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Orphan's Paradise

By: Mystic Song

Chapter 3 – New Arrival

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Disclaimer: Okay, so I don't have to keep putting one on every single chapter, this one will hold through for the rest of the story. No I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or any of its characters, nor do I own any copyrighted products, if mentioned, in this story. Now does that work? …I hope so )

A/N: Thank you very much for the reviews. It brought up something that (I know, shame on me) never occurred to me. Well it did, I just didn't make specifics out of it. And that is the characters' ages. And it would be unfair to you if you never knew any of the characters' ages. So here's a list of all of the characters that have appeared so far and their ages.

Kenshin – 23 Kaoru – 18 Aoshi – 24 Misao – 18

Tomoe – 22 Akira – 22 Shishio – 35 Yumi – 32

Sano – 28 Megumi – 27 Hiko – 42 do I really need to list anybody else?

Now I'll admit that's not what their ages are in the manga but this is an AU fic and things are slightly OOC. These are simply guidelines for you viewing pleasure.

Kaoru felt very self-conscious in the limo. Her hair was tangled, her shoes well worn, her shorts were ripped and her shirt was ratty. She looked like….well, what she was. A poor orphan, and looked nothing like the primped up woman and the tall, well dressed man sitting in front of Kaoru. So she sat curled up in the backseat of the limo, staring absentmindedly outside the tinted window, watching buildings fly past her as they headed outside of the city. She breathed heavily, wondering how difficult it will be just to blend in with the people in Kenshin Himura's mansion.

"What's there to be sad about, Kaoru?" Asked the woman who was in Yumi's office earlier that morning. Kaoru recently learned that her name was Megumi. "You'll be staying in a beautiful estate and will become personally acquainted with Kenshin Himura."

"You'll be famous!" Megumi's male companion added with a wink.

"Sano." Megumi growled. She tossed her long black hair over her shoulder and straightened her business suit. "Really, Kaoru, there's nothing to be sad about. You can visit the orphanage any time you want."

Kaoru looked up, startling Megumi and Sano with her bright stare. "Why am I here in the first place? What good will I serve in Himura-san's home?"

Sano leaned forward. "I'll be honest with you, kid. You're too bright to be messed around with. Kenshin is going through a rough time right now. I'm sure you've seen it in the papers." He said, glancing at the crumpled newspaper Kaoru still held in her hand from that morning. "To put it bluntly, you're here to save his image."

"But maybe you'll be able to save more than that.…" Megumi added almost as an afterthought.

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand." She muttered, returning her gaze to the window.

"Well it's nothing to worry about." Megumi said comfortingly. "The important thing is for you to enjoy yourself here. You'll be expected to attend major parties and such, but it's nothing big."

"All you have to do is get dolled up and make nice talk." Sano added nonchalantly.

Kaoru stuck out her tongue, eliciting a chuckle from Sano.

The city rolled past quickly and soon they were in the country, taking twisting paths under the shade of the trees. It all looked so beautiful to Kaoru, who had never left the city in all her life. Through the trees she could see a wide, open lake, shrouded in even more, taller trees that hid enormous mansions.

The limo slowed as it rounded a bend and descended a hidden driveway, leading them closer to the lake. A vast gate opened at their arrival, and they continued to drive across a road covered in pine needles. The trees thinned and soon the road was subjected to sunlight, with large bushes lining the road, and giving Kaoru a glimpse of wide gardens and towering fountains and beautiful flowers. The road curved into an under hanging, where butlers elegantly stepped outside large stained glass doors to greet them. If Kaoru wasn't the proof as to all the misfortune that happened three days before, she would have never believed it. How could there be murder and betrayal in such a beautiful place?

"This," Megumi whispered as they stepped out of the limo, "Is Kenshin Himura's mansion."

Butterflies swarmed Kaoru's stomach as she stepped onto the cobblestones and looked in every which direction. The mansion was huge! She couldn't see the ends of the estate nonetheless the ends of the mansion. "It's beautiful," she said, her voice hoarse with wonder.

A delighted squeal came from the front doors as a small girl rushed out and tackled Kaoru. "You must be her! Kaoru Kamiya! Oh, the pleasure is all mine! I'm so excited to meet you!"

Kaoru took a surprised step back, taking in the small girl's appearance. They seemed to be the same age, though the other girl was a few inches shorter than herself. Her eyes were bright green and her black hair was twisted into a long braid.

"Oh, I'm Misao Makimachi, by the way. I was an orphan too, until Aoshi-sama took me in. Here, let me show you around!" The girl said rapidly.

Kaoru giggled and let Misao lead her by the hand. She could already tell that her stay here would be worthwhile if she stuck with Misao.

