Ranma/ NiGHTS
'Into Dreams'
Ranma rushed out of the house with his school supplies in hand, and in a single bound from near the front door, he was on the wall of the dojo grounds; with another leap, he was carried over to a nearby roof and sprinting towards his destination.
There was something about his dream last night, something just too peculiar about it. It may have been the fact that it was the first break he had gotten while he was asleep. Instead of the slumbering in a nightmare built from his own self-conciousness, concerns, and fears, it brought him different emotions.
He felt exillaration far beyond anything other than the art had been possible to him. He *felt* the wind caress him as he danced in the sky, he experienced a gleeful joy only the naive innocent should be able to experience as the dream reality's beach sun washed his transmorphef form, regardless of the turbulant dangers that saught to end his slumber prematurely.
The pigtailed boy stopped, just as he reached the edge of the roof, how did he know they were attempting to wake him up? He actually didn't realize that he was aware of the consequences if their attempts were successful.
The though of the final one he had to face brought him back to his current task. Cologne must have had some knowlege of what this was all about; the dream he could feel was laiden with hidden meaning and subtle truths that he needed to face; she should be able to shed some light on it. The final part that was the confrontation with the Amazon Elder riding a large bird did prove one thing; a confrontation between him and the old Ghoul was coming.
Ranma leapt much higher than nessesary, finding a small satisfaction in the elavation that was but a small twinge of what he had found in his dream. Almost like the sweet mild scent of jasmine tea with a touch of honey before the initial soothing sip on a crisp winter day. The burst of emotion gave him an energy that asserted his confidence in a way he had been missing since after the wedding. Ranma landed with a running start, speeding as fast as possible and savoring the rush of air by him, and then once again jumped into the air like he was attempting to soar among the clouds.
Among the experience, Ranma hadn't noticed that the weights that had bound him down were missing. In fact, if he had been paying attention, he would have stopped himself from the embarrasing, childish giggle he was emitting.
_________________________________________
"HEY! OLD GHOUL!" Ranma shouted, as he strode into the front door of the Cat Cafe.
"Ranma!" a femenine voice that was heavily accented with Mandarin called out. Barely without notice, Ranma dodged the lavender projectile with unconcious ease; something that took said projectile by surprise, as she found herself having to recover into a roll to arrest her momentum..
"OLD GHOUL, I NEED TO TALK TO YA !" Ranma called out, and once again surprising an Amazon, by dodging the downswing of a knarled cane.
"Hmm, good reflexes, Son-in... Ranma," Cologne stated, as she came to resting on her cane, "What brings you by this time of morning? I believe you have school not too soon."
"What do you know about dreams?" Ranma asked, his voice losing the sanguine lilt along with his bearing.
Cologne took a moment of pause to consider the question, before replying, "That is a complicated subject, and although I have much in the way of knowlege, I'm not a trained psychologist in the least. Am I to presume that you have something rather complex to discuss?"
Ranma nodded, ignoring the purple haired girl stalking up behind him.
"Why Ranma dodge Shampoo?" The young Amazon whined, "You avoid Shampoo for too, too long!" Shampoo launched herself at Ranma, and found herself evaded again.
"Yeah, it was a pretty weird dream, and you were in it," Ranma stated, his voice not showing any form of exertion, as he continued to dodge away from Shampoo's attempted glomps.
"Ranma, don't you think I'm a little too old for you?" Cologne replied with a teasing tone.
Ranma slightly only baulked at the implication, "Nothing like that, you were riding a giant bird, A stork or something, and trying to attack me, while going in and out of these mirrors."
Cologne paused once again, "That isn't much more peculiar than any dream I have ever heard. Is there some circumstance that brings you to me to discuss this?"
"Well, you were attacking me in it, and..." Ranma trailed off, sheepishly scratching the back of his head.
