Author's Note:

As promised, the real story behind Kimigiku and Amagiri's strained relationship.

Also, Harada and Sen-and a shock.

Thank you to everyone who is reading and especially to those who posted reviews on the last, extra-long chapter.

A special thank you to DancesWithSeatbelts, who has gone back to read the start of this story and has been kind enough to post reviews for earlier chapters!

Please let me know what you think of Chapter 65!

~ ImpracticalOni

Quote:

A spider lives inside my head
Who weaves a strange and wondrous web
Of silken threads and silver strings
To catch all sorts of flying things,
Like crumbs of thoughts and bits of smiles
And specks of dried-up tears,
And dust of dreams that catch and cling
For years and years and years…

by Shel Silverstein (this just seemed to fit the various strands of this story somehow)

Chapter 65 – New Wounds and Old

[I] - Shinpachi Reports

Hijikata didn't have long to wonder what Shinpachi had been up to in the almost-hour he'd been gone. He and the Commander met the Second Division Captain only part-way down the lane that led out to the road. It was still raining, but Nagakura had obviously thrown on a dry shirt as well as his blue Shinsengumi haori.

"I take it we should hurry?" Hijikata asked tersely.

"Hai." Nagakura looked rather grim. "Commander Kondō," he continued, as all three men moved quickly toward the gate through which he'd just come, "Sōji and Heisuke were ambushed by quite a few heavily armed men not too long after they left us. Sōji said that he could just tell where the enemy was so he went looking for him—he says it was the spy that Yamazaki's been looking for. Problem is that the spy was up on the roof and the ambush was on the ground. Turned out to be a good thing that Heisuke went after Sōji; probably stopped him from being a lot worse hurt."

"There must have been quite a few of them then," commented Hijikata, frowning. "Sōji looked pretty fit when I saw him earlier today."

"How is he?" demanded Kondō at almost the same time, concerned.

"He'll be better once Yamazaki has his wits back together," Nagakura replied, ensuring the complete attention of his superiors. "Sōji claims that the spy up on the roof was somehow getting into his head and slowing him down and that's how come he got into trouble. Though, to be clear, Sōji won't actually admit that he was in trouble. Heisuke says he was, and he's definitely pretty cut up – Sōji, that is."

"Well, if Heisuke's fine and Sōji's injured it looks like a deliberate attack on Sōji. But about Yamazaki?" The Vice Commander was definitely irritated.

"Turns out that he had been trailing the spy. He tackled him when he saw what was going on—at least, that's what we think. Whoever this guy is, he basically threw Yamazaki off the building and took off. That's according to Heisuke."

"It sounds as though Heisuke did well," said Kondō approvingly.

"Anyway, Yamazaki was out cold and all of the attackers were dead or getting there—Sōji and Heisuke didn't really have time for finesse, you know?—so Heisuke fetched Inoue-san and his patrol. I tracked them down eventually, waited to find out more from Heisuke and Sōji, checked on Yamazaki, and then came here. Yamazaki was just starting to come around, actually. From what Heisuke told me, it's amazing he didn't break anything – doesn't seem to have so much as a sprain, but he's our best medic so we'll know better when he's completely conscious."

Report delivered, all three men picked up their pace even further through the wet streets. They caught a glimpse of Takeda's patrol some ways off. Shinpachi's eyes flicked to Hijikata, who was frowning – although over which of the many events was impossible to tell. Hijikata caught the motion and managed a faint, although sardonic, smile.

"I told Vice-Captain Takeda after that scuffle by the shop that he was to remain with the patrol and that there was no need for him to personally escort any dead bodies anywhere. He understood."

Shinpachi understood as well. Hijikata had told Takeda to look after the mess with the shop, the broken wares, and the dead body. But he didn't want Takeda to use it as an excuse to get out of being on patrol in the rain. Apparently only Kondō-san was taking the man fully at face-value. Then again, very little got by the Vice Commander.

"Who do with have with decent medical knowledge if Yamazaki's out?" Kondō asked, still concerned over his injured men. "I don't know if you were there, Toshi, but when Sen-hime explained matters to me, I thought we'd better allow Yukimura-chan to stay with her cousin, just in, er, case."

Shinpachi hesitated, but when Hijikata didn't speak at once he asked:

"So, I take it that we're prepared to let her out of our sight now? I mean… we've been a lot less strict about it in the last couple of weeks, but it seems to me that our basic problem's the same, isn't it? And what do you mean by 'in case', Kondō-san?"

