A/N GAH!!! Here it is.The " Missing Chapter" I felt so bad about leaving
it out and truthfully I didn't think that the story would be as good with
out it. I want to thank Shadow girl for her support and Hugs and Kisses to
all my reviewers.
Devotion
By
Melissa ^_^x
The Missing Chapter
The walk home was not far, and all the way Tanako kept trying to convince Karou that she knew nothing about her and that she didn't need to open her home to a stranger such as she. But Karou would have nothing of it, and insisted that she stay. Tanako helped Karou though the gates of the dojo and gazed up at the building. It was quaint but homey, but Tanako loved it nonetheless.
" Is this where you live Karou?" she asked as the helped the girl though the yard.
" Yes it is." Karou replied with a proud smile, " Welcome to the Kamiya dojo."
" It's wonderful."
Karou turned to the girl with a far amount of shock showing on her face. " You think so?.wow most to the time everyone says its run down."
" Well it does need some work.but other then that the place is great." It was better then great. The dojo reminded her of home, she never had a real home after she was taken into the Onozawa gang. Turning around Tanako watched with a slight smile on her face as Kenshin struggled to kick the gates shut, for his arms where still full of groceries. The smile faded slightly as she watched him; there was something about him that caught Tanako's eye. He was a swordsman the sword he wore made that obvious. But he had a gentle spirit, though, during the fight earlier, Tanako has sensed a warrior's spirit. It was so strong, that Tanako couldn't believe that it came from the amethyst eyes red head. But it was there nonetheless, buried.hidden from all to see. It was as if he was trying to hold it down, an internal struggle with himself.
The two girls kicked off their shoes and made there way into the dojo and Karou guided her straight to the kitchen. Karou had barely sat down when a shout rose from the next room.
" IT'S ABOUT TIME YOU TWO GOT BACK!! GEZZ I ABOUT DIED OF STARVATION!!"
Tanako whirled around at the shout and spotted a young boy running into the room. He skidded to a stop as he saw the newcomer.
" Yahiko!! You shouldn't be yelling at your assistant master.besides we have a guest!" Karou shouted back. Yahiko blinked as he gazed at Tanako.
" Um.Hello, I'm Yahiko Myojin." He said as he looked around for Kenshin.
" Hello Yahiko, I'm Tanako." She replied as she took a seat next to Karou at the table and bowed to him.
" So ugly are we going to eat yet!" Yahiko said nonchalantly as he also sat at the table. Tanako's mouth dropped open at the insult the boy dealt to his Assistant Master.
" Grrrr Yahiko!!!!" was all Karou could get out before another voice was heard.
" Excuse me, but could one of you help me here?" Kenshin called behind the many things he was carrying. Tanako jumped up and ran to his side and plucked a few teetering boxes from the top of the pile and set them down. " Thank you Tanako." Kenshin said with a sigh of relief.
" So are we going to eat yet or what!!!" Yahiko shouted, he hadn't eaten all day and everyone was taking as much time as they could to get dinner ready. Didn't they know he was a growing boy!
" Yes Yahiko, I'm going to start the cooking right now, that I am," he said in his ever-patient voice, as he gathered what he would need from the boxes.
" I'm coming to help Kenshin." Karou got up to stand but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.
" No Karou-dono your hurt," Kenshin said gazing down gently at her. " I wouldn't want you to injure yourself more by standing and helping with the dinner when I can do it on my own."
" Oh but Kenshin.I wanted to help." Karou argued back, sounding down cast for the first time in many months. Tanako suddenly felt very bad, she was the cause of the young girls injury. She should help out as much as she could around the dojo until she had to leave.
" What happened to you Ugly! Didja trip over your big feet? " Yahiko asked as he gazed over at Karou slightly swollen ankle. Tanako was again taken aback by the young man's gull, but the Assistant Master took it in stride.
" I got hurt in a fight." she said smiling down at her apprentice.
