[FIC] Class Act (part 23) Finale

[dd]

In the days of yore, sophisticated ships captains knew better than to take the weather for granted. Still, for all their respect for the vast expanse they sailed, they had no way to prevent a sudden unexpected sea change.

Sousuke had dreaded Wakana’s presence amongst his classmates. He had terrible premonitions of her saying enough to cause some energetic soul to examine the bus more than the usual apathetic teenager would. All someone had to do was pay close attention to the rear luggage deck---it would be hard to miss the oil splashes and the dark residue left behind by the smoke generator. If they managed to pry the compartment open, the row of TMPs would not look like standard bus equipment.

For some reason, he had also worried about the crazed and amorous police officer dropping hints about her having her way with him. True, the kisses had not been voluntary on his part---but try explaining that to Kaname! He wasn’t certain why that concerned him so much---probably because he would lose her trust, trying to keep things secret. That was it. That would make his job more difficult.

When Wakana had offered to do to Sousuke what she had done to her whistle, he fled to the captain’s seat and got his craft moving again. There was a fair distance to the police station he needed to reach, and he fervently hoped that someone or something would keep Wakana occupied or distracted for the necessary period of time. He was fortunate in that regard. His classmates resumed their joking around. They did not revisit the dangerous world of gossip.

Peer pressure and the need to fit in can lead to risky behavior. When it came to one rugby player’s turn to tell a joke, he could only remember one that hadn’t been told yet. Jostled by his raucous teammates, he jumped right in without thinking.

“The phone rang at police headquarters,” he started. Intent on telling the joke well, he failed to notice that the bus went dead quiet. Everyone was looking at Wakana. The police woman was looking at him.

“’Hello,’ someone answered the phone, their mouth stuffed with doughnut.” The boy began embellishing the joke. The cliché had Wakana raising an eyebrow.

“’Hello, is this the police?’ the caller asked. ‘Yes, what do you want?’ the officer asked. ‘I’m calling to report that I saw small bags of a mysterious powder hidden inside the logs at my neighbor’s house. His name is Seki Shinichiro.’” The boy was getting into the joke. “’Thank you for doing your civic duty. We will look into this!’ the rotund officer said, grabbing his tenth doughnut and looking for his favorite soap opera on the TV.”

A number of students slowly moved away from Wakana. The police officer licked her lips.

“’The next day, after getting lost half a dozen times, the police show up at Mr. Shinichiro’s house. They searched the shed where the man kept a large amount of firewood. They broke open each piece of wood, swearing when they found no trace of drugs. After only three wrong turns, they made their way back to the station.”

The boy wondered why his classmates weren’t joining in, making snide comments like they had with the other jokes. Maybe they were simply tired of jokes. Maybe they were simply tired. It had been an exhausting trip. “The phone rang at Seki Shinichiro’s house. ‘Hey, Seki, did the police come?’ the caller asked. ‘Yes,’ Seki answered. ‘Did they chop your firewood?’ the caller asked. ‘Yes, they did,” Seki answered. ‘OK, now it’s your turn to call. I need my vegetable patch plowed.’”

No one laughed. Wakana stood up from the seat she had taken next to a quivering Shinji. She smoother her clothing. She went as far as to take out her lipstick, look in her compact, and fix her face. Then, she walked ever so slowly towards the boy who had told the joke. After she gestured, the rugby player next to him jumped out of his seat, giving her a place to sit down.

“That was an amusing joke. It touched close to home for me.” Wakana’s stare cold have peeled paint. “Imagine, telling a joke about the police, when I was aboard.”

The rugby player who told the joke no longer embraced his usually tough façade. His eyes went wide. There was a lump in his throat. His hands started trembling uncontrollably. For some reason, he felt as the missionaries might have, when they were shown a huge metal pot by the overly friendly natives. He tried to apologize. His mouth wouldn’t move.

“That took some balls. That took some guts. I’m impressed. I think I like you.” Those words sent more fear through the boy than a death threat could have. “I’m going to sit back here with you. Maybe we could discuss those balls.”