"And you presumed I had something to do with it?" Cologne enquired with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, yeah. I mean, it could have been some sort of Amazon trick of yours, to get me to marry Shampoo, I guess," Ranma replied, while lifting one of his legs high into the standing splits, that caused Shampoo to barely pass by him.
"RANMA HOLD STILL!" Shampoo screeched, and then resumed her attempts to snuggle against her beloved's chest. Cologne's eyes narrowed slightly at Ranma's cavalier fashion of avoiding her heir.
"Ranma, I do not go out of my way to make your life uncomfortable," Cologne answered, "Take advantage of situations, yes, but never exert much energy towards you. I want what's best for my Great Granddaughter, and she seems to want you. You can forgive an old woman wanting to make her Great Grandchild happy?"
"RANMA! HOW DARE YOU TEASE SHAMPOO SO?!?"
"Ah, I guess," Ranma replied before tilting his head and grabbing one of the chains launched at him, and then twisting to pull it into an arc that sent the person holding the other end into a wall, just under a heavy shield that fell on top of the myopic boy's head. Cologne used her staff to parry the other projectiles launched after her and Ranma with barely acknowleging their presence, while Shampoo just hid behind Ranma. "Anyhow, you got an idea what was going on there?"
"I cannot say that I have a clue," Cologne said with a slight smirk.
"Well, I guess it's not important anymore, since you said you didn't use any funky Amazon tricks to cause it, I just wanted to be sure." Ranma turned to Shampoo with an irritated expression, causing the girl to stop her latest attempt only inches from his face, "WOULD YOU CUT THAT OUT?!?"
"You're awfully trusting, Ranma," Cologne replied, warily, the pigtailed boy turned away from Shampoo's bewildered expression and shrugged, "But if you're willing, we could discuss this further before your classes?"
"Ah, afraid I gotta get to school now, sorry to bother you!" Ranma replied, dashing out of the Cat Cafe.
Cologne waited until she was sure Ranma was out of earshot, and then sighed, "It was a crane, not a stork." She had not missed the cavalier way that Ranma evaded Shampoo, instead of freezing up as he usually did during her advances. It seemed as if the boy was starting to sort his feelings out, which probably didn't bode well for her Great Granddaughter.
The elder Amazon then went back to her restauranting duties, leaving a bewildered Shampoo standing and wondering what brought on Ranma's reaction to her affections.
______________________________________________
Akane kept ther thoughts off of Ranma as she walked to school. The dream she had last night made her feel more alive than she could ever recall. The sudden onrush of emotions when she came into contact with that jester that seemed to be trapped were not unpleasant. Her feelings of insecurity were replaced by vibrant expressions of joy, infinite laughter, and all consuming warmth. Even now, she could almost savor the happy feelings paint vibrant colors over the dark gray canvas that she held inside. The raven-haired girl relished in the mere shade of what she had experienced, and still it brought a slight smile to her face.
"It's good to see that you're smiling again, Akane!" Sayuri stated behind the girl, almost causing Akane to jump in startlement.
"Huh? Well, I had a nice night."
"Oh? You get back at Ranma for whatever he did to you yesterday?" Yuka asked from the other side, and then broke into a grin "Or did he finally ask you to the prom?" Both companions notice Akane's expression immidiately darken.
"A-Akane, Where's Ranma anyhow? Don't you usually walk with him to school?" Sayuri enquired, not particularly noticing that she may be stepping onto turbulant lands.
Akane bowed her head, not allowing the other two girls to see the hurt that bled black ink over the lovely canvas that she had been indulging. After a few moments, she managed to gather herself, "Ranma? That jerk went to the Cat Cafe this morning, not that I care."
Akane suddenly bolted, leaving two confused girls. They hadn't bothered to move, as they were trying to figure out why Akane's outburst sounded of feigned emotion.
_________________________________________
"Hmph, they've already discovered what needs to be done, your plans to hinder the two failed considerably," A phantom-like woman wearing fine velvet burgundy and teal robes with shock red hair that stood out like a cone from the back of her head. She turned to meet with a jester, one garbed in violet and red with a porcelyn painted face.
