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My deepest apologies to all Eagles. UnpublishedWriter reminded me of this episode, and more importantly, of the ending. This little jewel (of the family kind) came to me while I should have been working. I am blaming a 6 am start on a saturday, an excessive amount of caffeine and my own perverse sense of humour that will rear it's ugly head at the worst times.... Again, to all Eagles - I'm truly sorry

And I still like it.

OMG Good story! But can our Swan really be so cruel to her beloved Commander?

Ouch, Green! As an Eagle I'm still hurting! ... just kidding! What a good writeup! I think, in this case, Jun didn't electrocute him because she wished that, some day, those "little swimmers" made their way to her desired destination! In fact, we've discussed this issue several times in past threads! No one (I think) agrees with how Ken welcomed his female Teammate after having painfully thought of her possible demise ... not even us Eagles! Jun's inactive response had several times been reprimanded ... she almost acted as if she enjoyed being slapped, for goodness sake! What a humiliation! She knew Ken's character and attitude, and she may have been attracted to him, but that just not justify her lack of confrontation. On the other hand, there are those other issues that can, by some way or another, excuse Ken's behaviour even if it was totally unjustified and exagerated! For example ... his trying to cover up his true emotions and inner turmoil, his maintaining his position as a Commander and as an example for the others, his pulling himself up after being battered up by RI, his realization of how weak he had felt and been after thinking he had lost Jun and trying not to portray this aspect of his to his subordinates. In past discussions we've also mentioned that this did not seem such an insult to women during those days due to certain Japanese customs which still prevailed at that time. Yet, there's no excuse for what he did ... in my opinion, he could have dealt with the situation in another, more civilised way. Looking at the bright side, Jun did return this slap and another with a greater one in the Gatch F series! Way to go, at last!

Um, I think I can give two reasons why she might... 1. So that when he finally works out what's what, he will always treat her with the respect she deserves.... And, of course, that little bit of fear will mean he will ALWAYS be good to her 2. He might just like it? Just MY thoughts, of course.....

Originally posted by green Um, I think I can give two reasons why she might... 1. So that when he finally works out what's what, he will always treat her with the respect she deserves.... And, of course, that little bit of fear will mean he will ALWAYS be good to her

I think anyone would think twice before raising a hand after such a lesson!

2. He might just like it?

I doubt it!!!

Originally posted by green 2. He might just like it?

Is he BDSM fan? Hmmmm, why not. After all, members of KNT are accustomed to violence, so there are psychological predisposition

UW made a good point about why he slapped her - in essense when your emotions are put through the wringer, you'll react in ways you wouldn't normally. I've seen mothers smack their child after that child has just escaped being hit by a car - they are just so angry (read: afraid) with what could have happened when the kid ran out into the road. They respond with instinct (to teach the child quickly not to put themselves into such danger again), not with the relief that you would normally expect. I guess I should point out that this came from the reactions of the other three members of the team's point of view, not from Ken hitting Jun. I put myself in their perspective as if it were today. If I saw a team mate reprimanded in such a way, I would be rooting for that person to stand up, not to accept such a humilating physical punishment, and if for some reason they couldn't, then I would have more than just a few words to say... As for the scoring at the end, did I mention there were copious amounts of caffeine involved? A 6 am start? Work on a saturday?

Originally posted by green in essense when your emotions are put through the wringer, you'll react in ways you wouldn't normally. :

And this happens a lot of time! I don't know how many times did I ask myself why I acted in a way instead of another ... or why did I say other words instead of those that I really meant! We can say that the more you love or care for someone, the more your reactions become awkward towards that someone in some dire cases!

HA HA! Loved it! What an awesome little snippet to run into while having my pre 6am coffee myself... Both endings in BotP and Gatch were pretty insensitive toward the Swan: Ken slaps Jun... Mark let her captors go free, which I think is worse than a slap... I do understand Ken's reaction, however... Green, you brought up the mum giving the kid a smack after he/she runs into traffic. Oh I have been there TWICE... and, yeah, call child services, Josh got a smack across the butt for it, followed by a weeping hug, of course... The last time he did it he freaked out an entire store of people as he dashed out of the door across a road and into the carpark. It was a definite "buy yourself a lotto ticket" moment as it is usually a busy road and there were thankfully no cars on the road at that time... I thank Buddha that Flash lived up to his monniker and flew off after him that time... (he was waiting in the car)... but I digress.. Of course the difference here is that my son is only four, whereas Jun is practically an adult. If he truly did it for the same reasons a panicked mother would do it, then he should have done as Jinpei suggested and finished it with a hug. I love that you gave Jun the chance to answer to the slap here ... well done... The hynpocritic bastard runs off all the time, her response is perfect. Thank you for this.... I totall enjoyed it!! SJ

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That slap -in fact, that whole scene- is definitely one that can benefit from some elaboration and reinterpretation, as Green and TJ demonstrate well!

