A/N: I've been working on some quick and short Mass Effect fics that I hope to start posting in the next few days. Also, I'll be starting my thesis soon and it involves video games, so it won't be boring…for me at least.
Disclaimer: Dead or Alive owned by Team Ninja and Tecmo. Tramps Like Us owned by Ogawa and Tokyopop
Kunoichis Like Us
Chapter 20
"Are you sure you can't come home with me?"
"Yeah," Alex said, trying to catch his breath. "I gotta get the apartment cleaned up."
"Cleaned up?" Nanako almost snorted. "When is it ever dirty?"
"I do a little each week so I don't have to do something big." Alex said calmly as he grabbed his bag. "Besides, you-know-who is coming today."
"Alright." Nanako sighed. "Oh, before you go, I have something for ya."
The girl dug into her bag before producing a key attached to a key chain with a half a heart trinket, the type that would fit with another trinket to make a complete heart.
"Uh…" Alex looked at the girly gift, completely lost.
"I made an extra key for you." She winked. "Now my prince can come by anytime."
"Oh." Alex took the key, unsure what exactly to say. "Um…thank you."
Prince? Alex thought. I don't think anyone would think of me like that.
"Don't tell my landlord. We're not supposed to make copies." She continued.
"Oh…um…I suppose I could make a copy of my apartment for you."
"Nah, that's alright. That apartment isn't really yours, ya know. I don't want ya gettin' any heat from your parents for handin' out extra keys. Besides, it's part of our agreement."
"Who's agreement?"
Nanako seemed stunned, like she just realized she spoke out of turn. "Uh…nothin'. Never mind."
Alex furrowed his brow for a moment before passing off the remark. "Well, I guess I could stop by to see if you need anymore food or supplies."
"I didn't give you that to mooch food off ya." Nanako gave him a playful smack on the shoulder.
"It's alright." Alex responded, rubbing the shoulder. "I want to know that you're ok."
Nanako's smile fell, replaced with astonishment. The look was fleeting however when her face relaxed. "Oh."
Alex turned to leave, but the punk girl spun him back around and kissed him, deeply.
"Well…see ya tomorrow." She smiled and walked off.
Things seemed surreal for Alex. One second ago he was wrapping up a good ten minute make out session behind the school with Nanako and the next second he was walking home with cleaning and getting dinner set up in his mind. He would not be so bold as to say that they two were going out again…well 'again' might not be the right word since they were not technically going out the first time…it was too confusing. To sum it all up, they were seeing each other, but he would not use the label of boyfriend and girlfriend. Maybe. At any rate, finding out that his kunoichi had a boyfriend spurred his latest move. There was a part of him that did entertain the thought of Kasumi and him, but reality loved to put him in his place.
New old girlfriends, kunoichi's, and such; he was not sure if his life was starting to get weird or if he was the one that was weird. Either way, he had to get going.
His mother was coming home for a visit.
When Kasumi learned that Alex had begun to spend more time with Nanako, she felt ambivalence. She was happy that her master had found a girlfriend, but she was also wary of his choice of said girlfriend. Nanako was still a wildcard in Kasumi's mind, capable of doing and becoming anything, from the woman he needed to the person that almost destroyed him before.
Yet there was something bothering him, a subtle thing that he took great pains to hide from her, like he had learned a secret and did not want anyone else to know.
But all of that was moot as today was a special day. She would finally meet his master's mother.
She had already gathered some details from her past interactions with the Kane family. Like Alex's father, Darryl, Alex's mother, Elsa, was a very friendly individual. Unlike Darryl, she had a plan for everything. She had arranged her visit a month ago and all that it entailed: reservations at the restaurants she would take the family to eat at, a day to spend at Mayu's husband's home, time she would need to visit the office and catch up on work, even a few hours of 'free time' a day incase something else came up. While her master appreciated his mother's punctuality and structure he always felt that she was a bit too…controlling.
Plus her playful façade made talking to her…what was the word Alex used…taxing.
She had just finished running a cloth over the dinning table when her master burst through the door. She instantly detected a few things. Her master was haggard for breath and his cheeks were red, meaning he had run a great deal to get home.
