Ranma 1/2
A Scary Thought
Chapter 31
Only a minute had passed since Selene had been sealed inside Frost's room, left with the very disturbing image of Shampoo in tears and accusing Kasumi of an act that just seemed totally contrary to Kasumi's very being. Frost, always being very critical of Kasumi from the start, had naturally taken this for the worst, and was clearly now out to bring Kasumi's head back on a platter. Selene, on the other hand, just could not accept this.
Finally, after several failed attempts, Selene gained enough leverage to successfully turn the doorknob and open the door, her intent to question Shampoo herself. Cat form and love pill be damned, Selene would hear this directly from Shampoo.
Selene jumped back down to the floor from the shelf from which she was on, and eased the door to the side, ready to rush when she stopped short, seeing Shampoo at the door to the clinic, peering out. What's she doing? Selene wondered briefly, but decided to proceed forward. She made no more than three steps when Tofu's voice called out.
"Frost, who was that?" the doctor asked as he walked down a nearby hall.
In response, and to Selene's shock, Shampoo's form morphed to that of Frost's, clothes and all, and the Amazon Magus quickly distanced herself from the door to greet the doctor with a smile.
"Oh, it was no one, doctor. Just someone wanting directions."
Tofu nodded. "Oh, I see. You should get some rest. I have a feeling things are going to get busy tomorrow."
"Oh really?" Frost asked, in an uncharacteristically congenial manner that Tofu did not seem to notice. "Why do you say that?"
"Just... a hunch. Goodnight," he said, and left back the way he came.
Frost stood for a moment then sighed in relief and quickly scanned the room, barely missing Selene as the pink cat dodged behind the door for cover. "Right, that should about do it," the magus said, and headed to the clinic door and left.
From her hiding spot, Selene puzzled over this. Had Frost set this whole thing up to trick her, taking both Shampoo's and her own form in some kind of act. No, Selene quickly concluded. I saw Frost merge together not long before, and there was no doubting that Frost was honestly infuriated. Besides, I've never seen her with that kind of shape changing power. That has to be someone else, meaning Frost just got tricked. Damn, I should have sensed this earlier, but I didn't think to look, she scolded herself then her eyes shot wide as she realized the danger. Damn, I have to warn Kasumi. Selene quickly rushed over to a nearby phone.
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A couple blocks from the San Cheng Huang, a certain redhead sporting a new hairdo looked at herself in a store front window and frowned. "I look like a girl," she muttered as she leaned back then sighed and looked up at the sky. "I am a girl. Got to get used to this." She looked back at the window and examined herself. Hopefully now the others won't recognize me like Kasumi nearly did. That would leave me with a mess of questions to answer. I guess it isn't so bad.
Ranko nodded and adjusted a few out of place hairs when she noticed a cloaked figure running up the road at a breakneck pace. Ranko cast the person a quick glance, recognizing her as the girl who worked with Tofu, and that she looked very upset. However, since the girl passed her by with out the slightest attention, Ranko almost ignored it.
A moment passed as Ranko returned to fixing her hair and she began to wonder. Isn't that the way to Kasumi's place? she asked herself. She almost shrugged that off, but then had a disturbing thought. Ah geez. Forgetting her hair, she ran off in pursuit of the other girl.
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Over at the San Cheng Huang, Kasumi was in the midst of a nightmare. It really had no specific topic, more a collection of images that both frightened and angered her. She tossed and turned for several moments, fighting to banish the images when at last the nightmare ended with the ring of a phone. Kasumi shot upright, but quickly calmed as the images faded into the realm of forgotten memories leaving only the persistent calling of the telephone.
I wonder where everyone went, Kasumi thought as the phone continued to ring, unanswered, and she got up. Guess I better get it, she thought as she headed for the door. She made it only a short distance down the hall on the way to the stairs when an explosion hit her room. The shock wave sent Kasumi tumbling, and only instinct kept her from getting hurt in the fall. A second explosion hit, this time blasting into the hallway behind her, forcing Kasumi to dive down the stairs to avoid danger.
Kasumi rolled to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, just below the phone, bewildered. Absently she grabbed the phone and said, "I'm sorry, you'll have to call back."
XXXXX
On the other end of the phone, Selene looked at the phone, puzzled. Her answer came in the form of the sound of another explosion, and the line suddenly going dead. Damn, I was too late.
XXXXX
A pair of Frosts stood together on a rooftop opposite the restaurant, one sending a ball of fire crashing through the front window while the other had her eyes closed, probing. "She escaped out the back," the close eyed said.
"Good. I don't want her to die quickly. For what she did..." Frost alluded, and the paired headed off together.
XXXXX
Behind the restaurant Kasumi regained enough of her senses to realize she was under some form of attack, but her danger sense was blind to it. At least the others weren't inside. I wish I knew what was going on though. She looked back at her restaurant sadly, seeing flames begin to rise from the rooftop. Hiro isn't going to like hearing about this, she thought just as a sound of flames incoming caught her ear. Leaping away from the sound, she barely dodged as a ball of fire engulfed her former position.
Kasumi looked back the way the attack came, and finally caught sight of her attacker. "Frost!"
"Shut up! For what you did to Shampoo, I make you suffer a hundred deaths worth of pain."
"What? What did I do to Shampoo?" Kasumi asked in honest puzzlement. Surely she couldn't be this upset about me losing to Ukyo. That wasn't even my fault.
"I told you to shut up!" Frost yelled out in outrage.
"But-"
"No more of your talk, your voice I do lock!" Frost intoned angrily in English.
Kasumi felt as if she was being held by the throat. She tried to speak but her voice simply would not come. Okay, I suppose this rules out talking, she thought as she looked up at Frost standing on the roof of a building, remembering the last time the magus was out to kill her. She had taken her lightly that time, and that had nearly cost her, her life. Deciding now was not the time to mess around, Kasumi decided to subdue Frost for the moment, and learn the truth under less threatening circumstances. With a quick motion, Kasumi fired off a blast of ki, hitting the roof edge in front of Frost, blowing debris up at the mage. Using the distraction, Kasumi rushed forward, intent on putting a quick end to the fight.
She didn't make it far when once again the sounds of incoming flames warned Kasumi of danger. She leapt aside just in time to avoid another fireball, this time coming from the opposite direction. Kasumi looked back to see Frost on another rooftop at the other end of the street. How did she get there so fast? Kasumi wondered. Doing some quick comparisons, Kasumi concluded that Frost was somehow significantly faster than her. I can't beat her if she can move that fast. Desperate, Kasumi's instincts kicked in, and the old Saotome secret technique got another use.
Frost readied another attack when Kasumi suddenly turned and bolted down a nearby ally. Growling, Frost began jumping across the rooftops to join up with her twin who was still recovering from Kasumi's earlier attack. "Don't be so reckless next time," the one Frost scolded the other. "We had her."
"Don't worry about it. She can't get far. Come on." The two Frosts nodded together then began chasing after Kasumi.
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Kasumi made it several blocks away when she began considering her options. Frost's apparent increased speed, coupled with the fact Kasumi could not sense her made this a very dangerous situation. Without risking seriously hurting the Magus, Kasumi was not sure she get out of this mess.
