Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Silver Cross ❯ 3am Appointment ( Chapter 8 )

A/N - Yes, finals are finally over and I am proud to say that I passed all my classes my first semester of freshman year at JHU. Meanwhile, I've been non-stop writing to get this chapter out since I came back home for Christmas vacation. Hope you all enjoy it. Sorry for the delay. As always, thanks to the wonderful reviewers. With you all, I would be extremely lazy about posting. You remind me how wonderful it is to write.

Black Chiney, JML, Silver Warrior, Nigihayami Haruko, lilk0k0, Poppy2, ^^, Ginny-cry, Angie, kenshin obsessed, InsanexPsycho, missaw, hitomi, Koneko Battousai, Rinfirithiel, The Girl Who Cried Oro, EEevee, pyro girl, Luli451, MiT, Iram, Naiya-chan, random fan, DarkMave, Riokai Guardian of the Night, Ymir-chan, Mishorou Mie, Saiya Winters, Videl621, Ash, ixchen

Disclaimer - I've lost the will to make these witty and funny, so I'll just say, it's Christmas time, don't sue me. And yeah, I don't own Rurouni Kenshin.

Silver Cross

Chapter 8 - 3am Appointment

Megumi, has Sano always been like this?

Like what?

Yes, I'm afraid he has, Sir Ken.

Like what, Fox?

Ohohohoho.

If you don't know by now, we're certainly not going to tell you, Sano.

Rrrrrr. Ken!

"It's good that you have faith in your uncle, Soujiro."

Sou glanced over at his obasan. She was staring straight ahead out the window with a faraway expression on her face. He wondered why she kept on loving his uncle Shishio. Sure Sou loved his uncle, but he was also scared of the man. His voice and manner were intimidating, and the manner in which he acted breathed class and power. The class, he knew, came from his grandmother. At times she could be the most stuck-up bitch that ever lived. God, how he loved her. But who knew where that power in his uncle had come from? Shishio obviously still had connections to whatever world had put him in the mental hospital. His grandmother wasn't stupid. She had to know the kind of life her son had led, was most likely still leading.

His uncle was cold. He could break his mother's heart if he kept on in the same tracks as those he was presently rutted in. Sou wondered if he was risking the chance of breaking her heart as well. He wondered if she cared about him that much, or if she was starting to close him off in her heart. Was Kaoru really important enough to him to risk throwing his family back into the chaos that had formed when his uncle had first been arrested until the end of his trial? Was she worth all the pain? He had no doubt that he would risk it all for her if it was only about him, but did he have the right to risk his family's happiness for his own? He should have considered the consequences before he went and talked to his uncle, because Sou knew very well that he had sealed the deal when he'd told Shishio Kaoru's story. There would be no going back.

"No one else but me seems to have faith in him these days," his obasan continued a minute later. "They can't forgive him for tarnishing the family name all those years ago."

Sou felt uncomfortable. It wasn't often that an adult chose to confide family information in him. He'd only been a child when his uncle had gone to the mental hospital, only ten years old. He remembered an intriguing man who'd dropped in at the strangest times to his parent's home in Americaand brought him and his brother and sisters wonderful presents, technological presents that weren't even out in stores yet. Come to think of it, whenever his uncle had dropped by, there had always seemed to be a shadow over his parents' happiness, as if they were suspicious of Shishio's reasons for being in America. His older sister had asked about it once, but they'd told her nothing was wrong. She'd only been twelve after all. Sou understood their reasoning in not burdening their children with the problems of an adult world. Sou, being the second oldest at ten, had not given his sister's question an extra thought after their parents reassured her. Now, he wondered what her opinion of their uncle was. Was she one of the ones who had not forgiven him, as his grandmother claimed? He wondered what she would think if she knew he'd gone to see their uncle for Kaoru, a girl she was not overly fond of. He knew the two had clashed once or twice over him. Perhaps it was best not to tell her then.

"Don't have too much faith in him though, Soujiro. He was never one to take the feelings of others into concern before he acted. Perhaps I should have been more strict in raising him, but he was the youngest, my baby boy."

Sou sensed this was the closest his grandmother would come to telling him exactly what had happened ten years ago, to admitting that what his uncle had done was wrong.

"Don't blame yourself, Sobo. Oji is different."

"I know, Soujiro, I know." She seemed to snap back into reality. "Honey, you drive like an old lady! Don't let that man cut you off next time!" she fumed, glaring daggers at the back of a red Toyota.

Sou sighed. "Yes, Sobo."

"Don't you 'yes, Sobo' me! Put the pedal to the metal, kid. I want to get back home in plenty of time to get dressed up for the party tonight," she fussed.

Sou sighed again. "Gomen-nasai." He pushed his foot down on the gas and sped faster and faster away from his uncle.

God, Ken. Why'd it have to rain tonight?

Use the time to catch up on something. You haven't helped me manage the books in a while.

I'm above money.

