Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Sheer Bliss ❯ The Art of Seduction ( Chapter 3 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter 3: The Art of Seduction

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The next day seem to past like all the others I had shared with Kaoru. The only difference now was I knew what she felt about me. She even went as far as to tell me that I could drop the Miss and just call her Kaoru now that she knew how I felt about her. I couldn't help but find the irony of it all. It took my slip up in my speech to make her admit that she felt something for me. I wasn't about to complain though. I loved her and began forming plans inside my head to show her how I felt as I continued to wash the clothes.

There was a kind of peace in having a ritual to do every day, it didn't really bother me that it happened to be laundry in my case. Kaoru was in the dojo doing her daily warm-ups and routine that she did every day. I could hear her yells from time to time and it wasn't long before she emerged, sweat soaked and panting at the exercise.

"Kenshin, are you still out here doing the laundry?"

"That I am, Kaoru. Do you need my for something?" I asked taking in her sweat soaked appearance. I knew she worked hard every day and training to keep her muscles and figure toned. Mostly, I knew she kept teaching the Kamiya style of fighting to keep her father's dream alive. She was so passionate in her teaching, even if Yahiko pushed her buttons one too many times and got a beating for it. Kaoru had a kind heart.

"No, I don't need anything, but I'll be making lunch shortly if you want to help me you can." She told me. I could tell by her blushing cheeks that she was a little nervous about asking me even the most trival of things.

"Of course, I'll come and join you as soon as I'm finished here."

"Okay." She headed inside, probably to change into her yukata to be more comfortable. I only own my yukata and my hakama and gi, so I never had to choose what I wanted to wear. It was already there for me. Kaoru had given me some other sets and I wore them every other day to please her. They were all the same magenta color, but I didn't mind. A magenta colored gi was suiting for a wander like me. It was better than the blue one I had worn during my assassin days and that was behind me. I would never reveal too much about my past to Kaoru. I wouldn't want her to grow to hate me.

That thought alone frightened me to the core of my soul. I had grown fond of Kaoru and over my stay her I have grown to love her as she loves me it seems. Although she hasn't really said how much she loves me, but at least I know that she does love me and she knows I love her, but the feeling, the connection is still there and that is the most comforting.

She told me she doesn't want me to leave and if that is the only way she wants to put it. I will be satisfied with it. Even though I yearn to hold her in my arms again and show her how much I care, I can't risk scaring her. I can't help but think that last night was just a moment of weakness and she told me what she felt on the spur of the moment, and if that is so we might have lost the special connection between us.

If I were to lose that connection now that we are alone then, Sano's plan has already failed. I must act and soon, before they come back from their trip. "Kenshin?" I hear Kaoru call to me. "Kenshin! Are you still outside?"

"Yes, Kaoru I am." I smile sheepishly as she comes to the edge of the porch and stares out at me. She gives me a puzzled look to which I return one of my own to her.

"Kenshin, is there some reason why you're scrubbing your sleeves?" I look down and see that I am in fact scrubbing the edges of my sleeves. I have to laugh at the irony of it. Here I was so deep in my thoughts that I finished the laudry and began to wash my clothes even though I was still wearing them. Silly me.

"Um... opps. Sorry Kaoru, I've been distracted lately."

"Distracted? By what?" She asked still puzzled. I hadn't been prepared for her to ask that. I quickly thought through some things I could say but then stuck to being honest. Honesty is always the best thing to tell someone, that way you don't have to remember any lies.

Breathing in a deep breath and letting it escape my lips in a sigh, I gathered up my courage and began to tell her the truth. "Honestly Kaoru, I've been distracted by you."

"By me? What have I done that's distracting?" She asked perplexed.

"Everything. You are beautiful, talented, strong, agile, and the most wonderful person I have ever met. Everything you do Kaoru, you do with a purpose and you don't hold back if you mean it. Your dedication to teaching your father's style even though he is gone shows me how strong willed you truly are and I can't help but admire you for your courage."

