This is a revised version of this chapter. I mentioned before I was only somewhat satisfied with the first version. I am much happier with this one. I hope you agree.

I would like to say thanks to everyone who took the time to even say keep going because it does and those who gave constructive criticism to help me get better.

Karibanu, you were right and nailed what I didn't like in my first go round. Your review made me think and rewrite of the first section.

I would like to give a real big thanks Ghost in the Machine for post-reading this and pre-reading the revision and bringing up some points that I didn't even think about for me to tackle. My head is still hurting from it.

Boldly going where others had gone before and meekly going where few have been.

I don't own any of these characters or situations. As always the spelling errors are still mine, as are the grammar mistakes.
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Juuban part 10

*************
It had been a long week for Ranma as she explored the extent of her powers.

Between keeping up with her normal life during the the day, training herself in her Senshi abilities at night, and reflecting on her life in general, Ranma felt more than a little tired. Ranma was relieved to find that joining with the crystal, or what was once her, didn't really change her personality as much as she had feared. It had been almost a week and she felt and thought she was still pretty much herself. Of course there were some subtle things like her new found interest in dancing and a strong desire to seek out places where people her own age hung out, neither one she had had any time to really pursue at the moment. Overall though, she felt better and more sure about herself than she had in a very long time.

During the past week at night, when the rest of the house was asleep, Ranma threw herself into her training. Taking her sword, she'd cut a path to the farside of the Moon to practice, refine and explore her powers. Well, as much as she felt she could safely do.

When Ranma arrived on the Moon, she would compress time, that's what she started calling when she slowed time, and warm up with a few kata's before meditating on what she wants to explore that night. The time compression came it handy for extending her training time, the twelve hours she been spending lasted about 1/50th of a second in the real world time and there seemed to be no adverse effects. Ranma knew somehow she didn't age when she was in her Senshi form, nor did she ever get hungry either. How this was accomplished eluded her, but she accepted it anyway. Ranma also noted that she seem able to pull strength from somewhere, but accepted it in the same way.

It was like knowing how to drive a car, but not really understanding how it worked.

Sitting on her favorite dust covered rock, Ranma meditated about the types of attacks she used to train in in her past life. It was during her first meditation that she remembered several attacks that were designed for distance use. She was eager to try them out since they felt like her ki attacks in the way they were used. These should be easy to pick up on since she had been practicing ki usage for some time now. But where? A term came to her, as these things have been doing since the joining: firing range. Firing range? Oh, well. With that thought, Ranma summoned her sword and cut a path in space/time to the 'firing range', whereever that might be.

Ranma found herself floating in open space far from the Solar System. Some instinct told her that the faint star, to her relative right, no brighter than the surrounding stars, was home. She was far from home, on the edge of the Solar System if not beyond it. Ranma didn't expect to be that far out, but since she was there, she might as well see what she could use for target practice. That's when she noticed her first target as it floated to her left.

An asteroid.

A big asteroid.

Ranma estimated the rock to be about fifteen miles long and roughly five miles across. An impressive example of iron and rock.

[Okay, let's see how this 'solar flare' works] Ranma thought as went to normal time and tapped into her power.

Extending her right arm, Ranma cupped her hand with fingers opened. She stopped herself and thought, [No, I'm too close.]

Backing off about fifty miles from her target, Ranma once again extended her arm mimicking the same position she had taken moments before. Ranma tapped into her power and let it fill her, she then found it's center and channeled it toward the space made by the cup of her opened fingers. The flame of plasma that formed there that was unimpressive looking. Ranma felt just a little disappointed. She then locked onto her target, sensing it by feeling its distortion in the fabric of space because she could no longer see it in the faint light beyond the Solar System. She then let her projectile go with a mental scream of "SOLAR FLARE!"

The results were impressive as Ranma watch energy pour from her outstretched hand and it illuminated its distant target. The flaming ball of plasma resembled a miniature sun that was flying at tremendous speed, getting smaller as it traveled away from Ranma. Then it hit, the solar flare consumed the asteroid which then erupted into a cloud of expanding gas. Vaporized. Nothing but gasses left of what was once iron and rock.

Ranma floated there for a moment, stunned by the sheer power of the attack. An attack that didn't even come close to taxing her limits. In fact, Ranma had held back, wanting to go easy on herself at first before attempting larger moves. This was unexpected. This was huge. What in the hell was she going to use that much power for? Ranma float and thought, [This is too much. I'm going to have to practice on toning it down.] Looking at the still expanding and illuminated cloud of hot gasses, [Toning it down a lot.]

With that and a sigh, Ranma cut a path through space/time to her training grounds on the farside of the Moon again. She compressed time again and began weapons practice. She had discovered that she could form whatever weapon she wanted by just picturing it in her mind , as long as if it was some variation of a manual weapon: swords, staffs, knifes, clubs, etc. Ranma remembered a time when she use to frown on weapon users, now she realized all she was doing was limiting herself. Weapons can be very useful in a life or death fight. Plus the type of weapons she can generate can never be taken from her and used against her.

With this ability Ranma flowed through a kata that she knew by heart, but not from this life, and changed the form of her weapon in smooth, even moves. After moving through various types of swords, staffs and a mace, she found she perferred her "old" favorite, the Solar Sword.

The next night...

Once again on the Moon and sitting on her favorite rock, Ranma was preparing to meditate. Ranma began to wonder why of all the places on the Moon, she always picked this particular barren spot. It was familiar to her somehow, like home or something like that. Ranma felt that there was more out there, more than this, but for some reason she was always was drawn to this place every time.

Ranma decided to find out by concentrating more of her past life and see were it leads. Assuming a crossed leg position and closing her eyes, Ranma grabbed at thin filaments of her memories and started to follow them back, past this life into the last.

Images swirled, different training and drills, trying new things being comforted by the... Queen? Ranma decided to explore that later, pressing backward into her forgotten past she until she hit a mental wall of sorts. A wall? Here in her mind? Why? Curious, Ranma pushed more until the wall began to yield but does not break. She then collected herself before renewing her attack on the barrier in her mind. Putting all her mental energy into it, the mental wall begins to succumb and break and then...

Ranma was little, hiding behind the legs of her mother. Two big men nearby in uniforms were talking to her papa. She didn't understand what was going on, but she knew it involve her. Was she in trouble at school? Why are they talking like that and looking at me?

"Pluto said she is the one. She must be properly trained and conditioned..." one of the men said.

Ranma wasn't paying attention to what the man was saying anymore.

Pluto? Who's Pluto? Did I do something mean to her? Is that what this is all about? If I did, I'll say I'm sorry.

One of the men pulled a scroll out of a pocket. Papa reads it and pales. Why is papa so scared? Mom then grabs me in a bear hug, crying and saying "You can't have her, she's my baby!"

Papa shakes his head. He's crying. Why is he crying? The two big men come and pry me from my mother's arms. I'm frighten! I cry for my papa and mom! The two men carry me out of my house as watch my papa. He is holding back my mom as she out screams my name.

Ranma's eyes snap open. [Oh god, what was that?]

Taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, Ranma thought, [Why didn't I remember this when I joined with the crystal? The wall - it must have represented something, a... may be a memory block that was in the original memory block?] Ranma was now feeling a little nervous, she was exploring unknown territory and she was sure she wouldn't like what she would find.

