Ranma 1/2 is owned by Rumiko Takahashi. Familiar of Zero (Zero no Tsukaima) is owned by Noboru Yamaguchi. All rights reserved.
Zero Interface
Chapter 10
Worlds Apart
"Rise and shine boy!"
Ranma was only dimly aware of the sudden weightlessness that came from being thrown over someone's shoulder when his fighting reflexes kicked into gear. He twisted his body into a proper placement as he sailed through the air, eyes already marking their landing territory. Feet and legs cushioned his land, sliding easily into a ready stance with his hands open, holding in a defensive position.
It was so natural to him that Ranma still hadn't fully awakened yet when the first blows came flooding in. He parried and countered the offense with an elbow, pushing the attacker back long enough to take a little air for himself and lash out at the meaty thigh. The kick was deflected, an open palm strike coming in for his trouble. Ranma whipped his body almost parallel to the ground, catching himself with his hands as he spun his legs around in a tight circle, smashing his foot into the burly chest of the attacker, forcibly driving them back.
As Ranma came up, he noticed just who was attacking him. And he blinked.
"Pop?"
"You're open!" Genma cried out, grabbing Ranma by the lapels of his shirt and sending him flying towards a small pond. The young martial artist barely had time to curse before he splashed down into the water.
Only it started to smother him. Tendrils of black burst out from his chest, binding his arms and legs, letting him sink further and further and further into the dark depths of the water. Ranma continued to struggle, resist, but to no avail. His body felt heavier and heavier, his strength being sapped. He shook and fought still, only for what felt like hands touching his down in the black.
He couldn't see, just feel. His left hand began to itch, and the pressure intensified. Hands began drawing down his arms, a cold warmth at his back. Something was happening.
"Darling…"
He grunted, struggled.
"Darling…"
He didn't know what was going on, but he wasn't about to let it win!
"Darling…"
He threw his hands apart, roaring in determination.
"Kyaa!"
He blinked. He wasn't in watery darkness. In fact, it was Louise's bedroom. He sat up to find Kirche splay-legged on the floor, her eyes wide and a hand to her chest as her breathing was shallow.
He yawned, waving to the Germanian. "Um, hey."
"That must have been some dream," Kirche replied, getting to her feet. "You almost took my head off there."
"Er, sorry," he said, feeling somewhat sheepish.
Kirche waved it off. "So, what were you dreaming about?"
Ranma quirked his mouth a bit before replying. "Just sparring with Pop back home."
Kirche gave him a strange look. Ranma shrugged. "What can I say? He didn't hold back."
She reluctantly nodded in acceptance. After learning about the Cat Fist, she could almost believe anything Ranma would say about his father. Which would undoubtedly lower her opinion of him as it were, assuming Ranma ever decided to talk about anything pertaining to his own history. "Where did Louise head off to?"
"Hmm? Wait a minute; what time is it?"
"It's close to eight."
Ranma made a face. "That late?"
"You did seem preoccupied on the way back to the Academy last night."
Which was true – after all, it wasn't everyday he was given the option of either dying now or let millions of innocent people die later because you have no idea of where to find one silly old ring. The only clue he was able to get in the latter case was so useless, he might as well not have any clues.
Cromwell. That was all the Water Spirit had for him after some extensive questioning. No idea if it was the name of the leader, one of the thugs involved, or even someone's pet. It could have been a first or last name. There could be ten thousand Cromwells out there. It might not even be a person, but a place.
Kirche, Tabitha and Montmorency never heard of a Cromwell. The butler at Tabitha's mansion had no leads. And Ranma wasn't about to ask if the King of Gallia had any ideas; he might be too tempted to straighten the monarch out over the entire mess he delivered to Tabitha five years ago.
With no leads, they party had opted to return to the Academy late last night; the girls had already missed a full day of classes as it were due to his recuperation. Besides, Ranma was bouncing around some ideas in his head that he picked up during his trip to Gallia. If he was right, he might be able to get Louise's Void element out in the open. And who knows, maybe the Headmaster knew of a Cromwell or two. Wouldn't that be fortunate?
"Didn't think Louise would just let me sleep in, though. Especially since I'm usually up way before her."
"Mmm…. Who knows what she's thinking?" Kirche then smiled seductively, kneeling down to his level. "But that just means we have a lot more time to ourselves, mm Darling?" She closed the gap between them, her lips on a collision course for his.
She kissed nothing but air. Kirche blinked, finding Ranma, clad in just underwear and a tank top, having already crossed over Louise's bed and looping behind her to retrieve his clothes from his book bag.
"Darling?"
He was dressed in the blink of an eye, strapped on Derflinger and was already making his way over to the door. "Time's a-wasting. Gotta go find out about this 'Cromwell' guy and then find Louise so we can run through a few new ideas. See you later in class." In a second, he was already gone, with Kirche still rooted where she knelt.
She sank back on her bottom, her face screwed up in confusion. "Was I just… rejected?"
She shook her head. "Couldn't be…"
On the other side of the door, Ranma wiped his forehead with one hand. "Safe," he breathed. Then he took a quick jog down the hallway until he reached the window at its end. A quick flick of the wrist, and it opened for him to pop out of it. The wind felt good as he fell three floors down to the grassy earth below, landing lightly on his feet.
Time to see the Headmaster before he met up with Louise.
"Will you be returning to the castle soon?" Osmond said, sipping tea from his cup.
