(Author's notes)
I LIVE! MUHAAA!
Once again, I do not own either Ranma ½ or Sailor Moon. They are owned by their respected creators, and I thank both the creators for such great stories.
Okay readers, first I would like to say I'm sorry that I took so long to get this chapter out...PLEASE FORGIVE ME! I will be posting more often.
And thanks again for reading my goofy story.
I would also like to thank all those that wrote reviews, thank you. Please continue to write reviews, they encourage me to continue writing.
The story takes place three years after the end of Ranma ½, and just right after the end of the Doom Tree saga, right before Chibi Usagi arrives back in time in the Sailor Moon Saga. I would like to inform you that in this story, I'm using Saotome as Nodoka's maiden name to avoid confusion.
How will Mamoru affect the Ranma 1/2 Story?
In this story, one of the Sailor Moon characters played a major part in the Ranma ½ series.
In case you are wondering, more of the NWC (Nerima Wrecking Crew for newcomers) will be showing up and causing chaos for Ranma and Mamoru.
And soon Hank will be involved MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!... but not yet.
Once, and yet again, I would like to thank my proof readers, Pedro and Dimitri, both for getting back into writing again.
(Proofreader's notes)
Kytzune - Hey all! Guess who's back again? Hopefully my contributions will help with AwesomeMo's story flow since I've read the reviews and noticed that a few of you are having some difficulty understanding the great stories that these creative minds set out for you. I'm no English major, and English is my second language, but I hope my efforts make the transition from minds to written words move a little more smoothly. No doubt you can guess how passionate we are about the stories, given how rushed a few of the chapters seem. As always, your reviews help said creative minds tap into any changes that could benefit the progress in these stories, so all your opinions DO play a big part in how well the stories come out. I made a few modifications to this chapter, at the request of the author, for revision. Let me know what you think. Thank you, and we hope you enjoy! :D
Ranma and Mamoru sat tiredly on the couch. Both of them were quiet and exhausted from the visit that ended almost an hour ago. Even though the visit had only lasted thirty minutes or so, it taxed them dearly in their own way.
Mamoru was worn out from both the lingering effects of the alcohol and he kept replaying the conversation that he and Usako had. She desperately tried to reason with him, stating that they were destined to be together no matter how much he tried to push her away.
Earlier in the Apartment Hallway
Mamoru stood, leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, refusing to look up from his feet while Usagi stood across from him with her back facing him. "What do you want?" he asked in a soft voice.
"I'm sorry about this afternoon." She replied with an equally soft voice. She turned to face him with a smile. "I'm so dense; I didn't realize that you were in a bad mood." Usagi said in a cheerful voice.
"It's not like that." Mamoru said, still refusing to look at her.
"What?" She asked.
Mamoru clenched his hands into fists, trying to steady himself. Please forgive me Usako. "I just don't love you anymore." He said closing his eyes; he feared that his resolve would falter if he made any eye contact at this point.
"Mamo, I'll make sure to study hard too." Usagi continued on, as if not listening to him.
"Don't make me say it over and over again." There was coldness in his voice as he spoke. Please. "I just think it would be best if we end our relationship."
"Mamo… There's no way I can believe that." Her voice remained calm and gentle. "Because you were Prince Endymion, and I was Princess Serenity. We were lovers before we were even born into this world." Mamoru slammed his fist into the nearest wall, startling Usagi.
"That was then, this is now. Why do we have to be a couple? Is your only reason because we were so in a previous life long ago? I'm…" He looked up and stopped talking when he saw her straining to keep a smile and the tears welling up in her eyes. Usagi turned her head away from him, covertly wiping away her tears as she did so. She took in a long, deep breath before turning back to face him. Mamoru could clearly see that she was upset, but doing her best to hide it with a forced smile.
"I'm sorry." She stated, before heading into the living room to meet up with the rest of the girls and her cousin.
I am so sorry Usako, I truly am. He thought, slowly moving to follow her to the others waiting.
