Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ A Certain Clarity ❯ 18 ( Chapter 18 )

Title: A Certain Clarity (18/30)

Author: Franzi Dickson

E-mail: fdickson@ix.netcom.com

Archive: The SxSAS Archive, fanfiction.net and others (eventually). If you want it on your site, just ask.

Rating: NC-17 for wet dreams, sex, drugs, violence and other badness.

Warnings: m/m sex, lemon, assorted bad things in this part and future ones

Disclaimer: They don't belong to me. I'm just doing bad things with them. Don't sue me.

When he struggled awake again, Sister Seiko was sitting beside his bed. Her face was slightly less annoyed and sour looking than usual, though still not what he wanted to wake up to.

"Brother Sanosuke..."

"Yeah, I know I'm late. Sorry about that. I'll be up in a minute."

"The others told me that you had a... difficult night. I don't wish to pry, but did it have something to do with the... loss that brought you to us."

"Yeah... I guess so." None of your fuckin' business, you old bag!

"Yes, I thought it would be that. We occasionally have problems with this."

"Look, it won't happen again. I should get going now."

She attempted a smile. "You needn't worry about that. I am simply here to suggest that a change of scenery might be appropriate."

"Pardon?"

"When we have a brother or sister who has difficulties with the dormitory for one reason or another, we sometimes suggest that they sleep elsewhere until the problem is resolved, that's all."

And when, exactly, was his 'problem' likely to be resolved? "Where would I go?"

She stood. "The administrative building contains a number of sleeping areas. It is also rather run down, so that will give you something to do when you are not required at the bath house. You may assist Sister Hiromi with the repairs."

"Oh... Sure thing." That was much better than he'd been expecting. Maybe he could even get a look at the office while he was there.

On closer examination, he administrative building did indeed look rundown. It must be older than the other buildings, maybe an old house? He wandered around the back and found Hiromi sitting on the porch, swinging her legs. "Yo, Hiromi!"

"Brother Sano, what are you doing here?"

He smiled ruefully. "They kicked me out of the dormitory."

"Really? What did you do, molest your neighbors?"

He snorted. "No."

"Oh come on, I'll bet you did."

"Yeah right, what would a kid like you know about that anyway?"

"I know plenty! And I'm fourteen!"

"You sure? You look about twelve to me."

She stuck out her tongue. "Fine, if you're going to be so mean, I *won't* show them to you."

"Show what to me?"

"My secrets."

"I'm not sure your brother would like that, you being twelve and all. Besides, is there really anything there?"

"Baka! Not those kind of secrets." She made a rude gesture.

He laughed. Where the hell had she learned *that* from, living all the way out here... wherever 'here' was. "Hey, Hiromi, where are we?"

"On the back porch of the administrative building, why?"

"Never mind." Smart ass kid!

She jumped to her feet. "Come on! You can help me fix the doors."

"Doors?" He followed her down the porch.

"Yeah, they're all busted up. I've got some paper and stuff, but we have to get them down first and my brother was too busy earlier."

"And a twelve-year-old couldn't do it alone, huh?"

"Baka! I'm fourteen!"

He could see why Hiromi had had trouble with the doors; light though the paper might be, the frames were extremely heavy. He brushed a hand across the old wood.

"Hey, Hiromi?"

"Yeah?"

"Was this a house originally?"

She shrugged. "I dunno; ask *him*. It's his property."

"Really? I thought it belonged to the cult."

"Same difference."

"Yeah, I guess so, but then he wouldn't necessarily know any more about the place than, say, your brother."

"I think Niichan said that *he* used to own it before though." She looked thoughtful. "I don't remember. I guess you'll have to ask *him*."

"Ok, I'll ask him tonight." He went back to repairing the screen.

"What do you mean?"

"He didn't want to finish 'explaining The Way' or whatever he was supposed to be doing, so he just gave me the cloak and told me to come back today." And don't you dare ask why he couldn't finish...

"Uh Oh! It's happening already."

"What?"

"You're falling for *him*."

"Am not! I don't believe any of that stuff. Besides, he didn't even try to channel anyone."

She looked surprised. "Really? But I thought he always..."

"Not for me."

They worked in silence for a while. He glanced through the open doorway. That was the man from the ceremony; he must be Hiromi's brother, as he'd thought. "What's your brother doing back there? He looks like he's about to get eaten by pigeons."

She laughed. "They get very excited when they know it's lunch time. Stupid birds! I'm glad *I* don't have to feed them."

"Hmm... I guess it is about lunch time, huh?"

"Food!" She jumped up. "We can finish this later!"

He wondered how she could be so enthusiastic about the gray mass. He poked at it and stirred it around. It still didn't look very appetizing.

"Brother Sano?"

"Yeah?"

"Was it that Kaoru person?"

"Huh?"

