{These characters are not property of me. I would never attempt to claim them as my own. This story may not be used without my permission, and may not be used to make money in any way, shape or form. Characters and certain situations were created by Rumiko Takahashi, so don't try any funny stuff!}
Tatewaki moved around the kitchen with care. He felt like he was being studied by the man that was supposedly... No, not supposedly. He looked out of the corner of his eye at the man leaning against the wall.
No, that couldn't really be his father; they didn't look anything like each other. The man's hair was almost blonde for God's sake, and that ridiculous tree... He didn't have the nerve to actually ask him anything though, and the man hadn't said anything more to him, so...
"How can you not remember me, boy?"
The voice almost made Tatewaki jump. His eyes immediately moved to the food he was preparing, and his hands began shaking lightly. What was he supposed to say? Instead of speaking, he shrugged and continued preparing his food.
"Why don't you talk to me, Tatchi?"
Tatewaki's hands stopped working for a moment. Why? he couldn't say. Heh, wasn't that funny...
"God damn it, Tatchi. Say something! Why won't you talk to me?"
Tatewaki flinched under the verbal onslaught. He tried to resume making his food, but his hands were shaking too badly. His mouth opened as if to say something, but no sound would come out.
"Tatchi..."
Tatewaki whirled around, the knife still in his hand. "I don't know you! I don't know who you are! I don't have my family any more! They're all gone!" he yelled. Tatewaki felt like a trapped animal.
Takashi took a step forward. "I didn't..."
"Don't get near me! You can't be my father! My father never would have let all this happen!" Tatewaki put his hands to his head with the sudden insurgence of a migraine headache. He dropped the knife and staggered around the kitchen, the blood pounding in his ears.
"Ta... Tatchi? What's wrong?" He reached out with his hand to try and set it on Tatewaki's shoulder.
"Oh no... No no no..." Nabiki came into the kitchen, seeing the disturbing scene. She was just glad Takuma was still watching TV in the other room. She rushed forward, shoving the elder Kuno out of the way and kneeled by Tatewaki.
"Come on, Tate-chan." She put her arm around him and tried to get him up. "Why don't you come and lay down," she said soothingly, giving Takashi a glare that would send small children running in fear.
"I didn't... What's wrong with him?"
"I don't know. What did you say to him?" She managed to get Tatewaki to his feet, still holding his head.
"It's all right now, come on." She tried to lead him from the kitchen, but he wouldn't move his feet. "Move your feet, Tate-chan. Let's go. You need to lay down."
Finally he began to move, shuffling his feet. Nabiki ignored her absentee father-in-law and left the kitchen. At least Takuma was adjusting to the whole messed up situation.
That hadn't gone the way he had hoped it would. He walked out of the kitchen, feeling like a visitor in his own home. He could hear the TV blaring in another room and wandered in that direction. Everything seemed so strange and unfamiliar. His son didn't know him, his daughter was locked away... How? Where had everything gone wrong?
Takashi entered the spacious living room that wasn't anything like he remembered it. It seemed larger, more open, almost... childish. He looked at the TV and the little boy watching it. Not childish. Childproof. Currently, the TV was showing some American show he didn't recognize. The boy was watching it with rapt attention and didn't seem to notice his arrival.
Takashi walked around the couch, the one thing he did recognize, and sat next to the boy, not too closely. He didn't say anything for a bit, as the boy still didn't acknowledge his presence. He turned his head slowly to look at the boy. Boy... The 'boy' was his grandson, and... and...
"So... Takuma..." The name sounded strange and unfamiliar. "Do you know who I am?"
Takuma looked at him, his eyes large and searching. "Mommy said that you're my grandpa."
Takashi nodded.
"I like my other grandpa better," he said simply. "Mommy's Daddy takes me to get ice cream and to the park and he plays games with me."
Takashi knew he shouldn't take it personally, but it was impossible not to. "Oh. I'd... I'd like to be your new grandpa..." He truly thought he wanted to, seeing the Kuno genes evident in the boy, reminding him of Tatchi, reminding him of himself when he was young. "Would you mind if I was your new grandpa?"
Takuma looked at him as if he was mentally calculating the pros and cons of such a proposition. "I get to keep my other grandpa?"
Takashi almost laughed at that. "Of course. You'll just have two."
"Oh." Takuma seemed to think about it for a moment. "Why do you have a tree on your head?"
Takashi stared at Takuma for a moment, boggled by the question. "I guess it's just a hazard of living in Hawaii for too long," he answered, smiling.
"Hawaii? Where's that?"
"You don't know where Hawaii is?"
Takuma shook his head.
Takashi sat closer to Takuma. "It's the most beautiful island you've ever seen..."
Nabiki moved away from the door. The man didn't act like any industrial giant she knew of. And why had he been in Hawaii and not here? This was something she would have to investigate further, though for the time, things seemed fine.
She went back to the kitchen to clean up what Tatewaki had started to make. Damn it, why did everything always fall to her? Wasn't everything before enough? So much for karma, and wasn't money supposed to make things easier?
