STANDARD DICLAIMERS APPLY: Well, there's a lot of "disclaiming" to be done with this chapter so, basically, I don't own RK and I do not own any authors I make reference to or their brilliant literary work. I can't remember, but if I mention any song, I don't own that either and as far as Cinnabons go… I'd be rich wouldn't I? Sadly, I'm not so a simple syllogism will, I'm sure, solve that enigma.
Quick little message from author: Long time no update, hunh? Well people, put down all sharp objects because this is an extra long chapter coming your way! I'm sorry for the delay, but blame teachers and life in general for keeping me busy, busy, busy and on to dizzy! @_@ I'd appreciate any reviews, constructive criticism, ideas, opinions, random thoughts- anything is good for me!
ALSO, there's a little challenge out there, for anyone who feels up to it The lovely Fangirl suggested that someone draw a fanart of Sano with a Chinese Checkers board rammed in his mouth. So, anyone up for it? It does sound like a really fun idea!
Now I'll quit stalling, say I'm sorry one more time, and… it's on with the show!
Italics represent Kaoru's thoughts, by the by…
Chapter 8: Of friendship, hidden talents and speeding cars.
A window: an opening constructed in a classroom wall to admit light and air into the enclosure; a large aperture framed and spanned with glass upon an upright structure of white plaster, intent on allowing golden sunbeams and light breezes to filter into the room carelessly.
1. A window of opportunity. 2. A window of vulnerability. 3. A one-hour window to put oneself to shame.
A desk: an open-front table with solid steel legs and a sturdy, laminated, maple flat top for writing; a first-necessity article of furniture in buildings housing any type of educational institution.
A desk's surface to lean one's elbows against- elbows connecting forearms to hands with perfectly manicured nails, to a face supported by cradling palms in an effort to avoid letting a head droop down in misery.
A desk to avoid resting one's head open, for fear of succumbing to beddy-byes and blanket drills, intolerable dreams recounting embarrassing past experiences and, lastly, nagging teachers.
A chair: a piece of furniture consisting of firm and uncomfortable cranberry-hued plastic seat and back, plus nickel-plated steel legs designed to accommodate one person; a seat rarely ergonomically produced, yet solely intended for the purpose of 'commodiously' harboring an individual.
A chair. A chair to sulk in. A chair to continuously sigh in. A chair to prevent oneself from dramatically lying on the floor, depressively playing dead.
A notebook: a blue, hardcover, small spiral book of blank pages for taking notes. Said notes should be related to the message scrawled all over the blackboard and the one being transmitted by the adult in black slacks standing at the front of the room, but they are generally more inclined to follow the lines of scribbles and doodles regarding 'what ifs' and 'if wishes', accompanied by the trademark little hearts and name swapping jottings of a typical schoolgirl crushing on a boy.
A girl: a female with braided hair and a sad, faraway gleam in her eyes. Sitting on a red chair by the open window, slightly hunched forwards, she paid no attention to the open notebook atop her desk, and instead conformed herself with tiredly sighing for the zillionth time in less than forty five minutes.
"Misao, if you dare sigh one more time, I swear that I will not be held responsible for my future actions!" Kaoru admonished grittily from behind her.
Mou! On Sunday Kaoru had awoken with a very painful headache- courtesy of excessive drinking- and all the admissible dosage of aspirin in the world had not rid her of the throbbing migraine.
When she got home, the shouting and screaming match that her parents had denominated as a 'rule setting lecture', inevitably followed by a bellowed 'you're grounded for a month!' statement, had not precisely been what the doctor would have prescribed, had she gone in for a check-up in such a sorry state.
Monday morning had not been very pleasant either: the headachy sensation persisted and worsened as the day slowly unraveled. Misao's thrumming fingers, bubblegum popping, pencil tapping and now, perpetual sighing, were not on the list of well known alternative pain relievers.
