"Ghost in a Clamshell"
Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction

by George Aguirre
lgeorge@telcel.net.ve
http://go.to/xmark

Please be gentle, this is my first Rurouni Kenshin fan fiction. I'll go for comedy since it's one of the subjects I can manage with most ease, and stick to the original Kenshin cast, nothing new, and nothing someone who hasn't seen the first episodes or read the manga can't grasp. I'll try to stick as much into character as I can, and keep in mind it's a practice run! Here goes nothing...

It all began one quiet morning in the Kamiya dojo. Nothing was at all different. Kenshin was doing the laundry, while Yahiko was practicing with Kaoru. Sanosuke had slept the night off then, and was nowhere around to be seen, or at least, not until he'd come around looking for food, or any free meal that could satisfy him. Kenshin was very concentrated in the art of keeping that cloth he was cleaning to the utmost white color, despite it was originally yellow, something which didn't please Kaoru much when she noticed a few days previously.

After he was done, he admired his work. "Almost as good as the real thing!" he tried to convince himself, in denial, while he turned and went to hang it.

On his way, a run amok speeding Kaoru and Yahiko ran him over. "Hag! HAG! HAG! HAG!" cried Yahiko while an uber-demonic Kaoru sped behind him. "Wait until I get you, Yahiko! I'm going to—Aghh!" she cried in sheer frustration, not noticing Kenshin was clinging to her ankle, being dragged away by her in her path of destruction.

"K-K-Kaoru-donooo! Stop! Oro-ro!" he yelled, but it seemed Kaoru was too absorbed in her angry rush to notice. She ran around most of the dojo, and thankfully for him, she didn't spend too much time running outdoors, otherwise the bruises would have been worse. Yahiko kept laughing and mocking the chasing young woman, while she waved her shinai frantically, doing her best to try and strike him. All of them suddenly skidded to a halt when the door to the dojo opened, Yahiko crashing into the person that was walking in, and Kaoru following, both tripping back and falling over the rurouni's body, who simply "oro-ro"ed the pain away.

"O...Ouch..." cried the man standing by the door, who we will simply call Extra, since that's what he is. He doesn't have a complex background story, and therefore, I won't get into it either. But if you really want to know, he cheats on his wife with a younger woman, and he's 26, give or take a few years there. "...W...what the..." he pronounced, seeing before him a trio of crying people, very strange too, on the bottom was a red haired man with swirling eyes and a ragged up white gi on his hand, while the other hand had a death grip on the second person's ankle. Over him was the black-haired girl Kaoru, and over her finally was the little boy Yahiko, piled up like a totem of some sort. "......Maybe it's some new kinky position..." the man considered to himself, thankfully, not out loud.

With a cough, he caught their attention, all of them standing up, Kaoru rubbing the back of her neck and looking ashamed of her actions. "...I'm sorry, uh...are you hurt?" "No..." replied Yahiko, bringing Kaoru's attention again, as the woman firmly whacked his head "Too bad."

"Uh..." "Oh yeah, are you alright?" the conversation started again. "Yes, I...I'm fine, uh, am I interrupting something?" he asked almost nervously, all three of them waving their hands in a negative form "Oh no no..." "We do this every day..." "Yeah, though Kaoru wants Kenshin to be on top..." "Oro-ro?" "Why you--"

After a few moments Kaoru was again at Yahiko, this time having him at a fair distance for a sure beat up, while Kenshin addressed the man politely and seriously. "...Is...there...anything I can help you with?" he said in a gentle voice, smile on his face as if he was selling Amway products.

"Yes...Oh yes, you can help me... Would you mind please taking my challenge--" he began, while Kenshin's eyes narrowed, reaching down for his sakabatou, and jumping the man before he could draw whatever he was beginning to pull out of his gi. The man screamed, and quickly pulled out a paper, Kenshin skidding to a halt before him. "Oro?" "Please! Sir! I just came here to...to deliver this...contest paper!" cried the man, now scared for dear life, before dropping it and running away. Kenshin's eyes blinked at this, and picked the paper up, now deep down in his mind wondering if the man would be ok. "...Contest, huh?" "KENSHIN! KENSHIN! HELP ME!" "HAH! YEAH! YOU CAN CALL ME HAG, BUT WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO IT, WHO's CRYING FOR KENSHIN, HUH?!" "HAG!" "UGH!"

While Kaoru was having a middle-east fashioned struggle with the boy, Kenshin seemed not to mind, ignoring them for a moment while he pulled out the paper from it's envelope. "...Hmm...We...we won." He said in a simple, blunt voice, Kaoru and Yahiko continuing their fight, as he continued "...It's a trip to the coast...to some kind of hot spa resort, trip for two--"

The fight suddenly stopped, while Yahiko lied on the floor, body seemingly limp while Kaoru peeked over Kenshin's shoulder, eyes bright and interested. "What? That's great, Kenshin!" "Huh?" "Well! What's better than hot spa resort by the sea to--" "Buy new clothes! That's right Kaoru-dono! I could get you a new kimono since I ruined your favorite on--" "...Kenshin no BAKA!" "Oro-oooow!"

Kenshin fell back after a prompt hit by Kaoru, who had taken the paper, and was already planning on what to take there. The rurouni sat up and looked up at the girl, tilting his head "B...but Kaoru-dono! We don't know if it's even for real...let's not get too excited..." "...Heh...Excited, that's one word that she wants to hear..." Yahiko added, but instead of getting Kaoru's anger, she found herself in her own little dreamworld.