In war, sometimes a soldier’s sacrifice makes it possible for his squad mate to survive. Sousuke was grateful. He would remember to do a favor for that boy. He managed to drive all the way to his destination without being interrupted by a preoccupied Wakana.

Happy to keep the police officer at one end of the bus, Kaname walked up to chat with Sousuke.

“Are you doing OK, Sousuke. This all must be hard on you.” Her voice was measured and sweet.

“Kaname? I am OK. I am a little tired, but driving a bus is not that difficult.”

“No. You heard about terrorists and fighting, but never had a chance to see a thing. That must be like getting aked to join an all-star team, but never having a chance to play in the game.”

“I am fine, Kaname. All that matters is the safety of my passengers. I would not want you to face more danger than necessary, Kaname.” Sousuke had told the truth. There was no need to say more than necessary.

“O! Thank you, Sousuke.” Kaname found herself blushing. When Sousuke wasn’t climbing on top of busses or making clueless deals with bar owners, he could be kind of sweet in his own way. The thought of the dance club set her on edge briefly. But, she had to do her best to forgive and forget. She had told Sousuke that she was going to help him adjust.

“It is not a problem.”

“I know it’s not a problem, Sousuke. Is that the only way you look at things?” Kaname was laughing, but she found that she wanted to hear his answer.

“No, Kaname. Not everything is a problem.”

“Well, I’m certainly glad to hear that, for your sake. What kind of life would that be?” Her voice dropped down an octave and her eyes went vulnerable. “Sousuke, do you see me as a problem?”

“Negative. You are someone who does not deserve problems. I try to make sure….” Sousuke stopped. He was about to say ‘I try to make sure that your problems go away.’ Remembering something Kaname said in the museum, he wondered if he caused more problems than he solved.

“You try to make sure that I always have a problem, to keep me from getting bored?” Kaname laughed, feeling a slight twinge. That was close to the truth as she saw it. She had a good idea of what Sousuke was trying to say.

“Kaname, I….”

“I know, Sousuke. I was just teasing you. Though, there is some truth in what I said, right?” She wanted to make certain that he never lost sight of that fact.

“Yes.”

“But, don’t worry. Like I said. The kindler gentler Kaname Chidori will help you fit in.” Kaname walked back to her seat and returned with the halisen. She handed it to Sousuke. “As a sign of our new relationship, I give you this. I won’t be needing that any more.” She tossed her hair and smiled. There was hope for a bright new tomorrow.

“Thank you, Kaname.” Sousuke felt a groundswell of hope within him. If he were on better terms with Kaname, he could do a better job of protecting her. There was another feeling as well, but he had no time to examine that. He put the halisen across his lap. Kaname sounded sincere, but he still had reasonable doubts. The saying said that the road to Hell was paved with good intentions.

“But, we DO have a problem. It should be ending soon, thank God!” The look on Kaname’s face was intense.

“Problem, Kaname?” Sousuke’s posture straightened.

“I should have known that would get your attention, Sousuke.” Kaname smiled a crooked smile. “I’m talking about our…special…passenger.” Wakana.

“Uh….”

“’Uh,’ Sousuke? Does something about her make you feel nervous?” Kaname looked as if she were a blood hound, suddenly picking up a scent.

“Errr….”

“’Errr?’ That’s almost as bad as ‘Uh’ or ‘Ummm.’”

“Ummm…”

“What’s wrong, Sousuke? Are you hiding something?” Kaname’s eyes narrowed. Sousuke was sweating.

“Hiding, Kaname?” Sousuke wiped his hands on his pants before putting them back on the wheel. He let out a held breath in relief, seeing a landmark Wakana had mentioned. The police station was only a couple of blocks away.

“Keeping things secret. Knowing something that you don’t want someone else to know. Hiding something!” Kaname’s voice began climbing the octave ladder.

“What would I have to keep secret, Kaname?”

“If… I… knew… that… it… wouldn’t… be… a… secret. Now, why are you sweating?” She found it hard to pull her eyes away from the halisen, even though it was sitting on Sousuke’s lap. She did not want to look at Sousuke’s lap.

