Ah My Goddess Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ A Tale of Two Wallets ❯ Visitors ( Chapter 24 )

A Tale of Two Wallets

(An Altered Destiny)

Written by Jim Robert Bader

Proofread by Shiva Barnwell

Kasumi had finished her daily round of chores and was looking for something else to do to keep herself busy. Having everyone but Father away on a training mission left her with much less to do what was usually the case around the dojo. Without the usual hubbub and mayhem that seemed to go on around her family on a daily basis, it was relatively easy to keep the place spotless with all the laundry washed and put away, all the beds made (for once) and the kitchen looking as spotless as the rest of the house. In fact it was uncommonly clean, and moreso since her father had just stepped out to get a pack of cigarettes from the local market.

Usually about this time of day Kasumi would curl up with a good book and catch up on her reading, but that, too, held none of the usual interest as she had already gone through every book that she had either borrowed or gotten as a gift from Doctor Tofu. She really meant to return the one about Chinese Law and Policy regarding Indigenous regions, but she was still trying to find out if there were any clauses that might be useful for Shampoo, Ranma and Nabiki, and besides that Tofu was always acting so silly every time she paid him a visit.

Instead she decided to go to the dojo itself and work out, seeing as there was no one around to bother her or disturb her meditations. It felt good to finally have the time to just relax and practice the movements her mother had taught her so very long ago, the tension-draining exercises known as Tai Chi, which were the one and only martial art that she practiced these days, being the non-violent sort that she was. The slow and graceful movements always helped her to relax and concentrate her mind on matters of the present, to say nothing of keeping her fit and trim so that she could maintain her exhausting regimen of house chores.

Unlike Nabiki she had not all but completely halted her martial arts training while still in her childhood, and Tai Chi was such a wonderful way to stretch out the body so that she did not pull a muscle or strain her back bending down or reaching up for high places. She took Doctor Tofu's early advice to heart when she was still a mere child and he would talk to her like a normal person, knowing how important it was to take care of her body since everyone around her depended so much upon her efforts.

Of a sudden she heard a bell ring from the front gate, which caused her to pause in mid-salute to the kami spirits that looked over the dojo. Kasumi blinked her eyes, coming out of her trance-like state of intense focus and wondered who might be calling. A part of her deep down hoped that it was Tofu, but he rarely made house calls unless summoned, so she decided to investigate, which-after all-was the role of a good hostess…

"<This is a mistake,>" grumbled one of two women standing outside the gates to the Tendo property, "<We never should have come here…>"

"<Oh hush,>" said her companion, "<It's not like we've are completely uninvited. My grandmother sent word to me that there were interesting events happening here in Nerima, and you know that you're as much dying of curiosity to learn the details as I am.>"

"<I thought you Lore Masters knew everything,>" the first speaker said with a huff, glaring sourly at the gates as if expecting to find nothing but trouble beyond the wooden partition that she had once sworn to never again lay eyes upon.

"<We learn things by listening,>" the other woman replied, her attitude quite relaxed as she was actually looking forward to this kind-of-a-reunion, "<You should try it once in a while, it couldn't hurt you.>"

"<Ha, ha,>" the first speaker said, "<Just because you still carry a torch for the male is no reason I should be dragged all the way from China with you. It's not like I've got any interest in seeing how these two have been faring. Besides, I'm happily married.>"

"<Are you still complaining because I made us travel Coach?>" the second woman said with a gentle smile that denoted a kindly nature, "<You know we don't have the unlimited resources of the entire village at our disposal, like your grandmother.>"

"<It wasn't the travel accommodations,>" the first speaker said irritably, "<It was having to sit near to that noisy American who was going on and on about his backwards political system, as if I cared one whit what male they elect to be their leaders. What do they expect when they let men run their country, honest behavior?>"

"<Is that why you hit his 'Silent Monkey' pressure point?>" the second woman asked with a knowing smirk.

"<No,>" the first woman sniffed, "<I could tolerate the fool feeling betrayed because a middle aged male took an interest in a younger woman, it was when he made those insulting remarks about his wife that I drew the line. I met her once when she visited Beijing, you know, and if anyone was fit to punish her husband for errant behavior, it would be her. I just would not expect her to do it in public, she has far too much respect for her ancestors.>"

The door to the dojo swung inward and a beautiful young woman in a modest yellow dress stood back to bow to them respectfully as she said, "Good day to you, I am Tendo Kasumi. How may I…?"

