Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered ❯ A Little Bird ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: I would be lying if I said I didn't want to own the Kenshin-gumi, do you think it would work if I blackmailed Watsuki-sensei? -cackles-

Shattered
By Lacrymosa

Chapter 2: A Little Bird
__________________________________________________________________ ________________

If he had known how the day would have taken such a strange turn, Kenshin was sure that he would have just decided to stay at home today.

He couldn't say that the morning had started out nicely, ominous clouds had rolled in over night and had made the short drive from his small town in Nishitama to Tokyo more miserable than it should have been. It seemed that the deeper he got into the city, the harder the rain became. This probably wasn't the case, but Kenshin usually found his monthly trips into the urban area of Tokyo stressful even on the good days. He mostly did these trips out of necessity, to get the things that were either too expensive or too hard to find where he lived... among other things of business that he had to do, of course.

He actually shoudn't have been so surprised that he got stuck in a traffic jam. But when he looked out his window, he had to admit that it was better being inside his car where he was warm and dry, rather than outside in the awful weather. With this in mind, he had to remind himself that, eventually, he would be out there, in the rain, and he would probably get wet in the process.

Another reason that he preferred to do some of his more important shopping in the city wasn't simply the fact that they were just more abundant here, but mostly because it was just too awkward shopping in the closer and more accessible super market near his home. For the eight years that he had lived in the district, he had avoided interaction with most of the other residences, for his own reasons, and many didn't like him, or even considered him part of the community. He was sure that the only person who actually knew his name was the old doctor and his two young granddaughters.

So it was just easier to do his more important things in a place were people didn't know who he was, or would ask questions.

After about half an hour or so, Kenshin finally squeezed through a break in traffic and swiftly found a place to park his car in the nearest parkade. After locking it up, he strolled casually out into the side walk before he realized that he had forgotten to bring an umbrella. Mentally he shrugged, it didn't really matter to him if he got wet or not, and hopefully he would be inside most of the time.

He had to take the subway first, and occupied himself in finishing a sudoku puzzle that someone had conveniently forgotten in the empty seat beside him. He had never been very good at them, but it was half-finished anyway so it didn't take him very long to fill in the rest.

The subway passed a few stops, others got off and more and more people came on, and Kenshin was slightly relieved when he finally was at his own stop. He had taken the same route many times before, so it didn't take much concentration on his part to get there, and before very long he was at the office.

He was at the door when the familiar feeling of nausea hit him, but his well-schooled features betrayed nothing, except for the "I'm-just-you're-regular-average-guy" expression that seemed to be forever plastered on his face. It seemed so authentic, even Kenshin sometimes forgot that it was fake. It just proved how much he wanted to convince himself that it was, he had always thought.

The building, on the outside, was actually quite plain. It held the presence of a real-estate office, or even any old regular travel agency. It didn't have any signs marring it's perfect concrete bulk, not even any graffiti vandalism. It would have appeared abandoned if not for the steady flow of people that were forever going in and out.

Kenshin strode carefully over to the secretary's booth, and leaned casually over the side before tapping the bell lightly.

"Ohayou, Yumi-san. Is there anything here for me today?"

The secretary pursed her lips, covered in lime green lipstick, and then made a tsk-ing noise in the back of her throat. Kenshin just smiled, knowing that he wasn't fooling her for a moment with the pleasantries.

"Shishio-sama has taken care of anything that has come up. You'll find that the heads are quite satisfied with him," Yumi said disdainfully at him.

"Then I guess I'll be going," Kenshin replied, his voice not even giving any hint at the relief that he felt.

Yumi flashed him a sarcastically sweet smile before saying, in a sugary voice, "Actually, he has been wanting to talk with you Himura. If you're not busy...?"

"Actually, I am busy, so if you don't mind...?" Kenshin replied in the exact same tone. Yumi just huffed at him and waved her hand as if saying Fine, do what you like. Kenshin then made his way out, glad that nothing more major had been left for him. He hadn't been assigned a job in awhile and though he knew that the heads wouldn't hesitate to drop something on him on a moment's notice, he was glad for the pause.

