Tears
A
pure Heart
Part 3: Tears
"Okaasan, Otousan, I´m
coming to you ..."
Darkness filled Shinta's mind. For a
short moment, he felt the cold water and the thundering from the
waterfall, now so close. Suddenly, a hand grabbed him and he opened
his eyes in shock. Just now, all around had been dark and wet, but
suddenly his surroundings were so bright he couldn´t see
anything. Seijuro Hiko had pulled him out of the water in the last
moment. Just a few seconds later and he would have gone down the
waterfall. And even if not, he would have surely drowned.
Desperately, Kenshin tried to breathe as Hiko carefully walked out of
the stream towards dry land. Once there, Hiko put two fingers into
Kenshins mouth. He tried to fight the man, his face blue from lack of
air, but Hiko held him firmly until at last Kenshin began to puke out
water. Coughing, puking and trying to breathe all at the same time,
Kenshin tried to stand; but, still, Hiko held him firmly. "It's
all right. The water must come out." Kenshin kept on trying, but
finally his resistance broke and he even spat out his breakfast from
that morning. A few more coughs and then it was finally over. Hiko
took a deep breath and carried the soaked, shaking, sobbing child
back towards their hut. Looking in Kenshin's eyes, he realized that
the boy had now really comprehended what had happened in the last two
days. He had realized that other people had given their lives so he
could live on, and that he had nearly lost that very life others had
died for.
Shinta cried. Through the curtain of salty tears,
the green forest around faded and made way for the pictures burned
into his heart. All the blood. So much blood. The screams. So loud,
filled with fear of certain death. The sword through Sakura's
throat. The face of his deadly-ill sister as he was taken from her
hands. His mother's last smile and the mass-grave her and his
father's bodies were thrown into... Hiko made himself stay calm as
the sobbing got louder, more hysterical. It was as if the small boys
soul wanted to scream out all the things that he had to suffered.
Since his parents died, Shinta had been unable to cry. He would never
have thought anything worse could happen to him.
Shinta sat, covered in a blanket, in front of the small hut and stared red- eyed into the fire. For the second time this day, his haori and hakama hung on the tree to dry. He had lost his shoes when he fell into the water. When Hiko emerged from the hut, he looked down guiltily.
"Will you punish me now, Shisho?" he asked with a still, quiet voice, looking at Hiko.
The man sighed. "Should I punish you?"
"No..." Kenshin replied, more assured.
"I assume, you did not want to jump into the river, knowing you can't swim?"
"Of course not!" Kenshin replied more assured.
"Hmmm, come with me."
Kenshin left the blanket on the ground and followed Hiko into the Hut. Curious, he watched Hiko take a small pot made of clay from the shelf. "Come here." Hiko said, sitting down on the floor. Kenshin went over to Hiko, watching him with great eyes. Even now he had to look up a little, so big was the man. Hiko took a milky white paste from the pot and Kenshin startled as he began to cover the bruises all over his body. The paste smelled of herbs and his skin felt all cool underneath it. "Thank you" Shinta quietly said when Hiko was done and put the pot back on the shelf.
"I want you to go to bed early. Tomorrow, we go to town, you need a futon and shoes."
"But I don´t have any money!" Shinta said, frightened. "I can sleep on the floor and-"
"I
know that, baka!" Hiko interrupted him. Shinta sighed in
relief.
Night had covered the forest and everything around was
dark. Shinta lay alone in the hut and could not fall asleep. As soon
as he closed his eyes and tried to relax his mind he saw blood and
heard desperate cries, felt his sister's last touch as he was taken
away to the slavers. Another child that would not be a burden to the
village. Blood. Mutilated bodies. Swords in the dark.
"You
must live, Shinta..." Icy water, swallowing him. Dwindling
light.
The thoughts would not stop. Shinta rolled from one
side to the other. Through the small window he gazed at the pale moon
so his eyes would not close. He tried to think of something good, but
everything that had been good now made him even more sad. Everything
that had been good was now dead and destroyed. When Hiko entered
later that night, Kenshin was asleep, silent tears running down his
face.
Poor Angel ! He had to translate all alone again! I'm really no help. Sorry for the late update! The last two weeks were horrible! I was ill and then there was also the exams at university! Two day after the last exam we went for a weekend to Germany's biggest Anime Convention "AnimagiC" . Although my sister and I were ill, it was a lot of fun. For two days I get to run around in my Tomoe cosplay and one day as Shinsen Gumi together with Angel, my sister and other friends. We had so much fun!!! About this chapter: It's short, isn't it? I hope it wasn't too boring. Many people don't like the way I write stories , they say "it's too long, too boring" and so on --° Well, hope to see you next chapter! Bye, Ayumi