     "...Oh Kenshin...this...walk by the beach, it's been so wonderful..." "...Yes Kaoru, it's true...but what graced my eyes the best aside from this sunset, and above it was..." "...Yes?" she asked, her voice graced with a meek, tender tone to herself. "...Yes, Kenshin...?" "...It was..." "...Hmm...?" "...LOOK! CLAMSHELLS! I'LL MAKE THEM FOR DINNER, KAORU-DONO!"

Maybe Kaoru expected him to do something as stupid as that, he certainly would, but while it was just a figment of her imagination, Kaoru was now even more angry. She turned to the confused Kenshin, and before he could ask what was wrong, whacked him with her shinai against the wall. "YOU SHOULD LOOK AT ME! ME! NOT THE STUPID CLAMSHELLS. WHAT DOES A CLAMSHELL HAVE THAT I DON'T?!" "...They're edible?" commented Yahiko, before meeting the same fate as Kenshin.

And so, Kenshin and Kaoru began to get ready for their trip. Yahiko was brushing outside the dojo, simply not minding them at all, a bandage around his head to heal from the contusion Kaoru had given him, muttering under his breath how stupid he found Kaoru and her meager attempt at getting Kenshin's attention by this trip. Sanosuke walked in, hands in pockets, with his normal fish-skeleton on his mouth, typical bum look, as he stepped up aside Yahiko. "...What's up? You don't sound too happy." "Nah, it's just that Kenshin's going out with Kaoru to some beach hot spa resort..."

"...Could it be this one?" Sanosuke said casually, showing Yahiko a pair of tickets. The boy gave a blink "Hey, how did you--" "Some pretty freaked out guy came over and gave them to me too! ...He was yelling about having accidentally given up some to a nuthouse..." Sanosuke finished, as Yahiko eyed the tickets even more.

"...Weird...but...on the tickets, it said there were only two winners." He said, now growing to suspiciousness, to which Sanosuke nodded "...I haven't seen that guy around, he must be foreign to this town." "...Yeah..." Both started to think, while Yahiko rubbed the back of his head. "...Maybe we should tell Kenshin something's funky here..." "...Maybe we should..."

"Maybe we should go and peek on them..."

"Yeah, let's do that."

     It wasn't long before Kenshin and Kaoru had went to the resort, both on their own, Kenshin carrying with himself sakabatou, some clothing, while Kaoru seemed to be handling most of the luggage with great enthusiasm, her mind somewhere else.

The place was built on an almost foresty beach side, some rivers flowing out to the sea, possibly hot water rivers, which would explain the reason for the hot spas to be there, and after some more trees, the shore could be seen, while another part of the resort was built on the cliff side, where the rooms where. Kenshin examined the place, very surprised, and now deep down casually pointing out a something.

"...it's strange..."

Kaoru paused, sensing some concern on his voice, seriously questioning him. "What is?" "...Such a fine resort, and yet...no people here...and no fame for it either...". Yeah, it was kinda weird, Kaoru thought to herself, she hadn't seen ANYBODY else coming along the way, neither had she heard of it before. "...Maybe we should...go back." She said cautiously, while Kenshin shrugged "We're here already, if we go back it wouldn't make any sense. Besides, I still have to buy you that kimono..."

Kaoru was surprised because Kenshin insisted on buying it back for her. She made him feel an awful bad for ruining her clothing, but then again, he was too absentminded at the time for her to consider carrying on with the subject. "...alright...but don't you look for clamshells?" "...Huh? Oro? Kaoru-dono? W...what clamshells?"

The conversation seemed to skid aside, while Sanosuke and Yahiko arrived, both of them on their own, knowing that it was best for Kaoru and Kenshin not to see them. "So this is it...The Famous Hot Spa Sea Resort...what an odd name, eh?" Sanosuke commented, while Yahiko broadly smiled. "Heh...I won't have to do the house job while Kenshin's out now! I'll just get to relax and rest for a while!" "Hmm..." "What?" "I wonder if you're old enough to come to a hot spa...you know, bunch of girls around, gods know you're underage..." "..."

That conversation seemed to idle for a moment, Sanosuke giving Yahiko an eye-shot stare, which the boy returned. What would he answer? One answer could question his manhood, and the other make him look silly. Either way, for a boy his age, it was a tough break. After a moment, Yahiko began to speak, Sanosuke grinning to hear his explanation.

"...How about the young boy who's not old enough to be here tells Kaoru that on your way out you took some of her money for gambling, huh?!" "How'd you find out about that?!" "Hey, I'm just a growing boy."

Kaoru and Kenshin approached the resort keeper's counter, while both of them observed their surroundings. Kenshin tapped the counter, when slowly, a man with faded eyes, pale skin, and a black kimono came out. Kenshin almost flipped back from fear, few times having seen someone who was as scary as Shishio and Jin'eh all in one shot. Kaoru paused, staring at the man, and boldly took the shot while Kenshin stared.

"...Uh...excuse me...we won the contest...and..." she began, as the man extended his bony hand to her "...tickets............show..." he said in a rigor-mortis inducing voice. Kaoru quickly flapped them over, as the man eyed them, his face, grim and dull, not changing whatsoever as he read...it was amazing since his eyes didn't move either. He looked up and gave them back.

