Ah My Goddess Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ A Tale of Two Wallets ❯ Old Flame, New Battles ( Chapter 64 )

A Tale of Two Wallets

(An Altered Destiny)

Written by Jim Robert Bader

Proofread by Shiva Barnwell

Miss Hinako could not believe what she was reading in the notes left to her by the previous homeroom teacher whom she was replacing, thinking that this either had to be some sick kind of a joke or else the central school administration for the Province was even more screwed up than she had imagined. In her few years of teaching she had encountered many a puzzling and perplexing enigma, but the thinking behind the drafting of document in her hands sounded almost like a teenaged prank rather than something that serious adults would have come up with.

In plain language the heading of said document was "Absentee Form," but the reasons given for excusable absences were the thing was giving her the most trouble:

"I was late/absent from class for the (fill in length of time absent) because:

I was kidnapped by enemies/aliens/a rival clan and held for ransom as a hostage.

I was sucked into a parallel dimension and forced to take part in a galactic revolution.

An alien empire abducted me for study/matrimonial purposes.

I was challenged to defend the honor of my clan/school/nation/planet/home dimension.

And old enemy/past acquaintance revealed that I am the heir to a galactic dynasty.

It was revealed that I have inherited unusual abilities and must defend the earth.

I am involved in an unusual love triangle/quadrangle that monopolizes my personal life…

And so it went down a list of ridiculous and implausible reasons for being absent from class, sounding like a recitation of imaginatively far-fetched excuses that students might dream up for themselves instead of a serious form meant to be used by middle-level administrators. Hinako wondered if this was something cooked up as a form of "hazing" ritual for new teachers, the decided that she would disregard the offending form for now and take it up later with Hiro-sama at her earliest convenience.

It was as she was shuffling through the papers on her desk to sort out homework assignments that she heard a light knocking at the door to her classroom. Hinako looked up to find a very tall and pretty girl standing in the doorway looking apologetically at her before saying, "Excuse me, little girl, but I was wondering if you could help me…"

Hinako frowned in mild irritation, though she was used to people making such mistakes about her age, "I'm not a little girl, I'm an adult. My name is Hinako Ninamiya, and how may I be of service Miss…?"

"Kino," the girl said politely, if with a slightly dubious expression, "Kino Makoto, though everybody calls me Mako, Miss…ah…Hinako-san…"

"Sensei," Hinako turned to study the girl, who was nearly six feet in height and built rather sturdy for all that she had a slender frame and elegant features, "Well, Kino-san, how may I be of assistance to you? You don't look like a student of this high school, and that's not a Furinkan school uniform that you are wearing."

"I have permission to be here…Sensei," Makoto replied with only the slightest hesitation, holding up a permission slip that she showed to Hinako, bearing the official stamp of Jubbei High School on its letterhead, "I was sent here to deliver supplies that were requisitioned from my school by your school, and I thought while I was here…" she paused, "Um, you see…there's someone who goes to Furinkan, and I learned that they were enrolled in your class and…"

"I see," Hinako nodded, "Socializing is for after hours. I cannot approve of you disrupting class time for such obviously personal reasons. However…since it is the school lunch break, I suppose there would be no harm in my helping to steer you towards the party you seek. What is their name?"

"Kuonji," Makoto sighed in relief, relieved that the little girl was not about to chase her off campus, "Kuonji Ukyo. Do you know…him?"

Hinako did not notice the slight hesitation in the taller girl's voice, but she did recognize the rather well-behaved boy who had sat near to Tendo Akane and that other new boy, Hibiki Ryoga, so she nodded and said, "I think I know where to locate him. If you will follow me I'll be happy to point him out…"

"Thank you, Sensei," Makoto had less hesitation in her voice when addressing Hinako this time, but there was a faintly far-away look in her eyes as she added, "But you won't have to point Ukyo out to me…I'd know…him on sight anywhere."

Hinako nodded to herself, smiling in a way that made her look even younger than her regular appearance. High school romances were such difficult things to suffer through, as she well knew from her own flirtatious youth. No doubt the boy had transferred away from his previous school and left his sweetheart behind to pine for his absence…not at all surprising considering what a hunk he was to look at! Without needing any further prompting she led the way into the corridor and towards the nearest flight of stairs, unaware of the shadowy figure watching over everything with grim satisfaction as yet another key player was added to the mix of the ensuing drama…

Nabiki's Journal Resumes:

"Let me get this straight," I said to the Elder Lotion, "You say you've been detecting some kind of a malevolent presence, and since yesterday night you've been having visions that the lot of us are in some kind of immanent danger?"

