Disclaimer: All characters mentioned belong in the animé series Weiss Kreuss. The plot is taken from the book Scarlet Moon by Debbie Viguié. Please don't sue me…?
For Olive, fanart-factory extraordinaire, and the only one to ever see my true (fat, ugly) face (in Friendster, no less), I'm sorrrrryyyyyy! I still couldn't work on that fic! People out there, her fanarts are simply adorable! Wanna see? Just say so/mail me! (she hasn't come around to posting it anywhere yet)
For Skyyler-sama, arigatou for beta reading! And thanks A LOT for those revisions! (huggles but keeps it to a minimum 'coz she might spread the disease)
Oh, and in a totally random tangent, my best friend didn't know how to operate a mop until last week when, for some reason, her parent's bedroom was flooded.
Scarlet Moon
By Ninetails
Chapter10
The trees were whispering again as Ken hurried toward his grandmother's. He couldn't tell what the trees were saying, but it made him scurry even faster, feet flying across the crunching snow. Two weeks had passed since Ken had told Manx of Ran's curse. When he had gone last week to try and discuss it further, he had been frustrated in his purpose by the presence of Kase.
Kase had arrived before he did, and he had left after he did as well. These days his cousin looked gaunt, his scraggly hair tied back with a leather tie. He had been growing his hair out, and it was at the length that made him look a little wild and unkempt. He paced the room constantly, reminding Ken of the squirrel that had spent three hours accidentally trapped in their cottage the summer before.
Ken had wished to discuss his cousin with his grandmother as well, but he didn't have the chance. Today, hopefully, things will be different.
Upon reaching the clearing, he noted how silent everything seemed. A ripple of unease went through him as he knocked on the door. There was no answer.
"Grandmother?" Ken called as he opened the door. He walked inside and his blood ran cold. Everywhere glass jars lay smashed on the floor, his grandmother's worktable was turned over, its contents scattered everywhere.
"Grandmother," Ken whispered, terror filling him.
A groan from the corner drew his attention. There lay Manx, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth and shards of broken glass covering her clothes. Ken dropped to his knees and cradled his grandmother's head.
"Who did this to you?" he gasped.
Manx could only manage a gurgling sound.
"What did they do to you?"
Again there was no answer. Manx's eyes closed and her body slumped.
"Grandmother!" Ken screamed.
Manx did not stir, but Ken noticed with relief the steady rise and fall of her chest. At least she was still alive. Gently, the brunette eased his grandmother's head back down onto the ground and stood up. Somewhere in this house there is something that can help me; I just need to figure out what it is. He crossed to a shelf which had jars that were still intact and studied the contents.
Three hours later Ken had cleaned up the house as best as he could. He had moved his grandmother to the bed and had done his best to make her comfortable. He had applied a poultice to his grandmother's wounds and was trying to decide what to do next.
Outside the wind howled like a ravenous wolf, rattling the shutters as though seeking a way in. It was then that Ken truly understood that he was wrestling not with nature or injury but with death itself. He raised his fist to the sky. "You cannot have her!" he cried to wind and dark and death. Just then there was a knock at the door. He flung open the door, half expecting hell itself to be on the other side. Instead it was Ran, his face twisted in concern.
"I waited for you for hours," he said. "Is anything wrong?"
"Everything," Ken answered in frustration. "Someone attacked Grandmother."
"What!" Ran exploded, pushing past him into the cabin. "Is she okay?" he asked.
"I don't know. I'm not sure what I can do to help her."
Ran knelt by Manx and laid his ear to her chest. "Her heartbeat is slow, erratic," he said after a moment. He glanced up. "Could she have been poisoned with something here?" he asked.
"I'm sure she was, but I don't know with what," Ken said, cursing himself for not being able to think clearly.
"We can take her to the village healer."
"No!" Ken exclaimed. "She is not welcome in the village. Also, she and the healer never saw eye to eye. She would rather die than have him treat her."
"Well, she might do just that," Ran said grimly, rising to his feet. "Tell me what I can do."
"Go tell my father what has happened," Ken begged.
His father came, but there was nothing he could do other than look helplessly at the still body of his mother. At last he went home, tired and upset. Kase didn't come, but sent word that he would help out Ken's father while he took care of their grandmother.
For Ken, it was a long, sleepless night filled with worry. The next morning he sat by his grandmother's bed, grateful that Kase had offered to help his father in the shop for a few days. He was surprised that he hadn't offered instead to come and keep watch over Manx, though. Maybe he's seen too much death and illness, he thought.
Ken continued to work on finding a cure for the one woman who could have told him what to use. "Come on, Grandmother, wake up. I need another lecture," he pleaded softly.
It's not fair that the one person who could fix all this is the one person who can't, he thought.
He had racked his brain time and again thinking of all the poisons his grandmother had warned him about but none of them seemed to match Manx's symptoms.
He rose and walked about the room, stopping to look again at each jar, each potted plant, and each drying herb. The answer is here, I know it, he thought, frustrated.
He sat again and took a deep breath. Mentally he ticked off once more all the poisons he knew. Then, at last, it came to him. The day I came to tell her Youji would never come back. What was she talking about?
