All In The Name of Cement Shoes – This Job Ain't Worth the Pay

"Would you shut that hole in your face already?" Misao scrunched her face up in anger at the man's remark as he dragged her from the back of a moving van.

"Your mother!" Hannya shook his head at the wedding planner's lame attempt at her vocal retaliation. The sounds of waves restlessly crashing against the pier were sending both Hannya and Misao into a state of shock. The cement had dried long ago and although the mousy girl had bought some time by taking her feet out over and over, it wasn't enough for someone to find them. And now they were being dragged down a pier so that they could sink down to their watery graves. A sound tear trickled down her cheek as she realized there was no getting out of this. The smell of salt encrusted wood flooded her senses and she held back the onslaught of tears she had been fighting all night. A squeal of tires broke the morose scene as Sano ejected himself from his seat.

"WAIT! Just wait! You can't kill her! This is all one big misunderstanding!" His voice traveled over the sounds of the harbor. She turned to the large man dragging her.

"One big misunderstanding…," she echoed.

"She's still young. She hasn't experienced all the pleasures of life yet like Jack Daniels, that little Thai diner on the edge of town, and sex!"

"I really don't care for Jack Dan- Sano!" She stared in horror as Aoshi exited the driver's side of the luxury vehicle. She looked up at the burly man with the solid grip on her shoulders. She would be damned if she went out of this world looking like a prude! "That's not true. I've had lots of sex. Lots and lots…in fact, guys BEG ME for the sex because I'm just that talented!" She raised her voice an octave so that her intended could hear her proclamation. Afterwards, she silently berated herself for showing so much passion for such a benign subject. The man shrugged his shoulders and gave a slight push at Misao's shoulders, sending her into the murky waters. Sano cringed in fear as he watched his beloved sister fall into the depths and gasped in shock as Aoshi dived in after her.

Now, there were two problems that emerged with the plot to kill the wedding planner and her masked companion. The first was that they hadn't intended the bucket to be so shallow and only fill up to her ankles. The second was that she was wearing knee high boots and if they had paid attention to her dismal height they would have noticed that she had grown a couple of inches. What was the reason behind that? Simple – she had wedged her feet out of the shoes so she could slip out if need be. Using every bit of strength, the woman managed to untangle her feet from the boots and try to propel herself to the surface before she ran out of air. Luckily, a pair of strong arms grasped her from behind and helped her along the way.

When both Aoshi and Misao popped up through the water's surface, they were faced with an onslaught of bullets. The city's police force had received a tip that there was some shady business going at the pier and it didn't take long for the parade of red and blue lights to come barging in. The group of thugs was shooting rapidly towards the vehicles while Sano sat behind Aoshi's black machine, his hands pushed to his ears to drown out the small battle.

The sleek and stealthy man pulled the wedding planner under the dock until gunfire ceased. The small waves shoved her body into his and she was quite thankful for the action, for her small form was shivering relentlessly from the cold. The handsome millionaire tried to look away from her, to remind himself that this was his Misao – the girl who forced her way into his life and made it better because of it. But the lie nagged at him like a fly in his soup. Misao sputtered salt water out of her mouth and stuttered a quick thank you.

"I want to know the truth – were you my intended or not?" Large ocean blue eyes widened and she didn't need to answer for Aoshi could tell by her expression that the relationship had been a product of deceit. "I see…all women, then, truly are liars." The petite wedding planner pouted as Aoshi untied her hands from behind her while keeping clear from the hail storm of shots.

"I beg your pardon, but I didn't outright LIE. I was coerced by people who care about YOU to bring a little light to your life." She mumbled another line of thanks as the rope sank from her wrists.

"By lying to me?" Misao's jaw dropped about a hundred feet. He was making her out to be some kind of horrid woman that made an income by swindling rich men with poorly laid out lies. Underneath the dark veil of the water, she could feel something slither by her knees. To the more rational of minds, one could say that it was just a fish passing by. But in a situation that almost included death and climaxed with a gun fight and a heated argument to end your night, it might as well have been the Loch Ness monster.

"Can we talk about this later? Like, when we're not dodging bullets or accusing the other of lying?" Aoshi's usually cool eyes turned fiery with anger.

"It's not an accusation when it's the truth." That was the last straw. If it wasn't Kaoru lecturing her about doing the right thing, then it was Sano berating her for her hasty directions. And now she had to deal with a man that so was blind and thick headed that if she didn't stand up for herself she was going to burst…or worse, punch him.

"Like you didn't know, Aoshi Shinomori!" His eyebrows drew together is a questioning glance. Misao sighed. "Come on now! You went to college – you're an intelligent human being. You knew the mob boss' name, I'm sure. Do I look Italian? My name is Misao…not Carmen…not Anna Maria…but Misao! There is not a single thing about me that looks remotely like an Italian American and for some reason you just accepted that I was your intended bride to be. At any point in time, you could've said 'Hm, something fishy is going on here.' But no…maybe you WANTED me to be your bride because then you wouldn't have to agree to the actual thing. AND BY THE WAY – I've met Natalia, the woman you were supposed to marry. She stole my car and my Snapple and I know that the only thing that enters her brain on any given occasion is the dye in her hair! Yeah, I said it. That woman is scum. And whether or not you were ever in love with me…I am ten times more of a woman that…creature. I'm sorry, that I didn't give any of this any thought and I'm sorry that I didn't try to argue the situation of marrying you but more than anything I am sorry that I ever hurt you." The gun fire stilled as the wedding planner concluded her speech. The deep 'ker-thunks' of boots running against the wood signaled that the thugs had surrendered and were now calling for a medic van to receive Hannya.