The immaculately dressed Princess Henrietta nodded, her saucer in one hand, the tea cup held in place by the other. "I only intend to wait for everyone to enter class before exiting the hospitality of your care. I wouldn't want to draw more attention than I've already have."
Osmond nodded. "Of course, Princess. It is no problem."
Of course, the headmaster would have preferred that Ranma was to have accompanied Louise on such a mission. However, while he didn't know the specifics, he could guess that time would be of the essence, and regrettably the otherworlder had his own priorities. Truthfully, Osmond didn't know if Tristain could deal with another one of his exploits, given some of the things he learned by accident.
Still, he was Gandalfr, and the idea of Louise being a Void mage… Again, it brought about his apprehension. If Louise was really a Void mage, would it mean she was destined to bring about great change like the Founder, or was it a sign of impending doom?
Two Imperial Guards from the palace stood outside the Headmaster's office, one each posted in front of the double doors that lead into it. As nobles, they had a sworn duty to uphold to the Crown; in this case, they were to not allow any visitors passage to the office. Armed with specially designed silvery wands that were as hard as steel and stern expressions, they cut an impressive, intimidating air about them, which was more than enough to dissuade the average Tristainian.
Ranma came up the hallway, saw the two guards standing there and headed for them. Upon seeing him and the sword strapped to his back, the guards stepped into the hallway, blocking off the way, their wands drawn and pointed.
Ranma held up his hands. "Whoa, hey guys, I'm just looking for Old Man Osmond. Is he in his office?"
The guards looked at him incredulously, then at each other puzzled before looking at him expectedly. "Leave," one of them commanded.
Ranma frowned a bit. "…um, what? Look, I just want to talk with the old man about something."
Again, the guards looked at each other in disbelief before shooting him a warning glare. "We said, 'Leave,'" the other guard announced coldly, a dark glint in his eye.
The average person would have scurried off at that, for fear of his life. One did not simply agitate the Imperial Guard. Not if they valued their life.
Ranma brushed off the glare with an exasperated sigh. "Look, I really need to see the old man, so if you could just—"
"Get lost, commoner," the first guard snorted in dismissal, his wand lowering a fraction, though he remained ready. "The Headmaster has far more important business other than to listen to a ratty vagabond like you."
Ranma's eye twitched. "R-ratty?"
"Are you deaf as well as stupid?" the second guard asked contemptuously. "There's nothing for you here at all, so run along. Before you anger us."
Ranma's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Is that so…"
"Very," the first guard hammered out in words.
"Huh… well I suppose I should get going, then, huh?"
"Yes," the second guard replied. "You should, in fact, get going."
"Well, if you insist…" Ranma made to turn away, but suddenly pointed at something down the hall from where he came. "Hey, you see that?"
Both guards glanced past Ranma down the hall. "See wh—"
=TWHACK=
One guard's head snapped back sharply, courtesy of a backhand slamming into his face, knocking him off of his feet. He started to fall over backwards just as the other guard realized what had happened. Before he could react, though, Ranma had already pivoted on the balls of his feet, deflecting the drawn wand to smash him in the face with the back of his closed fist. He caught both guards before they hit the ground, carefully depositing them on the floor against the wall.
"Be thankful I'm a nice guy, jerks…" he muttered in annoyance.
Nobility, feh… if there was at least one noble that treated him like a human being without having to prove himself, he just might kiss them.
Osmond and Henrietta were quietly enjoying their tea when the doors suddenly swung open, much to their surprise. "Hey, Old Man!"
The headmaster relaxed and sighed. "Oh, it's only you, Ranma." Then he straightened up. "What happened to the guards at the door?"
"Eh, they fell asleep," Ranma said with a wave-off of his hand. "You really need better guards, Old Man."
Osmond frowned deeply. Imperial Guards did not just fall asleep. Meanwhile, Henrietta looked at Ranma, puzzled, before turning to Osmond.
"Who is this?" she asked.
"Ah… This is Louise's… familiar."
Ranma cringed. "Geez, I'm not a—"
"Is that true?" Henrietta asked, eyes wide as she stood from her seat. "In that case, I'm honored to make your acquaintance, er, Ranma, is it?"
The pigtailed boy opened his mouth, then closed it. "Uh, yeah. That's right. Ranma. Ranma Saotome."
"That is a rather unusual name, but regardless."
She held out her hand to him, palm side down.
Ranma looked at the hand, then at Osmond, confusion written on his face.
The old headmaster looked at Ranma for a moment before understanding came. "It's quite all right, Ranma. She's giving you permission to kiss her."
Ranma stared at Osmond, then Henrietta, then back at Osmond. "Are you serious?"
"It's fine," Henrietta said with a smile. "I give you full permission with this hand."
Ranma blinked, then scratched his cheek, a self-conscious blush touching his face lightly. "I… you're all right with that sort of thing? I mean…"
"Really, it's fine. I wish to get to know something about the person whom my childhood friend summoned."
He paused for a moment. "You didn't say 'familiar.'"
Henrietta shook her head slightly. "Louise told me about you last night. And about how that sort of thing irritates you."
Ranma scratched his head, taken aback by her statement. "Wow… I'm so used to people not even thinking about that sort of thing… I'm… I'm kind of surprised." He wavered a moment before he took a deep breath. "Well… okay… I guess… Just… just this once," he spoke, exhaling as he straightened up, loosened his shoulders. He cleared his throat. "Sorry… never done this sort of thing before."
