4/8/04 –Yes, dear friends, I am editing. Forgive me. However, after I repost the next chapter, there will be a new one. Thanks for you patience and love.
6/28 -It's my birthday. Honest to goodness. –Grant my birthday wish and drop me a review, won't you? ^_^ (Can you believe I originally posted this chapter in… '03 I believe? I'm such a bad girl.)
O_o Wow. A completely new chapter. Are you as excited as I am? :-D [I have to admit, I wasn't going to end the chapter where I did… but then, it just seemed so perfect. What do you think?]
Review:
[]= rurouni
= Battousai
bold= Kenshin
""= dialogue
''= thoughts
typos= I'm stupid
Chapter Ten: Uh Oh?
The next morning, Kenshin woke up early as usual. He had finally gone to his own room after waking up outside in the middle of the night. He stretched carefully, and then began packing for his three month voyage. As he did so, her inner personalities also became more alert and active.
Do you think we should go check on Kaoru-dono de gozaru?
I don't know…
[It really makes no difference, since it would be almost impossible to make things worse, de gozaru.]
"I really don't know what to do…" Kenshin groaned, as he tied up his bundle. He stilled, and looked at the door, reaching for his sakabatou. As his fingers closed around the scabbard, the door slid open.
"Kenshin-get up! We gotta-" The man froze and eyed the blade at his neck, albeit a dull side, warily.
…
"Are you ok buddy?" He asked a few seconds later, shoving the blade away and stepping back.
Uhm, what was that? What just happened?
I… guess I'm just a little on edge. Battousai said abashedly.
[Nice pun, de gozaru.] The rurouni grinned evilly. Both other personalities groaned.
"I'm fine-let's go." Sano began walking to Kaoru's room, so Kenshin said quickly, "Kaoru-dono said goodbye to me for all of us for the time being last night, so we should not disturb her, de gozaru."
"Uh... ok…" Sano said slowly. His mind was racing, but he didn't want to irritate Kenshin while he was so obviously volatile. "Well, come on- you got your stuff? The kid's outside waiting for us."
"Let's go." Kenshin said gruffly, picking up his bundle and following Sano out into the courtyard. He walked next to Sano, looking at Kaoru's door out the corner of his eye, in hopes that she would be awake and seeing them off, but her door were still shut as tightly as ever, and if that were any indication, she was still sleeping soundly on her futon. They walked outside, and Sano carefully bolted the gate from inside before hopping over it.
"Mornin' Ken-shin." Yahiko yawned sleepily.
"Goodmorning, Yahiko." He smiled.
Yahiko woke up a little and seemed to be looking past Kenshin. "Where's Busu?" He asked curiously. Nobody spoke for a few seconds.
"I wanted to say 'bye to her again." Yahiko added before it seemed he realized he was still speaking.
Sano cast a quick glance at Kenshin before clapping the adolescent on the back, saying, "She said that to you last night—and she gave Kenshin her regards to all of us. Anyway, she's getting her beauty sleep, and you know how much she needs it." He guided Yahiko away from the dojo as he spoke.
"Y-yeah…" The boy agreed, though there was a slightly wistful tone to his voice.
I do wish that I—that is we'd gotten a chance to see Kaoru before we left.
Definitely.
[Personally, Sessha wants to know how Sano got so smooth all of a sudden. He wouldn't be half bad at gambling if he gambled that way, de gozaru.]
True, that's a good point… Kenshin said, giving the rurouni a strange look.
Little did the three males know, but Kaoru was indeed awake and had been out of her room long before Sano had arrived to meet Kenshin. And she had heard what Yahiko said, so as she listened to their footsteps fade away, there was a small yet content smile playing about her lips.
'I guess I should never assume with males, especially those three, because they'll always find some way to surprise me.' She began her morning toiletries. 'But… I'd never had thought Yahiko would be such a softie. Or be the one to say that.' She chuckled to herself. 'What will happen next? Megumi and Sano will stop fighting?" She paused while brushing her hair in mid stroke. 'I forgot… Megumi wants to talk to me today…' She said to the air, "Mou."
Kaoru sighed, still smiling fondly to herself, still thinking about Yahiko. She passed Kenshin's room and her expression sobered a littlie. 'At least this time I know what he's doing and where he's off to… I do hope everything will be all right.' She peered into the room, noticing a few more touches in it, making it appear slightly more lived in. 'I am glad Kenshin is making this more his home…' A few minutes later, she caught herself. 'I had better take a bath- it'll be relaxing and I want to look good today.'
