Project A-Ko Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Vampire Hunter (Darkstalkers) Fan Fiction ❯ Nabiki 1/2 (A Very Scary Thought) ❯ Carrying a Torch... ( Chapter 76 )

Nabiki 1/2

(A Very Scary Thought)

Written by Jim Robert Bader

Proofread by Shiva Barnwell

Based Upon the Altered Destinies Storyline

Inspired by the works of such fans as

Wade Tritshler

Richard Lawson

James Jones

And Many Others

Standard Disclaimer: This is inspired by the work of Takahashi Rumiko and is not my original creation. All characters belong to her. This is only a fanfictional work, and is not intended to compromise the rights of the original owners, distributors and publishers of the Ranma series. I have no money to spare and would very much appreciate if no one tries to sue me.

She almost did not make it to the bathroom before the tears started to flow like a river. She staggered up to the sink area and began running water to cover up the sobs that escaped her. Only when she was convinced that she was alone did she allow her grief to finally well up to the surface, and then there was no stopping the wellspring. The pain was so great that she was almost blind to her surroundings.

Damn, swore Beatrice to herself, you would think after all this time I would finally be able to put it all behind me! When will this nightmare end? Were my sins so great that the Gods must punish me this way, forever tricking me to lower my guard, then springing the memories upon me when my defenses are at their lowest?

She pounded a delicate hand on the counter top and let the sobs escape her, fighting back the image that filled her mind with a face and form that had haunted her every single day since her return from her mission of failure. How could the fates toy with her with such a cruel jest? It was almost more than she could endure…

And then the ragged voice intruded on her privacy, very angrily demanding, "Are you following me around? What do I have to do to escape you?"

"Aiko?" Beatrice straightened, staring at her own face in the mirror, then slowly turning rounded eyes to one side to see the angry redhead shaking with emotion, having emerged from a bathroom stall with her own eyes red from heavy crying.

"What?" she heard the other girl ask defensively, "You were expecting somebody else? C'mon, admit it, you're spying on me! That's the only way you could keep winding up in the same places!"

Rather than deny this charge Beatrice dabbed her eyes with wet fingers then turned herself fully around to confront the fury she saw written plain in the other girl's expression. She fought the urge to back away and instead sought to control her voice, steadying her nerves as she said, "And what if I am? Are you going to swear out a restraining order against me?"

"If that's what it takes to make you leave me alone," Aiko took three long strides and halted again, "Well? Go on, say something clever and nasty! You always do when we're together like this…"

"I…can't think of anything like that…at the moment," Beatrice amended.

"Oh no?" Aiko took two more steps closer, literally shaking with fury, "Don't have an audience this time to lull into a false sense of security? Or are you still on this 'Nice Girl' act you're adopting? Come on, say something!"

"It's…very good to see you again, Alison," Beatrice said with faint bravado.

"Don't call me that!" Aiko roared as she lurched forward with a speed and power that only Beatrice knew to be as devastating as it was. She closed her eyes and prepared for the worst when she felt the shock wave just to the left behind her. She opened her eyes again and saw Aiko's arm alongside her head and knew without looking that the girl's fist had just made a sizeable hole in the wall right behind her.

With more calmness than she would have believed under the situation Beatrice said, "I'm very sorry you feel that way, Alison, but there's no sense in taking it out on the poor, defenseless tiles and plaster, or on me for that matter."

Aiko freed her hand with great ease and stood back a half-step, now looking more puzzled than angry, "What's with you? Why won't you fight? You never passed up the chance to fight with me before."

"Things have changed for us," Beatrice said sadly, "I thought you were intelligent enough to realize that…"

"Oh, so now I'm stupid, huh?"

"I didn't say that," Beatrice hastened to reassure her, "But you must realize that it can never be the same between us now as it was before we went out on that mission to find and rescue Ceiko. You have to know that I no longer feel the same way about you."

Aiko took a half step back, "W-what do you mean?"

