Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Reluctant Bet (2nd Labor) ❯ Reluctant Student ( Chapter 29 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

Reluctant Bet segment 29 "Reluctant Student"

disclaimer (use secret decoder glasses to read):

what's happened so far: Grey was told to "play Ranma" in order to stabilize a timeline. So far he's screwed up a LOT and hasn't done a very good job. Right now he's trying to attend High School while his advisors manage the Empire and figure out what else he has to do to fix things. Meanwhile Akane is pulling a "Doctor Tofu" around *her* True Love - Ranko, and the Great Fiancee Contest is about to begin.

------

Akane glanced into the living room where her father was meeting with some woman of about his own age, having finally recovered from her attack of love-panic.

"...Akane is my True Daughter," Soun Tendo was saying, "she's completely human and was the child of my wife Kimiko. She is not only my official legal heir, she is my Heir in the Art. The other two were accidents."

"Accidents that you have two daughters from the Kami Plane?" The woman said calmly. "They seemed quite charming young ladies when I met them earlier."

"Well, one was a 'half-hour indiscretion' as the saying goes. The other was a love potion and therefore not my fault. Kasumi and Nabiki are almost everything one could want of a daughter, but they're not quite human." Soun shook his head. "Ah, everytime I see them it reminds me of the shame I've had to undergo. Kimiko was far more understanding than I deserved. If it hadn't been for those two stains on my honor, perhaps my dear wife might have lived."

Akane nodded, the idea had been hers many years ago. She knew intellectually that neither of her older sisters had anything to do with their mother's death, but emotionally was another thing altogether.

"So, I will be taking two unwanted children from your care." The woman fingered the odd bundle in her hands. "It would be best if we conclude this quickly. Ranko should be ready to make her move in another hour and I must be in place."

"Ranko!" Akane covered her mouth a moment later, realizing she'd yelped the name. "Is she okay? She looked a little thin, is she getting enough to eat?"

The woman looked Akane over briefly before returning her attention to Soun. "It appears that your youngest daughter prefers my daughter to my son. While they might make a cute couple, it would hardly be suitable for joining the houses per your original agreement with Genma. And while I have little confidence in ANYTHING that man did, he was making the arrangement with my children in mind."

Akane went into private fantasies and started dancing around when she heard that the mother of her beloved Ranko thought they made a 'cute couple' and therefore missed everything else.

"Very well then, but how are you going to manage this? Neither Kasumi nor Nabiki have any experience with men and have their odd magical abilities." Soun was confident that once the two elder daughters had done some of their weirdness, this woman would reject them and they could start planning Akane's wedding.

Nodoka tapped her purse. "I am aware that a djinni and a dao have special 'considerations' that must be taken into account. Where are they now?"

"Nabiki's up in her room, Kasumi is likely on the roof." Soun was even more confident now. The two would balk and display their magic, and Akane's marriage would be so beautiful. Ranma was human, after all, unlike Ranko. It was only fitting for the two houses to be joined through pure bloodlines!

Nodoka quickly excused herself and went up the stairs to Nabiki's room. Soun noted the voices, Nabiki's raised in argument, then what sounded like a brief storm including thunder. What he expected was Ranma's mother to come flying out of the room. Instead she calmly closed the door behind her and asked for a ladder.

Soun frowned but pointed out where it could be found, then went out to the backyard. Yes, there was his eldest daughter, on the peak of the roof. There went Nodoka Ishikawa to plead her case. There was Kasumi turning away from the older woman, an argument breaking out. There was Kasumi, preparing to fly away.

Then the older woman held up a piece of paper and shouted something indistinct. Soun's eyes bugged as, despite Kasumi's struggles, she was drawn *into* the piece of paper. Which was then carefully refolded and placed within her purse.

As the woman carefully climbed down the ladder, Soun was there to greet her. "What?! How?!"

"All interaction between mortal (ins) and geniekind is done through contracts. They are now, by the laws of geniekind, married to my son." Nodoka smiled and half bowed. "When we schedule the ceremony you'll be invited, don't worry. Now I just have to prepare the receptacles."

