Chapter 24

(Megumi)

I was sitting quietly in my clinic, reading a book while there was a pause in my work, when Kaoru and Sano rushed in, the tall man carrying what looked like a blue colored bundle. It wasn't until I saw the red hair and a pale hand that I knew it was Ken-san, and it was then I grew afraid.

I stood, going to where Kaoru was breathing heavily in a chair. "Kaoru, what's going on? What's happened to Ken-san?"

She panted for a moment more, and then took a breath. "I found him on the floor in his room, he'd fallen over. He seemed disoriented, and he couldn't speak. There's a mark from an injection on his left arm, someone's poisoned him."

I swore inwardly, and waved to Sano for him to follow me to a room where I could begin looking over Ken-san. It didn't help that I had no idea what was in his system, and without that knowledge there wasn't much I could do but help him ride it out. Hopefully I could keep him alive long enough for his immune system to fight it off on its own.

Sano laid Kenshin on a futon, and I hurriedly looked him over. He was pale, cheeks flushed with fever and sweat running down his skin. His breathing was strained, as though he was having trouble, and his eyes were pinched shut in pain. I frowned, moving away to get some medicines and cloths to help with his fever. I quickly got a bowl and filled it with cold water, wetting a cloth and laying it across Ken-san's forehead. He moaned, trying to shift away from me.

I lifted his head, pouring the medicinal herbs into his throat and rubbing at his neck. He coughed, turning his head away from me. I growled slightly. "Come on Ken-san, swallow for me."

He continued to cough, but I kept up rubbing. He swallowed finally, and then choked. I swore, quickly moving him over and pounding on his back to get him to cough it out. I was a little shocked when he threw up into the bowl I had placed in front of him, emptying his stomach.

After he'd finished he slumped down against me, slipping farther into unconsciousness as far as I could tell. His breathing grew shallower, and his body sank against me limply, no longer tense as it had been. I lay him down on the soft futon, running a hand through my hair as I tried to figure out what to do next.

Sano was sitting worriedly nearby, Kaoru beside him. I could see the worry on the blue-eyed girl's face, and her hands were playing with her hakama. That was a sure sign of her fear; she tended to do that in times of stress. I smiled gently at her, trying to reassure her. "It'll be okay Tanuki. Ken-san will pull through this."

She smiled back at me shakily. "Arigatou Megumi."

I focused back on Ken-san, replacing the cold cloth on his forehead. His fever was high, and I knew that this poison had to have been very strong to take effect this quickly. Unless it had been given to him a long time ago…

I raised his left arm, finding the mark that Kaoru had mentioned earlier. His skin was bruised and red, showing where he'd had a reaction to the toxin. I prodded at the area, eliciting a moan from Ken-san. The mark was beginning to fade, and I knew then that it had indeed been administered some time ago. I was going to have to go this one on my own, guessing every step of the way on how to save Ken-san's life.

I sighed, settling Ken-san's arm back on the futon and wetting another cloth to place it on the back of his neck. Hopefully that would help his discomfort a little, but there wasn't much else I could do. I would try to get him to swallow the medicine again in a little while, but at the moment I didn't want to stress out his body any more.

Kaoru had moved forward to sit beside me, one of her hands holding Ken-san's limp one. She was chewing her lip silently; worry plain in her sapphire eyes.

I turned to look at her. "I want you tell me everything that happened Kaoru. How did this happen to Ken-san? Everything."

She sighed, looking down at Ken-san's face. "Yesterday I was in town when I ran into a man. He asked me if I knew where there was a vacancy at an inn, but we couldn't find any. I offered to let him stay at the dojo, I've done that before, and so I saw no harm in it." She frowned. "That's about where the trouble started. I should have known then that it was a bad idea, but I didn't think properly. He started to give me strange looks, and flirt with me. It made me uncomfortable, so I hinted around that my husband was waiting for me, so we'd better hurry."

I blinked. "Husband? You meant Ken-san, didn't you?"

She nodded. "It worked, he stopped coming onto me. Kenshin went along with it just find, we've…well…" she blushed and paused, and I saw instantly what was going on here.

I grinned slyly. "You're together aren't you?"

Her blush deepened and she nodded. "Hai. About 2 weeks now. The man asked me who I was married to, so I had to say Kenshin. He was the only one at the dojo. When we got there he introduced himself as Akki. We ate dinner together, and Kenshin seemed really tense most of the time." She looked down, her free hand twisting in her hakama. "I should have thought more about it, but I didn't pay much attention! I went to wash the dishes quickly, and when I came back out Kenshin was gone. Akki told me that he'd felt tired and gone to bed not to long ago, so I dismissed it. We went to bed, and then I found him the next morning like I told you."

