Disclaimer- Ranma and Fushigi Yuugi aren't mine, they're Takahashi Rumiko's and
Watase Yuu's, respectively, and also many other organizations affiliated with them.
Warning- Cursing, mild violence, innuendo, etc., probably stuff you'd see on Fushigi Yuugi
anyway there, and yaoi, probably. If you don't like, don't read. Spoilers for Fushigi Yuugi's
entire storyline as the story goes on, and as for Ranma 1/2, spoilers for the first episode
and the ones that introduce Ryouga.
Explanation- Okay, this was originally inspired by the thought that Fushigi Yuugi's Suzaku
no Miko, Miaka, was a wimp when it came to fighting, and well, EVERYTHING, because of
her lack of knowledge, experience, and initiative, which we all know. Wouldn't it be great
if the Miko could defend herself, and not be babied beyond belief? And I got to thinking
about anime females, and somehow I got stuck on the best female martial artist who I
knew and loved- Saotome Ranma-chan, of Ranma fame, who with a bit of thought
would fit just perfectly. It would be interesting how she was actually a he, it would give
us a fresh break from Miaka, who though becomes rather admirable and lovable is always
a bit annoying, and I knew just who'd take the place of Yui as Seiryu no Miko...
Author's Notes- This would be best enjoyed if you were at least somewhat familiar with
both Ranma and Fushigi Yuugi, but it's okay if you're only familiar with one of them,
especially if that one is Fushigi Yuugi, and BOTH of the shows do start from the their
beginnings. It sticks pretty close to the Fushigi Yuugi plot, at least at the beginning,
but will probably diverge later. If you can't stand that kinda thing- well it's kinda like the
yaoi. You don't have to read it.
The opening and ending songs, which I both rearranged, are from Fushigi Yuugi- "Winner"
(it fits Ranma so much better than For My Loved One AND it rocks), and "I Wish", by Yui's Seiyuu.
Translations of their rearranged lyrics, mostly taken from animelyrics.com (THANKS!) are
printed in the first chapter of the fic.
As for Ryouga speaking Chinese? Don't you think a guy like him who's been all around the
world constantly would have learned whether he wanted to or not, if not very well?
Sorry for the long notes. Now on with, as I used to call it, "Saotome Ranma, Suzaku no
Miko"- Suzaku no Miko 1/2.
***
I just can't go on
With these feelings I have
The pain of yesterday
Keeps me from going forward.
It's a labyrinth with no way out
That I keep on wandering 'round
But even if there's no way out
I'm gonna tear it down!
In this life
The weak really can't win.
If fate turns against you
You have to stand and fight!
It's not like you can do whatever you want
No matter what you try.
I'll push myself further,
Because I want to be more than I am!
I want to seize the ultimate joy!
I want to seize the ultimate joy!
I want to seize the ultimate joy!
Suzaku no Miko ½
by Starbrigid
This is the story of a young girl who single-handedly gathered the Seven Stars of Suzaku and gained the power to make all her dreams come true. The story itself is an incantation, and whomever reads it gains the main character's power to have their wishes granted. This is because once they turn the first page, the story will become real and begin...
Episode 1- Girl From Another World
"Whaddaya mean I'm cursed? What're you talking about? Turn me back into a boy RIGHT NOW!"
Saotome Ranma, heir to the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, was more pissed off than he had ever been in his ENTIRE LIFE. He and his pop had gone to a legendary training ground in China called Jusenkyo. When they both had fallen into some perfectly normal-looking springs there, Pop had turned into a panda, and he, Ranma, had turned into a... a... girl! Of all things! Saotome Ranma, man among men, a girl!
It was all Pop's fault, obviously. He was the one who'd taken them to the stupid place, and Pop couldn't even read Chinese, so he hadn't known anything about Jusenkyo. And he was the one who'd knocked Ranma into the stupid Spring of Drowned Girl in the first place! So his stupid Pop, now a huge panda, was lucky to just be lying knocked out on the slope, and that Ranma hadn't had the heart to do anything more serious to the old man. He was lucky that Ranma had just calmly changed into his dry Chinese-style clothes and left him alone. He was also lucky that Ranma had then gone to the funny-talking guide to get a cure for the transformation, which would help Pop as well as him. And then what did the weird Chinese guy tell him?
