- continues straight on from last chapter.
()-()-()-()-()-()-()
Gohan narrowed his eyes at the fast approaching purple-suited man, and felt himself instinctively tense up.
"Why hello kiddies!" The man leered, baring his yellow teeth in a grin that threatened to split his face in two.
Joey nearly jumped clean out of his chair as this weird man had come up on his blind side, completely undetected by him.
"Who the hell are you?" Sharon asked snidely, sizing up the dress and manner of their intruder.
"Who moi?" The man said, placing a hand on his chest. "They call me The Joker, folks. And I've got a little game I'd like you all to play."
"A game?" Kat sat forward in interest.
"Ah! Our first contestant!" The Joker cried in delight. "Move over chum." He roughly shoved Gohan off his chair. Gohan, who was unprepared for the raw force that was behind the shove, only just managed to save himself from landing flat on the floor.
He stood up, a slightly irritated frown across his brow, just as The Joker said, "Pick a card m'dear! Any card you wish."
"Uh Kat?" Gohan said pointedly, feeling the urge to warn her away from the pasty-skinned man with deceptive strength.
"Shh Gohan. I'm concentrating." Kat replied, eyes glued to the cards being presented to her.
"Can't be interfering with the girl's concentration now." The Joker smirked, looking at Gohan from the corner of his eye. "How about you go get her a drink, there's a good chap."
Gohan treated The Joker to a nasty glare, not liking the patronising tone he was being addressed in.
"Go on Gohan. You can play next if you want." Kat offered generously, reaching out to pick a card.
"No, thankyou." Gohan said coldly, and turned away from them, disgusted. He didn't like that Joker character. His ki was one of pure malice, and the look in his eye as he watched Kat choose a card made Gohan realise he was mentally unstable, if not completely insane. But Kat would not take kindly to interference on his part. Especially not while under the influence of the man in question. So Gohan did the only thing he could do. Made a hasty retreat.
Joey, Ranma, and Van exchanged glances. Seeing this Sharon commented,
"Well he certainly got his knickers in a knot. Just because nice Mr Joker gave him a little shove."
"I don't think it was that Shar." Joey murmured in a low voice, not wanting the intruder in their midst to hear.
"Why not? And they call ME sensitive?" She huffed, not bothering to lower her tone like Joey. The Joker turned his broad grin on her.
"Really? Why, I'm a sensitive sort too! How nice. We could be twins!" He fluttered his eyelashes at her in a distinctly annoying way. Joey felt the sudden urge to wipe that stupid grin off The Joker's face. Sharon only giggled.
Joey stood up.
"Where're you going?" Sharon asked instantly. Joey paused, before replying,
"I just thought that since you like 'Mr Joker' so much we'd swap seats." Though The Joker had turned his stolen chair to face Kat, he and Joey were still sitting side-by-side, far too close in Joey's opinion.
"Oh, alright then." Sharon answered, obviously trying not to appear too eager.
As Joey sat down next to Ranma he muttered, "I'm thinking Gohan had the right idea."
"Why should we leave? We were here first." Ranma whispered fervently back. Van inched his chair closer to them.
"I don't like the look in this 'Joker' person's eyes." He said, uneasily.
"But what're we going to do? How do we get him to leave?" Joey asked his compatriots.
"We'll think of something." Ranma replied, an intense look on his face as his quick blue eyes surveyed their enemy. "He can't take on all three of us."
()-()-()
While Joey, Ranma, and Van held their little council of war Gohan arrived at the bar. With a sigh he sat himself despondently down at a bar seat.
"What'll it be son?" A congenial barman asked him. Gohan looked up and didn't recognise the worker's face. He must be new. That would explain his lack of apprehension in the face of Public Barman Enemy Number 2. Of course without Kat around there wasn't much point in making life hard for him with the mind games they usually engaged barmen in to win the drinks that they weren't allowed to have.
He directed an irritated frown at himself and replied, "Just water thanks. No, make that iced water." He gave a dry smile, resting his chin in one hand.
"Not a problem." As the barman moved away to fetch the drink Gohan felt a large hand clap on his shoulder. He gave a mental groan.
"Hey kid. How's things?" Hercule greeted him in his usual overloud obnoxious way.
