Only You

by Mizuume

What if Tomoe never died in that battle? What if Kenshin spent those years in Otsu and never met Kaoru? But what if he meets her a little later? What if they fall in love? And what if this love is her downfall? Despite the past,some things are meant to be

3. Kaoru

Hey guys,

I wanna say THANK YOU to all who reviewed, all who favorited, and all who alerted. Encouragement does a lot.

Sorry I was so late with this one... i've recently moved from the Caribbean to Egypt, so I've moved to the permanent apartment. I had a lot of stuff to do and 450 boxes to open. Thanks for waiting :)

Chapter Two

Kaoru

By Mizuume

"That's it!" He growled, ripping his sword from his sheath. He pointed it threateningly at Hirotoshi, his mind buzzing with fury. "Drop them. If you don't wanna die, then drop them. And you." He whispered coldly, swishing his sword to Gohei. "Get off of her." He clenched his jaw as Gohei smiled challengingly and left the body on the table. "Faster!" He ordered.

The girl lifted her head towards him. Blue eyes lingered on violet eyes. Then Kenshin stared into those blue eyes, and it was as if the whole world was holding its breath.

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Everyone froze and looked his way. "Who the hell are you?" Hirotoshi asked waveringly. Kenshin's eyes were still on the girl. He didn't respond, too caught up with the level of beauty he saw before him. Large, lustrous, trusting, willing, sapphire eyes. Long, silky hair the color of a raven's wing. Pouty rosebud lips. Creamy skin and a heart-shaped face. 'She's amazing…' he thought lamely. But then he scoffed. She was more than amazing. She was beautiful beyond reason. There was something about her that kept his attention on her even when he tried to resist it. He couldn't take his eyes off of her.

"Well?"

Kenshin bit back a roar and pulled his eyes forcefully away from that tearstained face. "You'd better start making excuses right now." He growled. "And let this girl go."

Gohei laughed at him. "And who orders me to let this million yen captive free?"

"Hitokiri Battousai." The words echoed in the minds of the room's occupants. It brought confusion, and fear, and anger, but to that one exhausted, pained individual, it was more than just questions and worries.

'He's a killer. A legendary killer. So why… why is he here to save me? And if he was sent here to save me, why the hell did he take such a long time to do it?' She smirked sarcastically. 'Maybe he was taking notes for Lord Okubo that he was too stupid to write from memory.'

Gohei's face paled as the real Battousai drew himself up to his full height, a short height, but it still seemed like he was the tallest one in the room. His eyes rested on Gohei's, and he felt his heart skip a beat. Those eyes were the most piercing he'd ever encountered.

"This is Hitokiri Battousai. Gohei Himura. His last name's Himura!" One of them insisted, confused by the concept of two Battousais.

"His last name is Hiruma. Not Himura."

They looked at Gohei. His trembling stopped as he tried to hold on to his last shred of dignity. Kenshin flicked his sword in Gohei's direction and let it linger at his neck. The tip pierced into his first layer of skin.

"Get those coals off of her. Right now." He demanded fiercely, his voice low.

Gohei laughed at him again. He gave Hirotoshi that look and watched as the man smiled and used the tongs to press the coals harder into the girl's perfect skin. The cry of pain the girl let out was all he needed to get ticked off. All reason, all restraint, all control was lost.

His arm rose high into the air and slashed the first thing that came into view, and that happened to be Hirotoshi. The sword ran diagonally from the right side of his head to the left side of his ribcage. His bandage fell free from his cheek and the black wig fell from his head, revealing the red hair as it flew through the air with his movements and his cross-shaped scar. The men fell still with fear. Soon, there was commotion in the room as they all ran at Kenshin simultaneously and he fought them all off. A number of heartbeats passed. Suddenly, there was a pile of limb-mangled men on the floor. He lurched at Gohei, who had since then left the coals alone on the girl and pulled out his weapon. Kenshin saw her throw the black, burning masses aside and close her kimono over the horrific wounds.

"Hiruma Gohei, prepare to meet your death!" He called, using his last second to perform the customary announcement.

'Aah. I see. He wasn't here to do anything but assassinate Gohei.' Somehow, the thought embedded a sweet, sadistic pleasure in her fast-beating heart.

As Kenshin steadied himself for a Ryu Kan Sen, Gohei pulled out his sword. Kenshin came down on him with amazing speed and executed a cut Gohei would never forget. The two leapt apart again and resheathed their swords. When the enemy unsheathed and ran forward, it wasn't hard for him to launch himself into the air and out of his sword strike's way. Kenshin came down on him, and when his strike had ended, staring towards the girl who was apparently getting ready to fight, he came faultily forward on one disobedient leg and Gohei whipped his sword around, plunging it into his enemy's shoulder. He stopped dead in his tracks. He winced as Gohei let out a triumphant laugh, and the girl on the sidelines gasped. Kenshin pressed his hand to the wound with a shaky intake of breath. He was usually more efficient than this. He usually never got hurt. Gohei Hiruma did have skill of his own, but he'd never suspected it'd be enough to harm him. He'd just have to overpower it even further and work his best. His eyes hardened all of a sudden. He got into a battle stance like nothing had happened and growled deeply under his breath. Gohei felt his hand shake just as the girl got ready to fight, too. Kenshin's thoughts took a questioning turn, but he brushed them aside so he could focus on his fighting.

They locked swords again, this time in stronger, faster, angrier strikes. Gohei was quite a match for Kenshin, but probably more because his enemy kept looking back on the girl and getting distracted by her naturalness with the crouch of a ready swordsman than because of his personal level of skill. As Gohei tried to block him off, he sidestepped and slid his sword away. But Gohei ran at him, his sword raised at such an awkward angle Kenshin had to use more than instinct to block it. His attacks were getting more and more predictable, but also more and more powerful. His increase in speed was amazing. As Gohei got ready to deal Kenshin another blow and Kenshin got ready to counter it, jasmine filled his nostrils, followed by wisps of thick, black hair impairing his sight. The feather soft tips brushed against his eyes, much to his anger, and he closed them as a reflex.

When he opened his eyes again, his jaw dropped. The girl was holding Gohei's sword in her own two hands. She had disarmed him with such great speed he missed it when it happened. But because the girl was so exhausted, and because Gohei was quite skilled himself, he managed to catch her off guard and grab the blade of his sword again, only to be disappointed when he saw that she was more careful than that, and wouldn't be brought down by a simple grasp on her weapon.

She pulled the sword away, ripping it from his hold and slicing his palms, and when he rose up to meet his female opponent's eyes with his own, he saw fury. It was a fury so intense it terrified him. Her eyes burned with hate and her lower jaw grinded against her upper one. She swung the sword hard, seeing that Kenshin wouldn't fight from his fear of accidentally hitting her. She aimed with the dull edge of his sword and hit him in the back of the neck, sending him stumbling forward. Kenshin knew the exact moment had come, and strengthened the grip on his sword's hilt. When he brought his sword arm forward, metal made contact with flesh. By the time the fight was over, Gohei lay in pieces on the floor.

Kenshin hadn't fought a large number with this force and determination in a long time. His attacks had been filled with an almost animalistic fury, and his death toll had risen to more than intended. Returning to contact with his surroundings, he looked up at the wonder before him. Her legs were parted slightly in her pose, her hands were suspended in the air, still holding Gohei's sword, her kimono opened up to reveal her strong, slender legs, the neckline was low due to her fighting, her hair was in terrible disarray, and her face and neck glistened with sweat and grime. Her face was almost gray with exhaustion, her lips were pale, and she panted uncontrollably. But she was still hypnotically beautiful.

"I… I think I'm going to…" She couldn't say any more. The lack of everything a normal human being required in the past couple months had ganged up on her. She stumbled forward, letting out a sigh of relief when she was able to let her muscles loose, and sailed towards the ground.

Her savior hurriedly approached her and caught her in his arms. She was wide awake, but even paler with tire. "What's your name?" he asked in a kind voice.

"Kaoru Kamiya…" she answered weakly. He pulled a bloodless sash from one of the men's hakamas and tied it around her waist. The now useless obi remained on the floor. She was too tired to ask questions and too worn out to care for whom he was, but he offered his name anyway.

"I'm Kenshin Himura." His gentle voice was balm to her ears after hearing so many cold, explicit whispers follow her pain and degradation.

"So you're the real Hitokiri. Not Gohei?" She asked, seeming neither disgusted nor pleased by it.

"No. Gohei was a fake. I am the real Hitokiri."

Kaoru managed a smile for him, and that one smile was enough to show that even if he killed for a living, she didn't care. He'd saved her life. That's what mattered most.

"Were you here to assassinate him?"

"Yeah, but I also meant to release the captives. Do you think they need help?"

"Getting out of their bindings is the only thing they need help with. They didn't have anything bad done to them, and I'd suggest not letting them all out at once. They'll be hysterical."

He smiled at her tough talk, and suddenly felt guilty. "I'm sorry I took such a long time to do anything." He said, scratching the back of his head. "You see, I was undercover, and executing an undercover attack means I have to wait for the right moment. And even when I started attacking, it wasn't at the right moment."

"Then why didn't you do it at the right moment?" she asked.

He looked her directly in the eyes. "A man can only be patient to a certain extent, and when the line is passed, there's nothing he can do. What they were doing was inhuman. So I thought, screw the undercover crap and get going right now."

"I understand what you mean," she said, standing unevenly as if she was trying to hide an injury. "I was like that, but my situations were just childish arguments with my boarders. It was never anything like this."

"It'd be better if you kept it that way." Kenshin said to her, smiling.

She went quiet for a while, just staring at the bloodied table she'd been tortured on and thinking deeply.

"What's wrong?" Kenshin asked after a while.

"Nothing," she said, a ghost of a smile forming on her lips. "I was just wondering why the legendary assassin from the revolution would still be taking orders from the boss, and spending his time rescuing female captives from sick men like Gohei."

His brow rose. "You obviously have no shame when it comes to asking about other people's lives." He said sarcastically.

"Hey," she countered, "I can say whatever I want. You were the one who decided to just stand there while they were burning coals on me and screwing around."

"I told you before why I had to do that, and I apologized, too!"

"Yeah, yeah, you don't have to worry a thing about me or feel guilty about it- I was already used to getting tortured the way they were doing it, so it doesn't matter if they do it just a few more times!" She growled sardonically.

He grimaced, feeling the guilt flood into him as easily as water would. He never would have left her behind in their hands. He knew that. But why the hell did he wait so long to free her? 'We're not friends or anything like that. She's just a stranger. Who I happened to save by doing my job. That's all.' He told himself.

"It doesn't matter." She said. "At least you actually did something."

"Yeah, but I really am sorry…" he began to say, trailing off when he realized how pathetic he probably appeared.

"It's okay." She said, suddenly blinking away a hot tear. "So aren't you gonna go off on your way and tell the boss you killed him?" She asked, trying to cover up her tears.

"And leave you here by yourself? You must be crazy."

She slid down to her knees against the wall, still staring at the blood on the table. Some of it was new. Some of it was two months old. The back of her knees hurt like fire in her bones, but she'd carried the wounds for so long she barely noticed the pain anymore. Her center still throbbed, but she didn't feel it. Her stomach was caved in and aching, but she didn't notice it. She could feel this man watching her. That's what she noticed.

"So are you gonna sit in here for the rest of your life or are we gonna get out that window and leave?" He asked.

"I can't go back." She said suddenly.

He frowned. "Why?"

