Get Married 1
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It was raining when Kaoru woke up that morning. The young kendo instructor yawned lazily as she opened her sapphire eyes. It had been a while since Yahiko left the dojo. The soon to be thirteen boys had left to started living by his own in Sanosuke's ex-room. Sure the boy would still come over to the dojo to practice kendo and having dinner but it didn't change the fact that now it had been kind of lonely in the morning.
It had been six months since Enishi's Jinchuu and Kaoru could felt the slightly change in Kenshin's behavior toward her. Ever since they went to Kyoto few months ago to visit Tomoe's grave, Kenshin had acted differently toward her though not overly romantic. Now, he would hold her hand when they walk as if that was the most natural thing to do, or touching her hair to tuck some lose strands... They were just simple gestures but Kaoru couldn't ask for more. He didn't say it out loud but from his action, it was safe to say that they'd been officially an item now, wasn't it? Though it would be so much nicer if only Kenshin told her the four letter word. Kaoru knew that Kenshin did love her. His action told her more than enough. He had implied that she was his most important person right now, and it did make her really happy, but just hearing him saying it once wouldn't hurt right?
"Good morning, Kenshin..."
"Good morning, Kaoru-dono, I'll be done soon," Kenshin smiled sweetly when she entered the kitchen where he was preparing the breakfast for both of them. Like usual, he woke up much earlier than her to prepare breakfast. He cooked for her, did her laundry, saving her life more than once... Sure it meant he loved her, right?
"It smells good," Kaoru walked to the stove to see what he had cooked for the breakfast, "miso soup?"
"And fish," Kenshin added with a smile on his face, "you don't mind?"
Kaoru giggled, "it sounds perfect... Is there anything I could help you here?"
Kenshin was about to say no when someone called Kaoru's name from the front door.
Kaoru frowned. She didn't expect anyone this morning. Wondering who had been coming to visit their dojo this early, Kaoru left the kitchen to see her guest. She tried to recall if she had any appointment with anyone this morning but she remembered none. It was unusual for anyone to visit them this early.
"Sorry for the waiting," Kaoru opened the main gate and found a middle-aged woman in green kimono and bright yellow obi smiling at her. She recognized her right away, "ah, Shouko Oba-san!"
"Kaoru, my girl!" The woman pulled her into a tight hug, "you've grown up!"
Kaoru was surprised but she hugged the woman back.
This woman with jet black hair in tight bun was Shouko Nagano, her aunty, her late father's half sister and also her only relative alive. Up until now, she thought she lived in China following her husband who was a trader. They hadn't met for years, she hadn't even there in her father's funeral. The last time they met was in her mother's funeral and it had been years ago.
Kaoru's feeling was complicated. She remembered when she was young her aunty was really nice to her until she get married when Kaoru was eight years old and started following her husband travelling since then. Meeting her only relative alive was nostalgic and brings back old memories but there was also this uneasy feeling lingering. What had brought her here?
"I heard about Nii-sama but I couldn't come, I am really sorry Kaoru, it must be really hard for you..."
Kaoru had invited Shouko for breakfast with them and introduced her to the rurouni who had been surprised but was glad he cooked enough for three people.
"It's okay, Oba-san, you were in Tibet at the time... You are a housewife, it shouldn't be alright for you to travel without your husband's concern only to attend a funeral," Kaoru was sincere when she said this, she loves her Aunty and she knew that grew up in a Samurai household, her aunty was taught that a woman from Samurai family should obey their husband, no matter what, once they got married.
Shouko shook her head, "and there are other things too... The rumor of you... Being killed... You don't know how glad I am to know it was just a false rumor."
Kaoru could feel Kenshin tensed. He didn't show it much but Kaoru realized it the ex-hitokiri acted differently whenever that topic brought up. She gave the red headed an assuring look. A look that only them could understand.
"I am okay, oba-san. You don't have to worry about me anymore," Kaoru chuckled, she had it a lot. People would always gave her that kind of face whenever they talked about her fake death. She knew it must be shocking for them but she couldn't help but to feel that was... Surreal, "Kenshin had saved me, he had protected me. You don't have to worry about me anymore, Oba-san. With Kenshin here, I will be okay."
She tried to imply about their special bond but she couldn't say more. She didn't know, how was her aunty think about Kenshin? She wasn't too worried though. Everybody she knew loved Kenshin. His aunty Shouko wouldn't be different.
The woman put down her bowl on the tray and turned to the rurouni. Kenshin smiled sheepishly. He knew that this person was someone important to Kaoru and he didn't want her to hate him.
Shouko sighed before returning the smile, "Thank you very much Himura-san, for saving my niece's life. For staying here with her. After her father passed away, I heard about what had happened to the dojo... It must have been lonely for her. Thank you for being there for her." She bowed, surprising Kenshin.
"Ah, that was..." He bowed back, he didn't expect the woman to bow, "I... I have been saved by Kaoru-dono kindness too, that I have. Kaoru-dono had done so many things for someone like me. I think, it's me who have to thank Kaoru-dono for everything..."
Kaoru blushed, listening to the conversation between the man she loved and her only aunty was like... It was like he was asking her permission to marry her. Unless, of course he didn't really say it. It was only in her head but she hoped that it was true.
"I am glad that Kaoru had someone like you, Himura-san, to protect her... I heard many things about you. I knew your reputation," she stretched on the last word. Both Kenshin and Kaoru knew what she meant by that. She knew that Kenshin was the infamous Battousai, "I can't say I wasn't worried when I heard about it. My lovely niece was taking in someone as dangerous as you in... But after I meet you today, it change my mind. In fact I feel that Kaoru couldn't be saver anywhere but here with you..."
