Chapter 26

(Kaoru)

I ran forward, kneeling beside Kenshin's still body. Tears were flooding down my face as panic set in, and I frantically began to do what Megumi had taught me. I breathed into his body, and then began the chest compressions. I listened for breath, and then breathed into his blue lips again.

It was nearly 2 minutes later when Megumi came in, and she let out a shriek, running to my side to help. She pressed Kenshin's chest in between my breaths, and I was growing desperate. There was still no response from Kenshin, and it was getting too long.

'Please Kenshin…' I thought. 'Come back to me!'

(Kenshin)

I was getting lower and lower when suddenly two hands pushed on my chest and lips closed over mine, breathing life into me. I opened my eyes, staring into bottomless eyes. I blinked. "T-Tomoe?"

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh Kami-sama anata, I thought you were gone. You must not give into this poison my brother has given you! You can overcome it, and I know that you will. You have people that love you Kenshin, people that want you to survive, and ones that will help you take revenge for what this man has done to you!"

I blinked again. "Tomoe? What do you mean?"

She smiled slightly. "You are strong Kenshin, you are worthy of life, and of Kaoru. She loves you, and she would do anything for you. Now go back to her, don't let this simple thing beat you!"

I set my face. "I…I won't lose."

(Kaoru)

I breathed into Kenshin one more time, and suddenly his body surged upward, and he took a great breath of air, gasping. His eyes snapped open, and he gasped for air, body trembling violently. Megumi sighed in relief, pulling the blankets up over his form as he continued to shiver.

I tried to stop my tears, which were still flowing freely. A shaking hand came into my view, settling on the hands I had folded in the cloth of my kimono. "K-Kaoru…She… she said that I…that I shouldn't give up…"

I looked at him in shock. "What? Who Kenshin?"

He smiled at me through pale blue lips that were beginning to lose their frightening color. "Tomoe… She said… she said that you needed me…"

I smiled, holding his hand tightly and kissing it. "Well she was right Kenshin. I need you here with me. Don't you ever leave me."

He nodded, and then his eyes fluttered closed as he lost consciousness. His hand went limp in mine, and his breathing evened.

Megumi put her fingers on his pulse point, frowning slightly. "That's weird… His pulse is stronger than it was. He just came right back. It's a miracle."

I smiled, brushing Kenshin's hair from his face. "Iie Megumi. I think it's the work of Tomoe. She was his wife when he was younger. He said that she wanted him to live for me. He also spoke again, so he's obviously getting better. It's probably got something to do with his magic."

Megumi didn't seem to believe me, but she just let it go. "I think Ken-san's going to be fine now Kaoru. His fever seems to be lowering, even right now. It's going so fast…" She stood. "I'll be back soon."

I nodded, not really paying much attention to him as I continued to hold Kenshin's hand. 'Thank you Tomoe. Whoever you are. I couldn't be more in your debt; you gave me back the man I love…'

(Kenshin)

I opened my eyes slowly, blinking slightly. I felt like I was waking up from an eternity of sleep, I wanted nothing more than to close my eyes and return to sleep. But there was something drawing me up and out of that dark abyss, and I pushed myself into a sitting position.

I looked around, and then spotted Kaoru asleep on a futon not far from me. I smiled at the sight, which was again reminding me how beautiful this woman was, and how much I loved her. Her face was peaceful in sleep, making her look so much younger. Her pale skin was accented with the bar of sunlight spilling across her features, and her ebony hair flowing over her shoulders.

I crawled over to her, feeling a little shaky. I settled in behind her, holding her close to my body. It felt like it had been so long since I'd held her close like this, and I breathed in her scent, closing my eyes. I put a hand up lazily, snapping my fingers. My wings appeared, and I gratefully stretched them out behind me. They two were stiff, like the rest of my body, and it felt good to stretch them. I wanted to fly soon now.

The slender body in my arms moved, stretching against me and curling further into my embrace. I heard her intake of breath, and then she paused. "Kenshin?"

I smiled, putting my lips by her ear. "Ohayou sleepy head."

She turned in my arms and flung her arms around my neck, her lips meeting mine before I knew what was happening. I blinked, and then surrendered to the kiss, my eyes sliding closed and my arms sneaking around her waist. She pulled back from my lips to plant little butterfly kisses all over my face, across my scar, on my eyelids, over the bridge of my nose, and across my forehead. I scrunched up my face, trying to get away from her. "Kaoru!"

"You're okay! You're really okay!" she exclaimed, burying her face in my neck. "I was so worried about you, I was afraid I'd lost you!"

I put my nose in her hair, breathing in her scent of jasmine. "It's alright Kaoru. I'm fine now, I promise. I was silly to let something like that beat me."

