Stage Six – The Passing of Time

By: Shin Sankai

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"Mou, how lazy can Jiya be." Grumbled Misao as she swept at fallen leaves. They covered the ground of his private garden as she raked the brown, orange, yellow and red leaves into a large pile. He had promised her he'd keep it well under control but now Misao was currently raking it all by herself with a sour look on her matured face. She was dressed in a soft blue kimono with a white haori over the top warding off the chill in the air. Autumn had come too quickly for many and would soon bring about a blistering cold winter. Misao was one of the few that didn't mind the coolness in the air. She had complained so much about the heat that she'd craved the cold for months. Now that it was here Misao was ready to relax and welcome it with open arms. Unfortunately today was not a day to welcome the chilly breeze as it glided through the bare trees, dropping more autumn leaves to the ground. "Mou!" Misao complained once more as she went back to raking.

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Inside the private residence that was attached to the Aoi-ya, Okina was currently walking down the hallway and heading for the kitchen to get himself a nice cup of steaming tea. A crash upstairs jerked him from his thoughts as he turned his eyes towards the stairs leading to all of the private quarters and found a flustered Omasu.

"Okina, hurry! You won't believe…" And she rushed off, back to obviously where she'd previously been. The elder ninja scrunched his eyebrows but rose up the stairs and to where he too found a surprised Okon starring out the opened window. Okina moved between the two Oniwabanshuu women and peered outside, eyes narrowing to focus more on the lonely distant figure heading down the street towards the Aoi-ya.

"Can it truly be him?" Okon whispered, almost out of breath at the sheer excitement and anxiousness she was feeling. Okina continued to stare out the window, the overcast sky making it too hard to see the figure properly. However, there was something about the walk, the build…or maybe lack there of, as the unknown man moved closer and closer. When the breeze picked up and blew about the streets of Kyoto, three pairs of eyes were glued to the mysterious man. A familiar coat flapped open, revealing a flash of purple beneath.

"Aoshi-kun…" Okina muttered and Omasu and Okon turned to look at him before moving back to the ninja that had disappeared many moons ago.

"What do we do? What do we tell Misao-chan?" Okon and Omasu voiced simultaneously as they rushed about the quarters.

"We say nothing." They stopped instantly, bellows of 'what' escaping their lips. "We cannot interfere in something that needs to be addressed between them. We shall remain indoors; unbeknownst to the fact he has come back. A talk between him and Misao-chan is long overdue." Omasu nodded her head in agreement while Okon moved back to the window.

"I wonder if he found what he was looking for." The room fell silent as they all pondered on that very thought.

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Meanwhile, back in Okina's garden, Misao was humming softly to a tune she'd been taught long ago. She couldn't remember who used to hum it to her but it always eased her when horrible thoughts wanted desperately to plague her mind. She was drawn into the soft tune as she glided the rake through the leaves, dragging them towards the massive pile she'd completed already. With senses low and her mind far away she did not notice there was someone in the back garden with her. He was standing many metres away, but his dark green eyes would not break from her figure. She'd grown taller, filled out the very kimono she wore beautifully. It came a slight surprise to him that her once long braided hair was cut as it rested between her shoulder blades in a slight 'v' shape. It swished across her back, several strands lifting up as another breeze swept by. His eyes observed as she stopped raking, one hand lifting up to tuck blue-black hair behind her ear as her deep blue eyes gazed up into the cloudy afternoon sky.

"Misao…" Her name was out of his lips before he could even control it. His voice felt rough, cracked even as he'd not spoken to a single soul for months. His experienced eyes did not miss the jolt of her shoulders; the straightening of her back or the fact the rake had fallen from her hands to land into her leaf pile.

Misao slowly turned around, wide eyes looking over at the man who'd been invading her dreams since the day he left. She gulped down air while looking him over from toe to head. He looked worse for wear, but even that seemed like an understatement. He'd worn his shoes down, she noticing the leather ripping away at the seams. Aoshi's beige coat, which was now an ugly shade of brown and mouldy green was tattered and torn, especially at the ends. Moving further up even his purple outfit was dusty and smudged with lord knows what. Her eyebrows furrowed as she noticed it sagged slightly against his physique. It appeared the ninja had not been eating properly. Her quivering eyes rose to his shoulders to see his black hair now fell past them. It was unbound and blowing freely across his worn out face, complete with stubble as her blue orbs rose to his green ones.

"Aoshi…sama…" Misao mouthed softly, certain Aoshi could read her lips. How many times had she seen his image in her dreams that she was almost too afraid to walk towards him. Her mind didn't seem to be in sync with her body though, as her legs took her ever so closer to the silent Aoshi. "You…" A shuddering breath escaped her lips as she turned her eyes to the ground, searching desperately for words there.

"Misao…" Her name escaped his lips once more, in that deep soft sensual way he always voiced it. His heart clenched in his chest when those same blue orbs rose to his green ones, but this time they showed nothing.

"You should bathe." And Misao walked straight past him and towards the bathhouse. For a moment Aoshi felt gutted, but a frown quickly appeared on his lips. Just what had he been expecting? Did he honestly believe that Misao was going to run towards him, jump into his arms and cry all over him? It had been far too long that he was certain that things had changed. Eerily he felt something had definitely changed and it began to make his gut churn in unease.

"The ofuro is nice and hot, so take a long soak in it." She walked away from him and towards the porch. Aoshi lips parted, wanting to blurt something, anything out to her retreating back but watched her move into the Aoi-ya, the shoji sliding closed, the click of it resonating within his ears.

"Tadaima…" He whispered softly and disappeared into the bathhouse, head bowed and black scraggly hair falling over downcast eyes. Just what was he expecting from her when he was the one that left her?

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Aoshi didn't know how long he'd spent scrubbing furiously at his skin, it turning red raw as he scraped a cloth all over his body. His long fingers moved over his chest and stopped at feeling the indentation of his ribs. He'd not been looking after his health very well at all. Standing up, shaking excess water from his now washed hair, he poured cold water over his soapy lanky form and then stepped into the steaming ofuro where he sank eagerly into it, knees bending so he could dip his head under before rising to only have the top part of his head, his eyes and his nose sticking out.

