Okay guys.  This one's quite a bit different from my earlier 
stories....  More original content, so to speak.  ^_^;

This is a rough draft of teaser and/or a prologue for a Rurouni
Kenshin crossover story.  I jotted it down pretty quickly so it
probably contains a bunch of mistakes.  I hope it makes sense....

It starts out after the final battle with Shishio during Kenshin's
recover.  However, it takes a sharp left turn into a land of its own,
which probably makes it an ALTERNATIVE REALITY fanfic.

I think this story could actually stand by itself, but let
me know if any of you guys are interested in seeing it continue in
some sort of fashion -- but where it might go, I have NO idea.

As always, C&C is greatly appreciated!   ^_^

---------------------------------
NIGHT VISITOR
---------------------------------
A Rurouni Kenshin crossover Fanfic

---------------
Short Disclaimer: (Full Disclaimers at the end)
	Rurouni Kenshin and other series referred to in this work are
copyrights of their respective creators and all distributors of their
work and used without permission.

**********************************************************************

	It was the night of the new moon.

	On the holy ground of a half-forgotten Shinto shrine, a quiet
conversation takes place in the shadows....
	
	"I want to know how she died," said a woman's voice, low and
husky.
	
	"Why bother me?"  The reply came in a bored and sarcastic
masculine drawl.
	
	"You were there."
	
	There was a sigh, then a glowing red tip of a cigarette briefly
illuminated an austere, narrow face.

	"Along with three other people.  Ask them."

	"In your own words, 'Shinomori Aoshi has no idea what's going in
his own head, much less someone else's.'"

	"Hmph."

	 "'Sagara Sanosuke is an idiot.'"

	"No, no....  Don't pester me.  If you really want to know the how
and the why, go ask Himura Battousai."

	"The Battousai...."  The woman's voice was thoughtful.

	"Have fun trying to talk to him."

--------------------------------

	Dressed only in a loose white bedrobe, Kenshin slowly crept
downstairs with less than his usual agility.  It was the middle of the
night but he was careful not to make a sound.  If the others found him
up and moving around, they'd put him back to bed -- by force, if
necessary.  Not that he didn't appreciate his friends' concern and
attention, but he wanted a little time to himself... and there was
something soothing about sitting outside on a quiet night.

	At the bottom of the stairs, he stopped to catch his breath.  He
was nowhere close to full recovery.  The slightest physical exertion
reminded of how close he had come to dying during that final duel with
Shishio.

	After a short rest, he silently made his way toward the back of
the Shirobeko restaurant.  He slid open one last door and looked out
on a simple but lovingly tended garden.  Kenshin gingerly eased
himself down on the wooden deck and propped himself against one of the
sturdy wooden posts.

	It was the night of the new moon.  Although the sky was clear, the
starlight was pale and weak, leaving much of his surroundings shrouded
in velvety shadows.  The cool night air was clear, but a thin layer of
mist clung to the ground.  

	Kenshin let slip a quiet, appreciative sigh.  Closing his eyes, he
let his mind drift.  Unmeasured time passed as he sat there in a
semi-doze, listening to the soft croak of frogs and the soft ripple of
water. 
	
	"I've been waiting to talk to you, Himura-san."
	
	His eyes sprang open and he sat bolt upright in surprise.  The
abrupt movement brought a sharp, stabbing pain in his side, but he
ignored it as he stared at the woman standing several yards away -- a
woman that looked uncannily like Yumi.  For a stunned moment, he
wondered if he was dreaming or delirious with fever.  As the shock
gradually faded, Kenshin realized that the woman before him was not
Shishio's dead lover... but there was an unmistakable resemblance.

	"Oro?"
	
	Like Yumi, the woman wore a kimono loosely tied in the front. 
However, her shoulders were decorously covered.  And unlike Yumi's
artfully casual hairstyle, her hair was neatly and precisely confined
in a bun.  