The Commander looked slightly unsure how to answer, but Hijikata seemed to have finally made up his mind about whatever had preoccupied him.

"Well, taking your questions in reverse order: First, Sen-hime told us that for a number of good, Oni reasons, it is very likely that Yukimura will become pregnant fairly quickly—and as she's only sixteen, and without an established home, she'll be vulnerable, especially as she doesn't have access to all of her powers; from that perspective, staying with her closest living female relative makes sense. It does create problems for us where Saitō's duties are concerned, which we'll have to discuss. Second: whether we can trust her not to talk about what she has seen. To be honest, and as I've explained to Kondō-san—together with Sannan-san, of course—we already have a security breach. The Oni are aware of the rasetsu. Apparently, the ochimizu and the creation of rasetsu are an abomination to the Oni. Sannan-san's concern that the Oni may seek to destroy the Furies is valid. However, it also means that any of the Oni we've met—Sen-hime, Kimigiku-san, Amagiri-san, Shiranui-san and even Kazama-sama—would be reluctant to tell their human allies about Furies and especially the ochimizu. But where is Kōdō-sensei and what is he doing? I'm concerned that he's watched the shifting power alliances and decided to peddle his wares elsewhere…"

"Basically, you're saying that Chizuru-chan looks a lot safer to trust than other people out there who are already in the know," Shinpachi said, reflectively. "Plus, we've known Saitō for several years now and he's awfully loyal to the Shinsengumi. Mind you, we'll have to see how married life suits him."

"I don't believe that Yukimura-chan would betray us in any event, and certainly not to anyone who would harm the name of the Shinsengumi," said Kondō firmly.

The other two agreed that they were less concerned than they had been six months earlier, but for other reasons. Shinpachi voiced the thought first: "Even if I thought that Chizuru-chan might speak out of turn before, because of the rough handling she got, the situation's changed. First of all, the chance that she would do anything to get Saitō into trouble—on purpose—is pretty much zero. I'm not looking for a wife myself—"

"Thank goodness," muttered Hijikata. Kondō-san snorted, but let Shinpachi finish.

"—yeah, but he seems to have made a better choice than many have. I think she's going to be pretty devoted to him. And although the idea of Saitō with kids is slightly terrifying for some reason, I'm guessing she's going to have her time and mind full of things other than what she may or may not have seen over seven months ago."

"Agreed, agreed," said Kondō. "Although it does make Saitō-kun more vulnerable to other pressures. He's the kind of young man to take his duties to his wife and family—if he has one—quite seriously."

Hijikata intervened, saying drly: "I can assure you, Kondō-san, that 'vulnerable' is not the word that comes to mind with Saitō right now."

Shinpachi nodded. "I'll have to wait to see for myself, but from what Sano told me, Saitō's a whole new category of scary now. And he wasn't exactly a relaxing guy to face before he got turned into a demon." The Second Division Captain had dropped his voice, as they were approaching the compound. "Too bad, though; it means unless I can become an Oni too, I'll never get a fair rematch for that exhibition match we had last year…"

Kondō-san smiled, and Hijikata looked amused—and even appreciative. With Sōji injured and Saitō distracted, Shinpachi's steadiness and humour was just what they needed.

"Well, try not to turn into a demon anytime soon, Nagakura-kun," Kondō said. "It seems to take too much time and energy away from the Shinsengumi."

Shinpachi nodded. He was a bit worried about Sano and his apparent interest in Sen-hime, but he didn't want to raise the issue and he was certain that Hijikata was keeping an eye on it. But it turned out that Kondō-san had noticed too. As if sensing Shinpachi's concern, the Commander slapped him on the shoulder as they crossed the main courtyard.

"Don't worry so much, Nagakura-kun! Harada-kun will manage things well enough. After all, it might not be a bad thing to have powerful allies. She has friends in the Imperial Court, you know!"

"Ah—well, I didn't know that, of course…" Shinpachi responded, a trifle startled at Kondō-san's apparent enthusiasm over Sano's possible attachment.

"No, no, that's true, you didn't get to stay for the conversation. Now—I think that we should dry off before speaking to Yamazaki, if he's awake."

"Agreed," said Hijikata.

"Would you like me to go check things out in the city?" asked Shinpachi. Not that he wanted to go back out into the rain, but between the strange events at the shop and then the ambush, Takeda's joint patrol might be unsettled, and Inoue-san's bunch had only just finished searching and arranging the bodies of the men that Heisuke and Sōji had killed.

