The Deep Sea

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Simple, right?

Joh: Once again I've made you guys wait for a long time but guess what? I'm planning on wrapping this story up soon. So expect lots of updates from this one. I'm so proud of myself.

Sano: You're so simple

Joh: At least I don't have hair like yours –sniggers-

Sano: What! -starts ranting-

Wandering Hitorki: Shut up I'm trying to watch T.V –throws T.V at Sano- Damn it, you broke the T.V!

Sano: -Dead-

Answers to reviews

Jisusaken
Wasn't last chapter sweet?

RosenMaidan
There shall be faster updates in the future (this time for sure since I actually know where this is going now)

InuYashaGurl2007
hopefully there will be more sweetness in the future.

thoughtless dreamer
You actually read this

amaya
Thank you! More chapters are on their way.

skenshingumi
I like transforming Kenshin, I hope I haven't rushed it.

luvHaru7
Yay! That was a nice thing to say!

Reih
This weekend I had no homework! So I finally had time for updates!

Eliza
Thank you! I hope you like this chapter.

Kitsune's Grrl
We all love cuteness! At least I do.

antica
Kaoru might have more trouble admitting to her feelings then Kenshin.

patience&love
Yeah, I have testing this week but I gave up on studying. Haha!

anim3angel143
You'll see, I don't want to give away the ending.

Wandering Hitokiri
I put you in the chat part . I hope you don't mind that I had you kill Sano. –laughs-

ken
You liked it? Good, everything is going according to plan –evil laugh-

forever angel
Thank you! I finally updated! I'm so happy.

Brittanie Love
Oh, sorry that I haven't reviewed your stories yet, I have been reading them I just haven't had time to review! I'm sorry, please forgive me!

Rurouni-maxi
-Blinks- Aw man, not another angry mob gathered in front of my house complete with pitchforks and torches. –Sighs- Another day, another mob.

"You love her, don't you?"

Kenshin paused then frowned and stood up abruptly, stomping out of the room without a word.

Sano chuckled, shaking his head.

'How transparent.'

0o0o0

Kaoru blew a strand of hair out of her face and pressed her forehead against the cool pane of glass. The view beheld a large garden filled with so many flowers that they all blurred together in a rainbow of colors.

Her eyes narrowed as she watched Misao rush into the garden, her skirts whipping around her legs. A man was waiting for her outside and a small smile lit up his face as he took her in his arms.

Kaoru frowned slightly and squinted her eyes so she could make out the features of the man easier.

He had dark hair and long bangs that almost hid his piercing dark blue eyes. He was tall and lean, handsome.

Kaoru turned her attention to Misao who was grinning crazily as the man handed her a single flower he plucked from the garden.

They were gazing into each other's eye, a fixed emotion thick in their expressions.

Kaoru turned away unable to watch anymore. She had seen that look before. She had seen that adoration flicker in Kenshin's eyes once before. Or perhaps it had simply been lust.

A sigh escaped the young mermaid's lips as she closed her eyes. It was so hard to tell.

Would she ever gaze into Kenshin's eyes the way Misao was able to with her lover?

Great blue eyes blinked as Kaoru shook her head trying to clear her thoughts. 'I think I'm going crazy.' She mused.

"What's wrong?"

Kaoru looked up and smiled slightly out of habit now. "I was thinking." She replied quietly.

Kenshin nodded and walked over to stand beside her. "I think I know a hobby you might enjoy."

"A hobby?"

He glanced at her and smirked slightly. "You know, an interest?"

"Oh." She trailed off then piped up again. "Like when we rode the…horses." She stumbled over the word.

He nodded. "Kind of. But this is something else. Let me show you." He took her hand in his and led her out of the bedroom.

Kaoru followed after him, staring intently at his back. For some reason he seemed a little off today. Like he was bothered by something.

0o0

"What is it?" Kaoru asked curiously as she flipped through the pages of the red book he had handed her. It had words along with colorful pictures. She looked up at him, bewildered. "I don't understand."

"It's called a book. It tells stories."

Kaoru's eyes lit up. "I like stories. But why are they printed on paper?"

"So that you can read it whenever you want to." Kenshin answered her, taking the book from her hands to flip to the beginning.

