A Road Less Traveled
by Tin Mandigma


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This is a Rurouni Kenshin-inspired fanfic
written entirely for entertainment purposes
only. Standard disclaimers apply.

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Part 6: Mystica

"Are you saying that Jo-chan did that to you?"
Sano burst out incredulously.

Megumi sighed as she gingerly touched her sore
face where a large bruise decorated her right
cheek. She winced as her hand made rushed
contact with the still tender flesh. Grimacing
wryly, she looked at Sano. "Yes," she muttered.
"It was--No. It wasn't Kaoru...what I meant
was..." She raised her hand again, this time 
in exasperation. "You will not believe me...
In fact, you don't believe me now."

"Try me," Sano said matter-of-factly.

They were standing in the hallway leading to 
the kitchen where Sano had cornered Megumi
after a late lunch. The others were touring the 
gardens in order to verify Yahiko's claim that 
he had seen little people dancing near the 
koi pond the night of Kozue's seance. 
Megumi had choked at that. If only Yahiko knew... 
what she had seen, felt...

The men had arrived around mid-morning,
assuring Kaoru and Megumi that they had spent 
the past night learning how to embroider at 
Akiko's house. Megumi had retreated to her
room soon afterwards, claiming that she needed
to rest after her unfortunate--fall. She
went to the kitchen to get a drink, was stupid
enough not to get a light, slipped
and hit the floor face first, she explained
to a bewildered Yahiko, a grave Kenshin and
a frowning Sano. She sensed that Kenshin and
Sano didn't believe her story (after all,
how did the floor know which part of her
face to hit?) so she deliberately latched onto
Yahiko who expressed concern for clumsy old
women. Kaoru was very sweet and very attentive.
She'd offered to make breakfast for Megumi and
to call for a doctor, saying they needed a second
opinion. It was all Megumi could do to preserve
a calm expression and to force a convincing
if strained smile on her face as she told Kaoru
that a good rest and her own private medical opinion
were just what she needed and then she'll be okay.
Kaoru had hesitated but Megumi's gentle prodding
finally did the trick and the timely arrival of
the others had postponed further questioning on
Kaoru's part.

"If you say so Megumi," Kaoru had murmured.

Megumi had nodded with all the brisk efficiency
she could muster as she reached out to pat
Kaoru's hand. "Just trust me, okay?"

She hadn't the heart to tell Kaoru that, in all
honesty, she was just as lost as she was.

Megumi had deliberately steered clear of Kenshin
and Sano, both of whom  tried to approach her
several times in the course of the afternoon. 
She particularly dreaded talking to Kenshin. After
all, what would she say? That she was losing her 
sanity? Or that she had seen Kaoru lose hers? Megumi
did not know what to believe anymore. She desperately
needed to talk to someone, to air her fears and
doubts, to put into words everything that had happened,
to ask questions and find answers. The only recourse
left was Sano. Megumi admitted to herself that she
would have gone to him anyway, if not for confirmation
of what she had seen and encountered, then, even more
important, for the reassurance she so craved that 
everything was going to be fine. She had immediately
accepted his brusque offer to "'fess up" but now
that she was standing in front of him, she found herself
at a loss for words. Stammering, she told him about
the voice she heard in her sleep, what happened during
the night of the seance and the previous evening...

"I heard a noise outside my room last night. When
I went out to check I saw--" Megumi drew in a trembling
breath as remembered terror began to clutch her
again. "I saw--Kaoru," she stumbled over the last
word. "She was wearing her sleeping robe and she
had bare feet--Kaoru told me before that she never
went out of her room without her slippers and I--I--"
Megumi clenched her fist. "I knew something was
wrong. She looked strange--like she didn't even
know she was there and she had this vacant look
in her eyes..."

"What do you mean?" Sano asked sharply.

Megumi clasped her hands in front of her to keep
them from trembling. "It was like she was seeing
something I--couldn't. And then she started speaking.
She asked me for help...she kept repeating the
words  "no," "not hurt," "please..." And something,"
her brow furrowed as another phrase struck her
memory, "about a war... She began screaming,
flailing her arms and I tried to soothe her...I
grabbed her hand and that was when she hit me..."
Megumi sighed wearily. "I know that she didn't
mean to hurt me, Sano."

"I know that, too," Sano said quietly.

