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silluuuu · 6 years

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And Cat Makes Three

Here’s my submission to SE’s February Prompt Challenge! I was so excited to scoop up @makapedia‘s prompt: Character A and character B try to take care of a lost dog in an apartment where dogs are strictly prohibited. Or a lost cat. A lost pet. Any pet is acceptable.

This was a blast! Thanks to @jaded-envy and @piercelovewonton for the beta eyes and a big extra thanks to jaded for organizing this event!

And Cat Makes Three Rating: G

“No.”

“Please?” Maka says.

It is far too early in the morning for Puppy Dog Eyes, but here she is, unleashing them while Soul is still in his plaid pajama pants, mug of tea in hand. The juxtaposition of Puppy Dog in her eyes and black, mewling cat in her hands is as charming as it is grating.

“Maka. We can’t even have cats in the apartment.”

He wants to make her see reason, but unfortunately, it is a truth universally acknowledged that a weapon, in possession of perfectly good sense, must be in want of a meister with no sense at all.

He’s not being entirely fair. Normally she does have good judgement, but alas... today it has been stolen by a four-legged purring machine.

“I know, but look at her.” She holds the cat up, another meow escaping its jaws. Soul walks over to it and leans in, narrowing his eyes.

“...Looks like a cat,” he observes, which earns him a scowl. “And--” Accusatory eyes flash. “How do you know that it’s a girl?”

Check out the rest below the cut, or on AO3 | FFN !

A wave of guilt crosses her face before it’s replaced with a smile. She feels bad, but not bad enough. “Beeeeecause… I might’ve already taken her to the vet. And had her microchipped.”

“Makaaaa,” he grouses into his teacup, closing his eyes.

“...We don’t have to keep her,” Maka says softly. She’s the queen of the guilt trip, even when dumping a large shopping bag on the counter that is, incidentally, filled to the brim with cat toys.

“We can’t keep it,” Soul says. “Unless you wanna get thrown out of the apartment.”

He stands no chance. Her heart is too big, programmed to help every living thing that needs saving, and it’s going to leave them homeless, wandering the streets of Death City with Maka’s feline charity case in tow.

If they have to become vagabonds because of this, he is not carrying the cat toys.

“Just for a little while, then,” Maka says, looking down at her feet. “Until we find somewhere for her to go. Okay?”

He heaves a massive sigh, eyeing the now-purring cat in her arms.

“... Fiiiiine,” he groans. “But only until you find someone else.”

The way she beams at him is totally non-permissible. She should not be giving him positive reinforcement for harboring a fugitive.

“Wanna hold her?” Maka smiles, extending the cat out like she’s presenting Simba to his lowly subjects.

Soul grimaces and reaches out, but as soon as it seems to get settled, it lets out another yowl and jumps out of his arms, prancing away with its tail in the air.

“She likes you,” Maka declares in response to his scowl. “I can tell.”

---

He doesn’t like it at all.

It’s always there, in the apartment, staring at nothing, or licking itself, or thundering down the hallway at two in the morning like it’s chasing ghosts. Or even worse, staring at him. Which it does. Frequently. And when he shuts the bathroom door, it comes for him, claws slithering beneath the door, pawing at him like a toilet-peeping thief in the night.

It all sounds a little like paranoia; he knows this, and yet he can’t stop himself from keeping tabs on this cat. Fear for his own life is one thing, but he also finds himself making sure it hasn’t gotten itself into the grocery bags, or the coat closet, or crushed by the vacuum, or in the vacuum--

Not that he’d care. It’s not like he worries about its well-being or anything.

It does give him heart attacks every second day, though. One night, he’d been halfway through his routine midnight snack of two percent when yellow eyes had flashed out of the corner of his eye. A demon, he’s sure. Freshly summoned from the underworld to expunge his fridge of dairy.

“Yikes,” he’d said flatly, ignoring his heart hammering against his ribs. “Little witch.”

She’d let out a mewl and tried to rub against his leg, which had left him paralyzed in the kitchen at one in the morning, victim to her infernal whims.

She probably just wants milk, he could imagine Maka saying. In any case, his plaid pajama pants are no longer safe.

Maka had decided to name it Blair, after that character from Gossip Girl, because she’s supposedly classy and refined, or something. The ‘picture of down-to-earth glamour,’ Maka had said, as Blair had hacked up a hairball on the bed.

All Soul can think of is the Blair Witch Project, which he finds infinitely more fitting.

---

“Maka!”

The next day, his strangled yelp echoes through the apartment, and he hopes that the sound of pure desperation can properly rouse her.

“...What?” comes a drowsy response from behind her bedroom door.

She’s not grasping the urgency of the situation, so he expedites the process: “She’s trying to get in my pants!”

It’s very effective. The door flies open, followed by three heavy steps as Maka bounds into the room, fists clenched, ready to fight. “Who the h-- … oh.”

