Here it is, Volume Two, Part One! For this and any of my other
works, visit my Web Site at:
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.
Secrets: Volume Two Part One
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The tall, western man rose from his seat and paced the
room, his face bearing an expression of exasperation. "You
honestly expect me to believe this?" he asked, to the room at
large.
"Hai. We have been following the situation from the
beginning, as you had originally stipulated, sir. We believe
this represents your best chance for success," one of the many
other men seated at the long table reiterated, firmly.
"That's fine for you. It's not your name that's on the
line here. Gentlemen, this situation could make a laughing
stock of my Company and my family. I do *not* take it lightly!"
the man indicated, turning to lean forward on the table.
"Sir, given the circumstances..."
"I'm aware of the circumstances!" he snapped, glaring
back at the speaker. "You realize that in order for your 'idea'
to work, I now have to go crawling back to her and ask her to
'forgive and forget' just to do *me* a favour? How likely do
you think that scenario is?" he stated, angrily. "Christ, I
can't even look her in the eye!"
"We could always use 'influence'," a voice from the
back suggested, hesitantly.
"Influence... Have you forgotten who we're talking about
here?" he growled, rising and pacing once more. "That's no
damned good. I want scenarios, gentlemen. Workable, practical
*amicable* scenarios before I'll even consider opening this up.
It was closed two years ago, and until I see something acceptable,
it still is!" he asserted, casting a scathing look over the room.
"Sir, you must realize that this will take twenty years
to produce the desired result, and any attempt is still a
fifty-fifty gamble. Time is critically short!"
The man stopped his pacing and turned back toward the last
speaker. "Don't you think I'm aware of that?" he stated, flatly.
"I'm reminded of it every damned day," he added, lowering his head.
"This meeting is over, gentlemen. I don't want to hear anything
further until my criteria is met," he abruptly announced, then
turned and left the room.
Akane turned and eyed Nodoka narrowly. "I'm not
interested, Nodoka-sama. I've already told you that a hundred
times," she stated, setting her hands on the sides of the sink.
Nodoka frowned. "Are you ever going to let her see him
again?" she asked, pointedly.
"I... Can't. Every time I think of the life he's leading
now..." she began, only to be interrupted by Nodoka clearing her
throat.
"*She* is leading now. Akane-chan, you yourself said you
didn't care about her choices. All you wanted, in the end, was
for your son to have a father. Have you changed your mind?" she
redirected, flatly.
"No! But I can't stomach the thought of him and that...
That... Hentai *bimbo* he's rutting with! That's the 'choice'
I don't like... And I don't want it anywhere near my son!" she
spat, her face reddening.
"I see," Nodoka sighed, shaking her head. "Akane-chan,
that is a truly sad statement. I hope you realize that by feeling
that way, you're the one dooming your son to a life without
knowing his father," she indicated, eyeing Akane levelly.
"No! He is! He could have stayed here. Even if we
didn't end up married, he would have been around for his son!"
she shot back, angrily. "And he'd still be a man!" she choked,
abruptly breaking into heavy sobs.
"No, Akane-chan... That would not have happened," Nodoka
asserted, firmly. "From everything I've heard, she hated her life
for many years. I honestly believe this was inevitable, in one
form or another. We were lucky to find her -- she could easily
have gone to the mainland, or even to a western country, and
disappeared entirely," she continued, her tone becoming angrier.
"You, of all people, have in your hands the only means
by which she is willing to remain connected to any of us, and you
are about to throw it away. If you let that happen because of your
prejudice, then she *will* be gone. And so far gone that we
will never see her again, in either form!" she finally snapped,
rising to her feet and clenching her fists. "Is that what you
want, Akane?"
Akane, rocked back by Nodoka's outburst, shook her head
vehemently. "No! I want him to be a father to his son! But
*not* with her around!" she shot back though her sobs.
