Hello readers! I've decided to be a little crazy and write two stories at once, but this idea wouldn't leave my head and since I've already written several other fairy tales I just decided I might as well try Little Red Riding Hood too! Hope you enjoy, please, please, PLEASE, make sure and tell me what you think! Thanks!

Mia21

Kaoru lived on the very edge of the great dark forest of Aokigahara, moving there with her father when she was young and he decided his new swordsmanship school should be in Oyama, a growing town not far from the capital. Kaoru's mother, Akane, had died when she was very small, and most of what she knew about her mother had been told to her by her father. But one thing she'd learned on her own was that her mother's favorite color had been red. Kaoru had learned this when she had helped her father pack up her mother's clothes and things before the move, most of which had been red. The one thing of her mother's that Kaoru had been allowed to keep was her red fur-lined cloak. Kaoru had not worn it much before they moved but afterwards Kaoru found she was very glad that she'd kept it. Oyama was cold!

The two had lived happily for a time, Kaoru perfecting her father's style of swordsmanship as she grew and trained with other pupils. But then the war had begun and Koshijiro was drafted, not returning alive. As soon as the news spread of her father's death, all of the students at her father's school withdrew, even though Kaoru herself could have taught them just as well. Utterly lonely by herself at the school now, Kaoru would often head into the forest to train, sometimes walking as far as the next town of Fujiyoshida to visit with friends.

One afternoon she was heading back home from a nice chat with friends Megumi and Tae. Halfway home she stopped, standing in a spot of sun and enjoying its warmth, when a rustle in the bushes behind her made her heart stop. Turning slowly towards the sound, Kaoru picked up a large stick just in case and called, "Who is it? I know you're there. Come out!"

"Only if you put down the stick." Was the answer she received, before a man stepped from the bushes, his eyes wary. He had long red hair tied back in a high tail and the strangest violet eyes. The most unusual thing about him though was the way he moved. The grace with which he placed his feet as he cautiously stepped towards her was almost feral.

"Why were you watching me?" She asked.

"I was wondering why you were in the forest alone. Women usually don't walk these woods alone, especially in a red cloak that everyone and everything in the forest can see." He told her.

"It was my mother's, her favorite color was red. And what if I like to walk in the woods?" Kaoru wondered, feeling like playing the fanatic.

He shrugged. "It doesn't matter, women just don't walk in these woods, it isn't safe."

Her brow creasing, Kaoru asked, "Why?"

"How long have you lived around these parts?" The stranger asked, his expression now matching hers.

"Ten years." She told him.

"Then surely you've heard the stories about the wolf, which is why women don't walk in the forest alone."

'Ah yes, the wolf. Werewolf that is.' Kaoru thought.

Kaoru had indeed heard the stories that Oyama was plagued by a werewolf repeatedly since her and her father had moved there. At fifteen, Kaoru had asked old lady Takagi how the townspeople knew it was a werewolf, to which the old lady had explained that many of the men had gone hunting for it the first time the wolf had been seen but found neither hide nor hair of the beast, which wasn't natural. And then even after setting traps for it, it wasn't the last time the wolf had been seen on the borders of Oyama. And so, he was right, women avoided the forest at all costs as they were the easiest prey. Every woman except Kaoru.

She laughed, a single bark of laughter. "Yes, I've heard the stories. I don't believe them though."

"Oh?"

"Of course not. Werewolves aren't real." Kaoru explained.

"You'd be the only one in these parts to think that." The man said.

"You can't tell me you actually believe such…fairie stories." Kaoru said, unable to think of any other descriptive word.

"I do. What's your name, oh lady who doesn't believe in the supernatural?" He asked.

"Kaoru. Kaoru Kamiya. And yours?" She wondered.

"Kenshin Himura." He told her.

"How is it you believe in the supernatural Kenshin?" Kaoru inquired.

"Experience," Was all he said, shrugging. "Would you like me to walk home?"

"Yes, thank you." Kaoru returned.

After seeing her safely to the dojo, Kaoru insisted that Kenshin come inside for a bit. She was greatly surprised when, before entering, he knew to remove his shoes. Sitting down with her on cushions and munching on makizushi Kaoru had brought home from Tae's, she soon had Kenshin telling her that he was a wanderer, had ended up in Oyama because it seemed as good a place to stop as any, and had taken up the trade of hunting. Kaoru felt her heart warm when he told her he often brought food to those in Oyama and Fujiyoshida who couldn't afford to buy groceries. And in turn, Kaoru explained about moving to Oyama with her father when she was small, him starting a kenjutsu school, being killed in the war, her taking over his school and that she wandered the forest because she currently had no pupils. Kenshin warned her again about how roaming the forest wasn't safe, whether she believed in the werewolf or not.

"I'm usually somewhere in the forest, if you should ever need help just yell."

"Thank you, I will."

Kenshin walked slowly away from Kaoru and her dojo, making his way through the edge of the forest to his own small house which also backed right up again Aokigahara. Of course, he needed it to, it was safer that way. He found himself thinking over his meeting with Kaoru, trying to decide what it was about her that had him so twisted. He had managed to set himself apart from most everyone for a long time now, so why did he find himself sliding backwards? Was it those intense sapphire blue eyes or her long inky black hair that he was dying to run his fingers through? Or could it be her scent, a mix of Lavender and Cinnamon, that was driving him insane? Never, well at least not in the past four years or longer, had a woman ever captured his attention as Kaoru had. 'Reflect later on what to do about her!' he told himself sternly, unlocking his door and sliding inside.

A/N - I have tried to be as correct as I could with geography. If you look at a map, you will find that Oyama is an actual town on the edge of Aokigahara. I know this takes our characters away from Tokyo but they are still themselves no matter where I stick them. And just so everyone is aware, the name 'Akane' means 'brilliant red' Hope you enjoyed chapter 1!

Mia21