A/N: Hello! I'm sorry I haven't updated until now. I never meant for it to take this long but I have been busy with exams, add laziness to that and there you go. Furthermore my brother had to go to the hospital twicebecause of 'incidients' with alcohol and painkillers.And so I didn't really feel to write anything for a while. I know I said in my profile that I would update this past weekend but my grandfather got hospitalised on top of everything, so the chapter was delayed. Anyway here's the new chapter. I hope you enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin

The Consequences of Falling in Love

Chapter four: Moving in

The grey light of early morning filtered in through the curtains in the guestroom, shining down on a bundle of blankets and black hair. Kaoru stretched and blinked her eyes against the light. She turned her head towards the clock on the bed stand. It showed 6.10. She didn't want to get out of bed just yet; it was far too nice to be wrapped in the warmth of the bedcovers. She yawned and closed her eyes again but didn't go back to sleep. Instead she let her mind wander back a few days ago; the night Misao and she had come back from the gym.

They had gotten back to the house just in time for dinner and Sanosuke had also come back with Megumi from his meeting with the estate agent. He had greeted them in an enthusiastic manner in the dining room;

"Hey, there's my favourite sister and cousin!" He said and flung his arm around Kaoru's shoulders.

"Feh! I'm the only cousin you have, so of course I'm your favourite!" Kaoru huffed in a mock tone.

"Aw, come on Kaoru. You know I meant that I like you. By the way aren't you exited about the new apartment?"

"Umm, why should I be exited by that?"

"What, Misao didn't tell you!" He asked her incredulously and shot a forlorn glance at Misao. "I can't believe you forgot to tell her!"

"Wha... I didn... err I guess I did forget to tell her." Misao stuttered sheepishly and gave a goofy smile. "But other things got in the way and we went to the climbing hall." Misao exclaimed in her defence.

"Yeah, and not to mention she got all hung up on some tall dark stranger" Kaoru said in Misao's 'defence'. "And what did you forget to tell me about?" Kaoru asked turning to Misao with a frown between her eyes not having a clue what Sano and Misao was talking about.

"Hey, look who's talking! Besides, he's not a stranger! Misao fumed. His name is Shinomori Aoshi, thank you very much!"

Megumi then chose to join the conversation. "Ohohoho! So you know his name now? Where did you see him this time?"

"Err… the same place as last time of course." Misao retorted as a matter of fact.

"You mean to tell me you went back to that remote climbing hall where you spotted that seemingly cold guy just a few weeks ago? Really, it almost sound like you are becoming quite the little stalker" Megumi smirked; fox ears seemed to be sprouting from her head.

Misao shot her a murderous look and was just about to jump down the older woman's throat when a now annoyed Kaoru raised her voice,

"Never mind that now! Would anyone care to fill me in on the untold news everybody except me seem to know about?"

That finally turned the others attention back to Kaoru, and Sano started to fill her in on the 'Kaoru- and- Misao- flatmate- plan', which swiftly transformed Kaoru's irritation into excitement.

After further explanations during dinner and some catching up with her family, she had stalked up to the guestroom, taken a shower and prepared herself for bed and then exhausted fallen asleep more or less before her head touched the pillow. She had after all had pretty long day.

Kaoru yawned and stretched again in the bed as her thoughts now revolved around Misao.

'It was indeed amazing how Misao had forgotten to mention that Sano and Megumi wanted her and me to move in with them in their new apartment.'

'But then again Misao always was easily sidetracked by emotional problems and I… err…was having just that, an emotional problem. Gosh, I'm soo pathetic sometimes…" She rolled her eyes when she remembered the reason she had been upset.

David had got the number to her relatives' house through her father and he had called the day after the 'incident' and apologised. Although, he had also said that she should know by now that he has a terrible morning mood and she simply had herself to blame if he snapped at her. She got agitated by this statement of course. But not wanting to start an argument over the phone when David was thousands of miles away, she had merely sighed and swallowed her irritation.

'Guys! They can be soo annoying!' She exclaimed in her head but let herself wander back to her original train of thoughts.

'…And then Misao had gotten further preoccupied at the gym by both that tall man named Aoshi and Kenshin whom she thought would be a good distraction for me.' At the thought of Kenshin she blushed.

'Really, I'm not any better than Misao, not knowing what to make of myself in the presence of a complete stranger. But according to Misao's way of looking at things he's no longer a stranger since I know his name.'