Kaoru looked taken aback with my blunt honesty. She bowed her head and I could barely hear her when she replied. "Thank you Kenshin, but you have many of those qualities too. You are so brave and strong when you face oponents who seem to be stronger than you, and yet you defeat them with all of your talents if they threaten any one of us. I think that's why I feel drawn to you so much. You show me the strength I have inside me that I never knew I had. You're just as wonderful on the outside as you are within."

It was my turn to blush at her words. Her words stopped me from saying anything more I was so stunned by her speech. She must have felt uncomfortable though since she quickly turned back to go inside, but before she went in she called to me again.

"Are you going to help me prepare lunch or what Kenshin?"

"I'm coming to help you that I am." I said as I followed her in.

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I washed and cooked the rice as Kaoru prepared the tea and chopped the vegetables. We only spoke if we needed to retrieve something we needed if one of us were in the way. I left the rice to simmer in the pot and went to see how Kaoru was doing. She decided that she wanted to add so spices she had around so I told her what I though would complement the flavor of the vegetables as they cooked.

Kaoru browned them in the pot with some oil added in and I sprinkled some of the seasoning ontop of them and told her to keep stiring as I went to scoop out the rice. When I came back, a rich aroma hung in the air and Kaoru removed the vegetable from the fire.

"That smells wonderful Kaoru that it does." I complimented as she dished them out onto our plates.

"It's only because you helped me make them Kenshin." I waited until she put the pan off to the side to cool down and returned to sit at her place and I sat next to her instead of at my usual spot. "Um Kenshin? Why'd you move?"

"I wanted to be closer to you. Is that alright Kaoru?" I asked, hoping I didn't over step my boundries. She seemed fine when I sat next to her on the porch and held her in my arms. That could have been a one time thing though. I sighed to myself ready to move back to my original seat. Kaoru's arm however, stopped me from moving.

"Stay. You don't have to move." She said softly to me as I resumed my sitting positon and began to eat the meal we had cooked together. We ate in comfortable silence until we finished and she got up to clean the dished.

"I'll do it Kaoru. You don't have to worry." I told her and gathered up the rest of the dishes in my arms.

"How about we just do them together?" She asked, the look in her eyes telling me that she wouldn't take no for an answer. I joined her and as we cleaned the dishes for a while she suddenly decided to break the silence. "I meant what I said last night Kenshin. I love you. I really do."

"I love you as well Kaoru."

"Then why are you acting the same towards me like you always do. Why won't you act any differently?" She demanded, the dishes now forgotten.

"I... I just don't want to scare you away." I admitted and looked down at my hands wondering if i said something she didn't want to hear.

"What do you mean by scaring me away?"

"I'm torn between wanting to just hold you in my arms or just going on likes things always have, so we can still be friends no matter what. I do want to hold you, kiss you til you're breathless and just stay by your side, but I don't want to startle you and make you regret doing those things with me."

"I wouldn't." I stared at her shocked. "I want those things too and I'd be happy if you would accompany me to the springs this afternoon. Will you Kenshin?" She asked softly. It was an offer and I could refuse if I wanted to, but as I thought on it, I wanted to see how this would go.

"Nothing would make me happier than to take you on a walk to the spring."

"Good. It's a date." She replied and went back in the dojo to get ready. What have I just gotten myself into?

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TBC....

I am so very very very sorry it has taken...um since December to update this, and I do have an explaination for it. I wrote this fic back in, oh what was it 2003? Yep that long ago and although I have the first two chapters of it, the rest of the chapter 3-8 didn't save and fanfiction dot net removed my fic because of the lemon chapters I had in it. So I tried asking my other writer friends if they had somehow still had the e-mails I had sent to them with the chapters, but sadly only one replied and stated she only had chapter 8. *cries* But at least it was something. So although this fic may take me a while to update from time to time, please be patient with me. I am a 2nd year college student and my free time is very limited with my classes and two jobs that I have. Be thankful you are not in my shoes yet. If you are I know your pain.

Please review. I love feedback, even if it's to yell at me to write another chapter.