Ridgewolf1 Hello there, and thank you for reading my story, if you are reading this, then that shows that you are obviously a person of the highest caliber, and great sophsitication, with highly refined taste, and are able to appreciate superior culture (is that thick enough or what?) This story was posted to the Fanfic Mailing list during the summer of `96, but I was contacted by Ronald Chan, who suggested that I post it on the R.A.A.C. so that a wider audience could recieve it. It is thanks to him that I am doing this now. I am new to this, so if I am doing something wrong with the way I'm posting this, please let me know. Based off of characters by the ever-lovable Rumiko Takahshi, which are her's, no copyright infringement is meant, and they are used without permission. Story idea based off the script- Ranma 1/2: the final solution, what a couple of dips! - written by Joe Rispoli and Mike Termena of the Dayton Anima club. Again, no copyright infringement is meant as to their storyline. (Hey! If any of you people out their know how to get in touch with these people, or better yet, ARE these people, let me know!) Any other Non-Rumiko type characters have their own copyrights and are also used without permission, no infringement is meant. Any other characters are mine, and Are used with permission (Mine!) This story can be spread around, as long as the author is acknowledged, and it is not sold for profit, either in part or in whole, and the previous disclamers are left intact. (note: it helps to have read the script Ranma1/2: the final solution, but it is not mandatory to do so to follow and enjoy the story.) Ascending changes: part one by Ridgewolfe The Train pulled up to the Tomobiki-cho station, where it disgorged it's passengers into the sunlight of the early summer day. The platform was full of others who pressed forward, eager to board the new arrival and get on with their lives. Three of the arriving passengers however, were eager to arrive to witness the beginning of a new life. Soun Tendo, of the anything goes martial-arts Tendo training hall, gathered up his travel bag and walked off onto the platform. A tall man, he had no problem looking for his two companions, who were as equally tall. All three of them received some stares, as they were dressed formally, two of them in tuxedo's, one in chinese robes, but soon they were fighting like everyone else to get through to the street. "Hey Pops! let's get a move-on, alright?" one of his companions snapped, hoisting another travel bag. "Yes, it would be most unfortunate if we missed the wedding," the second companion agreed. "Well, I'm not Against getting to the wedding," Soun grumbled as he was buffeted by onboarding passengers, "But trying to make headway in all this..." "Rooftops are nice," companion 1 said to companion 2. "Indeed, I say we should pursue that option," companion 2 agreed. "W-What are you doing?" Soun gasped as he was grabbed by both arms. "C'mon Mr. Tendo, just click your heels together and think happy thoughts," companion 1 said as they launched into the air over the crowds. Soon, they were bounding from rooftop to rooftop. The Mendo family chapel. Many cars had arrived here, and many others were gathering outside. A wedding was taking place. Well, a dual wedding. Okay! it's more than that! (leave me alone!) After much procrastination, Morobishi Ataru was finally to be united to Redet Lum, (her Father had thought to bring a blaster rifle to ensure the wedding, but had been convinced otherwise.) at long last. Many (all, actually) of their friends were in attendance (many of which had brought various weapons of destruction to ensure the wedding did NOT take place, but had been disarmed by Lum), and Ataru had asked his favorite cousin, friends since childhood, to be his Best Man. Saotome Ranma. Sadly, Ranma had had to refuse the honor. Understandably, as he no longer qualified as a best Man. Because of a sudden sickness due to his Jusenkyo curse, Ranma, Akane, and their families had gone back to the pools to find a cure. They had found one, by accidently dropping Ranma back into the pool of Nyanneechuan, where it was unforunately discovered that a second emersion in the same pool causes the curse to become irreversible, forever locking Ranma in the form of a girl. Akane, however, in order to prove that she loved him (er...her) and so that they could be together, had found the pool of Nannichuan and dove in twice. ain't love grand? The various wedding parties had taken over several of the bedrooms in the Mendo Household to prepare, especially the anxious brides. "I think I'm gonna throw up." "Now Ranma-chan, your just nervous," Kasumi calmly said around a mouthful of pins, "please quit fidgeting or you'll--" "OW! that Hurt!" "--get stuck," Kasumi sighed and sat back as Ranma continued to fidget. "C'mon, Ranma," Nabiki scolded as she tried to work on Ranma's hair, "I don't see why your so nervous, you've been in worse situations before." "Name one." Ranma snapped. "Winning back the Dojo, facing off against the Seven lucky gods, eating Akane's cookies..." Nabiki trailed off. She tried again to set Ranma's hair, then gave up. "If you keep bouncing around you'll never be ready," Nabiki growled. Unlike Ranma, the two sisters were dressed in their Kimono's, Nabiki's was black with dark blue birds across it, while Kasumi's was sky blue with white floral patterns. Nabiki set the brush down and turned the nervous young girl around. Nabiki's eyes grew round. Ranma was almost as white as the wedding Kimono she wore, and almost looked frightened. "A little nervous, are we?" Nabiki asked as she took the bride's trembling hands, noting how cold they were. she started rubbing them to warm them up. "Oh Ranma, you're worried over nothing," Kasumi said from the floor in a soothing voice, "You'll make a beautiful bride." "That's just it!" Ranma whined, her voice rising, "Not only am I getting married to a violent uncute tomboy, I'm the one in the dress! This is not how I planned to get married." Nabiki looked at Kasumi, "The `I'm not ready ' stage?" "Definitely, soon to be followed by the `I can't go through with this', then the `calm before the storm' stages" Kasumi agreed. Nabiki looked Ranma in the eyes, "are you saying that you don't wish to marry Akane-kun?" Ranma's hands stopped shaking. A moment later a familiar light came back to her eyes. "No," She said defiantly, "I love her--HIM, and I want to marry him, and she's sacrificed so much to prove she loves me...I'd go through with this even if we were turned into cats." she looked away then, "I'm just nervous, that's all..." "We know you are, Ranma-chan," Kasumi said soothingly as she stood, "Everyone is before the wedding." "You didn't eat anything at breakfast, would a small snack help?" Nabiki asked, still holding Ranma's hands. Ranma's stomach flipped at the thought of food, "No, I wouldn't keep it down." "You sure? some tea maybe?" Nabiki asked sweetly. Ranma's eyes narrowed, "Alright, why are you being so nice?" Nabiki tried to look hurt, "I'm shocked Ranma, can't I play the loving step-sister?" "Not unless a profit margin is involved." "Ranma! You make it sound like I'm some sort of cold hearted mercenary who's only interested in making money!" Before Ranma could answer there was a knock on the outside door. Nabiki left to answer it, and Kasumi was there to pick up Ranma's hands, giving them a warm squeeze. "Is part of it the fact that your a girl permanently now?" Kasumi asked gently. "I--yes, maybe, I think, kinda, that's part of it," Ranma sighed, "I've gotten used to turning into a girl, somewhat, over the last two years, but being one all the time? I still think of myself as a Guy, but..." "But...?" Kasumi prompted when she trailed off. Ranma looked down to the floor, she might feel better, she thought, if she talked about what she had noticed, "But lately, I find that I'm... acting or thinking... more and more... Like a girl." she shuffled her feet for a bit before looking up. "Am I losing myself?" Kasumi raised her hands to Ranma's shoulder's, "I don't think that's the problem, it sounds more like your simply adjusting to what's happened. Your still the same Ranma I've known for the last two years, that will never change." "I wonder if Akane-kun is going through this," Ranma asked. Kasumi was about to answer when Nabiki knocked on the doorframe, "Ranma, you have a visitor." Ranma and Kasumi walked out to the next room, where a beaming Tendo Soun stood. "Oh Father," Kasumi sighed, "you look very dashing in your tuxedo." Ranma smiled slightly and nervously allowed herself to be hugged, "I wasn't sure you'd make it back." "I'd never miss such an important event," Soun told her. He held her out then at armslength, "you look marvelous." "Yeah, well..." She ran her hand tentatively through her hair, which was still loose. "I still wish you'd let us trim that," Nabiki commented as she leaned against the bedroom doorframe. "Like Hell! I haven't cut this in five years!" "I can tell." "Now girls, no need to fight," Soun said gently. "I'm a --" was the automatic response, but Ranma stopped herself. Soun looked back down at his soon to be daughter-in-law, "Nabiki tells me your very nervous. Is there anything I can do?" "No, no, I think it's just pre-wedding jitters," Ranma smiled up at him, "it's just that..." "Yes..." Soun gently coaxed. "Well...you guys have all been great, and I don't think I've seen Pop happier, it's just that...well, I wish...more of my friends were here, too." "You know what they say, Ranma-honey," a new voice spoke up, "Be careful what you wish for." Ranma looked up and for the first time saw that they were being video-taped. Then with a smile and a flourish, the camcorder was set down on a table. "Ucchan!" Ukyou smiled at the shocked expression on Ranma's face, "What, you think I would miss something like this? "she asked cheerfully, then she looked at Soun. Soun took his que, "Nabiki, Kasumi, let's let them have a moment's privacy, shall we?" they left the room, with Kasumi giving them a smile as she shut the door. There was silence between the two for a moment, Ukyou's smile faded, while Ranma kept looking down to the floor and back. Finally, unable to take the silence any longer, Ranma spoke. "You...umm...look fabulous, Ucchan..."she started. "You think so?" Ukyou raised her arms and spun around, showing off. She was dressed in a tuxedo, black, with a gray bowtie and cumberbun, and a white long-sleeved blouse with frills in the front and cuffs. The jacket was cut above the waist, with long tails, and a pair of black heels instead of shoes. Her hair was tied back with its usual bow. "Thanks, you look good yourself." Although it was a western ceremony that was being conducted, Ranma was clad in the traditional wedding Kimono. Around her waist was a blue sash, but it was evident by the fit of her dress and her loose hair that she wasn't done dressing. "heh heh, I wish I felt it," Ranma admitted, looking back down to the floor. "Let's see here," Ukyou crossed her arms and started circling Ranma, looking her over. A large tear-shaped sweat bead appeared on the back of Ranma's head, "According to tradition, a bride needs four things," Ukyou completed the circle and stood in front of Ranma, an eyebrow raised, "I see you have something blue, do you have something old?" "Uhh, yeah, the dress..." Ranma started weakly. "Something new?" "My earrings," she gestured to the two pearls clipped to her lobes, "they're wedding gifts from Kasumi--" "What about something borrowed?" "Well, sort of Everything is borrowed in a way--" "A-HA! get me a brush." Ranma drew back, "Your not gonna smack me, are ya?" "Get a brush, Idiot! I want to help." Confused, Ranma went back into the bedroom and came back with Nabiki's brush. Ukyou moved a footstool over and gestured for her to sit down, pulling up a stool for herself and sitting behind her. "Mr. Tendo says the curse is permanent now," Ukyou asked as she brushed Ranma's hair out in slow, even strokes. When free of the pigtail, her hair came down to mid-back. "Yeah, happens if you fall in twice," God, she's gonna blow up and smack me. "And Akane-chan jumped in after you, right sugar?" "She did it because she loves me," Ranma started to turn around, but Ukyou turned her back around. "Stay still, I can't do this otherwise," Ukyou finished and set the brush down, then started pulling Ranma's hair back. "What about you?" "What about me?" Ranma repeated. "Do you love her?" "It's him now, actually." Ukyou bopped her lightly on the head, "Answer the question!" Ranma took a moment to think how best to answer. "If I didn't, I wouldn't be here now." "That's not an answer, Ranma." "Alright, yes, I do love him." Ranma straightened as Ukyou paused, "It took awhile to admit it, but I've always loved Akane." Ranma felt Ukyou start to weave her hair, "Ranma...do you love me?" Ranma paused even longer, "Ucchan...I do love you, but I have to be honest..." As she was turned around, she didn't see the emotions that played across Ukyou's face, "I love you as a best friend, even a Sister. "I can't lead you on, you deserve the truth, and I have to be a, well,*man* about this. You have my greatest Friendship, Akane has my Heart." Ukyou was silent for a moment as she worked the hair, then finished. "Okay, you can get up now." Ranma turned around and saw that Ukyou's hair was now loose around her shoulders. Reaching around, Ranma discovered that Ukyou's ribbon had been french-braided into the pigtail with the bow at the end. "Ucchan, Thank you! it's very nice," she saw that her friends eyes were misting "Ucchan...please, don't cry, I didn't mean to hurt you." "Hey," she grabbed Ranma's hand's, "That is enough, just let me speak for a moment. "I don't have long, but I want to say that what's important is your happiness right now. To be honest, yes, I wish that it was me that was walking the aisle with you, but it's not. If it's Akane-kun that you love, then you should do the best you can to make him happy. "There are others who won't like what your doing today, but you can't worry about that, you have to make the right choice for yourself, Ranchan. everything else will take care of itself." Biting her lower lip, Ranma drew her friend in and hugged her. "Thank you." "I love you, Ranchan, friends?" "Always, Ucchan, always." After a moment Ukyou broke free and stood up, "Don't worry, I'm not gonna make trouble for you," she went and picked up the camcorder, "In fact, I'm your family photographer." "You'll do a great job, Ucchan." "So will you, good luck." Ukyou turned and opened the door to leave, causing Soun, Kasumi, and Nabiki to tumble into the room. "I can't believe you jerks!" Ranma snapped as she jumped to her feet. "Oh my..." "Hello there, Ranma, we were just about to knock..." "Yeah, Right! Get up! we have to finish getting ready!" Ukyou stepped over them and went to the end of the hall, where she could still hear Ranma going off on the others. There, she'd done it, She had talked to Ranma, in a mature, reasoning manner, and had remained friends with her, just like she had promised herself she would. Ukyou leaned against the wall and released a ragged sigh, her emotions warring within her. They were her friends! I want to be happy for them! {He's your true love, and that uncute tomboy is taking him away!} No! he loves her! {He could love You like that!} "God, this is more painful than I thought," she muttered, trying to collect herself. By the time Soun walked up to her, Ukyou's mask was firmly back in place. "Come, child, let's see the other's," he said cheerfully as he led her by the elbow. "Right! I want to give my best to the Groom, too," she set the camcorder on her shoulder and they walked off. Soun and Ukyou knocked on the door to the groom's quarter's, and entered on Mr. Saotome's gruff, "Come in!" Ukyou hid behind the camcorder again, hoping for another surprised reaction. Akane-kun and Genma Saotome were alone in the room. Akane-kun {she's the enemy! stop her!} was dressed in a gray tuxedo with blue cumberbun, and was currently sitting on the bed in a lotus position, coat off and collar open, watching Mr. Saotome, who was dressed in the traditional robes of the Brides Father, trying to figure out the bowtie. "is it over...no, under...wait..." "Well, Saotome, at last, the day is here!" Soun greeted. "Ah, Tendo, when did you get back?" Genma turned and faced his friend, the bowtie convienetly forgotten, "Did you get what you needed at home?" "Sure did, Saotome," Soun turned and looked at his newly acquired son, who jumped off the bed and gave him a quick hug. "You got them?" Akane asked, stepping back "The ring?" Soun reached into his coat pocket and produced a small, three banded gold ring, "Yes, your Mother's wedding band," he said quietly, remembering his own wedding. "What about our friends?" Akane asked next. {See? your not important to them! She asked about you Last!} Ukyou cleared her throat and pasted a smile on her face, setting the camera down, "Right here, Kiddo." Akane ran over and unexpectedly swept Ukyou up in a hug, surprising her. He was as tall as she was! Nervously, Ukyou returned it. Akane drew back then and gave Ukyou one of the most dazzling smiles she had ever seen, "Ukyou! I'm so glad you made it!" He was? Of course he was! "Hey, I wouldn't miss this for the world..." Akane turned and looked at his father then, "If you two could excuse us please?" he asked, "I'd like to talk to her alone." "Ohh, if only you knew how proud you've made your Father today," Soun bawled as they walked out. "Yeah, yeah, that's only the fortieth time you've said that since China," Akane muttered, "And no eavesdropping!" Ukyou just stared at this stranger-friend who had greeted her so warmly, "Wow, Akane--" she finally said, "-- you came out -- Good looking..." "You like?" Akane spun around, showing off. "It's the latest in Jusenkyo fashions." If Ukyou hadn't known better, she would have sworn that this was Akane's brother. His built and height were almost identical to Male Ranma's, a bit wider in the shoulder's and hip's, maybe, and he had the same facial structure as before, although the face was male now, maybe a bit longer. The only thing that hadn't changed were her eyes. They were still the same expressive hazel ones that Ukyou remembered. "You're going to drive the girls wild back at home," she finally said after a long pause. Akane simply shrugged at this. He seemed the epitome of calm, although Ukyou did notice his hands shaking. "Daddy obviously found you, did anyone else come?" unlike Ranma, Akane knew exactly why his father had gone to Nerima. "Just Mousse and I," Ukyou said, "I didn't think we needed Shampoo or Ryoga disrupting the wedding." she shifted nervously as Akane walked past and sat back down on the bed, "Your certainly holding up better than the Bride is." "How's that?" "Nabiki called it the `I'm not ready stage' , but she just seemed nervous to me." "Ah, that," Akane smiled again, "Yeah, I went through that last night, now I'm just anxious to get this over with." {How *Dare* she be so calm!} Ukyou bit back that particular response, "Uh, why aren't you finished dressing?" Akane shrugged, "I don't know how to tie bowties, neither did Mr. Saotome." "Well, I think I can help there," Ukyou picked the bowtie up from the endtable {That's it, Help the Enemy!} and quickly set it right, "Here you go." "Thank you," Akane took the bowtie and walked over to the mirror, slipping it over his collar. Ukyou sat down on the edge of the bed and watched. "I want you to know I'm really glad you could come on such short notice," Akane said as he tried adjusting the tie, "We would have sent invitations but things have been moving so fast..." {I'm sure you would have!} "Hey, I'm here now, that's what matters..." Ukyou trailed off as her throat started to tighten up against her will. dammit, this was harder that she thought. "I'm sure Ranma appreciates it too, she was really upset that more of her friends couldn't be here, especially since her mother doesn't know..." {Do you hear that? Your only a Friend!} {Just a Friend!!} {A FRIEND!!!} With a shriek of rage Ukyou's fist smashed into the bedside lamp, almost of it's own violation, then in shame she bit into her palm to try and stop the tears that suddenly wouldn't stop. Akane relaxed from the defensive stance when it was apparent that he wasn't under attack, and slowly edged toward the bed. Tentatively, he reached out, but Ukyou curled away. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Ukyou managed to force out. Akane slowly sat down, "About what, tell me." "I--I want to-- to be happy-- for you, or I-- I want to be a- angry with you-- but I *can't!*" Ukyou tried to stop crying but couldn't. "That's all I am to-- to him is a *friend!* I-- I never stood a chance! It's not fair! It's *not!*" she whirled and started flailing away at Akane, but he easily caught her fists. With a sudden jerk Akane pulled Ukyou forward and held her. She tried to break free but Akane was stronger now. Eventually, Ukyou collapsed against him and sobbed into his chest. "It's alright, it's alright," Akane whispered as he rocked her back and forth, running his hand over her back and shoulders, "Let it out Ukyou, let it out..." They stayed that way for several minutes, the only sound being Ukyou's slowly fading cries. Eventually, Ukyou quieted and slowly backed away. Akane reached for several tissues and started cleaning mascara from Ukyou's face. "I didn't think the tears would start before the wedding," he said. Ukyou sort of chuckled but wouldn't look up. "Can you imagine what it's like, Akane, to see the one that you love being married to someone else?" she took the tissues away and rubbed her eyes, sniffling like a small child, "And the worst part is, I want to hate you for it but I Can't" Akane laid a hand on her shoulder, "Why's that?" "You two always fight, you never seem to get along, But I know that you both are good people, and that you care for each other..." she looked up then, "It hurt's, Akane, it really hurts!" "I'm sorry, Ukyou, I really am. I wish I could say something to make it better." "I'm not even able to stand by Ranchan as part of the wedding party..." "We could ask one of my sisters to step aside," Akane started, "I'm sure they'd understand." "No, no, they're family, they deserve to be there," Ukyou interrupted, waving the suggestion aside, "I'm just a friend..." "HEY!" Ukyou jumped at the sharpness in his voice, "Let's get one thing straight: you are not *just* anything! You are Ranma's best and closest friend, and she wants you to be here just as much as I, because we love you. We want you to be happy, and to share in our happiness, your very important to us. I'm sorry that we didn't consider that this would be painful to you, and if you want to leave because it's painful, then we understand," Akane softened a bit then, "But I'd really like it if you stayed." Ukyou was quiet for a long time. Akane slid her right hand over her shoulders and pulled Ukyou against him in a partial hug. Gingerly, Ukyou rested her right hand on his shoulder. "Do you really mean that?" she asked quietly. "Yes, I do." Akane whispered, "I'd like to think of you as my friend as well, and to be honest, we're going to need all the friends we can get." "Really?" "It's not going to be easy for us or those around us, adjusting to the fact that we're of the opposite sex now," Akane told her, "We need people we can turn to for support, just like you are now." Ukyou sat back up, "I got your shirt dirty," she pointed to the mascara stains on the shoulder. "That's okay, the jacket will hide them." They sat in silence for several more moments, Ukyou rubbing away at the stains. She then stopped and sat back. "You've changed, your a lot calmer than you used to be," Ukyou observed. Akane shrugged, "I only seem calm, I worked a lot off last night," he raised one of his hands, which was still shaking, "I just decided that nothing was going to ruin this day for us." Akane stood and helped Ukyou up, "Feel any better?" "No, I feel miserable." Ukyou said. She reached up and adjusted Akane's tie, "But that's not going to stop me. C'mon, lets get you ready." Five minutes later, the groom was ready and being filmed by Ukyou. Mr. Tendo walked in then to tell Ukyou to take her place for the ceremony. With a quick good-bye for both of them, Ukyou ran from the room as fast as her heels would let her. Memories flashed through her mind as she hurried to the chapel; Her last memory of Ranma as a child sitting on top of a rapidly retreating okinomiyaki yettai, training against the seas as a warrior to seek revenge, then finding Ranma again years later and bidding for his hand. The battles they had fought, both for and against each other, the friendships she had made, The battles she had won. {But you lost the most important one, didn't you? And now Ranma's marrying someone Else!} Stop it! Ukyou told herself, he found someone he loves. They fought constantly, but even I can see now that it's because of their egos, not from hatred. Akane was a good person, basically, at heart. And I really am trying to be happy for you, Ranchan, she told herself, I love you too. Herself laughed back at her mockingly. Herself then found herself on the receiving end of a giant mental Spatula. Ukyou reached the entranceway to the Chapel where ushers were leading people in. Waiting for her was Mousse, dressed in the ceremonial robes of a wedding guest for his village. She walked up and tapped him on the shoulder. "Are we ready, Mr. Tendo?" he asked. With a sigh, Ukyou reached up and lowered Mousse's glasses down with her free hand. "Yes Mousse, I'm ready," she told him, shaking her head, "Thanks for waiting." Mousse bowed his head, his hands hidden in the depths of his volumeous sleeves, "It is an honor to serve." An usher walked forward and, after a brief discussion to find Ukyou the best spot to videotape the wedding, led them to the honored guest seating. After ten minutes, the Groomsmen started filing in to their positions. "That's my que," Ukyou ran over and assumed a position by the front rows, one where she wouldn't be in the way of the wedding parties, yet still giving her a clear range in which to film. Ukyou quickly checked her equipment, feelings of anxiety and grief mixing with her excitement of the moment. Don't back down now, girl, she thought to herself, then started recording as the Priest signaled for the Wedding March and the wedding parties approached. First she did a pan across the Grooms and best men, ending on Akane and Mr. Tendo. Akane glanced over and smiled shyly at her, while Ukyou noticed that Mr. Tendo hadn't waited for the wedding to begin, as the front of his coat was drenched. Ukyou then panned over to the approaching wedding parties, noticing that everybody had calmed down when the march started. Her view back was limited to the middle of the aisle, so she focused there, letting the other couples walk by, then centering on the Tendo's when they appeared. Nabiki and Kasumi were first, acting as Ring Bearer and Maid of Honor, both of them looking fabulous in her opinion. Then came the Father and Bride, Genma clad in the ceremonial robes of the Father, joy and pride radiating off him. On his arm was-- oh my god... Ranma-chan looked Beautiful! Kasumi really outdid herself with the wedding dress. Through the veil Ukyou could see the expression of simple happiness that Ranma wore. Ukyou felt a stab of ugly depression, then strengthened her resolve. With a quick glance at Akane-kun, who was simply staring down the aisle, she followed her friends procession up the aisle. "Will you SHUT UP!!!" What? Ukyou looked up in time to see a fireball leaping off a frying pan from Lum's wedding party. Ukyou gasped and kept the camera targeted on her friend's, while watching what was going on. Suddenly one of the women from the front row pulled out what looked like a super-soaker and fired, dousing the fireball in mid-air, but the stream of water continued through, to splash Mr. Saotome squarely in the face. Everybody gasped as a giant panda suddenly appeared in there midst, clad in robes no less. The panda reached up and adjusted his glasses, then gave out a huff and patted Ranma's hand (who looked like she was trying to smother herself in her bouquet), walking past the offending parties with his nose up. The scene was so typical that Ukyou did something she hadn't done in days. She laughed. In spite of the people shushing her from the pew next to her, she couldn't stop. Covering her mouth only made her snicker, and even when the Priest called for silence, it still came as a muted giggle, but she snapped her attention forward when the Priest scowled at her, focusing on her job and aware of Akane and Ranma only. Everyone's attention focused forward as the Panda handed Ranma's hand to Akane, then stepped back. Nabiki handed something to Soun, who also stepped back behind the couple, and took a seat in the front pews. Ranma handed her bouquet to Kasumi, who also stepped behind them, then all the couples turned to face the Priest. As he started to speak, Ukyou scooted forward , not wanting to miss the words. "We are gathered here today, Family... Friends... Loved ones, young and old, to witness today the joining of these fine young couples within the bonds of holy Matrimony," the Priest started, "In today's uncertain times, they come forth to show to the world the depth's of their love and trust in each other as they proceed down this most uncertain path. "May I ask, who is ready to start down this road?" "I am, Holy one." Akane