Here's the final part! This is, as with the previous Series,
based heavily on events and situations from the preceeding
stories, which are available on my Web Site:
http://www.oocities.com/coutuva
As always, C&C is anticipated, accepted, and appreciated.
All original Ranma1/2 Characters and Backstory Copyright
Rumiko Takahashi, and are used without permission.
Please Enjoy.
Coutuva.
The Death of a Dream - Part 4
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Hitomi was impressed. As she stood before the large
mirror in the bath, she couldn't help but smile at the rich
intricacy Kasumi had weaved into her hair. It looked so good
that it even made her feel a bit better.
"Arigato gozaimashite, Kasumi-sama," she bowed, smiling.
"It looks wonderful."
"Daijobou desu. I had a lot of practice while Akane was
young," Kasumi deflected, with her usual polite smile. She
didn't fool Hitomi, however, as the redhead could sense her
companion's pride. She had to wonder why someone as incredible
as Kasumi tried so hard to downplay her accomplishments,
especially since it was apparent how much they meant to her.
"Would you excuse me, Hitomi-chan? I came over today to
teach Akane some new recipes, and we really should get started,
or we won't get them all done," she asked, resting her hands on
Hitomi's shoulders.
She couldn't help but smirk. "Always the helper, ne?"
she noted, regarding the woman through the mirror.
Kasumi surprised her with her response. "Someone has to
keep them in line," she smiled, leaning in and winking.
As Kasumi walked from the room, Hitomi's face darkened
as she turned back to the mirror. She wasn't at all pleased
with her 'role' in the upcoming events, feeling that there was a
lot missing from Joy's description. Overall, it just seemed
too simplistic, given how much had already gone into it.
As she pondered the situation, she absently started to
undo her kimono, then stopped as she realized she had nothing
else to wear. However, even as she debated the unpalatable idea
of going to ask Akane, an answer came to her.
Removing the kimono, she stood facing the mirror and
closed her eyes, imagining herself wearing one of her sun
dresses. Opening them, she giggled as she saw that it worked.
Posing the dress before the mirror, she she sighed as she
recalled how cool it had been earlier, and opted to try
something different. A second later, she found herself in her
slinky black cotton flares and an emerald green top.
"Now *this* is useful," she grinned, touching her neck
to add a choker.
Walking out into the family room again, she passed Akane
bringing the last of the dishes from the table, and was a bit
surprised by the look she got. Akane eyed her from head to toe,
then shook her head as she walked by. Hitomi had to grin as she
heard the woman muttering under her breath about how she wished
she could wear such things.
As she entered the family room, she was dismayed to find
that the kids were not there, and neither were Ranma or Joy.
Frowning, she went to see if the kids were playing in the yard,
hoping to keep herself distracted as long as possible.
Much to her relief, she found both Miyabi and Masao
working with some kid-sized bokken out near the practice dummy,
and decided to see if she could get in on it. She smiled at
Miyabi's serious tone as she instructed her little brother, and
was impressed with the eight year old's patience and persistance.
It didn't take long for her to get involved in the
session, offering advice to Miyabi and improving on Masao's
somewhat wobbly stance. She became so involved in the process
that she didn't notice Ranma and Joy reappear just inside the
gate.
"It's amazing how they accept her without any hesitation.
Even Masao likes her, and he ain't one to warm up to strangers,"
Ranma observed, smiling.
"Hai. You should have seen her with the kids at the
Centre. She had them eating out of her hands," Joy quipped,
starting to walk toward the house.
"Hai. Guess she would," he agreed, watching the show.
"No... More *forward*!" he whispered, watching Masao attempt
an opening lunge.
Joy snickered. "C'mon, Sensei... Let them play."
"Hm. So, what happened to them? The kids and the
Centre, I mean. If they knew she wasn't coming back..."
"It's covered..." she responded, voice low. "And so is
Kikyo," she added, her face becoming sombre. Ranma, noting her
expression, opted not to explore the issue.
"Okay... I'll take your word for it. Let's get back
in the house. I gotta fill Akane in," he responded, gesturing
for her to follow.
Just as he had taken about three steps, the gate bell
chimed. "Ara..?" he remarked, starting for the doors.
Hitomi, like everyone else, had looked over toward the
gates, but as she did, she sensed something. Something
ominously familiar. As she watched Ranma start to open the
gate, it hit her.
"Package for Seirei Hitomi - sign here please," the
young man standing behind the gate droned, shoving a box and
clipboard toward the surprised Ranma.
