What You Ask For by Talya Firedancer ~~~ rurouni - rurou "wander" + ronin "warrior" = "wandering warrior" sakabatoh - reverse-blade de gozaru - a formal expression, a way of speaking formally used by the samurai class but I'm told Kenshin misuses it with its frequency. Think of it the way 'no da' is for Chichiri. Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu - Soaring Dragon Blade (style). Jou-chan - "Missy" taichou - captain oyasumi (nasai) - good night dou? - "how was/is it?" ~~~ Sun splintered in crystalline shards of warmth over the dusty, rural streets, gilding everything over in burnished benefaction. It was a crisp spring morning and the slight wind nipped at the heels of housewives sweeping the front stoops, or bustling at their chores. Little children scampered through the broad streets, vendors watching indulgently as they set up shop for the day. The year was 11 Meiji and a young man known as Himura Kenshin the rurouni had come to stay at Kamiya Dojo. Long red hair swished between deceptively slender shoulders, given a rich golden thread by the morning sunlight. The soft tread of the young man barely prowled up puffs of dust in the road. Slim, long-boned fingers gripped the handle of a small bucket for toting tofu, the same slim hands that held a sword with equal facility. The water slopped against the wood but did not slosh over. The young man walked up the broad street of Tokyo's outskirts with an indulgent, gentle smile for the girls knee-height playing with dolls on their front steps, or the two boys romping in the street with a scruffy, tongue-lolling mutt. He brushed back long red bangs and beamed at a pair of children playing hopscotch as they paused to gape at the sword that hung by his side. Violet eyes narrowed for a split second as his eyes flicked to the side, but he kept up his steady tread. A small, sharp rock hurtled through the air. "Oro..." Kenshin sagged, clutching at his head pitifully as the rock ricocheted over his skull, but still managing to keep hold of the tofu bucket. A small welt sprang up red on his fair forehead. "Heh." A tall, lean figure tossed another small rock in his hand, dark eyes lifting to case Kenshin with a sly, thorough glance. "You easily could've avoided that." "I could have," Kenshin acknowledged, turning to face the taller man as he rubbed at the small lump on his head. "But then I might have dropped Kaoru-dono's tofu. And the children wouldn't be nearly so amused, naa?" Ruefully he indicated the three little girls who were still giggling over his 'oro' dramatics. "Heh," Sagara Sanosuke repeated, stepping free of the shadows with a liquid shrug of his shoulders. His jacket gapped open in front, revealing a shirtless stomach that the morning sun clung to and lingered over with reverent fingers. His lower midsection was wound tight with bandages that disappeared beneath the bunched line of his pants. "You seem to have recovered completely," Kenshin noted with a warm smile as his eyes traveled the length of the lanky frame, assessing him. "It would have taken months for anyone else." Sanosuke shrugged, intense brown gaze dwelling on Kenshin with leisurely perusal, hands buried deep in his pockets. "What'cha doin'?" In reply Kenshin lifted the bucket with a ready smile. "I'm taking care of the cooking for Kaoru-dono." The taller man fell into step with him as he resumed his soft- footed tread, navigating the dust-clogged streets as they filled with people. Kenshin glanced over at him, purple-violet eyes widening. "Eh?" Sanosuke gave him an affable grin. After another few paces Kenshin's eyes wandered from the dusty strip of road back to the lean broad-shouldered man. "Oro...?" Sanosuke's gaze was squarely fixed on him. Hurriedly Kenshin returned his errant eyes to the road. This boy's gaze was daunting in its directness. "Are you coming to the dojo, then?" Kenshin inquired mildly after they had crossed the bridge in silence and Sanosuke made no move to return to the town. "Sure," Sano replied, "it's that or freeload at the pan-fried beef place." They took a few more strides in silence. Kenshin glanced over at him, purple-dusk eyes filling with suspicion. "You're going to freeload off Kaoru-dono de gozaru," he observed in a darkly deadpan tone. Sanosuke stretched broad arms and folded them behind his head as they continued walking. "Meee?" he exhaled in feigned astonishment. "Who says I'm coming along for anything but the company?" He glanced sidelong, sly, at the lean swordsman who was now avoiding his eyes. "And the panda's colors are taupe and pink this year." -Even more deadpan. "C'mon, with a face so innocent...?" "...as a thief making off with a fat man's quarterly wages de gozaru," Kenshin finished for him, deep plum eyes sparking with betraying