(no subject)
Title: Peace
Characters: Mostly Kaoru (being in her POV), Kenshin and vaguely Kenji and his family.
Rating: K
Spoilers: The entire manga
A moment at the end of Kenshin's life. (Totally ignores existence of OVA)
Kaoru got out of bed with a sigh. Her knees and hips made popping noises as she stood up. She had overslept a bit and had to get things together for the guests. Tomorrow was Kenshin's 60th birthday after all.
She fetched Kenshin's wheeled chair and rolled it into their bedroom. His battered body couldn't support him anymore. She bent over and gently nudged the sleeping man "Kenshin, wake up. You need to get ready. Kenji will be be over with his family soon and you don't want them jumping all over you."
Lavender eyes fluttered open. "Good morning Kaoru-dono" He said with a bright smile. A real one she noted, it was a shame that his scattered memories would still occasionally sneak a habitual dono in next to her name.
It was difficult to complain about his memory though, the gods had been generous with that and an occasional dono was hardly anything to whine about. The missing pieces from his mind were almost perfectly chosen (so perfect she had to wonder if he was exaggerating the memory loss) to erase his pain. He remembered his parents, that his name was Shinta and that they had died when he was a child. He did not however remember, seeing them slowly die, being sold into slavery or the day Hiko chose his new name. He in fact had forgotten every single death he had seen in his entire life.
In reality, he probably put those memories in a box somewhere in the back of his mind. After trying to forget so hard, when his mind finally started to go it was the first thing he lost. He still remembered feelings, he remembered that his previous wife had died and how much her death had hurt but for some blessed reason he didn't know he had killed her. He remembered that the scar on his face was from that day but he had no recollection of receiving it. Kaoru prayed every night now, giving thanks for this blessing. He was finally at peace and had been for about 10 years now.
She helped Kenshin dress himself and then Maneuver himself into the wicker seat of the chair. He had a great deal of trouble, but he was still too stubborn to accept more than the most basic help at anything. She had tracked down a rather recent and expensive import chair that had modern thin rubber wheels that he could use to push himself on better days for that reason.
"Should Sessha prepare the food Kaoru-dono?"
"Mou, Kenshin. You can barely reach now, you know I'll do it." She was met with a very annoyed look. He hadn't been able to cook himself in years but he still asked every morning. She gave him a sweet kiss before rolling him out of the room into the kitchen. Just because he couldn't physically cook didn't mean he couldn't instruct her. At least in their 30 years of marriage she had managed to improve enough to serve acceptable food with his help.
It wasn't long before Kenji and his wife arrived, their young daughter in tow. Mia was now 4 and had inherited his unusual hair. Kaoru wasn't sure how likely it was to have three generations with the trait but it had to be unlikely.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY OJI-SAN!" The little girl yelled before throwing herself up into Kenshin's lap. She had a bouncy personality that reminded Kaoru much of Misao.
"Arigato Mia-chan." Her husband replied holding the child in a tight hug. The child kissed him on his cheek. The trademark scar had faded to the point it could only be seen in certain reflections of light. The combination of that and the fact his hair was now almost entirely a light gray meant no one who did not know him recognized him as the former hitokiri. Kaoru absentmindedly wondered if the child he lovingly cuddled would ever know who he had been.
Tomorrow the rest of their friends would arrive and Megumi would be giving Kenshin his yearly exam. She was dreading it as about 5 years ago the prognosis had been "about 10 years". He hadn't been confined to the chair completely and even then he could still move around by himself.
She walked over to her precious husband and wrapped her arms around him. The unexpected action earned her a sweet "Oro?" making her smile. No use in dwelling on uncertain futures when she could savor the happiness she had in front of her.
A/N:
I, like many people, abhor the god damn reflections OVA. There are no words to explain the happiness I felt upon finding out Watsuki disapproved of it. (I did not own a computer when I watched it, and I don't think anyone had translated that interview anyway)
True, the ending has to be sad. Kenshin is 10 years older than Kaoru and in worse health so even in the fluffiest scenario she has to outlive him, this doesn't however mean he has to wait until death before he can be at peace. Fuck you OVA.
I put him in a wheel chair to deal with the fact he pushed himself too hard. If it doesn't shorten his life span it would seriously speed up how long it takes for his body to fall apart when he ages. My half assed research says wheelchairs that had rubber wheels were invented in the late 1800's and by the time Kenshin would be 70 it would be 1909. Half assed research also tells me that 60 would be a generous age for Kenshin to live to in that time period.