Kaoru, being sure that her head was seconds away from rolling off her shoulders and bouncing around the room, decided to intervene, to stop the annoying rhythmic noise that was inching her towards the edge before she, in turn, involved herself in some sort of evil, perverted deed that she would later regret, like, say… stitching lips together or good old fashioned defenestration.
Yes, that would be tactically and strategically doable, considering both Misao and her own locations within the compound… And yes, for Makimachi's own good, the sighing had better cease or all hell would be guaranteed to break loose. When one's mind starts plotting murder scenarios on its own, that's when it's time to start walking on eggshells and to…
"QUIT IT WITH THE SIGHING ALREADY!"
"I can't help it Kaoru! I keep on thinking about what Aoshi said in the car and… I just can't help it! I'm heartbroken and- I feel as if someone had neatly carved a hole in my chest, proceeded to squeeze and squeeze at my heart before ripping it out of it's rightful place and then had smashed it against the ground, stomped on it and, ever the clean-freak, had mopped it up, not even leaving a trace of where it had once stood! So now, there's this gaping hole right through my chest and I don't know what to do!" Misao screeched breathlessly with a mad flourish of her hands.
"Plastic surgery? That 'gaping hole' could surely be filled up with silicone and, if you took it upon yourself to demand of the surgeons that they make another 'neat incision' on the left side of your chest and have them fill that up with silicone too, you could be as good as new! Actually, better than new, considering how much more 'womanly' you'd have become!" Kaoru reasoned mockingly.
"Sometimes, I wonder about you… I come to you for comfort and all I get is a snide remark: what kind of a friend are you?"
"The type that doesn't abandon her friends to pursue a potential love interest…"
"You still can't get over that one tiny detail, can you?!! Why I ever chose to befriend a Cancer with an ascendant in Scorpio is completely beyond me!"
"This isn't about astrology; it's about me waking up at a stranger's place with memory loss and, unlike the guy from 'Memento', not having any tattoos all over my body to help me uncover the mystery of the night I lost my head!" Kaoru shot back furiously, her patience in regard to Misao's dilemma waning considerably.
"Well, I'm sorry that I was too busy basking in my own MISERY to pay atten-"
"Girls, as much as your conversation qualifies for the perfect example of 'pleonasm' incorporated to daily life, this isn't English class: if you wish to continue adding superfluous phrases, words and sentences to my exposé on the French revolution, you may do so… outside, in the hallway, or right by the principal's office: does that sound okay?
If you actually intend to pass my class, then may I suggest you both cut your most entertaining harangue short and lend me your ears instead? Of course, it truly is only a suggestion; after all you don't seem too concerned with results, do you Miss Kamiya?"
Mesdames et Messieurs, introducing Professor Norman Rogers, ever the gentleman…
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Small recap: the relatively cantankerous Kamiya Kaoru and the overtly recalcitrant Makimachi Misao got into another one of their acrimonious arguments and Professor Rogers offered them a one-way ticket to the hallway, lest they pipe down… and just how was that supposed to prove intimidating? As if!
So, naturally, there they both stood; the 'unyielding one' impatiently shuffling her feet whilst the revered 'oh bull-headed-sama' outdid herself in copycatting her favorite male specimen.
Reconciliation between the two could- of course- take all day but, hinting towards experience and slightly more outgoing natures, one of the gals would cave in soon enough and, as to which one it would be, there were never really any doubts:
"You know, Mars is probably wreaking havoc on your birth planets' regular alignment: I get that. Still, that's no excuse for you to gibe and jeer like some sitcom character! I mean, do you even realize what I'm going through?!" the green-eyed expellee spoke, choosing to pick up where their teacher had forced them to leave off.
"Misao… I threw up all over a stranger's pair of shoes and accused him of raping me in the morning: if what you're trying to say is that you feel embarrassed, ashamed, humiliated, bashful and all the negatives of the seven dwarves combined, then I believe we're on the same page here." her fellow blue-eyed classmate responded.
