Note (Just in case…): Guns are NOT toys (DUH!). This is a story, nothing more…don't try any of this at home. Okay…now on with the story.


Tampered Mind – Under Fire

Upon Ichirou's and Shouko's return, the entire house's inhabitants had taken to trying to get some rest. However, none of them seemed to trust that they were perfectly safe in the house, so they all ended up sleeping in the living room. Nyoko guarding the door, Oujirou fell asleep on the couch again and Misaki fell asleep in his arms for a second time. Shouko was asleep in a chair and Ichirou had taken a recliner. After a soft click sounded outside the door, a black gloved hand pried the door open ever so slowly, making it soundless when it slid away from its closed position. The black figure slipped in unnoticed until the gun being held in Nyoko's hand as she slept, was nudged by the person passing by her and fell to the floor. When it hit, a shot rang out loud and clear making everyone wake up immediately. Confusion set in as everyone in the room came to, realizing that they were not at all alone. After grasping the fact that someone was intruding, Nyoko picked up her hand gun and started firing at the person dressed in black. The intruder disappeared around the corner and started firing shots back at Nyoko. By this time, Oujirou and Ichirou had finally gained enough comprehension to understand the situation. Ichirou grabbed Shouko and forced himself, as well as her, to the ground. Oujirou immediately reacted, using all the strength in his arms to throw Misaki to the ground just before one of the shots ricocheted off of a metal piece and hit Oujirou full blown in the shoulder. He threw himself to the ground as well, biting his lip and shutting his eyes tightly to keep from screaming. Nyoko ducked behind the wall and waited for a clear shot. Shouko covered her head with her hands, crying and praying for her life. Misaki was too scared to look up. Pain surged through Oujirou's upper body, causing him to grit his teeth. Shots rang out again between Nyoko and the intruder. Oujirou wrapped the only arm that was unhindered, around Misaki. He wanted to make sure that she at least stayed safe. Misaki clutched at his arm, frightened of what was happening. Nyoko fired off several more shots before taking cover behind the corner of the wall again. Somewhere in the back of the house, a crash sounded loud and clear. Nyoko was almost afraid to know who was coming in the house from behind the intruder. Nyoko leaned against the wall, waiting. Voices were coming from one of the back rooms. She couldn't make them out at first, but as the gun fire stopped, she heard them loud a clear.

"Suspect is apprehended. Please hold your fire Hisa-sama! We're coming out towards you."

She hesitated, looking around the corner to see her superior coming towards her with a black clothed man in front of him, no doubt the very same man that had been shooting at them.

"Yes, Sir," she answered obediently, seeing that everything was all right. She put her gun down at her side and waited for them to escort the man out of the house. After they had done so, she spoke softly into the stiff, tense air that had settled in the dark house.

"Its all right, all of you may get up from the floor now. It's over."

Ichirou and Shouko got up very slowly and looked around. Light was just creeping into the room, little by little now and they could see more than just the outline of shapes. Colors started to meet their eyes. Misaki tried to get up, with much difficulty because Oujirou was still leaning on her for the most part and he didn't have the strength to lift himself, currently. Everything from about his waste up had gone numb.

"Oujirou," Misaki whispered softly, "you can let me go now. Its over."

"Misaki…I—I can't move…I'm sorry," Oujirou's voice was tight and soft, and held a note of apology in it. "You're—you're going to have to…help me."

"Oujirou?" Misaki spoke more softly into the air… "What's wrong?"

Almost immediately Ichirou's voice came from overhead.

"Oh my go—" He gasped. "Oujirou! Your bleeding!"

Oujirou bit his lip, "I know. I was shot."

Misaki sudden felt utter terror surging through every part of her body. Forcefully lifting herself out from under Oujirou, she looked at him. Seeing the blood near his chest, she screamed silently—unable to find any sound in her voice to scream with. She reached down and began trying to turn him over, "OUJIROU! HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN!"

Oujirou reached up and put his working arm around Misaki's neck, too weak to lift himself off the floor, even with her help. Gradually, everything started going out of focus for him until he saw no more and he could feel no more. Tears started streaming down Misaki's face when Oujirou fainted in her arms. Shouko, who had been looking on helplessly, started screaming for someone to get an ambulance when she saw that Oujirou may not be alive very long if they didn't do something immediately. Seeing that Oujirou was in trouble, Nyoko ran over and kneeled next to him, taking his pulse. Determining that he was getting weaker, she turned him around in her hands, gently, searching for the gunshot wound. Finding it on his shoulder, her stomach unclenched itself a little.

