Author Notes: I have been steadily writing this story bit by bit every day; but as the end comes closer to this story and plot holes needing to be plugged, these chapters are harder to write. Each scene is deliberate now and I'm listening less and less to my muse who wants to go on unnecessary tangents just because it would be fun to write. I have already started the next chapter, but I honestly can't promise when it will come out. It could be fast or slow (the latter being the most likely). So please enjoy this chapter and tell me what you think.

Thank you to all my loyal reviewers, some of you have been keeping up with this story chapter by chapter for years and I'm always happy to see your response. Special shout out to Lcsaf, YumeTakato, and kaoruca! Thank you for not abandoning this story despite by slow updates. You guys rock.

Ok, quick vocab: obi= wide sash worn to hold kimono closed, zori= wooden sandals, tabi= socks worn with kimono

Disclaimer: The Rurouni Kenshin world and all characters depicted are a creation of mangaka, Watsuki Nobuhiro.

Forgotten Reverie

By Hoshi-ni-Onegai

Kaoru stepped out and left the room that was getting a little too claustrophobic for her tastes. With all the droids crowded into the room discussing their new found humanity, Kaoru needed a breather. There hadn't been a dramatic internal shift for her at finding out she was a cyborg and not an android. However, she understood the need for the other droids to talk this through.

She, honestly, wanted other answers. The only truth they uncovered so far was that they were actually human. Other than that, everything else remained a mystery. Yahiko was not the wealth of information Kenshin had hoped him to be.

And speaking of Yahiko, Kaoru found him down the hall sitting at the top landing of the stairs. He had left the room ten minutes before she did, and no one had stopped him. If he were to run off, they would have found him. In reality, they knew he wouldn't leave. At finding out the truth about himself, he couldn't exactly slip back into his life like before.

From her angle she could see that the young engineer's shoulders were slumped forward like the weight of the world pressed down on them. She knew that look a little too well. Yahiko was going through a private existential crisis. He most likely wanted to be left alone to stew in his thoughts, but Kaoru wasn't about to respect boundaries.

"You know," she started as she plopped down next to him in the narrow stairway. "When I found out I was a droid, everyone kind of expected me to bounce back from the information and be a good little government assassin."

Yahiko's lips turned down on one side at her light tone despite the topic at hand. "You weren't told that your entire life was a lie."

"Really? Because I seem to remember a pretty boring life living on an island and then going to the University of Tokyo to do some super nerdy research." She pointed out.

He paused as he considered her statement and sighed. "It's just... I remember my childhood. I remember growing up." He reasoned, almost pleading. "And now I find out that's all just planted memories."

Kaoru raised a brow at that. "Planted? Who said your memories are fake?"

Yahiko looked at her confused. "How else do you explain it?"

"You're a genius, but really stupid." She smiled at his miffed expression. "I think you lived your entire life exactly how you remember -up until the car accident."

"The accident? What about it?"

"You almost died, and MIRU was in desperate need for a new engineer." Kaoru hypothesized. "They probably saved your life, but decided to plant a chip while they had you open."

He processed what she said and then shook his head. "That's insane."

"Oh, yeah, because the government using some unknown human brain to make a robot and implant with fake memories makes a lot more sense." Kaoru rolled her eyes and then suddenly asked, "Tell me about something that happened to you in the second grade."

"The second grade?" He repeated dumbly. "Not much happened. I went to school, my teacher was Ms. Yagami, and I realized I sucked at soccer."

"What about soccer? What made you realize you weren't made for it?" She kept asking.

He turned away from her to stare at the steps leading down to the lower floor. The wood was polished with care, but showed the years of wear from all the patrons trekking up to their rooms. Just when she thought he had resolved to stay mute, Yahiko finally spoke. "There was a game. It wasn't exactly a competitive league or anything. We were just a bunch of seven and eight year olds running around on the field. No one knew what offside meant and our only real aim was to get the ball in the goal." He then grumbled at the next bit. "I, apparently, didn't realize that you had to get the ball into the other team's goal."

"You scored an own goal?" Kaoru chuckled at the admission. "That's not that bad. It happens. I mean, there's even a name for it."

Yahiko frowned. "Yeah, but no one does it three times in the same game."

