From: "floribelle maximo" All's Well That Ends Well by flori-dono Disclaimer: This is a Rurouni Kenshin-inspired fan fiction. The author is not making any money out of this. The characters of Rurouni Kenshin belong to Watsuki Nobuhiro, Shounen Jump, and Sony and others that should be mentioned but were not. AUTHOR'S NOTES: WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONSISTS SCENES WHICH HUMILIATE SAGARA SANOSUKE. I DIDN'T NOTICE THAT I WAS ALREADY 'DEGRADING' HIM UNTIL I'VE WRITTEN EVERYTHING. I JUST CAME FROM A 'FIELD TRIP" FOR OUR ASIAN HISTORY CLASS AND I'M SO TIRED. I DON'T WANNA REVISE SO PLEASE, TO ALL SAGARA FANS DON'T FLAME ME. IF IT'S ANY CONSOLATION, SANO IS ONE OF MY CRUSHES (ASIDE FROM KENSHIN, AOSHI, SAITOH AND HIKO, NOT TO MENTION ALL THE OTHER ANIME MEN POPULATION). CHAPTER 4 "Sano," Kenshin said exasperatedly. "What are we doing here in the clinic?" "Well, we're going to ask help from the Fox-lady," he said as he pushed Kenshin inside the clinic. "If you're going out on a date then at least, you should look your best." "But why Megumi?" "Do you want me as your fashion consultant?" Kenshin looked at Sano's hair then at his clothes. "Uh, it's not that..." Kenshin protested. Sano just snorted. "Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Megumi said as she greeted the two. "I'm sorry Sano, but we don't do brain transplants!" "Very funny Megumi," Sano started, controlling himself not to return that last bit. "Kenshin here just asked Jou-chan out for dinner and he's asking if you can help him out with clothes and stuff." Megumi pretended not to know. "Is that all? Then you made the right decision to come to me, Ken-san," she said. "If you let Rooster here get loose on you, then you'll have Kaoru-chan laughing her head off." "Oh yeah?" Sano asked heatedly. "For your information Kitsune, I was the one who advised him to come to you!" Megumi smiled. "See, you've said it yourself." Kenshin almost laughed as he saw Sano's mouth still gaped open like that of a frog. Sano snapped his head towards Kenshin's direction. "And what are you laughing at Kenshin?" Kenshin controlled himself, although his lips kept twitching. "I was not laughing Sano-san." "You could've fooled me then," Sano muttered. "Okay, enough sour-graping Rooster," Megumi said linking her arm to Kenshin's. "We've got work to do!" *** "Blue!" "Pink!" "Blue!" "Pink!" "Are you a sissy?" Megumi shouted waving her hands in the air. "Why pink?" Sano himself was yelling. "Can't you see pink suits him fine?" The two looked at Kenshin who was sitting quietly in one corner, watching the two of them while they squabbled over the color of his hakama. Megumi sighed in exasparation but she wasn't about to give up. "Look, any color looks good on Ken-san, but he can't wear pink forever!" "Uh, Sano-san, Megumi-dono..." Kenshin decided it was time to speak up. The two had been at it for an hour. First it was the gi, now it was the hakama. What next? "Can't I just wear black?" Two heads turned and two voices snapped back at him, "Stay out of this!" "Oro?" Sano rolled up his sleeves. "Alright, there's only one way to settle this..." Megumi balled her fists, the light of battle shining in her eyes. "Sure, say when Rooster head!" "Ichi... ni... san!" "Gotcha Sagara!" Megumi squeeled. "I won!" "Dammit!" Sano said as he slammed his fist on the wall. "You cheated!" She tossed her head and gave a cute little lady-like snort. "I did not! I had paper and you had stone. It's as plain as day, I won!" He shoved his hands inside his pockets and leaned against the wall, chewing on his fishbone. "Alright, dress him in blue. Fine, see if I care!" Megumi chuckled and got out the dark blue hakama and forest green gi from their wrappings. She handed Kenshin these. "Ken-san, why don't you try these on?" Kenshin accepted the clothes and stared at the doctor. "Here?" "Yes here, where else?" she answered patiently as if Kenshin was a schoolboy. "Hey Kitsune," Sano piped in from behind. "Aren't you going out? Give him some privacy for Kami-sama's sake!" Undaunted, Megumi raised her eyebrow and turned slightly around. "Why not? I'm a doctor, I won't gape!" Kenshin's face went red and Sano's was also of the same shade. "Er, Megumi-dono..." She laughed heartily, with her hand near her mouth. "Geez your faces are priceless. I was just teasing! You're taking things too seriously Kenshin-kun, lighten up a bit!" The two men sweatdropped. But the Kitsune was not yet finished. "And what about you Sano, aren't you going out too?" "Huh?" "Don't tell me you like to see Kenshin naked ?" "Nani!" Sano cried out. "I swear Fox, one of these days, I'll get one over you." "I've heard that before