Fire and Ice: Chapter 10
Hey gang! How're you doing?
Guess what? I, Hekele Adams, am going to Alaska this summer! I will take a flight there, (all by myself,) get picked up by representatives of Alaska Pacific University, taken to the university, and will spend the next 5-6 days sea kayaking and camping on the Prince William Sound! After that, I get to spend another 4-5 days at the college meeting professors and students and stuff...and exploring the city of Anchorage! Then, I'll get dropped off at the airport, and come on home! I am so psyched that it isn't even funny! I might see whales, sea lions, tons of fish...maybe, (hopefully not since I'm camping in a tent,) a grizzly bear...
OK! Here is your chapter! I am happy as all hell right now, so...blah!
Disclaimer: I own nothing...yet...
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Ryou held Hekele's hand tightly as they appeared on Serenity. He was nervous for her, because though he trusted the aliens, part of him still didn't want to let her out of his sight while in unfamiliar territory. Keichiro seemed to be just as apprehensive about Kachie, so Ryou didn't feel as though his 'fears' were unjustified.
Pai, who had gone back to Earth for Lettuce, returned with the said girl then and looked at the four other Earthlings for a moment before motioning towards a hall that led to his laboratory. Taruto started walking in that general direction as Pai spoke.
"Let's get this over with; the sooner we find out what our options are, the better."
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Pudding poked a sulking Kisshu in the arm, earning a growl from the annoyed alien. She only proceeded to poke him again, earning a chuckle from Zakuro and a swat from her victim.
"What the hell are you up to monkey girl? Leave me alone," he ordered coldly. Pudding only poked him a third time.
"Are you going to apologize to Ichigo anytime soon na no da?" she asked. Kisshu growled once more.
"There is no reason for me to apologize! I spoke the truth! We'll all end up fighting again as soon as this is over with, so we might as well not get too attached to one another!"
Zakuro sighed and shook her head, "If life was as defined as you said it was, then nothing would be left to ethics and question. People change their minds, people change their hearts, situations change everything, and nothing is as we first perceive it. Hence what we have come to know now; we thought you aliens were evil and you thought that all humans were evil for destroying our own world. Now we know for a fact that you aliens are only trying to save your people, and are really as human as any of us except for your added abilities and you adaptation to not have to breathe in oxygen. I also would hope that you realize that not all humans are wasteful thoughtless creatures who care nothing for anyone but themselves. Once we learned the truth about you, we came to understand, and our animosity began to fade to the point where we thought we could trust you with this whole arrangement; now we know in our hearts that you are good people inside and that you are our friends. What have you learned about us Kisshu?"
Kisshu groaned and flopped back onto the couch, thinking, "That you're all as stubborn as mules, annoying, generally good-hearted, stupid, too trusting, two-faced, optimistic, and completely unrealistic. Other than that, nothing. Why?"
Pudding grinned, "See; we're not all bad na no da! Know what's funny; we've learned the exact same things about aliens na no da!"
Kisshu hit his head on the wall, "Is that right?"
Zakuro nodded, "Yep, so you might as well try to talk to Ichigo while you can. That girl has a habit of changing her mind once it's made up."
Kisshu looked at her for a moment, contemplating what she had said, and then vanished into thin air. Zakuro smiled at Pudding knowingly.
"I think we've won this round, now how about a game of War; I need to beat you in at least one card game before we go home."
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Kisshu couldn't help but roll his eyes at Ichigo. In the twenty minutes since she had stormed off to her room, she had managed to fall fast asleep. Kisshu gently sat in a cross-legged fashion on her bed, not wanting to disturb her. He stared at her for a moment before sighing.
"You know somethin' kitten? You're a real mystery. One minute I think you hate me, and the next I think you wanna be friends; what's up with that, huh?" he asked, more to himself than her sleeping form. Well, at least he thought she was sleeping.
"I don't think I could ever hate you Kisshu, even before; you just really pissed me off," Ichigo mumbled quietly. Kisshu blinked a few times in surprise before leaning a bit closer so that he could hear her better. He couldn't help the tender smile that had suddenly appeared on his supposed-to-be-annoyed face.
"You awake kitten?" he asked gently. Ichigo rolled over a bit so that she could see him and shrugged.
"I'm staring at you aren't I?"
"Well, you weren't when you had your back to me, kitten."
