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Guest – Thanks for your review! And Ryo and Kaori in this story knew each other for over a month. That's an eternity in fairytale time. :P Also, by 'this part', did you mean the oral sex scene where Ryo eats her out like a juicy peach? For that, I must agree with you. I am not very good at writing sex scenes.
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Guest – Here you go! It's the last chapter. I hope you like it though I don't. :P

Disclaimer: I do not own City Hunter or its characters.

MY BELOVED MONSTER

17. The End

He was a coward. When there was a need to strengthen the kingdom's boundaries, he decreased the number of soldiers and increased the number of welfare officers. Where there was need for heavy taxation, he distributed food grains free of any cost. There had to have been a golden film before his eyes; the poor bastard would not have been so deluded otherwise. It was perfectly easy to sit guarded within the palace walls and believe that every other kingdom, unless proven otherwise, was an ally of ours. He did not have to fight in the war with the nine tribes. He did not have to assume the role of Chief Commander at the age of eighteen. He did not have to spend sleepless nights because HE HAD BEEN DENIED THE THRONE FOR HE WAS YOUNGER THAN AN IMBECILE WHO WAS ONLY FIT FOR CHASING PETTICOATS!
'I did what was best for the kingdom'
The kingdom would have collapsed to ruins had he not committed regicide. He had made sure the Queen did not scream as he stabbed her husband in his chest repeatedly, sobbing and asking for forgiveness. When the King lay dead, he loosened the mystical hold of his spell on the Queen's throat. She had glared at him with unbearable disgust and horror in her eyes.
"Shin..."
Before she could scream, Shin Kaibara had stabbed his sister-in-law, who had loved him as her own brother, straight through the heart. The corpses lay beside each other, covered in blood and treachery. Kaibara kneeled by their bed and wept.
"I did it for the kingdom, Brother. You were not fit to be the King. Forgive me, Brother. Forgive me, Sister"
The spell he had been working tirelessly on for the past ten years would now come to fruition. They called it Purple Haze. With its aid, you could rule the hearts of thousands and thousands of folk. But beware, the spell warned, it was useless against those who were without sin. Kaibara knew well that every mortal was born with sin. He shrouded the kingdom in the power of Purple Haze, and with much effort, he erased all traces of his brother and his wife, and of their elder son. Why could he have done this to Ryo, his dearest nephew and favourite person? To prepare him for greater things, of course.
Ryo was destined to be the most ruthless weapon in the history of mankind. There was no one who would have so readily gone through such misery to protect his kingdom. It was Kaibara himself who had taken Ryo into the realm once he had perfected his transformation and new form.
"This is your home now, son. Remember – the people of your kingdom sleep peacefully because you are here to guard us against all evil"
"Yes, Father"
Even in that hideous form of his, how endearing had Ryo seemed when they parted. And now, this very Ryo was planning to wage war on everything he had spent seven years guarding, for the sake of that woman! Such treachery! What humiliation!
"Your Majesty! There is a mob gathered below!"
Kaibara left his chair without glancing at the guard who had come in running. The crowd was shouting,
"Murderer!"
"Down with Kaibara!"
He spotted numerous familiar faces in the crowd – his most trusted soldiers, eminent townspeople, Sir Umibozu as well. Kaibara would have turned about but he realised that the crowd had seen him at the window and was now howling bloody murder. Out of the raging crowd came forth the woman, looking upwards as vehemently as a young brat such as her could. To her side came Ryo – oh, son, how you have fallen! – and fixed Kaibara with a cold, unfamiliar gaze. How could Ryo bear to be in his weak mortal form! Kaibara was disgusted with this lack of ambition and power.
"Tell the soldiers that the mob is not to enter the palace by any means, but none of our men are to prohibit the red-headed woman from entering"
He might have been on the verge of losing everything he had, but Shin Kaibara would not fall into the chasm of misfortune alone.

