Chapter one, revised, rewritten, and much much better. 07 March 2004
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The Price of Love
Chapter One: Two Different Paths
Yukishiro Kaoru was on a train to Kyoto. The plans had been made, and the course had been set. Her father's dojo was being taken care of by her little brother; the students of the Kamiya Kashin Ryu had been given two weeks off.
Kaoru was hunting for the father of her child. She just didn't know who it was yet. Her own husband, Enishi, was unable to give her the gift of pregnancy, so he gave her another gift; The freedom to cheat on him, for the sole purpose of impregnation. Kaoru was a bundle of nerves. She didn't feel right sleeping with someone else, nor did she feel good about trying to find some suitable stranger. But she wanted a child more than anything, and she had her husband's blessing. So those two reasons were enough for her to plan a visit to her best friend Makimachi Misao.
Misao's grandfather owned a restaurant called the Aoiya, and Misao lived upstairs She offered a room for Kaoru to stay in, after Kaoru called her with the news of Enishi's blessing.
When Kaoru arrived in Kyoto, she headed straight for the Aoiya and Misao. Misao was already making plans for the different places Kaoru should go on her hunt for a man.
"We should try the place around the corner. Aoshi-sama sometimes goes there on the weekends. I've been a few times, the guys are really hot!" Misao chirped.
"As hot as your 'Aoshi-sama'?" Kaoru retorted.
Misao stuck her tongue out at her best friend. "Of course not, Karou-chan! No man is as beautiful as Aoshi-sama."
"You want I should tell him that for you? It'd prolly make things a bit easier. Instead of pining over your grandfather's assistant, you could be dating him."
Misao threw a pillow at Karou. "Get dressed Tanuki, we're going out and finding you a man... for the night anyway." Misao grinned evilly.
After throwing the innocent pillow back at her best friend, Kaoru turned back to her bags and began to choose her outfit for the evening. *Man hunting, man hunting. Oh Kami, that sounds so wrong. Ooh! This one is hot... Enishi never could turn me down when I wore this one* She pulled the small black dress from her bag, remembering exactly how well it hugged her curves. After donning the essential underwear- lacy black bra, lacy black tap pants, lacy black garter belt, and black thigh highs- Kaoru slid the slinky number over her head and headed to the bathroom. After giving herself the once over, she decided that makeup would be light and her waist length ebony hair would be worn down.
*Damn, I look hot.*
When she stepped back in the bedroom to find her shoes, she heard a low whistle from the door.
"Shit Kaoru, stay away from Aoshi-sama tonight, or I'll kick your ass. You're too damn hot for your own good... If I didn't like men so much, I'd totally be after you," Misao grinned and winked at her friend before laughing heartily.
"Mou! Misao, don't say things like that!! Especially not when we're in public. If you say *That* again tonight around anyone else, I will be doing the ass kicking! You can be soo embarassing!" Kaoru raved at her petite raven haired friend as she put her heels on. "Wow, you don't look so bad yourself."
Misao twirled showing off the little red off-the-shoulder number, she had chosen for the evening's outing. "I know," she replied smugly. "Are you ready yet, let's go!!"
And thus, Kaoru was pulled out of the room and dragged to a bar.
Kaoru was far from shy. Vibrant and outgoing, she normally dominated conversations and was the life at most social gatherings. Tonight though, was different. She had major issues with attempting to pick up a guy she barely knew. She became so nervous, that while Misao went out and got her dance on, Kaoru grabbed a table in a dark corner and proceeded to drink herself into oblivion, hoping no one would notice her. It seemed like a solid idea.
But fate had some other nifty plans.
-----
Himura Kenshin had lost his wife over 2 years ago in a car crash. Tomoe was his life and yet she was gone. He still didn't understand why he was alive when she had to die. She had swung the car around before impact in what was on obvious attempt to keep the other car from slamming into the passenger's side, where a very drunk Kenshin had fallen asleep. Kenshin felt guilty, thinking that if he hadn't gotten drunk and made Tomoe drive home on that stormy night, then she'd still be alive. Even though most of his anguish over her death had dissapated, every now and then he'd find himself drowning in depression and loneliness. He had distanced himself from everyone after Tomoe's death, except for his best friend Sano, who pushed Kenshin everyday to go out and find someone new. Kenshin had even missed his brother-in-law's wedding, not that he had known the boy very well, never even got to meet the girl.