Money is what got us this apartment. It looks like we may need to take on another job soon though. We're getting low again.

Again? What is it with inflation!?!

It's the increase in technology. The humans don't know how to run anything-

You've got that right! You'd think they'd be able to control the weather by now with all these other gadgets they've thought up. It's not right, Ken, not right.

This from the guy who was afraid of trains and cameras.

It's unnatural I tell you!

What does all this have to do with the rain?

It's depressing. I don't feel like going outside. You'd think they'd have invented something better than the umbrella.

"I don't much like the idea of leaving you while I go with those guys." I hate the idea, he wanted to say. I never want to leave you alone.

"You know there's no other choice. They might not know where the apartment is. If you take me back there, we'll have no safe house."

"They already know. How else would they have found you in the temple? They can't sense you." That wasn't completely true. If he could sense her, that special quality in her ki signature that drew him to her, then surely it wouldn't be hard for other vampires to sense her, or someone like her. He could also feel humans with ki similar to hers, scattered about the city, but they were all contacts. Her ki should be muted by the earrings hidden by her long hair in any case.

"They can sense you, can't they?"

"I doubt it. I was careful to hide my energy signal after I had fed and I was too weak before then."

"You're underestimating yourself. Sometimes you practically glow with ki. They must have sensed you when we left the apartment. I think there's a big chance they don't know where it is."

Her mention of ki made him pause for a moment. He hadn't known she could sense energy. Still, she was wrong. It had been an error of judgment on his part to think he could show his face in LA and not draw their attention sooner rather than later. "You don't know these people like I do. They must have been tracking me since the beginning of the night to get comfortable enough to deliver you that message the way they did."

"Who are they then?" she asked pointedly.

Ken sighed and led her to stand by the bench a few feet away. "LA used to be the place for vampires to develop connections and gain influence. Things started getting out of hand a while back, so a few vampires got together to form their own protection service for the city. Now no vampire can come to the city without letting them know, or they'll have to face the consequences."

"So why didn't you tell them then?" It seemed a simple thing. Men could be so exasperating. Now they had to waste time to deal with the vampire police of LA. And to think just last week she would have scoffed at the idea.

"They make you wait around for permission, and I couldn't afford to do that. Also, I couldn't really explain your presence because you're not my contact, and then there's the fact that the dark one will get word that I'm in town once they know. I couldn't be sure they weren't working with the dark one anyway. I still can't be sure, but I have to take the risk. They won't harm you as long as I go."

So it was all her fault. Sigh. Wasn't it always? It seemed her hanging around Ken was just slowing him down and putting him at more risk. If she didn't think she loved him, she would have left and dealt with those hunters in her own way. "But who says they won't hurt you? What are those consequences you mentioned?" Kaoru asked skeptically.

"They don't apply to me. Their leader owes me a favor. It's been ten years, but I'm sure he hasn't forgotten."

"You can't be sure," she protested, even though he had almost completely convinced her that going through with the meeting was the only way. There was no way they could get out of LA in time, even if Ken had been willing to abandon his search for the dark one. She could never ask him to do that.

Ken nodded. "I freed him. He'll know me." Ken hoped he still wasn't angry about that, or things might not go in his favor. Well he'd had ten years to cool down, so hopefully…

"Freed him?"

"It's not my story to tell. Maybe he'll tell you if you meet him some day. But for now I want you to call a cab and have him drive you around for a half hour. Here's enough money to cover the cost."

Kaoru frowned, but took the money. "Where should I have him drop me off?"

Ken closed his eyes, deep in thought. "Back at the apartment eventually. I'll catch up with you in an hour or two. Now walk a couple blocks before you hire the cabbie, alright?"

Kaoru lowered her head to hide her distress. "Sure, Ken." Something in her voice must have given it away to him, because he tilted her head up with his left hand, in which he didn't hold the umbrella, and gave her a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine. See you in an hour or two, okay?"

"I don't think this is going to go as smoothly as you want me to believe. I wish we could just leave, but I know how important finding the dark one is to you."

"If you want I'll put you on a plane to Philly. All you have to do is ask, Kaoru," Ken said seriously. God, how much he hoped she would never ask. He was relieved when she was indignant.

"I'm not leaving you. Besides, Jineh and that other weird vampire hunter could still be back there, just waiting for me to come back. I'll never ask that."

"Then go. I don't think my being late would create a favorable impression in this case." He pushed the umbrella into her hand and caressed her face a last time before turning away. Kaoru sighed, watching him walk down the sidewalk in the light drizzle. Something felt wrong. For one thing, it almost never rained in Los Angeles. Why now? If she was the type to believe in omens she would be even more spooked out then she was now, as if that was possible. Ken turned the corner and was gone into the night. She sighed and turned away as well, hoping she could find a cab to catch at close to three in the morning. She was lucky LA was just as busy as New York, she reflected, waving a hand in front of her face to relieve some of the heat.

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

Why are you quoting Shakespeare at me?