King Kaibara's hazed soldiers fought tooth and nail to keep the crowd away from the door. Umibozu pounded them one after another like sacks of rice. Kaori said to Ryo,
"It seems that I will have to open the door by myself after all"
"Take care", Ryo stood by her side.
Kaori held her hands ahead of her and began to chant the spell. Sooner than when she had performed the spell first, her hands writhed and shook like she were exorcising a spirit. With a thunderous noise and a flash in her eyes, she burst the door to King Kaibara's palace open.
"Are you faint?", Ryo asked.
"No"
She was surprised to find herself standing still, as if a flood of dark energy had not passed through her a moment ago.
"Let us go"
"No", Ryo placed a hand on her arm, "You must stay here"
She began to protest,
"Ryo..."
His tone was cold and stern,
"Stay here, Kaori. I have to do this alone. Umibozu?"
Umibozu stopped midway from smashing two soldiers against each other. Ryo said to him,
"Keep an eye on Kaori for me; make sure she stays here"
"Ryo! You cannot expect me to stay put here!"
He had entered the palace already and was out of earshot. Umibozu disposed off the soldiers and came to Kaori's side. He said,
"Ryo has his reasons to keep you here"
"No, he does not! He is selfish and simply wants to fight that bastard Kaibara alone!"
"I disagree. Ryo has kept you here for he does not wish for Kaibara to lay his hands on you"
Kaori glanced at the tall giant standing beside her. Ryo might have wished to keep her safe, but how could she make sure he was safe inside that devil's palace?

The palace had not changed much in seven years; it still filled Ryo with the awkwardness of visiting a stranger's house which was in fact his own. A few soldiers came running down those stairs to apprehend Ryo. He lulled them to sleep with his fists, not bothering to touch the sword in his scabbard.
'This must have been the last of them'
He jumped over the fallen soldier's body and climbed the stairs towards a platform. Ryo looked around and found that two stairways ran upwards towards Kaibara's chamber, and he sensed a long-lost presence across him on the other end of the platform.
"I am not fond of paying compliments to men, but I admit with gentlemanly candour – that was admirable"
Ryo smiled at the sight of his brother.
'All grown up now'
Mick's flawless hair and serene features evoked a rippled memory in Ryo's mind - a lullaby, the gentle rocking of his cradle, a pair of serene blue eyes gazing fondly upon him, and the golden ringlets touching his face as his mother embraced him. His brother looked much like the mother Ryo had been driven to forget.
"You are Ryo Saeba, I suppose", Prince Mick smiled.
Ryo said with compassion in his voice,
"I am not here to fight you. Do let me pass through"
"Or else?"
Ryo could not help but smile again,
"I will not hurt you, little brother"
"The name is Mick Angel. En garde!"
Mick had drawn his sword and pointed it at Ryo's chin,
"Draw your sword. I shan't fight a defenceless man"
"I will not draw my sword upon my brother"
"I am not your brother"
Ryo leaped in time to avoid a gash aimed at his abdomen. He shook his head in admiration when Mick threw him the sword he had whisked from Ryo's scabbard without his knowledge. Mick kept a masterful pose with his sword,
"Fight me, coward"
"I will not"
Mick charged at Ryo, waving his sword in flashes of lightning which would have stricken an ordinary human dead in the first blow. Ryo dodged all of his attacks and stood at a distance with his own sword.
"This is madness, Mick"
Mick succeeded to control his ragged breathing,
"Who are you?"
"I am your brother"
"The truth"
"I am your elder brother"
"Lies!"
Mick went into a fury and attacked Ryo from all sides at an incredible pace which Ryo matched with his own. His sword missed the mark as Ryo leapt above it like a jaguar and drew his own sword while in the air. Mick smiled menacingly at the thought of a real fight, but his hopes were soon shattered: like his sword. Ryo landed on his feet and slid his sword in the scabbard, while Mick glared at the broken sword in his hand.
"Enough of this", Ryo warned.
Mick threw the tattered sword aside and rolled his hands into fists.
"I will take you with my bare hands, you devil"
It was a mere repetition. Ryo dodged every blow from Mick and stood calmly while Mick panted and glared in impotent rage at his adversary.
"Let us put an end to this, Mi-"
A woman's loud scream and the sound of windows being shattered thrummed through the palace, and the two Princes looked into the direction of the noise. Ryo caught a fleeting glance of Kaori being yanked into Kaibara's chamber, with a never-ending serpent's tale coiled around her. The look of sheer terror on her face was what registered in his mind as instrumental for the revenge he sought.
"Miss Kaori!"
Mick advanced towards the stairs but Ryo held him back. He said,
"There is only one means of getting Kaori out of there and you know what it is"
Mick's brow glistened with sweat, and his face turned pale with the fading of a resolution. Ryo said,
"Your hands shall not be stained with his blood"
Mick gazed longingly at the door to his father's chamber and murmured an incoherent goodbye. He turned to Ryo,
"If Miss Kaori does not live, my fiancée will kill me. And then I shall haunt you"
He descended the stairs in rapid succession, not looking back once as if the ghosts of memories were close at his heels. Once Mick was out of view and out of the question, Ryo advanced cautiously towards Kaibara's chamber.

