Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 and Ruroni Kenshin are two cool mangas and animes owned by someone other than me. I don't even own the psychotropic needed to make yourself as delusional as the Kunos.

Chapter Two

By Michael Fetter

She'd seen sunrise and sunset. A great ball of fire rising over the sea and settling in the mountains. In winter. In spring. Where great groves of lush trees intend to hide from view the fresh light of beginnings. Lying out there, under the sky, with her father, Ranma had seen some of the great many things only the world had to show, but no event, light or dark, had ever greeted her as this morning did.

With a yawn, Ranma arched her body and felt the comfortable little bed brush her skin. It was a glorious feeling to wake to a real bed beneath her, the sun held off by some drapes on the bedroom window, and a full night's sleep relieving the stress of yesterday's hard work.

Something wrapped about her waist and pulled her up against a strong, solid chest. Wind whispered in her ear, warm breath brushing at her cheek.

"Morning, love."

Oh my god. Ranma's eyes snapped open and she held as still as a statue as images began to run through her mind, yesterday was not so easily forgettable after all.

With only her eyes, Ranma traveled the length of her body and realized it was 'her' body. The thin covers had fallen away during the night and she could see the pair of breasts connected to her new, little body, and then a hand, not hers, stroking intimately over her flat stomach.

Ranma flinched slightly at her memories, looking up at a ceiling where the swinging candle danced light and shadow over the room. It was euphoric in effect and narrowed her focus to her body and the young man that appeared over her. She turned her face to the pillow, but didn't want to leave, Why? Ranma stared dazedly out to the dining room where the bowls still sat on the floor. "How could this have happened?"

"Love is a mystery, Rhu Bei," Ryouga whispered into her ear.

Love? It was an alien concept to someone who spent their lives with a man whose title, father, was made with reference to thief, coward, and glutton. The feeling there, in her heart, ached for Ryouga's touch, however. How did this happen? She asked herself again. What has happened to me? To me?

Questions of the psychological, or were they metaphysical, crept into her mind, but her heart was warring for its space. These things were muddling her focus and love was all the heart cared for after such a long and lonely existence. Love was a mystery, a mystery to Ranma, but Rhu Bei?

"Rhu Bei, are you up?" A hand caught a piece of cloth hanging in the bedroom's doorway and pulled it aside for a moment and then quickly thrust it back. Ranma had enough time to see the woman from yesterday, Rhu Bei's mother, as she blushed proudly at the sight of her 'daughter' and husband.

"Oh," Ranma buried her head in the pillow again and recalled her part in this deception, more like masquerade with Ryouga's nude body still pressed against her back. "Yes, mom."

There was a note of cheer as Sae Xhi began to clean up the dining room. "You should get dressed and ready. We'll be going out again."

Going out? That's right, the Amazons, along with the other tribes in Jusenkyou, worked with scouting parties to find where the next battle was to be held. The Amazons, based on Ranma and Ryouga's experience, were not the aggressors. They went out to stop any advance into their territory and kill those who would mean them harm. Rhu Bei and her group were likely the raiding party sent out after the scouts had returned to report. Bad luck on their part to attack two Japanese boys trying to make it home.

Ranma put her hand over Ryouga's and held it against her stomach for a second then sat up in the bed. "Alright," she called back to Sae Xhi.

The bed shifted and Ryouga sat up as well, gripping her waist and kissing her neck. A feeling of desire ran through her for a moment and she smiled at him. When it occurred to her what the desire was for she suppressed the feeling and stood up, quickly removing some of Rhu Bei's clothing from a footlocker. Things would look too suspicious if Ranma were to go outside in anything other. She was a little surprised no one had greatly remarked over the gi she had on yesterday.

Thought of the gi brought back a flashing memory of the white top being tied around her wrists and then held over her head while Ryouga plundered her body. I never thought he would be that aggressive. Ryouga, for as long as Ranma had known him, was a weakling when it came to women. Or, at least, that used to be true.

