Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Oiran no Gaijin - "The Foreign Courtesan" ❯ Cold Kin ( Chapter 2 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Why is she crying? Miku thought desperately. What upset her!? How am I supposed to know!?

He rocked Nicole gently in his arms as he so often did for his sisters when they were crying and unable to sleep due to hunger. His own stomach growled insistently but it would just have to be patient. He had more important things to think about than his own wants. Nicole was sobbing into his gi so forcefully that he thought she might make herself sick. Almost in tears of frustration himself, Miku pulled Nicole up and held her shoulders so that he could look her in the eyes. His grip was strong and though she tried to hide her face again, he refused to yield.

"Yamero," he said firmly, using the stronger, more masculine command as he squeezed Nicole's shoulders. "Ima, oshiete. Doushite namida?"

Nicole looked up at her onii-chan with indescribable pain in her eyes. How could she tell him that she wanted to go home, that everyone she knew thought she was dead? What was she supposed to do to let him know something wasn't right, that she shouldn't even be there? Her whole body shuddered and tears still streamed unchecked down her face, dripping off her cheeks and spattering on her cape. Miku wanted to wipe those tears away, but he couldn't let go of her to free his hand or she would fall again. Trying to reach for him, Nicole raised one shaking hand as best she could. She wanted to lie down, go to sleep, and wake up in her own bed to find that this had all been a bad dream.

"Nemuritai," she said softly, her voice wavering.

"Iie Nikooru-chan," countered Miku. "Doushite namida?"

"My best friend, my parents, everybody I know and love thinks I'm dead!" Nicole burst out, not caring if he didn't understand but at the same time trying to make him. "I want to go home! HOME!"

She pulled herself free of his grip and fell over, swearing. Fighting her own weakness, she pushed herself back up and began to gesture wildly. Trying to get him to understand, she made an upside-down V over her head with her hands, screaming "Home!" as though she were trying to speak to someone very deaf. Miku shook his head, not understanding at all, and reached out to try to control her. All this movement just wasn't good for her! Nicole slapped his hands away and went on gesturing. Finally, she was hoarse again and at her wit's end.

"Mama," she croaked dejectedly. "Do you understand that? Mama..."

"Okaa-san?" Miku asked carefully, hoping he had heard her correctly. "Okaa-san to Otou-chan, ne?"

"Hai!" cried Nicole, nodding vigorously. "I want my okaa-san and my otou-chan!"

"Doko?" asked Miku, his voice still cautious.

"America," Nicole replied sullenly "Atashi amerikaijin."

"How did you get here?" queried Miku. "What happened?"

Nicole didn't know quite what he was saying, but she got the general message.

"Shirimasen," she said dully. "Mahou?"

Magic?

Miku was taken aback and went over this very carefully in his mind. Did she mean to tell him that she knew magic or something like that? His manner towards her as a friendly older brother dropped and was replaced with deep suspicion and a feeling of unease. Nicole watched his face change and panicked, wondering what had just happened to make his attitude change all of a sudden. Then she remembered - the people of Japan were very supersticious. If it turned out that he thought she was some kind of demon, who knew what he might do? She thought of the first manga of Ayashi no Ceres and nearly got sick with fear. He could kill her without much effort if he decided she was evil... When she looked up, he was indeed reaching for a knife.

"Miku-oniichan! Yamete!" she begged, reaching out for his hand. To her surprise, he let her take hold of it. "Atashi haguru! Haguru!"

She knew her Japanese wasn't very good, but if it could save her life, she didn't care.

"Hontou?" Miku asked, his voice critical. "How can I be sure of that?"

"Onegai! Maniukeru!" pleaded Nicole, gripping Miku's hand. "Onegai!"

Miku looked at Nicole's flushed face, at the tears in her eyes, the red blotches on her skin, the tears drying on her cheeks, and sighed. He simply couldn't do it - he didn't have it in him. Angel, demon, gaijin, whatever she was, he didn't have the heart to hurt her. He put the knife down and leaned towards Nicole, who cringed and shied away from him like a kicked dog, whimpering in much the same way. Though she tried to push him away, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her to his chest and feeling her body shaking against his own. She just seemed so small and helpless... If she was lost, he would help her get home, no matter what he had to do.

"Daijoubu, Nikooru-chan," he whispered, rocking her as he did for his sisters. "Daijoubu..."