“I know the answer to this,” Sousuke said.

“Of course you do, Sousuke. The only question is how long you get to live if you don’t tell me!” Kaname’s eyes flashed.

“Kaname, I thought you said you were going to be ‘kinder’ and ‘gentler’?”

“I AM, SOUSUKE! The death would be painless.” The look on Kaname’s face almost reminded Sousuke of Wakana. But, he was learning. He didn’t mention that. “We were talking about sweating, Sousuke!”

“That is correct, Kaname. It has been explained to me before. I was sweating because my body was responding to the ‘fight or flight’ response. To prevent a harmful increase in core body temperature, blood vessels in my skin are dilating, at the same time the sweat mechanism activates. The evaporation of sweat causes my skin temperature to drop, allowing the blood in the surface vessels to cool. That will keep my core temperature from going too high. That only works when the air around me is dry enough to evaporate the sweat. Fortunately, the climate control in this bus is quite capable.” Sousuke was proud. He had remembered one of the lectures the doctor had given the crew aboard the TDD-1.

“Sousuke… that’s… not…” Kaname’s initial disbelief was not enough to stop her growl response.

“I apologize. You are correct. There is more.”

Kaname relaxed some, looking on with anticipation. She wasn’t entirely certain she actually wanted to hear Sousuke’s secret. “And?”

“Yes. There is another adaptive function in sweat. It helps the skin become more slippery. That makes it harder to be caught by a predator.” Sousuke thought momentarily of Mr. Mahmud. Oil wrestling took natural defensce a number of steps further.

“SOUSUKE!!!” So much for any illusions of peace and tranquilty. Kaname took no notice of the fact that the bus had stopped, parked in front of the police station.

“Is there a problem up here? Were you two fighting?” Wakana had walked up without Kaname knowing. “Sousuke, would you like to press charges? We ARE in my territory, after all.” The police womans’ face looked like that of a predator. It was Kaname’s turn to start sweating.

“It is not a problem.” Sousuke answered calmly.

“Fighting? Why would we be fighting?” Kaname laughed, louder than one might normally expect. “As the class representative, I was merely discussing matters with our bus driver. I am the picture of serenity.”

Wakana smiled. She had resolved to leave without saying anything more than ‘Thank you’ and ‘good luck.’ Kaname’s reaction prompted more. She couldn’t help herself. “I see. In any case., it’s time for me to leave this happy environment.” Her words made a certain rugby player shiver uncontrollably. “Thank you for your assistance, Sousuke. I wish you all good fortune.” She began walking down the bus stairs, but stopped to look back at Sousuke. “I look forward to our next kiss.” After that, she was gone.

“Next?” Kaname asked reflexively, numb from the neck down.

“Uh…”

“NEXT???” Sousuke’s monosyllabic response once again triggered Kaname’s ‘fight or fight’ mechanism.

“Errr….”

“K-I-S-S!!!” Kaname’s boice carried to the back of the bus. Everybody got to their feet in anticipation.

“Ummm….”

Kaname grabbed back the halisen. No sense in trying to be something you’re not. Noticing her classmate’s watching, she lowered her arm. She was NOT going to put on a show for their entertainment. Her own satisfaction? That was an entirely different story!

WHAM!!!

“What would I have to keep secret, Kaname?” Kaname aped Souske’s voice.

WHACK!!!

“Increase in core temperature, Kaname.” The halisen swung like a headman’s axe.

SMACK!!!

“I look forward to our next kiss.”

SLAM!!!

It seems Kaname had stored up a long list of grievances. The last one on the list was a new one. Sousuke’s head broke her halisen. But, before she stopped in her mature discussion of their differences, she felt a something akin to catharsis. Suddenly in a cheerful mood, she felt the urge to lecture Sousuke in return.

“Catharsis, Sousuke. The elimination of destructive emotions through appreciation of an aesthetic experience. Since aesthetics refers to beauty and taste, anything I do is an aesthetic experience, right?”

