Quist: HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! This is my weird attempt at a romance fic. All be afraid... I can’t write romance very well. Surprisingly, I chose the couple Sano/Megumi over Kenshin/Kaoru. Why? Because I have YET to see a S/M fic! Well... I’ve seen fics with a little S/M on the side... but not a whole one dedicated to them. So I decided to write a little romance between them. Not really an "I love you, let’s kiss and proclaim out love to each other" romance. More like a little flirty romance. I can’t see Sano and Megumi kissing... or saying I love you to each other. The two fight way too much for that...

Kenshin: They do… don’t they.

Quist: I still like their pairing though.

Kenshin: You know, Sano and Megumi-dono are gonna kill you.

Quist: I know…

Ayame: *stares at Quist* Do you have any cheese on you?

Quist: Wow... that was random...

Ayame: I know... O.o;;; I don’t even know where that came from…

Quist: Anyway, like I said, just Megumi and Sanosuke flirting with each other slightly. It’s also fairly humorous near the end... I can’t leave humor out of my fics since that’s what I write best. Read and Review please! No flames please. All flames will be confiscated by Ayame.

Ayame: And used by me and Katsu to blow up the world!!! ^-^x

Quist: When will you give up?

Ayame: NEVER!!!!

Quist: Huh... be warned, spoilers for the Shimabara arc. Small spoilers. Nothing major really. So why does it matter? I don’t know... *bows* Before we start, I apologize for any OOC-ness. Forgive me! Sessha is not worthy! T_T

Quist: I hate disclaimers... Kenshin, KILL THE LAWYERS!!!

Kenshin: …

Quist: Never mind. -_-;;; *grabs Kamatari and shoves him on stage* You do disclaimers, Kama-san!

Kamatari: Er... This young girl right here does not own Rurouni Kenshin. Watsuki-sensei does. So don’t sue, please? She’s broke.

Quist: You do disclaimers very well, Kama-san!

Kamatari: Thanks... I think.

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Sanosuke never liked graveyards. They were always to creepy for him. Just the thought of burying people underground, either dead or alive, gave him the shivers. But he had a special reason for coming to this particular grave. The woman buried underneath the pewter headstone had been very important to him. And even though he had only known her for a short time, it was almost like she had been in his life forever.

It wasn’t like Sanosuke had fallen madly in love with Magdaria.... er, Sayo. He did admit that he was beginning to form feelings for her near the end of her life. What kind of feelings, he wasn’t exactly sure. Was it love? Or was it something else? Anyway, it didn’t matter now. She was six feet under, never to roam this Earth as a living being ever again.

Sano closed his eyes as he replayed Sayo’s death in his mind once again. Santo, whipping out the steel gun, aiming at Elstan. Magdaria.... um, Sayo.... putting herself between Elstan and the gun, taking the bullet instead. The woman’s last few breaths before she closed her eyes and ceased to be alive. "Why?" he asked himself, "Why did you take the bullet? Why didn’t you live?" Sano found himself asking himself this question a lot after Sayo died. It was kind of a silly question, now that he thought about it. Sayo had died protecting Counsel Elstan. Quite a brave move, but one he kind of wished she hadn’t made.

Ok, he admitted it, he had cried when Sayo had died. And the thing was, Sano never cried. And yet, after she had taken her last breath, he stood there, holding the woman’s lifeless body against his, allowing fresh tears to stream down his face, all for a girl he only new for a short period of time.

"Hell, this is a load of bull shit," Sano muttered to himself, feeling hot tears begin to well up in his eyes yet again. Sayo was dead, there was nothing he could do about it. There was no reason to get emotional over a dead woman. Blinking a few times to rid himself of the urge to cry, Sano raised his right hand and stared at it intently. It was red, covered in blood, bent in a very odd position, and kept sending a wave of pain through his arm. He had been in a... small disagreement earlier that morning, and thus had to use the Futae no Kiwami to save his skin. Once again, he had reopened the old wound he had received in Kyoto. Megumi would have to bandage his hand for him, and he was sure the woman doctor would not be happy about that. Sighing, Sano spun around and was just about to leave the graveyard when he bumped into, of all people, Megumi.

