Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ The Slumbering City ❯ Sunrise, Sunset ( Chapter 6 )

Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me. If they did, I'd make them do an episode of Gokusen! Kaoru would be Yankumi, and Kenshin could look young enough to be Shin, though he doesn't really have the personality for it. But he does have the red hair! Sano and Yahiko would be great as delinquent students! And Megumi could be the chorus/English teacher Fujiyama Sensei who flirts with her student. Ohoho-!

AN: The Kenshin POV is especially dedicated to Jane Drew and the Circle of Doom. I hope it doesn't disappoint!

Thanks to Elley and Ravyn for the comments and editing help!

The Slumbering City

By Indygodusk

Chapter 6: Sunrise, Sunset

“Elemental catastrophes” Megumi stated with precise enunciation, “such as floods or hail storms, I can handle.” Her words were accompanied by several hard nudges to Kaoru's tender limbs. Blinking groggily up at her friend, Kaoru had no idea why she'd been so rudely awoken. Grumpily she tried to push away the doctor's feet. Why'd Megumi want to talk about the weather now? Especially since early morning sunbeams streamed brightly through the window, gilding Megumi's dark hair with chocolate highlights and forecasting fair skies. The doctor ignored Kaoru's swatting hands and continued talking. “I can even take earthquakes with equanimity. Haven't I demonstrated that?”

After a moment of silence, Kaoru realized that the question wasn't rhetorical. “Sure, Megumi. Can I go back to sleep now?”

“No, you cannot go back to-,” Megumi paused, pursed her lips, and took a deep breath through her nose, causing her nostrils to flare. Ew, I didn't need to see that. Kaoru gave up on slumber. Sitting up, she rubbed the sleep away from her eyes with a final yawn. Then she looked up at Megumi and waited groggily for an explanation, a point, or a plate of breakfast. Preferably the latter.

“Kaoru,” Megumi began in a long-suffering tone of voice, `We've been friends since the day you were born and I've gotten used to crazy stunts, but this is the outside of enough!” Drat, her hands are empty, I don't smell anything cooking, and she's got that look on her face that means she's going to lecture for at least an hour. Hands on hips, Megumi announced, “And I don't see any sexy red-heads lurking around, so logic dictates that this has to be your fault.”

Hey, who's she to call Kenshin sexy? Kaoru stopped listening and started fuming. She's already got a man. Of course, with a husband like the rooster head, any other man would be trading up. Especially a man like Lord Battousai. He'd be a huge upgrade. In fact, I can't think of anyone higher on the manflesh scale than Kenshin. If Kenshin were available, which he's NOT. Kaoru ground her teeth together. Not that he's mine, but Sano's a good guy and Megumi should stay with him. Adultery and murder are both sins and sins mean hell and hell is hot and Megumi hates being too hot… so I'm worrying over nothing. Because there's nothing to worry about. Nothing at all. Forcing herself to unclench her teeth, Kaoru looked up just in time to dodge the pillow Megumi flung at her head.

“Have you been listening to me at all?” the irate doctor asked.

Standing up to give herself more room to run away, Kaoru answered with wounded pride, “Of course!” Megumi cocked an eyebrow. Kaoru fidgeted. The doctor waited. Five seconds later, Kaoru's confident façade crumbled like stale crackers under a toddler's fist. “To some... of the, the first few sentences,” she mumbled. An exasperated sigh expelled from Megumi's mouth. “What d'ya expect? I just woke up,” Kaoru defended.

A manicured foot tapped impatiently on the plush carpeting. “Then. Explain. Our. Rooms,” Megumi bit out.

“Huh? Explain wha-,” Kaoru gaped as she took a good look around and was forced to do a double take. The bare and pitted floorboards had been covered by a plush blue carpet. The yellow stain on the ceiling had disappeared under a fresh coat of ivory paint and a cut crystal light fixture now hung from the ceiling. The cushions Kaoru had made into a bed on the floor had transformed into a padded window seat. Glass fronted mahogany cabinets flanked a slate blue couch built into the opposite wall. Along with these improvements, an extra door had appeared where only a sink used to be and led into a brand new kitchen. “Well,” Kaoru laughed in amazement, “I'll be a monkey's uncle.”

“What you'll be is a dead monkey if you don't explain how this happened,” Megumi threatened. “It,” a hesitant light entered her suddenly doe-like brown eyes, “it wasn't Lord Battousai, was it?”

After relaxing her mental bindings from around that other-sense, Kaoru once again examined the room. “No, no it wasn't him, it was… oh!” she exclaimed. “Whoops.”

At Kaoru's words, all hint of softness fled from Megumi's face. Kaoru didn't have to worry about potential storms outside; Megumi's face had just filled with thunder clouds. “What do you mean, whoops?”

