Kaoru sighed, finding herself once again by her brother's bedside running bandaged fingers through his hair. When she had lifted Yahiko to head for the nurse's office, his skin was smoking. But when they arrived, his burns were merely raw, as if just coming from a hot shower. Her burns faired about the same, though she didn't appear to be as discomforted as he was. Yahiko himself varied from wakefulness and oblivion. When he first awoke, the nurse still buzzing around Kaoru and wrapping her hands, he gazed at her with tired rusty eyes, whispering, "Nee-chan."

Kaoru was by his side instantaneously, bandaged hands or not, cooing and offering words of nonsensical comfort. She couldn't do anything else and it irritated her to no end. When they were younger, before their family had started to disappear, she'd had many a day pulled from class because Yahiko had gotten into a fight or mouthed off, or became sick due to a local ghost. After all, their old school system had been built back in the Taisho Era and was teeming with ghosts. One of the big pulls for their father when deciding to move here had been that the school was relatively modern and probably wouldn't have the spiritual problems that they'd had previously. That and that the middle and high school were next door would be invaluable if Kaoru did need to help Yahiko out.

But even then, sitting in the nurse's office with her sibling, Kaoru was always able to have another spirit bring the ghost in question to the small curtained area and firmly discuss matters, so that Yahiko would no longer be bothered.

This, however, wasn't the same. She couldn't summon Shishio Makoto and brow-beat him into submission, or bargain better behavior, or even tell him to get lost. Yahiko was marked. She was marked. If the ghost-turned-demon killed someone and this was the result, things would only get worse. Already, her burns were getting itchy, though she dared not touch them.

Kaoru ran a bandaged hand through Yahiko's hair again, softly humming some tune she remembered her mother singing once. That was another thing Kaoru yearned for. She wanted her mother back. She would know what to do about the demon, how to help Yahiko, remove the marks, whatever was necessary. Instead, time had robbed the Kamiya children of a precious flower that spread its gentleness and wisdom with every breath of her sweet scent. Their father had done his best, but without the gift, Kaoru and Yahiko had to figure things out themselves.

Still, their father had been supportive in other ways. He was very kind with them and well versed in making excuses when supernatural things started to occur around the two children. He was a godsend in that manner. If Kaoru was pressed into going to help a spirit, he would take care of Yahiko and have a hot bath ready when she returned and a good story to tell, along with new insights in how to help Yahiko cope and deal with his own gift.

That was what she and her brother needed. But instead, they were alone and had to make do with nothing. And Kaoru couldn't do anything. She was so useless. So she cooed and hugged her brother closely, as if her mere presence could keep the problems of the world at bay.

"He's worried about you," Yahiko whispered, his eyes fluttering briefly before sighing and going back to sleep, curling into Kaoru's side.

The young kendo practitioner looked up and noticed the threadbare clothes and the freshly lacquered sword.

"I'm sorry, Kenshin," she whispered, not wishing to draw the attention of the nurse. "I just fell into 'nee-chan' mode and shut you out. I'm okay, really, I am."

The look of sorrow and shame flashed across his transparent face, his eyes warring between lilac storms and twinkling gold. "This one can not express his regrets that this has occurred, he cannot."

"It's not your fault," she murmured, once more stroking Yahiko's soft hair, rubbing a thumb across his cheek. "One of us was bound to open the shrine eventually, with or without you there."

The rurouni reached forward, a hand hovering over the child's head.

"Nerves," Yahiko murmured, waking again. "He's nervous." The hand pulled away. "Heavy regret."

Kaoru sighed. She didn't really feel like dealing with his hyperactive guilt gland at the moment. At all. So she ignored him.

"It's okay, Yahiko. You're okay."

"Some day," he replied. "Some day I won't have to rely on you. Some day I'll be able to do this myself."

Kaoru allowed herself a small smile. "I think this is above and beyond what we normally would deal with."

That earned a low, almost bitter chuckle. Yahiko turned his face to her, his eyes going from glazed to sharply in focus. "You're marked," he stated flatly.

"We both are," she replied, not understanding what he meant.

"No," Yahiko growled. "You have two marks." His eyes started to fade again, though he struggled valiantly to stay awake. "One's the same feeling as mine, an inferno." His eyelids drooped; sleep calling him back when he clearly didn't want to go. "The other's....softer....heated stones...." Oblivion finally reclaimed her brother, as he relaxed into her side once more.

Kaoru turned her own sharply focused eyes to the transparent rurouni by the other side of Yahiko's head, a hand once more hovering over the child's head.

"Heated stones is you," she whispered harshly. "When the hell did you mark me? Why? What do you want to do to me?" The image she'd had of the gentle rurouni shattered. Marking was what Shishio had done. And it burned, itched, and poisoned her brother and herself. Their gentle rurouni wouldn't do something like that. But he had.

His eyes slipped to gold and she could suddenly feel the power around him again. His transparence faded, becoming slightly more opaque, and Yahiko whimpered in his sleep.

"How are your hands now?" he asked.