Nabiki wiped the counter, remembering the time when she would have looked down on Kasumi for doing such a thing. She shook her head, smiling wryly. That was before she had to take care of a baby without Kasumi's help, without Akane's help, without her father's help... God that had been messy and disgusting... and somehow fulfilling. She had been ultimately pleased with herself that she could do something so fundamental without the rest of her family. That had made her happy.
There was a time when she didn't think she would ever find pleasure in anything again. And now she could actually happily recall a time (several times really) that Tatewaki had pleased her physically without feeling the urge think back to...
Nabiki closed her eyes, memories of those feelings suddenly overcoming her. Maybe... maybe it wouldn't be so bad giving Takuma a brother or sister. Maybe she had finally put it all to rest, even though she knew all those memories would never go away. They would never go away, but she didn't have to let them haunt her.
"Girl..."
Nabiki opened her eyes and looked back at the doorway.
"Why are you crying, girl?"
Nabiki wiped her eyes and discovered the tears. "No reason," she said quickly. "And I do have a name. I'd appreciate it if you used it."
They glared at each other for a moment. "I suppose. Nabiki..." That name sounded strange to him too. "Your boy says he's hungry."
"My boy has a name too. And he happens to be your grandson, whether any of us want that to be true or not."
She was shrewd. She knew where to pick to get the best results, using weaknesses and insecurities to get the reactions that she wanted. "You're good. I'll give you that. I could get to like you."
Nabiki didn't say anything. She had been convinced before, but her conviction was solidifying as time went on. She could tell he was used to dealing with subordinates and not a family.
"Takuma says he's hungry. He wants some ice cream."
That got a smirk and snort from Nabiki. "He's spoiled. My father gives him anything he wants."
"Your father... Does he have any aunts or uncles?"
"Two aunts, an uncle and a prospective uncle."
"Prospective?"
The two were probing each other. One with questions, the other with vague answers.
"They like each other, they just haven't managed to say it to each other."
"Ah, the pitfalls of young love."
"Yeah, I don't think Kasumi will ever get married at this rate."
"So."
"So."
"How old is the b... my grandson?" Takashi tried to be casual, but found that not even all his time in Hawaii could help him under the scrutinizing gaze of this girl.
"Five and a half."
The look of surprise on Takashi's face was unmistakable.
"Yes, it didn't matter. I couldn't give him up then, not before, not after. I wouldn't change that decision either. I wouldn't change my decision to marry Tate-chan either."
Loyal, intelligent, what else needed to be said about her? "I want... I want to know everything. Tatchi can't tell me; that much is obvious. So I want to hear from you everything that happened. I want to know what's wrong with Tatchi."
Tatewaki woke up two hours later, his headache finally gone. Where would he be without Nabiki to take care of him? He most definitely wouldn't be in bed with her pressed against his back, her arms around him.
"How are you feeling?" she asked when she realized he was awake.
"Better. My headache's gone." He rolled over to face Nabiki. "What are you doing here?" he asked, noting with much appreciation her nakedness. "Where's Takuma?"
"Your father is watching him. Seems he wants to play a part of the family."
Tatewaki frowned. "I don't know if I..."
"You trust me?"
Tatewaki nodded.
"I trust that he is who he says he is. I trust that Takuma will be safe with him." There was something about the man that exuded confidence and strength. When he said he was Takashi Kuno, Nabiki believed him. "Is that enough?"
Tatewaki hesitated, then nodded. "Good enough." He put his arms around Nabiki, feeling like he could just stay there forever.
"We have a while..." Nabiki said, not moving in the least. "They went out."
Tatewaki smiled gently. It was the simple moments of affection that he appreciated the most. Nothing could beat that. "If you want."
"Oh, I definitely want..."
"This is where my other grandpa lives."
Takashi looked at the house. It was somewhat small, but well kept and respectable looking. Takuma was tugging on his hand, leading him toward the house. "Now, bo... Takuma, we shouldn't visit unannounced." He didn't even know these people; they'd probably think he was some sort of kidnapper.
"Grandpa won't mind. Aunt Sa'tome says all he does is sit around the house anyway," Takuma said cheerfully, heading down the walk to the front door.
Takashi really didn't think this was the wisest thing to be doing, but he couldn't run off. It was too late to back down. They were already at the door with Takuma knocking insistently. He was about to pull Takuma away when the door opened suddenly.
A young woman with long, brown hair tied in a pony-tail answered the door. "Can I help..."
"Aunt Kasumi!" Takuma practically flung himself at her, latching on to her legs.
Kasumi simply smiled and gave Takuma a hug. "What are you doing here, Takuma-chan?" Kasumi looked up at Takashi. "And who might you be?"
Takashi didn't get a chance to say anything before Takuma answered for him. "He's my new grandpa."
"Oh dear. Are you Tatewaki's father?"
Takashi nodded. "Takuma and I were taking a walk and he brought me here."
"Well come in then." Kasumi managed to step aside with Takuma still clinging to her.
"No, we couldn't bother..."
"Nonsense. I was just about to prepare some snacks." Kasumi smiled, her eyes crinkling just so.
Takashi found himself unable to refuse.