"There's no way I can go back into my old life and show my face again. Look at what's been done." She gestured to the bloody table. "I don't think I'll be able to face anyone again. They'll think of me as less than a woman for being defiled this way… for being used this way. They'll think I'm worthless and dishonored, or even cursed if I'm that lucky. No. I can't go back."

"Your parents won't hate you."

"What parents?"

"Your siblings?"

"What siblings?"

"The rest of your family?"

"Don't have one."

"Do you have anything to live for?" He asked, wondering if he'd be able to convince her or if he'd have to drag her through that window and drop her off by the police.

She stared at the bloody table again. "I do…" she murmured. "I have a surrogate family."

"Do you think this will change their love for you?"

She groaned angrily. "I don't know! I'd like to think nothing will stop them from loving me, but the difference is, these people chose to love me. It's not like a real family that was born to love me. When their care was made by choice, it can just as easily disappear by choice."

"If you call them your family, then they must still love you. They're probably pulling their heads of hair out with worry right this second. So come on. Let's get out of here."

"But…" He grabbed her hand and pulled her up, and suddenly she felt the pain from her wounds, like the lingering of a wave's crest finally crashing. It was as if she'd woken from her daze and could feel the remains of the torture again. She felt the pain all over, in all the bruises, all the cuts, all the burns, and she collapsed.

"What's wrong?" Her savior asked in a panicked voice.

She held an arm across her stomach and bent over, trying to control the waves of pain that so suddenly began to pulse through her. She gasped for air and clenched her fists to keep from screaming. The backs of her knees burned with the sudden movement. Everything burned. She wanted to sink into the floor, curl up and never come out again to deal with this madness.

"Is it your wounds?" he asked.

She could only nod as she clenched her jaw and sank her teeth into her bottom lip.

"Let's get out of here. I can take you home." He took her hand and pulled her gently to her feet as she winced and sank her fingernails into his arms.

"Not yet... let it wane away," she whispered.

"Okay." He sat her down on a nearby chair and made her elevate her legs.

"Where does it hurt?" He asked, not realizing his hand was still rested heavily on her knee.

"Everywhere," she whispered, throwing her head back and letting out a restrained gasp at the pain.

"Okay… what's stopping you from walking?" he asked.

"I can walk," she said, wincing, "Just not very well. I'll have to wait a minute." She separated the fold of her kimono to her knee, and even in the horror of it all, Kenshin couldn't help but notice the perfectly shaped calf and the strong, slender knees. She tried to show him what was hurting her, but she couldn't stand the pain, and instead pointed to the back of her knees. He got down to his knees and stared up at what she was referring to. The sight shocked him beyond belief. There, on the back of her knees, were two vicious gashes, looking almost bone deep. The skin surrounding the gashes was blackened and weeping, and blood still oozed from inside. The edges of the cut were an odd, pasty color and looked like they'd mold into the shape of his finger at a single touch, like fresh wasabi or miso paste. The flesh was dead, and had been dead for a while. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Pure and simple, it was sick. Everything that had been done to her was sick already, but this…

"Why did they do this to you?" he asked, his mouth parted slightly as he visually examined the gruesome wounds.

"They didn't want me to run away. They made those gashes so I'd be crippled. For a while, it worked, but now I can walk. It just... hurts. But it's a dull pain, not like it was when it was fresh."

"It's almost inhuman..." he murmured, still taken by shock. He felt his heart beat more quickly as he slowly touched her infected flesh. Her knee flinched away and she let out a gasp.

"Don't touch it!" she cried, suddenly feeling hot tears on her cheeks. Kenshin froze, his arms suspended in the air with surrender. Had he pressed a panic button? He watched her heave, her forehead on her knees, her fists clenched over the silk kimono's hem.

"I'm sorry," he said, "I'll get something for you. A bandage and salve."

As he stood, he felt a sudden jerk on his sleeve and turned, seeing Kaoru's hand fisted in his red gi. Her head was bowed and she was still reserved, but he understood. She didn't want to be left alone in a place like this, even for a second, especially with more abusers just a floor below. He gently untangled her fingers from his clothing and walked slowly from the room. He ran to the next room, lined with cabinets and cupboards. Every few seconds, he'd run into the hallway and look towards the door where Kaoru was waiting to look for any disturbances. He was unusually worried about her. She was just another girl, just another person in the world with him, but he felt an odd possessiveness over her. He finally found the gauze bandages, and then a green paste that smelled a lot like the treatment he was given for sword wounds. He rushed towards the room and threw the door open.

"You have everything?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Yes, I do. Now, elevate that leg again."

She obeyed and laid her legs on the chair. He could feel her nervousness in the air as he approached her knees with the green salve on his fingertips. He wiped it heavily onto her wounds, but as soon as it touched her skin, she cried out and threw her head back. The pain was like nothing she'd ever before imagined. It was like he was loading her gash with salt and vinegar. Kenshin placed a comforting hand on the cap of her knee and spread it further. When it was over, she was still gasping as the solution worked at her wound, even after he had taken his hands from her and placed the bandages on her knees. He felt terrible to see her suffer so much, but it was a cruel to be kind situation, and she was still a stranger to him, both foreign and unimportant. When she could finally stand, he led her to the wide window and slid it open.

"You'll be okay…" he whispered. "I'll take you home."

"But … Do you think we can actually get there?"

He turned and smiled warmly at her. "Home… Yes. You will get home. You don't have to worry about these guys anymore." He felt a rush of sympathy pass through him. He pulled her away from the room and through the window. To his surprise, she wasn't shaky with heights at all. She leapt from the windowsill to the ledge with absolute grace and confidence, marred only slightly by her limping from the wounds. He pulled her along, and before he could even begin telling her how to get to the ground properly, she was there. He was definitely impressed. When he leapt down after her, he hastily grabbed her hand and pulled her away through a route in the forest, away from Gohei's mansion and his torture. The backs of her knees had practically crippled her before, that being the original intention, but she could feel herself getting better and experiencing less pain, and she knew she could run if she wanted to. She followed wearily but somehow managed to keep up with his fast pace, their breaths exhaling from their mouths and causing wisps of white steam to appear. The chilly autumn air was getting colder, and he worried for her, as she wore no more than a kimono.

"I'll take you to a police station. They'll know what to do, and they'll escort you home."

Kaoru nodded, but it was clear that she couldn't go much further. Gohei fed her something akin to a pathetic half-meal a day, and the energy had been seeped from her long ago. How she survived the torture and rape without passing out, she failed to know. But now, the exhaustion from the past two months came back and she fell to her knees. Kenshin's grip on her tightened.

"You all right?" He asked her. Her breathing came shallow and ragged.

"Kamiya-san?"

She fell forward and lay sprawled on the ground, suddenly in silent tears. Kenshin pulled her up and tried to keep her walking, but she almost passed out. In the end, he picked her up and held her light, hourglass form in his arms as he walked. Carrying her was effortless, though it did slow him down, and they got to the police station later than he'd aimed. When he finally arrived, his sword arm ached like hell and both he and Kaoru had lost a good amount of blood.

As soon as he walked in, Kaoru looked up and surveyed the space.

"Tae!" She cried almost mournfully. A woman standing by the desk turned and gasped.

"Kaoru!" She ran towards them. Kenshin took two staggering steps forward, his knees shaky and his wound playing up on the rest of his body, and collapsed.

"Are you all right?" Tae gasped. She ran up to them as Kaoru disengaged herself from his arms and lifted his head. Tae hastily made Kenshin sit down in the waiting area. He tried to keep his head up, but it wouldn't obey. It seemed like his ponytail weighed him down. He leaned his head back against the wall, closed his eyes, and breathed.

"Are you feeling any better?" Kaoru asked him worriedly. He tried to fake a smile, but it ended up looking like a grimace.

"Just sit there and rest. The nausea will pass." Tae said. Then she looked at Kaoru, her eyes softened and watery. "I didn't think you'd ever come back, Kaoru," she murmured, holding her close. "I thought you were dead..."

"I'm all right, Tae. Don't worry." Kaoru closed her eyes and smiled as she patted the other woman's back. "I'm okay."

Just then, Kenshin let out another gasp of pain. Kaoru pulled away from Tae and moved towards him, ready to offer some of the comfort he'd given her before.

"You both need to get to the clinic," Tae said seriously.

"I know we do," she said almost silently. She lifted her arm to tuck a strand of hair wearily behind her ears, but her kimono sleeve slipped to her elbow, revealing the bruises and wounds scattered across her arm. Tae, upon seeing it, was ready to fall into a state of panic.

"Kami Sama!" She cried, surveying Kaoru's form and her bruised wrists. "What did they do to you in there…?"

Kaoru shook her head and leaned forward as if to throw up. But she didn't. Instead, she started trembling. Tae tried guiltily to cheer her up. "Oh… Kaoru, don't cry… Your students will be so happy to see you're back! They were all so worried."

Kenshin gave her a questioning glance from his slouched form. "Students?"

"Kao-chan owns and is master to a very prosperous dojo." Tae stated proudly. "Kamiya Kasshin Ryu."

Kenshin raised a brow. He felt a new, deep respect for the slip of a girl sitting beside him. That explained the muscles he could see in her arms and the ease of her escape from the mansion's second floor.

Kaoru lifted her head slightly and opened her mouth. It was obvious that she wanted to say something, but couldn't bring the words from her mouth. "Yahiko?" was all she could whisper.

"Oh, don't worry. I sent him to Kyoto to stay with the Oniwabanshu; everyone believed a cheerful Misao was exactly what he needs."

Kaoru smiled fondly, once again finding her voice. "It's just like Misao to stay cheerful through anything."

Kenshin raised his brow again. This girl certainly had her contacts. They were talking of the commander with such familiarity and closeness that it was obvious they were friends. The Oniwabanshu was considered a very powerful ninja group. He knew for a fact that Makimachi Misao, a person whom he'd never seen before, was the leader of the Kyoto branch. Apparently, this girl he barely knew had close ties with the ninja leader.

"Tanuki's finally back, I'm guessing?" A sardonic voice sounded. At those words, Kaoru's world crashed around her and her frustration took a terrifying peak. She looked up at the source of the words and shot him a glare. But when Kenshin looked up at him and the policeman looked down at him, the cigarette dangling from his thin, malicious lips fell to the ground.

"Battousai…"

"Saitou…"

Saitou Hajime quickly corrected his posture, ground his heel on his cigarette, and lit another. "Hn. I knew that Gohei wasn't the real Battousai. Of course, I never told the Lord Okubo, but now he will know."

Kenshin nodded wearily. "You're a police captain now?"

"Yeah."

"Honorable job for a Mibu Wolf."

"My wife didn't appreciate such a dishonorable job as the one I had before."

Kenshin suppressed a laugh. The poor woman, getting her leg shackled to this… stiff… he couldn't find a single word that would sum up the man in front of him. Saitou was evil, pure and simple. His wife would have to be just as evil to stand him day after day.

"But on to more important things... The girl is back? Where did he find you, tanuki chan?"

Kaoru growled at him and stood. "If you call me that one more time I swear I'll—"

"Tanuki?" Saitou teased. Kaoru tried to lurch herself forward, but Tae hoisted her back by the waist, and the sudden pain convulsed brutally through her lithe body, so much she almost didn't want to jump that bastard of a man who'd always insulted her.

"Kaoru, you don't want to hurt yourself further…" She warned.

"Now the tanuki is hurt? How in the world do all the ugly ones get hurt so often?"

