Despite Jun telling his charges that they had the day off to rest and relax, none of the three found themselves able to do so. It seemed that none of the trio found doing nothing particularly relaxing. Somehow, Ranma had gotten word that it was a free day for them and had showed up in the morning to work with Emeralda, claiming she was the only one recently to give him a good warm up.

Zelgadis had wanted to get straight to having his blade blunted as soon as possible. Jun suggested taking it to Power loader over at the support items workshop. The former hero gave directions on how to get there and the chimera was eager to get started.

Of course, this whole conversation had taken place with Michiru serving as intermediary since it was her phone that was being used for the text conversation. The tanuki girl had wanted to spend some time thinking about her costume and hero name but figured that could wait until she helped make sure her cantankerous friend made it to his destination. Besides, Jun had told her she could get advice for her costume from Power Loader as well.

So it was that Zelgadis and Michiru found themselves standing in front of the rather large and imposing steel doors to the Development Studio. Michiru was about to knock when what seemed like an explosion rocked the walls and traces of smoke began leaking from the door's frame. Eyes wide, Michiru slowly turned her head to address the sorcerer "A, are we sure we have the right place?"

To Michiru's shock, Zelgadis seemed completely unfazed by the chaotic sounds that continued to emanate from the supposed lab. Looking annoyed by his furry companion's hesitation, the rock-encrusted swordsmen said "What? Mages routinely experiment with the results often being less than calm. Research can be messy, isn't this why those doors look reinforced?"

"You mean this is normal where you're from? No wonder your so pissed all the time…" Michiru cheekily shot back, still parked in front of the smoking door.

"Damnit, you know full well why I'm…You know what, just knock on the door, we're not getting anywhere like this." Zelgadis snapped, turning his head away, clearly flustered.

Taking a moment to stare after her blue-skinned companion's odd behavior, Michiru went to finally knock, only for one of the doors to swing open suddenly, smashing the poor tanuki girl in the face as an angry sounding man yelled back into the room "Damnit, Hatsume, if you're going to flood the studio with smoke, at least open the door!"

Michiru fell back from the sudden assault on her face, unable to even brace her fall with her tail, it was so sudden. As the tanuki girl covered her aching snout, Zelgadis first looked to her and seeing she was only slightly hurt but otherwise ok, turned to the offending shirtless older man, who had apparently not even seen what happened. Clenching his fists, the chimera shouted "Hey, what the hell is wrong with you! You just hit someone with your damn door!"

Higari Maijima or Power Loader as he was professionally known, turned back, eyes wide, though you'd be hard pressed to see them given the outlandishly large excavator claw-like helmet he was wearing. Still, he sounded genuinely concerned as he rushed over to Michiru "Oh, I'm so sorry…Kagemori-san was it? I guess I got a little worked up! Are you ok?"

Zelgadis had moved to check on Michiru as well but was brought up short by the sudden appearance of a girl standing at the entrance, some odd binocular-like contraption over her eyes and a wild grin to go with her pink dreadlocks and full figure. Between her mad smile, the ocular gear and the smoke framing her, the chimera wasn't sure if he should be worried or terrified. The answer would soon be revealed to be yes.

"Wow, sensei, and here you were just saying how dangerous my babies were, and you're taking people out with doors!" the previously named Hatsume half cackled.

Seeing the look in Zelgadis' face, Higari countered "Back off Mei, you're scarring the normies!"

Watching Michiru get back to her feet with her teacher's aid, Mei huffed "Its not my fault if they can't recognize genius!" Then realization donned on the dreadlocked inventor "Oh! Are you two here to request equipment? I have so many babies to show off!"

Seeing his student was clearly making the two guests rethink their choice to come here, the claw helmeted red head tried to reassure them, saying "Please don't worry about my student, she is brilliant but harmless, mostly. If she's right and you're here to see us, please step inside so we can talk."

Recovering from her sudden blow and the shock that was Mei Hatsume, Michiru tried to put on as cheerful a face as she could and forced out "Right, we'll do just that, right Zel?"

As Michiru glanced at her companion to confirm he would be following her, he frantically shook his head no, his previous nonchalance completely vanished, replaced by an ever-growing fear of the madness that lay within. Grabbing the sorcerer's hand, Michiru admonished "Come on you big baby, you heard Power Loader, it'll be fine!"

Zelgadis did resist, forcing Michiru to enlarge an arm and drag the poor chimera inside. Once there though, the place looked fairly calm, aside from one corner that almost looked like a mechanic hoarder's junk yard. There were work benches with seating set along the side, which is where Michiru and Zelgadis sat, turned to face Higari, who was seated at a computer monitor. There were actually a row of computers, likely for designing and it was one of these others that Mei also took a seat, though she was moving about so much, one was left to wonder why she bothered to sit at all.