Her expression went from pleasant to astonished. That astonishment was reflected in the expressions of the other two women, one of them being the focus of the girl's attention. For several seconds nothing was spoken, and then the lovely young girl gasped, "M-Mother?"

"Ama-" the first woman started to say when a sharp elbow from the second silenced her. Recovering her wits, the second woman replied, "I'm afraid not, Tendo…Kasumi? My name is Silk, and I'm…an old friend of your father's."

Kasumi stood where she was a few three seconds later, and then she fainted. Fortunately for her the first woman had noticed the signs and rushed forward in time to catch her.

"<Good one,>" the first woman noted sourly as she gave her companion a sour look, cradling the child in her arms that so greatly resembled another.

Silk heaved a sigh, "<Well…I should have expected that. Now at least I know why I've always had the sense that my daughter had a twin somewhere. Let's bring her inside, Comb, then we can explain ourselves and wait for the boys to return home. I'm sure we'll see a lot more such reactions before this day is out,>" she said with that curious note of certainty that was so typical of a Lore Master…

Nabiki's Journal Continues:

It was a weird kind of feeling sitting on the edge of a cliff overlooking a sheer drop of at least a couple hundred meters. I dangled my bare legs out into space and wondered why I wasn't feeling my usual sense of vertigo being up in such high places. It was like I knew that wouldn't fall, and somehow everything was connected to me, and that somehow I was in my right and proper place in the universe. Watching the sun set over the horizon, I had a sense of peace that I don't think I've felt in as long as I can remember.

"So," the old woman beside me began after a silence that must have lasted a quarter of an hour, "What do you expect to achieve when you are successful in the business world? Fame and fortune, a sense of limitless wealth, the ability to do anything that your heart desires?"

"Ah, pretty much, yeah," I replied, "I guess maybe it's just that I've never had that much wealth in my life, and I like the challenge of building up a financial empire, of writing my name across the sky. It's like climbing a mountain, you know? Because it's there…"

"I see," Lotion said softly, only there was something about the way she said it that made me feel more than a bit uneasy.

"You don't approve?" I asked.

"It's not for me to approve or disapprove," Lotion replied, "This is your life we are discussing, your plans for the future. It is good that you have dreams and goals that are attainable, and with your skills I have no doubt that you will go far. Only…"

"Only?" I asked nervously.

"It seems like such a simple goal, hardly worthy of your real talents," Lotion remarked, "We are far above the mere accumulation of material wealth, even if there are advantages to gaining what you desire. It's not that I disparage having a good business sense, or wanting to accumulate material resources if you plan on using them to advance a cause or contribute your ideas to the world, but…well, as I say, it is your life we are discussing."

"Right," I said uneasily, "My life, and that's how I mean to spend it."

"And where does Ranma fit into this equation?" Lotion then off-handedly asked me.

"Excuse me?" I asked, feeling more and more confused by the minute.

"You intend for him to be a part of your future, do you not?" she old woman asked, "How does your future husband feel about private ambition? Does he share your basic vision?"

"I…" I had to think on that, recalling how unimportant Ranma treated the basic subject of money, except when he was being nice to me and trying to help me with the family finances, "I…guess it's not all that important with him, but…"

"Do you share his goal of becoming one with the art?" she asked me again, as if she were deliberately keeping me off balance.

"Uh…?" I blinked, "Excuse me?"

"Your future husband has a destiny," she said as if making a casual comment on the weather, "He will become one of the greatest War Masters of his generation, if not the greatest ever. You intend to support him in this endeavor, do you not?"

"Of course," I said, "I know Ranma's really into the arts…"

"Or the arts are into him," Lotion replied, "There is a difference."

I got a bit exasperated at that point and said, "Look, I know Ranma and me are two very different people, and we have radically different approaches to life, but we understand that and we care for each other…"

"I knew that from the beginning," Lotion said, "But it takes more than a willingness to share a life when there are such fundamental issues at stake. I just wondered if you were prepared to make as many concessions for him as he will make on your behalf. As you say it could work, but you will change if you follow him into this destiny you will share together. That is what I wanted to learn, whether you are as willing to face the challenges fate will impose upon you as the price for loving Ranma."

I took my time before answering that, then said, "Why me? What did I ever do to deserve this kind of an arrangement? These things I can do, the way I pick things up, and this Lore Master stuff you keep going on about. Was all this just because I met and…I fell for a guy named Ranma?"

