Disclaimer: Kaoru, Kenshin, Sano, Yahiko, and all the rest belong to Nobuhiro Watsuki. I am merely borrowing them.
A Dance Woven Upon The Soul
Chapter One: The cure for ones woes is a red haired stranger
The moon cast a luminescent blanket over the yard--like a picture from an old fairytale. It seemed almost unreal. But to the sixteen year old, raven-haired girl gazing at the scenery, it was perfect.
Kamiya Kaoru smiled slightly as a light breeze, warm for April, tickled her face. Tightening the grip she had on her bokken, she stepped out into the fantasy world her yard looked like. With her smile still present, she raised the bokken and brought it down in a gentle stroke. She swung to the left, to the right, and then up again. She continued her movements with a happy look.
This is what she loved. The freedom. The tranquility. She just moved as her body and mind willed her to. Years ago, her mother had caught her during one of these private moments and had sat and just watched her. When Kaoru had asked her mother what she was so fascinated by, she'd replied, "I love watching your dance."
Kaoru supposed her mother was right. It was a dance--a dance woven upon her soul. She never knew how to start or where to finish. She just did what her heart told her to do.
After about thirty minutes Kaoru stopped. Wiping her brow, she headed back into the house. After a quick shower, she plopped down on her futon. Yawning, she closed her eyes as she felt her body succumbing to the effects of sleep. Her last thought was that she had to get up early for school…get up early…get up early…
"…get up early…" Mumbling slightly, Kaoru peeked open her eyes and immediately snapped them shut as bright light assaulted her vision. She'd just gotten into bed, so why the heck were the lights on? Maybe her father had gotten back early from the 'business meeting' he had gone to attend. Either that or…
Kaoru sat up abruptly and glanced at the clock to her left. Yep. She was going to be late. Groaning at the prospect of getting yelled at by her teacher (again), she leapt out of bed and proceeded with a seven-minute version of her normal morning routine. Before leaving, she paused and glanced at a picture frame resting on a table in her hallway.
The picture was of three people, two adults and one child. She smiled sadly at a face with features similar to her own. "I'll see you later, Mom."
With that being said, she rushed out the door. Glancing at her watch, Kaoru picked up her pace. She'd missed the bus, missed breakfast, and she was sure that she would miss the morning bell as well. Could anything ELSE go wrong today?!
As that question crossed her mind, Kaoru got a sudden chill. She felt as though something indeed was wrong--terribly wrong. With a shake of her head, she decided she'd dwell on it later. At the moment she had to focus on getting to school. And in her haste, she failed to notice the two police officers that were approaching her house.
* * *
Kaoru covered her mouth as she yawned. She was BORED. Placing her book in front of her, she positioned her pencil standing straight up on her desk. It was quite entertaining trying to defy gravity and get the darn thing to stand on its own. Her record was twelve seconds so far. Feeling a poke on her side she peered to the left of her at a fair-haired girl.
The girl's lips were in a slight frown. In a hushed voice she said, "Kaoru-chan, pay attention!"
Despite coming off as nagging, the girl, Kiyosato Kyoko, was actually a good friend of Kaoru's. Grinning at her friend, Kaoru replied, "I am paying attention."
Kyoko merely raised an eyebrow. "Honestly, Kaoru. I've seen you pull the 'pencil trick' tons of times."
Kaoru's reply was to flick a piece of paper at the desk and its inhabitant next to her. Kyoko, of course, had to retaliate. The 'Paper Flicking War' was well under way when Kaoru felt a book connect lightly with the top of her head. She glanced up warily at the teacher's disapproving face. She was ready to here the expected lecture when the classroom door abruptly slid open. Leaving her prey until later, the teacher went to see what it was their visitor wanted.
The students talked quietly among themselves and Kaoru wondered what the interruption was for. She felt something hit her and looked down to see some paper. She turned grinning to Kyoko, until…
"Kamiya-san, please come to the front." Kaoru stood and went to the front. Her teacher gestured for her to follow the person who had come into the class. Her teacher squeezed her hand as she passed and Kaoru didn't miss the pitying look on her teacher's face. Frowning, she followed the man, whom she vaguely remembered as a senior teacher, out the room and down the hall.
Kaoru bit the edge of her thumb. It was a habit she had when she was nervous. And she was most DEFINITELY nervous. Had she done something wrong? She searched her mind and tried to think of anything she could be in trouble for. She'd been late for school a couple of times. But that was no reason to be called out of class. And there was that incident when she and a classmate had fought over a…disagreement. But that had been settled in a duel in her family's dojo. She didn't think something personal like that would merit being called from class.
"Kamiya-san? We're here." Kaoru blinked as the man opened the door to the principal's office. THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE!? She was going to have no thumb left by the time this was over.