When at first no one spoke, Michiru had to elbow Zelgadis to get him started, as he seemed entranced by the all of the technology he had never conceived of before not to mention the pile of odd contraptions lying about in a heap, all so new to him. The poke worked, even if the chimera's hard skin hurt Michiru a bit. Zelgadis brought his attention to the two denizens of the studio when he spoke "Right, sorry. I was told by our…mentor, Jun Sanada that you may be able to blunt my sword for me." As he spoke, the swordsmen unhooked his sheathed blade from his belt and held it aloft in his hands.

"Huh, gotta say, I've never got a request like that before." Higari mused as he took the offered weapon and unsheathed it before examining the blade.

"Does that mean you can't do it?" Zelgadis replied, his voice a bit accusatory.

"No no, I can do it, it's not really that hard or anything, it's just…I've never seen a metal like this before." The support teacher explained.

"Oh! Oh! Let me see!" Mei excitedly injected, shoving herself into Higari's personal space to get a close look. "It…looks like metal." Mei added once she stared at the sword, having removed her apparatus to reveal yellow eyes that appeared to have crosshairs in them.

Taking a step back to regain some separation from his student, Higari finally got a moment to look at the sword more closely "Hmm…I've never seen anything like this alloy before. That the reason you want it dulled instead of just using another weapon?"

"Yes" Zelgadis replied, as Mei looked between the two, clearly confused "This sword was crafted so it could react to my…quirk. A replacement would be, a world away, let's say."

A knowing smirk played on the older man's features as he asked "I assume at some point you'll have it sharpened again? "

"You got it," the sorcerer-swordsmen confirmed "When I go home, that is the plan, so please don't dull it any more than you have to."

Higari nodded as he placed the sword back in its sheath and held it by his side "Consider it done. I'll just need to get the right tool out from storage and I can knock it out right away."

Never one to miss a chance to see a new piece of equipment, Mei shook in place as she begged "One of your babies? I'd love to see it sensei!"

With a sigh that was equal parts exhausted as it was proud, Higari added "We usually save metallurgy for third years who are interested but if you want, you're welcome Hatsume. Here." Then, throwing the dread-locked pinkette a set of keys, the support teacher added "It'll be in the second basement locker, X-42. Bring a cart."

Eagerly catching the keys, Mei offered a mock salute as she called out, already turning to leave "Got it, sensei!"

As Mei left, Higari turned back to his guests and asked "So, was there anything else you needed? Kagemori-san, did you just come to keep Greywards-san company?"

Michiru, who had kept quiet during the exchange about Zelgaidis' sword with nothing to really add, beamed when she was addressed. "Yes, Power Loader! Sanada-sensei said we needed to start thinking about hero names and costumes! He said you might be able to help with costuming?"

"Ah, yes, I am licensed to design costumes, though usually students have their own designs, can't say I'm always up with the trends, you know?" Higari explained, wondering if she wanted design help or another request altogether.

Pulling out a note pad she had been keeping tucked behind her and hidden by her jacket, Michiru proudly displayed her painfully crude drawing of her in her proposed costume as she exclaimed "Oh, you don't have to worry about the design, I got that down! It's great, right?"

Higari and Zelgadis peered at the…design and the veteran crafter struggled to offer a reassuring smile but mostly succeeded in cringing. Zelgadis wasn't even trying to hide his unfavorable reaction as he struggled to make out what the squiggles were trying to convey. After a few moments of silence, Michiru asked, disappointment in her voice "You…don't like it?"

Unable to look the tanuki girl in the eye, Higari tried to let her down gently "Its…a good start. Why don't we get you in touch with a sketch artist or someone who is a professional designer?"

For a moment, Michiru looked absolutely dejected before an idea popped into her head "Hey, Emmy is a great artist, I'll ask her! While I'm at it, I can see if she's thought of her own design yet. What about you, Zel? You thought about your costume?"

Scoffing, Zelgadis folded his arms and frowned, still finding the idea of being a hero distasteful but replied "I don't see anything wrong with what I was wearing when I got here. Just do that."

"Ah, you're no fun at all, Zel! Fine then, Power Loader, while I work on the design, I had a question about clothing specifically."

"Sure, kid, shoot."

"My, um, quirk, lets me morph parts of my body into other animals and after watching other heroes on the internet, I saw some that had costumes that could change when they did. Mt. Lady, for example."

