The moment he entered his room and closed his door, he clutch his bangs as he let out a vocal cry. He felt the pain his words had on Avaron and became grieved at the heart. It had been hard to say it then, but it tore him even more as he looked back on the scene.
He didn't know how he could do it. He didn't know how he could take care of her. He couldn't give her any promises. He didn't understand how she saw any life with him. He was counting on others to take care of Koharu. He was going to have to enter the life of an assassin and spy again. The risks weren't worth it to him. He felt he had no choice but to lash out against Avaron whether she understood or not. What was worse is he made himself a enemy to everyone else. He felt his time here was up. He had proven to everyone else he hadn't learned a thing since being here and that he was still no less grateful. It was far from the truth however. He had come to love it here. He didn't want to leave at all. He was ready to say yes to Kaoru and let her try to help him. Now he was sure he had destroyed any chance of having a home to return to anymore. Above all, he knew Kenshin must be angry in how he had treated Kaoru that day. How could he remain welcomed here anymore?
He shifted to his side against the wall and fell against it until he was in a seated position and continued to cry softly. It was nothing to do with the slap this time. He wasn't angry at her or even thinking how he had been mistreated by his adoptive family, as usually such a strike would bring those painful memories to life. He still felt he did what needed to be done, even if it cost him his stay here. He would have rather falsely admit he wanted to leave than hear Kaoru or the others say he had to leave after what he had done.
He suddenly held his breath and tears when he soon heard footsteps approaching his door. They were soon followed by an enraged voice. "Soujiro. Open this door at once!"
Soujiro didn't know how this day could get any worse. Of all people, it was Honoka. He looked towards the ceiling trying to quietly catch his breath and stop the tears from falling.
"Soujiro! If you don't answer me in three seconds, I'm entering on my initiative."
He got his feet beneath him and stood while trying to use his sleeves to quickly dry his tears. "Please go." He barely managed to utter out. He still couldn't catch his breath. "I can't do this now…."
Honoka, true to her word, opened his door and entered.
"I didn't give you permission-"
"You don't have permission to speak, child!" Honoka lashed out. "You will remain silent when a elder is speaking to you."
She approached and cornered him against the wall he was using for support. "Look at me when I'm talking to you."
Soujiro couldn't bring himself to.
"This is the second time you've humiliated her in front of a crowd. I disregarded it the first time because she took the blame for it and convinced me you had every reason to be angry." She said while referring to when she witnessed Soujiro lashing out at Avaron the night they had met. "Not only that, but you just attacked the girl. Look at me!" She demanded when he still was refusing.
He narrowed his gaze and slowly lifted it to meet her gaze. Honoka was then given a full view of his heartbreak and misery revealed through his misty eyes and moist skin on his cheeks. When she just kept staring at him, he looked away and used his sleeve to try and dry his eyes again.
Honoka's face twisted back into confusion. "I don't understand. Why did you do it?" She asked when she realized how dejected he was. "Why do you toy with her heart and then push her away?"
He had to break his gaze with her because he felt the wave of tears coming again. While his face was still concealed, he felt another wave of grief and despair come over him. He shut his eyes as hard as he could trying to gain control of his emotions and getting a decent breath of air back in his lungs.
He let out a forced breath before he could finally utter any words. "Look…I …am not who you think I am," he admitted. "The less you know the better…. Just take your niece and go. I promise I'll stay away from now on."
Honoka only pursed her wrinkled lips and forcefully grabbed his arm to make him lower it. "You're going to tell me everything."
"With all due respect, it's none of your business." He managed to meet her gaze as he said it and pulled his arm from her grasp. He immediately looked away when Honoka raised her hand to slap him.
She withheld it and lowered her hand to point her finger accusingly. "I know about my husband's sword. I know it's still here."
"What?" He more of cried out in horror.
"Don't play dumb with me. I know it's here. Avaron told me everything. Where is it?" She raised her voice in a sharper tone.
Soujiro's heart started pounding even harder than it already has been. How much was everything? How was he supposed to know where to start? He forced himself to take a deep breath and when he exhaled, his breath trembled. The events of today were becoming to be too much. It wasn't just the question of the sword alone that was overwhelming him. It was what he had done to Avaron and then everyone else. He was sure he had lost their trust and his stay here. "I…."
"Speak up!"
He attempted to try and breathe again to calm himself. His throat only seemed to tighten even more so that he felt it in his chest as well. He didn't know how to explain himself and get his emotions under control. He closed his eyes. He didn't want to break down in front of her. "I can't…."
…..
He jumped when Honoka took hold of his shoulders as Soujiro started to hunch over in his struggle over his emotions and trying to get in a decent breath. When he met her gaze again, he saw it had completely changed from acrimony to concern.