"Wow, that's an accomplishment." She bit back a laugh.

"And that was the end of my career as a soccer player." He sighed at the memory. "I did get consolatory trip to get ice cream."

"What flavor of ice cream?" Kaoru asked.

He raised a brow at the question, but answered nonetheless. "Actually, I got a sundae. I remember distinctly because the guy threw on extra sprinkles and gave me four cherries on top."

Kaoru smiled. "And you think those memories are planted? You think there's a government worker carefully coming up with a memory of where you had a terrible day at soccer and gave you bonus cherries on your sundae?"

Yahiko was taken aback by what she said. After a long moment, he nodded and his lips turned up. "I still don't know if I believe that I'm a droid."

Kaoru shrugged. "Well, judging by how you went postal, if you're not one of us then you're brainwashed."

"Those are my options? I'm a cyborg making other cyborgs or I'm a brainwashed agent?" Yahiko rubbed the back of his neck. "I sound crazy either way."

"Join the club." She chided.

"So what happens now?" He gestured back to the room where the other droids continued their confab. "Do I run away to the circus with you guys?"

"You can do whatever you want." She answered. "I don't know if you can go back to your old life. I'm not sure if MIRU finds out when you get switched on as a sleeper."

"My old life, huh? I don't have any family and I haven't kept up with the few friends I had before joining the Agency. I guess that's what made me a good candidate to disappear into MIRU without anyone suspecting." Yahiko said, not realizing how solitary his life was until this very moment. "When Kogoro found me, I was earning my PhD at the University of Tokyo. Come to think of it, it was only two months after the accident that he recruited me."

"Seriously? I thought you were fresh out of high school." She said. "You went to my alma mater. Go figure, you really never know where you meet a fellow alumni."

"Were you as bored as I was at that place?" He recalled.

"It's the top university in the country." She pointed out, and then added, "And yes, bored out of my mind but mostly because of this one French exchange student. I was doing original research, so it wasn't so bad." After a beat she furrowed her brows. "Wait, nine years ago you were working on your doctorate? How old are you?"

"Let me put it this way, I'm legally allowed to drink." He answered vaguely. "I'm thinking I look the same as I did back then because of whatever they did to me."

Kaoru frowned. "That still means you were what? Seventeen, eighteen tops when the Agency recruited you."

Yahiko sighed without answering her question and instead went back to the previous topic. "But the thing is, they planted memories in the rest of the droids. You can see why I wouldn't think I was any different."

Kaoru froze at his words. She turned to him and her previously lighter tone was completely absent from her voice. "What are you talking about?"

"The memories, the fake ones." He coaxed, expecting her to understand what he was getting at. "You know they're not real, right?"

She narrowed her eyes. "You're not going to convince me my three years before the Agency weren't real."

"Not those memories." He corrected. "I'm talking about your dreams."

"My dreams? You mean my nightmares?" She questioned. "I don't ever remember them."

He was surprised by what she said. Yahiko had always assumed that the droids with their perfect recall and photographic memory had some inkling of their dreams. "I mean, from what I've seen, they look like a run of a past life."

"You've seen them? How?" Kaoru wasn't quite sure what to make of what he was saying, but something in the back of her mind told her it was important.

"The memory extractor. It's a device we use after missions that went awry. It records everything a droids sees, hears, and thinks -including dreams." He explained and then shrugged. "Too bad they're all under twenty feet of sewage; I could have shown you what I'm talking about."

Thinking back on the moments with Kenshin before her first mission and before she went AWOL, she recalled the small device he produced to retain her memories. Turning her head slightly away, she spoke barely above a whisper in fear that her words might disappear. "Not all of them."

xXx

Lilting piano music streamed through the room along with a permeating blanket of tobacco smoke. The large ball room was filled with beautifully dressed women in their best gowns and kimonos, escorting these women were their gallantly outfitted men in military uniform. The formal military suits were pressed and cleaned, their shoes and buckles diligently polished, and their medals and badges glinted off with arrogant pride.

She had debated if she should wear the more traditional kimono or a Western style gown, but decided on the former. Men fighting in the name of their country were usually more easily drawn toward traditional women. She also had the added benefit of being one of the few young women who wore a kimono -which drew the attention of the men. She mentally smirked at their obviousness. Men were simple animals to read: they wanted the rare bird instead of the common sparrow.