Nodding, the crane-helmeted man confirmed "Yeah, with gigantification quirks and transformation quirks that conform to a set shape we can make materials that can shrink and expand to those perimeters. Yours would be tricker since you said it could be any animal, right?"

Slipping off her shoes, Michiru explained "I'm mostly talking about my shoes, I'd love not to shred them every time I go all bird." Then, to demonstrate, the tanuki girl shifted her feet into talons "The only other form I usually take with my feet are cheetah legs for speed and the different shape causes my shoes to slip off. If I only had two or three forms I usually took, could you do something like that?"

Higari didn't look optimistic as he thought. After a moment, he replied "That would be tricky. Shoes need to be much more supportive than clothes that just covered the body. I would need to call a colleague or two and see what I can do."

Again looking disappointed, Michiru answered in frustration "Oh, come on, you guys have all these cool robots and you can't come up with form fitting shoes? Don't you have, like, tiny robots that can do it?"

"Ha! You're talking about nanomachines? That's still the stuff of science fiction, kid. We're nowhere near that kind of miniaturization yet!" Higari mirthfully explained.

"Did someone say nanomachines! I could make so many babies if I had my hands on some nano tech!" Mei interjected as she pushed a chart with a large table-mounted instrument on it.

Waving off his student, Higari explained "No, Hatsume, Kagemori-san here was just letting something she saw in an anime or something get the better of her imagination. Be back tomorrow for the sword and if you bring along costume designs, I'll see about getting them fast-tracked, say three or four days? Deal?"

Still abit miffed at being patronized, Michiru forced a smile as she replied "Great! We'll see if Emmy is up for some brain-storming tonight, thanks!"

Offering a nod, Zelgadis added "Yes, thank you Power Loader, I look forward to having my sword back."

The two lighters turned to leave only to have Mei call after them "Are you sure you don't want one of my babies? Swords are so boring and low tech, can't I add a laser to it or something?"

The chimera's shoulders slumped as he stopped, only to have Higari cover Mei's mouth with his hand adding, "Don't mind my over eager student, Greywards-san, we'll take good care of your sword, I promise!"

Having turned his head to listen, Zelgadis looked less than assured as he nodded, Michiru offering a reassuring pat on the back as the two resumed their exit out of, what seemed to the sorcerer, a den of madness.

(X)

Meanwhile, back at the lighter's training hall, Emeralda and Ranma were already well into a spar that saw the greenette attempting to use her morphing abilities more and more in her martial arts. Ranma had just managed to sneak through the amber-eyed girl's attempt to sweep him away with polearms and was about to strike her hard in the head. Just like the day before with Mirio though, Emeralda shifted her hair into a ball of spikes that caused the formally smirking master martial artist to fall back out of the morpher's reach.

The two stood locked in their stances for a moment before Emeralda uncharacteristically spoke "Saotome-sensei, I have a question."

Shifting into a more defensive stance and motioning for Emeralda to attack, Ranma replied "Ok, shoot. Whats botherin' ya?"

Before asking, the amber-eyed girl charged forward. Closing half the distance between them, Emeralda reared an arm back as it shifted into a chain with a weight at the end that she then flung forward at Ranma. The pig-tailed master was surprised as the chain caught his forearm and wrapped around it tight. He wasn't, however, surprised enough to not have the presence of mind to grab hold of the chain and yank hard to pull his opponent off balance.

Instead, Emeralda stood firmly in place. Glancing downward, Ranma saw why; Emeralda had also shifted her toes into rebar she had thrust into the ground, ruining her shoes but keeping her firmly in place. Locked in a stalemate, Emeralda asked her question, her voice straining as she struggled with Ranma "I was in combat with a young man during our test yesterday. Despite his role as a villain, he seemed to refuse to attack me."

Once again surprised by the strength of this newest arrival to this world, Ranma knew that if he wanted to, he could overpower her but was content to struggle with her while this played out, looking thoughtful as he answered "That is strange, I gotta admit. Was there anything else odd about this guy?"

Her face contorting into a frown, Emeralda replied "Yes…despite the hood he wore, I could see his face was red. At first, I thought he was out of breath, but he continued to avoid my attacks despite what I perceived as fatigue."

The smirk returning to his face, Ranma had to hold back a laugh at his apparently oblivious sparring partner "Sounds like he has a crush on you! Is it love at first sight? Oh Emeralda, I'm so sorry!"

The greenette's frown deepened, partly from the response and partly because Ranma appeared to let go of the chain, keeping the chain tight with his raised forearm as he pointed his open palm at her. Still, the girl felt the need to answer, her voice carrying a touch of despondency "I was afraid you were going to say that, Saotome-sensei, though this is not the first time we have met, he acted strangely then too."

