on the wrong track, pt10
Where had she come from?
She had appeared so suddenly, and brought with her years of trouble. It was almost amusing, in a way.
But who was she, really?
He didn’t believe for one moment that she was something simple as an over amorous stalker. But although she was a stranger, she knew much more than his name. She noticed things he had not allowed himself to become aware of and it unsettled him deeply to realize someone had gotten so close to him without his knowledge. She knew of his magic, of the way he kept it suppress to the extent that it was a dam waiting to burst. Going on these trips apparently weren’t enough of an outlet, but he was afraid damnit! Afraid that if he let his magic flow - let himself relax - he would return to that and the peaceful life with a honorable job, fiancée and a spacious flat would be replaced with blood and bone-chilling loneliness. It didn’t matter that in the end, it might kill him.
It was worth it, wasn’t it?
He’d fought so hard to get to where he was now, had withstood so many horrors to achieve this little bit of normalcy, that he couldn’t let himself lose it at any cost. This girl was the first to really threaten his safe, peaceful life and all she’d done was witness the part of it that wasn’t safe, wasn’t peaceful, and she’d noticed.
Why is she doing this?
Getting too interested in an Assassin was always dangerous, but pursuing information about Battousai was considered suicide among most and he himself would not hesitate to remove a threat to his own identity, although he might not be living up to some of the rumors (he didn’t bathe in blood to dye his hair red, nor did he drink it to obtain inhuman powers). The only ones who would try him would be former enemies from the Revolution, ignorant thugs or people yearning to shoulder the title of the strongest.
Abe Mai was too young to harbor any resentment from the Revolution, her eyes were bright and curious, not arrogant, and he couldn’t imagine her ambitions to lie in succeeding himself.
Kenshin sighed from where he stood leaning against the wall outside the third pub he’d visited within the span of a couple of minutes. He’d been moving fast, his temper raging inside and making his magic hum in excitement. Tonight had been trying, he hadn’t used this much of his powers for years and it left him tired and sore. He needed to find Sano, but none of the shady bars he’d been to so far had any trace of the rooster-head’s presence. If only he could find him, then maybe things would become easier.
First off, it was obvious that Sano knew the girl responsible for all this trouble. How well, remained to be seen, but at the very least they were acquainted. Maybe they’d been at the same café, before she stopped by the Akabeko? Shaking his head, he snorted at the thought. A girl like Abe Mai was never seen in the places Sano visited. Unless…
She had yet to tell him where she’d acquired enough education to pass the entrance exam of the Freelance Tracker Guild. He didn’t know how easy it was to buy yourself knowledge in the black market for someone like Miss Abe, but Sano did.
There was so much more to this than the girl’s stalker story, he could tell.
Pushing himself up from the wall, Kenshin walked out on the street to continue his search for the younger man. He wouldn’t rest until this mystery was solved.
oOo
“Ah, Missy, I don’t know if this is a good idea…” Sano began, but trailed off at the heated glare sent his way. He watched, feeling quite helpless, as Kaoru continued to climb out through the window of the hotel room situated on the fourth floor.
“I can’t go through the door like you, Sano,” she grumbled. “The wards only let you through and I wasn’t able to create a loophole anywhere else, so just shut up and get out of here before he returns!” She paused to blow a couple of stray strands of hair form her eyes before adjusting her grip of her skirts, silently wondering what had possessed her to wear a dress when she followed Himura to the warehouse. Too late to linger on now. “Now hand me my luggage, rooster-head, before your friend Himura gets back and kills me.”
“He would never kill you Missy! He’s a good guy!” Sano protested with a frown, crossing his arms and letting the luggage stay where it way, just out of reach from her position. She just rolled her eyes and muttered what he suspected was a curse under her breath before sending him a suspiciously sweet smile that had the hairs in his neck standing.