Kenshin knew that his recent behavior at the office probably wasn't putting him in good favor, or even giving him a good reputation with his co-workers, but he didn't care, not anymore. Secretly, he suspected that the heads were sadistically satisfied with his slow withdrawal, but he had never enjoyed his work, he was just starting to show his dislike a little more. Not as if this would make them drop him, of course. He was sure that the complexities that would arrive if he got fired and thcleaning up that would need to be done were too much for them to be bothered with. And he was glad that he didn't have to talk to him today, now that was something to be happy about.

With that in mind, Kenshin decided that he would try his best to actually enjoy his day in the city, despite the rain. In fact, if he tried, he could almost find some good things about the rainy weather. Just one of those "cup-half-full-not-half-empty" sort of things, he supposed. Hmm. Optimism. Maybe he should try that point of view more often.

Mentally he shrugged, but decided that it wasn't a bad idea to try to have a good time.

Kenshin decided to avoid the more popular shopping places and was content to have his lunch in comfortable ramen shop that he was sure he must have visited once or twice before. After his quick stop he spent the rest of the afternoon picking up the random odds-and-ends that he needed to get.

It was a shame that he was in too much of a rush to actually relax and enjoy himself, but for him, it was enough that he could just avoid being unhappy. The rain hadn't let up very much, but Kenshin didn't seem to mind the fact that he was getting soaked as he maneuvered his way around metropolitan Tokyo. It wasn't as if he cared about his appearance, he had had enough people stopping and looking at the odd single curved scar on his cheek that it didn't really matter what others thought about him now. It was just those things that you got used to.

But he knew that it was better to get his shopping done with before traffic got too heavy. He didn't want to get stuck in another traffic jam, though he was pretty sure that it was inevitable, anyways. He decided to skip another stop at Headquarters, and avoid the confrontation with his boss for the moment. Postponing things wasn't really a good habit for him to get into, but Kenshin didn't really want his good mood to ruined. At least, not today.

Obviously some sadistic god must have been hearing him think at that exact moment, because after that everything took an awful turn for the worst.

"Battousai."

Kenshin stopped abruptly at the cold and sneering voice that had just addressed him with his most hated nickname. His eyes narrowed with immediate dislike and he made sure that he turned around slowly towards the man who had approached him so stealthily.

The man was clad in the regular gangster get-up and Kenshin guessed that he was probably working undercover. So why would Chou bother to to take the time to sneak up on Kenshin now? Kenshin raised his eyebrows in what he hoped was a surprised expression, and subtly prompting Chou to get on with whatever he wanted to tell him.

The man detached himself from the wall that he was lounging against and walked a few steps in his slouched swagger. His hair was dyed a strange pale straw color, and he had the annoying habit of wearing it straight up in what could only be described as "broom-like." Kenshin's hand drew into his coat pocket slowly, where he kept his pocket knife. He would have preferred something that could do a little more damage, but it was suspicious for him to be seen walking around with a sword at his hip all the time, no matter what sort of comfort it could give him. So, he usually kept his large knife with him whenever he went out, just in case he might need it.

Chou didn't seem to be armed, but Kenshin knew from experience how carefully hidden he could keep his weapons from him. He knew it wasn't beyond Chou to launch something at him even though they were technically co-workers. But then again, at Headquarters, "co-worker" was practically just another word for "rival."

Seeing Kenshin wary expression, Chou let out a barking laugh and drawled, "I got transferred to a new sect last week."

Kenshin failed to see how this could be breaking news, and even less how it affected the current situation. "And what does that have to do with me, exactly?"

Chou shrugged. "I'm with Saitou now."

Kenshin's eyes grew darker and he frowned. He could just imagine what Saitou could do with a little spy of his own to mess around with. So that explained Chou's unusual costume, he was probably doing one of Saitou's espionage missions.

