Night 28: M51-M60 Hall

[screwthegods]

[From here]

Once inside M55, Homura laid Kenshin carefully on the bed. Again his knees was put to the test as he was forced to kneel to retrieve the bottle, not so easy as task in the dark. A few moments fumbling was rewarded, however, when Homura felt the familiar plastic under against his fingers.

As tempted as he was to take the first drink himself, he knew Kenshin's injuries were more serious. The blood wouldn't work as effectively as when it was fresh, but it would be enough to get the man awake and mobile once again.

Craddling Kenshin's head, Homura opened the pill bottle and put it to the man's lips, forcing him to drink. Just what eyes would stare up at him when the man woke, Homura wondered.

It'd be interesting to find out.

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M55

[degozaruyo.livejournal.com]

The blood had been unappetizing the night before, but twenty-four hours had turned it into a congealed, disgusting mess. It wasn't quite as potent as it had been, but it would do the job.

Some of the thick liquid trickled out the side of Kenshin's slightly open mouth, but most of it was swallowed. Given the extent of his injuries--all of which were internal--it took longer to heal. But then then the color started to come back to his face and his breathing and pulse started to stabilize. He coughed weakly, eyelids fluttering open.

And it was the rurouni--not the hitokiri--that was looking at Homura, a bemused little smile on his lips.

"It tastes even worse than it did last night," he observed lamely.

[screwthegods]

"Yes." Homura, who had sampled his share of the stuff before, easily agreed before capping the lid on the bottle. Hardly any of the substance remained, but perhaps there would be enough to do Okita some good, and the demi-god didn't want to deplete what they had left. Besides, there was more than just what was in the bottle.

"Welcome back, Himura." With no signs of awkwardness or embarassment, the war prince used his fingers to wipe away the line from Kenshin's face, the touch gentle despite his calloused skin. A rather mischevious grin crossed his lips as he licked the substance away, letting it do what it could for his knee.

There were ways to improve almost any experience, Homura had found.

"Before we rejoin the others, I believe we have some things to discuss." It treaded on the line of things that were Homura's business and things that weren't, but so be it. There was too much danger around them without more coming from within. "You were rather angry about what happened on the bus."

[degozaruyo.livejournal.com]

Kenshin didn't even flinch when Homura went after the blood that had spilled. Honestly, he'd known worse. And at least Homura wasn't licking it off him.

The rurouni knew what was coming before the other man even opened his mouth. He could feel the shame starting to rise from the pit of his stomach. He thought he'd taken care of the violent side of his personality, but apparently...

His face darkened and he looked away. "This one has vowed to protect all human life around him, even his enemy's," he said softly. "This one also apologizes. That...was a side of this one that he never wanted to show anyone ever again. If...if Battousai ever emerges again, please stop him."

[screwthegods]

Such words. They made Homura wonder exactly what Kenshin had done, what crime he believed so unforgivable to feel that way. To even preserve the life of the enemy. To Homura such a thing was ludicrous, little more than a step away from a death wish. But free will was the one thing the demi-god respected above all. He wouldn't force Kenshin to kill should he not wish it. However, his charity would only extend so far.

"Battousai. Is that what you call him?" Homura thought about the coldness of the eyes he had seen on the bus, the danger in that voice. "I think Okita would be more than willing to do just that for you, in a permanent way. I am not so kind."

The request, the whole matter put Homura in a rather strange situation. He thought over it for a moment silently, uncaring about the time that passed, or how Kenshin might have felt in that brief span. "I cannot say that I don't prefer the side of you that is willing to kill without hesitation. That part of you is infinitely more useful to me than the you who would try and stop my blade. You must understand now that unlike you, the rest of us have made no such vow. I give my enemies the choice to face me or to back down. I will not show mercy to those who have chosen foolishly."

That alone made him more benevolent of a god than most that resided in Heavens. Or so Zenon had said once.

Then the man smirked, looking down to Kenshin. "But it would be troublesome for me if Battousai and Okita killed each other, wouldn't it? It's difficult enough keeping you both well enough to fight our mutual enemies."

[degozaruyo.livejournal.com]

"Choushuu Ishin Shishi Hitokiri Himura Battousai," Kenshin replied, still looking away. He was not directly addressing what Homura had said, but this worked just as well. "That is what this one used to be called by his comrades. An assassin who committed unspeakable acts in the name of the revolution." He touched the cross-shaped scar on his cheek, eyes distant. He normally wasn't very open about his past, but...

