A/N Hello Everyone! I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying the story so far. I'm getting lots of great reviews and that makes me feel great. Thank you, dear readers, for leaving reviews, even if they are just short words of encouragement. They motivate me. I want to take a moment to shout out to some of my reviewers.
J Luc Pitard- How great it is to see you again! I recall your reviews from many of my older stories. I always looked forward to reading your thoughts. I'm so excited to see that I'll have your reviews to look forward too once again!
Sulou, Ms. Rock, sapphirehimitsu, Dawnlight25, Fauzia Ahmed, JasmineDragon22, Melay, Guest Too, KureNo11, Queen Emily the Diligent, Lizzie, Kenkao4ever, Urisa, Kaotic I. Deas,Blackpearly, Ryumie, Nana, Stardust Angel2, Kryssy, Mama Cat (love your name!), Liz, Megtoreality, Jobetz, KurosakiKenalee, Bazinga0998, Kenji-chan. And all the many "Guest" reviewers!
Every single reviewer makes me feel glad that I'm spending my time writing. I normally write just formy own enjoyment but Its nice to see that others enjoy it as well.
In other news, I've posted a new story, which means I've three active stories going on right now. I've pretty much worked out a schedual where I post once a week. I will try and put a warning up in my stories If I'm expected to miss a week. I am also working on some of my older stories which have sat, gathering dust. As well as the shorts that go into my Kenshin short story collection. Not sure if any of those will be updated soon, but once I've a chapter ready for them I'll post it right away.

Alright enough of my rambles, on to the story!
(Please excuse any and all typos and spelling mistakes.)

Chapter 3

"We're doing the best we can with what we have. Trust us, this is the easiest way over this mountain, and those Drow are not going to make it with us in the way." The elegant Takou, Lady of the Snow fairies was elegant in all her splendor. Her white hair was tied back in a tight braid and bun, glittering crystals kissed her hair and dress. Rock diamonds hung heavy around her neck. Her shimmering white and silver dress hugged her body tightly. She was the pinnacle of snow and grace.

Kaoru stood before her in a simple blue gi and white hakama pants. Her hip length hair was braided in two braids and wrapped around her head like a crown. Despite her simple garb, she was a beautiful young woman. Seventeen-year-old Kaoru clapped her hands in front of her and bowed respectfully. Snow fairies were related to the Water clan and they got along well. Takou ruled the snow-capped mountain that loomed up over the valley and cast a shadow on the Keep. They kept to themselves, not out of shyness or snobbery. But simply because they couldn't take the heat of most places. Even here, in the land of the Water Fae, they would not stray far from the mountain and the safety of its constant cold. In the winter they would venture down into the Valley, but not much further, unless it was to try and make it to the next range of mountains before the spring.

With the Drow pressing ever closer, wanting to take over the valley, Kaoru was on a mission to make sure her Keep would be secure. She smiled at Lady Takou. "I'm happy to hear that." And she was. The Snow Fairies were not a soft people and they were extremely territorial. Kaoru herself had been intercepted halfway up the mountain by guards and escorted the rest of the way up. They knew her because of her father and treated her exceptionally, but Kaoru knew a stranger would be treated with extreme caution and an enemy was in for a world of hurt. But it was nice to have them guide her. A climb that would have taken days only took hours when the Snow Faeries took her on their secret paths.

Takou's reassuring face changed to one of sorrow. "I'm sorry, about your father."

Glendower had passed away almost a year ago. Kaoru felt the tug of sadness in her chest, but it vanished quickly, he wouldn't want her to wallow in sadness. Kaoru bowed her head again. "Thank you, My Lady." With the passing of her father, the Keep would have been her husband's…but because he had yet to return to the Keep after he left on their wedding night ten years ago, the Keep was in Kaoru's hands at the moment.

"Are you sure you won't stay?" The Lady of Snow asked. "You traveled so far."

Kaoru shook her head and kept smiling. "No, I must get back to Aiga Keep. It's overrun with Fires now."

Takou wrinkled her nose and was yet able to look beautiful doing it. "Ghastly. Is the heat unbearable there?"

