Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ The Alchemy of Gold and Silver ❯ Loved ( Chapter 17 )

Chapter 17: Loved

 

Perhaps the feelings that we experience when we are in love represent a normal state. Being in love shows a person who he should be.

-Anton Chekov

 

********

 

The Battousai raised his sword to deal the deathblow, but was stymied by a cry.

 

“No!” Kaoru shouted. Faster than she should have been able to move with her wounds, she was in front of him, arms spread wide in a gesture of protection, stopping him from approaching Shishio. “Kenshin, you can't do this, please!”

 

The Battousai wondered why this strange woman was calling him by his given name. He remembered that he knew her, and that she was somehow important, and that he should not kill her. Other than that, he could not say. He was also puzzled by her bizarre behavior towards his opponent. Surely, she was not protecting the man who had almost killed her.

 

“Kenshin,” she continued in a broken whisper. “You promised.” The Battousai blinked, trying to figure out what in the seven hells she was talking about. She was gazing imploringly at him, and something about that shook him. Kaoru-dono… wait. Yes, that's her name. But why do I know that? Why do I care?

 

None of that matters. Just get her to step aside and kill him. Finish what you started, his internal logic berated him. There would be plenty of time to figure out what was going on later. A hitokiri never let a target escape with his life. Or did he? The Battousai looked from Shishio to the woman called Kaoru and back again. Her eyes, he observed, were a luminous silver-white color. For some reason, that seemed… important. Like they reminded him of something. Something he cared about. Is it possible… that I care about this woman? Somehow, despite the part of him that protested, this appeared to fit.

 

Even the protesting side was effectively silenced when she pushed aside his sword and latched onto him. He was initially too surprised to react; nobody touched him like that, not if they wished to live.

 

During the moments between the act and his successful processing of it, he was able to make several observations. Her grip was surprisingly strong, and her presence was… warm. Warm like sunshine, and soothing like spring rain. He noticed that she smelled slightly sweet, like jasmine. Soft, lustrous hair brushed against his chin, and he was overcome with the desire to run his fingers through it. A compulsion that seemed… strangely familiar.

 

“Kenshin…” she repeated into his shoulder, and it all came back to him. He remembered why she was important, why he cared. He remembered Hiko and the forest and the time they first met, how her silver eyes and gentle nature had entranced him, convinced him not to kill. He recalled the comfortable weight of her sleeping against his shoulder, the way they had stood like this before, if only once.

 

His anger and frustration left him as swiftly as if they had been washed away by the rain. All traces of stiffness disappeared from his posture, and he briefly returned her embrace before moving her out to arms' length. “Kaoru-dono, I…” he struggled for the words. “Please forgive me.”

 

She smiled softly and stepped back. “For what? There's nothing to forgive, Kenshin, as long as you're back to yourself.” Her eyes met his, and widened in shock. “Kenshin! Your eyes… they're purple!”

 

His brow furrowed. This was most unexpected. He knew, of course, that they had been so once, but had accepted that they weren't likely to change back. He had actually come to appreciate this fact, for his eyes reminded him of what he had become, and what he was in danger of becoming once again. But the fact that they had changed… what could this mean? He had no doubt that Kaoru was responsible; it seemed that any positive change in himself was largely her doing.

 

So Kenshin smiled, and pulled her into his arms again. “Thank you, Kaoru-dono. Truly,” he whispered, before stepping back again.

 

Neither of them noticed Shishio tighten his grip on his sword.

 

***

 

Yumi's eyes never left her lover's form, though she did notice Saito was watching him as well. She didn't much care. She was still having trouble coming to terms with the fact that Shishio-sama had lost a fight. She silently thanked Kaoru for convincing Himura to spare him; the thought of living without him had become intolerable while she wasn't looking.