Ranma finds her center and dived into her past again...

Ranma didn't like this, it hurts. Why are they hurting me? What did I do wrong?

"GET UP!" a mean voice yelled very loudly.

Ranma stood like she'd been shot.

"You are too slow, too weak. Why they thought you would amount to anything is beyond me. Now get out there and run until I tell you to stop. NOW GO!" The mean man yells into her eleven year old face.

Ranma began running, what she really wanted to do was cry. The last time she did that though she got backhanded and ended up on the ground, while insults were thrown at her. Why are they so mean to her? What did she do? Why are they teaching her to fight? I don't want to do this. I wanna go home. I want mom. I want papa.

She ran past a familiar rock.

Ranma's eyes snapped open again. Breathing heavier she looked around more carefully. There was the sun, low in the horizon the dull gray lunar hills in the distance the powdery grey dust that covers everything...

... including the rock she sat upon. The very rock she ran past in her memories.

[Oh god.] Ranma thought as she stood, legs shaking. [Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god.]

Her childhood from her past life - and it wasn't good.

[They took me from my family, they took me away and trained me ... to fight. To be some damn super weapon.] Ranma steamed, then latched onto a name. [Pluto, I remember that man saying Pluto. Damn her! First, she screwed with my life in the past and now this one.]

Ranma was shaking with rage. [That bitch, who in the hell does she think she is? I am so going to hurt her when I see her next time.]

Ranma summoned her sword and head back to Earth, the park to be precise. She had a lot of anger to walk off before turning in for the night.

*****************

Arriving at the park, Ranma allowed her sword to dissipate before walking off. That's when she noticed a white glow around her and thought, [What the hell is this?]

The new development derailed her anger. This mystery grabbed her and demanded her attention. On closer examination of the ground she had just walked on, she noticed it was burnt and smoking in the light of the park lamps. [What in the hell is going on?]

Moving again she noticed that the leading edges of her arm starting to glow. [Huh?] Ranma was intrigued, what could be causing this interesting effect. It was not just a light show, it was generating heat, and a lot of it. Ranma moved again, being more observant to what was happening. She noticed that it wasn't so much her arm that was glowing, but something like a shield or barrier a quarter of an inch from her skin was glowing. [What in the hell is this?]

A close, form fitting warp bubble, was the answer supplied by her brain.

She was pushing around a bubble of warped space in compressed time, creating friction as the air molecules ran into each other on the leading edges.

[A warp bubble? Cool! I wonder if i can do anything with it?] on that thought Ranma imagined the bubble growing, and it responded by mimicking her thoughts. It expanded into a perfect sphere surrounding her. She couldn't see it, but Ranma could sense it. When she moved, she noted that just the edges of the bubble would heat up, everything within was protected.

Then Ranma remembered the dream, the one of destroying a sun, where she used this a shield. Was this what was protecting her in space? If so, where did all the air she breathed come from? [Wait, one problem at a time. What do I do about the heat? I need something to cool it or bleed it off or something.]

Ranma pondered. She thought about different techniques that she knew and the only thing that would be close to useful was the 'Soul of Ice'. [What the heck, everything I do is amplified when I'm like this.]

With that Ranma invoked the 'Soul of Ice' and began to move again. The glow started again and as Ranma poured more effort into the 'Soul of Ice' the glow subsided, then disappeared.

Ranma was then struck by the thought of, if everything was protected by her warp bubble, then is everything moving at the same time she was? A simple experiment proved that everything within Ranma's influence in the warp bubble was indeed moving at the same time relative to Ranma. Ranma bent over and picked up a stick that escaped being burnt and holding it before her, let it drop. It did like any other stick would do to anyone else. She then picked up the stick again and brought her warp bubble close to her, she repeated the experiment. The stick behaved very differently - it stay there hovering seemly in midair, frozen by Ranma's perception in compressed time. Ranma expanded her bubble and the stick immediately fell to earth.

She should have known the results, considering her earlier experiment with the stopwatch.

That's when Ranma thought, [I wonder if I could use this as a weapon of some sort?]

Though Ranma had just arrived back in Juuban from the Moon, she felt it was time for another training trip. She just had to see what she could do with this. With that in mind, Ranma headed out again, cutting a path to a remote section of the outback in Australia (blame "Crocodile Hunter" again). Ranma found that generating the heat wasn't the problem, negating the heat wasn't a problem. Doing something with it was a problem.

She noticed that the mass of heated air collided with something else, it would only go so far before being stopped by another barrier. Ranma decided to concentrate on the barriers and she what she could find out. She discovered she had not just one warp bubble, but several of them layered at various distances from her body. It was like being in the middle of an onion, with several different layers of warped space/time surrounding her.

When Ranma drew her warp bubbles in as close as she could, it was like a second skin. Moving them outward they placed themselves at distances relative to the next layer. Ranma wonder what would happen if she suppress the outer most layer.

Doing so yielded nothing, until she shrugged her shoulders.

A loud sonic boom echoed across the flat plain of the outback.

This made Ranma jump in surprise a bit which yielded another sonic boom. Ranma stood very, very still. Moving one finger on her left hand resulted in a sharp crack that reverberated in the air. Ranma firmed up the outer most barrier and moved her finger again. Nothing. Okay.

Picking the next layer inward, she suppressed that one. Moving her finger yielded no sharp cracking sounds. Ranma pondered and shifted her weight onto one leg, the inertia from that simple movement sent her floating sideways and slightly upward for some distance before gravity reclaimed her. When she hit the ground and bounced a couple of times before coming to a stop. Hmmm.

This was getting more and more interesting. She brought in her warp bubbles and by moving her arms she generated heat by friction. The heat was turning white hot before Ranma funneled the superheated gases through a self made channel created by folding space. This bypassed the warp bubbles allowing the heat to scorch a good part of her little corner of the outback. She could use the heat from the friction as a weapon after all. It turned out it could used as a very nasty one indeed.

Ranma explored the various layers of warped space/time that cocooned her. She found that most affected how she interacted with the "real" space/time around her, some of the bubbles she couldn't influence at all. The layers seem to isolate and regulate her interaction with different parts of "real" space. An interesting development that she decided that she would have to explore more later.

Ranma stopped a moment and considered something else. If the warp bubbles or fields controlled how she interacted with her surroundings, than why the friction? Ranma thought back to what she could recall about her training from her past life. Whenever she did the time compression back then, it was always in space or some other environment that lacked any real atmosphere.

Space. She just realized how much time after she first gotten her powers she spent training in space. It was as if she was built to function mostly in deep space and very little else. If so, then maybe the Techo-mages didn't think it was important to consider friction, after all the average density of deep space is one atom per cubic centimeter.

Techo-mages. That word brought back the memory of what she was thinking before being sidetracked with this new puzzle. Ranma sighed, she was going to deal with that later. She was mentally tired and yearned for bed. Ranma summoned her sword and cut for home.

******************

When she arrived at home directly into the relative privacy of her sleeping area, Ranma shook her head and detransformed. It seemed like every time she discovered and figure out something, it would lead to a new question that she would have to puzzle over, whether it be training or other memories. Well Ranma figured, she would have plenty of time to figure it out, this night she been gone for hours and hours, yet between normal and compressed time the clock on the wall showed she had been gone for all of fifteen minutes. She padded down the hall and bathed quickly and retired for the night.