Before she let herself feel sorry, she took his hand clutching at his chest and turned his palm upwards to clutch his wrist and feel his pulse. He resisted for only a moment until he saw what she was doing.
Her brow furrowed. "So you have a heart after all."
He rolled his eyes at the slight.
She understood though that he wasn't overreacting to gain sympathy or delay telling the truth. His pulse had clearly skyrocketed. "Catch your breath, child," she encouraged, her voice becoming soft and warm. She had also been aware how sick he had been. She still held his hand out towards her and rested her other hand over it and affectionately stroked his knuckles like she had done the first few minutes the two had met. He stared trying to decide whether or not to withdraw his hand from her.
"Take your time. I'm here to scold you, not wound you more." She now knew for sure that he wasn't just putting on a pretense to hold off from telling the truth. "Do you need a doctor?"
He at once shook his head and withdrew his hand back. "No, but I'm still contagious and you're standing too close."
"There's no need to worry about me," she said. He turned away seeing now he was being allowed to gather his composure.
Now that he had a moment to think, he realized that Honoka wasn't necessarily demanding the truth about him. As far as he could tell, she still was believing what Kenshin had told her. She was wanting to know the truth about the sword he had taken and frankly, that was her business to know.
After getting a few deep breaths, his throat finally started loosening and the wave of tears he had wanted to shed were not as strong. He turned to face Honaka again. "Kenshin has been holding onto the sword for me,"he answered the question she had been desiring. "Ask him, he'll give it to you."
Honoka held her arm out. "Fine. Let's go."
He didn't know why she held her arm out, but he at once shook his head.
"Don't you think you've been rude enough today? That sword is your responsibility and you took it from me. You are not going to make it someone else's problem."
"Any other time I would do it…." Soujiro started. It wasn't going to be hard to simply face Kenshin again, but it was the fact he had clearly been lamenting and cut to the heart for what he had done. It was not only humiliating but he had tried to put on a front that he no longer wanted their company. The very sight of him now would ruin that.
Honoka knew that. She extended her arm out again. "Do as your told, child. I don't know my way around here, I'm your guest and you need to face the consequences of your actions. Come now."
You found your way to my room, didn't you? He wanted to question her. He stared at the arm she was keeping extended out to him and realized that she was requesting that he both escort her and support her. Soujiro was going to have to walk down the hall with her holding on to him and in the state he was currently in because of the tears he had shed.
"Hurry, child. I'm not getting any younger."
He sighed deeply and finally extended his arm out for her to hold onto. She rested both her arms around his before letting him lead the way back out. This was his ultimate defeat. "Keep you head raised, child. You're helping an old woman. There's nothing to be ashamed about that."
He did as he was told and slowly lifted his gaze as he led her into there next room. He saw Kenshin already having been waiting in the next room. He had at first been on standby in case things went too ill between Soujiro and Honoka. Whatever direction it would have taken, he had the sword ready to be returned back to Honoka. As Soujiro entered the room, he saw no one else present. He wanted to ask about Avaron and figured they must be addressing the injury he had caused her. He didn't feel he had to right to ask about her anymore. He was still trying to cut ties with the Ohara family after all.
Kenshin was astonished to see the two not only leave the room peacefully, but Soujiro offering her support as he led her down the hall. He could almost smile warmly when Honoka berated him for his posture and made him stand straight and lift his gaze. The only reason he didn't give into a full smile was because when he met Soujiro's gaze, he saw how broken he was over what had taken place. Above all, he really understood why Soujiro reacted the way he did.
It seemed to take forever for Soujiro to get to Kenshin. Once he did, he let go of Honoka to retrieve the sword from Kenshin. "Soujiro," he said as he was giving the sword to him. "Kaoru, wanted me to make something very clear."
He reluctantly met his gaze, waiting to hear the words that he would be leaving the dojo for good.
"You know you were out of line today. Not only in how you treated Miss Avaron but Kaoru as well... And she wants it to be clear that you're not leaving here any time soon until you learn some respect." He still has Soujiro's wrap in hand and held it out to him for him to take.
He shouldn't have been surprised, but he was. He was confounded， yet relieved by the news. He showed his thanks by taking the sword and wrap and acknowledging Kenshin with a small bow of his head before turning back to face Honoka and presented the sword to her.
"I agree," Honoka inserted. She took the sword from it's sheathe to examine the condition of the sword. It was just as she remembered it.
"I promise you won't have to worry about me anymore. I'll stay away-"
"You speak when you're spoken to, child," Honoka said as she slammed the blade back in the sheathe. "Learn that first."
Soujiro meekly nodded.
