a/n: It's finally revealed! The truth behind Tomoe's death! Well, sort of... It's two parts, so she won't actually die until the next chapter so... Don't forget to review!

Disclaimer: If Kenshin were my body-slave, I wouldn't be writing this... I'd be doing all sorts of sinfully delicious things to his body with an assortment of ice cream toppings...

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Chapter 8: Answers, Part I

Kaoru stared out the window in Kenshin's bedroom with troubled eyes. When Kenshin had picked her up and told her about the demon… She shook her head. She just couldn't believe it. Enishi had disobeyed a direct order. Even worse, he'd confronted Kenshin.

"It was weird," Kenshin said, glancing at her. "He just showed up out of nowhere and then, after about thirty seconds, he disappeared again."

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "What'd he look like?"

"He had green eyes. And white hair. Definitely not your ordinary assassination crasher."

Her eyes widened. "Enishi…"

"Huh?"

"What did he say to you?"

"Nothing much. I asked him who he was and he said the was just there to watch and that I would know his name soon enough."

Kaoru sighed. "This is the last thing I needed."

"Who is he?"

"No one important," she replied. "No one important…"

"Kaoru!" Kenshin called from the kitchen. "It's time to go."

With a sigh, she stood up and met him by the door. At least, some of her questions would be at rest after this afternoon. She was going to find out what drove Enishi to seek revenge. She was almost positive that he knew the whole story. He had to. The last they knew, Tomoe was living happily in the human realm, despite how unhappy her people were.

They hadn't even known she was dead.

She needed answers.

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Kaoru merely stared at him. "Well?"

"Well, what?" Hiko asked, staring right back.

"Hiko, don't play games with me. Spill."

He sighed. "You probably should have heard this from my baka deshi."

"I don't have the patience to wait for him to face his past," she retorted sharply.

With another sigh, he bowed his head. "I will tell you what I know. There is some that I don't know, however."

She nodded her understanding and waited for him continue.

So he opened his mouth and spoke the story that had carved Battousai's present life…

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Tomoe stood at the entrance, awaiting her contact. Kaoru had warned her about venturing too close to the door between, but hadn't bothered to listen. She would not allow humans to scare her away from her own land.

The door swung open before she had a chance to move.

Her head turned slowly, gracefully and her ice eyes met the flaming amber eyes of a monster. She did not gasp or jump away in fear as he had anticipated of her. Her gaze was almost disinterested.

"You are late," she whispered.

"I was held up."

She shook her head and a small smile worked its way up to her lips. "But you are here now."

"Yes. I came for you," he answered, smiling in return.

He held his hand out and her smile widened.

"I have been waiting for so long… So long," she murmured, taking his hand in hers tenderly.

He pulled her along towards the exit. "I… We are going up there?"

"Yes," he uttered, pulling her close. "Or would you rather stay here? Alone?"

She looked lost for a moment. "I… I would not be alone."

He stared, waiting for her to elaborate.

"I… But I will go with you," she finally finished, squeezing his hand.

"I will never let anything happen to you," he promised quietly. "You will be loved. Cared for."

She gave him a watery smile and said the words she'd waited so long to utter, "I love you."

His smile was fiercely proud and possessive as he looked into her sincere eyes. He nodded his acceptance of the phrase, but did not repeat it. She knew what he felt without needing him to prove it with flowery words or intimate gestures. His presence was enough to calm her.

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"So she did love him," Kaoru whispered.

"Would let me finish? And don't interrupt anymore."

She nodded grudgingly and let him go on….

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From that day they were together. They were secluded most of the time, choosing to stay indoors with only each other instead of venturing into the uncaring world. They had had a small wedding at a local shrine, but it hadn't been a big ordeal. Simply an exchanging of vows. They hadn't even been dressed formally for the event.

Tomoe never left his apartment. He would leave for short periods of time in order to complete his missions, but she would never accompany him. She would watch him leave and wave good-bye with special smiles and wish him a safe return before retiring to their room to write in her journal.

A sad smile played on her face one evening after she'd bid him farewell and her entry was short and sweet.

Diary,

It is tonight. They will kill him. And I will die with him. I… My will is weak. I couldn't save him the way I wanted…

Tomoe

A lone tear slipped from her eyes as she heard pounding on the door. They had come. They would take her hostage and she would have no choice but to obey them if she had any chance of saving him. The pounding became violent and the door gave in and fell to the floor in splinters.

"Tomoe," a harsh voice whispered. Akira.

"I… I don't-"

"There is no backing out now, love," he told her, grasping her hand in his.

"Please, Akira… I… I never wanted to hurt him!"

"Of course you didn't!" he said sarcastically. "Look, whether you like it or not, he's going to die."

"Akira… I thought you understood!" Her face contorted in anger and sadness, tears spilling over her cheeks.

"Tomoe, I understand that I was paid to get rid of him," he answered roughly. "For the betterment of our people."

She sobbed. There was no way… She knew from the beginning what his fate would be even if she'd tried to prevent it. She thought it would be easier, somehow. Her mission was simple after all. She was going to protect him from their plot, but it… She was not strong enough.

"Tomoe, you knew as well as I did what we were attempting to do from day one," he pointed out. "I don't know how or why you've suddenly developed these childish feelings for him."

"I… I love him! Please, he's not the monster you think he is!"

He snorted. "I wish I could believe you. Now come on!"

He dragged her sobbing form through the destroyed door and towards the exit.

Tomoe cried into her hands as she sat on the wooden floor of the small cabin and thought about the brilliant plan she and her friend had come up with. It was for the people of the underworld. Surely it would be easy… her part hadn't been all that difficult. She was to observe him every time he ventured into their world. And observe him she had, only… The emotions that had bubbled forth every time she saw him were far from hate.

It was amazement.

After observing him for months, it was time for her to reveal herself. She was fairly certain that she'd been caught in the act more than once, but he'd never called her out. It was time for her to call herself out. After that, they met every chance they could get, until he offered to take her away with him. They set a time and place to meet and… from there, she was his.

Instead of carefully spinning a web of deceit to plan his death, she found herself falling in love with him and trying to find a way to protect him from Akira. But…

An agonized whimper fell from her lips and Akira gave her a look of disgust before shaking his head.

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Something was wrong. He could tell before he even made it back to apartment. He broke into a sprint and stopped dead at the sight that met his eyes. The door was shattered. It was in pieces at his feet. There was no blood and something in him unclenched, but the fact that hardly any traces of her scent lingered in the air made it re-clench. Someone had taken her.

He would paint the streets in blood to find her.

TBC

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