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Dragon's Destiny
Akane sat near her favorite tree to eat lunch. Seated near her were the three Chinese Amazons that had joined her class.
"So are you here to kill Ranma?" Akane asked between bites of rice from her bento. While she did want him away from her family, she really didn't want him dead.
Shampoo shook her head. "Shampoo hope not to. Ranma make great husband back at Amazon tribe. Hope Ranma come with us so Great Grandmother not have to kill."
Akane was glad she had just swallowed or she would have spit out her lunch. "You want to Marry Him! He's some sort of monster isn't he? I saw him turn into that thing!"
"Too true. But he also male outsider. Amazon law say that when male outsider beat woman Amazon, he become husband to make strong children."
"He beat you in a fight so now you have to marry him?" Akane asked incredulously.
Shampoo nodded. "According to law, we already married. As well as Talcum and Comb and over thirty Amazon womens back in China. As strongest warriors, we have right as first wives to bring back husband."
Akane felt lightheaded. Ranma the demon was already married? And to over thirty women? He really was a pervert!
"Oh god, Nabiki! He's trying to add her to his harem! If I help you, will you take Ranma back to China away from my sister?"
Shampoo seemed to think a moment then conversed with her companions in Chinese a moment. "Amazon help Akane Tendo. Airen already have too too many wife already. No want to share with Nabiki money girl."
"Great!" Akane exclaimed and held out her hand. The Amazons looked puzzled for a moment then each put out a hand. Laying hands over each other's they sealed their pact.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
Tylee pulled a bowl down from the cupboard before grabbing eggs from the fridge. She cracked the eggs and began mixing them with a wire whisk. Letting go of the whisk to let it continue on it's own she gestured to the stove to turn on the heat while preparing to cut up the peppers and ham for the omelets she was cooking for breakfast. Setting the cheese to grate itself into a separate bowl, she sat down at the breakfast table to read the newspaper while breakfast magically began to fix itself.
She was halfway through her first cup of coffee when she heard the front door open. The sound of hooves clopping on the hardwood floor told her that her roommate was home from her morning run. She made sure the omelet flipped so as not to burn and got up to go to the front room.
Tylee smirked as she saw her roommate. She was a big woman at first glance. Not in the overweight sense, but she would have easily cleared six foot five feet. Her muscular arms showed that she did some sort of extensive exercise. The woman was sitting on a Clydesdale sized horse wearing a flannel shirt and cowboy hat. Leather boots and worn jeans completed the modern cowgirl look. The woman had an excited nervous energy about her and Tylee knew she had some news from town she just had to tell her.
"So Jenna you gonna wear that Glamour in the house all day?" Tylee asked her friend.
The woman had opened her mouth to speak but let it shut with an audible click as she blushed for having forgotten herself. With a gesture, she seemed to shimmer and shift forward. The horse's head disappeared along with the jeans, boots, and the legs that went with them. The fact that Jenna was a centaur explained much of the furniture of the living room. There were cushions on the floor that were much too large for a single person to rest on. This combined with the high ceiling and oversize doors showed that the ranch house they lived in was specifically designed around larger than human sized guests.
"I'm cooking breakfast," Tylee interrupted again before Jenna could speak, "You can tell me in the kitchen."
Tylee happily noted that none of the omelets had burned and sent bread to the toaster. Jenna sat at the table, laying down seventeen hundred pounds of horseflesh on the floor.
"I'm glad we opted for the in-floor heating," Jenna said as her tail swished back and forth.
"You're getting soft with all these modern conveniences. So what was this news you so desperately had to tell me?"
"Oh, right. Well, I went into town this morning to pick up yesterday's mail cause' people have started staring at me funny for riding a horse into the post office if I pick it up in the afternoons."
"The news?" Tylee prompted. Jenna was so easily distracted.
"Uh, yeah. Anyway, we got a letter from one of our contacts in China near Jusendo."