Nicole relaxed and allowed Miku to lay her back down on the leaf bed. She was fully awake, but something in her was calling her to sleep. Something else inside her told her that wasn't a good sign. Miku also noticed that something was amiss, noting Nicole's suddenly-pale complexion. She was breathing erratically and her eyes were fluttering wildly, her fists clenched so tight that her knuckles were turning white. Was she having some kind of fit? No, he told himself. He had seen fits before and this was nothing like it. That could only mean she was feeling faint.

"Nikooru-chan, stay with me!" he whispered, taking her hand and squeezing it. "You can't pass out now - you might not wake up!"

It was too late - Nicole had already slipped into unconsciousness again. Miku was beside himself in panic, hoping against hope that she would open her eyes. Then he remembered the long-forgotten meat on the bamboo mat/plate to his right - Nicole had to be starving! That's what it was. And there was no way she could eat in the condition she was in... She was just too weak to chew. Miku sighed - he knew what he had to do when she woke up and he knew she wasn't going to like it. For the present, he contented himself with holding her hand.

Nicole, however, was having the wildest and most wonderful dream she had ever had in her life. There was a young woman with long, dark green hair standing at the end of a long corridor. The woman was tall and held a staff that looked like a giant key. In her other gloved hand, she held a pretty chalice. Nicole's eyes were glued to that chalice and she was fighting the winds tooth and nail to get over to the young woman, who tilted her head and waited for her. Finally, the winds stopped and Nicole was flung head over heels by her own momentum, landing in a sprawl in front of the green-haired Lady.

"You look like you could use a drink," the Lady said, her deep yet feminine voice ringing softly with amusement. "Here..."

She held the chalice out to Nicole, who drank gratefully.

When Nicole didn't stir after about ten minutes, Miku decided that it was time for him to do something about it. He reached for the water bucket and pulled it over to him. There was a rag near the bucket, so he dipped the rag in the cold water and squeezed it out. Gently, he eased Nicole into his arms, supporting her on his left arm while he wiped her face carefully with the cold cloth. Nicole twitched, but didn't awaken right away. Miku rolled his eyes and stuck the rag back in the bucket - this time he would wake her up for sure. Nicole was about to thank the green-haired Lady. At that moment, Miku dropped the soaking cloth on her head, where it landed with a wet splat and splattered cold water all over her.

"Yeeow!" squalled Nicole, sitting bolt upright and nearly nailing Miku in the jaw with the top of her head. "What the hell was that for!?"

"Well you wouldn't wake up!" retorted Miku.

"Well next time, why don't you just..." Nicole cut off as realization dawned on her. "You understood me!"

"Of course I did!" Miku said exasperatedly. "Wait... How did I do that!?"

Standing at the Gates of Time, watching over the proceedings, the green-haired Lady looked down and laughed.

Nicole, still pale and shaking a little, fell back on the leaf bed, making it rustle, and stared up at Miku, who stared right back in equal bafflement. Everything was just getting so confusing. Neither of them knew what to do at the moment and he was once again starting to think that Nicole had evil magic with her. Miku shook his head and swiped a hand across his forehead - he was sweating from all the stress and that fire was making everything so damn... Fire?

"Chikusho!" he yelped, jumping up to put out the roaring fire that was trying to leap right out of its pit and catch the meat on fire.

A few of the lower-hanging pieces were already in flames. Miku swore foully and started moving the meat racks away, trying not to catch his hakama on fire. Nicole was sitting up unsteadily, watching Miku and shaking her head. He reminded her of one of her friends back home - which brought fresh tears to her eyes. She sat there hiccuping and scrubbing at her eyes with her cape, listening to Miku cursing loudly as he, of course, caught his hakama on fire. Wait... That wasn't good! Nicole pushed herself shakily to her feet and grabbed the water bucket. Using the cave wall to lean against, she inched quickly in Miku's direction. He turned around trying to put the flames out when...

"Payback's a bitch," quipped Nicole, calmly drenching him.

Miku gave her a sour look and a grumbled "arigatou" as he started trying to squeeze the water out of his clothes. Nicole was once again in tears and his heart softened as he looked at her. For some reason, he just couldn't stay miffed at her - apparently that was just the way it was. He shook his head, shaking water from his hair like a dog would, then stepped over to the leaf bed and sat down. Nicole was coughing from the smoke and her eyes were so puffy and red that it was hard to tell what color they were originally.

