[kenshinfanfics] That Which Lingers - Part 5 (draft)

This is a rough draft of Part 5 my new story.

This story is set in my own ALTERNATE REALITY universe which I've
called "The Nightwitch Tales" -- think of it as Rurouni Kenshin mixed
with various supernatural and paranormal elements.  Other stories in
this alternate reality are:
        "Night Visitor"
        "All in the Family"
        "Romancing the Wolf"

WARNING:  This story is "semi-dark" -- it has dark elements
(violence, profanity, etc.) but it's not a darkfic!  Actually, there's

quite a bit of romance in it....     ^_-

This story takes place after the end of the Kyoto story arc.  After
that, it takes a sharp left turn into its own world.  Elements of the
Revenge story arc may or may not show up later on in the story.  The
Kenshin Gumi already know that Saitoh survived the destruction of
Shishio's stronghold.

As always, C&C is greatly appreciated!   ^_^

======================================================================
    THAT WHICH LINGERS:  A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfic by MadamHydra
======================================================================
        Part 5:  Two Hearts As One
======================================================================

---------------
Disclaimer
    All rights and privileges to Rurouni Kenshin belong to Nobuhiro
Watsuki, Shuiesha, Sony Music Entertainment, and associated parties.
The characters of these series are used WITHOUT permission for the
purpose of entertainment only.  This work of fiction is not meant for
sale or profit.  Original portion of the fiction included here is
considered to be the sole property and copyrighted to the author.

---------------
Text Conventions
    (  ) are character thoughts
    * ----- * ----- *  marks the start and end of flashbacks
    [ ] denote visual or time notes

**********************************************************************

[the present, 11th year of the Meiji period, late summer]

    The people gathered in the main room of Dr. Genzai's clinic --
Kaoru, Kenshin, Sano, Yahiko, Megumi, Misao -- stared blankly as Tokio
calmly put out another place setting for her husband.

    Through the open doorway, Saitoh Hajime could see Shinomori Aoshi
sleeping in the adjacent room.  He glanced at Misao and said, "I heard
you were looking for him.  I see your hunt was successful."

    Misao clenched her right hand and gritted her teeth, but said
nothing.
 
    "What the hell are you doing here?" Sano asked irritably.
 
    Saitoh raised an eyebrow and smirked slightly.  "Idiot.  My wife
left me a message."

    As Tokio handed her husband a cup of tea, Kenshin watched
curiously as Saitoh reached out to take the cup from her hand.

    (Why didn't he wait for her to put it down?  That doesn't seem
like Saitoh at all...)  Kenshin suddenly realized that that oddly
intimate act was actually just a cover for Saitoh's real gesture.
With a subtle flick of the fingers, Saitoh brushed back Tokio's
sleeve, exposing her wrist... and the clear band of darkening bruises
around it.

    His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, then glanced up at his wife.
Tokio patiently returned her husband's gaze and continued to set out
his dinner.  Except for Kenshin, no one else seemed to notice the
brief interchange between husband and wife.

    (Bruises?  Where did she get... oh, no... Sano.)  Kenshin felt a
definite twinge of uneasiness.  (If Saitoh finds out that he left
those bruises....)  Although Saitoh had not expressed any sign of
marital affection -- either by word or deed -- instinct told Kenshin
that it was NOT because of any lack of feeling on Saitoh's part.

    As he calmly began to devour the fish Tokio placed in front of
him, Saitoh said, "Perhaps you'll be interested in knowing that Mr.
Honami -- the man who decided to kill himself by smashing his brains
all over the street -- was being pursued by the police.  It appears
that some neighbors caught him in the act of slaughtering his entire
family with a sword.  He was shot several times, but he still managed
to elude them."

    Misao whispered, "Then... you've caught the murderer... the person
who's been killing all those people recently...."

    "No," Saitoh calmly corrected.

    "WHAT!?" everyone shouted.

    "He definitely killed his own family, but he couldn't have killed
the other five families.  We had his whereabouts checked," Saitoh said
as he casually stole the fish off Sano's plate.

    Kenshin stiffened.  "You mean to say...."
 
    "Yes.  "He is a murderer, but not THE murderer... if there is a
single killer."

    "You think there's more than one?" Kenshin said.

    "There's least two killers and perhaps more.  There's a pattern in
this madness.  The trick is to figure out what it is."

    Kenshin murmured, "All these deaths... they're totally random, but
at the same time, they're not random at all."

    Sano slammed his rice bowl down and said, "I don't understand what
the hell you guys are trying to say!"

    Saitoh snorted and said, "Of course you don't."  With his
chopsticks, he leisurely started putting peas in six separate heaps on
the table.

    "Assume that each pea is a death.  There have been six distinct
groupings of murders."  He pointed at a single heap of peas.
"Everyone within a group is related somehow -- by blood, marriage, or
close friendship -- but no group is related to any other group.  They
have virtually nothing in common.  The groups don't have mutual
acquaintances and they don't have similar social, economic, or
political affiliations. Do you get that much?"

