Snake in the Horse's Shadow By Lord Raa Disclaim-me-do: Should have sprung for the heated codpiece. Part 9 "So, does that clear everything up, Kasumi?" "Well, not really," the brunette answered. "Yes, you can disappear like a ninja, but that hardly explains why you'd lie to me about going to America." Ranma sighed. "Believe what you want, Kasumi. I don't care what you think about me." With that, the pigtailed man left to see what his father was up to. "Why can't I have a normal conversation with Ranma-kun?" Kasumi asked herself. "Just what is it about him that makes me... so frustrated?" "Hi, Dad, what's going on?" Ranma asked as he walked up to his father and friend. "We're just enjoying the sunshine, Ranma. What's up?" "It's... well, it's silly." "You can tell us, Ranma-kun," Soun smiled. "Ok, but you'll just think I'm being unreasonable," Ranma said as he sat down next to the older men. "Kasumi keeps asking me questions that I don't want to answer." "I take it this is about last night?" Genma asked. "Yeah," the pigtailed man nodded. "It's weird, it's kinda like dealing with Carter, but... you know, more domestic." "I'm not sure I follow, Ranma," Soun said with a confused look on his face. "Well, Kasumi didn't know that it's possible to turn yourself invisible." "It is?" The two Saotomes looked at each other and smirked. "Watch this, Tendo-kun," Genma said as he and his son faded from view. "S-Saotome-kun?" "Right here, Mr. Tendo," Ranma said as he fell into view. "And that's nothing compared to what we've seen." "I-I see..." the widower said, slowly stroking his moustache. "Well, how does this relate to Kasumi?" "What does Kasumi do all day?" "I... she looks after the house, why?" "I think that's the problem, Tendo-kun," Genma replied, pushing his glasses up his nose. Ranma sighed. "Yeah, I mean, sure, it's nice to be able to sleep without someone trying to kill me in the night, but I'm starting to get bored." "What do you want to do, Son?" "I don't know," the pigtailed man sighed. "I'm kinda tempted to see if O'Neill wants my help." "I thought you didn't like him," the portly man replied. "He's not so bad. It's Carter and that doctor that annoy me. Carter's all 'you can't do that, it's impossible' and you know how I feel about female doctors," Ranma said, tone of bitterness creeping into his voice. Genma smirked, but remained silent. Ranma's encounters with women trying to heal his wounds were a sore point. "You're not saying that you want them to get rid of Carter and that doctor before you'll go with them, are you?" "No, it's... it's weird. Maybe I should give them another chance?" "It would be the gracious thing to do, Ranma-kun," Soun said. "But what will you do with them?" "I guess the best way to describe it would be working as a consultant," Ranma answered. "You know what, I think they could do with my help on something now. I'll be back later." Kasumi, having decided to get a drink saw Ranma walking out to the dojo again. "Ranma-kun!" she called out. "What? Oh, Kasumi. What do you want?" the pigtailed man asked. "I... what are you doing in the dojo?" Ranma turned to the brunette. "Do you really want to know? It'll change everything." "W-what do you mean, Ranma-kun?" Kasumi asked, wondering if she had gone too far. "What I mean, Kasumi Tendo, is that you should be absolutely sure if you want to know some of what I know. Because it will change every aspect of your life and how you view the world you live in. Are you ready for that?" "I..." "If you don't know, then you're not ready. I'll catch you later, don't wait up," the martial artist waved. "Don't feel bad, Kasumi, I know that this is a sudden thing. When I get back, we can discuss it more and you can make an informed choice. I'd hate for you to think that I'm forcing you into something. I've had enough of that myself." Jack O'Neill pointed at the man who just walked into the briefing room as if nothing was wrong. "What are you doing here, Ranma?" "Well," the pigtailed man drawled as he took a seat at the table, "I was thinking that I might have some sort of plan for you to get Carter back. You know, one that doesn't involve her being sent away to some random planet with someone you don't trust and no back up." "We'd be happy to hear your plan, Ranma," General Hammond smiled. "As you all know, I have access to a ship and I'm willing to take Jolinar to wherever she wants to go to get a new host. One of the conditions for helping Jolinar will be a transfer of Goa'uld knowledge to Captain Carter," Ranma said, placing his hands on the tabletop. "And how are you going to convince Jolinar to do such a thing?" Daniel Jackson asked. "Jolinar has no reason to agree to that." "Indeed, the Goa'uld are extremely reluctant to share knowledge," Teal'c added. "Yeah, but do you know what the Tok'Ra do?" Ranma asked, drumming his fingertips on the black surface. "They're fighting against the Goa'uld using sabotage and other guerrilla tactics. Do you know anyone who's skilled at sabotage, espionage and other generally sneaky stuff?" "Are you saying that you're offering your help to the Tok'Ra?" Hammond asked, leaning in. "The help of the Ha're Kek is highly sought after, but if Jolinar refuses my conditions, then I won't help them. I won't