She stares at Soul for a moment, and then lets out a little laugh as she sinks onto his bed, watching Blair knead at the spot where Soul’s hip joins his leg.

“Nothing is funny about this,” he squawks, knuckles white against the backboard, which only makes her snort.

“Have… you never seen a cat do this?” She scoots up close to him, seeming to relish seeing him immobilized by cat affection.

“I have,” he says, grimacing. “But not to me.” When the cat jumps up onto his leg and settles herself in the crook of his thigh, however, he gives up the fight, scowling at Maka instead.

“She likes you,” she says again, reaching up and lying across the bed as she scratches the top of Blair’s head, and suddenly, this image, the two of them stretched across the bed with a cat nestled between them, sets his heart thumping again, though in a different way than before.

No. He will not fall victim to the allures of domesticity. He’s not ready to be a father, okay? Especially not to a creature that may or may not be consorting with the devil.

He is further convinced of this the next day, when all hell breaks loose.

“Surprise inspection!”

Sid is perky, as he normally is when he comes around for inspections. Soul suspects that this is because secretly, their landlord loves the stress that he induces in his tenants via his little check-ins. Much like the zombie apocalypse, no one can ever know when he’s coming. For many years, however, Soul had found it hard to be phased by this routine, since they never had anything to hide.

Until now.

“Uuuuhhhhh, just a second!” Maka calls out cheerfully as she jumps up, knocking over the cereal box in her haste. Her eyebrows knit in worry and she starts to sweep it up, but Soul’s got other priorities.

“Leave the Mini Wheats, what are we gonna do with it?” Soul hisses.

“Agh! Yeah. Okay. ” Maka jumps up and the two of them sweep the house, de-catifying the apartment which is, unfortunately, a process that normally requires more than thirty seconds.

“It’s okay, pretty girl,” Maka soothes as she quite literally stuffs Blair into a backpack, holding her down as Soul deftly pulls the zipper over Blair’s face. Under normal circumstances this would’ve given him an immense amount of satisfaction, but for the moment, he is made only of panic. Blair echoes his sentiments, screeching her displeasure as Maka carries her through the living room.

Maka places her gently on the porch, sliding the door shut against a chorus of yowls. Cat toys are quickly amassed and stuffed into a bag in the closet. After finding no other suitable hiding places, Soul simply chucks the litter box out the window, the top of the tupperware enclosing Blair’s… business inside. Maka glares at him, unimpressed at this decision, but time forces her into complacency, so she grabs the Lysol and makes it rain all over the bathroom.

With their tracks appropriately covered, the two of them run for the door, shooting each other a wide-eyed glance before they tug it open, faces ashen.

“Gooood morning!” Not waiting for a response, Sid struts in, chest out, almost giddy in the way he strolls through the apartment. He looks down at the spilled cereal and glances up at them.

“Heh. Yeah,” Maka says, pulling at a pigtail. “I’ll just--”

“No worries,” Sid says as she leans forward to start cleaning it up. “I’m sure this’ll be a quick visit, anyway.”

The two of them laugh, and Soul wonders if Sid can hear how forced it is. Soul crosses back into the living room as Sid and Maka make their way through the kitchen, and his feet still when a very obvious yowl carries in from outside. He peeks through the curtains to see Maka’s backpack rolling around the porch in a little circle, moving forward by little jolts and accompanied by Blair’s screechy commentary.

“Christ,” he mutters and, with Sid in the other room, he abandons his normal cool-shuffle for a full-on bound towards the record player, slapping on the nearest record without even looking at which one it is, eager to mask the sounds of screaming cat.

It turns out to be the soundtrack from Psycho - a present from Wes for his birthday - and he takes a moment to appreciate his love for Angry Violins, which happen to sound... not that different from Angry Captive Cats in Backpacks.

His relief is short-lived when, accompanied by the Psycho violins ringing his in ears, he hears something truly horrific from the kitchen:

“...Why is there cat food in your fridge?”

Maka’s stunned silence feels louder than the music, and since he won’t let her face that question alone, he doesn’t think before he hears the words coming out of his mouth.

“Oh, uh -- that’s mine.” (He’s going to kill this cat.)

He walks into the kitchen, trying to keep his face as impassive as possible - which Maka is certainly not doing, her mouth falling open as Sid turns to face him in disbelief.

“Yeah, it’s got uh… good health benefits, okay?” He can tell Sid still doesn’t believe him, and he can see Maka’s eyes growing wide with fear from behind him, and he knows, deep in his heart, what must be done.

“See?” he says, grabbing a fork and popping a bite in his mouth. “Good for digestion.” It tastes like salty, fishy refried beans, but the worst part is… it’s not even that bad.

“Plus--” Maka says, eyes sparkling with amusement at this point, because they can both see that Sid is beginning to accept that he may just have really weird, if catless, tenants. “It’s free range.”

“From Uruguay,” Soul adds, pointing to the label.