“Uh….” Wrong answer.

“Anyone have a fan I can borrow?” Kaname asked her classmates.


************************************************************


The final hours passed without any further terrorist attacks. Sousuke had long since felt the remainder of Kaname’s wrath. Feeling guilty, she made an effort to make amends---after a fashion.

“Sousuke?” Kaname sat on the floor, holding a bottle of soda with a straw. Sousuke needed some help after having been treated like a human xylophone. His arms were sore and bruised. He could hold onto the wheel, but nothing more. Kaname was feeing him soda and snacks.

“Yes, Kaname?”

“I think I have found it in my heart to forgive you Sousuke?” She smiled.

“Forgive, Kaname? For Wakana kissing me against my expressed wishes?” Sousuke was usually low key, no matter what happened. But now, he was close to being incredulous.

“No. For making me lose my cool. Especially after I had gotten all personal and promised to go easier on you. I don’t appreciate being made to look like a fool, Sousuke!” She was still smiling, but her eyes were slits. “I hope we understand each other better now. Any situation that helps us grow as people is a good thing, in a way.”

“I see.” Sousuke did not seem convinced.

“Are you disagreeing with me, Sousuke?” There was a touch of iron in her voice again.

“No, Kaname.”

“Good. You’re learning already.” She held the soda bottle up for him, feeling noble for helping someone in need.

“Your conversation up here with me earlier will help me grow.”

“Yes.” Kaname’s eyes went wide. He understood.

“The kindness you will show me, and the things you will help me understand, they will all help me grow.”

“That’s right, Sousuke!” She regretted going Medieval on him, but it looked as if she might have been able to pound some sense in that thick Sousuke head.

“Your helping me now, when I am somewhat disabled, that will help you grow as well.”

“Uh huh.” There certainly was more to Sousuke than met the eye.

“All of the trials and tribulations you faced as Class Representative, they will help you as well, since you managed to do a superb job under trying circumstances. You have earned the respect and thanks of many.”

“O! I…uh…errr…thank you, Sousuke.” Kaname felt herself blushing. “Can I get you one of the pillows off of the overhead rack. Would that make you job easier? Is there someway to make you more comfortable?” She kept focusing on the negative aspects of Sousuke. She made a resolution to look for the positive things as well.

“The mistakes you made in hiring a known incompetent bus driver will help keep you from making the same type of mistake again.”

“Uh….” Kaname had begun to stand up, to get Sousuke the pillow. She froze.

“The errors you committed in the failed attempt to arrange for room and board will also prove useful experiences.”

“Errr….” Kaname felt like she had been dipped in liquid nitrogen. But, a thaw would come. There was a fire starting deep within her belly.

“Just as the mistake I made dealing with unreputable men with a contract will effect my future judgment.”

“Ummm….” The fire threatened to become an inferno. Sousuke was correct. But, his choice of examples was ill chosen.

“And, my mistake in accepting the word of mischievous boys that led to me seeing you and the other girls naked, that too will serve as a useful lesson.”

Grrrr….” Inferno? No. Raging conflagration. Kaname went to get the pillow after all.

“I have also learned to be more circumspect in interpreting your words and assessing your intentions. The time I took hold of your breasts will be a very practical memory."

“S-S-S-…” Kaname stuttered. Magma, just under the surface, looking for a weak place in the earth’s crust.

“Just as your telling Mizuke that you wanted me to see you naked will teach you greater discretion.”

“SOUS-….” Pliny the Elder had made a mistake. Even though Sousuke was a student of History, he was about to make the same mistake.

“By the way. Why did you want me to see you naked, Kaname? To help identify your body if an accident damages your face? To be able to recognize you in the dark, if we are captured and placed in a dark enclosure? Some form of teenage sexual courtship ritual?”

“S-O-U-S-U-K-E!!!” Boom! Any of that would have been bad enough. The clueless way he said ‘teenage sexual courtship ritual’ was one straw too many on the back of a camel with a bad disposition.

