Name Game

"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!"

"JUST CALM DOWN WE WON'T HURT YOU, SO SIT DOWN AND STOP FIGHTING!"

"FUCK YOU! GET AWAY FROM ME OR ELSE…OR ELSE…JUST DON'T TOUCH ME! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU PEOPLE?"

"AAAAAH…SHE BIT ME!"

"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE? EVERYONE…SHUT UP, NOW!" Megumi screamed over the rest of the pack. She stood in the doorway of her patient's room trying her hardest not rip their throats out. Controlling her anger, she walked into the once pristine bedroom. Sheets and pillows were thrown about on the floor and the mattress was left completely bare. Some pillows were torn apart and the soft, white feathers covered nearly the entire bed and floor around it.

The three maids were standing defeated at the sides of the bed and looked as if they had just been sucked up in a tornado. One was nursing a fresh bite on her left forearm and could barely contain her own tears. The other's all looked on in fright and alarm towards Megumi.

A girl with wide eyes and in her satin blue pajamas stood on top and at the head of the bed. She looked disheveled with her hair noticeably dirty and knotted. Her blue eyes were wild with anger and fear, and Megumi could sense that she was confused. "She's going to be a handful" she sighed.

"Hello. How are you?" she smiled genuinely towards the young woman.

"Who the hell are you people? Where am I and why can't I leave?" the girl roared back. Her temper was certainly impressive, but Megumi was patient.

"Well, my name is Megumi Takani and I am a doctor. Actually I'm your doctor right now as well. You are in our home as we found you some time ago unconscious, and hurt at the side of the road. We took you in and have been nursing you since. You are free to leave just as soon as we can be sure that you're okay." Not wanting to further alarm the girl, she'd deliberately kept her tone soft and melodious.

The girl looked around the room once more and towards the maids. Megumi got the hint and dismissed them at once. After they were left alone she saw that the young woman was more at ease.

"Why don't you get down from there so that I can check your wound? After a nice bath and some good food, we can all sit down and talk. Is that agreeable to you?" she asked innocently.

"Who's we all?" she asked suspiciously.

"Well that would be you, me, and Kenshin Himura who is the owner of this estate and who incidentally was the one to find you and bring you here." She'd purposely left out mentioning the rest of them so as not to further alarm her. "I suppose she'll have to meet them soon enough though."

"You can your husband live in this huge place all alone? What about all those other people?"

The question nearly knocked Megumi off her feet with laughter and surprise. She let out a series of chuckles and laughs, "Oh my! No, no. Kenshin and I are certainly not husband and wife. We are…ah…close family relatives. We're more like brother and sister. And we don't live here alone. Our extended family is here as well. I believe you have met them the other night."

"I did. How could I forget?" The girls tone was cynical and she remembered back to the rude tall man, the others just standing there and gaping at her and then him; the man with amber eyes, and scarlet red hair.

"Well now, why don't you come down and let me take a look at you?"

"You're not gonna' put me to sleep are you?"

"No of course not" Megumi assured and smiled genuinely once more towards the young woman.

She looked towards the supposed doctor and thought about how pretty she was. She had straight black hair, dark eyes, and crimson lips and nails. "She doesn't look like a doctor…" The girl continued to ponder about the woman standing in front of her, and if she could be trusted.

Many nights ago, she'd awoken in this foreign place where she knew no one and no one seemed to know her. She was covered in minor scratches and a large, painful wound just below her ribs. What's more, her brain wouldn't allow her to remember who she was of where she came from. She remembered the amber-eyed man called Kenshin and how scary he looked. A chill passed through her just thinking about him and she looked towards Megumi once more.

Megumi read her thoughts and discretely twitched an eye brow over the 'too pretty to be a doctor' comment. Slowly though the girl gave in and descended from the top of the bed.

"Please sit here" Megumi patted the edge of the bed gently and went fishing into her black case.

