Wild Magic
Ranma 1/2, Slayers, and any other series used in this fanfic are owned by their respective creators/publishers/whatever
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
Chapter 12
"You are no longer the only one around here who can use wandless magic easily, Lina." Nashigi stated with a laugh towards her redheaded rival. It was the first day of December, and the snow had already begun to fall just a couple days earlier. It was almost like a white and fluffy blanket was placed over the ground outside of the castle. The lake had also been completely frozen.
That was by all means fine to Ranma. She had found out during one of her trips near the lake that there were actually fish men, monsters with the body of a fish, but skinny human arms and legs and that could talk, that lived within the lake. One of the apparent leftovers from history long past. They also seemed to like her for some disturbing reason. Suddenly finding your head inside the mouth of a fish man was not a fun experience.
The redhead had also decided to help a little on the search for that Flamel guy. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were busting their brains so much on the job of looking for the mysterious person, that she felt it was a bad thing to NOT help. That task, however, was a bit on the fruitless side.
"Easily… right" The cat-girl stated with a half-lidded stare. Many of the older girl's spells ended up backfiring on her on a regular basis. If it wasn't for the fact that they used the Room of Requirement for her to practice, then there would probably have been a whole lot of property damage and innocents hurt.
Xellos offered that maybe he could do a few things, but Ranma had outright refused. She did not want Nashigi, who was seemingly a bit far gone to insanity already, to be driven further into it by the crazy demon. That decision was fortified when the 11-year-old found out that the purple-haired mazouku had actually given Quintinsy a small pamphlet on dangerous and powerful spells. In effect, the trickster was the 'mysterious benefactor'.
Xellos went on to mention that he was just having a little fun with the playing field, and that there was no problem with that, was there? The fact that the boy was caught and expelled was just a hazard with playing a fun little game. Ranma didn't know which was worse. The fact that the trickster priest was having a little mindless fun, or the fact that he said it all with his stupid smile.
Nashigi gave a snap to her fingers. "You know what? I wonder if I could learn how to do THAT SPELL those Weasley twins performed on you a while back." The dark-haired sorceress-in-training's mouth was suddenly stretched wide by a glaring redhead.
"Never, ever, beyond anything else, and I mean it, bring up THAT SPELL again. Otherwise you will be tied to the highest part of Hogwarts. You hear me Nashigi?" Her self-declared rival was silent for a few seconds before nodding vigorously. "Good… because I mean it. I do not want to go through that again." Thinking about it made her shiver.
It was a couple weeks ago in which Fred and George had developed a new spell. It was actually a completely useless spell idea to a normal person. They discovered it when they were doing a little experimenting, and found that when used on a feline, the spell had the effect of a catnip induced feeling.
Sadly for Ranma, the redheaded twins decided to have a little fun and use it on her to see if it would work on a cat-girl. The spell did work… a little too well at that. The 11-year-old had a slight dazed and drunken feeling for almost three hours after the spell was cast. The details were slightly foggy after she came out of it.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (A couple weeks ago)
"Whattaya lookin' at?" A nipped-up redhead asked towards her own shadow as she wobbled slightly on her feet. The damn thing insisted on mimicking her every action, and it was getting annoying. "Quit copyin' me, ya shtupid blob of darkness." She sent a punch towards the shadow, but her fist phased through the wall. "Shtupid masu powers." Ranma grumbled to herself.
Students walking around the area were a little freaked out by the sudden actions of the Red Cat. For some reason, she acted as if she was drunk beyond all reason. Once the news got out that the Weasley twins used a spell that induced a cat-nip feeling on the girl, it made sense. She was part cat after-all, and there was a large chance that it would affect her.
Fear had come to them when the cat-girl had started to laugh and giggle uncontrollably before looking in their directions. They made good use of their feet when the 11-year-old girl had begun to chase them as if they were mice. The fact that she had been meowing, growling, and hissing was not too comforting either.
After several moments of chasing, she had gotten bored and headed outside. Prowling around across the frozen ground on her hands and feet, the redhead soon found herself near an odd looking tree that was large and imposing. As soon as she had gotten closer to investigate it, the thing had seemed to move. The cat-girl was soon dodging large branches and limbs that were trying to bat her away.
"Meow!" Ranma cried out in joy as she had begun to jump and move across each limb as it tried to smash her. The tree seemed to get fully pissed off at its lack of hitting the thing that had disturbed it. The sad thing was… it couldn't do a thing because the girl was too fast. It had known it was beat, and it had stopped moving around.