"I want just a few more minutes with him," she requested of Kenshin.
Never had Soujiro desired more for Kenshin to remain in his presence. He thought he would just hand the sword over and that this would all finally be over. He wanted Kenshin to somehow end this and send the woman away.
No matter how Soujiro looked at it though, Honoka had every right to be here and he had every reason to show his respect. She could have reported him as a thief and even a kidnapper because of Avaron having stayed the night with him. It would be her word over his.
He resigned himself to stand there a few more minutes and let her berate him instead.
When Kenshin respectfully took his leave, Honoka added to his discomfort by staying quiet and staring down at him. He dared not speak first again and decided to distract himself by slowly putting the wrap back on.
"Why did you need it?" She finally asked.
He finally felt he could meet her gaze. "I got caught up in with some distasteful people. " He didn't feel like he was lying at all. Those policemen were no better than criminals and above all, he had to deal with Chou. "They found out about my sister and I had no way to protect her...I never asked Avaron to give me a weapon, but you should know, she saved my sister's life by taking that sword. For that reason alone, I don't regret not having it at my side. We both would be dead by now if Avaron had not brought me that sword." He continued trying to clear the air for her. "It was only used to defend and protect. No one died by my hand while in possession of it."
"I ...suppose…that isn't a terrible reason. You do make it hard for me to stay furious for that…." Honoka said as she started pacing slowly in thought. Her face hardened again and she stopped towards the corner of the room and faced him again. "And yet, you thank her by saying such cruel words and throwing the girl against the ground in a dress, I might add, we have spent days restoring."
Soujiro cringed as she spoke. "That part was an accident…." he uttered regrettably.
"You didn't mean it, but you were still out of line. You shall apologize to the poor girl."
He started to open his mouth to argue he had said what needed to be said, but stopped himself. Honoka had a expression against him that dared him to open his mouth and say otherwise. She would not let him deny or refuse anything Instead, he spat out a sigh of defeat and showed his fault but letting his gaze fall back on the floor.
"Is Avaron in danger?" She next questioned.
He shook his head.
"Then what's the problem?"
"A time may come when she could be put in danger."
"May? It will come."
"Not if I-"
"Soujiro," she raised her palm to demand his silence. He obeyed. She approached him more closely and eyed the wrap he wore. "She helped you in your time of need, did she not?"
He tried to think carefully how to answer her.
She continued speaking, however. "You needed a doctor, warm clothes, a weapon, she kept your secret; She did these things for you, yes?"
He only nodded. He wished he knew what had all been revealed to this woman. He didn't want to end up telling or admitting anything else to her.
"By what means do you think that Avaron was able to provide these things for you," she held up the sword to include it.
"I guess…you," he uttered, not liking where the conversation was headed.
"Exactly, you don't owe Avaron. You owe me."
"I'll pay you back for the trouble," Soujiro said at once. "It might be a few months because of my circumstances but you'll get back every cent plus more for the trouble I've caused. That's the best I can do for you."
"It's not nearly enough."
He was starting to lose his patience. "Then what is it you are-"
"I'm dying."
There it was. All of Honoka's previous and current actions were making sense now. Soujiro was saddened for her, especially Avaron, but he wondered now if he really was going to be guilted into marriage. He couldn't be her only hope. Lastly, even if Avaron wanted that future with him, he was sure this isn't how she would want it to happen.
"Not all the money in the world is going to bring me comfort."
"I'm sorry," he said with a sincere voice. "I truly am," he added with a bow. "But there's no life I can offer her…. I say this because I do care for her. She will fair far worse with me.… not because I fear something happening to her…she'll be more alone than ever. I'm…owned…sworn by the allegiance I made to the Meiji."
Honoka at once became downhearted.
Soujiro rose from his respectful bow to meet her gaze. "Is there no one else out there to look after her?" Besides her possessive cousin….
"She is barely given a chance. The poor girl…has a reputation."
He nodded. "She told me..."
"Then you know no one will risk being seen with her."
He of all should know better. The extremes his own family went to protect their reputation caused him pain and misery even though he was nothing but innocent at the time. Avaron's own father had to give up on Soujiro because he had to protect his own reputation so he and his daughter could still have a decent life. "Has that much damage been done?"
Honoka nodded. "It's my fault. It started with me. Even though I took her in, I was cruel for a long time. I turned the whole family against her," she said she clutched at her chest as if there had been a physical pain. "Even after I brought her home after she ran away, I didn't change over night. I still told everyone and vented it to the family. I didn't know at that time I was ruining her future. They told their friends and then their friends, embellishing the mistake Avaron never made... I tried to give Avaron whatever she wanted, but the girl never desired money. The only thing she ever wanted was the father and mother she lost...
