Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Water on a Glass House ❯ Part Eight ( Chapter 8 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

Water on a Glass House

May 2004

Written by: ChiisaiLammy (ChiisaiLammy at Hotmail dot com)

Disclaimer: RK not mine. Please don't sue. Love RK so much. insert tearshere

(edit) FF.net got rid of my symbols! Sorry Tru, if you read this and it was confusing because the scene switch markers were deleted!
(edit 2) got rid of some typos and sent. mistakes. And if I'm missing quotes/commas, blame ff.net and their deleting of symbols

---

Part Eight The first thing that he had noticed about the young man was the prominence of his cheekbones. He was speaking softly to an older and more malicious looking man with thick, poorly cut black hair. Both of them wore similarly styled coarse black robes. The older man motioned towards the seat before him at the large, cavernous main dining hall, Kanryuu swallowed.

This venue was so immensely extravagant and imposing that even Kanryuu had to admit that such a meeting place was fitting for the Shanghai mafia.

Kanryuu bowed deeply in greeting and took a seat. The young man took a sip from his teacup.

"I don't think I will ever get used to that custom." The young man sighed in flawless Japanese.

"It brings me much pleasure to hold an audience with you, Heshin-san."

The young man with the chiseled features cheekbones lifted up delightfully as a laugh rang out through the cavernous dining hall. He nodded towards the older man, "That is Heshin. I'm his nephew Saku, our mutual contact informs me you are interested in purchasing some weapons from us?"

Kanryuu's eyebrows knotted in confusion as his face turned red. "Yes. I was informed that I should consult you when it came to the weapons trade." Turing to the other man he nodded respectfully, "It remains an honor to hold an audience with you."

Heshin's mouth twisted into a small frown, "I heard that you have problems with Hiroshi and that is why you seek us."

Kanryuu felt his throat get dangerously dry, but raising his chin in the most dignified manner possible, he shrugged. "I am a business man. I do what is most prudent. Hiroshi does not have what I am looking for. He mainly deals Dutch rifles and he is content with limiting himself with that tiny aspect of the trade. Me? I have larger plans than that."

Young Saku poured himself another cup of tea, his voice was soft and melodic, "I have been informed that you wish to enter the trade for gatling guns."

Kanryuu nodded and a glint flashed from his glasses as he moved, "Yes. Dutch rifles are so outdated. And I've been doing my research on the newest technology available." He reached into his leather document holder, "And have compiled a list of the most up-to-date weapons in recent technology. Most of which, I have been informed your organization can get help me acquire."

Saku's eyes skimmed over the list, "Fairly extensive list, Kanryuu-san."

"I know that Hiroshi contacts you only when there are requests that he cannot fill. I am well aware of a number of contacts in Japan who would be willing to update their arsenal. I have plenty of contacts in the Yakuza right now. I am a business man. I can buy, sell and distribute these guns faster, quieter and more efficiently than you can."

Hehsin's arms crossed as he sat back, "You assume too much. What monetary compensation have you to offer us?"

Kanyruu sat up, "If you wont sell directly to me, you can provide me with the weapons and I will distribute them with a twenty percent fee." He drew out another stack of papers, "All this, of course will never be connected back to you. I've already scouted out several key locations along the western coast. We can channel the funds through intermediaries there and make the necessary transactions. Just sign the deeds as a silent partner and we will be in business."

Heshin's lips curled into a small sneer, "Your recent incident with Hiroshi resulted in the confiscation of five crates of Dutch rifles. The Tokyo police and Japan's Internal Bureau are doing extensive investigations on the smuggling. It's only a matter of time before someone is found. Why would we want to run that risk with you?"

Saku smiled cordially and added, "We investigate all of our potential clients, you see."

Kanryuu blinked and folded the napkin in his nap, "Such negligence is due to Hiroshi's foolish temper and the lack of discipline in his men. You notice that the only people in police custody are Hiroshi's."

"Regardless." Heshin replied, "Though our leader is sympathetic to dealing with the Japanese, we do not like to run the risk."

Saku shrugged and gestured towards the papers, "But everything looks in good order. So from one business man to another, I suggest you find some way to make this work."

