Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns all rights to Ranma and Co. I just like borrowing her characters!

Notes: Sorry this took so long, I had to write in spurts since I got tendonitis in my elbow which was pinching a nerve and causing my fingers to go numb on me. I really have been trying! :) Although this chapter is mostly filler, I hope you still enjoy!

Thanks to all for sticking it out with me!

Now on with it...

--

It had been another long day at Furinkan High and Akane and Ranma were glad to be home and away from the antics of one Tatewaki Kuno. He had been as relentless as usual in his efforts to woo Akane, much to her eternal annoyance. Not even kicking him into the stratosphere two or three times was enough to deter him.

She gave a slight sigh as she seated herself next to Ranma, who had joined Jin in the yard by the koi pond. They all sat quietly for a moment, each enjoying some of Kasumi's freshly squeezed lemonade. Soon after, Ranma began filling Jin in on the events from the night before.

"And these images began when Saotome touched you?" he asked, turning his attention toward Akane.

She nodded thoughtfully at his question. "Hai."

"I see," the Chinese boy replied, a look of concentration forming on his handsome face. He had heard of this kind of phenomenon before of course. It was well known that a certain family in his tribe had been blessed with the gift of second sight. At least one descendent in every generation had reported having the ability. As to why Akane had suddenly developed this talent he had no clue.

"My best guess is that it was something you held all along," he told her. "You just weren't aware of it. The shock and fury brought on by your discovery of Ryoga's betrayal probably acted as a catalyst to waking the dormant gift." He turned towards Ranma then. "You said you'd never seen her so angry correct?"

Ranma nodded instantly. "Yeah, that white light in her aura was never there before. I was afraid it might burn me it was so bright."

"Yes," Jin concurred. "It would make sense then that this light is the trigger to Akane having her visions, and it was brought on by the sudden and brutal shock to her system." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "I would also have to say that the sense of touch then focused the images to a particular group."

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked, looking intrigued.

"Well," Jin began. "I would venture to guess that if Hibiki had been the one to touch her, the visions would have been quite different."

"How so?"

"For one, they most likely would have focused on particular events surrounding him instead of you, since he would have been the source she was drawing upon at the time. In other words the visions related to the person or object that was being touched."

Ranma pondered this for a moment. "Do you think she could learn to control it?"

"Control it, no," Jin quickly answered. "Focus it, possibly. My grandfather used to say that people with this gift are shown only what they are meant to see. The visions will probably come at random, usually with a precursor, such as a certain smell or taste."

"The buzzing noise," Akane said absently to no one in particular.

"Excuse me?"

She smiled slightly at Jin's confusion. "There was a buzzing noise in my head just before it happened," she confessed.

Jin merely nodded. "Yes, that's a typical precursor. Don't be surprised if you start to experience others though. Certain smells are often common."

Great, Akane thought. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It's not as if I don't have enough to worry about.

"You think there will be more of them then?" she inquired, already knowing the answer, but wanting to confirm it anyway.

Jin gave her a sympathetic look. "I know this is a lot to take in Akane. I won't lie to you. I think it's almost a certainty. If the gift was lying dormant, it's not anymore."

She nodded absently at the expected reply.

He put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I know it may not seem so right now, but it is a gift Akane," he assured her. "You were chosen for a reason. Not everyone is special enough to receive it." He gave her a soft smile of encouragement. It was infectious and she couldn't help but smile back.

Ranma felt the familiar spark of jealousy at the exchange, but said nothing.

"And since it can obviously be triggered by touch," he pointed out. "You should also be able to learn how to conjure the images by contact with a subject or with an object they might have touched."

Akane's eyes widened in obvious wonder at the prospect. "And you think I'll be able to do that?"

"I don't see why not," he replied sincerely. "As long as you remember that there is no guarantee of what you'll see. You'll only get what you're meant to get. Understand?"

Akane nodded, this time with more enthusiasm. "Hai."

Ranma noted the tone of eagerness in her voice and was glad for it. Things would go much smoother for her if she embraced this new found talent rather than resist it out of fear.

He watched his fiancée closely, wondering if she was at all worried about Ryoga, despite telling him to leave last night. There was still no sign of the lost boy, and although this wasn't unusual for Ryoga, it still left Ranma with an uneasy feeling. What if Cologne had found him and had taken advantage of his obvious vulnerability?

