Author's Note: WOO-HOO! Thanks to my first five reviewers, I've been inspired to update SO quickly... around a chapter a day! Arigatou! Oh, this is supposed to be the third chapter but since I combined the first two chapters, it's now the second chapter. Oh well.... On with the story!
Review Responses:
rurouni madness: Yes I so agree!! Oh, your wish might not be fulfilled; there'll be a lot of chapters between the kidnapping and the saving. Maybe I'll find a way to stick in Misao! I think I will, because in the original story, doesn't Kenshin run into Misao before fighting Shishio? Anyhow, thank you!
GoldAngel2: Yes, I've wondered that also. Kenshin's Achilles Heel-that's a nice metaphor! And thank you for your compliments!
Disclaimer: This fic idea is mine but the characters aren't...
A Cloak of Protection
Chapter 3: Dawning RealizationsDAY ONE-- 3:00pm
Kenshin burst through the open wooden doors of the Akabeko. As he dashed through the restaurant and past the individual compartments, he kept muttering, "Gomen," as startled customers whipped their curious faces around to stare at him. He almost crashed into a waitress wearing a white and orange apron dress, and caught her before she could fall down.
The waitress gripped his forearms, and glared up at him. "What do you think you're-Ken-san!" the waitress exclaimed. "What's wrong?" She stepped away from him and straightened her shiny brown bun, eyes narrowing in bewilderment.
Kenshin just stared at her with wild amethyst eyes tinged with gold, breathing hard as if he'd just ran all the way from Kyoto. Kyoto. The very name brought up colorful images, tinged with guilt, horror, and sadness. Kenshin angrily shrugged away the memories and opened his mouth to speak sharply to Tae, the owner of the Akabeko.
"Ka-Kaoru-dono. Where is she? Have you seen her?" He felt like he was capable of shaking the answer out of Tae. He knew something was wrong. Felt it, in his bones. Felt it, mostly, in his heart.
Tae's doe eyes widened in deeper puzzlement. Fiddling with her white frilly apron strap, she replied, if a bit cautiously, "No... I haven't seen her at all, all day. Today, we were planning to hold a little birthday party for me at noon, but she never showed up."
Kenshin caught a glistening glimmer of hurt in Tae's doe eyes, but she determinedly blinked it away. "Now it's 3:00, three hours past noon, and ... well..." She looked away. Then she looked back at him.
"I know it isn't a very big deal," Tae continued softly, fingers playing with the knot in her tied apron. "But Kaoru-chan seemed so anxious about the little get-together. She was so enthusiastic and happy yesterday, when Tsubame proposed the idea to her." Tae glanced up sadly at him.
Kenshin had been listening to Tae with growing horror. He knew Kaoru-dono would never intentionally hurt one of her good friends. His heart pounded frantically, making him feel like everyone in the Akabeko could hear it, though they were staring at him and Tae. Suddenly his palms felt clammy and moist. Where had Kaoru-dono gone to?
Turning away from Tae, Kenshin began to hash over the hours of the day, trying to figure out the time span in which something happened to Kaoru- dono.
At 6:00 am, he had woken up unusually early. He couldn't explain why-he felt a grim sense of foreboding.
At 7:00am, he had stacked his blankets and rolled up his futon. He was just starting out to the kitchen to cook up some potatoes and bread for breakfast. As he worked, Kenshin had deliberately pulled out eight servings of food to prepare: on Saturdays, Sano, Ayame, Suzume, Megumi, and Dr. Gensai always came over either to exchange news, play, or freeload. Freeload was usually what they did.
At 8:00am, Kenshin had finished cooking breakfast and served it out to the table. That feeling of apprehension had come again as he set out Kaoru- dono's place. His eyes lingered on her place at the table for a long time, until he wrenched himself away and started out of the kitchen doors to wake up Kaoru-dono and Yahiko.
At 9:00am, the whole group had gathered and sat down to eat the lovely breakfast Kenshin had prepared. He remembered Ayame and Suzume exclaiming over the meal, and heard Yahiko putting down Kaoru-dono yet again on how her cooking compared to Kenshin's. At that time, Kenshin had felt a little guilty, though he couldn't explain why. He knew Kaoru-dono hated cooking, and loved it when he cooked.
At 10:00 am, Kenshin had just finished washing the dishes and gathering up the huge load of dirty laundry. He was starting the laundry, scrubbing it in icy-cold water from the well, his magenta sleeves tied back with a white string.