Kaoru whacked the man in the side of the head before Tae could stop her. Kenshin smiled ruefully. She was too feisty for her own good…

Saitou rubbed his head. "You're pretty powerful. But that is expected from ugly tomboys such as yourself."

Kaoru jumped from her seat and hooked her arms around his neck, trying to pull him down. Tae got up that instant and tried to pull them apart. "STOP IT! You two are acting like childish rivals!" She cried. She pulled them apart with ease that was incredibly unusual, seeing that Kaoru was usually so strong. "Kaoru, sit down or you will make it worse. Saitou, your wife is sitting in your office. She would be very disappointed to hear that you taunted Kaoru while she's INJURED, and didn't stop when her rebuttals clearly had an affect on her."

Saitou folded his arms. "It's not like I care."

Tae smirked. "Tokio san!" She called. Saitou, horrified by the aspect of a frustrated Tokio, muffled Tae's calls with his hand.

"My wife does not do nicely when she's disappointed with me." He warned.

"Well, then, apologize to Kaoru."

Saitou raised an eyebrow and changed the subject. "Battousai, I will need the details of who died this night, where Gohei's body is, and the events that led up to the tanuki's rescue. Then, take that girl straight to the clinic. After that you can do whatever Katsura wanted you to do for all I care. But don't ask me for boarding favors or I'll just laugh in your face."

Kaoru scowled. "Saitou!" She growled. She tried to hit him, but Tae, once again, pulled her back.

"Calm down and wait patiently. God, Kaoru, even when you get kidnapped you remain the same dangerous explosive!"

"LISTEN to me, Saitou!" She began.

"That's Hajime-san to you, Tanuki!" She growled at him. "See? She's not a woman. She's an animal. A raccoon." Saitou continued.

"LISTEN! I've had to take TOO much crap from people in these past couple months, and I've had ENOUGH of it! I don't need any input from you!" Kaoru glowered at the floor.

Saitou's eyebrow quirked up at her response. So maybe he didn't know exactly what happened in there. She was still a stupid tanuki.

"I'm still a WHAT!?" Kaoru cried. He winced. Had he said that out loud?

Before Tae could restrain her, Kaoru tackled Saitou and pinned him to the ground. "Get off of me, you stupid tanuki!" He growled.

"You watch it!" She said, slamming her knee sharply into his arm despite the pain it caused her.

Saitou smirked and watched her coolly from the ground, keeping that smoking cigarette between his teeth. Kaoru glared at it and plucked it from his mouth. "Oh, go ahead," he said to her, "I've got plenty more." He patted his pocket.

Kaoru grinded her teeth and pulled the whole packet away before Saitou could see what was going on. His face fell. "Hah!" She held the cigarettes in front of his face for an instant and pulled the box away before he could reach for it. She placed it into her kimono shirt, glaring at him.

"Damned raccoon," Saitou cursed as he picked himself up and dusted off.

Kaoru stopped in her place and her hands turned into fists. She was uncontrollable because she'd HAD no control for such a long time. She couldn't very easily hold herself back. She was angry with him and angry with the world.

Saitou smoothed his hair, looked around to make sure no mystery witnesses were around to see him get beat by a little raccoon girl, and called for assistance, all the while shooting Kaoru various glares.

Kenshin, with some assistance from one of the policemen, followed Saitou into his office, and Tokio left to keep Kaoru and Tae company and give the two men some privacy. She was the same woman Kaoru had always known, soft spoken and tolerable to any kind of crap thrown her way, yet dangerous and artfully skilled to handle her husband. She was one that Kaoru could always trust, but she found herself unable to say anything about what happened in Gohei's hands. Somehow, it wasn't right.

"So, battousai…"

"It's Kenshin now, Saitou." He corrected.

Saitou gave him a sardonic glare and drummed his fingers on the table. "Do you really think I care?"

Kenshin pursed his lips and looked into his lap.

"Whatever. Listen to me. I need the details of what happened. That girl you saved is more important than you think. Her father, Koshijirou Kamiya, was one of Lord Okubo's comrades. He sacrificed his life for the Lord Okubo in the Seinan War when Kaoru was only fourteen, and he had promised to Koshijirou as he died that he'd protect and value his daughter. Kaoru is so important to him because of her father. People were going crazy searching for her. Nobody knew where she was. It was suspected that she was in Gohei's headquarters in Kyoto, seeing that Gohei is too careful to place her in his Tokyo hideout, but I'm guessing she was there the whole time. Knowing what happens to her is a big part of my job, so you need to give me the details."

Kenshin nodded. "I managed to sneak into Gohei's Tokyo headquarters. The men I followed had been talking about her the whole time, before I knew her. They talked about her like a pack of wolves dying to have a piece of the same raw meat. I was curious, so I managed to follow them to the room she was kept in. Some people were already in there…" he stopped, having difficulty in finding the words to describe what he'd seen.

"And?" Saitou said expectantly.

"They were… gang raping her. One man was in action as the others watched, and they took turns. It seems that for the past two months, that's what they'd been doing to her. Then, Gohei came out and performed some burn torture. I think I snapped. I engaged him in a swordfight, and shamefully, he's very skilled."

"You especially would be ashamed…" Saitou commented sardonically.

Kenshin glared at him before continuing. "When I was about to receive a hit, Kamiya-san blocked my way and caught the blade with her own hands. She managed to pull it from his hold, and I killed him, killing a lot of the room's occupants, too." He said. "I offered to bring her home."

Saitou sat still for a moment, idly turning a pen in his hand. He was frowning more deeply than usual.

"So, you're telling me this: Within the time it took for her to be rescued, she was being tortured and raped?"

Kenshin nodded vaguely, his mind caught up in images he wanted to expel forever.

Saitou sighed regretfully and laced his fingers together. "I would never admit this freely, but the tanuki means more to me than just a burden. When her father died, Tokio and I cared for her for a while, until she told us she could run the dojo alone. She's quite a determined one. She became important to Tokio, and as for me… I didn't see her much, but I could appreciate who she is. At first glance, she's rough around the edges. That's why I tease her."

"I don't happen to find her very rough around the edges, Saitou."

"I know she's attractive enough already. She spent a few months in my house and i was chasing away those stupid boys for a week. I'm talking about her etiquette. She's tomboyish, rough… but she's compassionate, and she cares deeply for others. She kind of grows on you after a while. Lord Okubo knew her since she was fourteen, and he is very fond of her."

"Is there a point in letting me know all of this?" Kenshin asked, covering up any interest in hearing more about her.

Saitou gave him a glare. "I'm saying that you rescued a very special girl. Lord Okubo will see to it that you are highly rewarded. Kamiya is violent and easily angered, but she has a wide soft streak. She cares deeply for others. Sometimes I think it's a special ability of hers to share someone else's pain."

"I don't know how, but I could tell since I first saw her."

"She's special. She's had to grow up too fast. Life hasn't been easy on her for a while." Saitou briefly bowed his head in both respect and gratitude, two things Kenshin never thought he'd ever receive from Saito, a Mibu Wolf. When he straightened, he looked him right in the eyes. "Thank you. But never tell a soul what I just did."

Kenshin smirked. "That's fine with me." But he knew in his mind that he would use it to blackmail Saitou someday.

When the two men finally emerged from the large, overbearing office, Kaoru saw, for the first time, a glint of sympathy in Saitou's eyes every time he looked her way.

He gestured to Kaoru. "You should… You should go to the clinic now. Get those burns checked." He swallowed hard. His voice was unusually raspy and low.

"Burns?" Tae exclaimed. "Kaoru, what the hell have they been doing to you?"

Kenshin noticed how Kaoru's eyes had suddenly turned both glossy and red, and made a diversion. "We should go to the clinic now. Please summon a rickshaw, Tae dono."

As they entered the rickshaw, Kenshin closed his eyes to rest. His breathing became ragged as he pressed his fingers into the wound to test its fatality, and Kaoru kept fingering the painful, itching burns. Tae, being the motherly one she was, slapped both of their hands away from the wounds. Kenshin couldn't help but continue to look back and forth at the girl beside him, whose beauty and fire constantly attracted his sight.

As soon as Kaoru's kimono fell open, Megumi's eyes threatened to water. "Kami sama…" she whispered. Her eyes traveled over the horrible burns scarring Kaoru's usually perfect skin. "Kao-chan, what did those men do to you?"

Tae was at her side, shaking her head sympathetically. She couldn't imagine what pain her friend would have felt to endure such burns. Megumi and Tae both felt the same way for once. Their Kaoru, their seventeen-year-old Kaoru, had been treated this way by grown men. Tae's brow was permanently furrowed, Megumi had to bite her reddened lips to keep the tears from falling.

Kenshin, who was sitting in a corner of the room, his wound dressed and described by the lady doctor as 'very serious', eyed what the burns had become and let out a hiss of sympathy. He noticed that the attractive doctor's eyes were very sympathetic, but lacked in the same devastation in Tae's.

"Oh, when Sanosuke sees this…" Tae whispered.

Kaoru jerked up, but the pain was too much and she lowered her head to the pillow. "How's Sanosuke been?" she asked desperately.

Megumi shook her head. "He was suicidal. Couldn't pay the ransom, didn't know where Gohei took you, couldn't imagine what went on with you. You know how protective he is of you. His heart was a mess. He wouldn't stop looking for you, and he didn't eat or sleep…"

"It was like he turned into a ghost…" Tae added.

"I'll see him soon." She whispered, closing her eyes.

"No you won't, Kaoru-chan!" Megumi chided condescendingly. "Look at your wounds! Sanosuke will be so angry with me when he sees that I didn't give his Jou-chan proper treatment."

"But, Megumi-saaaaaaaan…"

Megumi felt her head for a fever. "This gallant, insolent child looks nothing like the teenager that was mercilessly tortured for the past few months. How do you do it?"

Kaoru felt for her kimono and wrapped the layers over her body again. She didn't answer.

"Your favorite rooster head can visit you in a couple days." Megumi said, using Kaoru's age-old pet name.

"I don't need you to monitor me." She said with a surprisingly acid voice.

Megumi stared down at her cold face. The girl had been through so much pain already; she wanted to make things easier. "I have my responsibilities, Kao chan, but because it's you I'm talking to, I'll have the apprentice take up my role for a few days with Dr. Genzai."

Kaoru let out a triumphant gasp and flopped onto the bed, her face in a wide, forced smile. Kenshin sighed from his corner of the room. He didn't think he would ever understand her oblivious optimism.

"I'll pack my things. You stay patient and try to contain your happiness. And you," she said, looking at Kenshin with her sharp brown eyes, "I'll thank you for everything later. Right now, though, could you carry her to the rickshaw despite that wound, or is it too much?"

He shook his head. "It isn't too much for me. This girl is light as a feather, and my wound won't hurt me too much," He answered as Kaoru spoke up again.

"I can walk."

"No you can't. Keep your head on that pillow. When I get back I'll give you a proper examination before we leave."

Kaoru glowered at her and caught Kenshin staring her way. She flashed him a nervous smile before turning to Tae and asking about the others. "Is everybody else all right? Keisuke?"

Tae's face fell. "Keisuke's moving. He got transferred to Izu, because his company was worried about him. He said since you were in Gohei's clutches and you hadn't been returned in ten days, you were as good as dead… I'm sorry, Kaoru-chan. There's nothing we can do about it now." Kaoru's smile fell again. This time it turned into a look of pain.

"He… he's still here though, right?"