spoke clearly, stepping forward. "And who gives the Bride to this good man?" "Grrarfff." "Excuse me?" the Priest seemed startled. The panda held up a sign. `I do, Holy one' it read. Ukyou snickered again as the panda stepped back and took a seat by Nabiki. The Priest visibly had to regain his train of thought. "...ah ...yes ...Is there anyone here today who can show just cause as to why any of these couples should not be joined?" Ukyou tensed, expecting Kuno or Shampoo to come bursting in, but after a few moments, the hall remained quiet. "Very well," The priest addressed each couple singly, moving down the line. Soon he reached her friends. "...Do you, Saotome Ranma, take this man to be your lawfully wedded Husband, for better or for worst, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to have and to hold, from this day forth?" Ranma looked up into Akane's eyes and smiled, "I will." "Do you, Tendo Akane, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded Wife, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to have and to hold, from this day forth?" Akane had to clear his throat first, "I will." "Present the rings." Mr.Tendo stepped up and handed a ring to both of them. The Priest looked at Akane, "Repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed." Akane slowly slipped the ring onto Ranma's left hand, "With this ring, I thee wed." The Priest looked to Ranma, "Repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed." Ranma slipped the ring onto Akane's left hand, then squeezed said hand softly, "With this ring, I thee wed." And now, by the power invested in me by the authority of the church and God, and in the presence of all those held dear, I know pronounce you Husbands, and Wives," The Priest looked at all the couples and smiled, "You may now kiss your Brides." Ukyou sighed as Akane lifted the veil back and met Ranma halfway in a deep, passionate kiss. After a moment, the Priest tapped each couple and turned them around as he presented them, ending with-- "Ladies and Gentlemen, I now present to you Mr. and Mrs. Tendo Akane!" The entire audience by then were on their feet and showing their joy with thunderous applause. Kasumi seemed on the brink of tears, while Soun was well over the brink and falling fast. The Panda was trying his best to applaud and dab at his eyes at the same time. Kasumi and Nabiki reached into their pockets, and suddenly they were throwing confetti at the newlyweds. Ukyou stood up , still filming, and started waving her free hand in the air. But even in the midst of everyone's happiness, she couldn't ignore the darkness that seemed to close around her heart. * * * About half an hour later, everyone had adjourned to the Mendo reception hall, which was set up with a live band and was already playing soft jazz. After the Bride's dance, all of the Bride's had gone upstairs and changed out of their wedding Kimono's (except for Ranma, who only had her chinese clothes, and couldn't figure out how to remove all the pins to take the dress off.) while most the Grooms and Groomsmen had shucked their coats upstairs. Long tables were set up for all the party goers, with large round tables for the newlyweds and their immediate families. Akane walked into the room and over to the table where his new bride sat with the Fathers, having changed into a clean shirt and carrying his coat. Also at the table were Nabiki, Ukyou, and Dr. Foo, who had arrived from China to attend the wedding. Akane walked up behind Ranma and hugged her from behind where she sat, "I'm back love." Ranma looked up and met him with a soft kiss, which provoked a round of kissing sounds and table-thumping from the other occupants. Blushing, Akane pulled out a chair and sat, holding Ranma's hand. "So, how's it feel to finally be married, Son?" Genma asked, back in his normal form. "Well, It's--" both of the newlyweds started to say, then broke into giggles, "This is going to take some getting used to," Akane finished. Ranma reached up to touch his face, "We have all the time it the world, Love, enjoy it," she drew Akane close and kissed him again, provoking another round of table-thumping from everyone except Ukyou, who looked down at her hands. They were cut short, however, as a voice from behind interrupted. "SAOTOME!" Ranma and Akane turned, then slowly stood as Mousse, arms still hidden in his sleeves, walked toward them. "H-hiya, Mousse, h-how's it goin'?" Ranma stuttered. Dammit, this was no place for a fight, and she sure couldn't kick in this kimono... "Mousse, this is not the time or place--"Akane started to say. "I have only one thing to say to you two," Mousse growled as he walked up to them. With blinding speed his hands shot out towards them. The two Newlyweds dropped to defensive stances, then just gaped at what they saw. Mousse stood there, a small smile starting to creep onto his face, as he held out two red roses for both of them, "Congratulations on your new life together." Both of them visibly relaxed, "God, don't scare us like that!" they said in unison, then took the roses. Mousse then swept both of them up in a fierce hug. "I didn't know you were here too," Ranma said when let go, motioning for Mousse to sit with them, "Is anyone else here?" "Just one other," another voice from behind said. They looked up to see... "Dr. Tofu!" The good Doctor smiled down at them kindly, placing a hand on their shoulders, "It's nice to see that the two of you finally decided to get along. I'm glad to see that you've recovered too, Ranma-chan, Although I must say that the cure was a bit unusual." "Yes, most unpredictable are the Springs of Jusenkyo," Dr. Foo said as he stood and bowed, "Doctor, a pleasure to finally meet you, I am Dr. Foo." Dr. Tofu bowed back, "The pleasure is mine, Doctor Foo, I was hoping to be able to consult with you on their conditions, as I am the family's doctor." the soft jazz the band played ended, and a waltz started. "I am at your disposal, sir," Dr. Foo agreed, "In fact, if you have a moment..." "Why Doctor Tofu, how nice to see you," Kasumi said as she walked up to the table. Dr. Tofu turned around and a idiotic grin appeared as his glasses fogged, "K-Kasumi! Imagine meeting you here... heh heh... what a coincidence..." he continued to babble while twiddling his fingertips. Kasumi giggled demurely, "Dr. Tofu, your such a character, would you like to dance?" "Dance? why it's no trouble at all..." Tofu babbled as he was led away. Akane looked over at Ranma, then was suddenly pulling her out onto the dancefloor. "I find that I also would not be adverse to a bit of recreation," Mousse said, also rising. Bowing at the waist, he offered his hand to Ukyou, "Shall we?" Ukyou jumped in total shock, "uh, um, well... sorry Mousse, gotta play photojournalist," grabbing the camcorder, she ran off to tape the newlyweds. Mousse straightened, clearly disappointed, but smiled again when Nabiki rose. "I however, would never pass up the chance to dance with such a handsome gentleman," she offered her hand and was led out onto the dancefloor. "Ahh, Tendo, what a great day this is," Genma spoke in his deep rumble of a voice, "Our families finally united--" "And the legacy of the School of Anything goes martial arts is secured," Soun Agreed, sipping from his sake glass. "I will admit to a bit of surprise, Ranma taking Akane's name like that..." Genma said after a pause. "Eh? what's wrong with that?" Soun asked tersely. "Nothing! nothing at all, heh heh..." Genma nervously laughed, "I simply meant that it seems the boy is accepting his transformation in rather good grace, don't you think?" The two fathers watched their children dance in silence. "Augghhh..." Genma wailed suddenly, "If only his Mother could be here to see this day--" Genma was suddenly interrupted as a water bucket was broken over his head, driving him to the floor, "And who's fault is that, *Old Man!*" Ranma screamed over him, Akane trying to pull her away, "If you didn't go and make that *STUPID* promise--!" Genma-Panda stood up, rubbing the large bump on his head, and started growling at her. "Don't give me that!" Ranma bellowed back, "It's your fault that she's not here!" She hauled off and punched the panda in the stomach. "Ranma, you're causing a scene!" Akane hissed, trying again to move her by the arm. Ranma ignored him as she ducked a swing and smacked the panda again. "Aurruu, grafff braww--!" "Shut Up! I don't want to hear it Old Man!" Smack! Thump! Mousse returned Nabiki to the table, then calmly walked over and grabbed Ranma's free arm, helping to drag her bodily from the room. "Hey! Leggo--! I'm not finished--!" Genma-panda slumped back down and bawled into his paws. "Such a violent girl, that Ranma, wouldn't you agree, Darling?" Lum asked Ataru as they waltzed, having seen the whole thing. "Yes, not at all like her husband..." Ataru agreed. Akane and Mousse dragged Ranma down to the end of the hall, then blocked her in as she paced back and forth. "What was that about?" Mousse asked in a whisper. "Ranma hasn't seen her mother since she was six," Akane whispered back, "She doesn't know about the curse, and Mr. Saotome promised that they would commit seppaku if he failed to raise Ranma as a `Real Man'." After a moment, Ranma stopped pacing and walked up to them. "I'm... Calmer now," she muttered sullenly, not looking up. "That was totally uncalled for," Akane started to chastise. Ranma looked up to say something, and Akane saw a look of--was that regret? --in her eyes, but just then the panda walked out into the hall. He looked down at them, meeting eyes with his daughter, then Ranma spun around, her anger back. Dejected, the panda shuffled upstairs in search of hot water, his head low. "Mousse, thank you. Could you please go back? I'd like to talk to my wife in private," Akane asked. Mousse bowed and turned to leave, but then stopped. "I have no parents, Ranma" he said simply, "Consider yourself lucky that you have a mother who just doesn't know you, instead of no mother at all." he then returned to the reception hall. Akane looked after him for a moment, then turned back to Ranma, who still faced away and was now shaking with anger. "You should probably apologize to your father," he started, and was met with silence. Now Akane started getting mad, "Are you even listening to me, Ranma!" he turned her around by the shoulders and was shocked to see that Ranma wasn't mad. She was crying. Akane stood dumbfounded as Ranma put her arms around his neck and cried into his shoulder. "Ah-- uh-- C'mon Ranma, it's not that bad..." Reflexively, Akane glanced around to see if anyone was watching, then started to stroke Ranma's hair. "You don't understand," Ranma looked up, seeming like a small child at that moment, "For once, I was actually happy, then Pop had to bring that up? If I couldn't see Mom before, how am I supposed to Now?" "I can't answer that, Love," Akane said as he held her closer, "We'll think of something, though." They stood and held each other for a few quiet moments. "I don't think beating your father up helps, though," Akane suggested. "No, I guess not..." Ranma quietly agreed, "But it makes me feel better." Akane thought back to all the times he had wanted to smack Mr. Saotome around as well and started laughing. Soon Ranma joined in. Mousse, Ukyou, Nabiki, and Soun all sighed in relief as they peered around the doorway, they wouldn't have to diffuse a fight scene today. Genma returned in time to see Lum and Ataru cut the wedding cake, and quietly sat down as the other couples took turns serving each other from it. He caught Ranma and Akane glancing at him while eating there's from across the room, but they quickly turned away. Genma felt low. He nodded perfuctually as Soun continued to talk to him and they sipped sake, but he really wasn't listening. He was overjoyed that Ranma and Akane were finally married, and he was proud of the son he had raised, the fact that he was now a daughter was totally irrelevant. But Genma was afraid that these feelings were only one-way. Genma sighed and sipped from his sake glass again. Yes, that was the crux of the matter. He knew that his child was angry with him, had every right to be, really, but did Ranma like him? Genma was afraid that the answer was no. And if it was, he really couldn't fault him. After the cake cutting was done, the dancers started heading out to the floor again. Mousse offered his hand to Ranma, who took it in surprise, (the surprise being Akane shoving her forward) Soun swept Nabiki onto the floor, while Tofu asked Ukyou, who turned him down and busied herself with the camera again. Genma almost jumped when a hand was placed on his shoulder. "Mr. Saotome, I don't believe you've danced yet," Kasumi asked pleasantly. "Why Kasumi, I'd be delighted," Genma rose and led her to the dancefloor, leading her in a classic waltz. "Your a very good dancer," Kasumi complemented as they weaved around the other dancers. "It's been years, really," Genma replied, starting to reminisce, "When I was younger, your Aunt and I used to dance every weekend, it was a delight simply to hold her..." "Have you contacted her yet?" Kasumi asked. Genma started and stared down at her. "Mr. Saotome, I know about the conditions of your promise, but Auntie Saotome has a right to see her son, and Ranma has a right to meet his mother," she spun them in a way that Genma was suddenly looking at Ranma, " His change is permanent now, there's no way around that, and she needs her mother." "There's more to this than you think--" Genma started to say sullenly. Kasumi didn't frown, but she suddenly lost her pleasant expression, scaring Genma, "Ranma became my Sister-in-law today, Mr. Saotome. Today is one of the happiest in her young life, and rarely have I seen her or Akane so giddy. The one thing that takes away from that is that they cannot see Auntie Saotome, and it hurts both of them. I do not like to see my sisters hurt, and you know that I will protect them. This is a situation that has gone on far too long due to your short sightedness, and I don't see you doing anything to remedy it. "Quite frankly, if Ranma hadn't struck you with that bucket, I would have." Kasumi softened somewhat as it seemed that Genma was about to cry, "Mr. Saotome... Genma... I say this out of concern for you too. If you and Ranma don't address your problems soon, they will continue to drive both of you further apart, until one day you find that you no longer have a child, just a stranger with no interest in knowing you, and I don't want that to happen. Make amends, while you still have the chance." Silently, Genma nodded. Ranma was quite surprised, to say the least. Although the idea of dancing with any man besides Akane (Which didn't count in a way) made her nervous, Mousse was actually quite comfortable to dance with. He held her close enough to lead, but not enough to be intimate. His hand on her waist was firm but not offensive, and he was skilled enough to compensate for her lack of skill. Ranma also found that if she thought of this as being led through a Kata, she enjoyed it more. "Mousse, why are you being so nice?" Ranma asked as he spun her out in a twirl, drawing her back in. "Several reasons, which one do you want to hear?" he asked, keeping her from stumbling. "Is one of them because I married Akane and not Shampoo?" "That's one," Mousse agreed, "Although I do not think she'll be too happy when she finds out. Another is that I always thought that you and Akane should be together, and I'm glad you two finally realized it." Mousse paused for a moment, "It is also that I... Sympathize with you, I wouldn't want to spend the rest of my life as a duck." "It's hard," Ranma agreed, "I don't think I could do it if it wasn't for Akane," Ranma also seemed to pause for a moment, "Mousse, there's something I should tell you..." "What, you like tall men with glasses?" Mousse asked deadpan. Ranma's jaw dropped and she stared at Mousse, who was smiling at her reaction. "God, that's sick," Ranma shuddered, then tried again, "Mousse, I've brought back water from Jusenkyo, from the spring of Drowned Man." It was Mousse's turn to stumble, but he quickly recovered, "Are you serious?" Ranma nodded, "I brought it back for-- to stop one of the feuds. I'm sorry, but I hadn't even considered your curse, But I have enough for you as well." Mousse said nothing for a minute. "Mousse, I'd like to be friends, the reason for our feud is stupid--" "Keep it," Mousse interrupted. "Keep it?" Had she heard him right? "But I thought you said--" "I wouldn't want to Stay a duck, true," Mousse agreed, "But I have accepted my curse, it no longer has power over me. And I might one day have need of the power it gives me. Do you understand?" " I guess I can," Ranma agreed, "Are we friends then?" "I would not be adverse to that," Mousse also agreed, whirling her around again, "So, how do you plan on getting the water to Ryoga?" Ranma face-faulted, "You KNOW?" Mousse nodded, "Most of us do. I found out at the Christmas party," the music stopped then, and Mousse led Ranma back towards the table on his arm. "I really don't know," she sighed, "But I have to do it so that Akane doesn't find out, He'd kill us both if he does." Just then Ranma became aware of something, as if an icy finger had just touched the back of her skull. Ranma stopped, looking around. She had only felt this before when in the presence of danger, or something weird. "Something wrong, Ranma?' Mousse asked, pushing his glasses back and looking too. "I don't know... Something..." Her attention was drawn to the Host's table, where a Occidental couple had just approached and was talking to the still standing Lum and Ataru. The man was tall, dark-haired with a beard, and had laughing blue eyes. The woman was a voluptuous brunette, her hair a dark mane of tight ringlets down to her waist, and had exotically dark eyes. The man was dressed in a classic tuxedo, while the woman wore a forest green dress which clung to her curves. "Mousse... who are they?" Mousse adjusted his glasses again as he looked at them, "I'm not sure, friends of your cousin, maybe?" he shrugged. The woman looked up and around, then looked right at Ranma. After a moment, she turned back to her companion, made their apologies, then the two of them walked away. "That was weird," Ranma said, then was led back to the table. * * * The couple walked out into the hall and looked around, making sure they wern't spotted. "What was that about?" The man asked his companion. "I sensed that one of the brides had spotted us," The woman replied, "I thought that our cover might be at risk." "Do you think anyone suspects?" The man asked her, a concerned look on his face. The woman pasued for a second, as if seeing back into the reception hall, "No, I don't think so, but it's hard to tell with so many people close by. I don't think it's a good idea to go back in there." The man nodded, "I think your right, we have the information we came for, there's no need to risk getting caught." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small golden broach, which chirped when he tapped it, "Landing party to Transporter room, Two to beam up." The two of them disappeared in a shower of light. * * * At the table, Doctor Foo and Tofu were talking quietly, while Nabiki sat next to them and looked bored. Genma was listening to the conversation from across the table, while Akane was sitting next to Tofu, also listening. Kasumi and Soun were already back on the dancefloor. Mousse pulled a chair out for Ranma, but she evidently thought it was too close to her father, and sat down next to Akane. Before Mousse could sit down, Nabiki was pulling him off towards the dancers again. "Ah, Ranma, you and Akane might be interested in this," Dr. Tofu said to them. "I was just explaining to the good Doctor here some of the possible changes you might experience due to your transformations," Dr. Foo explained, suddenly the center of attention. "Changes? what sort of changes?" Akane asked. "Nothing drastic, I assure you," Foo said quickly, "Just that as your bodies are now different, you should be made aware of the fact that males and females have different chemical and hormonal processes than what you are used to." "And how would these... Processes affect us?" Ranma asked. "Without further study, it's hard to say," Dr. Foo shrugged, "I would say possibly at best case, some mild discomfort until you are used to your bodies new cycles. Possibly at worst case, your emotional makeups might alter to accommodate a more masculine-- or feminine, as the case may be-- outlook. But at this point, it is purely speculation." "Actually, any real changes you experience will probably be due to social pressures," Dr. Tofu added, "People will tend to treat you both differently now." "Is there anything that can be done about it?" Akane asked him, slightly worried. "I'll want to do a complete physical on the both of you when we get back to Nerima," Dr. Tofu answered, "But to be honest, any changes you do experience are probably just a natural effect of your bodies adjusting to the transformation, so that it doesn't harm you." "In my village, when someone falls under the curses, we advise them to talk about it when it bothers them," Dr. Foo added, "you would be surprised how well it helps. "But, in the meantime..." Both doctors pulled out small packages from under the table and handed one to each of them, "These should come it handy in answering some of your questions." The two of them opened their presents, revealing three books. "`Pools of Longing' the secret history of two pools," Akane said, reading off the title of his book. "`The Male / Female body; a user's guide'" Ranma read off, holding the two books up, "Cool! I knew there had to be a instruction manual out there someplace." Everyone started laughing or choking on what they just drank at this. Soun and Kasumi came back then, along with Ukyou, to cool off and catch their breath. The conversation turned casual, being joined shortly by Mousse and Nabiki, as they sat out the next few songs. Then a fast jazz song started, and all of them jumped to their feet. "C'mon Akane, I know this number!" Ranma said, dragging him off. "It's rather fast paced--" "Don't worry, you could use the exercise!" "What was that--! Would you care to repeat that!" Mousse again asked Ukyou to dance, who again declined. Mousse had expected this, however, and snagged Kasumi's hand before he was claimed by Nabiki again. "Kasumi, I need to talk to you about Ukyou," he softly told her as they walked onto the dancefloor. As the two danced, Mousse quickly explained his concerns and asked Kasumi's advice, which she was quite willing to give. After a moment, they intersected Akane and Ranma and cut in, quickly explaining their plans to their new partners. By the time Four o'clock came around, the buffet tables had been set up for an early dinner, and the band had gone to break, promising to be back within the hour. Kasumi sat at the table alone and quietly watching her family mingle with the other guest. Nabiki was headed off to one of the back rooms with several other couples, probably to start up one of her poker games, Father was off talking to the other parents, Ranma and Mr. Saotome (separately) were in the buffet line (Naturally), while Akane was nervously chatting with the other newlyweds. Mousse was off in the corner holding a one-sided conversation with a post, while Dr. Tofu... Where was he... Ah, there he was. Tofu and Ukyou were further down the buffet line. Kasumi looked at the Camcorder that she had relieved from Ukyou an hour ago, in spite of her protests, and sighed. Since then, Someone, either Herself, Tofu, Ranma, Akane, or Mousse, had been with Ukyou, trying to draw her into the circle of friends, but as of yet she didn't seem to be enjoying herself. Hopefully though, that problem would get resolved itself, Kasumi thought as she watched Ranma walk over, balancing three plates of food while chewing on the rice cake in her mouth, now to hopefully cut short another. "Ranma, don't sit down yet," Kasumi asked, standing. Ranma set the plates down and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Wabduya waab?" Ranma mumbled around the rice cake. "Walk with me please, I need to talk to you." they walked off to one of the back rooms. "What do you want to talk about?" Ranma asked as she shut the door behind them. "You were raised mainly by your Father, right Ranma?" Kasumi asked, turning around. "More or less." Kasumi folded her hands in front of her, "Have you ever had a girlfriend before?" "Uh... well, maybe... kinda... sorta... no," Ranma stuttered as she nervously scratched the back of her head, "W-why do y-you ask?" "Ranma..." Kasumi took her hand, "has anyone ever talked to you about the wedding night?" Half an hour later they walked back out. Ranma's eyes were glazed over, her face was red, and her right eyebrow had developed a nervous twitch. Ranma tried to walk back to the table and bumped into the doorframe. Kasumi walked her back to the table and sat her down. Everyone else was finishing up and had started bombarding Akane with questions. "Have you given any thought to College yet?" "Dad! I'd like to finish high school first," Akane shuffled his remaining food around on his plate, "We're probably the only Seniors attending our school to be married, right Ranma?" "Uhh... uh huh..." "We've yet to talk about it, but I think I'd like to pursue a career in theater arts." "What about your training as a martial artist?" Genma asked. "I want to keep up with my training," Akane agreed, "But it's not the only thing I want to do." Akane laid his hand over Ranma's as he talked, then noticed something. "Ranma, are you feeling alright?" he asked, "you're not eating?" Ranma seemed to come out of a daze, "I-I'm not v-very hungry right now... you go ahead." Akane looked over at Kasumi, his eyelids `Sqwuenking' as he did. Kasumi simply looked back in innocence. Kasumi then leaned aside and whispered something to Tofu, who nodded. "Akane, can I see you for a moment?" he asked as he rose. Everybody but Ranma watched them leave, then turned on Ranma. "What was that about?" "Where are they going?" "Do you know anything about it?" "I'd-- rather not talk about it right now, Okay?" Ranma finally answered, not looking up. About twenty minutes later, Tofu led Akane back to the table, who was visibly sweating. Akane was sat back down, and he started to giggle hysterically. "Yeah, that's what I thought," Ranma muttered, getting a glass of water for him. After a moment, Akane clutched the glass in both hands. "Ranma, we need to talk." Shortly though, the conversation returned to lighter things, covering friends, martial arts, TV shows, and what not. Around Five the band came back, and the couples once again started moving to the floor, dancing the range from waltzes, soft jazz, to fast and slow dances, that they played. All too quickly, though, the night seemed to wind down. Mousse picked up the two glasses of punch and, with a sigh and a grim look, headed back to the table. This might be his last chance. Arriving at the table, he set one of the glasses down in front of Ukyou, who was resting her chin in her hands and watching the dancers with a small smile. The camcorder sat next to her again, and the only other person there was Genma, who also watched the dancers. "Now that's nice to see," Mousse said as he sat down next to Ukyou. Ukyou looked up at him, "What is?" she asked. "Your smile, it looks nice on you," Mousse said as he sipped his punch, "Even if it IS a bit unusual..." "What's that supposed to mean?" Ukyou turned her chair to face him. "Well it's just that you've been so moody lately that I thought you were enjoying not having any fun," Mousse kept his eyes on the dancers as he spoke. "What do you mean? I've been having lots of fun!" Ukyou's voice started to rise slightly. "Yep, not dancing once today, not talking to anyone, brooding by yourself, sounds like lots of fun," Mousse agreed, still watching the dancers. "Hey! just because I'm not out on the floor Prancing around--" Ukyou was getting madder now. "Of course not," Mousse agreed, "that would be too feminine." "What!!" Ukyou kicked Mousse's chair out from under him, sending it under the table and him to the floor, then stood over him threateningly as Mousse sat there, still sipping his punch, "You listen to me and you listen good! I'm just as Feminine as anyone else here!" "Like who, Akane?" Mousse stood up quickly and caught Ukyou's wrists before she could bring down the Spatula of Doom, "You know, you seem to be very angry for some reason." "Really? I wonder why!" Ukyou shouted, trying to free her wrists. While this went on, they heard the Band's announcement for the last dance. "I just have to wonder, are you mad because I'm teasing you, or is it because what I say is true?" Mousse asked simply. "What?" Ukyou looked surprised. By then most of the others had come over to break up the fight. "You came here today to stand by your friends," Mousse said softly as he lowered his hands back into his sleeves, "But you haven't done anything with them. You've stuck yourself behind a camera, you haven't danced, you haven't talked, you haven't laughed. do you really think we want you to be this unhappy?" After a moment, Ukyou tossed her spatula onto the table and turned away. "So what do you suggest I do?" she asked. "Well... as it's Tradition... " Mousse pulled another red rose out from his sleeve and held it out to her, "Have this dance with me?" "Please, Ucchan, dance with him?" Akane pleaded. "Try to be happy," Ranma added. "It is the Tradition