A pure heart

Part 1: Found

Kenshin fanfiction by Ayumi Ikari

The sun sank blood red in the dusk. In the north the blackness of night was already approaching, but the last rays of the setting sun fell on the sea of ​​crosses.

"Come on. There is nothing more you can do for her." Hiko said to the little boy he was still standing in front of the three stones. He ran after him hesitantly, then looked around one last time and followed the tall man who had saved his life into the darkness of the night.
The moon rose, full and bright, and sent its pale light through the canopy of the woods.

Shinta still wasn't sure if this was the right thing to do with this man. He didn't even know what to expect. But what alternative did he have? To fall into the hands of the nearest slave traders?
The man had saved his life, so he couldn't be that bad. In addition, Shinta was far too tired to give any further thought.Wherever the man took him, he hoped they would be there soon. He struggled to keep his eyes open and stumbled over the uneven forest floor rather than running.
Seijuuro Hiko noticed how the child's mind was losing its strength and struggling hard not to slide into the depths of sleep.
He paused and waited for the boy he had named Kenshin to reach him. It wasn't far, but the boy was about to collapse.
"We're taking a break. Take a rest."
Without answering, Kenshin collapsed against a tree trunk and fell asleep within a few seconds.
Hiko picked him up and carried him the rest of the way back to his hut. The child smelled of earth and blood. But far worse was the smell of death that covered him. The smell of dead flesh, of corpses rotting in the heat of the day before the boy put them underground.
Hiko had waited the night to bury the corpses, but now the boy had already taken care of them in the scorching heat of the day.He looked at the small bundle in his arm. Kenshin was far from being a sturdy boy, his face was so delicate it could have belonged to a girl. His hair was the most noticeable thing about him. They were red like the flames of the fire. Hiko could already guess what the slave traders had planned with such an extraordinarily graceful boy. They would have gotten a good price for him in certain areas of Kyoto.
Not only was he very petite, he was also quite short. Or he was younger than Hiko had assumed. It is hard to believe that such a thin child was able to dig dozens of graves with his bare hands. Graves for people who had taken his freedom and for those who wanted to kill him. He had a strong will and a pure heart .. That's why Hiko had taken him with him. He was the one. He would be his successor.

Kenshin was sound asleep when they reached the small hut.Hiko lit a candle and then decided Kenshin to at least sparingly wash something before he put him down. His face and hands were full of earth, the blood of the dead stuck to his clothing in places.
He still had a bucket of water so he didn't bring any extra to go to the river. He took a cloth soaked in the water and rubbed it over Kenshin's face. His worry that he might wake the boy up was unfounded, he was so exhausted that he just went on sleeping.
Finally, Hiko carefully took off his clothes. What he saw didn't surprise him. The child's body was covered with bruises. Some were older, others were healing, and still others seemed fresh. He carefully washed the boy as best he could and then rolled out his futton. He put Kenshin down and covered him.

He was used to waking up to the first rays of the morning sun, but something was wrong this morning.Something was different than usual
The first thing he noticed when he woke up was that he wasn't lying on his futton as usual. The reason for this was revealed to him when he slowly opened his eyes. A few meters in front of him lay a small figure on his futton, of which only the red head of hair peeked out from the ceiling.
The events of the previous night suddenly came back to his memory.
Hiko left the little hut as quietly as possible and took the child's clothes to wash them.
The fresh air of a clear summer morning welcomed him. Dew was still on the grass and the moon was still high in the sky even though the sun was already rising.
Hiko made his way down to the river. First of all, he had to wash the boy's clothes. They would probably be dry long ago when Kenshin woke up, Hiko wasn't expecting that too soon. He had decided that Kenshin should take a rest today. This afternoon - or tomorrow, depending on how long Kenshin slept - they would go into town and buy the boy his own futton.The warm sun caressed his face as Shinta slowly slipped out of the realm of sleep. It was nice and warm around him. That hadn't been the case for a long time. When he blinked carefully, he realized that he didn't know where he was. He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes. He was in a small cabin and apparently slept on a futton. Bright sunlight shines through a small window in the small room. Nobody was here except him. Where was he?
He wore nothing but his underwear and his clothes were nowhere to be seen. Shinta just sat undecided and wondered what to do.
Was it sold? Maybe the door was locked ...
But he couldn't see a lock on the simple wooden door.
From outside he heard no noises, only the singing of the wind in the treetops and the melodies of the birds. No voices, no steps. He seemed completely alone wherever he was.Shinta tried desperately to remember, but couldn't. Should he just run while he was still alone? Maybe this was his only chance ... He wanted to get up, but by then it was too late.

Hiko sat in front of the hut and drank his sake. It was late afternoon and Kenshin was still asleep. Just as he was considering waking the boy, he noticed the movement in Kenshin's mind. So he was finally awake. Hiko took another sip of sake. The boy's mind grew more and more restless the more alert he became. The boy seemed totally confused and disoriented. Hiko gave him a little more time, then he decided to put an end to Kenshin's unrest.

Shinta froze in mid-movement when the door suddenly opened. He sat upright, with bright, alert eyes on his futton, his hands clasped around the blanket, and stared at the man standing in the doorway. He knew the man from somewhere, he just didn't know where from. The man was extraordinarily tall, muscular, and he wore a white coat.Shinta bowed his head and then asked in a low voice:
"Did ... did you buy me?"
Hiko sighed inwardly. The child couldn't remember anything. Hiko hoped it was just a temporary memory loss, triggered to muffle the shock the child was undoubtedly experiencing.

The white coat ... Shinta suddenly remembered. In his dream tonight, this man had saved his life and - the realization that his dream was a reality hit Shinta like a dagger in the heart.

Hiko noticed how a great shock hit the mind of Kenshin. Kenshin winced and then started shaking.
"It wasn't a dream, was it?" he asked in a trembling voice.

End of part 1

Hello! I hope you like the FF! Please write me your opinion! Thanks!
Ayumi ^^ X