side against them, but I won't rush to the phone if they come begging for help," the martial artist answered. "I'm not sure she'll go for that deal," O'Neill said, scratching his left ear. "You're asking a lot of Jolinar." "Maybe, but those are my terms. Looks like I learned about negotiating from you guys." The Colonel looked thoughtful for a moment. "What's in it for you? I mean, you've complained about the raw deals you've gotten from us in the past, so why are you offering to help us now?" "I'm not settling into the quiet life as well as I thought I would," Ranma answered. "I'd like a job. Not full time, but you know, occasionally going through the Stargate with you guys when you find something interesting." "Define 'interesting'," Jack requested. "I don't know, stuff like maybe finding who built the Stargate network." The members of SG-1 looked at each other before turning to look at General Hammond. The Texan considered things for a moment. "Jolinar would need to agree to the deal and you'd have to be on call in the event of an emergency." "You mean in case you guys need saving again?" Ranma smirked infuriatingly. "I can live with that. Let's see what Jolinar has to say about this plan of mine." Jolinar tried to play it cool with Ranma and SG-1, but it was difficult thanks to her affection for the pigtailed martial artist. "But I don't need to leave right now, so why should I agree to this?" "I thought you guys were supposed to listen to the host," Ranma countered. "Do you really think that Carter wants to remain like this? Besides, I said Goa'uld knowledge, not Tok'Ra knowledge. We don't need to know where your bases are or how many people you've got infiltrating Sokar's army." "..." the blonde closed her eyes for a moment. "Fine, I agree to your terms." "See, that wasn't so bad now, was it?" O'Neill smiled happily. "Let's get things started and we can have our Captain Carter back." "Do you know where you want to go, Jolinar?" Ranma asked. "And do you want to go via the Gate or ship?" "Ship," Jolinar replied. "Captain Carter has several questions about its technology." "I'll answer them on the way home. O'Neill, I want you to come with us." "Fine, I'll ride in your hotrod spaceship," the Colonel muttered good-naturedly. "The sacrifices I make for my country." Ranma gestured to where Jack and Jolinar should sit down. "I remember that this ship has quite the acceleration," the Tok'Ra commented as she looked at the Earth through the window. "Yep, but you get used to it," Ranma said as he unlocked the controls. "Do you want to send anyone a message before we leave? I don't want us to be sitting around for ages while we wait for someone to find us." "Very well, Ranma," Jolinar said as she signalled a nearby Tok'Ra base. "Ready when you are, Ranma." "Good, brace yourself back there," the martial artist said to O'Neill. "We're activating the hyperdrive!" As Ranma entered a planetary orbit, Jolinar was starting to become restless. "Something up over there?" the pigtailed man asked, not turning his head. "I... I'm sorry, I'm just..." the blonde sighed as she struggled to find the right words. "The thought of you helping me again without repaying you for your help makes me feel ungrateful." Ranma turned to look at the Tok'Ra. He cast a look at O'Neill before returning his attention to Jolinar. "It's fine, Jolinar, honestly. You don't need to reward me for this." "But still..." "No, it's fine, Jolinar. Also, don't you think that Captain Carter might have some say in how you try to reward me? You Tok'Ra say you care about the hosts when you're blended, but I think Carter might object." Jolinar blushed. "H-how did you know I was thinking about that?" "Most people reward me with women and food. I don't see any kitchens around here, do you?" Ranma asked with a knowing smirk. "Oh..." Colonel O'Neill scratched his head as he tried to get his head around the situation. While he knew that she wasn't herself, Carter had never acted like that before. It was most unsettling. To Ranma's credit, he was rejecting every advance, citing that it wasn't what Carter wanted. "I'm picking up Stargate activity on the planet below us, I'll set us down nearby," Ranma said, responding to the bleeping from the console. "I hope those are your friends coming through the 'gate, Jolinar." "I hope so, too." When the shuttle approached its planned landing zone, it became clear the gate travellers weren't the friendly Tok'Ra Jolinar had been expecting. Several hundred Jaffa warriors pointed their staff weapons at Ranma's shuttle. "Ah, slight change of plan, folks, we won't be landing here today," the pigtailed man said as he pulled a high-g manoeuvre to take their ship out of the atmosphere. "What happened?" O'Neill demanded. "I don't know," Jolinar insisted. "I only contacted my friends..." "They don't look too friendly to me!" the Colonel sniped. "Ranma, I think you better take us home." "Yeah, that seems like a good idea," Ranma nodded as he set in the course for Earth. "Guess you're with us for a bit longer, Jolinar." The blonde looked apologetically at the two men, but when she turned away a thought occurred to her, bringing a small smile to her lips. 