"MAMUNO!!" she screamed, leaping into the air and
firing a two-fisted blast at the stunned delivery man. Ranma
zapped away just as the blast connected, slamming the man across
the yard and hard into the Dojo wall.
Just as she touched down in the middle of the walk,
Ranma opened his mouth to ask what the hell she was doing, but
wasn't able to speak. The crumpled body began to wrench and
shudder, mist pouring from every opening.
Snarling, Hitomi lit up her hand and began to trace out
a familiar symbol. "Get the kids out of here...!" she shouted,
still staring at the rapidly congealing mist.
"Hai!" Joy responded, launching toward the startled
children.
"Hitomi! NO! You'll destroy half the ward!" Ranma
shouted, noticing what she was setting up.
"Kuso...!" she spat, snatching the symbol from the air.
Just as she did, the mist finished forming and the resulting
creature dove toward her, firing a a burst from its razor-like
claws.
The attempt just missed her head as she dropped low,
but it continued past her and hit the ground very close to
Miyabi. The concussion of the impact tossed the little girl
like a doll, sprawling her out on the ground several feet
away.
As Hitomi spun to face the creature, she saw Miyabi
take the hit, and felt something snap inside her.
"NOOOO!!!" she screamed, leaping to her feet. Glaring
death at the slavering demon, she jammed the heels of her open
hands together. As the aura began to build around them, she
grit her teeth -- and her arms exploded in flames.
The demon's next volley simply vaporized before her,
and before it could even respond, the aura leapt from her
hands and swallowed it whole, muffling its agonized screams.
Eyes flaring and lips curled, she began to close her
hands, crushing the creature within the shrinking sphere. She
ignored its shrieks as it compacted to a non-descript mass,
instead narrowing her eyes and uttering a chilling growl.
"This... Is for Kikyo... Lin-san... And Miyabi-chan!
Shi-ne!!" she snarled, and snapped her hands shut. The creature
and the sphere imploded with a violent, thundering boom, leaving
no visible trace.
Before the sound had even completely faded, she leapt
over to the fallen Miyabi, scooping the unconscious child into
her arms. Her face darkened even more as she detected the
child's injuries, and tears began to spill from her hate-filled
eyes.
"Too many people have been hurt... This ends NOW!!"
she screamed, and suddenly disappeared in a brilliant blue
flash.
Joy slumped to her knees, horrified face draining.
Ranma was every bit as stunned.
It wasn't until Akane burst through the door carrying
her barely-conscious daughter that either of them regained the
power of speech.
"Ranma... What the hell happened?" she almost
shreiked, face a picture of panic.
Ranma turned toward her and tried to speak, but Joy
cut him off.
"Miyabi-chan got caught in the crossfire while Hitomi
was fighting another assassin demon. She'll be okay... She
was knocked out by the blast, and probably twisted her
shoulder."
"So where's Hitomi...?" Ranma finally asked, despite
having a pretty good guess.
Joy lowered her head. "She's gone after them... By
herself," she answered, her tone ominous.
"Then we'd better get after her...! She doesn't..."
Ranma blurted, only to be silenced by the sad shake of Joy's
head.
"We can't, Ranma... Where she's gone, there's no way
to track her. Neither our empathic or telepathic senses will
work unless we're right beside each other. The 'atmosphere'
there absorbs those kind of energies," she stated, downcast.
"That's why we were supposed to go in together."
Akane swallowed hard. "So what... Does that mean?"
she asked, hugging Miyabi a bit closer.
Joy raised her gaze to hers, then drew a deep breath.
"Does the name 'Hiroshima' remind you of anything?"
"Masaka... You mean..."
"Hai... And since she's alone... It's a safe bet
she won't survive it," she added, looking up at the frowning
Ranma.
Hitomi rematerialized in a dark, formless space, and
scanned as far as she could for her target. Just as she
discovered that her 'sense' wasn't working, sections of the
misty atmosphere started to shift and change all around her,
forming more of the demons she had encountered previously.
Taking a stance, she charged her hands and waited,
knowing the demons had to be formed before she could affect
them. Within moments, the 'air' around her was alive with
bolts of energy and angry roars as the creatures swarmed
toward her. All she did was smirk, stand, and wait.
As the creatures bore down on her, she became forced
to dodge the wildly flying bolts, zipping from side to side
neatly until one exceptionally lucky burst singed her
whipping braid.
