D/C: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin, a Mercedes… (sigh).

Hiya, people! I'm back! Thank you for the nice reviews! You've made me touch 61! Ehm, anyway, sorry it's been a long while since I last updated, but my computer's just only been fixed, and I had a hell lot of exams, so…

Ah, well, anyway, enjoy!

Chapter 3: Taking Over

'Goodbye, Kenji! Have fun!'

Battousai stared as Kaoru left Kenji alone in the doorway of the two-story building, and headed back to the car. She climbed inside behind the stirring wheel and gripped it with both hands. She smiled as she looked at him.

'Should I take you to the garage to get your car?' she asked him.

Battousai opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He couldn't care less about the little brat, but how could Kaoru, his own mother, leave him alone like that? Was she insane?

'You're just going to leave Kenji here?' he demanded, incredulously.

Kaoru stared at him for a moment, and then she burst out laughing. 'You know, Kenshin, I almost believed you were being serious!' she wheezed.

Battousai frowned at her. 'But I was being serious!' he replied, indignantly.

Kaoru continued to laugh. 'Kenshin, honey, this is the nurseryschool where Kenji goes, remember?' she said, playing along with him.

Nursery school? 'Right,' he murmured.

'You can be really funny sometimes, Kenshin,' Kaoru said, shaking her head.

'Thank you…I guess,' he replied.

'So…to the garage then? I still have time,' she told him.

'Yeah, okay,' he agreed, since he was in no hurry to go to Kenshin's work; a job which involved something called a computer…and as far as he was concerned, he absolutely had no idea what that was.

-

This is mine? My car?

Battousai stared in awe at the black Mercedes before him. He didn't know anything about cars, but he knew that this sleek black one was a real beauty. Slowly, almost cautiously, he ran his hand on its shiny exterior, enjoying the feel of the cool metal beneath his skin…and it was all his.

'Kenshin, I know how attached you are to your car, but…' she said, and her voice trailed off as she glanced uneasily at the mechanic standing next to them.

'Oh, sorry,' he murmured, stepping back from the car. He looked at the guy. 'And it's fine now, you say? All problems fixed?'

'All problems,' the guy assured him. 'This baby's as good as new…and since you've paid in advance, I won't hold it back from you…go on.' He tossed him the keys, which to Battousai, looked nothing like a key; a black object with a green, a black and a red button on it.

Battousai caught the key. Baby? Why the hell is he referring to the car as a baby? Wasn't that a human-related term? 'Thanks,' he murmured, looking oddly at man. He then turned towards the car, and raised the key. Intuition told him to press the green button and he did. The car honked loudly and the lights blinked. 'What the…?'

He almost jumped backwards, if it weren't for the fact that Kaoru was standing right behind him. 'Go on, get in,' she told him. 'I know you're anxious to see if it's working okay, you drove me crazy taking about it for the last two days!'

'Right,' he murmured. Clueless of what he was doing, he opened the door to the driver's seat and climbed inside. Remembering what Kaoru did, he reached forward to place the key in its place. He pressed the black button and a key sprang out. Feeling somewhat relieved, he turned the key around in its place, and the car's engine sprang to life. The car vibrated beneath him, and Battousai felt glad that he had accomplished to get the car started. 'Now, to figure out how to use it…' he murmured.

Kaoru poked her head in through the open window. 'It's working, then?' she asked him, and he nodded. 'Good. Well, then…I'll get going now or I'll be late for work.'

'What…?' he started.

But she cut him off with a quick kiss on the lips. 'Don't be late for lunch, okay?' she said softly, before stepping away from the car. 'Bye!'

Battousai watched her retreating back for a moment, before he finally scrambled out of the car. He couldn't help the words which escaped his lips. 'Wait! You're leaving?' he blurted out. The mechanic shot him a very weird look.

Kaoru turned around, and looked at him with raised eyebrows. 'Um…yeah, I just told you that I have to go to work,' she said. She paused a bit. 'Kenshin, are you okay?'

Battousai felt himself go slightly red in the face. What was wrong with him? Had he become dependant on this woman now? 'Um, yeah…I'm fine,' he assured her. 'Sorry…you go ahead and go to your work.'

'Okay…' Kaoru murmured, still looking puzzled. 'I'll see you at lunch, then.'

