PM Productions Presents
A Phillip Masters Fanfic
A War Fought in Silence
Chapter Two (A): Consequenses

     Soun stretched as he made his way toward his room.  Genma had posed
quite a challenge that evening, and he was rather worn out.  He was
particularly proud of the move in which his old friend flicked a pebble
with his toe into the wall behind him.  Of course, when he turned back
to the board, the pieces had managed to move themselves in a quite
interesting fashion.  One that would spell disaster for him, if he
didn't act swiftly.  He never would have suspected Saotome to fall for
the, "Hey, there's a ten foot hot dog hovering behind you!" line... but
it continued to amaze him the power his friend's stomach had over its
ward.                          
     He chuckled as he made his way past the dining room, in order to
make sure everything was all right in his household before retiring.  He
peeked in, to find it in shambles.  A sigh escaped his lips as he
noticed the table would have to be replaced, and the floor needed at
least a good waxing.  His gaze panned over to one wall, where the
moonlight cast an erie glow.  There sat a figure, hunched in on itself,
and apparently asleep.                          
     Soun wondered who could have been left behind, either unconscious,
or too worn out to continue in whatever contest the Art had claimed of
the local fighting community that particular day.  Stepping into the
room, he could made out more details of the character.  Almost instant
recognition flashed across his face.  "K... Kasumi?" he whispered, shock
attempting to clamp its cold fist around his throat.
He continued across the room, being careful not to make any noise.  He
couldn't begin to fathom what his little girl had been through to cause
this.  What he did know, is when he found out, heads could possibly
roll.  When he came up beside her, he noticed the small pot lying
shattered on the floor.  He felt a sharp pain as memories all at once
rushed back into his mind.  Then, they were gone again, and his face
settled into a look of calm understanding.         Soun carefully leaned
down and placed a hand under his daughter's legs.  As he lifted, he
supported her back with the other.  He gently carried her up the stairs
and to her room, where he placed her on the bed with a touch only a
parent could achieve.  Then, he did his best to cover her, and brushed
some of the hair away from her face.  Planting a soft kiss on her
forehead, he smiled warmly and exited the room.  Now that his duties as
a father were finished, sleep beckoned, and he was not about to rob the
night of its only mission.