"I'm home." He gasped out, leaning against the wall. "Sorry I'm back so late."
"It's okay." Kasumi said as she walked over to greet him. "Welcome back. I was just doing some cleaning for the arrival of your mother."
"Really?" Alex looked around. "Wow. Thanks…um." Alex turned away from her gaze. "I'll, uh, empty the dishwasher and give you a hand."
He hurried into the kitchen. She noticed that he was having trouble looking her in the eye sometimes, like he was ashamed of something. She did not like him keeping things from her, mostly because it usually just caused him to feel extremely guilty.
"So," Kasumi carefully said as she resumed her dusting, "How is Nanako doing?"
Alex looked like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "N…Nanako? What do you mean?"
"I know you've been seeing her more often." She calmly stated. "It's nothing to be ashamed about. I just want to know how you feel about it."
Alex had hauled open the door to the dishwasher and was going through the cutlery. "I'm…fine."
"Fine?" Kasumi repeated. "Not a very…powerful word." She waited for Alex to respond, but heard nothing. "I know that Nanako wants to get closer and I know that you've stopped pushing her away. I just want to know if something happened."
"It…" Alex began, but the words died out. He was holding something back.
"Did you do something?" Kasumi inquired further. "Or did she?"
"Look, it's not important, okay, it's-OW." Alex suddenly called out. "Son of a bitch!"
When Kasumi saw Alex clutching his hand, she immediately leapt to his side. She saw the knife on the floor and the blood on his hand. "Let me see." She pried took his hand. A relieved smile came over her face. The cut, localized to his index finger, was not deep and the blood was a small amount.
"You'll be fine." She said and placed the wounded finger in her mouth.
She felt the muscles in Alex's arm. They clenched, like he was getting ready to pull his hand away, but he did not.
"Um…I'll go get a band aid." Alex said red in the face again. "Thanks."
Kasumi watched Alex walk to the bathroom, still unable to look her in the eye, obviously still plagued by guilt. But guilt about what?
What are you hiding, Alex? Kasumi thought. What's tormenting you?
The door flung open followed by loud voices. Alex sucked in a deep breath and went to greet his family.
"Mother, please." One voice spoke, Mayu's. "My mother-in-law is expecting us at the restaurant soon. You two haven't spoken since the wedding and she has been looking forward to meeting you."
"We'll make it, don't worry." Alex's mother replied as she stepped into the living room. Her Japanese held only the smallest of French accents and her voice sounded like tinkling glass. "There's something I want to take care of first."
His mother was dressed in a dark crimson blouse and dark grey pressed slacks. Her blonde hair hung past her ears, but did not touch her shoulders. She let the bags fall from her grasp and land with the sound of thousands of the little contents rattling around. Mayu set the bags she was charged with down far more gently.
"Hi, mom." Alex said. "How was-"
The teen never got to finish his sentence as he found himself engulfed into his mother's arms. She smelled like an airport lounge.
"Oh, there you are mon petit garcon." Elsa merrily sang while pelting his face with kisses. "It's been far too long."
"I missed you too, mom." Alex smiled.
"Ah, ah, in Francais." She said, smiling.
Alex sighed before speaking again. "Je vous ai manqués aussi, la maman."
"Oh, beau." Elsa kissed the top of his head. "It's wonderful to know that my children know the language of their heritage."
"I do my best, mom." Alex flatly said.
"Now then," she released her son and looked around the apartment. "Where is she?"
"Who, Rika?" Alex asked. "I thought you were going to pick her up later."
"You know who I mean, silly." His mother turned back to him. "Your girlfriend, I was told she'd be here."
"Girlfriend? Who told you-" Alex shifted his sights to Mayu who, uncharacteristically, looked away, sheepishly. "Nevermind. Nanako isn't here right now so-"
"Not her." Elsa waved him off. "I mean the one I've been hearing about, Sakura."
The blood in Alex's veins froze. "S…Sakura?" Again, he shot a glance to Mayu. She stared back, urging him to answer. "She…she's not my girlfriend. She's just a friend." Alex could have sworn that Mayu looked disappointed.
"Uh…huh." Elsa looked at her son coyly. "I see. Well, nonetheless, I want to see her."
