Dedications: To all my oneesans (Usa-oneesan, Himi-oneesan, Michi-oneesan, Angel-oneesan), D-chan, Tenshi-chan, Eternal-chan.
Special Thanks: I want to give a special thanks to Usa-oneesan's Yotogi for inspiring me on this chapter. Also, thanks to all you reviewers, especially PrincessLesse, Usa-oneesan, and Chibi Tenshi. I appreciated them.
Warning: Major OOC for 'Nanashi.' Alternate reality. Multi-crossover. Twists and turns at every corner, which some might not suspect.
Author's Notes: I realize there was some confusion with the first chapter. This series is really meant for you to ask questions and keep you guessing. Someone asked if the girl was Usagi, and I have to say that person obviously didn't read the last chapter right. If any of you actually don't know, I suggest you read the last chapter or just find out in this one. Also, some are asking if the guy is Heero. If you really can't tell from the last chapter or the continuing ones, you'll just have to wait until he gets his memories back. I leave subtle and not so subtle clues in each one. Then someone asked how in the world Li Syaoran got into this. There are such things as multi-crossovers. If no one knows, Syaoran is from Card Captor Sakura.
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The Man Behind the Gun
Chapter 2 - Do You Believe In Magic?
Author: Krys Yuy
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"Li Syaoran."
"Nice to meet you," Nanashi nodded as he shook the younger boy's hand.
"Same here," Syaoran replied, smiling slightly.
"And you are?" Nanashi questioned the two older men.
"The name's Ranma. Li Ranma," said the one with a pigtail.
Usagi hit him upside the head. "Why are you trying to act like James Bond?!"
The other man with a bandana ignored the now bickering cousins and shook Nanashi's hand as well. "I'm Li Ryouga."
Ranma stopped in his arguing with his cousin to grin at Nanashi. "He gets lost all the time," he stated matter-of-factly.
"Not exactly something I'm proud of," Ryouga muttered.
Nanashi smiled at the brothers a bit, but somehow his mouth wasn't use to smiling so much. It was already sore, but he dismissed it quickly. For the first time, his mind registered that his savior was dressed in formal clothes. "Oh, were you going somewhere?" he questioned.
"Me?" Usagi blinked.
"Yeah, you," he replied, his blue eyes twinkling with amusement.
"Gomen," she blushed, then glared as her cousins made gagging gestures, while her brother just stood to the side. "I was planning to go out tonight."
Her answer made Nanashi feel guilty for making her deal with him. "Gomen nasai," he apologized, shifting on to his feet and off the bed. "I better not be a burden to you any longer," he stated, about to walk out the door.
Usagi caught his arm and pulled him toward her with strength that didn't look possible for her small frame. "Oh no you don't," she expressed, her hand tightening on him.
'She's strong...' he thought. 'Doesn't really look it.' "But... you have to go somewhere and I kept you here," he retorted.
Usagi laughed and he once again felt the tingles crawl up his spine. "It was my choice," she reminded him.
"I don't want to continue keeping you here when you have to go somewhere," he argued.
"Hey! It's no problem," Ranma intervened. "We were just going to take her out tonight. It's nothing big."
Syaoran sent him a look, which read, 'What the hell are you doing?' but he covered it up with a smile. "Yeah, we can just do it tomorrow."
Ryouga nodded his head. "Usagi can take you out," he added slyly, grinning.
"So you guys can have some alone time," Ranma chimed in, smirking.
Nanashi and Usagi looked at each other, and blushed. "I can take you out if you want," she offered.
"Are you sure?" he questioned uneasily. "I mean... you've done so much for me already."
"No problem," she winked. "I can do the thing with my cousins and Syaoran tomorrow, like otooto said."
"Guess we'll see you later," Ryouga said. He smiled and waved to his new found friend. "Catch you later, Nanashi."
"Sure," he replied.
"Yeah, maybe we can spar sometime," Ranma suggested with a gleam in his eye.
"Okay," Nanashi agreed with a grin.
"Ja ne, Nanashi-san," Syaoran said as he walked out the door.
"Ja ne, Syaoran," he called after him.
The two people left in the room heard the voices grow fainter and then a door shut. Usagi plopped down on the bed, a thoughtful look in her eyes. "So... where do you want to go?" she inquired.