Sid heaves another sigh at this, and just as Soul is about to stuff another bite in his mouth to really bring home the charade, Sid simply shuts the refrigerator door and mutters, "Can't believe I already gave back your damage deposit."

The soothing sounds of Psycho continue to spill from the living room as they enter, which probably doesn't do much to improve their newly decreasing reputability with their landlord, but at least this particular room is devoid of potential cat giveaways.

With one exception, of course.

After clearing this room, Sid opens the curtains to look out onto the porch, and Soul's heart jumps into this throat as he cranes his neck, trying to see what Sid sees and hoping desperately that Sid isn’t watching a strangely mobile backpack. Somehow, though - miraculously - he doesn't seem to find anything of note, and he continues down the hallway. It takes everything in Soul to not race to the window and make sure that their cat is still breathing, but he holds himself back for the final ten seconds of Sid's inspection.

"Everything's fine, as usual,” Sid says, and Soul tries not to let out an audible breath. “But," he adds with a small laugh, "lay off the kibble, would ya? I don't wanna have to call Poison Control on my weirdest tenants."

He pulls the door shut, his chortling echoing down the hallway and leaving Soul and Maka staring at the peephole in the door.

The things he does for her.

Well, he's not living this one down for awhile, but for the moment he's more concerned about the great escape that his cat seems to have pulled off from the porch.

But no, the porch door slides open to reveal her purring and curled up in the bottom of the bag, pressed against the door. As soon as they bring her back inside, she hops out of the bag and runs over to the table the record player sits on, rubbing against its legs.

"Huh," Maka says, glancing at Soul and smiling.

"What?" He's still grouchy about Sid thinking he subsists on a cat food diet.

"I think... she likes the music."

Startled, he looks down at Blair again, who is happily curled up at the base of the table, head bopping along slightly to the music.

"'Course she does," he says with a shrug, turning to finally clean up the cereal. "We already knew she was psycho."

---

"You're leaving me alone with her?!"

"It's only for a week." Maka's eye roll is extremely unnecessary, he decides, especially since his concerns are extremely legitimate.

The cat won't leave him alone. She still hasn't stopped watching him when he drinks his midnight milk; if anything, she's gotten bolder, meowing at him in the kitchen, even standing on two legs and pawing at his knee, eyes wide and unblinking like she's trying to bewitch him into handing over his precious carton cargo.

“You’re just a wolf in cat’s clothing, aren’t you?” he’d said to her on one of these nights, and as she’d finally stalked away, leaving him to finish his milk in peace, he swore he saw her wink in the light of the fridge.

“She’s a cat, Soul,” Maka says, bringing him back to the present. “The worst she can do is fall asleep on your face.”

“Uh, yeah, which would suffocate me. That’s murder.”

Maka hoists her bag over her shoulder, dropping her keys into his begrudgingly outstretched palm. She’s the Responsible One, after all, keeper of the sole keys to the mailbox and the recycling room. Normally he’d be quietly happy about accepting this responsibility, but now... at what cost?

“You’ll be fine. She trusts you.”

It’s not whether the cat trusts him that’s the problem, he muses, but he catches the keys anyway. As she walks to the door, he staunchly ignores the fact that he misses her already.

That night, he puts on the Blair Witch Project to properly educate his fugitive feline about her namesake. She watches it with the same wide-eyed attention that she gives him when she’s after his milk which, yes, he does find terribly unnerving.

“You like horror movies, don’t you?” It’s the most riveting discovery he’s made in months, mostly because it makes so much sense. She meows back at him from her perch on his lap.

(It’s not like he likes her sitting there, or anything. He’s just too lazy to move her.)

They finish the movie in silence, Blair purring against his stomach. And even if his cat is a horror movie-loving, crazy violin superfan who is probably a demon, he has to admit… it’s sort of nice to have her there.

---

The rest of the week passes much like this. Blair invades his space at every opportunity, and Soul fends off her advances. He’s taken to pacing around the kitchen to avoid her begging during midnight milk, which is only moderately successful. She - like Maka - is aggravatingly persistent, and although he will only ever claim to be supremely annoyed about this, there’s a part of him that does find it endearing.

Currently, Blair is on a quest to grab a bite of his dinner, jumping onto the table every few seconds and swiping at his chicken. He imagines Sid saying well, if you’re so interested in her food, she should get a crack at yours! and crabbily wolfs down another bite. In response, he picks her up like a baby (which cats are supposed to hate, but she, for some infuriating reason, loves it) and tosses her on the bed, shutting the door so he can finish his dinner in peace.

Minutes later he finds himself creaking open the door to find that Blair has nestled completely into his laundry pile. Only her face is exposed, eyes half-closed in Tide-scented bliss.

“Tch,” he says, feigning disgust, but even as he says it, he’s taking his phone out, snapping a photo to send to Maka.

It’s after midnight, so he doesn’t expect a text back, and when the screen lights up in his hands, he almost jumps.

