Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin which is probably a good thing…anyway; Watsuki owns Rurouni Kenshin and it should be kept that way! On with the story! Remember, this is Misao's POV.

Put a Smile on your Face

He was always cold and heartless. Or…that was the front that he put up. No one ever really knew what he was truly like…and he wanted it to be kept that way. He had never cracked a smile or laughed; he was quiet and liked to be alone. He treated everyone the same…he made no exceptions. But I plan to change that! I will make Aoshi-sama smile; I'll even make him laugh! I'll even try to help him fall in love…

It was exactly two years after that whole Shishio incident and I was now a legal adult. No one could call me a kid anymore! I realized Aoshi-sama wasn't the enemy…he had just gotten colder. He stayed now at the Aoi-Ya with myself and the rest of the Oniwabanshu, who were actually ex-Oniwabanshu. This seemed to lighten him a bit…he talked a bit more at least. Or…I thought he did or maybe I'm just too busy talking myself to notice that he has been talking a bit more to the rest of us.

I straightened out my Shinobi outfit and flipped my braid over my shoulder as I opened the door to my room and walked out into the hall, stretching my arms, a wide smile plastered on my face. I sort of skipped down the hall and down to stairs to find no one there. I blinked and looked around. I ran to various rooms and such but found no one. "Where is everyone?" I asked myself rather confused to put it bluntly. "I've checked every room, except for…Aoshi-sama's." I looked up at the walkway upstairs from the bottom level floor and saw at the end of the hall…right next to my room, was Aoshi-sama's room, with his door closed like always. I shrugged a bit and ran back upstairs, slowing to a walk as I began to walk to the end of the hall.

It seemed to get darker as I went along but that's also because there were no windows for the bright sun to pour through. It was also mid-day and I figured everyone went out or something and just didn't bother to tell me since I had slept in later than usual today. I walked up to his door and took a deep breath. I paused and exhaled, blinking some more. Why did I take a deep breath? I'm just going to see if he's home…I sighed and raised my hand and then lowered it to knock. But instead of knocking on his door and making noise, my fist made no noise as it softly knocked on what strangely felt a lot like clothing. I looked up to Aoshi-sama who was now standing in front of me. I quickly lowered my hand and smiled brightly at him. "Ohayo, Aoshi-sama!" I said happily as he just nodded a bit and walked past my down the hall. I sighed again and walked after him. "Where is everyone?" I asked, following him into the kitchen where, as usual, he was making his tea.

He didn't look back at me or anything; he just continued to make his tea. At least he had the decency to talk to me. "They went out," he said simply and said nothing more. Just as I had suspected, too!

I nodded a bit to him and watched his back as he made the tea. "Oh, I thought so. So, what are you doing today, Aoshi-sama?" I asked curiously hoping he had a simple answer like, 'I was going to stay home' or 'I was just going to go for a walk'. But that wasn't Aoshi-sama so that wasn't his answer.

His didn't even answer my question; he answered it with a question, which was completely off topic, mind you! "Would you like some tea, Misao-chan?" he asked as he poured himself some.

I groaned, "No, I don't want any. Aoshi-sama, will you please just answer my question?" I pleaded and tried to have the cutest, innocent look possible. He turned around holding the cup in his hands and watching me. It didn't work of course. Nothing worked on the Okashira. He continued to stare. Why didn't he say anything? Why didn't he even walk past me? Why did he have to stare at me with that icy gaze that I found myself getting lost into regularly…like now.

There was no denying that there was an attraction between us and I've heard of people having relationships with their sensei's, so why can't I? Besides the fact that we're ten years apart…but that doesn't really matter to me, anyway and it shouldn't to Aoshi-sama either now that I'm an adult. Okina and everyone even teased me about Aoshi-sama sometimes and to tell you the truth, it bugged me. I still loved him…I always would. That could never change. No matter how he used to treat me when he wanted to kill Himura, I would always love him.

"I'm not doing anything today," he stated and then just as I had suspected walked past me and out of the kitchen to go back upstairs to his room. I groaned and leaned against the wall, sliding down it some but not all the way so that I was sitting.

"Why does he have to be so difficult?" I asked myself; frustrated that he was always so difficult! "Well I don't care anymore and I'm going to take him out today! And today, Aoshi-sama will smile!" I shouted triumphantly, standing up again and punching my fist in the air.

