Chapter Ninety-Eight

The wooden blinds that covered the small, attic window was cold to the touch, having soaked in the chill from the glass. Through the slits, the more traditional buildings of Neo-Kyoto stretched into the distance, and beyond them, the mountains. Snow covered the trees and roofs but had been pushed from the streets and sidewalks. The weak winter sun glistened off the snow, but provided little warmth to the bitter air.

Dark eyes stared out through the blinds, their pupils roaming aimlessly along the sights. Their owner sat quietly and deep in thought as he tried to make sense of his current situation. At any other time, he might have protested loudly and demanded an explanation, but he had refrained himself from such an outburst to instead deliberate an answer on his own. So far, all he had decided was that he was safe. Briefly, his eyes lowered to his blanket covered legs to glance at the reason he had remained silent, but he looked away quickly when he felt his ears burn red. Once more staring out the window, he swallowed to gather his nerve before looking at her again.

Upon waking, Yahiko had found himself tucked warmly into a bed. An IV had been secured to his arm, and a single monitor had displayed his vitals. The quiet beep of his heart had filled the private room with regular sound, but it was the soft breathing of another that had gained his attention. Without first knowing of his predicament, Yahiko had sat up, his body weak and his mind sluggish after days of being asleep. Pain had tensed his back muscles as a reminder of his wounds, and he had barely kept from wincing out loud. All of that had stalled the moment his pain narrowed eyes had landed on Tsubame's sleeping form.

Finally finding the courage to study her without embarrassment, Yahiko allowed his gaze to linger on her features. She sat in a chair that had been positioned next to his bed, but her upper body was sprawled across his legs. One cheek rested heavily on his shin, the pressure smushing her mouth to one side in a rather comical way. The flower in her hair was only a bud, its petals still tightly packed together in its own respite. Over her head, one of her arms stretched across both of his shins. Her other grasped him at the knee.

She smells nice.

He hated to wake her. A nervous part of him worried she might be embarrassed. A selfish part of him did not want the moment to end. A guilty part of him felt shame for the words he had said to his father, about how she meant nothing to him, even if they had been said to keep her safe. In the end, it was the logical part of him that needed to know where he was, why he was there, and what needed to be done next to stay safe. That part of him overruled the others. After all, it was the part that had been drilled into him by his mother as the most important one, and he reluctantly shook Tsubame awake with a hand on her shoulder.

For someone who appeared to be so deeply asleep, she came awake immediately with a snap to attention. Her body jerked upright, but she did not pull completely away from him. Instead, both of her hands shifted to grasp him by his lower leg, and her deep eyes, like the center of poppies, stared at him for three whole seconds.

"You're awake." The flower in her hair bloomed into a beautiful camellia with pinkish red petals. A gentle sigh later, and her features blossomed with it into a relieved and happy smile. "Thank goodness."

Frowning to cover the blush that rose high in his cheeks, Yahiko looked away.

"Where are we?"

"Neo-Kyoto." Tsubame leaned forward and placed her hand over his forehead to check his temperature.

"I-I could see that. I meant this place we're in."

"Oh, it's a safe house. Yūtarō-kun's family owns it."

"What?!" Kicking off the blanket, Yahiko swung his legs over the side of the bed. "Why the hell is he involved?" Tsubame tried to keep him from standing, but the entrance of the koi fish proved her efforts pointless.

"What the hell else was she supposed to do with you after you crashed into her apartment?" Leaning against the open doorway, Yūtarō smirked. "Look at you. You can't even stand up."

Scowling, Yahiko tried to ignore the way his knees trembled to instead glare at his rival in love.

"I don't need to stand."

"Against that lunatic of a father you've got, you might. He nearly sliced you to ribbons."

"That's got nothing to do with you!"

"It's kind of everyone's problem now, idiot."

"What?!"

"Yahiko-kun." Tugging on his sleeve, Tsubame pointed out the window. "The Emperor put the country on lockdown so he can search for his missing daughter." Out in the street, a patrol could be seen marching past the house they were in. "It's been this way since you broke out of the palace almost two weeks ago."

Deep black eyes darted back and forth between hers.

"Where's Yuna? Did she make it out with me?"

"You mean that little maid in the kimono?" Yūtarō came in closer, and Yahiko shot him a scathing look.

"Maid? That's my sister, you asshat!"