Kenshin sighed, and as he did he could just feel his stress levels go up several notches. "I suppose he has a message for me, doesn't he?"

Chou let out that barking laugh again. "Bingo."

Kenshin rolled eyes before letting out a long-suffering sigh. "Out with it then, so you can leave."

Chou shot a glare at him before leaning against the wall again in an act of indifference. "Who says I'm gonna leave after I tell ya?"

Kenshin didn't reply, just leveled a now very annoyed gaze at him and made a non-committable grunt. Chou almost jumped at the hostility now radiating from the small man. He had to remind himself that Himura wasn't someone to cross swords with, and anyways, he really did need to be going soon. But he fiddled with the zipper of his jacket for a few moments just for the sake of annoying the man.

"Hmmph. He just wanted me to give you these," he says as he hands Kenshin a large folder that was tucked in his jacket. Kenshin sighed as he accepted the files, and placed them in one of his shopping bags, making sure to situate them somewhere where they hopefully wouldn't get very wet.

Chou was giving the impression of trying to sulk while still keeping his dignity, but in the end just rolled his eyes and said, "Well, I guess I better go. Some promotion I got, now I'm just a friggin' message boy. Keh." And with that Chou almost seemed to melt into the nearest alleyway and Kenshin could still feel his ki until it too disappeared amidst the confusion of the city.

Kenshin let his gaze drift slowly to the bag where the folder now was and suddenly felt like the rain was the perfect weather to match his mood. Well, hopefully he would be home soon were he could lounge in his solitude for the rest of the day. So much for being optimistic, Kenshin admitted to himself dryly.

Kenshin turned around the corner of the empty street into the flowing crowd that swarmed around him. He was managing to keep a little dryer now that he could maneuver himself under the millions of umbrellas that floated overhead, and his steps feel into a comfortable rhythm, letting the flow of people push him in the right direction.

He couldn't have been walking very long when finally the crowd began to thin out just a little bit. When he looked around he saw that this part of the city was a little bit more Westernized than most, littered with quaint cafs and bookstores. He had never been in this part of town before, but he recognized the street and was pretty sure that that the parkade where he had parked his car was near. At most, a few blocks away.

His feet led him around the slower people as he weaved through the thinning crowd, and he felt a light prickling in the back of his head, as if it was vying for his attention. It was more like an itch at the back of his mind that he couldn't quite reach, easy to ignore. But it was slightly bothersome, he couldn't quite put his finger on what it felt like, but he had felt it before, he was sure...

A voice behind him. "Matte!"

A girl's voice. Again, "Matte!"

The voice stopped for a few moments and he assumed that whoever the girl had been calling out for had stopped, but...

"Please wait! You, with the red hair!"

This yelled observation caused Kenshin to stop in his tracks in shock, and he realized that he was fairly much the only person in the area who could fit into the description. He heard the distinct pounding of wet shoes on pavement and then he turned around to face whoever was calling for him. It couldn't be someone from Headquarters, she sounded too young for that. And calling out for him in the middle of street like this was too tactless for someone in his line of business.

Amethyst eyes glowed with confusion as he pivoted his body around to face whoever was calling him. She was right behind, panting, her hair framing her face in a wild halo, and soaking wet, eyes opened wide with shock and... fear?

"Oro!" Kenshin exclaimed as the girl let out a strangled gasp, and her eyes lost all life in them as she wobbled on her feet. Kenshin thought that she was about to faint, and as he saw her body tip precariously forward, he took a few steps forward and spread his arms out to catch her. She was shivering...

"Excuse me? Are you alright?" he asked her motionless body. No answer.

He noticed a few people passing by him slowing down and staring with the same confusion as Kenshin felt, but he took no notice. He turned her body around in his arms and looked at her face.

