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Amber Horizons	By : vampmistress76 Category: Rurouni Kenshin > General Views: 5093 -:- 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
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Amber Horizons

- Chapter 17 -

Testing the Limits

Misao pulled the book closed. Unbelievable. It was so unbelievable. Poor Tokio. Being assaulted and then finding out about her pregnancy. It muve bve been so hard. She was all alone. Poor Saitou. What would he have thought when he came home? His wife dead. His pregnant wife. A pregnant wife with a child that wasn't his. She clutched the book to her chest. He must've been so worried, so tortured. She couldn't imagine how awful it must've been, still be, to carry such a burden of guilt.

He hadn't been there for her. His wife had been raped while he was away on one of his many trips and he hadn't been there. She'd suffered alone, and now he too would have to suffer. Everyone suffered. She hung her head. Was this what worried him? Did he fear she would do that same thing? That she would kill herself like Tokio had?

Misao shook the questions that plagued her mind away as she rolled off of her futon and climbed to her feet. She needed to go see Saitou. She needed to talk to him, to let him know his fears were in vain. That she had no intention olloollowing that route, no matter what the result of her... unfortunate mishap.
She quickly blew out the candle and silently slipped out of her room, attempting to be as quiet as possible as she exited the dojo. Sighing in relief when she managed to make it outside without alerting Himura, Misao quickly made her way toward town. It was late, and she pondered the possibility of Saitou still being at the police headquarters. She thought better of it and instead, turned down the path that lead to the police officer's place of residence.
She stood outside the doorway suddenly uneasy. Maybe she shouldn't have come this time of night? Ah, well, it was too late for regrets now, she was here. She raised her hand to knock and did so before she could change her mind. She waited and waited. It seemed like forever. The windows were dark. Maybe he simply wasn't home. That didn't seem so odd, the guy worked way too hard. He really did have a one-track mind most of the time. She was just about to head down toward the station hoping to find him when the door was slid open roughly. At first she wasn't sure it was him, just a tall, male silhouette until she heard an exhaled breath and smelled the distinct odor of cigarette smoke.
"You're out late, weasel. Don't you think it's a bit late to be coming to a gentleman's house?" He leaned against the doorframe, showing no signs of inviting insiinside. She shifted. Good point.
"What gentleman?" She shot back. "Old men like you don't count."

She couldn't see his expression, but he didn't seem angry. "Come on in, weasel. No need to stand outside all night."
He moved away, stalking down a corridor. She had to hurry to keep up down the dark hall. She stepped in the room after him only to find he wasn't exactly dressed. His dark uniform was unbuttoned and pulled open.

She hastily looked away as she felt her pulse race at the sight. Damn it, despite all that she'd been through, she still reacted to him. She caught her breath, unsure of herself now that she was in Saitou's presence. What exactly should she say now that she was here? Turning back to Saitou, Misao found him staring at her intently, a cigarette dangling from his lips and an eyebrow arched questioningly.
Suddenly, she remembered the diary she still held clutched to her chest. Taking a step forward, Misao thrust it out toward Saitou. "Here..." she said softly, "I just wanted... to return this."
He stared at the book a moment before plucking it out of her hands and sitting it down on the table. "Sit down." It sounded more like an order than an invitation.

Misao glared up at him instinctively, but complied all the same. Once she'd sat down, Misao took a deep breath before speaking. "I wanted to thank you for allowing me to... to read Tokio's diary."
Saitou plopped down pulling the cigarette out of his mouth and exhaling a dancing trail of smoke. He glanced at the discarded book and then looked back at her. "You seem kind of jumpy. Bother you much?"
"N-not really..." Misao began, but winced at the slight stutter in her voice. Beginning again she said, "What I mean is, it took me by surprise. I wasn't expecting.... that." She kept her head bowed, finding herself unable to look Saitou in the eyes at the moment.
He scoffed. "I damn sure wasn't expecting it."

