Chapter One
Tendou Home, Nerima Ward
“Kasumi! Nabiki! Akane!” Soun Tendou shouted, hoping to gain the attention of his three lovely daughters. His long time friend Genma had sent word that he would be arriving with his son today. It was time to inform the girls that they would be gaining a fiancée this day. It was minutes later when his daughters had finally gathered together. “My daughters, my old friend Genma contacted me to tell me that he would be bringing his son here today. We had an agreement that one of you girls would marry his son, made years before any of you were even born.” “What! A fiancée!” came the collective shout from the three girls. “Relax, daughters, I’m sure that Ranma is a nice boy.” It was Nabiki who responded, “You’re sure? Have you even met this boy?” “Well no, but I…” “Let me get this straight. One of us is to marry this boy, a boy that you haven’t ever seen and probably know nothing about. You don’t expect that we might have a problem with this?” “Well no, do you?” “Yes.” was the unanimous response. “I don’t know about my sisters,” Nabiki continued, “But I’m not going to accept an engagement with someone I don’t know.” But her father was no longer listening. He was standing, preparing to head to the door as the bell had been rung. With nothing better to do Nabiki followed her father. Akane and Kasumi just looked at one another, neither saying a word. Soun and Nabiki quickly came running back into the room, both apparently frightened by what they had seen. Akane and Kasumi didn’t have to wait long as the source of their fright appeared just moments later. A large panda was carrying a struggling bundle. The bundle broke the silence. “What are you doing Pop? You’re scarin’ em spitless.” After having spoken she found her self set upon the ground by the panda. Soun had recovered his bearings at this point and spoke to the person who was now standing before him. “Are you…” “Ranma Saotome, sorry about this” the redhead looked to the floor as she spoke, answering Soun’s question. Soun had grabbed Ranma in a hug and quickly realized that something wasn’t quite right. He pushed the diminutive redhead to arms length. His eyes roamed what could only be a female figure. Darkness claimed him as he realized the boy Ranma, was a girl. Ranma stood where Soun had held her; she looked down upon his still form. From beside her she heard one of the girls speak. “Ranma’s a girl.” It was only a short time later when Soun awoke. He saw the sullen face of the girl he’d been holding only moments before, a confused stare on his oldest and youngest daughters, and disappointment etched clearly on the face of his middle daughter. “Real cute, dad, you got us all worked up about nothing.” “I assumed my friend Genma’s son was a boy.” She began to poke at Ranma’s breast. “Does this look like a…” She stopped suddenly as she felt a sudden pain in her wrist. “Could you please not do that?” “Nabiki! Leave her alone,” Akane yelled at her older sister before turning to Ranma. “And do you mind letting my sister go?” “Not at all.” She let go of Nabiki’s wrist. “I…” “Hi, I’m Akane; would you like to be friends?” “Friends?” Ranma pondered. “I don’t have any friends, except maybe mom.” But she had little time for wonder as Akane had moved on. “You do martial arts, right? How about a friendly little match? I’ll show you to the dojo.” Without waiting for any response she began to drag her new friend from the house. Before Ranma knew it, they were facing off in the middle of the dojo and Akane was starting conversation. “You do kempo right?” Ranma answered slowly, uncertainly. “A little.” “That’s good, are you ready?” Akane asked whilst taking a ready stance. “I guess so.” Ranma took no stance; instead she stood there, hands clasped behind her back. She had very little time to see Akane in motion, thus she had little knowledge of the girl’s skill. She’d decided to allow Akane the first move. Ranma didn’t have to wait long as Akane was charging in with reckless abandon. Ranma assumed that Akane thought she could overpower her easily. This girl was arrogant, but Ranma herself had been like that, before a spear thrust nearly removed her kidney. She had only recently healed from that. Ranma would show Akane her folly. As Akane extended her arm in a punch Ranma was already directing its energy away from her body. Then she came inside Akane’s guard striking with an open palm strike to her breastbone. Before Akane’s breath had been fully driven from her Ranma was already leaping past her. Akane felt a foot planted in the center of her back arresting