Henrietta covered her mouth to suppress a giggle. So much nervous energy… "I'm certain you'll do just fine."
He finally stopped rolling his shoulders, inhaled. "A-all right…" He exhaled. "H-here goes…"
He stepped forward, took her hand.
And kissed Henrietta on the mouth.
Henrietta froze with the warm, moist pressure against her lips, both her and Osmond's eyes flying wide open in stunned silence.
Ranma pulled away after a second, looking wholly embarrassed. "…okay, I did it." He glanced back at Henrietta, trying not to look her directly in the face. "So, what did you want to know?"
Henrietta's eyes crossed slightly as her legs gave out. Had it not been for Ranma's lightning-fast reflexes, she would have collapsed to the floor in an unsightly heap.
"…is she all right?" Ranma asked worriedly as he held the unresponsive Henrietta aloft.
Osmond just stared at Ranma. "…you were supposed to kiss her hand…"
Ranma looked at the headmaster blankly before his face tried its best to match the red shade of his shirt. "Buh?"
"Wow, Partner," Derflinger said. "You never cease to amaze me! You are truly the greatest familiar to ever walk this land!"
Ranma just tried to cover his face with both hands. However, he forgot that he was still holding Henrietta in his hands and buried his face in between her impressive breasts. He squawked, realizing what he had just done, and almost dropped her in the process.
Part of Osmond was horrified at the undignified treatment of Her Highness. Part of him felt… envious. Ah, the folly of youth…
"You are spectacular, Partner! I've never seen a familiar actually kiss a princess before, let alone snuggle her in such a manner before. If I were human, I just might be jealous of you."
Derflinger's words took a few seconds to register with Ranma. And the look of horror on his face was daunting. "Pr-Pr-Princess?" he squeaked.
"Of course, Partner. Didn't you notice the tiara on her head?"
Ranma froze solidly in panic, Henrietta slipping free from nerveless fingers.
"Princess!" Osmond cried out, launching himself headfirst to intercept her Highness before she met the floor. However, his back made an audible popping sound and he cried out in pain, tumbling underneath the falling princess. Who slammed right into said injured back, turning Osmond blue with pain. "My back…" he whimpered, his hands and feet stiffly slapping the floor in search of relief, while Henrietta laid atop of him, blissfully unaware of what was going on around her.
Ranma sank to the floor. "Hey, Derf?"
"Yes, Partner?"
"They don't execute guys around here for kissing a princess on the mouth, do they?"
"It's been known to happen."
"Aw man…"
"As you should know from yesterday, my name is Kaita the Gust," a young-looking mage with long raven black hair spoke in a cold arrogant manner. While he seemed outwardly attractive, his mannerisms and attitude left everyone feeling disquieted by his presence. He felt somewhat greasy and there was hidden contempt in his actions.
The instructor went on. "Before we were so rudely interrupted, we were about to discuss which element is the most powerful." His hawkish eyes roamed the desks until they lighted upon a head of red. "Zerbst," he called out. "Can you tell me which element is the most powerful?"
Kirche didn't reply, her thoughts elsewhere. This did not please the teacher at all.
"Zerbst!"
She drew her attention from the nether and back to the classroom. "Yes, teacher?"
His lips drew a thin lip, his jaw slowly clenching. "I said," he almost spat. "Tell me what is the most powerful element in magic."
"I would imagine Void," she said with a straight face.
Kaita stared at her, his brows furrowing. "I'm not asking for something of legends; deal in practical terms!"
She smiled. "Then in that case, fire. A hot enough passion, a hot enough flame, will burn even water."
There were some gasps of surprise at that. Kaita, for his part, looked at her incredulously before his face drew upon something sinister. "Is that how it is…"
She nodded with a smile. "Positive."
He smiled darkly. "Well, in that case, I would like to see your hottest fire."
Kirche looked at him with suspicion. "Are you certain, Professor? You won't merely be singed."
"I'm certain. Or is the flaming red hair of the Zerbst family merely there for decoration?"
Everything jovial about Kirche was swallowed up in a moment, replaced only by a cold expression. "If you insist."
Students became nervous as Kirche slowly stood from her desk, wand held out. Many both around her and in the front of the class started to scatter. Almost no one had ever seen this side of Kirche before, and therefore they had no idea just what would happen. And fewer were willing to have a front row seat to whatever did happen.
"Give me your best shot," Kaita demanded, his wand held slightly away from his hip.
"Fine," Kirche replied, letting words flow from her lips. "Fireball," she spoke, finalizing the spell and letting it rip straight along a collision course with the arrogant teacher. Who smirked as he spoke words, too, before striking out with his magic right into the heart of the fireball.
"You can transmute earth into virtually any metal that comes to mind," Mrs. Chevreuse said, gesturing with her wand at the stones on her desk. "Different element combinations lead to different—"
=BOOM=
"Gyaa!" Chevreuse threw her wand out the window in a blind panic as the plump mage jumped over her desk and ran as far away from the source of the explosion as she could. Students looked startled as the teacher hid in the very back of the classroom, cowering behind a brown-haired student.
"Pr-professor Chevreuse," the girl Katie asked, unnerved like everyone else. "Sh-shouldn't you go see about that? It sounded like it happened next door."
"No! I-it's all right," the teacher summed up, still trembling. "Probably just… an experiment gone wrong. No need to worry about it." She began to chuckle nervously.
