BISHLOV NOTES:
[1] Sorry for the long wait. I got busy with my other fics, among other things. Thanks for all of those who reviewed chapter one. You guys are the greatest!
[2] I'd like to clarify that this is based on the anime. The time setting is five years after UBS. There are no SODOM and Tendou Jigoku/heaven and hell madougu.
[3] I found out that Kaoru is actually four years older than Ganko. Serves me right for not doing my research first. However, I am still going to use the two years age gap that I mentioned in the previous chapter so that they will still be together in high school. Please don't hold this decision against me.
[4] Thanks to Lynn Untsukushii, I now know that Fuuko's darts (which Ganko also uses in this story) are actually called gimlets or kunais. I think I'm going to use kunais since they sound much cooler.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own FoR or any of its characters. This plot is a product of my imagination. Any similarities to other fan fictions are unintentional.
BABY YOU'RE MINEBy bishounen lovah
Chapter 2
Kaoru fidgeted on his seat, trying to find a comfortable position. It was a few minutes past midnight and not a sound could be heard in the big house. Well, none except for Recca's loud snore.
Several hours had already passed since Tsukiho attacked Ganko. They brought her to Kurei and Recca's house since it was the closest and settled her in one of the guest rooms. The others had left for their own homes after a couple of hours, leaving only the owners of the house, Kagerou and Kaoru.
He had refused to leave Ganko's side so the others left him be. He had expected the others to tease him about his protectiveness towards the girl but none came. All of them were serious about what happened to Ganko. The memory of almost losing her had stopped them from making any silly antics.
Almost lost her, Kaoru's mind kept on repeating those words, sending chills down his spine.
He glanced at Ganko's sleeping form on the bed in front of him to make sure that she really was alive and breathing. The moonlight was pouring from the window, illuminating her with an ethereal glow. He could now see clearly the effects of Tsukiho's nightly taunting. Her face was white with deathly pallor while the dark rings around her eyes stood out against her skin. And she was so thin. He had not noticed it yesterday but Ganko was unhealthily thin.
Wind coming from the open window cleansed the air inside the room. Kaoru noticed that it had stirred some of her golden locks and landed on her face. He stood up and moved to sit beside her on the bed. Gently, so as not to wake her, he brushed the hair away from her face and tucked the strands behind her ear. Laying a hand on the side of her face, he pondered on the new feelings that were still surging throughout his body.
He didn't know what came over him. Never in his life had he lost his cool. Not once when he fought in the UBS. Not even when Kurei admitted that he manipulated him into joining Uruha.
But earlier he was so furious at what Tsukiho did to Ganko that he couldn't think straight. He wanted to hurt him but since he couldn't it made him restless. And Ganko not waking up made him even more so.
Kaoru could still see red whenever he looked at his hands. They were clean now but he could still see her blood staining them. Could feel her warm blood flowing out despite his efforts to stop it.
He calmed down reasonably as the time passed. Kagerou-sama and Yanagi-neechan were able to convince him that the Kata Kugutsu wielder was all right and out of danger. They told him that the reason why she was not waking up was due to the weeks of not being able to sleep. Her mind and body were exhausted and in need of rest.
His heart ached at how miserable she looked. Even now, her brows were furrowed and her mouth grimacing. Kaoru knew that she was having another one of her nightmares. He quickly took her hand in his then smoothed the frown from her face with his other hand.
"Hush now, Ganko. I won't let him hurt you," he whispered near her ear.
A single tear escaped her closed eyelids and slipped down the side of her face, disappearing among her blond tresses. He reached over again to wipe the wet path the tear had left with his thumb. He knew she heard him for her face lost the frown and her body started to relax.
I thought you said you didn't want to be her bodyguard, the voice inside his head started to nag him again.
Shut up, he growled back. No one hurts my Ganko and gets away with it.
Your Ganko?
Our Ganko! She's part of the Hokage family and we protect each other.
Your Ganko?
Kaoru furiously shook his head to get rid of that annoying voice. This was no time to indulge an argument with his subconscious. He must think of a way to stop that ghost from further threatening Ganko.
A big yawn escaped his lips. His anger had finally drained all the energy in him. He sat down on the floor beside the bed and laid his head on the mattress.