The girl did as she was told and sat nervously at the edge of the bed. Megumi could already hear her pounding heart, but decided to perform the traditional doctor's check ups. First she used her stethoscope to hear the fierce but healthy pounding her heart. Next she flashed some light into her eyes to check her pupil's dilation as well as checking on her blood pressure rate.

"Alright, well all indications are that you're doing very well now. Please remove your top so that I can take a look at your bandages and check your wound."

As Megumi fished through her bag for more instruments, the girl removed her top. She sat in her bra and pants bottom and waited patiently for Megumi. She saw the doctor walk across the room and pick up the phone. "Prepare the bath in here and bring up extra towels and fresh clothing." After dropping the phone, Megumi walked back over to her and picked up a pair of scissors.

"Okay, we're going to cut those old bandages off so I can take a look. Let me know whenever you start to feel pain and I'll stop" she smiled.

The girl could barely nod in response and let the doctor go to work. Megumi instructed her to stand as she cut the bandages from behind. She could feel the doctor's petite fingers on her shoulder at one point to steady her and winced slightly at how cold they were.

"Sorry about that. Well your bandages are off, let me just get on some gloves so we can take off the rest of the patches."

As the doctor put on her gloves, the girl looked down and saw taped bandages clinging to her in front. She imagined the type of cut they concealed and wondered how she could get so injured.

Megumi was once more in front of her and gently peeled off the remaining bandages to reveal three long horizontal scars across her otherwise pristine white skin. "Well, she healing nicely" Megumi thought. The stitches were almost completely gone, but there could be nothing done about the ugly scars that would be left behind.

"You're healing nicely" she said.

"Thank you" responded, "for everything. I-I guess I'm really indebted to you." Her voice was much softer and Megumi couldn't overlook the sadness in it.

"It's my job, and you'll get the chance to thank the person that really deserves it. Sir Ken. For now, let's get you cleaned up and put into some fresh clothing hm?" Megumi walked across the large room and opened a door at the side. It wasn't the exit and the young woman had assumed it was a closet. But it opened into a beautiful bathroom.

She walked slowly as Megumi held the door open for her and stepped inside. A fresh burst of daylight poured through the tall windows. The room was quite a contrast between the heavy wooden and stone endowed bedroom. Its walls were a peach blush and accessories were entirely in white. A bathtub sat in the middle of the room, a large two-sink counter across on the right and a closet in one corner. On the order end was a large, glass encased shower, with a chair inside.

"Chair?" she asked.

Megumi turned to her, "Oh, well you see you can't quite take a shower or bath yet because of your stitches. So a sponge bath will have to do. Don't worry Mary will do a great job of helping you. We'll have to wash your hair too!"

The maid stepped forth with a wash cloth and soap in hand. Another one filled a small tub with warm water and spread fresh jasmine petals in it for fragrance.

The girl shivered at the thought of having strangers have to bath her. She knew that the maids meant her no harm, "Or do they?" she thought nervously. "Why can't I just do this on my own? I don't…" Standing in her bra and pajama bottoms wasn't helping her either.

Megumi picked up on her thoughts and sighed aloud despite herself. "I see you're nervous", she felt badly for the young girl. "Fine, I suppose being your doctor you won't be nervous around me? You can wash yourself off and I'll return to help you with your hair. How's that?"

The girl nodded her head and Megumi ordered the maids out into the bedroom to ready the girl's clothing. They shut the door behind them after exiting. The girl was left alone in the room and ran her hand through her hair. "Argh, it is dirty!"

Quickly she stripped down and got on with cleaning herself. The water was warm and she was happy to enjoy the fragrance of the jasmine. Looking out the window and through the partially covered drapes, she could see that the afternoon was growing later and later in the day. "I wonder how long I've been here? I wonder what my family thinks of me being missing. Do I even have a family? Why hasn't someone come to get me?"

Over and over, she kept asking herself the same questions. And again she was met with nothing more than an emptiness consuming her thoughts. "It's like as if my brain's checked out and just left me hanging here!"