While bathing, a thought floated into her mind and began nagging her. 'What am I going to do about Kenshin and Rui?' But she firmly pushed it out of her mind.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Well, there's our ship!" Sano said cheerfully, weaving in between the boxes of cargo on the wharf with an easy familiarity.
Kenshin's eyes followed to where Sano's finger was pointing. He blinked. "I'm surprised, de gozaru… that ship actually looks seaworthy."
"Tell me about it," Yahiko muttered. "It's probably some fish carrier, though, and Sano agreed for us to sleep in the hold or something."
Sano shot them each a dirty look.
"Oro!" I must have said that out loud…
[And you said Sessha wasn't being polite!] The rurouni gloated.
Is this your doing? Battousai asked suspiciously. Before the two of them could begin to argue, a man clapped Kenshin heartily on the back.
"This is your man, Sano? The toughest fighter in all of Japan?" He guffawed happily. "Well I guess this proves appearances can be deceiving, because I'll take your word on his skills, or at least believe he can hold his own." The man said good-naturedly.
You bet your sweet life. Battousai snarled.
The rurouni sighed and said in a long suffering tone, [I don't know why I let Sano convince me to do these things.] He sighed again. [At least he didn't mistake me for a woman…]
You like it. Battousai said smugly, simply glad that the rurouni was suffering, still bitter at him for continually messing things up with Kaoru.
Their attention was again drawn away from each other before greater conflict could arise.
"… pirates, a few ships haven't returned in the past month, so a lot of the captains have been nervous, and ship owners have been canceling trips." The large man Anji grinned. "But we're a bit more daring. I tell you, if we get this cargo through safely, and the next shipment in, we could be set for life."
"For life?!" Sano exclaimed.
"Wow, then you could repay all your debts and break even, rooster head." Yahiko teased Sano.
We could really use that money…
Just think about all the stuff we could get for Kaoru! And all that we could do for her…
"Of course the money will have to be divided evenly amongst the crew…" Anji said ponderously.
One could almost visibly see the hearts of the three males sinking.
"Well, come on." Anji said happily. "We've got a lot that needs to be moved, cargo to be loaded, and right now you three are needed to make sure that we have no stowaways and that none of the crew "jumps ship" if you know what I mean." He said with a wink, then looked back at them. "Maybe, two. Here son," he said, bringing a heavy hand down on Yahiko kindly. "Let me show you a special job I have for you." And he kept talking to the lad as he led him away and unto the ship.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Meanwhile, at the dojo
Kaoru stared. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She blinked. And again. Nope—she wasn't dreaming. She hadn't fallen asleep in her bath, and it wasn't an after effect of getting soap in her eye. Finally, she found her voice.
"Megumi… you do know you're… that this… no offense meant, but, your stay here is only temporary, right?"
"Of course Kaoru," Megumi said firmly, before turning to the young men carrying her trunks, which were blocking the entire walk way in front of the dojo. "careful boys! Those have very fragile things packed inside!"
"… but Megumi…"
"Oh honestly Kaoru. You of all people should know how high maintenance it is being a woman, especially now. How can one get a man when they don't have anything?"
"Maybe that's why you don't have one." Kaoru muttered, thinking 'I have quite enough boy problems, thankyouverymuch, and I don't even want to get into the whole issue of stuff. Not that I even see how that's relevant!'
"What was that?"
"Oh, nothing." Kaoru said vaguely and tried to walk away, but Megumi snagged her by the arm.
"Watch and learn." The taller woman whispered in a completely different tone.
Kaoru looked at the hand on her arm, then the woman, and shaking off the hand, said plainly,
"What?!"
Megumi rolled her eyes. "Those men!" she gestured. "How do you think I got them to carry my trunks over? I convinced them I had all that stuff because of them and that they were the only way I could manage to carry everything. Males- there is nothing like an ego stroking to have them be at your beck and call."
Kaoru watched the struggling young men warily for a few minutes, then looked back and Megumi blankly. 'She could have just packed less…' The older woman had a smile playing about her lips.
"Look at those muscles." She murmured, looking at some of the strapping young men straining to lift the large wooden boxes.
Kaoru groaned and moved away. 'I will never understand Megumi. Ever.' Lost in her thoughts, she bumped into someone. The person studied her, and to her surprise, didn't move away.
"Is everything alright Kaoru-chan?"
