Chapter 10: Only When You Leave

Battousai's inaction from the other side of the door eventually prompted Kaoru to move on her own. She bent to pick up the discarded bags on the floor. Leaving the groceries behind but taking the other bag with her, she made her way down the stairs, out of the apartment building and into the darkness of the night.

Unknown to her, Battousai had slipped down and sat on the other side of the door, with his head resting on his knees. Her plea was still ringing in his ears, trapping in his mind as it replayed itself in continuous loop. Please don't shut me out.

Idiot! Battousai berated himself. Why did you do that? Why? Why are you an idiot? He banged his head against his knee as if to punish him self.

I'm a fool. What have I done?

Meanwhile, Kaoru hurried her pace away from the building and headed back to the hospital. She needed to gather her thoughts and the safest place she could think of was the hospital. On several occasions, she had climbed up the hospital roof to mull things over in between her volunteer shifts. Her mind was filled with questions about her neighbor, about Soujiro that she wasn't paying attention to where she was going. Distractedly, she stumbled on something and only then did she stop walking.

Her eyes slowly surveyed her surroundings and her eyebrows furrowed in study. "I don't remember this part of the park," she murmured to herself. Her hand automatically reached out in front of her. An unnatural fog seemed to close in on her surroundings, too fast for it to be normal fog and her heart started beating faster.

"My, my. What do we have here?" A melodic voice came from the darkness and Kaoru turned around to see who it was that spoke.

Another voice joined the first, "I think its a little lost lamb." Again, Kaoru turned to face the voice that spoke and found nothing. No one there but the fog that seemed to be closing in on her person and became heavier. Kaoru clutched the pillowcase tighter and wrapped the end of it around her hand. The broken pieces of a ceramic cup jangled in the pillowcase as she adjusted her grip on the makeshift bag.

"Ooh, I think it wants to play," the voice teased as Kaoru felt a rush of cold air on her right shoulder and she flinched away involuntarily. "I do like it when they struggle."

"Who are you?" she demanded as Kaoru slowly turned to face the voice that seemed to be taunting her. "Show yourselves, you cowards."

A figure seemingly materialized in front of her and smiled slowly. "Tsk, tsk. That's not a very nice thing to say." It was a man with short cropped hair and pale skin who was a little taller than Kaoru. When he bared his fangs at her, Kaoru took a step back and bumped into a cold hard surface. Cold hands wrapped themselves on her upper arms, and she turned to see another man that looked exactly like the first. And he smiled the same insane smile his twin brother flashed at Kaoru.

Surprised, she stomped on his foot and temporarily loosened his hold on her arms and she ran away from him. But she didn't get very far. "What's the matter little lamb? We still want to play with you. Can't you stay and play with us?"

"I don't know what you are," Kaoru yelled at the pair. "But I'm warning you. You'll regret it."

The brothers smiled at each other as she made her threat. "I'm so scared, brother. I don't know what I'll do."

"If I still had a heart, it would be beating fast right now." The other one clutched at his chest in mock fear. Then they both smiled as one moved forward and the other disappeared into the fog. Kaoru concentrated on the vampire coming towards her and swiped at him with her makeshift weapon as soon as he got close enough. The jagged edges of the broken cup poked through the pillowcase and managed a small cut on his outstretched palm.

As she prepared to take another swipe at him, her arms were locked by the steel grip of his twin brother. "Now, that's not very nice, little lamb." His breath was in Kaoru's ear and she gritted her teeth in frustration. "My brother has been waiting for this moment. We were going to save you and give you to her but …" he turned around quickly and Kaoru lost hold of her bag. "I think we'll just have you for ourselves." He licked her cheek slowly and Kaoru shuddered in disgust.

"Ooh but not before I pay her back," the other brother said as he wrenched her away from the other's grip. "I think it's the polite thing to do." He threw her against a tree, knocking her head and she fell on the ground unconscious. Both brothers approached the still figure and watched it, unmoving.

"I do like it when they struggle though." They both smiled as their eyes held a predatory gleam. One of the brothers crouched on the ground close to Kaoru's body and closed his eyes. "She smells delightful, brother. Jasmines. I loved jasmines."

"Perhaps we'll wait until we get back to our apartment before having our little fun with her. What do you think, little bro …?" His brother never got to finish his sentence as he exploded in a heap of dust. A sword thrusted from behind had caught him. Surprised, the other brother only had time to turn around before a sword slashed through him as well. The fog slowly lifted from the area leaving only an unconscious Kaoru, a dirty pillowcase and a swordsman in the clearing.

Battousai sat in the darkened room, staring out into nothing. His mind, though, was processing the events of the last few hours and replaying the series of events that led him to this moment. Kaoru leaving the building after he pushed her out of his apartment. Following her to the park. The heavy fog that blanketed the area. Seeing her get thrown to the tree and unmoving on the ground. Killing those two vampires. Taking Kaoru back to the apartment. His sword rested against his shoulder and his hand clutching the hilt. His amber flecked eyes still burned with fury but otherwise was focus on nothing in particular.

Why did they target her? What is it a coincidence?

A small whimper came from the direction of his bed and the woman that currently occupied it. He stood and was immediately by her side to see to her comfort. Kaoru's body convulsed slightly though her eyes were still closed. He placed a warm towel on her forehead to settle her down but to no avail. Her blankets were tangled all around her small form as more whimpers came.

Frustrated, he replaced the towel with his own hand and felt Kaoru still her movements. Her breathing evened out and he could tell that she was finally relaxing. After a few minutes, he removed his hand from her forehead and stared at her as she slept. In the moonlight, she looked beautiful. Yes, I admit it. I think she's beautiful. He smiled ruefully to himself. Doesn't change the fact that she needs to stay away from me.

He noticed her lips were moving but no sound seemed to be coming. He strained his ears to hear what she was saying but it was too soft. Finally, he knelt closer to the bed and pressed his ear towards her lips.

Apart from the soft breath that escaped her, Kaoru's words managed to make his own heart ache with its quiet plea. Please …. Please don't …. Don't shut me out.

- End of Chapter Ten -

Author's Notes and Disclaimer: This is a rewrite of the original story. I've decided to ressurect this from the fanfiction purgatory and continue the story. There have been some revisions contained in some of the chapters. Other chapters, I've left untouched. Please enjoy the story!

Rurouni Kenshin is owned by Watsuki-sama, Shueisha, JUMP Comics, Sony, ADV etc. Definitely not owned by me. Have fun reading this chapter because I had so much fun writing it.