"An injury is more sooner forgotten than an insult." –Lord Chesterfield

Jasmine: What am I doing? I have to update What A Flamin' Spirit! (Screams)
Saito: …Yes. Go update that. Mess with the Ahou, and leave me alone.
Jasmine: Nah-uh! My reviewers seem to enjoy your pain, so I guess I'll just plug on with this! HUGE thanks to Lexi, who helped me BUNCHES in this chapter. I don't own Rurouni Kenshin and look for your paragraph, Lexi-chan!

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The Difference Between Love And Loathing – Chapter Three: Meeting

(With Saito and Kondo in a police car, March 17, 2005…5:34 p.m.)

Saito Hajime was not a happy camper. No, at the moment, he was the unhappiest camper on the face of the planet. And he wasn't even camping, either. Figures. Going camping would have been better than this.

"Come on, my boy, buck up! There's no need to look so grumpy!"

The wolf looked up from his…pouting…(he preferred to call it "brooding", though, as Saito Hajime most certainly does not "pout") and gave Kondo the best evil eye he could muster. Which is pretty scary; you definitely don't want to be on the receiving end of the detective's look of "death, doom, and destruction".

Kondo, unsurprisingly, merely beamed at the annoyed wolf. "I can assure you, this girl is very nice! I'm positive you'll like her, Hajime!" Great. More eyebrow wiggling. If Saito didn't know better, he'd think that his boss was trying to set him up on a date.

Yes! Maybe all this was just a joke! A huge, stupid, elaborate joke where everyone would yell out "Surprise!" at the end and jump out of hiding blowing loud party favors and waving banners!

…Feh. As if.

The wolf crossed his arms over his chest and sighed deeply, looking out the window of the police car in exasperation. Why had he agreed to allow Kondo to drive? The man insisted on crawling along at a snail's pace!Tapping his foot angrily, he asked, "Where does she live, anyway?"

Kondo's grin widened. "Anxious to meet her, Hajime?

The said detective bristled and narrowed his eyes. "…Of course I'm not."

"I'll bet you are."

The conversation was going to places Saito definitely didn't want to go. So, just to get the police chief off of his back… "Yes, sir, I am. I'm very excited." Okay, so maybe he was laying on the sarcasm a bit thick, but hell, why would he be impatient to meet the girl he'd be babysitting for the next "few months", as Kondo liked to vaguely put the time?

"I knew you were! You can't hide your feelings from me, my boy!" The police chief chuckled heartily. "Ah, here we are! That's her house, right over there!" He turned the steering wheel sharply to the right and drove up a long, twisting driveway. Saito blinked when the place came into view. The girl's house was huge, nearly three-times as big as his own!

"Is she rich or something, sir?" The wolf tried his hardest to sound uninterested, but he was positive that Kondo would…

The police chief laughed. "Oh? You want to find more about her, do you? Starting to get curious, are you? Hee hee. Well, she's got long black hair, beautiful blue-green eyes--"

"Sir, I don't need a detailed description of her. I merely wanted to know if she--…you know what? Never mind." Saito mentally groaned at the smirk Kondo was sporting and buried his face in his hands. Why does he always have to be like this? …Damn this day…damn it to HELL!

You deserve it, you failure…you murdering failure.

Ugh, not you. Go away. I don't need a guilt trip at the moment…

Meanwhile, Kondo had stopped the car, got out, and was about halfway to the house before he realized a certain wolf wasn't behind him. He blinked and looked back at the vehicle. "…Hajime?"

Murderer, murderer…

No I'm not. shut up.

"Hajime?"

You could have saved her; if you had tried harder, she'd still be here today/ Maybe you wanted her to die? Yes, you wanted to see her bleed, didn't you? You wanted to see her suffer, to scream…

NO! I never wanted that!

"Hajime!"

…to die…

STOP!

"HAJIME!"

Saito blinked, shook himself, and managed to come out of his daze. Shit, not this again. Am I going insane? "…Hn?"

The police chief's eyebrows knitted together as he studied the detective through the car window. "Are you okay, Hajime? Is everything fine? You do look a bit pale, my boy. Have you been getting enough sleep lately?"