Nodoka glared angrily at her for a few eternal seconds,
then lowered her head and sighed resignedly. "Then there is
nothing more to say," she remarked quietly, rising back to her
full height. "It is time to walk Kei home from school. We will
be back shortly," she added tightly, then bowed and left the
kitchen.
Akane watched her go with tears still streaming down her
cheeks, then as she heard the outer door slide closed, balled up
her fists and pounded the sides of the sink.
"Damn you, Ranma!" she shouted, then hung her head and
cried even harder, her tears dripping steadily into the dishwater.
"Why are you still torturing me?"
Miyoko moaned softly as she sat in her favorite chair, her
head tilted back and eyes closed while Yoriko meticulously brushed
out her long red tresses.
"Nee, Miyoko-chan... You falling asleep on me again?"
Yoriko abruptly jibed, tapping on the top of her head.
"Iya... Just thinking. It's been six weeks -- and not
a word," she responded, sighing.
"You mean about your son. Hai, I was wondering, too.
Especially after everything that happened," she agreed, gathering
another lock of hair.
"I hate to say it Yori-chan, but I miss him. I only got to
see him for a few minutes, but I can remember it like he just left.
Kuso, I knew this would happen," she grumbled, sadly.
"Ano... Do you want to try calling her?" Yoriko
suggested, hesitantly.
"No way! If I do that, I'm giving her the power. She'll
have to contact me now. I made her an offer, now it's up to her
to counter me, or decide to accept it. But, it looks like she's
not going to do either one -- and that's the sad part."
"Gomen ne, Miyoko-chan. I wish there was something I
could do..."
"I know, Yori-chan. But like I said, it's all in her
court now," she sighed again, shaking her head slightly.
"Hai. It's okay, I'm sure somehow it will work out,"
Yoriko assured, honestly hoping it would.
"I do too. This has been bugging me *way* too much. I
dunno if it's my parental instincts or maybe my curse starting to
mess with my head, but I've been thinking a lot about kids lately.
More than I ever have. I keep seeing the parents at the School
with theirs, and it's... Well, it's been making me think weird
things," Miyoko related, frowning.
Yoriko, eyes softening as she listened to her girlfriend
speak, rested her hand on the woman's shoulder. "Ano... Like
what, Miyoko-chan?"
"I dunno how to explain it... When I see a young baby...
I just get this urge to go ask if I can hold it. When I see
little girls, I want to teach them how to fix their hair. And
I even found myself wanting to show a ten year old boy how to
carry himself," she admitted, sheepishly. "Hell, it's been
going on for about the last year -- seeing my son has just made
it worse," she added, puffing.
Yoriko broke out in a wide smile, then dropped her other
hand on Miyoko's other shoulder, patting it a few times. "I know
what your problem is, Miyoko-chan. But I never would have
figured *you'd* have it," she snickered, nodding knowingly.
"You're more girl than you think," she added, seemingly quite
amused.
"What are you laughing about, Yori-chan? I'm serious,
here," Miyoko snapped, becoming slightly miffed.
"G-Gomen, Miyoko-chan," she replied, stepping around
and squatting in front of Miyoko, taking her hands. "It's your
'biological clock'. You know... The 'nesting instinct'," she
smiled, nodding again. "Every woman gets it, especially if
they're childless," she noted, the smile on her face taking on a
strange appearance.
The statement staggered Miyoko. "Ano... You mean... I
want to have kids?" she gasped, raising a hand to her mouth.
"Masaka..."
"Hai. Sure sounds like it," Yoriko nodded, almost
excitedly. "And I think it's so neat!" she added, leaning up
and hugging Miyoko affectionately.
"Yeah... Real neat," Miyoko groaned, rolling her eyes.
"Ano... I'll get it. I'm over here, anyway," Ryouga
called back to the assistant chef, as he turned and opened the
pot rack doors. "Hmm... Big pot, big pot... Kuso!" he suddenly
exclaimed, the sight that greeted him staggering him back a step.