The screams of "Fire!" and students stampeding out of the classroom next door did nothing to alleviate anyone's fears.
"No, I'm afraid I have no idea about any one named Cromwell," Osmond said, holding his back gingerly. It still ached painfully, once again reminding him that he was no spring chicken. "I apologize."
"Eh, it's all right," Ranma said, waving it off. "I didn't really figure it'd be that easy." He glanced over at Henrietta, who was lying on a couch close to the Headmaster's desk and felt thirty different forms of shame roll up on him all at once. He made certain to keep a careful distance away from her, having just discovered who she was. How on earth was he going to explain kissing a Princess? And of his own volition, too?
"Um, is she going to be fine?" Ranma asked worriedly. "Cause you know, I really didn't mean to piss her off or anything."
Osmond opened his mouth to say something when his office doors where thrown back , revealing a panicking teacher. "H-H-Headmaster! Professor Kaita's room is on fire!"
The old man's eyes widened. "What?"
"Professor Colbert's down there right now, along with others putting out the blaze!"
"The students! Are they all right?"
"They're safe! Most of them fled the room immediately when it happened."
Osmond breathed easier. "And Professor Kaita?"
"…a little crispy, but alive. He's being taken care of by Professor Chamberlain."
Osmond sighed. "All right. I'll be there in a moment."
The instructor nodded rapidly and ran back out the office. Then came back in perplexed.
"Headmaster, there are couple of nobles lying on the floor outside your office, bleeding from their noses."
"They'll be fine," Osmond spoke, shooting Ranma a look. Ranma was looking around the room, finding everything that was not Osmond interesting.
"O-oh, okay. I'll let everyone know you're coming." And again, the teacher ran out of the room.
Osmond turned to Ranma with a sigh. "You beat up Her Royal Highness's Imperial Guards."
Ranma stubbornly folded his arms. "It's not like they were very helpful or something, throwing their weight around like they owned the place. They didn't even tell me you have company."
Osmond exhaled, holding the bridge of his nose along with his back. Then he released his face to look at Ranma squarely.
"Understand, this world, while unimaginably different from your own I'd wager, still has its own order and rules. While you may not appreciate them, there are many, many others that do. Breaking such protocol just because it doesn't suit you will bring misfortune upon everyone." His lips were a tight line. "And, with that, enemies that will likely haunt your friends and their descendants for a long, long time.
He grumbled. "Geez, why not just tell me to bend over and lube up?"
Osmond shook his head. "I do not wish to exile you from this Academy, but do not force my hand. Bring trouble to the Academy, and I will have to dismiss both you and Miss Valliére."
"What!" Ranma shouted. "That's not fair!"
"Your actions reflect upon Miss Valliére. Please remember that."
"Kuh! Fine, Old Man… but don't expect me to lay down and let some blowhard walk all over me."
"I won't," Osmond replied, looking a little more upbeat. "Though, I do implore you to do your best to not brazenly throw your weight around." With that, he started to head for the double doors of his office. A few steps later, he turned back to Ranma "By the way, please look after the Princess while I'm away, seeing that her guards decided upon a terrible time to take a nap."
Ranma grimaced. "Yeah, yeah… sure thing."
"Good." Osmond reached the door and placed his hand on its knob. "And, by way, don't try to take advantage of the Princess while she's asleep – I will know."
"Wh-wh-what!"
Osmond smirked under his beard as he exited the room. One problem down… several more to go.
"Geez, what kind of guy does he think I am, anyway?" Ranma grumbled after Osmond left the office, trying to get his face to cool down from the rush of embarrassment.
A groan from the couch caught his attention. Princess Henrietta shifted a few times, her eyes fluttering open. She grunted, looking around the room with a confused expression on her face. Finding herself lying on the Headmaster's couch, she sat up, blinking a bit and holding her head.
"What happened? She wondered aloud, her eyes roaming across the room, only to find a strange sight.
Ranma on his knees, with his hands and forehead on the floor.
"I'm really sorry about all this, Princess. I didn't know, honest."
Henrietta blinked again, staring at Ranma's prostrate form before smiling a little. "Please, get up. I'm certain you didn't mean any harm, so there's nothing to apologize for."
Slowly, Ranma did lift his head, a pensive look on his face.
"Please, have a seat." She gestured for him to join her on the couch. "It makes me sad to see someone who aids my childhood friend to be so reticent."
"…you sure? I really want to understand this one. You're offering me to sit with you on that couch right there."
She smiled honestly. "Yes, I am. Please, sit with me."
Ranma looked away for a second, a blush unwillingly coming to his cheek. "All right. Okay." He took his seat on the couch, which drew a smile of approval from the Princess.
"It's so good to meet you finally. Louise has told me a number of things about you since she had summoned you to Tristain."
He scratched the back of his head. "Well, it's been a pretty new experience for me, I have to admit. I mean… wow, a princess."
"Please, call me Henrietta."
"Ah, okay, Henrietta."
She nodded. "Thank you. Whatever became of Headmaster Osmond?"
"Had to go put out a fire," Ranma admitted. "Some kind of accident."
Her eyes widened as she covered her mouth.
Ranma held up his hands. "Well, far as I know, everyone's okay, and teachers were already down there putting it out."
Henrietta nodded slowly. "Ah, I see…"
Ranma nodded. Then he looked at her. White gown made from fine cloth, with billowing sleeves that extended down to her wrists. A silver tiara with sapphire blue gems inlaid into its body was perched in her chestnut brown hair which touched her shoulders. Even the dark blue mantle wrapped around her shoulders was secured with more sapphire gems, it all screamed royalty.
