Saber Marionette Fan Fiction ❯ Surprises! Hanagata's True Love! ❯ Chapter 1 ( Prologue )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Lady Aoi 
Anime/Manga: Saber Marionette Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Comedy | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 09.14.2002 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.9K | Visits: 595 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Saber Marionette Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Comedy | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 09.14.2002 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.9K | Visits: 595 | Status: Completed
Surprises!: Hanagata's True Love!
A SMJ Fan Fiction
by
Lady Aoi
Summary: When Hanagata finds a boyfriend, Otaru finds some questions. Plays out like a (fan service) episode
Rating: PG-13 for Shonen-ai and language
Spoilers: Some things about New Texas and other countries on Terra Two
Disclaimer: I think it's safe to assume they're not mine and probably won't ever be.
Lady Aoi's Notes: Since I can't seem to put things in italics in .txt format, thins in <> indicate thoughts.
~*~*~*~*~
"I won't deny the pain
I won't deny the change
But should I fall from Grace
Here with you
Would you leave me too?"
- The Smashing Pumpkins, "Galapagos"
~*~*~*~*~
The still quiet of the morning was shattered as a missile rocketed upwards from an otherwise deserted backstreet in Japoness.
Upon closer inspection, however, the missile appeared to have long dark blonde hair, blue eyes, and a large purple bow around it's neck. And it was screaming. Loudly.
"I AM A THING TO BE PITIED BY ALLLLLLL!!!!"
Several kilometers below, Bloodberry turned her eyes away from the hole in the apartment's roof and dusted her hands off.
"All in a days work, eh?" she asked, turning her gaze to Cherry and Lime. The other two marionettes nodded gravely.
"Che, stupid Hanagata," Otaru glowered, wiping his lips furiously with the back of his hand. "I can't believe he actually kissed me."
"EH?!?" Instantly the attentions of all three marionettes returned to their master who was now rubbing his lips against his napkin.
After blinking her large green eyes for a moment, Lime was the first to speak. "Otaru..."
"I'll kill him," Bloodberry said decisively, slamming a spiked-gloved fist into her open palm. "Next time I see the little bastard, I'll split him open."
"And I'll help you, Bloodberry." Cherry nodded severely. "Guys! Guys!" Again, all three marionettes turned to Otaru. Wiping his mouth one final time, he shook his head. "It's not as if Hanagata has some sort of disease or anything."
The three marionettes exchanged uncertain glances.
"I mean, sure he's nasty, but just..." Otaru sighed. "Look, let's just not think about it now ,ok? It's a beautiful morning, and we were having a good day until Hanagata showed up. So let's just try and get back to that, ok?"
The marionettes looked at one another again for a long moment before nodding in agreement and setting back down at the breakfast table.
"He always makes a mess whenever he comes over," Cherry fumed, pulling out a dustpan and broom to clean up the rice and pickles Hanagata had spilled in his attempts to grab her master.
~*~*~*~*~
Near the Japoness boarder, a lone traveler tucked a map back into his knapsack and surveyed the gates to the city-state. Smiling slightly, he brushed a windswept lock of black hair from his face.
"Well, here it is," he murmured softly, his dark eyes shining beneath his glasses.
As the young man was about to continue his progress, however, something above caught his attention.
"Good Lord," he murmured, pulling a pair of binoculars from the side of his backpack. "Surely they haven't started lobbing missiles at people just because they don't know them."
As the stranger continued to monitor the skies, however, it soon became clear to him that the projectile was not, in fact, heavy artillery but rather --
"... is that a man? What the -- why the hell would someone launch a man into the air like that?"
Meanwhile, several feet above him, the blonde missile, had he been asked, would have been inclined to share in the stranger's puzzlement.
"IEEEE!!!!!!" Hanagata paused his scream to take a breath and to glance at Japoness Mt. Fuji. The peak today was snowless and --
"THAT DOESN'T BODE WELLL!!!!" He wailed as he began his descent to earth.
Minutes later, every single bird in a large willow tree screamed in terrified flight as Hanagata crashed through it's branches.
"OW!! OHH!! AHH!! EEE!! AIIEE!! OWWW!! OWW!! OWW!!! OWW!!"
When Hanagata finally landed it was at the bottom of an eight foot, Hanagata-shaped crater. Stunned, he lay there for a moment, face buried in the moist earth, before raising his head slowly.
"At least nothing hit my head," he murmured gratefully.
CLUNK!!!
"Mou... spoke too soon..." Hanagata whimpered, his face sliding back into the mud beneath the weight of a large tree branch as several tiny ponta-kuns danced across his vision. "This is a very unlucky day."
"Well it certainly looks that way."
Vaguely, Hanagata wondered if one of the ponta-kuns currently doing the backstroke three inches away from his nose had just spoken to him.
"Hey, are you alright?" the voice asked again.
"....... Nani?"
"I'm up here."
Slowly Hanagata eased himself onto his elbow and raised his head to look at the speaker, blinking several times to clear his wavy vision. And when he was finally able to make out the man's features, he let out a sharp and amazed gasp.
A tall and slender man leaned looked down at him with a concern written plainly across his pale and chiseled face. He seemed young, about Hanagata's age, and was clad in a gray and white tunic and lose-fitting black pants which matched his waist-length dark hair perfectly. But the most notable thing about him were his eyes. One blue and one green, both peered at Hanagata through a pair of silver-rimmed spectacles with nothing short of compassion and heart-felt concern.
The stranger standing above him was, in fact, nothing short of gorgeous.
When Hanagata merely lay there, blushing and attempting to make a few sounds, the concern on the young man's face only deepened. Slowly, he knelt beside the newly-formed pit and offered Hanagata a silver-gloved hand.
