I don't own Ranma or anything associated with it. There, I said it.
()-Chinese speak
''thoughts
""Speech
There, I also said it. Now on to the story.
The boy wandered for what seemed forever, the surreality from starvation and dehydration adding a small reprieve to his torn mind. Blood flowed freely from fresh wounds over his clearly visible ribs to his almost twig like arms and legs. Malnutrition made it's presence known in the boys fragile form and broken bones made it hard for him to walk and breathe. The wounds deepened and tore with every move he made, making the pain he endured almost unbearable. The slow limping stride aggravated his already mangled body and caused the youth to stumble through trees and thickets into a clearing. He rasped for air and his broken body fed the earth with his freely flowing blood. He painfully lifted his head and saw a gate with tell tale smoke pillars that meant fire and food. The boy tried to stand up but fell back down and brought on a new wave of pain that made him almost pass out. He tenderly felt around for anything that could lend him some leverage and felt a thick branch pass under his fingertips. Quickly, he drew it close and put his weight into it and luckily the stick held fast. Tiredly, the boy limped his way toward the gate and hoped that they would not turn him away like everyone else had.
-0-0-0-
The lookout saw the youth clamber his way out of the brush and fall to the ground out in front of the gate. She hazily tried to see why he collapsed but at this range from the gate that was almost impossible. She told the other gate lookout to fetch one of the elders and she readied her spear in case the boy tried to attack. He lay there for a while staining the earth red with his blood before he tried to shakily stand and fail miserably, proven by the moan of pain that escaped his mouth. He slowly felt the red earth around him and picked up a branch that fell under his hands. He brought the branch to bear on the ground and lifted himself to stand on the blood soaked ground. He smiled and started to walk towards the gate. The lookout brought the spear up into an offensive position and barked out to the now known bleeding boy,
("You There! Stop right where you are and state your business.")
The boy brought head up to see who had asked him and she noticed many scars old and new while there were also lumps and gashes across his face from a recent struggle. The boy looked at her through swollen eyes and said in broken Chinese,
("I sorry. Did not mean to bother.")
("It is no bother young man.")
The lookout jumped in surprise and bowed deeply while saying,
("I am sorry Elder Khu Lon, I did not hear you approach.")
The Elder looked at the lookout with a blank expression and said,
("It is alright young one. Have you found out where this young man is from?")
("No Elder, you have heard just as much as I have from the outsider.")
("Hmm, alright then.")
The Elder pogoed down on her staff to the boy's position to the shock of the lookout as she said,
("Elder! What are you doing?")
The Elder ignored her and instead concentrated on the broken boy before her. From what she could tell, he was around sixteen, had brown hair and dark brown eyes and was injured from head to toe. He had many gashes and cuts along his starved frame. He had broken his left leg badly and he also probably fractured his arm from the look of things. The Elder was also unsettled about something, but she couldn't quite place her finger on it. She gave the boy another once over and said,
("Hello young one. My name is Khu Lon, Chief Elder of the Amazon tribe Joketsukozu.")
The boy trembled and tried to bow but only succeeded in collapsing to the ground and falling on his obviously broken leg. He cried out in pain and tried to get up again and bow when Khu Lon came over and placed a hand on his shoulder and said as kindly as she could,
("Do not exert yourself child, I will forgive a lapse in formalities this once.")
She smiled and the boy tried to chuckle but instead coughed and sent blood and spit over his already bloody hands. The elder frowned and finally deemed it necessary to check his ki and see how bad off he was. The Elder felt that unsettling feeling again and finally understood what it meant. She could not sense his ki. Either this boy was at deaths door or he was suppressing it, which seemed highly unlikely so she went with option one for now, as it seemed the most logical. The boy's raspy breathing calmed and the Elder continued their conversation.
("So young man where do you come from?")
He looked up and stared straight through the Elder and gave her a look to say that he was gaging her. It seemed she passed because he quietly said,
("Japan.")
The Elder nodded and said,
"Would you like me to speak in Japanese?"
The boy nodded and she continued.
"Why don't you come in and let us take care of you child."
