Balance

by Naela

A stranger arrives at the Kamiya residence to stay for an extended period of time. No one knows who he is and Kaoru finds herself intrigued by the man. What no one realizes is that this man has come to Japan on a mission for revenge.

2. Only Red

Balance

By: Naela

Category: AU, Romance, action/adventure, dark

Summary:
A stranger arrives at the Kamiya residence to stay for an extended period of time. Though no one knows anything about him, Kaoru finds herself intrigued by the man. What no one realizes is that this man has come to Japan for a mission of revenge and will stop at nothing until he's complete it.

Author's Notes:

Thanks to all those who reviewed! I greatly appreciate the time and effort you guys took so as thanks, here's chapter two. It took longer than expected but really it was just because I was unhappy with the first version and rewrote the entire thing, then sent it off to my beta reader, Kitt, who sent it back a day later. I was still unhappy with it so I rewrote it again and then sent it back and Kitt sent it back in the same day! My oh my!! Especially since Kitt's a famous author over in the Star Wars fandom and she managed to also update her fic on the same day too. Anyway if you guys are Star Wars fans and enjoy reading fics about Luke and Vader then I suggest you go and check her fic out. Anyway special thanks to her and whew! This is one long author's note.

Disclaimer:

Rurouni Kenshin is copyright to Nobuhiro Watsuki.

Chapter Two: Only Red

Dawn came and out of habit Kenshin rose with the sun. His eyes were still filled with sleep and his mouth tasted awful. He grimaced as he swallowed and glanced over towards the window. Even this early in the morning Tokyo was a city that was always alive.

Brief images of the night before surfaced to his memory. He glanced around him and knew without questioning, where he was. Unlike most people, where it quite often took a few minutes to recall what happened, Kenshin had quick access to his memory and could easily pull out the information he needed.

He pressed a hand against his face, his thumb and pinkie massaging his temple while his index and middle fingers were massaging his forehead. He'd been drunk, a state he found himself quite often in nowadays. While back in America no one cared about his drinking binges, he doubted the people in the Kamiya residence would bear the same attitude.

Stepping up to the door, he locked it, at least that would deter any questioning from the family for a while. Too tired to stand, Kenshin sat on the chair by his desk but felt something poking into his stomach. Annoyed he pulled out his tanto and stared at it. In his drunken state… had he…?

He pulled the dagger from its sheath and felt relief wash over his body when he found the blade clean and glinting at him in the morning sunlight. He probably sat like that for another three hours, letting his mind wander through various thoughts and memories when he heard a knock on the door.

"Uh… Himura-san?" It was a child's voice.

He contemplated remaining silent but finally approached the door. He tucked the tanto underneath his belt and pulled his coat together. "What?" He flung the door open. He had to direct his eyes downwards to make eye contact with the speaker: a boy, no older than ten with spiky hair.

"Ummm… breakfast it ready," the boy replied. "Kaoru just wanted me to tell you…"

Kenshin gave a curt nod. "I'll be there in a few minutes," he replied and closed the door before the boy could say anything else. He threw off his coat and glanced at himself in the mirror, frowning at his dishevelled look. When he was drunk, he was not necessarily clean. Sighing he headed out his room and to the bathroom.

Once he felt clean enough, he joined the Kamiya family at the table. There was no sign of their father, a supposed close friend of Hiko's, not that Kenshin really cared. It was one less person butting into his life. He ate in silence, acutely aware of the stares that the boy was sending towards him. The girl on the other hand was looking at everything but him. He had a brief image in his mind of the Kamiya girl carrying him to his room.

When breakfast was over Kenshin stood up and without a word began clearing the table. He noted the boy's shocked expression. He obviously did not see him as the type who would voluntarily perform domestic duties. The Kamiya girl on the other hand didn't seem to care and went back into her room. The boy however stayed seated and watched him with interest.

Thankfully, the doorbell rang and the boy jumped. "I'll get it!" he exclaimed and rushed to the door. Kenshin stiffened and dropped the dish back into the sink. It was fortunate for him that the water had lessened the plate's impact. At the moment though, Kenshin cared little for the dish and was focused on the person behind the door. His hand went to his belt but quickly pulled it away when he realized the presence behind the door was of no threat. He turned back to the dishes and resumed washing.