The cat-girl had been a little sad that her playmate stopped playing. Giving a small shrug to it all, she had leapt off the tree and had begun to find another place to go. Her face broke into a smile when 'The Forbidden Forest' popped into her mind. "Oooo, explorin' dat place will be fun." So saying, Ranma had charged for the forest.
It wasn't that long after she had entered the forest in which numerous monstrous screams of pain and fear were heard from the darkness of the trees. Everybody who heard the screams decided to shrink back into Hogwarts and find a safe place to hide their innocent little hides.
It was an hour later when Ranma had made her way out of the forest with a smile on her face. Those creatures were so much fun to play with. The huge spiders were a little mean, but she had shown them not to mess with her. They didn't need to start cowering in fear though.
A voice ahead of her had interrupted her thoughts. "Ranma, let's go inside and see if we could help you with this small problem." The voice belonged to Dumbledore. Nobody else was around the area. This meant they were probably all scared or something. The aged wizard looked a little worried for some reason. "I believe that cat-nip should be a very big no-no on your list of things to avoid from now on."
"Ya got that right… Dumbahdoh." The redhead stated as she stood there wobbly. "Remin' me ta give Fred 'n George a piece o' my mind." She accepted the hand that had been offered to help lead her into the castle.
"I have a better idea, Ranma." He received a questioning look. "I believe that some meditative exercises might help you a little with this problem. It would also be better if you cleared your mind before talking to the twins. We don't want you to blow them up now, do we?"
Ranma gave a nod to that. "Ya, I shuppose dat blashtin' dem wouldn't be da besht way ta do tings." She had to stop for a second due to the need to vomit. "Gah… please remin' me dat cat-nip shtuff ish evil beyond all reason."
"I think this is a moment that nobody would need to be reminded of."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (End Flashback)
Needless to say, the Weasley twins got into a small bit of trouble for doing that. They were forbidden, by Dumbledore, to use that spell on or around the younger redhead ever again. Filch was not too happy with all the mess he had to clean up due to a rampaging cat-girl. The old grump lamented about how the girl was probably worse than the Weasley twins at causing problems.
Fred and George had apologized to Ranma for the slight fiasco, and the blue/red-eyed girl shrugged it off and accepted the apology. A part of her wanted to get angry about it, but she had managed to push down that feeling thanks to some of the meditative exercises she had started doing.
Speaking of meditation, Happosai had actually ordered her to do it more often. The subject originated during one of their sparring sessions when the aged pervert had found out that the redhead was more focused in a fight after the constant meditation exercises that were bringing her mind closer to being calm and collected. This excited the diminutive man with the thought that the cat-girl was finally gaining control of her temper and was able to conduct a match without any bursts of anger.
She still had a short temper at times, such as when dealing with Nashigi, Gosaria, Xellos, and a few odd moments, but Happosai noticed that it was as if the two personalities that clashed about in the cat-girl's mind had finally started to settle in a kind of balance.
"I don't know, Lina. I think the way you were acting because of that spell was kind of cute." Gosaria stated with her head tilted. "Well, cute in a sort of wild, crazy, and dangerous beast kind of way." That actually didn't make sense to the blonde. "Wait… what?"
Ranma waved her off. "Don't worry about trying to think it through. It'll only bring more confusion." A cry of 'freeze arrow' was announced next to the redhead. Looking back towards the large-busted girl, she blinked. "What was that all about?"
"Well, I saw a target out there in the snow that I wanted to test that spell out on." Looking back out in the direction, she gave her patented laugh. "Ooohohohoo, it looks like I, Nashigi, managed to succeed!"
Her cat-girl friend blinked and looked out into the snow and saw a small pillar of ice. "What was it you hit?"
"It looked like a small black piglet pulling along a large backpack of some kind." The dark-haired girl was suddenly talking to an empty spot as the one who was standing there took off towards the small ice pillar. "What was that about?"
"I don't know, maybe she likes pigs." Gosaria answered back with a shrug. The two looked at each other and proceeded to run off after their friend. It was a few seconds later in which they caught up with the redhead who was kneeling by the currently frozen pig. Ranma then gave a small laugh.
"Wow, bacon-boy. You managed to get lost and find your way here." Chipping away at the ice with her ki claws, she picked up the ice contained pig and looked towards her friends. "Would you two mind carrying that traveling pack?"
