The Art of Seduction: Chapter 1
To Meet your Significant Other
by Iridian
Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin, it belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki-sama.
"My dear, I know you hate this, but it's for the best," cried Kaoru's mother. Kaoru merely turned and glared at her, before returning to doing on of her katas.
"Mother, I have nothing to say to you. I will leave tomorrow as planned to meet my lord, and I promise I will bear it. Don't worry, your investments are safe," said Kaoru, her voice flat and cold.
Tomoe drew in a breath, defeated, and turned to leave. "Kaoru, we want nothing more than to keep you with us forever. Your father is in a difficult position, and he needs allies. Sacrificing the lives of our people was and is not an option." With that Lady Hajime turned to leave.
Kaoru turned, looking at the door, her eyes glistening with tears that would never be shed. "Mother, father, I do this for your sake. And for our people."
Kaoru continued doing her training, attempting to drown out her troubles.
"Kaoru."
Kaoru turned to see a brown-haired smiling man, who was holding an unsheathed nihounto.
"Come at me Kaoru."
She tapped her foot, and disappeared into the air. Soujirou, turned, almost lazily blocking her sword, knocking the weapon out of her hands. She did a spinning butterfly kick, disarming him, then flipped back over, in a guard stance.
The two circled, waiting for one to attack. Kaoru lunged forward, trying a move called the Seven Swords on Soujirou, only to be blocked, and then countered by a series of kick and blocks, then a flurry of failed jujitsu locks.
Finally, the Tenken pinned her down, smiling down at her with his omnipresent smile.
"You are slow today, Kaoru," he commented, getting off of her.
"I don't think I'll see you again Sou-chan," said Kaoru, her head bowed.
The Tenken only smiled brighter. "I'll be watching out for you when you least expect it, Kaoru. I will be seeing you again." He laid a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.
Kaoru turned, a smile coming through her misty eyes, throwing her arms around her best friend and sensei.
"I'm going to miss you, Sou-chan," said Kaoru, soaking Soujirou's gi with her tears.
The Tenken only smiled.
---
Kaoru woke up the next morning, her maid Tsubame attending her as she moved about woodenly preparing for her impending journey.
"My lady, would you like me to call your breakfast upstairs?" said Tsubame, worried about her lady as she simply sat in all of her finery, looking out of her window.
"No, Tsubame. I will go downstairs," said Kaoru, her voice betraying none of her anxiety. "Go on ahead and eat something yourself Tsubame, I will be there soon."
Tsubame curtseyed to her lady, then turned and left the room.
The sun is mocking me, it such a beautiful day. Lord whatever…my fiancé. Kaoru laughed, her bitterness coming out of her throat unbidden. Maybe a handsome kidnapper will sweep me off of my feet before I even get there…
Kaoru stood up, and went down to eat breakfast for the last time with her parents.
"Goodbye father, mother," said Kaoru, bowing her head slightly in deference to her parents, Emperor and Empress Saitoh and Tomoe Hajime.
Both parents stepped forward to give their daughter a hug, before she turned and mounted her horse, Kamatari.
She swung her leg over the beautiful blue-black mare, and turned in her saddle to give her kingdom one last wave.
She was gone.
---
"My lady Kaoru!" shouted Tsubame.
Kaoru turned, startled by the sudden shouts of her little handmaiden.
"Yes, Tsubame," said Kaoru, worry shining through on her face.
"Three men came and defeated all the soldiers and they are threatening to kill them," said Tsubame fearfully, "You mustn't go, my lady, they will try to take you too!"
"They defeated all of the soldiers?" Kaoru stood, feeling slightly dizzy. I cannot allow people to die for my sake.
"Tsubame, run to the nearest village and try to find work, or a family that will take you in," said Kaoru. She slipped off a ring, a large sapphire set simply on a silver band, "Take this and sell it, it should be more than enoughto keep you."
"My lady, I want to stay with you!" cried the little girl.
"Tsubame, if I can, I will come find you. Don't worry about me, ok?" said Kaoru. She kneeled to give Tsubame a hug, then stood and began walking away. "Don't forget what I said!"
Kaoru walked into the compound she had been staying at, expecting bloodshed and shouts but found it strangely quiet. She walked further in, finally coming to the courtyard.
"Hey missy, we've been waiting for you," said a tall, spiky-haired man, grinning at her.