Megumi slid him a glance. He was listening to
her closely, an attentive expression on his
face. "She was very upset... We struggled
and then she lost her balance... She fell
and hit her head on the floor. She passed out,"
Megumi closed her eyes, fighting the urge
to break out in tears. "I half-carried
half-dragged her to her room and when I was
sure she was sleeping deeply, I went
back to my own bed." She took a long shaky
sigh. "When we met earlier this morning,
it was like she didn't remember a thing.
I told her I had an accident and she seemed
to believe me. That's it..."

Sano didn't speak at once. When Megumi turned
to look at him, she saw him staring at the
opposite wall blankly, a frown marring the
unusually contemplative expression on his

"Well?" Megumi asked softly. "Do I qualify as
mentally insane?"

Sano straightened abruptly as he glanced at
her, a half-smile flickering on his mouth.
"Don't be an idiot. You're not insane. Neither
is Kaoru. I was just--thinking about what you 
told me. Something doesn't add up. I'm sure
there's a reasonable explanation..."

Megumi gave a choked laugh. "I wish. But I think
it's time we move beyond that."

"What? And accept that Kaoru is being possessed?"
Sano asked, shaking his head. "Look, I'm not
questioning your story. I just think we should
consider other avenues."

"Like what?" Megumi challenged him.

Sano pushed his hair back in a frustrated gesture.
"We should concentrate on other aspects of the
issue, for one thing. You told me something
about a room in this house."

Megumi shifted uneasily. "Yes," she admitted.
"I have this bad feeling about it. And what
happened that night of the seance..." she
shuddered. "I think there's a connection."

"OK," Sano murmured. He pushed himself off
the wall and took Megumi's arm. "Let's go."

Megumi stared at him. "Where are we going?"
she asked him nervously as he began to 
lead her firmly through the house.

"We're gonna look for a connection," Sano drawled.

Megumi tried to tug her arm from his grasp. "I'm
not going there, Sano," she muttered.

"We have to check it out," Sano retorted.

"I know that but..." Megumi stopped walking and
stared up at him. "You're not taking me seriously,
are you?" she asked him softly.

Sano stopped, too, but he didn't look at her.
"Of course I am."

"Liar," Megumi murmured.

This time, Sano looked down at her, his brown eyes
grave. "You got hurt, Megumi. Even if I don't believe
what--you tried to imply in your story, I still think
we need to check this out."

"I--" Megumi blushed. She averted her gaze. "Thanks,"
she murmured.

"Yeah...You're, uh, welcome," Sano muttered.

Megumi sneaked a glance at him and nearly burst out
laughing when she saw his face. He looked positively
nauseous. 'Probably said too much,' Megumi thought
wryly.

"Come on," Sano tugged on her arm gently. Megumi
obediently started walking again, trying to concentrate
on keeping up with Sano's long strides but she found
herself stiffening with tension as they approached the 
'room.' 

The door was open.

Megumi started in Sano's grasp. "I could have sworn I
closed that last night," she muttered.

"Yahiko probably came here," Sano responded. He dropped
her arm and walked into the room. He turned to Megumi
who was standing hesitantly in the doorway. "Well?"

Megumi shook her head mutely. She watched Sano prowl
around the room, inspecting the prints hanging on the
wall, the delicate woodwork. Megumi wondered how such
a beautiful room could project sinister intent. Her
gaze traced the floor which looked so inviting in the
muted light of the late afternoon sun. She remembered
its bone chilling coldness when she found herself lying
there in her nightmare. Megumi crossed her arms in front 
of her stomach, trying to dispel the sick feeling which 
came so easily at the mere memory of last night.

Sano sauntered over to the windows which were half-closed.
He slid them open, muttering under his breath. Megumi
thought that he seemed awfully far, almost as if his 
presence in the inner part of the room doubled the distance
between them, when he suddenly staggered, clutching
his head in his hands.

"Sano!" she yelled. She ran to him quickly, her heart
pounding in fear. She gasped when she saw that he was 
deathly pale. "What's wrong?" she asked him fearfully.

Sano shook his head, blinking his eyes rapidly. "I don't
know...For a moment there, I just--" he sagged against
the nearby wall wearily. "It's so--cold..."

Megumi's eyes widened in panic. "Sa-Sano..." she choked.

