D/C: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin.

Hello! I'm back! Thank you all for the nice reviews! Yes, it would've been nice to give Battousai a family, ne? Well, anyway, you'll have to read on to see what's going to happen…hmm, that sounded cheesy, didn't it? Ah, well, happy reading!

Chapter 9:

'Kaoru…'

Kaoru looked up, and started to reach for anything heavy enough to throw at Battousai. He stood in the doorway, and had a sort of sad expression on his face, and for a moment she relaxed her grip on the bed lamp she had grabbed, but then she grabbed it again and stood up. She glared defiantly at him, and for a brief moment, she was glad that Kenji was asleep, so he wouldn't have to see his mother whacking his father with a bed lamp.

'Leave the room,' she hissed. 'Don't take one more step inside.'

'Kaoru…just listen to me,' he pleaded. 'Just this once…please.'

Kaoru watched him warily for a moment, then she lowered the lamp. She continued to glare at him, though. 'Alright,' she said coldly. 'What have you got to say?'

Battousai closed his eyes for a moment, and Kaoru wondered vaguely about what he was going to tell her. She was quite surprised when he held out his sword before her. 'Here,' he said. 'Take it. Take my sword.'

Kaoru stared at him. 'W-what?' she stuttered. 'What the hell is this about?'

'Nothing, I swear,' he said softly. 'I just thought you'd believe me if I offered you my sword first.'

Kaoru frowned. 'What are you talking about?' she demanded angrily. 'What am I supposed to be believing in the first place?'

'Would you take the sword first?' he asked imploringly. Kaoru sighed, and cautiously walked up to him and grabbed the sword. Battousai smiled reassuringly at her as she took a step back away from him. 'I won't hurt you, Kaoru. I never would. I promise.'

Kaoru narrowed her eyes at him. 'I would never take your word on anything,' she retorted. 'So say what you came in here to say and get the hell out of my face.'

'Kaoru, I…' he started, and broke off for a moment. 'I've decided to give in.'

Kaoru blinked. 'Er…give in?' she repeated. 'What do you mean?'

'You know the thing you said about me leaving Kenshin's body alone?' he asked, and she slowly nodded. 'Well, I think I'm ready to do that now. I'll leave Kenshin's body and I won't ever bother him again.'

Kaoru gaped at him. 'Are…are you serious?' she demanded, her hands tightly gripping both the lamp and the sword. 'Are you serious about this? Will you leave Kenshin alone?'

'Yes, I'm serious…I've had enough of this world,' Battousai murmured, pushing his hands deep into his pocket. 'Although…there's one little problem here…'

Kaoru groaned. 'I should've seen that coming!' she muttered irritably. 'There has to be something wrong, right?'

'Well, I'm sorry!' Battousai shot back. 'I didn't ask for this to happen! I didn't ask to be killed and to have my soul trapped inside my sword while I relive all my painful memories, okay? It's not my fault! If I could leave this wimp's body, don't you think I would've done so ages ago?'

Kaoru was silenced. She had never seen Battousai look so hurt and angry before…and it was weird. She almost put down her weapons and went forward to comfort him, but she steeled herself as he looked back up at her again.

'Listen, Kaoru…' he said gently. 'I know you don't believe me…so how about this? How about I let you talk to Kenshin? He'll tell you that I'm not lying…he'll know that I'm not trying to deceive you. What do you say?'

'You'll let me talk to Kenshin…really?' she squeaked. 'Hey! Hold on a minute! How do I know it's Kenshin I'm gonna be talking to and not you pretending to be my husband?'

Battousai smiled at her. 'You'll just know,' he murmured. He closed his eyes for a moment, all the while with Kaoru watching him warily. When he opened his eyes, Kaoru could feel there was something different about him. 'Kaoru…'

'Ken…shin?' Kaoru croaked, and he nodded. Kaoru let her weapons clutter to the floor and she rushed towards him. She almost flung her arms around his neck but stopped herself. She looked up into his face for a moment. 'You're really Kenshin…aren't you?'