The dark-haired girl and blonde looked at each other before walking up to the pack and trying to pick it up. They were both surprised to find that they could hardly move it. "What the hell is in this thing, and how could that pig drag it?!" Nashigi asked out.
A laugh came to the redhead as she asked them both to step aside. With one hand, she picked up the pack with little effort and slung it over her shoulder. "Come on guys; let's get this tub of bacon to the hospital wing." She proceeded to walk towards the entrance to Hogwarts.
Both her friends stared off after her with wide eyes, looked at each other, and then back towards the smaller redhead. "You know what?" The blonde asked. "I've seen that she has just enough muscle to look fit, but not enough to be THAT strong. Lifting something with one arm that both of us could hardly lift."
Fire came to the older girl's eyes as she watched the younger girl walk off. "Lina Malfoy, you are an impressive rival indeed. I shall not rest until I surpass you! OoohohohohohoOUCH!" Her laugh was cut short by a small rock that hit her right on the forehead. "She has precise aim as well. Come on Gosaria."
"Uh… right" The blue-eyed blonde answered as the two began to chase after their friend. Entering the castle, the three began to walk towards the hospital wing. Other students who were walking to and fro stopped for a few seconds to watch another odd sight from the Red Cat of Slytherin. Many wondered why she was carrying a frozen pig and a large pack around her shoulder, but they ignored it.
When they finally got to their destination, Madam Pomfrey greeted them, but questioned why the young cat-girl was carrying around an iced pig. "What is the meaning of the pig, Miss Malfoy? I don't think it would be very healthy to bring it here."
"Sorry Madam Pomfrey, but this was the first place that came to mind. Do you have a small basin I could use to thaw the little guy out of his prison?" The matron of Hogwarts looked at the redhead for a few seconds before having them follow her. She directed her to a small basin that was big enough for the small pig to be placed in. "Thanks Madam Pomfrey." Ranma said as she placed what she was carrying into the container.
Putting her hands together, she continued with a small chant "Oh, source of all power, light which burns beyond crimson, let thy power gather in my hand. FIREBALL!" A small ball of fire appeared in her hands. Giving a blow with her breath, the flame acted as a flame thrower and headed towards the ice. The frozen water gradually began to melt, and after a few moments, the ice was just a puddle of water in the basin.
Moving a little, the pig began to blink his eyes, trying to figure just what the hell happened. He was splashed by some cold water in a place that was warm, but then he found himself walking through snow. That was until something completely froze him in place. Looking around the area, he noticed that he was in some kind of hospital, and there were a few sets of eyes watching him. One of them had red hair and a mixture of blue and red in her eyes. Wait, red hair and a mixture of blue and red eyes? He hadn't seen that combination in a while, and the last person who had it was…
"Sheesh bacon breath, you sure do get far with your lousy sense of direction." Ranma said with a smirk. "I'm surprised you haven't wandered into some pork roast by noOUCH!" The small black pig had jumped into her head and knocked her back. "Heh, you're still as strong as an ox." Waving it off, the redhead walked over to the traveling pack and pulled out a few clothing items.
"Aren't those clothes a little big for the pig?" Gosaria asked in confusion. Her eyes then lit up. "Hey, big for the pig. I made a rhyme." Everyone gave an odd look in her direction.
"Whatever" The cat-girl said as she rolled her eyes. "You three might want to brace yourselves, and maybe you should contact Dumbledore, Madam Pomfrey." At that statement, the older woman looked on in confusion. Ranma shrugged before she pointed a hand towards the basin of melted ice and sent off a fireball. The flame managed to heat up the water just enough. "There you go Ryoga, make it quick." The redhead also added a whisper that only he could here. "And while you're here, call me Lina. Let loose the secret, and you'll be a roast dinner."
A sweat-dropped formed on the pig with a bandana as he nodded. Quickly, he hopped into the now hot water and reverted to his birth form. With a quick motion, he grabbed his clothes and pulled them on. Behind the 11-year-old girl, two students and a matron looked on in shock at the fact that a small pig turned into a man with just hot water. Pomfrey decided that the best thing to do WOULD be to contact the Headmaster.
"Huh… you've changed a little since I saw you last, Ryoga." The cat-girl observed. The last time she saw the guy was about five years ago when Akane had learned of his secret of being P-chan. Akari was the one who had convinced him to tell the tomboy. The redhead was there at the exact moment it happened. Needless to say, the youngest Tendo daughter went on a small warpath, and they hadn't seen the two since.
