Disclaimer:  Rurouni Kenshin isn't mine.  So sue me.  Or don't. 

Author's note:  MASSIVE apology: this update has been something like a century in coming, I've been working on this chapter for so long it's kind of ridiculous.  But I actually really like how it turned out in the end, so…  Well, I hope you like it, too.

  I will strictly avoid leaving that kind of a gap before updating in the future, though I had various things to deal with (exams, stupidly solid writer's block, general busy-ness).  Thank you for your support and encouragement, I really am so grateful that you've been so patient with me on this story. 

  Well, enjoy!  That's what you're here for!  ^_^

Ice and Chaos

 Eleventh

  "Want to go out on Friday?"

  "You know, that'd be- oh crap, I forgot."

  "What?"

  "My dad's got this benefit thing, and he's dragging me along."

  Sou paused to think for a moment, tapping his foot on the carpeted floor.  Or rather, he'd already had the idea: he just wondered what Misao would think.

  "Want me to save you?" he asked finally.

  "In what way?"  Sou could hear the intrigued smile in her voice.  He knew exactly what look would be on her face right then.  He found himself smiling, too, a little smugly.

  "I could be your knight in shining armour: go along with you.  What do you say?" he smiled.

  "That'd be fantastic, Sou!  Wait a second…  Aren't your parents going?"  Misao's relief turned to suspicion.

  Sou found himself scratching his cheek guiltily, despite the fact that Misao couldn't see him down the phone line.

  "Yeah…"

  "And you were asking me if I wanted to do anything that night?"  Misao started laughing.  "Now I get it," she chuckled.

  "You know I don't like trussing myself up in a suit," Sou protested.  "Besides, I'd heard from my parents that you and your dad were going, so I thought I'd try and save us both."

  "Very noble of you, Sou.  But it seems we're in this one together.  At least if the worst comes to the worst, we can cover each other's backs when we get surrounded.  We won't go down without a fight!"

  Sou's smile broadened.  "Just what I was thinking, Misao."

  "So, you'll be 'trussed up in a suit'?"

  Sou sighed.  "Unfortunately."

  He could practically hear Misao thinking.  He waited, wondering what she was up to. 

  "You know, it doesn't have to be any old suit…" she said at last.

  "What do you mean by that?" he asked curiously.

  "Well, let's just say I've thought of a way to brighten up the evening a little."

  Sou didn't know whether to be intrigued or worried.  Misao had a knack for weird ideas, sometimes.  At other times, she could be positively ingenious.

  "Don't worry, I'll take care of it.  Just keep Wednesday's post-school hours free for a bit of shopping," she added mysteriously.

  "Okay," agreed Sou slowly.  His smile remained, despite himself.  He had a feeling Misao would succeed in making Friday fun.  She had a way of brightening up most days.

  Sou was still smiling to himself and shaking his head as he hung up.

  Ven sat watching TV as his sister drew.  The news was on.  Ven liked to keep abreast of things: he always had.

  Maree sat on the other end of the sofa to her brother, glancing up at him occasionally.  He was sitting quietly, arms folded in a comfortable, rather than a threatened or threatening way, eyes forward.  Some people found it hard to sit still for very long.  Ven could sit in almost exactly the same position for hours.  He rarely felt restless.

  He was used to his sister's presence, and the way she glanced up at him that way as she drew.

  Neither spoke.  The low sounds of the news hummed through the large space in the building, filling the hollowest levels of the silence.  Maree's carefully moving pencil filled another layer. 

  Minutes slipped easily by.

  Maree finished off her brother's usual calm face, and began to add in the faint outline of a gentle figure behind him.  The figure had long dark hair and a smooth young face, with eyes closed in some form of sadness.  Her slender arms reached out as if to hold Ven.  The wings that sprouted gracefully from her back were fainter yet than her body, barely visible in lines of grey lead on the clean paper.

  Aoshi walked in, making his way across the living area to the kitchen, his path taking him behind the sofa where the siblings sat quietly.

  Aoshi could be heard taking a glass from a cupboard and pouring a drink, before he walked back to stand behind the sofa.  He stood there in silence for a minute, watching the TV with Ven, before he went back to his room.

  Ven kept watching the news.  Maree let her pencil rest on her paper for a while.

  "We're going to the Cartoon again on Friday.  You gonna come?" Ven asked.

  Aoshi walked with a long, easy stride along the pavement.  "Sure," he said finally.  He looked up at the clouds that scudded across the sky, miles overhead.  Where visible, the sky was a mellower, heavier blue than the cornflower of high summer.  The breeze that urged the pair on was not too cold, but hardly warm.  Aoshi felt goose bumps rise on the back of his neck as an extra strong gust whirled past him.