He looked up with hope practically flowing from his eyes and said,
"You will? I don't want to be a burden."
"Don't worry, you won't be."
The boy's cracked lips upturned into a smile and began to bleed a little. Khu Lon frowned and said in the best motherly tone she could manage,
"Let's get you inside."
The boy smiled even wider causing him to wince and Khu Lon to sigh. She let the boy set the pace as they walked the rest of the way to the gate and the Elder called out,
("Open the gate.")
The lookout said,
("But Elder, he is a man. How do we know he isn't a spy?")
The Elder stared hard at the lookout and said,
("I will promise on my word and my title as Chief Elder. Now open the gate.")
The lookout was shocked that the Elder would go out of her way for an outsider male and opened the gate. Khu Lon kept pace with the boy and they began their small hike to the village. As they were walking along, the boy said,
"I'm sorry if I'm causing you trouble Elder. I'll leave if I am too much of a burden."
The Elder looked at the boy and said,
"You are not causing trouble young one, and I won't let you leave until you're healed."
The boy smiled his cracked smile and said,
"Thank you for your kindness."
The Elder smiled and said,
"Think nothing of it. Now what is your name child."
"Koiichi."
"Koiichi hm? Well then Koiichi, you already heard my introduction so I will not bore you with it again."
"Well then, thank you for taking me in Elder."
He went to bow but the Elder stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder, which caused him to wince and bark in pain. The Elder looked at him with sad eyes and said,
"Who did this to you young one?"
He looked up with old, haunted eyes and said,
"Do you need to know Elder?"
She looked thoughtful for a moment and then cracked a knowing smile. She said,
"Another time perhaps. We are here."
Koiichi looked up and saw a village that was bustling with the everyday happenings of life. Koiichi was wary until a few moments had passed and the Elder said,
"This village is the home of me and my sisters. You will not come to harm here."
The boy visibly relaxed and they began to walk towards the healers hut. They were getting close when it seems the injuries and blood loss caught up with him. He collapsed right outside the stairs up the hut and lay bleeding outside the door. The Elder sighed and caught sight of her great grand daughter leaving the training hall. It was a good thing too because the Elder could definitely not carry him up alone. The Elder called out,
("Xiang Pu, I need help carrying him. Can you help me?")
("Yes great grand mother, but why are you helping this boy? Why did you allow him into the village?")
("I will explain later, but for now help him into the healers, he does not have much time left.")
Xiang Pu came over and lifted the boy by pulling an arm over shoulder and dragged him into the healers home. The Elder went in ahead and left Xiang Pu with the starved and bleeding boy to drag up the stairs and into the modest home. She grunted and dropped the burden of the boy on the bed of the healer as roughly as possible and looked in dismay at her blood soaked clothes. She angrily said to herself.
("Stupid boy! These were my good clothes too. Now I'm gonna have to go out and get new ones.")
She inspected her clothes and noticed yet more of the disgusting boys blood and she huffed in anger. She sat down and waited for her great grand mother and the healer to come and inspect the boy so she could go home and clean as much of the blood off as she could. When the healer and Khu Lon entered they told Xiang Pu to leave and went to the boy to take a good look at his injuries. The healer took off his tattered clothes and began a thorough check of the boy. She went from head to toe from the boy and it seemed the lower she went the more pained she became. By the time she had gotten to his feet she had a disgusted look on her face and looked at the boy with pity she had never seen grace the healers face. The healer said,
("Elder, how did you find this boy?")
The Elder looked curiously at the healer and said,
("I found him outside the gate bleeding and about to collapse. Why?")
The healer sighed and said,
("Because whoever injured this boy made it so that he should have never been able to walk or breathe without being pained. Most of his ribs have been broken and his both of his legs have been fractured, one twice more so than the other and the other being broken. He has one shattered knee on the same as the broken leg and it also seems that he has broken his left arm and his right wrist. He has a dislocated shoulder on the same as the broken arm and has internal bleeding coupled with his external gashes and cuts. I believe the only reason he is alive is because the gods have pitied him.")
The Elder looked at the boy with an unreadable expression before saying,
("Has he any other injuries?")