" A fight!! Not fair, how come you can get into a fight but I can't!!" Yahiko shouted, leaping to his feet. Karou's eyes grew dark and Tanako edged away from the girl, for she looked positively scary.
" Because that is not the way of the Kamiya style you little brat!! I was in a fight to help Tanako out!!"
" Oh" was all the boy could say and he sat back down. Karou then broke into the story of what happened that day, adding in little details about how she knew her help was needed and didn't start the fight. Yahiko looked about ready to kick her in her good ankle.
" Um..Kenshin?" Tanako called as she stood, " I will help you prepare the meal if you wish?" At this Karou stopped in the middle of her story and turned to the girl.
" Oh but Tanako, you're a guest." she said.
" That's right, you do not need to help Tanako." Kenshin agreed.
" Oh but I want to help..you are being so kind to let me stay, and it's my fault that you are hurt Karou. It's the least I can do to help out." Tanako smiled, but then wondered if she had said the wrong thing, for Karou was staring at her with a shocked look on her face. Tanako looked back at Yahiko, who was rolling his eyes at her, and then over to Kenshin, who was smiling.
" You.you mean you want to work and help out around here?" Karou choked out. Tanako nodded. " Wow." she turned to Yahiko. " See! At least someone is willing to earn their keep around here not like someone I know!" Yahiko glared back at Karou and made a face at her when she turned away.
" But I must warn you, my cooking is not all that good." Tanako had never learned much in the way of domestic skills in the gang, but she did know enough to get by.
" That's alright Tanako." Yahiko chirped up. " Just as long as it's better then Busu's slop."
" YAHIKO!!!"
Kenshin laughed as the two started their ever numerous shouting matches and looked over at Tanako. " Thank you, I would appreciate the help, that I would." Tanako nodded and they left to prepare the vegetables and rice for the dinner. Toward the end of the preparations, Tanako stopped in the middle of her work. She felt a very strong fighters spirit approaching them. It seemed also, that Kenshin felt it too. " Sano is here." He called over his shoulder at the two still fighting it out at the table.
" Who's Sano?" Tanako asked.
" He's our close friend, he's a bit brash, but a nice young man, that he is." Kenshin replied.
At the sound of someone entering the room, Tanako turned to greet the newcomer, but the words froze in her mouth when she saw Sano. Kenshin paused at Tanako's reaction and looked over at Sano to see his, but the young man had yet to notice her.
" Hello Missy." Sano said as he stepped into the room, he noticed Kaoru's hurt ankle right away. " Whatcha do to yourself?" Karou yet again broke out into the story about the fight, this time telling the story so fast that the ex-gangster had trouble keeping up with it. " Whoa slow down a bit. Who did you bring back here?"
Nervously Tanako spoke up, " Me.. She brought me."
Sano turned at the voice and froze just like she had when she first saw him. Tanako knew that he knew who she was. Kenshin looked back and forth between the two. It was obvious that the two recognized each other.
" I'm Tanako." she said as she stepped up to the much taller teenager.
" Sanosuke Sagara." Was all he said back, as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
Tanako walked up to him to get a better look at him. She knew his face, but the name did not stick well. She knew him by a different name. She circled him a little, but it wasn't till she spotted the "bad" symbol on his back did she remember who he was. " Zanza!!" She shouted, snapping her fingers. That's who you are, you're the fighter-for-hire, you went by the name Zanza."
" I go by Sanosuke now.Sano to my friends." he said
" Hey who did you know Sano's old name?" Yahiko asked.
"Yahiko." Karou hissed. " Children should be seen, not heard."
Sano only shrugged and answered for her. " She's seen me around." Tanako and Kenshin placed bowls of vegetables and rice on the table. Sano sat but didn't make a move to inhale everything he could reach. Yahiko and Karou gaped at this; something must be bothering the young man. " I've seen you around too, but you didn't go by the name of Tanako." he said as he got comfortable at the table. " But at the moment I can't remember anything about you."