Kaoru stepped into the office and evaluated the three occupants within the room. One was a short, balding man with kind eyes. That was her principal. The other two she didn't recognize. However, she knew the uniforms they were wearing--police uniforms. One was short, with dark hair. He had a common face with no outstanding features. The other one had a completely different air to him. Even sitting she could tell the man was incredibly tall. And his eyes…he had the eyes of a wolf. And wolves were dangerous.
He put on a pleasant expression as she glanced at him. His eyes almost seemed to disappear. But Kaoru could tell it was an act. Wolf Eyes-san couldn't fool her!
She sat down in a chair placed out for her and looked at them expectantly. The short officer stepped forward. "Kamiya-san, when was the last time you saw your father?"
Kaoru was a little surprised at the abrupt and unexpected question, but answered calmly. "He left home three days ago. He told me that he had to meet an old friend of his. I assumed it was some meeting about our Dojo."
The officer nodded and whispered something to Wolf Eyes-san. Kaoru frowned. Something was wrong. Quietly she asked, "Officer, is something wrong? Is my Father alright?"
The sigh the officer made and the sad look her principal had caused her to start panicking. She remembered the chill she had gotten earlier and it returned in full force. Her principal came around and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. And as the officer began to speak Kaoru braced herself for the worst. "I'm afraid your father is not alright, Kamiya-san. He was found lying dead in an alley this morning. We…"
Kaoru didn't hear what else was being said. A strange numbness had come over her and there was an odd sort of buzzing in her ears. Her Father was dead…dead…dead. It couldn't be true! Not her father who was so strong at graceful; who was stern, yet gentle; who she would fight with over silly things like which one of them could cook better (when neither of them could cook at all). Not her father who would come home and they would laugh together about things that had happened during the day. Her father…it just couldn't be true!
Yet a part of her knew it was true. Someone wouldn't joke about something like this. It would be too cruel. And the part of her that suddenly felt cold and alone was something she couldn't ignore. It was the same feeling she had when she'd lost her mother. She felt a wet substance land on her hand. Raising her hand to her face, she realized she had been crying. Even in front of strangers, she couldn't hold them back. She would face any humiliating experience if it meant she could have her father back.
She focused on the men surrounding her through bleary eyes. The short man had stopped talking and was just starring. Wolf Eyes-san was sitting impassively and her principal still had a comforting hand on her shoulder. Kaoru opened her mouth to talk and was surprised at how croaked her voice sounded. "I-I'm sorry. It's just that I was-"
"No, Kamiya-san. It's alright." Her principal cut in with a gentle tone and then spoke to the two officers. "Could you gentleman kindly come talk to her later? The news has obviously upset her."
He was opening his door as he said that statement, clearly saying that he wasn't going to accept "No." for an answer. With a nod from Wolf Eyes-san the two officers rose, and saying they would make arrangements to meet later, left.
The Principal led Kaoru to the faculty lounge and sat her on a cushioned chair. Smiling kindly, he said, "Now you just sit here and rest Kamiya-san. Once school is over, we'll have someone bring you home. Are you hungry?"
Kaoru shook her head. Feeling slightly guilty she asked, "C-Could I just have some time alone? I don't mean to be rude, but I…I just-"
The principal raised his hand. "I understand. I've told the teachers not use the room so you won't be disturbed. If you need anything, just knock on my office door." With a final small smile, he left.
Kaoru sat there for a few minutes, just staring at the white colored wall. A few tears would fall occasionally but she didn't bother to wipe them away. Her mother was gone. Her father was gone. And now she was alone. Bringing her knees to her chin, she buried her face in her skirt. She suddenly had an urge to go home. For a moment, she thought that the place would bring back memories, ones she wouldn't want right now. But she needed home. It was where she new everything, where it was all familiar. It seemed like an anchor to the horrible storm she was facing.
Walking over to the door, she cracked it open and peeked out. No one was in the halls, seeing as classes were still in session. Taking a deep breath she just ran. She ran through the halls, out the school entrance, through the schoolyard, and just kept running. She ran as though fleeing the truth.
But she couldn't run forever. She stopped after ten minutes and leaned against a stonewall, panting for breath. She glanced around to assess where she was. She could hear the sounds of drills and she could she a crane over the wall. It was a construction site that was only a short distance away from her house. Sighing she stood up and prepared to walk the rest of the way.
When a deafening crack filled the air all she had time for was to look up and see something black descending on her. It seemed to happen in slow motion. Something had snapped from the construction equipment and whatever it was, was about to crush her. She tried to move her legs but she was frozen in shock and fear. Was this it? Was she going to die?
Then she felt strong arms. She saw a flash of red. And everything went black.
