Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 and it's characters are the product and property of Rumiko Takahashi and Viz video.

Chapter Seven

By Michael Fetter

At the close of the Silver Millenium . . .

The battle had lasted over three months before the first of the Sailor Scouts fell to their enemy. A shudder had run through Queen Serenity then as she felt the unmistakable loss. It was a pain that tore at her heart and would have had her weeping if not for the need to act.

The Negaverse had been picking up speed recently. Attacks became more savage and costly, like sharks after getting their first taste of blood. The Outers had kept the battle to the rim of their solar system, but eventually their strength failed.

The Negaverse pushed forward and the Scouts were forced to give up more and more ground, losing whole planets to the evil. Now, having been cornered in her own court, the Queen glared up angrily at the pulsating energy that was the source of all of her woes. Metalla. The thing had not true form except a purple gathering of all the evil energies its powers created.

Her castle was in ruins, parapets, palisades, turrets, spires, all had crumbled. The roof to her main hall had been rent from its place and the Queen could see right up into space, to the Earth in the background. The Scouts had given the fight their all, but now lay unconscious at her feet, their energy wasted.

Metalla made noises that could be laughter, but came out like the gurgle of a man choking on his own blood. It brought chills to the Queen to even look upon this evil monster.

Steadfast in her resolve to deal with this enemy the only way left to her, Queen Serenity lifted up her wand with both hands and aimed it to the center of the evil energy before her, gloating its victory so prematurely. Serenity cast a glance to her daughter, protected futilely by the Prince Endymion. What was left for her daughter once this monster had destroyed everything? She may not be a queen of the Moon Kingdom, but at least her daughter would have a future. "Good luck, my daughter. Protect her Sailor Scouts."

Metalla felt the rising power of the Queen and quickly began to gather its own energies. Once the queen was gone nothing would stand in its way. "NoW yOU dIe!!"

"AAAA!!!" Serenity screamed as the Negaverse power began to assault her. Only the power of her wand could protect her for a few seconds before everything would go black. With all of her effort, she pushed aside the pain and concentrated on her last act to protect her people.

The wand in Serenity's hands turned silver with the power coursing through its form. The energy was pure and good, passing over the fallen of the Silver Millenium and cutting into Metalla. A rip was torn through the universe. Winds pulled at anything not permanently affixed to the ground.

In her last moments of consciousness, Queen Serenity saw her Scouts protected within the energy spheres that would carry them from this place. The Silver Millenium was over, but maybe sometime in the future her daughter could restart the peace of the Moon Kingdom.

Space was cold.

The plants did not shine with culture and civilization. All had vanished with the wake of Metalla.

The darkness was a peace to the solar system, which had been plagued with disastrous battles of magical proportion. While in the darkness one could see clearly the end of the Moon Kingdom they could also feel the peace brought on by the Silence. Was this the Silence brought on by a Sailor Scout her people had prophesized? The Queen found it ironic. While everyone had feared the powerful Sailor Saturn, it was their trusted queen who completely destroyed the kingdom.

"I . . won," Serenity whispered in surprise. She should have died with the last effort to remove Metalla from the universe.

Serenity found herself drifting through the darkness of space, protected by a small sphere of blue light. Her body was spinning slowly as it drifted towards the pull of the nearest and strongest gravity. "The earth . .," Serenity saw the blue green planet becoming larger as she fell towards it. Her body rolled further and she saw the Moon. Her Moon was pot-marked and cratered from the war. A great crater had formed where she and Metalla had faced off. The Moon had been scoured clean of any trace of civilization, it was a dead planet once again.

"The moon kingdom is gone . .," it saddened Serenity to say it, but she knew nothing could last forever. In time, the champions of love and justice would return, the Moon Kingdom would return. She wished she could see her daughter when that time came, when Princess Serenity became a queen in her own right. "I love you, daughter."

Serenity was falling faster now, a valley of springs miles beneath her. Her hand clenched the wand close to her chest as she found the atmosphere of the Earth envelope her. There was nothing she could do. Serenity barely had the energy to protest her fate, but she did not fear it after fighting so hard to protect the future.

~

Ami's friends were strangely quiet as they entered the school grounds that day. It was understandable considering all they had learned yesterday about Ranma's mysterious powers. How this had happened was still a mystery. The idea that Ranma may have the reincarnated spirit of Queen Serenity gave them all pause. How should they act around the redhead now?

A green coupe pulled up to the curb outside the school's main gates and the group of girls watched as Ranma stepped out. Usagi was still a little jealous. Raye and Minako were still a little angry. Makato felt even more justified in her respect of the redhead's abilities. No matter what, things were going to change and hopefully for the better.

Seeing her friends standing silently and unsure, Ami chose to walk over by herself. She, at least, could be considered almost a friend to Ranma. Ami sidestepped the usual gawkers of Ranma's and greeted her, "Hi Ranma, Mamoru."

