Can You Keep a Secret?
(or Snow Revelations)

By Hikaru

Aoshi stepped to outside and observed his surroundings. The pale
whiteness falling to the ground just enchanted him. He sighed.

Why did everything have to be so damn complicated? Things never used to
be like this. He never had to be careful of what he said, or worry
about the events that may unfold. He spoke, the others listened. That's
how it was supposed to go.

But then again, things were not as they were when he left. No they
were, as Sano would say, fucked up.

Not only was Misao not talking to him, but Okon had began to say things
like 'Aoshi, you shouldn't be so cruel to her.' and 'Poor Misao, she
hasn't spoken since *then*'

But what could he do? Misao was... she was gaining ground. Taking over
what little he had left of a soul and he didn't like it. The fact that
her silly smiling face could make him do just about anything made him
scared. It frightened him. It made him feel like that he was weak.

So what other answer was there to then tell her to 'Go away'.

'That's not exactly what you said to her.' He told himself.

'More or less.'

Now leaning on the guard post of the patio of the house Aoshi gazed
more off into space, his mind replaying the scene with Misao.

He knew exactly where he had messed up. This was just going to be a
simple talk to Misao. Straight forward, he didn't want her to hang
around him anymore. The reason why? Well he had used the excuse of
that he was worried that she might get hurt, which angered Misao
even more than the thought that he was telling her to 'take a hike'.
Misao didn't like this at all. Screaming started, and finally the
whole scene ended in her screaming "I LOVE YOU!" That was what he
feared. In panic, his answer was "I hate you and everything that you
are."

The look on Misao's face was indescribable. It looked as if her entire
world had crumbled from beneath her. She sped out of Aoshi's room,
crying.

So the plan worked, technically.

Misao stayed her distance away from Aoshi and he was free from her
spell. Or so he thought.

But tonight...

Misao hadn't been at dinner. A worried Okon volunteered to go check in
her room to see if she was okay; only to return a few seconds later
screaming.

Misao had slit her wrists.

Everyone ran to Misao's room. Except for Aoshi. Aoshi was in a daze. He
couldn't believe what he had just heard. He slowly arose from the table
and sluggishly walked to Misao's room.

Her room was dark and covered in evil shadows. Aoshi paused at her
doorway peering into the room, and trying to see over all the
commotion.

Misao's face was pale, almost white. She looked as if she was dead. Her
hair was un-kept, her face tear-stained. Once Misao saw Aoshi's face
she began to scream 'Don't let him in here! He hates me! He hates me-'
Okon and the others had to hold her down. Aoshi quickly turned away and
fled to his own room.

The only words she had said in weeks- told him to go away.

He was responsible for this! Why was he so hurt? Wasn't this what he
wanted? 'No' he told himself. 'I just wanted to claim what was left of
my soul.' But in the process he had hurt Misao. And worse yet, the way
she had looked at him- the way her eyes were pleading with him. They
had once again cast their spell on his soul and Aoshi was lost again.

Dammit.

Okina later reported to Aoshi that Misao was indeed okay, and that she
hadn't cut anything major. Aoshi politely asked Okina to leave before
he could ask Aoshi to go do something foolish.

Like speak to *her*

No. That was the last thing Aoshi needed was to have the confusion of
his feelings for Misao come once again. He was telling her the truth
when he said that he was worried that she would get hurt. Gods he would
go crazy if she ever Misao was seriously-

Dammit!

Aoshi cursed himself. Misao *had* been hurt. And it was he that did the
hurting. What he had said to her- that was worse than any mortal wound
Misao could have ever received.

Sighing, Aoshi snapped out of his daze and focused once again on the
snow. "Yuki..." He whispered. "Just like that one time-"

Okina slowly approached Aoshi from behind. It didn't take Aoshi very
long to realize the presence of the ancient master. He nodded to
signify he knew of his presence and slowly began to watch the snow
again.

"Beautiful isn't it?"

Nodding slowly, Aoshi continued to watch the snow fall. It was then
that he saw the purple figure in the distance. Slowly walking and
shivering in the snow. Aoshi's eyes grew wide. "Misao?"

A small grin appeared on Okina's face. "She's all right so I let her
take a walk outside. I thought the fresh air would do her good."

Aoshi shot the old man a glare. Was this some kind of trap? He turned
his attention back to the fading Misao. Her figure, which had grown
in the past two years, was visible but slowly being erased by the
white of the snow. It was as if, Misao was disappearing.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Misao wanted to disappear. Oh Gods did she want to disappear! Her life
had just become less and less un-important to this world. For the past
two years she had been nice. She let Aoshi-sama take leadership of the
Oniwabanshuu back and she happily stepped into the shadows.

Well, more or less.

