a/n: it's a little longer this time with a little k/k interaction... just a little tho! and a couple battle scenes, even tho they aren't really... well, I was made to write romance, not battle, let's just say that...

Disclaimer: We've been thru this. Kenshin's not my body slave. He doesn't live in my bed. And no, I do not handcuff him to my bed and do deliciously wicked things to him all night long.

Exchange
Chapter 7: Surprise

Kaoru was drowsy. Her eyelids felt heavy and she found them falling despite her efforts to keep them open. Her head was wedged in the corner of the couch, resting on a soft pillow while her body was reclined onto the rest of the couch comfortable. She really didn't want to move…

She was asleep by the time the door opened and shut softly. He took in her sprawled out form with mild surprise before his eyes softened visibly with some unnamed emotion. He moved closer and pushed her bangs out of her eyes carefully. Her eyes snapped open and she grabbed his wrist. Looking into his shocked amber eyes, she loosened her grip and released him and shut her eyes peacefully since she could read no threat in his deep amber eyes.

The shock never left his eyes as she stayed still, content not to move. He pulled his hand away to trace his index finger down the smooth contours of her face. A shy blush rose to her cheeks as he sat next to her as she laid out. He smiled softly and brushed his thumb across her cheek before retreating and leaving her to herself.

As he disappeared towards his room, she brought a hand to her cheek. His touch had been so light and caring… It was so different than what she'd been expecting. Her own reactions had not been what she expected. She had expected to feel repulsion at his touch, but instead she found herself thinking that it was… rather… nice… Shaking her head, she pushed the thought away. She hated him.

It was so confusing.

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Kenshin glared at his door, forcing himself to stay put. He desperately wanted to go back and see if she would respond if he were to be… bolder. She'd probably smack him and call him all kinds of names. Somehow he found it in him to stay exactly where he was.

While she hadn't exactly pushed away his advances, there was something in her body language that told him she wasn't exactly comfortable either. There was uncertainty lingering in her ki. He heard her move towards her cage and deemed it safe to return the living room.

"You… you're annoying, you know that?" she said matter of factly.

He rose an eyebrow in surprise and chose not to respond. She growled inaudibly at that.

"Fine, be that way," she sniffed, doing her best to sound hurt.

"What…" he started, utterly bewildered before shaking his head. "You're the annoying one!"

"Now really, that's not nice," she pointed out.

"I don't recall saying that I would be nice to you," he retorted.

She pouted prettily and laid back on her bed. She muttered something too soft for him to hear but he doubted that it was anything nice.

"Kenshin?" she asked after a moment.

"What?"

"Why are you always angry?"

Her quiet question caught him by surprise, although he was careful not to show it. He covered it up easily with a scowl.

"I don't see how that's any of your business."

She blew her bangs out of her eyes. "Sorry I asked, then…"

He let the subject drop as the phone rang. He moved towards it with feline grace and she couldn't help but notice just how fluid his motions were. She wondered what it would be like to face him in the heat of battle.

"Yes?" He practically ripped the phone off it's cradle.

With a long, drawn out sigh, he held the phone out to her. "Shishou would like to talk to you."

Smiling secretly, she demonstrated her own grace as she moved in his direction to take the phone from his hand. She softly thanked him and put the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Kaoru. Kenshin's going out on a mission tonight and I'm going to need you to go with him."

"Why?"

"It's not a normal night. Enishi has been restless and sent some low class demons hunting for information. I need them eliminated," he explained shortly.

"And I take it that's where I come in?"

"Yes. Do it quickly. He will have his own target. Complete your mission."

"I really hate this whole…" she paused, trying to find the words. "Your authority bugs me."

He laughed at that. "When your up here, everything is different. Including the ruler."

"Hiko that does mean you can blatantly-"

"I understand, Kaoru. Relax. Think of this as a favor."

"Another one?"

"Sure."

"I have a better idea. I'll do this for you if you give me information," she said slyly.

"About what?" he asked cautiously.

"I want to know what happened, Hiko. I want the whole story." She snuck a glance towards Kenshin, realizing that he was listening to the whole conversation.

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me…"

"Hiko," she pressed.

"All right, all right. Just do what you're supposed to. Then we'll arrange a meeting or something…"

"Thank you," she said before hanging up without so much as a good-bye.

"Well?" Kenshin asked immediately after the phone hit the cradle with something like impatience creeping into his tone.

"I am to accompany you on your mission tonight with a side mission of my own," she answered.

"And?"

"And what?"

"What is it that Hiko is doing for you in exchange?" he demanded.

She bristled. "I asked him sometime ago to keep tabs on what was happening with my people. He had mentioned something about a troublemaker and I would simply like to know exactly what had happened."

He nodded, accepting her answer while searching her eyes. They held many mysteries, but if she was lying, she hid it far better than anyone he'd ever met.

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She could smell the stench of the undead miles before they hit their destination.