"That would be very helpful, Nagakura," said Hijikata, glancing at Kondō-san. "But why don't you wait to see if Yamazaki has anything to tell us first, and then go take a look around town?"

Shinpachi gave a slight bow to both of the leaders.

"I'll wait for you in Sōji's room, then. I forgot to mention it, but both Sōji and Yamazaki are there, since Sōji had the extra space and Yamazaki shares his room with Shimada."

They split up after that, agreeing to meet back in a few minutes in Sōji's quarters.

[II] - An Interlude and a Shock

Once their guests had left, Sen released a small sigh. Then she looked rather shyly at Harada-san. He had risen when his Commander and Vice Commander had left, and he was currently looking out the front window at them as they went down the path through the front garden. Sen could see him in quarter-profile, and she was struck again by how beautiful his eyes and face were—as though he were already partly in his Oni form.

It bothered her a bit that she could be so quickly distracted from what had been an important meeting by the mere physical appearance of a man—and not even a full Oni at that—but she also knew why it was like that for her. As if feeling her gaze—actually, he probably did—Harada-san turned to her.

"I don't know if you exactly fooled Kondō-san, but he was certainly ready to do your bidding, wasn't he Hime-chan?"

Sen's gaze faltered. She couldn't understand the slight edge in Harada-san's voice.

"I beg your pardon?" she asked politely.

The tall red-head slowly crossed the room and then sat down beside her, so that they were both facing the big window. Sen could easily sense his ki—that odd blend of both human and Oni that seemed unique to him, even among his part-Oni comrades.

"Ah, never mind me, Princess," Harada said. His amber eyes fastened on her face. "I don't really think that you tried to influence his mind—or if you did then it wasn't much, or on purpose—but I have a suspicious side that comes out sometimes. And…" He paused, as if debating something, and finally continued, "I've kind of been wondering…"

Sen was now regarding him warily. He was suspicious of her? Why? Harada-san looked uncomfortable.

"Did you really want to kiss me the other day?" he asked, in his usual direct way.

Sen blinked at him in surprise. She hadn't been expecting that. Had it really been so strange?

"Yes—yes, I did," she said, trying not to blush and not quite succeeding. "Why?"

"Well, I've been trying to figure out why I kissed you like that—no, wait! That came out badly. Um. Would you believe, I don't usually kiss a girl on a first date? Or even a second? At least, not in the usual way of things."

"And?" Sen's voice was frosty. "Do you think that I would stoop to something as… as ridiculous as needing to coerce you into kissing me? Is that what you think of me?"

Harada turned quickly. He was making a mess of things in a way that made him suddenly realize how nervous he was about the situation. It had been a long time since he'd been this awkward.

"No, that's not what I think of you." He looked at her rather stormy profile. "Sen-hime. You really are a princess. And an Oni. That's not really in my frame of reference, you know?"

Sen turned her head a little and looked at him. She was hurt, because he obviously had wondered if she'd pushed him a bit with her mind. And didn't you, just a bit? her traitorous conscience asked. Reluctantly, she forced herself to meet his eyes. Deep pink and bright amber eyes—what would their children look like? Sen blushed, and as though he had caught the edge of her thought, Harada-san gave her an odd, puzzled, half-embarrassed look.

"Um, Sen-hime? I have this feeling that there's something that you aren't telling me and it bothers me."

Sen tried to think what to do. Despite Oni stamina and abilities, she was tired, and although Kondō-san's visit had been interesting, it had been fatiguing in its own way too, especially with Hijikata-san watching her out of those deep purple eyes of his. They were Oni eyes, speaking to her of the wild North and a bloodline not seen in almost a thousand years. It was always most exhausting when her special Gifts suddenly decided to manifest unbidden.

"Yes," she said suddenly, heedless of the tiny break in her voice, "yes, there is something. I told you that before. And I think that telling you would make things worse. But since you're feeling suspicious about whether either of us has any genuine feelings—and thank you for the compliment—I'll tell you what I know and if it all falls apart then so be it. I just don't want to juggle things on my own anymore."

Harada was frowning now. He could hear the note of stress, and no matter how wary time and experience had taught him to be, he disliked causing distress to any woman, especially one that he cared about. Ironically, if he had cared less, he would have been less suspicious.

"No, we won't do it that way," he said firmly, in response to Sen's offer. "If I'm out of line, then say so, and I'll let it go. If you want to tell me what it's about, then I'll help you, short of breaking my promises to others." He studied her, and then gently turned her to face him. "Believe it or not, I can be very patient."

