Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Memory of My Past ❯ The Coming of the Past ( Chapter 2 )

Memory of My Past

by: dreamaker13

Summary:When a figure from Kenshin's very distant past arrives at the Kamiya Dojo, confusion, old tales and old memories emerge. Will Kenshin be able to re-open his heart to the past he thought he lost or will the past just hinder his future with his family?

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

A/N: Argh! It had been a while since I posted in ff.net. I looked at my last post and saw that ff.net does not show symbols such as the asterisk, the accent and the other random stuff that one puts in his or her stories. Hay...this is so frustrating.

I still continued to use some Japanese terms since no one commented on it...yet. I'm still waiting for someone to comment on it for me to actually change it if ever it is not desired.

I'm sorry if the first chapter was boring. The story is still starting so just hang on a bit ne? The good parts will come soon, I hope...

    Turmoil...

    A disruption of a life already lead.

    Confusion...

    The inability to distinguish one from the other.

    Shock...

    A state of the pause of time and at times denial.

    Drama...

    The fruit of everything.

    Onii-chan...

    Kenshin woke up, panting. His bangs were damp and so was his back. He got up from his futon and went out of his room. He held onto a pillar as a caught his breath. Calming down, he looked up at the full moon. His nightmares weren't of the dead bodies anymore, it was something that hurt more than that.

Chapter 2: The Coming of the Past

    "Konnichiwa. Hajimemashite." the person said, bowing down in respect.

    Kaoru was curious and confused. She looked at the person in front of her from top to bottom. She was wearing something close to a gi and a hakama but not quite. Her gi was not parted in the middle but its opening was situated on top of her right breast held together by three ribbon-like buttons. The neckline was very high, almost covering the whole of her neck. Her hakama was not as baggy as the normal ones. It was tight that one could see the basic shape of the leg but not too tight that it attached itself to the leg like a second skin. Her feet were not clad in the open sandals everyone wore. Her toes, the soles of her feet up to her heel were covered in cloth, almost covering her whole foot. The material of her clothes looked very expensive as well. They were glossy. Her pink 'gi' covered with purple tinted cherry blossoms and lined with red at the hems and her white 'hakama' that went until her ankles glowed when hit by the afternoon sun.

    Kaoru looked back up to the stranger's smiling face and gasped. The oval shaped face, the long red hair with a band of pink cloth perched on the crown, the soft lavender eyes. Kaoru's eyes widened even more. "Ken...shin?"

    The strange lavender eyes widened and smiled as she folded up her umbrella and introduced herself once again. "Oh, excuse me. I am Shun Li Mei," She bowed down yet again. "I apologize for the disturbance."

    Kaoru snapped out of her trance and smiled, stepping to the side. "Oh, no no. Please, come in." The stranger smiled at her and went in. Kaoru closed the door behind her and smiled up at the newcomer. "This way please, Shun-san." Kaoru directed the guest to one of the rooms. Once the guest was settled, Kaoru stood up. "Would you like some tea, Shun-san?"

    "Yes, please," Shun-san said with a smile which made Kaoru's heart jump. "Tea would be lovely."

    Kaoru stared at Shun-san blankly for a few seconds before breaking into a nervous smile and went out the door to get some tea. Shun-san kept smiling at the door until she heard the footsteps fade where she looked down at her lap and gave out a sigh.

    Kaoru went to kitchen and prepared to boil the water all in a daze. Her mind kept wandering from Shun-san to Kenshin. They seemed to have the same personalities, the same smile and the same features. Basically, Shun-san was Kenshin in the form of a girl, like they were identical twins. But that was impossible. When she last spoke with Hiko, he told her that he found Kenshin while being attacked by bandits meaning Kenshin was an orphan, he had no other family. He could have had his sister with him but Hiko said that Kenshin was the only one left alive. Kaoru's mind whirled around possibilities of how the girl could be related to Kenshin. Or maybe they aren't related?

    "Kaoru-dono!" The next thing Kaoru saw was Kenshin hurriedly dumping the tub of tofu onto the already burning kettle. Everyone, this including Sano and Yahiko who ran in to see the commotion, stayed still, watching the smoke disappear from the kitchen. Kenshin gave a sigh of relief, an empty tofu bucket in his hands.

    "Geez, Jou-chan," Sanosuke commented, opening the kitchen door wider, letting the remaining smoke out. "That's the third one this week."

