Finding Home.

Chapter two

Author's new note: If any of you have tracked down the anime of the final season, you will quickly note that I had quickly killed off one of the main characters. Despite how episodic the anime was, the original Sailor Moon Manga was very quick to kill off the main enemy bad guys. A trend I wish had carried out to the cartoons for most series I watch. I mean seriously. Dragon Ball Z is a staple to fighting anime everywhere, but do they really have to spend twenty minutes flexing their pecks, uttering man screams, and talking about how 'they've never felt a power as powerful as this awesome power is' ?

Disclaimer: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

Wait a second. That's not a disclaimer…

Fantastic Music Hall in Shibuya. I look up from the slip of paper in my hand to the building in front of me. It's a fairly large building tucked away between several tall office buildings in the middle of a fair sized city. A large board with plastic letters slipped into it proclaims "Tonight: Michiru Kaiou and the Three Lights". Looks like I had found my place. The little concrete plaza in front of the performance center is filled with a rather unique ensemble of people. This 'Michiru' chick is supposedly a really good violinist, and she attracts a nice crowd of well dressed individuals. The Three Lights, on the other hand, and gathered together one of the rudest, noisiest, annoying, crowds I've ever seen. And right in the middle of this mess of people is me, neither well dressed nor baby bopper.

It hadn't been easy to get here. They had only announced this concert a couple of days ahead of time in order to try to allow some fans of the violinist to get tickets before they teenage girls all got a hold of them. I had only found out about it several days afterwards, and when I went to get tickets, I discovered that they had been sold out. I shudder for a second, remembering how I had found out about this concert. Going incognito as a redhead, I had hit the Three Lights fan club in an effort to find out about the band. In consequence to my actions, I had been subjected to a hideous barrage of young women proclaiming how 'cute' they were, and filling my pure ears with all sorts of gutterish drivel that never should come out of girls that young. I had needed a bath after listening to them. But through it all I stuck to it. Let it never be said that Ranma Saotome ever lost when it counted, especially to a bunch or adolescent hyper-obsessed boy band fans.

Which brings me to my current situation. Trying to get into a sold out concert without tickets.

I brush an errant lock of black hair out of my face, and re-shoulder my pack in what was quickly becoming a habitual gesture. I don't want to sneak in, but I have too. Now if I can just figure out how to go about it. The building is three stories high, and there are windows on the upper levels, but none that open up. That rules out jumping up and climbing in. The front doors all have bouncer type men working them to pick up the tickets. I could take them down, but that would be drawing just a bit too much attention to me. Sighing slightly, I push through the crowd. I should check the entire building for extra entrances. I might be able to sneak in through a back door or something.

The building is fairly large, so I take some time going around the thing. The eastern edge is a narrow alley, as is the west. The north and south edges are both entrances, and both guarded by ticket-takers. Oh well. I am a premier martial artist. I might as well use my techniques.

I duck back into the eastern alley, and pull out a handkerchief. "Shooting star iron cloth defense," I whisper into the air as I twirl it around in front of me. The piece of cloth is ridiculously small, but to anyone who might have been watching, that doesn't matter as my body completely disappears from sight afterwards. I tuck the still visible hankie into my pocket, and it disappears as well. No point in wasting it.

I slip through the crowd, which during my tour of the building had diminished greatly, without touching anyone, and brush past the bouncer at the door. He doesn't even blink. Man I am good.

The hallways are lined with eager music fans buying greasy food and low quality t-shirts at rip-off rates. I ignore both of the two, though my stomach doesn't. A few fans give the place I was standing a look over, and I sigh in relief when they apparently dismiss it. What a horrible time to have your stomach rumble.

I move from the hallway circling the performance area quickly, not trusting my luck to hold while invisible among so many people. The actual arena where the performance would be taking place was a large semicircle surrounding medium to small stage area. An open space for the dancing that would take place when the Three Lights played covers the area immediately in front of it. A row of slowly ascending seats spread out from that, taking up the space to the back wall. The two are separated by a row of metal bars forming a medium sized fence. I move swiftly through the aisle in the center of the room. That will serve nicely. I hop up onto the little fence, and quickly run along it as easily as along a chain link fence. Now where would be the best place to wait? It wouldn't do to tempt fate by standing in the center. You never can tell when something might happen to make you loose control of your concentration. Like if someone were to decide to throw rotten fruit at the Lights. Hmm. I wonder if I saved some of those apples from two days ago…

Nah. I already ate them. Damn.

