Authors notes: Ok this is going to be chapter 21 so hold onto your
britches!! Anyway, I'm trying to think along the lines of what to do here,
so if it sounds a little sloppy, please resist your flames U anyway, I'm
hoping that you all enjoy this chapter!! Thanks for all your reviews!
Chapter 21: It's beginning
It had been weeks since Kaoru left for the Ishin shi shi base, and the people at the Aoiya were beginning to get worried. They were starting to get bad thoughts that Kaoru might have gotten hurt until they received a letter from her. They had no idea that they could get letters from there, since the base was suppose to be a secret. But one day, when Misao was out in the woods gathering some firewood, a Jaguar approached her. She was scared out of her wits until she saw it had a letter in his mouth. She blinked when it came up to her and placed it in her hand. It said 'from Kaoru' on the front, and Misao's eyes lit up. She looked up from the letter to see the Jaguar bounding with graceful stealth, into the darker parts of the woods, and disappeared. She ran back to the Aoiya, and presented the letter to everyone. The letter read,
Dear...uh...everyone :)
I'm happy to say that I've made it to the Ishin shi shi base safely...with the help of Scythe. (The jaguar who got you this letter) Anyway, Kenshin is doing quite well after a couple of emotional miss haps. All the men here are very friendly to me, along with the women. (with an exception of one...) The war hasn't begun yet, and it's starting to worry me. I hope you all are doing ok, and I hope Yahiko, (yes Yahiko...I'm looking at you...) isn't causing too much trouble :). Please take care, and hopefully, I'll reply again sooner or later.
With much love,
Kaoru
Yahiko was a bit freaked out at her saying she was looking at him, and everyone just laughed. They were happy to hear she was doing ok. They had a feeling it was going to be a little while until Kaoru came back. And when she did, Kenshin was either going to be with her, or not. But they were confident. They would wait and see what was to become of their friends. They hoped everything would stay safe.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
It was now in the beginning of winter. Kaoru had been with the Ishin shi shi for four months, and se still helped as much as she could. It was almost scary. The tension that was building in the men about the war was frightening her. It was unknown when the enemy would attack and the war would begin, so all the men her tense and stern. Kaoru was cautious around Kenshin now. He was also tense with the upcoming war. Kaoru almost believed they were growing further and further apart. Until the next day.
Battousai had just awakened from a relaxed slumber, and rubbed his eyes from the fatigue that was clinging to him. He yawned deeply, and scratched his head, causing his already bed hair to become more ruffled. He blinked sleepily a couple times and glanced over to his right to find a snoozing Kaoru. He was still half asleep, and somewhat un aware of his actions. He smiled clumsily and then scooted over to her, still sitting up. He then, all of the sudden, plopped down right next to her and encircled his arms around her waste while snuggling into her back. Also nuzzling it with his cheek, sighing contently.
Kaoru awoke immediately once she felt an arm snake around her. She almost shrieked when the sudden action occurred. She then spotted a mound of fluffy orange red hair, connected to a contently sleeping Kenshin. She put a pretend irritated face in, and turned in his arms. Kenshin then opened his eyes, and blinked twice sleepily again, and yawned as if he had just woken up. He noticed he was still clinging onto her, and then lifted his head slowly to see an 'irritated' Kaoru, looking down at him. He laughed nervously as he slowly untangled his arms from around her waste, and began to inch away from her. Kaoru then smiled as she then hugged him around the neck.
"Good morning my little pervert!" She said in a sweet voice. Kenshin's only response was a nervous laugh again. She just giggled at his reaction, and then stood up. She stretched until a couple cracks where heard, and then yawned deeply.
Later that day, Kenshin was socializing with a couple of his comrades. Kaoru was left sitting in the corner. No one was talking to her that day. It seemed they were all too busy with their own things. Kaoru almost felt like a shadow. It was a cold day since winter had just begun, and Kaoru hadn't thought about bringing something warm with her. She felt stupid on that part. So that day she felt alone, and dumb. She sighed heavily as she got up to go sit outside on the porch. Even though it was cold out, snow hadn't begun to fall. She sighed lightly, and saw a light puff of a cloud, seep out of her mouth when she exhaled. She shook her head and laughed. She started to shiver until she felt a warm aura surround her. She blinked her eyes open, and looked up to see Kenshin hovering over her. He looked at her and smiled.
