"It’s no good…no matter how much I try to forget…it haunts me…" Misao sits
on her futon back in Kyoto, hugging her knees. She looks down at her scratched
up hand and her eye begin to water. She clenches her hand into a fist and
tries to hold back the tears by shutting her
eyes.
"Aoshi-sama…why
did you…you shouldn’t have had to…am I really that weak?" she thinks to
herself. She falls to her pillow, sobbing silently so that no one else
will hear. "I need to become stronger…I need to be able to hold my own
in battle…or Aoshi-sama will…"
"You
were injured badly in this last fight Aoshi…" Okina sits opposite of Aoshi,
who is silently sipping his tea. Okina sees him wince when he puts down
his tea cup. "You should finish her train-"
"There’s
no need Okina…" He looks up from his cup. "As long as I live, nothing will
happen to our former leaders daughter." He reaches for his cup and takes
another sip. "Nothing," he repeats to himself.
Okina
looks over at Aoshi thinking ",You still don’t get it…do you?" He
sighs and take a sip or his tea.
Aoshi finishes the last
of his tea and stands up to leave. "Thank you for drinking with me Okina."
"You
should rest. Those wounds need time to heal."
Aoshi
opens the screen and steps out into the night. The light of the full moon
shines brightly, making the courtyard glisten from all the dew that has
collected. He breathes in the cold air deeply, and slowly exhales, the
moisture of his breathe forming mist in the night.
"I know…I
just want to check on Misao real quick. See if she needs anything before
I turn in." Okina nods and he closes the screen.
"Where
am I? What am I doing here? Jiya?! Aoshi-sama?!" Misao looks around her
and sees only the forest. No one returns her calls. Just silence.
All of
a sudden she hears the rustling of leaves and whirls around to see what
cause the noise. "Who’s there? Show yourself!! Don’t mess with me!! I’m
a member of the Onimitsu Oniwabanshuu!! I’ll kick your butt!!" She readies
her tobikunai, keeping her ears and eyes open to any other activity.
"So jou-chan…you’re
part of the legendary Oniwabanshuu? A little girl like you? Shall we test
your skills?"She
turns around to face her opponent but it’s too late. Two hands grab her
arms and force her back to a tree.
"Heh…you’re
just a kid…but why let the opportunity go to waste…" He starts lean in
and Misao struggles to break free.
"It’s
no use…no use…I’m not strong enough…" She sees the bandit leaning closer,
and shut her eyes tight, bracing herself for what she know will happen
next. "Ao…shi…sama…"
"Heh…no
one’s gonna- ungh!!" She feels the hands loosen their grip and eventually
fall away from her. She slowly opens her eyes and sees…
"Aoshi…"
He looks
at her and smiles. "Misao…are you okay?"
Her eyes
tear up. "Aoshi-sama…I’m fi-" She cuts off in mid-sentence as she watches
Aoshi get slashed from behind, blood splurging from his open wound. He
falls forward, and slowly a pool of his own blood forms beneath him. The
shadow vanishes back into the forest. She falls to her knees beside him,
hand held up to her mouth in disbelief.
"Aoshi…oh
God no…no….NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!"
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
She sits
up in her futon, sweat dripping from her face. She buries her face in her
hands. "It’s a sign. There’s no other choice." She feels tears welling
up again, but fights them back. "No! The time for crying is over. It’s
either do or do not. There’s no more time for tears." An image of Aoshi
flashes in her mind and she becomes even more determined.
"Even
if you won’t teach me…I’ll find a way to become stronger." She looks up
at the full moon through her window.
"Even
if you are not my teacher Aoshi-sama…I won’t give up until I’m stronger...I
swear it!!"