"When things are perfect, that's when you need to worry most." - Drew Barrymore
Jasmine: …(Sweat drop)(Tears) Please forgive me, I am an idiot. I know I haven't updated. I'M -SORRY-, OKAY? (Sob) …And I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. Goddess knows what I would do if I did.
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The Difference Between Love And Loathing - Chapter Eleven: Haze
-One week later-
(With Saito and Misao in downtown Tokyo, March 26, 2005.11:34 a.m.)
What had once started out as a normal, fairly bright, sunny day now was turning into quite a horrid mess for everyone's favorite wolf and weasel. The clouds that hung languidly in the slate-gray sky were dark and bloated with precipitation and unleashing their fury upon passersby below. The rain fell in unforgiving torrents, thus thoroughly soaking the hapless shoppers wandering aimlessly around downtown Tokyo. This included our protagonists, only one of which was wearing a jacket. The other, the poor thing, was clad in only a white button-down shirt and black jeans; not the best attire for such a dismal day.
I bet you can guess who that was.
"Carry your own bags, weasel. There's no way in hell I'm going to carry them for you."
"But you're my bodyguard, you jerk! Aren't you supposed to, you know, guard my body? That means guarding it from physical strain, too!"
The tone of his voice held unspoken threats of dismemberment if she refused to shut up soon, "Listen carefully, Misao: I am your bodyguard, not your servant. Didn't we make this clear when you ordered me to make you onigiri yesterday?"
She crossed her arms, inwardly grinning triumphantly. "And they were delicious, thanks muchly."
An irritated growl was the only warning she had before she was pushed none-too-gently into the nearest brick wall, Saito's face barely inches away from hers and looking quite ticked off (to put it lightly). "Okay, itachi, how's this for guarding, hmm?" He leaned closer and pressed his body nearer to hers, amber eyes narrowing into slits. "Good enough for you?"
It took all of Misao's willpower to avoid shrinking before his heated glare. Despite her fight to suppress it, however, a rosy blush crept traitorously across her cheeks at his close proximity. Heartbeat thundering in her ears, she vainly shoved at his shoulders and squeaked, "Ge-get offa me, you behemoth! People're s-staring!"
A low chuckle, and then, "You think I care if they're staring, Misao? Let them watch all they want."
She didn't trust the dangerous-looking smirk he was sporting anymore than she trusted Tae's boyfriend advice.
"W-well I care, all right? Now m-move, dammit!" Misao furiously slammed her fists into his chest again and again, growing more and more peeved when he remained unmoved. "Annoying bastard, let g—!"
Before the weasel had time to blink, her wrists were suddenly grabbed in an unbreakable hold, wrenched away from the wolf's shoulders, and tightly pinned down by her sides. She looked up in surprise, ready to give him a piece of her mind, only to see that Saito's mouth was mere centimeters from her own, causing her pulse to increase even more rapidly than before. Her breath caught in her throat and her struggles waned immediately, blue-green eyes widening with the sudden feeling of being crushed into his chest. Heart throbbing feverishly against her ribcage (she was absolutely, positively sure that he could feel it), the weasel fought to come up with something, anything to say, but was at a complete and utter loss for words.
"Something wrong, Misao?" he growled deeply into her ear, further causing the poor girl to melt into his arms. She was sure that she would be a puddle on the sidewalk if he wasn't holding her up.
"A-ah, I…w-well, I just," she stuttered, gaze locked firmly onto his mouth. K-Kami-sama, is he gonna kiss me? Better question: do I want him to kiss me?, her thoughts warred with one another, both sides furiously trying to come up with all the reasons she both desperately wanted said kissage and, in turn, abhorred the very idea with a passion. "U-uhh…"
Saito's smirk widened, causing the girl to fidget even more. "'Uhh'?" Of course he didn't plan on kissing her. It was just so easy (not to mention fun) to rile her up; plus, this would double as a warning for her to stop annoying him—something that normal people wouldn't dare to attempt. Misao, however, wasn't included in that group.
The weasel tried to swallow past the lump in her throat, but was a bit distracted by a droplet of water sliding down the wolf's cheek. Almost as if in a trance, she managed to twist one of her hands free from Saito's relaxed grip and slowly brought it up to rest against his face, wiping away the raindrop in the process. Something seemed to spark in those amber eyes of his, and she was suddenly afraid that she'd crossed some sort of invisible line.
She heard him make some sort of exclamation and move to pull away. Before he could, however, Misao opened her mouth to speak, voice quiet, yet firm, "Sai—"
The weasel was abruptly cut off when the wolf suddenly lurched forward, surprise clearly written all over his features as a man accidentally knocked into his back from behind. Lips slamming into and thus locking firmly with the weasel's, Saito was momentarily thrown for a complete and utter loop by this new and thoroughly disturbing turn of events.
"Oh, sorry!" The jogger called out without a backwards glance, disappearing around the street corner before he saw what he had done.