* * *
Kaoru ran around her yard with a net. She had a huge yard and plenty of butterflies to catch. Any big, black bugs just wouldn't do. Only butterflies would. With a cry of glee befitting a seven-year-old child, she chased after a blue butterfly that she had just seen. She whipped the net though the air at the butterfly. She blinked as it suddenly disappeared. She looked at the net and saw the butterfly unmoving.
Tears formed in her eyes. "Please come back Butterfly-san!"
She turned around as she heard footsteps behind her. "Daddy! Please save her!"
Her father stared at it for a few moments and turned to his daughter. "I'm sorry, Kaoru. S-She's gone now."
As he said that he took his daughter into a hug and buried his face into her hair. Confused, the child asked, "Daddy, what's wrong?"
He released her. "Its about Mommy…"
* * *
Kaoru snapped her eyes open. Great. She couldn't even dream without having it be something sad! She turned in her bed and buried her face in her pillow. Wait a minute…her pillow? She sat up abruptly and looked around. How had she gotten home? She remembered running from the school and then pausing by the construction site. And she remembered seeing red. Oh no…
"Am I dead!?"
She tried to calm herself as her breathing quickened. Taking deep breaths, she yelped in surprise as her door slid open. And then all she could think was 'Wow.' A man dressed in jeans, a form fitting black shirt and a red jacket stood before her. He had an odd scar on his cheek and flaming red hair. FLAMING red hair? Was he here to take her to Hell?
She leapt up and backed a way from him quickly. "Please don't take me to Hell! I know I misbehaved sometimes and I'm not the best cook, but that doesn't mean I deserve to go to hell or anything. I-I won't go!"
The man, who wasn't much taller than her, stepped forward with a puzzled look. "I think you're confused. I-"
"Don't come any closer!" She grabbed the shinai that she always kept in her room and raised it defensively before her. The man remained calm but didn't advance any further. Kaoru took a deep breath and tried to decide what to do next. Hold on…a deep breath? If she was dead, how come she was breathing?
Looking at the man that had entered her room, she lowered the shinai slightly. "I'm not dead, am I?"
The man coughed, which Kaoru suspected might have been to cover a laugh. "As far as I can tell, no."
Kaoru let out a deep breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. Suddenly feeling extremely fatigued, she all but fell into a chair she had by her desk. Glancing up at the man, the look of previous amusement had changed to concern. "Are you alright, Kamiya-san?"
Kaoru looked into his eyes--purple eyes. His eyes looked as though they had hidden depths filled with a past. A sorrowful one. She blinked and started to blush as she realized she had been staring. "W-What happened? Everything's so fuzzy. All I remember is something falling on top of me."
"They were pipes." His voice sounded gentle, hypnotic. "I managed to get to you before…anything could happen. You're address was on the outside of your bag so I thought I'd get you home. I hope you're not mad that I just entered uninvited."
Kaoru frowned and immediately felt guilty. She'd accused her savior of trying to take her to hell, threatened him with a shinai, and he was only concerned about her feelings. God! He must think she was some sort of ungrateful nutcase!
"I'm not mad at all! Thank you for saving me. I'm sorry about…uh…yelling at you. I-I thought you were coming to take me to Hell."
He chuckled a little and said, "I was worried you might have hit your head or something."
Kaoru giggled at that. It felt good to have something to smile about, especially with the darkness that seemed to have settled itself on her life. She stopped as she felt and heard her stomach grumble. She felt her face reddening yet again as she looked up sheepishly. The man just smiled slightly. "I saw the kitchen on the way in. I'll go make you something."
He turned to go but Kaoru rose to stop him. "Wait! There are only instant foods. You see, we can't…um…"
"Cook very well?" Kaoru looked at him in surprise. "You said so when you were…telling me not to take you to Hell." He smiled slightly at that. "Don't worry, I'm sure I can manage. You just get some rest."
And with that he was out the door. Kaoru slumped back down onto her futon. What a day! She felt overwhelmed, emotionally and physically. She still couldn't believe that her father was…that he was gone. Forever. Her fist clenched at the blanket on the futon. Why was he gone? Why!? At the sound of dishes clattering she glanced up. Sighing she stood up. What was wrong with her? The red haired man had saved her and here she was just expecting him to wait on her hand and foot.
She opened the door and headed for the kitchen. She couldn't cook very well, but the least she could do was offer whatever help she could give. Halfway to the kitchen she stopped and glanced down at a picture that she had looked at just that morning. She picked it up and once again felt tears falling. "Mom…Dad…"
Not really realizing what had come over her, she slammed her fist against the wall. Her voice filled with anger and grief as she muttered, "Why?"
She didn't now if she could stop. All she knew was that her frustration, anger, and grief needed to be released and if pounding a wall was a way to release it, she didn't give a damn about the wall. The picture lay forgotten as she kept hitting the wall, as though her pain and anger would disappear. As though perhaps her question would be answered. As though everything would go back to normal.