to save the last dance for the one you came with," Genma added, standing up. It is? Mousse thought, I was only making that up. "PLEEESSE??" all of them whined. "Well... I guess so..." Ukyou relented. All of them cheered as Mousse led her to the dancefloor. Akane and Ranma watched, happy that Ukyou was at least trying to enjoy herself. Then Akane turned and offered his hand to Ranma, "May I have this dance, Dear?" Ranma started to take it, but then seemed to think of something, "Sorry Love, but this dance is for someone else." Akane looked surprised, but then smiled as Ranma walked over to her Father. "Daddy, would you like this dance?" Genma stood straighter, eyes glazed, as his daughter took him by the hand. Akane was then snatched up by Nabiki, and was soon joined by Tofu and Kasumi. Soun picked up the camcorder and taped them all, his sobs almost drowning out the band. "Tell me what your thinking, Ukyou," Mousse asked gently as they danced. "They seem so happy today," Ukyou sighed, watching Ranma, "I just wish that I was the one he'd chosen to marry." "Tell me, Ukyou," Mousse asked, "Does their happiness bring you joy, even though it hurts, too?" Ukyou looked up at him then, "Yes. Yes, it does, Mousse." "Then you are a true Friend to them, and they are lucky to know you." He whirled Ukyou around, then drew her back in, "Never underestimate your importance." "Y'know, it's odd to hear you say these things, considering your track record with Shampoo," Ukyou didn't miss the twinge that crossed Mousse's face. "That... is an entirely different matter," Mousse sighed, "And one that I must deal with soon." "How's that?" Mousse grinned, "Shampoo and the old Ghoul will not take kindly to the Marriage, or to the fact that I am friends with them." They danced in silence for a moment, then Ukyou spoke again, "I wonder if I'll ever be that happy?" she sighed wistfully. "Happiness is where you find it, Ukyou, not who you find," Mousse finally said, "If you want to be happy, you have to discover it yourself." Ukyou smiled. "Ranma, I must tell you, I'm glad to see you so happy today," Genma finally said as they danced slowly. "To be honest, I never thought I'd get through today," Ranma agreed, then a very nervous silence followed. "Ranma, I have to apologize, I haven't been much of a father to you--" Genma started. "No, really? why would you say that?" Ranma interrupted sarcastically, then clamped her mouth shut at the expression of pain that crossed her Father's face, "I'm sorry, please go on." "I know you have many reasons to hate me," Genma continued, "And... I'll probably give you more, but I just want you to know... " "Yes?" Ranma asked when he faltered. "I want you to know... that I'm proud that your my child, and that I wish I could have done more for you." He looked down at his daughter then, but her expression was unreadable. Ashamed Genma looked away. "Yes, you have given me alot of reasons Pop," Ranma finally agreed, "All the engagements, going to Jusenkyo, the Cat-fist training, butting in where your not wanted... "But, you have always been there for me, and for that... I-I L... Love you Pop." Genma pulled Ranma closer, hugging her as they danced. "So, what are your plans now, Little brother?" Nabiki asked. "For what, a Honeymoon?" Akane blanched at the thought, "God, I really don't know... we haven't given it much thought yet." "You are so unprepared, Akane," Nabiki shook her head, "At least there's One good business woman in the family." "What's that supposed to mean?" Nabiki only gave her an evil grin. * * * Akane and Ranma approached the main entrance of the Hotel hand in hand, having decided to walk instead of driving with the others. Outside the doors were four taxi's that the drivers were loading luggage into. As they walked into the main vestibule, they noticed a large pile of luggage in the middle of the floor. As they watched, Mousse entered dragging five large suitcases, followed by Nabiki, who carried a handbag. "I thought... women... were supposed to... travel light?" Mousse growled as he threw the heavy bags on the pile. "But I just Had to pick up some clothes while we were in China," Nabiki cooed, "I just Love the fashions..." Akane and Ranma stared after them as Nabiki dragged Mousse off again, "Nabiki--?" "Well, she has been hanging around him all day... " Ranma reasoned, still staring. ""And Mousse is rather handsome... " Akane agreed. "What's that supposed to mean?" "Why Ranma..." Akane looked down at her, "I think your jealous." "Jealous--! of that near-sighted--" any further comments were cut short by Akane's kiss. Ranma quickly melted into it. "Oh, it's such a joy to see them getting along," Soun bawled. The two jumped apart to see the whole family watching them as Soun bawled, Ukyou recording them again. "Ah jeez, we're always being interrupted," Ranma sighed, "What are we supposed to do for a little privacy?" "What do you think the Honeymoon's for, Boy?" Genma asked. Akane blushed as Ranma facefaulted. The others started moving the luggage again when Akane noticed that none of his or Ranma's bags were in the pile. "Did our stuff get loaded already?" he asked, stopping Nabiki. "Ah, on that note..." Nabiki pulled an envelope out of her handbag as the others moved around them, "Your stuff isn't loaded because your staying here." "What?" neither Akane or Ranma were sure they heard her right. "Yep. This is my wedding present to you," Nabiki handed the envelope to Akane, "This is a receipt for the Honeymoon suite for the next week, along with sixty thousand yen that I won*SAVED*... for you for spending money." Akane slowly took the envelope, "Nabiki... that's... very... Nice of you" Akane said, stunned. "Yeah, when are the rest of the pod people arriving?" Ranma asked, then collapsed as Nabiki's handbag found the top of her head. "Thank you Nabiki, that was very nice of you," Akane said before Ranma could say anything, hugging his sister. Ranma stood back up, but didn't say anything. The three of them walked out as the last of the luggage was loaded, "Now remember, you two are now on a Honeymoon, No Fighting!" Nabiki tried to look stern, but ended up smiling. Everyone walked up to them then, except for Tofu and Ukyou, and amidst tears and hugs, said their good-byes. "C'mon, people, the meters are running!" Nabiki shouted out. Reluctantly, the family climbed into the taxi's and drove off to the trainstation. A moment later, Tofu pulled up in front of them in his subaru, then he and Ukyou stepped out. Tofu walked up to Akane and Ranma and talked to them softly for several minutes, again expressing his congratulations, and asking them again to stop by his clinic when they returned. Ukyou, however, stood quietly by the front of the car, almost as if she was afraid to approach. "So why are you driving back, " Akane asked him. "Well, I drove here, so it made sense," Tofu smiled down at him, "I was going to ask Kasumi to ride back with me, but everybody seemed to think that Ukyou would be a better choice, as she doesn't have any luggage." Akane tried to ignore Ranma's snickering to continue the conversation. "Well, I think that Ukyou also wants to talk to you, so... " Tofu said after a moment, "I wish you two luck." with a smile, Tofu bowed to them, then stepped back into the car. The couple turned to look at Ukyou, who still watched them silently. "Ucchan, it's time to say good-bye," Ranma said finally, breaking the silence. Suddenly, Ukyou was there, holding onto Ranma tightly, not making a sound. After a moment she stepped back, then reached for Akane and hugged him just as tightly. Again, after a moment, Ukyou stepped back, holding her hands in front of her and her face flushed. "Stop by the restaurant when you get back," she asked softly. "Are you going to be alright?" Ranma asked her, holding Akane's hand. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Just take care of yourselves, alright?" Ukyou's voice wavered then, so she turned and stepped back into the car. With a wave, Tofu drove off, leaving the couple alone at last. "I hope Ucchan will be okay," Ranma muttered as they walked back inside. "I hope so too," Akane agreed, "She's going to have to work through alot of it on her own, all we can do is be there for her when she needs us." "I was Really surprised that Mousse showed," Ranma said, pointing toward the elevators. "Yeah, that's just One problem solved though," Akane sighed, moving along, "I can think of one called Shampoo, one called Cologne, Kuno, Kodachi, half the school population--" "Hey!" Ranma drew Akane short on his ramblings and pushed the button, "All day today we've been paraded around, shown off, video taped, asked questions about our future, I've danced with people I'm usually fighting with, saw a couple that gave me the willies but didn't attack, I've been in a dress all day that I can't take off, and I've more or less enjoyed myself. Not a typical day." "I guess so," Akane agreed bemused, "So what's your point?" "My point is that I'm tired of wondering about what others are going to do, and want to spend some time alone with my beloved." Ranma finished as the doors opened. "Then what would you like to talk about?" Akane asked as he was pulled into the elevator. "I wasn't thinking about talking..." The elevator doors closed. End part one Authors notes: Okay this is my first attempt at fan fic (but not at writing) and this looks like the spot to say a few things. First of all, Most of my knowledge of Ranma 1/2 comes from Viz video and a few translated comics, as well as many hours of reading textfiles. That's all. Unfortunately, I know almost *Nothing* of the `UY regulars' so I tried to use them as little as possible. As my knowledge is somewhat limited, please forgive any gross mis- characterization on my part. I realize some of the characters aren't acting themselves, (Ranma and Akane aren't punching each other) but hopefully the reasons will soon become clear. Besides, they'll be back to normal soon. The idea for this story came about after reading the script: the final solution, what a pair of dips! in which Ranma and Akane are both permanently cursed, then get married. I liked the script, but it occurred to me that it didn't even touch on the reactions of the other cast members. (and hence, many opportunities for some great chaos!) so, the story before you was done. If you like the story, please tell me why, if you hated it why, please tell me (but please! say more than "you suck!" I Crave constructive criticism! It's my ADDICTION!!) I now have my own E-mail address! So you can now send your caustic comments, racious remarks, noxious notes, and original observations to: Ridgewolfe@evnet.com Any and all fanmail and C&C will be read and appreciated, and I do ask that you send it, C&C is one of the best tools for improving one's writing skills This story, as well as several others of mine, can be found at: HTTP://www.alliance.net/~jallen9/ranma.html or, drop me a line and ask, I can send the story to you. Sayonara! Ridgewolfe * * * It's nice to know that I went too far and there's a hall full of people saying "Yes you did!" Robin Williams Based off of characters by the ever-lovable Rumiko Takahshi, which are her's, no copyright infringement is meant, and they are used without permission. Story idea based off the script- Ranma 1/2: the final solution, what a couple of dips! - written by Joe Rispoli and Mike Termena of the Dayton Anima club. Again, no copyright infringement is meant as to their storyline. Any other Non-Rumiko type characters have their own copyrights and are also used without permission, no infringement is meant Any other characters are mine, and are used with permission (Mine!) This story can be spread around, as long as the author is acknowledged, and it is not sold for profit, either in part or in whole, and the previous disclaimers are left intact. Ascending Changes: part two by Ridgewolfe The first beams of the early morning sun lazily shone through the glass balcony doors, shining down across the bed and the two sleeping figures within. Ranma slowly woke in the early morning light, looking around blankly, then smiled warmly as she remembered where she was. Sitting up, Ranma slowly stretched, looking down at her still slumbering husband as she did. He always looks so cute when he sleeps, Ranma thought, reaching out to brush Akane's hair off his face, then quietly she slid out of the bed. Of the four days they had spent here, today was the first that Ranma had awaken first. Normally, Ranma was only up in the morning because of an attacking Panda or a sereneful Kasumi, but she just was feeling too good today to go back to bed. Lazily, she picked her robe up from the floor and slowly pulled it over her bare form, walking out onto the balcony as she did. Ranma leaned against the rail and drank in the early morning peace, the sun warm on her face. Overhead several birds flew. "It's so quiet here... it'd be perfect if I served breakfast out here... I bet Akane would like that..." Ranma smiled pleasantly to herself, then slowly started to frown as she realized what she had said. It wasn't that she had a problem making breakfast, or even in doing it for Akane, Ranma knew it would make him happy, and she really liked it when he smiled. No, it was Why she had said it, her thoughts had been so... so... GIRLISH! She was a guy, dammit! "There's no way I'm makin' breakfast, that's what a girl's supposed to do, I'm a Guy!" Ranma growled, then she turned and stormed back inside the bedroom. As she did, though, Ranma glanced over at the still sleeping Akane, and stopped. A pleasant shiver ran up through her stomach, and Ranma found herself with conflicting feelings. Although she thought of herself as a guy, the fact now was that she was a girl, with no known way to remove the curse. That didn't change her self image, in spite of everything that had happened, she still saw herself as a man, but with Akane... When Ranma looked at Akane, she could feel herself loosen up on the inside, she wanted to do things for him to make him happy, not because she was forced to, but because it made her feel good to see his face light up. More than anything, Ranma wanted Akane's approval in her actions now, to make him happy. The other night when Akane had said what a joy it was just being with her now, she had just melted... Ranma shook her head, she was doing it again! Disgust, mixed with a touch of fear, ran through her as she quickly but quietly stepped into the bathroom. Ranma sat on the edge of the large Japanese tub and turned on the water, shaking slightly. This was starting to get a little weird, Ranma thought as she watched the water level slowly rise, were these feelings the changes that she and Akane had been warned about? She was already a girl in body, she didn't want to become one in mind as well! These feelings, these desires, went against everything Ranma had ever been taught about how to act, and they scared her, but then, they also felt so... natural, so good... How was she supposed to know what was her mind, and what was the curse? Ranma thought as she turned the water off. Admittedly, Ranma had known for awhile that she acted slightly different as a girl, back when she was able to turn back to a guy. A action here, a word there, but it had been no big deal, just the instincts of her girl's body, the same way that it was a instinct for Mousse to float as a duck. Ranma dumped the water bucket over her head, shivering from the cold, then stepped into the shower, but now, they were so natural, so willing to have him do something girlish. Yes, stuff like cooking, or sewing, or other girlish stuff she would have to admit, if tied down and tortured mercilessly that is, wasn't that big a deal. After all, on the training trips it had been only her and the old man, it had to be done. But especially after Ranma had been cursed, she had become very self conscious about doing anything that might make her seem like she was acting like a girl. Now that she was this way for good, it was even worse. God! This was so confusing! Was Akane going through the same thing? Would he start acting more like a boy? "Well, if Akane does, who would notice?" Ranma muttered as she slid into the tub. No, that wasn't fair, if Akane was suffering... changes, then he would also be less prepared to handle them. No, Ranma had to stand by him and help through this difficult time. Mousse's words from the wedding came back to her then, unbidden. `I have accepted my curse, it no longer has power over me, and one day I may need the power it gives me' Ranma contemplated this, a thoughtful light in her eyes. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she slowly sank under the water. Akane awakened slowly, layer upon layer of sleep being kicked off by his subconscious, which complained loudly about it being cold when the last layer was gone. Akane looked around with heavy eyes, taking in the bleary surroundings of the room. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Akane slid out of bed, then, yawning, shuffled off towards the bathroom, tripping over the bedsheet as he did. "God, I hate getting up this early in the morning," Akane growled to himself, kicking free of the sheet, "Why does training start this early?" At this thought, Akane looked back to the bed, confirming that it was indeed empty. "Where's Ranma?" Akane muttered, "I hope she hasn't gone somewhere without me." Out in the kitchen, Ranma was stirring the rice as it boiled. Suddenly she turned and sneezed. "Whoa, wonder what brought that on?" she wondered. Akane stumbled into the bathroom and flicked on the light, glancing at the strange face that looked back from the mirror. "GAAAHHH!" Akane fell back against the doorframe, now fully awake, with his heart trying to leap out of his chest. After a moment, he calmed down and stood back up. "Baka! jumping like that at your own reflection!" he muttered, walking back to the mirror. Akane ran a hand slowly over his face, studying his features. He noticed that his beard was now starting to come in. That was something else he was going to have to learn, as the only time he had shaved since becoming male was before the wedding, and even then, Mr. Saotome had held the razor. Akane's hair looked a bit odd, but that was because it was still in a bob. His face was a bit narrower, but it was still Akane's features, especially his eyes. That made him feel better, in a way. Actually, Akane thought that he looked a lot like Shinnosuke, or a younger version of his father now. There was a knock on the door, and Ranma looked in, "Akane? are you alright? I heard you yell." Akane sighed, then smiled raggedly at her, "Yeah, I just startled myself, that's all." Ranma smiled back, "Okay! Finish taking your bath, I'll have something ready to eat by then," Ranma disappeared, then reappeared, setting some clothes down on the counter for him, "You can wear these." Ranma looked at Akane, who was simply staring at her, his jaw hanging, "...what?" "Your acting very... strange, Ranma," Akane finally said, still staring. Ranma grimaced as she realized how she'd been acting, Great, now I'm turning into Kasumi, she thought, then she smiled mischievously at her husband as she realized something herself. "Well, I'll go finish breakfast," she grinned, "If you don't like the choice of clothes, I think what your wearing now is cute." Akane looked down as Ranma left, and a blush that started at his toes rose as he realized he wasn't wearing any clothes. Akane sighed, belatedly wrapping a towel around himself. "Go ahead and laugh, you pervert, I'll get you back during training--" Akane stopped, confused. He and Ranma had talked about training more seriously together, the way she and Mr. Saotome did, as Ranma would now have to change her style slightly, and he definitely had to learn to use this body, but they hadn't started yet. What was he thinking? Akane stepped into the shower and started to scrub himself with the soap, He had done it again, thought of something that had come naturally to him, but was totally unlike him, too, sometimes from a frame of mind that he shouldn't have. It was the transformation, it had to be, Akane thought as he washed his hair, I've never thought of myself as a warrior before, but I did the other night. And something keeps holding me back when I lose my temper. I guess that's a good thing, but just how far will this go? Then there's the way that Ranma's acting. She was being a lot more kinder than normal. True, she was still a jerk, and a idiot, and a Pervert--! oh, she makes me so mad--! Akane quickly turned the cold water on, stopping that line of thought, No Ranma was acting different too, she was a lot more relaxed as a girl now than she was before, and she seemed so free with her emotions. She was nice, and so kind to him, Ranma rarely insulted him anymore. Obviously Ranma was changing, just like he was, but how was she handling it? did she even know she was? It wouldn't be the first time they had hid their feelings, but they had been so open with each other lately... "Not that we don't still fight," Akane muttered as he slid into the bath, just the other night they had gone at it tooth and nail, what about Akane couldn't remember, but as Akane had been about to whip out a mallet to flattened her, another little problem had stopped him, and Akane had seen the smile that Ranma had been trying to hide, meaning that she'd only been teasing Akane. Akane sank lower into the hot water, stretching the sleep from his muscles, Yes, let's not forget that "Other little problem," the one that had shown up on their first night together. They had been on the bed, and just as things had started to get interesting, Akane had rolled to the side to free his hands, but instead he had dragged both of them off the end to the floor. Akane had been mortified. Even now he still blushed with embarrassment at the thought. He thought he had hurt Ranma, as Akane had landed on top of her. Ranma, however, had laughed her fool head off, calling him a klutz and a tomboy. So of course Akane had gone to mash her. But before Akane could strike, a voice had spoken, asking just what did he think he was doing. This frightened Akane. Where was this voice coming from? Why was it controlling him? And why was he the only one who seemed to hear it? Ranma had never mentioned anything about a voice before, could Ranma also be hearing a voice, or was it just controlling her... "Oh Ranma," Akane whispered softly, "I'm so sorry that I put you through this..." it broke Akane's heart just thinking of the pain the poor dear must be going through-- #Talk to her.# "Nani--?" Akane almost jumped out of the bath, it was that voice again! He looked around, but then realized that it was in his head. Akane then felt a presence there, and it seemed... familiar, in a way. #Talk to her, Akane-san. Maybe she has the same thoughts that you do.# "Who are you?" Akane asked. When the voice had first spoke, it had startled Akane, but now he was more curious than anything. Why, he didn't know. #You will have to figure that out on your own, it is not yet time, but know that I am a friend.# "Then why do you keep messing with my mind? Why are you controlling me?" He growled, his anger starting to flare. The voice seemed to sigh, #There is still much anger in you, anger that blinds you. By realizing your feelings, you have taken a very important step, little warrior, but you still have a long way to go. Your anger drags you along by it's leash. When it walks by your side without one, then you will have reached the next level. That is where we will meet.# "Wait! What does that mean?" Akane called out, but it was too late, the voice was gone. Akane started shivering, although the water was still hot. Quickly he stepped out of the bath and dried off. Suddenly, he didn't want to be alone. Akane dressed quickly in the clothes Ranma had brought in, a pair of Ranma's black trousers and his blue chinese shirt with wood ties (Unlike Ranma, Akane didn't have a problem with wearing men's clothes. Besides, none of his old clothes fit anymore) and stepped back into the bedroom. "Ranma?" Akane called out, leaning into the main room and trying to keep a waver out of his voice. A pleasant aroma filled the room, and his stomach growled in response. "I'm out here, Akane," Ranma called back from the balcony. Akane hurried out there, trying not to run, and saw that Ranma had set breakfast out for them on the small patio table. Ranma herself was currently curled up in a chair, still dressed in her robe, holding a cup of tea in her hands. With a sigh, Akane walked over and hugged her. "Ack! Jeez, Akane, your spilling my tea!" Ranma said in surprise, quickly setting the cup down, "What's wrong, you're shaking." "I'm just happy to see you, that's all," Akane murmured into her hair, then he straightened, running a hand through Ranma's hair. Then Akane brushed Ranma's bangs out of her eyes, tucking a strand back behind a ear. Then he straightened Ranma's collar for her, then-- "Jeez Akane!" Ranma exploded, "Would you stop fussen' over me?! Sit down and eat!" "I'm just trying to show that I love you, you Baka!" Akane exploded back, his anger flaring, "I thought you would appreciate that!" "Fine! I do! I love you too! Now sit!" Akane glared at her, sitting down across from her, as Ranma handed him bowls of Miso soup and Rice. For several moments, the only sound was that of Akane eating angrily. Ranma realized that she shouldn't have yelled like she did as she watched Akane eat. Akane was acting as though something was bothering him, and yelling would only make him close up, which could ruin what had been growing between them. Both of them had to be open with each other, and that was something both of them needed to work hard at. Ranma cleared her throat, "So, did you, like, have a nightmare or something?" oh, good one, Ranma... Akane paused, trying to calm down. The voice had suggested that he should control his anger, but that was easier said than done, especially when one was always angry... "You'd only make fun of me," Akane grumbled finally, setting his bowl down. Especially if you knew I was hearing voices... he thought dejectedly. "Akane... " Ranma paused, wanting to choose her words carefully for once. This seemed to be one of those turning point thingees that you read about, and Akane could be unpredictable when like this, "Akane... if something's bothering you, and it's obvious that something is, I want to hear it. We're married now, I want to help you, to be there for you." Akane looked surprised, but only for a second. Things were changing between them, but they still acted on their old reflexes. "I-I think I'm noticing some of the changes we were warned about," he finally said. "What are they?" "Well, it's nothing definite, but... sometimes I think of things, then, it's like I realize I thought them," Akane started to stir his breakfast idly with his chopsticks, "It's almost like... like... " he fumbled for a good example. "Like someone's been plugged into your head?" Ranma asked quietly. Akane stared at her, "Yes, that's exactly it, sometimes it's like I'm on autopilot or something. Thoughts, ideas, sometimes even words just pop into my--" Akane stopped as he realized what Ranma had said, his suspicions proven true. "Ranma, you're going through this too." It was more statement than question. Ranma fidgeted a little, "I think so." Ranma looked down at the table, her hands, anywhere but Akane's questioning face, " There have been times here when I've been comfortable with doing things, like getting clothes for you, or cooking, or anything else. I don't mind because I know it makes you happy, and your so kawaii when you smile... " "Oh, Ranma... " Ranma still didn't look up, "but then there's times when I'm screaming to myself, `What are you doing? Stop it, your acting like a girl, your a guy'. I'm... " Ranma had to swallow before she could get the next word out, "...Afraid... of what I'm feeling. I never felt this way as a guy before, and I don't want to become something I don't want to be. It's a scary feeling." Ranma paused for a bit, then said, almost whispering, "But I have to admit, it's also kinda nice, too." Ranma's hands trembled at this thought. Could it mean she really was a pervert? Akane noticed and reached across the table, taking her hand. What Ranma had just admitted touched him, it made him feel very protective of her, in a way he had never felt before. Ranma had taken a big chance, and opened up to him. Akane hoped that he could prove worthy of the trust she had shown. Ranma looked up then and sighed, giving Akane a half-hearted smile, "But, we were talking about you, Akane, you've been thinking different too?" "Yeah, I've been thinking in ways I never did before, but umm... that's not what's bothering me the most... " Akane trailed off. "What is, then?" "Well, umm... Ranma," Akane cleared his throat first, "Have you been... uh, hearing voices, by any chance?" "Voices? no, I can't say I have," Ranma said slowly, "What are they saying?" "I'm not crazy, Ranma," Akane was suddenly defensive, but his voice lacked any bitter edge. "I'm not saying you are, I was just wondering what they said to you." Ranma squeezed his hand gently. "Oh, well... do you remember the other night when we... fell... off the bed...?" Akane looked down as he flushed in embarrassment. Honestly, he still couldn't believe that he'd done that! Ranma smiled but didn't laugh, she still thought it was funny, "Go on." "Well, I was going to bash you for laughing, but a voice told me not to." I think I like this voice, Ranma thought, but