She tightened her hold on my shoulders. "You said that Tomoe helped you. Did she really?"

I nodded with a smile. "Hai, she did. She breathed life into me, just when I thought I was going to sink into the darkness and never rise again."

She pulled her face away from my neck to smile at me. "Well I'm glad she did that. I don't know what I would have done if you had died."

I grinned, and then pushed myself away from her to stand. She followed me, worry creeping onto her face. "So what do you want to do now Kaoru?"

She frowned. "Well, I'd like to go after that baka Enishi that got you in the first place, but are you sure that you're strong enough to be standing Kenshin? You were down for a long time, and Megumi said that you may have some trouble."

I shook my head. "I'm alright now. And I've got my wings to help my balance, I'll be okay, I promise. Now come on, let's go find Sano and get back at Enishi. It's about time he learned a lesson."

She grinned. "That's just what I wanted to hear. But are you sure you can do this Kenshin?"

I snorted. "How many times do I have to answer you Kaoru? I know what I'm doing, and I, just like you, am sick of Enishi interfering with my life. I've finally found a place where I'm accepted for whom I am, and I'm not going to let that bastard ruin it for me."

She nodded in agreement, and together we walked out of the room. We ran into Megumi, and she gasped. "Ken-san, what are you doing up? You should be resting; you just recovered from a near death experience!"

I smiled at her reassuringly. "Don't worry Megumi-dono, I am fine, I assure you. I heal faster than normal people because of my angel half. I promise that I'll be okay. I thank you for your help, and I'm sorry for being such a trouble."

She gave in, accepting my explanation after looking over my strong stance and good color. I knew that I was better, my magic had been replenished, and it was doing its job, healing my body of the poison that was still flowing through my veins. By the time Kaoru and I got to the dojo I would be completely free of the toxin.

My magic had been tied into my will, and when Enishi had poisoned I had believed myself to be done for, that my life would be over. Because of that simple fact, my magic hadn't worked as it should have, and I had begun to fade away. With Tomoe's help I had realized that I could survive, and my magic had sparked back, healing my body of the toxin and freeing me from its icy grip.

After I hid my wings, Kaoru and I walked towards the dojo, and I gathered her smaller hand into my own. She smiled at me, leaning closer to my shoulder. I kissed her forehead gently. "Aishiteru Kaoru-koishii. I'm so thankful that I have you."

She smiled. "Aishiteru mo Kenshin-anata. I don't know what I would do without you, so I think that we're pretty much even that way."

I spotted Sano before she did, and I waved to the taller man. He saw me, and waved a long arm back at me. Kaoru smiled at him as we got close enough, and her look changed to a look of mischief. "Are you ready to kick some baka butt Sano?"

He laughed. "Are you kidding Jou-chan? I was BORN ready! Come on now; let's get you changed so you can fight."

While Kaoru entered the dojo to put on a hakama and gi and get her bokken, Sano grinned, holding out a long package to me. "Here Kenshin, I think you might like this. Besides, you need something to fight with."

I pulled the paper off to find a gleaming black sheath and a new hilt of what had to be a beautiful sword. I paused before putting my hand on the hilt. "Sano…"

He grinned. "I know what you're going to say. Jou-chan told me. We've been planning this for a while. Don't worry, you'll find that it's not what you think it is."

I blinked, and then grasped the hilt, drawing the sword fluidly from the glistening sheath. I gasped. "Sakabatou…" The blade was beautiful, just as I had thought. It was polished to a gleaming silver shine, the blade unblemished and perfect. I smiled widely at Sano. "Arigatou my friend."

He grinned. "Jou-chan gave me the money to get it; you should thank her, not me. It cost a lot too, so you should REALLY thank her. We found it in a sword smith's shop, and she instantly knew that it was for you."

I sheathed the sword, tying it onto my belt. The weight of the sword at my hip was refreshing, and I was slightly relieved to have it here again. I had been without it for too long, and it was good to finally have the reassurance with me again.

At that moment Kaoru came out, her bokken through her belt and just finishing tying her hair up in a high ponytail. I grabbed her, slamming her lips against mine and pressing her body into my chest. She squeaked, hands automatically pushing against my skin. I released her, but still held her in a loose grip. "Arigatou…" I breathed.

She smiled. "So I guess you got the sword."

I grinned. "You bet. It's perfect Kaoru, I love it." My grin turned malicious. "Now what do you say we go teach that bastard a lesson?"

She smiled. "And what lesson would that be Kenshin?"

I looked toward the sky. "That the fallen angel will always rise up to beat back the ones who push him down."

Wow, this was a hard chapter for me to write. Please review everyone!