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|Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!Mayhem!|
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=> Warning!  This fic contains excessive amounts of sugar!  With 
Valentine's day nearing, every single media in existence has been 
turning out sugar bombs that try to mutate all of us into starry-eyed 
idiots.  Sad to say, they have converted me into their sorry lot.   

=> Although I'm *not* proud to be among the few people who dread the 
coming of February, I am forced, under the pain of insanity, torture, 
slow death, (and lots of other horrible things to graphic to mention), 
to write this fic.  Writing romance stories makes me feel all good 
inside.  <gasp>  It's starting already!  Somebody!  Whack me on the 
head!  <Whack, whack>  Thanks, I needed that.  

=> I'm warning you at this point in time that the fic has a *really 
cheesy ending*.   

=> Also, the plot (actually the ending) is not really my original idea.  
I would like to thank my contributor (who still desires to remain 
nameless) for coming up with the cheesy ending that started the wheels 
turning in my mind to come up with a story to match.  May she (and all 
those other nameless people) find our own cheesy ending sometime in the 
foreseeable future.

=> Some notes on notation.  Things in {curly braces} are author's 
comments within the fic.  Signs and sound effects are in... uh... 
<pointy braces> 

=> The disclaimer is at the end, and the more people I would like to 
thank.   

=> Will somebody whack me so I can start?  Thanks.  
********  


8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F  
                 Twenty Less Lonely People in the World
   <otherwise known as Mayhem's Valentine Fic with the Cheesy Ending>  
   By the currently sessile (not senile) Nikholas "Mayhem" F. Toledo  
8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F8F  

