Divine Commiseration

Chapter 5: Forever Blue

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Rurouni Kenshin, including the very drool-worthy, Sou-chan!

Author's Note:
Wow, I really didn't expect this story to gain so many readers! Well, of course, I hoped that it would, but I really didn't think my dream would become reality! You guys are absolutely amazing, and you're definitely keeping me writing and updating at record speed!
Hm... This story is going at a much slower than I expected, even though the chapters are twice as long as my usual (the last chapter was the longest I've done on this username!). I still think I can finish this story by the end of summer, though.
Here's the newest chapter, go read!

Soujiro crept away early the next morning, hoping to catch the girl still asleep. Luckily, Shishio had let him wander around, watching for Himura and Saitou Hajime to arrive. There wasn't anything for him to do anymore. His training was complete, had been complete for years, and he was ready to fight Himura once more. And this time win.

Like he expected, the girl was still asleep, curled into a ball around herself, her white yukata clutched tightly around her small frame. The fire she had made the night before were embers now, giving off very little heat.

He jumped onto the ledge a statue was placed onto. Never believing in gods himself, or being the least bit religious, he cared not that he was sitting at the place of a god, and therefore setting supposed curses onto himself.

The sleeping girl he looked down on seemed so small. So helpless. So like him.

He knew, that under that soft exterior, there lived the heart of something stronger. A tigress. Not like him. All he had, if he even had a heart at all, was the heart of a killer.

He imagined her now... Though he could hardly see her the night before, he knew exactly what she looked like. Eyes that made the most precious of jades seem worthless, eyes that overflowed with emotions. Long, sooty eyelashes that accented the jewel-like eyes. Skin that was pale as the moon, as smooth as the blade of his sword. Hair that flowed like a river. A thin, lithe body that was steel underneath. All in all, a beauty.

However, that couldn't be the reason that he saved her. There were plenty of beautiful women that he had killed. Wives of politicians that had seen the deed, women that were unlucky enough to see. No, there was more to Misao than that.

Her range of emotions was just stunning. Anger, violent anger, that could be her weakness in battle, a bit of pity, compassion, also a weakness, were all bottled inside her. It was surprising that she was still alive. Perhaps her weaknesses were her strengths?

She rolled in her sleep, sighing softly as she got into a more comfortable position. Up on his perch, Soujiro smiled boyishly. How strange she was. One minute an angry ninja, and now a sleeping girl who just looked like she was out of place.

Misao, meanwhile, was in the middle on a wonderful dream. There was Aoshi-sama. In all his glory. And this time, he was back to be the Oniwa- Banshu. And about to propose to her and ask her to be his to their dying days. And there was no such thing that Makoto Shishio or his little assassin, Tenken no Soujiro. She smiled softly in her dream. All was well with the world...

That is, until she remember that Aoshi had joined Shishio's forces, and she had been kidnaped by a very smiley guy who just happened to be one the greatest swordsman in Japan, and have the orders to kill her.

She moaned softly, trying to get her green eyes open. The light caused her to wince slightly, her lips forming into a tight frown. In a few moments, her face smoothed over, and she crawled into a sitting position, yawning hugely. Her arms stretched up, reaching towards the ceiling.

Unable to help himself, Soujiro let out a chuckle. Misao's hands immediately went towards her Kansatsu, then relaxed when she saw it was him.

"Tenken!"

Soujiro hopping down from his resting spot and beamed at her. "Good morning, Misao-san. I hope you had a good night's sleep?"

Misao scowled. "No thanks to you! I nearly froze! I told you, you should have let me grab my mantle!"

Laughing again, Soujiro walked towards her. "Are you hungry?"

Misao hated to accept defeat, and this was no different case. She looked down, crossing her arms, choosing to remain silent until her stomach grumbled loudly.

For the third time that morning, Soujiro erupted in laughter. "It seems your stomach answers for you!"

She glared at him fiercely. "Stop laughing at me! Until you've been dragged out of your bed in the middle of the night, get threatened by an assassin, get carried at the speed of a train to an abandoned temple, and dumped there to sleep for a night, don't laugh!"

Soujiro stopped to think, his expression thoughtful. "Well, I have dragged a girl out of her bed at the middle of the night, threatened to kill her, carry her at the speed of a train to an abandoned temple, then dump her there for a night."

Ignoring the statement and pouting slightly, Misao stuck out her tongue childishly. Her stomach complaining again, Misao looked up to Soujiro with an angelic smile on her face. "So what's that you said about food, hm?"

Soujiro grinned, always his empty smile, "Would you like some, Misao- san?" He held up a small package of food.

Misao lurched forward and grabbed the package, tearing it apart savagely. "Thank you!" With a satisfied glean in her eye, she started stuffing the cakes into her mouth. "Wow, these are good!" she mumbled out, her mouth still full of food. "Did you make them?"

Soujiro shook his head, his expression one of obvious awe. How did anyone stuff so much food into their mouth at one time? It was like she was a... a man! "Arah... No."

Shrugging, Misao continued devouring her breakfast. In a few short moments, she finished. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she looked up to him with an asking smile. "You wouldn't have any clothes I could change into... right? Because you know I couldn't just walk around in my yukata... Right?"

