DiScLaImEr:  Rumiko Takahashi and a bunch of rich corporations own all 
the characters in this fic.  My use of them in no way is meant to
undermine those claims, and suing me would be a huge waste of time.
If, for some reason, you actually think this meager tribute to RT's
genius deserves to be further distributed, you may do so, so long as
you: a) reprint this disclaimer; b) give me credit (blame?) for the
story and; c) don't actually sell it (Yeah, like that's a concern!).
And now, on with the fic.

   In the interest of space, I am doubling up chapters, and I have 
eliminated the "recap" section.  If folks managed to follow 20 chapters 
of (the quite excellent) "Usagi is Dead", they should be able to keep up 
with this.
   

   And so we move on to:

*****************
* Illuminations *
*****************

**************************
* A Ranma 1/2 Fanfiction *
**************************

***************
* By Freemage *
***************

*Author's Note:  This story draws on both the anime and the manga.

 This is a dark story, with several sexually suggestive scenes,
 although no outright Lemon scenes.  If such material offends or
 disturbs you, please consider not reading this story--Unless, of
 course, you like being offended and/or disturbed....

  Thoughts are denoted by {X}.*

                      *****************
                      * Chapter Seven *
                      * Reversals     *
                      *****************


    "UKYOU!!"

    Ranma's cry pierced the night as sharply as Mousse's blades
 had pierced the okonomiaki chef's body.  He ran across the yard,
 heedless of possible attacks.  When he reached the spot where
 she had fallen, he slumped to his knees, which were suddenly
 unable to support his weight, and cradled her head in his lap.

    "Ukyou...."

    Slowly, cautiously, the others approached.  He could feel
 them, could feel their presence, surrounding him, and it made
 him want to vomit.  All this hatred, this violence, this
 stupidity, and what had it come to, in the end?  An innocent
 girl, his best friend, cut down by a vicious, unwarranted
 attack.

    Through his tears he noticed she was still breathing.

    "Somebody call an ambulance--Now!"  Soun Tendou broke from the
 others and went inside to call, and Kasumi came forward with a
 blanket, covering the unfortunate chef.

    "Saotome...."  Mousse's voice, sounding apologetic.
 
    Ranma didn't care, didn't want to hear the pathetic
 rationalizations, the revival of petty quarrels.  "Go."

    "I...Alright.  We will return to the Nekohanten...."

    "No.  I want you to leave.  Permanently.  Take Shampoo and
 Cologne and get out of Japan.  Go back to China."

    Shampoo looked stunned.  "But Shampoo cannot go back to
 village without husband...."

    "Then go to Hong Kong.  Or Beijing.  Or go to America.  Or go
 to Hell for all I care.  But if any of you is still in Nerima by
 morning, I'll kill you."  He paused, looked up at them with ice
 in his eyes.  "Do you understand?"

    Eyeglasses or no, Mousse could feel the venom in Ranma's
 voice, and he knew Ranma was telling the truth.  "Come, Shampoo.
 We must pack."

    Shampoo, frightened by this side of Ranma, one she had never
 seen, looked back and forth between Mousse and her "husband",
 trying to understand.  The cold fury she saw surrounding Ranma
 like a shroud decided her.  "Okay, we go now...."  {But not
 forever.  Just till you calm down....}  The two Amazons left,
 heads bowed. 

    "Ranma...."  It was Akane.

    Ranma turned that icy stare on her.  "What?"

    Akane whispered, barely audible, "Nabiki...."

    The concern in her voice cut through the haze of Ranma's
 pain.  He gave a sickly grin.

    "Of course.  We can't leave her in Kodachi's hands, can we?" 
 He paused, considering his options.  "Ryouga--you and I will go
 over to the Kunou mansion, I can fill you in on the way there."

    He stood and faced Akane.  "I need you to go with Ukyou to
 the hospital."  He cut off the protest he could see forming on
 her lips.  "I know you want to come with, but I need someone I
 can trust to go with her."

    Akane's eyes seemed to cloud with doubt and indecision.  He
 took her by the shoulders and gave a very gentle shake. "Please,
 Akane--I need you to trust me, and I need to be able to trust
 you, too."  His voice broke as he reached the end of his plea.

    Akane hesitated just a moment more, then gave a mute nod. 
 "Thank you," Ranma said, gratitude flowing through his eyes.

    Genma's voice broke the delicate equilibrium.  "What do you
 want me to do, Boy?"

    "I want you to stay right here."  Again, ice had entered
 Ranma's voice.