 

Though it was impossible to ignore the other two completely, it was almost unbearable to watch. Was it not what she had always wanted, after all? Well, perhaps not quite. She was not so blameless or foolish as to not admit a certain degree of complacency in her lover's machinations; she rather enjoyed the idea of being empress of the entire country, after all. Still, as she watched Shishio, she could not help but think she'd give it all up if only he asked. Not that he'd ever ask.

 

It was because she was so focused on the man she loved that she noticed him stir, and it was because she knew him so well that she understood his intent.

 

But it was because she knew herself that she felt compelled to act. Not her, Shishio-sama! Yumi ran, throwing herself at Kaoru and pushing the younger woman aside just as her lover's sword pierced her back, and, through her, Himura.

 

“Yumi? What have you done?” he asked incredulously, and she felt the sword tremble slightly. So, he does care…

 

“I'm… so glad that… I can finally be use….ful… to you, Shishio-sama,” she said by way of reply. She inwardly cursed herself for the fact that she could not bring herself to address him without the honorifics, even now. But then, there was a reason she used them in the first place. As much as she loved him, she knew that the depth of her emotion would be considered a weakness. Yumi knew well what Shishio thought of weakness. So she hid her love behind a façade of overbearing lust and the thirst for power. So twisted I've become… it's really too bad I've forgotten how to be anything else.

 

Looking at Kaoru, who was watching with a horror-stricken expression, she spoke again. “Don't… look so surprised,” she told the other woman. “You…. know you would have done the same… in my position.” In truth, she was glad she had been able to save the girl's life in the process of dying for Shishio. It was the one part of the deed that didn't feel tainted with pride or envy or corrupted emotions.

 

The silver-eyed samurai's visage morphed into one of grief. Of course, the one you love would never force you to make that decision. But that's where you and I are different, isn't it?

 

Komagata Yumi slumped, falling to the ground beneath her, whispered words of love dying on her lips as the life left her body.

 

***

 

Kenshin's face was a mask of disgust, as he dislodged the blade from his abdomen. The blow was bad, but not lethal. He stared hard at Shishio. “How could you?” he asked baldly. “She was probably the only person in the world who was ever completely loyal to you.”

 

Shishio laughed, a humorless sound, and slightly wet due to the blood in his lungs. All treatable, but not if this didn't end soon. “Of course she was. But you heard her; it's what she wanted.”

 

Kenshin was about to respond scathingly when a hand on his arm caused him to look to his side at Kaoru, who shook her head. “There's no convincing him otherwise,” she said sadly. “Let's just let Saito arrest him and go home.” She offered a weak smile, and he gave in.

 

When the two turned to look at Saito, however, they found that the Wolf of Mibu's gaze was firmly fixed somewhere else. Shishio followed their eyes and laughed again, this time with no trace of sanity left. “Hoji! Send us all to Hell!” he called, dissolving into further fits of deranged laughter.

 

“What's going on?” Sano asked, jogging up to the two of them, cradling one of his hands. Kenshin hadn't even noticed it was injured, but supposed it was to be expected.

 

“It would appear that the entire fortress is rigged to explode,” Saito replied tonelessly. “Plan B, perhaps?”

 

“What?!” Sano yelled by way of reply, casting about as if to locate the bombs. “Then why the hell are we just standing around here?! We gotta run!”

 

Saito calmly lit a cigarette. “And how do you suppose we do that? If we tried to leave the same way we came in, we'd never make it out in time.” He took a slow drag, and exhaled a cloud of smoke languidly, as though nothing whatsoever was amiss.

 

Kenshin grimaced. Unfortunately, the former Shinsengumi was right. There seemed to be no way out. He glanced down at Kaoru by his side. If he ran on his own, he might make it. But her wounds were worse than his at the moment, and there was no way she would make it, even if he carried her. Then I stay.

 

“Over here,” someone called, and Kenshin felt Kaoru stiffen, then look past him to the source of the voice.

 

“Seta-san?” she sounded confused.

