A/N: I'm sorry this chapter took so long. My brain is currently working at a minimum level as I study for the dreadful Pre-History test next Tuesday. Wish me luck ;D
sRoze: Thank you so much for supporting me every step of the way :) Yep, the pervert is in fact Okina. Only Misao calls him Jiya, at least in the manga (I watched a dubbed version of the anime, so I can't be sure if the same happens there). Portuguese words are similar to their English counterparts basically if they have latin roots. Otherwise both languages are quite different from each other, unfortunately :( Oh, and don't worry, this is (among other things) a Kenshin x Kaoru fic. They'll get there... eventually. Heh ;P
ObsidianRaven: Thanks for reviewing! I hope you keep reading :)
moshi moshi mother fucker: First of all, nice nickname ;P I'm glad both you and your friends like my fic! Please keep reading and reviewing, make a depressed author happy ;D
peaches: Thank you! It's always nice to know I got someone hooked. I'll work on the surroundings, I promise ;) I do realise I tend to overlook those descriptions, and for that I am truly sorry :glances around looking embarrassed:
Disclaimer: Surprising as it may be, I own nothing.
Aoshi waited patiently, lying on the bed in his small room at the Aoi-ya, for Saitou to come and get him so that both could go together to Tomoe Himura's funeral, which would take place in less than an hour. The previous night, before he had been chased away from the station by the obnoxious smoking policeman, he had managed to take hold of the file containing the details of the case, a bit fuller now than it had been by the time he had arrived in Toba. The agent had intended to go through it before going to bed, but he had ended up falling asleep after only two pages.
Lifting his tired eyes from the carefully typed pages, Aoshi allowed his mind to wander freely but regretted it right that instant, for his evanescent thoughts focused immediately on one of the few things that still managed to bother him somehow: young Misao Makimachi. Even though he was currently living at the Aoi-ya, where he knew she lived as well, he hadn't laid eyes on her since that last conversation they had had. Needless to say, the girl never showed up at the station like Aoshi had asked her to; perhaps that was what got him so upset even at the slightest mention of her. He wasn't used to being challenged or avoided, which, at the moment, seemed to be happening – both at the same time.
«Maybe I'll be able to drag her to the station after the funeral.» he mused. That was, as a matter of fact, the only reason he had for going to the damn funeral, which certainly didn't concern him, of all people. He didn't belong in that town, as people were so eager to remind him.
Aoshi lowered his gaze back to the papers in his hands and sighed. He almost felt like voicing his train of thought, as he so often did in his cramped apartment in Kyoto whenever he had a particularly difficult case to solve; only it was always a good thing to remind himself the fact that he wasn't at home and that he'd probably be heard through the thin walls if he were to do such a thing... besides, the somber federal agent wasn't too thrilled at the perspective of being deemed lunatic by the villagers. Impatiently, he shut the briefcase with a snap and flung it on the nearby desk; that was when he noticed a fallen photo on the floor next to the bed, undoubtedly there since last night, due to his lack of will to return everything to its rightful place. He picked it up and leaned back on the pillows, studying it with redoubled attention. The unexplainable lack of pictures depicting the victim alone had forced Saitou to collect somewhat casual, more familiar ones like the photo Aoshi was holding. Tomoe and Kenshin were smiling widely and embracing each other, at the entrance of the dojo where they lived and taught kendo. Around them were Misao and Kaoru, the latter harassed by Sanosuke, who curiously had a long fishbone hanging precariously from his smirking lips. Sitting in front of the group was Yahiko, a devious smile twitching his soft features and a gleaming bladed katana in his small and fragile hands.
Perhaps the intimate display had aroused unwanted memories in him; perhaps he intimately regretted being so utterly alone; perhaps he blamed himself for pushing away all those who had once loved him or cared for him. He just couldn't bear to keep looking at the picture and put it away along with the rest of the papers.
Saitou would surely arrive soon; he should get ready for the funeral.