"So, if you empathize, why can't you sympathize?"
"I do! I just… why can't you commiserate for a change? After all, it was my first time in all-out drunken oblivion and we are, somehow, still discussing Aoshi being disappointed in you after 11 am!"
"I… I… I'm sorry for being selfish but, it's just that-"
"But nothing! He doesn't have a right to be 'disappointed in you' as he claims because he has never even taken the time to truly 'know you'! In my opinion you are worrying over nothing- what that glacier of a boy says or thinks is of no consequence!" Kaoru snapped.
"So that's what this was all about?! You weren't upset with me for not giving your problems due notice; you were flipping out precisely because you were concerned for me!"
In spite of the low grumbles, the flushed cheeks showed, and Misao proceeded to beam in delight: Kaoru really was all that! Could anyone ever ask for a better friend?
"No matter how hard to read your astral chart makes your personality, it's good to have a Cancer with a Scorpio rising sign on one's side!"
"Wait a minute: wasn't that you in there complaining about my astral-thingy?" our heroine inquired amiably.
"Nah: I would never EVER do that! That was just my evil twin- don't you EVER listen to her!"
"Misao, stop hugging me: you are squeezing me into non-oxygenation!!!"
And thus, the war was lost and won, all before lunchtime…
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Kaoru stared at her tray, and I mean really stared at it: what was it with cafeteria food that always made it seem so, so… inedible? The scary part was how the Jell-O kept wiggling, even after the tray had remained untouched and unperturbed by movement of any kind for at least 5 minutes now.
"Gross!!!" Misao squealed in disgust, repulsed by her own so-called lunch.
If the gelatin- which apparently seemed to have a life of its own- could have scoffed at the girl's outburst, it looked like it would have been capable of such a feat. But, seeing as that wasn't going to actually happen any time soon, it jiggled instead, bringing forth another horrified squeal from Misao's mouth.
Tentatively poking at the mystery-everything on the shallow receptacle, an unbidden thought came to her mind:
"Hey, this resembles your cooking! Are you sure you didn't sneak back there and help Tae out today?"
Kaoru was about to respond when the multiple comments made by the others sitting at the table stopped her dead in her tracks:
"Stop being nice Misao; Kaoru's cooking doesn't even come close to this!" Danielle yapped.
"Yeah: Kaoru's Jell-O would have probably grown legs by now!" Terry put her two cents in.
"Not to mention that it would be burnt! God only knows how she does it!" Kaz crowned the iceberg.
And so, with the consecration ceremony at its peak, the Titanic crashed and water filled up its decks.
Milk cartons, plastic spoons, salad and sandwiches flew about meeting their targets head-on, mouth-on and chest-on too. Retaliation was swift to follow and, at some point "FOOD FIGHT!" became a war cry.
Ducking for cover under a table, Kaoru picked at the spaghetti strings in her hair and crawled through the piles of junk-food in its most literal form, reduced to merely junk and waste by fed up students… that, and angry individuals with zero culinary skills.
It was while she was traipsing from table to table, desperately avoiding yucky mud pies and soggy, greasy French fries that she bumped into a familiar someone, also seeking refuge from the lunch fiasco turned fiesta:
"Oh, hi Patrick!" she exclaimed cheerily, palms already sweating nervously. What luck to bump into him now!
She hazily remembered encountering him at the party: he was with his girlfriend, some ridiculous bimbo who had given her the chopped liver treatment…
Kaoru scrunched up her nose at the memories, forced to relive Beshimi-centered moments of the night and then… pitch blank. She had spent all weekend wracking her brain for information, but temporary amnesia was proving to stay with her longer than she would have liked.
In fact, looking at Patrick's face right now, she felt that there was something she really ought to remember… but what?
At that precise moment, something incredibly odd and bizarre occurred: if she didn't know any better, she would have thought that her crush's face blanched, his skin going pale and clammy, right before he slowly stumbled away from her, on hands and knees, like some sort of cornered animal.