    "I was just boiling water to make tea for our guest," Kaoru said, eyes watering comically. "I can't believe how incompetent I am in the kitchen. I can't even boil water without burning anything!" Tears then starting springing from her eyes comically like a spring.

    "Now look what you've done, busu," Yahiko said, inspecting the dirty kitchen. "I just cleaned the kitchen this morning!"

    "You can clean the kitchen again for disrespecting your sensei, Yahiko-chan," Kaoru said, tears disappearing replaced by anger.

    "What?! No way! You clean the kitchen since you made all this mess, you lazy old hag!"

    "That's cleaning the kitchen AND mopping the training hall, you disrespectful little brat!"

    "You make me do all the work around here and you complain that your so fat!"

    "Shut up, Yahiko-chan!"

    "Maa, maa. Calm down, Kaoru-dono, Yahiko," Kenshin said with his innocent rurouni smile. Kaoru's heart leapt at his smile which suddenly made her cry out.

    "Aaah! Shun-san! I have to make tea for Shun-san!" The three males looked at her with confused looks. "Shun-san?"

    "Hai. She arrived at the dojo not too long ago," Kaoru said, getting another kettle. "I was supposed to make her tea. She's waiting in one of the rooms right now." Silence. Then Kaoru cried out again. "AAAAHHH! She's in one of the rooms, waiting for the tea! Oh no, she must be so bored and impatient right now. I have to hurry. Hurry! Hurry!" Kaoru tried doing several things at once, almost setting another kettle on fire.

    "Kaoru(-dono)!"

x x x

    Shun-san sat still in the room, enjoying the sound of peace. She had quirked a smile, hearing the commotion in the kitchen. So far, she had only met one of the group while she heard at least three voices shouting at the top of their lungs. She had prevented herself from laughing out loud as she heard their conversation very clearly from where she sat. She opened her eyes and noticed the numbness in her legs.

    She squeezed her legs, trying to bring back the circulation in them but stopped when she realized that it wasn't working. She then opted to stand up. Shun-san stood up and gave a sigh of comfort when she slowly felt the warmth of her blood flow back into her numb legs. She kept standing up until the shoji door opened revealing a gaping Sano and a nervously smiling Kaoru.

    "I'm sorry that the tea is taking so long." Kaoru said, gently stepping inside the room.

    "Is everything alright?" Shun-san asked, still standing up. "Do you need any help?"

    "Ah, no, no, everything's fine," Kaoru said, raising her hands up in front of her, waving them from side to side. "It was just a minor accident. Kenshin's already in the kitchen. The tea should be ready soon."

    "Kenshin?" Shun-san asked, a slight frown on her face.

    "Hai," Kaoru said, a smile still on her face. "He's one of the tenants living in my dojo."

    "Your dojo?" Shun-san blinked. "You must be Kamiya-san, then?"

    "H-Hai," Kaoru said uneasily. Shun-san then bowed down in front of her.

    "Thank you for your hospitality, Kamiya-san."

    "Ah! N-No need for that," Kaoru insisted, again, waving her hands in front of her.

    "O-Oi, Jou-chan," Sano whispered from behind Kaoru. "Doesn't this girl look a bit too much like Kenshin?"

    "Oi! Let me through, baka tori-atama!" cried Yahiko from behind the tall gangster. he tried to squeeze himself in between Sano's legs. He was successful. He straightened himself up. He dusted himself from any invisible dirt then froze, seeing Shun-san. "K-Kenshin?!"

    Shun-san smiled at Yahiko and bowed. "Shun Li Mei, nice to meet you," Shun-san straightened herself and smiled sweetly at Yahiko. "You must be Yahiko-chan."

    Yahiko blushed and retorted quietly, "Don't call me Yahiko-chan." Shun-san just smiled at him.

    Kaoru, noticing Shun-san standing up, asked, "Are you leaving, Shun-san? Are you in a hurry?" Kaoru took a tentative step forward. "I'm very sorry the tea is taking too long. I'll go check on it right now."

    "Hmm?" Shun-san blinked then smiled sheepishly. "Ah, iie. I was just stretching my legs. I'm not used to sitting on my them for long periods time." She laughed nervously, slowly sitting down.

    "I'm sorry if I kept everybody waiting," a voice said from the doorway. Kaoru stood up and opened the door.