Yūtarō's orange eyes widened, and Tsubame bit her lip.

"She's fine. She went with someone else who knows Himura-san and Kaoru-san." A tentative glance was thrown at Yūtarō when he frowned at her. "I'm sorry, Yūtarō-kun. She asked me not to say anything about who she was."

He crossed his arms, but nodded his head.

"It's fine, I guess. Having both of them would have been problematic anyway."

"Was she hurt?" Yahiko was genuinely worried, and Tsubame felt uncomfortably jealous for some reason. "It looked like the Emperor caught her." Suddenly his face lengthened with realization. "I asked her to deliver a letter to you. Did you get it? What about the others?"

"I got it." Soft fingers took his hand. "You did great, Yahiko-kun. Your warning came just in time for everyone to get out, and Yuna-san wasn't hurt at all." Trying to persuade him to sit back down, Tsubame pushed against the front of his shoulder. "We'll tell you everything that's happened, okay?"

"'We' huh?" Looking very unhappy about her wording, Yahiko flopped down onto the bed, but regretted his childish action a moment later when his back lanced with pain all the way into the back of his head. Grinding his teeth to avoid showing how his immaturity had backfired, he looked away from both of them to stare once more out the window. "I guess you two have been spending a lot of time together while I was locked up."

"I suppose…" Tsubame reluctantly agreed to the truth in Yahiko's claim, but Yūtarō fed into his insecurity almost evilly.

"Someone had to walk her home from work and carry her groceries and pick her up from classes while you were gone." A cheeky grin pulled at Yūtarō's face. "Don't worry, Yahiko-chan, I took good care of her. She even came to a few of my shows to 'get her mind off things.' Right, Tsubame-chan?"

"Well… you insisted so much…"

If Yahiko had been a fire-based demon, smoke would have been rising from his ears. In a show of almost saint-like maturity, he bit back the desire to murder the koi fish demon and roast him for supper to instead grant him a twitchy, barely contained leer.

"Thanks." Sounding very much like he did not mean what he said, Yahiko lifted his nose to look down it. "I feel so bad for all that time you wasted when it's clear you're no longer needed."

Looking amused and gratingly superior, Yūtarō snorted.

"Again. You can barely stand."

"A-alright. Please stop." Stepping between them, Tsubame held up both arms to block them from antagonizing each other further. "Yahiko-kun is still recovering." A concerned glance was thrown over her shoulder. "Are you hungry? I'll get you something to eat."

Blushing and looking away, Yahiko mumbled. "I could eat."

"Okay." Happy to help, Tsubame hurried out the door. Yūtarō scoffed before sitting down in the seat Tsubame had vacated.

"How sad you've got to have a woman fight your battles for you."

"Shut up, you stupid fish." Making a face, Yahiko looked back out the window at another patrol marching past. "What the hell are we doing here anyway?"

Catching him up, Yūtarō leaned the chair back onto two legs and sniffed.

"We were forced to come here to escape the Emperor. Somehow, he kept finding us. Our safe houses are smaller here, though, so we had to split everyone up. There's something weird going on here, too."

Pulling one leg up under him, Yahiko leaned forward.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. We were followed from Neo-Tokyo. It was pretty obvious, but… there hasn't been any movement from the Emperor since we got here. The patrols have increased, too, and some of them don't look military."

"You spotted that, did you?" The tiny voice caught both of them off-guard, and while Yahiko jumped to his feet, Yūtarō fell flat on his back when he overbalanced in the chair. An impish giggle shot through the room, and Yahiko relaxed but glared at the sylph buzzing in his face like a hummingbird. "Found you, little brother."

"Being called little by someone your size is just demeaning."

"Don't pout. I'm actually happy you're still alive." Misao flitted out of the way when he swatted a hand to back her off.

"Who the hell is that?! And how did she get in here?!"

Looking down at the koi demon scrambling to get off the floor, Misao crossed her arms with a huff.

"I'll have you know I'm a princess, and I don't appreciate your tone." Yūtarō froze, but Yahiko ignored his input.

"If you were just checking in on me, I'm fine. No thanks to you."

Another huff, and Misao smacked him on the forehead.

"We came to get you but you were already gone. You know, I was actually going to thank you for saving Yuna, but if you're going to have that kind of attitude, I don't think I will."

"Fine by me."