"That is more or less the case," my sensei informed us gravely, "While the rest of you have been indulging in personal pursuits, a hostile presence has crept up among us and is working to shape events towards some unknown purpose for which I feel only grave misgivings."

"But it shouldn't be too hard for you to track down whatever's causing this, right?" Ukyo-kun asked her, "That's what you Lore Masters do, right? Serve like an Amazon warning system?"

"I am by no means infallible, Kuonji-san," Lotion informed her, "Nor am I omniscient, but I do sense that I have encountered this presence before on a prior occasion. It has the familiar stench of something foul that the rest of you should not take very lightly."

"Ah, it's probably just another one of Pop's old messes that I'm gonna have to clean up," Ranma huffed, "Whenever something goes bad he's usually in the middle of it…"

"Aiyaa," Shampoo chided him, "No make light of warning, Airen, Elder Lotion no mention this if no think it very bad thing that could cause Ailen problems."

"That is quite true, young warrior," Lotion replied, "This could prove troublesome for the lot of you, but it does not just involve Saotome Genma, but I sense it has a direct bearing for both of his sons, especially you, Hibiki Ryoga."

"Huh?" Ryoga blinked, "Why me?"

"Yeah," Akane seconded, "Even if Ryoga-kun is Genma's illegitimate son, I don't see why that should make him a target."

"Because the one I suspect of being behind this is none other than his maternal grandmother, Cybelle," Lotion said melodramatically, "The Demon Enchantress."

"Cybelle?" Ryoga repeated with a blank expression-or blanker than usual anyway, "My grandmother?"

"Who the heck is that?" Ranma asked, voicing my own next question.

"Cybelle is the reason why Atsuko first sought after Saotome Genma in the first place," Lotion replied, "And the reason why she raised you apart from your true past, and the true reason why your mother followed you to Jusenkyo. She is a half-human sorceress whose power should not be underestimated, for she is centuries older than Cologne and has the resources and knowledge to be truly dangerous to all of you. She mostly works from the shadows and through proxies, but if confronted directly she is a force to be feared. She seeks to increase her power by obtaining the current Nexus of realities, but to be truly effective she would need both brothers to achieve her wicked ambitions."

"Both brothers?" I said, "You mean both Ryoga and Ranma-kun?"

"Aiyaa," Shampoo remarked, "What she do if she have Pig-boy and Shampoo Ailen?"

"I can't really say for certain," Lotion replied, "But it would not be anything too pleasant, I imagine. Cybelle might choose to sacrifice one brother to increase the power of the other then claim both for herself. There is really no reckoning what her ambitions might lead her to do. It has nearly been twenty years since I faced her, and I can tell you that I do not relish doing so again, which ought to give you some idea of just how dangerous she can bee if you cross her. If she is indeed the presence that I sense at work behind the scenes than it can only mean that she has tracked you and Atsuko down and is prepared to exact her terrible vengeance for the wounding of her pride when Atsuko chose to leave her."

"You said she works through proxies," I noted, "You mean she uses agents to do her dirty work?"

"Despite her formidable power she has limits," Lotion explained, "Mobility is one of them, for her physical form is trapped somewhere inside a prison whose nature I have not yet been able to fathom. She must watch events take place from a distance and select her tools to be manipulated like chess pieces, often without their knowing and always towards some grander purpose."

"So," Ukyo-kun murmured, "What you're saying is she might be influencing people to do things that they think they're doing for themselves, but it's really her will that they're obeying."

"More or less," the old woman nodded gravely, "Her influence is greatest over suggestible minds and receptive personalities who have less resistance to her whims than most ordinary people. If a mind is distracted, not at peace or in some way imbalanced, then that person will be vulnerable to a psychic attack and/or manipulation by her. The main way of telling when she is at work is when people begin to behave in a way that is not at all like their regular behavior…"

"Not regular behavior?" Ranma repeated, then looked at me as we both said at once, "Kuno!"

"Huh?" Akane looked at us in puzzlement, "What about Kuno?"