The man in front of her was around 29-years-old, and his muscle mass seemed to be a little larger than it was all those years ago. Not too much, just enough to show that he was a strong martial artist. One of the biggest differences was that her former rival had grown a small beard. "Wow, P-chan's grown some piggy hair on his chinny chin chin." A fist suddenly found its way onto her head. "Ouchie"
"And you haven't changed on bit, still the rude and obnoxious little jerk." He winced when an elbow nailed him on the head. The lost man reached his hand out and pinched his former rival's cheek. "Little girls shouldn't so rude."
"Says you, bacon head." The two glared at each other while Nashigi and Gosaria looked on in complete confusion. The stare match ended when a voice made itself known.
"Ah, I'm glad to see that you're in such high spirits today, Lina." Dumbledore commented as he entered the room and moved towards the group. "I take it that this is a friend from the past?" His eyes twinkled behind the half-moon spectacles he wore.
"Oh, hey old fart." Ranma stated with a smile and a wave. "Yeah, you could kind of consider this guy to be a friend." The redhead pointed to her dark-haired friend. "Nashigi saw a little pig in the snow and decided, out of oh so sheer brilliance, to fire a freeze arrow him." Her eyes looked back to the man with a bandana. "This is one problem that you CAN'T blame me for. I have been teaching her to use her wandless magic though."
"So it is your fault." Ryoga stated with a half-lidded stare. At the 11-year-old's nervous chuckle, the former rival softened up a little. "Don't worry your head… Lina" the name was odd to say "I'm no longer the person who swore an oath of revenge all those years ago. I've grown up since then." A smirk came to his face. "That doesn't mean I can't tease you a little from time to time." His hand reached out and pinched the girl's cheek again. "Such a cute little cat-girl you've become." He laughed out. A second later, a foot was in his stomach.
"So, how's life been treating you these last five years, P-chan?" The redhead dodged a lazy slap to her forehead. She then sent a tweak to the man's nose.
"Well, Akari and I finally settled down five years ago after she got me to confess my curse to Akane. We also have a four-year-old daughter named Chihiro." He gave a large sigh. "The only problem is how my poor sense of direction keeps me away a lot. I've missed so many of Chihiro's first moments."
Ranma gave a frown at that. 'Still has a lot of depression, that hasn't changed either. Only this time it's for a good reason. I feel sorry for the guy.' Her eyes lit up for a second. 'I wonder if I could get Washu to help on this thing, or maybe I could try and do it. There's a whole library of books on magic here, and maybe one has something on directional curses or something. If I can't do something like that, then what good is this magic I have? Damn it, pig man.'
Coming back to the world around her, the redhead looked around and blinked when she didn't see the Hibiki man. "Hey, where did Ryoga go?"
"He asked to use the restroom while you were deep in thought." Madam Pomfrey stated simply as she went about cleaning up the basin of water. Nashigi and Gosaria looked on in confusion when their friend slapped her own head.
"The guy has the worst direction sense in the world. Believe me on that. He could get lost in a windowless room with one door and somehow end up somewhere else." Four pairs of eyes looked towards her in disbelief. "Don't believe me? Then watch and see if he returns."
After several moments of waiting, the Hogwarts matron went to check. She came back with a weird look on her face. "You were right, he is gone. I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't witness it myself."
"Yeah, there's no telling where he went to." She began to mumble to herself about 'the same after 14 years' and other small things. Her friends looked at each other before walking up to the redhead.
"Uh, Lina" Nashigi began as she whispered into her friend's ear. "What's all this about 14 years?"
"And why did you two act as if you were almost on the same age level or something?" The blonde asked as well. She may not be the sharpest one out there, but even something like that would seem a little odd.
A sweat-drop formed on the cat-girl's head. "Would you believe I was thinking a bunch of nonsense?" 'How the hell did I end up slipping like that?' At the pair of stares that were being sent her way, Ranma gave a nervous laugh. "I'm serious. I was just talking a bunch of nonsense." The laugh ended when the dark-haired girl wrapped an arm around her left one. The blonde did the same for her right one.
"I believe" Nashigi began "That we need to learn a little more about our friend. Don't you agree, Gosaria?" A small smirk was on her face. She would learn a little more about her rival today for sure.
