The 19 Thorns of a Rose
Disclaimer: I only own the plot. –Sigh-
Sano: So this is what school does to you.
Kaoru Gal: now I know I already have a ton of stories and stuff, but I really wanted to write this so just bear with me.
Kenshin: You can hardly update the number you've got now.
Kaoru Gal: Well school is almost over, only like 12 more days, so yeah.
The young girl walked slowly, one hand pulled into her red shirt's sleeve ready to pull a pocketknife out in case she encountered theman she was searching for. The heat beat down on her long black hair pulled into a tight ponytail. Her bright blue eyes searched every dark corner, every alley, everywhere.
She sighed and fiddled nervously with a necklace of a rose heavily burdened with thorns. It was what symbolized which gang she belonged to; it was what set her apart from the others.
Let me introduce you to this young girl. If you met her it wouldn't even cross your mind that she was part of the growing gang, 19Thorns. She was young and beautiful with such innocent blue eyes you might think she simply had those bruises and scars from falling off a swing or from running and tripping from a particularly large dog.
No one would dream that she actually got those scars from hopping barbed fences to run from cops, or that she earned those bruises in a street fight for more territory. Okay, so maybe you could accept the fact she was a gang member, perhaps the leader forced her into it…but wait…she's the gang leader?
Just one look at that tattoo of a rose with 19 thorns on her stomach tells it all. Why 19 thorns? Even the members of her gang don't know. It's just one other mystery of the Kaoru Kamiya, the Rose.
Lately she had been getting greedy for more and more territory to call hers. And her best friend and sister, Misao, had heard of an equally strong gang that owned the space around here.
So here she was, searching for them…ready to pick a fight with their leader, Battousai himself.
With a sigh she leaned against a dirty brick wall of a rotting building and slid down to the dusty cement. "Stupid Misao. They're not here." She muttered to herself closing her eyes from the wailing sun.
Suddenly a pair of strong hands pulled her up and pinned her against the wall, forcing her out of her thoughts
"Looking for me?" a dark voice asked obviously amused.
Kaoru opened her eyes slowly taking in the sight before her. A young man, probably her age if not older, was pinning her arms to her sides, his face thick with interest, as he looked her up and down.
"Battousai?" she asked slowly trying to regain some of her dignity.
He was different then she had imagined him to be. She had only known that he had red hair and a crisscrossed scar on his left cheek. But how was she to know how beautiful he was going to be?
His long red hair was tied up into a high ponytail, which ended at the base of his slender neck. His narrow amber eyes sparked with wild untamed darkness, which was fully focused on her.
She stared over his head as he pushed her higher up the wall so that the three close members of his gang could see her. There were only three but they looked formidable! They were all wearing a some kind of blue shirt and black pants which made them linked together, but that wasn't what shocked her. Two of them had identical crisscrosses on their own left cheeks! As for the younger one he had only one slash.
Battousai grinned up at her while his eyes were searching her. His eyes lingered a moment on her neck before finally resting on the silver chain necklace of the rose. Kaoru sighed. Now he knew. She could tell by the way his grip tightened on her arms.
His smile widened as he turned his head sideways so he could address the crew gathered around them. "And here I thought she was some girly who had the misfortune to stumble on our lands!" he laughed.
Kaoru flushed indignantly. Some girly? "It'll be your misfortune! Here I thought I was going to meet some tough guy and all I found was you. Guess I have to take what I get though, huh?" she snapped waiting for his reaction.
To her amazement though he just smirked. "I was supposed to say that." He breathed against her neck.
She shuddered in disgust. "Stop that you pig!" Kaoru said lifting up a foot to knee him.
With a small groan his grip slacked and she jumped over him. He snapped his fingers and instantly the small group formed a tight circle around the two of them, each of them pulling out a blade or cracking their knuckles.
Kaoru scowled and pulled out her own, even though she knew how pointless that was. Silently she eased back into a relaxed pose from her defensive crouch and let the fist clenching her knife fall limp, though she didn't put it away quite yet. 'Oh how I wish I brought someone else with me!'
