Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Liquid Flame ❯ The Hare and the Toad ( Chapter 2 )

A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfiction

Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin and its characters do not belong to me. Oh, the wicked things I'd do with them if they did.

 

AN: This chapter is a lot less dark than the last one. In it, I explain a little more about what's going on with this world.

Edited 05Jan06, thanks to my new beta, KC Evans

 

~Liquid Flame~

By Indygodusk

 

Chapter 2: The Hare and the Toad

 

Several hours of chain smoking had made the air in Saitou's office hazy enough that the unpacked boxes shoved into the corners of the room blended almost seamlessly into the peeling brown paint on the walls. Stubbing out his latest cigarette into the overflowing ashtray without looking, he groped in the desk drawer by his knee for another pack.

Saitou had lost track of how many hours he'd been staring at the grisly pictures from the latest murder scene. They'd found the slaughtered family in their cheerful yellow farmhouse four days ago. No new victims had surfaced since then, but just because they hadn't been found didn't mean they didn't exist. He felt like he was missing some vital clue, something that would give him the edge to find what he'd dubbed the “Black Lizard,” and wipe it off the face of the earth. Yet hours of comparing these pictures to the older murder scenes had failed to give him any new insights.

Both Saitou and his superiors were impatient at the lack of progress in the case. There were even rumblings that certain factions of the government were pushing to replace him. Supposedly a private agency with ties to several prominent politicians had some hot-shot prodigy that they wanted to send in. However, he wasn't at a dead end yet. He wouldn't disobey a direct order, but if politics pulled him off of this case he might have to do something potentially foolish and certainly violent.

Tonight would be his best chance at getting a break. The specific alignment of the moons meant that the magical creature would be vulnerable to earthly attacks. If he was lucky, he might even be able to take it down with ordinary bullets. Of course, he'd made sure to prepare a few spells as well. He wouldn't be caught without any good offensive magic like the last time. First, though, he had to figure out where it was holed up.

Pinned to the wall on his left was a large colored map of the surrounding area. Red pins, carefully numbered, marked where corpses had been found and orange pins marked potential sightings of the creature. Skirmishes, those few and far between, were marked in yellow. He knew that there was a pattern he wasn't seeing. For the hundredth time he tried to make sense of its movements, but his eyes chose that moment to stage a revolt and refuse to stay focused.

Closing his eyes, he pressed his palms into the sockets. He saw bright splotches of white and red appear in response to the pressure, but when he lifted his hands they felt better. Of course, his fingers had to accidentally brush against the healing gash on his forehead when he took his hands off. This replaced the ache behind his eyes with the ache on his forehead. Deciding a little fresh air might make him feel less irritated, he sighed and stood up with a lanky stretch.

As he opened his door, he noticed that the air pressure was pulling the pale haze out of his office in a quickly dissipating whirlpool of smoke. The relatively fresh air from the center of the building rapidly destroyed the fleeting pattern, but it lasted just long enough to spark Saitou's thoughts. Going back to the map, he began tracing his fingertips along from the first pin in a large corkscrew. His fingers moved hesitantly at first, but as a pattern emerged his hand sped up until he passed the last pin and slammed his palm onto the map. There! Allowing for false sightings and skirmishes with patrols sending the creature out of its way, the Black Lizard seemed to be zeroing in on the westernmost edge of the valley.

Quickly grabbing a red pen, Saitou circled the area he considered the center of the monster's spiral. This was it, he could feel it. A hard smile edged his mouth at the thought of finally hunting this vicious killer down. The scarlet circle included several homes, a school, a slew of farms and factories, and several miles of forest. Still a large area, but with the number of men at his disposal he could set up a gradually tightening perimeter. The men who circled the settled areas could advance and drive the creature out into the open area in front of the forest where it would be easier to see. Such a strategy would also keep the creature away from civilians and prevent further casualties.

His thoughts were interrupted by a voice from his open doorway. “Mirror Saitou?”

It took a moment to pull himself out of planning that night's assault. “What is it?”

“I brought you some coffee, sir.” Stepping into the room, the sandy-haired officer stopped by Saitou's side, “Here.”

Grabbing the steaming drink, Saitou couldn't help but raise his eyebrow at the picture emblazoned on the side of the mug. It showed a grinning blond baby hugging a small black puppy dog. The other officer seemed to notice the picture at the same time Saitou did. A mortified vermillion flush flooded his face. Believing that no one could turn that red on purpose, Saitou decided that the officer was probably innocent.