"..............welcome to the famous and happy hot spa sea resort, where every day is a special day for our guests.........aren't you excited?"

"No." both replied dryly, as the man didn't seem to react. He simply dropped his head on the counter, Kaoru staring in horror "...He died!" "ORO-RO!" both yelled, before the man rose it again. "...I'm sorry, I just felt so bad that you weren't excited..."

"..." "..." both stared in horror, as the man coughed, snapping his fingers "...I will have someone take you to your rooms...". He sank under his desk, and then came out aside them, wearing a traditional western bellboy outfit...Kaoru eyed behind the counter, and then at the man, doing this over and over again.

"But y--" "This way..........." he answered her before she could even begin. "...alright..." she replied, and began following the man, Kenshin walking up aside her. She leaned closer to the rurouni, putting her hand over his ear to hide her whispering. "...Uh.....Kenshin...doesn't this seem kind of freaky?" she asked him without much emotion in her voice, while he simply nodded. "...It...does..." "What are we going to do?" "...Just follow for now..." "And then?" ".......Don't ask him for room service, the thought already scared me, Kaoru-dono..."

That was more than enough for them to stay quiet. As they arrived, they found themselves in a luxurious room, with a view of the sea. Kaoru's eyes began to examine it. It was perfect. Beautiful plants, chandeliers and paintings on the wall, kanji on them with wise sayings and some romantic speakings, view of the sea, and...Only one bed, like traditional western hotels had. She had used one of these before, while on her travels, and slept quite well, although a futon was more than enough for her liking.

"Oh...it seems to be a mistake here..." Kenshin began, before Kaoru pushed him aside, muffling him. "Nothing! Nothing!" "B...but...Kaoru-dono!" "There's no mistake whatsoever...". The old, shady man suddenly gave a huge smile, which sent both Kaoru and Kenshin back in fear to the bed, sitting on it's edge, staring at the horrifying figure before them.

"..........enjoy your stay..."

As he walked out, both of them were pale, their eyes small, their pupils shrunk from sheer, pure fear. Kaoru wasn't sure if she had made the right decision, and Kenshin was almost as scared as if he had seen a death god before him. "...T...that was..."

"Something." Kenshin finished, while the ice broke off. Kaoru coughed and crossed her arms. "What's your problem, Kenshin, complaining about this nice room, huh? It's not like you have a lot to complain for." "B...but Kaoru-dono! It only has one bed!" "So?! It's pretty big..." "...I...see..."

"...You do?" she asked, with a curious, nervous voice, as Kenshin smiled. "...Yeah! Thank you Kaoru-dono!" he said, her smile growing, as Kenshin continued. "You want me to have this huge, uncomfortable bed while I go buy you a futon! I always enjoyed sleeping on these! Thank you!" he replied again, while Kaoru's eyes narrowed, suddenly standing up and picking some clothes from the ones she brought. Kenshin wasn't sure of the meaning of this, nor the reasons of her anger, and he dared ask.

"...K...Kaoru-dono? Is something wrong?"

In a plus-et-plussisimus-satanic voice, she replied, eyes flaring in anger. "NOTHING." Kenshin pulled back furthermore to the bed, knowing it was best to retreat from the battlefield, and change the question. "...Where are you going, Kaoru-dono?" "I'm going to the bathing area, that way maybe I'll get to send off some steam, and you'll buy yourself a futon, 'cuz you're the one sleeping out!" she yelled as she walked out, Kenshin not understanding at all....

Meanwhile, Kaoru walked her way across the bathing pools, each of them steaming in warmth...and yet again, she noticed what Kenshin had mentioned before...there were no other guests. Maybe he was right. This place was suspicious. Maybe she should had brought him along.

That would have been sorta fun too.

But she focused on things, she just had to enjoy these vacations. As she walked between the bushy, grassy path between the stone-made pools, Sanosuke and Yahiko were bathing in one behind said bushes, Sanosuke with a towel over his head, a broad smile across it, while Yahiko simply leaned against the stone, deep in thought about one thing or another.

"...What is it, huh? You haven't said a thing since you got on the water." Sanosuke asked him, his voice relaxed and faded, the boy shaking his head and rubbing his chin. "...I wonder if Kenshin noticed the thing about this whole trip being strange...maybe we're in the middle of one of his adventures, and we haven't even noticed." Yahiko replied, looking down at the towel that surrounded his middle and lower body under the water, from time to time thinking about that scary old geezer who ran the place.

"...If Kenshin was going into one of his crusades, he would have been the first one to tell us." Sanosuke said, adding with a chuckle. "...Besides, don't you think we have the right for a share of fun? Maybe he's being selfish and doesn't want to let us into this one because he wanted to come alone with Kaoru..."

Yahiko chortled at this, grinning. "Heh, yeah...I bet he's on an adventure alright...getting mushy and all..." Both of them laughed loudly, broad mouths open, and while they did so, Sanosuke saw Kaoru walking by a nearby path, quickly pushing Yahiko down into the water. The boy flailed his arms insanely, trying to get some breath, while Sanosuke hid his face with the towel, pretending to look the other way. Yahiko continued to flair, feet and hands trying to find a way to kick the oppressing Sanosuke, and get some precious oxygen into his lungs.

