Pairing: Battousai/Kenshin x Kaoru

Warning: English ins't my first language, characters might be OOC due to the alt. universe I've put them in and this story is actually just a drabble, not a chaptered story.

Staus: Complete

Genre: AU/Fantasy/Romance

A/N: This idea came to me and wouldn't leave me alone. I have lost of stories I should be updating, but had to write this baby.

Anyway, I'd like to repeat that this is just a drabble (a long drabble, but still) and will not be a chaptered story. It might seem incomplete when you've read it, but I do intend to write more drabbles using this universe. I won't be posting them here though, but on my drabble collection site which is my LJ. You can find the link on my profile.

Shameless promoting, I know! XD

Now, on with the story! Excuse me for my typos and grammar errors! -bows-

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Elemental

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They were a peculiar race; never gave up despite the obvious defeat their land had suffered. They were wild, proud, and strong – and Kamiya Kaoru was gazing at the perfect example standing on the other side of the tent flap she was peering through. Standing, not kneeling. Most called them uncivilized savages, but she could not help but be awed by this man inside her father's tent.

His eyes reflected her jewelry; a shiny gold, hard, cold and beautiful. His hair was of the strange color this particular land seemed to favor, but it was different from their usual shade of almost orange. It was pure, flaming locks of ruby red that rivaled any such gem, putting those she had seen to shame. And his skin; it was pale and smooth like a lady's with the exception of a vicious scar marring his cheek. So pale, even for a man living in a country with more rain than sun and more cold than heat.

Even his built was different from the sturdy, muscled men she had viewed on torn battlefields and in rioting crowds. Short, but still taller than she. Slight, but possessing a lean, sinew body coiled to strike. Strong, but possessing a strength that seemed to go beyond the brutal power of his kinsmen. He was fascinating, and the chains which held him in place did nothing to stop the confidence he seemed to radiate. It was almost as if he could break through them at any time; like he was here, before her father and his soldiers, only out of his free will. He, the top warrior of the Ignis tribe, who her father's men had fought long and hard in order to bring before their commander. There was just no way she'd stay in her tent when she knew he was here. No way.

"Battousai," her father's voice boomed, somewhere to the right from where she stood. He wouldn't be able to see her; the small crack in the tent she peered through was not enough to catch anyone's attention unless they were looking for eavesdroppers. By the looks of it, the men placed around the tent were too stiff and cautious about their recent prisoner to pay much attention to anything other than his powerful, pulsating aura of suppressed magic. The meager amount she possessed would hardly notify them of her intrusion.

"Your people have already lost, it is time you give up and surrender to our forces or the bloodshed will continue and end with your tribes' total destruction," her father continued, when the man made no movement to acknowledge his name being called. As Kaoru eyed him, curious of his continued lack of response ever since he entered (for no matter how much her father's soldiers tried to drag him inside, the man still managed to simply walk as gracefully as ever). So when he finally reacted, it made her bite back a gasp of surprise. Her father's words had lit a spark in his previously empty, cold eyes and the change was stunning in its simplicity. Having gathered her wits within a moment, she noticed nothing else about his expression or stance had altered and she found her admiration strengthen for a man who obviously disliked wasting energy.

"We are willing to negotiate for your surrender, Battousai, but any continued defiance will be crushed and your chance at a peaceful outcome will be gone forever. What do you say, Battousai of Ignis?"

A few moments of silence followed her father's statement and Kaoru's eyes stayed glued to the lazily postured figure of the tribal warrior. His eyes continued to betray his stance, glittering dangerously in the candle-lit tent. She found herself short of breath under the strain it took to keep quiet. Somehow, she feared the slightest noise would somehow turn his fiery gaze onto her and if it did, she wasn't sure what would happen.

"You must have misunderstood the situation, Commander," a low, smooth voice said; barely breaking the silence in its quiet, calm tone but every man – and, in her case, woman – stood rapt in attention. It was the first time he had spoken, had made a sound, and Kaoru was torn between surprise and satisfaction. While the voice suited him, it was at odds with his fierce aura in its mocking calmness. She hadn't even registered what words he had spoken before he continued. "I come here not as your prisoner, but as a messenger. The people of my tribe and our allied tribes are unwilling to surrender to your Lord's tyranny and will fight you until you leave these lands that are rightfully ours."

