A/N: I must admit that I was wondering where the S/Meg fans were...

Leila & Eriesalia, thank you for being the first reviewers. L - Sano isn't known for making good first impressions, but he's gonna get plenty of opportunities to make more impressions. Hehe. =P

Tru - Yay, another brand loyalty person!! Kaoru's well-meaning but loveable self will emerge from time to time, so watch out.

Moonlit Sphynx - Thanks for the silence break. I'm a navy brat too, and I have too much fun writing these ficcies.

Mirune - I thought you might like this, being the roosterhead/foxlady fan. Don't you find writing A/Meg and S/Meg COMPLETELY different? Or am I just wacko?

And to anyone else who's reviewed or read, thankies.

Part 2: Continuing Impressions

When the doorbell rang, Megumi peered through the viewing hole before opening it, only to see a grim-faced man wearing dark glasses standing in her apartment doorway.

"Yes?"

He frowned, reaching up to grasp his forehead with one hand. "You don't have to shout…" His voice was cautious.

This was the same man from yesterday? Megumi almost didn't believe it.

"I'm not shouting."

"Yes, you are," he told her, slowly removing his sunglasses, wincing slightly at the mid-morning sun. "Man…morning sucks."

Megumi stared up at him. She didn't have to stare too far up. But enough so that she felt the tilt in her neck. The man who was obviously Kenshin and Kaoru's friend was broad in the shoulders with a narrow waist, and long, long legs. His brown hair was cut short and tight around his head – military style. The blue jeans he wore were faded at the knees and fraying slightly at the hem near his feet. A small black bag slung over his shoulder. He wore a clean, gray T-shirt and as he raised his hand to massage his head again, she could see the slight shift in the muscles of his chest. His eyes were a mix of coffee brown irises and red streaks – no doubt thanks to late night he must have had.

While she didn't mind the offer for an oil change, she didn't think he'd show up with a hangover and stubble on his strong jaw.

"What now?"

A cross between a grimace and a smile lifted his lips. "I can think of several different ways to answer that," he responded, his voice low and causing the strangest sensation to her insides. "You got any aspirin?"

Megumi arched a brow. "And what makes you think I planned on giving you aspirin?"

"I don't know. You're a doctor?"

"Cute."

"Thanks," he responded. "Aspirin's good for hangovers, Doc, you know that." She crossed her arms, and he sighed. "All right. Let's start over." He cleared his throat. "I'm Sanosuke Sagara."

She waited for a moment before relenting. "Megumi Takani."

"Doctor Takani?"

"Soon enough," she responded.

"Congratulations. Can I come in? This sunlight is buggin' the hell out of me."

Megumi abruptly turned away to the kitchen. She spent several moments there to retrieve two aspirin tablets and pour some juice into a large glass. When he had made his way to her kitchen, she placed the glass and pills in front of him.

"Here you go."

"Thanks." After he downed the pills and drink, he set the glass aside. "So where's your car parked?"

She bristled at the demanding tone in his voice. "You're in a hurry, I see. Party not over yet?"

"I have better things to do on a Sunday morning than fix a nerd's car."

Something hot coursed through her in annoyance. "Excuse me? I am not a-"

"Did you do well in school?"

She blinked. "Yes."

"Teachers knew your name, you studied a lot, graduated with honors in high school, college, med school?"

"Yes, but-"

"Sweetheart…that's a nerd."

Her eyes narrowed. Of all the inconsiderate, rude men she had ever met, he was definitely at the top of the list.

"Consider it a compliment…it means you're smart."

"Yet you make it sound so derogatory," she retorted.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better…you don't look like any of the nerds I knew." A mischievous light filtered into his eyes. "So where's your car?"

()

The woman looked furious. In his opinion, and he'd shoot himself before he admitted it to her, she looked damn good when she was angry. She certainly didn't look like any doctor he'd ever met.

"I don't have any supplies," she announced.

"It's all here." Sanosuke patted his bag.

"You knew what to get for my car?" she asked incredulously.

