WARNING: Spoilers! If you don't know who Kenji is, please read at your own risk!
WITH DUE CREDIT: This fic was loosely spun off from two fics - "Over the Sting" by sasori and "Chronicles of a Rurouni", one of my earlier fics.
------------------------------------------
Yesterday's Shadow is Tomorrow's Twilight
------------------------------------------
Chapter 12: Rainy Recollections
"You don't scare us, ma'am," Kenji was saying, glancing suspiciously
at the old lady from the corner of his eyes, "something as immaterial as
a curse couldn't have put an entire family to death."
"I speak nothing but truth," the old lady sighed, "a tragedy happened to the people of this large piece of land many, many years ago. Since then, misfortune has struck anybody who dared go near their property. It is a curse, I tell you!" She breathed sharply. "Nothing but a curse could have caused it!"
"Well excuse us," young as he was, Kenji found it appropriate to roll his eyes, "are you the current owner, then?"
The old lady found it in herself to gasp in a disgusted tone, like it was beneath her to be considered related to the old building.
"Then why are you asking so many questions?" Kenji frowned. "It's none of your business if we get cursed or not, isn't it?"
"Why, you rude young man!" The lady quickly bristled. "I was warning you from imminent doom!"
The air staled. Kenji tried hard not to twitch.
And a full mouth-down began.
While Kenji and the distraught old lady debated about the finer points of being near an abandoned house with a family curse, Enishi noted with a slight grimace that Soujirou had not moved from being curled up against the wall, since they came into the courtyards for hiding. Although he did not rule out the possibility of him being tired, or that his injury was agonizing him, Enishi did not like how quickly his partner degenerated from a lively talker to a forlorn figure sitting by a broken wall. He had gotten strangely unfamiliar since the old lady began nattering away.
Having come to some apparent decision, Enishi looked away from Soujirou and took a step closer to where Kenji and the lady were arguing over the cracked wall. "Hey, you." He dully intoned. Both the squabblers ceased whatever they had been talking about and turned their attention to him.
"I don't care if there's a curse around here or not," he began, openly oblivious to the old lady's agitated expression of opposition, "but if you're so interested," he lowered his gaze and snarled with an evil smirk, "I can show you a lot of other ways to die without using a curse to help you."
Against Enishi's psychotic glare of doom, nobody stood a chance. The old lady fled without looking back.
Dropping the leer on his face after he was sure the old lady wasn't coming back, Enishi turned around slightly to regard Soujirou again. Kenji noticed the gesture, but was more forthcoming as he moved slowly towards the huddled wanderer. Bending down, the boy asked, concerned, "Are you all right, Soujirou?"
Only the wind and a distant rumble of thunder replied him.
Kenji and Enishi stared at the unmoving figure of Soujirou, then at each other.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Enishi?" Kenji narrowed his eyes and whispered conspirationally.
"..."
"Nevermind," the boy returned to staring at Soujirou. He slowly raised a hand, carefully and gingerly, as if any sound would disrupt his plans. With an outstretched index finger, he poked at Souijrou's shoulder. No reaction.
Bunching his fingers into a fist, he tried again, nudging the older person harder this time. Soujirou swayed to and fro like a tree being shaken. But otherwise, he remained as he was - calm and inactive.
Enishi made a sound, which Kenji translated to mean 'move away, idiot'. Although unhappy about the implied message, Kenji scurried to one side to allow Enishi to loom over the stooping Soujirou. There was no telling what he was going to do, until he lifted a single foot and toed the hunched figure squarely in his head.
The impact dislodged Soujirou from his foetal-like position and sent him sprawled over the soil.
Kenji and Enishi stared.
The Tenken was fast asleep.
"Now that," Kenji noted, "is a skill everybody needs to know."
"I can knock you out now if you want," Enishi droned. But even when droning, any threat Enishi gave was to be taken seriously. Kenji discreetly retreated two steps. "It looks like it's going to pour soon though," the white-haired man continued, ignoring the boy and glancing up at the dark clouds gathering overhead. "We should get somewhere dry."
------------------------------------------
By the time they managed to lug Soujirou across the creaking floorboards of
the house corridor into the shelter proper, the dark clouds were already moving
swiftly across the skies, heralding a tempest. It was only afternoon - late
afternoon at most, and yet the threatening gloom made it look like it was in
the deep of the night.
