Summary – It's been just two and a half months since Ryo Sanada's untimely death, and as the other Ronins are trying to return to normal lives, they are interrupted by two unearthly beings who are not yet ready to be forgotten and set aside.

Disclaimer I do not own Ronin Warriors and their related universe. I am simply borrowing them from Sunrise Inc. to fulfill my desire to write. Chances are, any names that you don't recognize belong to me.

Unfinished Business

Forward

This sequel to "Ryo, Bud, Where'd Ya Go?" was originally started in the summer of 2001. While I faithfully posted for a short time after that, my interest in the series soon fell to a minimum and I ceased working on it.

Until recently.

Upon the completion of another chapter story, my interest to finish "Unfinished Business" came back with a vengeance. Finally, after three years I decided to give it another shot. Before I could feel comfortable posting the remaining story, however, I felt I had to go back and revise the first four chapters. My writing style has matured and advanced so much during my three-year hiatus that I wouldn't be satisfied otherwise. Thus, the birth of a new and improved (and hopefully better!) "Unfinished Business."

Before you start reading, however, there are a few things I'd like to explain. Since the arrival of Ronin Warriors on DVD, I've become much more fond of the Troopers and their personalities, but seeing as I originally started this story with the Ronins, I'm going to stick with them. For the most part I will use the personalities and names of everything Ronin, but I will attempt to portray more of the camaraderie shown by the Troopers. Hopefully I'll be able to combine the best of both worlds. Because I'm trying to keep this a Ronin story, all Japanese has been removed save for a few names, even though I've taken a year of the 'language of Anime'.

Now that I have all of that out of the way, I won't hold you any longer. Read and enjoy, and please! Let me know what you think!

--Marie Kenobi

Unfinished Business

Chapter 1: Not Just Random Energy

By: Marie Kenobi

They say the one thing that remains constant is change, and with this change, naturally, you have time. So in the time after Ryo Sanada's death, the other Ronins found it hard to avert the inevitable changes that came to affect themselves.

Rowen Hashiba, the teasingly dubbed Einstein of the group, had perhaps been hit the hardest, his friendship being the first that Ryo had accepted. His grades dropped to a dramatic effect within the first few weeks, yet his teachers at school chose not to be overly critical. They had known he was close to the dark-haired teen. Rowen, however, had gathered an unhealthy mentality about him. Why should he care about his grades? Why should he care about anything? The gods seemed to enjoy making his life a living hell. After all, hadn't they already split his family apart, chosen to hand him a destiny he was not particularly fond of, and then taken away one of the most important people in his life? How could one fight against such odds? Rowen felt insignificant and small now. He didn't matter and neither did anything else.

Cye Mouri, pacifist and peacemaker, had retreated into a shell. The friendly boy with the occasional British accent was gone now, replaced instead with a cross 16-year-old. It could be said, perhaps, the he was now the average teenager, but it was a strange sight to all of those who had known him before his brother-in-arms' death. His heart had hardened when Ryo had been ripped from their world, so much so that trust was something he feared he had lost. He could no longer sweep past a crowd of people and instantly draw friends to himself. Not that he felt he wanted to. The art of cooking could no longer captivate him for hours either, which didn't really matter anymore as he lived at home again and could rely on his sister to do the job most of the time. But the auburn-haired teen was distressed. It was impossible for him to do the things he loved nowadays—Impossible to accomplish what he had so easily done at one time.

Kento Rei Faun, human garbage disposable and loveable teddy bear, lost the build that defined him at school and wherever he went. His bulk, though mainly muscle, began to disappear at an eerily rapid pace. He lost nearly 12 pounds in the first week after his comrade's death. For a time, while the four remaining warriors still lived together, Cye became so terse and fretful at one point that he yelled at him when he refused to eat. It wasn't that he wanted to worry his friends...but food no longer seemed so vital to his everyday life. As far as Kento was concerned, he would die sooner or later, whether he ate or not. And who was to say his demise wouldn't come after he had eaten a buffet of a meal or a single, solitary noodle. Who was to say he wouldn't die the very next day?

