October 9, 2006
Well, I am starting so soon! I know I should be writing the next chapter of Happiness in Slavery, but I want to work on this for a short time before I update HiS. I am so happy to see that I have had five reviews in day one! So, enjoy this chapter of Double Edged! I think I might change the title… I don't like it very much. R&R!
I don't own Rurouni Kenshin.
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Previously:
Katsura continued, "After that, we came to the scene, and found him passed out on the ground. We took him to the hospital-"
Kaoru cut him off, sounding very angry, while keeping her voice low, "You don't mean to tell me that-"
Both were prevented from speaking as the double doors were opened wide. Misao was quickly following a red haired man, protesting his entry.
Katsura froze.
Kaoru nearly fainted.
And Kenshin came into the room.
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"I'm sorry sir!" Misao began frantically, "I told him that you were in an important meeting and that he shouldn't come i-" Her babble stopped as she noticed no one moved. The young secretary quickly looked at her boss, and seeing a glare, she bowed, and backed out of the room, shutting the doors along the way.
Kaoru seemed to shrink back into the armchair she sat in, as she stared at a man she thought was dead. Her face had paled drastically, and she clutched one armrest tightly, 'No. This is impossible,' She kept telling herself, 'He's dead!'
She finally moved her blue gaze away from her ex-bodyguard, and glared at her step-father, "What is the meaning of this?" She stood up and walked towards Katsura, "You seriously mean to tell me that Kenshin has been alive the entire time, and no one, NO ONE, not even you, told me!" The girl's face was one of rage, as her eyebrows were knit together in frustration, "What kind of stunt were you trying to pull! Did you think that it would be okay for this to remain a secret for the rest of my life!"
A warm hand placed on her slim shoulder caused Kaoru to bring her lecture to a stop, "Come, Kaoru-san," Kenshin's smooth voice snaked its way into her hearing, "Stop this arguing."
The girl stood there, facing her father figure. A single tear made its way down her cheek, "Why?" Her voice was barely above a whisper, "Why didn't you tell me?" She turned away from Katsura, and fled the room. The assassin and the business man stood there for a few moments without exchanging any words.
"Well that was smooth, Himura, real smooth," Katsura Kogoro said in a not too kind voice. His sudden change in personality was quite startling, "I specifically told you that she was not to find out."
The red head chuckled softly, "Do you hear the stupidity that comes out of your mouth, Katsura-san? It was inevitable that she found out," At that moment, his golden eyes hardened, "And when I saw her in the street, I knew she was coming here. You should have gone to her, instead of her coming to you," Pausing momentarily, Battousai pondered, "Or, did you plan it out that way, knowing that I would make myself known to her?"
Before Katsura could say another word, the assassin too left the office, leaving the Choshu director to his own devices, "Well Himura, aren't you the observant one?" Katsura laughed to the empty room, "You'll just love what I have planned for my step-daughter then…"
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After slamming the doors shut behind her, Kaoru had rushed to the elevator, and pushed the down button relentlessly until the car arrived and the doors opened, ignoring the concerned looks from Misao. When the elevator shut its doors behind her, she screamed in frustration, and beat a fist on the mirrored wall. She might have known something like this would happen.
Once before, Katsura Kogoro had done something similar to her. She loved the man who had raised her since she was ten dearly, but this time around, she couldn't let it slide. As she stood in the elevator silently fuming, she studied the red number decreasing as she got closer and closer to the ground floor, 'I wonder what other things he has hidden from me?' She questioned inwardly, 'On second thought, I don't want to know…'
Finally, the doors opened on the main floor. Stepping out, she exited the elevator as though nothing had happened. However, she was quickly brought out of her thoughts as a hand gripped her upper arm, "Come with me Kaoru-san." Without another word, Kenshin was half pulling her outside and down the street. It took several minutes for Kaoru to get her tongue untied, and the girl wrenched herself from his grasp.
"What do you think you're doing?" She fiercely asked. Kaoru desperately wanted to get away from him, despite the fact that she wanted to hug him tight. Pulling her over into one of the alleyways, the red head looked down at her and whispered just as fiercely, "I am trying to get you to calm down. There are things you don't know about, and if the wrong thing is said, it could get you killed."
While Kaoru had been under several death threats before, none of them sounded as serious as the ones Kenshin implied could come into existence. She immediately silenced herself, and simply shut her eyes. She couldn't bear to look at him. For the second time that day, a tear silently fell down her cheek. The girl leaned against the wall, and hugged herself.
A calloused thumb brushed away the wet trail, and the assassin brought her into a strong embrace. Even with her high heels on, Kaoru stood a good half inch shorter than him. He softly said, "It'll be okay." This girl was the only one privileged enough to see his softer side. It was Kaoru herself who had caused the man to realize it was okay to have feeling, even if she didn't know of his other profession.
Kaoru finally broke down, and grasped at his sleeves, clenching the material in her fists, "I kept thinking that you were alive, I couldn't help but think you were around every corner!" Her voice cracked, "None of the other bodyguards that he replaced you with were ever as good as you. I found them out within days…"
The older man urged her to hush, and said, "Let's get you on a train. I am taking you back to Kyoto." He then led her through the side streets, so that she could compose herself. She silently followed him, not wanting to make even more of a fool of herself. Kaoru was acting as if she had been reunited with a long departed lover.