Because that guy lived before us and he's still remembered. We need to do something big so that people are quoting shit we say five hundred years later too.

Dream on, Sano. I'll settle for a happy ending to my story over everlasting fame.

Ken, Ken. Always the romantic. Is that how you get all your contacts half in love with you?

Nope. It's the skills.

Yeah right.

"Sou."

Soujiro turned around abruptly at the sound of her voice. It was just his older sister. He breathed a sigh of relief. For some reason he'd had the crazy thought that it would be one of his uncle Shishio's reputed 'loose' women and he would be standing with his arm around her waist, smirking, waiting for Sou to come to him. He blushed in shame. How could he have mistaken his own sister for one of Shishio's whores? It was best not to tell her about that for a very long time.

"Yes?" he asked, careful to paste an innocent smile on his face.

"Why did you go with Sobo to visit our uncle?"

Sou winced. It never was his sister's way to mince words. He wondered how her boyfriend dealt with her blunt observations and statements. "I hadn't seen him in a long time. That's all. Sobo needs someone to go with her and visit. She shouldn't be driving all alone."

"That's a load of bullshit, Sou. You never felt any inkling to go and visit that bastard before. Why did you go today?"

Sou sighed and walked over to his elder sister. The demure lady of Japanese history she certainly was not. He took her into his arms and gave her a tight hug. "I had to, sis. But I can't tell you now. There's no way you would believe me."

"Are you mixed up in something bad, Sou?" she asked, a tinge of fear creeping into her voice.

Sou was glad he could not see her face. The tremor in her voice was enough to make him want to crack down and tell her all. He had to resist, for Kaoru. "I'm not, Atsuko. Everything's fine with me."

He was relieved to hear her voice rock steady once more. "Then it must have to do with someone else. Is it one of your friends, Sou?"

"No, no. Everyone's fine. Can't you believe that I just wanted to see our uncle again with my own eyes? I wanted to know first hand if the stories were true. This may have been the last time we come to Japan. You know Tousan's about to retire. And with me still going to college, and the rest of our siblings about to enter, we won't have any money to make another journey here."

He could tell his voice was soothing her, but she still wasn't satisfied. "Sou, don't you remember what a horrible man he is? He was always like that. I could tell even when we were children and he used to come by bringing us presents. There's just something in his eyes that's wrong." She shivered against him.

"I know, Atsuko, but I had to see for myself. I was younger than you when he used to come and visit. I didn't remember."

Then she completely changed her tone. "It's Kaoru, isn't it?" At his silence, she pushed away from him in anger and he was met with the wrath of her stare, which was about equal to Kaoru's the one time he'd gotten drunk and shown up at her hours last summer. That stare had sobered him up in a hot minute. The stare his sister was giving him was mostly directed at Kaoru, whom she couldn't stand, and only halfway directed at him, so he found he could bear it easier. "That little bitch!" she swore.

Sou glowered at her. "Don't call my girlfriend a bitch."

"I don't care, Sou! She's messing with my baby brother! What could she possibly be involved in that would make you go to someone like Shishio for help? Is it drugs?"

Sou held up his hands half in protest, half to fend his sister off. She was coming dangerously closer with each question and looked like she wanted to take her aggression out on the closest person. That just had to be him. "She doesn't think she's mixed up in anything she can't handle. That's where I think she's wrong."

"Rrrr! I'm going to call her up and scream at that little hussy right now! What time is it in Pennsylvania?!"

Sou lowered his head so his bangs covered his eyes, finding he couldn't bring himself to meet hers. "She's not there."

He could hear the surprise and disbelief in her voice. "Then where is she? Did she go on that vacation with her parents after all?"

"I can't tell you, Atsuko."

"What do you mean you can't tell me? We're family, Sou. I am going to love you for the rest of your life. You two could break up next month."

"Do you really think she's that horrible?" Sou asked sadly. "I love her, Atsuko. I can't just let her go."

Tears welled up in her eyes. "I just can't make myself believe she loves you as much as you think, Sou. She takes you for granted. It won't last and I just don't want to see you get hurt."

"Atsuko-"

Their grandmother swept into the room then. Sou had never been so happy to see her in his life.

She took one look at the situation and threw up her hands. "What's going on here? What did you do to her, Soujiro?"

He backed away in protest. "I didn't do anything, Sobo."

He didn't know why she chose to side with him, but side with him she did, huffing and turning on his sister. "This about your brother's decision to visit his own uncle, your own flesh and blood then? Shame on you child! He's a grown man. You have no right to get him all worked up when you can't even muster up the courage to face your uncle."

"Sobo! That's not true. I'm only looking out for my brother!"

"Hush, child," she admonished, staring his sister down until she once again, looked like a demure Japanese lady. She turned to Sou and gave him a withering glance, as if to convey her exasperation that he'd managed to botch the whole thing up. Then she grabbed his sister's arm and led her out of the room, scolding her the whole way. Atsuko did not look up at Sou as they passed.

