Chapter Sixty-Five

Something was going on. Even locked up in his floating cell, Yahiko could feel the tension in the air. He wanted to believe it was a good thing, but a part of him understood that whatever was building meant trouble and nothing less. It made him antsy about his current situation, and his inability to do anything about it. Allowing his fate to rest in the hands of people he did not know or necessarily trust was not part of his nature.

The guard currently standing watch on the outside of the barrier yawned and adjusted his weight. It had taken little time for Yahiko to learn the faces and habits of the men regularly swapped out for guard duty at his cell. At the moment, it was the sand demon. Per Misao, the sand demon liked to gamble and drink, and rarely went to bed until well into the early morning hours. That meant his six o'clock shift change when working Yahiko's cell allowed him very little sleep. He usually skipped breakfast, as well, in order to make it without being late. More than a few times, Yahiko had caught him napping on the job, and he was almost always hungover.

When Yuna arrived with his mid-day meal, the guard was fast asleep while leaning against one of the outer posts. The princess did not spare him a glance or react, and instead stepped smoothly through the barrier to bring Yahiko his tray of food. As she settled it in front of him, and then leaned back onto her shins, Yahiko shifted forward to whisper.

"What's going on?"

Her dark brows lifted slightly in surprise, but her demurely folded hands remained lightly rested at her waist.

"The Emperor is very upset."

Frowning, Yahiko began stuffing his mouth to eat as quickly as possible, just in case he needed to be ready for anything. He spoke around chewing his food.

"'Bout what?"

Yuna lowered her eyes to one side to avoid having to watch.

"Someone close to the Emperor was found dead this morning. I don't know who or how, but I overheard Father yelling. He believes there is someone else working with the fire demon. Someone responsible for the assassination of at least ten government officials. As far as I am aware, no move has been made on our side. At the least, there appears to be some third party involved."

Dark brows creased deeply over his eyes, and Yahiko sat down his bowl of soup.

"Kenshin doesn't really seem interested in that kind of thing, though. At least not to me. To be honest, I don't think he's going to agree to help you guys out, either. Not because he has his own agenda, but because he seems pretty mellow."

"I see." There was a pause, as if she was debating on what else she could say. "Misao told me that the man they found dead was an assassin the Emperor had sent to kill a girl close to the fire demon. Do you believe that to be enough to upset your mellow friend?"

Yahiko sneered to hide the way his stomach dropped. He had hoped to warn Kenshin about an assassination before it happened, not after.

"I'd say so. I'd kill anyone coming after my girl, too."

A very slight smile curved his half-sister's lips.

"Then the fire demon is in love with this girl?"

Dark eyes widened, and Yahiko choked on his food. While he cursed himself for giving away information, his misgivings were quickly shown to be unfounded when Yuna blushed prettily.

"It's very romantic, for him to react only when someone he loves is in danger. Strong, protective men are just my type."

Sucking down some water, Yahiko stared at the guard who had snorted awake. He glanced briefly at the two of them, and then dozed back off.

"Yeah, whatever." Leaning forward again, Yahiko's black eyes remained on the guard's back and he pitched his voice low. "Hey, when the hell am I getting out of here? If Kenshin needs help, I'd rather not be stuck in here, especially with…"

Especially with Tsubame living on her own.

A slight shake of her head disagreed.

"It's proving difficult. The Emperor has become increasingly paranoid. If we try to break you out now, the plan will not work."

"But there is a plan?"

Yuna nodded, but refrained from elaborating. Scratching the back of his head, Yahiko tried hard to hide his impatience.

"What about Kenshin? Haven't they been able to get in touch with him yet? He needs to know what the Emperor is plotting."

The princess's doe-like eyes lowered.

"I'm afraid the fire demon is not willing to talk until after you have been released. So far, they have been communicating through a proxy, and Misao wants nothing lost in between. The plan was to warn him directly, but he is not making it easy."

"Can you blame him?" There was a note of disdain in Yahiko's voice, and he thought of the way Kenshin had smiled while offering him advice in the alleyway behind the restaurant. "Everyone hates him simply because he's a fire demon, and he's the last one in the world. So, he's got to bear all of that hatred alone. Offering to help me out in exchange for his cooperation sounds more than a little sketchy. No one likes being used, and that's just what it looks like you're trying to do to him. He's not going to just trust anyone, either, especially someone living in the palace."

