Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction, I do not claim any rights to any of the characters or concepts created or owned by Viz Video or Rumiko Takahashi. This is just the work of one fan to the others. The only characters or concepts that I claim are the ones I created or introduced. That said, I bring you:
Broken Mirrors, chapter 56
Monday, March 14th. The Saotome private jet over the Pacific Ocean.
Cassandra Saito looked out the window as she made her way towards Japan to pursue an opportunity that still seemed bizarre to her. Before her accident she had flown often, as she had attended one meet or another. Gymnastics had been her life, until it had been taken from her.
From an early age, she had thought of nothing but gymnastics and dance. Her first exposure to that world had been watching the summer Olympics as a small child sitting in her mother's lap. Her parents had thought that her fixation was just a phase, that it would pass quickly.
But it hadn't. It had been the defining thing about herself for most of her life.
Until it had been taken away with the only family she had in this world.
Her father's family had not approved of his choice of a wife, and had cut all ties with them. Not even the accident had caused them to seek to repair that bridge.
Her mother's family…. I guess you could say that family tragedies seemed to run in their blood. She had met her grandmother once when she was little. A woman who looked older than her years who did nothing but stare out a window all day. A house fire had left just the mother and daughter to continue on.
And grief had made her mother a practical orphan.
Her parents had always been so supportive of her ambition, and had made great personal sacrifices to give her the best chances they could.
That had been how they had ended up in Las Vegas. A training facility had offered her a try out, and she had passed with flying colors. Her parents had picked up roots and moved without a hint of hesitation. They had moved ever forward, ever chasing Cassie's dream.
Until a semi truck had ended it all on a dark, rainy night.
It was almost a week later when she had woken up, and found out what had happened to her parents. The next blow had been what her initial diagnosis had been. Her former teammates had visited once or twice, then never again. Even the letter of support and encouragement had dried up long before her tears had.
The settlement and insurance had covered her initial bills and the bare minimum of work to get her parents house to where she could at least live in it. The physical therapy had been exhausting, far harder than any training she had ever done as an athlete. And the fact that the only person she had been working for was herself had not helped.
She had wanted to give up many, many times over the years but had persevered, mostly because of one little girl who had never once given up.
A young girl that had encouraged her to push harder and harder. To try to make some of her life once again. There had been setbacks, yes. The falling out she had had with the Japanese Paralympic Organization had been one of them, as had been having the domestic program she had helped start taken down a different path.
Mrs. Watanabe had chosen the perfect time to approach her. Fortuitous circumstances, it seemed. Still, the resemblance between her and Ranko Saotome was almost unnerving. Both in appearance and the severity of the injuries that had caused them to lose so much. Both of them had at one time had something that drove them, that had formed the basis for their entire existence.
And both of them had lost it along with their parents.
Cassie sighed and stretched, and smiled at the helpful woman who had seemed to appear out of nowhere. The woman wore a very professional looking outfit, and had the emblem of the Saotome household emblazoned proudly on an armband. The staff had been happy to help, but had also allowed her as much autonomy as she had desired. They had even latched down a special wheelchair next to her seat, and shown her how to work the releases herself.
Honestly, not having to depend on someone to help her take care of certain things was good. And it showed just how much they had adjusted for the sake of this Ranko Saotome.
It made her want to meet her doppelganger even more.
But first…. She had to pass an interview with Ranko's brother before she would be allowed to meet the other member of the Saotome family.
Best to rest until they arrived. It was the best way to handle the rather large shift in time zones, after all.
Next stop, Tokyo.
Tuesday,March 15th. The airspace above Narita international airport. 6:00 PM.
Cassie stretched as they began their approach. She had been awake long enough to watch as the coastline of Japan had approached and swept underneath her. It was the first time she had been to Japan, and the vast expanses of the country that her ancestors had come from took her breath away from her.
The crew went about their tasks with the quiet efficiency that every aspect of her trip had been accomplished with so far, and Cassie relaxed as they closed the windows and made ready to land. Cassie gave the flight attendant a curious look, and she received a smile in return.
