This is for everyone who is still with me after all this time. Sessha begs humble forgiveness that there will be no review responses. The next chapter was already written before tragedy came to her home so it will be out soon. Gomen nasai... but Sessha's cat is dying and Sessha's mind is not on her work. Please forgive the lack of review responses and no that Tsuki-san loves all of you. She reads every review and knows all of her fans, and each one holds a special place in her heart. You are all my family... God Bless. Tsuki

Chapter twenty-seven

Part One-Bloody Hands

Sedgemont, New York

Early Spring, 1818

"How can you possibly stand there and tell me that my very own son plans to take my life? You are insane. Daniel... Daniel is a good son. He may not be the perfect son, but he is good boy nonetheless." Reverend March stared hard into the faces of his four guests, one of which he thought was his youngest son, Elliot, but he was beginning to fear was most definitely not. "I must sit down."

"I think that would be prudent, Reverend." Kaoru rushed to the old man's side and attempted to assist him to a near by chair.

"No, no..." The Reverend pulled away from the young girl's helping hands, a look of distrust and fear on his old face. "Please...I can manage on my own, Thank you." He winced slightly when he saw the look of worry and hurt reflected on her familiar features. She looked like Cassandra O'Massy, but if the crazy words being spoken to him were true, she was not. He grabbed the back of the old wooden chair in one gnarled hand and gently lowered himself onto the hard seat. "Please," he looked up into 'Elliot's' face. "Tell me again 'who' you are."

Aoshi sighed, shut his eyes, and then moved over next to the old man, kneeling down beside him. This was not an easy thing. "Forgive me, Reverend. I have never been very good at such things, and finding the proper way to tell you this is more than difficult, but the truth of the matter is I am not your true son. My name is Aoshi Shinomori and as hard as it is to accept, I am from a future time many years from now. I am also much younger than Elliot. In my life, I am only eighteen years old. If I am to understand your son correctly, it would seem he is closer to twenty or twenty-two, yes?"

"Elliot will be twenty-two this coming June. Daniel is nearing his twenty-fifth year this Fall." The Reverend looked at Aoshi briefly, shook his head and then started to rub his forehead with his hand.

Aoshi nodded. "I thought it was something like that. You see, Reverend, in our time, we are all young adults of a same age. Edmond and Ethan there are brothers."

"Brothers?"

"Yes, brothers. Kenshin Himura and Soujiro Seiguro, respectfully. Kenshin's mother married Soujiro's father... they share a younger sister named, Cleo."

"This is all so fantastic... so unbelievable. How can Ethan O'Massy and Edmond Fetlock be brothers?"

"The same way that your son Daniel is Soujiro's father... and Kenshin's step-father."

"Oh Dear Lord in heaven... it cannot be. You are insane... insane." The Reverend cradled his head in both hands and began to moan. "It's lies, all lies. Reincarnation is of the Devil. Only a witch can reincarnate... only witchcraft can bring back a spirit from beyond the grave. You are all of the Devil... the Devil... the Devil..."

"No, Reverend, we are not of the Devil." Aoshi bowed his head and closed his eyes, trying to find a way to make this man believe him. The times they were currently stuck living in were not helping the situation. The superstition and fear of witchcraft was nearly at a saturation point. Anything that couldn't be explained was immediately of the Devil and labeled witchcraft. He needed a break and he needed it soon.

"In our world, Reverend, Daniel is a man called Hiko Seiguro. He is a powerful man in business as well as in personality, but he is abusive and cruel. He has a drinking problem and he takes his anger out on his family. He beats his wife, Kenshin's mother, and both of his sons. Just before we were brought here, Daniel surfaced within him and we learned about Cassandra."

"Cassandra?" The Reverend's eyes rose to lock with Aoshi's gaze. "What did he tell you about Cassandra?"

"There is an old lighthouse near the town where we all live. It's named, Somber Man, and there has been a legend for about 300 years that the Lighthouse keeper murdered his wife there and then killed himself. It's supposed to be haunted. We all went there one night to find out. To our dismay, we discovered it was true."

"There are no such things as ghosts, young man. There are only evil spirits."

"Part of that is true, Reverend, but your wrong in the other case. There are ghosts. I met Cassandra O'Massy. She called me 'Elliot' and she called Soujiro 'Ethan'. I saw her looking at me from inside this girl's eyes. Kaoru Kamiya. She is what remains of Cassandra. We are all what remains of our former selves. But Daniel, he possessed Hiko's body completely in our time. When we were forced here, he was locked in a duel with Edmond, who was trapped inside of Kenshin's body."

"Impossible."

"What we know as fact now is this: every single one of us dies at Daniel's hands. He murders Ethan in a pistol duel after the boy discovers he's beating Cassandra and caused her to miscarry. He murders Elliot when he finds out he helped Cassandra and Edmond escape..."

"Escape? What are you talking about? Why would Cassandra and Edmond be escaping anywhere?"

"Because they are in love, Reverend. Cassandra O'Massay and Edmond Fetlock fall in love. That is one of the reasons Daniel starts to beat her. The others are simply because he is a cruel and foul man despite what you think you know of him."