'Should I have returned?' Aoshi thought to himself but shook his head and closed his eyes. He would not think about that right now and instead enjoyed the first bath he'd had in a long time. He'd travelled many miles, sometimes going in circles as he looked all over for Kanryuu. The man's twisted game had slowly begun to piss him off that he'd used himself as bait and gotten kidnapped just to locate Kanryuu's whereabouts. That entire week Kanryuu's abuse was fully directed at him for all the wrong that had happened within his pitiful life. Aoshi could do nothing but remain chained and had even prayed to Kami-sama that his body could withstand all the beatings he'd been given. He did not speak, this angering Kanryuu even more as he got the shit kicked out of him several hours a day, either by Kanryuu himself or some of his goons. Aoshi did have a plan, though it had to be the right time and the right day for it to even work. One the seventh day, when it finally came, Kanryuu was the one who saw nothing but blood and heard the distinct sound of his bones breaking.

Standing quickly up from the ofuro, Aoshi swayed slightly but shook his head. He didn't want to think about that time ever again and stepped out of the bath. He padded, dripping wet to a robe and slipped it on, loosely tying the sash. The soft material clung to his wet form and Aoshi bent over to wrap up his outfit into his coat and tied it up. He stepped into the changing area and looked over at a basket, dropping his clothing into it and didn't once look back. He hoped that whoever looked inside would dispose of them appropriately instead of trying to save them. Those clothes where also a part of past memories that he didn't wish to keep.

Stepping out of the bathhouse Aoshi headed towards the porch and found Misao standing there with her hands resting on the back of the western chair that sat by the window in Misao's quarters. He watched her pat it as if telling him to sit down in it. He did as she silently requested and his eyes drooped closed when her fingers glided through his wet hair.

"Its grown quite long." Misao couldn't help but voice softly as she began to glide a comb through it. It was still so soft and silky just as she remembered it was. It hadn't changed at all, except the fact it was long and didn't really suit him like it did when he was 15.

"It's been over 12 months…after all." She stopped clipping his hair at that and paused to look out into the bare garden. She'd spent many months in this very garden, thinking of him, thinking of her, thinking of a 'them' that hadn't been there. She watched the garden change throughout the seasons. The plants and the trees had gone into what Misao could only presume was hibernation for the winter months. Nothing seemed to bloom this time of year. As she snipped away, she remembered to style it just the way it had been before he left.

"When did you learn this?" His voice was but a rumble within his chest and Misao was glad she couldn't see his eyes.

"I've learned many things while you've been gone." Once again the porch area fell quiet. As Misao moved around to stand in front of Aoshi she finally took in the dark circles under his closed eyes and several new scars. She was certain there were more beneath his robe but these three she could see in plain sight. If she looked closely one ran from earlobe to his chin on the underside of his left cheek. Another was a lot smaller near his right eyebrow, just a small little circle like dent, as though something had been thrown at him. The third however was a lot scarier and made her heart ache for him. Before she could stop herself, Misao's dainty but shaking fingers on her right hand ran across the horizontal line against his neck, like he'd practically had his throat slit. Green snapped open to look up into expressive blue eyes. They glittered with hundreds of tears and he continued to gaze up at her, the coolness of the pads of her fingers running across his rough skin. He observed as she darted her fingers away and silently went back to clipping his hair, trying desperately not to notice that smouldering green eyes, the very eyes that could make her knees quiver as they looked her way, were still quietly watching her.

"It is from Kanryuu." The scissors stopped when Aoshi softly confessed this.

"It is not my business." To say Aoshi was shocked to hear those words was…mind-boggling. Never in his life would he have ever dreamt that Misao would say that to him of all people. His entire life, his entire being, his existence had been her business. The awkwardness around them grew and Aoshi closed his eyes once more. His feelings were so messed up that he couldn't stare at a Misao that wasn't the one who he'd left behind. He felt strands of hair tickling against his skin as Misao cut his bangs, styling them back to how they would fall agonisingly over his eyes. And just like in the ofuro, Aoshi's mind began to wonder until they snapped open when he felt something cool fall across his cheeks and partially down his neck.

"Was I asleep long?" He rumbled out and watched Misao shake her head.

"Not sleeping just lost in thoughts I'd say." She watched him raise a battle-scarred hand to his hair to drag through its shorter length before it fell back into his lap. "Lean your head back." Aoshi did as she requested and Misao leaned over him slightly, her hand extremely steady as she continuously glided a shaving blade over his neck and cheeks, ridding him of his black stubble. The task was done in silence and as she finished up, running a warm cloth over his bare skin, she jerked when Aoshi's hand clasped hers.

"This is nice." Those softly voiced words made her shake and just as she pulled her hand away the clouds opened up and a soft shower began to fall.

"You should go see Jiya and the others. They'll be glad to see you are back."

"Are you glad?" The question was harsh, but Aoshi needed to know. When Misao did not voice a thing he stood up, his tall bony frame slouching slightly. His body desired sleep this he knew. He felt like he could collapse any minute now, but Misao was right in the fact that he should go see them. "Thank you, for looking after me." Blue watched the very ninja that had been a huge part of her life walk away, heading around the corner towards the restaurant area and a sob broke from her lips. The blade clattered to the ground as Misao rushed after Aoshi, tears streaming from her eyes. When she rounded the corner she slammed right into him, his arms out as though he'd been waiting for her.

"Yokatta, Yokatta ne…" Was all Misao could mumble as she thrust her head into his chest and clutched at his shoulder blades. Aoshi closed his arms around her, one resting against the back of her head while the other held her impossibly closer to his form at the shoulders.

"This Misao, I know very well." Aoshi couldn't help but mutter as he bent his head, placing his chin against the top of Misao's and breathed in her fresh scent. His body was just relaxing when Misao finally stopped crying, but his senses went into alert mode.

"Misao?" Aoshi felt her stiffen and she quickly pushed away from him, her eyes moving towards that voice. Aoshi turned his gaze, but with no panic in his posture as he stared down at a young man, possibly around Misao's age with an umbrella over his head. He lifted it slightly and dark brown almost black eyes starred directly over at him. "An acquaintance of yours?" The man questioned as his head tilted slightly. His dark wavy hair fell away from his pretty boy face and Aoshi watched, feeling like his heart was thumping in his ears when Misao went to him and stood under his umbrella. His emerald eyes didn't miss the unknown man's hand take hold of one of Misao's.

"Ah, Tomoharu-san, this is Shinomori Aoshi, he's my…" Misao was stuck on what to say to that. "…Ah well he was my guardian for while." She laughed lightly. "He's been on a trip around Japan, has been gone for over 12 months you see."

"I see…" Aoshi listened to him voice and showed nothing on his face when it all clicked into place that this was the 'something' that had changed. "Well Shinomori-san, now that you are in Kyoto, you must come to our wedding." There it was, thrown right in his face like he'd just been punched.

"T-Tomoharu-san, he doesn't know about that yet. He's only just returned."

