Author's note:

This idea snapped onto our minds while we where talking on the phone one day. We imagined suits and stuff and suddenly….POOF!!! Came the idea. Hehehe…hope you like this fic!!!

Genre: Romance/ slight Comedy/AU

Pairing: Mainly SenRu…

Disclaimer: If only I could own SD…. :-/

Handshake Part 1: 1898 France By: Hagaki 2. Ozuno & Raei Dagger

It all begins on a chilly, snowy morning in Paris, exactly 6:20 am on January 1898.

A Japanese man donned in a luscious black suit strut around the foreign land. He seemed to be wandering aimlessly on the street, looking for something, which he himself didn't knew.

And no, he isn't stupid.

It just so happened that his Uncle left him here without a map or anything to guide him around this new place…not to mention an unfamiliar city. He continued to walk around in hopes of finding his uncle, but to no avail. He just passed by the freshly made Eiffel Tower, which was barely 9 years old, and sighed. How miserable could he get? He shouldn't have followed his auntie's wish to follow his uncle here in Paris. ..that guy must be a relative of Houdini! Heck, she should have sent for her own son at least. But his cousin was far more a lunatic than him, and he'd be lost on his first day here. Or worse, he'd be lost on their way here. I f only his cousin Hanamichi had some brains, then, at least, he would be enjoying the comfort of their dojo by this time. He'd be sitting on his favorite place, probably making some origamis while enjoying the comfy feeling of wearing his favorite gi. He sighed for the umpteenth time that day and decided to sit at the nearest bench.

But, what was the reason why he said 'yes'? Probably because his auntie promised him that there'll be tons of new things to explore out there, new things to look at, and a new sport called…what's that again? Hm…as he recalled, it was something associated with a rubber ball…hmm…and you shoot that ball into a hoop. Bas..Bass kite Ball? No…it's something like that but…it's an American game, made 7 years ago at Springfield Massachusetts. B..

Ah, Basketball.

And when he heard of that, he suddenly felt like playing. He wanted to try that new sport. And they said tat it's starting to be a big hit among western countries.

Oh, and he can't wait.

He just sat there, staring at people pass by.

Oh, there goes a funny woman with a very plump figure and an equally fat poodle. Hn.

And there departs a fine businessman walking downtown with those leather shoes clicking on the way.

And subsequently comes a spiky haired chap on his way here…haha…

Wait..

On his way HERE?!

'What did I do?!' he wanted to run away, but he kept his cool demeanor and sat quietly on his newfound friend: the bench.

" Excusez moi, avez-vous vú passer un caleche? Je dois ėtne au louvre avant 7 heures…" he said in a language that the other man did not know.

" Sorry, I do not understand." He replied in Japanese, cutting the spiky haired man short on his sentence.

" Oh, I see." The Spiky haired man drew a deep breath before he continued with a great big smile. " So, you're also a Japanese! It's so nice to meet a fellow here on Paris!"

He stretched out a hand.

The other man eyed him firmly. Huh, too friendly. He responded by slapping the other man's hand, which took him by sheer surprise.

" Hello, I'm Sendoh Akira." His smile widened, amused by his gesture. " You are?"

The other man felt reluctant, but what would be the harm anyway? " Rukawa. Rukawa Kaede."

" Pleasure to meet you, monsieur." Sendoh replied, shaking their clasped hands firmly. Rukawa did nothing but stare at his cobalt blue eyes, warm despite the frigid weather, sexy but demure. And that peculiar hairstyle which made him think that his hair was made of wires, not some dead cell or some sort.

" You…were saying something a while ago…" Rukawa mumbled.

" Oh!" Sendoh broke the handshake quite abruptly. " Well, I was asking if you've seen a carriage pass by a while ago…I'm gonna be late for my work at the Louvre. I need to be there before seven."

Rukawa's eyes widened. " You..work at the Louvre?"

He heard the other man chuckle. " Doesn't look like a guy who's artistic, hmm?" He said before explicating another titter.

" You look lost. Need help?" Sendoh offered again.

" Well…I could sure use help but…"

" C'mon, I won't eat you or anything!"

Hell right. But your eyes seem to contradict what you're saying.

" …ok…" he said in a deep whisper.

" Great! After my work at the Louvre, we can play basketball! My dad bought one for me last Christmas!" His newfound friend chirped cheerfully.

Basketball?

" Bring it on."

Rukawa sighed. This place had to be one of the most majestic he had seen.

Paintings were everywhere. And not just ordinary paintings, they were all breathtaking and seemingly real. He could felt he artist's emotion flow out from these works of art, and everything was just so…

" Marvelous." He found himself breathing in once again.