"You didn't see the way he was acting a while ago, Sis," I answered, "You wouldn't have recognized him at all. For one thing he was acting sane and rational, and he talked Shampoo's sisters out of fighting them in a way that left me dizzy!"

"Aiyaa," Shampoo agreed, "Shampoo there and Shampoo no believe how he talk Amazon womans into backing down from fight. Kuno act like changed man, and maybe he be under influence of demon. Is one possible explanation make sense of way he be acting."

"But why would she be making him act sane and rational?" Akane wondered.

"Yeah," Ukyo-kun remarked, "I thought demons like to…y'know…sow seeds of anger and confusion?"

"Don't rate all demons in the same light," Lotion cautioned, "They are no more like one another than most people, although for the most part demons do tend towards darker emotions. In Cybelle's case, however, I suspect she has plans for the Kuno boy, plans that require him to take charge over his life and stop squandering his youthful potential."

"Great," Ranma growled, "That's all we need…a sane and rational Kuno."

"Sane and rational almost means more dangerous," I noted, "We'll have to keep tabs on him to see he doesn't cause any trouble for us in the near future."

"I can't believe my own grandmother wants to do something bad to me," Ryoga shook his head in slow dismay.

"Ryoga mother tell stupid pig boy she no good," Shampoo sniffed, "Maybe you listen to mother now, she know her mother better than Ryoga."

"Stop calling him stupid, you bimbo," Akane glared in my wife's direction.

"Children!" I raised my voice, "Sham-chan, hold it with the name calling, all right? Akane, let it slide for now. We've got bigger issues to worry about at the moment…"

"Now doesn't this sound familiar?" a vaguely familiar voice said, one I had difficulty placing until I turned to see Miss Hinako standing there with a willowy tall girl wearing a different school uniform. It took a few seconds to place her as one of the five girls me and Ranma had encountered when visiting with his mother. I wondered what she could be doing here when in a hesitant tone she said, "Hello Ucchan."

"Makoto?" Ukyo straightened up with an astonished expression, "Mako-chan? How…?"

"Makoto-chan?" Akane reacted with a less than pleasant start, I noted.

"What is this all about?" Miss Hinako demanded, looking straight towards Lotion, "Who are you and what are you doing on these school grounds?"

"Oh, do you not know me?" Lotion smiled in a peculiarly insinuating manner, "I'm not surprised, your being new here and all of that. I am Professor Lo-Xion, a Doctor of Antiquities from China, and these students are members of a special club that I am instructing on Martial Lore and Philosophy of Ancient China. I was just giving my students some special instruction for an extra-curricular project we are working on together…is there a problem?"

"You're a teacher?" Hinako's attitude improved considerably, "Very well, I see no problem, even if one of your students is Saotome Ranma," she glared at my iinazuke then indicated the tall girl at her side, "I was merely conducting this guest student to meet with Kuonji-san, but now that I have done this, I must return to grading papers, so I will trust you to manage things on this hand. The rest of you…do try and be on time when class break is over."

So saying she pivoted on one tiny little heel and returned the way she had come, leaving us to turn as a group and stare at my mentor for her brazen audacity, to which I simply voiced the word, "Professor?"

"You didn't know I had a degree?" she smiled knowingly back at me like a pint-sized Mona Lisa, "It's all true, of course, except that mine was earned in the 1920s, long before the revolution."

"And what about the rest of that stuff?" Ranma asked, "About us all being in the same club…"

"Well, don't you young people all consider yourselves member of the same fraternity of powerful fighters?" Lotion asked, turning to Makoto as she added, "Which brings us to you, young lady…I sense a powerful aura in you. You definitely look as if you could hold your own in a fight."

"Ah…well, I've…been in a few," Makoto turned to look at Ukyo and said, "You've changed…"

"So have you," Ukyo said with what was clearly an uncomfortable expression, "So…how have you been doing?"

"Oh…I'm fine," Makoto cocked her head at an odd angle and said, "You're taller than I thought you'd be…"

Ukyo softly chuckled at that, "Like you're one to talk?"

"True," the nearly six-foot Makoto smiled as if this were a private joke between them, and I had the uncomfortable feeling that for these two the rest of the world had just stopped having any significance. I could see that this did not in the least bit please Akane, who was scowling at the new girl as though sizing her up like a target.

