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True Gifts Lemony Fresh Extra	By : Rissa2878 Category: Rurouni Kenshin > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 2468 -:- 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
- 3
- 4
- 5
Chapter 4

And so it had stayed that way for weeks. Misao couldn’t look him in the eye for fear of seeing the truth, so painfully obvious in his guilty gaze. Aoshi wouldn’t have tried to hide it even if he could. Even being around her and smelling her scent was enough to drive him crazy inside.

He was certain that she knew something about what had happened that night. A few days after the encounter they had met in the hall. Misao had looked him in the eye then, he saw the questions, the hurt. And that had been it, he couldn’t face her anymore. He’d done the unthinkable by taking advantage of her.

He hadn’t moved, hadn’t spoken, he gave her the same look he had given her that day in the field so long ago. And Misao knew. She knew it had been him, he would not deny it.

Then the tears had started, and they had shocked her. She hadn’t been prepared to be so vulnerable in front of him. Aoshi had reached out and wiped a tear from her cheek; she could see him asking for forgiveness with his eyes, but this was the one time she couldn't offer it to him. She only knew that she had somehow been violated by the man she loved and she couldn’t remember it. Before she could speak he was gone.

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When he had come to pick her up in Tokyo, she had been shocked. Misao had tried to think about him as little as possible on her vacation and had succeeded quite well, right up until his knock on the gate. On top of that fact, he was a few days earlier than she had expected her escort home to arrive.

Kaoru had invited him to stay for a day or two and he had agreed. It seemed that he had wanted very much the opportunity to talk with Himura. They had shopped in the city and walked the streets without so much as a word to one another. It seemed that Himura was aware of the tension between them. He and Aoshi had spent a long time together the afternoon they left Tokyo.

Misao could only guess that Aoshi was confiding in the nonjudgmental Kenshin about the experience. She couldn’t be angry with him for telling their private matters to a friend, she loved him too much and Aoshi was discreet. She could only hope that Himura could talk some sense into Aoshi, but he couldn’t make Aoshi love her.

Early that afternoon they had started on their way home to Kyoto. Though she tried at first to be bright and cheery the mood had settled into silence, during the long walk through the woods. Her thoughts were filled with quiet regret about leaving Tokyo, almost anything would have been better than the unbearable silence of her companion. Even the beauty of their surroundings was not enough to calm her aching heart.

At one point she took to walking ahead of Aoshi, ‘Maybe if I walk ahead of him I’ll just forget he’s here it will be like I’m going home by myself…’ The only thing the action had accomplished was an uneasy feeling that she was being watched.

And she was. Aoshi couldn’t take his eyes off of the swaying curves in front of him. Her braid captivated his attention as it bounced against her derrière time and time again. He longed to reach out and touch her, to feel her wonderful softness in his hands again.

The thought was making him aroused and he had to grit his teeth to keep from groaning in frustration. Misao sensed a change in the man behind her and hastily looked back to see what he was doing. His gaze was firmly attached to her backside. She stopped in her tracks and let him pass. Aoshi kept right on walking refusing to even so much as flinch despite the fact he had been caught.

Misao had wisely decided to walk behind him a half step, feeling that she might be safer in the long run. Walking with him was like walking with a shadow anyway, she might as well treat him like one. Eventually she was able to lose herself in thoughts of things to do once she had made it home. She wondered what her makeshift family would think of the things she’d brought back for them from her trip. The only one she didn’t wonder about was Aoshi, she'd known from the moment she saw his gift that it would be perfect. She knew he was the last person she should be buying a gift for, but despite the pain she still loved him.

She’d bought him a beautiful, black silk sleeping robe imported from China. The back was embroidered with a scene of a Dragon and a Phoenix chasing each other around two closely fitted teardrops of color. The red and green Dragon held a bright blue tear drop with a smaller midnight blue circle at it’s widest point in its claws and in it’s talons the yellow and orange Phoenix carried a dark blue teardrop of color with a bright blue spot at the bottom.

She wasn’t quite sure what the symbol was called but she knew she’d seen it at one of the temples she’d followed Aoshi to one time. He had tried to explain it to her as Yin and Yang, the balance of life, which all things struggled to meet. She recalled thinking briefly that maybe the robe would help him find his center point.

Whether or not she would actually give him this gift was another question. It was by far the most expensive thing she had purchased during her stay in Tokyo, as she had spent most of her savings on it. She had been almost embarrassed by the realization that she had bought such an expensive gift for Aoshi after what he had done to her.

She wasn’t even sure how she felt about him anymore. It was almost as if the distance had cleared her mind. The forgiveness she had been unable to give him before was becoming a distinct possibility.

For all intents and purpose, Misao knew she could not live without Aoshi. She'd given him her heart so many years ago that giving her body was hardly and issue. She had been his for the taking for many a year now. But she wondered why he had finally chosen to acknowledge her femininity that night was it for personal gratification or to teach her a lesson? And why he had hoped not to get caught after what he had done?

‘Even after everything that’s happened I still wish only to please you, to love and be loved by you, Aoshi-sama. Am I a fool for dreaming so much? A tramp for allowing myself to be used, and not even fighting for my honor? And all I want is to feel your lips again, to have you hold me in your arms. Kami-sama, what should I do?’ There were more questions in Misao's heart that went unasked as they passed before her darkly, the stress she had hoped to avoid by going away had returned with Aoshi's volatile presence in her life once again.

The road before her blurred as she walked, she couldn’t stop the tears. The emotions were never far from the surface when he was near her. She really didn’t feel like putting up the effort to stop herself from crying this time, so she just let them run their course.