I'm all for a woman standing up for herself, physically if necessary. You go, Jun!

I love these snippets into the slap and the BotP version. You guys are very talented... love it! I've never gone into that scene itself in my own work, but usually focus on the aftermath. I don't write Gatch at all (although I have ventured there on one or two occasions rather poorly), but I tend to write the off-scene things. In Dear Diary I focused on Mark's reaction to the scene at hand... but that's about as close as I've ever dared venture to it.. In Revenge it was more Princess' disgust at Mark letting the guy go free... Although I kindly gave Mark a viable "out" in that one ... just because I honestly cannot believe that after all he suffered and all Princess suffered, that he'd simply let the dude go. That always pissed me off when I watched it as a kid. But kudos to you Green and to you TJ for sharing your work and your visions on this scene... awesome.. SJ

Originally posted by Transmute Jun Too funny, Green! I do think Jun should have responded, but then, she was probably too shocked to do anything. What gets me even more than the slap in this episode is the expression of gooey-eyed devotion she gives Ken right afterward.

Yeah, there was no explaining that look... unless the Swan liked it.... OUCH. Apologies for that thought.. Obviously, I couldn't come up with a reason that made sense to me except the one that precedes this sentence, and I was NOT going to go there! Okies, I did, but only until the second cup of coffee hit me. By the third I was down right disgusted with that look and had to change things to suit myself. I would like to blame, um, THANK UnpublishedWriter for the episode reminder, and the whole egret/eaglet thing - apparently, according to my brain, Ken would one day father herons.... Don't try to make sense out of that, I certainly can't!

As long as Ken is a better father than RI, I think it'll be okay...

Eaglets and cygnets. That could be a very interesting little nest in Casa Washio.

Originally posted by UnpublishedWriter Eaglets and cygnets. That could be a very interesting little nest in Casa Washio.

That's the way it should be!

"Mo-om! Suki whacked me with her yo-yo!" "Kenichi, how many times have I told you NOT to throw your boomerang in the house?" "Uh, hello, Officer Smith. Suki in the playground with her yo-yo, again?" "Mrs. Johnson, I check Kenichi's backpack every day. I have no idea where he keeps his boomerang."

And that's just the eaglets and cygnets... Could you imagine holidays when they get together with Owls, Swallows and Condors? Utoland would never recover!

green, I can't believe I haven't commented here! (RL has been pretty crazy lately!) I love your answer to the infamous slap! Go, Swannie! There are many times in the series that she needed more backbone! Of course, BOTP tried to fix that a little with some of Princess' comments. You are a fabulous writer! I haven't had time to read all of your fics, but I plan on it! Thanks for sharing your talent with us!

UW, I love your take on the Cygnets and Eaglets...so funny! Ken and Jun would certainly have their hands full! I need to read your latest works, too! You have great writing talent, too! It is so exciting to see all of the wonderful new writers sharing with us! Thank you!

I'm know I'm coming in a bit late here...but Ken could have apologised for it later....maybe he did in private...oh so much fan fiction writing fodder!!!

And I wonder how he apologized. Ooh, the possibilities. Ladies and gents, start your smuts.

Maybe something like this to start with.... Ken shuffled into the Snack J and sat in his usual seat at the counter. Jun hurried passed him and didn't even offer him a drink...after an hour of her ignoring him Ken finally said what he came in to say, hanging his head in shame the words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them."Sorry Jun I just over reacted...you know I was worried about you and angry with you for taking it upon yourself to go after the flowers and put your life in danger...and I ...I... just...lost it. " Shoving his hands into his pockets he stood up and walked towards the door before she had time to fling back in his face with an acid tongue like he deserved for slapping her instead of acknowledging her bravery......

Ebony ... I can smell a ficcie here!