"I...I don't know... I had no idea."

"No one does." Aoshi cast a glance over at Kenshin and saw his friend glowering at the floor. "Daniel is able to get the information out of Elliot where the lovers have gone before he dies, and he follows them to New York. Edmond is the Lightkeeper, but it is Daniel that murders Cassandra. He throws her from the crowswalk when Edmond is gone. Then, later, he comes back for Edmond and shoots him in the head."

"Holy Father..."

"Every one of us, Reverend, died by his hand."

"Why? Why would he do such a thing?"

"Pride." Kenshin finally broke his silence and walked forward, kneeling on the other side of the old man. "Everything is about 'Pride' and 'Power' to Daniel. He wants everything you have, and he wants control of all the people here in Sedgmont. Cassandra is the daughter of the richest vender in town, and most likely the prettiest girl as well. That makes her the best, and he wants everyone to envy him. At the moment there are only two things standing in his way of getting what he wants."

"What things?" Green eyes met amethyst.

"Getting married to Cassandra... and you."

"Me? What do you mean by that? How am I standing in his way?"

"We've been wracking our brains for what feels like forever trying to figure all of this out, Reverend March. You have no idea what a nightmare it has been for us trying to put the pieces together. For awhile there, I was pretty sure we were all crazy, my self the most, but I have had to admit... we not. We've been crawling around in the dark chasing ghosts and dusty clues, but it took being shoved back here to finally figure it out."

"Figure what out? I'm sorry, young man, but I don't understand any of this."

"I can't say I blame you. Neither did we until just a little while ago. You see, during this whole thing, none of us could figure out why we were being brought back together after 200 years. What was the purpose? Okay, maybe it was to make up for the fact that Edmond and Cassandra were supposed to be together. Fine, Kaoru and I have done that. Then other things started to happen that pointed in a whole new direction. There was a much bigger problem to solve."

"What sort of a problem?" The Reverend leaned forward, regarding the redhead with serious eyes.

"We finally decided that someone had died that wasn't supposed to . . . that was after we got sent here. Apparently we are supposed to stop that from happening. The future wasn't supposed to turn out the way it did, and we're the ones that have to keep the past from happening the same way again. I'm thinking this is a one shot deal-no second chances, you know. If you don't succeed, all bets are off and everything stays the same, which means back in my time, I'm probably dead."

Reverend March reared back with a stunned and horrified look. "Dead? How can you know that?"

"I, we, Edmond and I, were in a duel with the Hiko/Daniel guy. We were playing with real swords, mind you, and I had cut off his hand and wounded him in the chest, but the last thing I remember was him getting me on a sucker bluff with a knife in the gut." Kenshin scowled blackly. "Dirty bastard. He did that after I helped him and kept him from bleeding to death too. He never did play fair..."

"He stabbed you AFTER you aided his wounds?"

"Yes," Kenshin's eyes flashed amber for a moment. "Eddy and I were just going to leave him there and let him die, but neither one of us had that much malice in us to do it, so we tied a tourniquet around his wrist and packed his chest."

"After he was trying to kill you?" The Reverend's voice was soft and incredulous.

"Yes, neither one of us could just walk off and leave him there. We should have... God knows, we should have."

The Reverend sat quiet for long moments just looking down at his worn leather boots. One hand cupped his forehead while the other rested on a knee. Kenshin and Aoshi exchanged worried looks but remained where they were. They knew the look of deep thought when they saw it, so they kept quiet and waited to see what the old man would say.

"This 'Hiko', he is your step-father?"

"Yes," Kenshin replied in an even tone.

"He beats you?"

"Yes. Since I was little."

"Does he beat you more than the others?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because he hates me the most."

"Why is that?"

"Because I am defiant of him and because I wouldn't let him hit my mother or my brother."

"You took beatings for them?"

"Yes."

"This hatred you speak of, was it always there or did it come gradually?"

"It was always there, but it worsened as I got older."

"I see. And his animosity toward your brother, his son, was it always there?"

"No. It was a gradual thing that became worse the closer Soujiro and I became."

"Did you go to this lighthouse with the others?"

"Yes."

"Did you see ghosts?"

"I saw Cassandra and Daniel."

"Did they look like this girl and your step-father?"

"Like Kaoru, yes. Like Hiko... not quite. Daniel was very young. Hiko is in his forties. The resemblance dawned on all of us later, and then it was most definite."

The Reverend fell silent again and Kenshin looked back at Kaoru in confusion. She shrugged and looked at Soujiro who looked at Aoshi. None of them knew what to think. They would have to wait again. Obviously the old man was sifting through something in his mind.

"What about this younger sister you speak of? How does she fit into any of this?"

"Umm, we are not altogether positive, but... we believe she was meant to be Edmond and Cassandra's child. While Eddy and I were dueling with Daniel, I saw Eddy remember that she had been pregnant with his child. It really tore him up because they were excited about the baby, and he blamed Daniel for killing both of them. So, we think Cleo could be Edmond and Cassandra's baby. She looks just like me but has Kaoru's blue eyes."

"What would happen to the child now should something happen to your step-father?"