"Hai." Tae nodded.

"I can talk him out of it…"

"There's no way they'll change their decision, Kaoru… I'm sorry, but he made a decision and his whole life here has come to a close. There's no turning back."

Megumi came back, holding a bag of her belongings in her hands. "Oh! I forgot… Sanosuke told me the other day that he'd be staying in your place. Keeping it fixed up."

Kaoru stared at the floor. "Good…" she whispered. "I'll see him tonight, then."

Megumi nodded. "And you…" she said to Kenshin.

He looked up. "Yeah?"

"Do you have a place to stay yet?"

"I'm only passing through. I'm going to an inn for the next few days."

"You can't go to an inn…" Kaoru said. "They won't take care of your wounds there."

He shrugged. "I'll take care of them myself."

"No you won't." Megumi said in her demanding voice. "That wound is worse than you probably believe. It's at risk of being infected. Kaoru-chan, you have extra space at the dojo, don't you?" Megumi asked.

"For the man who rescued me from that hellhole, I can spare a room." She said.

"I wouldn't want to get in the way… I'm a complete stranger and I'll be lying around in your house."

"Only for a few nights, then. Until Megumi gives you a proper medication."

He stopped to think. He could send a message to Katsura tonight and then meet up with him somewhere in town to figure out what to do… And he didn't bring much money with him. He nodded. "Around three nights."

"Then it's settled," Megumi said, smiling. She then banished everybody from the room so she could give Kaoru a proper examination.

"Is it bad?" Kaoru asked as she lay on the examination bed, spread-eagled so Megumi could get a proper look at everything.

She didn't say anything back, but instead kept the frown of fury on her brow and listed Kaoru's wounds and new disabilities on a spreadsheet with angry, careless strokes. She prodded around a little bit, asking Kaoru if it hurt and nodding at her gasps of pain. When it was over and Kaoru was again dressed, Megumi read out what she'd seen.

"Two gashes at the collarbones, one fractured wrist, countless burn wounds all over the body, several infected cuts on legs, thighs, and breasts, one sprained ankle, three abrasions at the throat, possibly from teeth, two bone-deep, viciously infected gashes at the back of the knees, and nine badly infected wounds around the feminine area." She finished off with a glint in her eyes. "What had they done to you?"

Kaoru briskly tied a sash at her waist. "Torture." She said bitterly, and she limped through the door.

Sanosuke's ears caught the sudden noise as soon as it happened. He was onto his third vial of Sake, so any noise he heard could be his imagination, but he couldn't trust his instincts. Not many people came to the dojo since Kaoru's disappearance. He winced. Whatever was going on in there… he wouldn't allow himself to think of it.

He heard the distinct noise again. A bell. One large brass bell, ringing over and over again. He dropped his vial and stood unsteadily, allowing himself to stagger into the yard. Of course, the sound he heard was real. He'd been missing his Jou-chan to death, and to drown his guilt and sorrow, he drank sake religiously. He'd taken alcohol to the point that he couldn't trust the true existence of any sound, movement, or memory he came across.

The bell continued to ring. Who would it be this time? A medic offering him ginseng or antidepressants? He rolled his eyes. They had come one too many times, asking for the lady of the house to sell things to. He wondered how Kaoru had dealt with them so calmly, because they seemed to come, several times a day, all offering different things. It irritated him to the point that he wouldn't open the door anymore, but he had that special feeling, so he wouldn't let whoever was visiting alone.

"Sanosuke, open the door!" Megumi demanded upon hearing his unsteady footsteps lead up to the door. He was probably standing still, staring at the textured wood, so drunk he couldn't remember how to open the door.

"Oi! Kitsune, what are you doing bothering me at this time of night?" he asked, his voice slurred.

When Kaoru heard the lock being undone, she made Kenshin put her down so she could stand for herself. She felt heavy anticipation, anxiety, nervousness and relief all at once. When the door began to open, her heart hammered.

Sanosuke had expected only Megumi to be at his door, with soap, medication, food, and the intention to sweep through the house and make sure he was still far from dying of grief, but when he opened the door and instead saw that precious girl standing before him, her eyes resting on his in that memorable way, even he couldn't give words to the relief he felt.

"Jou chan!" He blurted out with relieved surprise. She gave him her familiar smile, though it was slightly broken, and ghosted into his outstretched arms. As soon as they were touching, she dragged him closer and pressed her face into his chest. They both sank to their knees and stayed like that for a long time, their tears falling onto each other's shoulders.

"I love you, Jou Chan," he said, the way he'd always said it to let her know she was his best friend, the light in his sky and the one he cared for the most.

"And I love you, Tori Atama," she whispered, smiling as she let him know the same thing. Kenshin didn't think they were romantically involved, but they were, without a doubt, the best of friends.

He smiled and looked past her to greet the others, but kept his tight hold on her shoulders to keep her close. "Who's this?" He asked inquiringly, gesturing to Kenshin.

"That would be Kenshin Himura. He rescued Kao-chan from Gohei." Megumi said.

Sano gave him a thankful glance before inviting everyone inside.

Kaoru passed Kenshin a smile over her shoulder. "I'll show you around." She said.

"No way, Jou-chan, you're not walking around anymore tonight!" Sanosuke promptly stepped forward and swept her into his arms, smiling all the way.

"How the hell do you expect me to show the guest around while you're carrying me like this?"

"I'll be your little wheelchair. Just go ahead and point out all the rooms, and I'll go where you want me to."

Kaoru laughed, from sheer joy at reuniting with her best friend, and Kenshin couldn't help but laugh, too. Sanosuke planned on taking her in his arms from room to room as she pointed at one or two things and explained her way of living. Yes, these people were both unusually strange and confusing.

Sanosuke opened the door, and Kenshin raised his brow when he stepped inside. The ceilings were high, making the entry room feel cool and airy. The floor was polished and rich, with tatami running down the center of the hallway. She let Sanosuke support her as she showed her guest around, first showing him the kitchen, which was huge in comparison to his smaller one at home. Their dining room was just outside the kitchen, in the center of the house, so it had no windows. Down the hall were five bedrooms to the left, and an extra one to the right along with the study and the living room. She obviously lived rich, at least in Kenshin's mind. Sanosuke kept making a joke out of her effort to tour him through the place by twirling her around or walking backwards or standing still when she wanted him to go to a certain room.

"You're the worst wheelchair I've ever had," she mumbled irritably.

Everybody let out a laugh when Sanosuke deliberately dropped her, from a lower height, saying, "If you don't want to take up my nice offer, FINE! You can stay right here and do the tour but there's no way in hell you're getting up and walking around!"

She glared at him and got to her feet, rolling her eyes when she tried to escape and he only picked her up.

"Damn you."

"Just get on with it. I won't make any more mistakes."

"I'd rather walk."

"Too bad! You're not walking anymore."

"Okay, dad."

"I'm not your dad."

"Okay, dad."

"Damnit, Kaoru!"

She merely burst into laughter and tried to get her 'wheelchair' to move in the right direction.

"I have a dojo too," she said proudly, showing him the building from her outdoor walkway, having to reach over and slide the door open from Sanosuke's arms to do so. "My father established the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu style before I was born. I continued it after he died, and it's been going pretty well so far."

"What's it all about?" Kenshin asked.

"Protecting. Not killing."

Kenshin's brow rose to his hairline. "Do you think that's possible?"

"It's the Meiji era!" she said, smiling. "Of course it's possible! Everyone in the revolution used anger to fuel their strength. Anger and hate, so they could kill better. We use our feelings of protectiveness to fuel our attacks. But we don't kill." She reached down for her bokken, but needed Sanosuke to bend over before she could seize it. "That's why we use this."

Kenshin smiled at the way she lit up when she talked about her sword style. She seemed to be very passionate about what she did. And obviously, she was a good teacher. She was really well off to have everything she did, especially at the age he'd estimated her to be.

"How old are you, Kamiya-dono?" Kenshin asked.

"Seventeen," she answered.

His jaw literally dropped. Seventeen? She must have missed out on a great deal of her childhood to be this successful at seventeen.

She smiled, almost reading his thoughts. "I have a beginner, intermediate, and advanced class." She said. "There's about twenty students in each sect."

But this idea of not killing… he didn't think he would ever see eye to eye with it. He was surprised that so many people agreed with her idea, especially after a time like the revolution.

"Lets take a seat and figure everything out." Sanosuke said, hugging his best friend closer. "I think you need a little time to get used to things again."

They sat in the dining room, obviously because Sanosuke didn't want Kaoru to see the sake vials all over the floor of her living room. They tried to figure out more about each other, and avoided dwelling on Kaoru's kidnapping.

Sano desperately wanted to question Kaoru on what had happened to her, but the subject remained untouched. He knew she wouldn't want to cry in front of everybody. Whenever it looked like he was about to bring it up, Tae would give him a warning glance.

When Tae went home, Megumi took everyone to the living room to treat the wounds. While she treated Kaoru's wounds, she made Sano leave to buy a few things. Dawn was a good while ahead, but she'd convinced him that the markets were opening, and sent him away since she didn't want Sano to see what had happened to Kaoru. He would go crazy, or possibly worse.

"This," Megumi said, showing Kaoru a tub of greenish ointment, "will not only heal your wounds, but it will also prevent scarring. I know you like your baths. Sano will prepare one for you every afternoon. Directly after you're dried off, dab the wounds with this ointment. Morning, noon, and night. Ok?"

Kaoru's brow was creased as she concentrated. "Yeah."

"So put some on now, all right?"

"Yes." Kaoru nodded.

As she moved to stand, Megumi stopped her. "Kaoru?"

"Yes?"

"You look horrible."

Kaoru smirked. "Kami sama, thanks a lot, Megumi."

"Was what they did really bad enough to take your beauty away?"

Kaoru frowned. "It's my body that was screwed up, Megumi. I know for sure that I'm not going to be revealing it to anybody for a while. So it doesn't really matter. All right?"

"I'm not talking about that kind of beauty. Your sparkle is gone."

Kaoru's face fell. "I was hoping it hadn't… I'm just not strong enough…"

Megumi shrugged. "I guess it's understandable. I really would appreciate it though, if you told me your story soon."

"I will. When the time is right," said Kaoru, suddenly looking fragile and disappointed.

"Don't worry." Megumi said randomly.

She gave the doctor a questioning glance.

"Your ki hasn't completely disappeared. It'll return in time. Just remember to keep up with your words."

Kaoru nodded and forced a little smile, keeping her eyes on the floor. She ran her hand over her slightly warm forehead and reached down to retrieve the green ointment with her delicate fingers.

Megumi gave Kaoru a friendly, fond smile. "You look worn out. Exhausted."

"Yes. I am a little. I'll go to sleep now." She tried to stand, but the movement, requiring her skin's flexibility, stretched the burns and made let out an explicit curse that would have turned a sailor's ears red. If Kenshin hadn't been watching her contently already, his head would have flicked so quickly in her direction the force would break a kink loose.

"Careful, Kaoru, don't be so hasty. I'll help you." Megumi rushed towards her toppling form and steadied her. She helped her stand without harming the burns and guided her to her room.

"Himura-san?" Kaoru said suddenly. He looked her way as a sign of his attention, and she gave him a ghost of a smile to stare at. "Your room's the fifth one on the left side. Okay?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Kamiya-dono." Kenshin watched them leave. She was an overconfident, innocent child. She was naive and knew so little of the real world. She seemed almost to ignore what happened to her. That or she was a very good actress. Was it bravery or stupidity? He knew already that she was brave. Was she stupid? Gallant, not stupid. Naiive, not stupid.

