Standard Disclaimers Apply.
Chapter TwoKaoru woke up to the sweet singing of birds perched on the nearby tree. The sun's rays passed through her window, making her warm under the thin bed sheets. She sat up and stretched her arms as she arched her back, feeling as if she was on top of the world. She stifled a yawn and smiled to herself, "This is going to be a wonderful day…"
"Oi busu! Wake up!! Time for breakfast!!! Hurry up! I want to start training already!!!" Yahiko yelled, pounding the shoji door
Kaoru smile was replaced with a smirk. She said to herself, "Then again, maybe not." She dressed up immediately while Yahiko continued to pound on the door. When she had finished donning her kimono, she snapped the door open, glaring at Yahiko SD-faced as steam went out of her head. She whacked Yahiko on the head and snarled, "Stop banging the door you brat! I'm already awake!!!"
Yahiko fell to the floor with a big lump forming on his head. He quipped, "Oi busu! What's with the face? Isn't it too early in the morning to look that ugly? Hahahaha!"
Kaoru's face reddened in anger as she prepared clobber her most respectful student. "Why you!!!"
Kenshin suddenly appeared from behind, saving ten years from Yahiko's life. He asked in a sweet voice, "Koishii, is there anything wrong?"
"Koishii!??" Yahiko paled and fainted.
"Mou Kenshin!" Kaoru said, giving him a cute pout. "I thought this was going to be a beautiful day but…" she sighed.
Kenshin approached her and held her hand, "Is there anything wrong?"
Kaoru rolled her eyes and pointed towards Yahiko's direction, "I suppose shocking him about our engagement is not a good thing."
Kenshin sweatdropped and squeaked, "Oro!"
~~~~~
"Oi Kenshin! Why the assembly? Don't tell me we're going to have a post-birthday party celebration. You know, I am always up for that," Sano grinned while chewing on his fishbone.
"Maa, maa, Sano. That is not it," Kenshin sweatdropped. "Let's just wait for everyone before we begin," Kenshin smiled as he sat down in front of Sano.
Yahiko entered the room, looking very smug. He glanced at Kenshin mischievously and said, "I know what this is all about! Hehe! Kenshin and…"
The rest of Yahiko's sentence was muffled when Kaoru covered his mouth from behind. She threatened, "I wouldn't do that if I were you, Yahiko-chan! Not unless, you want me to tell Tsubame that you…" She paused for a moment to think and whispered so that only Yahiko can hear her, "… that I caught you one time frenching your hands to practice your first kiss."
Yahiko blushed furiously as he shook his head violently to show his submission to Kaoru. She let his mouth go as he slumped on the floor, defeated. "Che!"
Sano raised an eyebrow and asked, "Jou-chan, what's with the mystery?"
"Just wait, Sano. Have you informed Dr. Genzai and Megumi to come here?" Kaoru inquired, trying to avoid his question.
"Yes, Dr. Genzai is already on his way but Megumi cannot come." Sano said sadly.
"Why?" Kenshin asked, concern evident on his voice
"Don't worry, Kenshin. It is nothing bad actually."
Kenshin took the hint and stopped pressing Sano. He gave an audible sigh as he stared at Kaoru lovingly.
Kaoru held his gaze for a while, then, looked away, blushing. "Yahiko, aren't you going to fetch Tsubame-chan?" she inquired.
Yahiko frowned and replied, "I can't. She accompanied Tae to do some woman things. Don't worry, busu, I already told them. They are coming."
Kaoru exhaled deeply as she paced the room back and forth to ease her tension.
"Geez, Jou-chan. Calm down! You're freaking me out! It's not like you're going to announce that you're pregnant or something!" Sano yelled irritatingly.
"Oro!" Kenshin fell [rk style], while Yahiko snickered loudly.
"It can't be!!" Sano protested as he felt his brotherly protectiveness rising up. He fisted his hand, grabbed Kenshin's collar and held him up in the air, "Teme!!! Don't tell me you knocked her up without marrying her!!!"
Kaoru fumed, punching Sano to the other end of the room, "Hentai!!!"
Just then, Tae, Tsubame and Dr. Genzai entered the room, shock written all over their faces. Tae muttered, covering her mouth, "Oh my…"
Kaoru felt as if a pail of icy water had been poured over her head. Finally calming down, she self-consciously sat beside Kenshin while fiddling with the edges of her sleeves."
"Tae-dono, Genzai-sensei and Tsubame-chan, please join our circle," Kenshin said as he motioned them to sit.
They all had a serious looks on their faces as they glanced at each other nervously, waiting for someone to break the ice.
Finally, Sano couldn't take the tension anymore. He punched the floor and growled, "Will someone please just tell us what's going on!!?"
Kenshin and Kaoru glanced at each other at the same time causing them both to giggle. This infuriated Sano even more, causing the other people in the group to sweatdrop.
Trying to pacify Sano, Dr. Genzai interjected, "Kaoru-chan, what was the important announcement that you were going to tell us?"
Kaoru bit her lip nervously, silently pleading Kenshin for help. Kenshin took her hint by placing his hand on top of hers.
Tae and Tsubame stared at Kenshin in shock while Sano's jaw dropped as they witnessed Kenshin's display of affection. In contrast, Dr. Genzai didn't seem even a bit surprised. He just smiled at them as a father would, upon seeing his daughter happy.
