Yes, it has been a while, but with projects due, tests and the like, one must budget his time. Fortunately, finals are coming up, meaning no academic concerns for about three months. During that time, I hope to be updating my fics more frequently; but I'm not promising anything.
Someone call a medic 'cause I think she's gonna strike again
She slammed down the phone and gave the finger to the nightstand
And holds the picture in the heart-shaped frame we bought at Target
Yes, I guess we've got a problem, but I can't put my finger on it
The message on the cell says she's waiting on the call from me
To tell her that I'm sorry; I can come back if I crawled
But I got bad knees and I can't say that I'm sorry
'Cept I'm sorry that I met you now my guard's up and I'm fighting dirty
Down for the count, over and out
Toss in the towel 'cause she really got the best of me
I can't hang around; she kicks while I'm down
What was that sound? I just wish the f-ing bell would ring
Bowling For Soup
Chapter 12
"Keitaro..." Naru could only stand there in shock as Kitsune gave Keitaro the worst beating in his life--which is saying quite a bit, all things considering. Every strike, every cry of pain seemed to echo in her mind. She could hear Haruka yell something, but to Naru, her elder's voice sounded distant and distorted to the point that she couldn't understand what was said.
"No..." For Naru, probably the most shocking thing about the whole scene was how ferocious Kitsune was being. Granted, herself and Motoko have been in similar states of mind more times than she can count, but most of those examples end in one-hit wonders, giving them time enough to calm down while they waited for Keitaro's return from wherever they sent him. This time however, Keitaro was forced to stay and get pummeled time and again.
Naru continued to look on in silence as Kitsune swung for the fences a sixth... seventh... eigth time before Motoko appeared almost out of nowhere to prevent the ninth. Thanks to some fancy footwork from Suu, the massacre was finally brought to an end. It was at this point that Naru was unable to watch any longer. Quickly, she made a beeline for the front door, but she didn't go unnoticed.
"Naru?" Shinobu said in almost a whisper as she looked up from checking Keitaro's wounds. "Was that realy her?"
"Shinobu, what are you waiting for!" Motoko yelled as she, Suu and Haruka kept the still raging fox restrained.
"Oh, right," Shinobu said, remembering what she was about to do before she was momentarily distracted. Without another moment's hesitation, she ran inside and called 9-1-1 (or at least the Japanese equivalent).
After a couple of rings, someone picked up on the other end. "Hello, emergency hotline."
"We need an ambulance here right away!" Shinobu said.
"Alright, I need you to tell me where you are."
"I'm at the Hinata-Sou apartments!" Shinobu said. "Hurry, our landlord needs help badly!"
"Ok, we'll get an ambulance there as soon as we can."
"Thank you!" As soon as Shinobu hung up, she rushed back outside to see if the situation has improved. Kitsune was still struggling to break free, but has tired to the point that only Suu was needed to keep her in line, leaving Haruka and Motoko free to examine Keitaro.
"Well, he's still alive and breathing," Haruka said. "That's a start."
"Keitaro..." Motoko said, not even trying to hold her emotions back. "This cannot be happening--it just can't!"
"Everything's going to be alright, Motoko," Haruka said, trying to be comforting. However, on the inside, she was just as worried for Keitaro's health as anymore; perhaps more.
"No!" Motoko said, looking Haruka straight in the eye. "Everything's not alright--far from it!" She turned her gaze back to Keitaro who, at this point, was unresponsive. "If only I had known..."
"Hey," Haruka said. "If it wasn't for you, things would have turned out much worse than they did. For all we know, Keitaro would have died if Kitsune had connected with that head shot. You saved his life, Motoko."
"You don't understand," Motoko said. "After Kitsune's tirade this afternoon, I should have seen this coming. I could have prevented all this from happening. Why did I let this happen!"
"You're not at fault, Motoko," Shinobu said.
"Why shouldn't I be!" Motoko said, tears now threatening to fall down her face. "This was a time where he needed me the most and I let him down. I failed him."
"No..." Everyone's attention quickly turned to the injured manager as he tried to speak. "Don't blame yourself."
"Keitaro, you need to conserve your strength," Motoko said.
Keitaro slowly shook his head. It was probably the only part of him he could move without causing extreme pain. "I couldn't find Naru. Why else do you think I would stay out as late as I did? I dreaded what Kitsune would have done, and rightly so it seems."
"Keitaro..." Shinobu whispered, somehow able to keep her tears on the inside.
"Whatever happens to me," Keitaro continued, his voice becoming increasingly strained. "Just remember... we're all responsible for our own..." That was when he lost consciousness.
By now, a stream of tears had blazed a trail down Motoko's face. Her actions up to this point might have gotten a bigger reaction from those around her, had there not been a more pressing matter present. "Why did this have to happen?" she thought. "Oh, who am I kidding? What with everything Naru and I put him through, something like this should haave happened sooner. We're as much at fault for this as Kitsune. At least her reasons were justified; more than I can... can..."
Seeing Motoko begin to break down further, Shinobu decided to try her hand at the comforting role. "Haruka's right," she said. "Keitaro has been hurt in the past and he always bounced back. I'm sure this time will be no different."
"I'm not so sure," Motoko said, at least making an attempt to regain her composure. "I am well aware that, among Suu, Naru and myself, he has been hit more times than I care to count, but it was never done all at once."
Shinobu found herself forced to resign to Motoko's reasoning. She admitted to herself that what had just occurred was the equivalent to two to three regular days in the life of the Hinata-Sou landlord.