"SHH! Quiet it or she'll see us!" Sanosuke said, pushing Yahiko even more down to the water. After he saw Kaoru had gone to a fair distance, he released the boy, Yahiko gasping and coming out of the water, breathing quickly, standing on the ground outside. Gasping and wheezing followed, as he caught his breath, Sanosuke covering his eyes with the towel again. "See? You have to be more careful..."

"Careful huh?" Yahiko said scornfully, and without hesitation kicked the back of Sanosuke's head, sending him flying down to the water, nailing him to the rock floor. "You're a wacko! You almost drowned me, jerk!" he cried angrily, as Sanosuke came out, both their faces deformed with rage. "Well if you didn't have to be so obvious and have jou-chan see us, I wouldn't have had to push you down in the first place!" "How was I meant to know that hag was around?! I didn't feel my ears burning! What I did feel was lack of air!"

The fight carried on for a while. Kaoru didn't seem to mind, listening from afar to what she called in her mind "A weird couple of pervert guests". "...Ew...a guy and a boy...wonder where Japan's gonna go down to after this..." she said to herself, until she arrived to a pond, finding it isolated, perfect place for her to bathe, shrugging and stepping into the warm water, carefully removing her kimono and putting it to the side.

"...I guess since there's nobody around, I won't be worried about somebody seeing me." She said to herself, and calmly lied back, closing her eyes. "...Hmm...my arms are kinda sore from all that kendo practicing, I guessed this would be good...I was right. That Kenshin's just always suspicious about everything, even this great hotel." She thought to herself, speaking that out loud, calmly meditating.

Something rustled in the trees near her, but she didn't hear, nor see the movement. That water was almost as divine as it had been the last time she ever went to a hot spa, maybe even better. The rustling stopped, and a long pause followed, an eerie silence surrounding Kaoru.

The air grew heavy, it was bothersome around the place. Slowly she felt as if someone was breathing nearby her. An utterly disturbing feeling. She opened her eyes, when she did so fully, a scream was all she was able to produce. In a flash, she was back to her room, only with a towel around herself, and a pale expression, panting as she looked around to see if she was safe.

"...G...Good..." she began, and then turned around, screaming again, but this time in rage and embarrassment. Kenshin was just walking in, confused after hearing her recent scream, and meeting her punch to the face. "Don't look!" she cried, as Kenshin fell out, carrying some of the stuff he bought on the way, door sliding in front of him closed. "ORO-RO?!? KAORU-DONO?!" he exclaimed, and stood up, about to open the door, when it opened by itself, Kaoru grabbing him by the shoulders of his outfit, and pushing him against the wall, violently shaking him, immense pain brought to him by this.

"IT WAS A GHOST, KENSHIN! A GHOST!" she cried while beating him up against the wall, each hurl breaking the bones of his back more and more, confusion written all over his face, and eyes swirling while he tried to utter a word, but all he was able to do was yelp and squeal with each hit.

Sanosuke and Yahiko were just walking near the room, when they heard Kaoru yelling, and some thumping noises, loud thuds heard. Sanosuke's eyes widened, as the boy's eyes grew to have a sickened expression.

"...Jou-chan and Kenshin finally got it on.." Sanosuke said, with a smile of accomplishment on his face, "I think...I need to take a break..." Yahiko replied, beginning to back off, holding his mouth to avoid throwing up, but right on his way was the old geezer. He stared down at the boy, who paled up and blacked out, while Sanosuke eyed him with no fear at all.

"What is it?"

"..."

After a moment, the entire gang was in Kenshin and Kaoru's room, Kaoru was staring at Sanosuke and Yahiko, both of them trying to hide away the shame of having followed, while Kenshin was aware that it wouldn't help at all to bother. In front of them "sat", it you could call it sitting, the old man, who looked them over, and then, breaking the silence, began to speak.

"...This place is haunted..." he said, which, much to the surprise of him, didn't draw much of a reaction from the cast, while Sanosuke muttered under his breath something about the ghost running the resort. Kenshin spoke now, concern and some frustration on his voice. "...I'd like to hear the full story....uh..." he said, and examined the old person before him again, not sure by now if it was a man or a woman. "...sir."

Longshot. Success.

"...Well.....young girl..."

Unfortunately for Kenshin, the man was not as keen as he was with guessing. Sanosuke and Yahiko chortled, as Kaoru and Kenshin listened to the man's story. "A long, long time ago, this place used to be a popular sea resort. Many......many people came here, and I took care of all of it, made their accommodations the most enjoyable ever..." "...Yeah?" "Well...lately, ever since a year ago, maybe less, ghosts began to appear in my resort......they've scared away the guests."

"...Are you sure it isn't something else?" Yahiko asked, while Sanosuke thought to himself about the possibilities of scaring the people whom he owed money to just with a portrait of this old man. "...No, I'm sure they're ghosts..."

A question came up instantly, spoken up by Kenshin, who seemed to be running the discussion. "...But if you knew this place was haunted, why did you run a contest to invite people here? Isn't it dangerous for the guests?" The old man shook his head, and eyed him. "...Young girl..." "Man." "Fine, young girl man." "Ugh." "There was no such thing as a contest...I sent my grand nephew to find people who could fight away these ghosts...after observing you, he gave you the tickets."

"...So this all thing was planned?" Kaoru asked, now growing slightly angry, adding to her previous statement while the others backed off from her "...you planned for us to come here...unknowing there was danger...and put ourselves at risk for your resort, going against a ghost...and...and...tricked us all the way?!" she finished, lifting herself from the ground, flames seeming to come out of her, Kenshin evading them promptly, as imaginary as they were.