"Now you've *really* made me mad!!" she snarled, and
clenched her fists hard, increasing their azure glow to a
brilliant flare. With a battle cry that bespoke her rage, she
snapped her arms straight above her head and set off a
thunderously powerful explosion, vaporizing every last one of
the creatures around her.
As the echo of the blast faded off into the mists,
She looked around her for signs of any new adversaries, and
seeing none, decided it was time to stop playing around.
Noting that she still couldn't sense anything around her, she
raised her hand, and opened it palm-up in front of her. A
flat, bar-shaped energy charge then appeared just above it,
twitching like a compass needle.
"Find them," she commanded, and as the bar swung
around to point just off to her right, she smiled and
vanished into the void.
Suddenly, Nabiki wasn't smiling any longer. She had
just recieved word that the redhead had simply disappeared,
and she had no idea why. The news of the battle had also
suprised her, making her wonder just what was really going on.
Not being one to be satisfied with unknowns, she picked up her
phone again.
"Hi. Yeah, I knew you would. You can? Good... And
bring your toys, too. I need some answers, and I need them
yesterday. Great. See you then," she grinned, hanging the
phone up with a flourish.
"Wife... I would speak with thee," a certain annoying
voice announced, followed by the opening of her outer door.
"What?" she responded, in no mood to deal with *him*.
"Your activities of late smack of collusion. Hast
thou not learned from the errors of old?" Tatewaki intoned,
showing somewhat more awareness than usual.
"You worry too much, Kuno-baby... I'm only trying to
help my dear sister Akane get her act together. You don't
mind that, do you?" she responded, leaning slightly on her
sister's name.
"In faith, I would give of mine own life to aid the
fair Akane... Rather that than to dabble in the Black Arts,"
he replied, his normally vacant eyes sharp -- and fixed on
her. She was stunned.
"Black Arts...? Who said anything about the Black
Arts?" she recovered, trying to play it off.
"You have entertained that mage within our home.
This speaks dark intent. I will no longer permit her
presence," he indicated, his eyes narrow. "And as my wife,
you will respect my wishes and cease involvement with any of
her ilk," he followed, raising his everpresent bokken and
regarding it distantly. "I trust an accord had been struck?"
he added, flashing her a look that rattled her.
"Well, I think you're over reacting, but if it makes
you happy..."
"I am pleased," he responded, smiling. "I shall be
in the study... Do join me. We have matters to discuss,"
he indicated, sheathing the bokken in his sash as he turned
and walked out of the room. "Sasuke...! Tea... In the
study!" he shouted, striding into the hall without looking
back.
She puffed a huge sigh of relief and sank into her
chair. She had been, for the first time in her life,
honestly scared of her husband. She shook her head in
disbelief, wondering what had posessed him to actually
threaten her. Just as she completed the thought, her eyes
widened.
"They know..." she breathed, grabbing for her phone.
Hitomi had her hands full. Immediately after
reappearing, she was set upon by more creatures and demons
than she could count, not only of the earlier type, but of
all manner and description. Leaping, doging and incinerating
creature after creature, she began to note that it wasn't
buying her any time. The horde kept coming, and a few of
them even managed to land shots near her. Becoming even more
angry, she unleashed a huge blast right through the middle
of them, succeding only in punching a rapidly refilling hole.
Immediately, she lit her hand again and traced out the
Dragon's head, this time shaping it in a more oval pattern.
Setting her feet, she launched a searing, thundering blast
that vaporized the thickest horde, and went on to even punch
a hole in the mist itself.
She smiled as she saw how it took them a little longer
to recover. Leaping into the air, she started firing slicing
arcs around her, trying to keep the pressure on in the hope
of reducing their numbers. As she landed, she prepared to
deliver another dose of Dragon Fire, only to feel a hit in the
middle of her back. It staggered her, but in turn, only bought
its issuer a searing trip to oblivion.
Shaking off the impact, she grabbed her right wrist and
peppered the horde machine-gun style, trying to build a buffer
around her. It took her a few more blasts to realize that the
creatures et al were not coming at her any longer, but only
gathering around -- and watching her.
Before she could even start to wonder why, she felt the
atmosphere begin to sizzle with energy. With a rumble that
threatened to deafen her, the ground began to shake and crack.
Before she could decide which if any way to run, the entire
area before her feet began to fall away, expanding a chasm
out and away from her. Within seconds, the far edge
disappeared into the swirling murk.
