Kaoru was running around the dojo like a manic, and Sanosuke had had enough. He grabbed her by the back of her kimono and pulled her from the floor on her way past. She continued running for a moment before she realised, and smacked him hard over the head with her bokken.
"Sano! Put me down!" Sano obliged, rubbing the large lump on the top of his head as Yahiko laughed.
"It was your own fault, busu! What you running around like that for anyway?" A loud 'thwack' later, and Yahiko also stood nursing a lump.
"Kenshin isn't here again. What's he up to lately anyway? He isn't acting like himself." She looked suspiciously at Sano, who shrugged.
"Jou-chan. Kenshin ain't exactly what you'd call helpless. I'm sure he's fine. Quit worrying." Kaoru sighed, turning away sadly. Yahiko crept up behind her and whacked her across the head, quickly sparking an argument beyond all proportion. Sano looked towards the gate as it opened, and saw Kenshin standing in the road, his back to the gate and one hand pushing it open while he finished his conversation. Sanosuke looked closer at the offending person, only to see Megumi.
"Vixen? What're you doing here?" He called over, and Kenshin turned to face them, surprised. He turned quickly back to Megumi, and she nodded encouragingly. Sano watched the exchange suspiciously. What were those two up to?
"I just ran into Ken-san while I was on the way back from a job. He invited me to tea. We bought some food from the Akabeko too." At the mention of food from the Akabeko, Kaoru and Yahiko instantly stopped fighting to stare at the boxes of food Megumi was holding. Sano, though, was focused on the back of Kenshin's head. Was he imagining it, or when he turned around before… Were his eyes amber? Kenshin looked up to Sano and smiled his best rurouni smile. Sanosuke looked away and went to drool over the food Megumi was taking into the other room. He must have imagined it. They were their usual soft violet once more. Kenshin, meanwhile, stood at the gate with his heart racing. Sano had clearly seen his eyes, but he was able to control himself enough to return them to themselves. But what if it happened again? It was getting worse. He'd been seeing Megumi in the hope of finding some medicine or at least sound advice, but despite her tireless research on his behalf, she'd found no help for him. He sighed and decided to go after them. No doubt Kaoru would be asking after him soon. He knew she was already suspicious of all his recent disappearances from the dojo. But when he felt the urge of Battosai take him over, he couldn't bare the thought of hurting them. He always had to leave, and leave right at that second. He was suddenly all too glad that Kaoru had taken on extra lessons at the other dojo's and taken Yahiko with her.
He slid open the shoji to the room that now held all his friends, and took the seat that had been laid out for him between Kaoru and Megumi. He flashed a smile at neither in particular to avoid an argument between them, and took up is chopsticks, all too aware that Kaoru kept glancing at him suspiciously. He suppressed a sigh. He'd be beaten senseless once Megumi was out of the way. He felt a surge of rebellion, and had to pause to quell it, and then continued eating. Yahiko and Sanosuke were eating noisily, and Kaoru was trying her best to be dainty like Megumi, only to find she started stuffing her face as soon as she lost concentration. And with her attention so focussed on Kenshin, that was often. What was it? She couldn't put her finger on just why he seemed so distant. She opened her mouth to ask if anything was wrong when Megumi cut across her.
"You know, I think Ken-san needs a lady who can eat without spilling rice down herself and him!" She laughed her familiar laugh, fox ears poking out of her hair. Kaoru's face burned scarlet, and she slammed down her food bowl, grabbing Kenshin by his arm. Kenshin sighed, foreseeing the battle about to begin, and put his chopsticks down while his other arm was free. Just in time too, as Megumi quickly grabbed it close. The restriction on him made that little surge of darkness return, but he closed his eyes as he was pulled this way and that, trying to let it die away. He clenched his teeth, his sakabatou hitting his hip mockingly, as if daring him to act on his now primal urges for blood. He stood abruptly, knocking both Megumi and Kaoru to the floor. Megumi bit her lip. She'd been trying to stop Kaoru asking about Kenshin, but she'd just made his position worse without realising. Kaoru was staring at Kenshin as if he'd slapped her, and even Sano and Yahiko had stopped eating in their shock. Kenshin turned on his heel and stalked from the room, his familiar red fringe covering his eyes. Kaoru went to follow him, but Megumi grabbed her kimono to stop her. She knew he shouldn't be followed, but how could she tell Kaoru that without raising suspicion? She felt a small sigh of relief leave her as she heard the gate outside click shut. Now he'd be long gone, and Kaoru wouldn't be able to catch up. It was moments like this she was glad that Kenshin walked away. She feared him as his Battosai self. He had turned up at the clinic, amber eyes glaring, and had demanded to see her. As shocked as she was, she was in the midst of treating another patient and tried to refuse, but he had grabbed her tightly and his icy aura made her reconsider turning him away. She knew form that moment that she had to help. He wouldn't think twice about breaking his vow if the need happened to arise in that state. She looked up to see Kaoru glaring down at her, and turned back to her food. Kaoru looked at her incredulously, and turned to Sano or Yahiko for help, but they caught the look on Megumi's grave face and continued eating as if Kenshin had never been there. Kaoru sat back down in a huff, eating her food in silence. Now she knew it. Something was definitely wrong, and when Kenshin came back, she was talking to him whether they liked it or not.