A/N: Okay, in the last chapter in the paragraph before the break this was stated:

Kaoru was still not registering what had just happened. Something cold and wet hit her face. She looked up at the sky. It was snowing. Akira was currently carrying Mika to her doom. They were moving so fast that she couldn't register where they were.

I should have made a new paragraph starting at the Akira sentence. This sentence signifies the start of Mika's POV. The POV switch between Kaoru and Mika I thought was apparent enough, but I guess it confused some of you. I apologize for not making the POV shift clearer. Please don't hate me because I'm human, and I know everyone makes mistakes in their stories. So, I promise I will try to not let a major one happen again. I typed that chapter very late so I was tired. Please don't base the rest of my story off that one mistake. For those of you who didn't catch that, now you know!

Disclaimer: Nope, not mine.

Chapter 9: The Path to Doom

Kaoru stumbled along the path back to the dojo. She didn't think she could make it to the clinic for Megumi's help. Maybe Sano would be there to help her out. Her mind drifted back to the day's events. She was out with Kenshin and Mika for some lunch. Kenshin confessed his feelings. Mika got captured…wait. Kenshin confessed his feelings. How long had it been, a year? How many times had she sat and wondered what he thought about her? He wasn't going to leave her! Maybe things would be different from now on. He still hadn't said the three words she wanted to hear, but she knew he would soon. After all, even it was quick he did kiss her. That thought caused her cheeks to burn.

Sano was sitting on the dojo porch. Why wasn't anyone home yet? It had been a little over two hours. How could they stay out in the freezing cold for so long! Sano decided he would go home. There was just no reason for him to stay. As he closed the gate and looked down the path he noticed something in the distance. He cocked his head to the side and stared at it for a while. As the object came closer he realized it was Kaoru. He watched her for a while and then started to go towards her.

Kaoru saw Sano at the gate of the dojo and attempted to move faster. The cold was really taking a toll on her body. After a few more steps she stumbled and fell over. Kenshin's gi wasn't doing much to keep the wet snow off her wound. Pain seared through her body as she lay in the snow. She hadn't really paid attention to the fact her arm was sliced open. The ribbon Kenshin had tied around her arm was soaked through. With a futile attempt to pick up her head she called out to Sano.

"Kaoru are you okay?"

"Sano…please help me."

"Are you hurt?" Sano realized that was an incredibly stupid thing to say after looking down at her.

"Do you think you can make it to Megumi's?"

"No Sano, just take me…inside."

Sano carefully picked her up and brought her into the dojo. He laid her down on her futon and found some bandages.

"What did you do to yourself? Where are Kenshin and Mika?"

"We were in the woods for lunch. An attacker came from out of the blue and sliced my arm. He kidnapped Mika. Kenshin carried me to the road and left to go find her."

"Do you know where he is? Maybe I should help him."

"No Sano, he has to do this on his own. I think it would damage him emotionally if he didn't save Mika."

"Isn't there something I can do Kaoru?"

Kaoru smirked. "Well, you can start by making sure I don't bleed to death. Look at what you are doing!"

Sano had been tying the bandages on every part of her arm except the spot with the gash. "Oh, I'm sorry."

Kaoru laughed. She normally would have bashed Sano over the head but she was feeling much happier. She just hoped Kenshin would find Mika soon.

Kenshin frantically searched for someone who might have a horse in the area. He went into the market but found no one. It then occurred to him that the snow was still falling. If he didn't hurry soon there would be no tracks to follow. He finally found a man tying his horse to a tree.

"Excuse me, may I borrow your horse? I will return it later, that I will."

The man noticed the fire burning in his eyes. "Um…sure. Just make sure I get it back by tonight. I was going fishing but I need it later to get home."

"Thank you sir."

The man watched as Kenshin hopped on the horse and started riding down the path. A man with those eyes shouldn't be questioned. Why was he carrying a sword in this time of peace? The man picked up his fishing gear and left.

Kenshin hoped that he'd still be able to make out the tracks. It wasn't snowing very hard but it was getting harder to make out the path. Going faster now Kenshin looked around him. Akira had stayed on a secluded path very close to the water. This path went on for miles. It took a while before the tracks led off into the woods. Great, there were more trees to go through. There were trees all around him.

A few minutes later Kenshin came to a clearing. Apparently Akira and Mika had stopped here. Kenshin got off the horse and walked around. There were two sets of footprints scattered around the area. At one point they were all clumped together. There must have been a struggle of some sort. Kenshin walked back to his horse but then noticed something shiny at his feet. He bent down and picked up another dagger. How many of these did Akira have? Why would he throw away such a fine weapon? Maybe he had left it there intentionally. Regardless Kenshin got back on his horse and continued through the endless forest of trees.

It had finally stopped snowing but Kenshin could feel his mind numbing. How in the world was it getting colder? Kenshin assumed his mind was playing tricks on him. It couldn't be getting colder, that was just not possible. It was definitely getting harder to stay focused on riding the horse though. He looked up at the path he was taking. The trees seemed to be thinning out. Maybe there was an end to the never-ending forest. Kenshin rode on until he came to a huge gorge. The side of the cliff dropped down so far that it looked black at the bottom. He searched for a way to get across to the other side. A few feet away was a bridge, but it looked very old. Would the bridge hold him and the horse? There was only one way to find out.

