Author's notes! Whoooooooooooo!
THERE HAD TO BE A PROFECY
"Jatsuma!" Mascara's voice rang out over the grounds as she searched between the students trying to eat their lunch in peace. "Jatsuma! Where are you?" She ran towards the wooded area around the back and side of the school where he might be hiding.
Meanwhile Luffa was inside the school, slamming doors open and looking inside before moving to the next room in her search. Never mind that there were still some classes going on. "Jatsuma!"
Jatsuma dodged out of the room behind her and made his way up the stairs as quietly as possible. He was all the way up on the top floor before he felt like he was safe; Luffa was down on the second floor.
Usually I don't mind girls fighting over me. But do they have to be so violent? Jatsuma sulked, as he was still aching from the beating he had gotten earlier. Luckily Makoto had gotten a hold of Iikiba for lunch, so he didn't have to worry about him right now. But Mascara and Luffa were still on the prowl.
Jatsuma turned to walk up another flight of stairs and went out a door that took him out to the roof. He would just have to hide and wait up the lunch period. Not that he was particularly looking forward to eating lunch with Daichi today. He knew Daichi would be down there with a whole lecture prepared along with a few 'I told you so's' about how Jatsuma shouldn't chase girls so much.
"It's not my fault I'm so good-looking!" Jatsuma shouted to no one in particular.
"What are you blathering on about now?" Razor suddenly appeared next to him, causing Jatsuma to jump in surprise.
"D- Don't sneak up on me! What are you doing up here?" Jatsuma asked, regaining his composure.
"I always come up here during lunch!" Razor answered defensively as she turned to walk to the edge of the roof. It was surrounded by a metal railing, two bars running between each rail. Razor sat down and let her legs hang over the edge of the building, her hands resting on the lower bar.
"I take it you're hiding from your girlfriends?" She looked down over the ledge as the people below, Mascara among them. "They're going crazy looking for you."
"Uh, yeah… Razor, is this what you do during lunch every day? Just stare down at the people below? Where's your food?" Jatsuma asked.
Razor's face turned a little pink and she scowled. "It was in my school bag. I can't find it." She mumbled. Jatsuma snort laughed. Razor turned on him. "YOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY?"
"Come on, Razor! Lighten up!" Jatsuma went over and sat next to her to look out over the people below. He hadn't realized how many people ate their lunch on the grounds. "I think Luffa's shaking down that guy." Jatsuma observed. "At least she's outside now."
They were quiet for a few moments as they watched the people below them. Jatsuma watched various students he didn't know eat lunch, laugh with friends, fight over food, and walk hand in hand with their significant other. It was actually interesting to see all of this from above. It made all the little things seem less important.
"Look Jatsuma," Razor spoke up in a strong voice. "I- I never said I was sorry. In a kind of roundabout way, it's my fault you got into this situation. Because you were trying to help me. So sorry and thank you."
Jatsuma blinked in surprise. "You're welcome." He answered hesitantly. Razor turned to look back at the people below, but Jatsuma continued to watch her for a few moments. "Razor, why are you pretending to be a boy in the first place?"
He half expected her to get angry, yell at him again and push him off the roof. But Razor just sighed. "It's a long story."
"I've got plenty of time!" Jatsuma insisted, eagerly turning to face her with his legs crossed.
Razor seemed surprised by Jatsuma's curiosity. She searched her mind for the right place to begin. "Well, I- I suppose… It all started before I was born, when my mother was pregnant with me."
SIXTEEN YEARS EARLIER
Gray clouds were hanging low over the Amazon village that winter. The snow had all but melted but there was still the smell and chill in the air that it left behind. Amazons walked up and down the streets, going about their business. Younger Amazons were practicing martial arts with the elders, their breath coming out as smoke and rising into the air. But there was an eerie hush over the village.
"WHAT IS THIS?" A shriek broke the silence, causing birds to leave their perch and take flight. But no one bothered to go see what the problem was. They had been hearing shrieks like this for five months, and they still had another four to go. "CAN'T YOU DO ANYTHING RIGHT?"
The door to one of the huts slammed open and young pregnant woman stormed out. She had long silky black hair that was pulled back loosely near her shoulder. "If I want something done right I have to do it myself! I'm five months pregnant, Drier! I'm not supposed to get stressed!" She yelled at her husband, who had followed after her.