"Morning, Ami," Mamoru replied from with the car. He'd leaned over a little to see her face through the passenger side window. He looked to Ranma and gave her a little, nervous smile. "I'll pick you up from work."

Ranma nodded, "Okay."

Mamoru drove off and was replaced by other's dropping of high school kids. It was a fairly pleasant day, only a few clouds in the sky and stillness in the air that held a bit of the morning chill.

Ranma wore the girl's uniform now, much to the redhead's ire. She looked uncomfortable in anything that girlish and was irritated by the way boys looked at her legs and chest if they ever tried to talk to her. With the anger and fighting power Ranma possessed it was a miracle there were as few injured students. The last, a senior here, had come on to Ranma thinking his upperclassman status and popularity in sports would be enough to impress the redhead.

With as much thought as one might give the task of gutting a fish, Ranma-chan removed his arm from her shoulder, twisted it behind the guys back, ripped off his shorts, and tied him to a basketball hoop. Though boys were wary of asking her out, Ranma did become popular with girls who had been used by the same arrogant jock.

"Hope I didn't freak you out too much with that fight in the mall, Ami."

Ami was shocked by the sudden voice as they walked through the courtyard. She had been trying to work out how she should act around Ranma, maybe find some reason why she acted this way. Waving her hands, "It's all right. This is the home of the Sailor Scouts so it's nothing too unusual."

Ranma nodded and they entered the school, both heading for the same class. "I'm still itchin to give'em a piece of my mind, those little tramps."

Ami started to pale a little. "You . . You don't really mean-"

There was a sigh and Ranma shrugged. "Nah, I guess not. Maybe the Mars chick, but I'd be happy to never see'm again."

Ami let out her breath. Something would have to be done about this adversity Ranma had for the Sailor Scouts. If only there were some way to make peace.

The wall decided to explode then as Ranma and Ami entered their classroom.

"That be arrange," a high-pitched, feminine scream announced. The class gasped as a girl with long purple hair burst through the wall with a pair of odd-looking maces in her hands. She was an exotic beauty like no one had ever seen before, a close cut Chinese garb that accentuated her every curve. It would have been perfect except for the scowl and angry, "Ranma! Shampoo kill!"

Skipping backwards to avoid the first swing of the bonbori, Ranma put up her hands defensively. "Shampoo!" Ranma jumped into the hallway and leapt over another of the Amazon's attacks. The way Shampoo was going people were going to be hurt. Ranma had to lead the girl out of the school before she could fight.

The two exploded out of the front doors with a crowd of students following the fight from a safer distance.

"Ranma Shampoo kill!" The Amazon maiden announced again, smashing a wall Ranma had been backed up against.

"Wh-what do we do?!" Usagi asked as she and the rest of the Scouts appeared at the front doors. Ranma and Shampoo had passed them in the halls, missing knocking Raye in the face by an inch.

Watching the fight pensively, Ami spoke in her worried voice, "We can't help Ranma like this."

"Should we change then?" Minako asked.

"But Ranma doesn't even like us," Raye countered, her anger at the redhead still visible even if it was now unspoken.

Looking over the fight, Makato finally crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the doorframe. "Ranma can take care of herself." She knew it was true, after all they had seen of Ranma's power no normal human fighter could stand up against the redhead.

The fight went on for another minute with Ranma bouncing about the courtyard, easily evading every one of Shampoo's attacks. She still tried to stop the Amazon, but the Chinese girl wouldn't listen. Tempers flared as one of Shampoo's bonbori broke through a small fountain in the courtyard.

A soaked Ranma-chan wiped the water from her eyes and glared at the Amazon as she smirked haughtily. "Dammit, Shampoo! You got me all wet!" The smirk was wiped away quickly as Ranma rushed across the area and shot a fast front kick to the Amazon's gut.

There were a few whistles from the impressed crowd as the Amazon reached an altitude so distant that she became a speck in the sky.

"Where do you think she'll land?" Ami asked upon approaching the madly huffing redhead.

Ranma set her foot down and snorted, "On the moon for all I care."

~

"Life sucks," was about all Ranma could think of to summarize her life thus far. She was, at the moment, ringing out her wet shirt in the girl's bathroom after the teacher had sent her out. After punting Shampoo into LEO Ranma had been too mad to notice they way others were staring at her, or falling over bleeding. The teacher, a man who taught math, had gotten very red in the face and shooed her out of his class to clean herself up. Ranma-chan had left, trailing drops of water on her way. For some reason more and more girls were beginning to scowl at her.

"Not that I care," Ranma snorted. "Not like I want all of those hentai boys looking at me."

More water spilled out of the white top of Ranma's shirt as she twisted it a little tighter. When it looked finished she opened it up and frowned at the wrinkles. At least it was dryer and wouldn't show off as much.

The skirt came off next and Ranma gave it the same treatment as her shirt.