XxXxXxXxXAs the coffin made of light coloured, soft polished wood was slowly lowered into the deep pit, very few people cried. Saitou and Aoshi were the more indifferent ones: the former wouldn't stop smoking, as usual, and the latter let his eyes linger on each person around them in turn. Kenshin Himura kept staring fixedly at the coffin containing his wife's body, once filled with her young and careless soul. Misao's hands were clenched on Yahiko's shoulders. The boy looked almost apathetic in an inhumane effort to prevent himself from crying; Misao made no such attempt: she was one of the few people shedding copious tears. Silently...
"Why do you suppose no one seems awfully sad, Shinomori?" Saitou asked in a low, ironic tone.
"After so many days to get used to the idea, such a reaction was to be expected." Aoshi remarked. "The fact that it was a brutal murder leads people into directing their anger towards the assassin rather than crying for the deceased person."
"How elaborate." Saitou let out a discreet chuckle. "Aside from a federal agent, you're also a psychologist? You're really full of surprises."
Aoshi chose to ignore the sarcastic chief of police, who seemed to show as much respect towards the dead as he did towards his subordinates: none at all.
Sanosuke, standing motionless beside Kenshin, glanced at him with a murderous expression on his exhausted face.
"Are you two going to shut up anytime soon? This is a funeral!" he admonished.
"Thank you very much, you idiot." Saitou retorted. "I hadn't noticed."
The coffin had already been hidden from sight and the crowd started to slowly walk away. The three policemen followed shortly after, taking the route to the hospital, seeing as they still needed to question Kaoru Kamiya.
"Allow me to disagree with the remarkable psychological analysis you did back there." Saitou whispered, quite unexpectedly, in a way that only Aoshi could hear him. "If no one looked sad, it's probably because no one really was."
Without being able to grasp the meaning of Saitou's enigmatic statement, Aoshi stopped dead in his tracks at the hospital entrance, the smoking policeman staring at him dangerously. So far, all he had heard had made him believe that everyone liked the victim. Unless...
"That's right, Shinomori, very well. Unless they were lying." The chief of police completed his unfinished thought, pulling another cigarette from the half-empty pack, exactly as if he had read Aoshi's mind without apparent effort. "Or did you forget what you told me the other day? «During a murder investigation, no one tells the truth»?"
Without further words, Saitou pushed the white metallic door and entered the hospital, closely followed by Sanosuke, who was totally oblivious to the brief exchange of words between the two older men.
XxXxXxXxX"How many times do I need to tell you I can't remember anything?" Kaoru argued, rendering fruitless all the attempts made by the policemen in order to interrogate her.
"Don't play dumb." Saitou threatened, though his tone did not show any sign of underlying aggressiveness. "You mean to convince us that, after all of this, you can't even remember the face of your assailant?"
"That's right." the girl confirmed.
Saitou made a sound of impacient disbelief but did not insist. Megumi, sitting beside Kaoru since they had arrived, rose to her feet and decided to speak. "It's called post-traumatic amnesia, Saitou-san. It is possible that, during the next few days, she can't remember what happened to her. In most of the cases, the victim's memory returns shortly after."
"Did someone request your opinion? Just keep to opening up dead bodies and seeing their insides and stay out of police affairs."
Megumi opened and closed her mouth several times, apparently trying to find the right words to apply to that particular situation. Giving up from searching for them, she strode towards Saitou with clenched fists. If that were a movie and Megumi a man, Aoshi was certain that she would be rolling up her sleeves and preparing herself for a violent gory scene.
"Takani-san, please calm yourself." he advised, stopping her furious march with an arm.
"And you want me to calm down! Didn't you hear what he..." she pointed to Saitou, gesturing widely with repulse. "... what he said?"
"Let's drop that subject." Sanosuke surprisingly acted as the voice of reason for the first time in his life. "We came here to question Kaoru, right?"
Abruptly reminded of the young girl's presence, all eyes converged on the lanky figure sitting on the bed. Kaoru stared back at them, her expression challenging, although somewhat embarrassed. "I promise that, when I remember what happened, you'll be the first to know. Happy?"
"That had better be true." Saitou walked slowly to the door. Placing his hand on the door-handle, he turned his head back to Kaoru. "Or things will start to look bad for you."
He left.
A/N: Please, take pity on the poor author and review.
