Sorry this chapter took so long. :3 I can't update every day, but every 2 days might work 'cause it is already hard enough for me. xX Please review!
-Ditox-chan
"For a pirate, this Kenshin isn't much of a brutal rogue," Kaoru said to herself as she wandered the deck, watching the crew working busily. She knew nobody – except for Kenshin and his son, of course. However, Kaoru had especially been looking for other women on board – and so far could not spot even one. Kenji was still a child of 12 – maybe Kenshin had not been a pirate all his life. She did not know what to think and thought questioning the boy about it would only lead her to being thrown overboard, so she kept her wandering mind to herself.
She didn't want people to think she was a freeloader – spotting a lonely mop and bucket by the wall, she eagerly snatched it and attempted to look normal, mopping the surprisingly clean floor. She was only swabbing for a few minutes when a tall man approached looking suspicious. Her stood beside her with his arms folded a moment, watching her work silently, a small fish skeleton protruding from his mouth. She tried her best to ignore him.
"You tryin' to piss me off, missie?" He growled suspiciously. Kaoru sent him a side glance and murmured, "Um, no, s-sir. I was just trying to make myself useful."
She noticed how much taller and well-built this man was in comparison to mister Himura. He had a red headband tied around his head, the two ends flying in the breeze. Why he was chewing on a fish skeleton she didn't bother to inspect, but he was obviously a much more pushy man than Himura. He was surprisingly thin, had a lot of bandages around his waist and palms, and obviously had not taken a liking to the scrawny stowaway.
Kaoru feigned courage while slowly putting the mop in the bucket and pushing it back against the wall. She spun around and faced him with the most threatening expression she could come up with, "Tell me how I might be of annoyance to you when I'm just trying to help mister Himura!"
He glared at her a moment before reply. "I washed these floors twenty minutes ago and it wasn't volunteer work." He studied her a moment before adding, "Who are you and why are you on this ship?"
She stepped back and smiled. "My name is Kamiya Kaoru. Your crew rescued me."
He must've inhaled pretty deeply because the fish skeleton in his mouth sucked in and he began to choke on it. She watched him sputter uneasily, not sure on whether he was mocking the truth or simply couldn't believe it.
It took him a good couple minutes to recover. He relaxed and sighed, glaring at her again while spitting the skeleton from his mouth off to the side. "What kind of prank are you trying to pull?"
She put her hands on her hips and snarled, "This is no prank! I'm telling the truth!"
He raised a fist to her face and started to mumble out a sentence, but was abruptly interrupted. His head suddenly shot backward as he began to scramble in place with his spine being bent in the opposite direction. Kenji had seized one of the long ends of his headband and pulled it down to make the man spasm in place. Kenji sneered and remarked, "She's right. Dad had one of the crew members rescue her last night."
Kenji released the bandana, folding his arms with a grin. "Toots, this is Sagara Sanosuke, otherwise known as Zanza on the streets back in the city."
Kaoru gaped at the man cluelessly and shrugged. "Zanza? Never heard of him..."
Sanosuke instantly leapt up and glared into her face. "What do you mean? Everyone's heard of Zanza the Fight Merchant!" He stepped back and pouted off to the side in silence a moment while Kenji began to snicker deviously at the rogue.
"Sano, shaddup. She's gonna be on this ship a while, so you guys might as well get along, right toots?" He gave the woman a friendly wink and edged towards her with a wide grin. Kaoru stepped back uneasily and casted her glance off to the side. The sun was now setting – a beautiful sight over the ocean. Sano and Kenji began to argue and fight over Sano's claim of being famous, Kaoru edged away, lulled by the beauty of the setting sun, leading her to the bannister of the edge of the boat as she stood and watched it in awed silence.
The ship grew quiet as most of the crew finished their work and went inside, including Kenji and Sano. Kaoru was left by her lonesome on the deck, adoring the scenery. She had never seen the sunset from the seas before – she had never had the time to look and adore it. She heard soft footsteps behind her – it took her a moment to realize that captain Himura was now standing next to her, leaning on the bannister and gazing at the sunset as adoringly as she was.
"Oh... Mister Himura, hello..." She murmured with a smile.
"Sunsets are beautiful, aren't they?" He did not even glance her way, eyes focused out into the west. Seagulls cawed and flew overhead, soaring into the distance without a destination or a purpose. She wondered how this man always had time to spare when he had a naughty sun running amok and a ship to care for, yet he was always there when there was no one else.
"They are," Kaoru answered cheerfully. "Mister Himura-"
"You make me sound old. Keep it to plain 'Kenshin,' alright?"
She nodded, slightly surprised. "Alright then, Kenshin... I hate to peer into your history, but I've been wondering all day long... exactly how old are you and why do you own this ship? You've got to be at least twenty..."
Kenshin looked at her and smiled. "Why all the sudden questions, Miss Kaoru? I suppose you'll learn all about my ship and I soon enough if you stay here, that you will."
Kaoru blinked. "Did he just call me 'miss'? I've got to be younger than him, though..." She smiled cautiously and looked out at the ocean. "I would really like to know, Kenshin. I don't want to be riding a ship I know nothing about."
The pirate sighed and nodded. "I suppose the time to learn is now or never, that it is. Fine then, I shall tell you my story, Miss Kaoru, but I must warn you... it is not a fairytale.
"This, Miss Kaoru, is reality."
Well that was fun.. Chapter 3 done, yaaaay! Sorry it took so long – I spent the last two days at Lendra-chan's house so I haven't been able to write until now when it is almost midnight! Xx; Chapter 4 will be updated in the next couple days! PLEASE REVIEW! 3
-Ditox-chan