Within the Shadows- Sanosuke's Adventure in London

Disclaimer: All characters of Rurouni Kenshin belong to Nobuhiro Watsuki and all affiliates.

Chapter Six

He had gotten back late last night. Sanosuke barely got himself out of bed that afternoon due to the fact that he was so tired- and due to the fact that the bed that he slept on was enormous. He thought he would never reach the edge after what seemed like an eternity of sliding across the mattress, but when he assumed he was finally able to swing his legs over the edge he realized he had misjudged the distance and nearly slid right off the bed. He had to grab hold of one of the bedposts to keep himself from falling. It was such a long way down to the floor. Not like the beds back home at all.

Sano wasn't much used to this kind of schedule, but he lived by it to spend his time with Mary. He figured she should also be awake by this time and dressed quickly so that he could grab a carriage over to her room at Miller's Court. He had his jacket on again and his bandana tied securely around his head where it belonged. He thought about the night before and a small smile came to his lips. It had felt nice to hold Mary in his arms like that. It was probably the one and only time he actually forgot about the world around him during his travels and truly relaxed. It certainly was a moment he wouldn't soon forget. He hoped Mary wouldn't forget it either, but drunk as she had gotten later on that evening he figured she would dismiss the memory as nothing but a dream. He stepped out of the bedroom and grabbed the house keys off of a nearby dresser, but a knock on the front door stopped him dead in his tracks.

Who the hell is that, he wondered stepping slowly, and as quietly as he could with leather boots, toward the door. The knock came again, sharper this time and Sano realized that he had to be prepared for anything. His body tensed as he pressed his back against the wall next to the door. He wrapped his left hand on the knob and then leaned a bit toward the door.

"Who is it?"

"Sano? Is that you?"

Regret washed over the gangster as he turned the knob and opened the door to face the man he had hoped not to encounter for a while. Trevor stood at the stairs with a grim expression on his face. Sano had the odd feeling that the expression was intended for him.

"What's up, Trevor? I'm on my way out."

"To see, Mary?"

The question was laced with an accusing tone that Sano felt was meant for him as well. He didn't like the feeling he got from Trevor one bit, but then the other man lowered his face into his hand and held that same hand up, placating the fighter.

"I'm sorry. That's not any of my business. I don't know what came over me."

Sano studied him closely and immediately knew why the man had come over. He stepped aside and held the door open. "It's okay. Come on in. You're my landlord after all. You're probably doing one of your routine checks on your tenant, right?" Sano offered hoping to take some of the awkwardness out of Trevor's sudden appearance. The other man contemplated what the gangster said and then moved inside past him to enter the apartment. Sano had mixed feelings about closing the door but he didn't want to arouse any more suspicion in Trevor so he reluctantly shut the door and turned to play host.

"Uh, sorry but I don't have anything to offer you." He moved to shove his sack out of a sitting chair. "You can sit here. Hope everything looks okay to you. I've been trying to keep your place clean, so I figured that the less time I spend in it the cleaner it'll stay."

Trevor took the seat that Sano had offered, lowering his body slowly and shifting around on the cushion until he was comfortable. "That's an interesting way of keeping a home clean," he commented and gave the room they occupied the once over. "Everything looks fine to me. I appreciate how well you're taking care of my flat." He then shifted his gaze and fixed Sano with a long penetrating stare. "I also appreciate how you've taken care of Mary. I'm glad to see that she has a friend like you to look after her."

Sano's guard went up at the last sentence. He eyed Trevor cautiously, wondering what the hell he was trying to imply. "I owe her a lot. She helped me get settled here so keeping an eye on her is the least I can do." His thoughts drifted momentarily to his first morning in London and his encounter with the strange man. Sano was sure the stranger would have killed Mary if they hadn't met when they did. He focused back to the present and fixed Trevor with a hard gaze. "I have to keep her safe from the killer that's on the loose."

Trevor nodded his head slightly at that and sat contemplating for a moment. "These are dangerous times, Sano. There's no place to think about trivial things like love, is there?"

The fighter knotted his brows at that one. Where did that come from?