******************

Ranma was awakened earlier than usual by being thrown out the window, she barely had enough time to twist around and land on her feet. Then one of the Masters begins sparring with her before she had a chance to wipe the sleep out of her eyes. After defeating him, she was allowed to eat breakfast all awhile being lectured about how to be honorable and on how not to be worthless.

It was then off of class where she was taught mathematics, language arts and history - with more examples of brave and honorable fighters who fought to protect the Kingdom. Class always bored her, but she couldn't drift off to sleep like she wanted to, last time she came close to falling asleep she had extra homework and more training assigned to her. Ranma couldn't hide behind other students either, for she was the only one.

The scene shifted...

She was coming! Her favorite person, the only one that was ever nice to her was coming! Ranma was excited! Oh, she wished Auntie would visit more often and stay longer. There she was, in her spartan room, cleaning and straightening what little she had to make sure Auntie wouldn't be disappointed in her. Ranma didn't want to ever disappoint the only person who showed her any type of kindness. There was a knock on the door! She's here!

Ranma composed herself and answered the door. On the other side was an elegantly dressed woman, older than Ranma, that glided through the doorway and enveloped Ranma in a warm hug.

"How are you today?" asked Ranma's Auntie.

"I'm fine. How are you? Oh Auntie Serenity, I'm so happy you're here! What do you want to to today? Are we going to the city? Are you going to teach me more dancing? How's your daughter doing? Are we going to see her too?"

Serenity chuckled at the fifteen year old's rapid fire questions. "Yes, yes we will she everyone today and more later. Today is an important day for you and I wanted to be the one to tell you."

"Important? How?" Ranma asked.

"Well, you have completed your basic training and now, today we are going to the Techo-mages to give you the power that you have earned."

"No more training?" Ranma asked in slight disbelief.

"Oh, sweetheart, there will always be training but, not like you have had it. And... you will be closer to me." Serenity finished with a smile.

"Closer to you?" Ranma's eyes widened with excitement. "I'll get to see you more often?" Serenity nodded her head, Ranma hugged the older woman again. "That would be wonderful! When do we leave?"

"As soon as your packed. Here let me help you."

Ranma never had much, she had even less since coming to this place. Excitedly she packed what she did have, being aided by Serenity. Toting her bag over her shoulder, Ranma left the room that had been her home for a little over ten years.

She didn't look back.

The scene shifted...

Auntie Serenity was holding Ranma. "Sweetheart, I want to tell you how sorry I am."

"Auntie?" The now seventeen year old looking Ranma asked, confused.

"I know you have had a hard life. I'm sorry. I should not have allowed it. I should have spoke out against what they were doing to you," Serenity continued.

"Wh... what do you mean Auntie?"

"I mean I could have stop it. I'm sorry. My advisors and councilors convinced me that it was necessary. I thought they were wrong , but didn't do anything to stop it. Can you forgive me." Serenity looked at Ranma in the eyes, with tears flowing from her eyes.

"Stop what?" Ranma asked, slightly panicked.

"They... tore you from you family, trained you cruelly and didn't even think to treat you as a human being, just a weapon. I could have changed that, but in my folly I didn't. Can you forgive me for being weak?" Tears were following down Serenity's cheeks.

Ranma sat and thought, then gather her Auntie into her arms. "It's alright, Auntie. Please don't cry. I... I forgive you."

Sobbing quietly, Serenity hugged Ranma back even harder and whispered softly in her ear, "Thank you."

The scene shifted...

Ranma held Serenity's body close to hers, trying to will her to stay alive longer. Serenity gasped as Ranma begged, "Auntie don't die, please."

"There is nothing you can do for me..." Serenity croaked out.

"No!" Ranma's eyes filled with tears, "There must be something!"

"Y... yes."

""Tell me, please!"

"Seal them away," with that Serenity was still.

Ranma felt pain like never before...

*********************

Ranma woke with her alarm clock buzzing. Turning it off and brushing the few strands of red hair that manage to tickle her nose. Ranma stretched and thought about the dream she had just had.

[My life just keeps getting better and better,] Ranma thought to herself sarcastically.

Ranma rolled and put up her futon. She then dressed in her morning workout clothes and headed for the stairs. Ranma thought about the revelations of last night and a cool anger grew within her. Basking in the strong sense of being used and abused in both her lives made her anger turn hot, not the "out of control must have vengeance at any cost" anger, but a controlled and focused anger.

She was whole now, but that seemed like a small consolation now considering what she had been through in both her lives. Used and abused, that what it was. The hand-to-hand and weapons Masters of her past life. Genma, Cologne, and a host of other people from her ten year training trip in this life contributed to the feeling.

Then there was Happosai messing her mind and Pluto tampering with her life in general, the later one in two lives and then... Ranma didn't want to think about it anymore. It would leave her too angry to practice. She stopped at a thought.

Serenity used her too, but she was sorry for doing that and said so. Ranma knew somehow that Serenity was sincere.

Ranma was amazed how close both her lives seemed so much alike.

Downstairs, Ranma was beginning to rearrange the dinning area when Akiko entered the room from the kitchen area. She greeted her.

"Oh. Good morning Ranma. Getting ready for your morning workout I see."

"Yeah, I guess..." Ranma voice trailed off, as Akiko studied her.

"Ranma, what's wrong dear?"

Ranma looked into the hazel depths of Akiko's eyes and felt nothing but concern for her well being. Ranma sighed internally. She didn't really want to burden Akiko so much with her problems, but Akiko had been so helpful in putting Ranma's problems into perspective. "Granny," Ranma began, "I... I found out something that bothers me and I don't know what I should do about it."

"Would it help to talk about it?" Akiko asked.

"Yes. Definitely, but not right now. I have to get it right up here," Ranma pointed to her head, "before I can talk about it."

"Whenever your ready dear. You go right on ahead and practice while I putt about in the kitchen."

Ranma using her self developed "Chestnut speed room rearranging" quickly cleared the dinning area of tables and chairs. She the stood in the center and focused her mind on the coming exercises. Ranma then began with a series of katas.

********************

"Now can you talk about it?" Akiko asked as she help Ranma off the floor.

"I guess it's bothering me more than I thought," Ranma answered sheepishly.

"I can always tell when it's something major. You usually don't fall like that unless it is."

"Yeah, well it has something to do with my past life," Ranma said while easing her sore posterior into a chair.

"Let me get some tea and you can tell me about it," Akiko said while heading back into the kitchen.

A few moments both women were discussing Ranma's problems and Akiko would listen and give constructive advice where she felt it was warranted. One things that Akiko said that stuck in Ranma's mind was "Do not be ruled by the past, instead learn from your mistakes and then move on with your life." It sounded good to Ranma, who felt she was a whole person now and free of the past even while striving to remember the mistakes in both her lives. Ranma was determined to learn from the past and not be a slave to it.