"Ucchan," Ranma spoke up for the rest of us, and Ukyo seemed to recall his manners as he reacted with a, "Oh, right…sorry about that, Ranchan. Guys, this is my friend from my days at Crossroads Middle School, Kino Makoto. Mako-chan, this my…friend, Saotome Ranma…"

"We've met," Makoto nodded to Ranma, then paused before adding, "You're the guy Ucchan was always looking for, the one who…uh…" she paused without adding that she clearly knew that Ukyo had been Ranma's iinazuke.

"Heh," Ranma smiled back, "So you're a martial artist, too, huh? I kinda suspected that on account of the way that you move."

"Well," Makoto nodded, "You're Usagi-chan's cousin, so I guess I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, especially since Ucchan seems to like you."

"And this is Ranma's…iinazuke," Ukyo indicated me, "Tendo Nabiki…and that's Shampoo over there…"

"Oh, we met too," Makoto nodded to me and Sham-chan, "Way I hear tell you're both engaged to marry Ranma. That must be…kinda awkward."

"Only when bed no big enough for Shampoo and both of her Airen," Shampoo replied, causing winces all around and a VERY dubious look on the face of Makoto.

"Uh…right," Makoto gingerly decided to leave that point unexplored.

"And, um…" Ukyo turned to the last two members of our age group, "This is Tendo Akane…a…good friend of mine…and that's her friend, Hibiki Ryoga."

"Charmed," Akane said in a way that in no way sounded friendly.

"Hi," Ryoga waved a hand, looking like he didn't know what to make of all of this either.

"Hi yourselves," Makoto smiled at them as if not perceiving any negative feelings, "Uh, look, Ucchan, I only have a few minutes before my ride takes me back to Tokyo, so do you think maybe we could maybe talk a minute in private…if it's not too much trouble?"

"Sure," Ukyo said, "I'd like that very much."

"Unfortunately," Lotion's voice cut in, as the two were about to move off by themselves, and I noticed a shift in her manner, tone and behavior, "This may not be a very good time for the two of you to reminisce about times past. However, you might ask your friend…the one who is driving you back, if they might be willing to wait for a bit more and give these others a lift to their next designation."

"Excuse me?" Makoto looked at her in confusion.

"I've been waiting for the right moment to reveal this part with you," Lotion explained for us, "The other half of what I wanted to share with you."

"You're picking now as a time to bring this up?" I asked in growing suspicion.

"Of course," Lotion agreed, "It is a somewhat urgent matter of which you young warriors ought to be aware regarding those challenge letters issued to Ranma and his father…"

"Challenge letters?" Makoto repeated.

"Oh yeah," Ukyo-kun sniffed, "That. Well, that's just something I gotta square out with my old man when I go to see him today. He's meeting me after school at the law office of those Chinese weirdoes, Jun Mun Lun & Associates…"

"Indeed, just my point," Lotion looked at her for emphasis, "Isn't it interesting that the timing of those challenge letters should occur on the very day that you first enroll for classes?"

"Well," Ukyo began, "I've been kept kinda busy so I haven't really had time to check in with my Dad and…" she suddenly stopped talking, noting the odd look Lotion gave her, and in a toneless whisper she said, "No…you've gotta be kidding…!"

"I have been noticing an unusual fluctuation in the probability lines surrounding this part of Nerima," the old woman explained, "And I sense that in some ways it relates to you and your unfinished business with Saotome Genma."

"Are you saying Cybelle is also behind the issuing of those challenge letters?" I asked, feeling an odd sense of certainty in my breast as I said this.

"Cybelle?" Makoto repeated, belatedly reminding me that we had a civilian in attendance.

"It is a definite possibility," the old woman said grimly, "Kuonji-san's father has not been in the best of health of late, and it is possible that he is also as susceptible to Cybelle's manipulation as your young Lord Kuno. At the very least it would pay to be cautious."

"Where is this place where they got their offices?" Ranma asked, "Might be a good idea to check it out before the time when the match is supposed to get started."

"Is good idea, Airen," Shampoo nodded, "Smart warrior check out lay of land before fight there. That way there fewer surprised."

"Makes sense to me," Ukyo shrugged, "Grandpa would have called that good tactical logic, Ranchan."