He chuckled and stroked her cheek. 'Yes, Kaoru, it's really me,' he assured her. Kaoru's eyes leaked with tears and she threw her arms around his neck, and he nearly toppled back to the floor. He put his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. 'There, there…I'm here now. Everything's fine…you don't need to cry, Kaoru.'

'I know! I'm sorry!' she choked, burying her face deeper into his shoulder. 'It's just that…I really missed you, Kenshin! I mean, you were here! But you weren't here at the same time! I was so confused! I didn't know whether I've lost you forever or if you're still there!'

Kenshin kissed the top of her head. 'Yeah…I didn't know if I'll ever be out either,' he said quietly.

Kaoru pulled away from him. 'Is it true, then? What he's saying?' she asked anxiously. 'Will he really release you?'

'Yeah, it's true…Battousai wasn't lying,' he replied. He looked past her to the bed, where Kenji was sleeping. He headed towards him and sat down. He reached out and brushed his hair with his hand. 'I would definitely know if he's lying or not, and I can tell hat he's had enough with our world.'

'Really,' Kaoru murmured. 'But…he said he doesn't know how to get out! How is he planning to get out when he doesn't even know how?'

'Yeah, he wasn't lying about that either,' Kenshin replied. 'Battousai didn't imply this upon himself. I saw it in his memory. It was his brother-in-law who trapped his soul inside his own sword.'

Kaoru gasped. 'His brother-in-law?' she repeated. 'Battousai was actually married?'

'Yes, he…' Kenshin started, and froze for a moment. He chuckled. 'I'm sorry, Kaoru. I'm afraid I don't have the authority to tell you. Battousai will tell you everything when he feels like it. It's really none of my business.'

'Oh,' Kaoru said. 'But…what should we do now?'

'Battousai has this idea…he'll tell you all about it when he takes over again,' Kenshin said. He fell silent for a moment, then he looked up at her and smiled. 'Demo…everything's going to be okay, so you don't have to worry at all.'

Kaoru laughed lightly. 'Demo, huh?' she said. 'Are you taking after Battousai now?'

'Oh, c'mon! I'm Japanese in my blood, you know!' Kenshin protested. He pushed himself off the bed and walked over to her. He stroked her face. 'I know you're wondering why I haven't kissed you or…'

Kaoru laughed again. 'Oh, Kenshin! I'm not concerned about such stuff! I know you just want to protect me from Battousai,' she told him. 'I find that really sweet. I don't need you to kiss me, or hold me or anything like that…I just need you to make me feel that you're still there, okay?'

'Okay,' he agreed. Then suddenly came a sound from the living room. He frowned. 'What was that?'

'It sounds like your cell phone,' Kaoru said. 'It's the only phone left around the place. Battousai hid all the others.'

'Yeah, I know,' he replied. He headed for the living room, with Kaoru close at his heels. He picked up the phone from the coffee table and looked at the display. 'Damn…they're calling from the company.'

'Oh, right…Battousai hasn't been going to work recently,' Kaoru said thoughtfully. 'He goes out a lot, though…for long hours a day…he locks me in, of course, and he doesn't say anything so I really don't know where he…'

'Kaoru, I know where he goes,' Kenshin muttered darkly, and Kaoru froze. He noticed that and smiled weakly at her. 'Let's check what Liz wants, eh? Hello? Eh, Liz! Um…where am I? Well, that's a tricky sort of question! Um…well…'

It happened ever so quickly, and yet, Kaoru was sure that the man standing in front of her was no longer Kenshin. There was something different about him now. Kaoru couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was something different. The man standing in front of her was Battousai now.

'Actually, Liz…I've been away on vacation,' he said smoothly, as the stutter in his voice faded away. '…I don't think there's a need for you to know where I was. After all, I'm the boss round here, ain't I? …No, I don't know when I'll be coming back to work, and anyway, that's for me to decided, isn't it?…Yes, I thought so. I'll see you later, Liz.'

