Dark King Ascending
a Sailor Moon/Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
by SoftRogue
whiteb100@hotmail.com
Disclaimer:
There mine! I was the one who created them!
I own then! Those hacks stole my ideas!
I'll sue! I swear I will!!
Oh...by the way, you don't happen to have
a straightjacket that's a little looser, do you?
This one chafes.
**********
Chapter 3
**********
Sunrise. That sweet blessed event that banishes darkness from the land. 'Tis when the birds begin to sing and the flowers open there petals to greet the suns warming rays. Life once again returns to the land as the sun begins its endless trek across the heavens. Everyone, on one level or another, cannot help but greet the days awaking with a special...verve.
Everyone, that is, except one.
Awaking slowly, Ranma Saotome; heir to the Anything Goes Martial Arts Saotome Ryu; knew there was something wrong. His finely honed senses were screaming at him, telling him that there was something not right about the situation he was in. Coming awake fully; yet still feigning sleep; he took in his surroundings with all of the senses at his disposal.
Was he currently flying threw the air on a crash course with the koi pond? No. In fact he was still in his bedroll with the covers pulled up to his chin. Was he just soaked with cold water to end up at the mercy of the one who drenched him? No. He was still a guy and he couldn't feel the presence of any old perverts or angry uncute tomboys in the room. Did one of his fiancées sneak into his room last night in order to be 'closer' to him? No. He didn't feel the presence of Amazon, Chef, or insane Gymnast pressed against his body. Was he about to be attacked by one of his many rivals who thought the easiest way to strike at him was in his sleep? No. In fact, there was no one else in the room whatsoever, not even the Panda.
"What the heck is going on?" Ranma said groggily as he sat up and looked around the empty room.
His eyes roamed around the room until they finally rested on a single object sitting on the dresser. He looked at it in confusion for a moment as he tried to figure out what it was about the object that attracted his focus. Finally, his brain kicked in and he realized what it was about the object that had grabbed his attention.
"Oh, no! I'm going to be late for school!"
Sparing one last glance at the clock, Ranma leapt out of his bedroll and raced for the bathroom. Making sure the 'Occupied' sign wasn't up, he grabbed it and put it on the door before practically diving in to the awaiting water and began cleaning up. Not that he WANTED to go to school, mind you, it's just his mom would be disappointed in him if he didn't get there on time. And he didn't want to disappoint her, oh no; not when she started to finger that katana of hers.
As he was drying himself off, Ranma couldn't figure out why nobody had woke him up. Usually, Pops would throw him out the window in order to 'toughen him up' before they began to spar. If not Pops then Akane would've thrown a bucket of cold water at him to wake him up before yelling at him. At the very least, Kasumi or Mom should've gotten him up.
Shrugging to himself, Ranma dressed and left the bathroom and headed out in search of breakfast. If it were important, he'd find out about it later...usually when it blew up in his face. Just par for course here at the Tendo Dojo.
Arriving at the table Ranma saw Akane sitting there, eating her rice with a bewildered expression on her face. He was about to ask what was wrong with her, but changed his mind and decided to enjoy a peaceful meal for once. Accepting a bowl from an unusually quiet Kasumi, he also saw that neither Pops or Mr. Tendo were around; but just shrugged it off figuring they were either hiding from Happosai or planing another stupid way to 'join the families'. Nabiki wasn't there either, but Ranma just chalked it up to her business at school. Mom wasn't around and that concerned him slightly (did she leave again but didn't tell him?) but for the life of him he couldn't figure out his mother sometimes so he just let it pass for now.
What did concern him, however, was the fact that breakfast wasn't up to its normal levels of shear perfection. Everything was off somehow; he could taste it in everything he ate; but couldn't say exactly what was wrong. Since he wasn't clutching his stomach in pain he knew that Akane hadn't made breakfast like she's done to...er, for him in the past. Those thoughts were pushed aside, however, as Akane rose from the table and he realized that it was time to go. He was about to follow Akane out the door when a hesitant voice stopped him is his tracks.
"Ranma-kun?" he heard Kasumi say.
"Whatsup, Kasumi?"
"Well...you see...I was wondering...well..." the eldest Tendou daughter said uncertainly.
Ranma's thought process was quite simple, you see. Kasumi not acting like her normal self + food made by Kasumi that wasn't five star quality = Kasumi is sick and/or dying.
Ranma was instantly by her side, worry and concern on his face and in his voice. "Are ya ok? You're not hurt or sick are ya? Akane didn't make you eat anything she made, did she? Ya don't need ta see a Doctor, do ya?"
"No, no, I'm fine. It's just...well...I was wondering if you could..."
"Yes? Yes?" Ranma said intently, knowing he would try to move heaven and earth for Kasumi if it would get her to start making food like she normally does.
"Well...if you could..." Kasumi paused to take a deep breath, "the next time you see the Sailor Senshi, could you get an autograph from them? Please?" she asked hopefully.
"Yea...sure, I guess." Ranma said with confusion, not seeing what the big deal was about a bunch of girls in short skirts...well, except for Setsuna; but she was a special case.
"Oh thank you, Ranma-kun!" Kasumi said excitedly as she hugged him briefly before taking off through the house with a spring in her step.
Ranma watched Kasumi leave the room, trying to figure out why such a simple 'yes' could make her so happy. Shrugging his shoulders, Ranma left the house and poured on the speed in order to make it to school on time.
Unbeknownst to Ranma, two events were taking place at the Dojo as he was leaving. Neither one, however, would surprise anyone who was familiar with the on going train wreck that was called 'Ranma's Life'.
"We have a problem, Saotome." Soun said with a serious expression on his face as he shifted slightly to get more comfortable.
"Indeed we do, Tendo my friend." Genma replied as he twisted and turned in the cramped space.
Apparently using some semblance of intelligence, the two students of Happosai decided that they needed privacy for their talk. Unfortunately, there was no way Genma would go into the Dojo itself, especially not right now. So the two crawled underneath the house for their talk. Soun had no problems, and in fact had been here before the last time the hot water when out. He cried for over an hour when Kasumi frowned slightly at him before he finally gave in and did the repairs.
Genma, however, was having difficulty. He had problems squeezing his enormously muscled frame under the floorboards. (Well, he thought of that way. Everyone else would just say his fat ass (and everything else) was getting in the way.) But he endured. After all, wasn't his...er, that is to say, the Ryu's future at stake? Fortunately, there were several well-worn paths across the ground. He could understand the yellow and black bandana next to his left knee (after all, that Ryoga boy could get lost at a drop of a hat), but what the heck was a doll made of straw doing down here?
"The Sailor Senshi." Soun stated simply.
"Yes." Genma replied. "Powerful woman known for their beauty."
"How could my Akane hope to compete against the strength and beauty all nine?!" Soun said on the verge of tears (no big surprise there). "If it were just one or two of them I know they wouldn't be any threat to my little girl!" Proving that Akane and Kuno weren't the only ones who were delusional about her abilities and appearance.
Sighing heavily, Genma said, "We have no choice, Tendo. There is only one option available to us."
"You don't mean?" Soun gasped.
"That's right, my old friend!"
The two men looked at each other intently before crying out in stereo, "Operation: Get Ranma and Akane Married!"
They would have both stood up and thrust their pointer fingers to the heavens, however they both forgot they were underneath the house. As a result, they both cracked their heads against the support beams and were sent into a blissful slumber (not that anyone cared...well, actually Kasumi did. She was finally able to clean the floor underneath the Shogi board, a place she hadn't been able to get too in the past two years.).
Meanwhile, out in the Dojo, Nodoka went through the ritual cleaning and cleansing of her katana with a joyful smile on her face. The thought that her manly son had claimed all nine of the famous Sailor Senshi as his mistresses sent her into a daydream of caring for a hoard of grandchildren as she could hear the sounds of her manly son 'serving' his harem.