Heshin nodded gravely. "In other words, eliminate the leads that connect you back to the rifle incident."

Saku sipped his tea calmly and with one coy raised eyebrow he said, "Who knows. Maybe we will even send you that gatling gun you wanted, as a gift to solidify new alliances."

---

Shiki-jou and Hyottoko stood outside of the storeroom to watch Kanryuu's uniformed men pull out a large crate.

Hyottoko nudged his fellow Oniwaban, "What's it say on the carton?"

Shiki-jou studied the characters closer, "Eh. I'm not sure." He shrugged, "I think you're going to have to ask the Okashira later, western script all look the same to me."

Hyottoko's eyebrows, "The Okashira knows western languages?"

"Sure he does, remember how the Okashira's tutor went on the Iwakura Mission to America back in the day? His tutor knew all sorts of that crazy Western stuff."

"All that's useless if you ask me." Hyotokko said as he leaned against the wall. "I know all I need to. Fire-breath burn. And maybe cover Beshimi's scrawny little butt."

"Speaking of which, where has he been? I thought you two are inseparable."

"He takes it upon himself to personally watch that woman. You know him, always the apple polisher. The Okashira asks for some simple task he just runs with it."

Shiki-jou chuckled, "I wouldn't mind watching her, if ya know what I mean."

The other man rolled his eyes and took a seat on the floor, "Yeah well, I don't even know why she's all that important. I asked Beshimi, too, and he says he doesn't know. Hannya takes her somewhere all day and comes back with her."

"She's a doctor, remember? Maybe she's at the infirmary all day."

"Yeah, but, you don't see anyone sick around do you?" Hyottoko replied, "But she's gone all day."

Shiki-jou shrugged, "Does it matter? We do what we do. Doesn't change a darned thing."

Just then Hiroshi, dressed once again in his ill-fitting clothing, wandered towards the two men. "I am here to see your boss, Kanryuu?"

Shiki-jou nodded towards the mansion, "Kanryuu is delayed in his office. I'm supposed to take you there."

Shiki-jou heard a stifled snicker from his comrade as he and Hiroshi walked away. He could have laughed at the sight too, if he were a spectator. The old, round man in the too-small chocolate-colored western suit looked like a cocker-spaniel next to his towering muscular frame.

---

Aoshi stood next to the window and watched Shiki-jou escort Hiroshi up the white cobblestone pathway towards the great entrance of the mansion.

"They will be here soon." He announced monotonously.

Kanryuu uncrossed his legs with great deliberation. "You want freedom, don't you?"

Megumi merely glared at him, "What more do you want? I'm already making your drugs"

Kanryuu took the fountain pen and tossed it on top of a small stack of documents. In one smooth sweep of his arm, he pushed the pile across the great desk.

Megumi stared down at the forms in her. "What is this?"

"A business proposal." He said casually leaning back and turning to the window. He smiled roguishly as he watched Aoshi's face, "What you want is your freedom, a life free from guards and such. What I want is your skills as a chemist."

As Megumi skimmed the documents, Aoshi focused his eyes towards her, trying to ignore the intensity of Kanryuu's stare.

Flip. Flip. Flip. A pregnant silence lingered thick and hungry in the air.

Megumi leaned back, and Aoshi could see her expressive dark eyes crackle with anger.

"You want me to marry you?"

Aoshi's eyes widened for a fraction of a millimeter. Aoshi was a man who built his career in hiding his thoughts. He was good enough to escape the careful scrutiny of Kanryuu's gaze, but the fact that Aoshi's surprise had even manifested itself irked him.

Aoshi was sure that Kanryuu returned his gaze back to Megumi due to the Aoshi's stony expression. He wondered idly what the other man knew or suspected. He would have to be more careful, for underestimating even a man like Kanryuu could be a dangerous thing.

"What is this?" the woman hissed, her eyes narrowing into slits.

"Sign it and you're free. You would have access to my resources. I will even move you to another estate on the coast."

"You must be crazy." She spat as her fists clenched angrily in her lap.

Kanryuu shrugged, "I'm trying to work my way into this community. What I need is for you to legitimize my money and my image." He leaned in towards her, his palms planted firmly against the desk. "I told you, Megumi, that I wanted to take care of you."