Blue-green eyes as huge as saucers, Misao barely managed to grip the lapels of Saito's leather jacket before she drifted off into a sea of feelings, fearing that if she dared to let go…she would surely be lost forever. All thoughts of the outside world drifted off until only she and the wolf were left alone, Tokyo melting off into the distance behind them.
The milliseconds ticked by like hours, the seconds like days, the minutes like years. Misao felt that if the— was it a kiss? — didn't end soon, she would without doubt implode from the inside, consumed by the flames and fireworks erupting through her chest. And dimly, way back in the very recesses of her mind, Misao was aware of the reality that it was not in fact Aoshi who was kissing her. No …this man was not Aoshi at all, no matter how hard she tried to pretend otherwise.
Finally, finally, the wolf managed to break the kiss and turn his head away, frowning harshly in haze-induced confusion. He heard Misao make a small noise of protest and he glanced down at her emotionlessly, amber eyes nearly hidden behind sodden bangs. Suddenly angry at his lack of self-control, he fought back the fog in his mind and took a few steps away from the stunned weasel.
Before her brain was properly ready for any attempt at thinking, Misao hesitantly spoke again, "H-Hajime…"
The wolf abruptly started off down the street, agitatedly searched his pockets for a fresh pack of cigarettes, and yelled back over his shoulder, "Grab your bags and hurry up, weasel. I want to get this damned shopping done!"
Viciously thrown from her stupor at the sound of his voice, Misao's knees finally gave out, and she slid slowly down the damp wall to come to a stop on the wet sidewalk. Ignoring the chill on her back and the water seeping through her pants, mind spinning with sensation, the weasel hesitantly touched her lips, awe written visibly across her face.
It had been an accident, that was all. Saito had been pushed into her. Really. Neither meant for that kiss to happen. And it wasn't a real kiss, anyway! Just…just a simple brushing of the lips! Even though that wasn't really brushing, Misao, a little voice whispered inside her head. That was more like CRUSHING! He didn't even try to pull away, and you know it! Of course, you didn't either, now did you? Hee, hee, hee! Maybe Tae wasn't as far off as you would like to think, huh?
"Hurry up, weasel! I don't want this to take all day!"
"M-MEEP! C-coming, wolf!" Immediately shaking off her stomach-churning thoughts, Misao gathered up her dropped shopping bags and hurried off after the man, furiously fighting off a blush as she went.
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The girl was taking far too long to buy a simple gallon of milk. Honestly, was it really that difficult to decide between whole and skim? Was there even an actual difference between them?
"Hmm, I should probably lay off the whole for awhile. I think I'm gaining too much weight…"
He would have sighed, but it seemed as though he was past the point of complete and utter frustration. Shopping was always an easy affair for him: make a list, drive to the store, and get whatever it was he needed. He was in and out in five minutes, tops. Misao, on the other hand…
"But skim tastes so gross! It's practically water! AND it's absolutely no good for chocolate milk!"
A growl tore free from Saito's throat. "Why don't you just buy both, weasel?"
"Well, wolf, what the hell am I gonna to do with two gallons of milk, huh?" she retorted, arms crossed firmly across her chest. "It's not like you'll drink it! I don't really see you as a milk-drinking kind of guy!"
Another growl sounded, closely followed by the hiss of a cigarette being lit. "Then hurry up and pick one, you little moron. I don't intend on spending all day in this accursed place with you."
Misao's eyes caught fire with rage. "HEY! Why you...you…YOU BEHEMOTH OF A JERK! JACKASS OF ALL JACKASSES, KING OF CREEPS, RULER OF MEANIES, BIG-HEADED BRUTE!"
Well now, this certainly was amusing. "I'm pleased you've discovered another plethora of insults, weasel. Please, go on."
Who was she to deny? This time, she would give the man a piece of her mind! "You know what you are, Saito? You're just a high and mighty bastard, unable to figure out that there are other people in the world besides yourself, you self-absorbed slimeball! You don't care about anything or anyone because you're an insufferable, intolerable, impossible, HEARTLESS DEMON! I can't imagine anybody wanting to stay with you for more than five seconds because you're such a…a… a patronizing beast! In fact, it should be me saying that I don't want to spend all day with you, instead of the other way around! I HATE YOU, DAMMIT!"
Without waiting for what she was certain would be a scathing reply, Misao furiously spun on her heels and took off out of the store and into the stormy world beyond it.
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Misao sat glumly in the protected refuge of a deserted alleyway, grumbling slightly to herself at the dampness of her hair and clothes. The rain hadn't yet let up. It was starting to get dark out, and with the departure of the sun, all traces of warmth left in Tokyo decided to leave with it. Soaked to the bone, she silently cursed herself for not stealing Saito's jacket before she ran off.
This was his entire fault. The nerve of him, saying that to her! He had absolutely no right at all!
And who does he think he is, anyway, acting like I'm a horrible person to be around? At least I'm nice, unlike him! He deserved all I told him and more! …So why am I feeling so guilty about it, dammit?