instead, she asked "Are you sure it was a voice, or could it have been you? Like a thought that you really didn't want to do this?" "It was definitely a voice," Akane replied, "and it definitely kept me from flattening you. And yes, it's starting to scare me as well." Silence hung between them, both concerned for the other. Above, the sounds of the birds drifted down. Finally, Ranma spoke. "Akane, if you want, we could go back home early and have Dr. Tofu check us out," she said slowly, "And it's probably a good idea to read those books he gave us." Akane thought about this. It wasn't as if they hadn't been warned, and in a way, any changes they went through were his fault. But neither of them had thought that these changes would be psychological in nature. Besides, there were going to be enough problems facing them once they got back to Nerima, such as Ranma's other two alleged fiancee's, Kuno, their schoolfriends, their teachers, various wandering martial artists and princes... those problems would be much easier to deal with without having to deal with these. "But what if there isn't a way to fix it, Ranma, we tried so many ways to remove your curse before, what if there's nothing that can be done?" he asked. Ranma sighed, she'd been thinking that too. What would they do? What if they did become different people? What if their feelings for each other changed? We are different people already, she thought, there's no way we woulda been together like this a year ago, or even a month ago. We've finally admitted that we love each other, our feelings have already changed. Part of that's because of how fast things have been moving, though, but that's life... ...and with life... comes change... ...and with change... comes growth... Ranma sat straighter in her chair then, looking up at Akane. A light breeze blew, ruffling his hair slightly. The morning sun brought out faint highlights in it, as well as those of his handsome face. As she looked into it though, Ranma still saw the face of the girl who had offered friendship two years ago to a stranger carried in by a Panda, the girl who had caused her no end of trouble and heartache, the girl she had fought Kirin for, and Toma, and the Yamatano Horochi. The Woman she had fallen in love with. "Then... We'll deal with it, love," Ranma said slowly, unsure of her words, "If we become totally different people because of this, then that's the risk, but it's also the gain." Without letting go of his hand, Ranma stood and walked over to Akane, who pushed his chair back and pulled her into his lap, "I'm not sure about this, and maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, but I remembered something that Mousse told me, that he had accepted his curse and it didn't have power over him anymore. We're both stuck like this, forever. This is who we are, now, but it doesn't define us. That's done by what's inside. If we change because of it, I think it could be good, as long as we're together, don't you think?" Ranma noticed that Akane was looking at her with a big grin, "What?" "I love it when you talk like that," Akane grinned. "You do? I'm not usually that long winded..." "Well, maybe that's what happens when you actually think before you talk," Akane hugged Ranma to him, "I'm still worried, Ranma." "So am I, Akane," Ranma kissed him on the forehead, "So why don't we do something to take our minds off it this afternoon," She hopped up and started collecting dishes. "Like what?" Akane asked, helping clear the table. After four days, they had the routine of cleaning up down smoothly. "Well, your hair for one. It's cute, but I think you'll need something a bit different. Plus, you need to shave." Ranma rubbed her cheek in remembrance as they walked into the kitchen, "You were tickling me last night," she smiled at Akane as they set the dishes into the sink and started drawing dish water. "Do you... really think I should cut it?" Akane asked, touching his hair. "Just trim it, really," Ranma agreed, "It's a really cute style for a girl, but it does look a little odd on a guy." "Well... maybe... " Akane slowly agreed, starting to dry dishes that Ranma handed him, "I was hoping you'd show me how to shave, though." "I could do that tomorrow." "Yeah, and that's not all we can do, we could shop for some clothes, too, we're both gonna need those now, then we could even do a little sightseeing, maybe have a picnic in the park... " Akane had stopped drying, now starting to think of the fun they could have. Ranma just smiled, glad that Akane wasn't worrying anymore. "Ranma." "Hmm?" "You've been so sweet the last few days, wanting to do all the cooking, but why not take a break tonight and let me fix something?" To her credit, Ranma didn't flinch, gasp, or scream, or do any of the other half dozen things that popped to mind at the thought of Akane cooking. Instead, she slowly looked up at Akane, eyes wide and innocent, and said "But I enjoy cooking for you, it makes you so happy... " Akane wasn't quite sure how to handle that. Akane was happy Ranma felt that way, it made him feel warm inside to hear her say that, but now he felt even moreso that he should be doing something for her in return. Still, he made her happy... Hey, wait a minute! "Do you say that because you mean it, or just because you don't want me cooking?" "Dah..." "Ranma--!" * * * The ground in the empty lot exploded upward, scaring many a passerby, as a exhausted young man, dressed in green trousers, a ragged yellow shirt, and a yellow and black bandanna around his head, crawled out of the hole, a large backpack strapped to his back. "What a way for a martial artist to travel. Underground." he muttered, collapsing on the ground to catch his breath. He had thought that he would never get out of those sewers... Several pedestrians walked by, but did nothing. After all, this Was Nerima. After a few minutes, Ryoga slowly dragged himself to his feet, brushed himself off, then looked around. "Huh... Now where am I?" He asked himself as he looked around, confused. This place looked familiar, but then again, so had Paris, Mexico city, and that strange city that was full of crime (Why that guy lived in that cave with all those bats when there was a perfectly good house above was beyond him). "Well, at least the street signs are in Japanese, so let's hope that means I'm back in Japan," pulling out a map, he unfolded it and started walking, "If I can find the Tendo Dojo, I can gain my revenge against Ranma at long last..." Ukyou waved as the last customer left, then sighed heavily as she collected the tip and started wiping down the table. Ukyou had not cheered up much since the wedding, although she tried not to show it in front of her customers, as most people didn't respond well to a brooding martial artist. She still wasn't sure of her feelings about the wedding, and was still a little upset that it hadn't been her besides Ranchan, but Ukyou understood that Ranma loved Akane, and fully intended to try to stay friends with both of them. Still, in a way, Ukyou was glad that she had been asked to go, it showed just how highly they thought of her, and all of them had tried so hard to cheer her up. In spite of herself, Ukyou had to laugh at Ranma's last clumsy attempt... (flashback) The wedding party stepped out into the early summer evening, the air pleasant and warm. Soun and Genma were first, both of them pleasantly buzzed from the sake they had consumed, not quite drunk. next being Dr. Tofu, with Kasumi and Nabiki. "It was such a lovely day," Kasumi was telling Dr. Tofu, "I hope that Akane and Ranma will get along with their other friends now." "Yeah, it's going to be so Boring now," Nabiki grumbled, "How am I supposed to make any money?" Mousse had walked out with Ukyou, carrying the camcorder as she checked through the camera bag. "Mousse, you don't have to hang around me," she groused as they walked down the small flight of stairs. Yep, everything was here, "I told you, I'm fine." "I was just curious as to why you didn't answer me," Mousse was having fun teasing Ukyou, it served to cheer her up. Ukyou finally looked at him in exasperation, "And just what question was that, Sugar?" If Mousse teased everyone like he'd been teasing her, then no wonder Shampoo was always beating him up. "Why did you not kiss the bride?" Mousse smiled slightly as he saw the glint of humor in Ukyou's eyes. "I didn't see you get in line, Mousse." Ukyou quipped back. "True, but I did not wish to be beaten," just then the two newlyweds walked out. Ukyou quickly took back the camera and started filming. Akane stopped Ranma before she could go down the stairs, "Here, you'll need this," he said pulling a small bouquet out from behind his back. Ranma took the flowers, looking confused, "What for?" Akane pointed to his sisters, who had gathered around Ukyou, "Throw it to them," Akane replied. Ranma still looked confused, "Wouldn't it be easier if they just got their own?" Akane rolled his eyes, "God, Ranma... You're supposed to throw it, whoever catches it is supposed to be the next to get married!" "That's a stupid custom." "C'mon Ranma! You can do it!" "Throw it Ranma!" "Would you two quit stepping on me!" "Well... I wouldn't wanna disappoint them... " Ranma drawled. Ranma made several feints, causing Kasumi and Nabiki to jump as they giggled, much to Ukyou's annoyance. Then, Ranma threw it straight at them with a sidearm pitch that would be the envy of a major league pitcher. All three of them jumped in surprise at it's speed, but Ukyou's reflexes took over, snatching the missile out of the air. "Oh Ukyou! What a wonderful catch!" Kasumi beamed. "Yeah, so, who's the lucky guy, Ukyou?" Nabiki asked. "God, I don't need this... " (end flashback) Akane and Ranma had told everyone then that they were going to walk to the hotel then, and had left before Ukyou could get Ranma to admit that she'd thrown it to her on purpose. Ukyou knew she had, though, and normally she would be happy knowing that her Ran-chan was looking out for her, it was just that this dark state she was in from the wedding wouldn't lift, and at times it left her a emotional shambles. Probably it was some sort of mourning process. Ukyou glanced up and then groaned at what she saw out the window, There he was again! That's the fourth time today Ryoga's walked past here, she thought, her fists at her hips as Ryoga walked past the front of her store, his face stuck in a map. Well, the lunch rush shouldn't start for a few minutes... "Hey, Ryoga--!" Ukyou shouted, sticking her head out the door. The figure at the corner turned, then walked back to her. "Ukyou! so I am back in Nerima!" Ryoga greeted as he walked up, "It's been awhile." "You look a little lost," Ukyou said dryly, taking his map of the British Isles away and folding it up, "C'mon in and have a seat." "So, how's business been?" Ryoga asked, walking up to the grill as Ukyou went back behind it. "Not too bad, how's a breakfast Okinomiyaki no bacon sound?" Ukyou asked him. "Sounds great," Ryoga dropped his backpack to the floor and sat down as the batter sizzled onto the grill in front of him. Reaching into his pocket, he set several bills down on the counter, "I can even pay for it this time." "How'd that happen?" Ukyou asked him, raising an eyebrow. "Well, a couple of months ago I somehow ended up in this dojo, and the Sensei hired me for awhile. At first I was only cleaning, but when he found out I was a martial artist he let me teach some of the classes." "Where was this dojo?" Ukyou asked as she dropped ingredients into the okinomiyaki. Maybe if she kept him talking long enough, she might forget her mood for a moment. "I think it was some place called `Saddle', or was that `Settle'?" Ukyou paused for a moment, then with a feeling that she would regret it, asked, "What language did they speak?" "English, although Sensei Macleod spoke fluent Japanese. I think his accent was German." Ukyou searched for the name, then it came to her. "You went to SEATTLE!? That's in AMERICA!!" "It is?" Ryoga looked confused, "I thought it was a long walk from Toyama." Ukyou recovered from the facefault. This shouldn't surprise me, I'm used to it, aren't I? she thought. She hurriedly finished up the okinomiyaki, then started two more when she saw how Ryoga was wolfing it down. "So, what style did he teach?" Ukyou asked finally, feinting to be interested. "He taught several styles," Ryoga answered, swallowing the last bite, "He was really good, too. He was kind of odd, though, and these weird people kept showing up looking for him." Ryoga shrugged, he couldn't imagine living with a situation like that, "I sparred with him a lot, and really improved my skills, although he wasn't used to someone fighting with an umbrella. But it all paid off, I'm better than I've ever been before, and now I can finally take my revenge on Ranma! Long has he escaped his fate, but no longer! Now I shall--" *Clang!* "What was that for!?" Ryoga yelled as he sat up on the floor, holding the side of his head, but he stopped as he saw Ukyou's expression. Ukyou loomed over him, her Battle spat still raised, trembling with the anguish that showed on her face. "Why can't you leave them alone?" she screamed down at him. Tears that came too easily to her these last few days started to trickle down her cheeks, "I thought you were at least friends with Akane, but if all your going to do is try and beat up Ranchan then stay away! They have enough problems now after what's happened!" she tried to stop shaking, but instead started crying in small whimpering sobs. Ryoga slowly stood, he had never seen Ukyou in such a state before, usually she was so strong. "What's happened, Ukyou?" He asked, offering one of his bandanna's. Ukyou took the bandanna and collapsed onto one of the barstools, trying to get her emotions back under control. She couldn't let Ryoga interfere, she'd made a promise, she had to help her friends. With a huge effort, Ukyou stopped shaking, then turned back to Ryoga, who was hovering over her nervously. "Sit down, Ryoga, I've got something important to tell you," Ryoga sat down next to her, "But before I tell you anything, I want your word of honor as a martial artist that your not going to go flying off the handle and try to hurt Ranchan, `cause if you do, I'm gonna hurt you!" "Okay, I promise," Ryoga shrugged, he could find lots of other reasons to go after Ranma for, anyway. "Okay, well, about a month ago, Ranchan got hurt, real bad, because of his curse, and-- *Stop That!*" Ukyou punched Ryoga in the face again as it lit up in joy. "Stop hitting me!" "Do you want to hear this or not you jackass!?" "Of course I do!" Ryoga sat back on the stool and schooled his features as best he could. Ukyou was still glaring at him, but continued, "Anyway, because of his curse, Ranchan was paralyzed, and they had to take him back to Jusenkyo. They talked to a local doctor, but he couldn't do anything. "Somehow or another, Ranchan managed to fall back into the drowned girl spring again." Ryoga looked up at this, "He didn't drown , did he?" "No, it cured him, but..." Ukyou trailed off. Ryoga started as he saw the light in her eyes fade. "Hey, Ukyou, if it cured him, then that's not so bad," Not that he cared about what happened to Ranma, but Ukyou was sorta a friend, and like all men, he couldn't stand to see a woman cry. Without thinking, he reached out and took her hand, "Besides, Ranma was already cursed as a girl, it's not like anything bad could come from it." Ukyou looked at him with a strange expression, "Do.. you know what happens if you fall into the same pool twice?" she asked slowly. "Something happens?" Wham! "Ryoga no Baka! Baka! Baka! Baka! Baka!" Ukyou screamed, each insult accented by her spatula, "He fell in twice and now he's a girl forever! Do you get it? Forever! Twelve years of my life are gone! Wasted! I can never marry Ran-chan now!" Ukyou threw her dented spatula aside and started crying again. Ryoga sat up again and felt the large lumps on his head. "I see your taking the news pretty well," he said sarcastically. A scream of rage started to come forth from Ukyou, when the front doors opened. "Moshi Moshi! Welcome to Ucchan's!" Ukyou beamed merrily to her lunch rush, "Have a seat and I'll be right with you!" she turned back around to finish with Ryoga. He was gone. "That Jackass! He didn't even let me finish!" Ukyou stormed to the back of the restaurant, sure enough, the back door was open. The customers simply found their regular seats, used to such displays. Ukyou fumed as she glared out into the alley, then slowly calmed down, "Well, it's not like the little pig's going to cause trouble any time soon, the Dojo's just down the street. By the time he finds it, Ranma and Akane should be back." Ukyou went back inside, slamming the door behind her. Ryoga ran down the street, shrugging his backpack back on. Ranma was a Girl now! he thought, his feet barely touching the ground, Not that he'd wish something like that to happen to his worst enemy... well, okay, yes he did, and it had! What perfect revenge! And this means... this means... Akane was Free! "I've got to get to the dojo, now is my chance!" Ryoga cried out loud, "Oh Akane, now that you are free of his clutches... Hey!" Ryoga slowed down, then stopped, looking around, "When did they put a forest here?" * * * Akane stood outside the dressing room of the department store, fidgeting as he waited for Ranma. The two of them had quickly found a clothing store, and had set Akane up with several new outfits, but then he had surprised Ranma by insisting they get clothes for her as well. At first she had complained rather loudly, saying that her chinese clothes were enough, but had quieted when it had threatened to become an argument and set off Akane's temper. The result was that Ranma was now in the dressing room trying on several outfits and changes of lingerie, a variety of curses from behind the door indicating her success as Akane waited outside. Dressed now in gray slacks and a denim dress shirt, Akane looked exceedingly handsome, several other patrons having stopped to stare already. Akane tried his best to look casual, but to be honest, he was getting real nervous. His hair felt funny, as it was now trimmed into a man's style, shorter on the sides, the back layered. His bangs were still there, but now the part was down the middle. Occasionally he found himself touching it, still not sure what to think. Then there were the clothes. To be honest, the only thing that Akane was wearing right now that he was comfortable with were the chinese slippers that Ranma had given him. It felt odd to wear a T-shirt instead of a bra under the dress shirt, the belt was sitting funny on his hips, and although the boxers were alright, Ranma had insisted that he get an athletic supporter. To be honest, Akane hadn't known these stupid things even existed, but Ranma had said he would need them for sports or martial arts. "Yeah right," Akane muttered, trying to readjust his belt again, "Ranma's probably getting back at me for something. How you doing in there, Ranma?" "Lousy, no good-- Augh! where does that go!?" was the muttered response. Akane smiled and nodded as two young girls slowed down and tried not to act like they were watching him, and Akane was sure that if he looked he'd catch the saleslady looking again. That's what was making him really edgy. Akane had gotten attention before as a girl (if you wanted to call the hentai hordes of his sophomore year attention, that is), but now it was the *girls* that were giving him the eye, and he highly doubted his standard response of pounding the offender would go over that good. Akane supposed he should be flattered, as he was a guy now, but honestly, there was just no way that he could ever be attracted to a girl. Akane smiled to himself, well, there *was* Ranma, but that was different. Besides, there was a lot to be attracted to with Ranma. Akane flushed as he remembered how they had spent the last few nights, a flush that quickly turned to one of embarrassment as his body started to respond. "God, I'm turning into some sort of hentai," Akane muttered, trying to act casual and hoping nobody noticed. "Can I help you with that?" "Excuse me?" Akane turned to the saleslady that had been staring at him all morning, shocked. Asking something like that in Public--! "The tie, sir, can I help you with that?" The saleslady clarified, Akane looked down and saw that he'd picked up a tie from a display, and was twineing it around his hand nervously. "Uh, no! No thank you," Akane smoothed the tie out and put it back. The saleslady shrugged and went back to what she was doing, mainly, acting like she wasn't watching Akane. "If only she knew the truth," he muttered. Then Ranma stepped out of the dressing room. Akane smiled at Ranma, both because of her look of disdain, and at what she wore. Ranma wore a simple long blue skirt and white blouse , with a light tan vest. Her hair, like Akane's, had been trimmed and was no longer such a unruly mass, although the pigtail was still there. Akane had tried to get Ranma to wear a little makeup, but she had flatly refused, wanting to get used to the clothes first. Not that she needed it, Akane thought, she was very pretty, even when she was grimacing. "You look very nice, Ranma," Akane told her, adjusting the vest. Ranma's scowl deepened, "Yeah, right," Ranma pulled at her shoulders, then picked at the back of the skirt, "The skirt's making my knees itch, it feels like I can't breathe, and this underwear is crawling up my butt!" "You might have the bra too tight, but you'll get used to the rest of it. In a week you won't even know you have them on." "I don't even want to wear a bra, what if Happosai finds out?" Ranma growled. "Hey, your going to need one now, besides, if I have to wear a uhh... thing you said I have to, then you have to wear a bra," Akane started to get embarrassed. Then the saleslady walked up. "That looks very nice on you," She smiled at Ranma, then turned to Akane, "Is there anything I can get for you, sir?" Akane waited for Ranma to answer, then realized the saleslady was talking to him, "Oh! uh, well, we have to get a few more things, is it possible to get them sent to our room?" Neither one of them noticed Ranma glaring at the saleslady. "Of course... in care of... ?" "Ranma and Akane Tendo, in the Honeymoon suite," Ranma answered, a bit too loudly, as she took Akane's hand. "Alright, take your purchases to the front desk, and we'll send them out this afternoon," The Saleslady seemed disappointed for some reason as she left for the front desk. Akane looked down at Ranma, who was looking at him oddly, "What?" "Nothing," Ranma said, stiffly walking back into the dressing room to gather up her outfits. "Ranma, what is it?" Akane asked again as Ranma came out, "You act like I did something to upset you." "Why would I be upset?" Ranma asked questioningly, starting to head up front. She saw the two girls watching Akane with moonstruck eyes and snarled at them, scaring them off. "Ranma! What's wrong?" Akane caught up to her, "I'd swear your acting like your jealous or something!" "Now why would I do that?" Ranma said calmly, not looking at Akane, "In order for me to be jealous, You'd have to do something for me to be jealous of, but you haven't been doing that all morning, have you? Like I would care if you did." "Ranma!" Akane glared at Ranma, who looked up with questioning eyes, "Honestly, your so infuriating at times!" * * * Kasumi hung the last bit of laundry up to dry in the afternoon sun. Ever since they had returned, things had been relatively peaceful, so to speak. The number of fights had cut down dramatically, although Kasumi suspected that would change when Akane and Ranma returned. Still, it was much easier to get the housework done without the constant destruction, and it was much easier on everyone's nerves. Kasumi paused, and let a warm feeling of happiness seep through her as she thought about her newly acquired younger brother and his wife. It was strange, even for this household, to be sure, but they were finally married, and she could just imagine how well they were getting along. Kasumi looked up to the sky wistfully. With Akane and Ranma married, and Nabiki returning to college soon, maybe it was now time to start thinking about her own life...? The sky seemed to twinkle in response. The twinkle soon resolved itself into a form, which landed with a thunderous splash into the carp pond. At the porch, Soun and Genma-panda looked up from their Go game (Soun using the distraction to palm several of the panda's pieces) while Nabiki looked up from her text book to see who it was. When a white duck bobbed to the surface, Nabiki started jumping up in excitement. "Yes! Yes! That's 30,000 yen Hiroshi owes me!" Nabiki ran up the stairs, "That with the money from Kuno and what I won at the wedding, I'm set for the semester! Yahoo!" Mu-Mu chan stepped out of the pond and shook himself off, then picked up his glasses and put them back on, grumbling at the robes that were settling at the bottom. He *hated* when this happened, now he had to get his clothes cleaned, and dry his weapons out so that they didn't rust, those that could be salvaged, that was. Dammit, and he'd waited so long for the fragmentation pumpkin bombs, too... "Good afternoon, Mu-Mu chan," Kasumi said pleasantly, "What brings you here today?" The fact that she was talking to a duck didn't seem to bother her. Mu-Mu chan looked up at her, "Quack, Quack Quack, grrr" He said. "Oh my," Kasumi put her hand lightly to her cheek, "That's the third time this week Shampoo's done that, isn't it?" "Quack..." "She's gotten very hostile since we returned, hasn't she?" "Quack..." Mu-Mu chan agreed dejectedly, his head hanging. "Well, I'm sure your luck will change soon," Kasumi knelt down and petted the small feathered head, "I just hope she becomes reasonable soon..." "Quack," Mu-Mu chan agreed. Ever since he had told Shampoo and the Old Ghoul about Ranma's wedding, things had definitely gotten bad at the Neko-hanten. While Cologne had gotten more introspective (or withdrawn, he wasn't sure which), Shampoo was getting downright violent, even moreso than Akane. Mousse had tried several times over the last few days to talk with her, to confide in her, even Confront her, but every attempt ended like it had just now, with him being thrown out. Frankly, Mousse was frustrated beyond reason, and his patience was almost at an end. He truly loved Shampoo, and he couldn't imagine living without her, but he couldn't take this abuse much longer, and if something didn't change soon, he was afraid he soon would be without her. Mu-Mu chan let out a long sigh, then looked up at Kasumi, "Quack, Quack Quack, Quack?" he asked. Kasumi smiled down kindly to him, "I'm sorry, but the water heater is acting up again, the water for the bath won't be hot until later this evening." "Quack..." "You're more than welcome to stay for dinner, Mu-Mu chan." "Quack?" "I was about to serve some iced tea, would you care to join me?" "Quack! Quack!" "Your very welcome," Kasumi scooped up the duck, who found it hard not to get comfortable in her motherly embrace, and walked into the kitchen, sitting him down on the table as she gathered the tea set. Dinner was a mildly amusing affair. The conversation was lively, although the only one who seemed to be able to understand Mu-Mu chan was Kasumi. Still, it wasn't everyday that you saw a duck eating with chopsticks, or fighting off a panda for stealing it's food. Still, Kasumi had to consider it a quiet night. The company had been pleasant, and at least they hadn't been interrupted by revenge seeking martial artists, or magically charged elephants, or other worldly invaders. She looked down at Mu-Mu chan, who was walking down the hall next to her. Mousse was really a very nice gentleman, and she was glad that he'd finally decided to get along with Ranma, they would be such good friends. She just hoped he could work his problems out soon. Kasumi walked into the laundry room, holding the door open for Mu-Mu chan, and walked up to a series of shelves labeled with various names. Various stacks of clothes were piled there. "Let's see... Shampoo (Her entire wardrobe must be here)... Ryoga (I do wish he'd pick up his things instead of leaving them in the pond, those backpacks are so heavy)... Ukyou (When did she fall in the pond?)