"I mean that I can never hate you that way anymore," Beatrice informed her, "After what you went through to save my life…after everything we did to stay alive…can you really find it in your heart to think of me as the same cold, insensitive bitch who threatened you at the start of every class for almost a full semester? Do I really look to you like the same person?"

"No…you…" Aiko swallowed, then looked down, "I-I don't know you any more…not that I ever could figure you out…"

"Aiko," Beatrice replied, then amended herself, "Alison…I know it must be strange for you to hear me say this, but can't we at least try and bury the hatchet? I don't expect you to forgive everything I tried to do to you in the past, but please…please try and understand that I'm not that way anymore. I've changed, and I'd like to think it was for the better."

"Beiko…" Aiko seemed at a loss for words before she turned away, "You're asking me to forgive some of it, aren't you? Like I could forgive you turning my every waking day into such a nightmare…"

"The same way I forgive you for seeming to come between me and the object of my affections," Beatrice replied, "Please…I don't want us to be enemies any more, not in this new life, when we have a chance to build our lives together…"

"Together?" Aiko said archly.

"Well," Beatrice sighed, "Given everything we went through on that mission, isn't it at least possible that we might emerge from this as friends rather than as friendly enemies? We did make a pretty good team, and we even once managed to save all of creation…"

"That…" Aiko looked away, "That was a long time ago, and about a zillion light years from Earth…"

"It was only last month," Beatrice replied, "And since we managed to find our way home I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I've come to realize what a terrible mistake it was to ever make you out to be my enemy. It was all my fault and I admit that, but I was insane with jealousy at the time and blaming you for all manner of things that really weren't your doing…"

"About time you said that," Aiko continued to avoid meeting Beatrice's stare until she managed to regain the edge of her previous anger, and then she flashed brown eyes at Beiko and said, "That still doesn't change the fact that you let Ceiko walk away after we freed her from that evil old Hag. How could you make that choice for both of us? I thought you at least cared about her…"

"I do care," Beatrice all but whispered, "More than even you know, and you love her almost as much as I do, but in your heart you know it was never our decision. Celeste went home to her people to fulfill the duties she had inherited as the Lepton Princess of Alpha Cigni. Forcing her to come back with us wasn't the answer, and I'm sure you knew that as well as I did or why stand there watching her depart? I think we both knew then that it was the right decision, however much it cost us."

Aiko continued to stare at her, then flinched from the earnest intensity of Beatrice's gaze. Her expression was haunted as she stared off into the distance, then she took one ragged breath and said, "I don't know about anything anymore, Beiko. You expect me to believe you've changed…and you are acting really weird, I'll give you that…"

"Can you blame me?" Beatrice asked, "I died on that mission, Aiko. A thing like that changes you in ways you can't comprehend. Maruten may have revived me but you don't forget what it feels like having your heart literally blasted out of your chest, not to mention the several minutes I hovered in limbo before the two of you worked out a deal to make him regenerate the damage."

Aiko's expression was more than slightly pained as she favored Beatrice with a wary expression, "I really hate it when you bring that up. It weirds me out having to remember seeing you laying in the sand all dead and…" she took another deep breath to steady her nerves, then the hardness was back in her tone once again, "You always have to manipulate my feelings, don't you? You get a real sick pleasure out of making me squirm, like that time you…we…"

Her voice choked up and she could not continue.

"Oh," Beatrice said mildly, "So now you are blaming me for that as well is it? Well, it may interest you to know that there were two of us trapped all alone in that damaged shuttle for two weeks until we were rescued, Aiko. What did you expect was going to happen while I spend nearly every waking hour trying to find ways to keep the both of us alive, and you were steadily driving me crazy trying to find ways of relieving your boredom? Neither one of us is to blame giving in like that to the call of nature. Did you think you were the only one who was afraid of dying out there, all alone and unfulfilled without anyone to know or even care what happened back here on Earth? You at least have parents who would miss you!"

"Beiko," Aiko was surprised by the sudden intensity in the other girl's voice. Beiko Daitokuji was always a creature of wild, volatile temper and unpredictable mood swings. This calmer, more rational and reasonable Beiko was like a complete stranger next to her and this was the first time she could really see traces of the old Beiko in the silver haired girl's mannerisms and expression.

