Well, here goes Part 5 of the next phase of the series! This
is based heavily on events and situations from the previous stories,
which are available on my Web Site.
As always, C&C is anticipated, accepted, and appreciated.
"Miyabi" and "Masao" appear courtesy of Kunoichi, whose "Ranma
nibun no ichi" series inspired this "Paralell Universe".
All original Ranma1/2 Characters and Backstory Copyright
Rumiko Takahashi, and are used without permission.
Coutuva.
Mysteries of the Mind - Part 5
Unexpected Visitors
------------------------------------------------------------------
The older model car cruised down the 401, it's capacity
load of six passengers either sleeping or staring nervously out the
windows. The lot of them had just broken out of a jail transport
as it was enroute to the Jail facility. They were a motley
assortment, most convicted of assaults and petty crimes, but the
two 'leaders' were cut from rougher cloth... one convicted of murder,
and the other a serial rapist.
"Hey, Asshole... watch your damn speed! All we need now
is to get busted for that."
"Shut up! Everyone speeds on this friggin' highway... it's
the ones who don't that stand out. Just sit back and stay outta my
face." the driver growled, glaring angrily at his cohort.
"Hey... keep it down up there! I'm tryin ta sleep, here."
came a voice from the rear seat.
"Then do it, and leave me the hell alone!"
"Figger a place ta go yet? We should get off this
highway... the bastards'll have a roadblock up before long."
"I'm thinking... fer now, just take the next exit. We need
stuff, anyway."
The order thus issued, silence fell over the gang once
again, as each retired to their own little world.
The driver headed the old car down the next available exit,
and as luck would have it, there was a small store at the bottom of
the ramp. His cohort slapped his shoulder and pointed to the store,
nodding maliciously.
"Wake up, you guys... we're going shopping." the cohort
snarled, cocking the Police nine millimeter he had recently acquired.
Hitomi awoke to the shrill buzz of the alarm clock, and
sleepily groped for the snooze bar, which for some reason eluded
her. Finally, after several attempts, she sat up in the bed and
punched the 'Auto' button to off, sneering at the device.
"Ohaio, Hitomi-chan!" a cheerful voice greeted from
beside her, which instantly transformed her scowl to a happy smile.
Turning toward the voice, Hitomi smiled even wider. "Ohiao,
Kiko-chan." she responded, leaning over to kiss her girlfriend's
cheek. As she did, she crawled back onto the bed and snuggled up
to Kikyo's warm, naked form, moaning happily.
Kikyo lifted her arm around Hitomi, smiling contentedly as
she toyed with the tangle of red locks adorning her visage.
"Hitomi-chan... I'm so glad you're here. I love waking up
to you, Anata." Kikyo breathed, softly.
Hitomi's cheeks flushed at the compliment. "I love waking
up with you, too, Kiko-chan... but I especially like what happens
before that." she intoned, a letcherous grin sneaking across her
features.
"Enough of that, you... We'll end up late for work again."
Kikyo chided, half-heartedly.
"I know... I can't help it. You bring out the worst in me."
Hitomi replied with a smile.
"No... the best." Kikyo whispered, leaning over to kiss
Hitomi affectionately.
After a few more minutes of resistance, Hitomi chased Kikyo
off to the bathroom, but as she started to get out of the bed, she
abruptly stopped and stared at Hitomi's bare midsection.
"Is something wrong, Kikyo?" Hitomi asked, checking herself.
"Forgive me, Hitomi-chan. I just noticed your scar." she
replied, quietly. "I didn't mean to stare."
Hitomi bigsweated; She had seen the scar on her torso, but
had no idea what caused it. Thinking *very* fast, she came up with
a story that sounded reasonable.
"Oh, that... Just a training accident. Happened a long time
ago." she replied, casually.
Kikyo's face softened. "Gomen, Hitomi-chan... I didn't mean
to pry."
Inwardly, Hitomi breathed a sigh of relief. She felt
absolutely rotten about the lie, but on the other hand, as far as
she knew it could be the truth.
"Daijobu, Kiko-chan." she replied, smiling weakly.
