Disclaimer: All standard disclaimers apply. Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me – all characters and original situations are not my property.
Author's Note: This chapter is really happy…Aiya.
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Chapter 1: Portrait of a Family
On this particular morning, Kaoru was in the foulest of her foul moods. And that was a force to be reckoned with, as even in the best of tempers, she was still apt to leave everyone living inside her home with five or six bumps on their heads at the end of the day. But today, she had simply woken up irritated, and as the day progressed, she grew more and more annoyed at the tiniest things.
"Yahi-kooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!" the voice resounded throughout the dojo, rattling small vases and filling several ears uncomfortably.
A young boy with wild, dark hair clambered to his feet awkwardly from the breakfast table and shouted a snide response in reply, "WHAT, BUSU?!" He clutched a bokken at his side, knuckles white in annoyance at having been distracted from his food.
The owner of the voice poked her head into the room, and pointed her own bokken threateningly at the youngster, eyes flashing. "If you call me that again, Yahiko, I'll –."
"You'll what?" He interrupted impudently.
"Never mind," the young woman muttered, stepping into the room fully. She shook a high ponytail back from her shoulders and nodded at him, more calmly this time, "Although, I'm beginning to have serious doubts about your desire to become a proper samurai from this excessive devotion I've been witnessing ever since we started."
Yahiko sputtered, "What do you mean, doubts?! You stupid ugly, old hag! I'll show you!" He ran around the outskirts of the table, and waved his wooden weapon at the seemingly calm woman. "Let's have it, busu. Bring it on!"
"We better do something," another occupant of the breakfast arrangement muttered to his neighbor. He too, was busy cramming breakfast into his mouth at the speed of light, tall form never seeming to gain any weight even from the amount of food he consumed daily.
His violet-eyed companion nodded thoughtfully, "Right you are, I say."
"You call me 'busu' one more time, and I'll make sure you never hold a bokken, let alone a sword, again!" Kaoru screamed, and lunged at Yahiko.
Only to find herself restrained by a towering form. She looked up to see Yahiko wriggling, trying to escape the firm grasp of the short man who held him, purple eyes fighting to hide his amusement.
"I'm sure Yahiko didn't mean anything he said," the man told her soothingly. "He's just a child."
"I am NOT a child!" Yahiko screamed, and fought harder to escape the hands holding him.
Kaoru hissed, "And he means every damned word he says!" She kicked at her captor, "Let me go, Sanosuke!" She kicked harder.
"Yeesh. Whenever this one's angry, she always kicks," Sano muttered, changing his grip on Kaoru so that her kicks did not connect with her target. "How do you stand it, Kenshin?"
Kenshin smiled, but said nothing in reply.
"How DARE you?!" Kaoru continued, and began to flail with a spectacular amount of energy.
Within five more minutes, Sano and Kenshin had gotten their two prisoners blissfully quiet. Kaoru and Yahiko spared each other a few steaming looks, but did nothing to accompany those looks. The rest of breakfast passed relatively quietly.
Kaoru found that taking out her anger on the trio of men in her household had helped her mood a great deal. Yelling it off was always a good solution to many of her problems, and if she was in the worst of moods, she could usually deal out a few kicks to Kenshin before the day was over to satisfy her horrid temper.
Poor Kenshin. The things he puts up with, she thought to herself, looking at him fondly. He was sitting quietly between her and Yahiko, probably to prevent the master and student from flying at each other in anger again. It seemed he was deep in thought, lost somewhere in his own little world as he often was. Kaoru smiled, and touched him on the shoulder.
"Hm?" Kenshin started, looking up at her.
She giggled, "Just wanted to make sure you were still with us."
At that moment, Yahiko spoke up, staring at his knees, "Kaoru? Might we start our lessons now?" He asked her, trying to sound as docile and polite as possible.
Kaoru frowned, "We may. But if I hear the words 'busu', 'old', or 'hag' ONCE, there will be no lessons. Understood?"
Yahiko nodded, "Understood." The pair got to their feet and proceeded out into the practice area of the dojo, leaving behind the two older men to clear the dishes. In an unusual fit of goodwill, Sano helped Kenshin to clean up, although he wouldn't help wash.
