SA: Woo-hoo. Another chapter, aren't you all happy? Exams and school are over, may the world rejoice.

Disclaimer: -- No I don't own it. Ya ken?

Nobody said it was easy/
Oh it's such a shame for us to part/
Nobody said it was easy/
No one ever said it would be this hard/
Oh take me back to the start/

Coldplay "The Scientist"

(Makimachi Mansion in Tokyo)

Omasu cursed lightly to herself, rifling through the neat piles of papers stacked on the late Makimachi-sama's desk. Knowing her former leader as she did, Omasu guessed what she was looking for wouldn't be there. But then… where could they be? Omasu faintly heard Okon shuffling around in the next room, her steps as quiet as a ninja's should be.

The onmitsu ran her hands lightly over the panels of the expensive mahogany desk and contained her gasp of surprise when her finger touched a trigger and a hidden drawer sprang out. Omasu grinned. She knew instinctively they would be in here, and the woman had learned long ago that she needed to trust her instincts. Only problem was, the drawer was empty.

(Chou's Shop)

"Care to repeat that?" Aoshi's voice was flat and deep.

Flattened against the wall outside the office door, Misao sucked in a tiny gasp. Chou was in league with Shishio! And he… oh no! Now that…that bastard knew they were here!

Although Aoshi had firmly told her not to look and to stay out of the way and out of sight, Misao's natural curiosity overcame her caution. She crouched and inched carefully below the smoked glass to the door, where she sat gathering her nerves and wits from where they lay in scattered pieces on the floor. She peeked around. Aoshi had Chou at swordpoint.

She ducked back. It looked like her guardian had the situation under control. Suddenly the muffled sounds of a scuffle reached her ears, and Misao stiffened and looked again. Several more men, who had obviously been waiting for a situation like this in another back room, had joined the conflict and forced Aoshi to relinquish his hold on Chou.

Misao gritted her teeth – six against one wasn't fair odds. As she watched, one of the masked men came behind Aoshi with a knife raised. The girl reacted entirely without thinking.

Aoshi was busy with Chou and two of his darkly dressed assistants when he sensed another presence behind him. The ninja spun, only to discover the man writhing on the ground, a kunai thrust through his gut, dark blood pooling sluggishly around him.

Misao's jaw was slack as she stood in the doorway clutching the set of throwing knives. I killed him. I killed him. Oh, God! I killed a man!

By that time, the remaining four had begun advancing upon her, leaving Chou to deal with Aoshi. Misao began to faintly panic. She had no idea how to fight – she hadn't beaten anyone up since a boy groped her in junior high! The knife throw had merely been luck coupled with her natural good aim.

She gripped a kunai in each hand, sinking automatically into a stance she'd seen Jiya take once while training. It suddenly occurred to Misao that every member of both her real family and the people that raised her like family knew martial arts. Everyone except her, of course. Suddenly she wished she'd pressed Shiro and Kuro into teaching her when she was younger – or Okon, or Omasu, or even Jiya!

But it was no use to her now. She drew her brows into what she hoped was an intimidating expression as they came at her.

Chou was an expert swordsman – Aoshi had expected no less. But he wasn't the best, oh, no, Aoshi had sparred against better. Saitou, Okita, Himura, Hijikata, and Kondou, to name a few.

Their blades flickered around each other in an intricate pattern of offense and defense, slash and parry. Both combatants were both acutely aware of and distinctly separate from the world outside their tiny battleground. Sometime along the way a window had shattered; shards of glass were scattered beneath their feet.

Chou wore a look of intense concentration, beads of sweat dripped from his forehead and traces of emotion occasionally flitted across his face as the tides of battle turned. Aoshi, in contrast, had in place his stoic mask, which he did not break, even as the tip of Chou's katana pierced the skin of his arm.

Aoshi retaliated with a kenpo kick to Chou's chest that sent the other fighter flying backwards, temporarily robbed of breath. As Chou the Sword Hunter (I used to know what this was in Japanese, but I forgot) struggled to his feet, Aoshi reset his original stance in quiet waiting.

Chou readied himself once more and he sensed the subtle change in his opponent almost immediately. He wondered briefly what caused it, but the answer hit him like thunder as Aoshi slipped into movement.

The Kaiten Kenbu.