Ichigo sighed and stretched, "What do you want Kisshu? Come to argue with me some more?" Kisshu shook his head.
"Actually, I came to apologize."
Ichigo rolled her eyes, "Who put you up to it?"
"I'm shocked and appalled kitten."
"Not as much as I would be if you came up here of your own free will."
"I'm hurt then."
"Better; now what do you want? If it was just to apologize, you would have waited until I got up of my own accord."
Kisshu nodded a bit, "Well, now that you mention it, I would like to ask you something."
Intrigued, Ichigo sat up and drew her knees to her chest, resting on them, "Really? Fire away then."
Kisshu let out a breath he hadn't quite been aware that he had been holding, "Do you think that it could really work? In the long run?" Ichigo smiled.
"I do indeed; you and I alone are proof of that. It took us a while, but we're friends now; I trust you with my life, and I would hope that you trust me that much too."
Kisshu smirked a bit, "Hai, I do. You're a nutty cat-girl, but you're still a dependable one nonetheless." Ichigo grinned.
"I aim to please." Ichigo yawned suddenly, and she blushed in embarrassment.
Kisshu grinned, "Still tired kitten? You should get some more rest."
Ichigo shook her head, "Nah, I want to be awake when Hekele and Kachie get back; I don't want to be the last person to find out what's going on." Kisshu shrugged.
"I'll wake you up when they get back then; it'll probably be a few hours. Get some sleep kitten." Ichigo looked at him with tired eyes and sighed.
"Do I have to?"
Kisshu nodded, "Unless you want me to bother you the whole time you wait, then yeah. I'll wake you up as soon as they all get back if you get to sleep now though."
Ichigo sighed and curled up under the covers, Kisshu still sitting on top. After a moment of silence Ichigo turned to face him. "Are you leaving anytime soon?" she asked. Kisshu shook his head.
"Not until I know you're sleeping kitten," he replied. Ichigo rolled her eyes.
"I promise to go to sleep, ok? You said I was dependable didn't you?" she tried. Kisshu shrugged.
"Fine, but if you come downstairs any sooner than sixty minutes, you'll have me to deal with."
Ichigo smiled, "Deal."
Satisfied, Kisshu bent down and stole a quick kiss before Ichigo could move out of the way to avoid him. "Sweet dreams kitten." And then he disappeared. Ichigo blushed reflexively and smiled at the place where he had been.
"G'night Kisshu."
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"I'm going to have to ask you not to speak while you're being scanned; the movement of your jaw could blur the images. Now lie down on the table please," Pai asked Kachie as he motioned to an examining table.
Keichiro squeezed Kachie's hand and nodded gently for her to comply. Kachie nervously followed the instruction, quite apprehensive about letting go of Keichiro's comforting hand. Hekele likewise seemed bothered. The group was in Pai's laboratory, which was filled to the brim with large scientific machines that both Hekele and Kachie were very unfamiliar with.
Ryou noticed the troubled expression worn so plainly on Hekele's face and intertwined their fingers, squeezing her hand coaxingly. Hekele readily tightened her grip on the poor appendage, but Ryou didn't mind. He only smiled at her reassuringly and drew her a bit closer, knowing that it would make her feel s little more secure.
Pai surveyed the group, and after a moment, realized what was causing the hesitation. "I'm going to be using this device to detect any inorganic substances in you body. It works a bit like your X-ray machines, except it provides much clearer images and will detect more than metal and bone. It'll create a full sized transparent image of your body, with muscles, bone, veins, arteries, and cartilage in different colors. Anything inorganic will show up in a variety of greens and blues depending on their substance," he explained as he moved a giant suspended 'slab' over Kachie's body. He was careful not to turn it on, not wanting to alarm the girl. He hoped explaining the process would ease their justified fears; it would make it easier in the long run.
Kachie's mind eased a bit and she nodded to Pai thankfully, "Ok...will it take long? I'm certain the military will be wondering why our signals actually disappeared." Pai shook his head.
"Only a minute or so; it'll scan you using a sort of light, all right? I'm going to begin now," he warned. Kachie nodded and straightened her head. She closed her eyes as she heard Pai turn on the machine.
It was odd, she could feel the light slowly traveling over her body due to the warmth it emitted as it passed over her. Three times she felt the gradual warmth travel across her body before she heard the machine power down. At Pai's gentle command, she opened her eyes and carefully hopped off the table. Looking at Hekele, Kachie smiled.