Unable to come up with any real option save retreat, Kasumi's mind turned to the reason for the Amazon's sudden attack. What does she think I did? Maybe if I can find Shampoo I can get this cleared up. However, Kasumi had no idea where Shampoo was, and in her current murderous mood, Kasumi was reluctant to lead Frost near anyone else in the search for Shampoo.
Her options quickly running out, Kasumi could only hope that she managed to elude Frost long enough for something to come up.
Unfortunately that something came in the form of a bolt of lightning. Kasumi had no warning this time, and the bolt sent her sprawling to the pavement. It took every ounce of her strength to keep from going unconscious from the attack, but unfortunately this still left her defenseless.
"No more running," Frost said as she walked up, hand and eyes glowing. "I'll make you suffer for what you did." To emphasize the statement, Frost shot forth another bolt of lightning, one not strong enough to kill, but enough to put Kasumi into a state of agony. Two more bolts followed it.
On the ground Kasumi writhed with pain, unable to even cry out due to the earlier spell. Between the shots of pain, Kasumi finally realized the gravity of her situation. She's really going to kill me. I don't even know why. I can't... die like this, she thought as Frost shot her with two more bolts.
As Kasumi despaired, another feeling began to rise, one she had felt earlier in the day. Her vision grew red, and her blood began to burn, gradually pushing back the pain of the attacks. With it came a great anger, a rage rivaling that of her Amazon attacker. As the moments past, Kasumi could feel strength return to her, and the rage encompassed her. Finally, Kasumi spared a moment to look up at her attacker, and prepared to counterattack, intent not on disabling, but on destroying.
Fortunately for Frost, as soon as this thought crossed Kasumi's mind, she came back to her senses. Even in circumstances such as these, the thought of destroying an opponent was contrary to everything Kasumi believed and she fought against the impulse. Better to die than to kill. The rage quickly passed, but with it Kasumi's new strength as well, and once more Kasumi was fully at the Magus's mercy.
Several minutes passed, until finally Frost tired of the game. She ceased her attacks and watched Kasumi's pained face, strangely gaining no satisfaction from it. "Enough is enough, I guess. Hell is waiting for you," Frost said, and readied one final blow.
It was about half way into her preparation when a new figure jumped in between Kasumi and Frost. Instinctively Frost withdrew, expecting an attack while at the same time wondering how the new comer had dodged her sentry spells. "Who are you?" Frost asked in challenge, eyeing the red-haired girl in front of her.
"Just a concerned citizen. Now, do you mind telling me why you're trying to kill this nice lady?"
"She is a... you wouldn't understand," Frost dismissed. "Now get out of my way! I haven't time to explain. If you try to protect her, you'll suffer the same fate!"
"Sorry, can't do that," she replied, and before she could react any further, Frost made good on her threat.
"FULMENOS VENITE!"
Ranko braced herself, closing her eyes in anticipation. Instinct told her to dodge, but with herself being Kasumi's only shield, Ranko knew she had no choice but to hold her ground. The air crackled, but then nothing. After a moment Ranko opened her eyes to see Frost looking back at her in astonishment, the remnants of her lightning spell arcing down her body to the ground.
"How..." is all Frost could manage to say.
Ranko looked down at herself, and seeing no injury looked back up. "Okay, guess I really am immune."
"Immune?" Frost asked.
"To magic," Ranko elaborated. "Unfortunate story, but it does have its benefits. Now, are you going to talk or what?"
Frost remained unmoving, shocked beyond words to see her magic completely ineffective against the newcomer. The spell had hit full force and there was no mistaking the incantation. However, as soon as the arc had touched the redhead, it simply... stopped and ceased to be.
Finally Frost came back to herself, remembering her former fury and glared at the interfering girl. "Damn you! How dare you shield her!"
"You still haven't told me what she supposedly did."
"She... raped Shampoo," Frost blurted out in frustration.
"What?" the girl said in total disbelief.
"It's true. You don't understand, she can-"
"Change into a man, yeah, yeah, I know, but you're out of your mind if you think Kasumi is capable of such a thing," the girl countered.
Frost blinked in momentary surprise at the girl's knowledge of the situation, and apparently of Kasumi too. "She told me herself. If you don't believe me, you can ask Shampoo. She'll tell you."
Ranko frowned. The accusation seemed ludicrous. Sure, this was not the Kasumi she once knew, but everything she had seen and heard so far indicated she wasn't that different. Still, she couldn't be sure. "Fine, we'll talk to Shampoo. If you're telling the truth... I'll help you kill her, but till then, just back off, got it?"
Frost reluctantly nodded and returned to a passive posture. Satisfied by that, Ranko turned to Kasumi to see the older girl shocked equally by the accusation. "You alright?" Ranko asked, helping Kasumi to her feet.
"I..." Kasumi started to say reflexively, quickly realizing her voice had returned. "My voice..."
"Like I said, I'm immune to magic. The field extends partly over my body, so it can apparently neutralizes magic I touch as well," Ranko explained.
"This is the second time you've helped today, Miss Ranko," Kasumi said with a slight smile.
"Don't thank me just yet. I wasn't lying when I said I'd help her kill you if she's right," Ranko said with a serious look.
"I didn't..." Kasumi began to protest but Ranko shook it off.
"Come on, you okay to walk?"
"I'll manage," Kasumi answered, and with Ranko's help, the two began following Frost, headed directly back to Tofu's clinic. Neither noticed the other Frost slip into a nearby alley and begin to make her own way back to the clinic. A moment after their departure, another unseen figure, this one merely a slight distortion of light, walked away.
"Report," a man's voice demanded over the airwaves.
"Subjects reading matched pattern briefly, but then returned to normal," a female voice responded unemotionally.
"Hmmm... Strange. I had expected a more intense response," the man replied then paused a moment in consideration. "Continue monitoring. She's still showing more promise then our other subjects."
"Confirmed."
The connection ceased, and the invisible figured continued on its way.
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Frost rushed into the clinic, followed closely by Kasumi and the girl whose name she had learned was Ranko. Strangely, as they proceeded back, Frost had a growing sinking feeling. She was not sure if it was due to the new girl's arrival, and apparent total invulnerability to Frost best attack, or whether it was due to Kasumi lack of any real concern for her own safety. In fact, Kasumi seemed more concerned for Shampoo.
It doesn't matter. As soon as this girl hears the truth, I'll put an end to this, Frost thought as she raced into the room where she had left Shampoo and found nothing inside. "What?" Frost puzzled as she looked around.
"So, where is she?" Ranko asked as she and Kasumi entered.
"I left her right here," Frost protested, and rushed back out to the entrance.
Ranko remained behind, helping Kasumi sit up on the inspection table. A moment later Frost returned, looking panicked. "I swear she was here."
"Well, she isn't now. Are you sure you... weren't sleeping or something?"
Frost looked infuriated by the suggestion. "Of course not! I would never confuse a dream with reality! I tell you, she was here. She told me herself that Kasumi had attacked her and raped her." Ranko looked over at Frost skeptically. "It's the truth!" Frost yelled out, and rushed back out into the hall.
Outside she finally caught sight of Selene. "You! Where did Shampoo go?" Frost demanded as she rushed over.
"Is Kasumi alright?" Selene asked in concern.
"She's alive, for the moment. Now where is Shampoo?"
Selene breathed a sigh of relief then looked up at Frost, with a slight smug impression. "You got tricked, Frost."
"What?" Frost replied, her anger suddenly replaced with worry.
