To Reveal All
Chapter 20: Revealing Restraint
By steelphoenix
Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin, or any of its characters.
Author's Notes: I am positively evil with Sano and Megumi in this chapter. It's a bit predictable and fluffy, what happens, but it needed to be done, or so I think… /sweatdrops/ You'll either love or hate these scenes… I hope you love them!
I had no idea whatsoever what to call this chapter… I hope 'Revealing Restraint' works for you guys!
About the 'vision' sequence from the last chapter: the girl with the red-and-gold fan was Megumi, the girl with her was Kaoru, and the boys were Kenshin (duh) and Sano.
Also: Well done to evilteddybear and Raeyn-chan for guessing (albeit unintentionally, Raeyn-chan!) about what's going to happen. I probably shouldn't have put the obvious hint in, but anyway… /wheels in a stretcher, with Battousai tied to it, apparently unconscious/
evilteddybear/confused/ Why's he on the stretcher?
Raeyn-chan/pokes Battousai/ And unconscious, too?
Nix: He utterly refused to be given to someone else who may, or may not, use him for yaoi purposes.
Battousai/waking up/ Oh, my head… /notices he's tied up, minus katana/ NOOOOO! DON'T GIVE ME AWAY, NIX-CHAN! PLEEEEEAAAAASE! AT LEAST YOU DON'T USE ME FOR YAOI!
evilteddybear: I won't use you for yaoi… promise…
Raeyn-chan: I won't either… /giggles/
Battousai/wriggles out from bonds, hides behind Nix/ They said that last time… Please, Nix… Haven't I been a good Muse to you/practically begging/
Nix/shoves him towards evilteddybear and Raeyn-chan/ Please give him back, and relatively unharmed… I don't consider using him for yaoi 'harmed'.
Battousai: NOOOOOO!
(I'm sorry for any mischaracterisation, evilteddybear and Raeyn-chan.)
Language Notes: Tabi are the split-toed socks traditionally worn with sandals.
Warnings: PG-13 for sexual situations/scenes and violence in other chapters. No language warnings.
Megumi wandered along the passage, her senses pleasantly hazy. Her mood was pleasantly hazy too – something between happiness and silliness. Well, Kenshin's awake. That's good… maybe we'll be able to get Kaoru out of that damn room now…
"Aaaah, what does it matter?" she muttered. She had admired Kaoru for the single-minded devotion that allowed her to concentrate solely on Kenshin, and getting him well again. But the single-mindedness also annoyed her. How can anyone give so much attention to someone…?
Her attention was wandering, and that was why she didn't see the man coming out of the toilet. With a crash, she ran straight into him. He tried to catch her as she fell against him, but he overbalanced, and they ended on the floor.
"Ow…" My head feels odd, she thought. She giggled faintly, the haziness turning from a mix of happiness and silliness to pure silliness.
A deep voice recalled her to where she was: collapsed on the floor, lying on top of a man. "Megumi? Are you okay?"
She'd recognise that voice anywhere. With another 'ow', she clambered to her feet. "Yes, I'm fine, Sano. Just a little… oops…" she wobbled unsteadily, giggling, "…tipsy…"
"Heh, been out on the booze, Fox?" she could hear the grin in his voice, and in her drunken state, took offence. Her voice snapped indignantly. "No, I've been a geisha!" Then the sheer idiocy of the statement made itself known, and she giggled again.
Sano winced. She was obviously more than 'tipsy' if she was this giddy, and the comment about her work – which she had no way of getting out of, right now – caused a swirl of jealousy, but he forced it down, lest she should see it. "Hey, no offence! But you'll need to sleep it off – come on." He walked up to her, and wrapped his arm around her – the right. His left side couldn't support much weight yet.
They made their way along the corridor, Megumi swaying quite a bit, but eventually they made it to Sano's bedroom.
