Wild Magic

Ranma 1/2, Slayers, Harry Potter, and any other series used in this fanfic are owned by their respective creators/publishers/whatever

Thanks to the people of Fukufics and Lawra for pre-reading and helping.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

Chapter 3

As Sasami brought the newest guest into the house, she couldn't help but feel an ever increasing desire to latch onto the tiny redhead and squeal about how adorable she was. She knew better than that, though, and just settled for sending small glances to the smaller girl as she followed closely while holding tightly onto her hand. The nervous looks that were directed towards different parts of the house caused Sasami to almost giggle.

While observing the child, Sasami figured that she couldn't be any older than at least two-years-old, and so it was a question as to why she was by herself. It was possible that she could have been traveling for a while due to her disheveled appearance and dirt that could be seen on her outfit. The girl was also breathing as if she had run non-stop for a long distance, and both her stockings and shoes - the latter having been removed - were wet and muddy.

What really stuck out in the young princess's mind was that the girl had asked for Washu and was carrying a letter addressed to the genius. For whatever reason, the person who sent the letter had chosen a two-year-old to deliver it, but for what reason? As Sasami stole another glance at the child, she couldn't help but stare at the vibrant red hair that was made up in a ponytail. Was it possible that she could be a relation of some sort to Washu? It could be possible.

Once the tiny girl climbed up onto the sofa in the living room, Sasami gave her another bright smile. "What's your name? I'm Sasami."

"Um," The redhead answered in a small voice. What name should she say? Saying and being called Ranma back at the Tendo Dojo was like a breath of fresh air after only being known as 'Lina' for two years. Constantly being called THAT made her feel as if she was losing herself… as if she were a completely different person than who she thought she was. Being called and known as Ranma again would allow her to feel as if she weren't lost in someone else's body anymore. She wanted more of that. "Lina- Ranma- no wait… yeah, Ranma." She couldn't believe that she almost messed up there. Two years of being called and answering to Lina caused her to basically become used to it.

"Y- Your house is nice." She added in an effort to distract from her slip-up. The house did look nice though, and she wondered if the people who lived there were well off or something. The living room was huge, and there were large glass windows that allowed one to see the wooden deck outside. There was also a platform in the corner of the room that had a low table sitting neatly upon it, and Ranma couldn't help but guess that the kitchen was on the other side of the wall.

Sasami noticed the odd slip-up and hesitation as the girl said her name, but figured that the issue was because she was so young and nervous about her surroundings. "Okay Ranma-chan," The older girl began, "I'll go find Washu-chan and tell her that you want to see her, so could you sit there until I get back?" At the child's nod, the young princess turned and made her way to Washu's lab.

As Ranma watched her, she couldn't help but wonder why the older girl was heading for what she thought was the broom closet, and she was even more confused when she had stepped inside and closed the door. 'Maybe there are stairs that lead to a lower level room.' She thought as she twiddled her fingers. 'Yeah, that's it, it leads to another room!' Glad that she had managed to solve that mystery, Ranma sat back and began happily humming a tune.

Little did she know, however, that her humming was loud enough to reach the ears of a cyan-haired woman attempting to catch some sleep up in the rafters. The woman's ears twitched at the tune as she rolled onto her side. As it continued, her face slowly scrunched up into a scowl, and it wasn't long before her eyes snapped open to portray a look of annoyance at being woken from her nap.

'Alright, who the hell just woke me with that awful…?' Peering over the railing, Ryoko caught sight of a small red-headed girl sitting upon the sofa and giving off the most dreadful tone deaf humming that she had ever heard. 'Don't know who the midget is, but she needs to be silenced.' The former space pirate thought with a glare. "Hey brat, knock off that ear-splitting racket before I come down and do it for you!"

With an eep and a jump, Ranma rapidly swung her head around in an effort to figure out where the enraged scream came from. Not seeing anybody, she hopped off of the sofa and got on her hands and knees to look under it.

"Hey, twerp, up here!"

Taking offense at the twerp comment, but still obeying the command, the two-year-old glanced up to see a golden-eyed woman with swept back spiky cyan-colored hair leaning over a rafter on the ceiling and giving her an annoyed glare. "What're ya doing up there?" She couldn't help but notice that the woman's ears were slightly longer than normal.

"I was TRYING to sleep, but that noise of yours woke me up."

"It wasn't noise! I was humming." Ranma bit back as she placed her hands to her hips and gave a childish glare. "Maybe you just can't understand greatness when you hear it."

"Humming? Is that what you call it? I've heard better sounds coming from a drowning cat."

Ranma stuck her tongue out. "Oh shut up, ya tone-deaf old hag!"

A vein appeared as Ryoko started growling. "Old… hag?" She asked before immediately teleporting from her spot on the ceiling to the area right in front of the two-year-old. "Just WHO are you calling an old hag?" Attempting to keep her temper in check at least a little since the girl was just a child, Ryoko gave her a rather rough pat on the head while forcing a smile. "Aren't you an adorable little twerp?" The statement was made through clenched teeth.

Ranma was shocked to know that the older woman could teleport, but her curiosity turned into annoyance as she felt the hand roughly slap the top of her head. Any childish fear she would have felt in the situation of confronting the weird and creepy woman was tossed aside in favor of annoyance. "I'm calling YOU an old hag, thunder thighs. How about ya clear the gunk outta your ears so you can hear better?"

Ryoko's hand clenched in anger, and without another thought, she called forth her energy sword, but managed enough common sense to will it away. Still, she figured that it was probably time to teach the kid some manners. "Run," The former space pirate stated with a forced smile. "Run as fast as you can."

Gulping nervously as fear started to overcome her being, the two-year-old redhead wondered if she had gone a little too far. The woman before her almost seemed as scary as a demon now that she was angered, and she didn't want to know what this demon woman was capable of. "Um- I didn't- I mean-"

"Little girl, I told you to run." Strange orbs of energy started to appear around the room, and they seemed to be at the cyan-haired woman's command. "Unless you want to be hit, that is." One of the balls flew past the two-year-old's head.

Crying out in fear and terror, Ranma fled from the room and towards the front door with Ryoko right behind. Having no time to grab her shoes, she quickly slammed open the door and rushed outside. As soon as she was several meters away from the house, she turned around in hope that her pursuer wouldn't come outside. When she didn't see her, Ranma gave off a sigh of relief.

"Stopped running already?" A voice asked from behind causing the redhead to freeze. Slowly turning her head, the two-year-old caught site of the current cause of her terror. The woman was holding her hands behind her back in an innocent manner, and she was leaning forward slightly with a wide smile upon her face. "Well that's no fun at all, because I think we should play a little more."