She wasn't able to think beyond as a short while later a knock at the door disrupted her thoughts. "Hello? All done?" came the familiar voice.

"Y-Yes" she barely whispered. She hadn't noticed how dry her throat had gotten after screaming at the maids.

The door opened and Megumi slipped inside just as the girl wrapped a large towel around herself.

"Alright then, let's do something with this." She removed the butterfly clasp that barely held the thick curtain of hair messily on the crown of her head.

Megumi then dragged the chair to the side of the tub and told her to sit down while bending her head back into the tub. "That way I can easily rinse it off and you can sit comfortably."

She soon felt a gentle massage after warm water had completely soaked her locks. Her mind felt completely at ease as the doctor gingerly separated the knots and poured on a sweet smelling shampoo.

She could help but close her eyes and let her mind wander as the rinse and rewashing continued. "This feels really wonderful. I feel like I could go to sleep right here." She'd wanted to ask so many questions about where they found her, if they knew who'd done this to her, but for now everything melted into the soft touches that soothed the uncertainties.

"Okay, all done. Now just slowly bend your head back upright and I'll wrap it in a towel." Megumi gently helped her up from the seat and brought her back into the bedroom, which was already clean. The bed had a fresh new set of sheets on it and every last feather was picked up off the floor.

She found a fresh set of clothing on the bed and went over to them. Megumi picked up a black velour zip-up top and then matching lounge pants and a white tank top. "I'm sorry, but none of us girls are quite as tall as you and so this is the best I could do for now. Tomorrow we'll go shopping and pick you out something suitable."

"Shopping?"

"Of course! You can't walk around in pajamas and sweats all day!"

"I have fresh undergarments, but I'm afraid the bra might be too small" Megumi teased while tossed the lacy white garment aside.

"Ah…I…ummm…I wouldn't know I guess" she stammered out.

"Don't worry about it. Just get dressed behind that screen and then we'll dry your hair."

After putting on the clothing, Megumi helped to blow dry her hair and brushed out any remaining knots. As a finishing touch she spread glossing oil scented with a hint of jasmine through her freshly washed hair.

The girl gazed in the mirror as she sat on the stool in front of the dresser and Megumi stood behind and fussed with her hair. The girl looked at her face in the glass and memorized the features she saw there. Realizing it wasn't a stranger, but her own reflection she was looking at, she grew solemn over not even recognizing that. "Who are you?" she asked her reflection. "Who am I? Why is this happening to me?"

"There, now you look like you can sit down at the table with us tonight" Megumi interrupted.

"D-Dinner? With all of you?" she asked nervously. "I don't even know these people!"

"Well of course! Kenshin is ah…probably already home," although she knew better as she'd already sensed his ki upon his entrance in the estate, "and how else will you get to know them better? They've been so excited to finally meet you!"

"Meet me?" she thought again about the amber-eyed man she'd met for a few seconds.

"Come on, slip on these slippers and let's go! You must be hungry!"

The two women made their way out of the room and walked down the hallway. She remembered this long stretch of seemingly useless space.

"Are you guys rich or something?" she blurted out. "Argh, STUPID, of course they're rich! Why else do they live like this…a million rooms, servants, expensive everything!"

"Well I suppose you could say that. Although this estate has been in Kenshin's family's hands for centuries, but he's built on the family fortune quite a bit."

"Oh…" was the only answer she could muster.

After a few more moments of silence, Megumi spoke up as they descended the stair case. "You know, we need to get a name for you. Otherwise everyone will keep referring to you as 'the girl'."

"THE GIRL? I have a name!" she was furious once more.

"Well I'm sure you do, but until you can tell us what it is, we'll just to have to agree on something. Maybe you should just pick one for now. In either case, let's talk it over with Kenshin."

"What's he like the leader or something? Why does everything have to be okayed by him?" She was slightly miffed at the thought of a stranger having to agree on a name for her.