"Yes we do, Nashigi." The blonde stated with a bright and sunny smile. "Friends shouldn't keep crazy secrets from friends." A look on confusion came to her face. "Where should we go to talk though? I think this might be something that Lina wouldn't want anybody else to hear."
"I believe my office might be the best place for a private discussion, girls." Dumbledore stated with a slight twinkle in his eyes. The redhead did need more people who knew around here.
"Damn it, old fart." Ranma stated before sighing. "Alright, I believe you two should know. Come on, let's go." With that said, the cat-girl used her teleportation to take them all to Dumbledore's office. It was going to be a long explanation, and hopefully neither of the two would go off the deep end.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Ryoga looked around in annoyance. "Where the hell am I now?" He said to himself as he began walking. His eyes widened when he saw the sign that said 'Hibiki – Unryu Pig Farm'. "Did… I make it back?" He asked himself as he charged forward, the house in his sights. The door opened up quickly, and out shot a small blur that jumped at him.
"Daddy's home!" The little girl shouted in glee as she hugged her father with all her might. The lost man looked down at his daughter and felt a surge of happiness. His smile grew wider when he saw his wife exit the house.
"I'm home… again, Akari, Chihiro." The short-haired man said with a large laugh. He was then helped up to his feet by Akari. "I… haven't missed our daughter's birthday, have I?"
The dark-haired woman shook her head. "You're in luck, dear, it's tomorrow. Now come on into the house. We're making sure you stay here for tomorrow." The woman and child began to drag the overjoyed man into the house.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"You have got to be kidding." Nashigi said with wide eyes as her rival and friend finished her story. "How can I ever keep up with someone who has two previous lives of experience with things? Well, you may only remember bits and pieces of the first life, but still…" The dark-haired girl asked with tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Wow, three chances at life, one of those lives ended short due to someone killing you unfairly." Gosaria whined out with tears in her eyes as well. "Well, as they say, third time's a charm."
Ranma could only blink at the reactions of the two. "I… was expecting you two to go a little crazy or something. After-all, my previous life…" She didn't get to finish because of a fist hitting her on the top of the head. "Ow, what did you do that for?"
"It is true" Nashigi began with her arms crossed "that many people would be disturbed by the fact that you used to be a boy." The dark-haired girl uncrossed her arms and pointed at the cat-girl's nose. "But why should I care about that? You are still the same person that I declared a rivalry with. Did you honestly think that you being a boy in a past life would stop me?" A smirk came to her. "If anything… I now have someone to ask certain questions that with regards to the male gender."
"Wha?!" The redhead asked as she began to make warding gestures. "Now wait just a minute here." The blonde of the trio draped an arm around her shoulder.
"I think it's really cool." The sometimes slow girl replied. "I mean, it's slightly odd to know someone who actually had a sex change, but it's cool at the same time." She received a couple of odd stares. "What, did I say something weird again?" The blonde began to try and think of what she said that could have been weird. "I've got nothing."
Giving a sigh, the cat-girl shook her head. "I guess I should have expected this. These two aren't the most normal and sane people around." A couple people clearing their throats brought her to attention. Looking at her two friends, she saw that they had their arms crossed and were staring right at her. "Uh… you didn't just hear that, did you?" 'Jeez Ranma, you haven't put your foot in your mouth for a long time.'
A finger from the 13-year-old poked Ranma in the nose. "Do you really think our ears can't hear? They may not be as good as yours, but we heard every word." A smirk came to her face. "You can't put one over Nashigi. OoohohohohohohoooOUCH." Exclaimed the dark-haired girl as she was pecked on the head by Fawkes the Phoenix. "Humph, nobody respects such a refine laugh."
"Hey, what is that bird, Lina?" Gosaria asked as she began to pet the strange bird on the head.
"Ah, that's Fawkes. He's Dumbledore's phoenix." Ranma stated simply.
"Oh wow" The blonde stated with glee. "Um… what's a phoenix?" Her two friends, and a few former headmasters in portraits, face-faulted. Fawkes, on the other hand, gave a large sweat-drop. "What did I say?"
She suddenly found herself in a headlock from her redheaded friend. "Everybody has heard of a phoenix! It's a bird that is reborn from its own ashes when it dies." Oh yeah, now the cat-girl was sure of Gosaria.
"Ooohhhh, now I get it. That means it's magical or something."
