Chapter Twenty: Fabulous

She awoke to the smell of stagnant water, the sound of bones ruslting in the dark. The cold stone floor welcomed her back into consciousness.

She sat up slowly, taking in her surroundings as panic started to flood her mind.

The room she was in was small, windowless, and featureless. There was no bed. The only door was one made of huge iron bars.

A prison cell.

Suddenly a sound came to her. The sound of a wooden door with old brass hinges opening and then closing through the cell door. The sound of armored shoes walking on the cold stones.

Soon, a man can into view. The same one who had abducted her. His cold red eyes bore into her as she could do nothing but stare back. The man did not say a word, just simply standing there.

Finally, Kasumi found the courage to speak.

"Wh-where am I?" She asked.

"A prison cell within the palace of my master," The man stated simply.

"What am I doing here?" She asked, "What do you want?"

"You are here because my master has need of you," He said.

"Who are you?"

"Are you going to continue asking pointless questions?" He narrowed his eyes at her.

Kasumi shrank back a small bit, but it only took a few moments for her to recover at least some of her composure. Silence reigned for a moment.

"Um…" She said after a good minute or two of the strangely awkward silence, "Is there something you wanted?"

The man closed his eyes for a moment.

"I am sorry," He said simply, with no emotion.

"Wh-what?" Kasumi asked, "Why?"

"I cannot say," He remarked plainly, "My master knows everything that happens in this hollow castle."

Kasumi paused for a moment.

"What does he want?" She asked, looking off into space with a fearful expression on her face.

"With your blood," the man said, "He will regain his power, enact revenge on the fools who dared to cross him, and conquer the known cosmos."

Kasumi nearly fainted on the spot.

"The ceremony is to take place in two weeks," He said plainly. He then walked off.

Kasumi closed her eyes.

Back At the Clothing Store

"This is a lost cause and you know it," Rhys' voice rang out from the changing room. She and Nabiki had been in the clothing store for almost an hour now. It had been one refusal after another, "Can we just leave? This is embarrassing."

"Why are you embarrassed? You've been behind a closed door the entire time," Nabiki asked.

"I'm not a girl," Rhys' voice replied in a very feminine voice, "I don't want to wear a girls bathing suit. And I've been stuck in here trying on bathing suits that don't fit right for ages! They're all too small and none of them have a tail hole!"

"Easy now," Nabiki said from where she was leaning up against the wall, right next to the door Rhys was behind, "Go easy on shouting about your tail. People already started looking in our direction when I asked if they had bathing suits that would fit a nine foot tall woman."

"I'm not nine feet tall," Rhys retorted, "I'm 8'9"."

"Close enough," Nabiki said, "We still have a few more to try. If those don't work we'll have to resort to a spandex body suit."

"Great…." Rhys muttered, she then started to mumble something to herself.

Nabiki was about to ask Rhys to repeat what she had mumbled but she stopped as she noticed a woman heading over towards them. She appeared to be a middle aged Japanese woman with long black hair. She was relatively attractive and sported some very oddly colored amber yellow eyes.

"Excuse me," She said with a smile, "I couldn't help but overhear your friend shouting."

"Sorry about that," Nabiki said, "She's apparently having clothing issues."

At that moment, as if on cue, there was a loud snapping sound that came from the changing room followed closely by Rhys yelping.

"You okay in there?" Nabiki asked.

"…Yeah," Rhys answered after a moment.

"If I may ask a question," the woman asked, "Your friend wouldn't happen to be… a werecreature, would she?"

"Huh?" Nabiki asked, "Why do you ask?"

"She was shouting about her tail and everyone in the store is talking about a nine foot tall girl in the changing rooms that none of them saw enter the store in the first place," The woman smiled, "In my experience that can only mean one thing. And if she's looking for a bathing suit, you'll have better luck at a werecreature friendly shop."

"Werecreature friendly?" Rhys' voice asked. She had frozen in place the instant she had heard the woman say that word.

"Yes," The woman smiled, "My son owns a clothing shop just a few minutes away that secretly caters to non-humans. I'd be happy to show you there."

A Few Minutes Later at Boutique Le'Shique

"This seems like a pretty normal shop to me," Nabiki noted, looking around, "Albeit that the fashions are… unique."

"My son is a fashion designer," the woman told her, "Most of the clothing he designed himself. We keep the non-human clothing in the back. We'll have get my son Arata to get your measurements first. Wait here and I'll go get him."