He decided it was out of bravery.

The moon was particularly bright that night. Kaoru could clearly see that from her place on the wooden walkway. She was exhausted, but she couldn't sleep. Lying in her own bed again after such a long time was too hard to adjust to. She winced at the sudden onslaught of pain. Her wounds still killed her ability to do normal things, and she knew it would take a while before she'd pick up a sword again.

"Kamiya-dono?" A voice sounded from the bedroom door.

She looked towards the figure in the doorway. "Mr. Himura?"

"What are you doing up at this time?" He asked, sitting beside her on the wood floor.

Her eyes lingered on him for a moment before she looked away. "Insomnia." She replied, her soft voice piercing the heavy silence. "It felt too awkward to lie on my own futon again after such a time had passed."

He leaned against the wall and kept his gaze on her, this girl he barely knew, but who had easily sparked his interest. Was it pity? He didn't know. But then he refused to believe it was pity. It was awe. Awe at her resilience. Awe at her strong, brave heart. She was so different from anyone he'd ever seen before, both in attitude and in appearance. She was, in the simplest of expressions, one of a kind.

He folded his lips and leaned over to get a look at her face. She was staring at the ground, her hair loose over her shoulders, long lashes strewn with tears.

"Miss Kamiya," he said to her almost conversationally, pausing for a moment almost to hold his breath, "I want to know more about your sword style."

She passed him a ghost of a smile, a smile that didn't reach her eyes, but would easily fool the less observant people around her. She opened her mouth, just slightly, so slightly that it almost appeared sultry, and after a few seconds, she spoke. "Why?"

He paused, staring at the stone well in the middle of the yard. "Why…" he murmured, lifting his eyes to the moon and the many stars scattered across the indigo sky.

Kaoru kept her eyes on him and eventually placed her chin on the palm of her hand, allowing him time to think.

"I've never known any kind of swordsmanship but the swordsmanship of killing." He said slowly, still deep in thought. "Every time I look at a sword, I see blood, and I see death. I'm a manslayer. So everything to do with swordsmanship has something to do with death. I've never… known of a sword that could bring life, and be used with hope of life. It seems almost surreal to think of it. So… tell me what it's about."

Kaoru smiled at him, a small smile, but it was more genuine than anything he may have seen for a long time. She slid her bedroom door open and caught a wooden Shinai flawlessly as it fell, without having to do more than react with pure reflex.

"We use swords," she said as she began, "but we use wooden ones. Yes, it would be a disadvantage," she cut the beginning of his contradiction off, "but it's also about resilience. It's about being strong and being good without the aid of steel. It's more defensive than offensive. My father established it when the Meiji era began, because it was a sword style suited for it.

"I can agree with that when it comes to the ideas of the Meiji. It's a perfect idea for what people thought was the perfect era. I still believe that assassinating with a sword will never stop, unlike my father, but, like my father, I know that with the revolution behind us, it'll lessen a lot more. I'm sure you know that already." She looked directly at him with those eyes, eyes that seemed to say 'tell me everything,' even when her gestures and her words had no trace of it.

He smiled slightly at that trustworthy vibe, one he'd so rarely encountered. "Yes. I can tell you first hand that you're right, since I'm one of those people. During the revolution, I was on such high demand that I lived at the headquarters, but it was routine to live that way. I didn't have to pay for my own house or food, that's for sure. I worked in exchange for food, board, and the money that came with it. But after it ended, I lived with my wife in Otsu and had a house of my own. I only get called time after time, nowadays. Like this time; it was to kill Gohei."

"I see. I was a child when the revolution was going on, but I knew what was happening. I knew how everybody lived and killed. After years have passed when killing is almost… acceptable, if I can say it, there's no way it can end forever. We're humans; there's only so much we can adjust to."

Kenshin nodded in agreement, knowing that what she said was right. Young, but knowledgeable, he thought.

"I also know now that swordsmanship is part of our lives, here in Meiji Japan. We've been using Kenjutsu for centuries, maybe more than that, so its presence still runs deep. A boy can't grow up swordless knowing that his brother's a brave fighter and his father was a samurai. It's best, then, for him to turn to me. Kamiya Kasshin Ryu is all about life, preserving it and protecting it and using it as a reason to fight. I'll knock a guy out, but under no circumstances will I kill him. Everything that's done is done completely in the interest of my present safety, and the safety of the one I'm protecting."

"So it's like that move you used against Gohei… You did it earlier, when he was about to strike me. You caught it in your own bare hands."

"Hawatari." Kaoru answered. "Hawatari is the perfect example of Kamiya Kasshin Ryu's style and beliefs. Defend, Disarm, and threaten. But never kill. I almost always leave it to the police when he's on the floor and out of it." She smiled proudly at him.

"I understand what it's about…" Kenshin said. "It is almost surreal, as I'd said before. That things can be handled so innocently and safely; that you can solve a matter with everyone involved alive to see it." She smiled at him.

"It's most definitely real."

Kenshin watched her as she turned away and stared at the shining moon. Her hands were soft, but still the hands of a swordswoman. Among them, though, he could see something else. Creativity. Yes, that's definitely what it was. It was in her eyes and in her movements; one with so much passion for ingenuity should not only be a swordswoman.

"Is there anything else you enjoy doing? Is swordsmanship all?"

Kaoru blushed at that question. "I… I like to write." She said, lowering her eyes.

"I knew it," he said triumphantly, once again staring at her hands.

Kaoru gave him an amused look and shook her head. "It's not what I'm meant to do, though."

"Why not?"

"My father saw me almost as the daughter he'd wished was a son. All he did was encourage me to become a swordsman. I took writing classes, but my father wanted me to pass on the sword style for life. I have an heir to pass it on to, but swordsmanship is my first priority still. And I'm not sorry… it's one of my escapes."

"Although… your father would also want you to be happy."

"He was obsessed with family honor." She said. "He told me that even after he died, he would be ashamed if I dishonored his name. He said he would no longer be my father. I can't imagine what he'd think of me now." Tears began to find the surface of her sapphire eyes. "I don't know why I'm telling you this; maybe it's because you were there to witness a little of it, and I feel like I can trust you. But, either way, the truth is inavoidable. My father would hate me for this…"

"It wasn't your fault, miss Kamiya," Kenshin said to her.

"I was defiled, and then continuously used as a sexual object. If that's not dishonor, I don't know what is," she murmured, wincing as the tears ran down her cheeks.

"But… it wasn't your fault in the first place. You weren't willing, or purposely disobeying your fathers wishes."

Kaoru nodded. "Maybe, but the kinds of things they did in there…" she looked up at the ceiling, trying to find words for her pain. "Any honor is all gone now…"

"Miss Kamiya," Kenshin said, leaning closer to her, "what I saw happening… was that all that had been going on?"

Kaoru shook her head. "No… he'd done other stuff. Him and everybody else… they…" she held her chest, as if her hand could restrain the sharp, sudden pain. "The things I did…" she ended up breaking under the weight of her suffering and crying. "I can't face anything anymore," she sobbed as she held her head in her hands. "I want to just jump off a bridge and die!"

He watched her cry, feeling his gut wrench deeply and his chest burn with hate for Gohei and the others- he suddenly wished he'd killed his enemies a little more slowly…

"Maybe you should try to sleep, Miss Kamiya," he said in a soothing voice. He held her gently by her upper arm and led her inside, staying until she was under the covers of her futon, still weeping silently. Then, looking away from her and stepping into the hallway, his hand clenched tightly and murderously into a fist. For some reason, he couldn't bear seeing her grieve so deeply. He had the sudden need to re-enter the room and hold her, to run his lips over the trails of her tears and make them disappear. Then the moment passed, and he frowned with confusion, trying to ask himself what had just happened.

In the morning, Kaoru didn't emerge. Or the next morning. Or the next. She was like a ghost in the house; you knew she was there, but you could look right past her. He would walk past her door and hear her crying, or open the door to give her food and see her curled up in a ball at the corner of the room. Megumi and the others were really worried; she let nobody in, not even Sano. Saitou visited because Tokio had insisted on seeing her, but when she knelt before Kaoru's broken form, she didn't get more than a word out of her. She'd noticed that Kaoru was bleeding in a few places and her skin was somewhat grayish, and when she told Megumi the doctor rushed straight inside. Kaoru's wounds had reopened and she'd only lost more blood.

"Are you sure you want to keep to yourself like this?" Megumi asked.

Kaoru curled herself more tightly into a ball. "What do you think, Megumi?" she asked. "When I see the sun, it reminds me of how long I went without seeing it in that place. When I have to eat, it reminds me of how they forced themselves into me. When I talk to people, I remember the things they'd whispered into my ears. When I get changed, I remember the way they stripped me down to nothing. When I touch anything extremely hot, I remember the way they burned me. It's better off for me if I stay in here."

Megumi pressed her lips together. "You don't get it, do you? You have to get up and go! You're making everybody else worried about you, Kaoru! Don't be so selfish!"

Kaoru dropped her cup of water and it spilled all over the carpet. She was staring at Megumi with a frightening glare. "Yeah, Megumi, it's really easy for you to say, isn't it?" She asked accusingly. "You didn't have to lose your virginity to so many men, did you? You weren't starved or tortured or raped or anything like that, were you?" she ripped a hand through her loose, knotted hair. "You don't understand anything about this! You never will! Now get out!"

Sano came in as Megumi was leaving. Being Sano, she didn't resist him, and instead she let him hold her as she cried again.

"You'll be all right." He said to her. "You don't need to worry. You'll be fine."

Kaoru shook her head. "I won't, tori atama, I won't. Nothing they've done can be healed."

Sano closed his eyes. "Kaoru… Kaoru… don't talk like that. It's not like you."

"The captivity has changed everything." She said bitterly.

Sanosuke pulled her head to his chest. "You're here. And you're fine. Just a little scratched."

"You don't know." She said. "You honestly don't know."

"Will you ever tell me?" He asked.

"If I can bring myself to talk about it."

He nodded wordlessly and fell silent. He took one of her arms and ran his fingers gently over her bruises and scars. He moved to her next arm, and then to her neck. She didn't move or speak when he slipped the folds of her kimono from her legs and stared at her gashes. The wounds in the back of her knees were still gaping badly. They were unbelievably deep and heavily infected –she'd probably carried those wounds for a long time. He gathered all of her into his arms and produced the green ointment on her dresser. With a gentle finger, he spread it over her wounds. She bit her lip and winced as her muscles tightened. But he continued to tend to her when he was done with her knees.

"Let me see the rest of them, Kaoru." He said.

Then he felt her tremble against him.

"It's not fair." She whispered. "Why would they want to do this to me? I never harmed them, and now they've turned my life upside down…"

Sano kissed her forehead. "The world isn't fair." He said. "But it's been especially unfair to you. But you'll be all right. I'll always be here to have your back."

Kaoru rubbed her face against his collarbones. "Thank you, Sanosuke," she whispered. She didn't protest when he removed the kimono from her shoulders and stared at her back. His jaw clenched. He pulled it away until she was left in her kimono shirt and hip wrap, and he saw the wounds so clearly that hate surged through him and his eyes glazed over. He held her hips and pressed his face to her soft, scarred stomach, and then he started to cry. He couldn't imagine what had gone on for her to acquire those wounds, but every day, he'd cried, hoping nothing would happen and she'd come back safely. Every day, he'd cried, hoping Gohei would have spared her the assault she now knew. He'd hoped she could at least preserve her innocence, if that was all, but even that was ripped carelessly away from her. He should have felt like an idiot to be crying where Kaoru should have been, but somehow, in the separate world where only they existed, it made complete and total sense.