Unbeknownst to me, Okon had just walked in and was stopped in her tracks, staring at me like I was crazy. Which I was…but wouldn't admit to. "Right. Misao-chan, you're not going to get him to smile. Not today, not ever." She said with a shake of her head as she put down some tofu and other such things that she needed for dinner tonight.

I shot Okon a glare and placed my hands on my hips stubbornly as I so often did. "I will get him to smile!" I said and then ran out of the kitchen and up to his room. I walked quickly down the hall and rapped on his door in a quick manner as I tapped my foot impatiently. I heard a, 'Come in' from inside and I slid the door open and walked in stopping in front of the reading man, hands on my hips again. "Get up, Aoshi-sama. We're going out." I said still standing there.

He looked to me as if I was crazy. Why was everyone doing that today! Besides the reason that it was true! "I don't feel like going out today, Misao-chan. You can go out with Okina or someone." He said and then his gaze left me and returned to his book. He acted as if I wasn't there anymore.

"No, Aoshi-sama. I want to go out with you today, so get up," I said knowing this wasn't the best way to persuade Aoshi-sama to go with me but hell, I am stubborn. "We can just go for a walk or something. Please, Aoshi-sama?" I pleaded and once again tried to have the cute, innocent look that I knew wouldn't fool him because he was Okashira and I just couldn't fool him.

He was getting agitated now. Which was not the best thing at all; in fact, it was probably the worst thing. He set his book down and stood up, looking down at me, the little ninja girl. His eyes were cold and icy; they didn't even show a hint of happiness or comfort! "Leave, Misao," he said not even bothering to call me by a proper name. "I'm not going out today…" he said and continued to stare at me. He wasn't glaring, just giving me a cold look which I remembered easily from the past.

Never show your face in front of me again…

I quickly spun on my heel and ran out and into the room next door, slamming the door shut. I sat down on my futon and sighed angrily. I would not allow tears to escape. He wouldn't get to me. Not again. I clenched my fists and glared at the ground. I will get him to smile. I finally relaxed my body and unclenched my fists, laying back on my futon and staring at the ceiling, still angry but a bit more relaxed. I replayed scenarios over and over again in my head of how I could get him to smile. They all ended up to be tragic endings with him hating me or something along those lines. And those eyes…glaring at me. I bit my lip hard and felt a small whimper in the back of my throat. "Do not cry, Makimachi Misao!" I shouted as I sat up, not caring if anyone could hear me. I shook my head and just sat there…thinking things over, occasionally laughing slightly to myself even though the laugh sometimes felt a bit forced.

Aoshi had left his room and gone downstairs to put his cup away and as he was about to return to his room, Okon stopped him. He turned around at hearing his name being called and looked to Okon, not saying anything.

"Aoshi, what did you just hear?" Okon asked him, lifting her brows at him some. She knew he heard Misao shout because if she did, he did as well. She put down the rag that was in her hand and turned to face him completely.

He looked at her curiously and decided to be honest. "I heard Misao shout to herself not to cry." He said as if questioning why it mattered.

Okon nodded to him and narrowed her eyes a bit, "Exactly. Now why exactly would Misao shout that? You know that's not like Misao," she said and shook her head a bit as she picked the rag up again and went back to what she was doing.

The Okashira sighed in defeat and crossed his arms over his chest. "She asked me to take a walk with her and I refused. Then, she ran out. That's the only reason I can think of." He said simply and wondered what Okon's point was.

She groaned and once again, threw her rag down. "Honestly Aoshi, you can at least have the decency of taking a walk with the girl! She's been pining over you for who knows how long! You even know that! And you don't have the decency to take a simple walk with her! After all you've put her through!" Okon scolded Aoshi and took some steps closer to him, raising her finger at him.

He was hit by this like a ton of bricks. He hadn't even considered my feelings and looked to Okon for a moment before turning around and walking upstairs.

Okon smiled to herself and laughed some as she got on with her work. She shook her head happily and continued.

Aoshi sighed heavily and knocked softly on my door, waiting outside my room expecting to get a negative response. And he was right…

"Go away," was all I said as I rested my head in my arms which were criss-crossed over my knees which were hugged to my chest. I stared down at the futon between my legs and sighed some. I groaned as I heard the door slide open and someone walk in. "I said, go aw-" I began but cut myself off when I saw it was Aoshi-sama who had walked in. "What do you want?" I sneered and looked away from him, fists clenched and fingernails digging into my palms which particularly hurt.

