Subject: [KFFDISC] "Love and Duty" - Chapter 5 Date: Tue, 02 Apr 2002 15:18:24 +0800 From: " Megan Lavey" Reply-To: kffdisc@nabiki.com To: kffdisc@nabiki.com ::grabs the sakabatou and whaps the computer into submission:: Gomen! Gomen! This is really what's suppose to be in that post! For those of you who are just joining us, last year a romance novel of the fairy tale, "The Wild Swans" was put out. For those of you not familiar with the tale, it is the story of how a princess must knit shirts out of nettles for her 12 brothers who have turned into swans. She must remain silent the entire time. During this time, a handsome king comes along and falls for the princess. He takes her home and marries her. Things proceed from there.... "Love and Duty" by DQBunny DISCLAIMER: "Rurouni Kenshin" is owned by Nobuhiro Watsuki. The romance novel form of "The Wild Swans" is owned by Kate Holmes. All royalities go to them, I'm just a humble fanfic writer. ***** Chapter 5 Kaoru's jaw sagged as the woman swept by her, the scent of white plum clinging to her like a second skin. She tried her best to keep a regal appearance about her, but she knew she couldn't quite keep a serene appearance when every instince inside her cried to grab a shinai and beat the harlot up and down the corridor for seducing her Kenshin. Wait a minute...HER Kenshin? The woman paused and studied Kaoru, taking in her dusty traveling kimono and her ponytail with strands of hair coming loose from it. "Trust me, kodomo, if he wouldn't take me, he surely wouldn't be interested in someone like you." Kaoru blinked. "Someone...like me?" The woman shrugged. "Then again, he might prefer a taste for the rougher side of life. Megumi-sama indicated that he was from the lower class." "Megumi-san sent you?" The woman nodded. "I am Yukishiro Tomoe. And you are?" Kaoru smiled as prettily as possible. "I am Kamiya Kaoru, better known as Kaoru, Empress of Japan. And you have five seconds in which to remove yourself and your insults from my sight or else I might use you as a target in my next kendo lesson. Oh, and if you ever come near Kenshin's room for any reason at all, under any orders other than my own, consider yourself banished from Edo. You will be, how you say it, of 'lower class.' Have a good night, Yukishiro- san." She swept into the room, leaving a gaping Tomoe staring after her. Tomoe swallowed nervously, gathered the folds of her kimono in her hand, and ran down the hall as fast as she could. Kaoru closed the door behind her and leaned against it. She closed her eyes and a smile spread from ear to ear in satisfaction. A low cough sounded from the other side of the room. She opened her eyes to see an amused Kenshin smiling at her. An amused fully-dressed Kenshin, that is. Kaoru smelled the faint scent of white plum, but other than that, there were no other signs that the woman had been in the room. His futon was nowhere to be seen and his clothes didn't appear anymore rumpled than normal. Amusement danced in his violet eyes and he did nothing to curb the happy grin focused on her. Kaoru blushed and stared at the ground. "Ah...well...I saw you had company and...I'm sorry if I interupted anything." Kenshin couldn't control his silly grin and he shook his head. Seeing Kaoru tell off the courtesan that Megumi had sent to distract him had made his entire evening. He didn't realize how much he missed her until she stood before him, looking more like a triumphant young girl than an empress. Words burned in his throat. He swallowed, trying to call on the iron control that got him through many battles to keep the words from spilling forth. Kenshin always thought that talking was just necessary to get through life, he never found a pressing need to talk to someone until Kaoru pushed her way past the courtesan into his room. Kaoru sighed with relief and pushed an errant strand of hair behind her ear. She walked over to one of the chairs flanking the fireplace and sank into it. "It's been a long two weeks, Kenshin," she said, "I know the shogun will probably be back tomorrow and there'll be hell to pay. But, it's not just that." Kenshin took the other chair and cocked an eyebrow. "I heard rumors that Americans are not far from Edo. They want to try and force trade with Japan. Tokugawa-san is against it, but I doubt he'll have a choice," Kaoru stared absently into the fire. "I'm not quite sure what I think about it. Opening trade means progress, but I think the people are scared. It could throw them into chaos. Yet, everyone is so unsettled right now." She gave Kenshin a wry smile. "I wish I could just do one thing and make everyone happy. Except Megumi-san. Nothing would make her happy