    Sano glared furiously at Saitoh.  "Of course I do!  What do you
think I am?  An idiot!?"

    Misao muttered, "Don't answer that."

    Saitoh continued, "There are only three things that all six groups
have in common.  First, all these people are dead.  Second, they all
died the same way."

    Kenshin quietly said, "Killed by a highly skilled swordsman."

    "Exactly."

    Kenshin glanced curiously at Saitoh.  "But what's the third
thing?"

    Saitoh carefully put a piece of bright orange carrot in each heap
of peas.

    "Third, there's a suicide associated with each group of deaths.
Again, the suicide is related to the murder victims by blood,
marriage, or friendship.  Curious, isn't it?"

    "'Curious' is not exactly the word I would use, Saitoh," muttered
Kenshin.

    "Now I get it," said Yahiko, staring at the little heaps of
vegetables scattered across the tabletop.  "Random in some ways, but
not random in others."

    Saitoh smirked at Sano.  "Well, if the brat can understand what
I'm talking about, surely YOU can."

    "Why you...!" Sano growled as he started to get to his feet.

    Megumi yanked him back down onto his cushion and snapped, "Hush!
This is getting interesting!"

    As Sano and the doctor started yelling at each other, Kaoru asked,
"But why are you involved?  Murder, even mass murder, doesn't seem to
be a matter for the secret police."

    Saitoh gave them a chilly smile.  "On the contrary.  When expert
killers suddenly show up and start slaughtering people in my
jurisdiction, then I consider it my business.  Even more so when I end
up being a prime suspect in these murders, at least initially."

    "There were traces of Shinsengumi-style swordwork," Kenshin
replied.
 
    "Hmph.  I don't argue that."
 
    There was a soft groan from the next room.
 
    "Aoshi-sama!"  Misao tried to get up, but nearly fell over because
of the stiffness in her muscles.

    Megumi gave Sano a last angry look and hauled herself to her feet.
 She patted Misao on the shoulder.  "You stay put.  I'll take a look
at him."

    Just as Megumi left the room, Tokio came from the kitchen and
looked around.  "Where's Megumi-san?"

    Sano muttered in a sulky voice, "She's checking on Aoshi.  He
finally decided to wake up."
 
    "Thank you."  Tokio headed off as Misao started yelling at Sano.
 
    Over the noise, Saitoh put a piece of red pepper on the table.
"Assume that this is the killer.  Or rather, the killers."  He added a
few more red pepper chunks.

    With his own chopsticks, Kenshin replaced the carrot cube in one
heap of peas with a piece of red pepper.  "But we know that the
unfortunate Mr. Honami is both the suicide AND the murderer associated
with this group of people."

    "Yes.  Which makes me wonder about the other suicides...," said
Saitoh.  With his chopstick, he thoughtfully nudged a carrot chunk in
one of the other heaps of peas.

    As they all stared at the neatly arranged vegetables, Kaoru said,
"But how does Misao fit into this picture?"

    Saitoh shrugged.  "No idea.  So is someone going to tell me what
happened between Shinomori and the Weasel Girl?"
 
    Misao stopped arguing with Sano and glared angrily at Saitoh.
"Will you stop calling me that!?"

    Sano plunked down a chunk of onion on the tabletop, away from the
other vegetables.  "Say that this is Misao."  He then placed a single,
tiny grain of rice beside it.  "And this is Aoshi...."

    "What!?  You jerk!  How DARE you use a measly piece of rice to
represent Aoshi-sama!?"

    Yahiko butted into the conversation by saying, "No way!  He should
be a piece of cold fish!"

    Misao squeaked in outrage.
 
    As she, Yahiko, and Sano got into a heated three-way fight about
the virtues and faults of Aoshi, Kenshin sighed wearily.  "I think
they're taking your demonstration a bit too seriously."
 
    Saitoh uttered a malicious chuckle, then said, "So what happened?
The Weasel Girl's no match for Aoshi, even if the fool was holding
back."

-----------------------------------

    In the ward room in the clinic, Tokio glanced at Aoshi, who
appeared to be sleeping peacefully again.  Megumi was standing at the
far side of the room.  With her back turned, the doctor seemed unaware
of Tokio's presence.

    "Do you have any more soy sauce?  You appear to be out...."
 
    Megumi murmured, "I can't decide who should be first.  That idiot
Sano or Ken-san...."

    Tokio cocked her head slightly and said, "Excuse me?  I didn't
quite catch what you said...."
 
    Megumi turned around, black sword in hand and a wicked glint in
her eyes.

-----------------------------------

    As Kenshin finished giving Saitoh the general overview of Misao's
encounter with Aoshi -- discretely omitting any mention of the more
personal moments -- Saitoh raised an eyebrow and said, "So, the Weasel
Girl is blaming it all on the sword?"
 
    "That sword's EVIL, I tell you!" Misao protested.
 
    "What, are you going to start telling me stories of demons and
ghosts, now?"  Saitoh said.  "Or are you suggesting that the thing's
somehow cursed?"