What was going on? What was with the panicked look on his face? Was something icky stuck to her own face? On second thought, maybe it wasn't such a good thing, meeting him up in the middle of a food fight…
"Patrick, are you okay? You don't look so good…"
All it took were those words for him to bolt right past her, beneath the table, and out to the surface, point-blank into the eye of the storm: lemon meringue pie connected with his perfectly chiseled, square jaw and he slipped on a banana peel, landing on his back against the cool tile floor, his chin and nose covered in white goo.
The entire chess club erupted in roaring laughter, closely followed by fits of insuppressible wheezing and that strange noise that inhalers make when used: it's not wise to laugh too much or get too exited when one suffers from asthma- even if kicking Mr. Popularity when he was down seemed worth it. Ah yes… a laughingstock was born!
Kaoru peered on in confusion, disconcerted and disappointed by the boy's actions, but she wasn't left with much time to think and ponder over the subject: the principal's voice could already be heard and she took this as her cue to make a silent retreat; she was already in enough trouble as things were, no need to add to the list.
With that in mind, she tip-toed out of the cafeteria and out of harm's way, or so she thought…
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
"To be, or not to be: that is the question! For I am and I am not… and that's just wrong!"
"Damn straight!"
"Kaoru… would you please stop interrupting me?"
"You're the one who wanted me to stay!"
It was true: Misao had requested- from Kaoru's point of view more like begged and pleaded- for her best friend to skip last period and help her rehearse her lines for the upcoming school play.
At first Kaoru had been reluctant: her academic situation wasn't as good as it could be at the moment, and there were some grades she desperately needed to boost or else she would be doomed to repeat the year- The Year- and go through the whole tormenting ordeal of Senior Year anew.
Then she remembered that all she had was English class, one of the few subjects she was actually more than decent at, and weighing on one hand the prospect of discussing Hemingway, and in the other how little time she would be able to spend just chilling out and relaxing with her friends in the weeks to come, she took the slight opening in what was to be the rest of a boring existence and…cut class.
Now, sitting on the stage, leaning against an unfinished hand painted background scene with a book open on her lap, Kaoru asked herself just why she had even bothered!
"A donkey! A donkey! My homeland for a donkey!" the actress-in-the-making stated, all flair and dramatic airs.
"My sanity! My sanity! I'm loosing my sanity!" the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu practitioner articulated in obvious contempt and annoyance.
"Would you stop?!! How am I ever supposed to get my lines right if you keep on being a nuisance?"
"Sorry… Go on, go on; I'll be over here in my little corner of the world, reading up on watts and volts and gravitational pull- don't mind me!" she voiced, concealing her aggravation and apprehension behind a mask of warm summer smiles.
"Thank you! Now; where was I? Ah yes… 'Why must this happen to me?! I who have always depended on the kindness of strangers! Hand me my robe, slip on my tiara; I have Immortal longings in me.'"
Kaoru choked on her Cinnabon: was this some kind of sick joke or was she in serious need of a Miracle Ear? 'A Streetcar named Desire' meets 'Antony and Cleopatra'; since when was that normal?
"For the record, I'm not butting in again, or interrupting you. That being said, just out of sheer curiosity: who wrote that script that's in your hand?"
"That creepy guy who always sits by himself and, to the best of my knowledge, is mute. Why do you ask?"
"Which creepy asocial guy? The one who fancies himself to be a communist because he knows who Marx is, or the one who's responsible for half the planet's deforestation? Honestly, that boy writes so much that the least he could do is use recycled paper!"
"The writing one me thinks… again, why do you ask?"
"Oh, nothing really…"
"Except…"
"Except that… how in the world is that meant to be an original work of art?!!"
"Here we go! Let the rant begin Miss Kamiya!" Misao spoke in an oh-so-exasperated tone of voice.