Battousai watched her as she climbed behind the wheel of her car. She waved at him as she left. He watched her car go with a bit of a sinking feeling in the pits of his stomach. Now, he sat at complete loss of what to do next. He had been used to having Kaoru by his side, although it was only one day, and without her, he didn't know what he was supposed to do. He didn't like to think that he'd become dependant on Kaoru so soon, but he did need her to help him around. He knew zilch about this place, and it was going to be tough adjusting without her around.

'Hey, mister, I don't mean to be pushy, but…' the mechanic said suddenly, and Battousai whirled around; he had forgotten all about the guy. '…are you planning to leave any time today?'

Battousai scowled at him. If he had his sword with him, he would've gutted the man right away…but he couldn't. One; he didn't have his sword and two; he didn't feel like this was an era where murder would be treated lightly, so he just gave his back to the man and turned to the car. He returned to his seat and placed his hands on the stirring wheel, and when he did, everything came to him. He felt like he knew how to drive this car, even though he had never driven any car before in his life. He pressed down on the pedal, revved the engine, and pulled out of the garage.

He grinned despite himself; he had actually managed to get this thing to move! He pulled out onto the road and started driving the car, and found that he really was good at driving the car. He wasn't finding any difficulty in driving; every instruction, every move came to him from Kenshin's memory. He was in control of the car now, and it felt good to be in control…just like the old times. Just like when everybody used to fear him and he was in control.

He had no trouble getting to the marketing company where Kenshin worked. He only had to drive the car and it led him automatically to the company…that was another advantage of being on occupant on the mind as well as the body.

He pulled into the parking lot and parked the car smoothly. He stepped out of the car and looked up at the company building. It was more or less like their apartment building, except that it was shorter and wider. Battousai thought it was pretty neat. At least the guy had a definite working place…he, on the other hand, didn't use to know where he would be working the next day. But marketing? What was that? Somehow, he had the feeling it had nothing to do with swords.

-

'Good morning, Mr. Himura'

'Hello, Mr. Himura…nice day, isn't it?'

'Hey, Himura! Looking good today!'

Battousai could only nod. He was surprised to find that all the people here knew him. He was used to being famous, but he didn't expect Kenshin to be well-known; the guy seemed like such a normal, average person.

'Mr. Himura!'

Battousai stared at the woman who was rushing forward towards him, and now stood before him, a folder held tightly against her chest. Her blond hair was pulled back in a tight bun, and she peered at him from behind half-moon spectacles.

'Er…good morning,' he said, when she made no attempt to talk and just continued to look at him.

'Good morning, Mr. Himura!' she said loudly. Battousai almost jumped, and several on-lookers smirked and giggled. 'Mr. Thompson and Mr. Jennings already called, and Mr. Kinnawachi wants to meet you today. You have a meeting with Mr. MacClarkson who wants to discuss that new toothpaste commercial you had suggested, and…'

'Whoa, hold it!' he interrupted her. She frowned at him. 'Who are you?'

Wasn't it enough that he had to get into that elevator again to get to the floor where Kenshin worked, and now a crazed woman was talking to him with the speed of a mile per hour about meetings with people he had never heard of, and about some toothpaste? He didn't deserve all that!

The woman continued to frown. 'I'm sorry, where you cracking a joke?' she asked.

'I…' he started, but he was cut off by her laughter. He stared at her as she doubled over, laughing. 'Er…'

She straightened up, and as suddenly as she had started laughing, she stopped. 'Alright, sir…I'll play along,' she said, smiling. 'I'm Elizabeth Anderson, your secretary…at your service.'

'Oh,' he said. He raked his mind for the name. He found it. 'Well, Liz…I'll be in my office…and I'll take those files. If you need something important, come see me there.'

He took the files from her arms and hurried away to the door at the end of the corridor. The profile in his head told him: Elizabeth Anderson, secretary, upon spotting her, immediately go in the other direction. Best avoid at all times…and Battousai had a pretty good idea why.

He opened the door, went in and shut the door after him. Then, he had a pretty good look on what Kenshin's office looked like. It was really spacious. Greenery and paintings were scattered everywhere. The wall across from him was glass, and he could see the whole town beneath him, and before it was his desk and a couple of black leather couches. Simple and neat. He liked it. Kenshin seemed to be more and more like him by the hour.