"I knew what your car was."

She looked heavenward. Obviously, that answer wasn't enough to reassure her.

"Relax, Doc, I got all the right equipment with me."

Megumi shook her head, putting the glass in the sink. "I'm sure..."

He couldn't help but smile. "Haven't heard any complaints so far, sweetheart."

She almost smiled back and Sanosuke felt like he had taken a hit to the midsection. Doctor Megumi sure had a couple weapons in her arsenal along with that bombshell body. She was wearing khaki drawstring pants that tied below her belly button, and a white sleeveless crop top, exposing just of few inches of the creamy skin forming her flat abdomen. Her long black hair was pulled into a half-ponytail, with several strands framing her face. Definitely not like doctors he knew.

"First, though, I'd like to get something established." Her voice sounded exactly like his high school science teacher's when she was trying to get a point across.

With an indulgent smile, he nodded. "Shoot."

"Don't tempt me."

He chuckled. "Damn if I couldn't start to like you."

She placed her hand over her heart and blinked coquettishly. "Why my heart can't keep still…" Then her expression hardened. "Drop the endearments. I have a name."

"No sweetheart. Understood. Can I work on your car now?"

She snatched up her keys and led him into the parking lot of her apartment complex. "I'm not allowed to change the oil here, but there is a driveway where the manager lets us park if we need to fix cars."

Twenty minutes later, Sanosuke glanced at the black sports watch that circled his tanned wrist. Kaoru had said that she'd pick him up and she was due in about thirty minutes. He hadn't been in a mood to drive to the lady doctor's apartment, and since the whole oil change had been her idea, he told her that she had to drive.

It'd give him enough time to get to his apartment, hop in for a quick shower and head on over to the foundation for Abby's dance lesson. Abby and her three high school friends, along with five other girls, were cheerleaders and they had needed inspiration for their routine. Which basically meant that he had to make the whole thing up.

There were times he cursed Tsunan and their longtime friendship. Being old friends meant knowing a lot about each other. And that included Sano's sense of rhythm. He had lost track of all the times he gave Tsunan dance lessons because he was afraid he'd look stupid dancing with a girl back in high school. Course, that gave Tsunan the freedom to elect Sanosuke as a dance teacher to any of the kids who had the same issue. It also gave Tsunan the freedom to make fun of him. If the Navy didn't work out, there was always the job of a choreographer. So what if he had rhythm and could dance slightly better than the average man? He was just a fan of R&B, hip hop, and rock music.

He tightened the cap over the engine of Megumi's Lexus before closing the engine oil bottle. While wiping his hands with a rag, he inspected his work.

"Everything okay?"

He turned slightly before emerging from beneath the hood of Megumi's car. The lady in question stood several feet away, tall glass of water and tinkling ice in her hand.

"Yeah, it's done."

"That was fast…" she mused.

"It doesn't take long to do," he commented. He wasn't incompetent or anything.

"I brought you something to drink."

He paused. "Thanks…" He cleared his throat, glancing at his hands. "I…"

"Hold on…" Megumi opened her trunk and pulled out two sheets of baby wipes and handed them to him.

He removed the grime from his palms and fingers before accepting the glass. The water was cool going down his throat, refreshing to drink in the heat. After downing the glass, he licked several drops from his lips before glancing at his watch again. "She should be picking me up soon…"

Megumi blinked. "If you had plans…You shouldn't have come by and-"

"Kenshin and Jo-chan are my friends. They're yours, too, so I don't see what the big deal is."

"How do you know each other, anyway?"

"Kenshin and I work together."

The answer was short and simple.

A ring filled the air and Megumi turned slightly to retrieve her cell phone.

"Hello?" She paused. "Oh. Sorry to hear that…But…" Sano didn't miss the glance she shot his way. "Of course. No, it's not a problem. All right. I hope everything works out. Bye."

"Problem?"

"Kaoru's student sprained his ankle during practice, so she had to take him to the hospital," Megumi explained. "So it looks like I'll be taking you home."

