Here it is, at long last. Sorry about the delay on this folks. C+C DESPERATELY NEEDED, public or otherwise, to polish this one off.
Oh yeah, previous chapters are available at http:/matrix.crosswinds.net/~ksna/
KYUUKETSUKI NO SATSUJINHA'NIN AKANE/AKANE THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
A BTVS/Ranma1/2 Fusion by Leaping Gnome Productions
EPISODE FOUR
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Some scenes in this chapter have already appeared
in the shortfic "Ryouga's Story."
DISCLAIMER: The BTVS and Ranma characters and situations are
copyright Joss Whedon and Rumiko Takahashi respectively, and are
used here without permission but with the greatest respect and
admiration. Please forgive me for playing in your pools, cursed
or otherwise. Devil Hunter Yohko characters are copyright Miyao
Gaku and others. Certain other characters are borrowed from
Dreiser(Nicole Manders) and Wade Trischler, with their generous
permission.
LAST TIME, ON AKANE THE VAMPIRE SLAYER:There's a new Slayer in
Sunnydale and her name is Akane Tendou, a Japanese martial artist
who has been Called to replace Faith. Along with her fiancee,
Ranma Saotome, (a young man cursed to turn into a girl when hit
with cold water,) and her Watcher, Dr. Tofu Ono, she has arrived
in Sunnydale to learn at the feet of Buffy Summers, the first
Slayer of her generation. Unfortunately, Akane's been followed by
Mu-Tsu, Xian-Pu and their minions, Chinese vampires who are
responsible for the destruction of the Tendou family Dojo and the
deaths of several of Akane's friends and family.
While Ranma, Willow, Xander and Oz tried to escape the
clutches of Xian-Pu and her minions at the Bronze, Akane and
Buffy fought an all-out battle at the Sunnydale Museum of Natural
History to prevent Mu-Tsu from getting his hands on the Nanban
Mirror, a magical device that can take its wielder anywhere in
time or space. The vampires were driven off, leaving our heroes
in possession of the Nanban and their lives.
Three weeks later, the extended Slayer squad is in heavy
training, preparing to use the Nanban to travel back in time to
prevent the tragedy at the Tendo-ke. Unbeknownst to all, however,
Tofu has already been tampering with the timestream.
Ukyou Kuonjii, friend and so-called "cute fiancee" of Ranma,
encountered an old enemy of the Ranma crew on a transcontinental
flight, realized that the Sunnydale gang needed to be warned of
his impending arrival.
Ranma, distraught at his inability to be there to save his
friend, became despondent, and was visited by the ghosts of dead
friends, providing some much needed closure.
To add to the general weirdness, Xander has undergone a
massive personality shift, not to mention the fact that Spike has
returned to Sunnydale, in search of a particular Gem...
IN EVERY GENERATION, THERE IS A CHOSEN ONE....
TOKYO, SUBURB OF JUUBAN, JAPAN
The tattered-looking young man stopped in front of the
fence that surrounded the small suburban house. He stared hard
at the address, then down at a crumpled piece of yellow legal
paper clutched in his hand.
"Finally! After searching for so very long..." Tears
trickled down his cheeks. "Akane! I'm here to protect you at
last!!"
He'd arrived at the Tendou Dojo a little over a month ago to
find the venerable edifice in ruins, his beloved Akane and her
family gone. Queries around the neighborhood has been met with
only a stony silence, as though the residents of the district had
no interest in discussing whatever force or forces had levelled
the Tendou home. When he'd checked the usual hangouts of the
loosely affiliated band of martial artists known to the locals as
the Nerima Wrecking Crew, he'd found the Nekohanten deserted.
Akane's favorite Kissaten had been likewise been free of martial
artists. There hadn't been any sign of the gang at Furinkan,
either. Finally, he'd found his way to Ucchan's Okonomiyaki,
where a grim Ukyou had informed him that the Tendous had moved
away, but she'd be happy to give him directions to where they
were staying. It was a long trip to Juuban, at least it had been
for him...
Haphazardly, he brushed the dust of the road from his
worn clothes and backpack, determined to look every inch the
returning hero for his beloved. Striding forward with a
confidence he barely felt, he rushed up the front walk and
pushed the doorbell. A second later, a vase full of cool water
and red roses spilled down over his head. Female voices echoed
from above.
"Azusa! Watch where you're going! You knocked over the
flowers Osamu-kun sent!"
"Sorry, Yohko-sempai, but maybe you shouldn't have put them
on the window sill... Auntie Madoka warned you about that... Did
you hear the doorbell?"
"Don't worry. Saotome-san'll get it."
On the stoop below, a small black pig bemoaned the quirk
of fate that made his head an irresistable magnet for spilled
water. A moment later, the door swung open, revealing the
familiar black and white form of a giant panda bearing a
wooden sign. Scrawled hastily on the board were the words "May
I help you?"
The pig let out a frustrated squeal. The panda
sweatdropped, flipping the sign around to reveal the legend
"Oh, it's you... Well, come in..."
The piglet trotted inside, stopping to shake himself dry
in the foyer before preceding the panda into the living room.
With a grunt, the panda hefted the pig's soggy clothing,
backpack and umbrella under one forepaw and followed.
The pig glanced around the room in expectation, but no
beautiful, black-haired, brown-eyed goddess appeared to scoop
him up in loving arms. He turned to the panda.
"Hroink?" He said, questioningly.
The panda merely shrugged, producing a well-worn sign
that read "Don't ask me, I'm just an ordinary panda." The pig
sighed a piggy sigh in frustration.
Just then, his perspective shifted as he was lifted up by
his kerchief. His squeal of bliss became an oink of
disappointment as he was turned to face a pair of cynical,
cold dark eyes framed by an elegant bob of chocolate-brown
hair. This wasn't his sweet Akane!
"Tsk. Ryouga." Nabiki said, her tone cooler than usual.
"What a kawaii little piglet!" A high, bubbly voice
chirped from across the room.
"Hroink?"
Two teenaged girls dashed down the stairs, their eyes
wide with pleased surprise. The taller of the two, a brunette
with hair done up in an odd odango-style trailing two long
ponytails, looked to be around nineteen, the same age as
Nabiki. The shorter of the two was around eighteen, perhaps a
bit younger, and wore her midnight black hair in a shoulder-
length style parted in the center, her bangs kept out of her
shining blue eyes with a white bandanna. Both were dressed in
school uniforms of a style and color Ryouga didn't recognize.
The rushed over, oohing and ahhing over him.
"Nabiki, where did you find him? He's adorable! Can I
hold him?" The shorter girl said eagerly.
"Whatever..." Nabiki tossed Ryouga's startled form over
to the younger girl with an offhanded gesture. "His name's P-
Chan, he used to belong to my sister. Knock yourselves out."
She wandered into the kitchen. The girl hugged P-Chan tightly
to her chest, causing the small black pig to squeak as the air
was forced from his tiny lungs.
"Ooooh, Akane is just so-o lucky..." The elder girl said
enviously. "First that hunky fiancee and now this kawaii lil'
guy..." She tickled P-Chan under his chin. "Who's a cutie?
Who's a cutie? P-Chan is... Yes, that's right, coochie-
coochie..." She giggled, then stopped, staring oddly at the
piglet. "Azusa?"
"What, Yohko-sempai? You'll get your turn..."
"No, it's just... D'you think he's supposed to turn blue
like that?"
"Oh!" She loosened her grip, and P-Chan's panting face
slowly returned to its usual color. "I'm sorry, lil' P-Chan!