".....Yes..."

Kaoru was dumbstruck by the answer, unable to figure a way to respond to the old man, she sat down and decided to stay quiet. Kenshin rubbed the back of his neck, trying to figure out the next path of action, while Sanosuke shook his head. "Look...if there's not anything for us left here anymore, I say we leave..." "I agree." "Ooh yeah, brooms and hags are better than ghosts!" Yahiko finished, earning a glare by Kaoru.

"...Kaoru-dono, calm down...you've been very stressed lately...maybe you do need this hot spa to relax..." Kenshin spoke, serene and quiet, while Kaoru eyed him, Sanosuke as well. "Hmm?" "Although he did try to trick us into helping him, this old man is under an unfair situation...we must aid him."

Everyone knew once Kenshin made a decision, it was very unlikely for him to change his mind. The man gave them another smile, which brought the Kenshingumi to the first group hug ever, but not out of friendship, but out of terror.

"...Thank you...I hope you enjoy your stay.........." He said this, and dropped his head, limply. Yahiko took his shinai and poked him, the man rose his head, making the boy scream and jump back, while the old geezer's eyes flowed with tears. "................I'm so happy!"

"...Well don't share it!" Sanosuke yelled.

After a few idle moments, the man left, and the group organized itself. Kenshin stretched and stood up, everyone watched him, Kaoru speaking first. "Do you have a plan Kenshin? Maybe we could all collect information..." "...Yeah! Sano and I could find out who this ghost could be!" Yahiko added, while Sanosuke nodded, and Kaoru agreed, looking up at him. "How about you, Kenshin?"

"I'm tired...I'm going to take a bath."

The entire gang facefaulted, and jumped him, pounding him to the wall. "We're in the middle of a situation here! You can't just go off and take a bath!" Sanosuke said, while Yahiko growled "And...I want to get out of here soon! That crone's starting to scare me! I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight!" "Kenshin...are you...forgetting that your friends need your help here?! Hmm?!"

"ORO-ROOoooo...."

After a while of sneaking away, Kenshin finally made it to the bathing grounds. He gave a sigh as he meditated, looking down to his feet as he stepped towards the spa pools. "...A ghost huh?" he thoughts, as his mind drifted away with the steamy air, soaking his skin to the delight of most of his female fans. "...I don't see a reason while a ghost would hang around here...besides, there must be something we're missing..."

As if nothing was happened, Kenshin took his clothes off (yes, female fans, this is for you), although kept a towel around himself (suffer), stepping into the water and closing his eyes, rubbing his chin as he continued his thinking. "...Maybe if this ghosts appears I'll be able to get some answers." That was it, a craftily connived plan to acquire information. He really didn't desert his friends, it was not his nature, never, ever.

"...I'm stressed me out too, and the water's pretty nice..."

Well, maybe yes.

"HOW CAN HE GO AROUND AND BATHE WHILE THERE'S A GHOST AROUND?!" Kaoru yelled, and then shuddered at the thought of the hideous figure she saw, while Sanosuke and Yahiko sat on the bed, watching her with idle interest, quite distracted and only minding her a bit or so, until she picked up her shinai and extended it, as if admiring and preparing for battle. Sanosuke rose an eyebrow, curiously.

"Jou-chan, what are you doing huh?" he asked as if it wasn't his business. "If Kenshin won't handle the ghost, I'll handle it! That way I'll get to relax a little." Kaoru yelled in determination, to which Yahiko and Sanosuke reacted by sharing looks and turning to her, Yahiko speaking first. "...Don't you think we should really wait for Kenshin? He's not the type to just go around and laze off like you." "What was that?!"

Before Kaoru could get her anger to a point where she'd pound the boy, Sanosuke intervened, raising his hand to her. "He's right about one thing, I think you shouldn't go alone, we'll go with you." "...It's not like I can't handle it by myself." Kaoru responded, undignified. It was as if Sanosuke and Yahiko doubted her skill at fighting, something she had showed before, and wasn't hesitating on showing again. Sanosuke shook his head. "...no...that is not what concerns us." "Then?" "We're here to chaperone you from peeking in on Kenshin."

"..." Kaoru's eyes widened, the thought hadn't passed her head! Yeah...after all of this, she could get back on Kenshin for all the times he had seen her either naked, or close to it! He was good at accidentally stepping in to the bathroom, so why couldn't it work the other way. She grew a wide smile, horns protruding from the side of her head. "...Nah, I won't..."

Kaoru left with this, while Sanosuke and Yahiko shared glances, Yahiko whacking him for his incompetence at giving her a driving start, Sanosuke simply dropping his head in submission. "Mook."

Kaoru walked across the hall towards the gardens and bathing areas, shinai still in hand. She wasn't the type to forget an important mission for trivial things. Strong personality and mind set would help her, but it would help her better to get payback for all those. "Oro! Sorry Kaoru-Dono! I didn't know you were in here!"

On her way, she saw something that caught her attention. There was a map, an old map, as one of the paintings that decorated the hotel. "...Huh?" It wasn't until a few moments later that she approached the hotel owner's desk, holding the picture she had seen.