Murmurs of protests and the occasional loud curse went through the Commander's tent and Kaoru nibbled her lip nervously at the rising tension. If she could've seen her father's face she bet it would've been red, bordering on purple, under the strain of his temper. He was not a patient man.

"Battousai, clearly your level of skill on the battlefield does not compare to your level of intelligence. In your position, chained and surrounded by my best soldiers, it would be wise of you to know your place." Kaoru winced at the steel in her father's voice, a seed of worry for the red-haired man growing in the pit of her stomach. Her father's men were ruthless, especially towards his kind, and such insolence which he had just showed did not suit them well either.

A feral grin suddenly stretched across the tribal man's achingly handsome face and Kaoru was forced to clench the fabric of the tent flap painfully in her hand to keep from taking a step back. His whole demeanor was changed in that instant, and when he spoke again, the lazy tilt of his voice had been replaced by something wild that complimented the tangled locks of his hair in ways that made it clear which people he belonged to among the regally grey-armored soldiers of her father's.

"Know my place, Commander? I was under the impression I had just clarified it moments ago," he drawled, shifting ever so slightly and making the heavy, spell-laced chains rattle against his lean frame. "I am a messenger, and I have come to deliver a message. Our tribes will not give up, but like you, we have…negotiations, should you be wise enough to accept. They entail a truce and eventual peace; on condition that you will leave this country without further harm and have your Lord give up the silly notion of ever claiming our lands it as his."

This was the most interesting meeting she had ever peeked in on during her father's time as a Commander stationed in the wild lands of the savages; the Elemental Tribes. She had many times cursed him silently for bringing her with him, forcing her to deal with platoons of men deprived of any other female company other than those of the poor victims in their raids of the surrounding villages. In this moment, however, she was quite thankful since it proved more interesting than sitting home in a large, empty mansion.

These strange tribes were resisting more than any other had ever done, standing up and fighting back for their freedom which she, secretly, believed they deserved. If there was a chance, she hoped they would drive her father's troops away and making it clear to the Lord that these lands were not easily crushed. She believed it would be enough to ensure them their freedom, because her people's Lord was fighting multiple wars and most of them were within his own boundaries. After years of expanding his lands, the counties he had conquered were starting to regain their strength and sense of independence. The Lord had arrogantly continued with his quest of expanding lands which left his army widely spread at the moment. If the Elemental tribes managed to drive her father's troops to surrender, they would most likely be pulled back by the Lord to focus on the problems within his country instead.

Her musings were abruptly interrupted by several shouts of surprise followed by enraged cries of war. Her glazed-over, sapphire eyes sharpened within moments as she took in the scene before her. With movements too fast for nay senses to catch, magical or not, the red-haired man had broken free of his chains and knocked down several of the soldiers standing within range. One of their swords rested comfortably in his hand as he stood to face the shocked men of her father's.

"Get him!" her father screamed; panic making his voice crack ever so slightly. Kaoru watched, fascinated and unable to tear her gaze away, as the man moved with grace that made the rest of them look terribly clumsy and simple. She wondered, for a second, who were the wild one when suddenly his scorching, golden gaze locked with her wide eyes. Stumbling back, she managed to catch a smirk on his thin lips before the tent closed and blinded her to the fight taking place within. Backing away further, she swallowed and watched the blurry shadows moving behind the heavy fabric of the tent, the loud noise of the camp's soldiers ringing in her ears. Metal against metal, bodies hitting the ground with loud thumps and screams of pain and rage made her turn and run. She had no wish to remain and chance getting caught in a struggle, accidentally causing herself to be wounded when she was without defense. Her own sword lied by her bunk, where she had left it in her haste to get to her father's tent, and she realized now the stupidity of her hurry. To not bring a weapon when attending, secretly or not, a meeting with the infamous Battousai of the Ignis tribe was nothing short of incredibly foolish.

Her heart skipped a beat when she realized the noise she had meant to leave behind followed. Risking a glance back, she recognized his form even in the shadows of the night. He seemed to have managed to flee the tent, bringing with him a tail of furious soldiers, and he was heading straight in her direction. Panic welled in her chest, and she quickly looked away to keep her eyes on the path before her. Tripping now would not be good.