"Great Herc. Now that you're here, everything's just great." He replied sarcastically.
Hercule looked as though he was trying to figure out whether or not Gohan was being serious. In the end, like with so many other things he couldn't understand, he just laughed the comment off.
"Ahaha. Well of course! Why wouldn't it be?" The large man guffawed.
Gohan glanced over at him, amused despite himself. He blinked as he noticed something for the first time. With an innocent grin he asked, "Hercule, is your hair-line receding?"
Hercule's eye's widened slightly. "Of course not boy! Whoever told you that? Slanderous coward I'll bet." But the embarrassed blush on his cheeks contradicted his denial.
Gohan snickered.
"Well, good to see you again kid. But I really must be off. Busy job, being the World Champion and all that. Hardly any time left over for, you know, the fun stuff you kids like to do." Hercule replied, a little too forcefully, standing up from his stool next to Gohan.
"And what sort of stuff would that be?" Gohan asked with a small smirk, thanking the barman as he received his drink.
"Be darned if I know!" Hercule laughed, albeit a little nervously. "Take care kid."
"I'll see you in a few weeks for our annual meeting Herc!" Gohan yelled at The Champ's quickly retreating back. Hercule waved to show he'd heard.
A woman Gohan had talked with on a previous night came over to him.
"Nice work Gohan." She lifted her glass to him in salute.
"Thanks Captain Janeway." Gohan replied, feeling a good deal more cheerful after that encounter.
"Please Gohan, call me Kathryn." She responded cordially. Gohan gave her a broad grin.
"But Captain Janeway sounds so much cooler. It must be exciting to be the captain of a Starship, travelling across galaxies, meeting and learning about new species and cultures."
Kathryn inclined her head. "It has its moments." She allowed with a small smile.
"I suppose it's better when said new species doesn't try to kill you eh?" Gohan said, remembering his own experiences in space. Kathryn laughed in agreement.
"So, what are you doing sitting over here by yourself? Have all your friends gone home already?"
"No," Gohan replied, somewhat darkly. "We were intruded upon by a madman with questionable morale."
"Did you ask him to leave?" Kathryn asked calmly.
Gohan scowled and took a sip of his water. "Kat took a shining to him."
"Oh." Kathryn tactfully didn't comment any further, allowing Gohan to stew in his own thoughts.
"Why does she always have to make such bad character judgments?!" He burst out after only a few moments of silence.
"Well, why did you judge him to be of bad association? What did he do?" Kathryn responded diplomatically. Gohan's cheeks flushed red and he muttered something unintelligible. "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that." Janeway prompted.
"I said he pushed me out of my chair." Gohan repeated irritably.
"I see." Was all Kathryn said, knowing the young man to be smart enough to figure out her un-voiced implications. From the way he'd blushed she was sure he knew he sounded petty.
"But that's not the reason I don't like him!" Gohan quickly defended. "His ki feels all sick and black, and he gives off this aura of such malevolence that it makes me want to punch him before he inevitably attacks."
Janeway frowned as she gave his argument due consideration. "What do you mean by ki?"
"Uh, your inner energy. Lifeforce." Gohan replied with a sigh, calming down after his initial outburst next to Kathryn's rational influence.
"And you can sense this ki?" Kathryn asked for clarification.
"Yes."
"Can Kat?"
"No." Gohan admitted. "But he's insane! Anyone can see it in his eyes."
"Anyone who knows what to look for." Janeway reasoned.
Gohan clenched his jaw in frustration, at once seeing her point and not liking it. He'd been seeing that same look The Joker had in his eye again and again throughout his life. Against Freezer, Garlic Junior, Doctor Gero, and most recently against Cell as the android prepared to self-destruct and take the Earth with him. Gohan sighed.
"You're saying I can't blame her."
"Perhaps. But then again she does seem to be a girl who likes playing with fire, if you know what I mean."
Gohan snorted into his empty glass. "In which case I do have a right to be angry with her for her own good."
"Ah, so you realise you're angry?"
Gohan gave her a curious look. "Well yeah, I am a bit angry with her I guess. I mean we've been friends for like five years, yet she didn't even bat an eyelid when that Joker guy shoved me to the ground."
"You expected her to protest? To defend you?" Kathryn guessed.
