To Reveal All
Chapter 24: Revealing All
By steelphoenix
Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin, or any of its characters.
Author's Notes: If you haven't watched 'Trust' and 'Betrayal', please go and do so. They are fantastic pieces of anime. I love the way Kenshin and Tomoe interact. That said, Tomoe fans may want to kill me for parts of this chapter… /wince/
This chapter contains lime. This is description of a sexual scene. If you don't want to read this, then skip that bit of the story. Otherwise… read on! You have been warned! I tried very, very hard to keep it within PG-13 rating, but it's very close to R. If you think I should lift the rating, please tell me.
Big announcement: This is the end, guys. If you want me to do an epilogue, please say so… I have an idea for one, but unless you think I should, I won't post it. Thanks very, very, very much for reading and reviewing. More thanks, etc. at the bottom of the chapter. /sniff/
Battousai: And now she's going to get all emotional on us…
Rurouni: She has the right, Battousai, that she does.
Language Notes: The phrase "Itadakemasu!" means 'let's eat', or 'thank you for the food', and is said at the beginning of every meal.
Ryukansen (Dragon-Wrap-Sword) is best seen in the anime.
'Baka deshi' means 'stupid pupil' or 'idiot apprentice'. 'Shishou' means master or teacher.
Edo was the old name for Tokyo. 'Tokyo' was adopted near the start of the Meiji Era.
Warnings:PG-13 for sexual situations/scenes, bordering on R-rating. THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS LIME. Violence in other chapters. No language warnings.
The wedding party moved out of the shrine, back to the entrance, in a more relaxed manner than they had come in. Kaoru and Kenshin both laughed and talked now, the tension prior to the ceremony mostly gone.
At the entrance sat the Western carriage that had been 'permanently borrowed' from the Kokuryukai on the night of the battle. It had been the means of getting Kaoru to the shrine without damaging the exquisite shiro-maku kimono, and it was to be her transport back to the dojo.
Kenshin handed her in, and held the door so that Megumi and Tae could step up. He was about to close the door, when Megumi said, "Aren't you coming too, Kenshin?"
A stammered reply was half-out when he was pushed through the door by a big hand. Hitting his shins painfully against the carriage steps and his chest against the edge of the door, Kenshin swore in shock.
A giggle from Kaoru recalled him to the real world, and he peeled himself off the carriage floor, he turned and glared at a grinning, unrepentant Sano.
"You just had to pull some trick, didn't you?" Kenshin's question was snapped and angry, and Sano's grin faded, fearing the appearance of Battousai at any moment.
"Hey, Kenshin, I…" Sano was about to apologise, but Kenshin interrupted with a sad, half-exasperated sigh.
"No, Sano, I am sorry. I should not have snapped at you, that I should not. It is just that –"
"Too much tension, right?" Sano interrupted. At Kenshin's nod, he grinned. "No problem! Anyway, do you ladies want to go back to the dojo now?" He addressed the women who waited anxiously in the carriage.
"Yes, please," replied Megumi, casting an anxious glance at Sano, worried for him. A small wink was shot at her in cheeky reply.
Sano strolled around to the front of the carriage, where Yahiko sat on the driver's seat, with Tsubame beside him.
"Shove over," said Sano, and as the young man did, he caught the reins. "Alright, everyone, time to go home!" With a quick flip of his wrists, the carriage lumbered off down the street, in the direction of the dojo.
-
The group knelt on the floor, around where plates of food covered the floor. The dishes were exquisite: flawless rounds of sushi, tempura cooked to perfection, bowls of scented rice steaming invitingly.
Sets of chopsticks were passed around, and, as it was a special occasion, Kenshin offered a brief prayer to the kami for continued health and happiness. Then he said "Itadakemasu!" and everyone took bowls and began eating.
Laughter and teasing flew across the food, the good mood of the successful wedding carrying to the meal. It only got louder as jugs of sake were brought in.
Sano had just (rather pointedly) asked Kenshin what his 'size' was – which the redhead was trying to ignore – when Kenshin's head shot up, and a frown pulled his brows together.
