Disclaimer: Watsuki-sensei and Co. owns the Kenshin-gumi. I'm just playing with them.

Author's Note: Once again, I want to thank everyone who reviewed this story. This is the next to the last chapter. I hope everyone enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

White Rose, Black Rose

By Amberle-chan

Chapter Seven

Megumi barely spoke when she joined the rest of the Aoiya staff in the kitchen for breakfast the next morning. The others did not comment on her silence, thinking that she was troubled by the incident of the night before. But she was not troubled, she was gathering her determination together as she waited for Aoshi to appear.

After she and Aoshi had finally parted, she had returned to her room, all of her thoughts centered on him, on the way he had held and kissed her. She lay awake for hours, pleasantly distracted by the memories of his touch, but then as the night slowly passed, she also began to worry about his safety. She had seen the determination in his eyes as he vowed to protect her. She knew in her heart that she needed his protection to a certain degree, that she wanted it, but she also did not want to him to get hurt again. He told her that she was fierce, but she did not feel that way. She was becoming sick of being scared all the time, of wanting to flee in the opposite direction any time someone threatened her. She wanted to be stronger than she felt at the moment, but by herself; she did not want to be completely dependent on Aoshi's strength, no matter how much he was willing to give it. But she did not know where to find the strength she craved. Then, as the minutes moved on and sleep inevitably claimed her weary body and mind, it occurred to her suddenly that there was one way she could become stronger...

Aoshi did not arrive until they had started to clear away the dishes. When he entered the room, she carefully put down the dishes she was carrying on a nearby counter and turned to him.

"You have done many great favors for me over the last several weeks for which I am very grateful, Shinomori-san," she said formally. "If it is not too presumptuous, I would like to ask for one more."

Aoshi arched one black eyebrow in surprise at her sudden formality, but he replied just as seriously. "I am happy to serve, Takani-san. What is it?"

She locked her eyes onto his. "Will you teach me to defend myself?"

Misao dropped the plate she was carrying. Luckily, it did not break, clattering loudly as it spun and hit the floor, but Misao ignored it as she whirled Megumi around to face her. "But why, Megumi?" she demanded. "You're a doctor! You don't want to hurt anyone!"

"That is true, Misao-chan," Megumi replied as she turned back to face Aoshi, "but after last night's incident, I realized the none of you can be with me every minute of the day, and it is not fair to any of you for me to ask such a thing."

"But Megumi-san!" Okun broke in.

Megumi did not turn to face her but kept her eyes steadily on Aoshi. "No, Okun-san. I must learn to do this. I will no longer stand by and let myself be hunted. I must protect myself. I don't want anyone else to get hurt because I don't know how to."

Aoshi studied her with narrowed eyes for several long moments before he replied. "Hai, Takani-san, I will teach you."

Megumi bowed. "Thank you," she said before she left the room.

Aoshi followed her a few minutes later to the back staircase that led up to her room. He reached out for her hand as she placed it on the banister, causing her to turn and stare at him.

Aoshi's blue eyes, usually so cool, were full of worry for her. "Are you sure about this, Megumi?" he asked, his voice soft. "You know that I will protect you."

Megumi was standing on the second step of the staircase; for once, her eyes were level with his. "I know that, Aoshi," she answered, "but I don't want to feel this way anymore. I want to help myself. Perhaps this way I can and not be a hindrance to you."

"Megumi, you could never be...," Aoshi began to say, but he stopped speaking as she placed her fingertips against his lips. She suddenly grinned wickedly at him. "The Oniwabanshuu Okashira gave his word in front of all those witnesses in the kitchen. Now that we're alone, are you taking it back?"

His eyes sparkled in amusement as he chuckled, a sound that she had never him utter before. "Never, Megumi Takani," he growled lightly as he removed her fingers from his face and entangled them with his own. "We'll start your lessons tomorrow morning."

Aoshi began to teach Megumi some very simple hand-to-hand techniques the next morning, concluding that that if she ever truly had to use these methods, they would be the least hurtful to her conscience, because they were defensive only and not designed to kill. He had also given some brief consideration to letting Okun or Omasu teach her instead, but given that her stalker was a man, he decided against it. Men fought differently from women and she would need to learn to protect herself against a man. He would train Megumi himself, just as she had requested.

At first he was surprised at her relentlessness in learning to protect herself, but as the days went on, he once again saw that fierceness she had shown him so many times before, particularly when she was taking care of her patients. It seemed to him that she had simply transferred some of that intensity to her own self-preservation. He did not think that she would have ever the same level of skill of the Oniwabanshuu women or even Kaoru Himura, but each day she gained strength and some speed, and his admiration and affection for her grew even more.

Every morning they would practice together and then he would escort her to the hospital and return there in the evening to walk her back to the Aoiya. Their conversations as they walked together were light, playful, and teasing, but yet he would not touch her as they strolled down the streets of Kyoto, preferring to keep that aspect of their growing relationship private. Often times in the twilight, he found secluded spots for them to be alone together, making sure that each place was secure from prying eyes.

