Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Second Impressions ❯ Ashes of Truth ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Second Impressions

Part III

Sano and Kenshin met in a bar deep within Viper. For a few minutes they sat in silence, Sano drinking beer and Kenshin cradling his glass of water.

“How'd it go?” Sano asked finally.

“She didn't say a word the entire time.” Kenshin admitted. “She didn't seem afraid, at least.”

Sano contemplated this. Kaoru was an optimist at heart. She always saw the best in people. He was sure she would not condemn Kenshin for his past.

“I think you're right, Kenshin.”

“About what?”

“I'm gonna tell Megumi tomorrow.” Sano said nervously. “Any tips?”

“Look her in the eye when you're saying it. Otherwise she'll assume the worst. Try and get her to ask the questions.”

“How do I do that?”

“Introduce the subject first, then get into the details. Megumi will take it well. Once you convince her you're sane, she won't really care.”

“Kaoru won't care either. She's not going to hate you.”

“But she won't like me either.”

“It's up to her, now, isn't it? Just wait.”

“Ask someone else to be there when you tell Megumi. If you have to show her anything major, she might appreciate some support.”

“I'll call Kaoru. She's already gone through it.”

“I think my revelation might have been more distressing than yours will be.” Kenshin said, smiling despite himself. At least one good thing had come out of his and Kaoru's rather distressing second date.

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Kaoru was sure that even if she was unconscious, she would recognize the special ring tone her phone made when he called her phone. In fact, she was reasonably she had done so at some point.

So when he called her that night, she knew exactly who was calling. She also could guess why. Sano was Kenshin's friend; he would have already known everything.

“Hi, Sano.”

“Are you mad at me?”

Kaoru sighed. Was she mad at Sano? “No, I'm not. It's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault.”

“Are you okay?” he asked. She was touched by his worry and smiled. Even if her dates were weird, her friends were true.

“Yeah, Sano, I am. And no, I will not lend you money.”

“Hey! I call you for reasons other than money!”

“Yeah, occasionally you call me for food and/or beer.”

“I didn't call you for food or money! I need your help!”

“What's wrong?”

“I'm gonna ask Megumi to...you know.”

Kaoru let out a very un-Kaoru like squeal. “You're getting married! Finally!”

“There's one tiny little problem.”

“You do have a ring?”

“No, I haven't told about my being...you know.”

“Sano, you've dated her for three years and you haven't mentioned that you and most of your friends are nonhumans?”

“Well, yeah.”

“SANO, YOU MORON!”

“Ow, my ears!”

“You'll be lucky if she doesn't dump you! Or hang you!”

“That's why I need your help!”

“I'll come over and save your tail-feathers, Sano. When?”

“Ten minutes.”

“Ten minutes? Excuse me?”

“I...um...gave her the basics and she thinks I'm on a drug trip.”

“I would too, Sano. Hang on, I'll be right over.”

`Only he could do something like this. I wonder why he didn't tell her sooner.'

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When she walked into Sano's office twenty minutes alter, she found a sight she didn't think was possible.

Megumi was sitting on the floor, disheveled and crying. Megumi was never disheveled and she never cried in public or in front of anyone. The reason for this pre-apocalyptic event was in front of her. She was leaning away from what seemed to be a giant brown dog with sharp teeth.

“What-what are you?” She asked, lifting a trembling hand to touch his head.

“Don't be afraid.” Kaoru reassured her, putting a hand on Megumi's shoulder and patting Sano on the head. “It's still Sano in there.”

“My God, you're not doing opium,” Megumi murmured, relived. “Not unless you spiked my tea earlier.” She looked over at Kaoru, who smiled at her comfortingly.

“He is a Thing,” Kaoru explained. “He shifts into different forms.”

“What do you mean, different forms? How is that possible? Wouldn't it have an adverse effect on your health?” Megumi's natural medical curiosity kicked in. She turned to Sano. “Can you change back?”

There was a grinding noise as Sano's form blurred and reformed.

“Would this be a bad time to ask you to marry me?” He asked sheepishly.

There was a dead silence as Megumi's mouth fell open uncharacteristically. Kaoru stared at him. “You couldn't have given her a few minutes to get used to the fact you're not human?” `I swear, if it was me, I'd say no just to be contrary and tell him to ask again in a few months...'

“No, this is the perfect time. Yes!”

