Last major revision:  08/24/98
Last modified:  03/17/99

[KFFDisc] That Which Lingers - Part 9 (revised)

This is a revised draft of Part 9 my new story. The major change takes
place at the very end of this section, just after the 'dream' sequence.

    Q:  What's worse than a hitokiri losing his mind? 
        (see below for answers)

This story is set in my own ALTERNATE REALITY 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"
        "Romancing the Wolf"

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....     ^_-

This story takes place after the end of the Kyoto story arc.  After
that, it takes a sharp left turn into its own world.  Elements of the
Revenge story arc show up later on in the story.  The Kenshin Gumi
already know that Saitoh survived the destruction of Shishio's
stronghold.  

As always, C&C is greatly appreciated!   ^_^

======================================================================
    THAT WHICH LINGERS:  A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfic by MadamHydra
======================================================================
        Part 9:  REGRESSION
======================================================================

---------------
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.

---------------
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

**********************************************************************

[the present, Meiji 11, Tokyo, late summer]

-----------------------------------

    Sano gaped at Yahiko.  "Your... father!?"
    
    The boy nodded silently as he continued to stare at the corpse that
was no longer there... or perhaps it had never really been there to
begin with.

    "But... I mean... how can you possibly know what your father looked
like?  You were just a baby when Kenshin was... in Kyoto."

    In a dull voice, Yahiko said, "My mother used to draw pictures of my
father for me.  She had a gift for that sort of thing... but being an
artist didn't pay enough to fed both herself and a child... so she took
up work as a... pleasure woman."

    After a long silence, Sano said very quietly, "So... what are you
going to do about it?"

    Yahiko laughed bitterly.  "What can I do?  Tell Kenshin?"

    "I suppose you could...."
    
    His shoulders shook as he said angrily, "My father's been dead for
over 10 years!  Nothing's going to bring him back.  And... he died
honorably, fighting for what he thought was right... just like Kenshin
did.  Besides... we don't even know if any of this is real!  Who the
hell knows what's going on!?  And I can't go up to Kenshin and just ask
him if he really killed my father!"

    "Why not?"
    
    Yahiko glared at him.  "Come on, Sano!  How did you think the
Battousai got his reputation?  How many people do you think he killed in
Kyoto?  A hundred?  Two hundred?  More than that!?  How could he
possibly know all their names?  Do you think he'd remember all those
faces!?"

    Sano thought, (I don't know.  Maybe HE would....)
    
    The boy stared at the shinai dangling loosely in his hands and
whispered, "I was just a baby when my father died.  Kenshin... Kenshin's
been more of a father to me than a man I know only from my mother's
stories and pictures.  I don't want... I don't want to lose that over
something that might be just some big fat lie!"

    "You think someone might be jerking us around?"  Sano's thought
drifted back to last night's dream.  If it WAS a trick, it seemed pretty
pointless.  He hated Saitoh's guts already.  That dream didn't change
things for him... well, not much.  

    (I know that Saitoh's one hell of a cold-blooded killer -- he
probably enjoys it! -- but mercilessly tracking down and slaughtering a
helpless woman... that was entirely different from killing a man who can
fight back.)   Sano gave Yahiko a speculative look.  (Do you really
think it's a trick... or are you desperate to believe it didn't happen?)
    
    Yahiko slowly got to his feet.  He mumbled, "I guess we should get
back."
    
    Sano reached out and patted the boy on the shoulder. "Are you going
to tell Kenshin and the others anything?"

    "....I guess so.  It could be important.  But Sano...."
    
    "Yeah?"
    
    "Don't tell Kenshin about... the stuff about my father, okay?"
    
    "....Sure."
    
    As they trudged back to the clinic, Yahiko thought about one of the
very few personal items he had managed to keep over the last several
years as an orphan.  It was lying back in his room at the Kamiya dojo
and wasn't much... just a single sheet of paper....

    ....his mother's last and best picture of his father.

-----------------------------------

    Although Aoshi spoke with a perfectly straight face, Kenshin thought
he caught a definite undercurrent of... wry humor?... in his voice.  

    (I don't know what happened to him, but somehow... it's like
something's come to life inside him.)