"I just don't understand how a great swordsman like you could stand to wash dishes day after day," Sano informed him, lounging against a rack which held laundry. He watched Kenshin scrub, laughter clear on the rurouni's face.
"Sessha enjoys mundane tasks," Kenshin told him, continuing to scrub.
Sano made a face, " 'Sessha this', and 'Sessha that.' Honestly, Kenshin." He toyed with a fish bone, popping it into his mouth.
His companion made no reply, merely continuing with the crockery. The two men entered a comfortable and companionable silence, listening to the thumps of bokkens echoing from inside the dojo, and the occasional yell from either Kaoru or Yahiko. For once, though, everything was mostly quiet and it appeared that Kaoru and Yahiko were getting along splendidly.
"You hear the rumors?" Sano finally asked, cutting through the silence. "Looks like a big, English diplomat is coming to our friendly little city."
"Eh?" Kenshin looked up, hardly hearing what Sano was saying now.
Biting down on a fishbone, Sano nodded, "Seems that he'll stay for about a month or two. Don't know why, though." He shrugged, the motion accompanying his words.
"Diplomats always come," Kenshin said indifferently. "It'll just be another two months of parades and celebrations to contend with."
"You don't sound thrilled."
Kenshin decided to ignore the comment, and not tell Sano his true opinion of Western diplomats. It was not that he despised them, but nowadays, he felt that too many of the so-called 'diplomats' were useless toadies, sent by their governments to impress Japan. Not actual, useful and intelligent people. Unfortunately, such was the way with all of politics, no matter where or when you lived.
"Hey, look on the bright side. All that free food is just sitting out there and waiting for us to grab it," Sano smiled, a faraway look appearing in his eyes.
"What do you mean?" Kenshin asked blankly. "It's not as if the government sets out free food for spectators, you know."
Sano gave him a 'what are you, stupid?' look. "No. I meant the Akabeko. They'll be working really hard to keep up with all the tourists…" He rattled off, naming foods and dishes that he would add to his ever-increasing tab at the Akabeko.
Kenshin finished washing, and dried his hands on an apron, untying it from around himself. He received a snicker from Sano, who shook his head at the rurouni wearing an apron. "Oro?" he asked, when Sano snatched the apron from him.
"You look like a little old lady," Sano commented playfully.
Deciding to ignore this remark, Kenshin picked up a bucket, "I'm going to the market for Miss Kaoru. I'll be back in time for lunch."
"I think I'll walk you to town," Sano shoved his hands in his pockets. "Just to the Akabeko -."
"Freeloader," Kenshin muttered.
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"One thousand swings, and then you can go," Kaoru arched her back tiredly, setting her bokken down beside her.
Yahiko blinked, "ONE THOUSAND?! You horrible, old HAG!"
She pivoted around, snatching up her bokken once again, "WHAT did I TELL you?! Make it two thousand, then!" Kaoru proceeded to thump Yahiko with the bokken, her favorite method of punishment. Then she stalked out of the room, and went to prepare a bath for herself.
Normally, she would have Kenshin do this for her. But this time she didn't want to wait for him to get back from the market, so she lugged and heated the water herself. She shed her sticky clothing and climbed into the generous tub with a loud sigh. The warm water eased her many aches and seeped away her frustration and anger with Yahiko almost as effectively as hitting him some more would have done. She tilted her head back, and dove underneath the water to submerge her hair.
When she resurfaced, she felt quite refreshed. But the water was still warm, so she decided to spend some more time relaxing in the tub. She caught herself thinking quite unexpectedly of Kenshin. His large, violet eyes were engraved deeply into her memory as he had tried to pacify her and Yahiko this morning. She sighed, wishing those eyes could be turned upon her more often. How many times had she tried to get him to notice her? She was always afraid for him – scared for his life. Had he noticed her then? When she sat by, crying for his sake, because she feared he would die?