"I-I see."

The problem was, Yahiko needed to get all the information he had to him somehow before it was too late. If Ugly died and he could have done something to prevent it, he'd never be able to look Kenshin in the eye again. He'd kind of miss annoying the old hag, too.

"Look, I've got an idea. Do you think you could get me a piece of paper and a pen?"

X

Kenshin smiled as Kaoru pushed and pulled herself happily on the swing next to him. She was giggling in carefree delight, and kicking her feet like a child. They were both a bit too big for the swings, but not so big that they couldn't pretend they didn't look silly. When she noticed him looking, she grinned at him impishly. With both hands latched to the chains, she leaned farther back than he liked and stared straight up at the sky as her momentum continued to swing her back and forth.

"Have you ever been on a swing before, Kenshin? You look uncomfortable."

Chuckling, Kenshin helped slow her down when she reached out a hand.

"When I was really little."

A despondent sigh pushed from her lungs.

"I used to daydream about getting to push you on the swings. It's too bad I never got to."

"W-what?"

"It would have been easier to imagine if I had known what you looked like." She laughed openly. "I tried to figure out what the cutest little boy in the world with red hair would look like, but I didn't know any boys that I thought were cute when I was young, so it never really worked out."

Violet eyes looked away and he made a face. Kaoru giggled harder.

"I think I could imagine it now, though." The hand still clasped in his swung his arm to and fro, like kids walking hand-in-hand down the sidewalk. When one of his red brows lifted, she snorted in suppressed amusement. "I mean, you'd look like a cute little flame, right?"

"I was able to suppress my true form by the time I was five." Despite his best effort, the claim was slightly petulant.

"Yeah? Was it hard?"

"It's not easy at first, but I got used to it. I hardly think about it anymore." Except, now he had horns on his head that he couldn't hide, and they bothered him daily.

"Does everyone hide their true form?"

A pained smile creased his features. "Not anymore."

"O-oh." She must have realized what he meant, because she looked down. Since he didn't like when she looked sad, he elaborated to distract her.

"It is still polite or practical for some of us, though. True forms can be… overwhelming."

"I see. That makes sense." She hadn't looked up yet, so he squeezed her relaxed fingers to garner her attention. Two chews of her lip gathered courage, and her eyes swung back to him excitedly. "Can I see your true…?"

The words trailed off as her flame blue irises stalled upon the entrance of the park. They stared across the sandpit between them and the opening, unblinkingly and with such intensity that Kenshin frowned in concern. The fingers that were once pliant in his grasp cinched hard around his hand.

"Kaoru?"

Unexpectedly, she was unresponsive, as if caught in a trance or trapped by a memory. Darting his own gaze to the entrance, he unknowingly scowled in a threatening manner as he searched for what had snagged her attention away from him. However, nothing was there but the shadow of barren trees.

Standing slowly from his own swing, Kenshin let his hard irises continue their study of the surrounding area for a few seconds longer. Finally, he stepped closer to Kaoru and slowly knelt next to her. When his efforts revealed no signs of danger, he lifted his eyes to peer up at her face.

"What's wrong, Kaoru?" His free hand touched her cheek, and the contact broke whatever spell she was under. Instantly, she wrapped her free hand around his knuckles to press his fingers hard into her skin. She was cold. Colder than she had been in a long time. Cold like onibi flames.

"I…" Dark, thick lashes clenched together. "I'm sorry." Her voice was breathless and small. "I thought he… came back again."

"Sōjirō?" Both of her hands grasped his arm when he stood, and her head shook when he glanced down at her.

"N-no…" Sapphire eyes flickered back over to the entrance, and her words lowered to a whisper. "Death."

Something like a chill raced up Kenshin's spine, and he froze where he was to stare at her in disbelief. It was still jarring to actively think about her being dead, and not only because of what had caused it. Her experience with death went beyond dying, and extended into a realm no one living could imagine.

"W-what?" Even his own voice had softened with the subject. Swallowing, he lowered back into a squat and searched her haunted eyes in alarm. "Has he come back before?"

Another sharp inhale hitched in her lungs, and she shook her head quickly.

"N-not here. When we were…" She trailed off in confusion, and frowned. "No. It was here." Creased eyebrows relaxed, and her eyes focused abruptly on his face. Her spine had snaped straight in realization. "I was here. The whole time."