Characters: Mostly Kaoru (being in her POV), Kenshin and vaguely Kenji and his family.
Rating: K
Spoilers: The entire manga
A moment at the end of Kenshin's life. (Totally ignores existence of OVA)
Kaoru got out of bed with a sigh. Her knees and hips made popping noises as she stood up. She had overslept a bit and had to get things together for the guests. Tomorrow was Kenshin's 60th birthday after all.
She fetched Kenshin's wheeled chair and rolled it into their bedroom. His battered body couldn't support him anymore. She bent over and gently nudged the sleeping man "Kenshin, wake up. You need to get ready. Kenji will be be over with his family soon and you don't want them jumping all over you."
Lavender eyes fluttered open. "Good morning Kaoru-dono" He said with a bright smile. A real one she noted, it was a shame that his scattered memories would still occasionally sneak a habitual dono in next to her name.
It was difficult to complain about his memory though, the gods had been generous with that and an occasional dono was hardly anything to whine about. The missing pieces from his mind were almost perfectly chosen (so perfect she had to wonder if he was exaggerating the memory loss) to erase his pain. He remembered his parents, that his name was Shinta and that they had died when he was a child. He did not however remember, seeing them slowly die, being sold into slavery or the day Hiko chose his new name. He in fact had forgotten every single death he had seen in his entire life.
In reality, he probably put those memories in a box somewhere in the back of his mind. After trying to forget so hard, when his mind finally started to go it was the first thing he lost. He still remembered feelings, he remembered that his previous wife had died and how much her death had hurt but for some blessed reason he didn't know he had killed her. He remembered that the scar on his face was from that day but he had no recollection of receiving it. Kaoru prayed every night now, giving thanks for this blessing. He was finally at peace and had been for about 10 years now.
She helped Kenshin dress himself and then Maneuver himself into the wicker seat of the chair. He had a great deal of trouble, but he was still too stubborn to accept more than the most basic help at anything. She had tracked down a rather recent and expensive import chair that had modern thin rubber wheels that he could use to push himself on better days for that reason.
"Should Sessha prepare the food Kaoru-dono?"
"Mou, Kenshin. You can barely reach now, you know I'll do it." She was met with a very annoyed look. He hadn't been able to cook himself in years but he still asked every morning. She gave him a sweet kiss before rolling him out of the room into the kitchen. Just because he couldn't physically cook didn't mean he couldn't instruct her. At least in their 30 years of marriage she had managed to improve enough to serve acceptable food with his help.
It wasn't long before Kenji and his wife arrived, their young daughter in tow. Mia was now 4 and had inherited his unusual hair. Kaoru wasn't sure how likely it was to have three generations with the trait but it had to be unlikely.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY OJI-SAN!" The little girl yelled before throwing herself up into Kenshin's lap. She had a bouncy personality that reminded Kaoru much of Misao.
"Arigato Mia-chan." Her husband replied holding the child in a tight hug. The child kissed him on his cheek. The trademark scar had faded to the point it could only be seen in certain reflections of light. The combination of that and the fact his hair was now almost entirely a light gray meant no one who did not know him recognized him as the former hitokiri. Kaoru absentmindedly wondered if the child he lovingly cuddled would ever know who he had been.
Tomorrow the rest of their friends would arrive and Megumi would be giving Kenshin his yearly exam. She was dreading it as about 5 years ago the prognosis had been "about 10 years". He hadn't been confined to the chair completely and even then he could still move around by himself.
She walked over to her precious husband and wrapped her arms around him. The unexpected action earned her a sweet "Oro?" making her smile. No use in dwelling on uncertain futures when she could savor the happiness she had in front of her.
A/N:
I, like many people, abhor the god damn reflections OVA. There are no words to explain the happiness I felt upon finding out Watsuki disapproved of it. (I did not own a computer when I watched it, and I don't think anyone had translated that interview anyway)
True, the ending has to be sad. Kenshin is 10 years older than Kaoru and in worse health so even in the fluffiest scenario she has to outlive him, this doesn't however mean he has to wait until death before he can be at peace. Fuck you OVA.
I put him in a wheel chair to deal with the fact he pushed himself too hard. If it doesn't shorten his life span it would seriously speed up how long it takes for his body to fall apart when he ages. My half assed research says wheelchairs that had rubber wheels were invented in the late 1800's and by the time Kenshin would be 70 it would be 1909. Half assed research also tells me that 60 would be a generous age for Kenshin to live to in that time period.