Beta'd by the wonderful Sueb262

Kamiya Kaoru breathed a sigh of relief as she slid the shouji shut behind her, the long day finally over. Here, in the privacy of her office, she could drop her mask for a moment and relax. At least, until duty called and she had to reassemble the carefully cultivated persona of Inspector Kamiya.

She hadn't chosen an easy character to present to the world given her fiery temperament and impatient nature, but it had been necessary. No one would have taken her seriously had she been her true self, and it was imperative to get as many people on her side as Inspector. The job was as thankless as she had expected, but at least order was slowly being restored to the city.

The lamp in her hand threw a few shadows across the walls of the square, airy room she had been given as her office. Much to her secretary's chagrin, Kaoru hadn't decorated it with any personal items, so the place remained mostly barren except for the low table that served as her desk, the sword stand, and a tall, narrow vase in one corner of the room her secretary had insisted was from some famous potter, Ni'itsu Kakunoshin. If it weren't for the work piled on top of her desk, the office would have looked uninhabited. But she didn't expect to get too comfortable staying inside, not when most of her work was outside the building walls, enforcing the law.

Dropping onto the tatami mat, Kaoru set the lamp down and stared at her desk without quite focusing on the large piles of reports she had yet to read. Had she known how much paperwork came with the job, she might have reconsidered taking it in the first place. If her family back home saw her now, trying to make an effort to keep up with the myriad of records and logging complaints, they would fall over in shock.

And that train of thought would get her nowhere. Missing home, missing her father...

Kaoru shook herself free from those troubling memories and reluctantly reached for the patrol schedule first. Most of the deputies had quit when it was apparent none of the previous Inspectors after Saitou could maintain order, despite the Council offering salary bonuses. It took Kaoru nearly three months to coax a few of the veterans back, and only after she demonstrated she could handle the challenges to her authority. But they were still sorely lacking in officers so she had to be strategic about where to place the deputies she had.

As she tried to focus and make subtle adjustments, her vision blurred, focused, and then swam again...

Her secretary woke her up with a gentle shake, exasperation coloring her voice as she exclaimed, "Kaoru-san, you fell asleep at your desk again! When was the last time you saw your bed?"

Her mouth seemed both sticky and wet, and Kaoru wiped away the drool with a grimace, lifting her head and blinking until her eyes managed to focus on a glaring Okon. "Dawn already?" she mumbled. The open shouji revealed the sun peeking through the needles of the white pine tree waving to her from the courtyard. Fresh air swept some of the musty smell of oil residue from the lamp out of the room. Morning birds called out to one another in a ringing cacophony that normally would make her smile, but this morning was too loud and too cheerful.

"You're going to kill yourself before you've been here for six months," Okon said tartly, straightening up the scattered papers on the table. The young woman, hired for her cooking skills as much as her organization ones, kept Kaoru's office organized with the ruthless efficiency of any businessman. She also tried to keep Kaoru fed as much as possible, given her erratic schedule.

"How could I, with you always taking care of me?" Kaoru replied with a grin, spotting a tray laden with steaming hot liquid and a covered plate next to her assistant. Her stomach chose to growl just then, reminding her that she had only gulped down some yakitori bought from a street vendor the night before. Kaoru blushed.

Okon didn't comment on the noise but poured some tea and passed it to her. Taking the cup, Kaoru savored the heat for a moment before taking a sip. Jasmine green tea, her favorite, brewed at exactly the right temperature. She let the earthy, familiar taste flood her senses and closed her eyes in bliss. "Okon-san, this is perfect," she murmured.

"Hmph," the other woman responded, but she couldn't quite hide a small smile. "Your meeting with the Council members is in a half hour. You'll need to go home and change your clothes. Here's some onigiri to tide you over until lunch."

Kaoru grimaced, wishing her day started off better than meeting the demanding politicians who wanted results faster than she was producing, never mind that she had held the job far longer than her previous predecessors. "Thank you, Okon-san. I'll head home now."

