It was dark, storming heavily, when the car finally rolled to a stop in front of the empty warehouse building. The driver paused only a moment before killing the headlights, allowing them a rest in their struggling pursuit to pierce the elements, before he stepped out of the vehicle. A brief second after that, a second person detached himself from one of the buildings shadows and faced him.

Sniffing in disdain, the driver asked, "So you have her?"

Adjusting a pair of glasses that dominated a sizeable portion of his face, the second person replied, "Yes, I have hi... her." With that he turned, and after taking a couple of quick steps reached out and pulled open one of the sliding cargo doors that adorned the building.

The interior was pitch black, with nothing to see until a distant lightning strike briefly lit up the contents that were immediately beyond the door.

Where the body lay.

A second flash of lightning allowed the vehicle's driver the make out more details.

She was short, possessing a curvy build along with long hair that was currently tangled about her. Taking a step inside he knelt for a closer look, and it was then that he noticed the smell of blood.

"She is dead."

"No, she isn't. I've seen Sao... her take more then this. It's merely a head wound, which generally look worse then they really are. Besides, I needed to make sure that h... she'd stay like I'd found her, so I 'helped' it along a little."

Pushing the blood sticky hair aside, the driver confirmed that yes, the girl still breathed, before he smiled.

"Put her in the car."

Stepping around the driver, the second individual picked up the body and walked back towards the waiting vehicle. After dumping her into the back seat, he then reached into one of his massive sleeves and pulled forth a box, which he then tossed on top of her.

"Make sure she baths specifically with that soap, always, and have her avoid hot water in general. Also keep her away from Nerima, all of Tokyo if you can manage it. Her face is too well known there."

Still smiling the driver climbed into the vehicle before stating, "You always do bring me such interesting things from your homeland. I hope this proves to be just as entertaining."

With the turn of a key the car engine roared to life, and a moment later the headlights resumed once more their quest to pierce the nights weather. A few seconds after that, and it was gone.

Staring off in the direction the car had left, the now lone individual murmured, "A punishment more fitting then death."

And then he grinned widely while adding, "And now, Shampoo... you are all mine."

Lingering Past

All characters of note belong to Natsuki Takaya (Fruits Basket) and Rumiko Takahashi (Ranma 1/2) respectively.

Stepping up to the main house entrance Hatori paused a moment before sliding the door open and entering, spotting Akito almost immediately. Closing the door behind him, he silently waited to hear the reason for his early morning summoning.

And then he noticed the girl.

Immediately moving to her side he took in her still form, with the blood soaked water basin and rag lying upon the ground next to her. An obvious effort had been made to wash the blood off of her face, but that had only made the rest of the damage that more apparent. Her long red hair was tangled and clotted, and the blanket pulled over most of her body made her general figure blatantly clear.

Checking for a pulse, and finding a steady one, he turned and looked at Akito while asking, "What happened?"

Leaning against the frame of an open window, the head of the Sohma clan stared out into the light of the new day while saying, "I saved her. The poor thing... trying so hard to kill herself."

Glancing up Hatori then asked, "Who is she?"

"Who is she?" Akito paused a moment. "She is a member of the Sohma clan now, I suppose." Then, as an after thought he smiled while adding "Isn't that nice of me?"

Completely unsure what to make of the situation, Hatori fell back upon his medical training and stated, "I need to move her to the infirmary here, where I can clean her up and monitor her condition. Is there anything else you can tell me about her?"

"Oh yes. There is a special herbal soap that she should use, to treat a rather... unique skin condition that she possesses." Then after another long pause, and just as Hatori had tucked the blankets around her to be picked up, Akito then said, "I want you to erase her past."

Hatori froze; taking a moment to stare at the girl's bruised and battered face, before asking, "Why?"

When he felt the warm breath upon his neck, he suddenly realized that Akito was now right behind him, peering over his shoulder at the girl in question. And then, in a faint murmur, the young man said, "Poor, poor thing. Did you know that when she was only five years old, her mother threw her out of their home?"

"Did you know that she spent ten years living with her father, and that he beat and abused her every single day of it? Or that the kind people who eventually took her only, only did so to take horrid advantage of her?" Then his voice lowered even more and he whispered into Hatori's ear, "How would you feel... having the world declare that you are only refuse? And when you finally gain the courage enough to escape it all, you discover that in even that you are a failure."

"Wouldn't she be better off not knowing? Starting her life anew without the past to color it? Would you see her destroyed like Kana was, by knowing something that she didn't need to?"

And then Akito was gone, leaving Hatori alone with the girl, and his thoughts, as he made a hard decision.