When Ranma discussed how she felt about being used, Akiko looked at her right in the eyes, her hazel eyes boring into Ranma's blue, and told her that "No one can take advantage of you without your permission." Ranma thought about it and saw what Akiko was driving at. Ryoga took advantage of Ranma's promise and used it against her, Nabiki took advantage of - well just about anything she could get her hands on and used it against her, and Genma - she did not even want to go there. Genma used Ranma for everything from a bargaining chip to slave labor just so he could sit on his ass. And Ranma accepted it! She let them get away with doing things like that to her that no one in their right mind would tolerate! What the hell was she thinking? Ranma now was sure of one thing: she wasn't going to put up with being treated like that any longer.

She would make her own life and she would never let herself be controlled like she was again. Ranma felt she would answer to no one but her own sense of honor and nothing else, well maybe Granny - but that's different, but definitely not by Genma or anyone like him.

**********************

The rest of Ranma's week was made up of training at night and talking with Akiko in the mornings, the combination of the two made Ranma grow and change in a relatively short time. Happosai was be going to surprised. Ranma wasn't going to be the same Ranma he was used to tormenting and degrading. This was going to be a new and more dangerous Ranma.

********************

Ranma woke with a yawn and a stretch while turning off her alarm. Reaching up to lift the blinds up to take a peek at the outside world, she was pleased from what little of the sky she could see, that it looked like it was going to be a clear day unlike the off and on drizzle of the past two days. Rolling and putting away her futon, she went down the hall, knocked on Michiko's door and then entered. Michiko was still asleep, doing a good imitation of a lump on the floor as Ranma kneeled down and gently shook Michiko on the shoulder.

"Sis," Ranma whispered.

Groan

"Sis," Ranma repeated.

"H-huh? What? Oh, morning Ranma. What time is it?" Michiko asked while rubbing the sleep out of her eye.

"Early. Like you asked me to. I'll get the hot water going in the bath and meet you there," Ranma softly replied as she stood and headed for the door.

Groan "Remind me never to volunteer to help Hitomo at the school this early in the morning again," Michiko said sleepily.

"You wanted to help her with the School Art Show. A promise is a promise," Ranma said while exiting her sister's room as Michiko groaned in response.

Her sister. Ranma felt very comfortable calling her that. It started yesterday, when making there way out of the class at the end of the school day when Ranma told Michiko that she would be a little late getting home for work. Michiko had said not to be too long or Granny would worry. Ranma smiled and replied "Don't worry, sis. I won't be too long." in a most natural way. Michiko smiled in return and called Ranma "Sis" as well. It made Ranma feel warm inside in a way she never felt before.

After bathing together, dressing and leading a still sleepy Michiko down the stairs for breakfast, Ranma started thinking about what she had to do later in the day. Ranma had plans for the afternoon...

After the half day of school let out, Ranma planned confront the masters of Anything Goes over the future of the school. Ranma in her long hours of isolation while training had time to think about what she was going to say and do. She decided on giving the masters two choices: they could change the way they sought candidates and seal the mind altering junk away or she could just kill them all and be done with it.

That last choice was one that Ranma would like to avoid, but if it came to it, Ranma was prepared to carry out that threat, then allow them to continue as they were. Ranma had killed before, the demon in the park, so the ideal of killing evil didn't bother her. What the masters were doing was definitely evil as Ranma saw it and she was determined to put a stop to it. It was against her better judgment, letting them live anyway, but Ranma wanted to give the masters a chance to redeem themselves. So with that, Ranma decided to let them agree with her demands or she would just kill them...

... she already had the perfect place on the Moon picked out for their bodies if it came to that.

********************

Elsewhere...

Pluto was alarmed. Since last Sunday she hadn't been able to observe Ranma directly or indirectly. Ranma had always been difficult to watch, but now she was proving to be impossible. It was as if Ranma somehow managed to "jam" her attempts to keep tabs on her. Pluto remembered back in the Silver Millennium, Sailor Sun was impossible to track using the Gates of Time.

Pluto was able to detect other things, like the very minor earthquake, an increase in the distortion in space/time where someone or something was manipulating it, and the use of incredible energy on the far side of the Moon, but nothing she could specifically trace back to Ranma. But she knew it couldn't be anyone but Ranma.

As far as Pluto was concerned this was still not good. Not good at all. She was growing more concerned, wondering about Ranma's mental state.

The Gates of Time were useless now for looking into the future because the timelines were so split and fragmented that it was impossible to figure out what was going to happen. It was either the First Enemy's or Ranma's doing and she couldn't tell which. If Ranma had come into her powers and started using them, it could be good thing or bad thing. Pluto hoped it was a good thing, using the fact that the Earth was still here as evidence.

All she could do was wait and watch for anything to happen.

*****************
After class let out, Ranma ducked into a quiet and empty restroom to transform, she then willed her Senshi uniform into a Juuban school uniform as camouflage for the coming meeting. Leaving the school grounds after parting with Michiko, Ranma began roof hopping toward the roof of the building where she first met Happosai and the other masters last week. She was feeling a little cocky about what was to come, but quickly reeled that feeling in not wanting it to cloud her judgment.

Approached the roof, she compressed time to scout out the area. There they were huddled in a group, probably talking to each other about what questions that Ranma could possibly be asking of them. Ranma got her first good look at the masters of Anything Goes. There was Happosai and Charles who she met before in the park, just before she considered... ending everything. She studied the two white haired women, they were old but not too old looking. They had the same features, dark eyes flat nose and thin lips, if it were not for the differences in height and build, they could pass as twins. The other men were varied in their appearance, there was a short portly man with a scowl on his fat face of possible Chinese descent. The last man in the group was slightly taller and much thinner. He look American with graying hair tied in a pony tail. He also was the only one that wore a pair of square rimmed glasses.

Ranma scanned them and detected various hidden weapons and other magic items on their persons. Ranma carefully cataloging who had what before roof hopping away a few blocks and going back into normal time. She then approached the roof in the open this time. When she arrived the six masters of Anything Goes were lined up in a row facing her as she alighted on the graveled roof, making a crunching noise as she did so.

Little did they know it was going to be more like demands they would be hearing today.

"I see you are punctual, we like that in a candidate," said the portly chinese man.

"I asked you all here to ask you a few questions," Ranma said, said in a somewhat subdued, but matter of fact manner.

"Go ahead, my boy. What do you want to know?" Happosai asked while taking a drag from his pipe.

"I would like to know if these tests you give your candidates were something you all came up with or was it something that was passed down from one master to the next?" Ranma asked

"It has been a tradition in the school since its inception. Everyone goes through it. We consider the test a rite of passage," one of the women answered, rather pompously.

"So, by acting like a bunch of irresponsible idiots who nearly kill people by hazing, manipulating their minds and physically abusing them, you plan on continuing to use unnecessary and really stupid ways test candidates," Ranma shot back, putting a little venom in her voice. "Don't you guys ever stop to think that just because it was a good ideal 7000 years ago that it might not be a good idea today?'

"Don't be so judgmental. You know what's at stake. What would you have us do?" the other white haired woman shot back.

"I'm not sure, but I know with 7000 years of knowledge at your disposal - there has got to be a better way than taking people to the edge of insanity and messing with their minds. Why not try and follow examples of other schools in awarding levels of skill as they are earned and going from there?" Ranma snorted at the woman.