"Where the hell am I now?!"

Ranma-chan jumped to the ceiling in her surprise of the sudden voice. She hadn't felt anyone approach her. Clinging to a light fixture, Ranma-chan looked to the floor and found Ryouga standing beside a condom dispenser. He was staring at it intently as if it were the reason he was lost right now.

Sighing, Ranma dropped to the ground and pulled on her skirt. "Don't get any ideas, Ryouga."

The Lost Boy blinked and turned on his heel. "Ranma!" He laughed and scratched the back of his head. "Fancy meeting you here!"

"It is the girl's bathroom," she frowned, but did nothing more. Last night had been a great release for her nerves and soul. Finding out that Ryouga had been cursed at Jusenkyou, apparently with the pool she had almost died in, left her at a crossroads. She both hated him and wanted to keep him close. Even the hate was more like a desire to devour him whole and blend their souls together.

When she woke up that morning, on the roof, it was in Ryouga's arms. He'd been with her the entire time as she finally cried herself to sleep. Ryouga just sat there, holding her, watching her. She could feel his aura in her sleep and it chased away the usual nightmares.

Blushing, Ryouga took stock of his surroundings and laughed nervously. He'd accidentally walked into a girl's bathroom before, and if he recalled correctly it was a very painful experience. "S-Sorry bout that."

"You even sound like me," Ranma-chan muttered.

"Huh?"

She waved it off.

Noticing her wet clothing and hair, Ryouga turned away with a blush, facing the condom dispenser again, blushing further. "What happened to you?"

"Amazons happened to me," Ranma stated tersely. It all started when Ranma had beaten Shampoo in a tournament. How was she supposed to know beating an Amazon would get her killed? That was definitely the last time she put her neck out for her gluttonous father.

Ryouga didn't get it, but he nodded like he understood and followed Ranma out the door.

"First fighting in the courtyard, then walking through the school indecently, and now I find you coming out of the bathroom with your boyfriend."

Both teens paused and looked up at the tall, green haired woman that stood before them. She had a little smirk on her face as she regarded them with purple eyes, vastly older than her appearance. She was dressed in a dress suit like the administration wore. Something about the woman made Ranma very uncomfortable, as if she were meeting and old friend with whom she had had a falling out with.

Ranma looked over at Ryouga and found him blushing from the boyfriend remark. He may have a piece of her soul, but it would take a good deal more than that to get her into bed with him. She turned back to the administrator, "I'm late for class."

"And you will be later still," the woman returned. She met the hard glare from Ranma with an amused glance before turning to the boy. Her brows creased as she looked at him, "Go back to class."

"But I don't-" Ryouga started and stopped under the woman's gaze. He nodded and started walking off in a random direction. The woman didn't seem to notice and he sighed. Too bad Ranma got in trouble. This must be all . . . some guy's fault.

~

Setsunna led the redhead to her office. It had taken her a little planning to replace the usual Juuban High counselor, but the Time Gates made things easier. It was only for the day anyway. The normal counselor was at home with a cold.

When the door was closed, she walked around the little desk and sat down opposite of Ranma. Looking into the girl's past had been impossible. Somehow things had become masked around her, like time folded over her footprints and buried them in the snow. She'd been planning the return of the Silver Millenium for too long to have her efforts thwarted by a random factor in the time stream.

This was near the last of her options for dealing with Ranma. After the Time Gates, Setsunna had subtly asked Michiru to look in on Ranma's past, but that had only revealed a confusing kaleidoscope of images riding the ripples of a spring. Whoever Ranma was, she was being protected by Time, which meant she was either a savior, or a great enemy. Either way, she was dangerous to Setsunna's plans.

"I told you he wasn't my boyfriend and I wasn't having sex with him." Ranma had been growling at her since the hallway. Setsunna could really care less if the girl was fooling around, but she needed an excuse to drag the girl along. The boy had been a strange one, easily getting lost within a room with only one door, but he had had no effect on the coming of Crystal Tokyo.

Setsunna sat down in the large leather chair and steepled her hands before her face. "I'm told you recently returned from a trip to China."

"Yes."

"You endured some traumatic event while you were there," she stated. It wasn't written on any file, but it was a good guess considering the attack by the Amazon, Shampoo. "Would you care to tell me about it?"

"Not really," Ranma muttered, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away from the woman.

"You're a very angry girl, Ranma. It would help to let things out."

A bit of Ranma's resistance dropped, but returned with full force a moment later. "Lay off, lady. I don't gotta tell you nothin."

"Something very painful happened to you. Did you lose someone?" Setsunna gauged how close she was getting by the reactions Ranma had. "They were very close to you."

Ranma remained silent.

"Someone you loved? No, a life you lost." Setsunna was getting a little too obvious in her questions, but if Ranma wasn't who she thought she was then the girl would have no idea what she was talking about, or it would sound like psycho-babble. Despite Ranma's unwillingness to speak, the emotions playing over her face were worth more than words. "You used to be someone different, someone with a family, but now you are alone."

