Title: Guardianship
Author: KawaiiChica
E-mail: KawaiiChica@hotmail.com
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: All Rurouni Kenshin characters belong to their prospective owners. I am just borrowing them for the sake of this fanfic.
* * Sounds
" " Speaking
[ ] Thoughts
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----
"Mademoiselle Kamiya?"
Kaoru turned to face Madame Dupris, the headmistress of her boarding school with a happy smile.
"Oui?"
"There has been a message from your family in Paris, you must return at once. Marie is preparing your luggage as we speak." Madame Dupris motioned for her to follow.
"Papa? Has anything happened to him? What did the message say?" Kaoru's eyes filled with worry.
"There were no specific details in the post but you must be ready to leave at once," Madame Dupris turned away, leading her into the entranceway where Marie stood with a pair of bags. "Get your cloak on and be off, there's a coach waiting for you."
"Oui madame," Kaoru slipped on her cloak and mittens, turning quickly to look for Sabine, her best friend.
"Don't dally Kaoru, you must be off at once," Leaving her no more time to look, Madame Dupris pushed her out the door and into the awaiting carriage. "Let us know if anything's amiss little one," She smiled sweetly.
"Bien sur," Kaoru sat back as the door was closed and the carriage pulled away, leaving her no time to look for her friend. Sticking her head out the window quickly, she wanted to yell a message for her but shrank back as the icy wind hit her face. "Mon dieu," she sighed and closed the window, pulling her feet up in front of her on the seat.
Having nothing to do, she stared at the countryside as it passed by, wondering what could have happened to cause such a hasty trip to the city. [Something must have happened to someone.]
She yawned and rubbed her eyes. Going home to the city was never a good thing for her and at such a hurried pace something was bound to be terribly wrong. She wasn´t too worried though, whatever it was, her father would surely be able to fix it quickly. Ever since she could remember he'd been the only steady thing in her young life.
At the tender age of 11, Kaoru Kamiya was not your average schoolgirl. In stark contrast to her giggly young friends, she didn't spend her time playing, chatting and running about, but studying, practicing her music and keeping herself in strict control. She was the only girl at the school who enjoyed her classes and did not look forward to summer and Christmas holidays. She was mature, too much so for one of her age.
Having been left with only her father at the age of 5, she'd had to care for her self due to her father's lack of interest in her. Had she been a boy there might have been some sort of bond between father and child, but Keiro Kamiya had deeply resented the fact that his wife had given him a daughter, and resented her even more after she'd died and left him alone with the little brat. He'd re-married after the 'proper' mourning time had passed and was pleased with his second wife and the two sons she had given him.
The happy quartet lived together in Paris, where the boys were tutored at home by very expensive teachers and spoiled rotten by their adoring parents. Only during the school's vacations did Kaoru ever see her family, and even then was treated as an unwanted guest. She'd learned not to count on anyone, to fend for herself and to keep her head high, despite their efforts to put her down.
[What could they possibly need me for now?] Kaoru sighed at the thought of seeing her younger brothers so soon. It had only been three months since her last visit and they were all loathe to be brought together very often. Assuring herself it couldn't be anything too grave, she lay down across the seat and quickly fell asleep, knowing it best to gather her strengths for whatever was to come.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
"This way mademoiselle," the doorman escorted her to an office.
"May I ask what this place is?" Kaoru spoke to him, wondering why she´d been brought to this unknown building.
"The gentleman inside shall explain everything in a moment," he gave her a sad smile as he opened the door to an office and announced her. "Mademoiselle Kaoru Kamiya."
"Merci Jean," a gentleman stood from his desk and came to greet Kaoru. "Miss Kamiya, thank you for coming so soon."
"That´s all right, I just don´t understand what I´m doing here. Is Papa coming as well?" Kaoru replied, noticing two other men in front of the stranger´s desk.
"If you would take a seat I shall explain everything to you," the man smiled and extended his hand. "I am Monsieur Charles Masonet at your service and these gentlemen are their lordships Duke and Viscount Daren and Kenshin Himura."
"Its a pleasure to meet you," Kaoru gave a curtsy as she had been taught to do.
"The pleasure is ours," the older of the two gentlemen said with a wink.
