Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin is the creation of Nobuhiro Watsuki, with the
manga and anime rights belonging to Jump Comics and Sony Entertainment,
respectively. FF is non-profit, meant for entertainment only.
FF can be archived anywhere, just let me know where. Please send no flames,
I'm sensitive. For all other comments 0_o you may contact me at
kaoru_koishii@yahoo.com
Chapter Seven
*************
Kaoru jerked awake.
Early morning light filtered into the room, removing only some of the many shadows. She shivered not really aware if it was a result of the morning air or something else. An overwhelming sentiment came over her and she knew she needed help. This haunting feeling. She could eventually piece everything together if she had enough time. But she didn't want to wait. It could be a whole lifetime before she understood everything meanwhile she would go insane fighting desire and loathing.
"Battoussai."
She stood on shaky legs and made her way to the closet. Putting on the first items she could find. She grabbed a near by sweatshirt and headed out the door. A moment later she came back. She dashed into her room and after a moment, emerged with her purse.
She jogged down the street. She had a faint idea where she needed to go. She ran into the subway somewhat relieved by lack of people. The hum of the speeding car droned on easing her tension as she was taken away. Hopefully to a place where she could get some answers.
An hour later she found herself walking down some of the older Tokyo streets. The entire atmosphere reeked of tradition and something else. Old magic perhaps. The market place she imagined must have looked exactly the same during the Meiji era.
She poked her head into a shop. She didn't understand why she'd picked this one. It gave her the creepiest feeling yet her largest hope lay here. She sighed and walked in.
"Good morning child."
"Good morning," Kaoru greeted as she entered. "I was wondering. Your sign . . .it." Kaoru trailed off. "I was wondering if you could tell me about my past."
The older woman smiled in understanding. "Come with me."
Together they walked to the back, to another room. "Lin watch the front." The older woman called out. Kaoru turned trying to catch a glimpse of the other person in the shop but she didn't see anyone.
"Have a seat."
Kaoru sat on a dark cushion. Watching the older woman as she moved around. The older woman seemed to be in her early sixties. Beautiful black hair with two thick white streaks on the front. It suited her.
Kaoru frowned as objects were placed in front of her. A large silver bowl, a pitcher of water, a knife and some herbs.
The older woman sat across from Kaoru. Her eyes, Kaoru noticed were and odd shade of green.
"Your hand child."
Kaoru complied and handed her left hand to the older woman. The woman held her hand a moment before she looked at her palm. She studied for a moment before she spoke. "Exactly what do you wish to ask?" The woman gaze bore into Kaoru.
"I want to know what happened in a past life. Why I feel hatred for a particular individual." Kaoru's frown deepened as she said it.
"He has been with you in every life, child. You must be more specific."
"Why do I hate him, then?" Kaoru said a bit impatiently.
"You know the reason why. What you want to know is how you went from love to hate. Better yet why it follows you now that you've met him again." The older woman paused at Kaoru's dumbfounded expression. "I will need some of your blood to get a better picture."
Kaoru nodded and the woman cut her palm. It stung but the pain was lessened at the thought of getting answers.
Her blood dripped into the water inside the bowl. The old woman began to chant quietly at first. In response her blood swirled around the bowl. The old woman dropped some herbs into the bowl chanting a bit louder. Kaoru's head perked up at recognizing two of the words, Oni and Hogosha.
The water in the bowl turned transparent. Kaoru's blue eyes widened. Her blood and the herbs were gone. The old woman looked intently at the water before she looked at Kaoru.
"You will need to see." The woman dabbed her forefinger in her Kaoru cupped palm, in her blood. "Close your eyes." She commanded. When Kaoru complied she placed a dot on each of her lids and then trailed a finger down her cheeks. She chanted and the spoke, "Look into the bowl."
Kaoru saw him. He was wearing a pinkish gi. He looked concerned. "I can't hear." Kaoru mumbled.
"We would need more blood."
"That's fine," Kaoru granted. A second later she felt a stabbing pain on her right hand then a prickling sensation on her ears. There was a chant, which seemed to grow fainter as the image in the bowl became clearer. Soon she could hear.
: : : : : : : : : : : : :
"I can't."
"Che, Kenshin you worry too much. JouChan can take care of herself." The ex-gangster said trying to sway his friend.
Kenshin's face remained blank and unresponsive.
"Suit yourself then." With that last remark he left. He walked down the street with his hands in his pockets whistling distractedly.