"Oh… it's you." Kenshin heard the boy mutter.

"Well hello to you too," it was a girl's voice. Kenshin glanced over his shoulders momentarily to see a girl dressed in a blue skirt and blouse and she had her hair tied back in a loose braid. She stepped into the apartment and paused at the sight of him.

"Oooooooh, is this the guest Kaoru was talking about, Yahiko?"

So the boy's name was Yahiko. Kenshin filed the fact away into the back of his mind. He was surprised when the girl came at his side and gripped his arm. "You've got muscles!" she giggled. "And what a guy! Washing the dishes."

Kenshin tensed under her touch and held back a growl before pulling his arm away. The girl didn't seem to take a hint as she stuck a hand in front of his face.

"I'm Misao Makamachi!" she exclaimed with a large grin on her face.

Brushing the offered hand aside Kenshin turned to face her and gave a formal bow before exiting the kitchenette.

"Hmmm not quite a people person is he?" he heard the girl ask.

"Like I would know," the boy replied. "I only met him this morning. Ugly's in her room by the way so quit bothering me!"

Kenshin was only given a few moments of peace in his room when he heard a light rapping on his door. It seemed no one seemed to want to leave him alone. Grudgingly he opened the door to find both Misao and Kaoru standing behind it. Misao, smiling brightly, was a stark contrast when compared to Kaoru who was scowling at him.

"Father wanted me to show you around Tokyo," she said tersely. "So grab a coat."

Shaking his head, Kenshin began closing the door. "I have better things to do than wasting my time with little girls." He spotted fire in the Kamiya girl's gaze.

It was Misao who intervened, sticking her foot in front the door, she stepped forward and tugged on his arm. "Oh come on!" she exclaimed. "There won't just be girls there… Aoshi-sama's going to be there!"

At the mention of the name, Kenshin froze and cast his gaze down at the girl. "Aoshi?" he questioned.

"Yeah!" Misao exclaimed. "He agreed to take us shopping!"

The thought of the stoic man carrying shopping bags and baby-sitting a pair of young girls made the corner of Kenshin's lips twitch. He held back the smile but reconsidered Kamiya's offer. He had, after all, been without entertainment for quite a while.

***

Kenshin had known long ago that he'd always hated public transportation. Being jostled about and poked at from the back by little kids was far from what he considered comfortable. Especially being in such large crowds. During the years he'd lived in L.A., he'd somehow managed to avoid crowds but now without a car or any sort of resources to put a barrier between him and others, he felt exposed.

"Aoshi-sama will be waiting for us at the next station," Misao informed them over the din of the subway. Kenshin made no effort to acknowledge what she said, though inwardly he was looking forward to meeting Aoshi. He hadn't seen the man for over a decade and back then they used to get along nicely.

The subway stopped and many of the patrons except for Kenshin lurched forward. Already he spotted Aoshi waiting for them through the windows and it was obvious Misao did as well when she screeched and stood in front of the doors, waiting impatiently for them to slide open.

She threw her arms open and engulfed Aoshi in a bear hug. Had anyone tried to hug Kenshin like that he would have been startled but it was obvious that Aoshi was used to this sort of treatment and even gave Misao a light pat on the back albeit an awkward one. His gaze however was on Kenshin. He seemed more pleased than surprised to see him. Kenshin wouldn't have expected any less from the man.

"Aoshi," he greeted, no honorific or even a bow or handshake. Though Aoshi knew that, for Kenshin, even acknowledging his presence was a step over the man's normal level of respect.

"Kenshin," he replied. They'd gone past last name basis years ago.

"Aoshi-sama! Let's go!" Misao exclaimed, tugging on his arm with the patience of a three year old. Kenshin allowed himself a smirk at the comical display. Never in the years he'd known the stoic man had he seen Aoshi let himself be ordered around by a girl like her.

As Aoshi began walking pass them he muttered in a volume that only Kenshin could hear. "We'll talk later."

With that he turned around a corner and disappeared from view. Kenshin shoved his hands into his coat pockets and glanced down at Kaoru who was standing behind him in silence.

He waited.

Kaoru continued staring.

Finally he grunted. "Go," he said.

