Insertion
Part 36
The Spore
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Mousse pulled the microphone up to his face as he swung his hips and sang. "It was a night, ooh, what a night it was it really was, such a night!
Ooh, the moon was bright oh how bright it really was, it really was such a night! The night was alive with stars above. Ooh when she kissed me I had to fall in love!"
The small crowd sitting around the stage in the bar listened intently as the boy crooned his tune.
A shadowy figure in a heavy cloak sat at the bar with a drink in her hands, strands of violet hair spilled out of the hood as she sat with her back facing the show.
"You're new here, a little young aren't you?" asked King as she cleaned a glass and eyed the girl for a moment.
"Shampoo not Japanese, is okay," replied the girl as she smirked at the woman.
King shrugged. "What brings such a young face to a place like this?"
"Mousse is old friend," said the girl as she spared a quick glance at the show.
"You're here to see him?" said King as she arched her eyebrow.
"Shampoo no allowed see Mousse. He learn secret forbidden technique, and cast out of tribe," replied the girl as she turned to face the bartender with a small frown on her face. "He is dead to tribe."
"Oh," said the woman with a short nod. "What sort of technique? Not something dangerous I hope."
"He doing it now," said the young girl as she jerked her thumb back at the stage.
"Huh?" muttered King dumbly.
"King is ancient enemy of Amazon peoples," replied the girl. "Shampoo not supposed to be here, but Mousse is Shampoo's friend from child times."
"Just checking, huh?" said the woman as she seemed to understand. She still looked confused on how Elvis could be the enemy of a tribe somewhere in China.
"Yes, is best of not tell Mousse Shampoo here," said the girl as she looked at the bartender for a moment. "Mousse might be doing stupid thing, Great Grandmother not be nice if she see him again."
King frowned at that, and nodded. It was too bad; he was a good kid.
Shampoo stood up from the bar and walked towards the door after leaving the money for the drink on the counter. She paused and looked back at the stage for a moment. "Is stupid. How this enslave Amazon peoples?" She didn't understand it at all. Maybe it was just something old people were into back then or something?
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Ranma frowned as he looked at his father jumping over the wall of the Tendo dojo in terror. His mother stopped chasing him and put her Katana back into its scabbard as she turned away and walked back over to her son's side.
"Got away again?" he said lazily.
"Yes," replied Nodoka with a small sigh. "He is very good, at running away."
"Yeah, it's about all he's good at," said Ranma as he narrowed his eyes at the place the man had vanished.
"How are you and Ranko doing?" asked the woman sweetly as she picked up the cup of tea that Kasumi had set down in front of her. "Thank you Kasumi dear."
"Well enough," replied Ranma as he gave Kasumi an appreciative nod after she set down a cup in front of him as well. The girl then sat down with her own cup. "No problems really..."
"You don't sound very sure of that," said Nodoka with a slight smirk.
"It's not related to the two of us or anything. It's just been kind of hectic for me for a while now. Things seem to be calming down a bit though."
"You seem to enjoy it," said Nodoka.
"Well, I'll admit I find my fun where I can," said Ranma as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"Oh?" said the woman as she arched her eyebrow.
"You know, friends, work, blowing up planets, mass murder..." Ranma quickly put his hand over his mouth and glanced at the woman. She didn't appear to notice the slip up.
Kasumi looked at him and blinked. "Pardon?"
Nabiki, who was watching television nearby, nearly choked on her drink, but did not try to join the conversation.
"It's nothing," he said nervously while pinching his leg harshly to punish Pissant for making them say that.
"Work?" asked Nodoka. She appeared to have zoned out for a moment. "You're working?"
"Yeah. I got a job at a security agency," he said with a shrug. "It's been interesting for the most part. Keeps me busy, and it doesn't pay that badly either."
"That's nice," said his mother cheerfully.
"Um yeah," said the boy.
There was a noise in the front of the home as the door opened. "Hello?" said a feminine voice.
"Oh my! We have visitors!" exclaimed Kasumi.
Ranma watched as Kasumi walked to the front door. He turned back and saw Nodoka pulling her hand away from his cup.
"You almost spilled it dear," she said sweetly.
"Oh, sorry," he muttered.
"Ranma, you have a visitor," said Kasumi as she walked back into the room with a familiar blonde walking behind her.
"Huh?" he said as he looked up at Usagi, who was standing behind the older girl nervously. "Oh, hey meatball head, what's up?"
She paused and looked at him, the phrase seeming to register in her head for some reason she couldn't quite grasp. She shook the feeling off and spoke up. "I need to talk with you about something."
"Sure, go ahead," he said as he looked at his mother for a moment.