her backward motion. Now, Akane had been violently thrown forward. Before her surprised eyes, Ranma appeared, her arms flying out toward Akane. Akane could only close her eyes, bracing for the pain that was sure to come. “You can open your eyes now, Akane.” She heard the redhead tell her. Akane opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was Ranma’s smiling face. She looked towards her shoulders to find the girls hands pressed gently but firmly against her. She had yet to recover her faculties fully and could only utter one question, one word really. “How?” “You underestimated your opponent. You thought that my slight frame would mean that I was weak and frail, as you can see, that is not the case. Second, you completely underestimated my speed; I am much faster than you. You must learn that there will always be someone who is better than you. I forgot that lesson once, and this was the cost.” She lifted her shirt up to reveal a long scar that ran from her naval to just under her right breast. “I almost lost a kidney, Akane. Never underestimate your opponent, and never let arrogance rule your actions.” Ranma left then, to let the girl ponder her words. She found Kasumi at the entrance to the house. “Ranma," Kasumi paused until she was sure she had the redhead's attention, "let me show you where you’ll be staying.” Kasumi then gestured for Ranma to follow her. It was late in the day when Ranma had a chance to clean herself in the furo. She didn’t really have a choice; Kasumi had somehow charmed her into taking a bath. “I never saw it coming,” Ranma thought to herself. “One minute I decline her offer to take a bath and the next; here I am. Oh well, this is the perfect time to change back, and then maybe I can explain this so-called “curse” to everyone. Ranma stripped herself of her dirty clothes in the change room; proceeding into the furo proper. She filled the wooden bucket with cold water before setting herself on the stool. She dumped the water over her head and began to scrub herself with a soap and brush. After having rinsed herself of soap she settled into the furo. Her form wavered; red hair slowly being replaced by black, her breasts seemingly deflated, as she became he. He sat in the furo, relaxing in the warm water. He used the time he had to reminisce about his life; mostly about his time spent in the Amazon village. The gentle guidance of his new mother, and the not so gentle ways employed by Cologne had helped him greatly to mature into the person he was today. He had learned a lot of hard lessons in the village, and those lessons would help him greatly in shaping his new future. It was at that thought that the door slid open, and in walked Akane. He took a good long look at her body before he noticed that she had grown quite angry. He realized his mistake as Akane turned and left, closing the door behind her. This was Japan, not the village where nudity was commonplace. The Amazons loved the appreciative looks that they received; to them the body was a thing of beauty. However, in the civilized world, such acts could be considered perverted. A piercing shriek filled the air. Akane was obviously of the latter persuasion. “Ah, well,” he said aloud. “Best to get this over with.” He stepped from the bath, wrapping himself in a towel. He began to dry his body as he left toward the changing room and his pack. He dressed himself then stepped into the storm that he had hoped to avoid. Moments earlier Akane’s scream had brought her sisters running. “Akane,” Kasumi called to her sister. “Is something the matter?” “Yeah sis, what happened?” This of course came from Nabiki. “There’s a pervert in the bathroom!” “Oh my, I do hope Ranma is all right. She was in there just now, taking a bath.” Kasumi was truly worried about the well being of her new houseguest. “Why didn’t you just pound him?” Nabiki wondered aloud. “I was afraid. After having lost to Ranma in the dojo I didn’t know if I could take him.” “Ranma must have really shaken your confidence Akane. Ranma’s a girl, that shouldn’t make you doubt your ability to fight a boy.” Nabiki was surprised that one loss could do this to her sister. Oh how she wished she could have seen it. “I didn’t even see her move. She could have killed me before I could even think to stop her. It was Amazing. If one person could move like that, why not another?” “I wouldn’t have killed you Akane.” Came a rough masculine voice that none of the sisters had heard before. Suddenly all attention was on the male that was wearing the same kind of clothes Ranma had been wearing