"The person you lost... was that Kaoru?"

He laughed. An appropriate time to mention her... "No, not by a long shot. Why?"

"No special reason, I'm just curious."

"Oh." He ate a little.

"Was she very pretty?"

"Kaoru?"

"No, the person you lost... Oh! Oh dear! Are you all right? Brother Sano?" She pounded him on the back.

"I'm fine. I'm fine." He reflected that it probably wasn't wise to laugh, inhale and eat nasty rice porridge all at the same time.

"So she was ugly? Was she funny looking? What was wrong with her?"

"I'm not going to be able to eat if you keep doing that," he chuckled.

"So what was she like?"

"What makes you think it was a woman? Lost of people here lost siblings or parents, didn't they?"

"Not you."

"How do you know?"

"I can just tell."

"Riiight." Like hell you can.

"So if it wasn't a woman, was it a man?"

"Wha...?"

"Was it your boyfriend?"

"No! What are you talking about?"

"Oooh! Sano likes boys!"

"If you must know, a guy I knew died, but there wasn't anything..."

"But I'll bet you liked him! Was he nice?"

"No, he was a psycho."

"Handsome?"

"He looked like a cockroach."

"Sexy?"

"No." Well...

Hiromi winked.

Gods, she really was insane! "What would you know about stuff like that?"

"Like I said before; plenty!"

"Yeah, right."

"I'll prove it! Come on!"

He sighed; maybe he should have tried to stay in the dormitory after all.

He watched her fish around in the trunk. What the hell did she want to show him?

"Here they are!" She brandished a sheaf of papers triumphantly.

"What's that, a sex manual?"

She giggled and held them out.

"He hoped whatever it was wasn't too hard to read... Oh... Oh my god!

"Well?"

"Where did you get these... um... things?" He glanced through the gaudily colored illustrations. He'd seen a few, of course... Usually, they had women... These didn't seem to have any women. Sort of old fashioned, weren't they? What was the blasted brat child doing with them?

She was watching his embarrassment with delight. "I found them!"

"Here?" It was an old house, maybe...

"In the bath house."

"What?!"

She giggled. There's a loose board in the bottom of the cupboard with the robes.

He stared at her. "That's in *his* part of the bath house; what were you doing in there?"

"Exploring," she replied innocently.

He glanced at them again. "Wouldn't they have rotted? It's pretty humid in the bath house."

She shrugged. "Maybe they weren't there for very long. The last bathhouse guy probably left them there when he went back to the city. You can borrow them if you want. Since you're the new bathhouse attendant, it's only right for you to have them." She bounced up and down expectantly.

"Uh... thanks." He didn't want to insult her by refusing. He glanced at the picture on top. Come on, no one's that big, he thought. That's just scary looking!

He paused with his hand on the door: raised voices could be heard from somewhere inside.

"This will stop, now!"

"Taka, please."

"No, you have no right! We are running a business. I will not tolerate any more of your idiocy!"

The other man mumbled something quietly.

"You megalomaniac! Who the hell do you think you are?!"

There was a crash and Sano heard someone cry out. Footsteps approached. Shit! He barely managed to duck around the side of the house before Hiromi's brother went storming by. He cautiously approached the door. The room beyond was empty. "Hello?" He rapped on the frame. "It's me."

"I'm in the other room." The voice was quiet.

The other room turned out to be an office of sorts, with papers and things strewn around.

"Ah, Brother Sanosuke, it is good to see you." The man thrust the letter he had been reading into a desk drawer.

Sano wondered what it had been about. "Are you all right?"

"I'll be fine." He brushed a lock of hair out of his face.

Sano hissed in surprise. "What happened to your arm?"

"Nothing. I'm fine."

"You're bleeding!"

"It's just a little cut; nothing to worry about."

"Like hell! Let me see it."

"No, really I'm all right. I'll just put something on it..." He looked around the office distractedly.

"Do you have any bandages?"

"Yes..." He looked at Sano nervously. "Can you keep a secret?"

Sano nodded.

He seemed to be struggling to make up his mind about something. "I... Is he really gone?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Then... I have something to show you. Could you bring the pitcher of water from the other room please?"

Sano retrieved it. "Now what?"

The man fished a candle out of the desk. "Now I show you my secret."

He sounds like Hiromi... Sano had a sudden bizarre vision of the leader showing him a book of shunga, laughing maniacally while blood streamed down his arm. Get a grip, Sano!

"This way."

He looked up in surprise; the man stood by the wall, only there wasn't any wall there anymore. He looked into the dark opening. "A secret passage?"

The man shrugged. "If you like." He beckoned. "Come. I don't want to leave it open for too long."

They descended a set of steps, carved out of the rock. Sano shivered. It was cold in the passageway, even with his cloak. The candle threw strange shadows on the walls. They were gradually climbing again. Finally, they came to another set of stairs and a door. The man pushed it open and waited for Sano to enter.

