Author's Note: Alright, my first RK fic in awhile! I'm very excited to write this, but let me just give everyone a heads up: this story is intended to be very dark. The setting is somewhat AU, although I won't explain just how yet. I don't wanna give anything away. As always, all comments and reviews are appreciated!

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except the ones you don't recognize. RK does not belong to me (sad!).

Chapter One:

the side of me that no one sees
is warring to be free
to release the wraiths that scream in my soul
dripping acid daggers

In the darkest hour of the night, two men stood alone on a deserted street. Even now, when even the rats of Tokyo seemed to sleep, they were cautious. Pressed against the wall and hidden in shadows, they stared at a door and spoke in hushed tones.

"She is there?" The first man asked

"Yes," his counterpart said in a cool voice, "And he as well."

The first man, the taller and more sinister of the two, held a long breath before answering. His eyes were trained on the door, his thoughts on the occupants hidden behind its wooden expanse. He could feel the itch of anticipation gnawing at him and trying to drive him forward. He had already waited so long, already put so much work and effort into his plan … no matter how badly he wanted to, he would not go inside. He would not ruin everything he'd spent so much time working on. He would be patient because he had to.

The man beside him lit a cigarette, the glowing cherry at the end the only color in the black stillness.

"His skill is undiminished," The other man said in a puff of smoke

"You have not seen his skill," The taller man said evenly, "Not yet."

A pause. Then, "Are you sure this is going to work?"

"Now is not the time for doubt, Nobu."

The tall man's voice was even and controlled, but the man called Nobu did not miss his warning. He took another long drag from his cigarette, studying the man next to him through his peripheral vision.

"When shall I begin?" Nobu asked

"Soon," Came the reply, "Tomorrow, perhaps. Continue as you have been: be cautious, and do not be seen. I will send word when everything is in place."

Nobu bowed slightly to the other man before disappearing, silent and wraith-like, into a side street.

The nameless man remained only seconds longer, hateful eyes taking in the door one last time.

Soon, a voice inside him whispered, soon you will step out that door a different man, and I will be waiting.

He left without a backward glance.

Dawn had barely broken over the horizon when she awoke. She could not say what had woken her so early, or why her sleep had been plagued by nightmares; she dismissed both as unimportant events and stretched. The morning was still quiet, a rare treat that she rather enjoyed.

She rose and began to dress, the last vestiges of sleep falling away as she secured her ribbon in her hair. A long time had passed since she'd last been awake this early; the dojo was still and quiet around her.

Kaoru slid open the shoji door and padded softly out of her room. An easy smile lit her face as she passed Yahiko's room, where he was snoring rather loudly. She made her way down the hall and emerged noiselessly into the unfolding daylight. The sunlight was already warm and inviting, full of promise for a beautiful day. She closed her eyes momentarily, basking in the gift of a new day.

"You are up early, Kaoru - dono."

His voice did not startle her.

"I could say the same to you, Kenshin," She said evenly, turning to gaze at him

His back rested against the wooden beam behind him, and he had one leg pulled up to his chest. He looked alert, but underneath that she could see the truth. He had not slept the night before; in fact, she doubted that he'd even moved from the spot he occupied now. Lately Kenshin seemed a bit more distracted, even distant, than he normally was. She wondered if it was because of the note; she longed to ask him if that was what bothered him but seemed somehow to lack the words.

From his seat on the porch, Kenshin watched her closely. He could see the strain of a sleepless night written on her delicate features and wondered why sleep had evaded her.

Several moments passed in this manner, each scrutinizing the other from their respective spots.

Kaoru finally sighed and looked away, fixing her gaze on the leaves of a nearby tree. She wondered how much longer he was going to do this, then shook her head almost imperceptibly. He would continue on like this until there was no longer any danger. He would sit out here, standing guard, until he was certain that they were safe. No matter how she pleaded with him to rest, he would not relent.

"Another uneventful night?" She asked softly

He made no answer, only watched her with those familiar violet eyes.

"Just let it go, Kenshin," She said for what felt like the millionth time that week, "Nothing's going to happen."

"I hope you are right, Kaoru - dono," He finally responded

He refrained from telling her that she was wrong. Although no one had tired to attack during the night, Kenshin knew that someone had been outside that door. Someone had been there, watching, waiting. Kenshin had sensed the presence and stayed rooted to his spot. He too would watch, and wait.

Kaoru's eyes were on him again, searching his face for a truth she couldn't seem to find. He raised his eyes to meet hers in an intense gaze. She wanted to gasp but couldn't find the air. His violet eyes churned with strands of gold, shining in a way she'd never seen before.

"Are you alright?" He asked softly

"What?" She replied, pulled from her thoughts

"You had a strange look on your face."

"I was just thinking," She responded, then smiled, "At any rate, the night is over. Why don't you come inside now?"