	But she wore a string of dark blue-green beads in her hair, just
like Yumi....

	"Forgive the unseemly hour, Himura-san, but I wish to speak to you
about the circumstances surrounding Yumi Komagata's death."
	
	"If I may ask, who are you?"  Kenshin cocked his head slightly and
gave her an inquisitive look.
	
	"I am Maki.  Yumi's... older sister."  The introduction was
accompanied by an elegant bow of her head. 
	
	From the physical resemblance, it was clear that the two women
were closely related.  But Maki certainly didn't look like she was
older than Yumi.  Then again, Kenshin knew all too well how deceptive
appearances could be.

	"I see."

	"May I?"  She gestured to a place beside him.

	"Oh, excuse me.  Certainly."

	She stepped upon the wooden patio, turned to face him, and
gracefully knelt down several feet away.  Noting the paleness in his
face, she said, "Please forgive my imposition.  I'm sorry that you're
not feeling your best but I am impatient for some answers."

	Kenshin sensed something... there was just the faintest hint of
danger about Maki that had been completely absent in her sister Yumi. 
Maki didn't appear to be armed but that didn't mean much.  He was in
no condition to fend off any sort of assault, much less one from a
trained fighter.  Worse still, his sakabatou was upstairs in his
bedroom....  

	From the faint smile on Maki's face, she seemed to know what was
going through his mind.  But she said nothing and seemed content to
settle for some conversation.

	He looked down at his hands and said, "If I may be so rude, why
did you come at this hour?  It is not the usual hour for visitors."

	"I had been away traveling for some time.  I only recently heard
of my sister's death."  She gazed out over the gradually thickening
mist covering the modestly sized pond.  "And I wanted to speak to you
privately."

	She turned back to him.  "Your friends have been guarding your
privacy very fiercely.  I've seen them fending off the police,
high-ranking government officials, and untold other intruders who have
tried to see you.  Their loyalty is to commended."

	"They are very dear to me."  There was no point in trying to hide
that fact.

	"With reason, I'm sure.  Which is why I chose this time to visit. 
My business is with you and you alone.  It's best if we have no
unfortunate interruptions... or interference."

	Kenshin bowed his head slightly and quietly said, "I appreciate
and thank you for your consideration."

	His eyes narrowed ever so slightly as Maki reached into her
sleeve.  However, she merely pulled out a small crystal ball and
cradled it in her hand

	"Then to the matter at hand.  What happened to my sister and how
did she come to die?"  Maki's serene voice did nothing to mask her
demand for answers.

	He looked down at his hands and his fingers curled slightly, as if
to  hold a small object.  He sighed quietly, then for the very first
time, Kenshin quietly began to tell another person his own version of
the events leading up to the final battle with Shishio.  

	Yumi's sister did nothing but listen intently.  Occasionally, her
fingers would idly stroke the little crystal bauble in her hands.

	"...then Yumi stepped between us and pleaded with me to stop
fighting."  Kenshin abruptly fell silent.  

	"Did you kill her for her interference?" Maki calmly asked.

	He stiffened and turned just a bit paler.

	She answered his unspoken question.  "Yes.  Thirteen years ago, I
was here in Kyoto."

	"...."

	"Yumi was not the first woman to step before your sword in an
effort to shield someone.  And that time, the Hitokiri Battousai did
not hesitate to strike.  Not at all."

	Kenshin lifted his head and met her cool stare with a quiet, sad
look of his own.

	"You... were there?"

	"Yes.  What a man has done before, he might do again... which is
why I ask you now.  Did you kill my sister Yumi?"

	"No, I did not kill her."

	"Then who did?"

	"It was Shishio.  He used her body to conceal his attack until the
very last moment."

	Maki's lips thinned.  "I should have expected that she'd die at
the hands of one of her... patrons."
	
	"You disapprove of her choice of lifestyle."
	