("Well, it would seem that he has broken his bones many times before and that was why he was not driven mad with the pain.")
Khu Lon took this all in and said,
("Do what you can for him. I will hold an emergency meeting with the council.")
("As you wish Elder.")
Khu Lon left for the Council chambers and sent messengers to the other Elders. This boy required their attention, for she knew there was more to him than what he was letting on.
-0-0-0-
The Elders all gathered in the meeting hall of the Elders and waited patiently for Khu Lon to begin. When she entered, the entire hall quieted down and waited for her to begin the session. Khu Lon said,
("I have called an emergency meeting of the Elders for an important matter that concerns a situation that has arisen. Is there anything noteworthy of before we begin?")
Shi Lan, one of the oldest members other than Khu Lon said,
("We have heard rumors of a man allowed into the village and that you allowed it. Is this true Khu Lon?")
Khu Lon said,
("That was the reason I have called this meeting. I will address that concern later. Anything else?")
The council chamber was quiet and Khu Lon continued.
("I will continue on to the reason of this meeting. Today I came across a youth outside our gates, whose body was broken and bleeding. With the brief conversation I held with him, I learned he was named Koiichi and he hailed from Japan.")
The Elder held up her hand to forestall any comments and continued.
("I realize it may sound strange but in his state I did not want to pressure him. I brought him to the village to see the healer and learned that his broken state was put upon him on purpose. He was made so that travel meant extreme pain for him and that the only reason he even made it here without collapsing from the pain was that it seems his body has been broken more than once. I am pained to say that I believe he has sustained punishment like this before. Now that I have made my point you may ask any questions or put forth anything you see fit.")
The other nine Elders looked to each other and discussed amongst themselves until Sha Mei spoke up.
("Why did you not consult us first before allowing the outsider male into the village? For all we know he is a spy of one of our enemies and sent here to weaken us so his forces may cripple us.")
("I am sure he is not. But if you are still uncertain then you may visit him yourselves tomorrow.")
This time Sho Lin.
("Did you learn who forced these injuries upon him.")
Khu Lon shook her head and said,
("No, but I will ask him when he is in a better state of body and mind.")
Ada Nu.
("What about the boy's background? What have you found out if he has any family?")
("As I said before, I will wait until he is in a better state of mind.")
Nam Te.
("What of his age? If he is below manhood than certainly he cannot be a spy.")
Khu Lon sighed and said,
("He seems to be near or above my great grand daughters age, sixteen.")
This brought about another flurry of hushed conversation and Shi Lan spoke up.
("We have agreed on one final question Khu Lon.")
The apprehension was evident on her face and Khu Lon said,
("Yes?")
("We have decided to ask that you try the...memory sight on the boy.")
Khu Lon was shocked by the outcome but kept face in front of the other Elders.
("Why would you ask me to do this.")
Shi Lan said,
("This is the best way to know for sure that he is not a spy or enemy.")
Khu Lon knew this to be true but why? She looked over some of the faces of the other Elders and noted that most of them had a vicious gleam in their eye and it suddenly all fell into place. They hated men and they would do whatever it takes to remove him from the village, even if it meant killing him.
'Fools, they see nothing but their own blind hatred.'
Khu Lon knew that the memory sight allowed you to look into another's memories without hindrance, but it also left you vulnerable. For the process to work, both needed to be in a dream like state and were left sleeping alone and by themselves so that no one could interfere and hurt or remove one of the participants. They were clever to think up such a thing so as to put both the object of their hate and one of his few protectors out of commission. Khu Lon said,
("Very well. I will wait for the preparations of the memory sight and we will discuss the outcome.")
Shi Lan said,
("You have a week until all the preparations will have been made. Thank you for alerting us to the boy's presence Elder Khu Lon. This meeting is adjourned.")
All the Elders stood and bowed before leaving and left to go home and turn in for the night. Khu Lon pogoed over to the healers and knew that the situation was getting worse by the moment, but first she had to make a side trip to a certain great grand daughter of hers.
-0-0-0-
Xiang Pu was about to turn in for the night when there came a knock at her door.
'Who could it be?' she thought.