She stole glances out of the corner of her eye when Ryouga began to dress beside her, crawling about the room for the lost sock or tie string for his pants.

When they finished, Sae Xhi had breakfast ready and could only shower them with smiles and thanks for Rhu Bei finding herself such a good husband. Ranma did not feel sickness at this and it disturbed her more, so she remained quiet, watching a blushing Ryouga stare at his food and mumble back responses to the woman.

There was activity inside the village as women went about with weapons guarding the perimeter or heading off for official business in the community. Men worked on crops, repairing homes, and acting as relief guard where it was needed. The community lived because it worked together, everyone knowing their place and fulfilling their roles.

Near the gates a group of twenty Amazons were readying themselves for combat. Sae Xhi said another Musk camp inside their borders had been found and needed to be removed before they thought the Amazons had grown too weak. The group's leader again was Xian Pu, the next in line for Matriarch, great granddaughter of Elder Cologne.

Sliding a bonbori back into place on her back, Xian Pu tossed a few purple locks over her shoulder and watched them approach. "Rhu Bei, leave your husband behind. War is no place for males."

"What?" Ranma blinked and looked to Ryouga who was growling. "You're kidding, right? Ryouga is stronger than most of the warriors in this village."

"I'm going," Ryouga added in quickly, his aura burning lightly about his body to express his resolve.

Xian Pu frowned, but everyone had heard the stories of the Japanese men's fighting ability. She had seen it herself before being knocked unconscious. There was the chance that he would attempt to betray them and she let Rhu Bei know this with a hard look, "He is your responsibility."

Ranma nodded and placed a hand on Ryouga's forearm to ease his agitation. "We can get out of here once we're far enough away from the village," she whispered softly while trying to look like she was only stretching herself out a bit.

Ryouga seemed surprised and placed the tip of his bamboo umbrella to the ground as he watched her. "Why?" Ranma looked up to see him eyeing her curiously. "I'll fight with your people, Rhu Bei. I won't leave you."

"Ryouga, I'm . ." Ranma paused to watch the way Ryouga smiled at her, remembering how complete she had felt last night with him inside of her. If Ryouga knew . . If he knew then Ryouga would hate me. . . Rhu Bei grinned a little and nodded at him, "I'm grateful."

~

It had been a pleasant stay.

After the initial meeting, Ryouga had been invited to stay the night before he moved on. Tendou-san had made the invitation, as it seemed to relieve some of the tension his friend, Genma Saotome, had for his lost son. Little was truly spoken of the war in China, Ryouga finding a way to skirt the issue while maintaining a little smile.

Nabiki had been adamant that Ryouga must be the Battousai. Though the name would hardly apply to a man who wielded a large, heavy umbrella as a weapon. Akane made this point a number of times, though her conviction was not as strong as her sister's.

During the night, Saotome-san had left the Tendou's and Ryouga was given the spare bedroom to sleep in.

He woke up slowly the next morning with the sun shining into his eyes. Ryouga took a moment to contemplate the dream. He wondered momentarily why he had had it. The red-haired girl, his Amazon wife, Rhu Bei, she would always be within him.

Ryouga let himself release a deep, trouble sigh before he stood up to get dressed.

"It's early," Ryouga could still feel the hanging cold from the night and see the sun only just coming over the horizon from the window, "I should leave before anyone else wakes."

Shouldering his pack and leaning the umbrella against his shoulder, he made his way quietly down the stairs.

"Won't you stay for breakfast, Tien-san?"

Ryouga paused at the front door with his hand over the knob. "No, I should begin my travels. Thank you for your hospitality, Tendou-san."

Kasumi entered the hallway from the kitchen and returned Ryouga's bow. An apron was around her waist and she smiled pleasantly. "Have a good journey then."

Making his way through town, Ryouga eventually found his way to a small cafe for breakfast. He had not left Nerima yet, his own thoughts on Ranma Saotome beginning to form roots in his mind. "I hope you have not perished, Ranma. You had a very noble heart. But after so many years and not returning," Ryouga glanced about the empty street outside the cafe window, "it is difficult to believe otherwise."