Misao's eyes rose to meet him then, biting her bottom lips nervously. "Saitou.... I'm sorry about your wife."

He didn't immediately respond as the cigarette was placed back in his mouth. He was obviously sorry it happened too. After several moments of strained silence, he spoke up again. "You feeling any better?"
"I don't know." She sighed.

He stared at her, wishing for a time when there wasn't this tension between them. A time when he could've caged her in and played silly games instead of edging around his words. He couldn't help wondering if it would've been like this with Tokio too. What was she like all alone? Did she want him there? Would she have been too ashamed to face him? He pushed thoughts of her aside. He sure didn't feel any better about it. It didn't help his back was killing him, damn chairs were uncomfortable.

"Yeah, well until you do, stay away from all the pointy objects."
That caught her attention. Misao looked up, locking gazes with the amber-eyed cop at last. "I'm not going to wind up like her." She stated firmly.
"Good." He replied. "I didn't give you the book for nothing."

She didn't say anything for a moment, silence stretching out for an uncomfortably long time. "Saitou..." she began, faltering a bit before continuing, "Were you really worried.... about me, I mean?"
"They say history repeats itself, besides I'd like to avoid any confrontations with Shinomori. The man annoys me." He put out the remnants of his cigarette, yawning. He stared at her a long moment. "Come over here."
For some reason, Misao found herself obeying without any objections. Rising from her seat, she walked around the table until she stood before him, her arms wrapped around herself in an unconsciously protective gesture, and waited. He motioned and she kneeled down beside him. He snagged her wrist, pulling her to the floor with him. Misao went willingly, allowing Saitou to draw her nearer to him.

'What is he doing?' she wondered silently.

He pulled her against his side, leaning back against the wall, stretching his legs out, sighing heavily. He was so tired. He draped his arm heavily across her slim shoulders, holding her against him. "You scared, minx?"
Surprisingly, Misao found that she wasn't. The sense of dread that had been overcoming her whenever any contact was made with a man since Koji had raped her was absent. She felt her heart skip a beat as the indication of that absence struck her. Smiling, she shook her head. "No, I'm not scared."
He shifted, leaning down, breathing in her scent. It had been a while since he'd been so close to her. He didn't want to press, he didn't want to find out how far she would let him go, but at the same time he needed to know. As though knowing would somehow be an indication of how hurt Misao had been.

When she felt him lean down and breath in deeply, Misao couldn't help the pleased smile which passed her lips. Tilting her head so that it rested against his chest, Misao shifted slightly so that she could find a more comfortable position within the circle of Saitou's arms.
He sat up, turning, gently pressing her back. He kept his palms open, lying flat against her shoulders, eyes careful, watching her. He tilted her downward gaze up, one hand curled gently beneath her chin. "Scared now?"
Misao felt her breath hitch at such a gentle touch. "No." she murmured softly.
He leaned closer, placing one hand flat against the floor to support his body and the other rose to touch her cheek. He brushed the back of his rough skinned hand against her once and again asked, "And now?"
Misao's eyes fluttered closed at such a tender act. The realization of what he was doing dawned on her and she smiled slightly before shaking her head, no, silently willing him to continue. He felt some of his tension melt away at her response. So far, so good. Maybe she wasn't scarred for life. Maybe she really wouldn't put a blade through her chest or jump in a river. Maybe Misao could live through it. He'd seen a lot of women who hadn't. Killed themselves, or more commonly, killed by their rapist. Women in days of war were disposable trophies. Captured, raped and killed, the memories made him shudder.
He leaned closer, brushing his nose against hers, his breath fanning her face. He spoke, his voice a velvet caress, his lips a scant inch from her own. "Now?"