Misao yelled and flailed about wildly, sending her limbs flying in every direction in a desperate attempt to fend off her assailants. Her lungs burned; she felt like the time she'd nearly drowned at seven.

"Aoshi-sama!" she screamed through the flurry of knives and fists and feet. One of the men guffawed. Her next kick connected with his jaw and his head snapped back with a sickening crack that jolted Misao's spine. Again! Why is this happening to me? I don't want to kill anyone! No! Aoshi-sama! The mental screaming roared in her ears and blasted on like a broken record.

Aoshi didn't hear.

The Kaiten Kenbu was everything the rumors had suggested and more. It was impossible to follow, the slow and flowing movements of Aoshi's body as baffling as the progress of a river. Slow… now faster… slower… or was it faster?

Chou stood absolutely still, the beads of sweat from before now rivulets between his eyes. He gave up on trying to understand and predict Aoshi's sword-dance, and was now simply hoping to avoid the end. He had only two katana left on his person – the one in his hand and the one he didn't want to use if he didn't have to. It was his secret weapon and last resort. It was the type of weapon that worked best if your opponent wasn't expecting it.

Aoshi was finished toying now. Chou was once again sent flying back into the wall, this time lacking both breath and a significant amount of blood. His katana went spinning across the floor.

Aoshi turned in time to hear Misao shriek his name. Another man was dead at her feet, most likely of a broken neck. Two of the remaining three now palmed knives, and one had picked up a katana that somehow had not been secured.

He was charging at her now, and from the looks of things she would not notice him in time to successfully dodge.

Misao felt her body lifted and carried with the force of Aoshi's weight onto the cluttered desk in the corner. She barely had time to register the proximity of their bodies and the mingling of their blood and sweat before he was off again, trench coat swirling around his ankles, standing before her like a knight in shining armor.

The three were dead before they could blink. Aoshi turned and helped her sit up.

"Domo arigato, Aoshi-sama - "

He cut her off. "This time, stay here."

She bit her lip and studied the floor. "Gomen nasai," she said quietly.

The razor-sharp blade of Chou's 'secret weapon' cut the air between them with a loud snap.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. So that was why Aoshi-sama had been so brisk with her! She turned her eyes to the ongoing battle. Chou was obviously weakened significantly by Aoshi's Kaiten Kenbu, but was still fighting gamely with that freaky whip-like sword of his. On closer inspection, she realized it was actually his belt. She smiled faintly. Ingenious.

Only, Aoshi was still so much better. Within six minutes of hard fighting, Chou was on his knees, Aoshi's kodachi pressed against his throat again.

"You are going to come with us, and you are going to act natural. We don't need you. Any false move on your part and you are a dead man. Misao," he turned to her, "here." He tossed her two sets of shining new kunai. The ones she'd used in the fight were left where they were. "I knew they were right for you."

That – just then – was that the primitive predecessor of a smile? Misao wondered to herself incredulously as she numbly followed Aoshi and Chou out of the ruined building.

She didn't realize she was lagging until Aoshi called to her, "Makimachi-san! Hurry, before the police show up."

(Shinsengumi Headquarters)

Saitou chewed them out, as was expected. They had gone behind his back; they were his responsibility, yadda, yadda, yadda. Misao listlessly tuned him out; Aoshi took it like a man. It was, of course, his fault.

But then, he said, it wasn't a complete fiasco. Chou's capture was a major step in Shishio's apprehension. He was apparently a member of the Juppongatana, Shishio's legendary band of blood-thirsty followers – the strongest and most loyal of them all. Even though Chou stood on the bottom rung, he still had valuable information that the Shinsengumi certainly could use.

Misao slowly began to pay attention. Was the cranky old bastard actually giving off a slight aura of praise? Jeez! Now the sky will fall and pigs will sprout wings, she thought sarcastically.

"Before you go," Saitou called after them, "get your wounds patched up by Dr. Takani."

Tokio, who happened to be sitting at the desk again, smiled at the pair as they left the office. Misao eyed her in passing. She was beginning to wonder exactly what job the woman held in the close-knit and close-mouthed community of the Shinsengumi.

Takani Megumi, unfortunately, was not in her office yet due to a miscommunication.

(That Morning – Megumi's Apartment)

By the time Megumi woke from the deepest sleep she'd had in years, sunlight was streaming through the half-open blinds, illuminating a scene she half-wished she would never have to face. Clothes were scattered haphazardly across the room, the sheets were a mess, and lying next to her, breathing deeply with his arm slung casually around her waist, was none other than Sagara Sanosuke.

