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 Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 5:39 pm
 +Welcome to Expatriate Samurais - A Literate Rurouni Kenshin Role Play+Hi! I'm alyeth, and this is just a roleplay me and a Gaia user named Fallen Snow made up a while ago -- a story of past and present -- of love and hate. [Okay, that was lame, but I had to put something presentable, right?] Anyway, I'm putting it all into one post so we can get it started much faster ^^ The canon list is on a sticky in this forum, so in case you'd like to see who's taken, you can click here. Rules and guidelines for roleplaying are also located here.
Alright then, so here's the plot, and let's get started! X3
[Just for your reference Taiyo, I changed it up just a little bit. Added a sentence or two.]
Battousai and Rurouni Kenshin switch time plots, the Rurouni goes back to Tomoe times, Battousai Meiji time. Could he possibly save Tomoe, or would he let the same thing happen to go back to Kaoru? Will the past prevail, or the future? How will each of the times be affected by each move Kenshin makes, different or same? Kenshin as a whole could change in the balance, because only one Kenshin can exist... or can he?
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Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 7:22 pm
[Battousai is in indigo, Rurouni in dark red. ^^']
It appeared to be an all too regular day on the streets of Kyoto; with an all too regular itinerary of attack. Objection - slaughter anyone who opposes you and assassinate the one that is being protected. Though, surely this task was much more difficult than met the hearing of comprehension, despite the renown Battousai's skills. Lately though, his thoughts were clouded with confusion of a certain girl he'd found on the streets not even a week before, aroma of white plums dominating over the scent of the crimson liquid splattered onto the streets periodically. Dark laden hair, seeming to drip and flourish luridly with the blood soaking in the blade alongside him, matched in hue as he traveled ruthlessly adjacent to the cloudy hazy enviornment around him; suiting his thoughts for the occasion as well. Patted footsteps, prudently placed, could barely be heard reverberating throughout the otherwise silent streets, because most of the people who were incredulous about what happened amongst them would have a reality check of death the next morning. Was it for pleasure, perhaps? No, of course not. Kenshin didn't find ailment in brutally decapitating and slaughtering random bystanders, but his identity could not be known by not a single soul but the Ishin Shishi. Only he knew his true purpose - to help the innocent. Was that what he was really accomplishing in this ordeal? Killing mostly innocent people, was that helping them? It mattered not, for the moment Hiko abandoned hope for his apprentice, the Battousai knew, quick as a flash, that he was on his own now.
That wasn't his concern currently, not when he had a job to accomplish. Another soul to send to hell. Slash. Clang. Turgid sounds of swords clashing and minor wails of death lurked - all due to one swing of a katana. His katana. Was there really a purpose? Why was he letting this eat at him in the middle of a mission, a mission that was.. pointless? Blinking to refocus his vision, as well as thoughts, he cleaned his katana with a single swipe of powerful force, sprays of blood cascading onto his face and parts of his gi. Suddenly, an increasing wave of light-headedness overtook him, and he endeavored to resist by nimbly siding to a building, but to no avail. Vision fading, blurring reality lines, Kenshin gasped to intake a breath before falling unconscious into a nearby alley of an inn, unaware and oblivious to the outside world. It wasn't nausea of blood that made this so, either...
I can't... Tomoe. Would love side with him this time? Or would he define his own destiny with regret and hate?
This is the story of Himura Kenshin... both of them.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Drip. Drabble. The continuous cycle of dipping clothes into the bucket, taking them out, wringing them clean, hanging them up, not to mention scrubbing in between. For anyone else, it would've been a job that would be ridiculous, insane even. But, considering this was a certain rurouni we're talking about, of course the level of his patience was mind-boggling at times. But, didn't Kenshin always seem to suprise someone, no matter who? He even suprised himself sometimes, considering he was being housed with a girl by the name of Kamiya Kaoru - in a Dojo of all places. Violet orbs penetrated the nearby location where the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo's only student was probably being hounded on -- Yahiko. Just one simple "Ugly" or "Stupid" and he would be stuck with doing up to one hundred strokes. Sighing and intermittently hanging up the various clothes he had finished with, Kenshin sighed, surveying the effulgent sun and azure sky. Such a pleasant day to waste hanging clothes, though the red-haired rurouni thought nothing of the sort. This was what he had dedicated himself to do -- though, for reasons unknown. What was he doing here... wasn't he a rurouni? A traveling samurai? Had a certain woman stopped him in his tracks... had he really found home since that other one had burned to ashes? Ashes of his past...