"Can you reach this? Are you in too much pain to move?"
"Ehehehehe." was his only blushing and rather intoxicated response.
The stranger nodded gravely. "Alright, just... just stay there, ok? I'll come down."
"Mhhhh...hmmmm...."
And true to his word, Hanagata didn't move an inch as the young man slowly climbed into the crater and slid an arm around his waist. In a few moments, he found himself gazing into a pair of compassionate and clear eyes.
"You ok, man? That was a nasty fall. What were you doing in the air, anyway?"
"Ano...." Hanagata looked at him long and hard before shrugging. After all, he decided, it would hardly do to tell such a fine specimen of masculinity that he had been catapulted into the air by the whims of a jealous and possibly homicidally unstable marionette. But before he could come up with a more palpable excuse, the stranger merely pressed a slender finger to his lips.
"Shh, it's ok," he soothed, succeeding in making Hanagata blush even more. "Don't speak if it hurts, boy. We can sort all that out later. But right now, can ya just tell me your name and where the nearest hospital is? See, I'm new around these parts>"
New, eh?
<Well, hopefully you'll decide to immigrate,>
After a long moment of smiling blissfully as he studied the stranger's cheekbones, however, Hanagata finally realized he'd been asked a question.
"Sorry...what -- could -- could you repeat that please?"
"I just need your name and some directions to a hospital."
Ohh... right. Of course. Those were easy questions. "H--hanagata," he murmured. "Hanagata Mitsurugi and ano... the nearest hospital is...."
God he was beautiful. And hopefully he would attribute Hanagata's sudden relapse into silence as the result of his traumatic injuries, rather than any calculated ogling.
And after a few moments, it was clear the stranger accepted the first of these two reasons.
"Don't know, then? Well, shoot, that's ok! Just sit tight there, Mit-su-ruuu-gi," he drawled. "'Cause you got a medical student right here who's a gonna help ya."
"Hai," Hanagata agreed weakly as the boy gently lifted him into his arms. "I'll -- I'll just try to hang on until then," he murmured, nestling his face against the boy's chest.
And thankfully, the stranger didn't seem to mind at all. "Yeah, you jist rest up, Mitsi, while ole' Damien Houston takes care of ya."
Damien? What a nice name, Hanagata mused as the young man began the steady climb out of the crater. Damien...
~*~*~*~*~
"Dammit, where the hell is he?!"
"Otaru--"
"Otaru-sama, please! If we don't leave soon we'll be late for the barbecue."
"Barbecue! Barbecue!"
Otaru shook his head at the three marionettes and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets as he paced through the living room. "I know guys, but he should have been back by now. I mean, usually you send him off and he's back in ten minutes --"
"Yes, and begging for more of my pickles," Cherry interjected, rolling her eyes as her fingers again checked to make sure the lid from the pickle jar hadn't been tampered with.
But Otaru continued as if she hadn't spoken at all. "It's been three hours now and still no sign of him. Don't you guys think that's a little strange?"
"Oh I wouldn't worry too much, Otaru," Bloodberry purred from her cushion, stretching her arms up before folding them behind her head. "I hit him pretty hard this time. Chances are he's just flown farther than usual. It takes time to walk back, you know."
Otaru simply stared at her as if Bloodberry had suggested he French kiss a squid. "I'm going to go look for him," he said.
And immediately the marionettes were upon him.
"Otaru-sama!"
"Don't be silly, Otaru! He's fine!"
"Ne, Otaru! I don't wanna be late for the barbecue!"
The marionettes all began protesting so loudly that it took several minutes for Otaru to shout them down.
"Guys! Guys! Don't you get it?!" Otaru cried, "Hanagata could be hurt or -- or worse in God knows where! And since that's the case, his life is way more important than going to some barbecue!"
The marionettes all blinked and looked at one another. A long moment passed and then --
"But Otaru-sama! My pickles --"
"If we don't leave now we'll be late, Otaru!"
"And -- and Grampa Gennai said he'd fly a kite with me! I don't wanna miss that!"
"Dammit guys, now's not the time!!"
Once again the marionettes grew quiet as a red faced Otaru glared at all of them.
"Now, Hanagata's out there somewhere and we're gonna find him!"
"Even if we miss the barbecue?"
"Even if it takes all night! He could be hurt or -- or something and --"
"Actually I'm fine, Otaru-kun."
At the sound of this voice, the startled marionettes and master turned around. Standing in the doorway and leaning against a very tall dark-haired man stood Hanagata. And in spite of a few cuts and bruises (and his plaster-covered right arm), he seemed little the worse for wear.
"H--hanagata?!" Otaru blinked and moved a few steps forward. "You're o-- where the hell have you been?"
"Hmmm," Hanagata closed his eyes and smiled. "Do you want the story before or after I landed in the willow tree outside Japoness' gates. AND IT'S NOT FUNNY!!" he shouted as Bloodberry raised a spiked-gloved hand to stifle a giggle. "I could have been killed, you stupid piece of junk!"
"Hey watch who you're calling junk, your Hana-ness."
"Hey! S--stop calling me baby names!!"
"Hannie chan!! Hannie chan!!"
"Otaru-kun! Tell them to stop!"
But at the moment Otaru's full attention wasn't focused on his marionettes or his next-door neighbor. Instead his hazel eyes turned to regard the stranger supporting the now red-faced and screaming Hanagata.
"I don't think we've met," he said after a moment's pause.