XXXXX
Back in the other room, Ranko and Kasumi waited quietly.
"I hope Shampoo is alright," Kasumi said after a moment.
"I'm sure Shampoo is fine. I don't know what is going on here, but I somehow think this lady got her stories mixed up or something."
"Her name is Frost."
Ranko nodded. "Frost, right."
"You do look awfully familiar, Miss Ranko, and you seem to know a lot about me. Have we met?"
Ranko grew nervous for a second then finally signed in defeat. "Look, I don't know if now is a great time to explain all this. It's a long... really long story. Let's just say for now, we've... sort of met, but not really."
"I... see..." Kasumi replied just as Tofu came into the room. "Doctor."
"So what is all the commotion about?" Tofu asked then noticed Kasumi's condition. "Kasumi, are you hurt?"
"It's nothing serious," she reassured him, but he quickly came over and began examining her despite this.
"Hey doc, you didn't happen to see Shampoo here earlier, did you?"
"Shampoo? No, I didn't. Why?" he replied as he continued his examination.
"Frost seems to think Shampoo was here and that she said Kasumi... attacked her."
"Really?" Tofu said in surprise. "I trust that is not true."
"I would never attack Shampoo!" Kasumi exclaimed.
Tofu nodded, accepting Kasumi answer. "You really should rest. You seem to have many electrical burns. It's not serious, as you say, but I would still recommend you take it easy. I'll go speak with Frost about this."
Kasumi turned to Ranko. "Ranko, could you please head back to my place. I don't know if you-"
"That restaurant, yeah, I know it. You want me to see if Shampoo is there, right?"
"Yes," Kasumi answered with a nod. "I promise to stay here," she added with a meek look.
Ranko waved this off. "No problem, and you don't need to promise me anything, Kasumi. I believe you." Kasumi smiled in thanks, and Ranko left the clinic.
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Out in the hall, Selene finished explaining to Frost, leaving the young Magus dumbstruck. Then, without warning, she became extremely worried and ran into her room, leaving Selene in the hall, rather confused. What's her problem? So she got tricked, nothing happened, Selene thought and pursued Frost into her room just as Tofu came out from speaking with Kasumi.
Inside the room Frost had grabbed a bag and tossed it onto her bed, and was frantically tossing cloths and other possessions into it. Selene was just about to ask what she was doing when Tofu entered.
"Frost, what's going on?" the doctor asked, watching the display in front of him in bewilderment.
"I have to leave."
"Why?"
"Because Shampoo is going to kill me!" Frost answered without stopping.
"What?" Tofu said in surprise then final stepped forward to stop the Amazon. "Frost, would please stop and explain what is going on."
"I... I don't know," Frost answered, looking down at her own feet. "Some person came here as Shampoo and tricked me. She said Kasumi raped her."
"And you attacked Kasumi because of this?" Tofu asked in confirmation. Frost responded with a nod. "Then why do you think Shampoo would be angry at you."
Frost looked up at Tofu in shock, as if he just seriously asked what color was the sky. "What are you, dense? I just tried to kill her husband... wife, whatever. What do you think she is going to do, thank me for it?"
"Of course not, she'll be angry, but you were deceived. I think you are overestimating her reaction," he observed. "If anyone has to fear for their life, I think would the person who deceived you."
Frost looked at the doctor in shock. "You believe me? I... How do you know I'm not lying?"
"Why would you lie?" Tofu asked, further shocking Frost. "Look, Frost, I know who have never liked Kasumi, but I also know you've had no ill intents towards her without good reason. I'm sure if you say you where tricked then you were. Kasumi is alright now, so there was no major harm done."
"Not really," Frost corrected.
"What do you mean?" Tofu asked in concern.
"Well, the restaurant... I kind of destroyed it," Frost answer, once more looking down at her feet.
"Oh," Tofu said to fill the moment as he thought. "Well, I'm sure everyone will understand."
"Yeah, sure they will," Frost replied, completely unconvinced.
"Frost, just trust me. Things will be fine. Now, stop packing."
Frost remained unconvinced, but appeared to trust the doctor and relented.
Watching all this, Selene felt a certain sense of power. You know, I'm the only one who can back up her story. This could actually be valuable. Smiling deviously, Selene slipped out.
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Back at the examination room, Kasumi lay resting. I do hope this is all a big misunderstanding and not just a matter of Frost mishearing the person accused. The thought twisted Kasumi up, causing her to sit up, her fist clenched at her side as she considered that. No, Shampoo would still be here if something like that truly happened, she quickly concluded, easing her worry. Unless... she meant to deceive Frost. She really didn't like the idea of marrying Ukyo... No, that's silly. Why would she accuse me of such a thing then?
As Kasumi pondered this, she heard the front door fly open, and a pair of feet rush in. Shampoo soon appeared at the door, and with a happy cry of, "Kasumi," she nearly knocked Kasumi over as she launched into her with a hug. Kasumi let the Amazon hold her, until finally Shampoo looked up at her. "Kasumi, you okay?"
"I'm fine," Kasumi reassured her.
"What happened?" Shampoo asked just as Ranko arrived. "Restaurant on fire. Shampoo worried you still inside."
"Ummm... well, it's hard... Shampoo, did you talk to Frost earlier?" Kasumi asked but Shampoo shook her head. "Okay, ummm... It's... difficult to explain," Kasumi offered which only seemed to anger Shampoo.
"Shampoo worried sick! What happen?" she demanded.
"Alright, I don't know the whole story, but tell you what I know. Just promise not to overreact," Kasumi implored, but gained only a partial nod from Shampoo.
Ranko smiled and waved. "I'll see you around, Kasumi."
"Wait, Ranko, aren't you going to stay?"
"I have to get going, and it seems like you have some stuff of your own to do. Don't worry, I'll meet up with you later and we'll talk, okay?"
"Okay," Kasumi conceded, and with one more smile, Ranko departed, leaving Shampoo looking at her in a very demanding fashion. "Right. Where to start?"
XXXXX
Early the next morning, Nabiki woke up to the sound of her alarm clock, and promptly tossed it across the room, burying her head back in her pillow. "I hate mornings," she mumbled through the pillow. It took a moment, but finally she coxed herself to get up and get dressed, before heading down to the kitchen to prepare for breakfast.
The last week had been quite enjoyable for Nabiki. No school. No alarm clocks. No Kasumi. In fact, she had joined her younger sister and several of their friends for a rest at hot-spring and the whole thing had turned out as a rather nice diversion from events back home. Nabiki had even managed to forget about her issues with her older sister for a few days. That was until Nabiki arrived home late last night to find out Kasumi was staying over for several days until she could find other arrangements.
Nabiki reached the bottom of the stairs and paused by the door to the common room to look in. Inside, Kasumi, Shampoo and Cologne were sleeping on quickly laid out mats. Nabiki thanked her lucky stars Kasumi had chosen to spend the night as a girl, sparing Nabiki the sight of her male half for a least a few more hours. "It won't last," Nabiki mumbled as she continued on her way to the kitchen and began morning preparations.
Nabiki was in the process of putting out some vegetables and yawning when Kasumi came in, cheerful and ready for the day. "Hello, Nabiki. Have a good week off?"
"It wasn't too bad," Nabiki replied.
"Here, let me help you with that," Kasumi said and retrieved some the vegetables Nabiki was holding. "I hear you went to some hot springs with Akane."