  He reached up to pull up his collar.

  "Have you had much going on here lately?"

  Ven never played dumb.  "A little.  There are some guys from Reigate who like to cause trouble now and then.  Haven't seen them in a while, though."

  Aoshi just nodded.

  Ven's leather jacket flapped back as the breeze strengthened and fell away into a gentle whisper once more.

  "Wanna tell me what happened yet?"

  Ven had a way of asking direct questions in a very unthreatening manner.  Aoshi knew he didn't have to answer.  Ven knew it too.

  Aoshi shook his head, but it was a thoughtful shake, rather than a denial.  "I guess there's no point staying somewhere when there's no one to stay for."

  Silence fell between them as Ven accepted and deciphered the reply.  A cloud skittered across the fringes of the sun, making the light fall dim for a few seconds.

  "I guessed it must be something like that." 

  Aoshi only stared at the pavement, brow low, an unreadable look on his face.

  Ven sighed suddenly, his tone moving forward.  "But you know, you can stick around here.  Long as you want.  No worries.

  "It's not like anyone has to only have one family their whole life.  Just make a new one." 

  Aoshi felt his footsteps stop short.  Ven kept walking, shoving his hands into his pockets as he moved ahead with that easy, long stride of his.  Aoshi stared at the back of his head for a moment, scrutinizing his dark hair as if searching for an answer to something.

  Ven stopped a few paces ahead, and half-turned to look at Aoshi.  "Aren't you coming?"

  Aoshi let a small snorted breath escape his nose as a curious half-smile tugged at his lips.  He let his solid stride take him after Ven.

  "You look smoother than grease itself."

  Sou smiled a little confusedly.  "Is that a compliment?"

  Misao grinned at him enthusiastically.  "Of course it is!  Now come on, sweep the hat off, show me what you can do!"  Her sparkling blue-green eyes watched him as he nervously kept his smile in place.

  "I really don't think…."

  Misao shook her head at him and grinned.  "I was only kidding, I know you're not much of an exhibitionist, despite all my ploys to make you that way."

  She grabbed his hand and tugged him out to his car.

  They were soon on their way to the benefit Misao had hated the thought of only a week earlier.

  The main reception room was enormous, and full of people in black tie get-up, as well as women in elegant evening gowns.  A huge chandelier glittered and sparkled way above the heads of the crowd, sending tiny rainbow spots skittering lightly across the walls and ceiling prettily.

  Misao didn't stop to be impressed: she'd seen this kind of thing enough times before.  She'd be bored and annoyed already if it weren't for Sou's company.  He didn't often attend these things, but when he did, it made Misao feel far more able to bear it all for an evening.

  They'd barely entered the room before Misao lead Sou to the dance floor, and Sou took the reigns from there, as he always did, a perfect gentleman as he lead his lady through the dance.  Misao's dress was akin to a Victorian styled gown, with full sleeves and sweeping skirts, as well as a wide off the shoulder neckline that accentuated her creamy skin and allowed room for her hair, which she'd arranged half swept up, the rest in glossy ringlets that fell dark and heavy and shining against her back.

  She looked absolutely stunning: the belle of the ball, truly.

  Sou's top hat and tails matched his partner's style of clothing perfectly, and Sou couldn't help grinning widely at the fact that one of Misao's impulsive ideas had actually worked: amazingly well, in fact.

  The attention they were receiving was pretty flattering: young men kept turning to look at Misao as she swept by, taking in her beautiful azure eyes and sweet, enthusiastic smile, while young ladies watched Sou with interest as he guided his dark-haired beauty effortlessly through the steps of their dance.

  It only made the picture more perfect that Misao's dress was a deep rich blue that brought out the darker hues of those sparkling eyes of hers.

  One, two, three dances flew by, along with pauses for a little champagne, for the pair of smiling friends without their noticing one pair of eyes, in particular, giving one of them more attention than anyone else in the room.

  It was as the third dance ended that the young man approached and requested Misao's hand, bowing politely to Sou in apology and flashing Misao a wide grin.  He could only be described as dashing: with glimmering blond hair, shining green eyes and a well-cut suit that took full advantage of his lean figure.

  Sou, while a little surprised, allowed the cut-in, and went back to the wall to lean easily against the ivory plaster and watch the show as it played out on the dance floor.

  Misao was easily traceable, a shorter, raven-haired beauty in soft, deep blue amidst a crowd of women in black and white, red and gold dresses.  Every now and then, tiny crystals in her jet hair would flash in the light of the chandelier, looking like stars in the sky against her dark locks, which swung in heavy coils as she turned in the movements of the dance.

