Author's Note: This chapter's plot was sketched out ahead of time, which seemed to work pretty well for me. A kind reviewer (Syaoran Li Clow) mentioned that it seemed like the story was coming towards a finale, and it occurred to me that I had no idea. So, I sat down and asked myself 'where am I going with this story?' and 'where is it going to end?' among other things. And then I answered those questions, and so now I have a fairly good idea where things are going. That should help with the short chapters and wandering focus. I'll probably go back and re-write most of it once it's done, though. Also, I included a bit more magic in this one, along with Shiori getting beat up by Kozue. You're welcome, Yami Hime Hikari and lurk-a-lot. Also, cookies for those of you who catch the references in this chapter. There are two. One's hard, the other isn't.

Kagayaku Means to Shine
Anime: Shoujo Kakumei Utena
Primary Pairing: Utena x Anshii
Rating: PG-13
Written: 7 November 2006
Chapter Nineteen

Knock, knock, knock.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Suddenly the door was yanked open, and a grumpy-looking head poked out of it, dark-skinned with blue eyes and two long purple braids. The woman at the door jumped, then looked annoyed at herself for having done so.

"It's a Sunday afternoon," Nishiko snapped, startling the woman with her abrupt and boy-style speech, "What do you want?"

The woman paused to gather her thoughts, then stood up tall, folding her hands and speaking self importantly.

"I'm here to see Arisugawa Juri. I know she lives here, so where is she?"

"Busy," came the terse response, and the door was shut in her face. She blinked, startled, and immediately began knocking once more. This time the young woman stepped partially out onto the landing, and it was evident that she was dressed in some kind of white martial arts gi, and that her belt was a dark blue colour.

"I said she's busy! I'm busy too, so go away!"

"I don't care if she's busy," the woman explained, confident in herself despite the fact that this teenager was both taller and, if the belt was any indication, much stronger and faster than her, "I want to see her, right now!"

The teen opened the door further, and leaned against the inside of the door frame indolently. She grinned. Smirked, more like it.

"Fine. What's your name?"

"I'm Takatsuki Shiori. Now-" and she didn't get any further than that, as Nishiko stepped out of the way of a blue-haired whirlwind, who promptly punched Shiori right in the face. The woman, not so butterfly-like anymore, dropped like a sack of bricks and made a rather satisfying 'thump' as she hit the wood of the landing.

The door closed once more, and all was at peace.

"Well, that was an interesting little dance," Nishiko commented to Kozue as they made for the dojo, where she'd been practicing for her upcoming black belt test.

"Yes. If I hadn't been in the dojo at that very moment, I would have missed it. Lucky me!" Kozue grinned.

All Shiori had seen was the surface of things; that is, Nishiko and then Kozue's fist. In reality, Nishiko had come out of the dojo at the first knocks to see who was bothering them, and relayed that information back to Nishiki before even opening the door. Juri, and a recently arrived Kozue, had identified the woman, and Nishiko had happily played along to keep her occupied until Kozue arrived in the front hall to take care of things.

Back in the dojo, converted from an empty storage room when the family first moved in, Nishiki laughed aloud as Nishiko relayed the scene to him(1) from the front hall.

:Oh,: said his twin as she moved back towards the dojo from the front hall, :Thanks for the help with boy-speech.:

:No problem,: he responded with an internal grin, :You would never have intimidated her with your girly talk.: He nearly snickered out loud as a mental raspberry was blown at him.

Just as Nishiki was beginning to tell it all to Juri, the younger twin arrived back in the dojo, with a very satisfied-looking Kozue, who was cradling her hand and grinning like a maniac.

"I've been wanting to do that since middle school," she enthused, "And it was just as much fun as I thought it would be, too."

Juri simply shook her head, "I can't really condone that sort of violence, but I definitely understand the feeling." But condone it she did, rewarding Kozue with a brief kiss, which prompted laughing and razzing from the twins, which in its turn prompted Kozue to shake her injured fist at them.

"I'll get you, just like I got her! Just you wait." Another round of laughter, and Kozue departed to tend to her hand and gloat.

"Don't you still hate her," Nishiki mused as the door shut, "Or whatever?"

The three of them returned to the forms they'd been practicing while they spoke.

"Not really," Juri said softly, turning gracefully in sync with the twins, "I find that I don't care very much anymore, to be honest. I haven't, really, since..."

She trailed off into silence, simply working the kata(2) silently for a moment, until Nishiko spoke up.

"Since when?"

"Oh," Juri said softly, as if drawn out of deep thought, "I suppose I haven't cared about her since your Aunt Kozue came into my life again."

"Aww, that's so romantic," gushed Nishiko with a happy grin, "You two have been together for forever, so it's so cool to see you still being so...so love-love(3)!"

Juri just blushed, muttered 'it's only been twelve years,' and training continued on. Soon enough, the twins were too occupied with training for their upcoming belt test to ask impudent questions, which was just the way she wanted it.

"So," said a soft male voice, "There is a child. A girl."

Another voice, female this time, fell into the air after a hesitant moment, fluttering like the wings of a butterfly, "Yes. I saw her myself. She looked around sixteen or so, I think, and-"

"Enough," said the first voice again, "And not enough. I require more information, and you will go and acquire it for me."

