Ahem!  This is my first try at writing a Blue Seed fanfic.  In fact, this 
is my first attempt at writing fanfiction from any other series but Ranma, 
so I am legally and morally obligated to provide you with adequate warning.

THIS MAY SUCK.

Thank you.  All characters herein are property of Takada Yuzo and I have 
no idea who else.  Fortunately, I am small and pathetic enough to escape 
their notice. :)  

Thanks are due to J. Austin Wilde, David Bateson, and the Eternal Lost 
Lurker for providing me with info on military law and court martial 
procedure.  Also thanks to the guy who runs the Blue Seed Analysis page, 
where I got lots of interesting little tidbits of info like Koume's 
sidearm and what her name means.  
("Koume" means 'little plum', hence the title.) 

C & C would be greatly appreciated (I'm begging here!), you can e-mail me 
at msimmons@bcgroup.net.  This and other writings of mine are up at: 
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Garden/2506/story.html
Now then.  On with the fic!

_______________________
|  Little Plum Summer |

by Mike Simmons


	Koume hated rain.  Ever since she was a small child growing up in 
Mishima, rain meant staying inside, being quiet, and doing nothing.  None 
of these were things she excelled at.  Still, she reflected, after several 
years she had discovered a redeeming feature of this forced inactivity.  
If you weren't moving, then your enemy most likely wasn't, either.  Bad 
weather is a time to regroup, to plan your next move.  To be prepared.  
This made the rain, while not enjoyable, at least bearable.  Besides, it 
gave her time to clean her guns.
	
	Removing the bolt of her handgun, Koume squinted down the barrel 
and smiled with contentment.  Spotless.  She racked the slide and began to 
oil the mechanism, making sure that the entire weapon was in perfect 
working order.  Koume reassembled it and aimed the empty pistol at the 
panda poster hanging on the wall.  She pulled the trigger, and grinned at 
the smooth-sounding click.

	"Sorry, Mr. Panda.  You had it coming."  Koume wrapped her sidearm 
lovingly in a piece of cloth and put it away, taking up her rocket launcher.
Propping her boots up on the desk, she began to polish the metal tube, 
whistling as she did so.  Momiji entered, soaking wet and lugging an 
equally soaked package.  The youngest member of the T.A.C. plunked herself 
down in a chair with a squish and grinned.  

	"Hey, Koume!  You want an octopus puff?  They're a little soggy, 
but still edible."

	"Nah."  Koume puffed out her cheeks and frowned.  The shiny 
surface of the rocket tube reflected her irritated look.  "Momiji, are 
you -sure- you don't sense any Aragami?  I'm going crazy in here!"

	Momiji shook her head.  "Nope.  Not for the last few days.  Even 
Kusanagi hasn't been around lately.  Maybe Aragami just don't like the 
rain?"

	Koume groaned and picked up an ammunition belt.  She began 
removing the bullets and holding each one up critically to the light 
before replacing them.  The mindless job at least gave her something to do.
Momiji unwrapped the package and pulled out one of the octopus puffs.
Munching idly on it, Momiji wandered over to her own desk and rummaged
around in the drawer with her other hand.

	"Koume?"

	"Yeah?"

	"What was that song you were whistling when I came in?"

	Koume thought for a moment.  She'd almost forgotten where she'd 
first heard the tune.  "Just some gaijin song I heard back when I was 
stationed at Yokohama.  I'm not really up on Western bands, I think they 
were called ZZ Top or something."  She shoved the last of the bullets back 
into the ammunition belt.  "I just liked it because it was about guns."

	Momiji ohhed and turned her attention back to the drawer.  "Here 
it is!"

	"What is it?"

	"It's a teru-teru!  You know, to bring good weather and stuff!"  
Momiji dragged her desk over to the window and climbed up onto it.  She 
hung the little good luck charm from the top of the windowpane.  It dangled 
and spun slowly for a moment, but the rain showed no signs of miraculously 
disappearing.  Koume snorted.  