Chapter Ten 
Equilibrium Reached 
	
	The setting sun cast quiet shadows into the dark interior of the 
ruined moviehouse, filling the auditorium with soft, yellow-orange 
light.  Only two people were left to witness this, these being Shampoo 
and Mousse.  Everyone else had left, as soon as they could, to avoid 
getting blamed for the incident, except for them.  Now, each waited for 
the other to leave first, each waiting in vain.
	Shampoo gazed at Mousse's crumpled form on the ground.  She 
couldn't help but feel that it was somehow all her fault, that all this 
time she had taken Mousse for granted.  She took a hesitant step 
forward.
	She placed a hand on Mousse's shoulder.  "Mousse," she said, 
wanting to share in his pain, "you no have to cry.  Let's go home."
	Mousse looked away.  "Shampoo... I'm sorry for causing all this 
trouble.  I just... I just..."
	"No, Mousse, you no have to talk.  It all Shampoo fault.  Shampoo 
treated Mousse like old rag.  Mousse only did honorable thing."
	Mousse shook his head.  "You don't understand.  I almost killed 
you.  That's inexcusable.  I... I don't have a right to treat you that 
way.  All this time, I wanted you to be happy.  I wanted to spare you 
from pain.  When Ranma came with Akane and the little kid, it seemed 
that they were one happy family, that somehow something wonderful was 
going on."  He looked into Shampoo's eyes, his own eyes glistening with 
tears.  "They're going to get married someday, Shampoo.  I couldn't bear 
to see you hurt that way.  I thought that either Ranma, or I, should 
die.  I thought that it would be better if I forced you to see the light 
before it was too late.  I was wrong.  But you can't force people to 
love you.  You just can't.  You're going to love Ranma, even if you end 
up getting hurt."
	"But you win, now," Shampoo said, holding Mousse in her arms.  
"You defeat Chinese Amazon in combat.  Now you become Shampoo's husband.  
Is that what Mousse wanted, all this time?"
	Mousse threw Shampoo's arms down.  "You aren't listening to me, 
Shampoo.  No matter what I do, you're still going to love Ranma.  You 
almost died for him.  I... I don't have a place in your heart.  All I 
want is for you to be happy.  That is all.  Even if... even if I'm the 
one who ends up being hurt."  He began to walk away.  "Goodbye, Shampoo.  
You'll never see me again.  Go to Ranma.  I declare this marriage null 
and void."
	"What about tribal laws?  What would ancient and honorable 
ancestors say?"  She grabbed his arm, begging him to stay, if not for 
her, then for the tribe.
	Mousse looked away.  "Shampoo, this isn't love.  You've hated me 
for a long time, ever since we were kids.  A single fight won't make you 
feel the same way for me."  He gently lifted Shampoo's hand of her arm.  
"Go Shampoo.  You're really in love with Ranma, and not with me.  I... I 
can never make you as happy as he would."  He stood up as straight as a 
broken man can.  "Ranma's the one you're supposed to love, not me."  He 
sighed, "one can only wish for heaven to come to a man such as I."
	When Mousse said this, Shampoo felt a pile of bricks crash down on 
her again.  Mousse was letting her go just because she loved Ranma.  
"What noble and honorable man Mousse is.  Shampoo wonder why she never 
see it before."  For the first time in her life, she felt shame for her 
actions, a shame that sent waves of grief washing over her like waves on 
the beach.  Mousse really cared for her.  Even if Mousse were to go 
against the world, he would gladly do it.  Now, he was walking away, 
because he felt Ranma to be the right one for her.  But, is Ranma the 
right one for her?  She wasn't sure now.  Her life had suddenly lost its 
direction, the path that she had thought to be the truth was false, and 
the path that she did not follow lead to true happiness.  She felt as 
helpless as a child once again.
	She crumpled to the ground, sobbing softly.  "I... I wrong all 
this time," she said between each quiet sob.  "Shampoo feel like most 
dishonorable woman in all the world."  She tried to shake the sadness 
off.  "Shampoo no cry.  Chinese Amazon no cry.  It sign of weakness," 
she bravely said, but there was this pain in her eyes that melted 
Mousse's resolution.  He couldn't bear to see her cry.  "Go ahead and 
cry, Shampoo," Mousse said with all his heart.  "I won't tell anybody 
that you cried.  It'll be our little secret.  Crying is good, it would 
make you feel better afterwards," he said, opening his arms. 
	Shampoo tearfully jumped into his arms, crying as she had never 
cried before.  All the pain and the shame in her heart bawled out like a 
burst pipe.  "Shampoo need Mousse," she whispered quietly.  "Please, 
Mousse say that he forgive Shampoo..."
	Mousse held her tenderly.  "I won't leave you Shampoo..."  He said 
quietly.  "I'll never leave you ever again."
	A cool breeze passed by. 

	A mysterious dark cloud watched the events from an undisclosed 
location.  The sun set in a beautiful canopy of colors.  After a while, 
they weren't watching anymore.