From that point on, the group waited patiently for the ambulance to arrive. Despite how much they wanted to, they refrained from trying to resuscitate Keitaro from fear of making his condition worse than it already was. Had it not been for his track record in regard to injuries, they would have been that much more worried.
After the paramadics had Keitaro on a stretcher and wheeled away, a voice could be heard for the first time since the aftermath. "May I get up now?" Kitsune asked. Suu looked at Haruka, who gave her the go ahead, so she got off the fox, allowing her to get to her feet. Within moments of this, she was face to face with a still upset swordswoman.
"If you know what's good for you," Motoko said. "You'll explain to all of us why you did this."
Despite Motoko's threat, Kitsune did not so much as flinch. She had calmed down long ago and, apparently, saw the question coming a mile away. Therefore, she had an answer ready and waiting. "Aside from today, when was the last time you saw me angry?"
"What does that have to do with anything?" Motoko asked.
"Just humor me."
With some reluctance, Motoko gave the matter some thought--and the results came as a bit of a surprise. "I can't come up with anything." She turned to the others. "Can you?" The agreement was unanimous.
"That's right," Kitsune said. "That's not to say things do not upset me, I am just better at keeping my temper in check than you or Naru. For years now, I have been holding myself back, but when Keitaro told me what he did at the karaoke club this afternoon, it sent me to the point of no return; and when he finally came back empty handed... well, you saw what happened."
"I guess that makes some sense," Shinobu said.
"Listen," Kitsune said. "I am not proud of what I did. I was merely concerned about Naru."
"Speaking of which," Haruka said, looking around. "Where did she go?"
"What do you mean?" Motoko and Kitsune said in unison.
"About five minutes before Kitsune's ambush, Naru came to see me."
"She did!" both Kitsune and Motoko said.
"So that really was her," Shinobu muttered.
"What was that?" Haruka asked.
"I thought I saw her run inside just before I called for the ambulance."
Haruka sighed. "She must be taking all this harder than any of us." She then walked inside, closely followed by everyone else.
"Um," Shinobu said as they passed through the living room. "Why did Naru go to see you?"
"Yeah, I was wondering that myself," Kitsune added.
Haruka shook her head. "She didn't get to say much, but from the way she looked, something definitely happened to her while she was gone. She was so reluctant to tell me anything, I can only imagine what would happen if she came into contact with any of you."
"So she opted to go to you first and foremost," Motoko noted.
"What could have happened to make her not want to talk to us?" Kitsune asked, more to herself than anyone else. "To talk to me?"
"You'll have to ask her yourself," Haruka said. "But I don't think she'll give you much of an answer." By that time, they had reached the door to Naru's inner sanctum. "Let me go in first," she whispered. "For now, stay out of sight."
Upon seeing the girls nod in agreement, Haruka slowly opened the door. "Naru?" she said. "Are you in here?" Looking inside, she noticed the pale moonlight filtering in room, illuminating the lone figure therein.
Naru sat on her futon, clutching her Liddo-kun doll to her chest so tightly it might have put Suu to shame. She looked as disheveled as ever as she cried her eyes out. All in all, it was a very depressing sight. When she heard Haruka's voice, she opened her eyes and glanced in the older woman's direction briefly before turning her back completely. "Don't look at me," she sobbed.
"You wanted to talk to me," Haruka said, slowly walking towards the distraught girl. "You have a second chance."
"It's my fault..." Naru whispered.
"I'm sorry?" Haruka asked, not entirely sure what Naru said.
"It's my fault K... Kei... he got assaulted again. I'm responsible."
"Don't say that," Haruka said, now sitting next to Naru. "You're not to blame for this."
"Any why not!" Naru said, turning to face Haruka. "Since the day we met, I have been causing him pain." She looked down at the floor. "Even when I'm not around, I'm the source of his injuries. No matter what happens, he gets hurt because of me."
"Listen," Haruka said. "You know as well as anyone that no matter what happens to Keitaro, he always recovers."
"That's not the point! All this time, he seemed to have taken everything Motoko and I dealt to him in stride, but not anymore. Now, he has shown his hatred for me. He won't even let me try to apologize for what I've done; to try to make things right; to say that I... I..." She then buried her face in Haruka's shirt, resuming her crying, thereby continuing her emotional downfall.
"In the morning, we're going to see Keitaro at the hospital to see how he's doing," Haruka said after a while. "There, I think you'll get your chance to say what you need to, but until then, I think you should get some rest. Can you do that for me?"
"I think so," Naru said, somewhat meekly.
"Good. I'll see you tomorrow." Haruka got up and slowly walked out, only stopping at the door to look back at Naru, who was settling into her futon. When she left, closing the door behind her, she was immediately faced by the other girls. "What are you standing around for? Off to bed with you."
"You expect us to sleep after what just happened!" Kitsune said.
"Yes, I do," Haruka said point blank. "And depending on Keitaro's injuries, you should consider yourself lucky if he doesn't press charges." That shut the fox up.
"But weren't you going to ask Naru where she was all night?" Shinobu asked.
Haruka shook her head. "I don't think now's the time. We'll ask tomorrow after we get back from the hospital. Hopefully, she'll be more rational by then." She then walked off, muttering something under her breath.
"Haruka is right. We have done all we can at this point," Motoko said, glaring at Kitsune at that last part.
Somewhat hesitantly, everyone went off to their respective rooms, where they drifted off to sleep. Naturally, considering recent events, it did not come easily.
End of Chapter 12
Yes, I know this one didn't have too much to it, but consider it more like a transition than anything else. My plans has this fic only lasting a couple more chapters, which means you will not have to wait too long to answer the still burning questions you may have. Until then, please R&R!