Notes: Hey, this is my first try at an RK fic, hopefully its not as disasterous as its future seems to be. Its an AU set in modern times (don¡¦t we all love AUs? Jodan jodan, sumimasen desu ne). I don¡¦t know how this fic is going to evolve, if anyone would like to help me revise my chapters before I post them please do e-mail me (jenny124@yahoo.com). Well, here goes nothing.
Officious sounding voice proclaims: ALL STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY
Prologue A Unordinary Day in an Ordinary Life
"Kaoru, I'm going to be late tonight. Don't wait up for dinner, I'll take care of myself" Sano bristled about, grabbing a piece of toast carefully smeared with jam and gulping down coffee. ¡§Have a good day baby sis¡¨ He grinned and rushed out the door.
"Have a good day too ani*" Kaoru called dejectedly, watching her brother leaving the apartment. She glanced at the mess around the kitchen. When will this vicious cycle ever cease? In about 10 minutes, her younger sibling, Yahiko, will awake and the same will happen again. Thankfully her home making skills have improved tenfold since she started religiously adhering to the book Idiots Guide to Home Care and Cooking (the Fool-Proof Edition) . What could she do? Ever since their parents left them, no, abandoned them is a better description, she had assumed the role of the homemaker. Her older brother took care of the financial aspects of their lives. All of them completed their schooling a couple of years back, well, not completely. Kaoru and Sano both graduated last spring. Yahiko still had a couple of years left to tackle. Was she bitter? Probably, but she wasn't complaining and life wasn't treating her too badly.
They scarcely had time for anything but each other. Life wasn't mundane; they were barely able to take care of themselves. She sighed and pieced together a sandwich for Yahiko, she shouldn't be pessimistic, she should be grateful for what she had.
"Oi! Yahiko-chan! Wake up!" Kaoru whacked her brother's head with a pillow. "Your breakfast is getting cold" Yahiko slightly opened one eye and watched Kaoru storm about his room in frustration.
"Ahhhhhhh!!" Yahiko screamed, jumped on Kaoru and succeeded in knocking her over.
"Why you. . ." Kaoru breathed murderously "I'm gonna get you!" Yahiko grinned smugly as a tickle fest commenced.
"Busu, you've slowed down considerably. . .getting old so soon?" Yahiko smirked as Kaoru attempted to pinch his cheeks.
"For your information, everyone gets older by each passing day. I am NOT slower" Kaoru pinned Yahiko down, rubbed his head rather harshly and grinned. "I got YOU this time"
"Oh shove it Busu, I'm gonna be late for class" Yahiko huffed and pushed Kaoru out of his room "I need to change"
"Fine then, hurry up, I better be able to get to work on time today. I'm warning you, if I'm late I¡¦ll have your head because my boss will have mine" Kaoru retorted half-heartedly. Her younger brother always made her feel light-hearted and less jaded. Kaoru paper-bagged the almost forgotten ham sandwich and tossed it in Yahiko's direction when he emerged from his room, fully clothed and ready for class.
"There's one thing we are all grateful for. . ." Yahiko pronounced sarcastically as he caught the sandwich bag.
"What's that? Finally thankful for all the times your sister has had to wake you up in order to get your ass to class on time?" Kaoru grabbed her lunch, wallet, keys, laptop, shoved them into a nearby handbag and hoisted the combination onto her shoulders.
"No. I'm grateful because ani bought you that cook book. Now I can live each day in peace without having to taste things no man has ever voluntarily put down his mouth" Kaoru slapped the back of Yahiko¡¦s head as they headed out the door.
"Oh, Sano isn't coming home to eat tonight. Do you have other plans as well?" Kaoru slipped into their family Honda Civic and buckled down her seat belt.
"Oh yeah! That reminds me, I have to work overtime tonight. My stupid boss wants extra hours this week because we are getting close to the holidays and you know how popular flowers will be on" Yahiko smirked sarcastically "Independence Day" Kaoru laughed.
