AN: I swear, I only write to appease the Demons in my head who give me these ideas. Unfortunately said Demons just keep churning out the ideas. It never stops. Just joking. Mostly.
And I broke Genma! Think about it. You'll see what I mean. Even if he's not going to show up for a while, he's broken in this fic.
And since my original plan of going back to all my old fics and updating all them was interrupted, I'll need to get back to it soon. I hope. So I'll probably switch off this story for a bit to release new chapters on my other poor neglected fic in a few chapters. Sorry.
One warning. I did say I was doing my own version of Beryl's invasion, and then going off into my own little world of non cannon opponents. That pretty much means that the Sailor Moon part of this AU will become the most AU. And that means I can pretty much do whatever the hell I want with it. Like as I am not introducing the Outer Senshi as in cannon, I can introduce them at any time and in any order!
Right now all the Inner Senshi are together fighting off the minions of Beryl, not that they know about her or her plans, and Mamoru, also known as Tuxedo Kaman, is not yet one hundred percent together yet with Usagi. I'm starting this on the day of their first date.
Yes am evil personified for that.
Unfortunately, no one was able to look at this. GunnerRyuu who went over the last chapter has computer problems yet again, and to be honest, didn't do too great a job. So if any want to beta the next chapter, just say so in a review.
Happy New Year's people.
Well on with the fic.
HELPING OUT
CHAPTER TWO
DO YOU BELIVE IN MAGIC?
Outside Mamoru Chiba's apartment: Juban Japan: five months later
Ranma stood outside an apartment that was owned by one Mamoru Chiba. She was just hoping that this was her fourth cousin, and not some stranger, like there was a true difference having never met the guy.
With her were Kun-Loh and Xain-Pu. Kon-Loh had come along on this trip saying that she wasn't going to let the most talented student she ever had just leave, and Xain-Pu had told Ranma that she was the best sparring partner she had ever had and that she wasn't getting away that easily, and Ranma just accepted those explanations.
Neither had mentioned to Ranma the secret mission that the other Consul Elders had imparted onto Kun-Loh, which was to get Ranma into their tribe in anyway possible. A female warrior of that potential should not be anything but an Amazon in the other Elders minds. Kun-Loh thought they were being fools, but went along with it as it let her travel with Ranma with the full backing of the Joketsuzoku tribe. Diplomatic immunity is a wonderful thing in Kun-Loh's mind. And having all of her traveling expenses paid by the tribe's Elders fund was nice too.
As Ranma knocked on the door to the apartment, she grew a little nervous. Before she could even form the thoughts on why she was nervous before a tall black haired young man of about seventeen opened the door in just a towel saying "Usagi, I'm not… wait a minute, who are you?" he asked.
"Are you Mamoru Chiba?" Ranma asked.
"Yes." The man answered slowly, as if he wasn't sure he should.
"Are you the son of Gonan and Reia Chiba?" Ranma asked again.
"Yes." Mamoru answered wondering what this was about.
"Hi. My name is Ranma Saotome and I'm supposedly your forth cousin or something. My father sent me to meet your parents, but my companions and I couldn't find them listed, but we found you instead. Could you please tell us where your parents live? I'm supposed to meet my father at their place in a month or maybe a little longer if his, business trip, takes more time." Ranma said, glad she could come up with something on the spot to say. She didn't really want to go into the truth of the matter in the hall of an apartment complex.
"Yeah. They currently reside at The Ashfield Cemetery. They're dead." Mamoru said bluntly.
Ranma stood still with shock, while Kon-Loh said "That is most unfortunate to hear. May we come inside and discuss the matter at length, after you have gotten dressed of course?"
Looking down at himself like he just now realized his state of undress, Mamoru sighed and said "Fine. But I'm expecting company tonight. My new girlfriend and I are going out on our first date tonight." He then explained.
"We will try not to inconvenience you too much this night then." Kun-Loh said while hopping in on her staff like a pogo-stick rider.