Xiang Pu opened the door and saw her grand mother with a worried look on her face. She knew this meant trouble so she let her in great grand mother in and went to fetch some tea.
("No time for that now Xiang Pu, we need to head over to the healers.")
("Why?")
("I'll explain on the way child.")
Xiang Pu was hoping it wouldn't involve the disgusting boy from before. He had already made her throw away her favorite outfit because he had bled all over it. Xiang Pu grabbed her bonbori and quickly followed her out of the modest home to that of the healers. As said, Khu Lon explained to her great grand daughter the reason why she was asked for her to come along and Xiang Pu felt she held her annoyance in very well.
("So I am to come along to help guard the boy?")
("Yes and no. You are here to guard him and make sure that no one tries to do anything to him, yes. Having too many guards around to watch the boy would attract too much attention to him. You are also here however to make sure that he settles in and heals without too much difficulty, for it will be a long and hard road to recovery for him and he will need someone to help him.")
Xiang Pu hated that her great grand mother was asking this of her but she kept her mouth shut and instead said,
("But great grand mother, he is a man, shouldn't he be able to defend himself?")
(" Not in his current state Xiang Pu. Also weren't you the one who said he was a boy.")
There was an amused glint in the Elder's eye that instantly vanished when she saw her great grand daughter's reaction. It seems that at the mention of the boy comment she immediately bristled and said,
("Yes you are right Elder, he is a boy.")
Khu Lon was re-thinking the idea of making her Great grand daughter his helper when they finally reached the healers residence. They entered the house and were about to enter the room when Khu Lon pogoed in front of her great grand daughter and said,
("Listen and listen well great grand daughter. You are about to see something very...unsettling.")
Xiang Pu scoffed at her great grand mother and said,
("I have already seen the boy great grand mother. His condition does not unsettle me in the least.")
Khu Lon sighed and said,
("Have you seen him without his clothes Xiang Pu? He has a multitude of injuries that you did not see in your haste to get rid of him and get the blood out of your clothes.")
Xiang Pu looked at the ground guiltily and Khu Lon stared very hard at her before saying,
("No Xiang Pu, you have not seen most of his injuries but there is something else. Do you know how he got his injuries?")
("No great grand mother, why?")
Khu Lon sighed and said,
("They were forced upon him by other men Xiang Pu. He was made the way he is on purpose.")
Xiang Pu almost smiled but instead said,
("He probably deserved what he got.")
She was rewarded with a rather vicious bonk on the head and when she looked down she saw her great grand mother looking at her very sternly.
("Foolish girl, you are just like those ignorant fools on the council. No Xiang Pu, no one deserves to be put through what this boy has.")
Before Xiang Pu could retort the door to the room was opened and her words died in her throat. The boy's body was covered in deep gashes and cuts that were being sewed shut at the moment. His leg looked to be angled oddly and a very sharp lump was sticking out of it. His wrist was angled funny and his starved frame looked so thin that he could have passed for a stick figure. His ribs were almost painfully obvious and they had bumps all along them, indicating they had been broken before. They also broke the smooth bump like surface at certain points indicating they were broken and his knee was swelling very badly. His arm was also sticking out with a sharp bump that would make anyone that looked at him squirm. His shoulder was sticking out at a weird angle and the worst part of it was that he was awake. He was staring with his swollen eyes very intently at Xiang Pu who was squirming where she was standing until great grand mother got his attention.
"Hello there Koiichi."
His intense stare fell over to Khu Lon and instantly softened and changed into that of a friendly gaze.
"Hello Elder, thank you for coming by."
"Your welcome. How are you doing?"
"Good enough, I've been in worse situations."
Khu Lon's expression became unreadable and she said,
"You have been in worse situations?"
He shifted his position a little and said,
"Yeah, I know it seems hard to top a situation like this but it has happened."
Her face fell and she said,
"I am very sorry to here that, Koiichi."
He shrugged his un-dislocated shoulder and said,
"Well, it happens."
"It shouldn't for a youth like you."
Her face showed a great sadness in her that Xiang Pu had never seen on her features. Xiang Pu was shocked at the expression while the boy just put a wry smile on his face and said,
"So, why is this girl here?"
