Blessed

Blessed

Prologue 1: Beatitas et Lumina

By Libby Thomas (libby@bluebellknoll.com)

 

Based on characters owned by Rumiko Takahashi and Naoko Takuechi

Series idea by Little Michi, based on A Duet of Pigtails by Libby Thomas

 

Tsukino Usagi looked at her friends for the last time.  With disdain, she

tossed the lunar pen to the floor, her symbol as Sailor Moon.  "I'm done.

*We're* done.  It's over."  Strangely enough, for the first time ever, there

was no sorrow or tears in her blue eyes, the only emotion now being one of

contained anger.  For the first time in her life, Tsukino Usagi was

genuinely angry, and the reason for it was as old as anger itself.

 

"Usako," Mamoru said, holding his hand out to her, his eyes filling with

tears.        "It was a mistake.  A stupid, selfish mistake, but I didn't mean to

hurt you!"

 

At his side, her eyes already pouring out her sorrow, Rei couldn't even face

her closest friend.  She'd give her life if she could to erase what had

occurred, but the damage was already done, and everything they knew would

suffer for it.

 

Behind them all, a stately distance away, the rest of the Senshi stood,

unbelieving what was transpiring.  To Ami, Makoto and Minako, it was the end

of the world; the loss of their queen but just as much their closest friend.

To the majority of the Outers, it wasn't as earth-shattering, but it still

wasn't good.  Setsuna however, seemed the most lost, as for her it meant not

only the destruction of all her plans since time began, but moreso the loss

of Chibi-usa, the child that had so brought so much joy to her life.

 

Instinctively, Rei raced forward, enveloping the blonde pigtailed girl in a

desperate embrace.  Bawling, she all but shouted, "Please, don't leave,

Usagi-chan!  We didn't mean it!  We didn't mean it!"

 

"Let go of me, you bitch." Usagi's voice was a dark growl, a seething tone

that was so cold one would have thought she was taking lessons in etiquette

from Beryl.

 

"Usagi, please listen to reason--"

 

*"I SAID LET GO OF ME!"*  There was a pulse of white light and Rei found

herself thrown back several feet, finally to crash painfully against the

tree in front of the shrine.  Looking up with glazed eyes, she saw Usagi

standing there, furious as hell and her fist enveloped in a magic aura.

Usagi, the Light Messiah, had finally used her magic for the power of force,

had finally learned what it meant to hate.

 

*"I HATE YOU!!!!"* she screamed at Rei, then turned that rage on Mamoru.

*"I HATE BOTH OF YOU!!!!  I LOVED YOU BOTH AND IN RETURN FOR IT, YOU TWO

BETRAYED ME!!!  EVERYTHING IS OVER!!!"*  With a flicker of her hand, the

Ginzuisho appeared in her hand and she made a vow:  "I Tsukino Usagi, also

known as Sailor Moon and Princess Serenity--"

 

Somehow, Ami knew what was about to happen.  *"No, Usagi-chan, don't!"* she

shouted, pleading.  She bolted forward and the other two followed

immediately, hoping to stop the end of everything they knew.

 

Undaunted, Usagi continued.  "--hereby renounce my throne and my position as

Sailor Moon.  I understand that as part of the line of the moon, I must

continue to be the keeper of the Ginzuisho, but that power will never again

see the light of day."  She looked at them all, her face holding a puzzling

emotion.  "Farewell, all of you.  We shall never meet again."

 

At the completion of her words, there was an explosion of dazzling, blinding

light and when it ended, Tsukino Usagi was gone.  Where she stood was her

Sailor Moon fuku and the lunar pen, abandoned just as she felt all had

abandoned her.         Ami bent down and picked up the uniform then held it close

to her, crying uncontrollably; Minako hugged her friend for support but it

was an empty one as she too began to weep.

 

Makoto, her own eyes blinking from the sting of tears, looked at Mamoru with

anger and disgust.  "I hope you're happy.  Your own selfishness and

stupidity caused this. You two have destroyed everything!"  She reached

over and slapped the man who would someday be the High King, her anger at a

dark crescendo.  She didn't care what happened next; nothing mattered

anymore.

 

Mamoru took the slap, not really noticing it.  The woman he loved was done

from his life forever, and it was entirely his fault.  ((I have made a

mistake, and the world will pay for it.  I am not deserving of my future.))

 

Meanwhile, Rei found herself staring at the fury of two of the Outers.

Haruka and Michiru, united as always, looked at Rei with complete hatred.

"Everything we've accomplished, and you had to go destroy it just because

you and Mamoru couldn't keep your pants on."