... Kuno (He'll have to talk to Nabiki about replacing those pictures)... ah, Mousse." Kasumi pulled down one of the outfits there and a towel, "We had to store your equipment in the dojo, there was just too much to bring into the house," she apologized. "Quack," Mu-Mu chan replied, as they left towards the bath. Half an hour later, Mousse walked back into the kitchen. "Thank you, Kasumi-san, for your hospitality," he said formally. "Your very welcome, Mousse," Kasumi smiled at him as she finished the last of the dinner dishes, "I enjoyed your company." "I retrieved most of the outfits I have left here, to give you more shelf space," Mousse shrugged, "I should also retrieve my weapons as well." He walked to the back door. "Mousse..." Mousse paused in the doorway at the serious tone in Kasumi's voice, "What are you going to do if Shampoo won't calm down?" Mousse slowly looked over his shoulder, "Actually, Kasumi, I am more worried about what Shampoo will do if she doesn't calm down." Mousse left. * * * Akane stormed into the hotel vestibule, followed by a quiet Ranma. She makes me so Crazy! Akane thought, marching up to the elevator, is she Trying to make me jealous? he stabbed the door button, cracking it. Ranma walked up and stood behind him, downcast, Honestly, flirting with that--that--Guy! I'm Twice as good-looking as he was... The door opened and they went in, Akane standing at the back of the small room, not looking at Ranma. "Akane..." "I'm not talking to you, Ranma." Ranma paused, then shrugged. "Good, then you won't interrupt me," she said, "Akane, I'm sorry I got you mad. what I was doing wasn't very nice." Huh? "Your right, I was flirting with that guy, I was trying to make you jealous... but I was only doing it because of the way you were acting at the store..." Ranma started shuffling her feet, she wasn't any good at this apologizing stuff... Ranma started as Akane lifted her chin. Akane looked into Ranma's eyes, his expression searching. "Is That what the problem was, love?" Ranma nodded, "Ranma, I don't know why everyone was looking at me, but I wasn't doing anything." "Are you saying that you weren't trying to make me jealous?" Ranma asked him softly, starting to feel like an idiot. "No!" Akane smiled at her, if this was the problem... "But you weren't doing anything to discourage them..." "That's because they made me uncomfortable, I didn't know how to handle it... " Akane thought for a moment, "But then you never did anything to stop Shampoo either. I guess I understand now, a bit." "So your not mad anymore?" Ranma asked. Akane smiled, "No, but I wish you had told me what was wrong earlier. We already went through this, it's You that I love, Ranma, I always will, It's just that it's hard getting used to things as a guy. Am I forgiven?" The elevator door opened then, "Well, I guess if you can forgive a Pervert like me, I can forgive a Tomboy like you," Ranma took Akane by the hand, "C'mon, let's go back to our room." * * * The early evening silence in the village was shattered as the warning bell rang out. Immediately everyone started looking around. Just as quickly they saw the problem. "Wild Boar! Look out! It's a Wild Boar!" The Boar barreled down the street, easily the size of a bear, a destructive force of nature. It trampled down market carts like rice paper, and smashed through huts in it's rampage. There was instant chaos as the villagers tried to get to safety. "Clear the street! Clear the street!" the Bellman roared, helpless to do anything else to stop the destruction, then he happened to glance further up the street, and his heart stopped. A little girl, probably no older than five, tripped in the street as she tried to get out of the boar's way. Time seemed to slow for the bellman, as he saw someone move, but there was no way to keep the girl from being trampled. KaBlam! What? A eerie silence descended as the boar stood still in the road, then, slowly, it toppled over, unconscious. Standing in the middle of the road was a large man, breathing heavily. Clad in jeans, T-shirt, and jean jacket with several colorful patches, he wore his hair in a ponytail, and had a bone choker around his throat. Around his neck was a small pouch, while what looked like a large mallet hung from a toolbelt around his waist. A tremendous backpack was on the ground beside him. In his left arm was the small girl he had scooped up, while his right was still extended from the blow he'd delivered. Hikaru slowed his breathing and swallowed a few times, then looked at the child in his arms. "Are you okay, honey?" He asked, then hugged her to him when she nodded, "That was too close." The villagers started to gather around Hikaru, who handed the girl off to her mother. The Bellman walked up, his face a mask of disbelief, "Mister, that was incredible! I haven't seen anything like that-- well, in a few years, at least," he said, remembering a young boy with a umbrella that had showed up a few years ago. "Do you get boars through here often?" Hikaru asked, picking his pack back up. "Actually, I was wondering if you could help me," he handed the man a map, who took it with a strange sense of Deja vu, "I'm looking for a place called the Tendo dojo, maybe you could help me find it?" The Bellman looked at the map, and the deja vu grew. "But, this here's a map of Tokyo." he said. "Yeah, but I think it's a bit outdated," Hikaru agreed, "I didn't know they put a park here." "But... this here's... Shichouku." Hikaru looked crestfallen, then took back the map. That's what I get for traveling during the day, he thought. Although it wasn't as bad as it used to be, ever since had learned to read a compass and to navigate by the stars, his sense of direction still got him lost. It was useless to get mad about it, though, and he had been here to help the little girl. "Sorry to bother you... " he mumbled in apology, then turned and left. "Do you suppose he's one a' dem martial artists?" someone asked. "If he's anything like the last, I wonder when he'll be back," the Bellman answered. * * * Akane dried the last dish off and set it on the counter, then dried his hands with the towel. Ranma had cooked again, so Akane had insisted on cleaning up, chasing Ranma out of the kitchen. The two of them had actually had fun today, although they had argued off and on but they had enjoyed themselves and had gotten some things accomplished. Besides, Akane was beginning to suspect that they were arguing more for a need of security than anything else, a need for something they were used to, why else would they always make up so soon? Akane walked into the bedroom, glancing at several bundles that were off to the side. They had both bought several outfits, along with other things, but would probably have to buy more when they got home. Then again, Kasumi had mentioned something about altering the clothes they already had. Akane saw Ranma through the open balcony doors, and went to join her. Ranma had changed to a pair of sweats, and was currently sitting on the railing watching the slowly darkening skies. Akane leaned across the railing next to her, not trusting the balance of his new body enough yet to join her, and looked out across the trees. "Yen for your thoughts," Ranma asked softly after a moment. "Just thinking about what we talked about earlier," Akane sighed. "What part?" "The part about us leaving early to see Dr. Tofu," Akane looked over at his new wife, "Some of these changes really have me worried." Ranma nodded slowly, still looking at the sky, "We still have two days here, we could spend tomorrow packing, and be back home by tomorrow night, the next morning by the latest." "Do you... Do you think they could be life threatening?" Akane asked. Ranma shrugged, "I don't know, love. Dr. Foo said we were okay, so until we talk to Dr. Tofu, let's just hope not and not worry about it, okay?" They sat in silence for a few moments, then Akane stood and moved behind Ranma, wrapping his arms around her. Slowly he ran the tip of his tongue up the ridge of her ear. Ranma shivered, then looked back at her husband. "Akane--?" "Well, if we have only one more night here, it'd be a shame to waste it," Akane whispered huskily, sending another shiver through Ranma. "Yes, it would be a shame," she agreed, putting her arms around Akane's neck and letting herself be carried back inside. * * * The young woman quietly turned the corner and continued down the sidewalk, amazed at how pretty this new town was in the early evening dusk. Although she still wasn't sure why her Grandfather had moved them here. It wasn't as if they had done badly in New Orleans, but to just up and move to another country... Her thoughts were interrupted as a body was hurled out a door further up the block from her to land in a lump on the street. The lump stood to reveal a tall young man about her age in long white robes with long black hair and thick glasses. He also looked to be quite angry, and started to yell back through the doorway. She wasn't sure, but it didn't sound like Japanese. "" Mousse screamed at the doorway, pointing a accusing finger at the figure within, "" Mousse sat up, then staggered to his feet, holding his head, "" This time it was a water bucket that smacked him in the face, then it landed over him as he became a duck once again. "" with that the door was slammed shut and locked. The girl stared, wide eyed, down the street, both at the violence, and at what had happened to the boy. What sort of town did we move to? she thought. Mu-Mu chan threw the bucket off and shook himself out. Dammit! Twice in one day! And Kasumi had ironed the robe for him, too... eh? Mu-Mu chan looked up then and saw a strange girl walking towards him slowly, her hand outstretched. She was dressed in a white blouse and green skirt, with a shawl around her shoulders. From her left arm hung a small basket, which he could see had what looked like foodstuffs within. Her skin was a smooth, dark caramel color, and her dark hair was drawn back into a ponytail. She was rather cute, actually, Mu-Mu chan thought. As she got closer, she started clucking her tongue, then started speaking in a language he'd never heard before. "" She crooned in Cajun, "" as she got closer, Shanna knelt in front of him. Resigned, Mu-Mu chan sighed and allowed Shanna to reach out and pet him. This was one part of his curse he could do without, always being taken home as someone's pet... Shanna quickly stuffed the clothes into her basket, then scooped the duck into her arms. This had all the earmarks of a spell, Grandfather would know how to handle it. Before she got more than six blocks, however, four figures jumped out of an alley. All four of them wore blue closed neck suits, and wore animal mask. Shanna immediately jumped back, oh god what's going on I've never been in a fight before--! "Well, well, well... a girl and her duck, out for a walk," the cat mask one purred. "We're just here to collect a donation, sister," the hoot owl mask one hooted. "Yeah, so give us your purse!" the dog mask one barked. "Hey guys, don't that duck look familiar?" the pig masked one squealed. Shanna backed up, only able to understand a smattering of what they said, which scared her even more. Mu-Mu chan, however, could. Finally, a chance to work off some frustration, he thought as he squirmed out of Shanna's grasp. Shanna gasped as the group in front of her exploded into dustclouds and screams of pain. After a few seconds, the cries stopped, and when the dust settled, the four were piled on top of each other, Mu-Mu chan sitting on top of them. "Quack." was all he said, feeling much better. Again, Shanna couldn't believe what she saw, what sort of person was this duck? she wondered. "" she said as she picked Mu-Mu chan up again. This time, Shanna got all the way home. Mu-Mu chan looked over the restaurant they were approaching. It had to be new, as the building had been closed when he went through here last week. The sign by the door read `Crawdad's', but it looked like any of the other restaurants in the area from the outside. Mu-Mu chan just hoped she wasn't going to try and cook him, then wondered what a crawdad was as they went inside. Mu-Mu chan was set down on top of a table as Shanna called out to someone. As he couldn't understand what was being said, he looked around. Although the building was the same generic type as the Neko-hanten or Ucchan's, the decor was some sort of ocean theme, and there was a lingering odor of fish and spices. Nice place, as long as they didn't try to serve duck... An older black man walked out of the kitchen, drying his hands on his apron. Apparently in his mid-fifties, Mu-Mu chan noted that his color was darker than the girls. He was dressed in a flannel shirt that his barrel chest threatened to split with the sleeves rolled up, and blue trousers. His head was bald, although some white hair still lingered at the sides, and he had a warm face which was used to smiling. He greeted Shanna in a voice that could shake the windows, then listened to what she said. Several times Shanna pointed back to Mu-Mu chan, causing the man to raise a shaggy white eyebrow, then he said one word that he did understand: "Jusenkyo" He said a few things to Shanna, who pulled Mousse's robes out from her basket and placed them on the table, then left the room, confused. The older man pulled up a chair and sat down across from Mu-Mu chan. "So, me little friend, I see `dat you went to Jusenkyo, haha," he chuckled, speaking in Japanese, "Welcome to my home. You can call me Mr. LeBeau, an' you meet my granddaughter, Shanna. No need to introduce you self just yet, Shanna is getting a kettle now. She tell me that you helped take care o' some Idiots earlier, I thank you very much." Mr. LeBeau continued to chit-chat, seeming only to need someone there to listen, but Mu-Mu chan found him to be friendly enough. He found out that `Crawdad's' was something called a `Cajun' restaurant, and that their opening had been four days ago. Although they were off to something of a slow start, the cuisine was already popular with the customers. After a few minutes, Shanna walked back in and set a tea tray down, leaving at her Grandfather's insistence. Mr. LeBeau poured water into the three cups, then over the duck after he hopped to the floor. Mousse stood and quickly dressed. "Thank you sir for your kindness," Mousse bowed, "You may call me Mousse." "Your quite welcome, Mousse, please sit," Mr. LeBeau smiled at him. "Thank you, LeBeau-san," Mousse said as he sat, "If I may ask, how do you know of Jusenkyo?" "In my family, we have studied what you know as magic. For generations, we listen to all `de tales we can," LeBeau frowned a little at this, "sometimes, it cost us our lives. `Dey be many families like us, around world, who trade facts for facts," he chuckled deeply, lightly slapping Mousse's arm, "Bet `dey love talk to you, boy, HaHaHa! but yes, I know of Jusenkyo, de tales and legends. But I don't tink I know a cure, son." "I am not really concerned about a cure" Mousse said, sipping the tea. It tasted like... licorice? "But I will admit, life would certainly be more normal without the curses around here." Mr. LeBeau's eyebrows shot up, "Dey be more `dan you? I would like to hear." Mousse started to explain the last two years as best he could. Partway through Shanna came back and joined them. Occasionally, they would stop him to ask questions, but for the most part let him talk. When Mousse realized that Shanna spoke little Japanese, he switched to English. Mousse finished by telling them about the events of the last month, and why they were causing him to be treated roughly. When he was done, several hours had passed. Mr. LeBeau was looking at him like a bear does a honeypot. Shanna looked at him like he had lost his mind. "...I just am worried about how this whole situation will explode, I do not wish for Shampoo to be hurt, nor Akane and Ranma when they return. However, there most certainly will be a fight." Mousse finished. The frustration about not being able to change the situation was evident in his voice. "From `de way you tell it Mousse, `dey is no way it won't come down to one," Mr. LeBeau clamped him on the shoulder "Just try to do `de best you can, `dat all you can do." He looked over at his granddaughter, and his features turned comptemplative. Mr. LeBeau looked back at Mousse, "Tell me, Mousse, do you have a place to stay tonight?" Mousse looked down into his teacup, "I would probably not be welcomed back to the Neko-hanten," he finally admitted, "And if I went back, I probably would spend the night in a cage." "Shanna, go upstairs an' set up a cot for `de boy, it'd be wrong ta send him back out tonight," Mr. LeBeau asked. "" Shanna asked in Cajun, her eyes narrowing. "" Mr. LeBeau tried his best to look hurt. Shanna simply kissed him on the cheek as she stood up, "" she muttered to him, then turned and bowed uneasily to Mousse, "Sayonara, Mousse-san, it be nice to meet you." "" Mousse answered in English, standing and bowing back. Mousse sat back down as Shanna left, "You have a very nice granddaughter, LeBeau-san," he said. Mr. LeBeau's wide grin returned, "Fortunately, she get's her looks from her mama, not me!" He chuckled at this a bit, then his face grew serious. "Mousse, you a Martial artist, no?" Mousse pushed his glasses back up his nose, "Yes sir, I am a master of the hidden weapons style of martial arts, as well as the avian fighting styles taught by my village. Why do you ask?" "I ask `caus this old man would like to ask a favor o' you," he refilled their cups, then continued. "Me an' my family, we live in `de bayou, collectin' tall tales, but `de others `dere who do the job as good as me. I come to Japan, because we told `dat a chance to hear `dey tales are here, but it take years to hear `dem all." "I am not sure I understand, do you want me to help you?" Although many strange things came to Nerima, not many of them ever wanted to talk. "No, not `dat," Mr. LeBeau shook his head, "I'm asking `bout Shanna." "Now I am sure that I do not understand." "You see, `de people I met here, `dey good people, but most a' `dem are older, my age" Mr. LeBeau pointed a thumb over his shoulder toward the door Shanna had left through, "Shanna need be around one's her own age, `ta make friends. An' a know `dat `de Japanese no like us Gaijen, an' `de young one's can be cruel, why you `tink dose bullies try an' attack her. Shanna be goin' ta school here to, and she need `ta speak `da language better." He sipped his tea, then continued. "I realize you not know us, an' you can say no if you want, but I would ask if you be her friend. Show her `round, help her out, make her feel at home." He shrugged with his hands, "truth be told, I gonna be busy wit dis' place, I not gonna have much time for her. I not askin' you to date her, jus' be nice," Mousse thought for a moment. It was true, he probably wouldn't be spending as much time around the Neko-hanten anymore, although he would still have to keep an eye out for trouble. And before now the closest thing he had to friends were the people who didn't beat him up as badly. The idea of a non-violent friend was appealing. "How do you know you can trust me?" Mousse asked, looking back at Mr. LeBeau. Mr. LeBeau's face split into another grin. "Because o' dat question right `dere, Mousse," he chuckled, "Is dat a yes?" Mousse grinned back at him, "It would be an honor to escort Shanna-san, LeBeau-san." Mr. LeBeau stood and clapped him on the shoulder, "Ah, you make a' old man happy, son," he looked at the time and saw how late it was, "Come now, it time for bed, da' mornin' come way to early for dis' ol' man," he lead Mousse upstairs, and to their guest room. * * * Akane stirred in his sleep, reaching over to curl up with Ranma, his searching hand finding nothing. Sleepy-eyed, he sat up and saw that he was indeed alone. "Ranma?" he called out, more curious than worried, where was she? After a moment, a voice called back softly from the balcony, "I'm out here, Akane." Akane pulled on a pair of boxers and silently padded onto the balcony, the warm night air pleasant on his bare chest. Although he didn't notice, his movements had become more measured as he became more used to the male body, and his steps where weighed for silence. Akane walked up next to Ranma, who was sitting on the railing again, a robe over her compact frame. Akane noticed that she was looking up at the stars, her fiery red hair loose and ruffled by a summer breeze. "What's wrong, Ranma?" he asked softly, placing a hand on her shoulder. Ranma smiled, then after a moment looked at Akane, "Nothing's wrong, love. I just woke up and had a bad feeling, so I came out here to think, that's all." Akane squeezed her shoulder, "Want to talk about it?" Ranma shrugged, looking back at the stars. "It's just... a feeling, like something's going to happen," she shivered as she remembered the icy finger that had awakened her, "it wasn't real definite, like we're about to be attacked, but I think something might happen soon." Akane thought for a moment, "Could it be what's waiting back home?" he asked. "It could," Ranma agreed, "I've felt this before, like when Shampoo showed up, or sometimes when Ryoga comes to town," Ranma smiled at her husband again, "Don't worry, we always handle it. I'll be back in in a few minutes." Akane kissed her lightly on the cheek, surprised that he didn't have to stand on tip-toe, "Okay, but don't keep me waiting," he turned and left. Ranma looked back out to the stars, trying to reach into herself, to reach a meditative state. However, it still eluded her. Meditation was one of the few things that her father hadn't taught, preferring the more physical aspects of their art. Are you still there? Ranma called out silently, not really expecting an answer, then sighing when one did not come forth. The dream she had waken from had been odd. In it, Ranma had been a guy again, and his female form had appeared. She didn't look happy, and had started to say something, but then she had woken up, and now couldn't remember. However, Ranma had felt... something, a presence, maybe, and had come out here to search for it. Since she had felt the presence within her, Ranma had thought meditating might help. But it was apparently a losing effort. Ranma hopped down and went back inside. Well, I'm sure we can handle anything that happens, but I'll tell Akane about it in the morning anyway, she thought, pulling back the light sheet and climbing into bed, it's probably nothing anyway, besides, there's nothing bad that can happen, now that we're together. Ranma snuggled up to Akane, who immediately jumped out of the bed. "Auugh! Where have you been? Those things are cold!" He yelped, looking at her in surprise. "What?" Ranma sat back up. "Your hands are Freezing, Ranma!" "Well, don't you want to help me warm them up?" Ranma asked him. "Not when they're like ice!" Akane snapped. "Oh, really..." Ranma started mischievously. "Auugh! Don't touch me!" Akane ran from the room, a giggling Ranma following with her cold hands on his bare back. * * * Morning, China The Guide walked out of his cabin, puffing gently on his pipe, as he watched the sunrise. As he looked across the valley, he noted how the early morning fog over the springs gave the training grounds a eerie yet peaceful calm. The Guide smiled to himself, as if enjoying a private joke, as the fog lifted, revealing a quintet of deer by the far edge of the springs. Startled, they bolted, leaping in graceful bounds. one of them, however, stumbled, and plowed headlong into one of the pools. "Oh no! Little Deer!" The Guide called out, "How terrible! You fall in... fell in... " Actually, he wasn't sure *what* spring the deer had fallen in, it was one of the few that wasn't cataloged. The Guide started to rapidly make his way out to the spring, making sure to avoid falling in with a ease born of practice. About fifty meters from the pool, a figure burst forth, gasping for air, then collapsed by the side. The Guide's eyes grew wide with surprise, then he was at the pool. He rolled the figure over, it was a young man! So, this was a personality pool, he thought as he checked the cursed deer over. It was now a young man, slim of build, and appeared to be occidental. His hair was black, with some gray at the sides. His brown eyes looked up blankly in shock and confusion. "Oh, do not worry, little deer," the Guide shushed, "I take care of you, I can fix" He had to get him back to the cabin and doused with hot water, before he had a heart attack or went into shock, then he could take him to the drowned deer pool and turn him back to normal. Picking him up in a fireman's carry, the Guide made it back to the cabin. The Guide quickly put the cursed deer on his bed and wrapped him up in a blanket, then filled the tea kettle with water, setting it on the woodburning stove. As the Guide fanned the still hot embers within the stove, he could feel the eyes of the cursed deer on him. Glancing up, he smiled kindly, but found the gaze unnerving. The cursed deer slowly sat up, looking around wide-eyed. The Guide smiled again, then turned back to the stove, throwing in a few small logs. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened, and his heart broke for these poor creatures every time that it did. They usually acted like this, scared and cowering, unless you counted the time that Raccoon fell into the Niu-hoo-man-mao-ren-nii chuan--* That was when the hand grabbed him by the throat. With a surprised grunt, the Guide was picked up and shoved hard against the wall, knocking a row of shelves down. Looking down, he saw the strange man looking calmly at him, holding him against the wall with no apparent effort, choking the breath out of him. The Guide's feet were a good ten inches from the floor. The man looked around again, then looked the Guide in the eyes. The unholy light he saw there made the Guide afraid for his life. "So, this is Jusenkyo," the man asked in perfect Chinese, his voice cold as ice, "Tell me, has as much time passed as it seem's?" "I -- Don't know--" was all the Guide could get out, strangling. The man scowled, then brought up his left hand to the Guide's temple. Agony, like a hundred white hot daggers, bore through the Guide's brain. Screaming, he felt his mind sifted through, like a overfull trashcan, it was gone through, the bits read, then tossed back in. With a white flash, the Guide found himself on the floor, gagging and retching. The man turned and walked over to the Guide's closet, rummaging through it until he found a pair of camouflage fatigues. As they were overly large, he tied the waist off with rope, then did the same for the wrist and ankles. "So, the Tiger and the Crane are free again," he growled to the Guide, who was just now getting his throat unknotted and gasping for breath, "Finally, after all these centuries, the ritual can be completed." He found no shoes that fit, but he could do without. He noticed that the Guide was now trying to get to his feet. Unlike what people had thought all those years ago, he didn't kill needlessly, even if there was a certain joy to it. It simply was a waste of energy to use the higher spells on one person. Besides, the fool had been somewhat useful... "Sleep." Instantly the Guide slumped over, unconscious. He walked out of the cabin and looked around. Time. He needed time. All of his books were gone, and some of the spells had to be relearned. But most importantly, the spells for the ritual had to be rediscovered. If they had to be relearned from scratch, it could be difficult. He needed a place where he could get equipment, supplies, and muscle... It was then that he saw the smoke plumes rising up from the surrounding mountains, and smiled. So, the Amazon village was still around... good. It had been awhile since he'd... visited them. But first, he had some other business to take care of. Walking carefully, he made his way back to the pool of drowned Wizard, and jumped in a second time. end part two *Niu-hoo-man-mao-ren-nii chuan : Spring of drowned Yeti/Bull/Crane/Eel, famous for making Pantyhose Tarou the man he's not today ;-) Author's notes: Okay, this took a little longer than I thought, but I got the second part done! I want to thank Peter Schell and Ronald Chan both for their proofreading and their C&C, which I think helped greatly in this. Hopefully, part three will not take as long, although it won't be until after Christmas at least `til I start typing it. I now have my own E-mail address! So you can now send your caustic comments, racious remarks, noxious notes, and original observations to: Ridgewolfe@evnet.com Any and all fanmail and C&C will be read and appreciated, and I do ask that you send it, C&C is one of the best tools for improving one's writing skills Sayonara! Ridgewolfe * * * "And remember, my fast friend, these outfits we wear are just another suit of clothes, NOT another man." - Nightshade Based off of characters by the ever-lovable Rumiko Takahshi, which are her's, no copyright infringement is meant, and they are used without permission. Any other Non-Rumiko type characters have their own copyrights and are also used without permission, no infringement is meant. Any other characters are mine, and Are used with permission (Mine!) This story can be spread around, as long as the author is acknowledged, and it is not sold for profit, either in part or in whole, and all disclaimers are left intact. Ascending Changes part 3 By Ridgewolfe Hikaru stood on the outskirts of the Nerima district, watching as the sun rose to be sure of the direction. "Finally, I made it..." He muttered to himself as he adjusted his pack. After realising he was lost, Hikaru had waited until nightfall and had navigated by the stars. Now, two days later, he had reached his goal. "Now all I have to do is find this Tendo dojo and..." he started to reach into his jacket pocket, only to find it ripped open. "Auughh! My map, it's gone!" Franticly he started searching around where he stood, already knowing it was futile. "Great. Just great! Now how am I supposed to find this dojo... why'd that bear attack me anyway, it's not like I meant to step on him..." Hikaru stopped looking and closed his eyes. No sense in getting mad, what was done was done... Maybe he was supposed to help someone first. Either way, he would just have to find the dojo on his own. How hard could that be? With that, Hikaru entered Nerima. Akane sighed as the gentle motion of the train car tried it's best to lull him asleep in it's mid morning warmth. He tried to sit straighter, but as Ranma was already asleep with her head on his shoulder, the best he could do was fidget. The two of them had spent all of yesterday preparing for their return. Not in packing, even with all the stuff they had bought, that had taken less