Her cover story was that she had come in the place of her father, an invited guest to the party, because he had fallen ill. She was here to exhibit herself as a patriot who also happened to be single and of marrying age. No one suspected that one so young could be there to gather intelligence for the enemy.

Drink in hand, she wandered the room. The partygoers were gathered in smaller clumps and she flitted from one group to the other. The men were conceited and boastful, a combination that had them spilling tidbits of about their work. One man alone didn't provide enough information to prove useful, but the summed total of stupid men trying to impress a pretty young woman was enough for this mission to be useful.

"Miss Ayano," a young captain addressed her. "How is your father, Brigadier General Tsuchiya?"

She took a sip of her drink and smiled at the man who was probably no more than two or three years older than she was. "Fine, thank you for asking Captain..."

"Serizawa." He answered and studied her carefully. "Your father mentioned he had a daughter, but that she was always away studying."

"In Nagoya." She added, pulling information she memorized from the file on Tsuchiya. "I was fortunate enough to be able to attend tonight since I'm usually not in the city."

"What took your father away from the festivities? He's always in attendance." An older woman standing diligently next to her husband asked.

"A simple cold. He was up to coming, but my mother stopped him fearing he was a little too contagious." She offered the answer she had rehearsed in her head.

The woman's husband laughed. "Well, good thing he did. We wouldn't want the entire Japanese military to be without their commanding officers because of the common cold."

Feeling the conversation turning toward her, she glanced to the edge of the room to find a polite exit. What she needed was for the people to talk freely amongst themselves, not asking her probing questions. "Please excuse me, I'm going to get some air." She set her drink down on the tray carried by a passing waiter. "I think the champagne went straight to my head."

"I'll accompany you." Serizawa volunteered and also set his drink down.

"No, that's alright." She said with a smile. "I'll be fine. I'll leave you to this lovely company."

He took her arm in what seemed like a gentleman-like manner, but his grip was tight. "I insist."

Stepping away from the group, she knew this wasn't a forceful proposition from a suitor. The jig was up. He steered them through the crowd and she received more than one knowing smile from the women. To the partygoers she was an eligible single daughter of a moderately important man who a young single handsome Captain had taken an interest in. Appearances were strongly deceiving.

Reaching the French doors that led to the grand balcony, she caught her reflection along with the Captain's in the glass. She barely recognized herself with the kimono and the elegant way her hair was gathered with a delicate silver comb. What had given her away?

The Captain chivalrously opened the door and she stepped out with him following close behind. She knew, however, that it was not chivalry that drove his actions but an imperative to get her alone.

Once they were outside with the door closed to put a barrier between them and the party, he grabbed her upper arm more forcefully and spun her to face him. "Who are you?"

"I don't understand Captain Serizawa." Her voice held the perfect balance of surprise and innocence.

He remained suspicious, not convinced of her act. "You're not Ayano Tsuchiya."

She furrowed her brows in feigned confusion. "I'm afraid I don't understand your game, Captain."

"The real Miss Tsuchiya isn't in Nagoya anymore, she transferred to a school in Kobe as of last week." His grip tightened on her.

"Is that what's bothering you?" She let a subdued giggle out despite the increasing tension. "That's why I'm in town. I have a week before my transfer goes through, and my mother called me to Tokyo to spend time with her and my father."

Hearing her explanation, he narrowed his eyes. "Brigadier General Tsuchiya is like a mentor to me."

Her smile remained in place. "I'm afraid father never mentioned you to me. He usually likes keeping work and home life separate."

"He called me earlier today to make sure I would be coming tonight." He couldn't help his smirk at revealing what he said next. "He said he would be attending alone tonight because his wife was out of town visiting his daughter in Kobe."

Her smile remained for exactly three seconds longer, until it was let go with an exasperated sigh. "That old bastard. He called you?"

Captain Serizawa was taken aback by the vocabulary exhibited by an otherwise prim-looking young lady. His grip faltered for a brief second, but he tightened it again. "Who are you?"