She chuckled at this. She knew nothing about the guy and yet he had made her feel all giddy. Kaoru felt a little bad about this; going completely gaga over another man although she had a boyfriend. However, it seemed to be the same for Misao with Aoshi except that she didn't have a boyfriend. But Kaoru really didn't care about that fact right now…

Kaoru had learned from Misao that she had spotted Aoshi at the same gym just a few weeks ago when she was there climbing with a friend. They had newer been in that climbing hall before and Aoshi was the first Misao had noticed when she entered the room. She hadn't spoken to him but she had come back to the same place on several more occasions and found that he was always there, either with the tall woman or with some other friend. Since he seemed to know the woman in the reception Misao had simply asked her who the tall man with ice blue eyes was. The reception lady had told her that his name was Shinomori Aoshi and when she enquired about the tall woman Misao had been informed that that was his twin sister Okon.

Kaoru glanced at the clock again and decided it was time to get out of bed and do some yoga to soften up her body further. A brief yoga program and a shower later she meandered down the stairs and into the kitchen. She was greeted by her aunt and her youngest cousin Yahiko who was sitting by the table munching on a plate of waffles while his mother was making them by the stove.

"G'morning! How nice of you to join us for breakfast." He said with his mouth full of food.

"Good morning and of course I would join for breakfast. I have actually been up for a while. I practised some yoga."

Yoga? That's for sissies, you should start you morning with kendo practice." Yahiko said disdainfully.

"As if you get yourself out of bed early in the morning to train before school."

"No, but at least I train everyday, unlike you."

"As a matter of fact I normally do. But firstly, all my stuff hasn't arrived yet and secondly, I don't have my father here and I don't see any other adequate sparring partners around." Kaoru retorted with a sneer.

"Oh yeah? I can take you anytime, busu!"

"Bring it on, Yahiko-chan!"

"Don't call me little!"

"And you should learn not to call people ugly!"

He glared at her.

And she glared back.

"Now, now children, play nice with each other!" Kanako chuckled from her batter of waffles.

Then Misao came skipping through the swing door impeccably clad in a pinstriped suit, a fashionable white blouse and high heels. Her customary braid was now up in a bun on her head. "Good morning everyone! Isn't it a glorious day today? She sang. "Do I smell waffles?"

"You certainly do" Her mother replied

Kaoru briefly wondered how her cousin could manage to skip in high heels not to mention look completely unladylike while doing it, despite the feminine clothes.

"What are you so happy about weasel?" Yahiko grumbled. He wasn't exactly a morning person.

"Because we'll be going shopping this afternoon for the new apartment." She twittered elatedly. She didn't even react to the hateful nickname.

"Yeah, whatever"

"Err… shopping? Already?" Kaoru asked. "But Sano and Megumi haven't even signed the contracts yet."

Triumphantly Misao retorted, "Hah! They will do that this afternoon. There's just so much we have to buy and it will be soo much fun!"

"But, but we haven't even seen the apartment yet."

"Bah, a petty detail!" Misao said and waved her hand in dismissal. "Besides, Megumi said we could swing by the apartment and have a look at it before we hit the mall. We'll pick you up here at four if that's okay with you?"

"Mmm yes, I guess so…"

"Yeah, well I don't have time to listen to shopping plans, I'm off to school now." Yahiko said and rose from the table. He took his plate over to the sink. "Thanks for the breakfast mom."

"You're welcome son"

He turned towards the girls on his way out and said,

"And Kaoru"

"Yes"

"Don't forget our sparring match."

"I won't, just pick a time and place"

"Great, meet me in the training room in the basement, Sunday morning at eight am sharp."

Kaoru just rolled her eyes at her young cousin and turned to the stove. All that was heard was the swishing sound from the door as Yahiko exited the kitchen and the frizzling from the waffle iron. Inhaling the lovely aroma of the newly fried waffles the girls supplied them selves with a big plate of the golden brown food and a generous amount of whipped cream and jam each. While Kaoru preferred do drink orange juice Misao made her self a double espresso. Kanako joined them at the table eating waffles as well.

"Nothing gets me going better in the morning than sugar and coffee!" Misao cheered, happily digging in on her food.

'As if you weren't 'going' already.' Kaoru thought.

"Hnn, darling you should try to keep you blood sugar on an even level throughout the day." Kanako told her daughter.

"Then maybe, you shouldn't feed me with waffles in the morning mom."

Kanako sighed in defeat. "I know, but I know how waffles for breakfast make you all happy and that's all I want; for you to be happy."

As if on cue the doors to the patio opened and Okina strolled in from the garden. "Good morning! Is that waffles I smell" He imitated Misao's earlier question and blissfully went to the stove.

"See what I mean."

"Aww, that's so sweet but we won't be happy when we get fat." Answered the petite girl with a mock scolding voice, then she giggled and turned her attention back to her sugar larded breakfast.