"Kenshin?" Kaoru saw the tilted brows. "What's the matter?"
The redhead's frown deepened, and he put down his bowl carefully. He reached out to where his sakabato had been placed against the wall, standing and sliding it into his hakama. "I can sense a chi that I have not sensed in a long time, that I can." He shot a glance at Aoshi, who had also put down his implements. The room quieted as the Okashira rose.
"Hmmm… a very deep chi. Incredibly controlled." His voice was considering, and slightly curious.
Misao nodded in agreement as she began to feel aura of the chi in question creeping into her sixth sense. "It has the feel of the Earth Element." She followed Aoshi's lead, rising. She slipped over to the kitchen door, and grabbed out a holster of kunai, readying them for action.
Now everyone was standing, and Kaoru caught her new husband's hand as he walked over to the shoji that led to the courtyard and slid it open.
Into the courtyard strode a tall, black-haired man, a red-bordered white cloak fluttering behind him. He turned to the veranda, unsheathing an unusually long sword as he did so, and yelled, "Himura Kenshin!"
Kaoru turned to Kenshin, wondering how the man knew her husband, and what he was doing here. Surprisingly, Kenshin's face wasn't startled, or angry. Instead, his eyes were determined, and a one-sided smile curved his lips up. Kaoru had the briefest of moments to wonder why that expression was on his face, when the unknown man dove forwards in an attack.
"Hiten Mitsurugi Style! Ryukansen!"
He knows the Hiten Mitsurugi Style? Kaoru wondered. Then Kenshin let go of her hand as his smile deepened to a full grin, and he dove into an attack of his own.
A quick clash of swords, and the two fell away, back to their stances.
"Hiten Mitsurugi Style! Ryutsuisen!" Kenshin yelled, as the unknown man shouted "Hiten Mitsurugi Style! Ryushousen!"
The two swords met midair, the Ryushousen slightly ahead of the Ryutsuisen. Kenshin's strike bounced off the longer blade, and his blade flicked away, bouncing briefly before it stuck in the ground. Kenshin, too, bounced away, landing with a dull thud on the ground.
Kaoru leapt off the veranda, immediately rushing to check that Kenshin wasn't hurt.
But the unknown man got there first. Seeing the rapidity with which he moved, Kaoru had no doubt that he could easily attain godlike speed.
The man reached down to Kenshin, hand extended amiably. The redhead grabbed the proffered hand, and pulled himself up. The tall man clapped him on the shoulder, and said, "Not bad, baka deshi. You're out of practise."
Kenshin began dusting himself off, replying, "I have been recovering from wounds, shishou. I am not in full training yet, that I am not."
"Kenshin! Are you alright? You weren't hurt, were you?" Kaoru's anxious voice came sharply through their low conversation as she raced up to where the pair stood.
Kenshin nodded, and briefly hugged her, reassuringly. "I'm fine, Kaoru."
The tall man reached out, and tipped Kaoru's chin up. "Who are you?" he asked, arrogance running through his tone.
"Hands off my wife, shishou." Protectiveness, possessiveness, and a slight threat, more than equal to the elder man's arrogance, filled Kenshin's voice as he warned off his teacher.
The black-haired man snickered briefly, then flicked his sword away and resheathed it. "I didn't know you'd already got married, baka deshi."
"I invited you, that I did," replied Kenshin. "The ceremony was today."
The tall man's eyebrows shot up, and his reply was ever-so-slightly stuttered. "Really? I just missed it, then." Kenshin grinned lightly, knowing that his shishou had got the date wrong, but would never in a thousand years admit that he had even been planning to come to the wedding.
"Come, shishou, I will introduce you to my friends, that I will." Kenshin extended his hand to Kaoru, and they walked back to the dojo, hand-in-hand.
As they reached the veranda, Kenshin nodded infinitesimally to Aoshi, who had one of his kodachi clicked out of its sheath. The nod prompted him to return it to its sheath. Misao, behind him, lowered the holster of kunai.
Everyone re-entered the room, and the unknown man ducked in behind Kenshin.
"Everyone, I would like to introduce my shishou, that I would. This is Seijurou Hiko."