  Her partner was almost as striking.

  He led Misao with easy grace through the dance, his hands grasping her little waist gently and alighting upon her bared shoulder with a feather-light touch.  His head was slightly inclined so that his face gazed down into Misao's, and his smile was free and pleasant-seeming.

  His golden hair made him appear almost angelic.

  The Cartoon was busier than usual that evening.

  The reason was soon apparent.

  Ven set a steadying hand on Matt's shoulder, and Matt allowed some of the intense dislike to subside from the expression on his face.  Kieran looked unimpressed, but unwilling to act on his feelings.  Ethan only stared coldly, and Maree stood by his side, looking small and dark and fierce beside his tall aloofness.

  For a fleeting moment, Aoshi wondered if he usually looked the way Ethan looked just then: cold and distant.  He probably did.  He didn't really care.

  He spotted the group from the direction of the stares of the people around him.

  Near the bar, on the fringes of the crowds in front of the stage, stood a group of four young men, all laughing loudly at something and holding pints in their hands.  They seemed normal enough, really.

  But they were not welcome: especially not when Ven and his group were there.

  As the group by the bar caught sight of Ven and those with him, their laughter died away into the throbbing beat of the band's rock music, and the hostility in the air became almost instantly palpable.  It pulsated through the smoky dimness of the room in time to the angry music from the stage, though the crowd jumped on, glasses were still lifted and drained and conversations went ahead unhindered.

  It was only the few involved who felt the rising antagonism in the shady closeness of the Cartoon.

  As the man who had been speaking to Sou moved away with a genial farewell, the younger man blinked.  He searched the dance floor with his placid grey-blue gaze, but he couldn't see Misao. 

  The dance came to an end, and Sou felt a slight anxiety crease his smooth brow.

  "Come with me."

  "Where are we going?" Misao asked curiously.  Her ocean-coloured eyes kept track of the expressions that played across the face of her green-eyed companion.  He didn't answer right away.

  Before Misao knew it, the sounds of the ballroom had faded away behind, as the young man with her led her to a small alcove in one of the grand hallways that adjoined the giant reception room.

  Misao vaguely heard her full skirts rustle as she found herself pressed against a curtained wall.  The thick red velvet cushioned her back with pleasant softness, and Misao wondered what exactly was happening.  Her feet felt a little tired from the dancing and her head a little fuzzy from the champagne she'd had more than one glass of already that evening.

  It was when a hand slid smoothly around her waist that Misao's attention snapped back into focus somewhat.

  His body leaned slightly against Misao's, and his head dipped ever so slightly to capture her gaze.

  "What are you-"

  Misao's sentence died on her lips as the young man's free hand moved to trace a line delicately up her arm, over the pale curve of her shoulder, up her neck and along the soft curve her cheek, which was blushing a slight rose, whether from the warmth of the hall, the exercise of the dance or something else, only she knew.

  "You are so beautiful…" 

  Misao took a quick, surprised breath as the man lowered his face to Misao's.

Author's note:  Came back with a cliffie, it seems.  ^_^  I like cliffies, though I won't expect you to, so sorry for that.  But hey, it's exciting, isn't it?  I thought it was about time I got the pace back into gear, you see.  Hope you liked it.  ^_^

  Well, it should get pretty exciting from here on in, really.  For a while, at least.  I still don't know how long exactly this fic will be, but I'm thinking we're probably around the halfway mark, or close to it.

  Well, let me know your thoughts!  And no flames on the situation with Misao, okay?  I mean, this is what cliffies are about- not knowing how the scene actually turns out yet…  *wink*  *cackle of glee*  ^_^

Notes to reviewers:

