Read, enjoy, and review! Reviews are love!
Kaoru felt as though she were laying on a cloud. A very warm, fluffy cloud. The type of cloud a person wished their uncomfortable bed would embody. She wondered briefly how she got on the cloud but decided she didn't really care. She was too comfortable to care about anything else in the world. Reality caught up to her quickly.
She could hear voices talking around her. She couldn't make out what they were saying almost as though were a radio station with a lot of static. As the voices started to become clearer she could feel a headache forming behind her eyes. She wondered what was causing for her head to ache like it was. As the thought passed through her mind her memory decided to kick in. Her eyes snapped open at the thought of her apartment.
It wasn't the ceiling of her apartment that met her eyes. She actually didn't realize the dark blue ceiling at all. She blinked for a moment at the ceiling as she began to comprehend the fact she didn't know where she was. She was about to sit up before an unfamiliar face entered her line of vision. It was a woman with dark blue eyes and long hair framing her face and falling over her shoulders.
"You're awake, good! Tomoe, she's awake!" Kaoru watched as the new woman disappeared before Tomoe appeared in her line of vision. Kaoru managed to give the woman a smile in which Tomoe seemed to hesitate for a moment before returning it.
"I'm glad you're awake, Kaoru. Kenshin said you hit your head pretty hard in the explosion. Is anything hurting?" she asked. Kaoru blinked at her moment before wincing as the pain in her head only got worse.
"There feels as though there's a construction worker in my head." she replied. Tomoe laughed at the response before shaking her head as she turned her gaze away from Kaoru. She was sure she was looking at the other woman who she had first seen when she woke.
"Megumi, could you get her some painkillers? I need her to be lucid so I can talk to her about what happened. You can also let that redheaded idiot outside know she's awake and he can come in." Tomoe said. Kaoru heard the other woman agree before there was the sound of a door opening and closing. The girl in the bed supposed this Megumi had to retrieve the medicine for her head.
"Megumi is one of the best doctors I've visited. She'll be back with your medicine in a minute. Do you think you could possibly talk now or do you want to wait?" Tomoe asked. Kaoru let out a soft breath as she realized it really didn't matter if they waited. The story would obviously be the same.
"If you can help me sit up I'm pretty sure I can answer your questions. It might help the headache as well." Kaoru answered. Tomoe nodded before helping the younger girl move until she was leaning against a mountain of pillows. Kaoru realized she was in a pair of silk pajamas that she had never seen before. She sent Tomoe a questioning look.
"Your clothes were covered in dust from the damage. I sent them to be cleaned. Megumi helped me change you into a pair of my pajamas. I'm afraid the pants may be a little long but it was the best I could do on short notice." Tomoe answered her wordless question. Kaoru gave a soft laugh.
"It's not a problem. Thank you, though. I do have one more question before we start. Where am I, exactly?" Kaoru asked. Tomoe gave her a gentle smile.
"You're at my home, unfortunately your apartment is quiet unlivable at the moment. I have Aoshi and Sanosuke, another of my workers, gathering your things. I had Sanosuke tell the police you were his sister so he could get your things. I hope you don't mind." Tomoe told her as she took a seat at the end of the bed. Kaoru blinked at her before letting out a soft sigh.
"As long as you get the laptop there's not much I can complain about I suppose. It has a lot of stuff on it for your request. I'm guessing my apartment was blown up because of that information." Kaoru told her. Tomoe nodded before they both looked up as Kenshin walked in with the laptop in his hands. He had a small smile on his face.
"I hope you don't mind, Miss Kaoru, but I grabbed the laptop before we brought you here, that I did. I didn't want the police to be snooping through your laptop." he told her. She flushed at the kind smile he was giving her. She wondered why a blush always seemed to be under the surface whenever he was around. She barely knew him but she always found her heart beating fast when he was near.