"Curler, please go lay down." Drier implored her. He was wearing strangely scruffy clothes for an Amazon. His outfit was dark brown, the same shade as his hair, and he was wearing large round sunglasses even though it wasn't bright out. "I'll go get that mango for you. Don't get all worked up." He said in what he hoped was a calming voice.
"Calm down? Calm down?" Curler held up a large green fruit. "This is not a mango, Drier! This is a melon! You brought me a melon!"
"I'm sorry Sweetie. I misheard you." Drier continued. "But you know, melon works just as well in fruit salad as mango." A millisecond later Curler slammed the melon down on his head, causing it to break, and stormed away.
Curler stomped down the street, other Amazons jumping out of her way as she went. No one wanted to mess with Curler when she was in a bad mood. She was one of the most skilled martial artists in the Amazon tribe. They would have thought being pregnant would slow her down, it didn't.
"Move it Grandpa!" Curler pushed past a small hooded figure holding a cane. It wasn't until she had walked a few steps more that she realized that the hooded person wasn't any Amazon she recognized. She turned on her heels to face the intruder. "Who are you?" She demanded.
The other Amazons took notice of the small hunchbacked person. They also took out their weapons and stood around the trespasser so he couldn't make an escape. The small person chuckled softly as he continued to face Curler, his face covered by the hooded black robes he was wearing. "You would turn me away, Curer? After I've come so far just to meet with you?"
Curler narrowed her eyes. "I don't know who you are, stranger. But there is a penalty for trespassing on Amazon lands without permission from the elders."
"Is that law still in place? I suppose I should have known." The hooded figure reached into his robes. "I have something that might be of interest of you, Chieftain."
Curler's eyes widened. The other Amazons looked at the stranger and Curler questioningly. "Curler's not our Chief, Cologne is!" One fierce looking male Amazon with a green beard brandished his sword threateningly.
"Who are you to come here and presume such things?" A heavy set Amazon woman took a step forward. The other Amazons quickly agreed.
"Hold on everyone!" Curler waved her hands to get their attention. "Perhaps we should hear what this old man has to say!"
Drier stepped up next to his wife. "What's going on, Hon?" He asked, giving the mysterious man a curious look.
"Quiet!" Curler spat at him before turning back to the old man. "What did you mean by calling me Chieftain?"
"Does this mean you don't want this mango?" The old man held up the mango he had pulled from his robes. Curler smacked it away. "Very well. It seems I am a bit ahead of the times."
One of the oldest Amazons gasped and clamped her hands over her mouth in surprise. "I know who you are! You're Heng Shaiming!"
The effect this statement had on the other Amazons was phenomenal. The backed away from the old man and put away their weapons. Some kneeled down and some just stared at him in awe. Heng Shaiming was a fabled prophet that lived in the mountains. Legend has it that he was an immortal, a god cursed to live on earth because he had told humans about the future. He had taken favor with the Amazons and came down every hundred years or so to tell the fortune of some lucky Amazon.
"Please, don't flatter me!" The hooded figure waved his hand passively. "Call me Shai."
"Heng Shaiming! Please forgive my rudeness before. I did not know it was you." Curler bowed out of respect, but she couldn't bend forward very far because her stomach was too large. Drier held on to his wife's arm to keep her steady.
Heng Shaiming made no answer but instead reached out a hand and placed it on Curler's stomach. "A mother-to-be I see. Congratulations." He didn't say this with much enthusiasm; rather he seemed to think it was a pity.
Everyone looked at him questioningly as he drew his hand away and leaned on his walking staff. In the next few moments of silence no one dared speak or even breathe too loudly. The air around the prophet had changed, as though it was darker and more potent. They all stepped back from him, though there was no visible change, everyone except Curler and Drier.
Heng Shaiming spoke then, in a heavy voice that could be heard clear at a bell. "A boy will bring many fortunes. He will lift a tragic shame from the shoulders of the Amazons and help you…" He pointed to Curler. "Become Chief before your time."
Curler's eyes lit up and she smiled with excitement. Drier's mouth hung open in shock. It looked like Curler was about to speak but Heng Shaiming cut her off.
"But a girl…" The seer continued in the same voice. "Will destroy and betray the sacred traditions. If she lives… her generation will be the last of the ancient Amazons."
There was something in the way he spoke. Any one of the Amazons standing around could have recited the prophecy word for word after hearing it from him that one time. They turned their attention to Curler in wonder. Drier looked worried but Curler only looked ecstatic. "The roll of Chief has been in Cologne's family for four-hundred years!" She breathed. "Will I really be able to defeat Cologne?"