The healer cut in before Khu Lon could say anything and said,
("I need to fix your shoulder. Here, bite into the leather, it usually helps.")
("Thanks")
The healer handed him the leather and said,
("Ready?")
The boy nodded and an instant later a sickening crunch and a muffled scream could be heard. The boy had his eyes clenched shut and his face contorted in pain until he calmed down a few moments later. The nurse took the leather and muttered something under her breath. Koiichi said,
"So I have Xiang Pu here doing what exactly Elder?"
"She will be here to help you if you need help or to make sure nothing-"
"Attacks me?"
Khu Lon nodded and said,
"Yes, as you know, you are in an Amazon village and we have certain...laws I would like to avoid until you are all healed."
The boy nodded and looked straight at Shampoo with the intense eyes that made her feel like anywhere else would be safer than being in that room. He said in broken Chinese,
("So, you here to help me?")
She looked to the boy and said,
("Yes.")
("Well at least you cute, even if you hate me.")
Khu Lon and Xiang Pu both did a double take of the boy and before either could say anything he said,
("When you brought here, I was thrown on bed and you tried to get the 'disgusting' boy's blood off of your clothes.")
She looked to the ground in shame so she wouldn't have to look at him or her great grand mother. Khu Lon was eying her great grand daughter sternly while Koiichi sat there and let the healer try and set his fractured and broken leg. He hissed in pain as she set the bone and began to wrap gauze around the leg very, very, tightly. Khu Lon brought her attention back to the boy and said,
"Xiang Pu here will guard you for tonight and make sure nothing happens to you. If you need anything, call her name and she will be here."
"Thank you Elder, good night."
"Good night Koiichi."
Both Khu Lon and Xiang Pu left the room and went out into the living room. Xiang Pu was still looking to the ground when Khu Lon said,
("Disgusting boy?")
Xiang Pu was ashamed at hearing her own words and said,
("I thought he was still asleep.")
Khu Lon's eyes flashed dangerously and she said,
("That is no excuse. You should never had said such a biased comment in the first place. Have I taught you nothing these last sixteen years?")
("I am sorry great grand mother. I will make sure it does not happen again.")
Khu Lon sighed and said,
("Why do you dislike the boy so much Xiang Pu?")
She immediately fumed and tried to think up a reason of why she hated the boy so much and just came up with a blank. Khu Lon let the girl sputter and bristle for a few moments before she said,
("Can't think of one, can you.")
All anger died instantly in the fuming lavender and she was left choking on her own embers. Khu Lon sighed and said,
("Not all men are bad Xiang Pu. If you hate this boy just because of his gender, than you are no better than the council themselves.")
With this closing remark Khu Lon left the healer's home and hoped to god that the girl didn't do anything stupid.
-0-0-0-
Xiang Pu was sitting restlessly outside the door to the boy's room. She knew that she didn't feel bad about being so rude to the boy. She didn't care that he was probably knocking on death's door and she had talked badly saying he deserved what he got. She also knew she didn't care that he thought she hated him. She was just peeking into his room right now for no reason except pure curiosity. That's right, just curiosity. So when she looked over to his sleeping form, she was just looking there out of curiosity, not concern. When the 'sleeping' boy talked though, her 'curiosity' was shot down and sent straight to hell.
("So Xiang Pu, could not sleep either, eh? Want talk?")
Xiang Pu 'eeped' and bit her lip thoughtfully before saying uncertainly,
("Sure.")
She grabbed the chair she had been sitting on and brought it in to the small room where the boy was. She sat down next to the boy and started the conversation.
("So, why couldn't you sleep?")
("Haven't slept in bed or anything soft like this for years. You?")
Xiang Pu looked to the ground to hide her embarrassment and quickly thought up a lie. She said,
("Can't sleep in a chair. It is too hard.")
He chuckled softly but ended up in a bout of coughs that left blood covering his free bandaged hand. He sighed and said,
"Going to have to get used to that until it heals..."
"Who did this to you?"