He had been CURSED. The Jusenkyo curse was not permanent, though. Whenever the cursed were doused with hot water, they turned back into their original forms. But only until cold water hit them. Then they'd turn back into their cursed forms. It worked the same way for Pop's curse, too.
"Turn me back, then! Take this stupid curse offa me!" Ranma yelled, waving her newly small and delicate fists threateningly.
The Jusenkyo Guide backed away, alarmed at the girl's ferocity. "Can turn you back to boy for temporary!" He reached out of seemingly nowhere and pulled out a gold thermos. "Is hot water. Pour on self, turn back to boy."
Ranma eagerly grabbed it, and she turned back into a he. "That's better! Now tell me what I got to do to never change back! Cuz I ain't gonna stay with some stupid water-triggered curse, and Pop ain't either! We're martial artists, we can't afford to deal with somethin' like that!"
Jusenkyo Guide shrugged. "Like said, is permanent. No is cure."
Ranma gaped. "Whaddaya mean?" he yelled angrily, waving his fists again. Definite bodily harm was promised if he had to stay with this curse.
The Guide backpedaled. "On second thought, maybe there alternative for kind sirs. There reference book in hut which-"
"Thanks, man!" Ranma called, once again too impatient to listen to what else the guide had to say. In a second he had ran into the hut, and he began to madly tear through the books. "Come on, I don't want to be a girl!"
"Sir, wait!" the Guide yelled anxiously, hurrying to catch the speeding boy. "Very bad you open wrong book!"
Ranma pulled down book after book, opening them and hurriedly dropping them onto the ground when he discovered they were useless. Then one book that had been wedged carefully at the back of the shelf caught Ranma's eye. "Yes!" Ranma hissed. He could feel the magic coming from it. This had to be it.
He grabbed it and opened the first page, eyes skimming over the unfamiliar Chinese characters without assessing their meaning. "Hey, guide, get in here. You gotta read this for me-"
When he had finished skimming the opening section, he was blinded by a sudden red light emanating from the book. "What the- Is this gonna cure me?" A huge, shining red bird appeared in his eyes- no, a phoenix-
The light enveloped Ranma, and the only thing he felt before he was gone was the soft, slithering touch of cold water.
***
The Jusenkyo Guide ran into his hut, huffing and puffing. "Please sir, you-" Sir wasn't there. "What- where sir go?" He blinked. "Sir leave? Wait, sir!" He ran out. "Why you wreck hut? Find panda now... Oh, things go very bad now!"
The frantic Jusenkyo Guide ran out. He did not look down. If he had, he would have seen a quite valuable and dangerous book lying on the ground opened, still shining with a faint red light.
***
"Where the hell am I now?"
The Eternal Lost Boy had arrived at Jusenkyo.
Hibiki Ryouga stared at the unfamiliar location with his typical incomprehension. "This is a weird place. A... training ground?" Then realization sparked in his brown eyes. "Ranma must be here!" He felt his blood quicken and threw his head back in anger. "Saotome, prepare to die!" he screamed, familiar emotions once more aroused.
He launched himself off the hill, and began to jump from pole to pole, trying to find his self-declared worst enemy with his typical lack of strategy. "Saotome, you coward, the time has finally come! You can't hide forever from our MAN TO MAN FIGHT!"
At the thought of Ranma, he stopped jumping, angrily stomping down. Unfortunately, he was currently standing on a thin, light wooden pole, and with his strength, it quickly gave out. Ryouga, shocked, plummeted down, and within a second, had fallen into the spring below.
Ryouga resurfaced, shaking water out of bleary brown eyes. "What was-" Ryouga blinked- the voice sounded strange. The Lost Boy looked down.
And SCREAMED.
Ryouga, by some odd twist of fate, had also fallen into the Spring of Drowned Girl.
"I- I'm a girl?" she squeaked. "How?"
Ryouga's brain, unable to cope, reached the 'obvious conclusion.' "Saotome, this is all your fault! Prepare to die!" She jumped out of the spring and up to the top of the hill. Then she looked around, disoriented. "Which way was I going?"
She ran forward in the direction her directionally-challenged brain told her, pushing her newly long hair out of her eyes by tightening her yellow bandana. But as she ran, she felt something weird about her body, something... heaving? She stopped and looked down at the yellow tunic she'd changed into. There were large, heavy breasts beneath it.