A trace of confusion was set on her brow but she nodded before walking past him. Without hesitation he followed her, ignoring the many people who were gathering on the platform for the next train. As he predicted, watching Aoshi complying with Misao's demands was certainly entertaining. He smirked as the girl stacked bag after bag into Aoshi's arms while Kaoru went off to find clothing that were more suited to her tastes.

"Hey Himura-san, aren't you going to buy anything?" Misao asked, waving at him from beside Aoshi.

Kenshin turned his head away. His answer was an obvious one. Undeterred Misao approached him and began dragging the fiery red head towards one of the clothing stores.

"Come on!" she exclaimed, "A vacation ain't a vacation unless you spend some money!"

Pulling away from her grip he shot a glare towards Aoshi, who had averted his eyes. He looked too innocent for Kenshin's taste.

"I'm satisfied with what I have," Kenshin replied, allowing the slightest scowl.
"Is that right, Kenshin?" Aoshi questioned. "I believe that's the same coat you were wearing the first time I met you."

Misao gasped at the new information and quickly proceeded to drag the two boys down to the men's clothing department. Aoshi merely glanced away, oblivious to the glares that Kenshin was sending in his direction.

***

It was already sunset when the girls departed on the subway. Kenshin and Aoshi however decided to remain behind. Both sat in a small coffee shop that was set on the highest level of the mall. It gave them both an amazing view of Tokyo.

The waitress came and left, depositing a black coffee for Kenshin and green tea for Aoshi. Both sat opposite of each other though neither seemed to take notice of the view nor care about their drinks. Kenshin wrapped one hand around the mug.

"So, Battousai," Aoshi spoke up. "Is there a reason why you've come to Japan?"

For the first time in many months, Kenshin allowed himself a grim smile. "You know me, Okashira," Kenshin responded. "I always do."

***

Kenshin didn't return to the Kamiya residence until it was well after midnight. The meeting with Aoshi hadn't taken too long and after obtaining the information he wanted, he'd left the Okashira to enjoy his coffee alone. It was trying to go back to the apartment that had eaten most of his time. He'd found, to his dismay, that he had no idea how Tokyo's subway system worked and wasted most of the night riding in the wrong train.

'I'll be needing a car.'

He didn't need to knock to gain entrance to the apartment. Just that morning the Kamiya girl had given him a copy of their key card with instructions to never disturb her family with his drinking. He'd agreed to her terms with silent nods, finding them acceptable.

Slowly closing the door, Kenshin tried his best to enter the apartment in silence. Drunk or not he knew that the Kamiya girl wouldn't take being disturbed on two consecutive nights very kindly. Dragging his feet across his floor, he thought of dropping into bed and surrendering himself to sleep. The thoughts were banished from his mind when Kenshin reminded himself that sleeping was going to be the last item on his list. He'd already been wearing the same clothes for the past two days and desperately needed a shower.

When he entered the living room, Kenshin was surprised to find someone waiting for him in the dark. Seated on the couch with his hands resting on the armrest, was a figure that was barely distinguishable. Without even thinking his hand reached for his dagger.

"You won't need to draw your weapon." The voice was soft yet commanding. The authority of the words stopped Kenshin. Shifting in the darkness, the figure held up two hands, showing that he was unarmed. "You're my house guest, after all."

Knowing instantly who the figure was, he relaxed his stance. "Kamiya…san." He added the honorific with reluctance.

"You're getting soft, Battousai," Kamiya chided like an old teacher to a former pupil. "You should have felt my presence miles away." He stood up, and in the darkness gestured towards an easy chair. Kenshin remained standing, slightly annoyed at the truth behind the man's words. He watched as Kamiya gave a slight shrug and sat again.

They were like that for several moments, both staring at each other in silence. Kenshin's eyes finally began to adjust to the darkness and he could see Kamiya's calm and relaxed form. "You've really grown. I remember when you were just a child." Kamiya paused, and then added, "Hiko's been telling me a lot about you."

"Hiko's… been talking about me?" Kenshin spoke slowly. He saw the man nodding.

"He's told me about… her," Kamiya replied. His calm face became a slight frown. "I'm also very aware of how you've been taking care of yourself these past few days. Since you're staying under my roof, I would appreciate it if you gave up drinking."

Kenshin shrugged. "Fair enough," he replied. He admitted to himself that it'd been a reckless action on his part. No matter his location, there were still many who would have loved to be given a chance to attack him and he didn't make a very good fighter while in a drunken stupor.

