Snake in the Horse's Shadow By Lord Raa Disclaim-me-do: A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, but it can make suppositories a bit gritty. Part 10 Kasumi was trying to process what Ranma was telling her. "I... But who would look after Father if I go?" Ranma shook his head. "Kasumi, you have a long term degenerative illness. If things take a turn for the worse, you could be dead in six months. You could be hit by a bus tomorrow. Who's going to look after your old man then? "But tell me this, Kasumi, what do you think about aliens? As in intelligent life that live on other planets? Do you think it's possible?" The brunette was surprised by Ranma's questions. "I... I hadn't given it much thought," she admitted. "But what's that got to do with anything? Are you an alien, Ranma-kun?" "Me? No," the pigtailed man said shaking his head. "But the person who'll be helping you is an alien. She also needs help, and if you agree to this, you'll actually be helping two people as well as yourself. It's a long story that I can't really tell you unless you agree to help." Kasumi frowned. "I'm not sure about this." "..." Ranma scratched his head as he tried to work out a way to get Kasumi to help him, Jolinar and Carter without forcing her into something she wasn't ready for. "Ok, Kasumi, here's a simple version: "1) Aliens exist and have technology far in advance of anything we have. 2) Some aliens are bad, some are good. 3) One of the good aliens needs a new host body and whoever it is will be healthy for a long, long time. 4) If you agree to this, you'll have to leave town forever as you'll have a job helping fight some of the bad aliens on worlds far, far away from here." "Oh, my" "Yeah, so do you want to help two people, yourself and the countless others on planets you've never heard of by doing this or do you want to stay here and be the nursemaid for an old man?" Ranma asked. "I am very sorry for putting you on the spot like this, but this is a one-time offer." "I..." Kasumi bit her lip as she weighed up the options. 'It would be nice to go through a day without being in agony...' "But what about my father? I can't just leave him without explaining where I'm going." "My old man will look after him," the martial artist said. He held up a hand to excuse himself for a moment. "Be right back." Ranma returned with his father. "Pops, I need to help Jolinar find a new host. If I can't, she'll be stuck in Captain Carter's body forever." "I see," Genma said solemnly. "What's your plan?" "I was thinking that Kasumi here could be Jolinar's new host." The elder Saotome appraised the brunette. He spotted what was wrong and mentally kicked himself for not noticing it earlier. "How long have you been sick, Kasumi?" "I... how did you know?" the homemaker asked, turning to Ranma to glare at him for revealing her secret. "Your stance," Genma answered. "You're trying to keep the weight off the joints in your legs. Your father isn't the sort of man who forces physical hardships upon his children, which leaves sickness. So, Ranma, you think that Kasumi would make a good Tok'Ra host?" "Does it matter? I mean, with the greatest of respects, what kind of life does she have? Kasumi," Ranma said, turning towards the brunette, "You're dying from a long term degenerative illness and your main role in life is to look after your aging father. You've got a shitty life and I'm offering you the chance for a new one." "I..." Kasumi struggled to find an appropriate response. "Lots of people are in Kasumi's position, Ranma," Genma said, rubbing his neck. "Are you going to help all those people as well? Just how many people do you want to tell about the Stargate?" "I know I can't help everyone, Pops, but, I don't know, I just felt that I had to do something. Can you blame me?" "Not really," the balding man sighed. "And what about you, Kasumi? Are you ready to have your world turned upside down? What about learning how to do things you thought were impossible? Remembering things that never happened to you?" "I... is it worth it?" Kasumi asked, looking at the two men for signs of deception or mockery. "I don't like the idea of not being in complete control of my body," Ranma admitted. "But knowing about aliens and travelling to weird planets? That's totally worth it." "What about you, Saotome-san?" Genma removed his bandana and ran a hand though his thinning hair. "I agree with Ranma on both points. I have spent a lifetime learning to master martial arts with this body," he sighed. "I still remember the first time I managed to complete a backflip after jumping off a wall. Everything I can do, every martial arts manoeuvre, every fighting style I learned, I learned how to do so myself. I can't let that go." "You'll still be able to cook or arrange flowers or embroider cushions, Kasumi," the pigtailed man added. "If you want to do that sort of