Hi again! ^_^

A special "Thank You!!" to Pudgoose for leaving some nice reviews and for promoting this story. I really, REALLY appreciate the support! ^_^ I would also like to return the favor and suggest that if you're interested in reading other SSX Tricky fanfics, try checking out Pudgoose's SSX Tricky story, "We Are NOT Sports People." It's a great comedy!

SSX Tricky and it's characters are the property of EA games. Ranma 1/2 is the property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Inc., Kitty, Fuji TV, and Viz Communications. Xiu Mei's name was obtained from the BabyNameWorld site. The reference to jinwen was taken from the logoi.com website.

Now, on with the show... ^_^

PsYked

Chapter 4: Revelations and Frustrations

"STUPID @#$*%&!~(* !!!"

"Smash!!"

"Please, calm down Ms. Customer!!"

"OF ALL THE FREAKIN'...!!!"

"Slam!!"

"If you'd let me explain!!"

"THEY TOLD ME THIS NEW @#*&$)(@*# LEAGUE WAS BETTER THAN #$*&@#@)$ BMX!!!"

"Crash!!"

"Oh dear, there goes another family heirloom."

"EVEN TATTOO-BOY AGREED!!!"

"Bang!!"

"Wait!! There is a temporary solution!!"

"NOW WHAT AM I %*$&#@)(@* SUPPOSED TO DO, MAKE LEAN, MEAN RACING TRICYCLES?!!!"

"Whoosh!! Clang!! Boom!! Clink, clink, clin..."

"ARE YOU $%*&#)@& HAPPY NOW, WORLD!!!!"

"Ugh...nani?" As Kaori groggily collected her senses, the first thing she heard was the sound of breaking items and a young girl yelling at the top of her lungs. A pleading older woman's voice could also be heard. "I feel so strange. What happened?" The last thing she remembered was being knocked off a cliff and arguing with Psymon. "Oh, that's right. We fell into some water."

Shaking the cobwebs from her head, Kaori took note of her surroundings. The teen appeared to lying on some type of lightly padded surface. Turning her head, Kaori saw she was in a small cottage. Judging by it's tidy condition, the comfortable dwelling seemed well-kept. However, if the screams and the crashes were any indication, that was rapidly ceasing to be the case.

Kaori called out, "Hello?" Nobody answered. "Hello?" Again, no response. Either the girl and woman couldn't hear her, or they were too engaged in their own activities to notice. Deciding to investigate further, Kaori struggled to sit up. "Ooh...something doesn't feel right." Indeed, the teen's body coordination felt completely off kilter. "Did I get hurt?" Trying to check herself over, Kaori lifted her hands and immediately noticed her unusually pale skin. "Ne? Did I lose a lot of blood?" The woman shook her head. "I don't feel THAT weak." Examining her arms, she detected a faint pale green aura surrounding them. Kaori blinked. "Umm...this is starting to get a little strange." After a brief struggle to stand, Kaori looked down at her body. "What? My whole body's surrounded by visible chi? And...why am I dressed like this?" Instead of her normal jacket, t-shirt, and embroidered pants, the Japanese teenager was dressed in a black leather jacket with some Yu-Gi-Oh!-style ankh cuff links, a bikini top, ragged black leather jeans, and black sneakers. A sparkling ankh pendant hung from a necklace around her neck. She also noticed that her chest was the same pale shade as her hands. "O.K. Now this is becoming really, REALLY weird!" So engrossed was Kaori in examining her attire and strangely colored skin, she nearly missed her extra set of chitin-covered arms, just below her normal pair. "NANI!!"

"Zoooom!!" A perky young girl of about 11-13 years of age screeched to a halt in front of Kaori. The Japanese teenager, her head already in a whirl, could only stare in amazement. As with Kaori, herself, the kid was surrounded by an aura, this one rainbow-colored. Furthermore, the youth was dressed quite oddly, to say the least. She was wearing a slightly ratty, off-white, short-sleeved, cut-off t-shirt. Cheerfully displayed on the front of the shirt was a logo depicting a teddy bear being struck by a lightening bolt. Glancing further down, Kaori saw a denim skirt decorated with many tiny glistening stars. A pair of dark calf-high boots adorned her feet and similarly colored bracers were present on her wrists. A small earring hung from each ear. The hair, a reddish dark brown in color, was done up into two spiky, flowing pigtails. If Kaori had been thinking more clearly, she would have said the youngster's facial and hair features strongly resembled Duplica from Pokemon, with just a dash of Magical Girl Pretty Sammy and female super-saiyan added for good measure. What shocked and troubled the teenager the most, however, was the fact that the kid was clearly much, MUCH larger than she was. It was like looking into the face of a giant.