Coincidenally, the scent of white plums came to his attention, and he almost dropped the piece of clothing he was holding onto. That aroma.. once alluring and intriguing to him, so foreign yet familiar... why was he smelling it now of all times? This one must be imagining things... just the wind, is all. And at that, a calm breeze drifted, ruffling his flaring red hair, the hair once signified as death. All the more, it was unusual for something like that to come at such a time, those flowers were out of season, not to mention they didn't grow in the Tokyo area. Grimacing, the rurouni hung up the last of the pile of clothes and headed toward the Dojo to see if he could conjure up a lunch or something of the sort for the hungry trainee and teacher.
Yet again, whether it was just plain irony or coincidence, two blue-hued items were lain on the kitchen counter, both indigo. One was obviously a ribbon... the other, a scarf. A pang of fear clutching his chest, Kenshin swiftly took hold of the scarf and concealed it in his gi. Who was messing with him? It was quite a weird day... but, ignoring whatever warning signs were being sent, Kenshin continued to look for ingredients to cook, attempting to abandon past thoughts of uncontempt. It wouldn't last for long though, since soon he would be living in his own nightmare.
A cinch of pain entered his scar, something that hadn't ached him for at least a decade. That's when he began to feel dizzy, lose all sense of thought, and, clenching to the indigo scarf before he fell for 'cushion' - his last thoughts being.. Kaoru..
All was lost, remembered and forgotten as time itself was defied in that very moment, Rurouni and Battousai fusing and separating, into segregated times. Times of opposite. But for what reason? Would this resolve the continuous quarrel between the two? Would they finally find their place.... back home?
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Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2006 6:54 pm
Japan, 1867, Edo Era. A time of change, rebellion and bloodshed. Many who were once allies had been seperated from what they believe in. The days of the old Samurai were dying, and a new power would arise. With the help of those who chose to use their swords for change instead of tradition. They were to battle against the Shogunate. One group who opposed them was the Choshu Clan
Kogoro Katsura was the leader of the Choshu clan. He seemed quite quiet at a first glance with his serene smiled and his dark, but soft eyes. However when he did speak, he was a man who knew what he was talking about, whether it be about war, food, or women. He was a man who knew many things in life, despite only being in his late twenties. A young man indeed to be leading a clan to oppose the Tokugawa Shogunate.
Of course, he had plenty of help. He had trusted soldiers, each with their own advanatages in fighting. There was one however, who stood above them all in skill; an assassin who, not only was fast and very skilled with a sword, did not hesitate to kill no matterwhat the order was. What was the most startling is that he had only just reached the coming of age... 15.
The infamous Battousai Himura was only a boy, yet he was probably the most feared out of the Choshu. When Katsura had seen that young man for the first time, he knew that he was capable of bringning the Shogunate to their knees. He'd be extremely valuable against the Shisengumi, for not only did they have Okita Soujiro, but the Mibu Wolf, Saitou Hajime.
Things had been rather quiet lately though. Too quiet. Perhaps it was the calm before the storm, or maybe the Shisengumi were plotting something more suttle, Katsura did not know. However, he did have an inkling that something had changed without him realizing that very moment. Had he only realized that right now... he had lost a very important asset to this war.
Battousai Himura.
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Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2006 11:08 am
"For that comment, you get two hundred strokes and you'll just have to remain hungry till you finish them Yahiko-CHAN!" Kaoru yelled as stomped out of the dojo, anger still burning in her blood. If she wasn't in such a good mood Kaoru would've made sure that the boy did no less than two thousand strokes...but that would be cruel...meaning she would save that punishment for when she was in a more bitter mood.
Kamiya Kaoru let out a small yawn as she stood on the dojo's wooden porch, stretching slightly to relieve herself of a workout well done and letting the cool wind blow at sweat-covered skin. The wind playfully blew at her high ponytail, causing it sway back and forth, allowing the sense of cool air to be blown at her neck.
