Author's note: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin. And I wish to say any cliché's in this fic I deeply apologize for because well I've been watching Rurouni Kenshin for sometime now and I have recently taken a liking to reading these fics and I have yet to see a plot anywhere near the same as this one so if it's the same then I guess it's true Great Minds think alike!

A/n: Ah Ha!! I knew it people aren't reviewing as much anymore! Oh well might as well finish the fic for those who are still reading it and reviewing it… I'd hate to drop this one cuz I think no one's interested anymore… *Shrugs* Guess I gotta get over that… on with the story!

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 "You… you…" She tried to muster the words to say something but she was too much in shock and her father was in some sort of pain.

"Shall we take him to the prisoner's chambers as well?" One of the guards asked.

"I suppose for right now, let the girls get a final goodbye in; but as soon as he starts smelling burn the body…" Shishio said settling himself into the throne. The servant who had brought in the tea kinda stood there in complete and utter shock. "You, take this tea and dispose of it." The female nodded and grabbed the tray and fled before she too would get caught up in the arms of those soldiers. She got back to the kitchen and immediately noticed something was off with Tae.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!!!" Tae kept muttering to herself.
"Tsubame, what's wrong?" The servant asked the young girl kneeling next to her big sister.
"I did it, Tokio." Tae whispered.
"Did what?"
"I poisoned his highness. Father wasn't becoming well again and we needed the money for the doctor. They paid me to… to poison his highness."
"Why did you do that Tae?!?!" Tsubame asked almost angrily.
"It was wrong and I'm sorry, but father was getting worse, you knew that father was getting worse."
"MEGUMI IS A DOCTOR!!!" Tokio uttered watching Tae's tears come faster and her sobs louder.

"I know but asking her highness to do such a thing…"

"But you didn't hesitate to poison his highness!!!" Tsubame yelled at her sister. "I do not understand your way of thinking!! That Shishio man is pure evil!" Tsubame's voice lowered in fear she would get locked up as well. "Tae, we have to fix this and soon."

"We can't…" Tae said. "His soldiers surround the place."

"We'll have to do something…" Tsubame said. "I got it… is there any of the poison left, Tae?" She asked her older sibling. Tae nodded and produced a black velvet bag… inside "I'll be back... Tokio come with me."

"Father…" Kaoru was now trying to reach her father who was being held captive in a cell next to hers.

"What happened to him?" The voice of Megumi made Kaoru jump a little before she turned her sad blue eyes to the female.

"I-I don't know. He was fine one minute and the next he doubled over in pain grasping his chest. Could it be his heart?" Kaoru asked worriedly.

"I can't tell…" Megumi said.

"No, definitely not his heart…" Tsubame whispered. "Tae… Tae poisoned him on Shishio's request."

"She what?" The three sisters exclaimed at once.

"She was paid off to poison him. Can you do anything to counteract the poison?" Tsubame looked at Megumi. Megumi looked helpless at the moment.

"I-I would need my herbs, and a sample of the poison. Some hot water and several bowls…"

"Understood." Tae said.

"I will be back." Tokio said getting ready to rush off but Tsubame grabbed her shoulder.

"Come with me Tokio…" Tsubame said leading the girl to one of the far off walls. She pointed at several of the stones in the wall counting them off sort of before pointing at one. She then shifted a bit of the rubble and light poured through. "You are the only one thin enough to squeeze through… well possibly Tae too but at the moment she's a bit hysterical."

"How did you know about?"

"Tae and I found it by accident! But Go! Hurry!!" Tsubame said as the footsteps of approaching guards sounded.

"Hai…" Tokio grabbed the hem of her uniform and lifted the material to her knees and tied it so she had access to her knees. The pounding footsteps got closer and Tokio squirmed a little in the tight space finding it awkward with other rocks around it poking her sides and scratching her a bit here and there. Once her feet had passed the entrance Tsubame put the rock back in its place.

"What are you doing in here?" Four guards entered the dreary room and had their weapons pointed at Tsubame.

"I just came to look at the prisoners…" Tsubame replied hoping her face wouldn't heat up at the lie she was about to spit out. "It's rather humorous since I was just telling my sister Tae about how the three princesses walk around as if they have it all, and Kaoru over there is the worst of the three of them." She paused swallowing the lump in her throat. "Just because she has a cute face she thinks she gets to choose her husband while the rest of the world is just put in marriages. I would love to meet Shishio for the way he showed them the world doesn't revolve around them." She awkwardly leaned against the bars of the cell and forced a laugh out… the guards just gave her a funny look.

"You've seen the prisoners had your laugh now leave this sector now!!"

"Okay… Sheesh, no need to get your knickers in a twist." She said before thinking 'sector?'

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(Three days later elsewhere)

                Kenshin slipped into the hot water of the bath welcoming the relaxed heat it provided to his aching muscles. For the past five days Hiko insisted on practicing with Kenshin with, apparently, the final move of the Hiten Mitsurugi style. He just told him that he would need the attack… but for what? Kenshin never quite understood what was happening but apparently something big was going to happen and Hiko was worried that he wouldn't be ready. Either way you look at it Kenshin was progressing rapidly with the new attack and hopefully would have it completed not too much later but…

"Kaorudono…" The name rolled off his lips suddenly. As soon as the name left his mouth a pang reverberated in his chest. It was an awkward feeling… like maybe something was horribly wrong.

'Clank, clankity, clank….'  A sound made Kenshin jump slightly and he ran to the thin rice paper door and opened it and spotted a bottle of sake with a rag hanging out of the top and a flame was burning its way down.

"Oro?!?!" He looked at it before closing the door and jumped back into the tub head under the water and the sound of an explosion reached his ears at the tub tilted over in its side and flames surrounded him. After some quick maneuvering he made it out of the flames and ran to the room where Yahiko was asleep at and grabbed some clothes. (Yah Kenshin was naked)

'Clank clankity clank….' There was the sound again… Kenshin grabbed Yahiko and sprinted out of the room and to another wing.  'Clank…clank…clank…' The sound of the sake bottles hitting echoed behind him. Whoever was doing that obviously was targeting Kenshin. Suddenly Kenshin stopped and his body jerked waking up the young boy.

"Kenshin... What's going on?" Yahiko asked but got no answer as Kenshin's eyes were fixed on the eight bottles in front of him and one looked like it was starting to burn inside the bottle reaching its end. Kenshin searched around.

"Cover your head Yahiko." Kenshin said tossing Yahiko out of a window and a splash was heard. Kenshin then jumped out of the window himself just as the explosion began and hit the water in the outside pond hard. "Oro…" He surfaced face up with swirlies in his eyes. When he sat up he felt the teeth of Yahiko Myojin on his head earning more 'Oro's" out of him.

"You could've warned me you were throwing me into cold water."

"There was no time Yahikochan… There is someone on the premises trying to blow this place sky high. Kenshin said before his gaze fell on a shadowed being on a branch of a nearby tree. The figure was petit and not very tall.  The figure said nothing but jumped off into the night.

"Baka-denshi…" The voice of Hiko groaned out from underneath Kenshin and then he realized he was sitting on his Sensei.