A/N: This story is not a lemon, just a borderline lime. Let me know if you wish for me to put out a sequel I'm thinking about doing called "No". Enjoy!
"You lied to me. You deceived me. You toyed with me when you knew how I felt about killing. You played me like a game and almost won. But not today Kenshin, not now and not ever. I want you to get out right now and never come back. I never want to see you again!" She paused and locked eyes with the now stranger standing in front of her.
"I hate you." Kaoru finished off in a whisper, tears beginning to form. She had hoped that what she had found out was wrong, that Misao was wrong just this once. When Misao had told her that Kenshin was an assassin, and worst of all the Battousai, she couldn't believe it, refused to believe it.
Now standing before him in all of his Hitokiri glory stood Kenshin. No, the Battousai.
Gone were the beloved violet eyes of her tender Kenshin and they were replaced with the wild molten gold of a killer. There he stood, clothed in a gi and hakama of the old Meiji days, hair tied in a high samurai ponytail, and best of all a sword at his waist. He had come in her apartment right after she had taken a shower, and had met him at her front door in nothing but a robe when she had gone to investigate a noise he had made. Kaoru deducted that he had found out she now knew as he hid nothing from her sight.
"Do you truly mean all of those things? Do you hate me Kaoru?" Kenshin demanded.
Kaoru, with all of her fire merely lowered her head and clenched her fists.
"Yes."
He had come immediately after his assignment was done once Aoshi had notified him that Kaoru knew. He had hoped to talk it over with her, to figure out where they were headed. He had certainly not expected his Kaoru to completely throw him out of her life like this. If she believed that he would allow her to do so without a fight, then she had another thing coming.
"Do you wish to play a game Koishii?" Kenshin calmly inquired after a while, lifting his eyes to reveal dark amber orbs that burned bright with passion.
She whipped her head up,hair wildly following and tears shining from her fierce azure gaze. "You do not have the privilege to call me that anymore." Kaoru angrily whispered.
"I will ask you a question Koishii," Kenshin continued on as if he hadn't heard her. "If any one of your answers is a no, then I will leave your life for as long as you and I both shall live." A mysterious tilt of his lips had her eyes slightly widening and his golden eyes glinted in mischief. "However, for every yes you say, I will take one step towards you. When I finally have your delicious body pinned between myself and that wall behind you, I will ask you one last question. If you say yes to that question Kaoru-"
Kenshin paused and held her gaze to ensure she saw the seriousness in his words. "I will have you Kaoru and no force in or out of this world will stop me."
Kaoru, by now, was visibly trembling, though whether with anger or desire, she herself knew not. "And who is to say that I will willing play this childish little game of yours, Battousai." She bit out in distaste. She quickly glanced at the exit that was just out of reach to her left, Kenshin's right. If only she could slip past him and scream for help, she could-
Kenshin let out a sudden chuckle causing her eyes to shoot back to his, in tense alarm. "Because of that very name that you have so fondly adorned me with, my Kaoru. I am the infamous Battousai, Koi, and this means that you will only leave if I let you leave. Therefore, you will have to humor me just this once and play the game fair and square 'til the very end."
Now she understood why Battousai was so feared; with him, there was no escape. She also now knew why he had been graced with the name Battousai, the man many called "one with god-like speed." To prove this point, while he had been talking he had moved to close and lock the once open door, without her even having seen or heard him move. He was testing her, proving to her that she, in fact, had to adhere to his 'game'. He wouldn't let her escape otherwise.
"Do you hate killing?" She blinked up in confusion at him. "
She blinked up in confusion at him. "What?"
Kenshin held her gaze and softly asked again, "do you hate killing Kaoru?"
Kaoru balled up her fists in agitation and withheld the urge to scream at him. "What kind of stupid question is that Kenshin? You know," she swallowed. "You know more than anyone in the world what the answer to that question is, so pray tell why would you ask that question?"
"You should know that I've always loved that spark in your Ki whenever you get mad. I live to see how bright that Ki gets. So beautiful Kaoru-Koishii." Kenshin breathed out in appreciation and his eyes lit up as they looked her up and down slowly. The comment and his looks momentarily threw Kaoru off kilter.
"What does that have to do with anything right now Battousai?" At the mention of his title once again, he grinned but decided against addressing it at the time.
"Kaoru, this game only works if you answer the question. I suggest you do so before I completely disregard both the game and your personal space." The heated look he gave her caused a flush to crawl up her face and her body to react to his words. A slow burning began in the pit of her stomach with the slow and sensual up and down predatory glance he gave her robe-clothed body.
Refusing to allow her body to dictate their relationship, Kaoru haughtily turned her chin up answering with a, "yes of course. It disgusts me." A predatory step forward from him had her taking a quick and cautious step backward.
"Then, does my profession disgust you?" He lowly drawled causing her to lift a brow at that.
"What do you think Battousai?" She spit out like an angry fussy kitten.
"Kaoru~" Kenshin sing-songed.