Sage Date: liberal flirt and proud, noble warrior. Perhaps he had changed the most, with his appearance dropping from its 16 year reign as his top priority to somewhere down the list where things were hidden by lack of care. He was doomed to inevitably die someday, so why should he take such care to ensure he looked proper and trim? As far as Sage had seen, no one died looking pretty and peaceful anyway. And the gods only knew how much death he had witnessed in the short span of time he had walked this earth. The teen had rather surprised his parents when he returned home with a mop of golden hair that was much longer and grittier looking than they could ever remember it before. His enthusiasm and duty towards learning the art of kendo was failing as well, and it created a situation that did not sit particularly well with his father and grandfather. It was all his mother could do to entice him out of his room, but whenever he did acquiesce to her wishes, he soon found himself caught in another feud between himself and the two head males in his family. Thus, giving him the excuse for another trip to the seclusion he could find in his small haven.

Then there were Mia Koji and Yuli Yamano. The latter had been hit hard by the death of his idol. He had returned to his home in the city with his parents and hadn't actually visited the Ronins in person since the news had been delivered. There were the occasional run-ins on the street or sporadic phone calls of course, but nothing more. The young boy seemed to prefer keeping a safe distance from the remaining four whom he had greatly looked up to during the war. Even White Blaze had not had the privilege of seeing him in nearly two months time. The tiger dwelled with Rowen now, whom was currently the only two-legged occupant of the Ronin Manor.

Mia had temporarily relinquished her home in Japan to go abroad, with no clues as to when she may return to the house. Her vast bank account, a gift from her deceased grandfather, was left open for the needs of whoever decided to stay in her home. Rowen always knew just how much to take out that would keep the bills paid and sustain a house of its magnitude with the basic necessities for living. Mia had been in America on a trip for the university when news of Ryo's death reached her. Knowing that she would never make the funeral (and that perhaps it was best if she didn't), she had flown straight to France upon completing her business in the States. A letter announcing her intentions to stay with her parents awhile and her reunion with an old boyfriend was the last they had heard from her. To say it lightly, that had been two weeks after the teen's death in late August. It was now mid-November.

"What was the point to fight so hard and still lose?" Ryo had said once. And yes, the four survivors of the war with the armor wondered: what was the point?

Rowen woke slowly, feeling as grouchy and groggy as he always did at this time of morning. At least until he noticed what time it was. Then he just became grumpier. With a mumbled curse the teen rolled back over in bed and stared at the ceiling. "What ever happened to you being my alarm clock, eh Blaze?"

The large, black and white Siberian tiger looked up at the boy who he had decided to make his new charge and, through his unmerciful gaze, Rowen saw that he didn't really care. Then again, neither did he. So what if he missed another day of school? What was the sense of getting an education when sooner or later you were bound to die? And why does the glass always seem like it's half-empty these days? Why doesn't it seem–

Like it's half-full?

The still sleepy boy looked up into the eyes of his best friend and growled. "What is it with the two of us finishing each others' sentences lately?"

"I guess we've just grown closer since, well, you know...." He hesitated to finish his sentence, but Rowen already knew the rest of it.

...Since we lost Ryo to such an unexpected death. "Yeah, I know," Rowen told him, letting the olderboy know that he need not finish the thought. "Hey, school is already in session. Shouldn't you be there and not here, this far out of town?"

"Shouldn't you?" The blonde sat on his friend's bed and smiled in the way that only Sage Date could.

"Hah," Rowen grumbled sarcastically.

Sage's smile disappeared. "But being serious, Ro, I could feel this was going to happen. And I—" he turned away suddenly, his flushed cheeks indicating he was embarrassed over what he had to say.

"Sage?" Rowen asked worriedly. "What's wrong? You can tell me. You can tell me anything, remember? Right? Sage?"