“It was the puppies,” Kaoru said as if that would explain everything. “You know I can't resist puppies, and I thought it was just a dream.”

“And dream puppies have to do with magic, how?” Kaoru opened her mouth to explain, but Megumi held up a hand. “Wait, I should probably sit down for this.”

After Megumi elegantly sat down on the new slate blue couch and crossed her legs, Kaoru started. “Well, the puppies are the magic, see?”

“No.” Megumi was not looking cooperative. This was going to be a tough sale.

“Okay, well, let me put it this way. The puppies are bits of unbound magic roaming the city looking for buildings to call home. Last night as I was falling asleep, they came over and cuddled up with me. I thought it was just a dream so I, well….”

Megumi groaned, “Kaoru, you didn't.”

“They were sad and lonely, I had to help them. You know I can't resist cute baby animals!”

“We aren't talking about baby animals,” objected Megumi. “We are talking about magical manifestations.”

“Manifestations that acted just like puppies!” Kaoru practically shouted. Forcing herself to calm down, she continued. “They said that Papa-Lord, I mean Lord Battousai, hadn't come to play with them in a long time and some of the older of the unbound spells were thinking about letting themselves fade away completely. I couldn't just let them die! And the spell puppies just want to love and be loved. They'll take good care of the people living in these buildings. I know they will,” she knelt down and grabbed her friend's hands tightly, willing her to understand.

After a moment of staring into each others eyes, the smooth mask of Megumi's censure softened. “Alright,” the doctor sighed and squeezed her hands back gently. “I know the way you get with baby anything.”

Smiling gratefully, Kaoru released Megumi's hands and stood up. “Have I told you lately what a great friend you are?”

“Yes, but flattery is why I let you borrow my shoes. Feel free to be more specific as you list my many great qualities.” Smiling, Megumi stood up and smoothed down her slacks. Glancing at her watch, she sighed. “Unfortunately, we'll have to do that later. It would take a blind idiot not to notice the changes in this section of the city, and Lord Battousai's chief of security is anything but a blind idiot. Trust me, Shinomori knows where we are and his people are either already here searching or else on their way. Sano's outside scouting, but as soon as he gets back we have to leave.”

While folding the blankets from her bed, Kaoru asked over her shoulder, “Why do you talk of Shinomori like he's omniscient? He can't know everything that goes on in this city.”

“I'm not so sure,” Megumi said softly with a troubled frown.

“What do you mean by that?” Kaoru asked with trepidation.

Red nails ran distractedly through Megumi's long black hair. “Didn't you wonder why I never came back to the apartment that night? Why I was with Sano when the spell I bought for you activated?”

A blush stained Kaoru's cheeks. “Actually, I was so shocked at the news of your marriage and your,” a smirk twisted her lips, “state of dishabille that I forgot to ask.” Finishing with the blanket, she sat back on her heels. “So? What happened?”

“Well,” the doctor looked off into the distance as she started speaking, “you remember me stomping down to the messenger's car with righteous indignation?”

“Of course, your heels echoed quite commandingly as you went down the hall.” Kaoru winked. “Even if I was still in shock over the fact that you'd actually kissed me.”

Megumi tossed her hair behind her shoulder and laughed foxily. “Sorry about that. It once worked on a stalker ex-boyfriend who'd been refusing to leave me alone. Besides, that was the only loophole I could see to get out of the claiming law.”

“So what happened after you got into the car? I saw Kenshin, I mean Lord Battousai, down there with you, and then suddenly I heard the lock on the door click and he was standing behind me in the apartment.”

A frustrated sigh escaped Megumi as she sat back down on the couch. “Lord Battousai must have used magic to make me think he was escorting me downstairs. After I got into the car, the door closed and automatically locked. They must have child-locked the door, because it wouldn't open. The messenger was also gone. Then the opposite door opened and Shinomori Aoshi, Lord Battousai's head of security, got into the car. You remember him from that afternoon, I take it?”

“Ah ha,” Kaoru interrupted, “of course I do. And this is where something happened to change your opinion of him. Did he say something to you that sounded too sneaky and all-knowing?”

“I'm getting to that.” Megumi huffed with irritation. “Anyway, after the car took off I asked about the red-headed messenger, but Shinomori would only say that it wasn't my concern.” A speculative frown appeared on Megumi's face. “Actually, I remember being surprised at the way Shinomori looked. Unlike that afternoon in his office, his face seemed almost unnaturally pale. Plus, I noticed that the lapel of his jacket was torn, as if someone had grabbed it too harshly and ripped the seams.” Shaking the thought off, she continued. “Anyway, he wouldn't answer any of my questions or tell me where we were going. I could tell it wasn't towards the courthouse, but that was it. It was only when I mentioned that you'd be all alone in the apartment and might get worried that he finally said something.”