His guest sighed deeply and slumped slightly in his chair. He ran a hand through his hair and then straightened back up to explain himself. "I'm a shameless bloke, Sano. I like you a lot and I consider you a friend, but I'm here to ask you if there's anything romantic between you and Mary."

So that's it, Sano thought to himself not as surprised as he assumed he should be, although the guy was being a little too nosy for his taste. He has a thing for Mary. That explained his first meeting with Trevor and his gang. He had spoke of Mary as if she belonged to him and Sano remembered what that resulted in. He imagined that Trevor couldn't have forgotten either since thanks to Mary he sported a disfigured upper lip that looked like it still hurt. And if he remembered the morning right, that hit in the face almost cost her a beating from his gang! Sano was suspicious of this guy once again but he didn't want to say anything that would jeopardize their meeting.

"Romance isn't on my agenda for my visit. I don't have time for that kind of thing. Besides, there's a lady waiting for me back home and I don't think she'd appreciate me getting close to another woman while I'm traveling."

That wasn't entirely a lie. His reference was of a specific fox-lady back in Japan; he doubted she waited with bated breath for his return, but he liked to think it could happen.

That response seemed to be just what Trevor wanted to hear. He stood up and smoothed his trousers. "I'm glad to hear that. Don't get me wrong. You're a good fellow, but I think Mary needs someone who can take care of her. The last man she shacked up with could never keep a job and he just up and left her anyway. If she'll let me I can provide a nice life for her." He walked up to Sano and held out his hand. "If you're going to see Mary then I'm sure she'll be going to the Ten Bells tonight. I'll be there as well, so I'll see you then."

Sano shook Trevor's hand thankful that he was finally going to leave. He moved to take his hand back but found it was trapped in the other man's iron grip. The grim expression had returned. "Try not to hang around Mary so much. Your presence makes it difficult for a man to make a move." He stared hard at the gangster, expecting him to agree. Sano stared blankly back at him.

Trevor didn't seem to care about getting a response. He released Sano's hand and moved to make his way toward the door. As he passed him he gave the fighter a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Tonight is going to be fun," he declared with a smile that probably hurt his injured mouth. When he was finally gone Sano looked at the door that had closed behind Trevor. He didn't like the feeling that came over him one bit. It felt like he had more reason than ever to protect Mary.

"Really Sano, I wouldn't worry about Trevor. He's perfectly harmless."

Sanosuke turned from the window of Mary's room to eye her dubiously. She had to be kidding, right?

"For me he's harmless. For you, he's a stalker waiting to happen. I don't trust him."

Mary picked up a red shawl and flung it around her shoulders. She stopped a moment to check her hair in a piece of mirror by the window and then stood expectantly before the ex-gangster. She flashed him a coy smile.

"Quit being so silly. It's Friday. The festivities at the Ten Bells continue well into the morning and I'm looking to get a few customers to dance with." He raised an eyebrow in response, which prompted her to add, "I didn't work last night, and I'm a little short on my rent for this week. The landlord tells me that I have until morning to get the rest or else I'm out."

Sano lowered his eyes to gaze at the floor. "Oh. Sorry."

Mary waved the apology away. "It's my own fault. I had many opportunities to make money this week but I've been incredibly…" she broke off searching thoughtfully for the right word, "Choosy."

Sano knotted his brows not understanding what she meant. She shrugged her shoulders. "With a killer on the loose a girl can't be too careful. But I can't do that tonight." Mary walked past the tall gangster to the door. "Trevor will be there tonight. If he approaches me I can earn all I need for my rent."

Sanosuke's body went stiff and he turned around slowly to face her. He didn't like the sound of this. "That's not a good idea."

Mary just looked at him, unmoved. "You really are being rather foolish about Trevor. What do you have against him now? I thought you had become friends."

She caught him on that one. He sighed at that knowing she had scored a point. It was hard to explain. Trevor seemed nice enough on the outside but there was something deep within him that kept Sano on constant guard. It was something only another fighter would understand and it was something he wished he could talk to Kenshin about. The rurouni would certainly know the right thing to do in this situation. With that in mind Sano stopped and thought hard about what Kenshin would in fact do but he came up with nothing. He wished he had the kind of wisdom that churned underneath his friend's mop of red hair but alas he was on his own with this one. He walked over to where Mary stood and reached out to open the door for her. She glanced tentatively up at him.

