http://clampfix.fanworks.net/others/simple.txt </head><body><pre>*shudders* My first Clover fic. Many thanks to Kristin for pre-reading the first draft. Therefore, any mistakes found here are entirely my own. C&Cs please. All characters are property of CLAMP. Standard disclaimers apply. --- Simple Wishes A "Clover" Fanfic Presented by Alison Koh Kazuhiko had barely paused before the steps of the posh apartment block when a familiar voice, strong but tinged with age, buzzed through the intercom on his right. "Come on up. I'll put on the kettle for tea." The automatic gates unlocked themselves, allowing him to pass. Though he could not see them, he was sure that a series of security mechanisms were disarming and rearming themselves as he walked through the compound towards the elevator that would usher him to Gingetsu's apartment. As usual, he could smell the delicate aroma of Ran's tea permeating the hall. With an almost lethargic grace, he approached one of the comfortable sofas and unceremoniously plonked himself onto it, stretching his arms out to ease the day's tension. He took a quick glance at the antique radio taking up one huge section of the far wall. It was a gaudy piece of equipment, totally out of place in the simply furnished apartment. Hence he had been rather taken aback by Gingetsu's decision to buy it the first time they had laid eyes on it at a run-down junk shop on the other side of town. Besides, the weasel of a shopowner had quoted a price that constituted daylight robbery. But Gingetsu had paid for it immediately in cash without even pretending to bargain. Even then, the thing had not arrived in the best of shape, and it had taken the man several months to fix and enhance it to a reasonably working condition. "Well, he's rich. He can afford it," Kazuhiko mused. There was a sharp click, and Oruha's haunting voice floated through the room. /I want happiness I seek happiness.../ Kazuhiko turned around and saw a smiling Ran stepping out from the kitchen with his tray of tea in hand. Ran's soft hair had greyed much since they last met about three months ago, and the creases on his face had deepened. However, his eyes were still bright with youth and unclouded by experience. Wrinkled skin wrapped the hands that presented him with a cup of tea. "Thanks, Ran," Kazuhiko said with a weak smile that barely succeeded to hide his discomfort. Ran was wasting away with age and Kazuhiko was anxious to know why. However, Gingetsu had refused to tell him anything so far, though Kazuhiko did expect him to do so in good time. Except that there was not much left. "Where's Gingetsu?" "He won't be back this evening. Some important matters to attend to," Ran replied. His tone was casual, and he took a sip of tea with his usual calm elegance. "Why? Are you afraid of being ravished by a perverted old man?" Kazuhiko chuckled. "Sometimes I do wonder where you ever learnt to speak like that. Gingetsu hardly says anything beyond the monosyllabic. You haven't been fooling around, have you?" Without missing a beat, Ran responded, "You are the only other regular visitor here. What do you think?" Kazuhiko laughed and then shrugged his shoulders in defeat. Ran's tongue was getting sharper with age, and he knew better than to spar with him now. He sampled a little of the excellent tea and then settled back into the chair before asking, "So why did Gingetsu invite me here tonight?" Ran eyed him carefully and said, "He didn't. I did." If Ran had expected Kazuhiko to be surprised, he was to be disappointed. Instead, the man smirked. "Gingetsu will skewer me, you know that, don't you?" "He probably trusts you with me more than he trusts me with you." "You're selling yourself short now," Kazuhiko said. The conversation was beginning to bother him but he just could not put his finger on why. Nevertheless, he bided his time, certain that his companion would approach the main subject soon. Ran seemed to have sensed his thoughts and finally said, "I need your help on two matters." "My help?" Kazuhiko looked up from behind his round-rimmed glasses. Ran ignored his question, "Firstly, will you tell me more about Gingetsu?" "Huh?" Now Kazuhiko was surprised. It was a strange question coming from Ran. Surely, being the Lieutenant Colonel's housemate, Ran should know more about the man than Kazuhiko did. "I don't stay with him," he pointed out to Ran. "Neither do I. I merely tend to this place in his absence. Of course, he visits about once a week, but no more than that. No, you can't really say that he stays here," Ran replied. If he was joking, Kazuhiko was certainly fooled. There was no glimmer of the cheerful mischief that usually graced Ran's expression. Instead, a hint of regret seemed to shimmer within his mysterious sapphire-blue eyes. "I'm sorry." "You needn't be," Ran assured him with a gentle smile. "I've always thought that Gingetsu and you were..." Kazuhiko fell silent. "Lovers?" Ran said. "No, it wouldn't have worked out." Secretly though, Ran had often wished that it could have been otherwise, but he also knew very well that such a situation was impossible, and the knowledge pained him. The Supreme Council would never permit it. It was already a miracle that they allowed him, a 3-Leaf Clover, to stay with Gingetsu, who was a 2-Leaf, but it was necessary in order to control A's unstable frame of mind. But to have a 3-Leaf and a 2-Leaf be united in spirit and wield the unimaginable force of a 5-Leaf would be beyond the Council's threshold of tolerance. Besides, there was the delicate matter of A himself. "/If someone else becomes most special to C, I will kill that person. Even if C is dead, I will never forgive that person./" Ran had no doubts that A would