Leaning forward, Kaoru asked, “Well, what did he say?”

She huffed out a dark laugh. “He told me, `Lord Battousai will take care of her.'” Megumi imitated Shinomori's flat tone of voice. “As you might suspect, that really didn't really comfort me. Especially when it somehow clicked that the short redhead we'd left behind was Lord Battousai. I almost passed out when the icicle man next to me confirmed it. When the car stopped, I thought he'd finally decided to listen to my complaints and let me go. I thought it just a fortuitous coincidence that we'd ended up in front of Sano's apartment.”

“But it wasn't?” questioned Kaoru quietly.

“It wasn't,” her friend echoed, voice just as soft. “I hadn't told anyone about Sano, no one but you. And even you didn't know how serious it had gotten. After our last big argument, I hadn't even seen him for a few weeks. We'd talked once or twice on the phone, but I was still mad at him. Yet despite that, Shinomori knew. He escorted me to Sano's door and told me that they were letting me stay the night at my husband's apartment instead of in a cell as a favor to you. Somehow, he knew.”

“Could he have found out from your marriage certificate?” Kaoru asked.

Megumi shook her head, “No, we got married out of town and since I wasn't sure I wanted to stay married once I sobered up, we still hadn't finished filing the paperwork. It should still be sitting in a manila folder in that seedy chapel we went to, just waiting for the processing fee. There's still no public record anywhere. I don't know how Shinomori could have found out.”

“Wait,” Kaoru said, “the car you picked me up from the mansion in, wasn't that Sano's? Maybe they traced the license plate!”

A red flush stained Megumi's cheeks. “I'd considered that, but Sanosuke informed me later on that night that it wasn't really his car; he'd borrowed it from an impound lot when I called him for the favor. He says he sold his car a few weeks ago to build up his savings. More likely to pay off gambling debts if you ask me.”

Kaoru could practically hear Megumi's teeth grinding. “I'd have put him in the hospital for that one. We could've been arrested!” Thinking about her near escape from the security chief's office, Kaoru added, “Again! And you still slept with him after hearing that?” Amazement tinged Kaoru's tone.

Megumi's angry blush pinked into embarrassment, “I wasn't planning on it. I straight out told him it was never going to happen, but he- and then that thing with his tongue- and well, before I knew it `no' turned into `yes' and…” she trailed off in remembrance, a dreamy look seeping onto her face.

Hiding her laugh in a cough, Kaoru couldn't help but tease, “I guess he isn't as whipped as I thought.” This broke Megumi out of her trance. Before the good doctor could think about retaliation, Kaoru continued, “So maybe Sano told someone about the two of you or was seen taking the car,” Kaoru suggested.

“He claims not. I believe him.” Megumi bit her lip.

Coming over to the slate blue couch, Kaoru plopped down next to her friend and gave her a scolding tap on the chin. “Hey now, no biting. That's my bad habit.”

Releasing her abused lip, Megumi made a face and then picked up the thread of her story. “After knocking on Sano's door, Shinomori had the gall to order me to use this opportunity to work out my marital troubles.”

A startled laugh burst out of Kaoru. “You're kidding me!”

“He said that Lord Battousai did not want my personal problems upsetting you. I almost had a Kaoru moment and bashed him across the face.”

Kaoru squeezed Megumi's arm and joked, “I've always been a bad influence. Please tell me you hit him?”

Shifting her weight, Megumi continued her story. “I didn't get the chance. Before I could let loose, Sano answered the door with this adorably confused look on his face.”

“Adorable?” Kaoru interrupted. “You actually thought that in the middle of your sputtering at Shinomori?”

“Oh, shut up.” rejoined Megumi. “Anyway, Sano answered the door and Shinomori literally pushed me inside. Luckily Sano caught me or else I'd have ended belly-up on the floor. Before I could swing back around he said,” Megumi once again imitated Shinomori's tone of voice. “`This time there will be no rescues. At dawn, you are free to go.'” Her voice rose back to her natural register. “On the heels of his words a wind came out of nowhere and slammed the door shut. We tried for almost an hour, but couldn't get it to open. Even the windows and, my last resort, the air vents, wouldn't unfasten.” Megumi clenched her fists in remembered frustration. “Magic had welded them all shut.”

Placing a hand over Megumi's white-knuckled fists, she said, “Thank you for trying. It does make me feel better to know you didn't just abandon me to have some wild romp with a man.” Kaoru laughed at Megumi's expression and gave her best friend a one-armed hug. “So then what?”

“You know the rest. The next morning, you appeared and we all escaped before Lord Battousai and his henchmen could reach the apartment.”