“Now that you mention it…didn’t you compare Himura with a saint not so long ago? And if I remember it correctly, you claimed he would never leave his desk or bring harm upon anyone?” she asked with a tone to match her sickly sweet smile. He gulped, trying to remember when he’d told her such a thing, but she cut him off before he could stumble over his half-assed reply. “Since I have it all written down in my notebook somewhere, I can assure you that you did, in fact, describe him as such. And so, I would like to know what the hell happened in the warehouse. There certainly wasn’t anything saint-like about that, Sanosuke!”
“Well, you see,” he began, resisting the urge to fidget by stuffing his hands deep into his pockets and looking away before continuing in a rather sulky voice, a tell-tale sign he had been cornered by his own words. “He is a saint, in a way, Missy! Like, in a guardian-saint-like way, you know? And I dunno what I said about harming, but I know he wouldn’t do anything wrong; he’s honorable! He’s even made a vow to never kill again! But the bad guys don’t always hand themselves over without a fight, you know? And the L.E.G doesn’t always have what it takes to bring them in. So Kenshin kinda has to hunt the baddest guys down since he’s the best they’ve got and it always ends with fighting. That’s what happened tonight. That guy was a fricking serial killer!”
A bit taken aback by this new information, Kaoru made a mental note to write it all down as soon as she got the chance. But now, she could see his point, and she silently agreed that Himura certainly, without doubt, was the best the L.E.G had and ever could get. It didn’t help to quench her worries of what this meant for her personal safety though, since she was quite sure Himura didn’t view her as one of the good guys…or at least wouldn’t, if he found out much more about her.
“So he’s still doing the dirty work of his Guild, is he?” she mumbled, causing Sano to raise a brow in question before she continued in a louder voice. “So he’s still acting like the Battousai at times? That’s what all his business trips are about? Minus the killing, apparently.”
Wincing, Sano hurriedly reached down for her luggage and handed it over, wishing he would someday learn to keep his mouth shut. Especially around people like Kaoru, and Kenshin for that matter. “He doesn’t like to look at it that way Missy. That title is pretty heavy. Now go, before he gets back. I really don’t want him to catch me helping you escape; I’ll have enough trouble with pretending you’re not like a little sister to me and keeping myself out of your little investigation!”
“Just say I’m an old flame or something, he won’t be suspicious of that with the way you are around women,” she offered with a satisfied smirk as he blanched at the idea. Snagging the old, worn bag containing her meager supplies for this trip-gone-wrong, she was now hanging from the windowsill with her arms as support. Sending him an impatient glare, she held out a free hand expectantly. “And the tickets?”
“Missy! He’ll kill me!” he exclaimed, trying to make her see some reason despite knowing it was, obviously, futile. She merely raised a brow, and he merely sighed again, before handing them over.
“I thought you said he wouldn’t kill? And just say I must’ve stolen them! No, wait, don’t say anything about it until he does. If he suspects you, remind him that they were lying in the bedside table, after all. Totally unprotected. And, what kind of stupid captive would I be to not do everything I can in order to slow you down and prevent your search to go easy?”
He pouted slightly at her logic, but remained silent. Smiling, she gave him a wave before letting go of the window and falling down. He rushed over to poke his head out, watching her descend to the ground in a rather frightening speed. A glow of soft magic emitted from her then, and he could hear the soft click of her heels meeting the ground gracefully. He’ll never understand how people can manipulate their magic so carefully, but then again, he’d always been one for brute force. Both physically and with his mage powers.
“You’ll tell me not to worry,” he mumbled as he watched her slight figure run down the darkened streets towards to train station, “but this time, Missy, it’s justified.”
Leaving the window and slipping out of the room, he quietly made his way down the hall and stairs to return to the safety and familiarity of the pub. He would need another couple of drinks before he could figure out a way to avoid facing the temper of the Battousai.
oOo
NEXT PART
PREVIOUS PART
FIRST PART
so...Kaoru does not know when it is wise to give up. but people have different priorities, I guess. and it's quite fun to lead Battousai on this wild goose chase, you know? *sadistic glee*
and Sano....poor thing. he really doesn't want anything to do with this lol.
next up, Kaoru deals with her new situation and...enter a new character! :D
She had appeared so suddenly, and brought with her years of trouble. It was almost amusing, in a way.
