Disclaimer:
Hana's brother: "Hahahahaah! Kenshin! In love with a horse?! This is
better than your 'Kenshin is gay' jokes."
Hana: "Kenshin isn't gay."
Hana's brother: "Pink gi, girlish face... Gay, gay."
*THUD*
*Hana-chan's brother lies on the floor, not knowing what hit him.*
Hana: "Aren't you glad I know how to use a bokken?"
Hana's brother:...................*unconscious*
Hana: "I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. And Kenshin isn't gay."
Kaoru, popping out of nowhere: "I sure hope he isn't!"
Hana: ^_^;;;
To Guadalupe (Jo-chan)
~~ Kaoru's Fairy Tale ~~
4. Three horsemen and a donkey?
That had to be a nightmare... She was alone in a forest with Kenshin and all he did was woo her horse. In fact, all he worried about was the horse. If the horse was tired, they stopped. Kenshin would always try to find fresh fruits for the animal, while poor Kaoru was left to the leftovers.
That wasn't exactly her idea of spending her days with the man she loved. She wished she had never "borrowed" that horse. Not to mention the fact that it was plain weird the way Kenshin was acting. It wasn't like himself at all!
They had stopped for the tenth time that day.
"She is tired." Kenshin said, making goo goo eyes to the horse.
That was all Kaoru could take.
"Mou! Baka! You are such a moron!" And she left, stomping her foot pretty hard.
"Kaoru!" Kenshin called after her, but the girl didn't came back.
'Kenshin... You baka... But maybe that's why he haven't pulled any moves on me... He has a horse fetish. Is that the help I was supposed to get from that book? To find out that Kenshin and I can never be together because he likes animals and not people?' Kaoru mused, as she neared a stream. More than ever, she wanted to go home.
She knelt by the stream and splashed some water to her face. Kenshin was tiring her beyond words.
She could hear the trot of a horse. 'Great... Maybe he is coming after me to apologize.' Kaoru thought, as she stood up again, regaining her posture. Maybe she wasn't a princess, but she didn't deserved to be treated like that! He was ignoring her and only paying attention to a horse, for Kami's sake!
The trot was nearer. 'Oh-oh... I don't think that's Kenshin.' Three horsemen were coming right at her and it didn't look like they were going to stop or change their direction. Kaoru just stood frozen into place looking at them. Each one had a different color. The first one was white, the second was red and the third was black.
She was suddenly swept out of her feet and carried away from the horsemen path... Straight to the stream, where she landed on her butt, Kenshin on top of her. She didn't move for a second, watching the horsemen pass by the exact spot she was standing. Something on the bushes called her attention. It was a donkey. Yeah, definitely a donkey. The donkey put it's pawn to it's lips, asking for silence before it disappeared.
Kaoru finally realized the situation she was on. Kenshin was on top of her... And right between her legs.
"Hentai!" She yelled, kicking him right on... well, right where it hurts the most. Kenshin held his family jewels with both hands. Big mistake. He fell face first on Kaoru's breasts.
"Get off me! You sick pervert!" Kaoru pushed him away from her.
"Orororororororo!"
***
"Kaoru-dono... Sessha is sorry, that he is..." Kenshin tried again, but Kaoru kept walking in front of him, stomping her foot hard on the floor and not looking back.
Kenshin just followed as if he was a misbehaving puppy that had just been scowled by his owner. Kaoru had became an expert in giving him the cold shoulder. She was grateful that he had come for her rescue, even though they had ended in a compromising position. What really had angered her was the fact that he had touched her breasts. Of course, it wasn't intentional, he not even used his hands. But still, he had touched her. He deserved the cold shoulder for being such a clumsy idiot.
"Sessha thinks Kaoru-dono is really angry." She heard Kenshin talking to the mare. "You still love me don't you?"
That was really sickening. What was going on with him? Kaoru glanced back. There he was, patting the horse's mane. It made her even more angry. She should be the one to get that attention from him.
Kaoru tripped over something and fell.
"Are you okay, Kaoru-dono?"
"Yes, I'm fine. I just tripped over this..." Kaoru picked the rock on the floor. It had a very weird shape... It didn't look like a rock at all... It looked like:
"A skull!!!!!!!!" Kaoru shouted, throwing it to the air.
"Look, Kaoru-dono." Kenshin said, pointing at a nearby hut.
It looked like a regular hut, except that it's fence was made of human bones and skulls.
"This doesn't look good..." Kaoru muttered.
"I heard a witched lived around here somewhere. Should we knock and ask for directions?" Kenshin asked, walking towards the hut.
"Is he crazy?" Kaoru ran after him. "Kenshin! You baka! There are human bones! The witch eats people, can't you see?" Kaoru pointed at the fence.
"She has a very weird taste for decoration, that she does..." Kenshin said, thoughtfully. "She might not be a bad person."
"She'll eat us!" Kaoru yelled.
"Ohohohohoho! Why would I eat two skinny things as yourselves?" Said a familiar voice.
At the hut's door, stood a beautiful woman. Her long dark hair flowed around her face.
"Megumi?!" Kaoru stared in shock. "Kenshin! Run!"
Kaoru tried to run, but Kenshin held her by her hood.
"I'm sure she isn't a flesh eating witch." Kenshin said.
"That's not what I'm worrying about right now..." Kaoru sighed.
"Please come in." Megumi said, fully opening her door.
Kenshin started dragging Kaoru and the horse towards the door.
"Why don't you leave your horse outside?" Megumi suggested.