Next to him stood a tall, black-haired man, who regarded her coolly.
Kaoru stopped staring, and quickly collected herself. "Please do not harm my father's men, they have done nothing to hurt you and are not at fault. If you are to take anyone, please take me. I take the responsibility of all these men onto myself."
"Don't be all serious there missy, we don't want to hurt you. You're our lord's fiancée after all." The tall brown haired man chuckled "But hey, we haven't introduced ourselves yet. My name is Sagara Sanosuke, call me Sano, and this is Shinomori Aoshi." He gave a little bow.
"I am engaged to your lord? Pray tell me when this happy event occurred," said Kaoru sarcastically.
"You forget your fiancé so easily," said a voice from behind her. Kaoru spun, cursing herself for letting her guard down so carelessly, and found herself staring at a rather nicely built chest. She looked up, berating her parents for making her so small in stature.
A red-haired man looked down at her, and took her hand, "My lady Kaoru." He leaned down, kissing her hand.
Kaoru stood still, shocked by the appearance of this man in front of her. Bright red hair that shone gold in the moonlight and liquid gold eyes…this man was to be her fiancé?
"Who are you?" said Kaoru.
"I am Lord Himura Kenshin, my lady. You may know me better as the Hitokiri Battousai?" said Kenshin, a feral grin on his face.
Sano chuckled, laughing at Kaoru's obvious shock. "The Wolf didn't even tell her the name of her fiancé!" crowed the rooster.
Kaoru's eyes widened in shock, but she kept herself rigidly upright.
She didn't faint…good.
I am being engaged to a legendary killer…Someone up there must not like me…
"My lord is…my fiancé?" said Kaoru.
"As you are now well aware of," said Kenshin, his eyes glinting gold.
"I do not believe you, Battousai," snarled Kaoru.
"Start believing it," said Kenshin flatly. I cannot believe the Wolf didn't tell her. Bastard. "How is it that you didn't know the name of the man you were traipsing half across the country to marry?"
Kaoru blushed, then answered. "I-I was being very stubborn when they told me, and I had not wanted to know his name. I…kind of avoided it every time they tried." She drew herself up and glared again. "But why should I be telling you? You aren't affiliated with myself or my family."
Kenshin sighed, then turned to Sano. "Untie one of the soldiers please, Sano."
Sano moved over to the soldiers, and untied one who seemed to be the captain.
Kaoru spoke. "Captain Ryuichi, I want you to swear on our kingdom that this man is my fiancé, this…Lord Himura Kenshin."
The captain bowed nervously, then answered, "He is my lady. Her majesty, Hajime-san tried to tell you, but she never did. This man is your fiancé."
Kaoru gulped, then sighed heavily. "May I ask why you attacked the soldiers that guard your fiancée?"
"Obviously they were not competent," replied Aoshi.
Kenshin cleared his throat. "Now that that's all cleared up, let's go."
He began walking off, holding a pack behind him.
Kaoru stood gaping. "WE'RE WALKING!"
Sano turned, innocently. "Why yes my lady Kaoru, do you see any horses?"
---
Kaoru was exhausted. She had been moving by sheer force of will for a while now, and had only miraculously been keeping up with the grueling pace set by Kenshin because of the endurance instilled in her during her martial arts training. Sano and Aoshi were both unruffled, keeping up effortlessly.
Sano glanced over at Kaoru, worrying slightly about her state. Her face was paled and showed signs of fatigue, and she looked ready to faint at any given time.
"Oi, Kenshin, I think Missy here is going to faint any time now," said Sano, stopping in his tracks.
Kenshin turned, casting a sharp glance at his bride to be.
"She's fine," he said.
"She looks as if her feet are going to start bleeding, Kenshin! You don't want your bride to be fainting on you and wincing in pain during your wedding do you?" shouted Sano.
"He is right, Kenshin. It is a miracle she was able to keep up all this time in the first place," said Aoshi, his cool exterior showing nothing except for his ice blue eyes that held concern for his new mistress.
Kenshin strode over to Kaoru, and promptly swept her into his arms, carrying her bridal style.
Kaoru, dazed from her fatigue, only blinked up at him for a moment, strangely comforted by the feeling of his arms around her, cradling her body.
"Why are you doing this?" she asked, her voice strained.