"Indeed," Lotion's voice and expression took on that distant quality that I've come to respect as one of her visions, "It is such straightforward logic that even as great a fool as your father might think of it, and…I sense that Saotome Genma has indeed been one step ahead of us on that, for once…only…I do not sense the fool himself at the moment. How odd…perhaps he is taking a nap…or perhaps he has gotten a bit too cocky."

"Who are you people?" I heard Makoto asking from the sidelines.

"What?" Ranma leaped to his feet, "Pop went there without me? What happened to him?"

"That is just it, young warrior," Lotion replied with a puzzled expression, "I cannot say. There is some sort of interference in that area, though I think it likely he is still breathing. Harder to kill than a cockroach, that father of yours…"

"I gotta get over there!" Ranma turned to Ukyo, "You gotta show me where this place is, Ucchan! Something might've happened to the old fool, and I gotta know what!"

"But what about classes?" Akane asked, "School isn't out yet…"

"Who cares about classes?" Ryoga asked, "If…If Genma really is my father, then I'm with Ranma on this!"

"Oh you need not worry about Hinako-san finding you absent," Lotion assured us, "I'll make certain that you're excused from your classes for the rest of the day so that you may tend to what can obviously be termed as a family crisis."

"Then I might as well lead the way," Ukyo-kun sighed, "After all, I don't want anybody pounding your Old Man flat unless it's me doing the pounding. Mako-chan, I know this is a lot to ask, and after all the time since we last saw each other…"

"Oh, I think I understand something about emergencies, Ucchan," the tall girl said with a knowing expression, "And if this is as serious as the old lady seems to think it is, then it's the least I could do to help out. I'll tell Haruka-chan to expect a few more passengers, but don't expect the ride to be too comfortable, her driving leaves something to be desired."

"Shampoo go with Airen and help save father-in-law," Shampoo turned a look towards me, "Need lift Airen?"

"Ah…" I hesitated, "Actually, it's Ranma's turn, I think. You go with her, Ranma-kun, I insist."

"Huh?" Ranma blinked, "But…"

"You're in a hurry, right?" I tried to smile with deceptive reassurance, "Well, Shampoo's bike is the fastest way to get there, I guarantee it."

"Well…" Ranma said with clear reluctance, but I knew the baka would never refuse a challenge, just as I knew he was going to pay me back for this later on, something I'd be counting on at the appropriate time and place of my choosing…

Silk's fingers played across the length of her silver flute creating an unearthly charm that helped Atsuko in the focus of her power. With Comb adding her own spells to the mixture the three of them set to work firming up the holes in the wall while Terry Bogart looked on in frank amazement.

"Wow," he commented to Nodoka, who stood at his side watching the repair work happen, "If you guys can do this, then what do you need me for?"

"Some repairs are more easily affected than others by the use of magic," Nodoka noted with a pleasant smile, "Or so I'm told. In any event these three have their special uses, but in the end nothing is a substitute for a good man who is skilled in the use of his hands."

"I guess," Terry replied, totally missing the subtext to her statement, "How exactly are they doing this anyway?"

"Well, I don't fully understand it myself," Nodoka replied, "But I do know that it involves the manipulation of some kind of elemental energies. Astuko's powers are in illusion, Comb is a Healer and Silk says that she is something called a Lore Master. I'm not entirely certain how their powers are being combined here, but I must say it is proving quite effective."

"No great mystery about it," Silk remarked as she stopped playing for the moment, "It's really all just a matter of understanding the principles of the universe and how they operate. My power is mainly that of knowledge, while At-chan channels the power of form and mind to cause what others term as illusion. Comb's healing ability is just another form of energy manipulation, working on healing and mending of forms, so if you combine the three together, instead of healing a human body, what you get is a reweaving of pattern and form, coaxing the objects that are broken to repair themselves, using the archetype of what was to reverse the effects of entropy and disruption."

"I get it," Terry smiled, "The three of you are combining the compatible aspects of your different types of power to achieve the same goal. I didn't know that was possible. Usually when two Chi-masters try to work together…"

"You get a clash of egos, which undermines the ability to work together," Comb noted, "But Silk here is able to stabilize and reconcile the dissonance between me and Miss-Clueless here, so we can actually combine our powers in a way that wouldn't normally be possible."