I'll kiss it better..."
With that, she leaned forward, and gave him a gentle peck
on the nose. His reaction startled her, to say the least, as
the piglet's snout suddenly fountained blood and the animal
went limp in her arms.
"Oh no! You've killed him!" Yohko shrieked. Azusa joined
her, shaking the poor piglet in a desperate attempt to wake
him, to no avail.
"Relax, ladies..." said Nabiki, walking back in from the
kitchen and holding a kettle of hot water. "He does this all
the time. Set him down on the futon, will you?" They complied,
worried.
Nonchalantly, Nabiki doused the comatose pig in a stream
of scaldingly hot water. With a shout, a pink-skinned Ryouga
jumped up, his hands covering strategic parts of his anatomy.
"AAAAAAA! HotHotHot!!!!"
"EEep!" Yohko squeaked.
"Neat!" Azusa said.
"That'll be 500 yen, Ryouga."
Nabiki said this last with an unemotional tone that Ryouga
found disturbing. He didn't know the middle Tendou sister all
that well, but she usually took some amusement in others'
discomfort, especially if she was making a profit from it. Come
to think of it, since when did she know about his curse?
Come to think of it, why was he sitting here naked with
these strange girls staring at him?
His brain hit the panic button, and shut down. Ryouga
fainted.
LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, 1:05 am
The sleek black convertible parked at the arrivals gate and
disgorged its lone occupant, a tall, dark-haired man dressed in a
black leather trenchcoat over a charcoal silk shirt and matching
slacks. He glanced up at the sky, trying to divine whether it was
going to rain or not. Preferring to err on the side of caution,
he leaned back in and toggled the roof closed before activating
the alarm and entering the terminal.
Even at this hour, the terminal was a teeming mass of
humanity, the sheer number of people boggled his enhanced senses.
Wincing slightly, he shouldered his way through the herd towards
the LED sign displaying the arriving planes by number and gate.
Quantas Flight 141 was due in about twenty minutes.
Taking a seat as soon as one became available, he
instinctively scanned the crowd, his keen hunters eye spotting
the weak, the old, the ones who would not be missed. With a
scowl, he dismissed the thoughts. His senses, refined over two
hundred and forty-four years, still insisted on performing tasks
he no longer required. Well, he amended, no longer DESIRED to
require. Discreetly, he sipped at the silver flask he kept in the
inside breast pocket of his coat, careful not to draw the
attention of security, who might wrongly assume he was sneaking a
nip of hootch. Being amidst this many mortals at once was a
strain
he'd endure, but only because SHE asked him to...
When he'd answered the phone and heard her sweet voice, he'd
almost hung up right there and then, the pain of his own
self-imposed exile still too recent, too deep. Some part of him,
however, (the human part, his mind assured him), wouldn't let
him. She needed a man who could give her the life she deserved- a
life full of joy, of picnics in the park on a sunny day, the
simple warmth of an embrace, children... But didn't HE deserve to
hear her voice again? Even if it was only a tinny echo over the
telephone?
He sighed, a wholly affected gesture since his lungs
contained air only so long as he remembered to breathe. He went
over the conversation in his mind. A friend of her houseguests'
was coming into L.A. tonight from Japan, and was almost certainly
in danger from some kind of sociopathic martial artist named for
women's undergarments. Despite himself, he chuckled. Buffy's
weirdness magnet was still in full effect. It was good to know
that SOME things never changed...
Once he'd agreed to help, the remainder of the conversation
had been terse, platitudes and pleasantries exchanged as if the
rote repetition of cliches could dull the heartache they both
felt. After he'd hung up, he'd spent hours trying to remind
himself of why exactly he'd left her, why he'd thought that life
apart would somehow be less painful for them both. Somehow the
rationale seemed less compelling in retrospect...
He shook his head. This much angst was almost TOO much, even
for him. He glanced at his watch. Almost time. He stood and
prepared to wade back into the throng when a voice came over the
loudspeaker.
"Attention ladies and gentlemen. Quantas Flight 141 from
Tokyo has arrived, but due to some mechanical problems passenger
deplaning will be temporarily delayed. I repeat..." The message
repeated in English then again in Spanish. He paused,
unpleasantly surprised. If he hadn't been warned to expect
trouble, he might simply have shrugged the announcement off as
one of the inevitable delays that accompanied air travel. Since
he DID know better, however...
He made his way over to the observation window and peered
out, spotting the 747 bearing the red Quantas logo almost
instantly. It had taxied up to the accordion-like shape of the
disembarkation platform, but the tarmac alongside the plane was
abuzz with activity. Mechanics, technicians and airport EMS staff
scurried around like angry hornets. An upwards glance revealed
that there was some visible damage to the side of the plane. One
of the emergency exits looked as though it had been wrenched off
its hinges then jammed back into place with sufficient force to
damage the surrounding fuselage. As he watched, the hatch of the
rear emergency exit blew open, spilling out a rapidly-inflating
rescue slide.
Alarmed, he forced himself back through the crowd to the
doors and dashed along the side of the structure towards the
airfield, hurdling the security fence as though it were nothing
more than a bump in the road. Relying on all the native stealth
his form possessed, he made his way across the tarmac to the
scene, miraculously remaining unobserved by all.
As he watched, passengers began leaping down the bright
yellow rescue slide, carry on bags in hand, into the waiting arms
of EMS personnel who gave them each a brief once-over before
directing them towards the terminal.
He'd been told to keep an eye open for a Japanese girl
carrying a baker's peel. That last had set him to thinking that
maybe this was Buffy's idea of a joke, but she'd assured him that
her guests swore that the large spatula never left the girl's
side, and that she'd almost certainly checked it as carry-on
baggage.
Sure enough, there she was, baker's peel slung across her
back like a sword. She leapt down the slide with a surprising
grace that rivalled his own. He cocked an eyebrow as she shrugged
off the attentions of the EMS. She was tall, he noted, (for a
Japanese girl,) maybe five-seven-five-eight with long dark hair
held in a pony tail with a white scrunchy. Her clothes were
ordinary enough, a pair of well-worn loose blue jeans and a
mannishly-cut navy T-shirt. She seemed unharmed, no visible
bruises, and his hunter's instinct told him she was in excellent
physical condition. She didn't betray any sign of nervousness
under his close scrutiny, at least not to any greater degree than
any of the other passengers. So where was this Garterbelt person?
He backed away from his vantage point behind a baggage cart
and made his way back towards the fence, intending to meet the
mysterious Ukyou Kuonjii at the baggage claim since she seemed
unharmed. If all went well, he'd simply keep her company then see
her safely on to her flight to Sunnydale at six.
Ukyou strode across the tarmac towards the gate, her eyes
rapidly scanning the area as she walked. She had the strangest
feeling that she was being watched. Of course you are, she
mentally chided herself. There's security people and medical
personnel all around you, not to mention customs agents... Still,
her subconscious warned her, SOMEthing is out there, something
that's paying particular attention to YOU. It was an unsettling
feeling, but nevertheless one she was familiar with. She'd been
dodging Tsubasa long enough to recognize the fact that she was
being... Well, stalked wasn't quite the word, since she didn't
pick up any malice from her unseen observer, merely curiosity...
Tracked was a better word for it.
Well, there's not much I can do about it right now, she
thought. First things first, I need to find a phone. Ranchan must
be worried sick...