The hole then filled with a flood of the demons, who
had begun flying into it as soon as it opened. She gasped as
she watched them swirl together into a huge, rotating mass,
which spun apart into three smaller masses. As each congealed,
one became considerably larger than the rest. And even more
unsettling was her observation that even that made no apparent
difference in the number of lesser demons still swarming about.
But, before she could deal with that fact, he masses in
front of her began to pulse and rumble, vibrating the very
atmosphere. They twitched and stretched into massive, almost
man-like figures, the largest of them moving to the front.
As the foremost one solidified, it became so massive that it
exceeded her feild of vision.
As she gaped at the sight, the largest began a cocky,
self-righteous, booming laughter that filled her ears.
"You have done well to survive this long, Mortal; your
power is impressive," it stated, glaring down at her. "You
could be useful to us."
"Feh; the only thing I'll be to you is the last you'll
ever see!" she growled, eyes seething.
"Look around you, Mortal. You must know that no matter
how many of us you destroy, it will avail you nothing. We are
still more in number and strength than you could possibly
concieve," the arrogant, onmipresent voice echoed. "You are
but one naive, misguided human. You have no chance against
us. Only the Fates themselves could weild enough
power -- and survive. Your only salvation lies in joining
with us. Use your strength, rather than wasting it on such
a pathetic folly," it continued, glaring down at her with an
expectant smile.
Hitomi returned an angry glare, then looked around at
the murmering, growling horde that filled the space about
her. As she considered that, an abrupt realization crashed
through her anger.
The hulking, arrogant demon had been right about at
least one thing. Until this particular moment, she had been
pitifully naive. Sighing, she dropped her shoulders and
lowered her head, at last understanding the true reason for
her existance. Within her chest, her heart grew leaden. She
knew what she had to do -- and what it was going to cost her.
The demon apparently noticed her sudden change of
demeanor, and didn't waste any time trying to capitalize.
"Speak, human. Will you become one with us, or do
we simply kill you? The choice is yours," it gloated, the
delight in its voice rankling her.
Fighting back tears, she raised her gaze to the
grinning demon and nodded. "Since you put it that way;
what choice do I have?" she began, with a sigh. "It's
obvious that I have to join you -- in a one-way trip to the
Lost Realm!!" she shouted, exploding away from the ledge
and burying her flaring arms in its abdomen. Before the
huge demon could react, she grit her teeth and called up
more power, soon disappearing in a brilliant flare.
"Forgive me Kiko-chan; there's... No other way," she
thought sadly, just as the creature tried to grab her and pull
her out of him.
"No way you bastard! I'm gonna make SURE this is
over -- FOREVER!!" she screamed, closing her eyes and pulling
out *all* the stops. The light that was Hitomi grew an order
of magnitude brighter and overdoubled in size, incinerating
the closest minions. As they clawed over each other trying
to escape, the radiation began to affect even the movement and
pulsations of the mist.
The creature could only scream in agony as the massive
buildup ripped it apart from the inside. Its huge form
cracked and split, shafts of light bursting from each fissure
to illuminate the mist like miniature suns.
Its screams stopped as its shattering form began to
crumble, releasing huge bursts of energy into the mist, soon
overloading its capacity to absorb it.
With a blast so horrifically powerful it was felt
across all three Realms, the saturated, volatile mist
detonated, setting off a light show rivalling the death of a
sun.
When it was all over, absolutely nothing tangible
remained -- other than a chilling, eerie silence.
Joy and Ranma both suddenly shuddered, each seeking
the other's eyes. Joy rose from her seat on the floor and
walked over to Ranma, grabbed him about the waist and buried
her face in his shirt. A lump came to his own throat as he
felt her hot tears dampen his skin.
Just as Akane rose from her mat and started toward
him, the air in the middle of the room suddenly warped into
a spiral, then burst into a blue, shimmering mass. It then
settled to the floor in silence, pulsing once before taking
the shape of a prone body.
As the glow faded, Joy gasped out loud, zapping over
to the sorely abused form that lay helpless and shaking on
the floor.
"Hitomi-chan! We thought -- you were dead!" she
exclaimed, clasping the redhead's hand in hers.
"Dying; but -- had to -- come back. Tell you to help
Kikyo. Promise me!" she gasped, struggling to even focus her
tearing eyes.
"I will, Hitomi-chan. I swear it," the Spirit-Child
choked, brushing the redhead's singed bangs from her graying
face.
"Arigato," Hitomi breathed, a faint smile on her face
as she squeezed Joy's hand weakly. "Ranma; you here?" she
asked, turning her head.
"Hai. I'm here, Hitomi-chan," he responded, kneeling
close to her side.