    Misao gave Aoshi a wide-eyed stare.  He looked rather pale and she
could see faint but definite signs of pain around the eyes and the
mouth.  However, he seemed to be fairly good shape, all things
considered.  She reached out and put her hand on his forehead.  

    (He's not feverish, thank goodness!)

    Aoshi's eyes widened slightly as he caught of glimpse of Kenshin's
hair, but all he said was, "What's going on?"

    Kenshin replied as he gazed worriedly at Kaoru.  "Saitoh brought up
the possibility that the black sword was poisoned."

    Kaoru added in tired voice, "She got... a little scared."

    Slowly turning red with acute embarrassment, Misao slid off of Aoshi
and sat on the edge of his bed.  "Okay... I admit it.  I overreacted a
bit."

    Tokio murmured, "I really don't think the sword's poisoned.  As you
can see for yourself, Shinomori-san is recovering quite nicely."

    Misao glared at Saitoh and yelled, "You... you bastard!  You
DELIBERATELY said that just to make me panic, didn't you!?"

    He looked bored.  "Don't flatter yourself, girl.  It was a perfectly
valid possibility."

    "You... YOU...!!!"  She tensed as if ready to pounce on the
policeman.

    Kenshin quickly stepped in front of Misao and said, "Maa maa!  Take
it easy."  He knew that Saitoh would not hesitate to hit and possibly
hurt Misao if she tried to attack him.  And if that happened, Aoshi
would most likely get involved....

    (Poor girl.  Misao's always been excitable, but with all the things
happening since yesterday -- especially her nearly fatal attack Aoshi --
it's no wonder her emotions are running a bit wild.  And Saitoh
certainly isn't helping matters.)

    The faintly malicious smile on Saitoh's face told Kenshin that the
policeman was enjoying the little sideshow immensely.

    A low groan from the neighboring bed broke the tension.  They all
turned to see Megumi sitting up and rubbing the back of her head.

    "Owwww...."

    Kenshin quickly walked over and said, "Megumi-dono, how are you
feeling?"

    "What... what happened?  I've got such a headache....  Oh, no. 
Don't tell me I drank too much sake!"

    As Kaoru chuckled, Saitoh approached Megumi's bed and gave her a
cold, malevolent stare.  "I suppose you don't remember a thing about
trying to skewer my wife, hm?"

    "Eh!?"

    "How convenient," Saitoh drawled.

    "Megumi-dono, what's the last thing you remember?"

    "Hmmm.  I went to check on Shinomori....  That's about it.  What
happened?"

    Kenshin sighed quietly.  "Do you remember that black katana that
Misao used to attack Aoshi?"  When she nodded slowly, he said, "Well,
you tried your best to use it to kill Tokio-dono."

    "I WHAT!?  That's... that's impossible!  I may know how to handle a
scalpel and a kitchen knife, but what do I know about swords!?"  But
even as she said this, Megumi eyed Saitoh nervously.  Something told her
that he was not about the matter slide so quite so easily.

    Saitoh murmured in venomous tones, "At the most basic level, there's
not that much to know.  A sword has a sharp edge and a sharp tip, just
like a knife or scalpel.  I'm sure it wasn't hard for an intelligent
woman like yourself to figure out the rest."

    Kenshin said sharply, "But this situation was very much different,
as you well know, Saitoh."  Turning back to Megumi, he quietly said, "It
seems what happened to Misao also happened to you.  When you picked up
that sword, your behavior changed radically and you tried to kill the
first person you saw."

    Tokio murmured, "That's not entirely correct, Kenshin-san.  I don't
think I was her true intended victim.  You see, just before she attacked
me, Megumi said that she couldn't decide who should be first... Sano or
you."

    "Then... then Misao was... right?  That sword's cursed?" the doctor
whispered.

    Kenshin nodded slowly.  "Superstitious as it may sound, there
appears to be something about that blade which drives people to murder."

