Battle Front: Chapter 5

Dearest Kaoru,

I'm unsure of how to start off a letter to you. I wish I could call and hear your lovely voice, but that is a luxury I do not have. So my poor penmanship and vocabulary skills will have to suffice. I miss our drafty house and holding each other through the night with neurology textbooks at the foot of the bed. I miss waking up with those annoying rays of sunshine streaming through the window at the head of the bed. We both would tend to hit the snooze over and over so the sun was the only sure way of waking. I actually have to get up with my alarm clock now as there is little light in my current bunkroom.

Yes, I said bunkroom. I do not even have my own room. I have to share with three other men and I must inform you that you are by far superior to them. I'm not so sure that this separation thing was a good idea. The medical part of this has been good. I believe that dealing with trauma is my forte. The fighting where you are at is not as severe as it is here. What sort of cases are you having? Do you get to see actual families on your base? I keep seeing young men coming in with an appendage lost or terribly disfiguring scars. It is depressing. I'm saving their immediate lives, but they will live with the results of these battles forever.

It is very ugly here Kaoru and I wish every morning when I wake up that I had you beside me. You would be the shining light in a cave of darkness. Soujiro will be transferring to your base soon. I am exceedingly jealous of him. I almost requested a transfer myself, but that would be selfish on so many levels. I know I'm needed here. I would ask if you would come here, but I couldn't stand for you to be in this hot zone.

Know that all my happy thoughts are of you. Meet me under the stars so that I can at least think we are together for a moment.

Love Always, Aoshi Shinomori

Kaoru had tears coming from her eyes as she finished reading Aoshi's letter. She went to her closet and changed her outfit to a simple hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans, and a pair of her combat boots that she hoped she would never have to wear. She tucked her long hair up inside a baseball cap and hurried outside, his letter clutched protectively against her chest.

She went to the gazebo automatically, relieved that she had seen no one else there. The sky was beautiful she would give the desert that small praise. As she stared at the stars she came to a very somber realization. She did not know any of these constellations. They were not the same ones that she and Aoshi had learned together back in college.

Kaoru would have to discover the names of these stars all by herself.

Her peaceful star-gazing was interrupted by the arrival of a pair of boots crunching on the rocks leading to the gazebo. She ignored the approaching person, hoping whoever it was would take the hint and leave. The person the boots belonged to ignored the hint and sat across from her.

She very nearly growled when she identified her intruder. "Don't you think you've done enough damage for one night?" She stood and made to leave, the stars could be seen from her bedroom window.

Enishi had been outside and had seen Kaoru as she headed for the gazebo. She was clutching a letter and her lips had been curved into a smile. He became curious as to what could have made her so happy so quickly. It was obviously related to her letter. He had felt like a jerk ever since his untrue and hurtful comment. As much as he hated to admit it, she was delicate and he shouldn't assume that she represented all his grievances with society.

Maybe her caring disposition was genuine and not an act.

"I came to apologize," he said ignoring her barb.

She glared down at him and nodded her head firmly. "Fine," she answered, acknowledging his apology but neither accepting nor rejecting it. She made to walk past him but he stopped her by grasping her wrist. He wasn't wearing his blue shades and his dark eyes bore into hers. "It is hard enough being out here all alone; I don't need your added hostility."

Enishi did not release her wrist but he did loosen his grip. "I know." He didn't know what to say. He had already apologized and she had not accepted. He wasn't sure that he could stop his hostility. It seemed to be rooted into his behavior. She represented his disillusioned past. His lashing out on her was his means of lashing out against himself for failing his sister. He couldn't explain this to her though. He wanted to ask about the letter. He wanted to ask what had caused her to come out and stare at the sky with such a peaceful expression.

He wanted to find that peace. He released her wrist but held her eyes captive. "If you'd like, I could teach you the constellations here," he offered.

If anyone else had made the offer she would have readily agreed. "No thanks," she said walking away.

oooooOOOOOooooo

"Must you always have that expression?" Soujiro asked, pulling back his spoon and sending a stream of spaghetti noodles towards his silent companion's face.

Aoshi ducked just in time for the noodles to fly over his shoulder and land in a messy plop on the floor behind him. He narrowed his eyes coldly at Kaoru's future brother-in-law. "You are lucky I am under orders to allow you to live," he spoke quietly and threateningly.

Soujiro continued to grin at the straight-laced resident. "That's why I'm smiling," he answered flippantly, pulling back his spoon for another attack. However, when Aoshi picked up the knife on his plate he quickly shoved the spoon into his mouth. "Mmm good," he remarked, relaxing when Aoshi set his knife down.

Aoshi huffed out an annoyed breath through his nostrils and searched the mess hall in earnest. His fingers began to impatiently drum along the metallic dining table.

"What exactly are you looking for?" Soujiro asked, trying to follow Aoshi's gaze. He was unable to see anything of interest. He did happen to see the mail-call officer, but other than him, no one was mildly interesting. When Aoshi failed to answer he continued. "If you're waiting for Kaoru's response," he started, satisfied to see his friend's eyes snap back towards him. "It's too soon. Even if she wrote you back immediately it would take weeks to get here."

"I'm not waiting around for her to write me." Aoshi picked his knife back up and began to slice the remainder of his mystery meat into perfectly equal squares. His knife paused mid-slice when the post-man approached their table.

"Lieutenant Seta, I have a letter for you," the post-man announced, brandishing a letter with the familiar, flowing script of Kaoru's younger sister. Aoshi couldn't begin to count the number of times he had seen a letter with her handwriting, all addressed to Kaoru of course. Seeing that Sourjiro had received a letter and he had not caused a deep fire of anger to burn in his belly.

Soujiro took a nervous sip of water from his glass. Aoshi was angry, he could tell. There were no visual clues as to this fact, but he knew. It felt as if the very air he was breathing had boiled over with the man's rage. "Perhaps she has news of Kaoru," he offered.

Aoshi allowed some of the tension to melt from his shoulders. "Why don't you read it then?" His dangerous tone reflected the fact that it was not a request, but a thinly veiled order.

Soujiro read over the rushed script of his fiancée. Her handwriting on the outer envelop hardly matched that of the letter's contents. The envelope's details were written with painstaking care where as the letter was a mess of jumbled thoughts. The woman was scatterbrained and her letters surely reflected it.

He glanced up a quarter of the way through to see Aoshi staring at him intently. He shifted in his seat. "I'm not going to read it aloud." Pale blue-green eyes flashed dangerously at him. "All it says is that she hasn't heard from Kaoru yet and wonders how she is doing. She also wonders how you are and whether you miss her sister or not. Misao also thinks you're stupid for breaking up with Kaoru."

"I did not break up with Kaoru," Aoshi enunciated quietly in a threatening tone.

"Right, you're on a break," Soujiro agreed not wanting any more trouble. "The rest of the letter is about a patient of hers that she's been working with for a long time. It's a stroke victim who has been making remarkable progress lately all because of her positive attitude." Soujiro glanced at Aoshi over the top of the letter. "You could use an attitude adjustment."

"If you wish to retain your teeth for your pasted-on annoying smile I recommend you make no more suggestions to me."

"I could take you," Soujiro told him folding up his letter and placing it calmly on the table. He looked Aoshi up and down, assessing him.

Before Aoshi could accept the invitation of challenge another siren went off. Both men frowned at the familiar sound. It meant there was another raid and more men would be lost. "Do not get killed," Aoshi warned.

"Of course I won't," Soujiro answered, as the two made their way towards the exit.

"That privilege is mine."