"Ranma... I... I..." she struggled, her voice
fading to a dry whisper.
"Nani?" he asked, leaning a bit closer.
"Thanks... For the loan," she smiled, then grabbed
his shirt and kissed him full on the lips.
To everyone's shock, instead of the brilliant flash
and loud, booming crack they expected, the two became bathed
in a soft, bluish-tinted light, which decreased in opacity
until they could no longer be seen. A moment later, the
light pulsed and disappeared, leaving only Ranma laying flat
on his back. His eyes were closed and he wasn't moving, which
sent Akane into a blind panic.
"RANMA!!" she shrieked, diving toward him.
"Matei!!" Joy shouted, blocking the dive with her arm.
Without any further word, she zapped up a bucket of cold
water and dumped it on the prostrate Ranma.
Everyone's jaws but Joy's dropped as onna-Ranma
shrieked and sputtered, then sat up and glared at her.
"Whatja do *that* for?" she demanded, shaking the
water off of her hands.
Joy stood back and watched the family laughing,
talking, and celebrating Ranma's 'rebirth', smiling at
Akane's unwillingness to let go of her husband. Her heart
still ached nonetheless, as Ranma's good fortune had come
at a high price.
She was still amazed at how Hitomi had managed to
conserve enough strength to come back, just so she could
return Ranma's body. She knew that such an act was not part
of the plan, and assumed that the Fates must have let her do
as she saw fit, given her performance. What bothered her most
was that it meant Hitomi really was gone, and she, for many
reasons beyond simple friendship, knew she would miss her
terribly.
Despite being happy for Ranma, she wished that there
was a way Hitomi could have survived. She was an incredible
person, the kind one considers themselves honored to have
known. She touched the lives of many people in her short
lifetime, and most all were better for it.
Sighing sadly, she also realized that her job was
almost done, now that the Spirit World was at peace and Ranma
was once again a normal human. That meant she only had one
duty left to perform, and wasn't looking forward to it. It
also meant that the time had come for her to say her goodbyes,
and leave Ranma's family to the great life they had coming.
Walking up to Ranma, she placed her small hand on his
shoulder and looked at him with a sad smile. "Congratulations,
Ranma," she reiterated, a slight sniff escaping her guard.
"My job is done. It's time for me to leave. Kikyo needs me,
and you need to be with your family."
Ranma, upon seeing the Spirit-Child's eyes,
immediately felt for her.
"Arigato, Joy-sama," he opened, rising to his feet.
"I miss her too... And I always will," he stated, with a sad
smile. "Like I told her a while ago; she was the only
version of my girl-side I actually liked." As he finished
the sentence, he looked down at his body and sighed, then
flexed his fingers and arms. "I still can't believe she did
this... But, she was kinda known for surprises, wasn't she?"
"Hai. It even surprised me. But I think she felt
guilty, especially after meeting your family. You know how
much that meant to her."
Ranma looked down for a moment, then glanced at Akane
and his children. "Yeah. I do," he nodded, his voice quiet.
After a moment of thoughtful silence, concern knit his brow.
"There's a couple of things I'm curious about, though; like,
what really happened to Shampoo? I can't see her just going
back to China. And Elysse... What about her?"
"Well, Lin-san did go back -- after a certain subtle
'suggestion'. She took things pretty hard, and I think plans
to start a new life, as far away from her old one as possible.
Believe it or not, it's the best thing for her," Joy replied,
smiling. "I honestly wish her luck."
"So do I," he agreed, nodding.
"For sure... And as far as Elysse and her baby are
concerned... I hear she's going to be wiped out."
"Nani? Are you saying...?"
She frowned. "No... I mean her -- and everyone
else's -- memory. She'll be left thinking she got preganant
after a party, and 'Dad' somehow died. I think they're even
going to remove her curse. Makes sure there are no loose
ends."
He shook his head. "Kuso - had me freaked for a
minute, there. But even so, that's still gonna suck for her."
"Yeah, but it beats the alternative."
He frowned. "Hm. I guess. So now that...?"
"I'd better get going. I have to check on Kikyo,
and if she's recovered..." she began, but her voice trailed
off.
"I don't envy you that job. She's not gonna take it
well."
"Hai. She won't," she agreed, flashing a weak smile
as she stepped back a few paces and bowed. "Sayonara,
Saotome Ranma. It's been an honour to have known you. Live
a strong life," she bowed again, rising with shimmering eyes.
"And if you ever happen to need anything..."
