"Akio, is that you?" a woman's voice came from the darkness
created by the bridge above.  Night had fallen, and her dark
clothes made it all but impossible to see her shadowy
outline, crouching next to the concrete wall.

"Yeah.  I came, just like you wanted," he replied between
breaths. He was tired from running the entire distance. "I
came," he repeated, "now tell me: What's wrong with me?"

* * *
ARCANA

* * *

Akio watched as the figure rose to its feet with a small
chuckle.  "So do you believe me now?"

"I don't know.  I do feel strange."  he admitted, but then
shook his head, raising his voice in denial.  "But come on!
Do you really expect me to believe that I have powers?"

"Whether you do or not doesn't really matter now."  Stepping
out of the darkness, she appeared.  Waist-length black hair,
sparkling blue eyes.  Almost a vision of beauty.

Except for the large scar running down her right cheek.

* * *
Concept by: Scott Schimmel

* * *

Akio took a step backwards, trembling slightly. "Wh...What
do you mean?"

She grinned slyly. "Isn't it obvious? I'm going to kill
you."

Akio turned in a panic and ran.  He didn't get far before he
suddenly rammed into what felt like a wall.  He fell to the
floor and groaned in pain, but that sensation was soon
replaced by surprise as he looked for the obstacle, and saw
nothing but thin air.  Quickly, he leapt to his feet,
feeling the air with his hands.  Sure enough, it was as
though an invisible stone pillar had been placed in his way.
In a mixture of surprise and horror he whispered:
"Impossible."

Behind him, the woman giggled in amusement. "You can't
escape."

* * *
This part by: Brett Schimmel

* * *

Akio turned, pressing himself against the barrier.  He faced
the woman with a look of terror and confusion across his
face. "I don't understand.  We're classmates. Why?"

She advanced towards him. "'Why?' Because the queen thinks
you might be a threat.  That's why."

"What queen? What are you talking about?"

"You don't need to know!" Before Akio could determine what
was happening, she pulled back her hand, palm open and flat,
and thrust her fingers into his stomach.  He coughed,
spitting blood from his mouth, and stared down at her arm,
her entire hand hidden within his own body.

"B... But... We're... Friends..."

"I have no friends!" She said angrily, quickly removing her
hand.  Akio slumped to the ground, unmoving.

For a few minutes she stared at the body, her face showing
no emotion.  Then, she removed a thick handkerchief from her
pocket and began wiping the blood from her hand as she
walked away from the corpse, heading up the grassy bank
towards the street.  When she got there, she followed the
road for a bit until it lead to a public telephone.

* * *
Chapter Nine: A Marionette's Tears

* * *


"Kurayami residence! Moshi Moshi!" Maki answered, feigning
happiness in her voice.  She could only assume it was one of
her father's business associates, calling her home this late
at night.  Thus she was forced to wear the mask of the
"pleasant" girl.

"It's me.  Akio has been dealt with, as you asked."

No sooner did she recognize the caller's voice than did the
mask of her former self shatter, returning the Queen of
Pentacles to her true self.  "I trust you weren't seen?"

"I wasn't, but the body's still there."

"Throw it in the river.  Chances are they won't be able to
find it, and even if they do, they won't be able to trace it
back to you."  Or at least, not to me, she thought. 

"Understood.  When do I get paid?"

"Tomorrow.  I'll give you the money in the usual place."

"That's not what I meant.  You promised me a chance for
revenge.  When do I get that?"

"Hmm..." The caller's words sparked the formation of a plan
in Maki's mind. "Perhaps you can get that tomorrow as well."

"Very well." With that, Maki heard a click as the caller
hung up. Maki smiled to herself: things were going as she'd
planned. Whether Akio was major or minor Arcana, the cards
never made clear.  One thing they did tell her clearly,
though, was he might have been a threat. Well, at least she
wouldn't need to worry about him now.

*


Hotaru mumbled something lazily as the sun shone through the
window of her room, casting its waking light on her face. 
She rolled over, pulling the covers over her head as though
to escape from the world for just a while longer.  She
stayed like that for a half-minute.