Hiko gave a brief bow, and then sat down next to Sano.
Kenshin winced slightly, knowing what was coming.
"Well, how's Kenshin been? I remember when…"
"Shishou!" The redhead's voice snapped, and Hiko looked up. "No embarrassing stories, please."
The evil grin on Hiko's face was wide. "What are weddings for, if not to embarrass the bridal couple?" At this, Kenshin sighed, and stepped over to the shoji.
"I prefer not to relive the more humiliating moments of my life, that I do not." his voice snapped, and the shoji closed with a fierce slap. Kaoru, half-risen and hand extended toward Kenshin, finished standing. With a deep bow to the assembled company, and an intense glare at Hiko, she followed, closing the shoji much harder than Kenshin had.
"Hoo, she's a feisty one, she is," Hiko chuckled. The girl's gaze had probed deep into him, and he had the feeling that she had seen some of his motivation in coming… it disconcerted him, and he responded the only way he knew: arrogance.
"She's fully-trained in kenjutsu. And she was a geisha. And she's the only one with any control over Battousai." Megumi's voice was almost accusing as she replied to the master's comment.
Hiko whistled, and the grin on his face widened. "Trust Kenshin to find the only woman who could tame him…"
-
"Does your master realise that he hurts you with what he says?" Kaoru's voice was quiet as she knelt down beside Kenshin. He had retreated to his room – their room now – and was sitting stiffly on a cushion in the middle of the tatami matting.
"Of course he realises, that he does." Kenshin's reply was curt and dark, his head sinking to his chest as he sighed in defeat.
Kaoru gently lifted her hand, and placed it on his shoulder, offering the only brief comfort that she could.
"He didn't even remember the date…" Kenshin's head sank lower.
Kaoru moved closer, and slipped her arms around her new husband's shoulders. "At least he came, Kenshin."
A brief, bitter laugh responded, and Kenshin looked up. "He only came to humiliate me. He enjoys it, that he does."
Kaoru's head shaking surprised him, and his expression faded from bitterness to confusion. "No, Kenshin… I saw into his eyes… he came because he thinks of you as a son, I know it."
Kenshin's eyes widened, and Kaoru smiled at the doubt she saw in his face. "Anyway… don't let him spoil our wedding night…"
The doubt in the redhead's face faded as a sly grin covered his face, and his thoughts of Hiko were overwhelmed by much more pleasant ideas.
Carefully leaning forwards, he kissed her lightly on the lips. Unconsciously, he licked his lips, and then leaned back, a grimace on his face. "Can you please take off that makeup? It tastes awful, that it does."
Kaoru laughed lightly at the observation, and nodded. "Just let me get a cloth."
She shuffled over to where the bathing buckets had been stowed in a cupboard, and pulled out a washcloth. A quick dip in the pitcher, and it was damp enough to wipe over her face and remove the white mask and red tinting of her lips. Swiping it over her neck, she reached around to the nape of her neck, to clean it too.
But a hand caught the washcloth, and began to move it around in much slower movements than the rapid swish she had been using.
Then kisses began to trail after the cloth, and Kaoru shivered at the combination of cold and warm wetness.
Kenshin's hand was tugging at her obi, and Kaoru correctly interpreted it as a desire to take it off. With a quick shift of movement, she stood, taking Kenshin by surprise. His hands grabbed at her hips in an attempt to keep her kneeling in front of him, but she was already standing, so he followed her up, arms wrapping around her chest to play with the collar of her kimono.
Expertly, Kaoru undid cords and ties, loosening the obi enough so that it slipped down over her hips. As she stepped out of it, the shiro-maku flapped open. Kenshin's hands caught at the shoulders of the kimono, pulling it off. It slipped to the floor, unnoticed, as he trailed kisses up the back of her neck, moist and warm.
Now clad only in her nagajuban, Kaoru turned within the circle of his arms, and gave herself wholeheartedly to the lips offered to her.
Kenshin carefully caught her around the waist, and lifted her over to the futon. She coiled around him, moulding herself to him, and her hands were deft in loosening his clothing to allow her better access to the toned planes of his body.