The girl grinned in an eerily familiar way. "SOOOOOOO, the little sleeping beauty awakes."

"Gulp...Who....ah...who are you?"

"Why, it's your old buddy, Psymon!" The kid winked, "Don't you recognize me?"

"Psy...Psymon?"

"In the flesh, baby!"

"But...but..."

The girl's smile got even wider. It sent chills down Kaori's spine. "What?! Got nothing to say? Cat got your tongue?" The youth held a hand to her chin and considered, "Of course, given your size, that wouldn't be much of a meal for ol' putty-tat."

Kaori struggled to say something, ANYTHING. "...na...nani?"

The kid giggled. It wasn't necessarily a pleasant sound. "Guess I can REALLY call you a runt, eh, shortstuff?" Leaning in close, she pointed to each of her shoulders and whispered, "Say, do you think these tattoos go well with my new look?" Almost afraid to peek, Kaori glanced at the youth's shoulders. Sure enough, chain tattoos similar to Psymon's were present on both arms. Crazy as it seemed, there appeared to be little doubt that somehow, someway, this was actually Psymon.

The weirdness factor became too much for Kaori to take. "Uhhh..." Her eyes rolling to the back of her head, the teen promptly fainted.

Psymon, witnessing Kaori's collapse, blinked and said, "Can I take that as a yes?"

----------------------

"Splash!"

"Gurgle...ugh...Hey!!" Kaori was rudely awakened with a spray of water.

"Rise and shine, pipsqueak!"

Disoriented, Kaori instinctively yelled out, "PSYMON!!" She had failed to notice the female pitch of Psymon's new voice.

"Geez, you're an ungrateful runt. Would you rather I had tried waking you by frying you in a skillet? Although...come to think of it, that would have probably been more fun, hee, hee."

A little more alert, Kaori caught the feminine giggle. Turning around in dread, she saw the young girl from earlier. "She's Psymon? That means..." She groaned, "Kuso...I thought was I was only having a bad dream."

"'Fraid not, squeaky."

Kaori gave Psymon the evil eye. "Don't call me that."

"sQuEaky, SqUeAKy, sQUEEEEEAKY!!!"

No doubt about it, this was definitely Psymon. "...grrrrr...BAKA!!!"

"I see miss little customer is awake." Kaori spotted a middle-aged woman approaching them. Judging by the voice, she must have been the woman the teen had heard earlier. She was dressed in a loose-sleeved blouse, dress slacks, and canvas shoes. A little nametag labeled, 'Jusenkyo Guide', was clipped on the breast pocket. Being a fan of manga, Kaori immediately recognized the designation. "Jusenkyo? But I thought Jusenkyo was only an imaginary location?" Oddly enough, this person was also surrounded by visible chi, a mixture of white light interspersed with wispy strands of orange, yellow and violet. "If you are both ready, I believe I can explain what has happened to you." As the guide shot an irritated glance at Psymon, the Japanese teen noted the woman's aura became more orange.

"No."

The guide looked at Psymon in surprise. "Pardon?" Her aura turned a turquoise hue.

The girl who was Psymon clasped her hands and looked at the woman with big, pleading eyes. "Please, lady, do you HAVE to?"

The Jusenkyo guide could only blink in confusion at her 'customer's' unusual behavior. Kaori now saw a pale green light surrounding the perplexed woman. "Wait, that's the same color chi that surrounded me earlier. Are these chi related to emotion?" Kaori was beginning to suspect the true nature of the auras.

Lifting one hand to her forehead, Psymon assumed a melodramatic pose. "After all, there's NO WAY to predict how the truth will affect my tender, impressionable, young mind!"

Kaori muttered, "There's nothing tender about you, jerk."

Psymon managed to overhear Kaori. "Oh, squeaky, you wound me to the core."

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!!!"

The Jusenkyo guide stared at her guests. "These two are indeed most strange." Addressing Kaori and Psymon, she started to say, "Now, if I may..."

Quickly changing emotions, Psymon growled, "Tell us what?!! That I'm now a disgustingly cute shrimp that's barely old enough to be out of diapers?!!" She jabbed a finger at Kaori. "Or maybe you just wanted to say the brat here has become a freak?!!"