As he ended the call, Kaoru started to back away from him. 'You're not Kenshin anymore…are you?' she said cautiously.

'Don't be like that, Kaoru,' Battousai chided her. 'You're not going to act so coldly to me at our dinner tonight, right? I surely hope not, because, honestly, that's all I'm asking for.'

'Er…dinner?' she repeated, confused.

-

'Hey…Battousai?'

'Yes, Kenshin?' Battousai drawled. 'What do you want?'

'I just wanted to say thank you…for what you're doing,' Kenshin murmured.

'Don't thank me just yet,' Battousai replied. 'Don't thank me until I'm absolutely sure it's all over.'

'What's going to happen to you after you leave my body, though?' Kenshin asked curiously. 'I mean…you aren't going to return to your sword, aren't you? Much as I want you to get out, I don't want you to return to living that life you used to live.'

'Gee, thanks,' Battousai muttered sarcastically.

'I'm serious,' Kenshin retorted.

Battousai was silent for a moment, and Kenshin couldn't really find out what he was thinking about. 'I don't know,' he finally said. 'Chikusho. Aren't even murderers like me allowed to just…die?'

-

Kaoru sat awkwardly across the table from Battousai. He didn't blame her for that, even though he'd find a bit of a warm smile from her side extremely welcome. She had barely said a word since they left the apartment, and whenever he'd ask a question, she'd just nod or say "yes" or "no". This whole dinner idea was part of the leaving-Kenshin's-body deal, but up until now, Kaoru hadn't been acting well on her side of the deal.

'Do you suppose Kenji will be fine with that babysitter?' he asked conversationally.

Kaoru nodded. 'Yes,' she replied. 'He really likes that girl…what was her name again?'

Battousai smiled, glad he was making progress. 'Kim,' he said helpfully.

'Yes…that one,' Kaoru said, fumbling nervously with the edge of the tablecloth.

'You know, Kaoru, you don't have to be so stiff with me,' he said, rather reproachfully. She looked up at him. 'I know it must be weird for you to have dinner with me after all I've made you go through, but…it's the last thing I'll ever be asking you to do for me, so could you at least…try?'

Kaoru watched him silently for a few moments, and just as she was about to open her mouth, a waiter approached their table. 'Excuse me, sir, madam…are you ready to order yet?' he asked.

Damn you, couldn't you have waited another minute? 'Yes, I believe we're ready,' he said, trying to be as polite as possible. He looked at Kaoru. 'Kaoru?'

'What?' she said, rather distractedly. She looked at the waiter, who was looking expectantly at her. 'Ah, yes…well, I'll have the…'

They both ordered, and while they waited, Battousai could see that Kaoru was stealing glances in his direction. 'Yes, Kaoru?' he said. 'Did you want something?'

He had expected her to blush or stumble over her words then, but she just looked back defiantly at him. 'Tell me something, Battousai…how do you expect people to be good to you when you, yourself, are horrible to everyone else around you?' she asked him, coldly.

'Well, that certainly hurt,' Battousai replied, shifting in his seat. 'You see, Kaoru, to me, it doesn't matter whether people are good to me or not, as long as they do what they're asked to do.'

'But…' Kaoru said, casually picking up her fork and studying it. 'Kenshin told me you had a wife. If you didn't care about people being good to you, you wouldn't have gone and gotten married, would you?'

Battousai's face was expressionless. 'It really doesn't matter anymore,' he murmured. 'My wife isn't around anymore…and anyway, we didn't last that long together.'

'So…you got a divorce before her brother did you in, then?' she asked.

'We did not get a divorce,' Battousai snapped. 'We did not need to get a divorce. This may be a bit difficult for you to believe, but Tomoe actually loved me despite what I did, alright?'

'So, what happened then?' she asked curiously. Battousai was silent, and she couldn't help but soften her expression. 'Is it a painful memory?'

'Dammit, Kaoru! She died, okay?' he exploded, and several people looked around interestedly in their direction. Battousai took a look at Kaoru's bewildered face and lowered his voice several notches. 'Tomoe…she sacrificed herself for me. She got herself killed, so that I wouldn't die. And before she died…she said she was sorry.'