Hands slipped under fabric, and when the covering was shoved impatiently aside, lips followed.
Joined as one, two bodies moved in harmony, and the release was both beautiful and incredible.
-
Lying tangled together in the afterglow, Kenshin's hands moved slowly over his wife's body as she rested her head on his chest.
"Kaoru?" His voice was sleepy and content.
Her response was merely a lazy "M-hmm?" as she enjoyed the sensation of Kenshin's hand stroking up and down her side.
"I love you." His voice was nearly in her ear, and she smiled as he dropped a kiss on her neck, in the sensitive spot just below her ear.
"I love you too," she replied, her voice full with the same satisfied warmth as his.
A long while passed, and then Kaoru's voice came quietly. "Kenshin…? Can I ask you something…?" At his quick, affirmative nod, Kaoru continued. "Why did Battousai come out when I played that song…? I thought that he would only come out for important things, like when you came to the Kokuryukai House."
A considering frown pulled at Kenshin's brows. "Hmm… Well, at that time, Battousai wasn't sane, and he was constantly trying to regain control."
"Huh?" Kaoru was confused. "Not sane? But… he was sane – well, rational – when he came out after I was kidnapped… I think he might have been on the night you proposed, too."
"That was your doing, Kaoru." Kenshin's voice was warm, and almost amused. "When you kissed me, you provided a point for Battousai to focus on, and so he became aware and sane once more. But before that he was always trying to regain control. When Rurouni was with you, Battousai was always near the surface – he knew that Rurouni's emotions when near you were less ordered due to love for you."
Then the warm tenor voice became darker. "That song… it threw Rurouni's mind into disarray. Your singing so openly about the Battousai killing one you loved… guilt, and the similarity of the situation with Tomoe… They threw Rurouni's emotions enough to allow Battousai to gain temporary access. He was pushed back later."
"Ah… I see," was Kaoru's reply, and then her voice stuttered through the obvious question. "I know Tomoe was your first wife… but what was the 'situation'?"
A few moments passed, and Kenshin's voice held a hint of nervousness as he spoke again. "Kaoru… I have something to tell you…"
"I… I must tell you how I came to be what I am… My life…" He trailed off, looking down at her anxiously. She nodded silently, realising that he was finally going to reveal all that he was, to her.
No need to be frightened… I just need to trust her… Kenshin took a deep breath, to gain courage, and began speaking.
"This one was born in a small farming town… this one's parents died of cholera when this one was seven, that they did. This one does not remember much of them, except the fact that Mother was tall and had brilliant red hair… she was foreign, that she was." The light voice surprised Kaoru, and she glanced over at Kenshin. The ringed purple-and-gold eyes had morphed to the kind violet of the Rurouni, just as the voice was the once-familiar tone.
"After they died, this one's other relatives were too poor, and they want to bear the stigma of a half-blood child in the family, that they did not. So they sold this one to the next slave-traders that came past their village, that they did." A trace of bitterness weaved through the usually-expressionless voice of the Rurouni, and Kaoru could tell that her husband had carried the sense of betrayal since he was small.
"The slave caravan was attacked, and there were three women who looked after this one… they pleaded with the bandits to 'spare the child's life', even at the expense of their own, that they did. They were ignored, and died, but this one was saved by shishou. He took this one in, and trained this one in the Hiten Mitsurugi Style, that he did."
Then a deep sigh heaved through his frame. "This one was a good pupil to him until the Bakumatsu occurred, that this one was. But this one was too immature to understand that the technique of Hiten Mitsurugi was too powerful, and that it would be used by this one's commanders. This one was a boy, too young to see beyond his idealism, that this one was."
Kaoru had almost been lulled into a doze by the quiet, gentle voice of the Rurouni, but through her sleepy half-awareness, she noticed that the man's voice was deepening. The Rurouni's 'this one' and 'that it is' at the ends of his sentences were disappearing, as well. Her attention regained, she listened more closely. He was talking of Tomoe.