Looking at him closely, Kaoru was warmed by his smile. Guessing he was about 47-50, he seemed like a good person. Since he was sitting down she couldn´t see how tall he was, but he certainly was distinguished, with his greyish hair, large blue eyes and broad back, she wouldn´t have been surprised if he´d been quite the ladies man in his youth.
His son, standing behind his father´s chair, was not what you would call tall, but neither was he short. A stark opposite from his father, the young man had an air of hautiness about him that she didn´t like. Standing proudly with his hands behind his back and analyzing her as openly as she did him, something about the look in his cold, slightly purplish eyes, made her feel uncomfortable and strangely young. His bright red hair and soft features also distinquished him from his father, who had more a more statuesque, chisled look about him.
She was brought out of her thoughts as she was asked to sit again by Mr Masonet.
"Excusé moi, is there anything wrong?" Kaoru sat in the empty chair, folding her hands in her lap primly, her back straight despite the fact that her legs weren´t long enough for her to sit against the backrest.
Daren Himura smiled at the young girl´s attempts to sound like an adult. [She is most definitely Kaede´s daughter.] He was surprised to see how much she resembled his deceased friend. [The same blue eyes, black hair, confident air and stubborn pride as her mother´s.]
"Well miss Kamiya, to get down to the point. I regret to have to inform you of the recent passing of your esteemed father, Keiro Kamiya." Charles gave her an apologetic look as he waited for her response.
[He´s dead?] Kaoru blinked, the thought seeming too rash to be true. She shook her head slightly, as if to rid herself of some kind of invisible cloud and asked him to repeat himself.
"I suppose this must come as a shock to you, but your father died five days ago due to a sudden heart attack. His burial was yesterday morning." The older man sat back and waited, wondering about her strange reactions.
Unlike most children would have done, Kaoru didn´t cry or even become teary- eyed, merely sat silently pondering the idea for a few minutes before speaking to herself quietly. "I have missed even the burial... how very typical of my family."
The phrase caught the gentlemen off guard, causing them to give each other questioning glances before she spoke again. Looking at the gentlemen beside her for a second before focusing on the lawyer, she cocked her head to the side as she asked. "I don´t suppose I´ll be staying with my step-mother and brothers, will I? I couldn´t imagine her wanting to take care of me now, at least not any more than she used to."
"No," Charles felt a wave of pity for the young girl sitting before him, her maturity suddenly making perfect sense. "As your legal advisor, I have called you here to explain what will happen to you now. As of today you will be under your uncle´s guardianship until you reach the appropriate legal age."
"I apologize for interrupting Monsieur, but I have no uncles." Kaoru sighed and continued, "Perhaps my school could make itself responsible for me, Madame Dupris or..."
"That isn´t true my dear," the man sitting beside her finally spoke up. "Did your mother never tell you about me?"
Kaoru turned to face him and shook her head, "Maman died when I was five, I can barely recall the lullaby she used to sing to me. She wrote it for me when I was little." For the first time her stance changed, her shoulders slumping a bit as she looked away and added as an afterthought. "It was really nice."
Daren Himura felt a pang of guilt for never having tried to communicate with Kaede´s child before. In her eyes was a look of old age that should not have been for one so young. [Her damned father neglected her after Kaede´s death. I always thought he´d taken care of their only child.]
"I´m sure it was dear," he saw her nod and blink away the tears that had formed in her eyes.
"But you´ve never been truly alone, you´ve always had a family," he tried to amend. "Although your mother and I were not related by blood, our mothers were the best of friends and we grew up regarding one another as cousins. Well actually, I would say it was more of a brotherly/siterly type of relationship due to our age differences. But we both swore to help one another in any time of need, and that oath would now include you."
"Thank you," Kaoru gave him a slight smile and turned away again to the lawyer, "So my father died and left in his testament that I should be given to my mother´s family?"
Charles inwardly winced, "Your father´s properties were left to his current wife, Madame Gianna Kamiya, and his sons. All except the house here in Paris, which was bought under your mother´s name. That property is yours due to HER last will & testimony, as well as a rather large amount in bank shares and other capital. According to her testament, if anything should occur to leave you in the situation you now face, you were to go live with her dear friend, Daren Himura, or his eldest son in case he wasn´t able to care for you either."