Beatrice fought to control her temper, silently cursing the loss of discipline that she had worked so hard at maintaining, "I'm sorry, Alison…I shouldn't have shouted at you…that was…reflex. I'm just trying to say that you don't have to be afraid of me or what I might do anymore. If the very sight of me offends you so much, then I'll do what I can to stay out of your way, but I was kind of hoping that maybe we could start over with a clean slate and let the past go. Obviously I was mistaken."

Beatrice started to turn away when Aiko's hand shot out to block her path. She turned a questioning look at the redhead and saw confusion in her expression as if not quite realizing herself the true cause for her own behavior.

Aiko lowered her arm and said, "How do I know that this is the real you talking, Beiko? What if the old you turns up tomorrow in that combat suit of yours seeking to challenge me before class like you used to?"

"And what would be the point?" Beatrice studied her companion for a moment more before resuming, "You ask me what I want from you? Besides your forgiveness, I want to know if I have a chance at repairing the breach that's grown between us. We're two very different people, Alison, but we do compliment each other in ways that surprise even me. I…think we make a good team…maybe even a good partnership, your combat skills and strength, my intelligence…"

"Like opposites attract, huh?" Aiko said with an entirely neutral tone.

"And why not?" Beatrice turned towards her fully, "There are fewer surprises that way, and less to disappoint. We already have a pretty good notion of each other's bad habits from sharing the same space on that mission. It's pretty much as I explained it to you when I proposed that we go into space to find Ceiko…the two of us can accomplish a lot more working side by side than we can separately, and if anything, the mission proved this. It may be the one good thing that came out of the whole spacefaring adventure."

"And how are we supposed to trust one another?" Aiko asked, "If memory serves right you were trying pretty hard to kill me a while back."

"I had lots of opportunities to do the deed in the last few months," Beatrice replied, "The thought did occur to me on more than one occasion, and every time I said, 'not yet, I still need her.' As time went on I found it less and less hard to persuade myself that keeping you around was a good idea, and not just because you make a formidable ally."

"Beiko…" Aiko said with a look of wonder.

"What are you afraid of?" Beatrice asked, sensing the hesitation in the other girl, "Am I that terrible to be around? Do I frighten you so much because I used to waste so much time and energy plotting your untimely destruction?"

"I'm not afraid of you!" Aiko protested.

"Then why don't you trust me now?" Beatrice took a step closer to the other girl, and saw Aiko react like a startled deer, which caused her to hesitate, "I'm not wearing my Akagiyama suit, I'm just an ordinary girl with average physical abilities and above-average training. You could break me in half and never even feel it…"

"Beiko," Aiko stepped away from her as if to put more distance between them.

"I'm not a threat to you any more, Aiko," Beatrice replied, taking a full step to close the distance, "You don't have to run from me. Tell me to leave and I'll give you all the space you need and try to steer clear of you in the future."

"That's kind of hard to do," Aiko said as she backed away another half-step, "This ain't that big a school, and we'll probably bump into each other a lot between classes…"

"You mean you might run into me by accident?" Beatrice smiled, "Would that be so awful? I'd only bounce."

"Ah…" now Aiko backed away even more, then said, "Oh sure, and then you'll probably go chase after some cute guy who comes onto you, like that Gail creep..."

"Or like Kei?" Beatrice noted with a sigh, "Before him, I didn't even know I could be attracted to the opposite sex. That's another thing I want to apologize about, the way I went crazy trying to take him from you, and all the time he was really interested in Ceiko…"

"Who hated his guts," Aiko finished with a lame smile, "Only it was Miss Ayumi we both wound up hurting…"

"So now where does that leave us?" Beatrice replied, continuing forward to keep the distance even between herself and the redhead, "Do you remember what happened a month ago when you were fighting against Gail and I was holding that blaster?"