Entering the terminal, she passed through customs easily,
her visa and passport in order. Her baker's peel raised a few
eyebrows, but since it certainly didn't LOOK like any sort of
weapon, she was allowed to pass. When pressed, she merely told
the truth, that it was a family heirloom she didn't want to risk
losing in a baggage mix-up. As soon as the formalities were taken
care of, she headed over to the first available courtesy phone.
Hurriedly, she swiped her credit card through the reader and
punched in the number of the Summers residence. The phone rang
twice before it was picked up.
"Hello?" A female voice said in American-accented English.
Ukyou cleared her throat and began.
"Good evening. My name is Kuonjii Ukyou. Is Ran- er, is
Saotome Ranma present?"
The voice on the other end of the line said something away
from the receiver, then returned.
"This is Ucchan? Hi! I'm Buffy. Hold on a 'sec, 'kay?
Akane's here..." The phone was passed off, and a familiar voice
answered in Japanese.
"<Ukyou? It's Akane. Is everything all right?>" Ukyou
detected a surprising concern in her sometimes-rival's voice. She
tried to keep the shock from her voice when she responded.
"<I'm fine, Akane. Where's Ranchan?>"
"<He freaked when he heard your message and took off. We
haven't heard from him yet. What's going on? Ranma said that
Pantyhose was with you?>"
"<Uhh, well, he split, mid-flight. You said Ranchan freaked
out? What happened?>"
"<Well, it's kind of involved, but he'll be glad to know
you're all right...>" A happy glow warmed Ukyou's heart at that
thought. Akane continued, nonplussed. "<An old... friend of
Buffy's is gonna meet you there. We, er, Ranma was worried that
he couldn't be there himself, but... >"
"<Tell him I understand. I didn't mean to freak him out , I
just wanted to warn him about Pantyhose... So who's this friend
of your host?>" Akane hesitated for a moment, wondering exactly
how much Ukyou would be comfortable knowing.
"<His name's Angel. He's kind of Buffy's ex-boyfriend,
but... >"
"<Oh, okay... What does he look like? I hate to admit it,
but I have a hard time telling a lot of these gaijin apart.>"
"<Careful, Ukyou. We're the gaijin here, remember? Anyway,
Buffy says he's tall, wears dark clothing, usually a trenchcoat,
too. Short dark hair, pale complexion, dark eyes. Uh, I should
probably tell you something else about him, but first... How much
has Ranma told you about what we're doing here?>"
"<You guys are studying Vampire Slaying, right?>"
"<Oh, good. You know, then. Well, that'll make this a little
easier. This Angel guy is a vampire...>"
"<Huh?! Is he... dangerous?>"
"<Not according to Buffy. There's a reason, but it's a long
story that you should really hear in person... Sorry to dump this
on you, but...>"
"<Oh, no problem Akane,>" Ukyou retorted sarcastically.
"<Who better to keep me safe than a minion of darkness, right?>"
She sighed. "<Sorry, that was uncalled for... Look, is Ran-...
Are you two gonna meet me at the airport? My flight is supposed
to land at seven a.m. in Sunnydale, barring anymore trouble.>"
"<WE'LL be there, Ukyou, don't worry.>" Akane said tersely,
a little heat in her tone.
"<Heh... Well, I guess I'll see you there, then.>"
"<Right.>" Akane hung up abruptly on her end, causing Ukyou
to wince slightly.
Hmm, touched a nerve, did I? She chuckled to herself.
Well... good. Akane's not as annoying as Shampoo is, (WAS, she
winced, corrected herself mentally,) but she still owes me for
taking Ranchan away like that, evil undead on their tails or not.
Speaking of the evil undead, she thought, I bet that
explains that creepy feeling I had earlier... I didn't sense any
hostile intent, but who can tell with creatures of darkness? Not
that I've had a lot of experience in that department...
Mentally on the alert, she walked over to the baggage
carousel, fishing in her pocket for her claim stub. She collected
her suitcases and glanced around for this "Angel"...
She spotted a tall caucasian man in a trenchcoat looking in
her direction. Experimentally, she reached out with her
rudimentary Ki sense, and encountered only a hungry vacuum where
she would have expected to find at least a glimmer of life
energy. Definitely not a normal man...
He noticed her scrutiny and tried on a cautious smile she
expected was supposed to put her at ease. Reaching into his coat,
he pulled out a piece of cardboard and held it up facing her.
Sloppily written kanjii characters were inscribed on it in
black magic marker, spelling out her name. Despite herself, she
smiled. It was hard to be wary when faced with an immortal
creature of darkness who's handwriting was worse than her
five-year-old cousin Shin's... She walked over, hauling her
suitcases.
"Hi... " The vampire said awkwardly. "I'm a friend of a
friend of Ranma..."
"Yes, I know." Ukyou responded in accented English. "You are
Angel?"
He looked surprised for a moment.
"How did... Oh. You checked in with Buffy, hunh?" She
nodded, carefully watching his expression. "She told you that
I'm, er... ?"
"Yes... I feel I should inform you that I am a trained
martial artist, and am quite capable of defending myself should
you decide you are in the mood for a late night snack."
"Fair enough, but I don't really do that anymore..."
"So I have been told. Listen, I am very sorry you have been
inconvenienced, but I am presently in no danger... You can go, if
you would like to."
"That's all right. I made a promise to Buffy that I'd look
out for you. It's no problem."
"But I... Well, If you must. Could you give me a hand with
these?" She nodded down at the suitcases. "I need to get these
over to my connecting flight."
"Hmm, what? Oh, okay..." He hefted the two bags easily.
"Lead on..."
Unbeknownst to Ukyou and Angel, they too were being
observed, by a pair of almond-shaped sapphire eyes, eyes that saw
on more levels than the mundane dimension that was (if only by
majority consensus) called reality. They were attached to a
statuesque Chinese woman who gave the appearance of being in her
mid-twenties. She was dressed in a stylish Givenchy pantsuit
exquisitely tailored so as to highlight her obvious physical
assets without revealing so much as a hint of skin. Her
golden-blonde hair was done up into a conservative bun held in
place by a silver hairpin bearing a delicate dragon filigree. Her
companion was a younger girl of about eighteen, her ridiculously-pink hair
done up in an exotic odango-style with jade ornaments and a pair
of delicately-wrought golden earrings in the shape of tiny axes.
The girl, despite her exotic looks, was wearing the uniform of
teenagers across the globe, a loose T-shirt and blue jeans over
sneakers. Both women shared a basic similarity of feature that
indicated a close family resemblance.
"<Hmm... Interesting.>" The golden-haired woman said,
following the vampire and the martial artist with those piercing
sapphire eyes. Her younger companion looked up.
"<What was that, Grandmother?>"
"<That couple over there... What can you tell me about
them?>"
The teenager glanced in the direction her elder had
indicated and sniffed the air. Frowning, she turned back to her
companion.
"<The Japanese seems... familiar somehow. Should I know
her?>"
The older woman smiled faintly.
"<No, I suppose not. And the man?>"
"<It's odd, Grandmother, but he smells... wrong. Cold. Is he
a threat?>"
"<No, not that one. But do let me know if you detect any
others like him, hmm?>"
"<Of course, if you wish...>"
The golden-haired woman nodded with a fond smile at her
pink-haired companion, before placing her right hand lightly
on the younger girl's shoulder. Her left hand moved upwards in a
slicing motion, leaving a thin trail of honey-colored light in
its wake, which quickly stretched into a vertical beam about six
feet high. She stepped forwards into the line of light, drawing
her companion with her. In a moment, the two were gone as though
they had never been, the light fading behind them.
