(C&C welcome. Not to mention needed)

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THE FORGOTTEN GAME
By: Angela Jewell
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Based on the trilogy, The Forbidden Game by L.J. Smith

Ranma 1/2 is the property and creation of Rumiko Takahashi, and whoever else owns it. I'm not making any money off of this so don't sue me. Besides, good luck if you tried. I'm broke.

*** Volume 1: Spellbound ***

I measure every grief I meet
With analytic eyes;
I wonder if it weighs like mine,
Or has an easier size.

I wonder if they bore it long,
Or did it just begin?
I could not tell the date of mine,
It feels so old a pain.

I wonder if it hurts to live,
And if they have to try,
And whether, could they choose between,
They would not rather die.

                 -Emily Dickinson

*** Chapter 9 ***

The hallway before them seemed to stretch on forever and Akane was beginning to wonder if it would ever end. She glanced over at Shampoo and Ukyo who were walking quietly beside her. She wanted desperately to break the silence, and yet, she wasn’t exactly sure how. After all, the three of them had never been the best of friends...

 

After many awkward attempts—attempts which always proved useless—she finally gave up. Instead, she glanced once more at the crumpled piece of paper she held tightly in her hand. It was a picture of a forest—the trees colored in dark, ugly shades of green. It had appeared suddenly the moment Ukyo had exited her nightmare, and only Akane had seemed to notice it. She had meant to give it back to the other girl immediately; but even now she still couldn’t bring herself to do it. The last thing Ukyo wanted was to relive the nightmare she had just escaped.


Carefully, Akane tucked the piece of paper back into her pocket, promising herself she’d give it back when the time was right. Once that was done, she sighed, dreading the impending silence…

 

…until the unseen clock suddenly struck midnight. Akane smiled, welcoming the intrusion. She turned to her companions who were looking back at her, an air of unease surrounding them. The sound was echoing all around.

 

“Don’t worry,” she said quickly, trying to sound reassuring. “We still have plenty of time.”

 

Shampoo nodded, though Ukyo didn’t look quite as convinced.

 

The Amazon began to look down the hall, then turning, looked in the opposite direction. “We split up like before, yes?” she asked, motioning behind them. “Hallway might change. May find someone if separate.”

 

Akane immediately shook her head, her hands waving off the suggestion. “I don’t think that would be such a great idea,” she said, laughing nervously. She remembered all too well what had happened last time she had suggested they separate. There was no way she was giving Gabriel a chance like that again! “I mean,” she began quickly, trying to come up with a reasonable excuse, “since there’s three of us now, it would probably take longer to meet up. It’s better to just stick together, I think.”

 

Shampoo and Ukyo nodded. “Sounds good to me,” Ukyo replied.

 

Quietly they resumed walking, headed in the same direction. Akane couldn’t help but smile: once again she had managed to successfully evade another run-in with Gabriel. She was getting better at this!

 

But even that wasn’t enough to sustain her good spirits for long. The search turned out exactly the same: not a single door or person in sight. But they continued walking along the same familiar corridor regardless, the lanterns that lined the walls the only light.

 

Then, something unexpected happened... the hallway suddenly ended. And that’s when they finally found Nabiki, leaning casually against one of its three walls.

 

There was a large, elaborately decorated door behind her that Shampoo was eyeing strangely, but Akane hardly noticed it. Without wasting a minute, she ran towards her sister, calling her name. “Nabiki!” she cried happily, coming to a sudden stop before her. “We finally found you! Are you okay?” she added worriedly.

 

Nabiki nodded as she took a step away from the wall. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she assured her. “But it’s about time you got here,” she reprimanded them. “It feels like I’ve been waiting here for hours.”

 

Akane smiled apologetically as Ukyo rolled her eyes.

 

“Anyway,” Nabiki continued, motioning towards the door. “I found it a while ago but it refused to open.” At these words, she quickly grabbed a hold of the doorknob, twisting it slowly. This time, the knob turned easily. “Great,” she muttered in annoyance. “A door that can open at will. Just what we need.”

 

“You mean,” Akane began uncertainly. “That that door actually waited for us to get here?” She shook her head. “That’s impossible Nabiki.”

 

Her sister shrugged. “Stranger things have been known to happen,” she replied.

 

“Must be part of that Shadow-jerk’s sick sense of humor,” said Ukyo angrily.

 

Shampoo shook her head. “Is part of game,” she explained. “Gabriel want make sure Akane there when enter nightmare. He try scare into giving up. Is obvious.”

 

Akane looked dejectedly at the floor. If that was Gabriel’s plan he was doing an excellent job so far. She already felt guilty enough as it was...

 

“So my nightmare really is behind that door,” Nabiki replied thoughtfully. “How wonderful.”

 

“What we face now?” Shampoo asked, turning her violet eyes on Nabiki. “Is evil debt collector, yes?”