"Oh, I beg pardon, where are my manners?" the young man asked, shifting his hold on Hanagata to offer Otaru a hand. "You must be the Otaru Mamiya I've heard so much about. My name is Houston, Damien Houston from New Texas and --"
"And he saved my life, Otaru-kun!" Hanagata interjected, throwing himself between the two men. "He's just arrived in Japoness to study medicine with Dr. Eboshi down the street and he was just entering the city when he found me. Thanks to him, my wounds were treated on the spot and thus I survived to tell this tale of --" he broke off to glare at Bloodberry "pulled me out of the ground after your marionette -- STOP LAUGHING AT ME, YOU WORTHLESS SCRAP PILE!!"
"Scrap pile! Scrap pile! Scrappy Scrappy Scrap Scrap! Ne, Otaru? What's a scrap pile?"
"If you want to see a scrap pile, just try hitting me again! I'll turn you into one!"
"Oh yeah, take this, Hannie!"
"AHHH!!!"
Everyone quiet down!" Otaru cried, holding up his hands for silence and stepping between Lime and Hanagata (who was now rubbing a rather nasty lump on his head with his good hand). "You say you're here to study with Dr. Eboshi?"
"Yup, that's right," Damien smiled. "But it looks like I got some practice early, huh, Mitsi?"
"H--hai," Hanagata stuttered, changing through three shades of red as Damien clapped him firmly on the shoulder.
Otaru just stared at the two.
<Mitsi? What the Hell -- >
"Well, we're happy to meet you, Damien," he said after taking a moment to remind himself to ignore just how truly surreal this entire situation was becoming. "And thanks for taking care of Hanagata. If you'd like to, we're going to a barbecue today so --"
"IYAAA!!"
"Cherry?!"
The purple-haired marionette stood in the center of the floor, her eyes wide with horror. "Otaru-sama!! The -- the barbecue!! We're fifteen minutes late!"
"Ch--cherry?!"
But the small marionette was no longer listening to anyone as she rapidly piled carton after carton of food into an astonished Bloodberry's arms.
"We can't possibly wait any longer, Otaru-sama!! The yakisoba will get cold if we don't leave now!"
"Hey, watchit, Cherry!" Bloodberry growled. Then. "She's right, Otaru, we should go."
"But," Otaru looked uncomfortably at Hanagata and Damien. "I know guys, but --"
"Ne, Otaru, I'm hungry." Lime whimpered, glancing interestedly at the boxes in the tall marionette's arms as her stomach growled conspicuously.
Otaru sighed. "Hanagata, are you gonna be able to walk?"
"I --" Hanagata hesitated for a moment, biting on his quivering lip as he looked uncertainly from Otaru to Damien. "No, it's alright, chum," he said at last. "After what happened this morning, I don't think I'm really in any shape for an outing."
"No, it's fine, really. Bloodberry can carry you --"
"The hell I will," the crimson-haired marionette murmured, glaring daggers at Hanagata from around the pile of Cherry's boxes.
As Hanagata palled slightly at Bloodberry's glare, Damien nodded gravely. "I'm afraid I'm gonna hafta agree with Mitsi here. He's been through a heckuva lot today. And as his doctor -- at least a temporary one -- I say he should stay home and rest."
"Well, ok, but it's really not a big deal if you wanna come you know."
"No, that's ok. I think I need to stay and take carea him. See if he needs anything, ya know?"
"Oh. Right. Well, if you're sure then, Hanagata..."
"It's perfectly alright, Otaru-kun," Hanagata said, giving his neighbor what he hoped was a confident and natural smile. "I'll just get some rest so my arm can heal. I'll see you later, yes?"
"But --"
"Otaru-sama, the yakisoba --"
"I'm hungry, Otaru!"
"Hai," Otaru shoved his hands into his pockets. "Well, what are we waiting for?" he asked, turning around to flash the marionettes what he hoped was a confident and natural grin. "Let's get to that barbecue and have some chow, huh?"
"Yay!!" Damien winced and wrapped a steadying arm around Hanagata's shoulder as Lime barreled through the door, nearly tipping both men over in her wake.
"Lime wait for us!! You need to carry some things too!" Cherry cried, grabbing Bloodberry by the arm and pulling her out of the house, nearly forcing her to drop her load of boxes in the process.
As the marionettes hurried down the street, Otaru turned back to the two men. "Well, see you later, I guess," he said, bowing.
"Yes... go have fun now, Otaru-kun... and don't worry too much about me. I'll be fine."
"Ok."
Both men stared at one another for a long moment.
"Otaru-sama!!" Cherry shouted from somewhere down the street.
"Hai!" with one final bow, Otaru hurried from the room, admonishing Hanagata and Damien to close the door on their way out.
"You see what I mean? Horrible she-devils!" Hanagata exclaimed as soon as Otaru was out of hearing distance.
The dark-haired man nodded sagely. "They really are kinda strange. Back where I come from Marionettes don't usually talk that much. And none of 'em to my reckoning ever screamed or had emotions either. That something partic'lar to Japoness, Mitsi?"
"No, thank God," Hanagata replied, rolling his eyes. "Otaru-kun's marionettes are special."
"How so?"
"They have something called maiden circuits which allow them to feel emotions."
"Or pretend they do, you mean."
".... nani?"
Damien smiled slightly. "Well, I don't reckon as machines can feel anything, with or without them maiden circuits."
"Oh... of course not," Hanagata said, putting a hand to his head. "Gomen nasai, Damien. I'm not... thinking so well now. I might've hit my head harder than I thought."
"Yeah? Well we better getcha into bed then."
Hanagata nodded. "Better you than him," he said, staring down the street at the rapidly vanishing forms of Otaru and his marionettes.
"Huh?"
"Nothing," Smiling, Hanagata turned back to Damien. "I just meant I'd... I'd rather have you looking out for me than him. I mean," he chuckled slightly. "If Otaru-kun's crazy enough to think marionettes are real, then he's obviously in no position to help me recover, ne?"
