Disclaimer: It's interesting that you should ask if I own the characters used in this story. Believe me, it has an equally interesting and complicated story behind it, which I'll start by explaining how I got the copyri - hey, what's that over there? *runs as fast as my feet can carry me which, all things considered, is quite slow* Heh heh heh. A brilliant plan. . .
Rating: It's still 'R' for miscellaneous stuff, like swearing, violence, etc. Read at your own risk!
Author's Notes: Well, that last chapter was quite disturbing, ne? Don't worry, it gets even MORE unsettling hereon in. *_* Although, this chapter here gives a bit of an introspective into Kuno's life; not much, but a little.
On a different note, I'd like to say a big thanks to everybody who's reviewed, especially Silver Sunshine/Silver Phoenix and Naomi Athena. Without you two, I don't know where I'd be. ^_^ Best (creative writing) buds I've ever had the pleasure of knowing; also, Naomi did this KICK ASS pic of Noryoku, Naomi, and Kurai. Here's the address if you wish to see: http://meep.homestead.com/files/pandora.jpg Isn't it absolutely fantastical? O_O She's so very talented. . .
Anyhoot, finished in its entirety for your reading pleasure is Chapter 5 of. . .
Pandora
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Dinner was an oppressively quiet affair at the Kuno household that night. While thankful that Kodachi had not cooked that night (he feared that in his weakened condition his body wouldn't be able to properly handle the toxins the food would be saturated in), Tatewaki simply couldn't bring himself out of his thoughts; indeed a very unusual and hard feat under normal circumstances. However, as Kuno had relented, these certainly were not normal circumstances.
Chewing his delicately prepared sushi mechanically, Tatewaki's downcast, unfocused eyes and passionless face were propped up by his left hand, his elbow resting on the table. His right hand fiddled with the immaculately carved wooden chopsticks, unconsciously moving them between his fingers in a pattern as he analyzed the events of the day. Mysteriously, the movement of the wooden utensils in his fingers matched the rhythmic tick-tocks the grandfather clock near the end wall emitted, but still not managing to cut through the biting silence.
Kodachi sat on the opposite end of the table from her elder brother. She daintily used her chopsticks to pick up a piece of sushi, loll it around in soy sauce for a moment, and tentatively take a bite. It was extraordinarily delicious; although Kodachi paid little mind to the taste. Her dark brown eyes were locked on her brother at the far end of the dining table; the lamp in the corner, she noticed, cast an odd glow on Tatewaki, shadowing his features in a most peculiar way. Since it was nighttime and the Kuno's always kept the lighting low (a personal preference on both siblings' part), her brother's head position shielded his eyes from view. It was a shame; Kodachi firmly believed that a person's eyes were the window to their soul, and usually her theory held true. When she gazed into the eyes of her beloved Ranma, she could see the love and warmth held deep within; despite the fact that he never showered her in his affections and adoration for her, the young Kuno sister knew it was there. Although she could usually see love in her own brother's eyes, it was usually a fiery, lusty passion for those vile wenches Akane Tendo and The Pigtailed Girl. Once in a while though, when her eyes met his and she could see deep within his soul, she found a young man very detached from those around him; almost as if he was lost in a foreign land without hope of ever returning home. Kodachi couldn't quite explain how she perceived these things; perhaps because the same, familial blood ran through their veins, they had a connection they couldn't quite see, maybe even beyond the traditional role of brother and sister.
However, the rhythmic gymnast was still ticked at her brother's odd behaviour. He wasn't telling her something very important; Kodachi could feel it, choosing to think of it as "woman's intuition" - not to mention the fact she came upon him battered and bruised, and obviously injured. Although a gymnast, both her brother and Ranma-darling were constantly at odds; Ranma always came out on top, which left Tatewaki to come home bruised most days of the week. She wasn't a stranger to battle of either kendo or martial arts, and Kodachi was smart enough to know what the aftermath of a fight in Nerima left: destruction. Hence the given name for Nerima's most prominent martial artists; "The Nerima Wrecking Crew". It certainly held true.
Kodachi scrutinized Tatewaki between bites of her cucumber sushi that their manservant Sasuke had prepared. She hadn't been in the mood to cook up one of her deadly delicacies that night; poisoning the family dog Armadillo and her brother with cyanide cleverly disguised as soba noodles just didn't hold the same appeal as it did the other day. Sighing inwardly, the black haired woman finally resigned her soul-searching of Tatewaki and directed her attention to the food sitting on her plate. While the taste was exceptionally palatable, she suddenly wasn't very hungry. Sliding her plate away from her and pushing her heavy mahogany chair outwards and away from the table, the scraping noise seemed to startle Tatewaki out of whatever reverie he was having. He dropped his chopsticks, which clattered noisily in the stoic atmosphere of the dining area, but failing to bring forth from either of the siblings' lips conversation. Kuno watched his sister leave the dinner table in a hurried fashion, tracing the sound of her footsteps with his fairly sharp hearing to her gymnastics room. After a few minutes of sitting still and simply listening to the sound, or lack thereof, in the house, the familiar creaking of the trampoline had begun. The walls of the Kuno mansion were notoriously thin.
