Subject: [KFFDISC] [Fic] A Love Before Time Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2001 02:18:15 -0700 (PDT) From: Honjou Mizu Reply-To: kffdisc@nabiki.com To: kffdisc@nabiki.com "A Love Before Time" By Mizu_Onna Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. Nobuhiro Watsuki does. I don't own this song. CoCo Lee does. ^_^ So don't even think of suing me. Author's Pre-Fic Note: I just felt like writing a WAFF-y fic today. ^_^ And I guess I'm sorta writing it to ease my pain... I haven't had inspiration in ages, and I'm hoping this'll rekindle its flame. And I'm currently in an "unrequited love" situation, sooo... I'll try to get by through this songfic. Here's the HTML version! (I think it's easier to read) http://www.geocities.com/unspoken_devotions/beforetime.htm (If it doesn't work, please just use copy and paste. Thanks. ^_^) ~*~*~ A young woman maneuvered her way across the Tokyo crowd, elbowing her way as she fought to return to her home. The day's events had driven her nearly insane, and the frustration and anxiety was still surging through her veins, so like adrenaline and yet so different. *High school is killing me. I hate the prom,* she thought bitterly. *No one took me last year, so why should someone take me this time?* She clenched her hands into fists, averting her eyes hastily from a store display. Vaguely she could see a few of her classmates, crooning over beautiful gowns, talking about how their boyfriends wouldn't be able to resist them and discussing the high prices with reckless abandon. The notion of money served to anger her more. Her family wasn't poor, but they weren't well to do either. Her father had recently passed away, her mother was ill, and she was still in college. She had to take jobs just to earn enough for her to get through. [If the sky opened up for me And the mountains disappeared If the seas ran dry, turned to dust And the sun refuse to rise...] *Life is awful.* She sighed internally. *The prom should be the least of my problems.* [...I would still find my way By the light I see in your eyes The world I know fades away But you stay...] But no matter how much she desired to forget about frivolous things, she couldn't rid herself of the image of having the perfect family, the perfect social life, the perfect boyfriend...useless, petty wishes. *No such life exists in this world,* she noted sadly. *Not in _my_ world, at least.* She swam through the sea of faces, their bodies and forms melding into one, indistinct vision before her tired eyes. In her anger, she had trod around the city without inhibitions; but soon enough, she realized that she had forgotten where she was supposed to go. She glanced at her watch. She was 2 hours early for her job, but she had been walking in the opposite direction of her house. *Nani?* She thought bemusedly, her brow creasing in perplexity. ...As the earth reclaims its due And the cycle starts anew We'll stay always In the love that we have shared Before time... She eyed her surroundings warily, tingling unease traveling down her spine. She was in the outskirts of Tokyo, around quarter of an hour away from the capital, prowling half-deserted streets mindlessly. *Shimatta.* She shook her head, wondering inanely how she had managed to land herself in such a situation. Gathering her wits, she looked around, trying to figure out a way to return back to where she had came from. But something was quite strange about where she was...She could walk about without fear of getting lost, or lost further, at least. It appeared to her as if she knew the place perfectly. Already halfway frightened, she rushed down the dusty street once more, hoping to get back to the city by nightfall. [...If the years take away Every memory that I have I would still know the way That would lead me back to your side...] Much to her distaste, the horizon was beginning to color bronze, the colors of sunset painting itself upon the clear skies. The girl swore again, wringing her hands upon her shirt. She was lost, she had no money and she was beginning to lose her presence of mind. She gazed upward, trying to assess her position. Absently she noticed how beautiful the weather was, and how the scent of snow was melting away into the sensation of spring. Her being was attuned to everything around her. *Edo.* She blinked, then shook her head furiously. *Too much history lessons.* [...The North Star may die But the light that I see in your eyes Will burn there always...] She looked around once more, searching for a hint of where she was; a street post, perhaps. As she rounded a corner, her eyes fell upon an old structure, probably dating centuries ago. The building was falling apart, practically. The wooden gates protecting it from the outside were crumbling, giving her a full view of the inside. She squinted to try to see well. *It's a dojo,* she realized. The sign above the threshold was worn out by nature, but she could make out the characters with much deciphering. It looked like... *Kamiya dojo.* Her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. If she wasn't mistaken, the name "Kamiya" was in her family tree. *Nani?* She repeated mentally, her confusion mounting. [...Lit by the love we have shared Before time...] She ran her hand reverently down the doorframe, the rotting wood familiar beneath her palm. Ghostly visions flitted past her eyes. Two children playing in the courtyard, an old man watching them fondly...a boy swinging a bokken in practice...a gangster, a woman doctor...a tall man with a teenaged girl visiting... [...When the forest turns to jade And the stories that we've made Dissolve away One shining light will still remain...] *Where have I seen this before?* She thought distractedly, the aura rising around her, enfolding her in its intangible embrace. *When? How?* And then, a man. A man with flaming red locks spilling upon his shoulders, with violet eyes that pierced her soul. Before her very eyes, his orbs lightened into a bright, glimmering amber, before subduing once more into purple limned with halos of gold. She could see him unsheathe a sword in her mind's eye, running towards the wall with feline grace and godly speed. [...When we shed our earthly skin When our real life begins There'll be no shame Just the love that we have made Before time...] "Kenshin," The whisper passed her lips. Suddenly weak, she stumbled towards him, tears stinging her eyes. The man stopped to glance at her. Recognition filled his gaze. "Kaoru-dono," He murmured, the name sweet to her ears. It wasn't her name, but slipping from his tongue, it was the most beautiful name ever. "Aishiteru," She sighed as she fell to her knees. The vision of the man--unfaltering, constant, unlike the other images--reached out to her with a gentle smile and enveloped her in the warmest embrace. A candle's golden flame flickered inside the dojo, the wick hissing as the tongue of fire died in the wind. ~*~*~ Author's Note: O.o Where did I get that? I was expecting to actually make her _meet_ Kenshin's reincarnation, but what in the world happened? O.o Oh well. ^_^ I'm too lazy to change it. The part when Kenshin is sprinting towards the wall is from the Kyoto arc, after Saitou injured Sano. I chose it because I reckon that it was the most significant part of Kaoru's life concerning Kenshin...at least, before they got married. ^_^ Okay, minnasan, COMMENTS PLEASE!!! ^_^ ===== "...I feel once more the poignancy of those late night hours, the sound haunting me like a call from an oracle across the ocean of time, beckoning towards a land of dreams." --Adeline Yen Mah in "Falling Leaves"