Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Warped Reality ❯ The First Switch ( Chapter 1 )

A.N.: The idea I used here is a little weird, and a little hard to write, so, if you get confused, please, don't hesitate to tell me. Just, before you get confused, though, here's a small note, in the cases where people are `switched':

Name1/Name2

Name1= Who the person physically looks like.

Name2= Who the personality belongs to, who the person actually is.

Heh-heh, don't ask, you'll see what I mean soon enough…. And, if Megumi is a bit out of character, it's because I don't really like Megumi, and so I'm bending her to my will and making her as annoying or bitchy as I want her to be. Now, on with the story.

Disclaimer: I am not Nobuhiro Watsuki. Duh…oh, you really thought I was??? Aw…gosh, I'm flattered…. Anyway, this means I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or any of its many characters. Though, this storyline and general idea are mine.

WARPED REALITY: Chapter 1

Time was being fragmented. Things were not as they should be. People weren't where…no, weren't who they should be.

An evil plot was unfolding…

(A.N.: *corny evil laugh* BWA-ha-ha-ha-ha…!)

* * * * *

Takani Megumi awoke suddenly, staring right at the ricepaper wall in front of her. The sun peeked in through the small vent in the roof and made the rice paper seem to glow. It was telling her it was morning.

She sighed. Though she had gotten a full night of sleep, she reeeeally didn't want to get up and go to the clinic. Maybe…she could shirk on her duties…just this once….

She closed her eyes and snuggled deeper into the futon as she rolled over. She yawned and stretched her arms out in front of her, netting her fingers as she did so, to stretch them as well.

Her fingers brushed something warm and solid ahead of her. Her eyes immediately snapped open.

The sleepy-eyed redhead blinked tiredly. He smiled and waved his hand slightly in front of her face. She must've been staring. (A.N.: Can you really blame her?)

She couldn't breath. What the hell…?

"Good morning, Kaoru koshii," Himura Kenshin sighed.

`K-k-kaoru?!?!' Megumi's mind shrieked. `What the hell is going on here? Where am I? Why'd he call me Kaoru? And most importantly, what the hell am I doing HERE?!?!'

She sat up suddenly, a touch of panic setting in. As she did so, she caught a glimpse of herself on the mirror on the wall. She stared hard.

Big, blue eyes stared back. Long raven hair fell across her slim form, contrasting against the unusual white of her sleeping kimono.

One thought appeared in Megumi's head.

`Holy Kami-sama! I'm raccoon-girl!!'

"Is something wrong, Kaoru?" Kenshin asked a bit worriedly as he sat up.

`He doesn't know. He doesn't realize…that I'm…err, Kaoru's different.' The sly, `fox' area of Megumi's mind began giggling crazily. Her `Ken-san' was totally clueless. She could mess with his head to her heart's content…all she needed was a good lie as to why she had acted so strangely when she awoke.

"Um, oh Ken-sa-…err, Kenshin, I-" Megumi restrained the urge to call him `Ken-san.' "I just had a bad dream, and it scared me a little."

"Ah, well dreams are only dreams, Kaoru, that they are. They are nothing to fear."

Kaoru/Megumi, Megumi-in-Kaoru's body, grinned cunningly. "I know that Kenshin."

At this point, Megumi cared very little of where the actual `Kaoru' ki, or spirit was, or why exactly she was Kaoru in the first place. See, at the moment, Megumi was only thinking of Kenshin (poor clueless Kenshin) and how he was sitting there shirtless.

"Kaoru?"

The Kitsune-san smiled seductively. She scootched closer to Kenshin and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"My dear husband," Megumi purred into his ear. "You do always seem to make me feel better." She ran her fingers up his neck and through his head, doing her best not to giggle when her sat up strait, all tense."

Kenshin shifted his gaze to look at her. "See Kaoru? After all, now it is daybreak, and there are many things to be done. He started to stand, kissing Kaoru/Megumi lightly on the forehead.

Megumi, slightly annoyed at being mistakenly turned down, grabbed the cuff of Kenshin's white hakama. "Why are you going?"

"The morning chores will not do themselves, that they won't, Kaoru."

"But, Kenshin-"

"Right now, I have my routine to attend to. But…keep that thought in mind until later tonight," Kenshin said, taking the pink/fuchsia/whatever gi off a hook by the door. With the week of one violet eye, he was gone.