The sound of his tone was desperate, signaling a fear that lay deep inside each of the boys. Since their leader's death and their journeys back to their families, the Ronins had found it crucial that they strengthen the bonds shared amongst themselves, even if there was the underlying fear that by doing so they left their hearts open to more heartache should another teammate die.

Sage was fighting within himself, trying frantically to decide if he should tell the teen before him, whom had been his best friend through the thick and thin for nigh on four years, about the dream that had pervadedhis sleep the night before. "Rowen, I—Well, you see—" he sighed. He hadn't expected it to be this hard. "I had a dream last night." There was a brief pause. "Ryo came to me in it."

Rowen's wrinkled brow showed that he did not quite understand the significance of that statement. "But Ryo has come to us a lot in our dreams," he said finally.

The blonde smiled half-heartedly. How could he explain it? "This was different though, Rowen."

"How do you know?"

"I just do," he murmured, letting his voice trail off. "He spoke to me, or at least tried to. I could see his lips moving, only I couldn't hear him. He was silhouetted by a bright light, which I presume stood for my element. In the background, adding light to everything, was a large wildfire. It appeared to be growing larger, as though it was trying to consume him. He didn't seem to want to go with it though, which I thought rather odd for Ryo. There were no signs of wounds or blood on him like there had been in the other dreams...the nightmares. He looked me straight in the eye with the determination and stubbornness that only he had, then back at the wildfire behind him. When he looked at me again, he tried to speak. I thought I knew what he was saying, but...I'm not so sure now. I felt like I should come back here."

Rowen sat up, regarding his friend as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He looked down at White Blaze by their feet and spoke almost too quietly for the other to hear him. "Ryo came to me last night too. I could feel my element there, the wind, and I remember seeing the same wildfire you just spoke of. Sage," Rowen quickly caught his friend's eye, "he was trying to tell me something, too..."

Cye awoke with a silent cry upon his lips. It wasn't that the water in his dream was weird, just that, well, the fire was— and the mixed signals coming from the vision weren't helping. Jumping from his bed, the teen yanked on a clean shirt and quite nearly danced into a pair of jeans. By the time he skidded into the kitchen with his blue, fishy socks, his mother and sister were just appearing from their respective rooms. His mother took one look at the misplaced books upon the table and the hasty manner in which he stuffed clothes into his knapsack and sighed. Cye looked up at his mother, feeling guilt pull at his heartstrings, but knowing this was something he had to do. "Mum, do me a favor and tell the school I won't be coming in today. I have to go away for a while. I have to meet up with the others."

Mrs. Mouri sighed in distress. Her baby was going away again, and although she didn't like it, she trusted his judgement. He's probably missing Ryo again, so he should be with his friends for a while. If only the world did not have to be so cruel to the young.

"Be careful, Dear, I hope everything turns out OK."

"Thanks Mum," he whispered, kissing her pale forehead and hugging his sister goodbye.

The sun was still trying to peak through the cloudy atmosphere when Kento snuck outside to the gardens to where his grandfather, wise with age and one of the few others besides the Ronins who knew of the armor, was kneeling under a cheery tree. Kento knelt before him and waited restlessly for his presence to be acknowledged.

"You are impatient about something, Grandson," his elder said finally. "The armor calls you, yes?"

"Yes Grandfather." Kento squirmed, chewing on his tongue lightly as he felt one of his toes begin to itch and wishing he could get to it.

"I hope it doesn't call you to fight again, Grandson."

"Yes, Grandfather, I mean no! I mean—" Kento stopped speaking when the older man looked up at him, although his mouth continued to hang open in the shape of his next word. His grandfather chuckled before turning serious again.

"Perhaps the armor is calling you and your three fellow warriors together. You miss the one with the red armor? Sanada?"

Kento felt his eyes burn; this was not the time nor the place to bring up that day from Hell. "Yes Grandfather, we all miss him greatly." He wiggled again.

A glint of mischief rose in the elder's eyes. "Go to your friends then. I will deal with your parents."