"You're turn." Hekele bit her lip nervously as Ryou led her to the table. She carefully laid herself atop it and closed her eyes. Pai repeated the process cautiously, aware than she was considerably more jumpy than Kachie had been.
Lettuce watched the scene in silence, not wanting to disrupt anything. She couldn't help but smile at how quickly Kachie latched back onto Keichiro's arm, despite how calm she had acted. Glancing over at Taruto, Lettuce found him setting up a nearby machine and feeding a disk of data into it. When an image of Kachie appeared above the machine, she realized that it was the data collected from the test.
"Interesting?" Lettuce jumped a bit at the sudden voice and turned to see Kisshu standing near her in the doorway. Lettuce offered him a half-hearted glare before returning her attention to Hekele, who had returned to Ryou's side in the blink of an eye.
"I find it so, yes. Did you make things right with Ichigo?" she asked. Kisshu shrugged.
"Yeah. Dumb kitten was asleep when I got up there, but I talked to her, and I am apparently forgiven."
Lettuce smiled, "Good; I know you care about her Kisshu, and angering her doesn't exactly amplify your chances of winning her heart." Kisshu shrugged once more.
"Yeah well, she's got her precious Masaya anyway," he replied.
Lettuce shook her head, "Hearts change you know. I think you've got more than a fair shot at winning her over."
Kisshu rolled his eyes, "Wolf girl said the same thing. I don't think that it applies to us the same way though."
Lettuce cocked her head, "And why not? Love is complicated, and I personally think that Masaya is just a really big crush. If Ichigo and Masaya were to get into a fight, I'm pretty sure that she'd get sad and try to ignore what happened, whether she was in the right or not. With you, she feels the need for you to understand her point of view; she'll fight with you to be heard, because it's important to her. Sort of like you'll fight her tooth and nail to get your point across to her. If you don't care about the other person or their reactions to your opinions, then you won't fight to express them."
Kisshu sighed, "Yeah? Well, aren't good relationships fight-free?"
Lettuce shook her head, "In a good relationship, couples can fight all the time and grow to love each other more because of it; it's just a more difficult relationship. Easy relationships tend to get boring and the couple drifts apart because they need someone to challenge and express differences with. Get it? The more you and Ichigo argue, the stronger your friendship grows, and that's why I'm simply sitting on the sidelines waiting for you to become an official couple."
Kisshu glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, "So, what would your relationship with Pai be?" He was rewarded with Lettuce's immediate blush.
"What are you talking about?"
Kisshu smirked, "Don't play dumb, I can tell you hold affections for him. I also happen to know that he holds affections for you because you're the only person that brainy jerk can effectively talk to. You hold the same interests and similar levels of knowledge. He also seems to be at ease when around you, just as you do when you're talking or sitting with him. So, how would you classify your relationship?"
Lettuce's blush increased deeply, "Friendship. A nice, normal, understanding friendship." Kisshu rolled his eyes as he began to walk past her into the room where Pai was talking to the group and pointing to corresponding spots on the two floating images.
"Sure, for now at least."
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"It's nice of you to join us Kisshu, have you made amends with Ichigo?" Pai asked, his eyes narrowing slightly as he saw Lettuce blushing and walking up behind his comrade.
Kisshu nodded, "Yep, the kitten forgave me. So what'd you find out here?"
Pai rubbed the back of his neck apprehensively, a motion that didn't go unnoticed by Lettuce. "The nodes are located at the bases of their necks, directly over their spinal cords. It's a temperamental location."
Ryou and Keichiro looked at one another. Keichiro looked at Pai, "Is there any way to safely remove them?" Pai shook his head a bit.
"There's no way to guarantee that I could remove the nodes without jeopardizing their health. The odds are about seventy percent that a procedure would be successful based on the shallow location, but even so; it's risky."
Hekele looked at Ryou, "What should we do?" Ryou felt his hand tighten around Hekele's of its own accord. He didn't like the idea of endangering either Hekele or Kachie in the way that would be necessary for the removal of the nodes, but what other choices did they possess?
"Keichiro?" he asked, unsure. Keichiro looked at Kachie.
"Only if you want to risk it will we even consider removing the nodes, all right?" he stated firmly. Kachie nodded.
