Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Winter Fire ❯ Two to Tango ( Chapter 4 )

Winter Fire

Chapter Four - Two to Tango

 

Beta-read by: Human Chew Toy

 

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Yahiko yawned as he flung open his door and stepped out into the living room still dressed in his set of flannel pajamas. An eyebrow instantly quirked when he laid eyes on the pair of adults on the couch. Kaoru was sitting on the right end closest to the kitchen with her head lolled against the armrest and the single throw pillow left there. Kenshin was turned the opposite direction from how he was last night with his head now laying comfortably in Kaoru's lap. Both appeared sound asleep.

 

`Well aren't they comfy. What is it with adults and the need for mushy stuff?' he snorted as he wandered down the hall to the bathroom. `Honestly, how long have they known each other, and they're cuddling like married people!' He shut the door behind him just a tad bit louder than he'd meant to.

 

 

 

 

 

Kenshin drifted up from the realm of blissfully dreamless sleep to the sound of someone moving about. He heard feet slap carelessly against the hardwood floor and a door click to swing open. The feet padded into the room and stopped. For a pregnant moment, he could feel eyes upon him and feigned slumber. Inside, he chuckled at the expression he imagined to be on Yahiko's face as he caught his big sister in such a controversial position with the strange new guest Yahiko had yet to properly meet.

 

Kenshin heard the boy snort softly as he spun to saunter down the hall to the bathroom. When the door snapped shut a tad bit hard, Himura let his indigo eyes spring open to gaze in the direction the boy had gone. The withheld smirk of humor crept finally onto Kenshin's face before he transferred his energy to the task of sitting up.

 

Taking a deep breath in preparation for the onslaught of pain, Kenshin then carefully used his good arm and leg to take the brunt of the effort to sit up while letting the other two limbs act merely as stability support. As expected, the action caused a whole world of pain to rush through him, filling his eyes with stars and scrambling his mind. Yet, he refused to let it cause him to abandon his attempt. Finally, he managed to raise up enough to where he could simply shift his center of gravity to his back and fall backwards against the couch back. He made a soft yelping grunt as his back contacted with the backrest. Exhausted by that single action, he let his eyes fall shut as he let his panting breaths take time to calm. Beside him, Kaoru merely sighed in her sleep as she snuggled into a ball against the armrest.

 

Kenshin's mind filled with gratitude when he came to understand just how much of her strength she had sacrificed to care for him. Curious as to what the time now was, he allowed his eyes to flutter open and pan to regard the clock on the counter in the kitchen. It's large blue digital numbers and letters read 11:20 am. He had a feeling Yahiko had gotten lucky with his arrival causing Kaoru to allow him to sleep in that late.

 

Down the hallway, Himura heard the commode flush in the bathroom. Taking another deep breath, he carefully shifted his position just a tiny bit more on the couch. His face registered a wince as he did so, but this time, moving wasn't quite so taxing. Then again he wasn't lifting his own weight, nor moving quite so much either. Having gotten himself more comfortable and appearing slightly less weak in his pose, he turned to glance out the window behind him as he waited.

 

A couple of minutes later, water turned on then off. Then the door opened and footsteps slapped their way back through the hallway in his direction. Yahiko gasped and froze upon discovering Kenshin was, in fact, quite awake and now sitting up on the couch gazing casually out the front window behind him. Hearing this, Kenshin turned back to meet the boy's gaze.

 

“It's Yahiko, right?” he asked in a soft voice to create an effective conversational lead in.

 

“Yeah,” the boy nodded. “You're okay?” he asked with genuine concern.

 

“Yes. Thanks to the two of you,” Kenshin gently smiled.

 

“Not a problem. It's nice having someone around here to talk to besides her,” Yahiko replied. “I mean, I love her and all. She's my sister. But... God! She's my sister! Having only her to talk to and hear spout chores all day kinda gets irritating after a while,” the boy rambled with a pouting frown.

 

Kenshin quietly laughed, “I can see your point.”

 

“You want anything?” the boy jabbed a thumb towards the kitchen.

 

“Just water will be fine. Thank you,” Kenshin replied.