earlier. Akane was the first to speak. “It’s the pervert!” “I’m Ranma Saotome, sorry about this.” At Ranma’s proclamation Akane’s eyes rolled back into her head. Before she could hit the ground Ranma was at her side, supporting her. The sun was setting as the family sat around the table. Akane had joined them a few minutes earlier, having awoken from her sudden slumber. Nabiki was the first to speak. “Okay, we’ve given you your space, now its time to come clean. Who are you, and what have you done with Ranma?” “I am Ranma. And this,” he said indicating the bald man next to him who was slowly cleaning his glasses, “is my father, Genma.” “I can believe that your name is Ranma, but what happened to the girl Ranma?” Surprisingly, at least to Ranma, it was Genma who answered. “How best to explain? I’ve got it!” He suddenly threw his arm out toward Ranma, snagging his shirt. Before Ranma could counter he found himself sailing toward the pond in the Tendou’s yard. He had no way to stop himself; he splashed down into the cold water of the pond. She surfaced, sputtering. “What did you think you were doing, old man?” “Oh what a poor excuse for a son. Weren’t you prepared to give up your life in the pursuit of the art?” Genma returned, acting for all the world as if he were ashamed. “My life, yes!” She screamed, leaping out of the pond. “My ma…” She trailed off, before a wicked gleam formed in her eyes. “Yes, I was prepared to give my life for the art. Then we went to Jusenkyou. You forced me into this body.” She sprang at her father, enfolding him in a hug. “Oh, thank you daddy! If it wasn’t for you I’d still be stuck as a boy.” Genma went stiff in her arms. Only one thought was on his mind. “Nodoka’s going to kill me!” It was the same thought he had when his son brought her head out of the pool at Jusenkyou. He passed out. “That will teach you.” She let her father’s body fall to the ground, turning to address the Tendou’s as she did. “Now that we no longer have to deal with Pop’s antics I can tell you what happened.” “Let’s hope your story fills us in on all the details.” It seemed Nabiki was the only one who had something to add. “I hope so too.” He paused, making sure he had everyone’s attention. “It was while we were still in China. We’d traveled for weeks before we reached Jusenkyou from our last training ground… “Welcome, sirs, to the valley of Jusenkyou.” Their guide informed them, gesturing to the spring before him, each with at least one bamboo pole sticking straight up from their depths. “This don’t look like much Pops!” Ranma yelled to his father, ignoring the guide completely. “Stop whining, Ranma! You sound like a girl! Now get up there and let’s begin.” Genma leapt to the top of one of the poles after speaking, beckoning Ranma to come to him. “If that’s the way you want it!” Ranma followed after his father landing near him on his own pole. “I won’t go easy on you, boy!” “That’s just the way I like it, old man!” Their words finished they leapt from the poles they had chosen. Their blows were fast and furious, each intended to bring pain to the other. They were taking their time, slowly building up the pace of their spar. They leapt from pole to pole, springing about with reckless abandon. The wind picked up with the tempo of their blows, threatening to pull them from their precarious perches. Genma was the first to falter, failing to block his son’s kick. He found himself falling, there were no poles near enough for him to grab, no way to stop his descent. With a mighty splash, the water swallowed him up. Ranma was left upon his pole, waiting for his father to emerge. After a moment he called down to the pool below. “We done already, Pop’s?” The guide began to speak; pulling Ranma’s attention from the pool his father had fallen into. “This very bad, sir fall into pool of drowned panda, very tragic tale of panda…” He was cut off as a large black and white form erupted from the pool. Ranma was caught completely off guard and was easily sent down to the waters below. His splashdown was nowhere near as spectacular as his father’s. Ranma sensed immediately that something was seriously wrong. It wasn’t until he heard the guide’s next words that he made the connection. “Terrible tragedy, young sir. You fall into the spring of the drowned girl. Very tragic story of girl who drown in spring 1500 year ago. Now, whoever fall in spring take body of young girl. “…It was only later that we were shown that hot water could change us back, but cold water will return to us our cursed forms. However, I am not of the belief that this body