A/N: This is the last part of the…er…trilogy? I don't know what to call this three-shot…
Standard disclaimers apply.
091: Crown
She couldn't sleep. All she could think about was her father's final decision. Out of all the possible suitors, he chose Enishi to be her husband. Tears formed in her eyes once again, unbearably devastated. He expected her to be extremely pleased and thrilled with his final say, and was therefore extremely confused why she abruptly left his study.
Turning on her left side, she allowed herself to quietly sob for a few moments. Her eighteenth birthday ended up being the worst one. She was only expecting a few nice gifts from her parents and a quiet, delicious dinner with just her parents. Her father ruined the peacefulness of the evening by telling her that her husband had been chosen and they would marry a fortnight from tonight.
He didn't know her relationship with Battousai, how close he was to her. After her marriage with Enishi, she would lose Battousai forever, which was the most horrible aspect of all…
She felt the other side of her bed lower, making her freeze. Pretending to sleep, she took long, exaggerated breaths, hoping to throw off whoever just came into her bed.
"My name is Kenshin Himura, former son of current duke Hiko Himura. I was said to be dead three weeks after my fourteenth birthday. A month after my supposed death, I began murdering other dukes, marquis, anyone that corrupted the system." A voice whispered in the dark.
Kaoru immediately turned to her right, coming directly face to face with Battousai. She blushed at the close proximity of their faces and was about to pull away, but she became entranced in his amber eyes that were speckled with amethyst.
"Kenshin?" She whispered for clarification. Battousai, or Kenshin, nodded his head slowly. She suddenly realized the position the two were in and began to panic. "What are you doing? If we are caught –" She started frantically before he cut her off.
"Come off it. You know I have never been caught by anyone." He scoffed with rolling his eyes. Propping himself up by his elbow, he looked at her tearstained face with an overbearing sadness. "I am sorry…I wish…" He trailed off, looking away from her. Throwing himself onto his back, he looked up at the shadows on the ceiling. "It's not really fair, is it?" He asked softly. She stifled back a sob, bringing her hand to her mouth. "Hey, it will be okay, shhh, stop crying, please. It's killing me."
Kaoru immediately froze before glaring at him. "Do not use that word! You're going to be dead in two weeks! You cannot throw that phrase around anymore."
They stared at each other for a few moments before he brought her small form to his in a desperate hug. She didn't move in shock for a split second before she clung onto the back of his thin gi.
"They never dressed you properly for winter."
He embraced her tighter so that her every soft curve was against sinewy body. "Then you'll make me warm now." He answered, his face in the crook of her shoulder.
"What does this mean?" She asked after a few moments, still gripping the back of his gi.
"It means I love you. And that I do not want to give you up to anyone." He murmured in her ear.
She pulled away far enough to look at his face. "Love?" The word seemed foreign on her tongue. She used to word with her parents, which was the only way she knew to use it.
He nodded slowly, his eyes full of sincerity. "Yes."
Her breathing became shallow, unsure of her emotions. Was that love? The way a charge bolted through her body whenever he got very close to her? The way she felt comforted and warm whenever he understood her thoughts and feelings?
The way her heart ached whenever he smiled at her, an ache that hurt knowing that there was something unsaid between them?
"I…" She started, feeling tears form in her eyes. Fear also resided there. She was afraid that if she said those forbidden words, it would make it all the worse.
He took her face in his hands, trying to calm her down. "You don't have to say anything. Let's go to sleep…and then we can talk about going to my father's home."
"Really?" She whispered, a smile growing on her face. He smiled and nodded before turning on his other side to get out of her bed. However, she grabbed his arm and pulled him back down. "Stay with me? At least until I fall asleep." She blushed, realizing how childish she sounded.
"Alright." He said. She breathed out in relief and turned on her side once again. He snaked his arms around her waist and brought her close to his body.
Within minutes she was fast asleep.
"You wish for what?"
"To visit some of the counties I will be ruling in my near future. I want to see the people who are under your rule." Kaoru repeated with a clear voice.
"Yes, I understand that, but with him?" Her father spat, pointing to Kenshin who was kneeling on the floor, as he was instructed years ago to do when in the presence of the king.
"I do not want a dozen guards surrounding me." She said shortly.
"It is for your protection! Who knows what outlaws," Her father started, glared at Kenshin, "are out there. They are killers with no sense of conscious." The last part was said directly to Kenshin, who was careful to keep his face passive.
"He is the best sword wielder in this castle. I would feel safer with Ke-Battousai than with a dozen of your best guards." Kaoru stated, looking into her father's eyes defiantly.
Their eyes were locked for a few tense minutes until Kaoru's father said, "Battousai, come forward," in a demanding tone. Kenshin obediently walked forward until he was a foot away from the sitting king. He got back down on one knee and looked at the king expectantly. "Do you give me your word…do you promise that you will not subject my daughter to any harm?"