Then she threw the covers off as she sat bolt upright,
staring wide-eyed at the dolphin-shaped alarm clock on her
nightstand.

"No way! It CAN'T be that late!" she cried as she leapt from
the bed, quickly donning her school uniform.  She sprinted
out the door and down the stairs, taking them two at a time.

"Hotaru-" her mother began.

"Alarm didn't go off can't stop I'll be late!" She wailed,
grabbing her books and lunch in one hand and her breakfast
in the other.

"Hotaru, wait!" her mother said.

"No time!" She called, glancing over her shoulder. "Tell me
later tonigh- Uff!"

"Ouch!" Tetsuya cried simultaneously as Hotaru bashed into
him, knocking them both over. He sat up, rubbing his head.
"Geez, Hotaru, couldn't you pay more attention?"

"Sorry! I- Wait a minute, why are you here?"

"It's my turn to-"

"Tell me on the way!" she cried as she jumped to her feet.
"I'm going to be late!"

"For what?" Tetsuya asked, brushing the dust off his pant
legs.

"For school! What do you think? And where's your uniform,
anyway?"

"Uh, Hotaru." Tetsuya said with a smirk. "Today's Sunday."

"Eh?" Time seemed to stop as the realization struck her.
"Today's...?"

"That's what I was trying to tell you before," her mother
said from the doorway. "That and this young gentleman has
been waiting for you."

"Hmm.. That explains why my alarm clock didn't go off this
morning."

"Honestly, each day you're getting more and more like your
father," her mother shrugged as she went back inside the
house.

"Like father like daughter?" Tetsuya mused.

"Anyway, what are you doing here?"

"As I was about to say, it's my turn to watch you today."

"Wasn't it your turn to watch me yesterday, too?"

"True, but Shirosawa and Yasuragi are both preoccupied, and
that leaves me as the only other real option."

"I guess so, but..."

"And something else, too." Tetsuya's face suddenly became
serious. "Miyuki had a vision last night."

"A vision? Of what? Am I in danger?"

"I don't know for sure.  She said it was kind of sketchy. 
But she wanted us to be on guard today, just in case, and,
since I was available, she sent me to watch over you.  And
Hanako." When he said the child's name, he almost sounded
disappointed.

"Hanako too?" Hotaru asked.

"I suppose Natsu can tag along too, if you want."

"I'll call her." Hotaru said as she turned back towards her
home.

"You should probably change your clothes while you're at it. 
Then we have to stop and pick Hanako up from the Tower
Reversed on the way."

"On the way to where?"

Tetsuya smiled with a gleam in his eye. "Someplace I'm sure
you'll enjoy!"

*

"You still at it with those cards, Nakamura?" Sagara asked
his partner. Nakamura shuffled through objects, occasionally
drawing one, examining it for a few minutes, and putting it
back. "We're supposed to be working on the Usono case here."

"You're right, I suppose.  Where shall we begin?"

"Er..." Nakamura had him there.  With Ishido's sudden
disappearance, the police had very little to go on.

"These cards are the only connection we have to him, however
strange it might seem."

"Nevermind," Sagara caught himself.  He didn't want to admit
it to his partner, but those cards scared him.  Those and
his newly acquired so-called "niece".  He wanted to tell his
partner about her and her shady "connections", but his wife
was... She was...

With a feeling of guilt, Sagara said nothing as he sat down
to his desk.

The shuffling of the cards was the only thing Sagara heard
in the stillness that followed. Nakamura, focusing almost
all of his attention on them, seemed oblivious to everything
else.

"Hmm." Nakamura broke the silence a minute later.

"What?" Sagara wondered.

"Eh? Oh.  Nothing.  It's just that the last three cards I
drew were all swords."

"Is that all? Nakamura, you need to take a break from that."

"Yeah, I suppose I should."

*


Ace.  Three.  Knight.

Each time, the reading would come up with the same three
sword cards.  That, combined with her vision, began to make
things clearer and clearer for Fortune.  But the last card
was what worried her.  The Knight of Swords: The warrior
riding gallantly into battle, sword drawn.