Misao answered him, not by word, nor gesture, but by action as she leaned forward, closing the distance between their lips willingly. She brought her arms up to hook them around his neck, holding him tightly to her in order to convince him once and for all that she was not scared. At least, not by him. Never by him.
Saitou abruptly shelved his surprise, reaching out to hold the girl against him, her soft lips against his. How long hadn't it been like this? It seemed so long... He pulled her closer, dragging her up onto her knees to ease the stoop and strain on his aching back. He leaned back, caressing her bottom lip with his tongue, their eyes meeting.
She stared at him, her breaths coming in small gasps, the seconds seeming to stretch endlessly as she waited for Saitou to make the next move. He leaned forward, pressing his forehead against hers. "Maybe you ought to go now... I have to leave early in the morning to head out and you shouldn't be here this late."

She stared at him blinkingly, the words 'I have to leave' ringing in her ears. Pulling back from him, she frowned. "What do you mean? Where are you going?"
He drew back, running a hand through his hair. "I've got business in the next town over. It appears a witness, a young woman, was roughed up by the suspected members of a gang I've been after for some time. I hear she's not doing so well."
"Oh," Misao replied, barely managing to keep the disappointment from showing in her eyes as well as her voice.

"Oh?" He questioned. "You wanna come? You haven't been doing anything but sitting around anyway. I didn't borrow you from Shinomori for a vacation."

Misao started, having not been expecting him to ask her along. She smiled. "Really? You mean you don't mind if I come along?"
"If I was worried about the disaster you were bound to bring the trip, I wouldn't have invited you."
Her eyes narrowed at that comment. "Hey!"
"If you intend to come along, instigator that you are, you better get back to the dojo. Clearly the Battousai is becoming incompetent in his old age, letting you leave alone at this time of night." He stood up. "Be back here at dawn, or I leave you, weasel."

Rising to her feet as well, Misao nodded her agreement. Without actually thinking of her actions, she leaned in, wrapping her arms around Saitou's waist, hugging him briefly before withdrawing again. "Goodnight, Saitou. I'll see you in the morning." she said, and then quickly made a hasty retreat.

~*~
Misao's head snapped up. She couldn't be late. No! She couldn't really be this late! How could she oversleep?! It felt like the first day of the rest of her life. She felt refreshed. She felt awake. She felt... dirty. Oh, man she needed a bath!
She grimaced, as she ran toward the bathhouse. Five short minutes later she was running out, half soaked, half dressed. She dashed by Kenshin, who turned his head to watch her run. She could've sworn she heard an 'Oro!?' in there but couldn't be sure.
Moments later she was out the door, dragging her bag along behind her as she wrestled with her hair, long and loose trailing over her shoulder. She'd braid it on the way. She had just rounded up a hill toward the meeting site, dropping her bag in the process, only to find the place deserted. Poof. Empty.
She scowled, twisting her braid as she secured the band. That jerk! He'd left without her?! How could he?!
She was so caught up in her inner rantings that Misao missed the figure that emerged from behind the large oak tree it had previously been leaning against. The tall form moved to tower over Misao as she crossed her arms over her chest in frustration before leaning down and whisper amusedly into her left ear.
"You're late, minx. What took you?"
She jumped, startled. 'Ninja instincts straight out the window,' she thought absently.
Saitou seemed nothing, if not amused. "I said dawn, do you remember that? Or is your memory selective?"

Her eyes narrowed as she turned to face the aggravatingly handsome Wolf. "I remember, I just.... overslept." she grumbled.
"You can't oversleep," he snapped irritably. He walked around her and began ahead, leaving her to wonder at the source of his grumpiness.