The Fox'll need the futon to sleep in. Dammit, I'm stuck with the floor… thought Sano as he assisted her to the bed. Pulling back the covers, he pushed the still-giggling Megumi inside, and dropped them back in place. As he pulled away to make up a bed of his own, Megumi grabbed his arm, and said, "You're coming with me!" A fresh set of giggles bubbled up.
"Um… Fox… That wouldn't be right… um…" Sano was at a loss as to what to do. He loved her, yes, knew she loved him, yes, but he didn't want to harm that relationship, new as it was. Taking advantage of her wouldn't be a good thing…
" 'Course it would be!" replied Megumi, grinning up at him. "I love you, now come to bed!"
Sano's face heated. This wasn't exactly what he'd envisioned when he'd pictured going to bed with Megumi… nor was it what he'd wanted. If only there was some way to distract her long enough to let her fall asleep…
"Nah, gotta take off my jacket," he replied, inspiration suddenly striking. He fingered his 'aku'-mark coat. "You lie down, I'll come later."
"No jacket… hmmm…" Sano could almost sense the fox ears appearing on Megumi's head. Before he could react, she reached out and grabbed the shoulders of the coat, and yanked it off. "Now," she said, "Come on in."
"But…" Sano was still protesting. Megumi ended the argument by leaning forwards, grabbing him about the waist, and pulling. The thrust of movement was too sudden for Sano, and he overbalanced.
They landed on the futon, Sano on top of Megumi.
"Just the way I wanted," she commented, and lifted her head to place a kiss on the stunned Sano's lips. Then her head snuggled into the pillow, and the softest of sighs announced that she had gone to sleep.
Sano ever-so-carefully rolled off, but couldn't extricate himself from Megumi's hold. She had her hands wrapped though the belt of his pants, and there was no way to escape, short of waking her or taking off his pants – neither of which he was too keen to do.
He sighed to himself. Well, I get to sleep with her – just not the sort of 'sleep' I wanted… Wrapping his arms around her shoulders, he pulled her into his chest, and allowed himself to relax.
-
"Mmmmm…" Megumi sighed contentedly, and snuggled closer into the big, warm body next to her. So warm…
Wait a second… her brain decided to start functioning. Warm body?
She opened her eyes, and moved to lean on her elbow. A head was on the futon pillow next to where hers had been, and as she moved, the owner of the head was disturbed, and his eyes opened.
Dark chocolate eyes that matched dark chocolate hair nearly exactly.
A smile flicked across his mouth, and he said, "Woke up at last, Fox?"
"Yes… Why am I in the same futon as you, Sano?" It was a reasonable enough question, she thought, but the wicked grin that it awoke said that there was something else to the story.
"Well…" he grinned at her with that maddening mischievousness, "There was a certain fox who was very drunk, and very keen on having me in her futon, which is actually mine anyway, and since she wouldn't let go of me, I ended up in this position."
Megumi gaped. All the information added to a rather nasty picture: she'd gotten drunk at a party (a mistake), had come to the dojo instead of back to the okiya (a worse mistake), had somehow run into Sano (not a mistake), and tried to seduce him (the worst mistake yet).
At least we're both dressed… she thought, then mentally checked her outfit. Tabi, present; nagajuban, intact; kimono, present, but crumpled; obi, loosened, but there; hair… "Damn…" she said as she realised the state of her hair.
"What?" asked Sano. He had been watching the changing expressions on her face, and the way her hands unconsciously moved said that she was checking that she was fully dressed. Now she sat up, and her hands slid up to pat the chignons of hair on her head. The elaborate style only reminded him that she was a geisha, and again, a rush of jealousy filled him. But he knew that there was no way he could get her out – the okiya mistress wouldn't let two geishas go at once, especially when one was extremely popular, and he'd already promised the two thousand ryo to Kenshin, for Kaoru.
Megumi winced at the feel of the hair beneath her palms. It was utterly unsalvageable. Twists of hair lay flat against her head where they were supposed to be puffed, and hair that was supposed to be smooth was a round as a pillow. She muttered another curse, and began yanking out the pins.
"Um, Megumi? What're you doing that for?" asked Sano, bemused at her actions.
