Authors Notes: Well shoot, paint me green and call me Gumby! Another update has appeared! I must be ill. Well I don't think this should be going any longer then 5 chapters so thank Kami-sama for that assumption, but yes, any minute now some lime should occur. Well for now though, chill and enjoy! Ja!

Memories on the Road

"We really should be going Misao." Aoshi spoke in his deep voice as he stepped towards her, observing as Misao flinched before turning away from him to head down the hallway and outside.

"You don't have the right to call me by my first name, Makimachi will do just fine." Came Misao's snappy reply as she walked the pathway back to the apartments on campus. She shared with 3 others, making rent a lot cheaper. Not only did she room with Soujiro and Sanosuke, but she also roomed with Takani Megumi. She was doing some degree in nursing for now, but that was if she ever made it out of bed...and that was Sano's bed to be exact. Misao shuddered at the last time she had caught them going at it. She was permanently scared now and remembered that even though she lived their too it was probably best she knock on the door to give the sex fiends a bit of time to make themselves look appropriate.

"I shall wait here." Misao eyed Aoshi for a moment before heading for the apartment as he stood on the pathway allowing her time to pack. As Misao reached the front door there was no time to knock and so she barged right in, hand against the side of her face as she rambled away.

"Look I'm sorry for cutting into your mating ritual, but I'm in a real hurry."

"Misao-chan daijobu?" Snapping her eyes to where the voice came from, Misao found Megumi sitting on Sano's bed but actually looking over some textbooks.

"Mm, I'm fine." Misao muttered as she headed for her bed and a cupboard to grab an overnight bag before pulling open several draws.

"Oi, Kitsune you should see the stiff outside. Oh, hey Weasel, you seen that guy out there? His aura is so damn icy I thought my entire body was going to freeze up just by walking past him."

"That 'stiff' Sano happens to be an old acquaintance of mine."

"Chill Weasel, you almost sound like you're pissed at him and yet defending him at the same time. So which will it be?"

"Tori-atama, don't annoy her and sit down." Megumi spoke in a stern voice as she noticed the flickering of Misao's eyes. She seemed troubled but didn't wish to discuss it and only went through her draws to grab clothing and then headed to the small kitchenette they had to find some snacks.

"Kitsune, what's eating her scrawny little ass?" Sano muttered as he sat on the bed behind Megumi's sitting form and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He received a smack for his statement of Misao's figure, before Megumi rested her back against the chest of her spiky haired partner.

"Well, see you guys in a few days." Misao waved at the sitting couple before heading out the door and closing it behind her. She sighed against it before glancing up to silently observe the man with his back to her. The wind had picked up and was blowing the end of his coat around as his hands were tucked into his trouser pockets. His black tie whipped over his shoulder where it stayed, while his face was staring up into the sky, almost as though calculating the weather or more importantly the dark clouds looming off in the distance. Misao had to admit, he really was quite the sight to behold. He had an air of unemotional coolness about him and the way he dressed seemed to suit his very attitude - dark and gloomy.

"Ah! Konnichiwa Misao-chan!" Misao darted her eyes to one of the other apartment complexes and saw a girl with her hair in a ponytail and waving at her. She placed on a smile, keeping her overnight bag behind her as much as possible and replied back.

"Konnichiwa Kaoru-chan." She watched the girl race off, books in hand as she did so and Misao sighed before her eyes darted back to Aoshi whom was now silently staring at her. Gulping down the lump in her throat and trying to beat the unease from her heart, Misao took hesitant steps towards this 'stranger' and then silently followed him towards his car.

Bringing out his keys Aoshi pressed a button to pop the trunk before pressing another to unlock the keyless entry car. The indicator lights flashed before he went to open the trunk but noticed Misao had already done so, thrown her bag inside before heading to the passenger door with a backpack in her hand.