Tanako froze; she had no idea what to say to that. She wanted to tell everyone about her past, who she was. But she didn't feel that it was safe for them to know. She was only going to stay a few days, and she knew that Kenshin suspected something.
Kenshin noticed that Tanako was in a fix, and lost for words. He decided to change the subject for the moment; he was in no hurry to find out about Tanako just yet. " Here Tanako, let me take your cloak, it is much to warn in here for you to be wearing it, that it is." Tanako nodded silently, and unpinned the silver dragon clasp at her throat. Kenshin took hold of the cloak and removed it. There was a collective gasp from the three and Kenshin looked to see what caused the reaction and almost gasped himself.
Tanako was wearing a pale yellow gi with tight form fitting sleeves, and pale yellow hakama pants. But that was not what caused the reaction from the room. What did was the thick rope of midnight black hair that reached almost the back of her knees. The braid was a sight; Tanako had it hidden in the cloak so no one would notice it.
" Gosh, and I thought my hair was breathtaking. I wonder what it looks like down." Karou said.
" There's so much of it! How do you move, it must be very heavy." Yahiko added. All the attention caused Tanako to blush at she turned to retrieve the rest of the food for the tale.
" It sure is impressive." Kenshin said as he left to put away the cloak. It was heaver then it looked and hung strangely. Kenshin knew that it must be loaded with daggers and other weapons.
Upon seeing the obvious uniform that Tanako was wearing, Sano dove deep into his memory. He knew that uniform. Tanako sat between Sano and Karou, her braid coiling behind her. Kenshin sat between Karou and Yahiko, everyone picked up their bowls and started to eat.all but Sano that is, he was still thinking.
" Tanako." He said softly to himself. Tanako paused and looked at him. " Tanako.Tanako."
" Sano will you stop that and eat!" Karou scolded. " You're making her very nervous."
" Tanako....TANTO!!!" Sano shouted so suddenly that Kenshin jumped and almost dropped his bowl of rice on Karou's already ruined kimono. " That's the name I know you by.Tanto." Now that he finally figured it out Sano dived for the bowl in front of him and ate as fast as he could.
" Tanto?.as in dagger? Why are you called that?" Yahiko asked as he tried to keep up with Sano.
" Yahiko!! Don't ask questions!' Karou shouted as she too hurried to keep up with the boys.
" She's known as Tanto because of her awesome knife and dagger skills. I remember that uniform.you belong to the Onozawa gang. You brought in a hard-core gang member into you home Missy." he said to Karou as he reached for another bowl.
Kenshin's head snapped up and he almost shouted Ah-ha!! A gang member, that's why she has such a strong fighting spirit, that's why he felt drawn to help her.
Tanako bowed her head in shame; her secret was out and she knew there was no use in hiding it now. " Yes.I'm a member of the Onozawa gang.ex member. ..I was running away. I got tired of the killing and the life that was leading me nowhere.Someone gave me the chance to get away so I took it.and ran"
" Who?" Yahiko asked, as he set his empty bowl on the table. He was silenced by a hand on the shoulder.
" You should not pry Yahiko, that you shouldn't." Kenshin said gently. Yahiko muttered an apology and took up another bowl, but he only looked at the vegetables resting inside.
" You're running from a past you are not proud of." Kenshin added, " and you left in a hurry.or you would not have left wearing the uniform that would give you away.. isn't that right Tanako-dono?" Tanako nodded, keeping her eyes on her hands in her lap.
" What I don't understand is, how long where you going to keep your past a secret to us if I didn't figure it out." Sano said sternly and he set his second empty bowl down on the table.
Tanako looked up at the young man. " I wasn't going to use them!. I was only going to stay a day or to until I got oriented. I thought.I thought that you shouldn't tell you.if you didn't need to know." She turned to Karou. " I wouldn't use you like that Karou..I just had nowhere else to go..no friends that I could turn too." her voice ended in a whisper and Tanako bowed her head.
" You must have left in quite a hurry," Kenshin said gently. " You are still wearing that uniform, you did not have a chance to change out of the clothes that would most identify you..am I right Tanako?" The girl nodded .