"Actually he is the head of our family and we all regard him very highly. And so everything should be 'okayed' by him" Megumi replied.

"Sounds like a bit of a hard-ass to me. He looked like he was gonna' rip my head off the other night."

Megumi heard the comment loud and clear and struggled between either bursting out in laughter or slapping the girl for her insolence.

"How long have I been here?"

"Hmmm…it's been about a month now."

"WHAT! A MONTH?"

"Shhh!" Megumi hushed her as they rounded the corner and entered the dining area.

"Holly crap! I've been here a month? Where is here? Well…I guess when you think about it, I don't really have anywhere else to go…that I know of."

A giggle came from across the room and she looked up to see the same short girl with the braid. She seemed to have turned away from her and looked towards the taller man in am attempt to muffle her laugher.

The room was not surprisingly large and well furnished, with a massive wooden dining table. It stretched down the center of the room and was decorated with candelabras and more flowers. The same people that she'd met the other night now sat around it, with the one called Kenshin sitting at the head.

To his left sat Aoshi then Misao and to his right sat Sano an empty chair, then Yahiko and Ninna. A table setting was also left next to Misao and she quickly took her place there. Megumi went around and sat next to Sano.

The previous night's anger, frustration and distrust flooded back to her. These were the same people that she'd hollered and screamed at and now she'd have to sit in their midst and answer questions that she had no answers for. "Great, you feel guilty after you make a fool of yourself in front of the people that helped you."

As she sat down, Misao turned and gave her a pleasant smile. Obviously, she was the object of everyone's attention and it made her even more nervous. She looked around and saw that they were quietly sipping on their drinks. Tall wine glasses were filled more than halfway with seemingly red wine. They were quiet momentarily and resumed the conversations that were being carried on before her entrance.

Kenshin looked at her out of the corner of his eye. Sano was talking to him about another business venture, but his attention was on her. Megumi had found whatever new clothing she could not knowing the girl's taste, but the clingy fabric hung well from her petite frame and she looked healthy for a change.

Since the vision, he was consumed by the stranger. He was locked out of her mind because of the amnesia and it made him angry and curious. Her eyes looked clearer now and even the dark circles that were present the night he found her were completely gone.

The rest of the group enjoyed their drinks in silence again and waited for someone to break the void that was hanging heavily over the table. They all thought about what their leader that told them the night she awoke and realized she had no memory.

------------- FLASHBACK ------------------

"Well I see our little bird won't be singin any tunes any time soon" Sano laughed.

Misao groaned at his comment, "Argh, Sano! Now's not the time for your lame-ass jokes".

"Well Battousi, what's the situation with her?" Aoshi asked the question everyone was already thinking about over and over.

Kenshin remained quiet for a moment. Before calling the meeting, he'd thought and rethought what he would say to the group. They depended on him to be a strong and decisive leader. And now in such an uncertain time, he'd taken a huge chance by brining home a complete stranger, and a mortal no less.

He'd given the matter so much consideration and yet he still had no clear cut answers. The girl was obviously no use to him without her recollection of that night, but beyond his own interest in her mystery, Megumi had left a small spark of hope behind when she suggested that her memory may return. It left him delirious with confusion, frustration and anger.

It was enraging to have to deal with a human that was proving to be so much trouble. Deep down he knew that the real reason he was so disturbed and intrigued by her was the vision. After not being able to determine who was controlling who, he found it difficult not to dwell on the issue.

"Megumi, please tell them the situation first and then I will give you my answer."

The group looked towards the doctor and friend. "Well, as I've told Sir Ken, she's most likely suffering from post-traumatic amnesia. You all described that she was very confused and then didn't even remember her own name after waking up. She made it all the way downstairs without assistance, so I can't say her confusion was delirium or even grogginess. I'll have to perform more tests and for now, I've given her a sedative. When she wakes we'll see what she has to say."