`...but Megumi obviously feels differently. And she was the one who taught me how to punish insensitive guys, too.'

Kaoru scribbled a quick note on a pad on Sano's desk with the shiny, gold-plated pen, and slipped out into the night. She needed to put together a brief or something for Megumi. Her foxy friend was going to have a thousand questions for her later on, and she needed to be prepared.

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The Order of Truth had never craved the spotlight. They were a relatively unknown branch of one of the largest religions in the world. Bimulierism.

Bimulierism was generally considered the religion of both sirens and mermaids, but had appeared in various forms throughout history. It was defined simply as the worship of one omnipotent female deity. Humans had had one version and sirens and mermaids had another, which was older and considered the first.

There were in essence two ways to define it, then; as specifically the religion of sirens and mermaids, or referring to all religions worshipping a Goddess.

Out of the many orders, the Order of Truth was by far the most obscure, and the smallest. Its few members hid in plain sight or stayed in their headquarters, preferring to keep its existence as unknown as possible.

But Kyle Wormwood, a young member, had a mission tonight. It was his first mission: to deal with the dissolution of a spell in the area and to deal with a possible threat to the spell.

Pausing in front of a closed shop in Pearl, he glanced at his reflection in the glass. He saw the long white robes, the cropped brown hair and the staff with its poisoned blade resting against the nearest signpost.

Hailing a taxi, Wormwood ignored the strange looks of passersby and the driver.

“Fifty-Six District Devil Eye, Onyx.” He ordered, folding up his map and reaching for the bottle of holy water he would need at his first stop. “Step on it, please.”

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The scars on her back were itching again. Kaoru winced, wishing she'd taken her friends' advice and kept her nails a little longer. Instead, she had opted for the super-short utility nail. Useful for everything, except itching.

The scars were invisible to everyone except her. She didn't know the reasoning behind this, but she had always thought of it as remembrance. A scar that could never heal, never fade, to remind her of what she had to do. These scars only itched when the magic in them began to wear off. As far as she knew, there was no reason for the magic to fade for another two years. Why, then, why she practically scraping off her skin on this night?

A panic-ridden thought ran through her mind. Kenshin had seen the scars. Could he have done something? But no, he couldn't have. She would have noticed, of that she was certain.

`Maybe I should call them and have them check the spells. Something might have gone wrong.'

As soon as she touched the phone, it rang loudly. Surprised, she almost dropped it before shoving it against her ear and cradling it with her shoulder.

“Hello?”

“Kaoru, this is Kyle Wormwood.”

“I'm sorry, I don't know who you are.” Kaoru said hesitantly.

“I am from the Order.” He said. Kaoru sighed in relief.

“Oh, good. I was about to call, there's something wrong with my-”

“Someone will be there to respell you tomorrow. But I am not calling about that. As you know, you signed a contract with us.”

“Of course. But I don't see how that really concerns the problem at hand.”

“We have made a change in the contract. Within three months, you will be required to take the vows of the Order and join us in our retreat. It is too dangerous for you to be let loose any longer.”

“You can't change the contract without my permission! It's illegal!”

“This entire affair is illegal. These kinds of sealing spells are forbidden by the ruling party in this area. This leads us to the other stipulation of our contract. Stay away from that man, Kaoru. His presence is destabilizing the spell. If it continues, it will unravel entirely.”

“Illegal? I'm not going to be a part of an illegal contract. I won't get involved in anything that can drag down my family's good name.”

“Do you want someone else to end up like your mother, Kaoru/”

She didn't answer, her breath suddenly tight. She could see, clearly, her mother's white, bloodless face, the gray tint of her lips, the stillness at the funeral...

`No, not again...I promised Dad it wouldn't ever happen again.'

“No. No, it won't happen. I won't let it.” Kaoru whispered.

“Good. Then be prepared to join the Order. In our jurisdiction, all magic performed by the Order is legal.”

“Someone will be here tomorrow to fix the seal?”

“Yes.” There was an audible click as he hung up. Kaoru sat down on the couch, the phone dropping from her hand onto the floor.

Memories danced through her mind, showing her things she had tried to forget. Things better left unremembered, and things that might have crushed a weaker heart.

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“Dad?” A younger, teary-eyed Kaoru pulls on her father's arm. “Why did Mom have to die?”

