Disclaimer: I make no claim to the series, ideas, or characters of Full Metal Panic.
Defining Normalcy
Chapter 5: To Be Fitting
By Adam Lakewood
---And, tonight, there would be no one to keep her from him.---
... Except for maybe her not being home.
Sousuke let out a sigh as he rested his head a little too harshly against the metal door of Kaname Chidori's apartment. A hollow, louder than expected, 'clung' echoed up and down the empty stairwell.
Out of all the things he had prepared for this night, this was one of the most obvious things which he hadn't. He hadn't even stopped to possibly consider that she might not have been at home. It was amazing how much planning, plotting, scheming, and all-in-all preparing could suddenly be challenged by spontaneous action.
He slowly, almost sorrowfully made his way back down the several fleets of stairs. He pushed open the metallic door which seemed to make a point to sound its opening all up and down the stairwell. He sighed as he took in the sight before him.
Rain. Not only rain, but huge walls of water. He felt like cursing his luck, but knew that just as soon as he did, it would get worse. Sousuke was standing there holding the door open, just giving his best malicious glare to the sky. He almost yelled in surprise as an elderly lady came close to running him over during her mad dash through the doorway to get out of the rain.
Instinctively, Sousuke stretched out his arm and forced it forward in a clothesline strike. It hit the elderly woman square in the neck as she almost doubled around Sousuke's arm and went plummeting, lifeless, to the concrete floor. That should teach her to try to bull rush a specialist! That should teach her to think he was the door man, holding the door open for her! That should teach her to run into someone without apologizing, or run into someone at all for that matter! That should teach her to cross Sousuke Sagara! Ha!
Sousuke shook his head as he felt a sharp pain suddenly grab for his attention. As soon as it started, it stopped. He looked at the dead woman once more, only to not see her lying on the floor dead. Instead, she was standing before him with a warm smile. No signs of harm on her at all.
"Excuse me, young man. I was in such a hurry to get in here, I didn't see you standing there."
"It is not a problem." he said as his mind cleared out the last of the horrible images conjured up by his imagination.
He really needed to see someone about that.
"Wow, it sure is raining something dreadful out there!"
"Yes, I would have to second that. I've never seen it rain this hard before, except for the time I was in..."
Sousuke shook his head again. No need to think about such things right now. Normal people didn't think about those kinds of things.
"Yes, it is raining hard." he said, deciding to settle on that.
"Are you heading out right now?"
"Yes, I have things I must attend to."
"Do you have an umbrella, son?"
"No, ma'am. It was not raining this hard when I came over; I saw no need to bring one."
"Well, in that case, come with me, I'll get you one. A person really doesn't need to be out in that rain without one."
Sousuke was inclined to kindly reject her offer, that is, until a crash of thunder lit up the stairwell. Maybe it would be a good idea.
"Thank you, ma'am. I much appreciate your kindness."
"Of course. I truly hope Kaname took an umbrella with her. Poor dear caught terrible a cold the last time she went out in the rain without one." said the old woman to no one in particular.
That caught Sousuke's attention.
"You know, Kaname?!" he asked, sounding a little bit too excited for his liking.
"Oh, yes! I live just across the hall from her. We share our cooking often. A very nice girl, if I must say so. Are you a friend of hers." enquired the old woman.
"Well, yes... sort of. It has been a while since last we met."
The woman looked thoughtful for a moment before she spoke again.
"Hmmmm. You wouldn't happen to be... uh... what was his name... Sousuke, is it?"
Sousuke smiled at that. So, at least Kaname had mentioned his name since he left. That was a good sign. Whether or not she was talking well of him or cursing his soul was unknown. But, at least she hadn't forgotten him.
"Yes, that would be me: Sousuke Sagara."
"I figured as much. You are the only boy Kaname ever speaks of, except for maybe her father on occasion. Oh! She will be so happy to see you when she gets back!"
"I noticed she wasn't here. Do you know where she went?"
"Yes, I think she went down to that new music store a few blocks from here. It's that new one they built just a few months ago." said the older woman as they continued up the stairs.
"I see. I know which one you're speaking of."
Kaname ran quickly through the open door of the music store. She groaned when she realized exactly how soaked her clothes were. And, her hair seemed to want to stick to her face.