Kasumi had disappeared when the two of them finished cleaning and he had no idea where the ninja girl had gallivanted off to. He was slightly concerned, but this was not the first time she had left without telling him and he knew she would come home eventually.
"She isn't here either, mom." Alex pressed. "It's just me right now."
"Oh, really?" Elsa said with a smile. "Then who is that behind you?"
Alex turned around and nearly jumped out of his skin. Kasumi, in her Sakura disguise and school uniform, was almost two feet from him, a content look on her face.
"Ka…Sakura." Alex swiftly corrected himself. "I…uh…didn't know you were…still here."
"You're getting rather forgetful, Alex." She said playfully before she turned to his mother. "You'll have to forgive him. He's been preoccupied with your arrival."
"Has he now?" Elsa cocked an eyebrow. "I'm not getting in the way of anything, am I?"
"No, mom." Alex groaned. "What she means is that I've been busy getting everything ready for your-"
Elsa's laugh cut him off. "I'm kidding, honey, I'm kidding." Another hug followed. "I'm just glad to be home and see my children."
Alex sighed, silently. He was also glad to see his mother, but the razor's edge he had to walk concerning Kasumi and Nanako made enjoying the moment difficult.
"Forgive the intrusion." Kasumi spoke up. "But I have something for you."
Elsa let go of her son and faced the Japanese teen with a bemused look.
Kasumi produced a miniature, porcelain statute of a Japanese woman in full dress kimono holding two fans with painted Rising Suns. "I saw that you collected them," she nodded toward the table filled with similar statues, "and I found this one day, so..." She let the statement hang.
"Ooooh." Elsa said with the tone reserved for kittens and puppies. "That is so darling. And thoughtful." She gently took the statue and held it up. "Thank you, Sakura. I know just where to put it."
While Elsa attended to her collection, Alex shot Kasumi a confused look. She replied with a grin and a wink.
"You know, Sakura." Elsa said after finding just the right spot, between the sitting elderly man writing on a scroll and a samurai holding a katanna over his head, "we should all have dinner together sometime. I really want to get to know you."
"I would like that." Sakura bowed.
"Polite, well spoken, and cute as a button." Elsa pulled the girl to her with her biggest hug yet. "My son is lucky to have a girl like you."
"Mom." Alex said, frustrated. "Sakura and I-"
"Are just friends." Sakura finished for him, her smile relaxed.
"Oh." Elsa said like it was news to her. "Pity."
"Mother." Mayu interjected. "We have to leave soon, otherwise we'll be late."
Elsa sighed and released Kasumi. "Alright. But after that we're coming right back." She took her son's face in her hands. "We've have so much to talk about."
Alex was already formulating ideas to go over with Kasumi in case his mother used…aggressive questioning when she returned. The last thing he needed was to get caught in a lie due to poor planning.
"Hello?" A knock came at the door. "Anyone home?"
The voice caused Alex to almost stop breathing. He could not say anything as Mayu answered the door.
Nanako, in her school uniform, walked in with a beaming smile and a bag in her hand. Mayu followed, again looking displeased.
"Hello, Mrs. Kane." Nanako said. "I heard you were in town today so I'd thought I'd swing by…and…"
Nanako's chipper voice died when she saw Kasumi.
Alex's eyes shifted to every person in the room before settling on Nanako, who did not take her sight off his kunoichi.
"Uh…Nanako." Alex tried to sound upbeat. "I didn't know you were gonna…drop by."
"Huh?" Nanako looked over, like she just realized there were others besides Kasumi in the room. "Oh, well I thought that since we're going out again, I'd pop on by say hi to your mother."
"Oh." Alex said, unable to think of anything else.
"Ms. Izumi." Elsa said in cold formality. "It's been quite a while."
"Indeed it has, Mrs. Kane." Nanako was all smiles. "I know that there's been some…bad blood in the past but I hope to wash that away. And I've come bearing gifts." She held up the plastic bag with the name of a store Alex never saw before.
Elsa carefully took the bag and peered into its contents. Her eyes widened and her mouth hung slightly open. A light gasp escaped.
"Mom?" Alex said.