The next day, a very unexpected visitor rang the bell at the dojo gates. When Kenshin opened it, a tall, heavily bearded, soft-eyed man walked straight inside.

"L-Lord Okubo?" Kenshin stammered, and he dropped to his knees.

He turned to him and frowned. "Who are you?" he asked.

"I'm… I'm staying here for a night or two. I brought Kamiya-san back from Gohei's place."

"So it was you who saved her… Saitou told me about it this morning." He said. "Thank you. Now where is she?"

"She's…" Kenshin was still a little dazed as he kneeled on the ground before the Meiji Government's secretary. "In her bedroom. She's been there for days, and hasn't come out yet, so I don't think you'll have any luck getting her out of there. I'll take you to her."

Lord Okubo held his hand up. "Don't bother. I know where it is." He started to walk, but stopped, as if remembering something. He took out a starched white card and handed it to him.

"What's this?" Kenshin asked.

"As my thanks, this is a card that enables you to buy a place here. Whichever one. Give it to the guy you're buying it from, and he'll get the money from me."

Kenshin's jaw dropped. All this for saving a kidnapped girl? He started to say something, but Lord Okubo stopped him.

"I won't take no for an answer. You saved the girl I have solemnly sworn to protect. It stays valid, but it's best to use it sooner instead of later."

He gave Kenshin a small bow and walked up the stairs to the living room shoji door. He slid it open. Kaoru was kneeling on the ground, holding a hand to her cheek, her face drawn with exhaustion and the tears she was crying over the stress.

"Kaoru!" He exclaimed. Kaoru's head shot up to face him.

"O… Okubo?" She started, looking surprised.

"Thank god," He cried, and he pulled her into his embrace. "I'm sorry I couldn't shield you from him…"

"It's done and over," she mumbled into his chest, shaking her head.

"No, it's not." He said. "It'll leave a lasting effect on you."

Kaoru's eyes suddenly hardened as she remembered some of Gohei's words in the first month of her captivity. "Why didn't you give him the ransom? He told me he'd asked you for a ransom, and he didn't get it."

"Well, you see… Kaoru…"

She drew back fiercely. "You mean it's true, then? You didn't give him the ransom he asked for?"

"Kaoru, I couldn't. This whole thing was a private affair between him and me, but still… I couldn't give him what he wanted. He needs to know that he can't continue doing this to people for money."

Kaoru started trembling. Kenshin thought she was crying, but instead she was furious. She got to her knees and ripped back her sleeve to show him the scars and bruises. "This is what happened to me. This. And This!" She said, pulling her kimono open to show him the gashes at her collarbones. "And This!" She showed him her other arm. "All of these! You're sorry you couldn't shield me from him? If you hadn't refrained from paying the ransom, none of this would have happened!" She broke into tears. "Did Saitou tell you what they did to me?" She cried. She was no longer angry, just scarred and sad and vulnerable.

"Kaoru…" he whispered. "Kaoru…" he pulled her to his chest and let her cry.

Kaoru pulled away from him and collapsed on the tatami. Kenshin frowned at the oddness of Lord Okubo's fatherly treatment. Megumi came in with tea and curtsied low for the important political figure, and when she ducked out Kaoru only started yelling more. They talked for a little while, but most of the time Kaoru wept. After a while he went to the living room to talk with the others while Kaoru went to sleep.

"She's been having nightmares." Megumi said in her soothing voice as she took a place at the table with a tray of tea. "Sometimes she wakes up crying."

"Say, Okubo…" Sanosuke began icily. "Why didn't you just give Gohei the ransom money?"

"I couldn't. He'd just keep on doing it. He believes the best way to shame us is to suck money from us and show off how weak we are." He rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "I had no choice."

"So a tiny piece of your little reputation means more than Kaoru's sanity, does it?" Sanosuke yelled angrily.

"Sanosuke!" Megumi scolded.

"No! You listen to me, 'Sir' Okubo!" He said mockingly. "I've seen her these past few days. She wakes up crying, bangs her head against the wall, claws into her skin while she's asleep, and she hasn't eaten a thing! You don't get it!"

"But it's my responsibility-"

"Your responsibility is to Kaoru! Remember what you swore to her father when he died for you?"

"Sanosuke, be quiet!" Megumi demanded.

"I saw what was going on in there." Kenshin said suddenly, a real change from his previous silence. "And what happened must have been repeated over and over again, every hour of every day." He rose his eyes to the lord's. "If you saw what was going on and if you had any idea, you would have paid the ransom."

"The government is my first priority," he murmured, shaking his head. "You don't understand. I couldn't have done anything."

"She was gang raped and slashed and burned and tortured continuously."

"But I still couldn't have done anything that wouldn't cost the government their face!"

"It's nothing but the face!" Sanosuke cried. "We're talking about Kaoru's life here, compared to the face of this stupid government! I can't believe even when you know how she was treated that you would still not have paid for her release!"

"You don't understand!" he cried. "He asked for millions, and even though I have it, the government is more important!"

Sanosuke shook his head slowly. "She told me once that I didn't know. I didn't know what happened, so I couldn't talk. Well, you don't know either, so you can't talk."

//Kaoru lay on the table, staring at the ceiling as she dreaded the feeling of another forceful body entering hers. Dark spots obscured her vision and each and every one of her wounds stung to hell. A second man entered her body while another one forced himself into her mouth. She clung to the edges of the rough wooden table. The splinters stuck themselves in her skin as the body rocked against her. Kaoru dug her nails into her sides until she felt blood moisten her fingertips and didn't even stop there.//

//"It's that fucker Okubo, little woman. We were gonna release you," Gohei said, "But he refused to pay the ransom. Dunno why. But you know what? We gotta scare you. I thought I'd just have you a few times and let you go, but no. Now, I have to scare you if I want any of that loot. So get ready, little Kaoru."//

//Gohei pulled the cigarette from his lips and pressed the ash into her perfect, unmarked stomach. She let out a cry that was muffled by the man pushing himself into her mouth. Her teeth sank into the member upon pure reflex, but he let out a cry and drew away. He slapped her hard across the face, telling her to watch whatever it was she was doing. The body left her, and another one came along. They laughed and slapped and kicked and scratched and cut and whispered wetly into her ear as she tried to close her eyes and ears and mind to it all. But it didn't work. She couldn't ignore the slight tear in her feminine area, or the numbing in her toes, or the pain in her skin as more fire-heated knives carved into her. Then, they strapped her legs apart and did more, until she couldn't take the pain and clawed at her throat. She arched her back, fisted her hands, and let out a blood-curling scream.//

Megumi dropped her cup of tea and let it shatter. "Kaoru…"

Sanosuke ran through the table, knocking over all of its contents as he aimed for Kaoru's room. She was still screaming, constantly screaming, and when he threw the door open, with Megumi and Kenshin and Okubo in tow, he saw her thrashing her arms and throwing the blanket from the futon. Kenshin winced. She looked terrible, like a thousand hands were clawing at her and she was trying to throw them off. She kept on screaming until Kenshin and Sano grabbed her arms and pulled her up. She opened her tear-filled eyes, still clouded with the remnants of the nightmare. The dream had been so real… She looked through the mist at the face of the man she wanted only to hurt.

"I HATE YOU!" She cried, pointing towards Sir Okubo. She let out another cry and threw her glass vase towards him. He barely ducked, but she threw more things and threw herself into a fit of tears and screams and pure, raw fury. Megumi didn't force Kaoru down. She knew that it was a nightmare that had sent her into her seizure, and when she'd been relaxed, she'd find herself again. But Sanosuke and Kenshin tried to hold her down, and because the feeling of restraint and having no control had only brought her even further back to her captivity, she went crazier. Megumi stepped forward.

"Let her go." She ordered fiercely. Kaoru was still silently thrashing, and the two men were still trying to restrain her. She glared at their stupid, manly insubordination. "I said, let her go, you damned men!" she growled.

Sanosuke and Kenshin let go of her and threw themselves back, avoiding her thrashing arms. Kaoru lay on the ground, her chest heaving and her eyes glazed over scarily, her body beaded and shining with sweat. Megumi moved forward and took the girl in her arms. Without a second thought, Kaoru recognized the trust she had for this individual and she buried herself in the woman's chest, trembling with silent tears. She placed her arms maternally around the smaller body and rocked her back to sanity. Then Megumi looked over her shoulder at Sanosuke. "Get him out of here." He didn't need to ask to know exactly what she meant, and watched as she hugged her close. Kenshin was silent, rigid as he thought hard on the look of agony in Kaoru's eyes when she'd gone mad.

The next two days went easy on him. The new pain lessened and Megumi's medication actually worked. After a few days of Megumi and Sanosuke's tenderness, Kaoru had left her bedroom. The first thing she did was take a bath. She spent a long time in there, and to make sure she didn't drown herself, Megumi stayed in the entrance room. Kenshin watched Kaoru attempt to get back on track from the sliding door in his room as she went out into the sun and practiced katas with amazing grace. Sanosuke sparred with her on the second day, but the workout was too much for her and she collapsed. Megumi then demanded that she stay in bed and keep away from swords for a while. Kaoru was extremely angry; one of the things she lived for was the sword, so Kenshin came in during the afternoon to keep her company. He was fully aware of how bright and amazing Kaoru really was without the pain of the torture to hold her back. She had a beautiful laugh that lit up an entire room, she was innocent and sincere, and she was trusting wherever it was possible. He enjoyed being around her and basking in her sunny personality. As he spoke to her, he knew of the tall and imposing Sano outside the bedroom door, seeing it a bad idea to leave his Jou chan alone with a full grown man, especially after the past months.

When the room was filled with laughter, Sano came to join in on the fun. They ended up telling each other stories of their twisted childhoods, following up to the present day.

"When did you meet Keisuke?" Kenshin asked her after he finished his story of meeting Tomoe.

Kaoru bit her lip, thinking deeply. "About a year ago."

"You and Sano?"

Kaoru gave Sano a big, fond smile. "I'm not sure. When I was twelve, I think."

Sano returned her smile with a wider one. "I guess. I think it could have been earlier."

Kenshin saw the close connection between them as obviously as a connection could be. They were definitely very close.

"So what's your lady Tomoe like?"

Kenshin smiled at the thought of his wife. "She's very quiet and reserved. Feminine, graceful, sometimes a little fragile, but it doesn't bother me. She flower arranges and cooks very well."

"A proper lady." Kaoru said with a lilt in her smooth voice. "Your wife Tomoe san may need to teach me her secrets." She smiled genuinely at him.

Kenshin laughed. "Your cooking's probably good enough on its own, I'm guessing."

Sanosuke broke into laughter. Kaoru turned to him, narrowed her eyes, and whacked him on the shoulder.

"Her cooking is terrible. If she ever offers to cook for you, don't accept!" he laughed.

Kaoru hit him harder. Sano gave her an innocent stare before nervously averting his gaze from her promising glare.

Sano gave him a look suggesting something bad about Kaoru, and being as sharp as she was, she immediately caught on. Kenshin watched as Sano laughed away and Kaoru glared threateningly at him. As her glare gained power and her arm rose to smack him hard, Megumi slid the door open and took a step inside.

