Kendo no Go
In the Language of Kendo:
A Fanfic in 100 Chapters
by Akai Kitsune
67: Breakfast
~*~
Breakfast at the Kamiya dojo
was always an adventure. That was one thing Kaoru remembered easily of the time
following Kenshin's arrival at her home, bringing with him a string of assorted
strangers who quickly became her close-knit family. It surprised her, really,
how a man so soft-spoken and gentle could influence as many people - in so few
words and actions - as he did.
Although she had to admit that anything Kenshin
did or said was strong enough to leave an impact on anyone, least of all
an impressionable group of lonely youth who sought a balancing force, something
to hold onto.
It was so strange how a wanderer, bound to
nothing, as secure to his position as the wind might be, became their anchor.
Kaoru could remember when
breakfast was quiet and uneasy, containing a tension that was almost audible in
its intensity. The hidden emotions shared between her parents were always a
mystery to her; a secret, carefully concealed, ethereal to those who were not
part of it.
She envied them, and at the same time she felt
sorry for their situation. How could two people stand being together for as long
as they did, when they were unable to share what they felt with each other?
'I'll never marry a man I can't talk
to,' she vowed. 'I couldn't live like that.'
After she married Kenshin,
Kaoru found herself thinking back upon that vow rather frequently. It was true,
she and Kenshin conversed more openly than most married couples, but what they
talked about brought about a strange debate.
She loved him, and he loved her; no one could
argue with that.
But when it came down to it, she didn't know
much about him at all.
'Baka Kaoru!' she scolded
herself, guilty at expecting more from him than he was willing to give. 'He's
said it himself - he told you more than he's told anyone in over ten
years. Shouldn't that be enough?'
It should be, shouldn't it? Kenshin had always
seemed content, never asking for much of anything.
'I should be like that, shouldn't I.
I should be happy with what he's chosen to share with me.'
'He's given me his life... his
love...'
'Yes, that should be enough...'
The disappearance of
Sanosuke, Megumi's departure to Aizu, and Yahiko's move to Sano's old house all
joined to make the dojo far quieter than it used to be. Her practice and
Kenshin's chores simply weren't enough to generate the level of noise that once
broke the peace of the neighbourhood.
'Our neighbours must be so relieved,'
she mused with a sad smile. 'I'm sure they must've been ready to come
knocking on our doors demanding for us to be quiet, sometimes.'
Truth be told, she didn't have many visitors
after her father died. Her students came, of course - until that pesky false
Battousai incident - but it seemed as though many of her father's friends lost
interest in keeping in touch with their comrade's daughter.
'... no wonder I was lonely.'
Kenshin's arrival changed all that. With
rumours of the Battousai running rampant all over Tokyo, it was no wonder that
the Kamiya dojo's gate was always bare. Her neighbours lay as silent strangers
on the other side of the fence, distant and quiet.
But... it was all right. As long as she had
Kenshin, she knew it was just fine.
"It's a little lonely, but..."
"We'll endure it."
~*~
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