"Hn. Yes, sir, I'm okay. I just zoned out slightly, there." Saito forced a laugh at Kondo's concern. The man was always worried about him. 'Have you been eating well?' 'Oh, that cough sounds bad, I think you should sit down for awhile, my boy.' 'You sure you're okay, Hajime? You really shouldn't work so hard…' Kondo was like the father he never had.

The said man sighed, a sound he didn't usually make. The frown on his face was even more abnormal. "Okay, Hajime, whatever you say…" He opened the car door for the wolf, stepped away, and started back up to the house. "Come on! Let's go introduce you to the girl!" Kondo's frown was quickly replaced by his ever-present grin. "You said you wanted to meet her, anyway!"

Saito rolled his eyes and got out of the vehicle, but took a moment to study the house. It was big, that was true, but it was also…what was the word? Beautiful. The whole thing was whitewashed, except for the shutters, which were painted a deep, midnight-black. A garden decorated the front lawn, adding much-needed color to the area. Violets, Lilies, Snapdragons, all shades of the rainbow were present. The place was perfect, almost…too perfect, it seemed. Maybe he was just being paranoid.

Then again, maybe he wasn't.

…Baka morbid thoughts.

"Hajime, you can ogle her house later!" The police chief was already at the front door and was waiting anxiously for the detective. "Hurry up, my boy!" He raised a hand and pushed the doorbell. Saito soon joined him, skillfully hiding his annoyance at his superior.

A minute passed.

The wolf tapped his foot impatiently and growled under his breath. He never was very good at waiting. The girl was probably fixing her hair, or applying makeup, or something. Hn.

"J-just a minute! Come on in! I-I'll be out in a second," came a feminine-sounding voice from inside the house. It seemed as though it were strained, for some unknown reason.

Saito blinked at Kondo and gave him another "look of doom". The chief just grinned, turned the knob, and opened the door. "Well, you heard the lady, my boy! Let's go in!"

When they entered the house, the wolf was nearly blown away by the sheer size of it. Three hallways branched off in different directions, and a staircase nearby seemed to lead up into a second floor. The whole inside was clean and modern. High ceilings and white walls only added to the sense of space, but it could hardly be called bare. Tasteful and colorful accents were strategically placed here and there in the entryway, a painting here, a throw pillow there...it was obvious that this girl had a sense of style.

…Not that Saito would know much about furnishings, but back to the fic.

Surely the building was too big for just one girl to live in by herself! What was she thinking? And certainly she doesn't keep this place clean on her own! Even as the wolf thought this, he noticed that there seemed to be no servants around. No hustle and bustle. Nobody even came up to greet them at the door. Interesting.

A noise that closely resembled an explosion erupted through the house, causing both the police chief and the detective to jump violently.

"D-don't mind that! I-I've got everything under c-complete control, Kondo-san!"

The wolf fingered his pistol in irritation and looked at the police chief with one eyebrow raised. Kondo sweat dropped slightly. "Er, well, are you sure about that, Misao-san?"

Another boom sounded.

"U-um…almost p-positive!"

Saito, having had enough of this idiocy, decided to speak up. "'Almost'? Well, girl, it sounds like something (or someone) is dying in there. Are you certain you're absolutely fine? Not trying to blow yourself to smithereens, are you?"A smirk came unbidden to his lips.

"HEY! Who the hell are you? YOU JERK! I'LL COME IN THERE, AND-…oh boy…"

BOOM.

Kondo's sweat drop grew bigger. "Er, M-Misao-san?"

Footsteps were rapidly approaching from down one of the other hallways. A door opened, and a feminine head peeked out. "Eh-heh, does anybody..." The girl stepped into the foyer and Saito noticed that she was covered from head to toe in- "…know how to clean soba noodles off of a cathedral ceiling? Eh-heh heh?"

The wolf turned to his superior and gave him a wide (Fujita Goro) grin. "Kondo, sir?"

"Umm…y-yes, my boy?"

"No. Freaking. Way."