"…when I met her, I had just killed… She said that I had made it rain blood, and indeed I had. She fainted, and I took her to my inn to… well, I don't know why I didn't just kill her. Perhaps it was the smell of white plums she had… I had never smelt anything so… pure, so intoxicating… and I never did again, until I smelt the scent of jasmine… But I took her to my inn. She started to work there, and I found myself watching her, watching her as she did the simple, homely tasks required of an inn worker." The almost-wistful tone in Kenshin's voice made a deep spark of jealousy pass through Kaoru. To hear him speaking so, of another woman… even a woman that was dead… made her resentful.
"Then came the disaster of the Great Fire… and I was sent away. Sent away to tiny town called Otsu, where I was to pose as a farmer. But farming is in my blood, that it is. Peace came over me when I was working the crops. And this one had finally found how he wanted to be, for the rest of his life."
Kenshin's voice had lightened again, and Kaoru realised that the changing of his voice indicated which personality had been closest to the surface when the events occurred. But a thread of darkness still weaved behind the light tapestry of the Rurouni's tones, swelling until it overwhelmed the soft tenor, as he described what had happened.
"This one was content, that this one was. With a house, a small plot of land, and a wife. Creating life, not destroying it, that was the best thing in this one's life, that it was.
"Then Enishi, Tomoe's brother, visited; that he did. And this one knew that there was something more than love for his sister behind the visit, that there was. I sensed the hatred that ran half-concealed behind his friendly voice, that I did. This one went out to the field, and I know that Tomoe and Enishi talked. A hitokiri's hearing is highly trained, and I heard every word they said, that I did. I heard that there was a trap. I heard that Tomoe had been part of the plan. But I believed that she had simply been bait – unwilling bait.
"I also heard that Tomoe wanted her brother to go back to Edo – and I knew that she loved this life as much as I did. I took it as confirmation that she had been unwilling. And it was with this thought in mind that this one asked her to become my wife, truly my wife, not simply for our concealment, but with true vows and true bonds.
Another deep sigh rolled off Kenshin's lips, and his voice became uncertain. "…When Iizuka came to me with the news that she was the traitor… When he told me to kill her, my first thought was that he had to be lying. The plot that I heard she had been part of gave me pause, but I still didn't believe it.
"But her own words, her journal, told me the truth. Her fiancé had been killed, and that was the reason she was involved. She wanted me as dead as all the others… at least to begin with."
The uncertainty grew in Battousai's voice, and Kaoru was amazed. She had never heard such a tone from the hitokiri spirit.
"The plot never found fruition. For she did not want me dead anymore. Tatsumi was about to kill me, and I him, when she dove between us.
"She ran onto my blade.
"She took her dagger from Tatsumi's hand, and crossed this scar of mine.
"And she died."
-
A long, shuddering sigh and short, gasping breaths shook Kenshin, and Kaoru looked up, to see tears welling from amber eyes. She had never imagined Battousai crying, but here he was, salt on his cheeks and eyes wet.
He is still a man, she thought, realising finally that the invincibility of Battousai didn't preclude him from having emotions. It only seemed to, and the control he exhibited over them made it seem even more so.
He is still a man.
Carefully, she moved herself up the bed. Touching his cheeks ever-so-lightly with her lips, she kissed away the tears that had fallen.
With a quiet half-cry, half-sob, Kenshin rolled over, burying his face in her neck, and the wetness dripped down. She wrapped her arms even tighter, and stroked the blazing hair as it coiled around her shoulders.
Slowly, the sobs ceased. Kenshin lay, quiet and still, for a long while, and then he lifted his head. His eyes, swirling now into the ringed amber-and-amethyst, met Kaoru's, and in a muffled, damp tone, Kenshin at last spoke.
"I've never cried over Tomoe before."
Kaoru's reply was quiet and certain. "You've never cried before, have you?"
A soggy laugh answered. "No, I've cried… just never over Tomoe, and her death."
"You should have, long before. You should have, Kenshin."
Half-closed amber-amethyst and blue eyes shot open. That was neither his, nor her, voice.
"Kenshin… Kenshin, you should have let me go long since."