How on earth did he miss that?
That kiss popped up in his head again, and he reddened significantly. Stupid…
"Er…"
Ranma blinked, finding that Henrietta was turning scarlet as well. Realizing that he had probably just been staring at her, he looked away, shamefaced. "Sorry, I was thinking of asking you something, but you probably wouldn't know of anyone by that name, either, I'm guessing."
"What name?"
He risked a glance back at her. "Well, there's this guy named Cromwell. I'm currently looking for him because of a ring stolen from the Water Spirit at Ragdorian Lake."
Henrietta stilled. "Ragdorian Lake?" she echoed.
"You heard of it?"
"Of course… it's said that pledging an oath before the waters of the Spirit of Oaths would make the oath unbreakable."
Ranma cocked his head to one side. "The Water Spirit can do that?"
Henrietta nodded assertively.
"Huh…didn't know that…"
"So, you said that someone stole a ring from the Spirit of Oaths."
"Yeah. Something called the Ring of Andvari."
Henrietta looked away as she recalled from her memory. "I've… heard about a ring like that. It's supposed to be a powerful water artifact, if I'm not mistaken."
"Yeah. From what the Water Spirit said, it's something that can control people, even if they're dead, and something about the Strength of Water."
The Princess closed her eyes in contemplation. "That sounds about—"
Her eyes shot open, a hand going up to cover her mouth. "Did you say someone named Cromwell was involved with its theft?"
Ranma straightened up, an anticipatory feeling flowing up his spine. "Yeah… You heard of him?"
The Princess looked off to her side in present fear, her hand curling into a fist. She held it to her mouth nervously. "There is a rumor I heard from the Cardinal last week, but… this couldn't possibly be a coincidence."
"What? What's going on?"
Henrietta pinched her lips together, body radiating distress. "Louise…"
Ranma blinked. "What does Louise have to do with this Cromwell guy?"
Henrietta regarded Ranma squarely. "I asked her to perform a favor for me last night. A mission to retrieve something of great importance."
"Huh. Okay."
She drew upon herself. "However, even with the Captain of the Griffin Knights and her fellow student, if there's a connection between the Ring of Andvari and the rumor…" She turned to Ranma quickly, taking his hands into hers in a tight grip. "Will you go help Louise on her mission?"
"Huh?"
Henrietta released his hands turned away from him. "I had a terrible feeling about it this morning, but Louise assured me that she'd be fine without you and time was of the essence, so she couldn't wait for your return."
At that, Ranma perked an eyebrow. "What do you mean 'she couldn't wait for my return'? I've been here since late last night. I saw her when I came in."
Henrietta looked confused. "But why did she tell me you were still away this morning?"
Ranma had a sinking feeling he wasn't going to like Louise very much after this.
Classes in the Northern Tower had been cancelled for the day.
The classroom Professor Kaita was lecturing in was black with soot. Stone had been warped by fire; much of everything not fortified with Square-class resistance spells was barely ashes. The windows themselves had been shattered, either by heat or pressure, the resulting burst of fresh air created angry, lashing scars on even the reinforced stone outside of the room.
It was a miracle that no one was hurt. Save for Professor Kaita, of course. Given testimony from the students in his care, however, it seemed he literally asked for it, with full knowledge of what could happen.
And he created an even bigger mess in the process.
Osmond wanted to stroke his temple. "Whose element is the best/strongest" has always been inevitable among nobles. After all, no one wants to have an affinity with a weak element, and many a mage spend long hours honing their skill. It was only natural one would crow about his mastered affinity being better than all others.
Which also meant things like this could happen, if one bit off more than he could chew. Which was exactly the case here.
Osmond wanted to think this incident would curb the elemental-boasting game for a little while, reminding others that, despite being proud and great nobles, hubris would bring about their downfall if egos were not carefully monitored. However, for now, he had to deal with those involved in the incident, and just hoped to avoid a repeat or a campaign for petty revenge.
From either side.
Which brought him to the other half of the reason for the fire.
Kirche Augusta Frederica Von Anhalt Zerbst.
The professor should have really known better than to goad beautiful women. Not only did they make deadly mages, they were also creatures of pride.
Siesta sighed as she tended to her duties in the kitchen. It had been almost two days since she last saw Ranma. The black-haired maid wondered what became of him. Louise was still at the Academy, so where was he? He didn't just forsake her, did he?
"Hey, Siesta, we got another set of breakfast dishes to take out!" one of the servants said to her, carrying piping hot chickens on silver platters.
"Be right with you," she replied. Ranma or no Ranma, she still had her work to do. In another few weeks, she was set to return home in Tarbeles for a two-week vacation. She really wanted to see the pigtailed martial artist before then. Maybe she could—
"Hey, Siesta!"
The maid looked up to see a very familiar face. "Ranma!" she cried out happily. "You're back!"
"Hey, yeah… about that, I really got to be going somewhere else right now, so could you pack me up some things to eat? From what I hear, it's going to be a long trip."
"Aw… and just when you got back, too."
"Eh, can't really help it. Got to, um, see some people."
"Okay… How long will you be gone?"
Ranma began ticking off his fingers, talking to himself absently. "She said it'd take a few days to reach that Port City La Rochelle… umm… well, got some cash from her for that… hmm…" He shrugged. "Okay, just enough food for like three—ack!"