"That´s all very well but what worries me is that I shall not have to leave my home, correct? My family will have to leave if the house is mine!" Kaoru seemed to brighten, "Wonderful, and what about my school? Do I have money to keep the house? May I chose which of the servants stay and which will go? What options do I have?"
"Your uncle must see to your housing, being your legal guardian. He will have control over all of your assets until you are 21. To say things more clearly, you are under his and his son´s guardianship now." Charles gave her a smile.
Kaoru didn´t return the gesture, frowning as she looked at her uncle and cousin again. "Why?"
"Because you´re just a child, how do you expect to manage such a large property? Not to mention all the funds." Her cousin finally spoke.
Kaoru´s eyes widened at his tone before his words sunk into her mind. Standing and putting a hand on her hip, she glared at him defiantly. "How dare you question my abilities? You know nothing about me, perhaps I CAN take care of such a large property on my own."
"Do you really think so?" Kenshin inwardly smiled at her fiery spirit.
"Enough!" Daren raised a hand to silence his son and leaned towards his niece. "You may be able to care of yourself and your property, I honestly believe you quite capable, but the law will not accept your decisions because of your age. I will take care of things for you with your approval of how your money is spent and your house, whether its put to use or taken care of, all right?"
Kaoru sighed and thought it over for a moment. Looking into his friendly face, she couldn´t help but trust him and grudgingly agreed. "Very well, but what about my schooling? I will be able to return to my school, right?"
"Certainly, you can stay here and come home with us for vacations and holi..." Daren was cut off by a touch on his shoulder from his son. After listening to him for a second, he frowned and nodded. "Quite right... of course..."
Kaoru stared at her cousin suspiciously, not surprised when her uncle changed his mind. "As my son has pointed out to me, it would be rather difficult to come in case of any emergency all the way from our home in Brighton. Kenshin has heard of an excellent school for young ladies in Whitney which would not be too far from his university in Oxford."
"But I don´t want to leave!" Kaoru protested, glaring once again at her cousin.
"It would be safer for you to be closer to the family, not to mention that the school there is renown for the way their young ladies are educated. You´ll do well there, and if its your friends you´re worried about, you can always keep in touch through letters." Kenshin explained.
"Then its settled? Miss Kamiya will be going to an English school." Charles confirmed.
"Yes, but we must deal with the inscription and all that so how about we arrange this; Kaoru, you will have two more weeks at your current school, during which time Ken will deal with all the paperwork in Whitney and then come pick you up. That way you can say your good-byes properly to your friends here." Daren patted her hand and sat back to speak to Charles. "It would be better if she were to be picked up here in Paris, perhaps at her home? We´ll set the date for two weeks from this Friday."
"Very good, Miss Kamiya, would you prefer to spend the evening with your uncle and cousin or to return to your school? Perhaps you´d like to visit your family here in the city? Let them know of your plans?" Charles asked the angry young girl courteously.
"You mean I DO have some say in all this? I was beginning to wonder." Kaoru stood and straightened her skirt. "I´d like to get back to school as soon as possible. My future plans no longer involve my family here in Paris."
She gave a slight curtsy for her uncle and the lawyer before ignoring her cousin as she headed to the door.
"See you in two weeks Kaoru," Kenshin grinned mockingly.
"Merveilleux," Kaoru mumbled, opening the door and ordering for her carriage to be sent.
Once the door was closed behind her, Daren gave a chuckle and shook his head. "As spirited and independent as her mother I dare say, it's a bit alarming to see such similarities. There´s almost no sign of her father in her, to my profound relief."
"I´m sure," Charles also smiled.
[This is going to be interesting] Kenshin chuckled, remembering the angry glare she´d given him as she´d yelled at him for wondering about her capabilities.
[Interesting indeed]
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French terms:
Oui - Yes
Bien sur - Of course
Mon dieu - My God
Merci - Thank you
Merveilleux - Marvelous
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
Well, there ends Chapter 1
I hope you like the story so far, I have the whole thing written out in my head and notebook so chapters should be posted regularly, and most will probably be longer than this. I must be honest and say that I LOVE reviews, so if you´d leave me one and let me know what you think, I´d really appreciate it. Thanks a bunch!