The kendoist found himself rising from the table as well. Having not uttered a single word during his meal, Kuno felt a bit restless and on the edge. Leaving his plates for Sasuke to clean, Tatewaki padded down an extremely long, wooded hallway, gloriously lacquered and preserved over the ages. Lamps of low lighting hung from the relatively high ceiling, casting its solemn rays upon the boy walking through, but the diminutive light seemed to rest on a small, almost out of the way table perched against the wall to Kuno's right. It was covered by a lovely red and gold tablecloth, and had various items on it; a comb, a pair of beautiful ruby earrings, and a framed picture containing a lone figure with glorious black hair and smiling brown eyes. She looked genuinely happy; her deep crimson and gold tinged yukata beautifully accented the best parts of her physique, and the roses she held in her hands were brought up to chin level.
Tatewaki's mother was a true gem in her lifetime. The boy slowly came to a halt in front of the small shrine to his mother who was beautiful in both looks and heart, from what he could remember. He was very young when she died; he couldn't have been more than eight years old when she passed away. Despite the fact that he was quite young, he had a deep love for her; in fact, he still did. Tatewaki had always remembered mother having roses in her hands or around her at almost all times; she was quite fond of the rose. In turn, she had passed that trait down to both her children: Tatewaki loved the deep red roses, while Kodachi favoured the black rose. At least that part of his mother was alive and well.
After taking a few moments to pray to kami for his mother's sake, he continued down the hallway, thoughts heavy in his mind. He wanted nothing more than for a strenuous kendo practice in the dojo, however his injured ribs prevented him from doing anything of the kind. Cursing his bad luck, Tatewaki decided that the next best thing to do was to meditate on the happenings of the day.
'Perhaps it will clear my mind' Kuno thought, heading in the direction of his private meditation room. A few minutes of navigating through the Kuno estate later, and the kendoist found himself in front of the sliding paper door in front of one of his only places of solitude in the world. Stepping inside the room and sliding the white paper door shut behind him, Kuno quietly and discreetly made his way to a low shelf containing his incense, candles, and matches. Striking a match and setting it aflame, he lit the incense and allowed the relaxing scent to fill the room. He then strung two paper lamps on opposite sides of his meditation mat. Kuno blew out the match and made a mental note to throw it out later as he found his way in the dark to his meditation pad, quickly getting himself into the lotus position. His eyes still open, he could see the posters of both Akane Tendo and the Pigtailed Girl hung up in front of him. A smile attempted to forge its way onto Kuno's face, but didn't quite make it. While the beauteous Akane and the lovely Pigtailed Girl were the radiant lights in his life, he knew he had to have his mind as clear as possible if his meditation session was going to work; and given the occurrences of the day, it was going to be hard.
The boy took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and slowly exhaled, keeping the rhythm of his breathing low and steady. The aesthetics of the world disappeared slowly into oblivion, and the earth itself seemed to collapse into a void of non-existence as consciousness and unconsciousness waged war on Kuno's emotionally exhausted mind. Unconsciousness soon won the battle though; his mind slipping away from the realities of life and turning his focus deep into himself. . .
//~*~//
Stretching as far as the eye could see was a desert, its dust and sand swirling around his bare feet and beginning to burn his toes. The sun was high and hot, causing Kuno to shield his eyes for the most part. The region around him was flat and stark, the only signs of life except for him was scattered vegetation which was starting to die anyway. Tatewaki squinted his eyes, trying to see if there was any shade from the intense heat of the sun; to his surprise, Kuno spotted a simple-looking door in front of him that wasn't there before. Blinking a couple times in confusion, the boy approached the plain, wooden door, experimentally touching the brass doorknob with his right hand. When nothing dangerous or deadly happened, he twisted the handle and opened the door; Kuno was met by a blast of cool, refreshing wind and darkness. He entered through the doorway, and found himself bathed in darkness, the only light emanating from the burning sun behind him. Not wanting to lose the bit of light he had, Kuno left the door ajar and took a step forward in the relative darkness. Quickly, the door behind him slammed shut and promptly disappearing, leaving a dead end behind Kuno.
Just as Tatewaki was about to damn his bad luck, the room he was in suddenly illuminated. Hundreds of chandeliers containing hundreds of separate candles mysteriously burst to life, starting with the chandeliers directly above Kuno's head and proceeding down the length of the room, each one making the long room brighter and brighter. Once all the light pieces were aflame and glowing steadily, Kuno drank in his plush surroundings. The cool floor he was standing on was a gorgeous, hunter green marble, and the walls were of the same colour and make. The enclosures of the room ascended beyond Kuno's vision, and various plaster, marble, stone and other types of statues were spaced around the sides of the room. Tatewaki quietly made his way over to a particular statue that caught his eye; it seemed to made of glass, and was painted in beautiful, hushed colours. It was a statue of a woman transcending traditional beauty; her eyes were open and a brilliant blue, her hair wafting out behind here coloured a pale blonde, and wearing layers upon layers of kimono robes, each more complicated and detailed than the last. She carried a large bow and a sack of arrows on her back; however the thing that struck Kuno most was the large wings spread out on her back. They were transparent and immaculately carved; Kuno felt that at any moment, the beautiful woman could take off in flight. The flickering light of the chandelier candles bounced off the colours and through the wings, giving the statue a surreal, ravishing glow. Tatewaki didn't dare touch it; thinking that perhaps his unworthy and dirty hands would permanently damage or even completely shatter the delicate masterpiece before him. Although transfixed in a stare with the glass angel, Kuno's ears were still alert and picked up the sounds of hard shoes clicking on the marbled floor. Reluctantly, he turned his head from the radiant statue towards the sound. He was immediately glad he did.
