Promise
    by Elizabeth
*a Rurouni Kenshin fanfic written for entertainment purposes only. Rurouni Kenshin characters are the property of Nobohiro Watsuki.


The boy had only been with him for a day, and already Hiko was questioning his choice. The graves of those who died in the massacre attested to the child's strength, but Hiko knew a great fighter needed spirit as well. He found himself doubting his pupil's potential as he watched him practice in the slanting light of afternoon. The boy executed the stances precisely, but without enthusiasm. Maybe I picked a dreamer, not a warrior. He regarded the child through narrowed eyes.
"Kenshin!"
The boy stopped in mid-movement, but did not turn around. "Do a hundred more!"
A slight nod of the head, and the child completed the interrupted movement, continued on tirelessly. Hiko sighed. Rebellion, protest, complaints- these would be the reactions of a normal boy. They would irritate him, but also be reassuring. Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu allowed him to read his opponents perfectly. Why could he not read this child at all, this strange boy whose thoughts were closed to him? He wondered what would happen if he ordered the boy to do 500 repetitions, or 1000.
"Kenshin!"
Another quick cessation of movement. The boy stood poised, waiting but not answering. Hiko looked up at the sun lowering in the sky. "Nothing. Finish your exercises, then bring me water from the river." Another nod, sudden motion. Hiko wondered at the boy's stamina and total control of movement, the only promising sign in an otherwise discouraging day of training. "Strange child," he muttered.



 
Hiko sipped his sake thoughtfully, watching the silent boy on the other side of the fire. The child sat as far from him as possible while still staying near the light and warmth of the flames. Having finished his own dinner some minutes before, Hiko tried to draw him out by explaining Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu's most exciting techniques, but the boy only stared into his bowl, picking at his rice. One grain, two grains...the hashi raised...lowered again before they reached his lips. One grain, two grains...
"Do you eat?" Hiko exploded.
Kenshin looked up, startled.
"I asked you a question: Do you eat? To which you answer, 'Yes, Master, I do eat.' or perhaps, in your case, 'No, Master, I do not eat. I am not a real boy. I am a ghost you have invited into your house!"
"Yes, Master," the boy whispered.
"Yes, what?"
"I do eat. Just...not now."
Hiko flung the sake from his bowl and pointed across the flames at Kenshin. "Fine. See how long you can keep up with my training with such an uncooperative attitude. But I promise you this: I'm going to turn you into a worthwhile student even if I have to kill you in the process!"
At the word "kill," Kenshin was instantly on his feet. His wide-eyed expression was at once so genuine and ludicrous that Hiko felt his anger evaporating. "Oh, sit down, you idiot." Kenshin remained standing at the fire's edge. "Sit!"
The boy sat, eyeing him warily. "What am I going to do with you, Kenshin?"
He was not surprised that he received no reply.