"Ranma, I take from your attitude that you have decided not to accept the honor of becoming a apprentice master of Anything Goes," Happosai said as he sighed heavily.

"I didn't say that, I simply meant that some things are going to change."

"And who are you to dictate to us, the masters of Anything goes anything?"

"The one who holds the keys to the entire knowledge of Anything Goes in her grasp. Go ahead Happosai, try going to the library."

All eyes widened at that. "You're bluffing." the short man said with an unusual Chinese accent.

"Try me," was her response.

Happosai reached into his suit and pulled out his link and closed his eyes and concentrated. After a moment he opened his eyes and angrily demanded, "What did you do?'

"Not much, just pocketed the library as an example of what I can do. You will comply with my wishes."

"I don't take orders from a snot nosed punk like you, I'll teach you respect," Happosai retorted. Ranma's senses screamed trouble, she instinctually compressed time.

Everything froze around Ranma. Sensing something behind her she looked over her shoulder to find a distortion in the air about four feet off the ground, about two feet from her back. Her feelings from the fabric of space were telling her that there should be mass there. On closer inspection of the distortion, she found Happosai in mid leap hiding in a behind a blanket of ki, with arms outstretched toward where Ranma's head would have been. Ranma looked back and forth between the two Happosai's, one frozen in mid leap and the other still standing where he was with the other masters. Going over to the one that was standing, she detected no mass from him. Looking closer with other senses that she had just became aware of in the last week she discovered that this Happosai was made of ki.

Ranma was impressed, a decoy - clever little bastard.

This made Ranma wonder how times when she fought Happosai in the past, it was nothing more than her fighting a decoy.

She went over to the masters and implemented part of her plan.

************

Standing behind the five masters, Ranma sped up time again to normal. Happosai landed on the gravel coated roof on his belly with a splat and the other masters looked around in front of them and assumed defensive positions.

It was at that point when Ranma cleared her throat and spoke, "Well, you are a sneaky bastard, aren't you Happosai?" she said loudly, startling the six who then spun to face her.

"How did you move so fast?" Happosai demanded.

Ranma ignored the question and continued, "Are you going to accept my demands?" as she kept on her toes, ready for any tricks the other masters may have up their sleeves, that is if they had any sleeves.

"What demands are those, boy. I don't recall you making any demands," Happosai said while angrily picking himself off the ground.

"True, you were so intent on "teaching me respect" I didn't get the chance to tell you my offer, it is simply this: change your ways... or else."

"Or else what, little girl?" the tall black man known to Ranma as Charles asked, "You are not in any position to dictate to us..."

"Aren't you all a little cold?" Ranma asked interrupting Charles.

They all blinked and looked down at themselves, all they had on were their underwear, not even their shoes. As one they looked up at Ranma.

"How?" one of the woman asked.

"Oh the same way I'm going to do this to Happosai..." Ranma spoke as she once again compressed time.

Happosai readied himself for an attack. He felt a slight wind blowing but nothing else. All Ranma did was look like she wavered and stood exactly, or close enough to where she was.

"Changed your mind, boy?" Happosai taunted.

"Nope, and I must say you look very cute." Ranma said, her voice full of mirth.

Happosai eyes widened and he looked down at himself again. He was in a purple tight mini skirt and matching shirt, he also found wearing high heels were very uncomfortable. His ears were pierced! He was also wearing a bra! How? This was impossible! No one could move that fast, how in the hell was Ranma pulling this off?

"These are my demands," Ranma startled Happosai out of his thoughts, "you find a different way to test your candidates and I'll allow you all to live and have the library back. Also all the mind altering pressure points are to be sealed away, they are evil and they should not be part of the school to begin with. If you don't, then you can start writing your last wills and testaments for all I care."

"You dare speak to us in such a manner? What's to stop us from going after you and yours? The Library is important and we will take whatever steps necessary to wrestle it back from you." said the short, stocky man who spoke for the first time with his arms crossed over his chest, in a way that reminded Ranma of Genma.

"Wrong thing to say..." Ranma answered while compressing time again.

Ranma and the man who threaten Ranma just disappeared, Ranma returned to about where she started after a few minutes passed.

"What happened to Master Wang?" the shorter of the white haired women asked very, very nervously.

"He is probably swimming towards shore after I put him in the middle of Tokyo bay." Ranma paused before continuing, "Listen, this is how its going to be - find another way or you can kiss yourselves goodbye..."

The five masters, four in their underwear and one in drag just stared at her and blinked.

"... and remember, I know how to find you, if you even think about doing anything stupid. I. Will. Kill. You." Ranma finished with a very cute and winning smile.

"Ranma," Happosai began, "give us a moment, please."

"Can you go and bring Master Wang back, please?" The taller of the women asked, almost pleadingly.

"Why should I do that?" was Ranma's reply.

"Don't you care if he drowns or not?" the thin man with glasses asked, "He is not that strong of a swimmer."

"He threatened me and the people I love and care about, he is lucky I gave him a chance to live and learn from his mistake. I will not be so merciful next time, if he survives this." Ranma finished her answer with her eyes glowing with power, like two small blue suns blazing from her face. The masters involuntarily took a step backward away from Ranma.

"I will not be screwed with anymore, and I will not allow any of you to screw with other people like you did me - understand?" Ranma finished dangerously.

The five remaining masters on the roof, were frozen in shock.

"Well?" Ranma asked impatiently.

After what seem like an eternity, Happosai stood in front of the other four and looked at each in the eye, then announced "We agree, if you let us have access to the library so we can do research in other ways to test candidates."

"No."

Happosai looked exasperated, "How can you expect us..."

Ranma cut him off. "Between the five of you, maybe six if the other one hadn't drowned or gotten eaten by sharks yet, should be able to come up with something." Ranma's blue eyes harden, glowing slightly again with hidden power, "You have no choice."

The small group backed up further and looked nervously at Happosai. After a moment, Happosai took one step forward and bowed, "We accept, and on our honor we will not do anything - stupid." Raising from his bow, he looked at Ranma with a little fear in his eyes, he swallowed and asked, "If we complete this task, will you give us back our library?'

Ranma nodded, "You have my word. And as for sealing the mind-altering pressure points?

"Consider it done. How about my offer of becoming my heir?" he asked.

"Ask me again, after you are done with your first task."

Happosai sighed and nodded his little bald head.

"Oh, before I go... " Ranma announced, "Here."

With that Ranma vanished from the watchful eye of the anything Goes masters and left a pile of their clothing in her place.

For Ranma, who was already blocks away, giggled as the feeling of taking change for a change filled her with glee.

***************

Elsewhere in Tokyo...

It was a 35 minute trip to Nerima by rail and another 20 minutes by bus to get to an area near the Tendo Dojo. When they first stepped off the bus, they noticed some of the buildings were patched here and there and other evidence of huge battles were scattered all over the place. Few of the repairs were fairly new, but many others were markedly older.

"Remember the cover story we worked out and stick with it." Ami reminded the others.

"Don't worry, we have it covered - right?" Rei answered while glancing at Usagi as the others nodded their heads.

"Let's find out where we need to go." Minako said while Ami removed a map from her back pocket.