"I'm… damn pins… taking out this hairstyle, what… grrrr… does it look like?" was the answer. Megumi jerked out another pin with surprising annoyance.
"Yeah, but why?" Sano asked again – she hadn't answered his question.
Megumi replied, "Because, Sano, I need to prevent the pins from being broken. If I don't take them out, they will be. And besides, they dig into my head."
"Ah! I see!" The man watched for a minute, but he couldn't see much – moonlight through the shoji was the only illumination, and though it was bright, he still couldn't make out just what her hands were doing. "Do you want some light?"
The offer came at the right time. "Yes, please," the geisha answered, wrestling with a comb at the end of a long loop. As Sano lit the oil lamp, the room was flooded with a warm glow. It illuminated Megumi from behind, outlining her finally succeeding in removing the stuck comb.
Dammit… this is the problem with these hairstyles… The fox-woman reached for the next comb.
Before she touched it, a big hand descended, and caught hers. "Do you need help with that?" a whisper in her ear.
"I could do with some help…" she said, her voice slightly husky, the alcohol she'd had earlier still warm in her veins.
A slight tug to her hair indicated that Sano had pulled out another pin. His fingers were gentle against her scalp, and with a slow uncoiling of the waxed hair, the next chignon unravelled. The next, and the next followed, until there were no more pins and no more coiled hair.
"All done," said Sano's deep voice, and she felt the gentle warmth of his arms around her shoulders, hugging her from behind. "Shall we go back to sleep?"
Megumi's heart skipped a beat briefly. Why would I want to go to sleep? asked her mind, already slipping through the possibilities of what could happen if she didn't.
"But I want to sleep with you…" slipped out her lips before she thought to restrain it.
The body pressed up into her back tensed, and then Sano nosed at her hair, seeking her skin. When his lips reached it, they laid the lightest of kisses on the nape of her neck. Ever-so-gently, he pulled her closer, and his voice vibrated through her chest as he spoke.
"It wouldn't be right, Fox. Not now, anyway."
Megumi turned her head to look up into his face, wondering why he'd turn down such a tempting offer. The gaze that met hers was tender, but held the wanting and the passion that she was sure he felt.
"But why?" Dear Kami-sama, are you playing a trick on me? I can see he wants it… why move so slowly…?
"Well, I'm still really new to this – loving someone, I mean – and I really don't think it'd work… I mean, much as I'd like to, it mightn't be the right thing for us to do…" Please believe me, Megumi – I have no idea what to do! Much as I want you, I could hurt you…
Megumi sighed gently, her head sinking down, away from Sano's gaze. "I have no idea what to do, either…"
A small smile curled the fighter's lips. He hadn't been sure whether the move was a wise one, but from Megumi's reaction, it had been.
"…But know this, Sano," added Megumi, her head lifting, "I will have you in my bed one day!" Then a beautiful, teasing grin spread across her face, and she relaxed back into his arms.
Sano gently lay back on the futon, hauling the fox-woman with him. After her initial surprise, she was happy to lie cupped by his body.
The man lifted himself onto his elbow, and leaned down to lay a gentle kiss on her lips. She responded, her hand stroking the curve of his cheek, but then he pulled away, and lay back down, head nestled in the curve of her shoulder.
Megumi had one last question. "Sano?"
"Yes?"
"You know I love you, right?"
A deep chuckle answered the question, but he said it anyway. "Yes. And I love you."
-
The morning sun filled the room with a bright golden glow, but the two lying on the futon didn't notice. Red and midnight hair tangled together on the pillow, where Kaoru's head was nestled under Kenshin's chin. Gentle, sighing breaths floated up, mingling in the warm air.
Quiet footsteps along the veranda outside announced that Yahiko, up early for once, had come to check on his sister and Kenshin.
I'll come and see if I can get Kaoru to come out of the room… see how Kenshin is… he thought as he carefully slid the shoji open. Entering the room, a puzzled frown creased his face. Kaoru wasn't kneeling by the futon, as she had been on all his previous visits.