~ K.C ~
Author: KawaiiChica
E-mail: KawaiiChica@hotmail.com
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: All Rurouni Kenshin characters belong to their prospective owners. I am just borrowing them for the sake of this fanfic.
* * Sounds
" " Speaking
[ ] Thoughts
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----
"Mademoiselle Kamiya?"
Kaoru turned to face Madame Dupris, the headmistress of her boarding school with a happy smile.
"Oui?"
"There has been a message from your family in Paris, you must return at once. Marie is preparing your luggage as we speak." Madame Dupris motioned for her to follow.
"Papa? Has anything happened to him? What did the message say?" Kaoru's eyes filled with worry.
"There were no specific details in the post but you must be ready to leave at once," Madame Dupris turned away, leading her into the entranceway where Marie stood with a pair of bags. "Get your cloak on and be off, there's a coach waiting for you."
"Oui madame," Kaoru slipped on her cloak and mittens, turning quickly to look for Sabine, her best friend.
"Don't dally Kaoru, you must be off at once," Leaving her no more time to look, Madame Dupris pushed her out the door and into the awaiting carriage. "Let us know if anything's amiss little one," She smiled sweetly.
"Bien sur," Kaoru sat back as the door was closed and the carriage pulled away, leaving her no time to look for her friend. Sticking her head out the window quickly, she wanted to yell a message for her but shrank back as the icy wind hit her face. "Mon dieu," she sighed and closed the window, pulling her feet up in front of her on the seat.
Having nothing to do, she stared at the countryside as it passed by, wondering what could have happened to cause such a hasty trip to the city. [Something must have happened to someone.]
She yawned and rubbed her eyes. Going home to the city was never a good thing for her and at such a hurried pace something was bound to be terribly wrong. She wasn´t too worried though, whatever it was, her father would surely be able to fix it quickly. Ever since she could remember he'd been the only steady thing in her young life.
At the tender age of 11, Kaoru Kamiya was not your average schoolgirl. In stark contrast to her giggly young friends, she didn't spend her time playing, chatting and running about, but studying, practicing her music and keeping herself in strict control. She was the only girl at the school who enjoyed her classes and did not look forward to summer and Christmas holidays. She was mature, too much so for one of her age.
Having been left with only her father at the age of 5, she'd had to care for her self due to her father's lack of interest in her. Had she been a boy there might have been some sort of bond between father and child, but Keiro Kamiya had deeply resented the fact that his wife had given him a daughter, and resented her even more after she'd died and left him alone with the little brat. He'd re-married after the 'proper' mourning time had passed and was pleased with his second wife and the two sons she had given him.
The happy quartet lived together in Paris, where the boys were tutored at home by very expensive teachers and spoiled rotten by their adoring parents. Only during the school's vacations did Kaoru ever see her family, and even then was treated as an unwanted guest. She'd learned not to count on anyone, to fend for herself and to keep her head high, despite their efforts to put her down.
[What could they possibly need me for now?] Kaoru sighed at the thought of seeing her younger brothers so soon. It had only been three months since her last visit and they were all loathe to be brought together very often. Assuring herself it couldn't be anything too grave, she lay down across the seat and quickly fell asleep, knowing it best to gather her strengths for whatever was to come.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
"This way mademoiselle," the doorman escorted her to an office.
"May I ask what this place is?" Kaoru spoke to him, wondering why she´d been brought to this unknown building.
"The gentleman inside shall explain everything in a moment," he gave her a sad smile as he opened the door to an office and announced her. "Mademoiselle Kaoru Kamiya."
"Merci Jean," a gentleman stood from his desk and came to greet Kaoru. "Miss Kamiya, thank you for coming so soon."
"That´s all right, I just don´t understand what I´m doing here. Is Papa coming as well?" Kaoru replied, noticing two other men in front of the stranger´s desk.
"If you would take a seat I shall explain everything to you," the man smiled and extended his hand. "I am Monsieur Charles Masonet at your service and these gentlemen are their lordships Duke and Viscount Daren and Kenshin Himura."
"Its a pleasure to meet you," Kaoru gave a curtsy as she had been taught to do.
"The pleasure is ours," the older of the two gentlemen said with a wink.