"Yes." She hissed out menacingly. Amusement was clearly seen on his face, just the slightest hint, but enough to royally tick her off. That and the fact Kenshin was now only one step away from full body contact with herself at the wall now, was unnerving her. He knew that she couldn't lie to save her life. He was truly evil to use that against her.
"Then, do you hate the Battousai?"
"Of course, yes." She responded quickly. Too quick in fact to realize that she now had a very untamed and lustful Kenshin pressing her into her hallway wall. Kaoru froze as one of his hands had cupped her upper thigh and slid up her body slowly, stopping to cup her naked behind under her robe and lift her body up on the wall keeping her in place with his body; her legs on either side of his hips. His other hand went up to lovingly cup and angle her face towards his.
"I warned you Kaoru." He purred lowly and dipped his head to allow his tongue to gently trace the outline of her lips. A soft whimper escaped her mouth before she could suppress it. His golden eyes flared to life and he barely restrained himself from having his way with her. He would come out victorious in the end, he would win this little game of theirs. Until then he would have to wait to reap the benefits of his beloved's sensual little body. Oh, the pleasure he would bring her until she could only hoarsely cry out his name, again and again, his name being the only thing she would remember. After their wedding, of course, the thought not calming him in the slightest. Patience…
"Let me ask you this, my love, before I ask you my final question. Do you truly believe the tales of the heartless and brutal manslayer who enjoys his profession? A demon that wreaks havoc on humanity for his own pleasure? Most of all, do you truly believe that I am capable of such inhumane acts? This world cannot evolve and live by your beautiful ideas my love, at least not right now. How I wish that the Kamiya Kasshin values held true. That 'the sword that does not kill' would somehow conquer the corruption in this world.
"Battousai does not kill innocents, nor does he kill for pleasure. He kills only as a necessity, and only the truly corrupt of the world. Those who have thrown away their morals to kill and destroy the lives of innocents both directly and indirectly for their deplorable killers, homicidal and genocidal freaks of society that revel in their evil deeds. The Battousai does what he does so people as beautiful as you don't have to bear with the harsh realities of this world. I wish it didn't have to be this way but know this Kaoru. I would kill again and again, every day if it meant protecting you and keeping you safe from the horrors of this world."
"Kenshin-" She was cut off when Kenshin's lips gently caressed hers, teasing a response from her. He was sweet, her gentle Kenshin. Safe, gentle, and sweet. Nothing like the cold, dangerous, savage killer she desperately wanted to believe the Battousai to be. But somewhere in her heart, she knew she had lost that battle and had also lost the war which was Kenshin. She couldn't find it in herself to give up her Kenshin, no matter how many times she tried to reason with herself that this wasn't normal, wasn't right. Not when her heart said that this was so right. He was right.
All thoughts ceased to exist when his soft pleading lips soothed over the gentle nips he placed over her own. His tongue slipped out to caress and dance about her mouth tempting her into letting him in. With a throaty moan, Kaoru acquiesced and allowed Kenshin dominance over their kiss. Slipping inside to fully taste her, he left not a single inch of her mouth untouched. Kenshin shifted her body tighter against his own, allowing her robe to ride up around her hips and ground his heavy erection through the loose hakama against her now dripping and damp bare core making her gasp in pleasure into his mouth. Still swiveling his hips and stimulating her womanhood, he slowly released her lips almost smirking when she refused to part with him so soon. He leaned back just far enough to glance at her lust induced expression: beautiful blue eyes just barely opened and glazed, reddened and swollen lips parted with her breaths puffing out in pleasure, cheeks flushed to a pretty pink that adorned her face. Finally, pleased with his findings, he abruptly stopped his ministrations on their lower halves but just about took her against the wall when he heard the low sensual whine call from her throat.
"You don't play fair Kenshin," Kaoru whispered after catching her breath and attempted to weakly push at his chest, to no avail only to realize she was gripping his gi in her fists and tugging him closer. Try as she might, she just couldn't seem to find the same conviction to push him off and walk out of his life as she had fifteen minutes ago. And strangely, she didn't want to. Tears welled in her eyes at the entire situation and how she had almost pushed him out of her life.
"Please don't cry, my love. Tears are one of the many things about you that make me weak. I just need you to answer one more question. Do you love me Kaoru?" Kenshin, whispered breathily against her lips, gently stroking her cheek and wiping away the tears that fell and marred her face. A sob was wrenched out of her mouth, one that almost broke his heart and willpower to continue.
"I'm sorry Kenshin. Please, don't let me go. Don't leave me. I need you, want you but I can't take anymore deception: please, just no more secrets. I want to know everything about you. I want my Kenshin, all of him. I want to work this out with you." Watery blue eyes looked up pleading into amber ones and Kenshin's resolve firmed. "I love you."
"I know you do Kaoru." Kenshin was more than pleased to announce, his amusement returned full force when Kaoru furrowed her eyebrows at him and gave him a withering glare despite her yet knew she wanted him to say it back to her. He much preferred her anger than her sadness. "I just need to hear one, three lettered word. We need to finish the game after all."
Pouting, Kaoru wiped her eyes and sniffled. Threading her fingers through Kenshin's now loose hair, she leaned her forehead against his.
"Yes."