 

A young boy, not much older than Yahiko by the looks of it, approached the group. “I know a faster way out,” he said rapidly, “but we have to hurry!” He motioned impatiently with a hand, bidding them move as quickly as their battered bodies would allow.

 

Kaoru nodded, and her seeming trust in the boy was enough for Kenshin, who followed without hesitation, Sano and Saito not far behind. The boy led them underground, through some relatively straightforward tunnels than Kenshin supposed were used by the Juppongatana for practical reasons, given the layout of the floor above.

 

Not three seconds after they emerged into the evening light, a massive explosion rocked the fortress, and the five escapees had to duck falling debris. “Whew. That was close,” Sano deadpanned. This was apparently too much for Kaoru, who began to laugh, most likely just delighted to be alive. And why not? Kenshin asked himself, smiling a bit at the sound of it.

 

***

 

Two weeks later, Kaoru awoke in the room she and Misao shared at the Aoiya, and smiled. Ever since the battle with Shishio had ended, she had felt much lighter. The war was officially over, the Oniwaban were rebuilding the restaurant- having finished the inn part already- and she was surrounded by her friends.

 

In fact, the only sore spot in the whole thing seemed to be Kenshin. The smile disappeared from her face as she considered everyone's new favorite redheaded samurai. At first, when it was over, he seemed just as relieved as everyone else. Then he and Hiko-sensei had had a talk before the latter left to return to his forest, and now he seemed to exist in his own gray world of melancholy.

 

Sighing heavily, she stepped around the still-slumbering Misao as she pulled on the red kimono the other girl had ordered for her, one with a motif of silver-white flower petals that scattered upward from the bottom. An indigo obi finished off the design, and Kaoru had to admit that her friend had excellent taste; she found that she rather liked it, though she still didn't like moving in it. Still, she supposed she'd have to get used to such things, now that she didn't have constant work as an excuse for wearing gi and hakama all the time.

 

She didn't have a ribbon of appropriate color to wear with this kimono, so she settled for combing through her thick black hair thoroughly and binding it up with the slender sticks that reminded her too much of her favorite eating implements. It'll have to do for today.

 

She made her way downstairs without running into anybody. Not that this surprised her; Aoshi was always at the temple by now and usually there were only one or two other people awake at all.

 

She walked past Sano's room, heard his snoring through the door, and wondered how Megumi thought she was going to deal with that. Sano, being Sano, had proposed in the most unromantic manner possible, bringing it up casually as they were tending patients at her clinic, but the “fox-woman”- as he liked to call her- had agreed pretty readily… after making him swear off gambling and fighting. Personally, Kaoru thought he might be able to give up the first, but the second was just wishful thinking. She had a sneaking suspicion that Megumi knew it too.

 

To some people, it may have seemed as though Sano had proposed sooner than was strictly proper. But as he had pointed out, you never knew what was going to happen anymore- better to say what you need to say and be done with it. He had looked at Kenshin pointedly as he said this, though Kaoru was unsure why. Also, neither he nor Megumi had a parent who still wished to know of them, so it was entirely up to them to make this decision. Okina and other Oniwaban members would stand in for relatives where necessary, but they had no power over the choices involved.

 

Kaoru sighed again as she thought of it. It was wonderful that Sano and Megumi were finding their happiness, of course, but a part of her was envious. She had come to accept that she was in love with Kenshin, but she just wasn't sure she was willing to stake their friendship on a confession that could turn out very badly on the likely chance that he did not reciprocate. Maybe I'm the one who needs to take Sano's advice, she thought ruefully.

 

The two of them had shared their moments, of course, but Kaoru had long since explained away each and every one of them in her mind. All could easily be interpreted as gestures of friendship or respect or necessity. She had no idea what Misao was talking about when the latter went off about `the look in his eye' or whatever nonsense she said while trying to convince Kaoru that there was something there. The swordswoman largely ignored her on the basis that it was best to err on the side of caution where Kenshin was concerned and she should not make something out of nothing. This caused Misao no small amount of frustration.