Monkshood.
That's it!
"Please, please let me remember how to treat it," he prayed.
Grandmother said it was incredibly deadly. A small amount could cause numbing, a tiny bit more death. She also went on to say something about slowing the heart, causing paralysis…
He struck his fist into his open palm. If it could do that, surely it could render someone unconscious.
With renewed purpose he made the rounds of the cottage, searching for the cure. I don't remember what it was, but hopefully something will jog my memory.
When he came across the digitalis, he remembered. "I have to fight poison with poison," he said out loud, beginning to feel sick with anxiety. "I could kill her, but if I do nothing, she will die anyway."
He turned, determined, and crossed back to his grandmother, placing a piece of the poison plant in his grandmother's mouth and washing it down with a small sip of wine. She said something about alcohol being good for treating both of them. Let's hope she was right.
Ken waited anxiously for some sign. Nothing happened for nearly an hour, and then, suddenly, Manx began to vomit.
Ken panicked but quickly rolled his grandmother onto her side and helped clean out her mouth. The woman's chest began to heave and her skin grew warm to the touch, a marked difference from her clamminess that morning.
Suddenly her eyes flew open, the deep green almost totally obscured by the black orbs in the centers. They were enormous, but some part of Ken told him that this was right.
Manx reached up and grasped Ken's hand for a moment. She squeezed it hard before her own hand fell back to her side and her eyes closed. Her body slumped again and Ken feared the worst. Manx's chest still rose and fell steadily, though.
Ken put his ear to his grandmother's chest and almost cried for joy when he could hear her heart beat, steady and strong. It's working! Hold on, Grandmother, you're going to be okay after all, Ken thought.
He sat back up with an overwhelming sense of relief. As he stared at his grandmother's body, however, he realized that they weren't out of the woods yet.
Over the next several days his grandmother awoke off and on, usually just long enough to take a sip of water. She still couldn't speak, but she smiled up at Ken, her beautiful eyes expressive, before she would slip back into her slumber.
Ken longed to ask her what had happened, who had attacked her, but his grandmother was never conscious for long enough. Not that she could answer me anyway.
The days passed and Ken's anxiety grew. Ran visited several times, always accompanied by his father. Ken managed to joke that his grandmother wasn't much of a "chaperone" in her state, but it was hard to feel cheerful.
Still, plans for their union were made, and his father managed to get work done at his shop. The world moved on without Ken, but as the full moon drew near again Ken began to fear. He had never been able to discuss with his grandmother what to do to help Ran.
At last, the night before Ran was to transform, Manx awoke and was able to stay conscious. She tried to speak but could not yet, her throat still raw from her ordeal. The next afternoon Ken felt he could leave her alone, at least for a few hours, while he tended to the wolf.
TBC
Author's Notes:
I originally planned to update this fic on the nights of the full moon. But I figured it would take me about a year if I do so. Quite funny, in fact, since tonight is the last night of the full moon. Whee!
My cousins were confined to the hospital last Wednesday. I had to take care of the stupid little, err, I mean, poor little souls. Then, my other cousin and my little sis had fevers as well. And now, my five year old cousin was confined. So, I had to take care of the miserable, err, I mean, distressed angels. I blame it on the weather. They spend half the time in AC'd rooms, then they'd go out to play in our playground under the sweltering sun. Geez. And I managed to catch the disease that's been lurking around the house so I feel miserable as well. That's one of the reasons why I wasn't able to update this week.
The other is the dreaded, plain, old, writer's block. Hence the shortness of this update. Whee.
Oh, and have I ever mentioned that this'll be the last WK fanfic I'll write for a long, LONG time?
