Chapter 1

From within the shadows of a nearby bush, a pair of green, feline eyes quietly observed as — one by one — four young women gathered in the middle of a school's soccer field. They each appeared to be wary of the other, and kept their distance.

Phoebe released a tired sigh at the sight, knowing that what they were about to do wasn't going to resolve anything. They were all too stubborn and ambitious to give up the chance to become the Earth's sailor senshi, even if they did agree to the condition that the winner would take all in what would be their latest battle of contention.

The only way to officially withdraw from being among those being considered, for the right to become the sailor senshi of the Earth, was by making a formal request to the one given the responsibility to observe the rite of succession (which would be herself, of course). Only one person — of those who had initially been chosen — had ever done so. As understandable as their decision had been, she felt that the best choice had been lost; and she hadn't been the only one to have had that sentiment.

It was then that her sharp hearing heard Ukyo say, "So, are we going to do this or aren't we?"

She watched as they exchanged looks with each other before, at some unspoken agreement, they summoned their princess garb. Akane's gown was a royal blue trimmed in gold, Shampoo's was a pale lavender trimmed in white, Ukyo's was a medium brown trimmed in green, and Kodachi's was black with blood red trim. Shampoo's and Kodachi's gowns were the racier of the four, regarding the fabric that they were made of, the cut of their necklines, and the amount and placement of the lace. By contrast, Ukyo's gown was the plainest, while Akane's had more in the way of frill.

She supposed that they wanted their fight to look official, although she doubted that any one of them would treat it as such if they lost. It was sad, really, because it would be no different from how their past selves had behaved. She had hoped that things would turn out differently, but it had only gotten worse because — in addition to their magic — they had each learned some form of martial arts and had become fighters with awesome abilities. Well, when compared to the average person, for she had witnessed those whose skills were greater still.

One such person was the man that they each hoped to impress by becoming the sailor senshi of the Earth. She didn't really know how they hoped to accomplish such a thing, considering what she had learned from Kasumi, in regard to how they treated the poor guy. They had been nice enough to consider his fear of cats, at least, and had thus told her to stay clear of Akane's home; although — oddly enough — that hadn't stopped them from using her against him, whenever he had tried to interfere with their fights.

When the fighting finally got underway, she shook her head in wonder and disappointment. She was reluctant to move forward to the next step in their determination ritual, but she couldn't forsake her duty. The time was drawing near for them to be presented to the existing sailor senshi, so that they could be impressed upon by the four princesses prior to conducting the ceremony that would judge who was the most worthy to become the sailor senshi of the Earth. She only wished that the selection hadn't been so poor. In particular, she wished that a certain princess had remained in the running.

It was at that moment that she caught a familiar scent in the air. With the ice, fire and wind magic moving the air to and fro, it was difficult to pinpoint the direction from which it had come. However, after turning her head this way and that, she was able to find what she was looking for behind her: it was none other than the girl's common love interest, Ranma. There wasn't much to see of him, what with all of the leaves and branches in her way, as well as the tree that he was hiding behind, but she could see enough of his face to positively identify him.

She feared that he might do something rash and get caught up in one of the girl's spells (or even more than one), so she decided that she would have to get him to leave. She didn't want to use his fear of cats to do it, but she didn't know how else she could manage it; not without also having him learn that she wasn't an ordinary cat, at any rate. It was bad enough that he had seen her charges use magic, if not more than that.

With her decision made, she turned about and leapt out of the bush. As expected, the young man immediately jumped away and yelped in fright. She winced when he slammed into a tree, then fell face-first onto the ground. After that her brain struggled to bring coherent thoughts together, because she couldn't believe what had happened next. Not only did she not think it possible, for reasons not having to do with transformation magic, but she also thought it too good to be true.

The boy had become a girl with fiery red hair and, as said girl rose to her hands and knees, her vantage point afforded her the sight of a familiar face; a face that she had never expected to see again. And when the girl opened her eyes, to reveal irises that were as deep and blue as the world's oceans, her unlikely identity was confirmed without a shadow of a doubt. The girl's scent was further evidence, though she was more accustomed to sensing it among other pleasant aromas. Even so, her thoughts raced this way and that with the improbabilities, wandering here and stumbling over there with the possibilities.