"In private, it's kind of personal," said the girl as she looked at the three other girls in the room and blushed.
Nabiki looked on and arched her eyebrow.
"Oh, Mom?" said the boy as he looked at his mother.
"Finish your tea dear. You shouldn't be bothered in the dojo," she said cheerfully.
"Oh, okay," said the boy with a shrug as he downed the rest of the tea, grimacing as he became almost uncomfortably warm for a moment. He then stood up and walked Usagi out into the dojo.
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"What is it? Is there some sort of problem?" said Ranma as he smirked at her. The only thing he could think of, was that the new youma had shown up, and she was here asking for help.
"Sort of...someone showed up yesterday..." ventured the girl nervously.
"Tall, blonde, insanely attractive?" he ventured. "I've already met her."
"Huh?" said the girl dumbly. "Who are you talking about?" A huge blush crossed her face as she thought about the phrase for a moment.
"You haven't met the new youma yet?" he said as he arched his eyebrow and blinked.
"Oh. I thought you meant..." stammered the girl with a slightly relieved sigh. "The other one?" she suddenly became serious.
"Yeah, I met her a few days ago," he said with a small nod. "This one is smart, very dangerous."
"This isn't about that, we'll talk about that later," said the girl with a frown on her face. "I need you to come with me. This will be easier if you see for yourself," she said nervously.
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Ami stood up as Usagi brought the confused looking Ranma into the small park where she was waiting patiently with her nose in a book. Chibi-Usa was sitting next to her looking incredibly bored.
The little girl jumped up and smiled as she saw the boy walking up to them. "Hey! It's him!"
Ami frowned as she stood up and noticed him.
Ranma went completely white as he saw the tiny pink haired girl waving at him.
"Does he already know?" thought Usagi.
"THE SPORE! IT DIES!" cried Ranma as his golden aura appeared around him. He shot foreword in an instant and ignited his lightsaber as he charged.
The blade hadn't even fully appeared when he slashed down at the little girl. To his surprise, the girl had an exact copy of his weapon in her hand, and she had blocked the strike before jumping back away from him.
"All right!" said Chibi-Usa as she held the weapon in a ready position with a huge grin on her face.
Ranma blinked. "Huh?"
The girl burst into a golden flame, and her hair suddenly changed to the same color.
"What the fuck?!" cried Ranma as he blasted foreword and slashed at the girl again. "No way! Die Spore!" he cried as he charged again.
Ami and Usagi simply watched the battle in shock. Ranma and Chibi-Usa were performing a rather acrobatic display in mid air, their arms and legs nothing more than a blur as they fought, the lightsabers drawing complex patterns in the air with the after image of the blades.
Usagi walked directly under them and screamed. "STOP IT! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!"
Chibi-Usa paused and frowned at her. "Aw Mom, You're never any fun."
"Die!" cried Ranma as he attempted to attack her while her guard was down. The little girl casually backhanded him in the face, sending him into the ground. There was a small explosion as he struck the pavement, and he slowly climbed out of the hole and shook his head.
"What the hell? No way!" he muttered dumbly as he watched the little girl float down to the ground with a smug looking smirk on her face.
"Will you stop this! This is..." started Usagi as she frowned at him.
"I know what that is! It's the Spore! The Spore is evil and must die!" he cried as he pointed at the little girl.
"Spore?" muttered Chibi-Usa as she frowned at him. "You old fart! I'll kick your ass!"
Ranma blinked and realized that something was definitely different about her. "What the hell is going on here?" he muttered dumbly.
"Her name is Chibi-Usa, she says she's from the future," said Usagi.
"She is," said Ranma as he narrowed his eyes at the girl as her aura died down.
"She says she's my daughter," continued Usagi. She seemed to be getting nervous.
"So?" muttered Ranma as he looked at her.
Usagi swallowed and looked away from him. "Our daughter."
"So you and Tux boy had an evil spawn...HUH?!" Ranma stared at the girl for a moment and then looked back at Chibi-Usa. The transformation, he'd not thought about it until now, but she was using Saotome Ryu... "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He clutched his head and fell to his knees in horror. "I'd never do anything so horrible to myself! It's a lie!"
"Horrible?" said Usagi as she glared at him.
"She's a ditz! A klutz! She's got a meatball head for god's sake!" he lamented as he looked at Usagi in horror.
The little girl frowned at him and looked at her mother, who was fuming with anger.
"Oh! I must be punishing myself in the future! What could I have done to deserve such a punishment? Well, there was that planet, but still! The horrible speeches! It'd be like marrying Kuno!"