 
The boy was watching him in the darkness. Hiko kept his breathing regular, maintaining the semblance of sleep while he observed Kenshin through slitted eyelids. The child sat against the wall with his knees drawn up, his chin resting on them. In the moonlight that softly illuminated the interior of Hiko's hut his eyes were enormous. I wonder if he slept at all last night, after I first brought him here? He knew that the boy's gaze had not wavered in the last hour, and Hiko found himself becoming angry again, an impotent anger directed at the boy, at himself, at the whole absurd situation. He sat up abruptly, and Kenshin blinked.
"You can still react?" Hiko asked sarcastically. "Good. Good for you. I thought you had turned to stone." He looked appraisingly at Kenshin. "What's the matter with you, boy? I thought you were intelligent, but now I wonder. Or maybe you're sick. Is that it?"
Kenshin shook his head, a pleading expression in his eyes.
"This silence is going to end," Hiko said grimly, crossing the room to where Kenshin sat. "One way or another, this is going to stop right now." He reached out toward the boy, and the child shuddered, closing his eyes. "I'm not going to strike you, you fool." As Hiko laid his large hand against the boy's forehead, Kenshin looked up at him questioningly, fear and hope passing in quick succession across his suddenly expressive face.
"If you won't answer me," Hiko said, "you'll have to get used to being frightened." His hand slid down, pressed against Kenshin's cheek. "Your face feels hot. There. You could have spared me the trouble." He drew his arm back and sat down beside the boy. For a moment neither of them spoke, then Hiko said, "Do you know why you are sick, you stupid thing? No answer? Of course not. Very well, then, I'll tell you. You are sick, boy, because you don't eat, and you don't speak, and you don't sleep. You don't make any effort to be well, so you deserve to be unwell. Don't you agree?"
Kenshin nodded, dropping his forehead onto his knees.
"You know," Hiko continued more gently, "you spoke to me when I found you. In fact, you said some very intelligent things, things I wouldn't expect a child your age to say. But your behavior since that time has been a disappointment. I didn't become a master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu in order to waste my knowledge on a worthless student. So you had better decide, boy. Tomorrow morning I want to find you gone, or else ready to learn with all your heart how to be strong. And if you do choose to leave, then you had better go far away and never show me your face again, or I really will strike it. Do you understand?"
Kenshin nodded, his head still lowered.
Hiko raised the boy's chin, forcing their eyes to meet. "I said, 'Do you understand?'"
"Hai," Kenshin whispered.
"Now go to sleep for a little while. You have a big decision to make before dawn."
"I... I can't sleep!" The words were blurted out, surprising Hiko with their vehemence. "I can't close my eyes without seeing everything, everything again and again!" Tears coursed down Kenshin's cheeks. "I want to sleep, but I can't. I want to eat, but I can't, I can't..." His small fists beat against his knees, punctuating the words.
Hiko sighed. He knew there was a reason he had not wanted to marry and have children of his own. "Well," he said aloud, "I guess this is better than your silence." The weeping grew louder, filling the room. "Oh, come here, you idiot." He drew Kenshin close and awkwardly put his arm around the boy's shoulders. "Be quiet, brat," he said gently. "Haven't you learned yet that the world cares nothing for your tears?" But still he held Kenshin until he felt the small, tense body relaxing. When the boy finally fell into an exhausted sleep, Hiko carefully moved him to his futon. For a moment he stood looking down, contemplating the child's tear-stained face. "You are a real pain in the neck," he said softly, "but maybe I didn't choose so badly." He crossed the room to his own futon and stretched out, closing his eyes. You might do, after all.



 
Hiko woke to a room full of sunlight. For a moment he could not understand why it was so bright inside the hut, then he saw the door standing open. As his eyes flashed to the boy's empty futon a dangerous expression darkened his face. Hiko jumped up, swearing. "Damn him! I'll kill the little coward!" He rushed outside, nearly tripping over the small figure kneeling by the fire.
"Oro?"
"You!" Hiko roared, pointing down at him. "Just what do you think you're doing?" He knew he looked foolish, standing disheveled and barefoot in front of his pupil, but hoped his stern tone of voice would intimidate the child.
Kenshin only regarded him curiously, as if he could read Hiko's thoughts. "I didn't go very far away. Just to gather some wood so I could make our breakfast."
"Good. Good idea." Hiko relaxed, slightly mollified, and unclenched his fists. The boy noticed this and smiled. The gaze that met Hiko's was clear and direct, with no hint of the diffidence of the previous day. "So, I guess my stupid student is recovering?"
"Yes, Master. I mean, I feel better and the world doesn't seem quite so strange today. But I still... I still don't think I can talk much. Not yet." Kenshin cocked his head, looked shyly at Hiko. "I'm not used to it," he explained. "Nobody ever wanted to hear my voice before."
"You have an irritating voice, so I can understand such sentiments entirely," Hiko said dryly. "Speak or not, as it suits you- so long as you answer me when I speak to you. Now stop sitting there like an idiot and fix my breakfast! We have a lot of training to do today."
He turned to enter the hut, but the boy remained by the fire, watching him. "Master?" he said softly.
"What is it?"
"I'm sorry I'm a disappointment to you." Kenshin swallowed and looked away. "I didn't mean to be. You saved my life, and were kind to me...."
"I've never been kind to you, stupid."
"Oro? Well, anyway, I want you to know," Kenshin raised his bright eyes to Hiko's face, "I want you to know that I'm going to work very hard. I promise I will never, ever disappoint you again!"
Hiko laughed. "A big promise for such a little boy. Don't be a fool." But he saw that the boy looked genuinely crestfallen, so he smiled a bit to soften his words. " 'Never' is a long time, Kenshin. Just try not to disappoint me today. That will be sufficient."



 

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