Kikyo smiled, patted Hitomi's leg and headed off to the
bathroom, while a very relieved Hitomi went to the closet and
pulled out her Chinese-cut pantsuit to check over. She had been
leaving a few items of clothing at Kikyo's apartment of late, as
she had been spending more and more time with her. It occurred
to her at that moment that perhaps Kikyo was checking her out
as a possible live-in, which prompted her concern.
That thought made Hitomi smile happily.
In the month since they met, the two had become inseperable,
almost never leaving each other's side. Hitomi knew she was in
love with Kikyo, but still hadn't been able to come out with it...
but she knew it wouldn't be long. She also had not yet confided
her biggest secret... but that would have to wait for a while, as
she was afraid to scare Kikyo off.
Elysse had eventually accepted the reality of Kikyo's place
in Hitomi's life, although Hitomi suspected there was more to the
situation yet... she had seen certain looks in Elysse's eyes, and
noticed that Elysse would occasionally be distant... even cold.
And she knew Elysse was forcing civility when it came to Kikyo, a
fact which ultimately resulted in Hitomi staying over at Kikyo's
apartment, as opposed to the other way around.
Hitomi sighed as she thought about Elysse, wishing things
could have been different. She liked Elysse, and still felt that
she owed the woman a debt of honor for saving her life. However,
she reconciled that against the fact that if their relationship
would have been any better, meeting Kikyo would have been far
more difficult.
At that moment, Kikyo appeared from the hallway and looked
over at Hitomi happily.
"It's all yours... Anata." she announced, smiling and
pointing the way.
"Arigato." Hitomi replied, bowing deeply.
As she walked past Kikyo to take her turn in the bathroom,
Hitomi couldn't resist the urge to pat her lover's backside, which
elicited a predictable response from Kikyo.
"Hentai...!"
Once the two women arrived at work, an inordinantly busy
morning kept them both on their toes. For some reason, all of the
children were agitated and excitable, meaning Hitomi and Kikyo
were as tired as they were by nap time.
Just as they settled the last ones down, Kikyo's cell
phone rang, and she fumbled to get it out of her inside pocket
before it woke the children.
"Moshi, Moshi?" she answered quietly. A few seconds
later, her face darkened. "Chotto Matte." she said, looking up
at Hitomi. "May I be excused for a moment? This is an important
call, Sensei." she asked, voice just above a whisper.
Hitomi nodded, and Kikyo immediately rose, bowed, and
strode quickly out of the room.
In the back office, she took her call off hold and spoke
quietly.
"You should not call me at work... you will disturb the
children." she admonished, angrily.
"Sorry, Kiddo, but I haven't heard from you for a while,
and I thought I'd better see if you were still around."
"I am." Kikyo insisted, flatly.
"Goody. So, any sign of our boy wonder yet? The family's
really starting to get edgy over here."
"No. I have not seen or heard anything about the suspect.
No Martial Arts incidents, no bodies turning up, and no stories
about strangers. There has been nothing." she admitted, resignedly.
"Kuso... he must either be dead or have moved on somehow.
Okay... here's the deal. You *stay* in contact with me on this...
Like I briefed you before, he disappeared in your area at first,
so you should be the one to see him. If you do, you know what to
do."
"Hai, Nabiki-sama. I do." she assured, rolling her eyes.
"Good. If you do manage to find him, I'll see about that
stuff for your Mom... deal?"
"I will try my best." Kikyo replied, sarcasm edging her
voice.
"You do that. I'll check with the others in the mean time.
Good luck, Kikyo-kun. Caio!"
"Arigato." Kikyo replied, closing the phone. Sighing, she
turned off the ringer and slid the unit back into her pocket, then
headed back out to join Hitomi for a much-needed break.
Elysse sat in front of the television, trying to concentrate
on the shows. She wasn't having much luck, as her eyes kept
drifting over to the neatly made futon, and her thoughts to the
person that normally occupied it.
She missed Ranma, and much to her surprise, missed Hitomi,
too. It was nice having the female company, even though she really
wanted the male version.
