Once again it tingles.
He woke up from his fitful slumber, aware all at once of the stillness inside his room at the dojo.
Slowly his hand crept to his cheek, his fingers tracing the scar, feeling an almost slow burn as flesh contacted flesh. The two crisscrossing lines throbbed as though they had a life of their own.
He raised his fingers to look at it, as though some part of him expected to encounter blood on its tips. But there was nothing.
Kenshin dropped his hand and his head hung. Closing his eyes, his mind conjured the random images that assailed him in his dreams. But nothing concrete would come into view.
They were all a mish-mash of images that meant nothing to him. Or at least they seemed to.
But he knew they were supposed to mean something. After all, why would these dreams be haunting him? And why would this scar throb every time he wakes up?
The only thing that clearly registered is the sound of a girl crying out, followed by the characteristic sound of a blade slicing through thin air.
Could it be Tomoe rising up from the dead to make him pay for what had happened all those years ago?
Kenshin shook his head. No, it can't be. Ghosts may linger, but they rarely manifest themselves in puzzling dreams. If they came back to awaken his guilt, then all their efforts are futile, for he lives with them every single minute of every day.
And her voice...the voice of that faceless – and figureless – girl. It sounded nothing like Tomoe's. It sounded younger...and there was a trace of outrage in her cry.
The dreams are getting worse. And more frequent, too. But why do their meanings continue to elude him?
His thoughts were harshly interrupted by a loud crash just outside his door, sending him instantly to his feet, his hands reaching for his scabbard.
A loud sigh of relief came out when he heard the muffled whispers outside his door.
"Yahiko! Won't you be quiet!" came Sanosuke's irritated voice.
"You're the one who's causing all the ruckus!" came Yahiko's hissed reply.
Both eavesdroppers stumbled back when the door was opened suddenly and they saw Kenshin standing there, looking at them.
"Good morning," said Kenshin brightly. "What are you two doing here? Shouldn't you be at the kitchen, helping Kaoru with breakfast?"
The two had sheepish guilt written all over their faces as they scrambled to their feet and made every effort not to look Kenshin in the eye.
"We...uhm...we were just wondering how you were," Sanosuke hastened to explain. "Yahiko said he heard some noises coming from here last night.'
Yahiko shrugged. "I was just worried, that's all. I was afraid you had a nightmare."
Kenshin smiled slightly, surprised to hear that even in the waking world the dreams would manifest itself. "What noises, exactly?"
The young boy's face lit up at the opportunity to tell some story. "I went out yesterday to answer the call of nature, when I heard you talking. I thought there was someone with you so I dismissed it, but then I heard your voice getting louder so I...you know...I sort of...eavesdropped."
The thought of Yahiko prying into his privacy did not bother Kenshin as much as the idea of him talking in his sleep. "What exactly did you hear?" he asked.
Yahiko blinked at him. "You mean...you don't remember?"
This merited slap at the back of the head by Sanosuke. "Would he be asking you if he did?"
Yahiko glared at Sanosuke. "Hey! What did you do that for?"
"You were being dumb-ass stupid, as usual!"
"Who are you calling - "
Kenshin's calm voice broke through their petty argument. "Come on, stop that." When the two settled down, he asked again. "What did I say, Yahiko?"
His forehead creased, the young boy replied, "It wasn't that clear what you have spoken. Mainly it sounded more like gibberish to me. But then you sort of yelled something."
"Something?"
"Get to the point, pighead!" Sanoduke prodded impatiently, obviously curious what Yahiko had heard the previous night.
Yahiko ignored the pointed insult and went on. "You said something like, 'Keep away from my girl!' and then you screamed 'No!' That really worried me, and I was about to go in but then you kept quiet. I figured you were just having a bad dream so I just went back to my room." He squinted at Kenshin, who instantly became thoughtful. "I was right, wasn't I?" he asked.
Kenshin did not reply immediately. He was too caught up in his own thoughts.