"Pigtailed girl!" the kendoist said happily, a smile etching itself onto Kuno's face. His love had her ruby red hair in its usual hairstyle, this time accented with glittering gold and red butterfly clips on both sides of her head and matching earrings and tiara, which had a white veil attached to it. Her well-built body was covered in a carefully and beautifully designed white wedding gown, with a large red bow on the back of it. The front was lacy and left her shoulders bare, but covered both arms and chest fully. The bottom skirt part of it was large and flowed around her like liquid, following her every movement. Although she looked to be almost intangible, she truly looked like a goddess.
Smiling, Kuno's Pigtailed Girl turned around and half jumped, half glided along the marble floor to a staircase which lead to an upper corridor. Tatewaki bounded after her; though he didn't notice that he wasn't walking but floating as well, he couldn't seem to quite catch her. He followed her up a grand, marble staircase, the candles dispersing a now pink-tinged glow on the room. The Pigtailed Girl giggled happily as she bounced backwards, now facing Tatewaki as she continued down the second floor corridor, which had wide, open arches to Kuno's left to see down on the marble floor and the first floor's statues and furniture, and deep chestnut doors with different markings to his right. Running as fast as he could towards the Pigtailed Girl though getting almost nowhere, Kuno saw his beautiful goddess stop in front of one of the mahogany entrances. Smiling a dazzling, heart-wrenching smile, the red-haired beauty opened the door and stepped inside, disappearing from Tatewaki's view. Gliding towards the door himself, Kuno opened it, expecting to see his Tree Borne Kettle Girl inside awaiting his arrival. Instead, a most unsettling view greeted the young kendoist.
Ranma Saotome, the most vile, treacherous martial artist to ever exist, sat on a bed, cradling The Pigtailed Girl in his arms. Her blood spilled out over his hands and onto the bedspread and floor, staining the once white carpet a deep crimson. Her blue eyes were open and unfocused; cuts and bruises marred her beautiful features, and her wedding gown was slowly becoming a rich scarlet colour. Blood dribbled down her lips, her arms, and her legs. Kuno felt like throwing up; he could already feel the bile rising in his throat.
Ranma simply smirked, tracing the side of The Pigtailed Girl's face with a blood soaked dagger. Making a cross-shaped scar on her ghostly white cheek and allowing the blood to drip onto his fingers, the black haired martial artist looked up at Kuno. His eyes held a sense of victory and smugness as he unceremoniously dropped the dead girl to the ground. Tatewaki's hands shook in unblemished rage and complete abhorrence for the murderer in front of him. The candles were ablaze, the fire raging in the chandeliers threatening to overwhelm the wicks on the candles, matching and reflecting Kuno's rage. In a pure, chaotic frenzy, the enraged kendoist charged at Ranma, yelling at the top of his lungs, yet never discharging a sound. He swung his balled fist, aiming for Ranma's face. The pigtailed boy snickered and dodged easily, acting nonchalantly, as if nothing had just happened. The fire in Kuno's eyes burned uncontrollably as he aimed another punch at the boy, missing his mark once again. Ducking the blow easily, Ranma took his already blood encrusted dagger and made a clean cut across Kuno's cheek, drawing blood and infuriating Tatewaki even more. A soundless but undoubtedly animalistic growl escaped Kuno's mouth as he successfully body checked Saotome into a wall, causing it to crack. Ranma slumped to ground, unconscious, leaving a tiny streak of blood on the wall from where he slid down. His breath shaky, Kuno fell to his knees, wiping away the blood that was trickling down his face from the cut Ranma had given him; the cut given to him from the same dagger that took the life of his beloved Pigtailed Goddess. . .
He crawled over to the girl on the floor, her life force still pouring out of the various wounds sustained at the hands of the foul and murderous Ranma Saotome. Tears clung to the corners of the boy's eyes as he gently caressed The Pigtailed Girl's cheek where Ranma had cut her; the cross-shaped scar looked to be very deep. Her lifeless blue eyes stared up at his grey ones, which were brimming with tears that threatened to fall at any moment. Trembling fingers closed the woman's eyelids; despite her gory and blood-soaked skin, she looked almost at peace.
The tears streamed freely down Kuno's face, muted and choked sobs coming forth from his mouth. He clutched her body protectively against his chest, blood soaking clear through his yukata and sticking to his skin. The candle's deathly blue glow illuminated the sad scene in the bedroom; Kuno rocked her back and forth gently, the only sound to be heard was the thumping of his heavy heart. Kissing her forehead tenderly and resting his head on top of hers, Tatewaki tried to block out everything that had just happened, but found it to be impossible.
Tatewaki was startled when he felt a hand rest lightly on his shoulder. His eyes now open, he turned his head around to meet the gaze of worried and concerned brown eyes. Kodachi stood in front of her brother, her petite hand lying on Kuno's broad shoulder, in a comforting sort of way. Her black hair tumbled over her shoulders, not up in the usual side ponytail she usually wore, but simply let down. Kodachi's pale yellow sun dress hugged her body, yet didn't reveal much of her skin at all, save some of her legs and her arms. She was quite lovely, Kuno noted in his foggy and emotional mind.