"Rui-kun!" With Megumi moving half of the clinic into her dojo, Kaoru had completely forgotten that she had agreed to meet with Rui.
"Come on." She said urgently, taking his hand and dragging him into the kitchen before Megumi could see them and interfere or say any more strange things. As soon as they got into the room, Kaoru pushed Rui in, peered outside the door, and slid it shut quietly.
"Kaoru, is everything alright?" Rui asked in concern.
"Everything's fine," she said brightly. "I'm just hiding from Megumi, that's all. Her, and her trunks, and those men."
He moved to her side and took hold of her arm in a firm grasp, yet he was careful not to hurt her.
"Are they giving you any trouble?" He asked. Kaoru looked at him in surprise, and he tightened his hold. "Are they?"
"No…" she said slowly.
He held her gaze and arm for a few more seconds, before releasing her slowing, and exhaling, "Good." As he pulled her into an embrace.
'What is going on?' thought Kaoru.
A few seconds later, Rui stepped back. "Excuse me- I got a little carried away, but when I thought you were in danger, and everything around the dojo was so hectic…" his jaw hardened.
Kaoru looked at him carefully, then took his hand. He wound his fingers in between hers. "It's ok," she said softly, "and you know I can take care of myself." She gently extracted her hand then moved to boil some water, trying to buy some time to compose her racing thoughts. While she filled the kettle, Rui stoked the fire. As he stood up and straightened, he placed a package she didn't even notice that he'd been carrying on the table.
"Tea cakes." He said simply. Kaoru blinked, then smiled brilliantly.
"Thank you."
"It's my pleasure." He said with a smile.
Kaoru grinned back. "Just as well- I don't want to make us sick by even attempting to make anything on my own."
Rui opened his mouth to say something, but a loud crash startled both of them. They glanced at each other than moved to the door in one accord. Outside, was a lone trunk- probably what had made the noise, and a lone Megumi standing in the courtyard with her hands on her hips. The scowl on her face disappeared as she spied Rui with Kaoru.
"Oh, I didn't even notice you arrive! Would you please help me with this trunk?"
"Megumi…" Kaoru growled.
"Oh all right," the woman shrugged elegantly. "come on, I'm sure the three of us can move it rather easily." As they struggled with the large object, Megumi explained her behavior. "Those men have been harassing me at the clinic, coming in with splinters and other silly things, keeping me from helping real patients, so I thought I'd be nice and let them help me for once. I hope that teaches them a lesson."
"Well done, Megumi-san." Rui said, shaking his head with a grin on his face. Kaoru blinked. 'No wonder Megumi is known as the fox-lady...'
"Thank you." She said as they set down the trunk in the room Megumi would be staying in. "At least they didn't decide to leave until the last one…" Megumi glanced at the couple then said, "Well, it's pretty late in the day, and I told Dr. Genzai I'd only been gone for a while, so I'd better be going." As she walked away, she called over her shoulder, "Kaoru, be a dear and check the last trunk would you? I don't think anything was broken since it was filled with boxes of powder, but just make sure please."
"Won't you join us for lunch first?" asked Rui.
"Yes, you haven't eaten yet." Kaoru pointed out.
"No, no, I'm fine, believe me." Megumi said with a wink. And with that, she was gone.
'Alone again.' Kaoru thought with a slight flutter. 'And this time it really is only the two of us.' Then she thought, 'I hope he doesn't expect me to cook… especially after my comment…I did warn him…' But to her relief, Rui was speaking.
"Why don't we go visit your friend Tae at the Akabeko? It is almost time for lunch, and thinking about their sukiyaki is making my mouth water."
Kaoru beamed in relief. "I haven't seen Tae in a while and I think that sounds wonderful."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Late that night, Kaoru yawned in sleepy satisfaction. Other than the ruckus that occurred at the beginning of the day, everything had gone smoothly. Tae had been thrilled to see Kaoru with Rui and she had plied them with many complementary dishes- all of which Rui had paid for- as he had paid for everything else, to Kaoru's dismay.
They had then taken a long leisurely stroll, finding a small shrine and sitting there to avoid some of the afternoon sun and heat. They had then returned to the dojo, where both of them had eaten only snacks that evening, too full from lunch to eat another meal. Rui had stayed with her till dusk, before he reluctantly took his leave of her. Shortly after he left, the front door opened, and Kaoru stood up sleepily.
"Welcome back, Megumi." She said through a yawn.