Hitomi had not been home for several nights, and even now
Elysse couldn't believe how much it bothered her.
As she sat thinking about it all, she abruptly came up
with an idea. She hadn't been very nice to Hitomi's new girlfriend,
and it struck her that therin lay part of the problem. She
decided to invite the two of them for a drink, and try to smooth
things over before she lost Ranma completely.
Checking her watch, she noticed that she had enough time
to hit the grocery store before heading in for the afternoon shift.
Smiling, she grabbed her purse and was out the door in a flash.
Hitomi sat quietly chatting with Kikyo, waiting for the
time to arrive that they had to wake the children. In the distance,
and getting louder, she could hear sirens wailing, and hoped that
they would stay out of the neighbourhood so the kids could sleep.
As the wail became louder, Hitomi rose and walked to the
windows, closing them as quietly and as quickly as she could.
Just as she finished, and had walked back over beside Kikyo,
a loud boom startled her out of ten years growth. Before she could
even utter an epithet, the main doors crashed open, and six big,
surly, ugly men barged through it.
"Okay, ladies... on the floor, and don't give us any
trouble." the fat one snarled, motioning them toward the floor
with the shotgun he carried.
"Remington Pump, semi-auto. Three to six shot maximum."
Kikyo whispered, eyes narrowing.
Hitomi felt herself tense, and her perceptions seemed to
go on autopilot. Instantly, she counted the men, assessed each on
a threat potential basis, was preparing to attack the largest
when a panicked outburst from one of the men distracted her.
"Hank! This place is full of kids!" a tall, skinny one
shouted, reacting as if frightened out of his wits.
"What?" the fat one croaked, glancing around the room.
"Shit! This ain't no damn good... what the hell are we supposed
to do with all these brats?" he continued, angrily. "Aha! You
two... get over with the kids, and keep them quiet. Move!" he
ordered, waving the shotgun toward the women.
Slowly, Hitomi and Kikyo moved toward the children, some
of which were already crying. The men moved into the room, closing
the doors behind them and stationing themselves at various windows.
Outside, the sirens became deafening as Police cars and
vans descended on the small building, slowly surrounding it.
All hell broke loose inside the room as all of the children
awoke, realized what was happening, and promptly began to scream
and cry in fear. Most of them ran to Hitomi, and within seconds
she was covered with panicked children, and completely
overwhelmed.
The skinny guy hovered near a window, nervously watching
the army of Police gathering outside, and becoming more agitated
by the moment.
"Hank.. there's thousands of them out there... let the
kids go! Then they might back off...!" he stammered, eyes wide
with hysteria.
"Shut up, kid! I don't want to give them damn cops
nothing. They ain't takin' me back... no fucking way." he
yelled, waving the shotgun to a chorus of screams from the
children. "And you broads keep them damned brats quiet, or I will!"
"Hank... I got an idea." another of the men announced,
waving the fat man toward himself.
Looking quickly at the two women, who were both glaring
back at him with narrowed eyes, he sneered and stepped over beside
the waving one.
"You fucking idiot... do you have any idea how cops feel
about having kids involved? Why the hell did you pick a goddamn
Daycare??" the fat man snarled again, only more quietly.
"Don't hang this on me, asshole... The car ran out of gas,
and *you* picked the building. Now, shut up and listen. The kid
over there has the right idea... let's get rid of the kids, and
keep the chicks... we might even be able to have a little fun with
them."
"Yeah right, you sick bastard... You'd think of that
wouldn't ya. Okay, let's send the brats out... Fuck!" the fat
man cursed, noticing the 'kid' with his hand on the side exit
door handle.
Without bothering to worry about consequences, the fat
man raised the shotgun in his hand and pumped off two shots, and
as the rest of the room watched horrified, the 'Kid' took both
rounds, one in the shoulder and the other in the back, his blood
spattering all over the door and hallway. As he fell, he pushed
the handle on the door, and slid down it as it opened.
His body was grabbed from outside and quickly dragged
clear of the door, which automatically shut itself.