"Princess." Kneeling on the floor, Yūtarō offered a dramatic bow of deference. "It's an honor to be in your presence. Especially knowing what it is you plan to do." Misao spared him a glance with a lifted brow.

"Don't act like you know anything, little fish boy. I only came here for my little brother." Pointing over his shoulder, Misao indicated the mountain in the distance. "See that mountain with the missing tree line? Himura's there with the human girl."

"What? He is?" Yahiko turned to see which mountain she was talking about.

"We're waiting for him to come back down it. You interested in being there when he does?"

"You still plan on getting revenge against our asshole father?"

Misao's grin turned slightly cynical. "Is rain wet?"

Yahiko's lip curled. "Count me in."

X

An unfortunate side-effect of the second, smaller barrier that Hiko had erected around the house did not reveal itself until after Kenshin had regained his full strength. Although, it was unfortunate only for the water dragon. As the barrier was more selective about who and what was allowed in and out, thereby making it tighter in nature, it had begun to collect and insulate the heat that Kenshin naturally exuded from his body. After only one night, all of the snow had melted in a perfect circle around the house, and by noon, the yard had dried. Hiko was not a fan of the trapped heat, and had left to assist the komainu on their last push to mend the damage Kenshin had initially inflicted upon the mountain with the Kagu-tsuchi. Kaoru, on the other hand, had opted to take advantage of the smoother footing while they were still idle.

Seated on the veranda with his legs hanging off the edge, Kenshin watched from a short distance as Kaoru warmed up with the wooden sword Hiko had carved for her. Each swing of the blunt weapon was precise, her muscles well used to the motions and weight of the sword. Her expression was serious and focused; a direct contrast to her usual smile and happy aura. Kenshin knew that this was not something she did only for fun. Practicing the sword style of her father and keeping it fresh and alive inside of her mind was important to her. That was not to say she was not happy doing so. Kenshin knew that the part of her that he was currently seeing was as much a part of her true self as the silly part she tended to exhibit most of the time. Kaoru loved being active, and she loved sword fighting.

Pushing himself off the raised porch, Kenshin picked up a borrowed wooden sword and meandered his way over. He did not mind watching her, but through experience, he had learned that he enjoyed sparring with her more than being a simple bystander. One sharp turn and swish of the wooden sword over her head brought the weapon into a downward strike that he stopped with his own borrowed sword. The loud crack of their meeting echoed in the small clearing, and a smile broke through the heaviness of her tensed countenance. Kaoru loved training, but she relished competition.

"I was starting to worry you found me too intimidating to engage." The amusing jab made him chuckle, and his response was openly suggestive.

"Perhaps I simply like watching, Miss Kaoru."

A sudden blush darkened her cheeks, and he took advantage of her distraction to overbalance her. Rolling his sword out from under hers, he hooked the tip at the back of her knee and buckled her stance easily. Catching her before she fell and dipping her backwards, his expression turned playfully serious.

"You should be careful not to allow your opponent such an advantage. Miss Kaoru."

Both cheeks puffed out angrily, and he sat her back on her feet with a grin. Taking a wider stance, she lifted her wooden sword level with her shoulder.

"Since we're taking advantage of weaknesses now, I might as well do the same." One hand swiped across the full length of the weapon, and in the wake of her fingers the once warm wood turned hard and frosted blue. Ice crystals clung to what once was a blunt edge, and each jagged formation glinted in the overhead sunlight. Violet eyes noted the change, but studied her fingers with greater interest to be sure she had not harmed herself in the process. He was reassured by the unchanged, warm glow of her flesh, but resolved to keep watch throughout their sparring match to be sure it remained that way.

"Ice melts quite easily under fire, Miss Kaoru."

"It does? I didn't know that." The sarcastic retort preceded her attack by mere seconds, and he was forced to counter or dodge each strike in quick succession. This time when their swords slammed together, the heat from his body did indeed cause the crystallization on her weapon to instantly melt. As a result, the thawed ice splattered his face, neck, and chest with water droplets, but while they sizzled on his skin in irritation, it was the sliver of blood that dripped from his forehead that announced her attack had been more effective than at first glance. Contrite for his injury, Kaoru relaxed her shoulders and stepped towards him in concern.

"Sorry. Are you okay?"

Wiping the blood away with the back of his hand, Kenshin frowned.