She moved toward him, then held out a hand to help him up. An odd gesture, he thought, since they both knew he needed no help standing. For a moment he was inclined to ignore the gesture, but something urged him not to. Slowly, he laid his hand in hers, violet eyes lingering on their connection.

In one fluid motion, Kaoru helped pull Kenshin to his feet. She wondered briefly at how much power could be hidden in such a deceiving manner; Kenshin certainly did not look like the manslayer of legend. Her eyes drifted downward, to the hand that was still in hers. His hands were rough, no doubt from the years of wielding a sword. Such rough hands, yet capable of giving such kindness …

"You are blushing, Kaoru - dono."

Her head shot up in embarrassment, the blush she had not been aware of deepening.

"I'm not … I just …," She stuttered, "Sorry. I think I must be a little tired still."

Kenshin gave her a small smile and pulled his hand away from hers. Not five breaths later a barely coherent Yahiko stumbled his way out onto the porch.

"Morning, Kenshin," He greeted, "Morning, busu."

"Morning."

Kenshin watched Yahiko's eyes go wide in surprise. Apparently a simple good morning was not the response the young boy had expected from her.

"Are you feeling alright, Kaoru?" Yahiko queried, one eyebrow raised

"I feel fine," She said easily

"Did I … interrupt something?" He asked again

"Of course not."

She smiled, but the inflection of her tone caught Kenshin's attention. He watched her through a veil of bangs, studying her expression. Was she … upset? No, that wasn't the right word. Unnerved seemed to describe it better.

"OI, Kenshin!" Sano's loud voice suddenly boomed, "Quit playing sentry and make breakfast! I'm starving."

Kenshin shook his head and smiled. Sano wasn't a morning person; actually, the red head was surprised he was awake at such an early hour. Once he thought about it, he was surprised that any of them were awake this early. Normally the few hours after dawn were his alone, his to ponder the questions of his heart while he went about his duties. What was it that had woken them all so early this morning?

Yahiko turned and headed back toward the kitchen, already anticipating the thought of food. Kenshin started after him, only to stop a few steps short of the door when he realized that Kaoru was not following them. He half turned back to her, the question he was about to ask dying on his lips when he saw the intense stare she was leveling at him.

"Kaoru - dono?" He queried

"I know something's wrong, Kenshin," She said quietly but evenly, "I can feel it. I can see it in your eyes. What are you thinking?"

Her question caught him off guard; he did not know how to answer, so he simply remained quiet. Even if he had been able to form an answer, he wasn't sure that he would have given it to her anyway. The dark thoughts that danced around in his head were not fit for one as innocent as she.

"I was going to ask what you wanted for breakfast," He said then, smiling

Her eyes narrowed and she glared at him.

"If you're not going to tell me, Kenshin, then don't - but don't resort to lies."

She bustled past him and down the hallway, frustration and worry eating at her. Something in Kenshin had changed, something was different, and she was unsure if she should be worried. Ever since the day that damn note had been nailed to the courtyard door Kenshin had become somber and pensive; that was the day he'd stopped sleeping and started guarding the door. Only a week ago, she mused to herself, and already so much has changed.

Her mind wandered back to that day. They had been headed to the Akabeko, the four of them, and when Kaoru had pulled open the big door she'd been surprised to see a piece of paper nailed to it. Curious, she'd ripped it from the nail and simply stared at the cryptic message.

It is coming.

Confused, she'd turned wide eyes to Kenshin and simply handed him the paper. She'd watched as if in a haze as he read and then reread it, his eyes slowly narrowing into cat like slits.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Sano had demanded

"Nothing good," Kenshin had replied tersely

Kaoru pushed the memory out of the forefront of her mind as she joined Sano and Yahiko in the kitchen. She did not look up at the sound of Kenshin's footsteps, choosing instead to set out the bowls and chopsticks for everyone.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, perhaps one of the quietest meals they'd shared in their time together. Kenshin felt a strange twinge in the pit of his stomach as he glanced at the faces of the people surrounding him. They were a strange group, he knew, and an unlikely family, but it seemed to work for them. An old emotion began to blossom in his stomach then, the same one that he had been trying to quell for days now. Anger seeped into his blood as he thought about someone threatening the people he had come to think of as family; anger made him want to hunt the perpetrator down like a ravenous beast would its next prey.

Never mind that they didn't know who the perpetrator was, or what exactly they were after.

Here the anger gave way to frustration. He had no idea what was being planned or by whom, but he swore to himself that he would be ready. In the event that you could not predict your enemies next move, you simply had to prepare yourself for anything. So each night he took up post on the porch and waited, ready. The people within these walls would be safe - he would make sure of it.

Kaoru gasped; that sound coupled with what he swore was the sound of something breaking pulled his attention back to the world outside his thoughts. Kaoru's azure eyes were wide in - was it surprise, or shock? - and Yahiko was simply staring at him.