I frowned. "So do you think that this 'Akki' did it?"

She nodded. "Kenshin told me himself, if a little shakily. He pointed to the room, and then his scars, so I figured it out. That means Akki's real name is…" she thought a moment. "Enishi, that's what it was. He's the man that abused Kenshin."

I tapped my chin with a finger. "So, Ken-san couldn't speak, and he was dizzy and had trouble keeping his bearing from what I've understood." She nodded, and I narrowed my eyes, thinking. "I can't think of anything that would cause something like that…"

She reached out with one hand, gently pushed the bangs away from Ken-san's face. "So what are we going to do Megumi?"

I sighed. "I'm not sure Kaoru. The most we can do is keep his fever down and keep him alive until his immune system can fight it off. Other than that, I don't know."

Her lips formed a single line, and she tightened her hold on Ken-san's silently. "Well, he'll fight it off. He'll be okay, I know he will."

I smiled slightly. "That's right Tanuki. Have faith in him. He'll be fine." I looked back down at Ken-san's pale face, his cheeks still flushed and his breathing strained. 'At least I hope he'll be okay…'

Ken-san's fever persisted throughout the night, and he didn't wake up at all throughout the time. I grew more worried as time went on; this poison was obviously quite strong if it was taking this much time. Usually if things were left alone with normal medicines the person was able to get well.

I sat in Ken-san's room, silently reading a book to pass the time. I periodically replaced the cloth on his forehead, making sure it remained cold so it would help his temperature. I'd finally gotten him to swallow the medicine, and that had been a great happiness to me. But unfortunately, it hadn't really made a difference in Ken-san's condition.

I sighed, adjusting the cloth worriedly and then going back to my book. He shifted slightly beneath the very light blanket I'd draped over him. He'd begun shivering violently sometime in the night, his lips gaining a sickly blue tint. I'd worried covered him even though he still had a high fever, but the color had left his lips, and I'd been able to sit in peace for a short time.

I turned a page, only half paying attention to the book in front of me. My mind was racing, trying to figure out what kind of a toxin could do this to Ken-san. I could think of nothing, and even so I continued to try.

I set my book down, going to the door. I spotted Kaoru just outside, curled up in a spare futon and sleeping while she could. I shook her gently. "Hey Tanuki, wake up."

She yawned and moved slightly, opening her eyes. "Megumi? What is it?"

I sighed. "Could you look after Ken-san for a while? I need to get some sleep before I fall asleep on my feet. Then I won't be much use to any of you, and I need to be able to focus while caring for Ken-san. Just watch him for a while, make sure the cloth on his forehead remains cool, and come get me if anything seems wrong."

She nodded, sitting up and rubbing at her eyes. She fixed her hair, rising slowly and sliding open the shoji. "Sure thing Megumi."

I lay down on the futon, knowing that I needed to be close at hand in case anything at all happened. I knew that Kaoru would be able to look after Ken-san efficiently for a few hours, so I drifted off to sleep, if only for a time.

(Kaoru)

I sat beside Kenshin's futon silently, watching him as he breathed. His breathing was still off, strained and panting. The strange rhythm worried me, but I knew there wasn't much I could do about it. I pulled up the cloth on his forehead, finding it to be warm already. I soaked it in the water, and then laid it back on his forehead.

He didn't respond to the touch as he usually did, and that only made my fear greater. I settled back against the wall, closing my eyes and leaning my head against the wall. I sat there in silence for a moment, and then opened my eyes to look down at the book Megumi had been reading.

I picked it up, silently examining its cover. I opened it, flipping through its pages, slightly curious. It didn't seem very interesting, so I set it back down. I leaned my head against the wall again, staring up at the ceiling. There wasn't really much else to do, and I was finding that it was quite boring. However, I knew that Kenshin needed to be watched, so I would gladly sit there for days.

I'd just closed my eyes again when a strange sound brought my attention. My eyes snapped open, and I sat for a moment, just listening. I suddenly looked down at Kenshin, and then my eyes widened.

Kenshin wasn't breathing. A strange whistling gasp kept echoing from his chest as he struggled to do so, but his lips were still acquiring a bluish color from the lack of air. I cried out, and an instant later Megumi yanked open the shoji, her hair a bit wild about her shoulders. She noticed Kenshin and dove for him, quickly breathing into him.

Kenshin's chest rose, but he still didn't draw in breath. Megumi pressed down on his chest, and with a sickening rasp the air escaped his body. He didn't draw in air, and she had to breathe for him again.

I watched in silence, tears I hadn't really noticed were flowing running down my neck. I absently wiped at them, pleading in my mind. 'Please Kenshin…Breathe anata…'

Since these two chapters are a little short I decided to post them fairly close together. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!