"My speeches are not horrible!" snapped Usagi angrily. She stomped her feet on the ground and clenched her fists. Her entire face had gone red.
Chibi-Usa frowned and seemed to think about something for a moment. "Oh yeah. I'm supposed to give this to you." She walked over to where her backpack was and pulled out an envelope.
Ranma accepted it with a dumb looking expression on his face. Inside was a photo, a woman with her long blonde hair let down was sitting seductively in a skintight dress and smiling. "Whoa! Who's the babe?" he muttered.
"Turn it over," said Chibi-Usa.
"Hi, Usagi in ten years time. Do it, or we'll come back and really hurt you. Signed, Ranma Saotome, Carrot, Dan, and Pissant."
Ranma blinked. "Pissant signed this?" he muttered to himself in shock.
"What is that?" asked Usagi as she noticed the photo. "Pervert!"
"Hey! She gave it to me! It's a note," he said as he pointed at the little girl.
"Well, whoever wrote that note, should have picked a better postcard than one with some bimbo on the front!" snapped Usagi.
Ranma and Chibi-Usa looked at one another for a moment, and then burst into laughter.
"What's so funny?!" demanded Usagi.
"Private joke," said the boy as he pocketed the card and looked at her for a moment. "So, this is our daughter?"
"Yeah," snapped the little girl as she glared at him fearlessly for a moment.
"When I grow older, I'm going to spank you a whole lot," he said as he frowned at her.
"Just try it ape!" she snarled.
"Okay, I believe you," he said with a shrug.
Ami, Usagi, and Chibi-Usa blinked in unison.
"So? Now what?" asked the little girl as she looked at her parents. Usagi was still angry, she had her arms crossed in front of her chest and her nose in the air. Ranma didn't look particularly interested in the situation any longer.
"Well, you can't really stay with me," said Usagi.
"Wait a minute!" snapped Ranma as he turned to look at her. "You don't expect me to take her do you?"
"You've got that big company, my family doesn't have much money," said the girl with a shrug. "How am I going to explain this to my mother?"
"I dunno, she's a visiting cousin or something?" snorted Ranma as he turned away from the girl.
"I won't be able to have any fun if I stay with Mom," said the little girl irritably.
"Sure we would! I'll see you all the time! In fact, we'll go for ice cream, go shopping, watch movies, play video games, talk about boys..."
Chibi-Usa looked at Ranma and scowled. "I really wish I could kill her."
"It passes," he replied as he looked at the girl for a moment and smirked. "Why am I getting stuck with this? You're her mother."
"Well, it just seems easier," said Usagi with a shrug.
"I don't recall Mamoru getting stuck with her," grumbled the boy under his breath as he scowled for a moment and glanced down at the little girl. "Damn it."
"You'll do it?" said Usagi cheerfully. "Yay!"
"Come on, Spore," said Ranma as he walked off dejectedly.
"Hey! Quit calling me that you old fart!" snapped the girl as she grabbed her bag and followed him.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" asked Ami as she watched them go, arguing the whole way.
"Do you have any idea what my mother would do if I brought someone who acts like that into my house?" said Usagi as she turned to look at the girl for a moment.
"I guess you're right," said Ami with a small sigh.
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Pluto had the mother of all migraines. She stared into the Time Stream, her eyes bloodshot from sleeplessness. "It can't be..." she muttered to herself.
Tsuki stood beside her, watching the flow of time with the woman. "It's true. How did it happen?"
"A paradox, he created it when he was in the past!" snarled Pluto angrily. "It's too big to fix. We can't do anything about it, not from that end anyway."
"What can we do then?" asked Tsuki.
"Crystal Tokyo still exists if I exclude him. He can still be destroyed in this time," said Pluto coldly. "It's not to late."
Tsuki nodded and frowned deeply. "Understood."
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Ranma walked up to the gates of the dojo and looked down at the girl who was still following him. "So, how many voices do you have in your head?"
"None," she replied as she looked up at him and frowned. "It's something I inherited from you somehow."
"Huh?" said the boy as he looked at her for a moment. "But, without them..."
"I'm heavy like you are, but I've only got one mind," she said as she looked up at him seriously.
Ranma nodded and turned to open the gates. He walked into the home and walked in to see that his mother had left.
"Boy! Who is this?" said Genma as he looked down at the little girl who was standing behind his son.
Soun shuffled his newspaper and looked at the newcomer.
Nabiki was sitting with them, while Kasumi set out a small snack.
Ranma looked down at the little girl, and then back towards the others. "Her name is Chibi-Usa, she's my daughter from the future."
"How nice!" said Kasumi.
Nabiki snorted and turned away.
"Enough kidding boy!" snapped Genma.
