She... didn't mind dying.
Not too much, anyway. Not even to save that blowhard Kisada; Ranma would have done the same for Kisada, and she would have done the same for Ranma.
She knew the poison her servant used - and, even in a distant sort of way, why. Quick, effective, silent... Kisada would have keeled over without anyone the wiser, and she, as a Scorpion, would have taken the blame. Ranma had seen the servant just before she fired, but Kyoko was between him and his father.
Kyoko also had seen, and made the only move she could - in front of Kisada. Ranma let fire fly from his hands in the general direction, prompting her servant to flee; after seeing the results, though, he didn't feel like chasing her.
The numbness hit immediately; she'd been hit in the arm, and it fell, useless, in seconds. Kisada, seeing the needle and where it was headed, eased her to the stone floor as orders came from his lips.
She smiled. It wasn't difficult to see where Ranma got his leadership. Fortunately, his Crane mother had given Ranma his looks. She chuckled at her own private joke, then felt another pair of arms entwine around her, and blue eyes fill her field of vision.
"Ra... Ranma."
He was so distressed, his words flying out at breakneck speed; she couldn't help but share it, even if she didn't have much to say. He was the one regret she had in dying, the one thing she wished she had more time for. Maybe she'd get to be a spirit beside him after the poison was done...
A stray thought crossed her mind, and she tried to lift her arms to her mask. She didn't want to wear the thing anymore; it was a mask of dishonor now, as the people of her clan had shown their treachery. Her arms felt so heavy, though; they only made it up to her neck.
"M... mask. Off."
His eyes widened.
"Now."
He untied the silk strings of her mask; she heard it clatter to the floor by her ear. Better, much better. She could already feel herself fading; her vision was starting to gray. But the fleeting touches on her cheeks - hot tears, hotter breath, skin like fire - these made it all worth it.
"Love... love you..."
The gray swallowed her into an inky blackness, and an icy cold. Strange... she didn't feel any fear. This was the way it was; she could rest, knowing she'd done her job, that she'd done good.
She could re-
At once, fire consumed her being, and she screamed inwardly. This didn't feel like death, but it didn't feel pleasant, either.
Come back, Kyoko. Come back to me... I need you...
She felt hot breath enter her lungs, thoush she still couldn't see; every nerve in her body burned - BURNED, she realized - as life poured back into it, a burning that grew with each passing moment. This wasn't death; no way could this be death.
Kami... this was life. This was RANMA'S life. He was...
She coughed once, and sputtered; she grasped for breath, reaching for it with every part of herself, clinging to life, grabbing on and taking as much of it as she could. Black became gray became colorful blurs became...
She smiled weakly. "Anata..." Her arm still felt heavy, but she could caress his beautiful face. "Anata..."
Ranma wasn't saying anything; tears took up most of his remaining energy. "Kyoko... I..."
A cough caught their attention. "Ranma, Lady Kyoko," Kisada whispered behind her. "This is my court. While I must thank you for saving my life, it's not a good idea to show such romance in here." He picked up her mask. "Do you still want to wear this?"
She looked at the mask, and blinked. She'd nearly been murdered - by a Scorpion, by her own clan. She hadn't quite died, but it had been close; in a sense, she might as well have passed on. "That is the mask of a dead woman. Bury it, burn it, I don't care. Just as long as it's disposed of."
Kisada nodded evenly, a slow smile on his face. "As you wish."
Kyoko sighed, as she felt Ranma's hands entwine with her own. There'd be questions later - such as what to do and where to go. She'd just abandoned her own clan.
But, with him - for him - it would be worth it.
See other episodes by Nightelf
(Posted Sat, 09 Nov 2002 00:04)
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