------

New Beijing, the Alabaster Palace:

He was a proud young man who could trace his ancestry back to Xun You in the days when Cao Cao attempted to unify China under his rule. Xun Pi (actually his name had been Chang Pi and he'd used Peter Chang for Western business) had quickly seen that Communism was strong and determined, and *doomed* when it was being hit by magic, supernatural creatures, and technology that was at least four centuries ahead of anything that the Red Army could field.

It had helped salve his conscience when he found that the "Evil Despot" had turned out to be an uncertain fellow who wept for the dying and did everything he could to raise the quality of life of the areas he'd conquered. His loyalty had become firmly cemented when he discovered the oathstones. An oath sworn on one of these softball sized grey orbs became binding, but once sworn the individual had access to all sorts of fascinating stuff.

A textiles factory owner named Peter Chang had sworn the oath and taken his ancient familial name in order to reflect the new/old manner of this new empire. Then he'd gone through the Imperial Placement Test and become a magus, therefore someone who trained in magic and who'd gained status and power in the Empire.

His business, Lotus Cloud Clothiers, had to be rebuilt somewhat for the new environmental standards. He'd had to leave most of the concerns to his brother Lu but still felt a somewhat proprietary interest in what went on with it. Whenever he learned of an enchantment or enhancement that would affect the clothing industry, he leaked vague knowledge (nothing precise in the interest of the Empire) that such a thing was possible. For example, a minor enchantment on cloth or leather that caused dirt to be repelled. Eventually he'd be able to market such garments to elite clientele when the Emperor deemed this knowledge safe for limited release. Or, if not the Emperor, one of his Advisors.

The magus Xun Pi, bowed low and respectfully despite his power as a mage, because the seemingly seventeen year old girl named Cologne wielded an entirely different power. So, Pi bowed and nodded and waited for Cologne to run out of steam.

Apparently she'd built up quite a bit of it.

"So, milady Cologne, what emergency do you want to deal with first?"

"Emergency? The first order of business is grain subsidies and this trade embargo the UN has slapped us with! Hardly an emergency." Cologne frowned and allowed herself the luxury of flopping down into her chair. "Get Lilac and Hammer, Breeze and Gayle, up here pronto. I want situation reports yesterday. And NO I don't mean that literally."

Xun Pi carefully did not smirk. "I've already sent for them."

"Oh, and the delegates from Hong Kong and Taiwan? Tell them if they really want independence we'll grant it. We've already got quite a bit of territory, no point in being greedy. Oh, and go ahead and give Tibet their independence back, I'm sure they won't object. Any other 'emergencies' that I need to oversee will be dealt with in council."

-------

The President of the United States stared at the photos handed him by the *real* power behind the throne. "What does this mean, exactly?"

Sabbath (if you knew his real name your body would never be found) reminded himself that it was the Cabal's intention to produce stupid, easily misinformed and led, populace and leaders. Therefore he did not want to simply call his puppet a moron. "It means that this person who has come out of nowhere, conquered a world power and is reshaping it, is also manifesting a clear space superiority over the United States."

"I see." And he DID see. "So our satellite network, among other things, could be picked off. That will still take years, though."

"Try again, Mister President." Sabbath pointed at the photos. "These are 100 ton asteroids being moved into a Lagrange point, that's where the Earth and Moon's gravity reaches a null point where a large space station can be put in a stable orbit. There are five of these chunks of nickel-iron so far, and evidence that these are being refined and restructured where they are."

The President blanched. "If one of those came down..."

"End of the dinosaurs again. Yes sir. It doesn't appear that's a concern. What IS a concern is that the Chinese somehow now have roughly 500 metric tons of raw material placed where they can build their space station, then use that as a staging point for their lunar bases and the terraforming of Mars and Venus."

"I see. Hmmm. We can't do any of this, can we?"

"No, Mr. President. We *could* wait till they're done and then 'liberate' them. Maybe engineer a few emergencies and then show up to rescue them, uncovering human rights violations while we're at it so we have a public excuse to stick our noses in later."