She looked around in the store to see a quick count of about ten people in the store. Who would have guessed that American music would be so popular in Tokyo? It did in a way, make sense. But, the combination still didn't. It was a major contradiction for there to be an American music store run by a Russian man in Tokyo, Japan. Sure, she liked a lot of the music, but the Russian was always her reason for coming here.
"That sounded like the growl of one Miss Chidori." stated the Russian voice from behind the counter.
He must have been kneeling behind the counter because she didn't see him around.
"I would certainly hope there was only one of me. Though, I must admit, the world would be a better place if there were a handful more."
"That, Miss Chidori..." he said followed with a grunt as he rose from behind the counter.
"... is in the eye of the beholder."
"I have a feeling you are making fun of me, Mr. Kalinin." Kaname said with a sly smile.
"That too, Miss Chidori... is in the eye of the beholder."
With that the large Russian gave off a hardy, forced, yet humble laugh. The laugh ended with a short coughing fit. Kalinin, as hardy of a man as he was, seemed to be getting old fast. Or, maybe in was just a continuing bug. ... Highly doubtful.
"Easy there, old timer. You better slow down a little bit, hire some younger people to look after your store."
The Russian responded with a more modest laugh.
"The day these 'old bones' are so decrepit I have to surrender my shop to this era's tainted youth, Hell would have already frozen over and thawed out again."
That earned a laugh from the both of them as well as a couple of customers browsing the racks near the counter.
"I guess that old 'Russian pride' really holds true for you; doesn't it?"
"Certainly." he clarified before clearing his throat.
"So, I guess you've come to check up on Lieutenant Sagara?" he said in a lower voice that was only audible to Kaname.
"Yeah. It's been a few weeks since I've been over here. I guess it's time I check up on him."
Kalinin had to suppress his smile. The smile was threatening to make its presence known because of what he knew. But, he had sworn that he wouldn't divulge any details until he was told otherwise. So far, he hadn't been told otherwise, but he certainly wasn't about to lie about anything.
"I stopped receiving calls from Sagara aboard the Tuatha De Danaan. So, I can only assume he is no longer aboard the Tuatha De Danaan."
Kaname looked dumbstruck. Sousuke was no longer with the Tuatha De Danaan? How could that be? Where would he be?
"Do you know where he is now?"
So, how to pull oneself out of this position without lying. Simple, divulge the truth; withhold a few facts.
"No, I do not currently know his exact location." he said sternly, trying to keep a straight face.
The word 'exact' would make up for the other few hundred words that could be placed there. Like, for example, the fact that he was here in Tokyo, that he was living in the Tawia apartment complex, that he was currently working at his shop, and a few other facts which he had sworn to keep secret.
"S... So, you have no way of... contacting him."
The words came difficult to her. Kalinin was her only semi-tie she had with Sousuke, and now Sousuke had broken off contact with him too? Sometimes, reality does not go your way. And, when its harshness finally strikes you, it is with a bag of bricks. To anyone else who would have known how she felt that moment, they would have thought her to be hopeless, even pathetic feeling so down because she can not find out how a boy who left almost two years ago, was faring. And, she had to admit, the idea even to her seemed ludicrous. So, why was she feeling like her heart was about to fall out of her chest?
But, she tried to smile. Whether or not she succeeded was beyond her knowing.
Kalinin looked on in sympathy. He was originally telling her all of this because he thought it would be humorous to see her in a panic. He never expected her to take it like this. No questions came. No statements were made. Only an expression which could have said more than a world of words was present. He had never come so close to going back on his word. For once, he doubted Sousuke's odd judgment pertaining to the past three weeks. Was keeping his presence a secret from her really that good of an idea, especially since she missed him so?
It was not his decision to make. He knew Sousuke knew what he was doing what could happen as a result better than he did. For whatever reason he was postponing his announcement to her, he knew it had to be a good reason. Seeing the expression on the young woman's face would have definitely made him go back on his word to anyone besides Sousuke. But, not Sousuke.
"So... you have not heard from him in the past few weeks?" she said in an almost inaudible voice.
Her voice sounded completely sorrowful. Among the sorrow there was a tone of desperation. Among the desperation, still there was a tone of hope, as faint as it may be. He knew how she must have been feeling. She feared she had finally lost contact with him forever. She had known all along that sort of day would probably come, even though she didn't voice that opinion. He watched as thousands of questions made their trek through her mind. He couldn't take it anymore. He would not betray anyone's trust this day, but neither would he see anyone fall apart in front of him.