With her mind so preoccupied, there was little wonder as to why she was unable to act by the time the girl had regained her bearings and made good her escape. It also didn't help that the girl's ability to clear a wall — in a single, unaided bound, no less — was so unlike what she would have expected her to be capable of, when drawing upon old memories.

That's how she found herself alone, with the sounds of the four-sided fight behind her falling upon deaf ears, and her eyes wide yet seeing nothing of consequence. She wondered. She hoped. Could the girl really be...

"Princess Hestia...?"

Kasumi was sweeping the walkway between the front gate and the front door when Ranma returned. She didn't need to look up to know, but she raised her head and stilled her broom all the same, so she could properly greet the redhead. Besides which, she had to do something about the frown that marred the girl's beautiful face.

She smiled warmly in greeting. "Welcome back, imouto-chan."

Ranma stopped abruptly, due to how lost in thought she had been. It took her a second to process what had been said before her frown turned upside down, to better complement the expression of the speaker. By now she was accustomed to Kasumi calling her such a thing, and welcomed it, even if it did seem strange for her to do so. Despite that, being Kasumi's little sister just felt... right.

"Onee-chan," she easily acknowledged, before her visage clouded over once more.

Kasumi showed her concern. "Is something the matter?"

Ranma considered what she knew before she sighed and said, "I don't know. Maybe. The girls were fighting again, but..."

"Yes?" Kasumi prompted.

"Well..." Ranma crossed her arms and stared down at the ground, as she recalled what she had seen. "They changed into these fancy dresses. One second they weren't, and then — poof — they were. Then, not long after they began their fight... I guess they started to use magic, or something. They were throwing fireballs around, and chunks of the ground were flying about without anyone using their hands to do it, except to point where they wanted them to go."

Kasumi heard her mumble, "And I feel like I've done that before myself," afterward, but chose not to comment on it. Instead, she asked, "How did it turn out?"

Ranma grimaced and — with evident annoyance — said, "That stupid cat was there," as if that explained everything. To those who knew about Ranma's fear of cats, it did at that. Left unsaid was her suspicions concerning the cat's role in recent happenings, and the ill feelings that she had for being unable to get beyond her fear in order to resolve said suspicions.

Kasumi drew Ranma into a hug and said, "I'm sure that everything will work out," before she released her.

Ranma nodded her head half-heartedly, though more due to the hug than what had been said. As pleasant as Kasumi's change in behavior toward her were, it was still relatively new and novel. She might have been a bit put off and embarrassed if not for the fact that it felt normal, familiar. She didn't know why, since her mother was... distant, for lack of a better term. She was best described as a presence — a foreboding presence — rather than as a tangible object.

"Well," she spoke up, thus ending the brief lull in their exchange, "I'm sure I'll figure something out." Her face brightened a bit. "Until then, maybe I'll work out a way to throw icicles around."

"Try not to wear yourself out before lunch," Kasumi softly advised.

Ranma smiled fetchingly. "Sure thing, onee-chan."

As she made her way into the house, thinking that at least one good change had occurred during the past few weeks, that one good change watched after her with equal parts fondness and concern.

"You knew," a familiar voice spoke up from behind Kasumi, in an accusing tone. She turned about and looked down by her feet, where she saw Phoebe glaring up at her. The Earth's guardian cat didn't look very happy.

With a sigh of resignation, she closed her eyes and admitted, "I did."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Phoebe demanded.

Kasumi calmly met Phoebe's angry gaze. "Because he is adamant about being a guy."

Phoebe tried to argue. "But that's—"

"He's also engaged to both Akane and Ukyo, and has entanglements with Shampoo and Kodachi," Kasumi added.

Phoebe wasn't about to give up. "That may be so, but—"

"Furthermore," Kasumi went on, "his mother will have him commit seppuku if she ever deems him to be unmanly. I doubt very much that the memories of a princess — and one as feminine as Hestia had been — would be beneficial in that regard."

Phoebe bowed her head and sighed in defeat. "There is that, isn't there?"