Ryouga hesitantly reached out to touch them. She couldn't believe these were hers. She hurriedly pulled back. They felt strange. They shouldn't be there. Her muscles shouldn't be smaller, her waist shouldn't curve in. And below that, there shouldn't be-
Don't think about that, she told herself. For now, I kill Ranma!
The newly female Ryouga stumbled- into the hut. "What happened here?" she wondered, gazing around in wonder at the mess of discarded books. When she saw the ancient-looking tome lying on the floor, she reached down to put it back on the shelf- and STOPPED. The book lay open, and there was something awfully familiar about the girl in the book's picture-
It was what Ranma would look like if HE was a girl.
No way. Ryouga, eyes widening with disbelief, stared down at the text accompanying the illustration and read it aloud hesitantly. "And so, the Suzaku no Miko, transformed by a into her female form by a cursed spring, entered into the book's universe-"
Ranma... was cursed like him? Ranma was in this BOOK? That was crazy! And that would mean that Ranma was this "Suzaku no Miko", whatever that happened to entail. So that couldn't be, right? But that illustration was definitely Ranma- Ryouga blinked, confused, and read the spine of the book.
"The Universe of the Four Gods- Unauthorized Copy..." Well, that was meaningless to Ryouga.
"Come out of there, Saotome! Face me like a man!" she screamed, then winced. She was a GIRL now. How could she face Ranma? Her eyes caught on a sign posted on the wall.
"To Jusenkyo-cursed people. Pour hot water on you, you turn back. Pour cold water, curse reactivates, you turn back to cursed form."
Ryouga blinked and reached into a closet. There were countless thermoses of hot water. Weird. What were they doing there? She poured one over her head and was a he again. Ryouga sighed gratefully, patted HIS flat chest, lean masculine form, and toned muscles to reassure himself. He was a guy again. But for how long?
At least Ranma was cursed too.
Ranma... what was happening to Ranma in that book? "Saotome..." he almost whispered. "Please come out..." No answer.
He sighed heavily, eyes losing the spark in them. "Saotome, you've made my life a living hell- I will NEVER forgive you for this."
He opened the book and began to read.
***
Ranma lay on the ground, unmoving.
Her eyes opened slowly. "Ugh..." she breathed. "What happened to me?" Then she recognized her voice as female. "I'm a stupid GIRL again?"
She looked around. Her surroundings were unfamiliar. A grassless exterior covered with rocks assaulted her eyes, only relieved by the occasional dimly green plant or tree. She could see mountains in the distance. The sky was a clear blue, but still had a reasonable amount of clouds drifting across it, enough to keep anyone from waxing poetic about it-
THIS sure as hell wasn't Jusenkyo! "Pop?" Ranma called uncertainly. "Where the hell am I?" Her breath caught when she realized what she'd said, and she laughed bitterly. "Great, I'm Ryouga," she muttered.
Ryouga. Her thoughts turned to him for the first time in a while. Where was he? She wondered what he was doing right now. Was he in school? No, knowing him he was probably just as lost she was. She winced. She regretted that she'd had to leave and hadn't gotten to fight him like she'd promised, but Pop had waited an unreasonable amount of time anyway- unusual for him. She missed the Lost Boy a bit, though her memory of him did seem to be fading. Just another thing lost on the constant journey of bettering her martial arts.
Or was he lost from her? She wondered. Even now, if she tried hard not to forget, she could picture him clearly. If she tried, she wouldn't forget him. It was all a matter of what she wanted. But it would be a pity to forget him. Ryouga was the only she'd ever met besides Pop who could really come even close to challenging her in a fight- and she knew that if it wasn't for her speed and greater training, they would be a pretty fair match. She also knew for a fact, and grudgingly had to admit, that Ryouga was physically stronger than she was, even though he didn't use it with the skill and ease she possessed. She hated it, but it was true.
What would Ryouga have done in these unfamiliar surroundings? What DID he do when he got lost? Did it always feel like this when you didn't know where you were or where you were going, when you weren't sure just exactly what was going to happen to you?
That explained a lot about Hibiki Ryouga.