"Tell me what's wrong," he said gently, tilting Nicole's chin up so that he could look her in the eyes.

"I miss my friends," Nicole replied tearfully. "Everybody I know probably thinks I'm dead or something..."

And with that, she launched into an explanation of how she had gotten stuck in pre-Meiji Japan. She told him everything she knew, from the disaster in the library to the big leather book to the water spell. Then her throat sort of got stuck as she tried to tell him how the bubble had sucked the water from the ground and the sky. Miku listened intently with a frown on his face - this definitely sounded like dark magic to him. But Nicole assured him that she wasn't trying to do anything wrong; she didn't know that the spell would turn out as it did.

"And then I watched my best friend walk away..." she said softly, her voice trailing off as she dissolved into sobs again.

Miku could hear the pain in Nicole's voice as she reminisced tearfully about good times with her best friend, about how they would stay up 'til all hours of the night. He listened to her carrying on about the boy she liked back home, the one who scored the last goal in the soccer game to take State. Nicole curled into a ball, making herself as small as she possibly could, and lay down on the leaf bed. Again she got the feeling that she wanted to sleep and not wake up until she was back home.

"Maa, maa," whispered Miku, holding Nicole's hand. "I'll help you."

Nicole sniffled and wiped her nose on her hand, then wiped her hand on her pants. The motion drew Miku's attention to her mouth and he remembered what he had to do to get her to eat. He could at least offer to let her try first... So he picked up a strip of the now-cold venison and offered it to her. Nicole took it and tried to bite off the end, but but her jaw just wouldn't clench tight enough to chew it. Miku sighed - he was going to have a hell of a time with this...

"Like I said, I'll help you," he said softly. "Come here."

He took her left hand in his right and helped Nicole sit up, positioning her so that her shoulders were once again supported by his left arm.

"I don't get what you think you're going to... Oh no, you can't be serious!" Nicole protested, trying to squirm away. "No you don't! Don't even think about it!"

Miku rolled his eyes and bit off the end of the venison strip, holding Nicole tighter against him. She would thank him for this later. He chewed steadily and stopped. Nicole was determinedly glaring daggers at the wall of the cave, her face turned away from him as far as she could get it. Laying the rest of the venison strip back on the bamboo mat/plate, he wiped the grease on his hakama and caught Nicole's chin in a firm but gentle grip. She tried to bite him, but he turned her face up to his and carefully pressed his lips down on hers. Nicole gasped and he took the opportunity to push the venison into her mouth. Her first reaction was to gag, but somehow another sensation overrode it.

Miku fed her as much venison as she could handle and smiled wryly as she lay panting in his arms.

"Don't ever do that again," growled Nicole, swiping one hand across her mouth.

"You're not strong enough to eat by yourself," Miku told her. "I'll do what I have to do."

Nicole swore a black oath and Miku tenderly laid her back down - then he got up.

"What are you doing?" asked Nicole.

"I'm taking you home with me," Miku replied, packing the rest of the venison into a bamboo basket and sticking it in his travel bag. "It's not like I can just leave you here."

Nicole couldn't argue with that, so she pushed herself up, forcing her wobbly legs to support her weight, and started trying to help him pack. Miku swatted her hands away, muttering about little girls who liked to touch everything, but he smiled at her. He couldn't help smiling at her. When she was cheerful, her cheer was just plain infectious. You just couldn't help smiling when she smiled. He finished packing together the rest of what little he had brought, put his knife back in the waist tie of his hakama, and stood up. Nicole had quietly gone back to sit on the leaf bed when she had been discouraged from helping, so she looked up at him plaintively.

"You really know how to look pitiful, you know that?" commented Miku, offering his hand to Nicole, who took it and shakily pulled herself up.

"How far do we have to go?" asked Nicole, ignoring Miku's comment.

"We'll be going that way," replied Miku, pointing to the northeast. "Shouldn't take us more than four hours."

"Oh wonderful..." Nicole muttered sardonically.

They had spent so much time in the cave earlier that it was very close to nightfall by the time they had gotten halfway there. The evening air was cold and moist, making Nicole pull her cape tighter around her. Miku noticed that she was also walking with a limp, favoring her left leg and wincing whenever she put her weight on it. Nicole knew she had twisted her knee when she was trying to break out of the bubble, but she wasn't going to let him know that. He had done so much for her - she didn't want him going out of his way for her more than was absolutely necessary. Still, she couldn't help yelping when she tripped over a thick fallen bamboo trunk that was laid right across the path and landed on her knees.