The light that seemed to surround Kodachi permeated the darkness; when Kodachi opened her arms to Kuno, he didn't resist in hugging her for comfort and support. Her gentle arms wrapped around her brother's back, allowing him to sob soundlessly on her shoulder. After a few moments, Kuno's weeping began to subside. When he lifted his head from his sister's shoulder, he found himself in a grassy meadow dotted with wild flowers of all different shapes and colours; each beautiful in their own way. A soft breeze wafted through the field, and butterflies flitted about the flowers, one landing on Kuno's shoulder. Its beautiful saffron wings beat in rhythm with his heart, and took off into the sky after a few seconds. Smiling despite himself, Tatewaki turned his face to see his sister grinning happily as she set a picnic under the shade of a large and elegant looking tree. Kuno made his way through the thick grass, which felt wonderful under his bare feet, and to the blanket Kodachi sat upon which was littered with all different types of food. A candle was in the middle of the blanket, glowing a bright and contenting yellow. It all seemed so perfect; the scenery, the food, and even his inner being - it all felt so serene, peaceful, and happy. What was he so depressed about just a few minutes ago? For the life of him, Kuno couldn't remember. He also briefly wondered why there was so much blood all over his clothing. . .
It hit him like a ton of bricks. With a start, Tatewaki remembered exactly why he was covered in the deep crimson blood; his Pigtailed Goddess was dead. She was murdered by Ranma Saotome! A mix of emotions ran through Kuno, who was starting to get upset. Angry, extremely depressed, yet happy despite it all; Kuno was confused. Stumbling away from the picnic basket, he saw the flame on the candle flicker suddenly out of existence.
//~*~//
His eyes opened with a start and a sharp gasp of air. He wasn't in the meadow or the large marble room anymore; he was staring ahead at two posters of the beautiful Akane Tendo and his Pigtailed Goddess; swivelling his head around, he saw the incense he had been burning was nothing more than a batch of smoldering sticks. He recognized this room as his place of meditation, his sanctuary from the outside world.
'None of that was real' Kuno concluded mentally, sighing as he uncrossed his legs and got out of the lotus position. He allowed his face to drop into his hands; he was tired, and this time his meditation left him with more questions than answers. Running his left hand through his hair, he realized he felt a wetness on his right hand. Looking down in the dim light, Kuno could make out a deep coloured liquid. Tatewaki unhinged one of the paper lanterns from the wall and shone its light on his hand.
Blood. There was blood on his hand from where his cheek was resting in it. With his left hand, Kuno stroked the right side of his cheek and, sure enough, it was bleeding. Feeling the cut, Kuno recognized the shape of the gash.
It was from where Ranma had cut him in his meditation journey. Looking down, he saw and felt his yukata was also soaked in blood - from when he was holding the Pigtailed Girl in his arms. His eyes wide and unbelieving, Tatewaki ran from the meditation room as fast as he possibly could, hastily opening and slamming the sliding door shut behind him as he took off towards the main entrance of the Kuno mansion.
He needed to get away from his house, his sister, his family for a while. He needed to think; he needed answers.
He needed to find Noryoku.
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"Stupid tomboy," Ranma muttered, walking down the street with his hands in his pockets. Gingerly, he touched the protruding bump on his head, from where he had been on the receiving end of one of Akane's malleting and more violent outbursts as of late.
"All I said was that her cooking was toxic, nuthin' she hasn't heard before," he said with a sigh, wandering down the sidewalk, "no reason to throw me outta the house." Angry at his predicament, he continued down the street, muttering the entire while. It had all started when Akane had so joyously announced that she was cooking dinner that night, without Kasumi's supervision. The entire family was scared beyond belief; however Ranma was especially frightened. Akane had been rather touchy the entire day; the smallest slight and she would send Ranma sailing through the roof and, most often, into a nearby source of cold water. It was indeed a nuisance to have to search for hot water in a soaking wet shirt with a buxom chest; the leers alone drove Ranma to want to do some very violent things to the "innocent" bystanders, never mind the disgusting comments the male population whispered to one another. His martial arts training had greatly enhanced his senses, much to his chagrin. Remarks about the size of his chest were that more clear to his ears, he could see exactly where they men were looking, and, frankly, he didn't want to get into the other senses for fear of vomiting on the spot. Smell was the worst when Akane was cooking, which brought him back to the reason why he was wandering the streets of Nerima, giving Akane time to cool off. Luckily he didn't land anywhere near cold water this time, so he was at least walking at night as a male. The fact was of little comfort; he was tired, hungry, and in pain.
In fact, Ranma was so distracted he didn't even see the person running around the corner, coming straight for him. The pigtailed boy barely looked up before he crashed full-force into whoever was running down the street. Dazed but okay, Ranma blinked his eyes a couple times to recover from the surprise, and hefted himself up into a semi-sitting position. He rubbed the already tender back of his head, ready to chew the head off of whoever smacked into him.
"Watch where you're goin' next time, will ya?" Ranma asked in an annoyed tone, looking with disdain at whoever had run into him. The other young man was wearing a traditional yukata and hakima; Ranma had a sinking feeling as to who it was. Once the boy was sitting up, the pigtailed martial artist's suspicions were confirmed.