    "The preferred target appears to be people with close emotional
relationships to the sword's user.  But it seems that anyone nearby will
do."  The policeman eyed the securely wrapped bundle slung over
Kenshin's shoulder.  "Call it a curse if you like, but whatever it is,
it seems to be the only explanation why Mr. Honami murdered his entire
family for no apparent reason.  And it probably explains this whole
series of murders that have occurred in Tokyo recently."

    "You think that this sword is the common link?" whispered Misao.  "I
can see how someone who's been... possessed... might slaughter his whole
family... but you said yourself that the different murdered families
weren't connected to each other in any way."

    "Moron, what does that have to do with it?" Saitoh gave the girl a
contemptuous stare.

    Kaoru coughed and said, "Misao, there's something about the sword
that... that seems to attract people.  All you have to do is see it and
you...."

    "....you get this crazy impulse to pick it up," the ninja girl
whispered softly.  "So that's it....  After a cluster of murders, the
sword somehow gets dropped or lost, then the next passerby...."

    "The next person who sees it can't resist picking it up.  And the
cycle repeats itself," said the red-haired swordsman.

    "That's... that's HIDEOUS!  It's like some sort of a plague!"
    
    Kenshin murmured, "A plague of madness...."

    Aoshi quietly added, "That's not the worst of it.  Not only does it
drive its victim into a homicidal rage, it also gives the user both the
skill and physical ability to kill with deadly efficiency."  He glanced
at Misao.  "When you attacked me, you were fast... nearly as fast at
Himura-san and perhaps even stronger.  You're hurting, aren't you?"

    Misao blinked.  "Yes.  I'm really, really sore all over."

    Kenshin nodded in agreement and said, "Probably because you... or
rather, the sword was forcing your body well beyond its normal physical
limits.  Thankfully, you're young and in superb physical shape, Misao. 
Otherwise, you could have torn your own body apart or burst your heart
from all that exertion."

    Megumi whispered, "Is that why I feel so exhausted?"

    "Yes, Megumi-dono.  Unlike Misao, who's been training continuously
since she was quite young, you aren't in such good physical condition. 
Fortunately, you weren't fighting nearly as long as she was."

    "Himura, what are we going to do!?" the ninja girl said anxiously.
    
    Saitoh calmly said, "The preferred option is to destroy the sword. 
If that's not feasible, it may be necessary to find a secure place to
hide it." 

    Misao gave the policeman an intensely suspicious stare.  "I don't
get this.  I'd think that you, of all people, wouldn't believe in
superstitious stuff like curses and possession!"

    "That's basically irrelevant.  I deal with facts and the fact is
that the sword Himura's carting around has already driven you, the
fox-lady, and most likely Mr. Homani to mass murder or attempted murder.
 You may be incredibly stupid, temperamental, and scatterbrained, but
you're not a raving killer."

    "I'm WHAT!?" she shrieked.  Fortunately, Aoshi managed to grab a
hold of Misao before she managed to jump off the bed in an attempt to
attack Saitoh.

    The front door to the clinic slid open as Sano and Yahiko stumbled
in.  They both looked very grim and very upset.  

    Kenshin worriedly said, "What happened to you?"  He cocked his head
slightly as he noticed Yahiko giving him an intense, searching stare. 
"Yahiko?  Are you all right?"

    He reached out to touch the boy's shoulder.  Yahiko flinched
slightly, then relaxed.  

    Misao said, "You guys look like you've seen a ghost!"
    
    "Maybe we did...," mumbled Sano.
    
    "Huh?"
    
    Sano glanced at Yahiko.  After the boy slowly nodded, Sano told them
exactly what happened on the way back from the dojo.  As he promised,
the only thing the fighter left out was the identity of the dead squad
leader.  He finished up by saying, "One minute, there's all these bodies
lying in the street.  The next second... poof!  Not a trace."

    Kenshin was looking very somber himself.  "You... saw me?"  
    
    Yahiko felt Kenshin begin to withdraw within himself as he started
to lift his hand off the boy's shoulder.  Yohiko suddenly reached up
with his own hand to keep Kenshin's hand where it was.  The swordsman
stared at him in confusion, but the boy refused to meet those haunted
violet eyes.
    
    Kaoru protested, "It can't be Kenshin!  He never left the clinic for
a moment!"
    