 

Rei didn't answer, didn't do anything but look at the space where Usagi had

been, a landmark to her own selfishness.  It had been her own desire for

Mamoru that she'd controlled for so long, but in the end, could no longer

contain.  It had been that very same lust that had led her to seduce him,

not caring if he was the intended of her best friend; she wanted him and was

filled with that insatiable need.  Unfortunately, she hadn't known that

Usagi had a key to Mamoru's apartment, and when she caught them both in bed,

the damage had been done.

 

A distance from them all, Luna turned to Artemis, her heart breaking.  "What

do we do now?"

 

"I don't know," he admitted, as both cats watched an uncertain future

unfold.  "I don't know."

 

* * *

 

"Ranma, it was an accident," Kasumi said, her eyes filling with tears.

"It's not like anyone could have expected it."

 

"I know," he said, looking at the table, still dressed in the white tang and

pants of his funeral attire.  "I know."  He looked at Kasumi, the only one

left of the Tendos.  "But it's not fair, Kasumi.  They didn't have to die!"

 

"I don't know what to say, Ranma-kun, I really don't."               Kasumi held Ranma,

her brother-in-law and the only one left that she could call family.  The

funerals for Soun, Akane, and Nabiki had only ended a couple of hours ago,

leaving behind Kasumi, Ranma and Ranma and Akane's newborn son, Tokuma.

Tokuma was mercifully asleep upstairs, sheltered from the pain by his

infancy.  But it would now be a life without a mother to care for him and an

uncertain future.

 

The phone rang, and another voice answered it, female and dulcet in its

tones, though no less sad.  "Yes, Saotome-Tendo residence.  Ranma here.

Please to wait one second."  Wandering over to the distraught pair, Shampoo

gave Ranma the handset.  "Ranma, I sorry to interrupt, but police on phone.

Officer want Ranma and Kasumi come to station to fill workpaper."  The

former Chinese Amazon looked at her friend and love with sorrow.  To her it

hadn't seemed so long since she lost to Akane, but found out in the long run

that friendship with Ranma meant much more, and her love and friendship for

him was enough to make the so-called Amazon Princess renounce everything.

When Mousse and her great-grandmother had returned to China, Shampoo

remained behind, gaining Japanese citizenship and moving in with Ukyo.     Last

she heard, Mousse had married another girl in the village, and Cologne had

finally accepted that Shampoo could no longer live the life of an Amazon.

 

Ranma nodded, taking the phone.  Shampoo moved a respectful distance away

from the pair for a second, then turned and headed towards the kitchen,

where Ukyo and Ryoga were.  Looking at them both, she muttered something in

Chinese, following up with, "It so unright.  It not right that Akane, Nabiki

and Tendo-san to die."              Tears rolled from her brown eyes, flowing for the

loss of her friends.  As a Chinese Amazon, she'd been no stranger to death

or tragedy, but for it to happen now, so close to the bone....

 

Ukyo stopped dicing the carrot, then looked at her fiancĂ© for comfort.       She

and Ryoga had built a relationship together from the ashes of their loss of

Ranma and Akane.  They'd just gotten engaged the day of the accident, and

their day of joy had been turned into a hellish nightmare.  "You're right,

sugar, it isn't fair.  That other driver shouldn't have been drunk.  And

it's not right that he had to survive the accident, while Nabiki's car was

completely totaled."

 

Ryoga huffed, anger in his eyes.  "You woulda thought that Nabiki's car

shoulda been able to take a crash."

 

Ukyo looked at him.  "The car flipped over, Ryoga-kun.            There was no way

they could have survived, and if they had, they would've been paralyzed for

life." Ukyo sighed.  Nabiki had loved her car, because it gave her freedom

to get away from Nerima and all its insanity.  She'd saved up so much to buy

it, and when she first took it for a spin, all the girls had raced off to

Chiba for a weekend.  She'd done that a lot, and everything seemed so

natural about it after a while, as natural as the rest of Nabiki's habits.

 

But the events of last Thursday were not by any means natural.  On what

should have been a routine drive, Nabiki had gone to visit a friend in

Miura, and had taken her father and sister along.  No one had expected a

drunk driver behind the wheel of a semi on route 16.  The rig had slammed

into them just outside of the Taura city limits, and the car spun out of

control, propelled off its wheels and landing cab-down.  By the time the

ambulance arrived on scene, all three were with the ancestors.

 

Shampoo peeked outside of the kitchen, watching as Ranma and Kasumi held

each other, both crying unashamedly.  At the edge of the view, Saotomes

Genma and Nodoka came in, each of them just as distraught and there to

comfort the younger two.

 

"Not fair," Shampoo whispered to herself, feeling more helpless than she

ever had at any time in her life.  If she could, she would spend the rest of

her life in feline form, if it would bring back Akane and the others.  "All

not fair."