WHAM!!! A pillow slammed into the side of Sousuke’s face.

The bus swerved abruptly to the right. A horn blared indignantly, as a small car swerved too, barely avoiding a collision. Passing through a deep puddle near the curb, it tossed up a huge wave of muck and filthy water. The people sitting at the sidewalk café were not appreciative.

“Kaname, what are you doing?”

SMACK!!! The pillow. Coming from above, drove Sousuke’s chin into his chest.

The bus overcorrected to the left. A Taxi cab, traveling much too quickly, pulled off the road…through the parking lot of a convenience store…and back onto the road again. Three people with grocery carts dove for cover, their carts heading out into the street. The bus was out of view when a slew of fender benders took place.

“Kaname, why are you striking me again?!”

CONK!!! The soda bottle bounced hard off of Sousuke’s head. Chill liquid spilled down into his eyes, momentarily blinding him.

The bus bounced hard through a series of deep pot holes. His vision blurry, Sousuke steered to avoid what looked like a man standing in the middle of the road. It was a statue in the town plaza. Running over a number of orange cones set out to warn of the road damage, he knocked the plastic objects high in the air. One landed on a jogger’s head, blocking his vision, causing him to fall down an open manhole cover. Another went through a large plate glass window at the Adult movie store, wiping out a large display holding the new editions of ‘Battlefield Babes’ and ‘Hot Teenage Ninja Girls in Trouble.’ A third cone spooked a seeing eye dog. Its owner, a young man, was jerked forward. His hand landed on a buxom woman’s breast. Her slap missed him purposefully when she realized he was blind. Instead, it hit an elderly gentleman, knocking his false teeth out into the street. “That’s OK, they’re made of strong stuff!” he said to the contrite woman. A large dump truck ran over them a moment later.

“I’m helping you learn, Sousuke. I’m helping you learn.” There was only one thing written down in her lesson planner: Sousuke must pay!

But, as it often happens, bad deeds do not always pass by unnoticed. The debt doesn’t always go unpaid.

“So, I see you two lovebirds are at it again.” It was Mizuke. She stood smiling, watching Kaname’s antics. “No wonder he chose to kiss that crazy wacked-out police woman instead of you. I’m just surprised he didn’t drop you off at the police station, and bring her back to Jindai. It certainly looked like she was eager to come.”

Kaname stopped her swing. The pillow slipped out of her hand and flew out the open window near Sousuke. It landed on the grill of a street-side food vendor, catching on fire. Too quick to use his fire extinguisher, the man sprayed most of its contents on the Police Chief’s wife and her new fur coat.

Her shock abating, Kaname grabbed the near full soda bottle out of one boy’s grasp. “I’ll bring you another. Unless you won’t let me have this?” Seeing the look on her face, the boy told Kaname she could keep it.

Kaname had not witnessed the mishap with the fire-extinguisher---she came up with a similar idea on her own. Thumb over the top of the capless bottle, she shook its contents repeatedly, walking after a retreating Mizuke. She stopped in her chase, when movement caught her attention.

Miss Okibasu was feeling much better. She had gotten out of her seat, and needed no assistance to walk. She went up to check on Sousuke, having seen Kaname’s eruption from the good seats.

“Are you OK, Sousuke?” She ran her hand through his hair, looking to see if Kaname had given him any lumps. “She took the ice cubes out of a cup on the dashboard, put them in one of her stockings she had taken off, and held the impromptu ice-pack against Sousuke’s forehead. “Did that mean blue-haired girl hurt you? Don’t worry, I’ll take extra special care of you. Somebody appreciates all of the hard work you’ve done for us.” her voice was calm and soothing, nearly seductive.

Standing behind the two of them now, Kaname stared, jaw hanging open. Her whole body going weak instantaneously, her thumb slipped off of the bottle. Foam and soda jetted out under tremendous pressure, spraying Miss Okibasu.