"Best to keep prying eyes at bay, madam. Once we land, we will be taken into a private hangar, and your car will be waiting for you there." The woman said in Japanese before she bowed and made her way to her own seat.
Cassie smiled and nodded as she took a breath before she double checked her seatbelt. There was nothing left to do but wait now. She sighed and tried to relax, unable look out the window now.
Cassie gripped the armrests as the plane touched down, and felt it slowing to a stop. After a few minutes she felt the plane as it started to move once more before it came to a stop once more. She waited to unlatch her seatbelt until she saw the attendants moving about the cabin.
She leveraged herself into the wheelchair and unlatched it before she let the attendant wheel her over and onto the chair lift. She braced herself as the lift lowered her to the ground. The crew unloaded her suitcases and her own wheelchair and loaded them into the back of the black SUV with blacked out windows.
The driver walked over and bowed to Cassandra. The slim, tall man raised his head and met Cassie's eyes and introduced himself. "Madam Saito, it is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Shiro, and I will be taking you to meet the Master now. May I help you into the vehicle, my Lady?".
Cassie blushed a bit and smiled. "I am in your care, Mr. Shiro.". She smiled and let him wheel her over to the vehicle and gasped a little as he lifted her with a smooth grace that spoke of a lot of practice with helping someone like herself in and out of vehicles. She remained as relaxed as she could and bowed her head to the attendant before the door closed and the vehicle started to move.
She let herself doze until the vehicle came to a stop and the door opened. She let Shiro help her out of the car and into her wheelchair that he had set up for her.
"The Master will meet with you in the morning, Lady Saito. We will take you to your room, and let you get ready for supper, if you wish to join the master and our mistresses?" Saito asked as he pushed her up the ramp and into the house past a pair of older servants who bowed deeply.
"I guess it is a little late for the interview, isn't it?". Cassie said as she leaned back in her chair a little.
"I think that Master Saotome wishes for you to be rested before he speaks with you officially, Madam Saito." Shiro answered as he let go of the handles on her wheelchair and stepped aside to allow the two younger men who had carried her suitcases in to deposit them on a low bench between the dresser and the closet. "One of the maids will be in presently to help you change and get you settled in. Supper shall be ready shortly afterwards. Then, if you wish, you can make use of our baths before you retire for the night?"
"That sounds good. Thank you, Mr. Shiro." Cassie said as she looked around the guest room she would be using. If she was going to be honest with herself, it was larger than her living room in her house.
Shiro bowed deeply then left the room. Moments later there was a polite knock on the door, then a young maid walked in and bowed to Cassie. "Madam Saito, I am Rei, and I will be your maid as long as you are staying with us. Now, let's get you changed and off to supper, shall we? The Master and the ladies of the house would like to meet you."
Cassie smiled nervously. "I didn't expect to have a maid. I am quite capable of taking care of myself.". She said as she fidgeted a bit. "I am looking forward to meeting Ms. Saotome, as well."
Rei hesitated for a moment before she shook her head. "It's best that you get used to having servants help you, madam. We will be a part of your life going forward. Those such as you and I who are in the service of the Saotome family need to be able to adapt to any situation that may arise."
Cassie smiled and nodded as she wondered just what she had gotten herself into. One thing she had noticed already was the smooth grace that all the servants she had seen already moved with. It was something she had seen with trained dancers before, but she highly doubted that the entire staff had a background in ballet.
"I have an odd question for you, Rei." Cassie said as she watched the efficient maid start to lay out a dress, shoes and underclothes from the closet and dresser with practiced ease.
"You may ask me anything, madam, but I cannot answer all questions, I am afraid to say." Rei answered honestly as she smoothed out the clothes and started to stride towards Cassie with a determined look in her eyes
"Are you a trained dancer or gymnast, Rei?" Cassie asked as she found herself being very efficiently stripped and redressed in a manner that she found almost alarming in how quick and effortless it had happened.