"I hope that's not the extent of your strategy, Miss Kaoru." Playing it off to keep her from guilt, Kenshin took an uncharacteristically arrogant approach. "One small cut will hardly slow me down, and you forget that I survived jumping in the ocean. A few drops of water will do nothing."

"Well good." Haughty, and with her pride officially prodded, Kaoru resumed her aggressive stance. "Then I won't feel bad about not holding back."

Kaoru was not weak, but she did have a tendency to fight like a human; physically, without powers. Up to that point, whenever she had used what powers were available to her outside of their training, it had been mostly by accident. She did not have the experience using both physical attacks and her onibi powers in a fight the same way that she had experience with using only a sword. She did well in her training, but she still struggled to use both her internal and external energy in their sparring matches. He worried about what that meant for when she tried to translate it over into a real-life scenario. Demons were not forgiving by nature. They would not hold back or fight fair. They would never think to spare a life the way she had been taught to. Gein and Sōjirō were both proof of the underhanded tricks demons would use to get their way, and in such a way that there was little chance of fighting back. Kenshin would not feel comfortable with Kaoru fighting on her own until he was sure she was fully proficient in fighting with every available advantage and power that she had.

Thankfully, it seemed that learning she was able to use a different flame besides the deadly onibi had eased her innate fear of the powers that had been forced upon her. He could not say for sure if she had or had not practiced with them during the time he had taken to recover, but this was the first time they had sparred together since learning she could manipulate two different flames. The change in her attitude towards her newer ice fire was blatantly obvious. Up to that point, she had trained with her powers begrudgingly, as if performing a task that she knew was required of her but held little joy. The only time she appeared completely at ease when sparring with him was when she did so with her wooden sword only. Kenshin was glad to see that had changed. Coming to terms with ones own power opened up many barriers, the least of which was strength. He had learned that lesson himself within only the last two years.

She was breathing heavily when he finally called an end to their match. It amused him to know that he had to be the one to concede. Otherwise, he was certain she would have continued until she dropped. While still rudimentary and almost strictly based around her swordplay, her tactics were advancing. The fact that she had mastered her father's sword style was, in the end, still a well-honed advantage for her.

Grinning as she flopped down onto the veranda, Kaoru wiped at the sweat on her brow with one of the waiting towels. "It's official. I like training with you more than Hiko-sama. You're better at giving advice."

Sitting down next to her, Kenshin twisted to settled his borrowed wooden sword behind him on the veranda. "Hiko-sama prefers to teach by example." Turning back to her, he slid one bent leg half up onto the raised porch and leaned into the beam now behind him. "I am glad that you've decided not to replace me." Though he said it with a chuckle, she frowned.

"I'd never replace you." Scooting quickly closer, Kaoru flopped her back into his chest a little overzealously. Tightening his abdomen to prepare for the blow, Kenshin released his held breath slowly while holding in his amusement.

"Oh? Do you like me that much?" A hand ran up the back of her bicep, and she tossed him a teasing look.

"Hmm… just a little bit. Like, a tiny little bit. Maybe this much." Holding up her thumb and index finger barely a space away from one another, she grinned when he narrowed his eyes. Stealing a swift, smacking kiss, she corrected herself before he might mistake her playfulness for truth. "Just within the space of infinity, ya know?"

Both of her arms rested atop his when he wrapped them around her waist, and her head leaned back into the crook of his neck and shoulder. After a short time, she pulled free the long red braid hanging from her ponytail to puddle at her front, and then she began to hum while she ran its pleated length through her hands. It took him a minute, but he recognized the song as the same one he remembered her humming at the hot spring. There was nothing soothing about the tune, and it did not truly sound like something that should have been hummed at all. The song was slightly feisty and even a touch challenging. Kaoru, however, did not attempt to sing the lyrics, just as she had not at the hot spring. Distractedly, he wondered why she was fixated on the song, but it was not long before it ended.

Silence once more descended on the yard, but the atmosphere between them remained comfortable. Amusing herself, Kaoru lifted the tip of the long braid to brush the feathered end against her face, and then she sighed. "My salamander hasn't come out to see me even once since you replenished his energy. Do you think he's alright?"

