They didn't go anywhere that first night. As soon as they got out onto the road, the storm picked up again. The wind and rain drove them back to Kaoru's car, where they spent the night. With the windshield gone, it wasn't as warm as it could have been, but it was still better than nothing. Morning came and found them on the back seat: Kaoru with her back to the front seats, Kenshin squeezed up against the backrest, both turned in towards each other, faces almost touching.

Kenshin woke up first, feeling better rested than he had in months. A bit surprised, he propped himself up on one elbow and looked down at the girl in his arms. Kaoru, still sound asleep, muttered a little and, to Kenshin's profound embarrassment, lifted her leg so that her knee rested on his thigh.

'Oro …' Kenshin thought, blushing a little, 'I'd best wake her up soon …' Clearing his throat, he gently shook her shoulder. "Kaoru-dono," he called softly when she did not immediately wake. "Kaoru-dono …" He shook her shoulder again, and was rewarded with the sight of her sleepy blue eyes blinking at him. "Ohayou," he said as she yawned.

"Ohayou," she returned, moving to sit up. Instead, she slipped off the seat and fell the short distance to the floor, landing with a muffled thud. "Oro! Daijobu ka, Kaoru-dono?" Kenshin asked, startled. Kaoru waved off his concern. "Hai, hai, daijobu yo." She opened the door, crawled out, and began to stretch. Kenshin got out the other side to avoid watching her, and wandered off a little ways into the woods. When he had finished with his morning ablutions, he came back to find Kaoru bent over one of the front seats, muttering to herself.

"Anou, Kaoru-dono?" he asked hesitantly, trying to peer past her into the gloom of the car. "What are you doing?"

"Ah-ha!" Kaoru made to triumphantly stand up, but promptly whacked her head on the car ceiling and dropped the tin she'd been holding. "Itai …" Kenshin opened his mouth to ask if she was all right but she beat him to it: "I'm fine, thank you! I hurt my pride more than my head." Shrugging, Kenshin picked up the tin from where it had fallen and shook it carefully. There was a faint rattling sound and some crinkling. "What's in here?" he asked. Kaoru stopped rubbing her head to take the tin from him and open it.

"It's my emergency stash," she answered. "Some crackers, chocolate, dried fruit …" She popped a dried apricot into her mouth and offered him the tin. "Want some?" Kenshin took a slice of dried orange. "Arigatou." Kaoru put the tin back in her backpack, slung it over her shoulder, and they started out.

They made good time that day, getting to a small village before nightfall. The town was so tiny that it had no inn, but the owner of the local restaurant was very friendly.

"Sure," he said, "I'll let you sleep in the back room, in return for a favor."

"Ask away, Sozou-san," Kenshin said. "We will be happy to do anything you wish." Kaoru tapped her foot with his ankle as he said it, but she nodded nevertheless. "Well, the kitchen boy ran away a few days ago, and my other waitress is sick," Sozou said. "So if you two help out tonight and tomorrow until lunch, you can sleep in the back room and we'll send some food along with you."

"Domo arigatou, Sozou-san!" Kaoru said, bowing. The restaurant owner laughed at her enthusiasm. "Come on in, and I'll show you around." After a few humorous incidents in the kitchen, it was decided that Kaoru would wait tables. The other waitress, Ine, was glad to have help, but where was Kaoru's kimono? Kaoru pulled one out of her backpack that looked very much like Ine's, and with an apron over it they were nearly identical. Back in the kitchen, Kenshin peeled and chopped vegetables for the cook.

Even with the delay, they still walked a good ways in the afternoon. Late February was cold and damp, so although they had the campfire going strong that night, they still slept close for warmth. This closeness to Kaoru, though welcome, came with a price. For all that he enjoyed it, Kenshin was all too reminded of the last time he'd held a warm, breathing body as he slept …
The first time, he managed to keep from waking Kaoru. The second time, the nightmare did not cooperate with his desires, and she woke as he did.

"Iyé!" he shouted as he sat up, flicking open the sakabatou, ready to battoujutsu his unseen enemy into separate halves --

"Rurouni-san?" Kaoru asked, sitting up as well. "What's the matter?" Kenshin, panting harshly, looked at her. Her pale kimono was painted gold in the light of the glowing embers, her face shadowed by the ebony curtain of her hair. He took a few deep breaths and offered her a half-hearted smile. "Nan demo nai, Kaoru-dono," he said after a moment. "Just a nightmare, that it was." He couldn't see the look she gave him, but he could sense the suspicion in her ki. "Go back to sleep," he suggested. "We still have a ways to walk tomorrow, that we do." Sighing, she lay down again, and after a few minutes, he did the same. As he felt her curl around him, Kenshin wondered: 'How long can I resist this temptation? Surely, we cannot reach Tokyo fast enough.'

On the third day, the pair was attacked by bandits. They were ambushed shortly after lunch, shortly after Kenshin had informed Kaoru of his suspicions that they were being watched. Though all carried swords, they were none of them a challenge. Even Kaoru, hampered by her kimono and armed only with a bokken, took out two on her own.

"Just what rank do you claim in your style, Kaoru-dono?" Kenshin asked as they tied up the groaning men. Kaoru flashed a small, shy smile at him, and Kenshin was surprised to note that it was the first he had seen from her. "Shihandai," she said, tugging to make sure the knot was secure. Standing up, she brushed off her kimono.

"What about you?" she asked. Kenshin gave her his very best empty-headed-rurouni smile. "Sessha was but a student, de gozaru yo," he answered. Kaoru quirked an eyebrow at him, then shook her head and looked away. They continued walking until, a little while later, they reached a town large enough to have both an inn and a police station. They split up; Kaoru heading for the police station to report the bandits, and while Kenshin walked over to the inn. It took a bit of persuading, but by the time Kaoru came to join him, he had gotten them jobs that would earn them beds, baths, and a hot meal.

They worked hard and long. Kenshin was put to chopping vegetables and wood in the kitchen, then later bringing in water with which to wash the dishes. Kaoru carried trays of food from the kitchen to the dining room and individual rooms, grumbling darkly all the while. But she relaxed a bit over the meal they shared with the other servants, and even more when she went with the other women to the bath.

The next day, the fourth day, they got an early start. Kenshin and a yawning Kaoru waved good-bye to the servants while the sun slowly hoisted itself over the horizon. They passed through town after town, each a little bigger than the last, throughout the day. But even with those few extra hours and the steady pace they kept, it was still after sunset when they reached Tokyo.

Translations
ohayou: good morning
daijobu ka?: are you all right?
hai: yes (formal)
daijobu yo: I'm all right.
anou: um, er
itai: ouch, ow
(domo) arigatou: thank you (very much)
iyé: no
battoujutsu: Kenshin's technique of drawing the sword and slicing at the same time
nan demo nai: it's nothing
shihandai: assisstant master
sessha: "this unworthy one"