"Only near their foundries. Otherwise, the deep caves of the Keep are as cool as before." Though the heat from the Fire People and the roaring blazes of the foundries had turned the Water owned Keep into a lush, green almost tropical place. It was swiftly becoming a favorite stopping place for Fae of all elements. "The trip was also to scout out the area of forest between here and the Keep. I haven't had the time to travel and learn about the land as much as I should. As temporary ruler of Aiga, I think it's about time I know the territory."

The elegant lady gave a nod of her head. The diamonds around her neck sparkled tiny blinding rainbows. "You are a responsible Lady Kaoru. I'm sorry to say your husband is another story."

In most cases, Kaoru would have defended her spouse. Only, as time went by, Kaoru felt the same way. She didn't know her husband; much less love him in any sort of way. She expected him to return once news of her father's death spread. But there wasn't a word from wherever he was. If it wasn't for the letters from the Fire King that came ever so often with the wave of new workers, Kaoru would have assumed her husband had died years ago. Still, she was embarrassed. Her respect for the man dwindled day by day.

"Let's hope this isn't always the case," Kaoru said softly. Takou made the appropriate gestures for feeling sorry for the young Water fae. They said their goodbyes, wished each other safety and good luck. Kaoru spent just enough time to change from the clean court clothes to the traveling clothes she had been wearing. They had been meticulously clean and mended for her. A bright blue tunic of thick wool and tan pants, much like her hakama pants, only slightly tighter. The wool protected her from what cold she could feel. But being a water fae helped her stand the cold almost as well as the Snow people. A wooden sword strapped to her belt. Kaoru didn't like the idea of violence, like most Water fae they like to wear down their opponent slowly over time until victory could be made without causing much harm. Training alongside the Fire's gave her soldiers a viciousness she was unsure she agreed with.

Three guards escorted her back down the mountain, following trails that cut the traveling time to a fraction. They reached the halfway point where they had found her by late afternoon. They bid her safety and farewell before returning to the snow. Kaoru shouldered her pack and headed down, the snow was thin now and grasses were starting to poke up from the white. Then the air warmed suddenly and the snow and ice vanished rather abruptly and Kaoru dropped into thick green conifer forest.

Kaoru slowed her pace. She wasn't in any hurry to get back home. She was truthful when she told the Snow Lady that she was on a mission to learn the area. This part of the mountain sloped downward towards the large valley and ringed with towering pine trees, there the forest extended; she could just make out the gray, rocky top of the Keep in the distance. It jutted out from the forest of green. There was lots of wilderness between here and there, Kaoru had rushed to make the trip, but now she would take her time on the return trip and explore the expanse of land between the two imposing structures.

She cut across the mountain as it sloped even more downward. This took her further from her home and it took her twice as long to reach the bottom. But once down, Kaoru plunged into thick, beautiful forest of fir, aspen, pine and maple. As well as dozens of shrubs, vines, and bushes. Animals scattered before her as she took untraveled, overgrown animal trails. Her Snow cousin had reassured her that the Keep's back was being watched by them, but with the Drow being spotted more and more often, Kaoru was on a quest to find a way to keep them away from her home. Kaoru paused, her walking staff dug into the earth as she turned into the direction of the Keep. From here it was impossible to see. The trees were too thick to see through and too tall to see any landmarks. But Kaoru knew it was a day's walk away. She would make camp soon and get an early start in the morning. She would take the long way around to learn more of the area.

In her stillness, Kaoru heard something not normal in a forest full of animals. Curious, Kaoru ducked low in the overgrown grass and sticky branches of sapling trees and slowly moved forward.

… . . …

"You see that?" Sano said softly, indicating with a nod of his head to the distance in the North.

Kenshin pulled on the reins of his stallion and turned bright purple eyes in the direction. There, in the distance was a thin trail of almost invisible white smoke. Not a terribly strange sight but given the fact that they had been trailing evidence of Drow for the last two days made it suspicious.

