Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Two Swords: The Tangled Web ❯ Out of the Rain ( Chapter 1 )

Okay, I'm back. I'm sorry this has taken me so long. I had to write my developmental psychology term paper. I know I promised I would write an epilogue for "Of Youkai Bondage" next, but I got inspired. I'll still write it, I promise, just not yet. I began watching Rurouni Kenshin a little while ago, and I fell in love with the series. I could never forget about Inuyasha though, so I thought, crossover time! This is actually unique in as much as I've never seen one like this before. So read on and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing, but neither do you!

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"Hurry up, guys! It's raining!" Kaoru's voice rang out down the streets. Her, Kenshin, Sanosuke, and Yahiko were returning from a fair on the outskirts of town when the heavens opened up and began pouring on them. The little party was running down an unfamiliar street that was lined with cherry trees with Kaoru in the lead. Normally, it would have been very beautiful to run along a path with no buildings in sight, but when one was trying to find a place to get out of the rain, beautiful is not the operative word.

"I found something!"

The men, who had been trailing behind, watched as Kaoru disappeared behind a row of trees.

"Where are you going, Miss Kaoru?" Kenshin didn't like it when she was out of his sight, and he didn't know where she was going. The rest of the party sprinted to catch up with her. They found that she had ascended a long flight of stairs that led up to a shrine. When the men reached the courtyard they expected to find Kaoru in either the big shrine or the small building that lay next to it, but instead she was standing staring at something as the water beat down on her, soaking through her thin pink kimono. Kenshin hurried to her as Sanosuke and Yahiko made their way to the larger building.

"Miss Kaoru, What are you doing? Let's get some shelter." He gently grabbed her arm and pulled her to where the other men were. Kenshin couldn't understand why she would stand there in the middle of the storm and stare at something as trivial as a tree when there was a roof to hide under nearby. Truthfully, Kaoru didn't quite know herself why she had stopped. There was just something about that tree that almost called to her. She couldn't tear her eyes from the giant base or the spot in the middle of it that was lighter than the rest. Something very important happened there, and she knew it. She knew it in the depths of soul. That tree was significant somehow. Sanosuke was too busy pounding on the door of the shrine to even notice that Kaoru hadn't been with them. He was becoming frustrated that no one seemed to be answering.

"What kind of a shrine keeper shuts down when it starts to rain?" He continued his pounding to no avail.

"Sano, I think it's more likely that they shut down because it is already night, that I do." Kenshin looked up at the sky and peeked at the stars through the heavy droplets that were still angrily falling. Sanosuke gave up on the pounding and began to try and force the door open. It held fast.

"Hey, why don't we go over to the little house? It probably isn't locked up tight like this one." The obvious wasn't apparent to anyone but the youngest. The drenched people ran to the small shelter, and Sanosuke got the door open by not stopping at it but shouldering his way through. The four of them were relieved to finally be out of the downpour, even though the little room dripped and smelled old. The room held nothing but a few steps and an old boarded up well. It was very cold there because of its dampness, but no one cared. The three men took their seats on the steps as Kaoru looked around.

"What is this place anyway?" She asked as if they had all been there a hundred times before, and she had just misplaced the name.

"How should I know, Missy?"

"When you were trying to break the shrine door down, I saw a placard that said Higarashi Shrine." Once again it was Yahiko who held the information. Kaoru sighed. She had heard of this place, but she had never been there. It was too far from her home. There were many other shrines that were much closer. Besides, all the proprietor ever wanted to do was talk about all the demons that had once inhabited Japan and how his shrine had been built in order to honor the people who helped to rid the world of evil.

"Huh, real good job they did of that." Kaoru couldn't help but think of all the evil that still abounded in Japan. It may be politics and not demons, but it was evil none the less.

"What did you say, Miss Kaoru?"

"Oh, nothing, Kenshin." Kaoru moved to take a seat on top of the boarded up well. The steps were too full anyway. When she sat, she heard the boards start to creak.

"Looks like you're to fat to sit there."

"Shut up, Yahiko. These boards are plenty strong enough to support my weight." Kaoru had barely finished her sentence when a loud snap was heard, and the boards gave way. Kenshin and Sanosuke rushed to her aid and steadied her as most of the boards fell down the well. It seemed like they were going to be okay until Yahiko jumped to try and save his instructor as well. The little wood that was holding them couldn't do it anymore, and they found themselves falling sown the well in a tangle of limbs. They did not thump immediately to the ground as expected but were instead enshrouded in a blue light. It was eerie, and all of them disregarded it as their own imagination when they hit the bottom of the well.

"You idiot!" Both Kaoru and Sanosuke punched Yahiko's head simultaneously.

"Now, now, it was an accident." Kenshin didn't like them to be fighting and needed to figure out a way out of the well. He could have sworn he'd seen a ladder on the way down, but he also saw an aura of blue so an imaginary ladder was not out of the question. He looked up and his breath caught. Everyone stopped and stared up with him. Above them was not the roof of the little well house, but the sky. It was a beautiful starry night and no rain fell upon them.

"Um, what's going on?" Sanosuke scratched his head. How could the roof be gone?

"Come on, let's get out of this well." With much effort on the parts of Kaoru and Yahiko, they did just that. Everyone couldn't believe their eyes. Around them was not the small shelter or even the big shrine. The streets of Tokyo were gone. They were standing next to a well in the middle of a clearing. The only thing that remained the same was the tree Kaoru had been staring at. It loomed comfortingly in the distance.

"Where are we?" Kaoru was soaking wet, tired, and thoroughly confused. None of them even had a chance to speculate beyond that. Both Kenshin's and Sanosuke's heads snapped up as they heard a voice in the distance.

"You're lucky you came tonight. If it were any other day of the month, you'd be dead by now. But don't worry, I'll take you on like this."

They couldn't see from whom the voice was coming from because the moon was gone that night. It was only the stars that lent their light. Sanosuke and Kenshin sprinted toward the voice's direction as something else met their ears.

"Miss Kaoru, Yahiko, you stay here."

It was the distinctive noise of a sword being unsheathed.

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A/N: Ooooooooooo! Don't worry all you Inuyasha fans, this was only the introductory chapter. Nothing can happen between the Kenshin and Inuyasha gangs if they are in different times. You silly gooses. Okay, for those of you who haven't seen Rurouni Kenshin, go watch it. I love it! Don't get the OVA series though unless you want to cry. I cried a lot during that series and I've only seen up through DVD three. Sniff. It's really sad. Anyway, please review!!! Also, I hate the title "Two Swords." If anyone has a better suggestion tell me!