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All original Ranma1/2 Characters and Backstory Copyright
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Coutuva.
Goodbye Is Not Forever - Epilogue
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"Ohaiyo, Himiko-san!"
Himiko turned in her chair and shot the approaching
Kayoko a shocked look. "You mean to tell me Sleeping Beauty
has arisen?" she teased, raising a hand to her face.
"Ano... Why? How long was I out...?" the girl asked,
blinking.
"Only two days straight. I was just about to go in
there and hold a mirror under your nose."
"Gomen -- I guess I overdid it a bit..." she flushed,
but then broke into a smile. "But there was one good part -- I
was dreaming about Mom."
Himiko smiled. "Well, after what you did to that
building, I'm not surprised you were in a coma. They recorded
the shockwave on the mainland," she puffed, affecting a frown.
"That's how they explained it, too... Called it a 'localized
volcanic sinkhole'," she added, with a wry grin. "And by the
way -- how did you manage to do that without even disturbing the
trash in the street?"
"Mom showed me a few tricks," she grinned, then her face
sobered. "After what they did to my family, I still think they
got off lucky," she glowered, as she walked up to the table.
"Oh - what are those?"
"Just some Saotome family history... Thought you might
be interested when you finally came to. Want to see?"
"Hai!" Kayoko gasped, yanking out a chair.
"Okay - here's one I know you'll get a kick out of," she
grinned, handing over the top album from the weary-looking stack,
open to a certain picture.
"Masa... That's Mom - in her guy form! And who're all
these other people?"
Her grin softened to a smile. "That's his wife, and the
rest are some of his daughters. Those are the twins, their first
borns - that's Kayoko, and this is Himiko - the cute one," she
winked, pointing her out. "They were the ones that founded SGT,
and they're about 35 in this shot."
Kayoko nodded. "They are cute... And she even looks a
little like you - I guess they weren't identical twins, ne?"
"Iya -- fraternal. And about us looking alike - we
really do. In fact, my name is actually 'Hime' - I was given the
nickname because of the resemblance."
As expected, Kayoko thought about it for a moment, then
chuckled and shook her head. "Really?"
"Hai... Really," she confirmed, with a wink. "It was
first done by my sister as a joke, but it stuck... And I got
to like it better."
Kayoko rolled her eyes, then returned her gaze to the
picture. A moment later, she raised it again. "So if they were
the ones that started SGT, then what did Mom end up doing?"
"You'll get a kick out of this," she teased, leaning
back in her chair. "He gave up on Martial Arts -- at least as
a career. Instead, he ended up founding a children's
center -- one that eventually became the most respected,
non-profit, non-fee children's hospital in Japan. It still
is, actually."
Kayoko smiled. "That doesn't surprise me at all. She
had so much love to give..." she remarked, her smile becoming
wistful. "So if that's what happened with Mom, how did all
'this' start?"
Himiko huffed. "It all happened a lot later. SGT won
a big government contract that the 'other clan' thought they had
sewn up -- the commision to develop what became the cars we all
use today. SGT's concept was just outright better... More
efficient and much less expensive. And on top of that, the
twins negotiated an exclusive patent agreement, which earned the
company billions in licensing," she winked, knowingly. "That
didn't sit well with the other guys, so they decided to take the
political route to get SGT back. Figured they'd just take over
the country, and use that power to get what they wanted...
Including shutting us down. They actually came close a few
times, but never quite managed it," she noted, a bit smugly.
"The idea for this whole scheme was apparently hatched when
their stooge got booted out of a pivotal government
post -- because of what we found out about him."
Kayoko gasped. "You're kidding -- that was it? They
tried to wipe out the entire line because of that?"
"Hai -- it was the 'straw', actually. This 'battle'
has been going on for more years than I can remember."
"Then that means it's probably not over yet," the girl
frowned, at which Hime had to nod sadly.
"Probably not. Doppelganger was only one wing of the
empire, albeit impossible to connect legally -- as usual."
"Well, they'd better not try anything else," Kayoko
glowered, then closed her eyes and seemed to be calming
herself -- which brought a sigh of relief to Hime's chest.
A moment later, the girl puffed a breath, then opened
her eyes and looked back at the picture -- as if trying to
distract herself.
"I can't get over how young Mom looks here -- almost
as if she hasn't aged a day."
Hime decided to take the lead and run with it. "Hai -
he aged incredibly well. As for the rest of the people, this
is Kigai, that's Kasumi, and the baby his wife is holding is
Mika. And when this picture was taken, she was four months
along with another girl."
