AN- I know what you're thinking. A next new story out by me? I know I have other stories I have to finish but I couldn't help with this one. I had this one stuck in my head for the longest time and I wrote it so many times to have the first chapter like this. I hope you guys like it. It took me forever to write it, though I enjoy every aspect of it. Please leave a review, and feel free to leave comments, suggestions, and questions behind, though I don't except flames.

I did a lot of research before writing this story. This story and the plot is personally my own, so please don't steal the plot, or accuse me of stealing this plot. Thanks.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin series. I wish I did but I don't. : (
TITLE: Promise or Love?

SUMMARY: Promised to one, yet savagely taken by another, Kaoru must choose whether her heart lies within her father's promise to one man, or heart's desire by a seductive pirate. Will she choose her heart or a promise?

Everything happens for a Reason

Chapter one

Kaoru Kamiya approached the room with forced gracefulness as both her mother and father called her to enter their domain. Out of all the days since her fifteenth birthday, this was the day she feared, the day when her father would mention her upcoming future. Ever since she was little, her father would speak of her marrying someone of class and wealth. For him to summon her really early in the morning must have meant he found someone suitable for her.

For some reason Kaoru expected this situation to happen to her earlier. In families, young girls at the age of fourteen to fifteen years were betrothed and married off to wealthy men, as Kaoru's mother had been, though she had not been allowed to see whom she was going to marry at the time. Many suitors had asked for Kaoru's hand in marriage, though they only did it through her father, not her. He never did allow any of them to meet with her in person. However, all the men who came to ask for her hand in marriage, which sought out for her, were all turned down because they did not have enough wealth to suit her father's proposal.

Kaoru was sure now her father had picked the rightful husband for her. Soon his name would be mentioned and she would be sent to his honor and marriage.

As soon as Kaoru entered the room, she noticed her father didn't bother to look up at her approaching figure. It was a good thing too, because he would have mentioned some bad remark about her stiff figure entering the room, and not acting ladylike as he paid well for the teacher in convent school to teach her.

Looking at her father carefully, she examined his facial expression. As always his amber eyes remained cold as his face remained serious. Never did he look at her. Could it be that he finally changed his mind? Is he feeling guilty about everything? He sent her out to school for nineteen years, since she was a baby. Now that she finally came home once again, he was sending her away.

Tokio Kamiya looked at her daughter anxiously. She tried to dissuade her husband from having Kaoru marry the wrong man, to let her choose the man she wanted to marry, but her attempts were all futile. Saito Kamiya off handily told her his final decision. He made it clear that Kaoru was going to marry whom he chose and that was final. Kaoru was too different from other girls. Tokio so badly wanted to explain that fact to her husband. Kaoru was too spirited and too beautiful to give away. If Kaoru had chosen a good husband for herself, she could have been happy, however, Saito wanted a man of title to marry his daughter. He did not care if Kaoru found her husband to be repulsive or not.

"Well, Kaoru, I guarantee this will not take long," Saito finally said. His emotionless amber eyes caught Kaoru's sapphire eyes.

Saito did not alarm Kaoru. Never did he show emotions or love toward her or her mother. He treated them coldly as he treated his servants. His mind only focused on one thing, which was nothing but a considerable amount of wealth. These thoughts took up most of his time, leaving very little room for his family.

"Why don't you sit down, my dear Kaoru? You must tired from your long journey back from school," said Tokio tenderly before Saito could begin with his business.

Kaoru knew how much her mother loved her, but she refused to sit down, because she did not want to make anything easier for her father. Right now she felt like rebelling, though in her standard of place she had no right too. These things happened to every other woman, and it will never change throughout the centuries. She now began to wish her mother never spoke of marriage of love. From small her mother told her stories about meeting the right guy and falling in love. She spoke how wonderful love could be once it was found, and the feeling that it could bring. Yet when this was happening to her, she wished she never knew the meaning of love, when it will never come to her.

"Through a long time of considering the right man for you, I have come to a conclusion that you should marry. I have arranged for your marriage to Soujiro Seta," Saito continued. "It will take place very soon, like after the New Year."

Kaoru's blue eyes flashed defiantly at him for his cruel announcement. It was like a heart-wrenching blow through her soul. It was probably the last time she could rebel against him for soon she was to belong to another. Then with ladylike manners, she meekly bowed her head like an obedient daughter would do.

"Yes father," said Kaoru quietly. Her own soft tone amazed her. How could be so in self-control at a time like this?

"Soujiro Seta resides in the Caribbean. You have a month to stay here until your ship is ready to take you there. I have hired the finest dressmakers. They will assist you with your clothing, and your young maid Tae will accompany you on the trip as both a companion and a chaperone."

"Why must I go so far away," Kaoru exploded. Her temper could not be held back any longer. She didn't want to leave her mother so far behind, or the little life and memories her home so well preserved for her. "There should be someone here who I could marry father."