The energetic teen sprang to his feet and bowed, his quick moves spurred by the desire to be swiftly away. He thanked his grandfather fervently, reached for his book bag, and remembered to scratch his pestering toe before peeling out of the garden, nearly tripping in his haste to be off.

Sage and Rowen had been sitting at the kitchen table for just a short period of time when the screen door was forcibly swung open and two figures walked in, their features masked by the sun's rays behind them. The original two occupants of the room leapt from their seats and stood with apprehension. They established slight defensive stances, not knowing who had arrived and feeling slightly on edge from the confusion of their dreams. The sound of Rowen's chair smashing to the ground startled White Blaze from his catnap. Irked that something besides his own matter of choice had awaken him, the tiger sauntered into the kitchen, yawned at the newcomers, and promptly returned to his spot before the fire, a place he and Ryo had employed quite often on lazy days around the manor.

"Cye?"

"Kento?"

The two boys stepped forward so that Sage and Rowen could see them better. Kento leaned back stiffly to stretch his back muscles. "Were you expecting someone else?" he asked, setting his things down beside Cye's. The two had met on the train here, very much surprised to see each other.

"No, I suppose not," Rowen chuckled lightly. The four boys embraced one another quickly. When they parted, Cye squatted and whistled. White Blaze barely flicked an ear in the teen's direction.

"I've tried everything I can imagine, but still, two months later, he's just as depressed over Ryo." Rowen looked sadly at the white tiger.

Something sparked in Kento's eye, and he caught the attention of the bearers of Halo and Strata. "Speaking of Ryo, I thought you guys should know that I came for more than just a pleasure trip. I had a dream last night." His eyes broke contact and instead found the ground to suddenly be very fascinating. "Ryo was in it, as well as both of our elements; he was trying to say something to me, only I—I don't know what. That's why I came."

Cye stared wide-eyed at his friend, surprise clearly written along his features. "You too?" he asked amazed. The two listeners cast a knowing glance between them and motioned for Kento and Cye to sit down. Rowen picked up his chair as he and Sage joined them at the table. The latter clasped his hands in front of him.

"We need to have a talk." He leaned forward slightly. "It's about the dreams. Rowen and I had them, too." The two newcomers raised their eyebrows slightly. "Kento, Cye: I'm presuming Ryo looked perfectly fit and healthy in your dreams? He was back to normal?" He and Rowen had already compared their respective visions.

A nod came from each.

"And not only was Ryo present, but his element and yours?"

Another nod from the two.

"He was trying to tell you something, but you couldn't hear him, correct?"

Kento and Cye gave one final dip of their heads.

"Well," Sage mused, "from the clues that have been presented by each one of us, I've come to the conclusion that our dreams were all identical, minus the different elements. Kento, I'm afraid that I have to admit you're right...for once."

The taunt was not lost on the Chinese boy, but he was too curious at the moment to truly care. "I am? How? How am I right, Sage?" he asked confused.

"You said you came for more than just a pleasure trip. I'm afraid we all did. These dreams were presented to us so we would get together for one reason or another. Now, I know an ancient group of people once said that, dreams can be random energy and nothing more, but I think there is more to these dreams than meets the eye. What do you think Rowen?"

The other boy threw his hands out in an innocent gesture. "You're the resident psychic here, Sage, not me."

The blonde sighed and rolled his eyes. A lot of help he was...

"But what makes this one different compared to all the other dreams Ryo has been in?" Cye asked.

"You mean nightmares," Kento corrected.

Rowen shuddered. This conversation was suddenly sounding very familiar.

"Those are the kind you classify as random energy. But this one—This one is different. It has to be."

"The only problem is, we don't yet know how it's different," Cye concluded. The soft beeping of someone's watch alerted him to the time. Feeling an odd desire to be who he once was, Cye stood to his feet and moved to the refrigerator. "Anyone up for lunch?"

That night, as they prepared to bed down in their old rooms, Rowen noticed that White Blaze was not with him. "That's odd," he murmured.