    Sano looked his friend straight in the eye.  "Listen, Jo-chan.  I'm
not saying that Kenshin was actually there.  But I know what I saw.  You
couldn't mistake the hair or the scars.  It was you, Kenshin... or to be
precise, it was the Hitokiri Battousai."  He caught Misao and Aoshi
exchanging looks.

    Misao quietly said, "Himura... you asked me earlier how I knew you
wore your hair up in Kyoto, right?"

    There was a long pause, then Kenshin very quietly said, "Yes?"
    
    The ninja girl fiddled nervously with the end of her braid.  "Last
night... I dreamed I was in Kyoto back then... during the Bakamatsu no
Douran.  I saw the Battousai fighting a squad of Shinsengumi."

    As Kenshin's violet eyes widened in shock, Kaoru struggled to sit
up.  She said, "Misao, are you SURE?  I mean... you were dreaming,
right?"

    Aoshi quietly said, "Quite sure.  I had nearly the exact same
dream."  He glanced at Megumi.  "And Dr. Takani was in my dream too, if
only for a moment."

    Megumi gasped as she abruptly recalled her semi-nightmares of the
previous night.  "You saw me?  I remember now....  I ran into you."

    "And you ran away."

    Misao stared at Aoshi.  "You... you mean you had the same dream as I
did?  The EXACT same dream?  Then... then the things I told you... and
you told me...."

    Aoshi calmly cut her off by saying, "I remember everything we
discussed, Misao... everything."

    The ninja girl inexplicably began to blush all over. 
"Aoshi-sama...."

    Saitoh drawled, "This is all very interesting.  But there's more
important matters to deal with...."

    Sano suddenly said, "Saitoh, have you ever killed a woman?"
    
    "Why would you ask such a stupid question like that?"
    
    "Just give me a straight answer, damn it!"
    
    With his hand still on Yahiko's shoulder, Kenshin said softly,
"Sano...."
    
    The policemen stared down at the fighter.  In a cynical voice, he
said, "You're a naive fool if you think that greed, corruption, and evil
are the sole providence of men.  And it is the unexpected or unsuspected
persons who often do the most damage."

    As Sano gave him a blatantly skeptical stare, Saitoh gave him an
evil little smile and said, "Just ask Himura Battousai.  He knows that
from first-hand experience."

    All eyes turned to Kenshin who slowly removed his hand from Yahiko's
shoulder.  He stared at Saitoh with no particular expression as his
other hand casually came to rest on the hilt of his sakabatou.

    Sano sharply said, "I'm not asking Kenshin.  I'm asking YOU."
    
    "And I gave you an answer, you fool."
    
    Kenshin thought, (Yes, Sano.  He answered your question.  Can you
understand?  Back then, it didn't matter who it was... man or woman...
adult or child... if anyone interfered with what we perceived to be our
duty... they died.  For Saitoh, that duty was 'Aku Soku Zan'... 'Kill
Evil Instantly'.  For myself, it was defending the lives of the members
of the Ishin Shishi by whatever means necessary.)

    Sano stared at the two men standing in front of him.  Saitoh, the
relentless hunter with the cold, amber eyes... Kenshin, the resolute
protector with warm, violet eyes still haunted by past darkness....

    (There will never be men like that again....)

    Tokio said, "I hope you won't mind waiting a little bit longer for
your food.  Megumi and I are going to check on Shinomori-san's and
Kaoru's injuries.  As soon as that's done, I'll cook lunch for
everyone."

    Megumi managed to get out of bed without too much trouble and said,
"I'm sure you've done an excellent job of taking care of them,
Tokio-san, while I was... was...."  

    Tokio gave the doctor's shoulder a reassuring pat.  "Whatever
happened had nothing to do with you.  It wasn't your fault."

    The others left the wardroom, leaving Tokio and Megumi to quietly
confer over Kaoru. As they waited in the main room of the clinic, Yahiko
and Misao wrestled with their own private thoughts.  Saitoh lurked in
the background, but said nothing as Kenshin took the opportunity to tell
Sano about Megumi's recovery, the various dreams about Kyoto, and
finally their theories about the black sword.  