"I see." Damien smiled and scooped Hanagata into his arms. "Well, were to now, Mitsi?"
"I live right next door."
"Oh, right."
The door closed quietly behind them.
~*~*~*~
"Something's not right about this, Gennai-san."
"Otaru, relax. I'm sure everything's fine."
"That's easy for you to say, you didn't see him," Otaru sighed and reclined on the picnic blanket. "He had these weird eyes and when he smiled --" Otaru shuddered. "It was just plain creepy!"
"From what you told me he sounds like a nice young man who just wanted to use his medical skills to help someone out."
Otaru raised himself up slightly to give Grampa Gennai a trademark "did you hear a word I said?" look. "I don't like that guy, Gennai-san," he continued moments later. "And I want to know what he's up to."
"Ah, I see," Gennai said, smiling slightly. "You're that jealous are you?"
"WHAT?! Oh, please," Otaru rolled his eyes as Grampa Gennai winked knowingly at him. "I am NOT jealous of Hanagata Mitsurugi!"
"Ahhh-Ahhh-Ahhh!" Gennai wagged his finger a few mocking inches from Otaru's face. "Then why have you been talking about him for the last two hours while your charming marionettes have played volley ball by themselves?"
"Because my charming marionettes can very well protect themselves," Otaru smiled and waved as Lime called to him. "Hanagata can't."
"I see. So what you're saying is --"
"What Hanagata does on his own time in his own apartment is his business, and I could care less who he's spending it with," Otaru nodded. "But dammit, that guy..." "You're a good friend, then," neither man missed the accusations implied by that phrase.
And Otaru blushed slightly at sensing them. "C'mon, Gennai-san! It's not like that! We both know Hanagata has the judgment of a sea-sponge when it comes to a pretty face."
The older man nodded sagely. "And some of us, it seems, know that better than others."
Otaru scoffed. "Ahh, who am I kiddin', he's fine! He's probably sitting there in bed, drinking tea and eating sukiyaki while yucking it up with with his new friend and not even worrying about him or his creepy eyes! Who wants to play volleyball! I think I wanna play volleyball, how about you?! Well fine!" and before Gennai could answer the rather harried question and answer, the young man jumped up, cursed as he tripped over his blanket, dragged it several stumbling feet, and finally kicked it onto a surprised child's sand castle before tearing a clumsy pathway to the in-progress volleyball game.
Gennai merely sighed and sipped his drink. "Kids," he murmured sadly, shaking his head.
~*~*~*~
Hanagata sighed contentedly as he snuggled into the down-filled comforters. "You've been so good to me," he murmured, looking up at Damien. "Arigatou gozimasu."
The New Texan boy merely nodded as he adjusted his glasses on his high and angular nose. "Anything else I can get for ya, Mitsi?" he asked, straightening the bow on Hanagata's purple nightgown once again.
Hanagata blushed a little as Damien's long fingers brushed against his collar bone. "H--hai, there is."
"And what would that be, honey?"
At this appellation, Hanagata blushed even more.
"Did he just call me honey?"
Damien smiled and nodded, blushing a little himself.
"...And did I just say that out loud?"
Again Damien smiled and nodded.
<Oh, crap.> Hanagata thought, burying his face in his hands. <Now he probably thinks I'm some kind of freak. Chalk one more failure up to your big mouth, Mitsurugi.>
"And no, I don't think you're weird for wond'rin' why I called ya that."
"Nani?"
<Is he a mind reader too?>
"See, where I come from, it's a term of affection," Damien explained, smoothing a hand through his dark locks. "Ya know, like -- well kinda like buddy, amigo, kemosabe."
Hanagata just blinked at him. "Bud-dy? Ami-- Kemo--sa--?"
"Ya know, kinda like 'chum!'"
"Oh!" Hanagata nodded vigorously.
<What the hell is he talking about?>
"I see. Like chum!"
Both men laughed whole-heartedly.
"Like chum!!"
"Yeah, like chum! Buddy. Amigo."
"That's really funny!"
"Yeah."
<And why the hell am I laughing?>
In spite of their mutual reservations, however, both men continued to laugh for several minutes. At last, Damien removed his glasses to wipe the tears from his blue and green eye.
"Jeeze, why the heck're we laughing?" "You know I'm not entirely sure!"
"Amigo!"
"Chum!"
And again they dissolved into laughter quickly bordering on hysteria.
At last Damien managed to calm down enough to speak again. Clearing his throat a few times, he turned his gaze to Hanagata.
"Actually, Mitsi? There's another reason why I used that word just now."
"Oh! I mean oh... is there?" Hanagata asked, blushing.
"Uh... yeah," almost nervously, Damien flicked a hand through his hair again and turned his eyes away from the blonde boy.
"I used it 'cause...well, 'cause..."
Hanagata nodded his encouragement.
Sighing, Damien sat on the edge of the bed and patted Hanagata's shoulder. "Mitsi... what I'm tryin' ta say is.. I know I ain't known ya for very long but... but thing is, I really... I really think you're nice."
"Why... thank you," Hanagata replied, clapping Damien on the shoulder as well. "And I think you're an outstanding chap, Damien!"
"Uh-huh."
"Amigo."
"Chum."
Both men giggled again.
"But seriously," Damien continued when their laughter had subsided. "I -- when I got you outta that pit this mornin', I just..." he sighed. "Mitsi? You have any idea how sexy you are?"
"Sexy?"
"Yeah..."
Hanagata chuckled again. "Ano... this isn't like 'honey', is it? It don't -- doesn't mean something else entirely in New Texas?"