is a curse, though if you were to tell my father I would deny it vehemently. I have found certain benefits to being female, especially since it kept me alive back in China.” Soun rose from his place after Ranma had finished his story. “Your curse isn’t so bad then. Ranma, meet my daughters, Kasumi, age 19; Nabiki, age 17; and Akane, age sixteen. Choose one; she will be your fiancée.” “Oh he wants…” Nabiki began. Ranma held up her hand and began to speak, cutting off the middle Tendou sister before she could finish. “Hold it! You’ll not pawn me off on another of your sisters so easily. I suggest that we get to know each other first, and then we can make a levelheaded decision. Besides, Mom will have to meet you girls; it is up to her to decide if you meet her approval.” “Your mother, hmm? How is Nodoka these days?” “I’m sorry sir; I don’t know how she is doing. I haven’t seen her in over ten years. I was talking about my Mother, Xian Pu, of the Chinese Amazons. I was adopted by her while in the PRC.” “So, you’re a citizen of both the PRC and Japan?” Nabiki asked with a strange gleam in her eye. “Yes. The Amazon’s have a lot of sway with the government. It doesn’t take much for them to get what they want.” “You don’t say. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so hasty. I…” “Nabiki is it?” Ranma wasn’t quite sure if that was who she was addressing. At her nod she continued. “We can discuss the engagement later. If your father agrees to my terms I would like to go to bed. I’ll need to rest before school tomorrow.” “As long as you are willing to take the engagement seriously I can abide by your terms. By the way, when is your mother coming? I would like to know so we can prepare for her arrival.” “Mom and Grandmother will be here by the end of the week. Her village owns a building here in Nerima that will house a restaurant. They are there now, getting everything set up. They won’t have time to get away to see me until the grand opening this Saturday.” “Very well, we’ll see you in the morning.” Kasumi awoke sometime past one in the morning. There was something happening in her house, something that was affecting its wa. It wasn’t the snoring form of Genma Saotome that was lying where Ranma had left him. It wasn’t her sisters who were sleeping comfortably in their beds. It wasn’t her father, mumbling about his wife, her mother. No, it was the young pigtailed boy; or had she gone to bed a girl? Something dark was invading her dreams. Kasumi had to stop it; she had to bring peace back to her house. She got up from her bed and grabbed a robe to cover her long nightdress. Then she proceeded to the guest room. Ranma’s mumbling grew louder with each step she took, but it wasn’t the closing distance that was to blame. The nightmare was getting worse by the second. Kasumi hurried her pace, reaching the door much quicker than expected. She flung the door to the side, nearly throwing it from its track. There, surrounded by moonlight was the thrashing form of Ranma Saotome. She was covering her head, almost as if she were trying to ward of blows. Ranma was writhing around, tears in her eyes as she called for help. She called for help from her father, but he was not going to come in this dream. She called for her mother, begging her to stop the pain. Kasumi sat herself next to the girl, legs folded beneath her. She placed her hands under the girl’s shoulders, lifting her into a sitting position. She pulled the girl close, hugging her and stroking her hand across the lustrous red locks falling unbound against her shoulders. Ranma’s sleeping form threw her arms around Kasumi and held tight. Kasumi began to whisper softly to Ranma, telling her that she would be okay, that she had come to help. Ranma began to calm in the arms of Kasumi, who had gone from whispering words to singing a sweet melody that her own mother had used to chase away her nightmares. Ranma was soon sleeping peacefully against Kasumi, but her arms would go nowhere, Ranma refused to budge. Kasumi unfolded her legs from beneath her and lay down with Ranma still clutching her. After a moment Ranma shifted her position, pulling free her arm that Kasumi was laying on. She snuggled close to Kasumi who was averse to leaving the girl. It was obvious she needed someone there; someone to give her their love. Shampoo watched the scene from the window, completely unnoticed. She shed a tear for the pain her child had suffered, but smiled as someone was there who could chase the pain away. “Sleep well my child.” She whispered softly before disappearing into the night.