" I see this is your first time here." Sendoh grinned, quite amused at Rukawa's child-like amusement.

" My auntie said this place was beautiful, but I never imagined that it would be THIS marvelous! And…" He realized that he's on his I'm-a-child-so-what-do-you-care mode again. He coughed a bit to hide his exposed side and continued with his normal, composed self. " cough.. …the paintings are quite picturesque…"

He saw Sendoh smile for the nth time that day.

" Okay. Just stroll around while I carry on my job, okay? I'll be back in a jiffy." And with this Sendoh quietly strolled out of sight.

And Rukawa was left alone again, in the middle of the Louvre.

" Sendoh Akira, huh?" His eyes then traveled from Sendoh's retreating form into the painting on his eastern side. And he recognized it to be the Mona Lisa that everyone else was talking about.

The great Mona Lisa, majestic in everyway possible. The masterpiece of the late Leonardo da Vinci. The woman behind the mysterious smile…

Huh. Big deal.

Sendoh's smile was far more majestic than this woman's. Masterpiece? He could've doodled Sendoh's face on a wax paper and still beat Mona Lisa. He would just have to be named as Kaede da Vinci if he did.

Wait…why am I thinking of Sendoh?!?!

He shook his head, trying to get rid of this man's smile off his system. As he did so, Mona Lisa seemed to laugh at his current state.

" What're you laughing at?" He felt irritated. " Hn! Go get that Leonardo and ask him for eyebrows!"

With this, he sauntered away from the legendary portrait.

He then came across another painting, and he tried to read the label with his little bit of knowledge on French: " The Prodigal Son". He was not catholic, so he didn't knew of this story. He just looked at the painting and tried to understand the story behind it.

Prodigal? How could the son be prodigal if he's just crying on his father's feet?

" Monsieur, this is the Prodigal Son." He heard a voice from behind. He turned around and saw Sendoh smiling at him….again.

" Oh…"

" Have you enjoyed the past minutes?"

Heck, maybe if you were with me, and that Mona Lisa didn't make fun of me.

" Adequate." He replied.

" Well…" Sendoh chortled. " If you have any questions, just ask the me."

" Okay then." Rukawa answered back. " Why is this painting named: The Prodigal Son?"

Sendoh was taken aback. " Ah, so you're not a Christian."

The raven haired man snorted. " Of course. Christians are persecuted back in Japan."

"hm…where do I start…"

So passed a few more minutes of explaining the painting, why the story was named the prodigal son, profound explanations of the story, and the Christian moral behind it. They both enjoyed each other's company, and as minutes passed, Rukawa knew that Sendoh was a wise guy, an intelligent person with a great artistically-inclined background. He found himself listening quite eagerly, and he didn't knew if he was listening because he was interested, or because he found Sendoh's voice to be sexy.

"…thus, the painter named it, 'The Prodigal Son'." The spiky haired guy sighed after his long explanation.

" Hmm." Rukawa's action seemed to say 'not bad'

…you're not bad at all…

As they were about to leave, Rukawa dropped something shiny and round. Sendoh quickly noticed it and picked it up.

" You dropped this—oh…" Sendoh was taken aback. " This is…"

" That's a pocket watch." Okay, I take back what I said about Sendoh being an intelligent guy.

" Of course I know this is a stopwatch…. I just…the thing embedded on it is the general's seal…"

" That's from my father. He used to be a general. But I never got the chance to meet him."

" Oh…" Sendoh turned the watch around. " This is perfectly crafted. You should hold onto this tighter."

Rukawa took the watch and stared at it. A general. My father is a general. But I never got the honor to meet him….

" Well, let's go to the next painting, shall we?"

Ten hours seemed to be like eternity. Ten hours seemed to be like a short while. Ten hours with him seemed paradoxical. Ten hours seemed enough for both of them.

What is it with him and TEN MERE hours?!?!

Hell yeah, he can't wait to play basketball. Ooooh boy, he can't wait. He can't wait to see Sendoh's house, he can't wait to be with him and…

Wait, that didn't come out right.

Maybe he just can't wait to play basketball.

" Well, here we are." Sendoh shrugged towards his left side to indicate a three-story condominium. The place looked a bit rugged, but Sendoh's apartment was clean, and it stood out among the others. And through this, Rukawa had a new impression on his new found… clears throat friend. He's not only wise, intelligent, not to mention good looking, he's also an organized person.

" The Louvre doesn't give you decent wages?" Rukawa monotonously asked, looking around the room.