"Wouldn't you rant and rave if you found out that the greatest playwrights of all time were being plagiarized in such a horrible manner? Not only does Mr. Writer quote them every comma or exclamation point he can spare, but he actually feels the need to revise and modify their texts!
This is… this is… it's preposterous, that's what it is! And I'm sorry, but there is no other word that can do this act of – no other word can do justice to this inhuman- I'm struck speechless Misao!
I mean, this play was actually chosen by someone who deems him or herself an expert in dramaturgy and you and others will passively interpret their roles, the audience will surely clap, your teacher will probably feel fulfilled, the author of this piece of 'toilet literature' will feel smug and smart and Shakespeare will do flip-flops in his grave, crying bloody murder, then just begging mercy!
What kind of a no-brainer mistook this mind teaser for a play?!! Anyone could do better Misao; I could do better, for crying out loud!!!"
"Could you now?" a throaty male voice called out from behind her, sending shivers down her spine.
Slowly, biting down hard on her lower lip, she spun around, fully aware that she had just put her foot in her mouth.
"So glad to see that you decided to join us today Miss Kamiya.; even if you aren't a member of the drama club, it is always a pleasure to see students interested in our presentations and teaching methods. Sincerity is always a welcome guest on our stage."
Groan, groan and -just for the heck of it- another groan…
"Are you sure you wouldn't rather see it plummet down through the trap door, sir? I'm sure that could be arranged!"
"Actually, I hadn't come about to reading the entire script prior to today and, I must say, however blunt your choice of words Miss Kamiya, I agree with you. I was under the impression that we would end up performing a parody, not a copy-paste blunder, and I already said as much to Mr. Fallon, who apologized profusely and volunteered to rewrite this… mess."
"All's well that ends well, hunh?"
Pat yourself on the back Kamiya! Give yourself a firm handshake and a winning smile: you couldn't be more of a dolt if you tried!
"I'm afraid a happily-ever-after isn't the case. Mr. Fallon was indeed kind enough to make such a proposition, but I wasn't as open to taking him up on his offer as he was eager to make amends. And now, we are confronted with a dilemma: we have to present a play before the summer, but we have no material to work on." the teacher narrated gravely.
"That's a shame…"
"That's were you come in!" he announced with renewed enthusiasm.
"Come again sir?" she asked in bewilderment.
"I was talking with your English teacher during lunch break and I grilled her for the name of any student of hers that she thought was apt enough to take this on. Your name came up, we ended up going over one of your essays and we agreed that she would talk with you today, during her class… I see you decided to skip that part and fate drove you directly to me!"
"Umh… well…. As flattering as all of this sounds, I don't think it's such a good id-"
"Before you say no, I would like to remind you of something you said earlier: you said you could do better. You also called me incompetent, and I think this could be my chance for revendication."
"There's no need for that; I believe in your good judgment sir!" she exclaimed, in a feeble attempt to get out of there as quickly as possible; she and the theater just did not mix! Scratch that- she and school spirit did not mix!
"Perhaps you would also make a good actress? Well, that's okay; I can always swallow my pride, cast aside all of my years at the Actor's Studio and accept Fallon's help as a last resort. Pity your words are just that: words…"
Strike one! If Professor Martin was looking to subtly coerce Kaoru into authoring a script for the end of year theatrical piece, he finally found the Achilles' heel: challenging her integrity was the perfect way to worm under her skin and Misao grinned madly because she knew that victory was already at hand.
Fate delivered Kaoru right into Mr. Martin's ploy- or was it a weasel of a girl? Misao continued to smile broadly: one image is worth a thousand words…
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Pity your words are just that: words…" he says. "Kamiya Kaoru never says things for the sake of saying them!" I say. "Don't say things if you don't mean them, if you have nothing to back them up" he insists. "Words are loaded pistols" Sartre said. "Put your foot where your mouth is" I do; obviously I've learnt nothing!