"Kaoru…?"

Her calloused fingers fisted into his sweater.

"Kenshin, I was here. Inside the Veil. I…" She glanced back at the entrance. "I don't think I ever left."

"What do you mean? I thought the Veil was just a barrier between the living plane and the afterlife?"

She nodded absently as she continued to stare at nothing.

"Death was angry about it. He said my place was somewhere else. That he had somewhere special for me to go. But I…" She looked lost and a touch confused, like her memories were fragmented. From what Kenshin understood from Megumi, there were no records of revived souls clearly remembering the afterlife. Perhaps it was better that they did not have a way to tell the living what awaited them.

"Kaoru." His hands cupped her cheeks, and she reluctantly blinked to stare into his eyes. "Were you inside the Veil for three hundred years?"

Slowly, she nodded.

"I don't… remember very much of it, but… I think so." As if drawn back to the entrance, her eyes drifted away from him. When she spoke again, her voice was eery. "Did you know… that Death has a name, too?"

"I have several names. I will allow you to call me…"

"He said I could call him Jin-e."

"Death told you his name?" This newest piece of information she dropped on him was so unexpected that Kenshin nearly overbalanced.

"Well, he gave me a name. Apparently, he has lots of names. Jin-e was a name given to him by someone else, or so he said." As the memories came back to her, the ghost of a smile touched her lips, and Kenshin wasn't sure how to feel about the expression. Nervous? Jealous? Concerned? "You know, he scared me at first, but… when he realized that he couldn't get to me, I think he eventually gave up. Well, I don't think he actually gave up, but… there was a level of resignation about him after a time. He even started asking me to sing for him whenever he came by."

"You sang for Death?" Jealousy officially won the struggle over his emotions, and Kenshin's voice dropped into a rumbling baritone. "What exactly did you sing for him?"

Kaoru, unfortunately, missed the change in his mood, but her attention did finally return to him. Bright, sapphire irises sparkled at him mischievously, and she grinned.

"Ironically or unironically?"

The suggestion was bewildering enough to knock some of the wind out of his irritation.

"You sang to Death ironically?" The gall was nearly more than Kenshin could fathom.

Kaoru giggled.

"Yep. I think he found it amusing that there were songs about the reaper and death and stuff. His taste wasn't what I expected at all, though. At first, he would ask for specific types of songs, but, eventually, I learned what songs he wanted to hear before he even asked. It was like… I could feel his mood."

The single memory had become a string of memories, and she spoke the information easily as she recalled more about her time in the Veil as it related to her interactions with the entity known as Death. Kenshin, however, was stuck on one piece of information specifically, and he was a little eager to change the subject.

"Why, exactly, could he not get to you?"

The interruption stalled her, and she went quiet.

"I don't… know…" Whatever it was evaded her reach, and she grew upset by her inability to remember. Just when he opened his mouth to dismiss the question, her entire being scrunched in agony.

"Ah!"

Both hands balled into her sternum, and she slid from the swing to kneel in the sand.

"Kaoru!"

The spell came on fast and without warning. Bracing her upright, violet eyes widened when he realized that her cold skin from only a few minutes before was now searing hot. She writhed in pain within the embrace of his arms, and her cries ripped through him as he held her helplessly.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

Coughing wracked her lungs, and she doubled over his elbow as the rough jerking of her diaphragm contorted her torso. Sweat beaded and pooled along her forehead and neck, and she gasped greedily for air when she could.

What do I do? She shouldn't be this hot! Human bodies can't handle these temperatures!

He could absorb heat from the air, but he wasn't confident he could regulate how much heat he took from living tissue. If he took too much, he could kill her.

Both of the hands covering Kaoru's mouth fell limply into her lap, and his mind froze in shock at what he could now see. Ash from her forceful coughing had unknowingly covered him and the ground under her, and it was smeared across her chin like char from burnt wood. From out of her mouth, white and grey tendrils of smoke rose into the air. As if in warning of fire.

X

From across the street, Sōjirō impassively watched his little doll cough up dust and cinders directly onto the fire demon. Hidden, and hidden well, inside the darkest shadow at the base of a tree, he studied the interaction with interest and slight confusion. Love was not a concept that Sōjirō understood. If it was only the attachment to another, then he could agree that he felt something similar for Master Shishio. However, that attachment was still ruled by logic. From what he had witnessed of love, or those claiming to be in love, it was an emotion ruled mostly by illogicality. Which was good for him, as it was also an easy emotion to use as manipulation.