 

As the boy spun around and strode purposefully into the kitchen, Kenshin used the boy's distraction to his advantage. Eyeing the pair of crutches leaning against the front of the couch, his mind quickly formulated the next plan of action. Carefully leaning forward, he picked the crutches up one by one with his right hand and laying them on his lap. Next, he stood each of the crutches up and fixed a firm grip on the handle bar in the middle of each crutch. He took a deep breath, pooling his strength, then shifted power into his hips, left leg, and right arm. Pain flared once more, blurring his vision as he rose with a stumbling stagger, but he manage to quickly stabilize himself by draping himself properly over the crutches with the pads propped under his armpits.

 

Yahiko snapped around, hearing the sounds of Kenshin's movement and started to open his mouth in protest, but Kenshin shook his head and spoke up softly through teeth gritted in pain to stop him, “Hush. I'll be fine. I just need to move a bit.”

 

“But-“

 

“I can handle it,” Kenshin coaxed between pants. He took another minute to recuperate before continuing, thankful that he hadn't woken Kaoru up. “Go back to fixing your breakfast. I'll be all right. I'm just going to move in there so we don't wake your sister up. I have no idea how long she was up last night.”

 

“Okay,” Yahiko said in voice that spoke of compliance despite not totally agreeing with him. As he turned around again, Kenshin carefully made his way, one ginger hop at a time over to the kitchen table. Yahiko turned again to watch, jaw dropping the further Kenshin went. One step ahead, the boy had a chair pulled out and ready by the time Kenshin got there. Yahiko wordlessly helped him sit down then took the crutches and leaned them against the table within the man's reach.

 

“Thank you,” Kenshin nodded.

 

“No problem. That was awesome!” Yahiko answered with quiet enthusiasm, clearly impressed by Kenshin's strength and ability. “Man, you rock!”

 

“Not really. The worst spots just happen to be in places where moving around like that is still manageable.”

 

“I watched my sister stitch them yesterday. I can barely begin to imagine how much that's gotta hurt.”

 

Kenshin shook his head slowly with a chuckle, “I didn't say it doesn't hurt. I said it was manageable. Finish making your breakfast, silly.”

 

“We have Ty-“

 

“I know. Kaoru fed me one sometime in the middle of the night last night when I first woke up. I'm all right for now.”

 

“All right. Just making sure,” Yahiko shrugged as he turned around to pour the milk into his bowl of cereal. Putting the milk away, he fetched the glass of water he'd already poured and carried it over to the table. He set it down in front of his new friend.

 

“Thanks,” Kenshin said in a soft polite tone.

 

“No prob,” Yahiko nodded, then walked back to get his bowl of frosted flakes and a spoon. Returning again, he sat down across from the man to dig into his cereal. After a couple of bites, he paused to get up and go revive the fire with another log, then returned to resume eating. “So you come from California?”

 

“Not originally, no. I grew up near Ashville, North Carolina. This place kind of reminds me of the place I lived in back then with my foster dad. He hated civilization and lived in a cabin out in the mountains making homemade pottery the hard way.”

 

“Oh, wow! California's a big change for you then, huh?”

 

“You bet it is. Sun and people everywhere. Sometimes it's enough to drive a person insane. This is a nice unexpected change,” Kenshin mused before sipping at his glass of water. He savored the wetness the filled his mouth and spilled down his throat that remained parched even after the tea and soup he'd had earlier.

 

“You must be insane if you call getting all cut up like that `a nice unexpected change',” Yahiko frowned. Kenshin groaned at the witty use of his own words against him.

 

“I meant the scenery, goofball,” he chuckled.

 

“Have you seen many movie stars out there?”

 

“Yeah, I suppose so. Though, to me, it doesn't really matter. In the end, they're all just people making a living like I am. They're job just happens to make them more well known.”

 

“So you're not some new guy the camera's just haven't noticed enough yet?” Yahiko blinked. “If not, then what do you do?”

 

“Me? Heck no,” Kenshin laughed, slightly flattered at the implication. “No, I just help companies find people.”

 

“You're a private investigator?”

 

“Yeah. Pretty much.”

 

“Wow. Is that what brought you up here?”

 

“Yes, I think so.”

 

“Do you remember at all what happened to you? It's a long way from an interstate and Sis said she didn't see any kind of wreckage anywhere when she found you.”

 

“I can see the family resemblance between the two of you,” Kenshin smiled. “You're both highly intelligent.”

 

“Err.. thanks,” Yahiko frowned trying to keep the blush from his face. Kenshin turned his attention to his memories, picking through them carefully.