But Heng Shaiming was gone, as if he had vanished into the air or slipped away when they blinked. The Amazons searched fervently for the legendary seer but there was no trace of him left in the village, not even a footprint in the dirt. The only account of him ever being there were the eye witnesses. Each person there was taken before the Amazon Council and questioned on the nature of Heng Shaiming's prophecy. After hearing the same story and prophecy from seven different Amazons, the Council called Curler and Drier before them.
"Curler, I hope you understand the gravity of our situation." An aged woman with long white hair, held back with a band of fangs, looked down on Curler from her pedestal. The other Council members murmured in agreement. They were all very old women warriors, many small and bug-eyed like Cologne. Each one of them was at least a hundred years old. A circular ornate wooden desk stretched halfway around the room were the Council sat, the head of the Council was raised up on a pedestal slightly higher than the others.
"I do, Master Bath." Curler hung her head in respect. But she couldn't keep a satisfied smile from creeping onto her face. There was nothing she would like better than to dethrone Cologne and start a new family line of Chiefs. It was what she deserved after all for all her years of intensive martial arts training.
"As Cologne is not here to confer with us on the issue of the prophecy, the Council has come to a decision that we are sure Cologne will confer with." Bath continued. "If your child is born a boy, he will be trained by our finest masters and we will keep you in mind when the time inevitably comes that we must choose a new chief. But not before, Curler." The head of the Council gave Curler a stern stare.
"Thank you, Master Bath." Curler continued to stay bowed. Drier was standing next to her, also bowing in respect. He turned his head slightly to look at his wife, he didn't like where this was going.
"However," Bath closed her eyes and sighed. "Should you have a daughter… we will have choice but to banish you, your husband and child."
Curler's eyes shot open. "NO!" She yelled instinctively. Banishment was a fate worse than death!
"If you fail to cooperate, we will have no choice but to execute the child." Bath continued in a grave tone. "Heng Shaiming came here to warn us of the destruction of the Amazon tribe and we must heed his words. I'm sorry, Curler." She stood from her seat. "Council on this matter is adjourned until the birth of the child." The other Council members stood to leave through a doorway in the back of the chamber.
"I… understand." Curler spoke thought gritted teeth as the Council guard escorted her and Drier out though the front entrance. The Council Chamber was the largest and most well put together structure in the Amazon Village.
When the large female guard had left them, Drier turned to Curler with a panicked look. "Curler! What are we going to do? I won't allow my baby to be executed!"
Curler put a hand on her stomach and looked irritated. "Our baby won't be executed! It'll be a boy." She started to walk along, towards home.
Drier followed after her. "How do you know, Curler? What if it is a girl?"
"It won't be." Curler said with a huff. "Heng Shaiming called me Chieftain. He wouldn't have done that if I wasn't going to be Chief. That means that it's a boy. It has to be."
Drier took a deep breath. "I hope you're right… for all our sakes."
FOUR MONTHS LATER
"HHHHUUUUARRRRRGGGGHHHH!" Curler screeched like a banshee as another contraction overtook her. They were getting closer and closer together since her water had broken an hour ago. She was lying in the bed in their small home, the Amazon nurse was there with bucket of warm water.
"Hon, are you okay?" Drier patted her hand reassuringly. Curler reached up and grabbed cuff of his shirt.
"Do I look okay?" She spat angrily. "Stop standing there trying to comfort me! Make yourself useful and rip up some sheets!"
"You know…" Drier began hesitantly. "There is a hospital about half an hour down the road. Ten minutes by ambulance."
"NO!" Curler shouted. "I will not stoop so low as to accept help from those unworthy people! I'm going to have my son in the traditional Amazon wa- WAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" She screeched and sweated as another contraction hit her.
"Alright! Just another eleven hours of labor to go!" The Amazon nurse reassured her.
"DON'T JUST STAND THERE! CALL AN AMBULANCE! I'M IN LABOR HERE!" Curler yelled at Drier, who had already started dialing.
Several hours, one ambulance ride and many pain-killers later, Curler was… not much happier. "Don't tell me how far I'm dilated! I'll tell you how far I'm dilated!" She threw her pillow at the doctor, who covered his head.
"Mrs. Curler, please try to stay calm!" The doctor insisted.
"Remember your breathing, Hon! Hee-hee-hoo! Hee-hee-hoo!" Drier demonstrated how she should be breathing. Curler tightened her grip on his wrist and glared at him. "Or don't."