'I guess this means I've got a chance to convince Carter to keep me here...' SG-1 sat around the briefing room table, discussing what to do about the situation with Jolinar and Captain Carter. "Something went wrong," Jolinar said. "Ya think so?" Jack snorted. "Look, I know you want to get out of Carter's head, but we don't have any options. We can't let you go." "... Very well, but I want Ranma to protect me," the blonde insisted. "There's a chance we can find another Tok'Ra cell." "Wow, I guess that my father was right about working with you guys," Ranma said rolling his eyes. "But, since I'm a nice guy, I'll stay here on site." "Thank you, Ranma," Jolinar smiled sweetly. "Oh, would it be possible for us to have a talk in private a little later?" "What about?" the pigtailed man asked, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Are you planning one of those 'talks' where my shirt gets ripped off?" "What? No! I'd never throw you on a table, tear off your shirt and start kissing you all over. Well, unless it's what you wanted..." the Tok'Ra blushed as she realised her mouth had run away from her. She coughed before adding, "I mean, it's about your adventures." "If you say so," Ranma shrugged. "I'll need to talk to my father, let him know I won't be coming home for a few days." Back in Tokyo, Genma replaced the telephone handset and turned to see his old friend standing behind him. "Is something the matter, Saotome-kun?" "Not at all, Tendo-kun," the balding man replied. "That was Ranma, he was telling me that he'll be away for a few more days and that we don't need to worry." "I see," Soun nodded. He paused for a moment. "Err, Saotome-kun, I don't mean to rude or disparaging about your son, but is he going to be away often?" Genma considered the situation. "I would say that, yes, it is likely that Ranma would be likely to have to leave at a moment's notice." "But that doesn't seem fair to Kasumi..." "Excuse me, but what doesn't seem fair to me, Father?" Kasumi asked, having overheard the conversation. "I... well, I mean if your husband is away often, it won't make for a happy marriage," Soun reasoned. "Marriage to whom, Father?" the brunette asked. "I think your father is referring to the pledge to unite the Schools of Anything Goes, Kasumi," Genma supplied helpfully. "Ah, so you mean the plan for me to marry a secretive and ill-mannered man." "If you don't want to marry my son, you don't have to, Kasumi." "Saotome-kun, what are you saying?" Sound demanded. "This was our dream that kept us going through the dark days under the Master!" "Tendo-kun, Ranma and I have experienced things that make our training under the Master look like a honeymoon," Genma said solemnly. "When was the last time you fought for your life, Tendo-kun? How about the last time you went more than a day without food or water, Kasumi?" The Tendos considered the portly man's argument. "It's not easy for Ranma," Genma said. "We've spent the last twenty years or more on the road. Sure, we've had periods when we've been in the same place, but nothing more than eight months or so. It's unfortunate, but his wanderlust and his urge to help people have made Ranma the man he is today. "Yes, he's lacking in the social graces. Yes, he's not telling you everything. Do you really think that you're ready to know the gruesome details about how was forced to kill a dozen men in unarmed combat to save the lives of others? How about the time he risked his life to save me from horrific tortures?" "Oh my..." Kasumi murmured. The balding man adjusted his glasses as he continued his point. "No, Ranma is not the perfect husband in he doesn't have great job prospects. He will run out in the middle of an anniversary dinner if he gets the call. But I can promise you this: If you need someone to charging in at the last minute to save you, Ranma will be there leading the way on a white horse. He's done it in the past and he's probably doing it now far away from here." Genma smiled politely before leaving the father and daughter to consider the situation. Soun thought he was being a bit harsh on the young man, while Kasumi considered what Ranma could save her from. 'Perhaps he could save me from this life?' she asked herself. Back at the Cheyenne Mountain facility, Ranma was feeling a little uneasy about his upcoming conversation with Jolinar. It wasn't that he would be alone in a room with someone who had taken a liking to him. There had been plenty of occasions when attractive women had wanted to him "speak to him in private" in the past. Some of which had even involved actual dialogue taking place, even if the most recent had been Colonel Ionas asking for his opinion on ladies' fashion. The pigtailed man shook his head at the memory of what happened after he'd stepped into the room and saw the raven-haired woman dressed in a loosely closed silk dressing gown and asked him which set of lingerie would look better on her. "I still can't believe they're allowed to make things like that," Ranma muttered, recalling the powder-blue garment. No, the thing that was making Ranma uncomfortable was the fact that it was Captain Carter's body that Jolinar was trying to use to get close to him. Samantha Carter was a very attractive and highly intelligent woman, albeit one that didn't like him in that way. Thinking