Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin *sob*

A/N: Hey, this is my second ever fic, so please be kind. Hope you enjoy this!

Prologue

At the sound of a heart-wrenching scream, Kaoru knew that the massacre has begun. She and her little sister Reiko were huddled in the corner of their dojo while her father stood protectively before them. He had his bokken up.

There was another scream, followed by a gurgling sound. It was as if that person was choking in his own blood. Kaoru tightened her arms around her Reiko, and she saw her father drop into a fighting stance.

"Kaoru-chan, you must leave now. Before it's too late," he said in a cold hard voice.

"But father, I can help. I can fight with you—"

"And die? Never! Kaoru, please, run now!"

"What about you? You can't take them all, you need help—my help!"

"And Reiko doesn't? I can hold them off for a while. Save yourselves, and protect Reiko!"

With his commanding voice, Kaoru knew his mind was made up. Besides, she had to protect her little sister. She gathered her in her arms and they stood up quickly. She gazed at her father hard, and he nodded. With that, she turned away and started running towards the storage room.

Behind a large crater was a hidden door that opened to an alley. She quickly set Reiko down and pushed the crater aside. She kicked the door open, and picking Reiko up, they crept into the dark alley. They ran and stumbled, with Reiko sobbing for their father. But they never stopped running.

In the shadow of the streets, they crept like rats. Shortly, Kaoru's feet started bleeding. They continued running and running, and to make matters worse, Kaoru felt her leg cramp. She cursed under her breath, and stumbled into another dark alley. It was narrower this time, and dirtier. And it was also a dead end.

"Gods almighty, what am I going to do now?!" she let out a frustrated growl as she tried to gauge the height of the wall barrier.

"Nee-san (A/N: did I get that right?), are we gonna be okay?" she heard Reiko ask. She looked at her and hesitated. Should she lie to her? No, even in her tender years, Reiko deserved the truth.

Kaoru shook her head sadly. "Iie, Reiko-chan, but I'll try my best so that we will be. I promise." She tried to smile, but she failed miserably.

She realized there was no way they could climb over that wall, so she just had to find another route. She started to turn around—then stopped dead on her tracks. In the alley's opening stood a man…and he had his katana out.  

He started walking towards them, and Kaoru tightened her hold around Reiko. She started to back away.

The man wasn't much taller than Kaoru but he was frightening. His glowing amber eyes pierced through her. She step backed some more, and then felt the wall behind her now. They were trapped.

The man stopped short before them.

"My orders were to not leave anyone alive in this town. And I intend to carry them out," he said in a menacing voice.

Kaoru's eyes flared as anger surge through her. "Not in this case, bastard!" she spat.

"We'll see…"

The man prepared to attack, and the next minute, he disappeared. Kaoru felt a rush of air above her. She ducked and rolled away instinctively, with Reiko safe in her arms.

"Not bad. You managed to escape my attack," he said. He was suddenly towering above them. "But next time, I wouldn't let you."

He bore his sword unto them, and a blood-curling scream could be heard.  There was blood everywhere, but mostly on Kaoru's kimono. Her breath caught in her chest as a realization hit her.

It wasn't her blood.

Reiko, noooooo!

Her mind wailed in denial, refusing to accept the fact. But there it was. She looked down fearfully at the girl in her arms. Reiko was gone.  I promised I'd protect you. You can't be dead! Please….

She hugged the limp body close to her, rocking gently. Oddly enough, no tears escaped her eyes. It only took a hardened look.

The man gazed silently at them. He stood there frozen, the bloodied katana still out. But behind his thick red hair, the amber eyes were now flecked with violet.

Kaoru hadn't forgotten him. In fact, she was very aware of his presence. She stood up and walked over him, her eyes dead. Then with a cry of fury, she lounged at him.

It happened so quickly and so suddenly that the man didn't have time to react. They both fell down with the force, with Kaoru straddling the man. She saw his eyes widened with shock as she brought her hands around his neck. She pressed hard on his carotid arteries, watching with grim satisfaction as the man choked slowly.

She looked at his face and noticed the cross-shaped scar on his cheek. The man took this opportunity to grab the hilt of his katana and hit the base of her neck with it. She quickly released her hold of his neck as darkness slowly overcame her. The last thing she saw was a pair of purple eyes….

The girl collapsed on top of him. Slowly, he stood up and gently set her down on the ground. She was still alive, for the blow that he delivered wasn't that hard. He cursed himself for even bothering to spare the girl. Why did he spare the girl?

He went over to the girl's dead sister. He knelt before the body and mumbled a little prayer. He would leave the body here and let his colleagues find it. Hopefully, they would give her a proper burial.

He then went to the other girl and picked her up gently. He studied her for a while. She was probably around eighteen and is trained in sword fighting. Her earlier dodge gave him that impression. He noted that she was somewhat pretty too. Not as pretty as the other women he had been with, but pretty nevertheless.

He cursed himself again for entertaining such thoughts. Right now, that was the least of his concerns. Left with no other options, he decided to bring the girl to his place.

He walked quietly away, Kaoru in his arms, amidst the now blazing town.

***

A/N: So what do you think? Tell me please. Kaoru looses eyesight in the next chapter. I really didn't plan this ficcy, so forgive me if it's not that organized. T_Tx