The cursed training ground, Jusenkyo. Hundreds if not thousands of pools of water hidden away in a remote valley in the Byankala mountain ranges. Each with it's own tale of woe and tragedy, a grave to whatever animal or being that first fell into them and drowned.
From then on, any being who falls into the pools are cursed to with a splash of cold water take the form of the being who drowned there. Hot water changes you back, but only temporarily.
Ranma had been dragged there by at the time his father Genma, who either did not know of the danger or simply did not care. They both had fallen prey to the pools.
What Ranma didn't know, was that a curse would be the greatest gift they'd ever been given.
For his entire life Ranma had felt... off. Like he wasn't comfortable in his own skin. Something was fundamentally wrong even if he didn't have the words to describe it.
But then she'd popped out of the pools with red hair, a much higher voice and a fantastic rack.
She'd been terrified, of course. No one takes that kind of change lying down. But beneath that...
Elation. It felt right.
Genma had spent the entirety of his life hammering home the superiority of women over men. They were only good to cook and clean while the men did the work. How a woman would never be as powerful as a man.
And sure, he'd paid lip service to that idea, if just to shut his father up. But he'd never really believed it. Not after he'd met her.
Rose Quartz. How wonderful to have a name after all these years.
The two martial artists were as good as dead when she'd arrived, driving the vaguely octopus shaped creature back with an ease that at the time astonished the young Ranma. The thing was pounding his dad into the dirt. And this strange, beautiful woman had pasted it in turn.
What Rose Quartz did that day, without meaning to, changed everything.
She left something in Ranma. Something small but so important.
Doubt.
Genma had said all those horrible things about women, but here was very much a woman destroying the monster that had nearly killed him.
If she could do that, then his father must be wrong. And if he were wrong about that...
What else was he wrong about? Maybe being a girl... wouldn't be so bad?
Ranma had quashed that thought as soon as it crossed their mind.
It hadn't lasted.
Even then, deep down, she knew it wouldn't.
"Unacceptable. Unacceptable! Absolutely unacceptable!"
Ranma sighed as she watched Pearl pace back and forth in Steven's living room, gesticulating wildly, contrasted hilariously with Steven's happy bustling back and forth in the kitchen whipping up something or other.
Amethyst was sat on the bench on Ranma's left, Garnet sat attentively on the couch.
"Calm down. It's nothing to worry about." She said wearily, slumping back onto the kitchen counter from the stool she sat on.
It was funny in a way. Most people's reaction to Ranma telling them about the pools of Jusenkyo and it's many curses was wide eyed wonder and disbelief. Not panic.
"Nothi-nothing to worry about?!" Pearl spluttered, shooting her a look. "A massive reservoir of chaotic magic just lying around unguarded is 'nothing to worry about'!?"
"A 'massive reservoir of chaotic magic' that you'd never heard of before." Ranma said pointedly.
That at least stopped the Gem pacing.
"Look, it's not as big a deal as it sounds." Ranma said. "The pools only effect the tribes who live around it and the odd martial artist. And those two are ridiculously insular. It's fine, relax."
Pearl looked unconvinced.
"She's got a point P." Amethyst said. "If it were gonna be a problem we would have heard about it before now. Besides, I wanna hear more about this 'curse' thing. It sounds rad."
Ranma shrugged. "Not the word I'd use. But shoot."
"So you got one of these things yea?" Amethyst asked.
Ranma nodded. "Yep. I fell into the nyannichuan, or the Spring of Drowned Girl."
"So what, you're a dude that turns into a chick? That's boring." Amethyst said.
Ranma barked a laugh, but there was a bitter tinge to it it.
"Boring. That's a new one." She muttered.
"Well, yea. You can just change shape yea? I mean I turn into stuff all the time. I'm still me!" Amethyst said, demonstrating by quickly shifting into a small dog and giving a quick doggy wave.
"Huh." Ranma paused, taking a couple moments to soak that in. "That's neat. Unfortunately, most people don't share that opinion. And I used to be able to change. Can't any more. Had it locked."