What was she thinking, wasting time just standing there like that? Where was Pop? What was she gonna do if she and Pop were separated? What was Pop gonna do? What about their training mission? She didn't know...
Well, could this be a dream? But dreams weren't this vivid, and she never wondered if things were real during actual dreams. And... she'd have dreamed about food, like she usually did, cause she and Pop were always hungry. If she wanted to be STUPID, she could have admitted that they weren't just hungry in the want food sense.
Hungry...
Ranma tensed as she heard an unfamiliar pattering sound start up. After thinking for a second, she recognized the sound from when she'd heard it in the few movies she'd seen. It was horses, she realized. And sure enough, horses appeared, controlled by some of the most nasty-looking men she'd ever seen. Probably criminals, Ranma thought, classifying them with the assessing eye martial arts had given her.
They stopped when they saw her, standing there alone in her odd red shirt and blue pants, small and pretty and seemingly defenseless. Ranma's eyes narrowed when she heard one of them whisper, "What a prize," to another. Were they talking about what she thought they were talking about? "We should get a good price when we sell her." She gaped, outraged, then realized they had somehow managed to form a circle around her while she was distracted. Why had she let her guard down? Was it because she'd been thinking of Pop and Ryouga?
"Who are you?" Ranma yelled. "You ARE slave traders, right?" If they thought they were gonna sell HER, heir to Anything Goes, as a slave, they had something else coming.
The guys all sneered. "Yeah, sweetie. Now just be quiet and you won't get hurt."
Ranma sneered. "Like hell!"
The guy in front growled and made to charge. Ranma grinned and fell into a fighting stance. A fight? Now THIS was familiar. She could handle this. She was put off when the man stopped. A second of inspection made her realize that someone had grabbed the man's wrist and twisted it, catching him in the middle of his assault. "Stop it," the new man said coolly. She growled. This was HER fight. What the hell-
Her 'rescuer' was a boy, a year or so older than her by his appearance. He wore some kind of old-style long navy tunic, was pretty tall. His hair was long like hers, put back in a braid as opposed to a ponytail, which was how she most liked to wear it. Even though his hair was teal as opposed to black, the... really quite handsome boy kind of reminded her of herself as a guy. In a way, it kind of felt like her own self had shown up to rescue her... But it wasn't, and this was still HER fight! He needed to back off and stop playing hero before he got HURT.
A guy charged at him, yelling incoherently. The boy turned, and Ranma could see his narrowing eyes were an unusual pale violet. She stared, momentarily distracted, and was caught off guard when the boy took the thug down easily. Shit... her 'rescuer' was a martial artist, too!
She watched, bewildered, as he incapacitated thug after thug with the same ease he'd taken down the first one. The slavers weren't really that good, but the boy was much better than she'd expected he would be- definitely a notable fighter. Who was he? There was something very unusual about him. He had the Chinese character for ogre on his forehead, and if she didn't know better, she'd have said it was glowing. Ogre-boy, huh? Well, even though he was good and his movements WERE fast, she could tell that he wasn't as good as she was.
When the last thug had been taken out, the defeated criminals stared up at the young boy, amazed- and then ran for it, screaming in terror. Ranma snickered. Then the boy leaned over, a seemingly gallant, caring expression on his face. "Are you okay, miss?"
Ranma glared up at him, amusement disappearing, replaced with indignant anger. "Of course I'M okay, you-"
"Grateful? If you are, you should give me MONEY!" the boy chorused, holding out his hands expectantly.
Who the HELL did this guy think he WAS?
Ranma gaped at him. "Kisama-" she blurted, amazed.
The boy looked disappointed. "By 'kisama', I guess I can take it that you don't HAVE any money." He began to walk away, taking the distance in long, graceful strides. "Lady, money makes the world go round." Ranma heard him mutter to himself, "Why did I waste my time saving some girl if she didn't even have money?"
"No one asked you to save me!" Ranma called, furious, running after him. "I could've handled them on my own! I ain't no damsel in distress! Come back here, I'll kick your stupid-"
"I hate poor people! Bye!" the boy called, and then, faster than Ranma's eye could catch, he was gone towards the city.
"Wait! What IS this place anyway, you jerk?" Ranma yelled, but it was too late. He was out of sight.