"Don't worry. We'll find a way," he whispered to her again. After making sure that her hand was warmly secure in his, he fell into a deep slumber.
~*~
A couple of hours before dawn, a pair of blue eyes slowly opened and took in her surroundings. Ganko passively looked around the unfamiliar room before finally settling her eyes on the sleeping figure near her.
There was no doubt that the mop of brown hair belonged to Kaoru. She leaned towards him a bit so she could peer on his face. He was sleeping soundly with his lips slightly open.
She thought it odd that he was sleeping on the floor of her room. Come to think of it, this was not her bedroom. This was much bigger than hers in the apartment she and Fuuko-neechan were renting.
Where was she anyway?
A light gust of wind from the open window caught her attention. The warm wind stirred some of the light strands of her hair. It had also stirred the memory of her most recent ordeal.
It reminded her when that voice taunted her at the alley. When he toyed with her hair, showing her that he could touch her whereas she could not even see him.
She closed her eyes and recalled what had happened. It was the first time that voice attempted to hurt her when she was awake. He was around only in her dreams. There he tormented her and hurt her but now she was not even going to be safe when awake.
And he had almost killed her. She saw in her mind's eyes her own kunai flying towards her, felt how they pierced and embedded in her flesh. The last thing she had remembered was calling out Kondo's name.
Kondo…Kata Kugutsu…Who is he… Why does he want it…Why is he doing this to me?Questions she could not find answers to rampaged her mind. Weary tears flooded her eyes. She felt so tired…tired of wondering who her tormentor was…tired of thinking of ways to make him stop…tired of carrying this burden all alone.
She tried to raise her left hand in order to dry the tears that were falling freely down her face but couldn't. She tugged and tugged but her hand wouldn't budge. Finally looking at her side to see what had pinned her hand down, she came face to face with a wide-awake Kaoru. She stared at his eyes, mesmerized at the deep, chocolate brown color.
She watched him as he reached over to brush her tears away with one hand.
"Daijoubu," he said as he continued to gently dry her face with his fingers. "You're safe now."
Confused at his actions, she looked down. What she saw confused her even more. The reason why she couldn't move her hand was because he had it in his.
Ganko blushed at this, momentarily forgetting about her problems. She was not used to Kaoru's gentle behavior. She had not known that Kaoru was capable of such a behavior. The Kaoru she had known was cheeky and full of mischief. She was sure that he had never shown this side of him to anyone, well maybe except to Yanagi-neechan. It was no secret that he adored the older girl.
But why was he this kind to her?
Pity.
Of course…pity!
It was the only reason she could think of. She was such a pathetic little creature who could do nothing else but cry her eyes out. After all of these years, she was still a crybaby…a spoiled brat who couldn't defend herself. Among all of the Hokage members, she was the weakest. Defeated by her weaknesses. Too stupid to think of a good attack…too slow to dodge her own kunai.
Angry with herself, she pulled her hand from his and impatiently brushed his fingers from her face. She quickly lied on her side, her back facing him.
"I want to be alone. Please leave," her voice wavered from all of the emotions stored up in her.
Kaoru opened his mouth to protest but stopped when she spoke up again.
"Onegai," she whispered.
He stared at her back doubtfully. He knew that it was not wise to leave Ganko alone right now but could do nothing about it. A couple of minutes later, he stood up. It may not be wise but he didn't want to further upset the girl. He dragged the blanket over her shoulder, making sure that it was securely tucked before walking out of the room.
"I'll be right outside if you need me," he said after throwing one last worried look at her direction.
Ganko stiffened at his words and actions. Did he have to rub his pity in? She wa not a child anymore. She could take care of herself.
Fresh tears appeared as soon as the thought formed. She was such a hypocrite because if she could take care of herself she wouldn't be here in the first place. She wouldn't be this thin and this weak. All of those years of hard training were put to waste.
Oh would you stop whining already, her subconscious scolded her. You did not want Kaoru to pity you but here you are wallowing up in self-pity.
Her tears abated after that. Fuuko-neechan did not bring her up and trained her to be a crybaby. She was not weak. She could be strong. She would be strong. She'd show everyone, especially Kaoru, that she didn't need anyone to protect her.
