Author's Note: It seems that my updating skills aren't as good as they used to be. Well, I just promise that I will never leave a story unfinished, so you can always count on an update, though it may take a while sometimes. Thanks for waiting for this one, and thanks for your reviews. They are greatly appreciated! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I no own, you no sue.
Your Azure Eyes
Chapter 5: As Those
"I…" Was the most intelligent thing Kenshin could manage at that moment. His purple eyes blinked at her in bewilderment, as he stayed rooted to his spot.
"Come on," The woman grabbed Kenshin by the back of his t-shirt, yanking him out of the chair and pulling him towards her. She dragged him into the café, heedless of Kenshin's muttered protests and Sano's suspicious eyes.
They quickly turned a corner into a small hallway. Kenshin watched as they passed the men's room, turning his head just in time to see the large, "Lady's Room," sign on the door as the woman pushed it open. "Miss, I don't think that-"
"Stay quiet. I've got an idea," She whispered, letting go of the back of his shirt, only to grab him by the shoulders and steer him into the handicap stall, locking the door securely behind her. Kenshin stared, as confused as ever, as she placed her hands on her hips and clearly demanded, "Take off your clothes."
"Excu… excuse me?" He stuttered, discreetly trying to edge around her to the door. She placed her hand against the stall, and braced the other against his chest, firmly keeping him still.
"If you give me your clothes, then they won't be able to recognize me." She explained, giving him a solid push towards the back of the stall.
"Who?" Kenshin asked. The woman rolled her eyes.
"I'll tell you if I live long enough to do so. And if I'm going to survive this," She grabbed the front of his dark blue t-shirt, pulling him towards her assertively, "I'll need these clothes."
"Alright," Kenshin gave in, pulling the shirt over his head, "Take it, if it's the only thing that'll save you."
The woman raised her eyebrows at him for a moment before adding, "I said, all of your clothes."
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"Sanosuke?" The melodic voice rang through the crowd. Sano recognized it instantly as belonging to his charge. In a moment, he was out of his chair and scanning the crowd for her undoubtedly masked face. He spotted her as she walked off of the sidewalk and into the café's eating area, wearing a long sleeved black top, and a knee length black skirt. Her long hair was tied back in a tight bun, as usual, and her sunglasses sat firmly on her nose.
"Koaru?" He questioned as he pulled out a chair for her. Kaoru smiled gratefully at him as she sat down. Her eyes glanced over at the chair pulled out across for her, and the half eaten pastry and empty coffee cup in front of it.
"Is Kenshin here?" She asked, pulling the menu out from under the napkin.
"Uh… Yeah," Sano shrugged, sitting down himself, "He, er… went to the bathroom."
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Kenshin stood, shivering slightly in the handicap stall of the women's bathroom wearing nothing but his plaid boxers. His bright red hair hung loosely about his shoulders, and he brushed it back, thoroughly annoyed. The woman had even taken his hair tie in order to tame back her raven locks.
The dim sound of someone walking through the small hallway outside of the door could be heard. Kenshin listened as the sound traveled closer and closer, until it stopped right outside of the lady's room door. He quickly shrank to the back of the stall, as the door was pulled open with loud squeaks of protest.
Watching discreetly through the large gab between the bottom of the door and the floor, Kenshin saw black high heels make their way across the pink tile, and vaguely wondered why he recognized them. Not only that, but there was something in the woman's step that jogged his memory as well.
"Miss Kaoru?"
The footsteps stopped abruptly, and silence fell in the small bathroom. Kenshin stayed quiet, hoping that he was not mistaken.
"Kenshin?!" Her voice was shaken, as if she just had the scare of her life.
"Yes," He answered with a sigh of relief. He leaned against the rickety stall door, causing it to shake in its hinges.
"What are you doing in here? This is the woman's room!" She whispered. The click of her high heels could be heard coming towards his door. Kenshin chuckled nervously.
"You know, it's the strangest story—" He began, but never finished, as the door decided that it could not longer hold his weight. The small bar used as a lock had been jittered out of place by his movements, and fell out of the holder it rested in. As the door swung open, a very surprised Kenshin fell, sprawling onto the tile floor.
"Oh my…" Kaoru gasped, placing her delicate hand in front of her mouth. She quickly turned her back to the man, trying unsuccessfully to suppress her giggles.
Kenshin, his face very red, slowly stood up while muttering, "Someone took my clothes."
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Sanosuke scanned the crowd on the sidewalk for anyone suspicious, but brought his eyes back down to his coffee cup. At this time in the morning, the only people wandering the streets were businessmen and women on their way to work. The sounds of heels and loafers clicked and padded by him as well as the sounds of people talking on cell phones, or simply to themselves.
The jingling sound of the bell signaled to Sanosuke that someone was walking out of the café. He looked up, expectantly, hoping to see either Kenshin or Kaoru, but was met with a very different sight.
