Author's Notes: A big thanks to the readers who reviews, they were appreciated! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and of course, I would love some feed-back.

Disclaimer: Jeez, in all my rush last chapter, I forgot to mention this. Well, I do not own the original plot and characters of Rurouni Kenshin, but all outside characters and the plot of this fic are mine.

chap. 2 -fox eyes

"Yup, that's me," Sanosuke smiled tiredly, "Are you alright, Megumi?"

Megumi was shaking all over, and couldn't stop shuddering as tears welled up in her eyes. So long I've waited...and now he's here standing in front of me, and I can't say a thing.

"Whoa, whoa," Sano stepped forward instinctively at Megumi's tears, but stopped short as he was about to put his hands on her shoulders. He hovered uncomfortably above her, and added in a gentle whisper, "Listen, you can rest up at our camp for as long as you need."

The words "our camp" made Megumi's ears prick up curiously, but she nodded slowly as Sano led the way, his footsteps echoing eerily in her mind.

They traveled into the room that Megumi had come from not minutes ago, and she gasped at the scene that lay before her. Although the place had been in shambles in the first place, nothing could describe the mess and whirlwind that had torn through the building. Chairs lay broken and tabletops turned and shattered to pieces. Men lay next to the broken furniture, just as broken. Blood flowed alongst side the alcohol, mixing and intermingling, seeping into the cracks of the wood-boarded floor.

Megumi stood in astonishment, and Sano turned around, looking from her to the room.

"I'll explain when we get to the camp," he said.

Adding to the turn of surprises, Sanosuke went outside of the building to greet a group of men, all dressed in similar uniforms. In fact, she noted, they were all dressed like the man that had attempted to rape her. She shuddered at that thought, but stayed by Sano's side as Sano nodded them off. With nothing else but that wordless sign, they hoisted themselves onto horses and rode away to some place unknown to Megumi.

Soon, Sano and Megumi were the only ones left.

"You can ride the horse," Sano said simply.

Megumi turned in puzzlement.

"The saddle can only fit one rider, and to try to add another person wouldn't be safe. I'll just walk next to the horse."

She nodded as Sano gently helped her onto the horse. She sat with both her legs on one side, and she held onto the reigns for dear life.

The trip was taken in silence. Deep contemplating silence that stung the air and held heavy in breath. Megumi was relieved that they reached the camp in minutes time, and she gingerly lowered herself from the horse.

Taking in her surroundings, she noted heavy, cream-colored canvas tents in neat rows and columns. Fires could be seen every few feet, flinging flames, smoke, and ashes. Shadows of men and horses mingled into one, and then, she suddenly noticed, she was at the center of it all. The largest tent lay before her, and she stepped forward as Sanosuke beckoned her into it.

The flaps closed with a "thump" behind her, and her eyes widened. The inside of the tent was neat, a futon folded at the center. Clothes lay simple on the floor, where a soft, white cloth had been placed to keep out the dirt.

"This would be my tent," Sano grinned. He walked into the back and took out two cushions. He tossed one to Megumi, who fumbled as she messily caught it.

He lowered himself onto the cushion he kept and motioned for her to do the same, "Sit."

Hesitantly, she stepped forward and lowered herself onto the soft, silk-lined cushion.

Awingly, she was still taking in everything. Although not luxurious, the life Sano seemed to be living was full of simple pleasures, and Megumi felt a million questions creeping into her mind, just waiting to be let out. Millions of questions that could have burst out of her mouth, but at the last minute, jumbled,

"What..."

Sano smiled tiredly, "You're looking at the Captain of the forth Squadron."

"You...joined the military?" Megumi asked in a whispered surprise.

"Hehe," Sano coughed, "Naw, that's made up bull. I didn't join the military. Wouldn't dream of becoming one of their lap-dogs. 'Stead, I formed my own army. We don't really have a name, but since everyone's noticed I carry the Chinese character for 'bad' on my back, that's kind of become our...umm, motto-sorta-thing, I guess. In case you didn't notice yet, all the men wear a headband with the Aku symbol."

Megumi's eyes suddenly went avert, "No...I noticed...that man...he had the symbol on his headband."

Sano's eyes hardened, and his words went straight to the point, "Listen, Hiroshi was a bastard. A son of a bitch who always fooled around. All he concerned himself with was money and bribing higher-ups just so he could become promoted. I'm sorry that he almost raped you. As his Captain I apologize on his behalf. I also want to let you know he's not setting a foot into this camp ever again, or coming ten feet near any member of this army, or I'll be damned. I also want to let you know that you shouldn't judge us. Not all of us are like ­­­­­­­­­Hiroshi...in fact, none of us are. We fight for what we think is right, and that's good enough for us." Sano finished his long, winding speech in one breath, and his eyes were burning with a flame that never went out, an almost angry look that almost scared Megumi.