"I think you got it." The blue/red-eyed girl said as she released her friend. "Let's get something straight." She pointed to both of her friends. "The info I told you is not to be mentioned to anybody else. You got it?"
The azure-eyed blonde tapped her chin. "You mean the info about the phoenix?" A second face-fault occurred. "Oh wait, you mean the info about your previous life." Her face scrunched up. "But why is that?"
"It's because of a few reasons. One of the reasons is that I used to be a boy. Do you realize how awkward that would seem to a few people around her, especially the ones who used the bath while I was there?" Ranma shivered at the thought. It had the makings of something that could get messy. "Another reason is if this all gets out to the wrong people."
"The wrong people?" Gosaria asked
"There are probably still followers of Voldemort around" At the mention of that name, her two friends actually shivered. "What, you're afraid of that name? Eh, never mind." The cat-girl said waving it off. "Considering that the idiot thought of me as some kind of threat, you can be sure there would be people who would attempt to do me in. I also don't believe that he's dead either. Now, I don't believe that any of them would be able to lay a finger on me" she received a half-lidded stare from both her friends "but I do believe it would be annoying to have people constantly after my hide… again."
"You can really be full of yourself, sometimes." Nashigi stated.
"You're one to talk, Miss 'I'm Lina's greatest rival'." Ranma stated with a small smirk. The larger chested girl gave a small shrug in response.
"Well, I am."
"Yeah, whatever."
Gosaria gave a few nods. "Alright, I think I've got it. We keep this secret, and don't tell anybody, right?" A frown came to her. "But what about Hermione?" Wouldn't it be bad to keep her out on this?
"I'll tell her later on. If I tell her about this, she'll probably try to shrink back away from me again." Her blue/red eyes looked back at her companions. "It's still hard to believe you two aren't shrinking away from me."
"Hey, you're weird enough already." Nashigi calmly stated with a smirk. "What's more weirdness to it all?" The taller girl grabbed the redhead by the shirt. "I do think you could have told us earlier, though."
"It… uh… didn't cross my mind?" Ranma offered as she laughed nervously. The laugh died when she saw the two looks she was getting. "Alright already, jeez. We don't have to go and punish the story teller, now do we?" The twinkle in the two pairs of blue eyes looking back at her made the redhead a little nervous. "Uh… guys?"
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To anybody else, it wouldn't seem to be a punishment, but for the redheaded cat-girl, it was. She even had to slightly admit that the two deserved to be a little annoyed over her keeping the little info a secret all this time, but did they really need to go about forcing her to do that?
Who would have known that Nashigi had something like that? She wasn't the type of girl, at least that's what Gosaria and Ranma had thought. The punishment was a very simple matter. All the redhead had to do was sleep each night by wearing an extremely pink and frilly nightgown. Sure it was simple at the thought, but for a certain cat-girl… it was torture.
It was so frilly and pink that it should have been a crime against all that was natural in the world. What's worse is that the girls in the dorm she was sharing with had actually said it looked cute, and better than the blue pajamas with fish motif she usually wore. Who the hell were they trying to kid?
That was her punishment from Nashigi. Gosaria's punishment was just as annoying. She had an insanely cute jellyfish plush doll that she gave to the cat-girl and said she'd have to sleep with it each night. It was completely embarrassing, but nobody else could see why it was. Only the dark-haired, blonde, and redhead knew for sure.
Ah yes, and because of the story she told the two, the older girl wanted to meet Xellos. Sure enough, the purple-haired mazouku had actually said it would be fun to help Nashigi with her magic. There was a small bit of rivalry that would fuel the big-busted girl, and make her try and exceed the redhead. What's worse, the trickster even ENCOURAGED the self proclaimed rival in her laugh.
Gosaria had asked the demon if she would be able to cast any wandless magic. His response to her had been, of course, 'it's a secret'. With that response, the blonde began to pout a little at being left behind. This prompted Ranma to shove a fireball into the trickster's face.
The cat-girl then proceeded to explain to her friend that she WAS getting better at her magic with a wand. That perhaps it would only be a matter of time. If a girl who laughs like a banshee and sometimes lives in her own little world could do it, then maybe she could. That was actually a bit of false hope on the redhead's part. It seemed that Gosaria was indeed reborn from someone of Lina's past who couldn't use magic. The blonde had enough in her to use a wand though. That could be a start.
