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Concessions	By : lawless Category: Rurouni Kenshin > General Views: 3636 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
CONCESSIONS
by Lawless

"Like glimpses of forgotten dreams." ~ Tennyson

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DISCLAIMER: This is a fanfic. I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or its characters.

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Chapter 9: The Days are Gray

Kyoto
(Two days before the events of Chapter 8)
All was quiet at the Aoi-ya. It was night and the people of Kyoto have long succumbed to the enticements of sleep. A few minutes after one, a diminutive figure cloaked in black arrived by coach. The figure stood for a full minute, staring silently at the side door of the restaurant inn before a limb shot up and a rap against hard wood could be heard. A bleary-eyed man, perhaps one of the servants at the restaurant, opened it and exchanged a few words with the figure. At first, the man was adamant, but when the figure produced something from the shadows, he stepped back. Moments later, a lamp was lit somewhere inside the Aoi-ya, its yellow light looking faded through the thin paper covering the shoji.
- - -
She studied his features, onyx eyes watchful as she tried to gauge his answer even before he voiced them out. For a long moment, the old man did not say anything. His wizened old face was thoughtful as he carefully went over what she just told him, his hands absently fiddling with the paper crane he was holding. It was the same paper crane that she had shown the man who opened the door for her.
Replacing the cup of tea on the table, she spoke, "Gongse Lingdao sends his regards, Okina-san."
The room was quiet apart for the whistling, slightly muffled sound of bamboo swaying in the wind. The Oniwanbanshuu onmitsu gave a slight toss of his gray head but kept his eyes closed. A frown created lines across his brow, adding to the collection of creases that was there as a testament of time passing him by. She understood that the message she bore bothered him and she did not blame him for that.
The alliance was an old one, made during the days of Edo, and it was informal at best. It was created out of both parties' mutual needs. The Red Lanterns wanted information which might prove valuable for their burgeoning business in Japan and the Oniwabanshuu had contacts in Hong Kong that needed protection. It was an unspoken understanding - a pooling of resources. But it was nothing binding.
And demands were seldom made.
"The walls have eyes and ears," Okina began, lifting eyes faded with age to the stoic young woman sitting in front of him. "Gongse Lingdao does not need to ask what Gongse Lingdao knows."
A refusal. Polite. But firm.
She kept her face carefully devoid of emotion. A fleeting half-smile and then, the cold reply, "Gongse Lingdao does not ask." The Red Lanterns have other sources, of course. Okina was right in bringing that out. But without the onmitsu's cooperation, her task would be a little more difficult to accomplish. She decided to try another tactic, knowing full well that the Oniwabanshuu have more than a dozen contacts whose lives hung by a thread, spared only by the mark of the Gongse Denglong on them. A claim; they were Red Lantern property. Surely, they would not voluntarily forsake their own men to the wolves, not when underground politics was this cutthroat.
It was time to remind the Oniwabanshuu of that.
She leaned forward, onyx orbs shining like black fire even as a chilly note colored her words. "The shadow is only as far as the Rising Sun. Where there is dark, Gongse Lingdao sees."
The warning was subtle but it was a warning nonetheless.
The old man's frame stiffened slightly and anyone less discerning would have missed it completely. But the woman had sharp eyes and when she saw this, a pleased smirk crossed her porcelain features. She settled back on her cushioned seat, satisfied with her tiny victory. "Gongse Lingdao wishes only little and the Oniwabanshuu stand to gain much out of this," she added in measured tones.
Okina lifted one gray brow and she had to chuckle softly at this. "I have names that you might have some interest in." When he did not respond, she continued, "Does the name 'Yazaki Gi' mean anything to you?" The old man's face was blank and she seemed to find this amusing too as she chuckled once more. Changing the manner of her speech, she explained, "As his name implies, he is Japanese. Some months ago, he came to work for San Tiaolong. The fact alone that he is working for our greatest rival is enough to gain our attention, but we knew almost nothing about him and it took us time. He was a businessman, we discovered, a disgraced one. Considering our business, that made sense. But imagine our surprise when we discovered that he was a prison escapee before he came to our shores."
Okina paused, the realization evident on his face. There was no need to state who it was. They both knew it. "You mentioned," he said, "there is more than one name."
She nodded, her short-cropped hair falling over her eyes as she said, "Sagara Sanosuke."