Two weeks passed, then another two. There had been no more roses, no more notes. Aoshi had his suspicions as to why the stalker had retreated, wanting them all to become relaxed and less cautious before he could strike at Megumi again, but Aoshi remained wary and watchful. He had even begun to slip his kodachis into his belt, hiding them beneath his black coat, before he picked up Megumi at the hospital each night. Megumi had protested when she first realized that he had started to carry them again, but it was the one thing that he refused to be budged on. As he walked toward the hospital, he remembered with fond amusement that afternoon more than three weeks ago when she realized that he had been carrying the twin blades. Megumi had called him a "stubborn idiot" and attempted to take the sheaths from him with one of the moves he had taught her. He had easily blocked her, of course, and Megumi had found herself encased in his arms, being soundly kissed.

"I will use whatever is at my disposal to protect you, koishii," he whispered, his breath warm against her hair.

"It doesn't mean I have to like them, you stubborn idiot," she muttered against his chest.

"When all of this is over, I promise to never touch them again."

She shook her head and pulled back from him to look up into his face. "No...no," she answered. "I would never ask you to make such a promise, Aoshi. I may not like these swords, but they are also part of who you are. I cannot ask you to change that."

Aoshi's only answer was to bend down to kiss her again.

Dusk was only beginning to descend when Aoshi knocked on Megumi's office door. When she did not answer, he entered, not at all surprised that she was not there. He often had to wait for her to finish up with her patients before they could leave. As he placed the small package he was carrying on her desk, he noticed the single sheet of paper that lay open as if it had only just been read. It was a simple note, asking Megumi to:

Come meet me. I've got to talk to you.

The note was unsigned, but it was entirely possible that Megumi had recognized the handwriting and gone to meet whomever had requested her presence. He picked up the note and narrowed his eyes. The texture of the paper was expensive, something his fingers had held once before. He held it up to the last of the fading sunlight and his eyes narrowed even further. Two images had been drawn in the bottom right- and left-hand corners, so tiny that they could easily have been missed. Black roses.

Aoshi rushed out into the hospital corridor and abruptly stopped a nurse who was walking briskly by. "Excuse me, have you seen, Takani-sensei?"

"Yes, I have," the nurse answered. "Just a few minutes ago. She said she was going to the commissary."

Aoshi barely heard her finish the sentence as he turned and flew down the hospital corridor.

There were only two or three lamps lit as he crossed into the commissary moments later. But they were enough for his eyes to see that all of the chairs and tables had been pushed off to the side and Megumi's unconcious form lying in the middle of the floor, a single black rose by her head. He rushed to her side, kicking the rose viciously out of the way as he knelt down. He laid his hand on her cheek; it was still warm against his palm and he could feel her breath gently blowing against his fingers. She was alive, but he could not tell how badly she was hurt.

"You taught her well, Okashira," a voice suddenly spoke. Aoshi looked up and spied a figure in the shadows on the far side of the room. "She put up quite a fight, but, of course, she was no match for me."

"You will die for this, bastard," Aoshi promised, his voice a low threatening growl as he flipped his kodachis out of their sheaths.

The dark-haired man standing in the shadows did not turn but chuckled madly. "I knew you would come for her, Aoshi Shinomori," he said, "I planned it that way." He turned around; Aoshi's eyes widened in shock as he beheld Benjiro Inoue. The doctor who had taken an oath never to harm anyone was holding two kodachis of his own.

"No doubt you want an explanation," Inoue drawled as he pointed one sword toward Megumi's motionless body. "She was never the target. You were. From the very first day, I could tell how much you cared for her and she for you, although you did keep your feelings hidden very well for a long time. But I observed it from the first day. And she was so helpful, revealing that you were the Oniwabanshuu Okashira. I've been looking for you a very long time, Aoshi Shinomori. It was then that I began to make my plan to draw you out. All I had to do was place Megumi-san in danger, and I knew you would protect her. And I've had so much fun watching the two of you together, that I decided I wanted to see you suffer before I killed you. I want to take what is most precious to you away, just as you took what was mine. I will kill you a little at a time, and with your last dying breath, I will kill her."

Aoshi's eyes narrowed, deepening into a teal color, as he tightened his fists around the hilts of his kodachis. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"Oh, that's right, we haven't been properly introduced, have we?" his opponent answered, as he perched the kodachis on his shoulder. "Everyone thinks that I'm Hideo Inoue's son because we have the same color eyes, but I'm not. He adopted me when I was a child. My real name is Benjiro Daichi." He smiled wryly as Aoshi's eyes narrowed slightly. "I'm so glad you recognize the name. Not many people remember my mother anymore, especially since you killed her."

"She tried to poison Tokugawa," Aoshi replied harshly. "I was performing my sworn duty to protect him."

