Kaoru mounted the stairs, her footsteps lost in the din created by three hundred or so disgruntled students. She was deep in thought; wondering about what would happen to Ren. The spot beside her as she wandered to her classroom seemed unusually empty without the other woman there.

What troubled her most was how little she knew about Nanashi Ren, despite the fact that they had lived in the same building for the past two years. She and Kenshin had moved into that apartment when she was pregnant because it was bigger than their old apartment. Ren had already lived there and they had always been friendly. But she knew virtually nothing about her.

"Hey, Ugly, the bells about to ring! You're going to be late!"

The voice of her most obnoxious student snapped her out of her reverie. "Mr. Myojin, that was uncalled for. I'll see you after class." She snapped. Rubbing her temples, she made her way into her classroom. It's going to be a long day…

***

"…Kamatari?" Ren regarded the man; the frightened expression momentarily leaving her face. It was replaced by a happy one; a smile graced her lips and her eyes lit up. Then, as quickly as it had come, her happiness was gone and her face darkened once more. "I haven't seen you in years."

"Really…What the hell happened to your face, Ren?" Kamatari repeated, eying her critically. She was pale and thin, as if underfed. There were dark circles under her eyes; she looked as if she hadn't slept in days. Maybe she hadn't. He knew she was a little flighty about everyday things like sleep and eating three meals a day.

"My ex…He won't leave me alone." She whispered, "He comes around every week, looking for me. He wants to kill me, I think."

"You were married? It has been a long time, Kiddo."

"No, he was just a boyfriend. But he took the break up kind of hard." She handed him the sheaf of papers she'd picked from the floor, "That's why I'm here. The cops won't do anything any more. They're sick of me. I want a restraining order. I want him to pay for my medical bills. For me to have counseling. It's not like he can't afford it." Her brow furrowed and she bit her lip. Was she doing the right thing telling him this? They hadn't seen one another in years. He had changed a lot. He hardly even looked the same as the boy she'd went to high school with.

"Aw, man. You got a shitty deal in life too, huh? Law school just didn't work out. I failed the BAR twice and chickened out the third time. But anyway, I suppose you want to see Shishio, huh?"

"Well, I do need a lawyer. That's why I'm here, after all."

"Right." He smiled sadly, "Wait here a minute."

She watched as he wandered towards one of the back rooms, wondering what had happened to him since high school. He looked…like a man. A fruity man, but a man nonetheless. Khaki slacks, pink shirt and a pastel striped tie. How unusual to see him dressed like that…

"Miss?"

She jumped at the sound of a lilting voice behind her and turned to find herself face-to-face with a smiling college-age boy. He had dark hair falling around a very pretty face, a smile that was somewhat eerie and dark, velvety blue eyes.

"Is some one helping you, Miss?" He asked, his head cocked to one side.

"Oh, yes." She nodded, "Kamatari is gone to talk to some one for me."

"That's supposed to be my job." He pouted, the smile never leaving his face.

"Oh."

"Well, I can at least give you the form to fill out. Have a seat over there." He rummaged through a drawer in the filing cabinet as she settled herself into a fake leather chair. Then he presented her with a clipboard and pen.

"Thank you." She said quietly.

She was busy scrawling information on the form when Kamatari appeared back in the room. "Come on; he'll see you now."

***

This blows….Makimachi Misao slumped down in her seat. I hate history so much…Why the hell should I learn all this crap? How will it help me in real life? And where the hell is Miss Nanashi? Having a sub is the pits…

She looked around the room. The girl on her right was enraptured in the sub. The boy on her left was carving something into his desk. Directly in front of her was a slumbering…she thought it was a boy, but with the long hair it was extremely hard to tell.

"Hey…Hey, Misao…" A voice behind her whispered, "What are you doing here?"

"Aoshi made me come." She rolled her eyes, "I'd rather be at home watching talk shows and eating fruit loops, but noooooo…."