"Your boss needs a serious reality check. July fourth? Why would people need flowers to celebrate that particular holiday?"
"I was just messing you with" Yahiko grinned "But seriously though, July is a popular time for couples to get married and we are swamped with extra orders. I think we have to take care of six weddings alone this month" Kaoru snickered as she pulled into the parking lot close to the Science Center of Yahiko's University.
"I never thought the day would come where little Yahiko chan would give up family time in order to sit around and arrange flowers" Yahiko rolled his eyes as he climbed out the car "Just take care of yourself baby brother, don¡¦t overwork"
"Look who's talking Busu" Yahiko closed the door and headed towards the science center.
Kaoru pulled out of the parking lot and checked her watch, there was still a good thirty minutes before she was due at work. Finally, she could take a leisurely drive down to that infernal building. She sighed. Office work was not entertaining. She had a scintillating day filled with copying, meetings and reports ahead of her. She should have realized what kind of job a MBA would bring her. Bleh. Economics was fun, not this. She sighed. Maybe she should start looking at different positions in other companies. Whatever, right? She should be grateful for having a decent paying job during times of economic difficulties.
"I see you're on time today Kamiya-san" Kaoru groaned as she heard the condescending tone of her ever-sarcastic boss, Hajime Saitou. No matter how hard the company had tired to persuade its leading stock broker otherwise, he still maintained the practice of smoking indoors during office hours.
"Hai, I managed to wake my brother up earlier than usual" Kaoru sneezed as she whiffed the scent of Saitou's cigarettes.
"Well, congratulations.¡¨ Saitou replied sarcastically "Let's see if you are equally successful in these" He handed her hefty stack of paperwork "I expect them by noon"
"Hai" replied Kaoru wearily. She settled into her desk, located adjacent to Saitou¡¦s office, and prepared herself for a tedious morning.
"Mornin¡¦ Kamiya-san!" a cheerful voice caught Kaoru's attention as she placed down her ballpoint pen.
"Seta-san! How are you this morning?" Saitou's second assistant looked equally as stressed as Kaoru.
"I think Saitou is upset about something" Soujiro sighed as he gestured towards the mound of papers clustering his desk.
"You too?" Kaoru exclaimed "He wants mine by noon" Soujiro paled.
"He wants mine by 11. Oh. . .¡¨"They both groaned and buried themselves into a world of numbers, letters and formalities.
Kaoru's vision, after four hours of processing lines on pieces of paper, was watered and blurry. She slid the stack into Saitou's inbox with a triumphant smile.
"I see you've finished" Saitou glanced at the pile of papers resting in his inbox. "You may go on your lunch break. Don't, however, expect this afternoon to be any easier"
"Hai" Kaoru bowed in frustration. This man will never let up. I'll get him back one day, she promised herself inwardly. She gathered her lunch from her handbag and headed towards her customary lunch gathering with work companions when she was interrupted by her cell phone. Great, Kaoru thought, if either one of my idiot brothers needs me to perform a favor during my sole break of the day, I'll break his neck.
"Moshi moshi?" Kaoru flipped open her silver Motorola.
"Kaoru?"
"Sano?"
"You guessed correctly!" Kaoru was greeted by a deep laugh as she rolled her eyes.
"What do you want?" Sano chuckled when he heard the impatience and annoyance exhibited in her voice.
"Why can't an older brother check on his baby sister?" Sano replied, mocking sincerity.
"Oh you idiot, I know you never call just to check on me. What do you want?" Kaoru glanced down at her watch, her short break was slowly slipping away. . .
"I'm not that bad, come on, give me some more credit. Anyway, remember our discussion yesterday regarding our home finance?"Kaoru did not like where this conversation was heading.
"Of course I remember. Economy is bad. Hence, pay is bad and we have no money" Kaoru sighed. They all worked just as hard. It wasn't their fault the economy was failing everyone.
"Exactly" The assurance in Sano¡¦s voice made Kaoru roll her eyes.
"What kind of half-assed answer did you find this time?" Kaoru pressed, not really wanting to hear the solution that has graced the head of her brother.