Lotion gazed out over the expanse around us for a long moment before replying, "Who can say why the fates have chosen you, my child? For a certainty you have always had the ability you now have, it just never surfaced until this moment when you were faced with the challenges that attend being emotionally bonded to a Nexus."

"A what?" I asked, giving the old woman a sharp glance as I felt something tingle along my spine at the mention of the word Nexus.

"A focal point of reality," she smiled sidelong in my direction, "That's what he is, or didn't you know that? They come along every now and again, each generation producing them in whatever abundance fits the universe's needs. I was in love with a Nexus, too, you know…and I could tell you some stories of the adventures we had, the trials we overcame, even if we parted ways prematurely."

I thought a moment before I responded to that, "You're saying that Ranma…?"

"Is a Nexus of Realities," Lotion replied, "A Champion, if you will, who can decide the balance between light and darkness by his actions. He is special in ways you can scarcely imagine, and in bonding yourself to him you have become a part of his adventure. He affects the very nature of reality by his touch and presence, and now you have gained some of that through the awakening of your own latent talent. It is much as it was for me…a new generation takes up the challenge. Now, the question is…what will you do with this knowledge? Will it affect the way you feel about your Ranma?"

"I-I don't know," I admitted, "I'll have to think about it…"

"A sensible reply," Lotion said, "There is risk in all things, and some risks are greater than others. You must be strong in order to gain the power you seek, the ability to control-or at the very least-influence your destiny, otherwise…it will consume you."

I had a pretty good idea that this old lady was a kick at telling stories around campfires, because right there and then she was scaring the hell out of me, and I don't scare easy! Just the same I think I also felt a little irritated by her tone, which was presuming a lot from me. In some annoyance I said, "I can take whatever comes my way. I'll go the distance if that's what it means to be with Ranma."

She actually smiled at that in a way that thoroughly confused me, both knowing and smug, yet somehow pleased and impressed at the same time. I was just beginning to understand how complex this old woman was, how subtle her thinking, and the way she could weave from one point to the next without losing me entirely in the subtext.

"Good for you," she replied, "Now, let's get back to the focus of your lesson."

"What is this?" I gave a nervous sniff, "A pop quiz or a lecture?"

"Both," she said, suddenly sharpening her look as she asked, "What is the most fundamental force in all of nature?"

"Huh?" I blinked, now more thoroughly confused than ever.

"It's not a physics question," she said, "Just a simple dynamic. What is the fundamental force in all of nature?"

"Gravity?" I asked hesitantly.

"Falling down is your idea of an elemental force?" she asked with a lifting of grey eyebrows, "Why don't we test that theory."

All of a sudden I felt her hand touch my back and I was suddenly tumbling forward out into empty space, heading for a long fall with a sudden stop at the end…only something went wrong with that scenario. My scream was cut short as I found myself windmilling my arms and legs over emptiness, turning helplessly in the air but no closer to the ground than when I had started.

"Something doesn't quite seem to be working out here," I heard her say as I found myself upside down over the sheer drop looking back at her leaning on her staff as she stood atop the cliff face, "Shouldn't you be falling?"

My feet were kicking at darkening sky while I tried frantically to reach for the safety of the cliff face two meters farther than my grasp. In desperation I said, "All right, you've made your point, now…get me back up there now!"

"You're assuming that I have something to do with this." she smiled, "And you are right."

A wave of her staff and I found myself tumbling back onto hard rock, instinctively rolling with my landing while simultaneously feeling the urge to kiss terra firma.

"My apologies," she said, "I do so hate resorting to such methods, but you are only going to learn if I gain your full, undivided attention."

I bit off something very curt I felt like saying about her probable ancestors and settled for a very sharp, "Next time give me a warning when you do that!"

"Do what?" she asked.

"Don't play stupid!" I said as I got into a kneeling position to give her my most withering glare, "That levitation thing, whatever it was…"

"Ah," she smiled, "You mean the force that was keeping you from striking the ground."

"Yes!" I snapped in anger.

"A force stronger than gravity?" she asked, then waited for me to answer.

I was just starting to stand up when it hit me what she was saying. Very slowly I said, "Okay…so there is something stronger than gravity. Now…what is it?"