 

Ukyo shook her head. “If you ask me it’s obvious,” she replied lightly. “It’s an empty bank account. Right?”

 

“Actually, yeah,” Nabiki replied.

 

Akane’s eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at her sister. She knew money was important to Nabiki, but honestly! “An empty bank account?” she asked, her voice skeptical. “Really?”

 

Nabiki sighed. “Geez, Akane,” she glowered. “I know I’m not the easiest person to read, but you of all people should have seen that one coming.”

 

Akane nodded. She was right of course: she should have known. After all, money was all Nabiki could think about... so it was no wonder her nightmare would involve it in some way. And if all they had to fear from Nabiki was an empty bank account, then this nightmare should be easy to defeat.

 

A small part of her, however—a part she was trying desperately to ignore—kept reminding her of Ukyo. She couldn’t forget the look on the other girl’s face as she had stepped through the door of her nightmare... the pain, the anger, the fear. She had been forced to confront more than just a forest; that much was obvious.

 

And although she couldn’t explain why, she realized that an empty bank account might be the least of Nabiki’s worries...

 

Her attention was brought back to Nabiki as she watched her sister grab a hold of the doorknob, her expression guarded. “Everyone ready?” she asked.

 

Shampoo nodded as she took up a fighting stance, smiling with anticipation; Ukyo followed suit, though she didn’t look quite as enthusiastic.

 

Akane watched nervously from where she stood, her arms raised in a defensive position. But as the door slowly opened, Akane’s stance began to relax, and her eyes narrowed slightly.

 

That’s it? she thought, suddenly angry.

 

She looked questioningly at the others. Shampoo looked angry and annoyed while Ukyo shrugged, looking just as upset; Nabiki, however, seemed completely unfazed. Without hesitating, her older sister stepped through the door, followed closely by Ukyo and Shampoo. Akane, slightly miffed, was the last to enter, and the door slammed shut behind her, locking them in.

 

Not that it mattered.

 

They were standing in another long hallway, identical to the one they had just left behind.

 

After several minutes, Nabiki’s voice broke the silence. “This… I wasn’t expecting.” Everyone nodded their agreement, carefully assessing the long, seemingly endless hallway that stretched before them.

 

Akane groaned. She wouldn’t be surprised if Gabriel was doing this deliberately—maybe he planned on making them walk until their time finally ran out.

 

“What do we do now?” Ukyo asked, sighing.

 

“The only thing we can do,” Nabiki replied, as calm as ever. “Keep walking.”

 

T * * * G

 

It was like they were trapped in the forest all over again. No matter how long they walked, nothing happened. The hallway seemed to stretch on forever and showed no signs of ever ending.

 

After a while, Akane began to wonder if Nabiki had drawn anything at all. And the more they wandered, the more likely it seemed. That thought, however, brought up another, more frightening one: what about her own blank paper?

 

“Are you sure you drew an empty bank account?” Ukyo asked, echoing Akane’s thoughts.

 

Nabiki narrowed her eyes. “I think I’d remember what I drew,” she told her.

 

At her words, Shampoo suddenly stopped. A slight frown appeared on her face and she looked confused and angry as she pointed straight ahead. “Is end of hallway,” she explained, turning to look at them. “Hallway no supposed to end, yes?”

 

Akane followed her gaze. Sure enough she could see where all three walls met, creating a dead end—just like the one they’d left behind. It was still a good distance away, and still hard to see, but the closer they approached, the more they realized that something about the walls weren’t quite right. Lights cast about by the lanterns seemed to dance across the hallway, creating a small spectrum of color which leapt from wall to wall.

 

It wasn’t long before they realized what was causing it: Firmly attached to all three walls were three long mirrors. Even up close, the orangish-red glow of the flames sent light dancing between them, reflecting off their surface in a strange, unnatural way.

 

Akane wasn’t sure what to make of it... and apparently neither was her sister.

 

Nabiki walked slowly towards the mirrors, her eyes narrowed in analytical thought as she observed them. Lifting a hand she rapped lightly on the glass and frowned. “They appear to be ordinary mirrors,” she said, turning to look at the others. “But I have no idea what any of this has to do with my nightmare.”

 

“Maybe it doesn’t,” Ukyo replied, looking at the ground. “Maybe Gabriel wasn’t satisfied with what you drew so he changed it.”

 

A slow, lazy smile appeared on Nabiki’s face. “Works for me,” she replied, crossing her arms. “I wasn’t exactly looking forward to having my bank account emptied.”

 

Akane sighed in frustration. Nabiki was being way too calm about all of this. Whatever Gabriel had in store for her, she was sure it wouldn’t be good. And in these type of situations, it was always better to be cautious rather than careless and ill-prepared.