"Nope," Damien said after a moment. "It means just what it means."
"Well... thank you."
"Don't mention it, pardner."
"Pardner... heh."
A long silence followed.
And then slowly, both men leaned forward and kissed each other.
(End Part One)
A SMJ Fan Fiction
by
Lady Aoi
Summary: When Hanagata finds a boyfriend, Otaru finds some questions. Plays out like a (fan service) episode
Rating: PG-13 for Shonen-ai and language
Spoilers: Some things about New Texas and other countries on Terra Two
Disclaimer: I think it's safe to assume they're not mine and probably won't ever be.
Lady Aoi's Notes: Since I can't seem to put things in italics in .txt format, thins in <> indicate thoughts.
~*~*~*~*~
"I won't deny the pain
I won't deny the change
But should I fall from Grace
Here with you
Would you leave me too?"
- The Smashing Pumpkins, "Galapagos"
~*~*~*~*~
The still quiet of the morning was shattered as a missile rocketed upwards from an otherwise deserted backstreet in Japoness.
Upon closer inspection, however, the missile appeared to have long dark blonde hair, blue eyes, and a large purple bow around it's neck. And it was screaming. Loudly.
"I AM A THING TO BE PITIED BY ALLLLLLL!!!!"
Several kilometers below, Bloodberry turned her eyes away from the hole in the apartment's roof and dusted her hands off.
"All in a days work, eh?" she asked, turning her gaze to Cherry and Lime. The other two marionettes nodded gravely.
"Che, stupid Hanagata," Otaru glowered, wiping his lips furiously with the back of his hand. "I can't believe he actually kissed me."
"EH?!?" Instantly the attentions of all three marionettes returned to their master who was now rubbing his lips against his napkin.
After blinking her large green eyes for a moment, Lime was the first to speak. "Otaru..."
"I'll kill him," Bloodberry said decisively, slamming a spiked-gloved fist into her open palm. "Next time I see the little bastard, I'll split him open."
"And I'll help you, Bloodberry." Cherry nodded severely. "Guys! Guys!" Again, all three marionettes turned to Otaru. Wiping his mouth one final time, he shook his head. "It's not as if Hanagata has some sort of disease or anything."
The three marionettes exchanged uncertain glances.
"I mean, sure he's nasty, but just..." Otaru sighed. "Look, let's just not think about it now ,ok? It's a beautiful morning, and we were having a good day until Hanagata showed up. So let's just try and get back to that, ok?"
The marionettes looked at one another again for a long moment before nodding in agreement and setting back down at the breakfast table.
"He always makes a mess whenever he comes over," Cherry fumed, pulling out a dustpan and broom to clean up the rice and pickles Hanagata had spilled in his attempts to grab her master.
~*~*~*~*~
Near the Japoness boarder, a lone traveler tucked a map back into his knapsack and surveyed the gates to the city-state. Smiling slightly, he brushed a windswept lock of black hair from his face.
"Well, here it is," he murmured softly, his dark eyes shining beneath his glasses.
As the young man was about to continue his progress, however, something above caught his attention.
"Good Lord," he murmured, pulling a pair of binoculars from the side of his backpack. "Surely they haven't started lobbing missiles at people just because they don't know them."
As the stranger continued to monitor the skies, however, it soon became clear to him that the projectile was not, in fact, heavy artillery but rather --
"... is that a man? What the -- why the hell would someone launch a man into the air like that?"
Meanwhile, several feet above him, the blonde missile, had he been asked, would have been inclined to share in the stranger's puzzlement.
"IEEEE!!!!!!" Hanagata paused his scream to take a breath and to glance at Japoness Mt. Fuji. The peak today was snowless and --
"THAT DOESN'T BODE WELLL!!!!" He wailed as he began his descent to earth.
Minutes later, every single bird in a large willow tree screamed in terrified flight as Hanagata crashed through it's branches.
"OW!! OHH!! AHH!! EEE!! AIIEE!! OWWW!! OWW!! OWW!!! OWW!!"
When Hanagata finally landed it was at the bottom of an eight foot, Hanagata-shaped crater. Stunned, he lay there for a moment, face buried in the moist earth, before raising his head slowly.
"At least nothing hit my head," he murmured gratefully.
CLUNK!!!
"Mou... spoke too soon..." Hanagata whimpered, his face sliding back into the mud beneath the weight of a large tree branch as several tiny ponta-kuns danced across his vision. "This is a very unlucky day."
"Well it certainly looks that way."
Vaguely, Hanagata wondered if one of the ponta-kuns currently doing the backstroke three inches away from his nose had just spoken to him.
"Hey, are you alright?" the voice asked again.
"....... Nani?"
"I'm up here."
Slowly Hanagata eased himself onto his elbow and raised his head to look at the speaker, blinking several times to clear his wavy vision. And when he was finally able to make out the man's features, he let out a sharp and amazed gasp.
A tall and slender man leaned looked down at him with a concern written plainly across his pale and chiseled face. He seemed young, about Hanagata's age, and was clad in a gray and white tunic and lose-fitting black pants which matched his waist-length dark hair perfectly. But the most notable thing about him were his eyes. One blue and one green, both peered at Hanagata through a pair of silver-rimmed spectacles with nothing short of compassion and heart-felt concern.
The stranger standing above him was, in fact, nothing short of gorgeous.
When Hanagata merely lay there, blushing and attempting to make a few sounds, the concern on the young man's face only deepened. Slowly, he knelt beside the newly-formed pit and offered Hanagata a silver-gloved hand.
"Can you reach this? Are you in too much pain to move?"
"Ehehehehe." was his only blushing and rather intoxicated response.
The stranger nodded gravely. "Alright, just... just stay there, ok? I'll come down."