"Ken-san, a messenger told me to give you this." She said, holding out a piece of paper.

Kenshin took it without any surprise and thanked her. She nodded and turned towards Kaoru, wearing one of her wry smiles. "Kaoru, here's one from Keisuke," she said, eyebrows arched suggestively.

The younger woman rolled her eyes and snatched the starched-white card. "I'll leave you alone." Kaoru said casually as she looked towards Kenshin and tucked the card into her obi. She rose, smoothing her kimono as she straightened her knees, and tugged on Sano's sleeve. "Come, Sano." She said. They left. He opened the letter.

I'm glad you rescued the girl. Her late father, while he was alive, had close ties to Lord Okubo. She was one of his main reasons for refusing to join with the Ishin Shishi. Right now, all you have to do is play protector, or bodyguard. Your ensured safety of her will encourage Lord Okubo to reconsider our offer. This is part of the damage control. I cannot leave right now; there is some unrest in Kyoto. You may be eager to see your wife, but you must be patient. Protect the girl, stay in her house, and we will be more convincing towards Okubo.

Katsura

Kenshin pursed his lips. He tried making the best of it here at the dojo, but the truth remained that he pined for Tomoe. This always happened when he left for certain missions. He was so used to having the quiet woman around, something felt strange without her. Sometimes, though, he felt even emptier around her than he did away from her. Those feelings of emptiness ran deep and barely left him. "I'm happy. I have a wife, a little house, land and seeds…" He would always tell himself, but the emptiness remained.

Shut up, he said to himself. "I have a mission to begin." He needed to ask Kaoru if he could stay a few extra days.

When he found Kaoru, she was in the living room with Sano, instructing him on how to tie her obi into a butterfly knot, which he was clearly having trouble with.

"Jou chan, why didn't you just wear a drum knot like you always do?"

"Because, Sano, I have to talk to Keisuke today and convince him to stay. If I showed up looking as plain as I always do, he'll be off running!" She said.

"What in the world are you talking about? You could be wearing a potato sack and you'd still be beautiful. You don't need a stupid, fancy kimono and a butterfly obi to make you look nice!" He said it with some irritability, because at the time he'd been trying to work on getting the broad side of the obi around her waist a second time without making it fall. Kenshin smiled. What he said was quite true.

Kaoru's eyes softened, but hardened again when Sano yelled at her. "Damnit, Jou chan, how am I supposed to do this?"

"I told you!" She sighed. "Get the broad end in a double loop around my waist, then tuck the narrow end into the obi over the knot, and then… Mr. Himura?" Kaoru stared at him for a moment and smiled politely. "I didn't know you came in. I'm sorry…"

"Don't worry. Kaoru dono, I'm having a little trouble finding a place to stay at the moment, and—"

Kaoru flashed him a warm smile. "You saved me from Gohei. You can stay as long as you need to."

"Damnit Jou chan, you can tie this obi by yourself!" Sano growled angrily at the obi and let it drop to the floor. Unfortunately, the sash keeping her kimono together fell loose as he dropped the obi and fluttered to the floor. Her kimono fell with it.

"Sanosuke!" She cried. In another second, she clamped her hands around her body, trying to keep it out of view with violent humility. Sano covered his mouth. Kenshin's eyes widened.

"Jou chan… Umm…" He tried to react, but he was frozen in place. She was only wearing her hip wrap and kimono shirt.

Kenshin, fallen oblivious by the view, stared on shamelessly. She had lovely, sculpted legs that stopped at the swell of her round hips in contrast to her tiny waist. His eyes trailed upwards. Her ribcage was narrow, and her shoulders sloped nicely. With the kimono shirt slightly open, he clearly saw the delicate skin between her breasts.

Kaoru was too busy yelling at Sano to notice Kenshin's staring.

"I'm sorry! I'll… um… I'll…" Sano was out of things to say. With a shaky hand, he received her forgotten kimono and draped it over her as he tried to avoid her killer stare.

Kaoru glared at him. "I'll get you for that when I'm done with Keisuke."

She stomped out of the room wearing a scowl and slammed the door behind her. "Pervert."

Keisuke drummed his knuckles on the wooden table. His hands trembled when he tried to smooth his long, loose hair. Tae leaned against the chair opposite him. She was glaring at him as she tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear and placed her hand back on her hip.

"I hope you know what you're doing." She said in a stern voice. Keisuke knew she was angry about his decision. He knew it would rip his soul apart to do what he was doing, but it was for the best. Just then, the door opened. A beautiful blue-eyed woman nodded to the waiter who'd opened the door for her. Kaoru.

"Kao chan!" Tae chimed happily. "You snuck out without Megumi seeing, I take it?"

Kaoru nodded. Keisuke eyed her with a fluttering heart. She was beautiful. Her kimono was blue, with silver and gold and red designs on the flowers strewn across the silk garb. The hem was lined in black. The overall look brought out the beauty of her eyes. Her obi was in her everyday drum knot, but its colors were just as bold as her eyes. Red, gold, yellow and white brought the scene of a beautiful sunset. He knew that one look from her today would have any unmarried (or married) man weak at the knees. She never usually dressed this nicely. Her hair was usually messy, framing her gorgeous face with loose strands all over, and her kimono were usually just cotton with a few designs. Even so, she had always been beautiful. It was her tomboyish side that drew insults from jealous women. As soon as she looked his way, he stumbled from his seat towards her and pulled the woman he loved into a lumbering, strong, powerful embrace. Kaoru hugged him back with the same eagerness, and he took her by surprise with a kiss.

"My love…" He drawled when they pulled apart. "I was pulling my hair out with worry."

"So was I…" Kaoru replied, smiling through gentle tears. "How I missed you…"

"Gohei… he didn't… you know. Or did he?"

Kaoru shook her head. "He did." She felt her eyes redden with tears. Keisuke would be so ashamed of her…

But instead of feeling ashamed, he stared at the girl before him and felt angry. Gohei had had no right. If anyone had the right, it was him. He'd always believed that. He'd always believed that he would someday soon marry the girl. But now… He felt regret swell in his breast. He wanted to look away from her. He feared that if he looked any longer, he'd break down and cry. This is what I'm leaving, he told himself. This, this perfect, blue eyed, passionate, courageous beauty is what I'm giving up. He was an idiot. He'd almost missed the flash of hurt that passed through her eyes when he didn't immediately reassure her that no matter what had come to pass in Gohei's clutches, he would always love her. He wanted to put the smile back on her face. So he stepped forward and pulled her into a tight, comforting embrace, so tight she couldn't move her arms to hug him back. When he looked at her again, she was smiling.

As they went through the three courses, they talked with the same ease around each other as they always did. They shared secrets, and kisses, and jokes and laughs over the stupid things both had done. Kaoru was so sure he'd decide to stay with her, and Keisuke was screaming inside that if he didn't stop rediscovering the overpowering love he had for this woman, what he was forced to do would become so hard he'd chicken out.

They both refused to bring up Kaoru's kidnapping any more than they already had. Kaoru smiled to know that Keisuke knew her well enough to refuse to bring up the painful past. When the meal was finished and the bill was paid, he offered to take Kaoru on a walk through the trees to the river.

"Kaoru," He said nervously.

"Hai?"

"We need to talk about… my departure."

Kaoru stopped in her tracks. "Departure…" Silent understanding dawned on her glazed eyes. "So you're going?" He knew her well enough to know the slight tremor in her voice was anger.

"Listen… I know it's,"

"Why! Why are you going? Your company can't force you! You have everything you need here!"

"Kaoru…"

"No!"

"It needs to be done!"

"For who? For you? I don't think so. You wouldn't go to Kyoto unless you really needed to, and you don't!"

"I do!"

"You don't! You know you don't, and–"

He cut her off by pulling her into a kiss. After a moment of submitting to the familiar thrills of kissing him, Kaoru pushed him away.

"Don't say anything…" Keisuke commanded. She didn't look like she was going to say anything again, so he continued. "I'm becoming distracted."

"Distracted from this relationship?"

"No. From my job. I'm being distracted by this relationship."

"How?" Kaoru narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to say more, but he gave her a warning look.

"This," He said, pressing her heart, "is distracting me. Loving you is distracting me."

Kaoru glared at him.

"If I don't leave, then… I'll be too distracted, and all I've done will be for nothing."

Kaoru tried to argue, she tried to make him change his mind, but he didn't. She acknowledged with a heavy heart that Keisuke's decisions were always unchangeable. After trying to fight his decision and insulting his choice, saying work was more important to him than love, she ran out of the energy to argue.

"I'm leaving tonight, and it's final." He said sadly.

"I see. So you decided to tell me the morning before you leave. To give me no time to change your plans or your mind. You trapped me." Kaoru spat.

Keisuke bowed his head. He knew she wouldn't understand. She had a right not to understand. The man she loved, who she worried for during her torturous ordeal, was leaving her. She trembled. Whether it was from the cold or the pain in her heart, Kaoru shivered. Keisuke glanced up at her pretty face as it fell with sadness. This was his woman. His beautiful, spirited, strong, gentle, understanding woman. The woman he was leaving. His mind roamed to past times, including their ever fateful meeting, and so many more memories. He stopped, placing a hand on her stomach to block her path, and gazed deeply into those glittering blue eyes.

"One last time before I go," He said to her, pulling her closer to him, "Let me hold you. Let me kiss you one more time, so I'll always remember the feelings it gave me." He stared at her startled face. "Please."

Kenshin woke up from his place in the living room with a frown. He'd forgotten falling asleep, but distinctly remembered the lady doctor giving him sedatives. When he sat up, he saw Kaoru in the kitchen, sitting at the table with her head down.

He walked towards her and saw immediately that her body trembled every now and then. She was crying. "Miss Kamiya?" He asked.

She looked up and instinctively wiped her eyes, but she didn't manage a smile. For once, she didn't care to hide her pain. "You're awake. Is your headache gone?" Kenshin winced. Her voice was broken and dull.

"Megumi told you?"

"Hai."

"It's fine now. But what's wrong?" He'd already seen, from the way she wears her heart on her sleeve, that she wasn't a crying kind of girl. If she'd been doing it a lot lately, well, that was understandable due to what she'd been through in the past. She was the girl who'd laugh hysterically at women who cried at the drop of a hat, while she cried at horrible memories and being so mistreated. But he had a feeling that her tears were caused by something else this time. When she cried about the kidnapping, she'd always done it privately.

Kaoru smirked miserably. She was ready to answer him when the entryway opened with a bang and Sanosuke ran in. "Jou-chan! Tae told me everything. I need to talk to you." He said.

"What?" Kaoru frowned at him.

"Keisuke was a piece of shit from the beginning." He growled.

Kaoru placed her hands on her hips, then passed Kenshin an amused look, which he returned. "Is that what you needed to tell me?" she asked, feigning impatience. Even with the tears staining her face, she somehow made the sardonic look work.

He walked up to her and looked at Kenshin. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I need to talk to Jou chan."

"Go ahead," Kenshin said, shrugging.

"Great!" Without a warning, Sano hauled Kaoru up and planted her on his shoulder.

"Sanosuke! Put me down!" She growled warningly, but with the restrictions of her tight kimono, she found herself unable to kick him. "If I was wearing a hakama, you bastard!"

"Hai, hai, whatever. You're wearing a kimono, so today's my lucky day!"

He walked her outside and down the path to the training hall.

Kenshin frowned. Odd people.