The faint itch in the back of his mind had begun to become more insistent, and when he looked into her pale face it flared up behind his mind before it was gone again just as quickly. His eyes clouded with confusion and then he frowned at the girl as if she was the cause of all his grievances.

Now... what to do?

Truth was... he didn't know. And Kenshin had been in his fair share of perilous and/or unexpected situations, so why was his mind completely blank?

Maybe it was the stillness of the girl's body, or the cold dampness that was seeping onto his arms from her dripping frame, but Kenshin gave out a long sigh and looked into the girls face again, as if trying to prompt an answer out of her emotionless face.

He briefly entertained the thought of just dumping her on the concrete sidewalk and continuing on his way as if their little encounter had never happened, but if Kenshin could say one thing about himself, it was that he wasn't completely heartless. And he doubted that his conscience, hidden and smothered away as it might be, would let him simply abandon someone who obviously needed help.

He shifted her weight in his arms and gathered her long tangled legs, pressing her body close to him and he cradled her in his arms. It was a bit of a challenge to keep his equilibrium while being weighed down by numerous shopping bags plus a small woman, and Kenshin was not a large man. But he managed. It was then that he noticed the small, weather-beaten black suitcase that lay forgotten on the side walk about three feet away from him. The girl's suitcase, he reasoned. He quickly closed the distance between him and the tired-looking luggage and picked it up. He made a quick double-take between the girl and her suitcase, the first few words of a question forming in his mind.

Why is she carrying...?

Chastising himself firmly, he decreed that it was none of his business and that he should be more concentrated on what to do with the girl in question. He supposed that he could always drop her off at the nearest hospital, get her out of his hair, but...

He looked down at the girl nestled in his arms, like a little bird curled up in it's nest. She seemed so exhausted and helpless, like she was just looking for a place to rest from the storm. Both figuratively and literally. And looking at her like this, Kenshin felt a surge of protectiveness, not entirely sure where it came from.

And it was then that he decided what he was going to do.


Once Kenshin was on the highway and out of traffic, he found it much easier to break the speed limit. He knew that it would probably be only 10 minutes or so before he reached his home, even without speeding, but for some reason he had become to feel an increasing sense of urgency to get back home.

Maybe it was the frequent weak coughs that the girl was giving out every now and then from the back seat, that and the temperature of her shivering body had been when he had placed her in his car. She was burning, her face flushed with a scalding fever. He needed to get her home and changed into some dry clothes, call the local doctor...

He needed to, needed to...

Darting a quick glance in the rearview mirror, he assured himself that she was there, that she was real. Very real. And very sick, and in very urgent need for warmth and medicine...

Kenshin frowned. It seemed a little odd for his thought to be going around in circles, wasn't it?

Finally he saw his turn, and cringed slightly as the tires squealed as they strove to find some purchase on the dirt road. He convinced himself to let his foot relax a little on the gas pedal, if not for his sake then at least to make sure that the car drove more smoothly for his passenger.

Despite this, the trees on one side of the road still were blurring slightly as he sped past them, and Kenshin breathed a sigh of relief as he saw the tiled roof of his home peeking timidly over the leaves.

In no time at all he was driving his car around the back of his house and parked it in the habitual spot. He could hear the faint whisperings of the Tama river that was not too far away, felt the soft breeze that mumbled seductively through his hair, and he immediately felt more peaceful. But he quickly pulled himself out of his reverie. He hadn't rushed back home to just stand and stare at it, he had to get the girl inside the house.

He did just that, and made quick about it, too. Completely forgetting the bags of groceries and the suitcase that had been thrown hastily in the trunk --he could always get them later, anyways-- he gathered the small girl once again in his arms, closing the car door with a loud thump. After managing to slide open the fusuma door with his foot, Kenshin hastily kicked his shoes of and continued to carry the girl up the step and into the house.