Which shows that Akane and Soun aren't the only delusional ones living at the Tendo Dojo.
**********
Ranma arrived at school with plenty of time to spare. He saw Akane had gotten ahead of him; apparently still dazed for whatever reason. He absently noticed that most of the students were gathered around the school grounds and were looking at him while whispering to each other. Doing a quick check to make sure he was a guy and that everything was in place (Shirt: check. Pants: check. Shoes: check. Pig-tail: check.) he headed towards the doors before he was brought up short by a familiar bellow.
"Hold, Saotome!"
Sighing, Ranma turned around to look at the speaker. "What'cha want, Kuno?"
"That's Kuno-Sempai to you! Now tell me! Is what the avaricious Nabiki Tendo spoken unto me true?"
"Huh?" Ranma replied intelligently.
"Is it true that you have been consorting with the famed Sailor Senshi?"
Everyone's eyes were on Ranma waiting to see his answer. What happened next was something that no one expected.
Ranma's face twisted into a mask of disgust. "Ew! That...That's just sick! I would NEVER do something like that! Man, and Akane calls ME a pervert!"
A loud crash was heard as the entire student body face-faulted en-mass.
"Ranma?" he heard Hiroshi say, "Kuno means 'Consort'. As in 'to associate with' or 'to befriend'."
Pausing for a moment, Ranma finally replied. "Oh. Why didn'tcha say so? Yea, I met 'em last night. So what's the big deal?"
"Never!" Kuno bellowed as he charged and swung at the pig-tailed martial artist with his bokken; missing by a wide margin as Ranma dodged. "Never will I allow you to sully Her name and honor as you have done with Akane and the Pig-tailed Girl!"
"What'cha ya talking about?" Ranma demanded, not even bothering to attack as he dodged. His eyes narrowed slightly, however. If Kuno was talking about Suna-chan...well, let's just say that things were going to get terminally painful for the Samurai-wannabe.
Ranma's question brought Kuno up short. He clutched his bokken tightly as his eyes began to get that unfocused look that Ranma had seen many times before. It meant that Kuno was about to soliloquize.
"Ah, she is the most beautiful and graceful of all the Senshi! Her splendor rivals all; yes, even that of the fierce tigress Akane and the Pig-tailed Goddess! Her skills are without par in the field of battle! Her mer movements are shear poetry! Her voice is that of a thousand angles! I speak of none other than that great Paladin of Love and Justice! Sailor Uranus!"
"But what about Akane and the 'Pig-tailed Girl'?" Ranma asked, rolling his eyes.
Kuno froze, his mouth hanging wide open. He snapped his mouth closed and tilted his head to one side in deep thought. Seeing that Kuno wasn't going anywhere for a while, Ranma turned around and headed inside to his classroom. Once in his seat, his classmates immediately surrounded him.
"Is it true? Did you really meet the Sailor Senshi?" Yuka asked.
"Yea." Ranma said as he shrugged his shoulders. "But I still don't see what's the big deal, though."
"Are you kidding!" Daisuke said excitedly. "The Senshi are famous all over Japan! They've saved Tokyo from alien attacks and evil Youma countless times!"
"Well, how come I ain't never heard of 'em?"
Everyone in the room looked at each other as they shared one thought. If it didn't deal with food or martial arts, it didn't matter to Ranma.
"Well, it's a good thing that I'm your friend." Hiroshi said with absolute conviction of the true Otkau. "Allow me to enlighten you!"
^Bam!^
Ranma looked carefully at the thick book that Hiroshi had dropped onto his desk. Slowly, he lifted its cover and looked at the first page. He saw a picture of five scantily clad girls dressed in orange, red, light blue, green, and blue fukus. He noticed that even though they were facing the camera when the picture was taken, their faces were obscured; apparently by the same means that prevented him from making out their faces last night.
"Theses are the Sailor Senshi!" Hiroshi said with a flourish. "Well, at least their core group. They're commonly referred to as the 'Inner' Senshi, because of their close proximity to the Earth."
"Huh?"
"Sigh You don't even know their names?" Daisuke said with exasperation. "The five you see here are Sailors Venus, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Moon.
"Oh, hey! I remember! I talked to that Moonie chick last night!"
Several of the girls in the room sighed loudly as some of the guys groaned. "You...you talked...to Sailor Moon...?" Daisuke said with disbelief.
"Yea...she went through all these funny poses before she told me her name. Waz up with that, anyway?"
A few of the people in the room shot Ranma dark looks, while Daisuke started to gape like a fish. Ranma looked around the room in confusion and was about ask what was wrong when Hiroshi interrupted him, rolling his eyes. He started to flip the pages slowly, giving Ranma a little bit of information as he turned the pages.
"Here's more pictures of the 'Inners'. This is Sailor Mercury." Ranma saw a girl with blue hair styled like Akanes. She was dressed in light blue and most of the pictures showed her either consulting what looked like a small computer or with some sort of visor over her eyes. "She's apparently the brains of the group. Mercury's most often seen off to the side their fights and calling out weak points or advice. There are rumors that she's either an android or cyborg that escaped from a top-secret government facility or that she was genetically engineered to be super smart. From what I can tell, she apparently has some sort of ice powers."
"This is Sailor Mars." She had long black hair and was dressed in red. Some of the pictures showed her either in a poise Ranma recognized from his travels that some priests would use while in prayer or holding a spell scroll of some sort. Hiroshi noticed Ranma looking at one of those. "Ah, yes. Mars is apparently their spiritual advisor. You know, gives them advice on Religious matters and such. Some people think she was raised in a remote mountain temple where she devoted her life to the worship of her Goddess. Personally, I think she was one of those 'Devil Hunters' that roam around Japan before the Senshi recruited her. She seems to have power over fire.
"This is Sailor Moon." Ranma saw Hiroshi roll his eyes again, and several people shot him dirty looks as he talked. "She's apparently the leader, although I don't believe it." People began to protest as Hiroshi raised his voice to be heard. "Come on! She's a klutzy crybaby who gets a few lucky shots in now and then!"
"No she's not!" Yuka protested. "She a normal girl who's been caught up in event's beyond her control and preservers over adversity while leading the Senshi to victory in the name of Truth and Justice!"
"Yea, right!" Hiroshi snorted. "That's just what everyone says because they feel sorry for her! She's just a wannabe with no real power. Come on! She's Sailor MOON of all things! She's not even named after a planet!"
"You take that back!" Yuka yelled, being physically restrained by Sayuri.
"Now, now...let's not get into a fight or anything here." Sayuri said gently. "After all, Ranma should have a chance to find out about the Senshi."
"Anyway," Hiroshi continued, "Here powers are..."
"Truth and Justice!" Yuka exclaimed.
"Yea...truth and justice." Hiroshi deadpanned, then muttered "And a Frisbee."
"It's not a Frisbee! It's her Magical Disk of Justice that she uses to smite evil!" Yuka said with fervor.
"Whatever." Before another argument could break out, he turned several pages to the next Senshi, this one with dark brown hair tied back like Ucchan's and wearing green. "This is Sailor Jupiter and she's able to summon lightning. She's the 'Inners' powerhouse, and is often seen running headlong into a fight. A real bruiser...actually, now that I think about it, she's sorta like a female Ryoga but with out the depression or directional problems." Hiroshi mused before he said excitedly, "Now, THIS is the most important one!"
Ranma began to flip though the pages and saw the girl with long blond hair in orange that he rescued last night. In fact, Ranma found that most of the book was dedicated to her. "Sailor Venus. Also known affectionately as Sailor V. No matter what other's say, 'I' think she's the leader."
"Yea, right." Daisuke muttered.
"Come on! She was the first Senshi to appear! She's been seen taking the lead time and time again! She often goes out on her own to fight crime! Obviously she's in charge!"
"Tell Ranma what her power is." Yuka rolled her eyes.
"Love..." Hiroshi breathed loudly.