"The fundamental force that I spoke of," she replied, "What you call gravity is merely the attraction of mass, which is created by folding time and space around that phenomenon we call solid matter. Objects feel a natural attraction by their very weight and substance, yet they are also held apart by an opposing force that has many different expressions. It is all the same thing, just different forms of the same causal nature."

I thought about that before saying, "Equal and opposite forces?"

She shook her head, "There is balance, but the forces are not equal. Gravity is strong, but not as strong as Electromagnetism. The Strong and Weak forces of atomic and molecular interaction are more basic, yet limited elements of matter, which is itself a form of energy held in relative stasis. Physicists of the West have sought for years to find the equation that brings them all together, yet they consistently fail because of one elemental flaw in their equations."

"Which is?" I asked.

The tapped me with her staff and said, "They are all just phenomena of Nature, mere shadows on the wall of the cave, not the cause of manifest existence, merely a symptom of the real causes."

She turned around and started back along the trail we had originally followed. I reached for my shoes and slipped them on before hurrying up to catch up with her, trying my best to keep up in more than one sense of the word.

"So what you're saying is that the Four elemental forces of nature defined by modern science all have a more basic force that creates them?" I guessed.

"That is one way of expressing it," she said, "Another is to say that they are all essentially limited versions of energy that can be observed with modern instruments, but compared to the real thing they are like cheap imitation watches. Gravity applies to large, massive bodies yet can hold even the most elemental particle within its thrall. Strong and Weak interactions are what govern matter on the atomic level, while Electromagnetism is the release of energy in the form of photons. What a very dull place the universe would be if that were all that could be found in nature."

"Okay," I said, "So…what else is there, Sensei?"

"You already know," she said, "You don't need me to tell you."

I think I made a sound like a half-strangled cry before saying, "You know, talking with you is like talking to a wall!"

"Buddha once talked to a wall," she replied, "And when he arose he was enlightened."

"You're comparing yourself to Buddha?" I scoffed.

"No," she smiled, "Merely the wall."

I had to count backwards in English before I got my temper back under control, then took a deep breath and said, "Fine! Be inscrutable! See if I care!"

"When I say you know something," she said, "I am not merely being rhetorical. You know, yet you refuse to let yourself know, clinging instead to the outworn concept that all you see and here is all that there is in existence. You already know better than this, else why do you fear so much for what Cologne might be teaching Ryoga?"

I had to concede the point at that, then I took another deep breath and said, "How can she teach Ryoga to break objects with the touch of a finger? How can Shampoo do it, for that matter? And Ranma…"

I stopped dead in my tracks, a memory surfacing unbidden of a time that seemed like ages ago when me and Ranma were sitting on the roof of my house talking together and he made a demonstration that left me utterly breathless.

"Go on?" Lotion asked as she paused to look at me as if she knew what I was thinking.

"Ki?" I gasped, having the sudden sense that I had hit the nail with the hammer.

She beamed brightly, "Now, that wasn't so hard, was it? You didn't need me to point it out, you just needed a little prodding."

"Ki," I repeated thoughtfully, "You mean Spirit is the answer?"

"What is Spirit?" she asked, turning to look at me fully, "What is the Soul? What is the essence of the Mind, of the human heart? Our capacity to know, grow and understand the nature of the universe? What is love? What is this gift we call life? Surely you must sense that they are all intimately related, for all of them spring from the same source, the fundamental force behind…Everything!"

"The spirit," I said simply.

"A century ago Western science made a tragic error," she said with a wistful sigh, "It tried to define reality in terms of sensory experience and set down flawed definitions that inevitably pointed research in the wrong directions. Two fellows named Albert Michelson and Edward Morley observed that the velocity of light was a constant, but they started with the mistaken assumption that the Earth was moving through a sea of liquid Ether, which of course proved not to be the case, and from that they drew their hideous mistake of a conclusion: the Non-Existence of Ether."

"You're talking about one of the fundamental theories of the late 19th century," I said, "The discovery that the speed of light is the same in all directions…"

"Not the same," she replied, "It bends with gravity, such as the fold in space created by the mass of the earth itself…but what is space itself? That was their fundamental error."

I was thinking hard about this. My Physics teacher, Mister Hiroshi, had just gotten done explaining the Michelson-Morley experiment only a few weeks ago, and at the time I'd had a nagging doubt that there was something basically wrong with what he was saying. It did not ring true, but rather than make a fool of myself by saying so in class I just jotted the notes down so I could memorize what he was telling us and repeat it at test time. Now I had a sense that Hiroshi was a pre-schooler next to the woman before me.