She just loved to watch Aoshi-sama be happy, or at least *his* type of
happy. She was never sure when he was truly happy so Misao was pretty
much stumbling in the dark when she tried to do 'nice' things for him.
But his attitude towards her ever since she had turned eighteen
had made Misao miserable. She had secretly hoped that she and Aoshi
would marry. Not because they were in love, even though she truly loved
him, but because they were both strong leaders in their group. It would
bring strength to the Oniwabanshuu. And their children would revive the
Oniwabanshuu and it would once flourish.

Well maybe not, but it was a good cover.

Misao didn't really care *how* she got Aoshi, she just wanted to say
that he was hers. She loved Aoshi. She loved Aoshi to no end. She
had loved Aoshi ever since she was little. She had hoped that he knew
of this love and shared the same feelings. He had dropped hints that
he did, despite his cold exterior. Nights when the two were training he
would help her get up, or bring her a favorite flower freshly picked
from a neighbor's garden. Just little things. And it was those little
things that made her life happy. Enjoyable. Meaningful.

But after that night-

Her dreams had crumbled.

He had spoken the words that she had feared him ever saying to her.
Even though, in the back of her mind a small voice had always told her,
'He doesn't love you. He'll never love you. You're just a kid in his
eyes, he'll never look at you as a woman.' She would never be more than
a kid sister to him.

And it was these doubts that took over once Aoshi had muttered the
words:

'I hate you and everything you are.'

That comment hurt. Not only did he hate her, but he hated everything-
the Oniwabanshuu, everything. Or maybe- he just hated the fact that she
was a ninja. Of course Aoshi-sama deserved a *normal* girl! Not some
high-strung-weasel-girl who likes to swear and fight. That must have
been the reason he turned her away, even after she told him her
feelings.

I disgust him.

Pity was the last thing Misao wanted, yet that was all she received the
past few weeks. If everyone had just acted normal, maybe she could have
forgotten about the whole episode and gotten on with her life, yet-

Aoshi-sama would still be there. He would still be there- hating her.

Hot tears began to flow from Misao's eyes. The blowing wind froze the
tears instantly.

'I hate you Aoshi-sama. I hate you because even after all this, you
still hold my heart.'

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

*Aoshi-sama!*

*MISAO!*

The snow poured down upon the two very lightly. The flurries dropping
from the sky made the day perfect. Misao's eighteenth birthday.

Misao had decided, today was the day. Today would be the day that she
told Aoshi how she felt about him. Today he would tell her how he loved
her and their new life, together, would begin. Today was that day.

So what better thing to do than to go ice skating? It was a fun past
time of Misao's that she had picked up the previous year from a gaijin
friend of hers. Of course she brought Aoshi along for the ride, even
though he insisted that he would never, ever, skate.

As Misao slid back and forth on the ice, in circles, Aoshi contemptly
watched her from his seat, which he had made from a rock that was near
the lake. "Misao, be careful, the ice isn't that thick around here."

Misao, a wide grin on her face skated over to Aoshi's rock and made a
face at him. She let out a small giggle. "You're no fun Aoshi-sama."

"That maybe so, but you're still going to be careful."

"Hai hai." She said passingly as she spun herself in a slow circle.
"Ne, Aoshi-sama, after I finish this lap I want to talk to you about
something. It's a secret. Can you keep a secret?"

Aoshi nodded his head as if it were nothing. Misao stamped hard upon
the ice. "I'm serious! I have something very important to-"

Both Aoshi and Misao heard the giant cracking sound. But it was too
late for Misao to react. The next thing she knew she was shoulder deep
in freezing water. She gasped for air. "Aoshi-sama!"

Aoshi jumped from his rock and ran to the ice's edge. "MISAO!" He cried
out.

"Help!" Misao shouted as she once more surfaced in the air, taking a
deep breath.

Panicking, Aoshi looked around him. No one. Nothing. Dammit. I told her
to be careful. He quickly jumped into the gaping hole the ice had left
and slowly brought Misao back to the snow-covered surface.

The snow storm began to pick up now.

Misao was coughing heavily, trying to get the frigid water out of her
lungs. Aoshi continued to pat her on the back to help her get it all
out. Finally, the coughing ceased and Misao rolled over in the snow,
watching it fall upon her face.

Her bright blue eyes appealed to Aoshi at that moment. It was times
like these that he wondered how he survived so long without her by his
side. But he pushed the thought far back into his mind, telling himself
that she was just a child.

Misao turned and looked at Aoshi's towering figure. "God I love you."
She said out loud.

Aoshi, shocked for a moment, looked away from Misao and coughed. "We
should get going."

"No, I'm serious Aoshi-sama!" Misao slowly pushed herself from the
ground. "I love you, with all of my heart."

Aoshi started to walk back to the Aoiya. "Come on Misao. You're just
delirious because of the ice accident. We need to get you warm and have
Okina take a look at you."

"No dammit! Not until you take me seriously! I'm eighteen today! It's
time you started to think of me as a woman." Tears began to stream
down her face now. Why wasn't he listening to her?