 

“The reason why.. I wasn't near a highway was because.. I wasn't in a car or truck,” he answered with a distant expression.

 

“What? Then..”

 

“I was flying in a small single engine, two-seater plane a colleague had built.”

 

“You were in a plane crash!” Yahiko blurted in shock.

 

“Shhh… Yeah. I owe the fact I came out in one piece to the slow speed I was at when it happened and all the trees that caught the plane when it came down.”

 

“Oh my God, talk about getting majorly lucky!” Yahiko gawked. “Do you have any idea why it went down?”

 

“Not yet, no.”

 

“Man, bummer.”

 

“With this storm, I'll have plenty of time to think about it.”

“True. Very true,” the boy nodded. Seeing as his bowl was now empty, he got up to put it into the sink. “Do you need a refill?”

 

“Sure,” Kenshin nodded, passing over his empty glass. Yahiko refilled it and passed it back. He then pulled a deck of cards out of a drawer and returned to his seat.

 

“Name your game, Kenshin.”

 

“Well, since you're twisting my leg, how about Egyptian Rat's Groove?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kaoru awoke to the sound of joyous laughter coming from two male individuals. Squinting, she sat up and panned her gaze to the source of the commotion. To her surprise and amusement, she found Yahiko and Kenshin sitting at the kitchen table playing cards. Kenshin seemed to be having a thoroughly good time in the process. As long as he wasn't in too much pain, she was happy.

 

“Uh-oh. Ugly is up. Here comes trouble,” Yahiko commented. “There. Beat that one Fly Boy.”

 

“What? Why you ungrateful little rat! I'll get you for that!” Kaoru shouted as she shot up and across the room to get within smacking range.

 

“Oh crap! AAH!!” Yahiko yelled as he threw his cards down and bolted. Kenshin laughed as the siblings ran circles around the room, playing their silly game of cat and mouse. The game promptly ended when the phone rang. Kaoru got to it first and Yahiko sat back down at the table.

 

“Hello?” Kaoru inquired. In the next second, she was side stepping to smack her little brother over the head. “Hold on, Fox,” she prompted then turned to Yahiko. “I'm not ugly! Finish your game then go get started on your lessons for the day.”

 

“Well I can tell the two of you seem to be holding up all right,” Megumi laughed on the other end as she listened to the siblings squabble.

 

“Yeah, we are. But we have a new guest that's a little worse for wear. When the storm lets up and conditions are safe enough, I need you to take a trip out here to take a look at him. I've patched him up as well as possible. And he's up and seems to be doing well. But, he really needs to see a doctor as soon as possible,” Kaoru informed her.

 

“He?” Megumi questioned with sudden interest.

 

“Get a grip, Megumi. Can you come when it gets better out, or not?” Kaoru growled.

 

“Ooh. A bit possessive, I see. Just who is this mysterious guest, and what exactly is wrong with him?”

 

“Answer my question.”

 

“Oh, calm down, Tanuki. You know I will. Don't worry about it. I'll be out there as soon as it clears up enough to travel. Does he have a name or do I have to make one up for him?”

 

“His name is Kenshin. Here, I'll let you talk to him. You can ask him your medical questions,” Kaoru told her before passing the phone to Kenshin. “This is Megumi, the doctor friend of mine that I told you taught me how to do that stuff I did yesterday.”

 

Kenshin nodded and took the phone, “Hello Megumi.”

 

“Hello Kenshin. Might you give me a run down of your condition so that I know what to prepare for when I get the chance to come over?”

 

“Sure. Lacerations on right side and thigh. Also one on my left arm. Kaoru stitched them superbly yesterday evening immediately after getting me inside. Each wound was checked, re-cleaned, and re-bandaged this morning. None appear to be infected. I was a bit out of it yesterday upon arrival, but that's passed,” Kenshin explained, slipping into a professional serious tone out of habit.

 

“My, aren't you on top of things, sir. Though, the injuries you describe sound rather severe. Can you tell me what caused them?”

 

“Yes, but can you wait on that until you arrive. Since I'm still unsure of the cause of the event, I'm going to be careful what kind of information I give out. Sorry.”

 

“Oh, okay. I understand. Can you tell me your age, Ken-san?”

