Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin.

A/N: This sucks. I've hit a dry spell, and it's becoming increasingly difficult to write anything for this story what-so-ever. Plus, staying with five people with only one computer doesn't exactly help…. Oh well, I'll try to hurry as fast as I can.

Claw & Fang

Chapter Five

Aoshi's POV

Without any hesitation, I screamed for Megumi. Hopefully, she would be able to help, as she was an aspiring med-student.

Thankfully, she had heard over the loud music still blaring on and on downstairs, and had rushed up to see what the problem was. She gave a small gasp and set everyone to work, not wasting a second.

I growled in frustration, feeling completely helpless for the first time in years. I hated it.

Not five minutes later, Misao was lying on a futon, and Megumi was looking at Sano, who was starting to regain consciousness. All I could do was wait.

Megumi's POV

"Wha' 'appen'?" Sano asked, his voice drifting up from the floor. I smirked. "You got knocked out by something less than half your size. In fact, it probably wasn't even a fifth of your size."

He took the bait. "Size has no importance in a fight!"

"But it was something you could step on to defeat. I had no idea cockfighting would be so hard for you, Rooster-head."

"It wasn't even a fight!"

"You're right! It ended much too quickly to be counted as one," I said, casually flipping my hair over my shoulder. His gaping mouth was the best impression of a beached fish I had seen in a long time.

"I… uuhh…"

I knelt next to him, patting him lightly on the cheek, a sly smile adorning my face. "Now, now. You're not a foghorn, so don't act like one. Unless, of course, your dream is to warn ships in a fog…."

His face flushed in anger. "Come off it, Megitsune! I didn't see you do anything! At least nothing useful!"

I felt my own face heat. How dare he! "I just saved Misao's life! I'd like to see you accomplish anything more than running around like a headless chicken given the same situation!" I snapped, storming out of the room. I saw several heads turn toward me in question, but I ignored them, instead heading downstairs to calm myself down.

Picking up a book I had brought, I settled down on the large gray couch positioned in front of the TV. I let myself get absorbed within the book's pages, losing touch with reality as I followed the characters in my minds eye. I wasn't sure how long I had been sitting like that when the loud footsteps sounded from the staircase. Sighing, I lowered my book, looking expectantly at the Rooster hesitating halfway down the staircase. He looked nervous. I didn't help his feeling either, picking up my sassy nature and adorning a small frown on my features.

"What are you here for, Rooster-head? Last I checked, you were upstairs, sulking."

"Megumi…" he started, but I didn't let him continue.

"You had better not be here to annoy me with that loud mouth of yours, foghorn." Okay, so maybe I hadn't settled down as much as I had thought.

He frowned. "Fine! If you don't want an apology, I won't give one to you! But you had better remember that you're in my house, Megitsune, and I won't tolerate your attitude any more!"

"Do you even know the meaning of the word 'tolerate', Sagara?" I sneered, almost instantly regretting it. I must have looked like a total bitch to him.

"That's it! Get out! Get out of my house!"

I must have looked like I had received a slap to the face, but he didn't look like he cared. "W-what?"

"W-wait. I didn't mean it," he said anxiously. "I j-just…"

"You just what, Sagara Sanosuke?" I asked, my voice tight. "If you didn't mean it, then why did you say it?"

"Megumi…"

"Don't say it. I don't care." With that said, I picked up my bag, walking out the door without looking back.

I only hoped he hadn't seen the tears on my face.

Kaoru's POV

There was a large amount of confusion in the Sagara household that night. First, the seemingly random attack. Second, everyone stampeding around, trying to do what they were told and not panic for Misao's sake. Lastly, there had been Megumi. Nobody really knew what to think when she just stormed out like that. No one knew what had conspired between Rooster and Fox, and everyone had been too afraid to ask. I myself was at a loss for what to do. So, I had been just sitting there, waiting for someone to come up with a solution when a comforting hand was placed on my shoulder.

"Nothing's going right tonight, is it?" asked the somewhat subdued voice of Kenshin.