"Yeah," Aiko replied, "You shot him…"

"It was either him or you," Beatrice said, "Not him or the Universe, or even him or Ceiko…it was purely an act of gut level reflex, one I regretted at the time, but if I had to do it over again I would still choose to save your life. You mean a lot more to me than you realize, Alison…"

"Beiko…"

"Beatrice."

"Ah…" Aiko winced as she felt the wall come up against her back and it was only then that she realized that she had no where else to retreat, not with Beatrice standing so close in her way between the wall and the exit. It was just as the other girl said, she had nothing to fear from Beatrice, could have forced her to move aside without even the slightest effort, but somehow she could not make a move to refuse the other girl's further advances. There was no telling how far things might have gone at that point when, all of a sudden, the building shook all around them.

"What the…?" Aiko gasped, fighting to remain upright.

"That wasn't an earthquake," Beatrice said as she glanced to one side, hearing a bellowed roar down the corridors before the floor shook once again, causing both girls to immediately lose their balance.

"What the hell?" Aiko gasped as she landed on her back then saw Beatrice falling towards her and instinctively reached out with her hands to stop her. Beatrice winced, then looked down at her, then down at those hands and made a serious note about the ironic place those hands had chosen to catch her.

"Ah…" Aiko murmured nervously, "This…isn't what it looks like…"

Another roar, and this time they could clearly hear what sounded like heavy footsteps barreling down the corridor. With obvious reluctance Beatrice said, "Hold that thought until later. I think we are facing a much more immediate crisis."

"What the hell was that?" Aiko asked with relief as Beatrice got up off of her then stood erectly.

"At a guess something very large and bipedal," Beatrice replied with the typical nonchalance she used when being analytical, "Also, if I do not miss my guess, very, very hungry."

"I guess we'd better go see what it is--ah…" Aiko caught herself as she got back to her feet and amended, "I mean…we as in you and me separately, not as in you and me together…"

"Fine," Beatrice sniffed, "Have it your way," but she hid a slight smile of amusement, promising herself that the unresolved matter between them was far from concluded and that-one way or another-she would make Alison Kent Managi see matters her way before the day was entirely done with…

"What is that thing?" Ukyo cried as she risked a glance over her shoulder.

"Whatever it is it's gaining," Perfume answered, "Run faster!"

"We can't outrun it in the open," Ranma said, "It's way too fast!"

"Point taken, Ranchan," Nabiki replied, "Might I suggest we duck into the building and hope it takes the hint?"

"You won't get any argument out of-OW!" Ukyo cried as she fell down unexpectedly, catching her momentum like the trained martial artist that she was before curling into a ball and reaching for the leg that had unexpectedly encountered a pot-hole.

"Ucchan!" all three of her companions cried out as they halted their momentum as one, then looked up to see the creature advancing to within a good twenty paces.

Abruptly it slowed down as it neared Ukyo, making a very odd noise as it wuffed the air, resembling a massive bloodhound rudely shaped like a Tyrannosaurus.

Nabiki knelt down at her friend while Ranma and Perfume hovered expectantly at her sides, and it did not take long to make a diagnosis as Ukyo herself cried in pain, "My ankle…I think it's broken!"

"Twisted," Nabiki corrected, feeling the swelling with the tips of her fingers, "I don't think you'll be doing any running for a while now."

Perfume cursed volubly in Chinese and interposed herself between Ukyo and the reptilian beast, flexing her hands as her axes magically appeared in each palm. She crossed them as she assumed a wary posture then called over her shoulder, "Ranma, take Ukyo and go. I'll try and hold it off!"

Ranma looked ready to protest, but Nabiki gathered Ukyo up in her arms and said, "You'd better carry her, Ranchan…you're stronger than me in this form, and we need to make some tracks here."

"Perfume-!" Ukyo protested.

"Don't argue with me, Airen!" Perfume called tensely over one shoulder, "Ranma's the best choice and you know it, just like I'm the only one who can hold that thing off for more than a few seconds!"

"Don't take any unnecessary risks with your life, Per-chan," Nabiki said, "Just do what you have to and clear out once we're inside the building. You don't want to make your baby into an orphan."