Megumi nodded shakily; she hadn't realized how much Sanosuke had changed not in a bad way, no. He just seemed...different in her eyes.

Or maybe she was different. Maybe it was she who had changed.

Megumi gulped, "So...er, what exactly do you fight for? What do you believe is right?"

Sano snorted, "Pheh, what else? The Opium War's been going on for awhile now, and China's army didn't interest me. There was too much politics and crap I didn't want to involve myself with. So, I formed my own army. We make raids that shut down all major opium trading bases. I've got spies that collect information, fighters, swordsmen...you name it. Unfortunately...or fortunately, I guess...our name's been growing, and our raids have become less and less surprising. But we won't stop until opium is completely wiped from China."

Megumi laughed nervously.

"That's why we were in that building today. We were tipped, and decided to check it out. It's a well-known inn, and I don't think I would've suspected it to be an opium hangout. Heh, what do I know? Turns out that place was one of the biggest opium dens in China," Sano huffed, and crossed his arms, closing his eyes, and leaning backwards. He suddenly opened one eye at Megumi,

"So what I wanna know...is what you were doing in that building? I mean, I know it was an inn and all, but what are you doing all the way here in Canton? Why are you in China, period? What happened to Kenshin and the others?"

Sano had so many questions to ask, but restrained himself as he stopped at his fourth question. He opened both eyes, and stared expectantly at Megumi, expecting an answer from her.

Megumi bit her lips, her eyes muddled with confused colors. Her voice came in a soft hushed whisper, as if afraid to hear her own answer,

"I don't know much. But after I learned you left..." Megumi's voice broke as she heard those words leave her mouth; she swallowed hard as she forced herself to continue, "I...I went after you. Ken-san mentioned that you might be in China, so I dropped everything, my dreams, my ambitions...to search for you."

When spoken out loud, the words seemed foolish.

Sano stared back at her with an unreadable expression. Megumi stared back; as far as she could tell, Sano was acting like nothing had happened. As if they were simply friends who had been separated after a few years. But it had been more than a few years, and they had been much more than friends. Had been...Megumi thought. The rooster-head wasn't making a big deal out of this at all. In her mind, in her dreams, she would always imagine finding Sano, and she would run into his arms, and he would wrap himself around her, whispering words of comfort, sorry, and apologies...of regrets and loneliness.

But never had she imagined it to be like this.

Sanosuke stared expectantly at her, waiting for her to continue.

She gave in, and spoke in a raspy, broken voice,

"I know Kenji, Kenshin and Kaoru's son, he's doing fine. I don't know the details, but I heard Kenshin is rarely home. He wanders about as a rurouni, but Kaoru made him promise to always return home. He told Kaoru he had something to accomplish. Kenji hates him for that..."

"And you? How'd you hold up in China?" Sano asked suddenly.

"I...I...well, it was hard, Sano," Megumi paused; his name sounded so foreign on her tongue, "But..money became an issue after awhile. I spent years on the streets, wandering, attempting to find a place that would hire a doctor. But, the British came with their opium through the Silk Road, opium began to spread, and the Opium War set in. During these times, there was little use for a doctor...but more of a demand for opium dealers.

"It was easy to obtain any flat, tasteless opium from anywhere. People didn't want that. The people of China began to experiment, and craved the opium laced with other drugs. And only a skilled pharmacist could conjure up what people were looking for. It pays well too..."

Sano's eyes began to widen with realization as he listened to the words that left Megumi's lips; he did not want to let himself believe it. His voice came, shaken with anger and disappointment, with surprise and shock, with emotions that began to tear at him,

"You...You became an opium dealer!"

Megumi's lips began to quiver, as her voice cracked, "I...I didn't want to...but I was so desperate...so desperate to find you, to live...just so I could see you again."

"Wait," the Captain's voice came in a succinct tone, "You...You're Fox Eyes...!"

Tears began to well in Megumi's eyes, laying delicately on her lashes. The salty drops began to cascade as she nodded to the familiar name she had been given over the years of dealing opium.

Sanosuke suddenly stood up, a monotonous expression pasted on his face. His voice came in an even tone as he stared directly into Megumi's eyes,

"What you've been doing all these years...goes against everything I've worked hard for. Against everything Kenshin's been preaching. In my world, it goes against reality."

Figures blurred before her as she heard his clearly spoken words,

"Get out, Megumi. And I never want to see you again."