Looking at him closely, Kaoru was warmed by his smile. Guessing he was about 47-50, he seemed like a good person. Since he was sitting down she couldn´t see how tall he was, but he certainly was distinguished, with his greyish hair, large blue eyes and broad back, she wouldn´t have been surprised if he´d been quite the ladies man in his youth.
His son, standing behind his father´s chair, was not what you would call tall, but neither was he short. A stark opposite from his father, the young man had an air of hautiness about him that she didn´t like. Standing proudly with his hands behind his back and analyzing her as openly as she did him, something about the look in his cold, slightly purplish eyes, made her feel uncomfortable and strangely young. His bright red hair and soft features also distinquished him from his father, who had more a more statuesque, chisled look about him.
She was brought out of her thoughts as she was asked to sit again by Mr Masonet.
"Excusé moi, is there anything wrong?" Kaoru sat in the empty chair, folding her hands in her lap primly, her back straight despite the fact that her legs weren´t long enough for her to sit against the backrest.
Daren Himura smiled at the young girl´s attempts to sound like an adult. [She is most definitely Kaede´s daughter.] He was surprised to see how much she resembled his deceased friend. [The same blue eyes, black hair, confident air and stubborn pride as her mother´s.]
"Well miss Kamiya, to get down to the point. I regret to have to inform you of the recent passing of your esteemed father, Keiro Kamiya." Charles gave her an apologetic look as he waited for her response.
[He´s dead?] Kaoru blinked, the thought seeming too rash to be true. She shook her head slightly, as if to rid herself of some kind of invisible cloud and asked him to repeat himself.
"I suppose this must come as a shock to you, but your father died five days ago due to a sudden heart attack. His burial was yesterday morning." The older man sat back and waited, wondering about her strange reactions.
Unlike most children would have done, Kaoru didn´t cry or even become teary- eyed, merely sat silently pondering the idea for a few minutes before speaking to herself quietly. "I have missed even the burial... how very typical of my family."
The phrase caught the gentlemen off guard, causing them to give each other questioning glances before she spoke again. Looking at the gentlemen beside her for a second before focusing on the lawyer, she cocked her head to the side as she asked. "I don´t suppose I´ll be staying with my step-mother and brothers, will I? I couldn´t imagine her wanting to take care of me now, at least not any more than she used to."
"No," Charles felt a wave of pity for the young girl sitting before him, her maturity suddenly making perfect sense. "As your legal advisor, I have called you here to explain what will happen to you now. As of today you will be under your uncle´s guardianship until you reach the appropriate legal age."
"I apologize for interrupting Monsieur, but I have no uncles." Kaoru sighed and continued, "Perhaps my school could make itself responsible for me, Madame Dupris or..."
"That isn´t true my dear," the man sitting beside her finally spoke up. "Did your mother never tell you about me?"
Kaoru turned to face him and shook her head, "Maman died when I was five, I can barely recall the lullaby she used to sing to me. She wrote it for me when I was little." For the first time her stance changed, her shoulders slumping a bit as she looked away and added as an afterthought. "It was really nice."
Daren Himura felt a pang of guilt for never having tried to communicate with Kaede´s child before. In her eyes was a look of old age that should not have been for one so young. [Her damned father neglected her after Kaede´s death. I always thought he´d taken care of their only child.]
"I´m sure it was dear," he saw her nod and blink away the tears that had formed in her eyes.
"But you´ve never been truly alone, you´ve always had a family," he tried to amend. "Although your mother and I were not related by blood, our mothers were the best of friends and we grew up regarding one another as cousins. Well actually, I would say it was more of a brotherly/siterly type of relationship due to our age differences. But we both swore to help one another in any time of need, and that oath would now include you."
"Thank you," Kaoru gave him a slight smile and turned away again to the lawyer, "So my father died and left in his testament that I should be given to my mother´s family?"
Charles inwardly winced, "Your father´s properties were left to his current wife, Madame Gianna Kamiya, and his sons. All except the house here in Paris, which was bought under your mother´s name. That property is yours due to HER last will & testimony, as well as a rather large amount in bank shares and other capital. According to her testament, if anything should occur to leave you in the situation you now face, you were to go live with her dear friend, Daren Himura, or his eldest son in case he wasn´t able to care for you either."