"I am NOT a FREAK!!"

Looking at Kaori, the preteen smirked. "Wanna bet?" She briefly searched the room and picked up a piece of a broken mirror that was smashed during the earlier commotion. Holding it in front of the Japanese teenager, Psymon said, "Take a look."

Kaori was forced to confront her reflection. As the teen had already determined, she was wearing goth-style apparel. The teenager noticed that her face and neck were the same pale, bleached shade of white as her hands and chest. With the exception of a pair of antennae protruding from her forehead, her hair and facial features appeared to be the same as they were prior to the transformation. "Wait a minute, antennae?!!" Slowly bringing her hand up to feel the elegant, knobbed stalks, the athlete found that they were indeed directly attached to her head. An experimental twitch caused one of the antennae to move. The Japanese youth swallowed nervously. Now that she was more closely examining her face, Kaori could also see two small pointed tips barely jutting past her upper lip. Opening her mouth, she was surprised to find a couple of vampire fangs where her canines would normally be. Frightened, Kaori quickly clamped her mouth shut. A quick glance downward immediately verified the existence of the extra pair of black, chitin-covered arms. At the end of each extra arm was an equally armored five-digit hand. By this point, fear and disgust were quickly overtaking the teenager. Turning away from the reflection, Kaori detected a slight fluttering behind her back. Hesitatingly craning her neck, the snowboarder was shocked to discover a set of four dragonfly wings. Facing the mirror once more, Kaori tried to move the appendages. To her dismay, she saw the wings open and close. "Psymon's right. I…I AM a freak." Shuddering, Kaori backed away from the mirror shard, repulsed by her own image.

Witnessing Kaori's stunned silence, Psymon smirked once more. "Told you so." Facing the guide, the transformed Canadian glared at the woman and said, "What can you possibly tell us THAT WE DON'T ALREADY KNOW!!!"

"The story behind the particular spring you fell in…"

"BIG FREAKIN' HAIRY DEAL!!!!"

"…and perhaps a way to cure your condition."

"YOU CAN TAKE YOUR $&^#&@*$% STORY AND STICK IT UP…huh?" Psymon blinked, paused a moment to digest what she had just heard, then blinked again. "Really?"

The guide nodded.

The girl walked up to the woman and leaned toward her, raising one skeptical eyebrow. "No kidding? You're not just telling me what you think I want to hear, right?" Psymon looked off to the side and grumbled, "The docs are always pullin' that stuff with me." The preteen paused and conceded. "Gotta admit, though, they do hand out some great treats." She smiled in fond remembrance. "Take those deep-fried candy bars, for instance. Yum, they go so well with raspberry jelly, strawberry jelly, grape jam…"

As Psymon extolled upon the virtues of deep-fried candy bars, seemingly oblivious to the situation at hand, the Jusenkyo guide nervously thought, "In all my time here, never has there been a customer who has been so peculiar." The girl's mentioning of 'doctors' did nothing to reassure the bemused woman. Wishing to avoid agitating the preteen any more than necessarily, the guide waited for Psymon to end her trip down dessert lane.

"…Oh yeah! I forgot about the chocolate crepes! Nothing can top those terrific…Well, actually you can. Whipped cream, ice cream, sprinkles and cherries…"

The Jusenkyo guide sighed. Already twenty minutes had passed and the unusual customer showed no signs of stopping. Turning to observe her other tiny guest, she could see the little goth fairy was still depressed. Meanwhile, the strange girl continued to merrily ramble on.

"…hot fudge. Hey! I wonder what would happen if I combined deep-fried candy bars and crepes? Oh yeah, baby! That would be sweeeeet! Smother it with caramel, peanuts, pecans…"

"Ahem." Clearing her throat, the Jusenkyo guide interrupted Psymon's reverie. "Miss customer, I think it would be best if we continue."

"…Somebody would probably nag me about all those calories. Well, screw them! If I want…" Psymon stopped in mid sentence. Seeing the guide's expectant expression, she clapped her hands and exclaimed, "Gather around, kiddies! Teacher's going to tell us how we can get back to normal!" Darting off momentarily, the preteen rushed back with a stool and placed it next to the table where Kaori was moping. Plopping down on the chair, Psymon leaned toward the Japanese snowboarder and whispered a not-so-quiet aside, "Hey squeaky! Better listen up!"