Ranma didn't like to think that Ryoga would join forces with the old ghoul, yet he'd never seen his rival so completely and utterly defeated the way he had last night. At this point he had to assume anything was possible. It was another worry he'd have to deal with and he didn't like it. He didn't like it at all.

He voiced his concern to Jin as soon as Akane excused herself to change for their afternoon workout.

"I see what you mean," Jin had answered, his brow furrowing in contemplation. "We could always have Akane try to pick up on his whereabouts. Do you have something of his lying around?"

Ranma shook his head. "Even if I did I don't think Akane would be too eager to find him. Right now she wants nothing to do with him. In fact the suggestion that he might team up with Cologne will probably only encourage her urge for vengeance. A little payback ya know?"

Jin nodded slowly. "I see your point."

Ranma let out a wholehearted sigh. "I don't think he'd do it if he were thinking clearly, even then I have to wonder if he could bring himself to harm Akane. Of course I wouldn't put it past Cologne to slip him some mind control substance. If that's the case…" Ranma shook his head ruefully. "We're really going to have our work cut out for us. Ryoga is formidable. He nearly matches me in skill."

Jin looked thoughtful as he took in this bit of information. "It is unfortunate, he said finally. "But it changes nothing. Cologne still has to be taken down. We still need to go forward with our plan. We'll just have to keep our eyes open."

"And if Ryoga informs Cologne of our plan?" Ranma interjected, giving Jin a serious look.

"It still changes nothing Saotome," Jin's voice was hard, almost cold.

Ranma's brow furrowed at the tone. Although he knew where Jin's rage stemmed from—he'd felt the same when he thought he'd lost Akane—he couldn't help but wonder if, so driven by his vendetta, Jin weren't becoming completely blind to their safety. He thought it was time to give the Chinese boy a little reality check.

"It changes everything," he said firmly, finally catching the other boy's attention. "If she knows she'll be prepared, and we need to keep her off guard. Our best bet to pull this off is to have the element of surprise. Surely you realize that."

When the Chinese boy remained silent Ranma pressed on.

"I'm sorry about what happened to you and your girl," he said, his tone growing a bit softer, but still holding his serious tone. "I know you want revenge, believe me, I know, but I have my girl to think about here. I can't go racing in blindly and putting her in more danger."

Jin returned Ranma's sentiment with a tone that was just as serious.

"Something tells me Akane will be able to take care of herself."

Ranma frowned about to say that this was not the point, when Jin cut him off.

"Look Saotome," he said calmly, rationally. "I realize the stakes here. I don't want to put Akane in danger any more than you do, but we have no choice here. Cologne won't stop and neither can we."

Ranma was about to protest when the look Jin was giving him halted him in his tracks. He let out a heavy sigh. He knew deep down that Jin was right but that didn't mean he had to like it.

"Fine," Ranma said finally. "As long as you don't let your desire for revenge put us all at risk. That means we stick together at all times, and watch each other's back. Agreed?"

Jin nodded. "Agreed."

"I guess you should also know this too," Ranma went on. "I'm almost positive that Shampoo was here last night."

Jin's eyes narrowed at the revelation. "You saw her?"

"No," Ranma answered. "But my training has amplified my senses, and I definitely sensed someone last night. I'm pretty sure it was Shampoo."

Jin grimaced at the sound of the Amazon's name. "That settles it," he said. "We can't wait anymore. We have to strike first. You're right, the less opportunity we give her to prepare the better."

"We need to find her first," Ranma pointed out.

"Yes," Jin admitted, looking thoughtful for a moment. "I can always try scrying for her."

"Scrying?" Ranma asked, his confusion evident.

Jin nodded again and pulled from his tunic a long silver chain. At the end sat a flawless diamond shaped crystal. Ranma stared at it fascinated. Was it his imagination or did it seem to be glowing?

"My grandfather gave it to me," Jin explained, smiling slightly as he noticed Ranma's captivated look. "It's a great locating tool. All I need is a map of the area and I can pinpoint Cologne's location."

Ranma shook his head in awe. "Well, that's no problem," he told Jin. "Pop still has plenty of those stashed upstairs. We used to travel a lot before we settled here."

Jin smiled and nodded. "Good."

"What's good?" It was Akane's voice. She had once again come outside to join them, all freshly changed into her yellow gi for their afternoon workout. She looked much more relaxed than she had earlier that morning and Ranma was glad for it. He'd hated seeing her so upset last night.