She chewed on the rice balls as Kaoru hustled home and cleaned up as best she could before dressing into her more formal uniform. It was ridiculous to wear such a stiff haori that hampered her movements. Having worn it her first week on the job to show the symbol of the law, Kaoru had gratefully switched to wearing kimono and hakama for everyday wear. But the Council, who were essentially her employers, demanded she dress formally in all meetings with them.

Before she left, Kaoru slid her sheathed sword into her hakama belt, relaxing at the familiar weight on her side. With one final sigh, she rearranged her features to that of a stern, no-nonsense Inspector, and headed outside.

The dawning sun spread its colorful wings across the sky, spilling shades of red, orange, pink, and purple across the horizon. Thick maple leaves had begun shifting from a deep green to lighter colors, slowly shedding its foliage in preparation for the impending cooler weather. Kaoru inhaled deeply, allowing the crisp, fresh air to cleanse the last dregs of drowsiness away. Already she could smell the scent of roasted meat and baking bread permeate the air as the vendors prepared for the markets.

The city was built in loose, concentric circles. In the middle was the government building where the Council held their sessions. Large businesses surrounded them, intermixed with the marketplace and street vendors. Beyond that were the smaller business and warehouses, and, finally, the residential area. Kaoru's office was only a few minutes walk from the Council Tower, but her home was a brisk ten minutes away, in a row building full of other working, mostly single adults. The jail cell and her secondary office for interrogating and processing prisoners was at the western edge of the city to keep the populace safe should any of the criminals somehow escape.

Lost in her own thoughts, Kaoru didn't realize she was being followed until halfway to the tower. She berated herself for not noticing them sooner; the group of men kept off the main road, but their loud whispers and shuffling feet was a dead giveaway. Pretending she didn't hear them, Kaoru turned and strode onto a side path leading away from the residential area and towards the small strolling garden maintained by the city. At this early hour, no one should be there, and it would be safe to confront the men, whatever they wanted with her.

"She's heading left! Go left! We're losing her!"

"Why is she walking so fast?"

"Shh! You're too loud! She'll hear us!"

"Where is she going?"

Resisting the urge to spin around and lecture them for their poor skills, Kaoru stepped onto the stone pathway to enter the garden, pausing as if to admire a particular underbrush growing profusely around a Japanese maple tree. She didn't remember the last time she made an effort to go see shrubbery for relaxation, and she was glad to realize she wasn't missing much. Further down the path, Kaoru caught a glimpse of a pond glimmering under the sunlight, but she would make her stand here, with ample room to move around.

The group stayed back for a few minutes, apparently waiting to see if she was meeting with someone or not. Just when she was about to lose her temper because she was going to be late for her meeting, they emerged to confront her, all armed with some sort of weapon. So it was to be another challenge to her authority. Kaoru sighed deeply and shot a longing glance at the tower in the distance, wishing she didn't have to deal with yet another nuisance. These provocations had become tedious and Kaoru wondered when they would finally stop and they realized she was here to stay.

Not today, at least. She glanced around and noted four of them forming a loose circle around her. More than usual and slightly alarming considering she wasn't mentally prepared for them. But showing that uncertainty would be her death knell and Kaoru wasn't about to die here, right now. Not when there was so much left to do.

So she lifted her chin, keeping all emotions except impatience and disdain tucked away deep inside. "What is the meaning of this?" she demanded.

The man whom she assumed was the leader pointed a spear at her. "You're getting cocky, Inspector. We're here to make sure you know your place!"

It took all of Kaoru's strength not to roll her eyes at the trite comments. Those looking to defeat her were all the same and the instigators all eventually had to see a doctor - usually Takani Megumi - before being deposited in a jail cell.

But four all at once against a sheathed weapon ... Kaoru refused to entertain ideas of defeat, but it was going to take some creativity to get out of this alive and without giving herself away.

