Subject: [kenshinfanfics] [RK Fanfic] Fanfic Prologue - Untitled Date: Thu, 13 Aug 1998 12:19:59 -0700 (PDT) From: Angela-sama Reply-To: kenshinfanfics@makelist.com To: kenshinfanfics@makelist.com CC: kenshin_himura@hotmail.com Hello everyone. ^_^ I must say that subscribing to this list has really been a treat for me. I never read so many RK fics all at once! Every single fic I've read since I subscribed has been awesome! I have a folder on my E-mail that currently has 65 fanfics in it. They're all keepers! Keep up the good work! ....Lingers: Please oh pleeeeease continue this fic! I'm dying to know what Megumi will do! ....Earth: Kyaaaa! Don't let Kenshin and Kaoru die! ;_; A New Era: Ardith, you must continue this. :p You already know how much I enjoy reading it. :p Tattered Angel: Mihoshi, you really do have me on pons and needles for this one. I hope to hear the ending real soon. ^_^v Any I may have forgotten: Please forgive me if I forget anyone's fics. I like them all very much and I want to know what happens in all of them. ^_^v Being truly inspired by all of these good works, I decided to start a little fic of my own. I had the initial idea of creating an original character in the RK world in my head for over a year already. I've written versions of it before, but never felt satisfied with the execution of them. 2 days ago, a friend of mine reminded me about the fanfic I promised to write but forgot to do. I sat down at my computer and typed this completely off the top of my head while listening to the instrumental parts of the "Mulan" soundtrack. (The instrumentals are rather sad and gloomy, so that explains the nature of this first part. :p) I haven't thought of a title for this and I am begging all of you to give any suggestions you think of for a title. I think I wrote enough for now. On to the fic! ^_^v Please enjoy. C&C begged of each and every one of you. :p Take care and be genki, Angela-sama Key: -------------------------------------------------- '' = Thoughts -------------------------------------------------- [Insert title] Prologue The Bakumatsu war has begun. Soldiers of the Ishin Shishi and the Shinsen Gumi litter the streets. Their battle cries and the clashing sounds of their swords are heard over the thunder of running feet. A nearby house was lit on fire due to a struggle of the owner of the house with a Shinsen Gumi soldier. The small run-down home was consumed in flames. The door of the building came crashing down as a woman came running out, her body and her kimono covered in burns and cuts. Her wavy brown hair was tied back sloppily with a slightly burnt ribbon. After getting away from the burning house, she collapsed to her knees, sobbing violently. In her arms, she carried what appeared to be a bundle of cloth. To the untrained eye, no one would have noticed the small sobs of a child that emitted from the bundle. The child was a girl of about 3 years old. Her face was a beautiful Peaches and Cream complexion. She had brown wavy hair, just like the woman. This girl must have been the woman's daughter. "Hush little Keina....," the woman said soothingly. "This will be over soon. You'll be safe now." The woman clutched the precious bundle to her chest and continued to cry. She turned around to see what remained of her house, her life, her future, burning to the ground. A terrifying yell of pain filled her ears. She stopped crying and looked at the house wide-eyed as the owner of the house, the woman's husband, came staggering out of the door. After taking a few small steps, he collapsed to his knees, coughing violently. Another man came out of the door with a katana in his hand. The woman could see the man with the katana was clothed with the uniform of the Shinsen Gumi. "ANATA! [Dear]," the woman screamed out to the man on his knees. The man slowly lifted his head to look at the woman. His lips, thinned from pain, curled into a smile filled with unspoken words. The Shinsen Gumi soldier raised his katana in the air and brought it down on the man's head. A sickly chop was heard and the man's head rolled on the ground, a river of blood trailing to the man's body. The woman watched the grueling scene with horror and screamed in pure terror and anguish. "ANATAAAAA!!" Her screams echoed in the street, as the crackling sound of the fire from the burning building continued to consume it. The Shinsen Gumi soldier turned to look at the woman. He held his katana in front of him, the blade dripping with the blood of the man that he just killed. The woman recovered from her shock and quickly got up and ran, carrying the child protectively to her chest. The soldier chased after her, the katana in his hand gleamed from the light of the fire as he ran. The woman ducked through some dark narrow alleyways and finally found an old restaurant. Ignoring the sign that said 'Closed' above the name of the restaurant, Asahi [Morning Sun], she slid the door open and ran in. She quickly shut the door behind her and went to find the owners of the restaurant. She came across a bedroom door and flung it open, startling the old man sleeping inside the room. The old man got up and rushed over to the woman. "Are you alright miss?" The woman struggled to speak, sobs choking her words. "Please help me. There are soldiers after me. Please take care of my child. Take care of my little Keina." The old man looked at the small child that was resting next to the woman's chest. "I will take care of the little one. Please stay