Reala turned back to the woman that stood over him like an ancient oak to a sapling, even while sitting, "Patience, we did not expect to subdue either of them in the first try, though it would have been nice if we had. NiGHTS assuradly knew enough to keep us from a quick victory."
Zmartwan, the younger sister of Wizemon, turned her blank, featureless face to the harliquin, and spoke in a voice that was heard everywhere, but came from nowhere, "My patience is not finite. I will succeed with my older brother had failed. He lacked the proper might to control all of Nightopia, and with these two subjects, I will have the key to a compatible power that would allow me to subdue any resistance. I want them both adequately quelled so that we may use the boy to syphon the source of his curse energy."
"Yes, Reala is well aware of your plans to use the boy as a direct line to Jusenkyo's energy." Another jester wearing a parka and gloves of all red; his arms, legs, or neck could not bee seen, as if they were invisible or just not there. He casually flipped a trio of playing cards in his hand, before continuing, "And for what has been promised us, we'll do everything we can to ensure that it does not fail."
"See to it that it does not," Zmartwan replied coldly, "As it will be your turn to make an attempt at the boy. I will see to the girl myself."
"Oh, and I have just the way to deal with Ranma," Jackyl smirked sinisterly, and flipped a playing card over to view it's face. It was an ace of spades, with the spades being mini spactulas.
_________________________________________
Ranma sat in bed, wondering why Akane had avoided him all day, even going as far to switch places with Kasumi at the dinner table so that she wouldn't sit next to him. The sanguine mood he had felt earlier during the day after his confrontation with Cologne had melted away. Ironic, since it was his fiancee's rather cold shoulder which caused it.
The pigtailed boy sighed for another day, and decided that his thoughts could be left for another time. Just like Akane had not too many minutes prior, Ranma laid his head down to rest for the night, anxiously anticipating, and deeply fearing, what dreams may come.
'Into Dreams'
Ranma rushed out of the house with his school supplies in hand, and in a single bound from near the front door, he was on the wall of the dojo grounds; with another leap, he was carried over to a nearby roof and sprinting towards his destination.
There was something about his dream last night, something just too peculiar about it. It may have been the fact that it was the first break he had gotten while he was asleep. Instead of the slumbering in a nightmare built from his own self-conciousness, concerns, and fears, it brought him different emotions.
He felt exillaration far beyond anything other than the art had been possible to him. He *felt* the wind caress him as he danced in the sky, he experienced a gleeful joy only the naive innocent should be able to experience as the dream reality's beach sun washed his transmorphef form, regardless of the turbulant dangers that saught to end his slumber prematurely.
The pigtailed boy stopped, just as he reached the edge of the roof, how did he know they were attempting to wake him up? He actually didn't realize that he was aware of the consequences if their attempts were successful.
The though of the final one he had to face brought him back to his current task. Cologne must have had some knowlege of what this was all about; the dream he could feel was laiden with hidden meaning and subtle truths that he needed to face; she should be able to shed some light on it. The final part that was the confrontation with the Amazon Elder riding a large bird did prove one thing; a confrontation between him and the old Ghoul was coming.
Ranma leapt much higher than nessesary, finding a small satisfaction in the elavation that was but a small twinge of what he had found in his dream. Almost like the sweet mild scent of jasmine tea with a touch of honey before the initial soothing sip on a crisp winter day. The burst of emotion gave him an energy that asserted his confidence in a way he had been missing since after the wedding. Ranma landed with a running start, speeding as fast as possible and savoring the rush of air by him, and then once again jumped into the air like he was attempting to soar among the clouds.
Among the experience, Ranma hadn't noticed that the weights that had bound him down were missing. In fact, if he had been paying attention, he would have stopped himself from the embarrasing, childish giggle he was emitting.