However, Saitou wasn't naïve enough, or stupid enough, to believe that it was a silly accident. More likely it was an intentional slight by someone else in the department. Such pranks had been getting more and more frequent over the last week. Nonetheless, in honor of his good mood over his breakthrough, he decided to take pity on the man just this once. “Thank you…” he said dryly, limiting any further sour comments while waiting for the man's name and position.

“Officer Robinson, Sir.”

“Thank you for the coffee, Robinson.”

Saitou waited for the man to leave so he could go back to planning, but the officer seemed to have something else he wanted to say. Quickly tiring of the man's shuffling feet and clearing throat, Saitou decided to give him a prompt. “Was there something else, Robinson?”

“Well, um, I was just wondering if you'd gotten any leads yet.” He finally asked. Perhaps fearing his question could be interpreted as criticism, he paused only momentarily before continuing. “I know you've only been here for a couple of weeks, but I was with the patrol that found the last murder scene and,” he paused a moment to swallow, “I just want to know that it will be stopped. Being a Mirror and all, you're probably used to seeing things like that, but me-” He looked down at his feet as he admitted in a low voice, “I've never seen anything that bad. Blood everywhere and bits of torn flesh and that poor little boy-” when his voice broke unexpectedly, Robinson tried to disguise it by taking a sip his of coffee.

Turning to the map, Saitou gave the young officer a moment to compose himself by drinking his own coffee. It tasted awful, as expected. “Do you see this red circle here?” he finally asked.

“Yes, Sir.”

“That's where the creature has been heading. All of his attacks are circling this area here. Tonight, we are going to set a trap and end this once and for all.”

Officer Robinson's brown eyes lit up at this news and his drooping shoulders straightened. “Does anyone else know yet, sir?”

Giving a slight smile Saitou replied. “Actually, I only figured it out right before you came in. I was just about to go call a meeting to inform everyone of the change in tonight's patrol.”

Whatever response Robinson might have given to that was drown out by a surge of noise from the front room. Individual words were hard to make out, but it sounded more excited than alarmed. Exchanging confused glances, they went to see what all the commotion was about. On the way past his desk, Saitou made sure to grab his sword and gun.

 

 

Clouds dappled the grassy field next to Aizu Academy, casting the many students lounging there into inconsistent shade. A mischievous zephyr tugged the clouds westward, along with dark blue uniform skirts, beribboned ponytails, and miscellaneous homework assignments. Basking in the bright yellow heat and mild breeze, most of the girls found it a pleasant change from the chill fog and rain that had characterized the previous week.

Chewing on the end of her pencil, Tokio smoothed down the paper of her sketch pad where it had flipped up at the breeze's urging. She had decided to take up drawing at the beginning of the week. One of her older students, Riri, had challenged Tokio to become more proficient after a disastrous geography lesson. Tokio was talented at many things, but when a classroom full of bright young girls couldn't tell the difference between the size and shape of her hand-drawn continent of Asia and island of New Japan, she had to face the truth.

“Miss Takagi, you need to draw the tree exactly as you see it. You can't just draw a circle with toothpick legs!” exclaimed Riri as she examined Tokio's efforts. “Try to draw individual branches and the grain of the wood. See if that helps.”

The advice was kindly meant, but to be perfectly honest it didn't help. At all. For the last thirty minutes, Tokio had already been trying to draw exactly what she was seeing. Unfortunately, her eyes and her hands seemed to be speaking foreign languages. It was worse than the night the second moon appeared and The Sundering occurred.

Of course, The Sundering hadn't been easy either. In fact, it had been rather violent and rough. No one had understood why technology suddenly stopped working, and then started working again but only in fits and starts. It had taken decades to regain just a small fraction of the world's once great industrial capability. Not to mention how about seventy-five percent of the world's population had disappeared from their homes only to instantly reappear in far-flung foreign lands. Governments and societies were all but destroyed, forcing cultures to clash, mix, and finally meld.

But at least then, most people knew a little bit of English, thanks to the pervasiveness of American movies and businesses. Though to be fair, many non-industrial countries didn't teach English as a second language in their schools. Still, history had proved that there were enough countries that did teach English at that time to make it the new universal language. It had quickly become bastardized with the languages of the people making up the new cities and towns, of course. Yet her claim remained - the founders of New Japan were able to communicate with each other enough to form a new language and society. Her eyes and hands couldn't even communicate well enough to draw a tree.

