Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Mending: A Prelude ❯ Unwanted Reunion ( Chapter 2 )

I finally got this chapter posted after several things got in my way... including writing other stories. ( -.)=3 Things are progressing slowly for this one, unfortunately.

She had just noticed that it was already noon. Megumi decided to go to the kitchen to see if she can help. The women were busily preparing food for the lunch crowd. Tae was glad of the extra hand around the kitchen as Megumi, Ochika and Omasu took over the kitchen, while Kaoru and Tae served the customers.

"That's the last of them," Tae announced as she stepped into the kitchen, wiping her brow, "Thank you for helping out, everyone."

"Let's take the food up to the others," Kaoru suggested as she came up behind Tae, trays in hand. I'm sure they'll be hungry."

"Good idea," Ochika agreed. "I'll bring Shiro and Kuro's lunch over at the Aoiya."

"Better make sure those two aren't doing too much work," Omasu reminded. "They're still not fully recovered."

They busied themselves for a few more moments preparing another set of meals.

"Maybe you should rest a moment, Megumi," Ochika said. "Let us take care of this."

"Oh, no, I'm fine," she said, laying out the trays as Tae placed rice bowls on each. Five trays and a bento, the packed lunch for the two men, were finally set.

"I'll take this to Okina," Omasu said.

"I'll take this to Sanosuke's room," Kaoru put in, taking up a very loaded tray.

Megumi grinned slyly. "Of course," she said. "I'll take this to Shinomori-san. What?"

Four faces were staring mutely at her.

"I haven't seen to him yet," Megumi supplied laconically. She looked around. "Is there something wrong?"

Their eyes rounded slightly. "Ah, no, nothing at all!" Omasu responded, taking up one tray.

Tae stayed behind to see to their meals as the others went upstairs. Kaoru lagged behind Megumi.

"What was that all about?" Megumi whispered to Kaoru.

"They just don't feel at ease around him," Kaoru confessed in an undertone.

"Has he threatened anyone?"

"No. He hasn't even come out of his room. He asked to lave his tray by the door this morning."

"I see." Megumi stared down the tray absently. His fare consisted of steamed carp. He doesn't eat much, she noted idly, compared to the others' meal. She felt a tug at her sleeve.

"Are you sure about this?" It was Kaoru. Her eyes were filled with concern.

She was asking herself that same question. She knew it just has to be done sooner, if not later. Time has come that she should stop living in fear. She might never be ready, and the opportunity might never come again.

"I can't keep staying away," Megumi said. "I would have to face him eventually."

To this, Kaoru gave her an encouraging smile, and said no more.

Megumi watched the other women go in the rooms. She stared at the door in front of her. What now? She really had nothing planned.

"Just leave it by the door, please," came a deep voice from within.

She jerked from her thoughts. That voice always had a daunting effect on her. But there was something different about that tone; gentler, even.

Megumi gathered her breath slowly, then put a hand on the shoji frame.

She found him slouched against the wall. His dark yukata was partly opened. His tousled head turned sharply in her direction, his eyes registering surprise.

"It isn't proper to leave food in the doorway," Megumi said, not waiting for Aoshi to speak. She wasn't sure if she would still have the courage if she heard him again.

She cast a furtive glance around, and spotted a tray at the low table.

"You should eat," she said, her tone not losing its edge. "It's past noon."

Aoshi continued staring at her, giving no inclination of talking.

Megumi went to the low table and set the tray beside the other. Nothing was consumed, except for the empty pot of tea.

"But we need to see to your wounds first," she went on. "They said you refused to see anyone." She sat at his side, raising her eyes to his face slowly. He was looking ahead, fixed on a distant spot on the windowsill.

"It's not necessary," he said quietly.

"Is it, really?" she asked dubiously. "Your bandages need replacing."

"No need."

She was at the point of walking out. She didn't want to take this treatment from anyone, most of all, from him. Why should she help him if he didn't want to?