Kenshin had tried dating a few times. Disasters, all of them. The girls that Sano had tried to hook him up with were less than desirable, and Kenshin never spoke to them again. He seemed happy though, and that was enough for Sano to only feel the need to harass Kenshin to go out once every two weeks, instead of every night.
Sano showed up unexpectedly on this night to drag Kenshin to a bar. There was more than just protesting on Kenshin's part. He almost tried to throw Sano into the wall.
"Oi, Kenshin, you need to get out. How many times do I have to say it before I can get it through your hard head?" Sano cracked his knuckles for emphasis.
"Prolly about as many times as it will take me to get it through yours that I'm not going anywhere, Sanosuke, that I am not." Kenshin's voice was very cold, and his normally soft violet eyes had darkened to a hard blue. "I have things I need to do tonight, that I do. I will not let your extravagance hinder my chores."
"Che, Kenshin, you're going to do the laundry. You always do the laundry. You can do the laundry tomorrow, that you can," Sano mocked his red headed friend, as he rummaged through the smaller man's clothes. "Wear this. It's black, it'll suit your mood." He held up a slightly shimmery black t- shirt that would fit tight on Kenshin's little but toned body. He had found it in the back of Kenshin's drawer and assumed the other man had never worn it, and prolly hadn't bought it himself. It was definitely a shirt for a gay man, so Sano figured it would make women flock all over Kenshin even before they noticed the length of his hair.
"Kami-sama, Sano. That will not fit me. I'm not going to wear that. I'm not going with you, that I am not! Must I repeat myself a hundred times!" Kenshin protested as his spikey haired friend cornered him and started tugging the shirt that Kenshin was wearing over his head. "Sano, what are you... Don't!! I'm... not... going..."
After a slight struggle and Sano hitting the wall pretty hard, the taller man had managed to remove his friend's boring shirt and replace it with the metrosexual "thing", as Kenshin termed it. Sano then started pulling Kenshin's hair elastic out. "You need to do something different with all that hair of yours."
"Sano, I will kill you for this one day, that I will." Kenshin tugged the end of the shirt Sano had forced on him. "This *thing* clings, it's too small. And what do you mean I need to do something different to my hair. My hair is just fine, that it is!"
"The shirt is supposed to cling. Pull your hair up higher or something, chicks dig shit like that. Don't make me do it for you, Kenshin, because I have no shame, and I will fix your hair before I drag you out of this house if I have to." Sano handed the elastic back to Kenshin.
"Maa maa, Sanosuke, I'll do it." He snatched the hair tie out of Sano's hand. "Don't touch my hair. I'm now exhausted from struggling with your stubborn ass, that I am. I'll go, okay. I. Will. Go. Get out of my bathroom, rooster-head, so I can use the mirror to *fix* my hair. You will never get your hair to do anything but stand on all ends, you can stop preening, that you can."
"Che Kenshin, we're wasting time arguing. Go do your hair already." He stepped out of the bathroom and grabbed his white jacket off of the bed and pulled it back on over his white wife-beater. "We leave as soon as you're done, don't forget to grab your coat, the long one." Turning his back on Kenshin, he stauntered out of the bedroom, the symbol on his back screaming the word "Evil" at Kenshin.
"That stupid jacket of his tells the truth, that it does. That man is pure evil," Kenshin grinned as he pulled his hair up into a high ponytail before following the taller man out of the house. When they arrived, Kenshin headed straight to the darkest corner. It was the normal routine: watch Sano act a fool and try to pick up every girl around, sit in a corner brooding, and proceed to drown sorrows. It had always seemed like a good plan before.
On this night though, things happened a little differently.
--------------------
Yay for detail and dialogue. I hoped you liked it.