Kayoko's eyes boggled. "How many kids did they have?"
"Uhm... I don't really know. It's been two and a half
centuries since we 'left', and so many of them are gone that
getting all the records is tricky. And because they only ever
had girls, it's even harder."
"Nani? All girls?"
She nodded. "Hai. No doctors could ever explain it,
but they didn't care -- Ranma especially. All he cared about
was giving his kids the best family environment he could, and he
made sure all of them succeeded. It was like his 'personal
mission' -- and it worked, too. All of his kids are forces
to be reckoned with, and the entire Island knows it."
After an awed shake of her head, Kayoko composed herself
and picked up the album again. "Can't see his wife's face very
well here - she's looking up at him, but Kayoko's hair is in the
way," she noted, wrinkling her nose at what she'd just said.
Hime had to chuckle. "I know... It's hard to find a
good picture of her," she noted, selecting a few more prints.
"I always wondered if that wasn't on purpose - maybe because
of her curse."
Kayoko's eyes snapped up. "Curse? You mean...?"
"Hai... At some point, she deliberately got herself
cursed. I don't know any of the details, though."
"Huh... I can't see anyone wanting to be stuck with
this," Kayoko expressed, frowning in disbelief. A moment later,
however, a grin replaced it. "Any more of these?"
"You bet! Here's a really rare one," Hime grinned,
passing the album she had open. "Nobody even knows I have it."
Kayoko's jaw dropped. "Aiy! It's Mom -- and some young
guy... And Mom's holding a brand-new baby!" she exclaimed, her
eyes wide.
"Hai. That's Chisato when she was only a month old..."
she began, but stopped when she saw the look on Kayoko's face.
"Something wrong, Kayoko-san?"
"Hai -- I thought you said Mom married a woman."
Hime nodded. "He did."
Kayoko's face showed her confusion. Hime responded with
a teasing grin, during which Kayoko abruptly gasped.
"Oh! You mean *that* was his wife's curse?"
"You bet -- and I think you're only about the third
person that knows about it."
"Wow..."
"Yeah -- she didn't like it known what she turned into.
I think there was an issue there, even though she did it
willingly."
"I wonder what?" Kayoko replied, as her eyes returned
to the picture. Over the next few moments, her expression began
to sadden, and her hand rose to graze the image.
"She looks... So happy..."
Hime frowned. "Does that... Bother you, Kayoko-san?"
"Iya... I... I was just wondering... If that's how she
looked... When she held me," the girl answered, her voice tight.
Hime bit her lip, then reached to rest a hand on Kayoko's
arm. When Kayoko looked up, she smiled.
"I know she did."
Kayoko didn't reply, other than to lower her eyes.
"Kayoko-san...?"
Her eyes closed. "I... I miss her, Hime-san. It's only
been a few days, but I miss her so much my chest hurts," she
sighed, her voice cracking. "I knew it was going to hurt to... To
leave so soon after finally meeting her, but I had no idea it would
hurt this much," she sniffed, fighting back tears. "But... But
I'm sure... I'm sure I did the right thing," she noted quietly,
resting her hands atop the book. "This... Is all the proof I
need."
"I think you did, too, Kayoko-san," she smiled back
sympathetically, then patted the girl's arm. "Want to take a
break and go get something to eat? I figure you've got to be
hungry after two days in bed."
Kayoko raised a weak smile. "Hai - sounds good."
A short while later, as the car sailed out of the top
floor garage bays and broke into the late afternoon sun, Kayoko
turned toward her with a thoughtful look on her face.
"Hai, Kayoko-san?" she asked, figuring she'd save the
girl the trouble.
"Uhm, Hime-san... How did you get involved in all this?
I mean... I know you work for SGT, but... This seems like
something a lot bigger than most employees would do," she asked,
her face serious.
She drew a sigh. "It is. I do work for SGT, but that's
only part of the reason. The biggest part... Is that I'm
related to Ranma - just like most of the people who work there.
If he'd have been killed back then... None of us would have
been born. Me included."
"I had a feeling..." Kayoko smirked, leaning back in her
seat. "I could sense something from you right from the
start -- even before your eyes became blue," she winked,
knowingly.
Hime flashed a pixie grin. "Hai... And I was so glad
to get rid of those contacts -- they made my eyes dry," she
complained, puffing a sigh of relief. "I had to colour and
extend my hair, too, but that'll take longer to come out," she
added, running her fingers through it. "It's actually the same
as yours -- which is why I had to. Ranma would have picked up
on it right away."