"Ow!" she cried, curling up and wrapping her arms around her drawn-up left leg. "It hurts!"

Miku stopped, doubled back, and came to kneel beside her.

"Do you think you've broken something?" he asked, his voice clinical - he didn't know what he would do if she had actually broken a bone.

Nicole shook her head 'no'.

"Let me see it," Miku directed. "Forgive me..."

Gently, he pulled her hands away from her leg, wiped her tears away, and pushed up her pant leg. Her knee was swollen and purple and for a horrible moment, he thought he saw bone. But there was no blood, so he breathed a sigh of relief and tenderly stroked the swollen area. Nicole flinched a little, but tried her best to keep still. Miku was gently poking the area, trying to feel for anything that might be out of place. Her kneecap was pushed a little to the side - his had done that before and he knew there was only one way to deal with it. Thinking on the spur of the moment, he kissed her quickly to distract her and popped her knee back into place.

"YEEOW SHIT!" hollered Nicole, flustered and in pain. "What the hell did you do that for!?"

"I was hoping to distract you so it wouldn't hurt as much," replied Miku, rubbing her knee carefully to try and fix the circulation in the bruise. "I did ask you to forgive me..."

"It's okay," Nicole gritted out, clenching her teeth whenever Miku touched a sensitive spot. "Let's just get going..."

"I'll carry you," Miku said in a rather bossy voice.

Nicole swatted his hands away and grabbed a nearby standing bamboo tree to pull herself up. She shook her hair back, adjusted her cape, and set off continuing down the path. Miku followed her, waiting for the inevitable crash. Surprisingly, it never came. Nicole was doing perfectly well for herself using a piece of fallen bamboo as a crutch, though she was still wincing painfully every time she had to put weight on her left leg. Miku shook his head, surprised at her determination - he had never met a girl like her before. He walked a little faster and slowed down when he was by her side, just in case she needed to lean on him.

"If you need me to carry you, just say the word and I will," he reminded her gently.

~~ Two hours later ~~

Miku followed a triumphant Nicole out of the woods - she had gone the whole way without having to let him carry her and without leaning on him. He scratched his head, shook his head to get his hair out of his face, and squeezed her shoulder supportively. A sigh of relief escaped his lips - he could see his family's small house from where he stood, which meant that he and Nicole would both soon be safe and warm. Pride filled his heart as he thought of the venison in the bag on his back - he could provide for his family just as well as his father and brothers could.

"Almost there, Nikooru-chan," he assured her. "That's us right over there."

He pointed to a very small house on the end of a row of very small houses with shoji panels for windows and doors and no front porches. Sure it was small, but to him, his mother, his sisters, and his grandfather, it was home. He wanted to sprint for home like a child, but maturity kicked in and reminded him that he had Nicole to take care of. Her strength was fading and she needed to be inside where it was warm. Some food wouldn't hurt either. His mother made the best miso soup in all of Edo.

Well, they didn't actually live IN Edo... More like a village just on its outskirts. They hadn't seen much fighting from the Revolution that was going on, but they weren't getting many of the benefits the new government promised either. Dealers were driving the price of rice up into exorbitant amounts of money. It was a whole yen now just for one kilo! Miku shook his head and pulled himself back to the present moment. Nicole was shaking on her feet and was just about to give out. Finally, her knees gave way and she sank to the ground.

"I told you I would carry you," Miku whispered in Nicole's ear as he knelt beside her, earning a growl in response.

He slid one arm under her shoulders and the other arm under her knees, picking her up carefully to avoid aggravating her left knee more than it already was. Shaking from hunger, fatigue, and stress and sniffling because of the cold air, Nicole rested her head on her new-found onii-chan's shoulder. Strong, sure strides carried them both closer to the warmth and safety of home as Miku continued forward, a tad bit shaky himself. It had been a fairly grueling four hours, what with hurrying as fast as they could to get back before it was too late at night. Not too soon, Miku was standing on the front steps shivering as he let Nicole stand on her own just for a moment.