"So I saw." Aoshi continued to stare at him and watched Misao turn her blue eyes to him as well. "He looked quite suspicious when I was on my way here and then it appeared you knew him. So I watched and waited to see what you did."

"O-Oh…"

"She'll be quite the dutiful wife won't she Shinomori-san?" His arm wrapped around Misao's shoulders, not ashamed at showing a soft display of intimacy to strangers.

"T-Tomoharu-san…" Misao muttered, a flush rushing to her cheeks, filled with embarrassment and mortification.

"She dotted on you quite well don't you think?" He was smiling but Aoshi knew that anger, perhaps even jealousy ran beneath that boyish looking face.

"I believe I have detained Misao long enough. I will announce my presence to the others." As Aoshi walked away he heard this Tomoharu voice 'who is he really' but lost the rest of the conversation and headed inside. He was bombarded by Okon and Omasu and couldn't help but grin lightly down at them as they each hugged him before dragging him towards the private tearoom where he knew Shiro, Kuro and Okina would be.

"Okaeri nasai Aoshi-kun!" Aoshi bowed to Okina but the elder ninja ended up slapping him happily on the back.

"Mou, Aoshi-san, what have you been doing to yourself." The antics of Okon and Omasu had not slowed down over the past year as Aoshi was bombarded with their nagging. They'd poked him in the ribs, like older sisters would do and they both fumed as he hadn't been eating properly.

"We are seriously going to have to fatten you up. Just look at the state of you. Shiro, Kuro, food right now!" The women ordered and the smiling men rushed into the kitchen. Aoshi didn't even have time to reject anything as steaming rice and a large bowl of miso soup was placed in front of him.

"A-Arigatou…" He muttered softly and got another slap on his back.

"Eat up my boy, we've got a lot of catching up to do. Okon, bring us some sake, its time to celebrate!" All the Oniwabanshuu members groaned at knowing how Okina got when he was drunk, but begrudgingly Okon brought over a bottle of sake.

"I hear Misao is getting married." Sake spewed from Okina's mouth, Omasu nearly lost the pot of steaming tea and the other three went stone cold silent. Aoshi on the other hand picked up his miso soup and began to drink it down. The hot liquid quenched his dry throat and he closed his eyes for several seconds savouring it. How he missed the aromas wafting about the Aoi-ya restaurant, the flavours that were used in the simplest of dishes. The calmness at just being able to sit down somewhere and not have to worry about a thing eased Aoshi's tense shoulders.

"S-So you met Tomoharu then?" Okina stuttered out, his crinkled eyes watching Aoshi's every move.

"Aa, I did indeed. It appeared he was not happy."

"Why?" Green peeled open and Aoshi picked up the salted plain rice and before shovelling it down his throat he murmured his opinion.

"Perhaps because I have returned." Okina nervously laughed at that and placed his hand on Aoshi's shoulder as he rose to his feet.

"Tomoharu doesn't know everything that has happened between you and Misao-chan. He decided that if Misao wanted him to know then she would inform him. I think it was a shock to him to see someone he'd never seen before hugging his betrothed." Okina said it so lightly and Aoshi knew he was trying to read his actions.

"So, we were being watched then." The elder ninja made a soft 'ack' sound in the back of his throat and quickly left the tearoom, as Aoshi had been the one to trap him instead. The prodigy ninja had certainly grown wiser over his year's absence.

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Aoshi was finishing off his second bowl of rice when he heard Misao talking to Tomoharu and his eyes lifted to stare over the rim to look at the man starring at him in the open shoji. Scooping the last of his rice into his mouth, Aoshi placed down the bowl and laid his chopsticks over it. He closed his eyes just as he lifted his teacup to his lips.

"Can I join you for tea Shinomori-san?"

"If you wish, but I'm nearly finished."

"Misao tells me you used to live here." Green stared at dark brown as Tomoharu poured himself a cup of tea. Misao was sitting by his side, a scrunched sort of look over her face.

"Tomoharu-san, this is Aoshi-sama's home. He's always lived here."

"Aoshi-sama? Since when have you been so formal?" His voice grew louder and Aoshi placed down his teacup.

"Since when should a man raise his voice to his future wife?" The room fell quiet, blue and brown starring over at him. "I've lived in the Aoi-ya for longer then you have been born. I grew up alongside those that reside here. Okina is one of my mentors and Misao's late grandfather was and will always be my master."

"Your Master?" Aoshi's eyebrow rose at his confused facial expression and diverted his gaze to Misao. She was chewing on her lip, hands ringing in her lap nervously. Did this man truly not know anything about the organisation?

"I presume you do not know all there is to know about the Aoi-ya. The Oniwabanshuu have granted me a second chance at life and I will not disappoint them."

"Oniwabanshuu? Misao, what is he talking about?" Aoshi rose to his feet, looking down at the jittery Misao and the questioning Tomoharu.

"I am very certain you do not wish for me to be here Tomoharu-san, but I am. No matter where my path in life takes me, I will always return to here, to where I believe and feel I belong." He watched the younger man's jaw set at that. "Your tea is getting cold." Aoshi left his dishes there as Okon told him to do so. He left the room just when Tomoharu snared lightly at Misao, demanding she explain what he'd been talking about. Taking a deep breath Aoshi padded down the hallway and stopped at the stairs.

"Aoshi-san, I've set out your futon for you. Perhaps you should rest. You've had quite a tiring day ne?" He was starring at the smiling face of Omasu and lifted his hand to squeeze one of hers. Her head tilted lightly, just as surprise washed into her warm eyes.

"Thank you for looking after her. It appears she is doing quite well these days." Aoshi left Omasu and headed upstairs towards his old quarters. Her eyes saddened as she watched him move around the corner and out of sight.

"If you only knew Aoshi…" She mumbled to herself before wandering off to do some chores.

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Aoshi slid his quarter's open and noticed nothing had changed. Most of his belongings were still scattered about the room, little trinkets or ornaments Misao had found here and there at certain festivals. If it wasn't that then it was new uniforms, haori and hakama placed in his closet. Aoshi's feet padded over the tatami mats and he faced the end of his futon looking down at it. To think he'd be sleeping in an actual futon. At this thought Aoshi sank to his knees and plummeted to his futon, body slamming into it as he made an ungraceful and loud thump. His eyes instantly closed as his head sunk into a soft cushion.

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He could of sworn he heard voices behind his closed shoji…and perhaps maybe some in his room but he was far too comfortable, snuggled in the warmth of his blanket, only his black hair on the top of his head poking out from beneath the covers.

"I just need to make sure he's okay." Aoshi shifted slightly at hearing Misao's voice.