"Who's getting fat?"

"No one's getting fat father. Misao is just being silly."

Okina chuckled and cast a glance at the clock on the wall and saw that it was 7 o'clock. With this new knowledge Okina viewed his granddaughter.

"Misao-chan do you know what time it is?" Her grandfather queried with an amused tone in his voice.

Her eyes lazily skimmed over the clock and suddenly cursed under her breath. "I'm going to be late for work!" Misao hurriedly finished her breakfast and placed the dishes in the sink. The others just watched as she scurried out of the kitchen, looking very much like a weasel, and yelled to Kaoru not to forget about shopping at four.

'I really understand why she has that nickname.' With that thought Kaoru finished her own breakfast.

"So Kaoru, what are you doing today?"

"Well, I guess I will be searching for jobs and writing a c.v."

"You know that there always is a place for you in the family business. And don't forget to call that singing-master I recommended."

She walked over to her grandfather dishes and gave him a hug and a peck on his cheek. "Thank you for the offer gramps, but I rather try by myself first. And I promise I will call him." And with that she left to try her luck on the job market.

A tall man walked down the street, his strides were poised yet purposeful. His black hair blew slightly in the soft spring breeze. Hadn't it been for that of Tokyo's heavy exhaust fumes, he would have taken a deep breath to smell the scents of blooming spring. He neared the restaurant where he was meeting his friends for lunch and let his cold blue eyes scan the street for any familiar faces. When he couldn't spot them he proceeded inside the restaurant. Well inside he approached the hostess and asked if his friends had arrived yet. Since they were regular customers at the restaurant the hostess greeted him friendly and showed him to their usual table where his friends already were seated.

"Hi Aoshi, it's not like you to be late for a date." A cheering voice greeted the stoic man.

Aoshi turned his cold gaze towards the smiling man. "Funny Sōjirō, rhyming." He answered without a trace of humour in his face

"Well, don't worry about it, it's only five minutes delay, we haven't ordered yet." Sōjirō replied unfazed by Aoshi's comment. "Kenshin was just going to tell me about his new neighbours."

Aoshi didn't seem all too interested and just scanned the menu.

"Ah, well…I would like to hear more about them anyway." He said pointedly.

"There really isn't much more to say, I merely met them in the elevator. They seemed like nice people in their mid-twenties just like we, but we didn't speak much. You know how it always gets uncomfortably silent in elevators." The red haired man explained.

"I've never had a problem with that." Aoshi mumbled from behind his menu

Sōjirō snickered and teasingly said, "That's because you hardly ever say anything at all."

"…"

Kenshin chuckled slightly and turned to his menu as well.

"So when are they moving in then?"

"I don't know Sōjirō, as I said, we didn't speak much. You sound more curious of my new neighbours than I am myself.

When the waitress came back to their table he ordered grilled filet of salmon with cherry tomatoes, leek, capers, olives and new potatoes. Sōjirō decided to have veal fried with truffles, served with ruccola salad and sliced Formaggio di Fossa while Aoshi chose grilled Mediterranean perch with braised primeurs, new potatoes and vinaigrette.

The trio had grown up together and used to spend a lot of time together. But since they all now were occupied by their respective businesses: Kenshin on the verge of taking over his uncle's company, Aoshi being a management consultant and Sōjirō a lawyer, they had less and less time to meet. Nevertheless they still tried to meet for lunch once a week.

"So, Aoshi I discussed the new quality management system you've developed with my uncle and he got interested." Kenshin spoke.

"Hmm" Aoshi answered thoughtfully.

"In fact he would like to see an offer on the deal and a plan for implementation for the whole company. Here as well as Kyoto."

A look of interested flashed over Aoshi's features. "Is that so?"

"Yes" A satisfied Kenshin smiled. "I'm going to Kyoto early to morrow morning, so do you think you could prepare the tender for the deal and give it to me this afternoon? I'll be leaving work early so maybe you could come by my apartment around five?"

"Yes, I could do that."

Kaoru wasn't having a good day. In fact she was having a lousy day. She had only found a handful of jobs that met with her education; community planning with focus on the environment. And then when she went to apply for them she found that she had a hard time composing her curriculum vitae. It was hard to get it interesting and capturing; giving information without making it to long and boring. At three she gave up and started getting ready for Megumi's and Misao's shopping spree.

They were punctual. At precisely four Misao's energetic voice rang through the house. She hurried to her room and changed clothes in a flash and then hollered to Kaoru who was already in the foyer.

"Hurry up Kaoru, I'm dying here to see the new apartment."

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Kaoru sputtered irritably while putting on her heeled boots and then grabbing her coat.