It's the dark walk baby: enjoy the perfectly bad mood while it lasts…
And it was the pure and simple truth: Kaoru was going through one of those 'I'm having a bad day so get out of my way' moments as she ran down the streets that would lead her home, all because some stupid teachers had suddenly decided she was talented.
What did they know anyway? Just because she could write a fairly acceptable essay on Virginia Woolf did, in no way, imply that she had skills; that dissertation had been mediocre at best and it wasn't her fault if the only aspiring writer in senior year happened to be a lousy one!
Why, in the name of all that is holy, oh why me?!!
If at least they had actually spotted the spark of some budding abilities in her, then it might not seem so much like the end of the world. But the fact that potential had been overlooked and that she had been picked out as 'the next best thing' or more like 'our only, last hope', if choosing her had not been born out of desperation, then maybe she could actually take a deep breath, shake off the jitters and feel… flattered.
So, that was one of the reasons for her increasing rage; now for the other side of the coin: entrapment.
That Mr. Martin was- no buts about it- one of the craftiest, most cunning men she had ever encountered in her short life, was stating the more than obvious. To make matters worse, not only had he resorted to psychological manipulation, but she had actually fallen for it! Yes, she was angry at herself for seizing the bait; now she was the fish extracted from the deep blue sea and plopped into some kid's aquarium! How infuriating! How silly of her! How naïve of her! How- mou!
So, for art's sake she had stuck around after class, discussing nonexistent ideas for a play doomed to fail from the start. She had been enrolled in an extracurricular activity associated with the school and that just made her feel dirty inside.
It was one thing to be a spirited enough person as a general rule and another to prance around devoting said spiritedness to anything remotely school related; it was one thing to be cheerful and another completely different one to be a cheerleader!
Not that Kaoru had anything against the pep-squad per say, but none of what was happening… tickled her pickle?
Sigh. If I can't come up with a decent analogy in my own head, how in Marlowe's name do they expect me to write a play?
And that's what it all really boiled down to: not frustration, not petty excuses, not bold principles being flushed down the drain, but rather insecurity.
For, no matter how hard she tried to ignore it, no matter how she tried to cover it up with enough spunk to go around and still have reserves at the ready, deep down she was insecure and very much aware of it.
That was the pressing issue: Kamiya Kaoru had just been forced to face her insecurities and she was none too pleased about it.
It truly wasn't a question of being late to practice, it wasn't that she knew her father would work her to the bone for her tardiness; it wasn't even about being reprimanded for going against her timed-out curfew after only one day of being grounded; at the end of the day all those little things would be of no consequence.
The problem was that, when all those things went away, her uncertainties regarding herself would still be there, staring her dead on and she would still be the same old Kaoru, never one to turn down a challenge, eternal optimism in her own abilities always available except… except when looking in the mirror.
There was one enemy that was too tough to confront, one she would gladly avoid if given the chance, and that was herself.
Today, she wasn't given any choices; she had to look herself in the eye and fight and that, that was frustrating, irritating, maddening and scary.
She was scared out of her wits and running seemed like the safest bet to appeasing her mind, at least until she reached the dojo and tired herself out- nothing could better chase away the monster under the bed than a good day's training.
With that thought in mind, trying to outrun her skin and seemingly be plain old wind, she reached the zebra crossing and made a mad dash for the other side of the road.
That is why she failed to see the pedestrian light changing from a blinking green 'WALK' to a bright tangerine 'DON'T WALK'.
That is why she failed to notice the red car coming at her full speed.
All that could be heard was the jarring sound of a shrill cry and screeching tires…
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Reviewer Responses:
To missaw: Sorry about the not-so-soon part of my update. Okay, I'm also sorry for no Kenshin in this chapter, but I guarantee that there is lots of him to come and soon… Thankies for the review; Kenshin is REALLY drool worthy isn't he? In any shape, form or way… ~_~ Yep, definitely something to think about! ^_~
To Fangirl: Sorry your pointed look didn't get us very far, but what do you think about my posting your brilliant idea for a fanart as some sort of challenge? It truly would be a really cool image to see! Thank you so much for your constant reviews and for sticking around with this fic, even if I do seem to take my sweet time between updates. Thanx for caring, it helps to coerce the muse out of her hunger strike state ^_^
To kouri: Thank you so much for the incentive!!! Also, sorry about not giving you the other review that I promised for the rest of your fic, it's just that I've been so busy that I haven't been able to move past chapter 15. Oh well, never fear, I soon will be able to read it… or so I think.
