Disclaimer: This stuff is owned by other people, except for the stuff that isn't. If you own the stuff I've used, please do not sue me. Chances are you already have one hell of a lot more money than I do. The Legacy of Kain - Chapter 12 (Shooting Star) "Kev, lad, ye look as if yer havin' a crisis of faith." Kevin blinked. His head jerked up, looking around the cramped space of the bar. The Upstart Crow was not a large establishment, a small pub tucked away in a side street off Queen West, and deserted at this hour on a Monday night. His bloodshot, sunken eyes eventually settled on the bartender. "Crisis of faith? Me?" Kevin said, attempting a rakish smile. It looked ghastly. "I got oodles of faith, Angus. For examle, I beleive I'll have another drink." Angus sighed, crossing his arms over his great barrel of a chest. He was a tall man, with a craggy, bulldog like face that looked feirce as hell until it split in one of his frequent grins. He was also, according to Kevin, the most Scottish man in the world. "Kev, I don't think-" "I'll have. Another. Drink." said Kevin, steel in his tone. Angus sighed, poured out another glass of rye, and set it in front of Kevin. He then walked over to the door, locked it, and flipped the sign from OPEN to CLOSED - PLEASE COME AGAIN. He returned to the bar and leaned towards Kevin. "Kev, man, when you going to talk about it?" "I'm not," slurred Kevin. Angus' brows furrowed. "Kevin. How long we known each other now, lad?" "Mmm. 'Bout thirty years now, give or take." "Aye, that's right. In all that time ye've always kept to yerself. Even when I finally noticed ye've not grown a day older since then, ye only told me the slightest bit o' the truth - not where yer from nor why yer here. An' I've accepted that. It's yer way." He lay a huge, gentle hand on Kevin's shoulder. "But, lad, I've come to care for ye like a brother. It pains me to see yer sufferin' like this." Kevin looked at him for a long moment. The earnestness on Angus' face sobered him somewhat. He sighed and pushed the glass away from him. "All right, Angus." "Good." Angus reached under the bar and produced a bottle of beer, which he opened and took a pull from before walking around to sit next to Kevin. "So. Who is she?" Kevin's eyes narrowed. "I don't follow you." "Ye don't? Let me see now. Ye came to town near a month ago. Since then ye've been here nearly every night, starin' into yer drink with that same maudlin look on yer face till the wee hours. Except every now and again, when ye hear a woman's voice - low voices in particular - ye whip around in yer seat, yer face lightin' up like a bleedin' Christmas tree. Ye look around, and then ye go back to your drink, lookin' for all the world like a kicked pup. Don't be giving me the runaround, lad." Kevin looked bewildered. "How in the hell did you get so perceptive, old man?" Angus laughed and thumped his chest. "I've been a barkeep for twelve years and a father for twenty. Ye learn." Kevin laughed out loud. "Okay, all right, I give." He sighed. "Her name is Ryoko." Angus arched an eyebrow. "Odd name. Foreign girl?" "Mmm. You could say that. Not sure exactly where she was born, but she lives in Japan." Angus grunted and sipped his beer. "So...what happened?" "Same old," Kevin said, shrugging. "Family hated me, forbade us to see each other again. Hell, it wouldn't have worked anyway. She was kinda hung up on another guy." "Ye don't beleive that," Angus said. It was a statement, not a question. Kevin sighed. "No," he muttered. "No, I guess I don't. Maybe it could have worked, but...well, they didn't give me much of a choice. Dammit!" he snarled suddenly, thumping the bar with his fist. It left a small dent. Angus graciously pretended not to notice. "It's been a month! Why aren't I over this yet?" Angus smiled. "First time for ye, ain't it, lad." "Yeah. So?" "I'll tell ye a true thing, Kev. Some girls, they take a lot longer to get over than others. Hell of a lot longer than a month and change, anyway. Some girls...some girls ye never get over. Not really." "Why thanks, Angus," muttered Kevin. "I feel ever so much better now." Angus laughed. He turned around, leaning his elbows on the bar as he looked out into the street. He blinked. He turned back to Kevin, a twinkle in his eye. "Let me tell ye somethin', lad. I've lived a long, full life, an' I've been blessed enough to love a few times, and to have married the finest girl in Scotland." Kevin smiled. "How is Paula, anyway?" "Fine, thankee. Dinna change the subject." "Okay, okay..." "When it's right," said Angus, leaning close to Kevin, "Really right, ye can feel it right down in yer guts. And then, well, there's no force on God's green Earth that can keep the two of ye seperate." "Earth ain't the problem," murmured Kevin quietly. Angus, not hearing him, went on. "All will be well, lad, ye'll see. She'll come for ye." He turned back to the window, grinning. "Tell you the truth, I'm anxious to meet this lass one day." "Think you're getting ahead of yourself a bit there, Angus." "Ye think?" Angus said. "I'll tell ye, if she can capture the heart of a cold fish like yerself, sure she'd be somethin' special." Kevin opened his mouth to retort, then closed it. "She is, at that." He reached for his glass. "Why, I can near see her now," Angus said, gesturing broadly. "She'd be beautful, heart-stopping. Fine features, somethin' almost