amusement. "Maa..." Sanosuke scratched at the bristles of his dark hair. They walked in comfortable silence for a few measures, approaching the dojo. Sanosuke's eyes sought out the delicate profile again, crossed red scars only gaining it more attention. "I'm..." Softened violet-dusk eyes regarded him. Kenshin's face was serious until his lips pulled up in a sweet-natured smile. Sano blinked. "I'm freeloadin'." Kenshin beamed. "As I suspected!" Sanosuke glowered. After another length of silence, Sano spoke up again. "Naa...Kenshin...?" He rubbed at the back of his neck as if hesitant. "Hmm...?" The wide plum eyes turned to look at him again. "Hmph." Sanosuke gave him a tiny smile. "There's somethin' I've been meaning to ask you." "Nani?" Kenshin blinked, a guileless expression. The hand rubbed back and forth over the younger man's nape. Finally he spoke. "Hey...Kenshin... I wanted to ask..." Sanosuke's words halted and he scowled, shoving his hands deep into both pockets. Kenshin glanced over at the strong profile, somber now. Sanosuke's expression held the pent-up edginess of something bottled up inside. "Sanosuke, what is it?" Deep burnished brown eyes flicked towards him then skittered away before their eyes could meet. After such a direct stare it was hard to believe the young man suddenly could not look at him. "Naa, Sano?" "Kenshin - I wanted to ask..." Sanosuke began again, removing one hand from his pocket to renew the nervous brush of palm over the nape of his neck. "I wanted to ask if you - you could help me become strong?" The rest of the words came in a rush, abrupt, as if Sano wasn't saying whatever he had begun to say. Kenshin's eyes bugged out. "O-Oroo...?" he reeled. This coming from the brawler who had laid a man flat with one flick of his finger? Sano's mouth was firm with his apparent resolve, but still the dark eyes avoided violet-dusk sharp scrutiny. "You beat me. So I was hopin' you could maybe teach me some secrets..." Kenshin waved his hands. "Iya, iya! Sanosuke, I don't have anything I could teach you. You're a brawler and I'm a swordsman and besides...I do not teach Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. Not to anyone." "Naruhodo," Sanosuke exhaled. Then he tossed a glinting grin to the red-haired rurouni. "But you still use your sword for peaceful pursuits. Even...pleasurable pursuits?" Kenshin's eyes went completely round. This boy was dangerous in his directness. He wrenched his eyes from Sanosuke's intent gaze, and did not reply to the innuendo. They walked the rest of the way largely in silence. As they passed through the wooden gates to Kamiya Dojo, two little girls swarmed off the steps and Kenshin set down the tofu bucket as the tiny human missiles barreled at him. The little girls toppled the red-headed rurouni to the dust, their happy cries chiming as they climbed all over him and he laughed. Sanosuke regarded them with a peculiar expression, rubbing at the back of his neck again. "Ken-nii! Ken-nii!" they chorused, chubby little faces alight. "Ayame-chan was good," one child informed him gravely, tugging at Kenshin's threadbare gi. "So was Suzume-chan!" the other insisted. "Can Ken-nii play with us now?" Kenshin's husky laughter wove in with their silvery voices. "Ayame-chan, Suzume-chan, I'm sure you were very good," Kenshin assured them, ruffling their tousled heads with affection. "But I promised Kaoru-dono I would do the cooking and Ken-nii has to be good first, too, before he can play." Ayame's wide guileless eyes quivered. "But you'll play later?" He tapped her snubbed nose, gifting her with his smile. "I will definitely play later de gozaru." He levered himself up out of the dust and reluctantly the girls released his gi as he climbed to his feet. "Later!" they chorused, the two faces lighting with glee and then they scampered off, giggling. Kenshin brushed at his dust-covered rear and bent to pick up the bucket. "Here, let me." A broad hand swatted his bottom and Kenshin yelped, leaping a good three feet. The tofu splashed in its bucket but he kept his grip on it, landing to whirl and face Sanosuke with a wide-eyed startled look. "Oro...?" "There was dust on your gi," Sanosuke returned innocently, belied by the mischievous sparkle in his eyes. "Wait - I think I see a little more." Kenshin lifted his hands defensively. "That's...not...necessary de gozaru," he replied hastily with a wide panicky-eyed smile, backing towards the house. Sanosuke followed with long-legged strides. "Matte, Kenshin - naa, if I promise to be good will you play with me later, too?" Kenshin fled for the kitchen. * * * Sanosuke smirked as he stepped off the porch, picking between his teeth with a worn splinter. Kenshin was an awful cook - the rice had had a burned flavor and the kitsune