"Your presence here poses a great danger for my family," Kamiya continued. His frown became a benign smile. "But since I'm a close friend to yours, it's a risk I take for their sake."

At a loss for words, Kenshin bowed his head. He watched as Kamiya stood and headed for his room. Standing still in the darkness, he wondered if Kamiya's son or daughter were aware of the true reason behind their wealth.

***

Kenshin awoke from a dreamless slumber; it was a rare occurrence but he enjoyed them when they came. Getting up, he went to his window and threw the curtains open. The sky was still dark and the sun was ready to peak over the horizon.

He blinked away sleep and looked at his bed with longing. A few more hours under the covers would have been pleasant but as Kamiya had said, he was getting soft. What better way to toughen up than through training?

He prepared himself by dressing up in his usual training outfit, one of the few clothing items he'd brought over from America. Hiko had told him that he could buy more clothes in Japan and Misao had already helped him out earlier.

Below the apartment was an unused dojo. Apparently the Kamiya family had bought the entire first floor and had it redesigned as a dojo. Practicing kendo was a tradition that ran strong in their family and since he had become engrossed in his business, Kamiya rarely graced the training room with his presence. It was usually the girl or her brother who practiced there. He was sure that the Kamiya family wouldn't mind if he'd used the place for practicing. It'd been nearly a week since he'd last trained and he was certain that his reflexes had degraded. Kenshin could almost hear Hiko berating him with harsh words. One could not become a master without practice.

Kenshin turned towards his rack of swords and picked up a katana, the one he used for training. Each weapon was arranged in order from most used to just being eye candy. Out of the set of swords, Kenshin had only bought three. One was a katana that he normally wielded; another was his wakizashi. The third sword was the one he'd picked up, another katana but one he'd kept solely for training.

Unsheathing the blade, he stared at its cold steal. It'd been polished to the point where it'd reflected his image like a mirror. He frowned as an image formed in his mind's eye. It was the grinning face of a boy holding the hilt of the sword and pointing it at his sister.

Slamming the sword back into its saya, Kenshin let out a low growl. The boy, Yahiko, had come into his room and touched his swords. There was no need to question the fact. A swordsman always bore a deep connection to his weapon and a true swordsman could always tell when someone touched it. The boy's vibrant ki left traces of it on the sword.

Anger boiled in his chest. He felt it rise to his throat and form as a snarl on his lips. No amount of self-restraint could rein it in. It was a type of anger that could only be vented through the blade of his sword.

He ran to the dojo. His mind only focused on expelling his wrath on an opponent. His feet pounded hard on the steps. Every once in a while there'd be a landing with a window that overlooked the city, and had Kenshin stopped to stare at his reflection, he would have noticed the amber shade of his eyes.

The redhead slid the dojo doors open and entered the room. It was built like most of the modern training halls, though Kamiya had gone and made the extra effort of adding in paper walls. Of course they weren't real, if they had been the building would have already collapsed on itself, but it gave the place the authentic atmosphere of a dojo.

Sliding into a battou-jutsu stance, Kenshin's right hand hovered over the hilt of his sword. His left hand clasped the saya tightly. Glaring at an unseen enemy, he coiled his leg muscles and with a flick of his left thumb, his sword flew into the air. Thrusting both sword and saya forward with his left hand he imagined seeing the base of the hilt connecting with a vulnerable part of his opponent's face. If it'd struck an eye then his opponent would be momentarily blinded or if he'd struck the forehead then the other would be dazed. Either way it gave Kenshin an advantage. Bringing his right hand forward, he drew the sword from the saya and with one quick slice he halved his opponent.

Sheathing his sword, Kenshin stepped back and shook his head in disgust. Sparring with shadows was far from satisfying but being a disciple of Hiten Mitsurugi it was impossible to find a worthy partner to train with. Hiko had already given up in training him a while ago, having chosen to focus on his business, and, despite what his shishou said, Kenshin believed that he was ready to learn to the succession technique.

Turning back to his training, Kenshin imagined an opponent charging at him. The shadow drew his sword in a wild arc that left an opening. Taking advantage of the reckless move Kenshin thrust his sword forward, stabbing the other through the heart. Placing both hands on the hilt, he twisted the blade and felt, heard and saw his opponent fall as Kenshin pulled his weapon out of the man's chest.