The men behind her shifted restlessly and Kaoru turned slightly to keep a better eye on them. Knowing a fight was inevitable, she shrugged out of the restrictive, heavy haori and took a moment to hang it up on a nearby tree branch in slow, deliberate movements to show no fear. "Challenging me is the fastest way to get arrested. Are you so eager to see the insides of my cell?"

The man who had spoken laughed scornfully. "Only if you survive the ambush from the Hishigami. Attack her!"

Kaoru saw movement from the corner of her right eye. Placing a hand on the hilt of her sword, she dodged away from the slash of the first attack and jumped away from another man attempting to impale her with a katana. She pulled out her saya with her left hand and blocked a thrust with the scabbard, ducked under another swing from a mace, evaded the thrust of a spear.

Her constant movements began frustrating the four men and one of them yelled, "Stop dancing around!"

"Draw your sword, or are you afraid of a real fight?" another demanded.

Ignoring the taunting comments, Kaoru parried a thrust from the katana using the scabbard and then yanked the sheathed weapon backwards to catch the legs of another man running to attack her from behind. He tripped with a startled shriek. She darted to the side to avoid the falling man and drove the hilt of her sword into another opponent, who had raised his mace above his head, and left his body wide open to attack. Without pausing, Kaoru spun on her heels to the left and caught and shoved aside a side slash from the katana wielder with the hilt of her own sword. She then used her right elbow to smash into his face and break his nose. He cried out and dropped his weapon to clutch his face, stumbling away from her.

Kaoru glanced around for the fourth man, the one who seemed to lead the others. It was only instinct that made her turn behind her and see the spear thrust aimed directly at her chest. She tensed and tried to raise the saya to protect against the attack, but she knew it was too late.

And then a whoosh of air cut in between them, her hair flying into her vision for a second to blind her. Kaoru brushed it out of her eyes, hyperaware that the thrust had not connected. Her eyes widened when she realized two large portions of the spear - the sharp end and several inches of the wood - lay on the ground in front of her. The man holding the weapon, or what was left of it, stood frozen in mid-step, blinking rapidly as if he couldn't understand what had happened either.

Kaoru took a split second to take the scene in and then her skin prickled in warning as she swung her gaze to the left.

The red-haired so-called rurouni stood there. His sword was sheathed, but Kaoru had no doubt he sliced the weapon - twice! - to protect her. His unusual violet eyes remained focused on the Hishigami leader, hard and narrowed.

"Four against one seems hardly fair to me," he said, almost conversationally, but the man flinched at the steel undertone.

She would have flinched too, but she remembered her stoic Inspector personality and drew the cloak of the title around her. Not a moment too soon because the wanderer's gaze turned to meet her eyes.

"For an unprovoked ambush of a law enforcement officer, city law gives you the right to execute him immediately. You can draw your sword and kill him."

The challenge in his voice was unmistakable and for a brief moment, panic clouded her mind. He knows, Kaoru thought, feeling light-headed with sudden comprehension. She didn't know how, but this man who set off all the warning bells in her warrior's instinct knew her secret.

Could she attack him, threaten him to keep silent? But no, Kaoru knew she was no match for him, whether it was the demonstration of his whirlwind speed and unerring accuracy just now or the fact that everything inside of her believed he was the most dangerous man she had ever encountered, on the same level as Saitou Hajime.

The Hishigami leader, sensing their attentions were diverted, began easing backwards in hopes of escape. The slight movement caught the periphery of Kaoru's vision and she swung her weapon towards the man, hilt first. "Stay where you are," she ordered.

The man froze in his steps, and then his body began to quake when the wanderer glanced at him, until his eyes rolled up and he collapsed in a heap.

Kaoru suppressed a surge of envy that a mere look from the red-haired man could make a grown man faint. When those violet eyes swept back in her direction again, she took the time to tuck her sheathed sword back into her belt and ignore his previous comment. She couldn't let this stranger ruin over five months of hard work by revealing her secret, whether she had to threaten him, beg him, or bribe him.