This is working out better than I had imagined it would. I never counted on him falling in love with my doll, or becoming attached to her.

Truth be told, Sōjirō had originally imagined that there would be no small amount of disdain between his doll and the fire demon. Anger would have been a better emotion to manipulate, as he could have multiplied it exponentially, but love would do. The shadow demon was more aware of his emotional handicap than anyone else, and never assumed he would be able to guess or anticipate how others would react to his plans. Emotions confused him, because he did not experience them. Adapting, now that was something he was an expert at. He always had more than one plan.

And the absence of love usually resulted in anger, anyway.

Movement on the sidewalk pulled Sōjirō's attention away from his target, and he curiously watched a young male kappa jump at the site of the fire demon and his doll inside the park. A second later, he darted across the street straight at Sōjirō's hiding spot before ducking into the front yard of the house nearest to him. Intrigued, Sōjirō followed and wedged himself into the crevice between the gate and the privacy fence to eavesdrop.

"Old lady!" The kappa was furiously pressing the call button at the door, and his still squeaky voice hollered for the owner to answer. A few moments later, and the door opened.

"What is this now?"

"Old lady, hurry! There's someone in the park!"

"Oh, now. Don't you worry about that." A padded hand reached up to pat the young boy on the head. "I already spoke with them. They're nice people."

"No! The lady looks hurt! You gotta come fast!"

As the kappa pulled the old cat demon by the hand, an idea sparked in Sōjirō's brain.

Hmm… anger truly is better. If I can't instigate anger between them, I wonder if I can break her by instigating it elsewhere. At the least, I'll be able to gather some information on the fire demon's powers.

Before the old cat demon and the young kappa could register that there was a third person there, Sōjirō's grey eyes had ensnared them. Digging deep down inside of each, he found the anger he wanted, heightened it with fear, and implanted just the right notion inside of their minds.

"I saw the whole thing." The fake smile on his face did not match the tone of distress in his voice. Such a detail did not matter, though, when it was the curse he was wrapping them in that dictated how they would react. "It was the man with the red hair. He's a fire demon."

The concern on their faces melted, and scorn quickly replaced it. Anger truly was better to manipulate.

These two alone won't be enough. I'll find some others from the area.

X

Fire?! But her flames are cold!

Adjusting Kaoru in his arms, Kenshin pressed a hand flat over her chest and where the origin of her irritation seemed to be coming from. As a fire demon, he had a natural and unsurprising affinity for controlling fire. Even fire that was not his own, with the exception of the onibi. Deep inside her chest, he could feel something: a flicker; a spark. It was muffled, however, as if it were fading in and out of reality. Focusing as hard as he could on that tiny flame, he used his own power to suppress it. Despite how faint the fire felt, it fought him with surprising strength, and he ground his jaw and pushed back. Slowly, Kaoru's coughing lessened, and the foreign flame inside of her calmed. Every muscle in her body relaxed at the same time, and she slumped sideways into the protective curve of his embrace.

"Kaoru… are you alright? Do you know what happened?"

A wheeze pushed from her throat, and a few closed mouth coughs shuddered through her body. Shaky hands lifted, and she answered in sign language. A sure sign that her throat was in pain.

"I'm not sure."

A brooding scowl marred every inch of Kenshin's face, and he hugged her tighter against him. Distracted and intent upon her, he had missed the gathering of demons at the entrance to the park. He did not, however, miss the rock that was thrown.

With the stone caught in hand, his fiery violet irises jerked up to stare down the perpetrator. At least thirty demons of all sizes and races stood grouped together at a distance from them, and they drew back as one when his threatening gaze lifted. His anger turned quickly to confusion when he discovered the old cat demon among them.

"What is the meaning of this?" Dropping the stone in the sand, the tension in his shoulders slowly released when they all started shouting.

"Get out of our park!"

"Yeah!"

"Your kind isn't welcome here!"

"We know you're a fire demon!"

"You destroy everything you touch!"

"You hurt that girl!"

"Isn't she your friend?!"

"Get out!"

"Leave!"