"I'm nearly nineteen now and I don't think my mother would object. I would take her and Kaoru and I would raise her."

"Then you plan to marry this girl?"

"Yes."

Again there was silence.

"You believe I am the first murder Daniel commits, don't you?" Maxwell March turned and looked Kenshin directly in the eyes. "He will wait until after I perform his wedding to Cassandra next week and then he will find a way to get rid of me, yes?"

"That is what we believe, yes."

"He would then take my place as parish reverend and rule over this town with a fist of iron and unrighteous dominion, yes?"

"Yes, Reverend."

"So...You believe if you save me, you will save the rest of yourselves and keep whatever is wrong with the future from being, yes?"

"Yes." Kenshin's voice dropped to whisper.

"I think I understand, but you are wrong about one thing, young Mr. Himura."

"What's that?"

"It is Daniel that needs to be saved, not I." The four teenagers all gapped in astonishment at the old man as his gaze rounded the room. "We must find a way to stop him from becoming what he intends to be and save his soul. That is the only way the future will be altered of its pathway."

"I–I don't understand." Kenshin was in complete shock. "Why do you say that?"

"All men are innately good, Mr. Himura, even the evil ones, and my son is no different. It is your step-father who must be saved, not I. It is his soul that must be brought back from the brink. We must stop Daniel from realizing his sinful ways. He must be made to see what he is becoming. Only then can he be forgiven by God and the stain be lifted from his soul."

"Are you telling me that we were sent back here to save that fucking animal from himself?"

Fury roiled in Kenshin's belly as he climbed to his feet. "I don't think I can believe that. Why? You tell me why because at the moment, I'd rather go put a gun to his head and blow him all the way to hell before I'd spend one minute trying to save him."

"How happy can a tortured soul be, Mr. Himura? How content and carefree can it be when it carries the guilt and blood of six... no, seven lives upon its hands?" The Reverend stood up and faced the window, looking out onto the street. "The power of the Devil is strong and will give the weak man a false sense of strength. That is why he feels superior and clever, but in truth, he is nothing more than a puppet, and when the deeds are done, he reaps no reward. The only prize that awaits him is his own pit of despair and grief. There is no forgiveness for the murder of innocents unless penance is made, and in Daniel's case, he turned his back on God. Therefore, his soul has spanned the ages to become something evil and filled with self-loathing and rage." He turned and faced Kenshin again. "You are his greatest enemy."

"I know, but why? Because I had the love of the woman he wanted?"

"Yes, and no." The Reverend approached the confused redhead and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Yes, because he could never gain her love. He was too tainted with the sin of my murder and then those of his brother and hers. No, because the love of this woman was just something he wanted because of whom and what she represented. You are his greatest enemy because you are everything he could never be. Honorable, kind, gentle, loving, and loyal. He hates you more than he desires the love of his own wife, and instinctively, even in this next life you're living, he still hates you because you are the better man."

Kenshin dropped his gaze before the reverend's steady look and swallowed hard. He had never thought about any of those things before. The instinctive hatred issue they had already decided on, but not for the reasons the old man just mentioned. He wasn't sure what to say. He didn't feel like a better man. He just wanted to go home, curl up with Kaoru, and sleep for ten hours.

"How do we do this then?" He asked, meeting the old man's eyes once more. "We obviously can't kill him. So what do we do?"

"I'm not sure," The Reverend squeezed Kenshin's shoulder. "I need to pray on it for a while. God will help us find a way. God will know what to do."

"I hope so," Kenshin mumbled as the old man walked away. "Because I'm all out of ideas."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Aoshi stood outside of the church, watching the people walk by in their strange clothes and carrying the odd basket or two filled with bread, vegetables, or other goods. Every so often someone would nod in his direction and wish him a 'good morning'. Politely as he could, he nodded back and offered the same. In his mind, he couldn't help wondering just what his counter part was really like. Was he as stiff and uncomfortable with people as Aoshi was himself? Did he feel like a foreign body trying to mix in with he normal stream of things, or was he part of the even stream himself?

"Good morning, Master March. How are you fairing this day?"

A gentle, feminine voice jolted Aoshi out of his thoughts and he lifted his head to find a middle aged woman looking at him with mild concern on her face. Her eyes were a dark brown, and there were wisps of blonde hair fluttering out from beneath her bonnet.

"I am well, Mistress." He replied, trying to recall how these people addressed one another. "And how are you this day?" He extended his hand and took hers for a moment to help her up on the boardwalk. "You are well?"

"Oh yes. I have no complaints, thank-you." She smiled at him as he released her hand. "How is your father? I heard several days passed that he was feeling poorly. Is he improving?"

"Aye, he is well today." Aoshi tucked his hands behind him and inclined his head to the woman. "He never seems to stay ill very long."

"No, that he doesn't. He has one of the strongest constitutions I have ever seen in a man of his years. I suppose that is why God chose him to care for the spiritual well-being of our community."

"Aye, he does worry over much about the parishioners, but that has always been his way." Aoshi hoped he was speaking the truth. The reverend struck as that sort of person and it felt right describing him as such. "But he should rest more. He isn't a young man any longer."

