Never before had Miryu woken in a man's arms so fulfilled, feeling so blessed and loved. She watched Algren as he remained sleeping, and basked in the afterglow of the night previous. He had more than just taken her, he had totally ravished her, again and again until both his desire and curiosity was filled, while she did the same to him. Such an experience had never been offered to her when she was with the Emperor, where the aim was to satisfy his Imperial Majesty and no one else… And each time, she questioned her very existence… had she come all the way; just to be some toy for a young monarch? But with Algren, she felt truly loved, truly cherished, and she was happy.

"Good morning," Algren murmured into her ear, twirling a lock of her hair around his finger, relishing the feel of her soft body against his. She had ruined him for all other women, he swore in his mind, and only she, could make him burn as she did the night before. All he could say that the experience was… orgasmic. "And there is one thing that I want to ask you, Miryu… Why do you always wake up before me?"

She just laughed, and muzzled his neck slightly. "Captain, I am your bodyguard, and as such, I have to rise earlier than you are," she answered, inching closer for a kiss, which he readily obliged, giggling as he quickly flipped her beneath him, taking full use of his fast reflexes. "Now, you do not want to be late for your reunion with Bagley," she threatened, sliding her arms up and down his back. How she wished that they could remain like that forever, but as always, he had his duty, and she had hers. He had already delayed much time, and should have reported to his superior immediately after his arrival in Tokyo.

Algren acted as if he paid no heed to her words, and continued to explore her body with the softest of kisses. "Why won't you samurai just lighten up for once?" he asked her, grazing his tongue on a particularly sensitive spot, causing her to giggle uncontrollably before moving back up to claim her soft, pink lips with his. He had no desire to see that man at all, and he knew that Miryu shared this knowledge as well. As much as protocol dictated that he should meet Bagley as soon as possible, he wanted to delay it as long as he could. "It's not like he will die of old age waiting for me."

Miryu clicked her tongue. "Algren, this is not you talking," she said, her tongue meeting his between their mouths. Oh kami, why did he have to be so… irresistible? It was as if the gods had created his likeness in a quest to sculpt the perfect man… Those eyes, they seemed to laugh when he did as well, and she was utterly captivated, especially when they were filled with that hunger-filled, smoldering light that she knew was only for her.

"Then what is it, Miryu?" he asked, pulling her closer towards him, making quite sure that a moan escaped her lips when he nibbled on the arch of her neck. Her answer was the slightest caress at the apex of his thighs… "Do that again, one more time, woman, and I shall not be responsible for my actions," he murmured through gritted teeth, pressing himself against her to prove his… point. She just cupped his face with her dainty, white hands and pulled him in for another kiss before rising from the western-styled bed with the blanket in tow to cover her modesty, walking towards her own room across the corridor. Oh, was she going to get it that night…


Within the next hour, Algren and Miryu were already in the Imperial Army's training grounds, only to find it utterly changed, from the uniforms of the soldiers, to the people who were actually training them. In Algren's absence, two German military-men were hired, with their own bodyguards as well, no doubt; however, those men were more like advisors as he had been a hands-on kind of employee. "It's good to be back," he whispered into Miryu, to which words she smiled whole-heartedly.

Before she could reply, they heard an all-too familiar voice that Algren had dreaded to hear. "Algren… Algren!" It was Colonel Bagley. "My God, you're alive, and your pretty little bodyguard, too!" If Miryu were a snake, she would have hissed and delivered a poisonous bite towards the man. Some pretty little bodyguard she was! "You never cease to astonish…"

Algren pretended to take no notice of him, grinning when he saw Miryu's reactions to his words. What he did notice, was the cannons that the Imperial Army seemed to have now. "Howitzers…" he named them precisely. In his days in the American army, he had used them to his full advantage, and knew well their superior range and ability to take down any enemy force foolish enough to charge against them.

"Yes," Bagley replied. "This is but a slice of what we have to offer." At those words, Miryu just glared at the Colonel. Katsumoto would not stand a chance against such weapons, not even if she and Kenshin fought side by side. It simply was not done! "As soon as the Emperor signs the damned trade agreement, he gets the whole package, including this particular item." He side-stepped to show Algren and Miryu just what he had been talking about, a set of shiny Gatling guns, hot off the assembly line. Miryu had seen those guns before, they had been in use during the Bakamatsu once the Kiheitai was supplied with foreign weapons… Those guns were deadlier than any machine of war she had seen, and she took a little gulp, far from the earshot of Bagley. "200 rounds a minute, the new cartridges even cut down on jamming. One of the big-shot businessmen liked them so much that he even bought one from us!"

Big shot businessmen… who would buy such a thing? Miryu asked herself. However, she was not familiar with the business circles, and could not pinpoint a single one who had the purchasing power, and the reasons to support such a purchase.

"I need a bath," Algren commented, looking at Miryu, whose expression immediately changed when she saw the Gatling guns. He wanted to hold her hand, to draw her in his arms, but in the company of Bagley, well, it would not be that… appropriate. Genuinely, he could see that she was worried, very, very worried…

Bagley snorted at Algren's words. "After living with those savages for so long, I can only imagine," he said, in a low voice, so that Miryu could not hear him. After Algren's capture, he had heard from some of the men that Miryu was of high samurai linage, and his distaste for her trebled. "Welcome back, Captain…"