    "Kenshin!" Kenshin went in the room with his usual smile on his face and a tray in his hands. Kaoru took the tray from his hands and started serving the tea while Kenshin took his seat across from Shun-san. Shun-san kept staring at Kenshin with wide lavender eyes similar to his. She followed his every move with her eyes until he sat down.

    "Hmm?" Kenshin noticed her staring at him. Shun-san's eyes widened and quickly introduced herself.

    "Shun Li Mei desu. A pleasure to meet you," Shun-san said, bowing down from her kneeling position. Could it be?

    Kenshin's smile slipped back up to his face and introduced himself as well. "Himura Kenshin. Dozo yoroshiku."

    Shun-san looked at him with a far away look but looked back down when Kenshin noticed. This did not go unnoticed by the other people present in the room.

    "So, Shun-san," Kaoru started, cutting the silence in the room. "What brought you to the Kamiya Dojo?"

    Shun-san directed her gaze at Kaoru and smiled politely. "I am actually looking for someone." Shun-san shrugged. "I just came to Japan yesterday. A friend of mine advised me to first look here."

    "Do you know this person's name?" Kenshin asked, setting his tea cup down. "We might be able to help."

    Shun-san looked at Kenshin, a small sad frown barely showing on her face. After a few moments of holding his gaze, she looked at her lap when she found nothing. "Shinta."

    Kenshin's eyes snapped to look at her with shocked lavender eyes but quickly calmed down as not to show it.

    "Shinta?" Sanosuke said, placing a hand to his chin. "Hmm...I've never heard of him before. Have you heard of him, Kenshin?"

    Kenshin remained silent for a few moments. "No."

    "Hmm," Sanosuke kept thinking. "Is he from around here?"

    Shun-san looked at Sanosuke. "I'm not sure." She then redirected her gaze to Kenshin whose eyes were unreadable. "I just took my friend's advice to come to the dojo."

    "Then you came to the right place," Kaoru said with an optimistic tone. "Wherever he is, we'll help you find him. Shinta, did you say?"

    "H-Hai," Shun-san said smiling uneasily at Kaoru.

    "Wherever he is, we'll find him, that Shinta-san," Kaoru said, smiling at Shun-san.

    "Arigato, Kamiya-san," Shun-san said bowing down in respect. Kaoru blinked.

    "Ne, Shun-san," Shun-san looked up. "You don't need to be so formal. Kaoru would be fine."

    "As you wish, Kaoru-san," Shun-san smiled easily at Kaoru. "Likewise, you could call me Li Mei."

    "Li Mei," Kaoru smiled happily.

    "Who IS this Shinta-san?' Yahiko suddenly asked. "Is he your lover or something?" Both redheads froze.

    "Yahiko!" Kaoru exclaimed, hitting him upside the head. "Don't be rude."

    "I-Iie. He-He's...someone from my childhood," Li Mei said, laughing nervously.

    "A childhood friend?" Kaoru asked, suddenly curious.

    "Might as well call him your lover if you came all the way here just to find hi-Itai!" Yahiko as cut from his sentence when Sano hit him on the head. "What was that for, baka tori-atama?"

    "Shut up if you have nothing better to say," Sano said, pressing his knuckle hard into Yahiko's head. He looked at Kenshin and noticed the samurai's silence. "Oi, you alright, Kenshin?"

    Kenshin flinched lightly and answered in a shaky voice, "H-Hai..."

    "Well, we better clean this up, ne Yahiko, Sano?" Kaoru said looking at the two people who looked at her in shock.

    "Why do we have to do it?" Yahiko protested.

    "Che, I don't even live here!" Sano exclaimed.

    "Hai, demo you," she said looking at Sano. "Do nothing to help around here but eat and you," She turned to Yahiko. "Because I said so."

    "You can't make me!" Yahiko yelled stomping towards the door. Kaoru caught him by his collar and yanked him back. "Oi!"

    "Now, now, Yahiko-chan," Kaoru said in a very sweet voice. "It's very rude to yell in front of the guest and at your SENSEI."

    "Don't call me-"

    "Yahiko-"

    "Ne, Yahiko-kun?" Kenshin stopped as Li Mei looked up at Yahiko from her seat. "Would it bother you if you take this to the kitchen for me, please?" She said, lifting her tea cup from the floor. Yahiko, who was blushing, took the cup and stiffly walked out the room.

    "Che, that certainly shut him up," Sanosuke said, taking the remaining cups and walked out the door.

    "I'm sorry for Yahiko's behavior, Li Mei-san." Kaoru bowed down in apology.