"Good lord!" shouted Saito as he got from his seat to glare at his wife. His light colored complexion turned red.

"All those years at convent school went for nothing! Here she is still questioning my authority! You better teach her something or I won't be responsible for my actions!"

"If you only will listen to what your daughter will have to say," Tokio ventured, taking her daughter's side for a change.

"I have made my final decision," Saito declared. "Kaoru is to marry Soujiro Seta. I have made my mind set on the arrangements of the marriage. No longer can it be undone. I only hope Soujiro could learn to tame the temper she has!"

Does her father have to talk about her the way he does, like if she wasn't even around at all? Kaoru truly did love her father, but at times he made her want to scream at him for all he had done to do her.

"Father could I be excused?" asked Kaoru now trying to end the argument she first started.

"Yes you may. I have told you everything you needed to know for now. That's all."

Kaoru ran out the room. A part of her wanted to weep, while the other part of her wanted to laugh. She knew the man her father spoke about. At least her situation wasn't any worse. He could have chose to marry her off earlier as soon as she was done with convent school. But it took three years for him to finally make up his mind, and three years for the man she was about to marry to increase his wealth.

So many different emotions ran through her as she ran upstairs to her room. She was angry at her father for taking her to a different place, with different people. That idea horrified her. She wasn't mad for her father to set up an arranged marriage forever since she could remember she was always warned about that day her life would completely change. She felt completely saddened about the fact she was leaving her dear mother, but felt exhilarated by the fact she was traveling alone with her close friend Tae, whom she loved as much as she loved her mother.

Entering her room, the room she hardly seen because she was away most of the time, Kaoru saw her maid tending the flowers in her room. Sadly giving her a smile, Kaoru threw her entire body on her bed, while gem like tears fell from her eyes.

Tae moved over to the weeping young Kaoru and tried her best to comfort her. "Shush. Everything will be all right. You will see. The man will give you what your heart desires."

"That is where you are wrong Tae. I will never forgive father for what he is doing to me. He is sending me to a strange country with strange people inhabiting it. How could I go there? I will run away before going there!" Kaoru said childishly as she rested her head on Tae's lap.

"God will forbid such a thing, especially from you!" Tae scolded, shaking one slender finger at Kaoru. And then her eyes soften. "The Kaoru I know is will strong and something like this is something she could face. This man, you never know could be the man you will fall for, and may bless you with many children. Hope to God I will live to raise your children."

Kaoru smiled as she finally sat up on her bed. Her sapphire eyes lighted so much with spirit and determination. Tae was right. Kaoru would marry this young man and make the best of her life. She had past the age of making tantrums. She no longer could get what she wanted. The sisters at the convent school taught her she had to deal with what she could get and make the best of it.

Though a part of her still wondered what she ever did for her father not to love her so. All her life she did her best to please him, when he never paid the closest attention to her. No matter what, she made it her life's mission from young to make her father like her, yet nothing pleased him. She turned to making trouble, turning rebellious against him, yet that didn't work. He sent her to convent school, hoping that there she would learn discipline. Even learning everything how to be a proper lady, did not please him. At times she wished she could be the son he longed for. But things happened. They were meant to be. For some reason God put her in this world to be a woman and to fulfill something.

As she grew older, she realized that no matter what she did, her father would never be pleased. She learned to accept her place in which her sisters at convent school taught her. She learned to accept the love she already had which was her mother's and Tae's love. What more could matter? Whatever reason God put her here, she knew she had sacrificed too much of her happiness in life and that someway, someday, happiness will come to her, even if it lasts for a short time.

Early in the evening, Tokio walked into Kaoru's private room to talk to her. She wanted to make sure her daughter was fine from earlier events. For a young spirited girl, Tokio didn't want her daughter, Kaoru, to be going through, what she was going through right now.

"I tried very hard to convince your father not to carry you off to that- that man," Tokio said nefariously, while wringing her hands together. She had an unusual habit of doing that.

"Oh mother, you should not blame yourself for something you were not responsible for. I was only hurt at first for knowing I had to go so far away. I always knew father would arrange a marriage for me. I was completely aware he had that in his mind."

"Well, Saito has been making the arrangement for months on his own without any consideration. He didn't bother to know of your needs, knowing the fact that you will be in a different place, with different people, with new climate and other things you will have to learn to cope with. It is too much for you to absorb in. Plus the man is a stranger. You never met the man before." Tokio usually spoke what was on her mind in front of her daughter. Since she was pacing back and forth in Kaoru's room, she seemed to be at lost for words.

"Mother, is there something you wish to tell me?" asked Kaoru inquisitively. She was unsure how everything should be between her mother and her.

"There are some things I do wish to speak to you about, that is if you don't mind," said Tokio, unaware how small her voice sounded.

"Please go on mother."