Siesta looked teary-eyed and trembling.
"Wh-wh-what!"
Her voice quavered. "Wh-who is it that you're going to see? Is… is it a girlfriend?"
"Wh-what! No! No one like that!"
"But, you've been gone for two days already…"
"Siesta, i-it's nothing like that… Just… looking for a way home, that's all. Someone I met in the last two days might be able to help me with that."
Now the maid looked saddened. "Oh… you found a way home?"
"Not yet, but if I can find a couple of things, then, maybe, yeah."
"So, does this mean you'll be leaving me pretty soon?"
"N… mmm… ye… urm… I don't know. I'm just aware that I can get back, so…"
She looked even more teary-eyed, but she visibly put on a strong face. "Ah… I see… well…"
"…"
They stood there looking awkward.
"I really would like to see where your home is," Siesta spoke up first.
Ranma looked away, embarrassed that she didn't know the full truth. "Um, it's pretty far. I really couldn't guarantee you'd be able to get back."
Siesta bit her lower lip. "Maybe… maybe it… wouldn't be so bad… if you're…"
"Um, it's probably be—"
The maid suddenly drew her arms around him, hugging him. Ranma froze, feeling her soft body snuggle against him.
"Awwww…"
Ranma's mind snapped out of his stupor to see most of the kitchen staff standing around, watching the whole scene. Including Marteau, who came forward to clap Ranma on the shoulder. Tears fell from his eyes as he spoke solemnly to the martial artist.
"Please take good care of our little Siesta," he said. He turned to Siesta who had to good grace to break off from hugging Rnama at the moment. "You, go on with him. I'm certain he'll need someone to cook for him while he's on business."
Ranma blinked as Siesta blossomed into happiness. "Thank you, sir!" She winked at Ranma. "I'll have some food ready for us quickly!"
He tried to open his mouth to say something, only to have Marteau clasp his hand in deep fervor. "Our Fist, truly, you make us all proud."
"Here, here!" everyone in the kitchen cried out. "Our Fist! Our Fist! OUR FIST!"
And with that, the head chef signaled everyone else to return to work, leaving Ranma standing there stupefied.
"What the hell just happened?" he mumbled to himself. "I just came to get some food…"
Kirche sighed, setting buckets of water on the partially-melted podium, which had a scorched plank of wood lying across it. Even she was impressed by the widespread damage done to the classroom, eyes looking up to see part of a demolished ceiling. However, she couldn't take the full credit for all of it; Professor Kaita did have a hand in things, as well.
No one told the idiot to try and rip apart a fireball with Wind magic; he might as well have just scooped fire out with oily hands and flung it on the walls.
In the end, however, she was still tasked with cleaning up the mess for her part in the accident – recklessly endangering fellow students could not be so kindly overlooked, even on the account of a professor's stupidity – then attend special classes with Professor Colbert after school. In retrospect, Kirche surmised this was getting off easy, since Osmond had given her this punishment, much to the vocal resentment of Professor Kaita, who wanted her thrown out of Tristain.
Not her fault he couldn't take the heat; she did give him fair warning in advance.
Granted, she probably shouldn't – and normally wouldn't – have juiced it up as much as she did, seeing how she recently moved into Square-Class magic; however, she was a bit bothered by the scene with Ranma earlier that morning. Kaita just made it absurdly easy for her to vent her confusing frustration, insulting her family lineage. She was nothing, if not temperamental, about her personal life and family ties.
Of course, this incident might mean her time at Tristain's Academy of Magic would become limited, like all the other schools in Germania, and if she got kicked out of this school…
She shook her head. This really was her last chance. Otherwise, she would be stuck having to marry that decrepit old count her parents had arranged for her last year. Imagine, a marriage devoid of personal feeling and arranged by a third-party. What utter nonsense! There should be passion! desire! in all loving relationships! What would be the purpose of getting married otherwise if those didn't exist?
The smell of stone and ash was still quite strong in her nostrils as she grabbed a broom to get to work. Kirche highly doubted she'd get cleaning done before afternoon classes began; she really wanted to ask Darling about earlier this morning. Preferably before Louise could interfere in their affairs once again.
She really had to push the limit and secure her place with Darling before someone else could move in on him. While Kirche was normally secure in her sex appeal and attraction level, the last ten days had been chipping away at her confidence, to the point that she couldn't even relax with Tabitha, and, well, if Tabitha had taken an interest in him…
She shunned the thought out of her head. She really needed to secure her place, and quickly, so she could quit worrying about matters. Now, to get him by himself…
"This is outrageous!" Kaita roared in another part of the North Tower. "That Zerbst should be removed from this Academy immediately!"
Osmond sighed. "It was a simple accident."
"Accident my ass! She deliberately caused such chaos and pandemonium in my classroom! You saw my wounds! She purposely tried to kill me! And then you cave in to that simpering Colbert who highly favors her over our own Tristainian students! What nonsense!"
"Perhaps you should cool your head, Kaita," the Headmaster spoke warningly. "After all, even you admitted you had asked her to demonstrate her 'hottest' flame."
"That's besides the point!"
"And Mr. Colbert did have a good point. Perhaps all Miss Zerbst needs is a few lessons from an experienced Fire Mage and there would be no more incidents of this nature. And besides, I've tasked her with cleaning up the remains of the classroom, so, everything is settled."
"That's a slap on the wrist for attempted murder!"