catlike about her. Now, for ye she'd have to be somethin' of a rebel...probably have some kinda weird dye job, cyan or somethin'." He looked over at Kevin, who was staring at him, his glass frozen halfway to his lips. His grin broadened. "Sorry, Kev, couldn't help meself. She's standing outside." Kevin, a man in a daze, slowly turned around. There, standing outside the window, one hand resting on the glass, was Ryoko. Staring at him. The glass dropped from his nerveless fingers, shattering on the floor. Kevin blinked, shaking himself. "I...uh...jeez, Angus, I'm sorry, I'll pay for that..." Kevin said, never taking his eyes from the window. Angus snorted. "Kevin. Shut the hell up and get out there. Ye can settle with me tomorrow." Kevin nodded. He got to his feet and walked away without saying another word. Angus smiled down at his beer. "Ah...not a bad day's work, if I do say so meself." Kevin opened the door, walked outside. Ryoko looked as if she was about to say something, when Kevin reached out and pulled her into his arms, burying his head in her shoulder. Ryoko tenderly held him, lifting a hand to stroke his hair. Washu yawned voluminously. Damn, she thought. Two days worth of searching and I still can't pinpoint Mihoshi's ship. I must be getting old. She chuckled at the thought and waved her hand, dispelling the holotop back to subspace. What I need, she thought to herself, is some tea. She stood, stretching, and walked to the door. The instant she had walked through she knew, somehow, that something was wrong. Very wrong. "Sasami?" she called, walking cautiously towards the kitchen. Once she stood in the doorway she stopped dead in her tracks. It had been thoroughly wrecked. The window had been shattered, the cupboards ransacked. Most of the dishes were smashed on the floor. "What the hell-?" Washu summoned her holotop and tapped a few keys. A display popped up. EXTERIOR SENSORS - ACTIVE INTERIOR SENSORS - ACTIVE ALL SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL "This can't be right," she muttered. She heard a weak groan from behind her. Turning, she walked into the living room. It seemed more or less intact, apart from the smashed TV and the prone figure lying on the floor. She ran to his side and knelt, checking for injury. "N-Nobuyuki?" He coughed and looked up at her. His eyes suddenly went wide. "Boo," said a voice behind Washu. Something slammed into the base of her skull, causing little sparks to dance before her eyes as she lost consciousness. As she fell to the floor, she summoned the last of her strength, putting it all into one thought that she sent out, across an entire world, praying it would be heard. The lights of Toronto winked in the deepening night. While the city does not actually sleep per se, there comes a time early in the morning after the bars have all closed when the only people still up and about are depressed, or involved in illegal activiies, or both. A certain peace can be felt. Kevin looked down on the city scape from his vantage point, a long, long way up. He was perched on the edge of the CN Tower, shivering slightly in the cold wind. He resisted the momentary urge to spit off the side. He snuck a glance at Ryoko. She sat beside him, looking off towards the horizon with a faraway expression on her face. After a time he smiled. "I missed you," he said simply. Ryoko glanced at him, surprised, then smiled back. "I missed you too," she murmured. Kevin shook his head. "Ryoko...how...why did you find me? Last I heard, Ayeka was calling for my head on a platter, and Tenchi was only slightly less furious. I hadn't thought I'd ever see you again." Ryoko grinned ruefully. "Yeah, well...people change, y'know? I did a lot of thinking, and...I decided that I was going to find you, even if it meant not being able to go back to the household. Ayeka's got her faults - she's got a LOT of faults - but you can't say she doesn't care about keeping the family together. And Tenchi, well..." she sighed. "He's the last of the genuine Nice Guys, that one. He felt badly for having made a snap judgement about you...I talked him into giving you a second chance." Kevin nodded absently. "I see." He turned to look in her eyes. "And why did you come looking for me?" Ryoko opened her mouth, closed it. She reached out and took Kevin's hand in her own. "Kevin...I..." she shook her head. She leaned closer, biting her lip, one edge of a fang peeking out. Kevin's breath caught in his throat. Her lips came closer, closer to his own... Ryoko suddenly rocked backwards, clutchihng her head and hissing on an indrawn breath. Kevin's head snapped up. "W...Washu?" Ryoko blinked at him. "You heard that? How...?" Kevin shook his head, standing. "I'll explain later. You'd better get us back home. Sounds like there's trouble. Dammit." Ryoko got to her feet. "A two person teleport isn't the most comfortable experience in the world, y'know." "I'm tough. I can take it." Kevin took her hand. "And when all this is over, you and I have unfinished business to talk over. Deal?" he leaned down then and kissed her, gently, on the lips. Ryoko, her eyes shining, looked up at him. "Deal," she said. There was a soft -whumm-, and they vanished. AUTHOR'S NOTE: It's all about WAFF. Send C+C to kakapo101@hotmail.com in triplicate, signed, sent back, buried in soft peat for three months and recycled as firelighters.