Megumi stared off into space for a few moments. Her first thought was that winking wasn't a very Kenshin-like thing. Her second, she spoke aloud:

"Damn that laundry!"

Megumi turned toward the door, causing Kaoru's hair to fluff out at the movement. Since she had nothing better to do that she could thing of, she might as well try to discover what had happened to the real Kaoru. Just as Megumi was about to leave the dojo, she heard someone calling Kaoru's name.

"Kaoru? Kaoru? Hey, busu!" Myojin Yahiko ran from another of the dojo's many buildings. "You promised you'd teach me another move today!" He swung the bokken back and forth impatiently.

Kaoru/Megumi blinked a few times. What the-…what now?! WHAT NOW?! She slyly tried to think of a way to get out of this….

"Hello-o? Kaoru? Earth calling busu! Welcome back to Tokyo!" Yahiko jumped up and down.

"Oh, Yahiko-chan…why don't you take the day off…" Kaoru/Megumi thought. "Besides, I'm in too good a mood today to deal with a brat like you." With that, she smacked Yahiko on the back of his head for good measure.

He got all pointy fanged and yelled, "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!"

Megumi chuckled. It was all too easy to play the part of Kaoru. Now, time to find the real raccoon-girl. It could be fun. She wouldn't even have to tell Kaoru that she was really Kaoru/Megumi. She could somehow convince Megumi/Kaoru that she was insane. At least for a while. At least until she got sick of her `Ken-san.'

(A.N.: Ahh, Megumi, you evil little bitch….)

Sure, she'd miss working at the clinic and having battles of the wits with Sano, but still…. Megumi shrugged to herself. Oh, well.

Time for some fun.

* * * * *

AT THE SAME TIME, NEAR THE CLINIC THAT MEGUMI WOULD NORMALLY ALREADY BE AT CAME:

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"

A couple of startled birds flew away as what appeared to be Megumi burst though the front door of Megumi's house.

Megumi herself looked totally frazzled, her black/brown hair sticking out everywhere like an afro, her gray sleeping robe all wrinkled and bunched up. Her hands were balled up into fists, and her eyes had gone all pissed-off pupil-less and slanted.

But, of course it was really Kamiya Kaoru.

Total panic had Kaoru babbling inanely to herself. "Demo, demo, demo…WHAT THE HELL! DAME! It can't be! I'm going crazy. AHH! Where am I? Where's Kenshin?! Why do I look like the Kitsune-san?! AHHHH, dame, dame, dame, dame…."

She collapsed on the ground ranting. (A.N.: If you all couldn't have guessed Kaoru isn't one who deals well with great loads of confusion and stress.)

"Dame, dame, dame, dame…."

"Kitsune?"

Kaoru halted her mindless rambling for a moment and listened.

"Megumi, is that you?"

`So, it's true,' Kaoru thought feverishly. `People are calling me Megumi. What did I do to deserve this?' She barely took note that someone had sat down beside her, but she slowly looked up. Sagara Sanosuke had come over and was currently staring at her intently.

"What's up with you?" he blinked.

"Ada…it's you Sano. I'm - , I'm -" she faltered. `Kami-sama, he'll think I'm insane!' she ridiculed herself. "Gomen nasi, Sano, but I-"

"Dr. Gensai's been lookin' for you. Apparently, you didn't show up at the clinic this morning. And apparently there are a lot of patients out there." Sanosuke scratched his head. "Plus you look like you fell down a well or something anyway. What the hell happened?"

Kaoru took a couple of moments to think. Deep within her, she knew she had to keep cool. The last thing she needed was everyone thinking she…err, `Megumi' had gone crazy. Perhaps…perhaps it would be best to play along for now. Until she could find out what had happened, until she was herself again.

Speaking of which…

Where was Megumi, anyway?

A thought occurred to Kaoru.

"Um, Sano? Have you seen any of the others this morning? Like, say, Kenshi-…Ken-san, or um, Kaoru?" he twiddled her fingers nervously.

"Oh, Kenshin was out doing laundry again, but as for Jou-chan, she took off early this morning…. Kenshin said that she was acting a bit odd this morning." Sanosuke turned, directly staring at Megumi/Kaoru. "Shikashi, Kitsune-san, you've dodged my question."