"I checked on him earlier." Came another voice, Aoshi's fogged mind not making out whether it was Omasu or Okon. "He's happily sleeping like the dead."

"It's been two days though." Aoshi peeled open an eye and stared into the darkness of his blankets. He'd slept for two days! "Shouldn't you worry about your wedding in a couple days and not Aoshi-san?" Only a couple of days and Misao would be wed to that…

"He may have gone and forgotten me, but that doesn't mean I don't worry about him." This made Aoshi's heart ache. How could she ever think he didn't think of her? He listened to his shoji slide across and held his breath when slippered feet shuffled towards him. The rustling of clothing meant Misao was now kneeling at his side.

"Aoshi-sama…" She whispered in that soft sweet voice that helped him out of the darkness he felt he was in many times on his travels. "Daijoubu desu ka?"

"Heki desu…"

"Eh, you're awake?" He blinked several times at the pale lighting in his room and looked up at Misao, since she was the one to pull the covers from his face.

"I just woke up now." Aoshi sat up then, cracking his neck slightly and lifted his arms over his head to stretch, something that just wasn't very Aoshi at all. "Have I really slept for two days?" He swallowed several times, his throat was both sore and dry. "What is the time?" Aoshi murmured as he rose from his futon and headed towards the shutters to pry them open, gazing into the sky to predict the time of day.

"A-A-Aoshi-sama!" He glanced back at Misao; noticing her face was the colour of a ripe tomato and turned slightly, ready to ask her what was wrong. However, her hand coming up to cover her eyes and her screechy voice sailed instantly into his ears.

"Don't turn around! You're naked!" Surprised green eyes looked down at his form to realise, yes, he was as naked as the day he was born. Then the single thought of Misao seeing more of a man, and him being the first, then she'd ever seen before.

"Oh…" Aoshi muttered and searched for his discarded robe. Somehow in his sleep he'd reefed it off and now he'd forgotten he wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing. Without even bothering to try and hide his genitalia Aoshi bent over and picked up his crinkled robe and placed it back on.

"A-Aoshi-sama…?" He finished tying the sash loosely and turned his gaze back down to Misao's bashful glance, the redness still on her cheeks. "Um, about Tomoharu-san…"

"You needn't explain yourself to me."

"But I do!" Aoshi's eyebrow rose as Misao was up on her shins, hands clutched together, those ocean blue eyes wavering under his hard gaze. "Or more importantly I want to…need to in fact." His eyes once more took a quick dive about Misao's fuller figure. She was wearing a sky blue kimono with white sakura stitched around the hemline. Her hair was placed back into a simple ponytail with the shorter strands framing her pretty face.

"If you wish it, I will listen." He watched her nod her head, but then it tilted instantly when his stomach gave off an ungraceful loud grumble, demanding food since he had not had any for two days. Once again his shoulders eased from their tension when Misao's laughter echoed throughout his quarters.

"Maybe we'll get you something to eat first." Unconsciously his hand had gone out to help Misao to her feet and she took it without a single thought. The two moved out of his quarters and downstairs, their fingers still lightly brushing against each other's. Once they reached the shoji heading into the kitchen of the Aoi-ya, Aoshi was directed towards the backyard as Misao insisted on finding him something to eat herself.

Aoshi sat on the back steps, once again overlooking the bathhouse and Okina's flowerless garden. A small smirk reached his lips as the image of a complaining Misao assaulted his senses as he gazed at all the dried leaves on the ground once more.

"Mou, just look at the state of that garden!" Aoshi turned to gaze up at her as she sat across from him, her elegant behaviour baffling him slightly as she placed a tea tray between them. Steaming tea and several riceballs were the assortment of his light meal for now.

"If you would like help in raking, I am here." He watched her nod her head and he picked up a riceball, knowing that Misao was trying desperately to get all her thoughts together. He knew this, for she still chewed nervously on her bottom lip. He almost sighed in relief; glad to see some things still had not changed.

"I'm sorry…" Aoshi blinked over at Misao's slightly hunched form. Her blue-black hair had fallen into her face, covering her expressive eyes from view. "My feelings got in the way of how grateful I was that you came for me."

"You do not need to apologise to me Misao. It is I who should be sorry." Blue finally glanced up at him and Aoshi had to break away. Those very eyes had kept him sane, had saved him so many times that now he couldn't look at them without realising that her gaze, her heart now belonged to another. "I deserved your anger, even if for that moment, for I never understood your feelings for me, not truly understood them."

"You just left…without saying goodbye." It was a soft broken whisper; Aoshi knowing Misao was trying to keep her emotions in check.

"You told me to leave." Her face jerked towards his, her mouth parted, ready to rebuttal what he confessed but Aoshi was too quick and placed an index finger against her pink lips. "I'm sorry I was so selfish to leave just like that. I'd been a fool to think that my past could be cast aside so easily. In truth I was never over it, not truly." Dropping his hand Aoshi placed it against his beating heart. "In here, it was never over. Deep down I always had this sickening feeling that what if Kanryuu was alive, what if he came back, what if he came after those that meant everything to me."

"Aoshi…sama…"

"And he did. The nightmares I'd been having since my return came true. I tried very hard to hide them from you, but in some way I felt you knew about them, but you hadn't a single clue how to bring it up with me. I was glad that you couldn't, for it would only convey to me of how truly weak I am."

"You're not weak!" His eyes closed at the passionate way Misao yelled that to him. The fire of passion that he knew Misao had once had for him began to burn lightly within her being once more. Perhaps it had always been there, just shut off while he'd been gone. Now that he was back, would it return as well?

"I knew that since Kanryuu had returned, to lure me into his twisted game, I couldn't escape it and would have to face it as a warrior…and as a man." Green eyes watched as a delicate thin porcelain hand rose to brush a tear from the corner of blue eyes.

"I never understood you as much as I hoped. I guess I didn't want to come to terms with the fact that I couldn't ever ease your suffering." Without thinking Aoshi grabbed one of Misao's hands and placed it against his cheek, her warm palm connecting with his cool skin.

"That is not true." Misao's cheeks turned a nice hue of pink, Aoshi secretly pleased by it but when her hand slowly moved away from his and went back to her lap, he knew that it was not over yet. After all, Misao hadn't even begun to speak of herself and how she faired in the year he was absent.

"When you left…" Misao softly began, a small shiver brushing over her skin as she went back to the beginning of the days after he'd disappeared. "I became really messed up." Aoshi nodded his head in understanding and waited patiently for her to continue. "To have you leave again, it was a lot different from when I was younger. I understood you wanted to be the strongest, to give the Oniwabanshuu a great name, but still there was always this feeling that you were displeased with me…with who I am for you never asked me to go with you."