"Her life before my own, always." Kenshin said with all seriousness, shocking the king.
When he collected himself he said, "Good. Abuse this act of leniency, and you will be killed." Kenshin lowered his head, showing his understanding before standing up and taking his place next to Kaoru. "I expect to see you back here at sunset." The king said simply, signaling for them to leave.
Kaoru quickly walked to her father and kissed his cheek lightly before running across the room to where the stairs were. Kenshin bowed to her father and was about to go after her when the king told him to stay.
"My daughter, as you know, is to be married to Enishi –" The king started before Kenshin interrupted him.
"My life will no longer be under your protection. I understand what will become of me after their marriage." Kenshin said quietly.
The king nodded, not bothering to comment how a servant should not disrupt him. "Despite my obvious objection to the situation, you were very loyal to my daughter." Kenshin lowered his head, accepting the compliment humbly. "That is not all I have noticed." The king added with a sharp tone. Kenshin raised his head with slightly wide eyes. "I have seen the way you look at my daughter as well. Those feelings are inappropriate for that of a servant."
Kenshin bit his bottom lip for a moment before swallowing. "Forgive me, I did not mean for my feelings to be so obviously displayed." He said softly, bowing.
"Nobody else has noticed. I can read people very well."
"Then you should also be able to tell that these feelings are genuine."
"I do not care if they are genuine or not. My daughter has clearly grown attached to you and I want you to distance yourself from her." The king said harshly.
"If you know that your daughter is attached to me, then why would you allow me to be executed? Isn't that cruel to do for father?" Kenshin retorted.
"How dare you speak to me like that! After all that I have done for your ungrateful soul. You selfish bastard – you deserve to die." The king bellowed.
"You did absolutely nothing for me. I owe only Kaoru my thanks. She was the only one who ever protected me. I don't remember you stalling my impalement."
"You are not allowed to speak my daughter's name without a title!" The king yelled, getting out of his seat.
"That is to be decided by the person whose name it belongs to! She has her own will and mind." Kenshin said sharply, his amber eyes flashing dangerously.
"I should kill you right now."
"You know very well you stand no chance against me. My skills are above every guard and soldier under your command. Including Enishi." There was a tense silence for a few long moments until Kenshin broke it. "Thank you for trusting us. We will see you again at sunset." Kenshin said with a low voice, bowed, turned on his heel and left to find Kaoru.
He opened the door to her room to find her struggling to bind her chest with her back toward him. Mouth open, he was about to shut the door and walk away until she said, "Kenshin?" she turned her head to find him standing there frozen. She turned a delicate shade of pink. "Could you help me?"
Kenshin swallowed before shutting the door behind him and walking quietly to where she stood. Standing a few inches behind her, he asked with a slightly husky voice, "How can I help?"
"Just grab the cloth and wrap it around my back."
Kaoru started with one end of the white cloth on her left side and brought it across her right, passing it to Kenshin. He made sure to never touch her back, afraid what would happen if they made contact. It took a few minutes to completely bind her chest, and he was very happy that they managed to never touch. With a smile on his face, he grabbed the cloth a little too eagerly, accidentally brushing his fingers with hers.
They froze for a moment, their skin still touching, sending shocks through their veins. He gently took the short end of the cloth from her hand and twisted it around the top strip. When he finished, he continued to leave his calloused hands on her soft back. She leaned up against him, closing her eyes. He ran his hands up and down her bare arms, reveling in the softness of her porcelain skin.
"Kenshin…" She murmured.
"This is forbidden." He whispered in her ear.
"Just…a little indulgence…"
He exhaled before laying a trail of kisses down her neck to her smooth shoulder. She suddenly turned around and brought his lips down to hers. His eyes were wide open for a moment before he closed them and put a hand on the back of her neck, bringing her closer.
She suddenly pulled away with a scarlet blush. "We shouldn't, you're right. We do not have much time to speak to your father."
His throat was tight with desire as he nodded. She pulled up the sleeves of her navy blue gi before walking to the other end of her room and throwing Kenshin a straw hat.
"Good idea." He said, putting his long hair on top of his head before placing the hat on his head.
She walked up to him and kissed him again. He grinned on her lips before pulling away.
"It's…addicting." She admitted sheepishly, turning pick once again.
"Well, keep your desires under control at least until tonight." He said, raising an eyebrow.
She shivered at the thought of the evening, but held it back as today's activities loomed in her mind. "Alright, we have to get you a sword and then we will leave."
One of the guards very unwillingly gave up his sword to Kenshin, who held onto it a bit longer than necessary before tying it to his waist.