Soun just looked confused.
"Hey kid, why don't you go spar with Grandpa," said Ranma as he turned to the little girl and smirked. "Just don't break anything important. I'm trying to save some for Mom."
"Okay," said the girl as she shrugged her shoulders and looked up at the man who loomed over her.
"Boy. This isn't funneeeeeeeeee!!!" He sailed through the porch door and into the yard as the little girl punched him in the gut and charged into the yard after him.
Akane walked out of her room and looked at the scene for a moment. "Who's that?"
Nabiki's jaw was hanging down as she watched the little girl thrash the old man quite soundly.
"My daughter from the future," said Ranma with a shrug.
"Huh?" said Akane as she looked at him, thinking she misunderstood him.
"Oh! Akane! You've made me very proud! Mothering a daughter to carry on the school this way! Tell me, does she have any brothers?" He looked at Ranma and grabbed him by his shoulders.
"I dunno, she hasn't said," he replied with a shrug. Genma sailed through the air, passing by the porch again just beside them.
"Daughter?" muttered Akane.
Soun grabbed her in a rough hug and wailed loudly.
Ranma smirked at her while the man's back was turned and mouthed the words, "Not yours," to her.
She nodded and pat the man on his back.
Chibi-Usa dusted off her hands and glared down at the battered form of her grandfather. "Can't you do any better than that, you fat bastard?" She snorted and turned back into the home.
Genma groaned painfully. "I knew Akane would be a fine choice for a mother. If his daughter is this strong, imagine what his sons will be like!" he thought to himself through the pain.
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Ranma sighed as he sat at the counter of the Ucchan and hung his head.
The girl was flipping an Okonomiyaki over when she noticed his state. "Bad day?"
"You don't know the half of it," muttered the boy.
"I imagine I don't," she replied with a shrug.
"Do you ever have a really bad day, and realize that you're pretty sure that it isn't going to get any better?"
"Of course," she snapped while glaring at him. "It was all your fault too."
"Oh," he said with a small nervous laugh. "Sorry."
"I suppose I can't really blame you for that," she amended reluctantly.
"Yeah, well..." he muttered as he looked away. "Sorry anyway."
"Here, pay, eat, leave," she said as she put his plate down.
Ranma blinked, and then did exactly that.
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Ranma walked into the Tendo dojo and frowned when he saw Nabiki standing with half of a melted telephone receiver in her hand. She was staring down at the little girl sitting at her table in shock. Chibi-Usa had a sandwich in her hands and was eating it calmly.
"Hey. What's with her?" asked Ranma as he walked by the frozen Nabiki.
"She was trying to sell information about 'Ranma and Akane's love child' over the phone," said the little girl with a small snort.
"Oh," he said with a small shrug.
Nabiki wandered up the stairs and into her room, closing the door behind her.
"Where's your Grandfather?" asked Ranma.
"He's outside, completely wasted," said the girl as she nodded her head towards the door. "They're celebrating the eventual union of the schools."
"Let them have their moment of joy," said Ranma with a shrug.
"Yeah, whatever," said the girl.
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Nabiki frowned as she lay on her bed, staring at the names and now complete addresses in her notebook. She knew who the Sailor Senshi were. She'd called and asked about some of the rewards for the information that a few of the local papers were offering. She was pretty sure she could get the one offering ten million to double their offer.
Now the only thing bothering her was whether or not she should. If Ranma found out it was her that gave the information to the paper, she was pretty sure that he'd know where she'd gotten it from. There had to be a way around that.
She frowned and tried her best to think. The thing about anonymous tips were that they were anonymous. There would be no way for them to pay her without risking discovery. Calling wouldn't be very smart either. Especially not from here, cellular phones were to easy to pick up, especially considering all the equipment she had seen inside that building.
"I suppose I could go there and tell them in person, get cash," she muttered. It seemed to be the best solution. When though? Ranma might become suspicious if she broke from her usual routine and disappeared right before the information was made public.
She could ask for a sort of time release on the information. That wasn't reliable enough though. No reporter would sit on a story like this for more than a few hours. She racked her brain, trying to think of a way.
"This is going to be harder than I'd thought," she muttered. She knew it was very possible that she was being overly cautious. However, considering what that little brat had just done to her, it probably wasn't a bad idea.
She closed the notebook and replaced it in its hiding place, under a loose board beneath her bed. It was a problem she'd best think about for a little while before she tried anything. "I've got time I suppose. It'd be best not to wait too long though." She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, thinking of ways she could get revenge on that little thug Ranma had brought home with him.
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TBC...
Next time: Parenthood.