Setsunna could see it was getting hard for Ranma to control her emotions. The redhead's eyes were watering and she trembled slightly. It must be her then. Setsunna's smile brightened. She didn't know how or why, but this must be her queen reborn. The aura Ami registered was off, but that could just be a product of being raised on Earth. The face was too round, eyes weren't green, and the hair wasn't blonde, but who else could Ranma be? All that Setsunna had to do now was raise the memories out of their depths.

Standing up and rounding the desk, Setsunna pulled out her broach. Ranma was too busy in her own thoughts to notice. Speaking softly, Setsunna spoke the transformation sequence, "Pluto Power, Make Up."

The redhead blinked when the room lit up in a purple glow. Brushing the back of her hand over her eyes she turned around to look for the counselor. She gasped when she found a naked woman spinning in the air.

As the sequence ended, Pluto stood before the shocked redhead with her staff held in one hand. She brought the tip of her garnet staff to Ranma's forehead, "What was forgotten in the past, is returned to you at last."

A stupid rhyme, she knew, but it wasn't the words that were important but the focus they brought.

Ranma-chan glowed briefly for a moment with a silver light that sparkled for a moment and then drifted away like it was carried off by the wind. "What-?"

Setsunna watched the brief awakening with a frown. "Do you remember now, my queen?"

Shaking the feeling of cloudiness, Ranma blinked at the Sailor Scout and then stood up quickly, backing up for some fighting distance. "What the hell did you just do to me?!" she demanded.

Pluto's eyes narrowed as she glared at the redhead dangerously. The memories should have returned to her queen after using the Time Gates to unlock them. What was happening then? The power readings Ami had gotten, the fact that Ranma was the only one who did not look like her Silver Millenium counterpart - this was not her queen. "You disgusting puppet! How dare you imitate my queen!"

Ranma could see the Scout building up an attack and she felt her own power suddenly begin to grow. Without a word, she thrust her hands forward and a blue ball of ki striped with silver rocketed into Pluto's gut and sent the woman sprawling out into the hall.

"What's wrong, old woman?" Ranma-chan taunted as she sauntered out of the counselor's office and into the hall. "Can't keep up? The kiddies were faster than you."

Setsunna glared at the girl and stood up shakily. She hadn't done close quarters combat in some time. With her staff she opened a portal to the Time Gates. "Another time, girl."

Ranma frowned as she watched the Sailor Scout go. A crowd had formed in the halls when they heard the explosion and the people began to whisper. Ranma's knuckles popped as she strained her fists. With a growl she put her hand through the nearest locker and stormed out of the school. "Why can't they just leave me alone?"

~

It was a quiet restaurant almost a mile from the apartment Ranma and Mamoru shared. A simple establishment with all the common, ornate, Chinese pieces you would expect to find in a place that called itself the 'Lily Pond'.

The front door chimed and in stepped a pretty blue-haired customer. "Hi, Ranma."

The redheaded Japanese girl in a blue Chinese dress bowed. "Hi, Ami. Welcome to the Lily Pond. How many?" It was easy for Ranma to pretend to be nice because deep down, buried beneath Jusenkyou, she really was. Just don't ask her if it's true.

"Just one," Ami answered raising her pointer finger.

Smiling and picking up a menu, Ranma nodded to have Ami follow her. "This way."

"How is work, Ranma?" Ami asked pleasantly and sitting down at her table. Ranma gave her a small booth next to the wall.

The redhead shrugged. "Okay. It's pretty much the only place that will let me wear my Chinese clothes."

Ami took a moment to glance at the menu, but she already knew what she wanted. Passing the menu back, "How about some vegetarian ramen."

"Anything else?"

"No, thank you." Ami smiled again as she watched Ranma walk off. She was a strange character, Ami decided. A walking contradiction. Ranma didn't even move like a girl, too exposed. She seemed delicate, but her speech was rough. Feminist one moment, and a sexy restaurant hostess the next. Ami shook her head at the idea of 'Ranma'.

The Mercury computer began to beep. "Now what?" Ami groused and went through her book bag. To her surprise a daemon signal had just appeared very close to her. Ami dialed up the others on her communicator. "Guys, I'm picking up a daemon signal."

"Where are you?" Makato asked.

"With Ranma at her work."

Raye made an affirmative grunt, "We're on our way."

Ami gasped and ducked under the table as the front door to the restaurant suddenly exploded inwards. A shower of glass and wood splintered into the dining area and sparkled over the heads of customers.

"Ranma! Shampoo kill!" A bonbori toting, purple-haired Amazon charged into the restaurant. She looked in the mood for blood, probably a little sore (literally?) from the ass kicking she'd gotten from Ranma the last time.

Ami blinked and looked back at her computer. "It couldn't be."