"Are you going to be all right with this?"

How was he going to answer that? No, I'm not all right with it! I want you to stick with me the entire night so that I can keep you safe. If you get thrown out of your apartment you can stay with me, so don't worry about having to work and just enjoy the night.

But, he wouldn't tell her that. "I'm keeping an eye on you all night. If I think a guy is going to try anything that looks dangerous, I'm on the bastard and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

Mary peered up at him through her lashes, silently absorbing what he had said. "You're very bad for business, do you know that? How do you expect me to make my rent with you hovering about?"

Sano smirked at her feeling very satisfied with himself. "As long as certain fellows stay away from you, I won't cause trouble."

Her eyes hardened and she glared at him. "You're not being fair! Do you know how rich Trevor is? An entire night with him will have me set for this week and the next. Why are you making this so hard! Do you think he wants anything special from me? I'm going to shag him senseless. What more do you think he will want?"

Sano wasn't familiar with that term. "Huh?"

A smile crept back onto her face as she trailed a finger over the muscles that peeked through his open gi jacket. "What I did to you a few days ago," she purred reaching up and trailing the finger lightly over his lips.

He felt his cheeks flush and he swallowed hard. "Oh," was all he said as he tried with all of his might to keep himself from revisiting that memory. Mary moved her hand away before his mind wandered into dangerous territory.

"Are you getting shy with me again? You're so cute. Sometimes I wish I never agreed to keep my hands off you," she teased moving to clasp them behind her back as a show of her commitment to her vow. Sano felt the sooner they left her room the better. He gestured toward the open door as he held it open. Mary nodded her thanks.

"Believe me, he wants nothing more than a night with me. Perhaps two nights. I've been dodging him for quite a while. I think it's time to let him catch me, and in order for him to do that you have to be on your best behavior," she said, stressing her words with a firm gaze that told him that she wasn't kidding him in the least. Sano didn't say anything to that. He decided that silence was the best thing at this point. He would try and do some persuading with her later on. He couldn't just accept that Trevor just wanted to spend the night with her. After their conversation this past morning, Sano was convinced that the man wanted to give Mary things that she perhaps didn't want. Or if she did want them, she didn't want them from him.

Sano stopped at the doorway and watched Mary walk to the entranceway of Miller's Court. If she was looking for an easy way to make lots of money tonight then she could sure bet on making it from Trevor. He knew that the man would approach her tonight, and if he got to her first then no one else would get a chance with her. He wondered if she had any idea that Trevor harbored strong feelings for her. Sano felt it was safe to say that Trevor probably loved her. If that was the case he wondered if it was a good idea to mention that to her. If she knew would it change things? He watched as she stopped at the entranceway and turned expectantly, waiting for him to join her. He would drop it for now and wait and see what happened. He wasn't any closer to feeling better about this night.

Mary saw Trevor immediately head their way upon their entrance into the pub. She knew he had been trying for weeks to get her to spend a few hours with him and the thought of what she had to do tonight filled her with dread. The word among his group was that he had strong feelings for her, but the last thing she needed right now was another bloke who had those kinds of feelings for her. Her last boyfriend was a disappointment and she had no intentions of getting involved with another man just yet. If at all. She told herself to remember what she had said to Sano. It was just for one night.

As he approached Mary felt herself grow tense yet it wasn't from the dread that consumed her. Sano's palm, which rested against the small of her back, seemed to pass the tension he felt at the sight of Trevor, into to her. She wished the dear boy would relax. She was a big girl after all. She glanced up at the tall gangster momentarily and saw that he measured her client with a steady gaze, watching him closely as he stopped before them and held a hand out to her. She turned her gaze to Trevor now and greeted him with the sincerest smile she could muster. Trevor looked absolutely delighted. She then placed her hand into his and watched as he lifted it up to his lips and kissed it softly. The hand that had been so gently positioned against her back, ball up into a fist.

"Mary, you're looking lovely." Trevor said to her, and then he looked over at Sano and nodded his acknowledgement. "Sano, glad you could come. What are your plans for tonight?"