"Yeah. One of Akane's friends knows the owner so we got in at no charge," Nabiki explained as she set about cleaning and cutting the vegetables with Kasumi's assistance.
"Well, that's nice."
"It was pretty good until that old man showed up."
"Happosai?"
"Yes. He snuck along and he ended up fighting Akane most the time," Nabiki replied.
"That's too bad. I hope he didn't ruin things."
Nabiki hesitated then shook her head. "No, not really, at least not for me. He was more of a bother to Akane. Oh yeah, he also found some weird scroll under a rock there. He seemed rather excited about it. You might want to be on guard for something. God only knows what was on it."
"I will, thanks," Kasumi answered with a smile then the two of them heard Shampoo wake up and call out for Kasumi. "I better go," she said, heading for the door then paused. "Don't worry, Nabiki, I won't be here long."
Nabiki tensed up at hearing this. After several seconds, she looked back to see Kasumi had already left, and hung her shoulders. Damn it, she knows, she thought in despair.
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Not that much later, the various residents, both ongoing and temporary, of the Tendo Dojo were gathered around the family diner table eating breakfast. Ukyo and Kasumi took opposite sides of the table, the former giving dirty looks to the latter. Meanwhile the adults held a third side to themselves.
The time pasted rather silently given the normal banter that took place around this table. Thankfully, Happosai chose that morning to be absent, keeping the events at in a relative calm. That is, until Hidenori cleared his throat.
"Ah yes," Soun began, taking the cue. "We've made a decision, Kasumi, Ranma, and-"
"You want me marry to Ukyo now," Ranma interjected, his eyes remaining fixed on his food.
Shocked, Soun looked to Genma and Hidenori, surprised that Ranma had already figured things out. After a moment, he turned back to Ranma. "Umm... yes, that's about it."
Ranma nodded calmly. "So, Pop, this is what you three decided on, huh?" Genma nodded. "That's what I thought." Ranma calmly put down his bowl of rice, stood up, observed closely by the others. Still calm, Ranma circled the table to stand next to his father, and finally the air of calm came to a sudden end. Hauling his father to his feet, Ranma put himself right into his face and yelled, "Who the hell do you think you are?"
"Now son-"
"Don't 'now son' me! Did you even bother to consider how any of them feel about this, huh? Well did you? How they all feel about me married off to one guy? Well?"
"I... uh... well..." Genma tried to respond, but Ranma merely huffed and dropped his father back to the floor.
"I give up," Ranma said and left the room.
A moment passed in silence before Nodoka finally spoke. "That went well." The others could only respond with strained smiles.
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About a half hour later, Ranma was walking alone on his way to school, a rather sour look on his face. His solitude was terminated when Kasumi came running up and joined him.
"You rushed off rather suddenly," Kasumi observed as she matched Ranma's pace.
"I needed to cool off," Ranma replied.
"I understand. You've always said you wanted the choice."
"Yeah, well..." Ranma muttered and looked over at his companion. "What's with the outfit Kasumi?"
"This?" she replied, looking down at her new white gi. "It's the only thing that survived the fire, and it would be inappropriate to go to school in dirty clothes. Shampoo, I'm afraid, lost all her stuff in the fire. She's borrowing some clothes from Akane for now."
"Sorry about that. So, how bad is the damage? I didn't get to see."
Kasumi looked of to the sky sadly. "The second floor is gone. The first floor is in better shape, but there is a great deal of water damage from the men putting out the fire."
"That's too bad," Ranma replied, looking down at the ground. "Do you guys have insurance?"
"Yes, but I doubt it covers attack by angry Amazon magus," Kasumi said with a weak smile as she looked back at Ranma.
"Yeah, I kind of doubt that myself," Ranma agreed with a slight smile of his own. "Look, Kasumi, it's nothing to do with you. It's just..."
"I know," Kasumi said in understanding as the two arrived at the entrance of Furinkan.
"Kasumi, did you... just get tired of saying no?"
"Hmh?"
Ranma swayed his head back and forth wondering how to reword himself. "I mean, you and Shampoo. You-"
"No. That's not the way it was with Shampoo," Kasumi corrected.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I just..."
"No, I understand. I do however believe that you shouldn't simply give up on what you want. I also believe though that you shouldn't discount a choice simply because it is being pushed on you. You never know, it might be the right one," Kasumi said with a wide smile and caused Ranma smile in return.
"How about you? What do you want, Kasumi?"
Kasumi thought for a moment then answered, "to be happy, and for Shampoo to be happy."
"Do you think you can be happy in this mess?" Ranma asked.
Kasumi thought for a moment then shrugged. "I don't know yet."
Ranma looked at Kasumi for a long moment then shrugged. "Neither do I." The pair exchanged smiles when the child Ms. Hinako ran up.
"What is it?" Kasumi asked, noticing Hinako seemed anxious.
"The supervisor at the girls' dorm just called. Some girl got Sakura to agree to a fight," Hinako answered.
"I see," Kasumi said with a nod. "I'll head over there right away. I'll see you in class, Ranma."
"Sure thing, Kasumi."
XXXXX
A little over a mile away in an abandoned lot, two girls were engaged in an intense battle, testing the very limits of each other's combat skills. One was Sakura, part time student, part time street fighter. Her second life had started a mere two years ago. She had always been an athletic girl, interested in a variety of sports and hobbies but she could never quite pin herself down to something. Then she had a chance encounter with one Ryu, a previous champion of a street fighting tournament.
Sakura had watched that man demolish a dozen thugs in mere seconds, and then simply walk away, leaving nothing more than his name behind. From that moment, Sakura had a goal in life, and she devoted herself to following in that's man's footsteps. In one short year she had built up enough skills that she had set off to hunt down her idol and formalize her training with him. That had lead to some interesting adventures, and many encounters, including one with the girl opposite her.
Her opponent was of an entirely different stock. Rich, ambitious, and intelligent, she was Karin Kanzuki, the daughter of her industrial parents. However, her lifestyle was not one of all pampering. In fact, Karin had devoted herself to martial arts to a near equal measure as Sakura. However, near was not good enough in their first fight when Sakura soundly defeated Karin.
This time was proving different however. In fact, the pair had already been fighting for near 15 minutes at the top of their ability and neither had gained any real advantage. Beyond that, they were both exhausted.
"You've... you've been practicing," Sakura said through heavy breath.
"Yeah. You... haven't been slacking off either," Karin replied, equally exhausted. "I thought you were dodging me transferring here."
"Hey, that wasn't my choice. That extended vacation didn't go over well with the administrators. It was either this or a reform school."
Karin smiled at that and laughed. "Yeah, well, I guess we couldn't have that. Alright, enough of a breather. Ready for round 2?"
Sakura only nodded and the two hardened their stances in preparation for anything the other had to offer. Unfortunately, the anything was to come was not from either of the girls. Instead a man stepped into the opening to the lot, and gained both girls attention with a shout.
"Sorry to interrupt your little fight, ladies, but I have orders, and I've waited long enough," the man said and suddenly many more men appeared behind him and began entering the lot. "And I guess I have to thank you for wearing each other out like that. That will make this all the more easy."
Karin glared at the man, while Sakura adjusted her position to be back to back with her opponent of mere seconds ago. "Friends of yours?"
"Hardly," Karin replied, "I can't say I know them at all."