 

She was brought out of her musings as the object of her current thoughts presented himself, sitting next to her on the covered veranda outside, where she had taken to watching the midsummer rains fall on the garden.

 

“Good morning, Kenshin,” she said, smiling and mustering the cheerfulness she was currently lacking.

 

“Kaoru-dono,” he began haltingly, “there is something I must tell you.”

 

***

 

Kenshin watched as her expression moved between confusion, foreboding, and… hope? In truth, each one entranced him as much as the next, but none as much as her smile. Which made his decision all the more painful. No… it is for the best.

 

“Kaoru-dono… I have done many terrible things in my life.” It was hard for him to decide where to start, so he chose to lead her through his entire thought process. He wanted, no, needed her to understand this.

 

She shook her head. “Kenshin, I've already told you, none of that matters to me.”

 

“But it matters to me,” he replied softly. “I cannot forgive myself as easily as you can, Kaoru-dono. This is why… I've decided to seek atonement.” He shot her a glance, hoping to gauge her reaction before he proceeded.

 

Her face was largely blank, and she had gone quite still. “To seek atonement… how?” she asked at last.

 

“I talked it over with Hiko, and, well, I have decided to travel for a bit, see what I can do to help those that I meet.” He felt his gut wrench unpleasantly as her face fell into a frown. Though it was no less fascinating than any of the other emotions that appeared on her beautifully expressive face, he hated it more than anything he could name.

 

“I…see,” she levelly, calmly, though there was something in her eyes that he could not place. “And what does Hiko-sensei think of this?”

 

“He thinks I am being foolish, but this is something I need to do,” Kenshin explained carefully. In truth, he had decided before he talked to Hiko, and the old man had berated him for what this was going to do to Kaoru. Kenshin hadn't really considered it that way. Kaoru was surely a kind, compassionate person… and he cared for her more than he would ever say, because he did not wish to take advantage of her nature. Still, he hadn't imagined his departure would be too difficult for her to take, and she did seem to be managing it well.

 

“If you think that wandering is something that will help you come to terms with yourself, then by all means,” she replied, giving him a small smile. “We'll all miss you of course, and you should stop by whenever you end up around here.” The invitation seemed genuine enough, but there was something in her tone that gave him pause.

 

He decided to just move on. “I came to return this,” he said, removing her indigo ribbon from a pocket in his gi. He noticed absently that it matched the obi of her kimono today, which really did make her look quite… no. Stop. You're about to leave, and you must. Do not linger on this, or make it harder than it has to be.

 

She stared at it for several seconds, then shook her head. “Keep it. As a reminder.” She did not specify of what.

 

He nodded and tucked it away again, standing. She stood with him. “Well, I suppose I should go now,” he began. Every moment he spent in her company was making his resolve shakier.

 

“What? You mean you aren't staying for the wedding?” she sounded surprised, and took a step back. He flinched internally.

 

Perhaps I should have made that clearer. “I can't,” he responded feebly. There was no way he'd last another week without staying for good. Maybe I could… even if she doesn't feel the same way, I-

 

“I see. Well, then, I suppose this is good bye then.” He nodded, and she bowed formally. “Thank you for everything, Kenshin.”

 

Slightly put-off by her sudden politeness, he returned the bow. “You as well, Kaoru-dono.” He had to leave, had to seek redemption, even if he wished nothing more than to remain. He smiled, and Kaoru returned it shyly before turning and disappearing back inside the Aoiya.

 

Kenshin sighed and turned to face the path that would lead him into a life of atonement for his crimes. Maybe, when all was said and done, he could finally be at peace. He stepped into the rain, heedless of the threat it presented to his health. Okina had lent him a hat to stave off the worst of it. There was no time like the present, he supposed. So why do I feel as though I've made the wrong choice?