Sen gnawed at her lower lip. She never spoke of this. Never. But there was a lot at stake, and with Amagiri here, this time for an unknown amount of time, Kimigiku would be dealing with her own issues. She felt Harada-san's big hands close over her own small ones.

"Hime-chan," he said, his voice kind again, and concerned. "I'm sorry to have pushed you on this. We just need to get to know each other better, right? Besides, I notice that Kimigiku-san has decided to leave you unchaperoned for a few minutes, so I shouldn't be wasting time with pointless worries."

Sen found she couldn't answer. One part of her just wanted to be near him and the other part was still hurt. And she wished that she could share her burden, just a little.

Harada hesitated, but not for long. Either it was all a trick, or Sen-hime was honestly upset about something. Shinpachi would probably call him an idiot (if he was wrong and if the other man found out about it), but he very much wanted to believe that it wasn't a trick. Heedless of the fact that Kimigiku-san could come in at any time, he uncrossed his legs and pulled the Oni princess closer to him—although not in the way that she'd expected. Instead, he sat her with her back to him and carefully started taking the heavy ornaments out of her hair. When he heard a faint sigh of relief, he knew that starting with basic physical comfort had been a good choice.

"You know," murmured Sen, as Harada started to unpin her hair from the soft padding that gave it its elaborate, rounded shape, "I might wonder how an unmarried man could be so familiar with how to take down a woman's hair without so much as a single accidental tug."

Harada was unembarrassed, although a watcher might have seen a slight twinkle in his eyes.

"Natural talent, I suppose," he replied gravely.

"Of course," said Sen, a little dryly. But her stiff shoulders had relaxed, and he could tell that her eyes had closed, even though he couldn't see her face.

Kimigiku-san still hadn't come in by the time that Sen's hair was completely free of ornaments, gold wire, padding, and pins. It was an extraordinarily intimate moment, certainly by current standards. Sen was surprised that she wasn't completely embarrassed, but mostly she felt sleepy. The other sensations, the unfamiliar, dangerous ones, she tried to set aside, although it wasn't easy, especially when the man behind her started to gently massage the back of her head and neck with strong, competent fingers.

"You're exhausted, aren't you?" asked Harada, after a few minutes.

"I'm a little tired," Sen admitted.

Before either of them could say more, they sensed Kazama Chiharu-sama approaching. Since it seemed very unlikely that Sen's intelligent and well-bred cousin would interrupt them without a good cause, they accepted their fate with moderately good grace, although Sen giggled when Harada-san sent her a mental image of himself with red cheeks and a little storm cloud over his head. He helped her to sit a little more decorously at the table and then sat down cross-legged just around the corner from her.

Chiharu carefully waited before excusing herself and entering the room. She honestly didn't want to embarrass Osen-chan, but this was her best chance to speak with her cousin and Harada-san together. She had racked her brain for a gentle way to explain things—to share what she'd been told by Suzuka-hime—but nothing had presented itself. Moreover, she had been serious when she had told both the ancient demoness and her own mother that she was tired of secrets. And if she hadn't said it, then she was sure that she had conveyed the sentiment.

Harada-san bowed politely to her, and although his interest in her cousin seemed less guarded than before, anything other than that was well-concealed. Osen-chan, on the other hand, seemed very quiet, her thoughts and feelings both masked. Only the long, smooth brown hair that flowed unchecked down her back indicated that anything had passed between them. Chiharu felt a sudden pang of envy, which surprised her, since she didn't think she particularly wanted a mate herself just yet. The strong bond between Saitō-sama and Chizuru-sama had been almost uncomfortable to witness the night before.

"I told you almost everything about my discussion with Suzuka-hime," Chiharu began, without preliminary. She felt Harada-san tense at the name and had to force herself to continue. "But I left out one thing because… well, because I wasn't sure who I should tell. Or how."

"There seems to be a lot of that going around, Haru-chan," said Sen ruefully.

"Yes. Well, I've decided to tell you what she said to me, and… let you decide what she meant, I suppose."

Sen nodded.

"Please tell us what she said that concerns you," Harada said politely.

"Thank you, Harada-san. These were her words: 'although Osen-chan is extremely capable, she could use a friend to help her manage the Yukimura girl as well as my son.' She never really explained that part, but… I think she meant it quite literally."

The Princess of the Oni had gone pale. Harada was frowning, but hadn't made the connection.

"So you're saying that the thousand-year-old former princess may have a living son here in Kyoto? And she wants Sen-hime to help him?"