"No," the woman's brow furrowed as she consider her next words. "Do you think he will be leaving us soon to cross over to the other side, Master March?"

Aoshi was startled by the woman's question. It was almost ironic that she asked it considering what he and the others doing here. He hoped she was wrong for several reasons, the least of which was that the town needed the stability the old man provided. It was getting clearer to him just how important a role the religious leader played in this point of time. He almost had more power than those who wielded the law. He could manipulate the law makers if so chose to, and that kind of control would be devastating if it fell into the hands of a dishonest man. A man like Daniel.

"I don't believe so, Mistress." he tried to manage a gentle smile. "I believe he may yet out live all of us."

"Indeed, God knows how much we need him." She nodded and then reached out and patted Aoshi on the arm. "You're a good son, young Elliot." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "It is you who should be gaining the parish when your father passes, not your brother. You are the one the parishioners would follow. Daniel wears a false face and does not have the heart of a Reverend, but you do." Then she turned and hurried down the boardwalk toward the general store, leaving a gapping Aoshi behind her.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

Dr. Michael Hoffman looked down into the pale, almost gray face of the young, red-haired boy, laying on the gurney. The kid couldn't be more than seventeen or eighteen at the most. He looked younger, but the number of teeth in his mouth made him older, and he was told the boy's mother was out in admissions filling out paperwork. 'That should help.'

What he wanted to know was why was the kid dressed like a colonial gentleman, and where in the hell had he gotten his hands on an authentic Japanese sword? Mike shook his head and looked at the vital signs monitor. Pulse rate, respirations, and blood pressure were stabilizing, but the kid was no where near out of danger. The stab wound in his gut had punctured his liver and he was bleeding like a sieve. He needed emergency surgery or he was a goner. 'Just a couple more minutes, kid. Pull your pressure up just a bit more so I know you aren't going to code the minute they open you up.'

On the gurney next to them was the older man. His wounds were significant, but at the moment none were severely life-threatening. The bleeding in his right wrist was being controlled with a tourniquet, and the slash across his chest was tightly packed. There didn't seem to be any notable blood loss, and he was taking fluids well through the 18 gauge IV in his left arm. He would be going up for surgery soon. They were waiting for the Orthopedic specialist to come and assist with the repair on his right hand. Thankfully the people who found this man were with the program and saved the hand. There was a good chance it could be reattached.

But the kid was another story. He was a time bomb. They needed to get him under the knife and they needed to do it soon. His amount of blood loss was staggering which meant one of the main blood vessels going to his liver must have been damaged.

Mike looked up at the bag of O negative blood hanging on the IV pole. It was the second one they'd pumped into the kid. 'You're dumping it out just about as fast as we're putting in, aren't ya, kid. Damnit! Pull your pressure up so I can get you outta here. Come on...'

"Dr. Hoffman?"

"What is it, Mary?"

"The boy's name is, Kenshin Himura. He's eighteen...almost nineteen. This man is his step-father, Hiko Seiguro. He's some big Lawyer up in New York. According to the police report I just got, it looks like the father attacked the son first."

"How so? The kid's only got one wound and he did some major damage to the old man before he got it."

"They say the father struck him over the head and shoulders with a chair. They found bits and pieces of wood with blood and red hair on them."

"A head wound?" Mike looked down at the boy with narrowed eyes. "I didn't see a head wound."

"Well he's got hair like a lion, Doc. I wouldn't imagine anyone noticed." the woman smiled, patting the doctor on the arm. "Guess you should look for it now, huh?"

"Yeah. Tell Susan I need a sterile tray, will ya?"

"You got it."

"So, you got a head wound, eh? Let's just see about that, shall we." Tenderly Mike started feeling around on the boy's head, and as he fingered through the hair on the back of his skull, a sticky, crusty mass greeted him. "Ah ha. I guess you do. I suppose we should take a look and stitch it up, huh?" He turned and took the sterile tray from the nurse and instructed her to turn the boy's head so he could get at the wound.

"Wowsers! Now that's a head wound." Mike fingered a skin flap about three inches across and two inches deep along the bone of the skull. "You fought a sword duel with this thing on your head, not to mention the softball size bump that's going along with it? Damn! What kind of a kid are you?"

"A kind you've never seen before, Dr. Hoffman."

Mike turned toward the sound of a foreign voice and locked gazes with hard amber eyes. "Who are you, and what are you to this kid?" He asked as he finished cleaning the wound and reached for a suture needle.

"Hajime Saitou. I'm the Head Master at Ive Payne. Kenshin is one of my Seniors, but I am also his legal guardian and have been for the last three years."

"Legal guardian? I thought someone told me this guy over here is his step-father and that his mother was filling out paperwork in admissions?"

"Yes, that is all true, but I am still his legal guardian. I know it's confusing, but it's a long story. Can you tell me how he is?"

"Not good, Mr. Saitou. He's lost a lot of blood and he's still losing it. I'm trying to get his blood pressure stable enough to send him to surgery, but he may force me to send him regardless. He doesn't have a lot of time."

"I see," Saitou looked at the blood drops peppering the floor around the gurney. "What are his chances of survial, Doctor?"