He ran a gloved finger along her jaw line, and seemed to revel in the way the tiny muscles in her jaw twitched.

"No matter what," he breathed softly, "I own you, my pet. I redeemed you. A woman as used as you-you can never hope to crawl back from your fall! You can't ever be high society again.

Do you think you can escape, find your family, and live the life of a socialite? You will hear the whispers of scandal for the rest of your life. Takani Megumi, the woman lived under the houses of so many men. But I'm a kind man, and I'm giving you a choice."

Her eyes widened in shock. Her hand rose to slap him but Kanryuu had already pulled back, with a satisfied smile on his face.

"To move from one prison cell to another all the while making your disgusting drugs is not much of a choice."

Kanryuu's amused voice was light and teasing. "Tell me, Megumi. Did that doctor let you into his house because of your charms? Did you keep his bed warm at night?"

She flashed a desperate, pleading look towards the silent figure in the background. Her eyes were wild and indignant.

Aoshi could read the desperate, silent protestation in her body language. Aoshi blinked and without moving a muscle, looked away as if to dismiss her. Her feelings and her virtue were none of his concern now. He silently studied Kanryuu: his rapid breathing, his absolute glee, and the delight he was taking into provoking her. This was a performance. Kanryuu was planning something.

Kanryuu lowered his voice and went for the kill, "Don't you think you should be grateful? No one else wants you, Megumi. And you should be grateful that I want you as my doll! My golden goose! You belong to me, because no one else wants you!"

Aoshi watched as she hung her head hung in resignation. Her voice wavered under the heaviness of her grief. With an sudden wave of uncertainty, she replied, "I am not a trinket in your possession...I-I'm not."

Kanryuu shook his head, delighted that Megumi had finally shown signs of being broken. He nearly giggled as he replied, "Yes you are. That's all you ever were, traded from hand to hand by men who want nothing but to use you. You can't escape it, so accept it. It's who you are."

At the sound of the knocking at the door, Kanryuu called, "Come in."

At the distraction, Aoshi took a moment to study Megumi. He found that he couldn't read her with her face hidden behind the curtain of hair.

"Ahh Hiroshi-sama. I promised no body guards for this meeting. Completely safe. No fights between us, right?" He turned to Aoshi. "Please see to your men, Aoshi." He said.

With a raise of the brow, Aoshi gave a slight nod and swallowed his annoyance as he walked towards the door. He paused as the young woman raised her head and caught his eyes with her red rimmed ones.

He remembered that face. It was a face that had been etched into his memory since the first day he had seen her. It was her true face perhaps. Ashen, with the large doe-eyes, this was his face at fifteen, before he shut himself off to the world.

They were the same, waiting forever in this glass house for a glimpse of a former glory that would never return. Except this time, she didn't seem to be looking outside anymore. She merely sat before him with a vacant, lost look in her eyes.

Aoshi felt the air thin around him.

"The woman stays." Kanryuu ordered as he poured out two glasses for himself and his guest.

Aoshi closed his eyes and turned away, stalking out of the room.

Forget her. Forget her eyes. Forget the smiles. Get the scent of midnight out of your mind and the memory of moonlight out of her hair.

He doubted that he could have saved her, even if he wanted to.

He was no prince. Just a fallen, time-trampled knight.

---

Megumi watched as Aoshi closed the door behind him. He was so calm during the entire exchange.

She felt her stomach fall like the weight of an anchor towards her feet. This was it, it's over. No room for dreams.

She braced herself as the clicking of Hiroshi's bejeweled fingers reached for her face.

It was over. This was the end of her virtue. This was the house for the end of dreams.

Inside, she smiled ironically; maybe she should have killed herself. Maybe she should have poisoned Kanryuu. Maybe she should have poisoned them all when she had the chance.

Hiroshi turned to Kanryuu, his voice was leering and already thick with desire. He asked with a bit of a chuckle, "A bit of sugar to sweeten out business deal?"

Kanryuu calmly polished his glasses on his shirt, "No, Hiroshi, I tend to not like sharing my things."

Hiroshi's brows knitted, "What?"

