a/n: Whoa! It's been such a LONG time since I last updated this fic...over a year now. I really have no excuse for the long hiatus. However, I feel that I should at least attempt to explain myself. Basically, life just suddenly happened and I really didn't have the time or energy to do this story the justice that I wanted to do it...Now, here I am, over a year later, and attempting to write this fic. While I'm still happy with the plot line I have planned for this fic, I have found that my writing style is from disuse...to put it gently. I only hope that that you all will still enjoy this story as much as before, despite any changes in tone or writing skill within the story. Thanks.
disclaimer: Nope, don't own them. Sigh.
Scenarios
.::.Scene Three: The Friend.::.
As she stormed up the steps toward her room, she couldn't help but take out her anger on the poor floorboards that lay beneath her feet, at her mercy, as a certain silver haired fiend should be.
Another emphatic stamp, unsatisfactorily muted by the damp squish heard upon the generations-old estate. Distractedly, the fuming young woman glanced down at the repulsive sound. Only then did she notice the dreadful mess she unwittingly trailed through the only place she could honestly call home. Guiltily, she quickly proceeded down the elegant hallway to stop before familiarly carved wood.
Her ire rapidly cooled under the weight of her depression. She knew now.
She really was cursed to be...unlovable.
Before everything that occurred this summer, before Aoshi, she naively believed she simply did not fit within her family, but one day, she would find that one person who would cherish her above all else and love her.
Every part of her.
When he came, she thought to herself 'this is it'. Then Megumi showed up and proved that, even in love, Misao could not win. There was no room for affection for Misao. At least no place in her home. That's why she was here. She may have lost her natural family, but that did not mean she was alone. Her friends would be enough for her. They had to be. She had no right to ask for more.
With that assertion, Misao attempted to valiantly rally herself against the black gloom that hovered about her whole frame. Much calmer than before, she proceeded through the comforting aged wooden doors of her comfortably cozy room and inhaled the familiar scent of hibiscus and jasmine wafting through the inner chamber. Her friend always knew just what Misao needed. And at the moment, Misao needed nothing more than to cleanse the hurt and exhaustion off of her weary body. Misao sighed in contentment at the thought of soaking in the wonderfully scented water awaiting her. A sense of belonging washed over her, quickly followed by shame.
She had no right to wallow. Had she not found the perfect family here? In the presence of those who accepted, if not welcomed her. Kaoru, who knew her better than she knew herself. Hiko, who treated her with more indulgence and understanding than her parents ever would. This was a true family; one she was a part of, full of warmth and support. Thinking of her innocent, kind, and openhearted friend and said friend's rough yet affectionate father brought a months-long missing tenderness to swell within her.
Ah.
So, her heart did still work and had not forsaken her to her misery.
She would not be ungrateful. She would shine with happiness. After all, her friend, her beloved friend was getting married. To the man of her choice, for the pure, unselfish motive of love.
Naturally, she tore herself away from those fatal thoughts. That was one path she would never again tread. Forcing herself to think of other matters, her mind picked an equally unsettling topic to pick apart, though nowhere near as heart wrenching.
'Why did Kaoru's fiance look so familiar?'
She could almost taste that bittersweet lingering of memory upon her palate. Diffusing throughout her being in such a way as clamored for notice.
Too exhausted to contemplate what significance such a minor deja vu could possibly have upon her, Misao carelessly brushed the matter aside as she crossed her room and entered the private bath. Standing in the midst of the steamy bathroom, Misao could not help feeling wistful. The dreamy quality of the world through sleep-deprived eyes almost lulled Misao asleep with the beauty of the peaceful environment. She watched as the steam rose from the clear, undisturbed surface of the water, a blue-gray to rival those hatefully loved emotionless eyes burned into her mind's eye. A harsh slap of her delicate hand littered the surrounding surfaces with clear drops of her frustration as the water rippled as though chastising her for her lack of control.
Would she never gain reprieve from him?
Once again forcefully wrenching herself away from thoughts of her hopeless love, Misao quickly busied herself with the much needed cleaning of herself. Surely Kaoru would be up in no time to drag her back to the parlor. She wanted to be cleansed before she was hauled off to the inquisition, namely one excited Kaoru and one amused Hiko.
Misao allowed the water to embrace her as she submerged herself fully within the warmth, the hibiscus, the jasmine...
The turmoil.