"That settles it," she scowled, standing up and taking a battle position, ki flaring up around her. "I'll show HIM just what kinda damsel in distress I am! As... soon as I find him, that is." Ranma deflated, ki falling back down, and thought as seriously as was possible for her. "Then... I'll go turn back to a guy, I guess...and then find out where the hell I am so I can get back and find Pop." She turned to go, course of action clear in her mind. All of a sudden, an idea occurred to her that stopped her in her tracks.
The red light had come from that book, and then she'd woken up in this weird, unfamiliar place that seemed almost like a storybook setting. Had- had she been sucked into the book? It made sense why things were so strange here- But that was crazy!
But how crazy was being a girl right now, either? It felt true.
"I'm in a book?"
***
Ryouga stared at the Universe of the Four Gods. The illustration showed Ranma once again. This time she was watching as her rescuer left. He sniggered. That was FUNNY. Ranma, a damsel in distress! But- he turned the page... sighed and screamed, "Die, Saotome!" once, just to reassure himself...
Ranma was just as lost as he was for once- maybe more- and even though Ryouga couldn't fight him, why wasn't he that happy about that? He should be...
"Searching for the boy, the girl ran to the capital and stopped..."
***
"To take in the stunning view..."
Ranma stood overlooking the capital, gaping at what she saw. "Man!" she muttered. "This is incredible, like some kinda movie set! Guess I'm in ancient China, huh?"
Ancient. What WOULD Pop do without her? And what would SHE do without Pop? Their training- how would she become a man among men without Pop's twisted but constant guidance? Well, actually, considering the whole BEING A GIRL thing, it was a bit late to for 'man among men'...
She gazed over the city. "It's really busy there-" she observed, then her eyes caught on a navy figure, standing out among the others. It was that boy!
"It's him! I've found him!" Ranma grinned triumphantly. "Ogre-boy, prepare to die!" she cried, and launched herself from the slope onto the city below. When she had landed she stopped and groaned at what she had without thinking said. "Great, I really am Ryouga now!"
"Okay, coming through, get outta my way, watch it, guy..."
She stopped again at the sight that suddenly assaulted her eyes. A bunch of people. Balancing on elephants. A circus in the middle of town? Creepy. Everyone did seem really animated, full of life. Well, she didn't have time to stand around and gawk anyway. She did have a mission, after all. But- she'd lost track of Ogre-boy- She groaned. She was HUNGRY. She and Pop hadn't eaten for who knew how long. The buns at the food stand in front of her looked SO GOOD-
"Miss, it's not nice to stand there and drool, you know," the man at the stand said gently.
Ranma winced. So hungry... "Mister, have you seen a boy... really good-looking," she grudgingly admitted, "With the character for ogre on his forehead?"
"No, miss. I'm sorry," the guy said, and he sounded like he really meant it. His eyes swept over the strange but pretty young girl, who was obviously very lost and confused. "Even though you're dressed weird, you're really cute. Have some free buns!" Ranma's mouth opened wide.
"Really?" The guy nodded. She hurriedly took the free food and stuffed it in her mouth without another thought. "Luck-y!" she chorused under her breath. Maybe being a girl had its advantages.
The guy grinned at the happy expression on her face. "Say, there's a nice-looking guy right here, little lady-"
"Sorry love to chat but gotta find Ogre-guy!" Ranma speed-talked, not really listening to what the guy was saying, then rethought what she had said. "You got any hot water?"
The guy looked confused at the unusual request, but pointed down the street. "They should have some at the clinic."
"Cool! Thanks, mister!" Ranma called, and ran off without a backward glance.
"Strange girl," the guy mused. "Too bad she left, she WAS really cute..."
Ranma ran toward the clinic. On the way, however, she was stopped by some guy tapping her on the shoulder. "I heard you're looking for a boy with the character for ogre on his forehead."
Ranma turned to him warily. "Yeah, what's it to you?"
The guy smiled. "He's a friend of mine. If you want, I can take you to him." Ranma's eyes widened, and she thought for a second. Well, the hot water- but, the ogre guy wouldn't know it was her beating him up if she turned back, anyway. And maybe THIS guy felt a bit off, but that was probably just because he spent time around the stupid jerk.
"Yeah, sure," Ranma agreed. "Take me to him."
***
"Have you heard? There's a strangely-dressed girl wandering around town."