The shouting continued, and the more insults and accusations that piled upon him, the heavier his body felt. It had been a while, but he knew this animosity well. Fire demons were hated and feared, but with good reason. Most of the destruction done to the planet was from fire demons during the war. There were swaths of land that were completely unlivable as a result.

Stones, gravel, and sticks began flying through the air, but for just a moment, the now blank expression on Kenshin's face failed to react to their hostility. In that moment, Kaoru pushed herself from his grasp and stood with both arms outstretched before him as a shield.

"Wait." The word barely rasped from her throat, and her next attempt was so forced it whistled. "Stop."

Worked into a frenzy, the mob did not hear or even acknowledge her, and one hard-thrown rock slammed into her forehead. A sharp edge sliced through her eyebrow, and blood gushed from the wound and ran into her eye. Pain and vertigo dropped her to her knees, and the salamander burst from its charm in a blaze of hot flames. A roar, so deep and loud, echoed within the park, like that of a beast many times the size of the salamander. Almost like that of a dragon. The mob of demons drew back with squeaks of fear, but then instantly began jeering at the salamander's small stature.

"No." Half-blind and nearly mute, Kaoru lunged forward to grab the salamander around the neck as it bared its sharp teeth at those who had harmed her. Sparks and pops snapped in the air in forewarning of the fire that was to come… and then the moment ended.

An inferno of violet-colored flames encircled them and blew back the swing set into the half-stone wall behind them. It swept upwards, and bellowed into the cloud-speckled sky where it hit the atmosphere and boomed outward like an atomic bomb. The mob of demons were thrown onto their backsides, but not one puff of heat had escaped the contained blast. The swing-set was the only collateral damage due to its unfortunate close proximity.

On his feet, the beanie covering Kenshin's horns burned away into cinders, and he stared down their group of attackers with glowing eyes. The violet of his irises shimmered, like pearlescent lacquer, and his presence pressed down upon all those in attendance with the sheer weight of his power. The twin horns on his head burned hot like fresh lava against the crimson flush of his hair.

"Hurt her again, and I will give you reason to fear me."

The words thundered in the now clear skies, and the onlookers cowered in recognition of his status. Bending slowly, Kenshin gathered Kaoru in his arms to lift her. Without arguing, the salamander read his expression, and then quickly latched himself to Kaoru's hair-tie to return to his dormant form.

"Kenshin…" Her destroyed vocal cords fought to express her concern. "Don't… hurt…"

"I won't." Casting his voice low, he touched his nose briefly to her hair. "I just need to get you out of harm's way." Both of her arms wrapped around his neck, and she clung to him tightly in trust.

The crowd parted in fear, like insects scuttling away from the light. As he walked past the old cat demon, he paused to look at her and the hatred filled glare she gave him in return. Two creases formed at the center of his brow-line, and he carefully angled Kaoru's face into his chest so that she would not see. Even though the old woman no longer felt amiable towards them, he still left her with a brief nod of respect.

Watching from the shadows, Sōjirō was already amending his plans.

X

A/N: I was afraid I wouldn't get this chapter done in time to post on Saturday like normal. It was a long week, but at least it ended with a concert of my favorite band! I absolutely love Shinedown, and they have such great concerts. Last night's concert was not what I expected, but I still really enjoyed it. The lead singer was battling with bronchitis, and everyone could tell it was upsetting him. A part of me would have been completely fine with them cancelling the show, because I'd rather my favorite band not lose their lead singer by forcefully destroying his voice. Instead of cancelling though, he gave it his all through about three or four songs, and then his voice started failing. He said he'd go as long as he could, and asked the crowd to help him out, and boy did the crowd follow through! One song in particular, you could tell he was struggling, and the crowd pretty much sang the entire song. He stood up there and cried. It was amazing. The rest of the band stepped up, too, and it was just so awesome to see everyone helping out and screaming support. No one left, no one booed, it was just pure love. They did the entire show, and I didn't get home until one in the morning. My voice is totally wrecked! And I'm pretty sure I'm deaf in my left ear now. XD It also gave me some fun ideas about Kaoru doing a concert with the salamander perched on her shoulders, but it won't actually fit in my story, so I'll have to let that vision go, lol. If anyone would like to, please send some good vibes and love to Shinedown for a safe and quick recovery.

Next chapter… Aoshi and Misao learn something disturbing, and Kenshin and Kaoru share some sweet moments. See you next week!