Amethyst cocked her head in surprise. "Really? Why? It's awesome. Why give that up?"
Ranma sighed. "I'll toss that back with another question. You guys aren't human, are you?"
The gems shot each other nervous looks.
"Well... I mean I wouldn't-" Pearl tried to explain.
"Oh don't worry, no big deal I've seen weirder." Ranma interrupted. "But how much interaction would you say you've had with humans?"
"Until recently, almost none." Garnet said.
"Right. Of course not." Ranma muttered to herself. "Look it's... complicated. Long and short of it is, I'm trans. It's a whole mess of feelings and societal expectations that I'm in no mood to try and explain. Basically, I was a boy, now I'm a woman. I'm quite happy with it and don't ever want to go back, and I'd appreciate if you referred to me as such."
"Okay!" Steven answered instantly, dragging the rooms attention back to him. He carefully placed a tasty looking stack of pancakes in front of his guest with a beaming smile.
Ranma looked at him for a second. "Well." She said at length. "I've... not had it go that well for a while."
A look of confusion passed over Steven's face. "Why? If that's what makes you happier, why wouldn't we?"
Ranma barked another laugh, but the bitterness from earlier was absent. "You'd think. Thanks Steven. You're a good kid." She said, reaching over and ruffling his hair.
"Aww, why does everyone always do that!" Steven pouted. Ranma chuckled slightly and tucked into her kindly provided meal.
"But anyway. Yea. Pools ain't going anywhere. Don't worry about em. Any trouble that does come from that god-forsaken valley is my business and I'll handle it myself. That help?" Ranma said through a mouthful of pancakes.
Pearl looked... unconvinced.
"I just don't know..." She said. "It's... a lot to take in all at once."
Ranma nodded. "Mmm. That it is."
"Alright."
All eyes turned to Garnet.
"Ranma's right. If it were going to be a problem, we'd have heard about it. Lets leave it in her hands." She said.
"Sounds good to me." Amethyst said with a nonchalant nod.
Pearl still looked hesitant, but nodded as well. "Okay Garnet. If that's what you think is best."
"Good. Ranma."
"Hmm?" Ranma grunted through another mouthful of pancake.
Garnet stood, walked over to the middle of the room, and bowed deeply to Ranma.
"Please, teach me."
Ranma paused, ignoring the sudden shouts of surprise from the other Gems. She very carefully finished her mouthful, set her fork down and turned in her chair to face the taller woman fully.
"And... why exactly would I do that?"
She didn't move. She simply cocked an eyebrow, but something in the air changed. It was as if a weight settled on the Gem's shoulders, pressing them with the force of this small woman's very presence. None felt it more than Garnet, who almost struggled to raise her head to meet Ranma's eyes.
She almost regretted it. Her ice blue gaze was almost surgical in the way it seemed to cut deeply into Garnet's being, looking for something. It was almost like being back on the floor of the Sky Arena the day of her birth, dissected by the overwhelming force that was Blue Diamond's very being, turned directly, inexorably, on her.
But she was not that woman any longer. She needed no Rose Quartz to save her here. So she raised herself high and met Ranma's gaze full on.
"Uh, what's going on?!" Amethyst yelped, before being cut off by Garnet's warding hand.
"I wasn't strong enough today. I never want to have that happen again." Garnet explained.
Ranma scoffed. "So you want to get stronger. Big deal, so does damn near everyone. I haven't taught in over a decade and we met like five minutes ago, why the hell would I teach you."
Garnet took a moment before she responded.
"Fight for life on the planet Earth, defend all human beings, even the ones that you don't understand, believe in love that is out of anyone's control, and then risk everything for it." She quoted.
"That was Rose's manifesto for the Crystal Gems, and we have lived it since. We have defended this planet for over five thousand years. We rebelled against our homeworld for this planet, and today I failed. We nearly lost Steven. I wasn't enough and there are even stronger out there on this planet and off. With Rose Quartz there was nothing that could stop us but she is gone now. I'm all that's left. I cant stay as strong as I am, I need to be better. Not just for my sake, but the sake of my friends and this planet."