Averting an abruptly annoyed gaze out towards the yard, Kenshin did not hide the stern line of his mouth or the disappointment in his tone. "He has no right to show his face." Kenshin was still angry with the hair charm, and by extension himself, for letting Kaoru be taken away without even a fight. He had originally thought to throw the charm away for obviously being useless, but had relented at Kaoru's persistent request. He had even taken the time to adjust the strength and range of its duties in hopes of it being less than worthless. It was doubtful, however, that he would ever trust it with her safety again.

"Don't be like that, Kenshin. I shouldn't have been using him like a heater, and I feel pretty bad that he was bitten. You're sure he wasn't damaged at all?"

"Fire-based creatures are immune to poisons." His voice had dropped into a growl. "He should have easily burnt those spiders before they even touched you."

"Oh. I see." There was a pause as she exhaled. "He's not coming out because he's scared of you." Sapphire eyes glanced at him pointedly over her shoulder. Both of her eyebrows were arched, and unexpectedly, he huffed a somewhat amused laugh.

"He damn well better be." He had one job and he screwed it up.

Hearing her lighthearted giggles, though, softened his features, and he tugged her a little closer back against him to rest his chin on her shoulder. Absently, his gaze landed on her chest, and he thought about that glimmer of golden light he had thought he had witnessed after finally finding her the night of her abduction. As it turned out, that glimmer was supposedly a piece of him. A piece of him that had survived inside of her soul for three hundred years. While the others were excited to find what he needed to heal and to transition into a full-fledged dragon, Kenshin had mixed feelings.

It was clear that the piece of flame inside of her was causing her pain and discomfort. Not only that, her episodes were getting worse. They needed to get it out of her, but that as well carried risk. Best case, they were able to open her up and he was somehow able to manipulate a piece of fire that was literally inside of her soul. He had no desire to think of a worst case scenario. If anything went wrong, anything at all, he had already decided that he would snuff that flame out. With no hesitation, he would kill that piece of himself to save her. Even if it left him permanently crippled.

They had already planned to leave the next day to head back to Neo-Tokyo. Traveling again while the Emperor was still searching for them was dangerous, but Kenshin's priorities had shifted. He would do what was necessary to keep her safe, and he was much more proficient at utilizing the Kagu-tsuchi now. Though Enishi had thought it impossible to bluff the sky dragon, Kenshin thought he might just be able to with power that rivaled the sun.

"Hey." The call was low, and surprisingly nervous. "Were you trying to ask me something last night?" Lifting his chin as she shifted, he blinked out of his thoughts to focus on the side of her face. "You know, before I… had that episode."

Peering intently back at her, he wondered if the moment was right to ask now. Honestly, he wondered if it was right for him to have tried the night before. Though he had no plans to go through with a ceremony immediately, he still wanted to make it clear to her what his intentions were. Of course, there was the matter of it being a rather important decision to make, and he wanted her to be fully aware of what she was agreeing to before he secured her answer.

"Well? Was it… something important, or just routine…?" She trailed off but looked expectant, and he smiled slowly.

Idiot. If you waited for the perfect time, it might never happen.

Brushing aside her slightly damp bangs, he tucked the longer strands behind her ear to give him some more time to gather his words.

"I was hoping you might consider…"

"We're finally done!" Ayame and Suzume broke the tree line together with their hands clasped, and they skipped towards them with happy grins. Behind them, Hiko's long-legged stride easily kept up with their more enthusiastic gait.

Closing his eyes on a sigh, Kenshin helped Kaoru sit up. Even if he had decided to let go of the perfect scenario, this was even less than merely suitable. It was clear by her face that she was also displeased with the interruption, though, and so he leaned in to console her with a whisper.

"We'll try again later."

The disappointment left her as fast as it had appeared, and she perked up like a flower after rain.

"Okay."

Giggling as they stopped on their final hop next to the veranda, the komainu lifted their hands into the air to make an announcement.

"We're having a drinking party to celebrate!"

"You actually fixed the mountain?" Leaning into their gusto, Kaoru grinned and patted them both on the head. "That's amazing!"

Sliding off the veranda, Kenshin stood and provided Hiko with a mocking smile.

"Are you willingly sharing your sake, or are you under duress?"

"Don't make me change my mind. The girls wanted to give you a proper send-off this time."

"That's right, Ken-nii/Nii-san. Don't worry about supper, either. We'll take care of everything!"

X

Bonus Love Song #2

Cho: Rag Doll - Aerosmith