	Ranma ran through the streets searching for Akane.  It scared him, 
it scared the hell out of him, the way Akane ran away from the disaster 
area with tears in her eyes.  He knew, he knew deep in her heart that 
Akane blamed herself for what had happened.  He had to talk to her, he 
really had to, before she... she...  He shook his head.  He did not want 
to think about the consequences. 
	The Tendo Dojo seemed hauntingly vacant.  She was nowhere to be 
found.  She was not in the yard, not in the kitchen, and not in her 
room.   What frightened Ranma the most was the fact that Akane wasn't in 
the training hall.  If she was normally angry, she would have been 
smashing bricks there, but the stillness of the room echoed Ranma's 
fear.
	He walked over to the koi pond, wondering what to do next when he 
heard a soft sobbing sound somewhere behind him and was surprised that 
it actually came from the roof.  In two bounds, he was on the rooftop 
and, at the far end of which was Akane, gazing at the setting sun.
	"So, there you are!  I've been looking all over for you," Ranma 
not-so-quite yelled, walking over to her, then stopped as he noticed 
tears glistening in the last few rays of the setting sun.  "Oh, darn," 
he thought.  "Akane, you've got to come down, you've gotten everyone 
worried sick about you.  Akane, please..."  The last part of his 
sentence drowned in his mouth as Akane turned her back toward him. 
	"I don't want you here, Ranma.  Please, just leave me alone," she 
said softly, not looking at him, not wanting him to see her tears.  Deep 
inside, she wanted desperately to hold someone, to hold someone as she 
shed her tears, bitter tears she had kept for the entire afternoon.  She 
wanted to hold Ranma at least for a moment, for a little while, she 
wanted him to tell her that it was all okay, that it was all a horrible 
nightmare that would go away.  "Please, just go..."
	Ranma berated himself.  He hated seeing Akane cry.  He hated 
himself not being able to do anything about it but would make things 
worse.  He wanted to hold her that moment, to tell her that it was all 
okay, that it was not her fault.  A thousand words died in his throat as 
he tried to speak.  Not knowing what else to do, he placed his hand on 
her shoulder.
	"I won't leave you, Akane."  Ranma's heart was in his throat as 
Akane slowly turned towards him, as a cool wind blew softly through her 
hair, as he saw her eyes filled with a tender...
	... burning hatred, as Akane slapped him on his cheek.
	"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO THAT FOR?!?"  Ranma angrily screamed.  
	Akane turned her back once again to Ranma, hiding the pain she 
felt behind a wall of hate, a wall that she had depended upon for so 
long, a wall that she longed to tear down.  She remembered the way Ukyo 
held him back at the theater, or the fact that he defended Shampoo.  "I 
don't want your pity, Ranma," she said, looking away.  "I can do this on 
my own.  I'm asking you, please, just leave me alone."
	"Oh, I see," Ranma said in barely contained rage.  "For the first 
time in a long while, I do something nice for you, and this is the 
thanks I get."  He also turned his back on Akane.  "Not only are you 
uncute, you're also so stubborn."  He harrumphed.  "Sometimes, I wonder 
why I even bother... Why don't I just leave you, then?"
	"Why don't you do that, Ranma?  After all, you're always thinking 
about yourself.  You jerk."
	"At least I'm not the one who almost killed a little kid just 
because she was angry and---"
	That last remark tore though Akane like a shot.  Guilt over what 
she had almost done.  Anger at herself for losing control.  Hate.  
Shame.  The wall of hate that shielded her from the outside world began 
to choke her with sobs of helplessness and shame.  She should have kept 
a closer eye on Junior.  "Oh, no... What have I done," she thought, 
trying with all her might not to let the tears flow.  She was sure Ranma 
was laughing at her right now.  No, she won't let him see her tears.  No 
way.
	Ranma stopped himself as he blurted out the last sentence.  He 
suddenly turned around, expecting to see the worst.  And he was right. 
	There was a look of intense sadness in Akane's eyes before it 
clouded over.  She smiled bitterly. "You really don't care about me, do 