Then he noticed that the futon was lumpier than it should have been. A suspicion grew in his mind. Perhaps Kaoru got into the futon… He had heard Misao mention something about Kaoru calming Kenshin, but hadn't paid it any mind, having been distracted by Tsubame kneeling down beside him.
Crossing to it, he leaned over, and saw that Kaoru and Kenshin were indeed curled up beside each other. But there was something else… something not quite right…
Kenshin's not moving! There was no feverish tossing of the head, no half-heard moans, not even the harsh breathing that had previously rasped through the room.
Instantly, the young man leaned down and touched his fingers to the side of Kenshin's neck unoccupied by Kaoru.
But lifeblood flowed there… the strong pulse beneath his fingers indicated that Kenshin had not left the Earth.
Kaoru would've been heartbroken… flashed through his mind. Then he screwed up his wits into determination. No! He's fine… I can't even think that… Kenshin's going to recover!
Lifting his hand to Kenshin's forehead, he straight away felt the difference. Gone was the searing, sweaty fever, burning the redhead up from the inside. Instead, the cool and dry skin was a relief.
Thank Kami-sama… the fever's finally broken! A grin lit his face at the realisation. He rose, and went back to the still-open shoji. Gently sliding it closed, he thought, I'll let them sleep… Kami-sama knows, they need it.
He walked back through to the kitchen. As Yahiko entered, Misao was attempting to slice up a carrot at long range, with a kunai. It wasn't working. She turned as he entered, throwing the knife as she did. Yahiko watched it thump into the carrot, and winced momentarily. If she was that good when she wasn't even trying…
"Hello, Yahiko! How are you this morning? I'm trying to slice up a carrot long-range! It's good for my aim, and I want to see if I can get slices that are the same size as each other…" Then her chatter trailed off as she saw Yahiko's grin. She cocked her head. "Why are you smiling like that?"
Yahiko's grin deepened. "Kenshin's fever's broken!"
"Really!" Misao bounced up to him, "When? Why? Did Kaoru say anything? Is she alright? Is she awake? I would think she would be, but then if she fell asleep, it wouldn't matter –"
A deep, quiet chuckle sounded behind her, and the door slid open, revealing Aoshi. "Misao, let him answer the first question before you give him another."
Misao's head snapped around, and her attention was momentarily distracted from Yahiko and Kenshin's recovery. A series of quick, bouncing steps carried her over to hug Aoshi tightly. He laid a kiss on her lips, silencing her before she could start her usual 'good morning' chatter.
Then his attention turned to Yahiko. "I believe you said Battousai's fever had broken? When did this happen?"
Yahiko looked sheepish, rubbing the back of his head. A momentary sweatdrop formed. "Well, I don't know exactly… You see, Kaoru's asleep too… and she'd be the only one who knows…"
"Well, we should see, shouldn't we?" asked the tall man, and suiting actions to words, wrapped his arm around Misao's waist, and headed off to Kenshin's room.
-
"Uuuugh…" muttered Megumi as she slowly surfaced. A dry mouth and a throbbing headache indicated just how much sake she'd had the night before, and it wasn't pleasant. At all.
As she stirred, she bumped her head into a large, warm object. It was a well-muscled shoulder.
Her reaction was a little more extreme than it had been the night before – or rather, earlier that morning.
"Whaaaaa – ?" Her voice rose higher as she realised that the shoulder was attached to a well-muscled body. A very nice well-muscled body, she had time to think, before the hangover decided she'd done enough thinking for now, and interrupted.
She hissed as her head gave a fresh throb of pain. The sharp noise, and her slumping back down onto the futon, woke the man she was lying with, and his head raised. The spiky hair and brown eyes instantly informed Megumi that the man whose futon she was in was Sano.
"Morning, love," he drawled lazily, and the way he said the endearment brought shattered-glass fragments of memory flooding back.