"Kuno, why am I not surprised," Ranma grumbled, standing up fully and getting into a fighting stance in preparation for what was undoubtedly to come. Kuno also stood up, looking at Ranma in his martial arts pose. Looking at the boy in the face, flashbacks of his excruciatingly real meditation session assaulted him; Ranma killing his beloved, Ranma spilling his and the Pigtailed Girl's blood in pure spite and evilness. The trembling in his hands had returned in its entirety, his fists shaking by his sides, his eyes narrowing dangerously. It took everything he had not to simply lash out and kill him in the spot.
He then remembered that it was merely something occurring mentally in his head; however the wounds were quite real, which sharply reminded him of the reason he was running around the streets of Nerima late at night.
Ranma waited patiently for the inevitable Shakespearean-esque babble of the upperclassman, keeping his martial arts stance. His eyes flicked across Kuno's face; there was a large gash under his right eye that was still bleeding. Ranma's gaze wandered down to his shoulders, chest, and arms; Ranma figured he may have already been in a fight, not a big deal, but not something normal for Kuno to his knowledge. However, Ranma was extremely shocked when he saw the blood all over his traditional samurai garb; splotches of it were all over his chest and mid-section, some of it turning an ugly brownish colour. Kuno's eyes, Ranma noticed, also looked weary, and his face was sort of drawn. His hands were also trembling.
"Kuno, man, are you okay?" Ranma asked, a worried tone slipping into his voice. He relaxed his stance slightly as he saw Kuno's eyes cloud over and harden. Biting his lip, the kendoist closed his eyes for a moment, and simply ran past a bewildered Ranma, heading down the street until he was out of view. Small droplets of blood pocked the cement of the sidewalk, displaying the path Tatewaki had taken to wherever he was going. Ranma, genuinely worried, debated whether he should follow the boy or just let him go on his own. He sat in indecision for a few seconds before deciding to let the kendoist sort things out by himself. Getting tangled up in Kuno business tended to be more annoying than it was worth; although he couldn't help but think of the massive amount of blood the young man had on his clothes. He made a mental note to get around to asking him sometime later; preferably after he'd had something to eat. Ranma sighed and took off in the general direction of 'Ucchan's'. A steaming hot okonomiyaki sounded like a good idea to his rumbling stomach, although Ranma was sure to pay the price of being fed non-toxic food once Akane found out.
*=*=*
Kuno stumbled down the sidewalk, finally stopping under the pool of light the street lamp created. Sighing shakily, he tried to organize his thoughts into a rational pattern; his encounter with Saotome was certainly of no help to his situation. At least he had avoided a fight, although barely. Turning down a challenge, though indirect, was a very hard thing for Tatewaki to do; it usually caused his downfall, but nonetheless he was proud of not being a coward, never backing down from a fight no matter what the odds. He thought of it as bravery; his sister had often called it blatant stupidity. No matter. There was no confrontation, allowing him more time to search for Noryoku. At the moment, the only place Kuno could think of her being would be the meadow they had first met; it was a long shot, but it was still a shot. The sound of his pounding heart was all that he could hear as he raced towards the destroyed brick wall, which looked exactly the same as before. Stepping carefully over the rubble and shrapnel of the brick and mortar, Kuno entered the clearing. His eyes focused upon a lone figure lying in the middle of the field, who looked to be female. His feet crunched the grass and leaves beneath him as he approached the woman in the meadow; upon closer inspection he could see brown hair with two yellow streaks.
Noryoku. His luck had just made a complete turnaround; silently thanking the gods, Kuno approached the woman who was on her back, looking up at the stars, her legs crossed over one another. Her right hand was outstretched with her index finger pointing at the sky and tracing an invisible picture across the vast stretch of stars. Although a bit mystified as to why Noryoku was doing such a thing, Kuno wasted no time in making his way over to the woman. Tatewaki, fidgeting and a bit uncomfortable, began to speak.
"Nor - " The kendoist was promptly cut off by Noryoku's left hand raising in a gesture of silence. Kuno stopped talking and watched as she continued to draw the imaginary illustration, her hand swishing in fluid motions across her heavenly canvas and creating a painting only she could see. A bit frustration at his lack of conversational progress with the girl, Tatewaki insisted on speaking.
"Noryoku Damasu, it is of the utmost importance that I speak with you! It concerns my - "
"You talk too much, has anyone ever told you that?" the brunette answered calmly, continuing to create her invisible masterpiece. Tilting her head backwards, she met the gaze of a confused and aggressive Tatewaki Kuno. Despite the absurdity of her position, the seriousness of Kuno's situation permeated the vicinity of the two people in the field. Patting a soft patch of grass beside her and resuming her original laid back position, Kuno reluctantly sat down beside the girl and watched her continue to draw.
"May I ask what the point of this is?" Tatewaki inquired in an annoyed and urgent tone. Noryoku, instead of ignoring or cutting Kuno off like she had done so many times before, she simply looked at him, a strangely calm expression on her face. A small smile glided onto her face, her eyes becoming soft.
