Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin

Let's Talk

Later in the night, after everyone went to sleep, he came back and sat just outside Kaoru's room. He had given his room to Misao-dono and Aoshi. Kaoru, as always, would sleep with Yahiko, while Sano and Hiko would sleep in Yahiko's room. The spare room was for Okon and Omasu.

When he came back to the dojo, he was still angered, but not because of the comments made last night, but because of the wolf's remarks and mocks. He could stand the girls making fun of him, even his master, but that wolf… no, never.

He sat down in front of Kaoru's shoji, put his back against the frame and just tried to relax and get some sleep. It was a cold night. He had, has always, his Sakabato against his shoulder, and he was kinda hugging it.

It should be a normal day in TOKIO. He realize that it was near dawn, even thou he could not recall been out that long. Last night he had come to a realization, between Kaoru and him there was officially nothing. It shocks him to know that any moment now, his Kaoru, yeah HIS, could get married to someone else. The mere though of it put Kenshin in a unsettle state. He could not bear to think about it.

Tonight was the festival. Before the visitors came yesterday, he bought some new clothes for the festival. Since the rurouni and Battousai had made peaces, he promises to take the worn out gi and trade it for something else. He had some spare money, so he went shopping.

He got closer to the shoji to hear her breathing. He had made peaces with his alter ego for her, he was willing to lay down the sword, for her, he bough some new clothes so she could see him on it, for her, he bough a beautiful necklace just for her. Since the day in the alley when they met, his life turned out to be pretty much for her.

God she is beautiful

Yeah sessha agrees. This unworthy one thinks that she is a goddess, an angel in earth

You should stop the sessha thing rurouni… she already ask you that enough times

She… I know… Is just a little difficult

So tonight is the night. We are going to express our feelings for her, finally

Yeah… the our's part sounds good

Yes. If she really wishes to be with you rurouni, as everyone assures you, she must accept me also, because from now on we are one. I am Himura Kenshin as much as you are

I must let her know you

I agree. I am tired of hiding rurouni. I don't regret what I did during the Bakumatsu as you know, but I understand you finally. Tomoe taught us how we could live together after his brother took our Kaoru. Her smile brought me understanding and for you peace and courage. Don't you agree?

Hai… I just hope that she like us too and that she wishes to spend the rest of her life with us, I wanna make her happy

You need confidence rurouni. She does love us

I hope that you are right, thank you for understand me and for the respect. I really appreciate it

He was soo deep in thought that he did not notice Kaoru opening the shoji.

"Kenshin?"

"Kaoru-dono, good morning. What are you doing awake? Is really early. Are you all right?" said Kenshin. His eyes were violet with sparks of sleeping gold.

"Hai… Is just I could not sleep knowing how cold it was out, not knowing if you came back, and knowing that you were out here." Said Kaoru "and knowing that you gave your room to our guess and that you are not gonna sleep with Sano and Hiko even if your live depends on it. Here I brought you a blanket" she said all these reasons so fast that he had to pay attention to get what she was saying

"Arigato Kaoru-dono, there was no need. Would you sit down here with me for a while?"

She looked down at his eyes and was surprise to find sparks of calm gold on them, and an emotion that she did not see often enough in his eyes. Could that be happiness? And no sessha?

She took the blanket, and before she sat, she dropped it around his shoulders, and finally sat down next to him.

"are you all right Kenshin"

"Hai Kaoru-dono, never better. Sorry about last night, I really am. I did not intend on punching Saito but… I could not control my impulse"

"Is all right he is a damm wolf, but I like his wife"

"She likes your company as well Kaoru-dono. Saito said so while we were in the room"

They sat in silence for a while and there was a slight breeze coming from the north.

"Kaoru… there is something that I must ask you to do for me. There is something that I need you to know this morning. Look at me please" he said while turning his gaze upon her.

Wait a second, his eyes are gold, but they are not as I remember them, there are quiet, in peace and somehow relax. "For you, you know that I would do anything"

He gave a wide smile. Her face brightened. Will he tell me how he feels? Will I tell him now that there is only both of us here at this moment?