He smiled, and upon flashing a glance at Akane,
faced the Spirit-Child and returned an equally deep bow.
"It has been an honor to know you as well, Joy-sama,"
he stated, and before she could react, picked her up and
hugged her tight. A bit suprised, she gasped, then returned
the hug with great affection. Sniffing back tears, she then
whispered in his ear.
"I already miss both of you..." she breathed, then
floated back, and with a sad, longing face, faded from sight.
Akane, having so far remained silent, stepped up and
wrapped another tight hug around her husband. Looking up
into his eyes, she asked *the* question.
"Is that it? Is it... Really over?"
He could only look back and smile, his face confident
but sad. "Hai, Akane-chan. It's over."
Okimayaki Kikyo looked over the cans of vegetables
before her, pausing only to smile at her daughter as she
played in her stroller. Every so often, she would also have
to acknowledge compliments from people in the aisles, as to
a person they would all smile and wave at the bubbly little
girl.
She still marvelled at the little one's ability to
charm even the grumpiest of people, and how she was always
exuberant and happy. She knew it was the legacy of her
father, who Kikyo remembered fondly as the most wonderful
woman she had ever known.
She only wished she had lived long enough to see her
daughter born, and have been able to love the child as she
knew the woman would have.
It had been almost a year since she'd recovered,
only to be told the painful story of her lover's sacrifice.
The passage of time had not diminshed either the pain in her
heart or the emptiness in her soul however, leaving her
still feeling as torn as if it had all happened yesterday.
In fact, had it not been for her daughter, and the
child's incredible resemblance to her father, Kikyo knew
she wouldn't have been able to go on.
"C'mon, Hitomi-chan; we have to get home and make
supper. Okaasan has a garden to finish," she smiled,
recalling how proud her girlfriend had been of that
particular project. She knew her own work on it wasn't
nearly as meticulous, but something within her still
compelled her.
After arriving back home and finishing supper, she
took Hitomi-ko and went out to the nearly completed garden.
On arriving, she simply stood holding her daughter and
looking out over the lush grounds. Her heart twinged as
she caught herself wondering if Hitomi liked it.
As she was about to pick up the pouch of tools and
start edging the walk, she happened to glance toward the
bridge at the garden's center, and was startled to see
someone standing on it.
It was a very pretty young woman with lustrous,
deep auburn hair that tossed like a wave in the gentle
breeze. She stood about five-foot four, wore a long,
feminine, pale green sundress, and as far as Kikyo could
see, had an excellent body.
Face darkening nonetheless, she set her daughter
in her playpen and walked toward the woman, miffed that
someone would have the nerve to tresspass -- especially
in their garden. As she approached the woman however, she
was stunned to see her break out in a wide and unsettlingly
familiar smile.
As she stepped onto the bridge, the auburn haired
woman turned into a deep bow, and as she rose, Kikyo felt
her large sea-green eyes lock hers -- then they began to
shimmer.
"Kiko-chan..." the woman breathed, clasping her
hands together and biting her lip.
Kikyo stopped in her tracks. Gaping at the woman,
she had to blink, then take a second look to make sure she
wasn't seeing things. Even with the different frame, hair
and eyes, Kikyo suddenly knew exactly who the stranger was.
"Hitomi?" she gasped, her heart racing.
The woman shook her head. "No. Not any more. My
name... My *real* name... Is Miyuki," she almost
whispered, with hopeful eyes.
Kikyo didn't care. Bursting out in tears, she
leapt to Miyuki and wrapped her in a huge, emotional hug.
Miyuki returned it in kind, leaving them sobbing into each
other's clinging embrace.
Through all the tears, Miyuki managed to find her
voice first. "I'm back, Kiko-chan; and I'll never leave
you again. Ever," she sniffed, tightening her hug.
==================================================================
END - The Death of a Dream A Ranma1/2 FanFic By Coutuva
Comments Welcomed - Flames Extinguished!
coutuva@gmail.com
&&&&
And there you have it... The end of a saga. (snif) This story
didn't quite go as I originally envisioned it, but I certainly
did enjoy the experience. It proved to be quite an emotional
roller coaster ride, especially this segment. My thanks to
all who responded along the way, for it was for them that I
tried my best. I'm not done writing by any means, and I hope
that those who supported and critiqued my work will continue to
do so, since a writer is nothing without an audience.
Arigato gozaimashite, minna!
Coutuva.
(
geocities.com/Tokyo/Bay) (
geocities.com/Tokyo)