They stayed like that for a moment, as Garnet sat in judgement by the one being on the planet that could help her and refused to bend.
And then all at once, Ranma turned away. The pressure released, locked back away behind Ranma's iron-clad control.
She propped her head up on her hands, staring at the bench in front of her. "You don't know what you're asking of me..." She said quietly. "I have enemies. Powerful enemies. If it were just me I'd not be worried, but they aren't afraid to drag innocents into our fights. There's a reason I don't stay in one place for too long. People around me aren't safe."
"So do we." Garnet said simply. "But ours can destroy planets. If it means saving the earth from Homeworld, then its worth the risk. Please. Train me."
Ranma sighed deeply, and eventually shook her head. She was deeply conflicted. She liked this messy bunch. Garnet would actually be a very promising student and her reasoning was sound. But most of all, she was thinking of Rose Quartz. She quite literally wouldn't be the woman she was if not for her. She owed her a debt for that, even if the Gem had never known it.
"God dammit- Fine. We start at dawn."
Sleep was slow to release it's tender hold on Steven. Late nights watching lonely blade took their toll.
The soft light of early morning was what had woken him, spilling in from the curtain he'd forgotten to close.
A glance at the clock brought a groan. Six thirty am. Too early.
Well, he was awake now. May as well make the most of it.
Eventually he dragged himself out of bed, and blearily ran through his morning routine. He was absently frying some bacon when Garnet came flying through the window.
She smashed through the glass, bounced once on the floor before slamming into the temple wall at the back of the house.
"Sorry!" Ranma's voice floated in from the newly made hole in Steven's wall. She waved sheepishly. "I can fix this. Oh is that bacon-woah!"
Ranma was cut off by a recovered Garnet flying at her. She dived backwards and kicked out with both feet, sending Garnet sailing off back to the beach.
Ranma flipped back to standing, waved at Steven, and gave chase with a shouted "Save me some!"
Steven blinked. Once, twice.
Still not really awake, he turned back to the stove. Looks like he'd have to cook more bacon.
Ranma had been staying with them for two weeks.
From dawn until midday, every day, Ranma put Garnet through a training routine that would kill a normal human.
She'd asked for this, Garnet kept having to remind herself. She'd quite literally asked for it.
But it was hard to remember that when she was flat on her back, exhausted beyond belief and staring at the supremely smug face of her red-headed teacher.
"Gotta admit, you're fun to punt around. Been a while since I've had a sparring partner who could take a hit ya' know?" She said. "That being said, it's not really sparring when you cant land a punch now is it?"
Garnet didn't reply, still trying to recover from the nasty haymaker that had put her on her back in the first place.
"Now I know what you're thinking. 'Ranma, why don't you actually train me instead of beating my ass up and down this beach?'" She said. "And the answer to that is, you suck."
She chuckled as Garnet managed to glare at her from behind her sunglasses.
"I can tell that you've never had a teacher. You came by your skills on your own, right?"
"That's right... Battlefields mostly." Garnet panted.
"Figured. And taught yourself to fight, but its not pretty. Your movements are sloppy, you rely far too much on what I assume is your natural strength to carry you. You're stronger than most around I'll give you that, but against someone who simply out speeds you... Well. Your ass, up and down the beach."
She shook her head.
"So, I've got to train all your what, thousands? Yea thousands of years of bad habits out before I can build you again. And that's even saying the same things that work in training a human would even work on you. I doubt you have actual muscles, going by how your ki looks. Easy, Right? So I'm going to keep kicking your ass, punishing your mistakes each and every time until you learn. Aren't you excited?! It'll be a learning experience for both of us."
Garnet just groaned, letting her head plunk down onto the sand.
Author's note:
Hehe, uhh. Hey everyone. So... I'm back?
Yea I dont really have an excuse. A lot changed for the worse and better in my personal life and well. Fanfic was a backseat. But hey, we here now. Have a chapter. Hopefully the next isn't as long a wait. Thank you everyone for the support, it meant a lot.