"That's a weird reaction to have to finding out someone likes you, Emeralda. I've known many girls your age that would be happy to hear someone likes them. Something you're not telling me? Also, Mōko Takabisha!"

A yellow sphere of energy emanated from Ranma's hand much to Emeralda's shock. The tan-skinned girl had just enough time to shift her free arm into a shield which was enough to protect her from the full brunt of the attack but she struggled to keep upright between being blasted backward and being pulled by Ranma.

Unluckily for Emeralda, she didn't need to worry about it anymore as the attack had served its purpose in distracting her long enough for Ranma to move in and hit the poor girl hard with a series of strikes too fast for her to see.

Doubling over, Emeralda held out a hand to yield as she recovered from the blows. Ranma went over and got a towel while the tan girl calmed her breathing and the pain subsided. Setting an extra towel beside her, Ranma plopped down beside the amber-eyed girl and waited for her to speak. When Emeralda did, there was annoyance in her voice "You…can do more than change sex…they made you hide it, didn't they?"

A shit-eating grin on his face, the older man replied "Yep! That whole one quirk per person thing meant I was stuck picking the sex-changing or my home world's martial arts techniques. My curse's bad habit of getting me wet even when I don't want to didn't really make it much a of a choice. I only get to use techniques like that with other lighters or people who know about us. Now that you're pushing me, I thought it was time to get serious, so great job Emeralda!"

Rubbing her sore mid-section, the displaced morpher looked less than appreciative as Ranma continued "Still, you didn't answer my question."

Annoyed that her change of subject had not worked and still not feeling well enough to just stand up and leave, Emeralda finally answered, refusing to look at her new master in the eye "I am hardly like other girls. Besides, it's not like this is the first time this has happened, I just…it doesn't feel right."

That was a new one for the sex-changing martial artist. Still, he had drawn this out, he needed to follow through and asked "What do you mean, it doesn't feel right? In what way?"

Not used to speaking about herself or how she felt, the amber-eyed girl struggled to think of the words, taking several moments looking about the training hall in hopes she could articulate her thoughts. Finally, slowly, she said "It's just that…I do not feel myself to be…attractive?"

Seeing Ranma neither question nor condemn her comment and in fact, the older man motioned for her to continue, she spoke again "I realize that others see me that way. Michiru called me hot a few days ago and…back home several boys approached me, but I…I have yet to really see myself that way. I know that I am…different and…and I…"

"Emeralda, its ok. We're all a little different here. I only started having this sex changing curse when I was sixteen, and let me tell ya, the next few years of my life were a ride!" Ranma cut in, sounding more supportive than his overconfident jock-ish exterior would imply. "Besides, when you are ready, if you are ready, you'll still have an easier time than your friends will."

Glad to switch her focus from herself to her friends, Emeralda quickly asked, concerned "What do you mean, sensei?"

Realizing he may have overstepped a bit, Ranma rubbed the back of his head and nervously laughed as he saw the worry in the girl's now completely healed eyes as he said "It's just, ya know, I don't know how things were in their own worlds but here, they're seen as having mutant quirks and sometimes that can make life hard for folks like that."

There was a lot said and left unsaid with Ranma's words and Emeralda took a moment to consider them. Looking no less concerned, the greenette said "Michiru has told me people like her in the world she is from are hated and even hunted. Yet she chooses to stay as a tanuki when she could look human. Zelgadis very clearly hates how he looks and always speaks of looking for a way to be fully human again. What…what can I do to help them, sensei?"

Standing up and holding his hand out to his newest student, Ranma knew he didn't have all the answers. No one did, really, but he knew who could help and said as much, "That's more than I can answer, Emeralda. I'm sorry but I can tell you who helped me when I first got here and was still struggling with my unique problem."

Taking the offered hand and standing up, the tan girl suspected she knew whom her master spoke of and voiced it "You mean Hitomi? She has tried to help but she apparently…saw things about me I am uncomfortable with. Is there anyone else?"

"Ah, come on, she hasn't exactly been going around and sharing your secrets, now has she? Emeralda, I really think you, more than the other two, should take the time to talk to Hitomi. She wants to help and she's pretty good at it too." Ranma firmly stated as he moved to get into position for another spar.

Moving to resume, Emeralda sighed, unable to look the pig-tailed martial artist master in the eye again, stating "Thank you for your advice master, I will try."

"That's all I ask Emeralda, now prepare yourself because I'm not holding back this time!"