than an hour. No, what had them worried was that they didn't know what would happen when they arrived. They had finally gone to the small park by the Hotel and worked on their martial arts. Akane sighed again, trying to move his shoulders without bothering Ranma. He had a lot that he would have to relearn because of his new body. Akane had found that although his power, stamina, and resistance as a male was now greater than before, his balance and speed were off, as he was used to a smaller, female body. Ranma had assured him, however, that this was temporary, and had promised to help him train. That was something Akane was looking forward to. Before Ranma had showed up in Nerima, Akane had been the best Martial artist in the district, training regularly with his father, and the center of most the major duels in the area. By the time of his sophmore year, Akane had mastered the basics of kenpo and was beating not only Mr. Tendo regularly in their training, but the entire athletic department as well due to the idiotic challenge made by Kuno. However, after Ranma had arrived, Akane had been shoved into the background, so to speak. He was still the center of many of the feuds, but now as a prize, not a fighter. Akane wanted to learn the more advanced techniques of Anything Goes, but the person best able to teach him, Ranma, had never taken him seriously, always just dodging during their sparring matches. Even the fights Akane had over the last two years with Shampoo, Kodachi, and even Ukyou didn't help much, as they were infrequent and often ended with his opponent chasing after Ranma. In fact, the only time anybody had trained with him seriously was when Ryoga had trained Akane to win back the dojo from Natsume and Kurumi. But all that had done was just perfect his skills, they hadn't taken the time to learn the advanced techniques. Not that Akane was a lousy fighter by any means, even Ryoga had said so, it was just that many of the others in Nerima were so much better, but he knew that he had the potential to be a great fighter, a true martial artist... Akane slowly yawned, snapping himself awake. He didn't want to miss their stop, he thought, grimacing at the thought. They had purposely not told anyone they were coming home early, in hopes of avoiding a possible ambush at the station. Although Mousse and Ukyou had wished them well, there was still the Kuno's, Shampoo, Cologne, and the kami knew who else to deal with. True, they may have the house staked out... The two of them had even dressed in their chinese clothing, Ranma in her long sleeved red shirt, and Akane in the blue, just in case a fight did break out. Ranma had also seemed worried about Ryoga's reaction to the fact they were married now, but Akane didn't see why that should be a problem. True, Ranma and Ryoga fought a lot, but if Akane could get Ranma to stop teasing Ryoga, wouldn't he be happy for them? Akane glanced out the window and saw that their stop was coming up. Gently he nudged Ranma as the train started to slow. "C'mon Ranma, time to wake up..." "...lemme `lone...grr..." was the only reply as Ranma tried to crawl deeper into the seat. "Ranma, c'mon, we're home... wake up," Akane insisted, shaking his wife harder. "Mphgh...zzzzzz..." "Hmm..." Akane thought as the train stopped. Around them the other passengers started to rise to disembark. Standing up, Akane reached over and covered Ranma's nose and mouth, surprised that his one hand was large enough, that he did not need to use his other one to cut off her air supply. A full minute went by, with no results. Several other passengers stared at Akane, causing him to blush. Shrugging, he tried to ignore them as best he could. Suddenly, Ranma bolted from the seat, wide-eyed and gasping for air. "Are you awake now?" Akane asked. "Whatcha doing? Are you trying to smother me!?" Ranma shouted at the same time. "I had to wake you up, we're home!" Akane snapped back. "Leave it to a Tomboy like you to think of something like that." "What did you call me?" "You heard me..." "Ran-Ma--!" Normally, Akane would be seeing red by now, but as the odd voice he'd been hearing over the last week had seemed to indicate, the direct approach was not always best. Forcing his clenched fists down to his sides, Akane looked down at his feet and slowly, in a sulky voice, said "Fine Ranma, if that's how you want to be..." then he brushed past the surprised Ranma and walked off the train. Akane slowly walked towards the baggage car, waiting. Sure enough, Ranma came running up past him, stopping Akane by blocking his path, her expression one of worry. "C'mon Akane... don't be like this, please? I didn't mean it, I'm sorry..." Akane turned to the side, not acknowledging her for a moment, then looked in Ranma's direction with narrowed eyes. "You didn't have to be so rude." "Aw geez Akane, Don't be mad, it was a joke!" why did girls have to be like this--? Suddenly Ranma's arms were pinned as Akane grabbed her, holding her to him. "Gotcha!" He giggled, hugging Ranma. "Hey! No fair!" Ranma squirmed in Akane's grasp, sliding her arms around to Akane's back. "How you gonna get out of this one?" Akane smirked. "Who says I wanna?" Ranma tilted her head back, kissing Akane as they giggled. Across the street from atop a roof, Ryoga watched the two, his mouth hanging open. "It's... true..." he whispered to himself, his brain not believing what he saw, "I didn't want to believe... but Ranma... really Is a girl now..." Who would have thought that the curse would have affected her mind as well, nobody should have to suffer like that... "To live her life as a girl..." Slowly, Ryoga's expression became one of anger, "And she has a boyfriend already! Ranma, you really Are a pervert! How *dare* you cast aside Akane like that! Have you no regard for her feelings?! For Akane's sake, I shall punish you! Prepare to die!" Yanking free his umbrella, Ryoga leapt down to the street, his vision a red haze focused solely on the fiend Saotome. Which is why he didn't see the work crew and the open manhole cover until he dropped through it into the sewers below. One of the workers saw this and leaned down to peer into the darkness below. "Yo! Kid! You alright down there?" "Bwee..." "Crazy Martial artists..." Ranma and Akane, oblivious to this, parted, smiling at each other. Gathering their packs, they walked from the station hand in hand. The two of them made sure to avoid their normal routes home in an attempt to escape the inevitable. "How long do you think we can keep it secret we're back?" Ranma leapt onto a fence and, with a little coaxing, was joined by a wobbly Akane. "I don't know," Akane answered, holding his arms out from his sides as he walked in front of Ranma, "But you can be sure it won't be for long..." Ranma set her hands on Akane's hips, helping him to balance as they walked. Then she started pushing him into a run, "Well, whenever it is, we gotta start training you right away!" "O-okay Ranma, but don't you think we're going kinda fast?" "Don't think about it, Akane," Ranma encouraged him from behind, "You can do it, you have the balance, it's as easy as walking on the sidewalk." Akane looked forward as they ran, his mouth dry at trying this. Akane's balance had always been good, but that was when he had been a girl. He tried to relax, to let his reflexes take over, trying to let it flow, so to speak... then he saw the intersection ahead of them. "Ranma--?" Akane started, trying to slow down. "You can make it Akane," Ranma told him, pushing Akane on faster. Akane took on a grim look of determination and then started running full out. He could do this, he thought, besides, Ranma would leap with him in case anything went wrong, right? They reached the end of the fence and Akane leapt, soaring through the air across the street. He heard a car slam on it's brakes as he passed overhead, then he was landing on the opposite fence, still running. "Wow, I did it!" Akane was estatic, slowing down to a walking pace again. "Is it always that easy? Ranma?" Akane turned and saw that he was alone on the fence. Ranma was still on the other side of the street, watching him. "See, I told ya!" Ranma shouted, then she leapt across to join Akane, "All it takes is a little confidence, you got the ability..." Akane was staring at Ranma. Slowly his hand raised into a fist, "You mean, you let me leap across that..." Akane's voice started getting louder as he threw his pack to the ground "...and you didn't leap with me? You-- JERK!" Ranma did a handspring off Akane's foot as he launched a kick at her, somersaulting to land on the fence behind Akane facing him, dropping her pack to the ground as well. "What's wrong? I said you could do it and you did, aren't you happy?" "No! You tricked me!" Akane spun and lashed out with a backheel kick, which Ranma jumped up and over, and faced Ranma in a offensive stance. Ranma stuck her fingers in her mouth and stuck out her tounge, "Jeez, that's what I get for helping a tomboy like you!" She mumbled Akane smiled grimly, he wasn't so angry that Ranma's taunting was making him loose it. In fact, Akane was somewhat surprised that he wasn't seething right now. But still... "C'mere you!" He growled, throwing punches and kicks at Ranma. Well, now's as good a time as any, Ranma thought, then proceeded to block Akane's attacks, as opposed to simply dodging. Akane launched attacks furiously at Ranma, surprised that she wasn't just dodging. Curiosity cooled his anger, and Akane started to vary his attacks to see what would happen. Punches, kicks, elbow and knee strikes, forearm smashes, all were blocked as Ranma gave ground, sliding backwards across the fence. Akane's getting better, Ranma thought, a slight smile forming, so let's if he can handle... This! Suddenly Ranma started to attack as well, slipping past the gaps in Akane's defense with fingerstrikes. None of them were damaging, just hard enough to let Akane know he'd been hit. Back and forth across the fence the two went, first one giving ground, then the other. The fight had become more of a sparring match, where Akane found himself stretching his ability. While he saw that Ranma was easily blocking his attacks, it was obvious that the power behind them was more than she could handle. However, his defense was sorely lacking in this new body, as shown by the ease with which Ranma was able to breach it. What really surprised Akane however was that she was attacking at all. As for Ranma, she found the whole situation amusing. Here was Akane, who's ability was growing by leaps and bounds, and he wasn't even aware of it, judging by the look of fierce concentration on his face. After another minute Ranma cartwheeled backwards then bowed to Akane, drawing him up short. "You're doing very good, Akane, keep this up and you'll be giving Ryoga a run for his money in no time!" "What? I don't understand, I was barely able to touch you..." Akane asked, confusion written across his face. Ranma broke out into a wide grin. "This wasn't a test of skill, Akane-chan, this was a test of balance. Look at where you are." Akane looked down and his eyes widened in surprise as he saw they were still on the fence. "You're not lacking in skill," Ranma continued, "you're just lacking confidence. That'll come it time." That's when the applause started. Startled, both of them looked down at the sidewalk, to the two figures standing there, one slowly clapping, the other looking shocked. They leaped down to join them. "Mousse! How ya doin' man?" Ranma said, clapping the tall boy on the shoulder. "Hello Mousse, nice to see you," Akane agreed, holding his hands together in front of him. "Well, it's nice to see that you two are getting along as usual," Mousse commented, sliding his hands back into his sleeves as the two newlyweds started blushing. At this remark Mousse's friend, a dark skinned young girl, slowly turned and stared at him in disbelief. Mousse looked the two of them over, raising a eyebrow at how similarly they were dressed. "Let me guess, nothing else was clean?" "Huh? Oh, no... just taking precautions. So Mousse, who's your friend?" Akane asked, smiling at Shanna. "Ah, forgive me... Akane, Ranma, meet LeBeau Shanna." The two turned and bowed in greeting to her. "Actually, it's rather fortunate that we found you first, there's much you must know about." "" Shanna asked Mousse in english, "" "It's their way," Mousse answered, "And you really should use japanese. Why don't we go somewhere and we can fill you two in." "Ucchan's should be open by now..." Ranma mused, "C'mon, let's go there!" with that, Ranma grabbed up her pack and leapt up on the fence again, running. "Yeah, great idea Ranma," Akane muttered out loud, "Why don't we put four Martial artists together in the same room? What could possibly happen?" He looked over to Mousse "We better go you two..." Ukyou was behind the grill working fast, her morning rush in full swing, when Ranma walked in through her door. Several emotions ran past Ukyou as Ranma called out a greeting. First was the familiar joy of seeing her fiancee, which was quickly replaced by depression as she remembered that was no longer possible. Then surprise as she realized they must be back already. Then, lastly, confusion, as she saw that Ranma was here by herself. "Hi yourself, Ran-chan," Ukyou responded, absently flipping a okinomiyaki off to a customer, "What happened, did Akane kick you out already?" Ranma blinked in confusion, caught in the act of sitting down in the booth Ukyou reserved for her friends, then looked around. "Akane? Where'd he go?" Just then the door slid opened again, and in stepped a dripping wet Akane, followed by a amused Shanna carrying Mu-Mu chan. Akane did not look happy. "What's the idea of running off like that, Ranma?" he growled. "Oh, umm... I thought you guys were behind me... What happened, did you run into the wicked water woman?" Akane sighed as Mu-Mu chan quacked an affirmative, "I guess I'm as big a water magnet as you are," he agreed. Ukyou tossed a towel from behend the counter to Akane. "Why don't you guys go upstairs and change Mousse back, I've got something to tell you guys. You wanted the special, right sugar?" she said, turning to a customer. "Thanks, Ukyou, c'mon Shanna, this ought to be fun," Akane led the quiet girl towards the back. "This happen lots?" They heard Shanna ask. "Yep, afraid so..." "Quack..." "You no complain, Mousse, you cute as duck..." Ten minutes later the trio came back down and joined Ranma, who was already on her third okinomiyaki. Mousse decided to wait until Ukyou could join them to tell his news, and told her this as Ukyou set three of her masterpieces down for them. Soon Mousse and Shanna found themselves on the recieving end of a barrage of questions, such as how long had they been dating. The two quickly denied this, stating they had only met a few days ago and were only interested in being friends. Akane and Ranma then pelted them further with questions like how did they meet, where was she from, what hobbies did she have, when did she come to Japan... Mousse sat back and quietly ate as Shanna answered their questions, occasionaly correcting her japanese as needed. He was more interested in the changes he saw in Ranma and Akane. Already he could tell that Ranma seemed more relaxed than before, and Akane had already shown that he was at least trying to control his temper, if you didn't count the incident at the fence, that is... This was very interesting, it seemed that marriage was really doing these two some good. He wondered what had happened to cause these two to change so soon. Mousse wondered if it would be enough for what they might have to face soon. Finally, the crowd in Ucchan's thinned out enough to where Ukyou could join them. "So, did you two have fun on your honeymoon?" Ukyou asked as she slid into a chair, grinning as the two newlyweds turned crimson, "Or can't you talk about it in decent company?" "Ukyou! I-- really don't know what you're talking about..." Akane muttered. "Uh-huh, I'll worm the details out of you later, right now I've got something important to tell you two." "As well as I," Mousse chimed in, "However, let's let Ukyou talk first." "Okay. First of all, there's trouble. Ryoga showed up the other day." "Oh great," Ranma interrupted, "Let me guess, he went through the roof about the whole thing, didn't he?" "Well, he was kinda concerned about why you went back to China..." Ukyou started to twiddle her fingers, "But he really didn't react at all about Akane being cursed or you two getting married..." "He didn't?" Ranma gasped in disbelief, was this the same Ryoga? What happened, did he find religion on his last trip? "Why didn't he?" "Because... I sorta didn't get to tell him about it..." Ukyou finished lamely, "He ran out before I could finish telling him everything." "Oh, great. You mean he doesn't even know about the wedding?" Ranma growled, "Just what we need..." "Wait a minute Ranma, I don't understand..." Akane interrupted, "You make it sound like Ryoga would be mad that we got married, why would he? Why is it you two fight so much anyway?" "Uhh-- well, umm..." "You mean you don't know?" Ukyou asked, she knew that Ryoga was in love with Akane, but she though the lost boy had at some point told the transformed Akane. "Know what Ukyou?" Akane turned to face Ukyou, so he didn't see the frantic 'No! No!' gestures Ranma made behind him. "Oh," Ukyou thought for a moment, "Well, partly it's a matter of honor, so I can't say too much... let's just say that Ryoga doesn't think that you and Ran-chan make the best couple." Akane's eyes widened, as a thousand little clues suddenly came to mind. All the little gifts Ryoga gave him, all the times he turned into a blithering idiot... "You mean to say that Ryoga... has a crush on me??" "Well, yeah..." Ranma clasped Akane's hand to get his attention. Mousse noticed Ukyou's cheeks color at this, but neither said anything, "Ryoga... didn't want anyone to know, and he kinda wanted to tell you himself, but... well, he's kinda shy, and--" "And when he could say it, you'd start in on him!" Akane growled suddenly. "Why do you have to pick on poor Ryoga so much!" "Aw Geez Akane, That ain't it! Why do you always gotta put words in my mouth! I ain't never picked on him unless he deserved it" "So you admit it then, you do pick on him!" Akane snapped, "You insensetive jerk!" "I don't believe you," Ranma leaded on the table with one arm as she turned to glare at Akane, "Don't tell me that a uncute tomboy like you actually has Feelings for the little pig-gie!" "Cut it out!" Akane barked back, "Ryoga is NOT P-chan, I can't believe you're--" "Would you two SHUT UP!!!" Ukyou screamed at the two as she shot straight up, slamming her hands on the table. Shanna jumped almost out of her chair, her eyes wide as saucers. Mousse was covering his eyes as if he had a headache, he'd had such high hopes... "Here it is we're trying to tell you two stubborn jackasses something and all you can do is fight! I would've thought that you two being alone for a week without hurting each other would have cooled those tempers down but I guess I was wrong! I don't know why you two decided to finally get married when you can't even be in the same room together!" Ranma and Akane looked up at the steaming Ukyou, then at each other. "You're right," Akane agreed, "We can talk about this later. I just wish I knew why you two fight so much." Before Ranma could answer, Mousse interrupted. He had figured out awhile ago that Ryoga was actually Akane's little pet, and that somehow he must have gotten Ranma to promise not to tell. "Come on, Akane, this is Ranma we're talking about, who needs a better reason to attack her?" Akane thought about this for a second. He hated to admit it, but that was almost logical... "ANY-way..." Ukyou continued, sitting back down, "that's not all, there may be more to it than just Ryoga. Today when I opened up there was somebody here looking for the dojo. He said he had business there. Now he didn't mention you two, and he didn't seem like he was looking for trouble, but when was the last time that THAT happened?" "What did he look like?" Akane asked. "Big guy... wore denim... had a back pack and a sledgehammer... and he carried himself like a martial artist." Ukyou replied, "I'd say he was in his early thirties..." "Aw, big deal..." Ranma waved Ukyou's concerns off, "I can handle him if he causes trouble, no problem..." "I wouldn't be too sure, Ran-chan..." Ukyou cautioned, "I wouldn't like the idea of possibly having him team up with Ryoga against you." "And why would he do that?" Akane asked, curious now. "Because he said his name was Hikaru Hibiki, Ryoga's cousin. And if he's anything like his cousin then that means trouble." "Well then, where is he now?" Ranma glanced around the room briefly. Ukyou snorted in amusment, like they wouldn't have noticed if the guy was still here... "I figured we needed some time, so I gave him directions to the dojo, I figured if he had a sense of direction like Ryoga..." "So in other words, you let him get himself lost," Mousse finished for her, "Did it work?" "He wandered off in the southernly direction he was warned not to go in," Ukyou grinned. "That very interesting, but Mousse have something to say." Shanna added. Several of them jumped, she had been so quiet they had forgotten she was there. Shanna smiled shyly and looked down, her face coloring as they stared at her. "Ah yes..." Mousse pushed his glasses up his nose and sighed, looking back. "What I have to say is not exactly unexpected... Shampoo didn't take the news very well. She has become increasingly violent over the last week, and I believe she will seek out Ranma to exact vengence against her." Both Ranma's and Akane's expression's fell. "Just... great... why can't she just get over it? After all this time, she's STILL gonna try to kill me?" "I am afraid so, she has been training most of the week." Mousse agreed. "I wouldn't take this threat lightly." "Tell me again, Akane, why did we come back here?" Ranma muttered sarcasticly, holding her forehead. "Because this is where all our friends and loved ones are," Akane replied, "Mousse, is there any way we could talk Shampoo out of this? I don't think any of us want to see her get hurt, and we can't allow her to hurt Ranma." "Not that I know of," Mousse shrugged, "I suppose that if somebody were to defeat her then she may call it off, but I don't think it's because of tribal law. I get the impression it's because she feels betrayed." "Then why don't you challenge her?" Ranma asked, looking up, "I know you don't want to hurt her, but You could beat her easy if you tried." "I have tried, Ranma," Mousse told her, "But Shampoo doesn't even acknowledge my challenges anymore, she just hits me over the head and goes on her way..." "Why not go to police?" Shanna asked, "Get a re... a re..." "Restraint order?" Mousse supplied. "Yes, why not?" "Actually... I'd never thought about that..." Ranma agreed, "Do you think it would work?" "This is Shampoo we're talking about..." Akane muttered. "What's Cologne think about all this?" Ukyou wondered. "That's the strange part, Cologne doesn't seem to be at all concerned..." Mousse told her, "Either she's completely withdrawn because of it, or she's planning something." Just then several regulars walked in, "Well, whatever you decide," Ukyou told them as she stood, "I have work to get back to. Let me know what happens" Ukyou cheerfully greeted the newcomers as she made her way back around the grill. Hikaru looked up at the midday sun in confusion. The girl at the shop had said that the dojo was close by, yet here it was, almost noon, and he hadn't seen anything remotely like a dojo. Hikaru stopped abruptly when he came to another restaraunt, the banner in front showing Vietnamese characters. He started looking around in a panic until he found a streetsign. "Good, I'm still in Japan," He sighed in relief, "Well, maybe I can get directions in there." Hikaru walked in, glancing at the lunch crowd that filled the small buisness as he slipped his sneakers off, the chatter of several convesations filling the air. Making his way around the tables, he walked up to the counter, where he could see a young, long-haired woman busy in the kitchen, her back turned. Reaching around a customer, Hikaru rung the small bell on the counter. "Just one minute, I'll be right there!" The woman called out. "Take your time, I was just wondering if I could get some directions..." Hikaru called back, looking around the room. The woman suddenly stiffened, dropping the pan she held to the floor in a loud clatter. Magicly, the entire room grew quiet. That voice... no, it couldn't be, not after all this time... Slowly she turned around, fire in her eyes as she saw who was at the counter. "You--!" "Ah-hahaha..." Hikaru nervously laughed, "Mai Ling! So... when did you arrive in Japan?" Slowly he started backing towards the door. "After you defeated and humiliated me in front of my entire village, you DARE show up here?" Mai Ling snarled, a halberd suddenly in her hands. "Hey! You attacked me! I just wanted directions, how was I to know you were having a tournament?" Hikaru noticed that a lot of the customers were moving their tables off to the side, as if this was a common occurance. "I have only one thing to say to you!" Mai Ling snapped. "Nice to see you?" Hikaru asked hopefully, still edging to the door. "Die!" Mai Ling leapt over the counter and slashed at where Hikaru was standing, but he was already gone, flipping backwards with a handspring out the door. "At least let me grab my shoes!" He shouted back into the doorway, then barely dodged decapitation as Mai Ling charged after him. Hikaru dropped and swept her legs from under her, then leapt up onto the roof. Soon, he was bounding from house to house, the crazed cook hot on his heels. "Great spirits, why does this happen to me and not someone else?" he wondered out loud. Ranma and Akane sat on the park bench near the edge of the pond, the warmth of the midday sun comfortable as they tossed breadcrumbs to the ducks. After walking with Mousse and Shanna to her Grandfather's place, they had sat and talked to the older man, who had practicly gushed over them. Mr. LeBeau's mannerism's were... new, to say the least. But, when most everyone they had met over the last two years were after the two of them in some manner or another, they felt they could easily get along with him. After they had left the Crawdad's, the two newlywed's had come here to the park, putting off going back to the dojo as long as they could. It wasn't that they didn't want to go there, they just didn't want to become target's quite yet. Ranma sat next to Akane, her legs curled up under her on the bench as she rested against the cradle of Akane's body, Akane's right arm loosly around her shoulders. Normally, Ranma would never be seen in a position like this, not only because it was a public show of affection, but because the position she was in was very feminine. However, Ranma had decided that she didn't care. If someone saw her with her... with Akane, then what did it matter? Besides, this felt nice... "Yen for your thoughts," Akane asked, looking down at Ranma. "Why?" "Cause you were smiling, I was just wondering what about" Ranma smiled, "I was thinking about you, about how nice this feels..." "Ranma! You say the nicest things!" Akane squealed, hugging her tighter. "Ack--! Akane-- must breathe--!" Akane let go, and they settled back into place. They watched as the ducks floated across the surface of the pond, listening to the distant sound of children playing... A thought occured to Akane, "Ranma, what day is today?" "Umm... Friday, why?" she answered, looking up questioningly. "Great. You realise that we have school monday, don't you?" "The thought had crossed my mind. How do you think everyone's gonna react?" "I don't know..." Akane sighed. "Even with all the craziness over the last two years, this is going to take some getting used to. What do you think?" "Well I--" suddenly Ranma's eyes grew wide, "Uh-oh!" Before Akane could ask, Ranma was kissing him passionately, pulling his head down as she ran her fingers through his hair. Startled, Akane started to reciprocate eagerly. Ryoga walked past then, not paying attention to the young couple making out on the bench. "Why can't I ever get where I'm going?" the lost boy growled, stopping, "Is it ever to be my curse, to wander hopelessly, never to know where I am? Ranma!! This is all your fault! You won't escape me for long! Ranma!" Having uttering his standard battlecry, Ryoga ran off. Ranma came up for air, leaving Akane gasping as she watched Ryoga's retreating form. "Man, that was close! I was sure he was gonna find us..." Just then Ranma was grabbed by Akane again. "He could come back," Akane growled huskily, pulling Ranma back into another kiss. As the two continued to hide from Ryoga, dark eyes watched them from above, hidden in the depths of the trees. There she was... the one who had stolen her one true love... she had much to answer for... but not now... Hikaru skidded across the roof as he landed, hopping down quickly to the street. Throwing himself around the corner of the house he hid himself desperately, trying to get his breathing under control. As Hikaru's conditioning was excellent, his breathing soon returned to normal. Not hearing anybody in pursuit, he cautiously looked around the corner. "Huh, looks like I lost her," He muttered, looking up to the rooftops as well, "I wish Mai Ling would just sit down and talk with me, I'd make repreations with her but it's kinda