She quietly stood up and searched for the rest of her clothes. She pulled on her skirt under the large shirt she was wearing (probably Recca's) then bent over for her shoes. After dressing up, she moved towards the open window and climbed out, jumping towards a nearby tree branch. She looked back inside the room, waiting for the Kougan Anki wielder to barge in. When he didn't come, she jumped down the tree landing softly on her feet.
She knew of a deserted place in Tokyo where she could train. Walking away from the large house, she hoped that it was still deserted after all of these years.
So caught up in her thoughts, she was unaware of a pair of dark, brooding eyes watching her retreating figure from somewhere inside the house.
~One week later~
Ganko yawned more out of boredom than weariness. It had been a week since Tsukiho attacked her and since then he had not bothered her whether she was asleep or awake.
But she didn't let her guard down. Every night she would sneak out of her room and would go to an abandoned factory in order to train. She would not go back until shortly before daybreak. Nobody knew what she did except for Kondo who accompanied her and trained with her.
The first morning she did that, Fuuko had been so worried because she was not able to return well after breakfast. She gave her and Kaoru a big piece of her mind. Fuuko shouted at Ganko out of worry while Kaoru got the reprimand because he was supposed to look after her. Ganko didn't know about Kaoru but her ears rang the whole day. She almost had a hard time hearing the story behind the Kata Kugutsu and its previous owner.
Now that she knew who he was and why he wanted the madougu, she trained harder out of sheer desperation.
How the hell can I defeat a ghost?She had asked the question to the others but none had an answer. They said that they would find a way but Ganko knew that only she would have the answer. She had to talk to this Tsukiho again and perhaps reason with him although she knew it would not work. All she could do now was wait for him to come to her again and keep Kondo safe until that time comes.
Ganko yawned again, this time a much bigger one. She eyed the group of girls hanging all over Kaoru with something akin to disgust. It was like this everyday. She couldn't go anywhere without him and he couldn't go anywhere without his diehard groupies.
Tokiya-niichan assigned Kaoru as her bodyguard. At first she had protested vehemently. She did not need a bodyguard, especially a cheeky one. She even dragged Kaoru to the discussion expecting him to protest too but then he didn't. He accepted his new responsibility without so much a word. He started following her around like a puppy from the word go.
Ganko thought his behavior weird. He was not a lazy person but he did not like extra work especially if it involved her. For the past five years she did everything to make him write to her or call her. But she guessed he was too busy with his newfound hobby…flirting with ditzy girls.
Iie. Not all of them are bimbos. But most of them are, particularly these ones, she corrected herself as she watched the girls hang onto Kaoru's words. She noticed that these were the same girls who were diligent enough to follow him all throughout the day.
She couldn't blame the girls for falling for Kaoru. She found out that he grew to be a charming young man. So charming in fact she always got these nausea attacks. But still if you add charm with good looks it would definitely sum up to a group of frantic, fanatic girls.
Most of his fan club members had forgiven her when she explained that Kaoru was nothing but a childhood friend. But some could not easily forget how she acted towards the bishounen on her first day of school.
And then there was this 'bodyguard' issue. It did not escape the girls' attention the way Kaoru followed her around in school. Every time someone asked about it she would say to that person to ask Kaoru. And when asked, Kaoru just shrugged then left to follow Ganko.
Sometimes it irritated her the way his eyes would focus at the back of her head for such a long time. And there were times when she would catch him staring at her with a weird look on his face.
But much as she hated to admit it, she had gotten used to having him around. Sometimes she would miss having him shadow her movement and she always felt safe whenever he was around. That was why she was waiting for him to finish his bishounen duty right now so they could go home together.
"Anou, Ganko…"
Ganko turned to look at Megumi.
"…Did you think that I looked stupid like them that first day?"
Ganko smiled at her new friend kindly. Now that Megumi had actually spent some quality time with Kaoru by hanging out with Ganko, she wasn't that star struck with his looks anymore. These past few days, Ganko had actually caught the two bickering the same way she bickered with him though not as physical.
"No, not really. I might have acted the same way if it had been someone else other than Kaoru," Ganko consoled Megumi.
