Long Lost One - Part VII
Long Lost One Disclaimer

I don't own either Power Rangers Time Force or Catch You, Catch Me from the Card Captor Sakura soundtrack. ^_^;; Ahehehe.

Part VII
I swear, I was about as bright as a tomato when I came out of the dressing room. It felt like everyone was...well...staring and stuff.

"So, Miss Haruyama, you like this?" the clerk lady said as she circled around me a few times. "It suits you."

"I...uh...thank you," I murmured, blushing. "I thought it was a nice dress."

"Since you saved the store, I insist you take it for free!" she said.

"AAA! That wouldn't be right!" I protested, waving my hands.

"No, we insist!" the clerk lady said. "With your bravery along with all of the Power Rangers', you were able to fight those funny black things single-handledly! Please, take our gift. It's the least we could do to show our indebted gratitude towards your act of courageousness!"

"I...uhm...thank you for the gift," I said lamely, feeling guilty that she thought she had to pay me with gifts for my "job". It was just like in Soremura...just like there...

"No, thank you for saving me!"

It was my job. I didn't need thanking.

___________________________

"We decided to go to a karoke bar! Well, since you've never been clubbing and you've probably done karaoke, we thought, what the hell, ne?" I grinned, clapping Akira on the back.

"Uh...thanks for your consideration, Wes," she said dully, looking at her feet. She seemed troubled.

"Okay, li'l sis'?" I asked, frowning.

"Watashi wa maa-maa desu," she said dully, sitting down. "I mean, I'm fine. That's basically what that means, anyway." She glared at Trip so he wouldn't either agree with her translation or re-translate it for us. He just nodded meekly and looked at the table.

"So...what'cha wanna eat tonight, everybody?" I asked, rubbing my hands together. I had managed to get some money from my account to get everyone a pretty good meal. Everyone looked at the menu, which was filled with stuff like hamburgers and chicken sandwitches.

Akira was the last to order, frowning from each choice to the next. Finally, she pointed to a nice-looking chicken sandwitch. "I'll have that."

"Okay," I said, grinning as I waved over a waiter and took everyone's order. When he came over, Akira managed to get the waiter's attention by just coughing slightly.

"Yes, miss?" the waiter said as he put into inventory what everyone wanted.

"Are the people at the karaoke stand here allowed to bring their own music to sing to?" she asked, smiling a little bit; the first smile I had seen since she had bought her dress earlier that day.

"Well...as long as it doesn't have any profane language in it, it's allowed here," the waiter said. "Feel free to sing what you want."

She grinned. "Thank you!"

As he walked off, she ran up to the karoke stand and put her CD in that she had obviously been hiding in her purse. As the song started to pump out, she turned to the crowd, grinning. It was a happy-go-lucky song and it was obvious that she had sung it a lot of times by her enthuastic smile and body language. It was even more obvious when she started to sing the words...because they were in Japanese. Her voice was pretty, though; it had a beautiful clear tone and seemed to smooth all the rough corners in life. The song started to float throughout the room...

Aitai na
Aenai na
Setsunai na
Kono kimochi
Ienai no
Iitai no
Chansu nogashite bakari

Datte
Datte
Tsubasa hiroge futari de
Sora wo marason
Yume wo yunizon shitai

Hora CATCH YOU CATCH YOU CATCH ME CATCH ME matte
Kotchi wo muite suki da to itte
SO NICE TO MEET YOU GOOD TO SEE YOU kitto Atashi no omoi anata no haato ni tonde tonde yuke
Mayowanai

Tama ni ne Nakunatchau Karada no batterii
Anata no egao de itsu mo juuden mantan
Pawaa bakuhatsu shichae

O-negai
O-negai
Mazu wa o-tomodachi kara
Waratte mitsumete tanoshii mainichi ni shitai

Hora CATCH YOU CATCH YOU CATCH ME CATCH ME zettai
Unmei datte
O-niai datte
SO NICE TO MEET YOU GOOD TO SEE YOU kitto
Dare ni mo makenai
Anata ni sekai de ichiban ichiban ichiban ichiban
Koi shite 'ru

-+- Bridge -+-

Hora CATCH YOU CATCH YOU CATCH ME CATCH ME matte
Kotchi wo muite suki da to itte
SO NICE TO MEET YOU GOOD TO SEE YOU kitto
Atashi no omoi anata no haato ni tonde tonde yuke
Mayowanai

Hora CATCH YOU CATCH YOU CATCH ME CATCH ME zettai
Unmei datte
O-niai datte
SO NICE TO MEET YOU GOOD TO SEE YOU kitto
Dare ni mo makenai
Anata ni sekai de ichiban ichiban ichiban ichiban
Koi shite 'ru

She then ran off the stage, smiling but embarrassed. Everyone clapped not just because it was polite, but that she actually sang good.