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" She screamed as she beat her head back on the mattress.
"It's time! The head is coming through! Push Curler, push and remember to breathe." The doctor instructed as the nurse ran to grab a baby blanket and a pair of scissors.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK I'VE BEEN DOING? HEE-HOO! HEE-HOO!" Curler wheezed out a few breaths. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" She gripped Drier's hand as thought she were holding on for dear life. Her eyes were tearing from the pain but she didn't stop pushing.
With one last heave Curler collapsed on the bed, sweaty and breathing hard. Drier held her upright to look at the doctor. They watched him eagerly as he cut umbilical cord and the sound of a baby crying filled the room.
"Congratulations! It's a beautiful baby girl!" The doctor handed the bloody baby to the nurse, who wrapped it in a pink blanket.
Curler's smile went crooked, her eye twitched and she bent her husband's hand back at a weird angel. Drier winced but just started at his baby girl with a mixture joy, shock and worry.
"No… it's a boy." Curler grimaced. "It has to be a boy."
"Well, I have only been delivering babies for two years." The doctor scratched his head and smiled. "But in my professional opinion, I would have to say this is a girl."
"WHAT?" Curler shouted in near hysteria. "NO!" She put her hands to her face.
"Is something the matter?" The doctor asked.
"Dear God! What are we going to do, Drier?" Curler turned to her husband.
Drier's expression was hard to read through his dark round sunglasses, but he stayed thoughtfully quiet for a moment. "We'll accept banishment… for the good of the tribe."
"NO! I'd rather die!" Curler shrieked.
"Would you rather our daughter die?" Drier demanded.
Right then, the door to the hospital room opened and another nurse looked in. "We have a visitor for this room. I told her that only immediate family members were allowed, but she insists. Do you two know an elderly lady named Cologne?"
Drier and Curler's jaws dropped, their eyes widened and their pupils shrank. "COLONGE'S HERE?" Curler yelled.
"Oh, you know her? I'll send her right in." The nurse backed out of the room before they could stop her. "NOO!" They shouted at the same time.
"We're done for!" Drier shouted.
"No we're not!" Curler spat angrily. "You!" She pointed to the nurse holding the baby. "Clean off that baby, wrap it in a blue blanket and give it to my husband! Then get out of here! You!" She pointed to the doctor. "Just get out of here!"
The doctor took a step forward and raised his hands in peace. "It's not wise to put yourself under so much stress right after giving bir-"
"GET OUT!" She threw a vase of flower on the bedside table after the doctor as he ran from the room. Then she turned to the flabbergasted looking nurse. "Did I stutter? Move it!"
The nurse jumped over to the sink and washed off the still wailing baby as quickly as possible. "Good luck, kid." She muttered as she rewrapped the baby in a blue blanket and handed her to Drier. Then she ran after the doctor.
Drier took a sharp breath as his baby girl was placed to forcefully into his hands. Despite their circumstances he could help but marvel at how tiny the little girl was. Her tiny hands would fit around his thumb maybe and she was basically bald. But she had green eyes. His eyes.
He smiled and bounced the little girl slightly in his arms. She continued to cry, but it didn't bother him. She was perfect.
"We can't let Cologne know we had a girl." Curler spoke angrily. "It would ruin everything! We- we'll just tell them we had a boy!"
"What?" Drier asked in surprise. "Curler, how can we possibly-"
"Knock, knock." The door opened and Cologne came in, escorted by a nurse. "Hello Curler, Drier."
"Master Cologne." Curler hung her head as slightly as she could, but so it would still be recognized as a bow. "It's an honor."
It was then that Cologne got a good look at Drier and saw that the now silent baby was wrapped in a blue blanket. "I came all the way from Japan just to see how Heng Shaiming's prophecy would play out." Cologne said with a smile. "And it seems our greatest expectations have been met after all. Congratulations, both of you!"
Drier looked at the child guiltily and wrapped her more tightly in the blanket.
"Yes, it's a huge relief!" Curler sighed. "You wouldn't believe! But it seems fortune has smiled upon us this day!"
"It certainly makes things easier on everyone, especially you." Cologne agreed. "The Amazon Council will convene when you are ready to return to the village. Don't feel rushed, now. Give yourself time to recover."
"We'll be there as soon as possible." Curler hung her head again.