[[ see? she likes you. :) ]]

He rolls his eyes, but he bites down on his lip to keep from smiling. Aloof stoicism is his brand, and Maka, with her ruthless optimism, will not break him.

[[ likes being up in my business, maybe ]]

[[ well, I do that too, sometimes. and I still like you. ;) ]]

The smile is gone, replaced by a dull heat that fills up his face and then recedes, though the familiar gnawing in his gut sticks around.

“I wonder if she could,” he says to Blair. She blinks at him from inside her laundry cave. “Ever like me,” he explains. “Like that.”

At this, Blair stretches, sending socks rolling down the sides of the pile, and then plops back onto his lap, belly exposed.

“Is that supposed to mean something?” He tries to sound grouchy, but he’s smiling again, and it’s awful. “I don’t speak cat,” he adds, but as he sees her lying there, giving him nothing but love despite all his surliness, she reminds him of someone.

He looks down at his phone and starts to type.

[[ yea, ur not so bad urself ]]

Soul realizes that he should have seen his very peaceful week as a bad omen, because at this moment, he feels like Blair is making up for lost time.

This is what he gets for trying to be responsible. Clearly the possession of two forbidden keys had driven him mad with power, and since great power is the inevitable precursor to great responsibility, he’d decided to give Blair a bath - a cat’s public enemy #1 - in order to surprise Maka when she came home.

And when Maka walks into the bathroom to find litter all over the floor, and Soul and Blair drenched in a corner of the bathtub, she is certainly surprised. In fact, she walks in at the worst possible time, to angry hissing coming from more than one source.

“Ugh, Blair, quit it --”

“W-What are you doing?!” She raises a hand to stifle her laugh as Soul stares absolute daggers at her.

“I was trying to get her clea-- oh- oh god- stop wiggling--”

But Blair is, unfortunately, a master wiggler. In her haste, she leaps over the lip of the bathtub and out into the hallway. As Soul lunges for her, his face slams into the side of the tub with a sickening clunk.

“...Ugh.” He rises from the depths and pinches his nose as Maka runs over to him. “Is it bleeding?”

She carefully lifts his hand off his face to reveal that yes, it is, and even in the daze that he’s in, his eyes flicker to her hand, gentle against his.

“Let’s… clean this up?” she asks. All he can muster in response is a glum nod.

“I dob’t know,” he huffs a few minutes later, two tissues stuffed up his nose as he crosses his arms. “I tought maybe she’b like bads!”

“Maybe she’ll grow into them,” Maka shrugs as she dries his hair with a towel.

“Yeah, okay.” He settles into letting himself be taken care of, because his head is pounding and because yes, after a week, having Maka’s face this close to his is kind of nice, or whatever.

He has mostly forgiven Blair (for precisely this reason, if he’s honest). She’d come back in to the bathroom after sufficiently drying herself - he suspects the floor vent in his bedroom is to blame, as she’s fluffier than usual - and has now endeavored to wind between his and Maka’s legs.

“Well, anyway. All done.” Maka tosses the towel on his face and heads into the hallway to put away her things, his hair apparently dry enough.

From inside the bathroom, he catches her saying something else as she walks away, something that he wasn’t sure if he was meant to hear: “It was still really sweet.”

Blair, at this moment, bounds into the hallway after Maka, stopping just for a moment to look at him again.

Before she turns to go, he swears he sees her wink again.

---

It’s midnight and - world’s biggest plot twist - Blair is here.

Because of course she is, this infuriating, adorable, sweetheart of a cat that he can’t really bring himself to scoff at anymore. She might be Blair, Beseecher of Midnight Milk, Bringer of Nosebleeds in Bathtubs, Probably A Witch But Definitely Also A Cat, but she also might sort of be… family.

She’s a nuisance, but she’s their nuisance, and it’s the way that things are supposed to be.

“Alright, fine, little witch,” he mutters, going to the cupboard and grabbing a small bowl. “I think you tried to do some matchmaking yesterday. So here. I owe you one.”

Into the bowl goes a modest helping of two percent, and Blair meows her gratitude as she laps up her earnings.

Down the hall, in her bedroom, Maka smiles at the two of them, at the grunty-meowy conversation that she can’t quite make out.

As she lies there in bed, she pulls out her phone, and with a small sigh, she rereads a conversation from a few days before, replaying it in her head as she tries to figure out what it means, if anything.

[[ yea, ur not so bad urself ]]

She rolls over, letting the screen fade to black and watching her reflection in the glass.

… Who knows. Maybe Blair can help her figure it out.

#my writing #soul eater fanfiction #soulxmaka #soul&maka #family feels #roommates #cat chaos #se february 2018 prompt challenge

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fengshuiatl · 7 years

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Go’s Story - Finale

The conclusion of Go’s Story. If you read all of it, thanks a bunch. I don’t know if I’ll do anything similar for the next game I run, but I had fun with this. Let me know if you dig it, and one I can figure out how to enable https encryption on my music server, I’ll share the soundtrack.