"No talking back there!" The substitute teacher barked. He glared at her from under a pair of bushy eyebrows, "You, get out! You look like trouble! From the moment you go here, you've been giving me attitude."

"Fine. Whatever." She whumped out of her seat and out the door, slamming it behind her. There's no way in hell I'm going to the principle…I'm going home. I'll be back in time for Springer…

***

Katsu stared at a blank canvas. Most of his thoughts at the moment were not focused on painting. He had been holding the brush in the same spot for the past twenty minutes as his eyes focused on something no one else could see.

He was worried.

I'm such a jerk…This has been going on for three years and I never did a thing to help her out. It was so easy to ignore all the screaming; to just tune it out and paint. How could I have been so stupid? I've known all along that there was trouble. And I denied the truth…

Frustrated at his lack of concentration, he flung the paintbrush to the floor, leaving a black blob of paint on the tile. It was pointless to try and get any work done, pointless to try and do anything when he was in a mood like that.

He leaned back in his chair. Ren…Next time that bastard comes around, I'm going to punch him in the face. You don't deserve any of this shit.

***

Tea. Tea. Tea…

Shinomori Aoshi wandered stealthily down the street, his trench coat flapping around his ankles. He ignored the hustle and bustle around him; the squeal of tires on blacktop; the gloomy atmosphere. In fact, he ignored everything in his environment.

Another argument this morning…Is it too much to want her to get a decent education? She fights with me about it every morning…I know it's not exactly the ideal school setting, but such things cannot be helped. He frowned. I need a cup of tea…

"Morning, Shinomori."

Aoshi looked up. Walking in the opposite direction as him was Katsuhiro. He stopped, looking at the younger man. Katsu's face was pale, his expression grim. This was not unusual for some one constantly worrying where the rent would come from. Lucky he and Sanosuke were friends and he was allowed extra time to pay.

"…" Aoshi grunted a reply. His mind was elsewhere; the morning's argument with Misao still fresh in his mind.

"That woman across the hall from me…Did you see her at all today?" The artist asked quietly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear.

"Misao's teacher? Why would I see her?" His expression remained passive, his voice low and even. "I see her when I go to those damn teacher conferences. She keeps to herself outside of school."

"Right. I didn't even know her name until today. But I'm really worried about her. That guy comes around all the time. She looked terrible. Her face was all bashed up."

"Hmm…" It all added up. Misao complained often that Miss Nanashi was absent from school and they had a substitute. She bitched about this a lot; their neighbor was the only reason the teen enjoyed school in any capacity. Then she would come home bearing tales of Miss Nanashi's bruises and cuts, rumors of how they got there. Apparently, stories and allegations ran wild around the school.

"I think we should all watch out for her, you know? She doesn't seem very able to protect herself and she's got all of us guys living around her. Between me, you, Sano and Kenshin, we should be able to keep her safe."

Aoshi nodded. It did seem very unfair for a poor, defenseless woman to be bullied. This went against everything he stood for. Unlike Misao, Ren seemed to be shy and frightened of, well, everything.

"Well, I've got to get going." Katsu shrugged, burying his hands deep in his pockets, "I'll see you around, Shinomori."

Aoshi nodded a second time, averting his gaze back to the sidewalk below him. Tea…Must have tea…

***

Kamatari wandered back out to the lobby after he showed Ren to Shishio's office. He was more than a little curious about what had happened to his former classmate. They had once been fairly good friends, but a man tore them apart. That, and Ren's homophobia.

Which led him to another bit of confusion. She had been friendly towards him again. Did she not remember? Or was she not so close-minded as she had once been? Coming out in their junior year had been hard enough. Losing her friendship was the icing on the cake. He had been utterly devastated.

He scratched his head as he wandered aimlessly into the break room in search of a donut. Plain. All that was left was a single plain donut. He glared at it as if that would make it disappear and a better kind appear. Then he remembered…Shishio's coffee!