Chapter One

Tendou Home, Nerima Ward

“Kasumi! Nabiki! Akane!” Soun Tendou shouted, hoping to gain the attention of his three lovely daughters. His long time friend Genma had sent word that he would be arriving with his son today. It was time to inform the girls that they would be gaining a fiancée this day.

It was minutes later when his daughters had finally gathered together. “My daughters, my old friend Genma contacted me to tell me that he would be bringing his son here today. We had an agreement that one of you girls would marry his son, made years before any of you were even born.”

“What! A fiancée!” came the collective shout from the three girls.

“Relax, daughters, I’m sure that Ranma is a nice boy.”

It was Nabiki who responded, “You’re sure? Have you even met this boy?”

“Well no, but I…”

“Let me get this straight. One of us is to marry this boy, a boy that you haven’t ever seen and probably know nothing about. You don’t expect that we might have a problem with this?”

“Well no, do you?”

“Yes.” was the unanimous response. “I don’t know about my sisters,” Nabiki continued, “But I’m not going to accept an engagement with someone I don’t know.” But her father was no longer listening. He was standing, preparing to head to the door as the bell had been rung. With nothing better to do Nabiki followed her father. Akane and Kasumi just looked at one another, neither saying a word.

Soun and Nabiki quickly came running back into the room, both apparently frightened by what they had seen. Akane and Kasumi didn’t have to wait long as the source of their fright appeared just moments later. A large panda was carrying a struggling bundle.

The bundle broke the silence. “What are you doing Pop? You’re scarin’ em spitless.” After having spoken she found her self set upon the ground by the panda.

Soun had recovered his bearings at this point and spoke to the person who was now standing before him. “Are you…”

“Ranma Saotome, sorry about this” the redhead looked to the floor as she spoke, answering Soun’s question.

Soun had grabbed Ranma in a hug and quickly realized that something wasn’t quite right. He pushed the diminutive redhead to arms length. His eyes roamed what could only be a female figure. Darkness claimed him as he realized the boy Ranma, was a girl.

Ranma stood where Soun had held her; she looked down upon his still form. From beside her she heard one of the girls speak.

“Ranma’s a girl.”

It was only a short time later when Soun awoke. He saw the sullen face of the girl he’d been holding only moments before, a confused stare on his oldest and youngest daughters, and disappointment etched clearly on the face of his middle daughter.

“Real cute, dad, you got us all worked up about nothing.”

“I assumed my friend Genma’s son was a boy.”

She began to poke at Ranma’s breast. “Does this look like a…” She stopped suddenly as she felt a sudden pain in her wrist.

“Could you please not do that?”

“Nabiki! Leave her alone,” Akane yelled at her older sister before turning to Ranma. “And do you mind letting my sister go?”

“Not at all.” She let go of Nabiki’s wrist. “I…”

“Hi, I’m Akane; would you like to be friends?”

“Friends?” Ranma pondered. “I don’t have any friends, except maybe mom.” But she had little time for wonder as Akane had moved on.

“You do martial arts, right? How about a friendly little match? I’ll show you to the dojo.” Without waiting for any response she began to drag her new friend from the house.

Before Ranma knew it, they were facing off in the middle of the dojo and Akane was starting conversation. “You do kempo right?”

Ranma answered slowly, uncertainly. “A little.”

“That’s good, are you ready?” Akane asked whilst taking a ready stance.

“I guess so.” Ranma took no stance; instead she stood there, hands clasped behind her back. She had very little time to see Akane in motion, thus she had little knowledge of the girl’s skill. She’d decided to allow Akane the first move.

Ranma didn’t have to wait long as Akane was charging in with reckless abandon. Ranma assumed that Akane thought she could overpower her easily. This girl was arrogant, but Ranma herself had been like that, before a spear thrust nearly removed her kidney. She had only recently healed from that. Ranma would show Akane her folly.

As Akane extended her arm in a punch Ranma was already directing its energy away from her body. Then she came inside Akane’s guard striking with an open palm strike to her breastbone. Before Akane’s breath had been fully driven from her Ranma was already leaping past her. Akane felt a foot planted in the center of her back arresting her backward motion. Now, Akane had been violently thrown forward. Before her surprised eyes, Ranma appeared, her arms flying out toward Akane. Akane could only close her eyes, bracing for the pain that was sure to come.