Growl.
The black haired girl blushed at the sudden cry of food her stomach had asked her for. Should a certain overly feminine doctor had heard that, she would've probably laughed that annoying laugh of hers, while commenting "Oooh, women shouldn't make those kinds of sounds. I don't understand why Ken-san insists on living with such a poorly mannered tanuki!" Kaoru frowned slightly and placed a hand on her growling stomach. "Mou! I'm not a raccoon...I'm just hungry" she mumbled bitterly as she walked down the polished wooden floors, heading towards her room to change from her sweaty gi and hakama.
"Kenshin is lunch ready yet?!" Kaoru called as she passed the kitchen, not bothering to look inside. No response was given. Her blue eyes widened with worry as she stopped in the middle of the hallway, hoping for a slight sign, even possibly a faint "Oro! "Kamiya Kaoru don't be such a worry wort!" she told herself as she quickly shook her head and continued on her way.
Finally arriving to the sanctity that was her room, Kaoru let out a small sigh of disappointment as she slid the door close. "I really should try saving up some more money...the tatami in everyone's room is probably as old, brown and miserable looking as the ones in my room" she groaned. All the home improvements would've been made months ago if Yahiko and Sanosuke didn't eat like starving animals. "Just another thing to worry about..." she mumbled as she rubbed her temples gently as she went to go fetch her kimono and obi that she had left neatly arranged on the kimono rack before going to the dojo for the morning lesson/beating of Yahiko.
"Oh great...another thing to add to the giant list of things we really need!" Kaoru moaned miserably as she sat on her knees on the tatami, it making a really odd crunch noise as she examined her kimono more carefully. The material of her favorite yellow kimono was not only fading, but the material itself seemed to be getting rather thin on one side, obvious that it would tear most definitely on its next use. "WHY DIDN'T I NOTICE THIS BEFORE!!!!" Kaoru yelled at herself as she resisted the urge to kick something.
Taking care of a family of four was hard enough with herself being the only sort of income, not to mention that two of them ate like pigs that should've been turned into bacon several months ago.
"Would Sano even make good bacon?" Kaoru asked herself as she grabbed her kimono and obi and other articles of clothing before leaving her room once more to head over to the bath house. "Kenshin I'm taking a bath! Call me when lunch is ready!" Kaoru called as she headed for the bath house. Being a woman after all, she wanted to at least smell pretty and not be teased about being a tom boy. Quickly snapping out of her thoughts, the black haired woman realized that once again her beloved red-headed rurouni had said nothing.
"Weird..." she mumbled as she continued her trek to the bath house, not bothering to go check on what her intuition was begging her to go see.
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Posted: Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:01 pm
Outside of the Dojo, a tanned and spikey-black haired young boy had begun to regret what he said to his teacher about her appearance. As usual, Yahiko Myojin had a knack of angering the female Tanuki that was Kaoru Kamiya. It was a habit that wouldn't be broken in the near or far future. Of course, due two his comment, he was given two-hundred extra strokes to perform with his Shinai. Whoop-ee.
Still, two-hundred strokes wasn't as bad as it sounded, though. Since Yahiko was actually getting much better with this motion, so it took much less time as it used to. He already had his fair share of battles throughout the time he had been training at the Kamiya Dojo. Moreso than even some regular men would never see. There was no denying that the boy was quite advanced for his age. It was quite amazing actually. However, he still felt that his best wasn't good enough, for someday, he wanted to be as strong as his idol, Kenshin Himura.
Speaking of the swordsman, he hadn't seen him in awhile. Normally, in moments like this after Kaoru had ordered her student to do as many strokes as possible, the little red-headed sheep would poke his little head out from the corner and murmer a little 'oro' with a smile on his face. Next to that, there would a very profound talk about something that sounded like it did really pose any real reason (or logic for that matter), and then would bloom into a valuable lesson that Yahiko would carry on until his next battle. Now...
Where in the world was he?