Only I suspect that Ken apologizing and admitting he was worried (read that as cared, since you only worry about the ones you "care" about) would shock Jun so much she would be 'shocked into silence', forgetting that she wanted to fling back an acid retort. Not just that he "escaped" from her before she could give an response. I could see Jun standing there connecting the dots as Ken makes his way to the door "He said he was worried. You only worry about someone you love thus he must love me." By the time she connects the dots Ken could be out the door and Jun is left standing there glaring at the empty door thinking, I can't decide it I should be angry at him for slapping me, and I should have told him ......

CD thats was exactly how I pictured it too!!!

Okay ... Sorry Ebony. I guess I read your "snippet" the wrong way. That is what I get for trying to figure things out when I am feeling under the weather. On the upside only a couple more weeks and then I get to have my Christmas break and regain some strength to continue on for another couple of months.

I didn't think you read it wrong CD! I could see her standing there shocked...she was angry earlier and wanted to hit him back with some harsh words...but saw why he did it for the first time when he apologised.... But she didn't open her mouth in time to stop him from walking out the door.

I've noticed that Ken doesn't open up very well to his teammates. It's obvious (after a while) that he cares for Jun, yet he NEVER SAYS ANYTHING. He doesn't talk about his feelings about his father. Part of this might be cultural (?). And we can't smirk too much: in the United States, men weren't expected to talk about their feelings until recently, and it still makes them uncomfortable (in general). Man strong, no need talk about emotions like woman.

Originally posted by UnpublishedWriter I've noticed that Ken doesn't open up very well to his teammates.

I don't think any of the male team members are really open about their feelings. Well, maybe Jinpei is the exception, but he's just a kid. Ryu isn't prone to having very strong feelings in general. In the series, I find Joe just as repressed as Ken, but in a different way. He may act out on his feelings more often, but he certainly isn't very open about them - not even to himself. I think you're right UW, this sort of angsty, suffer in silence, manly-man attitude is very cultural - perhaps one thing Japanese culture and American culture have in common?

Originally posted by UnpublishedWriter I've noticed that Ken doesn't open up very well to his teammates. It's obvious (after a while) that he cares for Jun, yet he NEVER SAYS ANYTHING. He doesn't talk about his feelings about his father. Part of this might be cultural (?). And we can't smirk too much: in the United States, men weren't expected to talk about their feelings until recently, and it still makes them uncomfortable (in general). Man strong, no need talk about emotions like woman.

Aussie men could be just as bad! I'm from a rural district and not much has changed in that way.... you have to be tough to survive none of this new age male stuff.... I think I got the exception in my husband, a country lad who is okay about emotions. The other thing is men in general aren't as emotional as women, yet women expect them to be the same as us.

It's the same for us here, in Malta. Men still tend to embrace the traditional culture, that is a man is the head of the family and he must act tough without showing any extra emotions. It's shameful for them to cry or show their true feelings. Things are changing, in some way or another, as time goes by, but traditions are slow to overcome. Today, women have a lot of say and we are trying to educate our partners by talking about feelings and how by doing so helps to ease difficult situations, e.g. many problems could be solved just by being open about how one sees things instead of keeping all to oneself, thus increasing unnecessary tension. It's true ... that's how I communicate with my husband ... by spoonfeeding him day to day small lessons, explaining to him how even a small word like "thanks" or "sorry", or a small phrase like "I love you!", could make one's day! My DH is one that chokes before uttering such words! He surely shows how he feels by his behaviour or his actions and respect towards those he loves, but I always reiterate to him the fact that a few additional words from the heart would mean a whole lot!

Gatchamarie! I read an excellent book that talks about love languages. (He talks about the 5 main ones.) And how everyone has very different ways of expressing it and recieveing it. It explained a lot to me about the people I know. Somethings I'd picked up on over the years and it confirmed it too, so I often recommend it to people. My husband isn't a words of affirmation man. (Though he has no trouble with "I love you." ) He feels love when I do things for him...like tidy up the house, and he's a touchy feely person and I'm not!! LOL silly as it sounds and mundane doing tasks and he feels loved by it.... I'm very different from him, he didn't realize my love languages were in different field, we do have one in common and thats quality time.

You're right, Ebony! In fact, my DH tells me just what you said when I confront him! i.e. he shows me his love by showing me respect and by doing what he does daily to help me and to keep the family united! I, myself, in fact, also like to show him my love in that way ... by cooking him his favorite meals, etc. Even a simple thing like saving the two last chocolates in a chocolate box for later to eat them when he's with me, or like folding his pyjamas neatly and putting them under his pillow to keep it warm, means a lot for him! And that I understand by his facial expression without him needing to utter a single word!