He stared around him. "Where are we?" It was a cave of some kind. It could once have been natural, but it had obviously been enlarged and leveled, and it had been furnished. Boy, had it ever been furnished.

"My secret hiding place." He moved to light the various candles around the room.

Sano looked from the piles of rugs and cushions to the brass statues of many armed gods. The candlelight played over the sparkling, colorful surfaces. "What is all this stuff?"

His mouth quirked. "The result of a life of evil and exploitation."

Sano looked at him sharply.

"My father's." He noted Sano's expression. "He was an importer. This is what is left of his fortune." He shrugged. "It was all hidden back here already, so I just never bothered to clean it out."

"It's... impressive."

"And appropriate, no? The dastardly cult leader with his secret lair..."

"Oh come on!"

"It's what Taka would say if he saw it." His face clouded at the thought.

"Your cut!"

"Oh... yes. There are some bandages in the cupboard over there." He moved to one of the few bare corners of the room. "Would you bring the water over here please?"

"Just a minute." Sano found the roll of white cloth. "Here, let me do it." This time the man did not resist as he rolled back the sleeve. He winced at the bruising.

"The corner of the desk." The man's voice was flat as he said it.

"How can you..." Somehow he knew this wasn't the first time.

"It's... complicated." He bit his lip as Sano began to clean the cut.

He wanted to say something. He realized he had no idea how to address the man. "You know... I feel kind of silly calling you 'him' all the time in that *tone of voice*."

The man laughed. "It was Taka's idea. He says it creates the proper atmosphere or something." He looked a little sad at that. "My real name is Hoito."

"Hoito-san..."

"No, please, just Hoito."

"Hoito." He finished wrapping the last of the bandages. "There; that should do it. How does it feel."

"Much better, thank you." He flexed his wrist experimentally.

"It was the least I could do."

"No, I mean it. Thank you."

Hoito brushed his bangs out of his face. His breath caught.

"It's been a long time since I was just... a man."

Their faces were very close now. He could smell the Hoito's scent, almost strangely sweet.

"...long... time..."

They touched. He wasn't even sure who had leaned forward first. He tasted sweet too. Sano wondered whether he ate the same gruel as the rest of them. His lips were parted by a probing tongue. He pulled Hoito to him, letting his hands tangle in his hair. He moved to kiss the man's throat. "Hoito..."

"Sanosuke! Ah!"

He nipped experimentally.

"Ahou."

He jumped backward. "What?!"

"Sanosuke?"

"What did you just call me?"

"I... I don't know... It just slipped out. I..." Hoito's face was very pale. "I... You shouldn't be here."

"What?"

"I can't be around people now. Please! Please leave me." He staggered to his feet and across the room. "I need to be alone..."

"Wait, if there's something wrong, I'll help you."

"Sanosuke, I'm sorry." He still had his back to the room. "This happens some times when I'm... I... You wouldn't understand, and I won't ask you to. Please just go."

His shoulders were heaving, but Sano didn't think he was crying... hyperventilating, maybe.

"Please!"

He went. The passageway was dark, but he kept one hand on the wall. Eventually, he found the stairs up, and, with great relief, the catch that released the secret door and let him escape.

He paced around his darkened room. What the hell was that? What was wrong with the man? He couldn't have known... Even if Sano had told him a name, he still wouldn't have... But then how... ? It was impossible! He couldn't have said it! He was going crazy. It must be the lack of sleep, he thought. He had to calm down. Maybe a little air? The room suddenly seemed so oppressive in the darkness. He made for the door. His foot brushed something and he picked it up. Air would help. He had to get outside. He opened the door and slipped onto the porch.

He stood gasping, leaning against the railing. He really was going nuts. He looked down. Oh hell, that's what he'd tripped over? The garish drawing was strangely pale in the moonlight. An ecstatic samurai leaned forward to probe his partner's ear with his tongue. The kagema... well, that's what Sano thought he was supposed to be anyway... He was very pretty, even in the stylized drawing. Well, that made sense, seeing as he was supposed to be impersonating a woman... Still, it was pretty clear he was a man. Why the hell did Hiromi want him to have this thing anyway? It wasn't like he'd asked for it. It wasn't like he liked looking at it. What was erotic about licking someone's ear? That was just icky! ...But his body didn't seem to agree. Damn it! What was he looking at this damn thing for, anyway? He needed to sleep. He would sleep. He straightened, suddenly aware of the cold. What the hell had he been thinking? He went inside.