Part 36
The Spore
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Mousse pulled the microphone up to his face as he swung his hips and sang. "It was a night, ooh, what a night it was it really was, such a night!
Ooh, the moon was bright oh how bright it really was, it really was such a night! The night was alive with stars above. Ooh when she kissed me I had to fall in love!"
The small crowd sitting around the stage in the bar listened intently as the boy crooned his tune.
A shadowy figure in a heavy cloak sat at the bar with a drink in her hands, strands of violet hair spilled out of the hood as she sat with her back facing the show.
"You're new here, a little young aren't you?" asked King as she cleaned a glass and eyed the girl for a moment.
"Shampoo not Japanese, is okay," replied the girl as she smirked at the woman.
King shrugged. "What brings such a young face to a place like this?"
"Mousse is old friend," said the girl as she spared a quick glance at the show.
"You're here to see him?" said King as she arched her eyebrow.
"Shampoo no allowed see Mousse. He learn secret forbidden technique, and cast out of tribe," replied the girl as she turned to face the bartender with a small frown on her face. "He is dead to tribe."
"Oh," said the woman with a short nod. "What sort of technique? Not something dangerous I hope."
"He doing it now," said the young girl as she jerked her thumb back at the stage.
"Huh?" muttered King dumbly.
"King is ancient enemy of Amazon peoples," replied the girl. "Shampoo not supposed to be here, but Mousse is Shampoo's friend from child times."
"Just checking, huh?" said the woman as she seemed to understand. She still looked confused on how Elvis could be the enemy of a tribe somewhere in China.
"Yes, is best of not tell Mousse Shampoo here," said the girl as she looked at the bartender for a moment. "Mousse might be doing stupid thing, Great Grandmother not be nice if she see him again."
King frowned at that, and nodded. It was too bad; he was a good kid.
Shampoo stood up from the bar and walked towards the door after leaving the money for the drink on the counter. She paused and looked back at the stage for a moment. "Is stupid. How this enslave Amazon peoples?" She didn't understand it at all. Maybe it was just something old people were into back then or something?
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Ranma frowned as he looked at his father jumping over the wall of the Tendo dojo in terror. His mother stopped chasing him and put her Katana back into its scabbard as she turned away and walked back over to her son's side.
"Got away again?" he said lazily.
"Yes," replied Nodoka with a small sigh. "He is very good, at running away."
"Yeah, it's about all he's good at," said Ranma as he narrowed his eyes at the place the man had vanished.
"How are you and Ranko doing?" asked the woman sweetly as she picked up the cup of tea that Kasumi had set down in front of her. "Thank you Kasumi dear."
"Well enough," replied Ranma as he gave Kasumi an appreciative nod after she set down a cup in front of him as well. The girl then sat down with her own cup. "No problems really..."
"You don't sound very sure of that," said Nodoka with a slight smirk.
"It's not related to the two of us or anything. It's just been kind of hectic for me for a while now. Things seem to be calming down a bit though."
"You seem to enjoy it," said Nodoka.
"Well, I'll admit I find my fun where I can," said Ranma as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"Oh?" said the woman as she arched her eyebrow.
"You know, friends, work, blowing up planets, mass murder..." Ranma quickly put his hand over his mouth and glanced at the woman. She didn't appear to notice the slip up.
Kasumi looked at him and blinked. "Pardon?"
Nabiki, who was watching television nearby, nearly choked on her drink, but did not try to join the conversation.
"It's nothing," he said nervously while pinching his leg harshly to punish Pissant for making them say that.
"Work?" asked Nodoka. She appeared to have zoned out for a moment. "You're working?"
"Yeah. I got a job at a security agency," he said with a shrug. "It's been interesting for the most part. Keeps me busy, and it doesn't pay that badly either."
"That's nice," said his mother cheerfully.
"Um yeah," said the boy.
There was a noise in the front of the home as the door opened. "Hello?" said a feminine voice.
"Oh my! We have visitors!" exclaimed Kasumi.
Ranma watched as Kasumi walked to the front door. He turned back and saw Nodoka pulling her hand away from his cup.
"You almost spilled it dear," she said sweetly.
"Oh, sorry," he muttered.
"Ranma, you have a visitor," said Kasumi as she walked back into the room with a familiar blonde walking behind her.
"Huh?" he said as he looked up at Usagi, who was standing behind the older girl nervously. "Oh, hey meatball head, what's up?"
She paused and looked at him, the phrase seeming to register in her head for some reason she couldn't quite grasp. She shook the feeling off and spoke up. "I need to talk with you about something."
"Sure, go ahead," he said as he looked at his mother for a moment.
