Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin is NOT MINE. Too bad. The song "Haunted" also does not belong to me. It belongs to "Evanescence," which is a great band. Yes, yes they are.

A/N: I am SO SORRY for not updating in a long time. Now of course all of my readers will no longer be reading this story, but oh well. It was really hard trying to find a song for this chapter, but this was the only this close enough that inspired me to write it. It doesn't exactly fit, but who cares! Thanks so much for the reviews, all of you. Now you may read the story.

Shifting in the Wind

By: Spellcastre

Kaoru awoke feeling light and strange. She looked down and saw her regular colors, but they seemed so distant. Almost like you could see through her. What was this? And then it clicked in her mind. She was dead.

"Oh no," she said aloud in a whisper that echoed in the dark and empty room.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps coming into the room, and saw another spirit standing there. He had a strange look to him, and for some reason she suddenly knew who he was. Tomoe's brother. The fire spirit. Enishi.

"So you've finally joined me, Kaoru, after all these years," Enishi said, smirking happily and advancing towards her spirit figure.

"Get away from me you jerk!" She spat at him.

"Ouch, that burns." He replied with a smirk on his ghostly face.

She felt rage burn up inside her. Which was strange. It felt exactly like she was still alive, only just different. She had the same emotions, and she wondered if maybe spirit forms could touch and hurt each other. Maybe they just couldn't interact physically with the living because of the two different plains. But they could still interact with voices, obviously. This was something to ponder, but now was not the time.

'Enishi, right now, is the problem at hand,' Kaoru thought.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Long lost words whisper slowly to me

Still can't find what keeps me here

When all this time I've been so hollow inside

I know you're still there

~*~*~*~*~*~

He kept approaching her, and finally, when he got to her, he took her hand. Kaoru was right, they could physically interact with each other. On one thought, this was bad. What did Enishi want with her? She felt herself being pulled to her feet. She felt really light standing up when she was only a soul. Suddenly she felt the wall of the black room smashing into her. Or rather, she was smashed into it. She looked back at Enishi. He had her pinned there.

"What do you want from me?" She nearly screamed at him.

He smirked again. The smirk that, already, she loathed. "Everything."

Kaoru adopted a confused expression.

"While you were alive, I took everyone you loved away from you, with the disease I created myself. The one that burns you inside, just like the fire that I am bestowed with. Why did I do this? To torture you. Then I left you alive. Why? To torture you. Then, when you finally some a reason worth living, I brought my disease down upon you. Which is what I wanted all along. I did this, yet again, to torture you. I love seeing you hurt. I love seeing you in pain. I love it. I love everything about it, when it is concerning you."

So that was it. It was all done because of her. Because, obviously, Enishi was a spirit that loved her in his own warped way. Kaoru cringed as Enishi held her to the wall tighter.

"That's why." He said. "Now I will torture you even in your death, and I will keep on doing so."

Kaoru sneered. "Not if I can help it!" With that, she brought her leg up in a kick that slammed right into Enishi's chin. He let her go by being surprised at this. Kaoru took this as her chance to run.

"You can run, Kaoru, but you cannot escape!" Enishi called as she ran out of the room. "You can't leave death, Kaoru, because unlike life, you're stuck in death forever!"

Enishi's words stung her, but she kept running on her light feet, that she could barely feel and barely see. She did not stop running. And she didn't have to stop.

Because there was also something else unlike life here.

In death, you couldn't get tired.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Watching me, wanting me


I can feel you pull me down


Fearing you, loving you


I know I'll find you somehow

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kenshin's sword was brought down upon yet another ghost guardian. They disappeared, probably just to recuperate and then return. But it bought Kenshin some time. Then, turning, he faced the last one in this particular tunnel.

"Let me through!" Kenshin commanded. He had seen these ghosts guarding many of the tunnels, and was getting very tired of them always fighting him.

The ghost guardian shook his head, and responded with the same thing every other one did.

"What comes after death shall remain only known to the dead."

"Screw this…" Kenshin mumbled under his breath, and with one swift movement, his sword had cut through the ghost guard. This one merely sneered, and disappeared to recuperate. Kenshin re-sheathed his sword and kept running down the tunnel, in case one healed faster than he expected. He didn't take any chances. He did not walk. He had to get to Kaoru as soon as he could, and he could not let she seven days go up.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Hunting you, I can smell you - alive


Your heart pounding in my head

~*~*~*~*~*~

Finally, Kaoru was far enough away from the black room. She had been running non-stop for at least an hour. Of course, she wasn't tired, so she merely took a seat on a bench in this place that she had run to.

"Kaoru?" Said a familiar voice.

Kaoru turned around. "Tomoe!" She exclaimed, and a smile lit up her face. It was good to see someone familiar around here, even if the girl's brother was a complete bastard.

The wind spirit smiled, nodded, and took a seat beside Kaoru.

"Is there something wrong, Kaoru?" Tomoe asked, seeing Kaoru's face.

"Yeah…I'm stuck here forever," she responded.

Tomoe laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry! I guess I forgot to tell you, didn't I?"

Kaoru was totally confused, but thankfully, Tomoe kept explaining.

"Kenshin was given a chance. He was given seven days to travel into death and save you from it. It was a risk, but he took it. He is traveling, right now, through the tunnels into this realm, just to save you and bring you back to the realm of the living, Kaoru. If he succeeds, you will be able to live again, until it really is your time to die."

Kaoru was listening in wonder. Kenshin? Really? She could barely believe it. But Tomoe wouldn't lie to her, and so at these words she smiled.

"He's really coming to get me?"

Tomoe nodded. Kaoru flung her light arms around the wind spirit and began thanking her repeatedly for telling her this.

Things were beginning to look up for Kaoru. Just for once she finally might get the chance she really needed.

'Please Kenshin, make it on time.'

~*~*~*~*~*~

Watching me, wanting me


I can feel you pull me down


Fearing you, loving you


I wont let you pull me down

~*~*~*~*~*~

A/N: This chapter was fricken hard to write! And I cut out a lyric from the song because…it just…was blah for the fic. I know the song didn't truly fit, but it was the closest thing I could find, plus it inspired me to write this chapter, so thank the song! I hope you enjoy this chapter, although it was short and not all that great. I also hope that this makes up for my not updating in a long time. Sorry that I haven't, I'll try to make the wait shorter next time!

**pulls out her ever-so-faithful yo-yo*

You will click on "Submit Review," you will leave a review….you will click on "Submit Review," you will leave a review…

'Til next time!

~ Spellcastre ~