After getting orientated with a map they had brought with them, they made their way to a zone between Furinkan High and the Tendo dojo to look into the area restaurants, figuring if Ranma ate out it would be near where she lived or went to school. It would be a good start, they figured, to find out if anyone remembered her and could tell them anything they knew on Ranma, subtly of course.

The first two stops yielded not much more than Ranma was a hardy eater and how much the owners missed his business. On the third stop, the Cat Cafe, a purple-haired Chinese waitress was excited that they mentioned Ranma's name and called him her "airen". She then demanded what the girls knew about "him". This is when the cover story that Ami and the girls worked out earlier came in handy, of hearing about the great martial artists Ranma and Ranko. Makoto wanted to challenge and spar with them to test her skill. Even though the strange and aggressive girl was satisfied by their story, they were sent off with a warning not to become "obstacles".

Overall, a pretty unsettling experience for the five girls.

Leaving the restaurant, before getting a chance to eat, they decided to switch tactics and ask about Ranko Tendo, who they knew was also Ranma, that had swept the last Martial Arts Home Economics meet. Maybe it would be safer, especially after the purple hair girl seemed so possessive.

Walking along the lightly crowded sidewalk, they picked another eatery name Ucchan's to try their luck at fishing for information. Upon entering the Ucchan's they were greeted by a lovely waitress who led them to a sizable table near the center of the dinning area. Looking at the just passed out menus, the girls decided that they would eat here as well as subtly ask around about Ranko Tendo. The place was nice, nicer that the last place they attempted to scope out. The restaurant had a counter set up with a grill in front of it so people could watch their food being prepared and manning the grill was a handsome young man with long hair tied in a ponytail.

"Waitress?" Ami asked in her most polite voice.

"Yes miss?" The waitress answered with a slight bow.

"Can you tell us where the Tendo Dojo is?"

"Yes I can, If you don't mind me asking what business you have there?"

"I'm going to challenge Ranko Tendo to a judo match. I heard she's the best there is and I want to see how I measure up," Makoto answered.

"Oh dear, Ranma - I mean Ranko doesn't live there anymore and please don't ask the cook, she just starting to get over him."

"Him?"

"Her... I mean her. Just promise not to say anything to the chef, please?" The waitress asked again.

The five girls nodded in consent.

"Thank you. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Yes," Usagi look at her with a slight tilt of her head to one side, "Why are you dressed as a girl?"

"It was the way I was raised miss." was the slightly tense, but polite reply.

"Oh. Oh well, I'll have the seafood special, please. "Usagi continued as if nothing happened.

After the waitress completed taking the orders and walked away, Rei leaned over and asked Usagi, "What was that all about?"

"You didn't notice?" getting a blank stare from Rei, "Our waitress is a guy."

"No way."

"Ask him."

Rei thought about it, then decided to let it go.

Unnoticed to all of them a potted plant came up to the table.

"Are you looking for Ranma?" a voice from nowhere said.

The girls at the table looked around. "Huh?" Rei said.

"Are you looking for Ranma?" the voice repeated.

The girls blink-blinked, before Ami asked, "Did the potted plant just talk?"

Minako, who was sitting nearest the said object, nodded her head fanatically. "I think so, what do you want me to do?"

From the soil of the pot, a head of a girl emerged. "I just want to know if you're looking for Ranma."

"EEEEEEEK!" Usagi cried, "There's a head in this pot!"

"Tsubasa! You jackass! What have I said about scaring the customers?!" The cook approach the table with a... very large spatula in hand.

"Oh my beloved Ukyou!" the girls head in the pot cried, "I was just asking them about Ranma and..."

"Don't ever mention that jackass' name to me again! Now get out!' the cook screamed as he whacked the potted plant out through the door that was being held open by the waitress.

The five girls at the table just sat in silence as they watched the strange scene unfold before them. The cook turned to the girls and asked, "What do you know about Ranma?" waving his oversize spatula in front of them.

"N... n... nothing. Nothing at all. We were asking about a Ranko Tendo and this plant walks up to us and asks us about a Ranma. Th... th... that's all that happened." Ami stammered out.

The cook look deflated, then returned to his spot behind the grill.

Makoto leaned forward into the center of the table, "What the hell was that all about?"

"You're asking me?" Ami said.

"Why is the cook dressed as a boy?"Usagi posed the question to the just returning waitress.

"That's a bit of a long story, and I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to say. Let's just say she was hurt by someone she loved," the waitress answered while setting down the orders.

The girls sighed at this dismissal, and began eating their food.

After leaving Ucchan's the girls were arguing about what to do next. Rei just wanted to head straight for the Tendo Dojo and demand answers. Ami wanted to keep as low a profile as they could. They didn't want word somehow getting back to Ranma that someone was looking into her past. So after a small debate it was decided to head in the general direction of the Tendo dojo and ask people along the way where it was and about Ranko to try to glean information that way. It was hopefully a way of innocently asking questions about Ranma without raising any suspicions.

The first person they ran across just gave them an odd look and moved along muttering something about "looking for that loony bin", the second person carrying a bokken declared his undying love for Ranko, his missing pig tailed goddess and begged for any information of her where abouts.

"We don't know where she is, I just want to spar with her," Makoto said.

"Oh what a cruel fate to have befallen my beloved to be taken from my loving arms by that vile sorcerer," the dark haired boy said while covering his face with his forearm and weeping dramatically.

"Sorcerer?" Makoto asked as the other girls gathered closer to listen.

"Aye, the sorcerer Saotome... ah, I can't say that anymore, for my faithful ninja has informed me that he was throw out of his clan. No doubt because they finally caught him using black magic or some other dishonorable trickery."

"Ranma, a sorcerer?" Makoto asked.

"Yes, the boor was a practitioner sorcery and black magic. It was the only way that the cur could have possibly defeated me, the rising star of the Kendo world, upperclassman Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High." There was a pause as the boy held his bokken up high and the sound of thunder was heard in the distance. "It is a pity that the scoundrel didn't meet his fate at the end of my righteous and nobel blade, for I could have freed my pigtailed goddess from his slavery."

"Pigtailed goddess?" Minako said.

"Yes, the lovely and robust pigtailed girl, who was enslaved by the sorcery of Ranma. It wasn't until the Martial Arts Home Economics mewt that I discovered her true name of Ranko. Up until then, the vile Ranma forced her to use his own fowl name in place of her own."

The five girls blinked as one.

"Well... thanks for the info, we'll be on our way," Makoto said, getting a bad feeling about this boy.

"Tis no problem to assist a lovely and obviously noble person as yourself. You were going to the Tendo's in hope of sparing with the pigtail girl were you not?"

Makoto nodded, but remain silent as alarm bells started ringing in her head.

"Alas, you won't find her there. However, do not despair oh lovely and daring ponytailed warrior maiden. I will accept your challenge in her place, and if you win I will permit you to date with me!" with that Kuno charged at Makoto with bokken held high. Makoto sidestepped quickly as the other girls scattered and tripped Kuno as he passed who then face planted hard onto the sidewalk sending him into a daze.

That didn't hurt, he mumbled before becoming still.

"What a weirdo," Makoto commented as they walked away.

With a ego the size of Japan, Rei added.

"More like an idiot," shot Minako.

Or plain nuts, Ami added some more.

"I think he's just mentally detached from reality," said Usagi.