hard when she keeps trying to kill me." Shedding his backpack, Hikaru dug around in it until he found a pair of moccasins. Slipping them on he looked around to catch his bearings. When he saw the nameplate on the wall of the house he landed on, his jaw dropped in surprise. "Well, well, Mai Ling, it looks like I owe you a favor," He said softly, tracing the name ~Hibiki' on the nameplate. Hikaru leapt over the wall and to the door, his heart beating in excitement. Was anybody home? Taking the key from under the mat, Hikaru unlocked the door and walked in, setting his backpack and toolbelt aside. "Auntie? Uncle? Ryoga? Is anybody home?" He called out, almost forgetting to remove his footwear, "It's me, Hikaru!" Silence was all that answered, however, and with it a crashing of his hope. "Ah well... it was a long shot, anyway..." Hikaru felt the depression building, but quickly shook it off, he wasn't the angry young man he once was, he wouldn't let this get to him. All the members of his family were cursed to wander as he did, they would be back eventually. Besides, now that he'd found the house, it wasn't like he couldn't come back, that's why he had studied navigation... "No, it's getting there in the First place that's the problem..." he muttered. "Well, since I'm here..." wandering into the kitchen, he fetched a glass of water from the faucet, then scanned the room. "Hmm... what's this..." Hikaru picked up a bowl of what looked like dried out ramen noodles from the counter and a note, "`Ryoga, made some lunch for you, I've gone to the market and should be back soon. Love, mom.' Looks like it's been about three weeks then..." He emptied the contents in the trash, then proceeded to clean the dusty kitchen. Twenty minutes later, Hikaru walked out into the living room, moving towards his uncle's desk. "Let's see... he's gotta have some paper... ah." quickly he scribbled out a note, "Hello there, stopped by, but nobody was home. I am back in Japan and will stop by again later. Have a lot of stories to tell you, Hikaru." With that, he went back to the front door, gathered his pack and toolbelt again, and stepped back outside. "I'd like to stay, but there's no telling how long it'll be until anybody shows up next," He muttered to himself, slapping the note on the front door. Shrugging the pack back on, Hikaru walked out to the street and turned, hoping to find the dojo next. Five minutes later, from the opposite direction, a older woman led by a black and white dog and carrying a sack of groceries, strolled across the yard, and into the house. Kasumi worked away in the kitchen, humming merrily to herself. Akane and Ranma were back! And it looked like they were getting along so well... Kasumi started to sift the flour for the buscuits she would serve with dinner tonight. When Ranma and Akane had shown up at the front door an hour earlier, she had been worried like everyone else. After all, they weren't due back for another day at least, why were they back? Was everything okay? Kasumi had been very glad to hear that they had just come home early and they were getting along just fine. After that, Kasumi and Nabiki had dragged the two off to Akane's room for a gossip session, while the two fathers had broken out the sake to celebrate the joining of their families. Kasumi smirked to herself. She and Nabiki *had* been somewhat merciless with their questions, remembering how red Ranma and Akane had gotten, but it was just so exciting! They had wanted to know everything that had happened while on the honeymoon... well, not *everything*, she thought, blushing slightly, some things were better left unsaid... but Still--! Kasumi pulled out a measuring cup and started to spoon the flour into it, Soon she would have to show Akane how to do this, if he was going to be taking over the household, that way Ranma would be free to train students in the dojo... Kasumi paused for a moment, running that thought over in her head. Wait a moment, if Akane was the `man' of the house now, then wouldn't he be the one training the students? And wouldn't Ranma be in charge of the household duties? She was already a better cook than Akane... Kasumi sighed, then set the cup down, absently wiping her hands on her apron. If she were to instruct Ranma in how to take over the household, she'd better start now, she could be so stubborn... it would probably be best if Kasumi didn't tell Ranma she was training her right off, as well... Ranma and Akane, having unpacked after the little chat session, had decided to work out, so were now in the dojo. Ranma was currently facing Akane, leading him through a kata designed to improve one's defense, her movement's flowing and graceful as she slowly showed Akane how it was done. Akane followed through the form, his movements not quite as graceful, yet still just as powerful. They reached the end of the kata, bowed to each other, then started again. "I still can't believe those two, asking questions like that!" Ranma groused, blushing at some of the rather pointed details Nabiki had wanted to know. Akane grinned, "I wouldn't worry about it too much, Ranma... they're only excited about what's happened. It's natural to be curious. Think of it as a girl thing, if you want." "I suppose... just as long as they don't keep it up, the last thing we need is Nabiki selling information like that to Kuno or someone..." Just then they heard the dojo door slide open, and in walked Kasumi. Both of them nodded to her, and Kasumi bowed back, quietly smiling as she stood off to the side, watching them. Kasumi marveled at how smoothly the two newlyweds moved through the kata, both their actions the same, how dedicated they were to their artform. Even though their actions mirrored the other, Kasumi could see how Ranma was the more graceful, her movements like a soft breeze, as if gravity had no more hold on her than she wished, almost a bird in flight... Akane's motions seemed fluid, yet with stronger undertones, hidden power wanting to be unleashed, like a predator waiting to pounce... the two finished the kata, then turned to her. "Hey there, what's up Kasumi?" Ranma asked as they walked over. "This is rather unusual, seeing you out here," Akaner agreed. "I'm sorry for interupting your practice," Kasumi apologized, her hands held in front of her, "But I was wondering if I could talk with Ranma for a moment in the kitchen?" Both of them looked rather surprised at this. "Umm... sure, I guess..." Ranma answered slowly, glancing at Akane. "Uhh... is something going on?" Akane asked, wondering. "No no," Kasumi smiled, "Just some secrets I want to share with my new sister, that's all." Ranma flinched inwardly, wanting to say she was a guy! But this was Kasumi, nobody could bring themselves to say a cross word to her. "Sure Kasumi, I'll be right in." Kasumi smiled again and walked outside. Ranma turned then to Akane, "Do you think you can practice the kata by yourself Akane?" she asked. "Sure Ranma, no problem." Akane responded. He didn't want to show it, but what Kasumi had implied had hurt his feelings, that he wouldn't be shown how to run a household because he was a guy now... then Ranma was hugging him, pulling his head down to kiss his cheek. "Don't worry Akane, I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it," she whispered, "they just gotta get used to us, that's all." With that Ranma turned and bounded from the dojo. Akane sighed and started through the kata again, but even though his body went through the motions, his mind wasn't on it. He kept thinking about what Kasumi had said, and what it implied. Did this mean that he wouldn't be shown how to be a good housewife? no, that should be house husband, he supposed. either way, it was something he wanted to learn. Ever since he'd been a little girl, Akane had admired his mother, what she did for her family and loved ones, the things she did for her family... that was the image he held in his mind every time he tried to do something for Ranma, not only because it was something he aspired to, but because he wanted to make her mother so proud... it didn't matter to Akane that he never seemed to suceed, but that he tried so hard-- #How do you know she's not proud of you, little warrior?# Akane paused in the kata, surprised, but then continued, "So, you're back are you?" he said to the voice, "and to what do I owe this honor, oh spirit of drowned man?" #You figured out what I am,# The voice responded with a touch of humor, #I wondered if you would.# "It wasn't that hard, who else could you be?" Akane replied, "You've been quiet for days, why talk to me now?" #Because at this time, I can only communicate with you when you are either very relaxed or very upset about something, your will serves as a barrier otherwise. There may come a time when we can talk any time you want, and soon, but it is not now.# "Why can you talk to me at all?" Akane asked, stopping the kata and sitting down, "Can you read my thoughts?" #Those questions can only be answered when the next level is reached, Akane-san, but I will say that only your loudest surface thoughts can I hear... how do you know your mother is not proud?# "Well, my mom died when I was very young, but my fondest memories are of her doing things for us. I've always wanted to be just like her, to do things for my family..." Akane sighed, "I just don't seem to have any talent for housework though..." #I'm no expert, but it seems as if that would come in time. Did you learn martial arts right away?# "Well, no..." #Any skill worth doing well takes time, Akane. If you really want to learn it, I am sure you will... may I tell you something?# Akane shrugged, "I suppose, will it help?" #Maybe. When I was younger, my mother once told me something. she said that whatever I choose to do with my life, whether it was to become a merchant, or a woodcutter, a farmer, or even a gladiator, she would always be proud of me as long as I always tried my best. From what I have seen, you always do your best.# Akane thought about this for a moment, then smiled. "Was she proud of you?" #I would like to think so. Death may do many things, but it doesn't stop others from caring about you, I would say that your mother is proud of you and your family, and I am proud of you as well, you are doing better at controlling your anger.# "But I'm not yet there, right?" Akane asked. #No, not yet.# With that, Akane felt the presense leave him again. With a sigh, Akane stood back up and started the kata again. "Of course I'm getting better with my temper, what with you blocking me all the time." he growled, then started moving through the kata once again. Mousse waved goodbye to the last customer, then removed the banner that hung outside. The dinner crowd had just left, and as Crawdad's was a new restaraunt, they closed afterwards. Mousse took a moment to regard the low sitting sun, it looked like it would be a beautiful sunset, then stepped inside, sliding the door closed. Setting the banner aside, he hurried over and started helping Shanna clear the tables. "Mousse, you no need help," Shanna told him, grateful that he was. "It's no problem, really." Mousse told her, setting dishes on the tray, "Besides, you and Mr. LeBeau have been so nice to me, it's the least I can do." Clearing the last table off, the two carried the trays into the back, where Mr. LeBeau was finishing storing the food away. "Ah, we do good tonight!" He beamed at the two young people, "`Dis keep up, then we do as good as we did in New Orleans!" Shutting the cooler door, he picked up a clipboard and started on the closing paperwork. "I wouldn't worry about it, Mr. LeBeau," Mousse told him, setting the dishes in the sink for Shanna, "People in this area are always looking for new places to eat." Because of all the fights that break out in all the old ones, he thought silently. As Mousse grabbed a broom to sweep the front with, they all three heard the front door open and close. Looking at each other, Mousse shrugged and started up front. "I'll get it," He said, stepping through the doors, "Welcome to Crawdad's I'm sorry but URK! You!" "Nice to see you to, boy," Cologne drawled humorlessly, hopping up on her staff and across the room. "What are You doing here?" Mousse asked, dropping the broom, hoping this wasn't going to become violent. Cologne hopped over to Mousse and looked him over with a piercing glare, causing him to break out in a sweat. Finally she waved him away. "Relax Mousse, I only wanted to see where all my waitstaff had run off to." Just then Shanna stepped out of the kitchen, wondering what was going on. "Or is this the reason here?" Cologne finished, raising an eyebrow. "It-It's not like that, Shanna and her Grandfather are my friends," Mousse told the elder Amazon, "I figured since Shampoo didn't seem to like me that much anymore..." "Did she ever?" "Hello there, how do you do?" Shanna walked up to Cologne, bowwing to her and smiling nervously. If this was the Cologne that Mousse had told them about, Shanna didn't want to be on her bad side. "Hello there young lady, I'm doing fine this evening. Am I to understand that you are the reason Mousse has been away for so long?" Before Shanna could answer, Mr. LeBeau entered the room. "Ahh, what do we `ave Here? Are you `de famous Matriarch Cologne? `tis a pleasure to meet you Madam, I am Mr. LeBeau, and welcome to my little shop. It not often `dat we get people of your prestige here, Ha ha!" He beamed, walking right up to Cologne and bowing deeply to her, "It also a pleasure to meet another shop owner so soon! you must be hungry, please, take a seat an' I go get you some tea, the gumbo is still hot, I sure you would like a bowl, it excellent today, or so Mousse here think, he had three bowls already!" Waving to a booth, Mr. LeBeau started towards the kitchen, "You wait right here, I be right back!" With that he entered the kitchen again, where they could hear doors opening as his deep baritone sung out a folk song to himself. Cologne slowly looked at Mousse with wide eyes, wondering what had just happened. "I'm not sure, but I think I like him," she finally said, hopping down into a booth. "Great..." Mousse muttered, "This outta be fun..." Waving Shanna to follow him, he started back towards the kitchen as Mr. LeBeau came back out with a tray ladened with food, "C'mon Shanna, we'd best make ourselves scarce for awhile." "Mouuse tell me `dat you been around for awhile, you must `ave many tales for de tellin'!" They heard Mr. LeBeau ask as they went back to finish cleaning the kitchen. Yep, this was going to be a long night... Ranma stepped into the changing room, stripping off her chinese top and pants, and set her bath things on the sink. Dinner had been somewhat interesting, full of questions and jokes for the newlyweds. Ranma had let Akane answer most of them, though, as she was too busy wondering about Kasumi. When they had entered the kitchen, Ranma had helped Kasumi with making dinner. It had seemed the thing to do, that or just stand in the way... And Kasumi had shared some secrets... but they had been secrets about running the household, things about the neighborhood, how to cook... why would she tell her things like that? It was almost as if Kasumi was trying to instruct her or something. What was Kasumi up to? Ranma paused for a moment, about to brush her teeth, and studied the image that looked back from the mirror. A pretty young redheaded pigtail girl clad in boxers and a sports bra. With a scowl, Ranma pulled the bra off and threw it in the hamper with the rest of her clothes. She had accepted the necessity of the item, and both she and Akane had compromised in favor of the sports bras Ranma now owned instead of regular ones, as she could at least pretend they were something else like a tight shirt or something, but Ranma hated wearing them. They only served to remind her that she was forever stuck as a female now. Not that it was a bad form to be stuck in... Ranma thought as she studied herself in the mirror while brushing her teeth, her breasts were round and full, standing firm and proud in spite of their size... her tummy was nicely flat, the muscles showing a washboard relief... a slender waist, her hips nicely rounded... Ranma shook her head to clear it, she was getting aroused by her own body! Too bad Akane wasn't here... ah well, I guess I'll just have to wait `til later... yes, definately not a bad form to be in, but it wasn't the one she had been born to. She missed her height as a male, the strength it had... Not that this form didn't have it's advantages, as a female Ranma was faster than she ever was as a guy, and a good deal of her power did translated over, she just missed her real form at times. Ranma rinsed her mouth out and stepped into the bathing area. She would just have to make do, she supposed. "Not like I haven't had time to get used to it," Ranma told herself, "Besides, it's kinda nice being with Akane finally." They had talked about it while at the hotel, sorta. While both of them agreed that their new bodies were definately attractive, it was the person inside that they were interested in, not the packaging. Ranma hurriedly scrubbed herself in the shower, then went to step into the furo, almost screaming as she saw that Nabiki was there, watching her with a wicked grin. "Nabiki! What are you doing here!?" Ranma yelled, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her waist. "Finally, I was starting to wonder if you'd ever notice me," Nabiki drawled, her head resting on her crossed arms on the edge of the tub, "You know, that towel doesn't hide that much..." Nabiki's grin got wider as Ranma blushed furiously, readjusting the towel. "Out of curiosity, why are you acting so modest now? You never did before..." "Well, umm... I never really saw this as my body before," Ranma answered, starting to edge towards the door, "I'll come back later--" "Oh come on, Ranma, we're all girls here..." Nabiki told her teasingly, "Besides, it's gonna be awhile until I see any of you again anyway... come on in." Reluctantly, Ranma stepped into the far end of the furo, avoiding looking at Nabiki's bare form. It was one thing to see herself or Akane naked, but she didn't even want to think about what the others would do if they saw this! The hot water immediately started to relax her, and with a sigh, Ranma settled into the water, eyes closed. "You can open your eyes, Ranma, I don't think I'm that hideous," Nabiki said. Cracking open one eye, Ranma saw that Nabiki was looking at her, although she hadn't changed positions, and that with the way Nabiki was sitting along with the depth of the water, you really couldn't see that much. A thought occured to Ranma then. "Why aren't you embarrassed Nabiki? I mean I'm still pretty much a guy inside..." Nabiki shrugged, "There's no profit in it," she said, her face taking on a quiet look, "If I were to try and blackmail you because of this, I'd hurt myself. Besides, I forgot to put the occupied sign out, it's my own fault that you came in, so there's no use in worrying about it." Nabiki paused for a moment, studying Ranma as they relaxed in the water. "So, you really like being with my little sister?" Ranma felt her cheeks getting warmer at the question, but she noticed that there was something about Nabiki's tone that seemed more inquiring than teasing... "Well, yeah... I always have Nabiki. I just wish it hadn't taken something like this to admit it to each other. Not that I'm complaining, it's been kinda fun." Ranma smiled back as Nabiki's grin returned, "Now I got a question for you, where have you been hiding all day? Outside of dinner, hardly anybody's seen you Nabiki." "I've been busy packing, I leave for college on monday, didn't you know?" Nabiki asked back, a eyebrow raised, "I wanted to get it done today so that I could spend the weekend with everybody. Not that I'm gonna miss the insanity that happens around here..." "Umm... sorry about that..." Ranma muttered, looking downcast. Nabiki stirred, sending ripples across the water, "Don't worry about it Ranma. I know that a lot of it is caused by that useless furball of a father of yours, and when you do cause trouble, you at least try to make up for it." Not that Ranma always succeeded, but Nabiki was always able to make a profit off the attempts. "Besides, it does get entertaining at times." Nabiki stood up then, causing Ranma to "Urk!" and quickly screw her eyes shut as Nabiki stepped out of the furo. Nabiki shook her head at this, it wasn't that she was an exhibitionist, but you would think that Ranma would have gotten used to seeing a female's body by now... "You can look now, Ranma," she said, wrapping a towel around herself, "I'll go tell Akane he can take his bath now. Just remember, little brother, while you're having "Fun" with my little sister, to keep using protection. I don't think you're really ready for motherhood yet." With that, Nabiki left the room, leaving a wide eyed Ranma still in the water. Protection? Ranma thought to herself. Ryoga looked up from his map as he walked down the street, looking around in confusion as the early evening darkness settled in. "This doesn't make sense, the dojo should be around here someplace..." he said, looking around. He'd only walked across half of Tokyo, he should of found it by now... turning a full circle, he saw the object of his search across the street from him. At last! He'd found the Tendo dojo, there was no way that the cursed Ranma would escape the punishment she had coming to her now--! With a single bound, Ryoga was perched on top the wall that surrounded the Tendo's yard. Finally, that fiend Ranma would pay for hurting Akane so, she must be so heartbroken, after being dumped so heartlessly... wait a minute... if Akane was so heartbroken, then wasn't it his duty as her friend and true love to comfort her in her hour of need? Wouldn't this be the time to express his true feelings for her? But what about Ranma, who had so traitorously left her for that-- that GUY!? What was he supposed to do? Ryoga stood up on the wall, his fists clenched and unconsciously striking a dramatic pose. There was only one way to solve this dilemma. Digging through his pockets, Ryoga produced a canadian two-dollar coin. Huh, wonder where I got this at, he absently mused. "Okay, heads I comfort Akane, tails I beat the snot out of Ranma." he said, the coin flipping through the air. Catching it, he slapped it to the back of his hand. "Heads it is! Here I come Akane!" Ryoga cried as he leapt into the air, visions of Akane and him together clouding his vision, clearing only when he hit the koi pond that somebody must have moved into his way. Soun Tendo and Genma-panda, both who were sitting on the porch playing their favorite game of Go, looked bleary eyed out into the yard, many a bottle of sake around them. "Did you hear something, Saotome?" Soun managed to get out. The Panda tried to palm two of Soun's pieces while he was distracted, but instead ended up putting three back. "I guess it wasn't anything-- there they are! I was wondering where those pieces went!" A very disgruntled P-chan crawled out of the pond, his clothes and pack settling to the bottom. This wasn't quite what he'd been thinking of, why was it that the fates were always conspiring against him? Somehow, this had to be Ranma's fault! Ukyou stepped out of Ucchan's and, checking to be sure her Battle Spat was secure and she had a full bandolier, locked the door behind her. Then, with a look of grim determination, quickly strode down the street. It was time. Her target had much to answer for, and she knew she would find him at the dojo. She had tried to be nice to him, but for what he had done, there was only one option left. And when she found him, there was going to be hell to pay... Akane stepped into the bathing area, absently holding his towel to his chest as he entered. Sitting in the water was Ranma, a shocked expression still on her face. This was odd, Akane thought, kneeling by the edge of the tub. He reached up and touched Ranma's face, causing her to start. "What's wrong, love?" Akane asked, "You were just staring off into space." "Akane, I think we may have a problem," Ranma told him, her voice distraught. Akane quickly climbed into the furo, driven by the emotion in Ranma's voice. Gathering Ranma's small form in his arms, he held her tightly, stroking Ranma's hair. "What? What's wrong? Did something happen?" It almost seemed like Ranma was scared! "Akane... while we were away... should we have used... protection?" Ranma shuddered at the thought. "Protection? Protection against what? I don't-- Urk!" Akane froze, she didn't mean *That* kind of protection, did she? "You mean you think you might be... *pregnant*???" he gasped out, feeling Ranma flinch at the word. No, this couldn't be happening, he wasn't used to being a guy yet, but now he was going to be a Mommy?!? No wait, that would be Daddy... He thought as he turned Ranma around to face him. "I don't know!" Ranma almost wailed, looking away from Akane. "Well, what signs have you shown? How far along in your cycle are you? Are you overdue for your period?" Akane's stomach was turning flipflops right now, he wasn't sure if he wanted to cry or scream! "My period?" Ranma asked in confusion, looking up, "You mean that thing Kasumi was telling me about?" Akane `urked' again, then glared at Ranma. "How can you spend most of your time as a girl and not know what that is, you Baka!" "How can you yell at me at a time like this! You're the one that did this to me anyway you tomboy!" Ranma snapped back, pushing away. "I didn't hear you complaining at the time, you pervert!" he growled back, then stopped himself, "Okay Ranma, let's just stop. We've both been rather high strung today, so let's just take a minute and just collect ourselves before either of us says something really bad..." Ranma nodded, then slid back into Akane's arms. "I'm sorry I got you mad..." "I'm sorry I yelled at you, too..." they stayed quiet for a moment, then Akane sat back, "Okay Ranma, what makes you think you could be pregnant?" "I was talking to Nabiki earlier, and she made a offhand remark about using protection. We haven't used any at all." By now Ranma's cheeks were bright red. This was not the sort of thing she liked talking about, she'd had nightmares about this before! "So you're saying that there's no proof it might have happened, just that you think it might of?" Akane asked. "Well... yeah... I guess so..." Ranma muttered, feeling embarrassed now, "I feel like such an idiot..." "No, Ranma..." Akane shushed, petting the girl's hair gently, "It's something we should be worried about. Neither one of us are really ready to become parents yet, but as far as we know, you could be pregnant... I definately think we should go see Dr. Tofu like we planned tomorrow." "Umm... about that... Kasumi said that Tofu was out of town, he won't be back until tuesday. We'll have to make the appointment then." Akane thought for a moment. Tuesday. Okay, tuesday wasn't so bad, they could wait until tuesday. "Okay Ranma, we can do that. but until then, I don't think you should get into any fights or that we should tell anybody else, okay?" "That's easier said than done, you know," Ranma grumped, rolling her eyes. "I know that, but if you are pregnant you could hurt yourself and the baby, so I want you to promise me you'll at least try, okay? Okay?" Akane held her until she nodded her head. "Okay Akane, I promise." she said. With that, Ranma stood and stepped out of the furo, "I'm going to bed, Akane... you go ahead and finish your bath..." "Are you going to be okay?" Akane held onto Ranma's hand, concern in his voice. "Yeah, I just got a lot to think about... don't worry..." she squeezed her husband's hand, then turned and shuffled from the room. "Poor Ranma..." Akane watched her shut the door behind her, then slumped into the furo. Ohgodohgodohgod! Pregnant! whatifshewas? Whatifshewas?? I'm not ready for this! Aughh! A pajama clad Nabiki stepped into the kitchen, pulling a soda out of the fridge. She had finished packing for the night, but she still had a lot of work ahead of her. She had to make sure the household finances were all in order, plus instructions had to be left so that the others could keep them up... maybe an accountant should be hired... maybe she should also let people know that Ranma was taking the dojo over now, with her reputation, students shouldn't be hard to find... A scratching at the back door drew Nabiki's attention then. Opening it, she watched P-chan enter the kitchen, who greeted her with a friendly "Bwee!" "Oh. You." Nabiki drawled to the piggy. For the life of her, Nabiki couldn't figure out what Akane saw in the thing, but then again, Nabiki wasn't much for pets in the first place... I wonder if Akane would consider breeding P-Chan, you could charge a lot for stud fee's, and there had to be a market for miniature pigs someplace... The two stood there for a moment, looking at each other. What was she supposed to do, pet the thing? With a shrug, Nabiki turned and left. When she got partway up the stairs, she looked behind her and saw P-chan at the foot of the stairs, grinning up at her. "Are you following me? Not that I expect a pig to answer..." After a moment, Nabiki went back down and picked P-chan up by his bandanna, holding him away from her with two fingers, "C'mon, I suppose I can be nice for once and take you to Akane's room." Carrying him up the stairs, Nabiki took him to Akane's door and tossed him into the darkened room, wiping her hand on her pajama bottoms as she left. P-chan rolled to his feet, having a few choice