Sensing that all the tenderness that had been revealed to her the previous night bee been carefully locked away by the dawning of the morning, Misao heaved a sigh before crouching to pick up her bag. Grumbling under her breath, she headed out after Saitou's rapidly retreating form.
"Come on, the driver's probably about to leave without us." Hpt wpt walking, his pace brisk but nothing compared to Aoshi's long strides. She could at least keep up with him with a little less effort. Or, maybe he was walking slower for her benefit.
They arrived at the location in which the carriage awaited them, the driver indeed looked impatient, but said nothing as he opened the door to allow them entrance. Saitou allowed Misao to climb inside first before following her in, seating himself across from her in the dual cushioned seats. The driver shut the door securely behind them, then climbed up into the upper seat to take hold of the reigns. With a flick of the wrists and a whistle, the pair of chestnut mares attached to the rigging lurched forward, bningning the journey.
Saitou stared at the girl across from him. She didn't seem so bad off anymore. She didn't look healed either. She had been wearily eyeing the driver, whether she knew it or not she'd been hanging close by him the entire time. He couldn't think of any scenario worse than the one she'd been subjected to although he'd have preferred anything to befall her than what had. It was the kind of damage he couldn't see to fix.
Misao could feel his amber gaze upon her, a trunneunnerving experience to be caught within a gaze such as Saitou's. Shifting a bit uncomfortably, Misao purposefully ignored him, instead, she contented herself with looking out the carriage window at the passing scenery.
"Well? What do you think, weasel? Nice, eh?" He began hunting through his pockets, looking pleased when he located his cigarettes.

Despite their previous spat, if it could be called that, Misao felt herself smiling as she cast a glance in Saitou's direction. "Yeah.. it is." She watched as he lit up a cigarette, inhaling a puff of smoke before exhaling it once again from his lungs. Misao's nose crinkled at the smell of tobacco and she turned back to look out the window.

The carriage ride was smooth and very relaxing. Saitou tensed, body straightening when the horses neighed loudly and the carriage jostled. Misao lurched, body careening forward. Saitou reached to keep her from tumbling awkwardly, and instead she landed against him. With her loud gasp, he suspected it might have knocked the air from her lungs, but she wasn't gasping for breath.
Misao's body collided with Saitou's, but it was not enough to injure her in any way. She looked up, a bit sheepishly to peer into the amber orbs that were suddenly all to close, studying her quietly.
"Comfy, minx?"
Feeling herself beginning to blush, Misao diverted her gaze and made to rise. Saitou, on the other hand, had another idea. Reaching out, the Wolf snagged her around the waist and pulled her fully into his lap. Again, his mind started to wonder as he stared up into bright, wide eyes. How far until she recoiled? How far could he push until she pushed back, and did he really want to find the limit? His caution seemed to draw some kind of impatience as her hands fisted in the dark blue material of his uniform shirt, one on each shoulder.

Growling low in her throat, Misao restrained herself from yelling into Saitou's face, to convince him once and for all that she wasn't going to break. That she would live through this. Looking up, Misao stared deeply into his amber eyes and she felt her anger dissolve. Up close like this, she couldn't help but become ensnared within their golden depths and wonder at how beautiful they were.

'Like a tiger's eyes.' She thought, the memory of when she had teased him with such a nickname emerging in her mind, causing her to blush slightly.
She finally broke eye contact, breaking off the near trance enducing stare as her green eyes wandered downward, past the bridge of his nose to lock onto his thin lips. The pace of her breathing sped up slightly as she recalled how she had instigated the kiss the night before. She wondered, if she could get up the courage to do so, if he would mind if she did it again.

'Only one way to find out.' She decided, gathering her wits about her as she leaned forward, pressing her lips firmly to his.
Saitou was somewhat startled at the sudden and bold nature of Misao. Certainly, he'd wanted to know how far he could push, but he hadn't expected her to push back. It occurred to him then, what if she was pushing for the wrong reason? Her lips were soft and inviting though. The press of her body against his enticed him into forgetting her motivations. He wondered, even as his hands tightened around her waist. What if she was just pushing to forget? What if all she wanted was to erase the memory of Koji?