thing, I mean. It's just, it's hard to explain to someone who hasn't spent a lifetime learning martial arts, that's all." "You should meet Jolinar, Kasumi," Genma said, replacing his bandana. "If you don't like her, you don't do this. It's as simple as that." "All right, I'll meet Jolinar," Kasumi decided after she took a deep breath. "But what about dinner?" "I'll take care of that," the portly man smiled. "I can manage to cook a meal for two while you decide your destiny." Jack O'Neill was not happy about the way Ranma seemed to be able to just stroll into the SGC as if it was his own home. Not only was it a massive security headache, but the pigtailed man often had a smirk on his face when he sauntered into the Briefing Room as if nothing was wrong. "Good evening, everybody," Ranma said with a wave. "This is Kasumi Tendo and she's going to have a chat with Jolinar about becoming the new host." All eyes in the room turned to the embarrassed brunette. "Go on, say 'hello', Kasumi," the martial artist gestured to the members of the SGC. "¬I... I can't speak English!¬" Kasumi whispered, her cheeks burning brightly. "Is something the matter, Ranma?" asked General Hammond. "Slight oversight on my part, General," Ranma chuckled. "Kasumi doesn't speak English. And now that I think about it, I don't know if Jolinar can speak any Japanese. This could be interesting." "To say the least," Jack O'Neill said, rolling his eyes. "Are you going to translate for them?" "If they need me to," the pigtailed man shrugged. "So, who's going to escort Kasumi?" "I will," Daniel said, rising to his feet. "Konnichiwa, Tendo Kasumi-san. Watashi wa Daniel Jackson desu." "K-konnichiwa, J-Jackson-san," the brunette bowed politely. "Unfortunately that's about the limit of my Japanese," the bespectacled man apologised. "Don't look at me," Jack said, raising his hands defensively. "I've met English people I haven't understood." When Daniel had left the room with Kasumi, Ranma clapped his hands together. "So, you guys got anything to eat around here?" Back in Japan, Soun Tendo was feeling hungry. He tried to keep out of his eldest daughter's way when it came to culinary matters, but he was finding it hard to resist. Walking into the kitchen for an update on the evening meal, he was surprised to his old training partner preparing some food. "Saotome-kun, what's going on? Where's Kasumi?" "Ah, about that," Genma said, pausing in his preparation of the instant ramen. "She's had to step out for a while." "But what about dinner?" Soun asked, his heart sinking at the thought of missing out on his daughter's cooking. "Don't worry about that, Tendo-kun, I'm taking care of that. Sure, it's ramen for dinner, but I know what I'm doing." "But..." the moustachioed man trailed off when he caught the smell of the food. "That actually smells pretty good." "I told you I was handling it. It's nearly ready." "Where's Ranma?" Soun asked, noticing that the pigtailed man wasn't around. "He's with Kasumi," Genma answered. "He's with Kasumi? Does that mean that the schools will finally be united?" The portly man turned the heat off and allowed the ramen to stand for a minute. "I don't know, Tendo-kun, but who can say what the future holds for us?" Jolinar looked at her visitors; she smiled at Daniel Jackson. Thanks to the Tok'Ra's ability to access the host's memories, she had learned a great deal about the scholar. "Hello Daniel Jackson." "Hi Jolinar, I... this is Kasumi Tendo, Ranma brought her to have talk about being your new host. But the thing is..." Daniel trailed off. "¬Hello, Kasumi Tendo, my name is Jolinar. I believe we have a few things to discuss," the Tok'Ra bowed politely as she spoke in Japanese. "¬Hello, Jolinar," Kasumi bowed in return. "¬Where did you learn to speak Japanese?¬" "¬Ah, that, it's complicated. When I learned that English wasn't Ranma's first language, I made the effort to study Japanese so I could properly express my gratitude for his help freeing me from Sokar's prison.¬" Jolinar turned to Daniel. "I don't mean to be rude, Daniel Jackson, but could you leave us alone?" "Of course. I'll be back in an hour." When they were alone, the brunette sat down and let out a sigh. "¬Are you alright, Kasumi-san?¬" "¬I'm just tired, that's all.¬" "¬Are you sick?¬" Jolinar asked, giving her visitor a closer inspection. "¬Is that why Ranma brought you here to talk to me?¬" "¬Y-yes,¬" Kasumi admitted. She let out another sigh "¬I... I'm scared. What should I do? I don't want to stop being me, but I don't want to die. ¬" The Tok'Ra nodded in understanding. "¬I know what you mean, but you will stop being you when you die. If you accept the offer to be my host at least part of you will live on for many more years.¬" "¬But what will I do?¬" "¬Fight alongside the rest of the Tok'Ra to end the scourge of the Goa'uld,¬" Jolinar answered. "¬Maybe have some fun with Ranma while we're at it, who knows?