"Is that unreasonable?" Gohan shot back. "Isn't that what friends do?"
"In my experience yes. But try to think from her point of view for a moment. I've only known you both for a few months, and in that time we've exchanged our stories of what we do and who we are. I still remember listening to your story, how amazed I felt that one so young should have accomplished so much."
Gohan coloured slightly at her commendation and opened his mouth to say something similar about her own accomplishments, but she didn't let him.
"I'm not finished yet. I remember your story, and I remember who related to me the majority of it. Kat did."
"So, you're saying what exactly?" Gohan asked, confused.
"You say you have been friends for five years. That's quite a decent time. And after all this time Kat has come to know your own story just as well as you do. She knows you better than anyone else here. She's seen the demonstrations of your power and knows your strength. And I believe that tonight when this Joker pushed you to the floor she knew without even thinking about it that you would not be hurt." Janeway paused to let him absorb her argument.
"That you didn't need her to defend you. I think that rather than show her indifference towards you, her refusal to defend you against an opponent who is clearly weaker shows her faith in you Gohan."
Gohan's lips twisted as he considered the likelihood of Kathryn's reasoning and conclusion.
"Or maybe she just liked to see someone get the better of me for once." He proposed his own conclusion with a wry smile.
"That's possible too." Janeway allowed, setting her glass down. "But remember the golden rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
"If the situation had been reversed I probably wouldn't have had time to blink before she was up and defending herself at the top of her lungs." Gohan laughed. Kathryn smiled in agreement.
"Don't ever make the mistake of thinking a girl can't defend herself." She advised. "I have to be back on deck soon so I'd better be off. See you around Gohan."
"Bye Captain Janeway. And thanks."
"The pleasure is all mine." She gave him a companionable pat on the shoulder before heading off through the club.
Gohan stayed perched on his seat, rolling his empty glass between his palms, and thinking about what Janeway had said. "Faith eh?" He murmured to himself, before being startled from his contemplations for the second time in one night. This time however, the distraction was not Destiny induced. It was in the form of a loud crash.
"What the?"
Gohan quickly made his way over to the scene of the commotion. He passed a dazed Van, whose collision and subsequence fracturing of a table had made the startling crash. A little further on Gohan could see Ranma exchanging blows with The Joker, while Joey came up behind their mutual foe wielding a chair in a menacing manner. This did not go unnoticed by The Joker, and as Gohan watched he spun around and threw a small object at Joey with the exclamation,
"Here boy, catch!"
There was a boom and smoke and streamers went everywhere, obscuring vision and spreading chaos throughout the main room of the club. Coughing, Gohan could hear Sharon shouting. He couldn't quite decipher her shrill voice, but it seemed to him that she was abusing both The Joker and Joey at the same time, and sounding an awful lot like Bulma whenever someone did something that she objected to.
Someone collided with him in the confusion. Through the haze Gohan recognised Kat's brown hair.
"Kat?"
"Gohan?" She squinted up at him. "C'mon, lets get out of here before security shows up." She pulled him by the wrist towards the hallway entrance. As they reached the doors a team of heavily built men and women in tight black clothing entered the room. Gohan watched with wide eyes as they came from straight through the wall to his right.
Kat yanked him through the double doors, nearly bowling over a person heading the other way in the process.
"You don't wanna go that way just yet." She told the young man.
"What's going on? I uh, just got here." He said hesitantly.
"Even more reason to stay away. The guards will just pick up anyone who looks like a troublemaker and send them straight home. Not that you look like a troublemaker." She grinned flirtatiously, and even though Gohan was at that time wiping the smoke induced water from his eyes he knew that she was running her eye over the young man before them.
"I didn't know Nightlife had a security team." Gohan said quickly.
"Oh yeah. You weren't here that time Backslash and Herc got raging drunk." She snickered at the memory. "They got arguing over something, never found out what, and ended up at each other's throats. Quite the commotion. Very disruptive for the other Nightlifers. Anyway these two huge guys, and I mean half again as big as Hercule, appeared out of nowhere, plucked them apart, and carried them kicking and cursing straight through a wall and from the room. Haven't seen Backslash since come to think of it."
"I hadn't even noticed his absence." Gohan confessed. Noticing their acquaintance standing uncomfortably in front of them he held out his hand. "Sorry, I'm Gohan by the way."