Battousai grabbed her ponytail and pulled her head back with one hand while the other grabbed her wrist. He inspected her knife's handle closely for a moment before glaring at her with intense eyes.
Without a word he pushed her to one of the men. He had spicky brown hair and towered over her. Thin white bandages covered his fists hinting to her that he fought with them and not a blade.
With ease he caught her in his arms and gripped her with such strength she didn't dare breath.
Battousai stepped close to her and started tugging her shirt up.
"What are you doing?" Kaoru asked trying to jerk away from him while a blush creeped its way onto her face.
He said nothing but continued in rolling her shirt up until her tattoo was easy to see. The small red rose was vivid and easy to see against her pale skin. His eyes met hers.
"So…Rose…" his lips curled as he said her name slowly and mockingly. "What are you doing on my territory? You're well off your own."
A few chuckles echoed through the empty streets. Kaoru drew back her lips, her teeth clenched. "I can see that." She hissed softly.
He kept smirking in that irritating way while he wound the chain of her necklace around his fingers. "And what would you be doing off your area?" he drawled lazily still playing with her chain.
"What do you think?"
"Up to no good I presume." He slipped the knife out of her hand smoothly.
"I see you've not bothered to pull my shirt back down…"
"No I haven't, have I?" he tossed her knife to the younger boy he caught it, looking pleased.
She bristled at the remark but said no more when he turned back towards her with a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Is there anyone with you?"
"Maybe."
"Answer me. Sano…" the spicky haired man named Sano tightened his grasp making her bit her lip in pain.
"No."
"Good girl. Do they know where you are?"
Kaoru rolled her eyes. "No I just waltzed out without giving them any clue to where I am."
Battousai's hand reached out and grabbed her chain, twisting it tighter and tighter until it was biting into her skin. "No games, Rose. No games."
"Y-yes!" she gasped. The pressure on her throat subdued allowing her a greedy breath.
"Any other weapons on you?"
Kaoru said nothing but bowed her head so that her long bangs obscured her face. This was getting hopeless.
"Do you really want me to search you?" he whispered into her ear.
Kaoru looked up alarmed and blushing. "Don't!"
Sano laughed. "Kenshin you shouldn't tease her like that!"
"Who said I was teasing?" he said seriously.
"I have something in my back pocket." She answered reluctantly.
Battousai leaned against her as he wrapped his arms around her waist with deliberate slowness so that he could pull the throwing daggers out of her jeans back pocket.
"One more question."
"Oh goody." She said dryly wishing she never bothered to take them on.
He smiled. "What are your laws?"
"How is that relevant?" she snarled trying to pull away from Sano's grip.
"Answer me."
"But it's irrelevant!" she protested staring at him defiantly.
"When I ask questions none of them are irrelevant." His voice held a hidden warning.
With a loud sigh she answered. "You wanna hear all of them?"
"No."
"Then how am I supposed to know what ones you want to hear?"
"What are your laws if you have a gang leader at your mercy?" his tone was thick with laughter.
She knew where this was going. "We'd let her go…" she trailed off hopefully but he shook his head at her.
"Really? That's interesting. Our rule is to either take that leaders territory or have that leader completely under our control." He grinned at her pointedly tugging at her necklace now.
"Hm, that's nice."
"It is, isn't it?" he gave one hard tug forcing her neck to bend awkwardly towards him.
"I do believe that only is a law when you have actually beaten a leader. Which you have not." She pointed out.
He raised his eyebrows. "Oh really? Think about it girly. You are pinned together by Sano here, and I have taken all your weapons! Have I not beaten you?"
"No you haven't. You never actually fought me, one on one. Before I would have had to fight all of them, and that's not fair." She glanced at his group.
He bent towards her until their foreheads brushed. "I don't do 'fair'. But in your case I guess I could let you have your way for now." He nodded to the young boy he had tossed her knives to. He stepped forward and pressed one of them into her palm. Sano chuckled and let her go.