She ignored the small voice in her head saying none of it would work. She had to at least try.

"Sano isn't here to clean up your mess this time," the wanderer said. He still had the edge to his voice, but it was tempered with a certain degree of amusement she didn't understand.

Lifting her chin up, Kaoru said stiffly, "I certainly don't expect him to be around every time some idiots try to attack me."

"A pity. He would have enjoyed the fight."

Despite herself, a small, rueful smile touched Kaoru's lips as she remembered learning that the tall, lean man preferred to talk with his fists. A lot. She had to lecture him several times on excess violence but quickly realized it was useless. Kaoru could throw him in jail for breaking the law, but Sano didn't care and it wouldn't deter him in the least. He tended to take sides with the victim more often than not, and Karou decided that was good enough for her. She had enough to worry about without adding Sano to her plate.

He watched that smile, watched her, with such intensity, her hackles raised in annoyance. "You don't have to keep looking at me like that," she snapped before realizing that was not what Inspector Kamiya would say. Drat this rurouni, how could he tear down everything she worked so hard to build up in just their second meeting?

He blinked, and then smiled, the hardness of his eyes fading as if it had never been there to begin with. "My apologies. Maybe I can help you this time, since Sano isn't around." And without waiting for her to answer, he bent down and picked up two of the men to carry on his shoulders.

Kaoru could only stare, mouth agape as he lifted them without any apparent effort at all despite his slight frame. Just who was this contradictory character?

"To the jail then?" he asked in a mild tone before heading back towards town without waiting for a response.

Spurred into action, Kaoru prodded the last two man with her foot none too gently. She noticed her red-headed savior had picked up the unconscious men, leaving her to deal with the easiest of the group. "Get up," she ordered. "Start walking." Snagging her haori from the tree, she herded her meek prisoners to follow the rurouni to the prison. She was extremely late for her meeting with the Council and no doubt would receive a long lecture for her tardiness. But for now, Kaoru had to deal with these men and send yet another message to the criminal elements that she wasn't going to be run out of town.

All thanks to the rurouni who had stepped in at the last minute. Kaoru realized, as she shut and locked the last cell door, that she hadn't even thanked him for saving her life. Without his incredible speed, she would be dead or dying.

But how to thank him while asking him not to reveal her secret? She glanced at the red-head with the empty smile who seemed to be the complete opposite of the glaring warrior from the road. But Kaoru knew she wasn't the only one who could wear a mask and be someone they were not. The question was, who was he really? The gentle wanderer who implicitly agreed to stay out of her city despite her rude parting words to him months ago, or the hardened swordsman with moves so fast she didn't even realize what had happened until seconds later?

The uncertainty troubled her. Kaoru drew in a deep breath to steady herself, to remember why she was here and who she was. She couldn't let him reveal her secret.

"You'll have to face me some time, you know."

The quiet, gentle voice interrupted her thoughts and Kaoru hadn't realized she was glaring at the floor. Raising her eyes to meet his, she tried to hide the flash of temper in her eyes. "I wouldn't call it avoiding you," she answered tightly.

He smiled then, and it was a genial enough smile. He wasn't threatening her ... yet. "Maybe it's not exactly avoidance," he agreed.

Annoyed at his amiable tone when all she wanted to do was shout at him, Kaoru moved to the single desk in the room and made the notations of the four criminals, their cells, and their crimes in the log book. "I'll need to get a healer to look at those men," she said briskly.

"Megumi-dono should be happy to check them over," he replied.

A part of her realized he seemed to be enjoying her stiff demeanor, and she didn't know why he was so interested in her. Even at their first meeting, months ago, he had probed her with subtle questions she wasn't willing to answer then, or ever. But he didn't leave when he could easily excuse himself, and he kept up polite conversation that was starting to drive her crazy.

