A/N
Chapter fifteen's right here! Sorry for the delay, but there was a problem and I couldn'tupload any documents.Thanks loads for the reviews – I honestly sort of forgot what I had originally wanted chapter fourteen to be, since I last touch this fic a long time ago … but I'm glad that it was okay. And Misao makes a return in this, so I hope that it's good and that you like it! And I tried showing how evil 'Toriyama High-school' really is … I only hope that I succeeded in doing that …
It.soniabladeHey! Heh thanks a lot for the review! See, I remembered the promise I made, saying that I'd update right after my exams! Well, my exams were okay … though I think I didn't do the last few bits of my Classics paper well, since we were writing till 10:00 p.m. (oh well …) How did your sister find her exams? I bet she must be really happy, finishing at last! (who wouldn't be?) Yes, I think that you have a good point when you say that Aoshi should find out first. He is in a mess as it is, so it's only fair that he finds out. Ooohh … I can imagine Mr. Kamiya's reaction though, when he finds out… that will be fun to write. And Kaoru – I wonder who she'll tell first. Oh, and I read one of your fics; 'Let Your Heart Be Known' – Megumi is so evil! Heh, I can't believe that she hates Misao so much. I really liked the way Megumi complimented Mrs. Shinomori's dress, only to find out that Misao made it! That was good! Please update that … I want to find out what happens, especially where you left off in Chapter 3, with Aoshi and Misao 'bumping into' each other. I wonder what Megumi will do if she sees that! Update! Thanks once again for the review, and I hope that you like this chapter too.
Oniwabanshu Heh heh … you mean … you're not going to throw any kodachi or kunai at me? (phew!) Yes, it DID take me a long time didn't it? Ah, thank you for forgiving me! I thought you wouldn't. Being overly busy sure stops you from doing lots of things though, doesn't it? Heh, don't worry, there IS more Misao in this, and I hope you will like it! Thanks for the review, and for not giving up on this fic!
wanderinglunatickHey! Thanks for the review! Romantic interludes? Yep, I definitely plan on including them … although I'm sort of trying to 'raise' the respective couples to that level – if that made any sense. But I did include something in this chapter, between – no, I shouldn't tell you that now! But don't worry, the future chapters will have these interludes – I promise. Thanks once again for the review, and I hope you like this chapter too!
Black Metalmark: Thanks for the review! Heh heh … yes, I have to admit, that even though it's fun writing about the other characters as well, writing all the 'Aoshi glaring at Soujirou while Soujirou has NO idea why' moments are REALLY fun! I just love making Soujirou so clueless … heh heh. Thanks once again for the review – and I hope this chapter's good too!
Baby-Fire-666: Heh … I've updated! Hope it's good! And thanks for the review!
Rachel: Heh heh … ahh, if only Clef and Lantis were real – not to mention Aoshi and Soujirou! The second time reading it through? Whoa! I hope you've enjoyed the last chapter too in that case! And thanks a lot for the review!
Well, on with the chapter then!
Chapter Fifteen: Conversations
Mrs. Makimachi watched her daughter's movements carefully, as she walked rather stiffly out of her room. Giving her a weak smile, Misao turned her attention back to the corridor that she was in, aiming to get down the stairs without clumsily falling down or doing anything stupid. Her mother followed her, so that, if something did happen, she would be able to help her.
Gritting her teeth, Misao walked down the corridor, putting her weight on her injured leg gingerly at first, and then gaining more confidence as she went along. She would be lying if she said that her knee wasn't hurting … but, at the same time, it was much better than the pain that she had felt last week. Her ankle wasn't hurting her much anymore, it was just her knee. She stopped walking, wincing as pain throbbed around her knee.
"Misao - "
"No, I can do this," said Misao, interrupting her mother before she could continue. Taking a deep breath, she started moving forward again, and, although her movement was somewhat stiff and irregular, she managed to make it to the top of the stairs, before pausing slightly to take a break.
"Misao, are you – "
"Yes, Kachan," interrupted Misao, again. "I have to get used to this … especially if I'm going to take part in the tournament…" Mrs. Makimachi shook her head, although she didn't say anything. Once again, she wondered whether the doctor had been out of his mind when he had told Misao that her ankle was healing well, and that her knee was healing as well – and that she would be able to go about with her normal, day-to-day activities in ten days. And he had said that two days ago. Ever-since then, Misao had been walking around everyday, first around her room, and then down the corridor, and now, she was trying the stairs.
"Misao be careful!" she exclaimed, as Misao teetered at the top of the stairs, before gripping the railing hard. Misao grinned at her.
"That was a stupid mistake – it doesn't mean that I can't do this," she said, thinking that her mother would ask her to stop. Mrs. Makimachi stared at her daughter. She had to admire her courage and the strength of her will … but wasn't this taking it a bit too far?
"I won't stop you … just be careful," she said, at last, watching anxiously as Misao advanced down the stairs, holding the railing lightly.
A few minutes later:
Misao turned around to face her mother with a huge grin on her face. She could see the pleased expression on her mother's face, although it was marred somewhat by the worry that she also had.
"I did it, Kachan!" she exclaimed, happily. "I actually walked down the stairs!" Mrs. Makimachi couldn't help but smile.
"Yes, you did," she said. "Congratulations. And now, you can rest in the living room for a while before you go – Misao, where are you going?" Misao turned around to face her mother again.
"Since I succeeded with the stairs, I'm trying to see if I can walk around downstairs now," she said, cheerfully.
"Misao, that's too much!" exclaimed Mrs. Makimachi, shaking her head as she moved towards her daughter. "You shouldn't exert yourself too much. You've done enough – "
"Kachan, if I do this now, then maybe later I can walk around the garden," said Misao. "And then … tomorrow – maybe tomorrow I can try jumping over the fence, to Kaoru's place …"
"Makimachi Misao, if I catch you jumping over the fence, I swear that I will – " Mrs. Makimachi's threat was cut off when the phone started ringing, causing her to jump slightly, startled.
"Shall I – "
"No! You stay here," she said, moving towards the living room, where the phone was. "Stay right here until I get back." All that she got for an answer was an angelic smile. Misao watched her mother disappear into the living room, before turning around and heading for the kitchen area. If she could make it to the kitchen and back … well, then she could try walking around the rest of the house.
"Gomen, Kachan, but I've got to do this …" she said, before walking towards the kitchen, mentally urging her knee to stay strong.
Toriyama High-School:
Misanagi frowned as she twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. She glanced at her wristwatch, and, sighing exasperatedly, stood up, straightening her uniform.
"Okay, I think we've waited enough," she said, annoyed. "I'm leaving."