Kaoru was sitting in the passenger seat with her arms crossed. Her fingers itched to grip her guns to blow Enishi's puppets out of this world. She'd made some minor vanquishing modifications on them when she'd been informed of the mission and Kenshin hadn't said anything about it. She assumed that he had understood.

While Enishi hadn't disobeyed a direct order, he'd definitely gone against her beliefs. Demons were not to seek revenge upon humans due to the consequences it often led to. She remembered countless attempts for vengeance that had ended in needless bloodshed across her underworld. Shaking her head, she tried to concentrate on what she was going to do.

Send Enishi a message. A personal message.

She would carve a message he would never forget into his undead puppets.

Kenshin could tell she was angry. Her face held no traces of anger or sadness, but her ki deceived her. Something had made her lose the careful control she had over her emotions and ki. Her arms were crossed over her breasts and her body was tight. He didn't think he'd ever seen her this angry in the time he'd spent with her.

"Let me out here," she said quietly.

He quirked a brow. "Why?"

"They are here," she whispered, finally letting her fingers wrap around the handle of her guns.

He opened his mouth to ask her who when she rolled her window down and unbuckled her seatbelt. She jumped out the window, landing on the side of the road neatly. The brakes screeched to a halt.

"Just what the hell are you doing!" A gunshot went off and he instinctively ducked.

They were everywhere, she noted dully as she shot her weapons off in every which direction. Her leadership held no power over the undead, so it would be meaningless in her current situation. Kenshin was yelling something from the car and she cursed slightly. He should've kept going. The undead were getting restless and she really didn't want him around when she chose the lucky victim to deliver her message.

"Kenshin," she screamed. "Get out of here!"

"But-"

"Go before I shoot your sorry ass!" she shot back angrily. To emphasize her threat, she shot and killed an undead lurking behind him.

Swearing he slid into his car smoothly before anymore creatures could sneak up on him.

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Kaoru found herself having a hell of a time finding an undead that wasn't too small to carve messages into. They were like shadows. They moved with grace, granted it was a clumsy grace, but it was grace none the less. If she wasn't careful they'd manipulate the darkness around them to get closer. Her guns were going off in rapid succession before she got sick of constantly pulling the trigger and simply pulled out a katana.

In a matter of minutes, the thickets of undead were already clearing. She frowned slightly as she sung her sword through hordes of shadows time and time again. Why hadn't she tried this first? Because guns are effective, her mind supplied helpfully. With a slight snort she spotted the one she wanted. It looked mutated, but it was definitely bigger than the rest.

It was perfect.

She was behind it before it even knew she was there. She pinned it to the ground easily with a dagger through the back of it's shoulder, smirking. It wouldn't be going anywhere for a while. She could finish off the remaining undead without having to worry too much about it. It didn't take long to clear the area completely.

With that little problem out of the way, she crossed the field that was her battleground towards the lone undead. She gave it a happy little smile.

"You wanna do me a favor that'll ensure you live?"

It's bright yellow eyes widened and it nodded eagerly.

"Good. Bring a message to Enishi."

She withdrew a kunai and carefully scripted her note. The undead was writhing and yelping, making it terribly difficult to write straight. She hissed and finished up quickly. With the signing of her name and symbol, she tucked the kunai away once more. She took a moment to admire her handiwork before making conversation again.

"Take that to Enishi. Or I will hunt you down and make sure you die a torturously painful death," she promised sweetly. "Good-bye."

She pulled the dagger free and it scampered a few steps before disappearing into the night.

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Kenshin was having his own issues. The target had known. He didn't know how he knew, but the son of a bitch knew exactly who he was. He twisted in midair to avoid taking a bullet in the back. With a fierce cry he came down with an angry attack. Ryutsuisen. The soldier never saw it coming. While he wasn't exactly thrilled that his appearance had been prepared for, he wasn't exactly unhappy either. The soldiers were scattering like mice in the face of a hungry cat.

A wicked smile formed on his lips. Maybe this would be worth his time. Lately, he always had the urge to kill something to vent his frustration. His sword was slashing through men almost without thought as his mind was elsewhere.

"Battousai," a voice whispered.

His head whipped up to meet a pair of steel teal eyes. "And you are?"

"Merely an observer," he murmured, a smirk playing on his handsome features.

Kenshin's eyes narrowed. "Do you have a name?"

"None for now. Eventually, you will know me. And you will never forget me." And then he was gone.

He blinked in mild confusion. Unless he was very much mistaken, he'd just been talking with a demon. Deciding he could deal with it later, he continued through the room, coming ever closer to the politician. By now, most of the men had fled the scene and only a few remained at their posts, ever obeying their master.

"You," Kenshin said quietly to the fat man sitting in a leather chair shaking, "are a dead man."

He whimpered; the last sound that would ever leave his throat.

a/n: Like you don't know who the demon was... Anyhoo, don't forget to review!