Kaoru took her first few wavering steps up the stairs that leveled onto the platform beneath the under hanging, all the while wondering if she had stepped into a dream. Only Misao's cool grip on her wrist convinced her otherwise.

The butler standing outside the door bowed gracefully and opened the stained glass door with just as much grace. Kaoru felt her jaw drop. There was so much elegance here that she wasn't sure that she could handle it. She cast a glance back at Megumi and Sano. Megumi certainly had all the elegance in the world as she straightened her clothes and took confident steps towards the front doors, the clicks of her heels just accenting her poise. Sano simply stuffed his hands into his pockets and followed, his laid back demeanor emitting an easy and relaxing confidence.

Misao giggled and tugged on her wrist once more. "C'mon, Kaoru. There's so much to see! And not that much time until dinner! Let's go!"

Kaoru smiled and stepped into an impressive hallway. A pair of impressive oak doors stood to her right, a carpeted marble staircase stood in front of her, and glass doors stood to her left. Yet on the right side of the staircase there was an intriguing though dimly lit hallway. It was tucked in the corner so that it was easy to overlook, but it contrasted greatly with the cheerfulness of the lobby. Down that hallway Kaoru could sense despair and agony and a passion so deep that it was intimidating. But Kaoru felt drawn to it.

Misao jumped around and pointed to the oak doors. "This is the ballroom! Aoshi and Kenshin hold most of their parties in there, or out in the gardens, but mostly in there." She twisted around to where the glass doors were. "And these, well, these lead to everything else. To the library, and the kitchen, a couple conference rooms, a kinda movie theatre room, which is really cool, and a living room, and even a dojo." Kaoru's eyes widened in delight but let Misao continue. "And upstairs are our bedrooms and the study rooms. Where do you want to go first?"

Kaoru was overwhelmed with everything Misao had just said that her face resembled a deer in headlights. "Well, what's down that hallway over to the right?" She said, pointing to that alluring dark hallway.

"Oh, that's where Kenshin's study is. Hardly anybody ever goes down there. Only the heads of staff are allowed there." A malicious smirk spread across Misao's face. "But I snuck down there once. It's not all that impressive. Kenshin just sits on his chair staring off into space or toy around on that computer he's got. Real boring."

"Oh." Kaoru said. Misao suggested in touring the ballroom first so Kaoru let herself be dragged out of the lobby, though her eyes lingered down that hallway for as long as she could.

The rest of the day was a magnificent blur. Misao proved to be a very animated and trustworthy friend. They spent every moment together from waltzing in the ballroom to bribing the cook for some food before dinner. But after two hours of racing through hallways and trying every chair and sofa in the mansion, Kaoru just wanted to crash on a bed and sleep.

"Kao-chan! What are you thinking?" Misao exclaimed, applying her new honorific. "Dinner's not even fifteen minutes away!"

Kaoru groaned and plopped down on the stairs in the lobby. "Then I'll just take a fifteen minute nap."

Misao huffed and put her hands on her hips. "Kaoru Kamiya. You will not take a nap. You can not miss dinner."

"But-"

"Nope! Don't want to hear it!" Misao interjected quickly. "Now let's get you upstairs to your bedroom so we can get ready."

"What?" Kaoru said, confused. She never had to get ready for dinner before in the orphanage. Well unless you counted washing your hands before eating, but she didn't see the point of going all the way upstairs just to wash her hands when there was a bathroom just around the corner.

Before Misao could drag Kaoru up the steps, crisp footsteps entered the lobby. Megumi gracefully walked in and spotted the two girls. "Oh what are you two doing, you lazy bums. You should be getting ready! Kaoru, go upstairs and pick one of the outfits up in your closet. Any one should be suitable for dinner. Now hurry up! Go!" Megumi said, shooing Kaoru and Misao up the steps.

Kaoru groaned once more and trudged up the steps. "I don't understand why I need to get dressed for dinner. And how will I know that these clothes will fit?"

Misao giggled and pushed open the white door that lead to Kaoru's room, or more like suite. Once opening the door the two girls entered a wide, bright sitting room with plush couches in pastel colors. A sheer cloth hung from an archway that separated the sitting room to a queen sized sleigh bed. A walk-in closet was off to one side of the bedroom, and a master bath on the other side of the sitting room.

Kaoru pushed the cloth aside and clambered onto the bed, sinking into the downy white comforter and itching to slide between the navy blue satin sheets.

Misao playfully threw her hands up into the air as she slid open the door to the walk in closet. "Okay, okay. If you refuse to get out of bed, I guess we'll have to have a compromise. But we have to be quick cause I still have to get dressed."