other than seeing me married off to a money-hungry, power-grubbing man so she can control him via sex and he can control me." Laughter, full and rich, bubbled from the other side of the room. Kaoru's eyes widened with astonishment when she realized the laughter came from Kenshin. She openly stared at him as he laughed, watched as moisture gathered at the corners of his closed eyes and he wiped it away using the sleeve of his worn purple gi. His laughter subsided and his eyes opened. She unconsciously drew in a deep breath as his purple eyes sparkled with amusement at her. Kaoru blushed and stared into her lap. She quickly got up and started toward the door, trying to ignore how rapidly her heart was beating. "I uhh...need to get some sleep. I'm meeting with Matsudaria-san to discuss some new ideas with him, I need to prepare for Tokugawa- san's arrival, and I want to spend the afternoon conducting an Audience Day." Kenshin quickly followed Kaoru. He grabbed her sleeve to stop her. She looked back and he grabbed the hilt of his sakabatou, then nodded at her. "You want to escort me to my room?" Kaoru asked. He nodded. "Don't worry, Kenshin. Misao-chan's right outside, I see her coming this way now. I'll see you tomorrow for breakfast, ok?" Kaoru started out the door, then paused. She whirled around and gently kissed Kenshin's cheek. "You know," she whispered, "I really did miss you. Oyasumi nasai, Kenshin." With that, she walked toward Misao. Kenshin stared after her, his eyes wide with shock. His hand automatically moved to the place where she kissed him and his cheeks turned red. He smiled and went back in his room. ***** "Kaoru!" Kaoru looked up from the papers she was reading to see Misao walk into her office. Her heart sank. Tokugawa Yoshinobu must be in sight. She tried to calm herself down and set down her papers before she dropped them. "Hai, Misao- chan?" "I forgot to tell you, I got the information you were looking for," Misao said, holding up a sheet of paper. "You wanted me to look into Himura's past, ne?" "Oh! Yes!" Kaoru breathed a sigh of relief, "What did you find out?" "It took me awhile, but his name is really Shinta. He is listed in the birth records down in Nagasaki. Born June 20, 1849. His parents died of cholera when he was young, and he was adopted by a man named Hiko Seijuro and his name changed to Kenshin. From there, his whereabouts get a little shady." "I'm amazed you found out that much," Kaoru replied. Misao grinned. "There aren't too many red- haired, purple-eyed men with cross-shaped scars in Japan. All I had to do was mention the hair and the eyes and I could get enough to piece together Kenshin's history." The grin faded. "Here's where it gets interesting though. Hiko Seijuro is the 13th master of a sword technique called Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. Do you remember an asassin about ten years ago called the Hitokiri Battousai?" Kaoru frowned. "Vaguely. I was just a little girl then. Supposedly, a group of men called the Shinsengumi were out to remove my father from the throne and install the Tokugawa as emperor. They were going to have Tokugawa Yoshinobu marry me in order to claim the right to the throne through marriage. But, Battousai fought for my father and asassinated the group to the point where they split up. Not long after that, he disappeared. No one has seen him since." Kaoru sighed. "I wish I could meet him, just once. I would love to thank him for saving my father's life." Misao smirked. "You might just get your wish, your highness." "Huh?" Misao leaned back in her chair. "The Hitokiri Battousai was a slender, small red-haired man who could easily be confused for a woman. He had violet eyes and..." "A cross-shaped scar on his left cheek...oh Kami-sama," Kaoru gasped. "Yup. The stray dog you brought home happens to be none other than the Hitokiri Battousai himself." ***** Kenshin picked up his sakabatou and tucked it into the ties of his hakama. He started out of the room, bypassing the waiting baskets of knitting as he did so. He could knit another day, he had to worry about Kaoru at the moment. A swan wearing an odd pair of spectacles raced toward him. Grabbing hold of his hakama leg, he tried pulling Kenshin back in the room. Kenshin glared at the swan. It had to be Enishi, he was the only one of the brothers who wore glasses. He pulled at his hakama leg. Enishi pulled as well. Kenshin scowled at Enishi and pulled harder. Enishi pulled harder as well. Five minutes and a large hole in his hakama later, Kenshin marched toward Kaoru's office, mentally cursing Enishi the entire time. The swan, on his part, was squawking up a storm back near his room. He's