Nanashi remained standing and he rubbed his left arm, his eyes glancing around uncomfortably. "Well, I wouldn't really know... Remember I have-" he broke off, not wanting to think about it.
"Oh my god!" Usagi exclaimed, bringing a hand to her mouth. "Gomen nasai! I forgot. How about I just take you to one of my favorite places?"
"All right," he replied. Then he glanced down at what he was wearing. "Do you have anything else I can wear?" he asked. "Besides these," he gestured to the jeans and tank top he was wearing.
"I might have something," she remarked. "Let me think..." 'Clothes... clothes... I wonder...' she thought. 'Oh! Ranma left some of his old things here last week. Those might fit Nanashi.' She studied him, while looking him up and down.
"What are you looking at?" Nanashi thought aloud, looking down at himself. "Do I have something on my clothes?"
"Nani?" Usagi mumbled, then she blinked rapidly. "Iie! Iie!" she denied. "Just wondering if you'll fit in Ranma's outfits, that's all."
Nanashi grinned but then rubbed his jaw. 'What is wrong with me?' he asked himself.
Usagi noticed his move and stared at him through under thick eyelashes. "Daijoubu ka?" she questioned.
"Daijoubu," he half-lied. "My jaw is just sore."
"Hmm... I wonder why..." she trailed off, then shook her head. "I'll go get you your clothes. Ranma's should fit you."
"Doomo arigato," he thanked.
"Don't go anywhere," she ordered with exaggerated authority.
"Hai!" Nanashi saluted in a mock soldier tone, which actually sounded genuine.
Usagi stared at him curiously. "You think that you might have been a soldier?"
Nanashi shut his eyes as images which were new, yet familiar flew by in his mind's eye. "Maybe," he murmured. Then he opened his eyes to give her a mischievous expression. "So, how old is your boyfriend?" he asked, surprised to hear the venom in his voice.
Usagi didn't take notice as she flushed. "Well, he's a pre-med student in America," she informed.
"How old is he?" Nanashi questioned again.
"And he's really smart and is definitely going to be a great doctor," she added.
"Why don't you want to tell me his age? It's not really big is it?"
"Well, it's just that... I had dated him ever since I was fourteen. He was much older than me and my parents didn't approve."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, age really shouldn't matter, you know?"
"Hai, that's what I always said!" Usagi exclaimed, surprised.
"Well, how old is he?"
"I don't have to say," she refused.
"I get it," Nanashi nodded. "He's really old, ne? Like sixty or seventy."
"Nani?!"
"You have to help him eat his food and take him on his daily walks-"
"Oh! That's it! You're gonna get it!" Usagi shrieked, lunging for him from the bed.
Nanashi laughed, and tried to dodge her, but she was able to grab the front of his tank top. "Whatcha going to do?" he taunted in a playful attitude.
Usagi didn't answer because she had suddenly found herself drowning in his intense gaze. As she looked deeply into his blue orbs, her eyes turned blank.
*Vision*
He was running. He had to run. Faster. Harder. He jumped over the metal fence with expertise. As he tumbled on the grass, he continued to sprint. He took out a device and pressed a button. He stopped as an explosion racked the earth. He turned around, a satisfied expression pasted on his face. It immediately dissolved as he saw an exploded machine teeter and fall past the fence and knock into an apartment building, which created a chain reaction. Everything came tumbling down like dominoes. His mind's eye saw a young girl and her dog smiling at him. Then they faded as if they never really were.
"IIE!!" he screamed into the sky.
*End Vision*
(AN: I know he didn't really scream to the sky, but the vision was a mix of memory and mind. It held part of the memory, while it showed what his mind was going through as well.)
Usagi gasped as someone shook her on the shoulder.
"What's wrong?" Nanashi asked, his eyes worried.
Usagi turned away from his gaze and forced herself to look elsewhere. 'That vision...' she thought. 'That was Nanashi. The boy who screamed. I must not tell him. At least not yet.' "Just zoned out for a second," she lied.
He stared at her hard, but then shrugged. "All right..."
Then she noticed that she was still holding him by the front of his shirt. She got a sly grin on her face as she turned to look at him.
"What is it?" he asked, not even noticing the look in her eyes.
"Nothing," she denied. "Just this!" She pulled on his tank top, intending to drag him on top of the bed so she could pin him. However, she miscalculated a step and he came tumbling down on her. "Eep!"