	"Is it just me, or does that face look like your friend Kusanagi?"  
Momiji blushed as Koume sauntered across the office.  Narrowing her eyes at 
the teru-teru, Koume inspected it carefully.  "Lessee here.  Four eyebrows, 
cat pupils, fangs, big bubble head... Yup, that's Kusanagi all right."  
She chuckled and scratched the back of her neck.  "When I was in the 
Self Defense Force, we used to draw our commanding officer's faces on 
those things.  Then we had someone to blame if it wouldn't stop raining."

	Koume strolled back to her desk and began cleaning up.  Momiji 
regarded the pink-suited woman with curious eyes.  Taking a deep breath, 
she spoke hesitantly.

	"Uh...Koume?  Why did you leave the military?"  Koume stiffened, 
and Momiji kept talking hurriedly before she could be told to mind her own 
business.  "I mean, you always talk about it, it sounds like you were 
really happy there, so why did you join the T.A.C.?"  Koume turned her 
back and leaned over the desk, gathering up firearms and equipment.  Her 
voice was low.

	"You don't want to hear about that."

	"Please?"  Momiji begged.  "I'm sure Mr. Kunikida knows, but he 
wouldn't tell me, and I swear I'll never tell another soul!  Come on, 
Koume!"  Koume heaved a sigh and relaxed, dumping her armload of equipment. 
Sensing that Koume was considering her request, Momiji pressed on.  "We've 
got lots of time!  Please, Koume?"  The auburn-haired soldier scowled.  

	"Well...  all right.  Pass me one of those octopus puffs, huh?"  
Crunching the treat, Koume swung a chair over and straddled it.  She 
propped her elbows on the back.  "It happened like this..."

		*	*	*

	Lieutenant Koume Sawaguchi was confined to quarters.  She lay on 
her bed in full dress uniform, the sunlight from the window falling heavy 
and bright across her stomach.  It was hot.  Koume let her head fall 
listlessly to the right.  The small slice of window she could see from 
this angle was filled with blue sky, broken only by the intruding branches 
of a pine tree.  That was how she felt.  Reality had intruded on her, and 
it refused to go away.

	With an effort that seemed difficult, Koume let her head roll to 
face the other way.  The sunbeam coming in the window caught the edge of a 
small framed poem on the edge of her small desk.  There was a photo tucked 
in the corner of the frame.  She read the poem again, as she had a thousand 
times since the day Tojiro had given it to her.  

	Peach blossom after rain
	Is deeper red;
	The willow fresher green,
	Twittering overhead,
	And fallen petals lie, windblown
	Unswept upon the courtyard stone.

	Poetry was never really her style, but Tojiro had insisted.  
"There's gotta be a balance, Koume!"  he'd said.  "You don't have to be 
aggressive -all- the time, you know!"  At first she had scoffed at this, 
but after a long while Koume discovered that reading the poem gave her a 
small measure of tranquility.  Tranquility.  A strange and unfamiliar 
feeling, which she valued for just these reasons.  

	She followed the line of the frame, tracing the grain of the 
polished wood.  Her eyes halted when they reached the photograph.  In the 
slightly blurry picture, her and Tojiro had an arm around each other's 
shoulders, and were flashing V-signs for the camera.  Both were laughing. 
Koume remembered when it had been taken.  They had been on leave in Nagano. 
t had been a beautiful summer day, somewhat like today.  But today's summer 
was hot, muggy and relentless.  She wished it would rain, even though she 
hated the stuff.

	Koume shifted, uncomfortable in the heat.  The stiff fabric of her 
uniform gave off the sickly sweet smell of mothballs.  This was the second 
time she'd ever worn it, the first being when she first began her service 
in the Ground Self Defense Force.  Ever since, she had practically lived 
in a one-piece military coverall.  Why wear something that couldn't handle 
getting dirty or stained?  She'd never liked the damn thing, it made her 
arms itch.

	She picked idly at the ribbons on the breast of her uniform.  For 
Bravery.  For Courage.  For Meritorious Service.  "What do I need these 
for?"  she had scoffed when she had received them.  "The only one who needs 
to know if I did a good job is me."  She wondered if they gave out a 
ribbon for Reckless Stupidity.  Stretching out an arm, she pulled the poem 
and photograph off the desk.  Resting them on her stomach, she stared out 
the window and waited.

