Chapter 5
Kaoru woke abruptly as her horse came to a sudden stop. Shock ran wildly through her body when she recognized her surroundings. This was the Demon City, the part of town thought to be cursed and haunted by those killed in the war to create the new government. The houses and shops stood dark and lonely, their ruins staring out at her accusingly, as if to say It was you that ruined us! You that caused us to become what we are now!, but Kaoru did not remember ever contributing to the war effort. Shivering slightly, she urged her horse to move closer to Yuugure, who had suddenly become a dark, cold shadow, immediately blending in with the dark surroundings. The two horses trotted silently through the abandoned streets and stopped once more when they arrived at a large, once-beautiful building. Now it was dark, like everything else and surrounded by an eery mist. It’s once bold structure now seemed weak and exhausted, and its walls were cracked and worn. Its exterior landscape was an overgrown tangle of wild weeds and exotic flowers with an occasional gleam of the eyes of a snake or small rodent.
Yuugure turned slightly towards Kaoru.
“Come back this way behind the inn so we can tie up the horses. Then I’ll take you to meet the other three Stars. You’ll meet Night tomorrow.”
Kaoru nodded obediently and instructed her horse to follow Yuugure to the back of the building which she now recognized as Akuma Inn, formerly the most prosperous and expensive inn in town, mostly because it served the best food and contained pleasure quarters for the men as well as having excellent service. It was a shame that the inn and the surrounding, once magnificent buildings had been closed off from the rest of the city. When they reached the back of the inn, Kaoru noticed a line of crude wooden poles jutting out from the earth. Four of the poles were occupied by other horses, presumably belonging to the other Stars and Night. Kaoru guessed that the most magnificent horse, the black stallion, belonged to Night. Yuugure reached up and helped Kaoru off her mare, before quickly securing the horse to the nearest pole. He did the same for his horse and departed for the building, motioning Kaoru to follow.
Once inside the inn, Kaoru was astounded by the exoticness of her surroundings. Candles were everywhere, lighting the way though every corridor in the inn, and the soothing scent of incense filled her nostrils. Intricate rugs of strange, beautiful creatures covered the floor, and paintings of the night sky hung in various places on the walls. Yuugure waited patiently for Kaoru as she stared at her surroundings, but after a few more minutes, he reached out and touched her arm, motioning for her to come with him. Reluctantly, Kaoru followed, still wondering at her surroundings, and they stopped in front of a large sliding door. Yuugure skillfully slid it open and pulled Kaoru in after him before quickly sliding it shut again in one swift, fluid motion.
Kaoru looked around the room and noticed three figures staring at her. The first one, a boy only a few years older than herself, narrowed his eyes and eyed her suspiciously. In his hand, he held a long, sharp sword, its handle carved with the figure of a tiger. His face was pale, hard, and cold, and his dark, indigo hair lay carelessly tousled on his head in such away that it made him appear so much more dangerous. The next figure was a girl, perhaps two years younger than Kaoru, with a seductive smile on her face and mocking gold eyes. She was a very pretty girl with silky black hair that reached all the way down to the small of her back. Her body was delicately curved and covered with a thin, off-the-shoulder kimono. In her hand, she held a pretty, but deadly-looking fan decorated with a black serpent The next figure was also female, but much older, perhaps in her late 20’s or early 30’s. Her face was smooth and cold, and her eyes were icy blue. Unlike the other girl, her long red hair was pulled up into a crude ponytail instead of lying loose and free on her back. She was clad in men’s clothes and even her movements were that of a man. She held no visible weapon.
Yuugure smiled slightly at the three and gestured to each one, introducing them to Kaoru.
“Tora, Star of the Tiger”
The dark, handsome boy stepped forward and nodded slightly, his eyes still narrowed. He looked Kaoru up and down testily, and Kaoru backed up a step.
“Hebi....Star of the Serpent.”
The young, seductive girl stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Yuugure’s waist, smiling sweetly.
“Yuugure, I missed you...why don’t you come and play with me tonight...”
Yuugure glared at her coldly and pushed her roughly away. Hebi pouted and folded her arms across her chest sulkily, glaring at Kaoru and Yuugure.
“..and Ralon...Star of the Lion.”
The older woman stepped forward, her face expressionless, but somehow, Kaoru felt something different about the woman...perhaps a trace of kindness, or even compassion....Maybe it was acceptance. Kaoru smiled hopefully at Ralon, but the woman didn’t respond.