That afternoon, Kaoru came out with an inexpressibly sad face, but she looked like a little of her burden had been lifted. She changed back into her drab clothing. Kenshin's mind immediately went back to Tomoe and her ladylike elegance. She was such an ideal, traditional Japanese woman, and carried an air of reserved calm and serenity. She didn't question him. When they walked together, even as husband and wife, she strayed two paces behind him. She cooked and cleaned as a woman should do. She knew her place. This girl, however, was more often than not a fiery, passionate being that he'd never seen in a woman. Kaoru was blessed with a face more angelic than an actual angel, but she was tomboyish and drab all the same. Her fancy kimonos – gifts he'd found out from Sano were given to her by smitten and instantly captivated men all over the place – were rarely worn. He noted to himself that her trunk was filled to the brim with them. Obviously, she'd captured many men's hearts.

It's a very good thing I'm already in love, he told himself.

Kaoru rounded a corner as he wandered the hall and walked straight into him.

"Ah! I'm sorry," She said, looking flustered as she stared up to meet his eyes. She was in her usual gi and hakama, brandishing a bokken and wearing a slightly broken smile.

"No worries. Are you training?"

"Hai."

"You really shouldn't. Megumi-san said it was best you stayed in bed."

Kaoru glared at him and pushed past. "Yahiko's coming back today, and I wanted to greet him with a sparring match."

Kenshin wanted to laugh. "You're greeting the boarder with a spar?"

"Yep. That's the way he likes things done."

"His way will make you faint."

"His way is well deserved."

"Oh really?" His tone was sardonic.

"He was a nervous wreck when I got kidnapped. Things will go his way for an hour or two."

"Don't flatter yourself." Kenshin smiled amusedly, knowing she was behind him, her back facing him, and wouldn't see his smile and become further enraged.

"Excuse me!?" She growled. Before she could give back an answer of hers that made a grown man cry more often than not, Sanosuke showed up.

He looked Kaoru up and down, his eyes narrowed critically. "Jou chan, you're wearing your training uniform."

"Hai. Of course I am. I know what I'm wearing, you know."

"Not like today, when you completely forgot to add an under robe to your ensemble."

Kaoru blushed furiously. "Idiot!" She growled. "It's summer time, and that was a summer kimono. No under robes are worn with summer kimono. You DO know it's a summer kimono, right? Notice the not-so-long sleeves?"

"But it was silk…"

"Whatever." Kaoru said, pushing past him. Kenshin had turned to watch the exchange.

"No you don't!" Sano cooed, drawing her back by the waist and picking her up, this time in a much more comfortable bridal style. "You are going to keep away from the bokken, take off that outfit, and replace it with a kimono." He said.

Kaoru raised her eyebrows at him.

"And if you refuse, I'll do it myself!"

This time, Kaoru wasn't the only one to blush. "Mou! Fine, then. I'm going to sit on the porch and do nothing till Yahiko gets back. Happy?" She pushed away from his chest and landed on her feet.

"Very." Sano broke into a smile. "But if I find you practicing katas, you're gonna get it bad."

Kenshin wished Kaoru would turn around so he could see the look on her face.

"Ass." She growled. She disappeared round a corner.

"See? She's in a good mood already! And when did I come in, two minutes ago?" He said to Kenshin with a triumphant smile.

Kenshin shrugged and went back to his wondering. In the few days he'd been here, he realized that not only was Kaoru's cooking terrible, but Sanosuke didn't know a single thing about food, either, just 'how to eat it fast enough to finish a four course meal in ten minutes,' as Kaoru had once put it. So he aimed to ask Kaoru for a little bit of the 'secret money stash' and go shopping for something to make in the market. He saw her outside, performing a very graceful, complicated and flexibility demanding kata, a victorious look on her face.

When he explained his intentions, Sano had just stepped out of the bathhouse with a cleaning rag and a grumpy glare, so she dropped her bokken and went immediately to bring him the money.

He was surprised when she kneeled at a trunk in the study area and pulled out a medium sized case. When she opened it, she revealed thick, tightly rolled cash in rows and piles in the box and rummaged customarily for a certain note. He'd never expected her to have so much money. She looked up at him and caught him staring wide-eyed.

"It's… well, my parents left a large inheritance, and the dojo's very prosperous," She explained with slight humility. Then, finding what she searched for, she pulled out a ten-yen note. "A ten should do it."

"Oro… a ten? That'll leave a lot of change." He said to her.

"Oh well… you can just pick up extra stuff. We can keep it in the larder, and you won't have to take all those trips."

"Arigatou."

"No problem. Make sure you cook enough for everyone, though. Remember there's Megumi, Sano, me, and you, and there's also Yahiko. I think two of my ninja friends bringing him back may stay for a few days as well."

"Hai, hai, don't worry about it, miss Kamiya."

"All right." She stood and smoothed out her kimono, then bent over with sudden, captivating grace to lock the case and return it to her trunk. She tucked the keys into her sleeve. "Now, I'm going to look for a certain rooster head and convince him to spar with me."

Kenshin smiled amusedly. She would obviously get a no, but he wouldn't crush her spirits. He left for the market place.

Kaoru towered over a napping Sano, obviously one who had just fallen asleep, and blew mischievously into his ear. When he stirred and clapped his hand over it, Kaoru giggled.

"Wake up, Sano." She said from directly above him. He'd conveniently decided to sleep on the dining table instead of his futon, for one reason or another. He opened one chocolate brown eye and stared up at her. She flashed him a charming smile.

"Yes?"

"Can you get your lazy self up and spar with me?"

"No."

"Sano! Roosterhead! Please?"

"No."

Kaoru made a demand. "If you won't, you HAVE to promise to let me spar with Yahiko."

"No I don't." He said firmly, not bothering to open his eyes.

"You do!"

Sano growled impatiently. "Fine, fine… Just let me go back to sleep."

She rolled her eyes and lifted the rolled up blanket from her side, doing her Kaoru thing by being motherly and draping it over her sleeping friend's body. It was autumn, after all, and she liked making sure people were comfortable.

Kaoru smiled. "Well, I'm going off to spar by myself now. You'd better come and stop me!" She suggested playfully. She walked to the training hall as he dropped his heavy head back onto the table and ignored her offer.

Knowing Sano was asleep, Kaoru took advantage of her 'alone' time and practiced her katas. She felt easy assurance once the hilt of a Shinai rested in her hands. Her swings seemed to be made only by the naturalness of her movements, not by the concentration in her focused mind. She could let her mind wander away to flowers and chocolate and even Keisuke, and her body would still take over and do the swings and thrusts almost for her. She sighed contently. It felt right.

So she let her mind wander. She felt the pleasure of being able to see Yahiko again, the eagerness she felt around Sano sometimes, and her steps never faulted as the feelings of guilty love and almost physical pain in her heart at thoughts of Keisuke. But her thoughts settled themselves on Gohei, and her steps faltered. She fell to her knees, dropping her Shinai, and let out a sigh that abruptly turned into a sob.

//"There you are," He said with a growl as Kaoru opened her eyes and stared at him from the doorway. She was locked inside a tiny cage sided by other caged women, but his predatory gaze was on her. "I thought I left you in the drawing room."//

//"K-Koshimura brought me in here." She said, angry at the tremble in her voice.//

//"Oh?" he sauntered towards her, his eyes gleaming. Kaoru had the strongest need to back into the corner of the cage, away from him and his intense gaze, but being defiant as she is, she stayed were she was and returned his gaze with an even glare. He knelt to unlock the cage door, smirking at her angry eyes, and as the door swung open, she found herself ripped out and tumbling on her knees to the floor, the wind knocked out of her. She lay on the floor, gasping for breath, her choking sounds overriding the sounds of panicking ladies in neighboring cages.//

Kaoru covered her head in her hands. She forced herself to push the memory out. Out of her head, forever. But it came flooding back, like a gray cloud or a bad smell, no matter how many walls of defense she put up against it.

//She heard sinister laughing as a large hand gripped her hair and pulled her up. She struggled free of his hold and tried to run, but he grabbed her trailing hair and yanked her painfully back to his chest.//

//"I've made my decision, little beauty." He said, and she knew there was a second meaning to his words.//

//"Please, Gohei… I know I don't have any family to pay my ransom, but I have close friends and a lover who will give you my weight in silver to have me returned."//

//Without any warning, he grabbed her waist and lifted her effortlessly from the ground. "My, my, little beauty, but you are rather light. An elfin, mystical being. Elfin, mystical beings do not leave my mansion before first giving up their innocence." His soft, falsely tender voice hardened. "Your weight in silver is not enough. Your family, or what's left of it, holds the Kamiya fortune."//

//"My family has no such fortune," she told him, her chin held high.//

//"It does. In you." He slid his hands down the curves of her body, and she shivered with disgust. "You now know what I speak of. Your father took away the use of my right thumb. I took years to learn to use the sword with my left hand, and even more years to regain my dignity. You will pay."//

//Before she could answer, he pulled her away towards the doorway, then up the stairs, then to a room with white lights and an unusually high pine table.//

Kaoru's face twisted with regret and pain. Her tears pooled at her cupped hands and stained her face with their watery trails.

//Hands, moving to separate her kimono, brushed roughly over her face after she'd been thrown harshly onto the table.//

//Hands, moving up her thighs, getting to her zone. Clothes being removed from her body and the front of a hakama being lowered. A heavy, hard, harsh body pressing against her, ripping into her as she let out a short, pained gasp and dug her nails into the table. Gohei lying over her, repeating it, over and over and over again as her legs went numb from his weight and his abuse. Blood staining her legs and pooling to the back of her knees. The white flowers in her kimono staining red. Just like her, the white had turned red, overrun by sins and robbed of all purity. She stumbled from the table and fell to her knees as her life continued to pulse out of her. Her head bled from being banged and banged over and over into the table. Her fingers bled from digging into the wood. Her defiled area bled from Gohei's harsh entry. She was weak, and collapsed to her side as she bled and bled and bled… Someone laughed from a sitting position at the table as she heaved, catching her breath, lying spread eagled on the ground, her body aching and the feeling in her legs returning with gentle tingling that felt like the points of a thousand knives.//

"Kaoru…" Sanosuke whispered as he knelt beside her and pressed a hand to her shuddering back.

//As he walked out the door and slammed it behind him, Kaoru curled into a ball with her knees on the ground and covered her mouth with disgust. He had… Gohei had violated her… She felt her body lurch and threw up until it felt like the sides of her stomach were touching. Even then, she threw up stomach acids that burned her mouth and fell into a pool below her. She stumbled away and landed on her side. She was so tired, so exhausted, so agonized, she couldn't stay awake. She fainted in a sprawled, disgusted mess on the floor.//

Kaoru tried to stop crying. But it only hurt more. She didn't want to burden Sanosuke with her problems, no matter how willing he was to carry them with her. She struggled to keep composed, not knowing it hurt Sano to see that she couldn't trust him with her pain. So when she let out a short, strained sob, he eased her worries with a simple command.

"Cry. Cry all the things that hurt, until there is nothing left to cry."

She cried.

End Chapter 2

So, right now all K&K are doing is getting closer I have to establish a relationship between the two of them and get a few more characters out of the way, first. This was a particularly long chapter, but expect the coming ones to be slightly shorter. This took up about 19 pages on Word, while most of the other chapters range from 9 to 15 pages.

Anyways, Chapter Three: The sparks of Attraction

Tell me what you think, please!

Mizuume