udon had been a plain mess - but the food was free and Doctor Genzai had assured him that Kenshin's cooking far and above surpassed the Missy's. The slender red-haired rurouni had disappeared shortly after washing the dishes and setting them out to dry. He wasn't out back washing clothes nor was he tumbling around with the kids - those two little girls were on the wide porch playing jacks with the loudmouthed shrimp Yahiko. So Sanosuke strolled around in search of him, hopefully to find him before Jou-chan kicked him off the premises. "Kenshin..." Kaoru called out, wandering the circuit of the back yard, dolled up in a flower-print kimono. She *almost* looked feminine, Sano mused, shoving his hands deep into his pockets and spitting the toothpick into a nearby hedge. But he found Kenshin to be prettier than the Missy, and - slightly surprising to him, but only slightly - more to his taste. It was the air of utter seriousness, of complete focus that sharpened through the screen of gentle good humor that intrigued him so. That, and the incredible strength coiled in that slender seeming- frail body. Kenshin had defeated him. Oh, he could admit it - mostly because he admired him now. Kenshin had replaced Sagara-taichou in his heart, the dashing young captain who had been the anchor in his young life, ripped away in a wave of blood and deceit by the intrigue of dirty politicians in the chaos of the Bakumatsu. Sagara-taichou had been his idol, his dream, a standard by which to set his own life. In Kenshin, Sano found the same near-worship taking hold of his feelings, but this time with an added dimension, something he'd never felt for Sagara-taichou. Kenshin had replaced him...and now Sanosuke found himself wanting *more.* He had noticed more than the man's incredible strength, while fighting him - the amazing speed, as he had dashed up the length of the Zanba sword - Kenshin was more than that. He was a slender, lissome body with a tied-back mass of soft auburn hair, a heart-shaped face with delicate features and the crossed red scars that spoke of his past, serving only to intrigue him further... He was a fighter, with sword-calloused, strong hands...and Sanosuke was certain the touch of his hands would be gentle. Sanosuke slid open the door of the dojo and smirked again. Success. Himura Kenshin was within, his arms folded over his slender chest as he looked up with quiet fixation at one of the framed sheets of calligraphy that adorned the simple dojo walls. It didn't mean anything to Sano - he wasn't a scholar - and he prowled over the floorboards, bare feet silent as he snuck up on his prey. He struck in one swift instant, leaping in a whipcord length of muscle and Kenshin was whirling, his eyes wide with astonishment, hand already falling to the grip of his sword, a gleaming inch clicked free by his thumb. Sanosuke had a millisecond to realize what a *bad* idea it was to sneak up on a former Hitokiri, the voice of reason yammering in his skull that he was about to be Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu-ed into the ground. They collided. "Heh." Sanosuke smirked in triumph, squirming atop the rurouni, then straddling him and knocking his hand away from the hilt of the sakabatoh, pinning his hands above his head. "Gotcha." "Oro..." Kenshin exhaled in a comic tone. "How was that? Not bad," Sanosuke gloated, "if I managed to pin you, naa, Kenshin?" "You're lucky you attacked slowly enough that I recognized it was you," Kenshin blinked up at him, entirely serious. "Otherwise the blow I would have given might have hurt a little." Sanosuke scowled. "Well, I gotcha, anyhow." Kenshin's face firmed in the next instant to a hard, serious expression. "Sano. What are you still doing on my chest de gozaru?" "Well...I'm not exactly on your *chest,*" Sanosuke squirmed again, giving him a lazy grin. He blinked. Kenshin's proximity was more potent than he'd thought, the slender body beneath him filling his senses, the rurouni's windblown scent taking his breath away. He was getting hard. It was slightly embarrassing - but only slightly, considering his intentions. "You can't take me with your Zanba sword or your fists so you'll take me some other way, is that it?" The rurouni's purple eyes were dangerously narrow and flashing up at him, filled with fury. "You've got to prove your manhood at all costs, eh, Sanosuke-san?" The abrupt switch from 'Sano' to a more formal address almost gave him pause. He nearly snapped off an instant, heated response, his brawling instincts kicking in to retort the insult, then as he ground his teeth he realized he'd be proving Kenshin's nasty 'proving your manhood' shot by doing just that. "Knock it off," Sanosuke growled at him, keeping the slender wrists pinned to the mat. Kenshin's