IV

Kenshin walked slowly down the street with Yahiko. This was not because he wanted to take his time, but rather due to the injury inflicted by his spiteful wife. "Would you like me to hold your hand?" teased Yahiko as they made their way back to the Dojo. Despite being at the age of twenty-one, there were times when he didn't seem to act his age.

"No…thank you." replied Kenshin, catching himself before he could be impolite. "Kaoru is just a little illogical from time to time."

"I don't think that's quite the word I would have chosen. Hot-headed would be putting it mildly. Psychotic would on the right track."

"Well, let's not make things worse. She's bound to have cooled off by now, so we should probably go back before she has time to angry again."

"Good thinking, Mr. Prime Minister." The pair walked in the direction of the dojo, slowly of course. They opened the doors slowly and looked inside. They saw lieutenant-colonel Will Kiefer sitting on the edge of the front porch reading a news paper rather non-chalantly. The two approached with some caution and stared at him for several seconds.

"Hello?" said Kenshin. Will lowered his paper.

"Good day." he replied before returning to his paper.

"Uhhh…I live here. Do you?" said Kenshin.

"For the time being. I'm lieutenant colonel Will Kiefer, United States Marine Corps. I've taken up residence here." he explained in his precise English.

"Taken up residence?"

"Yes, a Miss Kaoru offered me a room here." Kenshin sighed.

"That's missus." he said blandly. "Where is she?"

"Inside cooking." replied the Lieutenant Colonel. Kenshin walked gingerly up onto the porch and it the dojo while Yahiko sat down next to the new house guest. Will paid little attention to him, still engrossed by his paper. It was difficult to get any English publications in Japan, so when he did, he could not be disturbed very easily.

XXXXXXXX

Kenshin entered the kitchen solemnly. "I see we have a new guest." he said to his wife, who was busying herself with a pot of boiling water and a random assortment of vegetables.

"Indeed we do, dear." Kenshin held up his finger and stared at the ground for a few seconds.

"Sanosuke, right?"

"Yes, for once in his life, he used brain and actually managed to produce some income."

"And how much is this gentlmen paying us?" asked the red-haired samurai. Kaoru reached into her wrap and withdrew a large gold piece, holding it in front of Kenshin's eyes.

"Well, I've got nothing to argue with."

XXXXXXXXX

Later that night, the various guests that inhabited the Kamya Dojo at one time or another sat around in a circle, eating the stew Kaoru had prepared. As usual, Sano made his snide comments about her cooking, earning him few lumps on the head, to which he had developed a strange immunity. When the unpleasantries had depleted, the attention focused on the quiet new guest. "So tell me, Mr. Kiefer,"

"You can call me Will if you wish."

"Very well then. Tell me about America, Will." said Kaoru. Will swallowed the bite in his mouth and set his bowl down.

"My compliments on the cooking. Well, I come from Minnesota, a city called St. Paul. It's a nice place to live. Gets too cold for comfort during the winter, but I'm used to it. It's a nice state. You can go up north and there's nothing but farmland and rolling prairie as far as the eye can see. Or you can stay in the city and (insert words here.) Then you can take a river boat down the Mississippi river to the south. It'll even take you as far as the Confederacy."

"Do you visit the Confederacy often?" Will removed his glasses and rubbed the lenses with his shirt tail.

"Well, we only opened our borders about two years ago. Things are not exactly rosy between us, and it looks like things are about to get a lot worse. When my father came back from the war of secession, he told me this wasn't over. This was only a prelude to something bigger." No one responded. The entire room was silent, save for some minor chewing sounds. "But don't let me bore you with home-grown politics. I'd like to know a little more about your homeland." As Kiefer's last word left his mouth, there came a ringing from the bell hung on the front door of the dojo.

"I'll get it." said Kenshin as he set his bowl down. He stood and walked out the door in the same strange fashion. It rang again as Kenshin opened the door, and was greeted by a man in a light-brown uniform with the slightest hints of stubble. On each of his collar tabs was a single gold star, and atop his head was another cap like Lieutenant-Colonel Kiefer's in the same color as the man's uniform. The stranger removed it and held it at his side.

"Evening, sir. My name is Major Robert Potter. I'm interested in renting one of the rooms ya'll are offerin'."