"...love?" Ranma blinked.
"Yea, can you believe it?" Daisuke shook his head.
"I'd like to know what kind of person thinks that love involves chains." Yuka muttered.
"Hey!" Hiroshi snapped out of his daydream and looked at Yuka darkly.
"Now, now." Sayuri cautioned. "Let's try to keep this impartial."
"Like your one to talk." Hiroshi said before he pointed out, "Now who was it that traded me those pictures of Sailor V for pictures of Sailor Jupiter?"
Sayuri blushed brightly as Ranma said, "Oh, yea...that's right. I saved her last night. She was about to get creamed before I carried her to safety."
"You...Touched...Sailor...V...?" Hiroshi drawled out slowly as every girl in the room sighed.
"Just like Tuxedo Kamen." Ranma heard several of the girls muttered.
"Who?"
With a look of resignation, Hiroshi flipped the pages back to the pictures of Sailor Moon. He pointed at several of them that included not only Moon, but also a guy dressed in a tuxedo and a top hat with a billowing cape.
"That is Tuxedo Kamen." Hiroshi said with disgust. "He apparently shows up to save Sailor Moon whenever she's in danger; which happens a lot. Besides that, he never dose anything useful."
"No...he's her trusted protector and has sworn his eternal love for Sailor Moon!" Sayuri pointed out.
Before they could argue any further, Ranma slapped his fist into his open palm. "Oh, yea! Now I remember! The weenie!"
"...What?" Sayuri slowly said.
"Yea. He was hanging around in the shadows after the fight. And...well, why else would someone do that unless they were about to attack? So, I threw a rock at him and knocked him out."
"You...What...!?" All the girls said slowly as their battle auras began to flare. Which Ranma didn't notice.
"Yea...a real wuss. I mean, he obviously doesn't know what he's doing; after all, even Mousse coulda' seen that rock commin'. Look at these pictures, all he's doin' in them is standing there trying ta look cool or sumthin'. I was right, wasn't I? He just jumps in and says a corny speech before disappearing again, right? I mean, even KUNO would try to do sumthin' productive!"
The temperature in the room dropped dramatically while Ranma remained oblivious. Before any of the girls could do anything to Ranma however Hiroshi stepped in.
"Now...now. It's like Sayuri said. Ranma should be allowed to hear about the Senshi impartially, right?"
The girls reluctantly backed down, but kept their hammers ready in case Ranma said something else about Tuxedo Kaman.
"Hey...what about the others? There were nine of them last night." Ranma asked.
"You saw all nine of them?" Daisuke said awed.
"Yea...so?"
Hiroshi and Daisuke shared a look and nodded with conviction. Hiroshi quickly removed the large book from Ranma's desk and replaced it with a much, much thinner one. In fact, it seemed to be only a few pages thick. Everyone crowded closer around Ranma's desk as Hiroshi began to speak.
"Then you, my friend, are indeed very lucky. You've met the 'Outer' Senshi. Very little is known about them. In fact, anything you could tell us about them would be greatly appreciated. These are Sailors Uranus and Neptune." Hiroshi said as he opened the folder and showed Ranma the first couple pages.
Ranma saw a shorthaired blond in a dark-blue colored fuku and another one with long light green hair in a light green fuku. "Of all the 'Outer' Senshi, more is known about these two than the others; and that isn't saying much. They always show up together; although on one knows why. Uranus is the one here with the sword; while Neptune is known to use a mirror of some kind. Nobody knows what kind of power Uranus has; some say earth based powers, but I dismiss it. After all, if she had that kind of power, how come she isn't called 'Sailor Earth' or 'Sailor Terra'? Others say sky based powers, but...well, no one knows for sure. Neptune has power over water, I think. But then again, little is known about the pair. So, Ranma. What can you tell us about them?"
Ranma frowned for a moment then answered slowly. "Well...this one," he said as he pointed at the blond of the pair, "was kinda cocky and arrogant. I kinda liked her for some reason." Ranma trailed off for a moment with a frown. "Oh, yea. She also laughed when I called that Tux guy a weenie."
Apparently everyone was so entranced by Ranmas revelation that the girls in the room let the 'weenie' comment slide. "I see...I see...anything else?" Hiroshi asked and, seeing Ranma shake his head, then turned several pages. "This is Sailor Saturn. Very little is known about her, except that Neptune and Uranus always accompany her...always. Those two have been known to go at it on their own or join up with the 'Inners'; but not Saturn, she's never seen by herself."
"Well, she's kinda young, that's probably why. They're probably her sisters or sumthin'." Ranma said offhand as he looked at the delicate looking girl in the pictures carrying that big naginata of hers; not realizing that everyone was hanging off his every word and taking his guesses as fact. "And she's really shy, too. Don't know why, though, she seemed kinda cute."
Ranma turned the to the last page of the folder and froze. There were only two pictures on that page, and they grabbed his full undivided attention. One showed Suna-chan in her 'Pluto' get up from a long distance away, but he recognized her instantly. The other one had all the Senshi together, including Pluto; which was probably why it was on this page. Although he didn't know it, Ranma was a very luck person. Because of his earlier comments about the other three 'Outers', no one noticed his reaction or how his voice suddenly sounded nervous.
"Er...what about this one?" he asked.
"Sailor Pluto, we think." Hiroshi said preoccupied. "No one knows much about her, if that's even her name. It's a guess, really. There are only two planets that don't have Senshi named after them. And since she's been see more often with the 'Outers'; it's everyone's best guess that she's 'Pluto' and not 'Earth'. So, can you tell me anything about her?"
"Who me? No...not at all. Not a thing. He, he, he."
"Too bad." Hiroshi was about to say more, but the Teacher entered the room.
As everyone scattered to their desks, Ranma gave Hiroshi a silent thank you. If it wasn't for him, Ranma would've had to find out about the Senshi another way; especially since Suna-chan was involved with them. And that meant Nabiki. He was pretty sure that he covered himself well last night and that she didn't suspect anything, but he wasn't sure. She was very crafty, and no matter how hard he tried to hide something from her in the past, she would always find out about it. If he asked her about the Senshi he felt there might be a slim chance that she might find out about Suna-chan.
A slim chance, mind you. But a chance he didn't want to take.
(Who knew? Maybe there's something in the water at the Tendo Dojo?)
The Teacher was about to start the class and begin the school day but was interrupted by a loud cry from outside.
"I Must Have All Three!!!"
**********
Six girls walked through the streets of Juuban on a mission of great importance. Well, at least one of them thought of it that way.
"I heard that this place is great! I can't believe I haven't gone there before! I can't wait until we get there! I've didn't even know that there were 151 different flavors of ice cream! I wonder if they'll let me sample all of the flavors..." The blond with twin pony-tails said with excitement as she bounced down the sidewalk like her namesake.
"Not that you need it, dumpling head. Your hips already wide enough." Rei said with a huff.
"Rei! That's mean! Oh, can I borrow some money? Please??" Usagi begged.
"You...you can borrow some of mine, Usagi." A small voice said quietly from the rear of the group. "Michiru-mama gave me plenty before we left the shrine."
"Really!? Oh, thank you Hotaru! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!" Usagi said as she rushed over and hugged the younger girl tightly.
Rei blew her bangs out of her eyes in annoyance. Privately, she enjoyed her fights with Usagi; not that she would ever admit it to anyone. She was a little vexed that Hotaru interrupted their latest fight, but she wouldn't hold it against her. She knew the small girl shied away from any kind of confrontation, so that's probably why she ended Reis' and Usagis' latest quarrel before it began.
In reality, Hotaru did what she did because those two could be so LOUD! She really didn't want Usagi to start to wail; after all, the last time she did Hotaru was standing too close and she couldn't hear out of her left ear for several days. She once heard Haruka-papa say that Rei and Usagi act like they do because they were like her and Michiru-mama but didn't want to admit it to themselves. Hotaru didn't really believe that, but she didn't know for sure. In fact, all she knew for sure was that she wished Usagi would let go of her; it was kind of hard to breath being hugged so tightly.