Elsa reached in and carefully removed the object from the bag. It was a book, thick with a leather hide.
"That is a collection of plays, stories, and art from Victor Hugo including Nouvelles Odes, Le Rhin, and L'Année terrible." Nanako rolled the French words off her tongue like she had spoken it her whole life. Victor Hugo was one of France's most famous authors, poets, and play writers. He was also his mother's favorite.
"This…is very thoughtful, Ms. Izumi." Elsa said, still surprised. "Thank you."
"My pleasure." Nanako bowed. "And please call me Nanako."
Elsa did not reply, instead she turned the book over in her hands and flipped through a few pages.
"Mother." Mayu snapped Elsa out of her daze. "We're going to be late."
"Yes, of course." Elsa regained her wits and put the book down on the table. "Let me…wash up. I won't be but a moment. Thank you again, Nanako. Sakura."
Alex watched his mother retreat to the bathroom. When he looked back, he noticed a victorious look from Nanako. A look she directed at Kasumi whom stared back impassively.
"Alex," Mayu shattered the tension. "Would you and Sakura take mother's luggage to her room, please? Nanako, I could use your help with getting the rest from my car."
"No problem." Nanako said, still smiling at Kasumi before she turned a left.
Alex's stomach relaxed, but only a little. He felt like he was walking on eggshells, but with those around him doing the same. Nothing felt worse than watching a situation teeter on the brink and not being able to control anything.
Kasumi silently took two of the bags and marched off to his parent's room, but not before she gave him a concerned look.
A heavy lump formed in his chest before he grabbed the remaining bags and followed.
Nanako's smile still hold strong after leaving the room. Talk about two birds with one stone, she impressed Alex's mother and manage to show up Sakura who no doubt had tried to win her over as well. Nanako knew that she had not yet gained Elsa's approval, but she had the patience. Baby steps. Besides, seeing the look on the little princess's face would tie her over for the time being.
She almost ran into Mayu's back once the two of them reached the bottom of the stairs. When the older woman turned around, the smile faded.
"What are you doing here?" Mayu sternly asked.
"I…" Nanako stumbled. "I told you, I wanted to see your mother and-"
"We had an agreement." Mayu interrupted. "Or did you forget our…talk on the way to my family reunion?"
"No, ma'am." Nanako's tone was hushed. "I have not."
"Well let me reiterate anyway. I don't like you. I know what type of woman you are and nothing would make me happier than to see my brother cast you out." Mayu said with dripping venom. "But I realize that I can't keep making his decisions for him. If he takes you back, than that's his choice. But, in the meantime, you are not allowed in our home without permission. Did you forget that?"
"No, ma'am."
"Than why are you here?" Mayu asked again.
Nanako swallowed the rest of her pride before answering. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."
Mayu nodded and turned back to her car. Nanako sucked in a breath and let it out evenly, trying to suppress the urge to slap the stuck-up bitch. But she would take all the abuse the woman could fling at her, because she knew that meeting every obstacle in her path with brute force would blow up in her face one day. Let the woman talk, she did not care, and let her make all these rules because in the end she would win and get what she wanted back.
No matter the cost.
Alex picked at the leafy food on his plate. He was never really a salad man, but he knew better than to leave 'healthy' foods uneaten on his plate, especially with his mother around.
The restaurant his mother picked out was someplace Alex never heard or seen before. His mother hated going to commercialized, brand name restaurants. 'Too sterile,' she always said, 'no soul at all'. She preferred the family run or local places. The one she chose was a French restaurant, no real surprise there.
The three of them, his mother, Kasumi, and himself, sat at a small table in the center of the dining area, surrounded by dozens of patrons, nearly all of them foreign.
"So, Sakura." Elsa said around her salad. "Tell me about yourself."
"There's not much to tell, really." Kasumi said bashfully. "What would you like to know?"
"Well, let's start with how you met my son." Elsa glanced at Alex.
"I was a transfer student and our instructor had me sit next to him." Kasumi recited perfectly. "He had to share his books with me and…well," she shrugged, "I guess we were destined to met."
Alex suppressed a groan. The 'destined' was not a word he thought helped their situation.