"Huh," Osmond spoke,, rubbing his beard thoughtfully. "I suppose you could see it that way."
"I know that girl," Kaita growled. "Utterly disrespectful of—"
"I suppose others could see you as… attempting to initiate a duel under the guise of education.
Kaita snapped off the rest of his words, staring at Osmond uncomprehendingly. "A 'duel?'"
"Yes, a duel. Battles between magi which are expressly forbidden on Academy grounds," Osmond replied, idly plucking a stray hair from his beard.
"Oh, now, that's—"
"Not entirely out of the question, given the way you wish to pursue this matter," the headmaster replied before patting Kaita on the shoulder. "Let it go for now; I'd hate for others to misunderstand your intentions being more than what a respectable educator such as yourself should be indulging in."
Kaita growled. "Yes, Headmaster. I will look into that for now…"
"Excellent! Then you accept my decision for Miss Zerbst to clean up the ruined classroom. Come by my office later; we shall have tea."
"Too slow, Danica!" a peach-haired girl taunted, dodging another stream of water that splashed against the corridor's wall. She turned to wave a small green book at the pursuing silver-haired girl. "Or are you afraid of getting your book wet?" she snickered with a suggestive look.
"Celeste!" Danica shouted, waving her wand erratically. "Quit taking my books!"
Celeste ignored the command and continued to run down the hall. "Let's see what today's title is… Oooh! 'Lady Aesland and the Stable Ha—"
The book suddenly disappeared from her hand.
It took Celeste a few seconds to realize that she no longer had a book in hand. Stopping her run in confusion, she turned around to see a young man in a red shirt handing a green book to the now quiet Danica.
"Aren't you guys supposed to be in class?" she heard him ask her friend.
The girl stopped her blank staring to answer him. "Um, w-well… we were, but since that Germanian girl caused a fire in the classroom, the North Tower had been… um, shut down for the rest of the day."
"Really?" he asked, surprised-seeming.
She nodded quickly, her head turning away from him slightly, while one foot began to grind a small indentation in the carpet. "Yeah. I bet they're making her clean up the mess, and then who knows what else they're going to make her do. I think she even burned the teacher."
"Huh… North Tower, huh? Okay, thanks," he said as he started to walk off.
"Ah!" He stopped moving as Danica held up a hesitant hand. "Ah… th-thank you… for my book."
He grinned at her. "No problem. Just don't shoot water all over the place, okay?"
"Ah! I-I won't!"
Celeste watched the red-shirt guy walk off, a long braid of hair hanging down his back. Meanwhile Danica hadn't moved at all, clutching her book to her chest.
Celeste snuck up on her while she was distracted, a Cheshire grin on her face. A little reaching over and—
"Isn't he wonderful?" Danica sighed happily, absently smacking Celeste in the face with the hardback book. "Just like Hugh the stable hand…"
Celeste rubbed her sensitive nose. "Isn't he a commoner?'
Danica nodded, lost in a daydream. "Mm hmm…." Then she realized something. "Ah! I don't even know his name!" Then she realized the proximity of her quarry and began to whack her with her book. "And leave my books alone!"
"Ack!" Celeste squeaked, covering her head and blindly running away from the enraged girl. While she didn't recognize the guy either, she already decided she didn't like him. And how did he make that book disappear from her hands like that?
Kirche swept slowly, trying her best to not kick up too much ash into the air. Already she had broken into coughing fits, nearly gagging at one point. "So tedious…" she commented to herself.
Forced to clean up the classroom without the aid of magic was so obnoxious. Unlike the wall rebuilding in Vestri Court, she was doing this alone, as well. No doubt Colbert had seen to it that no one else would be able to come in here to help her out, either.
Life wasn't fair sometimes…
"Wow, what a mess."
She almost dropped her broom, turning around quickly. Her face lit up. "Darling!"
"Yo," he replied nonchalantly, looking around the room. "Man, I don't recall Louise doing this much damage on my first day here…"
She dropped the broom to give him a quick hug. She felt him stiffen up in her arms, and she looked at him puzzled. "What's wrong, Darling?"
"Er… Louise is gone."
Kirche blinked. Then grinned deviously. "So, that means—"
"And she might be heading right into the guy that stole the Ring."
"…okay, I didn't expect that," Kirche replied, releasing him. "So, you're going after that Cromwell person?"
"Well, mostly Louise, since, she's on a secret mission, but yeah."
She shook her head. "What incredibly poor timing Louise has. Otherwise, I would have come with you."
"I heard," he said with a slow nod. "And Louise got such a long lead already, flying by griffin, whatever that is."
"Mmm… you could ask Tabitha. Sylphid should be more than a match for any silly griffin."
He nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I was going to look for her next."
Kirche frowned slightly at that. Ranma didn't notice as he inspected the demolished classroom. He looked impressed, too.
"I don't want Louise to get too far ahead, or she'll be in out of Port City La Rochelle before I get there."
She looked surprised. "All the way out there? Is she heading to Albion?"
Ranma opened and closed his mouth.
Kirche grinned. "You really don't know where you're going around here, do you?"
"Not really," he admitted.
"It's kind of strange, being able to speak the language, despite coming from another world, but unable to read it, too…" She changed gears. "Well, since you're in such a hurry, give me a kiss."
Ranma blinked. "Hm?"
"A kiss."