“That doesn't,” Kaoru stated with a raised brow, “explain how you went from searching for an exit to wearing only a sheet in the living room when I arrived. Or how Sano came to be wearing only that ugly orange pillow over his….”

Megumi threw up her hands. “Fine! I was upset. We talked. Sano comforted me and, well, one thing led to another. We are married, after all, and I decided to try out one the perks of the institution.”

Kaoru gave her a disgusted look. “Oh come on! You've got to be kidding me. You'd never let me get away with a bare-bones explanation like that. Details!”

“Well, that's why I'm me and you're you.” Patting Kaoru on the back condescendingly, Megumi changed the subject. “So last night while you were sleeping, you somehow gave all of the puppies a doghouse of their own?”

Grumbling, Kaoru allowed herself to be distracted. “Not all of them, just the ones that were going to fade and the pack of puppy-magic that came and snuggled up to me last night. It was mostly instinctual. Doing magic is like trying to piece together a big puzzle. I only have a few pieces put together, no final picture telling me what I'm trying to make, and most of the pieces are scattered around the room hiding under dusty couches and tables with the broken crayons and bubblegum wrappers.

A sympathetic smile escaped Megumi. “At least you like puzzles.” Kaoru stuck out her tongue at her friend. “What about Lord Battousai's knowledge of magic? You said he marked you that night and made a soul-bond. Can't you use that?”

Folding her arms around her stomach, Kaoru hugged her sides. “I still don't have most of Lord Battousai's memories sorted out,” she softly revealed. “I'm not sure I want to sort them all out. So much of it is scary and sad and,” Kaoru stood up again and started to pace across the plush blue carpet. “And confusing. The most frustrating part is that the more I learn, the more I…,” Kaoru cut off her explanation. Megumi had almost forced her to voice something better left unsaid.

A sympathetic smile tilted Megumi's lips. “The more you come to love,” Kaoru froze and stared blankly at the wall. Her best friend calmly finished her sentence, “puppies?”

Hearing Megumi's words, a surprised chuckle spilled from Kaoru's mouth. “Yes, puppies AND puppy-shaped magic,” she smilingly agreed.

Walking towards the newly adjoining kitchen, Megumi said, “I'll go put something together for a running breakfast while you go to the bathroom and put back on your disguise. You better be quick, because we should probably be gone already. And Kaoru?”

“Yes?” she acknowledged as she gathered up her things, barely noticing the odd tone of Megumi's voice.

“It is okay to care.”

Wrinkling her brow, Kaoru asked, “For the puppies?”

“For the puppies' papa.”

Sunrise. Waves of gold and cream light lapped across the sky, washing away the darkness of night, leaving only squeaky clean white clouds and blue sky in their wake. Himura Kenshin, Lord Battousai and Master of The City, stood on the precipice of the roof and took in the buildings and fields that made up his domain.

When the sun topped the distant, green leaved mountains and spilled liquid gold onto his hands, Kenshin glanced down with detached curiosity. Will the sunlight wash away my darkness as well? Four parallel scratches, speckled with dark red scabs and slightly swollen, ran across his wrist and the back of his hand. No, his stony façade twisted into a bitter smile. As if a man such as I would be so blessed.

But he had been blessed, for a few short hours. When he'd discovered Kaoru, his golden koi, emotion had burst across his mind in a warm wave. It had been so long since Kenshin had truly felt happiness that he'd been forced to pause and identify the emotion.

After the bonding, Kenshin had brought Kaoru back to his room to sleep. After slipping her under the covers and smoothing down her wayward hair, he'd gone to the windows and opened the curtains. Then he'd returned to the bed, removed his clothing, and wrapped himself around her small form, tucking her head beneath his chin.

Nuzzling the crown of her head, he inhaled deeply to memorize her scent, memorize every detail of that moment. She smelled of jasmine and hazelnut. It made him hungry for things other than dessert. Kaoru by moonlight made his stomach clench.

But what about in sunlight? How would she appear in the morning, sun-kissed and tousled? The not knowing was almost a physical ache. What secrets would sunlight reveal in her cerulean eyes and black satin hair? With the sunrise gilting her body, would her skin shimmer like the scales of a golden koi?

Setting his internal clock to awaken just before dawn, he cast one last glance at the open curtains before allowing his eyelashes to slip closed. He felt exquisitely content. The soft susurrations of Kaoru's breath puffing against his throat lulled him into sleep.

When he woke up only a few hours later, it was still dark. A noise from outside his room had woken him to full alertness. Not bothering with clothes, he quickly but gently unraveled himself from Kaoru's body and grabbed his sword. They should be safe in his own home, but with Kaoru there he refused to take any chances.