Tylee perked up at the mention of Jusendo. Nodding her head for Jenna to continue, she finished breakfast preparations and put a plate in front of Jenna before sitting down herself.
"Something happened at Jusenkyou. Apparently someone fell in Derakon's spring, absorbing all the magic from the valley."
The fork fell from Tylee's fingers from halfway to her mouth. Hey eyes wide in surprise, she told Jenna to finish her story.
"It was a boy from what he wrote. Ramma or lanna or something like that. Anyway, he met with both the phoenix king Saffron as well as Derakon's descendant lord Herb. Both have pledged their allegiances to him before he returned to his home in Japan."
Tylee was quiet for a moment while she absorbed the content of what she'd been told. She then fixed her friend with a serious stare.
"Do you know what this means?" she said, "That damn jerk had me worried all this time for nothing! Aghh! When I see him again he'll wish he was still dead!"
"Um, but I thought you'd be happy to hear that lord Derakon was reborn," Jenna said with a slightly confused look on her face.
Tylee seemed to calm down a little. "It's complicated. Of course I'm happy to hear he's alive," she looked down at her omelet growing cold, "I'm suddenly not hungry anymore. Pack your bags, we're going to Japan."
Jenna watched as Tylee got up and left the kitchen after she cast a spell to start cleaning everything up. She quickly grabbed Tylee's plate and emptied its contents into hers before letting the plate float off towards the sink. Leaning back, she contemplated what she was going to pack and how she was going to get by security at the airport as she slowly scarfed down breakfast.
Tylee went up to her room and pulled out a suitcase from her closet. Looking out her window, she could see the lightening of the predawn sky. Leaving the suitcase for the moment, she opened the glass door that led to an outdoor terrace. She leaned against the railing waiting for the sun to rise over her Montana ranch. When it had been discovered that the Earth had nearly healed from the Lemurian, Atlantean war, Tylee had begged to be on one of the expeditionary groups. When her and Jenna had first arrived, Tylee had immediately bought the whole valley, even going so far as to bribe several government officials to sell her the public land her old home had rested in. Looking at the mountains she owned, she remembered back to her childhood, playing around her mother's lair. The lair was no longer there but many of the landmarks still existed.
The sun slowly peaked over the ridge of mountains showering the opposite side of the valley with pink and orange light. Tylee smiled to herself as she went back to her packing.
"Brother dear, you are going to get the beating of your life for worrying me like that," she said as she began to pull clothes out of the closet.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
Akane was already home when Ranma and Nabiki arrived. The two had set up an account and converted the small bag of gold and gems to spendable cash. Nabiki didn't want to think about how much she'd lose to taxes when it came time to claim the income. Hopefully their meeting the next day would solve a lot of that problem.
Nabiki left to the kitchen to get something to drink while Ranma went into the tearoom and sat at the table across from Akane. She'd been watching the news when he came in and gave him a non-too subtle glare of death when he sat down. As Nabiki came in with a soda, Akane grabbed her cup of tea, and threw it Ranma's face.
"Pervert!" she humphed as she got up and grabbed her older sister's arm, leading her out of the room. Nabiki gave her intended an apologetic shrug as she followed her sister out towards the dojo.
Akane slid the door to the dojo shut after making sure the young dragon hadn't followed her.
"I assume the reason you threw tea at my fiancé is the same reason you've dragged me out here?" Nabiki asked.
"He's a pervert besides being a monster!" Akane hissed, "I found out today he already has over thirty wives!"
Nabiki was pretty sure her sister wouldn't make up unfounded accusations, yet she also knew Akane tended to go off half-cocked before getting all the information.
"And how did you arrive at this information?" Nabiki asked.
"Those Amazon girls just enrolled in my class today. They're here to take Ranma back to China with them. He's already married to all three of them plus the two working at the restaurant, and has another thirty one wives back in their village."