With a shaking hand, he slid the thick shoji aside. He slipped off his sandals at the entrance way and gestured for Nicole to remove her shoes as well. She kicked them off and let them land however gravity willed it, making an odd pile beside the neat row of worn zori sandals. Miku shook his head and straightened them, rolling his eyes at Nicole, who giggled quietly at his serious expression. She would have given him a hug, but remembered how the Japanese always put on a very modest front and hugging was pretty much forbidden.

"Tadaima!" called Miku, stepping into the warm light of an oil lamp.

"'nii-chan! Miku-'niichan!" squealed two eager, high-pitched voices as a six-year old and and eight-year old pelted into the room wearing sleeping yukatas. "Miku-'niichan's home!!"

A middle-aged woman followed at a more sedate pace, pulling a haori on over her own sleeping yukata.

"Welcome home, Miku," she said quietly, embracing her youngest and now only son. "You were gone longer than usual... And who is this with you?"

She smiled warmly at Nicole, who bowed respectfully, trying not to fall over with the sudden shift of body weight.

"Okaa-san, this is Nikooru... Erm... I can't pronounce her surname," Miku said awkwardly, gesturing politely at Nicole as he stumbled over his words - obviously this was the first time he had brought a girl home with him.

"Youkoso kimi ni wa, Nikooru-san," said Hasegawa-san. "Watashi wa Hasegawa Chizuko."

"Hajimemashite, Hasegawa-san," replied Nicole, bowing again and feeling rather faint.

"Mii-chan, how did you meet Nikooru---" Hasegawa-san began. "Oh my!"

Nicole's eyes rolled up and she fainted dead away for the umpteenth time that day. Reacting quickly, Miku tried to catch her before she hit the floor, but she just crumpled and fell in a heap on the tatami. When she hit, she rubbed a nasty friction burn on her nose. Miku pulled her up gently and laid her down on his own futon, which happened to be in the living room since he was tall and Ojii-san needed a room to himself anyway. Okon, the eight-year-old, and Omasu, the six-year-old, both slept in the third room of the house. Hasegawa-san raised an eyebrow at her son's behavior but said nothing. However, Miku saw the look and stood up.

"She's ill, Okaa-san, and quite lost too," he said softly, looking down at Nicole. "She's an American and she doesn't know what she's doing here. I only meant to sleep by the fire to make sure she was safe."

Hasegawa-san knew her son was a trustworthy young man who would never do anything to shame himself or a woman, whether he was responsible for her or not, so she nodded.

"Just don't tell your Ojii-chan," she cautioned, stepping over the end of Miku's futon towards her own bedroom. "We'll talk to him in the morning. Ima, nemuritai... Oyasumi Mii-chan..."

Miku bade his mother good night and settled himself beside his futon, watching Nicole's soft, even breathing. He wanted to do lots of things, but first and foremost, he wanted to touch that cascade of auburn waves. Looking around carefully, he made sure that the doors to his mother's bedroom and his grandfather's bedroom were both closed. Breathing an inaudible sigh of relief, he reached out to run his fingers through Nicole's hair. It felt soft, but not the same way his sisters' hair felt - Nicole's hair was thick and wavy and rather tangled, while his sisters' hair felt like straight silk. Nicole's hair felt unique to his hands, but he liked it. She shifted her head and he quickly pulled his hand away, this time snail-less.

"Oyasumi nasai, Nikooru-chan," he whispered, leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes.

~~ The next morning ~~

"It's the only thing to do, Chizuko," said the old man's rasping voice, overriding the younger woman's protests.

"Demo, ojii-chan, what about Miku?" asked Chizuko, still not giving up on her case. "He seems so attached to her. Maybe she would make a good wife for him?"

The grandfather of the Hasegawa family seemed to puff up, making his wiry old frame seem twice its normal size, and his face turned red.

"Absolutely not! I forbid it!" he bellowed, his weak body belying powerful lungs. "She's a gaijin! Foreigners are not to be trusted, ahou onna!"

"Now see here, ojii-san," snapped Chizuko, putting emphasis on the honorific. "This is about deciding an innocent girl's fate, not insulting my intelligence!"

"Quiet, onna!" yelled the old man, striking his daughter-in-law across the face and knocking her down. "You forget your place."

Hasegawa Chizuko pushed herself back up to a sitting position and bowed her head, accepting her defeat and cursing the old man in her mind.

"As I am obviously too old to be wandering around that area of town on my own and I certainly can't have you going, it falls on Miku to take her," the oldest Hasegawa said imperiously, regaining his composure. "Send the boy in here."