"All right... the next hero gets the same treatment! I'm
warnin' ya... don't fuck with me!" he shouted to the remainder
of his gang, then turned his attention back to his conversation.
Hitomi had been keeping a close eye on the 'leader', and
guessed him to be an easy target, provided he was disarmed. The
others about the room didn't look too challenging either, but she
knew she'd have to strike fast and hard, so they wouldn't have
time to use their guns.
Glancing over at Kikyo, she was surprised to find her
mumbling something to herself.
"Nee, Kikyo... what are you saying?" Hitomi asked in
Japanese, whispering under the noise of the crying children.
"We've got five adversaries, one with the Remington, he's
down two shells... three with Police Special nine millimeters, and
one with a Smith & Wesson .38 Special. The nine mills are the
dangerous ones... they fire the fastest. The .38 just makes a
bigger hole." Kikyo repeated with a wicked grin, glancing at
Hitomi.
Hitomi stared back at her, wide eyed. Suddenly, the
reserved, demure girl she knew was gone, replaced by a cold,
calculating adrenaline junkie who really knew guns.
"Ano... I take it you know guns." Hitomi finally sputtered,
quietly.
"I do. I'm an expert marksman, too." she grinned, winking.
Hitomi was, to say the least, surprised. "Great! We can
use that. I'm impressed... where have you been hiding this?"
"I didn't want to say anything until I knew what was going
to happen between us... I don't give out my secrets to just
anyone." she whispered, watching the fat man again.
"So, do I qualify?" Hitomi asked, smirking.
"Definitely. I love you." Kikyo responded, looking
straight into Hitomi's wide blue eyes.
Hitomi felt as though she'd been struck by lightning...
those three little words burrowed into her soul, unleashing a
wellspring of emotions all at once. She could feel her heart
rate rising right along with the euphoria she was experiencing...
and it felt wonderful.
"Kiko-chan... I love you, too. More than anything."
Hitomi breathed, wanting desperately to hug her girlfriend.
"Hitomi-chan..." Kikyo whispered, her face conveying what
her words could not, since they were rudely interrupted.
"Hey! What you chicks talking about over there? Shut the
hell up!" the fat man yelled, staring at Hitomi, who returned his
angry look.
"I'm gonna kill that fat..." Hitomi hissed, eyes flaring.
"Not if I beat you to it." Kikyo countered, quietly.
Abruptly, the ringing of the Centre's phone riveted
everyone's attention. The fat man grumbled and stomped over to
it, snatching it from it's cradle.
Listening intently, an evil smile parted his face, followed
by another scowl.
"Sure.. as long as you bastards stay well back... we got
over twenty kids in here, lots of ammo... and nothin' to lose."
he smirked, smugly. "I want a SWAT truck... out front, all the
doors open so I can see it's empty. And I want safe passage to
the airport, with five tickets waiting." He ordered, pausing as
he listened. "Fuck that! You got two hours!" he yelled,
slamming down the phone.
Sneering, the fat man looked at the terrified children
and huffed. "You!" he barked, looking at one of his cohorts.
"Grab about five of these brats and turn 'em loose. I'm gettin'
tired of havin 'em here."
"S..sure, boss..." the guy replied, walking up to Hitomi
and Kikyo, and reaching for some of the children. "Sorry,
lady..." he whispered, apologetically.
As if reading from a script, both women played 'foreign',
responding with a chorus of "Nani?"
When the children the thug selected began to protest,
Hitomi quickly explained in Japanese what was happening, allowing
the release to go smoothly. Seeing as the 'leader' seemed to want
to be rid of the kids, Hitomi decided to cooperate with the gang,
thinking that if she could get all the kids out first, then
mopping them up would be much safer. As she did, she winked at
Kikyo, who seemed to understand, and nodded her agreement.
After the first release, the gang simply waited, watching
the Police outside intently for some sign of cooperation. Thirty
tense minutes went by with no activity, and the 'leader' began to
get agitated again. Just as he started to pace the room, the
phone rang again.
The leader smirked and picked it up. "What?" he spat,
then listened for a few seconds. "Look, if I don't see a truck
out there, and damn soon, you'll get some kids all right... in a
fuckin' bag!" he yelled, and slammed the phone down again.
