Sweet Mistake
Shakin'
Seabreeze
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A/N: 6 reviews on the first day! That's exciting. Thanks very much, everyone.- - - - -
Disclaimer: I never owned him before, but today I own Rurouni Kenshin.
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Disclaimer: Oh, come on, just kidding.
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Kaoru dimly heard her door open and someone step inside, but whether they were dangerous or not, she didn't care. She was still asleep. As long as they didn't disturb her, she wouldn't attack.
Fortunately, her visitor was friendly. Unfortunately, he was there to wake up her.
"Miss Kaoru?" the calm voice inquired. Kaoru scowled and tore the blankets further over her head, grumbling. The voice paused, then persisted. "Miss Kaoru? I have something to tell you."
"Could it wait until I'm actually awake????" Kaoru snarled. Kenshin leaned back slightly, surprise lighting up his violet eyes. She was a nice enough girl during the day, but try to wake her up from her sleep, and she'd take a large bite out of you.
"I think its something you'll be glad to hear, that I do." Kenshin replied. Kaoru groaned aloud. WHY oh why did he have to be so kind? She threw the blankets off her head and sat up.
"What is it?" she asked groggily. Kenshin smiled, glad to have her attention.
"Your first session as my student taught me two important things. I learned that you have an enormous amount of talent, and I learned that you do not yet have enough strength or endurance to perform at your best. I thought to myself that I must build up those assets that you lack, but I know that attempting this on my own would take time."
Kaoru yawned and ran fingers through tangled, coal black hair.
"So I have decided to sign you up for dance classes at the studio in Tokyo." Kenshin beamed upon giving this information, and Kaoru froze, fingers partially through her hair. Her sleepy eyes widened and she stared at her teacher. Kenshin sat at the foot of her bed, still smiling.
"Kenshin. . . you mean. . .?" she breathed in a question. Kenshin chuckled.
"Yes, Miss Kaoru. You're signed up for ballet classes. Your first class is this afternoon, at 5:30." Kaoru could only stare at her beloved teacher in shock for several moments. Kenshin took this opportunity of silence to continue. "I called the owner of the studio, and asked him if he thought that dance would increase strength and endurance. He said not only that, but it would increase flexibility and concentration. He also said it was no problem that a girl your age is just beginning dance; you're in beginning teen ballet." Kenshin beamed again. Kaoru stared at him for a few moments more before throwing her arms around his neck in a massive hug. Surprised, Kenshin froze, before awkwardly patting her back. Kaoru's thank you's bubbled out of her lips so quickly that Kenshin missed 80% of what she said, and it wasn't until a few moments later did Kaoru realize the entire situation was awkward. She and Kenshin. . . on her bed. . . hugging intimately. This would not do.
Hastily, Kaoru pulled back, blushing.
"Gomen nasai," she said sheepishly, nimble fingers braiding her long hair over her right shoulder nervously. "I just. . . dance? Really, Kenshin? How will I ever repay you? My debt grows each day!" Kenshin held up a hand to stop her.
"As your sensei, it is my duty to do whatever I can to make you the best student you can be. Dance has many advantages. If it will bring you closer to the best Kamiya Kasshin student, then it is within my job description."
"Except for the fact that I don't pay you," Kaoru countered. "And I live on your property and eat your food and wear clothes you bought me and-" Kenshin's palm covered her mouth to stem the words.
"And you work off your debt daily by doing chores." He removed his palm.
"Isn't that sort of like slavery?" Kaoru demanded, guilt once again consuming her. To her surprise, Kenshin laughed.
"Its not slavery, as you are not required to work and can leave whenever you wish." He replied. "As I have said before, Miss Kaoru, you owe me nothing. If you feel you must work off debt, then I will allow you to. Can this be our last discussion of it? We seem to talk ourselves in circles, that we do." He smiled gently, and Kaoru swallowed.
"Oh, Kenshin, I feel like I'm leeching off of you. . ."
"I finally have someone to pass the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu on to. That is a greater gift than you can understand."