"Well… yes. But let me use illusion to show you Suzuka-hime. It may help us to discover her meaning."

"I suppose it might," Sen conceded, in a strained voice.

Harada-san gave the younger woman a look of concern. "Osen-chan, are you alright?"

"Just, let's see, alright?"

"Sure," said Harada. He gestured with a smile. "Please show us the mysterious Suzuka-hime."

Chiharu drew a deep breath, and then traced her fingers through the air. The Kazama tended to be able to make strong illusions—it was an advanced Gift of Mind—and Chiharu and Chikage were both very talented. A few moments passed, and then a tall, very beautiful red-haired woman with golden eyes appeared in the center of the room. Chiharu left out the small horns; if her guess was correct, Suzuka-hime would not have allowed anyone to see them while she was living among humans.

Harada-san shot to his feet, eyes wide with shock.

"Mother?!"

[III] - Old Wounds

Kimigiku had hesitated to leave Sen-hime and Harada-san alone together, but she knew that her beloved princess was hoping for just that. At sixteen, and long past her three Trials, Sen-hime was an adult; that meant that she was entitled to some privacy. It was difficult not to worry, however. There was something about the red-haired man that the Princess hadn't told Kimigiku. As one of the very few to know of the Okikurune Gift of Sight, Kimigiku suspected that it had to do with some kind of vision that was too personal to share.

The shinobi was more than a little surprised to find that her musings had brought her to the door of Amagiri's sick-room. Her immediate instinct was to leave; after all, while they had managed to get along better than usual in the past week, they were not really on good terms. On the other hand… If she understood things correctly, he was now free of his oath to the Kazama for the first time since before Kenshin's birth.

Once upon a time, she and Amagiri had been close friends. When he had first fallen in love with her sister, it had seemed like a perfect situation, although her mother's ambition to marry Kameko (as she then was) to the young Kazama Chikage-sama had been a stumbling block. But the bigger obstacle to a happy ending for the romance, from Kimigiku's point of view, had been Amagiri—Kyūju—himself. Even then, he had been a quiet man, although not nearly as reserved has he had become when everything had fallen apart.

Kyūju had been older and less impetuous than the Yukishima twins, and he had been unwilling to fight publicly for a relationship that had no sanction from the various clan heads. He had warned that rash action would bring disaster, and he had been right, but Kameko had been hurt by his apparent lack of commitment. The teenage Kimigiku—Kimiko—had also been disappointed, and had thought him a coward. In retrospect, she was beginning to wonder if Kyūju had been braver than she had realized; he had defied both his lover and his best friend (and presumably his own inclination) in order to protect them all from what he saw as the harsh consequences of going too far.

What he had done when things did go wrong had been unforgivable, however. Or so it had seemed at the time. But maybe now he would be willing to explain the actions that had caused the final breach between the two of them. As she hesitated in front of the door, a familiar presence touched her mind.

I am awake, Kimigiku-san. You might as well come in.

Irritated that he was just as good at sensing and predicting her now as he had been in the past, Kimigiku slid open the door with less than her usual grace. Her annoyance faded immediately, however, at the sight of the unnaturally white face with its brutal x-shaped scar; it reminded her of the mangled arm that ended at the wrist. Although—

"Your face looks much better healed than it did two hours ago," the shinobi told Amagiri, surprise making her blunt.

"Good afternoon, Kimigiku-san. Thank you for your visit."

"Was it Chizuru-sama, do you think?"

They stared stubbornly at each other for a full minute, and then Kimigiku shook her head.

"Very well. You're the guest and the invalid, after all. Konnichiwa, Amagiri-san. How are you?"

"I believe that I have been better. However, I agree with you that my wounds are not nearly as bad as they were two hours ago. At least, based on how they feel. Perhaps you might check the bandage on my neck?"

With a sigh, Kimigiku carefully unwound the bandage on Amagiri's neck. As the red-haired Oni had suspected, the wound was closed, if not fully healed.

"That's impressive," the shinobi murmured.

"It is. What is also interesting is that earlier—either very late last night or very early this morning—when I was uninjured but very tired, I unexpectedly recovered a significant amount of stamina. Hijikata-san suggested that although Yukimura-sama's own energy is used when she heals others, that energy, together with the strength and scope of the healing magic itself, is augmented by being with her mate—her husband, now. The closer the interaction the greater the effect."

Kimigiku stared at him, partly amused and partly dismayed.

"Are you saying that when they're physically intimate she heals those around her?!"