"It's not a horse--" Kenshin began, but was interrupted by Kaoru.
"It's a mare."
"That wasn't what I was going to say." Kenshin glared at her. "She is an enchanted princess. I must find a way to turn her back into human."
Megumi took a look at the mare.
'Maybe she knows how to reverse the spell. Then mare-dono and I can be happy together.' Kenshin thought, hopeful.
"No. You can't turn it into a human. It's just a plain mare." Megumi said.
"Plain mare?" Kenshin's mind was spinning. The mare was just a mare... He loved a horse? That couldn't be true! Shishou always said he was weird, but that was plain absurd!
"Are you sure?" Kenshin tried again.
"Yup! I'm an expert into turning humans into animals. If I say it's just a plain mare, it is."
"M-m-my koibito is a horse?" Kenshin stuttered.
Kaoru felt like laughing her mouth off. But Kenshin looked really shocked by the sudden revelation. She felt sorry for him.
"Why don't we go in for a cup of tea.?" Megumi said, almost pushing Kaoru inside the hut. "Sir knight can join us once he has recovered from his shock."
The inside of the hut was really clean and comfy. It felt like a warm home, what made her miss her own home even more. She missed her 'real' Kenshin, even though he treated her as a child. She even missed Yahiko's teasings for Kami's sake! She just wanted everything to go back to it's place.
"You look sad." Megumi the witch said, leading her to sit in a couch. Over the coffee table the tea was set for three, as if Megumi was expecting them.
"I want to go home..." Kaoru sighed.
Megumi gave her a cup of tea.
"Why don't you just go?" she asked Kaoru.
"I don't know how..."
"Tell me what happened." Megumi asked.
Kaoru raised an eyebrow. That Megumi sounded too nice... It gave her chills through her spine. She was up to something. But what did Kaoru have to lose?
"An old man gave me a book. I opened it and everything changed in my life... All the people I know either don't know me, or they know me as something else. I don't know where I am... I don't know how to get home... And worse! My Kenshin is in love with a horse!"
"Did you pass by Okina's hut on your way here?" Megumi asked, raising an eyebrow.
"As a matter of fact, we did."
"Did sir knight drink or eat anything there?"
"Yes... Tea and cookies." Kaoru remembered.
"Your friend shall be well in a few days. That Okina fellow always does this. He puts love potions into people's tea. But his potions aren't too good. The effects wear off soon."
Kaoru sighed in relief. At least now there was an explanation for Kenshin's weird behavior. That tricky old geezer... She hoped to not pass by his hut again. Otherwise she'd beat him senseless.
"Do you have any idea of how I could get home?" Kaoru asked, believing that the Megumi the witch was wise.
Megumi drank from her tea, peacefully. After a while, she finally said:
"Not a single clue."
Kaoru sweat-dropped. What would she do to get home?
"If that book you told me was an enchanted one... You might only be able to go home once you fulfill the book's purpose. It can be a task... Can I see it?"
"The book? I couldn't find it anywhere."
"Oh... Maybe you have to find it to return to your home." Megumi explained, looking at the door. "Oh, sir knight! Please join us!"
Kenshin stood at the door for a little while. He still couldn't believe she was just an ordinary mare. Why would a mare be that beautiful? He sighed deeply, walking to sit by Kaoru's side in the couch.
"I usually wouldn't let you go away, once you had entered my hut. As I invited you in, you are my guests and might leave whenever you want to. But you should at least spend the night, you'll be safe here. This forest can be dangerous at night."
"We'll accept your offer." Kenshin said, still looking pretty miserable.
'Oh... Kenshin...' Kaoru sighed.
***
Kaoru woke up pretty late in the morning. She didn't know she had been so tired. Her bed was so comfortable that it was almost as if she was sleeping on her own futon back home. She woke up refreshed and ready to continue.
Her talk to Megumi the day before had built some confidence in her. She would find her way back home. She heard voices in the other room.
"You say you can help me find what have been stolen?" It was Kenshin saying.
"I have a magical mirror, that supposedly knows everything. But it doesn't react to all people. I'll give it to you, if you can find something I lost."
A magical mirror that knows everything? That sounded way too perfect to be true. If it was half as good as Kenshin hoped it could be, he'd be happy. The mirror could help him find the treasure. The dragon would be safe. He would be able to go home and Kaoru... What would Kaoru do? She was following him around since he found her at the cave. Not that he minded. She was good company. Now that he knew he and his mare-koibito wouldn't be able to be together, maybe Kaoru could be with him... But that didn't seem fair...
"Find what?" Kaoru asked, walking inside the room.
"My donkey. It escaped yesterday. I sent my horsemen after it, but they haven't returned yet." Megumi replied. "I need that donkey... It is very precious to me. I must have it back unscratched."
"We'll find your donkey!" Kaoru said, cheerfully. "Ne, Kenshin?"
"Kaoru-dono... We were supposed to be looking for a treasure. We don't have time to search for a donkey." Kenshin pulled Kaoru aside and said under his breath.
"I saw a donkey yesterday. I know what direction it went." Kaoru replied, in the same tone of voice. "Besides, we need that magical mirror. We'll be able to save Yahiko if we get it."
Kenshin looked at Megumi.
"We'll find it, Megumi-witch-dono."
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TBC...
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Thanks very much for reading, everybody. See you next chapter! (Hopefully it will be out soon!)
Like chibi-angel says: it's a giving and taking relationship. Reviews make me happy and inspired to write the next chapter. Updates make the reader happy. Review and make the both of us happy.