Kenshin shifted closer to Kaoru and said, "I know this way overdue but I want to announce to all of you, our dearest friends and family, that Kaoru and I are going to get married."
Kaoru never felt happier upon seeing the joyous reaction of the people she considered as family.
Tae and Tsubame approached her and gave her a tight hug. Tae whispered into Kaoru's ears, "It's about time, Kaoru-chan… I guess, you won't need that see-through yukata to seduce him anymore…"
Kaoru and Tsubame blushed a crimson hue as Tae continued, "Oh well, you can still use it for the honeymoon! Maybe you can even borrow handcuffs from Inspector Fujita, if you know what I mean," Tae winked as she gave her own scary version of the Megumi-laugh, "Ohohoho!!"
Meanwhile, Sano slapped Kenshin hard on the back as he chuckled, "I can't believe you actually did it! I was kindda getting worried about Yahiko marrying Tsubame before you two…"
"Oro!"
"…but I guess, you still have it in you!" Looking carefully to both sides, Sano whispered, "Ano… Kenshin, between friends… I mean you had wandered Japan for so long and…" Lowering his voice even more, "… do you still know how to…"
Kenshin clicked his sakabattou as he glared at Sano with amber eyes.
Sano grinned nervously as he waved his hands in front of him to placate the upset swordsman, "Maa, maa, Kenshin… you don't need to go Battousai on me…" Sweat was beginning to form on Sano's forehead as Kenshin's eyes flickered with rage, "…of course you know how to pleasure Jou-chan…"
Kenshin growled and slowly unsheathed his sakabattou.
Oops, wrong choice of words. Inching backwards towards Yahiko, he stuttered, "Come on, Kenshin. Of course, you're the man. Right, Yahiko? Kenshin's the man!!!"
Yahiko looked at him quizzically and smirked, "What's the matter, tori-ata…" Yahiko was unable to finish his sentence when he saw the amber fires in Kenshin's eyes.
Fortunately, Kaoru saw the situation and called out, "Kenshin, is there anything wrong?"
Kenshin's eyes returned to their violet hue as he walked towards Kaoru, "No, dear. Everything is alright."
Kaoru blushed at the endearment as she smiled at her fiancée.
Caressing her cheeks with his finger, he whispered, "You look so pretty when you blush."
Kaoru blushed even deeper as she feigned a pout, "Mou Kenshin! Stop teasing…"
"I'm not teasing. Is there something wrong about complimenting my beautiful fiancée?" Kenshin said huskily as he titled her chin for a kiss.
Kaoru shyly leaned forward, making it easier for him to brush his lips against hers. Kaoru sighed in contentment as she melted in his arms.
~~~~~
"Nana?" Regan called out. "Are we all packed up?"
"Yes, dear," Yuku said as she pointed at their stack of luggage. "Are you sure that this is all we need?"
Regan nodded, "I don't need to bring all my clothes because when we get there, we would have to wear kimonos to blend in. I'm just going to bring my favorite dresses for mama. You know, she might like it."
"I'm sure she will." Pausing for a moment, Yuku asked worriedly, "Regan, are you sure about leaving the hacienda to the servants?"
"Nana, you don't need to worry. I trust Tobe. He had been our loyal ally since I was a child. I know he'll take care of things. Besides, even if the hacienda's economy plummets because of the incapacity of the servants, I don't really care. The hacienda belongs to Marcus not me and I really don't plan to return here. This place will just bring back bad memories. The most important thing is we have enough money here to support my real family in luxury."
"Alright then, child. I trust your decisions."
"How long will it take for us to get there? I'm really excited."
"A couple of weeks or in a few months, I suppose. I am not quite sure but I purchased tickets for the fastest ship here in Spain. The trader told me that it will cut our travel time in half."
Regan was pleased. After a couple of seconds, she placed her finger at her temple and looked thoughtful, "Nana, did you packed all the money and jewelries?"
"Yes, they are in the black suitcase."
"Hmmm… why do I have this feeling that we forgot something important…" Regan exclaimed, snapping her fingers, "I know! How could I forget? Tell Tobe to load the carriage now. I'll be right back!" With that, she bolted to Marcus' study room.
~~~~~
Author's Notes:
Thank you to all those who left a review and even those who didn't
Hana-chan, Midori-chan, Marstanuki, SBR, Ali-chan, Bunny, Gypsy-chan, Omochi, M@ry, JML- thank you! I'm glad you liked the proposal… I've always wanted to write a different yet, waffy one. Thank you for appreciating that scene.
Susan- hmmm… actually Regan's not that bad…
Shiari- don't we all wish that?
Takato Takaishi- hmm… love reading literature… hehehe we took that story up during gradeschool, I think.
JK the Nuriko-sama Worshipper- hehehe… I wonder what I said to make you sing that…
Nameless- thanks for the suggestion… I was actually thinking of a title for this chap.
Dementedchris- I commend you for your insight. ::wink!::
Special Thanks to Midori-chan… my beta-reader. I owe you a lot!
Important Announcement!
~~~Readers… here's the deal… I'll update 'Deadly Family Ties' and 'Surfacing Hearts' 6:00pm Hong Kong time every Tuesday and Friday. I'll try to finish the next chap by then. I don't want you to wait for so long ^_^ …all I ask from you is to please leave a review so I would know what you think of the chap. Comments, suggestions, constructive criticisms and encouragement are welcome.