Glancing at the sketchbook of the vivaciously drawing red-head sitting only a few feet away, Tokio tried not to feel jealous. Seemingly effortlessly, Riri had penciled not only a perfect replica of the tree, but also the group of girls lounging beneath its branches talking. In Riri's tree, a curious raven holding a scrap of food in its mouth peered down at the people below its perch. The raven looked so lifelike that it could have flown from the page, yet Tokio knew there hadn't been a raven in that tree the entire time they'd been sketching. After all, she'd spent more time squinting into its branches than actually drawing.

Sighing, she added a few lines of bark between her tree's `toothpick legs,' but her heart really wasn't in it. Riri must have finally noticed and taken pity, because she closed her sketchbook and stretched. “Why don't we go sit under the tree with An and Jin and you can get a closer look at the bark,” she suggested.

Standing up with alacrity, Tokio grabbed her art supplies. “Excellent idea. I'm sure a shift of perspective is just what I need to get my creativity going.” Besides which, the Chinese twins were sure to distract Riri with their chatter and allow her to escape the rest of the drawing lesson.

When Riri and Tokio circled the tree to sit down by the sisters, they noticed two more people that had been hidden by the wide trunk. Tokio was surprised to see young Kaoru sitting on the green grass with her skirt rucked up above her skinned knees. Her back was braced against the body of Junko, a senior student of Aizu Academy and one of Tokio's secret favorites. Junko was sitting up on her knees braiding flowers and leaves into Kaoru's long brown-black hair. While her first feelings upon seeing Junko were usually affection, this time Tokio felt a rush of concern. She didn't see Chi'na anywhere.

Junko was supposed to be Chi'na's `big sister' for the week, watching out for the new child and making sure she fit in to her new life at Aizu. Usually, Junko was one of the kindest and most dependable girls in the school. Upon thinking about Junko's reliability, Tokio tramped down on her worry. There had to be a good explanation.

“Good afternoon, girls. I hope you don't mind if we join you?” hailed Riri. At the chorus of welcome, Riri and Tokio sat down and made themselves comfortable.

Almost immediately, Riri flipped open her sketchbook to a blank page and started drawing. Hopefully, she wouldn't notice that Tokio hadn't done the same.

“So, Junko,” Tokio began, “where has Chi'na disappeared to?” At her question, all of the girls but Riri exchanged glances and started laughing.

“It's a secret!” Kaoru yelled. She looked quite comical, bouncing where she sat and yet trying to keep her head still so as not to dislodge Junko's careful placement of flowers.

“You have to guess,” said An from where she lay on her stomach on the grass with her feet swinging in the air.

“Yes, guess,” confirmed her sister, Jin, with a giggle.

“Is she with some of the other young girls playing?” Tokio queried.

“No,” they replied.

“What about up in a tree?” she guessed next, but Jin shook her head. “Or did she fly off to visit the rabbit in the moon?”

An sat up and smoothed down her skirt. “No, and she isn't with the toad either, so don't even think about saying it.”

“She isn't off ogling the boys in the fields, I hope.”

“Miss Takagi, she's way too young for that!” exclaimed Junko with a faint blush. Chi'na might be too young, but Junko certainly wasn't.

“If she isn't sneaking food from the kitchen, I might just have to give up in despair,” Tokio mock-sighed.

Suddenly, a familiar head with two licorice braids poked out from behind Junko's shoulders. “Here I am!” announced Chi'na with a delighted laugh. “I was here the whole time,” she shouted with large, circular arm gestures. “I was makin' Junko's hair super princess pretty, but she's so big you couldn't see me behind her. I kept quiet and hid good so you'd be surprised. You were, weren't ya?”

Making a face of exaggerated surprise, Tokio dramatically admitted, “I was totally fooled!” Chi'na let out another peal of delighted laughter, followed closely by the chuckles of the other girls.

As the conversation moved on to classes, assignments, and the evil test coming up in Pre-Sundering European Lit, Tokio leaned her back up against the wide trunk of the tree. If Riri asked, she could always claim that she was learning how to draw the tree through osmosis. Of course, if she said that she'd probably have to explain to the younger girls just what osmosis was. Being a fan of object lessons, Tokio would probably try to use the tree as an example, and then end up having to explain capillary action too. She should just save herself the trouble and think up another excuse.