"I am ready."

(X)

Michiru and Zelgadis returned home in time for lunch, Emeralda and Ranma having finished sparring and cleaned up not long before. The sex-switching martial artist could have left then, and given his long commute back to his dojo, he should have. However, Ranma never could let something like a long trip home get between him and a good meal.

It was a rare moment that everyone currently living in the house was seated at the same time, enjoying Mob's meal. The relative quiet of everyone eating was broken though when Ranma, in between stuffing his face (something Zelgadis was all too familiar with back home) blurted out "Hina-chan, it's been a while now, don't ya think we should have the party soon?"

The three newest lighters stopped eating, looking confused as they turned their attention to the blue-haired telekinetic. For her part, Hina had actually frozen mid bite, her chopsticks held midway to her mouth in front of her. With most of the table's attention bearing down on her, the usually confident girl could only manage a worried "Umm…"

Seeing his senpai's distress, Mob interjected "It, it just didn't seem like the right time, with everything going on, master. We're sorry"

"Aw, come on, we've never waited this long before and if we wait too much longer, it'll seem weird." Ranma bemoaned.

Hina tried to let the older man down gently as she replied "Master, I really don't think-"

The telekinetic was cut off by a fist slamming on the table as Shinra shot up, his sharp teeth showing as he grit them in anger before shouting "We can't have it because one of us is still in the hospital, you big oaf! Or did you forget about Terra!?"

Clearly not happy at being challenged, Ranma stood up as well (though he continued to stuff his face, showing things weren't yet too serious) "Shinra, I know it sucks but we don't know when she's going to wake up, we can't wait forever! Besides, it'll give us an excuse to do it again when she does regain consciousness, right?"

The former fire soldier looked mortified "Is, is that all that matters to you? A party? What, so you can eat more of someone else's food? I don't know why everyone thinks you're so great! Your just some gluttonous moocher who knows how to throw a punch!"

In an instant, Ranma was around the table and gripping the younger man's shirt, lifting him slightly off the ground "I am nothing like that! I earn my keep, you hear me!"

The two guys glared at each other for another moment when, in an effort to defuse the situation a bit, Michiru waved her hand "Uh, excuse me, but what party? Why hasn't anyone mentioned this before?"

With the moment passed, Ranma quickly came to his senses, releasing the shorter young man and returning to his seat, a frown still etched on his face. As he was returning, Hina began explaining "Its…something we normally do every time a new lighter appears. The rest of us gather to welcome them, impart wisdom, and let them know they aren't alone. Nothing about this time has been normal though and with Terra still at the hospital and Xellos gone, it just didn't feel right, you know?"

Michiru was surprised that the haughty Hina could once again show so much empathy and was beginning to wonder why the blue-haired girl seemed to hide under all the bluster.

Much calmer now, Ranma, almost in a pout, interjected "You know that Terra wouldn't want us to stop on her account…"

"That's not the point, and you know it!" Shinra shot back, arms crossed.

As the arguing began to heat back up again, Michiru thought back to that fateful day when she first arrived in this crazy world. Terra had been kind and sweet, and when things got bad, she did what she could to help others just as much as fight. Michiru believed that whatever had happened to the poor girl after Zelgadis and Xellos had arrived, it wasn't Terra's fault she had turned into a glowing pink rage monster. Coming out of her thoughts, completely ignoring the insults being hurled, the tanuki girl just blurted out "Hey Shinra, can we visit Terra some time?"

Instantly, Ranma and Shinra froze before turning to the tanuki girl, each confused and wide-eyed. Zelgadis leaned over and whispered, "You're doing it again, speaking for all of us, you know."

Suddenly, extremely embarrassed, Michiru blushed and looked down. Seeing the furry girl's expression seemed to knock Shinra out of his daze, pointing a thumb at himself as he declared with no small degree of satisfaction "Yeah! I can take you over to see her. I think Terra would be very happy to have you!"

With that decided, Emeralda pointed out what the others seemed to be forgetting "Unless the hospital is owned by UA, are we not allowed to leave the premises? That is, unless someone plans to get injured?"

There was a short pause before Michiru said, slowly and an eyebrow raised "Was, was that a joke Emmy?"

Turning to face her friend, though her expression was still flat, Emeralda replied "Did you think it was funny?"

Unprepared for the answer, Michiru answered honestly "Umm, no, not really."

"Then no." the greenette quickly answered back.

Hina, a smirk on her face from the exchange, offered "Well, we can always ask Sanada-sensei and see what he thinks and get his help. I'm willing to bet they'd make an exception for something like this. Here, I'll take care of it."