"Good. Well I don't mean to intrude on your moment, and I have other business to attend to at the village. Congratulations again." Cologne turned to leave.
Curler looked up with a maliciously pleased look on her face. "So it looks like I'll be chief after you."
Cologne stopped in her tracts, but didn't turn around. "If the prophecy is correct, yes."
"Well I suppose someone will have to take up reins." Curler continued. "Seeing as your family line has ended."
There was an uncomfortable silence between them before Cologne answered. "Yes." She continued on her way and was out the door before she turned around again. "By the way, what's the boy's name? I meant to ask."
Curler looked surprised. "Well we haven't really had time to-"
"Razor." Drier interrupted, still looking at the baby. "It's Razor."
TEN YEARS LATER
So the years passed and Razor grew. And with some creative problem solving and close observation of their daughter, Curler and Drier were able to keep the fact that she was a girl secret from the other Amazons. Razor was dressed in boy's clothing and they never let anyone else help her dress, not even to tie her shoes.
Curler's prospects of becoming chief seemed to be coming true as well. The Amazons had taken Heng Shaiming's prophecy to heart. They encouraged her to be involved with the Council's decisions, both trite and important, which Curler was more than happy to do. They Council even seemed to be accepting of her influence in the tribe, since Cologne was often away.
As the Council had promised, Razor was trained by their best martial arts masters. They all seemed to think 'he' had a great level of natural skill, which made her parents very proud. Razor was just as diligent about keeping her gender a secret as her parents were. She fought with the other boys and girls full out and never showed any interest in fashion, jewelry or anything else that might give her away. Drier always watched her martial arts sessions to make sure Razor's secret never got out. After so many years of keeping this secret, the whole family would all be incriminated for the deception. Drier often wondered if this was what Heng Shaiming had been warning them of.
By the time Razor's tenth birthday came around, Curler had to face the fact that it was only a matter of time before it became painfully obvious that Razor was a girl. But she had had plenty of time to come up with a solution, Jusenkyo Springs.
"What is this place?" The young Razor asked her Mother. They were walking hand in hand between the shimmering pools of water. Drier walked behind them, carrying a backpack filled with supplies. They had told everyone they were going on a training journey. Essentially, they were.
"Jusenkyo Springs." Curler answered. "It's a valley filled with cursed springs. Careful not to fall into one of them, or you'll drown and resurface in the form of that pool's spirit. Many people have been cursed in these springs. Now they turn into that other form when splashed with cold water. Hot water will change them back to normal. But we're looking for a specific spring just for you." She explained to the young girl, who had slowed down and was looking around the area curiously. Curler tugged on her arm and she sped up again.
"A cursed spring for me?" Razor asked.
"Yes, Razor. Nannichuan, the spring of drowned man. Once you fall in the spring you'll finally be a boy just like you've always wanted to be. Isn't that right?" Curler smiled down at her daughter as they continued walking.
"More than anything, Mother!" Razor shouted enthusiastically.
"Not all the time." Drier interrupted. Curler turned around to glare at him. "She'll still turn back into a girl with warm water."
"Well it's better than nothing!" Curler snapped. "And it will be much easier to hide that she's a girl if she can actually be a boy!"
At the edge of the valley, a small house had come into view. A thin line of smoke was rising from the chimney and a sign out front read 'Jusenkyo Tours'.
The Jusenkyo Guide was outside sitting on a chair, apparently carving something from a block of wood, and whistling a cheerful tune. He noticed the trio approaching and he put down his work and went out to greet them. "Welcome to Jusenkyo Springs! Could I interest you in a tour?"
"We're looking for Nannichuan." Curler answered prudishly, keeping Razor close. "Take us there as quickly as possible."
The Guide's face fell. "Oh, uh… it's not so easy I'm afraid. The springs are uncharted."
Curler's smile went crooked, her eyes sharpened and her nostrils flared. "What do you mean? You are the guide, aren't you?"
"Well… it's a funny story actually." The Guide chuckled. "Eighteen years ago a whole big battle took place here between those Phoenix People and some outstanding martial artists! Flooded the whole area! I'd never seen anything like it, myself. When the waters receded, all the springs were messed up. Some were out of order, creating new things. Nannichuan could be any one of the thousands of springs in the valley." The Guide scratched the back of his head.
Curler swiped her hand out and grabbed the Jusenkyo Guide by the cuff of his shirt, knocking his hat off as she lifted him a foot off the ground. "You had better not be kidding."