"Mhhhh...hmmmm...."
And true to his word, Hanagata didn't move an inch as the young man slowly climbed into the crater and slid an arm around his waist. In a few moments, he found himself gazing into a pair of compassionate and clear eyes.
"You ok, man? That was a nasty fall. What were you doing in the air, anyway?"
"Ano...." Hanagata looked at him long and hard before shrugging. After all, he decided, it would hardly do to tell such a fine specimen of masculinity that he had been catapulted into the air by the whims of a jealous and possibly homicidally unstable marionette. But before he could come up with a more palpable excuse, the stranger merely pressed a slender finger to his lips.
"Shh, it's ok," he soothed, succeeding in making Hanagata blush even more. "Don't speak if it hurts, boy. We can sort all that out later. But right now, can ya just tell me your name and where the nearest hospital is? See, I'm new around these parts>"
New, eh?
<Well, hopefully you'll decide to immigrate,>
After a long moment of smiling blissfully as he studied the stranger's cheekbones, however, Hanagata finally realized he'd been asked a question.
"Sorry...what -- could -- could you repeat that please?"
"I just need your name and some directions to a hospital."
Ohh... right. Of course. Those were easy questions. "H--hanagata," he murmured. "Hanagata Mitsurugi and ano... the nearest hospital is...."
God he was beautiful. And hopefully he would attribute Hanagata's sudden relapse into silence as the result of his traumatic injuries, rather than any calculated ogling.
And after a few moments, it was clear the stranger accepted the first of these two reasons.
"Don't know, then? Well, shoot, that's ok! Just sit tight there, Mit-su-ruuu-gi," he drawled. "'Cause you got a medical student right here who's a gonna help ya."
"Hai," Hanagata agreed weakly as the boy gently lifted him into his arms. "I'll -- I'll just try to hang on until then," he murmured, nestling his face against the boy's chest.
And thankfully, the stranger didn't seem to mind at all. "Yeah, you jist rest up, Mitsi, while ole' Damien Houston takes care of ya."
Damien? What a nice name, Hanagata mused as the young man began the steady climb out of the crater. Damien...
~*~*~*~*~
"Dammit, where the hell is he?!"
"Otaru--"
"Otaru-sama, please! If we don't leave soon we'll be late for the barbecue."
"Barbecue! Barbecue!"
Otaru shook his head at the three marionettes and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets as he paced through the living room. "I know guys, but he should have been back by now. I mean, usually you send him off and he's back in ten minutes --"
"Yes, and begging for more of my pickles," Cherry interjected, rolling her eyes as her fingers again checked to make sure the lid from the pickle jar hadn't been tampered with.
But Otaru continued as if she hadn't spoken at all. "It's been three hours now and still no sign of him. Don't you guys think that's a little strange?"
"Oh I wouldn't worry too much, Otaru," Bloodberry purred from her cushion, stretching her arms up before folding them behind her head. "I hit him pretty hard this time. Chances are he's just flown farther than usual. It takes time to walk back, you know."
Otaru simply stared at her as if Bloodberry had suggested he French kiss a squid. "I'm going to go look for him," he said.
And immediately the marionettes were upon him.
"Otaru-sama!"
"Don't be silly, Otaru! He's fine!"
"Ne, Otaru! I don't wanna be late for the barbecue!"
The marionettes all began protesting so loudly that it took several minutes for Otaru to shout them down.
"Guys! Guys! Don't you get it?!" Otaru cried, "Hanagata could be hurt or -- or worse in God knows where! And since that's the case, his life is way more important than going to some barbecue!"
The marionettes all blinked and looked at one another. A long moment passed and then --
"But Otaru-sama! My pickles --"
"If we don't leave now we'll be late, Otaru!"
"And -- and Grampa Gennai said he'd fly a kite with me! I don't wanna miss that!"
"Dammit guys, now's not the time!!"
Once again the marionettes grew quiet as a red faced Otaru glared at all of them.
"Now, Hanagata's out there somewhere and we're gonna find him!"
"Even if we miss the barbecue?"
"Even if it takes all night! He could be hurt or -- or something and --"
"Actually I'm fine, Otaru-kun."
At the sound of this voice, the startled marionettes and master turned around. Standing in the doorway and leaning against a very tall dark-haired man stood Hanagata. And in spite of a few cuts and bruises (and his plaster-covered right arm), he seemed little the worse for wear.
"H--hanagata?!" Otaru blinked and moved a few steps forward. "You're o-- where the hell have you been?"
"Hmmm," Hanagata closed his eyes and smiled. "Do you want the story before or after I landed in the willow tree outside Japoness' gates. AND IT'S NOT FUNNY!!" he shouted as Bloodberry raised a spiked-gloved hand to stifle a giggle. "I could have been killed, you stupid piece of junk!"
"Hey watch who you're calling junk, your Hana-ness."
"Hey! S--stop calling me baby names!!"
"Hannie chan!! Hannie chan!!"
"Otaru-kun! Tell them to stop!"
But at the moment Otaru's full attention wasn't focused on his marionettes or his next-door neighbor. Instead his hazel eyes turned to regard the stranger supporting the now red-faced and screaming Hanagata.
"I don't think we've met," he said after a moment's pause.
"Oh, I beg pardon, where are my manners?" the young man asked, shifting his hold on Hanagata to offer Otaru a hand. "You must be the Otaru Mamiya I've heard so much about. My name is Houston, Damien Houston from New Texas and --"
"And he saved my life, Otaru-kun!" Hanagata interjected, throwing himself between the two men. "He's just arrived in Japoness to study medicine with Dr. Eboshi down the street and he was just entering the city when he found me. Thanks to him, my wounds were treated on the spot and thus I survived to tell this tale of --" he broke off to glare at Bloodberry "pulled me out of the ground after your marionette -- STOP LAUGHING AT ME, YOU WORTHLESS SCRAP PILE!!"