She gave an exaggerated eye roll. "There's a war going on. Who do you think I am? Yuki Onna?"

His eyes widened. "You're a spy."

"Thanks Captain Obvious." She quipped sarcastically. "Well, I guess I better leave."

"You're not going anywhere." He threatened.

"You actually think I was sent in with little more than a cover story and a pretty smile?" She glanced at his hand still tightly grasping her arm. She shot him a side-eyed glance. "You need to work on your manners."

With her free hand she struck upward with her palm to catch the underside of his nose. He reeled backward and let out a low grown -one that was too quiet to call the attention of the people inside. The grip on her arm slacked and she took the opportunity and fist her two hands together to bring it down with surprising force to the back of his neck.

He was out cold and collapsed on the ground. She grabbed his jacket and dragged his unconscious form out of clear view from the inside. She considered her current predicament. There was the slim chance that her night could be saved and she could rejoin the party none the wiser. The more likely scenario was that someone else would make their way outside and she would have to make a risky getaway with a room full of military personnel.

Sighing, she gathered up her kimono and tucked the hem into her obi. Kicking off her zori, she let them clatter to the ground as she stepped onto the stone railing of the balcony, her feet clad only in her tabi. The drop was a little less than half a story and her escape off the guarded grounds was a quick climb over the fence and ducking into a dark alley. The party wasn't too heavily guarded and if she played her cards right she would slip away without anyone seeing her.

Strategy figured out, she leapt forward and braced for impact. The grass below made her landing quiet and soft. Just as planned, it was only a few short minutes before she was away from the party. In the shadows of one of the buildings, she readjusted her kimono to be presentable and especially to not draw attention to herself. It was sufficiently late that there weren't many people about, but enough people for her not to be noticed.

She could feel her hair unraveling from her exertion. Reaching up to remove the comb, she let her long hair tumble down in a long brain that whipped behind her. Walking swiftly she made quick work of six city blocks before she angled into a narrow alley. After making sure no one spotted her turning this way, she went to the end of the alley to a small sliding wooden door.

Knocking precisely nine times, the door was unlocked and she was let into the dimly lit room. Two casually dressed men waited for her. The older one furthest from the door furrowed his brows at her and spoke clearly in English. "We didn't expect you back for another hour, Agent Makimachi."

She sighed and answered back in the same language. "I was made. Tsuchiya apparently mentored one of the Captains."

The younger one spoke. "He revealed you?"

"No, he escorted me away from the crowd to confront me." She shrugged. "Rookie mistake. He knew if he exposed me in front of everyone, a commanding officer would take the credit for finding a spy and not him."

The older man considered the situation and then nodded. "You escaped without notice."

She grinned. "Did you expect anything less?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Sano suddenly interjected while hitting the space bar on the laptop to stop the video. "So we're supposed to believe that weasel was an enemy spy in World War II?"

"Forget the spy part," Misao grinned. "I'm an American."

"Exactly, enemy spy." Sano reiterated.

"Don't be so melodramatic." Misao contested. "They're just Americans."

"Yeah, and we lost the war." Sano frowned and looked over to Kaoru. "I was a Japanese WWII soldier, right? You're not going to tell me I fought on the other side, right?"

Kaoru sighed, "Priorities, Sano, priorities."

Kaoru had returned to the room with Yahiko and his point about the memory extractor. When put on the spot, Kenshin -albeit a bit embarrassed- produced the device from his jacket pocket. Kaoru didn't understand his embarrassment, and decided to store that away as a question to ask later.

There was a suggestion made to just watch one of Kaoru's dreams; however, Aoshi made the valid point that if they were going to watch a dream it should belong to someone Enishi had a past life profile on. Misao volunteered and her memory extracted. Tsubame pulled up the most recent dream up on her laptop and everyone crowded around.

"All of you have these dreams every night." Yahiko explained glancing at everyone, but his gaze rested on one droid in particular. "Except for Kenshin." All eyes turned to the redhead who seemed unsurprised by the statement. "You've had original dreams since before I arrived."

Kenshin was unfazed by the attention. "They're nightmares, not dreams."

The room filled with tension for a short moment before Misao spoke up. "Who's being melodramatic now?"