"N- No thank you." Ranma said nervously as she waved her hands in front of her. "I don't- WHA!" She found herself being pulled into the woman's arms as Ryoko - much to her shock - flew up into the air and hovered several meters above the ground. "Y- You can fly?" The two-year-old asked in slight awe.

"It's neat, isn't it?" Ryoko proceeded to point downward. "Just look how high we are. I bet that if you were to fall from this height, you wouldn't be doing so well." She almost giggled in amusement when the redhead latched tightly onto her arm in fright. "Don't you just love it, kid?"

"Y- Yeah, it's great." The young child lied as she held on tightly. She knew she wouldn't be able to survive a fall from this height in her current state, and just thinking about it frightened her even more. "Can you get us back down on the ground again? Pretty please?"

"Nah, kid, I'm going to take you for the ride of your life!" The cyan-haired woman announced as she flew quickly around the house and surrounding area. She made several dips close to the ground that caused her passenger to scream and close her eyes. She was only having some harmless fun in scaring her, and she had no intention of harm.

'I think she's learned her lesson.' Ryoko thought as she gave the frightened girl a look. She figured that it was about time to put her back down on the ground, but felt that it would be good to have one last moment of amusement. Lowering herself to tree-top level, Ryoko extended her arms and held out the child as she skimmed the trees. "You know, I wonder if I can drop you into any soft bushes. I'm sure the tops of the trees will provide some cushion."

As she stared in trepidation, Ranma could feel the tears on her cheeks as she thought about the fall. "Y- You wouldn't."

Her captor smirked. "Oh? How do you know?" She loosened her grip just enough to cause the child to slide down until she was being held by her armpits. "Uh oh, I think I'm starting to lose my grip! Here's hoping you land on something soft." Feeling as if she had enough fun, Ryoko was going to pull the girl back into the safety of her arms, but quickly noticed a faint glow surrounding her tiny and trembling form. "Hey, you okay there?"

"N- No, don't wanna fall. Too high- it'll hurt- maybe die." The glow quickly grew in intensity and size as her terror became worse. "Scary creatures- Getting lost- no… no… NO!" On her final 'no', Ranma somehow managed to release a blast of magic that sent Ryoko tumbling about ten meters back. This action also had the effect of releasing Ranma from her grip, and when the redhead noticed her predicament, the only thing she could do was close her eyes and hope to survive as she plunged down into the forest.

Ryoko's eyes widened when she saw the two-year-old fall and disappear into the trees. "Shit!" Taking off towards the spot that she believed the child fell to, the former space pirate hoped that she wasn't too seriously hurt. She may have not known who the girl was, but she knew that she must have been a guest, and if the girl were to die because of her… "Shitshitshitshitshit!"

Quickly coming upon the spot where the two-year-old had landed, Ryoko was surprised to see her struggling to get to her feet. From what she could see, the girl may have had a broken arm and leg, and it wasn't a good sign that there was blood either. "Hey, I didn't mean to drop you. I was just joking." She needed to get the girl to Washu… as much as she hated the idea of just how much trouble she'd probably get in. "Come here." She said as she reached out for the injured child.

"S- Stay back! D- Don't come near me." Ranma managed to get out before wincing. It was possible that she may have had a broken rib or two. It also didn't help that her vision was blurring and portrayed Ryoko as some kind of terrifying demon. "P- Please don't hurt me." Another glow sprung up around the two-year-old, but this time it seemed much larger.

'This can't be good.' Ryoko thought as she watched the glow grow larger by the moment, and the half-blue/half-red eyes that the girl possessed quickly turned pure crimson. They didn't stop at that, however, and slowly started to turn gold. 'What's going on?'

"STAY AWAY!" The two-year-old shouted as her body unleashed an incredibly powerful explosion.

The former space pirate had managed to avoid it by teleporting away and appearing back at the house. She was just in time to meet the other occupants of the house who were coming out to figure out what the cause of the massive explosion was.

"Ryoko!" Ayeka screeched as she marched up to the woman. "What did you just do?"

Sasami glanced around worriedly. "What happened to Ranma-chan? I hope she wasn't near that." She should have had the girl go with her to meet with Washu.

"Is Ranma a tiny redhead kid with weird red and blue eyes?" Ryoko asked with a nervous sweat. "Cause that little twerp just blew away part of the forest."

Before anyone could say anything else, Washu had vanished from the area, only to return a few moments later with a young child held in her arms. All the color drained from Ryoko's face when she caught sight of what happened to the redhead. Her body seemed to be deathly pale, and even her hair, for some unknown reason, was stark white. The clothing that she had previously been wearing was almost completely shredded with only a few pieces hanging on, and one could easily see the multitude of cuts and bruises across her body. Blood covered her tiny form from head to toe, and it even seemed to be trickling out of her mouth.

"Wash-" Tenchi didn't get to finish before the crab-haired scientist rushed towards her lab. Sharing a look, everyone else decided to follow.

Everyone except for Ryoko, that is. The cyan-haired ex-pirate continued to stand there in total shock. The sight of what happened to that girl was just too much for her, and she felt chiefly responsible for what happened. If she hadn't lost her temper and decided to mess around like she did, then this wouldn't have happened. Hopefully Washu would be able to save the kid, but if not, then she didn't know how she could live with the guilt of that.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A sigh of relief escaped Washu's lips as the diminutive scientist checked over the readings of her tiny patient. 'Heart rate finally stabilized.' She had to wipe the sweat off of her brow at that. When she had brought her in, the girl was in even worse condition than she had thought, and even her heart had stopped completely. This was compounded by the multitude of broken bones that managed to puncture a few organs, internal bleeding, a great amount of blood lost, and intense strain on her body both physically and spiritually along with a hint of severe mental exhaustion. If she had been even a second too late in getting the girl to the lab, then they would have lost her.

Lifting her head and staring into the healing tank, Washu took a moment to observe what had to be the luckiest two-year-old in the world. By all accounts, she should have died instantly. Hell, any other child in that situation would have. To survive meant that there was something special about her, and the scientist couldn't help but feel her curiosity grow even more. The girl was an incredible mystery, and Washu found that solving that mystery would be something to look forward to.

Those thoughts brought her back to the letter that the girl had brought with her. When Sasami had told her that there was a child looking for her, she was initially perplexed as to just who the girl could be and why she was there. Upon exiting her lab with Sasami, Washu saw the distressed look on the young princess who started to search for the missing child. That was when she had caught sight of a letter that was addressed to her.

She didn't know who this 'Xellos' person was and how he knew about her, nor did she know why he wanted her to teach the child, but she had to admit that the letter had managed to pique her interest. That was before the girl unleashed that interesting display of power. The area in the forest that she was found in was now nothing more than a lifeless crater, and so the power must have been immense.