    (He... doesn't sound like he's entirely joking,) Kenshin realized
with astonishment.
 
    Misao yanked her hair and shouted, "Why am I wasting my time?  You
obviously don't believe a word I'm saying!  That damn weapon was
probably MADE for someone like you!"

    "Oh ho.  Now I'm curious.  So, where is this diabolical sword?"
 
    Kaoru said, "I don't know.  I think Kenshin had it...."
 
    They all turned to stare at him.  Kenshin glanced around in
bewilderment, then suddenly frowned.

    (Yes, I did have it... so where did I put it?)  He was a little
startled to realize that he couldn't quite remember where he had left
the sword.

    Saitoh smirked, "Going senile already, Battousai?"
 
    "HAJIME!!!"
 
    The next instant, Saitoh was on his feet, his sword half-drawn.
Through the open double doorway leading to the main sickroom, both he
and Kenshin saw Tokio hastily throwing herself over Aoshi's bed in a
desperate attempt to evade the dark blade slashing toward her.
Saitoh's wife rolled off the bed and landed on the floor with a thud.
Scrambling to her feet, Tokio hastily backed away as Megumi jumped
effortlessly  over the bed and cornered her at the other side of the
long ward room.

    The doctor burst into a vicious snicker, then held the sword
parallel to the floor.  Her other hand was extended before her,
hovering just above the blade, and she crouched slightly.  It was an
instantly recognizable stance.

    A stunned Kenshin thought, (That's a form of the Gatotsu!  What is
Megumi doing!)  He started as he heard a soft growl beside him.  That
faint sound, along with the narrowed eyes were the only signs of
Saitoh's tightly controlled fury.  But even as the former Shinsengumi
captain started to move, Megumi lunged toward Tokio.

    (We're not going to reach them in time!), thought Kenshin.

    With no place to go, Tokio grabbed the first thing she could in a
desperate attempt to shield herself.  Amazingly, there was no fear or
panic on her face... only grim determination.  In that instant,
Kenshin caught a glimpse of what must have attracted Saitoh to an
apparently helpless woman like Tokio.

    (A soul of steel... total dedication... two kindred spirits....)
 
    A wolf and its mate....

    Megumi's powerful thrust drove the black sword right through the
metal basin in Tokio's hands.  By some miracle, Tokio somehow managed
to deflect the path of the blade just enough.  The tip of the sword
missed its main target and opened a shallow gash on her shoulder.
Tokio didn't make a sound as she clung desperately to the basin.  It
was the only thing which kept Megumi from cutting her to pieces.

    Kenshin yelled, "Megumi!  Stop!"

    Amazingly, she did.  She turned to stare at Saitoh and Kenshin.
Saitoh inhaled sharply and Kenshin felt an eerie chill run down his
spine at the look of almost unholy joy that suddenly appeared on
Megumi's face.  It was an expression of almost elemental recognition.

    "Battousai... and Saitoh...."  Megumi's smile widened even
further.  "Both of you... I've found you, at last!"

    As Megumi attempted to wrench her blade free from the metal basin,
Saitoh took instant advantage of the opening and launched his own
attack.
 
    "HIYAHHH!!!"

    "SAITOH!!!" bellowed Sano as he threw himself at Saitoh.  He had
no real idea what was going on.  All he knew was that Saitoh had every
intention of killing Megumi.

    Saitoh caught a glimpse of Sano's charge from the corner of his
eye.  With his right fist, he viciously punched Sano aside without
even slowing.  But that instant of distraction was more than enough
for the doctor.  Unable to pull her blade free in time to deflect
Saitoh's attack, Megumi grabbed Tokio's sleeve and yanked the woman in
front of her....

    ....right into the path of Saitoh's Gatotsu.
 
-----------------------------------

    Saitoh's only thought was, (Too close!!!)

    He could see Tokio turning... trying to get out of the way... but
it wouldn't be enough.

    Too late to stop... and no way to miss her....

-----------------------------------

    To Kenshin, it was if time stood still... an icy winter's day....
 
    ....the pale blur that was a woman's hopelessly vulnerable
back....
    ....the smear of darkness that was blood....

    ....images he would never forget....

    "NO!!!"  Kenshin leapt over Sano's sprawled body and lunged with
every bit of speed he had.

-----------------------------------

    Saitoh's desperate but futile attempt to stop was the only thing
that gave Kenshin enough time to intercept him.  His battou-jutsu
attack slammed Saitoh's blade aside just before he crashed into his
old enemy and the two of them collided with Tokio and Megumi.

    With bone-jarring force, they all ended in a great heap... four
people, three swords, and a perforated metal basin.

-----------------------------------

(end of part 5)

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Next part:   More of the Dinner Show!   ^_^

Gee, I've been feeling an uncontrollable impulse to write a lemon
sidestory with Saitoh and Tokio.   ^_^;;;;

--------------------------------------------
madamhydra@aol.com         /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/:E

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