Usagi released Hotaru and grabbed her hand. "Come on! What are we waiting around here for? Let's go!"
Usagi began dragging the smaller girl down the street as the others followed behind with small smiles at Hotaru's predicament; they've all been there before. Arriving at the ice cream parlor, Usagi proceeded to drool at all the different flavors available; at least until Rei called her a bottomless pit.
After each of the girls ordered, they took a booth at the back of the parlor and began to speak in low voices.
"Usagi!! Give me back my cherry!"
(Ok, maybe not ALL of them spoke in low voices...)
"So, Ami. Is there anything else you can tell us about this Ranma guy?" Rei asked after giving a silent prayer for her lost cherry (and protectively hovering over her chocolate sundae).
Looking up from her ice cream float, Ami opened the Mercury Computer and scrolled through the collected data. "Unfortunately, no. I don't have enough information to even speculate how he was able to do everything he did last night. And there's still the question about that slight trace of unknown magic."
"Maybe that magic is the reason he was able to move like he did." Minako said, taking a lick of her butterscotch ice cream cone. "You know, like some sort of Absolute Vodka Field or something?"
Ami looked at Minako for a moment in confusion before shaking her head. "No, it's not like an 'Absolute Terror Field'. Besides, the one time the readings I got on it 'spiked' was well after the fight. In fact, if it didn't 'spike' I would have just discounted it as back-ground noise from our encounter with the Sidhe."
"What do you mean, 'spiked'?" Rei asked suspiciously, "You mean he did something after the fight? Like when he was talking to us?"
"No, nothing like that." Ami explained, taking a sip of her float. "When I say 'spike' I'm only talking about a .5% increase. And it was directed internally; towards himself. It might be some sort of passive ability; it's even possible he might not even be aware of it."
Taking a lick of her double scoop of Rocky Road, Makoto asked, "So what else do we know about him besides this magic of his and that he's a powerful martial artist?"
"Well, it's not like martial artist of his caliber root through garbage, you know." Minako pointed out.
Before anyone could interpret what the blond had meant, Makotos' eyes suddenly went wide and she slapped her free hand against her forehead. "How could I be so stupid? It's so obvious!"
"What?" Several of the girls asked.
"Nerima!" The brunet said as an explanation as understanding lit the eyes of all the girls in the booth.
Well, all except one. "Mrunina?" Usagi asked, her mouth full. Placing her spoon back into the shattered remains of a triple-banana split with extra toppings, she asked her question again. "What's so special about Nerima?"
"Don't you know anything, dumpling head? Nerima is suppose to be the home of a bunch of insanely powerful martial artiest and Kami knows what else! Remember a couple of years ago when there was that news report on the TV? The one where they showed a hundred foot tall panda facing off against an equally tall...thing? Well, Grandpa and I were watching it together and I asked him about it and...well, he went real pale and got this scared look. He then said something like 'There are some Evils that a girl like you should NEVER be exposed to'. Then he expressly forbade me from ever going there for whatever reason. I don't know about you, but if something in Nerima has got Grandpa scared THAT much, there isn't anyway I'm going there unless it's with all of us together in our Eternal forms, you understand?"
"Yea! I've heard that it's a place where you can't turn around without being attacked by bicycles and mailboxes and giant pigs and there's even this giant demon with tentacles! I don't know about you, but we've fought a lot of thing but there's no way I'm getting near ANYTHING with tentacles!" Minako said with conviction.
"Indeed, I've periodically gotten strange readings originating from the Nerima Ward. Tornado's appearing during clear weather, strange energy readings, and other curious phenomenon. I asked Setsuna once about it and she told me that it was not my concern and that I wasn't to look into it." Ami pointed out.
Hotaru looked up from the single scoop of vanilla ice cream that she had been picking at with her spoon. "Setsuna-mama told me that I wasn't suppose to go there. Even if I was transformed."
Everyone paused for a moment as they absorbed the implications of THAT little statement. If Setsuna didn't think that Sailor Saturn; the Senshi of Destruction; was powerful enough to go into Nerima by herself, then Nerima was truly a bad place.
"Wow!" Usagi exclaimed. "So, when are we going?"
Every head except Usagis hit the table hard after her question. "You...!" Rei said, shaking a finger at the blond. "Didn't you hear a word we just said? Nerima is a dangerous place!"
"Yea, but if Ranma is really from there how else are we suppose to find out about him?'
It was silent around the table for a moment until Makoto slammed a fist into her palm. "Tomorrow! After school! It's probably just a bunch of tricks and exaggerated rumors anyway. If Ranma is from there then it's our duty to find out if he's seeing anyone!"
"Yea! There's nothing that's going to stop me from finding out about a cute guy!" Minako said with absolute conviction.
"No way! Not me! If Grandpa says I'm not suppose to go there, then there's no way you're going to get me to go."
Hotaru just shook her head and Ami sighed. "I'd might as well go. Perhaps I might be able to find the source of those strange energy reading." Unspoken what the fact that SOMEONE with a level head should go with Minako and Makoto into a place as dangerous as Nerima was suppose to be; especially when they were boy-hunting.
"Tomorrow?" Usagi asked in thought. Remembering her earlier decision to talk to Setsuna, she shook her head. "Sorry, there's something I need to do tomorrow."
Rei was about to say something to Usagi (Anyone think that it was going to be something nice? Anyone?) when she suddenly inhaled sharply as he eyes glazed over slightly.
"What's wrong Rei?" Usagi asked her friend with concern.
"Don't you feel that?" the raven-haired girl said distractedly.
All of the girls looked around sharply and discreetly reached for their Henshin Pens as Ami punched a few buttons on the Mercury Computer. "I'm detecting a strange energy source approaching the ice cream parlor." She said in a hushed tone. "It's just outside the door."
The bell over the door chimed and everyone looked with apprehension at the entranceway. In their time they had faced Youma and Phage and Demons and being from the future and the past that were bent on there destruction. While they might not have liked it, they were prepared for anything.
Well...anything except for a small girl with long red hair tied back in a pig-tail dressed in a red Chinese shirt looking around the parlor almost apprehensively.
To be continued...
(Don't you just hate it when authors do that?)
**********
Author's Notes:
The other day I was thinking about exactly HOW Crystal Tokyo would be formed after the 'Great Ice'. It was really starting to bug me. Did it just spring forth from the ground magically? Did the earth become a great wasteland like in 'Fist of the North Star' or 'Appleseed' and did the Senshi have to struggle to build their future home? I thought for a long time before inspiration came to me from an unlikely source and I just had to share my thoughts with everyone.
Now, without further ado, I present the answer to one of the greatest secrets of the Sailor Moon universe.
Ahem...
**********
Minako: Why, Ami? What are we going to do tomorrow night?
Ami: The same thing we do every night, Mina-chan. Try to create Crystal Tokyo!
Minako: Narv! Will we meet any cute boys?
Ami: Sigh Yes, Mina-chan. I'm sure we will.
"They're Minako and Ami.
They're Minako and Ami.
"One is a genius,
And the other's boy-crazy.
"To prove their Senshi worth,
They'll take over the Earth.
"They're Minako...
Minako and Ami,
Ami, Ami, Ami...
"Ami, Ami, Ami, Ami."
**********
Heh, heh.
Also, I'd like to thank everyone who gave me wonderful C&C and encouragement (and demanded I get new chapters out as soon as I could). And to everyone on the Delphi Fanfic Forum who's been the first to see my works; such as Ordnance11 and Thermopyle (who's also given me play on his wonderful website @ http://thermopyle.anifics.com)
My fics can also be found on Tannim's sight @
http://tannim.anifics.com
and @
www.fanfiction.net
(2/1/3)
a Sailor Moon/Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
by SoftRogue
whiteb100@hotmail.com
Disclaimer:
There mine! I was the one who created them!
