The Battousai, Cute and Adorable

Had that woman just told him, a deadly assassin, that if he was good he could have dumplings?

And after mistaking him for a cross-dressing woman and almost giving him a lecture about it?

And after noticing the fact that his hands were stained with blood and he carried a sword?

Either she was incredibly brave, or very, very stupid.

"Wait," the Battousai said, struggling with his amazement as he followed after Cho through the streets, their footsteps pounding on the dusky cobblestone. He had been treated with utmost respect, as a deadly killer, for his entire life - and now this girl seemed to regard him as if he was nothing but a silly boy who had gotten into trouble! "Where are we going?"

"I know someone who might be able to help you," Cho returned cheerfully, not deigning to turn back. "She's waiting, actually, at the place where I'm going now. Isn't that convenient?"

"Is this person a medic, by any chance?" Pain seared his chest once more, and he was reminded of his weakness. The Battousai tried to suppress his hope, knowing that it was never a good idea to rely on the goodwill of others. If there was anything that life had taught him, it was that trust would always be futile.

"Uh..." Cho seemed uncomfortable, but she walked with more purpose than ever. "Uh, well, she's going to be."

"Going to be a medic?" Kaoru repeated. "And what is she right now, then?"

"You get three guesses, and the first two don't count," a slight smile played across Kenshin's mouth, and he shrugged. "Considering I ended up at a brothel..."

"Oh," Kaoru blinked.

"Why are your clothes so ragged and torn? And why do you have a huge gash in your chest? When did you get it?" Cho asked brightly.

The better question is, how can you be so chipper when talking about that?

"I accidentally stabbed myself with a knife."

Confused silence.

Perhaps he should stay away from making jokes.

The Battousai briefly considered running away, but where would he go? Besides, he had to admit that he was curious. If worst came to worst, he would waste no time in disappearing.

"We're here!" Cho announced, stopping before a fairly large stone-walled house. She knocked on the door urgently.

"Ah, Cho!" Another petite young woman, with elfin features and light brown hair tied in a low bun, opened the door. "Got those dumplings? The girls are getting hungry."

"Yep! I made them myself, specially for Sayuri!" Cho proudly held out the basket, which the other girl accepted gratefully. "And also, Naomi," Cho continued, gesturing to the Battousai standing awkwardly about a meter behind her, "I also have a mysterious, handsome stranger with battle wounds!"

She's crazy, the Battousai decided. One moment I'm an odd girl who needs advice, the next moment a mysterious, handsome stranger.

Naomi took a step back upon seeing him. "Cho, what are you thinking?" She demanded in a fierce whisper. "He's obviously a danger to us! Get away as fast as you can!"

"Naomi-"

"Cho, I appreciate you bringing us dumplings, but don't you see that he's a swordsman who could probably kill us all if he wanted to?"

Truer than you think, the Battousai said inwardly as he watched them, a small smirk curling his lip.

"I might have accidentally called him a woman," Cho said under her breath. "That might have been a mistake..."

"How could you do something like that? You're lucky you haven't been killed!"

"Please!" Cho clasped her hands together, pleading for forgiveness.

"Does he want help?" Naomi demanded. "Did he ask you for help?"

"Uh..."

"If you're a doctor, I would appreciate your aid," the Battousai said in that smooth, low tone that came so easily. He ignored the sharp, metallic taste of blood that had risen to his mouth and the recurring waves of pain from the wound on his chest. "If not, then I'll be on my way."

Naomi looked conflicted, and then motioned for Cho to lean in closer. Her voice was meant to be quiet, but the Battousai's owl-like hearing picked it up instantly. "Cho, I'm not a fully trained doctor yet," she said softly. "Besides, the girls begged to throw a party tonight for Sayuri's birthday, and in these hard times...well, I can't deprive them of that happiness. Looking after him is the last thing I need to do tonight."

"He really needs your help. Please! I'll even stay and help if you want! Besides, isn't he adorable?"

The Battousai's hand crept towards the hilt of his sword. Adorable? How could she call a lethal assassin like him adorable? If that happened just one more time...

"Cho, I told you, that man looks dangerous. Look at the bloodstains on his clothes!" Naomi whispered.

"Dangerous? Naomi, please! Can't someone be adorable and dangerous?"

"I suppose he is fairly attractive, in a cute sort of way," Naomi admitted under her breath to herself, seemingly softening. The Battousai hardly heard the compliment, his mind instead fastening on the word cute. How dare she?

"Kenshin, why didn't she just help you?" Kaoru asked, feeling frustrated. "You were losing blood, and it was clear that you really needed medical attention, wasn't it?"