Nabiki crossed her arms and examined her sister's face. "I'm sure there's something here you either aren't telling me or you don't know yet. Ranma doesn't seem the type to be into bigamy."
"You've known him less than two weeks Nabiki! How could you possibly tell what kind of person he is? He isn't even really a person! Heck, I'll bet he's only been training me to try and get me into his harem."
"I don't know. We just have some kind of connection. I trust him Akane and I'm getting tired of you trying to interfere with my life."
"You're not thinking clearly! He's got some sort of spell on you. At least think of the Amazons, they might try to hurt you if you get in their way," Akane pleaded.
"That's what this is for," Nabiki answered as she held up the hilt of her sword and activated the blade. The blue energy engraved with runes made a humming sound in the air as it moved.
Akane stared at the blade in awe. She'd seen Nabiki carrying it around and practicing with it deactivated in the dojo but this was the first time she'd actually seen her sister use it. She knew Ranma had been helping her learn how to use it and she felt her resolve waver slightly. Ranma had been training her, he could teach her how to do things like this if she let him. Then she remembered the night she had seen him as a dragon and the fear she felt from his aura. Fear turned to comfortable anger and her resolve hardened once more.
"This is what I'm talking about sis. You haven't cared for anything about martial arts since we were kids. Who knows what kind of influence he has over you?"
Nabiki was about to retort that the reason she gave up the art was that she got tired of Akane always whining about getting her butt kicked, but Akane's words echoed through her mind. Was there some sort of influence? She had to admit that she had been acting seriously out of character ever since she met the copper haired boy. Seeing that Akane was looking at her expectantly she decided to think on it later.
"Look little sister. I appreciate your concern, really. But there is a lot involved here. Even if you were right and he is a monster of some sort, which I don't believe he is, he is still the son of Genma Saotome and as such, must marry one of us Tendo sisters. Kasumi already has Dr. Tofu, so again, if you really don't want me to marry him, then the honor falls to you and you alone."
Akane was exasperated. "But if he is a demon or something doesn't that nullify the agreement?"
Nabiki chuckled. "You obviously haven't read too many folktales. You should know that just because one of the people involved is a dragon, kitsune, oni, or some other creature doesn't mean the marriage can honorably broken. Heh, I've read a story where a nobleman is tricked into agreeing to a marriage with a monkey. His only options were marriage or seppuku. These days we aren't quite so harsh, I could always opt to be cast out of the clan and become ronin. This may be modern times but don't forget that we are descended from Samurai."
Akane sighed. She couldn't talk her sister out of it. She would have to fall back on the next plan her and the Amazons had come up with at school. Apologizing for taking up Nabiki's time, Akane decided to go out for dinner and headed into the house to let Kasumi know not to cook for her. Ramen sounded good for dinner tonight.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
Nabiki entered the house deep in thought. Ranma noticed her contemplative look and wondered what Akane had said to upset his fiancé. He got up from the table to go to her. Seeing Ranma approach, concern in his eyes, she decided she needed to talk to him openly and honestly.
"Are you ok?" Ranma asked.
Nabiki chewed on her thumbnail trying to decide how to start. She noticed her father and Mr. Saotome had stopped their game of shogi and were watching the two teens intently.
"Come on Ranma, I need to talk to you. Alone," the last was directed towards the eavesdropping fathers.
They went to Nabiki's room and Nabiki shut and locked the door behind her. Ranma could see that Nabiki was definitely troubled but waited for her to start their conversation. He felt the barest hint of a presence suddenly outside the window but when he turned to look there was nothing there. Scanning the area with his ki, he couldn't find anything. Chalking it up to his overactive imagination, he refocused on his fiancé.
"Ranma," Nabiki finally broke the silence, "Are the feelings I have for you real?"
Of all the things he had been expecting to hear, that certainly hadn't been one of them.
"What do you mean?" he asked hesitantly.