Misao received multiple reprimanding looks, but she ignored them. A beat passed before Kenshin let out a chuckle. "Sorry, old habits."

Everyone, aside from Kaoru and Sano, were surprised by Kenshin's lighthearted response. Although everyone knew Kenshin to be a good person, he was never one to smile or laugh that much. They had always teased and joked with him, but he had always passively accepted their humor.

While everyone else was getting over their shock, Sano spoke up. "So wait a minute. Are these planted memories or they from a past life?"

"Planted." Kaoru answered.

"Past life." Kenshin said simultaneously.

They stared at each other and frowned at the other's answer. "What are you talking about?" Kaoru questioned.

"The file Enishi gave you and what we just saw, they're consistent." He pointed out.

She stared at him as if he were an idiot. "Seriously?"

Her tone was incredulous and he felt a little foolish because he didn't understand why. Turning to the other droids, he saw some with the same look on their face and others as confused as he was. Well, at least he wasn't the only one.

Kaoru sighed and addressed Tsubame. "Rewind it for him, will you?"

The small droid gave a small smile and nodded. Kenshin looked on confused as Tsubame seemed to return the image back to the party when Misao -or better said, Agent Makimachi- first met Captain Serizawa. Kenshin had some comfort in the fact that Sano and Yahiko were both curiously watching the screen. They watched the video for about ten seconds before Tsubame paused it.

Kaoru looked at them expectantly. "Well?"

Sano's lips tilted downward. "I don't get it."

Hearing the tall droid's admission, Kaoru faced Kenshin. When the redhead shrugged she taunted, "Well, you did say you were one hundred percent combat. I guess I can't blame you for not getting it."

Hearing an out of character giggle from Tsubame, Kenshin feigned being offended. "Yeah, yeah. I'm the village idiot. Now, break it down for me." After a beat, he added, "And use small words."

Kaoru grinned and pointed to the screen. "Look at the faces of the people she's not talking to."

His immediately turning his attention back to the laptop, his eyes visibly widened. How had he not noticed it? He prided himself in observational skills and never forgot a face, but something so huge escaped him. "They all have the same face."

Kaoru nodded. "And some of the gowns the women are wearing seem more like post-war fashion and not something they wore during that era. This is a generated image. The whole point isn't to have a historically accurate reenactment of what happened, it's about the experience."

Kenshin carefully considered the known facts and theories. There was just so much speculated and so little that was definitively known. How far down did the secrets of the agency go?

"They're planting memories of battles and missions we never had so we have all the skills without the hassle of gaining experience." Kenshin said.

Hearing his conclusion, Kaoru couldn't help agreeing. They're main goal now seemed to be debunking all the facts given to them by the agency and Enishi's elaborate theories. She wasn't sure what the other droids thought of all that was being revealed, but she didn't know what to make of all of this. When they did finally stumble on the whole truth, what would that mean for her? For all of them? For Kenshin?

"Where do we go from here?" Kaoru asked aloud, but no one knew how to answer her.

xXx

"Hiko and Tae are alive and in their safe houses." Saitou recounted after getting off the phone.

Kogoro raked his fingers in his hair and slammed the other fist onto his desk. "What the hell is going on?"

With the Agency headquarters under sewage, the two heads of MIRU were relegated to their offices in the Defense Ministry's building. Even though they were away from their main facilities, they had all the capabilities of MIRU at their disposal. Computer savvy top techs were recruited from different departments and were busy monitoring their current situation. However, there was a vast difference between the smartest humans on the job and Tsubame.

"You have one hour." Saitou confirmed. "Three consecutive hours of radio silence and I take control of the Agency."

"I know that. You can think about mutiny later." Kogoro spat out and glared at his Deputy Director. This was the moment he had feared ever since Saitou was instated in his position. It was only supposed to be a safety protocol -one Kogoro had never wanted to come into effect. But he didn't want Saitou to know about the welling panic and instead he needed to control the situation. "I want to know what happened to Yahiko."

Saitou seemed to consider the Director's current state of alarm. It was warranted alarm considering the situation, but it was uncharacteristic of Kogoro. Saitou wasn't naïve enough to not realize something else was at play that Kogoro didn't want him to know. He had spent his years with MIRU trying to peel away at the secrets and intrigue. He was annoyed to realize that most of what he discovered was thanks to the arrival of Kaoru who alone was initiating more emergency protocols than ever before. She was like a bull in china shop who was proving to be very useful.

