Utena, Revolutionary Girl Fan Fiction ❯ Echoes of a final duel ❯ Chapter 6

Revolutionary Girl Utena: Echoes of a Final Duel

Part Six

 

"Well this is... interesting," Utena said diplomatically, looking around the old warehouse dubiously. She and Juri were there because of an errand Juri needed to run, standing in the middle of the large, mostly empty building. Thick cobwebs dripped from the corners, a cold cement floor stretching out all around them, and a sagging set of rickety stairs went up one side to abandoned offices on the second floor.

 

"It's a wreck," Juri corrected Utena wryly, her orange hair falling in waves down her back as she studied the space thoughtfully.

 

"Well, yes," Utena agreed, smiling. Her pink hair and her black clothes suited her well, giving her a almost noble bearing even in such shabby surroundings. "Is this where you were planning to put your bar?" she asked disbelievingly.

 

"I've got some pretty substantial renovations in mind," Juri agreed, looking around with a gleam in her eyes.

 

"Juri-san," the black haired woman came inside, her cellphone at her ear even as she nodded to the two of them. "I've talked to the Realtor and pointed out the poor location and state of disrepair the building is in," she said briskly as she folded the device away, "I suspect we can get several thousand dollars knocked off the price at least."

 

"Tenjou Utena," Juri smiled wryly, "I'd like you to meet Tendo Nabiki, my right hand woman on this project."

 

Nabiki shook hands firmly, her eyes inquisitive as she studied Utena with a false sort of casualness. "Nice to meet you," she said cheerfully, "are you Juri's latest fling?"

 

Utena blinked at her in surprise, blushing faintly as she answered, "No."

 

"Too bad, Juri could do worse," Nabiki said admiringly.

 

"Nabiki!" Juri growled out.

 

Nabiki just chuckled wickedly and said, "I'll keep on negotiating with the owner." As she walked off Nabiki flipped her phone open and dialed smoothly, looking the model of a business woman dressed in her casual suit.

 

"Sorry," Juri said to Utena wryly, "Nabiki remembers me from when I was a bit younger and quite a bit wilder."

 

"I don't seem to remember that at Ohtori," Utena said curiously.

 

Juri shrugged, blushing faintly, too. "I decided to let myself go a bit after I graduated," she confessed, "do some of the things I hadn't before."

 

Utena looked thoughtful, "Me, too."

 

Juri, Utena and Nabiki headed out of the building, Nabiki returning the keys to the battered old warehouse to the Realtor's assistant, staying to talk to her softly. After they got into the car Juri smiled slightly, "So what wild things did you do after graduation?" She shook her head, "It occurs to me I don't know much about what you did then."

 

"Nothing terribly great," Utena said, "mostly I just tried to help people." A sudden smile as a memory occurred to her, "Though there was one time...."

 

"Oh?" Juri grinned.

 

 

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

 

\

Mano Yohko walked to class, smiling as the girl dressed in a simple school uniform smiling as she and her friends talked together. "Oh my god, did you see that guy?" Chigako murmured to the others, her eyes twinkling.

 

Yohko looked around, her long brown hair falling in twin streams, the loops on top of her head bouncing slightly. He stood on the sidewalk, looking around with a faint frown, short pink hair falling into his eyes. The black clothes that he wore hugged the slim body tightly, black pants, white shirt and black jacket while his manner was casual yet radiating a strange energy.

 

"No way he's a high school student," Yohko murmured softly, several of the girls around them nodding their agreement.

 

"There's something about him," Azusa said softly, the black haired younger woman looking on with a frown.

 

Yohko looked at her fellow devil hunter curiously, "What do you mean?"

 

"I can sense something," Azusa shrugged helplessly before looking up at Yohko, "but what exactly I'm not sure."

 

"That's not helpful," Yohko sighed, but as they neared the school gate she could begin to pick up something from him, too. There was an aura of purpose around the pink haired figure, and nobility, combined with a strange power.

 

"Mano Yohko?" he looked up and Yohko could almost feel herself falling into the blues eyes that she had ever seen.

 

"Yes?" Yohko asked weakly.

 

"My name is Tenjou Utena," he smiled slightly as he continued apologetically, "I'm sorry to bother you at school...."

 

"No, no," Yohko felt herself blush as she stammered, "it's all right."

 

Utena smiled back at her gently, "I was wondering if I could talk to you after classes? It's somewhat important."

 

"I'd like that," Yohko murmured, hearts in her eyes.

 

"See you then," Utena waved, walking off gracefully.

 

"Oh my god," Chigako exclaimed once they were far enough away, "did you just let yourself be picked up by a strange man?!"

 

"Shh!" Azusa hissed at her then she looked up at Yohko to softly, "Do you think it's... devil hunter business?"

 

Yohko hesitated, looking back thoughtfully where Utena had walked away, "To be honest, I just don't know."

 

Racing through her day's classes Yohko was eager to see the mysterious young man once again, silently wondering what her grandmother had sent him to her for. She got a certain amount of teasing from her classmates, of course, but she bore it silently. Yohko knew that the girls were all just jealous of her good fortune.

 

Waving good-bye to Azusa and her friends Yohko all but ran through the school's gates, feeling a flash of pure disappointment when she didn't see him waiting there. Then she heard a low rumbling and he came around the corner perched in the saddle of a black motorcycle. The pipes and steel all gleamed silver while the rest was deepest midnight, highlighted by a pink trim.