"JouChan?"
"Morning." Kaoru mumbled. She looked sleepy like she'd just tumbled out of bed.
Sano frowned and turned back to the dojo. Walking beside her as she entered the Kamiya property.
"Morning Kenshin." She said smiling at the redhead. She sensed his unease though she couldn't fathom why.
"Weren't you leaving, Sano." Kenshin gaze didn't leave the sight of her. "Yeah, all right." Sano got the hint and scurried off. "Where you out all night?" Kenshin asked after an awkward silence.
Kaoru's mouth fell open. "I - I stayed at the other Dojo" She stuttered.
His face was a complete blank and it frightened her to seem him that way, so unlike her rurouni. He was upset. "Are you all right Kenshin?"
"Go to bed." His tone, like his gaze was cold and it was upsetting her. She had done nothing to merit this kind of behavior from him. "I'm not tired Kenshin." She said stubbornly.
He didn't say anything else, just turned his back to her and went back inside. Kaoru chewed on her lower lip briefly before she followed suit. Heading for the kitchen where she knew he'd go.
His back was stiff. She could tell he sensed her. "What's wrong Kenshin." He didn't respond to her instead he began to cut vegetables, drowning out her voice and other questions.
"Kenshin," she said pulling on his arm to get his attention. The knife stopped cutting and he looked at her. His amber eyes glittered angrily at her.
"Battoussai," she almost stumbled back in her haste to get away from him.
: : : : : : : : : : : : :
Kaoru felt the sense being pulled out of herself. When she blinked she was at the shop. "That wasn't enough. It isn't even what I want to know."
"You saw what your heart desired to see. You control the vision." The older woman said.
"So he reverted back," Kaoru thought out loud. As curious as she was it wasn't why she was here. " Why do I hate him?"
"Because you loved him so much that when he died it tore you to shreds. It made you angry and bitter: a feeling that's followed you all the way to this life."
Kaoru sat silent for a moment. What was the point of this? Didn't she know all of this already? It was the softer feelings in her hear that were conflicting with her actions. "I hate him. I want to hate him." She thought stubbornly. He caused me a great pain and I don't love him so that shouldn't interfere with this life. "Do you have anything to repress dreams?"
"Are you sure you want to repress them?"
"Yes, I don't want to dream about him anymore. I know enough." That wasn't the entire truth and she knew it. She didn't want to dream about the rurouni or the battoussai because she didn't want to fall in love with him.
"This will take an hour or so. I will give you a potion that will induce sleep and cast a spell over you while you slumber. It should block everything from the past. I'm also going to give you a charm, which you must carry at all times. It will reinforce the spell." The woman looked thoughtful for a moment. She hesitated before she spoke again. "The love between you two, it transcends death. You realized that in your first life with him. If you want, I could make you a love potion. It would serve to shield you from the hate until real love blossoms.
Kaoru looked almost murderous at the suggestion. "No. I don't want to love him. I want to hurt him, to make him suffer. Make your potion. I want the past suppressed before it can inflict anymore damage."
The older woman nodded as set out to work.
*************
Kaoru held on to the book carefully. The older woman had bandaged her hands but they still hurt. She hadn't realized how deep the cuts were; still the old woman had said that the ointment on her hands would help with the scarring.
How could I not fall in love with you.
She looked through it finding some of the chapters interesting unfortunately it's not what she was looking for. She hesitantly put the book down, making a mental note to come back for it when this was all over with.
She looked through rows and rows of books. Why had she wanted to come in here?
"Umph."
She looked up, somewhat surprised to see blue-violet eyes. She smiled at her luck. "We've got to stop meeting like this."
He let her go and bent over to get her book. He caught a glimpse of the cover as picked it up. 'Dream Catcher,' he'd never hear of it. He looked her over as he handed her the book, making no comment on the bandaged hands. "New?" He said touching the bracelet on her wrist. Sliding his finger down and over the top of her hand.
To her dismay and utter shame her skin broke into goose bumps. She cursed inwardly; she shouldn't have taken her sweatshirt off. "It's a charm bracelet." She said automatically. "I'm surprised you noticed." And she was. She'd never thought he'd really paid attention to her, rather looked at her that closely.
"I noticed."
She felt awkward, standing here in the middle of the bookstore. "So no date today?" She said moving her gaze away from his eyes.