Megumi/Kaoru blushed. `Oh, crap!' she thought. She just wanted to make Sano stop prying, to make him shut up. It was then when she realized telling him to do so would not be a very un-Megumi like thing to do.

"Oh, you nosey rooster! Why can't you just one butt-out and stay out of a woman's business?" She promptly tried (without succeeding) to fix her hair and stood up to head back into `her' house.

"Hey! Now wait just half a damn minute. I don't recall stepping over any personal boundaries. All I did was-" Sano began.

Kaoru kept walking. "Not now, Rooster. I have to work."

As she left, Sanosuke stood there grating his teeth. "What the hell did I do now?!"

* * * * *

Megumi/Kaoru went to the clinic like Megumi would have normally done. Though she was late, it wasn't as urgent as Sanosuke had made it out to be. Thing went pretty smoothly at first.

Meanwhile, Kaoru/Megumi herself was looking for Kaoru. After checking out `her' house and finding only a muttering Sanosuke, she concluded that Kaoru must've been posting as her at the clinic.

Realizing this gave Megumi some seriously bad thoughts. The first: What if Kaoru wasn't Megumi and there were two versions of herself running around, and no Kaoru?

The second: Worse, what if Kaoru was trying to pose as Megumi and was working at the clinic? It was no secret that Kaoru was not a competent medical worker.

This severely agitated Megumi. Maybe it wasn't worth getting Kenshin if it meant endangering the lives of her patients. (A.N.: Megumi does have a heart, see??)

As Megumi entered the clinic, she saw half a dozen people waiting patiently in the waiting room. None looked seriously sick or injured. Basic checkups. Even Kaoru could deal with those.

Then, Kaoru/Megumi her own true voice coming from the adjacent room: "Dr. Gensai! Dr. Gensai! Could you come in here, pleeeze?!"

The old man sighed gruffly from the other side of the room. "What is it NOW?"

Dr. Gensai entered Megumi's workroom, an Kaoru/Megumi followed. Both sweat dropped at what Megumi/Kaoru was doing. Because, it only could have been Kaoru.

She had the poor patient's entire head wrapped totally in bandages. He was making little noises of `please-get-me-out-of-here-help!'

"I don't understand! I was doing it all right, I swear!" Megumi/Kaoru leaned over, struggling with the ends of the bandages, pulling perhaps a bit too hard. "This is all your fault!" she muttered at the struggling patient.

Kaoru/Megumi was getting ticked off. This little girl was going to give her a bad name! A reaction… she needed a reaction….

"Geez, Megumi, I thought you were a doctor. What are you trying to do, kill the guy?" Kaoru/Megumi said slowly with an exasperated roll of her eyes.

Megumi/Kaoru glared up from her work. Kaoru thought, `Man, is it weird watching myself like this. But is it really me?'

Megumi/Kaoru let go of the bandages as Dr. Gensai took over. "Hey, Kaoru, I need to talk to you," she said.

Kaoru/Megumi's heart skipped a beat. "About what, might I ask?"

Megumi/Kaoru was about to answer when Dr. Gensai began reprimanding her. "Seriously, Takani-san, this is not one of your better days! This should be a simple procedure, and you were even late today! I'd like to know what…blah, blah, blah…."

At this point, Kaoru/Megumi decided to slip out. It was embarrassing to see herself get chewed out like that, even if it wasn't really her and Dr. Gensai only meant the criticism to be constructive.

She began to head back to the dojo. Perhaps Ken-san would be done with his routine. She giggled to herself slyly. `Maybe then I could spend some time alone with him…heh."

Megumi closed her eyes in happiness. For a moment she forgot the strange reality she had been thrust into.

* * * * *

Creeeeeeeeek!

Megumi/Kaoru slowwwwly slid the back door of the clinic shut. There was no way she could deal with this kinds of stress. She needed to find the real Megumi.

"Going somewhere, Kitsune?"

Kaoru turned suddenly, seeing Sanosuke standing behind her, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"Uh, is there something wrong here?" she asked sheepishly.

"I. Have. Been. Sitting. In. That. Damn. Room. For. Half. A. Day. And. You. Haven't. Come. Out. ONCE!" Sano grated, waving his bandaged hand in front of her face. He pointed it at her angrily. " You know I always come here every three days to change this. Never once have I been ignored like! Somethin's up with you, and I wanna know exactly what the hell it is!"