On the small hill, Kenshin could see the vast thick spring green forest and the jutting rocks of the Keep nearly a day's travel away. If there were Drow, they were definitely headed towards the Keep. This didn't sit well with Kenshin. He frowned softly, delicate eyebrows knitting together.

Sano glanced at the disapproving face. "Are you goin' to scout it out?" The Earth Fae asked.

Kenshin thought about it for a moment. "Yes, I believe I will."

"What about the Keep? What about your wife?" Sano grinned, he loved using that word around him.

Kenshin scowled slightly as he dismounted. "They went without me for ten years, what's one more day?"

"I can't believe it's been ten years since the last time you've visited your wife man…that's cold."

"Ten years ago my wife was a bad tempered, dirt encrusted brat of seven years…I'm not in a rush to see what she's turned into, that I am not."

"Oh don't give me that, I know you're eager to see her." Sanosuke teased as he took the reins of Kenshin's horse. "You can't tell me you're not at all curious?"

In truth, just a little. Kenshin could remember the angry little girl he met when he was a teenager. She was pretty and was sure she grew into a pretty woman, but she was also a bad-tempered, foul-mouthed chit. "I'm visiting only because of the letters Aoshi's been sending me. Though Kaoru rules with the same hand as her father, things seemed to of slipped. He tells me people are challenging my wife." His eyes narrowed.

Sano gave him a sidelong look. "She's written to you before, tellin' you all of this." He paused, unsure if it was wise to bring it up. "She asked for your help long ago, remember. When her father was confined to bed with his sickness."

"I know." Was all Kenshin was going to say. A year and a half ago Kenshin didn't want to think about the wife he had, not when there was a woman he would have given anything to be with. But she found out he was married; even though it was an arranged marriage to a child he had not visited since. She felt betrayed that she couldn't become his wife…that she would be technically a mistress. That wasn't what she wanted for her life. Kenshin's heart still hurt when he thought about her. And he spent many months cursing his child bride and tossing her letters in the trash, unopened. Then one day, just under a year ago, they stopped coming and Kenshin stopped thinking about her and the Keep that now belonged to him.

But Aoshi was his friend. He read his letters and they painted a different picture. Not the painfully polite, yet somehow snobby writing of a nagging woman, but the down and dirty, honest tellings from an old friend who didn't care if he hurt his feelings. It wasn't until Aoshi stated that maybe he should divorce Kaoru and ask the Fire King to marry her off to one a bit more worthy of the job did it jolt Kenshin back to the here and now.

His Uncle would be livid if he broke his side of the peace treaty. Though the idea of severing the tie between him and the Water Fae and that Keep was tempting. It was social suicide not to mention it was possible for the peace treaty to fall to bits. The last thing Kenshin wanted was a war between the elemental fairies to start up again just when they were struggling to keep the Drow out of their lands.

"I'm here now and ready to take responsibility, that I am," Kenshin said with conviction.

"Alright." Sanosuke said, sitting up straight in the saddle. "I'll tell them that you're off scoutin' for Drow."

"I should only be out a day or two," Kenshin said as he turned.

"Don't take them on if you're badly outnumbered, man." Sanosuke warned as Kenshin pulled a pack free of his horse and threw it across his back.

Kenshin smiled as he turned to look over his shoulder. "If I don't, I'll fall out of practice." Then with a wave and a tug to tighten his sword belt, Kenshin stepped off the trail and was quickly swallowed up by the vegetation.

… . . …

Kaoru could smell the smoke. One would think that living in the Keep for years with the foundry the Fire's built would have ruined her sensitivity to the smell of smoke. Yet the acidic smell of smoke within the crisp scent of the wilderness was easy for her to pick out. A frown pulled down her lips. Not that there was anything wrong with fires in the forest, but the scent of the smoke was off smelling. Curious, Kaoru closed her eyes and let her Water powers seep into the forest. She took a deep breath, turning her head this way and that until she was able to locate where the smoke smell was coming from…hopefully.