"Kenshin?" Yahiko prodded, getting concerned now.
As though shaken from his reverie, Kenshin looked at the two and said, "You're right, Yahiko. It was just a dream."
"Well, does it mean anything?" Yahiko asked again.
Kenshin shrugged. "I don't remember much of it, so I highly doubt that."
Sanosuke sighed with relief. "Well, that's a relief! Yahiko was real worked up when he told me about it this morning. By the way," he said, remembering something. "You had a dream about a girl?" Mischief overcame his face as he leaned closer towards Kenshin and whispered conspiratorially, "Don't ever let Kaoru hear that. You know how she gets!"
Kenshin merely nodded, not really feeling like joining in on the joke.
"Are you sure it was nothing?" Sanosuke asked, assessing Kenshin's face closely.
Trying his best to reassure them, Kenshin gave a small smile. "It's nothing. No need to worry. Now you two go help Miss Kaoru or she'll have your hide for sure."
Sanosuke gave a careless shrug. "Oh, she'll be alright. She is probably the worst cook I've seen in my entire life, but I have to admit she is improving."
Yahiko sniffed the air. "Wait a minute...Sano, can you smell that?"
Sanosuke tried to sniff along. "What...what is it?"
Kenshin smiled. "Smells like something burning."
Sanosuke and Yahiko looked at each other. Then both bolted towards the kitchen, where smoke is now coming out.
"Kaoru! What did you do to our breakfast!?"
"Kaoru! What have you done!!?"
Kenshin watched them go, but amusement at their outrage over another burnt offering at the breakfast table is the farthest thing from his mind right now.
Again the cry came back, more vivid now. Then the swishing sound of a blade cutting through the air.
He remembers it now.
There was another sound after that.
The sound of the blade hitting something. Cutting through.
Kenshin shook his head, leaning against the door weakly.
Why couldn't he remember all of it? Why do they come only in meaningless sequence, in disrupted motion?
Why don't they make sense at all?
And what does he have to do with it?
He woke up from his fitful slumber, aware all at once of the stillness inside his room at the dojo.
Slowly his hand crept to his cheek, his fingers tracing the scar, feeling an almost slow burn as flesh contacted flesh. The two crisscrossing lines throbbed as though they had a life of their own.
He raised his fingers to look at it, as though some part of him expected to encounter blood on its tips. But there was nothing.
Kenshin dropped his hand and his head hung. Closing his eyes, his mind conjured the random images that assailed him in his dreams. But nothing concrete would come into view.
They were all a mish-mash of images that meant nothing to him. Or at least they seemed to.
But he knew they were supposed to mean something. After all, why would these dreams be haunting him? And why would this scar throb every time he wakes up?
The only thing that clearly registered is the sound of a girl crying out, followed by the characteristic sound of a blade slicing through thin air.
Could it be Tomoe rising up from the dead to make him pay for what had happened all those years ago?
Kenshin shook his head. No, it can't be. Ghosts may linger, but they rarely manifest themselves in puzzling dreams. If they came back to awaken his guilt, then all their efforts are futile, for he lives with them every single minute of every day.
And her voice...the voice of that faceless – and figureless – girl. It sounded nothing like Tomoe's. It sounded younger...and there was a trace of outrage in her cry.
The dreams are getting worse. And more frequent, too. But why do their meanings continue to elude him?
His thoughts were harshly interrupted by a loud crash just outside his door, sending him instantly to his feet, his hands reaching for his scabbard.
A loud sigh of relief came out when he heard the muffled whispers outside his door.
"Yahiko! Won't you be quiet!" came Sanosuke's irritated voice.
"You're the one who's causing all the ruckus!" came Yahiko's hissed reply.
Both eavesdroppers stumbled back when the door was opened suddenly and they saw Kenshin standing there, looking at them.
"Good morning," said Kenshin brightly. "What are you two doing here? Shouldn't you be at the kitchen, helping Kaoru with breakfast?"