He quickly changed his frown to one of a stern look. He cleared his throat as to get her attention, and casually bent over to pull a box from behind the counter. When he rose again, he finally spoke the simple words which, in the eyes of Kaname, could have moved a mountain.
"I am not at liberty to say." he stated in a tone as if she were prying too far into secret matters.
She got the hint.
"Well, thank you anyway, Mr. Kalinin." she said with a grateful smile.
Kalinin once again cleared his throat, as he always did to notify he was ready to speak.
"I suppose I will part with you a little bit of my experience and wisdom, humble as it may be."
He took his signature, antique pocket knife and began cutting the tape which sealed the box.
"Sometimes, a single person cannot know all there is to know about something... or someone." he said as he intentionally added that last part.
"Sometimes, a single person can know too much." he stated matter of factly.
"When a person knows too much, sometimes they are not capable of sharing that knowledge with others."
He opened the box and began pulling out stacks of CDs and other assorted music paraphernalia. He looked up at her and pointed his knife non-threateningly at her as if to drive his point home.
"And, possibly one of the most important things I have learned, which can only be learned through experience, is this: Despite there not being any proof, any physical evidence, or even a trace of something's existence, does not, under any circumstance, mean it is not there."
Kaname smiled as she picked up on the man's innuendo.
"Well, thank you very much, Mr. Kalinin. I will take what you have said to heart." she said as she turned and walked out the door, back into the rain.
Sousuke ran, no, sprinted down the street. People immediately got out of his way when they saw him coming. He could have easily gone around them, but they all moved out of his way as if he were a vehicle with no breaks. The people parted for him like the Red Sea, as did the puddles on the sidewalk every time his foot would touch down, preparing for its next sprint forward.
He was running. He was running to her. What better reason to make haste? He was King Author, Kalinin's music shop: his destination, Kaname: his Holy Grail. Woe be to those who should get in his way on this night of the Sacred Flood. He, and only he, was acceptable for this quest. He...and his... righteous... umbrella.
Ah! There it is: his destination. The neon sign of the new music store shone through the pillars of water coming from the sky to obscure his vision like a lighthouse in a heavy fog.
"A very nice choice, sir. They are definitely one of my favorites. Thank you, and have a good evening." said Kalinin to one of his departing customers.
He turned his head towards the front part of the store as he heard a quite commotion amongst his customers. He saw they were looking through the hazy, glass and metal door. It was obvious it was raining outside, and the only thing that could be seen was the neighboring lights shining from the other stores outside. But, there did seem to be an oddly out of place, black mass getting larger by the second. He then realized the black mass was not getting bigger, it was getting closer. The customers near the door noticed this also and took a quick few steps back or ran to the other side of the room.
As soon as it seemed the black mass was upon the door, the entire door sounded off with a resonance like none other. The door vibrated and shook from the impact as if it had been hit full force with a battering ram. No doubt, the people were reminded of the legend of the black mass which would bring the rain with it and devour the souls of those who came near it.
As soon as the black mass smited the door with unholy vengeance, it vanished. But, as quickly as it vanished, it reappeared, starting from the bottom of the door and slowly making its way upward. Now, the black outline resembled a humanoid as the door slowly opened and in walked a man.
"Like a bird to the perfectly clean window, Mr. Sagara, I am led to believe you did not notice the door as an obstruction to your path of flight?"
Quite snickering came from around the room as Sousuke rubbed his head.
"I suppose." he said bitterly.
This was not the great entrance he wanted to make for Kaname. Speaking of... Where was she?
He glanced quickly around the room and did not see her there.
"Excuse me, sir, Kaname wouldn't have happened to come by here, would've she?" he asked.
Kalinin smirked at the beautiful, if not humorous irony playing out before him. He glanced up at the clock with a wayward thought and a humored smirk.
"Yes, actually, she was here checking up on you not twenty minutes ago."
Sousuke managed to resist the urge to salute his one time commanding officer. He instead nodded his thanks and threw up his hand.
"Thank you, sir. Call me if you become aware of any damage which may have befallen your door."
Kalinin let out a light chuckle at the seriousness in which the young man said that.
"Well, she seemed to be rather distressed. I hope you are going to see her. I know it must be torture for you to continue hiding from her, but it is hurting her too. Not to mention, it puts me in a difficult..."