hold true to that promise. But there were other things that bothered him too. Things that had nothing to with the Supreme Council or A, but everything to do with Gingetsu. Even after almost five years together, the man was still a puzzle to him. As a 3-Leaf, Ran should have been able to perceive some of Gingetsu's thoughts reasonably well. But the man seemed adept at shielding his mind. Perhaps that was the reason Gingetsu had been chosen to hunt him down during that very first time he had escaped from the government's research facilities as a little boy bearing the code name, C. Occasionally, though, Ran did manage to catch glimpses of the Lieutenant Colonel's innermost thoughts. And most of them revolved around genuine concern for the welfare of this dark-haired man seated across the coffee table from him. Ran took another sip of his tea and continued. "Gingetsu is my guardian. He has been protecting me on the orders of Sage Shuu." Kazuhiko frowned. This was the first time he had heard about the Supreme Council's involvement in Ran's adoption. Something else clicked in his memory. Things from three years ago. He uttered, "Clover Leaf Project." With a sigh of resignation, Ran nodded. "So Suu did tell you about the project after all. I'm here because it was decided that I should be separated from my twin." "You're one of the 3-Leaf Clovers that Suu had mentioned. She said there were three and then one died." "We were triplets named A, B and C. I'm C. A killed B because he was jealous that I was spending too much time with B. I ran away for I knew that if I continued to stay with A, he would kill everyone who comes near me. Furthermore, once the Supreme Council decided we were too dangerous, both of us would have been terminated instantly. Gingetsu was sent to track me after I escaped." "But how is it that you are here? When the Supreme Council wouldn't even allow Suu to live except alone?" Kazuhiko questioned. "The combined powers of the five Elders are enough to control a single 3-Leaf. Besides, I think Gingetsu made a pact with them to allow me this limited freedom, though I do not know the details and he wouldn't tell me anything." Ran sighed again. "I guess you should suspect by now that I don't have much time left." He raised his creased hands to display them before Kazuhiko. "I wish to at least understand a little more about Gingetsu before I die." Kazuhiko was stunned. The gentle plea enshrouded within that simple wish tugged at his heart. It was a strong but silent yearning to learn more about a person who was special. An entreaty made by one who could only stand by the sidelines and secretly watch his special person in silence, unable to declare his true feelings except in jest. Kazuhiko pitied the heavy mask of content amusement that Ran had to put on for Gingetsu's sake. He wondered if his old friend had ever understood Ran. At times like these, Kazuhiko wished he could punch that marble statue of a man, just to see if he would crack. But he knew that Ran would not want that, not when Ran was dying. Kazuhiko remembered what Oruha had once casually said about dying, though the words now held a poignant significance to him ever since she died. "/To not die before one's special person does is the greatest gift in the world./" It was a gift that Ran could never promise Gingetsu. With a shrug, Kazuhiko said, "What do you want to know?" Ran smiled. "Let's begin with the time both of you first met," he said. * The doorbell rang, almost startling Ran, who was already prepared for a silent evening alone again. Moments later, Gingetsu entered the apartment. "Ryuu called. He said you weren't feeling well," the tall blond man said. "That meddlesome idiot," Ran chuckled quietly to himself. "I thought you were busy tonight," he said, quickly changing the topic. "Matters managed to finish early today," was the reply, curt and devoid of useful information as usual. Ran had gotten used to it by now. Instead he asked, "Would you be staying here tonight?" Gingetsu looked at him impassively from behind his grey visor. Instead of replying, he asked in return, "What do you want?" "I would like you to stay," Ran replied shyly. Without another word, Gingetsu headed for his room, a sign that he was about to take a shower. That was the clearest indication that he would not be leaving for tonight at least. Ran smiled and walked quickly to the kitchen. "I'll prepare the tea." Gingetsu paused for a moment. "By the way, Kazuhiko asked me to pass a message to you. He agrees to your request." Then he closed the bedroom door behind him. The Lieutenant Colonel had not asked what the request was and would never do so, unless Ran was willing to divulge. For that, Ran was thankful. * "What's the second thing you wanted me to do?" Kazuhiko asked, after having recounted everything he knew about the mysterious Gingetsu to Ran. Ran took a deep breath and said, "I want you to protect Gingetsu for me...after I die." "I'll think about it," Kazuhiko said. * "Thank you, Kazuhiko," Ran whispered as he placed the kettle of fresh water onto the stove. Later, Ran entered the Lieutenant Colonel's room, and laid out a fresh set of casual clothes on the small stand just outside the bathroom. The sound of water spraying from the shower nozzle was audible through the thin door. Somehow, it never failed to amuse Ran to hear that stone giant whistling in his bath. ----- Dreams of Sakura Home -- http://www.geocities.com/dreams_of_sakura X Shrine -- http://www.geocities.com/asuka_sg</pre><p><a href="./">Back</a></p><p><a href=http://www.dreamhost.com/donate.cgi?id=216><img border=0 alt="Donate towards our web hosting bill!" src=https://secure.newdream.net/donate1.gif></a></p></body></html>