Present
Ranma was worn out because he felt as if he was at another autograph signing convention. Well, maybe not the same, seeing as how the girls didn't want his autograph. Add to that the act of trying to calm Usagi when she flipped out, today wasn't fun in the least. He sighed softly as he recalled the four young teens. He remembered Ami and Makoto from yesterday afternoon, but was now being introduced to his cousin's other friends. Minako and Rei were just as Mamoru had described them the night prior, but seeing Minako scared him. The four teen girls were literally glowing with excitement as he entertained them with some Q and A, leaving Mamoru and Sagi-chan to talk. He began to rub his temples, recalling the questions they had asked.
"Can you teach me how to better use ki?" Rei asked.
"Can you please train me?" Makoto asked.
"What are your Hobbies?" Ami asked.
"Did you really fight a Dragon?" Minako asked.
But their questions soon changed themes, and got a little too mature for their age group...or his liking.
"Are you single?" Rei asked.
"Will you marry me?" Makoto asked.
"Would you allow me the honor of being the mother of your children?" Ami had asked, blushing.
The worst question, however, came from Minako.
"Do you like these panties?"
Earlier in the Living Room
"Do you like these panties?" Minako was asking, slowly removing her skirt and gazing seductively at him. Ranma quickly reached over and covered Little-Usa's eyes when she began to unclasp the skirt fastener. What in the world is she doing!? There is a little kid here! Yes, he was used to this kind of attention, but he was here to get away from it. Least of all, he didn't want to involve a kid in the mix. He quickly picked up the youth and hurried off to the kitchen, leaving Minako standing there in a very scandalous pose. She still wore a dreamy look, showing off her very lacy (and very skimpy) black pair of panties, completely unaware that he even left.
Usagi and Mamoru were about to head into the living room when Ranma quickly rushed past them and into the kitchen with Chibi-Usa in his arms, one hand covering the child's eyes. The quarreling "ex-couple" were very confused, and Mamoru followed Ranma into the kitchen as Usagi turned and went into the living room.
The forced smile Usagi wore shattered when she saw the state of Minako's current...undress? Needless to say, due to the extremely taxing and depressing day Usagi was having thus far, seeing this was enough to finally make her blow her top.
"Min-A-Kooo!" She hissed, "What in the world… Do… You… Think… You… Are… Doing!?" Usagi's hissing voice grew louder as she walked up to her semi-nude friend. Minako began to focus when she heard a very displeased Usagi approaching her. Minako blinked a few times before turning and looking to see a seething Usagi standing a few feet away. She flinched instinctively, expecting physical harm, and turned to look at the other girls in hopes of finding out what was going on. Said other girls where staring at her in utter disbelief.
"Umm, what's wrong?" A stunned Minako asked, seeing a blaze building inside Usagi's eyes. Hearing her question only caused Usagi to begin trembling in rage as she slowly pointed at Minako's lower half. Minako's line of sight followed where Usagi was pointing and "eeped" loudly. Faster than humanly possible, she had her skirt back in place while sporting a massive, full-body blush.
"Oh my Kami, I wasn't just fantasizing about what I just did!?" Minako asked in a hushed whisper. Ami, Rei, and Makoto slowly shook their heads in the negative. "I'm so embarrassed." Minako stated, hiding her face in her hands.
"Well you won't have to be embarrassed for long, because I'm going to KILL YOU!" Usagi yelled leaping at her. In a flash, Usagi was on top of Minako with the intent of inflicting a great deal of bodily harm.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen
"Okay, what happened this time?" Mamoru asked as he approached the two in the kitchen. Ranma sighed and gave a quick recap of what had just happened moments ago in the living room. Mamoru began snickering at first, but by the time Ranma finished recounting the events, Mamoru's sides hurt and was full out laughing.
"It's not that funny Mamoru." Ranma said, scowling at his friend.
"I know, but this is just what I needed, a good laugh." He calmed down as he spoke. Ranma nodded, knowing what was going on between Mamoru and Usagi, having heard what was said between Mamoru and Usagi in the hallway. While the two did their best to keep their conversation quiet, he could easily hear it whilst entertaining the four girls. "You have to admit Ranma, it sounds just like the old days." Mamoru chuckled, and Ranma could only shake his head and smile.
"KILL YOU!" A voice in the living room carried into the kitchen.