body was tensed beneath him, coiled wire that could spring at any instant. He knew the rurouni could probably knock him off and to the mat in a heartbeat, even without his sword. But for some reason Kenshin was letting him - wary, eyes resentful - but waiting. "So I lost. Big deal. That's not why I want you." The narrow gleam of plum-dusky eyes slid shut as Sanosuke moved on top of him, galvanized by the slender, graceful body, the triangular delicate-featured face. The breath was a rasp in his throat, echoed trembling on the air by another throat, as he pressed the hard ache against Kenshin's thigh. Hard hands shoved at his chest, tough hands that held a sword - for protection, not for killing anymore - and Sanosuke was flat on his back in the middle of the dojo. Kenshin regarded him through thin slivers of impersonal violet for a moment, the look he'd seen when the rurouni was being utterly serious. "Kenshin - I..." He trailed off, sitting up to rub over the bristles of his hair, feeling sheepish. His erection had faded at once. Maybe he'd misjudged the rurouni's preferences. "I...forget it. Just forget this, okay?" The red-headed warrior's solemn look of contemplation dissolved into his beam of pure good humor. He smiled at Sanosuke, the sweet, familiar expression that seemed to be the heart and soul of him. The self beyond the Hitokiri he'd been. "Sanosuke." "Eh?" Kenshin stooped beside him and he blinked, eyes crossing as the redhead tapped his nose. Just as he had tapped Ayame's, earlier - with his promise. "Be sure you know what you want, before you ask for it." He beamed again as he stood, his eyes scrunched shut with the cheerful expression, then he left the dojo. Sanosuke watched the red tail of hair sweep to and fro between slender shoulders. He observed him leave, bemused, still rubbing sheepishly at his bristly hair. He thought he'd been perfectly clear with his intentions. Generally when one was straddling a man and nudging him, just so, it was fairly clear... Apparently, he'd have to be *much* more persistent and obvious. * * * Kenshin lay wakeful far into the night, watching silver fingers creep across the smooth worn floorboards of the room Kaoru-dono had given him. He owed her so much. She had given him kindness and cheer, and the salve he needed by fiercely declaring she didn't care what he had been, only what he was now - and he could see her heart in her eyes when she looked at him, wondering and hoping... And he was always smiling and cheerful and polite in return. And as she wondered if someday, he - they - might...well, so always he wondered why something within himself simply wasn't capable of returning her budding feelings. That Sanosuke might be part of the answer was a disturbing idea to him. Kenshin had never submitted to another man's touch - it was a fierce point of pride for him, despite assumptions others imposed based on his appearance of manner. Hiko had made advances at one point, but Kenshin had rebuffed him, red-faced and angry as he had rejected all similar offers. And when he had been Hitokiri... well. There had been many things he had done, as Hitokiri, that he had never done before and would never repeat. But submission had *not* been one of those things. And now, Sanosuke wanted him...and Kenshin found the intense gaze, the slight quirk of his lip, to have a direct mystifying connection with a point of heat within himself that had not kindled in quite some time. And yet...and yet... Kenshin sighed soundlessly, shifting, night-dark strands of auburn hair delineating shadows against the pillow. Sanosuke would not drop the matter, so it could not be solved that way. But the matter that kept him wakeful was he simply didn't know. Could he give Sano what he asked? * * * He stood before the darkened low-slung buildings of Kamiya Dojo, hands buried deep in his pockets, head bent. The moonlight that shimmered down in heatless waves poured over his shoulders, making him a silver-gilt statue as he remained unmoving. The night air whispered over his neck and stomach with its cool fingers, making the man think of another's touch. For the first time. When he thought of Kenshin, he was thinking of another's touch for the very first time in a passionate manner. Before now he had been consumed with rage and bitterness, his life eclipsed by the shameful extinguishing of the Sekihou troops. But Kenshin had defeated him. And in doing so, he had taken Sagara- taichou's place in his heart. And while his love for Sagara- taichou had been youthful worship, nothing more, with Kenshin... this was different. Even though, perhaps, if taichou had lived to Sano's maturity... But that part of his life was a closed book. His attention was fixed on Kenshin now, the grace of his movements and the clean