Perhaps "heartless demon" was going a bit overboard, Misao.
No, he most definitely is one! Ever since that kiss we shared, he's been such a bastard to me! He can go and die for all I care!
But that wasn't really a kiss, and you know it.
…Oh, shut up.
She looked up in surprise when the sound of rain-muffled footsteps reached her ears. Dammit, he must have found me! "Hey, you jerk, what're you doing back here?" she snapped angrily, refusing to turn around.
But it wasn't the cop who was standing behind her with the gleaming, very deadly-looking knife.
Now this was just getting freaky. Why wasn't he saying anything? Misao felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and she suddenly knew that something was wrong. DEADLY wrong. And when she did turn around to demand he say something, anything, all the new insults she had imagined immediately died on her tongue and flew out of her head in favor of one short phrase: "Oh SHIT."
The man standing before her was definitely not Saito in any way, shape, or form. Greasy hair so dirty it was nearly colored black touched his shoulders. The brown jacket he was sporting was worn, frayed at the edges, and was nearly falling apart at the seams. His face was so scarred…it was hard to tell if he even had a nose in the first place. Misao took all of this in with one glance, and immediately deduced that this was a person she really didn't want to be around.
She slowly got to her feet, blue-green eyes never leaving the man's oily black ones, and calmly questioned, "What do you want?"
"You." Clear, concise, and to the point.
Well, that was certainly blunt. "I really don't think you're gonna wanna do this, sir. I know how ta' protect myself from scum like you." Not to mention the fact that I have a bodyguard…
…A bodyguard that I ran away from and probably doesn't know where the hell I am. Dammit. Eh, looks like I'll just hafta deal with this myself, then. Fine.
Dropping back into a ninjitsu fighting stance, Misao eyed her opponent's gleaming weapon warily. Fighting an enemy with a knife wasn't horribly difficult; her sensei had taught her many ways to disarm a person. This would be easy as pie!
"C'mon, you jerk! I'm ready for ya'!" Taking a quick step backwards, the weasel shrieked abruptly when her foot fell into a rather large hole, throwing her completely off balance and sending her toppling to the cold, hard ground. Groaning as pain flared up her ankle, she cursed under her breath and clutched at it, mentally screaming at her own stupidity. Oh hell no! I am SO screwed…Misao, you IMBECILE! NOW what're you gonna do, huh?
The man blinked, completely baffled at his sudden luck. "Heh. Looks like I didn't need ta' do anythin' after all, huh? Your luck kinda sucks, girl."
Tears of pain sparkled at the edges of her eyes. She ground her teeth together as a burst of anger erupted through her veins. Her retort was quick in coming, "Sh-shut up, jackass!" She furiously pushed against the ground and stood painfully, trembling as her ankle protested viciously against her movements. "W-we're not done yet, dammit! I'm not some weak little damsel in distress, ALL RIGHT?" she screamed, an anger mark pulsing wildly on her forehead.
"All right, all right, jeeze. Don't get your frilly underwear in a bunch, girl."
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT WAS THAT? YOU'RE DEAD, BAS—!"
Misao's ankle gave out without warning and her knees rushed down to meet the pavement with a dull thud. She quickly flung her hand over her mouth to stifle a cry of agony. "…O-oh shit…not good…" she mumbled, wiping furiously at the wetness on her cheeks. Her eyes widened when the man started walking towards her, a laughing grin spread wide across his face.
"I promise to make this as quick and painless as I can, just as long as you don't scream. HEH."
The sound of a match being struck and a low chuckle startled the both of them, causing Misao to squeak embarrassingly in surprise.
"Dear KAMI, weasel. I can't leave you alone for five minutes without you getting into some sort of trouble, can I?" The amusement in the jerk's voice was palpable. "Do you need some help? I'll only step in if you ask nicely…"
Inner-Misao told Saito to burn in Hell, but her more sensible side took over. Swallowing her pride, the itachi managed to grumble, "Yeah, I could use some help, cop. You are, after all, my bodyguard. Just hurry up and beat this guy, okay? It's freaking cold out and I wanna get home."
Gray smoke billowed lazily into the air. "As you wish, Misao." The cigarette drifted to the concrete and was ground out by a well-polished boot. A feral, wolfish grin was directed towards the greasy-haired man. "Hn. Looks like you picked the wrong woman to mess with, ahou. Oh well. More fun for me, then. I haven't beaten up an idiot in quite some time."
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Jasmine: (Tears) Yes, I know it ended badly. Yes, I know it's a sucky piece o' shit of a cliffy. But I wanted to get this out NOW, no matter HOW BAD it is. Special thanks to Lexi-chan for helping me with the insults and pre-fight scene. (Grins) LOVE YA'! Until next time, loyal reviewers, this is Jazzy Reinier, signing off!
"People only have hope…because they cannot see Death standing behind them."