you, Ranma?  You like Ukyo, or maybe Shampoo, or maybe even Kodachi."  
It was more a statement rather than a question.  It felt strange for her 
to acknowledge what she had feared for the past months, from the moment 
that Shampoo arrived in Nerima.  The feeling that there was no way for 
her and Ranma to be together since every other girl that chased after 
Ranma was better than her in everything.  They were better martial 
artists, better at being a girl than her (even Ukyo), and worse, they 
were better cooks.  There was a dull pain in her heart as she said, 
"maybe it's one of the numerous fianc�es.  Why spend your time here when 
you could have all of them?  I bet you've been waiting for me to say 
those words for a long time now.  Go on!  Leave!  See if I care."
	A twisting tornado of darkness blew through his soul and sent it 
to places of eternal sadness.  He knew it.  He knew that she did not 
like him.  The one thing that kept him going when the times went tough, 
the thought that she cared, that she cared only for him.  He had always 
known that she did not really care for him but he kept himself in that 
comfortable illusion, that someday things would go better, that someday 
he would find the courage to say the words, those words.  It was strange 
to find his worst fear actually becoming true.  His heart shattered into 
a million pieces. 
	He fought the growing fear in his stomach.  "I didn't say that!"
	"Then how come you always keep doing this?  Huh?"
	"You talk, how come you always keep shoving me away?"
	"Is it because I'm not good enough for you, is that it?!?"  They 
both declared at the same time.
	A stunned silence blew across the wind like feathers in the breeze 
as realization hit them like a ton of bricks.  The loud and 
uncomfortable silence stilled even the breeze, as it died in mid-stroke.
	Akane was the first to speak.  She hid the pain that she felt 
inside in a fa�ade of ennui.  "That's it," she declared and began 
walking away from Ranma.  "Since we're not good enough for each other, 
I'm going to call it off."
	"Call what off?"  Ranma asked in a tone that belied his inner 
turmoil. 
	"All of it!"  She waved her hands vaguely in the air.  "This 
stupid engagement!  This stupid thing about carrying on the Anything-
Goes School.  All of it."  She noticed Ranma starting to open his mouth.  
She cut him off with a gesture.  "Now, don't you say no, Ranma.  You saw 
what happened today.  It's never going to work out.  You said so 
yourself."  She smirked, "now you can have all your other fianc�es all 
to yourself."
	Ranma stammered a retort.  Unable to find one, he said, "Don't 
Akane, you... we're going to regret it."
	"How can you regret that?"  Akane had this insane gleam in her eye 
that Ranma rarely saw.  "You don't care about me, you said."  She began 
mimicking his voice.  "You're not going to spend the rest of your life 
with a tomboy, you said.  What kind of a girl is she, can't even take 
care of little kids, you said.  At least I'm not the one who almost 
killed Junior, you said."  She looked him straight in the eye.  "This 
has to end now."
	Something inside Ranma snapped.  "FINE, AKANE!  IF YOU WANT IT 
THAT WAY, FINE!  If you want to call it all off, go right ahead, I won't 
get in your way."  He was about to jump away, away from it all, but 
there was something that held him back.  "And here I thought that 
something good was finally happening between the two of us," he 
whispered quietly.  "But it's all a darn lie."
	Akane's heart leaped at Ranma's words.  She felt the same thing.  
She thought that perhaps there was a chance that they could be... But 
Ranma was lying, wasn't he?  After all, how could he love someone like 
her who almost killed a little boy to attack him for spite.  "You're 
lying through your teeth," she said bitterly.  "You lie all the time..." 
	"Then I'm lying when I say that I..."  Ranma paused as he suddenly 
found himself in a middle of a trap with only one way out of.  There was 
no turning back. 
	"That you what..." Akane dared him, hoping against hope that he 
would say...
	"That I... That I don't really care for you!"
	Time seemed to stop for Akane as the words she wanted to hear for 
so long, words she never knew, never dared to think, would come from 
Ranma.  A cool breeze began to blow, causing the smooth surface of the 