Picking up a tray of orders, Ranma returned to the main room and raised an eyebrow at the chaos Shampoo had created. "Do you mind, Shampoo, I'm working here!"

Smirking and twirling her bonbori, Shampoo dropped into an offensive stance with one of her round maces low and the other raised over her head. She watched Ranma put down a bowl of ramen in front of Ami. When her back was turned Shampoo jabbed forward. "No mind to Shampoo!"

"Here's yer order, enjoy!" Ranma perkily bobbed her head so casually that Ami couldn't tell if she had dodged the strike or it accidentally missed.

Another swipe; Ranma ducked and neatly placed down another order at a different table. The surprised customer watched her turn with a spin to avoid the next swipe. "What?!"

The Amazon growled and tightened her grip on the bonbori. "Ranma make fun of Shampoo?!"

"You could wait until I'm done with work. You might trash the place," Ranma remarked with a grin and sidestepped another attack.

Bring the maces into an overhead strike, Shampoo busted through the next customer table Ranma served. "Shampoo no take orders from Ranma!"

Ranma blocked the spray of food with her serving tray. "Hey, quit it!" She spoke with more than words though. Shampoo found herself speeding through the kitchen doors though not of her choice.

The manager chased Shampoo, covered in noodles, back out into the main area. He took one look at the mess his establishment had become and dragged his fingers through graying hair. "Oh! My restaurant!"

Shampoo tossed aside tables and customers on her way back to Ranma. Most of the people had fled, but some met encouragement at the end of Shampoo's bonbori. Ranma snatched one of the unfortunate victims out of the air and thrust him into a fleeing girl's arms. "You're really asking for it, Shampoo!" Ranma ducked another strike and came up with a quick kick to the Amazon's chin and then her extended wrist, knocking away one of the bonbori.

None of them noticed a small seed begin to sprout beneath the stores jade dragon near the back. That was until it was hit by Shampoo's lost weapon.

"OW!" The daemon rubbed his head. "How dare you hit me, the Jade Dragon! I will have your pure heart crystal for that!" With a snarl the daemon took form into a tall woman made entirely of Jade. A firm grip on the stone pillar the dragon had been sitting on, she casually tossed the piece at the two young fighters.

Ranma and Shampoo both felt their danger senses flair and ducked beneath the passing stone slab.

"What are you doing to me?! I'll be ruined!" The manager moaned pitifully as his entire front was destroyed by the daemon's attack.

"Sorry! I'll take care of it Chen-san," Ranma yelled over the screaming. With a quick flip, she placed both feet on top of Shampoo's head and buried the girl beneath the debris. Pulling up her ki, Ranma started forward for the daemon.

The Jade woman smirked and held up a hand. "Jade's Revenge!"

Ranma's eyes went wide as she found herself confronted by a wave of green energy. A quick glance over her shoulder showed a blue haired girl only starting to pull herself out of her seat. There wasn't much time, Ranma changed directions and dived for the girl, tackling her to the ground. "Ami!"

Shampoo pulled herself from the ground and watched Ranma pull someone beneath a table before the area exploded in a green light. When it was over a few hundred pounds of debris from the collapsed ceiling was all that was left. "Good, Ranma dead." Nodding to herself, Shampoo made ready to leave when the Jade Dragon stepped in her way and glared at her. "What you looking at?"

"DIE!"

Shampoo gasped and dove for the ground again.

With the moon at their backs, standing at the entrance of the restaurant, a group of fuku-clad girls appeared. Their leader wore her hair in long blonde odangos and stood at the front of the group. "Hold it right there!" Her three comrades took dramatic positions beside the blonde. "Restaurant are places to enjoy good food and company. I am Sailor Moon!"

"Sailor Mars!"

"Sailor Jupiter!"

"Sailor Venus!"

"And on behalf of the moon, we'll punish you!" Sailor Moon finished, pointing at the Jade Dragon.

Shampoo blinked and dodged another blow from the daemon. She'd already exchanged a number of hits while the Scouts had been introducing themselves. "Aiyah. Stupid girls need fight more and talk less." Flipping over the daemon, Shampoo got a good look at her 'saviors'. "How stupid girls fight in bimbo clothes anyway?"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT HUSSY CALLED US BIMBOS?!" Sailor Mars' eye twitched and an aura of red began to surround her.

"Not now, Mars!" Sailor Jupiter spat and brought her hands forward for an attack. "Jupiter Thunder Crash!"

The daemon's back arched as the lightning struck her.

Sailor Venus quickly followed up the tall Scout's attack. "Venus Love Me Chain!"

Jade Dragon wasn't about to be taken that easily though. "Jade Darts!" she screamed, knocking away the magical chain and forcing the fighters to scramble out of the way.

Coming back up onto one knee, Sailor Mars put her hands together and aimed for the daemon. "Burning Mandala!"