 

“Can you think of any reason there might be mirrors in your nightmare,” Akane asked, hoping to find something that could help solve this. “Maybe you saw... or—or thought you saw...” she paused for a minute, confused. “Perhaps you broke, or did—” Akane suddenly groaned in frustration. “Oh, I don’t know,” she finished angrily.

 

Even to her, the idea of Nabiki being afraid of mirrors was ridiculous... she’d lived with her sister long enough to have a fairly good idea of what frightened her... and mirrors had never even come close to making the list.

 

“Maybe Nabiki afraid of own face?” Shampoo offered up helpfully.

 

The middle Tendo daughter glared in reply and Shampoo looked away haughtily.

 

“Why don’t you try standing in front of them,” Ukyo suggested. “Maybe you have to activate them in some way or something.”

 

Nabiki shrugged. “Sounds better than nothing,” she replied. Stepping forward, she positioned herself squarely in front of the main mirror, staring intently at her reflection as she did so. She could see the other two mirrors out of the corner of her eyes, flanking her from both sides; and it took most of her concentration just to block those two out. She stood that way for awhile—her eyes fixed on the full-length mirror before her—afraid to blink. The light from the flames seemed to jump around, and she felt herself growing more and more tired as she continued to stare at her reflection.

 

“This isn’t working,” she replied, stifling a yawn.

 

“Just give it another minute,” Akane said, though her voice sounded strangely distant. Nabiki barely realized she was nodding as she felt her eyes slowly drift closed.

 

Then, suddenly, she felt herself pushed forward, and her eyes flew open in surprise. Glancing around, she frowned. She blinked once, twice—rubbed her eyes... but nothing helped.

 

Gone was the familiar narrow hallway with its faint glow of light: Now she was standing alone in total darkness. She didn’t bother to look for Shampoo, Ukyo, or Akane. She knew instinctively that she wouldn’t find them.

 

Just when she had decided to resign herself to this fact, three bright lights flashed on, illuminating the darkness; it was strange and abrupt, and she had to shield her eyes from the sudden onslaught of light. When she had finally adjusted enough to open them completely, she noticed that the light was concentrated in three particular places: to her left, to her right, and immediately in front of her. But even more important than that, was exactly what the light was falling on: three large mirrors.

 

But they were different from before: they seemed to almost be floating around her, unattached... and this time, when she looked into the closest mirror, it was no longer her own reflection that stared back at her...

 

In the tall mirror right before her was Akane. Her eyes were closed, and her hands were lying motionless at her sides. Turning slowly to her left, Nabiki saw Ukyo in much the same position, and on her right, Shampoo.

 

Paying close attention to every detail she could, Nabiki carefully studied the mirrors: Aside from the people within, there didn’t seem to be anything extraordinary or special about them—no matter how hard she looked, they resembled plain, ordinary mirrors.

 

But when she was going over the mirror with Ukyo once again, that quickly changed. As she was watching, a single word suddenly appeared out of nowhere, written in neat, large letters:

 

REFLECTION

 

Instinctively, she glanced over to her right where Shampoo was and noticed the same thing, although “reflection” was spelled backwards.

 

Nabiki narrowed her eyes. “What is going on here?” she wondered.

Suddenly, she froze. She swore she could hear someone laughing.

 

“And here I thought you were the smart one,” said a voice, confirming her suspicions. Quickly turning around, her eyes scanned the surrounding darkness: the Shadow Man appeared, emerging from the shadows.

 

“What are you doing here?” she demanded, cutting right to the chase.

 

Arms crossed arrogantly across his chest, Gabriel shrugged. He was watching her closely through wide, brilliant blue eyes, and slowly, carefully, he began to walk towards her. “This is my game,” he told her simply, as if that explained everything.

 

Nabiki frowned, unimpressed with his answer. “So,” she replied flatly. “That doesn’t explain what you’re doing here.”

 

Gabriel laughed. It was a deep, guttural sound—a sound which grated instantly on her nerves, and it seemed to echo all around. “Is my presence distracting you, Nabiki?” he asked, moving closer, a smile on his lips.

 

Her eyes met his, and she glared back. “No,” she replied coldly. “I just want to know what your motivation is. I highly doubt you’re here to help me.”

 

“Ouch,” he said, putting a hand to his heart. “Your lack of faith really hurts.”

 

Nabiki, not missing a beat, laughed. “So does yours,” she replied sarcastically, mimicking his action. Just as quickly the smile was gone, and the calm, unreadable mask was back in place. “I’m not as naïve or foolish as you might think,” she warned him, her voice tight. “So tell me why you’re really here.”

 

His face became serious, then; his tone harsh. “To help you,” he said, taking a step closer. His expression never once wavered as he approached, and his eyes radiated sincerity and trust.

 

Nabiki eyed him curiously. Although she still didn’t trust him, she knew he was telling the truth. She might have lacked the ambition needed for martial arts, but she had the keen ability to read people. “Then maybe you can explain what all this is,” she said, gesturing towards the mirrors.