Outside, the sound of whistles could be heard running down the streets. A large man swinging a katana pounded down the sidewalk. He was being chased by several police officers. No one was out so early in the morning to be hurt or get in the way. Ryouga was glad of that, but stood up and left a few yen on his table before stepping out onto the streets.

"AAA!" The big man went crashing down as his foot caught onto Ryouga's. "You'll pay for that!"

Ryouga frowned and watched the man stand back up and draw his sword. The police moved about to surround him. With little worry, Ryouga lifted his umbrella off of his shoulder to point at the ground. "It is not good to run from the police. Running will only make things harder on yourself."

"Tien-san, get back! That man is a killer!"

Both men were momentarily stunned as a blue-haired woman jumped over the policemen's heads and struck downwards into the criminal's face with her bokken. Ryouga blinked at the sudden change, "Oro?"

"You're lucky I was out helping the police track down this killer, Tien-san, or you might have gotten hurt." Akane spared him a quick glance, brushing aside a few long strands of blue hair and then setting herself up into a revised Anything Goes Kendo stance.

"Stupid girl," the large man jeered as he stood up again, his nose gone purple and some blood dribbling down his chin. "You can not defeat me! I am the Hitokori Battousai and no one can best my Tendou Anything Goes Kendo style!" He made a wide slash that Akane was barely pulled away from in time. Two of the policemen were not so lucky.

Akane was shaken by how close she had come to being cut in two. The top half of her bokken now lay on the ground at her feet while she still held the grip with both trembling hands.

More policemen could be heard pulling around the corner in their squad cars.

The false Battousai laughed and ran away before he could be caught.

Frowning, Ryouga watched the man go as he continued to support Akane's shocked form. "This, I can not allow."

~

Darkness descended over the Nerima ward as night shrouded criminals from their punishments. Heavy clouds overhead sometimes snuffed the light of the moon as they crept across the sky. Though it was harder to see, the darkness only highlighted the sounds of rustling leaves as someone slipped over the wall surrounding the Tendou dojo.

The false Battousai smirked evilly as he studied the dojo where the lights were out. He'd waited hours for the day to end and begin creeping back into the city. Suspicion of the girl he'd run into the streets brought him here. "The stance that girl used, it was the Tendou School of Anything Goes Kendo. They have finally worked up the nerve to face me then." Making certain of the silence and his coverage in the shadows, the false Battousai pulled out his katana from his belt, the sharp metal invisible without the moonlight. "Well, I'll just have to show them what a mistake that is now."

Standing just outside the Tendou's backdoor, he slowly drew back the shoji. Things had been so silent that he nearly leapt into the air as a voice made itself known.

"Do you have no honor? You sneak up on people in the dark hoping for an advantage."

Lights went on all around. "What?!" The false Battousai whirled about in surprise until he came face to face with the tall man who had spoken. Standing just behind him was the bandanna wearing man from the streets.

Soun Tendou frowned while looking at the criminal attempting to enter his home. He noted how the left arm simply rested by the man's side, out of the way of his sword. The thumb of that hand had obviously been broken long before. "I remember you now, Toshio Hijiro. I knew you were a man without principle."

Hijiro growled and pointed his sword at the Anything Goes master. "You should! You were the man who broke my thumb! Insuring I would never hold another sword for the rest of my life." He suddenly grinned and twirled his katana about with his right hand. "Well, I've learned to overcome that with a one handed style based on your own teachings."

Ryouga watched silently behind Soun, his umbrella resting against his shoulder. He nodded at what the false Battousai had said. "The Anything Goes Style is centered on its ability to overcome obstacles by adapting and adopting new styles into its own."

Grinning with cruel joy, Hijiro drew back his sword and prepared to strike. "Now I will crush you like you did my thumb and thus earn my revenge!" He swung.