"Misao-chan, wait up!" Snapping ocean blue eyes to the running figure Misao smiled as it was Megumi heading for her dressed ironically in a plain black dress and Sano's white jacket. Aoshi watched Misao head for the young woman who handed her what looked like a cell phone, gave her a hearty hug and then took off once more. Just before Misao caught him observing the both of them off he turned around and got into his car. Misao on the other hand was tempted to sit in the back, almost making the immaculately dressed businessman look like her chauffer as he drove a sleek black car and was wearing that particular suit, but thought it was probably best to ride up front. She could always ignore him anyway and just play random games on Megumi's cell phone anyway. She really did love that girl. She never butted in on her own personal business and only smiled, gave her hugs or just like now gave her a cell phone to randomly call them whenever she needed to talk. Taking a deep breath Misao opened the passenger door, threw her backpack on the ground and sat in the plush leather seat.

Not a word was spoken as Aoshi turned the car over, placed it into drive and headed for the freeway in the direction of Kyoto. Misao herself sat slumped in the car, eyes half closed while she fiddled with the cell phone in her hands.

"If you need to call someone you can do just that."

"I don't need permission from you!" Misao snapped back and then instantly bit her lip at the immature way she was acting. She sighed and turned slightly away from the suit clad man and promptly gazed out the window. Aoshi remained as quiet as usual and kept his eyes secured on the road before he heard an electronic sound and darted his eyes to Misao to see she was pressing down the button of the electronic windows. The cool breeze wafted through the car flicking Aoshi's bangs about the place as they darted over his sunglasses. His eyes instantly went back to the road as he switched lanes before glancing down at his watch. He'd already wasted enough time as it was and with that in mind he placed his foot on the gas to speed up the car a little more.

# Hours pass by #

Not a sound resonated from the car by the two occupants that sat inside it as they kept to themselves. Misao had opted to try and sleep, but when sleep never came to her she listened to some music on her discman and played games on the cell phone. She grew tired of them quickly and now sat with her knees drawn to her chest and her flip flops gone from her feet as she rested them on the plush car seat as well. As much as Misao hated silence and awkward moments there was no way in seven hells she was ever going to try and bring up a conversation with him. Just what was she supposed to say anyway? Misao was not the same as she was when they were younger and she was certainly not going to be all "Ah, Aoshi-sama how have you been?" in all her cheeriness because to her he didn't deserve it. Frowning at her own behaviour Misao was broken from her thoughts by Aoshi actually talking.

"Are you hungry?"

"No, why do you ask?" Misao immediately retorted back but never moved her eyes away from the dashboard in front of her.

"When you were younger, you always frowned when you became hungry." Silence soon loomed over the two of them once more as Misao pondered over what Aoshi had said. So, in other words, just by him voicing that it meant he'd never truly forgotten her right?

"Those clouds look serious." Misao's eyes darted from Aoshi to the windscreen as she peered out to see what he was on about. She knew he wouldn't wait for an answer from her about his previous statement and looked up into the darkened sky and watched lightning flash through the clouds. Misao involuntary shuddered and her ocean blue eyes snapped over at Aoshi to see if he'd caught it, but he never moved his face away from the road. She pursed her lips, eyeing him off with a scrutinizing gaze before returning to look out the window and felt the breeze brush her thick bangs away from her face.

"What are you doing?" Misao muttered when she felt the car slow down all of a sudden.

"I need to stretch and get something from the trunk." Pulling off to the side, Aoshi left the car idle but placed it into park and got out. Misao herself didn't know how long he'd be and undid her seatbelt and got out as well. Her arms instantly lifted above her head as she stretched and yawned. Once that was over Misao slammed against the side of the car and observed her long time ago crush take of his coat and tie and place them neatly into the trunk before closing it shut. Turning away from his broad physique Misao lifted her head up as the sun still beat warmly down on them even if storm clouds were brewing a fair way away.

"It's me... Yes she's right here as well." At those words Misao darted back around to see Aoshi talking on his own 'state of the art' cell phone. His back was to her as he slowly paced back and forth, one hand in his pocket while the other held the phone to his ear.