Through the haze of grief and anger Kaoru felt someone take her arms and stop her from hitting the wall. Her arms flailed and she hit someone's chest a few times but they didn't retreat. She stopped her attack but she could feel herself shaking and knew her tears were still falling. The arms were still around her and all she could do was lean into the comfort they were providing.
After a while, her tears abated and sniffling slightly, she looked up and was met with purple. Kaoru found herself turning red for a third time that day, as she realized she'd practically thrown herself at the stranger. "I'm sorry. I-I don't know what came over me…I was…um…"
"It's no problem." He stood up and offered his hand to help her up. "Now lets get you some food."
Kaoru looked at his extended hand and suddenly felt overwhelmingly grateful and happy that she had met him. She was about to place her hand when something suddenly struck her. "Hold on!"
His eyes grew suddenly wary at that exclamation. Kaoru thought she'd dwell on it later and continued on. "I haven't even asked you your name yet."
She half expected him to comment on her lack of manners; after all, she'd yelled and practically attacked the poor guy. But he simply grabbed her hand and pulled her into a standing position. "It's Kenshin. Himura Kenshin."
Kaoru smiled. The least she could do was formally introduce herself as well. "Kamiya Kaoru. Kaoru is just fine."
Both smiling they headed to the kitchen. Behind Kenshin, Kaoru glanced at her hand. Funny. She'd never really bothered to remember what people's hands felt like. But she couldn't quite forget how hands that looked that gentle could feel so strong. Glancing at his back, she wondered how muscular he was.
Kaoru abruptly shook her head. Good grief! She was acting like one of those girls who gushed over every cute guy they saw! But glancing at him again, she couldn't deny that he WAS cute…
* * *
He sighed in relaxation as he worked his hands on the shapeless mass. Gradually it began to take the form of a pot. A sharp knock at the door caused his hands to lurch and the shapeless mass once again appeared.
Hiko Seijuro sighed, this time in annoyance. He wanted his three idiot heirs to take over any business that got thrown his Clan's way. It was their responsibility now. He didn't want to deal with it. He briefly wondered if his idiot apprentice had returned yet but the knocking was proving to be incessant.
With a growl of annoyance, he glared at the door. "What is it?"
The door opened and he was surprised to see one of his lawyers enter. He hadn't seen this one in years. If he remembered correctly, his job had been to deal with his more personal matters.
"Hiko-kun, I think you should read this."
The man produced a letter out of his briefcase. "It's up to you whether you want to accept what he's asking."
Frowning slightly, Hiko took the letter his lawyer was offering him. His mouth drawn in a straight line, he began to read:
'Old Friend,
It's been so long it seems since I've last contacted you. Perhaps too long. But the past is something I cannot change, no matter how much I wish too. It is of the future that concerns me now. It is clear to me that someone is after my life. And I think we both know who is most likely the source. While I have faith in my capabilities to defend myself, I cannot suppress this nagging feeling that it will not turn out for the best for me.
So I ask you now, if anything should happen to me, please take care of my daughter Kaoru. I have placed all the legalities with your lawyer. You never were one to deal with anything legal. I failed Hikari, and even in death, I cannot allow Kaoru to suffer the same fate. My respects to you, Hiko.
Kamiya Kenji'
"Hiko-kun," His lawyer said softly. "Kamiya-san was found dead this morning."
The hand holding the letter curled in a fist. Damn him…
Massaging his temples he said, "What are the 'legalities' that need to be taken care of?"
The lawyer set down his briefcase and cleared his throat. NOW he was in his element. "All that is required is your signature and it seems that you'd be acquiring another heir."
Hiko groaned. Three heirs were enough, but a fourth? Glancing down at the letter his face softened. Kamiya, the idiot, had been a good friend. A close friend, who, he knew, would have sacrificed anything if Hiko had asked it of him. Looking up at the lawyer he said, "Then lets get this over with."
Hiko wondered how his idiot heirs would take it. It seemed things would be getting interesting…
Author's Notes: Well, the first chapter is done! Yippee! I hope that wasn't TOO boring for anyone who reads it. Your opinions and any advice you have are most appreciated. ^_^
I wasn't sure about Kaoru's parents' names. If anyone knows, please tell me so I can correct the ones I used. Oh, and another thing about the names is that I used the traditional last name then first name for the characters. Just so there's no confusion. ^_^
Is it hot where anyone else live? I'm dying!!!! I don't have air conditioning. Waaaaaaaah! *ahem* Sorry, sorry. It's just my random lamenting…
Oh Yeah! I just wanted to thank Becca-chan! And Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!!
Anywho, thanks for reading my little ficcy!
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In the next chapter: Kaoru meets Hiko and his 'heirs' and learns just how difficult living with four men can be, especially after that bathroom incident…