The Dragon and The Rose
Kaoru sat on her porch, absently watching fireflies flicker through the moonlit shadows. Though the hour was very late, sleep eluded her. In her hands, she cradled a single, crimson blossom, one which had been left inside her room earlier that night by the house’s only other occupant.
“Kenshin…”
He’d always been reserved with his feelings, showing little beyond a close friendship with her, but ever since their return from Enishi’s island, the redhead’s behavior had shifted, becoming more attentive, more considerate, if that was possible. There were even occasional touches, brushes of a hand or arm when no one else was looking, each brief enough to be easily dismissed as accidental, but Kaoru wondered…
Kaoru smiled secretly, closing her eyes as she brought the precious flower to her lips, remembering the moments that led to its discovery, when her world shifted and hope for the future blossomed within.
The night had progressed like so many others since Sanosuke and Yahiko had left. Without the presence of those two, dinner was a quiet, peaceful affair. Kaoru would never admit it out loud, but she truly missed the noise of their squabbling. Now the house felt unnaturally hushed.
Just as he had countless times before, he walked her to her room when it was time for bed. But this night, Kenshin startled her when he reached out to gently graze her cheek, tucking a lock of her dark hair behind her ear. Long fingers lingered on her jaw as he quietly bid her a good night, and Kaoru could have sworn she saw a flicker of amber in his soft, lavender eyes before he turned to retreat to his own room. When she’d entered her room, she discovered it filled with yellow camellia, a solitary, red bloom laid carefully on the low table where she kept her hair ribbons.
A sound from the direction of the dojo drew Kaoru out of her reverie. Knowing it could only be Kenshin, Kaoru was overwhelmed with curiosity and crept closer to the building. Peering from the shadows, what she saw inside took her breath away. In all the months he’d shared her home, Kaoru had never seen him use the dojo. She’d seen him in battle, of course, but this…
Silvery moonlight filtered through the high windows providing the only illumination, but it was more than enough. Dressed only in his hakama, Kenshin fairly floated across the polished floor, his movements fluid, graceful, controlled, following a rhythm and pulse that could only come from years of training. At some point, his crimson hair had come unbound and now flowed around him like dark fire. Kaoru felt her gut clench and she swallowed convulsively, her throat suddenly dry at the sight of him in such a raw, primal state.
Slowly, he finished moving through the forms of his kata until he stood still, his back to her, but Kaoru knew he had sensed her presence. Turning around, he sought her eyes in the silvery darkness, his own sparking with the amber of Battousai. Unconsciously, Kaoru’s tongue swept over her lower lip.
Glistening skin and worn white hakama glowed in the moonlight and Kaoru briefly wondered if this man was truly of this world or Heaven’s Dragon clothed in human form. He was too beautiful to be real.
Stepping into the dojo, Kaoru was overwhelmed with the urge to touch this otherworldly creature that had taken the shape of her love, to declare herself to him just as he had done to her. Resisting the impulse and choosing instead to remain silent, she walked instead to the wall that held various shinai and bokken. Selecting two of the practice swords, she lifted them off their brackets, carefully placing the blossom she still held on one.
Testing the weight and balance of the weapons, she approached the still-silent Kenshin, heart hammering.
Kenshin gazed back at her, his eyes alight with a fire that made it difficult to breathe. A single auburn brow disappeared behind long bangs in silent question as she stepped closer to him than was strictly appropriate.
“You have declared yourself to the eldest daughter of the Kamiya house and heir to the Kamiya Kasshin-ryu, Himura-san. In the absence of my father, I must challenge you to see if you are worthy of the honor you seek,” she said, her voice surprisingly steady as she held out one of the bokken, her cobalt eyes sparkling mischievously. She knew she was horribly outclassed, but it had always been a secret desire of hers to spar with him.
Sheathing his sakabatou, Kenshin reached for the bokken, grazing slender fingers down her wrist before grasping its handle and taking it from her. Kaoru suppressed the shiver that ran through her at his touch, ignored the tightening deep in her belly as she took a few steps back, falling into a ready stance.
‘Maybe I should have thought this through first,’ Kaoru thought to herself, but quickly shrugged it off as Kenshin slowly led her through warm-up kata, gradually increasing the speed and difficulty of the forms. Soon they fell into a relaxed, albeit fast rhythm, neither attempting to land a blow on the other as they moved across the polished wood floor, content instead to lose themselves in the cadence of the warrior’s dance.
Kenshin watched Kaoru carefully for signs of fatigue, but despite the pace he set, there was not indication that she needed to stop. She truly was the Kenjutsu Rose. She was beauty personified, moving with the liquid grace of one who knew her art well. As their dance wore on, Kenshin found himself increasingly distracted by the way her skin glowed in the filtered moonlight…
…the way her ebony hair framed her wide, blue eyes as it escaped her loose sleeping braid…
…the teasing glimpses of muscled legs when her yukata opened as she moved across the floor…
…the rise and fall of her chest as her breathing became more labored.
Heat and need coursed through Kenshin, and though he had resolved to make her his own after the incident with Enishi, of some things he was still traditional. But, heaven help him, he wanted to wrap himself in the warmth that was this woman. Adrenaline surged through him at the thought of being with her in such an intimate way. So lost was he in his daydream that he didn’t realize he’d begun to push Kaoru beyond what she could handle. He snapped back to reality just as she stumbled backward.
Too late to prevent her from falling completely, Kenshin wrapped an arm around her waist, twisting so that he took the brunt of the impact. Air left his lungs in a rush as she landed atop him, their bokken skittering across the floor in a clatter of wood.