He says nothing to this. How do you explain death to a six-year-old? How do you tell a little girl that she may have killed her mother?

The man he is going to see will explain everything. When he received the call after the funeral, he thought he was mad. Now he thinks it might, might be true. The idea sickens him and yet draws him in; there is a perverse ease in blaming someone, anyone for his beloved's death rather then accepting it for an accident.

The man he is seeing wears white robes and a solemn frown. He speaks in a cold, unfeeling voice.

“That child's magic bears a taint. It killed your wife. It will kill others. It must be contained.”

He argues, rationalizes, and insists that it isn't her fault. Surely the organization that rules the nonhumans can heal her, help her, and cleanse her. They do not need to get involved.

“The procedure is illegal in this area. But it is the only way. You must sign her over to the order, and we will seal her.”

No, he will not give his daughter away. She is the only person he has, the last piece of his wife. She is the only person he can hate without fear and he knows that if she leaves he will not make it. These emotions whirl below the surface and he must let them out.

“You will keep the child. But she must be sealed. Unless you want her to be arrested for murder.”

No, if Kaoru leaves, he will lose his mind.

“Sign here. I will send someone to deal with it in a few hours.”

Looking down at his daughter, hen notices for the first time what awful eyes she has. Deceitful, lying eyes. Eyes like his late wife's eyes, eyes that shine with light but hide darkness. He suddenly realizes how awful his daughter is, to feel no remorse at killing her mother. How he hates this child.

“How permanent is this spell?”

“It is carved into the skin. It will last for years before we must replenish it.”

Carved into her white, clean skin. Horrible skin, terrible beauty that plays with you and then leaves you hanging. His mind fills with imagined injustices and nonexistent memories. It is good hat his wife is dead; better still that she is killed by the hand of the spawn she birthed. If only Kaoru had died too.

`Kaoru, Kaoru,' he thinks to himself. `You lying scum, now you will be punished.'

A few minutes ago he loved his daughter and now he loathes her. In his rage, he does no see the smile on the man's face as he leaves.

He has just stepped into the abyss, and he does not know it.

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After that fateful day, nothing had been the same. She'd been adopted by a foster father who she loved very much, the man who had raised her in this dojo. The dojo she'd kept alive until the Order had told her to stop, telling her it was dangerous to the spell.

In fact, everything that was even remotely associated with males had been deemed dangerous to the spell. A sudden suspicion crept through her mind.

`Does the Order want me to not kill people...or do they want a shiny new member to do their dirty work? It seems like they want me to “be a lady” whenever they claim something might change the spell...'

Was everything she had been told since the tender age of six a lie? He hands shook at the thought.

There was only one way to know, and she knew it was so dangerous that she shouldn't even think of it. If the Order hadn't been lying to her for a long time, it would be disastrous.

Who could she ask to check her magic for taint?

There were doctors, of course, but any doctor she went to could be traced by the Order. And none of her friends had the training to do it, and besides, Kaoru couldn't put them in danger.

She could ask Kenshin.

She was certain that anyone who ran the kind of organization he did knew someone or had learned to do it themselves. She could call him and ask, casually, if he knew. It would work. Maybe. And if it didn't, she couldn't lose anything. She'd tell the Order she was telling him it was over.

If she was wrong, it would be anyways.

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“Do you ever drink anything except sake, Shishou?” Kenshin asked with a sigh.

He had come home a few minutes ago to find his teacher and former guardian sitting on his couch and drinking a jug of sake. Kenshin had taken one look at him and tried to leave, but had been forced to come in and actually talk to him.

`At least no one else is here to hear him tell embarrassing stories about my childhood...'

“The taste of sake an only be appreciated by a real man, idiot.” Seijuro Hiko the XIII informed him.

“And yet somehow you enjoy it immensely.” mused Kenshin. “How curious.”

“Shut up, idiot. Do you still wet the bed?”

“No, Shishou, I stopped a long, long time ago. But I'm touched to hear you recall my childhood so fondly. Are you sad because you have an empty nest?” he asked bitingly.

Surprisingly, Hiko said nothing. Kenshin opened his mouth to ask why he was here, but the older swordsman beat him to it.

“What's her name?”

“What?”

“The reason for your mood, idiot! What's her name?”

Kenshin started to ask what he was talking about, and then decided against it. His Shishou had always been good at reading his moods.

“Her name is Kaoru.” He said quietly.

