When Ranma arrived back at Jusenkyo, the Guide said, "Young Mr. Customer! Your hair different! Old Mr. Customer look for you! Took packs and left."

"Figures," Ranma muttered. "Pop never has any patience." She knew her father would find her sooner or later. He always did.

"Mr. Customer!" the Guide exclaimed. "Where you find baby?"

"Her mother was fatally wounded by the Musk," Ranma explained. "She insisted that I care for her daughter and I've promised on my honor to do it."

"Musk bad news for women," the Guide said. He then brightened. "You know about curse? Hot water deactivate. Cold water activate."

Ranma nodded. "Tsukiko's mother told me about it before she died." She looked down at Tsukiko who was sleeping. She really wanted to test it out and verify that it worked.

"Do you have a place where I can put Tsukiko down?" she asked. "I'd like to change back."

"This way, Mr. Customer," said the Guide.

He led her inside the small building set at the foot of the cliffs that rose above Jusenkyo, well away for the pools themselves. Inside the building was a kitchen area, a couch, and two beds.

"Lay her on couch, Mr. Customer," the Guide instructed.

"Thanks," Ranma responded. "I will when the water is ready."

While she waited, the silver-haired girl sat on the couch and cuddled her sleeping baby. Despite still disliking the curse, she felt oddly content.

When the water was ready, she set Tsukiko down on the couch. The baby fussed and made grasping motions at her, but Ranma steeled her heart. Mater Draconis or not, she needed to make sure she could still be Saotome Ranma, sixteen-year-old man among men. She took a kettle from the Guide and poured it over her head. The change was nearly instant. The thing he noticed first was that his gi hung differently. He had to loosen the belt, so that it did not dig into his abdomen painfully. His chest was nice and flat and no longer threatening to come out of his gi. He took a few steps—happy that his hips worked like they should. The only things that bothered him were that a comfortable warmth that had been present without his knowledge since the ritual was now noticeable by its absence and that Tsukiko's fussing had progressed to full-blown crying.

He picked her up, but she continued to cry. He sighed. "I suppose you want your mother, rather than whatever my male half is to you."

He turned to the Guide. "Can I have some cold water now? I just wanted to make sure hot water worked."

The Guide frowned, but did as he asked. He laid Tsukiko back down and changed into his girl form. The warmth in the back of her mind returned and her daughter quieted down so that she was only lightly fussing again. She sighed and picked her up which caused Tsukiko to quiet down again.

"Can you take me to the Amazons?" she asked the Guide. "I have some things I need to discuss with them."

"Okay, Mr. Customer," the Guide said. "We can go now."


The trip to the Amazon village took about an hour. It was a pleasant, unhurried walk. Ranma cared for her father, but it was good to take a break from him on occasion. She had no illusions that her father would welcome the adoption of a baby girl, so she was pleased to put off the confrontation for now.

The Amazon village was a crude affair compared to Japan's villages, but that was to be expected. Japan had no real wilderness and the only isolated parts of it were some of its smallest islands. The Bayankala Mountains were very isolated and its inhabitants probably valued their autonomy from the Chinese central government. Ranma found it refreshing. She was no survivalist nut, but she found that she could take or leave modern conveniences and she did value her freedom.

The female guards at the village's gates watched them carefully. Then, they seemed to identify the Guide and switched to ignoring them. The streets were mostly empty. She could see only a few men here and there who seemed to be going about doing chores. The Guide led them to the village square where a large group of people were gathered.

"Oh, lucky, Mr. Customer," the Guide said. "Yearly Tournament. Village Champion chosen."

A young woman Ranma's age with long purple hair was fighting a mannish woman on a log. The purple-haired woman was skilled while the other was strong and brutish. The skilled girl dodged the purple woman's blows and then landed her own, knocking the other off the log.

"Oh! There other Mr. Customer," the Guide said.

Ranma turned and saw her panda father gorging himself on food that was laid out nicely on a table. She sighed. Somehow she knew this would not end well for him. As long as they did not kill or cripple him, she would let it play out.