He exited the gate carrying all that he owned with him. There'd been people there but none of them was a familiar face. It was a crowd of people who were waiting near the exit, all held back by a barrier. Some waved in his direction but the boy knew the gestures weren't meant for him.

Part of the boy wondered what he'd do if he couldn't find the man, the one he'd been sent to. The social workers had taken great pains to send him across the Pacific Ocean, yet none of them considered what to do if his legal guardian had decided not to show.

Tightening his grip on his duffle bag, Shinta threaded his way past the crowd and, like always, he was ignored. He supposed he could approach one of the people who worked at the airport and ask for help. After all it wouldn't hurt to ask them to announce for his guardian to pick him up.

A hand gripped his shoulder. It came out of nowhere and nearly made Shinta jump. He stiffened under its grasp and turned to face the owner of the hand. In the back of his mind he'd already known that it was his guardian but the other half of his mind was too flooded with fear to register the thought.

Grinning down at him was a tall, raven-haired man. Built like a body builder but dressed like a businessman. His expression was filled with confidence and even a certain gentleness but Shinta, being an abnormally perceptive boy, could see that this man was dangerous if he wanted to be.

Leaning forward, the man studied him and nodded once he was satisfied. "You've gotta be Shinta," he stated. "Your red hair's made you famous."

Shinta was trembling under his strong and large hand. Whether or not the other noticed it, he didn't seem to care that he was actually scaring the boy. Frowning at his lack of response the tall man slapped him on the back with enough force to make him wince. "Come on boy, speak! What? Did you bite off your tongue? Are you Shinta or not?"

"…Yes…" The response came out as a squeak.

"So you can talk," the tall man noted dryly though obviously pleased with his previous presumption. "You don't look a thing like your parents."

The boy didn't bother to respond. He'd heard that said too many times for it to be worth wasting his breath. Shouldering his bag, he turned away from the man. He was strange, but there was no doubt in Shinta's mind that he was going to be his guardian. He pondered what living with this man for the next ten years of his life would be like.

"Come on, kid," the man grunted and roughly grabbed the collar of his shirt. "We have a ride to catch. By the way the name's Seijurou Hiko."

Shinta filed the name away in his mind, since he knew he'd be using it quite often. He wondered if the man would prefer to be called Seijurou-san. He glanced ruefully at his guardian's back, thinking that he wouldn't be surprised if the man would insist on having 'sama' thrown in too.

Hiko paused before exiting the airport, noticing Shinta's absence. Glancing over his shoulder, he raised an eyebrow and cocked his head for the boy to hurry. Shinta picked up his pace and nearly had to run in order not to lose sight of the man. He decided, as he excited the airport, that living with such a man would not be very pleasant.

Kenshin had trained for nearly two hours before he decided that it was time to stop. His body was drenched from sweat by that time and his muscles were already aching. This was a regular occurrence and the more he practiced the more at ease his body would be with the vigorous training.

Wiping large beads of sweat off his forehead, Kenshin studied the ruined state of the dojo. The floor was cracked from the many times he'd performed do-ryu-sen and the paper walls had fallen apart, revealing the stonewalls behind them.

'Always be aware of your surroundings and of what you're doing,' Hiko had told him once. It was dangerous to let battle instincts to just take over. Kenshin had learnt that from experience but quite often he found himself forgetting the details around him. He often had to rely on sensing and predicting his opponent to win a battle. Hiko always saw it as a reckless tactic and it'd be his undoing someday. His teacher was probably right but Kenshin would wait until that day came to worry about it.

He shrugged and turned away from the mess. He'd get someone to clean it up once he had the chance. Considering how the Kamiya family rarely used the training rooms, they'd never notice. Leaving the dojo, he began to wearily climb the steps. The muscles in his legs began to knot. There was an elevator, of course, but to risk his life just because he felt lazy was a poor way to die.

Kenshin was surprised when he entered the apartment to find both the Kamiya girl and her brother already awake. He knew that it was still early morning and judging from yesterday, he also knew that the siblings awoke at nine.

"You already went training?" the boy moaned, immediately spotting the sheathed sword tucked beneath the red head's belt.