"Space," I said, "Is a result of basic geometry…"

"Length, width, depth and time," she replied, "The four basic dimensions of observable reality. And what are the limits to space itself?"

"None," I said, "It just goes on forever, or so the latest NASA photos tell us."

"Yet our universe is merely twelve billion years old," she noted with a smile, "How do you explain this?"

"I can't," I admitted, "That's one of the big mysteries of Astrophysics. Some stars are believed to be a lot older than twelve billion years…"

"A paradox," she smiled, "The Universe was created in a burst of cosmic fire known as the Big Bang, and yet it has always existed in one form or another."

"What are you saying?" I asked, "That space has always been there?"

"What has no beginning can never end," she replied, "Imagine, if you will, a pool of water that stretches on into infinity, then throw a stone into that pool, it creates a ripple. Throw several stones and you create other ripples, and the sine waves interact with one another, sometimes canceling out, yet still conveying their energy on forever."

"So the Big Bang was just a small stone thrown in a lake?" I guessed.

"Creating a cosmic ripple in one ten-billionth of a second," she smiled, "One that expanded and will keep on expanding forever, but do you imagine for a moment that it was the first Universe ever created, or the last? You are merely describing matter in particle form, after all, taking shape from raw energy and combining together to form larger and more complex arrangements. Sometimes a lot of mass gathers together and forms what we call a Black Hole, and this energy becomes a large dent in the fabric of our reality, drawing everything into its reach. Where does the energy go? To create more ripples in some other level of the Timespace."

I shook my head to clear it of the image of explosive ripples that looked like fireworks going off in the sky and said, "Hoookay! This is where I tell the conductor to let me off! If I wanted a physics lesson I could have waited until I got into college…"

"Let me simplify things for you," she smiled, "What is space?"

"In three or more dimensions?" I joked.

She inclined her head, "If you will, but what is it? What is it made of? Can you describe its essential substance?"

"Describe it?" I repeated, "No. It's just…Ether?"

She smiled deepened, "And what makes you say that?"

I looked at her sharply before I said, "That's what you wanted me to say, isn't it? That Michelson and Morley got it wrong because they mis-defined the nature of the Ether. They thought it was like some big cosmic wind that they could measure, but instead it's more like a fixed substance through which light travels…only doesn't that contradict what Einstein said about energy being self-maintaining?"

"Albert once asked me the same thing," Lotion replied, "1948, back when they were still working the bugs out of the Hydrogen Bomb. He was working on his grand unified field theory, you know, and I thought he was so adorable trying to piece the fragments of his theory together that way. He never could bring himself to accept Quantum Mechanics, you know. So I gave him some help in finding the answers he was seeking."

"And?" I blinked.

"He decided not to publish," she replied, "After seeing how his great theories had been used in the past, and given the escalating Cold War, he realized that mankind was not ready for the Pandora's box that would have opened. Instead he confused his notes, repressed his research and played dumb for the remainder of his days, always promising to put it all together, always making certain to keep from giving out the correct answer to his colleagues, though I could tell from a distance how much he longed to enlighten them in the same manner as I had done for him."

I wasn't sure if I wanted to question her any more on that point, such as how she could have gotten so close to the father of Relativity, or was this just an example of her pulling my leg to make me ask the right questions? Instead I tried to focus on what she was telling me, then said, "So…the Ether is space…"

"No," she replied, "The Ether is what Space and Time are made from…and energy itself. When we talk of the Time and Space field we are describing the Ether. It not only exists, it is the fundamental element of all Nature."

"And ki?" I asked.

"A higher expression of energy than any of the others," she replied, "Space and Time are limited in that no object bound to them can travel faster than light. You must move beyond them to cross great distances, or else go the opposite direction, inwardly, to cross the threshold on the boundary of the Ether. Another word for this is Hyperspace, or Super Reality, from which we gain the term Supernature."

"The Supernatural?" I think I blinked.

"That which operates on the fundamental level of true reality can be termed as Supernatural," she replied, "We draw on this energy, a universal harmonic known to the Hindu as Manna, which is the fuel of life itself. What we project outwardly is Prana, the raw essence of thought. The ability to tap into the force lines of Elemental substance comes from our ability to shape the currents that flow through the body. You will learn in time how to draw upon this power and shape it to your will, at which point you will discover what true power is like, and that will be the point where you experience the true danger."