Aoshi was left speechless as he waded through the water and onto the dock without looking at the woman left shivering in the water. Sano however was barreling past him, his large frame colliding with the freezing water. He squeaked out in surprise before swimming over to his younger sister.

"Are you okay?" Misao stared past him at the man that was now entering the EMS vehicle with Hannya. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears as the millionaire refused to even shoot her a fleeting glance. She finally glanced over at her brother. His face was etched with concern at having almost lost the only family he had left.

"Sanosuke…No, I'm not okay."

Megumi briefed the new doctors on the incoming patient. Her beeper had gone off almost immediately after Sano and Aoshi had fled the police station and it hadn't stopped since. Calls were coming in every hour and this new emergency was going to be the highlight of the night. Three injured men were being brought in as the result of gunfire but were to be left in police custody after recovery. The next patient being brought in was going to be the tougher situation. His feet were lodged into a bucket of cement. At soon as she saw her old friend rushing in to get started on paperwork she knew that the patient was either going to be Hannya or his new girl. Aoshi hardly ever rushed for anyone. The female doctor turned to her students and warned them that if anyone cracked a single joke about the patient in question, they would be terminated.

After assisting in the stitches of the criminals, Megumi checked in on Hannya, noting the student's progress. They were lucky – he had only received mild burns from the cement and a sprained ankle from falling over but these were small injuries compared to what could've happened and he would heal in no time at all. Her jet black heels clicked against the tacky tile as she moved towards the waiting room. Aoshi was seated in the corner, away from the nauseous children and the bleeding civilians, his mouth set in a stern frown. Megumi's perfectly manicured eyebrows arched as she searched the room for the mousy girl and her unfashionable braid. On cue, Sano was bursting through the doors with his sister in tow.

"I need a doctor! Please! Anyone?" Misao was scrunched up against his chest, her cheeks reddening from the obnoxious tone her brother had. The nurse on hand tried to calm the rooster head down as quietly as possible but he wouldn't hear of it. Dr. Takani sighed inwardly as she grasped Misao's hand and assured the former hoodlum that she was going to be well taken care of. The two women wandered down the hall until the medicine woman directed her towards an empty room. Looking like a drowned rat, Misao was swallowed up by Sano's leather jacket and she sneezed profusely as Megumi checked her blood pressure.

"I'll be right back." In a short time, Dr. Takani returned with a pair of scrubs for Misao to shimmy into. "They're my back up scrubs…I only dress like this during my normal office hours. I'm supposed to be in those but we can't all be perfect. Go ahead. They'll warm you up." She turned her back to the small woman so she could change in some privacy. And she was right. The plain black scrubs were a little too big for Misao's small frame but the simple cotton material warmed her to the bones and the smell of lavender and vanilla fabric softener flooded her senses. She cleared her throat to signal that she had changed. Megumi turned and smiled.

Shinomori Estates

Okon shifted uneasily within the confines of a very large comforter on the floor of the room she shared with Omasu. Both maids had retired for the night and were now playing Monopoly in front of a toasty fire. For some reason, they were uneasy as the clock chimed midnight. The elder of the two maids tugged at a chunk of hair as Okina paced the wooden floor. He had burst in hours ago, claiming that he couldn't sleep when there was still work that needed to be done. The windows still needed to be cleaned and the carpets needed to be beat and the floor could stand another waxing.

"Well then get to it, Okina. We're not stopping you," Omasu said gleefully. "Ooh! I want to buy Water Works!" Okon rolled her eyes as she accepted the paper payment.

"But it's YOUR job, Omasu!" The maid glared at the old butler as he pointed in her general direction.

"And my job ended its shift hours ago. So give it a rest. The windows and the carpets and even the floor will be there tomorrow." Okina sat his old body in front of her, sending tiny plastic houses across the floor. Okon groaned as she gathered up the minuscule pieces.

"What would Master Aoshi say if he saw his beloved house in such a condition; especially when he'll be sharing his humble abode with Miss Misao?" Omasu rolled her eyes and rolled the dice, neglecting Okon's trudging form crawling beside her.

"They were fine this morning, Okina! I could see my reflection in everything!" Okina laughed sarcastically.

"You could see your reflection in the carpets?" The younger maid scoffed at the remark and moved her silver shoe seven spaces.

"Yes, Okina…even in the carpets. THAT'S how clean they were! Where did my hotel go?" The elderly butler continued to grieve over the untidiness of the mansion until he noticed Okon staring at the clock. She lightly tapped the glass covering and turned towards her coworkers.

"Has anyone even seen Master Aoshi or Miss Misao this evening?" The trio shared glances before barreling down the stairs to check their cell phones.