Oh, it was pointless to think these thoughts. He had a dark past he wouldn't tell her about, and a mistrust of himself. How could anything be possible between them, if they didn't trust each other? Of course she trusted Kenshin with her life – the question was, did he trust himself?
Shut up, stupid heart, she told herself, stepping out of the bath and wrapping herself in a robe. She trudged back to her room and shut herself inside, drying her hair and then combing it out into long, flowing locks. She decided against tying it into a ribbon again and stayed in her robe, wanting to be at ease for the rest of the day. It seemed that lunchtime had already passed, as the sky was darkening into the deep red and purple of sunset. Soon it would be evening, and dinnertime instead of lunchtime. What was taking Kenshin so long?
Abruptly, she felt a twinge of worry. He wasn't in trouble, was he? Her feet started moving across the dojo floor faster, out of her room. He had said he would be back by lunchtime, and it was nearly time for dinner now… She began to run. He hadn't left, had he? Oh please, that would be cruel…so cruel…
Then, she stopped. What the hell has gotten into me?! She thought to herself bitterly, biting down on her tongue. Of course he would be back. It wasn't like Kenshin to just leave without one word. The whole escapade with Shishio had proved that to her. He had said good-bye to her, but he had left all the same. At least she would know if he would ever try that again. And she would show him…if he ever dared pull that –
And there he was, carrying a bucket from the market, walking with Sanosuke, deep in conversation. He smiled at something that Sano said, completely oblivious to Kaoru's presence on the porch. Disgruntled, and freshly angry, she bolted down the steps barefoot and in her robe, straight for Kenshin.
"Kenshin no baka!" She exclaimed, snatching a huge stick of celery from the bucket and hitting him over the head with it.
Kenshin looked taken back, stumbling backwards clumsily, "Ororororo…" He put his foot into a wooden pail along the side of the road, and fell backwards onto the ground. His eyes became unfocused, swirling lightly on the impact.
"Man, you're cruel," Sano commented to Kaoru. "Some way of saying, 'Gee, Kenshin, I'm really happy you're home'."
"Shut up," Kaoru told him. She frowned at Kenshin, wondering why he allowed her to treat him this way. His mouth was slightly open, adding to the funny effect his fall had. She giggled at the position, and then gently helped him up, still laughing.
Suddenly, she understood. Not only was he allowing her to take her anger out on him, but he knew that he could make her laugh if she hit him every time she got mad. Her reaction to his fall just now had been proof of that. She smiled again, and handed the celery back to him.
"So what took you so long?" Kaoru asked, trying to sound more gentle this time.
Quickly enough, Kenshin's eyes had become focused again. "We stopped to help some people out along the road," he told her.
"Their carriage was stuck, and the lazy fools didn't have the strength to pull it out of a rut," Sano explained. "Fat, rich folk, if you ask me."
"Sano," Kenshin's voice was light, but reprimanding.
Kaoru held up a hand, "Enough. But it seems to me that even you had difficulty with the wagon, Sagara Sanosuke, if you spent till sundown pushing it out of the rut." She looked up at the darkening sky, raising one eyebrow high up.
"Aw, shut up yourself," Sano told her and walked away, hands still in pockets.
Kaoru tilted her head, "What happened to him?" She asked when he was out of earshot, and they started walking back to the dojo.
Kenshin smiled, "Tae was adamant for once and didn't allow him to expand upon his tab at the Akabeko. I think it set him down a few notches."
"Glutton," Kaoru shook her head.
"I wouldn't blame him for it. He's a good man," Kenshin told her going up the steps into the dojo. He stopped, realizing she had not followed. "Miss Kaoru?"
She was standing at the bottom of the steps, looking up at him thoughtfully. Kaoru thought how kind he looked, with the sun setting and casting a warm glow on his already rich, fiery hair. His eyes were puzzled at why she did not come.
"Miss Kaoru?"
Oh, for the love of Buddha, Kaoru thought to herself. "I'm coming, Kenshin," she sighed. Sooner or later, she would have to stop simpering and staring at him like this – and it had better be sooner than later. Not that he would ever notice of course…
She followed him inside to where Sano was lounging aimlessly on a futon and playing with his fishbone once again. Yahiko was still doing his swings, perspiration standing out in large beads upon his forehead.