Out of nowhere, Junko suddenly slapped a hand to her mouth in horror. “I'm so awful!” she groaned. “Riri, you haven't been introduced to Chi'na yet, have you?”

Putting her pencil down, Riri replied. “No, but since this cutie has the only name and face I didn't know, I assumed she was the one Miss Takagi was referring to.” Leaning sideways to get a better view of Chi'na's suddenly shy face, the red-head grinned companionably. “Hi, I'm Lily. No one in New Japan can pronounce my name right except my parents, so you can just call me Riri like everyone else. You'd think that people here would have figured out the whole `l' versus `r' thing since most of us use English nowadays, but go figure.” She let out a world weary sigh and rolled her eyes. “I guess to some people, Engrish will always be Engrish - and they intend to make everyone else speak that way too.”

Chi'na shyly smiled back. “Um, you can call me Chi'na. I don't have another name. I knew a boy once who called me `teeny cheeny,' but I didn't like that.”

“Well, I'll just have to call you Chi'na then, which is a perfectly lovely name,” affirmed Riri, and blew the little girl a kiss.

Lounging back down onto the grass, Riri resumed sketching. Tokio followed Riri's gaze as it flipped between her paper and the large silver moon fully visible in the eastern sky. For some reason, Tokio loved those rare times when the moon appeared during the daylight. It always filled her mind with euphoria and sparked her imagination. If only it could also spark her drawing talent. It looked like Riri was in the process of penciling in another perfect tree.

Unintentionally showing off, Riri picked up the thread of her conversation with Junko without slowing her pencil down at all. “So Junko, are the rumors we've been hearing true? Are they really going to try and get that old video equipment working tonight?”

Junko smiled excitedly, “I think they are. The last time the Toad was hiding and the Rabbit was full, we all got to watch that old video about The Genji Monogatari, remember?”

At her words, An let out a dreamy sigh. “Oh, I remember that. Genji was so elegant.”

“Well, if the equipment works,” Junko explained, “I think we are going to watch a movie based on one of the books in Pre-Sundering European Lit. It is our turn after all, since all of the movie nights before The Genji were history and science.”

The speculation brought Riri's eyes up from her sketch. “I know I wouldn't mind the extra review for our test. If we watch Candide, do you think they'll actually show the old woman's you-know-what getting chopped off and eaten?”

“Riri, that's gross! Besides, there are little ears here, so watch what you say,” Junko scolded. “I hope we watch Pride and Prejudice. I really like Jane and Elizabeth.”

“Oh fine, I'll behave,” pouted Riri. “But I know your real motives. You just want to drool over Mr. Darcy, don't try and hide it,” she teased.

A light blush graced Junko's cheeks. “Well, we won't know what movie it is until tonight when the Toad fades.”

While they'd been talking, Kaoru's eyes had fallen to half-mast in response to Junko's gentle finger combing of her hair. “Can I come even though I'm not in the class?” she asked drowsily.

Kissing the top of Kaoru's head, Junko smiled affectionately, “I don't see why not.”

“You jerks, stop talking about it,” grunted An as she stood up and planted her fists on her hips. “Me and Jin aren't going to be here for it, remember? We have that nature campout tonight.”

“Don't make it sound like the end of the world,” Tokio interjected dryly. “I'm going to be there too, remember?”

The Chinese girl just cast Tokio a sour look. “We'll probably be killed by some forest monster.”

Her sister Jin turned and smiled encouragingly. “It'll be fun, An. Don't be a grouch. We'll have a big campfire and sleep in tents! With the full Hare, no Toad, and the protection of the treaty, I'm sure we'll be safe.”

Coming out from behind Junko, Chi'na plopped herself down next to the tree and leaned her head against Tokio's arm. “What treaty? And I haven't seen any hares or toads yet. Does the school keep pets? Can I have one?”

An clutched her hands to her chest and groaned as if she was dying. “How can you not know about the Hare and the Toad? You poor, ignorant child.” Walking over to Chi'na, she patted her condescendingly on the head, “Let Auntie An explain it to you.”

“An,” Tokio said warningly, “be nice.”