 

* * *

 

Standing on the shoreline by Kamakura, Usagi looked at the moon in the dark

of night, surrounded by the stars.  For part of her, it was her ancestral

homeland, something that had been a part of her soul.  From the time of her

mother (in her previous life) Queen Serenity I, stretching as far back as

their ancestor, Kaguya, the moon had stood, a pinnacle of civilization.

Even now it awaited the return of mankind, hoping for a better tomorrow.

 

((That tomorrow,)) Usagi thought, ((will never come now.))  Reaching towards

the top of her hair, she pulled on a pair of mother-of-pearl broaches,

undoing her trademark hairstyle.  The buns came undone and the blonde mass

of hair spilled free and poured to a point just past her waist, the way she

would leave her hair from now on.  Holding the two crescent shaped broaches

in her hand, she looked at the two articles of her station as Sailor Moon.

 

((Goodbye, future.))  With little cheer, she threw them as hard as she

could, the two items plunking into the ocean with little difficulty.  Within

seconds, the waves swept over the area, and a teary Usagi bid farewell to

the life of Sailor Moon.

 

It then came as a surprise to her as something else went into ocean as well.

She turned around and found Setsuna lowering her arm from the throw, dressed

in normal clothing for the first time in a while.  "I was hoping I could

find you here," the older woman said.  "I came to say goodbye."

 

"But I already did," Usagi told her, crossing her arms.  "I want nothing

more to do with the Senshi."

 

"Then you have nothing to fear," Setsuna replied.  "I'm no longer a Senshi.

I resigned as Sailor Pluto an hour ago."  Seeing the look on Usagi's face,

she clarified.             "Mamoru and Rei destroyed the timeline, caused a new one.

I'm not prepared to handle it, since I'd been so used to what I knew.  Since

I can't handle it, I can't be Sailor Pluto.  Besides, to be honest, I've

neglected my life as Meio Setsuna for so long, I don't know who I am

anymore.  Maybe it's time I found out."

 

Usagi nodded, but said nothing, and Setsuna caught the unanswered question.

"The others will stay. I don't know what fate the Senshi have without us,

but they will survive.  Crystal Tokyo will happen in the future, but without

us.  The future doesn't need us anymore."

 

"I know," Usagi said, reaching forward and embracing her friend, crying for

everything that she'd lost.  A couple of seconds later, she looked up,

seeing Setsuna crying as well.    "I feel so empty inside," the former Sailor

Moon admitted,        "I have no idea what happens next."

 

"You'll know," the dark-skinned woman answered, "you'll find out.  I can't

tell you how or why, and this time it's because I don't know.  But you'll

find peace and happiness, I promise."  With that, Setsuna turned to leave.

But before she did, she commented, "But whatever happens, Usagi, I'll be

there if you need me, my queen."

 

"But I'm no longer a queen," Usagi reminded Setsuna.  "I'm just Tsukino

Usagi now."

 

"Then you're something more important."  Setsuna couldn't help but smile.

"You're my friend."  Nothing more to say, the older woman departed, leaving

the younger one on the beach to the caress of the night, and a future filled

with change, as a shooting star signaled the omens of what was to come.

 

* * *

 

That same night found Ranma on a dark vigil.  At the moment, in female form,

she was atop the home, bereft, adrift and lonely.  Only 21, she was now

widowed and the head of a family of three.  Worse, Kasumi, the pride of the

Tendo clan, was in dark spirits, unable to weather the loss of her entire

family.  About the only one sleeping well this night was the baby.

 

Looking up at the sky, Ranma began to pray to the kami.  "I don't know how

to do this properly...I never have...but I hope that my family--especially

Akane--find peace in the afterlife.  I don't know when I'm going to be

there, or even if I will, because of my curse.               But all I ask is that me an'

my family get some peace."  Not having felt better about her speech, she

hopped off the roof ready to go inside and face yet another night alone in

the world without her beloved Akane.

 

Had the redhaired martial artist looked up, she would have seen a shooting

star racing across the sky, always a sign that the gods have listened to

what one of pure heart has to say.

 

* * *

 

Fourteen months later:

 

"'...and the Senshi narrowly escaped another attack by monsters,'" Osaka

Naru read the day's headline story.  "'In a later press release, Sailor

Mercury apologized for the extensive damage done to the Yokohama Sea Life

park, saying that the demolition of the rollercoaster was the only way to

cage the kraken beast long enough to bring enough power to bear.'

 

"'In a related incident, Sailor Neptune and Sailor Moon were admitted to the

local hospital for injuries, where they were released soon later.'"  Folding

up the paper, Naru groaned in disgust.      "Well, that's another area totaled

recently because of the Senshi."  The person she addressed gave no response

whatsoever, and the redhaired woman continued, thinking it to be agreement.

"Think about it: they used to be heroes, and now they're the laughingstocks

of all Tokyo.  They do more harm than good nowadays, and that guy who hangs

around them all the time--Tuxedo Kamen, well he ain't much better!"