"You look as if you're about to faint, we'll move faster because you won't be going so slow, and I don't want you to be injured during our wedding," said Kenshin, who was increasing his pace, the two behind him following.
Kaoru blinked, accepting these as good reasons, and promptly fell asleep in his arms.
Kenshin glanced down, feeling her body tremble and relax, noting her steady breathing.
What is it about this woman?Sano and Aoshi exchanged knowing looks. Then realizing they had just had a civil moment, quickly turned their heads away from each other.
---
Kaoru woke up to the feel of satin sheets, stretching out her lithe body, turning to look at the rock garden outside her window.
"So Kaoru-hime had decided to rise?" said Kenshin, sitting in a chair by the bed.
She glanced over, startled. "How long have I been asleep?"
"You fell asleep a while ago, but we only got to the inn an hour ago," informed Kenshin.
"Oh."
"I'll have a bath heated for you," said Kenshin, rising to leave.
Kaoru sat, musing over her current situation.
Kenshin is not so bad…he did carry me all the way here and doesn't even seem to be tired…Sano seems very nice…the tori-atam, and Aoshi…he's very quiet, but I can see he means very well.
Kaoru blushed, thinking about the three. They're all very handsome…My fiancé, Himura Kenshin…his eyes are beautiful.
She raked her hands through her own raven tresses, suddenly feeling very dirty. She got out of the bed, and padded softly over to the bathroom.
"I had a bath heated, though I feel rather grimy myself," said kenshin, grinning in pleasure when he startled her again.
"You can take one first. You must be very tired, carrying me all the way here," said Kaoru earnestly, moving to step out of the bathroom.
Kenshin stepped into the doorway, blocking her way out.
"You can help me bathe, I'm so tired," said Kenshin grinning, "I promise to help you too." He turned and shut the door, trapping Kaoru in.
Her eyes widened, shocked at the intimacy he was expressing towards her.
"B-But my lord…this is-,"
"You are my fiancée, we will be getting married soon, what's wrong with a little…head start?" said Kenshin, smiling seductively at her.
Kaoru looked towards him, then turned away with an audible squeak when she realized that she had already began disrobing. He has a very nice chest, well toned and…Stop right there, Kamiya…
Kaoru heard a splash, and turned to find Kenshin submerged in the pool. He beckoned to her, his molten eyes softening, becoming tinged with a soft lavender color.
She walked hesitantly forward, and sat behind him on the edge of the tub, reaching for the herbal mixture to wash his hair. She poured some out on her fingers, reveling at the softness of his mane.
Kenshin groaned at the feel of Kaoru's fingers massaging his scalp. He turned, catching the girl off guard when he pulled her into a gentle kiss.
She stiffened immediately, causing Kenshin to pull away.
His eyes narrowed at the fear in her eyes. "What's wrong?"
"I-I…" Kaoru stuttered. She sighed softly, "It hurts, doesn't it?"
Kaoru flushed bright red. "It's just that…when I was younger, I used to sneak around the castle all the time…and I accidentally saw some people…the lady was screaming so loud…"
Kenshin smirked. "Somehow, I feel you got the wrong idea…"
"What do you mean?" said Kaoru.
"Screams are not always from pain…" said Kenshin, chuckling.
Kaoru flushed even brighter.
"Would you like me to make you scream…only it won't be in pain," said Kenshin, rising out of the water to come closer to Kaoru.
"Um…err…maybe later?"
Kenshin laughed even harder.
The two walked out fo the bathroom, clean if not a little embarrassed…well Kaoru was.
Kenshin stepped over to the bed, lifting the sheets. He turned, realizing that she hadn't followed him.
Kaoru had stopped in her tracks, flushing a bright red.
"Well, there aren't any rooms unless you'd prefer sleeping with Aoshi or Sano over me," said Kenshin, getting himself under the covers, "And that's honestly not an option."
Good? Bad? Leave me a review!Iri
A/N: READ THIS! It has come to my attention that this story is very similar to a story by Scented Candles, called Back Home to You. I apologize, I have not read that story, though I have contacted the author, and if she asks, I will either edit this chapter or delete the story. I hate plagiarism, and if this is truly the same, I will make sure to correct it. It was an honest mistake, please excuse it. I am now waiting for a response from Scented Candles…we'll see what happens. I apologize for the inconvenience.