"You shouldn't be outside without something warm on. Even though it's not snowing out, you should still be prepared." With that, he sat down beside her. Kaoru kept staring at him and then smiled, turning her head down to look at the frost covered ground.
"You shouldn't worry about me. I'll be ok. I mean it's not like the first time I've been outside when it was co-" Kaoru couldn't finish her sentence because she felt his hand on her shoulder. She looked over to see Kenshin's head, tilted towards the sky. She then looked up, and gasped quietly. Snow had started to fall lightly from the white sky. Kenshin stood up still looking at the sky. He then smiled and turned his head to face Kaoru. He held out a hand to her.
"C'mon. I want to show you something..." He said gently. She looked at him quizzically, and then smiled slyly, grabbing his hand tenderly. He yanked her up from her sitting position gently, and then started to head towards the forest.
"Hey! Where are we going?!" Kaoru asked as she was dragged behind him. He suddenly stopped. She looked at him, and then averted her gaze in the direction he was looking. She gasped again when she saw what was standing in front of them.
"K-Kenshin...what are you thinking?....That thing could kill us..." Kaoru said in a whisper as she slowly crept behind him, and clung onto his blue gi like it was a life line. He chuckled softly.
"It's alright...I spotted him earlier. He's not dangerous." He said as he slowly stepped forward. Kaoru continued to gaze fearfully at the creature. There, stood a white tiger. His eyes where a piercing light blue, and his white coat and black stripes, blended so well with his surroundings. Kaoru question as to why Kenshin had suddenly brought her out here with this thing. Kaoru then watched fearfully as Kenshin approached it with a relaxed aura.
"Kenshin...?" Kaoru said in a questioning voice. She didn't feel right about what he was doing. But she had to trust him. She look in a deep breath, and started to walk forward just as Kenshin was. The tiger then broadened his head and moved one paw forward. Kaoru almost flinched at it's sudden movements.
Kenshin was very close to reaching it. He slowly lifted his hand in front of the tigers nose. The tiger then sniffed it curiously before lowering it's head. It stept forward, and lifted his head so Kenshin's hand rested on the tigers soft forehead. Kenshin smiled, and motioned for Kaoru to come closer. He then turned back to the white tiger, and rubbed left and right between his ears, causing a low purring sound to erupt from the tigers throat.
"It's alright...he won't hurt you." Kenshin said to Kaoru as she slowly came to him. Kenshin then backed off, and let Kaoru have a go. Kaoru looked at him, and he moved his head to signal her it was alright. She gulped, and walked towards the tiger carefully. She lifted a shaky hand, and slowly placed it in the tigers forehead, just as Kenshin had done. The tiger began to purr again, and Kaoru started to giggle. Kenshin smiled as he walked to her, and started to rub under the tigers ears. The tiger then stepped up, and turned around, sauntering away. Kaoru smiled as she watched it disappear into the snowy woods. She then turned to face Kenshin.
"Kenshin...why did you take me here? That was really something I didn't have in mind." Kaoru said as she gazed into his eyes. Kenshin only laughed in response. Causing Kaoru to place two hands on her hips, and make a small pout with her lips.
"I just wanted to show you that not all things around here are based on war and death." He said while smiling at her. Kaoru was still a little confused as to why he showed her a white tiger.
"But....why a white tiger?...I mean...a rabbit could have been enough." Kaoru said, totally missing his point.
"Because a white tiger is something so rare in places, and getting to touch one in the wild is something that not even professionals would think of doing. In this area, people think it's just a war base. That's all they see it as. But, I wanted to prove to you that other things that are pure and unique also live here too. It may have been out of the blue, but I still wanted you to understand what I mean. Do you?" He asked as he looked at her. Kaoru then smiled, and nodded her head.
Just then, they drew closer to each other. Kaoru could feel his breath on her lips. They were just about to brush lips until a loud bang was heard. Kenshin's eyes snapped open as did Kaoru's. They both glanced at the base. Kenshin didn't hesitate. He grabbed Kaoru's hand, and ran towards the base. As he reached the base, all of his comrades where out on the porch, all gathered together with their swords in hand. Kenshin pushed through the crowd until he reached the middle. He spotted Kastura, and ran over to him, Kaoru still linked to him.
"Katsura!! What's happening? What's going on?" Kenshin asked in a rushed sentence. Katsura then looked at the two with stern eyes.
"It's beginning..." He said in a cold tone. Kenshin didn't quite understand what he meant.