Hearing Psymon's voice, Kaori was rousted out of her funk long enough to shout back, "I told you not to call me that, baka!"

Shaking her head at her guests' antics, the Jusenkyo guide began speaking. "I believe we have not been properly introduced. My name is Xiu Mei. As you have no doubt noticed, I am the current guide and caretaker of these cursed springs."

Kaori introduced herself next. "I'm Kaori."

Psymon interjected, "Otherwise known as squeaky, runt, brat, twirp…"

"SHUT UP, PSYMON!!!"

"Given her current size, the little female's tiny, high pitched voice does resemble the twittering of a songbird." Looking at the preteen, the guide asked, "Then you must be Psymon, correct?"

Psymon, who was currently engaged in a tongue war with Kaori, turned her head and said, "Yeah. What's it to you?" She then proceeded to make exaggerated facial expressions at Kaori, much to the goth fairy's irritation.

Xiu Mei rested her face in her hands and sighed. "Why must it be so difficult?" Addressing her visitors, she started once again. "As I told Ms. Customer earlier," the guide gestured to Psymon, "you have both fallen into the spring of drowned magical girl and her magical companion."

Kaori spoke up. "Jusenkyo is real?" Xiu Mei had to strain to understand the little female.

"No, this is all happening in MY MIND! What do you think, squirt?!"

The exasperated guide chose to ignore Psymon's sarcastic comment. "Yes, very much so."

The Japanese teen tilted her head and asked. "Ranma and the others, they are real too?"

Psymon grumbled, "Who the heck is Ranma?"

Xiu Mei chuckled. "I see you have heard of the manga. Yes, all the cursed individuals in the story were present here as well. However, the feats of martial prowess and grand adventures presented in both the manga and anime did not actually take place."

Kaori was confused. "Nani?"

The guide continued, "It was something that my father suggested to me. A group of previous visitors would gather here on a regular basis. We would sit and converse about our lives, our problems, our aspirations and triumphs. It was a means for people to relate to others who shared this unique condition and to derive strength from the mutual bonds that were formed."

"Like some freakin' losers hit with cursed spring's anonymous?!"

Xiu Mei nodded, "Uh…yes, precisely. Someone, I can't remember who, suggested the idea of writing a story loosely based on these group sessions. As with many tales, there was much exaggeration and artistic license. In a way, that was preferable, since it provided another outlet for our guests as well as protecting their actual identities. Eventually an opportunity to publish the story as a manga present itself." The guide shrugged. "The rest, as some say, was history."

Kaori pondered the guide's explanation for a moment. "So…you're Plum, right?"

Xiu Mei smiled. "Plum is one translation of my name, yes. However, I was much older than I was depicted in the story. I was actually in my early twenties when the manga was created."

The Japanese teenager grinned. "Cool!"

"Cool, drool, smool! I couldn't care less about some bozo named Ranma! What does ANY of this have to do with CURING us!!"

Kaori giggled.

Psymon shot his rival an irritated look. "What?!"

The diminutive teen giggled some more. "You look so cute when you're pouting."

"Listen, runt, you don't want to make me mad!"

Kaori smiled as she shook her head. "You're not really mad."

The cursed Canadian scowled even more. "How exactly would YOU know THAT?!"

The goth fairy smirked. "Easy, you're chi isn't red."

Psymon was temporarily thrown for a loop. "Huh?"

Xiu Mei blinked in surprise. "It appears that at least one of your cursed form's skills has manifested."

Kaori nodded. "Uh huh. I can see your chi, my chi," she gave Psymon a mischievous glance out of the corner of her eye, "that baka's chi."

"What! Hey, brat, you keep calling me a baka. What the heck's that mean?"

Seeing Psymon take the bait, the teen grinned, lifted one of her original hands, and ticked off her fingers. "Idiot, jerk, creep, pervert…"

"THOSE ARE ALL INSULTS!!"

Kaori snickered. True, the term, 'baka,' didn't literally have all those meanings, but Psymon didn't need to know that.

The girl crossed her arms and sulked. Eyeing her tiny rival, the Canadian muttered, "One good flyswatter would take care of you." Observing Psymon's unintentionally cute pout, the Japanese snowboarder rolled on the table in laughter.

"SO CUTE!!!"

"Well, I HATE cute!!"

"I don't! Tee, hee, hee!!"