"Aa, I understand, one moment." Misao peered up at him and watched as he placed his phone on the roof of the car.

"It's Omasu." Instantly hearing the woman's name Misao snatched up the phone.

"Omasu, where's Jiya? Is he ok? What happened to him?" Behind black bangs Aoshi's eyes softened lightly as he watched the young woman fret about her adoptive grandfather.

"C-Coma...?" Aoshi heard Misao mutter and watched as she bowed her head, her thick blue-black bangs falling over her once lively eyes. Just then Aoshi's hand twitched at his side as he glanced down at it before he heard Misao whisper 'I understand...' before placing the phone back onto the car roofing as she quietly got back into the car and closed the door.

"How is the weather in Kyoto?" Aoshi spoke while getting into the drivers side. He closed the door and raised one hand to undo two buttons on his plain white shirt.

"Is that so? Arigatou..." With that he hung up and promptly dumped the phone on the back seat where a briefcase and laptop bag lay. Glancing his green eyes over at Misao Aoshi's hand instantly went out to the girl, but he caught himself just when an angry voice of 'Don't touch me...ever...' fluttered instantly into his mind. He suppressed a sigh and placed his car into drive before indicating to get back onto the freeway and headed off once more.

What Aoshi didn't know is that Misao had seen his reflection from her now raised window as she watched him hesitate to touch her, obviously remembering her words from earlier on. When his hand had reached out, she had bitten her lip in anticipation at his touch, but one simple reminder...and the flash in his eyes, though she was certain she was not meant to catch it, had forced him to drop his arm away from her and resume driving. Misao shifted in her seat, her eyes closed now as she pretended to sleep and faced his way, just to see what he would do.

Several minutes ticked by and Misao's frown depended as he did nothing. She knew she had mixed feelings for the man...and probably would always have mixed feelings for him, but just the mere sight of him trying to comfort her, trying to touch her and yet drawing away gave her heart a small tug of hope. It had begun ever since he remembered a memory from past years, but then it faded when she found out her Jiya was in a coma...and then instantly it returned when she saw the smallest amount of confusion and anguish on his chiseled face. Misao knew that Aoshi wanted to help her, in some small way, he really did want to help, but when his eyes flashed it meant he was remembering what she had said and would pull away from her.

"I'm sorry about what happened to Okina. It must be hard on you to try and keep so calm in such a situation Misao." Misao's breath caught at that soft voice. How could he read her so well after being apart for so long? Misao fought within herself as she didn't want to open her eyes to look upon his stern face. It was then when her heart stopped, literally, when fingers lightly brushed her cheek and then moved over her lips.

"A frown was never meant for you." That fleeting touch was gone in an instant, but it burned Misao's very skin as her heartbeat quickened in pace and yet her heart was breaking. Her façade was cracking under such intense pressure and without warning her eyes snapped open to catch Aoshi's gaze as he had removed his glasses and placed them atop his head.

"Misao..." He whispered in a voice not like his usual one and watched the young woman brush the stubborn tear that fell down her cheek away as she turned towards the window once more.

"I'm fine..." Misao muttered even when in all seriousness she wanted to jump into his lap and cry like she used to when she was a child. "I'm...perfectly...fine." Her wall crashed down as her shoulders began to shake uncontrollably.

"Okina's going to be fine Misao." Aoshi calmly remarked even though at the mere sight of the distraught girl he wanted to comfort her but didn't know where to start. Fisting his hands on the steering wheel Aoshi's mind was set. One hand instantly moved over to the passenger side, but he became even more surprised when before he reached Misao's shoulder she had turned back around, latched onto his hand and pressed it against her cheek.

"Baka, baka, baka!" She whimpered over and over again as she pressed her face into his hand. That's how it remained for quite sometime as well. Misao cried...and Aoshi drove with one hand on the wheel while his other was in the tight grasp of Misao's pale slender hands and cupped against her wet cheek.