 

The second person continued to say nothing, merely sitting on the park

bench, overlooking one particular part of Tokyo Bay.

 

"Hey, are you listening to me?"  More silence still, and finally, Naru got

frustrated.  "Usagi, your haircut isn't *that* bad, really!  Yes, it looks

*very* different than what you're used to, but c'mon--you've had the same

'do for years, and this one really makes you look classy!  You're 21, so you

shouldn't look like a little girl anymore!"

 

Usagi felt her hair for the eighteenth time today, her hand going through

the space where for the first 21 years of her life was either a long mane of

hair, or twin ponytails before that.  Now, the hair was in a boyish cut, one

that brought out her eyes and made her seem older than she was.  "It just

feels...so different."

 

"Well, yeah, it does, doesn't it?" Naru replied, and was rewarded by a smile

from the blonde.  Since her break up with Mamoru over two years earlier,

Usagi had changed a lot.  No longer associating with Ami or the others, Naru

had seen the blonde change into an entirely different person.  Much smarter

now and working on a college degree in business management, there was little

trace of the teary, clumsy goofball that she'd been during her teens.  When

Naru looked in her best friend's eyes now, there was strength and a sort of

arrogance, as though Usagi had changed from a crybaby into a queen.

 

As for herself, Usagi kept her anger inside.  Since she'd left them, the

Senshi had carried on without her, even finding replacements for Sailors

Moon and Pluto.  Oddly, it made her think of her old friend, Setsuna.  The

last time she talked to the former Senshi of Time had been six weeks ago,

when Setsuna had informed Usagi that she'd met a guy and was considering a

future with him.

 

As for the rest of the Senshi, Usagi saw them every so often, but didn't

speak to them; through the use of some lunar spells and the personality

changes that Usagi went through, they didn't recognize her.  The day she

left the Senshi, she began her change; this new hairstyle made it complete.

Her life as Sailor Moon was nothing but a memory now, the sort of adolescent

dream that made one wonder if it actually happened at all.

 

"Well, it's lunchtime, Naru," Usagi announced.           "There's an Italian

restaurant in the mall, and I'm in the mood for some pasta.  Care to join

me?"

 

"Sure!" Naru chirped, as both rose from the bench, headed towards the stairs

that led to the mall.

 

* * *

 

"Ranma," Shampoo said, phrasing her words slowly and deliberately.  In the

course of the past year, Shampoo had taken language courses to improve her

speech.  It had worked well--she'd gotten a job at a restaurant down in

Roppongi, and was even dating someone who worked nearby.  Since Ryoga and

Ukyo had gotten married, she'd moved into the Tendo-Saotome residence,

easing life a little for the empty home.  "You have to do something, or

Kasumi's going to hurt for a very long time."

 

"Shampoo, you know as well as I there's nothing we can really do.  I'm not

happy about it, but she knew that there was a chance this might happen.

When Tofu went abroad to take an internship in medicine, he hadn't proposed

to her; she wanted to wait when he came back.  And now he's not going to."

Ranma sighed, running his fingers through his mop of hair.  Kasumi had just

gotten a letter from Tofu explaining that he was going to remain in Boston

and open up his own practice--and marry another Japanese woman he'd met

while studying at Harvard.  Kasumi took the news in stride but soon broke

down in tears for the loss of the only man she ever loved.

 

The Chinese woman nodded.  "Well, I could see if Kenichi has any friends we

can set her up with, but I'm not sure she'd like that--she needs time to

heal."        Immediately, she covered her mouth, realizing what she said.  "Oh,

Ranma--I'm sorry!  That was so unthoughtful of me!"

 

"'Thoughtless,' Shampoo."

 

"That, too."  She gave him a slight smile, hoping that it wouldn't trigger

memories.

 

It did, regardless.  "I know what you're thinking, Shampoo, and you don't

have to worry--I've adjusted.  Yes, I miss her every day, but I have Tokuma

and Kasumi to think about, and they need me.  I can't abandon my son or my

sister, right?"

 

Shampoo nodded.  "But still, we should find a way.  Maybe we should go away

for the weekend, just the four of us.  It's been a while since the family

has gone on vacation, right?"  She was about to press him further for an

explanation when baby Tokuma, currently seated on Shampoo's lap, gurgled and

followed nature's answer. "Oh, no...Ranma, your son's a mess again."

 

Ranma tried hard not to laugh.   "I guess he just loves his aunt Shampoo,

doesn't he?  Well, fortunately, we're not too far from a local restroom,

where we can change him," he replied offhandedly.  "Besides, old friend,

it's nearly lunchtime.  How does Italian sound?  I hear they have a great

restaurant in the mall."