Unsheathing the katana, he moved to the side of the doorway and waited, silent death to anyone foolish enough to try and sneak inside. Footsteps approached his door and then paused. If he hadn't been listening so intently, he never would have noticed the sound. Whoever waited outside had been trained to move silently. The intruder's energy seemed familiar, but because of the bonding with Kaoru his magical senses were not at full strength. It could be either a friend or a familiar enemy.

In the faint light streaming through the uncovered window, Kenshin saw the brass doorknob slowly turn. Then the door noiselessly opened. A shadowy figure slipped inside.

Leaping forward, Kenshin grabbed the intruder's long braid and wrenched them up against his bare chest, restraining their arms and setting the razor-sharp edge of his blade against their throat with just enough pressure to threaten but not enough to break the skin unless they tried to resist. All of this took place in the time between a breath and a sigh.

In the midst of his attack, Kenshin realized the identity of his intruder. But they should know better than to sneak into his room in the middle of the night. Being made to leave a warm and sweet-smelling Kaoru, combined with his weakness from the bonding, made Kenshin irritable and little inclined towards forgiveness. He moved his blade away from skin, but not away from his intruder's throat. Their arms also stayed restrained.

“What?” Kenshin asked in a flat tone made even more lethal by its very softness. The strain of the bonding spell luckily kept Kaoru sleeping through the commotion.

“Lo- Lord Battousai, it's me! Makimachi Misao,” she whispered shakily. The flexing and unflexing of her muscles communicated her desire to struggle, but trapped between his chest and the double ring of his tense arm and sharp steel, she kept herself frozen. Perhaps she realized that struggling would make her situation worse.

“I know. Now, why are you trying to sneak into my room?” He had always trusted the girl. Yet she had never tried to sneak into his room before, either. The break in routine bothered him. With Kaoru sleeping so trustingly in his bed, he'd release the girl only if and when she'd explained her presence to his satisfaction. He sincerely hoped she'd be able to satisfy him.

It would pain Kenshin to have to hurt her, someone he considered a trusted member of his household. Not to mention how it would upset the majority of his security forces. Yet if his security was compromised, better to know it now. He would not allow anything to threaten Kaoru or his city.

When he didn't immediately release her, she tensed even further. “I came with a message.” Forcibly relaxing her body to indicate complete surrender, she elaborated softly. “Your representative called about that meeting you left so abruptly this afternoon. Someone on the council is trying to get the terrorists off with a slap on the wrists instead of having them stripped of their powers and imprisoned. They're holding a secret emergency session right now. We just found out.”

Kenshin swore in frustration. Although his tone roughened, he did not otherwise change position. “Why didn't you knock?” With her locked between his arm and chest, he could clearly feel the vibration as she swallowed.

“I'm sorry, my lord. I didn't want to wake your Lady. I was going to come to your side of the bed and quietly wake you. I swear, my lord, that was my intention,” she pleaded. “My loyalty to you is absolute. I'd sooner be boiled in acid than cause harm to either you or your new Lady. Please, my lord.”

Hearing the tears and sincerity in her voice, Kenshin released her and stepped back. In a voice now soft with gentleness rather than intimidation, he said, “I believe you, Makimachi-san. Forgive my roughness.” Misao shakily turned to face him. “But please remember to knock next time. I'm trained to see people sneaking in on me as threats.”

She nodded her head and swiped her hands across her face to dry her tears. Seeing her glistening eyes, Kenshin felt a pang of guilt. He hadn't meant to scare her that badly. Well, he had, but only when he thought she had betrayed him. After her explanation, he now felt remorse. She'd learned her lesson. He just wished it hadn't come so harshly. “Are you all right?”

“I'm fine, my lord. Please forgive me.” Misao closed her eyes and bowed humbly.

“Of course,” Kenshin replied. “While I get dressed, assemble my advisors in the main conference room. Set up guards outside my room for the lady as well.”

“Yes, my lord.” Opening her eyes, she straightened to leave. Half-turned away, she suddenly whipped back around. “You're naked!” she squeaked in surprise, looking him up and down quickly. At the loud exclamation, Kaoru shifted position on the bed but didn't wake.

Even in the darkness of the room, Kenshin could see Misao's bright blush. “And?” he asked. She was the one who had snuck in without knocking, after all.

Mouth opening and closing, she stuttered in a high-pitched tone of voice, “I- I'll just go and get the guards.” Stumbling backwards out the door, she turned and ran.

Negotiations had taken longer than he'd intended. By the time he managed to escape, the sun had long since risen. His intended morning vigil stolen, Kenshin consoled himself with the thought that he'd have many opportunities in the days and years to come.

Then he'd felt the magical wards around the house ripple. Dashing to the window, he was just in time to see Kaoru standing in a puddle of sunlight, black hair rippling with sienna highlights, as she held up a spelled letter and disappeared into the river of magical wind that suddenly swirled through his courtyard.