The milling crowds took no notice of their departure, just
as they had taken no notice of their arrival moments before...
Back at the Summers home, Akane sat down with an angry look
on her face. Buffy looked over, dismayed.
"What's up, Akane? I thought you'd be happy your friend's
okay."
"OOooh... She's NOT... " Akane took a deep breath and tried
to calm down. "Ukyou's more Ranma's friend than mine. Remember,
she's one of his many *other* fiancees... "
"Oh yeah... I take it you two have a little rivalry going
on?" Akane nodded, still sulking. "So Ranma doesn't know that
she's got the hots for him?"
"Oh, he KNOWS... " Akane growled, then continued a little
more calmly. "To be fair, he doesn't encourage her... As far as
he's concerned, they're just friends. I think... They HAVE known
each other since they were five..."
"Hmm, I detect a little green-eyed-monster action here... I
thought you said you didn't like Ranma." she added, teasingly.
Akane scowled.
"Well, I... Are you kidding? I'm just worried about him,
that's all."
"Su-ure... So that nice little scene I walked in on in the
yard was just 'cause you're worried about the lug, huh?"
"Honestly, Buffy! We were just about to... Spar! Yeah,
that's it, sparring!"
"Yeah, that's the ticket..." Buffy said, smirking.
"Well, think whatever you want. It doesn't make it true."
She stood, resigned. "Now I get to go deliver the good news. If I
can find him..."
"You want a hand?"
"I guess so... It looks like the rain is finally letting up.
Do we need to tell your Mom we're going out?"
"No, she'd only worry. Well, it would increase her constant
level of worridom, anyway. She's such a pain about that
sometimes..." Akane gave her an odd look.
"I'd think you'd be... Oh, never mind, not my business."
"What? What's not your business?"
"Well, it's just that I think it's great that you have a Mom
to worry about you. But, like I said, it's really not my place to
say anything. Can we go now?"
"Uh... Yeah, sure..."
JAPAN
Ryouga came to on the couch, someone having dressed him in
his slightly damp clothes. As his eyes focused, he took in his
surroundings from his prone perspective. The two strange girls
and the panda were looking at him with varying looks of concern,
while Nabiki was going through his wallet.
"Hey!! Put that down!!"
Nabiki glanced over unconcerned as she replaced the battered
leather billfold on the coffee table with a shrug.
"Fine. Pay me when you can." She stood and walked up the
stairs, oblivious to Ryouga's scowl. The two new girls watched
her go, and an odd look of sympathy passed between them before
they returned their attention to the strange (and fairly
handsome, in a rumpled sort of way) boy who'd appeared in their
living room.
Ryouga blushed awkwardly, and sat up.
"Uhhh, gomen, folks... " Both girls smiled understandingly.
"That's okay," said the odango-girl with a smile. "You've
just got one of those Jusenkyo curses like Saotome-san, right?"
"H-hunh? Uh, yeah, that's right... You're not mad, or
upset?"
"Why should we be mad? I should really apologize to YOU for
knocking that vase out the window and on to your head." The
shorter of the two girls said, with a winning smile that made
Ryouga's ears turn pink. "I'm Kanzaki Azusa, Apprentice Devil
Hunter, and this is my sempai, Manou Yohko, the 109th Devil
Hunter. What's your name, sir?"
"Uhh, Hibiki Ryouga. D-did you say that you're a Devil
Hunter? What's that mean?"
"I'll tell you what it means!!" A voice said from the
doorway. The trio turned to see a girl about Yohko's age taking
off her sneakers and stepping into a pair of slippers. "It means
that she's fully capable of meeting all your exorcism and
monster-slaying needs! For a reasonable fee, of course..." She
had chestnut hair worn loose to her shoulders and sported a pair
of stylish eyeglasses over her sky blue eyes. She was dressed
fashionably in the latest style of jogging gear. Yohko greeted
her cheerfully.
"Hiya Chi! You're here early!"
"Well, I needed to talk to Nab-chan about our latest
promotional campaign before we went out shopping. Now, Mr.
Wet-Stranger, allow me to introduce myself. I'm Ogawa Chikako,
Devil Hunter Manager extraordinaire and all-around financial
genius. Are you in need of my client's expertise? Oni in the
bathtub? Youma in your garden? What seems to be the trouble?" She
strode over confidently, sitting down across from Ryouga and
looking him over speculatively.
"Uh.. No, no... I'm just looking for a-a f-friend, I
guess... Is Tendou Akane here? A mutual friend told me she was
staying here."
The three girls exchanged a worried glance. Azusa finally
took pity on the handsome scruffy boy and filled him in.
"I'm very sorry, Hibiki-san, but Tendou-san left almost a
month ago for America with my cousin Ranma and Tofu-Sensei."
The whine of a cicada echoed in the silence. The wind-chime
in the window tinkled once in the faint breeze.
"L-left? For America?! She's g-gone?!!"
"I'm afraid so," Azusa said sympathetically.
"With... Ranma?"
Azusa nodded.
"Why?"
"Well, after what happened in Nerima, they had to leave the
country. They went to a place called Sunnydale to train with a
famous Slayer of Demons, a girl who studies an art very similar
to Yohko-sempai's."
"What happened in Nerima? Why won't anyone tell me?!!"
Ryouga yelled, frustrated. "What does all this have to do with
some American Demon-Fighter?"
"It's not really my place to say, Hibiki-san..." Azusa said,
bowing her head.
"Well then whose is it?! Damn it, Akane is the girl I
l-l-l... Well, she's a very good friend!! Why can't anyone tell
me what happened?!" He looked around the room, frustrated beyond
measure. The three girls looked away guiltily. The panda merely
played with his beachball.
"RRRRrr, that's it, old man! You're gonna do some talking!"
Ryouga strode over and grabbed the panda by the scruff of his
neck and dragged the beast into the kitchen, kicking and
growfing.
Finding another kettle on the boil, he turned off the gas
and dumped the hot water over the panda, triggering a
metamorphosis into a middle-aged man wearing glasses, a white gi
and a kerchief covering his bald head. He had the look of a once
powerful man gone slightly to seed.
"Now now, boy. There's no need to be so rough about it..."
"Shut up! You're gonna tell me what happened in Nerima, and
you're gonna tell me now!!!" He raised a fist menacingly, causing
Saotome Genma to quail.
"All right, all right, settle down, boy. Let me up, and I'll
tell you everything... In the living room."
"Okay, but don't even TRY to get out of this!"
The two men walked back into the living room and sat down.
Genma assumed a pensive pose that looked altogether too
well-rehearsed for Ryouga's liking. Azusa and Yohko sat patiently
nearby, while Chi bowed out to go visit Nabiki upstairs.
"Azusa dear, would you be so kind as to fetch me a cup of
tea?"
"Certainly, Ojisan Saotome." The petite girl hurried into
the kitchen, dragging a recalcitrant Yohko by the ponytails
behind her.
"Where do I begin?" Genma said pensively. "Hmm. I suppose it
all started when Mousse returned from China once more..."
In the kitchen, the two girls eavesdropped discreetly while
waiting for the kettle to boil.
"Why'd you drag me in here, Azusa? that boy is so-o cute!"
"Yohko-sempai, could you PLEASE think about something other
than boy-chasing for a change? Hibiki-san will no doubt be very
upset when he finds out what happened to Itokosan and his
iinazuke's family. He seems to be very fond of Akane-chan, don't
you think?"
"Awww... Akane-chan has all the luck..."