"In private, it's kind of personal," said the girl as she looked at the three other girls in the room and blushed.
Nabiki looked on and arched her eyebrow.
"Oh, Mom?" said the boy as he looked at his mother.
"Finish your tea dear. You shouldn't be bothered in the dojo," she said cheerfully.
"Oh, okay," said the boy with a shrug as he downed the rest of the tea, grimacing as he became almost uncomfortably warm for a moment. He then stood up and walked Usagi out into the dojo.
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"What is it? Is there some sort of problem?" said Ranma as he smirked at her. The only thing he could think of, was that the new youma had shown up, and she was here asking for help.
"Sort of...someone showed up yesterday..." ventured the girl nervously.
"Tall, blonde, insanely attractive?" he ventured. "I've already met her."
"Huh?" said the girl dumbly. "Who are you talking about?" A huge blush crossed her face as she thought about the phrase for a moment.
"You haven't met the new youma yet?" he said as he arched his eyebrow and blinked.
"Oh. I thought you meant..." stammered the girl with a slightly relieved sigh. "The other one?" she suddenly became serious.
"Yeah, I met her a few days ago," he said with a small nod. "This one is smart, very dangerous."
"This isn't about that, we'll talk about that later," said the girl with a frown on her face. "I need you to come with me. This will be easier if you see for yourself," she said nervously.
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Ami stood up as Usagi brought the confused looking Ranma into the small park where she was waiting patiently with her nose in a book. Chibi-Usa was sitting next to her looking incredibly bored.
The little girl jumped up and smiled as she saw the boy walking up to them. "Hey! It's him!"
Ami frowned as she stood up and noticed him.
Ranma went completely white as he saw the tiny pink haired girl waving at him.
"Does he already know?" thought Usagi.
"THE SPORE! IT DIES!" cried Ranma as his golden aura appeared around him. He shot foreword in an instant and ignited his lightsaber as he charged.
The blade hadn't even fully appeared when he slashed down at the little girl. To his surprise, the girl had an exact copy of his weapon in her hand, and she had blocked the strike before jumping back away from him.
"All right!" said Chibi-Usa as she held the weapon in a ready position with a huge grin on her face.
Ranma blinked. "Huh?"
The girl burst into a golden flame, and her hair suddenly changed to the same color.
"What the fuck?!" cried Ranma as he blasted foreword and slashed at the girl again. "No way! Die Spore!" he cried as he charged again.
Ami and Usagi simply watched the battle in shock. Ranma and Chibi-Usa were performing a rather acrobatic display in mid air, their arms and legs nothing more than a blur as they fought, the lightsabers drawing complex patterns in the air with the after image of the blades.
Usagi walked directly under them and screamed. "STOP IT! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!"
Chibi-Usa paused and frowned at her. "Aw Mom, You're never any fun."
"Die!" cried Ranma as he attempted to attack her while her guard was down. The little girl casually backhanded him in the face, sending him into the ground. There was a small explosion as he struck the pavement, and he slowly climbed out of the hole and shook his head.
"What the hell? No way!" he muttered dumbly as he watched the little girl float down to the ground with a smug looking smirk on her face.
"Will you stop this! This is..." started Usagi as she frowned at him.
"I know what that is! It's the Spore! The Spore is evil and must die!" he cried as he pointed at the little girl.
"Spore?" muttered Chibi-Usa as she frowned at him. "You old fart! I'll kick your ass!"
Ranma blinked and realized that something was definitely different about her. "What the hell is going on here?" he muttered dumbly.
"Her name is Chibi-Usa, she says she's from the future," said Usagi.
"She is," said Ranma as he narrowed his eyes at the girl as her aura died down.
"She says she's my daughter," continued Usagi. She seemed to be getting nervous.
"So?" muttered Ranma as he looked at her.
Usagi swallowed and looked away from him. "Our daughter."
"So you and Tux boy had an evil spawn...HUH?!" Ranma stared at the girl for a moment and then looked back at Chibi-Usa. The transformation, he'd not thought about it until now, but she was using Saotome Ryu... "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He clutched his head and fell to his knees in horror. "I'd never do anything so horrible to myself! It's a lie!"
"Horrible?" said Usagi as she glared at him.
"She's a ditz! A klutz! She's got a meatball head for god's sake!" he lamented as he looked at Usagi in horror.
The little girl frowned at him and looked at her mother, who was fuming with anger.
"Oh! I must be punishing myself in the future! What could I have done to deserve such a punishment? Well, there was that planet, but still! The horrible speeches! It'd be like marrying Kuno!"
"My speeches are not horrible!" snapped Usagi angrily. She stomped her feet on the ground and clenched her fists. Her entire face had gone red.