_________________________________________
"HEY! OLD GHOUL!" Ranma shouted, as he strode into the front door of the Cat Cafe.
"Ranma!" a femenine voice that was heavily accented with Mandarin called out. Barely without notice, Ranma dodged the lavender projectile with unconcious ease; something that took said projectile by surprise, as she found herself having to recover into a roll to arrest her momentum..
"OLD GHOUL, I NEED TO TALK TO YA !" Ranma called out, and once again surprising an Amazon, by dodging the downswing of a knarled cane.
"Hmm, good reflexes, Son-in... Ranma," Cologne stated, as she came to resting on her cane, "What brings you by this time of morning? I believe you have school not too soon."
"What do you know about dreams?" Ranma asked, his voice losing the sanguine lilt along with his bearing.
Cologne took a moment of pause to consider the question, before replying, "That is a complicated subject, and although I have much in the way of knowlege, I'm not a trained psychologist in the least. Am I to presume that you have something rather complex to discuss?"
Ranma nodded, ignoring the purple haired girl stalking up behind him.
"Why Ranma dodge Shampoo?" The young Amazon whined, "You avoid Shampoo for too, too long!" Shampoo launched herself at Ranma, and found herself evaded again.
"Yeah, it was a pretty weird dream, and you were in it," Ranma stated, his voice not showing any form of exertion, as he continued to dodge away from Shampoo's attempted glomps.
"Ranma, don't you think I'm a little too old for you?" Cologne replied with a teasing tone.
Ranma slightly only baulked at the implication, "Nothing like that, you were riding a giant bird, A stork or something, and trying to attack me, while going in and out of these mirrors."
Cologne paused once again, "That isn't much more peculiar than any dream I have ever heard. Is there some circumstance that brings you to me to discuss this?"
"Well, you were attacking me in it, and..." Ranma trailed off, sheepishly scratching the back of his head.
"And you presumed I had something to do with it?" Cologne enquired with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, yeah. I mean, it could have been some sort of Amazon trick of yours, to get me to marry Shampoo, I guess," Ranma replied, while lifting one of his legs high into the standing splits, that caused Shampoo to barely pass by him.
"RANMA HOLD STILL!" Shampoo screeched, and then resumed her attempts to snuggle against her beloved's chest. Cologne's eyes narrowed slightly at Ranma's cavalier fashion of avoiding her heir.
"Ranma, I do not go out of my way to make your life uncomfortable," Cologne answered, "Take advantage of situations, yes, but never exert much energy towards you. I want what's best for my Great Granddaughter, and she seems to want you. You can forgive an old woman wanting to make her Great Grandchild happy?"
"RANMA! HOW DARE YOU TEASE SHAMPOO SO?!?"
"Ah, I guess," Ranma replied before tilting his head and grabbing one of the chains launched at him, and then twisting to pull it into an arc that sent the person holding the other end into a wall, just under a heavy shield that fell on top of the myopic boy's head. Cologne used her staff to parry the other projectiles launched after her and Ranma with barely acknowleging their presence, while Shampoo just hid behind Ranma. "Anyhow, you got an idea what was going on there?"
"I cannot say that I have a clue," Cologne said with a slight smirk.
"Well, I guess it's not important anymore, since you said you didn't use any funky Amazon tricks to cause it, I just wanted to be sure." Ranma turned to Shampoo with an irritated expression, causing the girl to stop her latest attempt only inches from his face, "WOULD YOU CUT THAT OUT?!?"
"You're awfully trusting, Ranma," Cologne replied, warily, the pigtailed boy turned away from Shampoo's bewildered expression and shrugged, "But if you're willing, we could discuss this further before your classes?"
"Ah, afraid I gotta get to school now, sorry to bother you!" Ranma replied, dashing out of the Cat Cafe.
Cologne waited until she was sure Ranma was out of earshot, and then sighed, "It was a crane, not a stork." She had not missed the cavalier way that Ranma evaded Shampoo, instead of freezing up as he usually did during her advances. It seemed as if the boy was starting to sort his feelings out, which probably didn't bode well for her Great Granddaughter.