"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that on the grounds that
it makes you sound like a dingbat, Sempai."
"Nani?!"
"Akane-chan has just gone through a horrible tragedy, and
you think she's lucky?! Tsk. Poor Hibiki-san..."
"Hmm? I think YOU'RE the one who's boy-chasing, Azusa. 'Poor
Hibiki-san', indeed."
"Well, he seems like a very nice boy, and he doesn't have a
chance with Akane-chan... There's just something about him that
makes me want to take care of him..."
"Ooh! You ARE sweet on him! Wait'll I tell Chi!"
"Don't you dare!"
"I will, so there!" Yohko pulled a red-eye and laughed.
"RRRrr, Yohko-sempai, you are SO immmature!!"
"Nyahh!"
The girls re-entered the living room with two cups of tea as
Genma finished telling his tale.
"... So my son and Akane left with Tofu-Sensei to train
under this Summers person. Nabiki, my wife and I came to stay
here with the Manous while Soun-kun recovers in the hospital. I
fear that the loss of poor Kasumi was too much for him. He's
never been the same since Kimiko-chan passed away so many years
ago, and now this..." He sighed, shaking his head. "Our only
consolation is that the Master perished as well. Thank the Kami
for small mercies..."
"Excuse me for a minute, will you?" Ryouga said
mechanically, walking out the front door and closing it behind
him. No one failed to notice the flickering bands of dark energy
that were gathering around the Lost Boy's body. The girls
exchanged puzzled glances, before wincing as a bright flash went
off outside, accompanied by a guttural yell and shockwave that
blew out the front windows in a hail of glass.
"SHI... SHI... HOUKOUDAN!!!!!!!!"
KA-SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!"
The occupants of the living room picked themselves up off
the floor and were joined by a panicked Chi and a nonplussed
Nabiki.
"Saotome-san, what happened?! What was that?!" Yohko cried,
brushing bits of glass from her fuku. Genma sat, impassive, as a
bit of ceiling plaster bounced off his head.
"The boy was just letting off some steam, that's all. He
gets upset easily."
Everyone except Genma and Nabiki facevaulted. Chi was the
first to recover.
"NANI?! Who's going to pay for the damages?! This is
ridiculous!"
Nabiki walked up behind her and draped her arms over Chi's
shoulders.
"Don't worry, Chi-baby. Pig-boy has a fat wallet." She said
wryly. "C'mon, let's go back to our little project, hmm?" Chi
blushed a deep crimson and tittered nervously as Nabiki led her
back upstairs by the hand.
Yohko stared after the duo, noticing that Chi's T-Shirt was
on inside out. No way...
Azusa merely smiled benevolently.
"Those two are such good friends!"
NERIMA JAPAN, ONE MONTH AGO
The three figures trudged wearily through the night-darkened
forest of memorial stones, their footsteps crunching on the dry
white gravel path. The lead figure bore a small black satchel in
one trembling hand, the other clutching a flashlight to
illuminate their progress. His two younger companions followed
silently, absently scanning the area with haunted eyes for any
other signs of movement.
Not a day earlier, the trio, and many others, had walked
this same path, bearing the remains of one who was once a beloved
sister and hoped-for lover to what the majority of mourners had
thought would be her final resting place. To their sorrow, these
three knew that this was not to be.
They stopped their trek at the Tendou family plot, the beam
of the torch alighting on the shrine, a larger mirror image of
the one at the dojo, stopping for a moment on the two most recent
inscriptions. The first, perhaps ten years old but still
unweathered, bore the name "Tendou Kimiko". The latest, the
inscribed letters fresh, read "Tendou Kasumi". With a shuddering
sigh, the man switched off the light and turned to face his young
compatriots.
"Akane, Ranma... "
"Hai, Tofu-Sensei." They took flanking positions at the
Sensei's side, their back to his. Mu-Tsu and Xian-Pu's
whereabouts were still unaccounted for, and a watch had to kept.
Both girls were tired, and more than a little scared. What they
were about to do was terrifying even to contemplate, but their
experiences over the last week ensured that they were well aware
of the necessity of their actions. Kasumi's soul had to be put
back on the wheel of karma, and her body had to be put to rest.
It was their giri to the memory of the sweet, innocent girl whose
peace they were about to ensure.
Tofu knelt in front of the small shrine that contained the
cremated ashes of the only woman he'd ever truly loved. He said a
small prayer to whatever deities would listen, then stood with a
grunt.
"The demon has not yet stirred. Take your places. We must
wait for the creature to appear before we complete our task."
The two girls nodded, stepping back into the concealing
shadows with their mentor.
It is a credit to the skill of their assailant that not one
of the three skilled fighters took notice of his approach, up
until the moment that they collapsed unconscious at his touch.
Quickly, silently, he produced a small bottle of shampoo and
lathered up the heads of his insensate victims. With the
judicious application of pressure to various points on the
cranium, he made sure that the trio would remember only that
which he wished them to remember; that they had arrived at the
Tendou Shrine and had performed their giri. With no more noise
than he made approaching, he faded back into the night, masking
his presence completely.
In a moment, all three sat up and glanced around in
momentary confusion, before gathering their equipment and leaving
the way they came, muffled sniffles and sobs echoing in their
wake.
When he was assured that they had well and truly left, their
assailant emerged, made certain preparations to the area, and
took up the vigil himself.
Within minutes, a thick vapour began to issue from the
supposedly-sealed shrine, almost luminescent in the darkness as
it slowly coalesced into a humanoid shape. The glow slowly faded
as the shape became less nebulous, becoming distinctly feminine
in form. As the observer watched from his place of concealment,
the shape achieved solidity and the form and features of a
beautiful woman in her early twenties became visible,
resplendently naked, the deep brown of her eyes somehow lit from
within by a hellish glow.
No human emotion showed in the depth of those eyes, only a
hunger that seemed to intensify as the creature gazed about the
grounds, her stare finally landing on the watcher.
The glow in the umber orbs flared, pinning the observer in
place temporarily as the creature took a step forward, an
animalistic expression contorting the lovely features that in
life held such peace. She took another step forward before
freezing, a snarl on her lips as she encountered some form of...
barrier between herself and the living being she saw as her prey.
She backed away, hissing, only to encounter another invisible
wall to her left. Flailing out, she found herself boxed in,
unable to attack or flee.
The trap sprung, the observer stood, no longer in thrall to
the vampire's mesmerism. With a snarl of recognition, the trapped
vampire spat his name like a curse.
"Tofu..."
She lunged forward, body contorting as she impacted the
barriers set by the prayer-chains that encircled her tomb, unable
to pierce the holy magicks that restrained her.
"Hello, demon." The Watcher said in a low voice, barely
restraining the elation he felt. Everything was going according
to plan. The creature wearing Tendou Kasumi's form hissed, then
straightened. A cunning light lit her eyes as she gathered a
glamour about herself, clothing her naked form in a simple dress
and apron, not unlike the ones Kasumi had worn daily in life. The
creature's expression changed, becoming a mask of peaceful bliss
and benevolence.
"Oh, my! How nice to see you again, Tofu-sensei..." The
vampire glanced innocently at the prayer chains. "Oh dear, I seem
to be trapped! Would you be so kind as to let me out? I'd be ever
so grateful..." She looked hopefully at her captor.
Tofu forced himself to look away, his mind beginning to fog
at the sight of his beloved Kasumi-chan, just as he remembered
her. With trembling hands, he reached inside his black gi and
pulled out the sheaf of glyph-covered papers he had secreted
there.