*Tweeee eeeee eeeeee eeeeee eeeeeee e e eeeee e eeeeeeee eeeee eee eeeeee e eeeeeeee e e eeeeeeee ee eeeeee e eeeeee eeee eee eee eee eeeeeeee ee eeeeee e eeeeeeeeeee eeee eeee eeeeee eeee eeeee eeeeee eeeeee eeeeee ee e eeeee eeeeee eeeee eeeee ee e e eeeeeee eeee eee e eee eeeee e eeeee!!!*

As it turns out, the teacher had brought a whistle along with her too. “Miss Chidori! When we get back, it will be YOUR job to clean the inside of the bus. Do a good job, because the practice will prove very useful. You will be cleaning the chalkboard erasers for the next month!”

Things were bad. They got worse. A gentleman at heart, despite his clueless nature, Sousuke took of his shirt, asking Miss Okibasu if she needed something to wipe the soda off herself. The teacher was too appreciative for Kaname’s liking.

“I think your idea is a good one, Teacher. Kaname herself will agree. She explained to me how mistakes help one learn.”

“Really, Sousuke?” Miss Okibasu smiled, wiping the soda out of her hair. “In that case, I have a wonderful idea. We have recently signed an agreement to join four other regional schools in a sharing program. I think I will contact them and see if they would like us to clean their erasers too..” She turned to Kaname. “You can handle that, can’t you. After all, you ARE the Class Representative.”

The whole bus went wild. Some of them had started feeling sorry for Sousuke. Some of them sided with Kaname, but had been subjected to far too much whistle.

“Uh….” Kaname managed.

“And you’d do anything to help your classmates, right?” Miss Okibasu put her hand over her mouth to hide her smile.

“Errr…”

“It will also be a good way for you to set a fine example for Sousuke. Obviously, he thinks very highly of you. I t-think I will m-move you into the d-desk n-next to his.” It was hard to hold back the laughter. Kaname’s face was comical.

“A wonderful idea, Teacher. I will get to spend more time with her that way. And, it will be easier to protect her.” Sousuke accepted his shirt back.

“Ummm….” Kaname was close to catatonic. That too would change.

“You don’t have to be so formal Sousuke, we’re not in class now.” Miss Okibasu would have thrown her hair, but it was plastered to her head. “By the way, I have a favor to ask. I’m just coated with sticky soda. The plumber won’t be by my apartment for two days. Is there a shower at your place I might borrow?”

Ryo, Maya, Kyouko, and Ren rushed to restrain Kaname.


************************************************************


The streets were dark now. The beams from the bus’ headlights shined on the sides of buildings and reflected of the glass of parked cars along the street. The wind blew some stray scraps of garbage here and there. Occasional cats shot across the road, tails straight out and eyes glowing in the light. A growing forest of lamps in the distance marked the Jindai High School parking lot.

As Sousuke carefully brought the bus over the entry ramp, his passengers began talking in low excited voices. They were back. In one piece. Finally.

Parents began getting out of their cars, milling around and speaking with one another. The bus had taken longer than anyone had expected, but they were relieved to have their children safe and sound. The stories on the news had been frightening, to say the very least.

As tired as they were, some of the students found it hard to leave their friends. They had been through a lot together. They were not ready to return to the humdrum routine of their daily lives.

After just returning from a rather hectic trip, who would have expected anyone to be talking about the next trip already.

“So Kaname, has this trip made you think twice about organizing the one coming up?” Kyouko worried about her friends state of mind. She hadn’t said a single word after they had dragged her back to her seat.

“Are you kidding, Ky. It’s me you’re talking about.” The familiar loud Kaname laugh had made its return. “All this means is that I will try TWICE as hard to make sure nothing goes wrong again.”

“But you said nothing could possibly go wrong on this trip, Kaname.” Ryo waved to her mother, but took a moment to get in on the conversation.

“Well, nothing really went wrong, Ryo.” Kaname laughed again. “Things just went a little differently than planned, that’s all,”

Everybody went quiet. The students walking towards their family and their cars stopped, turned, and stared at Kaname.

“Do you live in the same world we do, Kaname?” Maya asked, shaking her head.