The other girl sighed in relief before looking at Ganko curiously. "You know what? I can't remember Kaoru-sempai having any friends. He hangs out alone whenever there are no girls around. You're the first one he acknowledged as his friend. When and where did you meet?"
Ganko sweatdropped as she thought of an excuse. She didn't think Megumi would believe her that they were members of Uruha Junior, naïve hired assassins of Kurei Mori. "Anou…Kaoru and I were orphans…"
"You mean, you met each other at the orphanage?" Megumi jumped to a conclusion.
"You could say that," Ganko took the easy way out. It was kind of the truth because Koran Mori did adopt them. The Uruha Mansion filled with lethal traps and dangerous madougu wielders wasn't exactly an orphanage but it would do. "Kaoru was always the one who would play with me and keep me company. You could say that he was the brother I never had."
"I see. So you think of him only as your brother? That could pose as a problem."
"What do you mean?" Ganko asked in confusion, question marks hanging on top of her head.
"Well, I may be mistaken, but I think Kaoru likes you."
"Of course he likes me. I'm his friend."
"Iya. Not that kind of like. I meant like-like. You know… the feeling that eventually leads to love."
The question marks changed into exclamation points.
"NANI?! Are you mental or something? Whatever gave you that idea?" Ganko yelled back, her face visibly turning red.
"Sometimes, whenever he thinks no one is looking, he would look at you in a certain way."
"I'm sure it's just your imagination, Megumi," Ganko replied although a part of her wished it wasn't.
"Iie. It's not. I can tell because his eyes changes color whenever he would look at you. Even his voice changes when he talks to you. It becomes…softer. And then he follows you around. I'm pretty sure if he can follow you in the girl's room, he would do so. Plus he glares at every guy who would come within a ten-mile radius of where you are. Haven't you wondered why there are no boys who would talk to you nowadays whereas they were all over you on your first day here?" Megumi pointed out her observations, ticking off her fingers at the same time.
Ganko turned redder and redder as Megumi spoke. She had a point. It had been a long while since a guy had hit on her but she didn't think any of it. She thought they just lost interest in her and didn't mind one bit.
Could it be true? Was Kaoru really interested in her, she thought seriously. But then Yanagi's face came into her mind and jealousy in her heart. No. He only likes Yanagi-neehan and no one else.
"Ahahahahaha," Ganko let out forced laugh. "You almost had me there, Megumi. Kaoru can't like me. He likes someone else. Besides, he thinks of me as a little sister who can't protect herself. That's why he's following me around."
"Did he ever tell you that?" Megumi asked, unconvinced.
"Iya. He doesn't have to tell me. I know him very well. The only things that he feels for me are protectiveness and annoyance."
Ganko briskly stood up from the bench they were sitting on and cast a last look at Kaoru and his groupies. "If ever Kaoru can disentangle himself from those ditz before you go home, could you tell him that I got tired of waiting for him? Thanks."
She left so suddenly, she did not get a chance to see Megumi's knowing smile.
~*~
"Now where the heck did she go?" Kaoru stopped for a while and looked around him. Ganko had a knack of disappearing whenever his head was turned. One minute she was talking to Megumi, the next one she vanished into thin air.
Damn those girls, he thought. For the first time in his life, he did not appreciate his admirers' attention. But he knew that they should not be blamed. It was his fault he lost sight of Ganko. He was just simply getting tired of them hanging onto him like a bunch of leeches.
Damn it, Ganko. You knew you weren't supposed to leave without me. How am I supposed to protect you when you keep on disappearing like that?
He jumped onto the fire escape on the side of a tall building and climbed towards the roof. There he scanned the surrounding area. Anxiety gnawed his stomach. He won't be able to forgive himself if something happened to her again. He had let his guard down and now she had managed to elude him again.
He had been hurt that first morning when Ganko told him to leave her alone. He had wanted to protect her but she refused his help. But that did not stop him. He had never let her out of his sight, not even when she sneaked out of Recca and Kurei's house to train in a deserted factory. Every night he would watch her train with Kondo but would stay out of their way. He didn't want her to know he was there because he knew she would not like it.