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 1:14 pm
There was a sharp pain erecting from his head and lower neck when the Hitokiri awoke fifteen minutes later. Only, expecting to be leaning against the wall he had passed out on, or at least back in his hotel room, the enviornment was much different. Much... much different. Come to look at it, it wasn't even dark outside. There was a stinging sun on him, along with the lolly white puffy clouds to coincide with the happy-go-lucky scenery. And... he was laying on a wooden floor. What, did Hiko knock him out somehow and bring him back to the mountains? No, it was almost always snowing there. What a stupid assumption. Well, what would explain this? Shaking his head, Kenshin sat up to look around, blinking a couple of times to attempt to reevaluate where he was exactly, but nothing came to mind. Pushing off from his arms to stand up, he saw that, well, this sure wasn't Kyoto anymore. He was in some sort of Dojo, since he was obviously right in the kitchen. There was a knife, and some chopped ingredients that were laying astray. Had he been taken hostage? How could he let this happen? Finally deciding to look at himself and make sure he was intact, he found that... this wasn't him. Well, not him as he knew him yet, at least. His regular blue gi was replaced with a reddish shaded one, and his hair was positioned differently.
Okay, now things were really starting to get confusing. Where was his katana? The Battousai nimbly grabbed the hilt of what he thought was his faithful companion for a sword and unsheathed it with, well, delayed speed. That was awfully slow for his usual mastery of Battujustu. Of course, as he inspected his new found weapon, it was not his own. No, not at all. This was a... reversed bladed sword. But why would he have that? His whole purpose was to kill people, not to just let them off easy with a few severe bruises here and there. His job was not to let people suffer, just to remove them from this world as efficiently as possible.
Come to think of it, his wakizashi was missing as well. This was definitely someone trying to kill him, with a hint of trickery on the side. Glancing around suspiciously, and with increased frustration of being deceived so easily, Kenshin pressed his body against the wall of the Dojo prudently, holding his sword alongside him so he could strike at any given moment. Narrowed indigo shaded irises took a risky trip down the long corridor, quickly turning into the next room available. All he could do was stare at whoever was looking back at him with increased confusion also.
It was none other than his own reflection. But... this couldn't be him. This WASN'T him. Slowly approaching it, the Hitokiri tilted his head to the side, looking the contraption at every angle to try to see how this could be him. No.. it wasn't. This wasn't what he looked like. But, did mirrors ever lie? Have they ever lied before? Of course they have... to his perspective at least. Just another game, is all. He appeared much older now, and... a scar was prominent on his cheek. But.. from what?
At that moment, the indigo scarf the previous Rurouni stacked away now fell onto the floor, that same scarf. Tomoe's scarf. Glancing around one more time to make sure no one was there, he kneeled to grab it and hold it in his arms for a moment. Where was she...? Was she safe...? What sick freak was messing with him like this? Gritting his teeth, the teenager stood back up, stowing away the item back to where it was before. Whatever was happening, he would go back to Kyoto and find Tomoe, and finish what he had started. No more delays.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A certain rurouni awoke not soon after our Battousai had, both in their original locations. A pain in his shoulder brought him to do so, shifting to his back to hopefully take the pressure off the aching shoulder. "Must've been from this one falling on the floor... Why he had suddenly lost consciousness was a mystery to him... at the moment, at least. He would soon find out a little taste of why. Footsteps could be heard running down the street, and Kenshin finally adjusted his sight so he could look at what was going on. This.... didn't look like Tokyo anymore. Not at all... in fact, it appeared he woke up in a nightmare. The last place on Earth he'd rather be, and he ends up there somehow. By some supernatural power he ends up going to the place that haunts him. Finally standing up steadily now, he sees that he steadies his ground much faster than he usually would. His heartrate increases by at least one hundred by now, as he looks to see two sword-handles protruding out from his side. This was a dream... right? He wasn't in Kyoto, and he certainly wasn't Hitokiri Battousai. Oh, no. Looking to the left suddenly to track someone running down the street, he found his hair was differently placed as well. Every puzzle piece was almost down now. It was unexplainable, but somehow he was back in Kyoto... from ten years ago. Wow, he sure was getting this much faster than Battousai would. Violet orbs narrowed as he demonstrated the last test... putting his hand up to his left cheek to find that.... to his worst demise, there was no scar. That meant....