"Ooi! Tori-atama, watch where you’re going!" Megumi snapped, taking a step away from Sano and brushing herself off. She look slightly annoyed, her nose wrinkled up in disgust.

"Huh, if you ask me, you’re the one who should watch your step, kitsune-onna," Sano muttered, chewing idly on a fishbone placed between his teeth and quickly hiding his injured hand behind his back. "What brings you here?" The ex-gangster asked with little interest. He really didn’t care what Megumi was doing here, but decided to ask anyway, just for the sake of the small shred of curiosity tugging at his conscious.

Megumi let out a small, annoyed sigh. "Well, it’s really none of your business... but if you must know..." she pointed to a headstone that was laying right next to Sayo’s, "That is the grave of the doctor I worked with before he was murdered..." she said quietly.

Sano glanced over at the grave. "Same doctor dude was killed by Kanryu?" he asked.

Megumi nodded, a small frown tugging at her lips. "Yes, the same guy," she answered. "I know I don’t talk about him much, but I really do miss him."

"’Zat so..." Sano said humorously, bending down to look at the headstone Megumi pointed to. He raised an eyebrow and began to read. "Hn... poor guy died pretty young," he said, standing up straight and shoving his hands into his pockets, once again trying to hide his injured hand.

Megumi nodded. "I guess that’s the price you pay for working with Kanryu. Die young." She smiled. "I’m glad Ken-san was able to save me from the same fate." The woman glanced at Sano suspiciously. "And why are you here?"

"Er... no reason..." Sano answered, turning away and blushing slightly. "I just felt like comin’, that’s all."

"Don’t feed me a pack of lies, you stupid tori-atama," Megumi scowled, placing her hands on her hips in a very mother-like action. "Come visit the grave of some old friend of yours who died from a bar-room brawl? Ohohohohoho!!" Megumi placed her hand behind her mouth and laughed at her own... ‘witiness.’

Sano wheeled on the woman in seconds. "No way! It’s not like that!" He cried angrily, causing Megumi to recoil in fear, "I’m here for a female friend of mine..."

Megumi’s eyes widened in shock and surprise as Sano turned away in embarrassment. Megumi had never heard about Sano’s so called, ‘female friend.’ "Sano..." Megumi said sympathetically, placing her hand on the young man’s shoulder, "I’m so sorry... I had no idea..."

"Nah... I guess it’s ok," Sano replied, sighing heavily. "You didn’t know Magdaria.... er, Sayo."

Silence.

"What was she like?" Megumi asked, stepping up next to Sano and staring idly at the headstone that marked Sayo’s resting space.

Sano sighed. "She was extremely pretty... and nice," he began, closing his eyes yet again and picturing Sayo’s smiling face in his mind, "She had tuberculosis, but that’s not what she died of. She was shot... trying to protect someone else."

Megumi nodded but said nothing. More silence.

"Did you... love her?" Megumi’s voice was so soft Sano almost didn’t hear her.

"Well... I don’t really know... did you love the doctor Kanryu killed?"

"Tori-atama!" Megumi cried, throwing up her hands in frustration, "What makes you think I loved him?!" Sano blinked at her stupidly. Megumi grunted. "I suppose it’s like you, I don’t know. He was more like a father to me than he was anything else. Loosing him pained me greatly."

"Hn..."

"So... I suppose I did love him... but more as a father figure..."

"Really now..."

"You aren’t listening!" Megumi stomped her foot on the ground and fixed the ex-gangster with an icy glare. "You’re the one who asked!" The woman sighed heavily and crossed her arms over her chest, muttering to herself.

"Oh, sorry," Sano apologized, shifting the fishbone in his teeth to the other side of his mouth, "I was just thinking. About loosing people you love. It hurts, dunnit."

"Yes..." Megumi said, slightly spacing out. She waited for a while to see what Sano would say, and when he said nothing, she decided to counter with a question of her own. "What about when you lost Sayo? Did that hurt you?"

"Hell yeah..." Sano said to himself, "I cried, damnitt..." However, he refrained from saying this out loud. "Yeah, it did hurt. I guess..."