"I don't suppose you'll come along quietly?" the man asked as his men encircled the girls.
"Um, let me think..." Karin replied. "Mmmm, no."
The man let out a false sigh. "Oh well, I tried. Get them boys, but don't rough them up too much." On cue, the men attacked, meeting a stubborn resistant from the two girls. Sakura spun into a kick, scattering several of their opponents, while Karin concentrated on dealing with each opponent as they came, making sure to leave as much damage as she could. She had little hope of actual victory, being so badly outnumbered, but she could leave a lasting impression. The battle did not last long. Sakura managed to drop two of her opponents before being knocked down and pinned from behind. Karin did little better, giving one man a broken nose while another received a good kick to the groin before she too was restrained.
"Now, wouldn't it have been easier to just surrender?" the man asked as he walked over to look down at them. "Tie them up and gag them both. We have a schedule to keep," he ordered and several of the men nodded as they grabbed ropes and tape. They did not get to use these implements as Kasumi walked into the lot.
"Excuse me, I'm going to have to ask you to leave," Kasumi said calmly as she approached.
"I hate interruptions," the men's leader said in irritation. "Get rid of her."
Several of the free roughens nodded and rushed toward Kasumi. They lasted a total of three seconds, each disabled with a single strike. The leader and remaining men watched this in shock. The two prone girls were equally shocked by the display, and quickly concluded that even at their full strength they could not have defeated the men so efficiently.
Finally, the leader shook himself back to his senses and glared back at his men. "Don't just stand there, fools, get her."
The men hesitated but finally obeyed and rushed forward, along with their leader in an effort to overwhelm Kasumi. Undaunted, Kasumi polished them off with as little effort as the first group then calmly walked over to Sakura and Karin. "I trust you are both okay."
"Yes, just some bruises, Ms. Tendo," Sakura answered.
"You know her?" Karin asked in surprise.
"I'm Sakura's... umm supervisor at school," Kasumi replied, helping the two girls to their feet. She looked back as several men from the first group recovered enough to begin a retreat. "Should I stop them?"
"Nah," Karin replied. "Let their boss deal with them. I'm sure they'll be in a ton more trouble from him than the law." Kasumi nodded in understanding, and looked back at the girls. "What is your name?"
"Kasumi Tendo," Kasumi answered.
"Kasumi Tendo, huh. Karin Kanzuki," Karin introduced herself then looked over at Sakura. "We'll finish this up later, Sakura."
"Sure thing," Sakura responded happily.
"Just be sure to schedule your duels after school," Kasumi interjected.
"I'll take that into consideration," Karin replied with a nod and left with a backwards wave.
"Sorry, Ms Tendo. Didn't mean to skip class. Me and Karin, we just-"
"I know. I have something similar with Ukyo," Kasumi replied with a smile of understanding. "Come on now, off to school."
XXXXX
Why did I accept this mission? Sissithississ asked himself as he clicked through the channels on his hotel room's television. I'm the leader of my clan, not some babysitter. I must have been drunk. Thing is, I don't drink. Maybe I should start. Finding nothing interesting, the snake warrior turned off the TV and lay back on his bed.
He was not resting long when a knock came at the door. "Now what does she want?" he mumbled to himself but quickly realized the knock was from the outer door, not the connecting door. He walked over to the door and opened it to be surprised at the sight of Herb. "Ah, Herb-sssama. What bringsss you here?" he asked as he stepped aside to let the dragon warrior inside.
"This is where you are staying?" Herb asked as she looked around the room.
"For the moment. I actually meant to asssk you how long you planned to ssstay ssso we could optimize our budget."
Herb considered for a moment then answered, "You should consider long term lodgings."
"I'll do that."
"Where is Lemon?"
"Ssshe has the room next to mine. Ssshe has been exhausted today and isss ssstill sssleeping, besssidesss occassionally bugging me for variousss thingsss."
Herb nodded then turned to address Sissithississ directly. "Kasumi was attacked last night. The Amazon magus is responsible. However, there is some question as to what made her do it. I have heard that she may have been deceived by some kind of fake Shampoo."
"And why are you telling me this, my lord?"
"No harm is to come to Kasumi. If there was indeed a person impersonating the amazon and you find out who did this, I wish to know immediately."
"Of courssse," Sissithississ answered. Herbed nodded in acceptance of that and turned and left without further word. Sissithississ scowled in thought then heard a rustling from the next room over and a sudden bang as a body hit the wall. He quickly headed over to the adjoining door and entered Lemon's room to find her quickly putting herself back under her covers. "Were you lissstening in?" Lemon hesitated but finally nodded. "You know, I do find it sssussspiciousss that you were taking an interessst in the Magusss jussst that morning. Do you know anything about thisss?"
"Me? No, of course not," she replied innocently.
Sissithississ studied her for nearly a minute then sighed. "Anyway, it doesss not matter. You heard the Prince. He would be upssset if harm came to Kasssumi. I sssuggessst you take that to heart." Sissithississ left her with those words and closed the door.
XXXXX
It was early in the afternoon when Cologne arrived at Dr. Tofu's clinic. She hopped inside to be greeted by the doctor. "Ah, Elder, I was expecting you'd come. You want to see Frost, don't you?"
"Yes, I have to get this whole incident sorted out."
Tofu nodded in understanding. "I'm afraid she's ill at the moment. She was up half the night worrying, and I'm afraid she developed one her headaches. She's also not letting me treat her. I think she's punishing herself."
Cologne nodded slightly. "Perhaps. Did she tell you what happened?"
"Most of it," he answered and lead Cologne into an adjacent room to sit. "It seems someone came here in the guise of Shampoo accusing Kasumi of... well."
"Yes, that much I heard. However, if Frost was tricked, how does she know it was not really Shampoo?" Cologne asked, stumping the doctor. "You must understand, neither Shampoo nor Frost are well accepted here, Frost for attacking Kasumi on her arrival and Shampoo simply because of this marriage. Although I personally do not believe Frost acted because of her own malice, I must be able to show that. As well, if she was deceived, I must show it was not Shampoo who indeed made the false accusation."
Tofu nodded in understanding, holding his chin in thought. "I see your problem. I'm afraid I cannot be much help in that regard. I did not see Shampoo arrive. Why don't you stay here and I'll see if I can get Frost up."
"Please," Cologne responded, "and if she refuses treatment again, tell her that I say she is to comply."
"Thanks. Wait here," Tofu replied with a smile and exited the room.
Cologne remained silent for a minute, closing her eyes to rest. Finally she tapped her staff on the ground and reopened her eyes. "Mousse, get out here." From under the cover of a nearby plant, Selene stepped out. "Don't think you fool me with that cursed body, now get out here."
"You knew?" Selene asked as she stepped out fully. Hearing her voice caused the elder to raise a curious eyebrow.
"I see, made you her familiar, did she? Very foolish of you."
The momentary surprise Selene felt quickly melted away as she grew angry. "You knew all along and you did nothing!"
"Of course. I am not your guardian. If I were, I would have told you to stay at the village. Count yourself fortunate. Not that long ago Frost would have turned you to a toad. She is obviously becoming more forgiving," Cologne replied with a wide grin, but then grew serious. "Enough of that. What happened here last night?"
