Mirai No Yakusoku
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Disclaimer All rights and privileges to Rurouni Kenshin belong to Nobuhiro
Watsuki, Shuiesha, Sony Music Entertainment, and associated parties. The
characters of this series are used without his permission for the purpose
of entertainment only. This work of fiction is not meant for sale or profit.
This is my first attempt at the art of fanfiction. Please be gentle. Comments
are greatly appreciated!!! The title means "Future's Promise" in Japanese.
. . . .
Names:
Yuukiko= Brave Child
Kakushin= Core/Heart
Warning: It is not all that happy to begin with!! ^_^
Yoko-chan (ardith@oocities.com)
http://www.oocities.org/Tokyo/1149/
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Mirai No Yakusoku: Part 3
"Damn it!!! You did not teach me everything that I needed to know! Busu!
(Hag!)" Yahiko yelled at the dojo walls.
It was the first time that he had gone in to practice after everything.
Swinging a bokken about, as if fighting invisible enemies, he numerated
the reasons he was angry at Kaoru for dying. For leaving them alone.
But he knew that it was not any of her fault. Kaoru definitely did not
want to die. Especially not like that.
"Chikkusho! (Shit!)"
"Yahiko-kun. . . ."
"Tsubume."
She entered the dojo silently, closing the doors behind her. She had been
staying there, helping around the dojo. She trying to cope with what happened
herself. Kaoru was terrific. She was strong and kind. Tsubume wanted to
be like her, be courageous, strong and sweet. She was not afraid.
Yahiko, Kenshin, everyone was in a sort of limbo now. Kaoru would not have
wanted that. Tsubume was determined to try to make everything better.
"Yahiko-kun. I was wondering . . . "
"Huh? What is it?"
"Could you teach me the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu? I want. . . I want to be stronger.
I want to be . . . ."
I want to be like Kaoru. For Kaoru. No not for Kaoru, for myself.
"Teach me. . . . "
()*()*()*()*()*()*()*()*()*()*()*()
1999
Kakushin was late to class. It was his first day and he was going to be
late! These damn dreams! He had not been getting enough sleep because
of them. It was his first day at a new school and everything, too.
He had had similar dreams for a long time, but lately, they had been coming
in greater and greater frequency. The name "Kaoru" stuck in his mind every
time he woke up. The dreams were strange. Vague about some aspects, yet
detailed in others.
He pushed his bangs away from his face as he dashed to his class. No one
was in the hallway anymore. This was not a good sign. Damn! He finally
stopped in front of the door. The teacher opened the door.
"Gomenasai, sensei! Traffic. . . ."
"Nandemonai. (Don't worry about it.) Class just got in. Please go to the
front and introduce yourself." He turned to his class. "Minna (everyone),
we have a new student."
"Hajimemashite. (How do you do?) Boku wa Myoujin Kakushin desu! (I'm Kakushin
Myoujin. . .). Yoroshiku. (Pleased to meet you.)"
***************
Megumi stood in the doorway leading to the courtyard of the Kamiya Dojo.
She was watching Kenshin and Sanosuke. They sat together in silence. Both
of them contemplating. . . something. In a strange way, the dojo had had
a cocooning effect on their lives. That safe, sound world had been shattered.
Kaoru . . . .
Megumi ached when she thought of her. She was too young to die. Though
they were, by an outsider's point of view, rivals for Kenshin's attention,
she cared for the girl a lot. Kaoru had been alone in the world, but she
survived and thrived. Megumi acknowledged to herself that they were very
much alike. She was like a little sister. Megumi knew that Kaoru would
not want this silence to go on. This atmosphere of quiet grief. Kaoru was
so full of life.
Megumi sighed to herself.
Kenshin would never be hers. She accepted that. That had been decided that
day he left for Kyoto. He loved Kaoru. She was the only one that he said
good-bye to. Kaoru was the most important to him out of all of them. Megumi
had begun to get over that fact. Now. . . . Now, she would never make an
attempt at him at all. Kaoru would be a ghost in the middle. Megumi did
not want to deal with that. Anyway, the was someone else who had gotten
her attention.
"Ken-san, Sanosuke . . . . " She whispered looking away from the pair.
"Whacha doing, just lurking in the door way like that?"
"Eh?" She jumped back at the rough voice. "Sanosuke!"
"Yeah?"
"Tako! (Dork!)" She pushed at him, but he didn't move or even grunt, so
it was not very satisfying. "DON'T SNEAK UP ON ME!!!!"
"You were just standing there. I didn't sneak up on you. You just didn't
notice me."
Megumi looked back to where Kenshin was before. He was gone. Sano followed
her gaze.
"He went to check on Yahiko. Something about him being too quiet for being
at practice."
"Sanosuke. Is he okay?" She asked, entering the courtyard. Sanosuke walked
beside her.
"Maybe. Probably not. Are you?"
"Better. I'm better. But its going to take a long time." Megumi pushed
back her hair. She still felt guilty, even though she couldn't have save
Kaoru. All four of them were there that day. Watching Kenshin and Kaoru
say good-bye was permanently imprinted on her. After she passed on, the
look in Kenshin's eyes was of pure torment and grief. All of them had lost
something when Kaoru died.
Sanosuke looked at her, his head cocked to the side, as if asking if she
was telling the truth about her feelings. He probably caught the glimmer
in her eyes at that moment. Suddenly he was next to her, hugging her hard.
"What are we going to do?" She asked against his chest. That was the question
that Megumi had been wondering about for the last few weeks.
"Go on. Kaoru wanted us to take care of each other." He spoke seriously.
It was amazing, but for the past few weeks, Sanosuke had become a rock,
comforting and pushing for everyone express themselves, teasing them to
laughing when they needed it. But then he had been witness to the death
of his Sagara-taichou. He took that experience and made himself stronger
for it. He knew what was going on in their hearts.
"Kenshin isn't talking. He has to let it out soon. At least Yahiko is acting
out"
"Yeah. He has a haunted look in his eyes everyday. Jou-chan would not have
wanted that for him."
"We are going to get through this, aren't we?"
"Yeah. Like Jou-chan said. We have to be strong." He hugged her hard again.
Megumi let him hold her for a long time.