Disclaimer: Just using the characters for my mere entertainment. And hopefully yours.
Over the Sky
Chapter Four
It had been the happiest he ever saw her—the first time since his stay that he saw her smile reach her eyes.
And while she was engrossed in a lively chatter with Sanosuke, who occasionally nodded his head in between slurping his soup, he couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of the upturned lips, the brightness of her midnight orbs, and the way her nose crinkled when she laughed. It was uplifting and he made it his mission to make her smile more often.
He could see why Himura-san had fallen in love with someone like Kaoru. It was all anyone couldn't help on doing.
Soujiro didn't want to be caught staring, so adverted his gaze to the silent boy next to him—Yahiko, if he remembered correctly—who had left his food untouched, staring off at nothing particular with a dark mood.
"Is there anything wrong with the lunch?"
"No," was his deadpan reply.
"Ah, okay then. I was worried there was." Soujiro nodded, beaming down at him. The usual smile that he wore on his face unnerved the boy and he fidgeted nervously in his seat, avoiding looking at the wanderer directly.
"Why do you smile all the time?" he asked so suddenly that Soujiro was taken aback, blinking furiously at him, as if the question was a momentary glitch in time. But it wasn't, and his tense shoulders fell.
"Here are the spare bandages you asked for. I had to steal them, so I'm pretty sure they'll be mad. But it doesn't matter."
"Why do you smile all the time, boy?"
"I figure it's better to smile then to let them know it hurts. Because pain is a weakness, right? And only the weak die."
With a shrug, he grinned at the boy. "No reason, I guess. It's a habit I developed from long ago when I was a child."
"You let them hurt you."
"I have no where else to be. At least here, I know I have a purpose."
"And what purpose it that?"
"To live. To be worth something. To be wanted, even for the wrong reasons."
"I suppose my positivism seems to take people by surprise. It comes in handy though, when I . . ."
"Kill."
"But why?"
"Do you want to become strong?"
". . . Yes."
"Good. Go get my sword."
"Communicate," Soujiro finished, but with a profound grimace that couldn't help but form. It disappeared as quickly it appeared, marring my face like a scar in its short existence.
Sano seemed to notice his change in mood, giving Soujiro a wary look before glaring at something Kaoru said about the ex-fighter's facial hair and how he was in need of a shave. He, in his fit of defense, slammed the table, sending a wobbling glass to crash against the surface. Water spilled—ran and tickled the tips of Sourjiro's skin.
"Are you crying?"
"No, Shishio-sama. Just admiring the rain."
She was almost there. A few more corners and she wouldn't have to worry about waking anyone up. She gave the sky above her a longing gaze, warmed by the bright fiery colorings dancing with the brush strokes of lavender near the horizon before melting into the darkness of the night.
They reminded her of him.
She pulled her kimono closer, bitten back from the cold left from the nighttime and something else that panged her gut violently.
She was going to go visit him today—like she always did some time at the end of every month.
She gave her friends' room a sorrowful looks as she past them by.
No, it was better off they didn't know. They weren't going to take it as well as she would have liked if they found out she was awake and off at sunrise just to visit him.
She clutched the basket of jasmines to her chest. They were his favorite—the jasmines. He had told her once.
And then he kissed her.
She had been wearing a jasmine perfume that day and continued putting it on several days later.
Only, it stopped once he went away. It hurt too much.
Her sandals clicked musically against the smooth surface of her floors. Basked in the morning sun, they reflected her slightly blurred image like a dusted mirror. Her sad blue eyes looked back at her.
Pitying.
She didn't want any of it, so she looked up and stared at the gates that stood proudly. The walls, after so many years, still rested sturdily—the corners eroded of their sharpness. His name, along with her, Sano, Megumi, and Yahiko's, was carved somewhere on the surface of the structure. Somewhere—probably worn away, too.
Almost there.
She peeked quickly behind her, making sure that there was no lurking figure following her steps, satisfied when there was none despite her murmuring conscious that spoke otherwise.
For in fact there was one. In front of her, to be exact.
And she crashed into him full on.
Her eyes flickered upwards and her mouth gave way with a surprised gasp.
"Soujiro!"
And then she couldn't help but glare. But it was hard glaring at someone with such beautiful eyes. And her glare fully faltered even more once he smiled—an expression torn between insanity and sadness. A look that never failed to unease her. She pursed her lips together and tried her best to hide her sadness and shock with anger. "Do you always scare people when you greet them?"
His smile widened and he shrugged. "Only to those who look like they are doing something they shouldn't be."
"Are you saying I look suspicious?" She narrowed her eyes.
He smirked mockingly, leaning forwards. "Do you always sneak out of our own home before dawn?"
She scoffed, but stole a glance back at her dojo.
"No need to worry. Sano's too deep into his slumber to notice or care. He might as well be considered unconscious at this rate. And Yahiko's hearing isn't advance enough to pick our conversation up from where he is," he paused, before putting a finger to his chin, "which is the kitchen, by the way."
His insightfulness astonished her once more.
She realized, right then and there, that he was more than what he let on.
But then again, she had a few secrets that he didn't know either. It was only fair.
"I'm off to see a friend." It was a blunt confession, she knew.
He stepped back to observe her. She bit her lip, flustered when his eyes roamed up and down her body. "A sleeping friend?"
Her gaze fell to the ground, making designs in the dirt with her heel.
"A friend who can never wake up," was her whisper.
And when she looked up, she saw the genial features on his face. He offered a hand and spoke in a way she couldn't refuse. "Then let me escort you. The pain is less unbearable if you aren't alone."
He understood. That was all she needed.
And she took his hand without hesitation.
Onaji yume mite sodatta ne
Shiroi hana saku machi de
Demo ima ha
We had and nurtured the same dream, right?
In a town where white flowers bloom
But now we...
To Be Continued . . .
A/n: And another installment complete. To clear up any confusion, this chapter would make a lot more sense if you've seen the Kyoto Arc. During the fight between Kenshin and Soujiro, there were cut scenes relating to Sou's past and how he met Shishio. The italicized in the beginning are flashbacks and not thoughts. I'm sorry if my constant shifting writing style annoys anyone, but it makes writing the story much more fun.