She decided to disappear between the many barracks lined up ahead, hoping he would continue past and follow the straight line which would lead them outside. Surely, that was where he, the red-headed, proud warrior, would want to go? It was silly of her to assume he was chasing her, when he only wanted his freedom. Still, she hated taking chances if it involved powerful men with eyes so burning they might as well be twin suns. Turning the corner, she slipped down the path between two barracks and aimed for the next turn only a few meters away. The shouting and screaming continued, having woken up the rest of the camp, and by the sound of it they had split up. She hoped it was to search for possible accomplices and not because they had lost sight of the red-head. Continuing forward, she panted at the strain but kept going until she rounded another corner and ended up in the shadowed space between a barrack and the surrounding walls of the camp. She turned to run along the wall, hidden in shadow, and smiled with relief as she saw the walls surrounding her and her father's own camp within come closer with every step. Just a little bit more…

"I guess I should be honored to have been graced by the Commander's daughter's presence when brought in as a prisoner of war," a voice whispered thoughtfully in her left ear and she choked on a scream. Tripping on her own feet, she was about to fall flat on the ground face first if it wasn't for the strong arm sneaking around her waist. Saving her from falling, it also stilled her run and another hand covering her mouth kept her from calling for help to expose their position. The hard, frantic beating of her heart filled her ears and she felt herself grow cold against the burning heat of his body.

"I wonder if your father would be more willing to negotiate if we had something to…persuade him with," the voice continued, his previous cold tone in her father's tent replaced by a warm purr that made her skin crawl. She refused to think it was goosebumps, and that the shiver down her spine was anything but a reaction of disgust. Gathering her wits, she took a deep breath through her nose and concentrated. She was never one to let fear take over, and if he thought he was turning her into a whimpering, frightened mass of distressed female then he had not heard anything more of her than her name. She drew on her magic, quickly, and shot it outwards as she simultaneously bit his hand, hard. It was enough to push him away, probably due to the element of surprise, and she wasted little time to form a secure shield around her body as she bolted. With the help of her magic, she reached a speed that made her surroundings blur but she knew he was right behind her. She hadn't dared using magic before, in fear someone would discover she was not where she was supposed to be, but at the moment she would gladly face the consequences as long as she wasn't left alone with that man.

She barely had time to take a breath before she was roughly slammed against the wooden poles that made up the wall surrounding camp. All air left her lungs and she gasped for breath, pain making her eyes tear up uncomfortably. Red hair, pale skin and golden eyes took up her view as she blinked the blur away from her vision. His mouth was drawn into a thin line, but his surprisingly expressive eyes twinkled with dark amusement that made her breath catch for entirely different reasons than getting slammed against a wall.

"You are full of surprises, aren't you, kitten?"

She bristled at the nickname, glaringly meeting his gaze while titling her chin upwards in silent challenge. "You have a whole camp of soldiers after you, they are just on the other side of the barrack, yet you stand here chatting with a girl? If I were you, Battousai, I would leave before getting captured again."

A dark smile stretched across his lips and she fought the impulse to look away. "I will only ever get captured if I allow it, and you are not just any girl, kitten," he replied, pausing to stroke a finger down her cheek and slip it along her jaw, only stopping to press lightly against her plump lower lip. The sounds of approaching soldiers made him look away in that direction, and she took this moment to capture his finger and give it a sharp bite that drew blood. He hissed, head snapping back to glare at her upturned face.

"You like to bite, kitten? Careful, you are playing with a beast," he growled, the sound of his voice and gleam of his eyes making him wonder if he might be speaking the truth. Slowly, he brought his finger to his own mouth and licked off his blood and the remains of her saliva with a flick of his tongue while keeping her locked in his gaze. "It seems like I am out of time. Until we meet again, kitten."

With that, he leaned down to capture her lips in a forceful kiss that he ended with a hard nip of her lower lip, returning the favor as she tasted blood on her tongue with a flinch of pain. Before she could properly understand what had happened, he had leapt into the air and disappeared before her eyes. Looking up, she saw nothing but the starry sky. He must've jumped over the wall, she mused, gently caressing the throbbing mark left by his teeth. It would probably scab but hopefully not scar, for she was no good with healing magic. Snapping out of her shock, she shook her head and took a deep breath, pushing his low, purring voice to the back of her mind and quickly made her way back to her tent before anyone could discover her.

She needed to come up with valid excuses to tell her father once he found her because, oh Lord, would he be pissed.

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A/N: I hope you liked it! :D Review please! :)