No, Rurouni
Kenshin and the characters from this manga/anime are not mine.
Well, this
is my new experiment.
KLEENEX
ALERT!!!
THIS IS
FULL OF SEISOU HEN SPOILERS, SO NOW YOU ARE WARNED, LEAVE IT NOW IF YOU DON'T
WANT TO KNOW, AND IF YOU DON'T WANT TO CRY.
I want to
express my gratitude to Mara who has been helping me with this a lot.
One more
thing: I'm not a native English speaker, so if I do any speeling mistake,
please, help me without flaming me. Thanks a lot.
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Chapter 1
Tokyo, 15 ju-ichi-gatsu, Meiji, 16 (November
15, 1884)
It's been
six years.
Six long,
dark years.
I can't say
life has changed to be milder with me after that fateful day on the beach; the
day on which truth stroke my mind mercilessly.
In fact it is
almost as unbearable as ever since I was left alone.
I saw her
again today, and as ever she didn't realize I was so close.
But this
time it was different.
He was not
besides her as he used to be. Her only company was their child.
It's quite
strange.
From those
days on, long gone in a blur, he had never left her alone.
He was
always there, around her, even if she was not aware of him.
But not
today.
I wonder
why.
I
understand him.
Oh, yes, I
understand him; no matter how much the mere thought of sharing even the
slightest idea with him enrages me to no end.
I
understand him, because rare pearls should always be protected, cherished,
wrapped in fine cases.
Someone can
steal them if you are not careful enough.
I was
lenient with my pearl.
And he
stole her from me.
Damn him.
I took his
precious treasure once, but I knew deep in my heart that I would never have
harmed her.
Never ever.
I am not
like him.
Not at all.
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Tokyo, 10
go-gatsu, Meiji 17 ( May 10, 1885)
I observed
her again today, doing some chores in the market. Six months has elapsed since
I had seen her that last time.
She was
alone once more. No sign of him in her surroundings.
It is not
wise.
Not wise at
all.
Things
aren't going well for them, as it seems.
Her
shopping was meager to say the least. I know they never had lived in luxury,
but he should take care of his household in a more appropriate way.
Despite her
wide smile, she couldn't hide the sadness emanating from her.
This is really
puzzling to me.
I used to
despise her as the replacement he had found for my sister.
However
after that time at the dojo something akin to respect towards her blossomed in
me. Back then she faced me knowing beforehand she had no chance of success, her
life at stake against an enemy she couldn't even try to stop, and such behavior
should be admired in an adversary. She never gave up, despite the odds was
against her.
Like her,
my only light, the one he had stolen from me.
But now she
is broken.
I wonder
what it takes for a woman like her to be broken?
And I
promise to myself I will find it out.
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Tokyo, 17
go-gatsu Meiji 17 (May 17, 1885)
Damn him!
Damn him!
How could
he?
How?
Is he
insane?
He left her
alone!
For what?
Because he
feels guilty, he tries to atone?
So much for
your atonement, brother.
You stab in
the heart of ones you are supposed to protect.
Damn him.
He ruins
everything he touches.
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3 Roku-Gatsu Meiji 17, (June 3, 1885)
After I
learned that she was left alone I decided it was the right time to pay my debt
to her.
I made her
suffer once and although that suffering is nothing compared to the one he is
inflicting upon her now, I should repay for it.
From now on
I will do his work.
I will
protect her and provide her necessities.
But it will
be wiser to keep it hidden. She wouldn't accept it, as I have been told she is
rejecting the help even from that brat who is teaching at her dojo.
She is too
proud for her own good.
It would be
worse if she found out that I am the one trying to help her. She would think of
it as a betrayal to him.
But she
needs help.
And I need
to help her.
I will find
a way.
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18 Roku-Gatsu Meiji 17 (June 18, 1885)
As I
foresaw, she refused to take money from others. I had to device a solution, it
was easy and she was unsuspecting.
I had never
thought Himura would defeat me, but I also had never trusted that stupid pig
Heishin. Before my departure from Shanghai I was clever enough to secure the
greatest part of my personal wealth on dozens of small bank accounts under
different names, mostly in European and American banks.
I never
wrote down anything concerning this money, therefore nobody except myself know
of it could access the accounts.
After my
defeat at Battousai's hands and my shameful two months of depression among that
bundle of shacks outside Kyoto, I recovered enough to come back on my feet, and
I decided then to face reality, no matter how hard it was.
To wake up
every new day without her is my atonement, because the pain
is so
intense that is almost a torture.
This
atonement however requires acting.
I found
three unlucky but ambitious merchants who were eager to be used as figureheads
in exchange of very interesting amounts of money, and I started to make legal
business in Japan using them as a cover.
After all,
I'm still a wanted criminal at large.
I hide
myself as a simple employee of my own new companies, and when some suspicion
rose I always found cooperative police officers and blind government officials
to add to my payroll.
I just used
one of those officials to convince Battousai's wife that she would be receiving
a government pension for her husband's services to Japan.
Life is a
bitch, isn't it?
Who would
had thought I would be helping the wife of my enemy pretending to do it so in
the name of the same regime I despise and revile so much?
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Hokkaido Prefecture,
3 San- Gatsu, Meiji 28 (March 3, 1895)
The sun had
set long ago.
He had the
first volume of the journals still in his hand, but his mind was now occupied
with the words on it.
Rubbing his
weary eyes he leaned against his chair, the clouded room shinning in a gloomy
blue light due the cigarette smoke. Nevertheless the strong smell of tobacco
couldn't conceal the subtler but persistent scent emanating from the worn
pages.
Woman's
scent.
He briefly
remembered he had one, waiting for him miles away.
He wondered
where that distracting thought came from.
Turning his
attention back to the journals he registered a few interesting facts. He had
never doubted that his adversary was a cunning, resourceful man, but he always
wondered where he had concealed himself.
He could
have found his adversaries whereabouts for sure but it would have been a waste
of time and recourses to look for him. When he recalled the broken man on the
sand after the fight with Battousai, he knew he wouldn't have to deal with him
any longer.
Maybe he
had been wrong.
He had the
feeling that the old tiger had kept his claws after all.
The
journals would reveal it nevertheless.
He should
check the information on the corrupt officials and policemen who had been in touch
with the man.
He expected
to find leads and clues through his readings. Then, at last it would be the
time for his own justice
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