"Kaoru-dono, thank you so much for everything" he turned his face to see the sunrise. His eyes were slowly gaining brightness. He turned towards her, his eyes wearing a bright gold and no trace of violet. She looked at him and her eyes went wide with the knowledge that she was with the Battousai in a non-danger situation, or was it? She thought she saw for a brief moment pain spark in his eyes, but as fast as it appear, it disappear

"You have nothing to be afraid Kaoru…dono. As you already know, you can trust me. I wanted you to get to know me better, if that is you wish"

"Kenshin, I am sorry. I am not scare of you, and I would love to know you better. I reacted that way because every time I see you is because we are in deep trouble or in grave danger" a breeze past again, and she could not suppress a shiver

"you are cold" he said while he stood up and took of the blanket from his shoulder, to place it on hers

"Kenshin no. Is cold, you are going to get cold, please I brought it f…." she continue mumbling

"Damm you women just take it ok? I am all right, I will be fine" but when he was gonna say something else, he sneeze

"See?" she said as she took one end of the blanket and put it around his shoulder so that both could be cover on it "you are sooooooo stubborn"

"look who is talking" said Kenshin "I am sorry Kaoru-dono for talking like that. I guess that my former boss, Katsura, was right, I have an smart ass mouth"

"Don't worry Kenshin, is ok"

"Kaoru-dono, for this morning and just this morning for now, I will answer any question that you may have concerning me. I will answer truthfully. For the first time in my life I am at peace with all me. I am now the real Himura Kenshin, actually Himura S… Shi… Himura Shinta" as he said the other name, she saw pain in his eyes

"Kenshin, or should I call you Shinta?"

"Shinta is just for you Kaoru. But you may call me as you wish. Shinta was a long long long time ago, before Hiko took me in. Kenshin was the name my master gave me because Shinta was too soft"

"Shinta… I like it really"

he turned around to look at her and then said "Kaoru-dono I hope that you don't mind but I wish for us to talk somewhere else than in the dojo with all the people. Would you mind going to the river bank right now?"

"Not at all Shinta, let me grab a jacket and leave a note here, so that they wont worry"

"All right I am going to grab something left for us to eat and a bigger blanket so that we can put it on the floor and sit comfortable, what do you think?"

"That sounds great, I will meet you at the gate"

Kenshin turned around and went to get the blanket in the deposit outside the spare room. Then went to the kitchen to grab the food, when he stood face to face with his master

"Where do you think you are going baka deshi?"

"Master I am gong for a walk, I wont be coming anytime soon"

"Well I don't care what you do as long as you make breakfast first"

"I am not planning on doing it. I am leaving"

"I should have taught you manners baka deshi, that is not a way to treat you guesses"

"Well you don't treat you guesses that well either. Help yourself with whatever you like. Bye"

He went out of the room before Hiko could say anything else. He saw Kaoru-dono at the door with the blanket over her shoulders in her yukata. He took a step closer and ask

"Are you ready??"

"Yeah Shinta, for you, always"

He could feel his heart get bigger as he heard those words. He could feel the ki of Aoshi near by, but he knew that he would not interfere with them, so he ignore it

"There is a place not far from here that is really comfortable and quite beautiful, it won't take long to get there" he inform her

They walked in silence for at least five minutes and then they reach a clearing of the woods in front of the river bank. He got ahead and put the big blanket on the grass, and motions her to sit and get comfortable, while he got the food out and took water for them to drink. After a few moments he sat back down at her side. The time that he was doing all these, she took the opportunity to look at him, to stare at him, and he knew it

"Hey take these rice balls, they are not fresh but they should be all right"

"Thanks Shinta. So tell me, you said that you were in peace with yourself, what does that mean?"

"Ah, well no preambles, I see. Well first of all from now on there is no difference between rurouni and Battousai. We are one again, at peace with each other. The rurouni accepted me as I am and I accepted him as he is. Second, now I discover what was missing from the beginning" his face look just astounding in the sunrise sun, she thought. He shivers when the breeze pick up, so she took one end of the blanket and got close to him. He took the end and he also got close to her, so they could be comfortable

"Shinta I understand what you mean, I can see it in your eyes, and I can assure you that I am happy for you" she gave him a wide smile, and he answer her with one of his own "When and how did it happen?"