She walked off towards the back of the store, leaving Nabiki and Rhys to stand in the middle of the store. Nabiki started to look through the various racks of clothing, looking at the clothing. More than a few made her raise an eyebrow. Rhys, on the other hand, stood in one stop and didn't move.

"I hate this store," She said suddenly.

"Oh come now, isn't that being a little harsh," Nabiki looked at him, "Granted that I wouldn't be caught dead wearing some of the these things but the less… 'exotic' looking ones look good."

"This store only sells women's clothes," Rhys said, "Any man would hate being inside this store. And the 'exotic' clothing looks like they came straight out a bondage porno."

"Personally I think you'd look good in this one," Nabiki said, pulling a piece of clothing off the rack.

Said piece of clothing was a full body skintight leather suit that had more zippers than was morally acceptable.

"NO." Rhys glared at her. Nabiki replied with a sinister chuckle.

Nabiki quickly put the suit back as she heard someone noisily coming over to them. The man that was heading over towards them was a relatively tall very effeminate looking man with the same jet-black hair and yellow eyes as the woman. He was wearing a poofy white shirt with the ruffle at the cuffs under a black leather vest and a pair of black leather pants. The clothing looked to be a few sizes too large for him.

"So," He said, looking at Rhys, "Is this the little pretty that needs a bathing suit?"

Rhys just looked at him with a blank expression.

"Um… yes," Nabiki said, "Your mother said that you might have something that will fit her."

The man threw up his hands suddenly.

"Tut tut tut, say no more!" He said before he grabbed Rhys' hand, "Come on sweet-cheeks, we're gonna make you look FABULOUS!!!"

Rhys had a look of utter horror on her face. She looked at Nabiki, her expression pleading her to save her. Nabiki just shook her head and sighed. She simply followed behind them as the man lead them into the back room.

Said back room had a small stage in the middle and had at least a dozen full body mirrors; not to mention a few cameras set up on tripods. This caused Nabiki to raise and eyebrow.

"You do photo shoots here?" She asked.

"Look sweetie," The man, Arata, said, motioning towards himself, "Wither its clothes or pictures, with this boy, its just FASHION!!!"

Jazz hands!

Arata pulled rhys up onto the stage in the middle of the room. Rhys' face was beet red at this point.

She took it back. This is WAY worse than the other store. Sure all of the stuff there had cut of blood circulation to 90% of her body but she wasn't on a freakin' stage!

Arata looked at her, standing there stiffly.

"No no no, sweetie!" Arata said, "I can't work fashion magic with you all stuffy like that. You need to relax and let the animal inside of you run free! I'll go first, okay? Now, waaaatch."

Arata did a small spin, changing from a tall Asian man to an even taller werepanther in the process. His baggy clothing suddenly seemed to fit. He ended with some more jazz hands.

"Your turn!" He smiled.

It took her a moment, but Rhys eventually shifted into her hybrid form. This caused Arata to gasp. This also caused Rhys' clothing to become skintight.

"Oh… my… god…," Arata said slowly, fanning himself, "I don't believe it. I've just GOT to tell mother. Be right baaaaack!"

He quickly reverted into human form and ran from the room.

Rhys and Nabiki stood there for a moment.

"Well, he's an interesting fellow," Nabiki noted.

"Interesting doesn't cut it," Rhys replied.

At that moment, Arata returned to the back room with his mother.

"Oh my," his mother said with a smile, "I see you weren't kidding. A real, live werecheetah. Oh, it warms my heart…. We need to tell the girls about this."

"Girls?" Rhys asked.

"Oh ladies~!" Arata called.

Soon, four girls came into the room from the various doorways.

And thus began a small lot of time that was filled with girlish talking and giggling; which Arata was included within.

Rhys sinked deeper into the depths of her embarrassment.

"Ladies, ladies," Arata finally said after a few minutes, "Business!"

The girls instantly fanned out around the room, surrounding the small stage that Rhys was on, and all of them changing from human to werecreature. Two were jaguars, one was a tiger, and the last another panther. Arata also shifted.

"Okay," Arata said, "Measurements!"

And they all pounced.

A Small While Later

"This is a nightmare," Rhys sighed. They had just finished getting her measurements, most of which she didn't even knew existed.

"Okay," Arata said, "Now, what are we wanting today?"

"A few bathing suits," Nabiki said, "Something light but doesn't tear easily."

"Ooohuhu," Arata said, "Adventurous little something."

Rhys looked at him harshly at that.

"Anyway," Arata said, shrugging off the glare, "Are we talking one piece or something sexy?"