"I wanted to know if you still wanted to take that walk. But obviously you're too angry with me right now," he said and turned back towards the door.

"No, wait!" I called out to him as I stood up myself, legs wobbling a bit from everything that had happened. I regained my composure and walked up to him as he turned around to face me. "I still want to take that walk, but what's with the change of heart?" I asked curiously since moments before he had been glaring at me.

He opened his mouth to say something but quickly shut it. If he had told me Okon had yelled at him, I'd probably shove him out my room and slam my door shut, angrier than ever. "Well, I figured I needed some fresh air since I've been inside for so long," he shrugged a bit and walked out of my room, myself close on his tail. "It might be interesting, anyway."

I happily walked out of the house with him, not noticing Okon watching us closely as we left. We walked outside and I squinted my blue eyes in the sunlight but eventually got used to it. I smiled up at him to see he was just staring straight ahead with the same expression. No expression. Not smiling, not frowning, not a look of comfort, nothing. I sighed and placed my hands behind my head as he walked into the village. "So, where are we going, Aoshi-sama?" I asked happily.

He blinked and looked down at me. Still no expression. "I don't know. You were the one who suggested the walk…" he said and looked away again, sighing a bit himself.

"Oh, right," I laughed at my own stupidity and looked around the village not noticing all the men ogling at me since I was exposing so much of my legs and such. "Let's just go take a walk through the forest, okay?" I asked and looked up to him to actually see an expression! It was a miracle! Okay, no, it wasn't…I had seen this one before. He was…angry. But why in the world was he angry? Was he mad at me for pushing him to go on this walk and he only did it out of pity and now he wished he hadn't? Okay, now I was thinking too much. "Uhm, Aoshi-sama? What's wrong?" I perked up and waited for his answer hoping it was a straight one.

Aoshi was glaring at all the men ogling at my long, slender, and bare legs as we walked. The raven haired man gripped his sheath which held both his kodachis and all the men ogling me quickly looked away. "It's nothing, Misao-chan," he said as we came to the end of the village where it met with the beginning of the forest. Well, at least he was back to calling me by my proper name. I shrugged the thoughts off and entered the forest, waking particularly close to him. If I had known the truth, which was that Aoshi was angry and jealous of all the man staring and drooling at me probably thinking they wished they could get me into bed, I would have been shocked…but happy. Aoshi-sama did return my feelings!

We continued to walk, deeper and deeper into the forest as the sun slowly slid down the horizon. I soon heard the rumbling of water and quirked a brow as I ran ahead of Aoshi-sama not knowing that he was about to call after me for my safety but stopped himself. I stopped at the base of a mountain and saw a giant waterfall. I grinned foolishly and ran over to it, poking my hand in and out of it repeatedly. When Aoshi-sama came up to the waterfall, I was under it, getting soaked from head-to-toe.

His breath caught in his throat, watching the water pour down my neck and hair into my Shinobi and down my not-so-covered legs. He got courage to speak again and spoke up. "Misao-chan, get out of there…you'll get sick," he said with a small shake of his head.

"So now you're concerned of my well-being?" I asked as I skipped out from under the waterfall and over to him. My teeth chattered together as I wrapped my arms around myself. I smiled up at him. "I-I'm not cold…not at all," I said with a nod and was soon lost in his icy stare which seemed to be traveling down my body and then back up to meet my gaze. We stayed quiet for a while before he broke the silence, which may have been a good or bad thing.

"Of course I'm concerned for your well-being. I always have been, Misao-chan," he said as he slipped off his pale white and yellow trench coat and slipped it over my shoulders. He crossed his arms across his chest and looked at me, sighing somewhat.

I slipped my arms into the long sleeves and found that there was a couple inches left of material. Then again, his arms were longer than mine. I giggled a bit to myself and then hugged myself, liking the feeling of being wrapped in his trench coat. I had never worn it before and I found I really liked wearing it. "Arigatou, Aoshi-sama," I said with a small bow of my head.

He waved his hand some dismissing it, "Come on, we should get back to Aoi-Ya, they're probably worried," he said and slipped an arm around me as he steered me to the exit of the forest. Night had fallen and stars dotted the black sky while the full moon lit it up. I looked to his hand/arm resting on the opposite of my body and smiled to myself. He had never done this before and I really liked it. Well, of course I did. But did this mean…Aoshi-sama was returning my feelings! I squealed some to myself and he stopped, looking down at me with a quirked brow. "Anything wrong?" he asked curiously.