"That sounds good. What about other countries?"

"The French are declaiming the whole thing, a number of Middle Eastern countries claim its an American plot, the British tabloids say the whole thing is a CIA plot gone wrong, the Japanese are trying to smooze as much with their Emperor as they can, the Russians are working feverishly on upgrading their own space program, and the Vatican has reversed its previous stand to declare that the new Empire isn't perfect by a long shot but that it's better than what it is replacing."

"Well, that IS a point, sort of," sighed the President. "That's publicly. What's the covert situation."

Sabbath smiled without humor. "Plausible Deniability, sir. It's in your own best interests to be out of the loop here."

-------

GRO, Yggdrasil Fileroom K7

Celeste aimed carefully and sped the deadly missile on its course.

The goddess Belle clapped her hands. "Bullseye."

Celeste pulled the throwing knife from the picture of Kitchiri. "What's keeping Amaterasu? With the time differential, every hour that goes by here is a day THERE."

"She's probably busy, you know how they can get." Joe spoke from the doorway.

"Joe?!" Celeste was a little surprised. Joe was not a goddess, but male and an Eternal Archetype Personification. Joe was, in fact, *the* Joe. The cynical footslogger in WWII's European campaign, the Roman spearman who faced the Celts alongside his buddies while complaining about the weather, the tired grunt in the Korean War who griped about not seeing why THAT hill was so damn special, and in thousands of similar roles throughout history.

"Yo." Joe scratched his perpetual chin stubble briefly. "Jes wanted to let ya know that if'n you're looking at that Second Labor line, a major divergence point occurred in the backtracking. If you'll look at June 12, 1991..."

Celeste pulled up a text brief and sweatdropped heavily. "Nehelenia snuck into the college of magic? She swore an Oath to get past the barriers? And has been trying to get the Emperor as her own personal lovetoy since then?"

Belle looked at the accompanying text briefly. "Oh, so she's been trying to use various means to eliminate her rivals without immediately killing them. Such as turning them all physically and mentally into children on September 14th. Oh, looks like it backfired. The girls remember how kind and supportive and good with children he ended up being, and they want him even more after having gone through that ordeal. He found a way to reverse it on September 25th. Then came that December where she tried to turn all her rivals into bedroom decorations."

"Geez, various cardians, droids, daimons, and other yoma types. All are usually of at least vaguely female form." Celeste shook her head. "Why does an artistic medusa seem appropriate?"

Belle shrugged.

"Where *is* Amaterasu, anyway?"

----------

"Bwahahahahahahha!" Amaterasu rolled on the floor, kicking her legs. "Look at that! She tries to start off the new year by sticking a Lust Daimon Seed inside Ami?! Bwahahahahaha! Oh did THAT backfire! Poor boy locked himself in a closet to escape Ami, and then she 'infected' most of his other fiancees! Bwahahahahaha!"

"My, he *does* get rather good at dodging running and hiding, doesn't he? And all this is just background, it's remembered and the physical evidence is there, but it never actually happened." Toltiir smirked. "Another drink?"

----------

Ranko *skipped* up to her big brother in his usual brooding position on the roof. Mama-Nodoka said do and Ranko was a *good little girl* so she would do. Seemed strange though. And then Rei-chan had figured it out and so Mina-chan and Ami-chan and Nuku-chan had also said Ranko should do this. Ranko was puzzled, but if they all wanted this...

"Prince Rammie! Oniisan!"

Ranma winced and sighed. "Yes, sister?"

"You remember last week? You gonna tell me now? You promised!" Ranko fibbed but Mommy-Nodoka said it was all right.

"Promise?"

"Which one do you like?" Ranko chirped. "So which fiancee are you going to choose?"

"Gakk!"

"C'mon, you promised me!" Ranko wheedled and turned the Cute level up, knowing this to be one of her brother's weaknesses.

"Well, err, things have been kind of busy."

Ranko nudged her brother. "C'mon. What about Rei-chan?"

"Well, she's kinda young..." Of course she was the same age as Ranma in this timeline, sixteen. He was sixteen, *biologically*, but a lot older chronologically.

