Hello, dear readers! This is important. If you read the previous chapter before 7/20, I did some major tweaking since then. Instead of putting certain elements later on in the story, I added them to Chapter 23. It was originally at 3,623 words but it's now at 4,331 so it's quite a chunk of information.

Here's the gist of it (of course, without the Sano/Megumi goodness, haha!):

1) Saito is a Special Agent with the Bureau and he and Kenshin work together.

2) The Bureau knows that the Sagaras are innocent but they need them to be the "scapegoats" for a while so they can catch the real criminals.

Megumi had been relieved that she had not run into Yamada in the weeks following her leaving his research project. He was a creep and her recent encounter with him just emphasized that fact. Her advisor didn't ask for details when Megumi told him that her research didn't exactly go with Yamada's and that they had parted ways. Dr. Genzai assigned her to another project which Megumi had been working on since. Only a few more weeks and she would be done.

Strange. Megumi thought. This substance does not look like marijuana. She had gone into Okuda's station next to hers to grab a spare mirror because one of her scopes showed a hairline crack. Megumi looked down when she felt her foot land on something. She had stepped on a small packet full of dried leaves laying on the floor, as if it had fallen and had been left unnoticed. Megumi's fellow researcher was working on a study involving medical marijuana for his dissertation so having dry leaves in this station was not unusual.

Suddenly, the computer next to Megumi chirped and the screen lit up. Numbers and chemical analyses marched across the screen in front of her incredulous eyes. She recognized some of the data as ones that Yamada had wanted her to work on. He must have passed it on to Okuda when she left the project.

The formula was for a substance more addicting and far more dangerous than any concoction of marijuana and Spider's Web combined.

Megumi lost no time in dialing her fiancé. His voicemail picked up.

"You've reached Sagara Sanosuke. Please leave a message."

"Sano, I think Yamada is cooking up a drug that is highly addictive and very possibly lethal. I don't know if this even has anything to do with the case, but it's something that should be looked into."

Her phone rang with an incoming call from Sano just as she finished her voice message. She quickly repeated the information back to him.

"I'll have Kenshin look into this, Kitsune. Meanwhile, you should go home. You shouldn't stick around there."

"It would look suspicious if I left, Sano. Besides, I might gain more information."

"Megumi—"

The warning timbre was evident in his voice.

"I'm not 'poking around,' as promised. Just keeping my eyes and ears open."

"I don't like it."

"I won't stay longer than usual."

"Not a minute more, Kitsune."

~O~O~O~

Megumi made her way to Kenshin's that afternoon. The red headed Special Agent was still at work but Sano was able to remotely let Megumi in at the gate. Saito arrived not a few minutes after her.

Megumi brought out the printouts and photos she had taken of the data she stumbled on at the University as well as the packet she had found on the floor.

"This is very through work, Ms. Takani. Who did you say is in charge of the project?"

"Yamada Jirou. He's a visiting research scientist who arrived rather recently. He came with a large grant which basically gave him access to use the University facilities and services. I was initially included as part of his team but I backed out when I learned it had something to do with the Spiders Web of lore."

Saito gathered the evidence. "I will take these to the analysts back at the Bureau. They will be able to determine what substances these are exactly and if there are any activity on the black markets related to it."

~o~

"How much longer until you're done with your own research?" They were sitting down to a simple lunch Sano had whipped up.

"Another week and I should have everything. After that I'd only need to complete the report which I can do from home." At Sano's unhappy expression, Megumi went on. "Yamada's harmless, Sano. He's delusional and probably a little unhinged but that's all."

"You should have a bodyguard."

Megumi rolled her eyes. "Not this again, Sano. I can take care of myself. If anything happens, you never know—I might finally be able to put my years of high school Aikido into practice." She joked.

"Don't say that." Sano certainly didn't think it was funny. Megumi sobered.

"I'll be careful. Promise me you'll do the same."

"I promise."

"Don't do anything foolish."

"I won't."

~o~

Kenshin arrived to find the two poring over papers and documents strewn all over the dining table.

"Hello you two."

"Hey Kenshin."

"Hi Kenshin." Megumi greeted cheerfully. "Sorry for the mess."

"Don't worry about it. What's all this?"

"We're looking to see if there's anything we may have missed. Anything that will clue us in to who Nakamura was working with." Megumi explained.

"As you and Saito had said, she couldn't have been working alone on this. We're hoping to see where that connection is." Sano added.

"Anything yet?"

Megumi shook her head and Sano exhaled in defeat. "All dead ends."

They worked for another two hours before Kenshin took Megumi home. Before she left, Sano stood and walked over to a side table where he picked up a box. Opening it, he handed Megumi the object inside. It was a simple bar phone, the kind that you can drop from a three-story floor and not even scratch. "I want you to take this—just in case."

Megumi attempted to lighten his mood. She bounced the phone in her hand. "I remember these! I used to beat you at snake all the time!" She grinned playfully at Sano.

"I demand a rematch." Sano joked back. "I've programed your important contacts in there and added Kenshin and Saito as well. I needn't mention that I'm your first speed dial." He winked at Megumi who laughed lightheartedly. It felt good to laugh even if it was only for a moment, before they had to return to reality.

~O~O~O~

It was another two days before something significant happened. Megumi was leaving the hospital after her internship when her phone rang.

"Hi, Kenshin."

"Megumi, where are you?"

"I just left the hospital, why?"

"I'm coming to get you."

"Okay… What's going on? Where's Sano?"

"He's been in an accident."

A/N: Helllooooo! Dear readers, it's been over a year since the last update on ARB. Gomen nasai! I'm so sorry. I'll try to do better…. If you're still interested in this story, I'm so glad you are. I will finish it, I promise!