"It's been raining a lot lately," Kenji observed, while propping the asleep Tenken against some empty goods crates.
"It'll go on for a while," Enishi agreed from his position at the large doorframe. Wearily he slid down against the weathered cement which made up a portion of the wall beside the frame and placed his sword beside him, staring out at the courtyards, and into the heavens. The bitter winds began to whip up into a strong gale, causing the old, dilapidated house to groan and creak at the pressure. Kenji joined him at the corridor, staring out at nothing in particular, after he was sure Soujirou would not shift in his sleep and hit something hard. There was nothing like companiable silence to keep him comfortable in such times.
They continued staring, until the first drops of rain hit the courtyards with its melodic rhythme.
"I never knew the rain had such a pleasing tune to it," Kenji smiled slightly, after a long silence.
A few seconds went by. "Nothing will sound pleasing to you if your heart isn't in the right condition," Enishi eventually responded.
Recalling his time in the dojo, where everything anybody said was like nothing but a buzz in his ear, and where everything anybody did was grossly wrong in his eyes, Kenji could not help but agree - grudgingly, for at the same time, a chord in his heart was struck.
Could he have been concentrating so much on the negative, that everything positive had been overwhelmed? Had he already decided, beforehand, that whatever anybody in his family said to him, would be inconsequential, and thus to be rejected?
A sigh from beside Kenji drew him out from his train of thought. Glancing briefly at Enishi, he noticed that the white-haired man bowed slightly so that his eyes were not in clear sight. "He doesn't like the rain," he muttered softly.
There could be only one person Enishi was possibly referring to. "Why not?" And Kenji was interested to know the reason.
"The day I know exactly what's going on behind that smiling face of his," Enishi stared evenly at Kenji, "is the day my hair turns back black." There was a note of finality in his last statement, and Kenji deemed it inappropriate to press on. After all, he did agree that Soujirou was a hard nut to crack. Although he didn't seem to be able to connect Enishi's hair colour with any of the issues on hand.
When lightning flashed and thunder boomed, Kenji looked in awe at the heavens. If it rained in the dojo, he would just hole up in his room and mope, or practice in peace in the practice arena. He had never bothered to be deferential of the forces of the elements, for he never had a need to. Travelling and meeting different people, going to different places, however, struck him with an appreciation he never knew he had - of how small he was when compared to the world; and how insignificant his problems were compared to the thousands of other people out there.
Was this why his father did what he did?
The boy shook his head furiously, trying to clear his mind. Admirable as it was, Kenji still failed to see his father in a different light. Well, maybe a little. "You couldn't have saved them all..." he mouthed in an inaudible gripe. "You couldn't have..."
"Hey," Enishi's commanding tone demanded for attention, "you'd better go bring him an umbrella. The rain isn't going to stop anytime soon."
Nonplussed, Kenji stared uncomprehendingly at his companion, who jerked his head backwards into the darkness of the building interior, and said nothing else.
At first, Kenji had no idea what he could possibly mean. But as he stared at the large, empty storage room, an idea struck him, and soon he was left gaping. "Soujirou's gone!" He exclaimed.
"He's been gone for a while now," Enishi concurred.
"What?!" The young boy stood up quickly, shrouded with disbelief.
The older man shrugged, "If he took such great pains to try to leave unnoticed, I shouldn't let his efforts go to waste, should I?" He remained coolly seated on the corridor, staring out into space. "Don't worry, he's still around here."
Kenji could feel his head spinning. "Sometimes I just fail to see the reasoning behind your logic. Or do you just don't care?!" Without waiting for a response, the boy dove into the darkness of the house behind him, trying to remember where he last saw the dusty heap of umbrellas.
While listening to the fading footsteps of Kenji as he thumped his way across the myriads of corridors in the large, derelict house, Enishi slowly closed his eyes.
"Sometimes I fail to see my own reasoning, too."
------------------------------------------
Kenji traversed countless numbers of wooden corridors which seemed to bear the
same face. It was difficult to see in the musty darkness with a bare glimpse
of sunlight through the thick, dark clouds, and his search for the missing wanderer
did not prove to be easy. That, and that the building was very large and empty,
made for a search operation more difficult than he cared to calculate.