thoughts for Nabiki as he did. But then again, it wasn't like he could really do anything to her, Nabiki wasn't a martial artist. Even though the room was dark, there was a bit of moonlight from the window, enough for P-chan to see the small figure huddled in the bed. Poor Akane, she must of cried herself to sleep. Hopping upon the bed, P-chan huddled close to the young girl. When Ranma had left the bath, her emotions had been in turmoil. She felt confused, angry, upset, distraught, all sorts of things that she wasn't prepared to feel and hadn't felt before. What was she supposed to do? What if she was... she was... oh kami, she couldn't even think about it! This would be just the thing she would need to have get out to the others, if they weren't after her head before, they would be now... her's or Akane's... she had crawled into bed and had almost fallen asleep. Needless to say, when she felt a certain piggy's snout prodding her, she knew it was about to hit the fan. Still only half awake, she sat up, picking P-chan up and petting him as she tried to gather her thoughts. Maybe if she was nice, she could diffuse the situation? Besides, she had promised not to fight... "Hey there Ryoga, it's good to see you," P-chan's eyes grew wide as he squealed in shock. What was Ranma doing here! "Um, Akane should be here in a bit, and I'm really not in any mood to deal with you, so I'll tell you what, I won't say anything if you want to stay here tonight, but we gotta talk tomorrow. You can't keep this up, P-chan. Maybe if we sit and talk we can settle this without anybody getting hurt, okay?" However, all of this was wasted on P-chan as a black veil of rage descended over his eyes. How *dare* this twisted, insensitive, freakish, PERVERT be here! Not only had she gone and lured some poor guy into her web of deceit, but now she intended to seduce Akane and have her wicked way with her! She'd gone TOO FAR! P-chan squirmed away from Ranma and leapt to the floor, marching across the room and out the door. "Ryoga, no, wait! Don't go... away mad..." Ranma watched the pig leave. He'd wanted to make friends with him... "That could have gone better..." For once P-chan's sense of direction didn't distract him from his goal, and within minutes he stormed into the washroom. That pervert had gone too far this time! There was no escuse, Ranma must be made to pay! Hopping up onto the rim of the Furo, he threw himself into the hot water. The change was almost instantaneous, tingly, like a muscle that had gone to sleep, then Ryoga stood up, erupting from the water. "Ranma. Now you die..." He growled, his battle aura already visible and humming. Furiously he strode out of the room, pausing only long enough to grab a change of clothes from the shelf in the laundry room and dress. Not once did he notice the strange young man he'd seen earlier that was sitting in the furo. A few moments later, all hell broke loose. "SHI SHI HOUKOUDAN!" Ranma hit the ground in a shoulder roll, clad only in her boxers and shirt as the outside wall of the bedroom exploded above her with the force of a bomb. When Ryoga had kicked the door in, Ranma's reflexes had taken over and she had dived out the window just in time to avoid the chi attack. Ranma came to her feet and leapt backwards for some distance as Ryoga leap out of the hole, his fist crashing into the spot where she had just been. Ranma then had to dive again as several bandanna's cut thru the air. "What the hell is your problem Ryoga, I said you could stay in the room!" Ranma sidestepped as Ryoga charged her, then she found herself dodging like mad, only barely avoiding a furious barrage of strikes and kicks as Ryoga forced her on the defensive. This was real bad, Ryoga seemed to have gotten better since they last fought, he was coming a lot closer than she liked with his attacks. Not only was Ryoga extremly furious, but he was unusually focused as well, if this kept up Ryoga would wear her down real soon, and then there would be blood spilled. Ryoga's answer however was to growl as he threw even more strikes, several of which grazed Ranma's shoulder's and arms, and followed with a backheel kick aimed for Ranma's head. A kick that would have taken her head clean off if she had been there when it landed. With a speed born of desperation Ranma had ducked under it and stepped inside Ryoga's guard. "Kachuu Tenshin Amaguriken!" Over three hundred blows nailed Ryoga in the solar plexus in under a second, then Ranma jumped back out of reach. The lost boy doubled over, then slowly stood, pausing to brush his shirt off. "Not bad for a girl, Ranma," Ryoga growled, the green glow of his battle aura surrounding him in a demonic effect, "I almost felt that. But none of your tricks will help you now, You Die toni-- OOFFFPH!" Ranma hit the ground as Ryoga suddenly went flying forward to crash into the dojo wall. When Ranma looked up, it was to see a very angry and boxer clad Akane standing before her, glaring daggers at Ryoga as he shifted his grip on his mallet. "Stay behind me, Ranma, the little pig is mine." Akane said in a frighteningly calm voice. "I'm glad you're here and all, but I can fight my own fights!" Ranma snapped, hopping up "You try fighting him by yourself and you're going to get hurt!" "Do you really think you're in any *Condition* to fight him?" Akane asked in that calm voice as he watched Ryoga stand up again. "Get out of the way, I have no quarrel with you," Ryoga warned the newcomer. For some reason, he looked oddly familiar... "You wreck my home, betray my trust, threaten my wife, and you think I'm just gonna stand aside? Think again Ryoga." "You're Wife?!? Ranma! Is there no end to your perversions! What about poor Akane!" "I'm Akane." "He even has her name! Ranma--!" "Akane TENDO! He's Akane, you jerk!" Ranma yelled back, "We got married! If you'd let Ukyou finish when she tried to tell you you'd know this!" Before Ryoga could respond, a figure leapt high into the air above the dojo, a weapon in hand as it descended rapidly. CLANG! Caught by surprise, Ryoga's eyes rolled back in his head and he toppled forward. With a grin, Ukyou peeled her spatula free of his head. "Hi guys!" she called out to the surprised couple in the yard, "I figured he'd be here by now... looks like I should have gotten here a bit sooner though, sorry." What happened to the wall, a bomb? "Thanks a lot Ucchan!" "Ukyou, would you please do me a big favor?" Akane growled, "Get that little pig out of my sight before I kill him?" At that Ranma looked up surprised, that didn't sound like Akane at all... "What? Why would--" "Please Ucchan, do as he ask," Ranma pleaded, turning to face her, "We'll explain later." "O-kay, I guess so..." Grabbing Ryoga by the back of his bandanna, she leapt into the air, dragging him behind as she left. Ranma sighed in relief. From the behind her she could hear Soun in the living room starting to wail at the damage to his house. Akane turned around to face her, his mallet gone. "You knew, didn't you." Akane said, his tone clearly stating that this wasn't a question. "That Ryoga is P-chan? Yes, I did." Ranma agreed, covering her head as she waited for the blows. Ranma didn't even think about running, this was something they had to clear up, and if Akane was going to beat her for it, it was best to get it out of the way. Akane reached out and took Ranma's hands, pulling them down to her sides, "Why didn't you tell me then Ranma." he asked, releasing her. Damn, Akane was still talking in that calm voice, he must be furious! "It's a long story, but I swore on my honor that I wouldn't tell his secret. Bushido." Akane simply glared at Ranma, thinking. That would be the case, and if it was true, then that meant Ranma had been over the proverbial barrel. Why hadn't I seen it? Ranma tenatively reached for Akane's hand, "Akane... are you okay? Talk to me..." "No I'm not, Ranma. I feel very hurt and betrayed. I want to know why Ryoga did this to me, but not right now, I'm too angry to understand anything." Akane clenched his fists, trying to stay in control, "I... I think I'd like to be alone for awhile." "Okay Akane, I'll go inside," Ranma agreed softly. "I love you." "I know Ranma, I'll be inside in a bit." With that, Akane turned and sat down in the yard as Ranma left. Neither one of them noticed the figure that dropped down from the tree across the street and bounded away... Hikaru turned the street corner and stopped, leaning against the wall as he started muttering angrily to himself. "Who needs a map, Hikaru..." he growled to himself, "You can find the dojo on your own, Hikaru... how hard could it be, Hikaru... I'm such an idiot..." he started walking again, then saw the name plate on the wall. "Tendo dojo of anything goes martial arts." he read. With a growl of exasperation, he looked skyward, "You're laughing at me, aren't you? Some spirit guide..." Hikaru hopped up onto the wall. Although it was kind of late, there were still lights on, and he could see people inside. Good, he didn't want to wake anyone up if he had to... what in the world happened to the side of the house? Kasumi was bringing a tray of tea into the living room for everyone that was still up. Nabiki was currently on the couch, calculating her damage assesments in a notebook, Soun and Genma had gone back to their game of Go, while Ranma was currently upstairs confiscating the guestroom to sleep in. As Kasumi set the tray down, they heard a knocking at the front door. "Oh my, who could that be?" She wondered, standing back up. As the knocking continued, she quickened her pace. Could this be another of Ranma's little friends? Another fiancee maybe? This night was getting more and more interesting... Opening the door, her eyes grew wide at the sight that met her. "Oh... my..." she breathed slowly as Hikaru looked at her, who could this be? "Good evening, are you Ms. Tendo?" Hikaru asked, bowing to her. Kasumi could only nod, and she felt her heart skip a beat as he smiled to her. My, what cute little fangs! "I'm sorry for disturbing you so late at night, but I have traveled far hoping to find someone. I understand he visits here often?" "Ummm... It's no... of course... Please, step inside, Mister...?" Kasumi suddenly found that she didn't know what to do with her hands, why was it suddenly so warm in here? Who *Was* this man? He was so tall, and handsome, and... older! "Hibiki, Hikaru Hibiki," He introduced himself, stepping inside just far enough to close the door, "I really don't wish to be a bother, but I'm looking for my cousin, Ryoga, and I understand he has friends here?" This was Ryoga's cousin? "Yes, he does come here often. In fact you just missed him," Kasumi answered, "after blowing out the wall he left with another friend. Is it urgent you find him?" Hikaru looked shocked, "You mean Ryoga did That? If he did, I guess it is urgent that I see him. Do you know where they went?" "They went to Ucchan's Okinomiyaki, it's only a little ways from here, would you like me to show you the way?" Kasumi asked him, somewhat surprised at her own boldness. "Um, no, Actually I know the way already, I've been there before..." Hikaru thought for a second, "Tell you what though, I know a little bit about construction, and since it was my cousin that blew your house up, I could come back tomorrow in the afternoon and repair the damages if you'd like." Actually, he was a practitioner of the construction based school of martial arts, but Hikaru saw no reason to mention that now. "You could? That would be wonderful! Thank you Hikaru-san!" Kasumi beamed, he'd be back tomorrow! "All right, I'll see you then, Bye!" Waving to her, Hikaru turned and let himself out. When the door closed, Kasumi let her expression fall. When he'd waved with his left hand, she had seen the gold ring he wore on his middle finger. "Damn!" She said, then quickly covered her mouth in surprise. Ukyou crossed her arms as she stood in front of Ryoga. He had regained consciousness shortly after she'd dragged him back to her shop, and had tried to leave. However, after beating him over the head and shoulders with her spatula, Ukyou had convinced him to stay and let her explain what was going on. Now Ruoga was sitting on the stool in front of the grill looking down at the floor, his face drained of color. "Are you okay Ryoga?" Ukyou asked softly, reaching out to smooth his hair. Her anger at Ryoga for running off the first time was gone, now all she could feel for him was sympathy, she knew what he must be going through. "My life is over..." was all Ryoga mutttered. Akane was cursed as a guy now, and married to Ranma. *Willingly* married, it seemed. There was no longer any hope... maybe he should just crawl off into a dark hole and die. Ryoga barely heard anything that Ukyou was saying to him, or the knocking on the door that followed. What was he supposed to do? It wouldn't be honorable to challenge Ranma any more, it would just cause Akane to despise him further, how she-- sorry, He must hate him now... A large hand cupped his face, gently turning his head upward. Hikaru was kneeling before him, looking concerned. "Hey there buddy, you going to be okay?" he asked. Ukyou had already given him a brief rundown on what she knew, although she herself still didn't know what had happened at the dojo. He knew that Ryoga had to be depressed, he could feel it just being this close to him, but hopefully he could help Ryoga overcome this. Ryoga's just stared at him for a moment, then his eyes seemed to snap into focus. "H--Hikaru?" "Yep, it's me buddy. It's been what, ten years? Sorry to take so long between visits, but I've been--" Hikaru was cut short as Ryoga's fist crashed into his jaw, sprawling him backwards. "You--! How dare you come back here after leaving me like that!" Ryoga screamed at Hikaru, on his feet with clenched fists, "I looked up to you! You said you would Train me! And you RAN OFF!" Ryoga charged the prone Hikaru, only to be met with a foot to the gut. Hikaru then grabbed a double handfull of Ryoga's shirt and heaved, launching Ryoga out the still open door that a wide eyed Ukyou stood besides. She had thought it strange that he asked her to stand aside and keep it open... "I guess I snapped him out of his depression..." Hikaru growled, then kicked back up to his feet. "Thank you Ukyou-san, I can take it from here, sayonara!" he said as he charged out the door. Shocked, Ukyou just shut the door and locked it. "Is his whole family like that?" She wondered. Hikaru waited for Ryoga to get back to his feet, then leapt away, looking for someplace where nobody would get hurt. Obviously Ryoga was a fighter, but he had no idea about Ryoga's abilities. There were some things that were to be expected, of course, all the Hibiki's were incredibly strong and had a high threshhold for pain, but outside of that... Hikaru spotted a empty field and bounded into it, shedding his backpack and toolbelt as he landed. He had a feeling he would need all his speed very shortly, and there was no way he was going to use his Sledgehammer on a family member. He turned to face Ryoga, only to be tackled as Ryoga bore into him. Hikaru braced his feet and stayed upright, his heels digging into the ground. With a grunt, Hikaru wrentched Ryoga free and tossed him aside. Yep, he was dead on about the strength... Roaring, Ryoga charged Hikaru again, launching a flurry of kicks at Hikaru, which he blocked with his forearms. "Not bad Ryoga, you're almost as good as I was at your age," Hikaru ducked under a kick, and then shoved Ryoga away, sending him stumbling a good ten feet. "Shut up and fight!" Ryoga snapped, almost frothing at the mouth. The rage he had felt for Ranma was as nothing compared to what he felt now. Ripping free several bandanna's he hurled them at Hikaru, who leaped over them. "You mastered the Iron cloth technique," Hikaru noted absently, landing in a defensive stance, "Very good, I was never able to learn that one..." What else had Ryoga learned? When Ryoga charged again, Hikaru caught his fist, then the other. Soon they were engaged in a test of strength. Oh yeah, Ryoga had a great deal of power, but it was obvious that Ryoga was going almost all out, while Hikaru was using only enough strength to keep him at bay, Ryoga was no match for him in the strength department. "Why don't we stop fighting Ryoga, I didn't come all the way back to Japan just to beat you up." Hikaru asked conversationally. "If you didn't want to fight then you shouldn't have come back here at all, you Traitor!" Ryoga snarled back. "Traitor? Here I am trying to be polite, and you call me names?" Hikaru brought his knee up into Ryoga's stomach, knocking the wind out of him, followed by a forearm uppercut that knocked Ryoga off his feet. Hikaru took a couple of steps back, "You're a good fighter Ryoga, maybe we can talk more about it when you wake up." "Why don't we 'talk' about it now?" Ryoga sneered, then started to stand up. "What the hell?" Hikaru dropped into another defensive stance, shock evident on his face, "That combination would have killed a normal man! How can you just shrug it off!" Ryoga grinned wickedly, rubbing his chin where he'd been hit. He'd felt the blow, but it hadn't been worse than anything Ranma had hit him with, "Just a little trick I picked up," he growled, then started running forward, diving for the ground in front of Hikaru with his finger extended "Care to see more? Bakusai Tenketsu!" Hikaru leapt backwards, shielding his face as the ground exploded, sharp bits of stone cutting into his arms and ripping his clothes. A secret technique??? Maybe I should have kept the sledge after all! Then Ryoga was charging out of the cloud of dust, tackling Hikaru and bearing him to the ground. "Why are you here!" Ryoga screamed, beating Hikaru face and chest as Hikaru tried to protect himself, "I was only six years old and you left me! You said you would help me train and you left me! when you left I went looking for you! I was lost for over a month! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME!" "Tesshi Ougi!" Hikaru called, poking Ryoga in the chest with a finger. With a flash of Chi Ryoga found himself blasted across the field, the wind knocked out of him as he landed in a heap, trying to suck air back into his lungs. Hikaru regained his footing, brushing himself off. Ryoga hadn't been holding back with his punches, Hikaru thought as he drew the back of his hand across his mouth, wiping away blood. He'd have some bruises tomorrow morning as well... It was a good thing that Hikaru healed as fast as he did. "Alright Ryoga, I'm sorry that I used the Tesshi Ougi on you, but this fight is getting way out of hand." Hikaru started walking towards Ryoga as he talked, seeing that Ryoga had already made it to his hands and knees, "I'm sorry that I wasn't able to keep my promise to you, but I didn't leave you, I got lost. Our entire Family is cursed to wander, you know this. I didn't come back to Japan to beat your brains in, I came here to fufill that promise. I came here to try and make amends. But most of all I came here because you're the only family that I have left. Let's stop this now and go home, alright?" "No... You don't get off that easy!" Ryoga growled, rising to one knee. His battle aura flared to life, bright green and humming with the power of his anger and depression, "I went through hell because of you! Take this! SHI SHI HOUKOUDAN!" Hikaru managed to roll as the Roaring lion's bullet washed over him, blasting him backwards off his feet to crash into the ground over a dozen feet away. Ryoga collapsed forward, drained. He caught himself on hands and knees, funny, he thought that Hikaru would have been more of a challenge. Panting, he looked up to see Hikaru's unmoving form lying on the grass. "Alright Hikaru, let's finish this!" Ryoga growled, shakily getting back to his feet, "Hey Hikaru, get up! I'm not done with you yet!" Cautiously Ryoga moved closer, his eyes growing wide as he saw his cousin wasn't breathing. "Aw man, I killed him!" Ryoga staggered over and dropped down next to Hikaru, pounding on the older man's chest, "C'mon, wake up! You're supposed to be tougher than that! Wake Up!" Hikaru's eye's shot open then, causing Ryoga to jump as three fingers were driven into his neck. Leaping back, he stared as Hikaru started to slowly sit up. "You... You Tricked me!" Ryoga growled, once again dropping into a offensive stance, "But... you weren't breathing!" "Oh come on Ryoga," Hikaru sighed, brushing himself off painfully. Even rolling with the attack, the Shi Shi Houkoudan had hurt. "What's so amazing about holding your breath to draw someone in close?" Hikaru winced as he sat up. He had a similar attack to the Shi Shi Houkodan, but not even he could summon it as easily as Ryoga had his. If it was based off depression like he had been told, then Ryoga was in worst shape than he thought... "by the way Ryoga," he continued as he rolled to his knees, "You can fall down now." "What? What's that supposed to... to..." Ryoga was overcome by a wave of dizziness as his eyes rolled back in his head, falling forward to unconscious. "Shiatsu points, I love them." Hikaru groaned as he got back to his feet. He would Definately be feeling that attack tomorrow... with a sigh, he comtemplated his cousin. "Great Spirits Ryoga... what am I gonna do with you?" If he was using attacks as dangerous as that... "Maybe you'll be in a better mood if you wake up in your own bed, Ryoga-kun... stay here, I've got to retrieve my pack first..." Soon, Hikaru was leaping from rooftop to rooftop, Ryoga's unconscious form over his shoulder's as he made his way back to the Hibiki residence. CHINA VILLAGE OF THE JOKETSUZOKU The Wizard quietly walked up to the guard, studying him in the dim torchlight as he stood at attention... Yes, a most impressive figure, he stood almost seven foot tall, it seemed, with arms as thick as some people's legs... a strong one, this one was, sure to scare many a foe in battle. Although he wasn't sure if the fear would come because of the guard's size or the guard's face, the wizard admitted. He had seen orc's in his time that were downright handsome compared to the guard. Broad and flatfaced he was, with a jaw that looked like it had been broken once and never properly set. He would hate to meet whatever had done that... Actually, he would rather not meet the guard, the Wizard found all fighters to be a terrible crude and uncouth lot, tending to attack first and not caring to ask questions at all. If it wasn't for the fact that the Wizard was currently invisible, he was sure the guard would have done so by now. But unfortunately, the door he was guarding led to the tribe's library, and if his books were still here, this was the place to find them. Quietly, the Wizard walked off to the side and sat, considering his options. He could put him to sleep, but the Wizard might be awhile looking for his books, and if one of the partols came by, the alarm would be raised. He couldn't just kill him, it would be a waste of magic and be much too loud... wait a moment, a charm spell would do nicely, that way he could recruit him for simple muscle as well. Making his desicion, the Wizard started casting his spell, his spell of invisibility dropping as he chanted. Sc'ope, hearing somebody talking, quickly whirled around, drawing his sword as he did. However, instead of a invader, all he saw was some friendly looking young man sitting off to the side, dressed in oversized fatigues. Relaxing, Sc'ope walked up to him. "You really shouldn't be here you know, move along!" Sc'ope ordered, although not nearly as harshly as he would have to someone else. True, this man was an outsider, but there was just something about him... "Hello there, brave warrior," The Wizard said, smiling. Charms worked so much better if you used flattery, "I am sorry to bother you so late at night, but you see, I left a book of mine inside earlier today, and I was wondering if I might retrieve it? I promise not to disturb anything that is not mine, and it is very important. I am sure nobody would mind..." The Wizard could see Sc'ope think about it for a moment, then he shrugged. "Well, I guess you're too little to cause any harm," He growled, sheathing his sword, "Besides, it's kinda boring tonight. Sure, why not." Taking a large iron keyring off his belt, Sc'ope unlocked the door to the small building and, grabbing the torch, gestured for the Wizard to enter. Quickly the Wizard perused the shelves, skimming over documents and scrolls and tomes. No... No... No... "You must be very well liked in the Village," The Wizard said as he searched, "Why else would you be given such a important job?" He was drawn up short at the guard's bitter bark of laughter. "I am stationed here not because I am liked, but because they think I need to be punished!" He growled, "After being beaten by an outsider, I have been banned from seeing my family and put here to watch over a bunch of moldy books! It is the most humiliating duty they could find, why guard that which doesn't need to be? Even if somebody did come after these, they would have to go through half the village first!" "I see... very interesting..." The Wizard commented with a knowing smile, then turned back to his search, "You have no love for the Village? What of this outsider that beat you?" "I would like nothing better than to hunt down the foul Hikaru and make him pay for what he has done to me," Sc'ope rumbled, "As for the Village, it can burn to the ground for all I care." "Perhaps then we can assist each other then, I am preparing to leave here soon, and I would find someone of your obvious talents very helpful... perhaps I could even help you find this Hikaru... No... No... No... My book does not seem to be here..." Looking around, the Wizard saw a door in the floor near the corner, a large iron lock sealing it. "What is in there?" Sc'ope stepped forward, bringing the torchlight closer, "That is where the oldest and most powerful techniques of the tribe are kept, only the elders have the key," he said. "Hmmm... perhaps it is in there..." Kneeling down, the Wizard spoke a few words, using more of the magic at his command. With a snap, the lock sprung open. "What do you know, it was open! Help me with this please?" Reaching down, Sc'ope yanked the door open, releasing the smell of dry air and leather. Taking the torch, the Wizard shone it downward and saw the steps leading down. "Excellent, I will be right back." Slowly he decended the stairs, could his books be in here? The room was very small, only about ten feet by ten feet, but there was something here that felt familiar... wait, over there! In the far corner of the room was a very large tome, two feet across by three feet down, bound in leather with silver hinges and a silver clasp. Yes! This was it, His spellbook! Opening the clasp, the Wizard carefully checked the pages... they were all intact! He now had the majority of his spells again... and even better, the spell of conjuration, the last spell he had committed to the tome, was still here. What fools the Amazons were, they should have destroyed this when they had the chance... Closing the tome, he tucked it under his arm. He had his spells again, and now he had muscle with that brutish guard... however, he still needed supplies, equipment, and time to study... plus he needed to find the Tiger and the Crane again. However, that would not take nearly as long now... what was that? Reaching into the corner, the Wizard discovered a tall object wrapped in leather. Undoing the bindings, he discovered a thick oaken staff, runes carved into the length of it. As he touched it, he could feel the magical power contained inside. "My staff!" He gasped, grinning in unholy glee, the Amazons truly were fools then to keep this around, after all the destruction he had caused with this. Well, now he knew how to get the supplies... Sc'ope watched his new friend as he came back up the stairs, a book and a staff in one arm as he handed the torch back. "I have found what I needed, my good friend... now all we need do is gather some supplies and we can be off to Japan." Sc'ope grinned at this, how had he know that's where he wanted to go? "Find by me, but where are we getting supplies at?" "Oh, do not worry, I am sure we can get them from the Villagers," the Wizard assured him, changing his grip on the staff. There was just something that was so... toasty about a bonfire... End? Author's notes: Well, here it is finally, the 3rd part of this series. I tried to experiment a little in this, mainly some of the mannerism's on the characters, in order to portray them a bit more like I'm thinking, so hopefully that was noticed. But, even if it wasn't, I hope you enjoyed this part, it's been a long while in the coming. I just hope that the next part (Which I am drawing a rough draft for BTW) will be out Much sooner... time will tell... I want to thank my list of proofreaders for the excellent work they did in catching my spelling mistakes and suggesting ideas, so all of ya (T.H.Tiger, Ronald Chan, Tzigane, Janissa, PRPchan, and Phoenix) take a bow or something ;) For those of you interested, you can send your caustic comments, racious remarks, noxious notes, and original observations to: Ridgewolfe@hotmail.com Any and all fanmail and C&C will be read and appreciated, and I do ask that you send it, C&C is one of the best tools for improving one's writing skills. Or, if you want to see more of my work or that of my friends, check out the website at: http://idt.net/~jallen9/hole.html (I swear we're gonna update it soon!) *Wolfish grin* Sayonara! Ridgewolfe