"Aa. Or so it seems. Of course, we don't know what causes the effect, or whether it is something of which she is even aware. It could simply be a matter of her emotional state, after all. I do not believe that Hijikata-san has been inclined to ask questions." Amagiri kept his face and voice deliberately bland.

"I should hope not!"

"Since when are you inclined to be embarrassed by the pleasures of others, Kimigiku-san?"

The question hung dangerously for a moment. Then Kimigiku forced down her temper and seated herself neatly on the odd, western-style stool beside the raised bed. The anger had faded completely from her purple eyes; rather, they held compassion. The damage that had been inflicted upon her former friend had been terrible, and either permanent or potentially years in the healing. Unless Chizuru-sama could help, of course. Even if she could, more than just physical pain had been involved.

"I'm older now, Kyūju. You're trying—with a notable lack of success, by the way—to keep me from asking what happened between you and Kameko. Why did you leave her when she needed you most? Why would you refuse to fight for her when they took her child—your child—from her? You wouldn't even see her again! And I know that my mother—as awful as she was—gave permission for that, at least. What possible excuse can there be for abandoning her, alone and with child, when she was only in that condition because of her love for you?!"

"Older, but not wiser," noted Amagiri, coolly. "If your sister will not tell you then why would I? After ten years—no, almost eleven years—what difference does it make?"

"I haven't seen my sister for most of the last ten years," Kimigiku replied in stark tones. "To be honest, I'm worried about her. Aren't you? Or did you never love her after all?"

The challenge didn't pass entirely unremarked. The pale, scarred features reddened slightly. Amagiri looked odd without his beard, thought Kimigiku, watching the colour rise and then quickly fade away again. She and Chizuru had needed to clip parts of the beard in order to look after the cheek and neck wounds, although mostly just to keep the surrounding areas as clean as possible. Amagiri had decided himself to get rid of the rest of it at some point. It was an odd thought, but the shinobi suddenly wondered if maybe Hijikata-san had helped with that.

Kimigiku was contemplating what to do or say next, when Amagiri surprised her by suddenly conceding defeat. She sensed it the instant that he decided to break his decade-long silence. In a moment, she found out why.

"The woman calling herself Suzuka-hime told Chiharu-sama most of the story, you know. She and Sen-hime—and possibly Chizuru-sama, if they can recruit her—are supposed to right all wrongs." Amagiri's lips pulled into a thin line for a moment. "It seems that none of us is to be spared pain and humiliation in the days to come."

Kimigiku stared down into the sky blue eyes, a little shocked at the depth of the bitterness in his voice. Then again, she supposed that she sounded the same way when she spoke of the alleged First Princess of the Oni. After a moment, Amagiri looked away, and she reminded herself to be patient. It was a rare man who would even speak to her in such circumstances; men did not like to be seen when they were truly vulnerable. She was tempted to let the matter drop and take it up on a different day. However, the choice was taken out of her hands.

"Very well, Kimigiku. I doubt that you will understand, and I am certain that you will not like what I have to say, but since it seems that we must be allies again, if not friends, I will try to explain. I accept your word that you are unable to see or speak with your sister. But once I have told you, do not blame me—although that would be a first—if your sister is unhappy that I spoke to you of this."

Amagiri continued without waiting for a response:

"For many of the years that we were lovers, your sister and I—Kameko and I—did little more than hold hands and kiss during the limited opportunities we were allowed to be alone together. That was normal given our ages, the nature of our race, and how we were raised."

Kimigiku had to agree. The Oni, by and large, did not take casual lovers. Most likely it was because the body could not follow where the mind was not engaged—the difficulty of being by nature a telepathic and empathic race. There were exceptions, of course, although Shiranui Toshio-sama was an exception on a rather large scale. However…

"Obviously, that changed." Kimigiku realized that her tone was too sharp, and tried to soften her words. "I did not mean to sound so accusing—or maybe I did, but I shouldn't have. I know that you are telling the truth, but I also know that eventually you changed your mind. Kameko was hurt that you would not trust yourself to her and overjoyed when you did."

"I know. And I was right not to trust her. Nobody, not even Kazama Chikage, has inflicted the pain, the daily grief, that Yukishima Kameko has forced me to endure."

Amagiri's words and tone were both harsh, and Kimigiku recoiled. She had never once seen or sensed this emotion, this deep and evidently abiding anger. Confused, but upset on behalf of her beloved younger twin, she opened her mouth to speak. She found that she couldn't.

Don't. You asked to hear the truth. I warned you that you would not like it. You will hear me out and then you can say or do whatever you like.