"Gimme that!" he snarled at the thug nearest him, grabbing
the nine mill out of his hand and giving him back the shotgun.
Turning, he cocked the weapon quickly, and then leaned down and
grabbed a little girl from in front of Hitomi. Hitomi caught the
child's arm, and resisted the fat man's effort to lift the child,
giving him a look that could kill.
The man raised the pistol and stuck it in Hitomi's temple,
his sneer changing to a wicked grin. "Don't be a fucking hero,
bitch... " he growled, pulling the squealing girl from her grip.
Hitomi's eyes flared as she made herself a promise... this
'man' would not survive the day.
Smirking again, the fat man dragged the helpless child to
the doors, and kicked them open. The little girl went into shock,
her screaming ceasing, replaced by the shakes and the occasional
whimper of terror as he swung her around in front of him, gun at
her temple. Had she not been covered with terrified children,
Hitomi would have acted on the opening the fat man just gave her.
"You bastards want to screw around? Here! Here's what
yer screwin' with!" he suddenly shouted, laughing sadistically
and firing twice.
Hitomi saw the child go limp in his arms just before he
shoved her out the door. At that moment, something snapped inside
her... her eyes glazed over and she sat very still, fists clenched
so tightly that her knuckles began to turn white.
Beside her, Kikyo noticed the change, and gasped quietly.
The fat man, giggling wickedly, slammed the doors shut and
traded back his gun, looking back at the others smugly. "That'll
teach them... you watch the truck show up now." he remarked,
evilly.
"So, what'll we do with them if it does?" his companion
asked, pointing to the hostages with his pistol.
"Leave the brats... but we'll bring them along... for
insurance, and maybe even a little entertainment."
Abruptly, Hitomi moaned and collapsed to the floor,
completely unconscious. Kikyo gasped again and lunged to her
aid, invoking a chorus of hammer cocks.
Quickly looking Hitomi over, Kikyo turned toward the
'leader' and his cohort, eyes wide with panic. "Please, to help
her, sirs... room in back with bed. Take her, please?" she
stammered, deliberately fracturing her English.
"Yeah, get her outta here... she was pissin' me off
anyway. You... stay with them." he ordered, winking at his
cohort. "This is more your style, anyway... chicks and beds."
he sniggered, and walked to the window.
"Okay, let's go." ordered the grinning thug, waving with
his gun.
Kikyo picked Hitomi up, draping the unconscious woman's
arm over her shoulder and walking her toward the small infirmary
at the back of the building. Many pairs of worried eyes followed
them out of the room, right up till they went out of sight.
Once in the back room, the thug closed the door behind
them, and locked it quickly. Without a word, he suddenly grabbed
Kikyo and wrenched Hitomi from her arms, allowing the redhead to
simply fall to the floor like a toppled mannequin. An absolutely
emotionless expression came over the thug's face as he threw the
screaming Kikyo on to the examining table, and then shoved his gun
in her mouth.
"Just shut the fuck up, and you might live." he whispered,
hoarsely. Kikyo nodded quickly, then closed her eyes as she felt
his hot, greasy hand on her breast.
"But you shall not be so lucky, lecherous dog." a cold,
reverberating voice indicated from behind the thug.
"What the fuck...?" the man snarled, whirling to see Hitomi
standing in the corner of the room, eyes glazed and her body bathed
in a bluish glow. She held her arms out before her with her hands
encircling a wispy image... the image of a dragon's head.
"For those who would dare to kill innocents... and those who
would harm the one that I love, there can only be one fate..."
Hitomi continued, her voice seeming to fill the room, despite her
slow, even speech. "Death." she stated, and set her feet. Taking
a deep breath, she glared at the stunned criminal angrily. "Dragon
Fire!" she yelled, and a blast of eldritch flame exploded from her
hands with a booming roar, incinerating the screaming thug where
he stood. When it was over, nothing remained of him save a hole
in the back wall of the building.