"So in conclusion," Kenshin picked up, "for now she will stay with us. I'll keep all of you posted on her situation and what I intend to do every step of the way. Until then, I must insist that everyone will have to be on guard."

------------- END FLASHBACK ------------------

"So Missy," Sano's voice cut through the silence. "How're you feeling tonight?"

She looked towards the burly man and recalled his rude behavior the last time they'd met. Although his cocky demeanor suggested otherwise, he seemed to be genuinely concerned with her answer.

"I…I'm not in too much pain if that's what you're asking. But I'm obviously very confused about all of this." She looked towards Kenshin, her eyes filled with confusion and hope for some answers. "Please, tell me where you found me. What happened to me? How did I end up like this?"

Kenshin looked at her and recalled the stormy night he'd spotted her barely clinging to life. "This estate is located in the mountains, just about an hour's drive from the nearest city. I was on my way home in a heavy rain late in the evening when we spotted you outside lying on the side of the road. You were badly hurt, but there was no one else in the immediate area. So I decided to bring you with me after confirming you were still alive, barely. Megumi treated you and now you're sitting here about a month later thanks to her."

She looked at the empty plate in front of her but was deep in thought over his words. They still rang in her head. "Alone, at the side of the road? In the middle of the night? In the mountains? What…?" She tried hard to search her memory and make herself remember what happened that night, but nothing came to light.

"I…what about the police? You didn't contact them?" she asked.

"Well actually Aoshi has direct links with the detectives in town and they searched for any missing persons reports fitting your description, but came up with nothing. No news bulletins were observed, no one has come forth regarding a missing family member."

"So I just fell out of the night's sky? Damn…" she added sarcastically.

Kenshin was amused with her sudden bursts of anger. "Do you recall what city this is? Or even the month or year?"

"I…can't remember anything right now…"

"Missy you've got…" Sano began.

"My name is NOT Missy!" she interrupted. "I don't know what my name is, but please don't call me Missy!" The room was quiet with her sudden outburst and Kenshin continued to read her. "I don't know…I wish I knew, but I don't."

It was evident that she was distressed and rightfully so.

"Okay, no problem. Than you tell us what to call you" Sano added remaining surprisingly calm.

"Call me? I…I don't know. How am I going to find out?" She was clearly exasperated.

"I think you need to think this situation over. You are welcome to stay here for as long as you need until everything gets sorted out. In fact, I insist on it." Kenshin instructed.

His voice came out smooth and velvety, much like what she remembered from before. In fact it was the only thing she could remember at this point.

"But…my family? What about…"

"We've put out a report giving your description to the police and they're cross-referencing it with missing person's reports in the databases. If and when a match comes up, you'll know about it" Aoshi stated matter-of-factly.

"I don't want to be any more of a burden on any of you. I'm already completely indebted to you for all of your help." She felt guilty being rude, but her frustration was making her tense and stressed. "These are complete strangers I'm staying with here. How can I trust them? But then again, do I even have a choice? No money, no memory, no where to go, and not even a clue as to where to start."

Misao reached over and put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Hey don't worry about it. We're here to help you out until you're able to gain your memory back."

She smiled at Misao who genuinely felt like an endearing friend. "Thank you" although she felt unsure about staying with them.

Looking back over at Megumi she asked a question that was plaguing her for quite a while, "When do you think my memory will return."

Putting her wine glass down, Megumi looked sympathetically towards her. "I have to run more tests to see if there's any damage to your brain. But there have been cases where the memory comes back after a few weeks, months or even years. And there are cases where the memory never comes back."

"I see…" she replied.

"Hey Miss…ah…why don't we eat first and then we'll talk this over some more?" Sano offered. He began to feel sorry for her especially after the thoughts that were running through her mind. She seemed like a sweet girl who'd lost her way and Sano was always ready to lend a helping hand to a female in distress.

She smiled weakly and nodded. "I guess I have no choice right now."

Kenshin was deep in thought and heard her every word."You certainly don't my dear. We need you right now and we need for you to remember."