koi pond to ripple in response.  She couldn't help but notice the hard-
set features of Ranma's face as he said it, as he said it with all his 
heart, the way the wind tossed the tightly-bound pig-tail to and fro. 
The way his eyes shimmered in the sunset light...
	The declaration needed a reply.  "Ranma... You..."
	Ranma's heart thudded against his chest.  He said it!  He finally 
managed to say it!  But, what good will it do, now that he knew that 
Akane did not care for her the same way.  Grief and despair loosened his 
tongue and all the emotions he had kept bottled up for all these months 
raged forth like water from a burst dam. 
	"Idiot, don't you get it.  I... I care for you, dammit.  I never 
liked Shampoo or Ukyo or Kodachi or all those other women.  I cared only 
for you."  He looked away, not wanting to see her mocking glance.  "I... 
I just couldn't say it because I was afraid that something like this was 
going to happen." 
	He smiled a bittersweet smile, a smile of one who has gone to hell 
and back.  "I never lived in a dream, Akane.  I always knew that you 
never cared for me.  I... I couldn't face up to the rejection.  So I 
told myself that I should prepare for the time that you would tell me 
how you really feel, that you don't feel that way.  Maybe that's why I 
keep saying the wrong things all the time.  It's because I was afraid 
that saying the right thing was wrong."
	He looked up to the sky.  "But I had hope, Akane.  Hope is not a 
dream.  I always hoped that someday, you and I could be together, 
without all these people trying to push us together and pulling us 
apart.  But you were right.  You said it.  You just didn't care about 
me.  You want to call the engagement off.  Now, I realize that you're 
right, that I have been living a dream, that I had wasted these past few 
months clinging on to something that wasn't really there."  Unknown to 
him, bitter tears began flowing on his cheek.  He tried hard to push 
them back, but he couldn't help it.  There was this intense feeling of 
loss. 
	"What's the use," Ranma said, turning his back on Akane.  He did 
not want her to see the tears he said, fearing that she would mock him 
even more.  "What's the use of Ukyo or Shampoo or all those other women 
loving me, when I can't love them back?  All I care about is you.  But 
now, what's the use since you don't really care..."  His voice began to 
break. 
	He wanted to run away. 
	He needed to run away. 
	He must run away.
	He tried to jump, but something held him back. 
	It was Akane, holding on tightly to his Chinese shirt.
	Ranma looked into the sparking tear-stained eyes.  He felt a 
certain softness in them that he felt only rarely.  He blocked off the 
warm feeling he had, it was all just a dream.  "Dammit, Akane," he said, 
trying very hard not to look into those eyes, "don't give me your false 
pity."	
	"Shut up..."  She looked into his eyes and saw the pain mirrored 
inside.  She depended on Ranma for everything.  She hated him crying.  
He needed her, like she needed him.  "I... I feel the same way, you 
idiot." 
	Ranma couldn't believe his ears.  The moment when he had thought 
that all was lost...  The moment that he thought he was going to spend 
the rest of his life never knowing how...  "Akane?" 
	"Ranma, I'm sorry, I never knew how..."  She began wiping the 
tears away, and began crying herself.  "You must think that I'm some 
kind of idiot, crying---"
	The last part of her sentence was muffled by Ranma's chest as he 
took her into his arms, just as the last rays of the sunset filled the 
western sky in flames of crimson red.  Both of them wanted this for so 
long, it was almost a relief.  The soft breeze that was blowing a while 
ago returned in soft whispers, tossing their hair as they touched.  The 
sky, the trees, the water, the grass, everything was perfect.
	There was nothing more needed to be said.
	"Ranma, I...I..." she began, squeezing her grip on Ranma's body. 
	"No, don't... You don't have to say it... I know..." he said, 
running his hand through her hair.
	"Ranma... I... I love you, too..." she said, looking into his 
eyes.
	"Will you just shut up..." he said lovingly, looking into her 
eyes.
	"No, you shut up..." Akane said, tenderly.
	The wind sighed.  Some things never change.