The guards followed the pair with their cold, concentrated eyes as they walked down the path to the gates of her estate. When they got beyond the gate, Kaoru set a very brisk pace forward, catching Kenshin off guard.
"You do not even know where you are going!" Kenshin said with slight amusement, catching up to her easily.
"You heard my father – we only have a few precious hours." She said impatiently. "Now, which way, left or right?" She asked as a fork in the path became present.
"Left." He said with a small smile.
They continued to walk for about an hour without saying another word. Kenshin looked at their surroundings, a painful surge of nostalgia hitting him every time he saw a familiar tree or house. She watched him with sad eyes, wondering what drove him to leave his home and family behind.
"It's up that hill." He said, breaking their silence, pointing to a large stone house that overlooked the town around them.
They walked up the stone steps, Kaoru behind Kenshin. She watched his back muscles tense beneath his gi as they got higher. When they reached the front door, she put a comforting hand on his shoulder. He looked back to her and she nodded at him.
Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door two times. "State your name." A deep voice said from behind. Kenshin turned to Kaoru and pushed her forward, urging her to speak. She shook her head and nodded toward him encouragingly. "State your name." The voice said again, this time impatiently.
"Your son." Kenshin finally said.
The voice didn't reply for a few moments until it said gruffly, "You have been dead to me for over four years."
"I ask to be let in and take a few papers and then I will be out of your life forever." Kenshin said with a slightly pleading tone.
"Leave me in peace."
Kenshin turned to Kaoru again gave her a look that clearly said, "I knew this was going to happen."
She took a deep breath before stating with authority, "This is Princess Kaoru, son of the King of the Kamiya Kingdom, and I demand entrance to your home."
The door slowly opened after a minute, revealing a large, muscular man with long black hair tied at the nape of his neck. He looked down at the pair on his front step and glared at the redhead, who was fumbling to take his straw hat off.
"I heard Battousai was given mercy and became the man servant of the Princess." The large man said.
"May we come in? We have walked a long way and we do not have much time." Kaoru asked kindly.
The man stepped aside, allowing her to pass. Kenshin continued to stare at the man for a few moments before saying quietly, "It's nice to see you, father."
The man, or Hiko Himura, snorted. "I am curious to see what you two are here for." Kenshin walked through the doorway and took a seat next to Kaoru. Hiko slammed the door shut and looked down at them before asking, "What are you doing here?"
"We want to get proof of Kenshin's identity." Kaoru said.
Hiko raised his eyebrows. "Why?"
"Because…" She blushed before looking directly into his black eyes. "I want to marry him."
Kenshin chuckled when Hiko's jaw fell open for a few seconds. He glared at his son, silencing him. "You want to marry this idiot?"
"Yes. And he's not an idiot." She retorted.
Hiko chuckled. "Feisty. Perfect description." He then frowned at the two of them. "He could never be king, Princess Kaoru."
"Why not? I could beg my father to pardon him, he'll be brought back into the Himura family, and then we could marry! It's perfectly acceptable."
"But it is impossible. The country will be in an uproar if such a thing were to occur." Hiko said rather kindly.
"But…if we do not do this…he will die." She whisper, tears filling her eyes.
Hiko snapped his head to Kenshin, who was looking down at the floor with a melancholy expression. "Is this true?"
Kenshin nodded slowly. "Yes."
Hiko sighed before turning on his heel and striding to a drawer on the other end of the room. He shuffled through some parchments until he took out two. "This is a certificate legitimizing your birth." He said, handing Kenshin a worn piece of parchment that had words written in black ink stating his full name, his description, and the names of his parents. "This is an old picture done when you were seven, but it is obvious to see the direct resemblance." He handed a folded piece of parchment to Kenshin, who opened it delicately, revealing a sketch of him and Hiko.
"I remember this. I got that man so angry because I could not sit still." Kenshin laughed.
Hiko looked down at the picture fondly. "Yes. You were very annoying."
The two of them broke into loud laughter. Kaoru watched on, tears threatening to fall at the father and son display. She had not laughed with her father like that since she was a child.
"Well…you can use these for proof…but I doubt it will change the King's mind. He is rather set on having you marry Enishi." Hiko said, getting serious.
"We have to try." She said, standing up. "I'm afraid we have to leave. My father expects us home by sunset."
"Yes…I suppose that's best." Hiko said.
Kenshin stood up and looked at his father with a sad, almost lost expression on his face. Hiko stepped closer to him and pulled him into a tight hug. Kenshin buried his face into his father's gi, grabbing fistfuls of it on his back. "It was good seeing you again. If this insane plan works, visit me. if it does not…well…you'll have to be careful when you visit."
Kaoru was confused at his last statement, but didn't want to interrupt the precious moment. Kenshin pulled away and gave a small smile, his eyes were glassy.