She looked towards him suddenly and swore that she'd heard him say something to her. But he wasn't even looking in her direction at the moment and was in stead concentrating on the food set down before him by the maids.

Kenshin was acutely aware of her suspicions and wondered how he'd allowed himself to slip and let her hear him. He would have to find out more about his girl somehow.

She looked at the food in front of her and although the hunger was there, her stomach was in knots. The situation was hopeless it seemed. "What am I going to do?" she thought over and over.

Dinner went on in silence as questions still danced in her mind. "Why is this happening to me? How can a person walk around in life with no identity? I must have a family or come from somewhere! I suppose it's easy to get lost in a sea of people inside a city, but how in the hell did I end up here? As if the memory loss isn't bad enough, how did I get this wound? An accident? Someone attacked me? I wonder if they found a car or…no, no, they would've said so if I were in a car accident. Argh…damnit…"

Sano: "She'll drive herself nuts at this rate."

Misao: "Poor girl…"

Aoshi: "I've heard of instances where memory loss leads to some sort of insanity, but I don't think she's quite there yet."

Megumi: "It's not an impossibility, but you're right. She's just very confused at this point and that's to be expected.

Yahiko: "I guess she just doesn't trust us…"

Ninna: "I don't trust her!"

Sano: "What's the matter with you? The poor girl's obviously lost everything and you can't have a grain to sympathy for her?"

Megumi: "You seem to be very worried about her Sano…"

Sano: "What…n-now stop it! I mean I just feel bad for her. Besides…she's YOUR patient!"

Ninna: "What the hell do we call her anyway?"

Yahiko: "I say raccoon-girl! She came in all tired and crazy looking that night…"

Misao: "NO YOU CLOWN SHE WAS HURT! She seems so sweet and nice. I say we call her ummm…Aikiko1

Sano / Yahiko: "YAWN…BORING!"

Misao growled to herself and the girl looked over towards her. After remembering that they were holding an entire conversation in private from her, Misao smiled brightly towards her: "Ah…haha, I just hate my steak too well done!"

The girls exchanged smiles and went back to their plates.

Sano: "Smooth!"

Misao: "Shut it! What's your suggestion rooster-head?"

Sano: "I say Hotaru2"

Misao: "What? NO! What about Akira3? What do you think Aoshi-sama?"

Aoshi: "Well I know that at the police department they just call them Jane or John Doe until they're identified."

They all twitched an eyebrow at the stoic and very bland answer.

Megumi: "Well I think Tomiko4 since she was found during a storm at night."

Misao: "Aw that's really nice too Megumi! But what about…"

Ninna: "What's the big deal with her name anyhow? She's just another human and hopefully she'll be out of our hair soon enough!"

Yahiko: "Ninna…"

Kenshin: "That's enough!"

The conversation ended with that and all went back to their meals. The night had left mixed feelings about their new guest. Misao was excited over having someone new to interact with as was Sano who wouldn't admit it. Megumi took a liking to her as a mature and older sister would to her childish younger sister. Yahiko was happy for the change in conversation for a change, but stayed reserved over his judgments on the girl.

It seemed his partner Ninna didn't think anything more of humans than play toys and the next meal. She was highly upset when yet another night had to be spent at home and discretely sipping on refrigerated blood. Ninna despised the human already and was going to let it be known.

After dinner finished, Kenshin instructed everyone to meet in the usual room to further discuss the situation at hand. As they all began to rise and leave the room, Kenshin stopped his new house guest.

"Would you please stay a moment?" he requested.

She nodded her head and nervously sat back down as the room cleared of all the other occupants. The heavy doors were shut closed and she could feel her heart begin to race. "Why am I so nervous? He's just some guy…with red hair, really weird eyes…umm…"

Kenshin smirked at the comment and made sure that no one else could hear their conversation. Being the most powerful and oldest out of the group made this an easy task for him.