"What's the big deal anyway?" Kaoru asked yet again, trying desperately to stifle her yawn.

"Well, dinner every night is a fancy event when both Aoshi and Kenshin are here. Every guest and member of the house is expected to be there. Plus, it's your first night here; you want to make a good impression on Kenshin. Believe me, it's not often that both Kenshin and Aoshi are home at the same time. And it's not often when somebody impresses Kenshin. He can be as cold as Aoshi sometimes." Misao added the last part softly, ruffling through the many clothes in the closet.

"If he is such an important man, why didn't I see him around the house? Wouldn't you want to make an appearance if you've been away so long?" Kaoru asked, picking at the comforter.

Misao flipped her braid over her shoulder. "Now really, Kaoru. That man has been through enough this week. I'd let him mope it out. But now that you're here, we can spice some things up!" She said with a giggle and a wink.

Kaoru sat up on the bed with a smile and watched Misao pick out dresses one at a time and then stuff them back. Kaoru wasn't so sure she would like this high class society. She was a pretty laid back person that enjoyed her peace and quiet, and when the time came she was never afraid to work. 'Maybe it wouldn't have been such a bad thing for one of the younger ones to come here. They would love to be in such nice dresses.' Kaoru thought honestly.

"Okay, I think this would be good." Misao said, eyeing a deep blue sun dress with a halter top, form fitting center, low back, and loose skirt that just brushed below her knees. "Matches your eyes, don't you think?"

Kaoru was speechless. She had never dressed so nicely in her life. Fortunately, she didn't have to do any of the talking as Misao rushed over and pushed and pulled Kaoru around the room to help her get ready. They were finished in a record breaking 7 minutes.

"Alrighty, now for my turn." Misao said, brushing her hands off and heading out the door to the room just down the hall.

"Is your room just the same as mine?" Kaoru asked curiously, wobbling in the black stilettos as they sunk into the carpet.

Misao offered a bright smile and pushed open her door. Kaoru almost laughed out loud. There was no furniture in the middle of the room; everything was pushed off to the side. On the far walls, however, were targets. And in the very center of the room was a sort of end table with stacks of shinai. The curtain that hung between that room and the bedroom was shredded, though it was in such a way that it looked stylish and added an edgy flair. The bed was a simple four poster, but with a black comforter and dark green sheets.

"Wow….do you just throw shinai around whenever you're bored?" Kaoru asked, surprised not to find pictures of people pinned on the targets around the room.

Misao smiled. "Yeah, sometimes. When Aoshi first decided to teach me, he said I had to work on my aim, so I took it over the top, I'll admit. But now I do it when there's nothing else to do. You know, it can get pretty boring here with nobody else around." She headed on over to her closet as Kaoru leaned against the wall.

Posters were hung everywhere. Most of which were labeled with 'Aoshi' and some kind of tournament or technique. She took the time to examine the man, for she assumed that he would be present at dinner. He was a very stoic looking man with black hair, thin lips, and a white trench coat. His face was sharp and his eyes were piercing….almost ice-like.

"He's a very powerful man." Misao supplied as she brought out a dark green dress from her closet. "What do you think?" She said, holding the dress up to her body, drawing the sides into a curtsey.

"Very nice!" Kaoru clapped.

Within seconds Misao slipped into the dress, which was one shouldered and clung tightly to her small frame and ended at her thighs. "Yeah, it's not too bad. Never worn it before. First time for everything, huh?"

The two girls slid over to the mirror. Misao started to unwind her braid, letting the wavy tresses dangle down her back and nimbly worked it into a loose bun. Kaoru released her hair from the tie and combed it through with her fingers. It draped down her back, covering most of the bare skin, which made her feel a little more covered.

"Normally I hate wearing anything lady like. But these nights are so few and far between that it's a grand occasion." Misao sighed.

"Yeah, I'm not used to anything like this." Kaoru admitted. "I've never worn anything nicer than a new smock. This is a definite change."

"Well you look good! Okay, let's go!" Misao said energetically, looping her arm with Kaoru's and heading down the steps.

"Dang, is that the same girl that I picked up from the orphanage?" Sano greeted the two girls as they walked down into the lobby.

Kaoru flushed and smacked Sano upside the head. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Geez, Jou-chan, give me a break!" Sano complained, rubbing his face.

"Well you deserved it, rooster-head." Megumi snapped as she walked briskly by. Sano simply rolled his eyes and quickly tailed Megumi.

Misao laughed. "He's been after Megumi for months. I haven't seen her yet give him a second glance." Kaoru laughed with her as they entered the ballroom to be seated for dinner.

☼A/N: There's another chapter for ya. Hope you enjoyed it! Please, as always, review! It gives inspiration! )