"But Kayo-sensei told us that he has an important – "
"I don't care," said Misanagi, scowling at Shura. "I mean, I have to go for my next class now. I don't have time to waste. Besides, it can't be anything about the Inter-High-School tournament. If it was, he would have met us earlier in the day."
"Misanagi-san – "
"Sorry I'm late, but I just had to double-check the information that I received!" called Kayo-sensei, walking towards the group of athletes.
"Sensei, this will be quick, right? I have to go for my next class," said Misanagi, not very happy.
"Oh yes, it will be quick," said Kayo-sensei, smiling. "Mitsurugi high-school appears to be facing a lot of problems … problems that we can benefit from."
"What do you mean?" asked Shozo, frowning slightly.
"Mitsurugi's fastest female athlete – the one I was telling you be careful of, Shura – is injured," said Kayo-sensei. There was a short silence.
"I'm sorry, but did you make us wait for you here, forgetting about our other classes, just to tell us that some girl is injured?" asked Misanagi. Kayo-sensei frowned in her direction.
"Yes, and no," he said. "Despite her injuries, which include a fractured knee and a sprained ankle; it appears that she will still be taking part in the tournament. Or so it seems." He turned towards Shura and Misanagi. "Girls, this is where you come in. If she appears for the tournament … give her a hard time. Push her around – see that she slightly bruises or injures that already injured knee of hers … so that her speed lessens greatly."
"Sensei, are you asking us to … purposely see that she injures herself?" asked Shura, not really sure whether she had heard him correctly. Kayo-sensei nodded. "But – but – how do we do that?"
"It's quite simple, really," said Misanagi, smoothly. "Just trip her up or something when you're running." She sighed as she saw Shura's stunned face. "Fine, fine, leave it to me. I'll handle her – but only when she's not running, since I'm in the Under 19 group."
"Good," said Kayo-sensei. "That's all that will concern you, so you two can go now, Misanagi, Shura." With confused glances at the rest of the team, the two girls walked off. "Right … now, this goes for you guys. Himura Kenshin, you remember him don't you?"
"Yeah we – Enishi?" Shozo glanced worriedly at the younger boy, seeing him tense up and narrow his eyes.
"What about him?" growled Enishi, glaring at Kayo-sensei, who was once again questioning the boy's sanity.
"He might not be an easy target to take advantage of, since the injury to his leg appears to have healed perfectly," said Kayo-sensei. "But, if you boys push him around, then he might lose his concentration … you get my drift?" No-one said anything for a while.
"Yeah … 'play dirty' …" said Usui, grinning slowly. "We get your drift …"
"Good," said Kayo-sensei, smiling approvingly at him. "Not that we need to resort to this to win … but you know the saying, it's better to be safe than sorry."
Mitsurugi High-School:
The look on Tokio's face was one of annoyance, as she made her way to the staff-room during break, gripping a piece of paper tightly in her hands. Reaching the staff-room, she stood outside, forcing herself to calm down.
" – ah, Fujita-san … what are you doing here?" asked the head of the Senior Year, Kawasaki-sensei. Tokio smiled at young lady.
"Sensei, I just wanted to talk about someone about … this … but I don't know who to talk to," she said, nodding at the piece of paper that she was gripping in her hands.
"And what's that?" asked Kawasaki-sensei, curiously.
"Kurogawa-sensei gave me this detention slip this morning … saying that I have been late three times this term," explained Tokio. "And I just wanted to inquire into this …"
"Oh dear … why, what's wrong?" asked Kawasaki-sensei.
"Well, sensei, I haven't been late to school three times this term. I know that I have been late twice; I'll admit that … but I haven't been late three times," said Tokio. "And Kurogawa-sensei told me that it didn't matter, because the record-book said that I was late thrice."
"Hmm … that's odd," said Kawasaki-sensei. "Are you sure that no-one has signed your name in the 'Late-book' when they got late, so as to get themselves out of trouble?"
"I don't know about that – but don't people check the late-book every day to make sure that something like this doesn't happen?" asked Tokio.
"We do … but mistakes do happen Fujita-san," said Kawasaki-sensei. "Do you remember being late any other time? Apart from the two incidents you just told me about?" Tokio shook her head.
"No! That's why – well, I was late on the first day of school … but that doesn't count, so – "
"Fujita-san, being late on the first day of school is also counted as being late," interrupted Kawasaki-sensei, smiling at the shocked expression that appeared on the girl's face.
"W – What! Since when? It wasn't like that last year!" exclaimed Tokio, surprised.
"Yes, it was one of the new school rules that were announced on the first day of school … but you were obviously late for that," said Kawasaki-sensei. "Well, I think you've done your inquiry now … detention's today, for two hours after school. You know which class it's in, don't you?"
"But – But I – oh god … I have athletics practice …" moaned Tokio, her face turning pale. Kawasaki-sensei smiled again.
"I can tell Hiko-sensei if you want …" she said. Tokio let out a long sigh, staring at the detention-slip that was in her hands.
"I can't believe that this had to happen now … when the tournament's coming up …" she muttered, before smiling her thanks at Kawasaki-sensei, and walking away, grumbling to herself.
Meanwhile:
Kenshin waited until their literature teacher's back was turned before leaning towards Aoshi, who was seated at the desk on his right, writing down what the teacher was saying.
"Aoshi …" he whispered, softly. Aoshi looked at him, questioningly.
"Hai?" he asked.
"Kaoru – er, I mean, would you by any chance happen to know why Kaoru's not in school?" asked Kenshin, trying not to sound too eager for information. Shogo, seated on Kenshin's left, shook his head, a small smile forming on his face. Honestly, wouldn't it have been a whole lot easier to just ask 'where's Kaoru?' Aoshi raised an eyebrow as he detected the note of worry in the red-head's voice. "I – she was absent yesterday as well, that's why I asked …" said Kenshin, hurriedly. Aoshi would have smirked, if he had exchanged personalities with Saito, at Kenshin's lame attempt to hide his concern for Kaoru.
"She's sick – she's got fever and a cold," he said, quietly.
"Oh dear … has she gone to see a doctor?" asked Kenshin, frowning slightly. Aoshi shook his head.
"Kamiya-san said that it's just the flu that was going around. She doesn't think it's anything to worry about," he said.
"Demo – what if she gets worse?" asked Kenshin.
" … I guess she'll go and see a doctor then …" said Aoshi, shaking his head inwardly.
"Poor Kaoru – I can guess how annoyed she must be, staying in bed …" mused Kenshin, sighing.