"We'll explain later," Jin told her. "Come on let's get in one last workout."

"One?" she asked as Jin walked past her. She gave Ranma a questioning stare.

"I'll fill you in on the way," Ranma said taking her hand and pulling her along behind him. Akane followed silently too stunned to protest.

"You know," Jin suggested as they made their way to the park. "If you are concerned about Cologne getting to Ryoga, you might want to ask Mousse if he would consider joining our cause, even up the odds so to speak."

Ranma nearly tripped over the suggestion. "No way!"

"It's just a suggest—"

"—I said no way!" Ranma cut off the Chinese boy immediately. "Forget it!"

"Ranma…" Akane tried to soothe him.

"No!"

"Alright," Jin said calmly, his tone merely grating against Ranma's nerves. "Just think about it okay?"

Ranma grimaced. He would think about it all right, and how it was never going to happen.

--

Mousse sneezed several times in rapid succession.

"Geez," Ukyo said, handing him a tissue. "Hope you're not coming down with something."

He accepted the tissue gladly. "Thanks Ukyo."

"Anytime sugar," she said, smiling slightly before moving off to help another customer.

Mousse watched her go, grateful for the fact that there were at least a few people who still cared enough about his well being. The other of course, sat across from him now, although if you had told him a week ago that he would be having lunch alongside Nabiki Tendo he would have said you were crazy.

They had been coming to Ucchan's every day while Ranma and the others trained. And although he still didn't fully trust Nabiki's motives for befriending him, he had to admit he was enjoying her company.

Still, his thoughts were never far from Shampoo, and what Cologne might be putting her up to. He knew if Ranma had his way he wouldn't be allowed to accompany them on their quest, but even Saotome didn't always get what he wanted.

Mousse still remembered what Nabiki had told him—it seemed so long ago now—that he had deserved better than someone like Shampoo, and maybe that was so, but it still didn't change the fact that he didn't want to see her hurt. Especially when he knew it was primarily Cologne's influence that drove her into doing the things she did.

He had no doubt that Ranma would kill Shampoo if he thought she'd try and hurt Akane again. He'd witnessed firsthand how much the Tendo girl had meant to Saotome in his battle with Saffron. He was willing to take down a whole mountain, and might have if Akane hadn't come back to him. He'd often wondered what would have happened had she not. He didn't think it would have been pretty.

If nothing else, he wanted the chance to try and talk some sense into Shampoo. Even though he was beginning to realize they might not be meant for each other, he still cared about what happened to her. He knew all too well that she could be her own worst enemy at times. If it looked like she was going to fail in her quest to make Saotome hers, there was no telling what crazy thing she might try. He had to stop her, had to make her see things clearly before it was too late. Before someone ended up seriously hurt, and all any of them had left were a bunch of deep seeded regrets.

Mousse was suddenly jolted from his reverie, when he heard Nabiki give a stark yell, as she called over to a sharply dressed young man who had just entered the restaurant.

"Kenji! Over here!"

Mousse watched as the gentleman turned in their direction. His handsome face lighting up when he saw Nabiki. She scooted over in the booth to make room for him, and he slid gracefully into the seat beside her.

"It's been a long time Nabiki-chan," he said smiling. "Too long."

She nodded in reciprocation. "Kenji Nagano, I'd like you to meet my good friend Mousse."

He nodded and held out his hand for Mousse to shake. After a moment the Chinese boy also nodded, reaching over to clasp the other man's hand, wondering all the while what Nabiki was up to this time.

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Kenji asked, turning his attention back to her, his curiosity more than a little peaked. He'd been pleasantly surprised when he'd gotten the call to join her for lunch.

"I hear through the grapevine that you're looking for a new investment opportunity," she replied, coming right to the point. Kenji couldn't help but smile. He had to love Nabiki's no nonsense attitude. It had, after all, netted him more than one financial windfall.

"What did you have in mind?" He asked, trying not to sound too eager.

With the slight smile still on her face, she carefully slid her plate towards him. "Go ahead," she encouraged. "Try it."

With a puzzled look he obliged her.

Nabiki watched as his eyes lit up in amazement, pleased with his reaction.

"What do you think?"

She smiled as he nodded enthusiastically. "I have to admit, this is pretty amazing," he said. "I've never tasted okonomiyaki this good."

"Good enough to start a franchise perhaps?" Nabiki suggested.