EXT. HIDEKI'S FARM - DAY

Go and April emerge from the forest nearby Hideki's property,

a small shack with a tiny parcel of fenced in land. A few

cows amble lazily about their pen as their handler, FUSAO

HIDEKI stomps out of the shack, a bundle of grain under one

arm and a huge bottle of beer over the other shoulder.

More stoutly built than Go and scruffier, but the family

resemblance is certainly there and it takes Go aback as he

watches the elder Hideki empty grain into a trough. April,

dressed in a traditional kimono, approaches and bows.

APRIL

Excuse me, lord, a word?

Fusau looks over his shoulder as one of cows greedily guzzles

from the beer bottle.

FUSAO

I am no lord, lady. You may have

many words, so long as none of them

are flowery.

APRIL

But I was told you were the chief

of security for the Akashi Castle?

FUSAO

Perhaps your source of information

was not privy to the past few days.

What happened?

FUSAO

A representative from the shogunate

arrived with an order for us to

return to Edo, immediately with no

explanation. I sensed chicanery,

so I asked what would occur should

we refuse.

So then?

He gestures around at the meager grounds of his farm. The

cow, for its part looks dejected at the brief moment of being

denied booze.

FUSAO

My most loyal men were scattered to

the winds as ronin, and the others

went back to the shogunate as

ordered. One soldier that left did

me a kindness in allowing me to buy

this hovel and cattle from him, so

here I am.

Fusao wrests the beer bottle away from the cow and begins to

massage the beast with what can best be described as a

resigned vigor.

APRIL

Do you have any idea why this was

done?

The weary ronin sighs, glancing over his shoulder at the pair

before retrieving a telescoping lens from his jinbei and

peering out toward Akashi Castle, a dot out toward the

horizon.

FUSAO

I have kept watch over the castle

ever since I have been here. One

day ago, a small group escorted a

foreigner into the castle. Aside

for some guardians in the towers,

he is alone. Dressed like him....

Fusao finally notices that he's standing in front of his

descendant and stops, examining him. April startles and

frowns apologetically.

APRIL

My lord, if you could-

Go is snapped into action at the mention of the foreigner,

looking around.

I need a horse.

He spots two Kiso horses at the far end of the pen and takes

one by its reins.

FUSAO

What's this?!

April rushes to join Go on top of the small horse.

APRIL

Sonno joi, Hideki-dono!

With that, Go and April are galloping off toward the castle,

a look somewhere between puzzlement and a renewed fire in his

eyes.

Through the forest, Go effortlessly guides the Kiso through

the trees and brush at breakneck speed.

APRIL

Didn't figure you for the type that

knows horses.

I don't.

APRIL

Well hell.

Once they clear the tree line there's only a small patch of

grass and a moat separating them from the castle.

APRIL

Do you smell that?

What?

A bullet whizzes by the both of them as the guys in the

towers snap to attention.

APRIL

Match cord. We're running out of

room...

Hang on.

Go snaps at the reins and the horse goes even faster as

bullets from matchlock rifles impact all around them.

He rears back on the reins and in an instant they're vaulting

over the moat. At the top of the arc, April jumps off of

horseback toward the nearest tower.

EXT. AKASHI CASTLE - CONTINUOUS

April's hair billows in the breeze as she pulls out the

needles holding it in place. She gives one a new home in the

chest of one guardsman, and the other in the eye socket of

another, sending the shot intended for her skyward.

Go lands outside the castle walls and by the time he's made

around to the front gate, April's opening it for him from the

ramparts.

CUT TO:

In the center of the grounds, LENNY stands, every bit as

dashing as when we first saw him in the passenger seat of

Go's getaway car. This time, he's in a commodore's uniform,

and is wide-eyed at Go's arrival.

LENNY

Holy shit...

Go dismounts, briefcase in hand, never taking his eyes off

Lenny.

LENNY

Look who it is. Good to seeya man.

Lenny's backing away, smirking and chattering while Go keeps advancing.

LENNY

How's Laur-

The distance is finally closed with a haymaker across Lenny's

jaw.

Shut up.

Lenny tumbles to the ground after a thrust kick, and Go stays

on top of him.

She loved you like a brother, you

son of bitch.

A kick to the ribs.

We all did!

A stomp to the back.

We were like family!

But when Go kneels down to deliver a punch, the fist gets

caught.

LENNY

That was always the problem, Go ol'

buddy.

Lenny hisses, blood dripping from his lips as stands, holding

Go in an armbar.

LENNY

YOU were all about family.

A KICK to the ribs.

LENNY

I was all about the score.

He hurls Go over his shoulder, SLAMMING him to the ground.

LENNY

And this place was the big one.

CUT TO:

April's finished with the last of the guards and is trying to

get a clear shot at Lenny when she can hear hoofbeats in the

distance.