But the question was; what was he supposed to be doing here?

He walked up to the desk and sat down on the chair before it. On the desk rested something which looked a lot like the TV Kenji had been watching the other day, except that this one was smaller, and there was this board which had a lot of buttons on it lying before it.

A monitor and a keyboard…computer devices.

However, knowing their names didn't help, because he still didn't know what he was supposed to do with them. What was marketing, anyway?

Advertising for products and items.

Battousai didn't bother trying to understand what that meant, because it really seemed boring just by the sound of it, not at all like his job. He leaned back in his chair, his arms behind his head. He needed something exciting. It was no fun living like a normal, average civilian.

He turned around the chair so he'd face the window. He looked at the city before him, at the tall buildings and the people swarming the streets below him. He wondered what kind of entertainment this place held.

I wonder…

-

'Mr. Himura?'

Elizabeth frowned. Where was he? She had been knocking on the door since ages, and he wasn't answering her. Panicked, she wondered if something might have happened to her boss. She grabbed the handle and pushed the door open.

'Mr. Himura!' she cried, and stopped.

The room was completely empty. Everything was in its place, but her boss was missing. She frowned. Had he already left? But how? She didn't see him leave! She couldn't have missed him…could she?

-

Battousai chuckled despite himself as he stirred his car through the streets. He wondered how that secretary of his would react when she realizes that he had already left the office. Well, she couldn't blame him. There was no way in hell he was going to sit at that office and do that boring marketing stuff Kenshin did. Two hours were definitely enough!

He could feel the later prowling angrily inside him, trying to get out…and that made him smile even more.

He looked out the window at all the shops which lined the sidewalk. Department stores. Clothes Boutiques. Electronics shops. Restaurants and bakeries. …pubs.

Now that was something he recognized. Feeling gleeful, he quickly pulled up into the empty space which was right outside the pub. He didn't know how lucky he was to find an empty space in such a busy city.

He stepped out of the car, locked it and walked up to the pub, his hands deep inside his pockets. He pushed the door open and stepped inside. For a moment, he stood there by the door, wondering if he had really walked into a pub…because this looked nothing like the pubs they had back when he was still alive. It was only the smell of liquor that told him that yes; he was in the correct place.

He walked up to the bar, and pulled himself up on one of the stools before it. He drummed his fingers on the polished wooden service as he surveyed the place. He vaguely wondered about what kind of drinks this place offered? Did they have Sake?

'Hi,' Battousai looked up and saw a guy; probably the bartender, standing before him. 'And what should I get you today?'

'What do you have?' Battousai asked.

The bartender looked doubtfully at him for a moment. 'Ah, well, we have brandy, sherry, vermouth, schnapps, crème de menthe, champagne, of course…' he said, counting them off his fingers.

'Do you have something strong?' Battousai interrupted him. He decided to be more specific, since he didn't know any of the drinks the man was mentioning.

'There's Vodka,' the man suggested.

'Don't you have Sake?' Battousai asked.

'Oh, the rice wine, you mean?' the man asked. 'You actually like that stuff?'

'Comes from being Japanese, I suppose,' Battousai muttered.

The man stared at him. 'You? Japanese?' he demanded. 'No way! I mean, you've got red hair! You don't see many Japanese people like that!'

'You got a problem with it?' Battousai asked, his eyes narrowed. What was wrong with this guy? He is starting to get on my nerves!

'No, mate, I don't,' the bartender replied, raising his hands in a surrender gesture. 'Chill.'

Chill? 'So…do you have it or not?' Battousai asked.

'Yeah, I do,' the bartender replied, nodding his head. 'One Sake bottle coming right up!'

While the bartender went to fetch him his drink, Battousai took the opportunity to have a look around. It certainly was nothing like the pubs they once had. The place was dimly lit, and tables and comfortable-looking chairs were scattered all over the place. There was also the sound of soft music playing in the background. It wasn't bad. In fact, it was really good; another reason why he'd never ever let Kenshin surface again. He wasn't just going to throw all this away.

'Hi,'

Battousai looked around and saw a pretty brunette sitting next to him. She was leaning across the table so as to let him get a good view of her plunging neck-line. And she obviously looked drunk. Battousai smirked; things just can't get better.