"Err... No."

Misao growled angrily. "And what, Tenken-san, do you suppose I can wear while you're off chopping people up?" She raised a fist, shaking it as if threatening him, then lowered it.

"Maa, maa! Calm down, Misao-san! I'm sure you won't die if you wear your yukata." His eyes brushed over the white robe, loosely covering her form.

Misao took it all wrong. "Y-you pervert! Stop looking at my body!" She jumped up, stepped forward, and made a move to slap him, or at least kick him until he was unconscious.

Needless to say, it was a breeze for Soujiro to duck, his training kicking in. "Misao-san, get a grip on yourself! If you get hurt it will have been a complete waste for me to save you!" He grabbed her wrist as she tried to land another punch, then pulled her closer to take hold of her other arm.

Misao found herself staring into the blue eyes of the strongest in the Juppon Gatana, and for some strange, deranged reason, her heart started pounding.

No, not the pulsation of a person who was feeling themselves drowning in fear, but the pounding she had felt when she saw Aoshi-sama, the idolizing memories washing over her. She knew that red had to been brushed all over her cheeks. She didn't want to remember... Without a second thought, she lifted her foot and brought it smashing against his stomach.

Soujiro shot backwards, avoiding the kick, and stared at the girl strangely. He wondered why she had suddenly flushed, and started acting so protective of herself. Had he... done something wrong?

No sense of guilt brushed against him. Instead, there was a strange bit of awe. "Is something wrong, Misao-san?" He felt the urge to lift his hand and press the palm of it to her forehead, as if checking for a fever. "Are you feeling all right? You seem... overheated."

Misao shook her head quickly. "I'm fine. I'm fine." Her voice was rushed, hurried, and it seemed as if she was trying to convince herself.

'What are you doing?!' she screamed at herself. 'He's the enemy! He's the one who kidnaped you and brought you to this hell! What do you think you're doing, feeling like you're attracted to him, even if it is in some sick, twisted way?!'

"Um... Soujiro, right?" He nodded to her uncertain question. "Do you mind if we go outside? It's kinda muggy in here," she suggested, trying to change the subject.

"Sure, Misao-san. As long as you don't look as flushed as you do right now and collapse." Soujiro smiled cheekily.

Misao jumped up and started walking towards the steps of the temple, Soujiro at her heels like an obedient dog. She quickly sat down at the first step, which looked over the many steps and some trees. Patting to the spot next to her, Soujiro also sat, if not a bit awkwardly.

Clearing her throat uncertainly, she looked at his clear blue eyes and asked a question that would hopefully change the subject for the better. "Soujiro, how do you fight without your aura? I mean, even Himura and that crazy cop have auras, and kenki. But even though I'm bad at reading them, I still couldn't sense any of yours. And neither could Saitou."

Soujiro looked at the step he was stepping on. The stone was worn and chipped, dirt permanently caked on some parts, making green moss grow on the damp soil. "Misao-san, my aura is unreadable because even I don't know what I'm going to do. I only know of my mission to kill, or defeat. I can wait for their attack first. Or I can just win with a single swipe. I can't... I don't know how to explain exactly."

"You never finished the story why you always smile..." Misao reminded him.

He looked away. He shouldn't have told her about his aura... He shouldn't have told her anything. She would only get attached, or tell everyone about the great news that he found out. It was stupid of him... The strong would live... and the strong never trusted anyone.

He didn't trust anyone... Not even Shishio. No one.

Not even the little ninja girl he was sent to kill... Makimachi Misao.

Misao cocked her head as he rose abruptly. "Where are you going? Are you just not going to tell me?"

"I have to go." It was the voice he used when he was threatening someone, light but with a haunted undertone. "I'll come back later."

"Huh? Why?"

"I have to go." The repeated sentence was one of absolute certainty, almost like a command to himself.

Misao shrugged. "As long as you come back later... It's going to be really boring here..."

He nodded and smiled again, towards her. He looked down to her. As the temple faced north, the sun was directly behind her head, making the light hit all the pieces of her hair. It almost seemed like she had a holy light behind her, like she was the answer of all the questions he ever had.

He shook his head softly, more to himself than Misao. "Don't worry. I'll bring more food."

Misao grinned again. "That I can wait for. Hurry, okay?"

He nodded, jerking his head up and down in a single, robotic movement.

Misao watched him walk down the steps, never once looking back. It was like he was hiding something... And she would do everything in her power to get him to tell her.

Ending Notes:

Well, I can safely say that this was a chapter for chapter development! Misao is starting to get attracted to Soujiro, even if it is in a freaky, twisted way, and Soujiro is starting to get confused beyond belief! Next chapter should bring in... um... Well, I have a fluff scene coming up. No action yet, but then again, this story is more drama than action. I don't think we'll have a lot of Kenshin or anyone else in this story... but he'll be involved later when Soujiro 'cracks'. Teehee. Okay, go leave a nice review! This chapter is really long... PLEASE! Just kidding.