I own then! Those hacks stole my ideas!
I'll sue! I swear I will!!
Oh...by the way, you don't happen to have
a straightjacket that's a little looser, do you?
This one chafes.
**********
Chapter 3
**********
Sunrise. That sweet blessed event that banishes darkness from the land. 'Tis when the birds begin to sing and the flowers open there petals to greet the suns warming rays. Life once again returns to the land as the sun begins its endless trek across the heavens. Everyone, on one level or another, cannot help but greet the days awaking with a special...verve.
Everyone, that is, except one.
Awaking slowly, Ranma Saotome; heir to the Anything Goes Martial Arts Saotome Ryu; knew there was something wrong. His finely honed senses were screaming at him, telling him that there was something not right about the situation he was in. Coming awake fully; yet still feigning sleep; he took in his surroundings with all of the senses at his disposal.
Was he currently flying threw the air on a crash course with the koi pond? No. In fact he was still in his bedroll with the covers pulled up to his chin. Was he just soaked with cold water to end up at the mercy of the one who drenched him? No. He was still a guy and he couldn't feel the presence of any old perverts or angry uncute tomboys in the room. Did one of his fiancées sneak into his room last night in order to be 'closer' to him? No. He didn't feel the presence of Amazon, Chef, or insane Gymnast pressed against his body. Was he about to be attacked by one of his many rivals who thought the easiest way to strike at him was in his sleep? No. In fact, there was no one else in the room whatsoever, not even the Panda.
"What the heck is going on?" Ranma said groggily as he sat up and looked around the empty room.
His eyes roamed around the room until they finally rested on a single object sitting on the dresser. He looked at it in confusion for a moment as he tried to figure out what it was about the object that attracted his focus. Finally, his brain kicked in and he realized what it was about the object that had grabbed his attention.
"Oh, no! I'm going to be late for school!"
Sparing one last glance at the clock, Ranma leapt out of his bedroll and raced for the bathroom. Making sure the 'Occupied' sign wasn't up, he grabbed it and put it on the door before practically diving in to the awaiting water and began cleaning up. Not that he WANTED to go to school, mind you, it's just his mom would be disappointed in him if he didn't get there on time. And he didn't want to disappoint her, oh no; not when she started to finger that katana of hers.
As he was drying himself off, Ranma couldn't figure out why nobody had woke him up. Usually, Pops would throw him out the window in order to 'toughen him up' before they began to spar. If not Pops then Akane would've thrown a bucket of cold water at him to wake him up before yelling at him. At the very least, Kasumi or Mom should've gotten him up.
Shrugging to himself, Ranma dressed and left the bathroom and headed out in search of breakfast. If it were important, he'd find out about it later...usually when it blew up in his face. Just par for course here at the Tendo Dojo.
Arriving at the table Ranma saw Akane sitting there, eating her rice with a bewildered expression on her face. He was about to ask what was wrong with her, but changed his mind and decided to enjoy a peaceful meal for once. Accepting a bowl from an unusually quiet Kasumi, he also saw that neither Pops or Mr. Tendo were around; but just shrugged it off figuring they were either hiding from Happosai or planing another stupid way to 'join the families'. Nabiki wasn't there either, but Ranma just chalked it up to her business at school. Mom wasn't around and that concerned him slightly (did she leave again but didn't tell him?) but for the life of him he couldn't figure out his mother sometimes so he just let it pass for now.
What did concern him, however, was the fact that breakfast wasn't up to its normal levels of shear perfection. Everything was off somehow; he could taste it in everything he ate; but couldn't say exactly what was wrong. Since he wasn't clutching his stomach in pain he knew that Akane hadn't made breakfast like she's done to...er, for him in the past. Those thoughts were pushed aside, however, as Akane rose from the table and he realized that it was time to go. He was about to follow Akane out the door when a hesitant voice stopped him is his tracks.
"Ranma-kun?" he heard Kasumi say.
"Whatsup, Kasumi?"
"Well...you see...I was wondering...well..." the eldest Tendou daughter said uncertainly.
Ranma's thought process was quite simple, you see. Kasumi not acting like her normal self + food made by Kasumi that wasn't five star quality = Kasumi is sick and/or dying.
Ranma was instantly by her side, worry and concern on his face and in his voice. "Are ya ok? You're not hurt or sick are ya? Akane didn't make you eat anything she made, did she? Ya don't need ta see a Doctor, do ya?"
"No, no, I'm fine. It's just...well...I was wondering if you could..."
"Yes? Yes?" Ranma said intently, knowing he would try to move heaven and earth for Kasumi if it would get her to start making food like she normally does.
"Well...if you could..." Kasumi paused to take a deep breath, "the next time you see the Sailor Senshi, could you get an autograph from them? Please?" she asked hopefully.
"Yea...sure, I guess." Ranma said with confusion, not seeing what the big deal was about a bunch of girls in short skirts...well, except for Setsuna; but she was a special case.
"Oh thank you, Ranma-kun!" Kasumi said excitedly as she hugged him briefly before taking off through the house with a spring in her step.
Ranma watched Kasumi leave the room, trying to figure out why such a simple 'yes' could make her so happy. Shrugging his shoulders, Ranma left the house and poured on the speed in order to make it to school on time.
Unbeknownst to Ranma, two events were taking place at the Dojo as he was leaving. Neither one, however, would surprise anyone who was familiar with the on going train wreck that was called 'Ranma's Life'.
"We have a problem, Saotome." Soun said with a serious expression on his face as he shifted slightly to get more comfortable.
"Indeed we do, Tendo my friend." Genma replied as he twisted and turned in the cramped space.
Apparently using some semblance of intelligence, the two students of Happosai decided that they needed privacy for their talk. Unfortunately, there was no way Genma would go into the Dojo itself, especially not right now. So the two crawled underneath the house for their talk. Soun had no problems, and in fact had been here before the last time the hot water when out. He cried for over an hour when Kasumi frowned slightly at him before he finally gave in and did the repairs.
Genma, however, was having difficulty. He had problems squeezing his enormously muscled frame under the floorboards. (Well, he thought of that way. Everyone else would just say his fat ass (and everything else) was getting in the way.) But he endured. After all, wasn't his...er, that is to say, the Ryu's future at stake? Fortunately, there were several well-worn paths across the ground. He could understand the yellow and black bandana next to his left knee (after all, that Ryoga boy could get lost at a drop of a hat), but what the heck was a doll made of straw doing down here?
"The Sailor Senshi." Soun stated simply.
"Yes." Genma replied. "Powerful woman known for their beauty."
"How could my Akane hope to compete against the strength and beauty all nine?!" Soun said on the verge of tears (no big surprise there). "If it were just one or two of them I know they wouldn't be any threat to my little girl!" Proving that Akane and Kuno weren't the only ones who were delusional about her abilities and appearance.
Sighing heavily, Genma said, "We have no choice, Tendo. There is only one option available to us."
"You don't mean?" Soun gasped.
"That's right, my old friend!"
The two men looked at each other intently before crying out in stereo, "Operation: Get Ranma and Akane Married!"
They would have both stood up and thrust their pointer fingers to the heavens, however they both forgot they were underneath the house. As a result, they both cracked their heads against the support beams and were sent into a blissful slumber (not that anyone cared...well, actually Kasumi did. She was finally able to clean the floor underneath the Shogi board, a place she hadn't been able to get too in the past two years.).
Meanwhile, out in the Dojo, Nodoka went through the ritual cleaning and cleansing of her katana with a joyful smile on her face. The thought that her manly son had claimed all nine of the famous Sailor Senshi as his mistresses sent her into a daydream of caring for a hoard of grandchildren as she could hear the sounds of her manly son 'serving' his harem.