". . .alright, we won't talk about this anymore. But I'm going to do my chores everyday, and when I get a job, I'm going to give you part of my paycheck!" Kaoru insisted.
"If that is what you want."
"It is." Kaoru said firmly, crossing her arms. Kenshin smiled.
"All right, then. Now get ready, Miss Kaoru, we've got some training to do after breakfast."
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At 4:45, Kenshin stopped Kaoru from doing the laundry and told her it was time to go.
"Already?" Kaoru asked nervously, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Kenshi nodded.
"We have to get you some dance clothes. Your dance teacher said she'd help you."
"Oh," Kaoru said. She stood slowly, brushing the dirt off her pants. She raised her face to look at Kenshin, completely apprehensive.
"Come on, Miss Kaoru, there's nothing to be nervous about." Kenshin smiled that irresistible smile once again, and Kaoru had no choice but to follow him to his car.
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When they arrived at the studio Kaoru had seen the other day, she noticed a tiny dance shop to its right. Kenshin parked in front of it (the parking lot was virtually empty), and looked at Kaoru after turning off the ignition. She was nervously biting her bottom lip and- there was no way he could deny it- she looked irresistibly cute. He let his long red bangs cover the expression on his face and got out of the car.
'It is not good for sessha to think in such a way, that it is not,' he scolded himself. Kaoru met him in front of his car and smiled distractedly. Kenshin motioned for her to go ahead of him into the shop, and he followed. Once inside, they were both greeted by a small, skinny woman with dyed-blonde hair. Her eyes were huge and expressive and very, very excited for a woman of her age.
"You must be Kaoru and Kenshin!" she exclaimed, reaching out an older hand for them to shake. Kenshin reached over Kaoru's shoulder to shake the woman's hand, as Kaoru had reacted by only staring.
"Yes," Kaoru said, shaking herself out of her surprise. She held out her hand and shook the woman's. "Will you be teaching me?"
"Yes! You may call me Miss Gina,"
"Nice to meet you, Miss Gina," Kaoru replied politely. Kenshin nodded in agreement.
"Yes, we're very glad you're taking her on." He said. Miss Gina turned her attention to Kenshin, eyes wide.
"And what relationship do you have with Miss Kaoru? On the phone I figured you were her brother, but there's no way you two are related. Are you her boyfriend?"
Kaoru immediately blushed and choked, eyes watering as she tried to portray without words that it wasn't true. Kenshin, on the other hand, smiled calmly.
"Miss Kaoru is my student. She is the only heir to the Kamiya Kasshin style." He said. Miss Gina's eyes widened (if it was possible) further, and she turned her attention back to Kaoru.
"So you're a swordswoman? That's impressive! From what I know, your kind is dying out in Tokyo."
"They're dying out in all of Japan," Kenshin replied. "But there are a few who truly appreciate the art of the sword. He put a hand on Kaoru's shoulder to show that he believed Kaoru was one of them. Miss Gina smiled and took Kaoru's arm.
"All right then! Let's get some dance clothes for you!"
"Is there a dress code?" Kaoru asked as she was led towards the leotards. Miss Gina nodded.
"Solid colored leotard, tights, ballet slippers, and a skirt, if you like. Go on, pick out a leotard."
Kaoru turned her eyes to the wrack of leotards in every color imaginable. She turned the wrack to the part that had all of the smalls, and grabbed a black one, a pink one, and a soft yellow one. Miss Gina had left her for a moment and returned with two pairs of tights. Kaoru tried them all on with the tights, and decided the yellow one was the most comfortable. When she came out, she felt entirely naked- in nothing but dance tights and a leotard.
"What size shoe do you wear?" Miss Gina asked.
"6 ," Kaoru replied, heading over to the wrack with skirts. They were translucent, but it was definitely better than nothing. The first one that matched- pink with light yellow and orange flowers- she pulled off the wrack and hanger, and wrapped around her waist. When she was done, she looked up to see Kenshin watching her. He smiled, and Kaoru blushed. Miss Gina hurried over with a small box.