"At least she's not been stuck in bed for days, like Misao has been …" said Aoshi, amused at the way Kenshin was behaving. His amusement disappeared in a flash when he realized what he had said. He narrowed his eyes slightly, mentally screaming at himself. Honestly, what is it going to take me to STOP talking about her?
Shogo, who was able to hear every bit of the conversation the two were having, despite the fact that they were whispering, frowned slightly.
"True … I wonder how Misao's doing too," said Kenshin. "We haven't gone to see her in some time …"
" … Hnnn …" was all Aoshi said, choosing not to say anything about that.
"Have you gone to see her lately, Aoshi? Since you live right next-door, I guess it must be easy for you to see go and check in on her," said Kenshin, absently. Aoshi glanced hurriedly at him, before turning away. Did he think that he had nothing better to do than to go and 'check in' on Misao everyday? Well … you don't have anything better to do anyway, do you? He frowned as he listened to the voice in his head argue with him. Of course he had better things to do. He … he could sleep … he could be in peace for a while (seeing as how that was now virtually impossible during school hours) and he could meditate and – and you can also waste time THINKING about Misao, can't you? He glowered at nothing in particular, wishing that he could kill the voice in his head, without killing himself in the process.
"Does Kaoru have a high fever?" asked Kenshin, changing the topic back to Kaoru. Aoshi lowered his voice as the teacher turned around for a second, before turning back to the board.
" … Why don't you go and see her? I'm sure you'll be able to tell whether she's seriously ill or not that way," he said, slowly. Kenshin glanced side-ways at him, before looking away.
" … I don't know …" he said.
"Himura! Shinomori! Care you share your conversation with the rest of us?" called the literature teacher, glaring at the two of them. Kenshin grinned.
"Gomen sensei, but I don't think that it'll interest you much," he said.
"Concentrate on this lesson, because I'm giving you a test on these four chapters tomorrow," answered the teacher, shaking her head and turning back to the board.
Shogo, meanwhile, was frowning as he stared at his literature book. From where he was seated, he couldn't help but over-hear Kenshin's and Aoshi's conversation. Kenshin had said that Aoshi lived next door to Misao. Aoshi; the resident heartthrob of the girls; lived next-door to Misao; a girl who had qualities any guy would want in a girl, from her bubbly personality to her loyalty and determination.
What if Aoshi and Misao … end up together?
He hurriedly shook his head as the thought entered it. Of course that wouldn't happen. Aoshi was … Aoshi was – no offence to him – but he was not Misao's type. He was quiet, calm, rather cold and distant. Even though other girls fell for him, he was sure that Misao wouldn't. She would prefer someone who was more … cheeky and adventurous. Right?
Kamiya Residence:
"No Kaoru, I'm really sorry, but I can't let you go there," said Mrs. Kamiya, pushing her daughter back down on the bed as she tried getting up.
"Demo – I need to see her," protested Kaoru, rather weakly. "She's probably really lonely too! And – and I need to give her the books that she wanted to read …"
"Kaoru, yes, she probably is lonely, but at least that's better than catching the flu from you, isn't it? Misao-chan has enough problems as it is … surely you don't want her to get the flu to add to them all?" asked Mrs. Kamiya, raising her eyebrows at her daughter.
"But – what about the books then?" asked Kaoru, nodding at the pile of books that was on her desk.
"Can't it wait?" asked her mother. Kaoru shook her head vigourously. "Fine, fine … in that case, I'll ask Aoshi to give them to her." The grin that formed on Kaoru's pale face worried her mother immensely. "Kaoru? Kaoru? Are you – okay?"
"Heh heh … yes … for once, Okasan, you're right," said Kaoru, grinning. "Send Aoshi-san over. That's a brilliant idea, Okasan!" Mrs. Kamiya sighed.
"I didn't suggest that for you to use in your 'match-making' project," she muttered.
"Okasan, you will tell Aoshi-san, won't you?" asked Kaoru, anxiously. Mrs. Kamiya sighed again.
" … Yes, I'll tell him," she said.
"Ooohh … I wonder what Misao-chan will do when she sees him! Especially when none of us are – oh NO!" Mrs. Kamiya almost jumped a foot in the air as Kaoru cried out.
"Kaoru!"
" – Soujirou … I have a bad feeling that he'll go and see Misao-chan today …" said Kaoru, thoughtfully. "But … if he does go, then Aoshi-san will just give Misao-chan the books and come back …"
"What else do you want Aoshi to do?" asked Mrs. Kamiya, startled.
"Okasan, we have to make sure that Soujirou doesn't go to see Misao-chan!" said Kaoru, wide-eyed. Mrs. Kamiya shook her head, placing a stern expression on her face.
"Kaoru, I know that you're doing all of this for Misao-chan, but please, listen to me when I say this,' she said. "Don't interfere with whatever is happening between Misao-chan and Aoshi. Do you fully realize what you just said, about Soujirou?" Kaoru just stared at her mother. "Kaoru, you just told me that you have to do something to make sure that Soujirou doesn't go to see Misao-chan. The next thing you know, you will want to do something to make sure that Soujirou doesn't talk to Misao-chan, so that Aoshi can get together with her. Don't you think that that's being a little … selfish?"
"Okasan – I – I didn't meant that we should keep Soujirou away from Misao-chan. Those two are really close – so close that we won't be able to keep them apart. It's just that … Aoshi-san's jealous of Soujirou, and he doesn't understand it. He probably still thinks that there's something going on with him and Misao-chan…and that will kill off whatever feelings he may have for her and – "
"Kaoru," interrupted her mother. "I think you need to rest. You're thinking way too much." Kaoru grinned weakly, before lying back down on the bed.
"It's just that I want Misao-chan to be happy – especially since Aoshi-san is the first person she's really, really liked. And … Aoshi-san deserves someone like Misao-chan … I mean, he is really sweet inside – he doesn't display his concern for people through words, he displays it through his actions …" Kaoru let out a long sigh, closing her eyes and smiling. Mrs. Kamiya stared at the pleased smile on her daughter's face as she thought about Aoshi.
Oh no … don't tell me that Kazuko was right! Kaoru … Kaoru CAN'T fall in love with Aoshi!
"You … you just rest, Kaoru," she said, standing up. "I'll be back in a little while with your medicine and your tea, okay?"
"Hai …" said Kaoru, feeling drowsy all of a sudden, and not even noticing her mother leaving the room with a worried expression on her face.
Mitsurugi High-School:
Kenshin walked into the changing room, and was about to go into one of the cubicles in it, when he heard the sound of rather loud whispers coming from somewhere. Frowning slightly, he looked around the fairly large changing room, looking for the source of the whispers. His gaze landed on three figures huddled together in a corner of the room, everything about their actions saying 'warning: we are up to no good.' He approached them slowly, curiosity getting the better of him.