"She needs to be born first before she can do anything," Perfume said tensely, "Just go…I'll try not to do anything suicidal. It's you Japanese who get Kamikaze-like, not us Amazons, remember?"

"Just take care," Nabiki said as Ranma took Ukyo off her hands, then she sprinted for the building, calling over her shoulder a heartfelt, "Hurry Ranchan!"

Ranma turned to go, knowing that above all else he had to protect Ukyo from harm, and that she was in no condition to fight without her trademark baker's peel anyway, but still the thought of letting Perfume play the heroine here was starting to annoy him. It was his place to protect women, not hide behind a brave woman making a valiant last stand. A man should be the one to risk his life, and that brought home what he was finding so annoying about Perfume's behavior lately. She was behaving like a guy, even though it had been three months since that incident on board Lao's vessel.

In spite of her bravado, Perfume knew that she was facing a threat more dangerous than any opponent she had ever stood toe-to-toe with. That three-meter tall lizard looked hungry, and it moved awfully fast for its size, and it had some pretty wicked claws, not to mention a set of teeth that would have made a shark blanch. At this range it looked like a Sherman Tank with teeth and against its hide, claws and feet her axes might do only minimal damage.

She had been in Japan long enough to at once recognize the resemblance between this creature and a certain other creature that was a strong part of the cultural tradition, but somehow this looked a lot more intimidating than any guy in a rubber suit facing off with the ludicrous rubber monster of the week and if the thing chose to rush her flat out there was a good chance it would stomp her flatter than one of Ukyo's okonomiyaki.

To her surprise the thing did not attack her but instead seemed to sniff the air like a bloodhound. Perfume belatedly called upon her woodsman sense to try to recall if there were a variety of reptile that had a good sense of smell and was in the process of attempting to classify which branch of family tree of Sauroids it might belong to when the creature turned away abruptly, circling around her as though following a different calling that took it towards the main building, only not in the direction she would have expected.

Perfume was trying to sort this out while racking her brain for the sort of kata that worked best with giant lizards when she suddenly became aware of the fact that the thing was swishing its tail…a very long and powerful tail with one end as thick as a club, and it was all she could do to dodge the thing before it could slam her into a world of pain unending. By the time she straightened up she saw that the thing was attempting to scale up the side of the building, poking its nose at an open second floor window.

As perfume stared in wide-eyed disbelief the thing tore the window apart to create a large enough hole to climb through. Moving with great speed for its huge size the thing entered the building in this manner while the voices of panicking students could be heard, along with the scramble of disks being shoved out of the way as the thing hauled its huge bulk into the gap it had created.

"Ucchan!" Perfume suddenly cried as she realized that her Airen was still in danger, as was almost every other student and teacher. Ranma and Nabiki would have little warning before the thing wound up ahead of where they would logically be heading, which meant that she had to haul ass if she was to get there in time.

As she sprinted for the front entrance she failed to take note of a pair of figures strolling up along the exact same trail that had been used by the creature. These two halted several meters away from Furinkan then the hulking male said, "Just great…now we're got civilians to worry about."

"Shouldn't you, like, be doing something about that, Muscles?" Urd asked her companion.

"Hey, who are you talking to here?" Hercules said in mild irritation, "I'm the original monster slayer, remember? This is what I do for a living, so I'll just hop in there and take the thing out before anybody gets hurt and-oh shit!"

This last part was said as he took note of a large shadow forming close to where he was standing, and the next minute Hercules was dodging to one side as a red-bearded meteor plunged into the ground hammer-first and created a huge pot hole.

"Hercules!" Thor bellowed as he reared up out of his own handiwork, eyes flashing like twin thunderbolts as he raised his hammer and prepared to commence swinging.

"Oh, hi Thor," Hercules said as he easily dodged a swing that would have reduced an M-1A Abrams battle tank into so much scrap metal, "Look, this is kind of a bad time for this, so don't you think we should postpone the rough stuff until after we're finished dealing with the monster…"

"Monster?" Thor snorted, continuing to attack, "You don't think I'm stupid enough to fall for that old trick? Now hold still and let me belt you!"