"What do you mean? What's beginning?" Kenshin asked, almost afraid of his boss's answer. Katsura just lowered his head, and said in a deadly tone,
"...The war..."
That's all for now! :D Please review!
Chapter 21: It's beginning
It had been weeks since Kaoru left for the Ishin shi shi base, and the people at the Aoiya were beginning to get worried. They were starting to get bad thoughts that Kaoru might have gotten hurt until they received a letter from her. They had no idea that they could get letters from there, since the base was suppose to be a secret. But one day, when Misao was out in the woods gathering some firewood, a Jaguar approached her. She was scared out of her wits until she saw it had a letter in his mouth. She blinked when it came up to her and placed it in her hand. It said 'from Kaoru' on the front, and Misao's eyes lit up. She looked up from the letter to see the Jaguar bounding with graceful stealth, into the darker parts of the woods, and disappeared. She ran back to the Aoiya, and presented the letter to everyone. The letter read,
Dear...uh...everyone :)
I'm happy to say that I've made it to the Ishin shi shi base safely...with the help of Scythe. (The jaguar who got you this letter) Anyway, Kenshin is doing quite well after a couple of emotional miss haps. All the men here are very friendly to me, along with the women. (with an exception of one...) The war hasn't begun yet, and it's starting to worry me. I hope you all are doing ok, and I hope Yahiko, (yes Yahiko...I'm looking at you...) isn't causing too much trouble :). Please take care, and hopefully, I'll reply again sooner or later.
With much love,
Kaoru
Yahiko was a bit freaked out at her saying she was looking at him, and everyone just laughed. They were happy to hear she was doing ok. They had a feeling it was going to be a little while until Kaoru came back. And when she did, Kenshin was either going to be with her, or not. But they were confident. They would wait and see what was to become of their friends. They hoped everything would stay safe.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
It was now in the beginning of winter. Kaoru had been with the Ishin shi shi for four months, and se still helped as much as she could. It was almost scary. The tension that was building in the men about the war was frightening her. It was unknown when the enemy would attack and the war would begin, so all the men her tense and stern. Kaoru was cautious around Kenshin now. He was also tense with the upcoming war. Kaoru almost believed they were growing further and further apart. Until the next day.
Battousai had just awakened from a relaxed slumber, and rubbed his eyes from the fatigue that was clinging to him. He yawned deeply, and scratched his head, causing his already bed hair to become more ruffled. He blinked sleepily a couple times and glanced over to his right to find a snoozing Kaoru. He was still half asleep, and somewhat un aware of his actions. He smiled clumsily and then scooted over to her, still sitting up. He then, all of the sudden, plopped down right next to her and encircled his arms around her waste while snuggling into her back. Also nuzzling it with his cheek, sighing contently.
Kaoru awoke immediately once she felt an arm snake around her. She almost shrieked when the sudden action occurred. She then spotted a mound of fluffy orange red hair, connected to a contently sleeping Kenshin. She put a pretend irritated face in, and turned in his arms. Kenshin then opened his eyes, and blinked twice sleepily again, and yawned as if he had just woken up. He noticed he was still clinging onto her, and then lifted his head slowly to see an 'irritated' Kaoru, looking down at him. He laughed nervously as he slowly untangled his arms from around her waste, and began to inch away from her. Kaoru then smiled as she then hugged him around the neck.
"Good morning my little pervert!" She said in a sweet voice. Kenshin's only response was a nervous laugh again. She just giggled at his reaction, and then stood up. She stretched until a couple cracks where heard, and then yawned deeply.
Later that day, Kenshin was socializing with a couple of his comrades. Kaoru was left sitting in the corner. No one was talking to her that day. It seemed they were all too busy with their own things. Kaoru almost felt like a shadow. It was a cold day since winter had just begun, and Kaoru hadn't thought about bringing something warm with her. She felt stupid on that part. So that day she felt alone, and dumb. She sighed heavily as she got up to go sit outside on the porch. Even though it was cold out, snow hadn't begun to fall. She sighed lightly, and saw a light puff of a cloud, seep out of her mouth when she exhaled. She shook her head and laughed. She started to shiver until she felt a warm aura surround her. She blinked her eyes open, and looked up to see Kenshin hovering over her. He looked at her and smiled.
"You shouldn't be outside without something warm on. Even though it's not snowing out, you should still be prepared." With that, he sat down beside her. Kaoru kept staring at him and then smiled, turning her head down to look at the frost covered ground.