"I think I want to try. I mean, it is our only option for removing the nodes, and I want to have some chance of being free, you know?" she said. Keichiro was about to say something when Hekele spoke up.
"Even if this fails, at least they'll never get their rubber glove-clad hands on us again. We'll be free in a sense, even if only in spirit," she said. Kachie smiled a bit and nodded.
"Exactly," she said softly. She turned to Pai, "Will you please do what you can to remove the nodes from our necks? We'd be very grateful."
Pai searched the worried eyes of Ryou and Keichiro for a moment before nodding, "Give me one hour to study the images so that I may understand precisely how they are attached and accurately how large they are so that the procedure will be as un-invasive as possible, and I will do everything in my power to remove the nodes as safely as I can. I give you my word."
Ryou nodded slowly and tugged Hekele a bit closer to him out of reflex, apprehension dancing in his blue orbs. Keichiro was likewise clutching Kachie's hand tightly, not wanting to think about what would happen if Pai failed.
Lettuce broke the awkward silence, "I suppose I should go back and tell everyone what's going on; I'm sure they're getting anxious." Kisshu looked ready to speak but Pai beat him to it.
"I'll escort you back," he turned to the rest of the group, "And I will start examining the images the instant I return."
Lettuce smiled gratefully, "Thanks, Pai." Pai only nodded and gently grabbed her arm. After a quick farewell, he transported to earth. Kisshu blinked a few times before speaking.
"What was that about? Why is that stotic oaf mad at me now?" he asked. Ryou quirked an eyebrow.
"If you're too dumb to figure it out then I'm not telling you," he said, shaking his head.
Kisshu glared at him, "What did I do! All I did was walk over here and he started glaring at me like I had played some horrid joke on him!"
Hekele tilted her head to the side a bit, "Well, Lettuce was certainly blushing when the two of you walked over here together." Kisshu was about to say something when he stopped in mid-motion. A huge grin spread across his face.
"I'll be damned, I made Pai jealous. How fun." Ryou narrowed his eyes a bit.
"What did you do to make Lettuce blush like that anyway?" he asked suspiciously. Kisshu chuckled.
"She was attempting to talk me into thinking I had a chance with Ichigo when I started drawing attention to her developing fondness of Pai. That set her off instantly, then I began alluding to reasons I was positive that he was showing affection for her; that probably made her turn an undiscovered shade of red right there, and then I walked over here. She followed."
Keichiro shook his head, "You're too immature for your own good. Pai probably thinks that you were flirting with her."
Kisshu grinned, "Let him; I did nothing wrong."
Kachie sighed, "You're gonna get your ass kicked one of these days."
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Pai and Lettuce transported in Mint's livingroom near the couch. Pudding and Zakuro looked up instantly from their card game and stood. Lettuce turned to Pai and smiled.
"I'll take it from here; thanks for bringing me down."
Pai nodded, "Anytime." He looked to his left as Zakuro and Pudding reached them and nodded politely in recognition.
Zakuro returned the nod, "What did you find out?" Pai gave her and Pudding a strained look.
"That things are a bit more complicated than we had hoped. I have to get back to Serenity, but Lettuce can explain things further." He took something out of his pocket and handed it to Lettuce. "I have a feeling that Kisshu might come back here, but if something happens and he isn't here to relay information, this is a communicator that is linked directly to the ship. I'm not sure how much time we'll have before the military starts looking into why their signals disappeared," he warned. Lettuce nodded.
"Ok, we'll keep our eyes open for trouble," she replied. Pai nodded slightly and was about to leave when Lettuce spoke again.
"Good luck."
Pai looked at her for a moment and offered a half-smile, "I'll need it." Lettuce crossed her fingers as he disappeared and for a moment, no one said anything. Eventually, however, Zakuro spoke up.
"Well, are you going to tell us what's going on or are you going to keep us in suspense all night!"
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Kisshu appeared in Ichigo's room silently and made his way over to her bed. She had wanted to be informed when her friends got back, but Kisshu was certain that she would like to know of the complications that had arisen as well. When he reached her bed, he carefully sat on the edge and began to gently shake her shoulder.
After a moment, Kisshu could see Ichigo's face scrunching up as she fought to remain asleep. He smiled down at her and shook her a bit more urgently, wanting for her to wake up sometime before he turned old and grey.
"Hey kitten; time to rise and shine," he cooed gently. He heard Ichigo growl.