    Genma stammered, confusion stifling his usual verbosity.

    "Because, you see, if you were to go with Ukyou, or come with
 Ryouga and me, then I'd be counting on you."  He faced his
 father and Genma saw that the ice was in his eyes, as well. 
 "And we have finally proven that I can't do that, haven't we?"

    Genma fell back, his son's words hurting more than any of the
 blows the older man had received in any combat.  "What do you
 mean, Boy?"

    "I trusted you to handle things here.  I counted on you to
 keep it from getting serious.  And you blew it.  Again.  How
 many people do you have to fail, Old Man, before you finally get
 it?  How many have to suffer from your cowardice, your lack of
 honor, your betrayals?"

    Genma was in full retreat, now, backing away from his son.
 "I'm sorry--you--You're right, I...."

    "You're sorry, all right.  You're the sorriest excuse for a
 man to walk this Earth."

    Ranma turned and faced the outer wall to the yard.  "C'mon,
 Ryouga, we've got work to do."

    The two of them leapt silently into the night, leaving Genma
 weeping on the grass.  Soun came out and tried to comfort his
 old friend, while the night was lit up by the lights of the
 newly-arrived ambulance.

   **********************************************************

    Pain.  Darkness.

    {Well, I should be able to do something about one of
 those...}

    Carefully, Nabiki opened her eyes.  The sight before her did
 nothing to ease her concerns.

    She was, as near as she could tell, in the Kunou's wine
 cellar.  She could hear the labored breathing of the room's
 other occupant, whom she suspected was the senior Kunou.  It was
 hard to tell for sure, though--he was naked, and covered with
 dried blood.

    The coppery smell had mixed with the vinegar scent of the
 wine, and the combination caused her to gag.  {I am in serious
 trouble here.  The "Black Rose" is obviously a few petals short
 of a full bloom.}

    Nabiki turned her head up to look at the handcuffs holding
 her wrists to the wine rack, the movement sending another wave
 of throbbing pain echoing through her skull.

    She was so distracted that she actually failed to notice
 Kodachi come in until the gymnast spoke.  "So you are awake.  I
 was beginning to fear that I had killed you too soon."

    The rage she had experienced in the graveyard returned,
 white-hot and numbing the pain.  "Yeah, well, glad I was able to
 stick around long enough to spit in your face," Nabiki hissed,
 matching deed to the words.

    "Oh look, it wants to play.  Isn't that cute?  I shall enjoy
 this."

    Kodachi pulled out another of her ribbons.  Even in the gloom
 of the cellar, Nabiki could make out the gleam of the razor-thin
 wire that made the ribbon's edge.

    "Feel free to scream, dear girl.  After all, self-expression
 is healthy."

    It took five minutes for Nabiki to take her up on the offer.

   ***********************************************************

    Ryouga ran next to Ranma, passing through the darkened Nerima
 streets.  He was worried.  "Ranma, about what you said to your
 father, before...."

    "I don't want to talk about it.  Right now we have more
 important things to worry about than my old man's feelings,
 right?"

    "Ok, I understand...."  Ryouga paused.  "How do you want to
 tackle the mansion?  That place is a madhouse."

    "You said it.  Our best hope is the element of surprise.  I
 figure that Kodachi won't be expecting us this soon--that should
 be an element in our favor.  Remember, if you see Sasuke, take
 him out, fast.  He may not be as cracked as Kodachi, but he'll
 do whatever she says--and he knows that place better than anyone
 else."

    "Got it.  I just wish we had more going for us than the
 possibility of surprising them."

    "It'll have to do."

   ***********************************************************

    Kodachi was skilled at what she did--Nabiki would have to
 give her that.  In an hour-long session of torture, the gymnast
 had never once pushed her over the edge into unconsciousness. 

    Nabiki had been aware of every cut, every bruise, every
 broken bone.  When it had looked like any more abuse would push
 her over the edge, the Black Rose switched targets, working her
 father over with the same attention to detail.

    Just when Nabiki was sure she could take no more, the little
 portable phone rang.  Kodachi paused in her efforts, then set
 down her tools and went over to pick it up.

    "Hello, this is Kodachi Kunou, the Black Rose, rising young
 star of the Martial Arts Gymnastics scene, speaking...Yes, I
 know who this is...WHAT?!? How did they know....Of course, it
 must have been that...Thank you."

