Disclaimer: Let's see… I own a Kenshin CD. Three of them! One's a three-CD case, so I suppose that means FIVE! Oooooooh. And a Kenshin action figure. And a poster… and a wall scroll… and a deck of playing cards… and I'm so pathetic…

Notes: Okay, so this is one of those necessary evils. A transition chapter. *Scary music* Yes, people, this chapter is here solely as a way for me to explain a few things. And I do mean few. That guy I made up? He will never again make an appearance in this story. I don't know why, it just happened that way. Right, so let's move on, shall we?

Haaaahhhhhh! Going to school tomorrow! New school jitters! I won't sleep at all tonight!!! *pops sleeping pills* *pointing finger* Heeeeeyyyyyyy! That's bad for you!!

To the reviewers: Well, since I've gotten more reviews for that last chapter than usual (Thank you, by the way. Thankyouthankyouthankyou! It really does help.) so I moved the responses to the end of the fic. Right… so all those people who just get annoyed at the extensive babble, you don't have to look at it anymore. But I'm gonna continue to respond because it just is so much fun.

On with the story!

Life's a Dance

            Dr. Vincent Schneider was a short, rather portly man in his late fifties. His brown hair was receding, and he styled it into an unconvincing comb-over. He was always dressed impeccably, however, Oxford shirt buttoned to the top, a perfectly starched tie, and pressed pants--either black or navy. His Rolex watch and impressive wedding band showed that he was not for lack of assets. In spite of this, Schneider had a pair of blue eyes that sparkled merrily with good humor or softened when he was serious. He was one of the most successful doctors in the clinic.

            At the moment, Schneider sat in a conference room with his notes spread around him on the table, a tape recorder near his left hand. Beside him sat a man who was not so clean-cut. Hair kept long and in a low ponytail, a visible stubble along his chin and cheeks, Kaji Ryoji was one of the more popular therapists. His easy smile and self-assured bearing made people quick to like him, not hesitant to return. He rarely tucked in his shirt, and then only for important meetings.

            "I don't know, Vinny," Kaji leaned back into his chair and folded his arms behind his head. "Maybe it's better to just leave that one alone."

            "I've asked you not to call me that," Schneider sighed. "I am a psychiatrist, not one of the Godfather's followers."

            "You're getting cranky, Vinny," Kaji smirked. "Why don't you go home for the night. Come in early and finish this up."

            "You've reviewed this boy's files," Schneider looked at the untroubled man beside him, peering over the tops of his reading glasses. "He is seriously disturbed."

            "Of course he is," Kaji sighed and leaned forward to brace his elbows on the conference table. "He's an MPD case. Those are always tricky. But you have already gone through the tragedy with all of his personalities."

            "Not all of them," Schneider countered.

            "What do you mean, not all of them?" Kaji frowned.

            "I think there is another personality," Schneider flipped through his papers and brought one forward. He skimmed the contents, then pointed at one. "At one point or another, each of the personalities has mentioned a man... Battousai."

            "There's a strange name."

            "At first I thought this Battousai was one of the terrorists," the doctor shuffled through his notes again. "Each of the personalities seems to fear the man. Here, Shinta refers to him as a 'scary, empty man.' In another session, Aya spoke of him as 'a shadow. He doesn't care about anything.' Yet another time, Rurouni called him a 'heartless bastard who is less than human.'"

            "Rurouni doesn't like him much, does he?" Kaji commented. "But how does any of that prove that Battousai is one of Kenshin's personalities versus one of the terrorists?"

            "It was just a slight shift in wording that made me start to think about it," Schneider reached for the tape recorder and held down the rewind button. It whirred for a few seconds, and he lifted his finger, then pushed the play button. A soft, husky voice suddenly jumped from the tape player. It was strangely feminine, but undoubtedly Kenshin's voice.

            "--inta was crying. I held him and Kenshin, but Kenshin was asleep, lucky boy... I wanted to say something, but Rurouni pushed me back. He was angry, snarling and violent. He's so protective of us all... Battousai was coming, though, and he was afraid. Battousai is the only thing that scares Rurouni. And then... all I could see was massacre. I was horrified--there was so much blood. All those men were laughing, but they stopped laughing when Battousai looked at them. One of them died. Another man was hurt, I think, before they shot Battousai with a tranquilizer--"

            The tape squeaked to a stop and then back as Schneider pushed the rewind button. It squealed in protest, and he released the button again.

            "--men were laughing, but they stopped laughing when Battousai looked at them. One of them died. Another man was hurt, I think, before they shot Battousai with a tranquilizer. Battousai doesn't care who he kills. He is just a machine, a shadow. He doesn't care about anything--"

            Tape whirring again, briefly, and Schneider let it play.