He was interrupted by the sudden chiming of the bells hung on the door. When he looked back up, Sousuke was gone, and the door was once again closing.
This wasn't exactly a horrible day for Kaname Chidori, but it certainly could be better.
She quickly ran up the stairs to the metallic door and harshly pulled it open since the blasted thing did have a tendency to get stuck every once in a while. Oddly enough, the door was not stuck and came open with a loud 'clang.' The sound echoed louder than the actual sound up and down the empty stairwell.
How better way to say "I'm home!"?
Kaname quickly stepped inside out of the rain and watched as a puddle of water began to form around her feet. She groaned as soon as realization hit her that this was her brand new set of clothes which she just got sopping wet. And, so she drug her self up the stairs until she heard a familiar voice coming from the open door near the second fleet of stairs.
"Kaname, dear! Is that you?" asked the old woman standing in the doorway.
Kaname immediately recognized her voice as belonging to Mrs. Fara, her best friend in the apartment complex.
"Yes, it's me, Mrs. Fara. How are you today?" Kaname asked, trying to be polite and not sound as tired as she actually was.
"Kaname, dear, you shouldn't be out in the rain like that; especially without an umbrella!" she said waving her finger in a shame-shame manner at Kaname.
Kaname smiled in response to the old woman's concern.
"I appreciate your concern, Mrs. Fara, but I'll be fine; a little bit of rain never slowed me down." she said.
Mrs. Fara shrugged her shoulders in defeat, or perhaps in realization that she might as well have been talking to a rock.
"I might as well be talking to a rock. You kids these days think you are invincible. Like I was telling that young man earlier, even you caught cold when you were caught out in that last heavy rain we had."
She paused before she continued on with her lecture. She remembered that was something she needed to tell Kaname. Mrs. Fara opened her mouth to inform Kaname, but she beat her to it.
"Young man?" Kaname asked while raising an eyebrow. "You don't mean, Tetsu do you? I thought I told him to stay away from here!"
"No, dear, I wasn't meaning him. I was talking about..."
That was when realization donned on her. Kaname pieced together the sly hints coming from Kalinin and what she already knew; now this.
"You don't mean S... So..." interrupted Kaname.
"Yes, I do believe he said his name was Sousuke. He gave me a last name, but I can't remember it. I believe Sousuke is that boy you are always telling me about; I'm sorry, dear, my memory isn't what it used to be."
Kaname didn't really hear much after the first sentence. She was too far on her own trek of thought.
"Really?! Are you sure? What did he look like? What did he say? Was he looking for me? Was he..."
The string of questions came out in a string that seemed it might go on forever.
"Really, dear, I don't remember. My vision is bad, so I don't really recall what he looked like besides he was a handsome young man. My memory is even worse, so I definitely don't remember anything he said to me except that he was looking for you. He was extremely polite, though; definitely not a trait you see in many young men these days." she said as she tried her best to remember what words had passed between her and the young man she met earlier.
"Well, where did he go?!" Kaname asked excitedly, sounding almost rude.
"He asked where you were, and I told him you went to that music shop. When I told him this, he took off like something was after him. I believe he said he was..."
Mrs. Fara didn't even get to finish her sentence before she was interrupted by the loud slamming of the entrance a few fleets below. Kaname was nowhere in sight.
Mrs. Fara looked out one of the windows to see the rain still coming down. She sighed. She rubbed her hands together in a vain attempt to ease the aching. She had always heard and laughed at the stories about the old people being able to tell when rain was coming by the ache in their bones, but now she regretted laughing.
Despite how she spoke of it, she still liked the rain. She always had, and probably always will until the day she dies. She had never recalled it ever raining this heavily before; she wanted to get a closer look at it before she retreated to bed. So, she slowly started making her descent to the first level of the stairwell.
Sometimes, her age annoyed her. In her golden years, she could have been up and down those stairs in the blink of an eye; now her bones seemed to creak with each step she descended or ascended. Because of this, it took her several minutes reach the first floor. She couldn't help but think of Kaname. She reminded her of her own daughter, and even herself when she was that young. That brought a smile to her face as she reached out to push open the only door separating her from the beautiful rain which she wished to see.
He smile soon faded, and her eyes widened in surprise and startlement as the door was violently flung open before he hand even touched it.
There stood that same young man who was there earlier. He was dripping wet from the rain, and he seemed to be badly out of breath. He seemed as if he were going to come in, but remained outside when he saw her standing at the door.