Hearing Usagi's yell ended their conversation, and the two quickly ran to the living room to find Usagi on top of Minako. The former attempting to harm the latter while the other girls desperately tried to stop them. Seeing this, Mamoru and Ranma immediately moved in to help the other girls in stopping one blonde from trying to wring the other's neck. With the guys' help, the scouts were able to prevent any real harm to Minako. Once Usagi was pulled off Minako, she began to calm her blood lust a bit. Ranma decided it would be best to take her into the kitchen to get her away from Minako, hoping that he could calm her down enough so she wouldn't attack her friend on sight again.
"It's okay Sagi-chan." Ranma said in a soothing manner as he held his irate cousin, bringing her to where he and Mamoru left a confused Chibi.
"Why did today have to happen?" She asked quietly. Ranma sighed as he held her, knowing full well what she meant. After a few minutes, she withdrew herself from his arms and tried to force a smile up at him.
"Thank you, Ranma." She finally said. Ranma, in turn, smiled back as he wiped away her tears.
"Anytime Sagi-chan, keep your head up." Ranma said. "I'm sure that whatever is bothering you will work itself out, you'll see. I promise." Her forced smile became genuine, hearing this from her cousin. With a small nod, she then gave him a big hug. "You okay to go back in there?" He asked cautiously. She could only respond with a groan/sigh into his chest. After withdrawing from his hug, her shoulders slumped as the two headed back into the living room. Seeing both Minako, who was trying to look as small as she could, and Mamoru, who didn't look towards her when came in, made her both angry and sad. She took a seat as far away from both as she could. There was an awkward silence in the apartment as no one wanted to say anything and spark another fiasco.
"How could you do this?" Usagi finally asked calmly, breaking the silence. Before anyone could an answer, though, she got up and quickly left. The slamming of the front door forced flinches from both Minako and Mamoru. Mamoru sighed as he got up, and then went into the kitchen, leaving Ranma with the others once more.
"It was nice meeting you Ranma." An awkward Rei and Ami both said before they quickly followed after Usagi. Makoto shook her head as she helped Minako up.
"Um... I'm really sorry about what happened earlier. And I'm sure that Mina-chan is sorry too." Makoto said, nudging the stunned blonde who's shoulders she held. Minako nodded her head in agreement, but refused to look anyone in the eyes.
"It's all right." Ranma said, standing to see the girls out. With a gentle movement of his hand, he turned Minako's face to look him in the eyes. Minako tried to smile, but failed. "I do recommend that you try to be a little less aggressive when it comes to getting the attention of the opposite gender in the future." Ranma said with a smile, reassuring her. Minako finally managed a small smile in return before nodding her agreement to him.
"It was really nice meeting you Ranma." Makoto said, with a bit of jealousy in her voice, since Ranma was paying attention to Mina-chan and not her. Ranma turned to her and smiled. This gesture had the opposite effect Ranma desired as Makoto began to gaze at him lovingly, becoming wobbly where she stood.
"Same to you Makoto." He replied with a slight nervousness in his voice. Minako turned to her friend and narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Yes, thank you for meeting us, and again, I'm sorry." Minako stated in haste as she pulled Makoto out the door. "Come on Mako-chan, we need to go find Usagi."
"HEY! Wait up you two!" Chibi-Usa yelled, running past Ranma to catch up to the leaving pair. Minako and Makoto stopped outside the open door in the hallway and turned to Chibi-Usa. Before reaching them, she stopped, and ran back to Ranma.
"Thank you for helping me with my homework, and for the snacks." She said with a cute smile. Ranma's heart melted as he knelt down to her.
"Anytime Little-Usa, you are always welcome here." He said. She then jumped up at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Ranma felt her strong emotions once more as he returned her hug. The emotions carried a sense of peace and belonging. However, the two teens standing in the hallway outside the apartment didn't like seeing Chibi-Usa being so friendly with their object of desire.
Present
"Talk about a flashback." Mamoru said with a tired voice, followed by a long and deep sigh. Ranma picked up the sadness in his voice. It was a feeling that he knew all too well. Ranma turned to see him hunched over with his face in his hands. He truly felt sorry for both Mamoru and Usagi. The two sat in quiet for some time, lost in their thoughts, when Mamoru suddenly stood up. Ranma watched as Mamoru withdrew a red rose from his sleeve. With a quick flash of light, Tuxedo Mask stood before him. Ranma did a double take just as the suited hero vanished from sight.