From her readings on the girl, Washu was amazed to see that she had such a high level of ki for an Earth toddler. The mystery child also possessed a mana capacity that seemed much greater than usual. Washu knew that the world she was currently on contained a 'secret world' of magic, and she had previously run a few scan probes in an effort to monitor and understand what they were capable of. Needless-to-say, the diminutive scientist wasn't all that impressed and found most of them to be mediocre at best and incredibly boring. Even normal Earthlings were more interesting to observe.

Here though, was a two-year-old with a huge potential for greater things, if put through the right training. That alone nearly sent her into a fit of maniacal giggling at the prospect of 'Guinea pig.'

"Hmm…" Washu hummed as she observed the unconscious child floating in the healing tank with various wires, sensors, and tubs strapped to her. Perhaps she could make it a little more interesting for the girl in a way to… help her adapt to the chaotic and 'dangerous' atmosphere of the house. It would also allow for some good research and observation material.

Deciding to go for it, the diminutive genius made her way over to the computer control panel connected to the healing tank and quickly started to type away. The commands that she gave the computer were for injecting and integrating Masu DNA into the redhead's body. Along with this, she included the necessary components that would allow the girl to be able to perform the abilities that both she and Ryoko could perform. After-all, she did wish that she could have observed her daughter growing up and into her abilities, so why shouldn't she be able to witness and observe the same thing with a human given those abilities in the early stages? She was curious as to how the child would grow and mature. Of course, it would also serve as to rid the child of her already fragile human structure, because if this was the kind of potential that the girl possessed, and if she performed anymore stunts like earlier, then she'd likely burn herself out before she could even reach her third birthday. That was something she definitely did not want to see happen to a child if she could help it.

The Masu DNA carried with it a sentience and the ability to evolve if given the right conditions. If it sensed that its host was in certain danger, then the DNA would attempt to work and correct the issue. As such, her body would be immune to most - if not all - illnesses. Of course, since the girl wasn't exactly human anymore, she wouldn't have to worry about the human illnesses of Earth.

Poisons and other harmful toxins were also things that she wouldn't need to worry about. Any harmful substances that attempt to attack and damage the body would be dealt with quickly and effortlessly. It was possible, however, that she could end up with a case of temporary indigestion if the toxin was potent enough. Temporary weakness was also a possibility while the immune system went to work on neutralizing the poison.

After she finished with her tweaking of the girl's body, Washu's thoughts returned to the writing in the letter. 'Teach her, huh?' The idea was an interesting one, and it has been a very long time since she felt the joy and amusement in teaching students. Maybe this girl will even become as great as her. That thought caused an amused cackle to escape.

"Washu…" A small voice brought her out of her thoughts and caused her to turn around to see Ryoko. Her daughter had the appearance of a child who knew that they had caused something terrible to happen. From their connection, Washu could tell that Ryoko was feeling an incredible amount of guilt, and was afraid of the consequences that her actions would bring upon her. If this had been before she fused with Zero, her emotions wouldn't have been so severe. "Is she-"

"She's going to be perfectly fine." The diminutive genius answered with a small smile. "There won't be any lasting negative side effects from what happened. She's still healing, and it'll probably take the rest of the day until she's ready to wake."

A huge weight felt as if it was lifted from the former space pirate as her expression turned into one of joy and relief. "I- I thought she was going to die. I managed to get a good look of her in your arms and thought-"

"She would have if I were a moment later." Washu interrupted. This caused a look of horror to flash across the other woman's features. "Her heart had stopped for about three minutes, and so I thought I was too late, but she seems to be an incredibly stubborn girl who doesn't like the thought of giving up." She crossed her arms. "What's most amazing is that she is just a two-year-old both on a mental and physical level."

Ryoko couldn't help but grow pale at that information. Everyone had assumed that the girl was at least two because of how small she was, but none of them were fully sure. Now they had confirmation, and Ryoko felt even worse about what she did.

"You're feeling a large degree of guilt over this incident, aren't you, Ryoko?" The question caused her to stammer. "It's okay, you don't need to answer. However, I can not approve of how you handled yourself around her. She is, after-all, just a two-year-old girl. Your careless actions could have killed her."

"I- I didn't know that this was going to happen. I was just trying to have a little fun. I-"

"It's okay," Washu comforted, "I'm not going to punish you… this time. You realize the terrible error of your actions and are feeling remorse for what has occurred. I'm certain that everyone else will forgive you, but," She motioned towards the healing two-year-old, "Getting her to forgive you is what really matters."

Ryoko nodded silently as she stared at the small girl within the tank. After a long moment, she turned around and made her way out of the lab. When the girl wakes up, she'll try and apologize for what happened.

As soon as the former space pirate left, Washu gave off a loud yawn as she stretched out her arms. Working for three hours on stabilizing a near-death child was incredibly taxing, and the diminutive scientist felt as if she could go for a nap. The computer and healing tank would continue to monitor the girl's condition while fixing up her body and integrating the programmed changes. If there was any danger of harm, an alarm would wake her up instantly.

About 10 minutes after the redhead left the area, another person entered in search of her. She was blonde with dark skin and large blue eyes. "Washu-san!" Mihoshi called out, but received no answer. Upon looking around, she noticed the glass tank that held a small two-year-old floating within. "Oh," She said as she walked towards the tank, "That must be Ranma-cha- Wha!" The blonde galaxy police officer tripped over her own feet and fell forward, hitting her head against the computer control console.

"Owwwiieee…" Mihoshi cried as she pulled herself up. As she did, however, her fingers accidentally pressed a few buttons, and she didn't notice that her hand landed on yet another button. "That huurrtt!" She whined as she rubbed her head. "Wonder where Washu-san went. Maybe she's no longer here right now." As she took in her surroundings, Mihoshi started to notice just how spooky the area seemed. The room was dark, and the only sounds were the constant beeping and humming of machinery along with the occasional bubbling of liquid within the large glass tank. It almost seemed like the makings of some kind of horror movie.

A small beep from the computer caused the ditzy blonde to jump in fright. "Maybe I should talk to Washu-san later…" With that, she quickly made her way out of the lab. Little did she realize that her meddling had managed to slightly modify the programmed task.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"OI!" Ranma called out as she sat upon a weathered rock. All around her was a rough sea with the only land in sight being what looked like an island off into the far distance. As the waves crashed against the rock, she couldn't help but shiver at the water that splashed onto her. She didn't know where she was, and it was beginning to freak her out. "A- Anybody out there?" Her call was drowned out by the roaring water. "Where am I?"