	Genma and Nodoka slipped out of the house when no one was looking. 

	Ukyo ran after Ryoga, knowing what kind of damage a frenzied 
depressed maniac can do.  In her mind's eye, she saw the entire Nerima 
district being blown up by a full shi-shi hokodan.  It was relatively 
easy for her to follow Ryoga.  He left a large trail of dust and debris 
behind him.
	The trail led into the park behind a cluster of trees where it 
stopped.  Ukyo looked around her, then heard a voice calling her.  
"Ukyo!  Over here!"  Ryoga called from somewhere below the ground. 
	Ukyo found Ryoga stuck in a deep pit.  "How the heck did you get 
down there, you jackass?"  She peered into the pit. 
	Ryoga's warning came too late.  "Ukyo!  Don't come any closer---"
	Ukyo fell into the pit with a loud thump.
	"Oww... That hurt."  She looked around them.  There was not much 
room inside the hole, a tight squeeze for two people.  "Where's Ryoga?"  
She thought, and a squirming body below her caught her attention.  "Oh, 
sorry..."
	She helped him up to his feet.  "Are you okay, Ryoga?  You got me 
worried back there when you ran out like some kind of freak.  You've got 
to get a grip."
	"What's there to hold a grip on," Ryoga said, "Akane loves Ranma.  
There's no place for me in their happy family, unless I become a pig and 
become their pet."
	Ukyo slapped him.  Of course, that didn't make much of an impact 
on Ryoga, him being as hard as rock.  "Come on now, Ryoga.  There's a 
lot more fish in the sea.  I don't see what you see in that tomboy 
Akane."
	"You should talk.  Ranma's a very dishonorable man.  I wonder what 
you see in him?"
	"Well... Ranma can be pretty nice, sometimes..." she said 
dreamily.
	"Yeah, pretty nice as he dates behind your back," he declared 
sarcastically.
	"And what's there with Akane?"
	"Akane's very caring.  And she's very... uh..."
	"Nice to sleep with?"
	"Hey, take that back!"
	"You take what you said back first."
	The two stared each other down.  Then, they became melancholy.
	"Face it," Ryoga spoke, looking downcast.  "Ranma and Akane are a 
couple now.  There's no place for us, there."
	"Yeah... Even thinking about it makes me sick.  My Ranchan ending 
up with that hussy Akane?"
	"And my Akane with that pervert Ranma?"
	They both sighed.
	"Well," Ukyo said, feeling the need to be optimistic just in case 
the guy she was sharing a small hole with should berserk, "maybe this is 
fate.  We've devoted most of our lives to just one particular person, 
that we have stopped looking around.  You know, looking at just one 
flower when there a thousand more out there."
	"You mean something like stopping to smell the other flowers, and 
stuff like that?"  Ryoga began to think.  "I guess you're right.  Most 
of the time I get lost, all I do is just think of her that I forget 
looking around me.  There was even a time when I was almost hit by a 
truck...  Never mind, you'll just get bored."
	But Ukyo was interested.  "Please.  Go on.  I promise I won't get 
bored."
	The closeness of the place began to get to Ryoga's nerves.  "Ah...  
Don't you think we should get ourselves out first," he laughed a nervous 
laugh.
	Ukyo looked around.  "Well, climbing out is out of the question.  
The hole is too narrow to do that."  She thought for a while.  "You can 
get us out, right?  I mean, you're a better martial artist then I am, 
and you travel a lot.  Most probably you have a special technique for 
getting people out of holes."
	"Ah... Actually, I just waited for the rain to come, so I can 
become a pig and I could climb or float out."
	"Some help you are.  I know!  Maybe we can call for help."
	"I think the sun's already set.  Most of the people around here 
have already gone home.  There's no one outside."
	The hopelessness of the situation began to sink in.  "ARRGHH!  I'm 
going to get whoever dug this hole!"  Ryoga began banging the walls, 
pretty hard if you're in a tight spot with a cute girl that even mere 
body contact would cause you to lose blood.
	"Hey, get a grip, will 'ya.  The walls might cave in."
	"Well, what the heck do we do until morning?"
	Ukyo, ever the practical one, "well, you could tell me stories."
	"Promise you won't get bored?"
	"At least that's better than banging our heads on the walls."
	A few minutes later, they were laughing heartily in the small glow 
of Ryoga's portable lamp.
	"Hey, this was a good idea," Ryoga said, between laughs.  "I might 
actually like spending a night in a hole in the ground, with you, I 
mean."
	"Yeah, me, too..."
	There was a short interval for looking into each other's eyes and 
blushing.
	"What you said back at the theater..." Ukyo asked, noticing the 
way the light cast shadows on his face.
	"Ah... eh... I... I..."
	"Don't... You don't have to explain.  Maybe it's fate," she said, 
blushing. 
	Ryoga gulped.  "Still... I... think we should stay friends for a 
while..." Ryoga said. 
	"Yeah... I don't want this to be a rebound thing.  I... I don't 
want to get hurt anymore."
	"Maybe, someday..." he said, looking in her eyes, not seeing 
Akane.
	"Hopefully..." she said, looking in his eyes, not seeing Ranma. 
	And, so, the two spent a night in a small hole in the ground, 
built for two, exchanging stories over the soft glow of a portable lamp.