"No it isn't; leave me alone Kisshu. It's gotta be eleven at night at least," she replied, rolling over towards the wall.
Kisshu rolled his eyes, "Well, you wanted to stay informed didn't you kitten? I'm here with news that I'm pretty sure you'd appreciate hearing." Ichigo sat up then, still appearing very tired, but also rather annoyed.
"We've gotta do something about that mean and sarcastic tone of yours; it gets aggravating really fast buddy." Kisshu grinned his trademark grin.
"And so does your slow response time kitten; I said I'm here with information so you might want to listen up. The girls do indeed have nodes, located at the base of their necks right above their spinal cord. After a discussion of the risks involved, the two of them decided that they wanted to risk it anyway to have them removed. Ryou and Keichiro are up there with them still and Pai's working on analyzing the data so the required procedure will be as safe as possible. Lettuce just arrived downstairs and to the best of my knowledge is relaying this information to Zakuro and Pudding as we speak. Mint is still in her room, most likely asleep by now," he relayed. Ichigo's eyes were wide.
"How good are the odds?" Kisshu's expression turned a bit more serious.
"Good, but not satisfactory; seventy percent chance of success." Ichigo's eyes became downcast and Kisshu suddenly felt bad for having been the one to give her the news. He scooted closer to her on the bed and cautiously pulled her into a small embrace. He was greatly surprised when she not only allowed him to, but rested her head on his shoulder.
"They'll be ok kitten; they're tougher than they seem. I'm going to head back up there in a while to see if there's anything that I can do to help, but I'll stick around here for a while if you want me to," he offered. Ichigo nodded into his shoulder slightly.
"Please? Would you?" Kisshu smiled.
"Sure, kitten, and like I said, don't fret; those two'll be all right." he replied. Ichigo nodded once more.
"Thanks Kisshu."
"No problem kitten."
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Pai walked from his laboratory to the control room calmly. The images had been a great help in determining the method he would use in the procedures, and he held confidence in his ability to safely remove the nodes. He still, however, was plagued with the worry that a complication would arise that he wouldn't be able to avoid. Like, for instance, any defense mechanism programmed into the nodes to keep them from being removed. Pai had no knowledge on how they precisely worked, and that bothered him.
When he entered the control room, he found the group to be rather tired; Kachie was actually asleep with her head resting on Keichiro's shoulder. "It has been a long night, hasn't it?" he asked as he stopped in front of the group. Ryou nodded as he glanced over at Hekele, who seemed about ready to join Kachie in the realm of dreams.
"It's time then?" he asked calmly. Pai nodded.
"I've got everything ready. The sooner we begin, the better." Keichiro nodded as he carefully awoke Kachie. After she was up, the four of them trailed behind Pai and Taruto, (who was as close to falling asleep as Hekele had been,) back to the laboratory.
Pai turned to look at them once they were inside, "Once I put them under, they'll be asleep for roughly six hours; more than long enough. All right?" The group nodded and Keichiro wrapped Kachie up in a warm embrace. Sensing that the group would appreciate a moment alone, he grabbed Taruto and said that he would prepare the anesthetic.
Keichiro gave Kachie a light peck on the cheek, "Good luck Kachie-chan." Kachie smiled.
"Arigato, Keichiro-kun, but hopefully we won't need it."
Ryou looked at Hekele for a moment before pulling her into a protective hug. The phoenix only smiled as she returned the embrace. "I'll be fine Ryou-san; I trust Pai." Ryou sighed and squeezed her a bit tighter.
"I promise you a huge banana-split when this is over with, and a whole pot of coffee too. Just stay in one piece," he said quietly. Hekele nodded.
"Hai, I will." It was then that Pai returned to the group. His return was slow, paced, like he was biding time for the group. When he reached the four of them he spoke.
"It's now or never; let's get this over with."
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Me- Ha! I'm ahead of schedule! I am the winner! I wrote two chapters plus this one before my self-proclaimed deadline! Woot! I'm so happy!
Kachie- Woot! Congrats! And Happy 17th Birthday too!
Me- Yep! Tuesday the 21st is my b-day! And I am happy as a clam! I get to go to Alaska this summer, and I get my 17th b-day this next week. Happy Happy!
Kachie- Review please! She wants your opinions and thoughts!
Me- Send me reviews for my b-day! Plz?