Was he getting another chance to make amends? Could he possibly... save Tomoe? Change how the Bakumatsu would turn out? But why... there was no such thing as second chances. Then again, there was no such thing as switching bodies with who you were ten years ago either. It can't be true. Looking at the ground, Kenshin decided it would be best if he tried surveying Kyoto a bit, though he was insecure and uncomfortable in this unfamiliar enviornment. He had the opportunity to change history in the making. It was.. invigorating, yet so risky. Every different choice he would make now would change everything in the present... did he want to lose being with Kaoru, Yahiko, Sano, and everyone else? Living with them in the Dojo, all those good times would be for nothing if he saved Tomoe. But he still yearned for her these ten years, she was truly his first love.
On the other hand, it would save them lots of trouble if he steered away from their lives altogether. It would stop Aoshi, Shishio, Saitou, everyone from tracking them down anymore. On another note, they would never come together either. Sano wouldn't give up being a fighter-for-hire, Yahiko would probably continue being a pick-pocket, and Kaoru's spirits would be more than depleted. All these things the rurouni did for them, would he sacrifice his own well-being for his one love? Then -- something else came to him. If he didn't have any battle-scars yet, that meant that he hadn't assassinated Tomoe's husband either. Could he let them be happy together and make them leave Kyoto?
Perhaps it would be good if he just went back to a certain inn, just to see Tomoe again... just to see her smile, cherish these extra moments of time he was granted with her. It would mean the world and more to the rurouni.
What would he choose... it all depended on him, since the fate of Tomoe, Kaoru, and the whole entire Kenshin-gumi counted on him. I mean, look, it's called the KENSHIN-gumi, geez people.
[[I'm not going to try too hard to implement Kenshin's rurouni language into here, after all, he can't use it now that he's "Battousai" right? Wow, this is going to be a hard decision even for me to make future wise XD]]
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 3:26 pm
"Mmmm... This place looks... interesting...." murmured Kihime as she came to a stop in front of a gate. "Kamiya... dojo? I could use some self-defense skills, ne?" she said softly to herself, smiling.
Then she raised her hands in a clueless guesture, and said in a mocking tone, "But since I am a lady, I am much too frail for that!"
A bitter edge creeped into her voice as she mumbled something about "evil aunts" and "sexist uncles".
"Well, maybe I could pay for a place to stay. I am waaay to tired to go looking somewhere else," Kihime grumbled, wincing as she held her growling stomach.
She could still hear the nagging voices in her head. 'A lady doesn't trudge! A lady doesn't kick, punch, scratch, scream, yell, or anything like that! A lady does NOT make mountains of food on the other side of the table when eating!'
Well, maybe she could work on that last one. She was a sloppy eater.
She shook her head and frowned. "NO! DARNIT, I'M PROUD OF MY SLOPPY EATING!" she screamed.
..........
Okay, she shouldn't have yelled that out. Blushing, she shuffled into the dojo, mentally cursing herself.
+-----+
(OoC: WOW. It's Kihime! :OOOO Yes. She wants to learn self-defense.)
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 7:43 pm
When Yahiko heard the loud hollar, shaking the Dojo, he jumped so high that he could've perfermed Kenshin's Ryo Tsu Sen with ease. However, he knew exactly where that hollar was from, though he never thought that a weasel could make so much noise. Then again... it was Misao, and she was a in a special weasel category all her own.
The young kendoka rubbed the back of his spikey head and stood up straight again. It was best that he greet Misao or he'd never hear the end of it. Actually, she wasn't all that bad... she was just... a little too over the top sometimes. Still, she was quite the fighter, and when she wanted to be, she could be as quiet as a mouse. The Oniwanbanshuu really were something.
Taking a towel from the porch, he wiped the sweat from his forehead as he made his way to go greet the ninja girl at the entrance. His marroon eyes took a quick glance again though. He still hadn't heard or seen Kenshin at all this morning. He didn't even hear a simple 'Oro'.
Was he sick?
~
Katsura was also wondering where his young fighter was. Normally, if Himura knew that Katsura was around, he'd arrive obiediently to see what his next job was and yet people hadn't seen the young teen since early this morning apparently. Perhaps he was going through a slight rebellion? He was still very young. He had only just reached his 'coming of age' actually, yet he was capable of fighting as though he was an old warrior. It was truly remarkable.