…Until more recently." She said as she eyed Soujiro. "I wish you could know how sad she was when she thought she was leaving you in Kofu. For a moment, she was the happiest I've seen her and then you reject the poor girl. Not just once, but a few times."
He ended up letting out a frustrated groan and dropped his head into his palm. He knew he was guilty but he didn't plan this all out to break her heart in the end.
"I'm running out of time to make up for the damage I've done." Honoka finished. "I can't rest in peace until I know I've made up for what I've done to her."
"That's understandable, but you can't count on me to fix it." He then shook his head. "It was wrong what I did to her…but she will not fair any better with me. Otherwise…if I could…. If things were different…."
"If you wait for things to be perfect, you'll never get anywhere in life," she said in a coarse tone. "You should know by now how fragile... How short life is."
"Yes…" he softly acknowledged and looked away as he meditated more deeply on the thought.
Honoka now held up sword to him. "If you will just watch over her, I will let you keep this special sword. It's not going to do me any good."
Soujiro's face twisted with repulse and he took a few steps back from her. "You're trying to bribe me into marriage now?"
"Of course not!" She snapped back at him. She approached him again with the sword. "All I'm asking is you watch over her. To let her come to you if she needs help. Don't forget, you owe me. You can at least give me this assurance."
"I don't need your family heirloom to make that kind of promise."
"So you agree to these terms then?" She held up the sword again for him to accept.
She wasn't giving up on him. How could she? Not only had she grown fond of him since they meet, but thanks to Kenshin, he had ended up painting Soujiro everything she would have wanted for Avaron. He couldn't just give her the truth to scare her away though, especially after Honoka revealed that she wasn't too great with keeping secrets. He would just have to keep telling her no. He raised his gaze to once more refuse the offer but was in turned, met with her eyes glistening eyes tearing up. She never actually said he needed to marry her, but that he would at least stay her friend. Soujiro wasn't stupid though. This was an attempt to keep Soujiro in Avaron's life. The one person that had made her happy again. To agree to it would give Honoka hope that Soujiro would change his mind one day.
"Take it!" She demanded. She then added more calmly. "Then I'll leave."
He hesitated. Why is she so willing to part with the sword? Shouldn't it at least go to her son? Perhaps Honoka is not blinded to how he treats Avaron. If that is the case, it's just one more reason for Honoka to push this onto me. Who knows how he'll manipulate and use her once Honoka is gone. Still…how can I protect her her from him?
He then remembered something he and Avaron had said to each other back when they walked through the market together.
Avaron pulled forth a small purse where she carried some money and gave it to Koharu. "Why don't you go across the street and get us each something to snack on? Including something for Soujiro's new friend."
"All right, sure," she said happily and was almost too eager in taking the money from Avaron.
"You didn't need to do that," Soujiro frowned.
"Why not? I'm hungry too and it be rude to eat in front of you three." She was including the cat.
Soujiro wasn't buying it.
"You'd do it for me, wouldn't you."
His frown softened as he nodded. "Of course."
"That's good enough for me then."
He caved into a soft chuckle. "I hope you're not this trusting with everyone you meet. But I will find a way to make it up to you...somehow."
This hadn't been some elaborate plan to make Soujiro indebted to them. Avaron had kept quiet about her aunt's condition and never used it to drop strong hints like Honoka now was. At that time, Avaron knew Soujiro was trying to heal and escape Tokyo. She had helped so he could escape and she well knew there was a chance she might never ever see him again so she wasn't pulled into the trouble he was in with the Meiji. He didn't know how he would ever make it up to a girl who already had everything it seemed. Even now, Avaron wasn't at her happiest and it was about to get much harder for her.
"You just have to promise to let her come to you in her time of need and let yourself be found right when she needs it. I think that's fair because that's exactly what she's done for you."
What she said was very true. It wasn't read for Avaron at all, buy she still did those things for him.
He nodded in agreement and then smile. "I'll make sure she's taken care of."
He knew Honoka desired him to be more than a friend to Avaron, but she acted like he had agreed to all her wishes. Her disheartened tears change to tears of relief as she lunged and pulled him in a tight embrace around the neck. "I knew I could count on you."
He had not been expecting the older woman to lunge and take hold of him and froze awkwardly in her hold. He forgot momentarily that he was helping her make up for a life long regret and saying those words alone was taking a great burden off her shoulders. She pulled away still holding the sword and at once placed it into his hands. He had to take it otherwise she would have let it drop. He didn't fully understand why she was parting with the sword so readily. She must have long been planning to give it to him after Avaron was forced to reveal why Kenshin was carrying it around. It wasn't just a last minute decision.