"Tofu-sensei? Please let me out... I have to get home and
cook dinner for my family..."
Tofu ignored her, and began reading aloud the spell he had
researched.
With a gasp of searing pain, the vampire collapsed to her
hands and knees, her false gentleness instantly fading to be
replaced by a demonic rictus, eyes blazing, needle-sharp teeth
appearing in her open mouth.
"W-what are you... DOING t-to me..?" the creature
half-gasped, half-snarled as convulsions racked her body. "STOP!
I'LL KILL YOU!! I'LL..."
Tofu continued to read the spell aloud, his voice gaining
strength as the creature trapped between the wards writhed in
pain, her face shifting between human and vampiric features.
He finished, his voice steady. On the ground before him, the
vampire's eyes widened with shock, as a flash of warm, pure light
emitted from within the orbs. With a very human gasp, she
collapsed in a faint.
SUNNYDALE, THE PRESENT
Xander slunk back up the basement stairs of his house,
emerging back out into the night with a chuckle. So someone was
using the Nanban, eh? Well, wasn't THAT interesting. Meddling
with time was always good for a larf, but who was doing it? He
resolved to find out.
With speed and agility anyone who knew him would have been
stunned to see he possessed, Xander sprung off over the rooftops,
trailing the source of the magical energies.
From the opposite direction, Ranma-chan dashed nimbly across
the rain-slicked rooftops, the last words he'd heard Kasumi's
fetch speak echoing in her mind.
She cried out Tofu-sensei's name... Is he in danger?
Worried, she'd leapt off her perch in the high steel frame that
would soon become the clocktower of a reconstructed Sunnydale
High School, and sped off towards Tofu's flat.
As she dashed across the avenue, she looked down to see
Akane and Buffy emerge from the Summers home and walk out on to
the street. Torn between to twin impulses to stop and hail them
or continue on to Tofu-sensei's she halted momentarily, allowing
the other girls to spot her.
"Ranma!!" Akane called, dashing over to her iinazuke's side,
Buffy close behind her. "Ranma! Wait!!" The red-headed girl
turned to face her, a worried look on her pretty face.
"Akane... We've gotta get to Tofu-sensei's place. I, er...
Got this feelin' he's in real trouble..."
"Feeling? What do you mean, feeling?!" A troubled look
crossed Ranma's features before she answered.
"I just know it, okay? Can't you just trust me on this one?"
"O-okay, Ranma..."
The trio dashed down the wet streets towards the small block
of flats where Tofu had been staying, Buffy and Akane managing to
keep up with Ranma's grasshopper leaps with some effort. Shortly,
they arrived at the Watcher's front door, Buffy and Akane panting
as they caught their breath.
"Whew! Guys, what the heck are we doing? What's going on?"
Buffy asked between gasps.
"We gotta check on Dr. Tofu, Buff. I think he's in trouble."
Ranma said, knocking on the door.
No answer came. She tried again, a little louder. Still no
answer.
"I don't think he's home..."
"Nope," a familiar voice called out, "He's gone bye-bye..."
All three girls looked up to see Xander perched on the roof
overhang like a half-naked gargoyle, a mischievous look on his
face.
"X-xander?" Buffy goggled. "What are you doing up there? Why
aren't you wearing pants?"
Xander leapt nimbly down from the roof amidst the three
girls, a lascivious smile plastered across his mug.
"Well, it cuts down on the preliminaries, doncha'know. Gimme
a hug!!!" He lunged at Buffy, encircling her petite frame in a
full-on glomp that caused the startled girl to squeak in
surprise, then growl as she realized which parts of her anatomy
were being subjected to squeezing. With a snarl of disgust, she
punched the boy squarely in the face. His nose took the brunt of
the strike and crumpled with a sickening crunch, sending him down
to the walk with a groan.
"You... You... ASSHOLE!!! What the hell are you doing?!"
Ranma and Akane exchanged glances, then looked at the
moaning boy on the ground clutching his broken nose.
"Did that attack look... Familiar to you, Ranma?"
"Y-yeah... But there's no WAY..."
Buffy was still screaming at the prone figure on the ground
at her feet, a stream of invective issuing from her lips that
would have made a merchant marine blush. As it was, lights were
coming on across the complex.
"Uh, Buff? Maybe we'd better do this someplace else..."
Ranma said, worriedly.
"Yeah, Buffy. Here, I have a spare key Dr. Tofu gave me for
emergencies..." Akane produced her key ring and fumbled for the
right key. Buffy stood silently, glaring poisoned daggers at
Xander. The trio let themselves in to the darkened apartment,
dragging the half-dressed, moaning boy in behind them.
They were shocked to discover the apartment in shambles;
papers and scrolls strewn about the room like the debris from a
windstorm. A quick search of the apartment proved that Tofu was
indeed nowhere to be found. Akane rapidly came to a conclusion.
"He's been kidnapped!" A muffled groan issued from Xander's
prone form.
"Doh, doh... I dib dis..."
"What?!" Buffy snapped, her tirade interrupted.
"I ded, I dib dis. I buz booking bor by beeror..." Xander
stood, finding his feet with a little difficulty. "I belt sumboby
ubing by beeror, bo I cabe to cheb ib owb. He bas gomb wheb I gob
here..."
The three girls looked perplexed.
"What did you say?"
Xander sighed as best he could, and sat down on the couch,
brushing aside the scattered papers. A blue glow suffused his
body for a moment, and the damage to his nose healed itself
before the trio's stunned eyes.
"There, that's better. Now. I said, I did this. I felt
somebody use my mirror, so I came to check it out. He was gone
when I got here, so I tossed the joint looking for my Nanban. My
guess is that he's using it right now..."
Akane and Ranma exchanged shocked glances, while Buffy
merely looked confused.
"You tossed the apartment?! YOUR mirror?! What the hell is
wrong with you?! You're running around half-naked commiting
felonies and trying to cop cheap feels off me?!! This isn't like
you Xander, I-" Buffy's eyes widened as she took a step
backwards. "You're possessed again, aren't you?" She sat down on
a chair with a groan. "Oh, no... Xander, I swear. It's like
you're a magnet for these things..."
"It's worse than that, Buffy..." Akane said softly. "I
*think* that's Master Happousai..."
A glint flashed in Xander's eye.
"Oh, good guess, Akane-chan. But call me, Xander, hmm?
Happousai, charming, debonair ladies man that he was, is gone.
Oh woe, oh tragedy, such a great loss to the world!!" He sobbed
melodramatically for a moment, before brightening. "I know you
missed me, but don't fret! I'm back for good, and I'll never
leave my two favorite pupils again!!"
"Grrr... You get out of his body, you perverted old freak!!"
Xander leapt to his feet and pulled a face.
"Nyah-nyah! Make me! I like it here!"
"Why you..." Akane swung at him, but Xander dodged easily
aside and sprung nimbly across the room to the door.
"Whassamatter with you? Ain'tcha got no respect for an old
man?" He looked down at himself, then smiled apologetically. "Oh,
right. I'm not an old man anymore, am I? Well..." He looked
pensive for a moment, then snapped his fingers and smiled
charmingly. "I know! Be nice to me, or I'll have the Harris boy
here stroll out in front of a speeding bus! Howzzat for
incentive, hmm?"
Ranma lunged across the room, fists flying.
"Leave him alone, you old bastard! I'll send you back to
hell!"
Xander/Happousai easily evaded the Amaguriken technique and
sidestepped. Ranma's momentum carried her forward and through the
door with a horrendous crash. Xander chuckled merrily.