"If Zulu protocol is an emergency kill code, why didn't we use it before?" Saitou questioned. He was aware that protocol Zulu existed, but didn't have the clearance to know what it entailed. That fact alone had Saitou chasing after the truth for years; however, yet again nothing came to light until Kaoru came into the Agency. According to documents that were declassified for Saitou, Zulu protocol consisted of a verbal kill code that Yahiko could use in the event of a rogue droid threatening his life. Saitou knew that it to be a blatant lie and he was no more out of the dark.

"We're not in the business of killing off our personnel." Kogoro shot back.

Saitou considered the atypical outburst and pulled out a cigarette from his jacket pocket. "In the past month you've had two droids go AWOL; a previous Agency droid created a crime network that you've been chasing after for years and consequently planted a bomb so that we would have to evacuate headquarters." Lighting his cigarette casually, Saitou shrugged. "You're right. There's never been a situation thus far that warranted a kill code."

Kogoro ignored his comment, closing down the conversation. Saitou knew that he wasn't going to get much else out of Kogoro no matter how much he pressed. Saitou could only hope that the metaphorical bull would break a few more plates soon; but he was determined to help her along.

xXx

"Shouldn't I have gone with them?" Kaoru questioned as she glanced toward the doorway for the third time in the past minute.

"As what? Moral support?" Kenshin responded distractedly as he scanned through the papers Kaoru had stolen from Enishi.

She had to admit that he had a point, but she felt like a sitting duck -which wasn't actually that far from the truth. After some deliberation, it was decided that they would send a small team to investigate the genetics laboratory. This decision in particular was one Kaoru didn't understand, and was hard pressed to be convinced by the other droids' logic.

Misao's objective was to safely escort Tsubame in and out of the facility so that she could analyze the computer databases for any indication of MIRU involvement. Aoshi would stay on the outside to make sure everything went smoothly. Without comms to report back, there was little else the droids left at the inn could do. The whole point of staying at Aoiya was to be off the grid, which also meant there couldn't be communication with the team on mission. If something were to go wrong, the team knew to call Aoiya's only phone in the lobby and leave a message with Okina, who would relay it to Kenshin. It was a rudimentary system that prevented tracking by government intelligence and Enishi's team.

It was approximately three minutes after the team left that Yahiko and Megumi both had the idea to examine the young engineer. Curiosity was gnawing at both of them and they disappeared to play a legitimate game of doctor. And as went Megumi, so goes Sano's nation. He joined them in the other room -more to pester Megumi than out of any curiosity on his part. And so Kaoru and Kenshin were left alone in the lotus room sitting next to each other on the floor cushions at the small round table.

"It's an espionage mission, I'm technically part of that unit." She argued.

"Misao is the best at getting into places undetected and Tsubame is going to do the actual hacking." He pointed out, still engrossed in the papers. "Aoshi is there for back up. Misao works better with him close by anyways. Don't worry about them."

Kaoru chewed on her lower lip. It was one thing for the wonder duo to be on a mission -that was nothing out of the ordinary- but Tsubame? From the extensive story Kenshin previously told her about the Agency history, Tsubame never went on missions. She left the compound every-so-often, but never for actual MIRU business. She was being throw into the deep end as suddenly as Kaoru had, but at least Kaoru had programming on her side. But she knew she needed to let her reservations go. Misao is a highly capable agent with more stealth in her little pinky than Kenshin had in his whole body. She would no doubt keep Tsuabme safe.

"I mean, it's crazy. Misao was just shot, and she's already been off to retrieve Yahiko and now sneaking Tsubame into a possible conspiracy theory base." She glanced at the door again.

"You know we don't need recovery time. Megumi did a great job patching her up." He continued to stare at the pages as he spoke to her.