"What?" Ukyou gasped, dashing over to the gaping Ryouga.
"Look!" he replied, pointing to an object innocently
hanging in the racks.
"Shimata... How did that get there?" Ukyou asked aloud,
reaching into the rack and withdrawing the Kaisuifuu.
"Maa... That startled me," Ryouga puffed, holding his
chest. "I thought Akane took it back," he added, wiping his
forehead.
"The staff musta put it in here. We probably left it in
the kitchen that night," Ukyou mused, looking the object over.
"Say, what are you so freaked out for? This thing only
*unlocks* the curses, right?" she blinked, noting his condition.
"Eto... You'd have to be cursed to understand," he
replied, regaining his composure.
"Well, don't worry. I'll put this in my office so it's
not near you or any water, deal?" she smiled, leaning up and
kissing his cheek quickly.
"Arigato -- I'd appreciate that," he smiled, patting her
backside as she turned to walk away.
"Oi! Not in front of the staff...!" she flushed,
shooting him a look.
"Hai, hai," he smiled, watching her go. He had to
admit, he was still surprised at how close he and Ukyou had
become in only a short time. He still slept in his own room,
although rarely alone of late, and she tried to insist that he
not show affection while she was working, but behind the scenes,
it was as if they'd been dating for years.
Still smiling, he fished out the pot he was looking for
and carried it over to the stove, then made his way back to
Ukyou's office. He stepped through the door just in time to
catch her on her way back out, and used the excuse to entrap
her in a hug.
"Ohhh... What's this, sugar? Trying to seduce the
boss?" she smiled luridly, raising her arms to his shoulders
and draping them over his neck.
"No -- you just made me want more than that little
peck," he grinned, burying her lips in a deep, passionate kiss.
When it finally broke, Ukyou nestled her head into his
broad chest and sighed exasperatedly. "You always do this to me
when I'm working," she pouted, thumping her hand on his chest
weakly.
"Heh... Just reminding you what's waiting for you when
you're done," he quipped, grinning.
'Mmmm... Trust me, sugar... I know," she groaned, pulling
him into another kiss.
Once Ukyou had extricated herself from what promised to
escalate into something harder to say no to, she made her way
back to the kitchen and started mixing up dough for the breakfast
crowd. As she worked, Ryouga wandered up to her and stood a
respectable distance away.
"Finding that thing made me wonder... Heard anything
yet?" he asked, moving to pass her another sack of flour.
"Iya. Not a word. You know Miyoko's been in a few
times, but hasn't said boo, and nobody's bothered calling here,"
she sighed, exasperatedly. "Makes me wonder what happened,"
she added, glancing back at him.
"Hai... After all that, too," he noted, thinking for
a moment then shaking his head. "All I can guess is that Akane
changed her mind. Nothing else adds up," he ventured, shrugging.
"Hah. Not likely. Akane forget something like that?
No, I figure she's just planning her next move. We'll see more
fireworks over this yet," she responded, frowning. "I just
wish that sweet little kid wasn't in the middle of it all," she
sighed, smacking the dough in her hands.
"Well, it's her own fault. She could have settled it
all that night, but chose not to."
"Yeah. She never was the type to do things the easy
way," she smirked, resignedly. "Well, enough about that. Feel
like refilling the trays? Most of the girls are already gone,"
she redirected, shooting him her famous kawaii eyes.
"Hai! Coming up!" he bowed sharply, then smirked and
headed to the store room.
The tall man groaned as he reached into his pocket for
his ringing phone, shooting his company a quick 'excuse me' look.
"Hai," he answered tersely, his face rapidly darkening
as he listened. "I told you already... Not until *all* of the
conditions are met. What...? How? You'd better be right, or
the first thing that falls apart will be your career!" he snapped,
quietly. "Get me anything and everything you have, and don't make
*any* moves until I clear it. Tomorrow, ten am. Oyasumi," he
concluded, slapping the phone closed.