 

The Shadow Man shook his head. “I don’t know,” he replied. “It’s your nightmare. You figure it out.”

 

Nabiki glowered. At that moment, she wanted nothing more than to hit the conceited bastard right in the jaw—it was a shame, really, that she had never taken to her family’s art like Akane had. “I thought you were to here to help me,” she replied tightly, annoyed.

 

“I am,” he replied dangerously, his blue eyes now stormy with an unspoken threat. “But not at your convenience.”

 

Angry, and tired of dealing with him, Nabiki quickly turned away. She wasn’t about to waste another second playing a childish guessing game with the one person responsible for this whole mess. Right now, she had to figure out the purpose of those mirrors. Closing her eyes, she began to gradually clear her mind—to concentrate on the task at hand.

 

When her mind was finally clear, she slowly opened her eyes and began to stare intently at the closest mirror. Akane was inside, still unmoving. Nabiki watched her closely, searching her face, her posture—anything that could give a hint as to what any of this had to do with her nightmare.

 

“Figure it out yet?” Gabriel asked.

 

Nabiki ignored him as she turned to look at Shampoo and Ukyo. Her gaze traveled over their motionless bodies, searching. But again, she came up empty-handed. She didn’t understand any of this. Was Akane and the others connected to the mirrors somehow? Or was she looking at this in completely the wrong way?

 

Gabriel stepped up beside her, staring intently at the figure of Akane; he was so close now, it was as if he could almost reach out and touch her. Nabiki watched him closely—not liking the way he was looking at her younger sister. “It’s strange,” he said suddenly, never taking his eyes off the mirror.

 

There was something about the way he said it which instantly caught her attention. “What is?” she asked, curious despite herself.

 

“Mirrors,” he replied thoughtfully.

 

Suddenly, before she even realized what he was doing, Gabriel was reaching towards the mirror, his hand passing effortlessly through the glass. For a moment, Nabiki was too stunned to do anything; but then, as she watched Gabriel softly brush his hand across her sister’s pale cheek, she felt her surprise quickly vanish. Grabbing a hold of his arm, she pulled it away.

 

“Don’t touch my sister,” she said dangerously, her voice low. Her eyes were narrowed in warning, and her face taut and angry as she released his arm.

 

Gabriel backed away, his hands in the air. “Sorry,” he said with a shrug, smiling. “Just thought I’d help.”

 

“If you want to help, then stop talking in damn riddles and—” Nabiki’s words trailed off as she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. The Amazon, though her eyes were closed, was smiling. But it wasn’t just any smile—it seemed to mimic the superior smirk on Gabriel’s face perfectly. The moment she turned to look directly at Shampoo, however, the smile vanished.

 

Unconsciously, she found her eyes drifting towards Ukyo, though she was careful not to look directly at the mirror. It wasn’t long before her suspicions were confirmed: where-as Shampoo had looked cocky and confident, the Okonomiyaki chef across from her appeared confused and frustrated; she was reflecting Nabiki exactly. The moment she turned to look at her fully, however, the mimicking stopped, and she found herself standing before a lifeless, unmoving person.

 

Again, her eyes drifted to the text written on the mirrors: ‘reflection’ forwards, and backwards.

 

Wordlessly, she moved behind where Gabriel was standing, and quickly pushed him to her vacated spot. He moved without complaint, a small smile on his face—but Nabiki completely ignored him. Now when she looked out of the corner of her eye, the reflections changed: Shampoo was now copying her movements, while Ukyo mimicked Gabriel’s.

 

Nabiki felt like hitting herself. She’d been so busy trying to figure out the importance of the mirrors, that she had completely ignored the obvious. What were mirrors, after all, but reflections.

 

...Somehow her entire nightmare revolved around them.

 

Akane! Suddenly Nabiki remembered what Gabriel had been doing before she became distracted. Releasing a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding, she turned once again to face her sister. With a new-found calm, she placed a hand on the mirror, the glass cool and hard against her palm.

 

The moment she began applying pressure—her hand moving easily through the mirror—she heard a loud, piercing cry. It was faint at first, distant; but the more she tried to push her hand through the mirror, the stronger the sound became. It grew louder and louder—the voice filled with anguish and pain... and familiar somehow. And when she could take the cries no longer, she tore her hand away, staring at the mirror in horror.

 

Akane remained exactly where she was, unmoving—all traces of the sound completely gone.

 

There had been something about it, something... like she had heard it before, somehow. But where...?

 

Immediately, she turned back to Gabriel. It was time to get some ‘help’...

 

T * * * G

 

Akane, Shampoo and Ukyo were back in the hallway; Nabiki lay at their feet, her face pale, her breathing shallow.

 

“Is she getting any better?” Ukyo asked, kneeling down beside Akane.