" Oh you poor girl!!" Karou cried and she threw herself at Tanako and grabbed her in a hug. Sano scoffed, Tanako was not poor, or a girl for that matter. " You don't have to feel bad Tanako! We understand.You will stay here with us and be a part of our family."
" I can't ask you do offer me that!" Tanako said as best she could, for Karou was squeezing the life from her. Karou pulled back to look at the girl, And Tanako was surprised to find tears in her eyes.
" Your not asking me..I'm telling you." She said with a teary eyes smile. " Your running from you past and looking for a better way of life. You deserve a chance, a home.and a family." Tanako bowed her head as Karou's words hit her. She had heard those words before. " Don't worry about your old gang..we will protect you, Right Yahiko!?"
" Right!" The boy shouted, " We will take good care of you Tanako don't you worry. Besides..your food is much better then Karou's!"
" And don't worry about that uniform of yours, we'll get you a whole new wardrobe in no time!" Karou added not giving Yahiko's sly comment a second thought. Tanako was speechless, she had never received such a offer before..and they even knew her past. She couldn't believe that she was going to be apart of a family.
Sano didn't look happy at all, and when he turned to Kenshin for help, he was shocked to find a smile on his face. " Kenshin, surly your not going to allow this are you?
Kenshin only smiled as he continued eating his dinner. " This is Karou- dono's home that it is Sano.and she can bring whoever she wants into it."
"But her gang will be out looking for her, you don't want Karou and Yahiko in danger do you?" He knew is was the right thing to say, for he saw how the comment hit a chord with the ex-samurai by bring up Karou.
Kenshin got a dark look in his eyes, " No one will harm Karou..or Tanako.you have my word Sanosuke." He said in a slightly lowered voice and continued to eat as he watched Karou fuss over the shocked ex-gang member.
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A/N I hope that no one got too confused , I still can't believe that I skipped this chapter. WI don't know if you will be able to review for it.but If you really want to you can e-mail me.or just wait until I post my next chapter. ^_^x thanks for your reviews you guys.see you soon .
Devotion
By
Melissa ^_^x
The Missing Chapter
The walk home was not far, and all the way Tanako kept trying to convince Karou that she knew nothing about her and that she didn't need to open her home to a stranger such as she. But Karou would have nothing of it, and insisted that she stay. Tanako helped Karou though the gates of the dojo and gazed up at the building. It was quaint but homey, but Tanako loved it nonetheless.
" Is this where you live Karou?" she asked as the helped the girl though the yard.
" Yes it is." Karou replied with a proud smile, " Welcome to the Kamiya dojo."
" It's wonderful."
Karou turned to the girl with a far amount of shock showing on her face. " You think so?.wow most to the time everyone says its run down."
" Well it does need some work.but other then that the place is great." It was better then great. The dojo reminded her of home, she never had a real home after she was taken into the Onozawa gang. Turning around Tanako watched with a slight smile on her face as Kenshin struggled to kick the gates shut, for his arms where still full of groceries. The smile faded slightly as she watched him; there was something about him that caught Tanako's eye. He was a swordsman the sword he wore made that obvious. But he had a gentle spirit, though, during the fight earlier, Tanako has sensed a warrior's spirit. It was so strong, that Tanako couldn't believe that it came from the amethyst eyes red head. But it was there nonetheless, buried.hidden from all to see. It was as if he was trying to hold it down, an internal struggle with himself.
The two girls kicked off their shoes and made there way into the dojo and Karou guided her straight to the kitchen. Karou had barely sat down when a shout rose from the next room.
" IT'S ABOUT TIME YOU TWO GOT BACK!! GEZZ I ABOUT DIED OF STARVATION!!"
Tanako whirled around at the shout and spotted a young boy running into the room. He skidded to a stop as he saw the newcomer.
" Yahiko!! You shouldn't be yelling at your assistant master.besides we have a guest!" Karou shouted back. Yahiko blinked as he gazed at Tanako.