The Jusenkyo Guide was scared now. "No, no! I'm telling the truth! I don't know where the spring is!"
"DAMN IT!" Curler cursed.
"We need the spring!" Razor piped in.
"How about if he takes us to where the spring was? We can start there. I don't see how the water could have ended up at the other side of the valley." Drier suggested. As skeptical as he was of using the cursed springs, he didn't want Razor's secret revealed by puberty.
"Right!" Curler looked back at the Guide, who she was still holding off the ground. "Take us to where the spring was!"
"I can take you." The Guide answered as Curler set him back on the ground. "But I don't think-"
"Did I ask for your opinion? GO!" Curler pushed him ahead.
"Okay, okay! No need to get forceful!" The Guide answered as he began to make his way between the springs. Drier, Curler and Razor followed closely behind him.
About half an hour of walking later they arrived at a spring that looked identical to every other spring in the valley, but somehow the Jusenkyo Guide could distinguish it from the others. "This is it. This is where Nannichuan was. But I must warn you-" before he could get another word out Curler had grabbed Razor and pushed her down under the water.
"GAH!" Razor kicked and gurgled water as she was pulled under the surface.
"AHH! What have you done to your son?" The Guide shouted in a panic.
Drier kneeled down next to the water and watched it fretfully for signs of his daughter. Curler stared at the water piercingly. A moment after Razor went under the water started bubbling and something small and white swam to the surface, paddling towards the edge of the pool for dear life. Drier quickly picked up his daughter and they all saw that she was a white rabbit.
Curler looked like she could kill. She turned to the Guide. He held up his hands. "I told you the springs got mixed up!" He said frantically.
"Curler! Stop being so hasty!" Drier turned to her with Razor in his arms. The little rabbit was apparently still in shock. "Look what you've done! Razor's a bunny! Don't you listen? There's no way of knowing which spring is the spring of drowned man!"
Curler pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. She turned away from the Guide and walked up to her husband. She snatched Razor from his hands and pushed him backwards towards a spring. "There's one way of knowing!"
"AAHHH!" Drier tried to regain his balance, but lost it and fell into the water. Razor came to her senses and kicked in Curler's grasp, but not enough to jump after him.
"Now you pushed your husband into a cursed spring!" The astonished Guide shouted. "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?" He cried to the heavens.
Curler ignored him and watched the water carefully. Moments later something large and feathered surfaced. Drier crawled out at the side of the pool and stood as tall as his wife, he was an Emu. The large bird was still wearing his sunglasses. Drier honked at Curler irritably.
"Well it wasn't that pool." Curler conceded. She turned to the Jusenkyo Guide. "Do you have any hot water?"
"Uh… back at the house." He answered momentarily.
"Well we don't need to go all the way back there yet." Curler grabbed her Emu husband and threw him into a second spring. "Might as well cross off a few other springs!"
"MISS! Oh, dear!" The Guide gasped.
When Drier surface this time he still had an Emu body, neck and head. But he also had four hoofed cow legs, a tail and two large bull horns. "MOOOO!" He protested angrily, which was weird because he still had a beak.
"I'd like to see you come up with a better idea!" Curler shouted at him. "How else are we supposed to find the spring of drowned man? Besides, when we find it you'll be cured! Don't give me that look! It's not for me, do it for Razor!" She pointed to the little rabbit in her hands.
Drier's face fell (if that was possible for an Emu-cow) and after a few moments nodded in agreement.
"Good." Curler jerked forward and pushed him into a third spring, catching him off guard.
"Well… uh, you seem to be doing fine without me." He Guide said nervously as he backed away from the crazy family and made a break for his house. Little did he know they would become his most frequent visitors.
So the search for Nannichuan began. The hours of searching turned into days, months, and finally years of checking every one of the thousands and thousands of springs in Jusenkyo valley. Curler procured a map from the Jusenkyo Guide so they could began checking off which springs they had test already. It wasn't long before Drier was cursed beyond all recognition. But after a while they kept a pot of hot water and a camping kit with them for the long searches, which lasted for months between going back to visit the Amazon village. Curler didn't not want to lose the foothold she had there in their absence. Curler and Drier told everyone they were taking Razor on some secluded training journeys. Razor continued to be trained by her parents and also by the other Amazon masters when they were back in the Amazon village. Their lifestyle had dramatically changed, but their desperation for the Nannichuan water became more and more essential as time passed and Razor grew.
I just washed my dogs so… I'm kinda smelly.