The characters contained within this story are owned by Takahashi
Rumiko or whomever wrote Sailor Moon. No infringement of copyright is
intended. This work to be distributed for free, unchanged, crediting
the current author.
This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Sailor Moon. To make the two
stories fit together the way I wanted, I needed to shuffle the dates at
which a few things occur within the main timeline of Sailor Moon. I bow
my head in shame: please forgive. We also have guest appearances by
Slayers and 3x3 Eyes.
Die hard fans of Ranma may also notice a very subtle change to it's
story timeline...
This story is dedicated to the letters A, and K and the number 8.
Visit my website at
http://www.fl.net.au/~fire
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| Destiny's Child |
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Ranma Makes A Friend
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Modern technology was a wonderful thing. It took less than a day for
Ranma to make her way to the lands where she and Akane had once had
their home and dojo. When she reached the hot springs, she was so
angered by the public baths that had been erected there that she almost
tore the place to the ground. How dare they? This place was a shrine to
his wife! Every rock, every blade of grass, every spring was a record
of their love, and these people had walked all over it!
Filled with anger, little Ranma stalked into the main reception of the
hot springs resort. Looking around for the owner, she spread her
senses, and searched. In moments, her anger left her: all around, all
she could feel were people's happiness. Sounds drifted to her ears:
children and adults laughing, happy couples in quiet conversation,
lovers walking hand in hand.
Looking around, Ranma felt like crying. This was still a business, and
it was there for profit; but the customers were there to be happy. When
Ranma left his home centuries earlier, he had made a pyre of his home.
The ashes of his wife were scattered over the springs which had brought
her such joy in her lifetime. Now, everyday, people came from around
the country to share that joy. Ranma could not think of a more
beautiful tribute to his wife.
Even as a tear started to form in the corner of her eye, an attendant
came up and smiled nicely. "Hello, little lady. Have you lost your
parents?"
Ranma pulled herself together. Crying in a public place! Hardly fitting
behaviour for a real man, an Amazon, a mystic, a Monk or a rebel. No,
it was perfectly acceptable behaviour for him to cry at his wife's
grave. "No, Just remembering. There is a particular pool I would like
to hire. Who can I see to make a booking?"
The attendant smiled indulgently. Such a brave little girl. All alone
in a big building, just her pack and caved staff. Even as she looked
around, she could not see the girl's parents, but she knew they would
be watching from the shadows. The little girl was probably trying to do
her best to help mummy and daddy by doing the booking for them. At the
reception desk she sat down and pulled out a guide to the springs that
they had.
Her petite customer studied it for a while, and eventually pointed to a
spring on the far side of the compound. "That one please. I want to
book it for the whole night."
The attendant was rather surprised. Most of the public springs were
around thirty to sixty degrees, that one managed to average at least
seventy. "Are you sure that's the one your parents want? This one here
has a similar name, and it's much nicer to soak in."
Ranma sighed. It could be bad in China, but here people treated you
like a child, just because you looked like one. Hauling her pack onto
her lap, she searched through it and brought out a handful of notes.
The exchange rates had been a bit poor, but she had converted quite a
large amount of Chinese and Polish funds. Dumping the pile of notes on
the table, she covered them with a small hand.
"Listen, lady. I might look like a kid, but I'm not, OK? My 'mummy' and
'daddy' have been dead longer than you've been alive. I know how hot
the spring is, and I want it for the whole night. Just me. No-one else.
Screens up for privacy. Just little old me. Understand?"
The attendant clamed up at this. She might be only twenty, but she was
quite a bit older then this girl. If she thought she could talk to her
in that fashion! Standing up she walked around the desk and took the
girl's arm. With a slight pull, she tried to lift the girl off her
seat. "Enough of that language, young lady! Come on, we're going to
find your parents right now!"
Needless to say, this was not the recommended way of securing the co-
operation of a Joketsuzoku Amazon, who happened to be the living master
of the School of Anything Goes Martial Arts. Focusing her Ki to anchor
her position, she replied with a voice as cold as ice. "You will remove
your hand now, or I will remove it from your arm."
The attendant was too preoccupied with trying to shift the incredibly
heavy child to notice what she was saying, or even how she was saying
it. She had reached the point where Ranma's temper was almost at an
end, and she was visibly yanking and dragging on the girl when her
manager arrived. Ranma instant fixed his gaze and let a small fraction
of her battle aura appear in her eyes.
"I was trying to hire a spring for my personal use when this woman
assaulted me. Unless you wish further consequences, I suggest you
remove her instantly."
After that little display things went much more smoothly. The attendant
was whisked off, and the quantities of money easily allowed her to hire
the spring of her choice. As soon as she was at the spring, Ranma
heated some water and changed to a man.
Stepping into the spring, Ranma moaned at the heat, and let the tears
trickle down his face. This spring had always been Akane's favourite.