--------------------------------------------------

     Kasumi awoke, with pains galore.  It wasn't long before she was
fully aware, and all the more upset for being so.  Cramps assaulted just
about every muscle in her body, and it felt like someone was jabbing a
sharp, heated needle into the back of her neck.  Almost on instinct, her
hand went to the spot, only to discover that it was rather touch
sensitive this particular morning.  She rolled around her head a bit,
and that allieviated the sensation slightly. 
     Standing up, she stretched the best she could, attempting to remove
the various kinks and twists her body had managed to wrap itself into
the previous night.  Finally able to move with relative comfort, Kasumi
glanced at her clock.  It was five, and the peeking aura of the sun was
still indistinguishable from the lights of downtown Tokyo.  Breakfast
had to be made, as another day dawned upon the battlefield.
Once dressed, Kasumi made her way downstairs.  She passed through the
dining room to get to the kitchen, pausing only briefly to stare at the
remains of her mother's pot, still in pieces on the floor.  She made a
mental note to make sure the mess was removed before other family
members began to rise.              
     A cry from upstairs told her that perhaps it wouldn't be possible,
"Ranma, get up and face the music!"            
     Some scuffling, and few sharp unknown smacks on the floor later,
Ranma replied, "Damnit, P-chan... it's too early to be doing this!"              
     More scuffling, then, "Nonesense, boy!  It is the duty of
every...."            
     More unknown smacks, and what sounded like splintering wood.
"Ranma, I know you did something to Kasumi!"            
     General racket.  However, Kasumi was no longer paying attention.
What Ryouga had said shook her to the core.  There was fighting... due
to her?  People were being done bodily harm because of *her*?  She
shuddered violently and began to make her way back upstairs.      
     More voices joined the fray as she was en route.  "Ranma, why are
you fighting Ryouga this early in the morning?"  Akane.     
     "What?!  I didn't do nothin'!"  Ranma.
     "Would you all shut the hell up, and let those of us who have a
life get some sleep!"  Nabiki.         Kasumi leapt up the stairs two at
a time, amazed at how much it took out of her.  Her breathing heavy from
exertion, she ran into Ranma's room.       
     Ranma and Ryouga were exchanging blows with practiced ease.  Akane
was attempting to find an opening in their close quarter battle in order
to plant what looked like part of the window sill into Ranma's face.
Genma was no longer to be found in the room, as apparently he was the
reason the window was smashed in the first place.       
     Kasumi took in the scene for a few moments, her neck screaming its
discomfort as a banshee might shriek its deadly cry to the raging sea.
"Stop!" she yelled, her head starting to feel a bit light.        
     All movement in the room froze.  Ryouga actually jumped slightly.
Akane dropped the stick, as if her fingers were unable to comply with
her continual order to grasp.  Ranma brushed himself off a bit, trying
to remain aloof, though the look in his eyes told another story.
"What is wrong with you?" Kasumi asked, trying to fathom why these
people in front of her, whom she knew and loved, wanted to kill one
another because of her.  "Ryouga, Ranma didn't do anything to me... why
would you think that?"      
     Ryouga's eyes dropped to the floor.  He couldn't explain why he
blamed everything on Ranma, it was just natural.  "I'm sorry, Kasumi...
it won't happen again."
     Kasumi seemed unsure of his response, but let it slide for the time
being.  There were more important fish to fry, she turned her gaze
toward Akane.  Her face couldn't help but soften, as her younger sister
had a look upon it not seen in almost six years.  There was an air about
her as one might find about a person who had just been caught sneaking
the last ice cream bar from the freezer.  "Why, Akane?  Why must you
blame Ranma as well?  It seems that everyone in this city makes it a
fine art... if something goes wrong, it's Ranma's fault.  Is the reason
behind it so shallow as it just makes life easier for you all, or is it
something else?"
     For once, Akane seemed unable to reply.  There was simply no excuse
for her actions... it had just become so commonplace to point the finger
at her fiancee.  She decided the best course of action would be to join
Ryouga in his intense study of the flooring.  
     Kasumi sighed, trying to keep her suddenly prominent temper under
control.  Perhaps it had always been there, but just subdued though her
constant denial of the situations around her.  She rubbed her aching
neck, trying to figure out when exactly it had become obvious to her
that Nerima was just a huge battle... one man against the world, in a
fight he was certain to lose.  "Akane... Ryouga... please leave.  I have
to talk to Ranma, alone."
     Both children left quietly, Ryouga's eyes never leaving the ground.
He was ashamed of himself... maybe it had been partially his own fault
Ms. Tendou was acting in such a way.  It was almost enough to drive him
to tears.  
     Akane glanced at her sister, the pillar of the household.  Her
usual smile was absent, and her eyes reflected a fatigue so deep that it
would be hard for a stranger to believe it to have ever been there in
the first place.  A wrenching went through her midsection, almost as if
she were going to throw up.  Was it her that had caused this?  Was
Kasumi truly just remaining quiet, while the chaos around her
deteriorated her from the inside?  She took a sharp turn at the doorway,
heading downstairs for the bathroom.  
     Kasumi shut the door, her hand still slowly massaging the sore
spot.  She turned back toward Ranma, who was now looking highly
confused.  Not to mention not a little disturbed.  "What is it, Kasumi?"
he asked, worry very plain in his voice.  
     "Ranma...." she began, then balked as she thought and rethought how
to put the next sentance.  "Was your life so hard before you came here?"
She felt so tired that she knelt before Ranma on his futon, and stared
up at him, the question hanging heavy in the air.  
     Surprise registered on Ranma's face, and he quickly fell to his
knees before Kasumi.  He held her gaze for a few moments, as he wasn't
sure exactly what she was asking.  "Wha...?" he started, coming up
non-plussed.  
     She broke in before he could finish, "Before, Ranma... as in,
before you came to Nerima... to this house.  Was your life this hard?"  
     For a second, Ranma's jaw worked withoutt sound accompanying it.
He finally settled on a neutral answer, in the form of another question,
"Why do you wanna know?"  
     For the first time in two minutes, Kasumi broke eye contact with
Ranma, looking out the window at the pinkish-hued sky.  "I want to know,
Ranma, because I want... no... I need to know why you stay here if it
wasn't.  I can't imagine that it was, even with Genma as your father...
at least you were on the move, and your contant problems couldn't focus
on you all at once as they can here."  
     Ranma blinked.  He had never really thought about it before.
Always was he in a constant war with himself on what to do with his
problems, but he never even considered leaving Nerima.  "I... I don't
think it's important what my life was like before.  I like it here."  
     Kasumi's shoulders slumped slightly, as they were getting rather
difficult to hold up.  Sleeping the way she did last night must have
taken a greater toll than originally thought.  "Why?" she asked quietly,
"What is it that is so important to you here?"
     Ranma's brow was furrowed deeply.  It had been a long time since he
was forced to seriously think, about anything.  "Because, here I have a
family... Nabiki is like the sister I never had... Akane is like the
friend I never had for more than a few weeks at a time... and you...."
He blushed slightly.  "You are like the mother I never had."  His chest
felt pained, like when Akane smiled at him in *that* way.  It was
something he could neither describe, nor say whether he liked or
disliked the feeling.  It did, as always, make him very uncomfortable
and insecure.
     Kasumi smiled again, and it felt as if a weight were being lifted
from her shoulders.  The light outside was getting that much brighter,
and the pain in her neck... was gone....
     "Kasumi!" Ranma cried, as he caught her before she could hit the
floor.

END Chapter Two (A)
Oy vey, this is a stressing story to write.  I'll work on more as I
can... please send comments, they would be very much appreciated.  Good
news and bad news... good: WebTV now has a spell checker... bad: It
can't spell check a message even this long.  Yes, WTV still remains
sucky as all get out.
Thanks for reading,
PMasters (3-17-99)        

"I'm only holding back the rain.  So many raindrops, so many pains.  I
want to find my train someday.  As seasons go past the station." - Tokyo
Babylon OVA 1
/ E-mail: PhilMasters@webtv.net /
"...has anyone ever used something alive for a coat of arms?" - The
Sailor Who Fell From Grace With The Sea (Mishima Yukio, 1965) / 
"You see, what you call a cat, we use as armor." - Rune (El-Hazard,
1994)