 

Looking at the floor, Akane shook her head. “Not yet,” she replied sadly. “She hasn’t changed at all—she just seems to be getting worse.”

 

“Don’t worry, sugar,” Ukyo said brightly, trying to cheer her up. “She’ll come out of it okay.”

 

Akane nodded. “I hope so,” she replied. “I just wish I knew what she was up against so I could’ve helped her, or warned her or something. She wouldn’t be looking like this if she was just facing the loss of a couple yen,” she finished softly. Ukyo and Shampoo slowly nodded, their faces suddenly drawn—they could only imagine what she was facing in there.

 

“Besides,” Akane continued, her voice barely audible. She was afraid to voice what she’d been thinking all along. “If this was really just about money, there wouldn’t be any reason for her to be in there all alone.”

 

Watching her sympathetically, Ukyo frowned. She wasn’t sure what she could say to cheer her up. Despite what she had said about Nabiki’s nightmare, she knew that there was a good chance the older girl might not make it out at all. Gabriel had said at the beginning that someone would die… and although she hated to think of that now... she knew that one of Akane’s sisters was the most likely candidate. After all, Ryoga was too stubborn and stupid to die from some stupid nightmare...

 

The sound of Akane hitting the wall with her fist startled Ukyo out of her train of thought. Guilty over where her thoughts had been headed, she turned to look nervously at the angry girl beside her. “I hate sitting around waiting,” Akane complained, looking helplessly at her sister. “What if she needs help? What if she can’t beat it? What if—”

 

“Nabiki can handle anything,” Ukyo interrupted, trying to sound firm and reassuring despite her misgivings. “She’ll be alright, don’t worry.” Shampoo quickly nodded.

 

“Nabiki strong. Even Shampoo no want go up against her.”

 

“Thanks,” Akane said, trying her best to smile. “And you’re right. She isn’t the type to give up easily. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s trying to strike some sort of deal, even in her nightmare.” She paused for a moment to look down at her sister. “She’ll be okay,” she said softly to herself, trying hard to believe the words.

 

The longer they waited, however, the worse Nabiki seemed to get... and the three mirrors lining the walls were beginning to fade.

 

T * * * G

 

Nabiki was doing one of the things she did best: reasoning.

 

She knew that her nightmare involved mirrors and reflections in some way. That much was certain.

 

The only question was, why?

 

She knew it wasn’t the mirrors themselves: that would have been ridiculous. So that meant that it had to be something that the mirrors represented...

 

Nabiki thought intently, trying to find something—some meaning, a connection. She began with the words themselves: mirrors, reflect, surface, light, illumination, observation, reflection, thoughts, memories... she sighed in frustration. There were so many things that both words could mean, she had no idea where to even begin to start!

 

She could feel Gabriel watching her from the shadows, and again, found herself cursing his very presence. After his little ‘high and mighty’ act she would have preferred to be alone. Again, she had asked for his help—demanded it actually—but again he had flatly refused. ‘Soon,’ he had said, smiling in that insufferably arrogant way. Then, before she could question him further he had retreated beyond her reach, back into the thick shadows surrounding the mirrors.

 

And she had never been happier. She was liking him less and less as time went by...

 

Turning back towards the mirrors, she forced herself to concentrate even harder. When at a stand-still it was always smart to start back at the beginning.

 

So… she made herself consider. What is a mirror?

 

A pane of glass, obviously. But what else?

 

At the unspoken question, several definitions came to mind. The scientific: a surface that forms images by reflecting light. And the simplistic: a faithful depiction or reflection—to put it loosely.

 

She glanced around the room, searching for any sign of a light source. The only source she found, however, was the obvious: the three strange lights which seemed to be concentrated on each, separate mirror. But they were used to illuminate Akane, Shampoo, and Ukyo—not necessarily to create reflections. At least, not like the mirrors in the hallway had been doing with the flames from the torches.

 

And she was fairly certain that the images of everyone in the mirrors were not mere reflections of light—after all, Gabriel had touched Akane... and she knew she wasn’t afraid of light or glass.

 

That left the simple definition: A faithful depiction or reflection.

 

This, she felt, held merit… at least more than anything else she had managed to come up with so far.

 

Reflection, she felt, was the key to all this: something Shampoo and Ukyo had kindly demonstrated in various, interesting ways. So did that mean that Akane was supposed to signify a faithful depiction?

 

And if so, a depiction of what?

 

As if in answer to her thoughts, Nabiki watched in surprise as her sister slowly vanished from sight. Now, staring back at her was her own confused and surprised face.

 

Her own reflection.

 

But there was something strange about it… something wrong.

 

She had grown accustomed to seeing a dark familiar shade of brown in her eyes when looking in a mirror... but the eyes staring back at her were white, blank and empty.

 

And then the reflection smiled.