"That´s all very well but what worries me is that I shall not have to leave my home, correct? My family will have to leave if the house is mine!" Kaoru seemed to brighten, "Wonderful, and what about my school? Do I have money to keep the house? May I chose which of the servants stay and which will go? What options do I have?"
"Your uncle must see to your housing, being your legal guardian. He will have control over all of your assets until you are 21. To say things more clearly, you are under his and his son´s guardianship now." Charles gave her a smile.
Kaoru didn´t return the gesture, frowning as she looked at her uncle and cousin again. "Why?"
"Because you´re just a child, how do you expect to manage such a large property? Not to mention all the funds." Her cousin finally spoke.
Kaoru´s eyes widened at his tone before his words sunk into her mind. Standing and putting a hand on her hip, she glared at him defiantly. "How dare you question my abilities? You know nothing about me, perhaps I CAN take care of such a large property on my own."
"Do you really think so?" Kenshin inwardly smiled at her fiery spirit.
"Enough!" Daren raised a hand to silence his son and leaned towards his niece. "You may be able to care of yourself and your property, I honestly believe you quite capable, but the law will not accept your decisions because of your age. I will take care of things for you with your approval of how your money is spent and your house, whether its put to use or taken care of, all right?"
Kaoru sighed and thought it over for a moment. Looking into his friendly face, she couldn´t help but trust him and grudgingly agreed. "Very well, but what about my schooling? I will be able to return to my school, right?"
"Certainly, you can stay here and come home with us for vacations and holi..." Daren was cut off by a touch on his shoulder from his son. After listening to him for a second, he frowned and nodded. "Quite right... of course..."
Kaoru stared at her cousin suspiciously, not surprised when her uncle changed his mind. "As my son has pointed out to me, it would be rather difficult to come in case of any emergency all the way from our home in Brighton. Kenshin has heard of an excellent school for young ladies in Whitney which would not be too far from his university in Oxford."
"But I don´t want to leave!" Kaoru protested, glaring once again at her cousin.
"It would be safer for you to be closer to the family, not to mention that the school there is renown for the way their young ladies are educated. You´ll do well there, and if its your friends you´re worried about, you can always keep in touch through letters." Kenshin explained.
"Then its settled? Miss Kamiya will be going to an English school." Charles confirmed.
"Yes, but we must deal with the inscription and all that so how about we arrange this; Kaoru, you will have two more weeks at your current school, during which time Ken will deal with all the paperwork in Whitney and then come pick you up. That way you can say your good-byes properly to your friends here." Daren patted her hand and sat back to speak to Charles. "It would be better if she were to be picked up here in Paris, perhaps at her home? We´ll set the date for two weeks from this Friday."
"Very good, Miss Kamiya, would you prefer to spend the evening with your uncle and cousin or to return to your school? Perhaps you´d like to visit your family here in the city? Let them know of your plans?" Charles asked the angry young girl courteously.
"You mean I DO have some say in all this? I was beginning to wonder." Kaoru stood and straightened her skirt. "I´d like to get back to school as soon as possible. My future plans no longer involve my family here in Paris."
She gave a slight curtsy for her uncle and the lawyer before ignoring her cousin as she headed to the door.
"See you in two weeks Kaoru," Kenshin grinned mockingly.
"Merveilleux," Kaoru mumbled, opening the door and ordering for her carriage to be sent.
Once the door was closed behind her, Daren gave a chuckle and shook his head. "As spirited and independent as her mother I dare say, it's a bit alarming to see such similarities. There´s almost no sign of her father in her, to my profound relief."
"I´m sure," Charles also smiled.
[This is going to be interesting] Kenshin chuckled, remembering the angry glare she´d given him as she´d yelled at him for wondering about her capabilities.
[Interesting indeed]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
French terms:
Oui - Yes
Bien sur - Of course
Mon dieu - My God
Merci - Thank you
Merveilleux - Marvelous
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
Well, there ends Chapter 1
I hope you like the story so far, I have the whole thing written out in my head and notebook so chapters should be posted regularly, and most will probably be longer than this. I must be honest and say that I LOVE reviews, so if you´d leave me one and let me know what you think, I´d really appreciate it. Thanks a bunch!
~ K.C ~