She sighed deeply as she estranged herself from his limbs – carefully, without waking him – and reached for her robe through still-blurry vision. She turned back, letting her fingers stroke his (surprisingly) soft, spiky, chestnut hair. She kissed him gently on the cheek, muttering, "Sleep well," before climbing from the mattress and heading to the shower. Somehow, she never did get that bath yesterday.

(The Aoiya)

"Do you still want to learn how to fight?" Aoshi asked Misao.

She didn't look up from the table where they sat. "I killed them, Aoshi-sama."

"Aa," he said, uncertain of what she wanted from him.

"And if I learn how to fight, I will kill more."

"Aa," Aoshi had absolutely no idea where this conversation was going.

"But I think I will have to anyway. I like you, Aoshi-sama, but I don't want to have to rely on you all the time! If there's one thing I learned from my mother," she added softly, "then it was that a woman has to know how to take care of herself, because at some point in her life, she will be alone."

Somehow, an unfamiliar sentiment akin to pride tingled in the back of Aoshi's mind. He guessed appearances really were deceiving – who would have thought upon meeting her that the skinny little weasel girl had it in her? Aloud, he replied, "I know someone who can teach you the basics."

(Kamiya Apartment Building)

The door swung open to reveal Sanosuke, his brooding expression a stark contrast from his unusually neat appearance. He was freshly showered, his hair combed and his clothes washed.

Kaoru glowered at him as she raised a wooden spoon menacingly. "Sanosuke! Where have you been all this time?! We've been worried!"

He stood in the hallway and spread his hands disarmingly. "Relax, Jou-chan, I was at the kitsune's."

Kaoru did relax slightly, seeing that the rough street fighter was (relatively) unharmed, except for some scratches and bandaged knuckles. "Mooching off someone else, were you?"

His expression shifted from brooding to slightly depressed. "Yeah."

Kenshin, suddenly appearing over Kaoru's shoulder, snapped his clear purple eyes to meet Sanosuke's. Though the red-haired ex-Battousai said nothing, Sanosuke felt as though Kenshin probably knew all of his thoughts at the moment. The street fighter tore his eyes away, not ready for that particular challenge.

So what if he had feelings for the fox lady? So what if Kenshin and Kaoru, and probably the rest of the entire world, knew it? She certainly didn't return them. A one night stand, made possible by improbable circumstances and stress. She probably wasn't even thinking clearly when she accepted his advances. It wouldn't happen again, he knew that when he woke and she wasn't there.

"Sanosuke? Are you feeling all right?" Kaoru asked gently.

"Yeah. I'm fine." A thought occurred to him and he turned a sheepish grin in his landlady's direction. "Do you guys have any food I could uh, borrow?"

"Sanosuke! Are you trying to tell me you still don't have any food of your own?! And what about that rent you said you would pay me by this month?"

"Easy, Jou-chan, I'll give it to you next time! I promise!"

Kaoru sighed. Why did she suspect she would never get the money from Sanosuke? If they weren't old friends… The Shinsengumi rookie mentally massaged her temples. She was far too soft hearted – but she really had to make ends meet somehow. She only had two boarders and one was really a freeloader. Her job at the Shinsengumi didn't pay much yet, and it probably wouldn't for at least five years. Kendo instructing in the basement of her building hadn't panned out. Her only student was her little brother, Yahiko. He most certainly didn't pay her.

"Come on in," she said, defeated. "Kenshin's cooking tonight." I will never be assertive enough to get what I really want. Short-tempered? Yes. Cranky? Yes. Scary? Most definitely. But nothing ever got done, and she never had any money.

Yahiko emerged from his bedroom at Kenshin's call for dinner. He saw Sanosuke and immediately latched onto the older man's head.

"What's the big idea, kid?"

"Don't you have anywhere else to go, rooster-head?" Yahiko growled as twelve-year-olds tend to do.

"No."

"Why don't you get a real job, ya bum?"

"Yahiko!" Kaoru snapped. "Don't be so rude!"

