Rurouni and Battousai

Chapter 8: Spell reversed

"Are you sure about this, Jou-chan?"

Kaoru glowered at the rooster head sitting behind her along with Megumi and Yahiko, turning to face the two men before her, she breathed deeply and closed her eyes. Concentrating on the task before her. A month had already passed since these two became separated, a month filled with revelations for Kaoru and Kenshin and a month full long of unexpected sensual tormentation from the two.

I hope this works… Kaoru thought worriedly as she summoned the reverse incantation. Only one month to undo what my mother had not been able to do within all her life as a priestess… I do really hope this works, okaasan, wherever you are, I hope you're right here with me at this moment… because I can't blunder this one up…

A bright light engulfed Kaoru as she went into the middle of her spell, her sapphire eyes glowing eerily blue as she lifted her hands towards the two men standing before her. Yahiko, Sano and Megumi all were forced to cover their eyes as the light surrounding Kaoru became too much for their eyes to handle. Meanwhile, both the Rurouni and Battousai stood motionlessly as Kaoru worked, both looked at each other and knew that whatever happens, they knew that they could count on their little tanuki to work things out. They trust her that much.

The Rurouni was the first to feel the effects of the spell, he could feel his heart start to pound uncontrollably. His eyes became unfocused as memories of the past month flooded though his mind, memories on Battousai's point of view. Battousai on the other hand had noticed the Rurouni stand still and look somewhat dazed, before he could ask the rurouni what was the matter, a strong force hit him, almost as if someone had punched him. Gazing at the woman glowing before them, his vision was replaced with that of memories, this time, on the Rurouni's point of view.

Kaoru lifted her hand up in her air as the force of the spell carried her lithe body from the ground, she could feel her energy draining from her body but she knew she had to finish this. Sweat fell on her face as she moved her hands before her, directly before the two red heads. Summoning up all her energy and strength, Kaoru forced her body through sheer force of will and determination to finish the spell…

"Light and dark

separated into two,

Let two souls unite

As once had been,

To create a whole

As it was before

Let two souls become as one

To fulfill the balance of his heart

So mote it be!"

AS Kaoru finished the last line of the spell, the light that had engulfed her covered both the Rurouni and the Battousai. Still floating up on air, Kaoru was thrown forcefully backwards by the strong energy that had surrounded her, knocking her unconscious on the walls of the dojo. Yahiko and the rest ran immediately to her side, Megumi checking if she had sustained any injuries. As Megumi and Yahiko looked at Kaoru, Sano turned from looking at Kaoru's prone form to the middle of the yard where the bright light had faded only to be replaced by a thick smoke. As the smoke faded, it slowly revealed the form of only one man. Sano grinned from ear to ear as her looked at the person standing at the middle of the yard.

"Well I'll be damned… looks like jou-chan pulled it off…" he muttered in awe. Both Megumi and Yahiko looked at him and turned to see Kenshin standing at the middle of the yard. He was still looking at his hands as if he was checking if anything was missing. As he looked up, Megumi gasped at the color of his eyes, it was no longer the shade of glittering amber, or the soft gentle amethyst. Kenshin's eyes were now the color of both. Amber clashing with amethyst.

He tilted his head a bit as he eyed them until his eyes focused on Kaoru's unconscious form. He dashed forward until he had her soft body in her arms. He looked worriedly at her then to his friends.

"What happened?" he whispered

"She got thrown backwards by something and she fainted at impact." Megumi answered him, "Anou, Ken-san… daijobou?"

Kenshin looked at Megumi, then to both Yahiko and Sano who was peering at him curiously. He smiled and nodded. "Hai. Daijobou… it looks like Kaoru's reverse spell worked."

Yahiko and Sano exchanged triumphant grins and whooped out loud.

"Whoooeeeee! Now that's our tanuki!" Sano yelled out loud

Kenshin slowly shook Kaoru's limp form, worried that doing the spell might have harmed her than him in the process.

"Kaoru… kaoru, wake up…" his gentle shakes seemed to have no effect on the girl. But just when he was about to give in to panic, Kaoru moaned and opened her eyes gingerly. She grinned ruefully up at him.