He was merely afraid of looking bad that he only agreed to watch over Avaron if he got something out of it. Perhaps by giving him the sword, he thought Honoka would trust he would never forget the promise he just made. It was a valuable thing she was willing to part with for the sake of her niece. This proved how she loved Avaron and Soujiro had proved he was worthy of welding the sword that had protected them. Seeing it that way made it easier for him to accept for the old woman's sake.
As Honoka promised, she started to take her leave and right before she left the room, she turned to look over her shoulder one last time at him. "Remember this promise, Seta Soujiro. I'll be watching very closely."
He only nodded. He wasn't unsure if she meant now or the afterlife. It was, however, expected that he would have to face Avaron. He looked down at the sword in thought tracing the edge of the lotus hilt with his thumb as he contemplated how that conversation would go. He felt like he was just going to end up breaking her heart again. He didn't know how to explain the promise he had just made to her aunt without embarrassing her or to explain the sword still in his grasp.
He broke his gaze from the sword and his thoughts to gaze down the hall and frowned. "I know you're there."
Silence.
"Koharu," he demanded.
She slowly and meekly emerged from his room and stood in the hall facing him. "I thought you could only sense people threatening you."
"Except I know you very well and you're hard to miss."
"Kaoru is here too!" She pointed back in the room.
A moment later, the door to his room slammed open to Kaoru holding a fist at Koharu. "You little-you said you wouldn't rat me out!"
They had ended up in his room when Kenshin left with the sword in hand and entered the main entrance to check on Soujiro and Honoka. While Kenshin was distracted, Koharu had tried to tiptoe though the yard and back on the pouch to listen in on their conversation only to find that they were not in Soujiro's room. So she entered into his room and put her ear against the door to listen in. Kaoru had noticed her absence and didn't have to guess too hard what Koharu was up to. She had tried to be the mature adult and not invade on the private conversation but Koharu knew Kaoru well enough already to know how to pull her in on it too.
"She's trying to force Sou into marriage." She had whispered to her.
That was all it took for Kaoru to plant her ear against the door to listen in on the whole conversation taking place.
The only thing that really disturbed Soujiro was that there had been two girls hiding in his room. He had long put together that there was little privacy here, but this further stressed it to him. Actually, he was relieved and approached the two girls down the hall. "Then you know that this wasn't some deal I arranged. She wanted me to have this." He held up the sword. "I tried to not accept it.… "
"Don't you see?" Kaoru clasped her hands and tilted her head with a smile. "She's already accepting you into the family. It's so sweet."
Soujiro's face twisted in confusion. "What are you talking about? I made it clear I couldn't-"
"She clearly wants it to be you, Soujiro," Kaoru explained even though he knew full well Honoka's intention. He just didn't tie the thought to the sword she gifted to him as a wedding present. "Don't think of it as you two compromising. Think of it also…as her blessing. You know…in case you two do decide…well you know." She was actually afraid to say the word out loud to him.
Soujiro's lips parted and he looked over his shoulder in the direction Honoka had left. It seemed he was ready to run after the old woman and refuse the sword again. He then looked back at the sword now holding a new meaning to him… and one that terrified him.
"So…like an engagement ring?" Koharu asked, and then giggled.
Not helping Koharu.
"Kind of," Kaoru shrugged her shoulders.
"It's like when I gave Sou my music box. It was my way of showing he was family…and he gave his last sword up for me. Only family do such things for each other."
Kaoru saw how heavy these words were for him to hear and knew she needed to quickly assure him otherwise. She had thought she was making him feel better by helping him not view it as some compromise that was made.
She stepped forward raising her hands in a calming manner. "Take it easy. You're not engaged and even if you were, nothing could come of it any time soon. You still have to recover and present yourself before the Meiji... And earn their trust," she added quickly. "For now, Honoka just doesn't want you writing Avaron out of your life." She carefully approached him and took the sword from his grasp. "I'll hold on to this for you until you're ready. For now, you need make peace with Avaron. You did much more than just sprain her ankle." She talked down at him. "You sort of humiliated her."
After a moment, he could only give an awkward nod.
"Well go on, now!" She requested and nudged the end the sword into his shoulder to urge him around.
He stumbled at the force and clutched his shoulder as he about collapsed.
"Ah! Sorry I just want you-" Kaoru was mortified and reached out to support him until he froze. That was when she saw the ends of his lips curl into a smirk. "Soujiro!" Her cheeks turned red as she held her fist up with the sword still within.
Koharu burst out laughing when she realizing Soujiro was messing with Kaoru. He's smiling again!