"...E...excuse me?" she said timidly, nervous to see the face of the man again, but, as always, it never stopped to freak her out when he appeared. "Egh..." "Yes.........young lady?" he responded in his usual voice that made her wonder if he was dead or not. "...Uh...can you...tell me about this map?" she asked him carefully. "..........very well."

Kenshin was still in the waters, his mind having gone adrift for a moment. It was nice to have some rest...actually the house job did tire him a little, but that was as far as it went. He wasn't the type that complained much. Suddenly, right aside him, Kaoru stepped into the water, towel around herself as well, map on hand. Kenshin's eyes widened, arms flailed away, and mouth dropped open at this.

"ORO?! Kaoru-Dono?!" he asked in a loud, nervous voice, while she shrugged it off. "Look at what I found, Kenshin!" she cried, smiling, beginning to pull something out of the towel. Kenshin stared, eyes wide, and began to sweat visibly.

"NO! NO! I DON'T NEED TO SEE, REALLY--" he yelled in nervous politeness, but Kaoru simply pulled out a small wooden stick to point the features on the map. Kenshin relaxed and blinked, now noticing the scroll that she kept from getting wet, held between her hands. "What is that, Kaoru-dono?" "Look...according to this map, this land here, where we are, is located between 3 small provinces...that's why this hotel was so successful, it was close to three villages that could send in tourists."

"...Yeah?" "Well, strangely, they're all friendly now, but a long time ago, until a few years ago, two of them were at war...The small fighting between them was common, but it was a tad bit on the cruel side...Once it was over, this resort got it's fame, but since a year before, there's been some minor struggle going on between them again, and also, the ghost appeared..."

...She was right. Kaoru had made an important discovery. Kenshin took the map from her hands, examining it, and then pointing at some words written on it. "This is the resort, right?" "Yeah..." she responded, and pointed at the figure, leaning her head on his shoulder to look better, both not seeming to mind. "...This village is right north, and the other one is south...the last one is deeper inland, to the east..." he continued to point out, trying to figure out all the information on the map. "...What's this to the west?" he asked her, pointing to a small notation close to the sea. Kaoru paused and tilted her head "...These are caves...they go inland, and were used as shelters during the war...but they were also used as war pavilions."

     Kenshin narrowed his eyes, now having grown too curious. This did seem like something strange, but the strangest thing that was being perceived at the time were their figures, which from behind didn't seem to have any map, it hidden by their bodies. Sanosuke and Yahiko listened behind some bushes, curious to see what they heard.

     "...What are we going to do Kenshin?" "Let's...check it out..." "But...isn't it a bit on the hasty side? Let's stay like this for a little more..." "But Kaoru-dono...we...we can't, if we don't, you know what could happen, right?" "Yeah...I know..." "I guess we'll have to go in then..." "...Do you think we'll get hurt?" "No, I've done good at this before.'

Sanosuke was, again, growing to a grin as he smiled, content that the events he heard were, in his imagination, the meaning that finally Kenshin would be honest to Kaoru and that they would both put their feelings at first. Either that, or get it on right there. Yahiko was turning green once more, before tilting his head down off sight, and returning the food he had ingested previously near Sanosuke's feet. "Uuuugh..." "Hey watch it!!!"

Suddenly, a breath was felt behind them, Yahiko looked up, and frowned, giving his back to whoever was doing so, crossing his arms, shivering "...Ugh...look, old geezer, you scare me, don't do that ok?!" Sanosuke frowned as well, cracking his knuckles. "...Yeah, it's not my kind of thing." As they turned around, both had smiles of confidence, which quickly sank down into horrified glances of fear, paling and fainting away.

Kaoru and Kenshin stood at the entrance of the cave, the sound of the waves crashing against the sea in the night behind them, cold air blowing behind as well. Kaoru had her shinai at hand, while Kenshin had his sakabatou on it's sheath, and a torch on the other hand to light the way. He gave her a nod, as both of them stepped in.

The caves really did seem to be well built, to resist any kind of tremors, and furthermore, there were pieces of food scattered across the floor. "...So it was a shelter alright." Kaoru deduced, Kenshin nodding at her acknowledgement, giving more thought to things as he walked. "...Why didn't the third village enter the conflict?" he queried, wondering if Kaoru knew. She tilted her head and examined the ceiling of the cave, checking for possible dangers. "...I'm not sure...not sure at all...the hotel owner said he never saw them in battle, but still, even with the war going on, it was the most prosperous of villages."

Kenshin's eyes narrowed, this striking a chord within his mind that added up to the sound of a distant breath, slowly growing closer. Kaoru recognized it, and stared blankly in mid air. "K...Kenshin, that's the...that's...the..."

Suddenly, a ghostly pale figure came in their way, it resembled a man, but his skin was worn and white, eyes completely black, and ragged clothes all over. Kenshin frowned and took his sword out, still holding the torch, while Kaoru took out her shinai, both ready to fight. The ghost didn't move, but simply shook his head. "LEAVE..."

"...No." Kenshin said, authority in voice. The ghost approached them, growing closer. "LEAVE!" he called again, voice thundering loudly, waving his arms and claws, trying to scare both of them. Kaoru frowned and then gritted her teeth.

"...How...could you ruin my vacation huh?! I'm going to get you for this!" she cried, and then tackled at the figure. It didn't think on reacting, without jumping out of the way, Kaoru hitting it's side with her wooden sword. The ghost gave a groan, while Kenshin's eye caught something. He threw a movement ahead, and made the ground under the ghost shake with a move of his sword, it screaming and falling down, obviously unconscious.

