On Thu, 13 Aug 1998 11:32:47 -0700 (PDT),
yoiko@earthlink.net (C. Toler) wrote:

<snip>

       He leaped out onto the rooftop and paused a moment to look out at
the sky, thanking whatever Kami it was that had arranged for him to find
Kasumi.  Not only did she respect him, she loved him enough to share her ki
and her body with him.  Whatever else might happen, he was grateful to be
loved by the one woman he respected enough not to glomp publicly.

       "Life is good," Happosai murmured to himself, then started off on
his afternoon rounds.

I thought it was very sweet, personally. One is inclined to
treat anime characters as one-dimensional icons - a practice
known, amongst certain thoroughly reprehensible critics and
authors, as staying "in-character." It always reassures me
to see authors treating the characters like actual human
beings.