Kaoru glared. What did that have to do with anything?

"Do they still tingle with Shishio's power?" he asked again.

She just held her brother closer, glaring until she realized what he was getting at.

"They don't itch," she murmured. "They're....fine..."

Gold faded to lilac, lacquered sword became translucent once more, and Yahiko relaxed. "This one did not intend to mark you, he didn't. It was an instinct." A hand went through his red locks, abashedly. "When you tried to reach your brother, this one had to keep you away," he said with a rueful smile, a hand once more hovering over Yahiko's head. "When you recoiled from this one's touch, it was then he somehow marked you."

"Then you have to mark Yahiko!" she pleaded, keeping quiet only from years of having hushed conversations with spirits. "Please! Help him the same way you've helped me with this marking thing. He needs it more than I do! Shishio barely touched me, but he engulfed Yahiko."

"Kaoru-dono..."

"If you have to remove my mark to do it, then fine! If Yahiko's flung back from your power like I was, then I'll catch him! But please! Help him!"

"This one cannot."

Kaoru froze; her eyes stinging with tears.

"This one was able to mark you before Shishio, he was. To mark Yahiko after such a strong mark from Shishio would only make things worse, it will." The hovering hand retreated. "It would take great power from this one to provide the same aide that a brief show could do for you, and doing so may do irreparable harm to your brother, it might. A smaller mark would only make the pain when Shishio does things worse." A frustrated sigh escaped Kenshin's lips. "This one must wait, he must."

He was just as helpless as she was. Kaoru couldn't help it. The loss of her parents, Shishio's release, the burns, the interrogations, the gossip, the stares, the everything. Now there was nothing that could help her or her brother. Not until Shishio was defeated. And she still couldn't do anything, and neither could Kenshin, their "guardian". It was all just too much. Kaoru cried. She held Yahiko close and cried. Kenshin could only watch.

The nurse came in a short time later, when Yahiko was awake again and Kaoru had composed herself. Her little brother showed no signs that he knew of her break down, but if he knew, she was grateful he kept it to himself.

"Hey guys! How're ya doin'?" Yahiko and Kaoru blinked tired eyes and turned to the nurse. That was definitely not her normal speech pattern.

"This is going to have to be quick, but I have some questions on what happened to you."

"Misao-dono," Kenshin greeted.

"Misao!?" Yahiko and Kaoru exclaimed.

"Yup," the nurse smiled brightly, her normally brown eyes suddenly flashing the rainy blue eyes of Misao. "My specialty is possession." The nurse's face grew somber. "I know you two are hurting, but I need to know what happened an hour ago."

"Has it only been an hour?" Kaoru was surprised. "It's felt like days."

One by one, they related the events of the walk to school, from the bossy pirate ghost to Yahiko's revelation that Shishio had killed someone. The interview went much faster than last time, given that Misao could ask her questions of Yahiko directly, and she already seemed to know the basics of what happened.

Misao sighed through the nurse's body. "I can't stay much longer. I think Aoshi-sama and I are on to something, but we need a little help. Himura, Aoshi-sama will contact you after these two get home. Would you mind joining us on a little fact finding?"

Kenshin looked to the Kamiya siblings, his translucent face clearly stating he'd rather be with the two of them. "If it will help this one fight Shishio, this one will come once he knows they are safe."

Misao smiled once more and walked the nurse's body outside.

"It's gonna be a long walk home," Yahiko grumbled.

"I think we should just go home," Kaoru agreed. "No point staying here," she grinned humorously. "I don't need that nurse pestering me anymore about sending us to the hospital. We can't afford it and they can't do anything."

"I bet you told her off for that," Yahiko grinned as well, some level of normalcy after the mornings events reasserting itself.

"It was a sight to see, it certainly was."

The door to the nurse's office burst open and a familiar voice could be heard behind the curtains.

"Jou-chan and the kozou are here?"

The nurse, evidently no longer possessed by Misao, replied snippishly, "Who are you talking about, young man?"

"The Kamiya kids. Are they here?"

Kaoru stood up and opened the curtain. "Yes, Sanosuke we are. Now what are you doing here?"

Sano hesitated for a moment. "Megumi left a message that you two needed to be brought home." Kaoru smiled, just imagining what Megumi would do to get Sanosuke's attention. "When I checked at the high school, they told me you and the kozou were here."

"I am not a brat!"

"Keep telling yourself that."

"Hey!" Yahiko moved to leap at their tall neighbor before hissing in pain and doubling over. Kaoru was once more by his side, checking his neck. His burns remained the faded color that they were before the events of the morning, meaning the sudden motion probably just aggravated them. Nothing supernaturally related. She allowed herself a sigh of relief.

Sanosuke walked over to the bed, noticing the fresh bandages.

"So nurse," he said, "what's it take for me to get these two home?"

Sano drove them to his house, not theirs, and promptly sat them in the great room before disappearing into the kitchen. That he was willingly offering his own food, in his own house, was a statement on how worried he was. Kaoru felt warmly touched.