"Kenshin," Kaoru said quietly in her lilting voice

Confused, he followed her gaze down until he was looking at his left hand. Where once he had been holding a glass, he now saw only shards. So concentrated had he been on his anger that he'd squeezed the glass so hard it had shattered in his hand, leaving behind only the piece that was now jutting out of his palm.

"I'm sorry, Kaoru - dono," He began, rising from his spot, "I wasn't paying attention. I'll get you a new one as soon as I can."

Kaoru made no reply, merely stood and made her way over to him as he began picking up the pieces of the shattered pottery. His movements were effectively stilled, however, when she reached out and latched one small hand around the wrist of his injured hand.

"Yahiko, will you clean this up please?" She asked, already pulling Kenshin in the direction of her room

Yahiko, who still seemed at a loss for words, merely nodded and rose to do as she asked.

For his part, Kenshin merely followed her silently to her room. She slid open the door and pulled him in, pushing him gently into a sitting position on her floor. She stepped around him and pulled out a box of bandages and ointments from a drawer, then came to sit before him. Wordlessly, she took his hand and pulled it gently to her.

"I'll try to be gentle," She said quietly

He concentrated on the nerve endings that seemed to dance where she touched his skin and wondered how she could be anything but gentle. He watched as she patted the blood from the area around the glass shard, her ministrations slow and careful. His eyes traveled from his wound up her arm, his gaze coming to rest on her face.

Strange thoughts accosted him then, and though he tried they refused to be ignored. He thought about how smooth the skin of her hands felt against the callousness of his own as they moved deftly about their task. Such delicate hands, so pure and unstained.

Kaoru, aware of the way he was watching her, lifted her gaze to meet his. She felt instantly breathless, as if the room simply did not have enough oxygen to support her. His gaze was intense, smoldering even, and he did not look away when she met his eyes. Tendrils of amber warred and danced with the usual violet of his eyes, swirling together to make his eyes the palest she had seen them. His eyes burned into her own; even if she had wanted to look away, she wasn't sure that she would have been able to.

She pulled the shard from his hand in one clean movement, her eyes never leaving his. He didn't so much as flinch. Somewhere within in her she found the will to pull her eyes away from his and look down at his hand. Despite the blood, the cut did not look as deep as she had originally feared. She piled the cloth over the open wound and applied pressure to stop the bleeding.

"I'm sorry."

His voice was low and flowing; she fought back a shiver.

"I'm more worried about your hand than I am the cup, Kenshin."

He watched her discard the bloodied cloth and pull fresh bandages out of the box. She folded a small piece of cloth into squares and then held it against the wound while slowly wrapping a bandage around it. Three, four, five times she wrapped it around his hand, holding it snug while she tied a knot with the remaining material. Finally, she released her hold on his wrist and he flexed his hand, testing it.

"Thank you … Kaoru."

He couldn't say what possessed him to drop the honorific, but the effect was immediate. A small blush that mimicked the one he'd seen earlier tinted her ivory skin a pale rose color, the flush deepening the blue of her eyes.

"You're welcome, Kenshin," She nearly whispered

The air in the room had become electric, charged with the tension that radiated between them …

"Kenshin!"

Kenshin's head whipped up and toward the door at the sound of Sano's voice. Loud footsteps pounded their way toward them, the sound followed closely by Sano as he barreled into the room with Yahiko in tow.

The look in the other man's eyes made Kaoru want to flinch, but she ignored the urge.

"Sano, what …" Kenshin began

He let the sentence hang. Clutched tightly in Sano's hand was a familiar looking piece of paper; Kenshin felt the anger surge inside him once again and set his jaw.

"Where did you find that?" He ground out, standing

"Yahiko found it, but …"

"Where?"

Even from where she sat Kaoru could tell that Yahiko was afraid to answer the question; she felt a cloud of dread sink her stomach.

"Where?" Kenshin repeated

"…Tree," Yahiko finally managed, "It was nailed to the tree by the clothes line."

Fierce, rabid anger bit at his insides with steel teeth. Nailed to a tree … inside the grounds? Someone had managed to get inside the grounds without him knowing? How? When?

"Give me the paper," Kenshin said coolly, extending his uninjured hand

"Listen to me very carefully, Kenshin," Sano began, holding the paper away from him, "Don't lose your head when you read this."

His eyes narrowed dangerously at Sano. Kaoru, who had remained seated on the floor next to where he stood, could almost feel the tension rolling off of him in waves. She watched Sano hold the paper out to him; she saw him take it, and saw the movement of his eyes as he read it.

Kenshin went utterly, perfectly, deathly still. The words on the paper stifled the breath in his lungs. They jeered at him, screaming their taunts in the perfect silence of the room.

Hers will be a fate worse than death.