	Her voice now contained a harsh edge.  "She chose to become a
whore, a kept woman.  An expensive whore, perhaps, but one never the
less.  There are certain dangers inherent in such a life, especially
if one consorts with the powerful and ambitious."

	"Forgive me, but to Yumi, Shishio was much more than just another
powerful patron.  She truly loved him.  And in his own way, Shishio
loved her, also.  She knew him and he knew her.  She was willing to
sacrifice her life to protect Shishio and to give him an advantage
that could lead to his victory.  She offered her life and he
accepted."

	(And she very nearly succeeded.  In that one sword stroke, Shishio
came very close to winning.  If I hadn't pulled back at that very last
moment....)

	Unconsciously, Kenshin's hand drifted to his stomach, where
Shishio's attack had come dangerously close to gutting him.

	"So you're saying that she was happy to die."

	"Yes...."

	"You don't seem to approve of my sister's decision."

	"It's not my place to approve or not.  But if I'd had the
slightest idea what she was up to,... I would have tried to stop her."

	"And you doesn't hate her?  After all, it appears that you very
nearly died because of her actions."

	"She was trying to defend the man she loved in the only way she
knew how.  How could I hate her for that?  I'm just sorry that she
couldn't think of a better way to save Shishio Mokoto's life."

	"So....  Yumi died happy and in the arms of the man she loved." 
Maki sighed, then looked at Kenshin.

	"Yes."

	"Why the sad look?  Everything you've said indicates that her
death was was hardly your fault.  Unfortunately, Yumi was always very
reckless and headstrong.  Now that you've told me what happened, it
all makes sense."

	"I...."

	Maki sighed quietly.  "Yumi was born with certain disadvantages...
ones that caused a rift between herself and the rest of the family. 
That rift opened early in her life and never healed.  Rather then
endure the pity, she chose to leave and make her own way in the world.
 We had hoped that she would eventually return to us...."  She
shrugged.  "But I suppose that was not meant to be."

	"Perhaps.  But I can't help regret the loss of her life."

	She cocked her head slightly and gave Kenshin a long, steady look
as she slipped her little crystal orb back into her sleeve.

	"You've changed a great deal since the Bakumatsu no Douran, Himura
Battousai."

	Kenshin give her a small, wistful smile.

	"I am now just Himura Kenshin.  A rurouni."

	"And a man sworn not kill."

	He nodded once.  "I've killed enough for ten lifetimes.  It has
taken me much too long to learn to value the lives of others properly.
 And it has taken me even longer to learn to value my own."

	Maki put her hands on the floor and bowed deeply in his direction.
 "I thank you for the truth and your honesty.  Rest assured that I
consider this matter closed.  My family will abide by my decision."

	Kenshin blinked in a mixture of surprise and relief, then said,
"You're very welcome."

	She gave him a warm smile, then suddenly reached out and waved her
hand in front of his eyes.  With that gesture, Kenshin instantly went
unconscious.  Maki caught his limp body and gently pulled him up into
her arms.

--------------------------------

	She had not lied to Himura.  She was indeed Yumi's older sister...
older by over a century.

	Poor Yumi.  Born without a Nightwitch's powers or a Nightwitch's
longevity, Maki's youngest sister had been doomed to only a few short
decades of life.  The pity she endured finally drove her into leaving
the clan.   She  had chosen a life among mortals.  Maki could
understand that,... but the fact that Yumi had chosen to become a
pleasure woman still grated on Maki's nerves.

	A whore estranged from her family her sister might have been.  But
Yumi was still a Nightwitch and her wrongful death was still a matter
worthy of vengeance.

	But it was now clear that Himura Kenshin had not been at fault. 
If there had been any fault, it lay in Shishio's overbearing ambitions
and Yumi's own intemperate passions.

	Oh, some in the clan might quibble about her decision, but the
rights of a blood sister, especially an elder blood sister, outranked
the rights of other clan sisters.  And if she chose to forego her
rights to vengeance, then all in the clan must also do so.