            "Another man was hurt, I think, before they shot Battousai with a tranquilizer. Battousai doesn't care who he kills--"

            Rewind.

            "Another man was hurt, I think, before they shot Battousai--"

            Schneider pushed stop, and the tape player clicked off. He wrote down the exact words.

            "Aya's own words," he said wearily. "'Another man was hurt, I think.'" He looked at Kaji. "Why wouldn't she know for sure?"

            Kaji rubbed his chin thoughtfully, fingers scraping over his five o'clock shadow. He sighed.

            "If Battousai is one of the personalities, then he would have passed out after being hit with a tranquilizer," he admitted. "And the outcome would never be perfectly clear to him--or any of the other personalities."

            "Precisely," Schneider tapped his pen against his notepad absently. "Which means I'll have to find a way to draw out this Battousai."

            "It might be wiser to learn more about him before you do that," Kaji pointed out solemnly. "If what the other personalities say is true, then he could be a very dangerous thing to confront."

            "Right," Schneider rubbed his eyes wearily beneath his reading glasses. He picked up his papers quickly and stuffed them into the file. "You're right, Kaji. It's time to get some rest. I'm going to call it a night. See you tomorrow."

            "Good night, Vinny."

            Sighing in mild annoyance, Schneider ignored the man and continued out of the conference room, tape player under one arm, his opposite hand holding the file. Stretching languidly, Kaji stood and followed the doctor from the room.

^_^

            Art. It was one of the more interesting classes, if not the easiest. Professor Katsuhiro was a pleasant enough man, if a bit solemn. Sano had taken an immediate liking to the teacher, frequently insulting the man, who would then fondly call him 'idiot.' Kenshin was not so keen about the man, but he respected the teacher as a student was expected to do.

            Kenshin was not what one would call a prodigy as far as artistic talent went, but he had a steady hand and a good eye for detail. Hiko's love of pottery had made him familiar with the workings of clay and the wheel. Katsuhiro's emphasis on realism worked just fine for him, although Sano usually groused about it. In return, Sano often met up with Kamatari's quick, but not always reasonable, tongue.

            "Hey, Kenshin," Sano craned his neck to look over Kenshin's shoulder. They sat next to each other at the art table, drawing and painting what Katsuhiro called 'rough sketches.' Sano's page was blank. Kenshin's was filled with charcoal lines which were rapidly being covered by layers of paint. "Whoa. That's... different."

            "Hmm?" Kenshin looked at him through lidded eyes. "Aren't you going to draw anything, Sano? Mr. Katsuhiro will get on you for that."

            "Oh!" Sano turned back to his own, white page quickly. "Right. Whatever."

            Blinking slowly, Kenshin glanced back at his drawing, tilting his head to look at it curiously, as if seeing it for the first time. He frowned and reached forward, smudging some of the paint up into the background. As he worked, his thoughts drifted, away from his painting.

            Kenshin's first full quarter at Central High School had been a success in the valued opinions of his esteemed therapists and Hiko. They were glad that he had made friends so quickly, was part of school athletics, and made good marks for all of his classes. Plus, he had experienced very few unexpected 'episodes,' which was an accomplishment in and of itself. Now, into his second quarter--the school's third--Kenshin was gaining confidence and popularity. The reporters had long since lost interest in his story, his wild behavior mostly forgotten by the majority of the students and teachers.

            Now, Kenshin had only to finish the final two quarters, and he would graduate with the rest of the students in his class. Considering he had spent a year learning three years' worth of material so that he could be reacquainted with the public school system and graduate on time, the therapists felt this to be a major achievement.

            The schooling was all secondary to Kenshin. He drifted through class, showing up regularly, turning in the proper assignments, and passing tests with ease. His first priority was to solidify and maintain the friendships he had forged only very recently. Thus far, he thought he was doing all right.

            "...you drawing, Kenshin?"

            "Huh?" Kenshin blinked out of his thoughts, quickly pulling his hands away from his drawing lest he ruin it in his momentary confusion. Looking up in surprise, he found Katsuhiro to be leaning over his shoulder slightly, studying the thing Kenshin had spent the better part of an hour on.

            "That is amazing, Kenshin," Katsuhiro stated, noticeably impressed. "By far better than anything I've seen you do. Who is this person?"

            Bewildered and more than a little embarrassed, Kenshin looked back to what he had been painting. He frowned at it. Truth be told, he had not been paying attention to his own actions, letting the back corners of his mind take control. In hindsight, he realized that one of his alternate personalities must have taken advantage of his distraction and taken the charcoal and paint.