Nabiki frowned, trying to sort what she wanted to say. "We've only known each other a couple of weeks, yet I feel like I've known you my whole life. I've never developed feelings for anyone so fast, hell I've never felt like this for anyone before!"
"I'm not sure what you're asking."
"Are my feelings real? Are you doing something to influence me? Or is it this sword? I'm scared damn it!" She slapped Ranma's chest, burying her face on his shoulder, "I'm scared they are real but I'm terrified that they're fake!"
Ranma could feel hot tears on his shoulder. Nabiki was crying for the second time today only this time he could feel the fear from her. She was second-guessing herself and Ranma realized that things had been moving too fast for her. She needed time to be sure of herself and where she stood with him. The fact that she had mentioned the hilt made him think. It had claimed to belong to Nabiki, thinking she was Endrea. Using his ki senses, Ranma looked deep into Nabiki. He could see the strong bond he already shared with her. But what he was searching for was something he was trying to dredge up from the fragmented memories of his dragon self. He tried to remember how Endrea had felt to Derakon. The memory of her scent, her aura, her personality quirks.
What he saw shocked him. There were subtle differences of course, but Nabiki could have been Endrea's twin had the Atlantean been born Japanese. Suddenly things began to make more sense. He started chuckling slowly under his breath before building up to outright laughter.
Nabiki pulled her head off Ranma's shoulder and glared at him through tear strained eyes. How dare he laugh at her while she was baring her heart to him!
Pulling away from him, she dried her eyes and in a voice that would have made glaciers seem tropical spoke to her fiancé, "Just what about my feelings is so damn funny Saotome?"
Ranma stifled his laughter with a nervous gulp. Nabiki even got mad like Endrea.
"I'm not laughing at you Nabiki. I just realized something that may explain this whole thing. Granted I don't have any proof yet but it would fit with what I remember about being the dragon."
Nabiki sat down on her bed and nodded for Ranma to continue. She would give him the chance to dig himself out of the hole he put himself in.
"Things are fuzzy so a lot of this is just speculation but imagine how things were three thousand years ago. Magic was still very weak, even after nearly seventeen thousand years since the war ended. The ancestors of the Amazons were threatening to kill my wife," Nabiki noted that Ranma referred to the Atlantean as 'his' wife but didn't say anything, "He knew that magic would one day return but he also knew the Amazons had him trapped. He'd been living off whatever mana tap he had been able to create at Jusendo for a very long time, so he was nowhere near his full power. He was probably worried about surviving long enough for the Dragon Lines to repair themselves. So he took the opportunity the Amazons presented."
Nabiki was wondering just where he was going with this when Ranma suddenly asked, "Do you believe in reincarnation?"
She thought about it. Most Japanese at least acknowledged the possibility, what with all the Shinto and Buddhist shrines in the country. She herself had entertained the possibilities once every now and then, especially on the anniversary of her mother's death. So, she nodded her head.
"Yes."
"Ok, I believe the DaiRyuujin cast a spell besides just cursing Jusenkyou. He put all his knowledge and power into the pools knowing he'd be reborn to collect it, that his reborn soul would be drawn to Jusenkyou. He also knew that his connection to his wife would never completely fade either and that they would meet again. I believe that fate or some spell of his is what led to us being brought back together. You are most likely the dragon's wife Endrea reborn."
Nabiki heard the name like a flash of light. Another name echoed back.
"Derakon?"
Ranma's eyes grew wide before he broke out in a big grin pulling the girl to her feet and giving her a big hug.
Nabiki returned the hug but her mind was awhirl with thoughts and emotions. It was like out of some bishoujo romance manga. She half expected a black cat with a crescent moon on its head to show up and tell her she was destined to fight devils in a skimpy skirt and leotard. And what did all this really mean? Are these her feelings, or are they the feelings of her past life? Did it matter? Then she realized that if Ranma made her happy, then what did it really matter where the feelings came from as long as he returned them. Looking up into his eyes, she felt warmth of emotion as he smiled at her and she realized she could feel what he was feeling.
