A/N:

Hello, people! As you can probably tell, I'm really bored over here, so I just write and write. Don't worry, Movie Star chapter 11 will make its way into the silver screen—er, I mean, your computer screen soon enough! Meanwhile, just sit back and relax with Streetlight Interference, okay? This'll actually be pretty short; only less than ten chapters or so.

Disclaimer: I definitely do not own RK

Chapter One

When Kaoru had first seen him, he'd been standing on the balcony with the full moon on his left, leaving the rest of his face in darkness. His golden eyes had been scanning the view below, had been searching the diamond lights of the city as if looking for the faintest shimmer of hope.

When Kaoru had first seen him, she had thought he was a fallen angel.

She hadn't been far from wrong.

Kaoru had assumed he was just another dinner guest who'd come out for a fresh breath of air, away for a while from the twinkling jazz, the dancing lights, and beguiling sighs. She had put her hands on the railing, eager enough to give him his own space as she began to lose herself to the silence of the night.

"You are…Kamiya Kaoru…?" The uncertainty in his voice had been clear, and she had seen him examining her face with curiosity. She had given him a small nod, not knowing what else to do. Seeing that she did not seem to recognize him, his lips had formed a slight smile. "My name is Himura Kenshin." They had shaken hands briefly. "I believe your friend Misao Makimachi called you by your name in exasperation quite loudly, right before the second course was served, if I am not mistaken," he had explained.

She had laughed then, a clear and musical sound. "She did that, didn't she?" She had frowned and turned away from the view. "I'm sorry, but I guess I didn't notice you in there." "Ah," he had said, taking a step closer. "I was at one of the tables near the window. Not very far from yours, actually."

"I see." She had said, and had not known what else to say. She had begun to wonder who he really was, and how anyone like her could've failed to notice someone like him who clearly stood out with that crimson-colored hair held in a high ponytail and those searching amber eyes. Out there in the balcony, the rest of his profile had seemed to blend with the night.

This time he'd caught her staring. She'd supposed that made them even. "Are you visiting town?" She'd asked, touching the sapphire pendant on her necklace. He'd placed his hands in the pocket of his slacks, looking up into the night sky. "I suppose you could say that." He'd seen the question in her eyes and had paused, as if debating before he finally answered.

"I was born here, but I've been traveling up until recently." He'd raised a hand to brush away his bangs, and she'd seen the weariness in his actions.

"I see," she'd said with a smile. "Well, welcome home then."

S.I.1.

He'd been curious about the dojo he had seen a few streets away from his house, a brown and white establishment that had not been there when he last had been. What was even more curious was that Sano had offered to drive him there to see it, saying he knew the owner.

Kaoru had smiled at him brightly the moment he had stepped inside, her shinai in one hand. "Like my dojo?" She'd asked, laughing at the surprised expression on his face. Soon he was sitting down and listening attentively to her talk about her father, their fighting principles and the altogether overwhelming love she had for the Kamiya Kasshin.

He had asked to watch her practice along with her students, and Kenshin had found himself satisfied if not completely impressed by her skills. Still, he had decided against telling her any of his observations. He was a simple man who did not know of such things.

He found himself thinking that more and more.

S.I.1.

He was surprised by her eagerness to "show him around," convincing him that she was sure he would be glad to see the changes in the town since he'd last visited. Sano had told him that it was a normal "Tanuki thing," and that he had nothing to worry about.

Sano wasn't wrong.

She had led him to the park, and glanced mischievously at the fallen leaves under the trees. "When we first moved here," she told him, throwing a handful of flame-colored leaves up into the air, "It was autumn, too. The first thing I did was run here and dance with all the leaves." She threw another bunch into the air, twirling about as they fell like some graceful dancer clad in denim.

He'd smiled.

"Would you like to join me?" She asked the question while holding out her hand.

He had shaken his head. The falling leaves remind me of raining blood, he'd wanted to say bitterly. After all, someone like him couldn't take joy in such trivial things after all he'd been through. He leaned back against a tree and urged her to continue. He satisfied himself with watching under the shadows.

S.I.1.

"Did you hear about me here, then?"

Sano put down his can of beer before taking a swig. He gave the redhead a sidelong glance, wishing suddenly that the couch they were sitting on would open up and swallow him whole; he could feel the darkness from Kenshin emanating like a somber song playing heavily, a black cloud shrouding them both from the seemingly joyous sounds coming from the music video they'd been watching.

"Look, Kenshin—"

"Just the truth, Sano. Please."

The truth…Sano supposed that after all the lies and the broken dreams his friend had experienced he deserved it after all.

"We…We heard about how a new assassin had been roaming around soon after you left here." He gathered the courage to look into those deep pools of gold—pools of depression now. "He was…rumored to be merciless…"

"Merciless," Kenshin confirmed. "As well as fast and efficient enough," he added. Sano cleared his throat, his eyes wandering to the popcorn he'd prepared. Tonight was supposed to be a Total Pig Out Night, and he'd especially planned it to cheer Kenshin up, hoping he'd remember their younger days together when even politics and its old, wrinkled hands could not grasp either of them in its deadly grip.

"I'm going to bed," Kenshin said, standing up.

Sano didn't try to stop him.

S.I.1

The next time he spotted Kamiya Kaoru was in the bookstore.

He had not seen her for a couple of weeks. In fact, he hadn't been seeing anyone except Sano for the last few days, seeing as that was inevitable since they lived in the same house. He had peered over Kaoru's shoulder to see what she'd been reading and she'd yelped, dropping the book.

He hadn't laughed like that in a long time, but she didn't know that.

"O. Henry?" He'd asked, returning the anthology of short stories to her.

She'd nodded. "And what about you? What've you been reading lately?" She'd quirked an eyebrow. "Or have you even been reading at all? I highly doubt Sanosuke has anything other than Playboy in that house, you know."

He'd walked with her to the next rack of books.

"I believe he's got some Archie comic books. I know I lent him my copy of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar a while back. I do believe he's lost it." Her laugh was something he was beginning to like hearing. "Come over at the dojo," she'd said on their way out of the store. "I think you might like some stuff I have."

She hadn't been joking, but still he was surprised to see Machiavelli's works sitting on her bookshelf, the cover old and smelling of long gone days thrown out against the bitter wind of the past. "It was my father's," she'd explained. "He was a very wide reader."

He waved the book in the air. "And he liked Machiavelli?"

She'd shaken her head, grinning. "More like loathed him. Still, he must've read that thing a million times." She had surprised him when she had reached out and held his hand, leading him to another one of her bookshelves, showing him all her favorites like a child showing off an artwork she'd done in school.

She'd begged him to let her read out loud, and sighing in defeat, he had relented, smiling as she opened her old faerie tale book, her voice hushing to a whisper when Beauty first saw the Beast, or rising out loud when the monsters were struck down in another tale, her exuberance wrapping around him like a faerie tale itself, enchanting him and yet warning him of a million mysterious ways in which things could go hellishly long.

Soon after, he'd looked at his watch and told her he needed to go.

Still, he wished he could've stayed longer.

A/N:

Chapter two's already underway. :D Also, I'm looking for a beta reader—for my original stories, that is. Know anyone who can help? Please tell me.

Thanks!