Kaoru took another kimono from her closet and folded it carefully. She did not have much things to pack, she only had about four sets of kimonos, and a couple of gi and hakamas and some night dresses that Enishi had gotten for her during her month-long stay on the island.

She thought about how much further and further from her home she was going to be, and another fresh set of tears appeared from her eyes. She brushed these away impatiently, hating herself for being so close to crying. Just when she had settled down in the island, accepting the daily routine she and Enishi had, he springs this new surprise on her.

It's not so bad when I'm here, at least I'm still in Japan and I know sooner or later my friends are going to find me, but what about China, she thought, setting all her clothes on the bed. Will they still look for me when I'm no longer in Japan?

The door to her room opened, and Enishi walked in. He handed her a traveling bag for her to put her clothes in, and he glanced at the tear stains on her cheeks.

"Thank you," she said quietly, taking the bag from him. "I know you didn't have any dinner, there's still some of that sushi left, I didn't finish it all," she said, nodding to the bento box on her bedside table.

"When we get to China," Enishi said slowly, fixing his eyes on her. "You have to understand two things. First, the syndicate does not really welcome strangers into its headquarters. When we get there, you will not be as free to move about as you are here."

Kaoru started placing her clothes into the bag. "I expected that," she said, sighing. "I hope you don't have to keep me tied up and blind-folded, though," she said sarcastically.

"I might keep you gagged if you make ridiculous comments like that," he replied with as much sarcasm as her.

She shoved another kimono into the bag. "I've tried my best to be a good captive, in case you haven't noticed. I haven't really given you much trouble at all."

"I noticed," he told her, continuing to watch her pack. "I've tried to be a good host as well."

"You mean captor," she corrected him.

He pressed his lips together into a thin line. "Yes, captor," he agreed. "I could have been much less kind to you."

Kaoru sighed as she finished packing her few things and she sat down on the bed, burying her face in her hands. Enishi was right. He had been kind to her. Except for that one time she tried to escape, he had never laid a hand on her or touched her with malicious intent. "I know that as well," she said. "Look, Enishi, I know I can't do anything, I am at your mercy. So I'll go along with whatever you need me to do, just keep your promise to return me to Tokyo one day."

"You'll go along?" he repeated.

"Yes."

"Good, because there is one other thing about the syndicate you should know." He paused. "It's full of people who usually just take what they want. You didn't notice the way Lei was looking at you tonight with interest, did you?"

She gasped, her head jerking up to look at him. He smirked. "I thought so," he continued. "To them, you are just another woman, and people there, they take women all the time."

Kaoru felt her skin crawl at his words. "You can't let them…"

"I won't," he said, cutting her off. "I'm going to tell them you're my woman."

He's what? She looked at him, her eyebrows rising skeptically. "I'm you're woman?" she repeated.

"Because nobody there would dare take anything from me," he said, explaining his point. "You said you'll go along."

Kaoru closed the bag and dumped it on the floor. "This is getting weirder and weirder by the minute," she muttered. First, he's taking me to China. Then he's going to keep me prisoner there. Then he's going to tell everyone I'm his whore. But if it's to keep them away, if it's to keep me safe… as long as he doesn't really touch me…

"I will," she said, standing up and rubbing her arms. "Just… you have to understand, it's going to be a new country for me, people speaking in a language I don't understand… you have to understand how it makes me feel."

"Don't worry," he said. "You are still my charge. I will look after you."

She gazed at him as he said that, feeling her heart twist at the words. Kenshin used to say those words to her, and here she was with his enemy who was saying the exact same thing. What made her heart twist, though, was that she believed Enishi as she locked eyes with him. I trust him, she realized. Suddenly, her tears were gone, and she did not feel like crying anymore.

"Then I will trust you," she said finally.

His eyes softened a bit at her words. He stooped to pick up her bag. "Let's go. Lei is already waiting on the ship."

It took them a day to get to Yokohama, and while on the syndicate ship, Kaoru kept to her quarters, only going out to eat in the mess hall whenever Enishi came to fetch her at her cabin during mealtimes. She was the only woman on the ship, and she understood what Enishi meant when he said it was better if he made it seem as if she belonged to him. It only took a quiet glare from him to send each sailor having a look at her to turn away.

When they reached Yokohama, Enishi rented a room at an inn for them and left her promptly for a few hours, reminding her in not so many words that he could easily find her if she dared escape. She gave her word that she was going to stay where she was.

As Kaoru sat on the bed and looked out the window, she thought about giving him the slip, but it only lasted a fraction of a second. She had given him her word, and she was not interested in getting herself into more trouble than she was at the moment. Enishi was not one to bluff. If he had said he could find her easily, then he could. Had she dared to even open her door, she would have found Lei standing guard outside as ordered by Enishi.

So Kaoru spent her afternoon confined in her room, looking through a Japanese-Chinese language book that Enishi had handed to her while they were on the ship to Yokohama. She couldn't help but smile at the memory. It was those little random acts of kindness that made it impossible for her to hate him.

When she had first seen Enishi when he had come to her dojo to pick a fight with Kenshin, she thought he was just another crazy man bent on destroying the strongest man from the Bakumatsu. After spending a month with him on the island, she caught glimpses of his loneliness and the sense of loss he had regarding his sister. When he wasn't in a rage over Kenshin, he was actually polite to her, and his attention to detail made it possible for him to sense her needs and provide for her without her even asking him. After a few days on the island, she had found a bokken in her room, several gis and hakamas and a pair of training sandals in her closet. When she had ventured into his library filled with Chinese books, she found that he had placed some Japanese volumes on the couch for her to peruse. Perhaps the funniest thing about it was when, after a several days of cooking for him, she found several cookbooks on the reading table as well.

Kaoru chuckled at the memory. She rolled onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. It was too bad that Enishi had a tragic time growing up. If he had lived under different circumstances, he could have been a good man. He would definitely be more useful around the house than Sano, she thought ruefully. But Enishi is not completely bad. I could feel some good in him. If he could still feel love for his sister, then he is not completely lost.

Wrapped up in thoughts about her captor, she drifted off to sleep.

End of chapter.

Note: Disclaimer can be found at the beginning of chapter one. This is a short chapter, I have several more written down but I think I will post one chapter a week just to let my writing catch up. I have the entire story in my head already, until the ending, it's keeping me up at night, but it takes long for me to translate the plot into words and chapters. Thank you for reading. I hope you had a lovely time.

Also, the title, I'll fill it in after I've finished the story. :p