Rooster-boy,"she answered. "Now are you coming with me or not? Or do I have to drag you out of here?" "Nope," he said resignedly. "My ego's been bruised badly enough as is." "Heh," Megumi retorted as she went out of the room. "You still have hope. You don't need a brain transplant after all!" *** "Hey my man, you look good!" Snao said as he saw his bestfriend in his new clothes. Megumi herself couldn't help but admire 'her' handiwork. "Are you sure you'd rather take Kaoru-chan out than me?" "Desparate," Sano mumbled under his breath. But kitsunes also have big ears and this one was no exception. "I heard that..." she said then added. "Oy Ken-san don't sneak out, we aren't finished with you yet!" Kenshin trudged back like a lost puppy. This was making his head ache. "You can't go out with your hair like that!" Megumi scolded. "What's wrong with it?" Kenshin asked, although he already knew the answer. "Just when did you last comb it?" Kenshin stared at his sandals. "See?" she said then eyed his red mop of hair. "Now what should we do about that?" "I have an idea!" Sano said as he pat his own head. Megumi rolled her eyes. "Geez, you really don't have any fashion sense do you?" "Okay, I'll shut up, will that make you happy?" Megumi circled around Kenshin slowly, eyeing his hair from different angles. Kenshin visibly squirmed under her scrutiny. Sano was silent. He decided it wasn't his lucky day so he'd better keep his mouth closed. "Ah hah!" Megumi exclaimed suddenly. "Just wait here." And Megumi went out of the room. Kenshin almost toppled over. "Do you have any idea what she's up to?" he asked the still sulking Sano. "She exists to humiliate me!" the gangster replied. "Are you ready?" Both Kenshin and Sano stared at the doorway where Megumi was. "No..." Kenshin's eyes widened, shadows of fear darkening them. "Come on Kenshin, this won't hurt!" she said as she slowly made her way towards the scared rurouni. "Please Megumi, anything but that!" "Eh, Kenshin don't tell me the Master Swordsman himself is scared of that little thing?" interjected Sano. Kenshin gulped. Megumi tapped her foot on the floor impatiently. "Ken-san sit!" He sat down immediately. In his eyes, Megumi has turned into the General of his nightmares. Nevertheless, he obeyed her. "Now, don't move..." Sano chuckled as he watched his friend cringed. "This is more fun than I thought," he said to himself. Snippity-snip-snippity-snip "There!" Megumi said. "Good," her victim muttered. "Hey," she said as she pulled Kenshin back to his seat. "We're not finished yet." Kenshin slumped his shoulders. He wasn't sure if he'd still want to go through the date. Being subjected to this kind of torture had almost worn him out. He winced as he felt the comb battle with the tangles in his hair. Finally, after a few more minutes of hair-tugging and tangle-cursing, Megumi declared that her mission was over. Upon hearing this, Kenshin almost got to his knees to give a prayer of thanks. "Hey buddy, here's a mirror," Sano said. "Just in case you'd like to see Kitsune's handiwork. Though I may have to agree, you look so much better now." "Of course," said Megumi with a toss of her head. Kenshin was almost afraid to take a peek. Hundreds of what if's zooming in his mind. What if I look like a china doll? What if I look like a mop? Or worse what if I look like Sano? He took a glance. He was almost taken aback. The man staring back at him was not the rurouni that he knew. This one was smartly dressed in dark blue hakama and forest green gi. The man's red hair was done in a neat ponytail with his bangs cropped artistically. This man was actually handsome. "Hey, not bad!" he said, smiling despite himself. "See," Megumi said triumphantly. "I told you to trust me didn't I?" Sano now seemingly uninterested walked towards the door. "Hey Ken-san, we have to do some reservations first for dinner, right?" he said. "Well Kitsune, thanks for the help but we have to go." "Arigatou Megumi-dono," Kenshin said unable to say anything more. "No prob," Megumi answered. "If you need something else Kenshin, just ask me huh?" Kenshin flushed as she winked at him. Sano snorted. "What about me, Megumi, aren't you going to offer me your services too?" he said, also with a wink. For the first time, it was Megumi who blushed, though she recovered easily. "Not in a hundred years Sano, not in a hundred years..." TBC ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com --------------------------- ONElist Sponsor ---------------------------- Get great offers on top-notch products that match your interests! Sign up for eLerts at: Click Here ------------------------------------------------------------------------