"Bloodshed was never meant for you."

"But I am Oniwabanshuu. It's in my blood therefore keeping me away from it only quenched my intrigue about it."

"You are just like your mother." Misao wasn't sure what to say to that.

"I'm not an innocent Aoshi." This made his eyes grow wide. "I ran away many times, wishing to track you down, wanting desperately to go with you. I caused many problems for Jiya and the others. I saw blood back then, a lot of it in fact. On my journey to find you, it was all around me. I travelled with Himura and came upon Saitou for crying out loud!"

"Aa, so I heard."

"I'm no stranger to death that's all I'm saying."

"I know this, but I still wanted to protect you from it." He listened to a small laugh escape her lips as she leaned back on her elbows, eyes focused on the clouds milling by.

"You and Tomoharu-san are truly different." Blue flickered over to him, his attention fully on her. "For many months I just walked about the Aoi-ya not knowing what to do with myself. Jiya told me that Tomoharu-san came to see me everyday, to sit and talk to me even though I wasn't paying any attention to him. After a while, I finally found focus and saw him before me, smelling of sweets and smiling so gaily." Aoshi fought away the twisting sensation in his heart when Misao sighed too wistfully for his liking. "He doted on me like…"

"The way you did me?" Misao nodded silently and turned her eyes towards Aoshi.

"To have so much attention bestowed on me, I didn't know what to do. At first I thought I was suffocating, then I was flattered and slowly I got used to it. So much so that if a day went by where I didn't see his smiling face it just felt…wrong."

"I know what you mean." Aoshi felt offended at Misao's perplexed look. "I do."

"In the suffocating part I bet. I practically smothered you." His lips parted, ready to comment that it was not the only thing he felt, but once again Misao went back into her confessions of Tomoharu. "In some cases I wonder if it was more Omasu and Okon's doing in making me dress in kimono's and go on outings with Tomoharu-san. After awhile I guess I got used to it and it felt…nice. I felt…content with life."

"They suit you well. The kimonos I mean."

"Thank you." Aoshi nodded his head in kind. It was true after all. Sure he'd seen her in yukata and her training uniform and then sometimes just her shorts and her wraps, but the kimono was far more beautiful on her. It made her all that much more…female in his eyes. "I guess it must have been one sunny day, far too hot really and I was fanning myself on the porch and along came Tomoharu with that smile on his face, a bag of sweets in his hand and he asked me to marry him. I was so shocked, I just sat there not sure what to say. I never imagined in my whole life that someone would propose to me like that!"

"It is because you do not like summer very much at all. I'm sure you would have liked a proposal during a blizzard or perhaps even if it were raining. Maybe even something to do with the darkness of the night."

"H-How did you know?"

"You associate those things…with me." He wasn't sure what colour Misao's face was now and placed his hand on her shoulder. "I was a major part of your life, the biggest sometimes, so it would have only been natural that you would have thought up such disastrous weather scenarios or the blackness of the evening with a proposal."

"Winter isn't disastrous." Aoshi smirked at Misao's pout. She was still far too cute for her own good. "And besides rain brings forth life. I love them all."

"I know."

"Tomoharu-san's family owns the lolly store I always visited when we went into the markets together. The clincher for me was all the candy I can eat." Green stared at sparkling blue; laughter held within her gaze, the mood seemed to have lightened. There was still so much to speak of, but for now Aoshi laid back, cradling his head in his hands as he looked up at the roof of the back porch area.

"You always did have a taste for sweet things." Aoshi didn't move, maybe didn't breath for seconds when Misao's head plopped onto his elbow, she lying back as well.

"And you for the bitter."

"It'd be boring if my tastes were like everyone else's."

"You just want to stand out." Misao snapped jokingly back, not being able to help it when she jabbed Aoshi in the side playfully with her elbow.

"Aa, me stand out." He smiled lightly when Misao laughed aloud once more. She died down not long afterwards and shifted her head, he knowing she was looking up at his face.

"We are such opposites."

"Aa…"

"You didn't have to agree so quickly!" Misao fumed as she rolled over, this time lying on her stomach as she looked down at Aoshi's smirking face. She so wanted to brush her hand over his face. The tension she'd always seen on his beautiful face was gone. His travels had certainly changed him and though her heart still felt pain that he left her, it was overjoyed that the darkness within his gaze didn't seem to be detectable anymore. Aoshi witnessed Misao's eyes widen slightly when he raised his right hand to brush it ever so gently down her cheek, fingers tracing over her lips before dropping it behind his head once more.

"Opposites attract…" He said it so softly, sultrily that Misao gulped for air.

"Misao!" Two pairs of eyes moved towards the irritated voice, one faster then the other as once again Tomoharu-san had come across Aoshi and Misao in quite the little predicament. Aoshi quietly and calmly rose to his feet, pulling a flustered Misao with him as she darted her eyes between the two men in her life, her past…and her future.

"I've taken up too much of your time again." Aoshi casually remarked and bent to pick up the forgotten tray. He turned to leave but stopped and looked back at Misao as her smaller hand rested against his forearm.

"Promise me you'll tell me about your travels when you are ready. I want to know, I want to understand."

"I'll only come to you." And Aoshi left, not being able to hide the wicked grin as Misao's cheeks reddened at his open words. He moved towards the shoji, eyes for a mere moment straying over to Tomoharu-san, perhaps a warning in them for if he handled Misao in any forceful way, they would definitely be having words.

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Aoshi had spent the better part of the late afternoon reading one of his literature books in his quarters, sipping tea and snacking on foods that Okon or Omasu had quietly brought up to him. He'd decided to leave Tomoharu and Misao alone to do whatever it was that they did together. He'd noticed the fidgeting stare that came from the other Oniwabanshuu members and realised that his being back was interrupting the budding romance. Aoshi knew the others were glad to have him back, but were also praying for Misao's happiness. A lot had happened over the years and many tears had been shed. It was only natural for the others to want Misao to finally be happy. Him being here was confusing her once again. He wasn't the same Aoshi that had left, the one that would hide what he would naturally be thinking. Of course Aoshi still felt his true self was suppressed, but little by little he wanted Misao to see it, to be able to understand that she had helped him become this way.

His thoughts were broken when slight arguing came from the hallway outside his closed shoji. The voices were of course, Tomoharu and Misao. With his book forgotten, Aoshi sat in his chair by the window and quietly listened it. He was certain they did not know he was within his quarters.

"You've hardly spoken to me all afternoon Misao. Are you still thinking of him?" The 'him' was practically spat out. Aoshi could just imagine the fuming look on Tomoharu's face.