Continuing to walk, Aoshi ignored Misao. She watched, shocked that he
was leaving her alone, as Aoshi's figure slowly disappeared into the
blizzard.

Okina's eyebrow raised as he gave a small nudge to Aoshi. "Are you just
going to let her leave like that?"

"She can do as she pleases." Aoshi said flatly. "She's always shouting
that she's a grown woman, might as well for once treat her like one."

"I see." Okina said, joining Aoshi in watching the fading Misao. A few
moments pasted until he spoke again. "She looks pretty cold out there-"

Aoshi looked at the old man for a second, his face emotionless. A smile
grew on Okina's face. "I know why you did what you did, even though you
may not know why yourself." Okina replied finally. "And even though I
don't approve of how you did it, I think-" He looked back to Misao. "I
think she looks damn cold Aoshi." Aoshi turned his head back to the
fading figure. "Look at her, she's not even wearing a coat! The woman
you love is going to catch a cold!"

"The woman I-" Aoshi mindlessly repeated. "But how could-"

"Simple." He replied. "What's the first thing you think of when you
wake in the morning?" Aoshi remained silent, watching Misao. Okina
began to walk back into the Aoiya. "And what's the last thing you think
of when you go to sleep?" The door quietly shut behind Okina as his
voice faded behind the door.

Aoshi continued to watch Misao and the snow. She was almost completely
covered in white now. Suddenly the figure disappeared. Aoshi perked up
his neck and squinted his eyes. He couldn't see her anymore.

Running as fast as his feet would carry him, Aoshi sped through the
snow. The storm was slowly turning into light flurries. Yet Misao was
still nowhere to be found. "Misao!" He called out to the wind. Aoshi's
voice echoed through the streets of Kyoto as he called for her. Slowly,
his body began to tire, and just as he was about to give up, his feet
collided with something hard.

He looked down at his feet and noticed a lump in the snow. But it
wasn't something rock hard.

It coughed.

Aoshi's eyes grew wide. He knelt down to the lump and slowly brushed
the snow away. As he feared, it was Misao. Her eyes were glazed over as
they slowly focused onto his face. "A-Aoshi-sama?"

Hiding his relief behind his cold mask, Aoshi wrapped his arms around
Misao's cold body and lifted her up. "Are you okay?"

Misao diverted her eyes from his. "I'm fine enough to walk." She
lightly squirmed within Aoshi's grip so he would release her. Once she
landed on the ground, Misao took a few steps away from Aoshi.
"Aoshi-sama I-"

Misao was interrupted by the feeling of Aoshi placing his trench coat
over her body. Warmth once again flowed through Misao's body. A more
human pink-ish color began to form in her face. She turned to Aoshi,
who was looking to his right. He too was diverting his eyes.

"Aoshi-sama..." There was so much she wanted to say. She wanted to
apologize. Whatever she had done to upset him, she would apologize
for, just as long as he would at least look at her again. Maybe even
speak to her. "Why?" She finally said, summing all her thoughts up in
one simple word.

"I was confused." Aoshi said, still looking away. "It just all comes so
natural to you. For me-" His voice cracked. "I don't know."

Taking a step forward, Misao held his coat closer to her body. "What
comes so natural?"

What Aoshi did next shocked both he and Misao. Reacting to the moment,
having her so close to him. He reached out and wrapped her in a hug.
His right hand cupped the back of her head and held her close.

Dammit.

Okina was right.

Misao could feel more tears start to flow. Failing to hold them back,
she again muttered, "Why? Why are you doing this?"

A small smile appeared on Aoshi's face as he buried it in Misao's raven
hair. "Can you keep a secret?"

Fin

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Author's Notes:

*sweatdrop* Yeah. This is what I feared! _ I finally wrote my damn
A+M fic and what? It's absolutely WAFF. Nothing but WAFF _ But then,
what should I have been expecting?

Okay, I'll be the first to admit that this is my first RK fic and that
I haven't actually SEEN the anime of Rurouni Kenshin this far into the
series, I have only *looked at* the manga. I did extensive research
before I even attempted this fic, but if I am wrong in some parts, tell
me _ (.jp) I'd like to know. Don't worry you'll get
credit for pointing me out wrong _

Listening to Utada Hikaru's "Can You Keep a Secret" repeatedly is to
blame for the title and final line of the story. It fit. I used it.
So sue me P No wait, don't. I have no money _

So what's next? A Karou + Kenshin WAFF?

Kenshin: ORO?

Karou: I fear.

Hikaru: ^^; You're not the only one.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Standard Disclaimer:

I don't own Misao or Aoshi or any other characters mentioned in this
short. I do not own them I tell you! Nobuhiro Watsuki does though. And
so does Sony and Jump Comics. And they are big companies that have lots
of money. I am a poor otaku who has *no* money. So please don't sue me.
This fiction was created for entertainment purposes only ^^;