"Oh, such fun, such fun! I really missed you, m'boy!" His
eyes turned to Buffy who was standing by the couch, a stunned
look on her face. "Now, YOU... Oh, boy, but ol' Xander's been
waiting a lo-ong time for you to come across with the goods! You
wouldn't beLIEVE what he's been dreaming about doing with YOU,
Buffy-baby. It's enough to bring a tear of pride to an old man's
eye. Now, give us a smooch, sweetie!" He sproinged forward, arms
outstretched for the glomp. Buffy sidestepped the lunge and
kicked the possessed boy with all the ki-force she had, sending
the lecher straight up through the roof with a crash. As he flew
off into the night, still cackling gleefully, Buffy stared
furiously after him, her breath coming in angry gasps.
"This is even worse than that time with the hyena..."
JAPAN, THE MANOU HOME:
Sometime later, after the glaziers had left and Ryouga had
received a royal chewing out from Madoka, Yohko's Grandmother and
Mentor, (who had returned home from her weekly Mah-Jongg game to
find her front lawn and living room a shambles), the Lost Boy sat
on the back stoop and watched the sun set.
"Akane... I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you... You
must be going through hell." He hung his head. "If only I'd been
there, I might have saved your sister... She was always so
sweet."
Ryouga turned slowly as he felt a soft hand on his shoulder.
Azusa stood there, a bowl of soup in her outstretched hands.
"Here you go, Hibiki-san. I made it for you. It's an old
family recipe..." She offered him the bowl with a hopeful smile.
Ryouga accepted with a polite bow.
"Itadakimasu, Kanzaki-san." He sipped at the soup. The
flavour was salty, but soothing. "This is very good... may I ask
what it's called?"
"It's called 'Sopa De Grande Pena'. It's a Spanish name. My
mother learned the recipe from her friend Pipo who came from
Latin America. It means Heartbreak Soup." She smiled
sympathetically. "I thought you could use some."
He looked up at her, a sad smile on his face.
"Arigatou, Kanzaki-san. It's very... soothing." Encouraged,
she sat down next to him, delicately arranging the chaste lines
of her long skirt.
"You can call me Azusa... that is, if you want to..." She
said, a small blush colouring her nose.
"Ah... Sure, Kanza- er, Azusa. I-if you want, you can call
me Ryouga..." He blushed a little himself, and sipped at his
Heartbreak Soup.
"I'd like that." Azusa replied quietly. They sat in pregnant
silence for a while as Ryouga finished his soup.
"Ryouga?" Azusa said when he put down the empty bowl.
"H-hai?"
"You really like Akane-chan, don't you?" Ryouga blushed
furiously.
"Hai..."
"Do you... That is, do you want to... Try and find her?"
"Nani? Do you think I should?"
"Well, if you like her so much, you should tell her how you
feel... I'm sure she'd appreciate it. She's lost so much, I think
she'd like to know that her friends still care about her. My
cousin Ranma tries to help, but he's..."
"A thoughtless, womanizing jerk who doesn't appreciate what
he's got? A mean-spirited sex-changing cheater who takes
advantage of people?"
Azusa was a little taken aback at the heat in Ryouga's
words.
"Err... I wouldn't have put it QUITE that way..."
"Gomen, Azusa... I shouldn't say bad things about him in
front of you, if he's your cousin and all... It's just, well, he
and I have a history..."
"I understand, Ryouga. Ranma-kun IS usually a little full of
himself. But you wouldn't recognize him now. He was very upset
about what happened at Akane-chan's home. He felt responsible
for-"
"Well, he should! If he hadn't been leading on Shampoo, none
of this would have happened!! It's all his fault!! He's gotta
PAY!!"
Azusa sweatdropped.
"Err, o-kayy... Well, what I was trying to say was that if
you want to go to America, I think you should."
"America? Well..." Ryouga looked pensive for a moment, then
shook his head. "Azusa, I think you should know something about
me... I'm uh, not very good with directions. I can get lost on
the home islands for months... America's a pretty big place. How
am I gonna find her?"
"I... I could go with you... As a guide, I mean... And I
speak pretty good English... <Good day, I am a Strudel Oven.
Where is the Refrigerator?>" She blushed.
"You'd come with me?" Ryouga asked, stunned. "B-but, you
hardly know me!"
"Well... I always wanted to see America... And I'm not in
school, so I don't have to worry about that. Besides, I'd like to
train under Summers-Sensei too. As an Apprentice Devil Hunter, I
will look on it as special training!!" She sat up straight,
smiling. "What do you say?"
Ryouga looked at her, so eager and energetic, her
honey-brown eyes sparkling. Despite himself, he smiled.
"All right... Let's go."
"Yaay!" Azusa cried, giving Ryouga a quick hug before
collecting herself and returning inside.
"Auntie Madoka! Ojisan Saotome! I'm going on a Training
Mission!"
Ryouga sat, stunned.
"She... hugged me?"
BACK ACROSS THE POND:
Long ago, people used to try walking the streets of
Sunnydale at night. They also stopped, for some odd reason.
Something about living on top of a demon-attracting anomaly that
sat on the rubber sheet of reality like a lead weight, making all
similar objects roll down towards it.
This particular taboo was not currently being observed by a
lone male figure, recently arrived to the benighted burg.
He was wrapped up in a midnight-blue cloak, a hood obscuring
his head and his feet made soft tappings as they hit the
pavement.
Then, he turned a corner, under a street light, and, as he
turned, one could glimpse a momentary flash of features - cold, hard
violet eyes, the light flickered off steel-gray earrings. Blue-black
hair falling in heavy bangs over his face were countered in their
bouffant appearance by two twisting locks of hair behind his
ears.
Now, people HAD stopped walking the streets for a reason.
Just as the man prepared to resume his movements, one of
said reasons burst out of a bush, snarling.
The man regarded the beast with blunt, cold boredom.
"Hi there, pretty-boy..." snarled the vampire. "You up for a
quick drink?"
To this, the young man just chuckled. Just to clarify, it
was *not* a nice chuckle.
"Oh, y'think that's funny, do you?" the vampire snarled.
"Now, ever since the slants arrived, heh, they bin showin' us stuff
'bout martial arts... So hold still and this won't hurt for long."
The vampire lurched forward with a speed that belied his
hulking appearance. As he approached, there was a sudden blurring.
The young man was gone. Turning, the vampire looked behind
him. He was sitting nonchalantly on a fire hydrant.
"You don't seriously think I'd waste my energy on you, do
you?" The man asked in an oddly moderate voice. Not a deep,
gravelly voice nor a high, feminine one... just enough of a
distinction to make one pause.
"Oh, you'd better..." the vampire stalked forward.
"Oh well."
Suddenly the vampire had to deal with a foot to his face, a
punch to his jaw and three short jabs to his stomach that left him
winded, despite not needing air.
"S'alright... I like ta play with my food, anyway." He
lashed out with one hand at the now standing boy, who casually
sidestepped and flipped his cloak over the vampire's head.
"Hey!" he lashed out. "Get!" Whoosh, the cloak catching the
air and billowing at the vampires movements, "Back!" Swing, a
wild haymaker that never came near. "Here!" Clang.
Water sprayed everywhere as the hydrant exploded. The
vampire, fortunately not a Jusenkyou-cursed one, shook his head
and managed to rip the cloak off his face, before turning around
to find the kid. He turned his head around...
Then up...
And up...
And Up...