So, instead of just waiting around for Himura, the young leader felt it was a good day to just take a stroll in the inn's garden and perhaps have some tea with one of the geisha that he had grown so fond of. He wasn't going to stress too much on what was going on at the moment. He knew that Kenshin wasn't the one who was the traitor that they were looking for. However, they certainly had to find the one that was and soon. Time was drawing nearer and it was only a matter of time before the Shisengumi would make their move to crush the Choshu. Not something to look forward to, that was certain. Saitou Hajime was known to be a rutheless killer with no remorse, and Okita Soujiro may have looked like a simple boy just as Battousai did, but he too was a formidable oppenent.
Katsura was going to make sure that this war would end with change. No longer would the peasants be opressed by the Tokugawa Shogunate. They would be able to run their own lives without living in fear. Everyone would be able to keep the money they earned and there would be no need for more death after this.
At least... that's what he wished for.
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Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2006 8:06 pm
"Kamiya Kaoru...what's wrong with you?" Kaoru asked herself as she continued to keep her gaze towards the kitchen, continuing to stare after she stopped halfway to the bath house several seconds before. Maybe it was the sudden wave of uneasiness that had fallen over her at not hearing Kenshin humming some tune as he prepared the food.
"Mou...I need to stop being such a worry wart. You know what, I'm not going to be able to relax unless I get a responce" Kaoru muttered as she placed her things gently besides the wall and stalked across the small courtyard towards the kitchen.
"KAAAAAAAAOOOORUUUUUU-SAAAAAAAAANN!!!"
The loud screech could only be defined that it was most definently Misao screaming for her attenion. Why was the petite ninja girl in Tokyo? Kaoru didn't recall her sending any warning of any arrival...but knowing Misao...she most likely invited herself over.
"HAI MISAO-CHAN! MEET ME IN THE KITCHEN!!!!" Kaoru screamed back as she continued on her way. Misao could wait. What really bothered the young shihandai was the silent not humming rurouni. What if he cut himself while cooking and was now bleeding to death because of...a bad cut to the throat? Nah, Kenshin was clueless...but could never been dimwitted enough to scratch his itchy throat with a sharp kitchen knife. Her blue eyes widened with worry at all the other possible scenerios that her mind was thinking up. By the time she actually reached the kitchen, Kaoru had come to the conclusion that Kenshin was being held hostage by an evil witch who wanted to make Kenshin do all the laundry that the old woman had been too lazy to do for ten years.
"GET YOUR DIRTY HANDS OFF KENSHIN!!!" Kaoru yelled angrily as she ran into the kitchen, but was surprised to find it rather empty. The black haired woman blinked in confusion as she walked further into the kitchen, noticing the half prepared food on the counter and various ingredients had been spilled onto the floor...as well as the knife.
"Kenshin?" Kaoru asked softly as made her way to the other side of the room to the doorway that opened onto the corridor. Poking her head out, she was able to spot her rurouni pressed against the wall as he slowly made his way down the hallway. What the hell is he doing?!
"Kenshin...why are you groping the wall?" Kaoru asked loudly as she stood out in the middle of the hallway, her hands resting on her hips as she gave the red head a weird look of accusation.
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:28 pm
Kaoru's sudden loud presence made itself obviously and blatantly clear, perhaps too clear for the poor Battousai to perceive innocence from someone out to kill him. After all, this wasn't his sort of environment at all, it was cozy, open, and awfully vivid and with happy attributes. Not something he was ecstatic to be associating himself with, since he had this subconscious philosophy that if he was kept miserable in some sort of sense he could accomplish his job more efficiently. He would soon find that making himself miserable wouldn't accomplish much in the Meiji era, especially if he was around Kaoru one too many minutes. And in some cases, one minute was more than enough. Not that Kaoru wasn't a good person -- no, we knew the tanuki had good intentions and a 'pure heart' -- yeah we get it, sometimes that got old though. Humans yearned for new, more daring people; people like Hitokiri Battousai. And that is the very reason why he was so well renown in the Edo era, for his alchemistic qualities and daring hope to walk his own path, society didn't matter. They didn't walk his path, and they never would understand him. Battousai would just be a shadowed legend in history as it crawled through the years, the decades, the centuries; it was human nature to turn previous facts into incredulous myths and legacies.