probably trying to declare Jinchuu on me, Kenshin thought bitterly. I'll add that to my growing list of curses and death threats. He knew that Hiko would probably come down on his head if he knew he was taking so long to get his brothers back to normal. Still, he had to put Kaoru's safety first. Even in swan form, his brothers were perfectly capable of taking care of themselves - Kenshin had seen that firsthand. If something happened to Kaoru because of his sitting away with a pair of knitting needles, he knew he'd never forgive himself. Kenshin paused outside of the door to Kaoru's office and heard voices within. He sighed. He had hoped to stare down the shogun with her. Now, he would just have to wait. He focused on the ki in the room, then smiled. It was just Misao in there with her. He raised his hand to knock on the door. "Are you sure it's him?" Kaoru's voice came from the room. "Positive. As I said earlier, how many red- haired men with purple eyes and cross-shaped scars exist in Japan? Sure, there could be two, but one would have to be a damn good imposter." Kenshin's fist froze over the wood. He closed his eyes and sighed. He was surprised it had taken the Oniwabanshu this long to find out who he was...or used to be. Resigned to his fate, he swung the door open without knocking. Both women jumped to their feet, Kaoru knocking over a stack of papers in the process. "Kenshin!" she cried. Misao scowled. "How much of that did you hear?" Kenshin smirked. Enough, he thought. Misao grinned. "That proves it. What do you propose we do now, Hime-sama?" Kaoru faced the large window behind her desk. It overlooked the path leading from the entrance gates to the palace. She studied the traffic for a moment, then smiled. Whirling around, she crossed the room, her arms opened wide. "Why, I think we ought to wish Kenshin a happy birthday!" she cried, hugging Kenshin. Misao gasped. Kenshin's jaw dropped. He remained stiff, his body refusing to accept Kaoru's hug. The empress pulled away and gave him a dazzling smile. "But...but...Kaoru," Misao stuttered. Kaoru grinned at her friend. "Today is June 20th. From the information you've gathered, today is Kenshin's birthday. He's so far away from home, I'm sure he's feeling homesick today. We're going to throw a party for him! How about that, Kenshin? We're not your family, but we can celebrate your birthday." Kenshin blinked and pulled back from Kaoru's embrace. He couldn't remember a time when his birthday had been celebrated. He would note it absently in the midst of sword training, caring for his brothers, and other work he was doing at the time. Celebration? It had never crossed his mind. He stared at the ground, feeling humbled. Then, he held up his hands and shook his head. Kaoru frowned. "You don't want us to celebrate your birthday?" He nodded. "Why not?" Why not? Kenshin could think of a hundred reasons. They were still nearly strangers to begin with. She had to worry about the wrath of the shogun when he came back, plus the threatened arrival of the Americans. He had to knit those damn shirts. He had to protect her. He didn't want to...Kenshin's heart melted at the pleading look in Kaoru's eyes. He didn't want to disappoint Kaoru. He gave up the fight and nodded his acknowledgement. "Great! Misao, go notify Tae-san that we're going to have a party tonight! Kenshin, what happened to your hakama? Go find a new one! Better yet, get Tae-san to give you some new clothes entirely. Hurry now, there's a lot to do!" Kaoru pushed them both out of her office and slammed the door behind them. Misao and Kenshin stood on the other side of the door for a moment, then stared at each other. Misao shrugged. "That's Kaoru for you," she said, then grinned, "I haven't seen her look that happy in a long time. I've got a lot to thank you for." She started down the hall, heading for the kitchens. She glanced back at him, her blue eyes dancing merrily. "Don't worry, Himura! Your secret is safe with me!" she yelled. Kenshin smiled after her, then headed for his room. He could probably finish Anji's shirt by dinner, he thought. It didn't seem like Kaoru would accept his being around her at the moment anyhow. Feeling light-hearted, he cheerfully kicked Saitou as he headed pass the swan down the hall, revenge for his earlier harassment. Saitou careened into the wall and laid there for a moment, disoriented. He got to his feet and searched for his cigarette. He lifted one of his feet and discovered it had been squashed to paper and ashes under them. Squawking madly, he raced after Kenshin, death glowing in his eyes. Megs ******* dqbunny@simplecom.net AIM: MegsLeigh http://www.wishing-blue.net/dreamweaver --