"Destined?" Elsa repeated, glancing again at her son with a cat-ish grin. "Intéressant."
"Yes, fascinating." Alex replied flatly, praying that topic would change soon.
"Tell me about your family." Elsa said. "Who are your parents? Any brothers or sisters?"
The bashfulness faded. She stared blankly into her plate. The bustle of the people around them was the only sound.
"Uh…mom?" Alex said after a short time of silence. "That's kind of a...sensitive topic."
"Oh?" Elsa looked intrigued. "I'm sorry. Is something wrong?"
"No." Kasumi spoke up. "It's just that…I haven't spoken to them for quite sometime."
"I see." Elsa stirred the remainder of her salad. "May I ask why?"
Another pause followed before Kasumi's answer. "It's…rather personal. We've had a bit of a…falling out. I would rather not go further than that, please."
"If you wish." Elsa spoke carefully. "If you aren't speaking to your parents, than that also means you aren't living with them either. So, where are you living?"
"At an apartment not far from yours." Kasumi replied. Alex winced. She said what the two of them came up with before the dinner with his mother, to keep their stories straight when the questions came, but Kasumi's answer came a bit too quickly. Most likely due to Kasumi's rattled state.
"All by yourself?" Elsa continued.
"Yes." She replied solemnly.
Elsa furrowed her brow, looking at the far wall in concentration. Then she shifted her gaze back to Kasumi, snapped it to Alex for a moment, then back to Kasumi. A smile spread across her face. He had a feeling he was not going to like what he heard next.
"I have an idea," Elsa started smoothly, "why don't you move in with us?"
He hated being right sometimes.
"Uh, mom, I…um." Alex floundered, not knowing what to say.
"It's perfect. I keep getting an earful from your sister about you being alone in the apartment. Your friend is cut off from family and on her own. I can't believe no one thought of this sooner."
Alex shifted in his seat. She had a point. This would make things a bit easier if he had a legitimate excuse for Kasumi continued presence. On the other hand, he doubted such news would remain in the family. And if Nanako found out…
"Mom, don't you think it might be…unwise to have a boy and girl with no relation to each other share the same apartment?"
"Why?" Elsa leveled her gaze. "Are you saying you might take advantage of her?"
"Of course not." Alex said, getting angry. "And what does that mean? Do you think I would do that?"
"Calm down, honey, calm down." Elsa soothed, realizing that her son was on the verge of yelling. "It was a joke."
Alex looked away, still riled up.
"I'm ok with it."
Alex snapped his head to Kasumi, mouth unhinged. "What?"
"It sounds nice." Kasumi bowed her head. "I accept."
"Good." Elsa's smile was from ear to ear. "Then it's settled."
"But only if Alex accepts as well." Kasumi continued. "He is involved in this as well."
"I understand." Elsa nodded and turned to Alex, leaning her chin in her hand. "Well, Alex dear, what's your answer? Will you let this poor girl sit all alone in her tiny apartment or will you let her live in our big, warm home?"
"Wow, a guilt trip, that's new for you mom." Alex rolled his eyes. Between his mother's cocky grin and Kasumi's passive face but powerful eyes, he saw that his objection was not an option. "Fine."
"Oh, good." Elsa said giddily. "It'll be perfect. Now I'll some eyes and ears at the home while I'm away."
"So you don't trust me now?" Alex shot back.
"Nope." Elsa sipped her tea. "Not when it comes to you telling me your well being."
Alex groaned. "I love you too, mom."
Elsa smiled, brought her son closer, and kissed the top of his head.
"And I love you." She smiled. The smile fell after she started running her hands through his hair. "And would you please stop dying your hair? You mustn't be ashamed of the hair God gave you."
Alex sighed and looked at Kasumi. Her smile put him at ease. Maybe this would work out.
Feigning Kasumi's move in was more difficult than Alex had predicted. His mother had insisted on helping move, which was pointless. Thankfully, with some mere insight into his mother's schedule, he picked a time when his mother was occupied for a few hours and told her that 'Sakura' and he moved everything from her 'apartment' to the family apartment during said period. His mother wanted the new guest to move into Mayu & Rika's old room, but Kasumi insisted on the loft. At first Alex thought it was so they would not have to really move anything around, but her response was "it wouldn't be right to move into a room that your family might need again."