Kanryuu shrugged and opened his drawer, pulling out a box of cigarettes. He offered one to the other man.

He slowly lit his smoke before continuing, "Just that. She is my prize and I enlist not to share my things with other men. Especially terrible business men such as yourself."

Hiroshi slammed his pudgy hands onto the desk. "You invited me here to insult me?"

Kanryuu shook his head, and calmly pulled open his drawer open once again. "No. Not at all."

He pulled out a small, silver pistol from his pocket and leered. "I invited you here to kill you, because you are an incredibly stupid man."

Without precession, he emptied his revolver into the other man. As the shots rang out, boom sounded through the room that was so terrifying, it made even the glass windows rattle with fear.

Kanryuu stared at the body before him, his eyes empty and unthinking. Even well after the gun had been emptied.

Hiroshi had stopped moving, Megumi watched as Kanryuu's fingers continued to squeeze the trigger. She watched in shock as the hammer of the gun clicked continuously in empty space.

Click click click. The empty metallic ring clicked a sad, barren sound. It was so weak, so lacking of force that it seemed to make a mockery of the thunderous boom that hadpreceded it. Megumi shook, without really knowing why.

"Bastard." Kanryuu breathed finally as he stood up, snubbing his still-lit cigarette in a nearby ashtray.

Megumi could only stare in shock at the motionless man next to her. She tried in vain to silence the steady buzzing in her head that sounded like senseless screaming. As she gasped for air, she wondered idly why her mouth did not echo the screaming in her head.

Kanryuu pointed the still smoking barrel at Megumi, stepping over the river of blood that dripped from the big leather chair.

"I wanted you here, pet, because this is the power of the new age." He said softly.

Pressing the barrel into her shrinking face, he loomed over her. As he leaned down, all Megumi could only think of was the smell of gunpowder on his clothing.

"This, pet, is the power that I possess." He gripped her face with his free hand. "I have the power. I could kill you! Is that what you want? That is what you love isn't it? You lust for it: the power of a killer. That's why you lust after him. That's why you threw your charms at him last night in the courtyard. You want his power because it stirs something inside of you. You're drawn to it and you can't help yourself. You try not to, because no one would ever understand your love for him. But you can't help but drown in his darkness, the storms of his eyes…"

He was screaming now, and strings of saliva hung from his canines. His voice rose higher as agitation built.

Megumi could hear nothing. She only saw the blood-matted graying hair. She saw a river of blood and the unwanted memories of the doctor's house. She could hear her own voice screaming desperately in her head.

Stop! Stop! Please! No! Sensei! Why?

"See? See what you made me do? I wouldn't have. It would not have to be like this."

He paused and tossed the pistol onto his desk. Planting his hands on the armrests of her chair, he loomed over her and screamed. "I will not compete with you! I will not compete for either yours or his affections! He is mine. You are mine."

His bony fingers dug sharply into her shoulders as he shook her roughly, "Do you understand? Do you understand why I do what I do, Megumi? Do you know why? It's all because of you. You and him."

In the white haze that had descended over her mind, she could only see an indistinct mouth move. Everything faded to the sound of white noise in her ears, a sound that reminded her eerily of falling rain.

She blanked out.

---

She awoke to the sound of rain against the unglazed tiles of the mansion. Propping herself up onto her elbows, she released a painful groan. She immediately clutched her head as if that action would somehow stop the dizziness that she must have been feeling.

"Where am I?" She asked, looking around in confusion.

"This is the third floor conservatory." Aoshi paused and watched as she wiped her bloody nose on her kimono sleeve nervously. He found himself amused by the fact that even the most cultured women would forgo propriety at a time like this.

"Hannya found you in collapsed in the courtyard. He tells me that you haven't eaten in days."

"I don't remember walking to the courtyard-" She looked around, chewing on her bottom lip, "Where's Kanryuu?"

Aoshi offered no response.

"He killed Hiroshi. Right in front of me. He just shot him. I can't-"

He looked questioningly at her downcast eyes, and the tears that had started to fall like rainfall down her glassy cheeks.

"I had been so foolish." She said softly, not meeting his eyes. "I thought that I would be able to endure it. I had been so proud."

