To reply, post publically or e-mail the author at <karaohki@snet.net>
Enjoy!

The FFML Refugee List

This is the result of tonights one hour challenge.  My thanks to the guys
in group one for their comments and suggestions.

Comments are welcome - send to karaohki@snet.net

Solitude Interrupted

A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by June "KaraOhki" Geraci
May 20, 2001

Ranma 1/2 is the property of Rumiko Takahashi.
I'm borrowing her characters.  This story is
intended for entertainment purposes only, and may
not be used commercially

-----------


She finished eating her dinner, and out of habit
brushed the crumbs off the table into the palm of
her hand.  A sudden impulse send her outside to
the point, where she tossed them into the water.
The koi rose to the surface and the crumbs
vanished.

The young woman stood there for a little while,
listening to the wind in the trees and watching as
the stars began to make their appearance in the
darkening sky.  The sound was a lonely one, and it
accentuated her solitude.  She shook herself out
of her reverie and went inside to do the dishes.

There was nothing worth watching on television but
she left it on anyway.  Anything was better than
sitting alone in a too-quiet house.  She missed
the first soft knock because the couple on the
screen was arguing loudly, but the second knock
was a bit louder and that caused her to pick up
the remote and switch the set off.

There had been a time when she would simply have
opened the door, unworried about who was on the
other side.  After all, she lived in a house full
of people, most of whom were more than capable of
dealing with unwelcome guests.  However, living
alone had caused her to become somewhat cautious,
and she stopped a step or two away from the door.

"Who's there?"

"It's me!"

Impossible.  That could not possibly have been his
voice.  Still, she had to open the door and find
out for sure.  It was he.  He stood there, looking
just the same as the day he had said goodbye.
Then a second glance showed that he was indeed a
little older, just as she was.  She stood there,
unable to speak.

"May I come in, please?"

"Of course.  I'm sorry!"  She held the door open a
little wider, and he entered, looking at her with
some concern.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine!  Are you hungry?"

"I'm fine."

She found herself unable to decide if she wanted
to hug him or hit him.  She had to get away long
enough to clear her head.  Perhaps the kitchen?
"Would you like some tea?"  His nod was enough to
send her flying out of the room.

The few minutes in the kitchen waiting for the
water to boil gave her an opportunity to scold
herself back to her senses.

They drank the tea in silence, each waiting for
the other to speak.  She finally put her cup down
and sat with her hands clenched together in her
lap, hidden by the table.  "I didn't think you
would ever come back."

He looked genuinely shocked.  "But I promised you
that I would come back when the time was right.
Didn't you believe me?"

"I did for a long time.  Then I stopped
believing."

"Why?"

"I don't know.  Maybe it was because of the way
everyone acted."

His eyebrows rose.  "Tell me what happened."

She shrugged.  "No one expected you to leave.  I
couldn't tell them I knew why, because that would
have made it worse."  She hung her head, and he
was unable to see her face, hidden by her hair.
"Some people laughed at me, you know.  Not to my
face, but I could hear the whispers.  That hurt,
but what hurt more was the pity from my sisters.
The worst was Daddy.  He would say terrible things
about you, and I had to bite my tongue.  If I
defended you, I knew he wouldn't believe me, so I
kept quiet, and I waited."  She paused, and wiped
her eyes.  "And waited, and waited!  Until I had
to force myself not to think about you, and not to
hope, because it hurt less that way."

"It's been this way all along?  Ever since I
left?"

"No.  After a while the talk stopped, at least
most of it did.  Now and then I'd hear a whisper
behind my back - 'poor girl, she'll never get
married!'  It made me think of Ukyo, and
understand what she went through.  That hurt a
lot, but it hurt more when my sisters got
married."

"Where are they?"

"Away.  They travel a lot, especially since our
father." the young woman trailed off and bit her
lip.  "He was sick for a long time.  Now he
doesn't hurt anymore."

She had no idea how, but suddenly he wasn't on his
side of the table, and she was in his arms, his
warmth surrounding her and filling her senses.

"I'm sorry!  I should have come back sooner!  I'm
sorry!"  His words were emphasized by his lips on
her forehead, on her cheek, on her lips.  Then he
pulled away.

"I'm too late, aren't I?"

Kasumi smiled through her tears, and threw herself
back into Tofu's arms.

"I've never stopped loving you."





--------------------------------------------------
www.karaohki.com
--------------------------------------------------
     You could turn this way,
I'm also lonely
     this autumn evening

Basho

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                     desaix@sysnet.net
Sir Desaix, member # 116 of the Knights of the True Fiancee           
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