See? I thought. See Akira? It's not that bad here.

___________________________

I had absolutely refused to sing.

"C'mon, Trip!" Wes said. "It'll be fun!"

"Yea, for you," I had pointed out.

"Your voice is WONDERFUL!" Katie said, trying to pull me out.

"It sounds horrible!" I protested, being stronger-willed than her for once.

"Stop being such a party-pooper!" Jen and Lucas said at the same time.

"How 'bout you guys sing and he stays behind?" Akira piped up. "Maybe he just doesn't want to do it, OKAY?"

"Well," the all said. "Okay..."

As the walked up to the karaoke stand, I turned to Akira, who looked mildly irritated.

"You okay?" I asked, worried.

"Yea. I'm fine..." she said dejectedly, her eyes distant. Finally she sighed and turned to me. "Trip, have I ever told you about my past?"

"I...I...I don't believe so," I said, a thoughtful tone in my voice. Upon thinking about it, I hadn't. In fact, except for knowing that her parents lived on a rice farm and that she lived in the countryside of Japan, I didn't really know that much about her past.

"D'ya wanna know?" she said, her voice soft and almost afraid.

"Well...sure," I said, scooting a little closer.

"Read my mind," she said, lifting her head up, meeting me eye to eye. Her eyes glared into mine, as if daring me to read her mind...see inside her soul. It was like her eyes were saying, "Go ahead...make my day!"

"Cl...close your eyes, Akira," I said. "Be calm so I can be consistent. The more chaotic your mind is, the more chaotic of a reading I get...okay?"

"Okay," she said, bowing her head, her long, curly eyelashes drooping over her eyes onto her cheeks.

It was dark once I concentrated and there was no sound except for the small, distant tinkle of a music box. As the music drifted, so did the light. The black void lightened into a view from a small yellow room on a small shelf. As if I was floating on the music box's tinkling music, the view went around the room to seeing face-to-face a small Akira in a mint-green kimono with small pink cherry blossom flowers as a print and a silky pink obi - or sash - around her waist. The cord around her obi was a gold color and so was the embroidery for the tree trunk on the kimono.

When I was little, Akira's mind said, we used to go to the local Sakura Festival - y'know, cherry blossoms - every year. 'Kaasama'd dress me up in my favorite kimono with the sakura on it - sakura's my favorite flower - and we'd go to the courtyard in the middle of Soramura. Every year, I'd dance.

"'Kaasama," I'd ask, "how long until I get to dance in front of the mayor?"

"Not too long," she'd reply, ruffling my hair. It was cut short then and I often dressed it in small pig tails on the side of my head with a strip of hair in front hanging down on each side and bangs in front. 'Kaasama said I looked adorable like that. I'd just blush and say nothing.

We'd go get my parasol and I'd do a small dance dedicated to the spring goddess who visited our small and humble village every year, bringing us the not-so-humble Gift of Life and Fertility. Of course, I just knew this is what happened with the changing of the seasons and not just because of some goddess, but I danced anyway because it was fun and I felt I was doing something important for my heritage. My blood may be American, but if I wasn't Japanese in the heart, I would of had someone shoot me.

Every year, I'd do that dance. The kimono'd change...from light blue with the sakura tree on it to yellow, pink, light violet, and about every other color under the rainbow. The last dance I did - which was about a year ago - I got mad at my mother at right afterwords.

"I don't WANT to dance this year!" I had screamed, trying to run to the other end of the house. "I'm sick of this childish tradition!"

"The mayor only likes you dancing, Akira! Now don't be so foolish. Get into your kimono and dance!"

"Let some other kid do it!"