The two were being shown to the door when Kaoru finally asked, "Why did you leave home?"
Hiko answered for Kenshin. "Because the king ordered for the execution of my wife."
Kaoru did not expect the answer she was given. "What?! Why was she killed?" She cried.
"Apparently, she was sneaking money to the peasants, who were giving some of that money to the outlaws. She was indirectly involved." Hiko replied shortly.
She looked to Kenshin whose hands were balled into fists. "That is why I left. We pretended I died hunting in the forest, then after a few weeks, I emerged as Battousai."
She looked to Hiko who looked extremely heartbroken. "I have been trying to fight the aristocracy quietly. But Kenshin…he needed his own way to fight. I did not want for him to do it…but he would have never…" He trailed off and looked out the window.
Bowing low she whispered, "Thank you for helping us."
"Of course." He said gruffly, opening the door to let them out. "Good luck. You two are going to need it."
Kenshin snorted. "Thanks." He then smiled genuinely before putting his straw hat back on.
Without looking back, Kenshin walked ahead of Kaoru, taking deep breaths of the clean air. "It was nice coming back." He said lightly.
"So…we at least have his blessing, right?"
He laughed. "Yes, I dare say we do."
They arrived back to the castle in perfect timing. Her father was sitting on his throne once again, looking at them with a stern eye. Except this time, Enishi was standing next to him with a smirk on his face. Kenshin obediently got down on one knee, making Enishi's smirk grow wider, while Kaoru walked to her father and kissed his cheek.
"You did what you needed to do?" He asked.
"Yes. And I have to tell you something." She said strongly. Kenshin raised his head and gasped. He didn't know she was going to tell him that very day. "Battousai…is not just a common outlaw. He is the son of the duke Hiko Himura." She stated.
The king raised both of his eyebrows in shock. "Are you now?" Kenshin didn't say anything. "Ah, yes, the red hair. Your mother committed treason."
"She did not." Kenshin hissed. "She tried to help the peasants, which is more than you can say."
The king gave him an ugly look. "That is not the point!" Kaoru said loudly.
"Then why does this matter?"
"That is high enough status for me to marry him!" She said.
The stillness in the air was tangible as the king stood up from his throne, Enishi's jaw flew open, and Kenshin stood up and walked forward to where Kaoru was. "I do not know if it was that…wise…to tell him so quickly." He whispered in her ear.
"What do you mean, Kaoru dear?" The king asked very calmly, but they both knew he was at a boiling point.
"I love him, father. I will not marry any other man." She said softly. Enishi growled at her response.
Kenshin looked to her and smiled. "You do?"
She scoffed. "Of course I do."
He shook his head, she clearly did not want to mention the insecurities she was feeling the night before.
"YOU WHAT?! HOW COULD YOU LOVE THIS MURDERER! HE HAS NO HEART! HE HAS NO CLASS. HE IS NOTHING BUT THE DIRT BENEATH OUR FEET!" Her father screamed.
Kaoru was frightened. Not because of his yelling, but because how much he had changed from when she was a child.
"Nobody is that worthless." She whispered. She looked down at her hands, grief overcoming her for a few moments. Kenshin grabbed her hand in support, looking at her expectantly. "Right." She said a bit stronger. "So you have to choose, father. Your kingdom, your reputation as a king, or your daughter's happiness. Which will you choose?"
The king's eyes soften ever so slightly in contemplation.
"This should not be a choice, my king. Your daughter should come above everyone's opinion." Kenshin said harshly.
At that moment, Kaoru knew exactly what her father would choose. "I will leave you then." She said inaudibly. "Kenshin? Let's go. We will help the people our own way." She said loudly.
Kenshin bit his lip and nodded. "You will hear about us soon." He said with a small smirk on his face.
"Come on, Kenshin! We will crown ourselves King and Queen of the Meiji forest!" Kaoru said from the doorway.
"You aren't going to stop them?" Enishi hissed to the king.
"I cannot. She is still my daughter…despite my choice." The king said sadly, watching the two of them run away.
Running past the guards, Kenshin and Kaoru were rushing down the path to the Meiji forest. "I'm sorry, I am so sorry." He said clearly, despite running very fast.
"Sorry for what? My father's inappropriate behavior?" She breathed.
"This life will not be luxurious at all."
"Well, I wouldn't be so sure of that."
"What do you mean?"
"You didn't think I would run off without some money? I had a feeling this was going to happen." She said with a small smile.
"So…help the people? Be my queen of the forest?" He said with a smile.
"Yes!" She cried with happiness.
Together they ran through twilight and into the darkness of the forest to start their fight for rule.
A/N: Well that was a fun project! Hope you all enjoyed it! I will not update until...the week after next since I'm going away next week to visit family. Until then :)
Please review!
MissGoalie