Author's Notes: Okay, originally this wasn't even fanfiction. In fact, I've still got it going on over at FP under a different title complete with all the characters' original names, appearances, etc. I dunno, but I felt like I needed to bring it to FF as a Kenshin fic. Only God knows why, but I think it'll all work out in the end. Most fics do, you know? Hugs to all readers, old and new alike. Hope you enjoy.
Warnings: Language, violence, and darkness abound. I mean, it is categorized under Horror, right?
Noir Fait Varier Le Pas : Feathered Black
Part One - Epiphany
Session One
Kaoru
You have a choice.
"What?" she asked.
You have a choice. You can choose. Well? What will it be, then? Are you going to choose now, or will you wait another thousand years? The time is upon you. Shall we be locatingBattousai andHimura as of this century or will you stay in this universe? As your Four Wings I must alert you of the problems that are occurring in Heaven and Hell. Both the Demons and the Angels want to rid the Earth of any Celestial being…especially the Anon. What is your choice?
"My...choice?"Her voice wavered.
Yours and the others of the Anon.
Anatawa zaicho jetsunae aesochikigawa anatawa.
Courage, they said. Take courage and rediscover the Fire and the Wings.
----
The sky was bluer than I remembered it being in a long time. There were clouds drifting over the sun, so even though the daylight was dim, the sky was just so blue.
Breathing was easy, and I took in deep lungfuls of air, then coughed and almost moaned when I realized that my throat was still itchy. I tried to speak, just to hear myself talking, but no sound emerged.
Oh great, I thought. No voice, no class.
There were Christmas lights strung up everywhere in my tiny apartment. Dad had hung them everywhere when he'd visited at Thanksgiving, seeing as he hadn't been able to make it all the way from Japan for Christmas. I was supposed to go a few blocks away to stay withtheYukishiros for Christmas to spend time with my best friend (and fellow art student) Enishi. His family had made the offer. I often thought Enishi was lucky, having his parents live so close to the school. So here I was, alone at home in the freezing winter, thinking about the strange dream I'd had the night before.
Anatawa. Zaicho jetsunae aesochikigawa anatawa.
Courage. Take courage and rediscover the Fire and the Wings.
What in the hell was that supposed to mean?
I sighed, and nestled further under my quilt rubbing my hands together in a pathetic attempt to ban the numbness from them.
I had been having a lot of weird dreams lately, all with voices or figures that looked either ominous or loving. I was thoroughly confused, because it seemed that each dream held a different meaning. The dream from three days ago, the night my parents had left, had been something like this:
I was walking through a waterfall, of all things, and suddenly I heard a strange sound…I realized almost immediately that it was music.
"Baidai akotudai seuntiu tasae... Baidai anusaku zaicho anatawa…"
It was beautiful.
I suddenly recognized one of the words: anatawa. It meant courage in whatever strange language the voices were speaking.
"Soon sunset will come... Soon we'll take courage."
Suddenly the world around me dissolved and I found myself in front of the waterfall again. Behind the waterfall something moved and walked through the water towards me.
"Tomoe."
I saw the most beautiful golden eyes, and a swish of long crimson hair and then the dream...
…ended. I sighed and rubbed my eyes quickly. My black hair, which fell to my shoulder blades but was tied back in a ponytail, fell forward into my face and I sighed again.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. Reluctantly I pushed back the covers and wearily dragged myself to my feet.
"Just a minute!" I tried to croak out, but nothing emerged from my mouth but a squawk.
(Damn,) I thought, touching my fingertips to my throat.
The doorbell rang again and again, beginning to annoy me.
I swung the door open and was about to give the intruder a nasty glare but it turned out to be Enishi.
I raised a hand in greeting.
"Morning!" he said loudly.
Enishi immediately swept through the door, knocking me forward.
"What's up?" he asked, plopping himself down on my sofa, and taking off his expensive leather jacket.
I gave him an impassive stare and then pointed at my throat in explanation.
"You mean you STILL have strep?"
I nodded and sighed, sitting down in the chair next tohim.
I'd known Enishi since we were both ten and dreaming of being artists in a desolate little town near Kyoto. To tell the truth, I'd had a tiny crush on him since I wastwelve. (It was hard not to, he was extremely handsome with his wild, dyed hair and laughing eyes.) I had no idea,though,how he felt about me. I just accepted the fact that we were best friends and tried desperately to ignore my feelings for him.
"Hey!" he yelled as soon as I sat down. "You'll give it to me, too!"
I stuck my tongue out at him, and he struggled to stand up. It was impossible, however. I was practically right on top of him, and he was trapped. (Shouldn't have bothered to even come over if he was worried 'bout catching it,) I thought, snickering inwardly.
"You lousy excuse for a friend," he said, giving up and allowing me to use his head as a cushion.
I nodded twice, and kicked his knee with the heel of my foot.
He jumped a little, but otherwise gave no indication that it hurt.
"So are you too sick to go to class today?" he asked.
I nodded wearily and rolled off of him to sit in a pathetic puddle of blankets on the floor in front of him.
I sneezed.
He rolled on top of me, gaining revenge by practically suffocating me underneath his back.
"Well, then we know what that means."
I gave the back of his head a puzzled look.
"I'll just hafta skip school to stay here with you...and help you recover, of course."
I gave a loud, overly dramatic sigh that made me cough.
"First things first," he said, jumping to his feet. "We get you into bed and then I'll make soup. Youdo have chicken noodle, right?"
Final Note: Bah, I hate this chapter. I had to make a lot of changes for the sake of it still being a fanfiction. Review Responses are below! I can't believe it - twelve reviews for just a measly prologue? Either this story sounds really good or I'm on more people's Author Alerts than I realized. o.o
Minni May Yukibara: You know how I do things! Ribbons for first-place reviewers! -gives you shiny gold ribbon- Much love M.M.Y-chan! -glomps-
royal blueKitsune: The pairings are K/B/K, M/A, and S?. You see, I absolutely despise Megumi, so I doubt she'll end up with anyone, especially not Sano. -huggles her Sanosuke-
Monkeystarz: Really? Thanks, I hope it meets your expectations.
Reignashii: Hey, it's you! XD -glomps- Nice to see ya, Rei-chan! Thanks for reading.
Aya45: Thanks, Aya. :D
Itsa mia: Hmm...I've been having a hard time figuring out your name...XD One of my friends' name is Mia, is that yours too? O.o Gosh, sorry, stupid thing to ask. Thanks for the review. Don't worry, I'm definitely changing a lot to make it more relevent to the anime series, promise.
Sims are awesome: Is this going to be a K/K fic! IS THERE ANY OTHER PAIRING WORTH MENTIONING! Actually, now that I think about it, it's a love triangle. B/K/K, seeing as Battousai and Kenshin are two different people in my fic. XD
B-chan: Hey B-chan, long time no see! The pairing can still go either way at this point; I'm leaning in one direction, butI'm still not sure. o.o Oh, and I promise to make it as original as possible!
PAISITA: Hey, thanks!
rain angst: Hope you enjoyed, rain-chan.
- Midi Tenshi.