-AN-

Kind of a final chapter here for Part 1 of the Sensei Ranma series. I might do an Omake chapter or two if the ideas come to me, but I don't have any thoughts for any at the moment.

-Story Start-

Usagi's broadcast was quick to surge around the world, from normal citizens to world leaders, and reactions were a mixed bag. Several national leaders expressed doubt about Usagi's and Ranma's avocation of peace. That much power and they only want to protect the world with it? Doubt was heavy. That many of said leaders knew what they would do with such strength and were projecting their own inner fears went unsaid by those in the know. But there were already thousands of requests for information directed towards the news station that broke the story. They'd be making money hand over first for some time thanks to the bubbly but dangerous Queen.

The people were another matter, the majority of which believing that Usagi was genuine in her quest to bring peace to the world. Of course, how that would happen was mixed. Already several camps of opinion had formed, from the groups that wished for the Moon Queen to take over and lead the people, to others who considered she might decide to lay waste to those that opposed her. Already polls were forming about her suitability against various world leaders, while on the other side, many were falling over themselves about Ranma as well. Was the King the womanizer that those from Nerima claimed he was? Did he perhaps need more women in his circle? Had he really been caught with some XYZ celebrity already? Conspiracies built upon themselves and the lack of concrete knowledge, and people ran with their own theories and imaginations as they saw fit. It was a new and exciting time, the status quo was changing. No one wanted to bring up the various religions and cults that had been spawned since the broadcast. Though a few were quickly gaining followers with a record pace.

In one house in the Nerima ward, the vaulted home of the Kuno family, the sibling pair of Tatewaki and Kodachi having watched the broadcast and having their own thoughts on the matter. Behind them their ever present and faithful butler and ninja Sasuke watched with a worried mind. Unsure how this would affect them. Tatewaki was the first to chuckle out loud, though it lacked the usual bravado or madness that was so ever present.

"To think all this time and all of my defeats at his hands, I have been fighting a Kami from the very beginning. No wonder I couldn't hope to best him. Truly it must have been a test of my faith and my abilities to have a true Kami placed before me as such." Tatewaki turned to his sister and Sasuke, "Truly I must be destined for something great to have been forced through such trails. Though my heart weeps as that must mean as well that the lovely Akane and the pigtailed girl must have been blessed by the very Kami as a test for me as well. They truly were too beautiful for this world."

Sasuke nods slowly, "Do you worry that Ranma might hold a grudge?"

"Never. It was my lack of ability that prevented me from seeing his divinity from the start, instead confusing him for a lowly sorcerer. Truly I must have only seen but a small portion of what he was, but not enough. I must train harder from here on and learn from my mistakes. I shall not fail my next test."

Through his rant, Kodachi is quiet, mind swirling with thoughts and concerns. Even she had noticed the other women vying for her Ranma's affections were no longer present. Did that mean he had spirited them away and left her behind? Was she not good enough? Was she going to be abandoned, again…

Sasuke could see the facial twitches that showed Kodachi might be following a dark train of thought and hoped to head that off. "Perhaps, as with your brother, you are being tested for a greater purpose as well mistress?"

By her will or not, Kodachi latched onto the thought like a lifeline, "That may be so. Though, perhaps it is my failing that I do not yet understand why the others were chosen by my Ranma-sama while I was left behind. While brother admits to having failed to recognize Ranma-sama's greatness, I have always known how great he was. Was recognizing him as divinity not enough?"

Tatewaki hums loudly, breaking his sister out of her thoughts for the moment. "Perhaps, as you've known Ranma's greatness from the beginning, he expects more from you. Something greater."

Cold eyes turn to son of the Kuno house, "Explain, brother dearest." She was the pinnacle of feminine beauty and grace. She had talent none her age could match and she had a mind that was sharp. What greatness was she missing?

"Simply that, of all the others, you are the only one to come from a great house, direct lineage of the samurai. But beyond that born greatness and your physical ability, what have you done? Your deeds were that of deception sister. Perhaps, the one you know as Ranma was built to show you a more honest path. Did you ever take it? Perhaps he is waiting for you to improve yourself in some yet to be seen way?" Flowery words aside, Tatewaki did care for his sister, deeply. "I believe, your Ranma-sama strives for an equal and is waiting for you to become that. Which the others could not attain without assistance."