Kimigiku had to use all of her own significant self-control to remain sitting calmly—or apparently calmly—on the wooden stool. It was always easy to underestimate Kyūju because he was so passive. Over the last decade he had been Kazama Chikage's perfect servant; it was no wonder that she had forgotten that he was exceptionally talented with the Gifts of Soul, especially for a male Oni. Also, he seemed to have honed his supposedly limited coercive Gifts of Mind, possibly because of his long association with Chikage-sama.

"I gave way to Kameko's wishes in large part because I did love her and I knew that she was hurt. However, I do not mean to say that I am not responsible for my own decision. I loved and desired Kameko; if I resented the pressure to be together in a way that I felt was inappropriate and dangerous, there was also great pleasure in it. I assure you that in more than a decade of paying for my mistakes, I have not spared myself."

All at once Kimigiku knew what had happened, and was appalled. And yet, it would not be beyond her sister to behave in that way. She had been desperately in love and desperate to escape an oppressive and arguably abusive mother. That much, Kimigiku had guessed. She just hadn't been willing to extrapolate the rest of it. Amagiri went on inexorably.

"The only condition I ever imposed was that we would produce no child. It would be intolerable to have a child in such circumstances. I was very much aware of the temperament of Kazama-sama, and Yukishima-sama's ambition was well-known to me as well. I believed that the repercussions for any us—for Kameko, for myself, and most of all for an innocent child—did not justify the risk. I explained this to Kameko, and in my arrogance I assumed that I would know if she lied. But she did lie. As you know, she wanted to leave your mother's tyranny more than anything else. She never believed me that her chosen course of action was reckless; instead, she told herself that she was being brave for both of us. She broke her promise to me not to try to conceive a child. It took her several years, because of course I adamantly did not wish it. But as time went on, and especially after Yukimura Chizuru-sama was born with a twin brother, my own concerns must have abated a little. This does not mean that I wanted a child—not under the conditions that still existed. But I suppose even reduced resistance was sufficient."

Still unable to speak, Kimigiku could only stare at him, all too aware of the appalling consequences of her sister's betrayal. Unless Kyūju was lying to her, her sister had broken her word, in itself a grievous offence for an Oni; on top of that, she had broken her word about something as important as bearing a child.

"I never realized what she was doing," Amagiri said, his eyes now closed and the circles under and around them more pronounced. "I blame myself for that most of all. How could I have missed it? Either I was willfully blind—and I can find no evidence in myself of such blindness—or the strength of her belief and determination was sufficient to conceal her true feelings on the matter. In any event, when she came to me one day, loving and beautiful and triumphant, to announce that she was pregnant with our child, I was horrified and repelled. Nevertheless, had her manipulative, self-serving decision brought about the result that she longed for, then I would have done everything in my power to repair our relationship. Instead, the worst happened, exactly as I had foreseen."

Amagiri carefully turned his head, his eyes once again open. Very reluctantly, Kimigiku made herself meet that stern gaze.

"Because of your sister, I have endured a decade of bondage; far worse, I did not get to raise my son. I have watched him grow up without me, the supposed child of the man who determined the conditions of my punishment and humiliation. The only thing that I was spared was that Kazama-sama did not live long enough after Kenshin's birth to form any close bond with him. His death was, shall we say, very sudden. I found myself unable to mourn his passing."

Kimigiku pushed irritably against the coercion that held her mute, and it disappeared immediately—though clearly by Amagiri's will, not hers.

"So you know about that too," she said softly. "I can see it in your eyes."

I will not speak of that aloud, Kimigiku. But how could I not guess? I have known you since you were a child. And, just this once, I will say that I was shocked but also impressed that you succeeded.

… Arigatō, Kyūju.

"There is one thing that I must add, for the safety of my son: I was compelled to give my word not to speak of any of this, especially not to Chikage-sama, on the understanding that Kazama-sama would not hesitate to have the boy killed the moment that I breached the smallest condition of my bond; it was implied that your mother felt the same way. I made no promises to Yukishima-sama—as you know, I have avoided your family to the greatest extent possible since Kenshin's birth. But I ask you to consider carefully whether Kenshin will be safe with Chikage-sama's mother once your mother finds out that my ties to the Kazama are gone. As angry as you have been with me for deserting Kameko, I refuse to believe that you would not protect your sister's son."

Kimigiku heard him through the jumble of emotions stirred up by the possibility that her mother would contemplate injuring her own grandson. Pride alone gave her the resilience to respond.

