Rurouni Kenshin Ficlet Excerpt
I said several weeks ago that I would be taking a summer hiatus from Dream Weaver and Allerleiruah, but the muse still pesters, pokes, and prods sometimes with other ideas until I just have to write them down or I don't sleep. Here is the result of one such prodding. This is possibly the beginning of a ficlet based on a challenge/prompt that was thrown down by LC Rose (aka tnew78 ) many months ago, and, as with most ideas she sends my way, challenges the boundaries of my comfort zone, but the idea just won't leave me alone. So, despite the mayhem that is my lift this summer, I had to put the proverbial pen to paper.
I posted a portion of this as a drabble to fanfic_bakeoff a few days back, but thought I would cross-post the complete scenes here and get opinions/thoughts/critiques from the RK fans that read this journal (or anyone else who wants to chime in). I know there's not much here to critique, but feedback/constructive criticism would greatly appreciated. It hasn't be beta'd so please excuse any grammar/spelling issues.
Kaoru…
The whisper, smooth and deep, reverberated through the void of her dreams. There was no light in this place, only the rustle of feathers and that voice, slick as honey. It slid through her being inspiring a desperate longing that pooled deep in her gut with such strength it left her breathless with want.
Come…
“Where are you?!” she cried searching the blackness. Her breath caught in her throat as the brush of calloused fingers along her jaw was given in answer, blazing a fiery trail down her neck and along her collar bone.
Kaoru reached out for him when he withdrew his touch.
“Wait! Please!” she begged, all but whimpering at the loss of his touch. “Who are you?”
Then she saw it, in the distance, the tiniest prick of light shining through the darkness.
Fighting against the leaden weight of her limbs, she ran toward it, knowing the object of her search was there. She could see him silhouetted against the brightening backdrop, tall, strong. As she drew close, enormous, ebony wings unfurled, spreading wide to welcome her into their embrace before the vision shattered in an explosion of downy blackness.
~~~
Kaoru groaned, the incessant beeping of her alarm pulling her from the heavy darkness of sleep.
“God, I hate this,” she mumbled reaching over to hit the snooze and burying her face in her pillow as she tried to grasp the last vestiges of her dream, but just like every other night, the substance slipped away leaving only the ache of unfulfilled desire and the image of feathers.
They both terrified and thrilled her... those black feathers that seemed to be the only link to a past she could barely remember. They haunted her, invading her dreams, her nightmares.
It all began a year ago when she’d been found bloody, broken, and unconscious at the emergency room doors, a single ebony feather clutched in her right hand - the mark of the Sentinel, or so they had said when she’d come to in the hospital.
The police came to take her statement, but there was little she could tell them other than the general location of the alley where she’d been attacked. Her memories of the assault were scattered, consisting mostly of pain and screams when her savior had descended upon her attackers. The police had told her there was little left of the bodies. Were it not for the identification in their pockets, she would never have known their names.
“A random act or violence.” That’s what the brief investigation had concluded.
No one knew for sure who or what The Sentinal was, only that he guarded the city in a strange kind of twisted justice. Some claimed he could fly; most called him a demon, but no one had ever seen him. No matter what rumors circled about this strange being, Kaoru only saw him as an angel - her angel - dark though he may be.
And then there was the voice, that slick-as-honey baritone that haunted her to this day. It had whispered to her that night, telling her to be strong, to stay alive. For months, she’d listened to police scanners, watched the papers, trying to anticipate where he would appear, but she was always one step behind. Her friends told her she was crazy and maybe she was.
“Don’t go looking for trouble, Kaoru.”
How many times had Kenshin told her that? More than Kaoru cared to admit, but she couldn’t help it. Since that night, she’d felt inextricably bound to the creature haunting her dreams.
The alarm sounded again, the sound of it grating on her sleep-sensitive hearing. Sighing heavily, she turned it off, rubbing eyes that were gritty from lack of good sleep even as she hauled herself upright. She had just enough time to shower before heading out to her night job. She was scheduled to go until closing and with school the next day, she knew there would be no searching for him tonight.