Soujiro also let out a soft laugh and stood straight. He nodded to her again to affirm to her he was fulfilling her request and turned away to seek out Avaron. He almost stopped again because he knew he had blatantly defied Kaoru that day and even after all he done, she was still letting him stay. Not only did he have to make peace with her…again, but thank her for the mercy granted to him to be here…as well as one other thing. He continued forward, however, thinking it was best to fulfill what Kaoru was currently expecting of him.
Kaoru now turned her sharp glare down at Koharu and crossed her arms. "Nobody would ever know you two weren't related.
The comment only made Koharu giggle with blushed cheeks.
Kaoru touched her finger to her face and tilted her head thoughtfully. "I suppose you never know what kind of day it will be with Soujiro. He's had every reason to be sad, but his outburst today was so sudden, and now he's left here with a smile on his face."
Koharu nodded shyly. "Yeah…ten years of keeping your emotions bottled up does that." It wasn't her first time witnessing Soujiro's moods change dramatically. She had at first blamed herself thinking she had been the source of it, but was able to make sense of his behavior the more he had revealed his past to her. She just hoped Avaron could put that together as well.
Koharu now bit her lower lip as she thought the following. Oh, Sou.… Don't run her off because no other girl is going to be able to understand like we do. You still deserve to be happy though….
They eventually followed Soujiro to where they left Avaron under Kenshin's care. She also had the company of Yahiko's, Sanosuke's and Honoka's still present at her side. Her heels had long been removed and her sprained ankle wrapped for support. The moment Soujiro entered the room, she frowned and turned away. The room quickly became too quiet as all other eyes turned on him. Soujiro only struggled to speak up because he only wanted to talk to her. He couldn't ask her to speak alone because he didn't want to make her walk, but he had a feeling that everyone else would be against leaving him alone with her. Plus, they were in a public room and he technically didn't have the right to make anyone leave. Kaoru has made that very clear.
"Avaron…." He tried to push through the awkwardness.
She still wouldn't meet his gaze.
There was nothing but silence in the air as all eyes now rested on him. He approached her more closely. "Look…." He then closed his eyes with an exasperated breath. No one even care how they added to his discomfort.
"Can I talk to you alone?" He finally blurted out.
She met his gaze disbelief.
"You're kidding, right?" Sanosuke spat.
Why is he even here? He clenched his fists.
Honoka was seen and heard whispering to Avaron.
"I can't." Avaron snapped at her aunt suddenly.
"Don't raise your voice at me child. It's barely sprained, now get up and go."
Soujiro then saw the Avaron was no less thrilled about their situation than he was. If anyone was a victim here, it was her. He knew her actions to be sincere and that she was here because she had been worried about him and that she had wanted to see him. A part of him wished she would have just given up and left already. He knew one thing for sure and that's that he didn't want to hurt her again. He approached her more closely and lowered his hand down to her. "Come on, let's go."
Even though she knew she was going to go, she now gazed doubtfully at him. The moment she took hold of his hand, however, he knelt down to place her arm around him so she could lean into him without having to put weight on her swollen ankle. It was about that moment that Koharu and Kaoru walked into the room. Koharu at first felt a twinge of jealousy seeing Avaron's arm around Soujiro and the other resting in his hand. She then noticed Avaron's rosy's cheeks and trying to hide her bashful gaze from everyone else, especially Soujiro. While she still felt a twinge of jealousy, she knew what it was like to have those arms around her. Once Soujiro offered his support, you could trust he was never going to let you fall again. To Koharu, it had been the most special feeling and one she had never taken for granted. He had first shown such reliance the day they met when he had to literally keep her from falling off the rooftop. By the end of the night, she knew if she lost her balance, he was ready to catch her. He was never going to understand what that meant to her and now he unknowingly was letting Avaron experience the same thing.
You better not take him for granted. Koharu crossed her arms that revealed her jealously.
As Soujiro walked passed her, he could sense her jealousy and lowered his hand from Avaron briefly to ruffle her bangs. "Sou! Stop messing up my hair." She tried to slap his hand off.
He softly laughed and by the end of it, Koharu was smiling again. She was reminded that no matter how close he got to Avaron, she would never have the bond that he and Koharu shared. The fact he was still wearing her jade necklace around his wrist proved that.
He would never do that for Avaron. She reminded herself.
"Are we really going to trust him alone with her? She is injured because of him." Sanosuke continued to be suspicious.
Koharu was already glowering at him.
"Oh nonsense!" Honoka said with her pursed wrinkled lips. "It was probably already sprained. She hasn't been able to walk in those shoes all day. All it was going to take was a little push to throw her down... Clumsy girl."
"You're defending him?" Sanosuke was surprised.