She swallowed before continuing. "I can't afford to be proud anymore."

He felt his hand inch almost on its own accord towards her left cheek, the one he remembered, with a tinge of sadness that was marked by bruise from the cruel guard.

His arm ached with the desire to touch her, to provide some sense of comfort, to feel her closeness once again, like he did in the courtyard. But he forced his hand to return to his side.

Turing away, he said in his cold, impassive voice, "Do you think, Takani-sensei, that you take too much liberty in telling me this?"

"I'm aware of who you are and who I am, but-" She captured his steely blue eyes with her own as she pleaded, "I know I cannot stay here any longer."

The unasked question lingered invisibly in the space between them. He knew perfectly well what she implied and she knew perfectly well that he understood.

"Even if I let you escape," he said softly, "you would only be caught again."

"You're the only one who could catch me." She replied. "So what if you don't? What if you let me go?"

"I see no compelling reason to let you go. Your business with Kanryuu does not involve me. You should not even speak to me about this."

She inched closer to him with clear trepidation, her eyes were hesitant and prodding, "What if you came with me? What if we just leave this place? What if we both escape from Kanryuu's cruelty, his greed? We could, you know. We could."

He would have laughed at the absurdity of the suggestion, if it were in his nature to do so. "I have no compelling reason to leave, either."

Deflated, she broke her gaze and stood back.

"So it is hopeless." She said softly as her shoulders fell.

His eyes flew to her wrists and the fingers that danced impulsively on the scars. "Is that what those scars are? A time marker for a time when there was no hope?"

She raised her eyes in surprise at him and pulled her kimono sleeves self-consciously over her wrists.

"They are a mark-for weakness." She replied softly. "Shinomori-san, I have no right to speak to you about this. But on the honor of the warrior--" Her voice softened as she looked meaningfully at him, "At what might have been. Please. I beg you not help me but look away for a minute. Give me a chance. I would give you my life for this. I would do anything to repay the favor."

He closed his eyes and remained silent for a long time.

What might have been. What might have been if he had still been the Okashira or if she had been with her family? What if he had met her in the Shogun's court or within the halls of Aizu castle? He wondered if the courtyard was a glimpse into a life he could have had. He wondered if that was what she had meant.

He hand inched out once gain and he allowed it to hover a few centimeters over her cheek for a minute, but he could not bring himself to touch her.

His voice was soft, without anger or harshness. "You should not be so free with your life. Would that not make you into what Kanryuu wanted? A doll to be traded in the hands of men?"

Silence.

"Did you notice how the ceiling on the grand hall is made of plaster but the ceiling to the ball room is not?"

Aoshi watched as her brows wrinkled in confusion. "What?" She asked.

"The ceiling is made of a different material. In fact, I find it interesting that the left wall next to Kanryuu's hallway sounds different when you knock on it."

"What does this have-"

"Kanryuu has built an escape route in the attic of the mansion. The entrance of it is found near Kanryuu's office. The paint is a half shade lighter than the rest of the hallway. You can find it if you look close. You have sharp eyes. I'm fairly certain that it leads towards the woods in the back of the mansion. If you go that way, the trees will obscure the vision of the guards on watch."

Her eyes widened. "Thank you."

"I did not say that I will not catch you, Takani-sensei. If we must talk of debts, I remember that you saved my life once so I return the favor to you. From now on my debt to you has been paid. If you return, I am your guard, your captor. You are the captive and that is all there will be."

She lowered her gaze, "I see."

Maybe this would exorcise her from his mind. Maybe for once, he could forget her scent, soft and warm radiate from her form.

"I see." She repeated as she hung her head. She bowed deeply. "I thank you."

Aoshi nodded and fixed his eyes on her. "Do not thank me yet. I am Oniwaban. You know where I stand…"

She closed the distance between them in a step and looked up into his eyes. Placing a hand on his arm to quiet him, she steadied herself as she stood on her tiptoes.

"Without hope or a reason or a hidden agenda, on my own volition, I'm going to do something…" She leaned into him slowly and apprehensively. "As a woman acting on her own will."

She wrapped her arms around him and buried her head in the warmth of his chest.