Thank you to FlameSolo (Yes, I wanted to put Misao in Maree's place in that dance…  Twas not to be, I guess.  But fluff and stuff has to be on the horizon, right? *grin*), Cat H (Thanks for the note about Misao's photo and the line- I'm glad you saw it the way I wanted it seen, you know?  ^_^  And I'm very glad you have faith in my fic's couplings.  ^_^  Few do, it seems!  And yes, more of Sou in this chapter- hope you liked it.  I love Sou!  *glomps poor defenceless smiling guy* ^___^), ceres17 (Yes, only the three of them are RK characters.  That's a deliberate decision from me: there are squillions of fics with loads of cast members- which is cool, definitely, and I have other fics doing the same thing- but that's why I wanted something a bit different, that's focused on a specific pair/trio of characters.  Sorry if you don't like it, but that's what this fic is and how I want it, so I hope you like it all the same ^_^), nekonomiko (Yes, left up to me!  *grin*  I have a couple of ideas of what to do with Maree…  Though I don't know if the originally intended one is one that I can actually get away with now…  Mou, maybe I let the sexual tension become too apparent, slight as it is?  *sigh*  We'll see, I guess! I thank you for the thoughts on how to make Maree more liked, though, thank you for that! ^_^), bee (Yes, I like a bit of intensity now and then… ^_^  And thank you SO much for not bashing Maree, and sticking up for her!  I know what you mean: I'm actually afraid to do a lot of what I wanted to do with this fic, just cos I'm scared that readers will assume the worst and stop reading it!  *sigh*  I end up putting in all these careful comforting assurances every chapter… *bigger sigh* Ah well.  But thank you Very Much.  ^_^), sophomoric genius (Well don't worry about the lemony stuff- it'll be very safe, easily PG-13 at most.  ^_^  I won't ruin this story with a big fat lemon!  And don't worry, Sou's still here!  I love him too much to leave him hanging.  ^_^  Thanks for the compliments, and for encouraging me *big smile*), Dark Phoenix (Okay, I'll try not to piss you off.  ^_^  Besides, how'dya now she's a wannabe?  *grin* Just kidding, just kidding!  Hope you continue to like the story despite any Mary-Sue inclinations that may inadvertently and accidentally arise… *nervous sweatdrop*), koala4u (Yes, thanks for the note, I wanted to get Aoshi and Maree and Ven established but now we have some more Sou/Misao time.  But you were absolutely right, balance was slipping a little.  ^_^  Thanks for the prompt and encouragement!  And don't worry: I would NEVER add in lemony content for the sake of sex.  Ugh, I hate fics like that.  This'll be very slight, and only pertaining to the storyline and what-not.  Your thoughts on the phone number scene did make sense to me, cos that was exactly what I was thinking when I wrote it: about our second instinct being the one we kid ourselves into thinking is our first instinct.  ^_^  It does sound complicated when it's written down like that…  *dazed*  Thank you for your review, anyway: it was so encouraging, thank you!  ^_^ Hope you liked this chapter too!), JJ (Don't worry, any lemony stuff will be sure to avoid undesirable pairings.  That much I can promise.  I don't even know how far off it is yet, anyway!  ^_^  Thanks for your encouragement, as well- I hope you continue to enjoy my story *hopeful grin*), AiteanE (Yes, it slowed a bit, didn't it?  I guess I wanted some breathing space, though I think it fell a bit short.  Oh well: it picks up again now, I hope you feel it and approve!  ^_^  I guess slowing down makes the acceleration more fun.  *grin*  Yes, the things you mentioned that need developing are in fact the point of this fic, so it's one of those 'all in due time' things.  But all will be revealed, that much is assured!), Kmye-chan (Glad you like Maree anyway!  Don't worry, she'll be okay in the long run in terms of 'possible spanner in the A/M works' speculation.  Thank you for the compliments!  *big grin*  You were so encouraging!!  ^_^ Hope you liked this chapter as well!), EK (*grin*  Your two cents worth are here responded to: a reunion is inevitable, has to be!  But I won't reveal when, cos that'd be a big spoiler, and that's no fun.  But I will say I'm not planning for it to be very far off…  ^_^  And the back stories thing is one that will be an ongoing thing, the main ideas of this story are the details of the character's backgrounds.  So it's a 'wait and see' one again!  ^_^), Avari Songwater (No such thing as too much luck when you've been an awful writer and not updated in so long…  *repentant*  Thank you for your wonderful comments though!  And as to Ven and Maree's sibling history: *nod* duly noted.  I think you're right on that one- hence a little bit for just them two in this chapter.  Hope you liked it, anyway!), len (Cheers for the note on Maree- I was really pretty chuffed at how you perceive her, cos that's just how I wanted her to seem, kinda complex, and hard to make out.  ^_^  *scrunches up nose* It's kinda hard to make her that way, but hey.  Fits the story.  ^_^  More light will be shed on her, don't worry: I've got a couple of different ideas I'm toying with for her, so watch this space! *grin*), Kitten Kisses (^_^  Thank you!! Your enthusiasm is much appreciated!) and Big Rikku fan (Thanks for the note on lemons- I'll keep that in mind.  Though this will be a very modest lemon.  ^_^  Thank you, I'll try to keep it up!  *bashes writer's block in the head with a stick*).

Thank you all again for your encouragement!  Please leave your thoughts, I'll die of lack of motivation otherwise *glares at exams that take her time away from fic-writing*

*happy dance despite it all- heck, she finally updated at last!*  ^_^