"How does he do that?" He asked aloud to an empty apartment. With a long, drawn out sigh, Ranma got up and began to move the furniture around, opening up a large space in the middle of the room.
As Mamoru leaped from one rooftop to the next across town to his destination, he began to wonder. Why must I do this? I need to stay away from her, and yet when she is in trouble, I'm obligated to help. Why? He arrived in short time, on the roof of a cosmetic store. He looked in through the large skylight to see Sailor Moon fighting a female Yoma with a large jewel on its brow. From his elevated position, he watched as the Yoma did an imitation of Godzilla's atomic breath attack made of what looked like makeup. He almost lost his footing seeing this. You have got to be kidding me! Can't she handle this monster alone? However his opinion changed when the aisle that was hit melted.
He was about to launch a rose and interrupt the fight, when Luna lunged at the Yoma to help out Moon. He chuckled at the little Luna's failed attempt when the Yoma slapped her aside, smashing the cat into a wall with a ridiculously large facial powder applicator. He composed himself and let fly his rose between the two combatants. Its stem buried into the ground with a "snickt," and caused the two combatants to stop fighting and look up at him.
"Young girls have nice, smooth skin." The words came to him naturally as if put there for him. "Heavy makeup is not necessary." He stated, inciting the Yoma to snarl at him.
"Shut up you! Oily, blemished, and dried up skin needs makeup!" The Yoma yelled at him, and started to launch her makeup breath attack towards him. He wanted to sigh as he casually hopped out of the way from his perch, and her attack hit the place he once stood. He landed softly next to Sailor Moon with a bored look. Wow, her attack is pathetic and slow. He thought.
"This is boring." He sighed, turning to the makeup abomination. He could see the fury his last statement caused in the Yoma. "You know, I know ducks, pigs and cats that put up a much better fight than what you're offering." He muttered offhandedly, re-positioning his grip on his cane, and knowing that another attack was sure to come.
"WHAT!? How dare you!?" The Yoma screamed. Sailor Moon was confused by his statement as well. "Take this you acne-infested fool!" The Yoma yelled, firing another of her breath attacks. This time, Mamoru simply spun his cane and deflected it back. The attack hit the Yoma square in the face, causing her to stagger in pain and disbelief, holding her face.
Mamoru moved into action, seeing an opening in his opponent's diminishing defense. While he would normally favor his cane before, he switched to unarmed combat. He frowned after he finished a four hit combo, ending with an uppercut to its gut, killing it. Wow, really? Four hits? That's all!? He mused.
Sailor Moon had stood there with her mouth gaping open as Tuxedo Mask unloaded a beating on the weak, pitiful Yoma. This was the first time she ever saw him attack an enemy head on. Her eyes widened when he hit the Yoma in the gut with enough force to rip it in half and fall into a dust pile.
Mamoru shook his head at the pile of dust before him. With a sigh he turned and headed to the door. I wonder. If I had stayed on top of my training, would all my battles have been that easy from the beginning? Sailor Moon remained frozen in place in utter disbelief as he walked past her, ignoring her presence. It wasn't like Tuxedo Mask at all to behave so aggressively.
"Wait!" She called after him, scrambling to catch up. Mamoru stopped just outside the entrance of the boutique, but didn't turn to acknowledge her. "I, ummm…," she stammered while standing by him. He finally turned and looked at her.
"Goodbye." He said and turned again to leave.
"Wait!" She shouted more pleadingly. He again stopped. "You were lying about what you said earlier, right? You know, about not liking me anymore?" Moon begged. "Why else would you come back to save me again?" Mamoru didn't turn to face her as she spoke to him, instead clenching his fists.
"That has nothing to do with this." He finally said after a few moments, bringing tears to her eyes and making her look down.
"Then Mamo-chan, please, just tell me why you don't love me anymore." She asked him, trying hard not to let gravity pull the tears down. Mamoru sighed softly, knowing without even looking at her that she was crying. This is for the best Usako. He thought. Please forgive me.
"I don't like weak girls." He stated as coldly as he could. "Now this is goodbye." With that, he left the room and jumped up to the rooftops. He could hear her calling his name out, but refused to make himself stop.