These were all things she already knew, but Kaoru needed to keep talking to distract herself. She looked over her own arm where she had sported a impressive collection of scrapes and cuts from the broken water glass; yet all that was left now was smooth unmarred skin. She didn't know what compound Megumi used, but she had brushed it over Kaoru's arm that made her skin tingle. It wasn't like before where it was some kind of resin bath that recoated her metal bones with skin like they had done when she needed her hand replaced. Instead, the compound caused a mild chemical reaction that allowed her skin to be malleable and meld together. Dunking her arm in water stopped the reaction and Kaoru was left with unscarred arms. Every procedure done to her was another reminder of her robotic status.

However, now, her reality shifted again. She wasn't all gears and wires. There were still parts in her that were definitively human. The human brain was so far advanced and unattainable, that neither Gein nor Yahiko could find a substitute. Her humanity was precious to her, and she was unlikely to let it go. Nevertheless, she wasn't going through an existential crisis like the other fellow droids. She didn't need answers. Kaoru was secure enough in knowing who she was to be comfortable knowing the truths she knew now. Everyone else, however, needed to know more.

"I still don't think it matters." She said suddenly into the quiet air between them. Kaoru waited patiently for Kenshin to finally look up from the papers. "We know we're human. Why does it matter if we were cloned or genetically engineered? We should just leave city."

Kenshin set down the pages and turned his entire attention toward Kaoru who sat across from him at the small table. "You say that because you have a history outside of the Agency. Didn't you notice how only Yahiko agreed with your idea? You two had lives, the rest of us don't. If Enishi's theory is right, than that means we each have a history too."

She considered what he was saying and let out a sigh. She could subtlety understand where he was coming from. Maybe she was being selfish without realizing it. Kaoru had to admit she only went through a mild identity crisis; but thanks to her father, she had her feet firmly planted on the ground. He had went out of his way to prove that she had a family with him and a home to return to. She felt her heart ache at the idea that her home was gone. The house still stood on the island and her friends and neighbors were still there but she knew that it would never be home again for her.

"Well, then here's to hoping you're a mysterious vigilante feudal lord." She mimicked the raising of a glass and glanced at the door again.

Kenshin considered her casual attitude toward their potential origins. He looked down at the papers that named various people plucked from history. Kaoru was noticeably absent from the lineup and she seemed unperturbed by it. After a beat, he decided to ask the unasked question. "Don't you want to know who you were?"

She turned her confused eyes to him, and realized he was referring to her lack of a dossier. "I don't need to know. If Enishi can't dig anything up, maybe that's a sign. It could be something horrible."

"Horrible?" He repeated as a question.

"I could have been a serial killer." She answered automatically. "They never did catch the Zodiac Killer."

Kenshin raised a brow. "Wow, that's a jump and a leap to the worst case scenario."

"Really? Because I can think of a dozen worse possibilities." She admitted. "Right now, I'm just a girl from a small island who had a loving father. I don't need that memory ripped apart."

He mulled over her words and nodded. "I can respect that. And if you ever change your mind, I have the extractor with your memories."

With the mention of the memory extractor, Kaoru recalled Kenshin's previous reaction to it. The resident redhead was nothing if not calm and collected, so his previous display of mortification was something Kaoru was all too willing to poke at. "Before, when I asked you about the extractor in front of everyone," she started and could have sworn she saw a light blush creep onto his face again. "Why were you embarrassed?"

As Kenshin seemed to sputter over his own response, and Kaoru contemplated the fact that droids were given the ability to blush. Even knowing now that they were in fact cyborgs, she had to admit that they were extremely convincingly built. She also wondered how droids who showed no modesty still had the ability to be embarrassed.

"I wasn't exactly embarrassed." He arguing.

"Oh really? Because I thought you turned red like your crush from high school stopped by your locker." She teased with a grin, but a disturbing thought crossed her mind. "Oh my god. Did you look?" Taken aback by the sudden question, Kenshin shook his head in response. Not trusting him, Kaoru raised her arms and waved them accusingly. "You can't just go around watching a replay of another person's life! Private moments are meant to be private!"

As her voice pitched higher, Kenshin bit back a smile and tried reassuring her. "I didn't peek. I swear."

She assessed his tone and face to figure his sincerity. Giving a hesitant nod, she relented. "Fine, sure. Then why were you embarrassed."