“You can open your eyes now, Akane.” She heard the redhead tell her.

Akane opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was Ranma’s smiling face. She looked towards her shoulders to find the girls hands pressed gently but firmly against her. She had yet to recover her faculties fully and could only utter one question, one word really. “How?”

“You underestimated your opponent. You thought that my slight frame would mean that I was weak and frail, as you can see, that is not the case. Second, you completely underestimated my speed; I am much faster than you. You must learn that there will always be someone who is better than you. I forgot that lesson once, and this was the cost.” She lifted her shirt up to reveal a long scar that ran from her naval to just under her right breast. “I almost lost a kidney, Akane. Never underestimate your opponent, and never let arrogance rule your actions.”

Ranma left then, to let the girl ponder her words. She found Kasumi at the entrance to the house.

“Ranma," Kasumi paused until she was sure she had the redhead's attention, "let me show you where you’ll be staying.” Kasumi then gestured for Ranma to follow her.

It was late in the day when Ranma had a chance to clean herself in the furo. She didn’t really have a choice; Kasumi had somehow charmed her into taking a bath.

“I never saw it coming,” Ranma thought to herself. “One minute I decline her offer to take a bath and the next; here I am. Oh well, this is the perfect time to change back, and then maybe I can explain this so-called “curse” to everyone.

Ranma stripped herself of her dirty clothes in the change room; proceeding into the furo proper. She filled the wooden bucket with cold water before setting herself on the stool. She dumped the water over her head and began to scrub herself with a soap and brush.

After having rinsed herself of soap she settled into the furo. Her form wavered; red hair slowly being replaced by black, her breasts seemingly deflated, as she became he. He sat in the furo, relaxing in the warm water.

He used the time he had to reminisce about his life; mostly about his time spent in the Amazon village. The gentle guidance of his new mother, and the not so gentle ways employed by Cologne had helped him greatly to mature into the person he was today. He had learned a lot of hard lessons in the village, and those lessons would help him greatly in shaping his new future.

It was at that thought that the door slid open, and in walked Akane. He took a good long look at her body before he noticed that she had grown quite angry. He realized his mistake as Akane turned and left, closing the door behind her. This was Japan, not the village where nudity was commonplace. The Amazons loved the appreciative looks that they received; to them the body was a thing of beauty. However, in the civilized world, such acts could be considered perverted.

A piercing shriek filled the air. Akane was obviously of the latter persuasion. “Ah, well,” he said aloud. “Best to get this over with.” He stepped from the bath, wrapping himself in a towel. He began to dry his body as he left toward the changing room and his pack. He dressed himself then stepped into the storm that he had hoped to avoid.

Moments earlier Akane’s scream had brought her sisters running.

“Akane,” Kasumi called to her sister. “Is something the matter?”

“Yeah sis, what happened?” This of course came from Nabiki.

“There’s a pervert in the bathroom!”

“Oh my, I do hope Ranma is all right. She was in there just now, taking a bath.” Kasumi was truly worried about the well being of her new houseguest.

“Why didn’t you just pound him?” Nabiki wondered aloud.

“I was afraid. After having lost to Ranma in the dojo I didn’t know if I could take him.”

“Ranma must have really shaken your confidence Akane. Ranma’s a girl, that shouldn’t make you doubt your ability to fight a boy.” Nabiki was surprised that one loss could do this to her sister. Oh how she wished she could have seen it.

“I didn’t even see her move. She could have killed me before I could even think to stop her. It was Amazing. If one person could move like that, why not another?”

“I wouldn’t have killed you Akane.” Came a rough masculine voice that none of the sisters had heard before.

Suddenly all attention was on the male that was wearing the same kind of clothes Ranma had been wearing earlier. Akane was the first to speak. “It’s the pervert!”

“I’m Ranma Saotome, sorry about this.”