Kodachi nods slowly, the thought propagating in her mind quickly. Yes, it did make sense even if the truth was a bit hard to hear. But for her Ranma-sama, she would bear the weight. "I believe you are correct brother. Ranma-sama would know better that I could yet achieve more than I have but must have been hopeful that I could come to the correct conclusion myself. That I did not quickly enough was my own failing, but not again. He must be waiting for a true goddess to stand by his side, and I shall rise to the challenge. With my own strength and ability." Kodachi was already standing with a thoughtful look on her face, "I need time alone to think and plan. Good night, brother, Sasuke." With a flourish the daughter of house Kuno was gone, long strides carrying her away to her room.

Left behind, Sasuke looked up to Tatewaki with a bit of wonder on his face, "My Lord, just, what did you just do?"

"I gave my sister hope." No flowery speech, no lofty boasting here. The more real and rational Tatewaki was needed for a moment, "My sister is more of herself when she is persuing a goal. And Ranma has been that goal for the last few years now. I…it is so rare for my sister to be herself since mother…" Tatewaki clams up quickly before shaking his head, "No. Even if it is a small lie, it matters not. Improving herself for the better is a good goal to have, even if she has no chance with the Kami that is Ranma Saotome."

Sasuke takes it all in before bowing to his lord, "Of course then. I will endeavor not to interfere then. I wish you both well."

Here Tatewaki grins and throws his chest out a bit with his hands on his hips, "Nothing less than greatness can be waiting for the House of Kuno. We must always strive for it." Even if the path was harder and more lonely than most.

Not far away on the other side of Nerima in a cold basement, another young man had just watched the broadcast and was coming to another conclusion for himself. Kneeling before a strange altar and praying to whichever dark gods had looked out for him, Hikaru Gosunkugi was more than happy that he hadn't pissed off Ranma enough to incur his true wrath. Nevermind all of the various women that apparently were bound to him as well and it wouldn't have been outside of the realm of possibility that Hikaru might have met his end or been cursed badly. That he had gotten out of it all with some light teasing and barely a beating here and there was a true godsend. Today was a new day, a new lease on life as he considered that perhaps he should follow the more straight and light filled path. He had been spared once, he might not be spared again. As he thought this however his eyes trailed over to his latest acquisition to his collection of the occult. A black bible, held closed by a chain with a pentagram at the end. Rumors had said he'd be able to enslave any woman to his will with this book, but thinking about the wrathful eyes of Ranma looking down on him, he decided perhaps this was best to be locked away as well. Feeling a cold chill not unlike fingers crawling down his spine, Hikaru decided that was exactly what he would do, finding a lock-box and shoving the book inside. He'd keep it deep in his closet for now, and eventually go bury it somewhere unknown. Magic and the occult was no longer for him. Continuing to play around with it might have Ranma on his doorstep.

Across the city in a completely separate ward in the living room of the Tsukino family home, they were joined by the quiet friend of Usagi, Naru. Neither side was sure of what to say or bring up first, though the Tsukino elders were sure that Naru knew about Usagi, what with her timing of coming to them now. Was she feeling guilty and wanted to come clean? Ikuko smiled softly and shook her head, deciding before her husband that she would help the girl along, "So, how long has you known about Usagi?"

Caught a bit off guard, Naru eventually smiles and chuckles out of embarrassment. Of course Usagi's parents knew by now. "I think, since the beginning. I got attacked a lot at first because I was so close to her. It definitely dropped off once the rest of the Senshi woke up and they started working as a team."

"From the beginning you say." There was something odd in Usagi's mom's eyes that she couldn't place, but the older woman was still smiling at the least. "I'm sure we can guess why you're here today then. The broadcast has you worried?"

Naru nods slowly, "Yeah. I mean, Usagi and friends had been somewhat distant lately and I was starting to worry about them. Now that I have a glimps of what they have been going through and it all makes so much sense. From Princess to Queen, she must be under so much stress." Naru pointed at the tv now running some opinion piece about the broadcast, "Even now though, her magic is holding up. No one seems to be able to connect Usagi to Queen Serenity."

Ikuko sighs as she leans a bit into her husband, "It is, unfortunate that you and her couldn't have remained close as you were before. Life, it seems, has curveballs for us all."

"It's okay in the end." Naru's smile is a bit brittle, but her eyes are clear and bright. "I was Usagi's friend for the longest time, the best of friends. But I'm just a normal girl now and she, she needs extraodinary people around her at all times. I can't compete in that space."

"Oh dear, it's not a competition." Ikuko cast a kind eye towards Naru, "You never know, you can always be a great help to her in one way or another. Being just a normal friend can be invaulable. Please do not doubt yourself."

Naru smiles, "Maybe. If there was something that I could do, I'd help her in a heartbeat." the petite girl wrung her hands together as she worried, "Maybe next time she stops in you can tell her I stopped by?"