"Now how can a man resist an offer like that?" He couldn't help himself. The jibe had been too easy.

He smiled to himself at the flash of annoyance in her dark eyes.

()

Later in the break room at the hospital, cup of tea in hand, Megumi was still stewing over Sanosuke Sagara's attitude.

The nerve of him. He had the gall to turn nearly everything she said into a proposition. It wasn't as if she wanted to sleep with him!

Men like him drove her nuts. They were like the boys in high school with the devil-may-care attitude, who got away with whatever they wanted to just because they could. The kind the cheerleaders giggled about in the locker rooms.

Not that she had been the type to go after males like that. And not that she had been a cheerleader who giggled and gossiped in locker rooms. She didn't even know if cheerleaders did that. Too much television and movies of stereotypical high school probably gave her that idea. Besides, she had always been too busy studying or dancing hula.

Why did she even care, anyway? Even if he was the Himuras' friend, she had never met the man until now. And she'd known the couple for a fairly long time. Who knew when she'd see him again.

"I take it the oil change went well?" Kenshin asked at dinner.

Sanosuke nodded. "No problems."

"Good."

"Considering the condition of her car, it's a small price to pay," Kaoru began as she set a bowl of salad and dressing at the dinner table.

Sanosuke smiled apologetically. "I know." He watched as Kaoru moved to the kitchen then leaned towards Kenshin, whispering, "Did she cook?"

"No, Mrs. Akiona next door gave us some food," Kenshin whispered back before rising to follow his wife.

Sanosuke breathed a sigh of relief. Kaoru's cooking skills were…well…she had none. Sanosuke came over for dinner often enough, and he usually avoided eating anything Kaoru made.

"Anything to drink?" Kaoru asked.

"Water's fine," Sanosuke answered.

When Kaoru returned to the table, she held three glasses and a pitcher of iced water, while Kenshin had a plate of rice and what appeared to be hamburger patties with gravy and fried eggs with solid yolk.

"So Megumi was okay with everything?" Kaoru asked.

"Yeah. I took care of her car and she drove me home," Sano answered. Then, after a moment, he spoke again. "How'd you guys meet her, anyway?"

"Oh…at the hospital," Kenshin answered. "I had injured my leg, she and a senior physician set it."

"And I met her when I started going to the hospital for routine check-ups," Kaoru added.

"She looks like the type who'd tear a man into pieces," Sanosuke said to no one in particular.

"Oro?"

Kaoru blinked. "What? But…she doesn't have any fighting skills, at least…" She immediately noticed her husband trying to eat while their guest let a slow smile cross his features. Then her cheeks grew hot once she discovered the meaning of their friend's words. "Sanosuke! Don't tell me you're thinking of going after her! The last time I set you up with one of my friends she drove herself crazy for a week wondering why you hadn't called her."

"She made the assumption that I would call her," Sanosuke declared flatly.

"Of course she did!" Kaoru declared. "You spent the night with her, what's wrong with-"

"Kaoru," Kenshin interjected. "That's probably Sanosuke and Kulani's business…"

"Still." Kaoru sent a pleading look at her husband before turning to their friend. "Tell me you aren't going to go after Megumi. After what happened with Kulani…we don't even talk to each other anymore…"

"I usually make it a rule to make my position very clear with the women I see," Sanosuke said smoothly. Straightening in his chair, he said sincerely, "But I'm sorry about Kulani. Really. I didn't know that things had turned out that way."

Kaoru sighed the moment the phone rang. She moved to her feet. "I'll get it."

When she was out of earshot, Sanosuke glanced at his friend. "I don't know how you do it…"

"What?" Kenshin blinked.

"Stay married and happy," Sanosuke added.

Kenshin smiled. "Because her happiness matters more to me."

And for one brief moment, Sanosuke realized that thought had never come to his mind with a single woman.

A/N: I'm finding that getting the roosterhead and vixen to actually like each other is growing to be more of a challenge than I thought. Especially since Sanosuke's played the field far more than Megumi's been out in it. =P