"Thank you, Kenshin. That was nice of you." she said as she took the object. She put on her lap before looking up at him with a smile. He returned it before also taking a seat on the end of the bed. She realized that he was there to also listen to the answers she was about to give to Tomoe's questions.
"Kaoru, I have to ask. Did you have anything to do with the fire at Shishio's office building?" Tomoe asked. Kaoru could only blink for a moment before shaking her head.
"Why would I? He might be a villain but I have no reason to try and destroy his office. The only thing I did was get in, get the information, and get out. You can ask Misao. I didn't do anything else." Kaoru said. She watched as Tomoe and Kenshin shared a look before looking back at her. She swallowed as she wondered what they could possibly be thinking.
"We'll talk to Misao once Aoshi gets finished talking to her. My next question is how in the world did Soujiro find you?" Tomoe asked. Kaoru had to shrug her shoulders at that because she really didn't know.
"I don't know. I have programs on my equipment to warn me if something comes up that if it crosses could possibly cause problems. They must've had a secret firewall that my programs couldn't detect. I was surprised as you that he knew where I was." Kaoru said. She watched as Tomoe looked away with a sigh. She was worried about the expression that was on the older woman's face.
"I doubt that. I feel as though they are going after you because they know you're associating with me. Shishio has always been the type to go after people who associate with other he doesn't like. Trust me, he really doesn't like me. I've spent much of my life standing in his way. It's not a surprise that he's tired of me doing that." Tomoe mumbled under her breath as her hands began to clench together. Kaoru could see she was blaming herself for the attack on Kaoru.
"It's alright, Tomoe. Don't blame yourself. I figured something like this would probably happen when you told me who I was up against. Don't apologize for something you can't control." Kaoru told her. She watched as Tomoe looked at her wide eyed before she managed a small smile. "Anyway, do you want me to tell you what I found out before that person decided to pay me a visit?"
"Not right now. Get some more rest and we can talk later. Megumi should be back with your medicine so Kenshin and I will get out of your hair." Tomoe told her. The older woman watched as Kaoru nodded before laying back down. Tomoe stood and motioned for Kenshin to follow her.
She stepped out into the hallway of her home. She let out a soft breath before heading to her home office. She was going to have to do damage control but that was her job in this little group. She was the one that made the excuses. She could feel Kenshin was still following her and knew he wanted to talk to her. She wasn't sure if she was ready for the conversation just yet.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she stopped at his soft spoke question. She turned to look at him to see he was staring out one of the windows in the hallway. She could almost see the shadow of who he was behind him. She felt as though the weight of he was pressed down him so heavily it hurt who he was at the moment.
"How do you want me to answer that question, Kenshin?" was her response. She watched as he turned to her with tortured eyes.
"I want you to tell me why! I want to know why you found it so necessary to keep from me who she is!" he growled. Tomoe chose to ignore the flash of gold in his eyes.
"Who she was, Kenshin. When are you going to live your life for you and not for the sins of the past?" Tomoe asked. She watched as his attention turned back to the window. She had known he would refuse to look at her when she had approached the subject.
"My sins are far deeper than anyone can imagine, Tomoe. I am living only because you asked me. I can sense her at the edge of my mind everyday…asking me to join her." he whispered. Tomoe had to keep from socking the redhead in the jaw. She knew he would be able to stop her before she could even approach him. It didn't stop her from imagining it though.
"That is in your mind, Kenshin. You and I both know she would never tell you die out of guilt. She loved you." Tomoe told him. She had to keep from hissing because she was unsure about how many times they had this conversation. She had lost count a long time ago.
"She died because of it!" he turned back on her again. Tomoe was unsurprised to see his eyes were completely golden instead of tinged.
"She died because she wanted you to live!" Tomoe felt her voice rising. She rarely yelled but sometimes Kenshin's stubbornness got under her skin.