    "What's the big deal?  How hard can it be to get rid of that damned
sword?  Or hide it so no one will find it again?" complained Sano.
    
    Saitoh glanced at Kenshin.  "Do you want to tell the chicken-brain
or shall I?"

    "Saitoh...." growled Sano.

    Kenshin said, "It may be too late for such an easy solution."
    
    "What?"
    
    "We were recognized."

     The fighter growled, "I still don't get it!"  Saitoh snorted
audibly.
    
    "Sano, when we were confronting Megumi last night, do you remember
what she said?"

    "Uh... I wasn't really paying that much attention...."

    "She said, 'Battousai... and Saitoh....  Both of you... I've found
you, at last!'"
     
    "You mean... somehow you think this curse has somehow latched itself
onto you.  You and Saitoh?"
    
    "It's a possibility.  All these dreams of Kyoto -- during both night
and day, sleeping and awake -- they only started after that fight with
Megumi... after we were recognized and named."

    "Oh shit...." Sano groaned.  "But... how about you guys?  Did either
you have strange dreams last night?"

    Kenshin said, "I didn't... at least, none that I remember."

    Saitoh made a careless negative gesture.

    "Man, this gets weirder and weirder."

-----------------------------------

    When Tokio finally reemerged from the wardroom, Misao and Sano
barraged her with questions about Kaoru and Aoshi.  Kenshin was much too
polite to join in, but he was obviously worried about Kaoru's condition.
 Saitoh's wife serenely waited for the storm to subside before replying.

    "Misao, Aoshi seems to be improving steadily.  All he really needs
is rest."  She turned to Kenshin.  "Megumi took a look at Kaoru's
injury.  The cut's healing very well and there aren't any signs of
infection."

    Kenshin stared at her.  "Then why is she so weak?  If her wound
isn't infected and if there doesn't appear to be anything like poison on
that sword, what's wrong...."

    Tokio gave him a sympathetic look.  "I'm sorry.  I just don't know.
She's physically exhausted.  It's like something's wearing her down."

    As she went to the kitchen to prepare lunch, Kenshin followed her. 
"Tokio-dono, we all greatly appreciate your help, especially with so
many of us being injured... but perhaps it would be best for you to go
home.  I don't want to get you any further involved in this trouble. 
Besides, what about Eiji?  I saw him running out of the clinic yesterday
afternoon."

    Tokio calmly drained the greens and started slicing them briskly. 
"Please don't worry about Eiji.  He's very independent for his age and
my maid can take care of his meals for several days.  And if you will
pardon me for saying so, I think it would be best if I stayed away from
Eiji until this matter is settled."

    "Don't concern yourself with my wife, Battousai.  Worry about your
own woman," Saitoh said as he walked into the kitchen.

    "She could be in danger if she stays, Saitoh!"

    The policeman shrugged.  "Tokio knows the risks.  If she wants to
stay, she stays."  

    She gave Kenshin a warm smile.  "Besides, Kenshin-san, I would feel
very badly about deserting Kaoru, Megumi, and the others at the moment. 
Don't worry about me.  You just concentrate on whatever needs to be
done."
    
    As he watched Tokio cooking with the same serene competence that she
displayed in everything she did, Kenshin thought, (Yes, she understands
the risks and her husband all too well.  Tokio's fully prepared to allow
her husband to do whatever he feels is necessary, regardless of the cost
to her... death, if need be.  She refuses to be a liability to him.)

    (But she's not the sort of woman to sit by helplessly and let things
happen to her, either.  Her husband trusts her to take care of herself. 
She will not fail that trust.  Saitoh Tokio will defend herself -- and
what she considers as hers -- to the utmost of her considerable
ability... just like the way she did when she confronted a murderous,
sword-wielding Megumi with nothing more than a metal basin....)

-----------------------------------

[the present, the Aoiya restaurant in Kyoto]

    Omasu burst into the kitchen with her arms full of groceries.  

    Her fellow female Oniwabanshuu glared at her and yelled, "Where have
you been!?  We've got to get all this food ready for the dinner
crowd...." 

    "You'll never believe what someone just told me in the marketplace!"