But before Saito could beat a hasty retreat, the police chief managed to grab hold of one of his bangs, successfully stopping the poor detective in his tracks. Kondo gave it a light tug. "Oh, no you don't, Hajime. You're protecting this girl and that's final!" Tug, tug.

The wolf glared down at his boss angrily. Grabbing his bang, what a low thing to do! Grr, he had been so close to the door, too! Once again, Saito Hajime was beaten by the almighty police chief, Kondo Isami! "…Yes sir…" Defeat sucks.

Kondo beamed and let the said prized piece of hair go. "Okay, you two! It's about time you introduce yourselves to one another!" One arm waved at Misao. "Hajime, meet Makimachi Misao," he gestured with his other arm at Saito. "Misao, meet Saito Hajime. You two will have to be together at all times until we catch The Akuma so you'd better make your first impressions good ones!" The chief's warm laughter did nothing to lessen the tension in the air that had been steadily growing between the two younger people as they "discretely" eyed each other.

Misao ran her fingers through her hair in a futile attempt at getting the soba noodles out of it. She took a few sneak-peeks at her new bodyguard in the process. Hmm, he's tall…taller than Aoshi-sama! And, from the looks of him, muscular, too! I wonder if he takes any martial arts?

The wolf (of course) noticed the looks she was giving him, and didn't bother to hide his own scrutiny of her. Small, weak looking, and young. Just great. She was everything he had hoped she wouldn't be. Hn. Probably annoying, too. Just like…

The ninja continued to study Saito, so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even become aware of his eyes upon her. Wow…I get stuck with a hot bodyguard…lucky me…I just hope Aoshi-sama doesn't get jealous…hee hee… Misao looked higher up and focused on his face. Black, slicked-back hair with four bangs hanging in his eyes. High cheekbones, pale skin…this guy looks like a cross between a bad-boy and some kind of predator! Whoo…creepy, yet somehow attractive…uh-oh…bad thoughts, Misao! Remember your Aoshi-sama!

…a weasel…and she sorta resembles one… And thus the famous nickname (much to Misao's displeasure), was born…

And then they locked eyes with each other.

Misao's own widened in surprise. His eyes…like… molten gold…so intense… Holy freakin' crap! What kind of person had amber eyes? Sheesh…maybe he was more of a predator then she first thought…hell, the man looked like a wolf, human-ified!

The detective was the first to break free from their unofficial staring contest. This Makimachi Misao was too…innocent…for his liking. It was obvious that she'd never seen a dead body before in her life. It showed…in her wide, childish blue-green eyes…

Shit. This bodyguard thing was not going to be enjoyable at all. Well, at least he could have a bit of fun with the girl…she appeared to be quick to anger…

"So, tell me, itachi musume…"

Misao blinked herself from her thoughts at the sound of his deep voice. Hey…did he just call me what I think he called me…? "Eh?"

"…Why are you living in this huge house all alone? A little weasel such as yourself really should be in a smaller place."

The ninja's right eye began to twitch. "Did you…just call me…A WEASEL?"

Kondo sweat dropped and stepped back a few feet. I'd better not get in the way of this one…

And therefore, that is how the fateful meeting between one Saito Hajime and one Makimachi Misao took place. I know the outlook seems bleak, now, but it'll get better! Just ignore the sounds of the rabid itachi in the background, and everything should be fine…

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Jasmine: Short chappie, I know, but it's 3:15 a.m. at the moment, and I want to go to bed. Please leave a review…they make me happy and help me update faster! Seriously…it's depressing…I have a ton of hits, but not many reviews! I'd like to know that this fic is actually worthy of your time…even if you just say one word, or something! Constructive criticism is welcome with open arms, and you can even flame me, if you justify it.
Saito: …Yes, flame her. Flames are nice.
Jasmine: (Anger mark) I hope Saito was in character, this time! I really tried! Well, 'till next time, loyal reviewers, this is Jasmine Reinier, signing off!

"People only have hope…because they cannot see Death standing behind them…"

Japanese Words:

Akuma: Demon
Itachi: Weasel
Musume: Girl
Baka: Stupid/Idiot