"We will dear. You aren't alone in your worries or concerns. There's a small network of us now. You should visit Rei's grandfather at the Hino shrine. He's also in the know." Ikuko watched as the girl bowed to them both and they switched to lighter topics. They all would be making changes to their lives through this period. It would be slow and hard going, but they would support each other as they could.

Far to the south in the coutryside on a rather peaceful farm, a young man is tethered to a fence post with a length of rope. A thoughtful frown on his face, Ryoga considers everything that he knows now. Beside him and leaning over the fence, Akari was all smiles in an attempt to be cheerful for him.

"You're worried about your friend Ranma huh?"

Shaking his head, Ryoga denies that, "Ranma always gets himself into crazy and sometimes unwinnable situations. But he always comes out of it on top. I don't doubt he'll be able to take care of himself and those girls."

Akari however isn't completely convinced, her smile dimming just a bit as she quietly asks her question, "Will you go? To check on them?" Akari remembered just how much Ryoga claimed to love that Akane girl. How much he fought Ranma over her. And even now, he hesistated to answer her. Her smile slowly became something a bit more sad.

On Ryoga's part, he does consider what it is he wants to do now. Missing his girlfriend's mood drop as he focuses back on feeding chickens. Eventually smiling, he shakes his head, "Nah. I have a life here now. The one I had always secretly hoped for, more than anything. A home and a family." Turning bright eyes to the suddenly blushing girl, Ryoga grins, "As long as you want me here, I'll be right here by your side. Ranma and the others can take care of themselves just fine without me."

Trying her best to ignore the sudden rush of heat that filled her, Akari giggles lightly anyway, "You better be prepared to stay here forever then. I got a lot of work for you."

Ryoga nods, and turns back to his work, "Sure thing. Forever it is then." Making sure he didn't tangle up his tether or accedentally pull the fence post out of the ground again, he realizes his feed bag is empty and makes his way to the barn.

Behind him however Akari is swooning. Overcome with emotions and knowing just who to let them out on, the girl hops the fence with grace, green hair trailing behind her. Ignoring his startled yelp, she drags him into the barn. She had a better use for his and her time.

-b-

Ranma is at the moment relaxed and at peace, nestled comfortably in a large bath, nearly a hot spring if not for the fact that there were in the Moon Palace. Everyone is together, the Senshi and the Nerima girls. Ranma was looking up and enjoying the view of the stars and the Earth hanging above them. Akane and Shampoo are both snuggled into his sides while not far from them Ukyo, Kasumi and Makoto chat and are trading recipies back and forth. Not far away on his other side sit Usagi and Minako on the pool's steps, though between them a stern Rei does her best to lecture them both about their duties and showing some restraint. They couldn't always run off with Ranma with the fancy suited them.

Ami floats by, content on her back to be carried where the water shall take her, "You know Rei, rest is an important part of one's duties as well. A tired mind is a mind that makes mistakes. Don't fall to far into your own duties you forget that." She was one to talk, but she liked to think that she got a pass because she genuinely enjoyed what she did.

Ranma however had other ideas, "You know Ami, maybe you could take some of your own advice. Kick back, relax, not work so much." Most of the citizens of the Kingdom had been removed from stasis by now, which had given Ami plenty of people to delegate work to and boss around. Not that she did either.

Ami does take the admonishment to heart, "I will, try. I could use some time off I suppose." Everyone else was raving about Ranma, perhaps she could take a trip with him. See for herself?

Watching the girl float her way, Nabiki sighs and reaches out to poke her in the cheek, "You're the smart one, so don't neglect yourself." Getting a giggle out of the girl, the mercenary in reform grinned, "So. Who do I drag around to talk about schooling and learning about your advanced tech?" That got the techy girl's attention. She was quick to sit up next to Nabiki and they started to chat back and forth about potential school programs.

Further away but within comfortable talking distance, Setuna is laying back against the rim of the pool with an odd aura of peace around her. Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru are all chatting back and forth while occasionally trying to include her. Of all of the Senshi, they had been the least busy since finding their stasis bound citizens. Of them, Hotaru was making strides with making friends among the members of the Saturn station. Slow going, but it was coming along.

Usagi was watching Setsuna and called out to the other woman who had an odd feel about her. Usagi was attempting to subtly probe her with magic, "How ya doing over there Setsuna?"

"I am wonderful. More than content at the moment." This wasn't one of her post coitus bliss moments she usually had when she got a visit from Ranma. She had been in a very good mood lately that she couldn't put a concrete finger on.

Haruka had apparently taken notice however, "You much be. We're in the bath and you're not having saki or anything with liqour. It's weird."