'Hi,' he replied.

'I couldn't help noticing you from my place…' she murmured. 'That red hair of yours…it makes you look so hot.'

'Why, thanks,' he replied.

She giggled. 'You're so polite…I like that,' she said softly.

'And you're beautiful, I like that, too,' he told her, his eyes glinting maliciously.

The girl smiled. 'Buy me a drink, why don't you?' she whispered.

'Sure,' he replied. 'What do you want?'

'I'll have what you're having,' she said.

'Sake?' Battousai questioned her.

'Er…what?' she said, confused.

'I'm having Sake,' he explained.

'Um…what's that?' she asked, sounding puzzled.

'It's Japanese rice wine,' he told her. 'It's really good.'

'Hmmm, really?' she said, unenthusiastically. 'Thanks, but I think I'll have a sherry.'

'Whatever you say,' he agreed.

He summoned the bartender, and ordered the sherry for the girl. The bartender slipped him the Sake before leaving. Battousai was about to reach for the bottle and the cup, when the girl leaned her whole body against him and reached for the bottle. She tilted her face up towards him.

'I wanna try it,' she purred.

'Be my guest,' he agreed. He took the bottle out of her hand and poured her some in the cup. 'Here you go.'

'Thanks,' she said, accepting the cup from him. She raised it to her lips. 'Cheers.'

She took a sip out of the cup and shuddered. Battousai smirked at her. 'Sake's to strong,' he told her. 'I don't think a pretty little thing like you can handle it.'

She pouted and frowned at him. 'Are you saying that I'm weak?' she demanded.

'Ah, no, I'm not,' he replied, smiling. 'I apologize if I offended you.'

The bartender returned with the glass of sherry. 'The total's 20 dollars, please,' he said, and smiled. 'And we don't accept Yens, so careful.'

Battousai scowled at him. Did he honestly think he was being amusing? However, he reached inside his pocket and pulled out his wallet, and pulled 20 dollars out of it and slammed them on the bar. He had gotten hold of this western money during the two hours he had spent in Kenshin's office.

'Hey, let's go sit over there,' the girl said, tugging at his shirt.

She was pointing at a table in a dark corner. Battousai smiled. The offer was really tempting, and this girl was obviously no angel. He slowly nodded. The girl grinned and slipped her hand into his. Battousai started to rise up from his stool when a face flashed before his eyes.

Kaoru's face.

His eyes widened and he sat back on the stool. The girl frowned and pulled impatiently at his hand. 'Come on, what's wrong?' she asked.

Battousai didn't know what was wrong. Was it the fact that Kaoru looked so horrified, so shocked? He felt like he was…cheating on her, although he really wasn't her husband. But why? Why did he feel like that? Was it because he was in her husband's body, and he was getting feelings that later would? Or was it because of something else?

All the exhilaration of spending some quality time with this girl in that dark corner seemed to fade. Somehow, he knew that the moment his lips touched the girl's lips, Kaoru's face would flash before his eyes again, and he didn't want that.

'No, let's stay here,' he said firmly.

'What made you change your mind so fast?' she demanded.

'Here's better,' he muttered.

'Oh, you're no fun! Come on!' she whined.

'No!' he said sharply.

The girl glared at him. She picked up her drink and strode away from the table…probably to find some other guy who'd buy her a drink and would fool around with her.

Battousai sat staring down into the liquor swirling in his cup. What was wrong with him? He looked up. The bartender was close-by.

'Hey, could you get me a new cup, please?' he asked.

-

'Hello?'

'Hi…Mrs. Himura?'

Kaoru frowned and she held the phone firmly to her ear, while keeping the other hand on the stirring wheel. Why was Kenji's teacher calling her? Did something happen to Kenji?

'Yes, it's me,' she replied, sounding concerned. 'What is it, Miss Michaels?'

'Well, I was wondering why neither you nor Mr. Himura came to pick Kenji up today,' the teacher said.

'W-what?' she stuttered. 'Didn't Kenshin come to take him?'

'No, he didn't,' she replied. She paused. 'Is something wrong? Should I send Kenji off on a bus?'

