The small crowd of boys shifted uncertainly. Their view of what was right and proper was... disturbed. A door that always before had been open for their passage, was barred and locked before them.
“Well, I guess we can use the door from the gym...”
An upperclassman looked down at the youth who had spoken. “Sneak about like invading rabble into our own domain?” said Omane Umada condescendingly, though gently. “No, we will enter through our front door or not at all.”
“It’s what we did last time we were locked in,” protested the younger boy.
“Learning to escape from captivity is as important as any other part of the Art,” instructed the upperclassman gently. “Like all things, we may begin teaching it here. But, equally, there are the demands of dignity and circumstance to adhere to as well, and so we do not begin our daily practices with such things. It is for this reason that we shall not sneak around like ninja, nor force our doors like thieves, nor even batter them like attackers.”
The younger boy nodded, receiving the wisdom of his elder with open ears.
“We could, perhaps, perform our practices in the open air,” suggested another upperclassman. “It would both permit us to acclimate ourselves to battle outside the artificial conditions of the practice hall, and display our prowess to the populace at large.”
“Indeed, a worthy suggestion.” Omane mused briefly. “I do worry whether we are ready for such an advance in our training, though; certainly our captain has never mentioned such in my hearing.”
“True, although we have, at his instruction, battled in the open in the past,” reminded Noriudo Eiji. “Nonetheless, it is surely better that we should perform some practice than none.”
“Quite so. Likewise, we have on occasion performed our exercises without benefit of padding and helmets, which are presently locked within our accustomed abode.” The leader nodded firmly. “So be it. We shall practice in our hakama alone. The younger members of our band shall restrict themselves to kata under supervision; I and the other seniors shall spar.”
As the party began to break up, the two seniors spoke softly about other concerns.
“It worries me that the captain has not arrived. It is most unlike him.”
“True. I do not believe I have ever arrived here without finding him already at his practices.”
“That as well. However, my true concern is of his other responsibilities.”
“What do you mean?”
“We, his loyal troops as we are, have long learned how to manage ourselves, and as we have now shown, are able to organise ourselves in his absence. We are, in a way, the least of his responsibilities. However, there are many other things he does without others even thinking of it, and as he has obviously been prevented from alerting us to his absence in advance it is likely he has also not been able to prepare for those responsibilities to be taken on by others.”
“I follow your thinking.” Noriudo raised his head, taking in the view in hopes of inspiration. “Perhaps we should think in terms of taking on those responsibilities ourselves. We can, I wager, fulfil them as well as anyone left to fill his shoes.”
The astute reader will have determined that either a) there was good reason for Kuno Tatewaki to have achieved his place of prominence within the Furinkan kendo club, or b) that the members of said club have spent far too much time around him. Possibly both.
Nervously, he bit his fingernails.
He was devoid of his other nervous habits at the moment, for fear of disrupting the ritual. He couldn’t adjust the headband with the candles since that had been left at home. He couldn’t fiddle with the hammer and nails for the same reason. He didn’t want to adjust the voodoo doll, since it was critical to this enchantment (as the nearest thing he had to the likeness of the beneficiary of the spell).
So he nibbled his own fingernails.
The telephone call in the middle of dinner last night had been a surprise.
Firstly that the telephone rang. The last time had been a telesales operator with a wrong number three months before.
Second that it was for him and not either of his parents. He’d never had anyone telephone him before.
Thirdly that it was a girl. He couldn’t count the number of times he’d spoken to a girl on the fingers of one hand, as some of his classmates might suggest; but he could count the number of times one had actually started a conversation with him on two.
Fourthly that she had actually had something to give him, if he came to get it from her, at a price he was able to pay, and that he’d been looking for.
The fifth surprise had been that he’d managed to convince his mother to let him go out before she insisted on putting him in his father’s best tuxedo for his ‘date’.
He had, however, received his father’s permission to ‘stay out as late as he needed to’, and his wish of ‘good luck’, which had led to him seeking a place to read the paired tomes the girl had sold him instead of heading home. Her price had been high – nearly his entire remaining savings – and he had quickly found the information he had been seeking these books for. The entirety of the savings she had left him had then been expended on purchasing the ingredients and essential tools for the ritual he was now performing; he had two suppliers who were available at any time, and he had called them as soon as he was certain of his needs.
It was curious how they had asked for exactly the sum of money he could obtain at one in the morning. He had expected it would cost more; but then again, at least one of them was a reasonably successful magic user herself. She had probably used her eldritch powers to determine how much he money he had.
Never mind. All that mattered was that he had gained access to the secrets of a power he could use at last, and the first fruits of that were now active. That fool Saotome didn’t deserve Tendo Akane, and she would surely turn away from him when he, Gosunkugi Hikiru, gave her a cute little magical mascot! All he had to do now was activate the teleport spell – carefully recreated in the form of a scroll, according to the instructions in the new books – and the small magical animal the spell was shaped for would have its cute, loyal nature focused through the enchantment circle centred on the doll of Akane. Then he could carry it out to meet her, and give it to her, and she would be ever so thankful to him – she might even speak to him!
Concentrating as the books advised, he threw down the scroll – just as the warning bell sounded one metre above his head in the school clock tower.
Yes, he was distracted.
At this point, the reader is advised to seek out a textbook on the fauna of Jade, and also (for interest’s sake) an atlas of the same realm. The creature you are looking for is the ‘Death Lepus’, also popularly known as the Wabbit. It is a fairly rare creature, magically formed as a practical joke by mages in the distant past, who started with the common rabbit and didn’t tidy up after themselves. The result commonly lives in groups in much the same way as rabbits, is about the same size and shape as a rabbit, and has no other characteristics in common with the rabbit.
Let’s put it this way: Foxes run away from Wabbits. So do wolves, bears, and most other predators smaller than dragons.
The idea of a swarm of rabbit-sized carnivores with assorted sharp weapons for tails keeps most sentient beings at a safe distance as well – say ten or twelve leagues from a known warren.
No, he did not intend to open his gate to the Forst Miores, the centre of the natural range of the Wabbit.
And No, they do not have cute, loyal natures.
He had received advance warning of the forthcoming inspection; not much, but advance warning all the same.
He could have warned the other teachers; but hadn’t. He could have put in effort to encourage the pupils to behave for the one day; but hadn’t. He could have put in some effort to ensure that certain pupils didn’t attend; but hadn’t.
He had made preparations, however, and as he looked around, he was satisfied with them.
“Yes, dey not takin’ me wid’ a full head of hair!”
The author would like to describe his preparations, and his plan… but the author is, despite allegations, not insane. So you’ll just have to find out with the rest of us.
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(Posted Fri, 11 Aug 2006 18:53)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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