    Hanging up, Kodachi walked back to the hapless pair.  "It
 seems I shall have to rebuke Sasuke.  It would appear that his
 carelessness earlier this evening has resulted in a valiant
 rescue attempt.  But do not worry, my dear."  She drew close,
 looking Nabiki square in the eyes.  "I shall make certain that
 no one interrupts your visit.  Never let it be said that the
 House of Kunou was lax in its hospitality." 

    "Now you wait right here, and we'll continue our fun when I
 return from preparing for our 'guests'."

    {Like Hell I will, you refugee from from a Clive Barker
 movie...}

   ***********************************************************

    Moving silently, the two boys leapt over the fence like a
 pair of panthers.  Without a word, they moved into the garden of
 the Kunou mansion, eyes searching for any sign of the dreaded
 booby-traps.

    Oddly, the trip to the back door of the house was uneventful,
 even boring.  Somehow, this only put Ranma's and Ryouga's nerves
 even more on edge.

    Ranma was puzzled.  {Why haven't we been challenged.  I'd've
 bet anything that that psycho put Sasuke on guard duty someplace
 around here....}

    Working in absolute silence, Ryouga eased the glass door
 open.  {Surely we will face some kind of obstacle here....}

    Suddenly, a whisper of wind warned the two boys to leap to
 the sides as the form of the Kunou's ninja guardian dove toward
 them, katana outstretched to pierce the flesh of anyone too slow
 to escape.

    Then he was gone.

    Ranma stood, confused.  "Where did he go?"

    He jumped as he felt an oddly weak kick strike the back of
 his head.  He whirled in mid-air, and confronted...

    ...the corpse of Sasuke, pierced with meat hooks and hanging
 from the ceiling by chains.

    Ryouga was looking ill.

    "Man, I never thought Kodachi would go this far.  Her
 brother's death must have messed her up even more than I
 thought..."  Suddenly, Ranma remembered that odd, feral look
 Kodachi had given him at the funeral.  {Now, where else have I
 seen that look...?}  Ignoring a deep-seated instinct that he was
 missing something important, he pushed the conundrum from his
 mind.  {Can't let myself get distracted.}

    "C'mon, Ryouga, we have to find Nabiki--fast."  The fanged
 boy just nodded mutely, seeming grateful for any excuse to get
 away from the grisly deadfall.

   ***********************************************************

    Kodachi descended back into the cellar, smiling.  The traps
 she had activated after...disciplining Sasuke would be adequate,
 she was sure, to the task of capturing any intruders, without
 killing them.  After all, her darling Ranma might be among them,
 and she certainly did not want to hurt him.  She had such
 wonderful plans for their wedding night....

    Enthralled by her nuptial speculations, Kodachi entered the
 wine cellar, prepared to continue her "work".

    And stopped dead.

    The Tendou Bitch was gone.

   ***********************************************************

    Nabiki ran through the labyrinth that ran beneath the
 mansion.

    Getting out of the handcuffs hadn't been easy, but Nabiki had
 had a couple of years to practice the fine art of lockpicking. 
 The handcuffs had been tougher than her classmates' diary clasps
 and locker padlocks, and the pain had made movement almost
 unbearable, but the principles had remained the same.

    She had considered stopping to help the senior Kunou, but she
 wasn't sure how long she had before Kodachi returned.  Besides
 which, if even half of Kodachi's ramblings during the last hour
 had been true, the wretch had been the ultimate cause of all
 this.  {Dammit.  You'd think that somebody in this town would
 have a father that was worth something....}

    She ran, not knowing what to look for.  And that's when she
 found it, leaning against the wall in a small alcove.

    A wooden bokken.

   ***********************************************************

    Ranma and Ryouga passed through trap after trap, looking for
 the middle Tendou sister.  After a brief discussion, they had
 decided to start in the attic and work their way down.

    Time after time they worked together to escape cages, avoid
 darts, spot trip-wires, and otherwise avoid the dangers of the
 house.

    Now they stood at the doorway to the cellar.

    Ranma's only words were, "It figures."

    And without a thought for themselves, the two plunged into
 the darkness.

   ***********************************************************

    {Nabiki}

    Nabiki spun about, trying to find the one who had spoken her
 name.  For a moment, it had sounded like...

    "Kunou-baby?"