wind-rendered scent of him in the early afternoon. When he had warned Kenshin not to go wandering anywhere without him...he'd had his own desires in mind. Puzzling out the feelings that Kenshin had sparked inside, and deciding what to do about them. Well, he'd decided. So it was that he slipped into the black silver-dappled confines of the Kamiya household, his intent held before him. Kenshin wouldn't be able to pretend misconstruing the situation *now,* not in the dead of night with more in mind than spar or...'play.' As he prowled past the first room Sanosuke could hear a slight whistling snore. The sound sharpened, then there was a soft thump as the sleeper shifted, then the piping snore started up once more. Sanosuke's mouth tugged in a slight smile. "Hm." It would figure that a tomboy like Jou-chan would snore. He crept past Yahiko's room and heard nothing but steady, regular breathing. The denizens of Kamiya Dojo were locked in sound sleep. Even Kenshin, it seemed, as he eased the door open and the wooden panel rasped over the runner. Sano winced. He was no thief and he'd never been particularly subtle - disguising his movements now was like a fumbling child trying to outwit a parent. But the purple eyes didn't even crack the slightest bit open. Once he was slung across the somnolent redhead's hips, though - *that* was when the purple-twilight eyes opened, languidly at first as he arched up in an unconscious response to the touch of a warm body, then snapping open wide and narrowing in that *look*, his serious almost Hitokiri look. "Sano-" he gasped, then his exhalation was cut short. As Sanosuke pinned his hands above his head, the gesture similar to his earlier clasp that day, he plastered him with a rough kiss. Kenshin's mouth was open from his soft outcry but Sano hesitated and chose not to take advantage of that, instead concentrating on the friction of lips together and thus he was startled when the rurouni's tongue brushed against his own. They broke panting for air, Sanosuke resentful at his own starved lungs when he hadn't wanted to stop, even at necessity's demands. Kissing Kenshin was... it was more intense than he'd imagined, the feelings sharper inside as if Kenshin had pierced him with the reverse edge of that sakabatoh of his. "S-Sano..." Kenshin's throat struggled to release the word again. His legs had drawn up almost as if he were preparing for a struggle, his body's unconscious response, and Sanosuke grinned in triumph as he realized it left the redhead's legs parted. He wormed from his straddling position and eased a leg between Kenshin's thighs, then the next and he was settling the full weight of his lower body exactly where he wanted it. Sanosuke grasped his thighs and pushed Kenshin's legs up higher, closer to his chest and Kenshin blinked up at him, his face a mingled missive of confused desire and determination. With deliberate friction Sano pressed against him, nudging his hardness between Kenshin's thighs. He could feel it, the answering throb, and it delighted him - he hadn't been wrong! "S-Sano..." he faltered once more, before two fingers were laid over his lips. "Kenshin. I want *this,*" he stated his direct intent now, speaking for the first time since entering the room. His voice was a low rumble then he bent his head to Kenshin, tasting him again. A heated mouth moved over the rurouni's neck, nipping kisses along his jaw, rough suction in the hollow of his throat. "I figured that much de gozaru," Kenshin replied dryly, opening his eyes half-mast and tilting his head up to regard the lean brawler whose body weight pooled between his legs. "I - unh...!" It was more of a hitch of breath than a whimper, then Kenshin bit his lip as the younger man shifted hard against him. Sanosuke smirked at wringing a reaction from the rurouni and nuzzled the skin of his throat, then licked from the hollow of his throat up to Kenshin's lips. Resolutely the redhead kept his lips closed, eyes tightly shut. "Kenshin?" the young man whispered against his lips, hesitant for once and uncertain. "Go back home, Sano," Kenshin murmured. With a heavy thump his head settled back onto the sleeping roll. He turned his face away. "Kenshin - " Sanosuke's brow puckered in confusion, then he began to draw away. Then he pressed abruptly back to him, hard between his legs again, tongue tracing over the crossed scars livid against the pale cheek. "I don't understand. You want me!" His whisper was fierce and defiant. He flexed, pressing himself between Kenshin's raised legs, a tremor passing through him as he felt the pulse of the redhead's hardness against his lower stomach. Oh, yes, Kenshin definitely wanted *something.