Cryptic, but it worked. But the hard part came, the official registration.
"I don't like this." The landlady Mrs. Watanabe handed Alex a clipboard. "Not one bit."
Mrs. Watanabe used to own the complex with her late husband. After his passing, she gained full custody of all their property. Rumor was that Mr. Watanabe's untimely departure was his way of escaping his wife's icy nagging.
"You're preaching to the choir." Alex said as he took the clipboard with the 'change of tenants' papers. He had learned long ago to be on Mrs. Watanabe good side. "I'll make sure my mother has these signed and delivered before she leaves."
"Legally I can't object." She put her hands on her sturdy hips. The woman had sagging jowls and faked curly hair. "But it's not right having a man and woman not united in holy matrimony to live together under one roof."
"For the record, this wasn't my idea." Alex was used to humoring the elderly landlord. "Besides, this girl was thrown out by her family and she has no where else to go. What was my mother going to do, let her survive by herself?"
Alex normally hated using an underhanded trick, especially one that his mother had used on him, but after years of conning Alex into doing free maintenance work on the complex, he felt that perhaps he should even the score a little.
Mrs. Watanabe huffed and crossed her arms. "Well, it would be a shame for a young thing like that to have to bear the harshness of the world on her lonesome, but that still doesn't make me feel any better about the situation."
"Mrs. Watanabe, do you think I would do anything dishonorable towards her?" Alex tried not to milk the drama.
The older woman regarded the boy with hawk-like eyes. "No, you're a good boy. Far better than my son who goes to Kyoto with some woman and only gives his mother a call on her birthday and Christmas." She shook her head and clucked her tongue. "But I also know that you're at that age when the…urges come in strong."
Alex held up his hand. "I promise I will be nothing but a gentleman. You have my word."
Mrs. Watanabe's eyes narrowed for a moment before she nodded in approval.
"By the way," Alex said quietly. "I think it would be best if we kept her new living arrangement between us. I don't want anyone judging her since she has a rough enough time as it is."
"Agreed." The landlady said. "And if that poor thing needs anything, you tell her my door is always open."
"Will do." Alex forced a smile. When Mrs. Watanabe walked away, he rolled his eyes. No wonder her son wanted nothing to do with her.
He walked up the staircase looking over the papers. He was telling the truth that he did not truly feel comfortable with this new arrangement. Sure she had been living with him for a few months, but in secret. Now that it was 'official' he was afraid something unpleasant might happen. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, right?
He opened the door and walked in.
"Honey, is that you?" Elsa called out.
"Yeah." Alex put on his slippers. "I got the papers."
"We'll deal with that in a moment." His mother replied. "Come here, I want to show you something."
With a sigh, Alex slid open the sitting room door. "Mom, this really…can't…"
His eyes adjusted to the evening sunlight shining through the patio door. Kasumi stood at the center of the curtain of light, a gentle golden backdrop. Her hair hung free, but her round 'Sakura' glasses sat on her face. She wore a blue colored cotton dress that went past her knees and a white long sleeved shirt with red pinstripes and a blue sweater vest. The smile on her face seemed to make her melt in the sunlight around her.
He noticed that his mother was standing off to the side, arms crossed with a smile of her own.
"Well, what do you think?" She made a gesture to the girl. "I decided to mark this occasion of adding one more to our family with a set of new clothes for our Sakura. Give Alex a spin to show him."
Kasumi twirled with the grace of a dancer, the dress and hair fluttering up.
"Oh, belle." Elsa said in wonder. "It'll be good for the colder months coming."
Kasumi had a look of utter bliss. "Do you like it?"
Alex could only stare.
"I think he does." Elsa said to Kasumi. "Parfaite."
Then the images of the beach house struck Alex's mind. The sight of Kasumi with the other man. The kiss.
"It's…lovely." Alex said, hushed. "I'll, uh, put these on your bed."
Alex hurried away, unable to look at either Kasumi or his mother in the eye.
She's not for you, Alex. He thought to himself. So stop thinking about it.