"But the Knight was supposed to have met with Death," she
said to herself out loud.  Granted, the incident took place
before she was born, but she clearly recalled ordering- or
rather, a former avatar of Fortune ordering two of the
lesser Arcana to remove the Knight from the deck, lest the
Knight turn against them in the future.

"So why is the Knight still alive?" she asked herself,
unable to remember what had happened afterward.  Did they
fail? Could the Knight have-

"Hey Miyuki!" Fortune was interrupted as Hanako burst into
the room, followed by Hotaru and Tetsuya. "You gonna come
with us?"

"Eh? Where?"

"Tetsuya won't tell us," Hanako moaned.

"Tetsuya, I told you to watch over them today!"

"I am! I am!" He ran a hand through his hair. "But I don't
see why we can't have some fun while we're at it! Don't
worry, I'll protect them."

"'Fun'? Tetsuya, tell me where you're taking them."

Tetsuya shrugged and walked over to her. He bent down and
whispered something in her ear.

"Hmm... I'm beginning to think they'll need protection from
you," Miyuki responded.

"Ow.  That was cold." Tetsuya frowned.

"In any event, I have a number of things to do today; I'm
afraid I won't be able to join you."

"Told you," Tetsuya said to Hanako, then groaned in pain as
she stomped on his foot.

"That's too bad.  Some other time, then?"

"Maybe.  We'll see."

"Okay.  I'll see ya later then," Hanako waved as they left.

*
	
Sagara sat alone in the office. His partner had finally
decided to take a break from the cards, and took an early
lunch. Nakamura had left the cards, though, and that left
him uneasy.  Sagara had spent the entire day thinking about
the cards, Ishido Usono, the girl, and how his financial
problems were slowly, but surely, being solved. He tried to
make sense of it all, but couldn't seem to concentrate.

Grumbling to himself, he took out a pack of cigarettes and
got out of his chair, intending to leave the building for a
smoke.  No sooner did he take a step though, then his new
niece walked in.

"Uncle Sagara! Looks like I caught you just in time!"

"Uh, yeah.  I guess so," he agreed, sitting back down.

"Don't worry, this won't take long," she promised. "I just
want to ask you for a favor."

"What favor?"

From her handbag, Maki took a deck of Tarot cards.  She drew
one in the center, and tossed it to him. "I just want you to
deliver this to someone."

"Is that all? Why don't you do it yourself?"

"Unfortunately, I'm going to be busy all day.  I was hoping
my favorite uncle could do it for me," she replied with a
sly smile.

"I hate to tell you, but I have to work today."

"You don't have to do it immediately.  Just do it... Say, on
your lunch break?"

"I guess I could, but why? What is this for?"

Maki giggled. "That's a secret among friends."

"I guess it can't be helped," Sagara sighed as he gazed at
the card, the Page of Pentacles. "Where and who do I give it
to?"

*

"Ta-Daa! Here we are!" Tetsuya waved an arm towards the
large neon sign over the entrance. 

"A theme park?" Hanako asked.

"Not exactly what I had in mind," Hotaru admitted.

"It's a shame Natsu couldn't make it, but that's okay! It'll
be fun! Every girl I've come with- ah!- Every time I've come
here I've always had fun!" Tetsuya grinned. "And I won free
tickets in a raffle recently, so we can get in quickly
through the short line!"

"I guess you could be right," Hotaru agreed. "What do you
think, Hanako?"

"Dunno. Never been to a theme park before."

"Well there you have it! Every kid needs to go to a theme
park at least once in their life!" With that, he
enthusiastically strode towards the entrance.  Hotaru and
Hanako exchanged glances, shrugged, and followed.

The "short line", as it turned out, only took thirty
minutes, as opposed to the two-hour long line.  Inside, the
park was crowded with people.  Small booths littered the
area; behind them, the larger rides loomed.  Different kinds
of music mixed in with each other, but was barely audiable
over the cries or children in joy or the shouts of merchants
selling snacks.

Tetsuya gazed around in merriment. "So, where shall we go
first? The roller-coaster? The haunted-house? The
bumper-cars?"