¬" "¬You like Ranma-kun a lot, don't you?¬" Kasumi asked rhetorically. "¬Why is that?¬" "¬Your eyes do work, don't they? You are able to see his hot body and good looks, right?¬" the blonde asked, carefully eyeing the brunette. "¬But it's more than just a physical attraction and the fact that he'll risk his life to save as many people as he can. Ranma is a good man.¬" "¬But he's so... rude.¬" "¬I don't think Ranma's intentionally confrontational, Kasumi-san, he's just got a directness that can take you by surprise. Ranma's a 'say what you mean, mean what you say' type of guy. Personally, I think it's part of his charm.¬" Kasumi closed her eyes as she considered what she was hearing. After a moment, she turned to look Jolinar in the eyes. "¬You want this a lot, don't you? ¬" "¬Yes, I do,¬" Jolinar nodded. "¬And not just because I have feelings for Ranma.¬" "¬If you have feelings for Ranma, why don't you just stay in that body?¬" The blonde scratched her head. "¬Well, there are two reasons, really. One, Captain Carter doesn't like Ranma in the same way I do, and Ranma knows this. Two, as much as I want to be with Ranma, I have a duty to the rest of the Tok'Ra to defeat the Goa'uld. I can't do that in Captain Carter's body, the SGC need her.¬" Kasumi started to stroke her ponytail as she contemplated her decision. "¬What will happen to Captain Carter if you leave her body?¬" "¬. She won't be going on any missions for a while, but I think she will recover in time if we have access to a healing device,¬" Jolinar answered. "¬I'll ask Ranma-kun if he has one,¬" the brunette said as she stood up. Ranma was sitting in the mess hall with Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c. The pigtailed man was just finishing his third plate of food, much to his dining companions' disapproval. "Do you even taste what you eat?" O'Neill asked. Teal'c nodded. "Would it not be easier to put your food in a blender?" "Of course I can taste it. It's just that I often need to be ready to move at a moment's notice," Ranma answered. "And as for drinking my meals, I need to exercise my jaws. Just talking doesn't help all that much." "So you're saying that your eating habits are just part of your exercise regime?" the Colonel asked. "That's a new one on me." Putting down the fork, Ranma reached for his glass of water. "I'll have you know that being able to chew through rope has saved my life more than once." "Is it wise to ask for details?" Teal'c asked Jack. "I kinda want to know, but I'm also kinda scared what I might learn," O'Neill admitted. The martial artist rolled his eyes as he let out a sigh. "Not every story I tell you is about me being kidnapped by women." "No, just most of them." "It's not my fault that some people find me irresistible!" Ranma huffed. "I don't think people realise just how much of a curse my rugged good looks and stunning physique are." "Modest fellow, aren't you?" O'Neill smirked. "When was the last time you were offered up as a prize for a warrior cult's rite of passage?" the pigtailed man asked, his tone deadly serious. "It's happened to me three times on two different planets in the last five years! The last time, I barely escaped with the loincloth they made me wear intact!" The occupants of the three tables that surrounded Ranma's seat turned to face him, causing the Colonel to facepalm. "What are we going to do with you, Ranma?" he sighed. The sound of footsteps approaching the table caught everyone's attention. It was Kasumi Tendo and Daniel Jackson. "Hi guys," the archaeologist smiled. He had noticed that Ranma had either said or done something to gain the interest of several tables. "I'm not going to ask what's going on, but Kasumi has something she wants to say to you, Ranma." "Oh, ok," the pigtailed man nodded. "¬What can I do for you, Kasumi?¬" "¬I...¬" the brunette was clearly nervous. "¬Can I ask a favour?¬?" "¬Of course. Should we go somewhere more private?¬" "¬Please.¬" The pair walked away to a secluded section of corridor. "So, what can I do for you, Kasumi?" Ranma asked in Japanese. "I… or rather, Jolinar wanted to know if you have a healing device," Kasumi replied. The pigtailed man slapped his forehead. "Idiot…" "Ranma-kun?" "Yes, Kasumi, I have a healing device. I just completely forgot about it. I could have just healed you without you needing to go through this massive life changing experience," Ranma explained. "I still can if you're having second thoughts about leaving home." To be continued… Pre-read by Chi Vayne and previewed on various internet pages. I'd apologise for the shortness of this chapter, but that would imply that the people who read the nonsense that I post here might have enjoyed reading earlier updates.
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Snake in the Horse's Shadow
Chapter 10: Chapter 10
By: Lord Raa