Silence was his answer. Mary wondered if anything had happened between these two to put the gangster into such a bad mood. She took her hand back and turned to look up at him. His eyes met hers briefly and she saw how displeased he looked. She really wished he wasn't so worried about her. It was going to make this night even more difficult for her to live through. She shot him a pleading look, making one last effort to reassure him that she would be all right in the hopes that he would take the hint and not cause trouble. Surprisingly, he backed off. A sweep of air behind her told her that he had dropped his hand, and with that he turned and made his way to a table by the window.

And she was left alone with Trevor.

She pushed aside the slight wave of panic that came over her and turned back to her date, deciding it was time to get to work. The look that she saw on his face instantly brought the panic back. Something had indeed happened between them. Why else would Trevor direct such a nasty glare at Sano? She saw smugness dancing around within his dark eyes and decided, against her better judgment, that she should get things started already. She reached out and took his hand. As if he had been under a spell he blinked and turned to smile brightly at her.

"This is a pleasant surprise, Mary. I was beginning to think that I wouldn't get to spend any time with you. Your friend takes up a lot of your time."

Mary squeezed his elbow and smiled back. "Sano has been protecting me these past few days. He wants to keep Jack the Ripper away from me."

She felt this man grow tense now, as he led her toward the bar. Perhaps her words made him react that way. He held his hand out toward a stool and she took the seat graciously. When he sat down next to her it felt as if he had settled down some.

"I can keep Jack the Ripper away from you," he offered, motioning for the bartender to come take his order. "My circuit will keep you safe, among other things."

She brushed the offer away knowing what other things his circuit could do. "No one knows who Jack the Ripper is. There are so many suspects that it isn't safe for me to associate with any men. Sano just arrived in London two days ago so in that respect I feel safe with him."

Mary glanced at him and noticed that he clenched his jaw tightly. He grinded his teeth slowly and stared vacantly at her as if he were looking right through her. The unsettling feeling she got in her stomach now was something she couldn't ignore. Perhaps Sano was right about him? She couldn't wonder for very long because Trevor snapped out of his trance and frowned disapprovingly.

"Really Mary, you barely know the chap. He made quite a mess his first few minutes in London."

Her gaze hardened on him. He had a lot of nerve bringing that up. "You would know. As I recall you had something to with that."

At that statement, Trevor pulled back as if he had been slapped. He looked as if he searched for an explanation, but she could care less about what he had to say. "Well, Mary I was just being careful. You know how it is. There's so much fear about this Ripper killer, and that posh bastard who joined us made us think you were in danger."

"I was. You were about to punch the daylights out of me." She remembered now why she made it a point to avoid him. When he didn't get his way he made you pay for it. She had the mind to forget about him and get her rent money from another client. The night had just begun. A few gents would get her enough to pay her debt and buy some food staples for the next few days. Yet, as preferable as that was she remembered what her purpose for tonight had been and so she focused on Trevor, and Trevor alone, deciding to let him get his way just this once so that she could rake in just what she needed to get through the week- and then never see him again.

She turned to him ready to accept her fate for the evening when she noticed that he was unusually timid as he sat beside her. She noticed his furrowed brow and the anxious expression on his face as he twisted his fingers together into seemingly painful knots. She wondered what went through his mind at that moment. Was he trying to conjure up an explanation for his behavior that night? Or was he just a nervous wreck thinking that her last comment meant his chance with her was gone? She suppressed a sigh, gave him a sly grin and put her hands on him once again. His gaze instantly shot up to meet hers.

"But then, you always were a rough, commanding sort of man. I find that appealing."

Trevor looked blankly at her for a moment before shifting his gaze to something behind her. Whatever he saw seemed to please him because he smirked slightly as he moved to stand. He held a hand out to her and flashed her a debonair smile.

"I want us to talk some more, but not here. I want some time alone with you. Would you accompany me for a walk?"

Mary hesitated a moment before answering. She truly hadn't expected to leave the bar so soon, and she just knew that Sano would find this absolutely suspicious. She didn't know what to do. She glanced over at her friend and to her surprise found him immersed in a game of cards with some gentlemen. She was dumbfounded for a moment wondering how that came about, but she let it fade quickly happy to see that the locals had finally allowed Sano to show how charming he was. Now, there was nothing to keep her from leaving. She turned to the man who sat patiently waiting for her response. She placed her hand in his and squeezed.