To Rhapsody07: Kaoru and Kagome are actually two of my favorite characters from the anime world; their strength is something to be admired- that and what they have to put up with from their tormented (yet oh so loveable) significant others. I'm so glad that I managed to make you laugh with that little comedic piece in the last chapter; I just hope that this too was of your liking. Don't worry, I guarantee that K and K interaction is right around the corner. Thanks for the reviews! Till next chapter!
To EnjuroJoshin: *blushes madly* Thank you so much for those inspiring words regarding my story!!! I'm sorry that I took so long to update, I really am- you seemed so excited with where all of this was going that I'm sorry I had to cut you short. Well, finally chapter 8! I hope you still continue to appreciate my story, even after this chapter and the weird cliffhanger… Again, thank you, my muse was thrilled and fed me lots of good writing material right after reading your review!
To Punky1: Thank you for the compliments. I plan to keep this story up and I hope you plan on continuing to read it too! I know I'm not that consistent when it comes to updating, but I won't leave my work unfinished, that I can promise. One more time, thanx for your cheery words and sorry for the delay!
To animegirl328: Don't worry about the cussing, I really don't mind. As for what happened with Aoshi and Misao, I think this chapter gave you a vague idea and I might be going a little more into that later on so stay tuned. Thanks for the review, it helped lots! Till next chapter!!! ^_^
To Bunny / Sailor Moon: I'm sorry I made you wait and I hope you liked this new chapter! For the moment it is pretty lighthearted, but I'm afraid it won't always be that way. However, before the angst comes, a loooooot more lightheartedness and cheer awaits our beloved characters so…enjoy! Thanks tons for the sweet review, it made my day!
To BillabongBob: I'm just glad my fic is good for a laugh or two!
To Ocean Fish: Yes, a poodle; I'm still wondering about that myself… I really don't know where that insane idea came from! Also, the binder thing: I'm sorry: it figures that it would be me to go about looking for a farfetched definition instead of the obvious regular one! I always seem to be half on earth, half on space and sometimes, that can be kindda confusing *looks about sheepishly*. I really can't believe you have a binder only for my stuff though that is so… wow, I'm actually struck speechless! Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks!!! I never knew I would find such a faithful reviewer in you and for that I just want to, once again, say thanks: you truly manage to keep me going, even when I feel discouraged! I am forever grateful.
To ChiisayLammy: Well, I hope you've read up to this chapter. I just want to thank you for taking the time to review both this and "All I wanted". I'm happy to see that you are enjoying the way I write and I can't wait to hear more from you! Misao is, in my eyes, the eternal optimist, far more so than Kaoru and that is saying a whole lot!
To A.R Frederik: Hey! As usual thanks for reviewing, and sorry for the delay in my updates. It's really late and I am tired, and I mean possibly exhausted! I need some caffeine and I need it now, or better yet some sleep. Don't worry, Max will appear later on, hopefully to lighten any dark moods that I whip up. Listen, I'll get back to you in a mail later but right now I just need some well deserved sleep after a veeery loooooong day. As usual, I love hearing what you have to say about my story and your advice is always more than welcome. Bye now!
Wow! I didn't realize just how many people had reviewed for the last chapter until I sat down and typed the "reviewer responses" section! That was quite a good deal of people, I must say! Well, I'm tired; my eyes are drooping and so, it's till we meet again on this bumpy road! Bye gang! I hope you had a nice reading session. If so, or if not, DO review!