* "You want me..." His finger looked dark against the whiteness of the rurouni's skin. "Don't you?" He hated himself for the way those words sounded. So weak. And Kenshin was strong. Instantly he wished he could take it back. *Go back home, Sano.* "Fine," he whispered quietly, bitter. He began to roll off of Kenshin. The redhead moved beneath him, his head lolling upright. His wide violet eyes fixed on Sanosuke, and he gave out a little sigh before reaching his mouth up to press a brief kiss to the corner of Sano's mouth. The other man's deep brown eyes lit up and he bent to pursue those lips, but Kenshin drew back again. "Not now, Sano," Kenshin told him, lips shivering against his would-be lover's. "Not...not here." His eyes flicked away, involuntary and towards Yahiko's room, and Kaoru's. Sanosuke followed his eyes and the meaning of his glance and a wry grin tugged at his lips. "Heh. All right." He ran his lips over Kenshin's throat again, delighting in the way the rurouni's body arched beneath him, almost squirming. "As long as you don't say that forever." "I don't think I could..." Kenshin replied breathlessly, struggling not to thrust up against Sano's hard young body, to grab the firm curve of his buttocks and demand release. This wasn't the time or the place. He clenched his teeth as Sano's mouth tickled lower and the bristles of his dark hair brushed against his chin. "S-Sano...please stop." He forced his voice to be firm. Sano chuckled softly, his confidence restored. Kenshin wanted him. The proof, of course, was wedged between them - but now he knew why Kenshin had seemed so reluctant but eager before. Equal parts desire and self-denial. The dark-haired young man eased off of the slighter redhead, smiling down at him. Kenshin looked at him a moment, eyes soft, hazed and partway fogged-shut, wanting him, then he broke out into a sunny, artless smile. "Oyasumi nasai," he beamed, his hand brushing in a brief gesture over Sano's cheek. "Oyasumi..." Sano acknowledged with a tiny, rueful grin. As he prowled his way back out of the dojo household, the caress was burned into his senses. He'd been right. Kenshin's touch was gentle. * * * "Hn. I thought I'd find you here," Sanosuke grunted, coming to the edge of the river, gliding to a nearly-soundless stop as his hands pushed into his pockets, stilling the nervous clench. The river wasn't large but it was swift-moving. The bank on either side was calm and featureless, perhaps soothing to some with its carpet of green-brownish grass and nothing else for miles, monotony broken only by the bridge nearby that spanned the small rushing brown river. The slender body was crouched by the riverside and could have been unmoving for hours, for all that the eye could tell - or had stooped just an instant before and remained frozen at his voice. It had been several days since that midnight-laced encounter, and every day since Kenshin had been occupied or unavailable. Children clamoring over him, Kaoru pressing him with errands, Doctor Genzai socializing with his amiable old-man's chatter... every possible scenario had been played out before his eyes. The upshot of each was that none of them left Sanosuke alone with Kenshin. The young brawler was certain now that it was deliberate. One time, chance; second time, his bad luck... seventh, eighth... He was acting like a fool. "Kenshin, if you're upset about the other night - " Sanosuke plunged right to the heart of the matter in his typical direct fashion. Two fingers were placed over his lips, shushing him and Sanosuke jerked, his eyes widening to an impossible extent. He hadn't seen Kenshin *move,* let alone stand and turn and cross the space between them to... Then he frowned at the indecipherable expression that had overtaken the rurouni's features. It was almost an assessing look, like the one that had taken him apart head to heels and strategy combined, before they had begun their first and only fight. Kenshin's sudden kiss was like a blade's edge between them, piercing and sweet, stirring his blood. Sanosuke lifted a hand to cup the back of his head, keep him close and take the joining for all it was worth, but the redhead was already pulling away. "Not here," Kenshin explained tersely, then moved past him and began to climb up the embankment. "Kenshin...?" he trailed off, wondering where the rurouni *did* intend them to tryst. There was a small forest not far from the outskirts of town, and as Kenshin led him into it Sano received his answer. They went deep...deeper...then Kenshin was kneeling by a cluster of hedges, tugging at something. He extricated a hidden sleeping roll and Sanosuke's face creased in a broad smile. "Shit, you've been *planning* this," he said in admiration. His most ambitious plan, if it could be called that, had involved luring Kenshin back to his place and putting a hand over the redhead's