And it felt good.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
Akane entered the Amazon run restaurant shortly before the dinner rush began. One of the older Amazon girls, Salve, Akane had learned, showed her to a table and gave her a menu. She looked around as she decided on what she wanted. The building had been decorated in a classic Chinese style that looked very authentic. Akane wondered how they had set up the restaurant so quickly. She finally decided her order and gave it to Salve who took it back to the kitchen.
Akane turned the conversation she had had with her sister in her head trying to see if there was something she had missed. She had never been able to out talk Nabiki and it grated on her nerves somewhat, just like Nabiki had always cheated when they sparred as kids. A brief burst of anger almost left her washing her hands of the whole Ranma mess, but she remembered her duty to her family. As heir to the Tendo school, it was her job to protect her sisters, even from themselves if need be.
She was interrupted from her thoughts, as a bowl of ramen was set in front of her. Akane looked up to see a blond haired waitress she'd never seen before placing chopsticks next to her bowl.
"Hi, I'm Akane Tendo. Are you an Amazon too?" she smiled in greeting.
Akane swore the girl actually blushed as she stammered a reply, "Ah, My name is Ryou-uh-Ryoumi. I'm just working here for a while."
"Hey Ms. Part Time! I'm not paying you to stand around talking to the customers!" a voice yelled out from the counter dividing the dining area from the kitchen.
'Ryoumi' turned and growled back, "You ain't paying me at all! You said I would be learning martial arts techniques not playing waitress!"
The old Amazon matriarch was standing on the counter with a pipe in hand, a gnarled walking stick resting against her shoulder.
"A true martial artist turns anything into training 'girl'!" the last was said with a sneer, "Order up for table six!" She cried as three bowls of ramen suddenly sailed through the air towards the Hibiki girl.
Ryouga's eyes widened and she scrambled to catch the bowls of hot noodles and broth. Ever since the old ghoul hit that cat's tongue pressure point, even slightly warm liquid burned like it was boiling. Hot ramen broth felt like liquid metal being splashed on her skin.
Catching the bowls, Ryouga managed to get them to the right table after the third try. Akane ate her dinner while watching the spectacle unfold. Cologne called the blond to the counter and talked to her quietly. Akane couldn't hear what was being said but when the old crone held up a locket, Ryoumi immediately lunged for it and they began fighting. Cologne however, seemed unconcerned as she took a slow drag on her pipe before starting to add more bowls of ramen and bottles of hot sake to the fight. The items seemed to almost hover in the air as the two moved at speeds even Akane couldn't keep up with. Now here was someone she could train with! It was only a few seconds later that Ryoumi was stuck carrying five bowls of ramen and three bottles of sake to another table, one of the bowls balanced on chopsticks held in the blond girl's mouth.
Akane finished up her bowl and smiled at the impromptu entertainment before getting up and going to where Cologne stood.
"Ah, young miss Tendo. My great-granddaughter has told me all about you. You wish to help us free your sister from the young dragon," she said getting straight to the point.
"Yes, elder. I tried talking to her again today. I used every argument I could, including the fact that Ranma is already married to over thirty women in your village. She didn't believe me. I'm sorry but we'll have to go with your plan. It won't hurt my sister will it?"
"Do not worry young one. What I have planned will be completely harmless to your sister. All I seek is to drive a wedge between her and the Saotome boy to allow one of the girls here to try her hand at convincing him to return with us to China."
Akane breathed a sigh of relief. She really didn't want to see anyone hurt after all.
"All right, I'll make sure she's near the athletic supply shed after school tomorrow. What about Ranma though? He might follow her."
"Don't you worry about that. I plan to have a chat with the boy."
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
It was early evening when Akane returned home. To her disgust, she found Ranma and her sister actually cuddling while watching television. She smiled to herself though. If everything went as planned Ranma would be out of her hair before the week was over.