Replies to Reviews (Chapter 9): Umm, hospital food, anyone? (snickers)
Moon without a Sun Waaaaaaaaahhh! I AM SO SORRY FOR TAKING TOO LONG TO UPDATE! (AND YEAH, THE CAPS LOCK BUTTON DECIDED TO TUR ON BY ITSELF) 'Nyways, oops, I almost forgot about Youji. Still trying to work the others back into the plot. Somehow. Gah, too troublesome. Hehe, go Shikamaru! I'm so sorry for the short update, but in pain of prolonging Manx and Ken's angst/torture, I'd rather tone it down. Ne? Did that make sense? Gah. Thanks for the review! (huggles)
Ru-chan Ehehehe, yup, they're UBER sweet. I was giggling madly (okay, not really) while I was envisioning that particular chapter, but when I tried to write it down… Gah. Goes to show, ne? Late breakfasts are good! (sigh) The life of a student… or bum… yeah, I'm too lazy to cook my own food. Hehe… (hides under convenient pile of towels) Kase sucks? He kills people? Hehe. I have a feeling that you'll hate him even more than you already do after reading this chappie. Yeah, that was a blatant hint. Gomen. 'Nyways, thanks SO much for the review! (huggles)
Little Fox Kit (blinks at amount of reviews)… You… are… insane! Hehe… Glad you appreciate the first chappie. Even though it featured a half-bitten Kenken. I like the trees too, err, I mean, the trees creep me out too. I don't even know if they're there to help out or to just add more creepiness to the story. (Nah, not really. They're just there to add more length…) Um… Dinner? Alcohol? How old are you again! Ehehehe, don't mind me, I started drinking (only gin and wine! … and vodka…) when I was 14. Or 13. Not sure anymore. Waaaaahhh! I didn't get the link! doesn't support links anymore! If you don't mind, please PLEASE send me the link again. Or mail it to me. Hehehe… Arigatou! Anime wallpapers! Gimme! Hehe, I likie the effects of alcohol on you! Hehe. Dun' worry, can't hold my liquor too… WAAAAAAAIII! NARUTO IS SO COOL! I won't really attempt to buy/dl the manga 'coz it's too troublesome (go Shikamaru!) so I just watch the series, dl some djs/pics/fics, and buy plushies! I have Naruto and Sasuke plushies of my own! The Kakashi and Iruka ones are with Elana-chan. What (yaoi?) pair do you support? I'm currently IN LOVE with the SASUNARU pairing! Have you read "Daddy Rooster Head?" Mwahahaha! Have you seen the doujinshis in zettai-hentai? Yummy! Wait… (nosebleeds) Even though I'm only about halfway through the series, yeah, NARUTO ROCKS! I love the first op theme, "Wind." Wai! Orochimaru is freaky-cool! Sasuke is god, and Naruto is adorable! Whee! Okay, gotta get down from my high. Thankies for the reviewS! (huggles hard)
oliviayuymaxwell Ehehehe, glad you likies chapter 9! And I'm sorry if I kinda ruined your expectations for this chapter… Nyahahaha! Kenken is adorable. Thanks for chibi diary IV! The one where Ken, this time, steals a peck from Ran's cheek. Uber kawaii! Wooooooh, Kase is dangerous nowadays… We'll just have to see what my puny mind would dredge up, ne? Thanks SO much for the review and the fanarts! I totally wuv you! (huggles)
HeatherR Hmmm… about that bonding thing… Not sure how to do it yet… Oh well. And yeah, the full moon will happen next chapter so watch out for that… Or not… I still haven't written it yet. (bawls) Kase, Reiji and Masafumi are bad people? (blinks) … Nah, just kidding. The truth is, I just want to use these people instead of making up OCs that are just gonna die anyway. Yeah, Reiji turned out to be good… I just don't want Ken to suffer more… Maybe I should've used Persia…. Hmmm… (starts getting a headache) Hehe, I really should've researched more than just rely on the fics I've read. Oh well. It's the same! I suppose. They are people, after all. Attraction is imminent, heck, even love is possible between men. Yeah, homophobes out there should be convicted of their crimes against accurate/interesting history! (snickers) Oh, she's gonna work on submitting it to sites when she has the time. Thanks SO much for the review! (huggles)
Chitoshiya no Tohma … The dialogue I write between Ran and Ken is so pretty you could marry it! … Not if I get to it first! (starts giggling madly) Thanks! Oooh, Artemis Fowl and the Eternity Code, eh? That book's cool! As for "The Opal Deception," well, it was cool too but… okay, okay, I won't spoil you. It wasn't Ran! Who/what was it then? Maybe they just slipped and fell and the wild woodland animals decided to snack on them on their way to wherever they're headed. Sex with Ken and be happy, the end? Cool! Maybe I could end this stupid fic with those exact words! Thankies! (snickers) 'Nyways, thanks for the reviewS! (huggles)
Dark-One Shadowphyre …. (blinks) … I never thought of it that way… Hmmm… Excellent theory though! (huggles) Cool too! (sigh) I wish I had more imagination… Ehehehe, my story made your bunnies breed? Gah, plot bunnies should be castrated and shot down! Err, gomen… My friend and I have this thing with plot bunnies. Hehe, I'm SO glad your bunnies have bred a Weiss AU plot! We can never have enough of Weiss AU plots! Wai! I do hope Kase is in your story as well… somehow… maybe as the talking headboard or something. See how much my imagination works? Gah. I'm SO gonna shut up now. Thanks SO much for the review! (huggles again)
Horisont Ehehehe, thanks SO much for liking my adaptation. It was a bitch to write, but the fluff moments (are there any?) make it fun. Ehehehe, thanks for saying that. I still have this nagging feeling that Ran and Ken (and pretty much everyone in this story) is WAAAAAAAAAAY too OOC. Uh oh. I think you're gonna kill me after reading this chapter. Gomen nasai! Oh, sorry too for taking too darned long. 'Nyways, thanks SO much for the review! (huggles)
RosefaerietaleRed Whoops, almost didn't include you there, hehe, gomen. 'Nyways, I hope Ran wasn't the killer too but Masafumi's murder was satisfying, don't you think? Ehehehe, gomen for corrupting you or something. Yeah, we'll find out eventually what happens next. Hexk, I dunno how to write the things I manage to envision. Geez. Thanks SO much for the review! (huggles)
To think that in a month's time, I'm turning 19. I'm getting old! Waaaaah!