Kaoru briefly entertained the thought of strangling the man, or even tossing him in the deepest recesses of her darkest cell, never to see the light of day again. But as quickly as she thought it, she dismissed it. He would never go quietly and she would be out of a job, and probably in a fight for her life. She was good, but this man... Kaoru glanced at him briefly, knowing he was watching her again. This man was dangerous.

His lips quirked and his violet eyes seem to laugh at her and Kaoru wondered if he could actually read her thoughts. Her heart thudded faster as she wondered if he was even human. Perhaps he was a demon, with all that flame red hair, thick and long. It looked extremely soft to the touch but must be a pain to wash it clean.

"Inspector?"

The amusement in his voice shook Kaoru from her reverie and she glared at him. When was the last time she had been lost in thoughts like that and in front of a stranger? "Maybe you're a witch and you cast a spell on me," she muttered.

"Pardon?"

From the increased humor in his tone, Kaoru knew he had heard her. The famed Kamiya temper, which she had attempted to bury deep within, reared its ugly head and the last thread of her control snapped. Marching up to the wanderer, she jabbed him in the chest with her finger. "Just because you move like the wind and chop up spears like they're daikon radishes does not mean you can make fun of me. I'm the law here, and I say so!"

He looked down at his chest, then back up to her. His eyes, still filled with mirth at her expense, changed slightly to a more calculated look. Kaoru suddenly realized just how close she had gotten to the man, and what she did, and how firm his torso was under her hard prod. She swallowed and eased back an inch to put more space between them, in case he did something.

"You seem to have quite the temper there, Inspector," he said. "You should be careful showing it to certain people."

It wasn't quite a warning, but it was enough for Kaoru to raise her hackles. She couldn't afford to quail under any threat, not if she wanted to do her job here. "Look, Rurouni-san-" she began.

"Kenshin," he interrupted. "My name is Himura Kenshin. I would think Sano told you that."

Himura Kenshin. Sanosuke had mentioned it months ago, but Kaoru had been too busy trying to survive and build up her reputation to remember it. Though now she wondered how she could have forgotten.

"Right, Himura-san," Kaoru said, thrown slightly off-kilter when the name didn't roll off her tongue naturally.

And the man seemed to realize that too because he repeated gently, "Kenshin."

They locked gazes and Kaoru dimly realized something was happening here. She didn't know what exactly, because she still didn't understand him or her reaction to him. One moment, she wanted to drive his head into the ground under her foot for laughing at her, and the next moment her instincts all but screamed that she avoid him at all costs. But the fact that he insisted she call him by his personal name when they didn't know each other in the slightest, that perplexed her.

He seemed unwilling to drop the matter so for the sake of moving on from this weird … thing between them, Kaoru acquiesced - rather graciously, she thought. "Kenshin," she repeated and heaved an inward sigh of resignation when that name came out as naturally as breathing air.

Kenshin smiled again, and Kaoru couldn't begrudge him the satisfied look in his eyes for winning this round. "Do I have your leave to call you Kaoru?"

"No!"

This time, he actually laughed out loud at her vehement refusal and Kaoru had the fleeting impression that Kenshin was just as surprised as she was at his reaction. But his mirthful expression never changed even as his chuckles faded. "Inspector, then," Kenshin agreed readily enough.

Kaoru sighed, trying to remember exactly what she was supposed to lecture him about. His whole presence unsettled her usually even keel, and now she was at a loss of what to say or do.

Perhaps he truly was reading her mind because Kenshin suggested, "If you'd like, I'll bring Megumi-dono here to look after the prisoners."

The prisoners. Her attackers. Yet more reports to fill out. "I would appreciate that." Kaoru would take the time in his absence to get herself back together. She was acting like an idiot who didn't know her own mind and that didn't sit well with her.

Kenshin nodded and turned to head out the door. "Until then," he said softly over his shoulder.

From the sinking feeling in her stomach to the glint in his eyes, Kaoru knew this wasn't the end of their conversation.