Her two friends actually had a run-in with Happosai once as well. The old pervert couldn't resist groping onto Nashigi. The dark-haired girl understood that she was so attractive, but that still didn't excuse the diminutive man from hopping onto her. The aged martial arts master was faced with a freeze arrow, and Gosaria whacking him with a stick while he was frozen.
After letting loose her secret to the two, it almost felt as if she could relax a little more in how she acted around them. The difference wasn't too easy for people to notice. She still had a short temper and all, but she seemed slightly more easy going and good-natured. To Ranma, it felt like, since the two knew her secret, she was back with the Masaki's
When she was living at the Masaki house, her personality was exactly similar to her previous life. There was the fact that she became a little less rude though thanks to Washu. She had still been prideful and arrogant, especially around Ryoko. The older masu woman seemed to bring out competitiveness in the redhead. It didn't help that the woman would constantly harp on about her skills and all.
Maybe she should have told Gosaria and Nashigi sooner though. Ah well, that was all in the past. The question now would be when and if she should inform Hermione, Harry, and Ron. Telling them now would be very awkward, and informing the bespectacled boy of the prophesy she had heard a while back would only make the boy worry. Ah well, she figured they could be told later.
Speaking of the three Gryffindors, Ranma had run across them on her way to the library to try and look and see if there were any books dealing on directional problems. They had asked if she found anything on that Flamel guy, and the redhead had shaken her head. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. The redhead figured a clue would be in the most unlikely place. Since that's usually how it went.
It was a few days later in which she had a run-in with yet another former Nerima acquaintance. This time, however, it wasn't an honest and good meeting between a 'friend'. It was just a person who continued to have a grudge against a certain individual who was around the area.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"So Lina" Gosaria began as the three watched Hagrid bring in some trees for Christmas décor. "Are you going to be leaving the school during the holidays?"
Ranma looked in her direction and nodded. "Yeah I am. Two weeks away from this place to stretch my legs, get some fresh air, and all that good stuff." Her eyes looked towards her two friends. "You two going away as well?"
The blonde shook her head. "I'm staying here for the holidays. I don't want to have to put up with my brother again so soon. He might be a little sore with me for that day." A frown came to her. "Apparently mom and dad are very disappointed in him, but they do wish me well in my schooling."
"Well" Nashigi began "if I don't visit home, my sister will whine about the injustice of it all. She'll talk about how I was trying to avoid her and all." The dark-haired girl gave a sigh. "Oh she can be so childish sometimes." She caught a half-lidded look from her redheaded friend. "Well… she can."
"Yeeaahh…" The cat-girl drawled out. She was about say some more when a small explosion was heard outside. Turning around, Ranma made her way to the front doors with her friends behind her. Looking outside, a slight twitch developed in her eye. "You've got to be kidding me." She said in an exasperated way.
Out in the snow was the diminutive form of Happosai fighting off against the monstrous form of Pantyhose Taro. After all this time, is the large idiot was still searching for a name change? It was apparently only a matter of time before Happosai was tracked down again. To her side was Hagrid, who had heard the commotion and rushed out. "What the hell? It's a bloomin' minotaur wit' octopus tentacles on its back, an' wings as well. It's… fightin' a small old man?"
"Yeah… you know what" the redhead began with a sigh "this is no place for those bastards to be fighting." Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw more people start to arrive. 'Great, let's bring everybody out and be at a danger.' Shaking her head, she rushed forward and made a leap towards the head of the large beast.
Taro made a roar of pain when a foot collided with the side of his head, causing him to stumble backwards a few. Shaking his head, he looked in front to see an odd little redheaded girl with cat features floating in the air. The girl began to talk at a whisper that only he could hear. "Yeah, you know what, Panty Princess; there are a lot of innocent bystanders that could get hurt because of you."
The creature's eyes became wide in shock. The only person who taunted him with names like that was killed several years ago. The fem-boy should be dead and buried, and not right here. Well… the person appeared to be a girl and a child… with cat features and seemed to be floating, but the red hair and blue eyes, even though there was red in them, was unmistakable. His eyes then narrowed as he brought his fist back and launched a punch aimed for her head.
To his shock, however, the girl seemed to vanish in thin air and appear near the side of his head. "Hmm…" She said with a finger to her mouth "still a bit slow in this form, Pantyhose bastard." The redhead dodged an octopus tentacle and appeared in front of him again, upside down. "What's the matter, getting a little angry?" She dodged around several shots of ink before appearing on the monster's shoulder.