"I'm kinda hungry," Hanako said.

The smile fell from Tetsuya's face. "Figures."

*

The bokken made slicing sounds through the air as Sumire
swung.  Behind her, the Hataraku kendo team tried to imitate
her, most of them failing. She hardly noticed, though, as
she was concentrating on her own moves.

They had been in the gym for hours, preparing for an
upcoming kendo tournament.  Despite the fact that it was
Sunday, her day off from school, Sumire had agreed to train
them, more for her own purposes than for the team.  The team
felt she was a master, an ace.  But Sumire only did what
came naturally, because it felt good to wield a sword.

She repeated the move a few more times for the others.  As
usual, she performed it flawlessly.  The others, however,
could not keep up.  Realizing that they'd been practicing
for several hours non-stop, she decided to call a short
break.

"Rest up and eat lunch, because we'll be training three
times as hard when you get back," she assured them.  Her
remark was met with moans. 

No sooner did they leave than Sumire fell back into a
fighting stance, intent on continuing. Before she could
swing the bokken, however, a lone kendoist interrupted her.

"Excuse me, Sempai.  A cop told me to give this to you," he
said, bearing a Tarot card: the Page of Pentacles.

"A cop?" She asked as she took it.

"He said it was from one of your friends."

Sumire stared at the picture on the card, eyes narrowing.

*

"Ugh." Hotaru said as she threw what was left of her food in
the trash. "That tasted unpleasant."

"Well, what did you expect?" Tetsuya asked as they walked.
"You don't come to a place like this for the food, you come
for the rides."

"I liked it," Hanako said, taking another bite out of her
cotton candy and licking her ice cream.

"Of course you did.  All you had was junk food," Hotaru
pointed out.

"So? I ate more of my meal than you ate of yours."

"Now now, let's not fight," Tetsuya interrupted them as he
came to a map of the theme park. "It's more important to
have fun! Shall we go here, to Rabbit Land? Or here, Eagle
Land? Or Raccoon Lan- oh, that's not open to the public
yet."

"It doesn't matter to me," Hotaru said.

"An' I've never been here," Hanako reminded them.

"Okay, then we'll go on the roller-coaster! Come on!" he
practically dragged them to the steel monster. "This'll be
great!"

"It's so... big," Hotaru said, gazing upward.

Tetsuya grinned mischievously. "Shall we?"

"What about my ice-cream?" Hanako asked, taking another
bite.

"Hmm... Can't you just toss it out?"

"Throw away free food? No way."

Tetsuya scratched his head. "Alright, why don't you wait for
us on that bench over there?" 

"'Kay," Hanako agreed, striding over to the designated spot.

"Tetsuya-kun, are you sure that's such a good idea?" Hotaru
asked as he lead her towards the ride's entrance.

"Scared to ride alone with me?"

"Wha-? No! I mean, shouldn't you be with her at all times?
What if something happens?"

"Don't worry! Hanako's a pretty responsible kid, and why
would our enemies think of attacking us in a place like
this? A crowded place, I might add."

"I guess you're right, but still-"

"She'll be fine.  This'll only take a few minutes."

They managed to get front seats, although the entire car was
filled quickly.

"Ever been on a roller-coaster before?" Tetsuya asked as the
car began to climb the track upward.

"Not since I was five," Hotaru admitted.

"Well, if you get scared, feel free to grab my arm!"

"What?"

"Or not, I guess." He chuckled as he scratched behind his
head.  As the coaster reached the apex of the climb, though,
his face suddenly became very serious. "But remember,
Hotaru: There is something you absolutely have to do."

"Eh?" She shot him a confused look. "What's that?"

Just as the car began to move downward, he winked at her
with a half-grin. "Yell."

She threw him a puzzled look as the coaster flew down the
steep incline, but if he caught it, he failed to respond. He
followed his own advice, and by the time it reached the
bottom, everyone, whether in ecstasy or fear, was screaming,
including Hotaru.  She had to admit, Tetsuya was right: she
was having fun, and despite all that had happened earlier
that morning the day seemed to be turning out rather well.
And besides, she thought, glancing at Tetsuya's smiling face
as he howled in glee, maybe he's not so bad after all.