Before the two cursed athletes could begin another round of bickering, Xiu Mei decided to get the conversation back on track. "To the best of my knowledge, no one has ever fallen in this particular spring."

"We're the first?"

"Yes. Presumably, since this is the spring of magical drowned girl and her companion, both of your cursed forms will possess extraordinary abilities. However, because this curse has never been seen before, there is no way to know beforehand exactly what those skills might be. My guess is that any magical attributes you have are dependent on either or both your personalities."

"You telling me the brat's responsible for this?!"

"I'm a fre…freak because of that baka?!"

The guide tried to wave off her guests' outbursts. "What I am trying to say is, whenever someone falls into a spring, the water's magic uses the victim as a template for that particular curse. If Psymon," Xiu Mei pointed to the frowning preteen, "had fallen into the spring of drowned little boy, then her cursed form would have taken on the shape of the young boy she would have naturally assumed, had she actually been born male."

Psymon objected, "Get your information straight, loser, I WAS born a freakin' guy!!" The girl glared at her shoulder. "No wisecracks from you, tattoo-boy!!"

The Chinese woman continued, heedless of the magical girl's yelling. "Admittedly, the spring you both fell in is one of the more unusual ones. Perhaps it utilized each of you as templates, or maybe it randomly chose one of you upon which to base itself."

"I bet it was that jerk."

Xiu Mei didn't hear Kaori's grumbling. "Indeed, it is even possible that the curse you both now carry may never have been activated had only one of you fallen into the spring."

Psymon and Kaori glanced at one another, then shouted, "IT'S YOUR FAULT!!!"

The guide sighed again, a gesture she was rapidly becoming accustomed to, "Be that as it may, the curse links your destinies together."

The Canadian stared slack jawed at her host. "You mean I'm forever stuck with runty here?" Looking upwards, she screamed, "HEY, YOU PUKES!! WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS!!!"

Kaori muttered, "Lots of things."

Psymon whipped her head toward the little teenager. "What was that, squeaky?!"

"DON'T…CALL…ME…SQUEAKY!!!"

Xiu Mei, struggling to maintain her patience, proceeded once more. "I did not say the curse would last forever, did I? While some Jusenkyo curses are permanent, others do wear off after a given time. In other instances, certain conditions must be met before the curse dissolves of it's own accord. I wouldn't be surprised if, given the unique nature of this particular spring, the latter wasn't true in this case."

Kaori asked, "What do we do?"

"QUIT STEALING MY LINES, BRAT!!"

The Japanese snowboarder looked at her crazy rival askance. "Ne?"

The Jusenkyo guide responded, "While I can't remember the specifics, I do believe the solution is written in one of the old books kept here."

"So, what are your waiting for, Teach? Let's see it so I can return to my own loveable self!"

"If it were not for miss little customer, I would be so tempted to deny helping this extremely rude Psymon." Fortunately for the Canadian, Xiu Mei avoided giving into the temptation. Walking to one of the undamaged bookshelves left standing, the Chinese woman pulled out a dusty, cracked volume. By common standards, the book appeared to be ancient. Returning to her guests, she started to open the book. "I think the answer is present…"

Psymon quickly grabbed the book. "Ooh…let me see!!" Trying to read the text, the girl scowled. "What the…it's a bunch of squigglies!!"

"The text is written in an ancient Chinese language similar to the characters on jinwen."

The psychotic magical girl scratched her head in puzzlement. "Really?" She glanced at her shoulder. "Tattoo-boy, you know this stuff?"

Kaori smacked her forehead with one of her hands. "…baka…"

Irritated, Xiu Mei snatched the book back from Psymon. "Allow me." Carefully perusing through the pages, the guide found what she was searching for. Translating for the benefit of her guests, she read, "From the seeds of bitter rivalry, new hope shall sprout forth. From the waters, a champion will arise. And with her, shall also emerge a guardian, an advisor and ally. Together, the two will right wrongs, triumph over various evils…"

"Sounds like Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon," Kaori thought.

"…and bring salvation among the lands. However, the way to victory shall not be easy. Friends and enemies alike will be caught up in the struggle. And the heroes will lie uneasy with their task, only finally achieving peace when…" Xiu Mei stopped reading, a frown on her face.

Worried, Kaori questioned her. "What is it?"

Psymon impatiently growled, "Yeah, get on with it, lady!!"

Silently, the Jusenkyo guide turned the book so the two cursed snowboarders could see. A jumble of crayon drawings was scribbled across one of the pages, making the text completely indecipherable. From the quality of the pictures, it was quite apparent they were the result of a child's handiwork.