He grimaced, watching his sister until she turned the corner. He didn't like fighting with her. Their arguments came few and far between, all besides this last fight that burned like an ember at the root of their relationship. It had been waging ever since Atsuko had met Kaoru and developed an instant dislike for her, he realized. Would it ever end? He only hoped she could forgive him for going after Kaoru and enlisting his uncle's help, because he sure as hell wasn't going to back down now.

This one chick said that Christmas lights are pretty. Don't you think they're just an unnecessary expenditure of electricity?

I don't know. They're okay. Ick, I think I've stayed in the States for too long.

You may have, Ken. You just may have. So does this mean you're getting me something for Christmas then? I've had my eye on this one car at the shop.

Your hints are so subtle.

Yes or no?

…Sure. You better get me something good then, though.

No worries, Ken. No worries.

She never made it to the corner. Kaoru should have known that the vampires wouldn't let her, their one leverage point against Ken, evade their grasp. They must be a truly admirable group if Ken had failed to notice their presence again. What else could she do but play it cool when she felt a cold hand grasp her elbow from an alley just as she was about to turn a corner? Still, she tried to let out a scream as she was pulled into the alley, but another cold hand was clamped around her mouth, making her attempt futile. How the rest of the idiots walking on the street had missed her sudden disappearance she didn't know, but sure as hell, they had. She struggled to free herself, but her wrists were firmly held behind her. And then the same voice from the temple spoke in her ear, freezing all her attempts. It was a vampire then for sure.

"Sorry, orders. If the Battousai doesn't want to cooperate, then we will use you as a bargaining chip. We can't let our whole organization fall to one vampire. Don't scream and it'll be much easier on you." With brash confidence, he released his hand from her mouth.

Kaoru sure felt like screaming, but more at herself for being so weak that she could be used as a bargaining chip against Ken. She knew that even if she did scream, there was no way a human could help her. If all vampires were as fast as Ken and she'd be gone by the time help arrived. So she simply vowed to be clever and beat him at his own game. "I won't scream," she said, careful to lace her voice with tones of defeat. Her mind was racing. The only chance she had was to somehow get him to let go of her wrists and then ward him off with her earrings, or to just hope that it still hurt vampires when you kicked them in the nuts.

The first plan went down the drain when she felt him tying her wrists together with a metal cord. Her purse, which still rested on her shoulder, slid uncomfortably down to rest in the crook of her elbow.

"Glad to hear that."

His tone was neutral; she couldn't tell if he believed she'd given up or not. In any case, all hope that her second plan might work was going down the drain as he tied a blind fold around her eyes.

"Sorry, you can't see where we're going," his voice came from behind her. When he was satisfied with the knot, she heard him move away, but only for a second, not long enough to run. "Our ride's almost here."

Her panic increased. Ride? That meant there had to be more of them. Well they couldn't very well pick her up and run with her to wherever they were taking her. While her chances of taking on one vampire were smooth, she knew she'd never last against more than one, especially blind-folded. "Where are you taking me?" she asked, more to get a feel as to where he was. She'd lost his position in the dark.

"Same place we'll be taking the Battousai."

He was directly in front of her. Reaching back into the past and relying on the kendo lessons she'd taken all her life before college, she lunged forward and kneed him in the crotch. He went down with a grunt. After a precious instant wasted regaining her balance, she was sprinting down the alley, hoping when she came out there would be enough witnesses to prevent him from attempting to take her again.

My underwear came out pink again! I hate doing the laundry.

Just let me do it next time. You have to sort it by color.

What the hell is that about?

Look, if you wash the dishes from now on, I'll do the laundry.

Will you still cook?

Yeah. I know whenever it's your night to cook you order out and call it your own recipe.

I do not! . . . How long have you known?

Since the first night I asked you to cook.

Oh.

Don't order from Matty's Pizzeria again, okay? They're way too overpriced and by the time it gets here, it's always cold.

Late, late, late. He'd been worried about being late. They were now officially ten minutes late. Ken found that really ticked him off. He had other things to do before dawn besides hang around waiting for the local vampire group to approve his presence. But they were more than just the local group and he had seriously scaled down the difficulty of the situation to Kaoru. He only hoped they would see it fit to let Kaoru live if he didn't make it through the night. Unlike Kaoru, he had no illusions that the Juppongatana knew exactly where his and Kaoru's rented apartment was located and they had probably established familiar contact with the landlord as well. After a moment, Ken had to admit that was a little paranoid, but how else would he have survived the vampire culture for so long if he wasn't a little paranoid. Kaoru had a relaxing effect on him, perhaps too relaxing since he had failed to sense the vampire that had assaulted her in the temple.

Ken was starting to draw suspicious looks from passersby when a black limo pulled up at the corner and a vampire female he knew only as Tsubame stepped out and beckoned to him with a sweet smile upon her face. Ken knew better than to fall for her innocent smiles and gestures, she was actually quite dangerous, but he pasted an innocent smile on his face and walked over to her.