"You know how we've had that extra room in the apartment for a while?" Sano paused "I ran into a friend today and he was looking for a place to stay. . ." Kaoru cut Sano off before he could even finish his sentence.
"I'm not having any one of your friends around the house. I don't care what you say, the final answer is no, no and NO." The characteristics of Sano's friends, well, those friends that would need to find a place to stay - loud, rowdy and often disrespectful - were not exactly qualities that one looked for in a tenant. Kaoru's life was already filled with enough trouble; there was no need to add more.
"Aw come on. Just give the guys chance" Sano pleaded.
"Wait! Guys!? You mean, there's more than one friend? You must be kidding me Sano, that room is barely big enough for two"
"Does this mean my baby sister is thinking about this proposition" Kaoru groaned.
"Sano, I'm stressed enough as it is. I really don't need more ¡¥children¡¦ to take care of" Karou stated angrily while looking at her watch. Great, only fifteen more minutes of break left. Life was just getting merrier by the second, wasn¡¦t it? She didn't even want to speculate what Saitou has in store for her this afternoon.
"Please~~~~~~~~" Sano donned a sugar-sweet voice "Pretty please? If you say yes I promise I'll do half all the chores"
"Sano, listen, I don't want to hear another wo. . . wait, you said HALF of the chores?" Kaoru grinned; her brother had no idea what he was getting himself into.
"I swear, half of the chores you do" Half of the chores didn't seem so bad, contemplated Sano, Kaoru seemed to pull thorough each day just fine. He would manage all right.
"Ha! Rooster-head moron, I got your number on this one. You've got a deal" Kaoru one, Sano zero, she cheered inwardly. "So, when is this arrangement going to happen?"
"Well, I was hoping tonight?" Sano hoped he wasn't pushing the line. He knew it was a bit much to ask of his sister. He really didn't have much of a choice though; his two friends were in quite a fix.
"Tonight!? Geeeez, you owe me big" Kaoru sighed, what a day. . . what a day . . . "Oh, have you asked Yahiko yet?"
"I texted him a message and he replied ¡¥whatever, leave me alone just don¡¦t piss off the busu¡¦" Sano waited for an angry response on the other side. He knew she hated it when Yahiko called her busu.
"That's just great" Kaoru replied sarcastically "I'll be known for the rest of my life as Busu, the caretaker of two twenty-some year-old boys, won¡¦t I? Seriously though, how is this going to work out?" Sano one, Kaoru zero, Sano triumphantly cheered inwardly.
"Well, I suppose I'll give them the address to the house and they'll show up sometime after eight tonight"
"How specific, some time after eight, I can just sit around the house by myself tonight, acting like some moron. Aren't you going to be there? I don't think I'll be too comfortable. . ." Sano butted in before she could finish.
"Kaoru, think of this more like ¡¥extra time alone to relax.¡¦ Besides, They're really nice, I'm sure everything will work out. I can't quit my engagement tonight. Its really crucial that I be there¡¨ Kaoru could tell by the happiness embedded in Sano's pronouncement that he was not out tonight on ¡¥official¡¦ business.
"Easy for you to say. . . New girl?"
"Oh come on, don't make it sound so bad. She's awesome. Works at the city hospital. . ." Sano protested teasingly.
"Spare me any explanation you have" Kaoru rubbed her temples in despair "All right, so, what do I do? Clean up the spare room, wait for these guys to come, entertain them, then feel like a gigantic moron when they don¡¦t laugh at my lame jokes and you come back drunk?"
"Don't be so bitter sis, its not good for you"
"Says the man who tops me in every battle of sarcasm" Kaoru¡¦s stomach grumbled. "Look, I really gotta go."
"Hungry?"
"What do you think?"
"All right, all right. You're the best sis"
"Save the flattery for your new girl. Ja. . . " Kaoru hung up the phone only to realize that she knew neither the names of her new tenants nor what they looked like. So smart Kaoru, she snorted, so smart. Lunch was going to be over in ten minutes, Kaoru stared down at her sandwich, looks like a stress-reliving break was not what fate had in mind. She stretched and sat back down at her desk, wolfing everything down in five and began working again.