"One of Battousai's victims was a young woman named Himura Tomoe. This one's wife. She leapt in front of his sword before--" Kenshin ducked his head and cleared his throat, obviously not wanting to go into any details about his late wife's death. Even now, more than a decade later, the wound was still raw.

"After Tomoe died, this one vowed to never kill again once the revolution had been completed. And...he has kept his vow. The reversed-blade sword was adopted after the Battle of Toba Fushimi, and this one has not picked up any other blade."

He looked up at Homura, eyes almost...pleading. "That is why it is imperative that Okita and Battousai never be allowed to fight. This one knows that his vow is a burden on you, but...if it were ever to be broken, this one would no longer be able to return to his life as rurouni. There are too many depending on him for that to happen."

[screwthegods]

Homura listened in respectful silence to Kenshin's words. In some way, it didn't surprise him that it was a woman, a lover that had pushed Kenshin to such an extreme. Perhaps she was somehow the one that had marked the man's cheek as well, though Homura didn't ask. He had heard enough to understand, and anymore would only satisfy unnecessary curiosity at best.

"You should become strong enough to rely only on yourself to keep your vow." Homura did indeed understand the pain of loss, but he had at least the Heavens at fault. To have killed Rinrei with his own two hands...how would he recover from such an act? It gave Homura a level of admiration for Kenshin, a new insight into the man's will. "The gods don't answer prayers."

"However," Homura held Kenshin's gaze, offering what reassurance he could. "I've already said it would be troublesome for me if the two fought, didn't I? There's already too much I can't control in my way. I don't need to add things I can prevent to that."

It was reassurance, in the demi-god's way. The vow was troublesome, but not so much as losing the two fighters he'd formed a strong alliance with.

[degozaruyo.livejournal.com]

"This one thought he was," Kenshin admitted sadly. "He thought he had managed to seal away the Battousai part of his personality...evidently, that was not the case." He smiled humorlessly. "And you would know that, wouldn't you? Still, it gives us humans at least a little hope to think that our prayers are being heard."

He could see that Homura was trying, in his own way, to reassure him. The next smile that Kenshin gave him was much more sincere. "Yes, of course not. Thank you."

[screwthegods]

"There are things here unlike anything you've ever encountered, correct? You will simply have to become stronger." Another attempted assurance, though what Kenshin said next struck Homura in a way he wasn't expecting. He typically didn't mind the skepticism in this place, in a way preferring it to simple blind trust. There was little evidence he was in fact a god beside his own word, after all. But the way Kenshin had spoken just then, mixed with that humorless grin...something about it angered him.

"I would know, better than you can likely realize." Homura moved off of the bed, taking a few steps away from Kenshin. "The man who fought with us. His name is Kenren. Ask him what the gods of Heaven are like. You'll find his opinion is similar to mine."

As well it should be, given all that Kenren and his friends had gone through. The shining stars of the Heavens, five hundred years ago. But Kenshin had no more reason to believe the once Taisho as he did the once Toushin Taishi, and Homura would have to accept that.

"You can rest for a bit longer, but we should move soon. We've already lost a great deal of time this night." Focus on the task, and frustration eased. It was a method that had gotten Homura through most of his life, and it would serve him again here.

[degozaruyo.livejournal.com]

Kenshin hadn't thought that what he had said would be taken badly, but apparently it was. He sat up in the bed, bending forward at the waist in a painful bow. The blood had cured the internal bleeding and healed the bones, but his side was still extremely sore, and likely would be for several days to come.

"This one apologizes. He didn't mean to offend."

He shook his head. Probably better they get going now, in case the conversation got any more awkward than it already was.

"No...this one thinks he can walk. We should leave now."

[screwthegods]

"It's fine." Homura looked at Kenshin over his shoulder, smiling lightly at the man. "I'm aware that it can be hard to accept that I am a god. But I will ask that you trust me when I say that Heaven took away the one person who was most precious in my life, and I will forever despise the gods for that."

That was enough detail for now. Kenshin believed himself ready to rejoin the others, and that was good enough for Homura. "Let's go then. I'm uncertain if either Okita or Kenren Taisho will be joining us, but we should get the rest of the blood to them. And I will need to get my sword."

[screwthegods]

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