Which shows that Akane and Soun aren't the only delusional ones living at the Tendo Dojo.
**********
Ranma arrived at school with plenty of time to spare. He saw Akane had gotten ahead of him; apparently still dazed for whatever reason. He absently noticed that most of the students were gathered around the school grounds and were looking at him while whispering to each other. Doing a quick check to make sure he was a guy and that everything was in place (Shirt: check. Pants: check. Shoes: check. Pig-tail: check.) he headed towards the doors before he was brought up short by a familiar bellow.
"Hold, Saotome!"
Sighing, Ranma turned around to look at the speaker. "What'cha want, Kuno?"
"That's Kuno-Sempai to you! Now tell me! Is what the avaricious Nabiki Tendo spoken unto me true?"
"Huh?" Ranma replied intelligently.
"Is it true that you have been consorting with the famed Sailor Senshi?"
Everyone's eyes were on Ranma waiting to see his answer. What happened next was something that no one expected.
Ranma's face twisted into a mask of disgust. "Ew! That...That's just sick! I would NEVER do something like that! Man, and Akane calls ME a pervert!"
A loud crash was heard as the entire student body face-faulted en-mass.
"Ranma?" he heard Hiroshi say, "Kuno means 'Consort'. As in 'to associate with' or 'to befriend'."
Pausing for a moment, Ranma finally replied. "Oh. Why didn'tcha say so? Yea, I met 'em last night. So what's the big deal?"
"Never!" Kuno bellowed as he charged and swung at the pig-tailed martial artist with his bokken; missing by a wide margin as Ranma dodged. "Never will I allow you to sully Her name and honor as you have done with Akane and the Pig-tailed Girl!"
"What'cha ya talking about?" Ranma demanded, not even bothering to attack as he dodged. His eyes narrowed slightly, however. If Kuno was talking about Suna-chan...well, let's just say that things were going to get terminally painful for the Samurai-wannabe.
Ranma's question brought Kuno up short. He clutched his bokken tightly as his eyes began to get that unfocused look that Ranma had seen many times before. It meant that Kuno was about to soliloquize.
"Ah, she is the most beautiful and graceful of all the Senshi! Her splendor rivals all; yes, even that of the fierce tigress Akane and the Pig-tailed Goddess! Her skills are without par in the field of battle! Her mer movements are shear poetry! Her voice is that of a thousand angles! I speak of none other than that great Paladin of Love and Justice! Sailor Uranus!"
"But what about Akane and the 'Pig-tailed Girl'?" Ranma asked, rolling his eyes.
Kuno froze, his mouth hanging wide open. He snapped his mouth closed and tilted his head to one side in deep thought. Seeing that Kuno wasn't going anywhere for a while, Ranma turned around and headed inside to his classroom. Once in his seat, his classmates immediately surrounded him.
"Is it true? Did you really meet the Sailor Senshi?" Yuka asked.
"Yea." Ranma said as he shrugged his shoulders. "But I still don't see what's the big deal, though."
"Are you kidding!" Daisuke said excitedly. "The Senshi are famous all over Japan! They've saved Tokyo from alien attacks and evil Youma countless times!"
"Well, how come I ain't never heard of 'em?"
Everyone in the room looked at each other as they shared one thought. If it didn't deal with food or martial arts, it didn't matter to Ranma.
"Well, it's a good thing that I'm your friend." Hiroshi said with absolute conviction of the true Otkau. "Allow me to enlighten you!"
^Bam!^
Ranma looked carefully at the thick book that Hiroshi had dropped onto his desk. Slowly, he lifted its cover and looked at the first page. He saw a picture of five scantily clad girls dressed in orange, red, light blue, green, and blue fukus. He noticed that even though they were facing the camera when the picture was taken, their faces were obscured; apparently by the same means that prevented him from making out their faces last night.
"Theses are the Sailor Senshi!" Hiroshi said with a flourish. "Well, at least their core group. They're commonly referred to as the 'Inner' Senshi, because of their close proximity to the Earth."
"Huh?"
"Sigh You don't even know their names?" Daisuke said with exasperation. "The five you see here are Sailors Venus, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Moon.
"Oh, hey! I remember! I talked to that Moonie chick last night!"
Several of the girls in the room sighed loudly as some of the guys groaned. "You...you talked...to Sailor Moon...?" Daisuke said with disbelief.
"Yea...she went through all these funny poses before she told me her name. Waz up with that, anyway?"
A few of the people in the room shot Ranma dark looks, while Daisuke started to gape like a fish. Ranma looked around the room in confusion and was about ask what was wrong when Hiroshi interrupted him, rolling his eyes. He started to flip the pages slowly, giving Ranma a little bit of information as he turned the pages.
"Here's more pictures of the 'Inners'. This is Sailor Mercury." Ranma saw a girl with blue hair styled like Akanes. She was dressed in light blue and most of the pictures showed her either consulting what looked like a small computer or with some sort of visor over her eyes. "She's apparently the brains of the group. Mercury's most often seen off to the side their fights and calling out weak points or advice. There are rumors that she's either an android or cyborg that escaped from a top-secret government facility or that she was genetically engineered to be super smart. From what I can tell, she apparently has some sort of ice powers."
"This is Sailor Mars." She had long black hair and was dressed in red. Some of the pictures showed her either in a poise Ranma recognized from his travels that some priests would use while in prayer or holding a spell scroll of some sort. Hiroshi noticed Ranma looking at one of those. "Ah, yes. Mars is apparently their spiritual advisor. You know, gives them advice on Religious matters and such. Some people think she was raised in a remote mountain temple where she devoted her life to the worship of her Goddess. Personally, I think she was one of those 'Devil Hunters' that roam around Japan before the Senshi recruited her. She seems to have power over fire.
"This is Sailor Moon." Ranma saw Hiroshi roll his eyes again, and several people shot him dirty looks as he talked. "She's apparently the leader, although I don't believe it." People began to protest as Hiroshi raised his voice to be heard. "Come on! She's a klutzy crybaby who gets a few lucky shots in now and then!"
"No she's not!" Yuka protested. "She a normal girl who's been caught up in event's beyond her control and preservers over adversity while leading the Senshi to victory in the name of Truth and Justice!"
"Yea, right!" Hiroshi snorted. "That's just what everyone says because they feel sorry for her! She's just a wannabe with no real power. Come on! She's Sailor MOON of all things! She's not even named after a planet!"
"You take that back!" Yuka yelled, being physically restrained by Sayuri.
"Now, now...let's not get into a fight or anything here." Sayuri said gently. "After all, Ranma should have a chance to find out about the Senshi."
"Anyway," Hiroshi continued, "Here powers are..."
"Truth and Justice!" Yuka exclaimed.
"Yea...truth and justice." Hiroshi deadpanned, then muttered "And a Frisbee."
"It's not a Frisbee! It's her Magical Disk of Justice that she uses to smite evil!" Yuka said with fervor.
"Whatever." Before another argument could break out, he turned several pages to the next Senshi, this one with dark brown hair tied back like Ucchan's and wearing green. "This is Sailor Jupiter and she's able to summon lightning. She's the 'Inners' powerhouse, and is often seen running headlong into a fight. A real bruiser...actually, now that I think about it, she's sorta like a female Ryoga but with out the depression or directional problems." Hiroshi mused before he said excitedly, "Now, THIS is the most important one!"
Ranma began to flip though the pages and saw the girl with long blond hair in orange that he rescued last night. In fact, Ranma found that most of the book was dedicated to her. "Sailor Venus. Also known affectionately as Sailor V. No matter what other's say, 'I' think she's the leader."
"Yea, right." Daisuke muttered.
"Come on! She was the first Senshi to appear! She's been seen taking the lead time and time again! She often goes out on her own to fight crime! Obviously she's in charge!"
"Tell Ranma what her power is." Yuka rolled her eyes.
"Love..." Hiroshi breathed loudly.