After watching Kun-Loh's, unique, form of personal travel, Mamoru said "Just relax on the couch or something while I get dressed and then we can talk."
The three then sat on the couch and waited for Mamoru to come back. After a while filled with silence, he did so.
"So, what's going on? Why are you now looking for my parents? I didn't even know about any other family members. The authorities couldn't find any, so they just stuffed me into a damn orphanage." Mamoru told the three women sitting on his couch while he sat in an easychair.
Ranma cleared her throat and said, "I am sorry to hear that. My father and I have been on until now a training trip that started when I was four."
"Training in what?" Mamoru asked.
"Martial Arts." Ranma replied. "While training in China we had a training mishap, which led my Father to wanting me to seek out your Father as he was my Father's closest living relative. Or so he had thought at the time." Ranma started to explain.
"What was this 'Training mishap' and what made it so that you had to go to a relative?" Mamoru asked, getting interested in spite of himself.
Ranma paused for a moment looking thoughtful. "I guess I can tell you. As you are family and thus do deserve to know, and I did plan to tell your father this. But let me first ask you, do you believe in magic?"
Mamoru's eyes went wide at that question, and not trusting his voice, he just nodded. Ranma and Xain-Pu noticed nothing strange about Mamoru's reaction, but Kun-Loh did. "He knows something and is trying to hide it." Looking closer she saw something "Ah, he has a large magical aura on himself, yet it seems very unrefined, like he is just starting to be aware of it and use it. I've never seen a magical aura quite like that one before. I wonder what it is from. Needless to say he is hiding a great secret. I must inform Ranma and Xain-Pu about this after either we leave or he goes out on his date. This can not be ignored."
Ranma just took the nod as a cue to start telling her tale. Well the relevant parts of it that is. "Ok, well you see…" Ranma started with her short and abridged version of what has happed, for she really wanted to be done with this before his girlfriend showed up. No need for her to hear this in Ranma's mind. Mamoru just listened with eyes that grew ever wider.
The apartment of Mamoru Chiba: Juban Japan: fifteen minutes latter
"So you really used to be a guy?" Mamoru asked.
"I keep telling you yes." Ranma said with her left eye now twitching violently.
"Sorry. It's a hard concept for me to wrap my mind around, seeing you there looking so, well, female." Mamoru said sheepishly, trying not to enrage Ranma any more then she obviously was.
Desperately trying to change the subject, Mamoru said "Well I'd love help you by letting you stay here, but this is a one bedroom apartment as one can see. I can let you stay the night as it's late if you really want, but I just don't have the room to put you up. What I can do is help you find a place to stay, and direct your Father to you after he finds me." Mamoru said, then went into a distant far off look that showed he was obviously thinking.
"That is most acceptable young man." Kun-Loh said to Mamoru.
"Huh, oh, ok, thanks." Mamoru said coming out of his thoughts. "I just remembered something. The top floor of this building is divided into just two apartments, and the old lady who used to live in the northern one just had to move into an assisted living home after she had a stroke. And they can't find many people who want it, for with it being so huge, it has quite the expensive rent." Mamoru told them. "But if you had the money, it would be perfect for all three of you. You'd defiantly have enough room, and I could just point your Father up five stories of apartment building, and then I could also show you around Juban easier when I had the time…" Mamoru then sighed trailing off. "But it's damn expensive. It might be out of your price range."
Kun-Loh said "In all truth I have no price limit. The location alone makes it worth taking. When can we talk to the manager of this building to start the paperwork?"
"In the morning. The manger went off duty to the public about an hour ago. Now he's just available to the residents for emergencies." Mamoru said. "He should be opening his office around eight or so tomorrow morning to the public." He then told them.
"That is acceptable. So we may spend the night here until we can rent this apartment?" Kun-Loh then asked.
"Yeah, sure." There then was a knock at the door.
"That must be Usagi." Mamoru said standing up. "Let me introduce you to her." He then said as he headed for the door.
After opening it, they could hear a bubbly girl's voice say "Hey Mamoru! Are you ready?"