“Did she break your heart, or did you do something stupid?”

“Neither. Both. I don't know.”

“So you did something stupid?”

“I told her that I was a demonic shadow assassin on our second date.” He said in a rush.

`Why did I just tell him this? Now I have to listen to him lecture me...you would think he'd have found a new apprentice to tor- to teach, but no...'

“Did you learn nothing from me, idiot?” Hiko asked impatiently. “Why did you tell her anything?”

“Have you heard of Shishio?” Kenshin asked. “He's moving in on me. Everyone I know is always in danger. It would be real idiocy to not tell her I was dangerous and scarred and hunted. I can't put someone in danger and not warn them, at least.”

He waited for his teacher to rebuke him, but he didn't.

Finally Hiko spoke. “It seems you learned something from me after all, Kenshin.”

With a last sip of sake, his Shishou left, leaving his jug of sake on the table.

`Kenshin. He called me by my name...I'm surprised he remembers my name, he hasn't used it in so long...'

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Going into work the next morning, Kenshin found that things were even busier than usual.

Shishio had sent Kenshin another letter asking him to join him. Another human-hating group had come into Onyx to trash houses and sell human flesh on the black market. He had to track, identify, and control groups like this. And that was a lot of paperwork for him and everyone else.

And to top things off, some religious group wanted to speak specifically to him, wouldn't talk to anyone else, and insisted on waiting a café across the street from the inconspicuous office building.

It was for days like this that Kenshin kept a flask of strong coffee under his desk.

People were moving throughout the halls and sitting at desk, conversing in a variety of languages and dialects. Among them was a young messenger whose job it was to convey interdepartmental notices between department heads. He dashed up to Kenshin as soon as he came in and sat down to read his memos.

“Sir, the man from this Order of Truth- it's Bimulierist- he wants to talk to you. He wouldn't consent to giving us anything but his name, but the Information Department says they'll have a file for you in five minutes. They want to know where you want to meet him.” All of this was spit out in a rush.

“Bring him into the meeting room and have someone send me that file.” Kenshin ordered.

The meeting room was a long room with four doors and two windows, plus a few handy vents. Its primary purpose was to meet with possible hostiles, which was why there were so many exits.

His visitor was named Kyle Wormwood. One of the cameras had a clear shot of him- a brown haired man in long white robes with a gold headdress and a staff. His file stated he was dead.

`Didn't Shishio's file say the same thing? And now he's a fire-breathing zombie.'

Wormwood stood stiffly in the plush meeting room. He watched Kenshin warily, as though he might go mad and attack him at anytime.

“You are Battousai.” He said. It wasn't a question. Clearly their guest had done some research.

“Some still refer to me as such.” Kenshin agreed. He had long since fallen into the habit of introducing himself as Kenshin to his allies and Battousai to his foes. It was an intimidation thing.

“Stay away from Kaoru.” His words were sharp. “Do not get involved with her.”

“Who are you to tell me what I should and shouldn't do?” Kenshin demanded.

“I am a messenger from a higher power. I have been commanded to keep her safe from the likes of you.”

“And who is your higher power?”

“There is only one higher power-“

“I have hundreds of religious orders who work with or against me. They all have different higher powers to worship.”

“We follow the Goddess.” Wormwood said with an ugly look on his face. He seemed to take Kenshin's words personally. Most religious fanatics took any mention of another possible deity besides their own as an unforgivable insult, and he was no exception.

“What does Kaoru have to do with your Order?”

“The Order of Truth commands all from the shadows.”

`That's my job...and Saitou's job.'

“Kaoru is a murderess.” Kenshin kept his features calm even as his mind swirled from the implications. Wormwood smiled with self-importance. “That's right. She killed her mother when she was just six years old. She didn't feel an ounce of remorse. Her father begged the Order to stop her, but you threaten her well-being. Do not go near her again.”

“You expect me to believe that a six year old killed her mother.”

“She used her magic on her.” Wormwood said, a perverse glee coming into his voice. “She laughed at the funeral. Laughed. Do you still want to get near her? No. Stay away.”

`Magic. He's trying to manipulate my emotions with his power, very subtly. It doesn't work, because this room is warded against that kind of spellwork, but it proves he's lying.'

His mind churned as one of his employees removed the man from the building and escorted him to the nearest airport.