	They weren't long in coming.  There was a sharp rap on the door.  
When she didn't answer immediately, it opened.  A sergeant stepped in, 
followed by two MPs.  "Lieutenant Sawaguchi?  It's time."  Koume nodded 
and rose from the bed, replacing the poem on her desk.  They'd let her 
come back for her gear later.  But then, she'd never been through something 
like this before.  Maybe they just mailed you your stuff.  She followed the 
sergeant out the door and into the hall.

	The two large MPs flanked her.  Both were armed.  The implication 
that she was considered a threat, even to a couple of big MPs, made her a 
little happier.  Her reputation must have preceded her.  Still, she ached 
for her sidearm.  Koume idly imagined the familiar weight of her CZ 75 
tugging at her hip as she walked down the corridor.  They halted outside 
of a conference room and the sergeant gestured her inside.  The two 
military policemen filed in after her.    

	The same thick sunbeams that had shone through her window were 
present here as well, turning the conference room into a sauna.  The small 
fan in the corner of the room did little to lessen the muggy heat.  Sweat 
was visible on the foreheads of the colonel and two senior lieutenants 
seated behind a table.  Koume eyed the two other men cautiously, they were 
unfamiliar to her.  One was obviously a doctor of some kind, he had a pair 
of hornrimmed glasses perched on his nose and a thin-lipped frown on his 
face.

	Koume shifted her scrutiny to the second civilian present.  He had 
a long face and lengthy nose, a black beard framing his narrow features.  
His expression was inscrutable, but he gave off the underlying impression 
of good humour.  Koume saluted.  Without waiting for permission, she sat 
down in the single chair facing the three officers.  The colonel's lip 
curled at this, and he shuffled some papers menacingly.  He cleared his 
throat.

	"This general court martial is now in session.  I am Colonel 
Kagoma, these are Lieutenants Mitsuyara and Harashuki.  The gentlemen on 
my left is Dr. Williamson," he gestured towards the bespectacled man, who 
nodded.  "And this is Mr. Kunikida, of the Terrestrial Administration 
Center."  The bearded man inclined his head gravely.  Koume was puzzled.  
She'd never heard of any such organization.  That in itself wasn't too 
odd, but civilians were seldom present in a military court-martial, 
especially those who had no obvious reason for being there.  

	The colonel nailed her with a steely glance.  "Lieutenant Koume 
Sawaguchi, you are charged with disobeying a direct order, and the 
reckless endangerment of fellow soldiers.  You have waived your right to 
defensive counsel, do you wish to reconsider?"  Koume frowned.  

	"No, I'll speak for myself."  

	Colonel Kogama raised an eyebrow.  Koume sighed.  "No, SIR."  The 
military members of the board, along with the doctor,  practically radiated 
disapproval at her lack of respect.  Mr. Kunikida was obviously amused.  
Kogama gestured to the papers in front of him.

	"I have here a report of the incident in question.  Lieutenant 
Mitsuyara, would you please give us a brief summary?"  The stocky 
lieutenant nodded his assent.  

	"On July twenty-first, at fifteen-thirty hours, the accused and 
another soldier, one senior grade Lieutenant Mukatsu Tojiro, were off-duty 
near the motor pool.  A vehicle going through alterations was stolen and 
driven erratically in the direction of the main gate.  The motor pool duty 
mechanics raised the alarm.  The accused immediately took position to fire 
on the renegade vehicle.  Lieutenant Mukatsu ordered the accused to hold 
her fire, but his order was disobeyed.  The accused opened fire on the 
fleeing vehicle, which immediately exploded."

	"Several motor pool staff received minor injuries, and Lieutenant 
Mukatsu, who was nearest to the explosion, received severe burns and a 
concussion.  He was rushed to sickbay.  The military police were summoned 
and the accused was placed under arrest."

	Colonel Kogama thanked the lieutenant and turned back to Koume, 
steepling his fingers.  He assumed a thoughtful expression.  

	"Mitsuyara, what is Lieutenant Mukatsu's condition?"  

	"Stable, sir.  However, he has sustained severe injury that will 
take several months to heal.  He will be given a medical discharge in 
three days time, and will continue his recuperation in a civilian medical 
facility."

	"Is there anything else?"  