"Scrap pile! Scrap pile! Scrappy Scrappy Scrap Scrap! Ne, Otaru? What's a scrap pile?"
"If you want to see a scrap pile, just try hitting me again! I'll turn you into one!"
"Oh yeah, take this, Hannie!"
"AHHH!!!"
Everyone quiet down!" Otaru cried, holding up his hands for silence and stepping between Lime and Hanagata (who was now rubbing a rather nasty lump on his head with his good hand). "You say you're here to study with Dr. Eboshi?"
"Yup, that's right," Damien smiled. "But it looks like I got some practice early, huh, Mitsi?"
"H--hai," Hanagata stuttered, changing through three shades of red as Damien clapped him firmly on the shoulder.
Otaru just stared at the two.
<Mitsi? What the Hell -- >
"Well, we're happy to meet you, Damien," he said after taking a moment to remind himself to ignore just how truly surreal this entire situation was becoming. "And thanks for taking care of Hanagata. If you'd like to, we're going to a barbecue today so --"
"IYAAA!!"
"Cherry?!"
The purple-haired marionette stood in the center of the floor, her eyes wide with horror. "Otaru-sama!! The -- the barbecue!! We're fifteen minutes late!"
"Ch--cherry?!"
But the small marionette was no longer listening to anyone as she rapidly piled carton after carton of food into an astonished Bloodberry's arms.
"We can't possibly wait any longer, Otaru-sama!! The yakisoba will get cold if we don't leave now!"
"Hey, watchit, Cherry!" Bloodberry growled. Then. "She's right, Otaru, we should go."
"But," Otaru looked uncomfortably at Hanagata and Damien. "I know guys, but --"
"Ne, Otaru, I'm hungry." Lime whimpered, glancing interestedly at the boxes in the tall marionette's arms as her stomach growled conspicuously.
Otaru sighed. "Hanagata, are you gonna be able to walk?"
"I --" Hanagata hesitated for a moment, biting on his quivering lip as he looked uncertainly from Otaru to Damien. "No, it's alright, chum," he said at last. "After what happened this morning, I don't think I'm really in any shape for an outing."
"No, it's fine, really. Bloodberry can carry you --"
"The hell I will," the crimson-haired marionette murmured, glaring daggers at Hanagata from around the pile of Cherry's boxes.
As Hanagata palled slightly at Bloodberry's glare, Damien nodded gravely. "I'm afraid I'm gonna hafta agree with Mitsi here. He's been through a heckuva lot today. And as his doctor -- at least a temporary one -- I say he should stay home and rest."
"Well, ok, but it's really not a big deal if you wanna come you know."
"No, that's ok. I think I need to stay and take carea him. See if he needs anything, ya know?"
"Oh. Right. Well, if you're sure then, Hanagata..."
"It's perfectly alright, Otaru-kun," Hanagata said, giving his neighbor what he hoped was a confident and natural smile. "I'll just get some rest so my arm can heal. I'll see you later, yes?"
"But --"
"Otaru-sama, the yakisoba --"
"I'm hungry, Otaru!"
"Hai," Otaru shoved his hands into his pockets. "Well, what are we waiting for?" he asked, turning around to flash the marionettes what he hoped was a confident and natural grin. "Let's get to that barbecue and have some chow, huh?"
"Yay!!" Damien winced and wrapped a steadying arm around Hanagata's shoulder as Lime barreled through the door, nearly tipping both men over in her wake.
"Lime wait for us!! You need to carry some things too!" Cherry cried, grabbing Bloodberry by the arm and pulling her out of the house, nearly forcing her to drop her load of boxes in the process.
As the marionettes hurried down the street, Otaru turned back to the two men. "Well, see you later, I guess," he said, bowing.
"Yes... go have fun now, Otaru-kun... and don't worry too much about me. I'll be fine."
"Ok."
Both men stared at one another for a long moment.
"Otaru-sama!!" Cherry shouted from somewhere down the street.
"Hai!" with one final bow, Otaru hurried from the room, admonishing Hanagata and Damien to close the door on their way out.
"You see what I mean? Horrible she-devils!" Hanagata exclaimed as soon as Otaru was out of hearing distance.
The dark-haired man nodded sagely. "They really are kinda strange. Back where I come from Marionettes don't usually talk that much. And none of 'em to my reckoning ever screamed or had emotions either. That something partic'lar to Japoness, Mitsi?"
"No, thank God," Hanagata replied, rolling his eyes. "Otaru-kun's marionettes are special."
"How so?"
"They have something called maiden circuits which allow them to feel emotions."
"Or pretend they do, you mean."
".... nani?"
Damien smiled slightly. "Well, I don't reckon as machines can feel anything, with or without them maiden circuits."
"Oh... of course not," Hanagata said, putting a hand to his head. "Gomen nasai, Damien. I'm not... thinking so well now. I might've hit my head harder than I thought."
"Yeah? Well we better getcha into bed then."
Hanagata nodded. "Better you than him," he said, staring down the street at the rapidly vanishing forms of Otaru and his marionettes.
"Huh?"
"Nothing," Smiling, Hanagata turned back to Damien. "I just meant I'd... I'd rather have you looking out for me than him. I mean," he chuckled slightly. "If Otaru-kun's crazy enough to think marionettes are real, then he's obviously in no position to help me recover, ne?"
"I see." Damien smiled and scooped Hanagata into his arms. "Well, were to now, Mitsi?"
"I live right next door."