"Father, this is Tatewaki's father."
Takashi could see the man eye him warily as he stood up from the table. Not that he could really blame the Tendo man after what Nabiki had told him. But Takashi was no longer in the business; he wasn't competing and he didn't need to fight.
He bowed deeply. "A pleasure to meet you. I am Takashi Kuno. Your daughter has been an excellent influence on my son."
That seemed to placate Soun, who relaxed visibly. He bowed back. "Soun Tendo. I have to admit that after an... unfortunate beginning, they have been happy."
Takashi nodded, studying Soun. The small talk was hesitant at first, but as Kasumi brought out the snacks, and with Takuma's influence, they were soon all speaking easily with each other.
Kodachi hid in the darkness. They would be looking for her. There was no way they wouldn't. There was no way they couldn't. Even she had to admit that. She had dispatched of that orderly fairly efficiently, and they couldn't not do anything about that. So she hid.
She would hide until true darkness, then move on, move on to Tokyo, to Nerima. She would find her 'family' and take care of them for doing the things they had to her. They had... They had... It didn't matter what they had done; they needed to pay. They needed to pay for her misery.
Kodachi huddled down in the darkness, the false darkness and waited. If anyone got close enough to her, she would kill them. Killing was an easy thing for her to do since she had dreamed of it for over four years.
The desire to laugh was quickly stifled. She wanted to laugh because she felt happy. That was what they did not understand. She didn't laugh because she was insane; she laughed because she was happy. She wasn't insane. She was just happy.
Happy to be outside and poised for revenge.
"No, you've watched enough TV today. You don't need to watch it any longer."
"But look what's..."
"No backtalk. You're not watching it any more today. You should have thought about that before you watched all those horrible American cartoons."
Takuma thrust out his lower lip in the biggest pout he could manage. He crossed his arms and tried to look upset. "It's not fair," he said, maintaining the childishly comical look.
Nabiki laughed and picked up the boy. "My dearest little Takuma," she said, smiling at him, "whoever said the world was fair?"
That didn't seem to help Takuma at all, and he kept his arms crossed.
"The sooner you learn that, the less unhappy you'll be. Trust me." She pinched Takuma's cheek. "Come on, why don't we draw some pictures?"
Takuma remained solid in his unhappiness for about ten seconds before he gave in. "OK. I get the markers!"
Nabiki set him down and watched him run off to get his drawing and coloring implements of destruction. "Let me go change," she said.
Nabiki looked at the picture and laughed. "Takuma, that's great! When did you get to be such a good artist?"
Takuma smiled proudly. "It's Uncle Ranma!"
"That it is. We'll have to take it over for Ranma to see. I'm sure he'll love it. For now, why don't we put it on the refrigerator?"
Takuma nodded vigorously and followed his mother to the kitchen. Once there, he watched his proud artistic achievement get hung up on the refrigerator.
Nabiki kneeled down. "Why don't you go get Daddy to show this to him," she urged.
Takuma smiled. "Yeah!"
Nabiki watched him run off then looked back at the picture. It was a passable likeness of Ranma with pig-tail and Chinese clothing evident, but that wasn't what made it so good. Takuma had added, for color, a long red and white striped tail and red ears.
The position was a little contorted, but it was unmistakable as Ranma in his neko-ken style. Takuma had also added a large green ball in front of Ranma which Nabiki guessed was supposed to be a ball of string.
This was too much. Ranma would absolutely hate it. Nabiki couldn't help but laugh more.
"Mommy?"
'Yes, Takuma?" Nabiki answered absently as she went through the rather extensive financial books she kept charge of.
"Mommy, who's Kodachi?"
The pencil almost snapped in Nabiki's hand. "Where did you hear that, Takuma-chan?" She tried to sound nonchalant, but there was a considerable amount of tension in her voice.
"Grandpa mentioned her."
"He did?"
"Uh-huh. He said he missed her."
Nabiki turned in her chair and beckoned Takuma forward.
Takuma stepped forward carefully, like he was walking through a field of beartraps, and stood in front of his mother.
Nabiki leaned forward so she was almost directly in his face. "You are never to mention her again. She did some very bad things before you were born to Daddy and I. Your grandfather doesn't understand that." She could see the quiver of fear in Takuma's eyes and leaned back in her chair.
"Bad things?" Takuma asked quietly, suddenly clutching the small stuffed polar bear to his chest.
Nabiki nodded. "Yes, so you shouldn't mention her around Daddy." Or her, but she couldn't shut the topic of Kodachi out completely. That wouldn't accomplish anything.
"I'm sorry," he said in a small voice.
Nabiki leaned forward and hugged Takuma. "Don't be sorry. It's not your fault." No, it was partly her fault for... everything; she couldn't let it bother a five year old boy. She suddenly hugged Takuma hard.
"Mommy!"
Nabiki released him and smiled. "Don't you have a birthday party to go to later?"
Takuma immediately perked up. "Yeah! Jun's going to be six!"
Nabiki nodded. "Why don't you start to get ready while I finish working?"
Takuma was little more than a blur as he ran out of the room.