"I don't really know. He's a kid, kids are stronger than adults in that they bounce back faster from trauma, but if they can't repair the damage to his liver... there's not much of chance."

"So, you're saying we may lose him regardless of the efforts to save him? The damage may be too great?"

"Yes. That is an honest opinion. I'm sorry. I wish I had better news for you." Mike pulled the last stitch through the skin and tied it off. "Is he some kind of a special kid, or something?"

"You could say that." Saitou waited for the nurse to move and then he walked up next to Kenshin's head, looking down into his still, pale face. "Extraordinary is probably a better word."

"Really?" Mike looked at the expression on the teacher's face and then looked back down at the boy. "What makes him different from any other kid?"

"Because he's the smartest kid I've ever met, and the cockiest. And because he just put his life on the line for everything he loves most in this world, facing the Devil himself."

"Huh?" Confused blue eyes searched Saitou's face. "I don't follow."

"You don't have to, Doctor. Just know that this is one of those kids who gets lost in the cracks, swept under the carpet, and used for someone else's excuses, but despite all of that, he still has the honor and inner strength to stand up for the truth and what he knows is right. Even if it kills him." Saitou leaned down next to Kenshin's ear and laying a hand on the clammy pale forehead, whispered, "You were right about everything, Kenshin. You aren't what anyone thought you were. None of us ever even gave you a chance to be anything but what we expected you to be. I'm sorry, son. I'm so damn sorry." Gently he stroked the heavy red hair, gazing into the angelic looking face. "You are the finest young man I have ever known, and it has been my honor to know you. I wish I had known you better–that is my fault. I never tried. Forgive me, if you can. You aren't a bad kid, Kenshin. You're what every kid wishes he could be. You're the best of them all. I would be proud to call you my son. Indeed I would." A tear slipped down the stern, stony features and he dropped his head onto the pillow next to Kenshin's head. "You have the fiercest fighting spirit I have ever known, Kenshin, and I'm asking you to use it now. Fight for yourself. You've been fighting for everyone else for so long and trying to protect them from getting hurt. Now it's time to use that strength for yourself. Fight, boy. Fight for your life. You and I have far too much to talk about for you to check out now. So, fucking fight for your right to live... and live."

Suddenly the monitor next to the gurney began to beep and the lights on the front of it were blinking and flashing. Mike jerked around and looked at the numbers that were appearing on the screen and gasped.

"His pulse rate is fluxuating, and his BP is dropping. Get the crash cart! Code Blue! Code Blue!"

Saitou raised up with wide, horrified eyes and backed away from the bed. The small room filled with nurses, technicians, and equipment as the Code went into effect. Someone shouted for EKG leads and then someone else was calling for gloves. It was chaos and terror all mixed into one, and Kenshin was in the middle of it. 'Please God, don't do this... not now. Please...not now.'

The sound of a long alarm filled the room and Saitou heard the words he feared the most.

"We've got a flatline... bag him and charge the paddles."

"I'm gonna hit him with a hundred... everyone clear."

FZZZT

"Nothing..."

"Recharging to three-hundred... clear."

FZZZZT

"Nothing..."

"Recharging..."

It was dark where he was, but not so dark that he couldn't see where he was going. There was a pathway winding away in front of him and he took it, walking through a grove of trees. He could smell roses and jasmine. It reminded him of Kaoru and he smiled, remembering how it felt to hold her close. Like holding a piece of the universe in his arms. She made him feel whole again. He missed her.

Ahead he could see that the sun was starting to rise, turning the sky a beautiful lavender-toned pink with shades of gold and blue. Now he could make the shapes of a snow-covered mountain range in the distance, and found himself walking along an old dirt road flanked by green meadows filled with wild flowers and butterflies. It was a beautiful place, peaceful and quiet. Scratching the back of his head as he often did when he was confused, Kenshin looked from one side to the other, then turned and looked behind him at the forest he'd just left.

'What am I doing here?' he thought, pursing his lips and scratching again. 'How did I get here, and where is here, for that matter?' He didn't recognize anything he looked at but it didn't seem to be very distressing. He was just confused. Shrugging and kicking at a stray stone, he continued to follow the road.

He wasn't sure how long he walked, but time passed by without notice or concern as he enjoyed the serenity of his surrounding. Then, as he topped a small hill in the road, he saw a small log cabin in the distance. A lazy tendril of smoke curled up from the chimney and a white dog lay sleeping next to the front door. There was something familiar about the dog. He narrowed his gaze, trying to remember, but nothing came to mind, so he just walked the rest of the way to the cabin.

"Hi, there." He greeted the dog, who looked at him with soleful brown eyes. "Is your master at home?" The dog raised it's head and started to pant, then it leaped to it's feet and bounded over to him, jumping on his chest where it began to lick his face with ardent enthusiasm. "Hey, what's the big idea?" Kenshin laughed and scratched the dogs flanks before lowering him to the ground. "All I wanted to know was if anybody was home, I didn't expect a bath in the bargain."

"He's just glad to see you again, Small Tiger. It has been many years for both of you."