 

“Twenty-eight. If it's any help, I'm five foot five and weigh about 160 lbs.”

 

“All right. I will try my best to make it out there sometime tomorrow. Until then, try to keep them from getting wet aside from careful cleansing every twelve hours. Rest and try not to jar the wounds too much, else they could re-open.”

 

“Yes, I understand. This.. isn't exactly the first time I've been injured, so the drill is rather familiar to me by now. Thank you for making time to come out in this awful mess. I appreciate it.”

 

“You're most welcome, Ken-san.”

 

 

 

 

 

The day ticked by at a comfortable leisurely pace. Kenshin found himself quickly becoming a member of the household as he helped Yahiko with his math and history lessons. Later, he assisted Kaoru with the cooking. As Yahiko cleaned up from dinner, he returned to the couch where Kaoru pulled out Monopoly onto the coffee table. In the end, Kenshin won with Kaoru in a close second. At that point, Yahiko dismissed himself to bed with a yawn. Kenshin sat enjoying the warmth of the fire as Kaoru tidied up for the night.

 

“You can hit the hay in my bed, if you like. I'll take the couch. I really don't mind,” she said softly, smiled at his lightly closed eyes as she sat down. Those deep indigo orbs reopened and panned to gaze upon her.

 

“The couch is fine. I don't want to kick you out of your own bed. You need rest just as much as I do with all that you do around this house.”

 

“You're the one who's injured, Himura,” she pointed out with a sly expression. A bizarre look entered his eyes, and just as she was trying to decipher it, he closed in to deal her a kiss of a hungry nature rather than the gentle ones of before. A faint growl rumbled in his chest as he did so, fingers of his right hand dipping into her raven tresses as the palm supported her head. Kaoru squeaked then moaned as fire shot through her core. His previous kisses were nothing compared to this one as it blew her mind in an instant.

 

“You're beautiful when you blush. But you're damn gorgeous when you use fire like you just did,” he told her in a slightly husky mumble. “I'm going to do you a favor and warn you to be careful about saying my name like that. It starts something in me,” he stopped to take advantage of her breathlessly open mouth. His kiss was deep, tantalizing, and short. “…That might not stop until it's run its course,” he concluded, opening his eyes to stare into hers. She was shocked to find them no longer indigo, but deep blue with flecks of amber.

 

“Where, in the name of God, did you learn to kiss like that?” she asked, encouraged by his own bluntness.

 

He blinked, then turned away, shuddering, “That was a long time ago.”

 

Kaoru instantly saw the raw nerve her words had unintentionally struck. In an attempt to repent for her misstep, she gently hugged him, “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you.”

 

He shook his head slowly, “No, it's all right. You had no way of knowing. Besides, that was my mistake all those years ago, not yours. Therefore, you have nothing to be sorry about. Don't worry about it.”

“I can't help it. Something I said made you feel bad. I want to make it better,” she said as she ran her fingers through his hair.

 

“There...are many old wounds existing in me that are unfixable. Only time can make the pain of their existence lessen. Though, I appreciate the effort.”

 

“Kenshin,” she whined as her arms slipped around him hug him as tears pooled in her eyes. “I'm not trying to fix you. I know I haven't that much power. I just want to make it better. Especially since it was I who drew us into this stupid conversation in the first place.”

 

“Gods. You're so pure. You have no idea. Too pure. How can I remain and not taint you? I'm sorry I've encroached upon your peaceful existence here,” he whispered, his voice suddenly broken with a sorrow that made him seem far older than the mere twenty-eight years old that he was. Kaoru's eyes widened in shock at his words.

 

“Kenshin, don't you dare talk like that. You have no idea what lead me to be here in the first place. I was tainted long before you fell into my path. The reason I live all the way out here in the middle of nowhere is because three years ago, sick bastards gunned down our parents for the fun of it without a damn care in the world during a convenience store robbery. You know what the worst part of it is? They got to make deals with the D.A. that cut their sentences down to 5 years in prison in exchange for giving a few names of colleagues. So, in two more years, they'll be out to walk the streets again while my parents can never ever come back from where they've been sent. Now, you try to tell me I'm not tainted after going through that sort of bullshit,” she told him firmly with hatred for those who placed her in the current position flaming in her words and face. Kenshin stared into her eyes as a knot twisted in his stomach.