Gasping at what she just witnessed, Kikyo looked over at
Hitomi, who had lowered her arms and stepped toward the table,
placing a hand gently on her knee. Her eyes however, were still
glazed over.
"How do you fare, my child?" Hitomi asked, in the same
omnipresent voice.
"Daijobu..." Kikyo replied, weakly. Looking into Hitomi's
now concerned face, she didn't recognize anything about her...
even her glazed eyes seemed to belong to someone else.
"Who... or what... are you?" she finally asked, fearfully.
"A friend." Hitomi smiled, pleasantly. "Take the dog's
weapon, child... the lives of innocents are still in jeopardy."
Kikyo grinned and reached around her back, producing
her .45 proudly. "No thanks, mine's bigger." she commented,
happily.
Just at that second, the first of the others burst through
the door, having heard the death scream. Hitomi didn't even
turn around, dispatching him with an elbow to the ribs and
following through by snapping the back of her fist into his face,
instantly smashing his nose.
"Nice technique." Kikyo commented, appreciatively.
"It begins." Hitomi stated, and leapt through the door.
The next thug to appear met up with a chest-crushing kick to the
sternum, and the last, as he turned tail to run, was felled by a
deftly-thrown shoe from the previous victim, then pummeled into
unconsciousness before he knew what hit him.
Stepping into the open room, Hitomi sought out the leader,
who stood fearfully amoung the children, holding another little
girl by the arm and pressing his shotgun to her head.
He could tell that something was different about Hitomi,
perhaps because of the bluish glow, or perhaps from the coldness
in her glazed eyes... but deep inside, he knew he was a dead man.
"Back off, bitch... either I get out of here, or these kids
start dying!" he threatened angrily, wedging the shotgun into the
little girl's head.
"There is no room for mercy in the fate of those of your
ilk, coward." Hitomi replied, her cold voice filling the room and
sending a chill down the back of the fat man.
"Hey! I'm not fucking kidding, here! I'll kill this kid...
and a bunch more if I have to!" the fat man reiterated, eyes
showing his fear.
"That you would dare harm innocents... this seals your fate,
unclean dog." Hitomi spat, stepping toward the fat man.
"Stay back...!" he yelled, twitching the shotgun.
From behind Hitomi, a single shot rang out, striking the
shotgun in the action, almost breaking it in half. Hitomi leapt
forward, and as she landed in front of the stunned thug, grabbed
him and threw him across the room, safely away from the children.
"Child, remove the young ones to safety. They should not
be witness to retribution." Hitomi commanded, walking toward
the cringing criminal.
Kikyo immediately ushered the frightened children out the
rear doors, and into the arms of the waiting Police. Once the last
ones were out, she pulled her gun again and crept back into the
common room.
As she watched, Hitomi, or whatever she really was, picked
the fat man up by his shirt with one hand and glared at him coldly.
"It was your will that this day claimed the lives of so many...
it is only fitting that it should claim yours as well. Remember
that you chose your own path, dog... as you journey to the
welcoming gates of hell." she said, raising her hand to his
quivering face.
Kikyo closed her eyes as the painful scream filled the room,
and opened them just in time to see Hitomi wrench her fingers from
deep in the fat man's face, and his lifeless body crumple to the
floor.
Hitomi then turned, looked about the room, and strode out
to the center of the floor.
"It is ended. Good Journeys, child." she smiled at Kikyo,
and then promptly collapsed.
Kikyo gasped aloud and ran to kneel at Hitomi's side.
Worriedly, she lifted Hitomi into her lap, and brushed her hair from
her face. Hitomi moaned softly, then opened her eyes gingerly.
"Kiko-chan..." she began, weakly. "Are you okay?" she asked,
raising her hand to Kikyo's cheek.
"Hai... " Kikyo gushed, tears running down her face. "How
about you?"
"Daijobu... a little tired though... What happened? Is it
over?" Hitomi asked, noticing the Police now milling about the room.
"Is it ever... you made sure of that." Kikyo commented, a
relieved smile parting her features.
"Ano... me? What did I do?"
"What did you do...? You saved us all... including me.