 

Shampoo nodded.  "Sounds fair enough.  Lead the way, airen," she answered,

her old pet name for him still there after all this time, though the meaning

behind it was more ironic than intentional nowadays.  She would have

continued, had it not been for the sudden scream of terror, only a few feet

away.  Shampoo tensed, ready to leap into action but stopped short as she

held Ranma's son.  That, however, did not stop the anything goes grandmaster

as he quickly bolted in the direction of the cry, ready to assist at a

moment's notice.

 

* * *

 

"Okay, ladies, cough up the dough!"  A man, his face covered by a tengu

mask, brandished the knife in a menacing manner.  Behind him, four more

toughs, also in party masks, awaited the spoils.  There was no one around in

this section of the area behind the mall, and as far away as they were from

the rest of the Tokyo Big Sight complex, there was no indication that anyone

would be able to aid them in time.  "Just give us your purses, and you don't

hafta get hurt."

 

Standing her ground with a troubled look on her face, Usagi shielded Naru,

who was terrified by the whole ordeal.      The blonde herself was calm--after

all, she'd been in life and death situations before, so what was this in

comparison?--but was faced with a new dilemma: should she give in, or take

the advantage and stop them?  While she'd kept up the practice on her magic,

she'd never told Naru, and to reveal it now would be inconvenient, to say

the least.

 

One of the other goons reached in his pocket, pulling out some rope.  "Okay,

I guess we'll just have to take it out of you the hard way.  Of course, I

wouldn't mind taking a little something else outta you, too."  The sound of

his voice, coupled with his words made it starkly clear what he'd intended,

and that changed the entire situation.

 

Behind her, Naru squealed in fright, her face a mask of complete shock.

Usagi, however, closed her eyes and prepared a defensive spell; she'd been

working on changing her lunar magic a lot since her old days, and the

arsenal of magic she now had at her disposal was more akin to a contemporary

sorceress than the Senshi of Justice she used to be.  As Naru screamed a

final cry of panic before passing out to the ground, Usagi began to whisper

the first stages of a fireball spell, something that would hopefully prove

to be the method that would allow both women to escape unscathed.

 

It proved to be unneeded.

 

*"GET AWAY FROM THEM!"*  At the sound of that booming voice, the blonde

opened her eyes and found herself in the face of a protector for the first

time in years.            However, unlike olden times, this new one was a man far

different.  With a compact, lithely muscled frame built for speed and

dressed in Chinese clothing, this man moved with the swiftness of a sparrow

and the agility of an acrobat, throwing punches and kicks with ludicrous

ease.  Dropping men back and forth in his assault, Usagi watched, her

attention completely caught up by the man's ballet-like display of martial

prowess.

 

Her respect for this man increased as one of the bullies, clearly a martial

artist in his own right, called up a ball of ki energy and lobbed it at

their would-be protector.  This didn't surprise Usagi too much; she'd seen

the non-magical phenomenon of ki in use before.  But what she hadn't

expected was the pigtailed hero blocking it as though it were nothing and

releasing a strike of his own, the beam of burning red energy far stronger

than what she'd ever seen before.  From the small ball the thug threw, she

knew that could punch a gouge in a wall.  From what she could sense of the

red beam, the blast could easily shave the summit off a mountain.  It

confirmed that a second later as the blast bored into the man, plowing him

into the nearest wall, rendering him painfully if mercifully unconscious.

 

"Hey, are you two okay?"  The man turned and spoke to them, his voice

sonorous and kind.  "That was awfully close."

 

"Yes, yes it was," Usagi agreed, looking up into his face...and for the

first time in what seemed like forever, got lost in a pair of eyes.  Those

eyes, the same color as hers, filled her with a peace and rapture that she

hadn't felt in a long, long time.  ((He makes me feel...as though I know him

from somewhere.  Or maybe some*when*?))  It certainly was possible, though

she was sure she would've remembered him somehow if he'd been part of the

distant past.

 

As for Ranma, he found himself somehow powerfully attracted to this young

blonde woman with blue eyes like his own.  Was it the fact that she had the

same haircut as Akane had?  Or was it the fact that there was just something

about her that seemed to echo in his soul, a reverb that seemed older than

time itself.  "So, are you okay?"

 

Usagi smiled a bit.  ((He's cute.  I wonder if he's available?))  "I am now,

thanks.  Are you okay, Naru?"  Usagi turned and found Naru completely

unconscious.  "Naru-chan!" Usagi gasped, reaching down and trying to help up

her faint friend.

 

"Here, let me help."  With ease, the man picked up Naru's form, leading her

to the nearest bench, some distance away.  Usagi gazed at him with wonder

and a bit of awe, at this stranger who had just come to their rescue and did

it with style.              There was a tugging at the edge of Usagi's emotions, a

stirring that she hadn't felt in a long time, and something that she

honestly thought she'd never feel again.  Maybe it was just the flush of

being saved by such a handsome, dashing gentleman, but perhaps it was

something more.