"True danger?" I repeated.

"When you the gain power of a true Lore Master you will find it tempting you, urging you to use it to gain your desires," she replied, "You must not allow it to master you, you must master yourself and become as one with the power, and then you will gain vision and knowledge beyond your imagination. It is in the realm of this knowledge that you will learn what it means to be a Lore Master."

"You make it sound like I'll become some kind of a magician," I said uneasily.

"Not a magician," she shook her head and looked sternly at me, "Mages are concerned with power, while we are concerned primarily with knowledge."

"How does being a Lore Master differ from being a Mage?" I asked, seeking greater clarification.

"You will learn in time," the Elder noted, "For now accept this crude definition, that a Mage can draw and shape the power to their will while we must refrain from doing so save at the time of greatest need, for we understand how Power shapes us and affects the destiny of the people around us. Mages are a different discipline entirely from ours, and they suffer less penalty than we do for the casual misuse of their potential."

"I don't understand," I admitted at last, "I don't understand anything!"

"Admitting this is so is the fundamental basis of wisdom," she said, then started forward again while I tried to make sense of everything she had just told me.

We made it back to camp just in time for me to smell something delicious cooking over the fire as Shampoo tended it with the kind of happy devotion I was used to seeing around Kasumi. Ranma was also there, but I was more than a little shocked to discover his condition.

"What happened?" I asked, seeing Ranma's face was puffy and swollen.

"Vaphts," I heard him say with an irritable glance towards his father.

"The boy just had a run in with some wasps," Uncle Genma replied, "He'll be fine, once he learns to tighten up his defenses."

"Interesting training method," I heard Lotion say, "A bit harsh, but effective."

"Training method?" I asked, then saw the confirmation in Ranma's down-turned expression and growled, "Uncle Genma…"

"It's for the boy's own good," he told me firmly, "With Ryoga studying the Breaking Point, Ranma has to learn to keep himself from being touched. There's no telling what else that old woman has taught him."

"Only the Amaguriken," Lotion replied, which startled us all, but she sniffed and said, "Relax. At his best the boy is only half as fast as Ranma. His great strength impedes him. Still, you are right that your son needs to tighten up his defenses, which is why I would like to give you and my apprentice a few pointers."

"You will?" I asked, "But I thought…"

"I won't interfere in the fight," Lotion replied, "But there's no reason why the boy can't listen in on tomorrow's lecture. I'm going to touch on a few facts concerning martial arts strategy and why it is best to fight with one's head as well as one's heart and fists. Some of it you already know, but the way I shall tell it to you will help clarify your knowledge."

"Then Ranma no have anything to fear," Shampoo said brightly as she uncovered one of the pots and began ladling the contents out into several rice bowls, which same she passed along to each of us in turn, "You eat, try Shampoo's cooking."

I noticed that someone was missing from the moment as I accepted my bowl and said, "Where's Akane?"

"She go take lost boy back to camp of Great Grandmother," Shampoo replied, "Make sure he no get lost and wind up somewhere on other side of Japanese Islands."

"Ryoga is here?" I asked, seeing a nod of confirmation from Genma.

"It seems the old woman chose to train in a spot very close to where we are," Genma replied as he prepared to dig down into his noodles, "Amazing coincidence that."

"Yes, isn't it?" Lotion asked serenely as she accepted her own rice bowl, "So the girl decided to spend time with her boyfriend. I suppose this means she's changed sides and won't be with us during the battle."

"You think she'd pick Ryoga over Ranma?" I asked, then wondered why I had even bothered to ask the question.

"Dun't madder," Ranma said in spite of his swollen lips and puffy face, "Ah still godda bea him…"

I looked at him sidelong and said, "Does it hurt?" then when he glanced at me I smiled and added, "Only when you laugh, right? Sorry…I'm just glad you're not allergic to wasp stings, like I am."

"Shampoo give Ranma special poultice that make swelling go down," Shampoo said as she blew on her own noodles and prepared to eat them, "You train real hard and impress Great Grandmother."

"Actually," I said, "You don't need to train that hard-" but before I could finish the sentence I felt Lotion poke me in the ribs with her staff then shake her head by a fraction, which prompted me to glare at her and say, "Why not?"

"I will explain in due course," she replied, "But for now Ranma does need to continue his training. It is very essential that he not underestimate Ryoga or the Bakusai Tenketsu."