"Heh…I'm so proud of myself!"
"I am too! Whoa … I can't believe that no-one noticed that it wasn't him!"
"Ano … are you sure that that was the right thing to do?"
"What?"
"Yeah, what are trying to say?"
"Well – there is a high possibility of him finding out, and getting you into trouble…"
"Nah! How's he gonna find out?"
"Yeah – I mean, it's not like anyone saw him do it …"
" – Saw him do what?" asked Kenshin, from behind the three boys, causing then to almost jump out of their skins.
"K – Kenshin! Damn! Don't do that again!" growled Sano, placing a hand over the place his heart was – or rather, the place he thought his heart was. "My heart's going haywire …"
"Oro? You're heart is on the other side Sano …" pointed out Kenshin.
"It doesn't matter!" muttered Sano.
"So … what were you three doing, whispering here? And who didn't see him to whatever it was that he did?" asked Kenshin, looking at Yahiko and Soujirou.
"Heh, Kenshin, you won't believe the guts that Sano has!" exclaimed Yahiko, grinning. "You won't believe what he went and did this morning!"
"Er – what did he do?" asked Kenshin, not sure whether he should be worried or not.
"He was late today – and it would have been the third time he was late – and the guy that keeps watch over the gate – you know, that old, rather friendly guy?" Kenshin nodded at Yahiko. "Well, he doesn't really know who's who, so he asked Sano to sign the 'Late-book' … and Sano signed his name as 'Saito Hajime'!"
"ORO!" Sano nodded, grinning.
"How smart was that huh Kenshin?" he asked, pleased with himself. "I don't think that Saito's going to be coming for practice today … he was late twice before – apparently – and that means that he's got a late detention today!"
"H-Hang on … are you telling me that … you put Saito's name in the late-book, instead of your own?" asked Kenshin, his eyes widening.
"Oh my god … even Soujirou understood what had happened sooner …" mumbled Yahiko, shaking his head.
"Sano – what – why did you do that!" exclaimed Kenshin, looking worried. Sano raised an eyebrow at him. He knew Kenshin was dense … but this dense?
"Hmm…let's see, a) because I don't like him; b) so that we won't be tortured by his presence at practice at least for one day; c) to get Saito in trouble; e) to get myself out of a late-detention; f) – "
"Psst … Sano, you missed the 'd)'," interrupted Yahiko. Sano sweat-dropped.
"That is not the point here, Yahiko," he grumbled.
"Sano! Do you know what can happen? Saito – Aoshi!" Kenshin smiled at Aoshi as he walked out of one of the cubicles, already dressed in his usual black shorts and white t-shirt.
"Hnn …" said Aoshi, nodding at them, before glancing at his wrist-watch. " … Aren't you going for practice?"
"We have a more important matter on our hands! Aoshi, do you know what Sano's gone and done?" asked Kenshin. Aoshi shook his head slowly. How was he supposed to know? "He was late this morning and he wrote down Saito's name in the late-book! And Saito's apparently been late twice already … which means he'll be in late-detention today …" Aoshi quirked an eyebrow in Sano's direction, amused.
" … He's going to find out …" he said, shaking his head. Honestly, doesn't he have ANY brains? Saito's not stupid … and when he finds out what happened …
"Nah, how will he find out?" asked Yahiko.
"Yahiko, Saito's not stupid you know!" said Kenshin.
"Eh? He's not?" asked Yahiko, sounding very surprised.
"Er … I hate to interrupt this important discussion … but don't you think that we should make our way to the field? I mean … Hiko-sensei might not like it if we get late …" said Soujirou.
"Aah … he's right, c'mon, let's go," said Sano, grinning. "Heh … I wonder whether Saito will be here …" Kenshin frowned.
"Sano, I still say that you shouldn't have done that. I mean, I know that you and Saito … have your differences, but you shouldn't have done that," he said.
"Differences? More like we despise each other," muttered Sano.
"Uh-oh, we should hurry up," said Yahiko, as they walked out of the changing-room, just in time to hear a loud voice shouting. "That's definitely Hiko-sensei…"
"It's about time you five got here! You can't afford to slack off with only eight days left for the tournament!" yelled Hiko-sensei, as Aoshi, Kenshin, Sano, Yahiko and Soujirou walked towards him.
"Gomen sensei …" said Kenshin, looking down.
"Hnn … and where the hell is Saito?" asked Hiko, looking around the crowd of people gathered around him. "Not that I care … but I would have thought that he would be here, being out Captain …" Kenshin gulped as Sano and Yahiko exchanged triumphant glances.
"I think he's got a late-detention today …" said Mitsui Yoriko, doing her best not to smile.
"What?" asked Hiko-sensei, glaring at her.
" – He – he got the slip from sensei this morning, during registration …" stammered Yoriko, put off by the glare Hiko-sensei was giving her.
" … Saito … is not here … because he's in late-detention?" questioned Hiko-sensei, his face darkening for a moment. "And he didn't even tell me before-hand …" There was a short silence. "Well, never mind. We don't really mind his absence anyway. Now, for today's practice – " Hiko was cut off when he heard snickers coming from Sano and Yahiko. He turned towards them, a scowl on his face. "And what may I ask, is so funny?" he asked. Kenshin glanced hurriedly at his friends, shaking his head quickly, trying to tell them not to say anything that would aggravate Hiko.
" … The fact that our dear captain is so irresponsible, getting into late-detention," said Sano, grinning.
"And not telling you about it either…" added Yahiko, grinning as well. Soujirou shook his head as Kenshin stood in front of Sano and Yahiko, doing his best to get them to stop indirectly gloating about what they had done. Why didn't they understand that that taking it too far was rather dangerous?
"Yes … he may be irresponsible but he is still our Captain …" said Hiko, slowly. "Anyway, leaving him aside … I have an important announcement to make. The long-jump and the high-jump events have been cancelled for the tournament – " He closed his eyes as a series of exclamations erupted from the athletes around him.
"What!"
"But – but we practiced for it!"
" – And what about the points system then? How are they going to divide the points?"
"Are they even allowed to cancel events at the last minute!"
" – Ano … why don't we all just be quiet … and let Sensei say what he wanted to say?" asked Kenshin, desperate. Hiko grunted as everyone turned silent. Whoa … they actually listen to this stupid red-head guy …
"The points-system has already been changed. Unfortunately, it doesn't sound good for us …" he said at last. "The number of points allocated to the hurdles has been raised – which means that we have to do well with the hurdles …"
"Demo – what are the girl's going to do? For the Under 17's?" asked Soujirou, frowning slightly. "Seeing as how Misao's – "
"Exactly … this is not good news for us, because we don't have any suitable candidate for the Under 17's," said Hiko Seijiro. "And this means that we need to do our other events really well, in order to compensate if we don't do well with the hurdles. I want everyone to practice the relays today … any problems?"