 

About the same time, Shampoo raced up to them, holding Tokuma and looking

around at the results of the latest Ranmadventure.  "And you didn't even

invite me for the fun," Shampoo replied, her lilting voice holding a forlorn

tone.  Turning to the baby, she replied, "Your father's just taking away my

fun, you know that?"

 

((Father?)) Usagi wondered, looking at the Chinese woman carrying the baby.

((He's married?))  The blonde looked downcast, though she really wasn't sure

why.  Suddenly she felt very envious of the other woman, her mind

encountering unfamiliar emotions and darker tones that she'd never known

existed.

 

"Shampoo," Ranma laughed gently, "you're his stable, not-as-wild-as-me aunt.

You're supposed to set a better example for him than I do."

 

The Chinese woman smiled.  "Then it's a good thing I'm not married to you.

The gods forbid what would happen then, ne?"

 

((He's single?)) Usagi caught that like a lifeline, though she was wondering

who the mother of the child was, if it was his son.  ((Oh well, I'll find

out later.))  "Thank you for saving us, sir," she said, "Naru and I are in

your debt."  Her eyes locked onto his and a part of her never wanted to let

go.  The rest of her, however, was busy forcing herself not to glomp him,

for reasons she really wasn't sure of.

 

"No thanks is needed, really," Ranma said, gazing into her eyes and feeling

a rush that he hadn't felt in a long time.

 

"Not true at all.  Please, let me make it up to you--buy you and your friend

lunch, Mister...?" the blonde asked, hoping for a name to match with the

face that was busily burning itself into her mind.

 

"Um, Ranma.  Saotome Ranma, and my friend here is Zhao Xian Pu.  And what do

I call you?" he grinned, not even realizing that on the face of the former

Amazon, a knowing smile of her own crept up.

 

"You can call me whatever you want," Usagi answered, without thinking.   "But

my friends call me Usagi.  Now, as soon as Naru comes to, shall we go to

lunch?"

 

*  *  *

 

"You like him, don't you?" Naru asked, seeing the starstruck look on Usagi's

face for the first time in ages.  "You really like him."

 

"He's so fabulous," she whispered, her mind fully off in dreamy mode.  At

the moment, the pair were on the way back home to the apartment they shared

together in Suginami ward, and as the JR sped on its way to their

destination, Naru had to admit, she'd only seen that look on Usagi's face

for one other person before, and it had been ages since an emotion like that

had been present in her friend at all.

 

((She's in love, and she doesn't know it,)) the redhead thought.  ((Saotome

Ranma, I really hope you're ready to have this chaotic odango-onna in your

life....))

 

*  *  *

 

"You like her, don't you?" Shampoo asked, peering over her tea, her familiar

Cheshire Cat's eyes staring at him, probing for a weakness.  It was close to

midnight at the old Saotome-Tendo home, and as become customary, the two old

friends shared a late-night tea while sitting on the rooftop, gazing at the

stars.        "You're attracted to that Usagi girl, and it's not just because she

has the same hairstyle Akane did."

 

"Shampoo, it's not like that," Ranma protested, a blush rising to his face.

"It's just--"

 

"--you were looking at her the way I used to wish you looked at me, the way

you always looked at Akane," Shampoo interrupted.  "Ranma, you're only 23.

You're still a young man, even if you're a father.  You have every right to

find love again, and considering you have a baby, a new woman in your life

might end up being Tokuma's mother."

 

"Funny, I always thought you hung around because you wanted the slot.  Not

that I'm offering, mind you, but...."

 

"Ranma, I discovered long ago that though I love you, I'm much better off

being your best friend and confidant instead of your significant other," she

answered, her eyes containing a hint of sorrow.  "In any case, Kenishi and I

are very happy together, so you lost your chance."  She winked to take the

unintended sting out of her words.  "But as your best friend, it's my

responsibility to make sure you're happy.  If being with her makes you

happy, then go for it. Call her tomorrow, and see where the adventure takes

you."

 

Ranma reached over and hugged his friend.  "Thanks, Shampoo.  I knew I could

count on you."

 

Shampoo leaned against her old friend, thinking of bygone wishes and present

luck.  "Anything for you, my airen.  Now, I do have one request, though, if

you would."

 

"That is?"

 

"When you have a girl, I'd suggest Shampoo as a name.  Very beautiful name,

you know," she said with a laugh.

 

"Shampoo, I'm only asking Usagi out for lunch.          I don't plan to have kids

with her."

 

Shampoo stared at Ranma, her brown eyes looking deeply into his.  "Trust me,

Ranma, she wants to have your child, even if she doesn't know it yet.  Every

girl you meet usually does."