"Oh yeah, I heard about that. She's looking for some guy with ogre written on his forehead, right? I heard she's dressed like a man, and is traveling all along like one, too, but's really hot, of all things. Where in the world did a girl like THAT come from?"
The boy who had rescued Ranma heard this and started. "Excuse me for interrupting. The strangely-dressed girl- did she have red hair?" he asked.
"Well, I don't know all the details, but that's what I heard," the guy shrugged. "Real cute, bright red hair and blue eyes, that's the description my pal Ryo told me."
The boy's eyes narrowed calculatingly. "The description fits. Red hair, blue eyes.. and she sure WAS cute. I guess it IS that girl from before..."
***
Ranma was not a patient teenager by any means. After they'd walked for quite a while, her patience snapped. "Where is your friend anyway, man? I ain't got all day."
The guy sneered at her naivete. "Right here," he drawled, the expression on his face that of the cat who'd just gotten the cream.
Ranma looked around and saw no one. She scowled. She should have followed her gut feeling. The guy didn't know ogre-boy, it had been a trap! Shit! Man, was everyone in this book a criminal, or at least, as in ogre-boy's case, really annoying?
"Well, this girl's dressed a lot more strangely than the usual ones," a male voice lazily commented. A number of guys strolled in, seemingly out of nowhere, joining the man who had tricked her. Ranma's fists clenched. Were they slave traders, too?
"She's a rare one," the leader grinned. "The clothes alone will fetch a high price."
The guys all moved into place, a clearly planned operation. "I wonder if it's true foreign girls taste any different," one guy hissed, dirty fingers wiggling in excitement.
Ranma choked. T-taste? They- they wanted to RAPE her? What? "You tricked me into following you, and now you're gonna try to RAPE me? ME?!" Ranma shrieked disbelievingly, voice raising to an ungodly volume.
"Shut up! Stop being so loud!" the guy in front hissed, and raised his hand to strike her. Ranma's mood abruptly changed. Any normal girl would have been terrified, but Ranma, who was really a boy, and a martial artist to boot- her mood soared up, excited adrenaline racing through her veins. If she couldn't fight Ogre-boy, at least she could work out some tension by fighting some honor-less rapists. She grinned, ready for the blow. This was gonna be FUN-
But the blow never came. A pebble had struck the man on the back of his head, so he had stopped and turned to see where it had come from. A figure stood on the roof, tossing another pebble in his hand threateningly. Ranma's jaw dropped. 'Rescued' again? What was WITH this "book"?
"Who are you?" the thugs shouted at the figure.
He didn't answer. "Four guys... against one girl?" he said threateningly. Ranma recognized that voice- It was ogre-boy! She groaned, leaned against the wall and sighed, exasperated. WONDERFUL.
He caught the pebble, and the character for ogre once again gleamed on his forehead. "You call yourselves men?"
Ranma found her voice again, pushing away the combination of shock and helpless amusement. "You don't have to, Ogre-boy. Just go away, I'll fight 'em. I ain't some damsel in distress! Hell, I've been training for YEARS in-"
"Just let me handle this, okay?" the boy shouted, and launched himself down into battle.
***
"As the girl faced peril, the boy with the mark of ogre upon his forehead appeared and beat off the hoodlums..."
Ryouga's eyes bugged out, then he nearly fell over laughing. "Ranma gets saved again? This is priceless! I can just imagine what Ranma's gonna do to this guy when those crooks are gone!" Though, still, the idea of men trying to RAPE Ranma of all things-
He stopped hurriedly, stretched out his legs, and reached into his pack, taking a needed break. His stomach growled, so he pulled out some instant ramen and began to eat it dry- it was a taste acquired by necessity.
"Hurry and come back, Ranma. I still want to- to FIGHT you," Ryouga hissed- at the picture of the ogre-boy beating up the criminals- Ryouga froze in mid-chew-
"You wouldn't ever- want to stay in that book, would you? Even for that boy who- saved you?"
***
When the boy had wasted the last of the rapists, he walked over to Ranma. "I thought it was you. What are you doing here?"
Ranma scowled and walked right up to his face. "Looking for you, dimwit. I couldn't just let you get away with treating me like I was some sort of helpless whiny girl in need of rescue."
The boy blinked. "Isn't that what you are?" he asked innocently.