    {I am here, with you}

    Nabiki stared at the wooden weapon in her hands.  {No way.}

    A sense of Kunou's presence flowed over, through her.  {It is
 true.  I have returned to help you finish what I failed to do. 
 For too long I allowed myself to be blinded by love to see my
 sister's true condition.  I will not allow that mistake to
 consume you, as well.}

    {Oh, Kunou...I-I loved you so much.}

    {And I you.  But our time is short, if we are to stop my
 sister's dementia before it claims any more victims.}

    Suddenly Nabiki's rational side asserted itself.  {And how do
 you propose we do that?  In my hands, this stick of yours is
 little more than a crutch.}

    {It can be more than that, if I guide your hands.}

    An instinctive revulsion, buried deep within Nabiki's soul,
 came to the fore with a rush.  {You mean... like possession?}

    {No, not really.  It is more like a joining of the souls, so
 that you can draw upon my experience.}

    Nabiki considered for a moment.  {Well, that sounds a little
 bit better....}

    {Yes, but there is something you should know.  In order for
 you to be able to respond with the instinctive level of a
 master, the gestalt will have to be almost total.  Nothing will
 be held back.  You and I will share secrets that two lovers
 would not share after a lifetime together.}

    Again, Nabiki was given pause by Kunou's implication, until
 cold, hard reality hit her.  {I don't really have a choice, now
 do I?  Besides, I think... I think you deserve to know it all.}

    {Very well.}

   ***********************************************************

    She saw it all.  The day the Kunou house had shattered, an
 innocent game gone so horribly awry.  Later encounters, when he
 tried to comfort his weeping sister, and she had turned the
 contact into something more primal.  The pain when he realized
 that the child of one of those encounters had been aborted by
 their father's private doctors, over Kodachi's screams of
 protest.

    She also saw with him the shadow-enshrouded blackmailer who
 had somehow managed to learn all of this, and the shame he had
 felt at the absurd tasks he had been required to perform to keep
 it secret.  The pompous posturing, the isolation of Akane from
 the company of her male peers, even his alleged ignorance of the
 "pig-tailed girl's" identity--All of it a lie, an act at the
 bequest of his unknown tormentor.

    She felt him knowing her, as well.  The shame of the photos. 
 And again, the unknown extortionist, the one who had forced her,
 time and again, to commit innumerable crimes to keep the
 secret--blackmail, theft, forgery, once even prostitution in a
 slum district of Tokyo.  And she realized, to her horror and
 confusion, that their tormentors shared the same voice....

    And she felt his love.  Warm, healing, it embraced her and
 filled her until she thought she would burst with it. 

    As they reached a state of gestalt, she felt herself
 rejuvenated.  {This one last time, my love, we will stand
 together.}  Neither was sure whose thought it was, or if it even
 mattered.

   ***********************************************************

                           End Chapter 7



                        *****************
                        * Chapter Eight * 
                        * All Fall Down *
                        *****************
 
    "Ohohohohohohoho!!  Where are you, my little plaything?  We
 have so much to do tonight!"  Kodachi raced through the dark
 tunnels beneath the Kunou mansion, searching for her escaped
 "playmate".

    She cursed herself for not making sure the little slut was
 securely bound.  Despite her quickly disappearing grasp on
 reality, some instinct from the reptilian part of her mind
 warned her that if Nabiki Tendou escaped from her, the game
 would be up.  Although her money and influence had been enough
 to secure a coroner's finding of "death by misadventure",
 *without* an autopsy, she had no illusions about what would
 happen if a bedraggled Nabiki suddenly showed up at the police
 station, announcing what--and who--had really caused Tatewaki's
 untimely end.

    She turned a corner, and saw her intended victim, Nabiki
 Tendou, standing there.  Nabiki held a wooden bokken with an
 unsteady grip.  Kodachi seethed with rage.  {How dare the little
 hussy lay her unworthy paws on the rightful property of the
 House of Kunou?  I shall have to correct this travesty!}

    "So, I see you have failed to learn anything from our time
 together, Nabiki Tendou."

    Nabiki turned, still a little woozy from the gestalt she had
 established with Tatewaki.  Trying to buy some time to get her
 head together, she asked with an artfully weak voice, "Wh-what
 do y-you mean, Kodachi?"

    "I speak of the way you have compounded your earlier
 transgressions by taking up the very weapon of him whose death
 you caused.  Of course, if you had any respect for propriety, you
 would never have sank your greedy little claws into my darling
 Tatewaki in the first place."

    "I was under the impression that Tatewaki was his own man."

    The barb struck home.  "He was mine!  Mine to love, to
 hold... Why must you foul Tendou girls keep getting in the way?"

    Nabiki felt compassion steal into her heart.  After what she
 had learned, it was all too easy to understand this demented
 little girl.