"Eeto … Sensei, Tokio-san's not here …" said Kenshin, looking around. Hiko nodded.
"Yeah, she's got late-detention too," he growled. "Everyone sort yourselves out into your various age groups and practice your relays. You know the drill; one person does the timing while the other one runs, and then vice-versa."
"Hai!"
"Tokio-san's got a late-detention too?" asked Sano. "Man … she's a 3rd year, isn't she? The poor thing … she'll be stuck with Saito in detention…"
"Oh man … I hope he doesn't kill her or anything …" said Yahiko, shaking his head.
"Oh, Seta, have you seen Makimachi lately? Do you know how her injuries are?" Yahiko and Sano glanced immediately at Aoshi, who was 'busy' kneeling down and tying his shoe-laces. Soujirou shook his head.
"I haven't gone to see Misao recently Sensei," he said. "I'm sure her injuries must be healing though … I mean, if she's resting …"
"Hnn … does anyone know how she's doing?" asked Hiko-sensei. Kenshin glanced at Aoshi, wondering whether he knew anything. Aoshi, tying his shoe-laces, was completely unaware of the glances he was getting.
"Aoshi? Do you know anything about Misao's condition?" asked Kenshin, causing Aoshi to look up at him.
" … What?" he asked. Sano grinned, nudging Yahiko before answering.
"How's Misao's knee these days?" he asked. Hiko-sensei raised an eyebrow in Aoshi's direction. Why were they asking him about Misao? Aoshi fixed Sano with a frosty glance.
" … I don't know …" said Aoshi, standing up suddenly.
"Are you sure you don't know?" asked Yahiko, grinning. Aoshi fixed him with a frosty glance this time.
"Y – "
"Ano … if Aoshi-san says he doesn't know, I'm sure he doesn't know, right, Aoshi-san?" asked Soujirou, smiling at him. The frostier glance that Aoshi gave Soujirou did not go unnoticed to Sano, Yahiko and Hiko-sensei, although Kenshin was clueless.
"Is anyone going to see Makimachi today? Or anytime soon?" asked Hiko-sensei.
"I don't think I'll be able to go today," said Soujirou, sighing heavily.
"Neither can I," said Yahiko. Hiko sighed.
"Fine, then, whenever one of you goes to see her, tell me how she's doing … now get going…" he said.
Meanwhile:
She scribbled furiously on the piece of paper on the desk in front of her, the small frown on her face increasing as she wrote every word down. It was bad enough that she had to miss athletics practice … but writing down the sentence 'I will not be late again' 2000 times was just pure torture. She squeezed her eyes shut as she heard the sound of a pen being rhythmically tapped against a table. It was even worse when the only other human in the room was a rude, annoying, selfish, egotistical, somewhat sadistic guy with nice eyes. She snapped her eyes open as the tapping continued.
"Look, is there really any need for you to continue doing that?" she asked, at last, glancing at the dark haired male seated at the opposite end of the class.
"Hmm?" asked Saito, looking at her, a smirk on his face. Tokio took a deep breath, telling herself not to lose her temper – which was obviously what Saito wanted her to do.
"Can you stop tapping that pencil against the desk?" she asked.
"And why should I?" asked Saito.
"Because I can't concentrate," answered Tokio.
"Oh?" asked Saito. "Is that any of my concern?"
"No, but the sooner I finish this, the sooner I get out of here …" said Tokio. And the sooner I get away from you …
"It's not my fault that you got yourself into detention," said Saito, shrugging. "Not my fault that you were stupid enough to get into this…"
"Excuse-me?" asked Tokio, raising her eyebrows. "But if it was my stupidity that got me into this, then what about you?" Saito stared at her for a moment, before smirking again.
" … I wasn't late today," he said. Tokio rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, sure," she said.
"You can ask anyone in my class … I wasn't late today," said Saito.
"Oh, then I suppose that someone accidentally wrote your name down in the late-book?" asked Tokio, sarcastically. Saito grinned.
"That's exactly what I think happened," he said. Tokio stared at him for a few seconds.
" … You're joking right?" she asked. Saito shook his head. "Who would want to do that?"
"You're joking, right?" asked Saito, raising an eyebrow in her direction. " … There are many people who can't stand my guts …"
" … But still, who would do something like this?" asked Tokio. Instead of just dealing with you in a dark alley.
" … I can think of quite a few people who'd want to do that," said Saito, turning serious. "And when I find out who did this …" His voice trailed off, and Tokio didn't need him to continue to know that whoever had signed Saito's name in the late-book would be in a lot of trouble when he was found out. She glanced at her wrist-watch and let out a small squeal, somewhat startled. " … What?"
" … I need to finish this soon …" stammered Tokio, turning back to the papers she was writing on.
"What's the hurry? It's too late to go for practice anyway," said Saito.
"I know that …" said Tokio, writing fast and growling as she made a mistake in the sentence.
" … Then – "
" – I have a music class right after practice … and since my music exam's coming up, I need to go for this class," said Tokio, absently. Saito raised his eyebrows.
"Music? You?" he asked, smirking. Tokio paused to turn around and glare at him.
"Yes, me," she said. "Is there something wrong with that?" Saito shook his head slowly.
" … No, it's just that it's rather odd to find an athlete that plays an instrument," he said. "What instrument do you play anyway?"
" … The flute," answered Tokio.
"The flute … huh?" muttered Saito, tapping his pen absent-mindedly on the table again, only stopping when Tokio glared at him. "What? Oh, sorry …"
Kamiya Residence:
Aoshi walked out of the bathroom that was attached to his room – or rather, to the room he was temporarily staying in – rubbing his now slightly longer wet hair with a towel, when he heard Mrs. Kamiya call him.
"Aoshi! Dinner's ready!" Sighing, he tossed his towel on the bed, and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. He took a few steps down the corridor, before he stopped. Walking back, he stopped outside Kaoru's room, wondering whether he should go in or not. Deciding against it, he turned back around, and walked down the stairs, heading towards the dining room. Mr. Kamiya was already seated at his usual place at the table.
" … Can we start eating now, Kaeri?" asked Mr. Kamiya, glaring at Aoshi as he spoke. Mrs. Kamiya nodded, smiling at Aoshi.