His feet made hardly any noise on the polished wooden floor as he made his way down the hall and around corners to where the rooms were. He looked down at the girls face, and saw that already wisps of hair were drying in curls, framing her face. It would have seemed peaceful, save for the deep flush of fever that was painted across her cheeks. And her breathing... it seemed more shallow then it had been before.

Kenshin slid open the screen to the room beside his, which the wall separating the two rooms could also be slid back to make another doorway. Most of the rooms in the house were like this, but Kenshin specifically chose the one beside his room. To make it easier to look after her, he reasoned.

The tatami mats made less noise under his feet then the wooden floor had. It was softer too, and he took advantage of this by laying the girl down softly on the floor. The room was sparsely furnished --it was hardly ever used-- with only a large ink painting scroll pinned to one wall and a small wooden dresser barely two feet tall under it, where a vase probably meant for flowers was placed.

Kenshin quickly pulled out a dusty futon from the closet, shaking it a few times in the doorway before laying it down on the floor. The girl had begun to shiver again, he noticed, and he started to speculate exactly, how it would help her if she was put in bed still wearing her soaked clothes?

And he felt a heavy sense of horror as he realized that he would have to undress her.

Kenshin rolled his eyes up to the heavens, in a plea or maybe just a sarcastically muttered "Why me?" but sucked up his embarrassment --it was necessary, after all-- and marched into his room to dig out one of his spare yukatas for the girl to wear. On a second thought, he also grabbed a dry towel that caught his eye, and knelt down beside the girl slowly.

He cocked his head, studying her for a few moments, and began to raise his hands, almost reverently, and began to pull her arms out of her damp jacket. The skin slid through smoothly, but when Kenshin tried to pull it off her shoulders, he met resistance. And then he noticed something that should have been painfully obvious since the moment he had see her. She had swords strapped to her back. Well, technically it was only one sword, and a bokken, but it was the principle of the thing! She had a katana...!

Kenshin began to wonder what the girl's reasons must have been to call after him on the street, someone he had never seen before. Perhaps her reasons weren't so innocent as he had thought. Maybe... His eyes narrowed in suspicion, and he pulled the two obstructions from the girl's back, letting the bokken clatter to the floor while he brought the katana nearer to his face to look at it more closely.

It was a fairly old sword, he could see that. The sheath was dented and well-worn, as was the handle. Dulled by use and time. Moving with decision, he placed his calloused palm on the handle and pulled out the sword in a swift movement of shining steel and flexing muscles.

"Oro!" Kenshin gasped as his violet eyes reflected off the polished and well-cared for blade of the sword. But that wasn't what had startled him. It was the blade itself, and he stared at it for a few moments before,

"The edge is on the wrong side," he muttered to himself. And indeed it was. The blade itself was well made, the sword perfectly balanced and precise, but why was it reversed? He looked from the katana back to the girl, and then back to the katana again, musing. His suspicions quieted, and he slide the blade quietly back in it's sheath. You wouldn't intend to kill someone using this sword, he concluded. It was practically useless for any intended harm, and worthless, unless you wanted it for an antique, and that might even be the case. Maybe she had stolen it.

Kenshin then returned to pulling her jacket off, and deposited the dripping garment over a rail on the porch to dry. He left the door leading to porch open, and was glad to see some sunlight peeking out through the dark clouds. It had stopped raining, and the scent of fresh, clean mountain air drifted through the room and into Kenshin's lungs.

Breathing deeply, Kenshin pulled off the girl's shoes but left on her socks, which were fairly dry anyway. Now all she had left on was a buttoned-up blouse and a pair of threadbare jeans. Kenshin shot an accusing glance at the folded yukata nearby, almost as if he was willing it to get up and undress the girl itself. He really wished that it would, but wasn't entirely surprised when it didn't. His fingers pulled slowly at the buttons of the unconscious girl's shirt, and he wanted to do it quicker, get it over with, but found that he couldn't force his fingers to move at a faster pace. She had started to shiver again, and more violently now that there was a draft. Kenshin silently cursed himself for so stupidly leaving the door open, thinking that it would do her some good, when it was doing the exact opposite.