It was cold again. He climbed up the hill toward were he knew the stone would be, a bunch of yellow chrysanthemums clutched in his hand. The wind whipped his hair into his face and rose gooseflesh on his chest. His jacket flapped. He shouldn't have come today. He shouldn't be alone, but who else was there to make the trip with him? Maybe initially, they would have, and even now, if he asked them... But he couldn't ask. The last bunch of flowers would be wilting, that is if they hadn't blown away. He had to come today. He was the only one who remembered anymore. He trudged onward. At least it wasn't raining. He had a feeling the graveyard would be a mess in the rain.

Suddenly the wind stopped. He looked around; the hill was gone. Where...?

"Taka! Oh, Taka!"

Oh no, not this again... He turned. Hiromi's brother, Taka rather, was caressing Hoito's ear with his tongue.

"Don't stop! Please! Taka!"

He bent the pleading man over the desk.

Were they in an office? It wasn't Hoito's and it didn't look like any of the rooms in the administrative building. In fact, it almost looked like...

They were clawing at the desk, sending papers flying in their need.

He felt himself respond.

"What the hell are you doing, ahou?"

He turned beet-red. "S... Saitou?"

"Where the hell are you? I thought I told you to stay out of trouble!"

"Um... Well... You weren't around..."

"Well I'm damn well around now! And what the hell is this?" He grabbed Sano's hand. "Shunga?"

He yanked his hand away. "It's none of your business anyway!" Damn it! The psycho cop was laughing at him now.

"You must really have missed me." His voice dropped to a sultry purr. "Poor Ahou."

"Go away! This is just another freaky dream. Leave me alone!"

"Oh, but you don't want me to got just yet, do you? That's not really what you want me to do. Wouldn't you rather if I did this?" The policeman was flipping through the packet of illustrations. "Or maybe this?"

"No! Go away!"

The policeman clucked his tongue at him. "And where am I supposed to go? You're the one who showed up at *my* office, ahou."

So that's why it looked familiar... "Oh."

"Now why would you be here at this hour of the night, I wonder?"

The man oozed towards him, looking evil and dangerous as hell and not at all 'nice', and he did look like a cockroach, but Sano must have been crazy when he told Hiromi that Saitou wasn't... He backed up. "It's just a dream." He hit the wall.

The lips widened in a predatory smile. "And?"

"I... umm..."

"Don't play the blushing virgin with me, ahou. I know better."

"Yeah well... heh." It was true that there had been that girl from the sake shop... and that other one from the... Right, and there was that waitress... But it was different with a man... He'd never actually... Well, except for that other dream with Saitou...

"Your mind is wandering, Ahou."

"Huh?" He made a strangled sound as the man's lips came down on his own, hot and strong.

He was going to faint, he was going to suffocate, he was going... Saitou moved to nibble on his neck.

"Oh wow! I mean... What the hell was that?!"

"I'm just trying to help you stay focussed."

Sano could hear the smirk in his voice. "Like hell! You were just waiting till I was off guard so that you could have your way with me, you perverted old goat!"

"I'm not the one with the nasty shunga, ahou."

"Hey, it's not even mine!"

"Oh?... Did you 'accidentally' borrow it from someone?" The voice paused as Saitou moved lower.

"There was this twelve-year-old... I mean fourteen-year-old who..."

"My, my, and you call me a pervert, ahou."

"No! I mean she's a girl."

"Oh, so you like prepubescent girls, but older men?"

"No!"

"So you don't like older men? Funny, I could have sworn that you did."

He looked down. The psycho cop was kneeling in front of him, his hands on Sano's hips. Yeah... When he put it that way, it was kind of... obvious. "That wasn't what I meant."

"Then what did you mean, hmm?"

"Well it's just that I..." His words ended in a moan. "Do that again!"

"I intend to, though it would probably be helpful to have less cloth in the way."

"Baka." He fumbled with the ties.

"Ahou." Saitou pulled the cloth down.

He shuddered under the first wet caress as the man pushed the sensitive skin back the rest of the way. "Ah!" Saitou ran his tongue lightly along the ridge, making him moan louder. "... more... Now!"

"At your command, ahou."

That grin was really a little too toothy for comfort. "Watch what you're doing down there!" The laughter vibrated down his length as Saitou swallowed him. He tried to tangle his fingers in that annoyingly perfect hair, only to have them swatted away. "What's... the matter? Afraid I'll... Afraid I'll mess it up?" His hands clawed at the wall. The lips moving on him; a hot, tight ring; sliding upward; popping over his sensitive ridge...

"I don't want you choking me."

"Wha..." The words didn't really register. "Please!"

The laughing warmth again, faster, harder. He trembled under Saitou's hands, one on his thigh, one his hip, pinning him to the wall. He felt the tension build low in his belly and then he was jerking against him, muscles screaming, fists clenched, reason gone in one hot flash.

He slid down the wall till they were facing each other. "I don't think my legs work anymore."

Saitou smiled and leaned forward to kiss him, tasting of cum and cigarettes.