"It's been a long time," she said simply, extending her hand and bowing her head slightly in a gesture of respect, face slightly shadowed by her shoulder length brown hair. "I'm sorry we had to meet again in these circumstances, but it's really all your fault."

Ken winced inwardly. It didn't look like he could count her as a possible ally this time. He shook her hand and said nothing.

She gave him a searching look, finally giving up with a quiet sigh. "Get in then," she instructed, standing aside.

He did as she instructed, not at all surprised to see two shady looking vampires already seated on one of the sofas in the limo. He gave them nothing but a curt nod and seated himself.

Tsubame slid gracefully in beside him and the limo started moving once again. He couldn't see the driver through the tinted glass that blocked this part of the limo off into its own world.

"I have to blindfold you now," she told him matter-of-factly, drawing a black piece of cloth from her purse. "You'll let me right?"

"Now I know why those two are here," Ken spoke for the first time, careful not to allow any emotion into his voice.

"Just as a last resort. I'm confident I wouldn't need their help if you refused," she said gamely.

This was a different Tsubame from ten years ago. She seemed to have gained much confidence, and if she wasn't bluffing, then she must have improved in skill as well. Ken found himself wondering who would prevail in a sparring match between her and Misao Shinomori. Ten years ago he would have said Misao and had no doubt in his mind that he'd made the right choice, but now… He simply nodded, closed his eyes, and inclined his head towards her so she could place the blindfold across his eyes more easily.

You know how every phone number on television is 555-555-5555? I wonder who would answer if I actually called it…

That question is like 'how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie roll pop?' The world may never know, Ken.

She ran into a hard body and bounced back, crying out as she lost her footing and landed on her butt. She lost no time in appealing to the person in front of her. Perhaps she had emerged from the alley and ran into a pedestrian on the sidewalk. "Please help me, I'm being chased! I only just got away!"

The voice laughed, high pitched and slightly maniacal, and dread washed over her. "That's a vampire from the Juppongatana about to get up from where you kicked him, miss. You must have done something bad to attract his attention. Therefore, you must be worthy of my time."

Without further ado, he hauled her up roughly by her waist.

Kaoru had a hunch she would have been better off with the 'Juppongatana' member. She was starting to panic. "Take my blindfold off," she ordered in her most commanding tone.

"I think you'll be easier to manage with your blindfold on, actually," he commented, his voice higher pitched than normal and slightly nasal. In a second he had her shoulder leaning against the side of the alley wall. "Stay here while I distract this guy long enough to get off our backs."

"What's to stop me from leaving?" she asked evenly. Big mistake. She could hear him drag a chain up and then felt him slide it through the bonds to her wrists and tie it. She tried to move away, but found this new tether restricted her to a few steps in either direction from the wall.

"That chain. You'd best hope the right vampire wins. If the Juppongatana are after a human, that probably means they're going to kill you. Me, we'll just have a little fun for a while before I let you go, okay?" he advised.

She hated his voice and herself for trusting the first person she'd run into. With her luck it would be another vampire, and I rival one to the organization that Ken was meeting with no less. She jumped when she felt his hand trace lightly across her butt.

"Watch it!" she yelled indignantly, wishing she hadn't heeded Ken's words to walk a few blocks before catching a taxi. Then she wouldn't be in her present situation, caught between two evils. And it sounded like this new evil was not the lesser of the two.

"Just wiping some gravel off from when you ran into me."

"Leave her alone, Takeda. She's my job," Kaoru's steely voiced temple vampire said from back the way she'd come. So he was up, and in a relatively short time considering how hard she'd gotten him.

"If your leader needs this girl, then I am going to do everything possible to stop you from getting to her." The nasal voice was moving away towards the temple vampire. So his name was Takeda. Kaoru stored the information in the back of her mind for future reference.

"Give it up. We've clashed before. There's no way you can win against me."

"Haven't you heard of improvement? I've been training especially hard for a showdown against one of the Juppongatana. You'll do as well as any," Takeda scoffed.

Kaoru heard their feet slide into a fighting stance and the battle was on. She was almost as frustrated as Ken made her by her lack of awareness of the fight. There was a heavy breather and a light breather, the light breather seemed to have the upper-hand, but she had no clue which vampire that was. It sounded like they were fighting with knives, because there were clashes of steel. After an eternity a cry of anguish reverberated from the area where they were fighting, and the heavier breather fled into the night. The other vampire walked over to her and leaned against the alley wall facing her. She could hear him breathing just out of her kicking distance. Gradually his breathing returned to normal and he spoke.

"Be grateful I won. No woman deserves treatment by the likes of Kanryu Takeda."