And he had to admit that she was darn good at what she did. Her Puppet Converter had attained greater powers, making Kondo more useful than he was before. And when combined with her new madougu, the Puppet Animator that was actually its twin psychic device, it made Kondo a dangerous force to be reckoned with (B/N: Sorry if you think that the new madougu's name sucked and not original. Can't think of a good one.)
A head full of blond hair caught his eye, startling him out of his thoughts. Ganko was two blocs away from where he was and was rounding another corner. Kaoru immediately jumped from one roof to another and tried to catch up with her. He followed her to the alley where Tsukiho attacked her.
Kaoru stayed on the roof of the store beside it and just watched Ganko silently. He looked on as she bent over to touch the blood stained ground. 'Niichan tried to clean it with his Ensui but was not able to thoroughly erase it. He could actually feel the pain Ganko was going through right now. She received a big blow on her pride when she was injured by her own kunai.
Movements coming from the entrance of the alley caught his eye. He recognized the group of boys from their school not only because of the uniform but also because they were the guys who kept on trying to come near Ganko. He did not like the idea of guys hitting on her. It was his duty to protect her not only from Tsukiho but also from jerks like these.
Kaoru held his anger in check for he knew Ganko would lash at him if she found out he was spying on her. Besides, she could handle these jerks with one hand behind her back. So he watched as the group walked towards her, blocking the entrance of the alley as much as they can. She was already facing them, an innocent questioning look on her face.
"Nakajima-sempai, what are you doing here?" Ganko asked, still not getting what the guys were up to.
"Nothing really. We just want to get to know you better. That monkey who always hangs around you always got in our way," Nakajima dropped his beefy arm around Ganko's shoulder. He was getting too fresh for comfort.
Nani! How dare him call me a monkey, Kaoru fumed. He was sorely tempted to jump off the roof and knock the guy's teeth off but was stopped by Ganko's shout.
"He's not a monkey! How dare you call him that?!" Ganko shrugged off his arm and walked towards the entrance but the other guys blocked her way. "Let me through, Nakajima."
"You can't leave so soon. We were just starting to have fun." He nodded his head to his companions and they started to close in on her.
"I'm warning you. Leave me alone," she hissed.
"We have a feisty one here, boys," Nakajima hooted. "What're you gonna do? I bet a puny girl like you can't hurt a rabbit, let alone men like us."
Uh-oh. Did he just call her puny? Kaoru frowned. Much as he hated the guy, he felt sorry for him because of what was about to happen to him. If there's anything Ganko hated, it was belittling her and her capabilities.
Sure enough, with a blink of an eye, the puny girl throttled the four men to the ground. Kaoru rubbed his eyes with a finger for he wasn't sure how she did it. But still the proofs of her rage were squirming on the ground, moaning loudly. He sweatdropped as he watched her walk out of the alley, acting as though nothing had happened.
He made a mental note to not ever use the word puny when she was around.
From the corner of his eyes, Kaoru saw that Nakajima was starting to get up. He was holding a small knife with the clear intention of following and hurting Ganko. Kaoru's vision turned red from fury. He jumped off the roof and dashed towards the guy, stepping on some of his buddies along the way. He grabbed Nakajima by his shirt and slammed him against the wall. The knife he was holding instantly dropped to the ground.
"Don't you ever try to hurt her again!" Kaoru slammed the guy's body again and again before lifting him up, his toes dangling a few inches above the ground. "And if I ever find out that you and your pathetic friends so much as looked at my Ganko, I will personally make sure that you won't be able to see pretty much anything for a couple months time. Do you understand?"
"H-hai," Nakajima squeaked.
Kaoru placed the guy back on his feet but threw a mean punch on his stomach. Nakajima crumbled to the ground and was knocked unconscious. The Kougan Anki wielder glared at the rest of the boys and frightened them into action. They quickly grabbed their leader and dragged him out of the alley.
The angry haze clouding Kaoru's mind slowly cleared. He blinked a couple of times and drew in several cleansing breaths.
What the heck came over me? I lost my cool again. Kaoru stared hard at the wall.
Ganko!He rushed out of the alley and looked around the street.
Damn! Now where did she go this time?To be continued…