"Boys!" Urd cupped her hands and tried to make herself heard over the melee, but in the end she just had to sigh a heartfelt, "Men…"

"I take it you two were not successful in finding the thing before something terrible happened?" Sif asked as she appeared at Urd's side.

"What do you think?" Urd asked as she indicated the building, which was currently the source of many violent noises that included the terrified screams of both young men and women, with not a few of the older set punctuated for good measure.

"We don't have time for this," Sif growled, "I guess it's up to us to try and find the monster."

"Isn't it always?" Urd replied as the two of them turned and headed for the nearest building entrance, "If it wasn't for that one thing men do better than us…"

"Tell me about it," Sif agreed with angry resignation…

"Kuso!" Nabiki hissed as she ground to a very sharp halt, then waved at her two companions and immediately reversed directions, "That way! The thing's cut us off in the hallway!"

The "monster" had only briefly paused on its way through a very panicked classroom, terrifying both a teacher and his students who had endured an eventful year full of surprises with their dignity intact. The creature sniffed the air until it seemed to pick up on a particular scent, when it moved towards a desk formerly occupied by one particular student in an earlier class.

It turned and followed the trail of that scent out the door, having to duck its massive head low and use its powerful forearms to brace itself as it lumbered out the door recently vacated by the students, considerably widening it in the process.

It ignored the screaming mewing insects that scrambled to get out of its path and headed down the corridor, careful to angle its head so as not to bump it while following a trail that seemed to be all over the place. The students it encountered quite sensibly made as much room as they could to allow the creature safe passage, all the while making those annoying sounds that impacted upon its senses.

"Why's it chasing after us?" Ranma asked, "It's not going after anybody else…"

"Good question, Ranchan," Nabiki said as they vaulted the stairs as though they were flying, "What say we table that until we get ourselves more breathing space."

"It's got to be me!" Ukyo declared.

"What?" Ranma blinked as he followed Nabiki's lead, "What are you talking about?"

"I touched the object," Ukyo explained, "I must have set off some kind of magical alarm, and that thing's its guardian demon."

"I don't think so, Ucchan," Nabiki said as they raced down the first-floor main corridor, students looking at the trio as if to wonder where the fire was that was causing such a panic, only to shortly discover the answer as it rounded the corner just behind them, "Would that object, by any chance, be shaped like an egg?"

"Uh," Ukyo blinked, "I-It could be…I didn't think about it until now…"

"So that thing back there could be what just emerged from the egg," Nabiki said as they reached the end of the corridor as she burst the double-doors out of her way, almost knocking them off their hinges, winding up in the school cafeteria, which was almost totally deserted at the moment.

Actually it was normally deserted even during lunchtime. Most students knew better than to eat there and brought their own lunches from home. One had only to sniff the air to get a pretty good idea of why even the school administration stayed clear of the place, which was what prompted Ranma's next question.

"What are we doing here, Nab-chan, and why do you think that thing hatched from an egg?"

"Second question first," Nabiki replied as she headed towards the kitchen, "Note that the head is out of proportion to the body, and its moving somewhat unsteadily or else it would have caught up to us by now. As to the first question," she vaulted over the cafeteria bar line, surprising the cook, who was not used to company that did not come rushing in for an inspection, let alone a girl and a guy carrying another girl, followed by a giant reptile, "This is Friday, right? And they always serve fish on a Friday."

"Oh," Ranma said, then blinked, "Fish?"

His question was drowned out by the scream of the cook ducking for cover as the creature plowed into the snack line, tearing it apart in the process. Meanwhile Nabiki found what she was looking for and promptly tore open the freezer, reaching in and grabbing up a box of frozen fish cakes. She emerged from the freezer and hefted it in both hands as the reptile came lumbering towards them, knocking the heavy kitchen equipment out of the way while Ranma backed away holding Ukyo protectively in his arms.