'Oh,' Kaoru murmured. 'She must've really loved you if she had given up her life to save you.'

'I guess…but I still don't know what she saw in me,' he muttered. 'I was still particularly a kid…and I was a murderer. I imprisoned her…and I also, killed her fiancé…'

Kaoru gasped. 'You killed her…' she whispered, and let her voice trail off.

'I didn't mean to kill him; I didn't even know it was him. He just attacked me and I killed him,' he replied, banging his fist on the table. 'But even so…she didn't leave me. She admitted to me later, that the reason she had stayed with me, was because she had been plotting to kill me. She carried a dagger around with her wherever she went, but after a while she just left it at home, and when I asked her about it, she said she didn't need it any more.'

Kaoru didn't say anything. She had never seen Battousai show so much feeling or emotion, and neither she had seen him show saw much passion about something…or someone. It was really strange. She wouldn't have thought, in a million years, that a cold-blooded murderer such as this man would have such feelings.

Battousai chuckled. 'You know, Tomoe took me out on my first date,' he informed her.

Kaoru blinked in surprise. 'Oh, really?' she said, and he nodded. She watched him take a sip out of his champagne glass. 'Why…why did kill people? What made me consider being an assassin?'

'You must think that I've always wanted to be an assassin, eh?' he asked, and she shook her head. 'Actually, I was told that I was doing it for the good of the people…to create a new world. They told me that even though it was a repulsive job, it had to be done…and that they found me suitable for the job. After a while, it didn't matter why I was killing or who I was killing…the blood lust was too strong within me…it was as if in order for me to survive, I had to kill people. It's a stupid principle, you don't need to tell me that…but that principle kept me going.'

'Didn't you ever consider doing something else?' she asked quietly.

'Actually, I did do something else,' he said, matter-of-factly. 'Most people don't know this, but there was a period in which Tomoe and me went into hiding. We pretended to be husband and wife, and we planted a vegetable field…and I was a medicine man…it felt really good to be able to live a normal life, but somehow, I knew that no matter how much I tried, I would never be able to escape from my title as the most feared assassin. Tomoe knew that, too, but she chose to remain next to me, even when her brother came to take her away.'

'Her brother?' Kaoru questioned. 'The one who…?'

'Enishi hated me,' Battousai said simply. 'He wanted Tomoe to kill me, but she wouldn't listen to him…in the end, after she had died, he sneaked up on me in the middle of the night, stabbed me with my own sword and said this spell…'

He trailed off as he put a hand to his head, as if the memory of that night was really painful. At that moment, Kaoru didn't hate Battousai. In fact, she almost reached out to comfort him, but for the second time that day, she withdrew.

'I'm sorry,' he murmured, looking up and smiling apologetically at her. 'I kind of strayed there.'

'No, it's alright,' she assured him, offering him a tiny smile. At that moment, the waiter came back with their orders and set them on the table before them. 'Well, then, shall we eat?'

Battousai nodded and picked up his fork a knife. He started to slice his steak, but then stopped and looked up at Kaoru, who had started on her salad. 'Hey, Kaoru?' he said softly.

Kaoru swallowed quickly. 'Yes?' she asked.

'I'm sorry for the trouble I caused you; you really don't deserve it,' he murmured. Kaoru just stared at him. He chuckled and picked up a piece of steak with his fork. 'Kenshin was right about you. You really are something else.'

Kaoru was silent for a moment as she digested those last few moments. Battousai had actually given her a compliment. Smiling, she raised her glass of champagne to her lips and took a sip. 'Thank you,' she said softly.

-

Demo: But

Chikusho: Damn it.

-

A/N: There! I'm done! Just two more chapters left to go! Yay! So, anyway, how did this chapter grab you? Was it good enough? Aren't you wondering about Battousai's little idea now? Oh, and don't you feel sorry for him? (blows her nose) Wait for my next chappie!

Oh, and please review!

- S. N. B.