"Yes I am, but before we go out, I want you to meet some people Usagi." Mamoru told the girl named Usagi.
As he led her in, they saw a young girl of about a year younger then Ranma's and Shampoo's age of fifteen. Mamoru then started to introduce every one "Usagi, this is Ranma, Xain-Pu and Kun-Loh. Xain-Pu and Kun-Loh are from a village in China where Ranma had been staying for a while. Ranma is my forth cousin. She's been traveling the world with her father learning martial arts, and something happened in China that made her Father need to send her to what he thought were his closest living relatives, my parents. Well they found me, and I told them they were dead. So they've decided to move into that big empty apartment on the top floor. You know the one across from that strange lady that never seems to be home? They're going to spend the night and talk to the manager in the morning about renting the place. Ladies this is my girlfriend Usagi Tsukino."
Usagi bowed and said "It's very nice to meet you." Then she turned to Mamoru and said "Mamoru, if you want to reschedule our date, I'll understand. I mean you haven't seen any of your family in years! You didn't even know they existed. You should spend the night with her, getting to know her better!" Usagi said with passion in her voice.
"Ah, that's ok. Mamoru was going to be helping us all day tomorrow, so we can get better acquainted then. Besides, I'd feel horrible if I stopped your date." Ranma told Usagi.
"Thanks Ranma." Mamoru said. "And Usagi, I got reservations at The Crystal Platter. You usually have to make reservations months in advance at that place. I had to beg my boss to let me have the reservation that suddenly just opened up last week." He then told his girlfriend.
"Sounds like quite the date then." Kun-Loh said. "Do not worry about us child. We will be fine tonight, and like Ranma said, she can get to know Mamoru better in the coming days. Tonight is your night together. So enjoy it. We can amuse ourselves here tonight."
Usagi didn't look convinced. Then she brightened up and said "Hey I know! Why don't you guy go to some other restaurant, and we'll meet at Juban Park! It's only a short walk from most of the normal restaurants, and not too much farther from The Crystal Platter. Then we could all go somewhere together!" she said excitedly "I'd love to get to know you as well!"
Everyone sighed. Usagi was being like a force of nature right now, so everyone just gave in to the mighty force.
"Sure. Why not?" Mamoru said looking at Ranma with a pained expression. Ranma just shrugged her shoulders.
"Ok. So where are the regular restaurants you were talking about?" Ranma asked with a sigh.
"Oh, their right to the east of Juban Park, which is like, three blocks south of here." Usagi said. "When should we meet?" she then asked.
Sighing, Mamoru looked at his watch. "Well it's a little after five now, and our reservations are for six. So how about nine thirty?" he asked every one.
"Sure." Ranma said.
"Sounds good to me!" Usagi said cheerfully.
"Then we'll meet then by the fountain in the center of the park." Mamoru said with a nod.
After they all got out of his apartment and he locked the doors, they all shared the elevator down, while discussing what they would do after that. The decided that since it was a nice safe park with plenty of police patrolling it, they'd just sit by the fountain and talk till eleven, since Usagi had a midnight curfew. Then they'd all escort her home and then come back to the apartment.
So they actually walked together south to the park where Ranma's group split off to the east, while Mamoru and Usagi continued south.
When they got to the strip of restaurants, they chose what looked to be a 1950's American style hamburger joint called 'Archie's' because Ranma thought it looked interesting and Xain-Pu admitted that she always did want to try a hamburger. Or a few dozen, considering what we are feeding here. That being teenage martial artists of insane talent and skill.
AN: People sometimes ask me how I can get chapters out so fast, especially when I'm supposed to be so busy. I'll tell you. I have no life. Master vampires may be nicknamed 'No Life Kings' But I am the "No Life Emperor' and rapidly approaching the title of 'No Life Deity'. That and I just love to write whenever I have free time. It's how I spend almost all my free time in fact.
In the next chapter-Ranma, Meet Tuxedo Kaman and the Sailor Senshi.