It was the temple vampire. She possessed the strong conviction he was right. Kaoru chose to say nothing. She remained silent as he unwrapped the chain from the bonds that entrapped her wrist and lead her to the mouth of the alley. Leaving her alone for a moment once again to check the mouth of the alley, he apparently found what he was looking for, because he let out a grunt of satisfaction and picked her up abruptly bridal style, depositing her seconds later on the cushion of a car's seat. He pushed her head down, not hard, but firmly. "I'll tell you when you can get back up."

It was all in Ken's hands now. She'd tried her best to get away. She only hoped he boasted as good terms with this leader as he'd told her.

Why did you go to war?

For the honor of my country.

Would you go to war for my honor?

Yes.

"Just a little farther now," Tsubame's voice encouraged as she led him by the hand through the halls of a building. The limo ride had lasted just long enough to disorient him as to what direction they were traveling in. When the ride had stopped, it was relatively quiet, though he could still hear the rush of car tires whispering in the rain. If Tsubame dared let him be visible from the street, then the Juppongatana must have bought out the whole area of the city where their headquarters were located, no doubt under different names. Then she'd led him inside, always polite, as if instructing a blind friend to avoid potential hazards in his path. They'd gone up an elevator, he could tell from the way it affected his stomach, and were now walking to the room where he would meet the leader of the Juppongatana. He suspected she had put in a good more twists and turns in their route then necessary.

Presently, they arrived at their destination, whereupon she opened a door, led him through, and set him down in a plush chair. He could sense the energy signature of the leader as well as a few other vampires.

"We're here. Thank you for being so cooperative," she intoned, swiftly untying the black cloth from his eyes.

The first thing Ken noticed when he opened his eyes was that he was sitting at the end of a long rectangular table that seated about fourteen, in what looked like a business office. Tsubame was walking down to the far end of the table, where she sat down to the right of the leader after murmuring something in his ear. The seat to the leader's left was vacant, while four other vampires Ken wasn't familiar with sat at the table as well. They were all staring expectantly at Ken, waiting for him to apologize he guessed. Like hell. He simply stared at the leader, willing him to remember his debt to Ken.

When it became painfully obvious that Ken was not going to speak, the leader did. "Why have you come back without informing the Juppongatana, Battousai? It's an insult to the whole organization."

"I recognize that, but informing you would have revealed my presence to the dark one."

The leader smirked, his brown eyes narrowing slightly in the framework of his tan features. "So you're still out to avenge Sagara and his team. They were the foolish ones, the Sekihoutai. I have never understood why you were determined to waste your time on him."

Ken remained silent. Let the leader think what he wanted. He would repay his debt to Sano or die trying. A friendship and closeness like the one they had developed could not be destroyed without repayment in kind to the person responsible. Besides, the other vampires were only revealing how cold they had become my not caring about the lives the dark one was destroying on its way to conquering the vampire world. As cold as he had been before he met Kaoru, even he could reach far enough ahead in the future to see the inevitability of that truth. He felt only contempt for those groups that opted to stay in their own territory and wait until the dark one trapped them to make a stand. The Shinomori's were making that same mistake with their Oniwaban group, Ken believed, though he and Aoshi had argued the issue so often that Ken had given up trying to persuade him to change the way he ran the group.

"Trust in the confidentiality of the Juppongatana, next time, Battousai. We will let you live, but you must pay a debt to the organization now."

Ken's temper flared. "My debt was paid when I saved your existence ten years ago," he reminded the leader in his most even tone. "If anything, we are even."

The leader leaned forward. "That is where you are wrong. You did not bother to announce the presence of the human woman either."

So they were going to try and bring Kaoru in to it. "She does not need your permission to come and go in LA. She's not my contact."

"Guilt by association. She is aware of the vampire culture and you are the one who has watched over her since you entered the city. If you had left her with humans, we may have forgiven her that, but she stayed with you through the night, the day, and tonight. You must pay a debt to the organization, or she must die."

"I will not. If I don't return, she will know to leave the city," Ken bluffed, hoping Kaoru would. "I may have done what you asked out of respect for you, Yahiko Myojin, but not after you tried to blackmail me into the task."

Myojin nodded as if that was fine with him. Ken was instantly suspicious. No leader of an organization as enormous and influential as the Juppongatana would ever give up that easily. To his surprise, the leader's cell phone rang, to the tune of 'I'm a Believer' nonetheless. Ken could do nothing but blink in surprise and annoyance when he actually interrupted their meeting to reach in his pocket, draw out the cell phone, and answer the call. He conversed in low tones that Ken didn't bother to try to make out with his keen vampire hearing. Ken wouldn't give him enough respect to deem his conversation worthy of listening to, rather he looked over the room and the vampires in it, gauging escape routes and how much energy it would take him to beat each of the vampires in the room. Tsubame looked annoyed at her leader's rudeness, while the other vampires simply set there with impassive expressions on their faces.

When Myojin was finished with his call, he turned back to Ken with a truly remorseful expression on his face. "I'm sorry about this, Ken."

Ken started. The other vampire had not called him Battousai. Tsubame looked over at her leader as well, her keen gaze trying to read his intentions. So she didn't know his plans either? Ken knew he could use that information in his favor.