"No!"

Hijiro's sword was knocked to one side as Akane interposed herself between the false Battousai and her father. Growling angrily at the man, Akane lifted her bokken to a ready position and glared. "You are not worthy of fighting my father. You will fight me first."

Hijiro laughed. "Little girl, you don't stand a chance against me! I will split your bokken as I did on the street."

With a cocky smile, Akane lifted her bokken to a fighting stance she preferred. "We'll see."

Sneering, Hijiro thought to end the fight quickly, but Akane had not hesitated this time. She slipped to one side and kicked the larger man out of the doorway and into the koi pond.

Soun and Ryouga followed slowly behind as Akane chased Hijiro out. The fight was taken up with greater focus. Though it seemed Akane was doing well, Ryouga had misgivings about Akane entering a fight with only a wooden sword against Hijiro's steel.

Seeming to know Ryouga's thoughts, Soun placed a hand on the young man's shoulder. "Akane is the master of this dojo, Tien. I would not have given her this title unless I was sure she was ready."

Ryouga nodded slowly and continued to watch just in case.

Raising the katana high over his head, Hijiro was ready to finish this fight with one swing. He could almost laugh at Akane, getting ready to block the sword with her bokken. His katana would easily go through the wood and then split her head. He swung. "I am the true Anything Goes master!"

Akane smirked as she slid to Hijiro's left side, where his sword hand did not reach, and grabbed his left wrist, twisting firmly down and in. With a scream of pain, Hijiro was forced to his knees.

"Not by a long shot." Akane saw the surprise in his eyes and brought her bokken down on Hijiro's hand still holding the katana.

The false Battousai felt his right thumb bend backward as it was crushed at the knuckle. "AUGH!"

~

Standing outside the home, Ryouga watched with the rest of the Tendous as the police arrested the false Battousai, Toshio Hijiro. The other Tendou daughters had returned from the neighbor's house where they waited for the incident to resolve itself. Kasumi and Nabiki were proud of their sister and her use of Anything Goes to protect and defend life.

Standing beside Akane, Ryouga nodded to where Hijiro was getting into the police care with his arms handcuffed. The left looked weaker compared to the right. "So you realized that Hijiro must have been working hard to make his right arm strong enough to use the sword one-handed that he neglected his left hand."

Akane was still smiling at herself for defeating the criminal. "That's right. I remembered how he just held it by his side that time in the street and knew he hadn't bothered to maintain the strength there. His left hand's reflexes were so slow that it was easy to grab." The smile became a smirk as she watched the police car pull away from the curb and off to the police station. "Toshio Hijiro never expected anyone to get past his sword that he just didn't bother with his left hand."

Nodding at the assessment, Soun clapped Akane's shoulder with fatherly pride. "Well done, Akane. I knew you could defeat him."

"Then why did you ask Tien-san to be ready to jump in when Akane got in trouble, daddy?" Nabiki asked in a slightly sarcastic tone.

Soun sweated nervously as Akane turned to glare at her father. "Urk."

Turning to the building family squabble, Ryouga shrugged his shoulder and said jovially, "Well, I'm just glad things worked out."

This pulled Akane's attention away from her father. "Oh, and I want to thank you for . . . saving me this afternoon, Ryouga. I'm in your debt." She bowed.

The Tendou sister blinked at this. They had lived with Akane for a long time and knew her attitude towards most men. The thanks and bow drew an arched eyebrow from each older sister. Both glanced at Ryouga and then grinned to each other.

"No, I'm just glad I could help," Ryouga responded lightly.

Taking his arm before he could leave, Nabiki turned Ryouga towards the Tendou home. "You know, Tien-san, you are just wandering right now. If you really are looking for your friend, Ranma, then you would have a better chance of finding him if you stayed at the Tendou dojo."

Ryouga blinked and thought of his penniless purse. "But I couldn't-"

Kasumi broke in, holding Akane by the shoulders to make her face Ryouga directly. "It seems only fitting since you helped Akane that we extend you this hospitality."