Turning on the shower, she let it run for several minutes while she gathered a fresh change of clothes. Stepping under the steady stream of water, Kaoru closed her eyes and tried to let it’s warmth wash away the dream.
I posted a portion of this as a drabble to fanfic_bakeoff a few days back, but thought I would cross-post the complete scenes here and get opinions/thoughts/critiques from the RK fans that read this journal (or anyone else who wants to chime in). I know there's not much here to critique, but feedback/constructive criticism would greatly appreciated. It hasn't be beta'd so please excuse any grammar/spelling issues.
Kaoru…
The whisper, smooth and deep, reverberated through the void of her dreams. There was no light in this place, only the rustle of feathers and that voice, slick as honey. It slid through her being inspiring a desperate longing that pooled deep in her gut with such strength it left her breathless with want.
Come…
“Where are you?!” she cried searching the blackness. Her breath caught in her throat as the brush of calloused fingers along her jaw was given in answer, blazing a fiery trail down her neck and along her collar bone.
Kaoru reached out for him when he withdrew his touch.
“Wait! Please!” she begged, all but whimpering at the loss of his touch. “Who are you?”
Then she saw it, in the distance, the tiniest prick of light shining through the darkness.
Fighting against the leaden weight of her limbs, she ran toward it, knowing the object of her search was there. She could see him silhouetted against the brightening backdrop, tall, strong. As she drew close, enormous, ebony wings unfurled, spreading wide to welcome her into their embrace before the vision shattered in an explosion of downy blackness.
~~~
Kaoru groaned, the incessant beeping of her alarm pulling her from the heavy darkness of sleep.
“God, I hate this,” she mumbled reaching over to hit the snooze and burying her face in her pillow as she tried to grasp the last vestiges of her dream, but just like every other night, the substance slipped away leaving only the ache of unfulfilled desire and the image of feathers.
They both terrified and thrilled her... those black feathers that seemed to be the only link to a past she could barely remember. They haunted her, invading her dreams, her nightmares.
It all began a year ago when she’d been found bloody, broken, and unconscious at the emergency room doors, a single ebony feather clutched in her right hand - the mark of the Sentinel, or so they had said when she’d come to in the hospital.
The police came to take her statement, but there was little she could tell them other than the general location of the alley where she’d been attacked. Her memories of the assault were scattered, consisting mostly of pain and screams when her savior had descended upon her attackers. The police had told her there was little left of the bodies. Were it not for the identification in their pockets, she would never have known their names.
“A random act or violence.” That’s what the brief investigation had concluded.
No one knew for sure who or what The Sentinal was, only that he guarded the city in a strange kind of twisted justice. Some claimed he could fly; most called him a demon, but no one had ever seen him. No matter what rumors circled about this strange being, Kaoru only saw him as an angel - her angel - dark though he may be.
And then there was the voice, that slick-as-honey baritone that haunted her to this day. It had whispered to her that night, telling her to be strong, to stay alive. For months, she’d listened to police scanners, watched the papers, trying to anticipate where he would appear, but she was always one step behind. Her friends told her she was crazy and maybe she was.
“Don’t go looking for trouble, Kaoru.”
How many times had Kenshin told her that? More than Kaoru cared to admit, but she couldn’t help it. Since that night, she’d felt inextricably bound to the creature haunting her dreams.
The alarm sounded again, the sound of it grating on her sleep-sensitive hearing. Sighing heavily, she turned it off, rubbing eyes that were gritty from lack of good sleep even as she hauled herself upright. She had just enough time to shower before heading out to her night job. She was scheduled to go until closing and with school the next day, she knew there would be no searching for him tonight.
Turning on the shower, she let it run for several minutes while she gathered a fresh change of clothes. Stepping under the steady stream of water, Kaoru closed her eyes and tried to let it’s warmth wash away the dream.