	But as for Shishio,...  He might be in Hell, but that did not
necessarily mean that he was entirely out of Maki's reach....

	Well, that was a matter for further consideration.

	That Yumi had been willing to give up her life to buy victory for
her lover didn't surprise Maki one bit.  Having grown up among the
Nightwitches, Yumi's impotence -- her helplessness -- must have been
nearly unbearable.

	On a whim, Maki reached out and pulled the string from Kenshin's
hair, releasing the long red strands from its ponytail.  As she idly
ran her fingers through the thick, soft hair cascading over her lap,
she wondered if he'd remember their conversation.  

	Or would he think of it as a mere dream of a weary mind?

	Carrying him as easily as a child, she reached the Shirobeko's
roof with a single, effortless leap.  Two more jumps and she landed in
his bedroom.  As she placed him on his futon and pulled up the
bedcovers, she bent over and whispered in his ear, "She always loved
blue flowers."

	Before she left, Maki carefully removed a few of his hairs and
wrapped the long red strands around her wrist.  She took one last
look, then disappeared out the window, leaving a quietly sleeping
Kenshin behind.

--------------------------------

	In the forest clearings stood a small, plain shack, shrouded by
the early morning mist.  Next to the shack was a pottery kiln, its
fires unlit.  And on a log positioned directly in front of the kiln
sat a man in a white cape, leisurely sipping sake.

	"I saw your little redhead, Seijuro."
	
	"So?"  The man slowly turned to look at the woman standing behind
him.  
	
	Maki smiled slightly.  "Don't worry.  I didn't hurt him."
	
	Seijuro Hiko, thirteenth successor of the Hiten Mitsuruguri Ryu
school, merely lifted an eyebrow.  But Maki was fairly certain that
behind that unbelievably arrogant exterior, he was sighing with
relief.

	"You should be proud of him.  He's changed a lot since I last saw
him."

	Hiko turned his attention back to his jug of sake.  "Bah.  He's
been nothing but trouble since the day I found him."

	She walked around the clearing, casually inspecting a pot here, a
dish there....

	"He has an amazing will to live, despite all odds."
	
	"Certainly took him long enough to realize it.  Idiot."

	She smiled.  "And he'll definitely need it, considering what fate
has in store for him.  I suppose you haven't warned him about what's
going to happen."

	"Hmph.  He'll find out sooner or later.  The way he messes around
in other people's business, it's only a matter of time."

	"Unless someone prematurely takes his head."

	"If he can't manage to keep his head on his shoulders, he doesn't
deserve to be a student of mine."  He sounded rather insulted.

	"But he refuses to kill," Maki remarked thoughtfully.

	"I've given him all the tools he needs to survive and succeed. 
What he does with them is his own business.  I've got much better
things to do than hold his hand for the next couple of centuries."

	She shook her head ruefully.  "That attitude of his is going to
cause him real problems, sooner or later...."

	Hiko snorted and muttered, "I don't need a magic spell or a
crystal ball to figure THAT out."

	"....After all, for you Immortals, there can be only one...."

=====================================================================


The Full Disclaimer

	All rights and privileges to Rurouni Kenshin belong to Nobuhiro
Watsuki, Shuiesha, Sony Music Entertainment, and associated parties. 
The characters of this series are used without permission for the
purpose of entertainment only.  This work of fiction is not meant for
sale or profit.  
	English translation of Episode 60 by Shinsen Gumi and/or HECTO
Fansubs.

	All rights and privileges to "Highlander" and its associated names
and characters are the trademarks and property of Davis/ Panzer
Productions, Inc and are used WITHOUT permission for the purpose of
entertainment only.  This work of fiction is not meant for sale or
profit.

	Original portion of the fiction included here is considered to be
the sole property and copyrighted to the author.

=====================================================================

--------------------------------------------
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