back, the martial artist considered the image he'd projected, that of an arrogant, brash man who didn't care how many hearts he broke on his way through the galaxy as long as he had fun. It made him wonder if he'd taken the wrong approach with Kasumi Tendo. "I'll apologise to her when I get back to Tokyo," he decided. Taking a deep breath, Ranma knocked on the door to the room Jolinar was staying in. "Enter." "So, what did you want to talk to me about?" the pigtailed man asked, eyeing the room's furniture and planning an escape in the event that Carter couldn't control Jolinar's urges. "I... I'm sorry if I've made you feel uncomfortable, Ranma," Jolinar said. "You've saved my life several times now, plus you've helped the Tok'Ra numerous times in the past. I just wanted to say thank you." "What's wrong with a nice meal and directions home?" Ranma asked, folding his arms across his chest. "I appreciate that you don't want to seem ungrateful, unlike these SGC jerks, but you don't have to keep trying to seduce me." "But I've been lonely, since Martouf died fifteen years ago," the blonde answered. "And you were so brave, so caring..." "Who's Martouf?" "My mate. We'd been together for centuries, but he was killed by Ra in a brutal attack." "I'm very sorry to hear that," Ranma said sympathetically. A comfortable silence descended on the room as the pigtailed man recalled what it felt like to be alone. Countless times, Ranma had had to move on because of his father, saying goodbye to his friends, rivals and in some cases, lovers. Colonel Jack O'Neill knocked on the door. "Is everything alright in here?" he asked as he poked his head around the door. "Yep, we're done," Ranma answered. "So, what do we do now, O'Neill?" "I was hoping you'd have an answer," Jack smiled before taking a sharp breath. "I think we can agree that Jolinar can't stay in Carter's head. She's too valuable to the SGC." "Then we need to find me a host. There's a chance I can leave Carter's body without killing us both, but it's not something I'd want to risk unless you have a suitable host for me," Jolinar stated. "What would you do with the new host?" O'Neill asked. "I take it you'd like to go back to the Tok'Ra." "It would be my first course of action, yes," the blonde nodded. "I will return whenever possible, but the host would need to be willing to leave the planet for long periods." "Yeah, that could be a problem," the Colonel winced. "You'd be coming here on business or vacation rather than just working in space. "But the blending with the host would mean that they'd have a long and healthy life," Jolinar added. "The effect is even greater than that of the Jaffa." There was a moment's pause. "What kind of diseases can you cure?" Ranma asked. "Pretty much everything humans have ever encountered," the Tok'Ra explained. She noticed that Ranma had an expression she'd only ever seen when he was thinking up a plan. "Hmm... I might know someone willing to be a host. Excuse me for a moment, I need to check up on a few things," the pigtailed man bowed politely before departing to see Dr. Fraiser. Jolinar turned to face Jack. "You know, I can't help but feel that Ranma always seems to put more in than he gets out of a deal. I remember the agreements to get his father home." "Yeah," the Colonel winced again. "About that... could you keep that under your hat?" "You don't want Ranma to be reminded of how you took advantage of him in case he decides to stop helping you?" the blonde sneered. "Fine, I won't mention that, but you should be nicer to Ranma. All of you in the SGC." Ranma walked into the Tendo kitchen, tapping on the door to get Kasumi's attention. "Oh, hello, Ranma-kun, I wasn't expecting you for a few days. What can I do for you?" the brunette asked, looking up from her dinner preparation. The pigtailed man rubbed his neck as he tried to manage his words properly. "I...I might be able to help you with your sickness. I know a way to help you live a long and healthy life." "You do?" Kasumi asked, giving Ranma her full attention. "Yes, but there's a price to pay, and it's not one you can just agree to just like that," Ranma said, clicking his fingers. "You remember that I offered you the chance to know some of what I know? Well, I'm making this offer again and I'm throwing in the chance for you to never get sick again. "Just one catch: You'd have to give up your life here in Nerima forever." "Oh, my..." the homemaker replied. It had been a struggle for her to get out of bed that morning, far greater than normal, and Kasumi couldn't deny that she had expected more from life than that of housewife without the family of her own. Ranma's expression turned deathly serious. "Look, I know this is a big decision. The world you know will be shattered into a billion pieces. Not only that, but you're going to be see things differently, feel new sensations, have memories of things that happened centuries before you were born. "Nothing will be ever the same again for you. Can you deal with it?" To be continued... Pre-read by Chi Vayne with some assistance from foesjoe and previewed on various intertubes. Until the next time.
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Snake in the Horse's Shadow
Chapter 09: Chapter 9
By: Lord Raa