"We… we didn't… sleep together, did we?" was the first question that sprung to mind, and Sano chuckled at the confusion on her face. He tugged at her obi. "Not with this on, we didn't."
Megumi's sigh of relief indicated that his decision last night had been a good one. Though perhaps I shouldn't have even brought her into my room…
The geisha sighed as memories reconstructed. "I tried to seduce you, didn't I?" She rolled over onto her back, staring at the ceiling. Of all the stupid things to do…
"Tried, Megumi," said Sano, warmth in his eyes, but the note of his voice telling her he was utterly serious. "I didn't think it was a good idea, not when you were as drunk as you were. And it's not really the right time…"
Megumi winced as the man's deep voice caused her head to start throbbing again. "I need to get back to the okiya…" she said faintly, trying to work past the pain.
Sano smiled gently. He'd had bad hangovers often enough. Slipping out of the futon, he scooted over to where a pitcher of water and a cup sat. Pouring a stream of liquid into the vessel, he handed it to Megumi. The fox-woman took it with a silent nod (which caused a wince of pain), and slowly sipped.
When she had finished it, the dryness in her mouth was quenched, and the throb of her head had lessened slightly. She risked slowly climbing to her feet, and without thinking, she pulled at the bow of her obi, to loosen and retie it.
"Um… Fox…?" His voice recalled Sano's presence to her notice, and she turned to see his turned back. She swiftly fixed the obi, straightened her kimono, and said, "Turn around."
The tall man did so, and he saw she was looking a lot more composed than previously. Once again the geisha… so beautiful, my Fox…
"I need to go back to the okiya…" she said, her eyes pleading with him.
"Of course," he replied, and walked over to the pile of hairpins and combs she had taken out of her hair in the night, handing them to her as he pulled on his jacket. She tucked them into her obi as he opened the shoji, and they stepped out into the morning.
-
Into the morning, and right into Aoshi and Misao.
Knowing smiles grew on both ninjas' faces as they noted that Megumi's hair was down. A geisha's hair is only down when she's going to the hairdresser's, or when she's had an active night…
"How are you this morning? Did you have a good night?" asked Misao, and her smile stated clearly, 'I know precisely how good your morning's been… and as for your night…'
"Very well, thank you," replied Megumi, trying to ignore the sly implications.
The ninja pair continued along the veranda. Megumi and Sano trailed after them, Megumi's head throbbing with every step, but her curiosity was touched as they paused outside Kenshin's room.
Just as they reached it, the shoji slid open, and Kaoru appeared. She had apparently heard them coming.
Misao leapt forwards, and hugged Kaoru. For once, she didn't chatter, but merely held the other woman. When she let go, her first question was "When did the fever break?"
Megumi and Sano started at the question. "He's alright?" "The fever broke?"
"About the fourth hour," replied Kaoru, and proceeded to tell everyone the details. "…And I was sleeping along with him until Yahiko came in."
Megumi's smile softened as Kaoru finished. The quick glances Kaoru had thrown through the open shoji indicated that she was still watching Kenshin. "It'll take a while for him to be completely well, Kaoru," she warned.
Kaoru nodded, and her gentle smile lit up the group. Her words struck a chord in both the other couples outside the room.
"Yes, but we're together, and we're on the mend. Most of all, we're together."
Author's Notes: If anyone was expecting a sex scene – I know you were, you hentais! – then sorry/grins/ I think it's a little too early in Sano and Megumi's relationship for them to be contemplating something that has as lasting consequences as sex does. I mean, they know where they stand with each other as friends, but romance is another whole ballgame. And that way, it leaves some room for meringue! Yay for sweet-and-fluffy!