“Everyone, this is Kaoru...Star of the Phoenix, and Kaoru, as you know,...I am Yuugure, Star of the Night Dragon.”
The three other Stars nodded slightly, not quite accepting Kaoru, but recognizing that she wasn’t an enemy. Hebi looked at Kaoru curiously for a second and smiled icily.
“So how do we know she’s good enough to be one of us, Yuugure? How do you know she’s not a fake, pretending to be a Star of Night?”
Yuugure pondered the question for a moment before a slow, cool smile spread across his face.
“Because Night chose her....not me....”
There was a murmer among the group, and Ralon and Tora glanced at Hebi, eyebrows raised curiously.
“You mean to say, that Night chose this...Kaoru, over Hebi?”
Tora smiled coldly. He was not particularly fond of Hebi and her flirtateous manner, and inflicting pain on her was one of his hobbies.
Hebi glowered angrily and flicked her fan shut loudly.
“Watch your mouth, Tora, or there’ll be one very dead body in your bed tomorrow.”
“...And that body will be yours.”
Tora was now crouched in a battle stance, his sword drawn and ready to strike. Hebi held her fan poised dangerously abover her head, her other hand brandishing two sharp and deadly hair pins. Yuugure stepped forward abruptly and stopped the two.
“This is not the time to fight. Save your energy for our fight against the enemy.”
Tora and Hebi reluctantly put up their weapons and waited for what Yuugure had to say next.
“All right. I know the four of us have been together for a long time without any intrusion, but Kaoru-dono is the 5th Star, and we have to cooperate together if we want to defeat Night’s enemy.” After several minutes of silence, Ralon nodded her agreement.
“I welcome you, Kaoru, but if you cause any trouble for us, you’re dead.”
With these words, Ralon left the room, and Kaoru stared at her back dumbfoundedly. Tora shifted uncomfortably for a bit nefore finally speaking up.
“Can you fight?”
Kaoru nodded.
“Well? Can you fight well?”
Kaoru hesitated a moment before nodding again. Yuugure smiled approvingly and relaxed slightly.
“Fine...I accept her, Yuugure, but she better be able to fight, unlike some people here.”
Tora gestured obviously at Hebi before disappearing into the darkness. Hebi snarled, deep in her throat and turned violently to Kaoru, speaking in a whisper.
“Fine, you can stay, but remember, baka, Night and Yuugure are MINE!!”
Kaoru nodded furiously, blood pounding in her head out of fear for the strange, jealous girl. Hebi roughly spun around and walked away. Yuugure watched sympathetically as Kaoru stared at Hebi’s angrily retreating back.
“Kaoru...don’t worry about Hebi. She gets like that sometimes. She’ll get over it. I’ll take you to your room now.”
Kaoru nodded meekly and followed Yuugure out the door.
***********
Kenshin, Sanosuke, and Yahiko walked silently through the woods towards Demon City, thoughts of Kaoru filling their minds. Yahiko remembered her lessons, her kindness, and the fun that he always had with her. He remembered her motto, “You must fight with the sword that protects life,” clearly, and promised himself he would use his shinai to protect her...to rescue her from the devil that stole her from them. Sanosuke remembered her hard-headedness, the jokes they shared, and her kindness towards him whenever he was hurt. He remembered the worry in her eyes when Kenshin and he returned from battle after battle covered with wounds. Clenching his fists, he swore he would bring her back...bring her back to Kenshin, who loved her.
Kenshin remembered everything. He remembered her sweetness and her stubbornness. He remembered when she chased him all the way to the river before his fight with Jin’eh just to give him her ribbon so he would remember to return to the Kamiya Kasshin school to return it. He remembered the difficulty of saying goodbye to her when he left for Kyoto and his delight when she came looking for him. Her image remained clear in his mind, and he shook his head at her memory. Kaoru-dono..I’ll find you!!!! Yoru will pay for this!! I promise!!! Wait for me Kaoru.....
The trio pushed on, more and more determined to find their old friend. All three became more nad more excited as they moved closer and closer to the outskirts of Demon City and the thought of seeing Kaoru again. Kenshin gritted his teeth as thoughts of he and Kaoru flashed through his mind, intertwined with grotesque images of Yoru reaching out, wrenching her from his grasp while she turned dark and evil, laughing coldly at a desperate and lonely Kenshin. I promise I’ll get you back, Kaoru.... I lost Tomoe already. I will not lose you!!!!!