Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin.

Laughingly Yours

by: FadingFaith

Prologue

It was seeping through...the colorless ice was slowly melting and blending into the rich wine, creating in its wake a series of small almost undistinguishable ripples. Just like me...my essence was seeping through my desperate and weakening grasp. I felt lost in a world where I stand alone...brushed aside by others who overlook my despairing plea of help for guilt. They shunned me without as much as a second thought...believing that the world was better...Kyoto was better...naïve fools.

I stared out a black and grey world with half-lidded and glazed-over orbs. The bustling crowd was enjoying a beautiful day. Cheerful rays of sunshine protruded into my view the same time as I saw them. There they were. A couple came into my gaze, one look would tell most people the sugar-coated lie...they were in love, such a wondrous thing to most. However to my unblinking orbs I saw past that into the forcefulness behind both of their actions, Love?

Love was dead in most truth, the couple was arranged by politics and money only. Love had no say in this, when it opened its mouth to object, it was drowned out by cheers and joy of this fake marriage. Love, not so much, after all not a spark of it shined in their tired, weary eyes which had bags underneath them. Love was supposed to be breath-taking...where is it now? Cowering in some lonely heart?

I meet the furious gaze of the so-called husband as he realized my interest was pinned on them for quite some time now. Cold, calculating golden amber clashed with translucent almost dead sapphires, I felt my dainty lips being pulled upward at his silent, thinly-veiled threat, "Moi?"　I mouthed silently. Almost mockingly...almost, maybe I was jealous.

Jealous...me...was I? Yes...I was jealous, not because of their so-called love but his willingness to sacrifice his true love, and feelings for this…this…this mistake. After all I relived in my mind so many times in my mind where he…the cold, aloof golden amber orbs, the gentle, melting purple violet abysses, all of it was mine. Mine. Mine and mine alone No one to share him with, no important politics and interfering duties. Just mine, where my soul can take refuge in his blissful, possessive embrace.

So lost I was in my own musing that I did not register the cold steel pressed against my pale throat until I felt warm liquid. Red...the color of that sticky, clammy fluid we rely upon for a living. Lifting my dead gaze I found myself looking into ice. Ice cold amber...I smiled ruefully, my favorite color. A snarl brought me back again at the situation at hand, his lips were moving in a quiet whisper audible only to me. "Meet me at mid-night sharp. You know where to go."

I shivered at the iciness of his words: as they bit away at me like frostbite, numbing me slowly...numbing so agonizing slowly at my soul...my spirit and my already shattered heart. Understanding that he will never and has never been mine was painful. All so painful to me, maybe my accustomed mask slipped, for briefly I saw a flicker of surprise in his normally steely glare.

Pain...so much pain, it overflowed their senses. Both the kind rurouni and ruthless hitokiri felt the numbness all the way to their soul. A pang went through their heart. One chose to mirror the pain on his beautifully feminine-featured face while the other chose to hide it behind a well framed façade.

Sessha is beginning to regret letting you take over, that I am.

A pause followed his statement, sighing softly, the rurouni continued on.

Sessha understands that our shishou wishes to have his god-daughter marry to someone he is familiar with de gozaru yo. But sessha wishes that this unworthy one does not have to see Kaoru-dono's melancholy eyes.

Ididn't like it anymore than you did rurouni. However you do realize that we couldn't afford to refuse shishous' request.

Hai, sessha is much aware of this; demo, sessha just requests that you would let sessha out to explain to Kaoru-dono, de gozaru yo.

Briefly both personalities snapped to attention when the young girl they had restrained under their sword spoke. Unable to fight off the temptation their eyes traveled to her pale lips; which to the rurounis' horror had tiny bruises over them.

The bastard who did this will pay.

Oro?

Sessha does not recall seeing those on her lips that he does not.

"Who did this to you?" Kenshin was surprised at the amount of emotions the hitokiri offered to show in his normally frozen voice. Apparently he wasn't the only one; both sides were very much affected when the dimmed sapphires that was trained upon anywhere but theirs flitted to them. The lucid, dull sapphires that were once filled with an entrancing twinkle of adorableness that the two sides adored so much was now filled with nothing...a void. Surprised, Battousai lost his firm grip; Kenshin noticing took control and pushed the hitokiri into the back of their minds.

Somehow I found myself staring into gentle violet that made my broken heart leap to my throat; it was so much easier to ignore the pain when cold amber glared but now. Sapphires widened an inch, Kenshin? My mind and sanity wondered. Was it really him? What's more is why do I still care anymore? After all, I've spent days...which crawled into months...trying to forget him. However at the sight of those lavender depths that melted and swirled like caramel in my mind, I knew the battle was lost. Steeling my outer appearances I vowed to not launch myself into his warm and inviting arms which I know would wrap possessively around if I did.

In the end what startled me back to myself was the worried call of Tomoe Yukishiro. Tomoe Yukishiro...the newly and always will be bride of the infamous Battousai and the compassionate Kenshin. Looking up I realized that Kenshin had long gotten up and was already striding toward his stunning bride...striding? No, this wasn't Kenshin, its Battousai. Staring wistfully at the beautiful picture they made I had an urge to barf on her spectacular kimono...I wanted to but I won't for his sake.

In some way I managed to slip away unnoticed by Tomoe. As I picked my way carefully through the bustling crowds of Kyoto I still felt his gaze on my back. A smile formed on my face as I realize that tonight I would once again end up waiting for him under the soft blankets of darkness.

FF: Well this is crap...no idea why I even bother so ya...please review! Reviews makes me feel hyper and hyper more and faster updates. I welcome constructive comments and flames are tolerated seeing as I know I can't write. Anyways those who reveiw gets cheesecakes! Flavour of your choosing.

Mountains of cheesecakes stacked behind her

Random mouse squeeks and knocks over a cake

Cakes wobbling

Uh...Oh...

Over And Out.