 

Nabiki took a startled step back, fear and disbelief plain on her face. No, she wasn’t afraid of mirrors—but that didn’t mean she was stupid enough to stand in front of one when there was something obviously evil inside of it.

 

“Looks like you’re finally making progress,” Gabriel said.

 

Nabiki looked towards the voice, her eyes wide. “What—what is that?” she demanded, pointing angrily at the reflection. “That—that’s not me!”

 

Gabriel laughed. “It isn’t?” he asked simply. His voice was disjointed and seemed to drift throughout the room. “Then why does she look so much like you?”

 

Nabiki turned, glaring angrily into the shadows, uncertain where his voice was coming from. “I don’t know,” she replied tightly, her lips drawn into a thin, tight line.

 

He emerged then, smiling brightly. “Maybe if you look in the mirror again, you’ll see what you need too,” he told her.

 

Nabiki quickly shook her head. “I don’t need too,” she replied. “I already know what I look like.”

 

Gabriel raised an eyebrow as he took a step closer. “Why Nabiki,” he mocked playfully. “Are you afraid you’ll look in there and see something you won’t like?”

 

“Of course not,” she shot back. “I’m just not about to play your sick little game.”

 

“Ahh, but you see, playing is mandatory,” he reminded her, smiling wickedly. “You have to play.”

 

Nabiki didn’t even flinch as Gabriel stepped up next to her, lying a hand on her shoulder. “Now,” he began, his voice low and insistent. “Are you going to look, or should I make you?”

 

Shrugging off his hand, she faced him, her eyes radiating fury. Then without a word, she turned and headed towards the central mirror.

 

Shaking despite herself, she looked within... and froze. She felt the blood drain from her face as she stared in disbelief at the mirror.

 

“What do you see, Nabiki?” Gabriel asked, taking another step closer.

 

Nabiki made no attempt to show she had heard him; her face, which had normally been calm and collected, was now drawn and pale. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were wide—with horror, surprise, denial... for being a person normally in control of their emotions, Nabiki suddenly found herself going through the entire spectrum. And it scared her.

 

Quietly, Gabriel stepped up beside her, and looking closely at the mirror, smiled. He could see himself perfectly in all three of them—his tight black pants, blood-red shirt—and the grin that had slowly spread across his face. But that was all: he was alone in the mirrors. “Oh,” he said quietly, looking back at Nabiki. “I see.” The smile never once left his face.

 

Nabiki turned. With narrowed, angry eyes she stared accusingly at Gabriel. “Why don’t I have a reflection?” she demanded, though her voice shook slightly. “Why can’t I see myself?”

 

Gabriel shrugged carelessly. “This is your nightmare,” he told her flatly. “No one knows better than you.” Laying his hand on her back, he gently pushed her forward.

 

Once again she found herself staring at what should have been her reflection. In the hard glass, however, Gabriel stood alone.

 

Is this all she had to show for her hard work, she wondered? An empty mirror? The shock shook her to the core—much more than if she had seen something—anything other than this. All her life she had tried so hard to stop this from happening—to make her presence known. All those times she had manipulated and controlled people... was that why?

 

She was convinced it was for the power and the money, and maybe to some degree it was...

 

But it wasn’t the real reason—it had never been about that.

 

“Is this what you’re afraid of becoming, Nabiki?” Gabriel suddenly asked, interrupting her thoughts. “Or,” he added thoughtfully, gesturing towards the empty mirror. “Is this how you already see yourself?”

 

“I’m not like that,” she told him slowly, motioning vaguely. “I might have been once—but I’m not anymore.”

 

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure?” he asked her.

 

At his question, Nabiki suddenly looked torn and confused, and she found herself at a loss for words. She could deny it—but the words would lack conviction. And the longer they stood there, the more she could feel her control steadily slipping away. She didn’t know what to do anymore...

 

...And that scared her almost as much as the empty mirror.

 

“You hate it, don’t you?” Gabriel said, feigning sympathy. “The uncertainty, the fear.” Wordlessly she shook her head, but Gabriel went on. “How does it feel, Nabiki?” he asked, his voice low. “To try your whole life to be noticed—to be felt—only in the end, to fail?”

 

Nabiki felt her chest tighten at his words, and she frowned. “I’ve never failed at anything,” she told him, trying to sound much braver than she felt.

 

Gabriel cocked his head as he watched her, then his eyes seemed to brighten. “Ah, I see,” he said, slapping his hand in his palm. “You’ve blocked it out too—not as successfully as Akane apparently, but you’ve tried to forget it all the same.”

 

Nabiki quickly shook her head, taking a small step away from him. A part of her—a part she had locked up a long time ago—warned her to get as far away as possible: that whatever Gabriel was talking about, was meant to be forgotten... and again, she heard the cries from the mirror, the ones she had heard while trying to break through—and she tried to block them out...