"Now wait a minute Nabiki…"

"Imagine it Kenji," she said, silencing his doubts. "Tokyo would eat this up. It's a goldmine waiting to happen."

"Okay," Kenji conceded. "But what makes you think the owner wants to expand?"

Nabiki smiled brightly, "Because she happens to be a close personal friend of mine."

"And you would consider it a huge favor…"

He watched as Nabiki smiled, putting on her best persuasive look. "Just talk to her okay?"

He hesitated for a moment than sighed and nodded in defeat. "Okay Nabiki," he said finally. "For you I will." He watched the triumphant smile light her face and couldn't help smiling in return. Truth be told, she had rarely steered him wrong. If she thought it was a good investment then he trusted her judgment

He watched as Nabiki called out to the dark haired girl behind the grill, motioning her over with a wave of her hand. The chef smiled brightly as she obliged her friend, taking instant note of the dark haired stranger who sat beside her with much interest.

"Hey Nabiki," she said when she'd reached the table. "Did you need something else?"

"Just a minute if you've got it," she replied, throwing a glance around the restaurant. Although still crowded, it looked as though a slight lull had begun to settle in.

"Sure thing," Ukyo replied, giving another quick glance towards the handsome stranger. Nabiki could swear that she saw Ukyo flush slightly, and smiled inwardly at the prospect.

She slid in beside Mousse, who moved over slightly to make room for her.

"Kenji Nagano," Nabiki said. "I'd like you to meet the owner of this establishment, and its cook, Ukyo Kuonji."

He gave her a dazzling smile, one that reminded her of Ranma's own. And like Ranma's smile, she was surprised to find it affecting her in much the same way, as her heartbeat began to pick up slightly.

"Nice to meet you Ukyo," he told her. "I hear from Nabiki here that you are looking to expand your establishment. Is that true?"

Ukyo's eyes lit up at the suggestion. She threw a quick glance in Nabiki's direction before nodding in the affirmative.

"I would love to," she told Kenji. "It's been a dream of mine for awhile, but I don't have the resources right now to be able to do so."

He nodded with understanding. "I happen to be an investment broker," he told her. "Perhaps we could work something out. Of course I'd like to discuss it further with you. Perhaps set up a sample tasting for my partners. Is there a time you'd be free for such a thing?"

"I'll make time sugar," she said, her excitement growing.

"Alright then," he said, reaching for his wallet and deftly plucking out one of his business cards. "Just give me a call at that number and we'll set something up."

Ukyo accepted the outstretched card with slightly shaking hands. The tremble became more pronounced as his fingers brushed ever so lightly against hers. Nabiki watched the exchange with much interest. There had been a definite spark there. She noticed by the expression on Kenji's face that he'd felt it too. She smiled inwardly. This was turning out better than she could have hoped for.

Kenji stood then and bid them all a good night, as he made his way toward the front door. Ukyo watched him go, the feeling of depression that had descended upon her since Ranma's confession lifting slightly. Suddenly the world didn't seem so dark anymore. She could see a real future for herself, and with it a hope that she could finally move on.

"Well, I'd better get back to work," she said finally. She then turned her attention toward Nabiki, an unmistakable look of gratitude lighting her face. "Thank you."

Nabiki shooed her appreciation away with a wave of her hand. "You realize if you do work something out I get a ten percent finders fee."

Ukyo couldn't help but smile at that. It was typical Nabiki and she loved her for it.

"Thanks anyway," she insisted, still smiling. Nabiki returned it with one of her own.

"Sure thing."

Mousse watched the exchange in silence, glad to see Ukyo looking happy for a change. He had been worried about her, watching her going through the motions day after day, without that usual joy she got from cooking and serving her dishes. He had also seen the way she had looked at Kenji, not to mention the way the man had admired her. He hoped it was the start of something good for her. She deserved at least that.

"Can I get you another Okonomiyaki Mousse?" Her voice startled him out of his thoughts, as he smiled slightly and politely declined.

She gave a slight nod before getting up and scurrying back behind the grill.

"That was a nice thing you did," Mousse said once Ukyo was gone. "Careful Nabiki," he teased. "People might start to think you have a heart."

"Nah," she said, with a shake of her head. "I wasn't kidding about the finder's fee."

Mousse simply smiled at this. She could say what she wanted, but he was getting to know the real Nabiki, and there was no denying he liked what he saw.

--

Anyway, there it is... drop me a line if you want to let me know what you thought. :)