Sauntering in behind his deceptively calm cousin, Enishi carelessly gazed around the grand ballroom, too accustomed to much finer rooms than sported by this manor. Finally allowing his gaze to fall back to his cousin, he donned his ever-famous smirk – well known across the lands and throughout the elite circles for the scandalous flashes it causes amongst the ladies and its violently adverse effects upon the gentlemen.
Unfortunately, Kenshin's even more so infuriatingly placid facade was worse than infamous, it was legendary.
Thus the two men stood, one calm, one smug, both facing off. For once, Kenshin broke first.
"It's not what you think. Misao...Makimachi-dono is very important to me." Despite his calm demeanor, there was the ferocity of a lion behind that soft-spoken sentence.
"I thought of nothing, my dear couz, after all, you have called off the game...or was I mistaken?"
The silver crowned man was enjoying this immensely as the smirk turned into an infuriatingly larger, full-fledged grin. The likes of which Kenshin had only ever seen when Enishi most definitely set his mind to something – more often then not, a hapless woman – and was assured in his imminent victory.
This last thought had Kenshin, the unhappy redheaded man that he is, fuming in what could be mistaken as possessive anger.
"You will not touch her!" Both men were startled by the intensity behind that statement. Kenshin recovered first. "I should not have raised my voice, Enishi. Pardon my behavior. I know not what plagues me today for I have been quite unreasonably ill tempered. But be not mistaken, the game is off and will forever remain so."
"No need for formalities, Himura, after all, we are family. I am sorry for provoking your wrath. It was horrible of me to even consider insinuating that you would betray your fiance. Of course you have never known another woman apart from Kamiya-san, let alone that woman-child of a beggar from this evening. Good night, poor Fanny has quite worn me out with the extent of her...let us say thoroughly enthusiastic tongue. It quite ran away with her."
As the door to the hall clicked closed, Kenshin threw a punch at the column before him. Damn his meddlesome cousin. He knew perfectly well what Kenshin meant, teased him with a thin veil of an apology, then had the gall to continue his insults while feigning deference to Kenshin's relation. Looking up from where flesh met cement, Kenshin's eyes locked upon cold amethyst, the same shade of his loved one without any of the affection contained within. His future father-in-law had witnessed the entire debacle from his perch next to the blazing flame of burning wood across the great ballroom. Kenshin braced himself for another onslaught of heated debate. The assault did not come. After assessing the short man, Hiko merely strode out through the glass doors leading into the gardens where he more than likely had a stash of sake hidden amongst the shrubbery for such an indulgence.
Yet still, Kenshin knew. These next couple of months would be quite taxing upon him.
A gentle morning breeze drifted into the still silently resting manor, teasing the soft, pliant curtains to life, mischievously dancing to a soundless song, with each twirl, permitting a glimpse of the outer bleakness of gray and brown. The breath of wind continued into the shadows of the gloomily lit room, filling all the little crevices and cracks within the surfaces of the walls, the desk, the bedside table, and finally the bed. It snuck beneath the downy covers to chill the pocket of warmth found within soft white sheets.
Delicately resting eyelids lethargically awakened to reveal sleep laced cerulean eyes.
Misao blinked several times before having oriented herself as to her surroundings. The last thing she recalled was crying desperately upon Kaoru's shoulders. Misao felt her cheeks burn crimson at the thought of her sudden outburst. Without explanation or thought, Misao burst into a sorrowful manifestation of all her pent up insecurities and frustrations. Insensibly mumbling apologies about her lack of control to Kaoru even as she continued her deluge of tears. Her friend must have been alarmed and concerned at the reaction, for she had merely cheerfully enquired after Misao's well being and provoked such violent emotion. Forcefully shaking her head clear of all such thoughts, Misao quietly hoisted herself out of bed and dressed in her customary outfit, having missed the modified pants that reached mid thigh and permitted her free reign over the movement of her limbs...unlike the horrid kimono her mother had practically forced her into before she left on her journey.
A fleet-footed silhouette lightly slipped through the manor doors. As the back door slid silently shut, preventing any more of the manor's warm and slightly stagnant air from escaping, Misao let out the relieved breath she had been holding since stepping into the hall. She was ill equipped as of yet to deal with any persons who felt they were privy to enquire after her every move. Not that it wasn't nice to know that they actually cared to ask.
Slowly, Misao made her way through the barren gardens, picturing the magnificence that she knew to be held within the very paths she tread during the height of spring. How she had missed this peace of mind. But, at last, she was away, and she could heal. She would learn to rejoice the way she once had, without care or regret, before Aoshi.