With the blouse finally tugged away and the girls shoulders bared --Kenshin didn't even dare touch her bra, he would leave that where it was-- he quickly peeled away the wet denim from the girl's slim legs and gently pulled the yukata around her. After tying it firmly around her waist, Kenshin let himself relax as he placed the girl on the laid out futon, and covered her with a thick blanket to cut off the chill. He began to worry a little bit more as he noticed how her cheeks were flushed even more with rouge, and placed a wet cloth on her brow in hopes that it would help. The screen to the porch had been pulled closed to shut of the breeze, and the room was now fairly warm and cozy.

Kenshin walked out of the room into the hallway, and strode into the kitchen where the phone was. Grabbing the device, he punched in a few numbers and tapped his fingers impatiently against the counter as it rung.

When he heard the click of the phone being answered, Kenshin swiftly said, " Moshi-moshi, I need to speak to Genzai-sensei."


"My goodness Kenshin-kun, I'm not very surprised that she fainted like that, she has a temperature of 103 degrees!"

Kenshin had never been very knowledgeable about sickness and medicine, but he knew that 103was not a normal temperature for the human body.

"She has probably caught the flu, being outside in the rain and all. She should be better in a few days, at the most a week," continued Genzai-sensei.

They were in the room again, the doctor doing his regular doctor-ly tests on the young girl, with Kenshin sitting only a few feet away against the wall. He was contemplating, listening to what the doctor was saying, understand it, but not really reacting.

He was brought out of his reverie by the sound of the doctor pulling something out of his bag, the object in question making a rattling sound as it was pulled out. In the doctors hands were two jars of medicine, pills, Kenshin concluded by the sounds they were making.

Holding out the larger, orange colored jar, Genzai-sensei said, "Make sure she gets lots of fluids in her, and give these antibiotics to her every 4 hours to fight off any infection."

Then, shaking the smaller blue jar for emphasis, the doctor continued, "When she wakes up, give her one of these aspirins if you think she needs one, and if she seems a little confused at first, just explain the important things to her. Give her food if she's hungry." The doctor then gave Kenshin a reassuring smile. "I'm sure that you'll be fine. But if you need anything, don't be afraid to call, alright?"

Kenshin nodded gratefully as he accepted the two plastic jars. "I understand, Genzai-sensei," he said, giving the doctor care-free smile.

They talked for a few more minutes before Kenshin saw the doctor heading back down the dirt road to where his clinic was. It may have seemed like Kenshin's home was in the middle of nowhere, but just a short walk down the dirt road was a small collection of shops and assortments of booths that was technically part of the town of Okutama, but was mostly used by tourists of travellers off the highway.

Kenshin turned and went back into the house, thinking to himself, musing, contemplating, just wondering how his day had taken such a strange turn. Letting himself into the girl's temporary room, he sat himself down again against wall. He could see the girl's face, and she looked so peaceful despite the fever that was hot on her skin. And Kenshin felt that odd feeling again, like the girl had been looking for place to rest and he had just sheltered her. He felt that strange protectiveness, that strong emotion that made him want to stay and just watch her.

Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing, after all.

A/N:

Hopefully it won't take to long to get the third chapter up, since I have a long weekend. A very long weekend. BTW, I have tried to do as much research on this area of Japan as much as I could without reading Japanese, and I have never been there, so please forgive me if I have (or in the future) make any mistakes regarding the country and its... geography? Culture? That sort of thing. :D

Thank you icy333333 and gure for reviewing! -sniffs- It really means alot to me!

~Lacrymosa

Japanese Terms:

Ohayou: hello, good morning
Matte: Wait!
-san: honorific, is something like Mr. of Mrs.
-sama: another honorific, meaning great respect, like Lord or Lady
Moshi-moshi: "hello" used when answering the phone
-sensei: honorific, means teacher, but also used for doctors