"Only because you're too much of a block head to appreciate Form Magic," Atsuko replied, "Besides, what is life but an illusion, or so Momma always used to say. What you call reality is just a more complex kind of illusion, and when you can see behind the illusion to the form that's underneath it…"

"This is how we fashioned the Jacuzzi that you saw out in back," Silk explained, "It's both an illusion and very real, so real that it will hold together permanently…or long enough that the difference hardly matters."

"And isn't it so nice that you three can achieve so much by working together?" Kasumi noted as she brought another pitcher of iced tea to refill their glasses, "It just goes to prove that studying the arts isn't all about destroying things, don't you agree, Father?"

"Hmm?" Soun seemed to be distracted as he accepted a refill to his glass, "I'm sorry, Kasumi-chan…did you say something?"

"Oh father," Kasumi chided, "You're still worried about Uncle Saotome. I'm sure he'll be back to play Shogi with you as soon as he gets done with his errand."

"Methinks your honored father is concerned that his friend might meet with misfortune during his recent challenge match," Kodachi remarked as she carried the rest of the luncheable snacks and hors d'oeuvres , which she passed along to the rest of the house guests, "Not that he need fear for the sake of Saotome-san's warrior prowess, Father."

"Father?" Soun blinked, "And since when have I become your father…?"

"Now Soun-chan," Silk mused, "You know Kodachi-chan is right. You're worrying over your friend is a needless waste of energy, especially where it concerns Saotome Genma…"

As soon as the words were out of her mouth she suddenly noticed that Atsuko and Comb were looking at her with extremely anxious expressions.

"What do you mean Saotome's gone off to face a challenge match without telling us?" Comb demanded, "Has that fat fool taken leave of what few senses he has left?"

"Yeah!" Atsuko seconded, "Gemi-chan should have told us he was going to face a challenge match today! At the very least we could have come along to root for him!"

"Oh dear," Nodoka remarked, "Dearest never said that there might be any danger when he left this morning. I do hope my husband took the necessary precautions for going into a hostile environment."

"Since when has Genma ever done anything cautious?" Comb remarked, "Who was he going to fight with anyway?"

"He didn't say," Soun replied, "Only that it had something to do with an old debt to be settled."

"That covers a lot of territory," Atsuko noted, "Considering the way Gemi-chan could make enemies when we were a team, I can't picture him as getting any more tactful."

"Kuonji," Silk suddenly spoke with an air of noticeable distraction.

"Say what?" Terry blinked.

"A friend of Saotome Ranma's," Comb explained.

"What about her?" Atsuko wondered.

"Not her," Silk slowly turned to gaze at her companions, "Not her her, but rather the her we once knew, the Kuonji we all remember."

"WHAT?" Comb all but exploded.

"You don't mean…?" Atsuko blanched, "No way!"

"Another Kuonji…?" Soun looked puzzled, then his eyes got wide, "You don't mean…?"

"What?" Kasumi asked, "Father…is there something wrong?"

"Something wrong concerning our fair bishonen friend, Kuonji?" Kodachi added.

"I just had a flash of the name, and her image," Silk said with an air of distance to her voice, "She's changed much since we last saw her…much harder than I remember…so distant, cold and determined…"

"Who cares if she's changed or not?" Comb snorted, "That ninja bitch was a real pain in the neck."

"You said it," Atsuko snorted, "That's one bit of old news I was hoping never to have to run into!"

"You say she issued a challenge note to Saotome?" Soun asked, "But why? Why would she be interested in him?"

"She's a Kuonji," Silk's expression darkened, "And her niece had issues with Saotome and his son. She may not know that Ukyo has changed her mind about seeking vengeance… Grandmother?" she whirled about.

"Granddaughter," the image of the ancient Lore Master appeared before her vision, though only she had eyes to see her, "Your instincts serve you well, but your vision comes late in this drama. I sense that Genma has gone into the lair of the dragon and has not yet reemerged. I suspect foul play, but we shouldn't try and get our hopes up. I've asked the young warriors to look in on it, but sending children in to do a warriors task seems hardly sporting…and the one they may be facing is anything but sporting."

"Understood, Grandmother," Silk turned to the others, "We have a problem…Grandmother thinks we should go after Saotome and get to the bottom of this challenge match with the Kuonjis."