"Huh? But--" Kaoru said, still not realizing the bravery she had shown, approaching the ghost and tapping it with her sandal, wondering if it was already done. Kenshin stabbed his sakabatou to the ground, and kneeled, running a hand across the ghost's face, and uncovering under some dust a normal man with black pair of covers for his eyes. "...I guessed...it wasn't a ghost after all."

"Huh?" "...I'll explain later...if this is what I think it is, we don't have time to wait for him to wake up...let's just move on." Kaoru paused and then nodded. Kenshin walked away, leaving her behind for an instant, which she took to kick the unconscious man. "...And THIS is for my time to relax! THIS is for the perfect room Kenshin and I could have shared! THIS IS FOR MY STRESS THERAPY!" she said with each kick, before Kenshin called her. "Kaoru-dono!" "Coming!"

Both ran down the caves, and finally saw, at the end, another exit, it seemed to go...right into the third village. Kenshin paused and examining his surroundings. "Just as I thought..." "...Ok, will you explain now?" Kaoru questioned as she recovered her breath. "...Alright...while I saw on the cave, I noticed that among the food on the ground, there were also some swords, and other weapons. It took me a while to think of it, until you mentioned how this village had the most prosperity during war times..."

"...But...how can a village have prosperity during war? It doesn't make sense." "It does if your business IS war itself..." Kenshin replied, as he began to approach the village. Kaoru began to realize it all now...both villages fought, and the third village sold the weapons, when the war ended, tourism picked up, peace too, and yet the village began to grow poor.

"...And the ghost was just..." she began, hoping Kenshin would fill in her doubt, having figured the previous one on her own. "...A way to get the resort down...see...the resort was built over the main road where weapons were sold to the villages. If there was any people there, the weapon traffic would be noticed, and someone could see they were selling to BOTH villages at the same time...the best way was to make the place as empty as it was during war times, in order to be able to start another conflict, and go back to the 'good' old days."

As they arrived to the town, the first structure that caught their eyes was the old war building. It was easy to recognize because of the many weapon markings outside, as well as the wide number of guards. Kenshin narrowed his eyes and gave Kaoru a glance "...You stay here, Kaoru- dono." He carefully remarked, and began to walk, as Kaoru frowned slightly. "Hey! These are my vacations too, Kenshin, I have a right to beat them up for it!" she cried in return, while the red haired samurai simply waved his hand behind his head "...I'm sorry, Kaoru-dono, but you have to be logical about this. There's a lot of armed guards, and it makes no sense to risk both of us. You know what's going on, so you may call the authorities." Kaoru paused, and then nodded, seeing there was something that could help. "...I'll go warn both the villages, but you take care, don't you get yourself killed..."

Kenshin smiled slightly, a smile of satisfaction, feeling cared for. The satisfaction of such noble feelings in Kaoru made his heard skip a beat at those words were pronounced, skipping another as he replied, and finally skipping all of it's beats when she replied in return."...Alright..." "BECAUSE I STLIL HAVEN'T GOTTEN TO PEEP WHILE YOU'RE BATHING YET!" "ORO--?!"

Inside the war building, Yahiko and Sanosuke were both tied up on the floor, before them was a man, a chieftain of the village, who kneeled and eyes Sanosuke to the eyes. "...Well, you're a smart one huh? Almost beat up the 'ghost'...poor man came back bruised up so much we thought he had actually died." Sanosuke gave the chieftain a glint, and a broad grin in return. "Turn him over again and I'll finish making him a real ghost."

"Cut the crap!" cried the chieftain, standing up and holding a sword at Sanosuke's throat, who stared at him angrily. "...You and your friends have been interfering, knowing too much isn't good, you know!" Sanosuke simply chuckled and kicked the sword away, managing to move his bound legs, while Yahiko simply stayed quiet. The man stared and reached off to grab his sword, but Sanosuke stepped on it, chuckling even in this precarious battle mode. "Uh-uh-uh, we'll be having some pain going around here, and it's most likely to be yours, so you won't need this."

The man stared, and then snapped his fingers, guards surrounding Sanosuke, swords on hand. Sanosuke frowned and looked around. "Maybe not...". The chieftain shrugged, and picked his sword up, turning and waving his hand "...Eliminate them..."

Sanosuke and Yahiko stared, suddenly Yahiko jumped up on his bound feet as well, Sano and him surrounded, and staring at each other nervously, while looking at the man. "Uh! Aren't you going to tell us your evil scheme first?!" "No." "What kind of self-respectless warlord are you anyway?!" both the boy and the man began to shout to him, making the warlord turn around and point his sword at Yahiko's face, who frowned and shook his head.

"Think that scares me?! What really scares me is...your lack of self-esteem!" Sanosuke gave a sigh, and looked up. "What the crap will happen to Japan if men like you take over, huh? We're all going to...have a serious lackage of information!" "Yeah!" both of them continued, keeping the charade as the man continued to grow angry, until he rose his sword, about to slash Yahiko through. Sanosuke shouted out, but to no avail, the sword was already coming down.

Right before it stroke, the reverse sword of Kenshin's sakabatou stopped it, the guards behind them unconscious. "...It's not very nice to kill a person in his presence..."

"..." "..."