`He's definitely lying...in his haste to breed distrust, he said a bit too much. For a six year old to kill anyone would require rigorous training from someone else, and they wouldn't have the capacity to do it of their own will. If Kaoru did kill her mother, she did it unknowingly on someone else's orders.'

This would take some investigating. Kenshin headed back to his office to gather all the information he would need. Job perk number four: access to a huge amount of information that the public never sees.

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Misao sat in a coffee shop in Platinum, drinking espresso (something she was forbidden to do with company) and playing with the tassels on the tablecloth. She fidgeted constantly, smoothed her collar and imaginary wrinkles in her professional-looking dress pants, pulling on her blazer and twisting the end of her braid around her wrist.

She could not recall the last time she'd been this nervous.

Back in high school, five years ago, Misao had lived in an inn with the rest of her surrogate family. They were a diverse group- Things, shifters, and soul-eaters. And of course, her. A cute little flying weasel imp.

A long name for a petite girl, but Misao had always taken a certain dramatic pleasure from announcing herself as, “Misao Makimachi, flying weasel imp extraordinaire!”

It had been so much fun, living in the Aoiya, their inn, with a varied group of ninjas. She had enjoyed her work, even if she wasn't the best at it. And there had been one person who'd always been very special to her. Aoshi Shinomori, the head ninja and her own personal obsession.

But right after graduation, everything had changed.

Her grandfather had disbanded the Oniwabanshuu, and she'd been told to go to college and get a job. Have a “real” life. No one had told Misao anything beforehand, and she had wondered later why there hadn't been any signs.

A year later, she had her answer. Doing some research for her latest project, a dance about baking (it was for a new musical), she had stumbled onto a police report in the paper. A report that mentioned an informant named Mary Diana.

Mary Diana was a code name for the Oniwabanshuu. She had embarked on a quest, tracked down the others, and had found that they were all living happily together in a house in Platinum.

Later, Okon had called to tell her the truth- they had lied about disbanding in order to give her a chance at a life. She had been furious, but no one would agree to take her back in.

Okon and Omasu had kept tabs on Aoshi and let her know what he was up to, but when he had shown up at their meeting, he was supposed to be in Tibet. It had all been a ruse, Misao realized. They just wanted her out of their lives, their business, and she wanted the facts for once.

So she had gotten Aoshi's number from Sano and had called him, telling him to meet her here.

It had seemed like the right move at the time, in her rage, but now she wished she'd waited. Aoshi had always made her so nervous, and now she was going to tell him what to do? Right. She was doomed. But Misao knew that she could never live in peace without understanding why her family had thrown her out and lied to her. Without knowing why they hadn't wanted her.

The little bell that Misao had given to the shop's power as a gift rang, and the door opened.

He was here.

In what felt like hours, he was sitting in front of her, and ordering green tea from a waitress.

`What do I do? What do I say?'

“So, you did come.” It was the first thought that crossed her mind. She had wondered if he would even show up.

She needn't have worried. He had given her his word, and Aoshi's Shinomori's word was something you could stake your life on without fear.

“Yes.” He was still the same man, the one that hardly spoke and showed no emotion. Like a still winter's day, he was unreadable.

But unlike the snow, you couldn't leave your mark on him. Could you?

“You and the others have told me a lot of lies. I didn't know families lied to one another. But then I guess we're not a real family anymore. Or at least, I'm not.” Misao was surprised faintly by the coldness n her voice, but she wasn't sorry. He deserved a little iciness for what he had put her through.

“It was for your good.” How she loathed those words. Who were they, to say what was good for her? She had a mind and heart of her own, too.

“You assume so much, Aoshi.” She didn't call him -sama anymore. He had lost her respect when he lied to her. “You are so horrible, do you know that?”

He didn't say anything. It seemed she would have to do the talking.

“You assume that you have the right to decide my life for me. You assume I've been better off. Hell, you assume I've been happy! Do you know, I spent my first year away crying because I was without a family? I was an orphan, because my family decided that they had no use for me.”

She had started to cry, from rage or from sorrow, she didn't know. The sight of his calm, unfeeling face made her blood boil. Did he not understand that she had been broken? If her friends hadn't been there to help her, what could Misao have done? Suddenly she wanted to slap him.

Her hand seemed to move of its own accord.

“Misao?” He sounded confused. It was the first time he had sounded anything other then cold. He obviously hadn't expected that.