" They actually do." Sendoh replied as he placed his coat on the nearest chair. "But I need to look after my sister on the other room. It's my father's will."

" He's dead?"

Sendoh Akira smiled. " It depends on your perception of being 'dead'." He took off his bow, and that left him wearing only his pants, his long sleeved blouse, and his suspenders. " And this was his last gift to me, on our last Christmas together."

Rukawa didn't dare to say another word as Sendoh took his basketball from the corner of his room. He carefully polished it's surface, and this made Rukawa think once more.

I never even knew my father.

" Come."

Rukawa stared at the place he's at. He's been told that this place was called a "court".

A Basketball court, to be exact.

" Hey, are you going to play with your suit on?"

" Huh?"

" I said, are you going to play with your suit on? That's gonna be wet, you know."

Rukawa flushed. No Kaede. Wrong, Kaede. You're having green thoughts again.

" Oh." Rukawa took off his suit and his tie, leaving him with the same garments as Sendoh's. He fixed his collar a bit to hide his flushed cheeks.

" Okay. First things first. Do you know how to play? I heard that this sport is not yet introduced in Japan."

Rukawa shook his head.

" Hmm…I see. Well, it's just simple." The spiky-haired fella took his position under the ring. " You just shoot. A shot is equal to two points. And a shot made beyond that line is equal to three points. The team who scores the highest wins."

" A team? "

" Yes. A team. They consist of five players. A Center, a Pointguard, A power forward, small forward, and a shooting guard."

" Do they…um…differ in some ways?" Rukawa found himself on professor Sendoh's explanation once more.

" Of course. But, um, it'll be confusing if I tell you." Sendoh walked near the raven haired boy. " But in this case, we're going to play one-on-one."

" One-on-one?"

Sendoh sighed, but it was a sigh of amusement. You're really innocent, aren't you?

" Yes. A game between two people. No teams. Just two people." He grinned as he saw Rukawa rub his chin, as if to say: 'hmm…'

" Well, why don't you try shooting?" He gave the basketball to the younger boy.

" Umm…okay…"

Sendoh sat on the ground. All sweaty and exhausted. Not to mention bewildered.

" Whoa…you're pretty good! No…you're really good! Are you sure this is the first time you've played basketball?!"

Rukawa silently nodded.

" Hoo boy, you're unbelievable, Kaede."

Rukawa flushed again, this time, obviously in front of Sendoh. Kaede…he called me Kaede…

" Oh, sorry. Here in France, first-name basis is common."

"I…don't mind."

…

" So…" Sendoh got to his feet. " Is it okay if I call you…Kaede?"

They both stared at each other, trying to read the thoughts of one another that seemed to escape from those deep pools of cobalt and cerulean. Both tried to look for something that they know cannot be found by just mere staring. A single stare meant a thousand unspoken words, a million phrases enclosed an enveloped in a single contact.

And everything seemed to last in an eternity once more.

And everything…seemed to be enclosed in a single breath

…a single moment…

…a single moment so soon ended….

" Sure…Akira."

And Akira smiled once more.

" I…need to go home now. But, I have a problem."

" Ah, sure. Just ask anything."

" Well, I'm not much familiar to this place, and I only have the address of our house….I…was hoping if you could help me…find my way home…" Rukawa handed him a small piece of paper with some writings on it.

Sendoh studied the paper carefully. " Okay. I'd be glad to help."

Sendoh reached out for a towel while Rukawa took his suit and slung it over his shoulder. While doing so, he never took of his gaze on Sendoh's back. And he secretly grinned to himself.

" Akira…"

He quickly turned around to meet Rukawa's call.

Without a word, Rukawa made his way to Sendoh and gave him a small, bronze pocket watch.

" But, Kaede…this is…" Sendoh stared at the pocket watch on his hand.

" I want you to keep it. " It sounded more like a demand than a request. " As a token of my gratitude."

" I'm not asking for anything."

" But I'm giving that you as a gift." His voice was stern, deep, but amazingly mellow. Sendoh could not find a reason to say no.

" Merci." He said with a grin.

" Huh?"

" Nah, I just said thanks."

" I hope we can see each other again some time…"

Silence.

…

" Of course. And the next time we meet, I'd show you around Paris." Sendoh said as he clutched the pocket watch tightly.

And we shall meet again…sometime…

TBC

Author's note:

Hope you guys like it! Part two will come up, so wait for it! In the mean time, please review! It would be greatly appreciated. .

Don't' forget to sing Ruru a happy BDAY!!!!!!!! Happy new year to all!