“Come on guys, have a little faith. You can’t let the little things drag you down. You need to look on the bright side of things!” Kaname sounded fresh and full of vim and vigor.

“Little things? Do you mean something like Sousuke?” Mizuke, of course, was looking to get a dig in.

Kaname’s smile evaporated. “A little thing? SOUSUKE!!!” Speak of the Devil, and he appears. Same rules apply to Sousuke.

“Yes, Kaname?” Sousuke walked up, his bag thrown over his shoulder.

“Kaname was just talking about our upcoming trip, Sousuke.” Maya mentioned helpfully, keeping an expectant eye on Kaname.

“Yes, and how much she is looking forward to it. I think she must have had a lot of fun on this trip.” Ryo was smiling.

“She was telling us to look on the bright side of things.” Kyouko added.

“Bright side?” Sousuke asked.

“Yes, Sousuke. Everything has a bright side, if you look close enough. All it takes is a strong spirit and a willingness to accept something new or different! Hmmppff!” Kaname sounded like she was lecturing an exceedingly dense child.

“I see.” Sousuke said. “Another excellent teaching point, Kaname.”

“Everything, Kaname?” Ren had walked over to see what had caused the small congregation.

“Even Sousuke?” Shinji had strolled over as well.

Kaname was silent. Her mouth opened and closed like that of a fish beached by a strong wave.

“Well?” Maya was smiling

Kaname looked to walk away, but Ryo, Maya, and Mizuke blocked her path.

“Did you mean especially Sousuke?” Mizuke asked.

Kaname’s face turned to stone. Seeing that, everybody except Sousuke and Kaname laughed.

“Hmmmpppfff!” Kaname said, regaining her confidence. “Let’s find out. Sousuke, are you a pilot?”

“Uh…” He didn’t want to lie, but also was not about to tell the truth. He was, after all, an Arm Slave pilot.

“Well, Sousuke?” Kaname’s pitch rose.

“Errr…”

“SOUSUKE! Can you or can you not fly an airliner?” Kaname walked up nose to nose with Sousuke, hands on her hips.

“No.”

“THERE!!! That’s the bright side.” Kaname folded her hands across her chest, totally vindicated.

“Kaname?”

“We’ll be flying to Okinawa, Sousuke. You won’t be at the controls. What could possibly go wrong?”


************************************************************
END of Class Act

[Belisarius]

Poor Souske.

Ever caught in a storm, even one not of his own making.

Has anybody ever wondered that maybe Kaname is the bad luck charm for Souske and not the otyher way around.

Sometimes dd, I really think that you created Full Metal Panic and is secretly making money from the rights sold in Japan for it.

[HELLFIRE]

Payments starts today... FOR THE NEXT 20 YEARS!! Will Sousuke survive...?

Here I was thinking you'd wrap things up, but we get the dreaded 'More
Coming' at the end. Uh-oh... what, Kaname not kick Sousuke's ass
enough, or is there one more bloodpressure raising stunt he has to go
thru before it's over?

@Belisarius
I don't think you're too far off from the truth there...











Regards

[dd]

@HELLFIRE

Not much more. Just a small section to set up the final punchline...

Whew! That's all folks.

[HELLFIRE]

“We’ll be flying to Okinawa, Sousuke. You won’t be at the controls. What could possibly go wrong?”

...I wonder ROTF








Regards

[Reaper DXR-7]

Um yeah... I just watched the FMP anime again, the one that was translated into english. This story would have to be in the FMP manga world or it would never fit in. In the anime Sousuke was only there forabout 4 days and then they went on the trip to Okinawa, in the manga he has already been there awhile. So this is manga based right, not anime, cause it would be a little weird having it in the Anime... Just curious thats all...

[dd]

Actually, it's both and neither. I cheat wherever it fits the story (eg Mizuke and Sousuke go on their date before the Gauron stuff in my story, not after)

I try to keep things in reasonable order as best I can. But, it's best not to look too closely....

[Taurec]

copy => paste .... i'm gonna make a few e-books now for PPC, that reads more easy ...