Pulling her knees close to her chest and resting her chin on top, the tiny redhead wrapped her arms around her legs and watched as the sky began to cloud over and grow dark. Thunder and lightning were soon followed by sheets of pouring rain, and it wasn't long before the sea itself turned even more chaotic as the waves grew larger and larger. As she grew cold and wet, she couldn't stop her body from shivering.

She didn't know what was going on, and it was starting to scare her. She wanted to be warm and dry, not cold or wet, and she wanted to be in a place that was safe instead of dangerous. A deafening roar of thunder and a violent flash of lightning caused her to instantly lift her head, and there in front of her was a wave that towered over her by 20 meters. As it barreled down onto the redhead, Ranma braced herself and waited for the inevitable to happen.

…But the wave never came, and for that matter, she no longer felt wet or cold. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes to see that a feminine figure was sitting right next to her, and that there was an odd barrier erected around the both of them that kept the wind, rain, and waves from reaching them. Lifting her head, Ranma was able to see that the woman had long golden hair that seemed to float slightly without any kind of outside interference. She was unable to see the woman's eyes, but could feel them staring down at her. There was something about her that made the redhead feel safe, and a desire to stay near and not leave.

"W- Who are you?"

"A friend." The mysterious woman answered with a soft and comforting voice as she pushed strands of wet hair away from the child's face. "I have no real name, but you may call me L-chan."

Ranma couldn't help but feel that it sounded like an odd name, but who was she to judge? "Where am I?"

"The Sea of Chaos." L answered as she pulled out a cloth to wipe the redhead's face. Of course, the woman had to add silently, it wasn't the TRUE Sea of Chaos… which was but a plain of utter nothingness. "My home."

"Huh?" The two-year-old asked with a blink. "How can you live here? It seems so dangerous." Her eyes glanced back at the rough sea and stormy skies.

L gave a simple wave of her arm, and Ranma was awed to see sea instantly become calm. The rain also stopped and led to the clouds dispersing to allow for a bright and clear sky. "I am but the mistress of this domain. It is little trouble for me to change it if it becomes to my dislike."

"Wow…" The young child let out with wide eyes. "Hey, hey, L-chan, can ya teach me to do something like that?" To be able to instantly change the weather would be fun.

The golden-haired woman gently ran her hand through the girl's hair. "You have the potential to do that… and more. However, it could take countless years until that becomes possible."

"Why does it always come down to years?" Ranma crossed her arms and pouted. Nearly everything she wanted to do couldn't be done or achieved for several years, and she was getting tired of it. "I wanna do something right now."

"But there is something you can do." This caused her to look up at the woman with intense curiosity. "You can do magic. You may not be able to do much until your little body becomes tired, but you can still do a few things before that happens."

Another pout took over the two-year-old's features. "I can't figure it out though."

"You just need to have the desire. Magic works best when there is something that you want to do." L gently pulled the redhead close and allowed her to lie upon her lap as she continued to softly stroke her hair. "An example is if you want to create a fire, gust of wind, a bit of ice, or something else. All you have to do is want it to happen. Your imagination is the key to grander things. If you can move past the self-imposed barriers of the mind, wondrous things await."

"Just need to want it…" Ranma mumbled to herself. As she watched the sea shift, she couldn't help but notice that the sky was beginning to turn dark again, and small parts of the water were bubbling and rippling. "H- Hey, L-chan, what's happening?"

Before an answer could be given, the sea exploded as several large figures shot out from the water and towered over the both of them. They were hidden within shadows, but Ranma could tell what they were by the glowing yellow and slit eyes, sharp fangs, long claws, and the basic shape. As she stared, the two-year-old couldn't help but try and instinctively cling onto the golden-haired woman's dress for safety, but found that said woman had vanished. In fact, the area she was in had also changed to that of a dark, enclosed space.

"MEEEOOOWWWW!" The shadowy cats all called out as they rushed towards the trembling two-year-old with their claws poised to strike.

Screaming in fright and closing her eyes, Ranma felt herself being batted to the ground as the demons circled around her like sharks to a meal. "L-CHAN!" She cried out in hopes that the woman was still around so as to help her get away from the pure evil encircling her. "L- L-chan, I don't wanna be here anymore! I'm scared!"

With a collective yowl, the cats leapt towards the petrified two-year-old as one, and each were attempting to aim for a different vital spot as their claws extended outward.

Just before Ranma could scream out again, however, a golden barrier appeared around her and knocked the shadows away. Accompanying the barrier was the golden-haired L standing straight with her arms crossed. When she saw the woman, Ranma hopped to her feet and quickly clung to her legs for safety as she watched the shadow cats get back up.

"Do not worry about these vile creatures, Ranma-chan. They are but mere kittens trying to act like lions." The woman grabbed the two-year-old's hand and pulled her out from behind. "You must show them that that they are trying to mess with something they shouldn't"

"B- But L-chan…" The redhead trailed off as she watched the shadows regroup and prepare to leap. "What can I do? They're going to eat me! I can't-"

"What did I say earlier, Ranma-chan?" The golden blonde asked as she reached down to comfortingly stroke the child's hair. "You already have what it takes to protect yourself. All you have to do is want it."

Ranma gulped as she turned her head to stare at the creatures as they crouched down to pounce. "Gotta want it…"

"REEEOOOOWWWRRRR!" The cats all screamed as they leapt towards her.

"G- Gotta want it!"

Several sets of claws extended even further as fangs glinted in the darkness.

"YAAAHHHH!" Ranma shouted as she tossed her hands forward and let loose a blast of sparkling mist. As she watched, Ranma witnessed the attack cover the approaching shadows and obscured them from vision. Once the mist cleared, she could see the cat beasts, but instead of dark shadows, they were nothing more than ice statues. A second later, the ice began to crack, and the creatures collapsed into an icy dust.

"D- Did I do that?" Ranma asked to herself with wide eyes. Once she realized that she did, she couldn't help but punch the air in victory. "I'm so awesome!" Turning towards L-sama, she gave the woman the victory sign.

"You did well." The golden blonde said with a nod. "But when you wake up, you must remember what I have taught you and be successful in gathering it." She proceeded to run her hand across the now curious redhead.

"Huh? What do you mean by when… I… wake…" Ranma promptly toppled over, but was caught, and the woman allowed her to peacefully sleep upon her lap.

Looking down at the sleeping redhead in her lap, L-sama couldn't help but allow a smirk to spread across her lips. It seemed as if everything was going according to plan. There were a few snags, but everything seemed back on track. It was only a matter of years now, but had the patience necessary to wait, though. No matter how long it would take.