Megumi was waiting in Sano's car; she had dropped off Sano at work after they signed the papers for the apartment and arranged the payment. The two girls got in the vehicle and they all sped off towards their soon to be home. After a twenty-five minute ride the car came to a halt in the parking lot outside the building. Megumi fished out her keys as they ventured inside towards the elevators.

Two minutes later Kenshin drove into the garage and took the elevator to his apartment. He glanced towards the door adjacent to his own penthouse and wondered when the new residents would move in. When he got inside he decided to pack for his business trip immediately and then whip something together for dinner.

Meanwhile just across the hall in the other flat the three women inspected their new residence. A spacious foyer with black marbled tiles led to the living room area. Kaoru opted for a bedroom situated to the right of the living room while Misao chose the bedroom beside the kitchen. The terrace stretched around the whole apartment and offered a marvellous view of Tokyo.

They spent a good thirty minutes imagining how they would furnish the place and admiring the view from the terrace and even Kaoru got in a better mood. At five they decided to head for the mall.

Aoshi calmly walked towards Kenshin's building. Just as he was about to open the door it swung up as if on its' own accord and he suddenly found himself looking into a pair of green eyes. The girl startled and then her cheeks coloured when her eyes flickered with recognition. She was just about to apologize when he heard a voice,

"Don't just stand there Misao we don't have the whole day. Huh? Oh I see."

Aoshi glanced confused at the small woman with her hair in a ponytail. He recognised these women. Then a third voice made itself known,

"Excuse these dimwits they really don't have any manners. Ohohoho!"

The three attractive women moved passed him as he stepped aside and held up the door. Going up in the elevator he pondered on where he had seen the first two girls before. It didn't hit him until Kenshin opened his door for him.

"Come on in Aoshi." The small man invited.

"You'll never guess who I saw downstairs."

"The girl I saw you gawking at in then climbing hall."

"What?"

"And her pretty green eyed friend."

Kenshin stared in disbelief at his old friend. It wasn't often Aoshi spoke that much in one take, unless he really had to, like during presentations. But what had he really said? 'The girl I was gawking at...'

"What!"

On their way to the car Misao couldn't say a word. She was in shock. Kaoru just snickered and Megumi right out laughed, hard.

"You didn't expect that one coming did you. She said between giggles. "You should see yourself right now."

'Oh my gosh! I never expected to meet him here of all places! What is he doing here? And how do I look?' Misao surveyed her body quickly. Luckily she looked okay, but even if she hadn't she hadn't been able to do much about it anyway, especially since Aoshi was no longer in the vicinity. 'Oh Aoshi-sama always looks so handsome!' Misao was floating on cloud nine and neither herd or saw anything. Finally Megumi snapped her fingers in front of the excited girl to get her attention.

"Hey weasel-girl! Snap out of it already! Prince charming has already left."

Finally Misao managed to shake her free from her daydreaming. I'm not a weasel fox-woman!" She snapped. "And don't you dare mock my Aoshi-sama!"

"My, my, aren't we touchy" The older woman sad and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "And I wasn't mocking him, I simply stated a fact."

Meanwhile Kaoru just shook her head and snickered a little. She was sure Misao would live on this for days. "Come on girls let's go now we have lots to do. And I'm starting to get really hungry so can we eat soon too?" She pleaded.

When they finally arrived at the mall the only thing Kaoru could thing about was food. She had a tendency to get really grumpy when hunger settled in her stomach and this time was no exception. The only thing Misao could thing about was of course Aoshi and she wasn't bouncing as she walked anymore, she was floating.

"Food! I need food, and I need it now."

"Yes, yes, we'll be at the food court in a minute. Settle down raccoon-girl." An irate Megumi steered the famished Kaoru in the aforementioned direction while leading the love-struck Misao by the hand, just in case she would collide with someone or something for lack of vision.

After much needed replenishing of their bodies with food and in Misao's case also coffee they were fit for fight and started their shopping raid.

"I said, the girl you were…"

"…gawking at in the climbing hall, yes I heard you the first time. But I wasn't gawking." Kenshin informed the tall stoic man. 'Was it really that obvious? But of course Aoshi's keen eyes would pick up on everything in his surroundings.'

Aoshi merely gave Kenshin a 'you-were-drooling-over-the-girl-and-you-know-it'-kind of look.

The only reply Kenshin seemed fit to give was a heavy sigh combined with an indignant shrug of his shoulders.

"What were they doing here?"

Now it was Aoshi's turn to shrug his shoulder albeit for an entirely different reason. "They were accompanied by a tall dark woman."