    Okon muttered, "What are you babbling about?  Start washing that
cabbage!"

    "Okay, okay!"

    "All right, what's the big news?"

    "Ghosts!"

    "Wha... ghosts!?  Oh, come on!"

    "It's true!  Last night, apparently dozens of different people saw
ghosts walking in the streets of Kyoto!"

    "What?  That's ridiculous!"

    "It's true!  And get this!  Old Mogumi-san down the street SWORE she
saw a procession of Shinsengumi appear out of nowhere and disappear just
as suddenly!"

    "Shinsengumi!?  What the...?  The old woman must be going senile!"

    Omasu went on breathlessly, "And there were stories about people
hearing the sound of clashing swords and screaming outside their houses,
but whenever they looked, the streets were empty!  And that's not all!"

    "There's more?" was Okon's skeptical reply.

    Omasu pouted.  "Yes, there is.  They say that people are still
seeing these ghosts, even though it's daytime!"  

    Her friend glanced out the window at the dark gloomy sky which was
filled with roiling black clouds.

    "With weather like this, there's not much difference between night
and day...."

    The door to the kitchen suddenly opened.  They all turned and froze
when they saw Okina standing in the doorway.  For a horrified instant,
they thought that the old man had suffered some sort of seizure or
stroke.  He looked incredibly pale and he was mumbling incoherently.

    Omasu ran up to him and said, "What's wrong!?"

    "I... I saw him...."

    "Who?" asked a bewildered Okon.

    "My... my old friend... Ichishino....  I saw him in the garden
drinking tea...."

    "So!?" both women shouted.

    Okina sat down abruptly on the floor and yelled back, "But he's been
DEAD for the past 12 years!"

-----------------------------------

    Elsewhere in Kyoto, in an old rickety house that was once an
expensive mansion, an old woman cackled madly to herself and mumbled
something about time folding back on itself.  

-----------------------------------

[the present, Tokyo]

    Lunch turned out to be a rather subdued affair.  Despite the
excellent food, it seemed that only Saitoh had much of an appetite. 
After the meal was cleared away, everyone sat around the table staring
at the bundle that contained the black sword.  Despite protests from
both Misao and Kenshin, Aoshi and Kaoru insisted on joining the
discussion.

    "Now what?" Misao muttered.

    Saitoh calmly drank his tea and said, "Don't look at me.  I'm hardly
an expert in this area."

    Tokio gracefully poured her husband another cup.  "Then perhaps you
should consult an expert."

    They all turned to stare at her.  "Do you know of such a person?"
said Kenshin.

    "I know of a few priests and scholars in Tokyo who have some
knowledge of the occult.  If they can't help you, then they should be
able to direct you to a more knowledgeable person."

    "How do you know people like that?" Misao asked in amazement.

    Tokio smiled, "I collect old stories and folklore.  I've met many
different people during my research.  Hopefully some of them will be
able to help you deal with this sword."

    Kenshin quietly began to unwrap the sword.  "I think I remember
seeing a family crest somewhere on the hilt.  That might give us some
clues...."

    Sano watched him uneasily.  "You WILL be careful with that thing,
won't you?"

    Kenshin smiled quietly.  "Believe me, Sano.  I'm not eager to do
this, but we need to know...."

    Suddenly, the room darkened and the temperature plummeted.  In an
instant, the warm, homely clinic vanished.  Everyone found themselves
standing in a cold, deserted street.

    Misao ran over to Aoshi's side and huddled against him for warmth. 
"Brrrr!  What's going on!?"

    Saitoh looked around and muttered, "It's Kyoto."

    Sano groaned.  "No, not Kyoto again!  Why does everything keep going
back to Kyoto, of all places!?  Kenshin...."  When he didn't get a
response, he turned and said, "Kenshin?"

    The red-haired swordsman was staring at a group of three men walking
down the street in their direction.  The group consisted of a plump,
elderly man and two samurai.  One of the samurai was large and massively
built while the other was slim and almost painfully young.  The large
samurai carried a package in one hand while the smaller one carried a
lantern.  Oblivious to the presence of the others, the three men idly
chatted about the young man's fiancee.