“I am, I am,” she assured her teacher. “Now, since my grandmother was Chinese, and Jin's too of course, I am the best person to explain this to you. You know that before The Sundering, there was only one moon in the sky, right?” Seeing Chi'na's nod, she continued. “Well, back then there was an ancient Chinese myth that the moon was made of water, and either a hare or a toad lived in the center. When a second moon appeared in the sky, one that was green instead of white, people remembered that story. They said that the toad had jumped over to the new moon so he wouldn't have to share with the hare anymore. Pretty soon, everyone called the old silver moon the Hare and the new green moon the Toad. See?”

The little girl curled at Tokio's side scrunched her face up in concentration. “Okay, I see. So there aren't really animals here, those are just the names of the moons. But I still don't get it. How does no Toad make you safe, and what is the treaty?”

“Well,” began An, but she was interrupted by her sister.

“It's my turn. Don't hog all the attention.” Clasping her hands in her lap, Jin spoke over her twin. “You see, when magic came, machines and technology stopped working very well. After a few years, people noticed that when the cycle of the moons caused the Toad to disappear and the Hare to be full, most machines would work again for a day or two. All of the new magic creatures are weaker during this time too. That means if there are any scary magical creatures in the forest, they will be too weak to attack tonight.” Her explanation was probably a bit more complicated than Chi'na needed, but luckily the girl seemed to be following along. Her chocolate syrup eyes were still bright and inquisitive.

“As for the treaty, I guess you don't know about it because you just moved here, right?” Tokio hoped Jin wouldn't bring up the death of Chi'na's parents. That would be sure to ruin the good mood the little girl seemed to be in.

“Well, wild magic threads through the woods and streams surrounding this valley, and even the ocean over there too. The people here, though, are all very careful to treat anything magical they come across with respect. The magical creatures in the forest don't harm us as long as we leave them alone, and they keep any truly evil creatures from setting up residence. That's the treaty. We even have a system of `tithes' set up, though we call them good will offerings. People leave baskets of goods by piles of green stones in the forest, and in return the magical creatures leave fruits, vegetables, and stray children or animals at the forest edge. So long as you're respectful and make sure not to offend them, you have nothing to worry about.”

Casting an exasperated look at An, Jin continued, “That's why we'll be perfectly safe camping out tonight.”

An flopped down onto the ground dramatically, “Oh, all right. I guess Miss Takagi and Miss Yamamoto know how to defend us anyway. After all, the teachers do have those lessons every week with Kaoru's dad.”

A burst of laughter from Riri drew everyone's attention. “Sorry,” she chuckled, “but I was just remembering what Kamiya-Sensei said after the last lesson at the firing range. I heard that he advised the other teachers to never stand in front of Miss Takagi if she has a gun in her hand.”

“Because she's that good?” asked An.

“No, because she's that-”

“I am sitting right here, remember,” Tokio interrupted indignantly.

Coughing into her hand, Riri tried to disguise her laughter. “Right, sorry. Well, I think the creatures in the forest are all afraid of Miss Yamamoto anyway, so you should have no problems.”

“Yeah, I bet she could take down a bear with her bare hands,” said Kaoru in a reverent voice.

The sudden tolling of the school bell echoed across the field, reminding everyone that it was time to come in for dinner. Gathering up their things, knots of blue uniformed girls began streaming back into the school.

Tokio took one last look at the tree branches rustling over her head in the breeze before standing up and stretching. “Come on girls, time to go inside and eat dinner. Besides, I still have to get some things ready for tonight's campout. It should be a lot of fun.”

 

 

When Saitou and Robinson cleared Saitou's doorway, they saw that the outer room was full of uniformed men. Everyone's attention seemed to be focused on someone in the middle of the room. Walking around to the in the main aisle running between the forest of desks, the only space clear of evidence boxes and coffee stained folders, Saitou saw the face of the man causing all of the commotion.

Warlock Gaurav, a sienna skinned man in his early twenties, stood posed with his hands on his hips. He had only been working with the police for a few months, ever since his predecessor had left to return home to an ailing mother. Although relatively new, Saitou had been told that it hadn't taken him very long at all to become popular with the men.

When they had first met a couple of weeks ago, it had been hate at first sight. The warlock had been the one to ask a cousin in the government for information about Saitou. Despite Saitou's profile being supposedly restricted, Gaurav had come in three days after their first meeting and flashed a report with his name on it. Less than fifteen minutes later, the entire station knew that `the great Mirror sent to save them all' was barely 17 years old. Bastard.