But that didn't matter much at the moment, now did it? Kenshin was appearing to edge along the wall after taking a glance into his own reflection, feeling extremely uneasy and slightly, no, increasingly uncomfortable with the current circumstance. Whirling his head around in an alarmed demeanor, the assassin wielded his sword that was quickly equipped at his side and, almost in an instant, had the end of the sword protruding into Kaoru's neck at a dangerously close pressure point. One nudge with his wrist and she would be unconscious for a while; hours perhaps. But control was what Kenshin had been brought up to handle and knew the concept and maneuver of it well. Good thing he did too, or else our tanuki would be a lying heap of temporary comatose on the ground. Now, as we all know, our diligent hitokiri was not a man of many words, for any he spoke was usually replying to an order or confirming it. In his perspective, all he did was end people's lives for the better of future ones. Equivalency in some sense. That would soon come to be a bad decision he made, a gravely bad decision that encrypted equivalency and atoning for his sins that he thought would make a better society - a better generation of freedom. It turned out his sacrifice was futile, and his whole life would revolve around attempting to fix what truly could not be fully mended.
It's not like our to-be-rurouni quite knew the mistake he was committing, and thus he remained stationary, staring with icy indigo eyes with a flash of amber embedded somewhere. That part of him that performed the kill; that fed off of it. But something about Kaoru reminded him of a certain someone he saved in the bleeding rain, who would save his mind and yet kill his heart. And yet this girl in front of him would revive his heart and tear his mind apart. Tear it to shreds of guilt and yearning, that yearning to become that happy regular man he'd wished to be with Tomoe, in that humble house they'd owned for what seemed like a blissful moment before it got torn away from them, along with Tomoe's life.
What ruined everything. But would this new beginning bring more than just new love? If Kaoru's faithful 'rurouni' could not return, would she learn to love the darkened side of the sun? Could she learn to?
"Who do you work for and why do you seek my life?" It was as simple as that; the flip of a reversed sword that could encase all of history and contradict all the world. Perhaps it was true that one person could change the world - only now we are meddling with time.
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Posted: Sun Aug 27, 2006 11:41 am
Kaoru looked down at the blade pointed to her neck and then back up at the red head who weilded the said blade. Many a brave soul would've been terrified to be in her position, but that suprisingly was not the case with the young instructor.
"Kenshin...ehhh...did someone beat you over the head with something to trigger this 'Battousai moment'?" Kaoru questioned as she calmly lowered the sakabatou from her neck.
Foolish...yes many samurai would've called her foolish for lowering Battousais's blade without having a weapon in her own hand. But Kamiya Kaoru didn't really fear Battousai...he was just Kenshin after all, not some blood-thristy demon that raided farms and sucked the blood from sheep.
"Ahh...maybe someone bashed you over the head while you were making lunch...or maybe you just tripped on something and landed on your head. Kenshin you really shouldn't have done that...you know how worried I get when I hear silence! I thought you got kidnapped or that you left! WHY DO YOU DO THIS TO ME!!!!"
(Sorry for the REALLY late post ^^; )
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Posted: Sun Aug 27, 2006 12:16 pm
The young Sempai twitched for a moment as he heard yelling from every direction. Misao from one place, Kaoru from another... actually, Kaoru seemed to be in a little distressed (wasn't she always) ... more so than usual (which usually means he should stay away).
However, Yahiko, being the curious one that he was, decided to see what great mishap was now happening in the kitchen. Of course, to make sure that he wouldn't get beaten to a pulp if the problem happened to be because of something he did earlier (did she already find the broken vase so quickly? Wait... wasn't it hideen outside? Whatever), he brought his Shinai. Sometimes it would help, other times... well, the Tanuki was faster than he was. Grasping it tightly, he quietly made his way to the kitchen, passing the entrance to the dojo first. To his surprise, there was actually someone here... someone who had never been here before. Was it a potential student? Kaoru would jump for joy if that was the case. Probably even more so since it was a female. He cleared his throat. Well, being the next in line to take over the dojo, he figured he had to say something.