At Ranma’s proclamation Akane’s eyes rolled back into her head. Before she could hit the ground Ranma was at her side, supporting her.

The sun was setting as the family sat around the table. Akane had joined them a few minutes earlier, having awoken from her sudden slumber. Nabiki was the first to speak.

“Okay, we’ve given you your space, now its time to come clean. Who are you, and what have you done with Ranma?”

“I am Ranma. And this,” he said indicating the bald man next to him who was slowly cleaning his glasses, “is my father, Genma.”

“I can believe that your name is Ranma, but what happened to the girl Ranma?”

Surprisingly, at least to Ranma, it was Genma who answered. “How best to explain? I’ve got it!” He suddenly threw his arm out toward Ranma, snagging his shirt.

Before Ranma could counter he found himself sailing toward the pond in the Tendou’s yard. He had no way to stop himself; he splashed down into the cold water of the pond. She surfaced, sputtering. “What did you think you were doing, old man?”

“Oh what a poor excuse for a son. Weren’t you prepared to give up your life in the pursuit of the art?” Genma returned, acting for all the world as if he were ashamed.

“My life, yes!” She screamed, leaping out of the pond. “My ma…” She trailed off, before a wicked gleam formed in her eyes. “Yes, I was prepared to give my life for the art. Then we went to Jusenkyou. You forced me into this body.” She sprang at her father, enfolding him in a hug. “Oh, thank you daddy! If it wasn’t for you I’d still be stuck as a boy.”

Genma went stiff in her arms. Only one thought was on his mind. “Nodoka’s going to kill me!” It was the same thought he had when his son brought her head out of the pool at Jusenkyou. He passed out.

“That will teach you.” She let her father’s body fall to the ground, turning to address the Tendou’s as she did. “Now that we no longer have to deal with Pop’s antics I can tell you what happened.”

“Let’s hope your story fills us in on all the details.” It seemed Nabiki was the only one who had something to add.

“I hope so too.” He paused, making sure he had everyone’s attention. “It was while we were still in China. We’d traveled for weeks before we reached Jusenkyou from our last training ground…

“Welcome, sirs, to the valley of Jusenkyou.” Their guide informed them, gesturing to the spring before him, each with at least one bamboo pole sticking straight up from their depths.

“This don’t look like much Pops!” Ranma yelled to his father, ignoring the guide completely.

“Stop whining, Ranma! You sound like a girl! Now get up there and let’s begin.” Genma leapt to the top of one of the poles after speaking, beckoning Ranma to come to him.

“If that’s the way you want it!” Ranma followed after his father landing near him on his own pole.

“I won’t go easy on you, boy!”

“That’s just the way I like it, old man!”

Their words finished they leapt from the poles they had chosen. Their blows were fast and furious, each intended to bring pain to the other. They were taking their time, slowly building up the pace of their spar. They leapt from pole to pole, springing about with reckless abandon. The wind picked up with the tempo of their blows, threatening to pull them from their precarious perches.

Genma was the first to falter, failing to block his son’s kick. He found himself falling, there were no poles near enough for him to grab, no way to stop his descent. With a mighty splash, the water swallowed him up.

Ranma was left upon his pole, waiting for his father to emerge. After a moment he called down to the pool below. “We done already, Pop’s?”

The guide began to speak; pulling Ranma’s attention from the pool his father had fallen into. “This very bad, sir fall into pool of drowned panda, very tragic tale of panda…”

He was cut off as a large black and white form erupted from the pool. Ranma was caught completely off guard and was easily sent down to the waters below. His splashdown was nowhere near as spectacular as his father’s. Ranma sensed immediately that something was seriously wrong. It wasn’t until he heard the guide’s next words that he made the connection.

“Terrible tragedy, young sir. You fall into the spring of the drowned girl. Very tragic story of girl who drown in spring 1500 year ago. Now, whoever fall in spring take body of young girl.

“…It was only later that we were shown that hot water could change us back, but cold water will return to us our cursed forms. However, I am not of the belief that this body is a curse, though if you were to tell my father I would deny it vehemently. I have found certain benefits to being female, especially since it kept me alive back in China.”