Rei paused for a moment then smiled as she finished up the task and helped Cassie back into her chair and carefully smoothed her dress back into place before she took her place behind Cassie and placed her hands on the handles of her chair. "In fact, I do have some training in both of those disciples, but all of those in service to the Saotome are all trained in the Saotome School of Indiscriminate Grappling." She answered as she started to push Cassie towards the dining room.
Cassie laughed a little nervously, worried about meeting the members of the household. "That is quite a mouthful.".
Rei smiled. "If you remain with us, madam, you will have to be comfortable with talking about it. It is also known as the Saotome School of Anything Goes." She said as they entered the dining room.
Cassie swallowed and looked at those assembled at the table. Ranma Saotome sat at the head of the table, and had a stern look to him. His piercing blue eyes locked with hers for a moment before he smiled.
"Welcome to our home, Ms. Saito.". He said and gestured at the brown haired woman at his side. "This is my fiancee Ukyo Kuonji.". He said and Ukyo dipped her head politely before he motioned to the raven haired woman who sat across the table from Ukyo. "And this is Akane Tendo, the fiancee of my sister Ranko. Sadly, Ranko will be away for business until after Sunday, when she will be flying to Las Vegas for her wedding ceremony to Ms. Tendo.". At this Akane blushed and dipped her head as well, but her dark, intense eyes never left Cassie.
Cassie rubbed her hands on the arms of her chair and dipped her head politely as she tried to pull up the lessons on proper etiquette her mother had taught her. "Thank you…. Very much for welcoming me into your home. I am in your care."
Akane smiled a brilliant smile and seemed to relax a bit. "You are quite welcome,.Ms Saito. Can I call you Cassandra, if you will call me Akane?"
Cassie smiled and breathed out before she nodded. "I would like that, Akane. And please, call me Cassie."
Akane nodded in response as Rei placed Cassie at the plate that was set to Akane's left and Ranma's right.
Soon the first of a series of courses was brought out for them. Three different types of nigiri, all prepared with different types of fish. Luckily Cassie had some experience with the finer side of Japanese cuisine from her time in the spotlight.
When the salad was brought out, Cassie hesitated for a moment before she selected the correct fork for her salad, then glanced at Akane as the raven haired woman giggled a bit.
"I'm sorry, Cassie. It's just…. My darling Ranko has many talents, you see. Fine dining etiquette is not one of them." Akane said with a fond smile on her lips.
Cassie blushed a little. "I… see…" she said as she ate what was a polite amount, since she had a feeling that this would probably be a multi-course meal. What had her confused was the fact that the other three had more on their plates, and finished it all before the next course was brought out.
Cassie was a bit surprised when there was no soup course, and glanced aside at Akane with a questioning look. Akane chuckled and smiled before she spoke up. "We have reasons to skip the soup course. In time, I am sure that Ranko will demonstrate why someday. If you stay around."
Cassie nodded as the next course was brought out, and hoped that she would be allowed to stick around. It had been an interesting day already, and she hadn't even been here that long. Still, she couldn't wait to get to take a bath and get some rest since she had her interview with Ranma in the morning.
As dessert was cleared from the table, Akane and Ukyo exchanged a silent look before they both stood up and Ukyo leaned over and gave Ranma a very soft kiss on his cheek and Akane looked at Cassie and then at Rei.
"We will take Ms. Saito from here, Rei. Why don't you get her room ready for her, hrm?" Akane said as she moved to take the handles on Cassie's chair.
"Of course, Mistress Tendo. I will leave her in your capable hands." Rei said before she walked quickly but smoothly from the room.
Cassie shifted a little in her chair as she looked over her shoulder at Akane. "I get the feeling my interviews have just started." She said with just a trace of dread.
Ukyo laughed as she led the way out of the dining room and towards the baths. "Don't be silly. Just three women having a nice bit of girl talk in the bath. Nothing that formal."
Cassie swallowed and nodded, as she tried to prepare herself for the first hurdle she would face in her attempt to get to stay here.