Slowly, Kaoru turned her body in the direction that felt right. She ducked under the thick plant-life and stalked, moving silently, carefully. She closed her eyes often, letting the energy of the forest tell her where she needed to go. Soon the strange smoke smell became stronger. It was a sweet undertone to the smell, strange for smoke…but not strange for burning sap.

Kaoru paused, resting on her hands and the balls of her feet. Melting resin would be used from everything from glue to fix weapons to waterproofing shoes and packs. Whoever was out there, was working on something. Then suddenly there was a sound that didn't match the rest of the forest. The sound was slow, soft and raspy, like the sound of metal moving against metal. Kaoru's blue eyes popped open and directly in front of her was a man. Her heart slammed to a stop and her chest tightened, pushing all the air from her lungs.

He didn't see her, he was moving from her lower right to her upper left. The thick shrubs covered her. The strange sound she had heard was of him slowly pulling his sword free of its sheath. As he moved away, Kaoru quickly moved to get a better look. She didn't see much of his face, but his blazing red hair was a dead giveaway.

Fire clan.

Kaoru felt a muscle in her face twitch. Was this Fire Fairy burning something in the middle of the forest? He must have realized she was stalking him but had no idea where she was. Well, she had the upper hand now. Moving slowly, not daring to breathe she pulled a small arrow-shaped dagger from her belt. Though she didn't like violence and lethal weapons, she had to level the playing field a little. He had a sword, a wicked looking one at that. She clamped her teeth around the handle of the dagger and moved on her hands and feet silently across the cover of vegetation. She kept her eyes on his bright hair and blue tunic. He seemed a little confused now, pausing and slowly moving his head this way and that.

Then finally he decided to stop, he crouched down against a large tree and took a few slow breaths. Moving with the sound of the wilderness around her, Kaoru was able to quietly sneak up and flank him on the right side. It was best as he kept looking over his left shoulder and around the tree he was crouched by. From his movements and the sword he carried he looked military. His stalking skills were superb. If Kaoru hadn't spied him on accident, she was sure she would be the one hunted. Why was he after her anyways? What had he been burning? Was it to lure her out? How did he know she would be there? Was he from the Keep?

An ugly idea formed in Kaoru's mind. Was this a plan to rid the Keep of its Water Mistress? Was he a killer for hire?

Alright, calm down Kaoru. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She was just over an arm's length away from him now. To get any closer she would have to step out of the cover and into the open. But she was at his side and he was constantly looking away from her. She could attack him easily. But she had to get information first. Who was he, what he was doing, was he hunting her and if so why and who hired him? He constantly flashed her his profile every time he rested back against the tree. He was startling to look at. Not only did he have bright red hair, but deep, hard purple eyes. His face was set in concentration, but it was easy to see the delicate features of his face. His clothes were thick traveling clothes, how long had he been traveling? He didn't look dirty at all.

Then suddenly she saw her chance! He looked back over his shoulder around the tree, leaning way out, just enough to compromise his balance. Kaoru didn't wait a moment longer. It was going to be now or never. With a single step, she slipped from her cover to move directly behind the large tree. She wrapped her arm around him and set the point of her dagger firmly against his throat with the point jabbing up under his chin. She could feel him freeze and at once his sword slipped from his fingers and he lifted his hands in the universal unarmed surrender. Silently and slowly he turned back against the tree.

His violet eyes shot open when he saw her and he relaxed ever so slightly. Now that Kaoru was looking at him full on, she saw he had a rather large X-shaped scar that ran from ear to chin and from jaw to nearly his eye. Yet even with the massive scar, it did not take away the effect of his handsome face. Just as she was about to interrogate him he slid his hand up and placed a finger over his lips. Kaoru's eyes narrowed but she kept quiet as he pointed to his left.

She leaned over a bit, keeping her eyes on the man, lest he try something while she was distracted. But with a flick of movement, her eyes landed on something far more terrible than the Fire Fae she held.

A camp of Drow.

A/n Oh dear oh, dear. Seems like the two ran into each other sooner than expected. Bad time though, with all those enemies around. We'll see how it all turns out in the next chapter!
Thanks for reading everyone! Reviews are muched loved!