"A lots happened in the last few days, what do you expect?"

"I expect a little acknowledgement from my soon to be wife."

"And I expect you to understand me a little better then this. You're behaving like a spoilt child." Aoshi nearly fell off his chair at that. In all his life he would have never imagined Misao voicing that. What he could imagine is a swift roundhouse kick to Tomoharu's head and Misao storming off.

"Don't I have a right to? He's been back for a few days and your already infatuated with him again! How do you expect me to behave when all you are doing is going on and on about 'Aoshi-sama this' and 'Aoshi-sama that'. What about all the times we've had together?" For a sheer moment Aoshi felt for Tomoharu. After all, if his soon to be wife's ex-flame who sort of wasn't really a flame at all came back, he'd be agitated as well.

"Have you no faith in me?"

"When I'm up against someone like that? No!" Aoshi stood up from his chair when he noticed Tomoharu's shadow move closer to Misao, his hands resting on her shoulders. "You tell me about past memories, of when you were young, about learning to fight and him watching you and being there to protect you. You never talk about before he went away, about your feelings for him. You speak like its brotherly love when all three of us know better then that!"

"T-Three of us?" Aoshi was by the shoji, wondering if his ki had given him away, but he remembered this was but a guy who would be running a candy store and not a ninja like him.

"You, me and him. He's known you for year's Misao, he would not miss the way your eyes light up at seeing him, the way you become this completely different person around him."

"It is not different…" Aoshi softly muttered this just as Misao spoke it to Tomoharu. Emerald eyes noticed Tomoharu took a step away from her.

"I am me when I'm with him. I will always be me when I'm beside him."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying the real Misao isn't all flowers and kimonos. I loved working out in the dojo. I love getting dirty. I'm naturally boisterous." Aoshi placed his head against the wall hearing this. "The Misao that everyone knows happens to love doing spontaneous things! I jumped off a rock face to plummet into the freezing water in only a pair of shorts; not even knowing if there were any sharp rocks at the bottom. Hell, I even proposed to him in front of my entire family and all the customers in the Aoi-ya!" Aoshi peeled his eyes open to stare at the silhouettes of the couple before him.

"This is so…" Tomoharu began, but Misao cut him off.

"I'm sorry for deceiving you all this time. In some way, the way you dotted on me, reminded me of how I was with Aoshi-sama. How I must have suffocated him so many times. All I wanted was for him to see me, to see I was right there, waiting, just waiting for him to come to me, to finally open up to me." The two men listened to her giggle in wonderment. "To think he finally has come to me and I don't know what to do. I always thought I'd be ready to listen to him, to be able to understand him, but it scares me. He scares me so much, but I can't help but be drawn to him. I promised myself that no matter what I'll listen to whatever he has to say. It can be anything, just as long as he knows that he can come to me."

"This man, he's been gone for a full year. Don't you think he's changed? What if it's for the worst? What if he isn't the Aoshi-sama you knew and loved all that time ago."

"He isn't the Aoshi I knew. His travels, his meeting Kanryuu again has changed him."

"His meeting…? You make it sound so casual. We could be talking about murder here Misao!" Aoshi was now aware that Misao had spoken a little about him and his past with Kanryuu to Tomoharu.

"That's right, I could be talking about murder, but that man has seen through so much death that maybe, just maybe Kanryuu deserves to be murdered."

"Misao this is not like you at all." Aoshi watched as she slapped his hand away.

"How do you know? You don't know how Aoshi was gunned down by Kanryuu, how he was shot three times in the legs, unable to move, facing death and having to watch the four men that meant everything in the world to him be gunned down just to protect him. Do you know how worthless, how weak he felt for not being able to protect them? They were his comrades…his brothers!" The passion in Misao's voice, the sadness Aoshi was sure would be spilling across her face made his knees weak. "Even if Kanryuu's blood is staining his hands, I will hold them close, treasure them for he has returned, for he has returned to me." Aoshi gripped the shoji knowing that Misao never wanted him to spill any more blood, but she would accept it even if it tore at her insides.

"I didn't know."

"Of course not because you never wanted to listen. In the end it was all about what you wanted right? The perfect trophy wife who is good at cooking and taking orders. Someone who isn't loud and temperamental and who could actually be content with running a sweet shop for the rest of her life."

"You never wanted to tell me anything!" The shouting grew, Aoshi certain the others downstairs could now hear it. "Do you still love him Misao?" Tomoharu's voice had gone eerily soft.

"I…"

"Do you…still love him?" He repeated, his brown eyes blazing at the tears rushing down Misao's reddened cheeks.

"Tomoharu…please…"

"DO YOU STILL LOVE HIM?" Aoshi's jaw clenched when the younger man shook Misao a little too roughly for his liking, demanding an answer out of her.

"YES! I WILL ALWAYS LOVE HIM!" She'd returned the yell with her own. As much as it swelled in Aoshi's heart to hear it, his hand had already reefed his shoji across, fire burning in his emerald gaze as brown and blue turned to gaze at him in shock.

"I suggest you remove your hands if you wish to keep them in one piece." Misao stepped away from Tomoharu and he swiftly turned away and headed downstairs and out the side shoji to obviously cool off.

"Is everything alright?" A tentative voice called from downstairs.

"Everything is fine." Aoshi replied and swiftly directed Misao down the hallway and into her quarters. When he slid the shoji closed, he went towards her desk in the corner. A jug of water and a basin were situated on top of it and he poured the water into the basin. As she quietly, too quietly in fact, sat in her western chair by her window Aoshi dampened a cloth and brought it to her. When she did not take his offering, Aoshi kneeled on one knee, lifting her blotched face ever so gently and brushed the moist cloth over her cheeks.

"Did he hurt you Misao?" When she shook her head negatively, another question popped out before he could stop it. "Has he ever hurt you?" Her eyes darted to his and quickly Aoshi shook his head. "It is not my business, you don't need to answer me."

"Did you…hear everything?"

"It was spoken quite loudly that even if I was in the bathhouse, I am certain I would have heard it all."

"You're just trying to make me feel better." Misao mumbled in mortification.

"Perhaps…" She made that cute little pout she was so very good at and Aoshi continued on. "I was coming to ask whether you had time to listen." He observed her eyes light up, just as Tomoharu had voiced and she nodded her head vigorously. "I'm not sure where to begin really." Aoshi mumbled out but got up from his kneeling position when Misao walked over to her already laid out futon and sat on it, her legs curled to one side.