Now Gaurav stood in the center of the room with a supremely self-satisfied smile twisting his lips. It made Saitou's stomach turn. He felt instantly suspicious.

When their eyes met, the man's chest puffed out even more. “Good afternoon, Mirror Saitou,” he greeted mockingly. “I've discovered where your Black Lizard is hiding.”

“Way to go, Gaurav!” one of the officers called out.

Saitou kept his expression bland through force of will. “Do tell, Warlock.”

The room quieted down as they awaited his reply. “It's holed up near the edge of the western forest, down by the farms and Aizu Academy.” Officer Robinson shot Saitou a startled look. “I used a little bit of necromancy to get one of the victims it had digested to track its hiding place down.”

“What?” asked Saitou in a low, angry voice. He made no attempt to disguise his displeasure.

Heaving a put-upon sigh, Warlock Gaurav said, “If you get out a map I can show you where it is. The spell was really quite simple. Not nearly as difficult as I'd been led to believe.”

“While I am on this case, you will not use necromancy again, do you understand?” commanded Saitou in a soft voice.

“What do you mean? It got results, didn't it?” argued Gaurav insolently.

Saitou growled. “It is evil and I forbid it.” A space cleared around the two men. It seemed that the confrontation that had been building for weeks had finally arrived. Unfortunately, Saitou noticed that more officers seemed to be standing on Gaurav's side of the room.

Warlock Gaurav seemed to notice it too, because he looked around smugly before walking up until he was right in Saitou's face. “You're just a kid, so you might not understand how things work around here. I know you're supposed to be a monster,” Gaurav made exaggerated quotation marks with his fingers, “expert, but it wouldn't hurt to try and learn a little from people older and wise-”

During the warlock's speech, Saitou had been lighting up a cigarette he'd found on a nearby desk. After a long inhalation of nicotine, he decided that it was time to act. Taking a small step to the side, Saitou smoothly sucker-punched the warlock in the stomach with his free hand. Stopped mid-word, Gaurav forcibly doubled over with a gasp. Effortlessly, Saitou swept the man's legs out from under him and sent him sprawling onto the floor. A sharp nudge with his booted foot rolled Gaurav onto his back. Then Saitou put one foot on the warlock's chest and stepped down. Hard. Saitou heard an angry voice cry out, “Mirror Saitou, he can't breathe!” The upset voices of other officers quickly joined in.

Despite this, Saitou calmly ignored the comments while he took another drag on his cigarette. Then, casting a piercing gaze around the room, he began to speak. “Let me put this in terms that even simpletons like you will understand. Aku. Soku. Zan. We are the hunters. We hunt evil down and destroy it. Swiftly and utterly.”

Pausing to gauge the impact of his words on his audience, he took another draw of his cigarette and decreased the pressure of his foot, allowing the warlock to breathe. “Necromancy is evil. Almost all spirits used in necromancy are damaged by the spellcaster, especially a novice like this, and turn into wraiths.” The man below Saitou's heel let out a groan, almost as if he was trying to find the breath to defend himself.

Frowning coolly, Saitou stepped back on the warlock viciously. “If this imbecile didn't have shit for brains, he would have known this. Wraiths kill innocent people.”

One man near the front of the crowd dropped his pen, but at Saitou's irritated glare froze him in place. “Also, idiots who use necromancy give off a corrupt magical aura. This aura attracts demons and other malicious magical creatures. These creatures kill innocent people.” By this point the only sound in the room was the frantic gasping of the suffocating warlock.

“When innocent people get killed because your mistakes, I have to come down from doing something important to destroy your problem. Such incompetence makes me unhappy. You don't want me unhappy.”

Tapping the ash of his cigarette onto the man wheezing beneath his foot, Saitou swept his gaze around the paralyzed room. “Don't question my orders again.”

When no one so much as twitched, he allowed a small smirk to surface. “Prepare to hunt the creature tonight on the western side of town. It will be at its weakest with the absence of the Toad from the sky and the Hare at its fullest. The First Lieutenant can make the patrol assignments. We'll leave in an hour when the Captain gets back from his meeting with the Mayor.” Finally stepping off of the nearly unconscious sorcerer, Saitou strode towards the room he'd been given as his office.