"Watch," Noryoku breathed, her mellifluous voice carrying on the breeze to meet Kuno's ears. Once again, Noryoku lifted her hand to the sky and outstretched her finger, pointing to the macrocosm above them. Instead of swishing her finger in an invisible pattern like Tatewaki had witness before, something completely incredible happened. Noryoku closed her emerald green eyes, and a soft yellow glow protruded from her forehead, taking the shape of a water-dropped jewel between her eyebrows. The same coloured light began to glisten on her forefinger; it slowly glowed brighter and brighter until it piqued at an intense saffron colour, continuously illuminating her finger. Although she still had her eyes closed, Noryoku began to use her finger much to the effect of a paintbrush on the galaxy above; when moving her finger about, a solid gold trail was left behind, like some sort of ethereal pigment on a beautifully intricate canvas. Kuno watched in utter astonishment as she continued to draw, playing connect-the-dots with the stars above her. Finally, after a few minutes of painting with the most supernatural pallet Kuno had ever seen, the boy shifted his gaze so it was at the same level as Noryoku's. Displayed for him was the gold, sparkling version of Orion the Hunter, his brilliant flaxen body scintillating in Kuno's wide eyes, not really believing what he was seeing.
Noryoku's eyelids opened, allowing her forest green eyes to behold the masterpiece she had just created. Stealing a glance at Kuno's bewildered face, Noryoku laughed a tiny, almost inaudible chuckle at the sight of child-like wonder visible on Tatewaki's expressions. Shifting her gaze back to her picture, she raised her right hand to her painting and swirled it around in the gold body of Orion, disrupting the colour until it was no more. The ochre pixels of the painting lightly sprinkled themselves onto Kuno's face and hair, covering him in the glitter Noryoku had created. After a few seconds, the shimmering gold disappeared into nothingness, not a trace of it to be found anywhere.
Tatewaki turned his surprised eyes to meet with Noryoku's smiling ones. His mouth working but with no sound coming out, he attempted to communicate the millions of thoughts rushing through his head. Finally, after a few deep breaths, Kuno felt he was ready to speak.
"How did you do that?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Kuno's eyes were still scanning the heavens for any trace of the mysterious and unworldly picture Noryoku had created. Leaning in closely to Tatewaki, her eyes still locked onto his confused grey ones, she took his large hand into her relatively small one. She guided his hand up to his own forehead, using his own palm to push up his bangs, exposing the part of his face above his eyebrows.
"Magic, Tatewaki Kuno. Magic like you've never dreamed of before."
*=*=*
She stared at the outside world through her thick window, watching the stars and the moon from her place on her bed. Drawing up her white comforter dotted with tiny black roses, she let out a sigh, allowing her ebony hair to tumble over her eyes and shoulders. The day had been a less than pleasant one for Kodachi Kuno: Her brother had fallen sick in the morning, and visiting him in the hospital apparently cost her a much needed practice for the upcoming Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics Meet, or MARG Competition, that was to take place in a few months. Further more, when she finally returned home after her coach chewing her head off for skipping that practice (some well placed poisons brewed in chemistry would fix him, as he would soon find out tomorrow), she finds her brother missing after walking out with him from the hospital. Since she found him lying in the midst of a demolished brick wall, he had been acting extremely strange. On top of that, she had not seen Ranma Darling once! It was a bit much for Kodachi to take; her nerves had been frayed for the past few days for Kami only knows what reason, and examinations at school were approaching. Sure, with her outstanding wealth she could just pay the headmaster for guaranteed tuition, but didn't that defeat the purpose of exams? She was also physically exhausted; the rigorous gymnastics workout she had left her quite tired in the bodily sense. Though various floor routines and trampoline practices left the muscles aching and craving sleep, her mind just wouldn't stop thinking enough to allow her eyes to shut and the dreamworld to overtake her. It annoyed her greatly.
Stretching her throbbing arms and legs out, Kodachi's silken white night gown cooled her body, its soft touch massaging her muscles and feeling quite nice on her tense skin. After a few moments of just sitting in her large four poster, Kodachi decided to try to read herself to sleep. Opening a copy of 'Romeo and Juliet' she had stolen from her brother's room, she began to digest the scene where Romeo first laid eyes upon Juliet at Capulet's feast. Although she had heard and read the story many times before, Kodachi couldn't help but fall in love with it all over again every time she opened the book. Closing her eyes for a moment, her imagination began to run away with itself.
Kodachi pictured herself wearing a grand, red dress with a large black rose on the chest. Her hair was adorned with little black roses, and was put up in a most intricate manner. Ranma Darling, wearing dashing attire fit only for the finest princes in the world, locked eyes with Kodachi. Slowly, he walked over to the black haired girl, his intentions easily recognized. Striding up to Kodachi, Ranma Darling took her gloved hands in his, and they twirled around in a dance, their movements in perfect timing with the music. The pigtailed prince smiled lovingly down on Kodachi, who in turn rested her head on her beloved's broad chest, memorizing the feel and contour of the hard muscle beneath his princely apparel. As the orchestra music softened into a love ballad, Ranma cupped Kodachi's chin with his hand, and his intense blue eyes met with her dark brown ones. They stood there for an eternity until finally Ranma's head gently lowered. Their lips were insanely close to one another's; Kodachi could practically taste her darling Ranma on her wanton tongue. . .
Kodachi suddenly snapped out of her reverie. Although she was a gymnast, her training had considerably sharpened her senses; and right now, The Black Rose could sense something was not right. Looking about her room, she didn't see anything out of the ordinary; her school books were neatly stacked on her large, ginger brown desk, the window was closed, the curtains were drawn, and everything seemed to be in order. Taking another nervous glance at her surroundings, Kodachi couldn't see anything wrong. Reluctantly, the gymnast returned to the book she was reading and laid back on her large pillows, trying to get comfortable.
A few minutes past, when Kodachi heard a creaking sound. Bolting upright and throwing the Shakespearean play aside, Kodachi knew that someone other than herself was in her room.