# Time passes #

Somehow, in the awkward position Misao was sitting in, she had fallen asleep. Most of her body happened to be resting on the floor of the car while Misao's arms and head rested on the seat where one would usually be sitting at.

"You always did sleep in strange places Misao." Aoshi muttered quietly to himself as he gazed back at the sound asleep girl. When Misao had lost grip of his hand, having cried herself to sleep, he didn't move it back to the steering wheel and in fact now rested it against her blue-black tresses as his fingers delved into the softness. Just gazing down at her, Misao looked so young to Aoshi, but he was aware that times had changed.

His attention was drawn back to the road or more importantly his windscreen as it began to spit with rain.

At the sudden swerve of the vehicle Misao jolted from her sleep and snapped her head up to look over at Aoshi who was now driving with both hands on the wheel and looked like he was glaring out the windscreen. She peered up and only now just realised that sheets of rain were falling down upon the car and the windscreen wipers were on high but not doing the greatest of jobs.

"The weather has turned, Omasu was wrong." Aoshi spoke as he had slowed down considerably, applying his brakes ever now and then to alert other drivers that he was on the road along with them. His high beams were on, but the pounding rain against his car and mainly the windscreen was making matters worse for him.

"In the glove compartment there is a map Misao, can you check to see if there are any places along this freeway."

"Are we going to have to stop?" Misao questioned as she tried to forget clutching his hand to her face for dear life and crying like a baby.

"We cannot drive in this weather. I questioned Omasu earlier, but she said that it was a mere storm and would pass quickly, but I don't think that is the case." Aoshi darted his eyes to Misao, to watch her scratch her head of messy hair before chewing on her lip as she studied the map.

"It's hard not knowing exactly where we are." Misao lifted her eyes to gaze at Aoshi but a blurred neon flashing sign got her attention instead.

"Look there!" Misao pointed and Aoshi nodded as he had seen it too and took the turn off away from the freeway and towards what seemed like a shady motel. He parked right outside the reception and brought out his wallet fishing out some notes and gave them to Misao. She was after all on the side of the car that was closest and was in fact under some shelter so she wouldn't be hit by rain like he would.

"Ask if there is a vacancy." Misao nodded and jumped out of the car and straight into reception. From his view point Aoshi could feel his lips quirk slightly as he watched the animated way Misao moved her arms about the place as she made up a huge long story to get them rooms for the night. It wasn't long before Misao exited the reception and pointed in the direction of where the room was. Placing the car in drive once more Aoshi followed Misao's dashing form as she unlocked a door and rushed inside not wishing to get too drenched by the rain thanks to the harsh winds.

Aoshi however, had the joyous job of fetching their bags and did so as quickly as possibly. He pressed the button on his keychain to lock the car and dashed into the room where Misao was coming out of the bathroom with two white towels. Dropping the bags onto the floor, Aoshi closed the door and stood in the pale lit one bedroom room dripping with excess water.

"You should shower before you catch a cold." Misao muttered and threw him a towel as she promptly sat on the bed, flicked on the television and proceeded to ignore him now. Aoshi also thought it would be best for him to shower and headed for the bathroom with his own bag and closed the door.

"Crap, why the hell am I nervous?" Misao muttered to herself as her eyes darted away from the bathroom door when the she heard the water turn on from the shower nozzles and turned up the television instead as she tried to hear it over the pounding rain. She was in a motel room, a one bedroom motel room with ever cool and calm Aoshi Shinomori, the man she had instantly latched onto when she was a young girl as he lived with her and her family at the Aoiya.

With past memories flashing through her mind Misao curled onto the bed, threw a pillow over her head and promptly snapped her eyes closed. Just how was she supposed to react now? They couldn't travel any further today thanks to the storm and now she was all alone with him. Misao's stomach flip flopped at this very fact and willed her heart to calm down as she curled into an even tighter ball.

Misao's eyes snapped open, even if the pillow was over them, when she heard the door to the bathroom open. She was here...and so was he. They were alone...and yet they were together as well.

What was she to do in such a situation now?

# To be continued... #