The purple-haired girl noticed that the food was being eaten and started yelling in Mandarin. She started to chase Ranma's father around. Somehow her father was producing signs proclaiming his innocence. She frowned; some of them offered his son to the girl.

"What an interesting panda," an old woman's voice said from her side in Japanese. "Is he yours?"

"Not exactly," Ranma responded. "He is my father though, so I'd ask that you not kill or cripple him when you punish him."

She turned to see a shrunken crone balanced on a walking stick. She had long, wispy, white hair.

"How did you know to speak Japanese?" Ranma asked.

The old woman said, "It was a reasonable guess based on the panda's signs. The expression on your face indicated you were familiar with its antics. I assume you just came from Jusenkyo. Are you cursed as well?"

"I am," Ranma said after a moment's reflection. She needed the Amazons to trust her—besides, many of them probably saw her come in with the Guide, who was still near by. She turned to face the old woman in order to talk to her more politely.

The old woman fell off her stick. "Where did you get that baby!?" she demanded.

The Jusenkyo Guide took that as a signal to flee. Ranma was surprised that the old woman could recognize that Tsukiko was special. It made her nervous, but Mithril had told her to get the Amazon's help and, to be honest, she really had no idea what to do with a baby. She really only knew that they drank milk and needed diapers. She tried to think of the best way to tell them what had happened that would not get them to try and take Tsukiko from her.

"Well!?" the old woman said impatiently.

Ranma's only real talent at speaking was to make people mad at her, so she had to be careful. Her honor depended on it. "Her birth mother named me 'sister' and charged me to take care of her as my own. She also told me to seek out the Amazon named Cologne, who was family to another of her sisters."

The woman stared at her intently for a few moments before relaxing. "I am Cologne," she said.

Ranma relaxed in return. She trusted in Mithril's judgement. "My name is Saotome Ranma and this is Saotome Tsukiko, my adopted daughter. I'm glad to meet you Cologne, because I could really use some help in learning how to take care of Tsukiko. In my wildest dreams I never imagined that I would be in this situation."

"Is this your cursed form?" Cologne asked, smirking.

Ranma sighed. "It is. I really hate it, but the gift Mithril gave me to help me take care of Tsukiko only works when I'm like this. Tsukiko also got upset the only time I've changed back."

"If you really hate it," Cologne said seriously, "the Tribe of Hero Women would be honored to take care of Mithril's daughter."

"I can't," she said, equally serious. "I promised on my honor to raise her as my own. Mithril also said that I was the only one who could raise her because of the gift she gave me."

"Come with me to my home and we can talk," Cologne said.

She took her to a traditional-style Chinese home and invited her in. They both sat at a low table and Cologne fixed her tea.

After they had drank a few sips, Cologne asked her, "What happened to Mithril and how did you meet her?"

Ranma explained about driving off the Musk, meeting the dragon, and what she had told her.

Cologne frowned. "Your tale is very troubling, sister of my sister's sister. The Musk Dynasty has preferred to isolate itself in recent years. That they would openly move agains Mithril and slay her is distressing. She has long been a friend of the Hero Women."

Ranma nodded. She hated the lack of respect for life the Musk had shown.

Cologne declined to say anything else, lost in her own thoughts.

"How were you related to Mithril's other sister, Cologne?" Ranma asked to break the silence.

"She was my true sister by blood," Cologne said with a brief smile.

"Really?" Ranma asked. "Mithril said that it was several centuries ago."

Cologne cackled. "The elders of the Tribe of Hero Women know many secrets. Some of those allow us to live much longer than most other humans. I, myself, am over three hundred years old."

Tsukiko took that moment to wake up and start to cry. The warm ball that had been with Ranma since the ritual radiated need.

Ranma frowned. "Tsukiko wants something, but I don't know what it is. Can you help me, Cologne? I really have no idea what to do."

Cologne cackled again. "In my extensive experience, babies want four things: to be fed, to sleep, to be cleaned, and to be comforted. How long has it been since she's eaten?"

Ranma blushed. "Since before I met her. I haven't had anything to feed her."