It was then that Kenshin noticed their school uniforms and realized that they were awake because they were going to school. Casting a furtive glance over their clothes, he decided that the two were attending some upper class institution.

He glanced momentarily at the clock and saw the short hand pointing at eight. If he remembered correctly, school was supposed to start fairly soon for the two. Rather than point out the time, he turned silently on his heel and headed for his room.

Settling back quietly in his seat, Yahiko sent his sister an irritated glance, acting as if the girl was at fault. "Sheesh," he muttered. "He is an ass."

***

The Kamiya siblings had left for school an hour ago, leaving Kenshin to an empty apartment. It didn't take him very long before he emerged from his room and migrated towards the living room. Still stinking of sweat, he sat rigidly in an armchair, the same one Kamiya had tried to offer him earlier, and turned the seat to face the 20" LCD television. With the flick of a switch, the screen was on and he was surfing through the many channels the Kamiya family received. Most of them were useless morning cartoons filled with happy-go-lucky characters and talking hamsters. The thought of watching an over stuffed balloon with eyes too large for its face almost made Kenshin shiver.

After finally deciding to settle on a sports channel, which at the moment was showing a feature on Kendo, Kenshin lowered the volume and sat back. Though physically he was there and watching the show, his thoughts weren't absorbing what he was seeing. All he could picture was his home back in L.A. and working in the garden with her by his side.

There was a thump on the door that was followed by a loud curse. Kenshin's hand flew for his katana, only to snatch at thin air. He silently berated himself, having realized that he had left his weapon in his room. It was only after several moments, when he heard more cursing from behind the door that Kenshin relaxed. He recognized the voice, or more correctly, the vulgar language used. Kenshin went to the door and, with one twist of his wrist, he had it open. Before him was Sanosuke, hopping around on one foot like a mad rooster.

Kenshin leaned against the frame, waiting for the taller man to acknowledge him. Waiting seemed an impossible endeavour when it became apparent that Sano was more preoccupied with his injured foot than with the man standing before him. Crossing his arms against his chest, the redhead narrowed his eyes at the man.

"Sano," he said.

His voice caused the other man to stop his wild hopping and colourful curses. Sano's head bobbed up much like a rooster's would, and with a dumbfounded expression on his face he cleared his throat and straightened. Shoving his hands into his pockets Sano threw Kenshin a wry smirk.

"Heeeey Kenshin," he greeted, approaching the redhead, and he thumped him on the shoulder. Kenshin grunted and brushed the other's hand off him with mild distaste. Knowing how much it'd annoyed him, Sano laughed.

"I should have known that your disappearance a few months back had something to do with my move," Kenshin muttered. "Hiko sent you."

Sano gave him a half shrug. "Just making sure you stay outta trouble."

"I don't get in trouble, Sano."

Kenshin's comment elicited another hearty laugh from the rooster-head. It truly was a fitting name for him, Kenshin wondered momentarily where the nickname came from and remembered faintly back in the days, when Sano had been a fresh amateur to the group and fouled up a mission. Hiko had shouted coarsely at the man and in the middle of his ranting he'd searched for an insult. He came up with a perfect one and it'd stuck.

Noting the dangerous glint in the redhead's eyes, Sano quickly sobered. "I just came by to drop off a package you left in L.A.," he said. Pulling a small, brown package from his pockets, he threw it to Kenshin who caught it with ease.

Studying the box, he glanced up at Sano questioningly. "Where did you get this?"

"Hiko sent it to me," Sano said in a tone of disinterest. "Why the hell he sent it to me and not you is beyond me but that's your master."

Running a hand over the box's rough surface, Kenshin nodded slowly. It was apparent that he wasn't listening to the other man. He was instead focused on the package. He knew what was inside, he'd been the one who'd put the contents inside the box and at the last moment he'd left it behind. Just as he was about to enter the apartment, Sano held out a hand and easily stopped the door from being closed. Glancing sharply at him, Sano gave the red head a large grin. "Not gonna invite a friend over for lunch?"

Never mind the fact that it was still morning or the fact that it wasn't Kenshin's right to invite guests over; it was just Sano's nature to free load. The redhead had never figured out the reason why, since he knew personally of the man's paycheck, but he had the question thrown at him often and even expected it. Nodding, he stepped back into the hall and slammed the door. Sano's hand had been millimetres away from being crushed.