Kenshin looked up and saw a man standing in the doorway of the cabin. His face was in shadow, but he was leaning nonchalantly against the frame in a pose that struck a cord in the red-head's mind. "How do you know that name?" He asked. "No one ever called me that except my..."

"Except your father." The man walked out into the light and looked into the stunned face of the boy standing in his front yard. "I remember well." he said. "I was the one who gave it you."

"D-dad?" Kenshin stared at a man he only remembered from his early childhood. His eyes were gray with thick lashes in a handsome, clear featured face. Dark, auburn hair curled around his shoulders and down his back. It was almost as long as Kenshin's, but the man wore his loose. "Is that really you?"

"Well, if it isn't, I'm doing a pretty good impression of myself. Don't you think?" Ishida Himura grinned, his eyes twinkling. "What does your heart tell you, Kenshin?"

"I... you're not as tall as I remember."

"You were a lot smaller then, ding-a-ling." Laughter filled the peaceful world and Ishida watched his son blush redder than any girl. "I hope you aren't this stupid with that girl-friend of yours. If you are, you'll never get married."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Violet eyes flared and Kenshin stepped closer to his father, who was only a few inches taller now. "I talk to her just fine, and we are going to get married, so..."

"Okay, okay. Calm down. Sheesh! I forgot what a little hot head you could be." More laughter echoed as the man put his arm around his son's shoulders. "Come on inside, son. We have a lot to talk about."

"Okay, but dad?"

"Hmm?"

"What's the dog's name?"

"Don't you know? He was your dog."

"I... ah..."

"And you're supposed to be some kind of a genius? Can't even remember the name of your own dog? Right."

"Dad..." Kenshin's voice was threatening as he eyed his father with amber tinged violet eyes. "The dog's name."

"Inu."

"Inu?"

"Um-hum."

"What sort of a lame-assed name is that for a dog?"

"It's Japanese, stupid. It means 'dog'."

"Oh my God. You are kidding."

"Nope. And you were the one who picked it out."

"I'm going to kill myself."

"Shut-up and come inside. The only way to deal with you is to feed you. And here I thought when you grew up you'd change. What a disappointment."

"We can't all be perfect."

"No shit."

"Dad!"

Laughter filled the cabin as Ishida Himura shut the door.

"...clear."

FZZZT

"It's still a flatline, Dr. Hoffman. What do you want to do?"

"Dammit... come on kid. You gotta give me something to work with here."

"Doc?"

"Recharge... five-hundred."

"Jesus, you'll fry his heart with that much."

"What's he got to lose, Jerry? He's already dead."

"Fine... charging..."

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Kaoru burst out of the church and ran up to Aoshi, panting, her eyes wild with worry.

"What's wrong?" He asked, grabbing her by the shoulders.

"It's Kenshin... he just callapsed in the middle of the Chapel... I can't get him to wake up." A dry sob clogged her throat. "I can't find his pulse, Aoshi. I think he's dead."

Part Two-The Mirror of A Soul

He woke up in the middle of a green, grassy meadow, butterflies flitting around the tip of his nose. He felt groggy and heavy limbed as he tried to sit up, and the pounding fury of his skull dragged a low groan from his throat. A rush of nausea washed through him and he lowered his head between his knees, praying it would pass. There was nothing worse than vomiting first thing in the morning.

"Bloody hell," he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand and his forehead with the other. "I haven't felt this terrible since... since..." His head snapped up and his eyes blew open. The last thing he remembered was watching Daniel throwing a knife at him and Kenshin. He grabbed at the tail of his shirt and jerked it up, revealing his bare mid-drift, but he couldn't find any evidence of a wound as his hand fluttered across the smooth skin. "How in the... what the hell is going on?"

His gaze was drawn skyward as a flock of birds flew overhead, the chaotic noise of their chattering catching his attention and drawing him into physical contact with the world around him. He was not where he used to be. This was not Hackler's Point, and he was not at the lighthouse.

"Where the hell am I . . . and where is Daniel?" Edmond struggled to his feet, wavering slightly in his balance as the blood rushed to his feet. Nothing around him was familiar. Off in the distance he could see the shape of a tall, bluish-gray mountain range, it's peaks capped with snow and surrounded with misty white clouds. A gentle breeze sifted through his hair and he could smell wild-flowers, but he could not discern north from south, nor east from west.

He was lost.

"Damn," he muttered, brushing his hands off on his breeches. "As if my life wasn't complicated enough." Angry eyes scanned the meadow and he picked a direction to start in. "Looks as good as any of the others." He said, clomping through the heavy grass. "May as well see where this leads me. God only knows what's happening now."

After only a few dozen strides, he came to an old dirt road. His confusion mounted as he looked up and down the dual tracks. It seemed well traveled, though he couldn't imagine by whom, but all the same, he decided to see where it would take him. Choosing the left, he turned and began to walk. He couldn't help but feel a little foolish. Here he was, out in the middle of nowhere, talking to himself like an idiot, and he didn't have idea one what he was doing.