The two had sheepish guilt written all over their faces as they scrambled to their feet and made every effort not to look Kenshin in the eye.
"We...uhm...we were just wondering how you were," Sanosuke hastened to explain. "Yahiko said he heard some noises coming from here last night.'
Yahiko shrugged. "I was just worried, that's all. I was afraid you had a nightmare."
Kenshin smiled slightly, surprised to hear that even in the waking world the dreams would manifest itself. "What noises, exactly?"
The young boy's face lit up at the opportunity to tell some story. "I went out yesterday to answer the call of nature, when I heard you talking. I thought there was someone with you so I dismissed it, but then I heard your voice getting louder so I...you know...I sort of...eavesdropped."
The thought of Yahiko prying into his privacy did not bother Kenshin as much as the idea of him talking in his sleep. "What exactly did you hear?" he asked.
Yahiko blinked at him. "You mean...you don't remember?"
This merited slap at the back of the head by Sanosuke. "Would he be asking you if he did?"
Yahiko glared at Sanosuke. "Hey! What did you do that for?"
"You were being dumb-ass stupid, as usual!"
"Who are you calling - "
Kenshin's calm voice broke through their petty argument. "Come on, stop that." When the two settled down, he asked again. "What did I say, Yahiko?"
His forehead creased, the young boy replied, "It wasn't that clear what you have spoken. Mainly it sounded more like gibberish to me. But then you sort of yelled something."
"Something?"
"Get to the point, pighead!" Sanoduke prodded impatiently, obviously curious what Yahiko had heard the previous night.
Yahiko ignored the pointed insult and went on. "You said something like, 'Keep away from my girl!' and then you screamed 'No!' That really worried me, and I was about to go in but then you kept quiet. I figured you were just having a bad dream so I just went back to my room." He squinted at Kenshin, who instantly became thoughtful. "I was right, wasn't I?" he asked.
Kenshin did not reply immediately. He was too caught up in his own thoughts.
"Kenshin?" Yahiko prodded, getting concerned now.
As though shaken from his reverie, Kenshin looked at the two and said, "You're right, Yahiko. It was just a dream."
"Well, does it mean anything?" Yahiko asked again.
Kenshin shrugged. "I don't remember much of it, so I highly doubt that."
Sanosuke sighed with relief. "Well, that's a relief! Yahiko was real worked up when he told me about it this morning. By the way," he said, remembering something. "You had a dream about a girl?" Mischief overcame his face as he leaned closer towards Kenshin and whispered conspiratorially, "Don't ever let Kaoru hear that. You know how she gets!"
Kenshin merely nodded, not really feeling like joining in on the joke.
"Are you sure it was nothing?" Sanosuke asked, assessing Kenshin's face closely.
Trying his best to reassure them, Kenshin gave a small smile. "It's nothing. No need to worry. Now you two go help Miss Kaoru or she'll have your hide for sure."
Sanosuke gave a careless shrug. "Oh, she'll be alright. She is probably the worst cook I've seen in my entire life, but I have to admit she is improving."
Yahiko sniffed the air. "Wait a minute...Sano, can you smell that?"
Sanosuke tried to sniff along. "What...what is it?"
Kenshin smiled. "Smells like something burning."
Sanosuke and Yahiko looked at each other. Then both bolted towards the kitchen, where smoke is now coming out.
"Kaoru! What did you do to our breakfast!?"
"Kaoru! What have you done!!?"
Kenshin watched them go, but amusement at their outrage over another burnt offering at the breakfast table is the farthest thing from his mind right now.
Again the cry came back, more vivid now. Then the swishing sound of a blade cutting through the air.
He remembers it now.
There was another sound after that.
The sound of the blade hitting something. Cutting through.
Kenshin shook his head, leaning against the door weakly.
Why couldn't he remember all of it? Why do they come only in meaningless sequence, in disrupted motion?
Why don't they make sense at all?
And what does he have to do with it?