The majestic mountain was towering over the outback of the small town of Gate. The peace and quiet that seemed to surround the tall mountain almost made one forget the evil that was dwelling underneath, deep in the bowels of the earth...
Still, the people had faith that whatever would come up to disturb their peace would always be hindered to do so by their guardian... the dragon that was resting on top of the mountain.
More majestic than even the mountain itself, the enormous Kaiser Dragon towered over the town and its surrounding woods and grasslands. Its front legs and its massive head were resting over the three entrances to the mountain itself, effectively sealing them off against any demon that might be struggling against them from the inside.
Its giant eyes, each one as big as a human's head, were closed. The dragon was sleeping peacefully.
Down below, at the foot of the mountain, two young individuals were standing, two female members of two different races.
One girl had long, blue hair and dark blue dragon wings that were folded on her back. She was dressed in a skimpy, but effective, red leather armor.
The other girl had short, red hair, striped fur that was covering most of her legs and lower torso, as well as her pointed ears and her long tail. Her armor as almost as skimpy as that of her dragon-winged friend, but was made of more metal. She was also carrying a long stick.
Patty, also known as the 'Phantom Thief', gently put down the bags and heavy stone figure she was carrying. Behind her, her feline friend was doing the same.
She smiled up at the motionless face of the dragon. "Hey there, big brother! Would you look at that? The villagers once again made you so many presents, can you believe it? Here, the old stone cutter even created a small statue that looks just like you."
She put down the figurine onto the big stone plate that had been placed in front of the sealed middle entrance, right beneath the dragon's muzzle. Here, many other presents for the heroic dragon have been placed.
"I still don't believe it..." Patty sighed. "My own brother, having become this famous..."
"Well, the people know that it was him who went down there to defeat the demon," Katt spoke up. "I figure they will think twice before turning to such a questionable 'religion' such as St. Eva..."
"Not that I'm not proud of what Ryu did... he's my big brother, after all. But, sometimes I believe the people forget that you, Nina, Rand, Sten and the others helped as well."
"Well, yeah, we always have been the 'sidekicks', you know?" the young Woren girl grinned bashfully. "We all know that it was your brother who held the group together as our leader... and wasn't it Ryu who in the end sacrificed himself to seal off the gates with his dragon form?"
"You almost speak of him as if he were dead," Patty grumbled as she crossed her arms over her ample bosom. "He's only sleeping... and one day, I'm sure, he will wake up again. Maybe... maybe when someone else will take his place."
Katt wanted to point out that she and her brother have been the only surviving members of the Dragon Clan that aren't sealed away in the underworld... but she wisely decided to shut her mouth for now.
With a sigh, Patty looked up at the sleeping face of Ryu's dragon form one last time, before she turned around and said: "Well, let's go!"
Katt nodded, and together, they walked back to town.
"Say, 'Patty'," Katt suddenly spoke up. "Do you still plan to carry this name? I mean, it's not like you still have to hide anything, with St. Eva gone and all..."
"Well, maybe, but this is the name I used for the past ten years, Katt," the dragon girl sighed. "'Yua' was just a little girl who ran away from home, because she couldn't save her father and brother..." She shook her head. "No, I prefer my current name, girl... That doesn't mean I would ever deny my true family name, but this is just the name I'm more comfortable with, you understand?"
"Yeah, I guess I can," Katt nodded with a sigh.
Patty blinked in confusion and looked at her red-headed friend. For a while, she believed to see something in the Woren's eyes that she had never seen before. Something like... regret? Sadness? She didn't get it.
Well, if Katt didn't want to talk about it, she would respect that decision. She would tell in time if she needed some help from her friends.
"So... you remember how I told you of that small vacation I've planned? I wanted to do a little bit of traveling, and visit all of our friends. You still wanna come?"
"Yeah, sure!" Katt said, perking up. "I can't wait to see them all again. Rand sure must have his hands full with his mother's farm... and Sten must have received his promotion by now. And Bow is still working as a ranger in HomeTown. You hear something from the others?"
"Well, Spar is just dwelling within the forest, being her calm little self. Nina is still in the middle of learning what it means to be a princess, now that Mina is stuck in her Great Bird form... Nina still tries to get on terms with that, I think. Bleu has returned to her little desert cave. I doubt that we'll be able to find it again... and to tell you the truth, I don't plan on going into the desert, just to visit an old friend. And Jean..." She shudders. "Well, who knows whatever is going on in that frog's head..."
"Yeah, our little frog prince has always lived in his own little world," Katt grinned. "Your father does approve of your journey, does he?"
"Well, he knows that I need to stretch my wings, every now and then," the Phantom Thief grinned. "What about you? Don't you have any relatives you wanna meet again? You never told us about your home, by the way. Rand told me you have been a warrior at the Coliseum in Coursair ever since he started working there. So where do you come from?"
She saw how her furry friend hesitated. "I... I don't really have a home," she sighed. "Before I met Ryu, I simply wandered around, seeing if there was a town that needed a strong fighter."
"And your family?" Patty asked. "Don't you have someone you would like to go back to?"
"I... I can't say for sure," the Woren said in a silent voice. "It has been such a long time I saw them, I wonder if they... if they would recognize me like this..."
"Hey, I'm sure they would be proud that their daughter has turned into such a fine warrior as yourself, girl!" Patty smirked. "So, you don't know where they are right now?"
"No, I... I don't know how to go back to them," Katt replied. "You know how it is with us Woren, right? We're the smallest of our tribe, and it would just be a big coincidence, running into a member of our tribe."
"True, Tiga has been the only Woren I've seen, except for you... oops!" Patty put her hands in front of her mouth. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to remind you of... You still must have some feeling for him."
"It's okay," Katt sighed. "He was a nice guy, but there never was something as love between us, even if he believed so for a while. Still, it's a shame what happened to him and Claris..."
She sighed again. "Sorry, Patty, I just need some time for myself... could you leave me alone for a while? I'll come back to your father's house in a while."
"Um, sure... no problem!" Patty nodded, wondering what sore spot she has hit now. But she saw that her friend wanted to deal with it by herself and left her for now.
Katt sat down on a big boulder, just outside of town. She put her arms on her knees and sighed, yet again.
Being reminded of that tragedy with Tiga had awakened yet another memory in the back of her head, which she had preferred not to think about anymore. And when Patty had started to talk about her family...
If she only...
She shook her head. "No!" she firmly said. "I won't see them again, ever! I came to terms with that, and there's nothing I can do about it."
A single tear ran down her furry cheek. "If only... forgetting wasn't that hard..." she whispered.
Out of her belt pouch, she pulled a small item, a locket that was formed like a horse.
She opened it. On either side, a picture was visible. Three different people were on those pictures... humans, with no trace of fur on their bodies.
On the left picture, she could see an adult woman, mature but still good-looking, with red hair that looked so similar to her own. She was dressed in an elegant kimono. Next to her, a portly man wearing a white gi and a kerchief upon his bald head was standing, holding her with his arm.
Katt sniffed. "Mom... Pops..." she whispered.
She then looked at the other picture, which showed a young, smiling girl with short, dark hair. Only her face was visible, but it was this face that made the feline girl cry. It was the memory of... the only person she had really ever loved.
How long was it since she had looked the last time at that locket? Looking at those pictures reminded the crying girl of so many things...
Like her real name, for instance...
She reached up to the backside of her head, where a red pigtail had once been dangling.
"Akane..." the girl formerly known as Ranma Saotome whispered. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry I can't come back to you... ever..."
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(Posted Thu, 03 May 2007 18:57)
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