Megumi/Kaoru drew back. "G-gomen nasi, Sano. I-I'm just…not myself today," she muttered lamely.

"I'll say! Take this morning for example. What was up with that? It's not like you're always Ms. Sunshine, but Kami-sama! You've got to stop…to stop…." He faltered.

Kaoru felt horrible. There was a look in Sanosukes's eyes that she had never seen there before. Hurt. She had hurt him. Sanosuke was an unbelievably strong man, but Kaoru had suspected that he had feelings for Megumi. Maybe he had had enough.

Even though Megumi would've probably acted the same way she had that morning, she couldn't help but be ashamed. Maybe there were things that Kaoru hadn't known about, that she had now screwed up.

She burst into tears, hugging Sanosuke in the process. "Ada, Sano, I'm so sorry!"

Sano had been exceedingly ticked off a few moments ago, but now he was seriously confused. This wasn't Megumi, this sudden change of emotions. It sorta reminded him more of…Jou-chan.

Kaoru pulled herself off Sanosuke. "I'm…I, have…to go."

"Wait! Where?"

"Ada, I don't know! I just gotta fix this somehow!"

A giant question mark appeared over Sano's head. "Huh?"

Kaoru kept running. She thought, `this has got to stop…. Kenshin. He'll help me. I've got to find Kenshin.

…Meanwhile, right outside the Kamiya dojo, Kaoru/Megumi, Kenshin, Yahiko, Ayame, and Suzume were going on a walk. Suzume, the younger of the two of Dr. Gensai's grandchildren, was riding on top of Kenshin's shoulders, waving her arms and giggling like crazy.

Kaoru/Megumi walked beside Kenshin and took his hand in hers, which emitted a loud `Ewww' from Yahiko. Kaoru/Megumi decided not to make a comment.

"Gee…, Kenshin, that looks like fun, and my feet are beginning to hurt. Do you mind if I…."

Kenshin blinked rapidly a few times in succession. "Well, Kaoru, don't you think…?"

"C'mon, Kenshin. I don't weigh that much!" Kaoru/Megumi laughed. That was definitely true. Kaoru, who was shorter and lighter than Kenshin in stature, and that meant she was short. (A.N.: No offense to Kenshin.)

"Fine then." He handed Suzume to Yahiko, who kind of stood there like `huh?,' and lifted Kaoru/Megumi up onto his shoulders.

"Oof!" Kenshin muttered. In the back of his mind, he noted that Kaoru had never been so…touchy before. She was normally so shy and all…he sighed to himself.

Kaoru/Megumi balanced herself on his shoulders, doing her best not to choke him. She grabbed a couple of handfuls of fluffy red hair to keep from falling.

"Ug, Kaoru, are you alright?" Kenshin asked.

"I'm fine," she squeaked. As soon as she was sure she wasn't going to fall, (Kenshin wouldn't have let her fall anyway…), she rested her shin on her hands, with her elbows on Kenshin's head.

"Enjoying the view?" Kenshin joked.

"Kaoru, just what the heck are you doing?" Yahiko muttered.

"Oh, you be quiet, Yahiko. Sometimes you can be so immature," Kaoru/Megumi scoffed.

"Hey, what'd you say?" Yahiko growled.

Kaoru/Megumi began petting Kenshin's hair, toying with his thick bangs and the little fluffs that covered his ears. She was about to repeat herself when she caught sight of someone running towards them.

For a split second, Megumi forgot that she was in Kaoru's body, and was a bit confused by the figure running towards them. Then, she realized that it definitely wasn't a `Megumi.'

Lines of tried tears stained this supposed Megumi's face. She seemed more than a little confused and distraught.

"Ada…Kenshin! Guys! I'm so glad I found you. I need your help! I…I -" she faltered. `What the hell….'

"Megumi, you alright?" Yahiko asked, cocking his head to the side. The motion brought Megumi/Kaoru's attention over to Kenshin.

"Megumi-san, what is the matt- ORO?" Kaoru/Megumi's hand down his neck and across his collarbone, which stopped Kenshin in mid-sentence.