mouth if he got too loud. But here they had perfect privacy. Kenshin gave the mat a swat of his hand then turned, giving him a look of such intensity, pure seduction, that Sanosuke could only fall on him and push the jacket of his katama from the lean shoulders, hungry. Their mouths didn't mesh or kiss so much as tear at one another. Kenshin suckled his tongue, by far the better kisser and Sano groaned, the sound thrumming between them. He felt the rurouni's hardness pressing flush against his stomach, shifting, then his thigh. Finally they were both naked, clothes tossed every which way in haphazard heaps of useless cloth. They breathed faster now, both wanting, needing to touch, restless ache consuming both their bellies. And now Sanosuke had Kenshin before him, naked, desiring, and...he was at an utter loss for what to do. Kenshin's eyes worked over his face then he gave him a swift reassuring twist of his lips, a fleeting touch. "Here," he said shortly, pulling Sano to the mat with him. "Like...this." Sanosuke was between his thighs again, already shifting in quick restless beats against his flesh, against the mat, anything... The redhead reached for something, hand questing in the folds of fallen clothing, and came back with a small tube. He coated his hand with a glistening salve then wrapped his hand around Sano's shaft. "Uhhhnnhh..." the noise was the release of a thrumming bowstring, but the hand around him pumped only thrice, then withdrew. Then Kenshin was lifting his legs and presenting himself and *now* Sano knew what to do. The thick tip nuzzled into the smooth crease of the offered buttocks, pressed flush against the pucker... Kenshin's eyes were closed tightly and his face was half-turned away as Sano began to push. The sex was swift and violent, both of them unable to hold back anymore. Kenshin did not touch himself. A portion of Sanosuke's mind noted this, wondering if it was a sign of utter submissiveness or simply because he was too proud or shamed to ease the ache with his own hands. And the rest of his mind shut down thought as he was engulfed in velvety-liquid pleasure, hips pistoning against and into him. He gripped Kenshin's thighs and pushed the older man's legs higher, jack-knifing him, then snaked a hand between their flat straining bellies and pumped Kenshin with a rough hand. They moved in a synchronous, beautiful violence. The outcome was more inevitable than the sword's dance that had begun between them, only this time Sano was coming out on top. "S-so good...you feel so good," the rasping whisper escaped Sano's lips. He felt better than good. "So fuckin' good..." Sano leaned forward, wringing a cry free of Kenshin as he was buried deep, and pasted a hurried kiss on the redhead's slack mouth. Then he resumed his thrusts, irregular now and pounding to completion until he grunted, coming hard, spilling his load deep in the redhead's embrace. His eyes stretched wide to catch every last detail of Kenshin's climax. The rurouni's face dissolved into an ecstatic open- mouthed expression, a soundless cry, his deep midnight-plum eyes shut tightly as every velvety-supple muscle beneath Sanosuke contracted in the throes of it. "Ahh...uhh..." the wordless noises leaked past his lips, and then suddenly he was thrashing under him, warm trickles spurting against Sano's stomach and he loosed a yell that made Sanosuke grateful they were deep in the forest. The lithe body went limp beneath him and Sano relaxed too, easing them to the side, the both of them still entwined. Sano spread his fingertips over the crossed scars, touching Kenshin lightly, a feather-wisp of a caress. "That was amazing," he admitted, voice hoarse. The rurouni's violet eyes were scrunched shut, breath lapsing to normal from the rapid pants, mouth still fallen open. "I'm glad you consider me to be a good fuck de gozaru," he said evenly. Sanosuke's mouth fell open, too. The bitter tone was shocking and completely unexpected. He thought...he'd thought... He burst into incredulous laughter, a reflective response. "You're kidding, right?" He shifted and an odd expression crossed Kenshin's face with the movement. "You think this's all I want?" "Why not?" came the bitter query. Kenshin pulled himself away, Sano's thickness sliding out of him and a shuddering sound escaped his parted lips. "You're finished. You got what you wanted - now you'll leave satisfied, naa Sano?" "Iya!" he exploded, a heated flush breaking over his cheeks. "Iya. You don't get it." He sighed and propped himself on his elbow. "I shouldn't have done it this way." "But this is what you wanted," Kenshin stated reasonably. He was squirming away, fingers groping for his discarded katama. "Stop that," Sanosuke smacked his hand away, irritable. "Don't just screw me and