"Would you two knock it off? If you keep yelling like that you will wake her up!" Tomoe watched as Megumi came from the direction she and Kenshin had just come. Tomoe watched as Kenshin folded his arms before walking away. She shook her head at his retreating back. She felt as though he would never recover from the blow he had suffered so long ago.
"At this rate I doubt he'll heal from those emotional wounds from s long ago." Megumi whispered as she moved to stand by Tomoe. The other woman nodded in agreement.
"I hate to bring painful memories like his back up…but I almost think she may be the one to heal him completely." Tomoe said. She looked at Megumi before shrugging. The doctor grinned at her.
"That sounds as though it came from the heart." was the reply. Tomoe laughed as she resumed her journey to her office. She looked over her shoulder with a dark smile.
"You know just as well as everyone else…my heart is nonexistent."
'Where am I?' Kaoru thought as she looked around. She could tell she was in a forest but it was covered in snow. 'Snow? But it's the middle of summer. How can there be snow?'
It was only then that Kaoru realized she had to be dreaming. She let out an amused sigh before she looked around. It made sense that she would dream about snow as winter had always been her favorite season. She never was able to explain to others why it was her favorite season but it just was. She liked to think it was because it was during winter that her parents met and got married.
The sound of clanging metal caught her attention. She blinked in confusion as she wondered what could be causing the sound. For some reason the image of swords appeared in her mind. She shook her head before deciding to investigate. There was no reason why people would be using swords in this day and age.
'Well, maybe they're practicing for a reenactment or something. But that begs the question of why in the world am I dreaming about it?' she thought. She shook her head as she continued to trudge through the snow. She was surprised at how deep her mind was making it in her dream.
She continued on as she admired the scenery. She was sure she had never been in such a beautiful forest before. She was surprised at how imaginative her mind was at creating such a place. She would always compare forests to this one now that she had seen it. She giggled at herself as she knew it probably wasn't real. She couldn't help it though. The forest really was breathtaking.
'It almost seems as though it was here before industrialization took over Japan. I remember seeing some pictures in school books of forests that had been destroyed because of it. They really were beautiful.' she thought as she continued on her journey. She realized the clanging of the metal was getting closer. She lengthened her stride in hopes to get there quickly as she was getting colder and colder. 'Wait, why am I getting cold in my dreams? Maybe the air conditioner in the bedroom is turned up really high.'
"NO!" she stopped at the loud cry. It had sounded pained. Almost as though the person screaming had lost the reason behind living. Kaoru felt her heart strings tuck her towards the direction she had been traveling. She began to run towards the cry before she burst into a clearing.
She saw a young man sitting in the snow cradling what looked like a body against his chest. Kaoru was momentarily stunned by the old fashioned clothing he wore, a gi and hakamas, only for the blood staining the snow around him to catch her attention. She slowly followed the curve of the man's back as he hunched over the body in his arms to stop at his hair. Her brows furrowed at the long red ponytail that sat on top of his head.
"NO! GIVE HER BACK!" she gasped as his head was suddenly angled towards the sky with tears running down his cheeks. It wasn't the scream that startled her nor the dead body. It was the cross shaped scar on his left cheek that left her breathless.
Kaoru's eyes snapped open as her breathing grew heavy. The dream played over in her mind as she sat up. She put a hand to her forehead and realized she was sweating. She swallowed as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed. She could also feel her heart beating up in her throat.
'What was that?! That guy…was he Kenshin? It had to be…wait a minute, Kamiya, what are you thinking?! One, this was a dream and two, he was dressed in traditional clothing! That couldn't possibly be Kenshin! It has to be my imagination that put the scar on that left cheek.' Kaoru chuckled to herself. She had convinced her mind but her heart was telling her she was wrong. She ignored the feeling thinking it was just left over from her dream.
"Miss Kaoru? I heard you crying in your sleep and wanted to check on you, that I did." Kenshin said as he entered the room. Kaoru looked at him for a moment before a smile spread across her face at his appearance.