" Um.Hello, I'm Yahiko Myojin." He said as he looked around for Kenshin.
" Hello Yahiko, I'm Tanako." She replied as she took a seat next to Karou at the table and bowed to him.
" So ugly are we going to eat yet!" Yahiko said nonchalantly as he also sat at the table. Tanako's mouth dropped open at the insult the boy dealt to his Assistant Master.
" Grrrr Yahiko!!!!" was all Karou could get out before another voice was heard.
" Excuse me, but could one of you help me here?" Kenshin called behind the many things he was carrying. Tanako jumped up and ran to his side and plucked a few teetering boxes from the top of the pile and set them down. " Thank you Tanako." Kenshin said with a sigh of relief.
" So are we going to eat yet or what!!!" Yahiko shouted, he hadn't eaten all day and everyone was taking as much time as they could to get dinner ready. Didn't they know he was a growing boy!
" Yes Yahiko, I'm going to start the cooking right now, that I am," he said in his ever-patient voice, as he gathered what he would need from the boxes.
" I'm coming to help Kenshin." Karou got up to stand but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.
" No Karou-dono your hurt," Kenshin said gazing down gently at her. " I wouldn't want you to injure yourself more by standing and helping with the dinner when I can do it on my own."
" Oh but Kenshin.I wanted to help." Karou argued back, sounding down cast for the first time in many months. Tanako suddenly felt very bad, she was the cause of the young girls injury. She should help out as much as she could around the dojo until she had to leave.
" What happened to you Ugly! Didja trip over your big feet? " Yahiko asked as he gazed over at Karou slightly swollen ankle. Tanako was again taken aback by the young man's gull, but the Assistant Master took it in stride.
" I got hurt in a fight." she said smiling down at her apprentice.
" A fight!! Not fair, how come you can get into a fight but I can't!!" Yahiko shouted, leaping to his feet. Karou's eyes grew dark and Tanako edged away from the girl, for she looked positively scary.
" Because that is not the way of the Kamiya style you little brat!! I was in a fight to help Tanako out!!"
" Oh" was all the boy could say and he sat back down. Karou then broke into the story of what happened that day, adding in little details about how she knew her help was needed and didn't start the fight. Yahiko looked about ready to kick her in her good ankle.
" Um..Kenshin?" Tanako called as she stood, " I will help you prepare the meal if you wish?" At this Karou stopped in the middle of her story and turned to the girl.
" Oh but Tanako, you're a guest." she said.
" That's right, you do not need to help Tanako." Kenshin agreed.
" Oh but I want to help..you are being so kind to let me stay, and it's my fault that you are hurt Karou. It's the least I can do to help out." Tanako smiled, but then wondered if she had said the wrong thing, for Karou was staring at her with a shocked look on her face. Tanako looked back at Yahiko, who was rolling his eyes at her, and then over to Kenshin, who was smiling.
" You.you mean you want to work and help out around here?" Karou choked out. Tanako nodded. " Wow." she turned to Yahiko. " See! At least someone is willing to earn their keep around here not like someone I know!" Yahiko glared back at Karou and made a face at her when she turned away.
" But I must warn you, my cooking is not all that good." Tanako had never learned much in the way of domestic skills in the gang, but she did know enough to get by.
" That's alright Tanako." Yahiko chirped up. " Just as long as it's better then Busu's slop."
" YAHIKO!!!"
Kenshin laughed as the two started their ever numerous shouting matches and looked over at Tanako. " Thank you, I would appreciate the help, that I would." Tanako nodded and they left to prepare the vegetables and rice for the dinner. Toward the end of the preparations, Tanako stopped in the middle of her work. She felt a very strong fighters spirit approaching them. It seemed also, that Kenshin felt it too. " Sano is here." He called over his shoulder at the two still fighting it out at the table.
" Who's Sano?" Tanako asked.
" He's our close friend, he's a bit brash, but a nice young man, that he is." Kenshin replied.