As he slid the device back in his pocket, he allowed
himself a thin smile. For the first time in two long, painful
years, the future looked promising.
Miyoko worked through her morning warm-ups as per usual,
but her mind was not on her form for once. All she could think
about were Yoriko's remarks from the night before, and how they
had hit home.
She did want a child -- only she couldn't be entirely
sure why. Over the years since she had locked her curse, she
had noticed that her emotions, actions, mannerisms and even her
thoughts had slowly become more feminine, which she had assumed
was a side effect of so much time in her cursed form.
She had come to accept the occurrence, simply because she
had chosen to live her life as a woman, and no longer felt she
needed to assert her manhood.
This development, however, was completely unexpected,
and she wasn't sure she was ready to deal with it. Especially
not the idea of ever becoming pregnant. That whole concept sent
a shudder down her back.
Casting a quick glance at the wall clock to change the
subject in her mind, she noted that it was time to finish off
and hit the showers, her first class due in half an hour. Changing
to her finishing moves, she soon settled to her final stance and
held it utterly motionless for two full minutes, then relaxed back
to both feet and bowed to the motto.
She was startled by the raucous round of applause that
burst out from the crowd at the far end of the floor. She flushed
embarrassedly, but at the same time was a bit irritated -- she knew
she hadn't done her best, and didn't like them applauding shoddy
work.
"Well, since you're all here, I take it you would like some
extra kata today?" she asked, turning to the awed group and
setting her hands on her hips.
Within a second, the crowd had disappeared. Smirking to
herself, she turned and strode off to the showers.
"All of the information is in the file, sir. Including
our proposed scenario as discussed," the young exec indicated,
flipping the pages as he spoke.
"I see. What makes you think this approach will work?"
he responded, evenly.
"Given the fact that she personally may not desire contact,
we felt that using 'the back door', as it were, to begin any
discussion may prove to be the best course," the exec explained,
pointing to a picture. "There seems to be a *very* strong
relationship, and they have both exhibited tendencies to look out
for the other. Using the right presentation may in fact do half
the work for us," he continued, smiling.
"Granted. And in a perfect world perhaps. Has she been
checked into? Thoroughly? We can *not* afford having this turn
into a scandal."
"Yes. The surveillance reports are in the dossier, and
there is still ongoing monitoring. We sincerely believe that she
is above reproach, despite the recent 'discourse' over her history.
There is only one minor skeleton, which is being rectified as we
speak. It's all in the notes."
"That's encouraging. How much do you think she knows?"
"It would appear that she knows nothing. Our conditions
at the time were quite specific, and it seems they have been
adhered to."
"I expected as much," the tall man noted, his voice
unusually quiet. "That could complicate matters considerably."
"We do not believe so. She kept her true history hidden
as well, and her 'revelation' was, to say the least, a good deal
more shocking," the exec insisted, turning another page. "It was
only the fact that the 'relationship' weathered that storm that
made this attempt possible."
"Hmmm... " the tall man nodded, then rose and moved
behind his chair. Crossing his arms behind his back, he gazed
out the large window before him for a few moments, then lowered
his head briefly. Abruptly, he raised it and turned to face the
assemblage once more.
"Gentlemen, I am going to give tacit approval to this
project, mainly because I have no choice. An opportunity exists,
and we have to act upon it. But, I remind you all at the cost of
your careers, this *must* be handled quietly and amicably. They
must cooperate fully and voluntarily, or you are to abort and
destroy the evidence. Do we understand each other?" he stated
adamantly, watching the faces before him nodding. "Very Good.
I want running progress reports on my private Email starting
immediately, and *no* outside contracts for any part of it. This
stays in our back yard. Good Day, Gentlemen... And good luck,"
he concluded, then turned back to face the windows once more.