"Thank you, Kenshin, I'm okay. It was just a really bad nightmare. I think. I can't really remember." she told him. She wasn't sure why she was keeping from Kenshin the details of the dream. However, something inside her was telling her to keep it from him. She didn't understand why but she had learned early on to follow her instincts.
"Oh? Well, I would normally say if you want to talk about it I'd listen but since you don't remember I guess that would be hard." he told her. She giggled at the put out look on his face. He had obviously hoped he would be able to help her.
"I'd appreciate company though. I feel a lot better and I've found it's easier to do tedious work when there's someone to talk to." Kaoru said as she reached for her laptop. She watched out of the corner of her eye as Kenshin sat on the other end of the bed. She turned to smile at him with a small smile on her face as she opened her computer.
"What would you like to talk about then, Miss Kaoru?" he asked. She bit the inside of her cheek as she typed on her computer for a moment.
"Well, tell me about yourself. How did you and Tomoe meet?" she asked. She heard him shift. She looked at him to see he was staring out in front of him. He let out a soft breath and she waited to see if he would actually tell her. The expression on his face told her she shouldn't hope for him to explain. She was surprised when he began to talk.
"I was in a dark place in my life when we met. She had brought a friend to Kyoto to…sight see and I accidentally bumped into them. Her friend thought I looked starved and insisted they take me out to eat. We slowly got to know each other over the course of a few weeks. Unfortunately, Tomoe's friend passed away and…I was there to comfort her. We've been friends ever since." he told her. Kaoru blinked before giving him a sad smile as he looked at her.
"That's so sad. What was her name?" she didn't see the pain that flashed across his eyes as she had turned back to her laptop.
"I…I don't…remember." he said slowly. She looked over at him confused at the slow response. She was surprise to see he was looking at the floor and refusing to look at her. She could tell the memory was painful. She decided she wouldn't push the subject. It was a painful avenue for him to go down, she could see that.
"I'm sorry, Kenshin. I didn't mean for you to remember something so painful. I guess I probably shouldn't ask Tomoe this question, should I?" she asked. She blinked as he chuckled before looking at her with a sheepish small on her face.
"I would appreciate it if you don't. I hate to think of how many embarrassing stories she'll tell about me when we first met. I also have the feeling she'll embellish those same stories, that she will." he told her. She gave him a gentle smile before turning back to her laptop as it pulled up the documents she had managed to steal from Shishio before his building burned to the ground.
"I get the feeling you're right, Kenshin. It seems as though you're really good friends." she mused to herself. She heard him chuckled and she looked at him once again.
"That would depend on the day of the week on whether we're friends or not, that it certainly does. We have our ups and downs." he told her. She smiled before looking back at her laptop. The document that she had pulled up was the same when the man that had been trying to kill her showed up.
"Hey, Kenshin, are you older or younger than Shishio?" she asked. She didn't see the way he tensed at the question as she was too busy staring at the date on the screen. She was anxiously waiting for his answer.
"As far as I know, I'm younger than him. I don't think I'm older than him but I guess it's hard to tell if we've never seen him in public before." he said. Something in Kaoru told her he wasn't being entirely truthful with her. She had a feeling he was only telling her a partial truth that was more like a lie than truth.
"Kenshin, I think it's time for you and Tomoe to be truthful with me. I don't like being lied to or being told half-truths." she told him. She watched as his eyes went wide at the stern tone in her voice. She waited for an answer.
"What are you talking about, Kaoru?" he asked. She remained silence before looking up as Tomoe entered the room. She could tell the woman had also heard her accusation. She raised an eyebrow waiting for her to say something.
"I agree with Kenshin, Kaoru. What makes you think we haven't been anything but truthful?" Tomoe asked. Kaoru narrowed her eyes before motioning to the computer screen that sat on her lap.
"How about we start with the fact that the man you're asking me to investigate was born in 1843?! I want answers and I want them now!"
Please don't forget to review! Reviews are inspiring!