Part Two
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Genma gazed at the forrest around him with unease. This was not good. Akane, Kasumi, and Nabiki's gifts had been easy find (he'd even managed to get most of it at 'bargain' prices), Ranma's gift, however, was proving to be a much harder fish to fry. Everyone he had asked told him that roses didn't grow around here. Normaly, he would have given up at this, but Ranma's promised violence if he didn't bring home a red rose proved to be adequate encouragement. So he'd headed off into the great unknown.
And promtly gotten lost.
"Maybe I should have bought that map that guy was offering." Genma said to himself as he freed his shirt from a branch. Then he thought about the yen saved in not doing so and changed his mind.
~~~
Sadie: That sounds like Genma, doesn't it?
Hope: Well....kinda, in a 'not-Genma' sorta way....
Sadie: Your support is overwhelming.
Hope: Glad to help.
~~~
He continued to wander to for while, until he came upon a gate. The gate stood several meters tall and was made of wrought iron. Strange patterns twisted in the metal, resembling demons and alien plants that seemed to move in the shifting half-light of the forrest. Genma shivered slightly and noticed that the gate was open. Now, being the honest, hard-working, and respectable man that is, Genma took this as an invitation to come inside and steal something. So he did.
Beyond the gate was a tall castle-like building, shrouded in the darkness of the trees. Occational beams of light broke through the trees and glimmered off razor sharp towers. Swallowing, Genma called out a few time to see if anyone was around. Hearing no anwser, he continued further in.
Upon mounting the old, slightly crumbled steps, Genma found the front door open has well.
"Very negligent here, this home owner." He spoke to himself, "Why anyone could just come in here and take something."
~~~
Hope: You don't like Genma, do you?
Sadie: Who? Me? What gave you that idea?
(Another shoe flies onset, but both girls duck and it goes over their heads. There is a loud clamber to "stop interrupting!". The two respond maturely and stick out their tounges.)
~~~
"Hello? Anyone there?" Genma shouted into the dark house. Again, there was no answer. He entered, noteing the fine furniture and carpets, the crystal chandelier and sliver candle sticks. Louder shouts still brought no people. Satisfied that the house was empty, Genma moved deeper in, looking for the dinning room or a bedroom. He found the dinning room first.
Just has he had hoped, surrounding the massive oaken table were glass cupboards fillled with crystal glasses, fine porcelain, and sliver. Draws below the cases displayed gold and sliver flatware. With an eager noise, Genma started filling his pockets and the top of his gi.
A loud *THUNK* disrupted his delight. Glancing down, his eyes widened to see a small spatula quivering in the wood flooring. He jumped back with a squeak, eyes scanning to see who had thrown it. There was no one. But there were more spatulas. A hail of them flew out of nothingness to land in a semi-circle around his feet.
"Ghosts!!" Genma wailed. He decided flight was the best answer and ran screaming from the room. He headed for the nearest exite and soon found an open window that would work. Behing him he could hear the ocasional landing of another razor edged spatula. Genma hauled his large frame through the window in record time, losing only a few utensils along the way. Once outside, he froze in shock.
He appeared to be in some sort of garden. And the entire place was covered in roses. They blanketed the ground or crawled over lattice fencing and appeared in every shade known to man and some not. There was pink, white, yellow, purple, orange, and blue roses. There were green roses and multi-colored ones, too. Some had hearts or bunnies all over them, others held the letters of the alphabet on each delicate petal. There was one cluster in a corner that showed the latest stock levels.
But the most promient roses of all, were the red ones. Each was larger and more beautifull then the last and stood out like shinning suns amid all the other roses. Genma let out sigh of delight at the beauty. He realized that here was his sulotion to the Ranma problem, and quickly went about removing a red rose before the flying spatulas could return. He snapped the stem neatly and didn't seem to notice when the rose paled and wilted slightly.
"Hold." Came a deep, rumbling voice that shuddered throughout Genma's body. He froze once more, hand tightening around the rose. "Turn around."
Genma did slowly and nearly fainted at the sight the confronted him. The creature stood tall and daunting, an alien shadow in the brightness of the garden. The beast's small, beady eyes scowled at him down the length of its black snout.
"What are you doing in my garden?" It demanded, the words ending in a slight grunt.
"A-a-a-a r-r-rose," Genma stuttered, "F-f-f-for my d-d-daughter." The creature cocked its head and flapped one ear.
"Just a rose?"
"Y-yes!" Genma nodded franticly and thurst out the flower to show him. In doing so, a couple spoons fell from his sleeve. Genma winced. The beast seemed to draw itself up, angry energy flashing around it.
"You come into my house to steal from me, then you lie about it!?!" It raged, voice rising to a ear-shattering squeal. Genma yelped and threw himself to the ground.
"Forgive me, O' Great One! I thought the house was empty!!" He pleaded.
The beast snorted and pawed at the ground, his hooved srcapping across the stones of the path. "That is no excuse! You will pay for your crime!" Genma whimpered and cowered futher against the ground, his shaking dislodgeing various items.
"What me to handle 'im, boss?" A tomboyish, female voice asked. Genma glanced up, but could see no one except the beast.
"Wait," the creature leaned down, "Didn't you say you had a daughter?"
"Y-y-yes I did, O' Great One."
"Know this then," the beast stated in a low, firm voice, "I will allow you to go free with the rose, and the other stuff, if you agree to send your daughter here to live with me forever." There were several startled gasps from the empty air around them.
"My daughter?" Genma asked, amazed. Then he thought about the punishment he would face at the hands of this monster and the further punishment at the hands of his daughter/son should he return without the rose. He thought about it long and hard, for five seconds, before coming to his heart-wrenching decsion.
"Sure, that sounds fair."
~~~
Hope: *snicker* Real heart-wrenching there. *waits for Sadie to continue*........*waits longer*.......*and some more* Hey, Neechan! Keep reading!!
Sadie: *snore*
Hope: Or for the love of....someone get me some ice water!
~~End part two