Aoshi heard her semi-silent sniffles behind him. He didn’t turn around, but with each swallowed sob the knife in his heart twisted a little tighter. ‘I never meant for this to happen. I’ve hurt her again, by wanting to see her so badly I’ve opened old wounds that were better left alone. I’ve been selfish.’ Aoshi’s head dropped low to his chest as he walked, listening to the sounds of her pain.

Misao noticed the change in his posture. A small part of her was silently satisfied that he at least had the grace to be ashamed of what he’d done to her. It let her know that he was not impervious to her feelings. It told her that he had been paying attention, even though he had pretended not to do so. This is how they continued even after Misao’s tears had dried up, walking straight into a mellow dusk filled with the subtle calls of birds and the symphony of cicaidas in the trees.

When it came time for them to sleep that night, instead of sleeping in the woods as was Oniwan tradition, Aoshi had taken them to an inn near the trail. He had requested separate rooms and had taken his evening meal alone in his chamber. Misao had been a bit hurt by the obvious separation of space, but it was better than having to sleep so close to him out in the woods.

Sleep had come to her quickly as her exhaustion, both physical and emotional, finally caught up with her. That night was the first time in the two weeks she had been away that she dreamed of him again. Aoshi, unable to sleep knowing her room was right next door, had tried to meditate unsuccessfully. As he lay back upon his futon, contemplating the ceiling, he could hear Misao talking in her sleep, calling him again. It took every ounce of his strength not to answer her calls. When he slept he dreamed only of her, as he always had.

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In the morning, Misao was awakened by a gentle rap at the door. Aoshi waited to hear her stir and then opened the rice paper door to her room. He leaned a lithe shoulder against the door frame and just barely managed to speak in a flat tone considering what he had walked in to see, "Misao, it's time to go. Get ready and we'll eat breakfast before we leave." Aoshi was trying his best not to look at the sleepy-eyed sensual mess in front of him.

Misao's yukata had fallen open to reveal the shadow of cleavage and her face was pink and soft with sleep. Although she had placed her unbound hair above her head whilst she slept, the freed raven locks had mussed themselves. She looked delectable.

Uncertainty came over Misao as she waited for Aoshi to leave her quarters. He seemed to have forgotten that he had finished speaking. Instead he was staring at her lips and the look his heavy-lidded gaze was bestowing on her was beginning to make her blush. She felt trapped and somehow unpleasantly warm all at the same time. As he continued to stare Misao licked her lips nervously. "Ne, Aoshi-sama? You said you wanted to leave right?"

"Aaa…" Aoshi was still focused on her lips, but if possible he seemed to be leaning further into the room. Misao fought the urge to bring the covers up to her chin and hide. After all, she couldn't hide from him forever, especially when she finally had nothing left to hide. He'd seen his fill already. She squirmed unconsciously and averted her gaze to the floor hoping he would get the hint to leave.

"Misao…" She started as he spoke. Aoshi's voice was hoarse and strained. She looked back up to where he was standing but Aoshi's hand was over his face and he was finally turning to leave. She knew she shouldn't call him back but his distress worried her.

"Aoshi….-sa-ma," The door closed with a snap, he hadn't stayed long enough to hear her. He was already out the door and down the hall. Still sleepy and slightly perplexed Misao reached into her pack next to the futon to grab a comb. She made quick work of the tangles and then braided her hair, attaching the gold clasp at the end. Aoshi had given it to her when her braid had finally gotten long enough. He had told her that it belonged to her mother who wore it often while she lived. She had cherished it for both being her Mother's and being Aoshi's gift of remembrance to her.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she jumped out of bed. She had to hurry or he would be displeased. She hastily changed and loaded up her pack. Hefting it onto her shoulder she headed for the door. On her way she snagged a sandal on the corner of the futon and tripped toward the rice paper door. She had to brace herself by grabbing the door frame. After having recovered her balance, she sagged against the doorway, thinking about the way Aoshi had looked at her only minutes ago. If she closed her eyes and thought about it she could almost feel the heat of his body against the wood. She rested her head on the smooth wood where his weight had rested and gave a tiny sob.

At that moment the door she had been semi-leaning against opened and Aoshi was standing mere inches in front of her. She righted her posture instantly but not before Aoshi had a chance to see her caressing the door frame. Misao blushed a bright red. She was upset that he had walked in on her again. When she spoke it was with annoyed sarcasm, "Is the Inn on fire? I know I wasn't that slow, you could have given me another minute you know. I was just about to go find you."

Aoshi leaned against the door jamb again and eyed her with cool regard. "You took too long. Breakfast is ready." There was a hint of a smirk on his lips and an amused glint in his eyes that she hadn't seen for far too long. Aoshi reached out, grabbing a few long strands of hair she had missed when she had done up her braid.

Running his fingers down the stands in a gentle caress he spoke, "Did you sleep well? You were pampered too much in Tokyo. You used to be up and going at the crack of dawn." Misao snatched her hair from his fingers and wound it around her braid. She opened the clasp and stuck the stray end in before snapping it shut and brushing past him out the door. She missed him leaning in to smell her hair as she passed, but she knew he was right behind her as she went to the dinning area.

They ate their meal in silence. The miso soup was tepid and the rice balls were stale, but it was enough to keep them going till mid afternoon. As soon as Aoshi had paid the bill they were on the road.

It was none too soon for Misao. The walk to Kyoto was hard enough without having to share it with Aoshi. She hoped that the second night of their journey would be better than the first.
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True Gifts Lemony Fresh Extra