"Kat." Said she by way of introduction.
"I'm Clark. Clark Kent." He in turn responded, shaking their hands. "Uh, where exactly…"
Gohan and Kat glanced at each other. "First night?" Gohan guessed.
"Um, yeah." Clark replied. Kat grinned and moved off down the hall, hooking her arm through Clark's as she went.
"Two cute new guys in one night? And my birthday isn't for weeks yet."
"Don't mind her." Gohan assured the apprehensive looking teen, falling into step on his other side. "She's on the rebound."
"I am so not on the rebound!" Kat protested. "Why on earth would you say something like that?"
"Uh, Zack?"
"Who?" She frowned. "Oh right! Him." She sniffed, before shrugging. "That doesn't mean I'm on the rebound. It just means I'm back to browsing through the market."
Gohan rolled his eyes and Clark gave a hesitant smile. "So, where are we?" He asked again.
"Nightlife." Kat answered promptly. "The sign above the front door kinda gives it away though don't you think?"
"It's a club." Gohan answered, his reproachful tone aimed at Kat. "A place certain people can reach when they're asleep."
"And everything's completely free!" Kat added happily. "Oh, I wonder what's in here tonight." She dragged Clark though a door on their left.
"But why am I here?" Clark asked in confusion, looking around the small room
"You tell us." Gohan replied, walking through the doorway behind them. "Hey look! Food!" He ran and skidded to a stop in front of a small counter table that held a selection of dips and corn chips.
"Score." Kat grinned and went to join him, dropping Clark in favour of food. They both grabbed some chips, dipped them in salsa, and popped them into their mouths. A few seconds passed.
"Gaah! Hot hot hot!!" Kat coughed, clutching her throat.
"Owie!" Gohan had stuck out his tongue and was trying to fan it with his hands. Clark, who had by this time made his way over to the small buffet, picked up one of the jars of salsa.
"Hot pepper salsa with extra chilli?" He gingerly sniffed the spicy substance and pulled a face. "Caution. Contents may be hot."
"Now he tells us." Kat moaned, rubbing her watery eyes. Gohan, who was able to see more clearly than her, noticed a large bowl of chunky white creamy dip that was situated in one corner of the counter. Deciding he had nothing to lose he dipped a chip in and ate it. He blinked in surprise as it cooled his burning tongue.
"Hey Kat, try this stuff." He said, using his fingers this time to scoop up more of the tastebud saving dip. Kat tasted it and sighed in relief.
"Cucumber yoghurt." She pronounced, licking her fingers.
"I think that's the only thing here that doesn't contain chilli." Clark commented, taking the lid off an insulated box at the other end of the counter and peering inside. "Even the ice cream looks to be chilli flavoured."
"Doesn't that sort of defeat the purpose of ice cream?" Gohan laughed.
"This I gotta try." Kat said eagerly. "Lets go sit down." She carried the box containing the controversial ice cream over to a corner strewn with rugs and cushions. Gohan grabbed the cucumber dip just in case, while Clark brought along a bowl of the corn chips.
"That reminds me." She continued, putting one scoop of chilli ice cream each into three bowls. "If you could be ice cream, what flavour would you be Clark?"
Clark raised an eyebrow, accepting his bowl of chilli ice cream.
"What sort of question is that?" He asked sceptically.
"Did you find out what flavour that Joker guy thought he should be?" Gohan quickly interjected, before Kat could get defensive. She snapped her fingers in regret.
"I knew I was forgetting something! Darn it. I probably wont see him again for ages now either."
"Why not?" Gohan asked, masking his pleasure at the thought.
"They'll all probably be put on suspension from the club for fighting. They can do that you know. Bert told me once."
"What, all of them?" Gohan questioned, realising that their group was now seriously depleted.
"Anyone the guards caught." Kat shrugged, eating a spoonful of her ice cream. Gohan waited for her reaction before trying any of his. She screwed up her nose and gave her bowl a funny look. "Weird."
Gohan and Clark exchanged glances before both taking a taste. Clark gagged slightly and immediately put his bowl on the ground beside him.
"It's weird," Gohan agreed, "but okay." With a few quick spoonfuls he finished off the rest in his bowl. Kat considered her options, and then handed him her bowl.