I settled back down, wondering why I had this sense that the old woman was pulling another fast one…

"Well?" Akane asked nervously, "Will you try it?"

Ryoga looked as though he had died and gone to the Mountain of the Gods as he accepted the plate from Akane and all but drooled in ecstasy, thinking to himself that life was good and that he was about to eat a home cooked meal prepared by her loving hands. How could life get any better?

He bit into the first bits he scooped up with his chopsticks and suddenly knew the answer.

"Well?" Akane asked anxiously, "Is it good? I tried to do it like my big sister, Kasumi, but I've never really had much practice in the kitchen, as she has. Actually…I haven't tried cooking in quite a while…not since that little accident in Home Economics…"

Ryoga fought against his gagging reflex, seeing the earnestness in her eyes, the nervous anticipation of her stare. With an effort that would have taxed a lesser man he managed to swallow the first bite, then broke his chopsticks between his finger as he declared, "I've never tasted anything this good in my life! Thank you, Akane, and I mean that!"

Cologne, who stood off a ways studying the lost boy, and careful to remain upwind of Akane's cooking, merely widened her eyes a little at witnessing a truly astonishing display of mind over matter. It amazed and appalled her to see Ryoga forcing a smile to his lips and thought tersely to herself that the power of love was appalling in the way it made one behave with such reckless foolishness.

"Oh," Akane said in realization, "You broke your chop sticks. Well, here, have mine!" she said brightly as she handed hers over, not noticing the way Ryoga's eyes widened in panic.

"Just a moment," Cologne said, hopping forward, "Allow me to take a sample. I've forgotten more about cooking than you young people could ever hope to learn in one lifetime."

Ryoga shot an incredibly grateful look towards the Elder as Cologne brought the chopsticks up to her mouth and pretended to put it into her lips when actually disguising her moves with a simple illusion. She pretended to chew the food a little then spat and said, "Much too rich in the ingredients, you might give the boy indigestion feeding him this during his training. Next time go a bit easy on the seasonings and vinegar…"

"Vinegar?" Akane looked puzzled, then reached for a bottle, "I thought I used white wine…oh! Now how did that happen?"

Cologne just gave Akane a look that would have said a lot to anyone who knew the Elder. It was not often that the Matriarch of the Joketsuzoku could be surprised these days, but discovering just how badly the Tendo girl could cook was more than adequate inspiration.

"You do know that you are supposed to read the labels before you use those bottles?" she asked.

"Well duh!" Akane snorted, "You think I'm stupid or something?"

Cologne very wisely chose not to answer that directly, "There is more to you than I suspected, child. Perhaps you might also be worthy of training."

"You think so?" Akane brightened, "Your great granddaughter's always putting me down and making me feel so clumsy…"

"Child," Cologne replied, "The entire Chinese Athletic and Ballet teams would look like epileptic patients next to Shampoo. You should not berate yourself by comparison, you have more than adequate talents of your own worth exploring."

"Really?" Akane brightened, "You think so?"

"I know so," Cologne replied, thinking privately to herself that it would be better to have the girl on the side of the Amazons rather than allow her cooking skills to fall into the wrong hands. If the Chinese authorities ever had a mind to have this girl brew up a lethal nerve gas, then the days of the Joketsuzoku would be numbered!

"It's great to have you here, Akane," Ryoga said, "But…I suppose you'll have to head back now that you helped me find my way back to camp…"

"I'm not going back," Akane said with a growl as she stared into the fire.

"You're not?" Ryoga looked like he wanted to weep from joy at the thought of having her near him.

"No," Akane said, "They don't appreciate me, and Ranma just makes fun of me, while my own sister thinks I'm a joke, and as for Shampoo…" she growled something unflattering that made Cologne's eyebrows climb a bit closer to her hairline, then the Tendo girl calmed down and said, "Besides, you always appreciate me and never put me down or anything, and I'd like the chance to practice getting my cooking skills down, so what do you say about me making you a homecooked meal every night from now on until you finish your training?"

The heavenly smile Ryoga was wearing became a frozen mask of dismay. Cologne just shook her head and decided that she would have to watch the Tendo girl closely to see that she did not poison her new protege. Of a suddenly she began to wonder if this trip really was worth the effort and knew implicitly that Ryoga's training was turning out to be even more of a challenge than even she had anticipated…

Continued

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