Megumi smiled fondly, then asked, "Where's Rui-san?"
"Oh, you just missed him. He stayed longer in hopes of seeing you, but he had to go."
Megumi seemed amused. "I never pictured myself as an excuse." She chuckled to herself softly. "That man is just too crafty."
"What?" Kaoru asked carelessly, thinking Megumi had been talking to her.
"Nothing- I'm tired, and we should both go to bed, Kaoru-chan."
"Do you want any tea?"
Images of over steeped bitter tea and a long sleepless night sprang into Megumi's head. "No, thank you, I already ate and had tea and Dr. Genzai's." was her truthful answer.
"Oh, all right. Maybe we'll all drink tea and chat tomorrow."
Megumi cringed slightly. "Mm… maybe, goodnight Kaoru-chan." She called back as she stepped quickly to her room. Kaoru watched her disappearing form with an evil smile. 'You and Rui aren't the only ones who can be tricky.' She thought smugly, going to her own room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ("Back" on the boat…)
Kenshin stared at his two companions, looking for all he was worth like a deer caught in headlights, or the Meiji equivalent.
"So, who do you like?" Pressed Yahiko, echoing Sano's question.
Ororororororo
Answer them, 'I don't like anyone, I love Kaoru.
[Is there any way to cure immaturity, de gozaru ka?]
How did this topic ever even come up?
Luckily for Kenshin, the captain's voice rang out. "Lights out- first watch report!"
Oh thank goodness… Once the ship's crew dimmed or blew out most of the lamps hanging about in various places, most of the crew would go to sleep, and nobody was to say a word since they had been told that noise carried over water more easily than on land, and they did not want to draw any attention to themselves if at all possible.
Do you love Kaoru?" Battousai asked Kenshin.
Well yes, of course, how could I not?
Good. Battousai seemed satisfied. Then, surprising all of them, and possibly even himself, he turned to the rurouni and spoke.
You know, I think you love her too.
Reviewer Response: (Incidentally, I adore all of you.)
lizzie^2- ^_^ Thanks for the review and encouragement! *hugs* Oo, thanks for picking up on all the minor details.
mihoyonagi- Hm, sorry this isn't that deep of a fic. It's meant really to be read for purely enjoyment factors, and if you'd like something with a bit more content, "Complicated Love" or "Prom" (When I revive it) should be better. -Also, anything more serious is more implicit, in this story.
Samachan23- :-D Thank you for the review... Hm... Megumi doing what? *tilts head, confused*
Icegal-Yeah, Kenshin does have an amazing talent for messing things up, doesn't he? Poor guy...
Lem- :-D I'm so glad you like this story. (Actually... Kenshin has 3 personalities here, 1) Kenshin, 2) Battousai, 3) Rurouni)- sorry about not making that more clear.
Polka Dot- I guess it's more of an "up to the reader" to decide who was talking. I feel it could have been a few of them, and possibly their intention wasn't to hurt, but yeah. Definitely that was a bad thing to have said.
swtrkgurlz- ^_^ I'm glad you liked the chapter. Heh, yeah, the poor guy is trying to make some sort of a move, but then, since when has Kenshin been super suave?
FyBanditGrl- :-D Much thanks for the review!
Rekka's Angel- Pain killers? *wince* I hope everything is ok now- thanks so much for reviewing even though you were in pain! I hope that chapter amused you!
Haru- *blink* Er, cliffhangers? *angel face*- well, actually I honestly didn't think of that chapter as a cliffhanger... but I do hope you're enjoying the story.
Gracey- Yay! Thanks so much from reviewing! *hugs* ^_^ I'm glad you like the three personality interaction. A lot of people think it's too much. -Yeah, I was aiming for a "more realistic" Battousai... I'm so glad you like him!
Vesca- Hello miss! -:-\ hm. I'm a tad confused by your review. Sorry- I do have a problem with too much dialogue. *cringe* I'll work on that.
LaTiNa-CiNnA- Thanks so much for the review! Hehe, it definitely made me smile.
LSR-7- Love Hina is really cute. =) I like it. ^_^ I'm really glad you enjoyed the chapter. Yeah, it was more devoid of action... *sigh* sometimes it seems these chapters write themselves. (Taking their own sweet time...)
Jason M. Lee^2- Thanks for the advice. Kenshin's working on it, poor guy.