The elder Amazon then went back to her restauranting duties, leaving a bewildered Shampoo standing and wondering what brought on Ranma's reaction to her affections.
______________________________________________
Akane kept ther thoughts off of Ranma as she walked to school. The dream she had last night made her feel more alive than she could ever recall. The sudden onrush of emotions when she came into contact with that jester that seemed to be trapped were not unpleasant. Her feelings of insecurity were replaced by vibrant expressions of joy, infinite laughter, and all consuming warmth. Even now, she could almost savor the happy feelings paint vibrant colors over the dark gray canvas that she held inside. The raven-haired girl relished in the mere shade of what she had experienced, and still it brought a slight smile to her face.
"It's good to see that you're smiling again, Akane!" Sayuri stated behind the girl, almost causing Akane to jump in startlement.
"Huh? Well, I had a nice night."
"Oh? You get back at Ranma for whatever he did to you yesterday?" Yuka asked from the other side, and then broke into a grin "Or did he finally ask you to the prom?" Both companions notice Akane's expression immidiately darken.
"A-Akane, Where's Ranma anyhow? Don't you usually walk with him to school?" Sayuri enquired, not particularly noticing that she may be stepping onto turbulant lands.
Akane bowed her head, not allowing the other two girls to see the hurt that bled black ink over the lovely canvas that she had been indulging. After a few moments, she managed to gather herself, "Ranma? That jerk went to the Cat Cafe this morning, not that I care."
Akane suddenly bolted, leaving two confused girls. They hadn't bothered to move, as they were trying to figure out why Akane's outburst sounded of feigned emotion.
_________________________________________
"Hmph, they've already discovered what needs to be done, your plans to hinder the two failed considerably," A phantom-like woman wearing fine velvet burgundy and teal robes with shock red hair that stood out like a cone from the back of her head. She turned to meet with a jester, one garbed in violet and red with a porcelyn painted face.
Reala turned back to the woman that stood over him like an ancient oak to a sapling, even while sitting, "Patience, we did not expect to subdue either of them in the first try, though it would have been nice if we had. NiGHTS assuradly knew enough to keep us from a quick victory."
Zmartwan, the younger sister of Wizemon, turned her blank, featureless face to the harliquin, and spoke in a voice that was heard everywhere, but came from nowhere, "My patience is not finite. I will succeed with my older brother had failed. He lacked the proper might to control all of Nightopia, and with these two subjects, I will have the key to a compatible power that would allow me to subdue any resistance. I want them both adequately quelled so that we may use the boy to syphon the source of his curse energy."
"Yes, Reala is well aware of your plans to use the boy as a direct line to Jusenkyo's energy." Another jester wearing a parka and gloves of all red; his arms, legs, or neck could not bee seen, as if they were invisible or just not there. He casually flipped a trio of playing cards in his hand, before continuing, "And for what has been promised us, we'll do everything we can to ensure that it does not fail."
"See to it that it does not," Zmartwan replied coldly, "As it will be your turn to make an attempt at the boy. I will see to the girl myself."
"Oh, and I have just the way to deal with Ranma," Jackyl smirked sinisterly, and flipped a playing card over to view it's face. It was an ace of spades, with the spades being mini spactulas.
_________________________________________
Ranma sat in bed, wondering why Akane had avoided him all day, even going as far to switch places with Kasumi at the dinner table so that she wouldn't sit next to him. The sanguine mood he had felt earlier during the day after his confrontation with Cologne had melted away. Ironic, since it was his fiancee's rather cold shoulder which caused it.
The pigtailed boy sighed for another day, and decided that his thoughts could be left for another time. Just like Akane had not too many minutes prior, Ranma laid his head down to rest for the night, anxiously anticipating, and deeply fearing, what dreams may come.