There was a grunt of effort on the daemon's part to block the attack. She skidded a few feet backwards before the fire dissipated. A snide remark was ready until she found herself facing the leader again.

"Moon Therapy-" When midway through her third spin Jade Dragon decided to toss another green shard. "EEEYAH!"

The rate at which the daemon could toss her attacks was just too much for the Scouts. They remained pinned down, even Shampoo, while Jade Dragon laughed maniacally.

The debris on one side of the room began to shift. Slowly, silver light began to push through the cracks until, "HA!"

"It's Ranma and Ami!" Sailor Moon gasped as she found her friend being supported by Ranma-chan as a heap of wood and cement rained down around them.

"I'm getting sick of dealing with you twerps," Ranma muttered and brought up her free hand at the daemon. "And I'm really getting sick of you guys shredding all my clothes!" Silver flames danced around her form without harming the unconscious girl she supported. A ball of magical energy grew in her palm. "Moon's Righteous Fury!"

Jade Dragon had been ready for Ranma's attack, or would have been if it had conformed to the power levels she'd been expecting. The silver energy blast melted her thrown darts into nothing and continued past. There wasn't time to scream as the daemon was pressed by the attack until fractures developed throughout her body. In a final look of surprise, Jade Dragon shattered into dust.

Shampoo watched the daemon's end with dazed awe. "Aiyah."

"Ditto," Sailor Venus whispered.

Someone stomped on the ground. "That's it!" All heads turned to the restaurant manager whose clothing had been burned and shred. Glaring, he pointed at Ranma, "You're fired!"

Ranma sighed and dropped her head.

"Uh, did I miss something?" Mamoru asked as he drove up in his car.

~

Nerima, Tendou dojo.

"Tough week, Ranchan?" Ukyou asked. She, Ami, Akane, and Ranma were together again for the weekend. It was becoming a ritual. Somehow, someway, Ranma came back to Nerima, and the rest followed. Though the past few weeks at least she had been getting there with the intention of getting anywhere.

"You could say that," Ranma yawned and picked at the blue nightie Akane had her dress in. If she had been a boy this would never have happened, but she hadn't been a boy in almost half a year now. Though the thing was nearly see-through, Ranma didn't mind. It was just her friends here and Akane had been the one to ask.

Akane was someone special, someone that had been growing on her with every visit. She still followed Ranma around like a love-struck fan, but she had the cutest smile and the way she looked in her gi when they were training or sparring . . it was nice.

Ukyou had a potato chip in her hand and was studying it intently before shoving it into her mouth. More relaxed than she had ever been, Ukyou was starting to be a girl again; doing girlie things, wearing girlie clothes. Last week Ukyou had told them about her new boyfriend from school. "I wish those Sailor brats would just take a hint and leave you alone."

Ranma shrugged, crossed her legs in the air above her and watched the toes wiggle.

"Sorry we couldn't be there to help you out, Ranma-san," Akane looked sheepish and glanced away before Ranma could see her face.

Yawning, Ranma rolled over onto her stomach and stared at the rest. "They ain't so tough."

Kasumi and Nabiki were somewhere in the house. Her father and Tendou-san were involved in another game of cheating Go, and Mamoru . . who cared?

The dojo was lit up only by the TV, which they had confiscated from the house. Akane and Ukyou had picked up two movies, a romance and a romantic comedy. Ranma could have put them together in one genre though: crap. It didn't matter what they watched though. Half of the time they weren't paying attention, just talking about this and that, forcing secrets out of Ukyou about the things she did in her all-boy schools, or forcing Ranma into the nightie. How she was to get out of the flimsy material without breaking it was beyond her.

Ami was wrapped in her sleeping bag, claiming there was a cool breeze, with her backpack of clothes, toiletries, and the school supplies she was never without. Instead of the snacks, Ami had asked for some cut up carrots and apples.

Ukyou's face was lost in shadows with her hair down and protecting her from the only light in the dojo. She'd kept her spatula with her (in case Mamoru showed up) and didn't bother with a bunch of extra clothes since she lived so close.

The TV changed Akane's face from red to blue to green and then around again. She lay down on her bedroll beside Ranma, her favorite sensei, and had asked endless questions about all the things Ranma did on her ten-year training trip.

Ami wore blue pajamas, Ukyou was in off-white, and Akane wore ones with flying pigs. All of this made Ranma wonder, why was she left in the nightie?

Finishing another carrot, Ami leaned her head on one hand and watched the redhead. "So who was this Scout that you met, Ranma?"

Ranma tried to recall, "Uhm, she called herself Pluto, I think."

"Pluto?" Ami looked surprised. "Why would she be after you?"

"What difference does it make? A Sailor Scout is a Sailor Scout." Akane nodded solemnly.

Ami frowned, "That's not quite true, Akane."

"What do you mean, sugar?" Ukyou asked.