"Yes, of course," she said. Aoshi waited patiently as Mrs. Kamiya served some food on his plate, before eating. No-one said a word for a while. "So Aoshi … how was your day at school?" asked Mrs. Kamiya, in an attempt to strike up a conversation.
" … It was … normal," said Aoshi, wondering whether Mrs. Kamiya really wanted to know, or whether she was asking simply to start a conversation.
"Oh … and how was athletics practice?" asked Mrs. Kamiya.
" … Tiring …" answered Aoshi, between mouthfuls. Mrs. Kamiya glanced at her husband, feeling slightly uncomfortable with his silence.
"Was Kaoru still asleep when you came down Aoshi?" she asked, turning her attention to Aoshi again. Aoshi winced mentally as he saw Mr. Kamiya glance icily at him.
" … I didn't check …" he said, hoping that Mr. Kamiya would get the point.
"Oh …"
"Ah Kaeri, that reminds me, what have you done with those photos of yours?" asked Mr. Kamiya, looking at his wife.
"Photos?"
"Yes, the ones from your days at Eigamura high-school," said Mr. Kamiya. Aoshi stared at Mrs. Kamiya, surprised. She studied at Eigamura?
"Oh – those photos … I – I haven't done anything with them …" said Mrs. Kamiya, feeling a wave of dread rise up in her stomach.
"Why don't you put them into a photo-album like I told you to? Since you can't really go anywhere with Kaoru in this condition, I can get one for you when I'm coming back from work tomorrow …" suggested Mr. Kamiya.
"It's not really necessary, Hisashi … I mean – "
"Why do you say that? They're photos of your past," interrupted her husband. "You should treasure them. Has Kaoru seen them?" Mrs. Kamiya shook her head slowly. "No? Well you should show them to her … so that she can see what her mother used to look like when she was in high-school …"
"Yes, I – I'll do that …" said Mrs. Kamiya, sipping her water rather nervously – something which didn't go unnoticed to Aoshi.
"Besides, I'm sure that he wouldn't be very happy if he got to find out that you were keeping your photos, hidden, in an envelope," said Mr. Kamiya. Aoshi glanced at him this time. He?
"He?" asked Mrs. Kamiya, frowning as she looked at her husband.
"Yes – that good friend of yours … the one that was in almost all of those pictures …" said Mr. Kamiya. "What was his name again …?" Mrs. Kamiya almost choked on the water she had been sipping slowly.
"Er – would you like some more chicken, Aoshi?" she asked, smiling nervously at the boy. Aoshi shook his head, wondering why Mrs. Kamiya hadn't answered her husband's question.
"What was his name again Kaeri? I don't seem to remember …" said Mr. Kamiya.
"His name?" asked Mrs. Kamiya, her heart sinking slightly as her husband waited for her to answer. Now calm down Kaeri … it's just the name. There's nothing wrong with mentioning it here … " – Yuuji …" she said, slowly. Aoshi looked sharply at Mrs. Kamiya, as he remembered that his father and Mrs. Kamiya had been 'good-friends' … which was why Aoshi was staying with her. Or rather, that's what I was told …
"Yuuji? Was he at our wedding?" asked Mr. Kamiya. Mrs. Kamiya shook her head.
"No …" she said.
"Why? If he was such a good friend, wouldn't he have been at your wedding?" asked Mr. Kamiya.
"Yes – he just … uh … he was really ill on the day," said Mrs. Kamiya. How could he come when he had a little baby to look after? Not to mention the fact that if he came, he would have had to watch me getting married to someone else …
"Hmmm … what's his surname? Do you know where he's staying now? I mean, I don't want to be held responsible for you two losing the close bond of friendship that you had …" said Mr. Kamiya. Aoshi, who was watching Mrs. Kamiya, noticed her face pale, and frowned slightly.
" … He … he's not anywhere nearby …" said Mrs. Kamiya, softly. You ARE responsible for us losing our close bond, Hisashi … but how can I tell you that?
"I can help you find him if you'd like," said Mr. Kamiya. "Consider that as an early birthday present. What's his surname? My friend – you know, Eiji? – he can help me find him." Mrs. Kamiya's face turned paler, if it was possible. "What was his surname Kaeri?" She glanced at Aoshi, and looked away hurriedly, as he caught her looking at him. "Kaeri? What was his surname?"
"It – it's no use Hisashi," said Mrs. Kamiya, smiling weakly at her husband. "It's … too late now …"
"What do you mean? Don't tell me that you've already severed all connections you've had with him?" asked Mr. Kamiya. "Kaeri, you're the one who's always telling me that friends are important and that you should never let them go …"
"Yes, but he's … gone," said Mrs. Kamiya, willing herself not to look at Aoshi.
"What do you mean he's gone?"
"He's … dead," she said, gripping the napkin on her lap tightly. Aoshi stared at his plate. Now this was getting confusing. If it had been his father that Mrs. Kamiya had been talking about … why was she stalling, and stammering when she was talking about him? Why had she been reluctant to tell Mr. Kamiya his father's name? He frowned inwardly. Her behaviour told him that there was something going on that he didn't know about – and, he felt that whatever it was, was the reason for him having been brought to the Kamiya household after his father had died. But what is going on?
"Oh dear … I didn't know …" said Mr. Kamiya. "Did you attend his funeral?"
"I … didn't know that he died …"
"Then how do you know that he's dead? How do you know for sure?" asked Mr. Kamiya, surprised.
"Because A – " the sound of the grandfather clock in the hallway interrupted Mrs. Kamiya – who was thanking the gods for causing the distraction. Her husband was still looking at her eagerly, waiting for an answer, when Aoshi stood up, pushing his plate away. "You've finished? Are you sure you wouldn't like some more?" Aoshi shook his head.
" … No, thanks …" he said, and was about to walk away, when Mrs. Kamiya stopped him again.
"Oh, Aoshi, I know that I shouldn't be asking this of you … but can you do me a favour?" Aoshi stared at her. What is it with her asking me for favours after dinner everyday? "If you go to Kaoru's room, you'll find a stack of books on her desk – do you think that you can just go over and give them to Misao?"
" … Now?" asked Aoshi, surprised. Damn … why does it have to involve her?
"I know that it's almost eight o'clock, but Misao needs those books, and I asked Kaoru not to take them to her, because not only is Kaoru ill, but Misao might get the flu from her as well, and that's the last thing that Misao will need at this point in time," said Mrs. Kamiya. "Will you?"
" … Okay …" said Aoshi, although one of his inner voices yelled at him for being easily convinced into doing things as Mrs. Kamiya flashed him a smile. Don't complain … at least you're getting to see Misao – in the flesh – instead of wasting time thinking about her! Aoshi growled mentally at his inner-voice, telling it to shut up … or else.