"We'll eat out," Kenshin said when he saw the other's confused expression.

"Huh? What about the T.V.?" Sano questioned. He jerked a thumb towards the door. He was unfazed by the close encounter between his hand and the door.

"Leave it." Kenshin was already down the hall before he paused at the stairwell. He glanced at the man and said, "We're going shopping afterwards."

Raising his eyebrows, Sano ran to catch up with the redhead. "Shopping?" he echoed.

***

"God… I hate biology!" Misao moaned.

Kaoru rolled her eyes and restrained herself from glancing at her friend. She knew the reason for her misery, an important biology test on viruses and bacteria, and in truth, she felt little sympathy for her friend. If Misao actually took the time to study she would passed the test.

"It wasn't that hard."

"Oh you're talking, Miss I-Have-Nothing-Better-To-Do-But-Study-And-That's-Why-I-Get-Top-Mark," Misao retorted.

 "Sheesh, will you two just shut up?" Yahiko muttered.

Both girls stared at the boy, both had their hands clenched, both had murderous looks in their eyes but before they could even land a punch, the boy's attention was captured by something else. His stance straightened and he quickly broke off into a run. Misao and Kaoru stared after him in confusion before running after him.

"Hey!" Kaoru exclaimed, as she found her brother standing at the front of their building, his hands pressed against the window of an expensive looking car.

"Oh…!" Misao exclaimed and was quickly at Yahiko's side, peering eagerly inside the vehicle.

Kaoru rolled her eyes. Sure it was nice and it was in a pleasant shade of red but she couldn't understand people's obsession with cars. A car was a car after all. They were all the same. Pausing behind the two, she coughed indiscreetly.

Realizing that both Misao and Yahiko were too lost in their fantasies, Kaoru sighed and headed for the apartment. "I'm going upstairs," she informed them, though she doubted that the two had heard her.

***

The box had been in his pocket since Sano had given it to him, crushed by the many times he'd sat on it, though Kenshin cared little about the contents being damaged. What was inside held little value to him and they could have caught on fire for all he cared.

He sat on the floor, beside his bed, with the rack of swords hanging above his head. The box was placed before him, squashed and with its edges bent.

'I don't care about what's inside it. I don't care about her.'

His hands flew forward, snatching the box. With a lightning quick speed he was able to tear it open. Much of its contents spilled forward, photographs rained from the box, all of them holding images of a dark haired women who smiled at him with eyes that were shaded by her bangs.

There were over a hundred pictures of her in the box, some of them were group photos, others were just of her alone. One had her standing in front of a building, dressed in silky white. Each photograph held a memory that he could see clearly. He had taken most of them and she'd reluctantly posed for the camera. Yet not even a camera could ever capture the entirety of her beauty, her spirit, her life force. That was what the camera had missed.

When he came to the last photo, he put them aside. His attention was drawn back towards the box and to the violet cloth that'd been left on the bottom. Her favourite shawl, one she'd owned before he even met her, and she'd always worn it. The cloth had taken in her scent and even as he held it he could smell the white plum perfume she preferred to wear.

Crawling to the post of his bed, Kenshin wrapped the shawl around it and sat on the back of his legs to admire how it contrasted the dark red wood.

"Tomoe…" Her name escaped his mouth in a soft whisper. It'd been a name he'd refused to speak in nearly ten years. He made a note to thank Hiko for sending the package over.

The slam of a door dragged Kenshin from his memories. With slight irritation he turned away from the shawl. There were heavy footsteps, almost as if someone was stomping around. He knew that it was the Kamiya girl, back from school; he wondered if the girl always entered rooms with such loud flourish. The stomping steps became louder and soon resided as the girl passed by his door.

Silence followed when she entered her room. Kenshin glanced at the scarf and no longer felt like thinking of her knowing that he was no longer alone. Sighing, he moved over to his window and opened it. He leaned against the sill and stared silently outside.

The silence was broken when the girl left her room and began knocking on his door. He ignored it but it persisted. Holding a hand against his forehead, he frowned. The girl was definitely determined.

"What?" he growled, loud enough to be heard through the walls.

"Himura-san…" the Kamiya girl's voice floated through the door. "Did… did you prepare lunch?"