"...love?" Ranma blinked.
"Yea, can you believe it?" Daisuke shook his head.
"I'd like to know what kind of person thinks that love involves chains." Yuka muttered.
"Hey!" Hiroshi snapped out of his daydream and looked at Yuka darkly.
"Now, now." Sayuri cautioned. "Let's try to keep this impartial."
"Like your one to talk." Hiroshi said before he pointed out, "Now who was it that traded me those pictures of Sailor V for pictures of Sailor Jupiter?"
Sayuri blushed brightly as Ranma said, "Oh, yea...that's right. I saved her last night. She was about to get creamed before I carried her to safety."
"You...Touched...Sailor...V...?" Hiroshi drawled out slowly as every girl in the room sighed.
"Just like Tuxedo Kamen." Ranma heard several of the girls muttered.
"Who?"
With a look of resignation, Hiroshi flipped the pages back to the pictures of Sailor Moon. He pointed at several of them that included not only Moon, but also a guy dressed in a tuxedo and a top hat with a billowing cape.
"That is Tuxedo Kamen." Hiroshi said with disgust. "He apparently shows up to save Sailor Moon whenever she's in danger; which happens a lot. Besides that, he never dose anything useful."
"No...he's her trusted protector and has sworn his eternal love for Sailor Moon!" Sayuri pointed out.
Before they could argue any further, Ranma slapped his fist into his open palm. "Oh, yea! Now I remember! The weenie!"
"...What?" Sayuri slowly said.
"Yea. He was hanging around in the shadows after the fight. And...well, why else would someone do that unless they were about to attack? So, I threw a rock at him and knocked him out."
"You...What...!?" All the girls said slowly as their battle auras began to flare. Which Ranma didn't notice.
"Yea...a real wuss. I mean, he obviously doesn't know what he's doing; after all, even Mousse coulda' seen that rock commin'. Look at these pictures, all he's doin' in them is standing there trying ta look cool or sumthin'. I was right, wasn't I? He just jumps in and says a corny speech before disappearing again, right? I mean, even KUNO would try to do sumthin' productive!"
The temperature in the room dropped dramatically while Ranma remained oblivious. Before any of the girls could do anything to Ranma however Hiroshi stepped in.
"Now...now. It's like Sayuri said. Ranma should be allowed to hear about the Senshi impartially, right?"
The girls reluctantly backed down, but kept their hammers ready in case Ranma said something else about Tuxedo Kaman.
"Hey...what about the others? There were nine of them last night." Ranma asked.
"You saw all nine of them?" Daisuke said awed.
"Yea...so?"
Hiroshi and Daisuke shared a look and nodded with conviction. Hiroshi quickly removed the large book from Ranma's desk and replaced it with a much, much thinner one. In fact, it seemed to be only a few pages thick. Everyone crowded closer around Ranma's desk as Hiroshi began to speak.
"Then you, my friend, are indeed very lucky. You've met the 'Outer' Senshi. Very little is known about them. In fact, anything you could tell us about them would be greatly appreciated. These are Sailors Uranus and Neptune." Hiroshi said as he opened the folder and showed Ranma the first couple pages.
Ranma saw a shorthaired blond in a dark-blue colored fuku and another one with long light green hair in a light green fuku. "Of all the 'Outer' Senshi, more is known about these two than the others; and that isn't saying much. They always show up together; although on one knows why. Uranus is the one here with the sword; while Neptune is known to use a mirror of some kind. Nobody knows what kind of power Uranus has; some say earth based powers, but I dismiss it. After all, if she had that kind of power, how come she isn't called 'Sailor Earth' or 'Sailor Terra'? Others say sky based powers, but...well, no one knows for sure. Neptune has power over water, I think. But then again, little is known about the pair. So, Ranma. What can you tell us about them?"
Ranma frowned for a moment then answered slowly. "Well...this one," he said as he pointed at the blond of the pair, "was kinda cocky and arrogant. I kinda liked her for some reason." Ranma trailed off for a moment with a frown. "Oh, yea. She also laughed when I called that Tux guy a weenie."
Apparently everyone was so entranced by Ranmas revelation that the girls in the room let the 'weenie' comment slide. "I see...I see...anything else?" Hiroshi asked and, seeing Ranma shake his head, then turned several pages. "This is Sailor Saturn. Very little is known about her, except that Neptune and Uranus always accompany her...always. Those two have been known to go at it on their own or join up with the 'Inners'; but not Saturn, she's never seen by herself."
"Well, she's kinda young, that's probably why. They're probably her sisters or sumthin'." Ranma said offhand as he looked at the delicate looking girl in the pictures carrying that big naginata of hers; not realizing that everyone was hanging off his every word and taking his guesses as fact. "And she's really shy, too. Don't know why, though, she seemed kinda cute."
Ranma turned the to the last page of the folder and froze. There were only two pictures on that page, and they grabbed his full undivided attention. One showed Suna-chan in her 'Pluto' get up from a long distance away, but he recognized her instantly. The other one had all the Senshi together, including Pluto; which was probably why it was on this page. Although he didn't know it, Ranma was a very luck person. Because of his earlier comments about the other three 'Outers', no one noticed his reaction or how his voice suddenly sounded nervous.
"Er...what about this one?" he asked.
"Sailor Pluto, we think." Hiroshi said preoccupied. "No one knows much about her, if that's even her name. It's a guess, really. There are only two planets that don't have Senshi named after them. And since she's been see more often with the 'Outers'; it's everyone's best guess that she's 'Pluto' and not 'Earth'. So, can you tell me anything about her?"
"Who me? No...not at all. Not a thing. He, he, he."
"Too bad." Hiroshi was about to say more, but the Teacher entered the room.
As everyone scattered to their desks, Ranma gave Hiroshi a silent thank you. If it wasn't for him, Ranma would've had to find out about the Senshi another way; especially since Suna-chan was involved with them. And that meant Nabiki. He was pretty sure that he covered himself well last night and that she didn't suspect anything, but he wasn't sure. She was very crafty, and no matter how hard he tried to hide something from her in the past, she would always find out about it. If he asked her about the Senshi he felt there might be a slim chance that she might find out about Suna-chan.
A slim chance, mind you. But a chance he didn't want to take.
(Who knew? Maybe there's something in the water at the Tendo Dojo?)
The Teacher was about to start the class and begin the school day but was interrupted by a loud cry from outside.
"I Must Have All Three!!!"
**********
Six girls walked through the streets of Juuban on a mission of great importance. Well, at least one of them thought of it that way.
"I heard that this place is great! I can't believe I haven't gone there before! I can't wait until we get there! I've didn't even know that there were 151 different flavors of ice cream! I wonder if they'll let me sample all of the flavors..." The blond with twin pony-tails said with excitement as she bounced down the sidewalk like her namesake.
"Not that you need it, dumpling head. Your hips already wide enough." Rei said with a huff.
"Rei! That's mean! Oh, can I borrow some money? Please??" Usagi begged.
"You...you can borrow some of mine, Usagi." A small voice said quietly from the rear of the group. "Michiru-mama gave me plenty before we left the shrine."
"Really!? Oh, thank you Hotaru! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!" Usagi said as she rushed over and hugged the younger girl tightly.
Rei blew her bangs out of her eyes in annoyance. Privately, she enjoyed her fights with Usagi; not that she would ever admit it to anyone. She was a little vexed that Hotaru interrupted their latest fight, but she wouldn't hold it against her. She knew the small girl shied away from any kind of confrontation, so that's probably why she ended Reis' and Usagis' latest quarrel before it began.
In reality, Hotaru did what she did because those two could be so LOUD! She really didn't want Usagi to start to wail; after all, the last time she did Hotaru was standing too close and she couldn't hear out of her left ear for several days. She once heard Haruka-papa say that Rei and Usagi act like they do because they were like her and Michiru-mama but didn't want to admit it to themselves. Hotaru didn't really believe that, but she didn't know for sure. In fact, all she knew for sure was that she wished Usagi would let go of her; it was kind of hard to breath being hugged so tightly.