Kaoru stumbled forward and rubbed her arms where he had gripped her.
"Ready Rose?" Battousai asked pulling a thin dagger-like blade from his waist.
Kaoru crouched cautiously with her blade clenched tightly n her fist. "Only if you are." She said softly rolling her shirt back down.
Slowly the crew around them backed up to give them room as the two leaders paced back and forth daring each other to make the first move.
With a cry Kaoru flung herself forward, her fist raised above her head ready to swing down.
Battousai stepped out of range with maddening ease. "You know, I kinda expected better then this. After all I've heard so much about you." He sneered.
With a growl of rage she leaped at him again, this time aiming to kick him. He stepped behind her and grabbed the back of her shirt and roughly spun her around to face him. Battousai grasped the back of her head and pushed her it forward as he pushed his towards her.
With a scream of outrage she thrust her knife towards his back, but his other hand caught her wrist easily. In that moment he caught her lips with his. He almost laughed. Her body stiffened then suddenly relaxed against his. He grinned against her lips as he felt her free hand slide around his neck, and slowly she slipped the one caught in his hand out.
Suddenly a wave of pain shuddered through him as he broke the kiss to jump away from her. She was smirking at him this time, wiping her mouth as she did so.
Battousai glanced at his shoulder where the pain was aching and noticed a rip in the blue shirt where blood leaked out.
"Going to take me seriously now, huh Battousai?" she taunted flicking the blood off her knife.
He glanced at her and smiled. "Always did."
Then in a blur of red he was right in front of her, Kaoru started and leaped back on reflex. Swiftly he kicked out sending her flying to the ground. She groaned and looked up, his dagger at her neck.
"I win."
She watched with angry eyes as he pocketed his dagger carefully so it didn't prick him. He turned towards her and held out a hand.
She ignored his hand and glanced down at the knife in her hand then at him. Maybe she could…
"Don't try it. You play dirty then I will too." He pulled her up and quickly pulled the blade from her.
"So, I've beaten you. Now you have a choice. Either give up your turf or do whatever I want whenever I want." He tilted his head and offered her a small smile.
Kaoru said nothing.
"I know you don't want to give up what you've earned so far, so make it easy for yourself…I won't be so mean to you." He continued backing her up into a wall.
With a wave of his hand his gang disappeared, slinking off to other parts of this city.
Kaoru bowed her head low as she let her shoulders droop. She was embarrassed and couldn't stand to look into those mocking amber eye knowing she'd be seeing them for a long time.
"I…I" she stammered wondering if she could run.
His hand tilted her head up to face his while his amber eyes studied her face. "I know I won't get tired of seeing these eyes."
She pushed at him. "No."
He looked at her in confusion. "No? So I get your land instead?"
"No." she smiled at him before running off as fast as she could.
"You can't run away from me Rose. I'll find and I'll get you." He called after her not bothering to try and catch her.
"Kaoru!" Misao shrieked as the bang of the steel door echoed through the rotting building. She whipped her head around sending her long black braid flying through the air.
"Hey Misao." Kaoru replied throwing herself down on the sagging couch.
"Glad you're back! The rest of the gang is out right now except for a few younger ones. Oh! What happened to your arms?" she exclaimed staring at the bruises on her friend's arms.
"Nothing," Kaoru brushed off watching a younger girl descend into the room from the upstairs.
Misao scowled and turned towards the girl. "Hey you, get me a bowl of cold water and a clean cloth."
The girl looked startled but nodded and scampered off immediately
Misao turned back to Kaoru with a eager look on her small face. "So, tell me what happened!"
She said nothing for a moment but gave into Misao's hopeful face. "Well, first I need to know if this is the safest building for us to hang out in, because no way as hell am I gonna risk going to my Aunt's apartment."
Her friend raised her eyebrows. "You are not planning on staying the night here, are you? Didn't we say we'd only do that on weekends? There's school tomorrow and if you skip again they'll start to notice!"
"I know but…I lost to him." She said quietly.