"Hello, ma'am. I'm sorry I startled you; I'm just in a bit of a hurry. I apologize again for startling you. Would you happen to know if Kaname has made it back yet?"
Mrs. Fara smiled. She was starting to find this to be a little bit funny and ironic. She felt sorry for the both of them, but still couldn't help but find the ordeal humorous.
"Sousuke, was it? Yes, Kaname was her just a few minutes ago. I told her you went to look for her at the music store. You just missed her; she took off running to the music store no more than ten minutes ago. Would you like to stay here until she gets..."
Mrs. Fara made the mistake of blinking, so she did not see Sousuke's departure. All that she heard was his voice leaving behind a 'thank you' as if it were coming from nowhere.
Young people these days...
Kalinin once again heard a commotion towards the front of the store. He looked over to see that a few of his customers were staring outside through the hazy glass and metal door. He finally saw what all of the commotion was about as he saw a black mass getting closer and closer to the door.
The black mass was upon the door as it disappeared as a resounding 'thud' seemed to almost shake the door off of its hinges. Once again, that must have been his young friend in desperate search for his significant other.
The black mass slowly reappeared starting from the bottom of the door and working its way upward. Finally the door opened and in walked Kaname, soaking wet from the rain and rubbing her knee.
It took everything Kalinin had to stop from laughing. This was like irony only found in the works of Greek literature.
"Perhaps, I should leave that door open for the remainder of the night?" he asked in an amused voice to anyone who would listen.
Kaname didn't seem to have any idea what the Russian was talking about, nor did she seem to pay it much mind at the moment.
"Mr. Kalinin, you wouldn't have happened to have seen... Sousuke... in the past few minutes would you?"
Once again he was put on the spot. But, he was not one to lie, so he wouldn't. Besides, to him, it seemed as if the cat was out of the bag anyway. He looked down at his shipping chart before he answered; without making eye contact with the young woman, of course.
"I believe I do recall someone by that name coming by here just a few minutes ago. I do believe he was asking about a certain young lady, and I do believe he said he would be looking for her at her residence."
Kaname smiled and almost shrieked in happiness. She knew it! He really was here... somewhere.
"Thank you, Mr. Kalinin." she said in hastened speech as she turned to head out the door.
She looked through the hazy glass of the door and saw two outlines of people just outside the door. She could not hear their exact words being said between, nor did she recognize either of the voices. But, she could have sworn she heard the word 'affirmative.'
She only knew of one person that ever used that word.
She quickly pulled open the door to reveal two men standing outside. One colored man whom was from America who she had met and spoke with before, and another very tall man with long brown hair pulled back in a ponytail who she had never met before.
"Oh, hi Reggie." she said, almost sounding disappointed.
Reggie nodded his head and continued talking with the man before him about some of the latest Reggae music the store was carrying.
Kaname leaned up against the side of the store, making sure to stay under the covered section of the walkway. She looked out in the rain for any familiar faces; a certain familiar face. Unfortunately, she did not see Sousuke around anywhere. Was her mind playing tricks on her? She felt like she was chasing after a phantom.
"I really wish it would stop raining." said the tall man after Reggie went into the store.
Kaname sighed sorrowfully before answering the man.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. And, me without an umbrella." she said with a slight laugh.
She saw the taller man walk over close to her. He picked up the umbrella that was leaning against the wall next to her.
"Well, we can't have you walking around in the rain, now can we? Perhaps you would like to walk with me, ma'am?" the man offered.
Kaname smiled at the man's kind offer and turned around to look at him.
Certainly, he was tall. She was considered tall herself, but the man seemed to tower over her. She blushed as she stared straight at his rain soaked shirt, revealing a rather slim, but well build, chest. He was wearing casual clothing from the shoes up, but it still seemed to look rather professional in the casual sense. He wore a necklace with a strange symbol pendant around his neck. His brown hair was very long and was pulled back into a ponytail. He had a matching well-groomed mustache, and a neatly trimmed goatee. She would have sworn that she had never seen the man before in her life, until she saw one distinguishing feature about the man.
He had a crossing scar on his cheek.
Upon closer examination of his facial features, he did look slightly familiar, but the scar was a dead giveaway.
"S... Sousuke?" she asked, struggling to get the words out.
TO BE CONTINUED