He remained in his seat at the head of the table, and she in hers which was three chairs down on his left.

"Please, sit a bit closer. This is seems so formal."

She took in and let out a silent deep breath with this request and moved into the seat at his left side. "Creepy…creepy…creepy. Formal? It looks like we're in some sort of a castle straight out of the medieval ages and you're talking like…like you belong there and I'm supposed to be casual around you?"

Kenshin was taken off guard momentarily at her comments. Thinking again though, it seemed she was right. He was very formal and well-mannered and his stoic nature at times reflected Aoshi's, which alarmed him even more. He hadn't always been like that, but those times had passed centuries ago.

She sat next to him and could barely meet his eyes at first. He was wearing his hair much lower tonight, but shaggy layered bangs still fell around his face. The ferocity that she'd seen the other night in his eyes was replaced with something else. But she couldn't tell what, he was exceedingly difficult to read. He wore a casual white sweater shirt and dark slacks.

His lean and muscular build was evident through the shirt's material and cut. He picked up the wine glass once more and brought it to his lips, and she noticed his well defined forearms even under the confining fabric of his shirt. Angelic and almost delicate facial features were offset by a muscular and strong physic.

"I want to apologize for what happened the other night. They were all very surprised to find you standing in the middle of the stairwell after you'd been unconscious for so long." His tone was softer and she looked into his eyes once more.

"Apologize?" The thought of him apologizing to her made her angry and her shyness dissipated. "Don't! I…I didn't even thank you for saving my life that night! If you hadn't come along and brought me here…"

"Don't worry about that now. You're here safe and sound. But please tell me what you remember from that night."

She reflected back and was quiet for a moment. Kenshin could sense her ransacking her mind to dig for the answer. "I…I don't remember anything. I just remember waking up here, being in a lot of pain and then seeing all of you. I-I'm sorry…"

He was noticeably disappointed at her answer and she felt like she'd let him down as well herself.

"You don't have to apologize. It's not your fault and I'm sure with Megumi's help you'll be able to regain your memory again."

"I've been such a pain in the ass for you already, I don't know how I can repay you for everything…"

"That's alright. No repayment necessary, we just want you to regain your memories and hopefully you'll be able to go on with your life."

"I hope so too…" she whispered. "My life…what sort of life could've that been? Was I happy? Damnit why can't I remember anything…what sort of a person just…just forgets every damn thing about themselves?"

Kenshin placed a hand over hers and her entire body tingled from the unexpected touch. Her mind was alarmed over the contact, but her body responded differently. There was an air about him that she just couldn't quite put her finger on. He seemed oddly familiar, as if she seen him somewhere or had known him from before. "No, no…wait…it's not like I would remember at this point…Maybe it's just my mind playing tricks on me."

He removed his hand and continued to look at her with a slight smile playing on his lips. His eyes remained focused on her and she felt her senses drowning out. It was if she could still feel his hand on her and her body remained tense.

"There is one matter that we'll need to address right now though" Kenshin interrupted her thoughts. "A name, your name. Have you decided on something for now?"

"I…uh…I don't know…I just don't want to be called GIRL or something stupid like that" her anger returned.

"Allow me?" he offered.

"Umm, okay. What were you thinking?" She was intrigued by him but still hesitant to let a complete stranger give her a name. "Let's see what he comes up with."

"Well Megumi's choice wasn't too bad." He wanted to test and see what she would think.

"Tomiko? Hmmm…" she crinkled up her nose and stuck out her tongue. "No!"

Kenshin had to chuckle despite himself, and she was delighted to see the change in his demeanor. "He looks so sweet when he laughs…completely different."

Clearing his throat at her comment, Kenshin focused. "Hmm, let's see then, big beautiful blue eyes and quite a personality to match. Aoi5. You're very outspoken and not easily impressed by all the glitter around you. Kasai6 Your anger is just as ferocious as your tongue. Kaida7 But there's an air of innocence and what else? Uncertainty?" He inhaled the sweet smell radiating from her, "Jasmine…Riko8"

He smiled at her as she continued to look at him with creased eyebrows and a confused expression. "I wonder what he'll say. Better not be something flowery and wound up like…ROSE or something."