"Yes, well, of course, I swore an oath of revenge over my poor mother's grave," he said. Aoshi began to circle around him carefully, realizing that the man standing before him was insane, something that he could perhaps use to his advantage. Benjiro continued to prattle on. "I've been studying the ninja arts for years, dreaming of the day I would finally meet you. And now you're here." He lowered the two swords from his shoulders and pointed them at Aoshi, grinning madly. "Isn't it wonderful how dreams come true?"

Aoshi did not reply, but raised his swords upwards, prepared to fight for Megumi's life and his own. He took his usual defensive stance, his kodachis held out to his sides, staring at his opponent, measuring and weighing him, ticking off the list of everything he knew about Benjiro Inoue in his head. Inoue was intelligent, skilled, highly trained, and patient; all traits that Aoshi possessed himself. However, Inoue was also obviously mad with revenge, a state that Aoshi had once been familiar with and gotten past thanks to the help of Kenshin Himura. They both had much in common, making them evenly matched.

"We are alike in so many ways," Inoue stated sarcastically, his own kodachis held ready. "That's what you're thinking right now, isn't it? That our skills are matched? Well, you're wrong. You are weak, Shinomori." In a flash, Inoue stood above Megumi's still body, one kodachi point held against her throat. "Here is your weakness, Shinomori." The blade flicked and a thin line of blood pooled down Megumi's neck.

It was the only provocation Aoshi needed. He attacked.

With a twin clash of steel, he forced Inoue away from Megumi's unmoving form. Through the cage made by their crossed blades, Inoue laughed. "I was right, wasn't I? I just love being right."

"You know nothing, fool," Aoshi growled. He leapt back, once more surveying his opponent for a moment before he moved into his Kaiten-kenbu, the lightning quick dance that made him appear to be in several places at once.

Inoue laughed again, a mad guffaw resounding throughout the room. "Do you actually think that would work with me?" He also moved into Kaiten-kenbu, matching Aoshi step for step. Suddenly, one of his kodachis slashed down and out, burying itself in Aoshi's thigh. Aoshi's leg collapsed and he found himself braced on his other knee, one kodachi point embedded in the floor for support. Inoue stepped back for only a moment, still grinning madly before he attacked again. Aoshi barely had time to lift his kodachi to block the blow, the sharp clang of steel against steel ringing through the air, but he was too slow to block Inoue's second kodachi. It ripped deeply into his chest.

Inoue moved back, assessing him. "Perhaps you and I aren't so evenly matched after all, Shinomori," he declared.

Forcing his injured leg into movement, Aoshi stood up and attacked.

Back and forth they danced across the room, the only sounds their harsh breathing, the ringing of steel, and Inoue's occasional loud maniacal cackling as he slashed into Aoshi one more time. Aoshi ignored the pain of each wound, his only concern that Inoue be kept away from Megumi. Aoshi's kodachis slashed out and two bloody lines appeared on each of Inoue's upper arms, and then before the other man could even recover, the kodachis flashed again and twin wounds appeared on Inoue's thighs.

"You'll pay for these, Shinomori," Inoue growled.

Megumi's head was pounding when she came to a few moments later and tried to push herself off the floor. She opened bleary eyes to see that Benjiro had backed Aoshi into a corner and that his attacks were getting fiercer with each swing of his swords. She could tell that Aoshi was bleeding from at least a dozen wounds, one or two that were bleeding profusely. Even with her limited knowledge of sword fighting, she could tell Aoshi was going to lose, her Aoshi would lose...

With a sudden burst of adrenaline, she launched herself at Benjiro. "No! I won't let you hurt him anymore!" she cried as she crashed into him. He was so surprised by her attack that he dropped one of his swords and lost his footing. Megumi's momentum pushed him over a nearby table; he tumbled over the other side and landed with a loud crash. She ran over to other side of the table, kicking his other sword out of the way as she went. He had hit his head on the edge of the table, but after pressing two fingers to his carotid artery, she could tell that he was still alive.

"Megumi." Aoshi's voice was a harsh whisper behind her. She whirled and rushed over to support him as he slowly slid down to the floor.

"Aoshi," she whispered, caressing his face lightly.

His blues eyes drank her in. She was alive. He reached up to cup her face with gentle fingers. "Are you alright, Megumi?"

She brushed her lips against his palm and nodded. "I'm okay, Aoshi, " she murmured reassuringly. "I'm okay."

He stared deeply into her eyes, gazing into the soul that was a match for his own. "It was worth it, then," he said tenderly. "I love you, Megumi Takani." His hand fell from her face as his eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed into her arms.

"Aoshi!" she screamed as she gently laid him on the floor. "Don't you dare die on me, Aoshi Shinomori!" Tears flowed down her face as she pulled his shirt off to inspect his wounds. "Don't you dare die. I love you too much to let you die..."