"Great! They're on Kaoru's desk …" said Mrs. Kamiya.
"Kaeri, are you trying to get Misao into trouble too?" asked Mr. Kamiya, surprised.
"What?"
"Are you out of your mind? Sending him to Misao's house? Alone? At this time?" he asked. "God knows what he'll do to her!" Aoshi glared at him through ice blue eyes.
"Hisashi, you don't know what you're talking about," said Mrs. Kamiya, frowning. "Aoshi's not a person like that. Besides, he and Misao are friends, aren't you, Aoshi?" Aoshi found himself nodding slowly, before he could stop himself. Why did I nod? We're NOT friends … we're just … we just know people who know both of us … right? "Go ahead Aoshi … " Nodding, Aoshi walked up the stairs.
Kashiwazaki Residence:
Misao sighed as she sat down on her bed, doing her best not to pay any attention to the throbbing in her knee. It had been throbbing ever since she had walked around the house and the garden that morning and afternoon, as a result of her exerting herself too much. She just wished that her mother would understand why she was doing this. The sooner she got used to this, the sooner she could try running. She had been the happiest person in the world when the doctor had told her that afternoon that he would be removing her cast in two days. That meant that she would be more flexible.
But all of this exercising didn't mean that she wasn't bored. No-one had come to visit her during the past few days, and she was beginning to get cranky. A gut feeling in her stomach told her that Soujirou would come and see her today. She was waiting for him to turn up – to yell at him for not coming to see her before. She felt – though she knew she was being stupid – rather neglected and forgotten.
"Oh come on Misao, they have their own lives too," she said aloud, shaking her head. "Ah! Kaoru was supposed to be giving me some books to read …" She frowned. Even Kaoru hadn't come to see her. She hadn't even called her. She hoped that nothing was wrong with her … "Aargh … if someone doesn't come to see me today, I'm going to go mad!"
Mrs. Makimachi opened the front door, sure that it would be Kaoru, who she hadn't seen around for a few days. She was startled when she saw the tall frame of Aoshi, standing on the doorstep, a small stack of books in his hands.
"Aoshi," she said, smiling surprised. "What brings you here?"
" … Kaoru-san wanted me to give these to … Misao," said Aoshi, nodding at the books. "Kaoru-san's sick, so she can't come here herself."
"Oh dear? Is she okay?" asked Mrs. Makimachi, worried. Aoshi nodded.
"She's just got the flu …" he said.
"Oh … oh, sorry, please, come in," said Mrs. Makimachi, stepping aside. "You know where Misao's room is, right?" Aoshi paused for a moment, debating whether he should just give Mrs. Makimachi the books and leave. Don't do that! Just go … it's not like anything's going to happen. Aoshi wondered where that had come from.
" … Yeah …" nodding at her, he walked down the corridor, and up the stairs. Mrs. Makimachi smiled as she closed the door and walked into the kitchen, almost bumping into her father.
" … He's new to that group, isn't he?" asked Okina, smiling. "If I didn't know any better … I would think that my little Misao is smitten with him …"
"Your little Misao?" asked his daughter, raising her eyebrows.
"Ah, sorry, your little Misao," said Okina, laughing.
Kamiya Residence:
Mrs. Kamiya opened the front door, smiling, thinking that it was Aoshi. She guessed that Kaoru's hopes were not meant to be – Aoshi had merely given Misao the books and come back.
"There's no need to ring the bell, you live here Aos – " she stopped as she saw the male standing in front of her, an apologetic smile on his face. Her eyes widened as she recognized him, although the cross-shaped scar on his face was something she had not seen before. "Kenshin!" Kenshin smiled apologetically at her.
"I'm really sorry for coming at this time Kamiya-san," he said, scratching his head sheepishly. "But I heard that Kaoru was ill … and no-one else was able to come … so I thought I'd come and see her …" Mrs. Kamiya smiled widely. Kaoru didn't tell her anything, but, being the girl's mother, she could tell that she had a soft spot for the lovable red-head.
"That's really sweet of you," she said, stepping aside to let him enter. "I'm sure Kaoru will be happy." Kenshin nodded, moving inside. "You know which room is hers?" Kenshin shook his head. "Well, it's the only room with the door wide-open." Kenshin stood where he was, unsure of whether it was okay to go into Kaoru's room without anyone else with him. "Oh go ahead! There's nothing to be worried about …" said Mrs. Kamiya, knowing why he was waiting.
"Ano – is Aoshi here?" asked Kenshin, looking at Mrs. Kamiya. She shook her head.
"No, he's gone to Misao's place," she said.
"M – Misao's place!" spluttered Kenshin.
"Yes … there were some books that Kaoru wanted Misao to have, but she couldn't give them to her, so I asked Aoshi to go instead …" said Mrs. Kamiya. "He'll be back soon though, since I don't expect him to be there for long." Kenshin nodded.
"I'll … go and see Kaoru then …" he said, walking down the corridor. Mrs. Kamiya smiled as she watched him go. She wished she would be able to see Kaoru's reaction at seeing Kenshin. If only Aoshi would 'feel like' visiting Misao like that …
Aoshi stood in front of the opened door, wondering whether he should announce himself or go straight inside. He immediately decided against going straight inside. That didn't sound right. He scowled as he saw Misao seated on the bed, with her back towards the door. How much easier would it have been if she had been seated facing the door. Balancing the books in one hand, he leaned forward and knocked on the opened door.
"Oh! It's about time!" growled Misao, still not turning around. Aoshi stared at her – or rather, at her back. What? "I thought that you had forgotten me!" Aoshi raised his eyebrows. She thought he had forgotten her? "Mou, it's not nice to make people feel neglected and forgotten you know!" He had made he feel 'neglected' and 'forgotten'? When? Misao turned around, a cute pout on her face. "What are you going to do to make it up to – " Aoshi watched, amused, as her eyes went from narrowed slits, to wide blue orbs, and as her face turned red. " – A – Ao – Aoshi!" stammered Misao, really wishing that the ground would open up and swallow both the bed and herself.
" … Kaoru-san wanted you to have these," said Aoshi, standing at the door, feeling rather uncomfortable.
"Oh … you – er – can come in if you want …" said Misao, awkwardly. Aoshi walked inside and stood somewhat awkwardly by the bed. "Why did she want me to have those?" asked Misao, pointing at the books. Aoshi moved forward and placed them on her bed.
"I really don't know …" he said, watching as Misao picked up a book from the pile.