But who was she, really?
He didn’t believe for one moment that she was something simple as an over amorous stalker. But although she was a stranger, she knew much more than his name. She noticed things he had not allowed himself to become aware of and it unsettled him deeply to realize someone had gotten so close to him without his knowledge. She knew of his magic, of the way he kept it suppress to the extent that it was a dam waiting to burst. Going on these trips apparently weren’t enough of an outlet, but he was afraid damnit! Afraid that if he let his magic flow - let himself relax - he would return to that and the peaceful life with a honorable job, fiancée and a spacious flat would be replaced with blood and bone-chilling loneliness. It didn’t matter that in the end, it might kill him.
It was worth it, wasn’t it?
He’d fought so hard to get to where he was now, had withstood so many horrors to achieve this little bit of normalcy, that he couldn’t let himself lose it at any cost. This girl was the first to really threaten his safe, peaceful life and all she’d done was witness the part of it that wasn’t safe, wasn’t peaceful, and she’d noticed.
Why is she doing this?
Getting too interested in an Assassin was always dangerous, but pursuing information about Battousai was considered suicide among most and he himself would not hesitate to remove a threat to his own identity, although he might not be living up to some of the rumors (he didn’t bathe in blood to dye his hair red, nor did he drink it to obtain inhuman powers). The only ones who would try him would be former enemies from the Revolution, ignorant thugs or people yearning to shoulder the title of the strongest.
Abe Mai was too young to harbor any resentment from the Revolution, her eyes were bright and curious, not arrogant, and he couldn’t imagine her ambitions to lie in succeeding himself.
Kenshin sighed from where he stood leaning against the wall outside the third pub he’d visited within the span of a couple of minutes. He’d been moving fast, his temper raging inside and making his magic hum in excitement. Tonight had been trying, he hadn’t used this much of his powers for years and it left him tired and sore. He needed to find Sano, but none of the shady bars he’d been to so far had any trace of the rooster-head’s presence. If only he could find him, then maybe things would become easier.
First off, it was obvious that Sano knew the girl responsible for all this trouble. How well, remained to be seen, but at the very least they were acquainted. Maybe they’d been at the same café, before she stopped by the Akabeko? Shaking his head, he snorted at the thought. A girl like Abe Mai was never seen in the places Sano visited. Unless…
She had yet to tell him where she’d acquired enough education to pass the entrance exam of the Freelance Tracker Guild. He didn’t know how easy it was to buy yourself knowledge in the black market for someone like Miss Abe, but Sano did.
There was so much more to this than the girl’s stalker story, he could tell.
Pushing himself up from the wall, Kenshin walked out on the street to continue his search for the younger man. He wouldn’t rest until this mystery was solved.
oOo
“Ah, Missy, I don’t know if this is a good idea…” Sano began, but trailed off at the heated glare sent his way. He watched, feeling quite helpless, as Kaoru continued to climb out through the window of the hotel room situated on the fourth floor.
“I can’t go through the door like you, Sano,” she grumbled. “The wards only let you through and I wasn’t able to create a loophole anywhere else, so just shut up and get out of here before he returns!” She paused to blow a couple of stray strands of hair form her eyes before adjusting her grip of her skirts, silently wondering what had possessed her to wear a dress when she followed Himura to the warehouse. Too late to linger on now. “Now hand me my luggage, rooster-head, before your friend Himura gets back and kills me.”
“He would never kill you Missy! He’s a good guy!” Sano protested with a frown, crossing his arms and letting the luggage stay where it way, just out of reach from her position. She just rolled her eyes and muttered what he suspected was a curse under her breath before sending him a suspiciously sweet smile that had the hairs in his neck standing.
