After a certain amount of living, age becomes a presence settled into one's flesh and bones - particularly during weather changes such as the stormfront currently moving in. He had been born in 1903 after all, and sometimes the mileage built up their toll as much as the years had.
He could see himself, sort of, in the young man currently surrounded by so many women. He'd remembered how he'd come to the Imperial Theatre back in his youth, and he'd met the Flower Troupe, and gone on to such adventures in the capital. He remembered all the little things too, even if it had been 1923 when he'd met them.
Lieutenant General Yoneda, who'd died in 1929, had been his C.O. at the time. The others, some dying of natural causes, others falling in battle. Some had died during World War II. Others survived that only to fall in other battles.
Sumire had gone on to an arranged marriage within her family's zaibatsu. Maria had returned to Russia, and as near as anyone could tell had fallen to one of Stalin's purges. Iris had been the youngest at the time, born in 1913, but she had died a great-grandmother in... had it been just 1985? A teleport had gone wrong, the strain killing her. Or so it was said. Oogami himself had his doubts but any contacts he'd had in any places with better intel had long since retired or passed on.
Ri, the Chinese engineer/slavegirl, had been given her freedom and allowed to go back to China. It was believed she had fallen during Mao's takeover, as she had been a Chiang Kai-shek supporter. Kanna had been given her freedom and returned to Okinawa, and eventually moved to Germany of all places. Maybe she'd gotten tired of being taller than all the guys around her, as Sumire had joked, Oogami didn't know. What he DID know was that Kanna hadn't been seen or heard of since 1981 - when he'd heard of her third great-grandchild being born.
Then there was the picture he kept on his desk, old and yellowed in a tarnished silver frame. Sakura. The picture taken in 1926 when she'd turned 21. Not the bridal picture from earlier, but just a photo of her training in the sword with a toddler watching in rapt fascination.
Just for a moment he imagined the new group settling in as the Flower Troupe. With Kanna taking the place of the tall kunoichi, himself as the youth, the maiden being Sakura, and the swordswoman fitting into place as an outraged Sumire.
It wasn't a perfect fit, to be sure. He could just as easily swap the swordswoman to Sakura and the maiden as Sumire.
He had a brief moment of longing so intense it hurt, but that passed as it always did. When he passed from his life would they all be there on the other side, as they had been on that day in 1923 when the cherry blossoms had drifted thick upon the streets and he'd reported for his new assignment?
The marriage arrangement from the boy's mother was a bit odd, but some of the old villages were very traditionalist in their stances on such things. A young boy who seemed to be ready to die of sheer embarassment at any given time, a young woman who seemed to be both daring and proper on different levels, a kunoichi and a samurai retainer. An odd group, but then this old place seemed to attract such.
"So what do you think of them?" Oogami asked the photo.
The photo didn't answer, which was just as well in some respects.
"And they came up with it that quick?!" asked Ranma.
"Well, it was sort of your Mom's idea. Then my grandfather managed to make the arrangements with your father," said Konoka, laying back on her bed and ticking things off on her fingers. "Then when that sleep-faerie got us, do you remember what we said when we woke up?"
"Uhm, uhh," said Ranma, desperately trying to remember.
"When I woke up with you and Secchan? And I said 'now I'll never be married'?" prompted Konoka.
"Uhm," said Ranma, vaguely remembering the sleep-faerie. "Uh, that was-"
Konoka rolled her eyes. "You said 'Gee, I'll marry you!' all serious. Then, Secchan started getting upset about us seeing her wings."
"Uhm, I sorta remember something about that," said Ranma.
Setsuna's eyes were narrow as she looked towards Ranma.
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(Posted Sat, 19 May 2007 09:46)
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