Nanashi blinked as he felt a warm body underneath him. He found himself on the bed with a surprised Usagi underneath him. "You did it," he reminded, not wanting him to get mad at her.
"Yeah, I did," she breathed softly, trying to deny the feeling that she liked him near her.
"Hmm..." Nanashi murmured as her breath tickled his skin, not even noticing as his face was nearing hers.
Usagi's eyes fluttered close as she sensed him about to press his lips on hers, the attraction humming in the air. Half of his weight was resting on her, while the remaining was on the bed. Her arms were about to snake around his neck, before a glimpse of crimson eyes flashed through her mind. 'What am I doing?!' she shrieked. 'Chibi-Usa... Mamoru- I mean Mamo-chan... she- I mean they mean too much to me!'
Usagi turned her head just in time for Nanashi's lips to make contact with her cheek instead of her lips. Even through her inner dilemma, she blinked as tingles burst from the tips of her toes to cover the top of her head. Her hands pressed against his chest and pushed him off somewhere between rough and gently. She quickly got up and smoothed over her dress. Nanashi stared at her, his eyes wide with shock as he tried to register what happened.
"I'm just going to- going to- umm... get your clothes!" she exclaimed as she exited the room quickly.
'Kuso!!' Nanashi thought, clenching his fist. 'Damn hormones! I just met her for crying out loud!'
Usagi pressed her back against the bedroom door, her head tilting. 'What the hell was I thinking? I found him today and only a couple hours after he wakes up, I'm about to kiss him?! Kuso! I've gone insane!! Even if I am attracted to him, I have a destiny. It's just attraction, plain attraction. That's why we were about to kiss. I'll help him out, then he can go on with his life. Then I can go on with mine. Yeah, that's it,' Usagi convinced herself. She pushed herself off the door and went in search of her cousin's clothes to give to Nanashi.
* * * * *
"We didn't even get to question her!" Syaoran exclaimed to his cousins, narrowing his eyes.
"Lighten up, Syaoran," Ranma said, raising an eyebrow. "It's not like your sister has any secrets from us. I mean, what's bigger than what we already know?"
"I would like to know the chances of her rescuing someone on the same day she is supposed to know the full potential of what it means being a descendant of Clow Reed!" the teenager expressed, frustrated. "That's where we were taking her tonight. To visit the sanctuary."
Ryouga leaned against a lamp post, staring at his kindred beneath his black bangs. "You know as well as we do that Usagi doesn't even need to visit the sanctuary yet. You're just being too protective over her... and you're her younger brother at that!"
"Besides, you know how Bunny always likes to help people," Ranma added, smiling. "There's always someone she has to help out."
"Hai," his brother agreed, adjusting his bandana. "But there was something about that guy..."
"Ah-ha!" Syaoran exclaimed. "So you agree with me!"
"I never said that!" Ryouga retorted. "I'm just saying, it seems like my little cousin takes a kind of liking to Nanashi, that's all."
"You're just like your girlfriend!" Ranma snorted. "Trying to find match-ups anywhere you can."
"Iie, I'm not," Ryouga argued. "At least my girlfriend doesn't have your girl's irascible attitude!"
"Lay off."
"You lay off."
"Ranma-san, Ryouga-san," Syaoran started, sighing, "you guys don't really need to be arguing right now."
"You're right," Ranma said after a minute's pause. "Anyways," he began, changing the subject, "I think Nanashi is a way better choice than- what's that guy's name?"
"Mamoru," Syaoran informed blankly.
"Yeah, him," Ranma said. "Nanashi radiated a kind of aura one doesn't forget very easily."
"True," Ryouga agreed. "Mamoru... don't get me wrong, he's okay... but his spirit doesn't go well with our cousin's. It is more forced than anything."
"Should we be watching them?" Syaoran questioned as he glanced down the block where his sister was living.
"Your sister is a big girl, Syaoran. She has had the same lessons and teachings as you have," Ranma reminded him. "She can take care of herself."
Syaoran's eyes seemed to soften. "I know that," he whispered. "It's just... well, you know..."
Ranma grinned and laid a hand on the younger boy's shoulder. "Yeah, I know," he replied, ruffling the teenager's hair. "I know."