Kasumi looked down upon the guardian cat with no small amount of sympathy and understanding. "I know you want Ranma to be a candidate in the rite of succession, but I'll always stand by their decision: she wasn't interested then, and I know that he won't be interested now."

"You're probably right," Phoebe grudgingly admitted. She turned a sad eye toward the house. "But you heard her earlier. What she witnessed the other girls doing at the school has no doubt caused her memories of the past to rise closer to the surface. And if what I witnessed a moment ago is any indication of how you have been treating her recently, it's probably only a matter of time before she remembers — whether we desire it or not."

With a guilty expression on her face, Kasumi looked toward the dojo. She had a feeling that that was where Ranma was, no doubt trying to figure out with martial arts what the girls had done with magic.

"I can't help it," Kasumi quietly admitted. "Hestia had been... special."

Phoebe regarded her with a look of understanding. "I'm not blaming you, child. However, at this rate, it may be best that she remember under controlled circumstances. There's no telling how the other girls will react if they knew that Ranma remembered being Hestia. They had felt threatened by her then, so they will likely feel threatened by her now."

Kasumi nodded her head in agreement. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine the potential troubles and complications that might arise if Ranma were to regain the memories of his past life while in the presence of any one of the four girls. Of course, considering how he was also their love interest, that was bound to create its own set of troubles and complications, too.

"It might be for the best," Kasumi finally decided, after releasing a sigh of resignation. She opened her eyes and considered her companion with a meaningful — if somewhat ominous — look. "But I don't want to hear a single word about the rite of succession coming out of your mouth while in his presence. Not even if he brings the topic up himself: you will not see it as an opportunity to suggest or otherwise request that he once again become a candidate for it. Do you understand?"

"Perfectly," Phoebe grumbled, looking put out.

Four princesses of bygone kingdoms were — by now — panting and slouching in exhaustion. Their battlefield was riddled with numerous scorch marks, craters, melting projections of ice, and jagged gouges. Some of the damage extended beyond the embankment that surrounded the soccer field, notably evidenced by a fallen tree and two gaping holes in the school building.

While the combatants had expected to get down and dirty, the pristine state of their gowns were still a marked contrast when compared to any particular part of the body that hadn't been covered by them. No one's hair escaped being mussed, nor was any bare skin left unblemished by dirt, bruise or cut. Some of their faces were red, due more to physical blows than physical exertion; and more than one lip had been split, as well as eye swollen.

Akane raised her forearm and wiped the dirt, blood and sweat from her brow. She — like the others — knew that any move now could possibly mean their last. They were now too tired and handicapped to take an offensive action without also leaving themselves vulnerable to another's attack. Seeing as no one was willing to commit to another move, she realized that she wasn't the only one who didn't want to take a risk.

"So," Akane said between pants, as she glanced around at the others, "shall we call it a draw?"

Kodachi's back straightened, in order to display a bit more dignity than she had before. "Let's."

"Shampoo no want easy win," said person blustered nonchalantly.

Ukyo wasn't about to let that comment slide. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to take advantage of anyone who's having an off-day."

Akane rolled her eyes. "Let's just call it day and leave it at that."

With no small amount of caution, the group returned to wearing their mundane attire and went their separate ways. Whether they would ever get together to fight in the way that they had just done was unknown, but they were at least assured that they would be able to lick their wounds and fight another day.

Kasumi and Phoebe stood in front of the entrance to the dojo, which was currently closed. They could hear Ranma doing something inside, though nothing particularly physical by the sound of it. The guardian cat's right ear twitched upon hearing a muttered curse, having never heard the voice that had produced it utter such language in the past.

Phoebe glanced up at Kasumi, whose reincarnated presence hadn't made any sense to her until a short time ago. She reasoned that Queen Serenity must have sent her forward because she had also sent Hestia into the future, perhaps fearing that she would need her support and protection. Ironically, according to Kasumi, Ranma was one of the most formidable fighters that she knew of.

However, that didn't explain why the queen had included Hestia with everyone else, knowing very well that — in addition to her withdrawal from the rite of succession — the princess had made it quite clear that she abhorred violence and disliked getting involved with politics. She'd had no interest in becoming a sailor senshi, and had only been among the chosen because she had bowed to her parents' will. Only something that she wouldn't speak about — which those close to her had assumed to be a threat — had given her the nerve to go against the wishes of her parents.