"Uhh..."
Now, the informed reader is meant to chuckle and say "Uh-oh".
A huge, furred monstrosity filled his vision. Eight writhing
black tentacles squirmed regularly around in arcs, two fists the size
and density of sledgehammers clenched angrily. A pair of horns
glittered pale in the darkness, moonlight winking off the two iron rings
that said, yes, this nine and a half feet of nightmarish
malignancy was the same thing that had been under the cloak.
The creature raised its arms over its head and FLEXED. A
huge pair of bat-shaped wings spread out to almost twenty feet. Then,
the creature blinked a few times, and its eyes gleamed the faintest
red with slitted irises. With an angry, bovine smile, it showed a
grin that proved, yes, a grin is merely showing all your teeth. Two
predominantly overlarge fangs glittered in prominence over the rest.
The rest, sadly, is child abuse. There are some things that
not even a vampire can live through.
Pantyhose Tarou, godson of Happousai, snorted angrily. Now
he'd have to find some hot water. Oh well.
Stalking away from the smoking ashes that were all that was left
of the vampire, the vast beast chuckled to itself. If that was
the sort of thing that he had to face, well, this was going to be
easy...
"I swear... you're gonna pay, duck-boy." He vowed, clenching
one huge fist.
Well, that's what he meant. What he said was more like:
"Moo, grrr, moo, snort."
But the sentiment is there.
JAPAN, THE PAST:
Tofu stepped forward and dismantled the prayer chains, his
breathing ragged with anticipation. He could barely tear his
eyes away from Kasumi's supine form. Did it work?
Heedless of his own safety, he knelt down beside her, out of
instinct feeling for a pulse before dismissing the idea as
ridiculous. Gently, he tried to draw her to her feet, but she
remained limp and cold in his arms.
"Kasumi-chan... Speak to me, please..."
With a gasp, her eyes flew open, a look of sheer terror in
the brown orbs. A racking breath shuddered through her body as
her muscles spasmed, knocking Tofu to the ground. Alarmed, he
spun, only to see Kasumi stagger to her feet, and looked down at
herself. There was a moment of silence as she held up her hands,
examining them in the moonlight, her back to the Watcher. Her
head bowed and her shoulders trembled as she clutched her arms
around her torso, as if to assure herself that she was really and
truly here.
"Kasumi-chan..." Tofu scrambled to his feet and rushed to
her side, his voice choking. "Is it really you? Did the spell
work? Have you come back to me?" Slowly, she turned to face him,
her eyes shrouded by her bangs. Tentatively, he reached out and
touched her face, tilting her chin upwards.
Her eyes were shut tightly, but thin rivulets of tears
managed to slip through and trickle down her cheeks. Her lower
lip quivered softly as a sob escaped her lips.
"Why...?" She whispered. "Why did you do this?" Her eyes
snapped open, still weeping but displaying the same unnatural
glow they had earlier possessed. "WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME??!!!"
She delivered a vicious backhand to Tofu, sending him
sprawling to the gravel. He looked up, shocked. Kasumi NEVER
raised a hand in anger, to anyone!
"Kasumi-chan..."
"Don't call me that! Who gave you the right to call me
that?! Who gave you the right to make me into... Into... Some
kind of monster!"
"I didn't make you a monster, Kasumi-chan... I gave you back
your soul..."
"It wasn't yours to give!" With inhuman swiftness, she
lunged at him, grabbing him by the front of his black gi and
lifting him off the ground. "Undo it! Kill me! Whatever it takes,
do it!"
"I... I don't understand..."
"Don't you see? You've trapped me! I don't want to spend
eternity as... some kind of parasite, no better than a leech or a
flea! Undo it! NOW!"
"B-but... I gave you back your life! I love you!"
"My life was over! Done! Y-you... You..." She collapsed,
weeping, in his arms. "Kill me. Now. Please... If you love me,
Tofu, do it..."
"I-I..."
She looked up at him pleadingly. "PLEASE..."
"I..." He reached into his gi, and pulled out a strip of
paper, a Shinto ward. One touch would destroy her, this soon
after her rebirth... She nodded, closing her tear-filled eyes. He
reached forward, his hand shaking, to place the ward on her
forehead.
His hand stopped, refusing to go any farther.
"Kasumi... I can't do this..." Her eyes flew open,
despairing.
"Then I will!!" She reached out to grab the ward, but he
pulled it away.
"No, I can't let you do that... Please, Kasumi, forgive me,
but... I can't let you die again..."
"Then you are an even greater monster than what I have
become..."
Kasumi picked Tofu up by his throat. It seems his assessment
of her strength, comparative to his, was now somewhat flawed.
While she may not yet have the endurance of a true kyuuketsuki,
she sure had the strength of one.
"WHY DIDN'T YOU LET ME DIE?" she lamented in his ear, her
misery a peircing cry that tore at him.
"Kasumi-chan - please!" he gagged. "You're- you're
hurting me!"
Kasumi released him and dropped to the ground, tears
flowing
from her eyes. "Why?"
"Kasumi... we... we need you. Not just me. Ranma-kun, he
needs your help."
"What good would I do? I'm nothing but a housewife,
remember!?!" she snarled at him, her face unconsciously
metamorphosing. "And now, I'm not even THAT."
"Shhh..." Tofu reached out with one arm, to comfort her,
only to have her grasp his wrist and fling him over her head.
"Leave me alone!"
"Kasumi-chan, we have to go back!"
"Leave me!"
Tofu tried to prop himself up on his wrist, to call after
her running form, but he sagged, the pain shooting up his arm - she�d
BROKEN his WRIST! Gods...
"We're in California!" Tofu yelled. "PLEASE!"
It was too late. Kasumi was gone.
"Well done, Ono."
Tofu looked up over his shoulder, only to encounter the
briefest flash of a face-
And a fist to his jaw.
**********************************
END EPISODE FOUR: TO BE CONTINUED!
**********************************
By Dave Menard and Rick Hall, with plot assist by Matty Higgins.
Jan. 2000
THANKS GO OUT TO: The ATVS Prereaders Squad, Nicole Manders, Wade
Trischler, Blade, and all the C+C mavens on the FFML.
NEXT TIME: Pantyhose versus Xander, a possible cure for Ranma and
a new magic shop opens in Sunnydale. All this and Spike too, next
time on Akane The Vampire Slayer!
NOTE TO RYOUGA FANS: We hope you enjoyed this episode's guest
appearance of everyone's favorite Lost Boy. Unfortunately, due to
an already-overstuffed cast list, Ryouga won't be appearing again
in ATVS for quite some time to come. However, Ryouga and Azusa
will be showing up next in the first of a sporadic series of
sidestories (working title: Ryouga Hibiki and the Lost Crusade)
as the bandanna'd twosome make their way across the wilds of
America in search of that fabled place they call... Sunnydale!
Coming soon from Leaping Gnome Productions!
C+C REQUESTED, NAY, DEMANDED!!!!!!! Reach Dave at
catthouse@lweb.net, Rick at talen@optusnet.com.au, or the whole
Leaping Gnome Team at leapinggnome@hotmail.com. For previous
chapters of ATVS, visit Akane The Vampire Slayer's Homepage at:
http//:matrix.crosswinds.com/~ksna/
Here Endeth The Lesson.
Spa Fon!
-------------------------------------------
Dave Menard
Keeper of Pink's Hammer of Vengeance
Knight of the Combat Fiancees
Member of the Space Pirates Guild
http://matrix.crosswinds.net/~ksna/