    "No, no, everything's alright," Li Mei said with a smile. "I was like that when I was his age. I understand how he feels."

    "Is that so?" Kaoru laughed shakily as she stepped out of the room. "Well, if you could excuse me."

    Li Mei smiled at Kaoru as she went out then turned back to Kenshin. Her smile disappeared and her head dropped as she stared at her lap once more. She looked up at him only to see him smiling politely at her from his seat. She just looked at him, trying to read his eyes. She dropped her head down again.

    "Ne, Himura-san," Kenshin flinched slightly at the sound of his name on her lips. "Do you really not know who Shinta is?"

    "I don-"

    "Do you?" Kenshin stopped at the tone of her voice. He sensed loneliness an despair, emotions which he was only too familiar with. He decided to give in.

    "Hai," Kenshin said, dropping his head. Li Mei sharply looked up, her lavender eyes wide. "I know him, but not too well."

    "Himura-san..."

    "Shinta was a person from my childhood as well," Kenshin paused, swallowing the lump in his throat. "He was my childhood."

    Li Mei wasn't contented. His answer drew thoughts and questions from her mind. She just kept staring, egging him to go on.

    "I used to know him," Kenshin continued. "He used to laugh and smile and play."

    "Used to?" Li Mei couldn't stop herself from asking. "What happened?"

    "He's gone," Kenshin said quietly. "Shinta just disappeared one day."

    "Himura-"

    "Kenshin," Li Mei stopped. "Kenshin replaced him."

    "Why?" Kenshin didn't answer immediately.

    "Because Shinta was weak," Kenshin said, his eyes hidden by his bangs. "The only way that Kenshin could live and be strong is for Shinta to disappear and he did. Shinta's dead."

    Li Mei's eyes visibly softened, tears were threatening to spill from her lavender orbs. "Hi-...Ken-shin."

    "Now, I have a question for you, Shun-san," Kenshin said, his voice becoming louder. "Do you know someone named Akari?"

    Li Mei froze. "Akari?"

    "Hai. When Shinta was alive, he used to know a little girl named Akari." Li Mei didn't answer. "Shun-san?"

    Tears started to fall from her eyes. "H-Hai." she said in a very soft voice. Kenshin heard it.

    "Is she dead as well?"

    Li Mei started shaking from concealing her sobs. "No," she whispered. "No! Akari isn't dead. She...She..."

    Kenshin kept quiet, his eyes solemn and blank.

    "She's still alive looking for Shinta!" Li Mei exclaimed, looking at Kenshin in the eye. "No. Akari won't die. She can't die! And neither can Shinta!"

    Kenshin's eyes widened, shocked at her words. Li Mei started crying, her sobs were violent and her tears streamed down her cheeks without stopping. She was bent down from her kneeling position, her hands rolled into fists, her face near the floor which was being flooded with tears. Her red hair curtained her face from him. Kenshin's eyes softened. He moved forward from his position, took her chin and slowly raised her face.

    "Do you believe in Shinta that much?" Kenshin softly asked, lifting her face up enough for her to force her torso to move up as well. There were still tears on her eyes as she answered, "Yes."

    Li Mei blinked as she felt a drop fall onto her cheek. Her eyes registered shock when she felt Kenshin let go of her chin, encircled his arms around her and buried his head on her shoulder. Li Mei relaxed as she felt the growing wetness on her shoulder. She encircled her own arms around him and placed her cheek on his shoulder.

    "Everything will be alright, Shinta...onii-chan."

    Kenshin opened his eyes, still glowing with tears. "Akari."

    Kaoru's scream was heard from the kitchen. "Kaoru-dono!" Kenshin immediately, stand up and dart out the door. Li Mei followed closely behind him, concern evident on her face.

    Once they reached the kitchen, Kenshin opened the shoji door and called out Kaoru's name. "Kaoru-dono!"

    "Kenshin!" Kaoru cried out, comic tears streaming down her cheeks. "Our dinner is ruined!"

    Kenshin looked down at the tub in Kaoru's hands and sweat-dropped. In the tub was the tofu he bought that morning all fried and burnt.

    "We're going to starve to death!" Yahiko cried out, clutching onto Sano's leg. "It's all busu's fault!"

    "What?!" Kaoru exclaimed, anger growing inside of her.

    "He does have a point, Jou-chan. If you hadn't burned the kettle while making Shun-san's tea then Kenshin wouldn't have dumped that tub of tofu in the fire." Sano countered.