 

***

 

Three years later, and summer had come early to Kyoto. Aoshi strode through the open marketplace with purpose. He needed to pay a visit to Saito about a recent case that he was consulting on, and he only had another hour before the man left his office. He would pay a social call if necessary, but he would really rather not.

 

He allowed his mind to drift as he walked, and it flitted happily past his wife's smiling face as he told her he wanted her to take over as Okashira and schematics for the new clinic the Oniwaban were building Megumi as a gesture of gratitude. Unfortunately, it settled rather uncomfortably on Kaoru. The unfortunate woman was still not quite herself, though it had been quite some time since Himura had left.

 

He sighed internally. The swordswoman's state bothered Misao quite a bit, and truth be told he wasn't happy with it either. Kaoru had done a lot for both the Oniwabanshu and Aoshi personally, and he had come to consider her a friend, as odd as that word still sounded to him.

 

Still, there was little he or anyone else could do for her. There was only one person who could really help Kaoru, and he was nowhere to be found. To be honest, it wasn't as though she was failing to function just fine, because she was actually meeting with quite a bit of success. She'd opened a dojo, and had several students. She visited the Aoiya and the clinic a few times a week, and she was largely the same friendly, warm person as she had always been. It was only in the moments when she thought nobody was watching that she faltered. People would look away, and Kaoru would forget she was supposed to be smiling. Occasionally, Aoshi would catch her staring listlessly into space, but when questioned, she would merely smile sadly and decline to say anything about it.

 

A low growl of frustration escaped him, and ice-blue eyes sharply scanned the area as though searching for the answer to his frustration there. Unsatisfied, he ducked through the door to the police station just as someone else was coming out, and stopped dead in his tracks.

 

“Himura?” he asked speculatively, betraying none of the surprise he felt. “What are you doing here?”

 

The redhead's eyes went wide. “Oh, hello, Aoshi. I just got taken in for wearing a sword. Apparently that's illegal now.” The wanderer placed a hand behind his head in affected self-effacement, but Aoshi wasn't having any of it.

 

“You're in Kyoto long enough to be arrested, and you haven't bothered to visit Kaoru?” The former Okashira fixed his once-ally with his best ice-man glare.

 

Himura seemed largely unaffected, though Aoshi supposed that wasn't really the point. “I think it would be best if I didn't see Kaoru-dono right now, that I do,” he replied slowly.

 

Aoshi ignored the curious speech pattern that Himura seemed to have picked up. “Your cowardice does you little credit,” he replied stonily. He wasn't going to spell it out for the man, but hopefully that would be enough.

 

Without waiting for a reply, he brushed past the shorter man in search of Saito.

 

***

Kamiya Kaoru was at the market with her three live-in students, trying to decide what to cook for dinner. She sometimes missed living at the Aoiya, where all the meals were free, but had ultimately decided that opening a dojo was worth the sacrifice. She had somehow found herself unwilling or unable to return to Tokyo, even after all this time. Here in Kyoto, she was close to all the friends she had made, and could even visit Hiko-sensei sometimes without needing to make a major event of it.

 

“Don't make us eat sushi again, busu!” Yahiko grumped, crossing his arms over his chest and scowling in typical Yahiko fashion.

 

“Yahiko,” Kaoru replied in a warning tone, “if you want me to make it, and you want to be alive after eating it, it has to be sushi.” She was swiftly losing her patience, and tried not to let it show. She had to be the responsible one, after all. Not that it stopped her from clocking him when he was too far out of line.

 

“Uhm, Kaoru-sensei, I could cook tonight if you would like…” Tsubame fiddled with the hem of her sleeve and looked at the ground. Kaoru sighed. She appreciated the girl's offer; indeed, she had enjoyed having Tsubame around for a number of reasons. Once Sae at the Shirabeko had told her the story of the samurai and the frying pan, Kaoru had insisted on taking the girl on as a student, and she was certainly much more pleasant than Yahiko. Still, her youngest pupil seemed to suffer from perpetual shyness, and occasionally it got on Kaoru's nerves.