"Battousai you mean?"
"Who else?" Kaoru snapped irritably.
"Sorry, so what happened?" Misao said propping her feet against the steel table set in front of the couch.
"He said I'd have to give him all our territory-"
"No! Don't! We have so much; he can't just take it away from us! Don't let him!" Misao cried out.
"Or I'll have to be his slave…" Kaoru finished ignoring Misao's outburst.
A silence fell over the two of them as the girl came running into the building carrying a slightly cracked bowl and a white cloth. Gingerly she set the bowl down and raced out of the room once more knowing what ever they were talking about it wouldn't do well for her to hear.
"Kaoru, you're my best friend, you know that?" Misao whispered throwing her arms around her.
"Yeah."
"Don't tell the rest of the gang. They'll tell you to never give up our space. But as your friend I'm saying…give it up."
"I can't though! I can't just…"
"Fine then. Plan B: pretend it never happened and see what Battousai does about it." Misao giggled.
"That's what I thought about doing, but what if he tries to find me?"
"He can't. This place is crawling with gang members. He can't just waltz in here."
"Sure. That's why I don't dare go home. If he follows me there then…"
"I understand. I'll stay with you tonight."
"Thanks."
It was night and the strange building she was sleeping in cast all sorts of strange and long shadows playing across the floor.
Kaoru groaned as she felt herself waking up from her half sleep. It had taken her hours to drift off since this itchy futon was so old and musty smelling.
Kaoru turned over and stared across the room knowing her friend was dead asleep across the hall. With that thought comforting her she pulled the covers over her head and shut her eyes trying to drift off once again.
'This is so stupid. I can't sleep, and this room is creepy…'With a sigh she threw the covers back and shivered as the cold air whipped against her bare arms and though the thin fabric of her undershirt.
A low whistle broke the still night as wind blew into the room through the open window.
Kaoru stomped up to it and slid it shut angrily. "Who the hell opened this window?" she muttered angrily to herself.
"Sorry."
Kaoru bit back a scream, but before she could spin around she was shoved against the windowpane roughly making it shudder under the force. She moaned in pain as her vision swam and her knees buckled.
"I told you that you couldn't run away."
"Let me go." Kaoru hissed steadying herself.
"No thanks." His voice was filled with playfulness.
In a whirl of color she was twisted to the ground his hand over her mouth, amber eyes sparking with threat.
"Kaoru?" Misao's earnest voice broke in followed by a gentle tap on the door.
Her blue eyes met Battousai's raging amber as he pulled out a short sword like thing. Placing it close to her neck he bent close to her and whispered into her ear. "Tell her your fine, you were just closing a window."
Kaoru stared at him with growing hatred as she realized that if she hadn't been able to beat him Misao wouldn't either. "I'm….fine…just closing…a…window." She said trying to hide the venom in her voice.
A long yawn was heard and a soft patter of footsteps as she moved back to her room. The sword was withdrawn from the crook in her neck but he didn't sheath it. "Get up." He ordered standing up himself.
"No."
He shot her a look and grabbed her necklace, pulling her up by that. "Have you chosen?" he asked smiling lazily at her.
She froze and thought about all the times she fought so hard to earn more space, all the people that would have to scatter once this wasn't hers anymore. "If I become yours what will be expected of me?" she asked slowly not meeting his eyes. She could almost hear him smirk.
"Everything, anything."
"Could I still check in with my gang?"
"You can do anything when I dismiss you, but you'll have to appear when I summon you."
"Fine." She hissed hugging herself.
Silently he turned from her and slid the window back open. "Coming?" he asked with one foot already out the window.
With a heavy sigh she stepped forward.
Kaoru Gal: Whoa 10 pages! Tell me that isn't awesome!
Sano: That isn't awesome.
Kaoru Gal: Screw you. Anyway, if you liked it and think I shouldn't delete it please review and tell me what you think. This is my favorite one to write. (Battousai is just too cool) In later chapters you'll learn more of their personalities if it wasn't clear in here.