I sighed. "No."

He sat on my left, his hand still resting on my right shoulder. We sat there like that for a while, neither of us really wanting to move. I lay my head on his shoulder, leaning into his form. I felt my eyelids starting to close slowly, the days events –and the comfortable position- catching up with me. I had almost been asleep when I felt Kenshin tense beside me, and all of a sudden there was a bright flash. I jumped up immediately, startled into wakefulness by the sound of laughter coming from the room in general.

"Wha…"

Then I saw it. Sojiro and Chou were standing in front us with a digital camera between them.

Oh, they hadn't.

Turns out they had.

I turned to Kenshin, whose face was roughly the shade of a tomato, and I felt my own face heat with embarrassment. The duo in front of us had just taken a picture of me falling asleep on Kenshin.

My embarrassment faded quickly into anger, and I charged at Chou, who had been the one holding the camera at the time. In my haste, I knocked over Kenshin, who muffled a faint, "Oro.". I didn't even register the fact that Misao was now adding to the laughter from her spot on the futon. All I had in mind was one thought.

Revenge.

As soon as I neared Chou, he quickly tossed the camera to Sojiro; who happened to be on the other side of the room. I started over to where he was, but he had already started for the stairs, and damn that guy was fast. I only stopped to grab my bokken from my backpack before I continued my relentless pursuit of the cheetah. I saw him toss the camera to Okita, his twin, who had shifted into his ferret form. He clutched the string attached to the camera in his tiny jaws, and, giving a smirk as best he could in his current form, he darted underneath the furniture.

I started across the family room, ready to give the little rodent a piece of my mind, but tripped over the prone form staring at the ceiling. It was Sano. How had I not noticed him before?

The embarrassing picture forgotten, I knelt next to the lanky teen that lay sprawled on the beige carpet.

"She hates me."

"No, Sano. Megumi does not hate you."

"She does. You should have seen the way she looked at me," he said, looking so forlorn that I couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

"She was just stressed out. All she needs is a little while to cool off."

"You don't get it. I told her to leave. I basically threw her out of my house."

I blinked in surprise. "But you didn't mean it, right? Surely you wouldn't have…."

"But I did, and now she hates me."

"Then go make it up to her."

"But how? How can I even face her again?"

"All you need is a good excuse."

"But what can I…." he trailed off, looking at the coffee table situated in front of an old gray couch. I wondered what he could possibly be looking at. The only thing on the table was a worn paperback book. But Sano seemed to have brightened visibly at the sight of it. I frowned in confusion and opened my mouth to ask about it, but Sano beat me to it.

"I guess I need to return her book."

Kenshin's POV

I watched as Aoshi sat, unmoving, by Misao's futon. She was talking nonstop to him, and I wondered how he could stand it.

I also wondered how the Hell the little weasel could be so perky after she had just been poisoned. I wouldn't have been; that was for sure.

I sighed, getting up off the floor for the first time since Kaoru had knocked me down on it. I walked over to the staircase; it had been quiet for a while now and, frankly, I was worried.

After all, I knew first hand how brutal Kaoru could be when provoked.

What, you thought I could last a week without invoking her wrath for some reason or other? How foolish of you. If you could last that long, I would be amazed.

Anyway, I peeked around the corner, hoping not to be noticed in case Kaoru's rage had not yet subsided. Instead, she was kneeling next to a half depressed, half hopeful looking Sano. I smiled, realizing Kaoru was helping Sano with whatever had happened between him and Megumi.

I glanced around the room, looking for everyone else. The Seta twins and Chou were nowhere to be found, however.

That meant I was alone. How nice.

I knew I should have stayed home tonight.

A/N: CHAPTER FIVE IS FINALLY OUT! WOOT WOOT! Sorry it took so long, but, like I said, this story has been hard for me to write lately. Anyway, please review! (And yes, even though I haven't replied to most reviews, I still read all of them. They give me warm fuzzy feelings.)