'No, no,' Kaoru said. 'I'm coming to take him right now, there's no need for the bus.'

'Okay, Mrs. Himura, I'll keep an eye on him until you arrive,' Miss Michaels told her.

'Yeah, thanks,' Kaoru murmured, and with that she hung up. Then she quickly dialed Kenshin's number, and waited for him to pick up. 'Come on, Kenshin, where are you?'

But Kenshin didn't answer the phone. She bit down on her lip. Could something have happened to him? He never forgot to pick Kenji up from the nursery school! Oh, Kenshin…

She continued to call him all the way to the nursery school, but he still didn't answer her. She tried to keep her mind clear of any horrible possibilities, tried not to think that Kenshin maybe lying on some hospital bed now, unconscious and bloody.

She pulled up before the nurseryschool and hurried inside to Kenji's classroom. There she found him sitting at a table with his teacher, coloring with crayons. His face lit up when he saw her and he dropped the red crayon he was holding.

'Mommy!' he said happily. He got up from the table and hurried to her outstretched arms. 'I thought you were going to leave me here forever!'

Kaoru laughed as she hugged him. 'Oh, don't be silly, Kenji,' she replied. 'Who'd want to leave such an adorable thing like you?'

'Daddy would,' Kenji mumbled, pouting. 'He didn't come to pick me up today.'

'Ah, I'm sure daddy has a good reason for not showing up, he'd never leave you,' she said, soothingly. She straightened up and turned to his teacher. 'I'm sorry for this, Miss Michaels.'

'It's alright, but don't let it happen again, I hate it when kids get ideas such as Kenji's,' the teacher said, smiling. 'If you can't come for him everyday, maybe you should put him on a bus?'

'No, thanks,' Kaoru replied. 'We're fine. Now say good-bye to your teacher, Kenji, we have to go home.'

'Bye,' Kenji said, smiling.

'Bye, Kenji, I'll see you tomorrow, okay?' the teacher said, smiling. 'And then we'll get to finish that lovely picture of yours.'

'Yes!' Kenji said happily.

Kaoru took hold of her son's hand. She nodded at the teacher before hurrying Kenji out to the car. She put him inside and she, herself, climbed behind the wheel. She quickly revved the engine and pulled out of her parking space. She had to get home; she wanted to see if Kenshin was there, if he was okay…

'Mommy, why are you driving so fast?' Kenji asked. 'You never did.'

Kaoru smiled at him. If he only knew. 'I'm sorry,' she apologized. 'I'm just really hungry and I need to go home and eat.'

Kenji smiled and nodded enthusiastically. 'Yeah, me too! I'm really hungry!' he agreed.

It was only a few minutes before they finally got home. Kaoru quickly left the car and hurried her son inside. She took the lift and headed up to their floor.

'Come on…come on…' she muttered.

They finally got to their floor. Kaoru fumbled with her keys as they left the lift, pulling Kenji behind her as she did. She quickly unlocked the door and walked in.

'Kenshin!' she called out into the house.

But Kenshin didn't come to greet her. Panic rose in her chest as she went further into the house. She looked around wildly, while Kenji trudged in after her, frowning at his mother.

'Kenshin, where…?' she started.

But she was cut short when the door next to her opened, and Kenshin stepped out. His red hair was dripping wet, and his shirt was open. He blinked when he saw her.

'Kaoru…' he said softly.

'Daddy!' Kenji squealed happily. He went forward and hugged his father's leg.

Kaoru didn't know what to feel. Angry, relieved…? If Kenshin was fine, then why didn't he come pick Kenji up? Yet, she was glad that he was okay.

'I…why didn't you pick Kenji up?' she demanded angrily.

'Yeah, why?' Kenji asked, pouting at him.

'Huh?' Kenshin said, confused, as he looked from her to Kenji. 'Pick you up from where?'

'Don't play games, Kenshin! You forgot to pick Kenji up from the nursery school!' she snapped.

Kenshin slapped his forehead. 'I knew I had forgotten something! I just didn't know what!' he groaned.

'Yeah? Well, now you know,' she muttered. 'Kenshin, how could you?'

'I'm sorry, okay? I just forgot!' he protested.

'And why the hell aren't you answering your phone? Have you got an idea how worried I was?' she demanded.