"Let me think this through. Of course I'll do everything I can to protect Kenshin—I always have. You seem to have other allies as well, now."

Amagiri's face was unreadable once more.

"Who knows? I have been given from one service into another. It is hard to say what will come of it."

Kimigiku stood abruptly. "Don't be an idiot. Saitō-sama is absolutely without conscience in defense of those he cares about. And even if that doesn't extend to you, Chizuru-sama is quite determined in her own way, you know."

Amagiri managed a very faint smile.

"Yes, I've noticed. So if you are prepared to call me an idiot does that mean we have a truce?"

Kimigiku rolled her eyes in a way that would have greatly surprised Sen.

"Oh for the gods' sakes, Kyūju!"

"I don't take anything for granted anymore, Kimigiku," Amagiri said flatly.

"I will look after Kenshin."

Suddenly they both frowned and looked toward the front of the house. Without further words, her focus suddenly redirected, Kimigiku vanished from the room. Something or somebody had just shocked Sen-hime badly, and if it was the lanky red-head then he was going to wish he had never been born.

[IV] New Wounds

Strong hands helped Yamazaki to sit up. It was the Vice Commander, he suddenly realized, and his eyes flew open in mortification.

"Well, Yamazaki, I'm glad to see you alive and well. I understand that our spy managed to throw you off a building into an ambush."

"Not much left of the ambush by that point," growled another familiar voice to Yamazaki's right. Wonderful. He seemed to be in Okita-san's room. It made sense, but it was annoying.

"Quite whining, Sōji," cut in a lighter voice, rather unexpectedly. "You're lucky that Yamazaki's too nice to refuse to sew you up all the time. Especially since Chizuru-chan's away."

"Shut up, all of you," the Vice Commander cut in, to Yamazaki's great relief.

The shinobi-medic's head was aching badly. He very much wished that Yukimura—or was it Saitō-san now?—wasn't away. Whatever her name was, he was quite certain that she would have had lavender water nearby for him and her voice would have been quiet and soothing. He was reasonably sure that he had a concussion. The real surprise was that he hadn't broken both his legs.

Just then, somebody—Nagakura-san?—handed him a wet cloth that smelled of… lavender? Yamazaki neatly folded the cloth in four and pressed it gently to his forehead. It didn't do much for the pain, but the feeling and the scent still brought a measure of relief.

"There, see I told you that would help," said Okita in a smug voice. "Chizuru-chan always uses it for stuff like this."

"Fine, good call." Hijikata-san was examining Yamazaki through narrowed eyes. "Concussion and some bruising. Damn."

"I'm already feeling much better, Vice Commander," said Yamazaki.

"Of course you are. How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Ah… four?"

"Exactly. You aren't going anywhere."

"Yeah, and you aren't sewing me up when you can't tell two fingers from four," muttered Okita.

"Is there anybody else that you can recommend, Yamazaki-kun?"

Yamazaki tried to crane around—he hadn't realized that the Commander was there as well. The movement was a mistake and the room spun. Hijkata-san caught him again and settled him back with surprising deftness. Of course, the man had been tending injuries for a few years before Yamazaki had joined the Shinsengumi.

"Should I call her Saitō-san now?" the medic was horrified to hear himself ask. He clapped a hand over his mouth, but the Vice Commander didn't seem to consider the question to be strange.

"Damned if I know. So, who else can sew up a couple of bad cuts?"

After a moment of (literally) painful thought, Yamazaki reluctantly concluded that there really wasn't a lot of choice.

"Shimada has helped me often enough, and he has steady hands. If you can wait an hour or two, I will most likely be doing much better. My skull is swollen on the back left, but it no longer appears to be bleeding. There are one or two things that might help reduce the swelling, but on the whole it isn't bad. If it cannot wait, then I recommend asking Sannan-san to supervise."

"Right. I think I want Sōji looked at right away. Nagakura—go get Sannan-san. Heisuke—find Shimada. They're likely both in their rooms. Commander, I'm going to have to help Shimada: would you mind finding out whether there's any news from Gen-san or Takeda?"

"Good idea, Toshi." Yamazaki had already closed his eyes, but he could feel the Commander smile. "Good luck, Sōji; good work, Yamazaki-kun. Oh—and well done, Heisuke-kun!"

There was another grumble from Okita-san and something like embarrassed thanks from Tōdō-kun. Yamazaki went back to considering what had happened, but his head really did hurt a great deal. He turned the cloth again on his forehead and endured.

[END]

A/Note: All reviews and comments welcome! I love it when a plan comes together...