Two heads slowly turned, and both on the futon sat up, turning to face the closed shoji. Moonlight slid through them, and with a movement that wasn't a movement but a sliding of lines of light, bent into a figure, the figure of a woman. Her hair was dark – how do you darken moonlight? – and her eyes glimmered of a deep, warm brown.
A gentle smile curved Tomoe's lips as she took in the scene, and the gently-glowing brown orbs focussed on the man. "Kenshin, you have finally found your equal. Hold close to her. I have little time, so listen carefully.
"I was a saya, a sheath for your brandished sword, but you have never understood that you needed more than just a sheath. You were merely the blade-edge, half a blade, and you had no dull-edge. Rurouni was not the dull-edge – he was merely the cut surface of a half-sword, trying to be the dull-edge. He stood temporarily where the dull-edge should have been, waiting to be sealed between the Battousai and the person would be your dull-edge. You need that dull-edge to be a complete sword…"
He voice slowly trailed off, almost as if she had what she was supposed to say next, and her eyes turned to the woman who sat beside Kenshin.
"Kaoru… you are Kenshin's wife, more than I ever was. You have the fire that I had, but never displayed. You have the steadiness that I had, but never truly gave to Kenshin. And you have a giving and loving heart that I have never, will never, completely know."
Seeing the slight frown on Kaoru's face, she continued, with a quirk of rare humour, "Do not be insulted that I called you Kenshin's dull-edge. The dull-edge is the strength behind the sword. You are the strength behind his blade. You are what holds him to himself. I can seal the blade-edge and cut-edge into one, but you are the one who will bind them together and give them a foundation and strength. I helped separate the two sides of him. You will help return them to one."
Tomoe's gleaming figure gently glided over to the futon, knelt, and a hand of woven moonlight reached out.
"Kenshin, you have separated from one being into two half-beings. You cannot truly live like this.
"And so I seal you into one."
Her finger touched Kenshin's forehead, right in the centre, and a slight radiance swept from it, encasing the redhead's body. The man's eyes went wide, then closed as fast as a slamming door. With a brief swirling, two colours coalesced into unknowable coiling patterns in the iridescent cocoon – amber and purple.
Kaoru's mouth hung half-open, but in the instant she reached out to touch the shell, a moonlight hand caught her wrist. She gazed up into brown-glowing eyes, Tomoe's sharply-hissed "No!" brought her up short.
A slight thump made both turn. Kenshin had slumped down onto the futon, and he lay still as the cocoon swirled, its patterns lightening and fading until it was completely white. Then it began to dissipate, coming off his body in long shreds of solid moonlight.
A deep gasp announced the opening of his eyes, and he shot up from the futon as fast as a sword-draw. He was panting as if he had just been fighting, and he remained there, eyes wide, mouth open in a silent scream.
Then perception flickered into the huge eyes, and his mouth gradually closed, panting slowing. Torturously, he turned to where Kaoru and Tomoe knelt. His mouth opened again, working as if to say something.
When his voice came out it was hoarse and stuttering.
"I am… I am one… one again… How…?"
He had known the instant he had regained awareness. Though he had been one before, the sense of separation had floated at the very back of his consciousness, barely detectable, but there, able to be pinpointed, able to be identified. Now it was gone, and though he searched the deepest depths of his soul, he could not find anything even remotely resembling it.
Tomoe nodded, as if satisfied with her work. "It is my last gift, my parting gift, to you. You have finally let go of me, and so I can finally let go of you. You have revealed all of yourself to someone else, and so the burden and joy of utter knowing has passed on."
Kaoru's question was nearly inaudible. "Utter… knowing?"
The moonlight-woman's eyes turned kindly to Kaoru. "Yes. You know all that he is. You will protect his heart, as he protects your life."
Tomoe's figure rose silently, and she glided back to the shoji, flicking it open without touching it, without a sound. As she stood there, the tendrils of moonlight that made up her form began to scatter in silver tatters.
Her voice was gentle as she spoke for the last time to the two that remained frozen on the futon.
"All is joined. All is whole.
"All is revealed."
Author's Notes: And so it was… ended and revealed.