"Er…"
Now she looked at him. "Come on, Darling. It's at least two to three days to La Rochelle, and who knows how long it'll take for you to get back, and since you're just going to leave me behind…" She noticed his embarrassed look at that. "…I want to feel your lips upon mine before you go. Something to stir up the fire in my heart for you anew."
He began to back up as she drew closer to him. "Uh, r-really…"
"Come, my Darling, let us bind our hearts, taste the flames of passion and consume each other until there's nothing left."
He sweated, still backing up, not getting any further away from the Germanian. "Uh, that… sounds like a lot…"
"Give in to me, Darling…" she cooed, reaching out to touch his chest.
He skipped backwards, panic in his eyes. However, he wasn't looking where he was going as he slapped right down on a scorched plank of wood lying across the partially melted podium.
The same podium Kirche had sat two buckets of water upon.
It was like watching a comedy in slow motion. The buckets of water catapulted upward in a short arc, both of them on a collision course from Ranma. He didn't notice what had happened until the cold waters hit him, one across the torso, the other splashing down on his head. The metal bucket clanged over his head, shunting him into darkness as he stumbled about in a daze. One misstep later, his legs went flying up without permission or preparation for the rest of his body to take flight and he crashed to the floor hard.
"Darling!" Kirche cried out as she quickly, carefully, approached him. "Are you all right?" she asked as his bucket-covered head rose off the floor, a moan of pain echoing within.
Ranma jerked the bucket off his head, grumbling about "stupid spirits." However, Kirche wasn't listening.
"Darling?"
"Yeah?"
She poked at his larger-than-Montmorency's breasts then stroked his chestnut colored hair. Her eye twitched.
"Just who have you been kissing?"
Ranma blinked for a second. Panic overrode cluelessness as he jumped to his feet. "Uh… Henrietta?"
Shock took away Kirche's breath. He just admitted to two-timing her? And so brazenly!
"Who is this 'Henrietta,' Ranma?"
"Um, the Princess of Tristain, you know?"
"The Princess only stopped by yesterday."
"Yeah, and she gave Louise a secret mission last night and saw her off this morning."
She snickered. "Yes, sure. I'm certain the Princess of Tristain is solely relying on Louise, of all people, to complete a secret mission for her. Does it involve matters of the state, too?" She frowned contemptuously. "Do you take me for a fool?"
He held out his hands. "Hey, I didn't know she was a princess! She just told me to kiss her!"
Her eye twitched in annoyance. "What kind of princess lets just anyone, let alone a commoner, make out with her!"
"I don't know!" he snapped back.
There was a gasp of surprise at the doorway. Both Kirche and the girl-turned Ranma looked in that direction to see Siesta kneeling.
"Y-Your Highness! I… I didn't know you were in here!" the maid quickly said. "I-I'm so sorry to interrupt your conversation!"
"Ah… Siesta," Ranma-Henrietta spoke, drawing startled looks from Kirche and Siesta.
The latter became wide- and wet-eyed. "Your Highness… knows my name?"
"Um… er, yeah. Yeah. Ranma said that you need to meet him at the, ah, East Tower."
She bowed and scraped. "Your Highness is too kind! To remember the names of such lowly commoner as myself and Ranma…! Thank you! Thank you!" And with that, she quickly excused herself from the room.
"Hey now…" Ranma-Henrietta grumbled in retrospect. "I'm not a lowly commoner."
Kirche was numb, having seen the scene unfold before her eyes. "Darling…" she mewled in a shaken voice.
Ranma-Henrietta blinked. "Uh, like I said Kirche…"
She turned her back on him. "I don't know if I can deal with this…" she mumbled to herself in growing horror. Stealing a lover was one thing; having your lover stolen was another. Kirche could deal with either, though the latter was irritating. Having your lover stolen by the princess of the land, though… And she commanded him to kiss her…
She bit on her thumb. "This… isn't good…"
"Kirche?"
She turned and stole his lips with a chaste kiss. "Sorry, but I really got to get back to cleaning. I, ah, wish you luck on your journey."
"Uh, all right," he replied, unable to come to a conclusion as his cursed body shifted and grew into that of Kirche's image. "I'll see you later, then."
Kirche didn't respond, only listened to his footsteps until she couldn't hear them anymore. Then she held still for a long moment. Looking over her shoulder to see that he was really gone, she let her concealed emotions tumble free.
She sank to her knees, cold sweat on her face. Was this really going to be the end of a romance that promised to burn down all others? To be done in by a princess? If the Princess was willing to fight her for Darling… if she considered him her precious treasure… should she just give up like she said she would?
This… this was not good at all…
That was just weird, Ranma thought to himself as he sought to make a quick quest for hot water before meeting up with Siesta at the girls' dormitory and hoping Tabitha didn't mind taking them out to La Rochelle without Kirche present. Something about the way Kirche acted just made him feel saddened for some reason. Part of him wanted to fend off whatever was going on, not that he understood what that was, since Kirche was such a ball of contradictions sometimes. Part of him… felt relieved.
Since he knew it was somehow possible for him to get back home, maybe whatever happened would make transitioning himself out of her life even easier. After all, Ranma did intend to go back home; the last thing he wanted was too many attachments to this world. He had more than enough problems on hand as it were, what with having to save an entire planet from a promised genocide. And whatever else was waiting for him when he got back home.
It was fun while it lasted, though. But now, it was time to go to work and put things like girls behind him. And the sooner he could find the Ring of Andvari, the sooner everyone that met him could forget about Ranma Saotome and return to their normal life.