"No sense in letting it go to waste I guess." She said. Clark ate some of the cucumber dip in an attempt to get the taste out of his mouth.
Kat sighed and leaned back on her cushion. "I wonder what flavour The Joker would've been." She mused.
"He was definitely off his rocker." Gohan snorted. "Rocky road, I say."
Kat grinned. "Yeah, he was great. Did you see what he was wearing? I liked the purple suit well enough, but the vest underneath was like," she paused to think, "orange sherbet coloured!" She wrinkled her nose in amusement.
"Sounds like a colourful character." Clark offered. Gohan allowed a small scowl to show on his face, and appropriated Clark's unfinished ice cream.
Kat clapped her hands. "Maybe he's Napoleon ice cream! That's colourful."
"It's also neatly arranged in straight lines." Gohan remarked. "No, I think if he was ice cream he'd have to be a really insane flavour to correctly match his personality."
Kat's eyes glittered as she thought about it. Gohan watched her speculate while he licked his spoon. Finally she announced,
"Peanut butter and Jelly Chocolate Chip Cookie dough."
"That's two different flavours." Clark pointed out.
Gohan snickered. "I wouldn't be surprised if he really did have a split personality."
"You didn't like him did you?" Kat observed objectively.
"Words cannot convey the sentiment I felt about that man." Gohan sniffed. Of course, having said this his well-educated brain immediately supplied him with some apt expressions. "Contempt, loathing, abhorrence, revulsion, disdain, scorn, repulsion, disgust, and all round aversion."
"He hated him." Kat supplied for Clark, who was looking slightly confused. "So tell me Gohan, how long have you been memorising the thesaurus?" She asked with a teasing grin.
"I read a lot that's all." He replied defensively.
"Sure you do." She mocked. He just rolled his eyes at her and turned to Clark.
"So, what do you do during the day?"
Kat listened to the ensuing conversation up until the topic turned to some girl named Lana, whom Clark was obviously besotted with. At that point she discretely whipped out her dark sunglasses, piled up some more pillows, and made herself comfortable.
Feigning sleep she was free to stare at Gohan without fear of being discovered. It was too late at night to be thinking any deep and meaningful thoughts, (for her at least), so she contented herself with just watching, absorbing every minute detail of his face and body.
Sometimes, when you've known someone a long time, you take for granted that they'll always be there. But then one day they're suddenly not. And you discover that you never took the time out from your own life to just sit quietly and watch, and listen, and come to know what they think about, and what disturbs their inner peace.
And then you feel regret.
If Kat realised this now it was only subconsciously. As I have mentioned, it was too late to be thinking such profound thoughts. But if it was one thing she prided herself on it was her observational skills.
To observe, one must first look. And Gohan is nothing if not interesting to look at.
The longer spikes of his thick hair were currently being restrained by a black hair-tie, no doubt courtesy of his mother. They reached to about the middle of his back. Now that Goten was old enough to know that pulling on hair was frowned upon, Gohan saw no need to keep his locks short. Shorter spikes made half-hearted attempts to defy gravity and stood out at random intervals, although all but the shortest decided that pointing at the ceiling required too much effort and set their sights lower.
Then there was that one renegade tress that curved out over his forehead and down in front of his eyes. Kat's lips twitched as she remembered how he'd tried to let it grow long and then simply tie it back with the others, only to find it would somehow always escape and inevitably find its way into his mouth or in his food. It would need to be cut again soon, as now it almost reached the tip of his nose.
She blinked as Gohan and Clark turned to face each other, sitting cross-legged.
"First clear your mind of all thought. Push everything away. Concentrate on keeping your breathing slow and regular." Gohan instructed.
Kat opened her mouth to ask what the dickens they were doing, but hesitated, as she comprehended the answer for herself. They were going into some sort of meditation. Both had closed their eyes. Gohan's face was a picture of composure, void of any emotion. Clark on the other hand was visibly struggling to follow the instructions, as shown by the small frown lining his forehead.
They stayed completely silent and still for ten boring minutes. Kat had almost dozed off when Gohan spoke again, startling her so much that she jumped slightly.
"Now listen to your body. Search deep inside yourself for the core of your energy. Once you find it you'll know. Knowing your power is the first step to controlling it."