"Whew! That was fun," Tetsuya grinned as ride slowly came to
an end.

"Yeah. It was." Hotaru nodded.

"See? I told you you'd like this place.  Now all we need to
do is get Hanako to join us for the next ride."

The joy they had gotten from the coaster quickly turned into
concern when they came from the exit.  Hanako was nowhere to
be found.

"Hey, where'd she go?" Tetsuya wondered.

"You don't think-?" Hotaru began.

"Hmm... Check the nearby bathrooms.  I'll stay here and see
if she returns."

Hotaru nodded.  Several minutes she returned, her face was
stricken with panic. "She wasn't there.  Tetsuya-kun, what
are we going to do?"

"Calm down.  Maybe she just-"

"I told you not to leave her alone! Something must've
happened!"

Tetsuya's mind raced, thinking of where the child could've
gone. "Let's not jump the conclusions just yet.  Come on,
we'd better search for her."

"Let's split up!" Hotaru said, and began to run off.

"Wait!" he grabbed her arm. "We'd better stay together, in
case you're right."

Hotaru nodded, and they began searching the park for the
Page.

*

It was still early afternoon outside, but within the tent it
was very dark, a few small lamps providing the only light. 
The tent itself was wide. Lining the walls were pieces of
equipment to be used when that section of the park, Raccoon
Land, opened.

Hanako gasped, finding herself tied to one of the machines
with a strong rope.  Noticing she was awake, dark figure
fell from above, landing right in front of her.

"Awake, huh?" She cringed in fear as the woman thrust her
face inches from the child's. "Good. Now if you want to
live, I would suggest you keep quiet, not that anyone can
hear you scream within the field."

"Who- Who are you?" Hanako asked.

The woman stood up, ignoring her question. "Don't worry,
your savior will be here soon. I left plenty of clues."

Hanako noticed her shoes had been taken, probably for bait. 
She ventured another question. "But what do you want with
me?"

"It's not you I want at all." She ran a hand along the scar
on her right cheek. "It's her."

As if cued, Hotaru burst into the tent, followed by Tetsuya,
carrying Hanako's shoes. "Hanako!"

"Hotaru! Tetsuya!" Hanako cried.

"What? Who are you?" The woman asked. "You're not supposed
to be here!"

"That should be our line," Tetsuya said, removing something
from his pocket.  It was a vajra- a small golden cylinder
with three prongs on each side, shaped very much like a
sword hilt.  It shimmered as he gripped it.

Hotaru lifted her open hand in front of her face, and a
white flame formed above her palm. "I swear, if you've hurt
her-"

"Not yet, but I will," she said, thrusting her fingers at
Hanako's neck, "Unless you bring me who I want."

Hotaru's flames died out. "And who's that?"

"Me." 

They all faced the entrance as Sumire entered, resting the
blade of her bokken on her shoulder.  She walked in front of
Hotaru and Tetsuya, and then stopped. "Or am I wrong?"

"Sumire!" Hotaru squealed.

"Sokana told me I would find the Page here.  Thank you for
the message, Arisa."

"Heh.  So you remembered me after all." The woman smirked,
brushing her hair back so that they all got a clear view of
her scar. "Or is this what jogged your memory? You should
know. You gave it to me!"

"Do you know her?" Hotaru asked.  Sumire ignored her.

"Arisa... you know that's not true."

"Shut up! I remember it all as though it were yesterday!"
She rubbed a hand along her scar as she spoke. "Back in the
gym, when we were attacked that day?"

"Arisa..."

"You always said you were my best friend, that you'd always
be there for me," she continued, rage filling her voice.
"But when that day came... When I needed you most."

"Arisa. I didn't..."

"When that day came, you abandoned me!" She screamed. "You
ran, leaving me to face them all alone!"

"I didn't run, Arisa," Sumire tried to reason. "I tried to
help you."

"Oh, sure, you came back to help me after you found your
precious sword, didn't you? You defeated them all and saved
your best friend's life, right?" The sarcasm cut deeply.
"But if you had stayed, then my face... My face would never
have..."