 

"I hope you don't mind," Utena said as he removed his helmet, his pure blue eyes crinkled with amusement, "but I got to town on this."

 

"Wow," Yohko managed, just knowing that a mob of school girls behind her were just dying of envy and not really caring. Well, not much. "It's wonderful," she looked up to meet those impossibly blue eyes again.

 

Casually Utena tossed a second helmet over to Yohko then firmly patted the seat behind him. "Would you like to ride with me, then?" he asked gently.

 

"Please," Yohko grinned, carefully pulling the helmet on over her hair and then climbing on. As they drove off. engine purring, she thought, 'If this is a demon attack, please let him wait at least until the ride's done.'

 

They moved through the city, then up into the hills beyond, trees rising up around them. "The road's a bit twisty up here," Utena said, "be sure to hold on."

 

'Oooh,' Yohko smiled as she let her arms wrap around him. She snuggled close, letting her arms tighten a little around his chest and felt... curves that really shouldn't have been there. Her hands drifted a little, confirming her discovery, then Yohko sighed to herself, 'I knew someone as cute as this couldn't be a guy.'

 

They eased to the side of the road a few moments later, Utena removing her helm and running a hand through her short pink hair. "When I talked to your grandmother she mentioned there might be youma up here," she said, "a strong one."

 

Yohko looked over at Utena in surprise, wondering both why her grandma would even trust this woman or how she knew about the monsters.... Her hand tightened, the hereditary amulet of the devil hunter's gleaming there as she said, "If there is a demon, you could be in danger."

 

Utena just smiled back faintly, if possible looking even more handsome there on the hill, sunlight gleaming on her face. "I've had some experience with oddness," she said simply, casually leaning against the bike.

 

There was something in her voice, a barely healed sense of pain and regret, something that made Yohko want to press the young woman. Changing the subject she asked curiously, "Why were you visiting my grandmother?"

 

Utena sighed softly, clearly listening to the sounds of the woods as she said, "Looking for training, honestly. I have certain talents that I'd like to tame."

 

"Part of the oddness you mentioned..." Yohko stopped, frowning as she felt a ominous presence. She stiffened, starting her transformation even as she said, "It's coming!" Her clothes dissolved, a wave of red light forming into the simple red dress, a stylized yin-yang symbol appearing on her chest.

 

Trees broke, a muffled roar as the beast forcefully broke through the brush, his misshapen head looking around him wildly. A bulky, dark gray body shoved the plants aside as he glared with beady red eyes, finding the two women waiting for him. "Tasty morsels," he growled, his heavy tusks distorting his speech.

 

"I am Devil Hunter Yohko," she cried out as began to make her speech... when a rush of power stopped her.

 

Utena shimmered, light dancing around her as she narrowed her eyes. Raising her hand she cried out, "For the Revolution of the World!" Her clothes shifted, bearing a resemblance to a schoolboy's uniform edged in pink, even as a sword exploded from her chest, the ornate blade dropping into her hand smoothly.

 

"Wow," Yohko murmured, eyes wide.

 

Utena had a grave intensity as she faced the demon and said, "The world doesn't need things like you any longer." She gave Yohko a look, "Ready?"

 

"Yes!" Yohko cried as she charged forward, her Soul Sword at the ready.

 

The creature went for Utena as she charged it head on, raising her blade to stop the first blow, She braced a palm against the flat of the blade, her legs buckling from the strain but she refused to give any ground.

 

"Die, little gnat," it growled out, frustration marring it's face. Raising a massive fist it swung down again, trying to squish her, but she dodged smoothly.

 

Yohko swiftly struck in the opening that his attack left, first whipping her blade across his face them striking between his ribs when he reflexedly went to guard his face. With a wet sound her blade found his heart but the beast bucked in a final convulsive gesture, throwing her away violently to slam up against a tree.

 

A few moments later Yohko felt herself awaken, surges of pain slowly fading away. Utena knelt beside her, a faint pink glow shining from her hands to wash over Yohko's aching body. "You fight," Yohko croaked, "and heal, too?"

 

Utena flashed a charming smile, "Part of why I wanted to talk to your grandmother about training." Gently she tugged Yohko to her feet, ignoring the now dissolving form of the demon nearby. "You all right?" she asked.

 

"I am now," Yohko sighed happily.

 

 

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

 

 

"So what happened?" Juri asked as they pulled to a stop in front of the apartment building in Shinjuku that Juri lived in.

 

"I stayed a few weeks learning from grandma," Utena smiled fondly in memory, "picking up what I could from their skills."

 

"From the sound of your story," Juri noted, "Yohko was quite impressed with you." She smiled, "Think she had a crush on you?"

 

"No, we were just friends," Utena shook her head.

 

'Yup, clueless.' Juri thought. Even with what she suspected was an edited account from Utena she figured that Yohko had crushed on Utena fairly badly. Dropping the topic she asked, "Did

you have any more interesting adventures while traveling?"

 

"A few," Utena conceded as they got out, heading into the building to talk some more, "maybe I'll tell you about them some time."

 

To be continued...

 

Author's Notes: Yes, Yohko is very straight in the Devil Hunter Yohko anime series, falling in love with any number of cute bishonen in the six episode series. Therefore I figured the only way she might crush on Utena would be mistaking her for a boy... Utena's look in this episode is pretty much TV series uniform combined with the Utena movie haircut.