"Oh! These are the books she promised to give me!" she exclaimed, looking grateful. "Now I'll finally have something to do. Is Kaoru okay? I mean … I haven't seen her for some time now …"
"She's sick – "
"She's WHAT!" interrupted Misao. "Why? What's wrong with her? Is she going to be okay!" Aoshi nodded slowly, rather surprised to find that he wasn't the least bit annoyed at her outbursts.
"It's just the flu … nothing serious," he said.
"Thank god …" mumbled Misao. There was a short silence in the room.
" … No-one's come to see you the past few days?" asked Aoshi, breaking the silence. Misao shook her head, pouting again.
"No! I've been ALL alone! And I've been SOO bored!" she wailed, before catching sight of the amused expression on Aoshi's face. She flushed. "I – sorry … it's just that I'm really cranky …" she stammered. Misao you IDIOT! Continue to act like that and he'll DEFINITELY think you're weird! Not that he DOESN'T think that already.
" … I … can imagine …" said Aoshi, wondering why he had said that. He glanced at the cast on Misao's leg. "How's your leg?"
"My leg?" asked Misao. "Oh! My leg!" Aoshi cocked his head to a side, wondering why Misao's face was turning red. "Er … the doctor came a few days ago and said that I should walk around and stuff … and today he said that he'll take the cast off in two days!" She looked excited. "That means that I can take part in the tournament!" Aoshi frowned.
" … Are you sure about that?" he asked.
"Of course! All I need to do is practice a little … that's it," said Misao.
" … The tournament is in eight days," said Aoshi. "You really think that you can take part in the events you were put down for?"
"Yes!" said Misao, scowling at him. "Is there a problem with that?" Aoshi shook his head hurriedly, before frowning again.
"What about the hurdles?" he asked, casually. Why is it that I'm talking to her? I should be going now … I don't need to stay here and talk to her … I did my part of the 'favour' Mrs. Kamiya asked me to do.
But she does look nicer when she's all energetic and revved up … He shook his head hurriedly, forcing his inner-voice to shut up. The last thing he needed was for it to cause problems when he was here.
"Well … I can practice with the fence that separates this house from Kaoru's … but Kachan won't let me," grumbled Misao. Aoshi raised his eyebrows at her. She wanted to try jumping over fences … in this state?
" … I'm not surprised …" he said, slowly. There was another silence in the room, causing Misao to fiddle with her thumbs, uncomfortably. Aoshi started to turn around. " … I should get going – "
" – No!" Misao stared open-mouthed at Aoshi, raising a hand to slap it over her opened mouth, but stopping half-way. Aoshi stood extremely still, doing his best to ignore what his inner-voices were saying, and trying not to show his surprise at Misao's outburst. As it turned out, he failed at both.
" … … …"
"I – I -" Misao stopped, unable to ignore her inner-voices either. What was wrong with her! Why the hell had she – oh god, please don't let me have ruined this … please don't let me have ruined this … "I – it's just that … I – no-one's come … and – and I don't know what's going on in school … and I'm getting really annoyed without anyone to talk to – and … and – " she trailed off, looking embarrassed. " … That didn't make any sense, did it?"
" … Not really …" replied Aoshi. Misao sighed, and looked down at her lap as Aoshi didn't make any attempt to say anything. She was furious with herself, for ruining the moment. He had been talking normally to her … and she had somewhat managed to do the same … only to ruin it all by blurting something stupid out!
"Oh …" was all that she said, whilst she mentally berated herself. Aoshi, meanwhile, was arguing with his inner-voices. The argument was something along the lines of; No, I should go … that's the right thing to do, But if you go now, you will lose this opportunity, What opportunity?, You might never get a chance to talk to her like this again … especially when she's all alone … and with no SOUJIROU to bother you … …… and so the argument went.
The argument ended with him turning back around, his face expressionless as usual. The poor girl's really bored and lonely … it's not nice to leave someone like this was what he told his inner-voice, to justify his staying back, to which the reply was Yeah, yeah, you keep on telling yourself that. Misao looked up as she saw him move. Her eyes widened. It looked like he was going to stay!
" … What do you want to know about what's happening in school …?" he asked, surprising himself and Misao.
" – Everything!" said Misao, grinning. "You don't need to stand – you can sit down over there if you'd like …" she added, nodding at the chair on the other side of the bed. Aoshi glanced at it, the incident with what had happened when Kaoru had been in his room still in his mind. He shook his head. He knew that he wasn't going to do anything to Misao … so why was he worried? Nodding, he walked over to the chair and sat down on it, turning it so that he was facing Misao. "So … what's Saito been up to these days?"
Aoshi sighed. Why was it, that wherever he went, people always insisted on talking about Saito? " … He didn't come for practice today, since he was in late-detention – "
" – HA! Serves him right! How irresponsible of a Captain though, to get himself in a late-detention with the tournament just around the corner," interrupted Misao, grinning widely.
" … Sagara wrote his name down in the late-book; that's why he got a late-detention," said Aoshi. Misao's eyes widened.
"Sano did that? Sano?" Aoshi nodded. "Heh … I can't – oh no … he's going to be in so much of trouble if Saito finds out!" Aoshi nodded.
"That's what we tried telling him …" he said.
"We?" asked Misao, trying not to show her happy surprise at the fact that Aoshi was 'getting used' to hanging out with Sano and the others.
" … Kenshin and … Seta …" said Aoshi, not liking the way he said 'Seta.' He really needed to get over his problem with Soujirou …
"Yeah, I guess that should be expected from those two," said Misao, shaking her head. "They're both clueless idiots." Aoshi didn't say anything to that. "So what else happened?" Whoa … I'm actually talking freely to him! Argh, I hope I continue this way …
" … Hiko-sensei told us that the high-jump and long-jump events have been cancelled …" said Aoshi, leaning back in the chair as he spoke, with Misao listening attentively to every word he said. She must have been really bored during the past couple of days. Never-mind … at least what he had to say interested her …
… AND you get to talk to her without feeling odd … and without being interrupted by anyone, so that you – Aoshi, rather triumphantly, created a mental barrier, separating his inner voice from the rest of his brain. He was not going to ruin this moment.
A/N
PHEW …… that was rather long, wasn't it? Ooops … I didn't mean for it to be too long, but I couldn't find a suitable place to end this chapter with, except with this. I wonder whether having Saito talking to Tokio, Kenshin visiting Kaoru, and Aoshi talking to Misao all in one chapter sort of spoilt this chapter… (Oh dear … I just realized that I've forgotten about Megumi! Aargh … oops …) Heh, and I wonder how Kaoru would have reacted when she saw Kenshin! Heh heh …
Well … that's it for this chapter! Hope it was good!
See ya soon!
Siriusgirl1