The table tensed. Yahiko glared at his surrogate sister/mother/teacher and decided to open his mouth again. "You can't tell me what to do, ugly! You're not my mother!" He stormed off again, without touching or looking at his food. There was a collective sigh from the adults still gathered around the tiny kitchen table.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with him," Kaoru groaned miserably. Inwardly she was hurt. Who had cared for him all these years? And he still didn't appreciate her.

Kenshin patted her back awkwardly. "All kids go through a stage like this. I'm sure he'll outgrow it."

"Yeah…"

Sanosuke ran a hand through his hair. "I should go…"

"Don't even think about it, Sanosuke!" Kaoru said sharply.

"Jeez, alright, I won't."

A businesslike knock sounded at the door of the small apartment.

Kaoru stood slowly. "Who would be coming around here…?" As a precaution, she flung the door open quickly and stepped to the inside, weapons at the ready.

"Kamiya-san?"

She cautiously peeked at her guest. Tall… trench coat… dark hair… Eep! "Shinomori-san? What can I do for you? Would you like to come in? I'm sorry it's not much we're just having dinner, heh… heh…"

She noticed for the first time the smallish girl trailing after Shinomori. Despite her size, she looked somehow… fierce.

"Oh! I'm sorry! You must think I'm so rude! My name is Kamiya Kaoru!"

Misao, taking a liking to the older girl, held out her hand. "Makimachi Misao," she said proudly.

"Makimachi? The Makimachi?" Kaoru's eyes widened suddenly. She mentally slapped herself. Of course! This was Shinomori-san's charge! Makimachi Misao! Oh, great, Shinomori–san's going to think I'm stupid and tell someone and I'll lose my job… oh no oh no… And… it just clicked that she was one of the famous Makimachi's, an extraordinarily rich business family and (known to only the select few that dealt in this kind of information) the leaders of the elite and super-secret onmitsu clan, the Oniwabanshuu.

"Yeah," Misao said, rubbing the back of her head, slightly embarrassed.

"Oh, I'm so sorry; I really am terribly rude…"

They had reached the kitchen.

"Himura-san," Aoshi acknowledged the red-haired man seated at the table.

"Shinomori-san," Kenshin smiled secretly.

"And…?"

"Sagara Sanosuke," the spiky-haired fighter said gruffly.

Aoshi nodded.

Kenshin sighed comically. "Sano, this… is Shinomori Aoshi." He turned to Aoshi. "He's not with them, if that's what you're worried about. I would trust him with my life."
Aoshi nodded, again, slightly. "Very well then. Kamiya-san, I came here to ask if you would be willing to take on a student?"

Kaoru paused as she was setting the tea. "Ah… well, yes, I would, if one came by." She answered, not completely able to mask her surprise.

"I would like you to please teach me how to fight," Misao spoke up boldly.

Kaoru furrowed her brows again. "I would be happy to… Although, I'm surprised you don't know how already."

"Why is that?" Misao asked innocently.

"You're a Makimachi – your family's led the Oniwabanshuu for the last two hundred years, haven't they?"

Somewhere in the recesses of the tiny apartment, a pin dropped audibly. Misao was the first to speak. "What?"

SA: I seem to write longer chapters every time, don't I? Took me a long time to write this one, though. sighs I really am a melodramatic person, aren't I? I apologize for any OOC behavior here; trying my best. I hope this isn't too boring…

Review Responses:

Prexus: Nope! Not a word of Chinese! ;;

Misao Mei Mei: I would be honored to submit this story to your archive! I checked it out and it seems pretty high-caliber, so I'm gonna finish the brushed-up version Domo arigato!

Why? What? Shutup: Heehee! That makes us opposites. I had an obsession with Sesshoumaru until I saw Miroku! I still really like Sesshoumaru… I have a weakness for dark-haired guys.

silvermuse89: I know! I hated to do it, I really did. I love Okita as well. It's really cool that you also watched GATTACA, it's an awesome movie, especially if you're into genetics. Can't promise a heck of a lot of KK, but there's definitely more AM coming soon.

len: Thanks for the good luck – that and my mad studying actually paid off, and I get to advance to sophomore year. Oh, Aoshi my dear, yes, the poor guys gonna start experiencing some unfamiliar "feelings."

NARGIEGIRL21: Thank you, I have a rather interesting but strange mind, or so I'm told – or was it that I'm just scary? Anyway, thanks a bunch for reviewing!

Cyjj: I love being interesting. Thank you! Thank you! Tohru expression here