"It will be better than camping out, ne?" Nabiki asked, nudging him in the ribs.

Looking among the Tendous for some protest, Ryouga only found expectant looks, except for Soun who seemed slightly confused. Ryouga finally nodded once. "You are truly gracious."

The next morning brought with it a clear sky and bright sun.

Ryouga walked out of the kitchen with an apron around his waist and two plates of food to set before Akane and her father. "You didn't tell me I would be doing the chores."

Smiling and picking up her chopsticks, Akane began to sample the food. "Well, you didn't really think my sisters were still living here, did you? They have their own lives and families to attend to."

At the head of the table Soun was staring up to the heavens with happy tears streaming down his face. "Oh, to eat real food again!"

Akane used to get upset when someone reacted that way to her cooking, but she could only suppress the truth for so long. That and she had missed the birds which flew away each time she entered the kitchen.

Letting out a sigh, Ryouga reached over for a basket of clothes and headed for the washing machine. "Oh well, I should start on the laundry then."

~

The past.

The Amazon party strolled into the village. Some had suffered some minor wounds, but most were had returned from the skirmish without some much as a scratch. The Musk had not even known what had hit them.

Ranma had felt a bit of pride to watch Ryouga fight alongside the Amazons, having him watch her back, and earning respect from the other fighters. It wasn't that she held the Amazons on higher ground than Ryouga and herself, but to see other women look at him and know he belonged with her. On the walk back she had even held his hand, publicizing her claim even more and earning the sincere congratulations from others.

Entering the village, Ranma watched the other warriors nod in their direction. Ryouga had looked flattered himself. "That was a whole lot easier than being out on our own."

At his side, Ranma nodded and looked about the active village. Men were still hard at work fortifying the walls, tending crops, and looking after the children. Ranma wasn't sure she'd ever get used to seeing gender roles reversed like this.

Adjusting the hold of the two women on his shoulders, Ryouga looked back out the closing village gates. "Good thing this is skirmish warfare. It's nice to come back to some place when a mission is finished."

Ranma stared up at the sentries constantly watching over the village. So far it seemed there was always someone on guard and the Amazon women took the job seriously. Not one had lost their focus. She sighed. As long as no one was the wiser, Ryouga should be safe here until she could smuggle them both out. "There aren't enough people in any of the villages for full out wars."

Waiting for a moment while Xian Pu finished speaking with one of the sentries, Ryouga had to adjust the unconscious women on his shoulders again. "Uh, where do I put these two?"

Ranma looked to the group leader with purple hair. She was walking up to one of the Matriarchs for a report now. "Xian Pu?"

The girl pointed off to one of the huts for Ryouga. "The village healer is over there."

Ranma followed Ryouga, not wanting to be separated from the boy who could still become lost in a closet if he didn't constantly concentrate with his ki.

Ku Lon hopped up to Xian Pu and nodded to the bowing girl. "You're back sooner than I expected."

Xian Pu stood up and glanced towards the retreating redhead and her recently acquired husband. "It was because of Rhu Bei and her husband, Matriarch. They are a powerful pair."

Ranma looked back as she felt someone's gaze on her back. She worried slightly at the way the old Matriarch was studying her. The thought was brushed aside a moment later as her attention returned to Ryouga. For a long time neither had anyone to rely upon. Ticking items off in her head, Ranma found the boy to be strong, skilled, loyal, and . . . handsome.

For some reason that last admission hadn't disturbed her in the slightest.

It was here in the Amazon village Ranma and Ryouga had found something like family. Not with the Amazons themselves, Ranma thought, but with each other. She decided she could be happy with Ryouga at her side. Ranma felt protected and yet still in charge. The boy made her body warm and her depression fade.

Yes, she could be happy married to Ryouga. Happy to learn to live in the village with a new family. Happy to defend that family.

She would be happy to remain Rhu Bei.

End Chapter Two

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