Usagi released Hotaru and grabbed her hand. "Come on! What are we waiting around here for? Let's go!"
Usagi began dragging the smaller girl down the street as the others followed behind with small smiles at Hotaru's predicament; they've all been there before. Arriving at the ice cream parlor, Usagi proceeded to drool at all the different flavors available; at least until Rei called her a bottomless pit.
After each of the girls ordered, they took a booth at the back of the parlor and began to speak in low voices.
"Usagi!! Give me back my cherry!"
(Ok, maybe not ALL of them spoke in low voices...)
"So, Ami. Is there anything else you can tell us about this Ranma guy?" Rei asked after giving a silent prayer for her lost cherry (and protectively hovering over her chocolate sundae).
Looking up from her ice cream float, Ami opened the Mercury Computer and scrolled through the collected data. "Unfortunately, no. I don't have enough information to even speculate how he was able to do everything he did last night. And there's still the question about that slight trace of unknown magic."
"Maybe that magic is the reason he was able to move like he did." Minako said, taking a lick of her butterscotch ice cream cone. "You know, like some sort of Absolute Vodka Field or something?"
Ami looked at Minako for a moment in confusion before shaking her head. "No, it's not like an 'Absolute Terror Field'. Besides, the one time the readings I got on it 'spiked' was well after the fight. In fact, if it didn't 'spike' I would have just discounted it as back-ground noise from our encounter with the Sidhe."
"What do you mean, 'spiked'?" Rei asked suspiciously, "You mean he did something after the fight? Like when he was talking to us?"
"No, nothing like that." Ami explained, taking a sip of her float. "When I say 'spike' I'm only talking about a .5% increase. And it was directed internally; towards himself. It might be some sort of passive ability; it's even possible he might not even be aware of it."
Taking a lick of her double scoop of Rocky Road, Makoto asked, "So what else do we know about him besides this magic of his and that he's a powerful martial artist?"
"Well, it's not like martial artist of his caliber root through garbage, you know." Minako pointed out.
Before anyone could interpret what the blond had meant, Makotos' eyes suddenly went wide and she slapped her free hand against her forehead. "How could I be so stupid? It's so obvious!"
"What?" Several of the girls asked.
"Nerima!" The brunet said as an explanation as understanding lit the eyes of all the girls in the booth.
Well, all except one. "Mrunina?" Usagi asked, her mouth full. Placing her spoon back into the shattered remains of a triple-banana split with extra toppings, she asked her question again. "What's so special about Nerima?"
"Don't you know anything, dumpling head? Nerima is suppose to be the home of a bunch of insanely powerful martial artiest and Kami knows what else! Remember a couple of years ago when there was that news report on the TV? The one where they showed a hundred foot tall panda facing off against an equally tall...thing? Well, Grandpa and I were watching it together and I asked him about it and...well, he went real pale and got this scared look. He then said something like 'There are some Evils that a girl like you should NEVER be exposed to'. Then he expressly forbade me from ever going there for whatever reason. I don't know about you, but if something in Nerima has got Grandpa scared THAT much, there isn't anyway I'm going there unless it's with all of us together in our Eternal forms, you understand?"
"Yea! I've heard that it's a place where you can't turn around without being attacked by bicycles and mailboxes and giant pigs and there's even this giant demon with tentacles! I don't know about you, but we've fought a lot of thing but there's no way I'm getting near ANYTHING with tentacles!" Minako said with conviction.
"Indeed, I've periodically gotten strange readings originating from the Nerima Ward. Tornado's appearing during clear weather, strange energy readings, and other curious phenomenon. I asked Setsuna once about it and she told me that it was not my concern and that I wasn't to look into it." Ami pointed out.
Hotaru looked up from the single scoop of vanilla ice cream that she had been picking at with her spoon. "Setsuna-mama told me that I wasn't suppose to go there. Even if I was transformed."
Everyone paused for a moment as they absorbed the implications of THAT little statement. If Setsuna didn't think that Sailor Saturn; the Senshi of Destruction; was powerful enough to go into Nerima by herself, then Nerima was truly a bad place.
"Wow!" Usagi exclaimed. "So, when are we going?"
Every head except Usagis hit the table hard after her question. "You...!" Rei said, shaking a finger at the blond. "Didn't you hear a word we just said? Nerima is a dangerous place!"
"Yea, but if Ranma is really from there how else are we suppose to find out about him?'
It was silent around the table for a moment until Makoto slammed a fist into her palm. "Tomorrow! After school! It's probably just a bunch of tricks and exaggerated rumors anyway. If Ranma is from there then it's our duty to find out if he's seeing anyone!"
"Yea! There's nothing that's going to stop me from finding out about a cute guy!" Minako said with absolute conviction.
"No way! Not me! If Grandpa says I'm not suppose to go there, then there's no way you're going to get me to go."
Hotaru just shook her head and Ami sighed. "I'd might as well go. Perhaps I might be able to find the source of those strange energy reading." Unspoken what the fact that SOMEONE with a level head should go with Minako and Makoto into a place as dangerous as Nerima was suppose to be; especially when they were boy-hunting.
"Tomorrow?" Usagi asked in thought. Remembering her earlier decision to talk to Setsuna, she shook her head. "Sorry, there's something I need to do tomorrow."
Rei was about to say something to Usagi (Anyone think that it was going to be something nice? Anyone?) when she suddenly inhaled sharply as he eyes glazed over slightly.
"What's wrong Rei?" Usagi asked her friend with concern.
"Don't you feel that?" the raven-haired girl said distractedly.
All of the girls looked around sharply and discreetly reached for their Henshin Pens as Ami punched a few buttons on the Mercury Computer. "I'm detecting a strange energy source approaching the ice cream parlor." She said in a hushed tone. "It's just outside the door."
The bell over the door chimed and everyone looked with apprehension at the entranceway. In their time they had faced Youma and Phage and Demons and being from the future and the past that were bent on there destruction. While they might not have liked it, they were prepared for anything.
Well...anything except for a small girl with long red hair tied back in a pig-tail dressed in a red Chinese shirt looking around the parlor almost apprehensively.
To be continued...
(Don't you just hate it when authors do that?)
**********
Author's Notes:
The other day I was thinking about exactly HOW Crystal Tokyo would be formed after the 'Great Ice'. It was really starting to bug me. Did it just spring forth from the ground magically? Did the earth become a great wasteland like in 'Fist of the North Star' or 'Appleseed' and did the Senshi have to struggle to build their future home? I thought for a long time before inspiration came to me from an unlikely source and I just had to share my thoughts with everyone.
Now, without further ado, I present the answer to one of the greatest secrets of the Sailor Moon universe.
Ahem...
**********
Minako: Why, Ami? What are we going to do tomorrow night?
Ami: The same thing we do every night, Mina-chan. Try to create Crystal Tokyo!
Minako: Narv! Will we meet any cute boys?
Ami: Sigh Yes, Mina-chan. I'm sure we will.
"They're Minako and Ami.
They're Minako and Ami.
"One is a genius,
And the other's boy-crazy.
"To prove their Senshi worth,
They'll take over the Earth.
"They're Minako...
Minako and Ami,
Ami, Ami, Ami...
"Ami, Ami, Ami, Ami."
**********
Heh, heh.
Also, I'd like to thank everyone who gave me wonderful C&C and encouragement (and demanded I get new chapters out as soon as I could). And to everyone on the Delphi Fanfic Forum who's been the first to see my works; such as Ordnance11 and Thermopyle (who's also given me play on his wonderful website @ http://thermopyle.anifics.com)
My fics can also be found on Tannim's sight @
http://tannim.anifics.com
and @
www.fanfiction.net
(2/1/3)