The others just looked at Usagi as they walked peacefully from the scene, until Makoto was grabbed from behind.

"Ahh my ponytailed warrior! You of..." he didn't get to finish as Makoto twisted in his grasp and with a upper cut to the jaw, sent him high into the air. She left him unconscious, hanging high in a tree, dangling from a branch.

Impressive, considering she was not even transformed at the time.

Moving away more quickly from the scene, they crossed paths with a girl wearing a short black skirt and with matching ribbons in her hair walking in the opposite direction who suddenly declared, "Oh how cute! Maxwell, Maxwell!" and proceeded in trying to steal one of the "meatballs" off Usagi's head, not realizing that it was an attached fixture. Much hair pulling ensued.

"Whaaa! Let go of my hair!"Usagi cried as she tried to hang onto her hair with one hand while the other arm flailed about.

"Give me my Maxwell. Oh, Maxwell, Azusa will save you!" the strange girl cried in an annoyingly cute way.

It took all four of the remaining Juuban girls to separate Usagi from her attacker that was attempting to remove her hairdo and crying for "Maxwell". Then it took more doing, but they managed, to "persuade" the hyper energetic girl to leave Usagi alone. Usagi was rubbing her head to ease the pain during the "persuasion" part wondering who in the heck was Maxwell.

While the strange girl ran off bawling, and calling them all "meanies", all five were startled by a loud cry of "Where in the hell am I now?" Spinning around they spotted a well formed, strong looking teenaged man with a bandana around his head, carrying a very large backpack with an umbrella mounted on it and looking around, confused.

"Um? Can we help you?" Minako ventured.

The bandana clad boy blinked a few time and looked at them, then asked sheepishly, "Ahh.. Heh, heh... could you tell me where I am?"

"You're in Nerima." Minako replied carefully, raising an eyebrow.

"Nerima? No! If I get caught here - she'll - no! Damn you Ranma! This is all your fault!" With that cry, he took off down the street and disappeared.

The five girls from Juuban stood there looking at the spot where the strange boy was just seconds before and blink-blinked as one. A quiet two minutes passed before Rei cleared her throat and turned toward Ami, "Ami, what in the hell is going on around here?"

"You're asking me?" Ami said, exasperated.

Rei opened her mouth to say something more but was interrupted by Makoto screaming "Pervert!" and turned just in time to see the bokken carrying boy from before sail over a building. Makoto was in a finishing pose that left no doubt that it was she who sent him on his way.

After that little scene, everyone decided to head straight for the Tendo Dojo and asked the residents there about Ranko. Approaching the dojo, which was enclosed in a high wall they heard someone yelling from within. Stopping and looking at each other they wondered if this was such a good ideal after all, but after taking all this time to get here they might as well. At the door, Minako screwed up the courage to knock on the door, the rest trailed behind, readying for anything.

A very tired looking woman in her late teens or early twenties with long brown hair, wearing an apron answered the door, "May I help you?" she asked in a voice that was flat and filled with false cheer.

"Um..." Makoto stuttered, "we... ah... came to see a Ranko Tendo. Is she in?'

The older girl at the door took a crestfallen look on her face, "I'm sorry," she whispered sadly while her head drooped. "She hasn't live here in quite some time."

"I see... " Makoto replied

"Ohh look! A cute little pig!" Usagi interrupted, while bending over to pick up a small black pig with a strangely familiar bandanna around its neck.

Suddenly the girl at the door head shot up as her eyes hardened. She then stormed up to Usagi and addressed the pig in her arms. "You know what I'll do to you if you ever show your face here again. Do you want me to carry out that threat?"

The pig's eyes widen before bolting from Usagi's arms and racing down the street before disappearing.

"What the hell was that all about?" Rei demanded.

The woman of the house turned toward Rei and tiredly answered, "I'm sorry, it's a bit of a long story. I don't mean to be rude, but you came at a very difficult time. Ranko doesn't live here anymore and I have no way of contacting her."

The women then moved back toward the door and spoke in a way that brooked no argument, "I'm sorry for being rude, but I can't ask you in or help you, good day."

"Hold on Kasumi," said a voice from within the house. "Why are you all so interested in Ranko?'

Makoto spoke up, "Well, she won the last Martial Arts Home Economics meet and I wanted to see first hand how good she really is. Can you help us?"

The new girl at the door eyed the five speculatively.

"Well, if your interested in any information on her, I'm afraid... I can't help you. I've had some... difficulties a few months back and I can't... ah, compromise my position," the new girl said with arms crossed in front.

"Nabiki," the older of the two said softly, "I'm sure there's something you can do. Maybe they can help you find Ranma and then you could tell him how sorry you are," as she finished with a hopeful look.

"But... I'm sorry Kasumi, my lawyer advised against even giving information away. I dug a pretty good hole for myself and I don't want to make it any deeper."

The Juuban girls stood, transfixed by the conversation.

You're right, but you wouldn't have been in this situation if it wasn't for your... extra curricular activities to begin with. the older girl admonished.

We been through this a dozen times, Kasumi. Nabiki snapped, enough that it make the five girls at the door back up a bit, If daddy wasn't such a worthless basket case and provided for this family like a responsible adult would have, I wouldn't have had to do the things I did to bring money into this household.

But, he hasn't recovered from mother's death and...

That's not an excuse! It's been over ten years! He deserted this family to fend for itself, I did the best I could, now WE have to deal with it.

The older girl sighed, and became aware of the guests at the doorway again.

Kasumi turned to the girls at the door, "I'm sorry, but we can't help you. I don't mean to be rude, but as I said earlier - this is a difficult time. Good day." With that the door was closed softly.

The five girls stood there for a moment, looking at the closed door before moving off.

*****************

Later, eating at a eggroll stand near the bus stop, the five girls sat at a table and tried to puzzle together what kind of person Ranma was from what little they discovered so far on this trip. From what they heard Ranma was a boy, a girl, a sorcerer, a goddess, a pervert, the most honorable man that ever lived, a great martial artist, someone you depended on, a joke, a jackass, an airen and a cash cow. All that rolled up into one person.

"I don't think everyone is talking about the same person," Minako ventured.

"I think they are." Ami said, "It's just that everyone has such radially different views on Ranma that no one agrees."

The girls sat there in silence, thinking.

"This isn't getting us anywhere," Rei sighed. "How can we find out anything on Ranma if we can't find...

"Excuse me, did I hear you mention Ranma?" a girl wearing a sundress with shoulder length brown hair interrupted carefully.

"Yes." Makoto said, remembering their cover story, "I came all this way to spar with either Ranma or Ranko and I can't find anyone who knows their whereabouts or tell me anything about them."

"Well, I can't help you find them, but I can tell you about them. My name is Sayuri. You see..." before the girl could go any further she was interrupted.

"GENMA! You come back here and face your punishment like a man!" A woman in a kimono waving a sword dashed by as she chased a... large panda... around a corner. The five girls from Juuban blink-blinked at what they saw. Then they noticed the lack of response from the people sitting at other tables to the outrageous scene.

"Umm. Was that a panda we just saw?" Ami asked, nervous at the situation.

"Yes," the girl picked up without missing a beat. "That woman was Ranma's mother, the panda was his father."

"Mother...?" Minako muttered.