At the sound of someone entering the room, Tanako turned to greet the newcomer, but the words froze in her mouth when she saw Sano. Kenshin paused at Tanako's reaction and looked over at Sano to see his, but the young man had yet to notice her.
" Hello Missy." Sano said as he stepped into the room, he noticed Kaoru's hurt ankle right away. " Whatcha do to yourself?" Karou yet again broke out into the story about the fight, this time telling the story so fast that the ex-gangster had trouble keeping up with it. " Whoa slow down a bit. Who did you bring back here?"
Nervously Tanako spoke up, " Me.. She brought me."
Sano turned at the voice and froze just like she had when she first saw him. Tanako knew that he knew who she was. Kenshin looked back and forth between the two. It was obvious that the two recognized each other.
" I'm Tanako." she said as she stepped up to the much taller teenager.
" Sanosuke Sagara." Was all he said back, as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
Tanako walked up to him to get a better look at him. She knew his face, but the name did not stick well. She knew him by a different name. She circled him a little, but it wasn't till she spotted the "bad" symbol on his back did she remember who he was. " Zanza!!" She shouted, snapping her fingers. That's who you are, you're the fighter-for-hire, you went by the name Zanza."
" I go by Sanosuke now.Sano to my friends." he said
" Hey who did you know Sano's old name?" Yahiko asked.
"Yahiko." Karou hissed. " Children should be seen, not heard."
Sano only shrugged and answered for her. " She's seen me around." Tanako and Kenshin placed bowls of vegetables and rice on the table. Sano sat but didn't make a move to inhale everything he could reach. Yahiko and Karou gaped at this; something must be bothering the young man. " I've seen you around too, but you didn't go by the name of Tanako." he said as he got comfortable at the table. " But at the moment I can't remember anything about you."
Tanako froze; she had no idea what to say to that. She wanted to tell everyone about her past, who she was. But she didn't feel that it was safe for them to know. She was only going to stay a few days, and she knew that Kenshin suspected something.
Kenshin noticed that Tanako was in a fix, and lost for words. He decided to change the subject for the moment; he was in no hurry to find out about Tanako just yet. " Here Tanako, let me take your cloak, it is much to warn in here for you to be wearing it, that it is." Tanako nodded silently, and unpinned the silver dragon clasp at her throat. Kenshin took hold of the cloak and removed it. There was a collective gasp from the three and Kenshin looked to see what caused the reaction and almost gasped himself.
Tanako was wearing a pale yellow gi with tight form fitting sleeves, and pale yellow hakama pants. But that was not what caused the reaction from the room. What did was the thick rope of midnight black hair that reached almost the back of her knees. The braid was a sight; Tanako had it hidden in the cloak so no one would notice it.
" Gosh, and I thought my hair was breathtaking. I wonder what it looks like down." Karou said.
" There's so much of it! How do you move, it must be very heavy." Yahiko added. All the attention caused Tanako to blush at she turned to retrieve the rest of the food for the tale.
" It sure is impressive." Kenshin said as he left to put away the cloak. It was heaver then it looked and hung strangely. Kenshin knew that it must be loaded with daggers and other weapons.
Upon seeing the obvious uniform that Tanako was wearing, Sano dove deep into his memory. He knew that uniform. Tanako sat between Sano and Karou, her braid coiling behind her. Kenshin sat between Karou and Yahiko, everyone picked up their bowls and started to eat.all but Sano that is, he was still thinking.
" Tanako." He said softly to himself. Tanako paused and looked at him. " Tanako.Tanako."
" Sano will you stop that and eat!" Karou scolded. " You're making her very nervous."
" Tanako....TANTO!!!" Sano shouted so suddenly that Kenshin jumped and almost dropped his bowl of rice on Karou's already ruined kimono. " That's the name I know you by.Tanto." Now that he finally figured it out Sano dived for the bowl in front of him and ate as fast as he could.
" Tanto?.as in dagger? Why are you called that?" Yahiko asked as he tried to keep up with Sano.