 

But Gabriel didn’t give her the chance.

 

“Allow me to enlighten you,” he replied. Lifting one long finger into the air, he drew a sideways V in one simple, fluid motion. “Kenaz,” he whispered, and Nabiki felt a strange power surrounding her as a flash of memory came—swift, and real.

 

 

She was five years old again, peeking around the door to their grandfather’s study. She could hear her mother yelling and crying inside—see her as she tried unsuccessfully to pry Akane’s small fingers from off the hem of her dress.

 

The closet door behind her was open, and there were strange things reaching out of it—their dark, sharp claws wrapped tightly around her mother’s arms and legs, pulling her in.

 

Nabiki had closed her eyes then; covered her ears as she tried to block out the sound of her mother’s cries and Akane’s screams. And finally, she had heard the closet door close...

 

But when she opened her eyes again, only Akane was there: their mother was gone.

 

 

It felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. The images—the memory, slowly it vanished; and she fell to the floor, breathing heavily. Somehow, she forced herself to look up, her eyes dark and troubled as she met Gabriel’s. “Why,” she asked, her voice strained. “Why did you make me remember that?”

 

Gabriel kneeled down beside her, shaking his head. “You needed too,” he told her, motioning towards the central mirror—the mirror that Akane had suddenly reappeared in. “You had to see for yourself what happened—what she did, what she caused—”

 

Nabiki stared at her sister’s reflection. “Akane,” she said softly, darkly. Turning, she looked back at Gabriel. “She did that?” she asked, her voice shaking with anger.

 

Slowly, he nodded. “Don’t you want revenge, Nabiki?” he asked in a conspiratorial whisper. “Don’t you want the person responsible for robbing you of your mother to pay? The one who made you feel like a nobody—a worthless shell?”

 

Nabiki was breathing heavily now, her thoughts a jumbled mess of confusion. She wasn’t sure what she wanted anymore...

 

“I can give you everything,” Gabriel continued, his voice low and hypnotic. “Riches, power, recognition,” he paused for a moment, watching her face. “If you help me.”

 

At this, Nabiki slowly raised her head to look at him. “Help you how?” she asked carefully.

 

“I want her,” he said simply, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. His eyes drifted once more to the mirror, and he found himself once again staring at the image of Akane. She remained frozen in place, her eyes closed, her arms lying motionless at her side. Painfully, he tore his gaze away. “And I’ll have her regardless… whether you help or not,” he finished, his tone deadly serious. “But,” he added, “I’d much rather have your help.”

 

Nabiki seemed unbothered by his words, but continued to look uncertain and torn about his offer—torn between years of concern for her sister, and the sudden hatred she felt over what happened to their mother. And always, her mind came back to that image—their mother being pulled into the closet, her screams echoing throughout the room.

 

And somehow she knew that it was all because of Akane…

 

Akane—Daddy’s little martial arts protégée—the one who would unite the schools by marrying Ranma and complete their father’s dream. And then there was Kasumi—dear, sweet, gentle Kasumi—the very image of their mother who everyone loved and adored.

 

...But where did that leave Nabiki?

 

“Don’t you want revenge?” Gabriel repeated, moving closer. “To get back at her for what she did—what she made you become?” He paused for a moment, carefully gauging her reaction. “Don’t be a fool and let it pass you by, Nabiki,” he warned her. “I’m willing to give you anything...”

 

“Anything?” she asked, her voice suddenly breaking. “The only thing I want is my mother back!”

 

Gabriel seemed unaffected by her words. “Alright,” he replied after a moment’s silence, nodding slowly. “Consider it done.”

 

Nabiki looked at him, her eyes wide. “What...?” she asked softly, incredulously. She tried hard to control her shaking voice. “Don’t—don’t even JOKE about something like that!” she replied angrily.

 

Effortlessly, Gabriel stood, ignoring her outburst. “It’s no joke,” he replied, smiling at her. “I’ll give you back your mother. But in turn,” he continued, his expression turning grave. “You have to help me win the game,” he said. “Is it a deal?” He put his hand out to her then, waiting for her to grab it.

 

Nabiki could only stare back, not believing what she heard. For several long, quiet minutes she watched him, looking for any sign that would reveal he was lying. But no such signs appeared. His hand remained outstretched to her, a small smile on his face as he waited patiently.

 

To give her sister to him... to him, it might not be so bad, she tried to reason. Akane would be happy, eventually...

 

And her mother... to have their mother back...

 

Slowly, hesitantly, Nabiki reached her hand out to his.

 

And the Shadow Man smiled.

 

 

T * * * G

 

Suddenly, Akane heard it: a loud, grating sound—a noise that seemed to reverberate all throughout the room.

Startled, the three girls turned to see what had happened, surprised to see a doorknob sticking out of the main mirror. But their attentions were soon diverted elsewhere... seconds later, Nabiki began to stir.

