Sentiments of gip-k: -Heyo, everybody! ^_^ Welcome to the 2nd Chapter of my little story, Episode 1 of the Tales of the Kenshin Gumi Series, Sanosuke's Lost Coat. Do you think Sano will find his coat, eh? And what will he do if he doesn't?

Sanosuke: (Squeezes his knuckles, then stretches the flexible fingers) I'll do some hurting.

Me: (Gulps) But…I'm a girl! I thought-

Sanosuke: You thought wrong. You steal the coat, and you don't give it back- that equals a good beating.

Me: Leave me alone! Kenshin will- will- will hurt you!

Sanosuke: I don't care… I'll fight him, too.

Me: You idiot! What is your problem? I didn't steal the coat, anyway!

(Much more arguing ensues, and finally we reach the disclaimer)

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Disclaimer: I do not own the Rurouni Kenshin TV show…but Kenshin is mine.

Kenshin: But- I- uh- thought that you- ?

Me: O.o What was that Kenshin?

Kenshin: Erhm, nothing. (Laughs uneasily) Sessha was just…thinking about something.

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---Sanosuke's Lost Coat: Chapter 2---

Sanosuke hurried into the kitchen to eat lunch, Kenshin not too far behind him. Sanosuke was whistling happily to himself, until Yahiko sprinted across his path like a little feisty squirrel, bumping hard into him as he hurried past.

"Hey what the -?"

"You'd better hurry, you moron! I'm gonna get all the fish this time!" Yahiko called back to him spitefully.

Sanosuke cursed, and broke into a hard run, trying hard to catch up to Yahiko. He shouted angry rebukes after the boy.

After a good bit of running, Sanosuke finally got inside of the house. He crashed into Yahiko directly as the boy abruptly stopped, right before making a sharp turn and then sliding down in front of the small table. He began immediately gorging himself, hardly taking care to stop and swallow, or drink a bit of water from a small cup. Sanosuke, angry and red face, muttering all sorts of names against the boy, also slid down at the table. Meanwhile, Kenshin was all "oro" over and over again, and Kaoru was looking on with plain outrage painted all over her face, hands on hips. Sanosuke hardly seemed to notice, but when he and Yahiko's hands reached for the same bowl…

"It's mine, you lousy bum!" Yahiko said, quickly swallowing down a mouthful of food. Sanosuke mumbled in response between his mouthful of food, tugging back violently.

"No it's mine you little punk!" He yelled, pulling it hard. But the little brat wouldn't let go.

"Get your filthy hands off my bowl, you @$$hole!" Yahiko shouted back.

The argument went on, and Kenshin settled down in the corner, his face the picture of pure grief and desperation.

"It's actually mine."

Sanosuke, and of course Yahiko, barely had time to lift their heads in utter shock before Kaoru had grabbed the rice bowl, and was hugging it to herself. They stared at each other, until finally Kaoru began devouring the contents of the small bowl with as much ferocity as they would have been. Sanosuke snarled at her, glaring hard, and was joined by Yahiko. Then they looked at each other, and glared even harder, teeth bared. They didn't have to speak to know each other's words. It was your fault…

At that very moment, they attacked each other. Sanosuke tried pounding Yahiko's arm to a bloody pulp, but the boy climbed up behind him, and began gnawing on his head. Sanosuke cried out a bit, and then flipped the boy over his head, where he landed square on the floor. Yahiko kicked Sanosuke in the shin, and that caused a large torrent of language, and they fought harder, knocking over the table in their violent battle. They even kicked up the old dust on the floor, and soon the whole room was filled with a cloud of the stuff that made Kenshin wheeze and sneeze. The whole thing made him begin to cry to the Kami.

* * *

"Hold, still," Kaoru was saying sternly to Sanosuke.

"That stupid little s***!" Sanosuke yelled out angrily. Kaoru was bandaging his arm. "It was all his fault, the little bastard."