"Yes, my lord," said the woman's voice, trembling, "But..."

"Oh, that. Wait for your eye to heal, then go. It would not do for you to be wandering about with a black eye."

"Yes, my lord."

"Hey, 'Shiko-chan! You wanna go shopping this Sunday? I here there's a really cool new shop over in Harajuku selling the coolest new socks ever!" They were waiting for homeroom to start, and Eriko had turned around in her desk, kneeling on the chair, to talk to Nishiko.

"I'd love to, Eri-chan, but I have my black belt test this Sunday..."

Eriko threw her hands up in the air, then folded her arms and rested them on Nishiko's desk, peering up at the dark-skinned girl who'd become her best friend after the first time they'd been paired up in English class. She'd been shamelessly leeching off of the other girl's English skill ever since.

"You're so boring sometimes, you know that? Anyway, how many martial arts is it that you've mastered now? Like, a dozen?"

"Watch your skirt, you'll give the boys a show. Anyway, this is only my third one, and you know it. Jujitsu, Aikido, and now Tang Soo Do." Nishiko smiled, though, and closed up the manga she'd been reading. Eriko simply sighed dramatically.

"But you also do kendo and fencing and swimming and riding and you play the violin like a master. You're like a superhero, I swear. And I bet your brother's just as bad."

Nishiko opened her mouth to respond, but Eriko simply continued on, like a bulldozer under full steam.

"Speaking of Nishiki-kun, is he single again yet? It's like every time I turn around, he has a new girlfriend. I'll never get my chance!"

Nishiko laughed.

"Oh, shush. First of all, I only do a little bit of kendo and fencing. Second, swimming is my sports club and riding is just because my parents do. And Niichan doesn't play violin, he plays piano and does track, not swimming. You wouldn't want him anyway, and you know it."

"I know, I know. He's like your clone or something. Oh, but he's older, so wouldn't that make you his clone? And did you hear those rumours going around that he's really a girl or something? That's totally stupid. Just because he hasn't hit puberty yet doesn't mean he's really a girl. I mean, you're his sister, you'd know. But nobody ever bothers asking you, do they? Oh, and there's yet another rumour going around about you being a lesbian, as if everybody didn't already know that. But wait, if you're twins and you're a lesbian...oh, no! I hope he isn't...hmm, no wait. That would be so cool! Oh, boy/boy love is so cute! Do you think he's gay, 'Shiko-chan? Do you, do you?"

"Uh, no?" Nishiko stammered out a reply to the sudden question, having mostly zoned out on her friend's rambling, "I'm pretty sure he likes girls. But why would you want him to be gay? Wouldn't that mean you could never date him?"

"Well, yeah," Eriko mused, "But then I could dream about him kissing other boys behind the school...and then, at a sports club retreat, they'd..."

"Hey," Nishiko protested, "Don't draw my brother into your dangerous little fantasy world! I told you, he's normal(4)! Besides," she muttered, "Sports club retreats are hard work. We practice all day and sleep like dead people, then get up and do it again the next day. I always come back looking like a prune. Not much time for this and that,(5) really."

"Uh-huh," Eriko responded with a grin, "I bet you've found the time, though, haven't you?"

"With a girl from my team? Are you crazy? No way, not in a million years!"

"Really? How come?"

Just as Nishiko was about to expound on the dangers, difficulties, and general ickiness of dating a teammate, the teacher tapped her folder on her desk and called them all to order for homeroom. Eriko settled back into her seat, and the conversation was shelved for another time.

:Hey, Niichan,: Nishiko called out to her brother.

:What's up?: came the prompt response.

:You know my friend, Torii Eriko-san?:

:The one with the headband and a crush on me the size of the entire Kinki region?:

The sarcasm was evident in the mental sending, and Nishiko smiled at her book before responding.

:That's the one.:

:What about her?:

:She wants you to be gay, so she can fantasize about you and a teammate doing 'this and that' at a sports club retreat.:

:Date a teammate? Is is crazy?:

:My thoughts exactly.:

"I think he's found us."

END CH.19 (AN: Dun dun dun!)

References:

I'm calling Nishiki by male pronouns now. There's no such distinction in Japanese pronouns, in terms of practical usage, but I'm considering him to be more or less a boy at this point. Plus, it makes it easier. Also, as far as his classmates know, he's always been male. He has a masculine name, has always worn the boys' uniform, uses boy-speech, and is referred to as 'big brother' by Nishiko. It's a very easy mistake to make, and they never corrected it.

Kata – Sort of, meditative sequences of martial arts motions, done to limber up, calm down, and/or strengthen the body. Often done prior to practice, or as part of practice, and sometimes called 'forms'.

Love-love – Typically said in the Japanese fashion (rabu-rabu), this means something along the lines of 'lovey-dovey' in this context.

Normal – In Japanese, futsuu. It means, literally, 'normal,' but the slang usage is something closer to 'straight,' as in, heterosexual.

This and that – 'sore to are', a slang phrase used as a euphemism for petting and/or sex, similar to the English 'hanky-panky,' but less dated.