“Don't you have anything to say to me, Aoshi? Or do you not care?”

“I thought I was doing the right thing.” He hissed. Now he was angry too. “There is a world outside of the shadows. It was time you learned that.”

“You can't run from the shadows, Aoshi. They exist everywhere. Whether you fight them, belong to them, or live without them. The shadows of our world can't be ignored, or forgotten.” Misao suddenly realized she was standing up and silently blessed her parents for giving birth to such a short child. It didn't make much of a difference whether she stood or sat.

“I'm leaving. Don't contact me unless you have something to say.” Misao turned, not bothering to give him a contact number. He could get that information on his own.

`I guess I'm an orphan...again...'

It hurt a lot worse the second time around. She lasted until she reached her apartment. Standing, in the entryway, Misao collapsed.

She didn't see the shadow that closed her door behind her in her sorrow.

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When someone knocks on your door at three in the morning, it's never a good thing.

Kenshin had had many experiences that proved this. Sano had crashed at his house, drunk and convinced he was a microwave. (“Don't kill me, Kaoru!”) People had come to fight him, to kill him, and on one occasion to borrow sugar from him. (He was certain that girl had been on drugs.)

He was working when it happened. Not wanting to stay in the office and do his research, he had taken the files home and was continuing to piece together all the information.

Izumi Kamiya had died at age thirty-two of arsenic poisoning. That was strange in itself, and killed Kyle Wormwood's explanation. A six-year-old couldn't force an adult to take arsenic, no matter how strong their magic. They wouldn't have the concentration needed to do so.

Kaoru herself had been in foster care until her foster father died when she was seventeen. She had stayed with her biological father for a year. Koshijiro Kamiya was an alcoholic and was currently in a rehab facility. He'd been violent and abusive towards his daughter ever since his wife was killed.

The pieces fitted together. The death of Izumi Kamiya had driven her husband mad. He had taken his emotions out on his daughter. There was only one question. Who had killed Izumi? And why? To get their hands on Kaoru?

If someone had told Koshijiro that Kaoru had killed her own mother, or used magic on him to make him believe it, Koshijiro would have done anything to get rid of his daughter. Even have Kaoru sealed with an illegal spell.

The only possible culprit was Wormwood's order. They were currently draining Kaoru's power for their own purposes. That gave them a motive for wanting her parents out of the way-so that they could control her.

But why did they want to control Kaoru?

This was the question on his mind when he went to open the door.

And found a soaking wet Kaoru standing outside the door, bearing a slight resemblance to a half-drowned animal with her scraggly hair plastered to her face and neck. She wasn't wearing a jacket.

“Speak of the devil,” Kenshin said, pulling her into the apartment before she caught cold or fainted. Her face was pale from some unknown emotion. She was shivering from the cold and wet.

“I can explain.” Kaoru said.

“I was just thinking about...and here you are.” He mused. “Let me get you a towel. We have a lot to talk about.”

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Wormwood was waiting outside an inn. The inn was called the Aoiya, and was home to a family of ninjas who might be able to assist him.

That demon would be a problem. That unbelieving scum would get in the way of their goals. How had he gotten hold of his death certificate?

Battousai would trace him, and it was fairly certain that he would discover too much. Now they had to silence him, too. That girl was far too much trouble. She was forever doing unwomanly things and befriending monsters. The Order's influence over her was thinning. If she had any inkling of the real cause of her mother's death...

She could vanish in a heartbeat. Battousai would hide her somewhere.

The various organizations that ruled the nonhumans formed a network that blocked the Order at every turn. They made laws, secular laws, which made the Order into common criminals.

And Battousai was one of the worst- His Ishin Shishi and the Shinsengumi kept a close eye on the workings of their city. Luckily, the order's only operation in Onyx was Kaoru. And they had remained under the radar until now.

If only there was an easy way to oust him and his people. They would have to infiltrate his friends to get close enough to kill him.

The man he had come to meet was late. The leader of these ninjas.

A sudden silver flash behind him made him turn, but he barely had time to move his staff before it was cut into firewood.

A pair of shining silver swords rested against his neck.

The leader was here.

“You're late. I told you to come at-” He began. An icy voice cut him off.

“It is not wise to attempt to control the minds of those stronger than you.”