Aoshi felt a wave, warm and heavy like steam, rise in his body. His nerves seemed to awaken at that moment, as he felt what seemed to be every curve of her body as it leaned against his. But for all the sensations that he had felt at that moment, the presence of her body was so brief and so ephemeral that he couldn't be certain if it had happened.

He blinked once in confusion and she was gone. Her scent was gone. Her embrace was gone.

"Goodbye, Shinomori Aoshi." She breathed as she stepped backwards.

He started after her. Without another word, she had turned and walked away so quickly that he wondered if he had just woken from some hazy summer's dream. As he watched the empty air in front of him that she had occupied just a moment before, he began to feel a slow, growing chill spread throughout his body.

He wondered if his body had merely missed the warmth which radiated from hers. He could never be sure, of course. To think anymore about this would put too much at risk. And he couldn't be selfish, not when it came to matter with his men. He sat down on the floor of the conservatory and began to take slow, even breaths to calm himself. He knew that despite the chaotic swirl of his emotions, what he needed more than anything right now was a calm, clear mind.

As the night fell over the horizon, a pale orange glow from the oil lamps all seemed to light at once and infiltrate the house. Their steady flicker stood guard against the chill and burned away the darkness of the night.

Aoshi stared at the flames of the oil lamp that sat before him. He was lost in the turbulent storms of his thoughts. He watched the wick of the lamp that had burned down so low that the fire struggled against it, grasping for the very last morsel of fuel. It flickered and fought for a bit before suddenly, in the every end, the fire emitted its last dying ember, a spark of light, before it too succumbed to the darkness.

Aoshi sat alone, cross-legged in the third floor conservatory. He had only the sound of rain as his companion in the complete darkness. As he opened his eyes, a small enigmatic smile spread across his face under the cloak of darkness.

Slowly, Aoshi stood and gathered his kodachi. He paused at the window and looked outside. Inhaling one last lingering scent of rain, he reached his hand out and drew closed the large glass-paned windows.

He locked the large metal hatch and the sound reverberated though the tiny room in a heavy, ominous thud.

---

He closed his eyes and concentrated on the cold, biting well water as it carved tiny rivers down the muscles of his back. His baths always took place in the early morning. It was a habit that he had formed since he was a child, for he as a guard, he was always awake before dawn and could not bring himself to wake the servants for such a selfish and trivial request as a hot water.

Moreover, he had always believed that petty indulgences like those were what made men weak. He was taught that one must always prepare for the unseen enemy and waiting for hot water was luxury that a warrior could not afford. Even in an era when warriors were reviled as remnants of outdated tradition, Aoshi had decided long ago, long before he took the mantle of Okashira, that he would gladly carry his kodachi to the grave and live without all of the bodily indulgences that marked weak-willed men.

And last night was merely a glitch in that plan. He was sure that he had scratched the memory of her from his mind.

Aoshi shook his head to clear his thoughts as he shook the excess water from his hair.

The sun was rising over the horizon.

He secretly wondered if he chose to wake up early in order to catch the first rays of sunlight over the mountains. It was his favorite sight. Nothing really compared to the sudden explosion of colors against the gray-black sky. It was so crisp, so colorful, and so undeniably beautiful.
When he had seen his first sunrise as a boy, he had been so awed by the majesty that the he sat down in the middle of the field for an hour just to watch the undulation of golds and pinks as the colors bled across the sky.

Twenty-one years later, he never stopped revisiting this first love.

And he liked to think that despite all the changes in his life, that there were still things that could remain constant. He liked to think that there were still things that could be regimented and controlled by him, like his morning baths. He liked to think there were certain things that couldn't change, like the color of the sunrise.

Even if people were inherently illogical. Even if he had done something he considered to be insane.

The sun will always rise in the east, reminding him about the richness of a new day. His bath water will always be cold, because that is life that he has chosen.

He turned suddenly as his ears picked up the thundering of panicked footsteps.

Kanryuu, with his hair in a complete state of disarray came running up to Aoshi with panic in his eyes.

"The woman! She's gone! Oh kami-sama, how could this happen? HOW?"