'My…phone?' he repeated blankly.

'Yes, Kenshin, your phone,' she said impatiently. 'Why weren't you answering it? I thought that something wrong had happened to you!'

'I'm sorry, I…' he started.

'Wait a second…' she said, holding up her hand. She sniffed the air. 'Oh, my God! You were drinking?'

'What? Oh, yeah, I stopped at the pub for a little drink,' he said indifferently.

'You left Kenji at the nursery school…and went to have a drink instead?' she cried, outraged.

'I guess I did, didn't I?' he said, smiling sheepishly.

'Kenshin, how dare you?' she shrieked. 'Here I was, out of my mind with worry and you were having a little drink! How could you be so inconsiderate? And forgetting you own son! What is wrong with you?'

Kenji stood back, whimpering as he watched his parents arguing. 'Mommy's shouting at daddy,' he murmured.

'Nothing, I…' he started.

'Don't make excuses! What you did is totally unforgivable! I can't believe you did that!' she snapped. 'I won't forgive you no matter what you say!'

'Maybe it's something I do…?' he said, smiling.

'Huh?' she said, confused.

It all happened so fast. One moment she was shouting at him, the next she was kissing him…or rather, he was kissing her. He cupped her face between his hands and pressed his lips against hers. Kaoru's eyes widened in shock. Battousai slowly brought down one hand and held it behind her back, crushing her body against him while his lips remained glued to hers.

Kaoru could barely breathe for the intensity of the kiss, and she could hear Kenji gasping behind her. Slowly, she gave in to the kiss. She snaked hers arms up around Kenshin's neck and returned the kiss.

And then, just as suddenly as it had started, Kenshin pulled away from her. He stood, panting, his eyes wide and fearful, before they returned to their normal glint a moment later.

'Kenshin?' she whispered tentatively.

He leaned back against the wall. 'That was one hell of a kiss, wasn't it?' he said, grinning at her.

-

Kenshin was trembling all over. He was trembling from anger, from shock…

He couldn't believe he had actually managed to break free of Battousai's possession. He had managed to regain control over his body long enough to make Battousai pull away from Kaoru.

When Battousai had touched Kaoru, he had gotten really angry, and that anger had obviously managed to release him from Battousai's clutches. Maybe he should try it again? Maybe he should get angry enough and escape from…?

'Don't even think about it,' the cold voice of Battousai filled the emptiness surrounding him.

'You bastard, how dare you?' he demanded. 'I warned you not to touch my wife!'

'Your threats are of no importance to me,' Battousai sneered. 'You can never do anything to me.'

'Yeah? What about me breaking out of your control just a few minutes ago, or have you forgotten so soon?' he demanded.

'You fool, you only managed to escape because I had let my guard down, and you can't blame me for that…who wouldn't let his guard down while kissing such a girl like…?' he said.

'Shut up!' Kenshin shouted angrily.

'Ah, jealous, are we?' Battousai said, snickering. 'But my dear Kenshin, you shouldn't be jealous, we're the same person after all…that is, if Kaoru kisses me, then she's kissing you too, see?'

'I don't care! You are not to touch Kaoru again!' Kenshin said heatedly.

'You are in no position to give me orders,' Battousai snapped.

'I swear, if you touch her again…' he started.

'What do you think you could do to me? Think you can break free again?' Battousai said, and laughed. 'I'd be damned if I let you take over again! This is my body now! Your life is now mine!'

'You can't…' Kenshin started.

'Watch me take over,' Battousai sneered.

And Kenshin watched in horror as Battousai turned back to Kaoru and pulled her into his arms.

It can't be all lost, can it?

-

A/N: Done! Ah, well, how was it? Was it good? Please say yes coz I felt it was kinda lame and boring…and if you did think it was so, then wait for the next chapter; I promise action in that one! It's going to be really god, so be careful not to miss it…I'm just building up to the exciting parts, y'see? I love crazy secretaries, though, they're really funny! I was glad to be able to include Liz in this chapter! And I put in a little too much alcohol, didn't I? Mind you, I don't drink myself; I never did.

Oh, and before I forget…please review!

-ZEN. (By the way, does Zen seem like a guy's name? Coz the other day I was chatting with someone and he thought I was a guy! Eeep!)