While it was painfully hot, it was also warm enough not to trigger his
curse. It was a place that they could spend their time together as man
and woman, secure that even rain and snow would not interrupt. You
couldn't spend too long in the spring before hyperthermia began to set
in, but every minute was precious when the Kami conspired against you.
Ranma spent almost the whole night either soaking in the pool, or
cooling off in the chilly air beside it. By the time the morning came
around, he felt more at peace than he had at any time while he was
studying relaxation as a Monk. Somehow, after spending this time with
the ghosts of his past, he had come to accept them more. With the
rising of the sun, Ranma took one last soak then climbed out. A splash
of cold water later, and she was ready to take on the world.
Buying a map of Japan, Ranma settled in a cafe and looked over her
options. She could go south-west, and try to track down where her
family had ended up. The last she had heard about Kasumi and Nabiki,
they had both moved to Kyushu. It was a big island, but she had plenty
of time. Eventually she discarded that idea. No one would know her, and
so many generations had passed she would hardly be related to whomever
she found.
Patting her little bird-type pet, she leaned back and blew out a deep
breath. If you cannot re-establish your roots, make new ones. Selecting
the largest city on the map, she paid for her drink, put her pet Takuhi
on her shoulder and went off to Tokyo.
In two weeks she started elementary school. In four weeks she was
changing schools. She had been this age for so long she had forgotten
what it was like for children. In two weeks she had discovered that her
academic standing was far below par. Her general knowledge and
specialised knowledge in other fields was tremendous, but her knowledge
of recent history, or contemporary authors was terrible. Hardly
surprising, she had left Japan long before what was considered either
recent or modern history. As for current events...
Her other main problem was a little more physical. You average twelve
year old is not inclined to jump into fourth story windows, or jog
twenty kilometres before breakfast. For that matter, most of the girls
in her class would not be able to beat the entire Martial Arts club
(instructor included), or be able to do most of the swim training
underwater, holding their breath. Most students also tended to have
parents who had not been dead for four hundred plus years.
In short, two weeks of school made her a freak and an outcast.
Backwards mentally, and overdeveloped physically, she was shunned. The
Saturday of the second week, she left school and never returned.
Selecting another school at random, she plotted her strategy.
Before she enrolled, Ranma got herself a foster family. They were a
nice couple, and they were thrilled when social workers sent Ranma - or
Tendo Ai as she told people. Officially she was now a girl, a
surprisingly developed nine and a half, and ready to start school. She
had studied some children in a park, and had a fair idea how they
played, and what they were capable of physically.
School turned out to be a fun and exciting place. She was one the
biggest kids in the class for the first year or two, then she was
normal, and by the time she was in elementary school, people were
talking to her 'parents' about vitamins and grow supplements, she was
looking a little small for fourteen.
Ai's best friends were the daughter of a local Okonomiyaki chef, and
another girl who mother was a sole parent, working in a pharmacy to
support the girl. It had started out innocently enough, Ukyo (the
budding chef) had invited Ai and Kikyo over for dinner. Kikyo could not
make it that first night, so Ukyo had challenged Ai to a Martial Arts
tournament to see who could get the first Okonomiyaki her father made.
Ukyo's father, a big bearded man, had watched in pride as his little
daughter battled with the bigger girl. They were both ten, and
enthusiastic fighters. His daughter had put on a good show, and had
eventually lost to the other girls strength and development. He
chuckled when he handed little Ai the food, and thought how things
would change in years to come.
The next day Kikyo joined them for dinner, and while three sets of
parents watched from near the yatai, the little kids fought with happy
abandon. Covered in dust and grinning ear to ear, the three had proudly
walked up to the yatai and demanded that he cook three at once: it was
a draw.
The three were almost inseparable for the next few years. Kikyo lost
interest in Martial Arts, and instead became an artist. Ucchan and
Aichan continued to fight for their food every time they ate, either at
Ukyo's or Ai's. When the girls were all thirteen, it was Kikyo who
caught the first glimpse of Ranma's boy form. Over the last couple of
years Ranma had noticed that the Kami did not seem to be paying him as
much attention, he seemed to be able to spend much more time as a guy,
maybe as much as five percent of a week.
In the weeks after being spotted, Ukyo and Kikyo took to waking up
early and trying to watch the handsome man as he went for his morning
walk and workout in the park. Ranma was in the middle of a Kata one
morning when he called them from their hiding place and introduced
himself. Giving them the name Tendo Ranma, the girls leapt to the
conclusion that he was Ai's big brother. He did not try and disillusion
them, preferring to have them as friends than scaring them away as some
kind of perverted freak.
By the time the trio had reached fifteen and entered high school, Ai's
age was beginning to show seriously, and Ranma was beginning to think
it was time to move on. Ukyo was having other ideas. She had met the
man of her dreams, and would soon be old enough to marry him. While
Ranma looked a few years older, he was an ideal catch: cute, strong,
and friendly. Either as a pair or a trio, the friends had gone out
together many times, and Ukyo had decided that it was time she tried to
take the next step in their relationship.