"Well, there are the Inners and the Outers. Every planet except for the Earth has a Scout and their leader is Sailor Moon. The Inners have been around longer, fighting off the Negaverse." Ranma noticed that Ami seemed to take some pride in this knowledge. She seemed to puff up a little. Ranma figured the Scouts did deserve some praise if some of the things she'd heard about them were true. How they stopped some evil generals from stealing people's energy.

Still, what mattered more to Ranma was personal experience. "Don't mean much to me. They're all just a bunch of no skill, silly-dressed girls."

"Despite what you think, Ranma, the Inner Scouts are good people. I'm sure they've realized it was just a misunderstanding," Ami smiled weakly, embarrassed about apologizing for the Scouts.

Akane snorted, "Some misunderstanding, Ami. They attacked Ranma with their stupid magic."

"Well, look at it from their point of view." Ami began to reason, "Before Ranma showed up the only people with her kind of powers were Scouts and people trying to take over the world."

Ukyou hesitated a moment then nodded in agreement. "She's got a point, Ranchan."

"Yeah, I guess." Ranma could understand that. She treated boys almost the same way. The only difference was she hadn't found any exceptions to her own fights. "Well, if the Inners leave me alone then I'll leave them alone. Except for that Mars chick. Is she an Outer, Ami?" Ranma asked hopefully.

Akane gave a small laugh and shook her head. "Mars isn't that far from the Earth, Ranma-san. Don't you know what the solar system looks like?"

"Uh . ."

Deciding to bail out her friend, Ukyou looked at Ami, "How do you know so much about the Sailor Scouts anyway, Ami?"

"Uhm, newspapers," Ami answered nervously and pulled her backpack with the Mercury computer back further. A quick change of conversation was called for. "So how are things going between you and Mamoru, Ranma?"

Ranma blinked as she found everyone watching her intently.

Juuban, Ice Cream Shop.

Since Ranma came to Juuban, Mamoru and Usagi hadn't gotten as much time alone together. Without any daemon attacks this night, they decided to head out. Of course, this meant Usa would be tagging along with her new friend Hotaru.

The young couple sat together on one side of a booth in Usagi's favorite ice cream shop. After some fruitful discussion on the benefits of original versus fat free ice cream, Mamoru decided he missed the more interesting discourses he had with Ranma.

Ranma who didn't seem to hate him as much recently, who defeated daemons single-handedly, and who had an admirable strength of will.

"So what do you think?"

Usagi looked away from her ice cream with the spoon still in her mouth. "About what?"

Smiling softly, Mamoru handed Usagi a napkin. The one thing Usagi and Ranma had in common was there ability to eat like pigs. "About the fight between Sailor Pluto and Ranma, of course, meatball head."

Rolling the spoon around in her empty bowl, Usagi tried to consider her feelings. Despite Ami saying that Ranma was a nice person, Usagi just didn't have that experience with the red head. "Who knows? Ranma seems to get into fights with everyone. I can't believe she's my mother from the Silver Millenium."

"Ami said she wasn't entirely sure about that," Mamoru reminded her.

Usagi frowned, a little fear trembling into her voice. "You didn't see what she did at the restaurant." The power the red head had wielded was amazing and frightening. What if Ranma really lost control one day? How many people would be hurt by the girl who seemed to have a vendetta out for the Sailor Scouts? There were other reasons not to like Ranma however. "So what's going on between you and Ranma?"

"What do you mean?" Mamoru was a little surprised by Usagi's change of conversation.

"Well, she's living in your apartment and the two of you seem to be getting along pretty well." Usagi leaned in closer to make sure she could see Mamoru's eyes, or maybe just to look miffed.

"I, uh, it's nothing, Usagi. We're just friends, really." Mamoru tugged at his collar. "Not even friends! More like roommates!"

Usagi's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You only have one bedroom."

Mamoru waved his hands about defensively. "Nononono! She sleeps on the couch! We just share the bathroom." Usagi's began to growl and Mamoru's eyes widened in fear. "No! Not at the same time! I only walked in on her once!"

"What?!" Usagi hadn't really thought they shared the bathroom, but . .

What was happening to him lately? Mamoru seemed to be acquiring some sort of mouth in foot disease. "I didn't mean to! It was an accident! I was thinking about when I was touching her breast the night before!"

Usagi was livid with rage. "Mamoru!"

"Ack! You don't understand. They were all just accidents!"

"They?! It happened more than once?!" Usagi's eyes twitched worse with every moment.

"I-It wasn't always Ranma!"

Usagi wasn't sure where she got the mallet, but she wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. "Mamoru no baka!"

Ranma snorted and sat back on her butt, crossing her arms over her chest. "How should things be going with Mamoru. Not like I'm interested in the pervert."

Ami pat the redhead's arm with an amused smile. "He's not that bad, Ranma."

"He probably just hasn't gotten around to gropin ya yet," Ranma looked away indignantly. Ukyou nodded with the same anger.