Kenshin got off his horse and started to slowly inch across the bridge. He took little steps making sure the horse kept looking straight ahead to avoid any disaster. The wind howled as it passed through the depths of the gorge. Kenshin started to shake. He may have good stamina, but he couldn't take anymore. He had to get inside soon. They were half way across the bridge when the wind picked up and it started to sway. Surprisingly, the horse didn't panic. Thanking God, Kenshin continued across the bridge and finally made it to the other side.

Mika felt the horse stop and she heard Akira slide off. He took her off the horse and undid her blindfold. Mika was currently outside a giant mansion. It was three stories, with gothic windows, and giant double doors. Akira firmly grabbed her shoulder and looked down at her. She half expected him to be smirking but instead he had a very stern look on his face. Two men in Western style clothing came and opened the doors. Akira guided Mika through the great house. All the furniture was exquisite and the paintings on the walls were breathtaking. Mika was thrown out of her daze when Akira jerked to a stop at the beginning of the first flight of marble stairs. After this he didn't move.

"Um…Akira? Aren't we supposed to go up the stairs?"

"You seem in a hurry to be killed."

"No…I just…"

"Then stand there and be quiet," Akira said darkly.

Mika looked down at the floor. He was right; she was going to die soon. In a few minutes a big man with enormous arms came to the stairs. He glared down at Mika causing her to shift uncomfortably and then smiled.

"It's a shame we are going to have to kill this one. She's such a pretty thing."

Akira glared darkly at him. "Just open the passage Garo and get it over with."

"Come on Akira, you know what I say is true," said Garo.

"Just hurry up you big idiot. I have better things to do with my life. Akira glanced at Mika for a moment and then proceeded to glare at Garo.

Garo went around to the side of the stairs and started to push on the wall. There was a great marble square that Garo seemed to be pushing out of the stairs. In just five minutes Garo had succeeded at pushing a great marble slab out of the side of the stairs. He stepped back and smiled at his work.

"There you go Akira. Have fun."

"Yeah whatever. Go be stupid somewhere else."

Akira thrust Mika into a passageway under the stairs. It was too dark to see, so he grabbed a torch and continued down a long passage. Mika shivered. There was a terrible draft in the passageway. It also smelled wet and moldy. Her shoulder was starting to go numb from Akira's grip. Why had his carefree attitude changed so suddenly? Deciding it would be better not to talk to him Mika trudged on in the dark. She hoped someone would come for her. She really didn't want to die yet. There were so many things she still wanted to do with her life. Once again tears came to her eyes. She bit her lip to fight them back but it was no use. It didn't matter anyway. It was too dark to see much.

Akira felt something wet slide down his hand. Mika was crying. That was one more thing to add to his collection of bad things happening to him. What in the world was so different about this girl? He had carried out countless missions like this before and had to even assassinate a few people. Why was this one person driving him insane? You are supposed to do your job, get paid, and go find some other thing to do. For some reason he just couldn't shake the idea that Mika was going to die. It had been fun for him to kidnap her. That samurai had made the mission a challenge. He was just glad he finally did the job. So what was it that was making him care for someone he knew almost nothing about? His eyes narrowed as he remembered his own past. How he was orphaned and had to steal to survive. His parents had been murdered but he never found out how. Over time he developed fighting skills and perfected the use of daggers. Many underground people sought his help in doing things. They also happened to be very wealthy. So he spent most of his life doing missions and getting paid. Maybe the fact that he could relate to her pain is what was bothering him.

A bright light shone at the end of the dark passage way. This was it, the end of the tunnel. Mika started to shiver more violently. Tears continued to slide silently down her face. Akira's eyes narrowed even more. The room they walked into was very spacious. There was another door leading to a different area at the back of the room. There were many different fish trophies plastered on the wall. Three men stood off to the side carrying swords and large clubs. Two other men stood by a very large chair next to a fireplace. The fire felt warm compared to the dark passageway. In the chair there was a man dressed in a very fancy suit made of shiny material. He had greasy gray hair and was balding. A creepy smile was plastered on his face. He slowly stood up and placed his fingers together. He nodded to Akira who stepped off to the side and went to stand in a corner. Mika looked worriedly at Akira who showed no emotion at all but a small flicker in his eyes betrayed him. She slowly turned her head back towards the creepy old man.

"Hello Mika," the man said.

A/N: This was a pretty late update but I was busy. Next chapter we will find out more about the fish man and what becomes of Mika. What is Kenshin going to do? I know that almost all of you find Mika very annoying and irritating, which is why she was created. I needed to make someone that would be a direct contrast to Kaoru in a different way than Megumi. At this point in the story I hope you can see beyond the surface and realize Mika isn't as bad as you think. She is a person with feelings too. So please take that into consideration before labeling her permanently. I should be done in a few chapters but for now, let me know what you thought!