As soon as his back was turned the men started to move, as if released from the paralyzing spell of his actions and words. When Saitou disappeared into his office and closed the door, several men immediately went to their desks and began checking their weapons. The rest left the room, eager to get away from the menacing young Mirror.

Only the Second Lieutenant hesitantly approached the center of the room where the warlock huddled, breathing harshly on the grey and white tiled floor. He was in the process of crouching down to check for broken ribs when Saitou's door reopened. Immediately the Second Lieutenant froze in an awkward half-crouch with his arms partially extended. Fearfully, he turned to look at the smoking figure in the doorway.

“Lieutenant,” Saitou drawled, “after you've helped that idiot, find out where he cast the spell. Then make sure a priest from the Order of the Lamb blesses him and the site. If you get the wrong type of priest it won't do any good, so no street corner charlatans.”

When the Second Lieutenant just stared at him wide-eyed, Saitou let out a loud sigh of irritation. “Did you hear me, Lieutenant?”

“Sir, yes sir!” the Second Lieutenant finally replied, straightening up as much as he could while sitting on his heels.

“Good boy,” Saitou said, despite being less than half the other man's age. Running one white-gloved hand through his bangs, Saitou swept the room quickly with his dark-eyed gaze. Finding the bustling of the men to his satisfaction, he returned to his desk.

Back in his office with the door once again closed, Saitou sat down in his chair and blew a long stream of smoke. Bringing the cigarette back to his mouth again, he noticed that his hand was shaking slightly with the adrenalin rush. Frowning, he glared at his hand until it steadied.

He was lucky that the men had backed down. For a moment there when he'd first pinned Gaurav, it could have gone the other way. Saitou understood that having a stranger come in, especially one that was younger than the majority of the men on the force, had to be difficult. Having said young stranger assume command from the Captain they were used to obeying would also foster resentment.

However, he was confident that they would deal with it. They weren't bad officers; they just weren't used to dealing with rogue magic. Too many of them, even the veterans, were making novice mistakes. Unfortunately, those mistakes were costing lives.

His methods might be harsh, but he had to establish complete authority now or else risk someone disobeying his orders at a crucial moment - and tonight was going to be crucial. They had to stop the creature now. There was no telling what harm it could do if it reached its goal. Especially if its goal was that girls school, the Aizu Academy.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

 

Dictionary:

Aku. Soku. Zan. - The motto Saitou lives by. Most literally, "Kill those who are evil immediately," but more poetically translated as "Swift death to evil."

Genji Monogatari - The Tale of Genji is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century. It is considered by most to be the first novel ever written.

Pride and Prejudice - Published in 1813, this novel by Jane Austen is one of the most popular in the English language.  I love it!  There are a ton of great film adaptations as well.  In particular, I recommend the 1996 A&E version with Colin Firth.  The BBC version is also very well done.

 

Author Notes: I think this is the longest chapter I've ever written. Whee! I hope you'll let me know whether things make sense or you feel confused. I'm trying to make a new world here and there are bound to be inconsistencies, so criticize away.

 

The story of the hare and the toad in the moon is a real Chinese myth.

 

Takagi Tokio and Saitou Hajime were real people, not just fictional characters. While this is a complete work of fiction based on the RK manga/anime, I will sometimes make a shout-out to history. For example, the real Tokio was an educator. However, she taught in Tokyo later on in her life, not in Aizu. Her early life was spent in Aizu as an attendant to the Daimyo's daughter, Teruhime. If you don't know anything about the real Tokio and Saitou, don't worry. It won't make a difference to understanding this story. I just got some inspiration from history. Also, because this is fiction, I have exercised my creative license to change a lot of things. Case in point, the ages are going to be very different. The real Tokio was two years younger than Saitou. In RK, Saitou was five and a half years older than Kenshin. In this story, don't expect ages to correspond at all to either history or RK.

 

Kenshin will be appearing in a couple of chapters. I plan on writing some romance with him and Kaoru later on, but Kaoru has to grow up first in this story. However, there will be a fateful childhood meeting. This story and its sequel will span 10 to 15 years.

 

 

Thank you so much for reading this story. I have a lot of wonderful ideas for where to go with these characters, so please keep reviewing and tell me your thoughts.

 

 

PLEASE REVIEW and tell me what you liked, disliked, were confused about, or want to see. Thanks!