For several minutes, they lay there, unmoving, Kenshin with his arm around her waist, Kaoru with her nose buried against his neck. Kenshin began a slow count backward, trying desperately to distract himself from the soft curves pressing against him and the feel of her warm breath on his bare skin. He was, however, unable to suppress a groan when she finally shifted causing her nose to graze against his jaw. Placing her hands against the floor on either side of his head, Kaoru lifted herself enough to look into his face, her eyes filled with concern.
“Are you all right?” she asked, her voice as breathless as he felt.
“Hmm…”
Wisps of midnight hair fell around them and Kenshin gave into the urge to run his fingers through its dark silkiness. Kaoru’s breath caught in her throat, her teeth catching her lower lip in a gesture of nervousness. Kenshin moved his hand to cradle her jaw, gently coaxing the abused lip free with his thumb, running it gently over the slightly chapped skin.
“Kenshin?”
In a swift, fluid move, he sat them up, keeping Kaoru in his lap. Cradling her face in his calloused hands, Kenshin brought his lips to rest on her forehead. Breathing the essence of the jasmine soap she used, wrapping himself in its calming scent, Kenshin realized once again that he had found the absolution he desperately sought. It lay in the treasure he now held in his arms. He needed her, like air, like water – he had told her as much through his gift. She would be his and he would never let her go again.
With shaking hands, Kaoru ran tentative fingers along his cheek, feeling him shudder under her touch. Gently, she pulled back to far enough that she could meet his eyes. What she saw there made her heart hammer against her chest. She knew he loved her, but she was wholly unprepared for the unguarded desire she saw swirling in the violet-gold depths of his gaze.
“Kaoru…” No dono, just her name…just Kaoru…a hope, a prayer, an unspoken need in that one, simple word. A small whimper escaped Kaoru’s lips at hearing her name uttered in such a way.
That one, tiny sound was Kenshin’s undoing. Months of restraint crashed around him and he gave in to his need.
The brush of his lips against hers was tentative at first, gentle so as not to frighten her. His desire for the woman in his arms was nearly overwhelming, but he restrained himself for her sake.
When she didn’t pull away, Kenshin brew bolder, his kisses more heated with every unconscious sound she made. When she moaned unexpectedly, Kenshin seized the opportunity, sweeping his tongue against hers, needing to taste her fully. Kaoru gasped at the unexpected invasion, pulling back, eyes closed, as she fought for breath.
“Kaoru…”
Instead of meeting his eyes, she traced the lines of the pale scars that covered his torso, her slender fingers blazing a trail up his bare skin before coming to rest on his left cheek. Gold-violet eyes closed when lips replaced fingers, lingering on the marred flesh. He hummed in pleasure as she pressed small, chaste kisses along his cheek and jaw. Working her way down his neck, Kaoru’s breath became more ragged with each taste of his flesh, her kisses growing bold, demanding…hungry.
Lifting her head, Kaoru’s half-lidded gaze met burning amber. Wrapping his arms around her, Kenshin pulled her flush against his naked torso before claiming her mouth once again. Tongues dueled for dominance as he gently lowered her to the floor, pressing her into wood with his weight.
He relinquished her mouth only when he sensed her need for air, moving to suckle on the sensitive flesh behind her ear, eliciting another moan. One hand grasped behind her neck, tilting her head to give him better access to the succulent flesh of her neck, while the other hand moved along her slender side, trembling with the force of his restraint as he resisted kneading the soft, round flesh of her breast.
Kaoru arched under his touch, whimpering her need and setting Kenshin’s already heated blood on fire. Groaning, he pulled back the thin material of her yukata, biting and nipping his way along her collar bone, finding a particularly delectable patch of skin near her shoulder. Kenshin delighted the in feel and taste of her. The hand at her hip moved to work its way through the fold of her clothing until it rested on the smooth plane of her stomach.
“Kenshin…” she moaned, the feel of his calloused fingers sending sparks dancing along her flesh.
Desire laced Kaoru’s voice, and suddenly, reason cut, unbidden, through the fog of Kenshin’s lust. He pulled back abruptly, leaving her panting on the floor, her eyes filled with confusion and hurt.
“Go back to your room, Kaoru,” he ordered, eyes blazing “Lock the door.”
He turned his back to her, the sight of her sprawled wanton, pale skin flushed with desire threatening to shatter his resolve. After a few moments, he heard the rustle of clothing as she stood, straightening her yukata.
“Kenshin?” Her voice shook as she laid a trembling hand on his arm. “I’m sorry. I…”
Kaoru gasped as found herself pressed up against the wall, cut off by a searing kiss, his hips pinning her in place. Strong hands clasped either side of her head as he plundered her mouth once again. He pulled back only to rest his forehead against hers, eyes closed as he fought for a measure of control.
When he opened his eyes again, molten fire met midnight blue. “Lock the door,” he commanded again, releasing her from his hold and backing away. “In the morning, we find a priest.”
Kaoru’s eyes widened at the implication of this words. Turning quickly, she fairly fled back to her room, not trusting herself, or him, if she stayed a minute longer. Locking the shoji behind her, Kaoru curled into herself under the quilt of her futon, staring at the moonlit paper screens.
Moments later, Kenshin’s silhouette passed by, pausing outside her door, testing the lock.
In the quiet of the night, she whispered softly to the shadow, “I love you.”
It was several hours before Kaoru found sleep. When she awoke the following morning, the sun was already streaming through the windows. On the futon next to her lay the forgotten red blossom, under it a piece of parchment containing a single word:
Forever…
xxx
A/N: I did some very brief Wikipedia research into the meaning of flowers in the Japanese culture. In hanakotoba (flower language), the yellow camellia signifies longing, while the red declares love.