As Hina excused herself to make the phone call, Ranma moved to help Mob clean up, leaving Shinra to say "Seriously, thank you guys. Even if they say no...its cool you want to visit her."

Offering a warm smile, Michiru replied "Of course! I thought Terra was very nice! It's the least we could do!" Then, turning to Emeralda, Michiru thought to ask, "Hey Emmy, if you've got time later, can I ask you a favor?"

Nodding, while also looking a bit surprised, the amber-eyed girl replied "Of course, Michiru. How may I help?"

Sounding a bit sheepish to start, Michiru asked "Well, remember that Sanada-sensei told us to think about our costumes, right? Well, I drew up one for me and showed it to Power Loader and…he thought it was a little rough. I thought since you're an artist and all, that maybe you could make a better sketch I can take to him tomorrow. We could do yours too while we're at it!"

A hint of excitement seemed to shine in the tan girl's eyes at the prospect just offered her and Emeralda said with a light smile "Of course Michiru, I would be glad to help. Though I don't have any plans myself to wear anything different than something like my uniform I had on when I got here."

Rolling her eyes, Michiru groaned "Oh, not you too, Emmy! Come on, we'll see if we can't come up with something you'll like and still be different, ok?"

"Fair enough" Emeralda responded.

With that settled, Hina arrived back to say that Jun had thought it was a great idea and would lobby with the principal and police to make sure everyone was on board and would likely happen in a few days. After that, everyone helped finish cleaning and Ranma headed back to his dojo in Yokohama while the rest of the lighters split up.

(X)

In the days since the Camino incident, Emeralda had asked Jun for more sketchbooks and colored pencils to allow her to do more detailed work on her portraits of everyone back home. Along with martial arts, it had become her favorite past time, being the two things that most closely tied her to home, and to Fei. Little did Emeralda know that her hobby would be called on to help others. After all, back home it was Fei's work that everyone praised and his skill that people sought. Hers was a pale shadow of his work, after all since she was just copying him.

Still, Michiru had asked, Emeralda would do her best for her friend. Spending the intervening hours cleaning and organizing her work as well as actually taking some time think about her own costume, the greenette actually found herself a bit excited to sketch for her fellow lighters. As she stared at a blank sheet, several previous attempts having been balled up and tossed in the garbage can beside the desk, the long-expected knock on the door finally came.

Standing up and walking to the door, Emeralda quietly answered "You may enter."

"Thanks, Emmy! Thank you for having us!" Michiru replied as she entered, followed by Zelgadis, who offered a courteous nod. All three of the room's inhabitants were wearing a basic shirt and shorts combos for casual sleeping wear with only Emeralda standing out for still sporting her long scarf, now wrapped loosely around her neck, her arm clamps resting on the desk.

Emeralda offered her guests spots on her bed as she sat back down in her chair, having turned it to face the others. Properly seated, Zelgadis and Michiru had a chance to glance about. Being standard rooms, the layout was exactly the same as each of theirs except this room was now adorned with portraits of many people, several of which the two recognized. Jun and Hitomi stood out right away, beside which was a work that depicted Ranma back-to-back with his female form, each cockily smiling at the viewer. Almost everyone the trio had met so far in this world was up there, including the two of them. Michiru even had several works depicting several of her forms, including her human one. One notable omission was Xellos, Michiru realized and part of her wanted to ask her tan friend about it, along with why her human form was up there.

Then there was the section with people Michiru didn't know and were no doubt from Emeralda's world. There was a cute little pink creature, a giant of a man with green skin and orange hair, likely one of the demi-humans the greenette had spoken of. Then there was what looked like a gun-wielding priest with white, bowl-cut hair, and a man with long black hair and glasses that seemed to have a wisdom about him. A brash looking blonde with tan skin and an eye patch as well as a girl maybe a few years younger than them with silver hair adorned in ringlets. Finally, there was the young man and woman that seemed to be the center of the whole collage of portraits. A strong looking young man with black hair held in a long ponytail and an auburn-haired beauty of grace and pose. Both seemed to be smiling at the two viewers fondly and Michiru couldn't help but wonder if they were related to Emeralda. Something else to ask later.

Realizing Emeralda was waiting on them, Michiru tore herself away from all the people on the wall and got to business "So Emmy, should I just tell you what I had in mind?"

Taking a moment to think, the tan artist replied "Do you have your original sketch? It may make things easier for me to visualize what you have in mind than just describing it to me."

Before the tanuki girl could answer, Zelgadis spoke up "Trust me, it wouldn't help. You're better off starting from scratch, I promise."