"Imagine my surprise when that icy ninja shows up and says something happened to you, " Megumi was saying. "I was so shocked that he'd even spoke, I thought the heavens would fall or something. I mean, really, imagine the trouble he must have gone through to open his mouth, to dare lower himself by speaking to me. I'm sure it was like taking icicles and stabbing them into his throat. But, oh wait, I forgot. As a ghost he doesn't have a throat. "

Kaoru grinned, picturing the image. Yahiko also had a faint smirk on his face, feeling the mirth.

"But what I want to know," she said, "is how you were able to tell Sanosuke that we needed you."

"Don't answer that, kitsune!" Sano shouted from the kitchen.

"Oh, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, " Megumi laughed. Yahiko in turn gave an odd mimic of it. "You see, our dear rooster doesn't wake up as early as you two. He was much too busy sleeping off all that beer, sake, and other alcohols that he'd eaten for dinner. His feathers were molting, he'd had so much. I had to flip his sheets off in order for him to just roll over. "

Kaoru was giggling, Yahiko again mimicking Megumi's laugh.

"I won't bother explaining what it took to get him out of bed. Let's just say he was very pink by the time he stumbled into the shower. "

"Whatever she's saying is an outright lie!!"

"All the steam fogged up the mirror, so I used that to write him a message. Then came making the water ice cold. That certainly woke him up. " Kaoru was now in peels of laughter, Yahiko not far behind. "You should have heard the curse words he used when he found the writing on the mirror. Our rooster gave quite the cock-a-doodle-doo. His feathers un-molted, and for the first time since he moved in I watched him fly. "

The laughter continued for several minutes, and when it finally died down the Kamiya children felt much better. Sano, bright red coloring his throat to enhance his rooster imagery, finally came in from the kitchen. Two hot bowls of ramen mixed with vegetables and pork. A second trip brought mismatched glasses of water, and the third trip was a plate of apples.

"Fridge was empty, so I stopped off on the way to get you," he said sheepishly.

Yahiko quickly dug in, flinching at the hot broth but inhaling it anyway. Sano sat heavily with them watching as the two of them ate.

"Breakfast wasn't all that long ago, but I'm surprised I'm so hungry," Kaoru said, savoring her apple and licking up the juice.

"Horses would like apples," Yahiko slurped.

"Only ungrateful brats would say that about the roses that bloom over them, Yahiko-chan."

"Don't call me chan! Busu tanuki!"

"Tanuki? " Megumi asked, mirth entering her voice again. "Well, now, that is an image that suits you. In fact I can see the tail right now. "

"Megumi!! I thought you were supposed to be on my side!"

"If Sanosuke can look like a rooster, then you can look like a raccoon. Now all we need is an image for Yahiko. "

"Brat suits him just fine. Although right now pig might work."

"It does not!"

The three of them burst out laughing again. They continued to joke back and forth as they ate, enjoying each others company.

Sanosuke, sipping a bottle of sake until now, put it down. He looked up with dark eyes.

"Jou-chan," he said slowly. "How can you laugh over this?"

Both Kamiya paused, and Megumi fell silent. "What?"

"I saw you when you slid down the snow, I saw Yahiko. I can't even imagine what it felt like when that ghost or whatever killed somebody, but I know it damn well hurt. How the hell can you be so light about it? Shit, how can the kitsune be so light about it?"

"I beg your pardon? "

"No, Megumi, it's fine," Kaoru said quickly. She turned to her live companion. "You're right. It's hard, it's very hard. But there's no point in completely moping about it. It would crush us if it did." Yahiko was very quiet. Kaoru smiled. "But now that that's settled, here," she tossed an apple. "I'm curious if roosters can eat apples."

"You really are a tanuki."

Yahiko grinned evilly. "Glad you agree."

Two hours later, Kaoru was refilling a glass of water. She walked out to the back; the sun was filling a bright, cerulean blue sky. Any clouds that existed were only feathers in the blue. It looked as if the brown tree trunks were reaching up with their branches to try and touch the sun.

"He's after something. "

"What?"

"I can't say with absolute certainty. "

Kaoru stilled, recognizing the voice of Kenshin and the soft tones of Misao's partner, Aoshi. She turned but could not see them.

"Please, tell this one anyway."

"His patterns are very deliberate; he's looking at specific locations. The places make little sense when looking at the present day, but looking at his time period airs it out. He's going to his old haunts, his old battles. The first place he checked was where he and you fought. Was there anything that he treasured, something he liked to keep close? "

Pause. Kaoru realized belatedly she was eavesdropping, but couldn't bring herself to pull away.

"Two things, to his one's knowledge. He treasured the Oiran at his side, he did; and he treasured his sword, Mugenjin."

"The woman is obviously dead by now. He must be after the sword, then. A demon of his rank's power would make him able to physically manifest for brief periods. In conjunction with possessing someone and he would, in effect, be reborn. "

"That would only cause problems, it would."

"Yes. "

And Kaoru felt nothing but worry.