"Ahem... umm... Yo. Listen, I'll be back in a minute, alright? I just need to get the 'Tanuki' if you need anything... so yeah... just... wait a few minutes."
Well, it certainly gave him an excuse to see what all the rucus was about, and knowing that a guest was here, Kaoru would be thrilled and forget about anything bad (a.k.a... the vase that he broke).
After sliding the door to the kitchen open, Yahiko's dark-red eyes widened in surprise. For what was in front of him was something he'd never thought he'd see in his life... ever.
Kenshin was pointing a sword at Kaoru.
Yahiko was now almost certain that he had landed into the world of the truly insane. Or at least something close to it. After all there was several things wrong with this picture.
1) Kenshin never plays the offender in a fight. He is always the defender. Meaning unless his oppenent drew the weapon first (or was about to attack), his Sakabatou was always sheathed.
2) It was Kaoru! After all the hardships and challenges all of them went through, he'd never threaten or hurt Kaoru. He just wasn't that kind of person.
Well, he wasn't that kind of person anymore. He knew that he could trust the Kenshingumi. Most of all, Kaoru.
"What the...?" Yahiko muttered, still having a look of surprise on his face.
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Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2006 1:25 pm
For a moment, well, lots of things didn't seem to make a lot of sense. Who was she to lower his own sword from her? Dark irises narrowed, and the sword was quickly retreated from her neck. There was another voice not far from where their current position was, ah, backup or something of the sort. What the hell were these people planning? And how did she know his name? His identity had been uncovered; this wasn't good at all. He'd have to kill them. It was orders. The woman seemed so calm.. like she knew his every move and action from here; it was unnerving. So loud and obnoxious was her voice also. "What the hell are you talking about?" Kenshin wouldn't allow too much confusion to enter his voice, notifying the current offense attacker that you were vulnerable made things much, much worse. The Battousai almost felt out of place in this body though, like it.. almost wasn't his. He wasn't as powerful as he could be. How could this woman do this? It was perplexing.
The Hitokiri continued his grip on the sword, though the appearance of Yahiko made things a bit more complicating. He had to get out of this. Glancing around for a moment, there was access to a window nearby, but he would have to wait for an opportune moment. Escaping or murdering, it was a bit too bright for that right now. Perhaps it would have to be later until he really killed them. Blinking a couple of times, Kenshin stepped back slightly, still so shrouded with questions and where he was. "Tell me - who do you work for?" Usually the Battousai didn't even give two words before slaughtering his victims, but he didn't like killing for no reason, no matter if they knew about him or not. It was something that never really changed about him. A tense sigh released the Hitokiri's body, and his muscles remained tightened as well as his stance. No way would he back down until he got some information. But she did resemble Tomoe almost indefinitely.. it made him more vulnerable and slightly weakened. Could this be...? [[This post is a disgrace to my others, please forgive me for this one day >>;]]
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Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 4:04 pm
Why was he looking at her so strangely, every ounce of cheerfulness seemed to evaporate from the young instructor as she continued to gaze up at the former hitokiri. This made no sense at all, how come he didn't remember her? After Enishi's Jinchuu, wouldn't he have stopped with a game such as this, asking her who she worked for, who she was, as if she were a complete stranger to him. Kaoru felt saddened by the sudden coldness the Kenshin seemed to ooze, almost as if he was lost, unsure of his surroundings like some lost animal. Her beloved red-haired rurouni was most certainly not there...that was especially evident as he now watched her as if she was another.
"I don't work for anyone" Kaoru responded, hoping the simple answer would be enough for Kenshin. "And don't accuse me of lying either. I'm Kamiya Kaoru, assistant master of the Kamiya Kashin Ryu....A technique that protects life and that does not shed blood...so I prefer that you would not look at me like that Kenshin because you know me better than anyone!" How had her words suddenly become filled with anger? She wanted Kenshin to stop this game of playing Battousai, but with each passing second, she started to fear that she wouldn't be hearing him say any 'oro' any time soon.
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