As she continued to stare, she couldn't contain a giggle at just how adorable the two-year-old was really was. "Maybe the wait won't be so bad after all." The golden-haired woman commented as she ran a finger across the child's cheek and watched as she made a small twitch. Yes, she definitely had the patience.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As she slowly opened her eyes, Ranma noted that she was in a darkened room that contained the telltale signs of running machinery. The first thing she understood was that she was lying on some kind of bed with a blanket covering her. As she attempted to figure out where she could be, her mind tried to wrap itself around a dream that she had. It was mostly fuzzy, but one of the things that she could remember was someone named L. For some reason, thinking about that name gave her a sense of comfort and safety, but she didn't know why. 'Gotta want to…'

"This just doesn't make sense." A voice sounded from somewhere behind her. It sounded female, and there was an accompanying sound of fingers furiously typing. "The program shouldn't have performed a scan of the subconscious, nor should it have also integrated what it found into the Masu assimilation process." All the two-year-old could gleam from that was that something did what it shouldn't have done and ended up combining with something else. "Oh, it seems as if the patient is awake."

'Guess I'm that patient.' Ranma thought. She then watched as a girl who seemed no older than 12 appeared to her left. The mystery girl had bright long red hair that had an odd crab-like style in the front. Her eyes were an emerald green that seemed to contain a knowledgeable look, and there was just something about them that made Ranma give a nervous shiver.

"Good evening, Ranma-chan." Washu said with a bright smile. "You woke sooner than I thought you would, but that's okay."

"Um… who are you?"

The older redhead snapped her fingers. "Oh, that's right, you haven't met me yet." Stepping back, she placed her hands on her hips. "I am Washu, the greatest scientific genius in the whole universe!" She proceeded to give off a laugh that made the two-year-old want to pull the blanket over her head and hide. "Of course, you may call me Washu-chan."

"Err- Okay." Ranma didn't know what else to say, and felt as if she were in the presence of a mad woman. Sitting up, she pushed off her blanket and immediately noticed that she was in the nude. "Hey, where are my clothes?" Not that she really cared much for the outfit, but it was the only thing she had to wear at the moment.

"I'm sorry, but they were completely destroyed during the mishap you had this morning." That didn't mean she couldn't easily reconstruct the outfit, though. "However, I can quickly get you something to put on." Summoning her holographic laptop, Washu punched in a few keys to allow a set of clothes to appear.

Ranma could only stare when she saw a computer appear out of nowhere, and was also surprised when some clothing materialized in front of her. She was a little disheartened to see that the outfit consisted of a light blue sundress, though. The underwear also had a small image of a puppy's head on it.

'At least it's better than another lolita outfit.' She thought as she grabbed the clothing and hopped off of the medical bed. As she touched the floor, the two-year-old felt her balance give out and send her falling forward onto her face. "Ooowwww…" Ranma let out as she wiped the tears from her eyes. 'I can't believe I was that clumsy.' Pushing herself back to her feet, she found that she was still having difficulties in balancing and fell to her knees. "Hey, what's wrong with me? Why can't I stand?"

"Well, you see," Washu began as she tried to figure out how she should break the news to a two-year-old. "There was a little mishap that happened as you were being healed earlier, and I don't know how it happened."

The younger redhead did not like the sound of that, and it filled her with a sense of dread and worry. "W- What do you-" A large mirror was placed in front of her. What she saw as she stared into it caused her to instantly freeze in terror. Raising her hands towards her head ever so slowly, she was able to confirm, to her horror, that she did have a pair of red and furry cat ears. This meant that the tail she saw swishing behind her - and felt now that she realized - was real as well. There was also the issue of the slightly elongated canines, sharper claw-like fingernails, and the very slight change to her pupils.

"As you can see," Washu said with a small smile, "It's not as bad as it sounds." After-all, a two-year-old would probably shout out in amazement at the idea at being a kitty. Upon giving a closer look, the redheaded genius instantly noted that the girl was trembling with a fearful look in her eyes. "Ranma-chan?"

"No… no… don't wanna be a cat." Ranma managed to get out as she reached up and attempted to pull at the ears to get them off, but let go because she didn't want to touch them. "Get them away. Don't wanna be a cat. Don't wanna be a cat monster" She continued to fall deeper into fear as she hugged herself and rocked back and forth as the image of the shadow cats from her dream towering over her appeared in her mind.. Her mantra of 'don't wanna be a cat' and 'get them away' continued over and over as tears cascaded down her cheeks.

Washu didn't know what was going on. She didn't even know why the girl was so distraught or afraid of cats. The only thing that she did know, though, was that there was a scared two-year-old child in front of her who seemed to be going through her own version of hell. As such, motherly instincts quickly kicked in, and Washu found herself holding the smaller redhead in her arms and whispering soothing words as she rocked her back and forth.

"Shh, it'll be alright. There are no evil cats around to harm you, and you're as safe as can be." After almost five minutes, she had managed to calm the girl enough for her fall off to sleep. As she sat there, Washu couldn't help but wonder just what could have happened to make her fear cats so much. She contemplated the idea of seeing if she could get rid of the appendages, but figured that maybe it could help her overcome her fear. She'd just have to keep a close eye on her and provide some help.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Ranma next opened her eyes, she couldn't help but wonder just how many times this was going to happen. In just a short amount of time, she found herself waking up for perhaps the fourth time in what had to be two days. She wasn't sure, however, because of her current ignorance of time due to crossing time zones and mostly being out of it. From the looks of things, though, it was morning again.

Glancing around, she noticed that her location was different from her previous one. Currently, she was lying in a comfy futon that sat next to a bed. The room itself appeared neat and tidy, and large windows allowed sunlight to trickle in. If she were to guess, Ranma would have to say that she was still in the house that she had arrived in not that long ago.

A movement on top of her blanket made the two-year-old face forward, and she found her eyes staring into the large yellow eyes of some kind of brown rabbit. Upon its forehead was a small red gem of some kind. It was giving her a wide and happy smile, and Ranma couldn't help but return one of her own. The child in her wanted to reach out and…

"Myah!" It cried out happily

…pull the covers over her head to make the creature that sounded like a cat go away. "I'm not here!" She shouted in a muffled voice from beneath the blankets. "P- Please go away. I don't like cats." Even if it didn't look like one, it still sounded like one, and so it must have been some weird species of cat. As such she was going to stay under the blanket until it left.

Or at least she thought she would. Ranma couldn't stifle a tiny 'eep' when the blanket was pulled off of her. Instead of the tiny meowing rabbit, however, there was a girl of about two or so years older than her. Said girl had light tanish-brown skin with long blue-silver hair that was brown in the middle. On the brown hair was also a tiny red gem similar to the animal from a moment ago. She had incredibly long ears and - like the creature - yellow eyes. The outfit she wore was a blue dress with a couple carrots designed on the front. Upon her feet was a pair of pink socks.