 

She pasted on a smile for their sakes. “That sounds lovely, Tsubame-chan. What would you like for dinner, Soujiro-kun?” she asked the most unconventional of her students, completely ignoring Yahiko on purpose. Soujiro was here of his own initiative, having decided that there was nowhere better for him to go after what happened at Shishio's fortress. He had forsaken everything that his former master had taught him in favor of learning her style, and he had excelled. All three of them had, in fact, and they helped out as the assistant instructors at her dojo. Or at least, they would, if I had any other students anymore…

 

Whatever Soujiro might have said was drowned out by the sound of a police alarm. Kaoru's head snapped up, and she focused on hearing snippets of conversation as a group of officers passed her. “They say they've finally found Battousai-”

 

“Kamiya Kasshin-ryu-”

 

Kaoru's teeth ground together. Not only was this jerk defaming her style by claiming to use it, he was stealing Kenshin's name to do it! Not the kind of thing he needed when trying to atone for his past. She chose to ignore the part where she still hated herself for not telling him she loved him. She had known he had to leave, and that she had no right to try and make him stay. Since then, she had done her damndest to live the way she wanted, but she couldn't help but feel that there was something missing, and she knew well what it was.

 

“You three, buy whatever you want,” she said, handing Soujiro the dinner budget for the day. “I'll be back.”

 

Yahiko looked like he was about to protest, but Soujiro merely nodded and led the others off in the direction of the tofu vendor, leaving Kaoru to follow the officers. The oldest boy knew better than to protest when she looked like that, glints of silver at the edges of her irises, mouth set as though she might tear down anything in her way. Kaoru was in a kimono, but kept her sakabatou strapped to her back at all times anyway. There was a ban on swords these days, though it helped to know one of the highest-ranking police officers in the city, and Saito had issued her a permit.

 

As she suspected, the cops were having trouble dealing with a massive man who was clearly neither the Battousai nor using her father's style. Blue eyes narrowing, Kaoru charged in past the officers and delivered several heavy blows to the man, who fell backwards under the admittedly slightly overzealous onslaught.

 

“Kamiya-san,” greeted Hojo Yousuke, the captain of this particular squad. The two knew each other pretty well, and he was quite aware of her vendetta against the imposter.

 

“Hojo-san, please make sure the others know that this man was not using Kamiya Kasshin-ryu,” she implored.

 

He nodded, understanding her plight. “I'll do you one better,” he replied. “I'll make sure everyone knows it was the Kamiya Kasshin-ryu that took him down. And my son will be back to his lessons on Monday, since my wife no longer has any reason to keep him away.” The officer shook his head. His wife's… opinions on letting their son train at a school with a female kendo instructor were very well-expressed.

 

She smiled broadly, but her thanks was cut off by another whistle, this one of the variety carried by individual officers. Still, if whoever had it was using it, that meant he needed help. “May I?” she inquired.

 

“Of course,” he replied easily, and he ordered his men to see to the large impersonator while he and Kaoru took off toward the sound of the whistle.

 

***

 

“Sir! As you know, a ban has been applied on all bladed weapons. Your sword is in clear violation of the law!”

 

Kenshin sighed. This was not going well at all. For some reason, the officer had deemed him a threat and blown his whistle, which meant that there were only going to be more people involved, and soon.

 

“Please, officer,” Kenshin began respectfully as he could, “I told you I have a permit. If you would just allow me to show it to you-” he reached for his pocket, where he kept the piece of paper Saito had given him upon his initial arrest.

 

“Keep your hands where they are!” the officer practically shrieked, and Kenshin had to try really hard to avoid rolling his eyes. Here he was, on his way to find Kaoru, having at last decided that he needed some closure. Perhaps… perhaps he had done her an injustice by leaving without properly telling her how he felt. Things never seemed to go the way he planned, though, and he was beginning to wonder if he should have ignored Aoshi's rather cold reminder and Hiko's frequent admonishments after all.