"No date." He affirmed as he studied her. He'd been thinking about her since the gala the night before last. The encounter he'd had with her yesterday had left him distracted, so much his date had noticed.
"What are you doing here?"
Her voice broke him out of his thoughts. "Meeting someone." He responded. She frowned and though he usually didn't do it he did elaborate this time. "Job offer."
She smiled. "At a bookstore."
"Aa."
She nodded, a little self-conscious now. He kept starring and he wasn't saying much. She would have worn something more eye catching had she known she'd be seeing him. "You have very intense eyes you know that," she said as she side stepped him. His left eyebrow rose a fraction of a centimeter. She smiled disarmingly and he fell into step with her, walking to the front of the store where she paid for her book.
"So what are you doing today?" She said looking sideways at him. "Aside from skipping work I mean."
The corners of his mouth turned up slightly. "Day off."
"I see Monday's off, Can I get a job there." She tossed playfully as they walked down the street. She saw a strange look appear on his face before it quickly disappeared.
"I can arrange it."
Her mouth fell slightly open; she was surprised by the quick response. His willingness to assist. She turned away. She didn't really want to work with him. Everyday she would see him. Her mouth turned into a small pout. "You're with Akihito Corp." She thought out loud. "What would I do there?"
"Secretary work," he offered watching the expression on her face.
Kaoru thought about it. I mean she wasn't doing anything but planning. "I don't know." She said looking doubtful. She looked to him for a sort of guidance or other helpful thoughts. But his face was blank, devoid of anything he might have been thinking.
"How about an early dinner." Kaoru suggested as they turned the corner. He accepted, she knew he would. Together they walked into a small restaurant not too far from her home.
They sat in a booth opposite each other. American style food would be nice for a first date.
"I saw picture of you in the newspaper Sunday." Kaoru commented once they'd ordered. His mouth settled into a firm line at the mention of the media. "Why the hostile face."
Because they're fucking vultures, he thought darkly. Good for nothing bastards. Still he kept his thoughts to himself. "All they do is interfere." He voiced a bit too abrasively. He couldn't help himself though he hated the lot.
"They do see to have a fondness for you." She noted. Her elbows lay on the table while her hands laced as they were covered her mouth and hid her smile. "Must be cause you're so beautiful."
The waiter interrupted then, brining their food to the table. Kaoru avoided eye contact with her date. Instead she smiled gratefully at the waiter making the younger boy flush in embarrassment.
"So tell me about this job offer." Kaoru said once they were eating.
He seemed reluctant to talk.
"Come on," she coaxed. "You worked for the PSB right and if you had to go meet someone in a public place that could only mean that it was someone you didn't trust too much. So the job they offered you must have been of some significance."
"You're very observant." He noted somewhat suspiciously now.
She smiled. "I guess you didn't expect me to be smart." She countered.
"That's not what I meant."
"Really cause that's how you said it." She looked at him with dark humor in her eyes. They were both silent after that.
*************
The walk back to the her house was 'peculiar.' Evening had settled and the warm autumn breeze stirred.
She had to admit she liked his hair better when it was up in a high ponytail. The black trousers and midnight colored shirt he wore made him look very delectable. She bit her lip and wondered just how many of his old instincts he still retained.
"Has anyone ever called you battoussai?"
He looked at her trying to read what she could mean by that. "NO."
It was hard to say if he was lying or not. Though if she had to guess she would say that he was. "So what time do you get off tomorrow?"
"Six."
"So . . ." She drawled.
He looked at her with a blank face.
What she saw was confusion very well hidden. "This is where you ask me out to dinner?"
He smiled at that. Something very rare indeed. "Do you want to?"
"If you insist." She smiled brightly. They reached the front of her house and she was somewhat relieved. Though only somewhat. "You know," she drawled at the top of the steps. "I never kiss on the first date." She bent her head and kissed him lightly, nothing more then a gentle press of the lips. Still the sensation sparked something in her and she pulled back to look at his face. "But I think I'll make an exception for you." She bent down again dropping her book as she took his face into her hands. She kissed him. Forcefully and possessively. A long time kiss for old time souls.
Small Note: Nothing new . . . . .
She's had her dreams repressed in order to keep a handle on her hate. A chance meeting at the bookstore has given her the opportunity to spend the afternoon with him. A chance to get her plan underway. Still the struggle persists and it's obvious when she kisses him. Perhaps repressing her dreams had not been enough.