"No one else knows the dance, Akira! Now just go out there and do this!" My mother was very patient. Finally I caved and put on my kimono and went. I danced half-heartedly that night and even though everyone knew my heart wasn't in it, they clapped and said it was beautiful anyway. I knew different.

A few months after that, I was working at the police station when I heard from the fire station that there was a fire at Ishida Drive - my house. (We called it ishida since that means rocky rice paddy, which ours sort of were when we first came here.)

I remembered running...running...running. Running like there was no tomorrow, I tried to get there to help, but by the time I got there, no one would let me through. I had beat the fire trucks, however. I tried to get through, to save my mother and father...

"NO!" they shouted. "Stay away, Akira!"

I heard a laugh...a thick, hoarse laugh from the midsts. An odd man with the head of a goat was walking towards the rice patties. I saw his hand glowing bright red...I knew it was he who had started the fire. I tried to go after him, but the villagers wouldn't let me, trying to protect me again. I cried. I had never cried before, even after my grandmother had died. Once the fire department had finally gotten there and doused the fire...they were gone. Forever.

I stopped from there and lifted up Akira's face from the chin.

Her eyes were glistening with tears.

"There there--" I started to say before she threw herself on me and started to sob.

"I hadn't...told anyone," she gasped between sobs. "No one...knew...no one...I thought...cared..."

"Shh," I said, patting her head. "Sure we care...we all care...shhh...there..."

Since we were in a corner of the place, barely anyone paid us any heed. But even if we were in the middle of the karaoke bar, I would of felt like we were in the middle of that black void that was her memories, just the two of us, with her sobs echoing in the dark, dark place...

___________________________

When we got back to the booth, both Akira and Trip were gone. Trip had left a note, in his quick, scribbly handwriting:

Wes, Lucas, Katie, and Jen;

Akira got really tired because something upset her, so I took her home. Don't worry; we're right at the clocktower and no where else, honest.

Trip

"Well, that's comforting," I said, folding my arms. Wes sighed and put his arm around my shoulder.

"I'm sure Trip's fine, Jen. My sister wouldn't take advantage of him."

"That wasn't what I was talking about," I said, giving him a weird look. "I meant that Akira got really upset. I faintly heard some crying while we were singing...maybe that was Akira. We should probably get home...I don't like the idea of her being upset with Trip. What if she wants to...heaven forbid...uh, say, kill herself and Trip can't stop her?"

"I don't think that Akira's that unstable, Jen, but we'll go home and check on her," Wes said, sighing. We all paid the check and went out to walk home. It was a long, quiet walk home, with my thoughts mostly on whether Akira was okay or not. She was almost like a little sister now, so I was a bit protective.

When we got home, Trip was downstairs. As soon as we stepped in, he put a finger to his mouth.

"Shhh. Akira's out cold," he whispered, going upstairs with some slippers. "Or rather, I thought she was. I'm bringing her some hot tea just in case. She started crying in the bar after she asked me to read her memories about her past. It was really upsetting...I don't blame her."

"You did WHAT?" Lucas half-whispered, half screamed. "Trip, that wasn't--"

"She ASKED me to!" he said, half-way up the stairs. "So just...shut up!"

Lucas sighed and plopped down on the couch. Wes went to help Trip, but Trip stopped him.

"I'll take care of her, Wes. You rest...you've worked hard today," he said lamely, backing up the stairs.

"Okay," Wes said dully, going down to sit beside Katie, who had sat down beside Lucas. I, being the smart person I am, waited until Trip went upstairs to sneak behind him and spy under the doorway.

"Mmm...Trip, you should rest. I'm fine," I heard Akira say, sitting up. "My head's just stuffy from crying, s'all."

"Shh...when I'm upset, it usually makes me feel better if I have something that comfort me that reminds me of home. You said you drunk tea a lot, didn't you?"

"No, but I do. Thanks," she said, sipping it. As Trip sat down beside her, Akira rested her head on his shoulder.

I sighed. They would make a wonderful couple.

End of Part VII

Awws...^_^ Wasn't that cute? I thought it was cute...adorable, adorable, adorable! ^.^;; I got done with the report yesterday, so I'm proud of meself! n.n;; It's not too bad! Anyway, I hope that yousah like da ficcie! n.n;; Hehe! Dewa mata neee! n.n;; - Yoshiko