"I can understand her reluctance," Kenshin replied. "Imagine yourself in her place. You'd worked for such a long time to be able to take a break from prostitution and throw a party for your friend. Suddenly, a bloodied stranger shows up at your front door and ruins the one night that you've planned for such a long time. Besides, it's another responsibility that you're not sure you want to take."

"Well, I would definitely have helped you," Kaoru declared. "Even if you were a cold-blooded killer. It would be the right thing to do."

Against his will, the Battousai swayed on his feet. He had been taught to suppress weakness, and the thought of being this weak mortified him to no end. Despite his fervent attempts to remain as still as possible, the world seemed to tilt against his balance, and he turned to the side to cough out gobs of blood.

"Internal bleeding," Naomi said suddenly. "He needs immediate attention, or he might die. Not like I want to be responsible for that. Fine, Cho. I'll treat his wounds, and then he can go so we can have our birthday party. Quick, we need to get him inside," she ordered, with impressive authority despite her small stature.

Another girl appeared behind Naomi, and then another. "Who's this? Why is he coughing up blood? That's not good, is it?"

Naomi sighed. "He's been injured." She said, as if that explained everything. "Help him inside, and wait for a moment while I find my bandages and supplies." She disappeared behind the door.

"You heard her!" Cho shouted loudly, clapping her hands. "Come on!"

"I can walk by myself, thank you," the Battousai scowled, and he painfully limped through the doorway. Immediately, he heard the flurry of conversation from several girls. Each was dressed in bright, ornamented clothes with an elaborate hairstyle. Five of the girls were sitting at a table, two apparently drawing something on fluttery paper with a paintbrush - caligraphy, the Battousai realized - and the others were carefully arranging flowers in a vase. About ten more were talking excitedly as they sat on black cushions scattered about the main room, which was decorated with dark red curtains and furniture as well as additional delicate flower arrangements. Three hallways branched off from the room, leading straight ahead, left, and right.

"What is this place?"

The conversations immediately stopped, and they all regarded him with bright, curious eyes.

"Ah...um..."

"...well..."

"You don't know?"

"Apparently not."

"But then why is he here?"

"You guys, we should just tell him," a girl spoke up. "He's obviously clueless. We're oiran.* This is a brothel. You didn't know?"

As if this couldn't get any more awkward.

"Uh..."

"So they didn't try to interest you in their...ah...services?" Kaoru asked curiously.

"No. As strange as it seems, I think they were all ready to throw a party and take a break from it all," Kenshin shrugged. "No one likes working like that for a living, and some of them were rather upset at my presence."

"Hey! Wasn't this supposed to be our night off?" A freckled, red-haired girl demanded, standing up indignantly. "What's he doing here? Didn't we have an agreement that we'd throw a party for Sayuri? Seriously, guys."

"It's okay, I don't mind. We can celebrate my birthday later," a girl with a tanned complexion and dark brown hair said shyly.

Naomi reappeared, holding a medical case complete with equipment and clean bandages.

"Naomi!" The red-haired girl exclaimed. "Tell me what's going on!"

The Battousai, meanwhile, had been barely listening, too preoccupied with making sure his legs didn't buckle under him. Gratefully, he collapsed on one of the cushions and tried to steady his breathing.

"No, Reika, we do not have a new client," Naomi said quietly, and the red-headed girl sat down again. "No one called him here. We have someone who needs our help." She strode over to the Battousai, who felt as if her gaze had chilled his skin. "But before we help you, we need to know who you are. It's not every day that you see someone like this."

The Battousai considered the dangers involved.

Best to take his chances now.

"So you actually told them who you were?" Kaoru whispered. "Wasn't that dangerous?"

"Very," Kenshin admitted. "It was a high-risk gamble. I figured that if I didn't tell them, when the police arrived and explained that they were looking for a deadly assassin, one of the girls might figure out that I had lied and expose my true identity. If I told them and was abruptly shoved onto the streets...well, things would look grim, but hopefully that wouldn't happen. If I did tell them and they didn't kick me out, I would have a greater chance of surviving."

"I see."

"It was one of the few times that I revealed my identity to anyone I met without killing them, let alone a group of people."

He took a moment to pull himself together.

"I am an assassin," the Battousai began, his gaze sweeping across the group of shocked girls. "The deadliest of my kind."

*[A/N] In that time period, oiran were similar to geisha except that they also worked as prostitutes as well as being entertainers (hence the flower-arranging and calligraphy). Naomi and the rest are oiran. Did I get most of this from Wikipedia? Maybe. But I did try to be somewhat historically accurate.

The Battousai might be embarrassed now, but he has no idea what's coming ;)

Hope you enjoyed!