He lightly held the door ajar, hoping to enter unperceived. He struggled to think clearly, to not let his thought be clouded with the images of his precious Kaori being strangled to death.
"You may enter"
Ryo's skin prickled with goose-pimples on hearing that voice for the first time in years. It was difficult to believe that this fatherly voice had ordered the execution of Makimura. Ryo entered and found King Kaibara waiting for him with his hands behind his back. The sorcerer smiled,
"Welcome home, son"
"I have been led to believe that my home is the realm where you left me to die at the hands of your enemies"
"You are not dead yet, are you?"
"Do you plan to make me so?"
"Come now. You do not suppose that I would ever harm you"
"No", Ryo said, "You would turn me into a fearsome Monster and kill all whom I love"
King Kaibara mused,
"Well, I hope you do not love this one"
Ryo staggered back as Kaibara threw onto the floor before him an unconscious Kaori, being choked to death by a serpent who had his fangs in her throat. Kaibara said as Ryo drew his sword to strike,
"You must not do that. His hold only tightens if you slash him. Your Healer's ribs will burst and cause an instant death than the slow, painful one I intend for her"
Ryo gritted his teeth,
"Let her go"
Kaibara scowled,
"You dare lose your temper over this wench? I should have known better than appointing that infidel Makimura's sister as your Healer"
"I will not let you kill her the way you killed Makimura"
The emotion in Ryo's voice seemed to aggravate Kaibara further.
"He was a distraction to you! She is a distraction as well! How could you allow yourself to be taken in by the temptation of regaining your weak, human form? No more. No more. She must die for the better good of this kingdom"
"Why do you not die instead?"
Kaibara smirked,
"Because my death can come to me only by your hands. Do you have it in you to kill your father, Ryo?"
Ryo's eyes were transfixed on Kaori, whose skin had begun to turn blue and green due to the poison. Kaibara looked from him to her and back again. He said,
"Her death is certain; she is a traitor to the kingdom. This is your ultimate sacrifice, Ryo. Upon her death, you will ascend to the throne. Throw me in a dungeon if you like, but give the people a King they deserve – one who will make the greatest sacrifices for them, like I have"
"Let her go"
Kaibara tore the sleeve on his left hand and exposed a most gruesome sight to Ryo's eyes. The serpent that was holding Kaori in a death grip had emerged from Kaibara's arm. The serpent's body was as thick as the distance between Kaibara's upper arm and wrist, from which he extended himself around Kaori. Kaibara beamed in pride,
"Your only means of saving her are through my death. Which shall you choose – your father or your concubine?"
"You are not my father"
So saying, Ryo turned into his Monstrous form right in front of Kaibara and leaped with mortifying fury and a deafening roar.