"Well that is not an easy answer. We got separate when I killed Tomoe" he took a peak at her with his peripheral vision and he saw her frown a little. Oh god, she is the jealous type "then it was my realization that what I was doing was not entirely the right thing to do. Don't get me wrong, I don't regret it, but I am sorry that I caused so much pain to people. That is when somehow the rurouni appear and then I began wondering through out Japan"

"About a year and a half ago, I met you in a alley. Then I was only the rurouni. He was really afraid that they would recognize him as the Battousai, because he was ashamed that he even got so far as to kill his wife. I don't like or enjoy seeing fear in people's eyes. I ask you to understand one thing; we did love Tomoe in a sort of way. When we met you and you took us in, we were blessed with a place to stay and food to eat, but must importantly, you did not care about our past. When someone had you, I, the yellow eye me "Battousai" as everyone assumes, came back to the surface to protect the little that I had. First it happen with Jinhe-Udo and then Saito… One after another. But then Enishi happened. He forced me to confront reality, I could not hide behind my rurouni mask any longer, I needed to be just who I am. When I thought that you were dead with the Gein incident, I went to Rakinmura, and I was about to kill myself somehow, but your mere image saved me. You have no idea of how many times you have saved me from myself. With Shishio, I was ready to let it just go. I kinda wanted to die, I was tired, injured, without hope if I did not kill him… but then in the darkness, your face came to me, your smile, our promise of coming back together. With Enishi, it was the light to know that you were still alive and that I could see your face again."

"I took my mind back in time, and analyzed everything that happened on the past, and I realize that something was missing. I might sound straight forward, but I understood what it was when I saw you in the island, it was you. Kaoru since the time that you welcome me in your house after Shishio, you became my home. We already had a "family" with Yahiko, Sano, Megumi and even Misao, but you are my peace and home, where my happiness lies"

He watched as tears fell down his face. He turned around and wiped them of.

"Shinta, I had no idea. I am so sorry for causing you trouble" the sun was now high in the morning sky "but let me ask you one question, do you still love Tomoe?"

"Aa Kaoru, I still do" He watched as new tears came down "but not as you think" he said finally "Tomoe was the person that save me from madness, that is why I love her. But there is more space than that in my heart. Tomoe was right for me back in the time of war, now I need something different, but I will never stop loving her Kaoru, she meant things to me, a lot actually"

"I understand Shinta, sorry that I asked. Will you travel any time soon?"

"Well maybe, but this time it will be different. If I go somewhere, and if you would like, I will really like to take you to places that I have wandered long ago. But not any time soon, I wanna enjoy the dojo for a while"

She now was looking at the side of his face. He was really handsome. She was somehow relive to hear him open up to her. He turned around to watch her. His eyes were now a mixture of violet and gold

"I am happy that you heard me Kaoru-dono" wait, back to the dono?????? "I fell better now. You wanna ask anything else?"

"Shinta… i am glad that you are feeling better. You know that I will forever be here to hear you, and no it is ok for now" she said while a smirk played at her face "but I will also like to tell you something if you don't mind Shinta"

"I don't like that look, that I don't. You can tell me whatever you want, but not just now, let's leave something to say tonight. Would you let me escort you to tonight's festival? "

"Hai I will love that very much Shinta. And hai, we will talk more tonight"

"Well we should get back now. Shall we?"

"Hai" Her smile was wide with happiness. His eyes were full of happiness and relive. It was like a great burden was lifted from his back, but that was not all, there was more to say, more to express.

See rurouni, you had nothing to worry about

Yeah, I can see that. Thank you

No thank you for the chance

So they march up to the dojo again. She was feeling somehow better and fill with hope

"Oh Kaoru-dono, one more thing, not a word of what we spoke all right? I had enough mocking worth ten years yesterday"

She blushed deeply and said "of course Shinta"

Soon, too soon they arrived at the dojo principal door.