Xiang Pu had said it before she could catch herself and put a hand over her mouth. The boy gave her an intense stare that led her to believe he was looking straight into her soul and his gaze lightened up into a friendly look. He said,
"I ran into an old..."
His face became expressionless for a moment and then went back to friendly and finished with,
"An unfriendly acquaintance you could say. He turned the village I had come by recently against me and had them pummel me until I was a broken heap. He added a few of his own touches as well."
He 'pointed' to his leg an laughed a laugh with no humor in it. Shampoo said,
"This man sound like a real nasty person."
He started to laugh and cough up blood at the same time. When he finished with both he said hoarsely,
"Ya got that right. Ever meet anyone like that?"
Xiang Pu shook her head and said,
"No, thankfully. I have not been out of village much so only enemies I have are rival tribes women."
His eyes glassed over for an instant and he said very quietly,
"I should hope you never leave this village Xiang Pu. It's very peaceful here and you should enjoy that peace as long as it lasts."
Xiang Pu huffed and said,
"I don't think so. Village women always challenging Xiang Pu for right to village champion. It never peaceful for me."
This got a grin on her face and a chuckle from the boy. He said,
"Sounds pretty busy around here for you. At least you're not chased by a mob every time you enter a town."
She giggled and said,
"Oh you be amazed how many women challenge me for title."
The boy cracked a grin and said,
"I guess I might be, but some things just don't seem to surprise me any more."
Xiang Pu put a confused look on her face and said,
"Why that?"
He again gave the soul piercing look and again went back to his friendly gaze. He said,
"It's because most of it has probably already happened to me."
"Oh? Like what?"
He sighed and said,
"Xiang Pu, with the things I've seen and the stuff that's happened to me I wouldn't ever burden anyone with it."
Xiang Pu was confused more than ever now and said,
"Nothing worse could happen to you than this right?"
His eyes became deader than any corpse Xiang Pu had seen and he laughed in a way that made the hair on the back of her neck stand straight on end. He then looked at her and said with sadness in his voice,
"If only that were true Xiang Pu."
Sensing that this was definitely a bad topic, she switched topics to something different and hopefully better.
"So Ko...Koii...Koiik...Koiic-"
"Koi will be fine."
The life came back to his eyes and Xiang Pu giggled at the obvious play on words. She crossed her legs and purred,
"'Koi' hmm, who came up with that? A girl friend?."
He instantly dropped back into his dead eyes and said,
"Yeah..."
Xiang Pu was getting really tired of getting confused and said,
"What happened to her?"
He looked at her with an expressionless mask on his face and said with finality in his voice,
"You don't want to know."
Xiang Pu thought she probably didn't and said,
"Maybe you right."
There was a reigning silence for a moment before Xiang Pu yawned and said sleepily,
"You know Koi, you not that bad."
He chuckled and said,
"Neither are you Xiang Pu."
By now the Amazon had fallen asleep and left Koiichi alone with an amused glint in his eyes and a truck load of thoughts. After an hour of him trying to sleep and Xiang Pu's silent breathing he decided to do the gentlemanly thing. He got up and off the bed and put his arms around the sleeping Amazon in an attempt to move the Amazon. He started to move her with a bandaged arm and an equally bandaged wrist when she groaned and grabbed on to his borrowed shirt for dear life. He chuckled and set the girl down on the bed while prying her arms off of him at the same time, which is no easy task. This girl had a vice like grip on him and could probably give him a killer glomp. When he finally did get her off of him he took a seat in her chair and immediately began to doze. He noticed the peaceful look on her face and thought to himself,
' Heh, can't believe I was like that once. Eh Jokka?'
From inside the boy's head there was a nod and before the nightmares could claim him he thought,
'Lucky girl.'
The boy slumped into the chair and if anyone was awake later that night, would have noticed the lone tear that trailed down the boy's face and the muttered name,
"Setsuna..."
Koi- one meaning of the word is defined as- love
A/N: MWAHAHAHAHA. Pretty cool story eh? I bet a lot of you are wondering who the hell Jokka is. That will be explained later, as will Setsuna. And who is Koiichi? All will be explained in a plot more twisted than my sense of humor. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA.