=========================
UCHUUJIN TAISEN: PROLOGUE
=========================
Prologue: The Blank of 90 Years, Part 3
- Author's Notes -
I'm really glad there's been such a positive response to this story so far, even though I haven't even finished the Prologue. *sigh* Soon, soon.
I'm aware that there is a sizable Reni lobby here :) Just to make things clear: I have my own plan for how the story will turn out (even though it changes now and then!), and hints are already sprouting here and there as to who the major players will be. Not to diss you guys, but this isn't Hanagumi Idol (so popularity isn't going to be a factor) and I'm not familiar enough with Reni to do justice to her character... yet.
Yes, it's very confusing. Yes, it does seem like there are multiple Oogamis, doesn't it? Worry not, dear reader; all will be explained by the end of the Prologue - and then the story really begins. Bear with me, please: it gets better (hopefully!).
Another note: this story follows the continuity of the games, not the anime (apart from, of course, the movie). If you know both, you'll also know that there is one enormous plot difference between the two...
- Present Day -
Two women sat in a darkened office, illuminated only by the flame-orange glow of sunset. An almost-palpable silence filled the room.
"It's a little strange for you to be still working at your age, isn't it?" The younger of the two, a Eurasian woman who looked to be about thirty, spoke, glancing occasionally out of the floor-to-ceiling window that constituted one wall of the office.
"It's a little strange for you to be so highly ranked at _your_ age," the other countered acidly, seated behind the desk. Her features were indistinct, backlit as they were by the sunglow, but her silver hair caught the light and shone dazzlingly bright.
"My, my. Whatever happened to the Tsubaki-chan we once knew?"
"Ninety years happened," the woman now known as Matsuzawa Tsubaki stated without bitterness. "I've lived a full life, and I should by all rights have retired by now to enjoy the fruit of my labour."
"And you haven't. Why?" The visitor leaned forward slightly.
"I found out... things. Why the Kagekidan was dissolved so suddenly, for one thing - and what happened to the rest of our people. I have to see this through - for their sake."
The younger woman's brow furrowed slightly. "It might not happen during your lifetime, you know."
"Oh, it's happening, all right." Tsubaki smiled grimly. "You know that better than I do. And while we're here, I might as well ask - weren't you supposed to be - "
"I got better," Tsubaki's visitor interjected suddenly, then allowed herself a laugh. "But you _are_ extraordinarily perceptive."
"It's all in the name," the old woman answered. "You're too transparent."
"Well, who's going to figure it out?" The conversation was abruptly halted by the strident tones of a cellphone attempting an absurdly cheerful dance tune with little success.
"They will," Tsubaki murmured after her visitor had excused herself to answer the call. "And you want them to, don't you? Sentimental as always..."
---
- Orihime, Maria, Kohran -
Roused by the calling of birds outside the window, Orihime opened her eyes to a vision of a familiar ceiling.
A gorgeous fresco of roses was spread above her, like the canopy of a vast bed. It was only after a couple of seconds that she recognized it as the master bedroom of the Soletta family's summer villa. Golden-hued Mediterranean sunshine was streaming in across the windowsill, but oddly enough she felt cold in several places.
- Cold? She glanced downward, discovering that the bedclothes were in disarray. Perhaps she'd been having a bad dream - but no, that didn't seem right.
Then her mind shook off the downy coverlet of sleep that was clouding it, and she remembered. The wedding, her parents' joyful faces, /him/ and... what came after that. An impish grin spread across her face as she recalled every movement, every embrace, the scent of perfume mingled with sweet summer sweat. How he'd taken her breath away...
...And that was just the dancing. What had come after /that/ was something else completely.
"Hmm?" The person next to her, under the covers, stirred.
Orihime smiled, reached out a slender hand and touched his cheek tenderly.
"Oh - " His eyes opened. "Orihime - " Apparently his brain was sleep-fogged too. She could tell the exact moment when he remembered: his eyes flew wide open and he blushed. It was really unfair how... adorable he was when embarrassed, she thought, smiling inwardly.
"Rise and shine, Ichirou - wait, you seem to have got started on the first half of that already..."
---
The long, mournful sound of the liner's horn made Maria start. She'd been lost in thought, gazing out over the ocean. Looking down over the railing, she could see the white foam of the ship's wake trailing out towards the horizon. The Russian woman dipped a gloved hand into her pocket, withdrawing a plain silver pocket-watch: it was five-thirty in the morning.
She smiled to herself, turning and pacing up the deck towards the bow of the ship. Peace, she reflected to herself, was a wonderful thing: peace, and an end to the constant danger she and her friends in the Hanagumi has been in -
- though it was sad that they'd had to part ways. Some had remained in Japan and settled down; some had returned to their respective countries. A few, like Maria, had taken bold steps into new lands.
At length, Maria reached the bow of the ship, joining the man standing there.
"So, how does it feel to be starting a new life?"
Her companion laughed. "Exciting, of course - I see you couldn't sleep either. But haven't you been there before?"
"Different parts of America are... different." Maria smiled faintly. "The last time I was in America, it was because I was giving up on life. This time, it's to begin it again. And..."
"And?"
"That time, I had nothing. This time, I have you, Taichou."
He grinned. "Please, call me Ichirou."
They turned, of one accord, to the railing as the sun rose into view over the Golden Gate Bridge.
---
"And so, class, the minimum velocity required for the Bernoulli effect to negate the aircraft's mass in this example - " The lecturer was suddenly interrupted by a shrill whistling noise. Rummaging in the pocket of her lab coat, she pulled out, in rapid succession, a large coiled spring, a badly-scratched lens, and finally a large and irregularly-shaped watch. As she was about to open the last of these, it sprang open of its own accord, and a small wooden cuckoo bounced out of it on a spring. "Cuckoo, cuckoo, cu-" the watch announced, before it exploded.
Some of the first-year students stared. The others, who had heard of Professor Ri's colourful reputation, just smiled and nodded.
Kohran, now slightly charred but unfazed, continued: "...is going to be your homework for tomorrow. Calculating it, that is. Gotta run. Bye!" She dashed out of the lecture hall, leaving only a faint smell of smoke behind.
A few minutes later, Kohran emerged into the gardens of Tokyo University, lugging two sizable metal boxes. "Ah, I'm so glad you could make it. You must be really busy these days."
"I'm never too busy to have lunch with you, Kohran," the man waiting for her responded with a smile, unconsciously straightening his naval uniform. "But... what are those?"
"Heh-heh," the bespectacled woman grinned. "It's my latest invention - the Steam Bento. Our lunch should still be nice and hot now." Steam hissed out as she opened one of the boxes.
"Wow." He blinked. "That's great, Kohran!"
She blushed. "I'm glad you think so. By the way, you said you had something to ask me today?"
The Navy officer blushed as well. "Well, er, we're not really young anymore. I'm nearly thirty, and we can't really go on just living together."
His companion leaned forward.
"...I'm starting to think about settling down." He fumbled in his pocket, retrieving a small felt-covered box and eliciting a gasp from her.
Oogami opened it. "Kohran, will you marry me?"
UCHUUJIN TAISEN: PROLOGUE
=========================
Prologue: The Blank of 90 Years, Part 3
- Author's Notes -
I'm really glad there's been such a positive response to this story so far, even though I haven't even finished the Prologue. *sigh* Soon, soon.
I'm aware that there is a sizable Reni lobby here :) Just to make things clear: I have my own plan for how the story will turn out (even though it changes now and then!), and hints are already sprouting here and there as to who the major players will be. Not to diss you guys, but this isn't Hanagumi Idol (so popularity isn't going to be a factor) and I'm not familiar enough with Reni to do justice to her character... yet.
Yes, it's very confusing. Yes, it does seem like there are multiple Oogamis, doesn't it? Worry not, dear reader; all will be explained by the end of the Prologue - and then the story really begins. Bear with me, please: it gets better (hopefully!).
Another note: this story follows the continuity of the games, not the anime (apart from, of course, the movie). If you know both, you'll also know that there is one enormous plot difference between the two...
- Present Day -
Two women sat in a darkened office, illuminated only by the flame-orange glow of sunset. An almost-palpable silence filled the room.
"It's a little strange for you to be still working at your age, isn't it?" The younger of the two, a Eurasian woman who looked to be about thirty, spoke, glancing occasionally out of the floor-to-ceiling window that constituted one wall of the office.
"It's a little strange for you to be so highly ranked at _your_ age," the other countered acidly, seated behind the desk. Her features were indistinct, backlit as they were by the sunglow, but her silver hair caught the light and shone dazzlingly bright.
"My, my. Whatever happened to the Tsubaki-chan we once knew?"
"Ninety years happened," the woman now known as Matsuzawa Tsubaki stated without bitterness. "I've lived a full life, and I should by all rights have retired by now to enjoy the fruit of my labour."
"And you haven't. Why?" The visitor leaned forward slightly.
"I found out... things. Why the Kagekidan was dissolved so suddenly, for one thing - and what happened to the rest of our people. I have to see this through - for their sake."
The younger woman's brow furrowed slightly. "It might not happen during your lifetime, you know."
"Oh, it's happening, all right." Tsubaki smiled grimly. "You know that better than I do. And while we're here, I might as well ask - weren't you supposed to be - "
"I got better," Tsubaki's visitor interjected suddenly, then allowed herself a laugh. "But you _are_ extraordinarily perceptive."