"If I had stayed we would have both died!" Sumire argued.
"I'm sorry for what happened. I wish I could have done
something differently, but I didn't.  Arisa, I'm still your
friend!"

Arisa wiped away the tears that were falling from her eyes.
"I have no friends. Not anymore. All I want now is my
revenge."

"I see," Sumire said. "Komatane."

"Huh?"

"Get the girl to safety and stand back.  This is my fight."

Hotaru nodded.  She and Tetsuya ran along the tent's wall as
Sumire approached her old friend.  They brought her back to
the entrance, and turned to watch the battle.

"Arisa, is there no other way?" Sumire tried one last time.

Arisa fell into a fighting stance, palms open, fingers
pointed at her enemy. "I'll never forgive you."

Wordlessly, Sumire took the basic kendoist's fighting
stance, sword held out in front towards the enemy.

With a cry, Arisa lunged, a hand pointed straight towards
Sumire's heart.  The kendoist easily dodged the blow,
quickly parrying the next attack. Her own counterattack, a
slash from the side, was parried with ease by Arisa's arm,
but she followed through, slashing and cleaving.  Arisa
blocked several with her bear arms, dodging away from the
last few. She then lunged forward, thrusting at Sumire's
face.

The kendoist tilted her head to the side, narrowly avoiding
the blow; Arisa's arm cut some strands of her hair as it
passed.  Sumire spun, slicing at her neck, but she easily
parried the blow.

They broke away from each other to regain their balance and
catch their breath, and stared at each other across a few
feet of ground.

"Why does it have to be this way?" Sumire asked.

"Because I hate you!" Arisa lunged once more, bringing her
hand down in an overhead chop.  It clashed with Sumire's
bokken, and they stared at each other across weapon and arm.

"I tried to help you," Sumire said again.

"It was you who had us stay late in the first place."

"We were best friends."

"If I'd have known what you were really like back then, I
never would've been your friend!" Arisa leapt away again,
this time charging immediately at Sumire.

"I'm sorry, Arisa," Sumire whispered.

She swung just as Arisa reached her.  Then Arisa passed
Sumire, and they both stood still, Sumire with her sword
out, Arisa with her fingers thrust forward.  Watching the
battle from afar, Hotaru couldn't tell what, if anything,
had just happened.

A half-minute later, Sumire lowered her sword and turned
around.  A trickle of blood ran from a small cut below her
eye. "You're pretty good."

Arisa clutched her stomach as she dropped to her knees.  She
suddenly coughed, staining the floor red with her blood.
"Why? I should've won! I should've had my revenge... Why
couldn't I beat you?"

"I'm sorry," Sumire whispered again as her old friend fell
to the ground, unconscious.  She turned towards Hotaru and
the others, and walked right past them. "Come on, let's go,"
she said in her usual emotionless voice.

"But what about her?" Tetsuya asked. "Shouldn't we-?"

"We'll let her go for now.  I owe her that much."

Somewhat reluctantly, they followed her out of the tent. 
Hotaru couldn't help stopping to look back at Arisa's fallen
form. "She was your friend?"

"A long time ago," she replied, half-turning to face her
younger classmate.  Her voice remained cold and emotionless,
as usual, but for just a second, Hotaru thought she saw a
tear fall across her right cheek.

*END*
	
*** AUTHOR'S NOTES ***

Well, here you have it: my first Impro. I tried to add a few
plot twists to the part and show different aspects of some
of the characters (Tetsuya likes theme parks?). Hopefully I
managed to surprise some readers...?

Miyuki's reading: Obviously, the Ace represented Sumire, and
the Knight represented Arisa. As for the Three, it stands
for (among other things) betrayal. Fitting, no?

Arisa's fighting style: I don't know if I managed to
describe this as well as I wanted, but basically, Arisa uses
her own arms as blades. That's why she always thrusts with
her fingers or chops. ^_^

On another note, I think I'm the first person to actually
kill anyone in the story...

Thanks to Scott and Delfina for pre-reading.  

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! :)


~Brett Schimmel
vortex@drexel.edu