Wandering among the stripped and naked skeletons of trunks and branches, Misao could not help but feel how perfectly the scenery became her mood. Her heart was just as barren for she had no one to love and nurture her. How she wished things were different. If only it weren't so quiet here.
'If only I wasn't alone.'
A snap of a twig later, Misao regretted her last two thoughts. Before her stood that arrogant prick of a man from last night who had patronized her and for all essential purposes called her a midget. Misao could not repress the groan.
Enishi was quite entertained. He had been peering out his window when he spotted an intruder on the grounds. The fact that the intruder was obviously female and flashing her 'assets,' namely those long, sleek, coltish legs of perfection for the world, namely Enishi, to see played no little part in his decision to apprehend the thief. He had not recognized the muddy rogue of last night until she had turned around to confront him. She seemed caught between flight and fight. Enishi suddenly recognized the girl from last night. Without the mud from before, he only recognized that direct crystal blue gaze. She was the only female to date who could look directly at him, see through and past him. Enishi did not like it. He decided to play. Besides, the shrew cleaned up quite nicely. And if it ruffled Kenshin's feathers, so much the better.
"What are you doing here?" Spoken with the utmost hostility. Enishi merely rose an eyebrow. "Well?!"
Interesting. Her flush of anger flowed from her cheeks all the way down across her soft jaw-line and straight down her neck until it disappeared beneath her undesirably obtrusive clothes. Enishi smirked, she had asked for an answer...
"Funny thing really, I was gazing out my window this morning to take in the wonderful countryside view – "
Here Misao interjected with an impertinent "the point of this is..."
Enishi continued onward without acknowledging her antics, even the continued mumbling that sounded suspiciously like degradations and damnations to his questionable character.
"– when I spotted a scantily clad intruder upon the grounds. So I asked myself, 'what would a stranger, a uniquely dressed one at that...'" It was now Enishi's turn to cut himself off as he trailed his sentence to briefly give Misao a once over, instantly conveying to the still mumbling girl his meaning. The mumbling ceased as the girl processed her sensory information, blinked disbelievingly, and then became offended at his blatant appraisal of her and surprised by the implication that he was referring to her. Enishi continued before she could react, still torn between anger and guilt at being caught meandering through the lifeless grounds. "The only logical explanation that came to my mind was that she must be a thief." Here Misao choked on her rapidly rising indignation. Enishi plowed on. "Once that fact, or what seemed a fact at the time, had been established, I felt it my duty, as the Good Samaritan I am, to apprehend the criminal."
She was amazed; the ego on this man! Beyond irritated, she refused to fall into his ploy to further irk her. Unfortunately, she was never good at anger management.
"Imagine MY surprise when I discovered there was no criminal, but the beautiful sprite I'd encountered mere hours before. I have been truly blessed with such pleasant company." Enishi smiled his most dazzling smile as he finished with his narration, secretly congratulating himself for remembering the waif's unusual sensitivity about her size. He had very nearly said little sprite.
Misao wondered at how a man could smile with such deceptive openness. She was no longer a fool. She could feel his smirk at his perceived conquest of yet another young, innocent heart. Bitter humor filled Misao's very essence as she realized the differences within herself. She would have been flattered and blushing had Enishi said the same to her before. Now, every lie was bare to her eyes, as the garden before her. She had no heart to set aflutter with gallantry; it had been stolen and broken months ago.
Enishi just barely maintained his confident, carefree expression as he watched an impossibly worldly and cynical grin slowly spread across the imp's face. Perhaps there was more to this girl. Grief clung to her like second skin, whether old or new, over a lover or for family, it still remained unclear. However, all the symptoms were there. She was grieving for some loss. Well, that just made the challenge of obtaining her heart more complicated, but his eventual triumph would be all the more satisfying.
"Well, since I'm up and about, shall I accompany milady upon her travails through skeleton lands?"
Though put in question form, there was no search for permission. The arrogant man had just commanded her to walk with him. He hadn't even asked "may I" but rather asserted "I shall." Misao determined she would bring him down to the level of all other "mere mortals" if it was the last thing she did on this visit...waitaminute...her thoughts stopped.
What was he doing on the grounds?
"I thought you left last night. What are you doing on the estate so early? Don't tell me you're sniffing after Kaoru! She's already taken! It's disgraceful and sick and disgusting and wrong and, and...and wrong to pursue an engaged woman! Have you no honor?"