Kaori was stunned speechless. "…"

Putting a finger to her chin, Psymon noted critically, "Hmm…not bad. Could use a little more magenta, however."

The two women stared at the crazy Canadian.

The preteen glanced at the two stares. "What?! You don't think I have any artistic sense?"

Kaori yelled at the girl, "IDIOT!! That was our cure!!"

Psymon became thoughtful. "Oh yeah…it was, wasn't it?"

Frustrated, the Japanese teenager repeatedly bopped her forehead with her hand. "…baka…baka…baka…baka…baka…"

Looking at the text once again, Xiu Mei said, "It would appear one of my younger cousins got a hold of this book."

Psymon snarled, "So now what?!!"

The Jusenkyo guide shrugged, "Let the prophecy run its course, I suppose."

The Canadian screeched, "THAT'S IT?!! WE'RE SUPPOSED TO JUST SIT AROUND AND WAIT FOR SOME LAME MUMBO JUMBO TO OCCUR?!!!"

Xiu Mei coolly regarded the young girl. "I imagine you will have to do more than 'just sit around.' The text did say you were to perform heroic deeds."

Psymon made a disgusted face. "Yuck! That's sounds boring." She suddenly appeared hopeful. "Sure we can't be villains, instead?"

"I doubt it. The book was quite specific up to that point."

The magical girl grumbled, "Great, just freakin' great."

Kaori remembered the Ranma 1/2 manga. "Umm…will hot water work?"

Psymon looked at the diminutive teen quizzically. "Hot water?"

Xiu Mei blinked. "Oh, yes, certainly." Turning to the Canadian, the guide explained, "Just as in the manga, hot water will indeed temporarily reverse the effects of the curse. Cold water, of course, activates it again."

Psymon stood dumbfounded for a few moments. Then she screamed, "WHY DIDN'T SOMEBODY TELL ME THIS SOONER!!!"

Xiu Mei grew embarrassed. "It slipped my mind."

The magical girl retorted, "So? I lose my mind ALL the time!! It doesn't mean I can't remember anything!!" The bewildered guide tried to comprehend Psymon's nonsensical statement.

Kaori rolled her eyes. "You should read more manga, jerk."

The Canadian glared at the fairy. "And you should watch more slasher films!! But you don't see ME telling YOU what to watch, now do you?!!"

"BAKA!!"

"You know, that's getting pretty old. Can't you come up with anything better?"

Growling, Kaori rattled off some obscene Japanese phrases. The magical girl asked, "What the heck did you just say?"

The teenager grinned smugly. "I'm not telling."

Psymon snarled, "Hey, runt, I want to know what you just said!!"

Smiling, Kaori assumed an innocent pose and started whistling.

The Canadian tried to grab the teen. "Let's see you smile when I yank those wings off your back!!"

"IIIIIEEEEEEE!!!"

As Kaori tried to dodge Psymon's attempts to snatch her, Xiu Mei thought it the perfect opportunity to heat up some water for her guests. The two rivals were still at it when she returned with two cups of warm water. By this point, Kaori had discovered she could actually fly. Psymon was now repeatedly jumping and swiping at the air.

"Stay still you little mosquito!!"

"You can't catch me! Bleh!!"

Failing to get either of her visitors' attention, Xiu Mei simply threw the water at the bickering duo.

"Gotcha!"

"Splash!"

"CRASH!!"

"PERVERT!!"

"SLAP!!"

Just as Psymon grabbed her, Kaori felt the transformation take place. Fearing Psymon would see her naked, she slapped him. The Japanese youth examined herself. To her great relief and surprise, she found that not only was she back to her normal self, but that she was also clothed in the same apparel she was wearing before falling into the pool. Peeking at Psymon, Kaori discovered that he, too, was fully clothed. Unfortunately, he was also still sprawled on top of her.

"Psymon…please…get …off…of…me."

The Canadian realized he was an adult male again. "Overjoyed, he sprung up and shouted, "Whoo hoo!! I'm back in the saddle, snow cone!!" Rubbing his cheek, he scowled at Kaori. "You didn't have to hit me, squirt."

The teenager looked away. "Hmmph!" She tilted her head and gazed at Psymon out of the corner of her eye. "You deserved it."

Xiu Mei observed, "Interesting. I've never seen the wearer's clothing become a part of the transformation before. Must be another unique aspect of this curse."