He had just about ransacked every nook and crany of the adjoining houses, as well as the barns littered sparsely around the large courtyards. If Soujirou was not indoors, then it was highly probable that he was standing outside, in the rain. Just as he passed by a tall door of sorts, something flashed by the corner of his eyes and he came to a standstill.
Retreating slowly, he stared at the item which had given him a shock.
It was a run-down, rectangular wooden plate of sorts, hung by the doorframe with a single, rusty nail - almost broken with age. Yet it was not the condition of the plate which chilled Kenji to his bones. He stared, and stared again at the two kanji imprinted in ink which had now run off, on the surface of the wood.
Seta.
"Seta..." Kenji echoed to the rumbling of a growl of thunder. Numbly he walked a bit further with those words bouncing off the interior of his mind, gathering all facts to make all the possible connections. As he stood at the corner of the open corridor, a slight shift in position saw that he came in full view of an isolated corner of the courtyards, where one barren tree stood, fiercely determined to survive despite how it obviously was not going to. There was a glimmer of blue that peeked out from the simmering shower of rain. Kenji found himself unable to do anything for a few seconds but stare at Soujirou, who faced the walls and had his back to anybody who cared to see. His hands were limp by his side; his shinai, his only other accessory, left in the warehouse they had first come across.
Kenji wondered if he was still smiling.
Opening an umbrella, and tucking the other one under his arm, Kenji slowly made his way over to where Soujirou stood, taking care to avoid deep mud pits and puddles of rainwater. As if he knew the boy was coming, Soujirou lifted his head towards the skies. With an irascible feeling of disappointment, the young redhead noticed that Soujirou was indeed, still smiling.
"Standing in the rain with an injury at your side," Kenji approached the wanderer slowly from the back, treading carefully around his personal space, "you do some pretty interesting things sometimes."
Tilting his head slightly, Soujirou smiled at the boy. He said nothing, however, and quickly returned to staring at the corner of the walls.
After a bout of insufferable silence, Kenji said, "I brought you an umbrella," in the most level tone he could manage. He held the spare umbrella out.
"That's all right, Himura-san," the boyish wanderer did not turn around, "I'll be heading back soon. I remember the way, don't worry! You can go back first, really."
There was something about how dejected, how lost, and how desolated Soujirou looked in the rain, with his back against all who had sight, that prevented Kenji from making a move.
"Himura-san," the older person suddenly spoke out again, making Kenji jump slightly, "what... what would you say to... to your dead relatives... before their graves... ?"
"..." Kenji was unable to reply immediately. "... I would probably just keep very quiet," he finally said. Soujirou laughed.
"I understand what you mean, Himura-san," he nodded. Still, he made no effort to turn around.
After staring at his companion's back for a few more seconds, Kenji held the spare umbrella out and made sure Soujirou grasped it. "Umbrella's for you, and," he said, "come back in soon, okay?" The pleading edge to the boy's voice was hard to miss. Like he knew there was no way to drag his friend back under a roof, unless he himself felt ready to return to shelter.
Soujirou felt his area go cold - the indication that there was no one but him within the immediate vicinity for now.
He was cold. He did not like the rain. Especially not when they beat on him like that. He had an umbrella poised, but he made no move to open or use it. He just stared ahead, and stood lifelessly rooted to the ground. There were words, but no speech. Thoughts, but no realization. Soujirou just remained where he was, and smiled.
He just smiled.
And only noticed that Enishi had materialized in front of him when he heard the faint sloshing sound of boots against softened mud. Not a few moments later, he could see, from his bowed head, said boots coming within view on the ground before his own feet.
Breathing slightly, Soujirou attempted, but failed, to say a greeting.
"Are you crying?"
The question came as suddenly as the droplets of rain pelting down on his head. Just like someone else had asked him on that night, many, many years ago. Instinctively an answer graced his lips, but died as quickly as it came, for he knew now that he would not speak truth with that reply. Just as he pondered over his dilemma, Soujirou felt the umbrella he had been grasping all this time being relieved from his hands.
"Moron," he could hear Enishi's mocking tone, "you can't tell if it's rain or tears if you don't use this." A sound indicated that the umbrella had been opened, and as Enishi held it over the both of them, the rain was no more.
