So... Hi there! I know it's been, well, exactly one year since my last update to this story. But here it is! You can thank kokoronagomu for inspiring me to get back on top of it.

Disclaimer: I own two cats, but no anime characters...

Dinner had gone by nearly in silence. Kaoru had thanked Kenshin for preparing her meal, and he had nodded his head to her. The look on his face had made her uneasy. Not even an empty smile. Kenshin was clearly devastated. Inuyasha had not joined them, despite Kaoru practically insisting at his door.

"Not now, wench. I'm not hungry. Leave me alone. Just eat with Shinta."

Her heart was heavy as she ate the absent-mindedly prepared rice and vegetables. It almost tasted as bad as her cooking. Almost. Kenshin had poked at his, but she was unsure if he actually took even one bite. Could she really blame him? She tried to search his eyes for what he could possibly be thinking, but he resolutely kept his head down, his bangs shadowing his face the whole time. When he stood and reached to clear her plate, for she too had been picking for about fifteen minutes, she laid her hand on his arm.

"Kenshin?" Her voice was soft and full of worry. He stayed behind his curtain of hair and gently pulled his arm and the dish away.

"You should get some sleep Kaoru-dono, that you should." And he left her there at the table. She wanted to cry, but wasn't sure why. Was she sorry for him? After all, he had worked so hard to prove to himself that he wasn't a demon, though thousands had called him one, only to be proven wrong in every sense of the word. He wasn't like a demon. He actually was one. Was she angry at Inuyasha for coming into their home where he had finally achieved peace, only to shatter it once again? Or maybe she was angry at Kenshin himself. Did he think himself unworthy of her? Of her home? Of her love? Did he think she would toss him out for what he was after letting him stay so long knowing he was the Hitokiri Battousai? Maybe it wasn't any of that. Or maybe all of it. She couldn't cry for those reasons. Then something hit her, and her chest was so heavy that she had to lay a hand upon it. What if he left again? What if whatever it was that Inuyasha wanted took him away from her? What if it was for good? But she couldn't cry for that either. That particular fear had been all cried out. No. She would do something about it. If he were to leave...

"Then I'll go to!" She pounded her fist on the table to prove to herself that she was serious. But first things first. She had to figure out what exactly it was Inuyasha wanted.

Inuyasha had heard the thud from their dining room, and the hurried footsteps moving toward the room they had given him. He was not surprised when he saw Kaoru march right up to the door and bang on it.

"Inuyasha! Wake up! I need to talk to you." Her hands were on her hips, and her right foot was tapping impatiently. He snorted. She looked a lot like Kagome did when she was mad at him. All business.

"Oi, wench," he called. She whirred around in surprise to find him lounging in a branch of the tree just behind her, eyes closed.

"Well? What do you want?"

"To talk to you."

"Yeah, I kinda figured, what with whole, 'Inuyasha! Wake up! I need to talk to you.' thing." He had imitated her voice, and she thought it sounded a bit like a whiny Misao. She did her best not to become too angry.

"Will you come down here?" He opened one amber eye at her.

"Please," she tried. He swung his feet lithely over the bough and landed just in front of her. She stepped back a bit and then turned and sat on the porch, hoping he hadn't noticed. He had, but a small smirk was all he showed of it. He sat cross-legged next to her.

"Tell me the truth."

"About what, woman?"

"About everything."

Kenshin woke before dawn. He was tired. His mind had covered lots of ground that evening, though it really hadn't gotten him much of anywhere. He had decided that Inuyasha and the incidents of the previous day were real and not hallucinations, which was a big step in itself. Also that the white haired man had to be telling the truth, and he was, in fact, half demon. A hanyou. That was an even bigger step. He dressed quickly and tried not to let it scare him too much. At least Inuyasha was there. He was a hanyou too. He could help him come to terms with himself. And then Inuyasha would leave, and God willing Kaoru wouldn't want him gone, and they could go back to the way things were. He would be happy again. As long as she was around and they had their quiet lives in the dojo, things would be just fine. He stepped confidently out the door after sliding his sakabatou in place on his hip. Today he would figure everything out and then go back to normal. After all, if he had always been a hanyou, knowing about it shouldn't change too much. He quickly turned the corner of the building and was surprised to find Inuyasha and Kaoru sitting on the porch with a small lantern and a pot of tea between them. From the looks of the low candle and the tiredness on Kaoru's face they had been there all night.

"Kaoru-dono?" he said cautiously. Her face brightened when she realized he was there.

"Kenshin! Come sit with us. Inuyasha and I were just talking." He walked over and sat between them, behind the candle and teapot.

"I've been hearing a lot about you, Shinta."

"Is that so?" Inuyasha grinned and slapped him on the back, causing the slight man to lurch forward a bit.

"Your father will be proud of ya, brat." He looked up at the white haired man's beaming face.

"He will be? Wait. He's alive?" Kaoru reached out and grabbed his hand.

"He is, Kenshin. And we have been waiting for you to wake up. We have to go. We have to help him!"

"Calm down, wench. You're a human. You have to sleep before we can go. If we left now, you'd probably just pass out before got through the fucking town."

"Inuyasha, do not call Kaoru-dono wench. And where are we going? My father needs my help?"

"We're going into the mountains to the south of here, to save your father. He's been held captive for 27 years. He told me to take care of you, and then to come for him. And then you got yourself fucking lost, and I had to track you down..." He tapered off scratching the back of his head.

"27 years? Are you sure he is still alive?" Inuyasha gave a firm nod.

"Fucking positive."

"Well this is quite... unexpected, that it is."

A/N: Send me a quick review so I stay inspired...