After glaring at the rock-encrusted sorcerer, Michiru turned back, a light blush on her face as she admitted "No…after how everyone reacted earlier today, I sorta threw it out. Sorry Emmy!"

Despite herself, Emeralda sighed. She'd only been drawing for a couple of years now, so she didn't exactly have extensive experience and almost none working with others so she was beginning to get nervous that she'd be able to meet expectations. "That…is fine, Michiru. I will do my best. Please tell me what you want and I'll start. Please go ahead."

Smiling from ear to ear, Michiru eagerly started describing her concept, almost too fast to follow "OK! So lets go with a black, skin-tight one piece jumpsuit that's sleeve-less and ends mid-thigh! I was thinking of having two silver bands running up the front of the suit, twisting like a double helix across the front and back! Make sure those bands cross between my boobs, I don't want them going over them and highlighting them, I'm not going for sexy here!"

As Michiru broke to take a breath, Zelgadis added "I've noticed how many of the female heroes here seem to wear more revealing outfits. I take it you have your powers in mind more than anything, right?"

"You got it, Zel! How's it looking, Emmy?" Michiru excitedly asked, leaning over to look at the work. The sketch was still mostly that, just a rough sketch, lacking any detail and no head as yet. Still, it looked worlds better than anything Michiru could do. "You want me to keep going, or you need a minute, Emmy?"

"I will, by necessity, be a bit behind anything you tell me, Michiru but I am fully capable of remembering anything else you wish to tell me." Came the amber-eyed artist's response.

Nodding, Michiru continued "If you could put two narrowed, mean looking eyes embedded in the loop formed by the cross across my chest, just below my collarbone, that would be perfect, and make them completely red. I figure that'll be my symbol! Plus, give me a utility belt with pouches to round out the base look!"

"The base look?" Zelgadis questioned, an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah! I want a red, short-sleeved jacket to wear over everything, ideally with some pockets to keep projectiles for me to throw!" Michiru answered, finishing with a pumped fist, showing just how much she was into this.

Not terribly impressed with the tanuki girl's enthusiasm, Zelgadis crossed his arms and reaffirmed "Well you may want a makeover, Michiru but aside from switching to full gloves and some of these fancy shoes, I'm perfectly happy with my look. Though the cloth itself could be more durable."

"Ohhh? Is that right, Zel? And here I thought you were all about wanting to find a way to become human again?" Michiru teased, though when she saw the perched lips and furrowed brow of the chimera next to her, she knew she had crossed a line.

Refusing to look his furry companion in the eye, Zelgadis looked up, eyes unfocused as he sighed, as if the anger was just leaving him, an exhausted husk being all that was left. That husk finally spoke, his voice wistful "I can see why it's something you might joke about, I keep getting so much further from the possibility of being human again that it is laughable..."

"Zel...I'm so sorry. We all want to get home too, but, but there's nothing wrong with taking some joy from our time here, right?" Michiru gently countered.

Zelgadis turned to answer, at first annoyance on his face but his features softened as he was about to speak, only to be cut off by Emeralda "I've completed the base design, please tell me what you think Michiru."

Zelgadis and Michiru both eagerly looked over at the completed sketch, glad for a distraction. Michiru, though, was extra pleased because she loved what she saw. Her head was still missing, to be added later, Emeralda assured her, but what was there was standing with arms outreached to either side and the outfit looked absolutely great. Though the jacket was by itself to the side. Emeralda then confirmed that she'd do a sketch with the complete look later.

With her own costume done and Zelgadis being stubborn about his, Michiru hoped to get Emeralda in on the fun as she said "Emmy, you can't be like this stick in the mud! There's got to be something we can do for your costume!"

To the tanuki girl's surprise, Emeralda actually had a ready answer to the question as she nodded, pulling out her necklace from under her shirt "Actually, at the bare minimum, I want this design included in my outfit. After doing your costume, I think I'll use a sleeveless style as well but otherwise, aside from some minor changes, I will stick fairly close to my uniform."

Michiru sighed as she stood up "I guess that's the best I can hope for but if you ever want to change it, promise you'll come to me first, ok!"

A soft smile on her face, Emeralda nodded, taking note that Michiru had drifted over to the portraits of herself and was looking at them. After a moment, Michiru asked "Mind if I have the one of me as a human Emmy?"

Raising an eyebrow and responding slowly, the amber-eyed girl said "You may, but why Michiru? Did I do a poor job recreating the look?"