"It's all in the name," the old woman answered. "You're too transparent."
"Well, who's going to figure it out?" The conversation was abruptly halted by the strident tones of a cellphone attempting an absurdly cheerful dance tune with little success.
"They will," Tsubaki murmured after her visitor had excused herself to answer the call. "And you want them to, don't you? Sentimental as always..."
---
- Orihime, Maria, Kohran -
Roused by the calling of birds outside the window, Orihime opened her eyes to a vision of a familiar ceiling.
A gorgeous fresco of roses was spread above her, like the canopy of a vast bed. It was only after a couple of seconds that she recognized it as the master bedroom of the Soletta family's summer villa. Golden-hued Mediterranean sunshine was streaming in across the windowsill, but oddly enough she felt cold in several places.
- Cold? She glanced downward, discovering that the bedclothes were in disarray. Perhaps she'd been having a bad dream - but no, that didn't seem right.
Then her mind shook off the downy coverlet of sleep that was clouding it, and she remembered. The wedding, her parents' joyful faces, /him/ and... what came after that. An impish grin spread across her face as she recalled every movement, every embrace, the scent of perfume mingled with sweet summer sweat. How he'd taken her breath away...
...And that was just the dancing. What had come after /that/ was something else completely.
"Hmm?" The person next to her, under the covers, stirred.
Orihime smiled, reached out a slender hand and touched his cheek tenderly.
"Oh - " His eyes opened. "Orihime - " Apparently his brain was sleep-fogged too. She could tell the exact moment when he remembered: his eyes flew wide open and he blushed. It was really unfair how... adorable he was when embarrassed, she thought, smiling inwardly.
"Rise and shine, Ichirou - wait, you seem to have got started on the first half of that already..."
---
The long, mournful sound of the liner's horn made Maria start. She'd been lost in thought, gazing out over the ocean. Looking down over the railing, she could see the white foam of the ship's wake trailing out towards the horizon. The Russian woman dipped a gloved hand into her pocket, withdrawing a plain silver pocket-watch: it was five-thirty in the morning.
She smiled to herself, turning and pacing up the deck towards the bow of the ship. Peace, she reflected to herself, was a wonderful thing: peace, and an end to the constant danger she and her friends in the Hanagumi has been in -
- though it was sad that they'd had to part ways. Some had remained in Japan and settled down; some had returned to their respective countries. A few, like Maria, had taken bold steps into new lands.
At length, Maria reached the bow of the ship, joining the man standing there.
"So, how does it feel to be starting a new life?"
Her companion laughed. "Exciting, of course - I see you couldn't sleep either. But haven't you been there before?"
"Different parts of America are... different." Maria smiled faintly. "The last time I was in America, it was because I was giving up on life. This time, it's to begin it again. And..."
"And?"
"That time, I had nothing. This time, I have you, Taichou."
He grinned. "Please, call me Ichirou."
They turned, of one accord, to the railing as the sun rose into view over the Golden Gate Bridge.
---
"And so, class, the minimum velocity required for the Bernoulli effect to negate the aircraft's mass in this example - " The lecturer was suddenly interrupted by a shrill whistling noise. Rummaging in the pocket of her lab coat, she pulled out, in rapid succession, a large coiled spring, a badly-scratched lens, and finally a large and irregularly-shaped watch. As she was about to open the last of these, it sprang open of its own accord, and a small wooden cuckoo bounced out of it on a spring. "Cuckoo, cuckoo, cu-" the watch announced, before it exploded.
Some of the first-year students stared. The others, who had heard of Professor Ri's colourful reputation, just smiled and nodded.
Kohran, now slightly charred but unfazed, continued: "...is going to be your homework for tomorrow. Calculating it, that is. Gotta run. Bye!" She dashed out of the lecture hall, leaving only a faint smell of smoke behind.
A few minutes later, Kohran emerged into the gardens of Tokyo University, lugging two sizable metal boxes. "Ah, I'm so glad you could make it. You must be really busy these days."
"I'm never too busy to have lunch with you, Kohran," the man waiting for her responded with a smile, unconsciously straightening his naval uniform. "But... what are those?"
"Heh-heh," the bespectacled woman grinned. "It's my latest invention - the Steam Bento. Our lunch should still be nice and hot now." Steam hissed out as she opened one of the boxes.
"Wow." He blinked. "That's great, Kohran!"
She blushed. "I'm glad you think so. By the way, you said you had something to ask me today?"
The Navy officer blushed as well. "Well, er, we're not really young anymore. I'm nearly thirty, and we can't really go on just living together."
His companion leaned forward.
"...I'm starting to think about settling down." He fumbled in his pocket, retrieving a small felt-covered box and eliciting a gasp from her.
Oogami opened it. "Kohran, will you marry me?"