*squish*
Isis
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The Price of Love
Chapter One: Two Different Paths
Yukishiro Kaoru was on a train to Kyoto. The plans had been made, and the course had been set. Her father's dojo was being taken care of by her little brother; the students of the Kamiya Kashin Ryu had been given two weeks off.
Kaoru was hunting for the father of her child. She just didn't know who it was yet. Her own husband, Enishi, was unable to give her the gift of pregnancy, so he gave her another gift; The freedom to cheat on him, for the sole purpose of impregnation. Kaoru was a bundle of nerves. She didn't feel right sleeping with someone else, nor did she feel good about trying to find some suitable stranger. But she wanted a child more than anything, and she had her husband's blessing. So those two reasons were enough for her to plan a visit to her best friend Makimachi Misao.
Misao's grandfather owned a restaurant called the Aoiya, and Misao lived upstairs She offered a room for Kaoru to stay in, after Kaoru called her with the news of Enishi's blessing.
When Kaoru arrived in Kyoto, she headed straight for the Aoiya and Misao. Misao was already making plans for the different places Kaoru should go on her hunt for a man.
"We should try the place around the corner. Aoshi-sama sometimes goes there on the weekends. I've been a few times, the guys are really hot!" Misao chirped.
"As hot as your 'Aoshi-sama'?" Kaoru retorted.
Misao stuck her tongue out at her best friend. "Of course not, Karou-chan! No man is as beautiful as Aoshi-sama."
"You want I should tell him that for you? It'd prolly make things a bit easier. Instead of pining over your grandfather's assistant, you could be dating him."
Misao threw a pillow at Karou. "Get dressed Tanuki, we're going out and finding you a man... for the night anyway." Misao grinned evilly.
After throwing the innocent pillow back at her best friend, Kaoru turned back to her bags and began to choose her outfit for the evening. *Man hunting, man hunting. Oh Kami, that sounds so wrong. Ooh! This one is hot... Enishi never could turn me down when I wore this one* She pulled the small black dress from her bag, remembering exactly how well it hugged her curves. After donning the essential underwear- lacy black bra, lacy black tap pants, lacy black garter belt, and black thigh highs- Kaoru slid the slinky number over her head and headed to the bathroom. After giving herself the once over, she decided that makeup would be light and her waist length ebony hair would be worn down.
*Damn, I look hot.*
When she stepped back in the bedroom to find her shoes, she heard a low whistle from the door.
"Shit Kaoru, stay away from Aoshi-sama tonight, or I'll kick your ass. You're too damn hot for your own good... If I didn't like men so much, I'd totally be after you," Misao grinned and winked at her friend before laughing heartily.
"Mou! Misao, don't say things like that!! Especially not when we're in public. If you say *That* again tonight around anyone else, I will be doing the ass kicking! You can be soo embarassing!" Kaoru raved at her petite raven haired friend as she put her heels on. "Wow, you don't look so bad yourself."
Misao twirled showing off the little red off-the-shoulder number, she had chosen for the evening's outing. "I know," she replied smugly. "Are you ready yet, let's go!!"
And thus, Kaoru was pulled out of the room and dragged to a bar.
Kaoru was far from shy. Vibrant and outgoing, she normally dominated conversations and was the life at most social gatherings. Tonight though, was different. She had major issues with attempting to pick up a guy she barely knew. She became so nervous, that while Misao went out and got her dance on, Kaoru grabbed a table in a dark corner and proceeded to drink herself into oblivion, hoping no one would notice her. It seemed like a solid idea.
But fate had some other nifty plans.
-----
Himura Kenshin had lost his wife over 2 years ago in a car crash. Tomoe was his life and yet she was gone. He still didn't understand why he was alive when she had to die. She had swung the car around before impact in what was on obvious attempt to keep the other car from slamming into the passenger's side, where a very drunk Kenshin had fallen asleep. Kenshin felt guilty, thinking that if he hadn't gotten drunk and made Tomoe drive home on that stormy night, then she'd still be alive. Even though most of his anguish over her death had dissapated, every now and then he'd find himself drowning in depression and loneliness. He had distanced himself from everyone after Tomoe's death, except for his best friend Sano, who pushed Kenshin everyday to go out and find someone new. Kenshin had even missed his brother-in-law's wedding, not that he had known the boy very well, never even got to meet the girl.