"She's the same age as you, brother. You like older girls? What about Setsuna-chan?"

"She's all of twenty, right?" In *this* timeline at least. "Errr, Ranko, it's just that i..." ~don't expect this timeline to last, and when the real Ranma is backtracked in how will *he* react to any of this?~

"So it's not old and not young?" Ranko's hair hid the earplug from her mama. Her clothes hid the microphones and antennae. "Maybe intelligent like Ami-chan?"

"Well, i *do* like intelligence," admitted Ranma.

In a room not too far away, Usagi wailed and Ami discovered if you smiled too hard your face hurt.

"Or is Rei just not pretty enough?" Ranko seemed to think for a moment. "Or is it that Rei is so powerful and intimidating?"

In that same crowded but not very far away room, Rei was being forcibly kept from running out.

"It's not that, Ranko-chan. C'mon, you know why i can't choose one. i'm not going to be around that long."

"Neither are any of *us* by that reckoning." Ranko cocked her head, refusing to worry about it. "It feels real, so why not treat it as real?"

"Look, if it came to that, and i was going to stick around. There is still a major problem."

"There is?" Ranko stopped, not expecting some other reason. Nodoka in her home and various girls in their room also started paying even closer attention. The crowd of not-fiancees listening in also stilled in response. "What is it, oniichan?"

"None of them are interested in me," said Ranma. He said something else but it was all lost in the single largest simultaneous facefault to ever occur in a non-Urusei Yatsura timeline.

Ranko pulled herself up, checking oniichan for level of seriousness. Yup, looked like he was heading into a major depressive episode. "No seriously, big brother! They're NOT just yanking your chain."

Ranma thought for a few moments, in order for that to be true... "Toltiir."

"Excuse me?" NOW Ranko was confused.

"All right, Toltiir, i know you're around here somewhere or at least listening. i will *not* accept some mind control love affair."

"Huh?" Ranko blinked and scratched her head.

"It took awhile for me to realize, but these oathstones are being used for more than ensuring that we don't have a lot of mages and monsters running about aren't they?"

"Well, yeah." Ranko thought a moment then related a story about a slumber party. How back in August apparently all the Japanese girls had gotten together for a little "bonding" and had a slumber party. Usagi had suggested trying a game of "sort of" Truth or Dare. USING an oathstone. Minako had apparently started it, stating that she "would claim the lips of her darling Grey."

Ranma blinked. "Her darling 'Grey'?!"

"When you were her cat, you'd switch from being the cat Orion to a boy named Grey," Ranko explained, "so she and all her friends call you Grey."

"Oh. Go ahead."

"Well, things continued to get silly, and err, well." Ranko had the grace to look embarassed. "I kinda suggested that they couldn't *all* do that cause I know you don't believe in sleeping around so..."

Elsewhere, Nodoka was a little concerned about Ranma's manliness but allowed that Ranko was indeed a clever and resourceful daughter.

"You didn't."

Ranko nodded. "Errr. Even Setsuna and Michiru and Haruka and Nuku-chan and Ukyo-sempai were joking about it, and, uhm, they all kinda swore an oath to marry you."

Ranma was quiet for a moment. "It *has* to be Toltiir. Well, i cannot accept girls who only love me because of a magical compulsion. Mind control is *not* an option."

"Tell you what, doc," said Bugs Bunny as the scene froze. "Knew this was coming, so I've got a deal for you. When they reset this timeline and backtrack there will never have been any Senshi, no Silver Millenium, no Nuku Nuku. Though frankly at this point they'll most likely just let it merge with the Pheonix Mage's timeline."

"So what's the deal, Toltiir? If the timelines merge, they'll just become part of the other timeline by merging with their analogues. The ones from offplane will have never been here. Everything will be fixed. Sort of." Ranma still wasn't comfortable with the personality mergers that would occur, realizing that the individuals he was getting to know would cease to be no matter which option was used. That it happened all the time anyway didn't help.

In a certain room, Rei would have frowned except for being frozen between the ticks of the clock.