Amazing what leaps the female imagination could take when left to its own devices. Amusing really. But also the reason for his ever-lengthening bachelorhood. He would never subject himself to such flightiness and infirmity in mind. Even his beloved sister suffered from such flights of fancy. It was really what made women the weaker sex.
"My dear lady, you are completely mistaken. Permit me to relieve you of all misguided conjectures by properly introducing myself."
Misao became annoyed at his most condescending manner. She interrupted him, sure it would annoy one who so loved the sound of his own voice. Amazing what differences in men vanity could wreak. What horrible deficiencies it could inflict. Between Aoshi, whose pride ran his life with the utmost efficiency to the point that the glacier of frozen emotions obtained such control over his feelings that even love could not touch him, except love of money and advancement in society that is, because he deserved nothing less. And this Enishi character, whose pompousness could submerge a ballroom with his arrogance that seemed to boost his libido to the point that he believed he could woo anything with legs – including men and heartless young women.
"No. That will not be necessary. Our circles are so different, that the possibility of my ever seeing milord again is highly improbable. Thus it would be an unnecessary waste of both your time and mine to form an acquaintance that has no future. Good day."
Misao congratulated herself over her ability to maintain her composure despite her seething mind that commanded release through more...ill mannered means.
"Uhuhuh...not so hasty. We will be seeing much of one another. I am not a stalker of your dear friend, Kamiya-san. On the contrary, I'm practically her family. I am the groom's cousin, on the mother's side, twice removed."
"Oh."
'Oh! Is that the best you can come up with? Misao, you dolt. Don't let this stupid jerk get the best of you. Come on, let me loose!'
She quickly silenced her treacherous mind.
"So...you are currently residing within the manor as well. I apologize for my previous rash assumptions. I had not considered – "
"Think nothing of it, my dear lady, for I have forgotten the incident already."
'Well, he certainly is smooth...' Misao decided that perhaps she could permit herself to have a little fun in this man's presence. He seemed willing enough to play. Besides, nothing would happen; Saito would make sure of that when he arrived within the week, what could happen in the little lapse of time before his arrival?
"Alright then, let us begin again. I am Makimachi Misao, best friend of the bride, new resident of the ghastly edifice Hiko insists on calling a manor, and lover of solitary wanderings."
'Now if that isn't an invitation, I don't know what is.' Enishi could not repress the sardonic grin that insisted on making itself at home upon his beautiful features after Misao's not-so-subtle hint. Fortunately for Enishi, he was nothing if not persistent, and at the moment he was determined to ignore the most probable possibility that Misao mentioned her love of solitude as his cue to leave her in the garden to her own devices. After all, he had nothing else to do.
"Have you visited these gardens before?"
'The perfect question. If she has not, I can show her around. More probable, she has and I will ask her to show me the sights. Either way, she will find herself biding her time by my side.'
"As a matter of fact I am very familiar with these grounds as one who has been here each season since she had seen but five years, therefore, I – "
"Perfect! I have yet to see all the sights and beauties that Hiko's lands have been said to contain and have been seeking an able guide..."
Ooh! The nerve of the man! He set her up for this!
"Well, you see, I am hardly dressed for the occasion."
"Nonsense, you were ambling along perfectly impervious to that fact before, besides, I have brought an extra coat with me, originally intending to apprehend the thief by blinding her with a coat over her head, of course."
"Of course."
Disgruntled grumble here.
"Well, let us just say that it is still at your...disposal, should the need occur."
Smirk here.
'At least someone is in an impeccable mood. Argh! He is so...infuriating!'
"You are too kind. Unfortunately, my sense of propriety does not permit me to believe that it is appropriate for a young lady such as myself to be meandering around the grounds with a stranger, and a young man at that. I cannot afford to linger about any longer for fear of my honor."
'Take that.'
"Come now. You cannot expect me to believe that you are troubled with any such concerns for society's scruples. I saw how smug you were last night when you scared away all those drones of society, the cream of the idiotic crops, last night. You purposely exposed yourself to censure and ridicule for the pure pleasure of watching the rich squirm in discomfort in your presence. I will not believe an iota of what you utter about your concern for etiquette and societal mannerisms." Enishi smiled at the remembrance of last night's most refreshing event.
"It was quite humorous." Misao could not help but concede and smile at the thought of the chaos that ensued as a result of her careless actions.