"One piece," Rhys said quickly.

"Oh, come now sweetie," Arata said, waving her off, "You have the body most girls would positively die for. I can't very well let you leave without something fabulous!"

"I don't want to l…!" Rhys started to say loudly.

"Tut tut!" Arata said, shushing her, "This isn't up to discussion! Now… when we talk about not tearing easily, could you elaborate a little."

"She's a martial artist from Nerima," Nabiki said plainly.

"Ah." Arata said, "Then I'll just have to use the strongest material available. We have this lovely line that has threads of mythril woven into it for maximum durability."

About An Hour Later

"That was a nightmare," Rhys said.

At this point, it was getting kind of late in the day. The sky had already turned into the vibrant yellows and oranges of dusk. Rhys and Nabiki were leaving the shopping district with their purchaces.

"Oh hush," Nabiki said, "We got your bathing suits. Two one piece suits and one rather… 'riskay' bikini."

"I will never wear that ever again," Rhys said quickly.

"Mm-hmm," Nabiki smirked, "I saw your expression when you saw yourself in the mirror. You spent almost ten minutes checking yourself out before Arata had to tell you to take it off."

Rhys just looked down, her face beet red again.

"Not a word of this to anyone," She said in a low voice.

"Don't worry," Nabiki said, "If I told anyone about this they'd want me to explain, which might mean your secret would come up. I won't risk it."

Rhys sighed.

"I just want to get back and forget about this whole day," She said, "Who knew trying on bathing suits would be so exhausting. I just wanna go to bed."

"Didn't Akane say you had a test tomorrow at school or something?" Nabiki asked.

"…Crap."

The Next Day

Thankfully, the next day wasn't as hard as Rhys had imagined it being. He had spent the entire day waiting for one of the teachers to announce that the test was going to begin. However, it turned out that the test that they had that day was in English class; as the test was being passed out, Rhys was relieved and easily breezed through the test. Most of the students came through the test with their head hung low in defeat. Akane had noticed that Rhys was the only one who really didn't.

After classes Rhys and Akane were walking towards the Tendo residence together, silent as usual.

"You seem pretty calm about the test," Akane noted, "With a nightmare of a test like that, I would think you'd get the lowest score."

"Nah, the test was easy," Rhys told her.

"Really," Akane replied, "Why would you say that?"

"English was my first language," Rhys told her, "Everyone in the tribe spoke english."

"Your tribe?" Akane raised an eyebrow, "Where did you live, the Sahara?"

"No!" Rhys shot back. He then paused for a few seconds, "We lived south of the Sahara."

"Really?" Akane asked, looking at him like she didn't believe him.

"Really," Rhys said.

"So you're a jungle boy?" Akane asked.

"What? No! Chee…" Rhys said before stopping cold. He was about to comment on how cheetahs don't live in the jungle. No, no, can't say that, "It was the plains! You know, where the lions, rhinos, gazelle, and zebra are?"

Akane just looked at him as he tried to avoid her gaze. After a few seconds he began to jog to try and get away from her.

"H-hey!" Akane said, "Where are you going?!"

"I'm not gonna wait around for someone as slow as you!" Rhys said, "I'll see you back at the house!"

"Grrr! Get back here!" Akane said, coming after him. He started to jog faster and faster, easily keeping out of her reach.

"Neh neh neh!" He taunted her, "Never gonna catch me!"

At this point, they were already coming up on the Tendo residence. Rhys let up a little on his speed as he neared the gate. And at the exact moment he came to the gate….

"HOY!!!" Someone suddenly leaned out of the gate with their hand raised up into the air. This caused Rhys to come to a dead halt, almost causing Akane to slam into him from behind.

The man that stood there was about six feet tall with shoulder length dirty blonde hair; a goofy expression on his face. He was wearing a pair of loose kakis and a green t-shirt under a long brown coat.

They stood there for a few seconds: Rhys and Akane with a confused and shocked expression on his face and the man with the same goofy expression. Silence reigned for a few moments.

Until Nodoka walked around the man with the goofy expression.

"Kyros, I think you've struck them dumb," She said.

"I have that effect," the man said.

Rhys looked over 'Kyros'. He didn't really look anything like the anthropomorphic cheetah man he had met yesterday; this guy was human.

"What?" Rhys asked no one in particular.

"I'll explain later," Kyros said quickly, "I'm here helping Nodoka gather all your things."

"Gather my… what?" Rhys asked.

"Ranma, who are these people?" Akane asked.

Rhys turned to her.