"I'll be okay, Fox," Sano muttered as he tried to push
himself off the wall with a trembling hand. "It's nothing...
Just some sort of reaction...Gods, it's cold here!" he
exclaimed. 

Megumi latched onto his arm. "We should get out of here,
Sano," she said fearfully. 

"No way," Sano retorted weakly. "I ain't letting some
cold make a coward out of me."

"Don't be so damn cocky!" Megumi nearly screamed.

"The hell I am!" Sano snapped. "Look, you're blowing
this out of proportion."

"You nearly collapsed!" she snapped back.

"Yeah? And I suppose you'll say that my, uh, near-collapse
was the work of ghosts?" Sano questioned her sarcastically
as he shook his arm from her loosened hold.

Megumi stared at him in disbelief. Sano looked angry,
enraged almost. His face was still pale but his eyes
were glistening with a strange light. And the way he
spoke was so unlike him. It wasn't his usual half-playful
half-exasperating tone. He sounded almost--abrasive.
She took a deep calming breath. "Okay, I'm sorry," she
said evenly. "Let's just drop it."

"Fine," Sano muttered tensely. He stepped away from her, 
pushing his hair back with a slightly shaking hand.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Megumi burst out.

Sano glared at her. "I told you I'm all right."

Megumi didn't reply. She wanted to get out of the
room, to drag Sano along with her if she had to, but
she didn't want to risk another falling out. 'Gods,
what's happening?' she asked herself despairingly. 

"What's going on here?"

The cheerful voice made them both look up. Megumi
expelled a sigh of relief when she saw Kenshin and
Kaoru standing in the doorway, looking at them curiously.
She forced a smile on her face as she beckoned
them closer, wanting nothing more than to somehow
counter the waves of tension she could practically feel 
emanating from the silent Sano. "Nothing. We were just--"

"Watching the sunset?" Kaoru asked as she came up to
them, Kenshin following her.

Megumi turned abruptly and her breath caught in her
throat when she saw the splendidly vast expanse 
of twilight sky crisscrossed by pale indigo streaks 
darkening the bright orange glare of the setting sun.

"It's beautiful," Kaoru murmured.

Yes, beautiful. Ominously so. Megumi didn't speak
as she tried to lose herself in nature's display of
waning power but she found herself wanting to cling
helplessly to the last fading rays of light to keep
away the approaching darkness.

"Sano, are you okay?" Kenshin asked worriedly. "You
look pale."

"That must be an unusual occurence," Sano said
dryly, a half-smile quirking his mouth. 

Megumi glanced away, baffled at the abrupt change
in Sano's mood. A while ago, he had been ready
to snap her head off but he now he looked relaxed,
peaceful even. Would she ever understand
this man? She frowned as a disturbing thought
niggled her. What if it wasn't a question of
understanding in the first place? What if something
had happened during those few short moments
when Sano stood in the shadows alone? What if...

"And Megumi," Kaoru nudged her playfully, "is
very quiet. Now *that* is an unusual occurence,
right, Sano?"

"Jo-chan..." Sano muttered.

"He wouldn't know," Megumi interjected drily.

"Ohhh..." Kaoru murmured. "Do you mean to tell me
you don't--speak at all when you're alone with
each other?"

"Well, Kaoru-dono," Kenshin put in matter-of-factly.
"There is a time for everything...Ouch! Sano!"

"Shut up, Kenshin!"

Megumi laughed, shaking her head. "Did you find
Yahiko's little people?" she asked Kaoru.

Kaoru made a face. "Only a couple of little
frogs. I don't think they qualify," she responded
wryly.

"Yahiko invited Kozue-dono over for another
seance," Kenshin said carefully.

Megumi turned to him, startled. "What?"

"That woman is obviously a fake," Sano growled.
"I can't think why you didn't stop him when he
jumped all over her like some demented fan, Kenshin."

Kenshin didn't answer immediately. Instead his gaze drifted
over to Kaoru who was still watching the sunset,
a rapt expression on her face. "I just think
she deserves another try, that's all," Kenshin answered
quietly.

Sano threw up his hands. "If I didn't know better, I'd
say you saw something intriguing in the seance, Kenshin."

"Maybe," Kenshin responded. His violet eyes assumed
an inscrutable expression as they met Megumi's
troubled dark ones. "Maybe not."