"That's good at least," Nyoko said out loud, "it shouldn't have hit any organs."

Oujirou let out an unconscious groaning protest after Nyoko had turned him on his back and laid him on the floor again.

"No telling how long that went on for. I would guess about fifteen minutes, but its been at least five since it stopped. Twenty minutes leaving a gunshot wound unattended to can mean the loss of quite a bit of blood. At least…that's what I've been led to believe. I'm not a doctor, so I couldn't possibly tell you what is exactly going on. But I think I know how to stop it from bleeding anymore."

Nyoko ripped a piece of her sleeve off, with the help of a pocket knife she had on her person, wrapping the cloth around his shoulder and tightening it.

"There…that should keep us from losing him before the ambulance gets him to the hospital."

Her superior came running back into the house with two paramedics behind him. He pointed at Oujirou, "He's right there."

The paramedics rushed over to Oujirou, securing him on a stretcher. Misaki, Shouko, Ichirou, Nyoko, and her superior who they didn't know by any name other than "Kenichi-sama", due only to the fact that, that was the name that Nyoko kept calling him by. Other than the bustling back and forth of a doctor and the soft talking of Nyoko and Kenichi, the ambulance was completely silent. Silent tears were streaming down Misaki's face, Shouko was sitting silently in the corner of the ambulance with her chin on her hands, and Ichirou was staring at Oujirou in a "worried father" sort of way.

"Did we get her at least?" Nyoko's voice was hushed as she spoke.

Kenichi sighed, looking over at Oujirou, "Fortunately, yes. She's in custody at the moment. But since she's only a minor, I can't guarantee that she'll stay there very long. Hopefully the judge will consider the severity of her actions and will give her a fairly long sentence. Although…for a minor…the longest sentence I've ever seen that judge give is five years. Even so, it breaks my heart to see that happen. I don't understand what could have pushed her that far."

"Mean students in her school? Family problems? Perhaps a death in the family? Its hard to say," Nyoko turned her head towards Oujirou momentarily, then back to her superior, "But, what scares me, is the fact that she was able to gain access to such things as snipers. And we're not talking, just someone who wanted to be a 'bad boy.' We're talking about someone who's obviously had experience in using long-range weapons and knows what he's doing. How is it possible? I just don't get it."

Kenichi shrugged, "I'm not sure. That part worries me as well. Especially since she's considered to still be just a child by most people."

Nyoko looked out the door of the ambulance, watching the pavement go by in silence.

When they arrived at the hospital, Oujirou had gained a slight state of consciousness as doctors were rushing him towards a bed in one of the rooms. It only took them about thirty minutes to locate and remove the bullet, and about another fifteen minutes for him to get stitches put in. But when all that was done, hospital personnel were still bustling around him, constantly checking his blood pressure, his pulse, and looking if he was awake. A doctor finally came out of the waiting room to meet with Misaki, Shouko, and Ichirou.

"We've stabilized him for now," The doctor said in a professional manner, "but we need to keep him overnight for observation, as well as, getting some fluids into his body. He's very week at the moment, due to the amount of blood that he lost, but nothing vital was damaged. I would say that he'll probably be home as early as tomorrow, maybe even up and about by the end of this week."

"So, he'll be okay, right?" Misaki asked rather timidly.

"It certainly looks that way," the doctor said with a small smile.

"Can I…may I see him?" Misaki asked shyly.

"Yes." The doctor waved towards a nearby door, "He's in the fourth room down on the right."

"Thank you," Misaki said, jumping out of her chair and walking towards Oujirou's room. She stopped at the door, suddenly not wanting to go into the room, for fear that she may see something that would shock or disturb her. Gathering up the courage, she slowly walked into the room.

There was nothing unexpected or appalling about Oujirou's room. It was sanitary, dark, and empty. Just an ordinary hospital room. Oujirou looked slightly pale and with his eyes closed like they were, he looked slightly ill at a distance. Misaki walked over to him and gently brushed hair away from his face. To her, he seemed peaceful, but exhausted. Misaki pulled up a chair next to his bed and sat down. She stared down at him for a moment, feeling strangely lost. She gently put her small, warm hands in Oujirou's almost manly, cold hands and frowned. Hesitating for a moment, she leaned forward and over slightly, kissing him, then leaning away from him almost instantly. She blushed at her own daringness as she sat back in the chair next to her bed, still holding his hand in her own. The morning light crept through the windows of the room as her eyes closed and she fell asleep once more…


Okay, I'm making progress slowly. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll try to write the next chapter soon, but no promises.