Megumi breathed in slowly. She shouldn't let his aloofness drive her away. If she let him affect her, he wins. And she'll be damned if she let him!

Calm down, Megumi, she chanted in her mind. Just treat him as any other stubborn patient, ones you'd want to slip alkaloids in their drinks-

"I can't have that," she asserted. "Anyone ailing under this roof has become my responsibility."

He gave a long inaudible sigh. "Is that a fact?" he said, weariness hinting in his voice.

Megumi's hands slapped down the the floor a little too noisily. Aoshi gazed at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Why don't we just drop the little game and let me work?" she said coolly, but the venom ran underneath. "I'm very willing to set aside our differences just so I can do my duty. Right now, I don't care what you think about me being here. So, make it easier for the both of us and let me do what I came here to do!"

She stopped herself from gasping. She didn't know what had gotten over her. She didn't mean it to come out like that.

As for Aoshi, he still kept his sidelong look at her, gray eyes glinting beneath narrowed lids. Megumi shrank back a fraction, but determined not to go anywhere. Soon, he averted his gaze towards the window. His hand, which had been resting across his torso, eased down to his side.

Which was enough for Megumi. She sighed softly, a relief running through her.

"May I?" He made no remark nor showed any assent, so Megumi proceeded parting his yukata further. She sat back, stunned. His entire chest was a battlefield of scars; on top of them were some scorch marks, and unchanged dressing halfway soaked, and a long, deep gouge running from his right side to his left collarbone.

"How did you get this?" Megumi couldn't contain her surprise. She had never seen such an injury like it on any of her patients. The severely bruised skin had no laceration. But the blow was powerful enough to have broken tissues underneath the skin, breaking out into red and purplish spots.

She yelped in surprise when her probing hand was caught in a vise-like grip of Aoshi's hand. Her eyes flew wildly to his face, her breath caught throat. She noticed the muscles in his jaw tighten.

Megumi gulped a shuddering breath, waiting for the inevitable to come. She felt every bead of sweat coursing down her cheeks. She didn't want to meet his gaze, didn't make a move to disengage from his hold.

No. Please…

"Battousai-dealt me that," Aoshi's voice was tight, releasing her hand.

"T-two of your ribs are possibly fractured," she said mechanically, clearing her throat. "I don't think they're broken."

"They're not," he stated simply. "I should know."

She gave a noncommittal nod. "I'll just get some hot water," she said, rising slowly on trembling legs. She picked up the other tray on her way out.

"Is something wrong, Megumi?" Tae asked as she arrived in the kitchen.

"No," Megumi answered, handing Tae the tray. "Everything's fine."

Tae glanced at the contents. "Shinomori-san's still asleep?" she asked.

"No. I just came back to retrieve my medicine box. Could you get me some hot water?"

"Sure." Tae gave her a look before leaving for her task.

It was when Tae left that Megumi gripped the edge of the table for fear of collapsing. What happened up there? For a brief moment, she thought she saw the malicious face of Takeda, felt his hands encircling her wrist. Memories just took over, haunting…

Megumi forced her eyes shut. She might have escaped Takeda's clutches, but the images linger on. She never had the time to think back to them during her stay with Genzai-sensei. Fists clenched on the tabletop.

"The water's almost ready."

Megumi straightened herself before turning to see Tae coming into the kitchen.

"Shinomori-san distresses you, doesn't he?" she asked bluntly, to Megumi's surprise.

Her eyes rounded slightly, but she kept her gaze away from Tae. What could she tell her? That she made opium for a drug leader, and that Aoshi was her prison guard?

"Aoshi, he…" Megumi started to say, "he came to the dojo right after Kaoru and Yahiko left for Kyoto."

"And?" Tae prodded gently.

"He threatened me when I didn't tell him where Kenshin was," Megumi confessed, looking away.

Tae gasped as her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh, my," she exclaimed softly. "I have no idea…" She looked on in sympathy.

Deep down inside, Megumi admitted she doesn't want to be in the same roof with the man. But she doesn't resent him enough to want him dead.

