Crimson
Red.
It was a color that haunted him, disturbing the very recesses of his mind in the twilight hours even as he lay in the peace of Kaoru's embrace, felt the warm brush of her breath against his neck, the slender weight of her arms around him in the night. Even the serenity of that embrace could not fully erase his memory.
Red was the color of the blood staining his hands, years washed away but ever-present as he felt the sticky warmth coating his fingers, and heard the dying cries of every assassination ringing in his ears. Blood-red…angry, blatant- the color of death…
But red- somehow red delighted him as much as if horrified him, easing away some of the guilty burden the familiar hue inspired in his heart.
Scarlet was the color Kaoru-dono had a habit of blushing in the more he complimented the results of their cooking lessons, something she'd shyly approached him about nearly a month before, to which she had been a surprisingly apt pupil.
As he walked her through proper methods of preparation, temperature and seasoning, her confections came out more and more edible, even tasty, and the more he praised her efforts, the more she flushed an endearing, demure scarlet. It was quite kawaii, Kenshin could admit to himself.
Crimson was the color threading its way through the horizon, joining its brethren in the skies- marigold, vermillion, azure blue, lavender, and so many others- as the large face of the sun began its descent at the end of the day, the day he first dared to kiss his beloved.
They stood together on the porch, awaiting their impromptu family to return home in hopes of going into town for the evening meal. As the sun sank further in the skies and crimson light bathed the woman beside him in an amber glow, he'd leaned in and softly pressed his lips to hers, the first of many kisses coloring their courtship.
Burgundy was the color of the wine Sanoske bartered off a Western merchant passing through the city, far different from the potent translucence belonging to the sake being served to the masses attending Kenshin and Kaoru's wedding. Sano presented the bottle to the couple at the dinner, and small glasses of the merlot were exchanged at toasts.
His young bride has never been one with a penchant for drinking, and he gently cautioned her for such, something he followed himself. Still, he could still feel the heat of the alcohol in his veins, saw the flush to Kaoru's complexion not having everything to do with virgin shyness as they retired for the night, lay together on the futon and contemplated one another in the dark luminescence of the moonlight. The burgundy was in the blood rushing to his head as she quietly embraced him, the blush in her face present upon all her skin as the folds of her kimono fell away and he met the soft curves of her body for the first time.
Titian was the color of the blood on the sheets, accompanying Kaoru's screams piercing the air and the fear freezing in his veins as the birth of their firstborn proved to be more difficult than either of them anticipated. It was the color staining Megumi's hands as she rushed past the anxious husband and father-to-be, desperate for more cloth to stop the bleeding.
Russet was the color speckling the head of the newborn as he crowned and entered the world via thirty-six hour labor, swaddled and placed in the arms of his weakened but recovering mother. Russet was the hair of the toddler Kaoru could never quite tame, settling for a ponytail similar to his father's as the child squirmed in her arms, desperate to get outside to meet his father for promised games.
Red was the blur of the ball and son bouncing around the yard as Kenshin spotted the boy, watching the child's antics as he stepped through the front gate to the dojo, Red was the color of identical hair billowing in the wind as he leapt into his father's arms, eager for hugs and stories of his sire's day.
Red was death and life, love and desire, passion and repentance. Blood brought his repentance, but passion was Kaoru, and life was Kenji.