You're a hero!"
"A hero? I don't understand..." Hitomi replied, looking
at Kikyo like she was from another planet.
Kikyo smiled, shaking her head. "Don't worry about it.
I'm just glad you're okay." she stated, pulling Hitomi into an
affectionate hug.
After all the dust had settled, and the Police had talked
to both of them and made out their reports, Kikyo pulled Hitomi
aside and tried to fill her in. Hitomi couldn't believe the
description, thinking that perhaps Kikyo had a little too much
excitement. Kikyo tried to show her the hole in the back wall of
the building, only to discover that it was gone. In fact, the
Coroner's team was removing a body from the room. As they passed
the stunned Kikyo and smirking Hitomi, one of the team members
commented how lucky they were that the guy in the bag shot himself,
as had the 'leader' of the gang.
Kikyo was utterly dumbfounded. She still swore to Hitomi
that the redhead had used some kind of 'spell' to incinerate the
man with them in the infirmary, but couldn't explain the absence
of the hole in the wall.
Finally, Kikyo gave up trying to convince her, and the two
women caught a cab home. As soon as they arrived at Kikyo's
apartment, Hitomi stretched her tired muscles and groaned aloud.
"Ohhh... I'm glad that's over, Kiko-chan. I was really
scared today. I thought for a while..." her voice trailed off as
she had a sudden memory flash into her head.
"Maki... those bastards killed her..." she breathed, her
widened eyes filling with tears.
"Ya! She didn't die! She didn't! She's just fine!" Kikyo
blurted, waving her hands frantically before her. "I saw her with
an EMT!"
"Nani? I saw him shoot her..." Hitomi sniffed, her voice
wavering.
"He fired over her head! He was just trying to freak the
Police out. All she did was faint out of fright." Kikyo
explained, hands on Hitomi's shoulders.
Hitomi looked back at her with shimmering blue eyes, then
wrapped her in a huge hug. "Oh, Kikyo... thank god she's okay!
I would never have forgiven myself if..."
"I know, Hitomi-chan. They're like your own children."
Kikyo soothed, her heart melting at Hitomi's concern for the little
girl. "But she's fine... and will probably be back at the Centre
in a few weeks." she continued, softly.
"I'm glad. Sorry about coming apart like that, Kikyo."
Hitomi sniffed, wiping her eyes sheepishly.
"Huh... don't worry about it. That's one of the things I
love about you." Kikyo grinned, hugging Hitomi back.
A short while after supper, Hitomi sat cross-legged on the
couch, dressed in only a very baggy t-shirt and a pair of cut-offs,
watching the news reports of their day.
Just then, Kikyo wandered back into the livingroom quietly,
and happened to glance at the answering machine.
"Oh... we didn't check messages." she stated, noticing the
flashing light.
"Are there any?" Hitomi asked, flipping off the couch and
walking up beside Kikyo.
"Looks like it..." Kikyo indicated, hitting the play
button.
Hitomi hung her arms over Kikyo's shoulder as they waited
for the replay, and mischievously blew a gentle stream of air past
her ear. Kikyo shuddered and giggled, then kissed Hitomi's cheek.
The tape finally finished and began to play back, revealing
only one message. It was from Elysse, inviting the two of them
over for a drink and to 'talk'. Hitomi looked at Kikyo, who
immediately lowered her eyes. "I don't want to go, but you can
if you want... it sounds important." she said, quietly.
"I dunno... I'd feel funny." Hitomi stated, already
'feeling funny'.
"I know you two have some things to settle... it's okay.
Stay over if you want, so you won't be on the street with alcohol
on your breath." Kikyo offered, sliding her hand down the side of
Hitomi's face.
Hitomi smiled, then took her hand and kissed it. "You're
too good for me." she said, smiling happily.
"Not...! *Perfect* for you is more like it." Kikyo replied,
burying Hitomi's mouth in a passionate kiss.
====================================================================
END - Mysteries of the Mind - Part 5 A Ranma1/2 FanFic by Coutuva
Comments Welcomed, Flames Extinguished!
coutuva@vecdev.com
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