Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah. I know. I don't own 'em. I've begged and pleaded, and they won't let me have them. They won't let me buy them either. Apparently the 37 cents leftover from my lunch money won't cut it.
Notes: I am pleased people like this. Not much to say here. Some female talk. *Gasp* Breasts!
Calger459: You're talking about that story Prism, right? I like that story! And I liked the one before that. Keep writing. I'm looking forward to the next installment. *runs off to admire little Shinta*
shiomei: Admittedly, Kenshin makes a nice femme guy. I guess I'm just taking the femme part to the extreme. I'm glad you like the story even if Kenshin is a girl.
Path of the Sword
2. Check up
Kaoru studied herself--himself--in the looking glass. There were definitely some differences. One, she was taller. She liked that a lot. The difference was not extreme; she was about the height that Kenshin usually was, perhaps a couple of inches taller. Another thing was her face. While she could never consider the face handsome, it was more masculine than before. A slight change in the curvature of her jaw, an arch to her brow, something made her look more like a man than a woman. A pretty man.
Kenshin had helped her with her hair that morning. Wearing it down or in its usual ponytail would have been inappropriate for a man, so she had asked her husband to help her figure out a more masculine style. She had starkly refused to put it in a low ponytail like Kenshin's usual style, declaring that she did not like the hair against her neck. So now it was up in a samurai's topknot, just a little higher than her usual ponytail.
If there was one thing about being a man that Kaoru liked, it was that she could dress like one. Her own hakama was a little too short for her, so she borrowed Kenshin's. It was not much better, but at least it was not up around her calves. She noted that the ties to his hakama were too short, but she adjusted by not tying it in the usual bow. The gi she had was fine, so in a blue gi and white hakama, she emerged from the room.
Kenshin was still in his yukata, looking very ill as he sat against the wall in the kitchen. Kaoru smiled, sympathetic. She knew what it was like to have morning sickness. It was as miserable as he looked.
"Kenshin, would you like something to eat?"
He glared at her balefully, and Kaoru giggled.
"Sorry."
"I never knew you could be so nasty, Kaoru," Kenshin grumbled.
"Why aren't you dressed?" she knelt beside him, automatically checking his face for a fever.
Kenshin blushed darkly and glanced away, muttering softly. Kaoru leaned forward.
"What?"
"I said," he growled. "I don't know how."
Kaoru burst out laughing, earning another glare from her husband. That prompted her to break down into another fit of giggles. His glare simply did not have the same effect when he looked so delicate and feminine. And with that blush spreading across his cheeks, he was far more cute than threatening.
"I supposed you want to bind the breasts," she predicted.
Now a nice shade of crimson, Kenshin nodded silently. Kaoru grabbed his hand and pulled him back to their bedroom. She spent the next half hour teaching her husband how to dress like a woman. Of course, she had never bound her breasts while dressing in a kimono, but Kenshin was not used to the extra weight around his chest, and they did get a little cumbersome when moving around too much.
"I'm jealous, Kenshin," Kaoru murmured as she helped him into the long kimono.
"Why is that, Kaoru?"
"You've got a better figure than I had."
Kaoru spent the next ten minutes being chased around the dojo by her very feminine husband.
^_^
Early in the morning was never a busy time at the clinic. It was a rare occasion when someone came calling for a doctor. When it happened, it was usually an emergency. Thus, when Megumi heard her name being shouted from the waiting room, she automatically assumed the worst. She rushed out into the large room.
A young couple stood in the room, neither person of whom was familiar to her. The man was just shorter than Megumi, with long black hair and blue eyes. Beside him was a young woman with hair that startling red of Kenshin's hair, and pretty violet eyes. Megumi blinked. The woman could have easily passed as Kenshin's sister.
"Hello," she said cautiously, studying the woman openly. "I'm Megumi. What can I do for you?"
She mentally ticked off the details, one by one. They were obviously here for the woman's sake. She was pale to the point of looking almost sickly. Her eyes were wide and anxious, and the man seemed to be helping her stay on her feet.
"Megumi-san," the man stepped forward, hugging the woman closer to his side. "This is going to sound strange, but..."