Turning and waving her hands defensively, Michiru quickly replied "No! No! You did an excellent job, looks just like me! That's…kind of the problem, actually…"

Now Zelgadis was growing concerned and the two locked eyes briefly before Michiru turned away as the chimera said "What's wrong Michiru? I didn't take you being the type to be bashful."

"It's just, it's not me, you know? I'm super happy the way I am now and now that I'm in a world where looking like this doesn't matter, I'd rather not think about my human form is all!" Michiru explained, rolling up the picture.

Immediately, Emeralda thought back to Ranma's words from earlier in the day. The greenette wanted to share that warning but found she didn't have the words. Looking at Michiru and how sure she was that she was in a better place, Emeralda didn't know how to tell her otherwise. And so, she didn't, looking away in shame at herself and hoping everything would be fine.

Zelgadis was trying to tell Michiru she didn't have to act that way for his benefit and Emeralda could feel the two about to bicker once more so instead she interjected "I'll have all three of our costumes done by morning so you can take them to Power Loader. Is there anything else I can do before we part ways?"

With the other two lighters attention brought back to the reason they had gathered, fight avoided, Zelgadis shook his head that he didn't have anything else. Michiru though, pointed to the two portraits so warmly portrayed and asked "Could I ask about these two Emmy? I can't help but see a resemblance between you and them, are they siblings of yours?"

Again, Emeralda flashed back to their first night in the police cells. To Xellos basically asking her the same exact question and then, again, to the odd man's death, ultimately because of her own failure. For a moment, the tan morpher lost her composure, a haunted look playing on her face. After a moment of silence that felt far longer, Emeralda replied "No, I'm not related to these two, but I guess they are the closest thing to my father and mother that I could have had."

Michiru had noticed the change in expression in her friend, but she was sure it was because it was hard for Emeralda to think about her lost friends and family. The tanuki girl was mildly surprised to hear these two weren't related at all. Given their ages as depicted, it felt like a stretch to think of them as parents. Still, Michiru was glad Emeralda had answered at all and decided not to press further, at least for today. With contraband in hand and answer received, Michiru waved as she moved toward the door "Thank you so much Emmy, I own you one! As soon as we can leave and I have some money, I'll take you for ice cream!"

Smiling again, Emeralda waved and returned Zelgadis' nod as he too made his exit. Again, the greenette was alone, left to work and to wonder exactly why Michiru really wanted that picture. More and more Emeralda was beginning to think that maybe talking to Hitomi wasn't such a bad idea after all.

(X)

Later that evening, in a back alley in a shadier part of town, two well dressed, and yet very threatening looking young men stepped out from the back door of a building. Both wore suits, though upon close inspection one may notice they were ill-fitting and both wore them with simple white undershirts and the jacket open. One wore a pale blue jacket, the other lavender, though both were adorned with cheap gold-colored jewelry to go along with their slicked back black hair and sunglasses, worn despite the sun having already set.

The blue-suited one, Kiyanon, carelessly thumbed the wad of cash in his hand as he exclaimed "What a score, bro! All we have to do is kill one bed-bound girl and we're set for a long, long time!"

The lavender-suited one, Shiryou, slightly more reasonable, replied, a sly smirk on his face "Yeah, it's a little weird the guy wanted us to do it if it's so easy but with a payout this high, it was hard to say no."

Kiyanon scoffed at his partner's concern "You saw the guy, he looked as soft as it gets. Probably couldn't bring himself to get his hands dirty. You know how rich pretty-boy types like him can be, even if he was alittle handsy."

Shiryou's worry, what little there was of it, disappeared as his smirk turned into a full-on grin "That's true! He even got us set up as attendants at the hospital, I can't imagine an easier job! We just slip in, get her alittle too much face time with a pillow and slip out again and we're rolling in the money!"

"Heh, heh, in just a few days we'll be living the high life, I can't wait!" Kiyanon exclaimed, as the two left the alleyway, off to gamble away the advance their benefactor had just given them.

(X)

Surprise! I did say if I could I'd do something for the anniversary! I originally planned for this chapter to be about half as long as a normal one so I could break the chapter into two parts, the other half going out on the normal first Friday of the month. Because this "half chapter" ran so much longer, I've left myself less than half a month to write the next chapter so expect the 7/1 chapter to be shorter than normal, my apologies.

I'll probably said this a million more times but I really do wish I could have more for you more often. I just don't have enough hours in the day to do more than one a month, special occasions notwithstanding.

I suppose it was foolish to ask for input on my ability to tell this story. I'm not one to comment often on others work myself so I shouldn't ask it of you. Near as I can tell, people do read this so I'm happy just knowing that. Thank you for continuing to stick with me and hopefully you'll be with me for the next year!