 

“You're right. In a manner of speaking, you're tainted. Tainted far beyond repair. But… you're the victim. That sort of tainting is completely different. You feel sick because you lost loved ones in such a hideous manner. But I? I feel sick.. because I know what it feels like to take the life of another. Yahiko told you earlier what it is that I do for a living. One can't arrive into that kind of occupation not knowing what it's like to end the life of another human being.”

 

A slew of emotions crossed Kaoru's face as she listened to his confession. She took a moment to digest it before speaking up again, “Your nightmare this morning had something to do with this, didn't it?”

 

His eyes widened in recollection before that deep sorrow settled within him once more, “Yes.”

 

“Tell me this. Would you, as you are now, or could you at anytime in the future... take the life of another without any reason whatsoever other than sport?” she asked in all seriousness. Kenshin stared at her squarely.

 

“No,” he answered softly and honestly.

 

“Would you or could you take the life of another without a reason that involved the waver between life and death in one or more others, yourself included?”

 

Kenshin took longer to think about this one, yet the conclusion he reached was again the utmost truth, “No.”

 

“Then, Kenshin Himura, no matter what horrors you may have committed in your past, you are not the filth that truly taints anything in this world. I understand that there are many dark and monstrous sides to this world. That's the way it has always been. The lion must hunt to survive. I understand that. It's because I understand that... that I say you are not a force of corrupting evil,” she told him sternly. Her right hand rose to cup his scared left cheek, her thumb gently caressing the blemish. That action added onto her words proved to be his undoing.

 

As Kaoru's thumb brushed ignorantly, the very symbol of the darkness lying within Kenshin's soul, energy left him in a great whoosh. He slumped against her, head against her shoulder as a small portion of the damn he'd built around his core fell away.

 

“Kaoru, you know not your own awesome strength,” he whispered as a few rare tears spilled from his eyes. His arms wrapped around her to hold on tightly.

 

“Damn. All of this, just because of one really good kiss,” she laughed bitter-sweetly. He gave a gentle squeeze of his arms in reply. “Oh, but you confuse me,” her lips spoke poetically. “I've known you only a day and yet you have the power to drive me crazy in ways I've never known. I can't help but wonder how you do it.”

 

It was a minute or so later when he finally answered after lifting his head to press a weary kiss to her forehead, “I regret to inform you that it is not just I causing this. As they say, it takes two.”

 

Kaoru groaned audibly and melodramatically, “How did you know I'm such a sucker for sappy shameless romance?”

 

“I didn't, but now I know what to look for come gift hunting time,” he chuckled light-heartedly. Kaoru gasped then playfully swatted his good shoulder.

 

“Weasel!”

 

“No. No, that's Misao Makimachi. Though, I have a feeling you and her would get along fine,” he grinned wryly. He then kissed her temple, “You should get to bed. I've troubled you enough for one day. Go on, I'll be fine here on the couch.”

 

“Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no. No you are not, mister. You're sleeping in a bed tonight, Himura. Like I said before, you're the one who's injured. I'm not taking no for an answer,” she scolded firmly.

 

Kenshin gawked at her, before quickly composing himself to respond accordingly, “Well, I'm certainly not letting you sleep on the couch, nor the floor, neither. There's only one more alternative after that.”

 

Kaoru blushed profusely at the implication. She coughed then quietly replied, “Kiss me witless again, and you've got yourself a deal.”

 

“Erm, well… In that case, I suggest we both go to bed so that we don't have far to fall when we knock ourselves out.”

 

Giggling, Kaoru rose and helped him to stand with the use of the crutches. She lit and carried a candle lantern down the hall to her room then returned to help him along. Once in the room, she shut the door as he traveled over to the bed and eased himself down into it. She set the crutches within easy reach for him, changed into her pajamas, then crawled into bed beside him.

 

“Now where's that kiss, Himura?” she teased with a wicked grin.

 

“You naughty girl. I warned you about that. Ye ask and ye shall receive,” he replied before granting her request.

 

His lips attacked without reservation, yet the instant his tongue entered her mouth to twine with hers and taste her, he became just as lost as she. Round after round, they continued their game, muttering sweet nothings in between. Sleep swept in somewhere beyond that to claim them, neither knowing exactly when. But when they finally settled into sleep, entangled together they were to guard one another from any nightmares that dare come in the hours ahead.

 

 

 

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