Clark had power issues then? Lucky bastard.
Kat was starting to believe that Nightlife, everyone in it, the entire plane in fact was all some sort of strange fantasy conjured up by her sub consciousness. Even though everything felt so real…but of course it would, when you're asleep. In the cold light of day however it was clear that the only power she had was severe disillusionment.
'I shouldn't have let myself fool myself for so long.' She thought morosely. All because of a stupid secret desire to be special. And now it was going to be harder than ever to let go.
"I know you're awake Kat." Gohan's voice cut through her brooding. Kat needed only a second to re-gather her wits before offering him a smirk. Pushing her glasses up on top of her head she looked around.
"Where'd Clark go?"
Gohan snickered. "Home I presume. He probably fell asleep. One second he's here, the next I open my eyes and he's gone."
"Well it was pretty boring." She sat up and stretched.
"Don't knock it till you've tried it." Gohan countered. "Is it getting stuffy in here or is that just me?"
"Normally I'd say it's just you." Kat yawned. "But unfortunately I agree. C'mon, the next room over usually has an open view."
"Yeah, let's get some fresh air." He grinned, standing up and then pulling her to her feet beside him.
'Yet he feels so real,' Kat couldn't help but think, as she gestured for him to lead the way.
They went to the next room, and stepped out onto a wooden floorboard patio, with a lattice topped by a hand railing marking the boarder. The cool grey of predawn settled all around as Gohan closed the door behind them with a quiet thud.
"Almost time to wake up again." Kat murmured, wandering over to the railing and leaning against it. Gohan followed her lead, and stood silently next to her, his dark eyes seeming to shine though the dim blanket of grey surrounding them.
They stayed in silence for a while, wondering if the other was going to say anything more.
"Kat," Gohan bravely broke into the slight tension, "are you okay?"
"What do you mean?" Kat asked, trying to hide her unease. Had he caught her staring before?
"I mean, you won't let that Zack guy get you down or anything will you?" Gohan was equally nervous as the girl he addressed. This was not his area of expertise. Heck, the only people he knew in his age group were all at Nightlife, only seen for a few hours a night whenever he decided to come.
Kat almost laughed. Her night in the soothing atmosphere of the club had all but blotted the incident from her memory. At this reminder her hand moved of its own accord to her chin. If Nightlife didn't get rid of zits it certainly made you forget them.
"He was a jerk. End of story." She replied, wincing slightly as her hand nudged the painful spot a little too hard.
Gohan's jaw dropped just a fraction. "It's real?"
Kat shot him a smile that confirmed his guess. "But like I was going to let Sharon know that. Miss Prissy Bitch."
"So your story?" Gohan left the question dangling, inviting her to come clean.
"Rest was all true. But I probably wouldn't have pushed him to dump me if it hadn't been for Mount Pus-bowl. He was an okay boyfriend. Got me lots of little gifts, even if they were usually just tickets to the latest game."
"I see." Gohan said ambiguously.
"What do you see?" She retorted mockingly.
"The sun's about to come up." He replied smoothly. Then, after a pause, "So people have to buy you stuff for you to like them?"
"Diamonds are a girl's best friend." She answered jokingly. "Seriously though, you can't usually trust a guy to actually mean what he says. I know they say that about women, but most guys I've known always have an ulterior motive too. If a slightly predictable one."
Upon seeing he didn't understand her implication she sighed and added. "At least a trinket or something proves he was thinking about you when you weren't directly in his line of sight. Sooths the ego somewhat I guess."
"And with an ego as big as yours…" Gohan replied with a cheeky grin.
"Ha ha." She said sarcastically, and then let out a massive yawn. "Won't be long now." She sank tiredly down to sit on the floor, with her back resting against the lattice balustrade. She felt rather than saw Gohan sit down beside her. He covered his own yawn with one hand.
"Look, you've infected me with all your yawning." He accused.
"So sorry. How can I ever make it up to you?" She replied, unable to prevent her eyes from sliding shut as she did so.
"What do you want for your birthday?" He asked out of the blue. Kat laughed at the abruptness of the question.
"What can you get me?" She asked in turn, her head sagging to rest on his shoulder. "When was yours again?"
"Last week."