leave me - or is that part of the rurouni package?" Kenshin turned back to him slowly, dusky eyes wide with flickering emotion. "Nani?" he growled. "Y'heard me," he returned, resentful. "That..." Kenshin stopped, breathed hard. A strange laugh tripped from his lips. "That was supposed to be my line...de gozaru." Sano blinked as the lines of tension relaxed in his lover - yes, *his* lover's face as Kenshin continued to laugh somewhat weakly, but the humor tipping his face into that sweet smile again. After a moment Sanosuke joined him with a few chuckles and pulled Kenshin close to him. His skin was soft but supple, and had tasted so sweet...the first time had happened too quickly to savor individual details. The former brawler let his hands roam as they willed as he bent his head to nuzzle at the skin of Kenshin's throat again. Kenshin groaned, eyes widening. "No - matte, Sano! Not so soon; I'm to sore de gozaru," he exhaled miserably. "Your strength..." Sanosuke just grinned and slid down between his thighs. "Iya...iya..." he continued his helpless huffing protests, fingers sliding through the short bristles of Sano's hair without purchase, as the younger man wormed a sensual trail down his stomach, tasting the length of him. Then he fell silent with a soft sussurrating "ohhh..." as Sanosuke's mouth engulfed him. He licked away the traces of the redhead's recent eruption. Sano began to suck, letting the soft ecstatic 'ohhs' guide his movements. After such an intense climax the first time around, it wasn't a great length of time before Kenshin was coming to the coax of mouth and hands, his yell more muted than before but undeniably enthusiastic. Sano made a face but chose to swallow instead of spitting it into the bushes. "Dou...?" Sanosuke pulled back, wiping at his lips with the back of his hand. He crawled up the length of Kenshin's body to sprawl beside him, the redhead's body limp and replete. His head turned and Kenshin's smile was equally slow as that movement, languorous, a side of him Sano hadn't yet seen. "It was different from anything I've ever had," he assured Sano in a throaty purr. One hand patted against his cheek in a simple affectionate gesture then the redhead was rolling against him, body tucked to his, face nestled into the hollow of his throat. Sanosuke put an arm around him, his lips stretching in a grin that was possessive and triumphant all at once. "Damn," Sano muttered, the sound throaty. "Eh...?" Kenshin's guileless deep plum eyes regarded him. "I wanted to take your hair down," Sanosuke told him, fingering the shadow-darkened auburn masses with his rough fingers, "and spread it around your face..." "That's it?" Liquid orbs of amaryllis blinked as Kenshin's lips creased upwards again. "We will have plenty of time." With a rough arm he snagged Kenshin and pulled him close, ignoring the startled yelp. Kenshin had said it first, an admission that this was more than a quick heated tumble. It was all he needed...it was enough...enough... ...enough to let him sleep, as his eyes were drooping inevitably shut. "'Yasumi," he managed to get out as he eased into a deep, satisfied sleep. Kenshin regarded his new lover soberly. "Plenty of time...I hope." He sighed and let his eyes slide closed, rest coming to him with a languid sort of peace for the first time all week. Kenshin gave in to the rising need for sleep as he had been submitting to Sano's advances from the start, a first for him. The submission had not come easily. The largest portion of him counseled that the only thing Sanosuke was after was a quick heated tumble, perhaps just even to see if he could; a swift taking and nothing more. And initially, Sano's behavior had seemed to bear up that reasoning. Kenshin's ultimate decision had not crystallized until just this very day - despite his careful preparations, the hidden sleeping mat, the tube of salve. The moment he'd begun to admit the truth had been when he'd seen how touchingly nervous Sano was, confronting him gruffly by the river, clenching his hands to disguise the tremor. Only the fact that Sanosuke was uncertain, perhaps as jittery as he, had enabled him to admit his own feelings. And realize that it was indeed within him to give freely what Sanosuke asked, although the boy himself perhaps did not realize *how* much he asked. "Somehow...I think I need you," Kenshin whispered hoarsely. One hand stroked the surprisingly-soft skin of Sanosuke's hip. That admission was the hardest one of all. Sano's only response was a thick, sawing inhalation of breath. Kenshin made a little face. It wasn't necessary for the boy to hear it. It was enough to ease his own mind just to say it...and with assurances made on both sides, he rested his face in the hollow of Sano's throat, and slept. ~owari~