Chapter 3 – Mr Red

To legoleasEstelstar – yup! I'm Malaysian but I'll be leaving here at the end of next year.T-T

To battousaichick- - thanks for telling me kaoru's birthdate…I think I'll include the date June 3rd somewhere later… )

To inu-lover-alwayz-n-4eva – it is pretty short isn't it? Heheh….. I was kind of stuck and was procrastinating until I thought of something. But I took too long and still didn't really know what to write so I just decided to write whatever came to mind and finish it. I'm trying to make my chapters longer though

To lily 125 – that's nice to hear. )

Himura Kenshin muttered impatiently to himself. Lately, he was becoming more like an office boy than the detective that he was supposed to be.

Pushing the door of his office with his leg, he handed the cup of coffee and plate of toast to the girl who had ordered him to get her breakfast. Surprisingly, he had complied for reasons that he himself could not identify.

Maybe he pitied her. After all, it was pretty horrible to come back to a house where everyone was lying dead in their own blood. Then again, it could have been because he was barely awake when he walked into his office that morning.

Settling down on his own chair behind the desk, he ate his breakfast silently, aware of the girl's stare upon him. He had expected her to redirect her focus after a moment but to his annoyance, she kept her gaze steadily.

As soon as he had had enough, he snapped at her, "Stop staring…its annoying."

"Don't flatter yourself, you're not worth staring at!" She retorted hastily.

Kenshin was startled but he didn't make another comment. It was much too early in the morning for him to waste his energy arguing pointlessly with his future client. And speaking of client, she probably didn't know that yet.

"Oi, you do know that you will be working with me on this case and just so you know, I strongly oppose the disrespect that you have just displayed," he drawled out in a low tone with a smug grin to match.

He watched amusedly as she struggled with herself, probably to prevent from hitting him. That is, if she could actually touch him. Kenshin smiled to himself amusedly, pleased that this new piece of information had shut that little mouth of hers.

Swinging his feet off his desk, he got up but before he could get to the door, a hand that belonged to the very same girl who invaded his office stopped him.

It was like a suspense movie, the way she stopped him with a hand, the way he surprised himself yet again by complying and the way she was now slowly raising her eyes…..her blazing blue eyes.

Kaoru drew her hand back when he had stopped and she slowly lifted her gaze from the ground to his eyes. When she caught the smug look of his face, she grew furious. No one had EVER treated her that way.

"I will not work with you, not now and not ever!" she yelled and stormed out.

Kenshin walked calmly out of his office after her and told himself that he was growing soft. Before, anyone who dared insult him would be cowering in fear of him whether or not they did it intentionally. But something told him that this girl would stand up for herself no matter what.

Oddly, he had always resented having to be at someone else's mercy but in a way, he was enjoying the way she treated him. It was…intriguing and mysterious. Which was exactly what she was.

As he passed them, people greeted him in such a polite manner that was as if they were afraid of him. Kaoru took note of this and scowled. He didn't deserve the respect they gave. The moment that thought crossed her mind, her expression softened. Kaa-san and Tou-san had always told her not to dislike a person based on what they revealed on a first meeting. In short, don't judge a book by its cover.

And as she watched the way he simply nodded in response to their 'good mornings', he emitted a sense of aloofness which was so different from the way he had been so cocky with her. Either he didn't realize the way he was behaving or he was doing it on purpose.

Kenshin caught sight of her and knew that she had caught on about the way he treated different people differently. Many he treated carelessly. Some he treated better. Few he respected and admired greatly. Only the unique he treated specially.

Kaoru sat silently, still fuming but not quite as spitefully as before. She was puzzled by him though she would not let him know. Determined not to look at him, she stared at her feet, looking as if she was ignoring word he said. But she had caught every single word that came out of his mouth. Why? Because it concerned her 'parents' death.

"You and I both know that this incident is not coincidental. Do you not want to know who inflicted this upon you? Do you not want to know who murdered everyone in your house in cold blood? Do you not want to know what conspiracy lies behind this? Do you…

"Shut up." Kaoru muttered harshly.

"I will when you agree to work with me. I need information and you're my direct access to it. Besides, you could be the next victim."

"Fine. When can I get out of this place? I'm getting sick of the coffee smell."

"I'll get permission. Explore if you're bored as long as you're in the office when I return."

Kaoru didn't feel like physically wandering so she headed back into his office and let her mind drift. It wasn't often she had a chance to do so. Sure, it was nice to have so much time to herself and it was a change. But everything either led to another thing or is caused by something. And changes were no exception. This change happened because of the massacre that happened.

Picking up a pencil, she let her hand do as they please. She sketched, shaded, and smeared the carbon. His desk was like a little playground to her hands. He had so much material that she could use. She loved his black ink pen and his pencils.

Drawing was always an interest of hers. But like many other hobbies that she had, it was always pushed aside to make way for public appearances. She watched her hands create an image and it felt as if she was taking out her favourite book from a cabinet that had been locked and pushed behind other furniture.

She was so preoccupied with it that in the end, she stopped being dazed and focused on her masterpiece. Satisfied, she dropped the pencil in hand and stared wistfully at what she drew. It was a picture from her memory. A picture of her together with her foster parents, at the beach.

The corners of her lips twitched upwards slightly and once again, she tried to make herself cry. She wanted to weep for them, she wanted to mourn for them.

She rubbed her temples, gently at times but applying more pressure than necessary at other times. She was confused, angry, sad….she felt like a lost soul trying to find a place to settle down.

Kenshin shut the door quietly, unsure whether or not she knew that he had entered. He walked up to her and before he could say a word, she cut him off, "I'm Kaoru and keep that in mind if you want me to cooperate with you."

"Will do, Your Royal Highness Miss Kaoru. You're permitted to leave. I'll be taking you to your new home in half an hour."

"Idiot, I said to call me Kaoru, not Your Royal Highness and aren't you going to tell me your name?"

"No."

"Fine, Mr Red."

review please! let my know if i've made any mitakes in this chapter. dont really have the time to re-read it and once gain, im sorry cos it's pretty short and i took really long to make such a short chapter.