Chibi-Usa frowned and seemed to think about something for a moment. "Oh yeah. I'm supposed to give this to you." She walked over to where her backpack was and pulled out an envelope.
Ranma accepted it with a dumb looking expression on his face. Inside was a photo, a woman with her long blonde hair let down was sitting seductively in a skintight dress and smiling. "Whoa! Who's the babe?" he muttered.
"Turn it over," said Chibi-Usa.
"Hi, Usagi in ten years time. Do it, or we'll come back and really hurt you. Signed, Ranma Saotome, Carrot, Dan, and Pissant."
Ranma blinked. "Pissant signed this?" he muttered to himself in shock.
"What is that?" asked Usagi as she noticed the photo. "Pervert!"
"Hey! She gave it to me! It's a note," he said as he pointed at the little girl.
"Well, whoever wrote that note, should have picked a better postcard than one with some bimbo on the front!" snapped Usagi.
Ranma and Chibi-Usa looked at one another for a moment, and then burst into laughter.
"What's so funny?!" demanded Usagi.
"Private joke," said the boy as he pocketed the card and looked at her for a moment. "So, this is our daughter?"
"Yeah," snapped the little girl as she glared at him fearlessly for a moment.
"When I grow older, I'm going to spank you a whole lot," he said as he frowned at her.
"Just try it ape!" she snarled.
"Okay, I believe you," he said with a shrug.
Ami, Usagi, and Chibi-Usa blinked in unison.
"So? Now what?" asked the little girl as she looked at her parents. Usagi was still angry, she had her arms crossed in front of her chest and her nose in the air. Ranma didn't look particularly interested in the situation any longer.
"Well, you can't really stay with me," said Usagi.
"Wait a minute!" snapped Ranma as he turned to look at her. "You don't expect me to take her do you?"
"You've got that big company, my family doesn't have much money," said the girl with a shrug. "How am I going to explain this to my mother?"
"I dunno, she's a visiting cousin or something?" snorted Ranma as he turned away from the girl.
"I won't be able to have any fun if I stay with Mom," said the little girl irritably.
"Sure we would! I'll see you all the time! In fact, we'll go for ice cream, go shopping, watch movies, play video games, talk about boys..."
Chibi-Usa looked at Ranma and scowled. "I really wish I could kill her."
"It passes," he replied as he looked at the girl for a moment and smirked. "Why am I getting stuck with this? You're her mother."
"Well, it just seems easier," said Usagi with a shrug.
"I don't recall Mamoru getting stuck with her," grumbled the boy under his breath as he scowled for a moment and glanced down at the little girl. "Damn it."
"You'll do it?" said Usagi cheerfully. "Yay!"
"Come on, Spore," said Ranma as he walked off dejectedly.
"Hey! Quit calling me that you old fart!" snapped the girl as she grabbed her bag and followed him.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" asked Ami as she watched them go, arguing the whole way.
"Do you have any idea what my mother would do if I brought someone who acts like that into my house?" said Usagi as she turned to look at the girl for a moment.
"I guess you're right," said Ami with a small sigh.
+++++++++++
Pluto had the mother of all migraines. She stared into the Time Stream, her eyes bloodshot from sleeplessness. "It can't be..." she muttered to herself.
Tsuki stood beside her, watching the flow of time with the woman. "It's true. How did it happen?"
"A paradox, he created it when he was in the past!" snarled Pluto angrily. "It's too big to fix. We can't do anything about it, not from that end anyway."
"What can we do then?" asked Tsuki.
"Crystal Tokyo still exists if I exclude him. He can still be destroyed in this time," said Pluto coldly. "It's not to late."
Tsuki nodded and frowned deeply. "Understood."
+++++++++++
Ranma walked up to the gates of the dojo and looked down at the girl who was still following him. "So, how many voices do you have in your head?"
"None," she replied as she looked up at him and frowned. "It's something I inherited from you somehow."
"Huh?" said the boy as he looked at her for a moment. "But, without them..."
"I'm heavy like you are, but I've only got one mind," she said as she looked up at him seriously.
Ranma nodded and turned to open the gates. He walked into the home and walked in to see that his mother had left.
"Boy! Who is this?" said Genma as he looked down at the little girl who was standing behind his son.
Soun shuffled his newspaper and looked at the newcomer.
Nabiki was sitting with them, while Kasumi set out a small snack.
Ranma looked down at the little girl, and then back towards the others. "Her name is Chibi-Usa, she's my daughter from the future."
"How nice!" said Kasumi.
Nabiki snorted and turned away.
"Enough kidding boy!" snapped Genma.
Soun just looked confused.