"Soujiro's actions today are understandable," Kenshin interjected. "If you see his motives behind the actions, you'll see he was acting protectively. Not just for Koharu's sake but Avaron's too. Part of it was him reacting to fear as well."
"Explain," Honoka demanded. She thought Kenshin the same age as Soujiro and thus treated him as a younger child rather than the mature adult he was.
Kenshin didn't help when he let out a nervous chuckle. He did have to pretend he had always been close to Soujiro and not create conflict in the story he had already told Honoka. "Soujiro was orphaned and grew up in a rough environment. Many of the people he has counted on abandoned him. For awhile he was lost in the wrong crowd until…." He started to lose his words.
"Until I recently came along and straightened him up." Kaoru stepped up confidently. She was fulfilling her role as his older cousin.
"Ah, so he's in the army because of you," Honoka assumed. "Yes, that probably taught him much needed discipline." She then thought more deeply on it. "Poor child. Thank goodness he has you. His life could have turned up much worse without all your support. He should be more thankful."
"Yet, you're settling for him? You can't do better for your daughter?"
"Sanosuke!" Kaoru berated.
"She's my niece," Honoka corrected. "And I'm not settling for Soujiro. If I were settling, my niece would have been married a long time ago."
This was shocking news.
"What? I thought she had a reputation," Koharu questioned.
"Precisely. Who do you think are the ones who want to marry her?" By their blank expressions, Honoka knew they were clueless as to what she was saying. "The reason I travel with my niece is so she can take a break from the misery she suffers in this town. Somehow, her mistake she never made gets found out and she's rejected. The only ones willing to welcome her…are foreign ones…old foreign ones."
She let that sit with them for a moment. Yahiko then spoke up for the first time. "So… only old men want to marry her?"
"Yes. Men who have already had a family and lived a full normal life and try to be young again. They want to take advantage of the situation Avaron is in. She would be ripped away from everything she knows and be viewed as something exotic or a plaything to show off...so I'm not settling for Soujiro and neither is she. She genuinely cares for him and did you not see how he handled the pitiful girl just now?" She questioned mainly Sanosuke.
"That's…terrible," Kaoru said in response to Avaron's situation.
"The fact that they used to know each other also plays another vital role in their relationship."
"What?" Everyone except Koharu exclaimed.
"Did you not know this?" Honoka sat her hands on her hips, now questioning mainly Kaoru.
Kaoru then tried not to appear too surprised. She then let out a nervous laugh. "He can be quite secretive…."
Koharu stepped forward and nodded eagerly. "I can't believe this hasn't been mentioned until now. Yes, Avaron once knew Soujiro before he worked for Shishio. Her father tried to take him in but they couldn't because he was an Englishman and Sou's owners were too prominent in the village they resided in. Her father could have easily been charged with kidnapping so he had no choice but to leave Sou so he could protect his daughter." Koharu's expression suddenly became regretful and she covered her mouth. "I don't think I was supposed to say that much! Don't tell Sou you heard it from me." She only wanted to explain the history between Soujiro and Avaron.
It dawned on Kenshin that Soujiro has in fact mentioned this…he just didn't realize it was Avaron and her family. He had kept their identity concealed. He wondered why. Perhaps it was for this very reason. He was trying to forget Avaron and any future he had desired with her and yet, everyone else around him was encouraging it. This now would encourage everyone to encourage Soujiro to hold onto her. He wondered what Soujiro must be saying to the girl as of now. He had shockingly calmed down and came out peacefully with Honoka. Honoka had also calmed down so she must have gotten what she wanted. It was unclear how was all going to end.
"We will never know if her father made the right decision to leave Soujiro like that. Had he taken Soujiro and been caught with him, he would have never been welcomed back in this country again and Avaron ripped away from her father," Honoka continued. "Avaron still strongly believes something could have been done. Regardless of that, the moment she knew who Soujiro was, she has done everything she could to make it up to him for them abandoning him in his time of need as a child."
Sanosuke had simply thought Avaron had been a naïve child that Soujiro had taken advantage of. It was the only thing he had assumed when he had first fought Soujiro on the street a few months ago. Her devotion to protecting Soujiro had astounded him at the time and he had been angry at Soujiro for toying with an innocent girl's heart and using her. This shed new light on the matter. Her devotion to him was righting a wrong her family had committed against Soujiro. Had her father been able to protect Soujiro, things would have turned out very differently. History as they know it would have been different. What were the chances of Shishio stumbling upon another child that held potential as Soujiro did and one he could use at will to perform the deeds he no longer could by himself? He then thought about the trouble Soujiro was in at the time and Sanosuke has done nothing to help the matter. That was why Avaron had intervened and risked the thug's wrath. She wasn't going to abandon Soujiro again in his time of need. Sanosuke suddenly developed newfound respect for the young woman.