The amount of work Saitou dumped on her and Soujiro this afternoon made the morning seem like a pleasure cruise. Something must be bothering this man, Kaoru thought, he was bossy normally. . . but it was never like this.
"Kaoru-san" Soujiro ruffled the papers that he ran through and placed them at the corner of his desk. "You seem agitated this afternoon, well, its perfectly understandable since Saitou has given us so much work. . ."
"I'm okay, seriously. My idiot brother just decided that we were going to take on tenants today. That might be what trigged the agitation." Kaoru smiled as she patted the stack of papers that consumed the surface area of her desk "Yes! And I¡¦m done!" She checked her watch, 6pm, good. Just enough time to return to the apartment and clean up before Sano¡¦s friends arrive. "Soujiro, I'm going to rush out right now. Don't let Saitou see me, he might think of some excuse just to keep me longer. I'll treat to dinner sometime, I promise. Thanks!" With that Kaoru dashed out of the office, leaving a bewildered Soujiro staring at the new mound of paperwork Saitou slipped on his desk to finish before he left the office.
Kaoru folded the remaining blanket and admired her handiwork. The room seemed somewhat clean. The bed appeared comfortable. What more could Sano's good-for-nothing friends need? She filled a mug with orange juice and flipped on the TV.
"Gang busting has reached an all new high. The leaders of an important underground mafia network were almost cornered in a meeting last evening, their code names are Shiroi Tora* and Akai Ryu*. Their true identity remains hidden, however. . ." Boring, thought Kaoru. Crime busting was constantly reaching an ¡¥all new high¡¦. Violence was all that TV ever displayed now, mou, why pay attention to it when it didn¡¦t concern you? Her thoughts were interrupted with the doorbell.
"I wonder who this may be" She muttered sarcastically and headed towards the door. "Hello, may I help you?"
She was greeted by two men of Sano's age. One was tall, muscular, and was graced with white hair. The other was shorter, slimmer, and was graced with red hair. Both did not look too, what was the word? Warm? Cheerful? Kind? Kaoru wished that the white haired man could at least wipe that menacing grin off his face. The hostility in the red haired man's eyes could. . .oh man Sano, I'm going to kill you when you get back, Kaoru rubbed her temples in desperation. The red-head spoke first.
"You must be Sano's sister. I'm Himura Kenshin" He bowed politely.
". . .Yukishiro Enishi, Hajimameshite Yoroshiku onegaishimasu" The tall one inclined his head slightly. Kaoru's mind was swarming with confusing thoughts. She said the only words that came into her mind.
"I'm Kaoru, um, welcome to my, no wait, yours. . . oh goodness, the home that you might, well, kind of be staying in for a while. . ." Great, just great. . .what a wonderful way to make a good first impression. Kaoru smacked herself silently. "I can usually string together a coherent sentence. . . but its been a stressful day, anyway, Please, come in"
AN: Eek, edited it, sort of. Really no big change (except for Kenshin, changed him into the batousai), just a little line added here and there. I know there was no hint of plot in this chapter. . .but, I had to set something up and get this idea that was swarming in my head out in the open. This is the second fic that I¡¦ve ever written so please, go easy on me. As usual, I accept all types of reviews ^_~ Constructive criticism/advice being my favorite. I also need some opinions, shall I make this B/K or E/K? I¡¦m really torn. Or I could just be really indecisive and make a huge love triangle and leave it up to you guys to decide. Either way someone will be extremely hurt. Until next time (if there is one) THANKS FOR READING and review!!!
Japanese Annotations
Ani : Used when referring to your brother. Oni san is used when referring to someone else¡¦s brother.
Ane: Used when referring to your sister. One san is used when referring to someone else¡¦s sister.
Shiroi Tora : White Tiger, literally.
Akai Ryu : Red Dragon, literally.