I shook my head. "No, not all," I grinned up at him and looked to his arm which was now slung over my right shoulder since we were standing face-to-face. My grin faded as I looked up at him, the silence growing more and more. The tension rose and I felt my cheeks heat up as his face seemed to lean closer to mine. My breathing quavered a bit as our lips briefly met. He pulled back to see my expression and since it was what he expected, he leaned in again and this time stayed there. His lips were sweet…almost like honey or sugar. As we parted, I licked my lips and savored the taste. "Your lips taste sweet, Aoshi-sama," I said grinning.

He smiled. My Aoshi-sama actually smiled! And for me, too! This made my smile only widen if possible as he shrugged a bit, the smile fading which was alright…at least I got him to smile. "Ai shiteru, Misao-chan, my koibito," he said softly to me.

I could feel my cheeks heat up even more as I obliged to him. "Ai shiteru, Aoshi-sama, my koishii," I whispered back as out lips met again only for a moment. "I think we should head back now. As you said, they're probably worried," I said as he nodded. He kept his arm protectively wrapped around me and we walked back to Aoi-Ya.

When we entered Shiro, Kuro, Omasu, Okon, and Okina were all there smiling widely at us. I could hear them whisper things like, 'I knew they would end up together,' or 'About time they got together!'

Aoshi ignored them while I turned to look at them, winking quickly before we walked upstairs and into his room. The others exchanged glances and then burst out in laughter.

Aoshi sat down and offered a seat next to him and I willingly accepted it as I sat down beside him, leaning up against his chest, his arm wrapped around me. "Do you know why I left you with Okina those many years ago?" he asked. I looked up at him, not sure why he was talking about this at such a time.

"Because it was too dangerous…?" I said more in a question type of tone than statement. I grabbed his hand hanging over my shoulder and laced fingers with him.

He nodded, icy blue gaze staring down at me. "Yes, that's why. Han'nya, Beshimi, Shikijo, and Hyottoko all died. They all died because of me…they died protecting me. I don't know what I would have done if you had been there and died as well…" he said in almost a whisper.

"I would have died for you, Aoshi-sama," I said and was about to say more before he palced a hand to my lips and began to speak again.

"Yes, I figured that but I wouldn't have wanted you to. I didn't want any of the other Oniwabanshu to die but they did…I can't afford losing any more, much less…you. I would die if you died…" he said with a shake of his head.

I blinked and watched his expression as it saddened. I've seen him smile…and now I've seen him frown. Not that I wanted to see him frown but now I knew…he wouldn't hide from me any longer. "I'm not going to die, Aoshi-sama so don't even talk like that…don't even think like that, 'kay? I'm not leaving you just yet, Aoshi Shinomori. You have to live with me for many years to come." I said and nodded happily to him.

He smiled again; it was a small smile, but a smile none the less. He nodded back to me. "Okay. I think I can handle that," he said and then blew out the single candle lighting his room. The room immediately darkened; the only light coming from the moonlight that poured in through the window. I rested my head against his chest and closed my eyes, feeling and hearing his soft breathing as she rested. I closed my eyes and remembered his smiles. They were gorgeous. And I was happy to know that I was the first one to witness them and the first person to cause them. Don't worry Aoshi-sama…I'm going to see you smile a lot more…

Alright, so, whaddya think? It was my first Rurouni Kenshin fic, so it was my first AoshixMisao fic. I just recently became a fan of these two and they're now my favorite RK couple, I just hoped I got their personalities right, which I think I did. Please review and tell me what you think!

Glossary:

-sama: Used to show extreme honor and respect.

Shinobi: Another word for "ninja".

Ai shiteru: A way of saying, "I love you,"

Koishii: Meaning dear or beloved.

Koibito: Meaning lover. Aoshi used it instead of Misao since he's much more serious like that.

Kodachis: A weapon that's a smaller form of a katana. Aoshi has two placed in one sheath.

-chan: Used to show honor. To a small child; "little" and with someone older; to indicate affection.

Aoi-Ya: The inn that Okina runs and where Misao, Aoshi, Omasu, Okina, Shiro, Okon, and Kuro stay.

Ohayo: "Good morning"

Okashira: Head of the Oniwabanshu

Arigatou: "Thank you" (Domo Arigatou: "Thank you very much". Even though I didn't use that, I just wanted to add it in).

Sensei: Teacher or someone above you like a mentor in studies or in dojos.