Okay, I admit, I'm a confirmed Genma-basher. The man is
an idiot and a fool. But, last night, a thought occurred
to me - what if he was actually kind, and sensitive, but
_still_ did everything attributed to him? What could drive
a man to that? This fic is my answer.
Disclaimer: Sorry, it's not a spamfic!
Sacrifices to Destiny
The diner was one of the lesser known eateries in
downtown Tokyo, and was almost completely deserted save
for one man. He was large for a Japanese man, well over
six foot tall, and quite stocky. He was not overly
muscular, but wasn't soft either. He wore nothing on his
head, not even hair, and kept a pair of spectacles on his
by means of strings tied behind his ears. In front of
him, a half-finished glass of water rested next to a
half-eaten plate of food. He merely sat, and waited.
After a while, the chime of bells announced the
entrance of a woman, older, but still attractive. Her
hair was put up in a bun, and she carried a silk-
wrapped bundle on her back. Seeing the man sitting alone,
she walked over, and sat down.
The man looked up at his new lunch gust, and
struggled to hold back a smile. "Hello, my love." He
stood, and she embraced him. "How are you holding up,
Nodoka-chan?" he asked.
She smiled, but he could tell that it never
reached her eyes. "I am surviving, Genma. After what
we have been asked to do, all I can do is be patient."
She glanced down. "Why don't you eat? You seem quite
enthusiatic at any other time, or so they tell me."
Genma's restless chopsticks came to rest. "That's
part of the act. I have to pretend to b hungry, when
what I have become just turns my stomach."
They sat down, and Genma resumed picking at his
food. A waiter stopped by, and got Nodoka's order.
Leaving them to their awkward silence, he sauntered back
to the kitchen to prepare it.
The seconds dragged to minutes.
The minutes dragged on.
At some point, neither one knew when, the waiter
returned with Nodoka's late lunch, a modest salad. At
last, she could take it any longer. "Anata, how much
longer must we maintain this lie?"
The man toyed with the morsel on his plate. "Until
he has come into the fullness of his destiny. You know
that as well as I. Your Grandmother would have our
heads if we dropped the facade a moment too soon."
"I know. But, every time I see him standing there,
pretending to be someone else, I want to wrap my arms
around him, and tell him that I would never, ever hurt
him, not for any reason." Tears began to well at the
corners of her eyes. "This... this lie we have lived for
eleven years is torture beyond belief. Especially for
you, dear Genma."
The chopsticks in the man's hand were gently placed
on the side of his plate. He looked up at her, but, at
the same time, past her. "No-chan, when this is all over,
I beg you, do not ask me all I was forced to do to him
so that he would be ready. Those who found out have
called me an idiot, a maniac, a thief, and the poorest
excuse for a father there has ever been."
A slender hand reached out, and covered his own,
rough paws. "I know about the Neko-ken, dear. And I know
how much it took for you to bring yourself to do it. I
also know why she demanded it of you."
The tears in Genma's eyes began to trickle down his
cheeks. "It was horrible. She wasn't there, but she was.
And she watched with an approving eye as I... as I..."
Nodoka reached out, and wiped the tears off of his
face. "I know. And you, of all people, should know why
she forced it to happen."
He pulled her hand away from his face. "Don't, No-
chan. A real martial artist doesn't cry." He sniffed, as
if trying to force the errant moisture back where it
belonged. "The worst part is, is that what broke his
trust in me forever. Before then, I was 'Tousan', 'Poppa'.
Ever since, I was 'Oyaji', 'Old Man'."
"Grandmother's ways may seem cruel, my dear, sweet
Genma, but what must be, must be. Without the strength
that training provided, without the speed, he would
never have succeeded in the training Cologne gave him,
or defeated some of the foes he has fought so far."
Nodoka contemplated the husband she knew, and the man
everyone else saw. "Perhaps, when he has achieved what
Grandmother says he must, we can tell everyone the
truth."
Genma looked down, and realized he was still
holding his wife's hands. Idly, he started rubbing her
knuckles with his calloused thumb. "They would never
believe it. I'm afraid I was too good of an actor. The
only thing that keeps me going these days are you, our
son, and good old Soun. Even though he knows what I have
done, even though he doesn't know what's really going
on, he's stood by me through all of the past several
months. Well, almost all of it."
"Even when he's crying?" smirked Nodoka, the humor
of the thought piercing through the gloom at the table.
For once, Genma smiled. "Yes, although he does
occasionally turn me into a panda during one of those
crying jags. I swear, he must drink a hundred gallons
of water a day."
Nodoka laughed, a silver clarion in the silent
room. "Perhaps the Tendou's were descended from a water
kami, or rain kami?"
"I hope not," said Genma ruefully, "one kami per
family is enough."
Together, they left the diner. And, keeping near
to them, Destiny hovered close to her granddaughter, and
the girl's beloved husband.
=====
- Valandar the Red of the Empty Tankard
Captain of the Guard of the Barony of the Far Woods
Empire of the Iron Mountains
and Ruler of the Spammish Main
http://members.tripod.com/~Valandar/fanfic.html
http://members.tripod.com/~Valandar/ran40k.html
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