As she disappeared, and he knew it had been voluntary despite the wounded voice inside selfishly wishing otherwise, rage and anguish in equal measure flooded his heart. The emotional swell passed into the magical net crisscrossing the city, shaking buildings and sidewalks alike.

Luckily, no one had been hurt beyond small cuts and bruises. Nevertheless, he had sent doctors to every block and discounted rent payments for the month. Kenshin sometimes wondered if the city might be safer tied to someone more emotionally contained like Shinomori. Yet he knew that the strength to protect so much for so long came from that very same passion.

Kenshin had almost had her a few minutes later when he'd used most of his magical reserves to change the buildings to absorb her and send her back to his mansion. She'd been caught. His fingers had clasped her wrist and started to reel her back in. But then she'd raked his hand, loosening his hold just enough to allow her to escape.

Kenshin could have healed the scratches. Instead, he kept them as a reminder. He would not underestimate her again. Although he now suspected she'd not be won by force, he also suspected she wouldn't return without it either. His golden koi really was as slippery as a fish. Yet his magical net covered the city. And with it, he was determined to net his koi and find out why she'd run away.

Something had gone wrong between the time he'd left her and when she'd fled that morning. Whatever the problem, he would fix it. Kenshin refused to let her slip into the hazy realm of memory and daydreams. Most importantly, the sting of his scratches reminded him that Kaoru was out there and real. As long as she existed, he would find her.

All day long, he and his men had searched the city for her and her friends. Every time Kenshin felt himself getting close, another urgent call would come from the council. Despite his personal wishes, duty must be served. Yet he refused to leave the city. If he did, he had a horrible feeling that Kaoru would disappear from his life forever.

Kenshin had run his chief of security, Shinomori, ragged with his demands. The fact that Kaoru had escaped Shinomori twice now cast serious doubts on his security's proficiency. If she could escape twice, why not a third time? If it were any other situation, he'd be admiring such a savvy woman. But with this situation and this woman, his anger, frustration, and fear overshadowed his admiration. What if she couldn't be caught? The chief had noticed his distemper, it would be hard to miss, and had responded by becoming even more emotionless. Shinomori was pushing his men hard. Lord Battousai was pushing him harder.

Sunset had come and gone, and still Kaoru had eluded them. She hadn't left the city, but that was all of the comfort Kenshin could claim. With darkness came more frantic phone calls. Forced to stamp out more fires at the council meeting, Kenshin finally pushed through the verdict he'd been working towards at four o'clock in the morning. The leaders of the terrorists who had used magic to bomb and destroy public stadiums across the country for the past four years would finally be punished.

Because some members came from prominent families, there had been a lot of money and pressure to commute the sentences. Yet in the end, justice had prevailed. It had required the use of cunning, favors, force, and blackmail, but those men would not be retaining their magic or going free.

With the council session finally concluded, Kenshin hung up the phone and left the house. Shinomori still hadn't found Kaoru. By that time, he had been separated from Kaoru longer than he'd physically been in her presence. Yet she was branded on his heart.

Declining the use of a car, Kenshin walked off alone into the city. Lack of sleep and direction didn't deter him. Using the night to hide his more blatant spells, he tried to discover where she'd gone to ground. Nevertheless, as false dawn finally came to lap over the horizon, his hopes evaporated like morning dew. After running around all day chasing shadows and elusive perfume, he had come up empty handed and empty hearted. Again, as always, he would be alone to greet the dawn.

A few minutes later he found himself staring blankly up at Sanosuke Sagara's apartment building with no memory of how he'd gotten there. Trudging up to the roof, he stepped to the edge and waited for the sunset he'd missed seeing the previous morning. He thought it would somehow make him feel better. It didn't. Without Kaoru, it was just another celestial revolution, same as any other.

After smoothing a hand across his face and through his tangled red bangs, Kenshin jumped off the three story building. Landing lightly on his heels in a crouch, he stood up with feline grace. After a moment of examining the side of building, he walked up to the window of Sagara's apartment and placed his palm flat against the glass. Grumbling slightly, the building complied with his wishes and formed an open portal. Kenshin stepped inside and the wall reformed with a muttered complaint.

Before Kaoru, the magic hadn't had personalities. To Kenshin, magical energy possessed different textures. One spell would be smooth like pudding while another would be crumbly like chalk. Yet after Kaoru woke his garden, the magic changed. Different spells had a new layer of perception. Some, like this apartment building, had become crotchety old men. Others became ducklings or gossipy housewives.

Earlier that day, Kenshin had been sent to the north side of the city by a frantic phone call. A small house had suddenly become a skyscraper. When he'd gone to investigate, the skyscraper had refused to change back. It wanted to be a giraffe. Forcing it to change would have destroyed the spell and perhaps even the building. After the owner got over his shock, he'd agreed to keep the alteration.