"Come sit with me and start from the beginning." She pat the vacant section beside her and Aoshi took the invitation and sat down, legs spread out in front of him, one ankle crossed over the other, his yukata parting open to reveal his tanned skin beneath. His hands were splayed out behind him, holding him up as he stared out the window and not at Misao.

"I headed south, a gut feeling that Kanryuu would not head back to familiar territory. His game was to disadvantage me…and it worked well for the longest of time. I went around in circles, became very agitated and angry. Days became a blur to me as it all rolled into one big joke of Kanryuu's. I must have stopped in a small nameless village and listened intently to the conversations that were going on. Finally his name popped up and my blood boiled at the mere mention of it. I nearly killed the stranger for any information he could provide me. In the end I gave him what little money I had left for his troubles."

"You did not fair well at all." Aoshi listened to Misao voice, his eyes moving towards her hand as it unabashedly pressed against his side, obviously feeling his ribs.

"I was more engrossed in killing him then eating." Aoshi didn't miss the flinch from Misao's shoulders. "It must have been three months before I came across a single person, an elderly man to be exact as I saw him sitting in the middle of nowhere, within the dense forest, meditating of all things. His eyes opened and for a minute I just stood there, remembering Makimachi-sama. His smile was so warm that he didn't object when I sat in front of him, weapon and all and mediated along side him. It had become the best part of my trip so far."

"So far?" Aoshi nodded his head, eyes drifting back to the outside world.

"The elder man took me to his home, to where he lived peacefully with his son. I was fed, had my first bath in…you don't want to know how long. The next day I left not even telling them of why I was travelling. I never saw them again, even after I finished my business with Kanryuu. I went back to thank them and only found the hut I stayed in and nobody there. Perhaps in some strange way it was your grandfather and your father who were trying to speak to me. That small amount of time I spent with them refocused my senses and I went back on the hunt for Kanryuu. It was around the first snowfall that I discovered myself into another town, my bones stiff, my muscles ached and I was so hungry. I came across a dirty alleyway and collapsed against some boxes. In my weak state I'd listened to people walk by, commenting on a new 'western' man within the town, he scarring several people out of their businesses. Just the way they described him I knew it had to be Kanryuu. I was so much more closer than I'd ever been." Aoshi's hands fisted before one opened to press against his throat.

"That is from him isn't it?" Green met painful blue and Aoshi quietly nodded his head.

"I had been so sick and tired of waiting that I became my own bait and had Kanryuu's goons take me to him. I remember being tied up, a sack thrown over my head and I was placed in a caged cell like an animal. The room was completely dark and I had no idea how much time went by. A candle was only ever lit when I was beaten." Aoshi held Misao's hands as they clutched his, she wanting to give him strength to proceed with his tale. "I took it all for so long that I was surprised my body didn't just give up in the end. I was certain I had many broken bones, a severe concussion and several cuts and bruises. I can still feel it all."

"In your heart?"

"Iie… I never gave my body enough time to recuperate. I stayed in bed for several days, but I needed to go."

"Where'd you stay?"

"Saitou's…" Aoshi softly grinned at Misao's shocked expression.

"S-Saitou's?"

"Aa… It was mainly his wife more then he of course. Saitou would never allow anyone to stay within his own home, but Tokio-san has quite the power over him."

"Sugoi…" Aoshi listened to Misao mumble, she still looking baffled about that news.

"I waited for Kanryuu to come to me alone. My movements were restricted since my knee was twisted very painfully, as I couldn't walk at all. It was extremely hard to breathe as well. I was certain several of my ribs had been cracked too. One thing that Kanryuu always forgot was who I truly am. I'm a ninja and ninjas have many skills. He never knew that I was watching him, observing his every move. He never realised that every time he came to watch his goons' beat me up that I was edging closer and closer towards the door to the cage I'd been locked away in. Kami-sama must have been on my side when Kanryuu came by himself. He'd previously seen me curled on the floor, blood pooling around me, and thought that I would have just been there when he came the next time. I'd crawled to remain behind the doorway and armed myself."

"With what?" Aoshi could tell a small amount of excitement was within Misao as she intently listened to him. Fear was the main factor, she not sure if she could handle what he did to Kanryuu, instantly thinking the worst possible and most painfully slow death.

"Though I was without my kodachi he never knew I carried kunai with me."

"Kunai?"

"Aa… Your kunai to be exact." Misao's eyes widened at this knowledge. "I had taken several with me, so I wouldn't forget those that waited for my return." Misao chewed on her lip hearing this. "When Kanryuu entered the cage I saw nothing but blood. Every small ounce of strength I had left came out at once and I continuously stabbed at Kanryuu. He wailed in pain, but never the pain that I had been through. He screamed for his lackey's and they came running, but your kunai took care of them easily."

"A-Aoshi-sama…" Her hands shook as she pulled them from his and lifted them to cup his face. The anguish, the pain, the guilt, the anger, it was all there once more for her to plainly read within his darkened eyes. "Don't be afraid to tell me everything." In truth she was more afraid he'd loose it before he go to the end. How much pain must his heart, body and soul be going through to have to relive through it all once more, just so she could fully understand him. "I'll always be here for you." And she hugged him, desperately. For the first time he'd been back Misao had thrown herself into his chest and clutched possessively at his shoulders, head tucked into his neck breathing in his spicy scent. Just the feel of her made Aoshi go on, his arms still stretched behind him, now holding the both of them up.

"When I finally overpowered Kanryuu I blacked out. I woke up to darkness once more and felt around the flooring. I came upon Kanryuu's body and knew he had what I desperately needed. He'd not gained consciousness at all and remained caked in blood. I couldn't even make out his face for all the damage I'd done to him. I sat over him, every fibre in my being telling me to kill him for if he escaped again and came after you once more, I wouldn't be worthy enough to live for I didn't protect you." Misao's arms tightened around him, silent tears falling against his skin. "I sat there, arms raised above my head, kunai glinting within the pale flickering light and…I stopped."

"You what?" She pushed away from him, starring openly into his gaze, eyes puffy and red once more.

"I couldn't do it. I was that pathetic I couldn't kill the very man who destroyed the life I once led. I couldn't kill him…because of you."

"M-Me…?"

"I never want to remember the time I spent in that cell, waiting for the perfect time to strike. I never want to have to remember it ever again, but what I mostly don't want to ever see is fear in your eyes." He watched her eyes well up with hundreds of tears once more. "The thought of you, the words you spoke to, no matter how much they ate at your insides, telling me it was alright to kill him made me stop and think. If I were to kill him, I would become a monster that could never return to what he had finally discovered." Aoshi cupped his hands against Misao's face, a genuine serene look washing over his features. "A life alongside the one I treasure the most."