"Do you know how to read?"

She nodded.

"Good. I thought you might enjoy these."

She smiled again, her eyes meeting his. "Thank you." She whispered.

That look appeared in his eyes again but it quickly vanished and Kaoru had to wonder if it had ever been there.

She took the book back and began to read the first page but her mind soon wandered. "Kenshin,"

"Yeah?"

"What would happen if I did live with you?" she blurted this out before she could think about it and immediately regretted her words. Of course she wasn't going to stay on land, that thought was unbearable. But she was curious…

His face lit up as he stared at her. "What?"

"Not that I will," she said hastily. "I was just wondering."

"We would…" he trailed off. "Get married maybe."

"Married…what's that mean?" she asked.

Kenshin smiled. "It's when two people who are –" he broke off realizing he was about to say 'in love'.

"Yes?" Kaoru prompted.

"When…two people…" he shook his head and instead of answering he simply reached out to touch her cheek gently. Surprisingly, Kaoru didn't pull back but she didn't lean into the touch either.

"When two people what?" she repeated, a determined look on her face.

He sighed and looked away from her. "When two people love each other and they want to live together forever they have a ceremony called marriage."

She was silent for a long moment before she stood up abruptly, knocking the book from her lap to the floor. She made as if to leave but he reached out to grab her wrist.

"Kaoru,"

She glanced at him, eyes wide. And for a moment Kenshin was sure she looked sad, frustrated, annoyed even.

"You asked me and I answered!" he said pulling her back down to her seat.

Kaoru spared him a wistful look before leaping back up and dashing out of the room before he could stop her.

0o0

What did he mean?

Kaoru trailed her fingers along the wall, a distant expression set on her face.

Did Kenshin love her?

Was he in love with her?

Kaoru snorted and shook her head. Even if he was in love with her (which he probably wasn't) she would still go back to the sea.

But you love him back, right? The little voice in the back of her head whispered in her mind, smirking knowingly.

'No, no I don't.' she thought back furiously.

Kaoru sighed and without looking walked right into a girl.

"Sorry." She mumbled as the vase the maid was holding fell and shattered to the ground strewing flowers and water everywhere.

"Kaoru-san? Are you alright?"

It was Misao, her cheeks flushed and her eyes bright. "Kaoru-san?"

"Oh, Misao. I'm sorry." Kaoru apologized again, bending down to pick up a flower.

The maid giggled and took the flower from Kaoru's hand, pressing it to her chest. "Oh, it's alright Kaoru-san! I'll clean this up." She giggled again before bending down to collect the broken pieces of glass.

"What happened?" Kaoru asked almost suspiciously. Misao had always been the happy type, but this was beyond the usual behavior.

"Aoshi-sama." Misao sighed, blushing even more.

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "Pardon?"

"Aoshi-sama," Misao repeated happily. "He gave me these flowers and I was so happy I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Oh." A strange empty feeling filled Kaoru's chest, as if all the air had left her. What was this feeling?

Could it be…

Jealousy?

Kaoru put on a smile. "You must really…love him, huh?"

Misao nodded enthusiastically, her young face beaming. "I love him, I really truly love him."

Jealousy.

0o0

"Kaoru?" Kenshin called quietly, knocking two times on the closed door.

No answer.

Kenshin sighed and opened the door a crack. His dark eyes peered into the room, spotting Kaoru curled up in the bed.

He hesitated before stepping in and closing the door behind him.

There she was, her legs pulled up against her chest and her great azure eyes closed so that the dark lashes were curled against her soft cheeks. Black blue hair was splayed around her looking like a dark cloud.

Kenshin touched her hair gently, the feeling of want rising inside him.

"Kaoru, what I said before…I was just…" he trailed off and absentmindedly began to play with her hair, twirling it between his fingers. "I want you to know that I do…I…"

He sighed and withdrew his hand. This time, without hesitation, he bent down and kissed her tenderly. "I love you." He whispered, using all his self-restraint to step back and exit the room.

As soon as he left and closed the door behind him Kaoru's eyes fluttered open and a slender finger reached up to trace her lips.

0o0o0

Joh: Not my best chapter. But I tried.