Ranma's mouth opened wide in outrage, then she drew her first back and hit Tamahome as hard as she could. He went flying across the street, smacked hard into the wall, and collapsed on the ground.
Ranma grinned. "And there's more where that came from!" She cracked her knuckles menacingly. "Come on, bi-shou-nen, take your beating like a man! You've really pissed me off, so face the consequences!"
The boy looked up with bright, wide, watery amethyst eyes.
"Scary..."
"No more talking!" Ranma yelled, and catapaulted high into the air, coming down right before him. "Now, you die!"
"Wait!" Ogre-boy cried. "Aren't you overreacting, miss? You're still a young girl, and you couldn't have handled a bunch of thugs!"
Yes she could have! "Shut up!" Ranma yelled, and slammed her first towards the boy's head. He ducked at the last second, and her fist left a small dent in the wall behind the him.
"Aren't you going to introduce yourself, nice cute girl?" he said desperately, trying to stall the enraged female.
Ranma grinned nastily. "Okay. Saotome Ranma. And who the hell are you?"
"My name's Tamahome," he said, flashing a charming if a bit frazzled grin. He was glad to have temporarily stopped her assault. He stood up, and he was far taller than her. "I'm a traveling man in search of money. Sorry to bother you." He made to split.
"Wait!" Tamahome found himself grabbed and held in place. "I have no idea where I am or what I'm supposed to do to find my Pop, and since you're the only one I know here, you're going to help me! Or I'll beat you within an inch of your life!"
Tamahome backpedaled. "Whoa, I'll help you, okay. Just calm down! Geez!" Just his luck that he'd meet some weird tough girl and be suckered into helping her without being paid.
"Now, where AM I?" Ranma asked.
Tamahome looked at her oddly. "Konan. DUH. Was that supposed to be a joke?"
"What's a Konan?" Ranma snapped. He was making her feel stupid.
"An empire, okay? We're in the capital city," Tamahome explained, wondering. Was she one of the crazies? It would explain how strange she acted. He gave her a glance to the side. "Sure I can't convince you to give me money for this?"
Ranma glared. "Don't push your luck, cuz I KNOW I can take you in a fight any day."
Tamahome leaned in weirdly. He hadn't ever expected a girl to say something like that to him. "Just what kinda young maiden are you, anyway, Ranma?"
Ranma glared at him. "You idiot, I'm not a-" Then she stopped. Was she going to tell him about her curse and her true gender? It was so embarrassing. She didn't want to say anything. Even if she'd have to deal with him thinking of her as a girl, at least he wouldn't know her true problem if she kept quiet about it. "I'm a girl, still, whatever KIND you may think I am," she lied. " Yeah, most girls are wimpy and stupid, but I'm not like that."
A bruise was steadily forming on Tamahome's face. "I've never met anyone like you, ever, Ranma..." Tamahome said, an odd smile crossing his face. After a second, a newly energized smile replaced it, sly and teasing. "Well, at least I'll have a story to tell my family when I get home! Come on, let's find the way to where you're from, whatever place makes girls like you!"
They walked away together, bickering, but with a clear understanding between the two of them. They had become friends in an instant somehow, in an understanding between two unusual people, and would help each other find their way.
The Suzaku no Miko and the first of her seishi.
***
Ryouga closed his eyes silently. "Ranma..."
He wasn't quite sure what he was afraid of.
***
Those stars that twinkle in the darkness
Must have made you lose your way as well.
We're both looking for a different tomorrow
So very much alike,
You and I.
Even though I know believing in someone,
Will only end up hurting me in the end...
I wish for your love
I wish for your love
Why? Please tell me, blue star...
I wish for your love-
I can't become strong
With a broken heart.
***
Next Time on Suzaku no Miko ½!
Today, Ranma gets food.
Oh yeah, and gets Tamahome in trouble by picking fights.
A beautiful young man appears, too.
One who puts the moves on Ranma-chan.
Said Ranma-chan has weird dreams.
She has a heart to heart with Tamahome.
Well, kind of.
Tamahome is revealed NOT to be a soulless bastard.
Ryouga just sort of exists.
And we insert song lyrics in the middle of the episode for no reason.
SO... join us for the next time on Suzaku no Miko ½,
"We're going as fast as we can."