"Shut up!" Kaoru said in pure disgust and exasperation. "You and Yahiko ruined my kitchen, and here I am bandaging you! I should be kicking your butt to the blood red moons, dear kami! " Kaoru exclaimed. "I said hold still you stupid rooster head or I'll do it now!"

Sanosuke decided to obey… temporarily. He was really mad at Yahiko for causing all the trouble, though.

Kaoru finally finished, and started bandaging his cheek. She'd done his forehead already- a ring of bandages was under his headband. Yahiko had scratched him! Stupid little-

At that moment, the little brat appeared. He had a bandage on his cheek, his nose looked a bit bloody, and his arm was in a sling. He looked positively disgusted.

"Did I hear you saying it was my fault?" he demanded, injecting all the spite and contempt as was possible into his already sadistic voice.

Sanosuke nearly attacked him again, but Kaoru whacked him across the back of the head with something. He let out a cry of pain and indignation, but then quieted down.

"Are you done yet?" Sanosuke demanded impatiently.

"Yeah, Mr. Impatient," she said sulkily.

"Good," he said. "Now I'm going to go, then. I've had enough of this place. Yeesh!"

Yahiko licked out his tongue at Sanosuke, and he punched the kid in the eye on his way out. He thought he heard something of the likes of "idiotic moron", just with a lot more profanity somehow squeezed in. Sanosuke paused, taking a moment to grin to himself, and then started off towards the dojo gate, a new spring in his step.

"You really ruined Miss Kaoru's kitchen, that you did," said Kenshin with a slightly unsteady voice. "I believe she will be taking out some of her fury on me, I say."

Sanosuke turned to look at Kenshin, giving him a grin and a thumb-up.

"Can't be that bad, shrimp," he said cheerfully. "She'll just whack you on the head with that bokken of hers a couple of times, and then everything will be okay. I'm surprised she hasn't already."

"Oro!" Kenshin exclaimed, looking both abashed and vaguely alarmed. He rubbed his head subconsciously. "She hasn't already, my pardons, because her attention was fixated on your injuries, as well as Yahiko's, and so she has not recognized the full extent of the damage, I say. And I fear that soon she will-"

At that very moment, a large shriek erupted from the kitchen inside the house.

"KENNNNNNNNSHINNNNNNNN! WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP THEM FROM DOING THIS YOU DANG IDIOT YOU COULD'VE STOPPED THEM BUT INSTEAD YOU HID IN A CORNER I AM GOING TO KILL YOU ALLLLLLLLLLLLLL!"

Kenshin flinched, but Sanosuke jumped. They looked at each other uneasily. They heard a sound, and turned to see a plaque fall off the wall. Then they exchanged disturbed expressions. Suddenly, Sanosuke's face broke into a wide grin.

"Sorry, won't be here to take my share of the pain, Kenshin," Sanosuke said with a wry chuckle. "I've gotta go find my coat. See you all later."

With that, Sanosuke darted out of the house, just leaving out through the gate while Kaoru descended on Kenshin like angry storm clouds. He heard a chorus of "oro" just as he rounded the corner, and had to laugh. Those three were amazing. Their behavior was beyond his comprehension.

Then Sanosuke realized he really did need to find his coat. His eyes narrowed. If it wasn't at his house, and it wasn't at the Kamiya Dojo, where on earth was it?

Sanosuke continued his travels through the Tokyo marketplace, keeping his eyes sharp for any suspicious persons. Suddenly, a person crashed into him.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" he shouted angrily.

The short plump man, obviously a butcher for his red-stained apron, stopped in his tracks, and looked up at Sanosuke with dark eyes.

"No, you watch where you're going kid!" he said He emphasized each word by with a poke at Sanosuke's chest.

"Hey, yeesh, quit with the poking!" Sanosuke retorted irritably.

Suddenly, the man's eyes lighted up with recognition, and he went deathly white.