"Sasuke?" she whispered into the darkened area of her room, hoping against hope that indeed it was only her ninja manservant. Although a lecture would be in order for him if she did find him sneaking about her room late at night, it would be the least of her worries. The logical side of her brain told her that she was simply being paranoid, that she'd had a rough day, and she was overtired. Kodachi desperately wanted to believe this left-brain sort of thinking, however the gut-wrenching feeling she had just wouldn't go away. Kodachi had always listened to her instincts, and usually she was right. In this particular case, instinct governed.
Her instinct suddenly told her to get out of her bed. NOW.
Rolling out of her bed and doing a gymnastic tumble to the floor, Kodachi heard a horrible ripping sound emanating from where she had nearly been asleep but seconds ago. Jerking her head upwards from her stance low on the ground, Kodachi could see a shadowed figure crouched atop of her mattress, their features mostly shadowed in the dark. A pair of blood red eyes glowed unnaturally in the blackness, gouging into her soul; its gaze sent shivers up Kodachi's spine. As quick as the figure had appeared on the bed, it dissipated from Kodachi's view, which scared The Black Rose greatly. Standing tall and whirling her head and body around trying to find the intruder, Kodachi couldn't see any sign of the encroacher who had somehow managed to get into her room without being noticed. Kodachi decided that the darkness wasn't helping her cause any; turning on her heel and sprinting as fast as she could towards the light switch, the teenaged girl could feel the wind stir behind her. The hairs on the back of her head stood on end, along with the minute hairs on her arms. Before she could reach either the door or the light switch, the wind rustled in front of her, and in an instant Kodachi was sent flying into the opposite wall. Falling with a sickening crack, the girl blearily opened her eyes to see those same damned red eyes staring at her, burning intensely. Rays of moonlight filtered into a pool in front of where Kodachi was slumped, providing a small bit of light for the gymnast.
The attacker stepped forward, the moon rays illuminating the person's features, which had once been a mystery to Kodachi. The intruder was a well-built, well-toned woman with black hair cut short at her chin. Her skin was ghostly pale, and her blood red eyes narrowed, looking at Kodachi. Her ebony ninja suit clung to her shapely body, a deadly looking katana hanging at her side. The ninja woman advanced dangerously on Kodachi, who was frozen in fear.
The tall attacking ninja stood directly above the frightened Kodachi, looking down at the teenaged girl and smiling cruelly. Lifting her arm horizontally in front of her face, Kodachi could do nothing except watch in terror at the ungodly scene that was about to take place. The ninja's arm suddenly began to bleed horribly, blood spurting out of her arm and onto Kodachi's face. To Kodachi's disgust, the skin on her forearm began to part with sickly slurping sounds, emerging from the bloody flesh a large metallic sickle that glinted in the moonlight. Rivulets of blood trickled down the woman's arm and splattered onto the floor and Kodachi's once pristine white nightgown. Kodachi screamed soundlessly.
The woman brought the sickle down on the terrified and helpless Kodachi; the only witness to the brutal attack was the lonely moonlight, casting its shadow on the growing pool of blood.
*=*=*
"Emotions?" Kuno asked Noryoku from his sitting position in the grassy meadow. The moon was high and full, illuminating the field in a beautiful sea of silver light. Noryoku nodded solemnly.
"My power is activated by emotion. As is yours," Noyroku added, looking back at the teenaged boy. Tatewaki looked a bit confused.
"You mean that I, Tatewaki Kuno, possess that power as well?" The brunette woman nodded in response, taking a cross-legged sitting position opposite of Kuno. She studied his face for a moment, scrutinizing his features in the moonlight.
"It will be made apparent to you in time, Tatewaki. The signs of manifestation have already occurred; your strange dreams, your heightened sense of mawkishness, and your most interesting meditation," Noryoku stated, feeling the dried blood on Kuno's yukata. Tatewaki cringed at her mentioning of that, and Noryoku obviously noticed this. "I take it the meditation was a none too pleasant experience?"
"No, that is an immense understatement Noryoku Damasu," Kuno said bitterly, hugging himself despite the fact is was a fairly warm night, "it was an intensely real nightmare."
"Ah, purging the inner demons are we, Tatewaki?" the girl remarked with interest, one eyebrow raised, "do not worry. This is your power clawing its way to the conscious surface. It has remained dormant for seventeen years; believe me, this experience will strengthen you and ready you for your great responsibility." Kuno didn't seem to thrilled to be the bearer of such a 'great responsibility'. He sighed and looked down at a blue wild flower growing in front of his crossed legs. Fiddling with it for a moment, he was at the least thankful that he had a basic idea of what was going on and wasn't totally in the dark.
"When will my power manifest?" Tatewaki asked, his voice low and nearly expressionless as he kept his gaze locked on the beautiful flower in front of him. Noryoku exhaled loudly.
"That is the hard part. I don't know," the brunette informed Tatewaki, resting her head on her hands, "but it will most likely come about in a heightened period of emotion. There may also be some side effects." Noryoku's last comment made Tatewaki worry.
"What sort of side effects?" Kuno implored, hoping that it wouldn't be anything extremely serious like growing an extra limb or a mental disease. Although Noryoku looked to be normal physically, from the short time knowing her Kuno had concluded she wasn't the sanest of all minds.