"You'll get used to the clothes soon, don't worry." She said in response to Kaoru's embarrassment. "Here," she handed Kaoru the box. Kaoru opened it and pulled out a pink leather slipper. There was a bench, and she sat down to try the slippers on. They fit.
"Now you're ready to go!" Miss Gina beamed. She pulled Kaoru off the bench and spun her, removing the tags as she did so, to hand them to Kenshin.
"Miss Kaoru," Kenshin said as he took the tags from Miss Gina. "I have to work tonight, but Sano will pick you up."
"Ok," Kaoru replied.
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When Kaoru walked into the studio, she was greeted with 7 curious heads turning her way. Miss Gina laid a hand on Kaoru's shoulder and cleared her throat. In the distance, Kaoru heard Kenshin's SUV start up and pull away. For some reason this, more than anything else, filled her with dread.
"Ladies, we have a new student joining us today. Her name is Kaoru."
"Hello, Kaoru!" 7 voices chorused in greeting. Kaoru waved weakly.
"Hello," she said. Miss Gina beamed, and gave Kaoru a slight push in the direction of the barre.
"Kaoru, we start every ballet class at the barre. You can get at the end of the line if you'd like." she motioned towards an empty spot at the barre behind the last girl, who grinned at her. Kaoru returned her smile gratefully and headed over. "Since this is your first ballet class, it may be difficult. But we all understand, and you'll be caught up in no time!" with that, she clapped her hands, and headed over to the cd player. Self-consciously, Kaoru turned to the barre and mimicked the girl in front of her.
"Hi!" the girl said, looking over her shoulder at Kaoru. "I'm Tae. Welcome to ballet class! You'll love it; Miss Gina's great."
Wordlessly, Kaoru nodded. Tae grinned.
"Just do what I do if you get confused. We'll all help out, right, Misao?" the girl in front of her turned upon hearing her name and grinned, nodding.
"Yeah, don't worry, Kaoru, you'll catch up in no time!"
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At the end of the hour of ballet, Kaoru felt like there was no way she would ever catch up. The terminology was all in french and all above her head; and all the other girls knew what they were doing while she was utterly clueless. Miss Gina, Tae, Misao, and the other girls told her it was nothing to worry about; she felt otherwise. The girls left the studio sweating, and Kaoru looked around expectantly for Sanosuke. She couldn't find him anywhere. Frowning, Kaoru checked the dance shop, the three studios to the left of the ballet room, and finally, the studio to the right. Poking her head in, she saw around 15 tiny girls including Ayame and Suzume, a young teacher only a few years older than herself, and a line of parents against one wall. One of them was not a parent, however, it was Sanosuke.
And unlike all the other people he was standing with, Sano was not avidly watching a little girl. He was avidly watching the teacher. Rolling her eyes, Kaoru slid the glass door open and headed over to stand by him.
"Hey, Jou-chan," he said without looking at her. She bristled at the old nickname, but he laid a lazy arm across her shoulders. Kaoru looked at his point of interest; the teacher couldn't have been more than 21 or 22. Wavy brown hair hung down her to her upper back and was held out of her eyes with a purple headband; and bright green eyes sparkled as she taught the little girls. A light green leotard matched her eyes, and a purple skirt floated lightly whenever she moved. Kaoru noticed that she taught in the ballet shoes known as pointe shoes, and that the little girls tried in vain to move exactly like their lovely young teacher. Kaoru smirked at Sano until he looked at her.
"What?" he asked, not wasting a second before he was staring at the young woman again.
"Wonderful, girls! You danced beautifully today! Remeber to practice for class next week, all right?" the teacher had an almost childish voice, and Kaoru noticed the smallest of smiles tugging on Sano's lips. She shook her head and dragged him over to the woman.
"KAORU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Ayame and Suzume yelled in unison, making her cringe. She giggled and bent, lifting each girl in a hug.