APRIL

Oh no.

A horde of shogunate samurai, wearing the same crests as the

guards are heading straight for the castle.

CUT TO:

Lenny's slinging Go around the castle grounds like a ragdoll.

He's no bigger than Go or even fighting with any more

technique, but he just seems ferociously stronger.

LENNY

See, while you guys were fine to

call the old man a kook, take his

money and do the job. I did a

little research. Got myself an in

with the other team.

He picks up Go by the throat, looking him in the eye.

LENNY

For the power they gave me, tying

me to this place? I'd sell all of

you out all over again if I could.

CUT TO:

As samurai approach, April tries to slow them down with the

rifles but it's futile. For every shot she gets off, she has

to dodge a hail of arrows and bullets. Just then:

FUSAO (O.S.)

Sonno joi!

Comes the battle-cry, echoed by six of his compatriats as

they charge into the shogunate samurai's flank on horseback

armed and outfitted in full regalia. The shogunate's forces,

though at least three times the number, crumble at the

advance.

April smiles and turns back toward Go and Lenny.

CUT TO:

Lenny turns his head at the commotion. Go, finding an

opening, kicks him square in the balls.

LENNY

Fuck!

Go tumbles to the ground, landing next to the briefcase as

Lenny staggers for a brief moment, recovering quickly.

LENNY

Dirty pool, pal...

With Go on his hands and knees, Lenny's sizing him up for

more punishment. His concentration's broken by a ball of

lead embedding itself in his shoulder.

LENNY

Agh! You're fuckin' kidding me!

Lenny turns find April staring down the sight of a rifle.

LENNY

Who're you? He sure works quick.

Well wait your turn, I'll get to

you in a se-

It's in that moment that Lenny realizes that April's staring

PAST him. Too late to matter, as Go fells him with the

briefcase upside his dome.

Go's on top of him in an instant, slamming the briefcase into

Lenny's skull, over and over until he's heaving for breath.

He tosses the briefcase aside and it snaps open when it hits

the ground. Go pulls the Automag from his jacket and when he

cocks it, Lenny's only response is a blubbering that sounds

something like "Wait, wait!"

Go levels the barrel at his head, his finger hovering over

the trigger.

LENNY

Please...don't...I...I can pay...

Go sneers and pushes the hammer closed on the gun, climbing

off of Lenny.

She'd never forgive me.

He walks over the briefcase and starts the timer, dragging

Lenny next to it.

Instead, I'll let you watch the

last few seconds of your big score

tick by.

The crumpled heap of a man that was Lenny strains to try and

reach the timer: 5...4...3...2...1...

CUT TO:

ECU - THE DEVICE

On 0:00 the liquid transmutes into a big hunk of crystal,

resembling the Tsingtao diamond, shattering the glass.

CUT TO:

A FLASH of blinding white light...and then: Well, nothing

special.

Every bit of green vegetation on the grounds has turned

brown, and the castle itself looks shabbier, like it could

use a new coat of paint or a pressure wash. Slightly

desaturated. Nothing else seems to have changed.

April leads the horse over and gives Lenny a disdainful

glance before handing Go the reins.

APRIL

We should get going.

They ride out through the back, and soon after Fusao and his

men are on the grounds, surround the battered Lenny.

FUSAO

So, ikokujin, what should we do

with you who would bring pestilence

to our land?

FADE TO:

EXT. UNDERWORLD CAVERNS - MOMENTS LATER

April and Go are back in the Audi, cruising through the

caverns. LU-SID is jury rigged into the cigarette lighter

and flashes as it gives navigation updates.

LU-SID

Route to nearest doorway leading to

1996, calculated. Approximately 15

miles.

You don't have walk me all the way

there, y'know. I'm a big boy.

APRIL

A lady always sees her gentlemen

friends home safely. 'Sides, maybe

I'll get to meet the girl worth

�� rewriting history for.

She gives him an easy smile and he tries to return it. He

can't manage past a weary grin.

Maybe. Thanks for everything,

April.

She tries to hang onto the smile but it fades with her

request.

APRIL

You wanna thank me, maybe re-think

your answer to my question earlier?

She squeezes his shoulder.

I'll let you know once we get

through this.

APRIL

Get through what?

And she looks up to get the answer.

CUT TO:

EXT. TEMPORAL DOORWAY TO 1996 - CONTINUOUS

Normally, the long straightaway that leads to the 1996 gate

is completely clear of any traffic. Just a gate in

Stonehenge-like rock formation at the end of a lonely road.

Today is not a normal day. Barricades with heavily armed

tactical personnel. Snipers in the caverns above. There's

even a gunship sweeping the area, and the gate's being

blocked by two bulldozers on either side. Almost every

vehicle is emblazoned with the seal from Kepler's ledger.

Speakers from the gunship blare out a canned warning, asking

any intruders to please stop and surrender. Go's only

response is to rev the engine.