Kasumi returned Phoebe's gaze and nodded her head, showing that she was ready for what they were about to do. She didn't particularly like it, but she had to agree that it was probably for the best. In truth, she wanted nothing more than to be reunited with Hestia, but her conscience was working overtime to discourage such selfish thoughts.

It didn't help that she recalled the time when Ranma had bumped his head and, in the wake of the resulting amnesia, the personality of his past life had shone through loud and clear; all that had been missing were the memories. Knowing what she now knew, looking back on that event made her yearn for more. Between doing housework and cooking dinner together, she had felt closer to Ranma at that time than any of her sisters... in either life.

With a mental shake of her head, she stepped up to the door and rapped her knuckles against it. Phoebe moved to the side, so she wouldn't be seen by Ranma. The last thing that they wanted was for him to get scared and run away.

"Ranma?" Kasumi called out. "May I come in?"

"If you want to," came the reply.

After sparing Phoebe a momentary glance, Kasumi squared her shoulders and slid the door open. She gasped when a gust of cool air hit her, and the sudden chill made her shudder and break out in gooseflesh. That wasn't about to stop her, so she folded her arms over her abdomen and stepped inside. It felt as if she were entering a giant refrigerator.

"Sorry," Ranma apologized, as she rubbed the back of her head in a sheepish manner. The other arm she raised, to show that her forearm was covered by ice that was an inch or so thick. "I've only managed to project cold air, not ice."

Kasumi couldn't help smiling in amusement as she approached. "That's okay, imouto-chan. Too bad it's not Summer, or else I would have asked you to practice in the house."

Ranma stuck out her tongue in response.

"Still," Kasumi went on, "you really want to do what you saw the other girls doing, don't you?"

"Of course!" Was Ranma's immediate response, who puffed out her chest and smirked. "There's no way that I'm going to pass something like that up!"

Kasumi bit her lip. "What if I said that I could help you?"

Ranma blinked her eyes in bemusement. She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it and seemed to reconsider what she wanted to say. Finally — and with a dead-serious expression on her face — she asked, "You know what's going on, don't you?"

Kasumi knew that there was no going back, so she nodded her head in the affirmative. "I do."

"Is it the cat?" Ranma posed, almost growling. "Is the cat controlling them, or something?"

Kasumi shook her head. "The... cat is a part of it, but not in the way that you are thinking."

"Then what's going on?" Ranma asked, frowning. "Why are they always fighting each other? Why are they acting differently? Just what does that cat have to do with it?" She paused and gave Kasumi a significant look. "You have changed, too. I'm not about to complain, but..." She lowered her eyes, and her cheeks flushed. "I'm... worried."

Kasumi gently placed her hands on Ranma's shoulders, then bent down and kissed her on the top of her head. Ranma looked up at her with a mixture of embarrassment and confusion, once she stood upright again, and wondered about her smile — it seemed a touch sad.

"There's only one way that you're allowed to find out," Kasumi stated, her kind eyes holding onto the pair of blue, expressive ones before her. "Do you trust me?"

Ranma nodded her head mutely in reply.

"Then, please, sit down and close your eyes," Kasumi softly directed.

Ranma hesitated, wondering how being in such a prone position had to do with anything. Then she reprimanded herself and did as she had been directed, completely forgetting to take care of her ice-encrusted arm in the process. After all, if she couldn't trust Kasumi, then who could she trust? For her to not trust Kasumi would be the same as doubting her own abilities as a martial artist.

Kasumi looked toward the door and signaled for Phoebe to enter. The guardian cat did so as silently as she could, because she didn't want to alert Ranma of her presence. Once she was in front of the unseeing redhead, she turned to face her and sat down on her haunches.

"The only way for you to be allowed to know what's going on," Kasumi spoke up, ending the silence that had descended upon the room, "is if you were to know everything already."

Ranma's brow creased in confusion upon hearing that. Before she could open her eyes and voice a question, however, Phoebe initiated a mind meld with her. As soon as she felt the warm pressure against her forehead, thoughts concerning the present dispersed and began to explore the memories of another time... of another life.