He found his boss's favorite mug in the dishwasher and ambled over to the coffee pot. Filled it with coffee, two sugars, no cream. Just like Shishio liked it. He knew every one of the boss's likes and dislikes; all of his ambitions, his wants, his desires. He knew everything, except how to please the man.

"Haven't you got that coffee yet?" Yumi poked her head into the room.

Kamatari growled low in the back of his throat. He thrust the mug in her direction, nearly splashing out the scalding coffee. "Here. Here's his damn coffee. You know, some of us have things to do other than get coffee for people. And it's your job anyway!" He turned on his heal and stormed out of the room. Yumi annoyed him like no one else.

***

Misao unlocked the apartment door and slowly pushed it open. She threw her book bag down on the floor and flounced into the room, kicking off her shoes as she went. She wandered into the kitchen in search of a snack, then flopped down on the couch.

"Ahhh…" She settled down in the plush cushions, her feet up on the coffee table. She dug the remote out of the cushions and flipped the TV on, searching for the Fox Network. "Just in time." She sighed happily as chants of Jerry! Jerry! Jerry! filled her ears.

It was when Rikki Lake was half over that Aoshi returned and he did not look pleased. Misao looked up at him from over the back of the couch, her eyes wide and innocent. "Hey Aoshi."

He glared at her from under his dark bangs. "What are you doing home?"

She shrugged. "Sub kicked me out. Said I was causing trouble. I didn't do nothing, Aoshi."

He blinked his icy eyes, but said nothing. Instead he walked briskly out of the room and down the hall. She winced when she heard his bedroom door slam. He was angry.

Very angry.

***

"You think you can help me?" Ren asked nervously. Shishio Makoto was making her nervous as he sat there, eying her critically. He was an intimidating man, his eyes peering intently into hers; his skin riddled with what appeared to be burn scars. His feathery brown hair stuck up in tufts all over his head. She shrank back into her chair slightly, frightened by his feral appearance.

"I think I can help you." He nodded, his voice dripping with confidence. "I can do anything I want, even help the weak like you!"

Her face paled. Had he just called her weak? She was not weak…It was just…He was so terrifying when he went crazy. She didn't know what to do when he got like that. All she could do was beg him not to and stare into those haunted eyes, hoping beyond hope that he would somehow realize what he was doing.

"By the laws of nature, you shouldn't even be here." Shishio continued indifferently, as if he were merely discussing the weather, "Survival of the fittest and all. You're lucky to be alive."

"I suppose I am. And all I want to do is stay alive." She frowned, "So you'll get me a restraining order?"

"Of course I will." He grinned as Yumi opened the door to present him with his coffee, "So don't you worry about it, Miss Nanashi." He dismissed her.

She rolled her eyes as the door shut behind her. She could hear Yumi giggling and wondered why she was asking the most unorthodox lawyer in the practice to help her out.

"How'd it go, Ren?"

Kamatari's shrill voice caused her to jump. She turned to look at him, taking in his pretty face. Those soft brown eyes, the sensual smile, his whole face framed by his dark, silky hair. How she had missed him in the years since their falling out. He had been one of her closest friends until they both set their sights on Yasuo in their junior year. Then things had gotten tense…

"Okay, I guess." She shrugged, her hands stuffed into her pockets, "He's going to help me."

A relieved look crossed the gay man's face. "That's good. I was kind of worried when you came in here looking so messed up. But, um, it was nice seeing you."

"Feh…" She looked at her feet. Why did people keep saying that? She was miserable. She was wretched. And she certainly didn't deserve any one's friendship or respect. "I've got to go. I need to pick up some groceries."

"If you…ever need anything, feel free to call me." He said slowly. He pulled a post-it note from the desk and scribbled his number on it. "Here. I'm always willing to help out an old friend."

She took the paper and wordlessly stuffed it in her pocket. Then she turned to leave. He stood there, watching her go and feeling rejected for the millionth time that day. I just want to be friends again…