope. Forgetting everything else but her, Aoshi grasped the girl's arm.
'Misao.'
She turned, startled.
And his hope failed. He could actually feel his heart drop to his knees.
She did have a black braid. But her eyes weren't Misao 's. Nothing was.
He staggered away from the young woman's questioning gaze.
He had let himself hope again, just for a fleeting instant. Just for an instant, he had thought that this living hell would end.
He covered his face with his hands and leaned drunkenly against the stark white wall.
But he was wrong.
If he would have looked up, he would have seen the pair of azure eyes that regarded him with a mixture of confusion, pity and contempt, peering out from a seat on the train. As the person turned, she tossed a single braid over her shoulder.
'Aoshi -sama...'
Misao -chan will always love Aoshi - sama! Forever and ever and ever...
Author's Note:
Whew! Another chapter of Surrender complete. Did you like the ending? People say that I have the gift of suspense. *beam* I hope that my writing isn't boring you or anything- I try! *sob* Some people have wanted me to leave an author's note...so...here it is.
When I started this story, I actually only had one idea in my mind: a single line that I had used in my first ever Rurouni Kenshin fanfic. (Which will, due to its poorness, never see the light of day... -_-;) I'll be using it soon, but until then, ideas have just been swarming my mind.
I started off as a vignette author- loving to explore the complexities of Kenshin and Aoshi's minds- how could they deny the hearts of the two women who loved them above all else? In vignettes I could try to explain, but the absence of plot always presented me with limitations.
I started to write plot wise with, of course, Kenshin and Kaoru as my star couple. (And, sorry, btw, about the delay in I'll Give you Forever, I'm a very busy student...), and enjoyed putting them through different situations. If it was either exploring the lighter side of the rurouni in GYF or trying to explain the darker side of Battousai in Black Heart, I was in heaven. I started to concentrate on Kenshin and Kaoru instead of Aoshi and Misao, Aoshi one whom I also love to explore. But when I was reading through some of my early works, I found a quote that I had written. And Surrender was born.
Aoshi and Misao are one of my favorite couples due to the inexplicable odds against them. The differences are astounding- not just the age, but their personalities and their maturity.
I had always tended to find Misao annoying in the anime- or at least during the Kyoto Arc- and soon realized that I was wrong. Misao is one of the most mature characters in the series. To have the strength and courage to go out and search for her love, and then to have the patience to actually wait by his side for so long...It is truly admirable, to say the least. Aoshi is one that I had also tended to lean towards, not only due to the fact that he is one finely drawn man... (-_-;), but I'm also drawn to his soul. The darkness that threatens to devour him in this story is one that I imagine he has to face each and every day. How hard is it to be a manslayer or a samurai or a killer in a time of peace- where everyone fears and despises what it is that you represent?
Thank you for reading. God Bless. *bows*
Until next chapter...
Chikai Tenshi