 

*  *  *

 

Two years later:

 

In the darkness of the room, the pair lay under the sheets, holding one

another.  Ranma looked out the window, seeing the moonlit expanse of a soft

night in Aoshima.  The pair had come to the secluded town to finally talk

about a few things that were going in their relationship, and how to handle

it.  Both of them had come clean about their pasts, and spilling a few extra

things that they hadn't during the course of their relationship, deepest

darkest secrets that the pair had held to themselves.

 

It was necessary, Usagi had told him.  They'd been together for the longest

time since the day they first met, and the past two years had been a joy for

them both.  Ranma was a top-notch martial arts instructor, and Usagi opened

up a florist shop near the Osakas' jewelry shop. Situated not too far from

Shampoo's restaurant, Ranma's "adopted sister", Usagi, and Naru had become

the best of friends; Usagi and Naru even served as bridesmaids at Shampoo's

wedding two months ago.

 

Now, they themselves were at that precipice.  Earlier that night, Ranma had

asked Usagi to marry him and be a permanent part of his life.  With a joy

that verged on tears, Usagi has accepted his troth and was looking forward

to their union together.  But before they did that, they needed to lay

everything bare, to be honest with each other and hold no secrets back.

 

Ranma admitted to Usagi that he and "Tendo Ranko", Kasumi's cousin, were one

and the same.  Afraid with Akane, as he had been in the beginning, to reveal

his curse, he mostly hid it from her, and during their long heart to heart.

Fortunately as he grew older, the change was becoming less and less, as the

water magnetism the curse seemed to have all but dissipated; other than the

occasional rainy day or genuine accident, Ranma mainly stayed male.

 

However, just as surprising was her revelation that she, Tsukino Usagi, had

once been the teenage hero known as Sailor Moon.  Not wanting to reveal to

Ranma all of a past that no longer mattered anyway, she merely left out the

details of the Moon Kingdom and told her fiancé that she left the mantle of

Sailor Moon behind when she wanted to live a normal life again.  In the

years since, she never dealt with any of her former teammates, and she had

no idea who the new Sailor Moon was.

 

As she lay asleep in his arms, Ranma gazed at the sparkling ring on her

finger.  Soon it would be joined by a gold band of marriage, the second one

he'd wear.  At the thought of the first, Ranma thought of Akane, knowing

that wherever her spirit was, he still loved her and knew she'd be happy he

was able to move on.  ((I'll never forget you, Akane,)) his mind gently sent

out to the four winds.                (('Sagi probably wouldn't let me anyway.))  Kissing

his soon to be wife on the top of her head, he closed his eyes and went to

sleep.

 

As he did, Usagi opened her eyes and smiled.  She loved Ranma, more than she

ever had Mamoru, ironically.  She had been destined for Mamoru once, but the

love she had for Ranma was stronger because it had been a conscious choice

to love him.  Endymion was the chosen mate for Serenity, but Usagi chose to

no longer be Serenity; it would be Ranma who would be the man she spent

forever with...

 

...as well as the father of her child.             She lowered a hand down to her flat,

well-toned stomach.  It had happened tonight; she had felt it in herself.

Though the wedding would be in four months, five months later would see the

birth of their daughter.  Closing her eyes, she thought of the child that

once would have been Chibi-usa, a child that would see a far different

future.

 

((A different name for a different future, my daughter,)) Usagi thought to

the tiny life now nestled within her.  ((A different future and a different

world.))

 

*  *  *

 

Six and a half years later:

 

Saotome Mikome raced around her mother, chirping happily, her long pink hair

tied into a braid just as her father's was.  Looking at her mother with

expressive red eyes, she asked, "Mama, when are we going to Aunt Kasumi's

party?       An' is Aunt Shampoo gonna be there?  An' is she bringing Akane?"

 

Brushing her shoulder-length hair, Saotome Usagi, age 29 as of the previous

week, held a soft smile on her lips.  Mikome was, as Chibi-usa was/would

have been, a high-speed terror; this time, however, the adult woman that

Usagi was dealt with it in stride.  "Yes, we're going to your aunt's party

tonight, and Shampoo will be there.  I'm also sure that she'll bring your

cousin Akane with her, so you two can play."  Usagi remembered when Shampoo

had announced that she and her husband were expecting, the same time as

Ranma and Usagi made their announcement.  Shampoo named her daughter after

Akane, something that brought tears to Ranma and Kasumi's eyes; Mitsuhara

Akane was born five minutes before Mikome had been, and the two girls were

the best of friends.

 

Another voice sounded, and Saotome Tokuma ran into the room, carrying the

phone.      "Mom, Dad's looking for you, and Aunt Shampoo's on the phone!"

Handing the receiver to his mother, Tokuma took a second to stick his tongue

at his little sister, to which she chased after him, mock-angry.  Usagi paid

no attention to this, as she knew it was just a game the two siblings

played.