Kaoru walked to him, "How many have you done?" she asked.
"One thousand, two-hundred and thirty-seven," he told her, swinging again. "One thousand, two-hundred and thirty-eight."
"That's enough," Kaoru ordered, stilling the bokken in midair. "Go on and get some rest."
Yahiko lowered his wooden weapon, and looked at her in astonishment. "I'm free?! Wow!" He jumped up and ran around the dojo once, then pummeled Sano for emphasis.
"Hey! What's the big idea?" Sano asked, sitting up and delivering Yahiko a good punch. The two squibbled for a moment, Yahiko setting Sano back into good spirits with a friendly brawl.
"Maybe I should've assigned him another thousand," Kaoru muttered bleakly.
Kenshin shook his head with a smile, "Don't be too hard on him, Milady. He tries, but remember that he is still a child. Let him have his fun."
She looked at him, shocked for a moment. He sounded almost wistful to her, but it was true, he had never had the chance for childhood. She lay a hand compassionately on his arm and gave him her own reassuring smile. When he turned to look at her gratefully, knowing she understood, she added, "Although, Sano's getting too big for these kinds of antics."
"Eh?" Sano looked up from where he had pinned Yahiko to the ground.
Kenshin and Kaoru turned to each other and laughed deeply.
"I believe it is time I went and prepared dinner," Kenshin told her. "You all must be hungry."
"Famished," Sano stated.
"Ravaged," Yahiko put in.
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Kenshin had outdone himself. Dinner was a tasty affair, and Yahiko and Sano found pleasure in packing it all in as quickly as possible. Kaoru tried to be more delicate about her share, although she too, was hungry. Kenshin showed signs of patience while he nibbled on his food, and watched the others polish their plates off rapidly.
"More," Yahiko and Sano said in unison, sticking their bowls out.
"Get it yourselves," Kaoru told them. "Kenshin's done too much already."
The two of them groaned, unhappy at the prospect of crawling three feet to their left to pick up seconds.
"As your elder, I give you the honor of filling my plate," Sano stuck his dish into Yahiko's face.
"What?!" Yahiko shook his head. "You go do it, since you're such a capable 'elder'."
"Not on your life! You! You're closer!" Sano pushed Yahiko to his feet.
Kaoru shook her head, disbelieving, "Amazing."
"Sessha would be happy to serve you," Kenshin said quietly, silencing the bickering. He held out his hands, and went to refill the plates.
Kaoru glared knives at Sano and Yahiko, "Do you two have a conscience, or a semblance of one? Because right now, it isn't really showing."
"It's nothing, Milady," Kenshin reassured her, setting Yahiko and Sano's food before them. He resumed his place beside her, "Sessha does not mind."
She sputtered in anger, but Sano and Yahiko had already shoved their faces into their bowls, with muffled 'thank you's. They began arguing with each other again, amongst huge helpings of dinner.
"Those two…" Kaoru whispered to herself, not for the first time that day.
"Would you like more, Milady?" Kenshin asked her.
She looked at him in confusion, "More? Oh! Well, I suppose so, but I can -."
Kenshin had already come back with more dinner for her.
"Really, you're too kind to us," Kaoru told him quietly.
"No, you are all too kind to take one as unworthy as I into your family," Kenshin replied softly.
Kaoru suddenly felt uncomfortable, "Oh, stop it, you!" She slapped him on the cheek playfully, but he toppled backward.
"Oroooo…"
And it was now, that Kaoru felt that she finally had a family again. True, they were all far from perfect in the real world, but right now… By the glow of a warm fire and the people she loved most surrounding her, she felt safe and happy.
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Author's Note: And on that happy note, I'll end the first chapter! Please drop a review if you like ^_^
Of course, we all know it's not going to be so happy next chapter… I'll stop being so lighthearted, because as much as I love our rurouni, Battousai is fun to write about too. ^^;;;; Ah…evil Kenshin *sighs*
And I just noticed how much I like have Kaoru kick people…