That was how Kenshin found them. Smiling pleasantly at each other. He nearly ripped out his cousin's perfectly straight, ivory teeth. Had he not made himself painfully clear the previous night concerning Enishi's interactions with Misao?
Enishi turned and caught Kenshin's glower.
Two golden orbs of molten fire bore into Enishi's own pair of now wary emeralds.
'Stay away from her.'
Deep, dark, possessive, with the promise of violence should he disobey. Battousai. The true face of one Himura Kenshin.
The two figures stood frozen, a battle of wills ensuing.
All exchanged through the split-second locking of the eyes.
Enishi smirked. Battousai would never risk exposure in front of any lady, least of all one that he was so concerned over.
Kenshin realized that he had apparently made himself quite clear, crystal in fact. Enishi refused to be intimidated, yet still knew the rage he stirred within him.
Misao was suddenly acutely conscious of the shift from almost easy camaraderie to tense hostility. Though unsure of the cause, she was afraid it had something to do with Enishi's playboy tendencies and Kaoru's fiance's disapproval of such activities, especially toward his fiance's most precious friend. Feeling that she had caused enough mischief for the next few days, and perceptive enough to note the volatility of the situation, she decided to intervene.
"Pardon me for being so forward as to introduce myself. I have little regard for many of the ridiculously tedious conventional restrictions placed upon us by society. If you will allow me so, I am Makimachi Misao, Kaoru's best friend, and you must be her fiance..."
Giving her a perplexed look, Kenshin responded, "My name is Himura Kenshin."
"A pleasure to meet you! Kaoru has told me so much about you that I was really very eager to see for myself who this lucky man was that finally captured my wonderful Kaoru's heart," Misao stated affably. The same statement, had it emerged from any other of society's ladies would have been trite, insincere, and terribly over-practiced, infused with the bland feelings that were trying to even Kenshin's world-renowned steely patience. From Misao, it was heartwarming.
Suddenly, she became much more serious. "If you ever hurt her, you will answer to me. She is precious, you had better treat her that way." The small woman was anything but to be laughed at with the levity she infused into her declaration. She was serious and more that intimidating.
Kenshin had not realized how much he missed her.
"Do not worry. I will protect her with my life."
Misao assessed his statement with a keenness Enishi had never seen a woman possess.
'So, the spitfire could be levelheaded as well. Also, what was this? Did the girl really not know Kenshin from before? Perhaps old habits really do die hard then, eh Battousai?'
No. Kenshin had definitely known her before, and quite intimately, too, else he would not have been so concerned about her well-being.
Apparently, Misao accepted Kenshin's assertion. Breaking out into a grin, she invited him to join them. "Your cousin and I were just discussing taking a turn through the garden, would you care to accompany us? After all, 'the more, the merrier.' Besides, it will provide me with the opportunity to get to know you better before the wedding and decide whether or not you are truly worthy of Kaoru."
Kenshin did not know whether to laugh or to cry at the innocent statement.
'Damn.' Enishi knew it was too much to hope for Kenshin to leave. Well, that was his cue to depart.
"I'm afraid that I must take my leave. I have just recalled a letter that I had better than not answer sooner than later. I beg your pardon, dear Lady. I will have to look to another time for the pleasure of your company." With that said, Enishi beat a hasty retreat before either were quite sure what had transpired and what to make of his actions.
Kenshin was relieved. With Enishi gone, he was free to investigate into Misao's state of mind. Did she not recognize him? Had she forgotten him? No. She could not have forgotten when he had not...when he still remembered everything as if it were yesterday rather than yesteryear.
Misao was surprised off her guard when Himura-san uttered his question seemingly unaware of having done so. Should she remember him?
Kenshin started as wide sapphire jewels contemplatively locked with his own swirling violet orbs. So innocent. So trusting. So beautiful. It took him back a lifetime ago.
He had always been a small boy. All his playmates would tease him, push him around...all the general roughhousing of healthy and vivacious young boys. Unfortunately, Kenshin had never been a healthy, vivacious boy. He had been sickly, small, weak. His fragile health prevented him from frolicking with the rest of the boys, with any children his age. Though, his weak constitution could only partially account for his lack of friends. His lack of friendship mainly sprouted from his sullen attitude and painful shyness toward others. The type of attitude that children never could comprehend as even adults rarely could. Where other children hollered and dallied about, Kenshin was soft-spoken and peaceful. This unique personality singled him out as the easiest of all misfits to be teased and tormented, for he had not yet learned the importance of ignoring taunts. It was in the middle of one of these episodes that he was fated to meet his dear little Misao-dono. Though his junior by eight years, Misao was wonderfully vivacious and open. Her vivacity could win over even the most cold-hearted, mean-spirited of bullies.