Still sure you wanna be a proper

lady?

Before April can vocalize the apprehension that's suddenly

washed over her face, Go's phone rings.

Yeah?

LAUREN (O.S.)

Go? Honey, where are you?

The wind leaves him. He wants to say so many things, but the

shock leaves him stammering.

LAUREN (O.S.)

Can you hear me, babe? I'm getting

all kinds of crazy interference.

I...I'm here. Is everything okay?

LAUREN (O.S.)

Yeah, everything's fine, just

wondering when you're getting home.

I just picked up Michael, he wants

to say hi.

CUT TO:

INT. HIDEKI RESIDENCE - DAY

Lauren passes the phone to a cherubic three year old that is

the spitting image of the pair. He steadies the phone with

both hands.

MICHAEL

Daddy?

CUT TO:

EXT. TEMPORAL DOORWAY TO 1996 - CONTINUOUS

Go's on the verge of tears.

Yes son?

MICHAEL (O.S.)

When are you coming home?

I...I'll be there soon, okay buddy?

MICHAEL (O.S.)

Okay. Love you, daddy.

I love you too, son.

April watches him, every measure of doubt and apprehension

melting away.

LAUREN (O.S.)

Hey again, so you'll be home soon?

Mm-hm. I love you so much, Lauren.

LAUREN (O.S.)

I love you too, Go. Everything

okay?

Yeah...everything's wonderful.

LAUREN (O.S.)

M'kay, well hurry home then

alright?

I will.

He hangs up and looks to April for some sort of support. She

just squeezes his hand and puts it on the gear shift.

APRIL

Don't keep the girl waiting.

A deep breath, Go's eyes close and Audi's in full gear. The

Ascended forces don't hesitate, sending every bit of

ordinance their way.

Go pulls a series of turns and drifts through the first set

of barricades to wind through in a backwards S pattern.

As they're pulling away from the last squad of grunts,

they're so close that April grabs an M4A1 from one, smashing

him in the jaw before they're away.

Brass casings and bullets litter the ground as the gunship

and snipers try to get a bead. April leans out the window,

sending a few bursts at the gunship.

Hang on!

The Audi pops up onto two wheels to ride the line between the

next set of barricades. April does a drive-by on the squad

at their right, tucking back in once the Audi's back on four

wheels and speeding towards the bulldozers.

April checks the rear-view for the gunship and it's still

strafing like crazy.

APRIL

Done around. Done through. Over?

Gonna try.

The machine guns from the massive helicopter trail in their

wake, getting closer and closer to the car.

Go shifts gears, the Audi moves even faster but the guns keep

creeping closer.

He cuts the steering wheel left and as the car begins to

slide he...

CUT TO:

ECU - E-BRAKE LEVER

Wrenches the brake back.

CUT TO:

The Audi is airborne and flipping, right side over left.

April braces herself and once the passenger side is facing

the gunship: THWOOMP!

The grenade sails from the M4A1 through the cabin window of

the gunship and: BOOM!

The Audi lands on the other side of the bulldozers, spinning

out to a stop in front of the gate. The gutted gunship

falters and rotates before crashing into the bulldozers in a

fiery conflagration.

April hops out of the passenger window and checks her ammo.

What're you doing?

APRIL

Cleaning up the rest, now get outta

here.

But-

APRIL

Don't hear you pulling off.

She pops the clip back in and racks it, keeping her eyes

ahead.

You're going a little farther than

returning a favor.

APRIL

Yeah, well. If you can't get over

it, I charge a pretty high premium

to babysit.

She doesn't turn around. Otherwise he'd see the full, bright

smile on her face.

I'll keep it in mind.

And he rolls through the gate.

CUT TO:

EXT. LOS ANGELES - MORNING

The battle scarred Audi drives through the streets of early

morning L.A., from downtown on into Hollywood.

CORKER

(V.O.)

Sounds like a remarkable woman.

(V.O.)

Yeah.

CORKER

(V.O.)

So from there?

(V.O.)

I just went to where LU-SID told me

my house was.

From Hollywood in to Beverly Hills.

CUT TO:

EXT. HIDEKI RESIDENCE - MORNING

Once Go pulls up the long driveway of the opulent three story

mansion, there's no time to marvel at his newfound fortune.

He rushes inside, calling out for his wife and child.

CUT TO:

INT. HIDEKI RESIDENCE - MORNING

�� He goes from room to room, each one telling him something

about his new life. Lauren finally got him to watch The Thin

Man. Michael likes Kix for breakfast. The twin showerheads

mean he got fed up enough to do something about her hogging

all the hot water.

The path of discovery leads all the way to Lauren and Go's

bedroom. All sleek and modern...except for the bed. An

antique, brass behemoth that certainly clashes with all the

clean lines, but it's what she always wanted.

He sits down, smoothing his hand across the bedspread before

noticing a scrapbook on the nightstand. The first page he

opens it to is a collection of photos. First, pictures of

the old crew that he can remember taking, but then new ones.