	Kasumi led Dr. Tofu on the most indirect route back to the clinic.

	"Why the heck am I doing this again?"  Nabiki Tendo found her way 
to the Furinkan High school soccer field.  And, sure enough, a lone man 
with a bokken bid farewell to the setting sun.
	She walked over to him.  Kuno's back was turned to her, as he 
stood gazing at the red orb as it hung lowly above the horizon.  "Ah... 
If it isn't the cruel and heartless Nabiki Tendo.  Tell me, what brings 
you here to the hollowed grounds of Furinkan High?"
	"I have to safeguard my assets," she replied.  She took out a 
small wad of pictures from her pocket.  "I still have these pictures I 
haven't sold yet.  You still wanna buy them?"
	"I have no need of them," Kuno said slowly.  "By my own eyes, I 
have seen true love.  It is the love that burns and ravages the soul, 
turns one into a raving lunatic, and consumes the man afflicted by it.  
I have seen the full power of Ranma Saotome, and finally know that I 
cannot defeat him no matter how hard I try.  Let him keep the pig-tailed 
girl and Akane Tendo.  For I know now that they shall be protected unto 
death by Ranma Saotome."
	Nabiki took on an air of ennui.  "You mean to say that you've 
given up on the two of them."
	Kuno replied, "No.  For I still care for them as long as the sun 
will shine.  But they have a much better protector than I..."  He took a 
deep breath.  "What fools these mortals be.  All of us hide behind masks 
that cloak what we really are inside.  For Saotome, it is a cloak of 
incompetence that fooled even the keenest of eyes.  I wear a mask of 
poetic justice.  And you, Nabiki Tendo, you hide behind your appearance 
of calculated equanimity.  You are heartless by definition, but your 
presence here indicates otherwise."
	"What do you mean to say," Nabiki asked with nearly closed eyes.
	"Ah!  A sudden interest from the unmovable Queen of Capitalism?  
For we hide behind masks, to protect our true self from the piercing 
gazes of others, for we cower in fear of being laughed at or scorned.  
But, sooner, we find ourselves becoming the masks that we wear, and we 
long for the true self that we have so callously lost.  I have seen 
through your mask, Nabiki Tendo, and I find a heart that is as pure as 
the light of the sun.
	"For that little boy has melted the heart of stone that you have 
trapped yourself in.  I saw the look in your eyes when you saw the 
balcony upon him, a horrified and desperate look that pierced through 
your cool and composed self.  Why is it that disasters bring out the 
best in men, when desperation forces him to reach beyond the shell he 
has created around himself.  Perhaps, it is because of the primal 
instinct of survival, that we cannot live alone in the world.  Inside 
your soul, you constantly seek out and yearn for another.  You have a 
caring heart, Nabiki.  Do not be ashamed to show it."
	It was 5:34 PM, the moment when the sunset was at its most 
beautiful.  No words passed between them as the flaming ball that was 
the sun ended its long arc through the sky, to be replaced by more 
distant suns. 
	Kuno took out a small bouquet of flowers.  "Nabiki Tendo, I would 
humbly ask you out on a date with the Blue Thunder---"
	Nabiki slapped him.  "What do you think I am, some kind of idiot?  
There's no way you could make me go out with you," she walked away, 
leaving the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High on the ground.
	Unseen by any mortal eyes, Nabiki Tendo broke out into a smile.  
"I would like to go out on a date with Tatewaki Kuno, not the Blue 
Thunder," she said quietly to herself. 

	Hiroshi and Sayuri limped out of the theater just as the police 
and rescue vehicles arrived at the scene.  Daisuke and Yuka ran up to 
them, with a concerned look.  "What happened," they asked at the same 
time.
	Hiroshi looked at Sayuri for a little while.  "Next time," he 
said, gazing into her eyes, "Let's not invite martial artists over."