Usagi watched as Tuxedo Mask disappeared from view. Now she didn't even try stopping the tears. WHY! She screamed to herself, closing her eyes and clenching her own fists.
"Sailor Moon, I found the store clerks unconscious in the basement, we should help them." Luna said, coming up behind her. Usagi didn't respond. Instead, the bun-haired scout raised her head and looked out at the setting sun with a growing smile. Luna was confused to see this. "Um… Sailor Moon, are you ok?"
I understand, Mamo-chan. I'll become stronger and win your heart back. Ranma will help me, I just know it.
About halfway back, Mamoru dispelled his Tuxedo persona, only to find that roof hopping became harder without it. At first, he almost didn't make the jumps, but by the time he reached home, he had it down again. Once in the building, he thought about what he said to Usako, and how much he hated saying it to her. I can't let you get hurt. He thought, recalling the events of his last vision.
Mamoru's thoughts were interrupted once he was at his door by the sounds of ballroom style music coming through the door. He entered the apartment and began looking for the source. He was greeted with the sight of Ranma in her sleep shirt, ballroom dancing in the living room. The furniture had been pushed out to make a large dance floor, he noted. Ranma hadn't heard him enter, and was oblivious still when he came closer. Her eyes were closed and she held her arms positioned as if she was with someone. He stood there for a minute, watching her gliding about flawlessly. Just as she was about to pass him, something possessed him to join in. Without missing a step, he positioned himself perfectly in her arms and took the lead.
Ranma's eyes shot open, feeling his intrusion, but continued dancing. She did not expect to see Mamoru for some time since he would tell her that their fights tended to last a while. "I take it the fight didn't last as long as they normally do? Was the whole team there?" She asked. Mamoru just smiled at her as they danced about the room.
"No, just Moon and I this time. The Yoma went down before the others could show up." He responded, feet ever moving.
"Moon threw out one of her speeches and just ended it?" Ranma asked incredulously. She wondered if her cousin was still irate about the preceding events of that day.
"I took it down. I used Anything Goes on it." Mamoru confirmed. Ranma smiled brightly at him, hearing this. As the two continued to dance, they both closed their eyes listening to the music and enjoying each other's company.
After a bit, Mamoru reopened his eyes, not quite registering the palace ballroom he found themselves in. People stood about, couples dancing, but everyone was smiling and talking. He even saw his father talking and laughing with the Queen. He also took note that all of the Sailor Scouts where present tonight, even Pluto. Well she is her best friend. He though, nonchalantly. The mood and morale of the palace was positively high tonight, and for good reason. He looked back to his soon-to-be wife, only to see blue eyes shining back at him, filled with insurmountable love.
"I love you Endymion." His betrothed spoke softly.
"I love you too…" He started to say.
"MAMORU!?" A voice jostled him back to reality.
"Who, what, huh?" Mamoru said looking about, shaking the view of the palace from his eyes. They had stopped dancing and he found himself propped up in a seat.
"It's me, Ranma. Earth to Mamoru? You zoned out for a few minutes." Ranma replied, giving him a concerned look. It was now his turn to look confused.
"What?" He asked.
"You spaced out there for a moment, I called your name and shook you, but you didn't respond." Ranma reiterated. "Are you okay?"
Mamoru looked around before turning back to her, still confused and scratching at his head.
"Yeah, I'm okay. I just…" He started. "I think I just had another vision, or a glimpse of a past memory."
Ranma tilted her head slightly, waiting for him to continue.
"I don't remember much, but I do remember that I was dancing in a grand, palace ballroom." He finished with a frown.
"I'm sure more will come to you in time." Ranma reassured him.
After the two straightened up the living room, they said their good nights and headed off to bed. Mamoru laid on his bed, unable to sleep, looking up at the ceiling. Those bright, blue eyes haunted his mind. Sigh, why can't I remember her face? Just her beautiful, sapphire eyes.
Ranma, too, laid on her bed. Her mind kept replaying that faithful night of her senior prom. Tears formed as she rolled over into a fetal position. She sighed. I hope I did the right thing.
Sleep soon claimed them both, but Ranma's mind refused to rest. Images of a young, blonde, ball of energy continually kept pestering her.