Fighting back tears, Chizuko bowed respectfully to the old man and gracefully rose to her feet, straightening her homongi kimono. She opened the shoji, stepped out, and snapped it shut angrily behind her. Sometimes, though she knew it was not good to hold feelings like that, she hated that awful old man. He treated her (Chizuko) like a servant and was a harsh disciplinarian with Okon and Omasu. Now on top of that, he was going to make his grandson do the unthinkable - she couldn't even think about it.

"Mii-chan, could you come here please?" she asked in a soft voice, stepping out into the main room. "Your ojii-san has something to... Oh!"

She looked to the left to find her son with his knees drawn up, leaning against the wall and still sound asleep. Nicole was curled up on her side with the blanket wrapped tightly around her. Some time during the night, her hand had sought out Miku's and their fingers had intertwined. Normally Chizuko would have scolded her son for such behavior, but they both looked so sweet and innocent, like children, as they slept peacefully, hand in hand. She wiped a single tear from her eye and stepped out the door to go get some water and use a compress on her face. Hopefully the hit wouldn't bruise and the children, including Miku, wouldn't ask questions.

As she slid the front shoji closed, stepping back into the house and sliding her sandals off, she swallowed hard as she looked at the sleeping pair again. It would just hurt Miku more if she let him get any more attached to Nicole, so sooner was better. She had to tell him, but she couldn't stand to wake Nicole and have her hear it too. It would just be too painful to listen to the girl cry. Taking a deep breath, Chizuko padded over to her son on silent feet, trying her hardest to force back her tears and think only about what had to be done. After all, she had Okon and Omasu to think about - she couldn't just let them go hungry when there was easy money at hand. Not feeling justified at all, she leaned over and put a gentle hand on her son's shoulder.

"Mii-chan, mezamenasai," she whispered, still holding onto his shoulder and touching his face with her free hand. "It's time to wake up..."

Miku's eyes fluttered open as he made a soft "Huh?" noise and scratched his head. He was still facing Nicole and his eyes trailed down to see their hands, still entwined with each other. A sleepy smile curved his lips - he could definitely get used to waking up like this, even if his back would hate him for it later. He heard a whispering voice and was jolted from his thoughts as his head jerked up and he found himself face-to-face with his mother. Smiling guiltily, he tried to untangle his fingers from Nicole's, without much success as Nicole held on tighter to his hand. Gently, he pried her fingers away from his hand and settled her hand up by her pillow. Chizuko sighed and smiled, deciding to let it go because of how cute they had looked.

"'kaa-san?" he mumbled, wiping the sleep out of his eyes with one hand. "What's going on? It's too early..."

Chizuko rolled her eyes - true it was about six in the morning, but it was starting to get lighter outside and the morning people were starting to get up. But the fewer people out there were, the better - it wouldn't do to have her son seen heading for that area of town. Miku was starting to pick up on something that was wrong and was awake within a very few moments, shaking his head. His mother gestured for him to follow her, so he unfolded himself, pushed himself up off the floor, and followed obediently, frowning.

"Your ojii-san has something to tell you," Chizuko told her son in a soft voice, ushering him into his grandfather's room.

"'kaa-san, what's going on?" asked Miku, upset by the look on his mother's face and the tone of her voice. "Is something wrong? Did something happen?"

His mother shook her head and swallowed hard, unable to speak at the moment.

"Well, sit down, boy," snapped the grandfather, pointing at a place on the floor as though he were ordering a dog to sit instead of his grandson. "Like your okaa-san said, I have something to tell you. Now sit down!"

Still frowning in confusion and a growing feeling of dislike, Miku sat down, not crossing his legs but sitting formally, staring at his grandfather. He knew something was wrong and his gut told him that it was something that had to do with Nicole - he felt sick to his stomach. The grandfather drew himself up, once more acting quite imperious, and ordered Chizuko out of the room as if shooing a dog. Chizuko bowed respectfully and left the room, gritting her teeth to keep from verbally ripping the old man a new one. Miku drew himself up as well.

"What was it you wanted me to see you about, ojii-san?" he asked politely, trying to keep his voice from sounding too hard.

"That gaijin girl you brought in," the old man spat crossly. "Sell her off."

"Excuse me!?" cried Miku, jumping to his feet. "What are you talking about, ojii-san!?"

The grandfather snorted irritably.