"Wha- wait, you're Zanza, aren't you?" he asked. "You're that punk gangster that was always fighting in my slaughter house and knocking meat down on the dirty floor! I know you!"

"Hey, I don't do that anymore," Sanosuke replied. "But ****, didn't you recognize me?"

The man shook his head, and let out a dry chuckle.

"No, 'didn't recognize you, Zanza-"

"-I go by the name Sano now," Sanosuke corrected him, his voice carrying a bit of irony in it. This man was definitely annoying him!

"Sano, then," the fat butcher said with a wave of his hand. "Well, as I was saying, I didn't recognize you withoutjur coat, Zan- Sano."

Sanosuke blinked. Well he hadn't known his coat made people recognize him.

At that very moment a tiny old woman came running across the street in their direction. Sanosuke and the butcher turned their heads towards her. Her chest heaved from the hard running, and her breath was raspy. She clutched Sanosuke's hands in hers.

"Hello, young man," she said. "I am so glad to find you! You're a tall one, aren't you? Well thank the Kami! I am so glad to see you! I need someone just of your sort for…"

Sanosuke was too shocked to reply. A lot of people like this lady were usually afraid of him, shying away from his presence, and here was this tiny old woman coming over here asking for his aid? What in the hell was going on?

"…well anyway," she rambled on, still struggling to catch her breath. "My two precious cats are trapped up in a tree! And I saw you, and I said; 'there's a strong young man to help me get my kittens!' and so I came running over here, fast as I could, and here you are! Oh please help me get my cats! They're my darling cats-"

"Wait a minute, lady," Sanosuke began. "You're not… afraid?"

"Oh, yes of course I am!" she said, putting a hand to her chest. "I'm so afraid my poor kitty-cats are going to fall from that tree and hurt their poor little selves I am horribly, horribly frightened for them!"

Sanosuke blinked a couple of times. What the kami?

"You need to help the old lady, Zanza," the butcher whispered to him. Then he directed a toothy, artificial smile towards the old woman. "Excuse me, Lin-san. I've got to go get back to my work." Then the butcher ran off in the other direction.

Lin-san, as she appeared to be named, turned her attention back to Sanosuke.

"Oh will you please help me?" she asked. She began to lead a now dumbfounded Sanosuke through the streets. "They're right over here, now, just a little farther!"

Lin-san led Sanosuke through the streets of Tokyo. For such and elderly woman, the grip of her wiry, wrinkled hand was quite strong, and she kept up a good pace walking. Sanosuke didn't have to walk slowly, and her legs were about a third of the length of his!

Finally, they made it to a luxurious mansion, gated in by black-painted iron fences, and surrounded by dozens of lovely trees. Lin-san stated that this was the mansion where she worked.

She threaded a path through those many trees. Sanosuke followed her, half letting himself be dragged by the elderly Lin-san. At last, they began to hear the sound of frightened, frantic meows. Lin-san announced that they were close.

"Ooh, kami! That tree up there!" she said, finally releasing Sano's arm and using her free hand to point up one of the taller Sakura trees. "There they are!"

Indeed, there they were. Two cats… one was a smaller cat, with a fur of a dirty brown coloring, with an array of light gray and muddy orange threaded in between. It looked more like a stray than a housecat. The second cat was obviously a kitten, a Siamese cat basked in a coat of white fur, with a dark grayish face and cute pink nose. It was licking its paw, and Sanosuke caught sight of the small wound it was trying to nurse.

Lin-san let out a pained moan.

"Oh, my poor Kiki," she said when she also had seen the injury. Then she turned her eyes to the other cat and sighed. "Oh, Tulu, why did you have to climb way up there dear?"

Meanwhile, while Lin-san crooned over her poor kitties, Sanosuke was finding the best way to climb up the tree, and to get the kittens. They were obviously restless, especially "Tulu" and Kiki had an injury, which would make her very desperate and perhaps more wary.