Just such a bully had chased Kenshin up a tree and had been prepared to follow after the runt of a boy that Kenshin was when Misao popped out of nowhere and demanded that the boy leave the tree alone. Though Kenshin had been surprised, he was touched that a five year old had the gall to challenge someone more than twice her age and almost twice her size. He had been charmed immediately. So had the bully. He soon lost all interest in chasing and taunting the bruised, tattered outcast of a child that was Kenshin and immediately took to tagging along behind Misao, at her beck and call that the adorable little girl should lack for nothing and never be deprived anything that could bring her even the most minute pleasure. How one little girl could bring an overbearing giant to her service was beyond Kenshin. As Misao turned to lead the bully away, she tilted her head up in minute acknowledgement of the stranded boy as if to say 'It's alright to come down now. I'll protect you.'
That was their first meeting. And oh what a glorious meeting it was. Some may have insisted upon correcting Kenshin by pointing out that it was really no meeting at all. However, it would be lost upon the poor, smitten boy.
To him, it was fate.
From that fateful day on, bystanders were amused by the sight of a tiny, mischief-creating, cunning little girl trailed by not only her infamous tail of a braid but her very first conquest of a red-mopped, gawky, prepubescent...quietly naive lad. Where Misao walked, Kenshin and the braid inevitably followed. Eventually, Kenshin worked up enough courage to approach the child and speak with her. Misao took to him immediately and played with him as a kindred spirit, accepting and warm. Misao was Kenshin's first friend, first sister, first confidant.
First love.
She was many of his firsts. For that, she would always hold a special part of his heart. He had been heart broken the day he turned 21. He finally came into his estate and had to take leave of his precious little imp of a friend. He had approached her...to confess, yet had found his throat uncooperatively clogged by some unknown emotion as he stumbled over his earnestly prepared phrases of admiration.
Of course, Misao had been too young to realize Kenshin's affection had tended down a path of more than friendship, bordering on admiration.
At this point in his remembrance Kenshin took on the distinct hue of a tomato red that could never be mistaken for anything other than embarrassment.
It was that exact look, a combination of mortification, fondness, and chagrin that finally triggered the recesses of Misao's long forgotten childhood days. Memories of soft yellow sunlight, fields of green and white and lavender. A slender redheaded young man. Her beloved companion.
"Ken-chan..."
The softly whispered nickname arrested Kenshin's focus.
"Misao-dono..."
The attempt was far too weak to fall upon the ears of one bitter-sweetly reminiscent Misao. Her happiest times. Her childhood champion. He had been lost to her these many years. Yet, as always, her champion appeared before her in the time of her greatest need. Then his manner of speech arrested her.
One would think a close to 30-year-old man would have outgrown his stuttering over '-dono' long ago. Only Kenshin could remain ever so endearingly unchanged. Without another thought, Misao threw herself into the embarrassed yet hopeful man. Oh how she loved the flustered, adorable idiot.
Kaoru had a wonderful catch. Now, if only she could train him to be less polite.
"M-m-m-misao-dono – "
The addressed party sighed heavily. She had always been an advocate for change. Why not start by teaching Kenshin the proper way to talk?
end scene three: the friend
Review Responses:
dynast – There is definitely the possibility of that occurring...but where would be the fun of me revealing it? ;op As for the Misao/Enishi fun...I hope this chapter met with your expectations. There is definitely much more "fun" to come.
nekonomiko – Sorry for the delay. I agree completely about Enishi. Don't worry, the pompous butt kicking will begin shortly.
Many thanks also go out to all the rest of my lovely reviewers. Thanks for the encouragement and delightful comments. Again, sorry for the wait. But I hope this new chapter shows I am still very interested in seeing this fic through to the end!
bee
anime-diva
chitchat
smurtle
scorpion05
Sheeshasan
Shinichi Kudo
MIRENE no REEYNEER
seri-chan
a/n: Not sure I'm satisfied with the outcome of this chapter...It's been much too long since I've written anything. Hopefully it was acceptable. Please let me know what you thought. Especially if my writing completely sucks now...let me know what I need to work on. I know I promised that Enishi's plan would be revealed, which it obviously has not been...but I decided to move things around...so yeah. Until the next time I get a vacation from life!
- Koala-chan