The serpent around Kaori turned to dust and released her limp form, sprawled across the floor. Ryo ran to Kaori, despite the throbbing headache after his transformation to human form, and gathered her in his arms.
"Kaori? Kaori, speak to me"
Her skin gradually resumed its soft ivory shade and grew warmer. Ryo tried to breathe air into her lungs, hoping against the worst.
"Kaori? No. Please... Kaori?"
She slowly lifted her lids and looked into Ryo's face hovering above hers.
"Where is he?", were her first words on gaining consciousness.
Ryo helped her to rise; she found Kaibara lying in a pool of blood across the room.
"Ryo", she pointed, "He still breathes"
Kaori took Ryo's hand and stumbled over to Kaibara's side. He looked up at them with a proud smile made ghastly by the blood spurting from his throat. Ryo kneeled beside him and waited on his last moments. Kaibara's voice came in guttural successions,
"You have made your choice it seems"
He continued while Ryo gingerly took his hand,
"It-it does not matter... what choices you have made... or what I have driv-driven you to do... Ryo..."
For the very last time, Ryo saw the same light of fatherly love in Kaibara's eyes before it faded away. The dying man was smiling,
"You will always be my greatest creation"

The crowd waited on one breath below the window to Kaibara's chamber. They had seen a serpent drag away the Healer by breaking through the walls of the palace. They had seen Prince Mick running down the bottom stairs and walking away from the palace at the same pace, never turning back for a last glance. Now they waited to see hope. A hand sprung from the crowd to point towards the window -
"Look over there!"
The jubilation and celebration rose to an unfathomable volume. People threw their hats in the air, jumped in joy, cheered and howled. Many of them wiped away the tears of exuberation which came gushing through their eyes. Prince Ryo and his Healer looked down at the people from the window. Kaori saw Umibozu smiling at her and then turning towards the street. She observed the impassive expression on Ryo's face for a minute and then straightened whatever rags remained of his former clothes. She said, positive that he could hear her clearly despite of the commotion below,
"Where to from here?"
Ryo forced a smile and turned to her,
"Wherever you lead"
The Healer and her partner walked out of the damned palace, holding hands and supporting each other's walk.

The kingdom was no more a kingdom. Prince Mick and his new wife Princess Kazue introduced a revolutionary form of government in the land. It was known as democracy. Certainly, the people had trouble getting used to the new system, but it had begun to work out well. Umibozu, a former knight, married his childhood sweetheart Miki, and helped her to run the alehouse. King Nogami and Princess Saeko soon paid a visit to their neighbours and expressed their admiration for the new government. Kaori Makimura, who did not believe in changing one's last name after marriage, walked through her shire with her head held high. The Purple Haze having been lifted, the people no more despised her or her dead brother. She was watering the plants from her doorstep when a stranger bowed to her,
"Do I have the honour of addressing Miss Kaori Makimura?"
Kaori greeted him,
"Yes, sir. How may I help you?"
The man spoke in a discreet fashion,
"I am here on behalf of a distinct personage who wishes to avail of certain services"
She laid the can of water aside and asked,
"What kind of services?"
The visitor's chest puffed twice its size and he exclaimed,
"It is a task of monstrous proportions"
Kaori smiled,
"I know just the being you need"
She then turned and walked a few steps to look at her backyard, intending to introduce Ryo to their visitor. What she saw was her beautiful husband surrounded by five milkmaids, all of whom were leaning on one or another nook of his body. The visitor had followed Kaori to the side of the cottage and he peered over her shoulder,
"Where is this remarkable being you spoke of, Madam?"
The poor man soon recoiled in terror and his powdered wig fell to the earth. Kaori Makimura had produced a 10,000 ton hammer out of nowhere and she slung it at her husband. The maids' startled voices and her husband's trampled form were not enough to make Kaori stay. She dusted her hands against each other and walked to her shrubbery, mumbling and gritting her teeth,
"Monster! Idiot!"
It need not be told that Ryo Saeba soon made reparations to his wife as evening came; and that they lived happily ever after.

A/N: I thank every reader of this story from the shallow bottom of my heart. It is actually a relief to me to be able to end this story today because VACATION, BABY! We shall meet again if this 150° C summer doesn't melt me. Bye! Don't forget me. I will be back. Bye-bye!