Living in the Past
Chapter 2
By Henrika
Henrika- Well, I actually managed to get another chapter up! Yea! Thanks to Sailor Kensjin, kenshinadmirer, and Kaiba-Angel for your reviews. And to answer Lady Ann Kenobi's question: A bit of a combination. Kenshin has always had these memories and feelings, but the battle with Enishi made them resurface. Hope that explains it. Enjoy the next chapter and don't forget to review!
"Kenshin?" Kaoru called softly, hoping he had already sensed her presence. There was no indication in his posture that he had heard her. "Kenshin." He failed to look up. Kaoru was agitated now. "Kenshin!" It was to no avail. "Kenshin you jerk! Pay attention when people are talking to you!" She yelled as she pegged him with a nearby bucket. Kaoru's eyes widened in fear when Kenshin didn't even say "Oro." Instead, he simply slumped over in the snow, the cloth slipping from his hands. She quickly ran to him as he raised himself up on his hands. When Kaoru reached his side she found him staring at red snow, a small trickle of blood from his mouth was staining the white landscape.
To Kaoru's horror, another trickle joined the first. Part of Kenshin's scar had begun to bleed. "Tomoe..." He breathed, before collapsing into the crimson snow.
"SANO! YAHIKO! HELP!" The pair fighting in the kitchen immediately came out at Kaoru's scream. Kaoru dragged Kenshin face-up so he could breathe.
"Jeez. What happened to him?" Yahiko asked as they ran over.
Sano stopped in front of Kenshin. "Yahiko, go get Megumi. Hurry!" Yahiko took off running; hoping he could get to Megumi fast enough, the image of red snow still in his mind.
"C'mon Missy, let's get him inside." Sano stooped to scoop Kenshin up. He's way too light. Sano thought as he picked the former wanderer up. He began walking towards Kenshin's room, Kaoru following silently behind him. Kaoru opened the shoji and Sano used his foot to spread out Kenshin's unused futon, placing the unconscious man on it. "Hey Kaoru, don't worry. Kenshin will be fine." Sano was gibbering and he knew it.
Kaoru had been crying silently since they took Kenshin to his room, but her tears lessened slightly at Sano's words. "I know." She whispered as she took Kenshin's freezing hand into hers.
#####################
Yahiko had made it to the Genzai clinic in record time, despite the thick snow. "Megumi!" He yelled as he burst through the gates.
Megumi was finishing her breakfast leisurely, since Dr. Genzai had taken Ayame and Suzume into town. She immediately dropped her chopsticks and ran for the clinic door when she heard Yahiko's cry. "Yahiko, what's wrong?" She asked, her serious tone not managing to hide the fear in her voice. A million possibilities raced through her mind at what could have sent Yahiko for her help.
"Kenshin...fainted...bleeding." Yahiko panted. One of her worst possibilities confirmed, Megumi became a whirlwind, writing a quick note to Dr. Genzai, grabbing her medicine chest, and locking the gate of the clinic.
"Let's go." She began running and Yahiko soon followed.
#####################
"Hey Kaoru, can you get a few compresses?. I think he has a fever." Sano said. Kaoru looked like she was going to protest, but after a glance at Kenshin, she went.
Sano used the time to get Kenshin out of his wet gi. He sucked in air through his teeth when he saw that the gash Kenshin received across the chest from his first fight with Enishi had re-opened and was bleeding profusely. Sano quickly undid the bandages on his left hand and hauled the limp man into a sitting position. He wrapped the bandages around Kenshin and slipped him into a clean yukata he found. He looks almost as bad as he did in Kyoto. Sano thought. "Kenshin, what the hell happened to you?" Sano muttered in frustration. Seconds later, Kaoru entered with a bowl of water and a handful of small towels.
Sano's un-bandaged hand caught her attention as she knelt down. "What happened to your bandage Sanosuke?"
Seeing that she had stopped crying, Sano was reluctant to tell the truth. After a moment, he pointed to the white chest bandage that was already turning red. "He's been pushing himself too hard." Sano explained. "He never let himself heal fully because he knew we were worried about him being hurt so badly. So he tried to ease our worrying by going back to his daily routine before he was healed!" Sano was angry by the end as he realized how much Kenshin was willing to sacrifice to spare his friends from any pain.
"Oh Kenshin." Kaoru didn't start crying again, but she did put her hand on Kenshin's forehead. "He's burning up." Kaoru said as she put a cool cloth on his forehead.
"Sir Ken!"
"Kenshin!"
Sano and Kaoru looked up at the pair frozen in the doorway. "How long has he been like this?" Megumi asked as she knelt down next to Kaoru.
"About fifteen minutes." Kaoru responded as Megumi began taking things out of her medicine chest.
"Beside the fact that he's been unconscious this entire time, is there anything else wrong?"
"He has a high fever." Kaoru supplied.
"And his chest wound re-opened." Sano added.
"Yahiko, could you warm up some water? I need it for this medicine." Megumi asked as she began mixing ingredients.
"Yeah, sure." Yahiko left.
"Sano, could you get more blankets?"
"Right." Sano began searching for extra blankets in the dojo.
"Kaoru, I need you to keep the compresses going." She nodded as the man in front of them grew paler and paler.
Henrika-I'm just evil aren't I? Hehee. Tell me what ya think!