After I make myself comfortable, on the far right side of the performance area balanced on the fence, I sit back and wait for the show to start.

As the crowd begins to filter in more, I take a second to wonder about why I'm here. I mean, what am I expecting to happen? I'm sure that if the three guys really are responsible for something fishy, they're not going to just step up on the stage and reveal their master plan for world domination or whatever. Oh well. I can always follow them home from here and start a stake out on them. While I don't really anticipate this being any kind of terribly difficult job, it still doesn't sound really appealing. I wish I had other things to do than follow around a bunch of suspicious band members.

I take a second off from my musing as something brushes across my face suddenly. I start a little, but calm down when I see its just a moth. Stupid little bug. It has no reason to be here. I wonder what it thinks its doing? As I watch the insect, the lights in the arena begin to dim. The crowd begins to murmur in anticipation, and suddenly spot lights blink on from the ceiling, casting two long beams of illumination on the stage. In one stood a piano. The other captured a microphone. The crowd silences for a second, and then breaks into cheers as two women walk onto the stage. They stop for a second standing in the light around the microphone, and bow. Then one of the women, a tall blonde with an arrogant little swagger continues on to the piano. The other women, an elegant lady with aquamarine hair carrying a violin, takes another bow, and fit's the violin to her chin.

The moth I was watching flutters away into the dark of the arena, and I turn my attention to the stage. Let the show begin.

The two play a series of duets for the piano and the violin. I'll give them this much. They kept me awake. That's a bigger compliment then you think. I've never found music terribly interesting before, and the fact that these two had my attention for nearly three fourths of an hour speaks mountains about their skill. I clap a little when they finish, trusting the general noise to drown out my own contribution. The one at the piano takes a place by the violin player, I guess she's Michiru, and the two hold hands while the blonde bows and Michiru curtsies. I raise an eyebrow. So. The two are an item. Well, they make a cuter couple then when Ukyo and Kodachi ran off together. I still shudder at the thought of Ukyo in the grasps of that madwoman. Kuno seemed to agree with me about that, because he vowed to save his 'twisted sister' from the 'low born servant boy'. They ran off, and last heard from them was a letter from Ukyo, saying she's was happy and somewhere in Hokkaido. I sigh to myself. As long as she's happy, I'm happy for her.

I just wish she could of chose someone a little less scary to be happy with. It would make me visiting my old friend a lot less of a nervous experience.

While I had been lost in thought, the pianist and the violinist had left the stage, and a sudden roar from the crowd draws my attention back to the stage as the reason for me being here comes out. The Three Lights. The crowd goes wild as the band begins their set.

My eyes narrow as I study them from across the floor. That was them all right. The ones who had taken that girl after her boyfriend had been taken by Weird-Clothes.

Like the last act the Three Lights keep my attention, but for different reasons entirely. I catalogue the way they move, act, sound, and look. After only five minutes of inspection, I have confirmed my suspicion about the three. There is something very suspicious about them. Little things gave it away: their balance, their endurance under the harsh lights, their lack of shortness of breath despite their onstage antics. I got the distinct impression that these three were hiding something about themselves.

After the three finished their set, I turned my attention away from the stage and listened to the crowd as it goes wild. Voices surrounded me in a cacophony of noise.

"They are, like so cute!"

"That was awesome!"

"Eleven Sailor crystals. Lady Galaxia will reward me!"

"I hope we get an encore!"

"Whee-hoooo!"

As the Three Lights get up on stage again for an encore, I stop for a second. Eleven Sailor crystals? What was that all about? I search the crowd for the one that had shouted that. When I find her, its all I can do to prevent the sweat drop. We have a winner.

Dressed in something resembling bell-shaped lingerie, and wearing glasses, she was cackling maliciously and rubbing her hands together. Her outfit was daring, even considering what some of the others around her were wearing. I shake my head. What is the world coming to? In my day…

Never mind that. Now that I think about it, some of the outfits my ex's had worn were kind of more revealing.

The strangely dressed one stops cackling and strikes a pose. "I, Sailor Iron Mouse," she begins her declaration, "-demand that you sacrifice your sailor crystals to the Lady Galaxia!" She proceeds to toss a five foot wide ball or energy at the stage.

That got my attention real fast.