Selene paused to think, obviously considering her response but finally came out with the truth. "Basically what the doctor just told you. A person arrived who looked and sounded just like Shampoo. Frost left before she knew the truth. I was actually the one who found out. She transformed right in front of me to look like Frost. Whoever it was, was good enough to fool the doctor as well because he spoke to her."
"I see. Troubling. Well, at least whoever this is seems unwilling to confront Kasumi directly. Or perhaps her true intent was to destroy the reputations of either Frost or Shampoo. Either way, having such a convincing shape-changer around is not good." Cologne hung her head in thought for a minute as Selene stood waiting.
Finally, the pink cat grew impatient and spoke. "Aren't you going to do anything about what Frost did to me?"
"No," Cologne answered without looking up.
"What?"
"I'm not your keeper, Mousse. As the old saying goes, you made your bed now sleep in it. You should never have used Frost in the manner you did, especially for this shortsighted attraction you have for my great granddaughter," Cologne responded, but that only caused Selene to grow angrier. "Besides, you'd be better suited to simply telling her that you chose to tell me the truth today. I can do little to force her to return you to normal, so getting on her good side would be the best thing you could do for yourself." Cologne stood back up and hopped out of the room, leaving Selene alone with that to consider.
Outside she met back up with the doctor. "Thank you, Doctor, but I have decided not to speak with Frost today. I have confirmed her account of events."
"Oh, I... how?"
"Perhaps you'd like to ask Frost about that, and her new cat. Good day to you," Cologne said with a farewell nod and left the building. Tofu stood confused for a moment then noticed Selene come out from the room.
"Her cat?" he repeated in confusion, looking down at Selene who remained silent.
XXXXX
"Karin Kanzuki! You met Karin Kanzuki!" Nabiki exclaimed as she and the other Tendo residents walked home from school.
"Is she someone special?" Kasumi asked.
"Special? Special? She's only the richest girl in Japan."
"Oh. How nice," Kasumi said, not taking any particular interest in the matter, irritating her younger sister that much more.
"Kasumi, how can you just call that nice? I'd die to meet her. Okay, actually, I'd die to be as rich as her, but meeting her is certainly high on my too do list."
"She wasn't all that much different than anyone else, Nabiki."
"Did you even talk to her?" Nabiki demanded.
"Briefly. We just basically exchanged names. Sakura would probably know more about her. They seem to be martial arts rivals."
"Sakura? She knows her too? Blast it all, why am I always the one left out on these things!" Nabiki exclaimed in exasperation.
"How do you figure you're left out of things, Nabiki?" Ranma countered. "You just happened to miss the boat on this one."
"You shut up," Nabiki retorted, but fell quiet as she thought.
The group continued on in silence for a moment until Kuno came rushing up to join them. "Kasumi Tendo, I have just heard the news. I, Tatewaki Kuno shall offer you the use of the Kuno Mansion until such time as you can mend the damage to your own abode."
"That's very kind of you, Tatewaki. You of course realize that Shampoo and her great grandmother also need someplace to stay."
Kuno paused a second, clearly having not considered that, but quickly adjusted to it. "Of course, they may stay at my dwellings as well. We have a large number of rooms and I am certain you will find them comfortable."
Kasumi looked over at Shampoo. "What do you think Shampoo?"
"Shampoo no mind," she responded although plainly she actually wasn't overly happy with the idea.
Kasumi turned back to Kuno. "I suppose that will be okay. I will have to speak with the Elder to ensure she approves as well."
"Excellent. I will inform Sasuke to make preparations at once. Oh, and do not fear my father. He does not plague my sister and I with his presence."
"That is good to hear," Kasumi said with some relief, and Kuno took his leave of the group.
After Kuno left earshot, Akane spoke up. "Do you think it is a good idea to stay with him, Kasumi?"
"It would be rude to refuse."
"Yeah, but he's... you know, interested in you."
"I know, but my options are limited at the moment. The dojo cannot take so many people staying there all at once for very long."
Akane nodded, accepting Kasumi's point. "Where's Makoto staying anyway?"
"She is staying at the dorm for now," Kasumi answered. "Ukyo, with your father leaving, you really should think about staying at the dorm as well."
Ukyo merely huffed her response.
"So, how long is it going to take to fix the restaurant?" Ranma asked.
Kasumi shook her head. "I'm not even certain we can. I already told you we probably won't be covered by our insurance, and the damage is extensive."
"Don't worry, Kasumi," Akane replied cheerfully. "You have a ton of good karma saved up. It has to pay off sometime."
Kasumi smiled and nodded, although she personally had little faith that such a thing was to happen. They walked on for a moment longer when Kasumi caught sight of Ranko standing at a street corner, apparently waiting. Upon seeing her, Ranko signaled to her and headed into a nearby ice-cream shop. "You all go on without me. I have to talk with Ranko."
"Kasumi," Shampoo began to protest.
"Shampoo, I'm certain she wishes to talk with me about some things, and I somehow think she would rather do that in private. Don't worry. I'll be along soon enough. You have to see about getting some new clothes anyway."
Shampoo frowned but relented and the grouped headed on its way as Kasumi entered the ice-cream shop and headed over to where Ranko was waiting.
XXXXX
"So... you're from another dimension," Kasumi stated to confirm, and, while wolfing down her third sundae, Ranko nodded.
"Dimension, parallel world, alternate reality... whatever you want to call it."
Kasumi nodded slowly. "I must admit, that is a little, strange."
"Strange ain't the half of it," Ranko said as she finished off the last of her ice-cream, spooning out as much as she could. "There's another dimension too, where everyone else went... well sorta. They merged together."
"So, why didn't you go there?"
Licking her spoon clean, and looking at the dish dejectedly, Ranko answered, "I couldn't. Well, that's not exactly right. I could, but I couldn't merge with my counterpart there. We... weren't compatible."
"I see," Kasumi said with a nod.
"You're still wondering who I really am, aren't you?" Ranko said as she put down the dish and looked at Kasumi. Kasumi only smiled. "Please don't spread this around. I really don't want to get a bunch of pity I don't really need, but I'm... Ranma."
"Oh, so in your world Ranma was born a girl," Kasumi concluded, causing Ranko to face fault. "No?"
"No. Kasumi, I was a guy every bit as much as this world's Ranma. But, when my dimension starting falling apart... it's a bit hard to explain it all. I don't understand it all myself, in the end I had to get this anti-magic field put on me. I was a girl at the time so I got stuck this way."
"And there is no cure?" Kasumi asked with a sad look.
"Nope. Magic don't work on me at all anymore. You saw what happened last night. Zip. I know what you're thinking, but don't sweat it. I made this choice myself, and I plan to live by that choice. I mean, I've been thinking about it and it's not like it is all that bad. It's not like I got trapped as a parrot or something. I'm still human, and in your world nobody knows me, so I can start fresh."
"It still seems like an awful burden to bear," Kasumi replied, but Ranko only shrugged.
"Yeah, but what are you going to do. I'll get used to it. But, I really don't want everybody feeling sorry for me so if you could keep that to yourself..."
"I'll try, but I promised Shampoo not to keep secrets from her. But, she won't tell anyone, I know, and I'll only tell her if she asks."
Ranko looked a little disappointed, but shrugged it off. "Guess that will do. Speaking of Shampoo, you and her... are getting married?"
"We're already married," Kasumi replied plainly causing Ranko's eyes to go wide in shock.