"You want the little pervert, do you not?" She whispered with a small smile. Taro reluctantly gave a small nod. "Good" she stated before vanishing and appearing behind Happosai and grabbing him by the gi. "We don't need this kind of trouble, Happy. So why don't you just bug off?" Pulling her arm back, she gave a powerful toss that sent the diminutive man flying off into the distance.
Running up to the man turned monster, the redhead gave a well placed kick into his stomach. It didn't phase Taro too much, but was enough to cause a little discomfort. "I owe you back for some of the trouble you caused me in the past, first." Moving back a ways, she started to chant. "Oh, source of all power, light which burns beyond crimson, let thy power gather in my hand." A small orb of fire appeared in her hands. Her expression turned into a smirk. "Enjoy your trip, Panty Bastard. FIREBALL!" The ball of crimson light shot forth and slammed right into the Minotaur wannabe. The force sent the chimera into the sky in the direction that Happosai went.
Settling back onto the ground, the blue/red-eyed girl noticed the looks she was getting and scratched the back of her head nervously. "Well, that solved the problem, right? There probably could have been people hurt otherwise."
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After that little show outside, it seemed as if the students were as reluctant as ever to look at her. There was even a new nickname going around, The Minotaur Basher. It… actually had a nice ring to it, and Ranma hoped she would meet up again with Taro some other time. That way they could have another battle, and not have to cut it short for fear of property damage or something.
Gosaria and Nashigi had laughed their asses off when they learned that the creature was really a man named Pantyhose Taro. They were curious as to why someone would have that name. Once the redhead mentioned that Happosai was the one who gave the guy his name, they actually thought it made sense. Only one encounter with the pervert, and the two already had an idea about him.
Ah yes, Happosai. He was apparently a little peeved over what the cat-girl had done to him. Xellos mentioned that after that toss, the diminutive pervert had hit a tree and was knocked out. Taro then ended up falling onto the Anything Goes master, and managed to get a few hits in. The man got away, but he would be in some casts for a little while.
That left the fact that the purple-haired mazouku would have a bit more time with the redhead. It made no sense at all. Xellos would begin to help her with magic, but then would break it off early and proceed to have some fun doing whatever it was that he thought would annoy her.
He did teach her some things like the Balus Rod, a whip of light that appeared in her hand, and other techniques of both magical and martial. The only problem was… he would only teach her a little bit, or hardly any, of the skill, and then she would have to try and figure out the rest of it. This was actually fun for her though. The redhead enjoyed the challenge of figuring out a new skill. It made her feel like the times she attempted to learn new skills in her previous life.
Time seemed to fly pretty quickly until it was time for the holiday break. It seemed that Draco was planning on going home for the holiday as well. The only problem was how he taunted many people who would be staying, saying that they probably didn't have families to go home to.
"So what are your plans, sis?" The pale-eyed boy asked Ranma as they began to board the train that would take them back to London. There the students who were going away on holiday would then get picked up and taken by their families.
"Well" The cat-girl began as Laira hopped onto her shoulder "I think I might visit mom and dad for a little while, and then go and visit Washu. I'm not sure on what I'll do." She had actually planned on seeing if Laira could now fly well and maybe do a small bit of traveling.
Nashigi chose that moment to wrap her arm around the redhead's shoulder. "I think you should also come and visit the great Nashigi the Serpent's family. Nothing could be more interesting than that, Ooohohohohohooo!" Draco raised an eyebrow before leaning in towards his sister.
"Uh, Lina, how did you manage to become friends with her?"
"I attract weird people. I can't help it. I just attract some of the oddest people in the world." Ranma answered with a simple shrug. 'Well, it is true.'
The dark-haired girl looked towards the smaller girl and gave a pout. "Ooohhhh, you don't mean that, do you?"
'I should have just used my powers instead of relying on this boring train ride. Ah well, at least I'll have a chance to get a few snacks on the way. I might stock up a little on Chocolate Frogs. Those things are good.' The cat-girl thought to herself as she sat down in a seat and looked outside at the blanket of snow covering the ground. 'I'll finally be able to stretch my legs a little.'
xxA.Nxx
I had a little trouble with figuring out how to go about doing this chapter, but after I knew what to do, it came easily. I feel that this chapter would be considered to be some kind of filler, even though it is a chapter. Ah well, you can't have things without some filler. It also seemed understandable to have Gosaria and Nashigi learn of Ranma's secret.