April-Moon- I'm really glad you're taking Kaoru's side with this. Thank you for the support- and I promise, no matter how long it takes, I will finish this story.
ranma1517730129- ^_^ I love your penname- how do you manage to remember all those numbers? Yeah- I didn't update for stories for a while, poor things, but I am working on them. . True, things just aren't going so well for the guys right now.
Brownilocs- Hm, well, Rui hasn't been ousted yet, but I guess some sort of conclusion will have to be made... =) I'm definitely rooting for a happy ending too.
genocide ex-sync*in- Thank you for reviewing. ^_~ Poor Kenshin's been getting a lot of abuse.
Shiek- LOL I liked your review- it was fun. I'm glad you like how clueless Kenshin is.
Jen-I agree, a definite change has to be made in the rurouni. ^_~ I'll work on that.
Lucrecia LeVrai- Thanks for the compliment. I'm glad you're reading my humble little ficcie. And that you pointed out what you liked in the chapter, thanks so much for taking the time to do that.
Mika blue eyes- Kenshin does have a lot of mess-ups doesn't he? I feel a little bad for putting him through so much, but I do think that it is fitting.
(ananymous)- Thank you for reading and reviewing, and picking up my story again! I hope you continue to read. I truly appreciate the feedback.
Shojin Takaru- :-D *hugs* I adore your reviews. Thanks for always being so encouraging and making me smile.
Celya- *ooh* ^_^ I'm honored that you reviewed. I'm so glad you agree with me and think the rurouni is the one with reservations about emotions and such!! I like Rui too :-\ I feel bad for the poor boy, and I'm really torn as to what to do.
Fullmoon- Thank you for such a long review. I thoroughly enjoyed it. ^_~ Heh, thanks also for the idea for this chapter. I took it into consideration.
marstanuki- Hi! :-D Haha, thanks for the review. (btw… I'm sure you've seen the lemon repost of your story but… I dunno.)
sawdust monster- (What a cool penname!) Thank you for taking the time to review! Much appreciated!
Shiomei- ^_^ Thanks for the encouragement.
jojo- I do like Kenshin a lot, and I am a sucker for k/k. -Also *sh* but I honestly don't plan on killing anyone off...
iminyourmind- heh, interesting name, I like it, though it is slightly disturbing. Sorry I didn't get to update sooner- life pretty much took a baseball bat to my head. L
myvan-I'm so glad you like the three personalities of Kenshin! :-X It's actually pretty hard to keep them all separate. -Yeah, Rui and Kenshin will have to have a confrontation at some point, neh? Anyway, thanks so much for reviewing. :-D Wow, all in one setting- I'm grateful.
Azura Dea- O_O *hugs love and adoration!* Wow, thanks so much for that review! You have no idea how encouraging it was, and how appreciative it was. -It might be even more fitting that you thought, really, and I'm so glad that you even considered I have life to deal with too. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!!
-And I just had to say this... Tasuki is a sexy beast. *drool* Honestly. FY sometimes drives me up the wall, but the boys in it are so pretty. *pets*
Lastly, sorry for the lull in updating- life again happened. We'll see how it all works out. The basic plan… well I don't know.
But, I do respond to reviews, instant messages, and e-mails. ^_~ I also have a livejournal which can be found on my profile.
Lastly, if you'd like to be notified when I update, please tell me in a review.
*Hugs* Thanks so much for reading, and reviewing!
^_~ Bow before: Daja2, Vesca, hinami-1412, Fall Rate, Tan Kimiko, Joey8, Midori Natari Himura, Istoria, Battousai angel1, Gypsy-chan, Spellcastre, ewunia, Rishtalak, [eternal aliquis, ego3,] neamh, Jason M. Lee, Kykigirl, IcE-BaNdIt, SailorKagome, DarkLark00, l3al3yanime, Tsuki Karasu, Lilfrozenfire, Kitty127, Babo, Eviljinxypoo, Kikirio-dono, Tears of Amethyst, Mitchy, Aryanne, mango mui mui, Conscience Fairy, Moonseeker, cleoclaudia, Rekka's Angel, Kithkin, whisper*2*imaginary, Tsuki no hikari4, TheEtherway, LifeSavers, fireflies, FrogBunny, deity of death1, Ruriko2, bootleg, Reverie-sama, Jasmine Battousai, EnjeruJoshin, Star of the Sea, Kitsune KeNsHiN, DeeDee-Chan
Awe, shock and gratitude for putting me on your favorite author's list. ^_^ I really should write a story for you sometime...
…
Make my day.