"I'm game," Atsuko said, "So where do we start?"

"Ah…" Silk paused, glanced over her shoulder and said, "Grandmother?" There was another long pause, then she shook her head and sighed, "I think she broke the connection, which means I'll have to rely on my own intuition to guide us."

"Typical Elder," Comb huffed, "Never there when you need them, but in your face when you least expect them. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's find the fool and see what the ninja is up to."

"Oh my," Kasumi said, "Does this mean you're going too, Father?"

"Uh…well…" Soun hesitated.

"I'd rather you didn't," Silk said tightly, "It may have been close to twenty years, but considering the way you both parted ways…"

"Besides which she's jealous," Comb smirked, then when Silk turned a sour look her way she replied, "Hey, if you can do it to me, then it's my turn!"

"Uh…should I come along?" Terry asked, "I'm pretty good in a fight, and I have some experience dealing with…unusual happenings…"

"Thank you, but no," Silk replied, "No offense to you or your abilities, but this is a private family matter, and we've only contracted you to make repairs to the walls and the roof. Now that we've finished with the really hard task, I expect what's left won't be too much of a problem, and at the usual rates your employer charges…"

"Can we get going already?" Atsuko impatiently demanded, "Who knows that that cast iron witch is doing to my poor Gemi-chan!"

"Nothing too painful or permanent, I hope," Comb said darkly, "I want enough of him left over that I can kick around for running off like this without us!"

"I'm sure Dearest will be all right," Nodoka said firmly, "But just in case," she slung her cloth-wrapped katana over her back and said simply, "Shall we be going?"

"By all means," Kodachi said, "Lets."

"You're going to help out too, 'Dachi-chan?" Kasumi asked brightly.

"Lady Silk has said that this is a family matter, and I consider you to be family," Kodachi affirmed, "So I may, in some small part, be able to help out, such as to have Sasuke bring around the rolls to take us there in style and in a timely manner."

"You're so thoughtful like that," Kasumi smiled in an endearing way.

"Since when are you family?" Soun murmured to himself, but of course everyone ignored him.

"Ah…" Terry said as he looked around at the yard, then at the group of women heading for the front gate, and then at Soun before asking, "Are they always like that?"

The Tendo patriarch nodded simply, then followed after the women without further comment.

Terry shook his head with a sigh, "Maybe being a bachelor isn't all that bad after all…"

Lotion sighed and shook her head, knowing that everything was now in motion as her forces rallied to the point where she sensed the greatest discord of the region. As formidable as the fighting talent being assembled was, however, she knew it would prove painfully inadequate should her dark suspicions prove to be correct and Cybelle truly was behind the tide of recent events that had been perplexing her so greatly. It would take more than the children and parents combined to make a difference in this matter, especially with her apprentice still so inadequately prepared to deal with the likely challenge. They would need more allies to help even things out in a more favorable direction, and fortunately she knew where to find such allies, with just time enough to get them all to the same place so that they could be of use to one another and whatever nasty surprises they were likely to encounter.

"Like lambs to the slaughter," she murmured grimly. Cybelle was no fool and might even be in some part responsible for the string of recent coincidences that had caused the old gang of Nerima to reassemble, no doubt to have all her likely challengers assemble in one place where they could be dealt with in a more orderly fashion. Lotion did not like being in the dark when it came to the list of variables that would likely complicate even her best calculations. Nor was she in any position to challenge the power of the demon Sorceress directly…that task would fall to another who had the experience and power to balance things effectively.

Lotion smiled, reckoning that the young-seeming Matriarch would not mind any excuse to get away from Ninamiya Hinako by even a matter of a few hours. Cologne knew Cybelle from the old days and would be the one best able to deal with her, especially if she worked things so that Happosai would be able to back her. War Master and Lore Master united would make a formidable combination, if only they could stop bickering and set aside their differences for the sake of their heirs. No mean task playing peacemaker between those two, but it was certainly preferable to sitting back and doing nothing while disaster unfolded before them all.

Oh well, she mused, not like I'm getting any younger. Time to play my part in this little melodrama and see what the old witch is up to. With that thought in mind she set about her self-appointed tasks, knowing time was running against her if she was to be of assistance to her apprentice and her loved ones with the future itself hanging in the balance…

Continued

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