Finally, Sanosuke thought up a quick plan and without word began climbing up the tree. He reached for the closest branch to pull himself up. With a small leap he caught hold, and began his ascent.

As he made his way higher into the tree, he smiled wryly. What in the world was he doing saving some lady's cats?

"And I'm sure she wouldn't care if I fell from here- she'd just be sad about her- cats," he chuckled once again at that, and continued pulling himself higher up in the tree. The two cats began meowing loudly, and scowling and spitting at him.

"Shush, shush, little girlies, it's all right," he said. "Just keep your little paws away from my face, got it? Or else there might be- trouble." The cats made even more of a fuss. Sanosuke sighed, and cursed a bit. Then he pulled himself to the other side of the tree, and decided to wait. The cats quieted down. They looked for him. Finally Lin-san began to be of some assistance.

"Quiet down my pretties," she crooned. "Hush, hush! Mama will get you down! Be nice to the man, be nice!"

The cats turned their attention to Lin-san, and Sanosuke saw his opportunity. He crept up behind the two cats stealthily. Just as Tulu turned his head, he reached out with his hand and grabbed the skin on the back of its neck, and held it up as it kicked and spat. Just then, Kiki began scurrying up a branch, and Sanosuke let out a groan, as he had to reach unbearably far and catch it just in time before it fell the long way down the tree. He hugged the little kitten to himself. Lin-san let out a sigh of relief. Sanosuke just held the cats, "reassuring them". Finally, Tulu calmed down, and he allowed Sanosuke to carry he and Kiki down the tree. Lin-san cheered them on.

Finally, he made it all the way down the tree. Lin-san literally grabbed the two cats away before he could hand them over to her, kissing them and cuddling them, whispering soothing words to them. They licked her face. Sanosuke felt a bit awkward, seeing her reaction, and angry that she had not yet praised him, who did all of the work. Yet he had to grin at this blatant and unashamed display of affection to the animals. Well, at least the old woman was happy. Sanosuke placed his hands in his pockets, and leaned against the tree.

Finally, after a good deal more of all of that mushiness, Lin-san thanked Sanosuke profusely.

"…I am utterly grateful," she said.

"Sure thing, lady," Sanosuke said, smirking a little. He put an old fishbone between his teeth and began chewing on it.

"Oh, and what did you say your name was again?" she asked.

"Sanosuke Sagara," he replied.

"Sanosuke Sagara," she mused. "Well, thank you so much for your help! Now I can tell everyone how this boy Sanosuke Sagara helped me get my cats from a really tall Sakura tree, how brave he was!"

Sanosuke's jaw dropped, and the fishbone fell from his mouth. His stomach turned. This lady was going to tell the whole town about how he saved some cats from a Sakura tree! She was going to ruin his reputation! Kaoru and Yahiko would tease him for the rest of his human life, and Kenshin too! The whole town would-

"No, lady, please don't do that you don't have to do that-" he began, face going white.

Lin-san's face brightened. She seemed not to notice that his face was turning pale.

"Oh, and such a modest boy, too!" she replied cheerily. She patted him on the shoulder. "You don't worry-" Sanosuke breathed a sigh of relief. "I'll tell everyone in Tokyo about your good deed, and I'll make certain you get rewarded for it."

Sanosuke fell down anime-style. His head was spinning. His life was over…

And how did this start?

He lost his coat.

He lost his coat.

HE LOST HIS COAT!

He needed to find that coat… he needed to find it, and he needed to find it soon. And whoever stole it…

…Was going to pay.

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gip-k's Post Chapter Statements: -Tee-he-he. Who stole the coat? We wonder, we wonder, who stole the coat? (Commences singing the Stolen Coat Song ^_^) Oh Sanosuke is going to try so hard to kill me for this! ^_^ Well, everyone, I hope you're enjoying it. Keep on reading this hearty happy comedy!

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