Gatekeeper2

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-Untitled-

Chapter 2: The struggling sniveler

By: Yutsuki/Sabrina

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This is my first gatekeeper fic!!! Being a great fan of this series and of Ruriko (and Kageyama ^^) I decided to make this fic. It's a sort of "What if?" fanfic set in the middle of the series... What if Ruriko's reason for opening the Gate of Genocide was far deeper and graver than that of the series? How will her comrades (most especially Shun) get her out of her misery? Please comment! Constructive criticism is welcome but I'm not quite happy about receiving flames o_0 So anyway, have fun! ^_^ BTW, [ ] means thought.

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DISCLAIMERS/BLAH BLAH: I don't own Gatekeepers. Don't sue me please! No infringement intended!

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"Ruriko-chan… Daijobu desu? You look very frightened…" Ruriko immediately snapped out of her train of thoughts and managed to make a weak smile. "I'm okay mother, don't worry". "Well, if you say so Ruriko-chan. But visiting hours are almost over so we better go home now." Mrs. Mieko Ikusawa planted a kiss on her husband's cheek and with a look of sheer concern, she said, "You get some rest. The sooner you get well, the better…" "Yes. She's right father. You have to be out of this hospital in time for Christmas!" This time, her smile seemed more genuine as she decided to thank the heavens above for the fact that he wasn't extremely hurt to the point that he needed to be in an Intensive Care Room. Ruriko shook her head, dismissing the vision of her father getting a major operation with all the surgeons crowding around him with scalpels and blood on their surgical gloves. Little did she notice the slight frowns of the couple upon hearing her words.

The mother and daughter left the room and with a soft click of the door, they headed towards their red BMW car and drove off.

There was a solemn atmosphere as they entered the car. Ruriko's head was tilted sideways as she gazed intently at the zooming view before her. Her mind was lost in a deep trance yet ironically, she wasn't thinking of anything. Everything that had happened left her dazed and confused. She wanted to doubt Ukiya's involvement in this mishap yet the facts seem to be directly pointing towards him. Her mother's bronze eyes occasionally glanced at Ruriko with a worried look. Although she was quite saddened about her husband's predicament at the moment, she was still in a good spirit knowing that he had no grave injury whatsoever. Hoping to at least break the deafening silence inside the automobile, she turned on the radio and again focused on her driving.

"Ano, okasan?" Ruriko finally turned to look at her. "Yes, dear?" the mother asked without leaving her attention to the road up ahead. "When will otosan be out of the hospital?" "It depends on how fast he recuperates. However, since he's been in a lot of stress lately, with his long hours working in the office, it might take a week or two for him to be out of the hospital." Ruriko's eyes widened in shock, "Nani?! But I thought the bullet didn't hit any important part of his body! How come he has to stay that long? I can't believe he's going to spend Christmas in the hospital!!!" The mother sighed. "Yes. It is quite true that his injury wasn't that critical but it's his fatigue that they're worried about. If he leaves the hospital without full recovery and go back to his daily routine of work, there might be a possibility of a traumatic effect on his brain…" Ruriko's mother bit her lower lip. She agreed with her daughter when she said that that was a long time to be staying in a hospital. In truth, all the words she said earlier was just the mimicry of what the nurse said. But, she didn't want her child to know that. Somehow, she had to be strong and be more optimistic about the whole situation. Otherwise, it's going to be a dreadful Christmas season…

The silence overcame the remaining part of the trip. The radio's effort of trying to overwhelm the solitude was in vain.

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Upon entering the Ikusawa residence, Ruriko walked upstairs as quietly and as sadly as a man would, during a wake. The mother went back to her business of washing the remaining dishes, deep in thought. [God, help me to be strong… for Ruriko and for the holidays…] At that, tears fell down and the discreet sound of the drops falling down the sink filled the kitchen with an aura of melancholy.

Ruriko lay down on her bed. She stared at the ceiling, her father's words never ceasing to ring in her ears: The feature was… a bandage. The boy had a bandage on his nose…She imagined Ukiya with an evil smile plastered on his face, laughing like a raving lunatic, eyes with pleasure as he sees his prey's blood. The horrible visions and the ringing in her ears were torture for the girl. It was like a broken record, playing then rewinding then playing again, over and over and over. Ruriko fought the urge to cry… "I'm not going to cry… I don't want to be a sniveler anymore…" Ruriko kept repeating these words softly, hoping to forget the description of the boy who shot her father. Her eyes roamed around only to see the green dinosaur at the top of her small cabinet. With that, all her efforts of stifling her tears were futile as she cried herself to sleep. "Ukiya-kun… why? I thought you were my… masked miracle…"

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Ukiya-kun laughed evilly, holding a gun in his hand. He went inside Mr. Tetsuo Ikusawa's office, the sadistic grin still fixed on his face. And then the loud "Bang!" then blood. Crimson hue, dripping. And then a hand, a finger dipping it on the blood, laughing… relishing the fear on his victim's face. "This time, I'm not gonna kill you... I just want to see the reaction on your family's solemn faces as they spend their Christmas... without you... But rest assured I'm coming back to see you die... for good. And I'm going to see the look on Rurippe's face and make her see how it is to lose someone you love. She's gonna cry and I will enjoy her grief." Ruriko stood before him, his hands and shirt now smeared in blood. Her rust-colored eyes shuddered… her whole body was shivering… tears were streaming down her face. "Oh and there's the sniveler now! Go on, you sniveler! Cry until your tears run dry! I knew that you were still just the kid I knew before, crying whenever the slightest of things went wrong. You're a weakling. You're just a…" "Stop it! No! I don't want to hear this anymoooorrre!!!!", Ruriko said, closing her ears tight.

Ruriko woke up from her nightmare. Beads of sweat trickled down her forehead. Her eyes were wet. "I don't want to be a sniveler… anymore… I want to change… I want to be stronger…" Wiping her eyes dry as furiously as she could, she looked at her clock. She woke up an hour earlier. She opened the drapery only a little bit, to make sure Ukiya wasn't awake yet. It was still dark outside. The sun had barely risen to create a deluge of warmth. She opened the curtains and windows fully this time with the assurance that he was sleeping. The bitter wind pinched her cheeks and sent a stingy feeling up her spine. She closed them again hoping to regain the warmth of her room.

Strangely enough, the heat didn't return. It just got chillier. Then, a familiar voice cried out to her with the blizzard surrounding her kimono. "Do not cry… Believe in him…"

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TRANSLATIONS:

Daijobu desu? - Are you okay?

Nani? - What?

Okay! That's the end of chapter 2! Email me at sab_shob@yahoo.com and please visit my site (Anime Cosmos) at www.envy.nu/genroutasuki/anime.html Thanks!

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