Responses to Reviews:

GoldAngel2: I'm glad you think I've gotten Soujiro's character down. Since this takes place in the series, I have to work really hard to try to keep him in his original personality, unlike when I get to write everything in A- U. It's difficult to write a character that feels basically nothing, unlike Joe, who is really compassionate, and Kenshin, who has a lot of anguish in his soul. Thank you for offering to tape the episodes for me; I would really like that, but I won't get back to the US until mid August, so I'll give you an e-mail then. I think that Yumi is another very complex character. She's easy to write, but it's hard to capture her in a 'good' light. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Nakashima-Michiyo: I'm so glad you're enjoying the story so far, and I hope that as it goes on it'll be just as satisfying. For readers like you, I update fast and make the chapters long. Thank you for your wonderful support!

JMeg: Hope this chapter was to your absolute enjoyment! Glad you're still happy with this story!

Pyrotess: Was this chapter enough Sou/Mi for you? I tried extra hard trying to get some chapter development up! Here's newest chapter! Enjoy!

Twilight Sky: I think we can become great cooking buddies! Just wait, I'll tell you about the time when I tried making a cake for Mother's Day (laughs). Well, you see, I learned this recipe from my friend for this egg-cake. You beat the egg extra fluffy so it's almost creamy, and you put only a little flour and oil. Well, my blender wasn't as powerful as hers, so the five eggs I used were... flat. I then baked it with some fresh strawberries (bad move!). Let's just say that I didn't mention anything to my mom after I was done... It was horrible! As for your frying pan dilemma... consider yourself lucky. My mom doesn't trust me enough to let me near a frying pan! It's so weird that we live so close and we're the same age and everything! It's really cool! We should cook together sometimes... And of course, get insurance, first. LOL!

regina-terrae: Yay! A new reader who enjoys my work! Here's the newest chapter! Enjoy!

xT-Zealot: Hey! When are you going to update Festival?! I'm waiting! Very impatiently, of course! Update, you good writer you! Glad you enjoy my work; it's an honor to get that compliment from a good Sou/Mi writer!

Shinji Ikari: faints again from the long review I'm so glad the last chapter didn't have so many inaccuracies! I tried keeping everything in character, even if it was a short chapter. I'm sorry about the chapter length; I'm used to writing really short chapters, usually around 1000- 1500words each time, and writing longer chapters is a bit of a challenge for me (I get bored). However, I am trying, and I'm doing better than before. I'm hoping that by the time this story nears its end, I'll be ready to write long chapters without a quake. Unlike many other anime, dubbed RK stuff is okay! The voices aren't crappy (I don't know, the voices really get to me sometimes), and the translation is better than most I've seen (I don't want to get into Inu-Yasha... shudder). I will get those tapes, and a fanfiction friend has offered to tape it for me if I'm broke at the time. I have edited the first few chapters, replacing the Shuntensatsu with Shukuchi, but I haven't posted it yet. I plan to as soon as I post this chapter and get a friend to beta it for me for spelling mistakes. Also, about Misao's Kansatsu, I now understand why I used that phrase. When she first mentions her weapons (episode 30-something, I really can't remember), she calls them "Kansatsu Tobi Kunai". Kenshin calls them "Tobi Kunai" from that moment on while Misao switches back and forth from Kansatsu to Kunai. A bit confusing, but so is Misao. She uses Kenpo, which was taught to her by Hannya, which she also tells Kenshin. Since this is my first serious "during the series" story, I am working harder than I usually do to keep everyone in character and the time-line accurate. Kaoru will get hurt, so Kenshin does get worried (I thinking about writing, maybe a one-shot, about Kenshin during the battle with Soujiro because he won't be a major in this story, just mentioned and in the chapter in which Soujiro fights him), and we get that part. Therefore, he'll be more of a... roadblock, I guess, for Soujiro. Yes, he will be heavily done during the fight scene, but it will still be focused on Soujiro and Misao. Okay, I'd better stop blubbering (this is the longest response I've ever written!) and start writing the next chapter! Enjoy! (Oh, and I forgot to ask—do you write, too? I would love to read your work; I know it'll be amazing. If so, do you have a pen name?)

$$$$$$$$ (Money-SAMA): Thanks for all the information you gave me! It helps me a lot, especially with Soujiro's birthplace and technique. I hope you enjoyed this chapter; I tried putting in a bit of fluff and the like. Thanks for all your support!

KRN-CHAN: It's okay; I'm glad that you just enjoy the story and actually take time out of your (I'm sure) busy life to write a review! If you don't mind me asking, what is your first language (since you mentioned the part about your English)? As for my new story, it's just a collection of ficlets (100 word short stories), but I will have another Sou/Mi fic soon... That one... Well, let's just say that it's going to be in alternate universe and pretty humorous!

Leishe: rubs the back of her head in an embarrassed manner I know, I'm bad for writing another 'killer falls in love with the victim' story, but it was the only way I could think of bringing Misao and Soujiro together during the Kyoto Arc, and it was one of the most believable ways, too. I'm glad you liked Bullet in the Dark (eeps, I can't believe it's almost a year old!). I am trying to fix the grammar problems, along with the time-line errors I committed, so expect the edited version soon! Thanks for your review!