I hoped down from my perch, moving carefully to avoid detection, though with all the screaming and running by the other fans its not that hard. The strange girl, Sailor Iron Mouse, was less than ten feet away and shouting for something called 'sailor scouts'. I narrowed my eyes and considered my options. It was a girl, so I couldn't just attack her. Damn my old man for always telling me that women are weak. Even all these years later, after all the female martial artists I've met, I still have trouble hitting them. But I can't just let her run-a-muck. Grimacing I prepare to attack her from behind.

Fortunately, something happens to distract me from her. Five girls in yet another embarrassingly short skirted school girl costume stand up and announce themselves.

"I am Sailor Mercury!" one in a blue skirt calls.

"Mars," another in red.

"Venus," a blonde in orange.

"Jupiter," tall and brunette.

"Moon!," the final one, another blonde with two suspiciously familiar braids down her back, proclaims. I start when I recognize her. The woman from the airport! What is she doing here, like this?!

"I've been waiting for you sailor scouts," Iron Mouse declares. My eyes widen as I feel something start to radiate from her. She holds up her arm and shouts, "Galactica Crunch!"

I'm moving before I realize it. My foot lashes out and strikes one of the foldable bottoms of one of the chairs. The force of my kick sends it flying and the cushioned part strikes Iron Mouse in the arm just as her attack is launched. The projectile hits the arm and knocks the attack askew, to the astonishment of both Iron Mouse and the five others.

All eyes turn to where I'm standing, searching for where that attack had came from. The sudden action has disrupted my concentration enough, so that under the combined and intense scrutiny of the six girls my technique wavers. I give it up altogether, and I'm treated to the sight of the eyes of all present widening as I appear from out of nowhere.

"Hi," I tell them, scratching the back of my head absently. "I'm Ranma Saotome, of the anything goes school of martial arts." It seemed like the polite thing to say, seeing how all of the others had introduced themselves.

All six of the assembled girls in front of me 'blink blink'.

I'm saved from further scrutiny by shouts of "Space turbulence" and "Submarine violin tide". My attention is jerked towards the shouts from halfway across the open floor. Two more scouts stand there, resplendent in dark skirts and bows. My eyes narrow in a split second as the faintest tingle of recognition rushes through me. If I didn't know any better I'd say those two look suspiciously like Michiru and that pianist…

My attention is dragged from those two as their attacks home in on Iron Mouse. She desperately swings her arm up, and the two blasts of power disappear with out harming her. It looks like they had been sucked into the bracer on her arm. Could it have some kind of power?

I find my answer out a second later as another shout sounds off. "Star Sensitive Inferno," is followed by a bolt of power, this time aimed specifically at the bracelet still being held up in front of Iron Mouse. The blow shatters the jewelry, and I grimace at the rather messy looking dissolution of Iron Mouse. So. The bracelet is the source of her power, and apparently her life.

My attention is drawn back to the stage, where the attack that had finished of Iron Mouse had come from. Three women stand there, dressed in yet another slinky set of outfits. Am I the only one here today with a sense of modesty? That combined with the strange hair, one brown, one white, and one black, they…

Wait a second. Brown, white, and black. Who else here had been a group of three, with brown, white, and black hair? Those three…

The Three Lights were supposed to be a boy band, but I've ran into cross dressers before.

As I'm scrutinizing the three, they leap up, and disappear into the light.

It doesn't matter where they go now. I know something's going on here. And I'm going to get to the bottom of it. One way or another.

"Ahem," a voice startles me. I jump slightly and take a look around me. I then sweat drop and gulp nervously. The five from earlier, plus the two from in the pit, have decided that since I'm the only one still here, I deserve some attention. They surround me in a semi-circle, cornering me against the wall. That many scantily dressed girls looking at me like that is scary.

"Listen you," the tall blonde with short hair asked, the one who looked like the chick on the piano. "Who are you and what are you doing here? Answer quick or we'll attack."

Do I sense some hostility?

"W-well," I begin, shrinking nervously under their stares. "I-I'll be glad to answer your questions. I'm Ranma Saoto…Oh my god! What's that!" I end in a shriek.

The seven gathered sailor soldiers turn as fast as they can, dread rising in their faces. The dread falters, replaced by confusion as they realize that there's nothing behind them.