    Kaoru heard Kenshin utter a soft gasp.

    Suddenly, a shadowy figure appeared behind the three men and said in
a cold, detached voice, "Apparently you are Kyoto administrator Jubee
Shigekura.  Nothing personal, however, I wish to take your lives."

    The large samurai dropped his package and went for his sword. 
"Who're you..."

    "Choshu Ishinshishi... Himura Battousai," as a red-haired young man
-- a teenager really -- stepped out of the shadows.   

    Kaoru stared in astonishment.  (He's... he's so YOUNG!)
    
    The next few seconds passed in a blur of flashing steel and blood. 
The young Battousai cut down the old man and the large samurai with a
single stroke apiece, then he closed with the smaller samurai.  There
was a brief exchange of blows as the Battousai's badly outmatched
opponent somehow managed to fend off the assassin's blade.  A final
exchange of slashes... then the young man collapsed, nearly disemboweled
by the Battousai's brutally precise sword stroke... but the red-haired
assassin had not escaped unscathed.

    There were gasps from the stunned observers as they watched blood
trickle from a long cut on the Battousai's left cheek.  He briefly
touched his wound and stared at the blood on his fingers.  The Battousai
then silently turned and plunged his sword into the back of the young,
mortally wounded samurai as he crawled along the ground in a last futile
attempt to escape the clutches of death.

    The Battousai cast the blood off his sword, sheathed it, and walked
away.  But the young killer stopped suddenly, then turned to look behind
him.  Impossible as it might seem, the Battousai was undeniably aware of
Kenshin's presence.  Cold golden eyes gazed into stunned violet eyes as
the two Himuras stared at each other across the bridge of years. 

    (I know you.  You are me.  I am you.) 

    The Battousai finally turned away and disappeared into the murky
darkness, leaving the watchers alone in a cold Kyoto street with three
dead men.

    Kenshin slowly sank to his knees in the blood-covered street as he
slowly reached up to touch the cross scar on his face.

    "Kiyosato Akira...," he whispered.  And with that name there always
came another.  "Tomoe...."

    The scene in front of them wavered like a mirage, then vanished.

    They found themselves back in the main room of Dr. Genzai's clinic. 
Kenshin was still on his knees and still motionless.  But this time, the
vision... or illusion... or dream... did not vanish without a trace.  

    Kenshin's hakama were unmistakably stained with fresh blood....

    ....and still more blood trickled steadily between his fingers from
one half of the cross scar on his face... a scar that had not bled for
nearly 14 years.

    Sometime during the past few moments, people gravitated to others
for reassurance.  Yahiko hovered anxiously near Kaoru.  Misao quietly
clung to Aoshi who put a comforting hand on her shoulder, while Megumi
leaned against Sano for support.

    "Kenshin?" Kaoru whispered. 

    The red-haired swordsman rose to his feet, still graceful even in
his dazed state, and slowly walked outside the clinic.  As the blood
continued to seep from his scar, Kenshin sank down on the porch and
stared vacantly at the yard, its stone walls and modest vegetation
seemingly awash in blood from the reddish light of the setting sun. 

    As the others stared wordlessly after Kenshin, Tokio put her hand on
her husband's arm and murmured, "Hajime-san...."

    Surprisingly, Saitoh wasn't watching Kenshin.  Instead, he was
looking up at the spectacular reds and purples of the evening sky. 
There was a faint tone of bemusement in Saitoh's voice as he absently
replied, "Isn't it a trifle forward for a respectable young lady like
yourself to be on a first name basis with a man she's only known for a
few days?"

    There was a long... a very long... silence as everyone -- except for
Kenshin -- slowly turned to stare at Saitoh.

    Tokio's eyes went wide with astonishment, but she managed to answer
with an unbelievable amount of composure, given the circumstances.

    "Hajime... it's been 15 years since we first met in Kyoto... and
we've been married for over EIGHT of them...."

-----------------------------------
(end of part 9)

**********************************************************************

    Q:  What's worse than a hitokiri losing his mind?
    A:  Two of them!  ::maniacal laughter::

Next part:   A few minor mental glitches.   ^_^

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