^_^
Megumi looked back and forth between Kenshin and Kaoru, trying to decide whether to be worried or to burst out laughing. She settled for soft laughter. It was funny. Kenshin in a dress, Kaoru as a man, and both of them distressed over how to deal with it. It was impossible, but here they were, proving the impossible to be true. The doctor in her was intrigued.
"I wouldn't believe it if Ken-san did not have such distinct looks," Megumi managed between giggles. "You two always manage to get yourselves into some kind of trouble."
Kenshin and Kaoru had identical expressions of apprehension on their faces. Megumi decided that she had tortured them enough... for now.
"First off, we'll have to make certain that the baby is okay," she smiled broadly at Kenshin. He cringed.
"Ano... what does that involve?" he asked, his voice small and uncertain.
"Ohohohoho!"
"Megumi-san!" Kaoru growled. "Be nice to him!... Her!"
"Kaoru!"
"Sorry."
"You have nine months to be a woman, Ken-san," Megumi grinned slyly. "You might as well start getting used to it."
She reached out and caught his hands, pulling him toward the examining table.
"Oro!"
Megumi did not miss a beat, pushing the female Kenshin onto the table and gently maneuvering him onto his back. He looked like a frightened rabbit, ready to leap from the table at a touch.
"Relax, Ken-san," Megumi waved Kaoru over, who immediately went to Kenshin's other side and clasped his hand gently. Megumi smirked. "You can even remain dressed for this part."
"What are you going to do?" Kenshin demanded, his hand clenching spasmodically over Kaoru's, making his wife wince. He jumped as Megumi's hands slid over his waist, reaching to push the obi aside. "Hey!"
"Kenshin," Kaoru touched Kenshin's shoulder, pushing him back down. His wide eyes darted to stare at her. She smiled warmly. "Anata, it's a routine examination. She'll feel for the baby in your stomach. It's okay. Really."
"I want to be sure everything is in order," Megumi added. "If you're really carrying the child, then we'll have to check this frequently. You're not exactly a typical woman."
His eyes went narrow in annoyance, but he took a deep breath and relaxed back on the table. When Megumi's hands glided over his waist again, he twitched but did not move otherwise. Clamping his eyes tightly shut, he concentrated on breathing while Megumi pressed hard into his stomach, feeling for the fetus.
"Ah, there you are," Megumi smiled warmly. She looked up to Kaoru, who was watching with interest. "The baby seems to be just fine. Whatever happened to make this switch, it turned out all right. Ken-san's carrying the baby, just as any woman should."
Kenshin opened his eyes, a little hopeful. Lifting his head slightly, he looked back and forth between Kaoru and Megumi.
"So everything's okay?" he asked.
"You're very healthy," Megumi grinned. "For a young woman."
He sighed and let his head thunk back to the table. Kaoru looked at Megumi worriedly.
"About that, Megumi-san..."
"You want to know if this is all as real as it looks, do you?" Megumi tittered. "It looks real enough to me."
Kaoru scowled, only Kenshin's solid grip on her hand preventing her from grabbing Megumi's apron and shaking the woman angrily.
"It's not proper for a man to strike a woman, Kaoru-chan," Megumi grinned. "You should remember that. So no hitting Ken-san. Especially now that he's in such a delicate condition."
"Megumi-dono," Kenshin sat up, quickly placing himself between Kaoru and the lady doctor. He frowned at the woman who was teasing his wife. "Will you at least let us get used to this before you start provoking Kaoru?"
"Ohohohoho!"
Kenshin and Kaoru exchanged long-suffering glances and waited for Megumi to finish. Finally, the woman stopped laughing, and she grew serious, with only a slight smirk.
"Kaoru-chan, I'd like to examine you first," she said, gesturing to the next room. "It'll be a routine physical examination. Ken-san, I'm sure, can tell you that nothing terrible will happen."
'Ken-san' decided not to mention that he always went to Dr. Gensai when he was required to take off more than his shirt. Which was another thing that brought him up short. He had a woman's body, but his mind was definitely his own--with male thoughts and all. It was awkward, having breasts and the usual woman's body parts. He had never been particularly conscious of his body before, but now he was extremely aware of how he looked.
Kenshin smiled when he heard Kaoru's angry shout coming from the next room. No doubt Megumi had made some inappropriate comment. But he had other things to think about at that moment--like where the nearest washroom was. He dashed out of the room, rapidly found the latrine, and threw up.