"What are…?" the one with the two suspiciously familiar braids down her back turns around to find the spot where I had been occupying a moment earlier empty. Further study would reveal that the blond with short hair is now face down on the ground, with both of her hands spread out in warding gestures after I had jumped on her head. And just a bit more study would let her catch my back as I sprint as fast as I can towards the stage.

Saotome ultimate technique: run away.

The seven shout at me as I sprint towards the backstage area, but I ignore them. Defying all conventional physics, I cut a sharp right turn and as I pass by the back, I snag a bottle of water that the Three Lights had been using to keep their throats from drying up as they sang. As soon as I'm out of sight of the seven, I empty it onto my head, replacing the fleeing black haired man with a fleeing red haired woman. I dart through a door into a corridor that connects that backstage with the changing rooms. I try the doors as I pass, and when I find one unlocked, I dart into it quickly, shutting the door behind me silently.

I lean against the door and listen as the sound of footsteps in pursuit come closer, come even, and then draw away. Good I lost them. I turn around and to take stock of my surroundings and come face to face with…

My god. It's beautiful…

The room I had ducked into apparently belonged to one Seiya Light. A singer from the Three Lights. I know this because there's a big banner strung up over a mirror proclaiming "Congratulations Seiya". A table stood in front of the mirror, carrying a variety of essential stage make up. Next to the makeup table is…

A large card table laden down with a huge meal. Roast turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, gravy, and a bottle of some kind of fancy-smancy grape juice. My stomach reminds me that I'm still currently homeless, and I have eaten in about three hours. I'm about to show my stomach a good time, when a scraping sound outside of the door of the room I'm hiding behind announces someone was about to enter. I hastily wipe the drool off my chin as the door opens.

And in walks Seiya Light.

He jerks up when he sees me in his room, and I chuckle nervously. Great. I'm stuck in the changing room of a potential enemy with no way to escape. I hope I can get out of this alive…

Seiya suddenly grins. "I know I'm popular, but do you really think its such a good idea to wait for me in my changing room like this?"

Scratch that earlier statement. I hope I can get out of this with him still alive.

Seiya walks by me, laughing lightly, and continues. "Is there anyplace in particular you would like me to sign?"

The sudden popping noise from my clenched fist snaps me out of my impending berserk fury, and I stop myself grinding my teeth into dust. Why that little… I'm going to kill him. I'm going to rip his heart out. I'm going to…

An evil grin crosses my face. My expression turns from a murderous glare at his back, to a smile so sweet even flies would be sickened by it. "Oh Seiya-poo," I trill out cheerfully. He stiffens from his position next to the makeup table, and turns to look at me slowly, a worried expression on his face.

Making full use of my 'feminine charm' I slink across the space between the two of us, my pack across my shoulder and my eyes fluttering. "I just couldn't stand the thought of staying away from you any longer," I begin, in an oh-so-shy tone. "I just had to come here as quick as I could, so I could tell you my true feelings." As the distance between us closed, Seiya begins to back up nervously, until his retreat is stopped by the card table.

"Why, whatever do you mean?" he gets out nervously, as sweat begins to pop out on his forehead.

"Well," I say in a demure and quiet tone, "what I really want to tell you is…" The space between us is almost nonexistent, and he begins to lean backwards as I lean forward.

"What you mean to tell me?" he asks in a whisper, his eyes wide.

"Oh, I can't. I'm too embarrassed." I brake off my close proximity to him suddenly, tilting my head to the side and pretending to blush. Clutching my full backpack to my chest. I turn. "I shouldn't be here," I cry out as I flee the room, faking tears. The look on Seiya's face at my 180 in personality is rich.

I wonder what his expression will be when he realizes that I stole all of his food and put it in my back pack?

Sucker.

---

I take a bit out of a drumstick and take a moment to stretch out. Stretched before me is a small table cloth bearing the fruits of my labor. The only thing from the table missing is the gravy. Which is too bad considering the turkey is really dry.

"Cheap scamp," I mutter. The green beans are just right on the other hand. I take a small helping of that and think a bit.

What have I learned today? Well, I learned that there is definitely something fishy going down around here. The Three Lights are definitely something strange. What catches me by surprise, though, is that the woman from the airport is up to something strange too.

I sigh quietly. Well, I can't keep an eye on the girl. I don't know where to find her. I can, on the other hand, track down the Three Lights pretty easily.

I take another bit of turkey. First I eat, then I sleep.

Tomorrow I work…