"Oh, right."
The door closed quietly behind them.
~*~*~*~
"Something's not right about this, Gennai-san."
"Otaru, relax. I'm sure everything's fine."
"That's easy for you to say, you didn't see him," Otaru sighed and reclined on the picnic blanket. "He had these weird eyes and when he smiled --" Otaru shuddered. "It was just plain creepy!"
"From what you told me he sounds like a nice young man who just wanted to use his medical skills to help someone out."
Otaru raised himself up slightly to give Grampa Gennai a trademark "did you hear a word I said?" look. "I don't like that guy, Gennai-san," he continued moments later. "And I want to know what he's up to."
"Ah, I see," Gennai said, smiling slightly. "You're that jealous are you?"
"WHAT?! Oh, please," Otaru rolled his eyes as Grampa Gennai winked knowingly at him. "I am NOT jealous of Hanagata Mitsurugi!"
"Ahhh-Ahhh-Ahhh!" Gennai wagged his finger a few mocking inches from Otaru's face. "Then why have you been talking about him for the last two hours while your charming marionettes have played volley ball by themselves?"
"Because my charming marionettes can very well protect themselves," Otaru smiled and waved as Lime called to him. "Hanagata can't."
"I see. So what you're saying is --"
"What Hanagata does on his own time in his own apartment is his business, and I could care less who he's spending it with," Otaru nodded. "But dammit, that guy..." "You're a good friend, then," neither man missed the accusations implied by that phrase.
And Otaru blushed slightly at sensing them. "C'mon, Gennai-san! It's not like that! We both know Hanagata has the judgment of a sea-sponge when it comes to a pretty face."
The older man nodded sagely. "And some of us, it seems, know that better than others."
Otaru scoffed. "Ahh, who am I kiddin', he's fine! He's probably sitting there in bed, drinking tea and eating sukiyaki while yucking it up with with his new friend and not even worrying about him or his creepy eyes! Who wants to play volleyball! I think I wanna play volleyball, how about you?! Well fine!" and before Gennai could answer the rather harried question and answer, the young man jumped up, cursed as he tripped over his blanket, dragged it several stumbling feet, and finally kicked it onto a surprised child's sand castle before tearing a clumsy pathway to the in-progress volleyball game.
Gennai merely sighed and sipped his drink. "Kids," he murmured sadly, shaking his head.
~*~*~*~
Hanagata sighed contentedly as he snuggled into the down-filled comforters. "You've been so good to me," he murmured, looking up at Damien. "Arigatou gozimasu."
The New Texan boy merely nodded as he adjusted his glasses on his high and angular nose. "Anything else I can get for ya, Mitsi?" he asked, straightening the bow on Hanagata's purple nightgown once again.
Hanagata blushed a little as Damien's long fingers brushed against his collar bone. "H--hai, there is."
"And what would that be, honey?"
At this appellation, Hanagata blushed even more.
"Did he just call me honey?"
Damien smiled and nodded, blushing a little himself.
"...And did I just say that out loud?"
Again Damien smiled and nodded.
<Oh, crap.> Hanagata thought, burying his face in his hands. <Now he probably thinks I'm some kind of freak. Chalk one more failure up to your big mouth, Mitsurugi.>
"And no, I don't think you're weird for wond'rin' why I called ya that."
"Nani?"
<Is he a mind reader too?>
"See, where I come from, it's a term of affection," Damien explained, smoothing a hand through his dark locks. "Ya know, like -- well kinda like buddy, amigo, kemosabe."
Hanagata just blinked at him. "Bud-dy? Ami-- Kemo--sa--?"
"Ya know, kinda like 'chum!'"
"Oh!" Hanagata nodded vigorously.
<What the hell is he talking about?>
"I see. Like chum!"
Both men laughed whole-heartedly.
"Like chum!!"
"Yeah, like chum! Buddy. Amigo."
"That's really funny!"
"Yeah."
<And why the hell am I laughing?>
In spite of their mutual reservations, however, both men continued to laugh for several minutes. At last, Damien removed his glasses to wipe the tears from his blue and green eye.
"Jeeze, why the heck're we laughing?" "You know I'm not entirely sure!"
"Amigo!"
"Chum!"
And again they dissolved into laughter quickly bordering on hysteria.
At last Damien managed to calm down enough to speak again. Clearing his throat a few times, he turned his gaze to Hanagata.
"Actually, Mitsi? There's another reason why I used that word just now."
"Oh! I mean oh... is there?" Hanagata asked, blushing.
"Uh... yeah," almost nervously, Damien flicked a hand through his hair again and turned his eyes away from the blonde boy.
"I used it 'cause...well, 'cause..."
Hanagata nodded his encouragement.
Sighing, Damien sat on the edge of the bed and patted Hanagata's shoulder. "Mitsi... what I'm tryin' ta say is.. I know I ain't known ya for very long but... but thing is, I really... I really think you're nice."
"Why... thank you," Hanagata replied, clapping Damien on the shoulder as well. "And I think you're an outstanding chap, Damien!"
"Uh-huh."
"Amigo."
"Chum."
Both men giggled again.
"But seriously," Damien continued when their laughter had subsided. "I -- when I got you outta that pit this mornin', I just..." he sighed. "Mitsi? You have any idea how sexy you are?"
"Sexy?"
"Yeah..."
Hanagata chuckled again. "Ano... this isn't like 'honey', is it? It don't -- doesn't mean something else entirely in New Texas?"
"Nope," Damien said after a moment. "It means just what it means."
"Well... thank you."
"Don't mention it, pardner."
"Pardner... heh."
A long silence followed.
And then slowly, both men leaned forward and kissed each other.
(End Part One)