Kenshin didn't understand why the magic had changed, but he suspected it had to do with Kaoru. The thought made him smile. It was one of the few things he'd had to smile about that day.

Looking around the last place he knew with certainty Kaoru had visited, Kenshin felt a catch in his throat. It was empty. She hadn't been here for almost twenty-four hours.

Slowly, using only the tips of his calloused fingers, he caressed the cold wooden floorboards. He had known she wouldn't come back here, known from Aoshi's intelligence that Sagara was too proficient at escaping authority to return to his own apartment. As Lord Battousai, he knew this with his head. But as Himura Kenshin, his heart desperately wished otherwise.

As he blankly stared into the distance, the building whispered sympathetically in his ear about the woman he'd lost. Lost…but was she lost, or was he? Dipping his hand beneath the wooden floor, Kenshin fished around for a second. When he pulled his fingers back, he held a white sock.

A second later the floor disgorged a white tennis shoe, mate to the one left in Kenshin's courtyard. Letting one shoelace slide between his fingers, Kenshin smiled softly and nudged the shoe back down beneath the floor. A push of magic sent it to pair with the other abandoned shoe securely ensconced in his bedroom.

Examining the white sock, Kenshin noticed a brown cross unevenly stitched onto the ankle. One line was longer than the other. As he traced the embroidery with a fingernail, he realized that it closely resembled the cross scar on his left cheek. Although that couldn't be what it represented, the sight still gave him hope. There was a small brownish-red stain next to the thread. Blood, he realized. Kissing the remnant of Kaoru's blood tenderly, he tucked the sock carefully into his pocket.

Again his mind wandered to the question, why was she running away? Once again, Kenshin tried to use the bonded part of her soul to discover his answer. That first night, he'd cast the opening part of the bonding ceremony, exchanging portions of their souls. Time, ritual, and physical closeness were required to deepen the bond. Kenshin had heard wondrous things about what such bonds could become. When completed properly, the couple was said to possess a telepathic awareness of each other. Having such a tie now would certainly make finding Kaoru easier.

Nevertheless, Kenshin cherished the piece of Kaoru's soul he now held. At that first exchange, he'd nestled that part of Kaoru deep inside and set about learning everything from it he could. It wasn't the direct conduit into her mind that he yearned for, but it was still a morsel of personality that could communicate and give him insights into her past and character.

From her bonded soul he'd learned much of her history and secrets. But not everything. His Kaoru was, through and through, even to this small piece of her soul, a stubborn bit of baggage.

Something had happened to her a little over two years ago; something that he suspected was at the root of why she ran from him. He needed to know what it was. If he didn't know, he couldn't fix it. But the bonded bit of her soul kept curled tightly around that knowledge and refused to budge. Each time he tried she gave him an increasingly hard spiritual thwack over the head. They'd gotten hard enough to make his eyes cross and his ears ring.

The message was clear - If I want you to know, I'll tell you. He could force the knowledge, and would if he didn't find her soon, but such an action could irreversibly damage the bond. He didn't want to do that.

Alone in the apartment, he allowed himself a moment of weakness. Resting his elbows on his knees, he cradled his head in his hands. Weariness pervaded his being. Because of the trouble with the council meeting and now Kaoru's flight, he hadn't slept more than fifteen hours in the last week. A headache throbbed through his temples.

A gentle touch against his mind soothed the pain away. It brought Kenshin's head up with desperate hope, only to drop again when he realized he was still alone in the dimly lit apartment. Sorry, that was just me, Kaoru's bonded soul said. He felt her sigh. If you aren't reunited by sunset, I'll tell you. But you should really hear this from the real me.

A genuine smile eased onto Kenshin's haggard face. Thank you. Yet he did not want to go another full day without her.

Letting his eyes roam around the apartment, he tried to trace the events of the previous morning from this side of the floorboards. When he realized why he'd lost her, because of the ugly brown carpet and the help of her friends, he felt his anger kindle. To have his hopes dashed because of such small things… for a moment he felt a dark kernel of antipathy towards Takani Megumi.

She'd stolen Kaoru away from his mansion twice. And that kiss… what if it hadn't just been a ploy to escape the law? What if she had stolen Kaoru's heart as well?

From the bond, Kaoru voice scolded, Don't you even think of threatening my friend! Besides, how could it be stealing if she knew me first?

“Shut up!” Kenshin cried out loud. Turning his anger on the apartment, he threw his hand out and used a stream of fire to incinerate that cursed brown rug. Too quickly only embers and curling ashes rimmed with red-gold remained.