"It worked?" she whispered as she struggled to get up

Kenshin smiled endearingly down at her as he cradled her face in his hands. "Hai, koishii… it did… that it did…"

Kaoru smiled and sighed in relief… "Thank the gods…" she smiled weakly up at her friends who were grinning happily by their side. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw a shadow form from behind her friends backs. She gasped as the shadow took on to the form of her mother. Leaning back at Kenshin, she blinked owlishly at the form of her mother.

At her surprised glance, the rest turned to look exactly what had gotten her attention. Their eyes widened when they saw exactly what had captured her attention. A gentle breeze wafted around them, it ruffled the spirit's clothes gently moved with the wind. With long dark raven hair, and gentle blue eyes, the spirit wore the traditional dress of priestess.

"Who… in the…" Yahiko muttered while the rest could only stare in disbelief.

The spirit smiled and looked at Kaoru endearingly. "Hello, hime-chan…"

Kaoru opened her mouth to reply only to come up with a little squeak. The spirit merely laughed at her and tilted her head to one side and kneeled before them, her eyes happy yet sad.

"It has been a long time my hime-chan… I see your father has done a very good job of raising you." She whispered

Kaoru straightened herself from Kenshin's embrace and slowly tried to reach out to the woman before her, her eyes misting with tears. "Okaasan…"

The rest of the Kenshin-gumi stared at Kaoru then to the priestess. "Okaasan!" came both Sano and Yahiko's screech.

The gentle figure laughed gently at the surprised looks on the faces of her daughter's friends. She smiled tenderly as she reached out a hand to hold the one Kaoru had in front of her, their hands passing through one another.

Tears fell from her eyes as she tried to grasp her mothers hand. When she realized that there was no way that she would be able to hold her hand, she dropped her own and leaned into Kenshin's warm supporting embrace.

"I know that things that have happened here for the past month have been a surprise to all of you… most of all to you my dear hime-chan…" Kaoru's mother smiled a bit ruefully. "As you have thought, I did know what was to happen to you even after I died. I knew when your father was going to leave you, and I also knew the day that a certain red headed rurouni would walk into your life." She sighed and looked up to the clear blue sky.

"You don't know how hard it is for a mother to know all the hard-ships that her only daughter was to face and there's nothing she can do about it… I tried to guide you as best as I could Kaoru-chan… I even told your father not to join the war…" she shook her head in resignation. "Not that he would ever listen… he's always been as stubborn as a mule!"

Kaoru looked at her mother in a quiet assessing glance. "You knew everything?" she whispered in disbelief

Her mother smiled, "Not almost everything, but I knew that you'd be strong and that you'd do everything you thought was right… that everything will be fine once that certain rurouni stepped into your life."

All heads turned to stare at Kenshin before they all turned back to the priestess before them. "Did you know everything that was going to happen up to now?" Sano asked her politely

Kaoru's mother winced, "not entirely all of it… but I just saw bits and fragments of the future that has been set out for my daughter. It was the least I could do before I passed away." She answered him

"Then what about the separation spell that Kenshin read accidentally?" Yahiko asked her

A crystalline gleam glittered in her eyes. "Ohhh… I definitely knew about that… why don't you think I created a counter spell for that?"

Jaws dropped simultaneously in shock. It was kaoru who had recovered first, a bright red flush appearing on her cheeks. "You knew I could find a way to counter that spell…" she whispered

"Oh… yes… definitely!" the deadly gleam seemed to intensify as she eyed Kenshin and she stood up. "You. With me. Now." she told Kenshin as she floated through the dojo panel.

Kenshin looked at his friends before he stood up and followed Kaoru's mother inside the dojo. As the panel closed behind him, all of them looked at each other and crowded closer to the door to listen what was going to happen inside the dojo.

They all slowly looked upward when they heard someone cough from above them. Four sweatdrops appeared when they saw Kaoru's mother give all of them disapproving frown. They all laughed nervously before they moved away from the door.

Kaoru watched worriedly at the closed shoji before she sighed.

What on earth is mom going to do? She thought worriedly.

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AN: Whoeeee! Sorry if it took me this long to update! Last chappie to follow soon… (crosses fingers behind my back… I hope…) hope to hear more revies minna! And thanks for the wonderful reviews! Muah muah!

Aoi-chan