"That was Hajime Saitou. I sent him out to collect the human woman. Apparently, she almost got away from him once, and ran into Kanryu Takeda."

Ken grimaced. This was bad. There was no telling what Kanryu would do to her.

"You'll be happy to know that Saitou was able to retrieve her from that particular situation," Myojin cut into Ken's thoughts.

He couldn't help but breathe easier at that. Takeda was merciless when it came to dealing with humans.

"They're here now. If you do not agree to carry out the task I have appointed to you, we will torture her until you do."

Tsubame stifled a gasp and covered her mouth with her hands in an effort to compose herself.

"You're bluffing," Ken stated flatly. How could they have managed to apprehend her in front of all the people frequenting LA anyway? Still, he wouldn't put it past Saitou to get the job done, though he was extremely surprised that Saitou was working for Myojin. He'd always thought it would turn out the other way around.

Just then the door behind Ken, the one that he and Tsubame had come through, opened. Ken risked turning his back on the six vampires. It was Kaoru, blindfolded with her hands tied behind her. Saitou, guiding her along by her shoulders, towered over her. He let his eyes roam over her, searching for just one scratch. She appeared unhurt, and though still, composed. Saitou on the other hand, was sporting several cuts and a serious gash across his left shoulder that a medic vampire must have bandaged at one point. He released her to shut the door quietly. She didn't even try to run, somehow knowing she couldn't escape now, she just stood there until Saitou placed his hands lightly on her shoulders again, her purse dangling at the crook of her right arm.

"Well done as usual, Saitou." The voice of Yahiko Myojin rang out over the room.

Ken watched as Kaoru tilted her head slightly in his direction.

"Take her blindfold off and untie her wrists."

Ken was angry. Angry at himself for not making sure Kaoru was safely away before he had gone to meet the Juppongatana. He'd been too selfish. He should have done what was best for her and sent her back to Pennsylvania, surely the two hunters were gone by now. No matter that it might break him to have her gone, he knew it would certainly break him to watch her tortured because of him. He would have no choice but to obey Myojin and work for the Juppongatana. He favored Saitou with a glare and quickly hid the anger in his eyes so Kaoru would know he didn't blame her for getting caught.

"Who are you?" Kaoru's voice rang back across the room, just as determined and powerful as the leader's had been. So her temple vampire's name was Saitou. She would have to thank him for saving her from that Takeda character, if she lived through the whole ordeal. She remained still as Saitou first undid the bindings about her wrists. As soon as her hands were free, she shoved her purse back onto her shoulder and reached up, undoing the blindfold on her own.

The first person she saw was Ken, staring at her and looking slightly worried. The question in his eyes was plain. Did he hurt you? She was so shocked to see him that she froze for an instant before shaking her head no slightly and trying to hold back the tears that welled up in her eyes. He was okay. He was unhurt. A heavy weight she hadn't even realized was present lifted from her heart. Ken was there.

Saitou walked in front of her view of Ken and she saw her captor/protector for the first time. Tall, thin, and muscular with dark brown hair and dressed in simple jeans and a dark blue long sleeved collared shirt, his almost uniformed appearance was only marred by some cuts to the fabric and a wound on his shoulder where blood seeped through. Saving her. He'd gotten hurt saving her. She realized that he was pulling a chair from the table to rest beside Ken. Then he kept moving and sat to the left of the man at the head of the table. The man at the head of the table. He was studying her with obvious interest. The woman next to him, whom she supposed his wife, looked like she was trying to wrestle with something that had been said before Kaoru entered the room, because Kaoru could see her emotions warring just below the surface as she struggled to hold her husband in the same esteem as she had before. Kaoru hoped it was a long and hard struggle if that man was the leader of the Juppongatana.

"I am Yahiko Myojin, the leader of the Juppongatana. Have a seat."

"Kaoru Kamiya," she informed him, ignoring his command. "I know you've only brought me here to use me against Ken. As a supposed protector of the city, you're not doing your job."

"As a human, you should have stayed away from vampire circles if you did not wish to become a contact. Then you would not find yourself in this situation. I renew my offer of seating, Miss Kamiya." He said evenly, brown eyes still neutrally taking her in.

She nodded. It didn't look like there was any rattling him. Besides, it was a relief to sit by Ken. She sank into the chair next to him.

"Are you really okay?" he asked her quietly, leaning close and focusing completely on her, as if they weren't in the Juppongatana headquarters.

"I'm fine," she assured him, feeling uplifted by his presence. Just being around him reinforced her will to bear all this gracefully and keep up her strength. "I'm just glad you're okay. I was worried."

He smiled at her then. "Just so you know, no matter what happens, none of it's your fault, Kaoru." Ken didn't want her to blame herself for the completion of whatever mission the Juppongatana leader had in store for him.