The smiled widened at her comment as he decided what his new guest would be called. "I see you'll be interesting, maybe I was too quick to assume you're a complete waste of time…"

Meanwhile in the main room, the rest of the group sat and waited for the two to join them.

All were seated expect for Sano who leaned against Megumi's chair.

Misao was growing more impatient by the moment over having to sit in one place and wait. "I wonder what they're talking about."

Ninna's mood was already sour from having to deal with the human, "This is not fair! Just because she's here we can't go out? We have to hide ourselves from her like…like we're inferior! Argh…she makes me so mad…"

"Ninna, she hasn't done anything to you. Are you so savage that you can't live without killing for one night? Besides, it's just as well. There've been even more reports of murders and we don't need any attention thrown our way" Megumi countered.

"She's right. If the girl can provide some information, then at least we know what to expect" Aoshi added.

"SHE CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER HER OWN NAME!" Ninna hollered.

"Don't raise your voice at me" Aoshi warned. He'd had enough of the young vampire's arrogance and foolishness.

"Ninna please! Kenshin knows what he's doing. Just trust in that and in him" Yahiko soothed trying to diffuse the situation.

"They're on the way…" Sano muttered as the room quieted down.

A few seconds later Kenshin and the young woman walked in. He was telling her about the grounds of the estate and that she would need a tour to show her around. As they walked in, Kenshin looked up and made his announcement.

"You may call her Amaya and for formalities we've also chosen a surname. Ms. Amaya Yoshida." She looked around the room and awaited a response.

"It's very appropriate, night rain…makes sense I suppose considering the circumstances under which you came here in. And Yoshida is perfect as well as you were very lucky that Kenshin found you in time. Welcome." Megumi congratulated her.

"Amaya, yes it does sound perfect for you!" Misao giggled.

"Well you understand it's only temporary. It's just out of convenience until we find out who she is and where she's from. I know that all of you will make her feel at home until she can return." Kenshin added on unbeknownst to his guest, "And I expect everyone to treat her well until we can get the information we need. No one is to harm her in any way!"

The newly named young woman looked around at her new companions and nervously smiled. "Amaya…it'll have to do for now, but I hope I can find out what my name really is…soon."

----- -------- ----------- --------- ------------

Special thanks go out to Reignashii for all her assistance. We spent some time trying to figure out a good name for Kaoru…obviously you guys know the girl IS Kaoru! LOL

Reignashii gave me a ton of good ideas and I intend to use at least one more that she suggested at another time. You'll just have to wait and see.

So now let's see…any clarifications needed? Yes, Ninna hates her…sorry can't have everyone like her just like that ya' know.


Oh and they can all read her thoughts at the moment and of course they freely do so. I personally liked the little telepathic conversations that go on in her presence about her! LMAO…imagine if and when she does find out they talk about her so much? Oh…she'll be heated!

And yes, she was struggling and then bit one of the maids at the very beginning. I never said that she was prim and proper…that would be no fun! LOL

Anyhow, the story will pick up more steam with the upcoming chapters as most of the introductions and stuff are now out of the way.

So please leave me a review and let me know what you think. And please no flames about her name…it was very difficult to decide something appropriate for her but I just really like the sound of Amaya…very mysterious and 'mystical' just like our girl right now. )

-THANKS AGAIN REIGNASHII!

1 Means either "autumn child" or "bright child" in Japanese

2 Means "firefly" in Japanese

3 Means "intelligence, brightness" in Japanese

4 Means "child of Tomi (red)" in Japanese

5 Means "blue" in Japanese

6 Means "fire" in Japanese

7 Means "little dragon" in Japanese

8 Means "Jasmine child" in Japanese