	"Only that the accused was carrying an excessive amount of personal 
weaponry, much more than is permitted for off-duty personnel."  Colonel 
Kogama thanked Mitsuyara who sat back down with a grateful look on his 
face.  Koume boiled inside.  The little worm was setting her up!  Her 
penchant for weapons was well known among the Self Defense Forces, but at 
the time she'd only been carrying her CZ 75, her modified assault rifle 
with grenade launcher, a bandolier of grenades and a belt of extra ammo 
clips for the '75.  Excessive amount of personal weaponry!  Koume snorted.
Ridiculous.

	Colonel Kogama regarded her for a moment with a stern look.  Koume 
returned it without flinching.  She knew she'd screwed up, did they have to 
drag it out like this?

	"Lieutenant Sawaguchi!"  The colonel's delivery was sharp and 
bullet-like.  "Do you know why senior Lieutenant Mukatsu ordered you not 
to fire on the vehicle?"  Koume dropped her head.  She'd found out later 
from one of the motor pool duty staff.  

	"Yes, sir."  Koume took a deep breath, and continued.  "The vehicle 
was being modified for an extended mission in a desert climate, and a major 
part of the mods was the adding of extra fuel tanks.  Shielding would have 
made these tanks safe from gunfire, but it hadn't been added yet.  
Lieutenant Mukatsu was already aware of this, and warned me not to fire.  
He gave this order because the vehicle would go up like a Roman candle if 
hit.  Which it did," she added with a humourless grin.  

	Kogama went red, and slapped his hand on the table.  "Lieutenant 
Sawaguchi!"  he roared.  "Several people were injured because of -your- 
actions, I don't find that very amusing!"  Silence ruled in the room.  
Koume bowed her head apologetically, sensing that she'd gone too far.  The 
colonel, still trembling with anger, continued.  "We've investigated the 
situation thoroughly.  Several witnesses confirm hearing Lieutenant Mukatsu 
give an order which you disobeyed."  Talking seemed to calm him, and rage 
slowly drained from the colonel's face.  

	"Lieutenant, in the course of this investigation, I've become 
increasingly aware that this is hardly an unusual occurrence for you.  In 
fact, I question your competence as an officer and as a soldier."  Now it 
was Koume's turn to see red.  Her anger flared and she opened her mouth to 
respond, but Kogama overrode her protests.  "Dr. Williamson here has the 
results of your latest psychiatric evaluation.  Doctor, if you would?"  

	The little doctor stuttered his assent.  Looking down through the 
glasses perched on the end of his nose, he read.  "Well, Lieutenant 
Sawaguchi has had several psychiatric evaluations in the course of her 
military service.  All have been quite consistent with each other."  
Doctor Williamson stopped, removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes.  He 
sighed.  "Frankly Colonel, I fail to see why this woman was allowed to 
remain in military service.  She is erratic, violent, and possesses little 
or no moral principles at all."

	Koume clenched her fists until the veins stood out sharply, as the 
doctor continued.  "This woman has no respect for authority whatsoever, 
she is random, chaotic, and unpredictable.  I have been told that other 
soldiers refer to her as the 'Hurricane'.  I hereby recommend that we do 
what we can to prevent further storms, and have her... contained."  
	
	That was the last straw.  Koume was out of her chair like a shot.  
Before the MPs could react, she had leapt over the table at the civilian 
doctor.  Grabbing him by the throat, she started banging his head on the 
floor.  

	"Erratic?  I'll show you erratic!"  she screamed.  "You little 
weasel!"  Kneeling on the chest of the already unconscious doctor, Koume 
felt her arms restrained by the two military policemen.  Twisting wildly, 
she freed herself and went for the doctor's throat again, trying to choke 
the life out of him.  Scum like that don't deserve to live.  Before she 
could finish the job, she felt a sharp impact on her temple and blackness 
washed over her.  Koume's last view before falling into unconsciousness 
was the concerned look on the face of Mr. Kunikida.  

		*	*	*

	The hospital was clean-smelling, quiet, and white.  Surrounded by 
pale beige, Koume felt out of place and garish in her pink military 
coverall.  She was uncomfortably conscious of the gun oil on her fingers, 
the grime on her boots.  Reaching up, she gingerly rubbed the bandaged 
spot on her head where the MP had hit her.  She grumbled.  He hadn't had 
to hit her quite so hard.  Well, maybe.  It wasn't like she had been going 
to -kill- that doctor guy or anything... just teach him a lesson.  Yeah.