Before anyone asks, yes, I had this ending in mind when I began writing. I did not plan for Tomoe's appearance, but 'Trust' and 'Betrayal' changed that. Tomoe played a very large part in Kenshin's life, and I think that Kenshin would have held on to her for a long time, certainly until he met Kaoru. Then, and only then, he might have started letting go.
This is a long chapter, precisely for the fact that is an ending chapter, and there are ends to be wrapped up. I hope you enjoyed it.
Review Replies: Thanks to all my reviewers.
scythe195 (for both reviews) – Thanks for the info about rkresource! I didn't know about that, so that's very useful! Glad you liked the SxM and AxM!
Rurouni: Arigato for the new gi, scythe-dono. This one is most grateful, that this one is. This one likes the gi from the manga better, that this one does. It means that this one is less likely to be accused of being girly, that this one is.
Battousai: You are correct in the fact that my gi is the same in anime and manga. You will be under the same threat as the anime creators if you attempt to steal it.
Crewel – I'm afraid you may be disappointed at the ending, but I did write this as a KxK story. However, there's always the epilogue…
kitsune – He was threatening to do so, but… well… the remark about Kaoru distracted him… I think he's gone off to stalk her… or something…
Crisa Rei – No, but this is the end! See you next time… whether that be my next story, or the (still debatable) epilogue!
Thefunnymonkey – Whoa… Best you've ever seen... /jaw hits the floor, goes silent/
Battousai: Wow, you've managed to shut her up!
…anyway… /whacks Battousai/ I'm glad the language notes help! That's the idea!
Brittanie Love – Arigato/bows/
kenshinlover2002 – I had to do the traditional wedding… I was trying to stay as accurate as possible, to make up for earlier mistakes… /sweatdrops/ Glad you liked it!
evilteddybear – Thanks! No, it wasn't over then… but it is now… /sniff/
jodibetz – Now it's over… but if you want (and say so), there is an epilogue half-typed-up on my computer.
thechickenlittle – Thanks very much!
Rurouni: Two new gis! This one is very lucky, that this one is/squeals like a girl/
Nix and Battousai: Oro/eyebrows threatening to disappear into hairline/
Battousai: …anyhow… I am glad that you guarantee that. Yes, I do know that Nix loves me, just won't admit it. I will help her write the epilogue, then I shall come and visit you and… the-weird-haired-guy-whose-name-I've-forgotten.
Chrono (guest appearance): You've forgotten my name!
Battousai: Um… yeah…
MZ.AMbER EYES – Glad you like it!
inuyasha/kenshin gurl – Arigato/bows/ Thanks for the compliment!
Peachie-Chan – Yep, he will, won't he/hugs Rurouni/ Don't worry, Battousai doesn't hate you… he just doesn't want to be made into a plushie…
Battousai/sighs/ It's the last chapter… I think I can stand it… /shudders, hands a Battousai plushie, complete with miniature katana, to Peachie/
Peachie/squeals, glomps Battousai/
Battousai: Urk…
midnite cherry blossomz – Here's the update… last one… /sniff/ Yes, Misao is funny when she goes on and on and on… It makes it entertaining to write!
Final Thanks: Thanks to all the readers and reviewers who have come with me through this journey.
Most especially thanks those who reviewed numerous times, and those who left the constructive criticism that helped me improve what I was writing.