"Aoshi-sama!" Misao bawled, her sobs making her hiccup.

"Thank you for saving me." She was back in his arms and Aoshi took in a deep breath. "This Misao I know very well indeed." He softly confessed again as his arms wrapped around her too. "When I finally left the cage, I took the unconscious Kanryuu with me, dragging his body along the flooring. When I came upon the exit and bashed it open with my already injured shoulder, it was snowing. It was so soft, so pure that I collapsed in it, the coolness numbing my aching body and once again passed out. I woke up with Saitou looking down at me with that wolfish grin and a cigarette between his fingers. He all but dragged me to the room they kept Kanryuu locked in. There he asked me what I wanted to do with him."

"He gave you a choice?" Misao muttered against his warm skin.

"Shocking I know, but in the end we made a deal."

"A deal with the wolf? I don't know if I like the sound of that." A soft chuckle escaped Aoshi's lips as he had thought that when he hobbled away after leaving Saitou's home.

"We had a truce. The Oniwabanshuu would help out with regards to intelligence he required in the future and he would make sure that Kanryuu died of natural causes within a cell in a secluded area not known to me or any of his officers."

"W-What if he escapes?"

"If he did, I'd cut Saitou's balls off."

"A-Aoshi-sama…that's…crude." She was shocked those words had passed his lips and stared back at him. The darkness in his eyes had disappeared.

"It was part of my deal, as was his telling me I could try, but he'd whip me like the dog I was first."

"And that's what you call a truce?" Misao questioned in bafflement. "You men are certainly strange creatures." She muttered mainly to herself.

"He asked about you." She silently blinked at him, waiting for him to continue. "I informed him that I'd made sure you stayed away. I cut ties completely, not sending any response, because I didn't want you coming after me and finding out just how twisted Kanryuu had made me." Misao nodded in understanding at this. "I've spent the past 3 months wandering from place to place, trying to grow and mature and searching for something within me."

"Something…?"

"Aa… I even returned to where I first buried Hannya and the others. I stayed there for the longest of time, just sitting by those headstones and talking to them. To me, parts of their souls would still be connected to that forest, to those headstones. I spoke of Okina and the others, and of you. How you'd grown up, matured over the years. I told them of how proud you made me, how proud you would have made them."

"Keep talking like this…and I'm going to cry again." Aoshi smirked and this time he leaned towards her, his forehead resting against her shoulder.

"I spent countless hours talking about what I was feeling, how much I wanted them to be here with me. To go back to how things used to be, but then that wouldn't be living at all. The past will always be left in the past and that I cannot change no matter how much it pains me. Their deaths I still need to come to terms with, but now I truly believe they did not die in vain. They protected me because they wanted me to live, to continue a life with the one who I'd never be able to forget, with the one I'd left behind to protect from my inner demons." Misao squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her head against Aoshi's while her arms lifted up to wrap around his shoulders once more. "I do love you Misao, I truly, unbelievably do."

"Aoshi…" Misao's heart was thumping in her ears, her entire body tingling and yet she shook from all that was being said. She didn't want to let him go when he pulled away, those crystallised green orbs of his burning into her gaze and possibly straight into her soul.

"Throughout all that has happened, please do not doubt how much you mean to me. I never voiced it, because I never felt worthy of your love, of any love whatsoever." He pressed his fingers to her lips stopping whatever it was she was about to say. Aoshi knew that if he didn't spill his guts now, spill his heart, he thought there would never be another time to do so. "Whether I felt worthy or not didn't matter because you would love me regardless. I spent the last part of my journey discovering this and much more. You aren't just part of my life…" Aoshi couldn't help but initiate the embrace this time, almost wondering if his grip was squeezing the breath out of her. "…you are my life Misao." She sobbed hysterically within his embrace. How long had she been waiting for him to voice this? Too long Aoshi knew.

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He didn't know how long they stayed that way, but when Aoshi finally let go of Misao, he'd noticed she'd actually cried herself to sleep. Gently Aoshi placed her onto her futon, fingers brushing softly over her face before leaning over to press a kiss against her forehead.

"The rest, I leave in your hands." Aoshi stood up and headed for the shoji. He pulled it across to see Tomoharu leaning against the wall opposite Misao's room. His head was bowed and Aoshi stepped out of the room and slid the shoji across.

"You're ruining everything." Tomoharu murmured to Aoshi, his brown eyes rising to look up at the taller man.

"I've told Misao all that has been unsaid for over 10 years. It is now up to her to decide."

"What if she still wishes to be my bride?"

"Then I will accept and respect her decision like a man. Do you think you are mature enough to do the same?" Brown eyes narrowed, trying to calculate what Aoshi was saying but failing instantly. The man was far too hard for him to ever predict or understand.

"She will always be the one I love." Tomoharu confessed back, hands fisting at his sides.

"I would gladly die to protect her. Could you?" When Aoshi received no reply he left the man standing there and moved back into his own quarters. He would not admit to how vulnerable and raw he felt right now. His battered heart was now within her delicate hands. Would she hold it dearly or crush it within her grip?

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The day had arrived for Misao's wedding to Tomoharu. Or what should have been their wedding day. Instead the Aoi-ya was blissfully quiet, closed for several days, everyone needing to unwind after all the drama that had occurred over the short period of time.

Soft footsteps could be heard moving from within the Aoi-ya as the back shoji slid across. Misao found Aoshi sitting on the back porch steps looking out into the baron garden. She moved towards the quiet man, kneeled behind him and placed her arms around his shoulders, her chin resting atop his left shoulder. She was pleased when his hand had risen to caress one of her bare arms, the sleeve of her kimono having fallen away.

"Was there ever any doubt in your mind that I wouldn't come back to you?" Misao quietly whispered into his ear.

"Of course…" He confessed, being the changed man that he was.

"I heard that you'd die to protect me." Aoshi slightly turned his head at her words. So Tomoharu had told her of their small conversation. "Looks like someone deserves a smack for saying something as careless as that."

"Misao…" He began, but her lips against his cheek stopped him.

"I can protect myself, but if there is doubt in your mind that I cannot, then you better start teaching me sensei."

"Aa…" Aoshi muttered, eyes drifting towards the garden as he and Misao witnessed the first snowfall together.

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(TBC)

Stage Seven – Pleasant Changes

Authors Notes: Thank you to all for sticking around for this. I have two chapters to go, but the last two will not be as painfully long as this. Its 19 pages filled with mixed emotions – I felt them all. I got very carried away with this part of the series, so I hope too many aren't disappointed in it. A big hug goes to my Oneesan once again for putting up with me.