'Now, that was really a thorough explanation.' Kenshin thought sarcastically. He didn't pretend to know every face in the building and Aoshi's 'description' indicated that it could be almost anyone, if the woman lived there at all. He shook his head. There was no use pondering over the reason for Kaoru's visit in the building. There were more important matters at hand so he simply let it go. If it was meant to be he would meet her again.

A week passed and Kaoru hadn't put much time on the job searching task. Instead she had helped Misao and Sano pack for the upcoming move. The latter seemed to be much more productive than the former. Those of her belongings that hadn't fit in her suitcase, had been shipped over by her father and they had arrived last weekend. Just in time for her sparring match with Yahiko so she could use her own bokken. Much to Kaoru's surprise, Yahiko had proven to be a worthy sparring partner. He had advanced a lot since her visit last summer but he had still some way to go before he reached Kaoru's skill in the art of kendo.

During the week there had also been a couple of more shopping trips. They had purchased couches, a dining table, bookshelves, beds, rugs and other furniture. They had also equipped the kitchen with all possible kinds of utilities. Kaoru marvelled over the amount of money they spent. Sure, her side of the family had a lot of money too, but they never frittered away. Although, she wouldn't exactly call this squandering money since she new that furnishing the apartment was necessary. Their purchases were now already in their new home, waiting to be properly placed. The only thing that remained to be moved was their personal possessions like clothes and books. For this purpose Sano decided to rent a small van. They had decided to move their personal items by themselves. Kanako was still a bit apprehensive about her baby girl's leaving the nest and she would probably call everyday to check out on her. But their father, Sōzō thought it was about time they stood on their own legs. He had always encouraged his children to make the most of their lives.

So, on a sunny Saturday morning in the middle of May, only two weeks after Kaoru's arrival to Japan, Sano, Misao and Kaoru loaded their belongings in the rented van and drove off to do the same with Megumi's things.

Kenshin had been in Kyoto for over a week and thus hadn't been aware of the activity in the neighbouring penthouse. He had returned home late at Friday night and had now awoken in the late morning. He usually had early habits but permitted himself to sleep in today. The week had been long, yet Fruitful. Hiko had been enthusiastic over Aoshi's proposition and Kenshin and Aoshi now had the opportunity to work together while implementing the new quality management program. But he didn't intend to think about work related issues today. Today he was going to relax and perhaps go to the climbing hall. If he was lucky he would run in to Kaoru although he knew the chances were slim to none.

He drank a cup of coffee and ate some rice and miso soup. After that he decided to take a shower and then go for a walk. He took his time and wasn't ready to go until 40 minutes later. As he exited his own apartment he caught sight of his new neighbour Sagara carrying a large box in his arms. He was surprised to see that they were already moving in and greeted him friendly.

"Good morning Sagara-san!"

Sanosuke glanced down towards the short red haired man an recalled his name. With a lopsided grin he said,

"Hey Himura! Nice to meet you again!"

"I see you're moving in already."

"Yeah, we didn't find a reason to wait really." He put down his heavy burden at the same time as Megumi showed up in the doorway.

"Hello Himura-san."

"Oh, Hi Takani-san, but please, you don't have to be so formal. Call me Kenshin." He answered with a bright smile that made his eyes squint together.

"Oh, okay. Then you may call me Megumi. And this is Sano." She inclined her thumb in Sano's direction.

Unaware of their small talking Kaoru was on her way down again to help Misao unload the truck. They had a system where Misao carried boxes from the truck to the lobby where Kaoru loaded the boxes inside the elevator and took it to the top floor. From there Sano and Megumi helped her take the boxes inside the apartment. Kaoru was now back at the top floor, busy with a heavy box filled with what she assumed was books. Her back was aching and found it really difficult to lift the box. This made her more and more frustrated by the minute and she wondered were the hell her rooster-head cousin was. She finally managed to hoist it up in her arms and felt a presence behind her. Assuming it was Sano she immediately snapped,

"Don't stand there like an idiot! Help me with this box!"

She turned around to shove the box into Sano's chest, but halted her action upon finding herself face to face with a familiar red haired man with violet eyes.

A/N: I feel pretty satisfied with this chapter, but since English isn't my mother tongue I would be really happy if you notify me of any inconsistencies and errors in the language and grammar or sayings that I think I have gotten right but turns out to be completely wrong.

Review responses:

Lynne: Thank you! It makes me glad that you do! Hands out cookies and sweets

Mini-MoonStar: Lol! I'll try to keep that in mind. Hands out fluoride pastilles I wouldn't want you to spend too much time or money at the dentist . And I really appreciates your criticism. I find it very constructive.

Drawkcab: Please don't eat me gets down on knees and begs and frantically gestures at the computer…See! I've finally updated!