    "Calm down, Yahiko, Karou-dono," Kenshin said, pasting his rurouni smile on. "I'm sure we still have pickles in the cupboard."

    "We're going to die!" Yahiko exclaimed at the sound of pickles.

    "Or I could treat you all out for dinner," Li Mei supplied, poking her head in the kitchen through the door. "I found this really good restaurant just down the road."

    Everyone kept quiet as they looked at Li Mei with wide eyes.

x x x

    "Kaoru-san," Tae exclaimed as she saw Kaoru and the others come in the restaurant. "It's a surprise to see you all here."

    "Good evening, Tae-san," Kaoru said bowing down. "It was a impromptu visit. Please excuse us if we've disturbed you."

    "Oh no, no. Not at all. Here," Tae lead them to a booth. Once they all settled down, Tae faced them with her usual smile. "Tsubame-chan will come by to take your order in a few moments." She bowed down and was about to leave when she spotted Li Mei. "Wait, you were here this afternoon, weren't you?"

    Li Mei blinked then bowed down. "Shun Li Mei desu," She straightened then smiled sheepishly. "I was just asking for a few directions. I'm sorry if it disrupted your business.

    "On, not at all, not at all. There were just a couple of women who were curious about you," Tae said waving her hand dismissively. "But," Tae leaned a bit closer as she looked at Li Mei directly at the face. "Hmm...they were right."

    "Hmm?" Li Mei blinked uncomfortably, slightly backing away from Tae.

    "Uh, Tae-dono," Kenshin cut in smiling. "Is something the matter?"

    Tae took one last look at her then backed away. "No, its nothing. Just a little tired from this afternoon that's all. Ah, Tsubame-chan's here. I'll leave you to her."

    Sano and Yahiko immediately shouted their orders out, startling the shy Tsubame. Kaoru, after giving Sano and Yahiko a warning glare, and Kenshin gave their orders as well. Li Mei, however, took a lot of time deciding on what to order. She tapped her chin as she raked her head on what to get.

    "Hmm," Li Mei said, looking up at the ceiling in thought. She gave a brief glance at Kenshin who gave her an encouraging smile and a slight nod. With a bright smile in return she turned back to Tsubame and said confidently, "I'll have what Kenshin had."

    Tsubame nodded as she quickly took something down on her note pad. She smiled up at them and said, "I will be right back with your order in a few moments." Tsubame bowed out and went towards the kitchens.

    Kaoru watched as Li Mei kept her smile on her face, looking at Kenshin who smiles softly in return. Kaoru felt her heart constrict slightly. What's going on? Kaoru thought as she watched the two interact. She did admit that she was jealous seeing how close Li Mei was to Kenshin in just a few hours of meeting. Was she his former lover? Was he the one she was looking for? But Li Mei-san mentioned that the person's name was Shinta, wasn't it?

    "Kaoru!" Kaoru turned her head quickly towards Sano who called out to her. "Oi, Jou-chan!"

    "Hmm?" Sano sighed as he shook his head. "Looking at Kenshin again?"

    Kaoru absently nodded her head. "Hmm...ye-wait! What do you mean again?"

    "Ah, Jou-chan, that won't work on me anymore," Sano said smirking as he did. "Everyone could see the way you look at Kenshin. Everyone except Kenshin."

    Kaoru blushed slightly as she bowed her head. Laughter was heard from the other half of the table which caused Kaoru to look up. She saw Kenshin laughing casually with Li Mei as they conversed. She had never seen Kenshin that loose before, not with her and not with anyone.

    "Ah, this is interesting," Sano said, watching Li Mei and Kenshin play a complicated finger game. "Is Li Mei flirting with our rurouni? Looks like you have pretty tough competition here, jou-chan."

    "Sano!" Kaoru protested but she somehow knew he was partially right. Sano shrugged.

    "It's possible. And Kenshin's pretty comfortable with her too. But then again," Sano said as he watched the two comparing their hair color. "They look more like two siblings playing around than two lovers, don't you think?"

    He's right! Kaoru immediately concluded. They might BE related. But Kaoru knew she hardly had any evidence, well, except maybe the hair, the eyes and the face but other people might have the same symmetry as Kenshin and not be related to him. It was possible. The only way she would know for sure is if she had their family history or they admitted it themselves.