"Why was he after Kenshin in the first place?" Tae wondered innocently.

"You'd have to ask Shinomori-san for that," Megumi returned calmly.

Tae fell silent. It quelled her curiosity, as Megumi wanted.

"Did he apologize to you?" Tae ventured again.

Apologize? "Yes," was Megumi's curt reply, matching it with an unyielding gaze at the other woman. Tae grinned, seemingly satisfied.

"I'll help you bring up the hot water," Tae told her.

Megumi beamed gratefully before exiting the kitchen.

They found Aoshi just as Megumi left him. He seemed to ignore their presence as he gazed out the window. Tae set the wooden pail quietly by the low table and cast an anxious look at both of them.

"I'll be preparing our lunch now," Tae told Megumi.

"Oh, you can start without me," Megumi said as she inspected the contents of her medicine box. "I'll be down soon."

"Excuse me, Megumi. Shinomori-san."

Megumi waited until Tae closed the door. "It seemed that you have that effect on people," she murmured, busily reading the labels on the jars and packets. After getting what she needed, Megumi turned to her patient. Aoshi's gaze was on her, the slightest of frowns on his brow. Megumi bit the insider of her lip. Did he hear her?

She mentally shrugged. "Can you sit up?" she asked lightly, returning to the tatami beside him.

Aoshi braced his hands on the floor as he slowly sat up. Megumi quickly brought an assisting hand on his back when the perspiration broke out on his temple. She waited while he was catching his breath.

"Take off your yukata,"she ordered. Aoshi ignored her, which prompted Megumi to add, "So I can get a better access to your wounds." She sighed softly. Stubborn, stubborn man...

He pushed his clothing from off his shoulders, which gave the young medic a view of a slim but well-toned frame. Megumi swallowed. There were a few scattered scars on his broad back, but not as much as in the front. She assumed he hardly had his back turned on his opponents. Unlike Kenshin's thin and fine scars, Aoshi had a variety of jagged and severe-looking welts on him, some probably acquired from weapons other than a sword.

"Some of these look deep enough to have killed you," she remarked as she ran a finger along a wicked-looking mark running from between the shoulder blades until it disappeared to his right side. He stiffened under her touch.

"Lessons learned from foolishness," Aoshi answered quietly after a moment.

"It wouldn't be foolishness if you're still alive," Megumi returned."Now, lie back."

He stared wordlessly at her before complying.Once he was settled on the futon, Megumi dipped a small cloth in the hot water and began cleaning his wounds.

Lying prone before her, Aoshi didn't resemble her captor at all. She had never seen him in any vulnerable state. He was a warrior, after all; he'd never put his life in anyone's hands. But it seemed that this was that situation. Lying bruised and battered, weaponless, his life was in her hands. If she had a dagger now, would she have used it on him? Here he is, unguarded, grudgingly giving her his trust. The opportunity was right under her nose. If she can't take it out on Kanryuu, then perhaps...

Megumi shook her head sharply. Kami-sama, what am I thinking?! I can't be stooping to his level to be thinking of revenge? She gave him a furtive glance, worried her unguarded expression might arouse suspicion.Thankfully, Aoshi's eyes were closed.

How could she even think of killing a man when it goes against the primary objective of her vocation? But if she were to be true to herself, the fact remains. She does want retribution. She was totally helpless before; what could she have done against powerful enemies? Now, only one of them is left, now a 'prisoner' of her care.

But there was a big difference between Shinomori Aoshi and herself, she reminded herself. She might have resented the maltreatment she suffered in Tokyo, but she will never resort to the basest acts just to satisfy her need for justice.

I'm not like you, Shinomori Aoshi. Just like Ken-san, I will move and and be a doctor. I'll right the wrongs you've forced me through. I'll live my life usefully and happily.That is my revenge.

With those thoughts lingering in her mind, she found it a bit easier to do her work. She was so easy on her mind that wore a small smile.