Breathing heavily, Kenshin sharply reigned in his anger. Kaoru's soul brooded in the corner of his mind. He sighed. I shouldn't have done that. “I'm sorry,” Kenshin apologized into the silence of the bond. Kaoru, sulking, didn't reply.

As he tamped down on his anger, the pain and fear it had covered rose to the fore. “Is that what you're hiding? Is that why you ran? Because of her?” The sulking silence eased slightly. “Do you love her?” A painful spasm seized his heart. If that was the truth… it must be the gods' way of punishing him for his evil deeds. He'd tried to atone for over two centuries, yet obviously his debt ran deeper still. Before she could answer, he felt the affirmation of her emotions.

Sucking in a sharp breath, he stood up. He didn't have to ask why he deserved it, but that didn't make it hurt any less. Well, yes, of course I love her, bu-, Kaoru's soul started to explain, but Kenshin cut her off before she started describing the depth of their relationship. He couldn't deal with that, didn't want to. Maybe later when he could use it to formulate a strategy, but right now he felt too raw.

However, until then he couldn't give her up completely. “If I promised not to threaten that,” he began, keeping the next part of his thought, at first, small and hidden, “do you think she,” he paused and dug his fingers into the wounds around his wrist. The pain helped him focus, helped him gain a small and shaky control. “Do you think you would consent to stay in the city? With her? Your Megumi? Could I ask at least friendship?”

Dark humor veined through his pride like fractured glass. After all, didn't the woman usually offer friendship when romance died? In her eyes, perhaps the romance had never started, but for him he would be in mourning for decades and centuries to come. Nonetheless, he could live for a long time with a few crumbs of her life, of her vibrancy.

From the bond Kenshin felt a torrent of emotions, but he refused to analyze them. Although he'd asked the questions, he suddenly doubted he could handle the answers. A moment of absolute vulnerability was all he allowed himself. Then he slammed that door shut.

He would not beg any further, not when he knew it was futile. His life was duty and sorrow, he should not have forgotten that. Kaoru's compassion wouldn't let her abandon the needs of the city. He would have to be satisfied with that. Letting out a low, bitter laugh, he used magic to reconstitute the rug on the floor.

Kenshin could feel the voice of their bond trying to speak, but he was too fragile right now, too hurt and viscerally angry. Running outside the apartment into a shadowed alleyway between buildings, he let loose a guttural cry and slammed his fist into the concrete ground. Blocking out her voice and whatever excuses she might have made, he threw his power into the magical latticework of the city, using the strength of his writhing emotions to fix weakening spells and expand the borders of his influence.

Overextending his magic could be dangerous, but at the moment such concerns blanked from his mind. He didn't want to think anymore and he couldn't do what he really wanted to do. So he repaired things, because if he didn't fix, he'd forge a swath of destruction that would level most of the city. Knowing this, he ignored the warning twinges and kept working.

Suddenly and without warning, his power cut off. Shocked out of his maelstrom of work, duty, and pain, he collapsed onto the cold, hard ground. “Wha-,” rasped his tired voice.

You idiot, you are going to hurt yourself. It was her soul's voice, the gentle and compassionate tone contrasting with her harsh words. You didn't wait to hear my answer.

Kenshin's muscles tensed as he painfully pushed himself to his knees. Before his shaking limbs could once again collapse, he sat back against the rough alley wall. It was cold in the shadows, yet he was too worn out to move, too worn out to block her voice, and in truth, he didn't want to block her out.

Oh Kenshin, you sell yourself much too short. Warmth and strength infused his mind. I love Megumi because she's my best friend, and only as a friend.

Hope welled up in his heart. Dropping his head back to thunk against the wall, he let out a relieved chuckle. “I am an idiot, thank God.”

He heard her exasperated sigh inside his head. Yes, you are. Now go home and get some rest. You're going to need your wits about you if you want to persuade her. Don't forget that she has a weakness for your handsome face.

Standing up, he dusted off his pants. “Oh, really? And what else does she have a weakness for? Besides baby animals, I mean.”

Like I'd tell you that easily? Now go rest! Or you won't look handsome, you'll just look haggard.

“Yes, ma'am,” Kenshin replied with a mental salute as he stepped out into the sunlight. He only needed a couple of hours of rest. Then he'd find Kaoru, his golden koi. Caressing the embroidered sock in his pocket, he set off at a brisk pace for home.

TO BE CONTINUED

Author Note: Thanks for your support and patience.

Everyone go nominate fics for RKRC over at meijitales! There were a lot of cool stories in 2005, so get the word out and support your favorites!

Thanks to Linay, I've been obsessing over the Gokusen manga and drama this week. Shinkumi LOVE! You can watch episodes on youtube(dot)com and download the manga from a couple of different sites. Yay!

Thank you for reading and please review!