Ranma, putting two and two together, could only assume that the creature and this girl were one in the same. As such, she couldn't help but gulp. "Were you that creature I just saw?"

"Myah," Ryo-Ohki said with a nod. "Myaow myaou-ou"

Wincing, but only slightly, Ranma pushed herself up into a sitting position. "Sorry, I'm just scared of cats, not you." She blinked when the girl grasped her hands and pulled her up into a standing position. The two-year-old then reencountered the problem she had earlier: her balance.

"I still have cat ears and a tail, don't I?" She asked as she lifted her hands towards her crimson ears. Looking behind, Ranma could see her tail that jutted out through a hole that was cut into the blue dress and - most likely - underwear. Closing her eyes, she turned away and hoped to try and at least forget about them. Briefly, she wondered why she wasn't freaking out as bad as she did when she last found out about her new features. By all accounts, she should have become a blubbering mess. Better than dwelling on that and possibly cause HERSELF to go crazy, she decided to focus on her balancing issue. "Why can't I stand or walk?"

Ryo-Ohki gave a few myahs in response to her question and tried to make an effort of telling her the reason that she had learned from overhearing Washu. However, she had to explain it through pantomime. The redhead would have laughed if it weren't for her current predicament.

"So it's because of my… tail that my balance is shot, and I need to learn how to use it to help me." The younger girl grumbled, but then her eyes widened in shock as she stared at Ryo-Ohki. "Hey, I can understand what you were saying."

"Myao-myah?"

"Yeah, I can." Ranma answered with a nod. She was then caught off guard when the cabbit-girl grabbed her by the hands and started to happily dance around. "H- Hey, cut it out." After a moment, the redhead managed to pull free, but - due to balance issues - ended up stumbling backwards and into the bedroom door.

Or, at least she would have if she hadn't gone THROUGH it and fallen onto her back on the other side. When she realized what she had done, Ranma could only stare in shock as she attempted to figure out what happened. That was when she witnessed Ryo-Ohki walk through the door as if it were no big deal. "H- How did I- Did you- Did we do that?" Pushing to her feet, the small redhead stumbled over to the door and tried to move through it, but found that she couldn't manage it. 'Maybe it only works going out.'

She was soon pulled back towards Ryo-Ohki as the cabbit told her that Washu would help explain things. Before she could say anything else, Ranma found that the older girl was helping leading her along so that she could walk. It honestly felt as if she was learning how to all over again, and it was all because of the stupid tail swishing behind her.

That didn't mean she wasn't appreciative of the older girl's help, though. Without it, she would have probably fallen down the stairs and got seriously injured. She also couldn't help but find herself enjoying the company, and was having fun talking with her despite the cat-like sounds. It was also how she learned that her name was Ryo-Ohki and that she also had a similar issue with balancing when she first obtained her child form.

"Thanks," Ranma said softly as Ryo-Ohki helped her down from the last step.

"Ah, I knew I was right in leaving Ryo-Ohki to watch after her." A familiar voice spoke up. "Are you feeling better now?"

Turning her head, the two-year-old caught sight of the older redhead from earlier leaning against the side of the stairs. "Sure, except for the fact that I'm part cat." She answered with a half-lidded stare. "Isn't there something that-"

"Ranma-chan!" The newly-turned cat-girl turned to see another familiar girl with blue hair. She was also accompanied by a taller dark-skinned blonde woman. "Are you okay? I was worried about when you got hurt."

"It was so scary to know that you almost died!" The blonde shouted with a tearful sniff. "That would have been so terrible!"

Ranma couldn't help but sweat as she stared at the sniffling woman. Surely she was exaggerating just how hurt she had been. Turning her head a little, she also caught sight of a raven-haired teenaged boy of around 17 and another girl who had purple hair. 'Are these all his sisters?' It felt as if she was forgetting someone though, but she couldn't imagine who.

"Hey, kid," A voice that caused her body to stiffen spoke up from behind. Spinning around, the two-year-old couldn't help but stare at the cyan-haired woman from earlier. "I just wanna say that I'm really sorr-"

She didn't quite get out what she wanted to say as the scream of a terrified two-year-old interrupted her. Everyone watched as said child - despite being clumsy with her balance - ran away and jumped to the other side of a chair. Once there, she poked her head up to look over the arm; a look of utter fear was present within her eyes.

"K- Keep her away. Don't let that monster anywhere near me!"

Ryoko acted as if she had been slapped. "Hey kid, I'm not a monster." She took a step, but watched as the girl made a sound and ducked out of view. Noticing this, the former space pirate stopped. Biting her lip, she turned her attention towards the wall. Her guilt over what she had done to the redhead quickly returned.

"I'm going to go see if-"

"Wait a moment, Tenchi." Washu said with a raised hand. "And you too, Sasami-chan. That also goes double for YOU, Mihoshi."

"But Washu-oneechan…" Sasami began with a worried look.

"It's already taken care of." The diminutive genius pointed towards Ryo-Ohki as the cabbit - in animal form - hopped over and leapt behind the chair. Everyone could hear mumbled speech and myahing, but nobody could understand what was being said. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of waiting, Ranma moved out from behind the chair with Ryo-Ohki held close to her chest.

The two-year-old stood there and hesitated as she stared at Ryoko, but comforting words from Ryo-Ohki urged her on. Slowly but surely, the small redhead finally made her way over to where Ryoko was standing.

"Um… Ryo-Ohki told me that you aren't a monster." She couldn't help but pay attention to her feet. "Sorry for calling you one." The earlier confrontation she had with the woman still made Ranma wary of being even being around her. 'I wouldn't be acting like this if I wasn't a damn child.'

Ryoko allowed a small smile to appear. It still seemed as if the girl was afraid of her, but at least she wasn't considered a monster anymore. "You're an OK kid, squirt." She said as she gave Ranma a small pat on the head. It was hard to miss the redhead's violent flinch at the touch, and it was just proof that Ryoko still had a long way to go. Still, progress was progress.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ranma couldn't help but glance from person to person as introductions were made. She felt incredibly out of place and unwilling to really say anything. As such, she just kept silent and continued to hold onto Ryo-Ohki. A small bit of commentary from the cabbit slightly confused her as to how Ryoko could be the creature's sister, and how Washu was the mother of both of them. The crab-haired girl didn't exactly look like she'd be old enough to have a child, and Ryoko seemed much older than her as well.

"So- Um- Why do I have these?" The two-year-old pointed to her ears and tail as her eyes portrayed a distraught look.

"Your current physical appearance is due to some unforeseen incident that occurred while your body was healing." Washu explained as she sat across from her. "You see, while you were healing, I decided that the best course of action would be to give you a little special something to help you cope with the 'dangers' that can go on around here. I programmed it so that while you were healing, your entire being right down to the DNA level would integrate and assimilate with the DNA of the Masu. I also threw in a little extra protocol that would allow you to perform the various abilities that Ryoko and I share."