"Well, hello. Are you Ayame and Suzume chans' sister and brother?" the teacher asked, smilng at Kaoru and Sano. Kaoru shook her head.
"No, I'm their neighbor. Sano-"
"I'm her sensei's best friend," Sano interrupted, as if this was an impressive masculine statement. He held out his hand to her. "Sanosuke Sagara."
"Magdaria Shougo," the teacher answered, taking his hand delicately. She seemed slightly unimpressed with Sano.
"So," Kaoru interrupted, wanting to give Sano time to recover, "do you wear those all the time to teach?" she pointed at Magdaria's pointe shoes. Magdaria subconsciously tappedÿher left shoe on the ground as she answered.
"These? Oh, no. I only wear them when I'm teaching advanced classes, and when I'm dancing myself. I usually wear slippers like the girls have on, but they beg me to wear these. I figure its good to give them something to aspire to, you know?" Magdaria smiled at Kaoru. "I notice you're in slippers as well. Do you take ballet?"
"First class today," Kaoru replied, embarrassed. "I'm terrible, though."
"The first class is always the hardest, especially if you join later in the year. Don't worry, you'll do fine." Magdaria smiled at Kaoru, and she smiled back. "Well, it was nice meeting you all! I'll see you next week, Ayame-chan and Suzume-chan."
Ayame and Suzume tackle-hugged her, and Sano smiled hopefully at her.
"See you around. . ." he said, but she had been distracted by some of the other little girls. Kaoru poked him in the side.
"Come on, Sano, lets get home," she said impatiently, Suzume sitting on her shoulders and Ayama grasping one of Sano's hands. He scowled, looking away from Magdaria.
"Yeah, all right."
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A/N: Kaoru's teacher is based off one of my old dance teachers. She was about 50, but overly excited about just about EVERYTHING. She was so much fun. I picked the name Gina because its both Japanese and American. Not because its my friend's name. looks around suspiciously ALSO- several important notes:-forgive the typos and misspellings, for some reason Word won't work on my computer, so I have to use wordpad and thus can't spell check.
-sorry that I haven't updated in YEARS! I've got the entire story planned out, though, and its gonna KICK BUTT so get excited :)
-sorry also about the crappy formatting. wordpad would also not work, so I had to use text. anyone know how I can fix formatting with text? html?
-I'd kill to be able to dance en pointe. I've wanted to for forever, but only recently got my butt into ballet class. sighs, then glares at RK-128 and kicks her several times in jealousy
Thanks to:
RK-128 - Actually, while the session was intense, it was nothing extraordinary. Like, we could've handled it. We'd be exhausted at the end, but we wouldn't have hyperventilated like Kaoru did. Its just that, as a stripper, the only exercise she ever got was, well. . . stripping. She may have had a nice body, but she was completely out of shape. And thanks, as usual, for being such a fan. Oh, I'm sorry, a "female fanboy". LOL. Gee, what part of that doesn't make sense? Also. Your new nickname? "Wake up Call".
. . .merrrrrrrr.
Celesta1 - Aww, don't cry over my stories! They're not THAT good! If you get that excited over mine, I dunno how you'd react to some of the really, really amazing ones out there. Either way, thanks so much for the support!
Mika - I'd be overjoyed if I met a guy remotely like Kenshin. And yeah, the love life. . . I'm workin' on it. Thanks for reading
Saitan's daughter - One more word: THANKS! LOL. You make me giggle.
Koishii Sweet - that's one way of looking at it- no matter what I do to her, everyone's gonna hate her. sigh Kinda sucks for poor Tomoe, does it not? Aw, too bad! Thanks for reviewing.
Hotguylover - your username cracks me up. And sorry I took so long! I didn't mean to, I promise! Thanks much for reading and reviewing.
XxSilentxDreamerxX - I would've updated every week during the school year, its just that I got so busy. . . but I love this story, so I'm going to try to keep it up weekly or bi-weekly if I can this summer. Thanks for readin'!