Author's Note: Please note while the first few chapters of this fanfic have a slight continuous flow, not all of them will have it. Gaps will appear in the timeline. I have chosen characters based on my interest on them, and they don't necessarily meet Kenshin one right after the other. Thanks for taking the time to read my humble offering to the RK fanfic world.

First Meetings — A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfic

Part One: Himura Shinta

Chapter One: Akane-san, Sakura-san, Kasumi-san

Sakura bent herself backward in an effort to stretch her overused muscles. The travel had been grueling today; the slave traders in more hurry than usual. She heard them fight amongst themselves about a new acquisition they made—a small boy to be exact. Jinpachi, that cruel lout, had gotten in an argument with his brother Oniji, an even more depraved lout, over taking the boy with them. The boy would slow them down, he had said, in these bandit-infested areas.

While she hated to agree with anything that pervert had to say—don't think she didn't notice how his eyes followed her around these days—he did have a point. The boy had a slight frame; a good gust of wind could blow him clear across the field. Still, he walked as silently like the rest of them, his eyes wide and bewildered. He had an almost desperate air about him as he trudged one foot forward at a time.

"Move along, boy!" shouted Oniji, giving the boy a solid kick in the behind for good measure before walking away. He had been taking out his frustration on everyone he seemed to set his eyes on ever since he had lost the argument over the boy.

She winced as the boy stumbled, scraping his knees and hands along the rocky dirt path. And, in one of her more shameful acts to date, she looked away and pretended not to see.

"Are you okay?" she heard someone ask.

She looked back to see her sister, Kasumi, kneel down and gently help the boy up.

"What are you doing?" she hissed under her breath. "Leave him alone," she continued as she tried to drag her sister's arm away. "Oniji might very well come over and take his wrath out on both us for helping him."

Kasumi looked up at her reproachfully. "He's just a boy, Sakura. He's scared and alone here." She looked around for their owners. "Besides, they couldn't sell him for much if he was too battered."

Sakura looked back down at the boy in question. She felt a familiar rise of bile well up in her throat as she cursed silently the unfairness of it all. Of course she knew he was just a boy. But then, aren't boys just so special? Isn't that the reason that she and Kasumi were sold into slavery while her brother remained at home under the protective wing of their parents? She stopped her train of thought.

Kasumi reached out and touched her arm. "Please," she said.

"Just get going," Sakura snapped back. "You don't want to give Oniji and excuse to think we're dawdling."

Kasumi nodded and held her hand out to the young boy. "What's your name?" she asked, attempting to draw him out of his shell. The boy was a quiet one.

He looked up at them with his deep purple child eyes and said quietly, "Shinta," as he brushed the dirt of his threadbare clothes. He raised his arm to wipe the sweat from his brow. "Thank you for helping me," he continued politely.

Kasumi smiled merrily. "It's nice to meet you, Shinta," she replied. "I'm Kasumi and this is my sister, Sakura," she pointed towards her.

Sakura remained silent for a moment until she felt Kasumi's nudge. "Hello," she said uncomfortably. The boy had a way of looking at you...Almost as if he knew why she didn't want to be near him. "Let's just go, okay?" she said, making a concerted effort to move along.

"What's taking you so long?" a low whisper came from behind. She turned and saw Akane trudge along.

Sakura pointed at the boy.

"Oh, hello, Shinta," Akane greeted. "Have you met my friends?"

Shinta's eyes grew bigger as he stared at the new arrival and nodded his head. Sakura could hardly blame him. She didn't think he'd had this much attention (that is, good attention) in awhile. In fact, the boy didn't look like he's had much of anything lately.

"Let's hurry, okay?" Akane continued on. "We don't want the jerk brothers finding an excuse to punish us, now do we?"

And so, they walked, following the line of fellow slaves, with the heat beating down at their backs. She watched the boy (she just couldn't bring herself to call him Shinta) as his small strides tried to match the pace set before them. She gave a startled little gasp when she noticed that his feet were bare and raw.

He looked back at her with his solemn eyes as if to ask what was wrong.

She bit her lip and looked away as she tried to stem the bitterness that swamped her thoughts.

It was several hours before the traders let them have a rest. A small bowl of water was passed along the line and she waited in anticipation.

It was so hot!

"Only one gulp, you greedy leeches!" she heard Jinpachi shout and saw him cuff one of the slaves. She grimaced at the sound of grunting, of whip hitting flesh, and of bodies falling down. She closed her eyes and tried to block it all. All she wanted was the water.

She waited patiently for one of the bowls to get to her. And when it did, she stared at it aghast. There was barely anything in it. Maybe a drop. She looked up and saw Oniji leer at her.

"What are you waiting for?" he asked. "Drink up!"

"There's not anything in here," she tried to whisper bravely.

"Well, you know what you have to do to get more, don't you?" he laughed at her before going of to torment some other poor soul.

Tears building behind the back of her eyes, she tilted the bowl back, attempting to get more than just a drop. She shook the bowl, her fingers clasped tightly against it.

"Would you like some of mine?" a voice came to her.

She almost dropped the bowl and saw the boy with his ration of water held up to her. She blinked. What was he doing? Didn't he know how precious water was right now? For a brief shameful moment, she thought to accept the offer. Just to teach him a lesson. Her face flamed at the thought and she choked back a sob.

What kind of person had she become? Slowly, she shook her head, passed her bowl off to someone else, and hoped against hope that she hadn't sunk as low as to deprive a child of water.

It wasn't more than a few minutes later when the shouting began.

Bandits!

She stood up as they came from what seemed like all sides. She felt blood splatter across her face in the same instant she heard the clanging of swords. She glanced quickly at Akane and Kasumi as they mobilized and tried to make a run for it.

But there were just too many of them, too many and they were all so tired...

"Don't hurt them," a child's voice exclaimed. And as Sakura looked up, she saw Shinta come between the bandits and her, her sister, and Akane. And in that one instance, she knew the secret wish her heart wished ever since she realized that her parents would sell her and Kasumi to slavery. I n her mind, she envisioned her brother, whom she had loved ever since he was born, whom she had doted upon, whom she had spoiled much to her parents' ever-lasting annoyance...she envisioned him—her parents golden child...she had envisioned him begging her parents to let them stay, to not sell them to slave-traders, to keep them in their home forever.

Except, of course, he didn't. He stared at them with solemn, innocent eyes as he waved goodbye.

And now, this boy, this stranger, stood before them in his misguided attempt to protect them.

"Shinta!" she heard Kasumi shout as she grabbed Shinta and shoved him behind her.

A wordless cry escaped Sakura's lips as she saw her sister fall down, blood gurgling in her mouth. She caught Shinta in her arms, and wrapped her arms protectively around him.

"Don't look," she said quietly, as Akane lent her frame in an effort to protect him as well. She felt one of the men try to drag Akane away and she embraced the boy tighter. "Don't look," she said again, as she heard the sound of swords hit flesh, the sounds of cries over the clang, and more...more sounds best left unsaid.

She looked at the boy, saw his scared but determined eyes and tried to think of what to say. "Shinta," she said urgently, "listen to me. You're too young...too young to give your life to protect others." She looked into his eyes and searched desperately for the words, the right words. She tried to convey her appreciation of his efforts, her concern for him, and her gratitude to him for reminding her of her love for her brother, who was too innocent to know that she wasn't coming back.

And when she felt her hair dragged back from her head and the blade pierce her skin, she murmured a silent prayer to the gods to protect this boy, this very young boy with red hair and old, purple eyes. This boy who sought to protect others from suffering. This brave boy, whom she hoped her brother would grow up to one day become.

She felt the world darken. Shinta...Thank you.

End