"You know that I love you for how much you are willing to do almost anything for your father's happiness. Though I blame it upon myself that you cannot have what you truly deserve." Tokio turned away from her daughter, not being able to see sadness within her daughter's eyes. But instead of receiving what she expected, she got something else.

"What do you mean mother?" asked Kaoru innocently, titling her head to one side.

"I mean as a mother I wanted you to have happiness. I wanted you to be able to choose the husband you want to marry instead of having your father choose for you. I thought what happened between us a long time ago will never repeat itself again but it did."

"Mother?"

Tokio turned to face her daughter once again. If she had to reveal the real truth to her daughter then let it be so. It was time she confessed to her daughter about her past, about what really happened between her and Saito. Grabbing the sides of her skirts, Tokio looked up to see her daughter gazing at her with a questionable look from her sapphire eyes.

"Mother?" Kaoru iterated.

"It happened a long time ago, before you were born. My father was never really rich until he struck gold in a land mind. Automatically he opened businesses and became rich, far beyond you ever dreamed. The only problem about being rich was he needed to have a son to inherit his businesses and his money. Women have no say when it came to those things. When it came time for my marriage, mother wanted me to marry based upon my choice, but also with a choice of being able to receive money from him. However, father refused. He said he would choose the man for me to marry."

"Oh gosh mother!" Kaoru exclaimed looking at her mother with disbelief. In some ways, her mother story reminded her of the situation she was going through. "What happened mother?"

"Well, my father chose a nice rich man for me to marry. The man had so much land, so much money. During the time I use to travel a lot to town with my mother, hoping to spend a lot of time with her as possible before I left her. It was then I met up with up with Saito."

"Talk about being so dramatic."

"Yes, well, we fell in love. Every time I went to town, it was to see him. Yet when the time came for me to marry, I told your father I could never see him again."

"Mother that can't be! How did you end up being with father?"

Tokio smiled at her daughter. She was so open, so willing to listen. Even confessing the truth and teaching her daughter a moral, she was still so eager to learn and relate to her situations. Yet the main difference between the both of them was Kaoru was willing to give her happiness to please someone else.

"Mother how?"

"Your father never saw me again, when I married whom my father wanted me to marry. Only later did the man I first married realized that my father became new with wealth. He hated the idea and rejected me completely. I felt so desolated, like there was nothing in the world to ease my mind, until one day I found out I became a widow."

"Oh I am so sorry to hear that!"

"It is okay. It was from there that I believed things happened for a reason. My father realized the type of man he got me involved in and decided for me to choose the man I wanted to marry. Saito who was already rich was the man I chose to marry. My family agreed based on certain conditions. In the end I married your father out of love, and from that love you blossomed."

"I am so happy everything turned out to be so fine!" Kaoru hugged her mother, glad for her mother to confess her romantic story with her. It was a way of telling her how much she loved her.

"Yes and basically from that day forward I promised for you to be happy without making sacrifices, yet you did anyway. Saito so badly wanted a son and had you. I didn't want him to make the same mistake my father made earlier. Now he's doing the same thing my father did, and I am so helpless to stop it."

Kaoru stopped hugging her mother and drew away from her. Walking to her dresser, her head became engrossed with the details her mother told her. "Everything happens for a reason right? Even you said you believed that, when your first husband died. I know through father's cold heart, that he still cares for me. He maybe believes that a man having a lot of wealth will guarantee my safety and well being."

"Oh dear, you could be so generous! You remind me so much of my mother before she passed on. She was always willing to help another soul, or do whatever pleased her close relatives. For that good heart of yours, you should never feel disappointed or feel any remorse when your heart has found the chance to love. Please promise me that," Tokio said moving closer to her daughter and clutching her forearms. "Please say when you find one moment of happiness, even for a little time that you will be happy, you won't feel any remorse, and you will enjoy it."

"Yes mother, I promise," said Kaoru finally making a conclusion to their heartfelt conversation. Just then servants passed by the room checking to see if everything was in order and waiting for Tokio to order them about. Tokio left Kaoru's room to tend to her business.

Kaoru on the other hand stood before her mirror, wondering why Soujiro would pick a woman like her to marry. She didn't consider herself as beautiful as her mother spoke of her. She thought of herself rather plain looking. She had a petite figure. Instead of having full breasts and round curves, she found her hips to be too slim, giving her breasts not enough firmness. Her small waist kind of added small curves, yet whichever gown she wore, she always had to put pads around her hip area, giving her a womanly form. Her long raven hair was always straight. It did not have any body to it. Her skin was smooth, but did not have blemish within it.

"No matter what, I will learn to accept life. However it may come to me, I will live it, cause everything happens for a reason," Kaoru whispered to herself.

Unbinding her long raven hair, Kaoru walked up to her four-poster bed, and crawled under the coverlets. Her long raven hair fell to the side of the bed and the floor. With so many things going through her head, it took her awhile before she fell asleep.

(To Be Continued)