Madam Hydra's That Which Lingers
Part Twelve: The Downward Spiral [B]
This story is set in my own ALTERNATE REALITY Rurouni Kenshin 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"; and "Romancing the Wolf."
It takes place after the end of the Kyoto story arc. After that, all bets are off. Elements of the Revenge story arc may show up in the story.
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.... ^_-
As always, C&C is greatly appreciated! ^_^
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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.
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Text Conventions:
( ) are character thoughts
/ / and // // represent various sorts of mental dialogue
* ----- * ----- * marks the start/end of dreams or flashbacks
[ ] denote visual or time notes
An hour before dawn, Saitoh came downstairs to see his wife dressed, packed, and ready to go. As she set out a modest breakfast, Tokio said, "Do you think the others will join us on the boat to Kyoto?"
Saitoh sipped his tea. "Shinomori and the Weasel Girl, most likely. As for the others, who knows? But I suspect they will end up in Kyoto, one way or another."
Finishing the meal, Saitoh got to his feet. Taking advantage of the last few minutes of true privacy they were likely to have for at least the next several days, he put his arms around Tokio... and momentarily froze.
There was a brief instant of silence, then he said softly, "Ah...."
Tokio tipped her face up and gave him an innocent look.
He smiled ruefully at her. "I see that you really are... packed and prepared."
She shrugged. With a playful little smile, Tokio murmured, "Considering what happened at the clinic... well, just in case."
"I won't even bother asking you if you've stayed in practice."
"It's an useful way of occupying time when you're not home." She chuckled and took the opportunity to snuggle against him a bit. "I hope you realize that we'll be obliged to visit my family this time. They found out that you were in Kyoto only recently and they wanted to know why you didn't drop by to see them."
Saitoh winced at the mere thought of drinking tea with over ten eagle-eyed, cantankerous old harridans... and the less said about Tokio's younger female relatives, the better.
She gave him a quick hug. "Don't worry. I'll protect you."
He sighed and muttered, "Only a person like you could making dealing with your family worthwhile."
The sun was just peeking over the horizon as Kenshin and his friends arrived at the harbor police station. Saitoh didn't miss the exceedingly grim and somber expression on all their faces -- particularly in Kenshin -- but he merely said, "You're late."
"You bastard! We've had one hell of a night!" Misao shrieked at him.
"Oh?" Saitoh lifted an inquiring eyebrow.
Kenshin said in a cold, tightly controlled voice, "Kaoru's gone. With the sword."
Saitoh blinked. "Hmph. So this time you've managed to lose both a cursed sword AND your woman at the same time. And how did this little catastrophe occur?"
It seemed that the policeman's sly provocation was too much for even Kenshin's exceptional self-control. The others tensely waited as the redhead gave Saitoh a long, bone-chilling stare before abruptly turning and stalking away toward the edge of the dock. Kenshin stood there and stared out at the water, leaving the others to do the explain the situation.
Tokio emerged from the police station and stood behind her husband as Aoshi, Misao, and Sano described the events of the previous night. When they finished, Saitoh smirked slightly and said, "So you're all now headed to Kyoto to 'rescue' her, hm?"
Sano shouted, "Don't be so damn cool about this, Saitoh! Don't forget, Kenshin's not the only person on this... this... THING's hit list. That message wasn't just meant for the Battousai, it was also meant for YOU, the goddamn Mibu's Wolf! And if it hadn't been for you dumping the damn sword in Kenshin's lap, maybe Kaoru wouldn't be in this mess! It could have easily been your own wife who's gone missing and how would you have liked THAT!?"
Saitoh's eyes narrowed for an instant, but he shrugged carelessly. "Hardly my fault. I didn't force him to keep the sword around."
"Damn you! You fucking well know that Kenshin would never endanger innocent people by throwing such a dangerous thing away!"
"Then it's entirely his decision, isn't it?"
"Why you...!"
Just before Sano was about to pounce on the infuriating policeman, Tokio stepped forward and said in a very polite but firm voice, "The ship will be leaving soon. Perhaps we should go onboard?"
Aoshi said coolly, "Sagara, we have more important things to do than to nurse you back to health if you get hurt fighting with Saitoh."
"Grrr...." Sano glared at the smirking policeman. "FINE. Come on, Kenshin!"
The red-haired swordsman did not immediately reply. He stood near the edge of the dock, staring blankly out into the harbor as he rubbed at his temple. As they watched, he shook his head sharply as if trying to clear it.
"Kenshin?" Yahiko called out worriedly.
Misao muttered, "Maybe that knock on the head was worse than we thought."
With their attention all focused on Kenshin, only Tokio noticed that her husband also had an alarmingly vague and confused expression on his face -- vague and confused for him, that is. Most people wouldn't have even suspected that anything was wrong, but Tokio knew her husband too well. She briefly touched his arm and murmured, "Hajime?"
He blinked, then shook his head sharply before giving his wife a quick, uneasy glance.
"Is there something wrong?" she discretely asked.
Saitoh scowled slightly. "For a moment there...."
In the meantime, Sano walked up behind his friend and said, "Kenshin, we need to get on the boat to Osaka!"
"Osaka....why TO Osaka...?" Kenshin scanned the harbor in bewilderment as if he couldn't quite figure out what the hell he was doing there. The stiff breeze from the water whipped his long red hair, still gathered in that high ponytail, into his face.
Misao and Aoshi exchanged decidedly worried looks.
Yahiko yelled, "Yeah, to Kyoto! Remember, we're going to Osaka so we can get to Kyoto and find Kaoru?"
Kenshin turned and stared at them with an aloof, if mildly confused, look in his pale violet eyes. In a perfectly calm and coherent voice, he asked a very simple question.
"Kaoru? Who's Kaoru?"
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