The woman from before walked with long, purposeful strides. Sano recognized her despite the fact that her hair was tied back, and she was wearing different clothes: Kenshin's clothes.
Sano stood up to stop her, but before he could get one word in, she passed by his table and was lost in the steadily growing crowd.
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"I'll bring my coat back here, and you can put that on," Kaoru said, while standing next to the door of the handicapped stall Kenshin had locked himself in once more.
"But what about pants?" Kenshin asked.
"Well, you still have shoes, right? You can just pretend that you're wearing shorts. There's not much of a difference." Kaoru said sensibly, smiling to herself.
"There's a big difference," Kenshin countered, "And I'd rather not go into that. If I hadn't forgotten that I left my keys in my pants pocket, I would be able to send Sano out to my apartment to get me some more clothes."
Kaoru laughed quietly, "Well, we're going to have to do something. You can't stay locked up in a lady's room stall for the rest of your life. We're lucky that no one else has tried to come in."
But she spoke all too soon, as Kenshin heard the telltale squeak of the heavy door being opened.
"Kaoru?" It was a man's voice, and Kenshin immediately recognized it as Sanosuke's.
"Sano!" Kaoru replied, "What are you doing in here?"
Sano stepped into the bathroom, letting the door swing closed behind him, "I went looking for Kenshin. Some woman just ran by wearing all of his clothes."
Kaoru brought her hands to her mouth to stifle her laughter, "Kenshin, you were mugged by a woman?"
Kenshin could feel his face heat up in embarrassment. He would have liked to tell her the truth, but the strange woman had begged him (or more so, ordered him) not to tell anyone. "Yes," He finally gave in, hearing Sano join in the laughter.
Kaoru finally managed to catch her breath long enough to ask, "How are we going to get him home? He refuses to come out in his boxers, but honestly I don't see any difference between them and shorts."
"There's a big difference," Sano and Kenshin said firmly.
"Fine," Kaoru shrugged, "Then you figure out how to solve this."
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"Take small steps, and don't saunter," Kaoru warned as she pulled Kenshin's hair back into a ponytail with her ribbon, tying it in a bow at the top of his head.
"Yeah, and try not to talk. You're voice is too deep to pass off as a girl," Sano added, pushing more toilet paper down the front of the buttoned up coat adorning Kenshin's frame.
After ten minutes of ideas, they had finally decided to have Kenshin wear Kaoru's coat as a top, and to wrap Sanosuke's coat around his lower half as a skirt. This way, he was not only covered, but he could walk out of the woman's bathroom without worry.
"Do you think they're even?" Sano asked, stepping back and admiring his work.
Kaoru glanced up from adjusting Kenshin's skirt, "The left one is slightly larger."
Sano nodded and proceeded to shove more toilet paper down the coat. Kenshin sighed, his face as red as a tomato.
"Come on, Kenshin, it's not that bad!" Sano patted his shoulder reassuringly, "You just have to stay like this until you get home. That's only, what… two blocks?"
Kenshin heaved another great sigh, "Yes, only two blocks… But I don't have my keys anymore. They were in my pants…"
Kaoru giggled again, "Well then, you'll have to come back to the studio with us. That's four blocks, but at least we can fix you up with some clothes there."
Sano agreed, and before Kenshin knew it, he was being shoved out the lady's room door, and forced to walk out in public.
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"Why are you all so late?" Kamatari asked as they walked through the door, "I was starting to worry!"
"Sorry," Kaoru answered, "Kenshin was mugged, and they took his clothes."
"Oh you poor dear!" Kamatari ran over to the red head, engulfing him in a tight hug, apparently unaware that he was dressed in coats like a woman, "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, thanks," He answered, prying her fingers off of him, "We need to start this shoot or we'll never have those pictures done in time for Vicky's magazine. Kamatari, can you please get Kaoru in that red bikini while I try to find something to wear?"
Kamatari nodded, grabbing Kaoru by the wrist and hauling her off to the dressing room.
After wandering for a few minutes, Kenshin was able to find a pair of pants and a loose shirt to wear. Although they were women's clothes, and had been previously fitted to fit Kaoru for photo shoots, they fit surprisingly well.
"Alright," Kenshin began as Kaoru stepped out of the dressing room, "Let's get these shots."
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It was close to midnight when Kenshin finally stopped outside his apartment door. He carefully set the pictures onto the floor, as he had decided to take them home in order to prevent further damage to them. Pulling out the bobby pin Kaoru had given him, in hopes that he could use it to unlock his door; he grabbed the handle.
The handle turned, and the door opened. It was unlocked.
"What the…?" Kenshin whispered as he opened the door and took a step back. He always locked his door before he left. If the door was unlocked, that meant that someone was in the house.
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Extra Author's Note: I went with more of a humorous tone in this chapter. Hope that it was at least slightly funny! Please tell me in your REVIEW, that you should. Thanks!