Kenshin smiled, Shouko wouldn't see the sadness in his smile but Kaoru could see it, "I am aware of it, Nagano-san. I have thought about it too. I knew what harm I could have done to Kaoru-dono and believe me, I didn't want to harm her, or would I let anyone do that to her. I just... I couldn't let her alone by herself. When I still have the strength to protect her, I would do that. I would protect her from anything including from myself."
"I could see that. Actually, there is another thing I would like to talk about with Kaoru, and with you too, Himura-san," Shouko took a sip of her barley tea, "it's about Kaoru's future..."
"Shouko Oba-san..." Kaoru felt her heart beating faster, she had an idea of what it was about. She had expected something like this when she saw her aunty at her front gate this morning but she wasn't ready. She looked at Kenshin from the corner of her eyes. He realised it too, she could see it.
"I know you don't feel comfortable to talk about it, Kaoru," Shouko sighed, "but you couldn't avoid this talk forever. This year, how old are you again? Eighteen? Ninteen? You can't stay single forever, Kaoru..."
Kaoru bit her lower lip. She looked down to her laps, avoidin eye contacts with anyone in the room. She didn't knew what was in Kenshin mind right now. She could only hope that the red head wouldn't get the wrong idea about this. She loved him. She would be happy, more than just happy actually, to marry him and have his children but she didn't want to force him when he wasn't ready.
"Himura-san, I don't mean that I would force you to marry my niece, I could never do that. You have done so much for my niece and I appreciate it. I just want to make sure, if you do have that kind of feeling for her, I just want to know," Shouko looked at Kenshin sternly. The woman might be a merchant's wife right now but she was brought up in a samurai family. There were samurai bloods in her vein and it could be seen in her eyes, "my niece wouldn't be eighteen forever. Soon she would be twenty, twenty three... And I don't want her to end up as a spinster. People talk about her. I know I could believe her, she wouldn't do anything that would disgrace herself, but it wouldn't stop people from talking behind her back."
Kaoru knew her aunty was right. People in town were being nice to her and Kenshin but it didn't mean she hadn't heard one or two rumors about her and the rurouni. She never talked about it with Kenshin because she didn't want him to blame himself. Because she didn't think that it was important topic to be brought up.
Shouko sighed, "I come here today, with this intention to set an omiai for Kaoru."
Kaoru looked up at the word 'omiai', "Oba-san!"
Shouko smiled faintly, "that's it, unless Himura-san asked for your hand for marriage, I would have to go on my plan about the omiai."
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It was still raining in the afternoon. Yahiko had just finished her training and now off somewhere in town to work. That kid now started having part time jobs. Kaoru was glad that living in Sanosuke's old place didn't make him anything like the lazy man. Kenshin was in the police office. This morning after the breakfast, one of the police officer come to pick him up. There was someone from the government needed to see him. He had said once that he didn't want to get involved in the government business anymore but when he agreed quickly to meet the unknown minister, Kaoru wondered if he did that only to avoid her. After all, the conversation with her aunty this morning during the breakfast did give this awkward feeling between them.
Kaoru's aunty, Shouko had left the dojo after the breakfast, saying that she would have to leave the town in the afternoon to accompany her husband. She would be back in three days to collect Kaoru's decision about her offer. Kaoru didn't know what she exactly felt about the offer. It was so unreal for her. Her long lost aunty knocked on her door this morning, offering an omiai for her... That. If Kenshin didn't asked for her hand first.
Kaoru sat alone with a cup of tea that afternoon. She opened the door so she could watched the rain. She didn't know what to think. Everything happened too fast and out of control. What should she do? What could she do?
All of sudden her future was no longer in her own hands but in Kenshin's. Yes, her future had depended on Kenshin's decision. If he didn't want to marry her, then she would have to meet this unknown man for an omiai...
She let out a heavy sighed. If Kenshin didn't want to marry her at all, it wouldn't be surprising for her. After all, it was too sudden. It was just recently that they started being a couple and now her aunty came and gave her no choice but to get married, with or without Kenshin as her partner...
Kaoru groaned at the thought of herself marrying someone who was not Kenshin. That was unthinkable for her. She knew that her aunty was really care about her and whoever he was, the man her aunty had picked to be her omiai partner should have been a nice respectable man who would treat her right. She knew that omiai, as scary as it might sound in her ears, was actually not that bad. She knew there were many couples who got married after they met in an omiai and ended up falling in love with each other after they got married. In fact, her parents were one of those couples.
She knew it could have worked for her too, if only she hadn't fallen so hard for the rurouni. She just knew it was impossible for her to love another man right now, or ever. After what had happened between her and Kenshin, people shouldn't have even thought about separating them.
She knew he felt the same way. She knew it but she wasn't sure about it. Not anymore. If only he told her that he loved her... She would feel more confident.
Now her aunty's words sank into her mind. She wouldn't be eighteen forever. She would grow up and old as time went by. Kenshin would be twenty nine soon but he was a man and he had been married one. Twenty nine or thirty didn't even matter for him. But for a woman. Once she turned twenty there would be people called her spinster already.
Kaoru sighed. The rain hadn't stopped at all and she felt more and more gloomy.
Megumi was going to be twenty three soon and she hadn't married. Tae was twenty five. The other girls around her was older and they hadn't even had a partner or a lover so she wasn't the only one. That didn't make her felt better though. She knew she couldn't use Megumi and Tae as her reason to refuse the omiai offer.
Kaoru took another sip of her tea. Maybe she should really talk with Kenshin about this. She needed to know about his real feeling. She needed to hear it. She decided it herself. She would ask him straightforwardly.
The question was: how.
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Author's Note:
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That's it. My own take of post Jinchuu. I don't know... It's been so long since I wrote something for this fandom. I don't know if I still have it in me.
I apologize for grammars and typos, I haven't checked it. And... If you want to be my beta/proof reader just tell me. I would always need one.