"Already? But I heard... I thought you guys were planning the wedding."
"Oh, maybe you heard that we were thinking of having another formal ceremony. We've already been married by Amazon and Chinese law. It was... informal though."
Ranko nodded, understanding. "And she knows you're really a girl?"
"Yes."
"And she's fine with that?"
"At first it was a rather sticky issue, but we seem to have overcome that," Kasumi replied. Ranko shook her head, trying to absorb that information, when Kasumi started to ask, "Ranma-"
"Ranko. Please, just call me Ranko."
"Oh, of course, Ranko. Um, I assume since you did not know that, that your world is different from mine. How so?"
"Many things I've noticed so far. I mean, just for starters you were never a martial artist in my world. Shampoo wanted to marry me in my world. This Frost girl was never here, and neither was that other girl I seen at the Tendos'."
"I believe you mean Herb. She has a curse like yours, and is also trapped in her female form, but she may be able to reverse that if Frost ever fixes that kettle."
Ranko took a second to absorb that then continued. "Well anyway, she wasn't here. That restaurant of yours was called the Nekohanten in my world. Shampoo was cursed to change into a cat. Ukyo liked dressing up as a guy most the time. What else... Well, there's probably lots more I just haven't seen yet. Say, how did you get into martial arts anyway?"
"Our parents decided to raise my Ranma along with Akane so they could get to know each other before they married. I went to live with Uncle Saotome because of this. I trained with him."
"Ah, I think I get it now. So, instead of Pop teaching me, he taught you. Weird, but it works. And that's why you got married to Shampoo I bet. When I met her, I was a girl, but I bet you were a guy."
"That's right," Kasumi confirmed.
"That makes sense. Yeah. Tell me, I haven't seen Ryoga around or Mousse. I don't suppose you met Ryoga, but Mousse-"
"No, I know Ryoga. I walked with him to his school some years ago. I also know Mousse, although he hasn't been around lately."
Ranko nodded. "Well, if he does show up again, he may be sporting a new curse if he's anything like my Mousse."
"Oh dear, I hope not. He has to know the danger of Jusenkyo by now."
"Never stopped him in my world. I wouldn't worry about it. He'll show up eventually," Ranko said and looked out the window. "Actually, I was going to ask you if I could come work for you. I've been camping out mostly up till now, but I really need to get some money. I guess that is out now."
"I'm sorry. I wish I could... or perhaps I can. If you truly mean to continue your life as a girl, I could see if I can get you into our girls' dormitory. It has plenty of space and you get free food. Of course, you'd either have to work at the school, or even attend classes. I assume you haven't graduated yet. You could join my class."
Ranko pondered this for a moment. She didn't particularly enjoy school, but it was a fact of life, and getting a roof over her head and free food to boot was nothing to sneeze at. "Sounds good. I obviously haven't got any records or anything."
"Neither does Shampoo. That shouldn't pose a problem."
"Great," Ranko replied enthusiastically. "Oh, one more thing Kasumi. My world was a bit ahead of yours, so I might be able to help you out some more with stuff to come. Could save you a lot of trouble."
"That would be very nice. Thank you, Ranko."
The redhead waved off the thank you and stood up. "It's no problem. I guess I should let you go. I'm camping out under the bridge by the river a couple blocks from your Dad's place. You know it?"
"Yes, I do. I'll try to get you into the dorm as soon as possible."
"Thanks, and thanks for the food."
"You're welcome," Kasumi said as Ranko waved a goodbye and left. Kasumi continued to sit for a moment, pondering what Ranko had told her. I definitely see the resemblance now, and she didn't seem to be lying. How very strange. Oh well. Concluding there was nothing more to be done here, Kasumi headed out and back on her way home.
Since she was on her own, Kasumi decided to take a walk by the restaurant. She had not had a chance to personally see the damage, and she wanted to get a better idea of it herself. Soon she was standing in front of a burned out building, only half standing, that used to be her home.
"Oh my," Kasumi said softly and sadly as she examined the remains. Little was recognizable, and there was no doubt that repairs would be expensive. Kasumi took a moment to look back down at her white gi and marveled that it had survived unscathed. "Pierre did not exaggerate when he said it was resilient."
As she looked back up she noticed a particular man coming out from inside. She recognized him as a Mr. Sato. He was for a local developer that had been interested in purchasing the restaurant for sometime to develop a mall in the area. Kasumi had naturally refused but he had persisted several times. No doubt he had heard about the fire. Kasumi did not particularly feel like speaking with him at the moment, but he spotted her and headed over before she could escape.
"Kasumi Tendo, nice to see you again."
"Hello, Mr. Sato," Kasumi replied with a weak smile.
"Ah, I see you're not happy to see me," he said with a grin. "I know what you're thinking, but that's not why I'm here. In fact, I have some stuff for you." Sato walked over to a nearby car and retrieved his briefcase. He then opened it, and began handing Kasumi a large number of papers.
"What is all this?" Kasumi asked and she tried to examine the ever growing pile of paper work being forced upon her.
"Contracts, waivers, blueprints, and some other stuff to."
"For?"
"For your new restaurant. I've been authorized by my employer to offer to reconstruct the San Cheng Huang. Not only that, I'm also authorized to expand the premises into several of the nearby lots that my company also owns and to expand the building appropriately. It's all their in the paper. Realize this was a rush job, so it's all a bit rough. We just got word of it this morning. You don't have to accept now. You can take the opportunity to look the papers over for as long as you require. Also, the blueprints are preliminary and my company will be glad to change them to meet any further specification you have."
Kasumi stood stunned by all this. Finally, she asked, "Why?"
"I do not know that myself, Ms. Tendo. I was told to simply give you this letter and you'd understand. My card is there somewhere. It has a number which you can reach us. I have to be off. Call me when you've made your decision. Workers will be available as soon as you are ready to go." Bowing, Sato left Kasumi with the mound of paper and a letter which he handed to her as he left.
Kasumi adjusted the load to get access to the letter and opened it. Immediately she noticed the letter head was from Kanzuki enterprises. Is that Karin's family's company? Kasumi asked herself as she looked down at the letter.
XXXXX
Dear Kasumi Tendo,
I did not get the proper chance to thank you for your help today. I must apologize for my recklessness. I will remember in the future to conduct my affairs under proper supervision.
Anyway, it is not my family's policy to overlook those who help us. I heard about your particular problem, and I've decided to help you out. Everything is on the up and up, I can assure you. We don't engage in dirty tricks in my family. Think of this as my way of thanking you.
Yours,
Karin Kanzuki.
XXXXX
Kasumi blinked as she finished reading the letter, remembering what Akane had said earlier about Karma. "I guess I better take this all home," Kasumi said aloud and headed home, still rather amazed.
XXXXX
Happosai sat on the roof of the Tendo home, pondering the scroll in front of him with a greatly perplexed look on his face. After a moment an idea came to him and with a suddenly confident look he turned the scroll upside down. However, his confidence quickly left him as that didn't help.
Suddenly, Ranma stepped on the old master, snatching the scroll out of his hands. "What's this you got, old man?"
Happosai freed himself from under Ranma's weight and jumped up to retrieve the scroll. "Give that back," he ordered, but Ranma dodged the attempt.
"What is it?"