Kaori eagerly nodded. "Uh huh. Magical girls always get their normal clothes back when they retransform." An idea popped into her head, "Umm…couldn't we be cured by jumping into a different spring?"

Psymon glanced down at his rival in surprise. "That so, shortstuff?" He thought for a second, "I do remember seeing more pools out there." The crazy athlete's face broke in to wide grin. "Sweeeeet!!" Before anyone could object, Psymon sprinted out of the small cottage. "Last one in is a rotten egg!!"

Witnessing the Canadian's wild dash, the Jusenkyo guide turned back to Kaori and replied, "You mean, by jumping into the spring of drowned boy or drowned girl?

The Japanese woman nodded.

"Splash!"

Xiu Mei sighed. "Actually, it's not that simple. Contrary to what either the manga or anime depict, the spring's curses cannot cancel one another out."

"HEY!! THIS DIDN"T @*$^#&%#* WORK!!"

"Nor can they be mixed."

"What tattoo-boy? You're saying I should choose a different spring? Well, here goes!!"

"Splash!"

"Which is most fortunate for your friend out there."

"THIS ISN'T THE RIGHT #$*&#(@* ONE EITHER!!"

"Although, I must warn you…"

"Splash!"

"…Jusenkyo victims…"

"LAST TIME I FREAKIN' ASK YOU, TATTOO BOY!!"

"…do tend to attract…"

"Splash!"

"…cold water."

"STUPID $&^#(@)*!)#!!!" "Splash!"

Kaori whispered, "I see."

"YOU!!" A female Psymon stomped back into the small house. The youth was wearing her previous magical girl outfit. Marching up to Kaori, the preteen shouted, "YOU said this would cure me!!"

The angry Japanese snowboarder retorted. "You didn't ask first!"

The magical girl huffed. "Pleading innocence, eh, twirp?" Psymon picked up Kaori and threw her over her shoulder. Obviously, the young girl was much stronger than her size or frame would indicate. "Let's see how YOU like it, sushi-head!"

"Let me go, jerk!!"

A bemused Xiu Mei stood by as Psymon carried a kicking and screaming Kaori out the door. Soon enough, another "Splash!" was heard, followed by additional yells and insults. This, in turn, was followed by series of more splashes.

The Chinese woman shook her head. "I guess more hot water is in order." As the squabbling continued outside, Xiu Mei retrieved her two cups and went to prepare a new batch of warm water.

----------------------

Back at the hotel where the SSX tour group was staying, Elise, Seeiah, Mac, and JP were sitting in the main lobby, watching TV. They had all gathered to see the end of the race.

Mac was rubbing a bruise on his jaw. "Man, I am sooo goin' to lay down the smack on…"

"…Moby." Elise finished. "Yeah, Mac, we know. You've only said it about million times."

"But he…"

"Gave you a big boo, boo. Listen, I don't care if he had strung you up by your toenails! Just shut-up, already!"

Seeiah glanced at her Canadian counterpart. "Ooh, that was harsh, girlfriend."

"So sue me!"

"Please ladies. Keep your voices down. Oh, my aching head!!" JP was holding an icepack to his cheek.

The African-American glared at the Frenchman. "Knock off the theatrics, rich boy!"

"…oooh…"

Elise rolled her eyes. "Geez, you'd think you two had never gotten a bruise or scrape in your life."

"Amen to that, girl."

"Yo, you weren't the ones kissin' snow! Man, when I see that…"

"Mac, honey, we heard you the first time!" Wearing both wrist and ankle braces, Seeiah was in no mood to listen to either JP's or Mac's constant whining about some mere bruises. "Elise is right. Give it a rest!"

"Soyez silencieux!! Ooooowww…"

"Oh good grief."

Naomi Chen's voice rang out from the TV. "Here we go, folks! The racers are coming to the final stretch!"

Elise perked up. "Look, there's Eddie!"

Indeed, Eddie was currently in the lead. Not far behind him were Luther and Zoe. The other competitors were no where to be seen. The three athletes were entering a series of undulating, artificially created slopes. At the end of the row of smaller hills, just in front of the finish area, was a much larger and steeper incline.

Luther, currently in second position, bellowed out, "Wimp!! Your butt is mine!!"

Eddie took a brief moment to glance at his backside. Looking back at Luther, he yelled, "I don't shwee your wame there, Wuther!"