 

Blinking against the onslaught of light, she opened her eyes.

 

“Nabiki!” Akane cried happily, “You’re all right!” Throwing her arms around her sister, she hugged her tightly.

 

The Middle Tendo girl patted her back evenly as she sat up. “Geez, Akane,” she complained lightly, “I need to breathe, you know.”

 

Akane apologized as she quickly backed away. “What happened?” she asked, watching her sister closely. “One minute you’re here, and the next, you’re passed out and lying on the ground.”

 

“Even two mirrors disappeared,” Ukyo added.

 

Nabiki looked around the hallway for a moment, and shrugged. “I was just facing my nightmare,” she replied calmly, though a small grimace had come over her face. “Trust me,” she said, “it wasn’t pretty.”

 

Akane looked at her sympathetically, frowning. “What was it Nabiki?” she asked.

 

Her sister waved a hand in dismissal as she climbed to her feet. “If you don’t mind, Akane,” she said. “I would actually prefer to forget about it as quickly as possible. It wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences in my life.”

 

Shampoo and Ukyo nodded knowingly, and Akane frowned. “Sorry,” she said, standing. “I shouldn’t have asked.”

 

Nabiki waved the comment aside. “Don’t worry about it,” she told her. “Let’s just concentrate on finding Kasumi.”

 

Akane smiled brightly. “Sure,” she said.

 

Stepping up to the mirror, Nabiki grabbed the doorknob and easily pulled it open. Behind the door was a tall flight of dark stairs.

 

“That must lead to the second floor,” Ukyo said, nervously eyeing the staircase. “It sure looks dark up there—you can’t even see the top.”

 

Shampoo smiled. “Will be good get off first floor,” she replied happily, starting the long climb up, already leading the way. Ukyo nodded as she followed, and Akane started up after her, turning to look at Nabiki who had yet to enter through the mirror.

 

“You coming?” she asked, calling to her older sister.

 

Nabiki nodded, as she waved her ahead. “Yeah,” she replied. “Just give me a second.” Akane shrugged as she resumed climbing.

 

In the hallway, a small piece of paper had landed beside the mirror next to Nabiki’s foot. Smiling slightly, she bent over to pick it up. It was a drawing of a tall mirror in a dark room, and a person could be seen trapped within it.

 

Grinning, Nabiki began to wave at the figure—the figure who looked surprisingly like herself. “Don’t worry, Nabiki-chan” she said cheerfully, speaking to the figure in the paper. “Just leave everything to me.” Laughing softly, she took the paper and crumpled it up, throwing it on the floor at her feet.

 

And without looking back, Nabiki’s reflection started climbing the stairs.  

 

***

End of Chapter 9

***

 

Authors Notes

___________

 

Well, did I surprise you? lol. I must have, because I completely surprised myself. This was really not the direction I was planning Nabiki’s nightmare to go in, but I guess it’s true what they say… some chapters really do write themselves. Anyway, I really hope you enjoyed it! As long as you didn’t hate it completely, I’m satisfied.

 

And don’t worry if you’re a little confused about what happened towards the end, I’ll be explaining it better in the next couple of chapters. But in case you’re wondering, yes, it IS the real Nabiki trapped in the mirror—the one with Akane and the others is a fake— or at least, a reflection of her.

 

If Nabiki’s nightmare disappointed you, or if you had something completely different in mind, all I can say is I’m sorry. Although I realize that money is a large part of Nabiki’s characterization, I like to think she’s deeper than that… whether or not it’s true. And since I’ve always loved the concept of mirrors, I thought it would be fun to try and incorporate it into Nabiki’s nightmare. And yes, Poltergeist III really influenced this chapter, if you couldn’t tell...

 

Anyway, feel free to disagree with my interpretation… and if you think you can do better, I dare you! :P

 

Err, actually, don’t. You’ll probably be able too, and then I’ll feel like an idiot… But one thing’s for sure, after writing Ukyo and Nabiki’s nightmare, I realize what a cop-out Shampoo’s was. I’ve NEVER been satisfied with it, and so once I finish this volume, I’m determined to do a SERIOUS rewrite—gone is the dumb monster. I’m gonna get inside Shampoo’s head!

 

And in case you’re curious, no, I don’t hate Nabiki—even though it may seem like it at times, especially in this story. The only character I can actually claim to hate is Shampoo. Interesting character—but get your filthy hands off Ranma, he’s Akane’s!!!

 

But I digress…

 

Next chapter, it’s Kasumi’s turn! And don’t worry, Ranma will make an appearance as well.

 

See you then!

 

___________

 

---------------------------------

If sisters were free to express how they really feel, parents

would hear this: "Give me all the attention and all the toys and

send Rebecca to live with Grandma."
~
Linda Sunshine

---------------------------------

 

 

 

CHAPTER 10