Kenshin had tried dating a few times. Disasters, all of them. The girls that Sano had tried to hook him up with were less than desirable, and Kenshin never spoke to them again. He seemed happy though, and that was enough for Sano to only feel the need to harass Kenshin to go out once every two weeks, instead of every night.
Sano showed up unexpectedly on this night to drag Kenshin to a bar. There was more than just protesting on Kenshin's part. He almost tried to throw Sano into the wall.
"Oi, Kenshin, you need to get out. How many times do I have to say it before I can get it through your hard head?" Sano cracked his knuckles for emphasis.
"Prolly about as many times as it will take me to get it through yours that I'm not going anywhere, Sanosuke, that I am not." Kenshin's voice was very cold, and his normally soft violet eyes had darkened to a hard blue. "I have things I need to do tonight, that I do. I will not let your extravagance hinder my chores."
"Che, Kenshin, you're going to do the laundry. You always do the laundry. You can do the laundry tomorrow, that you can," Sano mocked his red headed friend, as he rummaged through the smaller man's clothes. "Wear this. It's black, it'll suit your mood." He held up a slightly shimmery black t- shirt that would fit tight on Kenshin's little but toned body. He had found it in the back of Kenshin's drawer and assumed the other man had never worn it, and prolly hadn't bought it himself. It was definitely a shirt for a gay man, so Sano figured it would make women flock all over Kenshin even before they noticed the length of his hair.
"Kami-sama, Sano. That will not fit me. I'm not going to wear that. I'm not going with you, that I am not! Must I repeat myself a hundred times!" Kenshin protested as his spikey haired friend cornered him and started tugging the shirt that Kenshin was wearing over his head. "Sano, what are you... Don't!! I'm... not... going..."
After a slight struggle and Sano hitting the wall pretty hard, the taller man had managed to remove his friend's boring shirt and replace it with the metrosexual "thing", as Kenshin termed it. Sano then started pulling Kenshin's hair elastic out. "You need to do something different with all that hair of yours."
"Sano, I will kill you for this one day, that I will." Kenshin tugged the end of the shirt Sano had forced on him. "This *thing* clings, it's too small. And what do you mean I need to do something different to my hair. My hair is just fine, that it is!"
"The shirt is supposed to cling. Pull your hair up higher or something, chicks dig shit like that. Don't make me do it for you, Kenshin, because I have no shame, and I will fix your hair before I drag you out of this house if I have to." Sano handed the elastic back to Kenshin.
"Maa maa, Sanosuke, I'll do it." He snatched the hair tie out of Sano's hand. "Don't touch my hair. I'm now exhausted from struggling with your stubborn ass, that I am. I'll go, okay. I. Will. Go. Get out of my bathroom, rooster-head, so I can use the mirror to *fix* my hair. You will never get your hair to do anything but stand on all ends, you can stop preening, that you can."
"Che Kenshin, we're wasting time arguing. Go do your hair already." He stepped out of the bathroom and grabbed his white jacket off of the bed and pulled it back on over his white wife-beater. "We leave as soon as you're done, don't forget to grab your coat, the long one." Turning his back on Kenshin, he stauntered out of the bedroom, the symbol on his back screaming the word "Evil" at Kenshin.
"That stupid jacket of his tells the truth, that it does. That man is pure evil," Kenshin grinned as he pulled his hair up into a high ponytail before following the taller man out of the house. When they arrived, Kenshin headed straight to the darkest corner. It was the normal routine: watch Sano act a fool and try to pick up every girl around, sit in a corner brooding, and proceed to drown sorrows. It had always seemed like a good plan before.
On this night though, things happened a little differently.
--------------------
Yay for detail and dialogue. I hoped you liked it.
*squish*
Isis