	Hitching her duffel bag higher on her shoulder, Koume strode down 
the hallway and halted in front of room 1-302.  Easing the door open, she 
slipped inside.  The interior was bright, and three of the beds were empty. 
 The fourth was occupied by a figure swathed in bandages and blankets.  
Koume moved quietly closer, and jumped as the figure suddenly twitched.  
A muffled chuckle came from the bed as Koume tried to slow her heartbeat 
back down to normal.  

	"I gotcha, Sawaguchi!  Admit it!"  

	Koume grinned.  "Dammit Tojiro, you just about gave me a heart 
attack!  Then there'd be two of us in here!"  The smile fell off her face 
as she remembered just whose fault it was that he was in a hospital bed.  
Pulling a chair close, Koume sat down and fidgeted for a moment in silence. 
Tojiro heaved a sigh.  His eyes and mouth were still visible, but the rest 
of his head was covered in white gauze.  

	"Koume..."  

	"I'm sorry, Tojiro.  I really messed up bad this time, didn't I?"  

	Tojiro shrugged.  "Seen worse.  What did they do to you?"  Koume 
smiled ruefully and held up an envelope.  "Discharge papers, huh?  I'm not 
surprised.  I hear you tried to choke a psychiatrist..."  

	"Well, I tried,"  Koume said.  "But it just made things worse.  
They gave me a dishonourable discharge, Tojiro!"  

	"Maybe you'll listen to me next time then, huh?"  Tojiro pushed 
himself up on his elbows, grunting with the effort.  "Listen Koume, you 
said it yourself before.  Ribbons don't mean anything.  Medals don't mean 
anything.  Even honour, when you come down to it, doesn't mean anything.  
It's whether -you- think you did the right thing or not.  Good or bad, no 
one can take that away from you."

	Koume nodded slowly.  He was right.  That was the infuriating 
thing about Tojiro, he was almost always right.  She screwed up.  That was 
that.  She wouldn't make the same mistake again.  Maybe that's what life is 
all about.  Knowing when you've screwed up.  Living with it.  Learning from 
it.  She stood up.  

	"Thanks a lot, Tojiro.  I'm..."  She paused, and looked away with 
a scowl.  "I'm sorry," she growled.  Tojiro gave a mock gasp, and burst 
into laughter.  Tears rolled from his eyes.  Koume turned back with a fist 
clenched.  "What's so funny?"  Tojiro kept laughing.  Koume rolled her 
eyes, and waited for him to stop.  Eventually his humour ran its course 
and he wiped his eyes, still chuckling.

	"I'm sorry Koume, it's just... I've never seen you apologize 
before.  You don't have to look like such a martyr, you know!  Oh man..."  
He chuckled.  "I'm convinced.  You might even mean it."   

	Koume gave a mock scowl.  "Don't count on it, Tojiro."  She reached 
down and took his hand.  "Goodbye.  And thanks."  

	"No problem.  Take care on the outside, Lieutenant!"  He saluted.  
Koume crisply returned his salute for the last time.  Spinning on her heel, 
she walked out of the hospital and into the busy street.  She had a 
particular destination in mind.  

	While waiting at the crosswalk for the light to change, Koume 
rummaged in the pocket of her coverall.  She came up with a crumpled piece 
of paper and squinted at the address on it.  "Terrestrial Administration 
Center, huh?  I hope you've got lots of stuff that needs shooting, Mr. 
Kunikida!"  The light changed.  She crossed with the crowd of pedestrians, 
lost in her own thoughts.

	The summer sun was falling in the sky as she marched purposefully 
along the sidewalk.  A patch of weeds that the streetcleaners had missed 
was waving merrily in the breeze, bathed in a pale yellow light.  Koume 
eyed the stray plants for a moment, and another poem that Tojiro had read 
to her a long time ago suddenly sprang into her mind.  She recited the 
words out loud.  A little bit of tranquility would sure be nice.

	Summer grasses,
	all that remains
	of soldier's dreams.