    The food came and everyone was silent, concentrating on their food. Yahiko shoveled the food into his mouth until Kaoru bonked him in the head. "Chew properly, Yahiko, before you choke."

    Yahiko stuck his tongue out at her but heeded her advice to chew properly. Once everyone was done and the dishes were cleared, tea was served. Kaoru silently sipped her tea, temporarily forgetting about her dilemma with Kenshin until he spoke.

    "Hmm?" Kenshin peeked from behind his tea cup, noticing Li Mei staring at him. "Li Mei, is there something wrong?"

    Li Mei shook her head with a soft smile. "Nothing's wrong, Kenshin," She placed her hand over his. "Nothing's wrong." Kenshin smiled at her and discreetly laced his fingers around hers. All these were noticed by Kaoru.

    Kaoru glared at their direction, drank up all her tea and placed her tea cup on the table with a loud bang catching the other's attention, especially Li Mei and Kenshin's. Kaoru stood up and said stiffly, "Shall we go back to the dojo?" She then walked to the door and marched right out.

   "What's up with her," Yahiko asked, blinking at Kaoru's exit. Sano just shrugged in reply. Kenshin however was troubled and Li Mei watched the emotions dance in his lavender eyes.

x x x

   "Thank you for the meal, Li Mei," Yahiko said, walking in front of Li Mei and Kenshin, rubbing his stomach. Sano had turned the other way, going back to his own little shack. They had all caught up with Kaoru who was walking in front of them, a bit more relaxed than before.

   "It was my pleasure, Yahiko-kun," Li Mei said, smiling down at him.

   "Li Mei," Kenshin started, turning to her as he walked alongside her. "Do you have anywhere to stay for the night?"

   Li Mei blushed and smiled sheepishly. "To be honest, when I came to Tokyo, I went straight to the Kamiya Dojo. I forgot all about my lodging arrangements."

   "Then I'm sure you could stay in the dojo," Kenshin said, a smile on his face. "Right, Kaoru-dono?"

   Kaoru stopped walking. She didn't answer for a few moments until she turned around, a smile already on her face. "I'm sure there's enough room for you to stay in, Li Mei." Kaoru then turned back and started walking forward. Yahiko followed after her with an eyebrow raised.

   Li Mei blinked and was about to start walking when Kenshin held her back. "Akari?" The name surprised her but she turned to him with a smile.

   "Yes, onii-chan?"

   "About the conversation we had earlier," Li Mei looked at her brother expectantly as he stood at the side of the road. "I would prefer it if you didn't call me Shinta."

   "Ken-"

   "You haven't done it yet. I'm just making sure. It's just that," Kenshin inhaled, trying to keep himself calm. "I'm just not ready to disclose my past to the others right now. I hope you understand."

   Li Mei smiled softly and held his hand. "I understand."

   "Arigato."

x x x

   Kaoru sat on the porch, looking down at her lap. She felt somewhat guilty. She felt that she was rude to Li Mei earlier and was ready to apologize. It wasn't Li Mei's fault, well, not entirely. She might not even know that she was flirting with Kenshin. It might be some foreign gesture of friendship or something.

   Kaoru looked up, hearing the front entrance open. She heard Kenshin's baritone voice call out, "Tadaima." Kaoru stood up, shocking the two redheads.

   "Li Mei, may I speak with you?" Kaoru asked timidly. Kenshin took this as his queue to leave.

   "I'll prepare your room, Li Mei," Kenshin disappeared into the house, leaving the two women alone.

   "What was it that you wanted to speak to me about, Kaoru-san?" Li Mei said, walking towards Kaoru, sitting down next to her.

   "Well, ano," Kaoru fidgeted with her words.

   "Kaoru?"

   "I just...I just wanted to apologize." Kaoru let out.

   Li Mei looked at her, confused. "Apologize? For what?"

   "I felt that I had been very rude to you a little while ago and I just wanted to apologize." Kaoru didn't look her in the eye, keeping her head down.

   Li Mei smiled at her and took her hand in hers. "I understand, Kaoru. You don't need to apologize."

   Kaoru looked up. "Li Mei?"

   Li Mei stood up, walking inside the house. "I'll be turning in now. Oyasumi nasai, Kaoru-san."

   "Oyasumi nasai, Li Mei." Kaoru said softly, watching Li Mei disappear around the corner.

Did you like it? I hope you did.

The ending was a bit rushed since I was running out of time.

Read and Review! I still need those comments!

dreamaker13