"You and your ghosts!" Sano muttered. "Megumi was
telling me about--"

Horrified, Megumi clutched his hand. "Sano," she hissed
warningly.

Kenshin's gaze narrowed. "What is it?"

"No-nothing, Ken-san," Megumi stammered nervously. 
"I was just--" she stopped abruptly in alarm when she
saw that twilight had fallen in the room. Kenshin's
and Sano's faces were half-shadowed in the gathering
darkness. "We should get out of here," she said hurriedly.

"Megumi-dono..."

"Ken-san, come on!" Didn't they feel it? It came with the
darkness. It drew its life from the fleeing of the
light. The cold was seeping in through her clothes with
menacing persistence.She heard a soft sigh from behind her and
she turned, shocked. "Kaoru," she gasped.

Kaoru was still standing by the window, her head bent
as if to examine the intricate carvings on the sill. 
The bright red color of her kimono, highlighted even
more by the dark, lent her face an otherworldy flush.
Megumi could almost feel the shift, the changing of
places between possessor and possessed. 

"Kaoru," she repeated hoarsely.

The girl looked up slowly, her blue eyes wide. She
was breathing in shallow gasps and her right
hand clenched and unclenched with the effort. "Please..."
she rasped.

Megumi felt herself being pushed gently aside as
Kenshin stepped forward to confront Kaoru. The
girl flinched but she did not back away. Megumi held
her breath.

"Kaoru?" Kenshin murmured gently. "What's wrong?"

"Not--Not Kaoru," Kaoru answered laboriously. "N-Not
Kaoru. You-you call her K-Kaoru..."

"Yes," Kenshin said carefully. "You are Kaoru. Remember?"

Kaoru shook her head slowly. "Don't--know... Who are y-you?"

Kenshin closed his eyes briefly. "Kenshin."

"K-Kenshin," the girl repeated the word carefully. It
sounded strange on her lips, Megumi thought with a pang.
The voice itself was Kaoru's but the tone and inflection
were different. And the way she spoke was so unlike
Kaoru's usual cheerful banter. It was slow, hesitant,
almost as if she was lost in her own words.

"Need...help," Kaoru uttered, her eyes darkening
with pain. "Need..."

Megumi heard Sano take a deep breath behind her.
She clasped her hands tightly in front of her,
needing the contact of flesh to flesh as she willed
herself to calm down.

"Of course we'll help you," Kenshin responded. "But
you have to tell us why."

Kaoru's eyes filled with tears. "Otousan...he...not
hurt..." She drew away from Kenshin's outstretched
hand. "No! Not hurt! Tell him...stop!" she wailed
mournfully.

"Gods, Kaoru," Megumi choked.

"Tell him!" Kaoru screamed. "Stop...tell him!"

"Kaoru," Kenshin said hoarsely.

"What's going on here?" 

Megumi threw a hand in front of her face at the
brightness which suddenly filled the room.

Yahiko.

Kaoru cried out and then she crumpled slowly
like a broken doll as she fell to the floor. Kenshin
caught her quickly, supporting her weight as she
sagged against him.

Yahiko was gaping at the scene. "Kaoru?!" he
burst out.

"Yahiko," Kenshin said tensely. "Go to Kaoru's
room and open the door. Turn down the covers
of her futon. Leave the light here."

Yahiko closed his mouth, nodded and then ran
down the hallway.

Megumi collapsed to her knees in front of the
unconscious Kaoru. She reached out with a 
shaky hand to touch the pale drooping neck which
rested limply against Kenshin's arm.

"How is she?" Kenshin asked her tautly.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she felt
the faint steady pulse beneath her fingers.
"She's okay," Megumi answered. She sat back
on her haunches as she looked up at Kenshin.
"Ken-san..."

"Kenshin, the room's ready!" Yahiko called out.

Kenshin nodded, his lips thinning into a narrow line.
"We'll talk about this later," he said coolly as he 
stood up with Kaoru in his arms. 

Megumi bit her lip and inclined her head in assent.
She watched as Kenshin strode out of the room, his
posture tense. Sano made a small sound behind her
and she swiveled her head to look up at his face
which was barely visible in the dim light of Yahiko's
lamp.

"We have to get to the bottom of this," Sano said quietly.

"And your 'reasonable' explanation?" Megumi asked
him, her voice just as soft.

Sano did not answer.


End of Part 6 
Friday, April 30, 1999