"I've ran out of cool lines! I'm a bit lightheaded from the spa steam too, so--" Kenshin argumented, slightly frustrated, his voice meek and mallow, crying slightly while Sanosuke and Yahiko shook their heads. The warlord took some steps back, while Kenshin released his friends, and turned to look at him. "...So you were the one behind all of this huh? You wanted to start a war again just for money. Thirsty for bloodshed just because of greed..."

"...What he said!" Sanosuke excused himself for not knowing the plot, and cracked his knuckles, while Yahiko pulled out his shinai, all three of them ready. The chiefstain frowned and took more steps back, while the other door opened up behind him, as he turned around, expecting to see more guards, all he saw was...

"Kaoru-dono!" Kenshin yelled, as the girl stood on the other side, calmly, with two men behind her. "Did she get caught?!" cried Sanosuke, while Yahiko shook his head. "...She doesn't seem to be scared..." the boy commented, while Kaoru smiled, motioning to the men. They stepped forward, and bowed politely for Kenshin. "...We're both the mayors of the nearby villagers, this woman kindly told us what was going on. We came here to solve the events at hand, but it seems you handled it quite well." One of them said, with a polite tone of voice, very official, to which Kenshin shrugged. "It is alright now. The man before you is the culprit behind a few crimes..."

"He will be judged properly...and given a rightful punishment..." commented the other mayor, while the man threw his sword to the side, guards from other villagers stepping in and taking him away. An idle pause followed while Sanosuke and Yahiko stared at Kenshin, their eyes growing sly. "...So, what took you so long huh?" "Yeah, having fun?"

Kenshin paused, confused as he rubbed the back of his neck. Sanosuke elbowed him teasingly, grinning, as Yahiko held his arms behind his head. "...you don't have to be shy, we heard you and jou-chan! We never thought...you'd be THAT kind of guy..." Sanosuke spoke with a sly tone of voice, while Kenshin's eyes widened. "...What? Oro? Sanosuke, what are you talking about?!" the rurouni complained, while Kaoru blinked and stepped over to Kenshin. "...Did what?" she asked, while Yahiko laughed "Getting it on with a girl!"

"WHAT?!?!" Kaoru yelled in a demonic voice, grabbing Kenshin's throat and beginning to shake him, his head limply waving to and fro, a moan and a whine coming out of his throat as the pain sank in. "WHAT GIRL?! WHAT ARE THEY TALKING ABOUT KENSHIN?! IS THAT WHY YOU DIDN'T WANT ME TO COME?! SO YOU COULD TELL THEM ABOUT THIS GIRL?! WHAT GIRL?! KENSHIN NO BAKA!!!"

"...Uh...."

"...I think I'll just go for a bath now..."

It was a few days later already, Kenshin, Kaoru, Sanosuke, and Yahiko were finally leaving the spa, all four of them walking away, faces of relaxation and calmness on each of them. "...That was nice, huh?" Kenshin said, smiling broadly, in his ever so zealous way of expressing himself, while Sanosuke and Kaoru nodded, Yahiko laughing something off. "And I didn't have to do any house work!" he said amusedly, Kaoru smiling to it too, looking forward "...Yeah...it's amazing how that place picked up costumers again..."

"...Even with that freaky old man running it." "Yeah..." "Sorta scared me..." "I think I had nightmares of him." All of them commented on the old hotel owner, while Sanosuke gave a short chuckle. "Well, let's look at it this way, we won't have to bother seeing him as often if we come around again..." "Yeah...it's good he finally got himself a new bellboy..."

At the resort, the hotel owner was constantly poking at the warlord, on a bellboy outfit, with a stick. "..........you're doing a very good job......I'm proud of you..." as the man looked up, he saw the old geezer smile, drawing a scream from him, one that the Kenshingumi heard from afar.

Kenshin sighed and shrugged, something in his mind still, hands behind his head, Kaoru caught this and narrowed her eyes in concern. "Is...something wrong, Kenshin?" "...Nothing, I think I'll miss...the peace I guess..." "Yeah..." "I think I'll miss the sound of the sea..." "...Yeah, I'll miss it too..."

"...What I'll miss most of all...was that moment when we both took that walk you suggested by the shore..." Kenshin said, smiling to her with a tender look to his face. "...R...really?" "Yeah, Kaoru...there's never been anything better than that walk...we...talked...we saw the sunset and..."

Both Sanosuke and Yahiko were listening in, but Kaoru was too dazzled by Kenshin's words to notice. Kenshin slowly began to pull something out of his sleeve, and smiled broadly. "And the clamshells I found were GREAT for dinner!!!"

Not a second too soon, Kenshin was running his way down the path, screaming, Kaoru waving her shinai behind him. "KENSHIN NO BAKA!!! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!" "ORO- ROOOooooo!" "Do you think she's going to chase him all the way to Tokyo?" "Beats me."

And so, the figure of the rurouni and his friends...running...towards the sunset, spirits high, and insults higher, closes this story. Again, a noble deed and some fun while saving the day.


Liked it? It's my first story. I roughly managed to keep the characters within their natural personalities, but I'll keep working on it! I'd really appreciate feedback being sent to lgeorge@telcel.net.ve or, if you'd like to see more of my work, visiting my site at http://go.to/xmark (Heart of Sword - Rurouni Kenshin Online Magazine). Thanks for sticking across this long mess! I hope I didn't traumatize any of you! 'till next time!

George Aguirre