"Well, hurry up and tell us, Megumi. We don't have all day," Kaoru/Megumi purred, while staring right at her. "Since when have you come bawling to us with your problems?"

Megumi/Kaoru blinked rapidly. "But…I…I…." Kaoru/Megumi chuckled slightly, returning her hand to Kenshin's hair as he stared up at her stupidly.

Kaoru could have sworn she saw fox ears pop out of her own body's head. It clicked.

Her eyes got all pupil-less and squashed.

She pointed. "YOU!"

* * * * *

A tallish man with a mushroom cap shaped haircut stood just inside the opening of a cave. He was dressed in warm coats, because outside the wind was blowing and small flakes of snow were falling. The floor of the cave was cut and polished, but the walls were covered with reflective ice.

"Who! It's gotten even colder," the man said, whipping the fog off his glasses. He turned around, looking toward another figure, standing in the shadows. "Even so…are you ready?"

"Yes, I am," the young man said cheerfully. Even though he had to be at least twenty by now, his voice was still high-pitched and very recognizable. (A.N.: Guess who?)

"I've waited along time for this…," the first man grated. "Too long. Now with this new base and technology, I'll finally have all the money I once possessed. And…I'll finally get to seek my revenge. Even if her pathetic gang of friends were to follow her, they'd never be able to find her.

He chuckled evilly. "This time, that bitch will taste every ounce of my revenge!"

The boy laughed. "Perhaps so. Should I be on my way now?"

Takaeda Kanryu nodded. "Bring her to me. Alive. Otherwise Megumi will never know who will torture her…make her beg for mercy…," he pretended to be violently choking someone.

The boy just stood there blinking. "Ummm…okay. I'll be right back." He turned toward the door, and began tapping his left foot on the floor of the cave.

"Don't be too long, Tenken," Kanryu grated, slipping back out of his `I'm-a-psycho' mode.

The boy smiled even wider than normal. "Trust me. This is all too easy." He just kept right on smiling.

Of course…he always did….

A.N.: Ta da. There it is. I'm done. So, HOW'D YA LIKE IT???? Please review. Reviews make me happy. ^-^ ^-^ ^-^…(get the hint yet?)….

I hope this wasn't confusing at all. Maybe that was just me being paranoid again. Heh. But anyways, I have the next few chapters written, so it won't take me long to post them. (Shikashi…reviews would make me work faster, ne?)

If you would be as so kind as to add your favorite part in this chapter, or tell if I goofed up something, that would be NICE. Hint hint….

When I wrote this, I fiddled with the idea of `switching' Kenshin and Sanosuke. Yes, that may have been weird and funny, but it wouldn't have worked at all for the story I have planned, so gomen nasi. :P….But I will leave with the amusing mental image of Kenshin/Sanosuke running around like a decapitated chick screaming, "Holy shit, I'm short! Holy shit, I'm short! Holy shit, I'm short!!!!"

Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll shut up now, that I will.

~GCN anime dragon (^-^x)

Wait… a certain annoying member of my family demand that I put a little "Japanese-English Dictionary" at the bottom here, so I will….

Kami-sama: I think it means like "The Lord Almighty"

Ki: The spirit thing or whatever that Kenshin can sense.

Futon: The very flat, uncomfortable-looking bed-things

Gi: Things like the pink thing Kenshin wears

Hakama: The pants-like things like Kenshin wears.

Bokken: (shinai): wooden sword that the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu uses.

Gomen nasi: Apologetic…Like, I'm sorry.

Shikashi: However, but…(contradictory)

Ne: right?

Ada: an exclamation, like `Oh?' or `Oh!'

Koishii: Term of endearment, like `My love…'

Dame: simply put: NO

Demo: (contradictory) but

Jou-chan: Roughly means, `the missy,' what Sano calls Kaoru

Kitsune-san (Kitsune): Fox or Fox Lady

Busu: `Ugly,' or hag or wench…what Yahiko calls Kaoru.

Maa Maa: (I think-) `Now, now….'

I don't even slightly claim to know Japanese, so if any of this info is mussed up or incorrect (though I highly doubt it is) don't have a cow.

If you think you know more useful words than me (which you probably do) I'll be HAPPY to receive them via e-mail, reviews, etc. THANKS, Y'ALL! (no, I am not a y'all person, don't even ask why I did that…:P)