“What?” How did he know? How did anyone know? Battousai couldn't have seen something to small-

“Battousai asked me to detain you if you were stupid enough to venture near here.”

“How did he-”

Something hard slammed into his head, and a massive pain lanced through his skull before his eyes rolled upward and he fell, unconscious.

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If someone had taken a hammer and smashed her life with it, they could not have been more thorough then Kenshin had been.

He knew everything. Before, it would have terrified her. Now, it meant nothing.

“There is nothing wrong with your magic. Nothing.”

She was such a fool! The Order had lied to her for her whole life. They had killed her mother. They had destroyed her father. They had even engineered the death of her foster father.

No taint. No warped, strange thing that made her kill.

“Your magic cannot act without you causing it. There is no such thing as a taint that makes it kill.”

She wasn't a murderer. She was just an idiot. But how was she supposed to know? Kenshin had told her, as he examined the scars, that the spell on her back manipulated her mind. It allowed someone else in the Order to drain her power and use it for there own will.

“This is a dangerous thing. I have to destroy it.”

She felt the smooth skin of her back again, hardly believing it. She'd never noticed what nice skin she had before. Misao was right about that, at least.

Goddess-she could say it now, could finally worship the Goddess because she was pure again- Goddess forgive her for not realizing it before.

There was supposed to be an Order man coming to reseal her. He'd never shown up. Or he'd come in the early morning, while she'd been at Kenshin's place.

Her house was the same, but she had changed so much in the last few hours. Her body felt light, as though she'd been carrying a burden her whole life, and someone had taken it away.

`I have been carrying a burden...I've been carrying Mother with me, all this time...Mom...why did they kill you? Why did they need my power? There are other sirens in the world...'

The contract didn't stand. She'd never done anything, so the contract meant nothing. Another lie. It seemed everything was a lie...

`Am I a lie?'

With some effort, she dragged herself to the mirror in her bedroom.

A face stared back at her, both familiar and strange.

`I look so pale. So ill. But my eyes...were my eyes always this blue? Or did I never look at myself properly before?'

Reaching out a white hand, she laid a palm against the cool glass. She was sickly looking, and her hair was a mess. She'd cried, on and off, for the last few hours.

But her shoulders were back, and her spine was straight, and her eyes held more steely resolve then ever.

And Kaoru Kamiya felt as though she'd never been more free.

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It was still raining when they met again.

But the rain had lightened, the thunder faded. It was only a shower now.

The storm was ending, and the sun was returning, amidst a gray sky.

She'd waited outside his building that morning, calling herself in sick. She might me fired for it, but she doubted it.

A higher-up had found out about Roma's outrageous behavior, and things were changing in the office. Soon she, Kaoru, might have be promoted. It was all coming together now. All that was left was this...

Standing here, in the lightly falling rain, they faced each other.

“How are you?”

“I don't know.” Kaoru said softly. “I've done so much, and yet there's so much left to do...but I`ll be all right. It's like a wound...it may hurt, bleed, scar, but it will heal...in time...”

Kenshin ran a finger over the scar on his own face. `Some wounds don't heal. Not completely.”

“But they become easier to bear, don't they?”

“Yes. Over time, even this scar has lightened...as though I have been forgiven...”

“Maybe you have.” Kaoru said, coming closer. “Maybe the only person who hasn't forgiven you...is yourself?”

Kenshin blinked at her. “Uncanny. Can you read my mind?”

“No. But you seem like the type who can't forget his own sins.”

“When your sins are as great as mine, it is difficult.”

“You're right. It is difficult. You shouldn't forget...but you shouldn't live in the past, either. You have to go forwards.”

“I'm trying.”

“Maybe you need help. I know I do. I can't do this alone. You can't do this alone.” Kaoru paused. “I guess what I'm trying to say is...I won't condemn you. I can't judge you for your past, not when mine is so...” She trailed off, not finding words to describe her own past.

“You can't build a life on lies, Kaoru. All you can do is burn them away and make truth from the ashes.”

“I know that. And you know that, too. What I really want to know is...there's a company party next week. Would you like to come with me?”

Kenshin brushed her jaw with his fingertips. “Yes,” he said, amusement spreading across his features. “I would like that very, very much.”

“So would I, Kenshin.” Kaoru whispered as she leaned up to kiss him. “So would I.”

Above them, the clouds parted, and the sun shone at last.

Finis