Silence followed that explanation for about a minute before the other residents of the house shouted a unified 'what?'

"Dangers my ass," Ryoko growled as she grabbed the smaller woman by the collar. "You just wanted to have a little fun in observing the end result, and what's the big idea with giving her my abilities?"

Ayeka's left eye developed a nervous twitch. "W- Washu-sama, isn't the Masu the thing that tried to attack Tenchi?" At the mention of that, Tenchi couldn't help but sweat.

"But didn't Washu-oneechan say that Ryoko-oneechan and Ryo-chan were created with using Masu?" Sasami asked as she thought back to the lesson the scientist gave them.

"Oh wow, Ranma-chan will be able to do so many wonderful things!" Mihoshi shouted happily with a clap.

From her spot in the chair, Ranma couldn't help but scratch the side of her head as she watched everyone crowd around the older redhead. When she did, she felt that her perfectly normal HUMAN ears were missing, and that only caused her to think more about the cat ears. "So while I was asleep, you went and did something else to my body?" She honestly did not like the sound of that. "And I can also now fly and stuff like Ryoko?" As her eyes drifted over to the cyan-haired woman, she couldn't help but shrink back a little.

Washu's voice appeared next to her. "You really are quite smart for a two-year-old." After jumping in fright, Ranma turned her head to see the emerald-eyed woman leaning over the arm of the chair and staring directly into her eyes. "But I see that you are still greatly confused."

"Yeah, I don't get it. What's a Masu?" Ranma asked as everyone attempted to stop her.

It was too late, however, and Washu proceeded to go into 'lecture mode' by pulling out a teaching stick and - to the two-year-old's amazement - a holo-screen. "It's quite simple, Ranma-chan. You see, the Masu are an aquatic race of very simple creatures that have relatively simple instincts." The screen displayed an image of a round blob-like creature with small eyes. "They're pretty unimpressive at first glance, and it makes them seem as if they can't do all that much. However, if many of them converge together, they can become quite formidable." The screen changed to several that depicted destroyed ships and vehicles. "Also, if given the right circumstances, desires, imprints, and motivation, they can do extraordinarily amazing things."

The screen changed to one that depicted a tall and vaguely feminine creature that had the same brownish-tan color as the blob-like creature. "You see, not too long ago, several Masu congregated together and formed this new shape for the sole purpose of performing one single task. Needless to say, its mind was still simple, and it easily perceived anything as a threat."

"Wow…" Ranma said in childish wonderment as she stared at the screens. She wondered how those floating screens came about, and also wondered about how they worked. "But what does-"

"Raise your hand please when you want to ask a question, Ranma-chan." Washu interrupted in full teacher mode.

The two-year-old blinked for a moment but promptly did as she was told. "But what does that have to do with me? Am I going to change into one of those things?" There was a hint of fear as she asked the question. From what the older redhead had mentioned, it sounded as if she were going to become 'not human,' and that thought freaked her out. Of course, her new cat features already made her 'not human.'

Washu smiled and gave the child a pat on the head. She was definitely going to have a fun time taking the girl on as a student. Every scan that she had made while healing her had shown that she was - before the change - a completely normal two-year-old human Earthling. That meant that the reason the girl was so smart could have been that she was just gifted and/or soaked up things like a sponge. "An excellent question, but no, you do not have to worry about changing into THAT." She pointed at the small blob-like creature. "It is true that you are no longer human though. The assimilation of the Masu has rewritten that aspect of you, but for the better."

"How-" A look from the older redhead caused Ranma to quickly raise her hand. "How is it better?"

"It won't become apparent immediately, but it will as time goes by. The changes to your body are still in the process of 'setting up.'" The holo-screen vanished from view. "With your new structure, you won't have to worry about needing to actively breathe to take in oxygen. Your body will be able to collect needed nutrients from your surroundings to convert into its own oxygen to pump your blood. This means that you could survive in places with no proper source of oxygen such as underwater, an enclosed area, or even in outer space. Your body will also continually store excess nutrients to use for when you are in places with nothing to pull out. Along with this, your body will be able to automatically 'tune' itself according to the pressure of an area to allow you to survive."

Ranma couldn't help but allow her jaw to drop. The idea of not being human anymore was disturbing, and she didn't really like it, but the knowledge of her being able to do something awesome as being able to survive underwater or in OUTER SPACE without oxygen was just amazing.

"Lastly, you don't have to worry about sickness or toxins. In fact, your new body already allows you immunity to the viruses and diseases that affect humans. As for toxins, your body will neutralize the effects of them so that they can pass harmlessly through your system."

It was easy to tell that the two-year-old was getting excited because of her tail. The crimson appendage was wiggling around as she thought about fantastic the information sounded. Ranma must have noticed or felt her moving tail, because she quickly stiffened.

"Now we get to why you are currently a cat-girl." Washu said with a loud clap. "To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure just HOW it ended up happening, because by all accounts, it shouldn't have."

"But you do know why it happened, right Washu-chan?" Tenchi asked as he glanced between the genius and the two-year-old.

Washu merely smiled. "Of course."

"Tell me." Ranma said as she placed her hands to her ears and shivered.

With a nod, Washu crossed her arms and sat down. "For some reason, the programming process that foresaw the changes to your structure changed. Something caused it to go ahead and perform a deep subconscious scan of your mind to see if it could gleam anything of interest. Once the scan completed, it managed to find something that it figured out to be useful, and a second process that shouldn't have been running took the information and combined it with the one that oversaw the Masu restructuring of your body. I assume that once the necessary changes were fed into your body, the Masu ended up combining with it and allowing the process to fully complete. Even now your body is still adjusting to the changes of becoming part cat, and I think that it will continue to become more and more integrated into you as time goes by."

"NOOOOOOO!" Ranma shouted as she shook her head. "I don't wanna turn into a cat!" The idea of slowly changing into the four-legged beast scared her to the core, and se would rather face 1,000 cats than become one.

"The physical changes have stopped!" Washu announced in an effort to calm the girl down. "You won't have to worry about one day waking up and finding yourself covered in fur and walking on four legs." That information managed to calm the younger redhead. "However, that doesn't mean that you won't develop a more cat-like mentality and mannerisms. If anything, it should also allow you to become more comfortable around them as well."

Ranma still didn't like the sound of becoming more cat-like in mind and actions, and she sure in hell didn't want to become more comfortable with the beasts. "Stupid Neko-ken." She growled to herself. It just figured that her problem with cats had to follow her into rebirth, but at least it seemed to be only the fear and not the insanity.