" Yahiko!! Don't ask questions!' Karou shouted as she too hurried to keep up with the boys.
" She's known as Tanto because of her awesome knife and dagger skills. I remember that uniform.you belong to the Onozawa gang. You brought in a hard-core gang member into you home Missy." he said to Karou as he reached for another bowl.
Kenshin's head snapped up and he almost shouted Ah-ha!! A gang member, that's why she has such a strong fighting spirit, that's why he felt drawn to help her.
Tanako bowed her head in shame; her secret was out and she knew there was no use in hiding it now. " Yes.I'm a member of the Onozawa gang.ex member. ..I was running away. I got tired of the killing and the life that was leading me nowhere.Someone gave me the chance to get away so I took it.and ran"
" Who?" Yahiko asked, as he set his empty bowl on the table. He was silenced by a hand on the shoulder.
" You should not pry Yahiko, that you shouldn't." Kenshin said gently. Yahiko muttered an apology and took up another bowl, but he only looked at the vegetables resting inside.
" You're running from a past you are not proud of." Kenshin added, " and you left in a hurry.or you would not have left wearing the uniform that would give you away.. isn't that right Tanako-dono?" Tanako nodded, keeping her eyes on her hands in her lap.
" What I don't understand is, how long where you going to keep your past a secret to us if I didn't figure it out." Sano said sternly and he set his second empty bowl down on the table.
Tanako looked up at the young man. " I wasn't going to use them!. I was only going to stay a day or to until I got oriented. I thought.I thought that you shouldn't tell you.if you didn't need to know." She turned to Karou. " I wouldn't use you like that Karou..I just had nowhere else to go..no friends that I could turn too." her voice ended in a whisper and Tanako bowed her head.
" You must have left in quite a hurry," Kenshin said gently. " You are still wearing that uniform, you did not have a chance to change out of the clothes that would most identify you..am I right Tanako?" The girl nodded .
" Oh you poor girl!!" Karou cried and she threw herself at Tanako and grabbed her in a hug. Sano scoffed, Tanako was not poor, or a girl for that matter. " You don't have to feel bad Tanako! We understand.You will stay here with us and be a part of our family."
" I can't ask you do offer me that!" Tanako said as best she could, for Karou was squeezing the life from her. Karou pulled back to look at the girl, And Tanako was surprised to find tears in her eyes.
" Your not asking me..I'm telling you." She said with a teary eyes smile. " Your running from you past and looking for a better way of life. You deserve a chance, a home.and a family." Tanako bowed her head as Karou's words hit her. She had heard those words before. " Don't worry about your old gang..we will protect you, Right Yahiko!?"
" Right!" The boy shouted, " We will take good care of you Tanako don't you worry. Besides..your food is much better then Karou's!"
" And don't worry about that uniform of yours, we'll get you a whole new wardrobe in no time!" Karou added not giving Yahiko's sly comment a second thought. Tanako was speechless, she had never received such a offer before..and they even knew her past. She couldn't believe that she was going to be apart of a family.
Sano didn't look happy at all, and when he turned to Kenshin for help, he was shocked to find a smile on his face. " Kenshin, surly your not going to allow this are you?
Kenshin only smiled as he continued eating his dinner. " This is Karou- dono's home that it is Sano.and she can bring whoever she wants into it."
"But her gang will be out looking for her, you don't want Karou and Yahiko in danger do you?" He knew is was the right thing to say, for he saw how the comment hit a chord with the ex-samurai by bring up Karou.
Kenshin got a dark look in his eyes, " No one will harm Karou..or Tanako.you have my word Sanosuke." He said in a slightly lowered voice and continued to eat as he watched Karou fuss over the shocked ex-gang member.
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A/N I hope that no one got too confused , I still can't believe that I skipped this chapter. WI don't know if you will be able to review for it.but If you really want to you can e-mail me.or just wait until I post my next chapter. ^_^x thanks for your reviews you guys.see you soon .