Setsuna shrugged however as she could say she didn't have any craving for alcohol at all. "Lately I just haven't had any urge to drink. It's just, poof, out of my mind. Maybe because there's no real stress now that we're out and about to the world?" Yeah, fat chance of that. She should be stressed out to the max about that.

Usagi however just giggles, "Probably because you're pregnant." That brought all of the various conversations to a screeching halt. Slowly as if they were puppets with bad hinges, everyone turns to face the time mage.

Setsuna herself just waves them off, "No no, I'm sure I would know if I was. I have much more experience in this than you do." She didn't, actually. She had given up the thought of children and pregnancy a lot time ago. Hmmm.

Usagi is shaking her head, a finger twirling in the air and trailing rainbow colored sparkles, "I'm the magical Queen here. My magic knows better." This was her, possibly through Ranma and their connection, area of expertise. She had no doubt. Her finger however points towards several of the women around them, smile firmly in place, "Now it's me. Setsuna. Shampoo. And Kasumi who have all been knocked up. Good job Ranma." Giggling, she was ready to have so many of the others to go through this with her. She thought nothing of the chaos she just unleashed.

Watching as many eyes turn towards him and away from a shell shocked Setsuna, Ranma chuckles nervously. "I have been…busy…lately."

Next to him Shampoo has her hands on her belly, an odd smile on her face. Eventually it turns into the brightest and more carefree smile she had ever produced, "I'm…I'm going to be a mother."

Kasumi is sitting rock still, eyes with and unresponsive as she thinks about this. Pregnant? Her? Now? She wasn't going to ask how, she knew how. Oh did she know exactly how and how great it had been. Still, There was only the one time back home in the kitchen…and then again upstairs in the bath, and his guest room. And…oh dear.

Ukyo is snapping her fingers in front of the girl and getting no response, "Yup, she's gone. Good job Ranma, you broke her."

Akane giggled, "I mean, he did do that. Repeatedly." Akane wasn't fazed at all. She was only a little surprised that she wasn't pregnant after all this time, but then again she had been remembering to keep up with contraceptive pills.

On Kasumi's other side Makoto has much different thoughts. Standing tall and exposing her dripping body to Ranma while pointing an aggressive finger towards him. "You and me! We're locking ourselves in a room somewhere and you're helping me build a large family on the double!"

Minako is the first to giggle and shake her head in her relaxed state, "I don't care as long as I get my cute twins eventually. That'll make me happy."

At the beginning of all of this, Setsuna blinks as the shock begins to wear off. Sure enough she felt inward with her magic, confirming that indeed there was new life growning inside of her. It was new, fragile, but there and growing. Smiling but not trusting her voice, she locks eyes with the young man who had worked his way into all of their hearts and mouthed a thank you to him. He smiled and nodded, telling her with his eyes that she wasn't alone.

Seeing Setsuna smile, Hotaru is a little confused but smiling all the same. Pregancy meant babies, and that was always a good thing. "How did you get pregnant Setsuna-mama?"

"Errr." Setsuna looks to Haruka and Michiru who both panic a bit before she takes the lead and smirks in Ranma's direction. "Well you see, it has to do with Ranma's special cookies. The reason they're so special is because if you eat to many of them you can get pregnant."

Hotaru nods enthusiastically, "Ooooooh, no wonder you wouldn't let me or Usa have any." Hotaru giggles, "Usa's going to be so mad in the future when I tell her."

Setsuna nods, "I'm sure she will be."

Distracted and sighing with relief, Ranma isn't full paying attention as Akane and Shampoo float towards Kasumi for a talk. Life was Chaos as usual, which meant he could relax a bit.

Makoto decided now was the time to remind him that jinxing himself was stupid. "Rawr!" Pouncing on the man, Makoto dragged him under the water. Life was good. And Ranma had no real complaints at the moment.

Though maybe someone could drop off a pallet or two of energy drinks? He'd probably need them.

-AN-

And we're ending Part 1 here. Honestly I'm going to work through the outtakes for a few canon chapters and a few requests. I'm also going to spend some time catching up on the story for the older series I haven't watched in a long time. So a Tenchi marathon Tenchi GXP, and probably the later Sailor Moon series as well dealing with Galaxia and the Starlights. I want Part 2 to run smoothly. I love all your engagement and reviews and messages that you've sent me. Without them, I wouldn't be writing stories like this. Now. I haven't obviously decided about story type or rather, since I like how I'm doing that now. Hopefully I'll see you soon. There will most likely be a few Ranma 1/2 and Sailor Moon one shots in the mean time while I get my mind working properly. So I hope you stick around for those. Till later, raise a glass and enjoy life.