"Take her into town and get some money for her," he said curtly. "It's easy enough. She's a gaijin, so you should get a good deal."

Miku was outraged, to say the least. He understood what the old man was telling him to do - he had seen a father sell his daughter into slavery after catching her kissing her childhood friend just weeks ago. But how could that terrible old man ask him, no, order him to do the same thing to Nicole!? He wouldn't do it, just simply wouldn't do it! There was no way he could! It was wrong... It was a sin to defile an angel! He swallowed hard and opened his mouth to argue.

"Demo... Ojii-san... What if I were to make her my wife!?" he begged, tears stinging his eyes. "She could have a son to carry on the family!"

"Don't you dare speak like that to your grandfather!" roared the old man, puffing up again. "I am your elder and you do what I say! I forbid you to take that gaijin as a wife, concubine, lover, slave or anything else! She's worth good money and we need that money to eat on!"

The grandfather quieted down, took a breath, and started again.

"You can't just let your mother and sisters go hungry, can you?" he persisted, his voice taking on an oily, manipulative tone that Miku didn't like one bit. "What about me? You couldn't let your honored elder die of hunger, could you?"

"Old man, I could see you rot in the deepest pit of hell and not bat an eye," snarled Miku, spitting his words like an adder spat venom.

"But your mother... She works so hard to supplement the little income you bring in selling meat," the old man went on. "I know you can see it... She's exhausted... She wouldn't be like this if you measured up to your brothers..."

Tears welled up in Miku's eyes again. The old man was wearing at him.

"And your little sisters, Okon and Omasu," the grandfather went on. "They're getting so thin... How do you think they'll be able to attract suitors if they grow up thin and starved like that?"

A single tear escaped.

"Ojii-san, it's WRONG! She's an innocent girl! How can you even think about doing that!?" pleaded Miku, his voice bordering on hysterical. "Ojii-san ONEGAISURU! Otou-san wouldn't have wanted this!"

"Oh pull yourself together and be a man," spat the grandfather. "Do what I say and don't speak to me about my son. I don't want to hear another word - the matter is closed. Now get out of my sight."

Miku ran from the room and bolted for the front door. Chizuko was sitting in back of the house, trying to get a fire started under some kindling. She had heard the entire conversation, as had every other house within two or three kilometers, and she knew what was coming. Miku ran around to the back of the house and fell on his knees by his mother's side, breathing hard and trying to keep himself from crying. He couldn't lose face now, not after such a defeat by his grandfather. Chizuko opened her arms to her son and let him let his pain out, crying into her shoulder.












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"Yamero" - a more masculine form of "Yamate", which means "Stop"

"Ima, oshiete." - "Now, tell me."

"Doushite namida?" - "Why are you crying?" lit. "Why the tears?"

"Nemuritai" - "I want to sleep."

"Okaa-san?" - "Mother/Mom?"

"Okaa-san to Otou-chan, ne?" - "Your mother and father, right?"

"Doko?" - "Where?"

"Atashi amerikaijin." - informal, "I'm an American."

"Shirimasen" - "I don't know."

"Mahou?" - "Magic?"

"Atashi haguru! Haguru!" - "I'm lost! LOST!" (probably not conjugated right)

"Hontou?" - "Really?"

"Onegai! Maniukeru!" - "Please! Believe me!" (also probably conjugated wrong)

"Daijoubu, Nikooru-chan." - "It's all right, Nicole-chan."

"Chikusho!" - All-purpose swear word to express dismay

hakama - the kind of pants Kenshin wears and that Kaoru wears to train, also part of the Shinsengumi uniform.

"Maa, maa" - "There, there" or "Now, now" (A calming expression)

onii-chan - cute term for older brother, can be used for male friends who are older or that a girl has a crush on

"Tadaima!" - "I'm back!" , more commonly "I'm home!"

"Youkoso kimi ni wa, Nikooru-san." - "Welcome to you, Miss Nicole."

"Hajimemashite, Hasegawa-san." - "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Hasegawa."

"Mii-chan" - family nickname used by Miku's family

"Ojii-chan" - family name for "Grandfather"

"Oyasumi nasai, Nikooru-chan." - "Good night, Nicole-chan."

"Ahou onna" - a particularly insulting way to say "stupid woman"

"Demo..." - "But..."

"ONEGAISURU!" - An impassioned masculine form of "Please!" (He's taking a risk here, using an almost-command.)