Realizing that Kaoru had the capacity to think of the worst possibility, Kenshin decided to tell her the truth. "Having the extractor means I've had it on my person since before you were activated and sent on your first mission."

Already moved on from her previous worry, she tilted her head in confusion. "Wasn't that the deal, you download me and store it?"

"Yeah, but when I found out you had your memories I didn't have to keep holding onto it." He explained.

"You were keeping it safe..." She stated more to herself than to him. "Why?"

"Honestly?" He shrugged. "I don't know. I just couldn't bring myself to return the extractor back to the lab."

And there it was again, that tingling warmth she felt in her chest on occasion when she was with Kenshin. It was a recent development with her friendship with Kenshin, and it was one she had tried to ignore. Their life was nothing short of chaotic and on more than one instance they had contemplated going their separate ways for good. But now, things felt different. Even though the droids felt they needed answers about their origins, she knew that if they were to run they would run away together. Kaoru wasn't prepared to leave them at the mercy of MIRU anymore -especially not Kenshin. They may decide to split up at first to avoid detection, but she would stick by Kenshin until his heart core gave out on him. She had been sincere in her promise and was now willing to see it through.

"You should have warned me you were a sentimental." She joked.

"And scare you off?" He retorted with a smirk. Reaching into his pocket, he set the memory extractor onto the table and slid it toward her. "I guess you'd want this back."

Picking up the small electronic device she wondered what it meant that her entire life could be packaged neatly into something that looked like an outdated cell phone. It was such an unassuming thing that she had nearly forgotten all about it. Kaoru recalled how Kenshin had taken her to his room to download her memories before her first and only mission. It was amazing how much their relationship had changed since then. She distinctly remembered Kenshin emphasizing a need for trust for his plan to work. Now, she trusted him more than anyone else alive.

Setting the device down, she slid it back to him. "No, why don't you hold on to it for me? I'm always losing things."

A smiled tugged at the corner of his lips as he took the item back and returned to his pocked. He felt an odd sense of relief for having it back, but didn't have the nerve to tell her.

"After that first mission, when I ran away," Kaoru spoke unprompted. "You could have looked into the genetics lab since you fried our trackers. Why didn't you?"

The question was unexpected, yet he answered truthfully. "We needed to find your father."

"You did that for me?" Her voice was only a hair over a whisper. "You barely knew me."

Kenshin didn't quite know how to respond. There was so much to say and not enough adequate words to say it. The weeks since he first met Kaoru had been a full force sprint that felt like a slow burn. His life wasn't boring before, but it was a completely different story since her arrival to the Agency.

He was torn from his thoughts when he felt her reach for his hand and squeeze. Catching her gaze he felt his heart leap in his throat. Sadness crossed her eyes with the last memory of her father, but she gave Kenshin a small smile. "I got the chance to say good bye because of you. Thank you."

Maybe it was the quiet of the moment. Maybe it was the way she held his hand. Maybe it was weeks of wanting to act. Kenshin allowed his free hand to reach toward her face and tucked the perpetually unruly lock of hair behind her ear. His fingers lingered as they grazed her neck and her eyes visibly widened. She could feel a chasm being breached and she didn't know what to make of it. But as she saw him lean toward her, she instinctively tilted forward in response. Kaoru could feel his breath against her cheek and she closed her eyes.

But the moment shattered as the shoji to the room was slammed open and Sano rushed in. "They're on their way back." He froze in his step and anything else he was prepared to declare when he saw the scene before him. This was undoubtedly a romantic moment he had barged in on, and Sano couldn't help the smirk as he backed up through the door. "Sorry to interrupt. Take your time."

Shoji door closed and privacy renewed, there was no salvaging the moment. Kenshin sighed but felt himself smile at seeing Kaoru as the one blushing now. "Look who's embarrassed now." When the blush deepened in color, he decided to spare her. Sitting back and out of her personal space, he pushed off the table to stand up. "We better go join the team."

Kenshin offered her a hand to stand and she wordlessly accepted it. Noticing how quiet she was being he decided to bait her. "So what are these private moments you were afraid I peeked at?"

She narrowed her eyes at the question. "Private. That's what they are."

He laughed at the quip and led them out of the room, all the while his curiosity about her 'private moments' grew.