"Ah me," he sighed, looking at the azure sky above him. "No use being contrary about it, Edmond, me boy. Just make the best of it." That's what Sandra would tell him. Sandra. Edmond frowned and scuffed a stone with his boot. 'Where is she?' he wondered, feeling the old ache of separation nagging at his soul again. 'I hope she's alright.' Flashes of memory stared to splinter through his mind and he could see himself, shoving her and that young girl out of the room, yelling at them to find Kenshin's friends. He knew it was their only chance, and he had to keep Daniel busy long enough for them to escape.

"Was I successful?" He asked himself as he topped a small rise in the road. "Did I save them?" He stopped in the middle of the road and ran a worried hand over his face, remembering the last words his beloved spoke to him before she disappeared out the door.

"Don't you dare get dead..."

Horror filled him as the implications of his own thoughts seeped into his logic. 'Dear God, am I dead? Is that where this is? The place dead souls go?' He looked around with wild, frantic eyes, trying to decide if he were right. 'It didn't look like this the last time I died.' He thought, taking several more steps and looking down the hill. 'The place I went before was dark and cold, and there was no air to breath . . . this is definitely not like that.'

If he was confused before, he was down right bewildered now. If this was heaven, he was in a lot of trouble.

"What's a log cabin doing in heaven?" Edmond's eyes narrowed as he noticed the small building about a quarter mile away, smoke drifting lazily out of its' chimney. "Now that is not something I would expect to see in heaven." Curiosity won over his confusion and he made for the cabin. It was only a short walk after all.

Once he reached the yard, Edmond felt a little nervous and self-conscious. He didn't know whose home this was, but it was obvious someone lived in it. Maybe they had some answers about what and where this place was, and how he could get out. Granted there was a way out. So, sucking in a deep breath, he threw back his shoulders and approached the door, knocking on it.

"What was that?" Kenshin looked up at his father. "Did you hear that noise?"

"Of course, I did. I'm dead, but I'm not deaf." Ishida raised an eyebrow at his son, and then shook his head. "You are really starting to make me wonder, boy. That you are."

"What? What did I say?"

"Do you think you are the only one involved in this dilemma, Kodora? Please don't tell me you are that arrogant to believe you are."

"What the fuck are you talking about, Dad? What dilemma?" Kenshin reared back in his chair and glared at his father. "And what are you talking about... dead? I know you're dead."

"Yeah, well, at the moment, so are you." Gray eyes pierced into shocked violet and then Ishida pushed himself away from the small wooden table and stood up. "Don't you remember anything?"

"Remember? What . . .what am I supposed to remember?" Kenshin was confused and frightened at the same time. Was he really dead? 'Kaoru!'

"There are more important things in this world than just yourself, son. One of them is on the other side of that door. I suggest you prepare yourself."

"But..." Wide eyes searched out the older man's face. "What should I be prepared for?"

"The world you left behind... the stuff you seem to have conveniently forgotten. It's about to grab you by the throat, Kodora. Are you prepared?"

"I... I guess so."

"Good. At least you aren't a coward."

"I've never been a coward, old man!" Kenshin rose to his feet, anger brewing in his amber shaded gaze. "I've never backed down from a fight in my life."

"I know that. I just wanted to see if it was still inside of you."

"What? If what was still inside me?"

"The 'ability to find your inner wolf'." Ishida looked at the growing circle of gold shimmering around his son and nodded. "It would seem you do. I am proud you didn't bury it or 'him'. You will need him where you're going."

"Dad, you aren't making any sense...even for a dead guy. What the hell are you talking about?"

"You have to go back, Kenshin. You can't stay here with me. It's not your time, but before you go, there are certain things that need to be done. This is the first one." Ishida grabbed the door and flung it open, and then watched as two sets of shocked violet eyes met, clashed, and fused together. "I believe you already know each other, yes?"

"K-Kenshin?"

"Eddy? Dear God, is that you?" Kenshin took several slow steps toward the man in the doorway while he was taking the same measured steps toward him. "This isn't possible. You're me...I mean, I'm you. How can we both be here at the same time?"

"I...I'm not knowing the answer to that question either, my friend, but it would seem, we are both here." Edmond's gaze shifted toward the third man in the room. "Where is here?" he asked, coming to a stop several feet inside the room. "Am I dead and is this... wherever it is that dead souls go?"

"Well, you are partly right, Edmond. You are dead, for the moment, but this is not heaven, if that is what you are wondering."

"Aye, it is." The older of the two red-heads slumped a little. "But if I'm dead, where am I, and who are you?"

"I'm Kenshin's father, Ishida Himura, and you are... well, you're in my cabin."

"Aye, I can see that, Master Himura, but 'where' are we?"

"That's a little harder to explain." Ishida offered a weak smile and motioned for the two men to come sit at the table. "I can't really tell you where you are, except that it's like a waiting room, or holding area for spirits who are in transition."

"Transition?" Edmond looked at Kenshin as they sat down, and then both of them looked at the older Himura.

"Yes. Although both of you are dead, neither of you is supposed to pass on, so you are here with me until we can figure out what needs to happen to keep you both alive...in your respective time periods."