 

Turning her attention to the phone, she said, "Yeah, Shampoo, what's up?"

 

"'Sagi, are you sure that Ukyo and Ryoga are on flight twelve?"  In the

distance, Usagi could hear the sound of airport speakers at Haneda rattling

off their litany of incoming and outgoing aircraft.  "Flight twelve says

that it's coming from Sapporo, and that's a little north, you know?"

 

"Hey, Shampoo, Ukyo told me flight twelve.  Maybe they're coming from one of

their other restaurants?"  Four years back, Ryoga and Ukyo moved back to her

hometown after her father died, leaving the pair everything including a

small family fortune she wasn't aware of.  The Hibikis in turn parlayed that

into a chain of Ucchan's all over the country.              Now, they were coming back

to Nerima, and the whole extended family would be reunited, especially in

light of the good news.  "Hey, Shampoo, I have to get going; I have to go

get beat up by Ranma."

 

The blonde could just see the smile on her friend's face.  "Well, if you

don't want him to train you, I could always oblige.  Oh, wait I see them

coming out of the terminal," Shampoo quickly added.

 

"No thanks, I've already been through your Amazon regimen once, remember--I

had bruises for weeks!              I'll see you tonight--oh, and though you know it,

Mikome's already looking forward to spending time with Akane as usual.   Talk

to you all later."

 

"Ja ne."

 

Turning off the phone, Usagi sighed and grabbed her gi top, tying it on over

her T-shirt.  It was time for her daily practice session with Ranma,

something she both looked forward to and regretted.  Since the first time

they met, Ranma had insisted that Usagi be able to protect herself, and even

though he now knew of her secret, he still insisted that she learn defenses

other than magic.  Though she'd never get as good as Shampoo was without the

aid of magic, she was talented enough to handle herself in a tough spot.

Readying herself for the inevitable, she went downstairs.

 

* * *

 

Her kick towards his head missed by a longshot, but even at age 31, Ranma

had to admit that his wife was better than he thought she'd be.  Anyone else

other than a seasoned pro, and that snap kick would have dropped an

assailant.  If that didn't work, then whatever spells his wife had at her

disposal would teach someone not to mess with the woman who had once been

the leader of the Sailor Senshi.

 

Moving like a blur, Ranma dashed behind her and tackled her from behind,

hugging her gently.  "Good move, 'Sagi, but you're not fast enough."

 

She turned and planted a romantic kiss on his lips while still in his arms.

Gazing at him with bedroom eyes, she asked, "Am I fast enough now?"

 

"Absolutely," he responded, returning the kiss.  Ending the kiss, he changed

the subject saying, "It's going to be great getting everyone back together

again."  The reason for this was to celebrate the official opening of the

local medical clinic, owned and operated by Tendo Kasumi, M.D.             Having lost

her focus, Ranma urged his sister-in-law to go back to college; the results,

a decade later, made her the neighborhood doctor and prosperous in more than

one way; at 33, she'd finally started dating again and her new boyfriend

seemed charming and wise.  To celebrate the grand opening of her clinic, the

girls were all gathering for the party down at a private restaurant at

Ariake Island, while the men would spend a night at the dojo catching up on

old times.

 

"It is, isn't it?" she added with a smile.  "Naru's already looking forward

to it, and I know that it's going to be a blast--assuming Mikome doesn't

wear herself out from the surprise."  Usagi looked quickly at the clock on

the wall.  "Hey, look at the time--I'd better get in the shower if I'm going

to get ready."

 

"Want some company?" Ranma asked suggestively.

 

"I think I'll be taking a cold shower," she responded tartly.  "It keeps me

safe and frankly, two children are enough for this house."   A second later,

after seeing the disappointed look on her husband's face, she kissed him and

said, "Well, we could stand to stay in practice.  I'll make it a warm

shower, and that'll make it hot."  Ranma carried his wife in his arms,

towards their home and the shower.

 

To be continued in

Prologue 2: Girl From Manhattan

Prologue 3: Battleground Shinjuku

and the main series!

 

Author's Notes:

The concept of Blessed is based on A Duet of Pigtails, and the original

draft of it is very much (too much!) like the adventures of Saotomes Hikaru

and Ranma.  When Little Michi (it wasn't her idea; she was given it by a

friend) brought it to my attention, we talked about it and decided to work

out a rewrite of the initial stages of her series.  I found it so

interesting that I offered to do up a new prologue for her as well as the

occasional sidestory.

 

Where Duet and Blessed go are two different paths now, and you may see me

putting in a tale here and there to this series.  It will be interesting to

see how two stories with a common origin will end up.

 

BTW, for you language buffs out there, the title is Latin for "Blessings and

Light".