Megumi shifted the weight on her feet slightly and fiddled with the hem of her kimono.

"’S not like I cried or anything..." Sano said boldly, trying his best to prove his manhood. Megumi grinned and whacked the young man’s arm playfully.

"Of course not! You’re a big strong man who doesn’t cry!" she said teasingly. "You’ve drunk sake galore, been in plenty of bar-room fights, and can most likely can charm any girl out there into worshiping the ground you walk on!"

Sano began to poke Megumi playfully in her head with his good hand. "Not really! But I wish!" he said, continuing to annoy the woman with his excessive poking. "Women seem to hate me, and all the ones I actually get to love me end up dying."

Megumi let out a loud snort and grabbed Sano’s finger with her hand. "Stop that, you’re getting annoying!" she said moving Sano’s hand towards his side. "You know, not every woman who loves you dies before anything special happens," she said a little more softly, squeezing the young man’s hand lightly as she did so.

"Huh?" Sano asked stupidly, tensing slightly at the small pressure Megumi had put on his hand. Instead of jerking away like he normally would have done, he linked his fingers with hers and smiled brightly. Or... as brightly as Sano can smile anyway. "You’re right," He said, pulling the female doctor towards him and slinging his free arm around her neck, forgetting momentarily about his injury, "Perhaps there is one woman I love that is left alive."

Megumi closed her eyes, resting her head on Sano’s chest. She sighed happily, feeling Sano rub her shoulders lightly. She liked being close to Sano, although she’d never admit it out loud. She’d never hear the end of it if she did. Suddenly, Megumi came to her senses and realized what she was doing. "Hey!" the woman cried, breaking away from Sano’s grip, "What do you think you’re doing?!"

Sano flushed red and crossed his arms over her chest. "I don’t know! You started it, you took my hand!"

"You hugged me!"

"You..." Sano stopped short, trying to find something to accuse Megumi of, "Er..."

"Stupid tori-atama," Megumi muttered, brushing past Sano and heading for the exit of the cemetery. She stepped out onto the road and hugged herself, shivering slightly. She wasn’t quite sure exactly why she had snuggled close to Sano like she did back there at the graveyard, but she had to admit, she did enjoy being held by the younger man. He made her feel... safe. Secure. Something she never really felt from any other man, not even Kenshin.

"Hey! Fox! Megumi!" The female doctor spun around to face an approaching Sano. Did he just refer to her by her first name?

"Megumi..." Sano said again, grabbing the woman by her wrist, preventing her from walking forward any further, "Don’t leave me here by myself." He once again pulled her towards him sliding his hands up by her shoulders and glancing down to look in her eyes. He noted that Megumi had pretty eyes.

Megumi sighed and smiled, nodding her head in understanding. "I won’t Sano," she said, sliding her hands around Sano’s neck and hugging him tightly.

Sano wrapped his arms around Megumi’s waist and embraced her back. "I won’t let you end up like Sayo," he said, burying his face into the woman’s black hair. She smelled pretty good. He wanted to hold her forever. But of course, that was impossible. And then another thought struck him. "Well... I have to tell her sometime…" Sano thought to himself. And now was as good of a time as ever. "Megumi?"

"Hn?" She answered dreamily.

"I messed up my hand again..."

Megumi screeched loudly and broke away from Sano, glaring at him with a mixed expression of anger and surprise. "Again?" she cried in disgust, throwing up her hands in surrender. "How did it happen this time?" She asked, shaking her head.

Sanosuke pulled his bloodied right hand out of his pocket. "I was in a small fight before I came to the cemetery..." he said sheepishly.

Before he arrived at the cemetery? And Megumi didn’t notice the whole time she was in there? Either Sano hid his injury really good, or Megumi was just loosing her mind. "Sano, if you got blood either on my clothes or in my hair, so help me..."

"I was careful!"

"Huh!" Megumi reached out and took Sano’s injured hand. "I told you, I have no cure for stupidity. But if you ever want this hand to heal, you must stop using it in fights!" She scolded.