            "It's..." Kenshin trailed off, staring at the picture, nearly complete. It was indeed a person--a young man to be more specific. His features were rather delicate, nose fine and slightly sloped, small mouth set into a hard line. Those were not what drew the attention of the observer, though. It was the dull, golden irises of emotionless eyes, framed by strangely colored hair. Wild bangs, not unlike Kenshin's, were shaded brilliant, glowing red that faded into almost brown toward the tip of each lock. The hair itself could have been short or long, for it spread out away from the man's face, becoming the background. Bright red, shading toward brown the farther away from the face it went. One hand, scratched and bruised, reached out toward the viewer, holding nothing--just reaching.

            "Wow, Kenshin!" Kamatari poked his pretty head up between Sano and the redhead. "That's creepy. Someone you know? A relative? He kind of looks like you."

            Kenshin scratched some letters into the drying paint, not fully aware of what he was writing. Sano leaned past Kamatari and read the letters aloud.

            "B-A-T-T-O-U-S-A-I," he glanced at Kenshin and repeated Kamatari's question. "Someone you know?"

            Shaking his head very slightly, Kenshin glanced at his friend.

            "No," he looked back at the drawing. "He is my own creation."

            Sano opened his mouth to question that, thought better of it, and nodded curtly.

            "That's pretty good," he said finally.

            "...Thanks."

            "It's amazing," Katsuhiro broke in. "He reminds me of some photographs I've seen of victims of war. Signs of abuse," his fingers gliding along the painting, tracing the darker overtones of the painted boy's cheek without actually touching it. "The bruises. Cuts... and he is reaching... for what?"

            "He is not a victim," Kenshin said softly. "And he is reaching for anything... anything he can hold without destroying."

            "Pretty active imagination there, Kenshin," Katsuhiro patted the boy's shoulder. "Would you let me put this on display at the year's Fine Arts night?"

            Kenshin nodded silently. The bell rang, and the students all gathered their belongings, clearing their work stations. Kenshin watched as Katsuhiro moved his painting to a safe place to dry. Sano dropped a hand on his shoulder, and Kenshin looked up at him. The taller boy smirked.

            "Come on, Kenshin," Sano suggested. "One more class and we're done for the week. Don't forget... party at Aoshi's place tonight."

            "I won't forget," Kenshin chuckled. "I'll see you later, Sano."

            "'Later, Kenshin."

^_^

            "Not a chance in hell."

            The shift had been very abrupt. One minute, Schneider had been questioning the gentle, kind-hearted Aya, the next, the more easily provoked, protective Rurouni jumped forward to answer the doctor's question. If there was one thing Schneider had learned about this particular persona, it was that he was wildly unpredictable. He could be sweet and cooperative for a time, then shift to the defensive and get rude and downright hostile. It took no effort to figure out how he would act now.

            "I am asking to speak with him, Rurouni," Schneider explained as mildly as he could. "You do not approve?"

            Flinty blue-violet eyes glared at the doctor irately.

            "No man in his right mind ever attempt to talk with Battousai," he said. "Besides, he doesn't talk."

            "Doesn't talk? He's a mute?" Schneider made a small note in his book.

            "Not mute," Rurouni stood and started pacing the room restlessly. "Just silent. I can't explain it, Dr. Schneider. To understand it, you'd have to ask Battousai, but he would sooner tear your throat out than answer you."

            "Is there any way I could get you to agree to this?" Schneider pressed.

            "When I see pigs with wings ice-skating in hell, I will let you know."

            "May I talk with Aya again?"

            "You'll sweet-talk that wishy-washy girl into agreeing to this," Rurouni glared at Schneider menacingly. "As long as I'm around, Battousai will never escape his cage."

            "If he tries something violent, could not you just retake control?" Schneider asked curiously.

            "Easier said than done," Rurouni stopped in front of a mirror, studying his reflection. Doing something less characteristic of Rurouni and more like Aya, he reached back and straightened his ponytail. Clucking his tongue in disapproval, he shook his head and looked back at Schneider. Those bluish eyes had melted into a gentle violet and when he spoke, it was with the feminine tone of Aya. "It's a bit of a group effort, Dr. Schneider. Even Kenshin has to join in and help push Battousai back. Convincing that boy to do anything he doesn't want to do is very difficult. And he does not like to have anything to do with Battousai."

            "Yet he has come out before," Schneider flipped through his notes. "How did you push him back then?"

            "The tranquilizers," Aya said simply. Returning to the chair, she sat down again. She reached back and started braiding thick, red hair. "He would lose interest and go back into hiding."

            "So you won't let me talk to Battousai," Schneider asked dejectedly.

            "I'm afraid I can't, Doctor," Aya smiled apologetically. "He's just too frightening."

            "Is Shinta of this same opinion?"

            "He is," Aya sighed. "Now he's gone and hid himself away. This talk of freeing Battousai has upset him."