"The fact they found each again is amazing…it can't be by accident," Kaoru giggled to herself. "It's quite romantic."
Yahiko rolled his eyes. "Oh brother…."
Even Koharu had a disinterested expression at the thought but it was Yahiko who got smacked at the back of his head by Kaoru for his comment. "Hey ug-"
He stopped himself when Koharu now cast here beady eyes on him daring him to finish the sentence. Who's side is she on? He pouted.
Honoka cleared her throat to get their attention. "Perhaps my intentions are better understood. It isn't just an old woman marrying off her niece…and the last thing Avaron and I are doing is settling for Soujiro. To simply put it, she's fulfilled her role helping him in his time of need…now I want him to take care of her. And if something more were to come of it…I wouldn't object to it either."
The rest of them exchanged glances with each other. It dawned on them something else Soujiro has been keeping to himself. He wanted to be there for Avaron, but he had practically sold his soul to the Meiji. It wasn't exactly his choice on whether he could choose to go against orders and drop everything to help Avaron when that time came. Looking back at the promise he made to Honoka, Kaoru realized that's just what Soujiro agreed to do. Avaron had put everything on the line for Soujiro and he just agreed to do the same for her. He would break the law again for her sake, yet, the law will not be so easy on him like it was on Avaron.
The most important thing is he doesn't have to break the law again. He has us now and he keeps forgetting that, Kaoru thought bitterly. We can make sure Avaron is safe until Soujiro is able to step in and care for her. That's what family is for.
Sanosuke shrugged. "Seems fair." He ended up speaking up for everyone.
"Of course it is," Honoka said righteously. "I wouldn't suggest it if it wasn't so." She straightened her posture. "Now that I've made my wishes clear, I shall take my leave." She cleared her throat and flattened the cloth of her kimono in front of her. "Now, who will be walking me home?"
Everybody's eyes grew big until they eventually looked to Sanosuke, including Kenshin.
"Why me?" He barked.
Honoka held her chin up as she started to take her leave. "You're obviously the strongest and most capable and a poor old woman needs your assistance. Come now." She requested.
"Kenshin!" Sanosuke yelled. "You're more than capable."
"Who am I to argue the words of such a wise woman. She clearly wants you to walk her," Kenshin smiled innocently.
Sanosuke made a threatening fist at him.
Kaoru then elbowed the thug's side and whispered: "It's best he stays near Soujiro anyway. It's his job. Just go."
Sanosuke was heard muttering under his breath before following Honoka out the door. The poor woman was tired and had expended more energy than she was used to. She wasn't wanting to rush Avaron but at the same time was ready to head home and recover her strength and wait eagerly for her niece to return. While Sanosuke was left to the task of escorting Honoka, Kaoru thought she would check on Soujiro. She found them back in the yard where Soujiro had found a wooden bench for Avaron to sit on and he leaned against a tree for support while facing her.
He's still not listening. I told him not to stay outside! She glowered. If they hadn't looked so deep in conversation, she would have marched right down there to them and demanded Soujiro come inside.
At least Avaron isn't crying….
Avaron's posture suddenly tensed up as she shot her gaze up at him. "The worst part is I knew you were just trying to drive me away…but I still hit you. I've never hit anyone before….Why would you think it would be better that way?"
He turned away from with a sigh and looked off towards the distance even though there was a protective wall around the dojo. He then shrugged. "I just needed you to leave and you wouldn't. You should have just left. None of this would have happened if you would have just got the hint earlier."
"I got the hint, Soujiro. I got it a long time ago from you…but that doesn't mean I haven't worried and thought about you a lot. The last news I got was that you nearly died…so of course I took this opportunity to see you. Why wouldn't I?" She then looked towards the ground and scoffed, yet, with traces of a smile forming. She was thinking how he had held her when he first caught her to keep her from falling. "Your coldness and abruptness at first nearly worked." She then shifted her eyes towards him. "You might have once been good at hiding emotions Soujiro, buy you only pulled it off for a moment."
He crossed his arms and turned his head away to hide his blush. "I'm sorry about that…I don't know what came over me."
Of all the things he was directly apologizing for, it was the one thing she could look back on and still smile about despite what followed after it. It wasn't just how he touched her, but how he reacted to her once he touched her. She supposed he acted like any normal guy but he had seemed so innocent and handled her so carefully. She giggled out loud as she looked back on it.
Soujiro frowned at hearing her giggle. "Why are you laughing?"
She at once hardened her face again and set her posture straight against the bench. For a moment, it grew quiet between them. It was about that time that Kaoru decided to leave them alone to finish talking.