Aoshi calmly followed the man to the doctor's quarters. Sitting outside was a forlorn looking

Beshimi with his shoulders slumped in shame.

"Okashira." He threw himself at the younger man's feet. "For my transgressions and oversight, I beg forgiveness please! I only fell asleep this time, I have never brought the Oniwaban such shame!"

Aoshi placed a firm hand on the other man's shoulder. "No doubt you are loyal and able. I have no doubts that any mistakes that you make will be remedied."

His eyes traveled over to small apple core next to Beshimi's frame. Aoshi frowned.

Beshimi touched his forehead to the ground once again and released an ecstatic cry from his lips. "Oh thank you Okashira! Thank you! I will not disappoint you a second time."

Aoshi felt a sense of unease at the sudden surge of people thanking him for an honor he was not sure he deserved, but he said nothing and entered the room.

As Kanryuu threw things about in a fit of furry, Aoshi calmly created a catalogue of the scene.

His eyebrows lifted as he drifted over to her vanity. When Kanryuu had went about rifling through her clothing in order to find a clue, he had tossed about a mess of silks and gauzes.

Aoshi stalked over to a innocuous looking pile of silk scarves and picked up a small brown vial that tumbled that had out of the bundle. Wandering away from the crazed man, Aoshi stuffed the small vial into his coat pocket, certain that it had been some form of narcotic that she had used on Beshimi. After all, Beshimi never slept on duty. It simply was not in his nature to disappoint the Oniwaban for such a petty thing. Aoshi fingered the bottle in his pocket as he wondered silently toward the closet. As he opened it, his senses were invaded by the warm, flowery scent of the missing woman. Upon that scent, he was flooded with sudden memories of her face. He exhaled and pushed aside both his thoughts and the clothing that had hung in the large western closet. Finding nothing, he wandered over to her bed, where he found on the inner wall next to her large western bed, a silver monogrammed letter opener. Pinned to the wall by the letter opener was a small paper crane made out of a thick lavender paper.

Aoshi tugged on the letter opener lightly and the crane fell into his palm. He inspected the creases carefully and wondered idly if it was the same one that he had made in the apothecary weeks ago. If it was, he wondered why she would keep it. He turned the bird over in his hand and discovered that on each wing, Megumi had written the kanji "life."

It was a reminder, or perhaps a wish but Aoshi could not be sure which it was. His mind only returned to the rivers of white scar tissue that marred her wrists. He wondered if he could ever imagine the difficulties that she had faced, the desperation that she had felt.

He wondered if he had it in him to bring her back as he knew he would eventually have to do.
He was the Okashira. He would have to. He could already hear the war drums call to him from the distance. He could smell the upcoming battles. He was a warrior, not a lover, not a friend and not a confidant. Aoshi crushed the crane in his hand and allowed it to fall to his feet.

So she had escaped. Finally, she had taken flight of her cage. He closed his eyes and leaned against the wall. She, and all of the hope that she had embodied within her, passed by him like a fleeting memory. It felt as if someone had pulled the very breath from his lungs in one last large purging sigh that pushed all of the warmth from his body.

She was gone, exorcised from his mind. Every bit of her, right down to the light of the moon in her hair, seemed to dissolve from the dark haze of his mind.

Aoshi gripped his weapon and stood up. His eyes hardened into steely resolve.

He would give her one day's head start.

He stalked back into the mansion and into the glass house he had so painstakingly built for himself. He will formulate his plan.

He will give one day to his memories, to the possibilities of what might have been. Then, like a hound upon his prey, he will catch a fox.

---

A/N: TRUIMPH! The ChiisaiLammy is finished! Finished with this (well short of an epilogue that is). It's been--incredible. I appreciate everyone's constant words of encouragement. I tried really hard to keep the characters in line and the plot plausible. The continuity is the hardest thing, because if I wanted anything out of this story, it would have to be that I wanted this to fit seamlessly within the RK timeline. And hopefully I haven't done anything to contradict the RK continuity.
I can't believe that I finished a story. Hopefully this one is relatively error-free. I totally proofed it at work today, switching back and forth from doing "real" work. (Bad ChiisaiLammy! Bad bad bad!)