	"Thank you for all your help," the man gave and his son gave a low 
bow to Mr. Tendo and Miss Hinako.  Soun apologized, "we're sorry about 
the accident."  The man shook his head.  "Don't be.  Junior here is a 
very tough boy.  It would take more than a few bricks to keep him in 
bed."  He lifted the little boy and placed him on his shoulder.  
"Well...  We have to go now, still have a long way to go...  Say goodbye 
to the kind people, Junior."  "Bye-bye, Uncle Tendo.  Bye-bye, Miss 
Hinako."  The gate opened then shut as the father and son tandem took 
their leave.
	Miss Hinako said, "I guess I have to go, too."  She gave a low bow 
to Soun and stood up.  There was an awkward silence as each waited for 
the other to make the first move.
	It ended up both of them doing it the same time. 
	Memories of the morning's rumble in the dining room came back to 
them in vivid recollection.
	The brat began tickling Genma, causing furry arms and legs flying 
over the place.  Miss Hinako was knocked off her feet, straight into 
Soun's arms and sending them both crashing to the floor. 
	Time seemed to stop for Miss Hinako as she lay softly on Soun's 
chest, feeling every muscle in her body tense then relax as the feeling 
of closeness overwhelmed her.  There was something different she felt 
for Soun than for all the other people she knew.  It was only too bad 
that Soun had chosen to live in the past together with his deceased 
wife.  Miss Hinako regretted that the man she had chosen to love was 
just as dead to her as Kimiko was to the rest of the world.  Soun loved 
only his wife and his wife alone.  "If only he could move on... Just 
move on..." Miss Hinako placed her head on his chest, wishing that 
things were different.
	Time seemed to stop for Soun as he cradled Miss Hinako in his 
arms.  An overwhelming feeling of grief engulfed him as he remembered 
the last time he had held Kimiko so close.  It was a spring day very 
much like this one.  She had her head pressed softly against his chest.  
Soun could feel her heartbeat.  A small breeze blew through the window, 
and her hair waved softly in the wind, calling to him in soft whispers.  
Soun gazed lovingly into Kimiko's face, and her face dissolved into Miss 
Hinako's face as he held her so close, so softly.  "If only I could move 
on... Just move on..."  Soun held her close, wishing that things were 
different.
	Remembering the rest of the world, they both hurriedly stood up.  
"Sorry about that," they said at the same time, concentrating instead on 
the ball of fur at the center of the table and the one child that was 
the cause of all this.  Their hearts moved on to other less important 
matters.
	But now, they won't move on.  They stayed in each other's arms for 
a few minutes that seemed to have lasted a few days, enjoying every 
moment of the comfortable closeness.
	"Forgive me," Miss Hinako said, "I just couldn't..."
	"Don't be," Soun replied.  "Don't be sorry... All I need is time."
	"Promise me that this won't be the last time you hold me," she 
sighed.
	"I promise..."  They held together for a few more seconds, then 
they reluctantly let go.  Miss Hinako bid goodbye before it became too 
late for them to turn back.  The gate swung shut after that.
	Turning his head to the sky, Soun wept openly.  "Kimiko... 
please... a sign, that's all I need.  Tell me, tell me if... I 
should..."  His monologue was interrupted by the drifting of a feather, 
a true heavensend.

Nikholas F. Toledo Zu @ http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Flats/3145/mezza9.html
Vector, Switch, Yebah, Rain Man, goo, Pervert, Scruples, Hollie, NomaD,
Blitz, Gee, Datzo, Jewel, Elf, Radler, Pinball, Mayhem, Chaos, Father, Attar
Fanfiction @ http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Flats/3145/fanfics.html
Warp Zone @ http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Flats/3145/thirteen.html
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The logo of the Church of All Worlds is nine concentric circles.
Word from the Laity:  Wipe yer feet!  Bloody 'ell...
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Gallery/3145/index.html
Currently under construction... confessional at the links.
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