Behind him, the others quickly filed out and closed the
door, leaving him alone with his thoughts. Turning back toward
his desk, he flipped open the cover of the dossier and regarded
the photograph clipped to the top of the first page.
It featured two women, a blonde and a redhead, walking
together on a Kyoto street. They looked happy, content -- and
literally emanated familiar affection.
Lifting the picture up, he couldn't help but grimace.
"The biggest mistake I ever made," he frowned, and tossed
the picture back on his desk.
Miyoko sang happily to herself as she folded the last of
the laundry, pleased that job was done before Yoriko got home.
That meant that they could get out early enough to hit the strip,
and still catch 'Titanic' in the mall.
Walking to her closet, she was about to pick out
something nice to wear when she heard her phone indicating
someone at the security door. Smirking, she made her way over to
it, thinking that Yoriko must have forgotten her keys again.
"Hai?" she responded, a hint of teasing sarcasm in her
voice.
"Takara Miyoko?" an unfamiliar voice asked, pleasantly.
"Hai. Who is this, please?" she responded, listening
intently to the staticky voice.
"I have a matter of importance to discuss with you. It
concerns Naganato Yoriko. May I come in?" the voice responded,
again pleasantly.
Miyoko frowned. This didn't sound good. "Who is this,
please?" she asked again, her tone indicating her displeasure.
"I... Do not wish to identify myself in such a public
location. May I be allowed to present my credentials in person?"
the voice replied, sounding slightly pleading.
"No, you may not. Until I know who you are, and what
this is all about, I have nothing more to say," she stated
adamantly, then let go of the talk bar and raced to her door.
Sliding on her shoes, she bolted down the hallway and
leapt out the window, hoping to catch the owner of the voice by
surprise.
Arriving outside the entryway, she was stunned to discover
that there was absolutely nobody around.
"Miyoko-chan! What are you doing out here?" Yoriko asked,
walking up to the frowning woman, taking note of the fact that she
was still wearing her robe.
"Something weird just happened, Yori-chan. Let's get
back upstairs, and I'll tell you all about it," Miyoko replied
evenly, still frowning. Yoriko bit her lip.
The tall man set down the papers in his hand, pulled off
his glasses and massaged his eyes, then set the glasses on his
desk and yawned loudly. Glancing at his watch, he noted his wife
should finally be home, and reached into his pocket for his phone.
Dialing the number, he sighed heavily and set the unit to
his ear. After a few agonizingly long rings, the subdued voice of
his wife answered.
"Ano... It's me. I miss you, too, Mika-chan," he began,
smiling. "Hai. Business has been very good today. I'm coming
home soon, but I wanted to call you and let you know about
something that happened today. Hai. We found her," he stated,
then held the phone away from his ear to avoid the scream.
Yoriko blinked. "About... Me?" she gasped, looking back
at Miyoko questioningly.
"Hai. Said it was important, and wanted to speak to me.
Knew my name, too," she responded, her expression darkening. "I'll
just bet it's that damned Nabiki again. She just can't take a
hint," she glowered, her fist clenching.
"You think? What could she want with me?" Yoriko
replied, starting to wring her hands nervously.
"Like I said before. She's trying to break us up,
Yori-chan... But don't worry. It'll take a hell of a lot more than
her to ever change how I feel about you," Miyoko smiled, noticing
that she seemed to be scaring Yoriko.
Yoriko looked back at her for a moment, her sea-green eyes
filling with tears. "I wish they'd just leave us alone!" she
suddenly cried, leaping to her feet and running into the bedroom.
Miyoko, totally shaken by the reaction, sat on the couch
blinking until she realized what had just happened. Jumping up,
she headed after Yoriko worriedly.
In the bedroom, she found her girlfriend face-down on the
bed, her head under the two pillows she had crammed against it.
She was also crying so hard her small body literally shuddered
from the sobs.
Moving gently to the side of the bed, Miyoko stretched out
beside Yoriko and laid her arm over the girl's shoulders. Yoriko
responded by rolling to face her, then nestling against her chest,
sniffling.
