Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

Author's Note—Kenshin is a woman in this story. I'm glad some people find this story romantic, even though it is not quite a conventional love story. As to incorporating the other 'canon' story elements, I'm basically fudging everything to the way I think will fit into this semi-existent plot I have going on. So I hope in the end everyone will like it!

Sidenote: sorry this took so long! FFnet was giving me problems with uploading. Sigh...

6. Stolen heart

Mae had been putting away a pile of clean dishes when she turned around and was surprised by the sudden appearance of Himura. "Oh!" she cried out, dropping the plates in her hand. Himura's hand shot out and caught them in a strange act of balance and skill.

"Sorry," murmured Himura, holding out the plates carefully. Mae took them back, somewhat awed and relieved that none of them had cracked despite the unique way they had been caught.

"No, no, I didn't notice you. You were so quiet," Mae said, near rambling as she put the dishes away properly. She stood and eyed Himura critically. Why was the younger girl making her so nervous all of a sudden? She looked the same as she had earlier when she had left with Okita, if a little wetter, but--

"Miss Mae?"

"I did not realize that..." she gestured to her cheek. Himura's hand raised reflexively and touched her bandaged cheek. "I thought you had gone out with Souji."

"I did. We met with opposition. Souji killed them," Himura said, as if giving a brief report to Katsura. Then her entire manner softened and she spoke the next words almost shyly. "The way he handled his sword was amazing!"

"Himura!" gasped Mae.

"Not like that!" Himura protested, realizing what Mae had thought she meant by the comment. She blushed, looking away. "He has a natural ability with the sword. I didn't realize how skilled he was until I saw him use it." Her eyes narrowed slightly at her next words, "He could be my equal in a duel."

"You really like him, don't you?" Mae asked, smiling at the odd way that Himura expressed her admiration. She wasn't quite sure what swordsmanship had to do with it all but she was definitely of the mind that encouraging a relationship with a man was a good thing. She easily ignored the knowledge that Himura was an Imperialist soldier; it was not her place to comment on such things.

Himura had grown silent. She looked unsure. "Is it wrong to like him?"

"Not at all," Mae assured her. "You deserve the happiness he gives you."

The red-head nodded, accepting Mae's logic. Her blue-violet eyes widened for a brief moment, and then assumed innocent confusion as they met Mae's brown ones. "Miss Mae, your customers...?"

"Oh!" gasped Mae for the second time that evening. She half-turned to go back out to her neglected patrons who were probably becoming disgruntled. "Will you be staying?"

A shake of the head. A few droplets of rain flung themselves from Himura's hair and fell unnoticed on the floor.

"All right then," Mae said, nodding. She returned to her work, leaving Himura in the kitchen. The girl-assassin remained there for several minutes, listening to the muffled noise of a busy restaurant before exiting through the back door.

In the darkened street outside of Mae's restaurant, Himura chuckled. Himura Battousai nearly kissed a Shinsengumi captain. She was truly insane, and yet she felt only the quickened beating of heart as she remembered those seconds in the rain.

"I am not as innocent as I look. I am just as much of a monster as you."

"Is that what you are keeping a secret from me, Miss Himura?"

"It is."

"You're lying. You could never be a monster to me." He had said those words, and she had imagined that if she had drawn a sword upon him, he would have walked away unscathed. It only made Himura desire to spend more time with him.