Cologne stood up and then used her walking stick to push aside the opening of Ranma's gi, exposing her breasts. Ranma looked down and saw that her nipples were damp. She had noticed that her gi had felt a little clammy, but had thought it was sweat or moisture from the humidity.

"I thought so," Cologne said. "Mithril has provided you a way to feed her baby."

Ranma's blush deepened. Her unwanted descent into womanhood continued. Still, she had promised on her honor and her baby would not go hungry like she had so many times.

"How do I do this?" she asked.

Cologne cackled again. "Simply insert it into the baby's mouth. She'll do the rest."

Ranma brought Tsukiko up to her breast and the baby latched on and began suckling. A pressure that she had not realized was there began to relieve itself.

"Does she have diapers?" Cologne asked.

Ranma shook her head. "Before the ritual that Mithril did, she was a dragon. She didn't need them. I found this blanket to wrap her in, but that's all."

"I can provide you with some diapers. You'll have to wash them. We don't have the connections to have disposables here."

"That reminds me, Cologne," Ranma said. "Would it be possible to send people to Mithril's cave? I don't want her treasures to fall into Musk hands."

Cologne nodded gravely. "I will organize a party immediately. I will need to go with them, since I am one of the few that know where the cave is, but I will have another young mother come by to teach you about diapers and other mothering necessities."

"Thank you, Cologne," Ranma said gratefully.

The old woman left. About 15 minutes later, a young woman carrying a baby that looked a little older than Tsukiko entered the home.

"Greetings, Tatsu no Haha," the woman said. "My name is Napkin and this is my daugher, Doily."

"Call me Ranma," she replied. "And this is my adopted daughter, Tsukiko."

"I couldn't be so familiar with the warrior chosen by the Great Dragon," Napkin said. "I, myself, am not a warrior."

Ranma sighed. "Call me Mater Draconis then. It means the same thing in the dragon Mithril's language." The foreign language allowed her some distance from her new responsibility.

The Amazon smiled. "Okay, Mater Draconis."

Napkin spent the next hour teaching Ranma how to care for a baby. She did her best to pay attention. Her honor depended on it. After she was finished feeding Tsukiko, Napkin showed her how to burp her. She did not really enjoy either activity, but they were not bad when compared to diaper changing. Napkin also gave her tips on the dos and don'ts of holding a baby. Luckily, Tsukiko was developed enough that she was somewhat sturdy.

As Ranma was finishing changing Tsukiko's diaper—luckily she had not gone while in just the blanket—she heard Napkin say, "Now, if your monthly bleeding doesn't happen, don't worry, Mater Draconis. The menstrual cycle of many women does not start up again while they are nursing heavily. Since you did not actually give birth, I don't know if this will be the case."

Ranma halted. "Monthly bleeding?" she asked with trepidation.

"You have not started your menstrual cycle yet?" Napkin said in confusion. "You're sixteen? Seventeen?"

"Sixteen," Ranma confirmed.

"Most women start between twelve and fourteen," Napkin said.

"I've been a woman for less than a day," Ranma said with even more trepidation.

At Napkin's confused look, she added, "Jusenkyo."

"I thought it was a myth," Napkin said.

"Definitely not," Ranma said with feeling.

Napkin proceeded to lecture Ranma on the menstrual cycle and feminine hygiene. Ranma would rather have remained ignorant of what women went through, but decided it was better to know now than to be surprised. She desperately hoped nursing postponed her cycle.

By the time Napkin left, Ranma was feeling even more overwhelmed. She glanced down at Tsukiko who had gone back to sleep. She admitted to herself that she had already grown attached to the little girl. She knew a lot of that was due to the ritual she had undergone, but even without that, she did not think she could stand to condemn the infant in her arms to growing up as a barely thinking animal. Beyond her promise to Mithril, the Code of the Martial Artist demanded that she help since she was the only one that could.

There was an old rocking chair in one corner of the room. Ranma sat in it and cradled her baby. It had been a long, mentally exhausting day, even though it was only late afternoon. She feel asleep within minutes of sitting down.