Kenshin wanted to tear Kawasaka Ikeda apart with his bare hands.  Not only
for killing innocent people and children, but for kissing his Kaoru.  Kaoru
was merely an innocent pawn in whatever game Kawasaka was playing and Kenshin
didn't like it at all.  Imagining her helpless alone with that...man- Kenshin
couldn't finish that thought.  He swore to stay a non-killing wanderer and to
keep Kaoru from becoming sad or worrying about him, he would keep that vow.
He would try to get the idea of anyone else kissing Kaoru from his mind,
especially the kiss between her and Kawasaka.  That kiss angered Kenshin more
than he thought it would. The anger stemmed from frustration and a feeling of
loss on his part.  Frustrated because he knew that this was one of the many
things that Kaoru seemed to be hiding from him, and the loss because...well,
he knew Kaoru well enough to realize that that kiss had to have been her
first, a kiss that should have been hi-
 "Hey Kenshin." Kenshin snapped out of his daze to realize that he'd walked
right into the laundry lines.  Kenshin stepped back quickly when he realized
he was face to face with some of Kaoru's... garments.  With an "Oro?" he took
a step back and felt his foot enter cold water.  "ORO?"  He looked down to
find his foot at the
bottom of the laundry washtub.  With a sigh, he lifted it out and put his
sock-covered foot on the ground. "Ororo?"  He glanced at the tub and saw that
his shoe still sat in the water. He looked down at his dripping sock and saw
grass stains as well as mud sticking to it. He leaned over to grab his shoe
from the tub when he felt a hand come behind him and pushed him off balance.
 "OROROOO?!?"
 Splash!
 Kenshin was completely drenched from head to muddy toe in wash water.
Kenshin looked up to see a very happy Yahiko standing above him. "Hey
there,Kenshin, I just thought you needed a hand. Then again, maybe I should
scram before Ugly sees this. She's gonna kill you for breaking her washtub."
Yahiko was laughing so hard that he couldn't help from bending over in
merriment.
 "Oro?" Kenshin looked back down again to realize that, yup, he'd broken it.
Sighing, he stood up and and futily tried to squeezed the water from his
clothes.  When he was done, he realized that Yahiko had stopped laughing and
was now looking up at the sky. "Hey Kenshin.." he started hesitantly. Kenshin
squatted down besides Yahiko and ruffled the boy's hair, "Yes? Yahiko?"
 Yahiko looked down and pulled a few blades of grass from the ground, "Do you
think Kaoru still likes me?"  Kenshin's eyebrows lowered in concern, "Of
course she does, why would you think otherwise?"  Yahiko shrugged.
 "Yahiko,please tell me what happened to make you think that Kaoru-dono
doesn't like you anymore."
 Yahiko felt kind of embarrased talking to Kenshin about this, but he didn't
know who else to talk about it with. He couldn't go to Sanosuke. Sanosuke
would just laugh at him and call him names.  And Tsubame would...well, he
didn't want her to know how vulnerable he was.  Besides, no one besides
Kenshin would understand how he really felt about Kaoru.  Yahiko knew that
without both Kaoru's courage and Kenshin's understanding, he probably wouldn't
even be alive today. And though he knew he'd never admit it outloud, Yahiko
loved Kaoru as the big sister he'd never have.  Not only did she let him live
at the dojo and taught him how to fight, but she gave him a family.  That's
why her recent distance from him worried him so much.  She used to be so loud
and annoying but now...ever since she slapped him that day outside the dojo,
she hasn't been the same..
 The boy looked at Kenshin sadly,"I don't know..she's doesn't smile anymore
and I have to try really hard to get her to yell at me like she used to. And
the other day, I thought she was gonna actually hit me, but she caught
herself." He shrugged again and whispered,"I guess she doesn't want me around
anymore."
 Kenshin placed a hand on Yahiko's shoulder, "Yahiko," Kenshin shook him
gently to get his attention, "Kaoru-dono likes you, I know she does.  She's
just very upset right now because her dojo is being threatened and tired
because she works so much.  But that should end very soon, tonight, I think."
 Yahiko tried to casually swipe the corner of his left eye before he nodded.
 "Now Yahiko, tonight Kaoru-dono is going to work for the last time.  I would
like for you and Sano to go along with her and Megumi-dono to make sure they
are safe.  Kaoru-dono's boss is not a very nice man and I need you there to
protect them, okay?"
 Yahiko stood up and clenched a fist in determination, "You can count on me,
Kenshin.  No one will lay a hand on Ugly as long as Myojin Yahiko is around."
Yahiko nodded once to Kenshin before running to the dojo to practice his
swordplay a bit before nightfall.
 "He's such a good boy." Kenshin said aloud before walking out the gate and
into the neighborhood.
  *  *  *  *
 Once Kenshin reached the forest, his steps slowed as he allowed himself to
finally go over his conversation with Kaoru-dono earlier.  When he first came
to her door, he called her name out quietly.  After a minute without a
response, he turned to walk away, but a sound of unrest from inside the room
stayed him.  He turned and slowly slid the door to her room open.  Kaoru-dono
was asleep, but her covers had been kicked off and she moved restlessly.  She
looked so beautiful that Kenshin stood there timelessly lost watching her,
before common sense kicked in and he covered her with blankets.  Still
kneeling, he almost touched her.  Her hair was shining black around her and a
piece of it had slid seductively near her lips. Shocked by the thoughts THAT
put into his mind, he stood up and walked to the other side of the room. What
he wanted to say to her was important to her safety and he had to be there
when she awoke.   There, he sat, knowing that he would be the first thing she
saw when she did. That was his excuse anyway. He didn't want to think of the
truth behind his decision.
 Nothing prepared him for the sight of her when she finally did wake up.
 When her eyes opened, she looked so soft and warm that he had to stop himself
from walking to her side of the room to make her look at him that way.  And
when she stretched, he'd realized with shock just how much of a girl she
wasn't. She was definatly a woman, he thought.  He'd never really allowed
himself to think about her that way before, but she was more than he'd
expected or imagined..if he'd ever admitted to imagining her.
 When he realized that she was staring at him, trying to figure out what was
on his mind, what he was feeling, he almost panicked.  Not wanting to shock
her with what he was thinking after he'd done such a great job shockng
himself, he slid the friendly Kenshin mask onto his face and tried to be
impersonal as he spoke to her.  It didn't work though.  He couldn't help but
be concerned and angry when he heard of Kawasaka's kiss.  Kawasaka was going
to pay for making Kaoru cry.  If he still had his katana, he would've-
 Kenshin blinked from his musings and decided to calm himself instead. To
meditate. To feel his surroundings and his body in relation to them. He closed
his eyes.  He was aware that the wind picked up around him, as well as the
sound of leaves as they flew from their branches.  He breathed in deeply and
placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.  Yet, before he could go on, his
peace was shattered by the look on Kaoru's face with tears flowing from them.
The wind stilled and Kenshin's concentration was lost.  He opened his eyes and
released his sword.  Looking up at the sun, he decided to return home to cook
dinner.

It's becoming harder to be a stranger to her, he thought.