Pictures of film sets, with him in stunt gear. Lauren on

those same sets, tinkering with electronics. Movie premiers

with him in attendance, schmoozing with stars. A few with

him on red carpets, Lauren on his arm.

He starts to spread things out onto the bed: Pictures of

their wedding on The Beach, Michael's baby footprints, photos

of them all on vacation.

Then once Go's at the end of the book he finds a photo of his

and Lauren's hands intertwined. He turns it over and finds a

bunch of newspaper clippings taped to the backside. Slowly,

he lays them out:

WOMAN AND YOUNG SON CRITICALLY INJURED IN CAR ACCIDENT

LAUREN HIDEKI, SFX GURU AND YOUNG SON DEAD

DEATHS OF MOTHER AND CHILD RULED VEHICULAR HOMICIDE

LEONARD CHALMBERS CHARGED IN DRIVING DEATHS

There's a moment of quiet where Go looks at the clippings and

can't process what's in front of him. Then, as quiet as a

whisper.

No.

He sinks to his knees, burying his face in all the rootless

memories, repeating the word, louder each time. Until it

becomes an incoherent wail.

FADE TO:

EXT. THE BEACH(UNDERWORLD) - DAY

Go's made his way to the shore, looking out at the waves as

though he's trying to spot something.

I keep trying to remember

myself...those places in the

photos...and it's all blank. I can

imagine it, but it's not real.

CORKER

I'm really sorry, Go.

The Detective puts a hand on Go's shoulder.

I couldn't stay in the house...or

even out in the world, so I came

back here.

CORKER

Still planning on going to see her?

Honestly? The only reason you

found me here is because of her.

CORKER

She wouldn't forgive you for it,

would she?

With tears in his eyes, Go nods and Corker puts an arm around

him.

CORKER

You've been through a lot. Believe

me, I can understand. It's why I

wanted to find you. I've got an

offer for you, and you don't have

to answer me right away, obviously-

I don't think I'm cut out for the

force, Corker.

CORKER

You've been down here long enough,

Go, you haveta know I'm not a

regular cop. I've known about this

whole Secret War for quite a while,

and you're not the first person

I've run across that gotten

stranded without a real home. I

run a little operation that employs

folks like you.

What...what for?

CORKER

Mainly to keep things like this

from happenin'. Just think about

it, and gimmie a call when you make

up your mind.

CUT TO:

CU - THE CARD

Corker hands him the card, but rather than his LAPD

information, it's just his name and an Ascended seal embossed

behind it.

Go looks up at him, aghast.

You're...

CORKER

I know what you're thinking, and no

I didn't have anything to do with

what happened to your friends. I'd

been watching your crew since the

beginning, and when those Dragons

got a hold of you, I wanted to step

in. The Ascended's like any other

bureaucracy, Go, for every decision

that gets made there's at least 10

other ideas behind it that were

probably better.

But they said...the Ascended

were...

CORKER

Big brother, the new world order,

heard 'em all. The truth about the

Ascended is that we're trying to

keep the world running as it is.

You've seen the future that we're

trying to prevent for yourself.

Go's face contorts in confusion for a moment before he turns

his gaze back to the ocean. Corker sighs, making his way

back toward the caverns.

MONTAGE - GO'S THOUGHTS

While Corker talks, we see a rapid montage of Go's memories

of Lauren.

CORKER

I'm not gonna wear you down about

this. You take your time and think

on it, 'cause the others aren't

going to move on you with me still

in your corner.

It ends with those clippings from the scrapbook. Corker

turns back to Go one last time.

CORKER

Real sorry about wh-

He's cut short by a .50 caliber to the head, lifting his body

off the ground. Go lowers the smoking gun, tears rolling

down his face.

Time lapses between his movements, and after watching the

waves one last time, he drives away.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE JUNKYARD - MORNING

The Professor and Kar Fai are talking with Go again, but this

time the conversation is about what he'll do for them.

KAR FAI

Eventually, you will meet with Raye

Kuramoto and Eddie Lee. They are

two allies we encountered in Hong

Kong.

THE PROFESSOR

But it's not necessary to dive

right back in to work, of course.

You've had quite the ordeal, and

time to heal both physically and-

There's a weary, wry grin on his face as he gently

interjects.

All respect due Prof, I'd like to

get to work on whatever you have

for me, as soon as possible.

The Professor's brow furrows, but she corrects herself,

trying to seem relatively neutral.

THE PROFESSOR

We just...well, for the quality of

your ability to work, we would hope

for your heart and head to both be

in the right place.

CUT TO:

EXT. THE BEACH - MORNING

Go and Lauren are wrapped in each other's arms, watching the

tide roll back and forth.

Trust me, Professor. They are.

#sonno joi #akira kurosawa #vanishing point #feng shui rpg #13 assassins #time travel #go's story

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