"So, what you're saying is we both bought the farm, but we weren't supposed too?" Kenshin's face was full of skepticism. "I'm really sorry, Dad, but it all sounds like a bunch of shit to me at the moment. You were right, I had sort of forgotten about everything going on back in the 'world of the living', but I do remember we already found out that it didn't have anything to do with our deaths. It was the reverend and Daniel that needed to be saved. Not us."

"Daniel?" Edmond stared at Kenshin. "What are you saying, boy? Save Daniel?"

"I know, Eddy, I know... I said the same thing, but the old preacher explained everything and he's right. We have to save Daniel. We have to stop him before he starts his plan to take control of Sedgemont. That is the key to this whole fucking mess. Daniel's greed and want for all of that power."

"Aye," Edmond dropped his chin and looked at the edge of the table. "Perhaps...but what is it 'we' have to stop?"

"He's gonna kill his old man, Eddy. That is the key to starting the whole thing off..."

"No, that isn't right. That's not what happened. The Reverend died when he lost control of his horse and it threw him off the bridge into the river. Broke his neck. That's no murder, boy. That's just a rotten accident."

"Are you so sure, Edmond?" Ishida leaned over and looked the older redhead in the eye. "How easy it is to spook a horse, or put a burr under a saddle? There are any number of ways to 'instigate' an accident, but it is still murder."

Edmond fell silent and his face turned introspective. "There was never any question the reverend fell to his death..."

"How long after Daniel and Cassandra were married?" Kenshin leaned forward, searching the twin face of his own.

"Less than a week, as I recall."

"A little too convenient, don't you thing?" Kenshin exchanged a worried look with his father. "Daniel officiated at the funeral?"

"Of course, he was the leader of the parish by right of inheritance. There was no one else."

"How long did he mourn the loss of his father, Edmond?" Ishida leaned over the table. "A day, a week? Did he mourn at all?"

"The people thought he was cheerful because he was trying to be uplifting to them in all their time of loss during those days. Many looked on him as a pillar of strength for his behavior, though I thought it rather odd myself."

"Odd, indeed." A chair scraped the floor and Ishida stood up to walk across the room. "Who was responsible for saddling the reverend's horse, Edmond? Daniel or Elliot?"

"Daniel would be. He was the eldest son." Edmond's eyes grew round as he listened to himself answer and give the last shred of evidence needed to convince himself of the truth. Daniel murdered his own father in order to grasp the power of his position in the community, and he did it without remorse, guilt, or even one second thought. "Dearest Lord..."

"Indeed."

"What do we have to do, Master Himura?"

"The same thing you did at the Lighthouse."

"But...he killed us, didn't he?" Edmond exchanged an alarmed look with Kenshin.

"Perhaps, perhaps not. It depends on what happens in Sedgemont. If you alter the past, the present will follow."

"You mean, I won't be dead?" Kenshin stared at his father."

"No, you won't be dead, Kodora. The life you remember will not have even occurred."

"But, what about my memories? My family? Soujiro and Cleo? What about Kaoru!"

"Calm yourself. Trust me... everything will be as it should. Nothing you hold dear will be lost to you. Only the nightmare and pain will be gone."

"I still don't understand. If we change the past, won't that mean that none of us will be born the way we are now? Won't we end up somewhere else?"

Ishida moved to his son's side and rested a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Please, trust me, Kenshin. Everything will be alright. By fixing this horrible wrong, God will not punish you by taking what you love away from you. I promise you that."

"Will I remember everything?"

"Of course, you lived it. It is still inside of you. Everyone involved will remember. It can be no other way. But now you have to understand that the only way you can accomplish what needs to be done, is if the two of you do it together. It must be both you facing Daniel or all of this will be for nothing."

"Why must it be both of us, Master Himura?" Edmond stood and walked to the other man's side. "You are suggesting we share my body and confront him as such, yes?"

"Yes, it is the only way."

"Why? I don't understand what our being together has to do with confronting Daniel. What significance does it have for him?"

"Eddy's right, Dad. As far as we can tell, Daniel hasn't been changed in the past like the rest of us. He's still just 'Daniel'. He won't know who I am."

'That's where you're wrong, Kenshin. Hiko is back there with the rest of you, but Daniel is such a strong-willed man he can't take control of his body. He's laying dormant beneath the surface of Daniel's conscious mind. It wouldn't take but the right kind of stimulation to bring him-and all the memories from the future with him-boiling to the surface. Trust me, son, Daniel will know exactly who you are. Both of you."

"Okay, if you say so." Kenshin stood up and sucked in a deep breath. "You ready for round two, Eddy?"

"Aye, indeed. Round two." He dropped a hand on Kenshin's shoulder and smiled. "It's quite a disconcerting feeling to touch myself and feel someone else, eh?"

"You said it. This whole thing is going to give me nightmares..." Kenshin grinned and grasped his alter-ego's forearm. "But I suppose it could be worse."

"How?" Edmond's eyes twinkled.

"We could be real twins."

"Lord have mercy!" Both men burst into laughter. Ishida shook his head.

TBC

Alright, before anyone goes and starts spewing crap about time paradox and all that... I know already. But hey, it's my story, and I think I got it all worked out in the next chapter (which will probably come out quite quickly since I just seem to have this thing rolling). KnT