"Right. The cake. I remember." How well she remembered the look of glee on his face when they brought out the giant cake she and Bert had organised. Even better was the look on his face when the scantily clad woman had burst from the top and led the singing of 'Happy Birthday'…
Gohan's sight was starting to blur. On impulse he rested his cheek softly on the top of her head. Not a breath stirred.
Bert felt a small smile tug at his lips. Their minds were gone back to their homes now. Soon the spiritual embodiment of their flesh would start to fade away. But right now a very rare thing was taking place. It was, Bert believed, a perfect moment.
"Bloody unnatural, that's what it is." Growled a voice beside him, effectively spoiling the atmosphere. "Stupid boy. Knew he wouldn't listen."
Bert didn't trust looking at his companion for the moment, lest a glare wind up on his features.
"Mic," He sighed, "this isn't the old days. Things have changed."
"It won't last." Mic responded forebodingly. As if agreeing with him the forms of the two teenagers dissipated. Bert sighed.
"You've been saying that for five years."
"Because it's true." Mic instantly replied. Bert's wrinkles deepened as he frowned in annoyance. He turned around to confront the man standing to one side and behind him.
"Your vision was hazy. You don't know what is going to happen. You've always been pessimistic anyway. Vague premonitions of imminent battle…how can you be sure they're not just the delusions of an old warrior's bloodlust? Or is it revenge you want?" This last accusation earned him a sharp glare from under the broad brim of Mic's hat.
"Time will tell." Mic's tone was icy. "My brother regretted not heeding my warnings. And he was more then you will ever be."
Rather than become riled by the insult, Bert's face softened. "It wasn't your fault."
If anything the reply served to stir Mic's anger further. "The sixth year. It will come to pass in the sixth year." And with an angry clap of thunder he vanished.
Bert snorted. "Always melodramatic." He turned back to look across the horizon, where a bright golden smudge was beginning to cut through the mist. "Yet always accurate. For once I hope you are wrong my friend."
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Gimme a Joker! Gimme a Ranma! Gimme a Van! Gimme a Captain Janeway! Gimme a Clark Kent! (from Smallville please)
What do I own?
NOTHING!
AN: See why I gave this night two chapters? Hoo boy the ideas are flowing tonight. No wait! Come back! – runs off after flowing away ideas –
- comes back with a defeated air -
They got away…made straight for the sink…barely a gurgle and then gone…-sobs-
But on a more positive note thanks to Pheonix Rising who correctly guessed The Joker, Crazed fanatic anime fan, Min Farshaw, Cold Paws, and JenovaDragoon (logically he should realise the answer first, and then move onto discovering THE question, but then again this is Gohan we're talking about ; P), who not only guessed correctly but supplied me with some great ice-cream flavours, and lastly to happygohangirl, who has submitted one of the most entertaining and critically helpful reviews to date. Unfortunately I received it after typing that part of the chapter, but since she cheated anyway (tut tut) I'll just mention here that her ice-cream suggestion was: "…a mix of vanilla, raspberry and mint (as those are his 'colours' after all) with a healthy helping of nuts because, well, he's nuts."
In a quick reply to her (the rest of you wonderful people can skip down if you want ~_^) : I saw my first ever episode of Trigun the other night (and I'm sorry but I don't watch 24, always too busy reading fics!), and I see what you mean…even if I was a little confused plot-wise. It's a pity we're at the end of the guest heroes, though it does save me some research time into that anime. ^_^
And EVERYONE thankyou for reading and for your suggestions! (The PowerPuff girls? Cell??? I might have to save them for random interludes or something…hehe) We're starting to move into only partially charted territory now, so while my grander plot and general issues to be addressed is firmly in my head (and scrawled on little blue scraps of paper just in case), getting from scene to scene will undoubtedly cause a few of you to question my intentions. I'm counting on this, and counting on you guys to tell me because you never know…something you mention even in passing could cause this entire story to do a 180. For the better too, one would hope.
Next chapter's just about written, (I would've posted this one sooner 'cept I've been having connection problems), and I promise to plug the sink next time the ideas start to flow.
Lastly if you spell Fate's messenger's order backwards you should get an Alcoholic Drink. You don't have to tell me, I know it's stupid. But hey, everyone needs a bit of stupidity now and then.
~_^