"Ano... Gomen, Miyoko-chan. I didn't mean... To worry
you," she sobbed, clenching the fabric of her girlfriend's robe.
"I was just... So sure we were done with this," she continued,
starting to cry again.
"Yori-chan... It doesn't matter. They can pull whatever
crap they want, it won't make a damned bit of difference to me.
I love you, and there isn't a force on this planet that could
ever change that," she assured, hugging the shaking girl to her.
Yoriko didn't respond, other than to try to nestle in
closer. Miyoko could feel the girl's tears hot against her
breasts, which threatened to bring them to her own eyes.
"Yori-chan... Shhh... It's okay. I'll put a stop to
this if I have to charge them with harassment. I don't ever want
you to cry over this again," she promised, stroking the back of
Yoriko's head gently.
"I know... I'm sorry, Miyoko-chan. I'm sorry..." she
sniffed, trying to clear her voice. "It just... Hit me the wrong
way. We've been so happy... *I've* been so happy. I just hate
to think that it's going to start all over again," she stated,
wiping at her eyes.
"Feh... Never worry about that. First thing tomorrow,
I'll put a stop to it, I promise. I'll protect you, Yori-chan.
I always have, and I always will," Miyoko assured her earnestly,
tightening her hug. "No matter what it takes," she added,
kissing the girl's forehead.
"Ano... I love you, Miyoko-chan," Yoriko breathed,
pulling Miyoko's robe tighter to her. "Arigato gozaimashite...
For just being you."
Miyoko's eyes flew open, a sudden feeling of dread waking
her from her fitful sleep. As she tried to sort it out, she
noticed that Yoriko wasn't nestled against her side.
Reaching out, she gasped as she discovered the girl wasn't
even in the bed.
Flinging off the blankets, she grabbed for her robe and
threw it over her shoulders, then rolled out of the bed quickly.
Heading for the living room, she worried that Yoriko may
have done something silly, especially after their conversations
earlier.
As she crossed the empty livingroom and headed for the
kitchen, she was suddenly shuddered by a cool breeze.
Turning, she noticed that the patio doors were open, and in
the dim light, could just make out a figure leaning against the
balcony rail. Walking over to the doors, she bit her lip as she
saw Yoriko looking out over the lights of the city, a deep sadness
marring her pretty face.
"Yori-chan? What's wrong?" she ventured gently, knowing
that it must be something major to affect the girl so badly.
"Oh... Miyoko-chan. Gomen -- I didn't mean to wake
you," she replied apologetically, turning to face the redhead.
"I couldn't sleep, so I came out... To get some air," she
flustered, nervously.
Miyoko sighed, then frowned slightly. "Tell me what it
is, Yori-chan. Are you still upset about that guy today?" she
deflected gently, stepping up and fixing Yoriko's bedhead.
"Ano... Hai. That scared me, Miyoko-chan," she
acknowledged, lowering her face and sighing sadly.
"Baka ne. I told you already. I'll take care of it.
One way or another, she'll never bother us again," Miyoko smiled,
pulling the girl into a hug.
Yoriko puffed a humourless laugh. "Iya, Miyoko-chan.
I'm pretty sure it's not her," she sighed, stepping back from the
hug and turning toward the Kyoto skyline once more.
"Nani? If it's not Nabiki, then who else would it be?"
the redhead countered, eyebrows raised.
Yoriko looked back at her sadly, then sighed resignedly.
Drawing her hands together in front of her, she began to toy with
her ring as she gathered her thoughts, then appeared to set herself.
"Miyoko-chan..." she began, her eyes beginning to shimmer.
"You're not the only one who has a past," she stated, quietly.
=============================================================
END - Secrets V2P1 A Ranma1/2 Fanfic by Coutuva.
Comments Welcomed - Flames Extinguished!
coutuva@vecdev.com
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