    {Be strong, Nabiki.  I, too, was compassionate and
 understanding, and look at the results.}  Tatewaki's voice in
 her head bolstered her resolve.

    {Then I'll let her decide her fate.}  Nabiki allowed the
 point of her weapon to dip, feigning weakness.  Kodachi, seeing
 the opening, charged, razor-edged hoop poised to strike.

    Nabiki released control of her body to Tatewaki Kunou's
 spirit.  With astounding speed, the bokken came up to a combat
 position.

    Kodachi saw the stance her target had assumed, and recognized
 it, from long hours of watching Sasuke and Tatewaki spar.  She
 hesitated, and in that moment was lost.

    "Strike!"  The hoop went flying from her hands.  "Strike!" 
 An edged ribbon dropped from its holster.  With each cry,
 another weapon was dropped, or she was forced further away from
 those that had already fallen.  Taken off-guard, it was all
 Kodachi could do to keep the head shots from connecting.  Soon,
 the unceasing attacks pinned Kodachi against the dirt wall of
 the cellar, weaponless.

    Confused and frightened by this sudden reversal, Kodachi
 looked searchingly at her opponent, trying to understand how she
 had so rapidly lost control of the situation.  Then it came to
 her, in a moment of clarity that had become rare in her advanced
 dementia.

    "Tatewaki?  You?"

    "Yes, Sister," Tatewaki said with Nabiki's voice, "I am here.
 You and I have unfinished business.  But know this--No matter
 what you have done, no matter how this comes out, I shall still
 love you, always."

    Nabiki/Tatewaki stepped back, prepared to beat the girl into
 submission.  Kodachi simply stared, her eyes filled with regrets
 that few could have fathomed.  "Kill me, please, my brother. 
 Kill me now, while my head is still clear."

    Hesitation.  "I--I do not know if I can."

    "Then...DIE!!!"  Kodachi leapt for Nabiki's throat.  Reacting
 instinctively, Tatewaki brought the weapon to point at her,
 hoping to force her to the side.  Instead, with a look of
 animalisitc fury, Kodachi grabbed the weapon and drove it, with
 the strength of the mad, into her own breast.

    Overcome by horror, pain and grief, Nabiki slumped down to
 the ground.  As she passed out, she saw a look of peace come
 over the mad girl's face.  {Funny, isn't it?  Maybe that's the
 only peace any of us will ever know...}

   ***********************************************************

    The scene was unchanged when Ranma and Ryouga, worn out from
 dodging all the death traps in the house, came running into the
 chamber.  Kodachi's lifeless form was surrounded by a pool of
 her own blood.  Nabiki, still clutching the bokken, lay across
 from her in a heap.

    "Oh man...."  Ranma moved to check on Nabiki, and recoiled
 when he saw the marks left by Kodachi's torture.  "She looks
 like she's been through Hell."

    "Looks like she was able to get her own back, though," Ryouga
 said, a touch of approval in his voice.

    "C'mon, let's get her out of here."

    "What about her?"  Ryouga pointed to Kodachi.

    "Nothin' we can do for her, anyway.  And we won't jostle
 Nabiki as much if we both carry her."

    Ryouga nodded, taking up Nabiki's ankles.

    As they passed through the tunnels, Ranma heard a faint moan
 coming from one of the side chambers.  He motioned for Ryouga to
 set Nabiki down, and opened the door.  It took him several
 seconds before his mind could encompass the horror now
 confronting him.

    "P-Principal Kunou?  Is that you?"  Indeed, the bloody,
 bruised form strapped to the wine racks was hardly recognizable
 as the hair-crazed school administrator.

    "Who dere?"  The man raised his head, trying to see through
 the crusted blood that came from the place where his eyebrows
 once were.

    "It's me, Sir.  Ranma Saotome.  We're gonna get you outta
 here."

    Ranma could not quite make out the Principal's reaction, but
 moved forward anyway.  "Ryouga, gimme a hand, would ya?  I can
 take Nabiki the rest of the way, if you can help him out."

    Ryouga moved as Ranma requested, and soon the grisly
 procession was underway--Ranma, with Nabiki cradled in his arms,
 followed by Ryouga supporting the Principal on one arm.  They
 made their way through the garden to the gate, the Senior Kunou
 able to direct them around the booby-traps.

    After they passed through the gate, Kunou turned to Ryouga. 
 "Where is my daughter?"

    Ryouga had trouble meeting the man's eyes.  "Sh-she's dead,
 Sir."