Usagi, after dropping the mallet, leapt to a new conclusion about Ranma. What was she doing going to the bathroom without locking the doors? "That floozy! When I get my hands on her . ."

Mamoru sighed as he began to realize how used to being hit he was becoming. "She's not that bad, Usagi. Ranma has been on the road training for ten years."

"The perverted thing is just a phase guys go through, Ranma-san. Cousin Mamoru will change before you know it," Akane tried to reassure the red head. Somehow it didn't help.

Ranma leaned over and looked the girl in the eye. "Yesterday I caught him going through my underwear."

"Probably just doing the laundry," Akane replied hesitantly. She looked to the others for support, but Ukyou looked away and Ami . . . seemed uncertain at this point.

"Ya think I'd lettem do my laundry?" Ranma asked with a bit of disgust.

"She's a bully. Probably does drugs too," Usagi stated.

Mamoru shook his head. "I never found anything in her underwear drawer."

The eye twitch was back. "What were you doing in her underwear drawer?!"

"He's a macho, arrogant, perverted, two-timing, cradle-robbing," The three blinked at that one. "chauvinistic jerk!"

"She's a proud, independent, skilled, protective, kind-in-her-own-way young girl."

"And what am I?!" Usagi pushed Mamoru back into a corner with her glare. He didn't get the chance to answer however. The mallet was very handy as it turned out.

WHAM!

Across the table, Usa and Hotaru were staring at the young couple blankly. Hotaru turned to her friend. "Who's Ranma?"

"I don't know." Usa answered. "But I'm gonna find out."

~

Sasuke, the Kuno's manservant, kneeled before Tatewaki upon returning from his latest quest. Ever since discovering the pig-tailed girl, Tatewaki had become obsessed with her, though he didn't know where to find her. Rather than ask Nabiki or look through a telephone book, Tatewaki directed Sasuke to perform, of all things, a house to house search. Understandably, Sasuke was very tired.

"Have you discovered the location of my fiery-haired goddess’s whereabouts?" Kuno asked, standing tall and dignified in his pajamas, having been caught during breakfast.

Sasuke bowed lower in case he saw something he wouldn't like. "Y-Y . . Yes . ."

Kuno tsked, "You are a lazy servant, barely worthy of serving a Kuno, but give me the knowledge I seek."

"Yes, . . Master . . Tatewaki . ." Sasuke huffed. "She attends . . . Juuban . . High."

Kuno stroked his chin in thought.

A sweat drop appeared on Sasuke's head as he realized he might be here for a while.

~

Come Monday, Akane was more than feeling the burn. Ranma had put Ukyou and herself through a meat grinder it seemed. There was no part of Akane's body that didn't feel sore and abused. It didn't help that she would probably have to deal with the morning mob again. Too bad Ranma couldn't be there to see her deal with the hentai horde.

Down the street came the faltering steps of one of her new friends.

"How are you feeling, Ukyou?" Akane asked with a wane smile.

"A little sore." Ukyou tried to straighten up, but fell right back to using her battle spatula for a walking stick. "Good thing Ranchan can only teach during the weekends."

"I hope Kuno decides to take the day off," Akane wished as she loped along, beside the taller girl.

"Yeah, right. That moron?"

Akane shrugged. It was a . . dream?

Both girls looked around the courtyard in confusion. They'd never actually seen it in the mornings. Without the mob the place looked unfamiliar. "They're . . They're gone?" Akane gasped.

"Hey, Nabiki? You know anything about this?" Ukyou called up to Akane's sister in the window.

Nabiki shrugged. "Much as I'd like to have gotten the yen for telling Kuno, it wasn't me."

"Tell Kuno?" Ukyou blinked.

Akane likewise felt clueless. "Tell him what?"

~

As the sun began to rise on a new day, the students of Juuban High were greeted by a sight of regal splendor. The great hope of Japan, noble amongst nobles, the rising star of the Kendo world, Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen, had come to their school!

Feeling the awe he inspired in other - someone gagged into the bushes behind him - Kuno, decked in his finest Kendo garb, raised his bokken to the air. "Today, my pigtailed goddess, we shall embrace our love for each other!"

In the distance, Ranma shuddered and new life was about to meet a new low.

End Chapter Seven

* * *

Ok, it's here. So I'm slow. Do you know how time consuming writing, let me count, thirty pages of essay for college is? Let me sum it up for you: "The horror, the horror." (Heart of Darkness, pg. 180)

Ah, it feels good to be doing something I enjoy though. More chapters are on the way. What to expect: the next chapter will bring together the fury of Ranma and the wrath of the Outers, hoo-ha! Then, of course, bungling Inners, Mamoru getting brained, and a little girl in Cambodia discovers visas and gets the hell out of her country to some place where they have food!

Okay, that last part was mean, but this is all part of the dynamic of me.

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Or visit my website at www.geocities.com/jehtek

Ja ne.