"I'd love to."

Strange as it was, within minutes of making himself comfortable at a table Sagara Sanosuke found himself joined by a group of bar patrons who had allowed him into their card game. Or they had decided to have their game at his table and dealt him in as a courtesy- or more likely, to avoid a fight with him. Either way the gangster had welcomed the chance to try out his gambling skills again, partake in a round of drinks, and sit among the company of these intense card players who eyed him firmly as he contemplated his next draw. But hand after hand inevitably proved that it was back to normal in terms of his gambling skills. Damn it.

He couldn't believe it. He won like a demon two nights ago, yet tonight he'd be lucky if he could win back the measly amount of change he had started out with. He had managed to scrounge that money up doing various favors for young ladies who needed a hand with their bags, and older women who desired a strong young man to accompany them into the less desirable areas of London. Sano didn't see the big deal with those areas. They were nothing compared to White Chapel, but he did those ladies the favor and was rewarded nicely for his time. He thought it strange that they just up and trusted a complete stranger, and one who was obviously from another country, but then when he thought about it this Jack the Ripper fellow had people doing things they wouldn't normally do in order to keep themselves safe. It was safe to assume that the locals now accepted that he was relatively new in town and therefore not the killer who had been terrorizing them for the past few months. He was very happy to be on the town's good graces but that didn't change the fact that he was now dangerously close to being completely broke once again.

He accepted another set of cards dealt his way and gathered them together to take a look at what he had. He felt like sighing. He wins big one night and bombs the next. He had hoped with that win that his luck would have changed and the streak would continue. But it felt like lady luck was messing with him, letting him feel what winning was like just once and then snatching it away. The sigh threatened to escape him but he caught it in time. These fellows would find out that he had a losing hand and there would go the rest of his loot. He decided his best bet was to try the bluffing trick he had learned from those cowboys back in America. If he did it right he hoped to win his money back and then sit out and just watch the rest of the games until Mary was done for the night.

Mary.

He straightened abruptly in his chair, grabbing the attention of everyone at the table. They all stared at him as he slowly rose from his seat to scan the entire area of the Ten Bells' Pub, and they all seemed to blanche in unison as Sano's eyes grew wider and wider at the realization that Mary was nowhere to be seen- and neither was Trevor. He absently dropped his cards onto the table and moved to leave when a hand on his elbow stopped him. He was too distracted to get angry, and turned his head mechanically to look down at a pleasant looking middle-aged gentleman. His slightly shaky hand was wrapped firmly around Sano's elbow and he immediately released his grip when he saw that the gangster's intense gaze was directed at him.

"Pardon my rudeness young man, but we're still in the middle of a game. Why are you leaving right now?"

The other table occupants glanced at Sano wondering the same thing. None of them were happy that the game had been interrupted.

"I'm looking for Mary. I don't see her anywhere."

"Oh, she went off with Trevor. Must've left about fifteen minutes ago," a young dockworker said, trying to be as helpful as he could be. However, he shrank under Sano's now fiery glare.

"You saw them leave together?"

The young man nodded, pulling at his collar uneasily. "I did, sir but why do you care so much? You do know what she does for a living, don't you?"

That statement was like a smack to the back of the head. Of course he knew what she did for a living! He just didn't want her making a living off of a man like Trevor. It all felt bad. Like the bad feeling he felt his first night in London. He was confused now. Did he experience that feeling of helpless fear because of the appearance of that strange man, or did it come because of Trevor's presence? Sano couldn't figure it out now. He still wanted to get back at the sneaky bastard who got him into trouble. There was something about him that wasn't right, something that Sano felt deep down in his gut, but then there was Trevor to consider now. And Mary had gone off with him.

His chair tipped backward as he moved to step away from the table. The entire table eyed him and then one another with growing trepidation. They had indeed heard the rumor of what he had done the day he came to town and they had no desire to find out if the rumor of his skills were true. They watched in silence as he circled the table, absently dropped some coins among the chips, and strode out the door. The players spent the next few moments staring at the doorway expecting him to return at any moment. When that didn't happen they turned back to their business and resumed their game, forgetting that the young gangster had ever been there.