"Th-this is Nodoka, my adopted mother," Rhys told her, "And this is Kyros… I think."

"You think?" Akane noted before looking at Kyros, "Hey, is he the guy that's supposed to help you get Kasumi back?"

"Kyros Daithi; treasure hunter, spelunker, and part time demonologist," Kyros said, bowing, "I'm also somewhat of an engineer, but not while I'm on the job."

"Right," Akane said darkly, "I'm going inside."

Kyros stepped out of the way for Akane to pass. They watched her go into the front door.

"What's up with her?" Kyros asked.

"I dunno," Rhys told him before he changed the subject, "What was this about gathering my stuff together?"

"Oh," Nodoka said, "Doctor Tofu and I talked a little bit this morning and we came to decision that it would be best for you and Ukyo to move somewhere a little less hectic. My house is far too big for just one person to live in, so I thought I would extend the offer."

"Move out of here?" Rhys asked, thinking about it, before he quickly replied, "Wait. Would Genma stay here?"

"Doctor Tofu and I both agree that, due to the obvious way you feel about him and the sensitivity of your and Ukyo's position that he should remain here," Nodoka told him.

"He flew into a rage when Nodoka brought it up," Kyros said, "He went on about some nonsense about the schools not being joined or something. He and Mr. Tendo cried up a storm too. Kinda disturbing if you ask me."

"I've been trying to qualm the storm," Nabiki's voice came. She had just come out of the door, "They've stopped crying and started drinking. It's gonna be hell in this house with both Rhys and Kasumi gone."

"You gonna be okay?" Rhys asked.

"What, you worried about me?" Nabiki asked, looking at him with an eyebrow raised. She laughed a little bit as Rhys got flustered, "Don't worry about it. You get Kasumi back home safely and I'll be able to smooth out the rest. Most of it at least."

It's funny but in GD there really aren't that many types of werecreatures. Wolves, rats, and various species of cat. That's about it. And sorry if the first part of the clothing shop was a little… off. I threw it together off the top of my head, being that I had made a small mistake in thinking that that the last part of Ch19 was really the first part of Ch20; completely throwing my story plan off kilter for a small moment. I had planned to change a small part a little before posting it… until I realized that I had already posted that part. Mostly it was the fight that Akane and Rhys had at the end of Ch19. I've cleared it up.

And no offence to any overly effeminate male fashion designers intended. Keep… uh… doing whatever it is that you do… or something.

You might think that Nabiki's been getting really out of character, but I would like to disagree. I mean… come on….

Come on….

Anyway, here's a quick BLURB that'll explain a little bit more about Rhys that I think I should clarify.

Who Rhys is: Basically, Rhys is Ranma with a more troubled past. He doesn't tolerate Genma at all, but then again, Ranma didn't tolerate him very much either. A troubled past can make a person icy and sometimes even cruel even though they may be a good person. Rhys is more independent, something that he developed since he basically saw himself as being all alone throughout most of his life. He's a good bit more socially acceptable. Sometimes he's sarcastic and cold, but he's also sometimes animated and funny. He has a huge since of justice and won't sit around while someone around him is suffering or in danger. He has a drive to get things done, an iron will, and a kind nature. He is, however, a troubled person, and is sometimes unable to cope with certain situations; sometimes lashing out or sinking into depression.

He doesn't remember his childhood before and up to the 'incident'. Repressed memories and all that. In fact, he doesn't remember how he got to Japan either. He is plagued by recurring nightmares about the incident, which are really all he remembers about it. For a description of the nightmares, reread the very very beginning of this story. Or I can repost it here for your viewing pleasure. Hynah!

The roar of an inferno….

The sick smell of burnt hair….

The heat of the flames and the cold night wind….

Alone… all alone…

Father…. Gone. Mother…. Worse. Sister…. Lost….

A man. A leader. A traitor. A murderer. A name uttered in silence.

Another man. An angel. A savior who fought the murderer. The traitor is cast down.

But not before a young boys life is utterly destroyed….

Painful flashes and images. Unintelligible words spoken as if in a dream. Memory fades. Sorrow prevails.

Pain. Heartbreak. And finally release.

Pretty soon we'll start diving into Rhys past and he'll start remembering some things. It'll be painful. TO YOU! MY WORDS WILL STAB AT YOUR EYES LIKE A THOUSAND SPEARS! SERIF! NONE OF THAT SAN SERIF BULL CRAP! THEY WILL BE POINTY AND HAVE SPURS!

SPURS!!!

Mwahaha.

~EB