Sage looked up from the other side of the bed that Rowen was helping him make and cocked his head to the side. "What is?" he asked, before returning his attention to the hospital corner he was working on.

"Blaze. He's usually in my room by now."

"Maybe he's visiting Cye and Kento?"

Rowen nodded, although he couldn't take his mind off the tiger for the rest of the time spent helping Sage. When the bearer of Halo began to change into what he would sleep in, Rowen left the room, closing the door softly behind him and wandered somewhat hesitantly up and down the hall before finally stopping in front of his other two friends' room. He was surprised to hear a ruckus that he hadn't previously heard while with Sage. The wall between them was usually so thin...With a strange feeling of wrongness beginning to creep up in his mind that had nothing to do with Cye and Kento, Rowen slowly pushed the door open a crack.

"How many times have I told you, Kento? Don't feed my fish pixi stixs!"

"But they looked hungry!"

"What's all this yelling about?"

Rowen smiled as he backed out and closed the door. Sage must have heard and come through the bathroom the four of them shared. But as he headed towards the stairs, looking forward to a cold glass of milk, the wrongness came pummeling full-force at him and blocked all other thoughts out. It was something he'd never felt before; it was a mixture of something good and familiar, yet oddly different and unusual. The feeling reached its maximum when he stopped in front of Ryo's partially opened door. He hadn't stepped foot in there in over two months and the door was usually closed, but, Rowen realized, if White Blaze wasn't in any of their rooms, that meant he may possibly be—

There was a lump in Rowen's throat as he pushed the door completely open and immediately spotted the elusive white tiger by Ryo's old bed, producing a sound that was half-growl, half-whine and louder than he had heard in a long time. The Ronins had come to figure it out that that was White Blaze's way of purring, and usually he had only ever 'purred' that loud after he had not seen Ryo in a long time.

Rowen looked up sharply and wrapped his arms around himself, stopping in the center of the room. He absently noticed that White Blaze had closed his eyes in obvious pleasure and was tilting his head as if being scratched behind his ear.

Dang! It's COLD in here! The bearer of Strata thought to himself, suddenly wishing he had worn a thicker shirt. He walked over to the balcony door and checked to see if it was closed. It was, and although there were no places in the window or door through which he could feel air being blown in, the heat from the vents did not seem to be able to permeate the frigid air. An unnaturally cold wind was blowing through the room and chilling Rowen to the bone.

Wondering about the wind but more willing to forget about it for the night and go to his warm bed, Rowen chose to leave the overgrown kitten to his own choices. As he was walking towards the door, however, a picture still tucked into a corner of Ryo's mirror snagged his attention. The snapshot revealed the five Ronins in their subarmor and it brought a large lump to his throat. He was abruptly reminded of the coldness of the room when another blast of wind seemed to snake past. It was strange, he thought, that his hair didn't seem to be ruffled at all by the unusual draft. Yet the goose bumps on his arms told him there was definitely something wrong.

He was turning to leave when, through the mirror's reflection of what was behind him, Rowen noticed a soft, gentle colored, red light suddenly appear over an indentation on the bed before White Blaze. It almost appeared that...someone was sitting there...

When Rowen did not return right away, Sage went looking for the youngerboy, hoping to find him and ask if he knew where he could find a few batteries for his CD player. He hoped Rowen hadn't gone out looking for White Blaze. Heaven only knew the tiger could easily fend for himself and didn't need a teenager with blue hair and armor to baby him. The blonde startled badly when he heard a scream erupt from the open door of Ryo's room. He arrived just in time to see Rowen faint and catch him before he hit his head...

But not soon enough to feel the cold wind disappear, nor understand why the white tiger gave a sudden, heart-wrenching roar of loss.

Thanks for reading. Now please don't forget to review!

(I blame any typos you may have seen on the website's upload program. Heaven knows I've been over all the chapters with a fine-toothed comb many, MANY times! Unfortunately, I've yet to figure out how to indent paragraphs and make text smaller with this thing...)

COMPLETELY REVISED: 7/15/2004