    The bloody head nodded.  "Shoulda known it would come to
 dis."

    Summoning his will, he stood away from Ryouga.  "You two
 better get goin'--Dat chil' needs attention."

    He stepped back through the gate.

    "Wait--Wh-where are you going?"

    The Principal stretched out a hand that was bereft of
 fingernails.  "Gotta finish it."

    He pressed a sigil on the ornate gate and gave a loud cry. 
 "Kunou Family Final Honor Restoration!"

    He gave Ryouga a sickly grin.  "You might wanna take a few
 steps back...."

    Ryouga stood, confused, until the first tremor caused him to
 backpedal.  As the two boys watched in horror, flames began to
 shoot out of various apertures, casting a hellish light over
 the estate.

    More tremors followed, and Ranma realized that they were
 being caused by explosions, deep underground.  He suddenly
 understood what was going on.  "C'mon, Ryouga--We've gotta get
 clear!"

    Ryouga nodded his assent.  The two ran, seeking shelter
 across the street.  As they turned, they saw the elder Kunou,
 silhouetted against the flames, as he entered the blazing house,
 just before it collapsed in on itself.  Small explosions sent
 blazing debris flying into the night sky, and soon the two could
 hear sirens approaching.

    As the first emergency vehicles arrived, Ranma and Ryouga
 flagged down an ambulance, and accompanied Nabiki to the
 hospital, while they tried to explain what they could to an
 incredulous police officer.

   ***********************************************************

    Akane hated hospitals.  They reminded her too much of when
 her mother died.  She especially hated the waiting rooms.  The
 antiseptic smell, barely masking the stench of death and dying,
 made her want to retch.

    Of course, the personalities of those she was waiting with
 didn't make things any easier.

    Ranma was still refusing to speak with his father.  Genma had
 given up pleading for some kind of response, and now just sat,
 stone-faced, in one of the vinyl-covered seats.

    Her own father was not any better.  Akane had called home
 when the boys arrived with Nabiki.  They had rushed right over,
 and Soun had immediately started in with his usual hysterics,
 running around, weeping loud enough to wake the dead, and
 generally making a nuisance of himself.  Finally, in the
 interest of restoring some kind of order, one of the nurses had
 injected him with a sedative.  Now he slept fitfully on the
 battered sofa, tears running down his face even in his sleep.

    Ryouga had gone into the vending room next door three hours
 ago, and hadn't been seen since.

    Kasumi had announced that she should stay home, in
 case there was any further trouble at the dojo.  Akane had
 briefly wondered if Kasumi was just trying to avoid confronting
 the horror that was so anathema to her eldest sister's
 world-view, but she quickly suppressed the unkind train of
 thought.

    The doctors were fairly certain Nabiki would be okay,
 although they said it would be a while before she would be
 awake.  She had taken quite a beating, though, and would
 probably be on the mend for weeks, and it would be at least a
 week before she could leave.

    Ukyou was another matter entirely.  Mousse's chain-spike had
 actually hit the base of the spine, and the doctors had told
 Akane that there was a very real chance that the chef would
 never walk again.  The look on Ranma's face when she had told
 him had scared her--It was like a part of him had just...died.
 She had tried talking to him, but had given up after an hour of
 unresponsive grunts.

   The clock on the wall continued inexorably into the night, and
 Akane hated it.

   ***********************************************************

   {Nabiki}

   {Yes, Love?}

   {I must leave you soon}

   {I know...I want to come with you}

   {No...It is not your time...There is one here who will need
 you}

   {How...Who?}

   {All will become clear in time...There are some things I
 cannot reveal just now}

   {But there is so much I need to know...At least tell me who it
 was that blackmailed you}

   {I cannot, for I do not know...At first they were merely a
 voice on the phone, reading the report from the clinic where
 Kodachi was sent...When later we met, the fiend was shrouded by
 darkness...I have oft thought it was the Devil himself}

   {Kunou...I wouldn't have cared}

   {I know that, now, and it will comfort me while I make ready a
 place for you in the Far Lands}

   {Far Lands?}

   {All in Fate's due time, my love...And now I must go}

   {Tatewaki, I love you...Don't leave...I'm not ready}

   {I shall wait for you}

   {KUNOU!}

  *************************************************************

                             End Chapter 8

  Random ramblings:  OK, so I wimped out on killing Ukyou.  Don't
 worry, those of you who congratulated my "courage", I haven't
 finished with her, just yet.  See you in Chapters 9&10!
   

 
--Freemage  


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