After drying his skin with a clean, dry cloth, she began to apply the medicinal balm on his wounds. One of them had angry blisters breaking out around the open wound. She frowned. Maybe from a heated weapon of some sort. She applied the balm carefully on the wound, then applied a different medicine on the blisters before covering it loosely with a clean bandage. She did the same with the other burns.

The bleeding wound came next. Carefully prying off the linen covering, Megumi discovered it still bled slightly. She applied the hot cloth to it, revealing a gaping cut. But scabbing was already starting. Another one for his collection, she thought grimly.

"This needs to be reopened and stitched closed, Shinomori-san," Megumi informed him.

He opened his eyes slightly. His expression was bland, except for gray eyes clouded in pain.

"I'm not asking your permission," she said pointedly. "The wound must be closed or it would be at risk of an infection." She met her gaze steadily.

"Do it, then," he answered evenly, closing his eyes once more.

She resented the remark and let him know it. "Don't tell me what to do," she retorted. "I'm no longer your captive, Shinomori Aoshi."

Long silence ensued before Aoshi responded.

"I'm aware of that," he murmured, eyes still closed.

Megumi let herself seethe before taking up the needle. The man was so infuriating, and he does it effortlessly! She would have to learn to be just as unaffected so he won't goad her that easily.

She started to work once she felt she was calm again, diligently threading through his skin. She was amazed how smooth his skin was, if one looked beyond the scars. But it had a marked pallor to it, something not easily acquired in just a couple of battles. She recalled when she saw Aoshi again in the Kamiya dojo, looking like death. What could he have done all that time?

From time to time, she glanced up from her work to look at his face. The first time, it was held in a slight grimace. When she looked up once more, only a frown lined his brow as if in concentration. Sweat beaded and coursed down his face and neck, betraying his discomfort.

Megumi finished faster than she expected. She wiped off the excess blood, cleaned the closed wound then applied a disinfecting cream. He obviously began to relax when the procedure was done, breathing a bit more deeply. Aoshi must have been bracing himself during the operation.

She cleaned her instruments before putting them away. Then, taking the dry cloth, she mopped his face. She gazed abstractedly at his finely-shaped brow, the straight, regal nose, firm lips usually in a grim line now parted slightly as he let the breath escape softly, and the resolute chin. Strong features Megumi usually found interesting in a man. Her lips curled up derisively.

Aoshi opened his eyes, signifying he was still awake. Megumi helped him up to put on his yukata, then guided him as he leaned back against the wall.

"The stitches stay on for a week or so," Megumi told him as he adjusted the yukata opening. "I suggest not to move around unless you have to. And I expect you to finish the meal I brought in." She put her hand on her hip, and added wickedly, "Or do I have to feed you myself?"

"Fine." He looked annoyed, but said no more. Megumi set the tray on his lap, offering no arguments. She smiled inwardly. Seems like he hated being ordered around. More was the pity.

"I'll be back to check on you from time to time, whether you like it or not," she said, couldn't resist adding the last barb. She put the last few items in her medicine box then picked up the wooden bucket in the other hand. Expecting no pithy reply from the quiet man, Megumi turned her back to him to leave.

"Domo... Takani-sensei."

Megumi was just outside the threshold when she heard it. She didn't know what to make of it. The short statement sounded as if forced. And it irked her to note he called her with that title, knowing only too well she's not even that. He knew that.

Was he mocking her? His way of letting her knpw that her presence was unwelcome to him? Then, he has a lot of nerve to do that, considering he the one at fault.

No, that wasn't it. He's too much of a smart man to resort to cheap comebacks. She was just reading into it too much, she chided herself. Maybe the onmitsu does know how to be grateful.

Megumi blinked upon a revelation. An apology from Shinomori Aoshi?

She realized she had been standing there. Turning her head slowly, she saw him looking ahead thoughtfully, bringing the hashi to his lips and chewing slowly.

Maybe.

Megumi nodded in acknowledgment before sliding back the shoji panel.