* * * * *
Usagi breathed deeply as she clutched the clothes to her chest. 'Just pretend like nothing happened,' she thought. 'Breathe... just breathe.' She opened the door to find Nanashi banging his head against the mattress, not noticing her enter. She stopped, shocked, before bursting out laughing.
He looked up, surprised, and his cheeks flamed to a bright red. "Umm... I was just..." he stuttered.
Usagi hiccupped as she tried to control her giggles. "It's okay," she gasped out. "I got some of," she paused as laughter escaped her again, "my brother's clothes for you."
Nanashi glared at her as she continued giggling, and she immediately stopped while flinching visibly. His expression turned to one of panic, instead of anger. "What happened?"
"It was nothing," she lied quickly, but she shivered, which escaped his notice. 'His eyes... they were so cold and emotionless... devoid of life... That glare could kill someone.' However, she smiled cheerfully and put on a happy attitude so he wouldn't worry. "Here you go, Nanashi," she said, thrusting the clothes into his arms. "It should fit you..."
"Doomo arigato, Usa-chan," Nanashi thanked, but blinked as he realized the affectionate nickname he had given her.
It was Usagi's turn for her cheeks to flush as she shyly ducked her head. "You're welcome, Nanashi-kun," she replied and skipped out of the room, giggling as she saw him blush again. Minutes later, the door opened and she turned in her position on the couch to glance at the door. She did a double-take and grinned. "You look wonderful," she complimented.
Nanashi tugged at the collars of his forest green silk Chinese shirt self-consciously. "Not as much as you," he replied, winking.
Usagi now felt the familiar returns of a blush coating her face, but she willed it away with an effort. "Stop fidgeting," she ordered as he continued to fumble with his new clothes. She walked up to him and turned him to face her. He stood straight as she began smoothing over wrinkles. She stepped back and nodded with satisfaction. "Let's go," she suggested.
"Okay," he agreed readily.
Usagi grabbed his hand playfully and almost stumbled as a sensation alike to the one she had felt earlier erupted. She smiled at him and ignored it for the second time that day. Nanashi was having similar problems as he squeezed her hand unconsciously. They exited the house where Usagi lived and walked out onto the sidewalk. She had a twinkle in her eye as she led him down the block.
"Do you believe in magic?" she asked suddenly.
"What brought that question on?" he replied, curious.
Usagi shrugged and giggled, bringing a hand to brush away her bangs. "It's nothing," she answered. "I always ask people that."
"Why?"
"I just do."
"That's interesting..."
"You never did answer my question. Do you believe in magic?" she repeated.
Nanashi turned away from her, vaguely aware that their hands were still entwined. "I guess so..." he trailed off. "There's this childish hope I have that there is magic in the world, but it goes against all logic. I mean, where would magic come from, you know? But there's the side of me who will always believe in it."
"........................"
"Do you?"
"Do I what?"
"Believe in magic?"
"Yeah, I do," Usagi answered softly, gazing ahead.
"Soo ka? Why?"
"I just know there's things out there that can't be explained by logic or anything else," she replied. "There are the things in life which remain unknown. I believe magic can be used for good or evil. It depends entirely on the person."
"You sound like you're a hard-core believer," Nanashi commented with a raised eyebrow.
"Sure I am."
"What makes you believe in it so much if there's always this doubt?" he questioned.
"It's in my blood."
The sound of a honking horn brought the two from their conversation and Nanashi's next question. They had been so busy conversing, the two hadn't noticed that they had walked right into the middle of the street without looking if there were any cars. A red sports car was speeding toward them with what looked like no intention of stopping. Usagi's mind became blank with fear and Nanashi reacted on instinct. He pulled on Usagi's hand urgently and tackled her to the ground as he realized she wouldn't move, but they were still on the car's path. It looked like it was too late as the car was mere feet from them and about to crash. Nanashi's mind froze as well, but he shielded Usagi's body with his, regretting what was about to happen.
'I wish we could've gotten to know each other better...' he thought.
'I wish we could've spent more time together,' she thought, closing her eyes, not able to scream as her vocal chords weren't working. 'Bye Chibi-Usa, my friends...'
"Time Card! Freeze!"
End Chapter 2 - Do You Believe In Magic?
Coming Next - Chapter 3 - What We Weave