“Now that you mention it…didn’t you compare Himura with a saint not so long ago? And if I remember it correctly, you claimed he would never leave his desk or bring harm upon anyone?” she asked with a tone to match her sickly sweet smile. He gulped, trying to remember when he’d told her such a thing, but she cut him off before he could stumble over his half-assed reply. “Since I have it all written down in my notebook somewhere, I can assure you that you did, in fact, describe him as such. And so, I would like to know what the hell happened in the warehouse. There certainly wasn’t anything saint-like about that, Sanosuke!”
“Well, you see,” he began, resisting the urge to fidget by stuffing his hands deep into his pockets and looking away before continuing in a rather sulky voice, a tell-tale sign he had been cornered by his own words. “He is a saint, in a way, Missy! Like, in a guardian-saint-like way, you know? And I dunno what I said about harming, but I know he wouldn’t do anything wrong; he’s honorable! He’s even made a vow to never kill again! But the bad guys don’t always hand themselves over without a fight, you know? And the L.E.G doesn’t always have what it takes to bring them in. So Kenshin kinda has to hunt the baddest guys down since he’s the best they’ve got and it always ends with fighting. That’s what happened tonight. That guy was a fricking serial killer!”
A bit taken aback by this new information, Kaoru made a mental note to write it all down as soon as she got the chance. But now, she could see his point, and she silently agreed that Himura certainly, without doubt, was the best the L.E.G had and ever could get. It didn’t help to quench her worries of what this meant for her personal safety though, since she was quite sure Himura didn’t view her as one of the good guys…or at least wouldn’t, if he found out much more about her.
“So he’s still doing the dirty work of his Guild, is he?” she mumbled, causing Sano to raise a brow in question before she continued in a louder voice. “So he’s still acting like the Battousai at times? That’s what all his business trips are about? Minus the killing, apparently.”
Wincing, Sano hurriedly reached down for her luggage and handed it over, wishing he would someday learn to keep his mouth shut. Especially around people like Kaoru, and Kenshin for that matter. “He doesn’t like to look at it that way Missy. That title is pretty heavy. Now go, before he gets back. I really don’t want him to catch me helping you escape; I’ll have enough trouble with pretending you’re not like a little sister to me and keeping myself out of your little investigation!”
“Just say I’m an old flame or something, he won’t be suspicious of that with the way you are around women,” she offered with a satisfied smirk as he blanched at the idea. Snagging the old, worn bag containing her meager supplies for this trip-gone-wrong, she was now hanging from the windowsill with her arms as support. Sending him an impatient glare, she held out a free hand expectantly. “And the tickets?”
“Missy! He’ll kill me!” he exclaimed, trying to make her see some reason despite knowing it was, obviously, futile. She merely raised a brow, and he merely sighed again, before handing them over.
“I thought you said he wouldn’t kill? And just say I must’ve stolen them! No, wait, don’t say anything about it until he does. If he suspects you, remind him that they were lying in the bedside table, after all. Totally unprotected. And, what kind of stupid captive would I be to not do everything I can in order to slow you down and prevent your search to go easy?”
He pouted slightly at her logic, but remained silent. Smiling, she gave him a wave before letting go of the window and falling down. He rushed over to poke his head out, watching her descend to the ground in a rather frightening speed. A glow of soft magic emitted from her then, and he could hear the soft click of her heels meeting the ground gracefully. He’ll never understand how people can manipulate their magic so carefully, but then again, he’d always been one for brute force. Both physically and with his mage powers.
“You’ll tell me not to worry,” he mumbled as he watched her slight figure run down the darkened streets towards to train station, “but this time, Missy, it’s justified.”
Leaving the window and slipping out of the room, he quietly made his way down the hall and stairs to return to the safety and familiarity of the pub. He would need another couple of drinks before he could figure out a way to avoid facing the temper of the Battousai.
oOo
NEXT PART
PREVIOUS PART
FIRST PART
so...Kaoru does not know when it is wise to give up. but people have different priorities, I guess. and it's quite fun to lead Battousai on this wild goose chase, you know? *sadistic glee*
and Sano....poor thing. he really doesn't want anything to do with this lol.
next up, Kaoru deals with her new situation and...enter a new character! :D