"Hey kid, why don't you go spar with Grandpa," said Ranma as he turned to the little girl and smirked. "Just don't break anything important. I'm trying to save some for Mom."
"Okay," said the girl as she shrugged her shoulders and looked up at the man who loomed over her.
"Boy. This isn't funneeeeeeeeee!!!" He sailed through the porch door and into the yard as the little girl punched him in the gut and charged into the yard after him.
Akane walked out of her room and looked at the scene for a moment. "Who's that?"
Nabiki's jaw was hanging down as she watched the little girl thrash the old man quite soundly.
"My daughter from the future," said Ranma with a shrug.
"Huh?" said Akane as she looked at him, thinking she misunderstood him.
"Oh! Akane! You've made me very proud! Mothering a daughter to carry on the school this way! Tell me, does she have any brothers?" He looked at Ranma and grabbed him by his shoulders.
"I dunno, she hasn't said," he replied with a shrug. Genma sailed through the air, passing by the porch again just beside them.
"Daughter?" muttered Akane.
Soun grabbed her in a rough hug and wailed loudly.
Ranma smirked at her while the man's back was turned and mouthed the words, "Not yours," to her.
She nodded and pat the man on his back.
Chibi-Usa dusted off her hands and glared down at the battered form of her grandfather. "Can't you do any better than that, you fat bastard?" She snorted and turned back into the home.
Genma groaned painfully. "I knew Akane would be a fine choice for a mother. If his daughter is this strong, imagine what his sons will be like!" he thought to himself through the pain.
+++++++++++
Ranma sighed as he sat at the counter of the Ucchan and hung his head.
The girl was flipping an Okonomiyaki over when she noticed his state. "Bad day?"
"You don't know the half of it," muttered the boy.
"I imagine I don't," she replied with a shrug.
"Do you ever have a really bad day, and realize that you're pretty sure that it isn't going to get any better?"
"Of course," she snapped while glaring at him. "It was all your fault too."
"Oh," he said with a small nervous laugh. "Sorry."
"I suppose I can't really blame you for that," she amended reluctantly.
"Yeah, well..." he muttered as he looked away. "Sorry anyway."
"Here, pay, eat, leave," she said as she put his plate down.
Ranma blinked, and then did exactly that.
++++++++++
Ranma walked into the Tendo dojo and frowned when he saw Nabiki standing with half of a melted telephone receiver in her hand. She was staring down at the little girl sitting at her table in shock. Chibi-Usa had a sandwich in her hands and was eating it calmly.
"Hey. What's with her?" asked Ranma as he walked by the frozen Nabiki.
"She was trying to sell information about 'Ranma and Akane's love child' over the phone," said the little girl with a small snort.
"Oh," he said with a small shrug.
Nabiki wandered up the stairs and into her room, closing the door behind her.
"Where's your Grandfather?" asked Ranma.
"He's outside, completely wasted," said the girl as she nodded her head towards the door. "They're celebrating the eventual union of the schools."
"Let them have their moment of joy," said Ranma with a shrug.
"Yeah, whatever," said the girl.
++++++++++++
Nabiki frowned as she lay on her bed, staring at the names and now complete addresses in her notebook. She knew who the Sailor Senshi were. She'd called and asked about some of the rewards for the information that a few of the local papers were offering. She was pretty sure she could get the one offering ten million to double their offer.
Now the only thing bothering her was whether or not she should. If Ranma found out it was her that gave the information to the paper, she was pretty sure that he'd know where she'd gotten it from. There had to be a way around that.
She frowned and tried her best to think. The thing about anonymous tips were that they were anonymous. There would be no way for them to pay her without risking discovery. Calling wouldn't be very smart either. Especially not from here, cellular phones were to easy to pick up, especially considering all the equipment she had seen inside that building.
"I suppose I could go there and tell them in person, get cash," she muttered. It seemed to be the best solution. When though? Ranma might become suspicious if she broke from her usual routine and disappeared right before the information was made public.
She could ask for a sort of time release on the information. That wasn't reliable enough though. No reporter would sit on a story like this for more than a few hours. She racked her brain, trying to think of a way.
"This is going to be harder than I'd thought," she muttered. She knew it was very possible that she was being overly cautious. However, considering what that little brat had just done to her, it probably wasn't a bad idea.
She closed the notebook and replaced it in its hiding place, under a loose board beneath her bed. It was a problem she'd best think about for a little while before she tried anything. "I've got time I suppose. It'd be best not to wait too long though." She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, thinking of ways she could get revenge on that little thug Ranma had brought home with him.
++++++++++++++
TBC...
Next time: Parenthood.