"Well, I certainly didn't choose to dye my hair this colour," Noryoku snorted, playing with one of her blonde streaks, "I guess the shock of the intense power did this to my hair. Kind of weird; but that's the only thing other than the actual power revealing itself that's happened because of it." Sighing in relief, Kuno closed his eyes. No matter that he knew what was going on, the meditation dream was still fresh in his mind and no less disturbing.
The two young people sat in the field in silence for a few moments, simply enjoying the serenity nature had to offer them. They had more in common than had first appeared; they shared the same burden of power, the same sort of fate awaited them. Although Noryoku was more experienced with it, Tatewaki Kuno would learn in time what the wonders of his new power could achieve - and what the eventual consequences would be as well.
After a while, Kuno finally arose from his sitting position, gazing at the moon. Noryoku looked up at him, but did nothing else. Kuno could swear he saw something odd flash across her eyes; was that pity? Pushing the thought aside for a while, Kuno began heading out of the clearing and to his mansion.
"It's late, I must be going," he said over his shoulder to the woman still sitting contentedly in the meadow. His only reply was the wind whistling in the trees and the leaves dancing on the wind in front of his face. Turning around once more to thank Noryoku for her help, Tatewaki found that the meadow was completely devoid of human life except for himself.
'She has many secrets, that Noryoku Damasu. I shall learn them all in time' Kuno thought, trudging through the foliage and carefully stepping over the remains of the brick wall, heading on the path back to his house for some well deserved sleep.
*=*=*
The paper door slid open almost soundlessly, Kuno thanking Kami that, unlike traditional Western style doors, paper sliding doors didn't creak. He tip-toed through the house, hoping not to wake the slumbering residents up; although Sasuke probably wouldn't think much of it, his sister was most likely still angry at him, and, well, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Though Kodachi wasn't really a 'woman' in the sense of the word (would real women poison their families with their cooking on purpose?), she could still beat him soundly with her gymnastics ribbon and spiked clubs; and his ribs still hurt. A passing glance at an old clock hung on the wall informed Kuno that the time was 2:30 a.m.; explaining why the kendoist felt so fatigued. Quietly he crept up the wooden stairs which, unlucky for him, did creak under his weight. Hoping against hope that his sister was sound asleep, he wove his way through the many corridors of the Kuno mansion, finally finding the hallway where his and his sister's bedrooms were located. Passing by a bathroom, Kuno felt it would be a good idea to at least brush his teeth before going to sleep. Entering inside the luxurious washroom, Tatewaki found his blue toothbrush and a bottle of toothpaste under the sink.
A couple minutes and a mouth-wash later, Tatewaki was back in the hallway, his minty fresh mouth feeling rather pleasant. He noticed the door to his sister's bedroom was slightly ajar; the tiny stream of moonlight irradiating the wooded hallway. Tatewaki decided to make sure that his sister was sleeping, just in case she was wandering around the house and found him. Poking his head through the doorway, he found he couldn't see a thing; so he took a step inside, attempting to hear any snoring or breathing on his sister's part. Although he didn't hear anything, he felt his foot stepping in a sticky liquid. Confused, Kuno's hand fumbled around the wall until he found the light switch.
For a moment, he wish he had never turned on the light.
Kodachi's normally orderly and kempt room was in shambles; her desk was cracked in places, and papers and books were scattered all over the place. The far wall was cracked horribly and the window was shattered, glinting pieces of glass reflecting the moon rays into Tatewaki's eyes. Kodachi's four poster bed was ripped inside out; bedding and feathers were everywhere, the white mattress. . .
It was caked in blood. Kuno ran inside his sister's bedroom, his hands trembling, his face white. There was a rather large puddle of blood by the window, and splatters of it all over the room. A shredded copy of 'Romeo and Juliet' was thrown unceremoniously by the closet; it too also covered in blood. Kuno, not knowing what else to do, hollered his sister's name at the top of the lungs. Searching frantically around the room for any signs of his sister and hoping to Kami that she was okay, he managed to find no traces of her. He stumbled over to a small end table where there was a folded up white paper. Picking it up with his already bloodstained hands, Tatewaki unfolded the note, wanting to see what was inside.
The note was written in blood. For the second time that night, Tatewaki could feel the vomit rise in his throat, threatening to spill onto the already grotesque scene that was once his sister's bedroom. The trembling in his hands increased as he read the letters on the paper; Kuno sinking to his knees in complete exhaustion, fear, and hollowness. The words on the small piece of paper ran through Kuno's mind countless times, the simple and infuriating sentence grabbing at his mind. He looked at it in contempt once more before a startled Sasuke ran into the room, beholding the horrors of Kodachi's bedroom for himself for the first time.
"M-master Kuno," Sasuke managed to gasp after a few moments, "w-what happened?" Tatewaki, his eyes unfocused and bleary, simply tossed the crumpled note to his ninja manservant, who straightened it out to read it for himself. The sentence made no sense to him; by the looks of it, Sasuke concluded, it didn't make much sense to Master Kuno either.
Tatewaki, standing up from the blood soaked floors of the remains of sister's bedroom, muttered the sentence from the paper which had been ingrained in his memory forever.
"Pandora's box has been opened."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Hey yeah, that was quite odd. O_o Well, I told ya something was gonna happen in this chapter, and I DID make it longer! ^^ Aren't ya proud of me? ^^;; Anyhoo, R/R s'il vous plait! =)