To his horror he saw Nabiki chuck the box at the charging dinosaur-like creature, planting it squarely in its open jaws as it reflectively clamped down on the blocky cardboard. Ranma tried to order her away, the first time he had even thought of telling Nabiki what to do, only to stop in mid yell as he saw the creature rear back and begin to chew the box in its jaws. To compound his horrified amazement the creature began making far more pleasant noises as it continued chewing on the box.

Nabiki set her hands on her hips and smiled in self-satisfaction then murmured very softly over her shoulder, "Ucchan…you think you can put some weight on that ankle of yours?"

"I think so…why?" Ukyo asked in dull amazement.

"Because I'm going to need your help to feed this thing," Nabiki nodded, "Junior here looks like he has quite an appetite, and that box won't satisfy him…it's barely a mouthful."

"How did you know…?" Ranma started to ask.

"I played a hunch," Nabiki noted, "Good thing this school is too cheap to maintain a decent kitchen, that refrigerator barely keeps anything cold enough to freeze. I knew the delivery was yesterday so the fish cakes are fresh and almost warm enough to have the flavor of the ocean. Help me with this next box, by the way," she said as she re-entered the freezer, "Ucchan, you open the boxes and pour their contents out for Junior here. I think he'll be happier if he gets fed direct by his mommy."

"Mommy?" Ukyo blanched as she saw the creature finish off the half-frozen box, then look at her with a plaintive expression, "You've got to be kidding…"

"Set her down, Ranchan, and I'm not kidding, Ucchan," Nabiki replied as she emerged with a fresh box, which she placed on the cutting-board table, then nodded to Ukyo to get busy unpacking, "Let's get this baby fed before it decides it wants something else besides fish on its menu."

"How did you know it wanted fish?" Ranma asked as he set Ukyo back down on her feet and followed Nabiki's example.

"I saw it in a movie," Nabiki replied as she fetched another box while Ukyo went to work unpacking the second, hastily tossing them onto the floor to the instant delight of the creature, which dove into the pile like an overgrown puppy.

"Ucchan!" Perfume cried as she finally caught up with them, virtually out of breath as she had been too frightened to concentrate on her usual practice of sustaining her Chi-levels. When she saw what was going on, however, she lowered her axes and muttered something in Chinese to the effect of "What the heck?"

"Just in time to help," Nabiki called out, "Grab a box and help Ucchan feed the baby."

"Baby?" Perfume blanched, "You mean…that…?"

"So it's a baby," Ranma said as he passed by Nabiki with another box of fish-cakes in his arms, "What I want to know is…where is its parents?"

"One problem at a time, Ranchan," Nabiki urged, "I'm more worried about what happens when we run out of fishcakes. There's only six more boxes in there, and Junior looks like he's got an appetite like Kurumi's."

"Here you go, baby," Ukyo called out as she passed the next load of fishcakes onto the floor, this time having taken a moment to unwrap them from their cardboard, "Not so fast! Chew a bit slower, you'll give yourself indigestion."

Both Perfume and Ranma gave Ukyo studied glances, unable to help noticing how the tone of their mutual beloved had taken on a distinctly maternal edge. The creature was too happy to care, gobbling fishcakes as fast as they could be produced as though it did not mind chewing them into an icy mush.

No one took any notice of the pair of tall, foreign-looking women who appeared at the ruins of the doors and took the scene in with a glance, then Urd said, "That's what all this fuss is about? It's big but it seems harmless."

"Looks are deceiving," Sif replied, "Looks like these mortals have it pacified for the moment. Pretty resourceful use of available materials…"

"Yeah, but how long will they be able to keep it happy?" Urd sniffed, "And what do you do with an eight hundred pound lizard when it's finished eating? Burp it?"

"I think we'd better go get the boys," Sif nodded sagely, "This is more up their alley, but don't look at me if somebody suggests giving it a diaper."

"I'm with you there," Urd smiled, "What say we cool those two hotheads off? I'm sure we can find some way to make them see reason."

"If they know what's good for them," Sif agreed, and both goddesses shared a rare look of conspiratorial agreement, thinking of the options at their disposal for insuring "the boys" quickly learned to mind their manners…

Continued

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