The streams of water that run down his face were no longer cold, but warm and unyielding.
Enishi gestured for Soujirou to take the umbrella, and the younger person slowly obeyed. His hand manage to somehow find the thin handle of his personal shelter, and he grabbed hold of it firmly.
Just as a pair of strong, calm arms drew him into a reassuring hug; the same pair of arms patting him on his back in a friendly notion - all in the span of a single heartbeat.
The older man then pulled away by stepping backwards, and punched his partner lightly on his shoulder. "If you want to say anything to them," he turned around to walk away, "it has to come from your heart. Don't go around asking people. Especially not greenhorns who have redheads."
There was a whisp, and Enishi departed in the same mysterious way he had arrived in.
It took Soujirou all but a few seconds to finally sink to his knees, tired and cold from standing out in the rain for so long. With his free hand he held onto himself tightly, a single phrase echoing around in his mind.
"I'm sorry!" He sobbed, lips no longer upturned, face no longer perfect. His mask torn from his countenance, it now lay crumpled in a heap of pent-up despair and regret. "... I really didn't mean to... I'm so... I really...
"... I'm really sorry!"
------------------------------------------
Enishi was nowhere to be seen by the time Kenji returned, although his sword
remained where he had last put it, indicating that he would return. The boy
sat back down on his place on the corridor, his thoughts catching up with him
once more.
"Himura," he tapped his finger on the wooden ground, "Kenshin..."
He tapped. "Hitokiri," tap, "Battousai.."
Another tap. "Himura... Kenji."
Raising his head westwards, he blinked at the direction.
"Kyoto."
... to be continued
--------------
23/8/03
xd@tougenkyou.net
A/N
I assumed Soujirou grew up in the Kanagawa prefecture seeing how that was his
birth place. If he didn't, well, uhm... sorry? ^_^x;;; All right, angst-fest
is over! Finally we can go to Kyoto! BUAHAHAHA! *dons padded armour* Okay, Soujirou
fans, Enishi fans, I know you all want to grill me for this OOCness chapter.
Bring it on! *clangs pots and pans*
Firuze Khanume
Thanks for the links! I'll go through them very carefully and milk them for
all they're worth. Nuahahah!! I am an asshole and yes, I forgot they moved their
graves closer Kyoto. Forgive me!! m(_ _)m Now, for my excuse for there still
being gravestones there: Aoshi either thought it appropriate to leave it, or
Soujirou made some himself for remembrance! *laughs maniacally* Okay, that was
lame. o_Ox Thanks for pointing it out to me though! I'll try to keep a lookout
for mistakes like these next time!
Shahrezad1
Yes, Soujirou needs a huggle. *_*x Everytime I watch his flashback scenes I
want to huggle him. Hamlet the Manga? Hmmm... sounds interesting enough. XD
I'll keep a lookout for it, thanks! XD (ps: i like xelloss)
April-san
I'm always afraid I won't live up to your high expectations. o_Ox I for one
don't quite think I fit in 'excellent'. I had hoped to achieve some kind of
symbolism with the graves - the obvious link with the Oniwabanshuu and Aoshi
was supposed to hint at Kyoto, so... yeah. :3
jbramx2
B-b-but... Enishi/Misao?! o_Ox;; Just... gimme a day or two to get over my mind
boggle first, okay? ^____^x Though now that I think about it, it /could/ happen.
o_Ox I've always been more of a Enishi/Kaoru and Soujirou/Misao camper myself,
though, so maybe that's why my head is still in the ground. XD But I am open
to all pairings, and will take a look at that fic... soon! Hope you liked this
chapter too!
Shihali
Aaah... yes, Soujirou should have seen it coming. XD I think he really wants
to get over his past, though, and that's why I dragged them through Kanagawa.
^_^x I didn't make him suffer /that/ badly, I swear!!
Silver Nightingale
Hey... you're right! *_*x Maybe that IS why Saitou's not letting them go!! XD
Gotta write that in somehow... thanks for the idea. MUAHAHAH!!
blue eyes
Is one day fast enough for you??! XD Hope you liked this chapter too!
EK
I'm honoured! *_*x Ooh, a trend-starter. XD I love trend-starters. I'm still
boggling at the pairing, but it sounds plausible. Thanks for the vouch of confidence!
XD