"ARRRGH!!! Pray I don't catch you, punk!!"

"You got bigger things to worry about, porky!" Zoe soared over Luther, doing a 1080º back flip.

"Woman!! When I get my hands on you!!"

"Gotta catch me first!! Hey, Wachowski! Here I come!!"

The nineteen-year old swung his head around and spotted Zoe rapidly approaching. With only the last large slope up ahead, Eddie knew he had to make this final jump count.

Elise shouted, "Come on Eddie! You can do it!"

Mac commented, "Yo! Where's Moby? I'm telling ya, when I see his lamo butt, I'll…"

"BE QUIET, MAC!!!"

"Ma tête! …Oooooohh…"

"Don't know what you just said, flyboy, but the same goes for you too!"

Unaware of his arguing teammates, Eddie crouched down, hoping to achieve more momentum. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zoe boarding beside him.

The feisty snowboarder chuckled at her opponent's shocked expression. "Surprised? Tell you what, I won't shove you if you don't shove me. Person who catches best air wins." Seeing Eddie's non-believing look, she shrugged. "Hey, girl's gotta make it interesting, right?"

Not quite believing his luck, Eddie simply nodded, accepting Zoe's terms. Both boarders focused on the last jump, gathering as much speed as they could. They hit the top of the slope at the same instant.

"WIGHT ON, WABBY!!"

"MAKIN' IT LAST!!"

As fate would have it, the two athletes hit their respective peaks simultaneously. Eddie was performing the 'coffin roll' while Zoe was doing a 'pommel me.' Unfortunately, Zoe wasn't completely recovered from when she and Marisol had plunged into the frozen creek earlier. The punk girl was nearly completing her ubër trick when a sudden sneeze attack hit her. "AH, AH CHOO!!"

Zoe's sneeze caused her to loose control of her motion. Off balance, she crashed into Eddie in mid air. A sudden sense of dejá vu overcame Zoe. "CRUD!! NOT AGAIN!!"

Like Icarus, the two snowboarders plummeted to earth, impacting only a couple of feet from the end. Despite being tangled up with Eddie, Zoe was absolutely determined to win. She started to crawl forward in the hope of extending a hand beyond the finish line.

"Almost…there." Her hand suddenly stopped moving forward. Zoe felt a dragging weight behind her. Craning her neck to see what was occurring, she spotted Eddie clamped tight onto her left leg. "Hey!! Let go!!"

Despite her protests, the youth refused to release her. His eyes were shut in complete concentration. "…wust win…"

"You moron!! If you don't let go, neither of us will win!!"

"…wust win…"

"UGGGH!!! WHY ME!!!"

Witnessing Zoe's attempts to kick and shake off Eddie, Elise lowered her forehead into her hand and said, "Geez, this is embarrassing."

Seeiah awkwardly patted the blonde on the back. "Don't worry, girlfriend. When this is long over, we'll be able to laugh about it."

"Boy, that make me feel SOOO much better."

The African-American shrugged. "Can't say I didn't try."

Mac grumbled, "You think that's embarrassing? How about what happened to me?! I'm goin' to get a piece of Moby soooo bad…erk!!"

Seeiah and JP stared with wide eyes at Elise, who was now standing over an unconscious Mac. Shaking a fist at JP, the Canadian snarled, "Got anything to add, JP?"

"…meep…"

"Didn't think so."

Meanwhile, Zoe was having her own frustrations. "Stupid, lousy…what are you, part octupus?!!"

"…wu…wu…wu…ust wi…wi…wi…in…"

"YEE HAH!! TOUCHDOWN, BA…oof!!" Trying to complete his own ubër trick, Luther crash-landed right on his face. Despite that mishap, however, the heavyset athlete managed to fly past the finish line, winning the race.

Zoe couldn't believe her extraordinarily bad luck. "Of all the rotten…to come so close." She turned and yelled at Eddie, "YOU HAPPY NOW, WACHOWSKI!!! WE BOTH #&$^*@(*$ LOST!!!"

"…wust win…"

"CAN SOMEBODY PLEASE REMOVE THIS DICKHEAD FROM ME?!!!"

In the winner's circle, Luther was eating up the audience praise. "KING OF THE WORLD, BABY!!! KING OF THE WORLD!!!" In his excitement, the large snowboarder performed his own touchdown dance. "You know you love me!! You know you love me!!" For the moment, at least, Luther was truly the champ.