            Schneider would not let it go. Surely he could just convince one of them!
            "Just for a few minutes," he suggested. "There is nothing for Battousai to fear here. We are all frien--"

            "Get off it, Doctor," the redhead snapped, slipping into the harsher tones of Rurouni. "You're a psychiatrist, here to make Kenshin 'all better.' We all know he'll never be better. He'll always have us, even if we stay hidden. Besides. Your hour is up. It's time for Kenshin to go home."

            Schneider glanced at the clock and sighed in disappointment.

            "Very well," he relented. "We will finish this discussion next week."

            "Whatever you say, Dr. Schneider," Rurouni said unhappily. "Just unhypnotize Kenshin already."

            "I hate to part on such a bad note," Schneider mumbled.

            With a heavy sigh, Rurouni sat up straighter and smiled halfheartedly.

            "I understand you are just trying to help, Dr. Schneider," he offered, his teeth showing with his next smile. "I am not trying to be uncooperative. I just want to protect Kenshin."

            "I know, Rurouni," Schneider sighed. "I know. Now relax..."

^_^

Notes: *Grin* Anyone recognize the cameo? (No, not the German doctor-person. That's just a dumb take-off on Freud, only without the 'all your problems are because you want to have sex' thing.) Kaji? Anyone else out there like Evangelion? Okay, I'm sure I mixed up his first/last name and stuff, but I don't know… it just seemed like fun at the time.

Okay, so we insert a little bit of Battousai. Just a little mentioning so far…

Battousai: Why do all the other personalities get to talk and I have to sit on the sidelines?

Fitz: Because I said so.

Battousai: That's not a reason! And who the hell is Aya? She's not even one of Kenshin's personalities! You made her up!

Fitz: That's my right as the author.

Battousai: *Sulking* I don't even get to make myself known. I'm cooler than Rurouni anyway.

Fitz: True, but Rurouni is so cute and protective. You're a psychopath.

Battousai: Am not! I'm a sociopath.

Fitz: Whatever.

Reviewers? What reviewers? Oh… Those reviewers! Um, yeah. They're here now.

marstanuki: I will try to keep it within the bounds of 'tasteful.' Yeah, I think it's okay, actually. Nowhere near the realm of hentai. *Points to a gaudy-looking door* That's the door to hentai-world. Isn't it charming? And Okita has become my favorite character. I took so many liberties with him, but oh well. He's my doll. *holds up a plushie of Okita* See?

nemo: Wow. Uhmmm… well you weren't cut off this time. Heehee. A calculus teacher was my tennis coach in high school. Oh, and I don't think track is really a year-round thing. Isn't it something like track for one season and then cross-country for another? *headache* I don't know the difference! So I kept it simple and left it at track.

Clarus: I'm not telling! Yet. Oooooh… hentai mind indeed. Methinks that subject will not be broached in this story. I'm not quite to that level of writing yet. Note that I am blushing.

Koneko-chan: Actually, any guy/girl overnights I went to ended up with people all over the place, and half of us never actually went to sleep. People on the couch, the floor, the beds… we were so tired by that point that we could have been sleeping with a tuna and we never would have noticed. And you are likely wrong in this case, unless I'm totally misunderstanding you. I just can't imagine Shinta flipping some guy twice his size to the pavement. *Hands you a specially made imaginary brownie just for explaining anyway*

Jason M. Lee: Heeeeeeyyyyyyy! *Cuddles Okita protectively* Be nice to my baby! I think we could keep it to a slap instead of a punch, right? You can punch him later.

Opposite: Hi! New reviewer!!! *waves stupid looking pennants and flings confetti* Welcome to my neurotic little party! Misao and uhm… Soujiro seems to be the common one. Aoshi would be sad, though, so I think I'll leave them alone.

Vesca: Here, a little randomness, just for you… and anyone else who bothers to read.

*Kenshin and Kaoru on the couch after his little nightmare thingy*

Kenshin: *Mutters in his sleep*

Kaoru: *Reaches to push his hair out of his face* Gross! I'm supposed to touch you when you're all sweaty?!

Kenshin: Oro?! *Falls off the couch* (Which is a feat because Kaoru is between him and the edge of the sofa)

Kaoru: Go take a shower!

Kenshin: I'm sorry! Feh. Women and their cleanliness fetish.

Kaoru: On the double!!

Kenshin: Eep! *Runs off to shower*

Oryo: What? You mean you don't get to cut up little innocent animals? Whooo… actually I liked that part. I still recall the fun we had with our little rat. And the guys sitting across from us… well, they were just cruel. Poor rat.

mae (times three): Thank you, thank you, and… I didn't think it was cruel. It was your opinion, and I respect that. Actually, you get to know Okita better in later chapters, although Aoshi still remains in the background a bit. And no, I've never even heard of that manga. Where would I find it?