"I know... I know... buuuuuuttttt..." Sano started, "You said you wouldn’t leave me, so you’re always here to patch it up!" He took a deep breath. "I don’t need to worry about injuring my hand and it never being able to heal because you’re here. You’re always here for me."

"I really wonder about you sometimes, Sanosuke. You know that made very little sense," Megumi said, reaching into her kimono and taking out a roll of bandages. She began to patch up Sano’s hand yet again. "I suppose your utter stupidity is what makes you so appealing to the opposite sex."

Sano chuckled. "You just said sex..."

"Oh for crying out loud, Sano! You’re acting stupid on purpose!"

"I know." ^-^x

"Sometimes I wonder if you’re messing up your hand on purpose as well."

"What if I am?" Megumi glanced up at Sano with a confused expression. "What if I’m messing up my hand just so I can come and be close to you?"

Megumi shook her head. "Yeah right."

Sano did nothing but grin. Megumi squint her eyes, wanting Sano to say something. "Urgh!" She cried in frustration. Sometimes Sano was just... so dense. The woman finished patching up Sano’s hand and placed the rest of the bandages inside her kimono again. "That should hold you until we get back to the clinic." She slipped her hand inside his. "Come on tori-atama, let’s go home now. I still need to sterilize the wound."

"Are you sure that’s what we’re going to the clinic for?" Sano said, grinning slyly.

"Hentai!" Megumi cried in shock.

"Woman doctor!"

"Rooster!"

"Fox!"

Megumi sighed deeply and closed her eyes. This wasn’t working. "How about we agree not to talk to each other the whole way home, ok?" She proposed.

Sano snorted. "Well then, I’ll just have to do this," he said, stepping forward and sliding his arm around the woman’s waist and pulling her close to his side. "I’m going to force you to walk home with me like this the whole time."

"SANO!"

"Come on, fox. You know you like me!"

"Fat chance! I’d rather be stuck with any other man in the world besides you! Ken-san for example!"

"Well, unfortunately for you, Jou-chan beat you to him. I’m the only one left," Sano grinned.

"And what about Sayo?"

Sanosuke raised his eyebrow, but he did not release his grip on Megumi. "I figure if Kenshin can get over the death of that ex-wife of his and move on, I ‘spose I can get over Sayo’s. ‘Sides, I didn’t know her for that long. At least not long enough for her to make a serious impression in my life. Now... as for you..." Sanosuke brought his other arm around Megumi’s front and hugged her from behind, resting his head on her shoulder.

Megumi let out a sigh of defeat. "You are so annoying, you know that Sano?" She said, bringing her hand up and placing it on the side of Sano’s face.

Sano grinned real big. "You like me."

"TORI-ATAMA!!!" The woman cried, blushing deep red. "I do not!" she denied, repeating herself over and over. Yet, no matter how many times she tried to convince Sano she did not have feelings for him, he just kept insisting that she liked him. "Like a broken record..." she thought. "How cute..." Finally, she just gave up trying not to like him all together. "Ok... ok... I like you..." She admitted finally.

"HAHAHAHA!!!! I knew it!" Sano cried in triumph.

"Just don’t kiss me..."

"Don’t worry, I won’t. I just like you, I don’t love you."

"Good."

"But maybe I will love you, in the future. And I hope I do start to love you eventually. And then I’ll be free to kiss you as much as I want!"

"WHAT?!"

Sano let go of Megumi and began walking down the street, calling behind him. "It’s possible! You’re a very pretty woman. And judging by the way you hugged me back there, you’re gonna eventually love me as well."

The woman stomped her foot on the ground and began to chase after Sano. "Just so you know, I was only being nice! You seemed sad, so I was cheering you up! I only like you! I’ll never love you! And I didn’t enjoy those two hugs I had to give you! Are you listening to me!?!"

Sanosuke grinned, knowing very well that the female doctor was lying. She enjoyed being held by him. He knew it, and so did she. Megumi may not love him now, but she’d eventually grow to love him. He hoped. In the future. Sometime in the near future. And he could wait.

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Quist: Hahahahahaha.... My strange attempt. Note the word... ATTEMPT. I’m not good at romance.

Ayame: But it’s one of your favorite genre thingies.

Quist: I know...