Huffing, Happosai discontinued his attempts to retrieve the scroll, instead opting to sit back down and begin smoking his pipe, looking masterly. "It's an ancient and powerful technique, the most potent attack move in the Anything Goes Style, so dangerous I decided it better to seal it away that let it be used any longer."
"Uh huh, so why do you have it now?" Ranma asked as he turned the scroll from side to side while examining it.
"I reconsidered. After all, it is the discipline in the use of a technique that counts, not the technique itself."
Ranma looked down at the old man skeptically. "Sure, old man. Looks like a bunch of chicken scratches to me," he commented and was promptly hit on the head with Happosai's pipe, causing him to smash face first into the roof.
"How dare you doubt your master, boy! Have you no respect?"
"For an old pervert like you, no," Ranma replied as he picked himself up. "If this technique is so great, how do you do it?"
"I'll leave that up to you, boy. I encrypted the scroll so that none but the most worthy could decipher it. Let's see if you're up to the task," Happosai said and left the roof.
Ranma again looked skeptically, and examined the scroll more closely. Yeah, right. Encrypted my butt! The old man's handwriting is just totally unreadable. Shaking his head, Ranma pocketed the scroll just as Ukyo's scream came from down below. Ranma moved to investigate but he quickly deduced the reason for the scream as Happosai's form suddenly shot into the sky from the direction of the scream. "That guy is intolerable!" Ranma mumbled as he dropped down to the ground to check on his new fiancée, finding her standing at the entrance to the Tendo home, panting heavily in anger. "Ukyo, you alright?"
"I'm... fine," she managed to get out then quickly calmed and looked over at Ranma.
"Come to get your stuff?" Ranma asked, causing the chef to look away self consciously. "Where you been hiding it, anyway? I'm surprised no one noticed over all this time." Ukyo muttered something unintelligible in response. "Aw, don't worry about it. I told you, I'm not mad."
"This... just wasn't... I didn't..." Ukyo tried to respond but finally fell silent from lack of words.
Ranma nodded in understanding, walking up next to her. "This wasn't exactly my idea of how things would turn out either," he commented then paused, growing more serious. "Ukyo, are you okay with all this?"
Ukyo grew very nervous at the question and began playing with the fingers, looking away. "You... you mean the marriage."
"Yeah."
"Well... I... umm... yeah. I'm okay with it."
"Really?" Ranma asked. "You're really okay about being marriage to Kasumi?"
Ukyo suddenly grew tense, her face twisting into a disgusted look. However, that only lasted a second and she once more looked at Ranma, this time much more confident. "As long as it is with you, I... don't care," she blurted out, and almost immediately lost the confidence that allowed her to speak. "Umm... you?"
Ranma paused to think. "I can't really say for sure, but I think I'm willing to give it a try."
"Really?" Ukyo asked, surprised.
"Yeah, what's so surprising about that?"
"I'm mean... it's just that you've always... you know, said you wanted the choice to yourself," Ukyo replied.
"Yeah, I said that, and I still do, but I think at least I should see if this is the choice I don't want to make before I say I won't do it," Ranma responded but then added. "That doesn't mean I'm going to go through this, I'm just saying I'll consider it."
"Of course, of course," Ukyo replied quickly. The two shared a smile for a moment then noticed Kasumi entering the yard, a large stack of papers in hand. Ranma moved to help her, while Ukyo's mood darkened slightly.
XXXXX
In a darkened room, a man sat on a chair, his eyes fixed on the large monitor in front of him. On the screen was displayed a zoomed in view of the battle between Karin and Sakura. The stats for each fighter rolled by at the side of the display, constantly being updated.
"Interesting," he murmured to himself as he watched, not really paying attention as the door to his rear opened and the thugs from earlier hobbled in.
"Sir, we..." the leader began to say but the man silenced him with an upraised arm. The thugs remained silent as they watched, seeing their own confrontation with the girls, and then Kasumi.
Finally, the display paused as the thugs retreated. The man sat back in his chair. "Not an impressive performance, gentlemen."
"I can explain," the leader the group offered but was again silenced with an upraised arm.
"Your excuses would only irritate me. Take your men and leave. Consider yourselves lucky that you have merely lost your commission. You squandered a valuable opportunity. Now, go."
"Yes sir," the leader replied and gesturing to his men they all filed out.
The man at the console then sat forward again to replay the video, this time studying the stats. "Yes, interesting," he repeated to himself. Another minute passed before the door opened again and two women entered. "Greetings. I trust you are well," the man said without looking back. One woman walked up next to him to watch the screen and began twirling a hat on her finger as she did so. The other remained on guard at the door, stoic and unemotional.
"You used those men," the woman watching the screen commented with some amusement.
"Of course. Although capturing Sakura and Karin would have been a positive result, observing Kasumi Tendo in action is an equally positive result. Indeed, I must say I'm impressed. Sakura and Karin's reading are exceptional, no doubt, but they pale in comparison to our new subject."
"And what of the treatment?"
"That, I'm afraid, has produced less than optimistic results. Sakura has shown no continued signs of the energy, and even when we did get her to use it, the effect was momentary. Kasumi has shown further signs of the energy field, but she has consistently rejected it since the fight she had in the woods. I suspect her human personality is incompatible with it."
The woman stopped spinning the hat, and looked over at the man. "That is not acceptable, doctor. I must have a stable user of the Dark-Hado."
"Indeed. There is still is Kasumi's other personality. Her cat-mind is not nearly as disciplined and given our earlier observations, even without treatment, she is a strong possibility. However, Sakura, I believe, we can discount." The man froze the image on screen and turned his chair to address the woman directly. "I still do not understand why you are reluctant to test the other known users."
"Even I dare not trifle with the one, and the other has already proven himself incompatible with me."
"I see. So, you need someone new, who has not yet embraced the power enough to become dangerous, yet is still open to it."
"Exactly," the woman replied then looked back at the screen. "So then, does this Kasumi Tendo meet my requirements or not?"
"I cannot say for certain of course, but I believe she just might. I advise bringing her in. We can run our final tests here."
The woman nodded then chuckled. "Perfect."
"We will need sometime to re-equip the facilities, you understand. They are designed with far less troublesome people in mind."
"How long?"
"A week, maybe two," the man replied.
"That will suffice," the woman said with a nodded and turned to depart.
"I will require the continued use of your... assistant and perhaps some others. As you can see, Ms. Tendo is more than a match for my normal resources."
The woman stopped at the door, and looked over at the other woman with a grin. "Of course. Just realize she is still my property in the end."
"Of course," the man echoed.
Nodding, the one woman turned to the other. "Shadow Lady, I leave you under the command of this individual for now. Obey his orders as you would mine." Without further word, the woman left, leaving the guard behind.
The man finally stood up and walked over to her. He looked her in the eyes for a long moment, a curious look on his face. "How must it be, I wonder, trapped in your own body, only able to obey," he pondered aloud, gaining no response from the woman. "Ah well, we have much work to do." Shadow Lady showed no signs of response, merely staring off into space.
End Chapter 31
So, who the heck is Ranko you may be wondering? Well, she is indeed Ranma from another dimension. Specifically she comes from another story of mine, namely Most Unlikely of Friends. However, for the most part you can think of her as Ranma at the end of the anime continuity with the slight addition of her magic invulnerability.
Well, that concludes things for this chapter. Special thanks as always go to T. H. Tiger for creative assistance in writing this thing, and all my other pre-readers. Later.