"Father...?" Rei muttered also.

"He's sooo cute!" Usagi said.

"Yes, Nabiki told her about Ranma and his curse last month and she has been chasing him ever since," Sayuri said. "But, he's not very bright, he keeps going back to the dojo."

"The dojo?" Ami asked.

"The Tendo Dojo, that's where he's been living for almost a year now," the girl answered.

"Ranma's father is a panda?' Rei inquired.

"Not really, it's just the curse." Sayuri answered with a straight face.

The five girls looked up at the local girl and blinked again. They all knew of the curse since Pluto confirmed Ranma's story Saturday night, but hearing it confirmed again from someone else was... slightly frightening. Ami took the initiative and asked, "Would you like to sit with us? It sounds like quite a story."

"You don't know half of it, since Ranma left, Akane, that's was his fiancé, has been depressed. Yuka has been over there almost every day cheering her up," Sayuri said while taking an empty seat.

"What can you tell us about Ranma?"

"Well, about - I don't know, a year ago let's say, Ranma and his dad showed up and..." Sayuri began telling a summary of what she knew of Ranma life from his arrival to the Herb incident that led to Ranma's departure from Nerima.

"All this is for real?" Ami asked.

"As real as I can figure. Between listening to Akane tell us about what was going on and buying information from Nabiki, it's about as close as I can get." Sayuri stated. "It was a real soap opera, everyone was interested in what was going on."

"So, it's all true." Minako echoed.

"Yes, but it's all true. I have seen Ranma in action and he is an amazing fighter," the Nerima girl said.

"How did he get so good?" Makoto asked.

"Well," Sayuri began, "it has something to do with a ten year training trip his father took him on, beginning when he was only five."

"She's been training since she was five?" Makoto asked, slightly disbelieving.

"Yes, and from what I know the training wasn't all good. Remember when I mentioned to you about Ranma acting like a cat and kissing Akane at school?

The five Juuban girls nodded.

"Well that was the result of a training... mishap. Akane said it was something called the cat-fist and it involved throwing a young child into a pit of starving cats over and over again. I didn't get all the details - I thought it was too horrible at the time."

"Was her training always like that?" Ami asked a little pale.

Sayuri shrugged. "From what I can gather, Ranma's father was pretty much fixated with martial arts and is not a very bright man or honorable man no matter how much he preached about honor."

"How did she stay sane throughout all of this?" Rei asked, waving her hand indicating all of Nerima around them. "We've only been here a few hours and I feel like I'm beginning to go insane."

"It's not too bad. I heard that Juuban has it worse with scantily dress girls running around and fighting these weird monsters all of the time," Sayuri answered back, slightly defensive.

The five big sweated in silence.

"What about this friend of yours, Akane?" Ami asked, breaking the silence, "Is she around, maybe we can talk to her about Ranma."

"No, since Ranma left, her and Yuka have been spending a lot of time together. I thing Yuka is making sure Akane doesn't get too depressed over Ranma and do something rash," Sayuri said, "and since Nabiki's legal problems began, she also has been under a lot of stress."

"Legal problems?" Ami asked, recalling the conversation at the dojo.

"Yes, she pissed off the wrong girl at school that she tried to blackmail and that girl blew the whistle on Nabiki, Akane's sister. There has been a big investigation and she has been tied up with lawyers and all sorts of legal stuff," the girl replied with a slight smile on her face.

The other girls at the table looked at each other, wondering if they should even ask.

"Wow. Curses, an idiot for a father, a over-honored psycho for a mother, a - " Rei paused looking at their guest, "high-spirited pervert basher for a fiancé plus two other girls claiming to be his fiancé, a Chinese Amazon girl claiming to be his wife, a crazy Samurai wanting to date her girl side and kill her boy side who also has a sister that wants to do the opposite and every nut case within twenty miles that wants to fight, bash or kill him."

"And to top it off," Ami picked up from Rei, "Ranma is also a world class martial artist, who spent ten years on the road with an idiot for a father who sold her over and over again for food, who also endured insane training techniques and had honor hammered into her by someone who was honorless. Why hasn't she gone crazy and killed anybody yet?"

"Do you know how... incredible this all sounds?" Rei added

"Yes I know how it sounds and no he hasn't killed anybody, in fact he goes out of his way to make sure no one gets hurt, even though the fights tears up a lot of real estate, but I don't think it's ever really his fault," Sayuri answered.

Before the conversation could continue, the bus to the rail station arrived.

"It was nice talking with you Sayuri, was it?" Ami said while standing, Sayuri nodded. "It's been real interesting," Ami finished.

"Yeah, we never have anything this weird back home," Rei added. The girls said there goodbyes and boarded the bus to the rail station. The ride there gave plenty of time for the girls to discuss what they found out. Ami was starting to be troubled by this.

Emotionally dependent? Yes, considering how quickly she bonded with Akane according to Sayuri. Socially isolated? Yes, taking the ten year martial arts training trip into account which was also abusive in manner. Honor? Ranma father preached all the time, her mother lived it and Ranma? According to Sayuri, she tried to be honorable. Two lives, thousands of years apart and still so much alike.

Ronin. Ranma was thrown out of her family and onto the streets with nothing more than what she could carry. For someone who tried to be honorable, it must have been a devastating blow. From what they gathered, Ranma was ronin for at least a half a year. What was she doing all that time and how did it affect her? Ami sighed, even though it was educational, she felt now that this trip was probably a waste of time. This helped them to understand Ranma of six or seven months ago. Ami could only imagine how much of that was carried over to Ranma as she is now. Even though Sayuri was forthcoming with information - how relevant was that information now - today?

Even with such a bizarre upbringing, Ranma seemed happy and stable, at least by outward appearances. Who knows what's going on inside Ranma's mind? Maybe they should have tried to talk to the people who know her well now instead of trying to dig so deeply into her past.

After boarding the train the trip back at the shrine was filled with silence from the now tired group. Ami, Rei, Minako, Usagi and Makoto staggered back inside the Hino shrine after their excursion to Nerima. It had been quite a day...

"I never seen a ward that was so... so... filled with weirdoes," Ami summed up for everyone.

They all nodded in agreement, missing the irony of that statement.

*********************

The pseudo-cat was receiving a very good back rub, something that it had learned to love over the last few weeks, when the hyper-space uplink alerted it to a priority message. Sighing within itself, it knew it was important, but it was enjoying itself so much. Without moving from the perch it was at on a young girl's lap, it opened the channel.

This was it. The final instructions.

Next week, on the next Saturday, the pseudo-cat was instructed to go to the park and wait for there to be sufficient humans present to use as hostages and living shields for the equipment that the expeditionary force will bring with them. When there were enough humans available, the pseudo-cat was to alert the council who would then give the word for the expeditionary force to move out. The human hostages should give them enough time to set up and get the equipment running and stabilize the wormhole on this end. Once they secured this end of the wormhole it could be widened to allow the main force, made up of shock troops and super troopers, to cross over and establish a larger beachhead. Once that was done and more equipment was brought over, multiple, stable wormholes could be opened to allow more troopers to cross over.

Then the Moon Kingdom would be on its way to being reborn.

Until then, the pseudo-cat was determined to enjoy as many back rubs as it could get.

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