After a short time, they reached the train station, and Kenshin grabbed her by the upper arm leading her along, and Kaoru suddenly asked, "What about my luggage?" She received no answer, and then silently allowed herself to be pulled along by him. While she had gotten over the short breakdown, the tears were replaced with anger again. All she could think was 'Why?' The college student didn't know why Katsura would have kept his survival such a secret. He of all people should have known that Kenshin was one of the few she could call close.
Without much notice, Kaoru sat down in the seat the man guided her to, and absentmindedly gazed out the window. She subconsciously acknowledged the compartment door being shut, and Kenshin sitting down opposite her. She thought back to the time of her mother's death. Katsura had done something similar. Rather than saying Kaoru's mother was dead, he had said she was alive. Kaoru did not find out of her mother's death until six months later, and she had yet to find out the cause of death.
At the time, she had been a little girl of ten, so Kaoru's childish mind had taken her step-father's excuses. Now she wasn't so sure. Had he really kept her mother's death a secret to make it easier on her? Or was it to make little Kaoru beg to see her mom daily, only to be given the same answer: "No, not today," And in the end be even more hurt?
Heaving a sigh, Kaoru realized her anger had dulled, and now she glanced sideways to look at Kenshin. He looked the same, his long red hair pulled up in a high ponytail, those golden eyes just as fierce and beautiful as before, and his hands just as calloused as from his means of defense: a katana. She had the feeling that beneath his shirt, there were numerous scars that laced across his defined chest, and she was positive that a scar remained just above his heart, where a bullet had penetrated months before.
An announcement overhead came on, "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for riding with us today…" It continued on with travel time, weather conditions, and the usual information.
"What are you looking at?" Kenshin asked curiously.
Kaoru blushed and immediately shifted her gaze to look out the window, "Nothing. It's just…"
"Odd? Strange? Do you find it weird to be looking at someone you thought was dead?" The girl sat silently in her seat, not answering. Running a hand through his bangs, Kenshin said, "I would have let you know sooner, but Katsura-san was very persistent about you not knowing. He even went to the extent of scanning my mail, watching every move I made."
At the mention of Katsura, she stiffened, "That man does not deserve to be honored with –san." Kenshin was a bit taken aback; he had never heard these kinds of words come out of her mouth. He was about to speak, but stopped as she continued, "This isn't the first time he's lied to me about something as precious as life and death. And I know he has other things that he does illegally," She looked at him with very hurt blue eyes, "I can only be glad that I kept my mother's name."
If only the girl knew how right she was about the secrets of Katsura's Choshu corporation. He had every intention of telling her today that he was not only a bodyguard, but the shadow assassin, Hitokiri Battousai. The man would much rather her find out from him, rather than from some unfortunate circumstance. A ring broke the silence, as Kenshin's cell phone went off.
Pulling the device out, he checked the caller I.D.: "Katsura Kogoro." Sighing, he answered it, "Hai?"
"If I find out you have told her anything of the organization, she's dead. You are her bodyguard for the time being." Then the line went dead. Kenshin stared at the receiver in his hand momentarily, and then pocketed it again.
"Was it him?"
Kaoru's voice caused Kenshin to bring up his head, "Yes."
She raised an eyebrow, "What'd he want?"
"I have been reassigned as your bodyguard."
She sighed in relief, "At least it's someone I trust now." A small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, "While I can't forgive him, I am glad that you are here."
"Trust"
That word stuck out in his mind like a sore thumb. After the word he had just received from the boss, Kenshin felt even stronger about telling her what he really was. He no longer cared if it revolted her, caused her to hate him and cast him aside. All the mattered to him now was that his trust was earned, and rightfully so.
He stood and sat down next to her, whispering into her ear, "I am going to tell you one of the things that Katsura Kogoro has kept secret from you ever since you met me." The assassin felt her body tense up, "I know that you might hate me for it, but at least I can be comfortable with the fact that you heard it from my own mouth, and not from the voices of others."
"Kenshin…" She started, but he cut her off. It pained the assassin to think that he might loose her trust, but he knew he would have to protect her either way. He continued, "Now, you're step-father must never know I told you, for your own personal safety…" The man paused, "But, for the past five years, I have not only been your bodyguard, but I have also worked as the shadow, Hitokiri Battousai."
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After hanging up the phone, Katsura stood from his desk, and grabbed his coat. As he exited his office, he told Misao, "Makimachi-kun, please send all calls to voice mail. After you clean up, go on home." The girl's green eyes stared momentarily, and finally she spoke, "Yes sir!" She immediately started her tasks, as the man entered the elevator. He stopped on the tenth floor, and entered a small office area. He walked up to another door, past a desk, and pushed a button.
A small keyboard popped out of the wall, and he typed in a password. Without much more than a few seconds wait, a red light turned green, and he opened the door. Katsura then entered one of the many floors of the Choshu Corporation's illegal branches. He passed several desks, and finally came to a stop at one of the closed doors. Pulling out a key, the leader opened it and closed the door with a firm click, "Something unexpected has come up, and I think we have quite a bit of planning to do." The man grinned evilly, a fierce glint emitting from his dark eyes, "And that needs to begin now.
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Cliffhanger you guys! Do you think the story is moving too fast? Is the pace set pretty well? I would have kept writing, because I'm in a really good writing mood, but if I had, I don't know where I could have stopped! This seemed like a good stop point. Well then, it's longer than last chapter, at the wonderful length of 2300 words or so. I hope you liked it, and leave me your thoughts!
Reviews are welcome from all and much appreciated.
October 10, 2006