What if that wasn't the case at all? Could she really be recovered so quickly? Tokio hadn't seemed to want anyone to touch her or talk to her. She'd become, by her numerous entries, despondent and lonely, caught up in her nightmares. Were all women the same? Was he questioning it too much? Would Tokio have been all right had he been there for her? Had he been there to reassure her?
All his doubts seemed to melt as he felt Misao's tongue brush across his lips. 'Why question...' he thought.
Parting his lips to allow Misao's persistent tongue entrance, Saitou neither pressed nor pulled away from this kiss. He instead allowed her to control the pace and course of the embrace and where it might lead. Despite his determination to let her take the lead, Saitou couldn't stop a deep moan from emerging when she began to nibble on his lower lips lightlforefore sucking it into her mouth with gentle insistence. Finally releasing it, Misao shifted in Saitou's lap, moving into a more comfortable position by placing one knee in the seat on each side of his thighs. Once satisfied, she returned her attention to exploring his mouth again, this time letting her hands unclench from the cloth of his shirt to wander the ese ose of broad chest before her.
Saitou tensed, unexpectedly, and Misao pulled back abruptly. His eyes immediately darted toward the window and she glanced in the same direction.

"What is-" she started, only to be cut off as he waved a hand.

"You hear that?"
"No," she replied. "Hear what?"
He brought a hand up to comb through his hair absently. "Nothing," he replied. Maybe he was stressed. Or tired. He hadn't been sleeping exceptionally well lately.
Misao, suddenly feeling uncomfortable, extracted herself from his lap and moved back to her seat, keeping her gaze directed out the window. He couldn't begin to fathom her mood swings let alone what she was thinking.
Misao continued to stare out the window of the coach, her green eyes scanning the passing timberlines, just to have a reason not to look at the amber eyed man sitting across from her.
She couldn't banish the uneasy feeling she had, but she'd been feeling antsy for a while, since the incident with Koji. Of course, she felt that way now too, uneasy. Her eyes scanned along the road way, but all seemed pretty normal. When the carriage bounced and she heard the distinct sound of wood splintering, followed by the abrupt stop of the carriage, she began to tremble.
"What was that?" She asked, trying to keep her voice from sounding panicky>
>
"Sounds like the carriage pin wheel broke." Saitou replied, as though announcing he suspected it would rain the next day.

"Carriage pin wheel?" She asked, drawing blanks. "What's that mean?"
"It means... we're walking."

Her jaw fell as she watched him open the door and hop out. The coachmen were already examining the damage. She followed him out, watching as the men hovered around the wheel in question while she stood back, peering around.
Saitou looked up from the chatting about the wheel as he felt the sudden presence of several others. He turned sharp eyes around peering for the source of the ki he was sensing closing in on them.
Misao saw Saitou's body tense and took in the way he was eyeing the wooded area that lined the road. He sensed something, she could tell. But what? "Saitou..." she began, intending on voicing her thought, only to be cut off by a sharp, pieg yeg yell that seemed to echo all around them. Surrounding them. Trapping them.
He moved, reaching out to snag the driver, only to watch the man gasp, a sickly bubbling sound, blood spattering as a kunai went straight through his throat. He whirled around, reaching for Misao, startling the girl as he grabbed her roughly.
Misao grunted in slight pain as Saitou none to gy puy pushed her back inside the carriage. "Stay there and get down!" He commanded, before shutting the door firmly and turning to face the oncoming attackers.
He turned, mouth setting deeply into a frown as he glanced at the men now surrounding him. There were only a handful, but enough to be troublesome. He barely repressed a growl seeing the other coachmen beside the driver, now dead.
'Bastards.'

From within the coach, Misao peeked cautiously out the side window. She watched Saitou as he faced off with at least seven guys, some armed with long swords and a few others with kunai. The dead bodies of the driver and guard lay just within her sight and Misao felt her chest clinch. Saitou. He was all alone out there.

A deep resolve settling within her, Misao reached deep within a hidden pocket, her slender hand wrapping around the hilt of a sharp bladed kunai. He was going to need help.

And by Kami, she wasn't going to let him down.

~*~

TBC�

Authors' Notes: We deeply apologize for taking so long to update. Please forgive us! We are happy to say that AH is drawing close to an end. Probably two, maybe three more chapters to go! Hope you enjoy the update!
Buffybot76 & profiler120
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Amber Horizons