To all my reviewers: moonchild, half-breed-demon-fox, Chibi Kiki, iLuvJaeWon, Prince Aoshi, Kaorurules, Little Spider, TheEtherway, girl from ipanema, Peachie-Chan, elysium, sweetyfanfic, My name, not yours, deal with it, shan, anonymous, Sosoru, MoonStars, Reign-of-Dreams, HiEi JaGaNsHis FlAmE, pyramidgirl89, Mika, miki, sabella/pan, Kao-gurl, RangerDo'Urden, gaby (hyatt, angelprincess22, kenshinlover2002, jeez, Pixel-the-evil-fairy, Jomai, Hi Hi, sprinkles73, half-demon-from-Azarath, Dagorwen of Ithilien, Zhuyou, lyn, jkdsjhdhjfdshk, thechickenlittle2000, Lydia-Blessing, blue-katana-girl, The Silly Koneko 2, blue faery, someone special, evilteddybear, Oriana Anderson:), anime-luney, Crewel, inuyasha/kenshin gurl, Big-Purple-Lizard, DakBug, videl621, Bradybunch4529, nikki, Nanakiyoda, scythe195, thefutureMrs.Kaiba, Estel-Elf-Lover, Dakota, hIgHoNsUgAr, Amanda, froggi3, Niaka1, Jenny, kitsune, Hatoriscute, Crisa Rei, KilluaHiei, kagomefan, Jupiter's Light, Raeyn-chan, auburn moonlight, Christy, Disco Jesus, erica6060, Brittanie Love, Kaede-Rukawa-ice-prince, onee-chan, Zenegami, reader00, nilnil, DragonBlade666, Thefunnymonkey, Anonymous miss, chizuru-chan, Hannah, and midnite cherry blossomz, jodibetz, MZ.AMbER EYES: Arigato gozaimasu. Thank you very much.
Especial thanks to half-breed-demon-fox, who was my biggest fan for the first 14 chapters (where are you now, demon-fox?); Peachie-chan, who followed me since the second chapter, and now has Kenshin, Sano, Aoshi, and Battousai plushies; scythe195, who entertained me with enormous long reviews; Crewel, who wanted more SxM (and got it); HiEi JaGaNsHis FlAmE, who didn't give up on my writing, despite hating Chapter 3; RangerDo'Urden, who has just as much trouble with Muses, Trig and Chem as I do; thechickenlitte, who wants to borrow Battousai (and will have him shortly); Bradybunch4529, who was so perceptive and poetic; evilteddybear, who left me half-a-pageful of fight-scene tips; Crisa Rei and Raeyn-chan, who left a review for every single chapter, and on the same day; and to miki, jeez, and The Silly Koneko 2, who pointed out my inaccuracies… /sweatdrops/ and kicked my ass to fix them.
I hope to see you guys again… look out for my next story!
Battousai: And to everyone who was reading just to see me… thanks!
Rurouni/eyebrows raised/ And that won't be many, this one thinks… /raspberry/ Anyway, this one thanks you all for reading, that this one does.
/deep bows from Nix, Battousai, and Rurouni/
Nix: It's OOOOOOOVVVVEEEERRRR/bursts into tears/
Battousai: I knew this was going to happen…
Rurouni: You should be more sympathetic, that you should… it's the end of her first long story, that it is… /gathers Nix into his arms, hugs comfortingly/
Battousai: She did a good job… But she shouldn't have lent me out so much!
Rurouni: You were fine, that you were. You shouldn't hold a grudge, that you should not.
Battousai: But it's not a grudge… I was just… well… I just… /trails off into silence/
Rurouni/eyebrows raised/ You just what?
Battousai: I just liked being a Muse… I wanted to do more… /comes over, pats Nix on the back/
Nix: What/looks up, stops crying/
Battousai/going red/ I liked being a Muse…
Nix: You did!
Battousai/bashful pose, pressing fingertips together/ Kinda…
Nix: Battousai no baka! (translation: Battousai, you idiot) /thwaps Battousai over the head/
Battousai: Owww…
Nix: I needed more help, you should have said!
Battousai: Well, if you needed more help, you should have said!
Nix: A Muse is supposed to ask if they can help more!
Rurouni: This one thinks that you both did a fine job, that you did…
Nix and Battousai: No-one asked you!
Rurouni: But this one was just trying to help, that this one was… /sigh/
Nix: Uh-oh… /takes off running as Battousai draws his katana/
Battousai: You're dead, Nix-chan! DEAD! Just wait 'til I catch you/takes off after Nix/
Rurouni/sigh/ This one exists solely to keep the peace, that this one thinks… /notices readers still watching, slightly bemused/ Oro! You're not supposed to be still here, that you are not!
/Nix hurtles past, Battousai on her tail/
Rurouni/to readers/ They'll be at that most of the afternoon, that they will… Anyway, from this one, this one's alter ego, and Nix-dono, goodbye!