Kayoko nodded, then her face sobered. "But that still
doesn't explain why *you* did it. You could have sent someone
who was a better shot..." she returned, eyebrows rising.
"True. I could have - but I'm pretty happy I didn't,"
she responded, ominously. "And besides, it's hard to get
volunteers for a mission nobody else knows about."
Kayoko blinked. "Nani?"
"That's right. I discovered this whole thing when I
was hacking into Doppelganger's systems -- I had no clue about
it before that, and as far as I know, nobody else in the family
did, either. That made me think there was probably a reason, so
in order to keep it quiet, I arranged everything under tight
security, and went back myself," she explained, flashing a quick
grin. "It was probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do,
but it was definitely worth it. I got two for the price of one."
"What do you mean?"
She grinned again. "Finding you there -- that was a
major bonus. I've been racing the clock on this for the past
year, and had no chance to find out what became of you. That
was going to be my priority when I got back."
Kayoko looked shocked. "You... Were going to come
after me?"
She winked. "Damned straight - we're family. We
Saotomes stick together."
The girl's shock melted away to a grateful smile.
"That's... Probably the second most wonderful thing I've ever
heard," she noted, her hands meshing in her lap as her head
bowed. "Arigato, Hime-san. I can't tell you how much it
means to me... To finally have a real family."
Her grin became a wide smile. "You always did,
Kayoko-san. And you're about to meet it."
"What?"
"Hai. Look out the window."
Kayoko blinked, then wiped her face and turned to the side,
only to gasp out loud. "This... This is the house!" she blurted,
gaping back at Hime in disbelief.
"Hai. The very same," she confirmed, stifling a laugh.
"Ranma eventually bought it, and it's been in the family ever
since. Ready to meet the gang?"
Kayoko's gape fell away to a wide smile. "I can't wait!"
she squealed, starting to snap off her belts. Two minutes later,
the two of them were stepping through the wide-open main entry.
"Tadaima!" Hime called out, slipping the nervous but
ecstatic Kayoko a 'shhh finger' while changing into her sandals.
A chorus of excited responses rolled back out to greet
them, at which she saw Kayoko's face absolutely light up.
"Oh - there is one thing I should tell you first..." she
began, deliberately schooling her features.
Kayoko, meantime, felt her heart sink in unison with her
face. "H-hai?"
"Remember how I told you that I'm... 'Related' to Ranma?"
She nodded nervously.
"Well, that's not the whole story," Hime began, lowering her
gaze. "I'm actually his youngest daughter - and your half-sister."
Before the impact of the statement could even register,
however, she was distracted by the sudden appearance of a handsome,
black-haired, 40-something man.
"Okaeri-nasai, Hime-chan... What's made you decide to..."
he began cheerily, only to freeze just as a slightly older woman
gasped behind him.
Kayoko herself was the first to break the incredulous
silence.
"M-Mom...? Na-Nabiki-san?"
Ranma gaped at Hime, then back at her, then blinked and
shook his head. Tentatively, he reached out and took her hands.
"Masaka... Kay-chan... It -- It really is you," he
whispered, his eyes glistening.
Her face crinkled, squeezing out her nascent tears as she
nodded in silence.
To her surprise, however, he looked toward Hime and
winked knowingly. "And I *knew* it was you..." he added, pride
mingling with the other emotions on his face. "Arigato...
'Himiko-chan'."
Hime gasped. "You... You knew?"
His smile widened. "Hai. Figured it out about four or
five years ago -- you were getting to about the right age," he
smiled, turning to the resignedly smiling Nabiki. "You owe me,"
he grinned, then turned back again.
Kayoko could only watch speechless as his eyes then
took her in from head to toe, upon which he broke out in a very
different smile.
"Someone wants to see you," he stated, then stepped
back and closed his eyes. An instant later, a diminutive
redhead stood in his place.
Kayoko felt her heart skip as her widened eyes met the
shimmering sapphire blues before her, and that was all it took.
Tears flowing, they dissolved into each other's arms.
She was still in the midst of the wonderful embrace when
she heard another, more distant sniff. Looking up, she saw Hime
with an arm around Nabiki, and using her free one to wipe at her
face.
Hime noticed her looking, then smiled and shot back a
wink.
"Welcome home - oneechan."
=====================================================================
END - Goodbye Is Not Forever A Ranma1/2 Fanfic By Coutuva
Comments Welcomed - Flames Extinguished!
coutuva@vecdev.com
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