"You shouldn't worry about me. I'll be ok. I mean it's not like the first time I've been outside when it was co-" Kaoru couldn't finish her sentence because she felt his hand on her shoulder. She looked over to see Kenshin's head, tilted towards the sky. She then looked up, and gasped quietly. Snow had started to fall lightly from the white sky. Kenshin stood up still looking at the sky. He then smiled and turned his head to face Kaoru. He held out a hand to her.
"C'mon. I want to show you something..." He said gently. She looked at him quizzically, and then smiled slyly, grabbing his hand tenderly. He yanked her up from her sitting position gently, and then started to head towards the forest.
"Hey! Where are we going?!" Kaoru asked as she was dragged behind him. He suddenly stopped. She looked at him, and then averted her gaze in the direction he was looking. She gasped again when she saw what was standing in front of them.
"K-Kenshin...what are you thinking?....That thing could kill us..." Kaoru said in a whisper as she slowly crept behind him, and clung onto his blue gi like it was a life line. He chuckled softly.
"It's alright...I spotted him earlier. He's not dangerous." He said as he slowly stepped forward. Kaoru continued to gaze fearfully at the creature. There, stood a white tiger. His eyes where a piercing light blue, and his white coat and black stripes, blended so well with his surroundings. Kaoru question as to why Kenshin had suddenly brought her out here with this thing. Kaoru then watched fearfully as Kenshin approached it with a relaxed aura.
"Kenshin...?" Kaoru said in a questioning voice. She didn't feel right about what he was doing. But she had to trust him. She look in a deep breath, and started to walk forward just as Kenshin was. The tiger then broadened his head and moved one paw forward. Kaoru almost flinched at it's sudden movements.
Kenshin was very close to reaching it. He slowly lifted his hand in front of the tigers nose. The tiger then sniffed it curiously before lowering it's head. It stept forward, and lifted his head so Kenshin's hand rested on the tigers soft forehead. Kenshin smiled, and motioned for Kaoru to come closer. He then turned back to the white tiger, and rubbed left and right between his ears, causing a low purring sound to erupt from the tigers throat.
"It's alright...he won't hurt you." Kenshin said to Kaoru as she slowly came to him. Kenshin then backed off, and let Kaoru have a go. Kaoru looked at him, and he moved his head to signal her it was alright. She gulped, and walked towards the tiger carefully. She lifted a shaky hand, and slowly placed it in the tigers forehead, just as Kenshin had done. The tiger began to purr again, and Kaoru started to giggle. Kenshin smiled as he walked to her, and started to rub under the tigers ears. The tiger then stepped up, and turned around, sauntering away. Kaoru smiled as she watched it disappear into the snowy woods. She then turned to face Kenshin.
"Kenshin...why did you take me here? That was really something I didn't have in mind." Kaoru said as she gazed into his eyes. Kenshin only laughed in response. Causing Kaoru to place two hands on her hips, and make a small pout with her lips.
"I just wanted to show you that not all things around here are based on war and death." He said while smiling at her. Kaoru was still a little confused as to why he showed her a white tiger.
"But....why a white tiger?...I mean...a rabbit could have been enough." Kaoru said, totally missing his point.
"Because a white tiger is something so rare in places, and getting to touch one in the wild is something that not even professionals would think of doing. In this area, people think it's just a war base. That's all they see it as. But, I wanted to prove to you that other things that are pure and unique also live here too. It may have been out of the blue, but I still wanted you to understand what I mean. Do you?" He asked as he looked at her. Kaoru then smiled, and nodded her head.
Just then, they drew closer to each other. Kaoru could feel his breath on her lips. They were just about to brush lips until a loud bang was heard. Kenshin's eyes snapped open as did Kaoru's. They both glanced at the base. Kenshin didn't hesitate. He grabbed Kaoru's hand, and ran towards the base. As he reached the base, all of his comrades where out on the porch, all gathered together with their swords in hand. Kenshin pushed through the crowd until he reached the middle. He spotted Kastura, and ran over to him, Kaoru still linked to him.
"Katsura!! What's happening? What's going on?" Kenshin asked in a rushed sentence. Katsura then looked at the two with stern eyes.
"It's beginning..." He said in a cold tone. Kenshin didn't quite understand what he meant.
"What do you mean? What's beginning?" Kenshin asked, almost afraid of his boss's answer. Katsura just lowered his head, and said in a deadly tone,
"...The war..."
That's all for now! :D Please review!