It was to be Ranma's last night with his foster family. They had been
extremely kind to him and he needed to repay that kindness. A few
months prior, he had managed to contact a company in Hong Kong. It was
the evolution of the investors which had managed his business so long
ago. After proving his credentials, he was stunned to discover the
wealth which had accumulated over time. Smart management had made him
rich, and he had not even tried.
Now he transferred a hefty sum to bank account in his foster parent's
name, and wrote them a long letter of goodbye. He explained that Ai
loved them dearly, but she had found her real family. The explanation
in the letter was designed to discourage them, and the sum of money,
apparently donated by Ai's parents, was designed to be some
compensation. Leaving the letter and bank book in the kitchen after
school, Ai took her pack, prized possessions, walking stick and left.
She would miss her friends, but she would never forget them.
That evening Ukyo and her father arrived at Ai's foster parents. Since
they caught the couple as they were arriving home, no-one knew of Ai or
Ranma's departure. Ai's parents had met Ranma a number of times, but
the explanation they had was the same as Ukyo: she was Ai's brother,
and lived separately since he could not support his sister. When Ukyo
told them of her long friendship with Ranma, they whole-heartedly gave
their blessing for her to be his fiancée. After all, if they were Ai's
'parents' surely they were his too.
It was not a formal betrothal, but Ukyo was now officially Ranma's
fiancée, at least until she was eighteen, and the decision could be
reversed. Ranma seemed like an intelligent young man, so he would come
to realise the value of parents helping their children organise their
life like this.
Neither Ai nor Ranma came home that night. It was not until the next
morning that they found Ai and Ranma's letter. Ukyo cried for days at
the loss of her friend and fiancée, and vowed that she would find them
some day.
As for Ranma, he was sitting in a train, idly watching Tokyo roll past.
He had not liked leaving friends and family, but it was time to move.
If he stayed too long, people would begin to form strong attachments
like Brush or Cologne did. He did not want to hurt anyone like that
again. Best to make them sad now, than distraught later.
Sitting in the train carriage, all alone bar her staff and pack,
looking to all the world like a young girl out for a day trip with
friends, Ai was surprised when he heard a woman's voice. She had not
seen the woman enter the carriage, and she had not been here prior to
the last stop. When a light flashed past the train, it shined straight
through the woman: she was just a spirit.
"Tendo Ranma, I need your help, and I can offer my help to you."
Ranma was surprised. Not so much at the appearance of a spirit in a
train carriage; she had seen spirits many times before, and even had
one as a pet. What surprised her was the fact that the spirit knew her
correct name. Most spirits were neither smart nor particularly well
informed about happenings on the physical plane.
"Greetings, spirit. What is it that you wish?"
"Ranma, I have a great story of woe to tell. Will you listen to what I
say?"
Ranma nodded. Just a glance and a careful probe with his Ki had told
him what he expected. The tall, dark haired woman was purely a
projection. All she could do was talk, and even speaking and being
visible pushed the bounds of her spiritual presence. The only threat
she posed was if she surprised him and went 'boo'.
"For many years I have worked for a wise and benevolent leader. He
dedicated his life to spreading his peace and wisdom to all people that
he could. Wherever he went, people obeyed his teachings and
acknowledged his greatness. However, a great tragedy had befallen us."
The woman moved over and sat on the seat next to him. She gestured to
herself and passed an arm through his chair. "As you can see, I have
been reduced to this spiritual form. It is my duty to prepare for his
arrival, and to help bring him here. Now, this is what I am reduced
to."
Ranma nodded and mumbled his consolation. Spirits on the whole tended
to complain a lot he found. It was usually better to let them get it
out of their system, and they would go away of their own free will.
"Ranma, I know much about you, and I can see the power of the curse
that holds you. Even though I am in this weakened form, my powers are
great. To be able to bring my master here, I will need a physical body
so that I might perform the tasks which are needed. I have come to you
to offer an exchange.
"It is within my power to separate your cursed body from your own, and
to take that body as mine. If you accept, I will join with you, and
work from inside. Over time, I will be able to break the magic which
holds these bodies together. You will be free of your curse, and I will
be free of mine."
Ranma sat in shock. It had been his dream for so long now, and some
spirit was actually offering it to him. Ranma leaned back in the chair
and tried to evaluate her. It was a strange tableaux which held for
several minutes. A mature, beautiful spirit sitting their calmly while
a serious looking twelve year old reviewed her.
Eventually Ranma asked for more details and the spirit complied.
Despite his hope (and fear) the process would not be a quick one, and
would take several years to complete. Magic as powerful as this would
not be easy, and could not be done alone. The spirit had another ally
in Tokyo, and he would be her foster father while they both worked to
free Ranma from his curse. At any time she desired, Ranma would be free
to leave, and keep his curse forever is she desired.
The talked for quite a while till eventually Ranma accepted. Before the
spirit joined him in his body, to begin weaving her subtle magic, he
had one last question. What should he call her?
"My name is Mistress 9, and you shall be known as Tomoe Hotaru."
(
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