Kaoru was scared then. What Ken had just said made their situation sound gloomy and almost hopeless. And he was being decidedly un-Ken-like by telling her not to put the blame on herself. Ken seemed to be trying hard to turn over a new leaf where she was concerned, but she couldn't forget that cold exterior he could slip back into at will. He seemed to sense that he'd said the wrong thing, because he leaned closer, took one of her hands in his, and kissed her lips lightly. How had she forgotten how good it felt to be kissed by him already? The world faded away for a couple precious seconds, until he pulled back and turned away from her to face the Juppongatana. Kaoru stared at his profile for a few seconds more, willing herself to see what was in his mind, but it did no good. He squeezed her hand lightly. She wondered if that was supposed to be reassurance, or an order to face the front. She decided to take it as both and turned to face the other vampires.

The leader and his woman had been whispering among themselves. The female vampire still looked distressed, though more composed. Saitou, her temple vampire was looking at her with a bemused expression upon his face while he smoked a cigarette, while the four other vampires were starting to look antsy. Kaoru was impatient to know what the whole meeting was about. Were they going to punish Ken or not, and what did she have to do with it? Ken hadn't been late, so there was no way they could use that excuse to kill her.

Then the leader cleared his throat and spoke. "As I was stating before, Battousai, you owe the Juppongatana a debt, therefore you must carry out this mission for us."

"What is it?" Ken asked, hoping to delay his acceptance long enough to think of a way out of the situation.

Yahiko leaned forward slightly. "A dangerous member of one of the other ruling vampire groups has infiltrated out net and is presently in LA. Her name is Tomoe Yokishiro. I want her dead."

Kaoru could feel Ken shift slightly in his seat, and he held her hand tighter, but otherwise showed no emotion.

"Who does she work for?"

"The Inshinshishi. They are trying to take over LA and return it to the way it was before we took over by assassinating our most powerful and influential members. We had a particularly sweet victory over them a few weeks ago, so now they've sent this Tomoe bitch in to spy and figure out where we stand."

"This isn't my battle. I'm only here to find the dark one. I don't want to get caught up in your war, Myojin."

"You don't have a choice, Battousai. Since you've completed several missions for the dark one, this should not be a problem," the leader of the Juppongatana finished icily.

"He's not your puppet," Kaoru shot at him. "He saved your life. You owe him. Just kill her yourself if you want it done that bad." She could hardly believe she was talking about killing someone so lightly.

"You're not in a position to order me around, Miss Kamiya. I have already acknowledged the fact that I owe him my life. I will spare his instead of killing him like I should have for disobeying the rules of the Juppongatana. A life for a life. It's your life that needs saving. It's Tomoe Yokishiro or you, and Yokishiro must die by his hand. A life for a life," Yahiko finished smugly.

Now Kaoru knew what Ken had meant when he'd told her not to blame herself. She was the reason Ken would have to do as the Juppongatana said, the reason why he would have to face the consequences. She blinked hard to free her eyes from the tears that threatened.

"If I'm going to kill Yokishiro for you, you can at least give me the information you know on the dark one. Or is the Juppongatana now working for it?" Ken asked, not happy with the way the vampire had treated Kaoru.

"The dark one respects the Juppongatana enough to inform us when it will be entering the city, but we have not fallen low enough to work for it. That will never happen. You're flirting with death asking that question, Battousai."

Ken knew when he was beat. There was no way out of this particular piece of blackmail. Tsubame obviously didn't agree with her mate's decisions, but she wasn't going to go against him in front of his rivals. "I accept your terms, Yahiko Myojin."

"I'm glad you see reason, Battousai."

"Yahiko-" the female vampire started softly.

He cut her off abruptly. "I'll be sending Saitou with you until the task is done, Battousai. And meanwhile, the Kamiya woman doesn't leave LA until Yokishiro is dead."

Saitou coughed loudly, having just choked on cigarette smoke. "You're sending me with them!?! Just let me kill the Yokishiro woman. You know the Battousai and I have a past."

"You're the only one I can trust to be sure the job's done right, Saitou. Don't doubt my orders."

Saitou nodded, but didn't look very happy about the whole thing. None of them were as far as Kaoru was concerned. She was already feeling the guilt of forcing Ken to take another's life. She didn't even want to contemplate Ken's feelings. The female vampire looked appalled and angry and the leader would no doubt be upset by the time she was done with him the first time she caught him alone.

"Tsubame will accompany you back to your apartment building. As it will be dawn by the time Saitou gathers his things, he'll meet up with you both this evening."

There were nods of misery all around the table, except for Ken, who simply glared at the leader, his eyes a hard blue. And then the four vampires who hadn't said a single word stood up, bearing black blindfolds, and darkness settled once again over Kaoru's eyes.

A/N - Once again I beg your forgiveness that I didn't update for a month. It's getting really sad, I know. But in the meanwhile, I hoped you enjoyed the new chapter. Please review and tell me what you thought if you feel like it. Godspeed!

~Aryanne