"Ranma-chan," Sasami began with a curious look, "What's the Neko-ken?"

The two-year-old froze and glanced up to see that everyone was staring at her and possibly waiting for her answer. Cursing to herself for letting the word slip, she decided that it might be a good idea to give them at least a LITTLE info. Maybe then they wouldn't see her as just a child.

"Well- You see- I…" Why was she so nervous about saying? It's not like they'd really believe her, and they'd probably think she was just being a silly child. "I… I was attacked by a bunch of hungry cats." No, she would not tell them about her being reincarnated or how she used to be male. If she did that, they'd probably think she were a freak and kick her out. "Some ugly bald man thought he could make me strong by putting fish around me and pushing me into hole with a bunch of hungry cats." She couldn't help but glance downward as her ears drooped. Her tail had also unconsciously wrapped around to allow her to hold onto it. If she had realized what she was doing, she would have tossed the appendage away in fright.

Almost instantly, the new cat-girl found herself in the arms of Washu who had almost seemed to teleport to her. "She's so cute!" The genius shouted as if she were nothing more than a school girl doting on an adorable puppy. Sasami and Mihoshi were also right next to them and doting on her cuteness. Several feet away, Ryoko, Ayeka were attempting to NOT burst at the Cute Kitten-Girl Attack of Doom. Near them, Tenchi was coughing into his fist and had a pinkish tinge on his cheeks.

"Let me go!" Ranma shouted in a muffled voice as she attempted to flail her arms, but to no avail. She felt like she wanted to be anywhere else BUT right there getting hugged. Almost instantly after that, and to the surprise of everyone, the small redhead vanished.

"Where did Ranma-chan go?" Sasami asked worriedly as she looked around.

Washu gave her chin a tap. "It seems she managed to perform her first teleport."

"But to where?" Tenchi asked as he and the others started to search. "She could have ended up anywhere."

A small noise convinced everyone to look up, and there, on one of the rafters, was the cat-girl in question. Only the top of her head and hands were visible as her head poked over the side and stared down at them while her ears gave off a few nervous twitches. Her tail also appeared as it draped off the other side of the platform. "Um… a little help?" She asked as her hands gripped the corner and wondered just how she managed to get up there in the first place.

Slapping her head and giving a sigh, Ryoko vanished and reappeared on top of the rafter with her legs crossed. Observing the two-year-old redhead, the ex space-pirate noted that she had her body scrunched up and was lying like a cat with her arms and legs underneath her. Ryoko went to reach out and grab the back of her dress collar, but when Ranma noticed her, she made an eep and attempted to scramble away. However, before she could, her hand phased through the wood and sent her off balance. Before she could fall off the side, Ryoko grabbed her and teleported back down to the floor before turning to glare at Washu.

"Just WHAT made you think that giving those abilities to a TWO-YEAR-OLD was a good idea?"

Ayeka also appeared next to the genius with her own glare. "Yes, how could you do something so irresponsible?"

Instead of acknowledging them, Washu moved over to Ranma as Sasami, Ryo-Ohki, Tenchi, and Mihoshi were making sure she was okay. "I see you discovered your ability to teleport and move through solid objects."

Ranma gave her a wide-eyed look. "So what happened with the bedroom door earlier…." The ability sounded awesome, but what if she didn't watch herself when trying it out? Did that mean she could fall through the floor and get stuck down there? 'Best to not think about it…' She thought with a shiver. That was when something else clicked within her mind: She could teleport. Just that fact alone made her situation seem a little better… except for the entire cat issue, and not really being human anymore. Still, she could do something awesome.

Helping the younger redhead to her feet, Washu continued her explanation. "You should also be able to fly and perform other abilities that you'll learn about with time. However, at your current age and development, you will be limited in just what you can do and how long you can do it. More often than not, you will only be able to do these things on accident, much like what's happening now." She casually pointed to the floor.

Glancing down, Ranma saw that she really was slowly phasing through the floor. With a yelp, she tried to pull herself out, but found that she couldn't do a thing to stop it. Luckily for her, Tenchi reacted the quickest and had pulled her out. "Washu-chan, I think I agree with Ryoko and Ayeka in that it wasn't a good idea to give her these abilities."

Washu gave him an innocent look. "But Tenchi, what if Ryoko decides to be reckless with her again? What if she gets caught in the crossfire of a fight between Ayeka and Ryoko? Maybe Mihoshi causes a little accident? Or perhaps she even finds herself in some other kind of danger? She's two-years-old after all, and these changes will help her survive better. I'm only looking out for her best interest."

"Washu-oneechan, you're not going to make her into your guinea pig, are you?" Sasami asked with a curious look. This earned a series of questioning gazes from everyone present as they waited.

"I bet she already has." Ryoko accused as she crossed her arms. She was a little miffed at being used in part of Washu's list of examples of things hazardous to the kid's safety. "Should be obvious with what she's already done."

Suppressing a sweat drop, the diminutive genius gave a dismissive wave of her hand. If they did find out that she had guinea pig in mind for a two-year-old, she'd never hear the end of it. Of course, she did still have one other thing in mind for the girl. "None of you have to worry about her becoming my guinea pig, because I've decided that she'll become my student."

There was a long moment of silence before everyone gave a shout of 'WHAT?' It wasn't long before all they could imagine was the younger redhead taking after the older and turn into a nearly identical clone, but with different colored eyes and cat features. The very idea caused terrible chills to travel down the spines of all those present.

"N- Now wait a minute, Washu-sama," Ayeka stammered, "Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean-"

Ryoko pushed the princess out of the way. "We don't need two of ya! You hear me?"

Washu gave the woman an amused look. "Oh don't be silly, Ryoko." She proceeded to walk on past. "After-all, we all know that there can only be one Washu, supreme genius of the universe." A maniacal cackle followed her proclamation.

'Just what have I gotten myself into this time?' Ranma asked with a nervous look as she stared at the obvious mad scientist.

"Still," Washu said once she stopped cackling, "You have all surely noticed how advanced she is for a two-year-old, and I just can't let that be an opportunity to pass up." There was also the part about the girl's potential, but she left that out. "That means that you, Ranma-chan," She plucked the two-year-old out of Tenchi's arms and set her upon the floor, "are my newest and first pupil in thousands of years."

"…thousands of years?" Ranma asked with a blink. "Whaddaya mean by that? You only look like you're 12." Even that caused her to wonder what with all the machinery and gizmos from earlier.

The genius couldn't help but smile as she gave the child a pat on the head. "And that, my adorable little student, will be part of your first lesson on the existence of extraterrestrial life."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Author's Notes

Sorry for taking so long in updating this chapter.