Title: Because It Hurts

Chapter Two: Return

Pairing: Kenshin/Kaoru, Yahiko, Sanosuke/OC, slight Megumi/Sanosuke

Summary: The death of Kaoru leaves Kenshin in heartbroken grief as he escapes to the depths of his mind. Yahiko, Megumi, and Sanosuke try their hardest to try and revive the Kenshin they know and love but things turn to the worst as the Legendary Man Slayer Himura the Batosai seems to be reviving instead. Will the arrival of an old friend be any help? Or will we lose of beloved Kenshin to the likes of his former self?

Disclaimer: I do not own the anime Rurouni Kenshin.

Violet-blue orbs stared out the window of the large oak carriage with scrutinizing eyes.

"It's beautiful isn't it? Things haven't changed that much since I've been gone."

Looking over at her male companion she nodded silently before returning her gaze back out the window.

"The Cherry Blossoms will bloom soon. Would you like to see that?"

She nodded without turning raising a hand and brushing aside a troublesome lock of green hair that refused to stay in place, behind her ear.

Her male companion frowned slightly, letting out a silent sigh as he turned his gaze away from the green clad lady across from him. 'Stubborn woman.'

Sanosuke stopped down the halls in blind rage as he headed out the Kamiya Dojo gate. 'Damn it' he thought as a scowl made itself known on his face. Gritting his teeth he walked on not bothering to stop when a punk came up to him asking for a fight. "Beat it kid. I could kill you right now." He walked on not stopping for anything or anyone as he reached his destination.

"Will you be okay by yourself?" asked a concerned Megumi as she added more wood into the fire. When she received no response she turned from the fire to the figure staring out the window across the room. "Yahiko?" she asked silently.

He didn't turn, merely nodded once and closed his eyes, frowning slightly before getting up. "I'll be fine. Sano will be back when he cools off. So I won't be alone for long."

"Alright then. Come and get me at the clinic if those two get in a fight again, okay?" Yahiko nodded as he slide the screen open. "Yahiko?"

He stopped getting ready to close the door behind him, "Yeah?"

"…never mind…" Megumi looked back to the fire when the screen clicked closed and let out a heavy sigh. "Things just seem to be getting worse…" she whispered to herself before putting on her sandals and heading to work.

Kenshin Himura sat on the roof of the Kamiya Dojo, his reverse blade sword held in his hands as he stared at it blankly. '…Kaoru…'

Her fingers ran through his hair as they lay by the river watching the clouds above them. "Do you remember when we met?" she asked him quietly, running a hand from his forehead over the side of his face and stopping to lay a finger on the point of his nose.

"That I do," he whispered opening one sleepy violet eye. "I could've died right then and there," he said moving his hands above him and positioning them as if he had a knife in them and moved them down pretending to stab himself, turning his head to the side and sticking out his tongue from the corner of his mouth.

She hit him on the arm softly, stifling a giggle. "Well I was right in the end wasn't I? You are Batosai the man slayer!" she frowned as the words left her mouth, "You WERE the Batosai," she corrected herself. "Now your Kenshin Himura…my Kenshin Himura"

His back stiffened as he heard movement under him looking down he tilted his head to the side and watched silently as Sanosuke came through the Kamiya Dojo gate. He seemed to sense someone watching him for he looked up and directly at Kenshin.

Sano couldn't help but shiver slightly not only from the breeze but from the empty eyes of one Kenshin Himura as those empty violet eyes stared down at him from the roof completely devoid of emotion and feeling. He tore his gaze away not being able to stand those dead eyes any longer and ran into the darkness of the ex-school.

The carriage slowed to a stop, horses neighing and shaking their black manes as the coachman pulled the rein back. A footman stepped down from behind the carriage and walked over to open the carriage door. A brown clad gentleman stepped out, turning he whispered something to the woman inside before turning back nodded in brief thanks to the footman and walked ahead towards the clinic before him.

Kenshin slowly walked back to his room. His manor almost ghost like as he turned the corner and mechanically reached out a hand to stop himself from falling back as he bumped into Sanosuke. Sano grabbed the out stretched hand looking slightly shaken as he stared down at Kenshin.

"….Sorry…" he mumbled before pulling him up and continuing on his way to his own room an apple in hand.

"…Sanosuke…"

He stopped the eerie hollow voice of his companion left him shaking from head to foot. "…yeah?" he managed as he slowly turned to look behind him. Kenshin's' back was to him as he heard the red-head speak, "About earlier…" he shook his head as if trying to clear it before he started again, "what I mean is…I'm leaving…because I need to…not because I want to." With that he walked on.

Sano stared at his retreating back before he clenched his fist absently crushing the apple in the process as he shook once more, but he wasn't scared, he was angry.

"Kenshin!" he called out running after said samurai and grabbed his arm pulling him around to face him. "Snap out of it!" he said before he lifted his hand and punched him.

"Do you really think this is what Kaoru wanted you to become after she died!" he said enraged. "Kaoru is probably crying right now because she's watching you turn back into the Batosai you once were." Another punch. "The unemotional bastard that killed for no reason!" and another.

Yahiko stared in shock as he watched from around the corner his own apple long forgotten as he watched Sano try to knock some sense into Kenshin. Hurriedly he snapped around and raced out the gate heading straight toward the clinic. 'I hope Sano doesn't go overboard.'

Yahiko stopped right outside the clinic; hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath, "gotta…huff...huff…get..huff..huff…Megu…huff….mi" he looked up only to lock eyes with violet-blue. For a moment Yahiko thought he was dreaming as he got lost in the deep pools and time seemed to stand still. Just as fast as it started the moment was broken as one of the horses neighed at him almost as if reminding him he was here for a reason. 'Right' he thought to himself before running through the screen…and right into Megumi.

"Yahiko! What are you doing here? Did something happen?" she said hurriedly as she looked him over only to see he wasn't paying attention to her but looking at something …behind her?

A light bulb seemed to go off in her head as she remembered the one she'd been showing out when Yahiko had come crashing into her. "Oh yes, say hello to –"

"Yutaro…" whispered Yahiko his brown eyes filled with recognition, as he stared at the boy- no young gentleman before him.