At 10:30 am, Kaoru-dono had come over to him as he worked, and showed him the present of chocolates she was going to give to Tae for her birthday.
Kenshin's heart jumped-he had stumbled on what he was seeking. At 10:30, Kaoru-dono had left the dojo, setting out for the Akabeko. She had probably intended to be a bit early for the get-together, probably going to help Tae in the restaurant. That was the nice person Kaoru was, Kenshin remembered fondly.
The regular walk to the Akabeko restuarant took about ten minutes. So something must have happened to Kaoru in those ten minutes...
Kenshin sprang out of the recesses of his memory to the bustling noise of the Akabeko. Tae was staring at him, chocolate eyes wide in fear. "K-Ken- san? Do you need to sit down for a second? I'll get some tea for you..."
Kenshin turned to Tae with a wobbly, grateful smile that he had to force on his lips. "Arigatou, Tae-dono, but I'll have to pass."
And he flew out the doors of the restaurant, back to the Kamiya dojo. He was going to try to track down Kaoru-dono, trying to find what path she had taken, trying to find out what had happened to his Kaoru-dono.
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3:15 pm
Kaoru hung limply in Soujirou's strong arms, hair swaying slightly, blood caked on her blue kimono with the pink-purple obi.
Shishio felt a hint of a smile forming on his lips. Yumi strode over to stand next to him, glancing at the unconscious girl in Soujirou's arms.
"You did well, Soujirou," Shishio announced to the happy boy. Then his eyebrows (A/N: Does he have eyebrows, or did they get burned off? -;) knit sharply together, and his bandaged hand reached out to harshly swipe away a drop of blood on her shoulder. He brought his hand up to look at the blood on his finger. "But what's this? Didn't I tell you I wanted her at least conscious enough? What, did you have to hack her up?"
The boy smiled up at the bandaged mummy. "Shishio-san, it's much better this way," Soujirou announced cheerfully. "You see, if Himura-san, the Battousai, sees his girl seriously wounded and in deep pain, he'll go to even further depths to save her from any more pain. Then you'll be able to take him down. And as for the deep wounds, the girl is a terrific fighter- she put up such a good fight, the wounds were necessary to stop her long enough so to bring her to you." Soujirou nodded at Kaoru's deep, bloody wounds to emphasize his words.
Shishio stood there thoughtfully, standing in front of Soujirou and beside the beauteous Yumi, licking off the drop of blood on his thumb while he thought. Then his face contorted into fury again.
"Soujirou, you forget one crucial detail. If my friend Jin-e has taught me anything, he has shown me that the true Battousai emerges from that wimpy Rurouni whenever anyone close to him is in danger. Then he is unstoppable." Shisho's fingers curled into claws at this obstacle.
Soujirou looked vaguely dismayed for a moment, then brightened with an idea. "Shishio-sama, whenever Battousai-san is about to slay you, then I or Yumi here" he indicated the silent (jealous from the attention Shishio is giving Soujirou) Yumi with a head gesticulation, "will stab the girl. And that will distract the Battousai enough so you can slay him instead you."
Yumi shook with silent convulses as a grin slowly spread across Shishio's bandaged face. "I like your thinking, Soujirou," Shishio answered, fingering Kaoru's swaying long hair and twisting it in his fingers with unsuppressed glee.
Yumi turned sharply on her heel and strode out of the steamy bath room. She had been so sure Shishio would get angry at Soujirou. Face flushing angrily, she stormed off down the hall.
Meanwhile, back in the steamy bath room, Shishio fixed his cold, black hitokiri eyes on Soujirou, who was still carrying the limp and wounded Kaoru in his pale arms. "Take the girl to our base at the Six-Gated Temple," Shishio told the boy. "We'll meet you there shortly."
Shishio looked down at the limp form of Battousai's girl once again, marveling at the deep, bloody gashes Soujirou had managed to inflict on her (though he wouldn't doubt Soujirou's ability for even a millisecond), and swept out of the room, dark blue robe billowing behind him.
Soujirou looked after Shishio for a long moment, then hefted the limp girl higher in his pale arms and strode purposefully out of the room, down the hall to Senkaku's room so to inform him of Shishio's news.
TO BE CONTINUED
Author's Note: Well, this chapter was just not much action. And it's still short, according to my standards! Thanks for reading-I'll pop out a new chapter in a few days or so!
-Twilight Sky