here with me. I will give you a room and--" The woman gave the child to the old man and stood up, "No. I must go and face the soldiers. If I was to stay here, they would come after you too. I cannot allow that." She left the room and shut the door after her. The old man called after her, but the only response he received was the slamming of the front door. The woman was already halfway down the road, running as fast as she could. The woman headed for the corner when the Shinsen Gumi soldier came up to her and ended her life with a strike to her chest. The blood of the woman and the blood of her man mixed together on the soldier's katana, always to be together. She screamed in pain as she collapsed to the floor, her eyes lifeless as her blood formed a large puddle around her. The old man gasped as he heard the woman's screams echo in the restaurant, that same scream to be forever reverberated in his mind for the rest of his life. The soldier picked up the woman's body and dragged it away, hiding it in some nearby bushes. The old man cradled the little child in his arms and coaxed her to sleep with soothing words. Keina slowly closed her eyes in dreamless sleep, sobbing silently. As the old man stared at the child's sleeping face, he thought, 'The lady said that the child's name is Keina... I guess I have to take care of her until she's old enough to look out for herself.' Keina stirred slightly in her sleep. "O....kaa...san....," she mumbled as tears escaped the corners of her eyes. ~*2 Years Later*~ 2 Years after her parents' death, Keina slowly grew up with the old man of the Asahi restaurant. She was now 5 years old. Her face was thin and angular. Her hazel eyes looked like they were devoid of life or happiness--only sorrow and pain. Her wavy brown hair that barely touched her shoulders, was very tangled and dirty. She wore a worn out tan dress, covered in small holes and stains, that barely touched her knees. She had short, bony arms and legs. She looked malnourished and unhealthy. She was working in the back of the kitchen, sweeping the floors. She stared lifelessly at the floor as she mechanically dragged the broom back and forth. Small clouds of dust blowed over her bare feet. A yell was heard from inside the kitchen, "Keina! Come in here!" Keina put down her broom and ran into the kitchen, "Yes Mr. Hido!" The Asahi restaurant was always a very popular place. Today was no different. Keina could hear the loud chatter and laughter coming from the customers in the dining area as she made her way from the lot behind the restaurant to the back entrance of the kitchen. The old man, Mr. Hido, was at a stove, cooking some sukiyaki meat and noodles with a large wooden spoon. When he heard Keina approach, he stopped turning the meat and faced Keina. "Keina, how many times have I told you to take the garbage out 3 times a day? Your slacking off is making this restaurant lose business! You get out there and make sure that the trash is clean!" Keina slowly turned around and walked away. "Yes Mr. Hidoi [Mean, cruel, etc.]," she said under her breath. Mr. Hido stormed to Keina and hit her in the back of her head with the spoon. Keina, startled, fell to her knees with a shout. "Don't you EVER call me that again! Do you hear me, you good for nothing little brat?!" "Yes sir," she mumbled and started to get up. Mr Hido gave her a swift kick in the stomach when she stood up. The force of the blow sent Keina rolling out the kitchen door, "You better watch your step, you ungrateful little brat!" Mr. Hido yelled before slamming the kitchen door behind him. Keina slowly got to her feet, coughing violently. When she caught her breath, she wiped her hand on her dress and picked up her broom. Her skirt had traces of blood where she wiped her hands. She continued sweeping the floor, trying to hold back tears. She threw the broom to the floor, unable to hold her tears back anymore. She wrapped her arms around her shoulders tightly and cried. "I didn't do anything to him. Why did he beat me?" She stood there, sobbing for a few moments. She quickly brushed her tears away and walked to her room, a small run-down wooden shed right next to a large trash bin. Her room had just barely enough space for a bed mat and a box filled with some clothes. The walls were faded and covered in cobwebs and spiders. A couple of rats crossed over her bed and ran out the door. She took a tattered, dingy sheet from her bed mat and filled it with the clothes in her box. 'I'm not going to take this anymore, she said to herself, 'I'll run away and find some nicer people to take care of me.' Her head was bowed slightly, her brown bangs hiding her eyes which began to fill with tears. As soon as she got all of her clothes into the center of the sheet, she folded up the corners and tied them into a hard knot. She flung the bundle over her shoulder and climbed over the gate of the restaurant and ran into a dark alley. 'Goodbye Mr. *Hidoi*. I hope I never see you again!' She quickly and silently ran through the alleyways of the town, her eyes blinded by tears. ~*End of Prologue*~ Author's Notes: This is my first time typing out a fanfic completely on impulse. Some parts don't seem right. I really need your help on this. Comments and Criticism (C&C) are very much needed. Please be brutally honest. :p == *My Profile* (Reformatted: 07/26/98) http://jupiter.beseen.com/chat/cgi-bin/Member.fcg?name=Angela-sama I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. -Helen Keller