Soun rose from his place after Ranma had finished his story. “Your curse isn’t so bad then. Ranma, meet my daughters, Kasumi, age 19; Nabiki, age 17; and Akane, age sixteen. Choose one; she will be your fiancée.”

“Oh he wants…” Nabiki began.

Ranma held up her hand and began to speak, cutting off the middle Tendou sister before she could finish. “Hold it! You’ll not pawn me off on another of your sisters so easily. I suggest that we get to know each other first, and then we can make a levelheaded decision. Besides, Mom will have to meet you girls; it is up to her to decide if you meet her approval.”

“Your mother, hmm? How is Nodoka these days?”

“I’m sorry sir; I don’t know how she is doing. I haven’t seen her in over ten years. I was talking about my Mother, Xian Pu, of the Chinese Amazons. I was adopted by her while in the PRC.”

“So, you’re a citizen of both the PRC and Japan?” Nabiki asked with a strange gleam in her eye.

“Yes. The Amazon’s have a lot of sway with the government. It doesn’t take much for them to get what they want.”

“You don’t say. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so hasty. I…”

“Nabiki is it?” Ranma wasn’t quite sure if that was who she was addressing. At her nod she continued. “We can discuss the engagement later. If your father agrees to my terms I would like to go to bed. I’ll need to rest before school tomorrow.”

“As long as you are willing to take the engagement seriously I can abide by your terms. By the way, when is your mother coming? I would like to know so we can prepare for her arrival.”

“Mom and Grandmother will be here by the end of the week. Her village owns a building here in Nerima that will house a restaurant. They are there now, getting everything set up. They won’t have time to get away to see me until the grand opening this Saturday.”

“Very well, we’ll see you in the morning.”

Kasumi awoke sometime past one in the morning. There was something happening in her house, something that was affecting its wa. It wasn’t the snoring form of Genma Saotome that was lying where Ranma had left him. It wasn’t her sisters who were sleeping comfortably in their beds. It wasn’t her father, mumbling about his wife, her mother. No, it was the young pigtailed boy; or had she gone to bed a girl? Something dark was invading her dreams. Kasumi had to stop it; she had to bring peace back to her house.

She got up from her bed and grabbed a robe to cover her long nightdress. Then she proceeded to the guest room. Ranma’s mumbling grew louder with each step she took, but it wasn’t the closing distance that was to blame. The nightmare was getting worse by the second. Kasumi hurried her pace, reaching the door much quicker than expected. She flung the door to the side, nearly throwing it from its track. There, surrounded by moonlight was the thrashing form of Ranma Saotome. She was covering her head, almost as if she were trying to ward of blows.

Ranma was writhing around, tears in her eyes as she called for help. She called for help from her father, but he was not going to come in this dream. She called for her mother, begging her to stop the pain. Kasumi sat herself next to the girl, legs folded beneath her. She placed her hands under the girl’s shoulders, lifting her into a sitting position. She pulled the girl close, hugging her and stroking her hand across the lustrous red locks falling unbound against her shoulders. Ranma’s sleeping form threw her arms around Kasumi and held tight.

Kasumi began to whisper softly to Ranma, telling her that she would be okay, that she had come to help. Ranma began to calm in the arms of Kasumi, who had gone from whispering words to singing a sweet melody that her own mother had used to chase away her nightmares. Ranma was soon sleeping peacefully against Kasumi, but her arms would go nowhere, Ranma refused to budge. Kasumi unfolded her legs from beneath her and lay down with Ranma still clutching her. After a moment Ranma shifted her position, pulling free her arm that Kasumi was laying on. She snuggled close to Kasumi who was averse to leaving the girl. It was obvious she needed someone there; someone to give her their love.

Shampoo watched the scene from the window, completely unnoticed. She shed a tear for the pain her child had suffered, but smiled as someone was there who could chase the pain away. “Sleep well my child.” She whispered softly before disappearing into the night.