"Algren, it is time to rise," Miryu said, softly to the American in the morning, her fingers gently touching his face. Her voice, it was sweeter than honey, and her touch, like the softest silk. Her sapphire eyes were glowing as she met his half-lidded eyes, and he wanted to draw her into her arms and just have here then and there… However, that would not be proprietary, and most likely, the villagers would have his head for disregarding her honor so easily… "You have a huge day ahead of you, Captain."
Wanting to tease her a little more, Algren covered his head over the blanket and groaned, "Does a hostage have a full schedule?" She chuckled, and pulled the blanket from him with a sharp tug before folding it and moving it into the corner. "I'll take it as a yes, then?" She just chuckled, and got her katana from its stand. She looked at him and shook her head, as he was still on his futon, trying to get some extra sleep before she does anything drastic like pouring ice-cold water on him.
She knew that he was expecting something from her, and decided to ignore him. "Fine, if you will not rise, I won't make you," she said, scuttling out of the room with naught but the flutter of her kimono as she walked out. Once she was outside, she smiled at the silent samurai and greeted him with a smile. He would have to rise sooner or later, and rise he did. After he had refreshed himself with the basin of water he had been sure was meant for him, he saw her practicing in the courtyard once again, and this time, he decided to try to sneak up to her, to see if he was indeed fated to keep a respectable distance from her at all times.
And for some heaven-blessed reason, she remained stationary for quite some time, and held her katana straight before her, as if contemplating a new technique, or a new direction for her practice. So, he crept behind her, and placed an arm around her waist. "Good morning," he whispered into her ear, hoping to be greeted in the same regard, but even he, the great strategist, did not expect what was to come seconds later. With one swift and quick motion, Miryu grabbed his hand and flipped him over her shoulder with full force, crashing him down onto the ground with what strength she had within her. It was a rather… painful experience, but at least, he managed to get close to her. "I feel the same way too…"
"Algren!" Miryu exclaimed, quickly releasing his hand and dropping to his side. "Are you hurt, Captain? Forgive me… I was too engrossed in my thoughts…" There was sheer worry written clearly on her face, and she quickly tried to get him onto his feet, but to no avail. Not only did he make no effort to rise, but he quickly rolled over, pinning her beneath him.
He smirked. This would be a chance that he would regret to pass over, and he knew it. "Thoughts… about what?" he asked, drinking the sight of her, dark hair sprawled across the ground, a slight flush in her cheeks, sapphire eyes filled with fire. Surely, there was no woman that could compare to her beauty? But who ever said that it was her extraordinary appearance that drew her to him in the first place?
With a small pout, she flipped him over, getting above him and replied, "Thoughts that you should not bother with, Captain," She wanted to tell him that she had been thinking about him, about how he had made her somewhat simple life so complicated. She was the average rehabilitated Ishin-Ishishi patriot, given a new life when the new age of peace came. And ever since she was tasked to protect him, everything she had come to understand had been challenged. Her ideals and the goals that she had thought to be accomplished were all shaken because of the conflict that the American Captain surrounded himself in. It was not fair! But if he had not come, Katsumoto would still have staged his rebellion, and Omura would certainly find another warrior from some other Western country. She knew it. But could she have been so deeply… attracted to that other warrior, as she was to the man who was kept beneath her?
The answer was a direct "No". She had met plenty of gaijin in her life, but not one as Algren was. He had intrigued her, a warrior who had seen what she had seen, a warrior plagued by his own past. And somehow, deep down inside, she wanted to help him rid himself of his suffering. She had wanted to help him find the peace that he had always sought, and failed to find. The strangest thing was, he seemed to return her sentiments. But she knew that they could not be together, not when he was a gaijin and she, a ward of the Emperor. It would only be a matter of time before they were separated, by either death, or distance, if they sank deeper into the conflict before them.
"Really?" Algren asked in return, his large hand now behind her head. His eyes were focused on her lips, pink like the softest of dawns, neither too thin nor too full. Slowly, he closed the distance between their faces, inching closer to hers, while leading hers close to his with his hand. She did not protest, and he took it as a sign that signaled her consent. Their lips had just barely touched, and soon, they were taken by a strange hunger, tasting one another with a series of passionate, fiery kisses that made them shudder.
Miryu was sure that she was in heaven… So, this was how Captain Nathan Algren tasted like, of alcohol and something sweeter, something particularly him. He was swift, and hungry, but also quite tender, making sure that in his need to sate himself of her, he did not allow himself to force her to do what she was loath to do. And Gods, did she want more… However, it all had to stop, and before she could allow herself to give in completely to him, she pulled away, apologizing softly. She just could not go on… she was so afraid, afraid that he would leave her, in one way or the other. In her mind, it would be better that they kept their relationship professional, or platonic, if they could, so that her heart would not need to feel the pain when reality struck them when they least expected it.
At the very notice of her not wanting to continue, Algren cleared his throat and said, "I'm sorry, Miryu. I shouldn't have forced you like that." How selfish he was, to do such a thing without the slightest consultation of her feelings? Even if he got what he had wanted, he had no right to do so in the first place! However, he knew that she had wanted it to happen too, but still, he should have not been so rash… It would be his fault and his alone if she had felt anything against what he had done, and if she wanted some distance between them after this, he would be all too happy to give her that.
Miryu did not answer, but she got off him and held his hand to help him up. They began to walk out of her house, with the aged warrior following them once they emerged from the back gate. And strangely, her hand never left his as they walked towards the shrine where he had first talked to Katsumoto. "Katsumoto would see you now," she said to him, with a slight bow before she left. "And Algren… you need not apologize, for if any fault existed, it would be ours and ours alone…"