 

Just then, the two were interrupted as more people arrived on the scene. One was clearly another officer, but Kenshin couldn't have cared less once he saw who had arrived alongside him. Can it really be-?

 

But she gave no sign of recognition, merely turned to the other officer. “Hojo-san, I think I can take care of this.”

 

The middle-aged man looked at her curiously, but then shrugged and gestured to his subordinate. “Come on Hadashi, go harass someone else.”

 

“Yes, sir!”

 

Once they were gone, Kenshin turned, to find that Kaoru was no more that three feet in front of him, looking as though he'd just come back from the dead. Then again, that might as well be the case, he thought with a twinge of regret. Three years had done a lot for his perspective, mostly to inform him that she was far more to him than he'd thought even then.

 

Yet there was no reason to believe she felt the same, or would forgive him even if she had. He'd walked out of her life, and though he'd been through Kyoto several times, not once had he visited. This time was supposed to be different, but he had still been unsure of how he would go about meeting her when she had taken the choice away from him.

 

“Kaoru-dono-” he was interrupted when she delivered a stinging slap to his unscarred cheek. He had deserved that. She was about ready to do the same with the other hand, but he deftly caught her wrist, then her right one when she tried a third time. He noticed with trepidation that she was shaking, shoulders heaving with silent sobs.

 

“Kaoru,” he murmured, this time adopting a soothing tone, pulling her flush against him. She did not resist, but leaned freely upon him, and he could feel his gi moistening with her tears. He ran his hands up and down her back in what he hoped were calming motions.

 

“I love you,” she managed between shuddering breaths. “I love you, and you left. How could you?” she gathered his gi into her fists, and he had to overcome his initial shock at this blunt proclamation before he could pry her fingers loose and step back.

 

Tilting her chin up, he used a thumb to wipe away the tear-streaks on her lovely face. “Kaoru,” he said sincerely, “this one is sorry. You were never supposed to be hurt by this one's actions.” She hiccupped slightly, and he dared to continue. What good were secrets or reservations now, after all this?

 

“In truth, Kaoru, I have loved you for a long time now. I just didn't recognize it for what it was, in you or in me. You changed me, Kaoru, utterly and completely. And I'm sorry I didn't realize it until I wasn't there anymore.”

 

She blinked slowly, still sniffling, and nodded. “I'm sorry I never told you,” she replied shakily. “I just… never thought you could feel the same. I feel kind of stupid now,” she admitted.

 

Kenshin smiled. “You are anything but that.” Strong, yes, and beautiful, and kinder than I deserve, but never that. With that thought, he closed the distance that remained between them and pressed his lips gently against hers, and for a moment, his world once again narrowed so that there was only Kaoru, and the feel of her lips on his and her smell and her gentle spirit against his ki sense.

 

And if that moment had been the extent of his world from then until the end of time, Kenshin would have happily lived forever.

 

*******

To my readers:

 

I wish to take this moment to thank all of you for reading my little story. There are a number of excellent pieces you could have read instead, and to be truthful, it still flabbergasts me that anyone could be bothered to see this one through to the end. For that, every last one of you has my gratitude. Because of you, I kept writing.

 

Last but certainly not least, an extra-special thank you to Beth, the edit ninja and beta extraordinaire, without whom this story would contain more errors than I care to think about. Because of you, this story didn't totally suck.

 

As a side note: I will be writing another story for this fandom, but I cannot say for sure if it will be the next thing I work on or not. I try to only do one or two projects at a time, so I ask that if you are interested, just keep your eyes open; it will most likely be appearing in either September or October of this year, and the working title is Hood. Not terribly original, but alas.

 

Love,

~Kiku~

 

Y'know, just because this is the last chapter doesn't mean reviews are any less awesome… just sayin'.