o0o
Tokyo
(A few minutes after the events of Chapter 8)
Sano sensed her presence even before he saw her shadow fall on his seated form. He was at the park, sitting on a stone bench, erected there simply for that purpose. The ground was covered with dry leaves and sakura petals that have escaped the confines of its stem. "At the Pass, the snow is white and bold..." The stark white of the cherry blossom indeed looked like snow against the backdrop of the rich brown and dark gold of the leaves.
He felt her sit beside him, the fur of her cloak brushing his hand softly. Keeping his head bowed, he spoke, "Huang Li Wei." It was a kind of tradition between them. He would always greet her by her full name and she would always respond with a cursory nod. "I received your note," he added, raising his head up to stare in the distance.
"You spoke with the Okashira?" She asked, studying his profile.
Sano closed his eyes. So she knew. The kunai was too obvious and it made sense that he spoke to him before the note arrived."He is no longer okashira," he finally replied.
Her expression remained neutral. "So it seems."
"What are you doing here, Li?" The question was quiet.
"You know why I'm here, Yang Liu."
Sano looked at her then and his eyes darkened. "Gongse Lingdao sent you."
"Of course."
"San Tiaolong?" He asked and she nodded. "I see." San Tiaolong - the Three Dragons - was the Red Lanterns' rival for power and influence in the Hong Kong black market. Sano knew enough about them to understand the danger. "I have no business with San Tiaolong," Sano told her, "And I have cut off my ties with the Red Lanterns a long time ago. Why have you brought me here?"
Instead of answering, Huang Li Wei stood up suddenly, saying, "Is she the real reason you left, Yang Liu?"
The question took Sano by surprise. She was there. She had been watching.
It unnerved him but it also made him think. He never stopped to think about it. Is she? he found himself asking the same question she had posed. Despite their differences, Huang Li Wei always had an uncanny insight into his persona. And now, she seemed to understand the predicament he was in with Megumi. Sano recalled the anger he felt when he first saw her outside the dojo, the quiet understanding that followed, the light teasing, then the outburst earlier today, and finally, the kiss. Extremes. Her effect on him was always strong, always to the limit. No one has ever affected him like she did. She made him do drastic things, stupid things like a man desperate... But she wasn't his reason. At least, not at first.
"It was the letter that brought me back, Li," he replied.
She kept her face averted and when she spoke, her voice was soft, devoid of feeling. "But she has become your reason for staying."
Sano shook his head. It was all too confusing.
She turned to look at him and at that moment, a draft of wind blew their way, letting them bask in the warm scent of flowers in bloom. And for a moment, Sano thought he saw something soft enter her black eyes. But then, she spoke. "Gongse Lingdao cannot let San Tiaolong gain the upper hand."
And so that was it. She was after her, too. "Of course." His voice dripped with sarcasm. "Business as usual, ne?" When she continued to stare at him unemotionally, he ventured, his casual tone belying the tension he felt, "You understand that I won't just stand by and watch."
The fleeting half-smile. "I do not expect."
"Shinomori -"
She cut him off. "The Oniwabanshuu will do their part. That is the agreement."
"I will stop you."
The half-smile widened, transforming her face, making it appear almost child-like in its purity. "That is the only thing I expect." She gathered her fur-lined cloak more tightly to her diminutive body, drawing it close as though she was feeling the cold for the first time.
"Then why tell me all this if you knew I was going to stop you?" Sano asked, dark eyes questioning.
She looked away, her voice coming out in a whisper. "Because, Yang Liu, there is something to be said of old friendships." And with that, she left, her dark cloak gracefully swirling behind her.
Sano watched after her rapidly retreating form, seeing her pale hand appear to wave at a passing coach. She climbed in and his last glimpse of her was her stoic pale face and the voluminous mass of her cloak. After she was gone and the coach rolled away, Sano continued to stare at the space where he last saw her. For a moment, he could not form a single coherent thought. Questions assaulted him from all angles but answers eluded him. After a while, he sighed. In time, the answers will come to him. Meanwhile, he had some apologizing to do to a certain kitsune-onna and he figured that now would be the right time to give her the medical books he promised.

- oo - TO BE CONTINUED - oo -

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A/N Can anyone take a wild guess on who Yazaki Gi is? By the way, sakura trees don't normally bloom in autumn but apparently, they do in this fanfic. Please, don't hurt me.
Thank you all for the great reviews. I'm a little scared now.
Footnotes:
Gongse Lingdao - literally means "Red Leader"; not an actual name but a title for the leader of the Red Lanterns (Gongse Denglong)
San Tiaolong - literally means "The Three Dragons"; the name of a rival gang, so-called because there are three leaders - Mu Long (Solemn Dragon) whom you will meet in the next chapter and two others who will only be briefly mentioned in this fic
- 9
- 10
- 11
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Concessions