Review Replies: Thanks to all my reviewers.
anime-luney – Heh, I didn't mean that I didn't like it, I was just sure that I'd heard it somewhere else! Thanks for the review!
scythe195 – Whoah… long review/grins/ But I love long reviews! Bokkens do indeed hurt (yes, I've been hit by one – I'm absolutely craptacular at kendo, especially since I've never had any training). As for stealing Kenshin…
Kaoru (guest appearance): YOU AREN'T GOING ANYWHERE NEAR MY KENSHIN! Ooops… I didn't mean to say 'my'… YOU'RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE NEAR KENSHIN, ANYWAY/flourishes bokken dangerously/
…So, I wouldn't try it. Never mind about weird stalker voices in the background… it's probably Battousai, taunting you…
DakBug – You're a genius? Who wrote it/grins/ Just kidding. Glad you didn't get confused.
Estel-Elf-Lover – Thanks, glad you liked it!
Bradybunch4529 – The dream sequence was interesting to write, but once I got the hang of what I wanted to happen… well, it happened! I'm glad you think the characters are becoming more alive – that's the whole point of writing, ne?
evilteddybear – Congrats on guessing what's going to happen! (See above for awarding of the prize…!)
kenshinlover2002 (for TRA19 review) – It's a vision, and may or may not happen. It's simply to emphasise that they should be happy together, and their friends will support them. Glad you're happy about the recovery, and so on. Kaoru's scene was one of my favourites, too.
Christy – You read it in one go? Wow… That's… Wow. It would have taken hours, especially considering mot chapters are over 3000 words long… I'm glad you thought it was worth it. Arigato.
Crisa Rei - Club card: Make one yourself. Club button: See above. Club poster: Anything with Kenshin being hot/Kaoru being cute will do. Club car: I have a plastic, car-shaped keyring…? Club sandwich: Oh, this is getting silly… /laughs/ Wow. You almost cried? I think that's the best tribute I've ever had… don't worry about work, it will get better!
Peachie-Chan – Go to where? is deleting URLs again… /hands Peachie a Kenshin plushie, with eyes coloured yellow (rather obviously felt-tip pen) and a blue gi (again, obviously felt-tip)/
Rurouni: He refused to be a plushie doll, that he did.
I'm glad that you liked this chapter, and wow… you actually cried over it? You're the second person who did… I think it's a sad chapter then…
Crewel – Yep, this chapter is mostly SxM… I think you may have caused that, in part… /grins/ Never mind, they needed it!
inuyasha/kenshin gurl – I'm glad you liked the vision! And as for Kenshin waking up…can't tell/evil grin/
RangerDo'Urden – Kenshin being magically healed in a day is annoying – I mean, he's not Wolverine! But I'm glad you like the vision.
Disco Jesus – Good guesses, but not quite what I was aiming for! Though (A) may indeed happen… hehe, no giving away the plot/evil grin/
froggi3 /grin/ Battousai will be happy to hear that… when he's back from his 'holiday' with evilteddybear and Raeyn-chan… Glad you liked the vision.
kenshinlover2002 (for TRA18 review) – Che, fluff is good, once in a while – it's just that I feel I need drama in there to balance it… and I'm not so great at that! Never mind about school, keep working at it, and you'll achieve. It's easier than University, trust me!
kitsune – Thanks! Will keep up the 'good work'/salute/
erica6060 – Thanks! I love it when people call my work 'cute'!
Brittanie Love – Updated! Enjoy!
Raeyn-chan – Well done on (unintentionally) guessing what went on with Sano and Megumi… I'm glad you like it, and if the vision was a bit too confusing, sorry… The explanations above should help you at least understand who's involved. As for borrowing Battousai – you got it anyway!
thechickenlittle2000 – I hope this chapter enlightens you on the situation with Megumi and Sano. As for getting Kaoru out of being a geisha, expect that next chapter. I like the way you called the vision the 'Floating World' sequence… that describes it so perfectly! As for the Muses:
Rurouni: This one is sorry, that he is. It is not very often that he gets to tease the Battousai, and this one took the opportunity, that he did. This one is happy that you still like him, that he is.
…and unfortunately, Battousai's 'on holiday' with evilteddybear and Raeyn-chan, so I'll answer for him/puts on deep voice/ Arigato! Of course it'll be twisted… /coughs/ Okay, not doing that again. Anyway, thanks!