Rolling his eyes, Kenshin gave a curt nod only to realize that she wouldn't have seen it. "Yes," he replied. What kind of a stupid question was that? Of course he did, didn't she see it lying on the table? Well, really he didn't prepare it himself, and had picked it up on his return home but he didn't think she needed to ask the question in the first place.

"Oh… uh… thank you," she stuttered.

Kenshin didn't respond and stayed rigid until he heard her footsteps walk away.

Soon the boy returned, with another that Kenshin identified as the Misao girl. He could hear them chattering away in the kitchenette. He had no intention of joining the group but despite what Kenshin would have liked, there was no way for him to stay in his room for very long. Even with the window open, it was still stuffy and there was no miniature bathroom for him to use without needing to interact with other humans. Since Hiko had been so thoughtless about his living arrangements, he'd been given a place to stay with an annoying family who enjoyed pestering him with questions.

Just as soon as he stepped out of his room en route to the bathroom he was belted by a barrage of questions from Yahiko and Misao who were both jumping around and yammering on about a car. He knew immediately what the two were talking about.

"It's my car," he replied.

Their eyes widened and even Kaoru, who had been sitting at the table, glanced up at him in shock. Kenshin somehow managed to stare at all three at once and all three glanced away, unable to meet his intense gaze.

"When did you get a car?" Kaoru asked.

"This morning," he said. "I went looking around and saw one I liked."

"But… how did you get it so fast?" Misao exclaimed. "Don't you need to wait a few days for it to be registered or something?"

Kenshin shrugged. "I have my ways."

They stared dully at him, but Kenshin, this time, turned his back on them. It was true he had his ways. He had many ways in getting what he wanted but fortunately for the car dealer he'd opted for a less bloody method.

As he walked towards the bathroom, he paused at the window and glanced out to see his car. It was a shade of dark red. Cars didn't excite him as much as other people, but he did feel proud of owning a vehicle like the one below him. What had Sano called it? Ashton Martin Vanquish, yes, that was it.

"That one," Kenshin said, pointing towards the car that'd caught his eye since they'd entered the building. His sudden voicing interrupted the heated argument that Sano and the salesman had been in. They turned to stare at him blankly.

"That… car?" Sano stared at the vehicle he was pointing at. His face paled as he recognized the model and knew immediately how expensive it was. "Ah… Kenshin, are you sure?"

The redhead stared at him causing Sano to shrug. "All right, your choice."

The salesman, also recognizing the model and its expense, quickly put on a grinning mask that was frightening enough to scare children away. Just as he was about to approach the redhead, Kenshin glared him away.

"I want to see it in front of my apartment in two hours," Kenshin told the man.

"Ah… Kenshin, I don't think you know how this works…" Sano began.

"Two hours," Kenshin snapped. "Make it happen, Sano."

Sano frowned but silently agreed. Both he and the salesman walked away to go through all the necessary arrangements in the dealer's office. Kenshin was left alone in the display room. His gaze drifted towards the car and, slowly walking towards it, he reached out a hand and touched its cool surface. Moments later Sano returned, looking agitated.

"It's being set up," he informed Kenshin. He frowned when he realized that the redhead was barely paying attention to him. "What possessed you to want this car so badly?"

Kenshin's gaze never left the car but with a clear voice he said, "It's red."

Sano's frown deepened. "So?"

"It'll hide the blood well."

End Chapter Two

To the people who reviewed my fics:

Leigh: Thank you! I'm glad you liked my fic, I spent some time trying to figure out a workable plot. lol

AngelsExist: Thanks! ^_^

nemo: Yeah, I'll admit that most of the characters in this fic are a bit OOC but its hard to Kenshin to act like Kenshin when really he's Battousai and is pretty  much your basic moody anti-social. Oh and there's definitely gonna be romance in this.

baru-chan: Eh well I see no reason to hide this… Kenshin left Japan when he was young (as you shoulda read in this chapter ^_~) to live with Hiko, who runs a 'business' in America. Kenshin came back to Japan for well… read the summary. Oh and about In the End… ehehehehe nervous shifty glance.

Val: lol no mystery was really intended but I guess the first chapter would be mysterious. Kenshin is Kenshin to quote Kaoru, no matter what, well ok he's a little Battousai too.