"My deal is this, they'll know what's coming, and all the geases and mind bending will be negated just prior." Toltiir took a few moments to chew on a carrot. "If any of 'em decide to take it up again, then ya gotta take 'em, doc."

"If they got a choice, i ain't got a problem. But you *know* they'll end up loved in the new timeline if they merge with the Pheonix's line. And so i'll be alone again. So, yeah, i'll take that deal."

Bugs Bunny tapped his carrot like a cigar and winked. "Remember this, doc. I sure will."

"So when's the event?" Ranma asked the rabbit, glad that it wasn't that pink one.

"One day from now, Midnight Tokyo time. Then the merger or backup takes place. If they go with the merger, that Mage guy ain't gonna notice much difference at all. Except maybe the space race, but he was already terraforming planets so the space station isn't exactly needed." The rabbit altered slightly, and pulled a pocketwatch out of his vest. "Well, kid, this is my cue."

"Wait. One last question. i've heard three versions of how Ranma died on this timeline. Which is correct?"

Toltiir looked sober, a rare thing. "Genma couldn't keep his stories straight? Go figure. You've heard about the plank with a nail and an infection, the Touched Soul, and the Pit of Cats? Touched Soul, actually. It was when the burned corpse was exhumed from its mountain and she saw it that Nodoka dumped Genma."

Ranma nodded as the white rabbit vanished and time seemed to restart.

"So..." Ranko gulped, her mind whirling. ~So Oniichan is gonna go away, but there's a chance that a girl could go with him. Or waitaminute! Bunny-man used *plural* so it could be more than one...~ "So, big brother Rammie, are there any of the girls you don't like?"

"Hah? Oh yeah, listen Ranko-chan, your big brother's really..."

"You gotta! You always honor your promises, so you'll tell me, won't you big brother?" Ranko activated her pleading-cute look.

"Oh boy." Ranma sighed and sat down with his back against the short wall that marked the roof boundary. "Honestly, Ranko... OK. IF i were to choose and IF i felt they actually liked me, and IF it were up to me? That's a lot of ifs."

Ranko continued to put pressure on Ranma with the weight of her gaze.

"i like... a lot of 'em."

"Cop out!" Ranko sang.

"No, seriously," Ranma said and drew a deep breath. "i've only got to talk to them briefly but there are some things i really like about them. Both the versions here and other versions that i've met in other timelines.

"Minako can be a little ditzy and her skills around the home are horrible but she's nice girl who can be fun to be around. Ami is a bit shy but has that keen intellectual edge and is a pretty good strategist, anything she turns her mind to she can accomplish. Rei can be attractive, intense, and you certainly always know where you stand with her. Makoto- her name means loyalty and she's strong and graceful and beautiful. Usagi... well she intends well, and her friendliness seems to drag you in. Haruka is a bit weird at times, but she's got a way of taking charge in a crisis. Michiru's nice when she wants to be, though she can be cattier than Shampoo when she's in the mood. Setsuna's a bit manipulative and likes the Ice Queen image, but she can thaw - and she's BIG on keeping promises.

"Shampoo is the sort who commits to a plan of action and then NOTHING will dissuade her. She's cute and a good fighter, gets along well with Makoto when they're not struggling over this engagement thing. Ukyo's a bit okonomiyaki-obsessed but it's not her fault. Sash is a bit manga and anime obsessed, but it's something that i could live with. Ayanami-san has this vulnerable quality which is oddly appealing. Misato quite frankly NEEDS someone around, you couldn't trust her to be able to take care of herself. i understand Ex-el's problems, being a cyborg isn't always a good thing. Nuku Nuku has this bubbly enthusiasm that just seems contagious.

"Megumi and Mayumi i can't say i know them very well. Megumi's a True Samurai who regards me as her daimyo, while Mayumi's a Glitter Boy pilot. Other than that..." Ranma shrugged. "Belle is kind and nice and graceful but kinda reminds me of Belldandy a bit much, and i consider Keiichi a friend..."

Ranko watched her brother trail off in thought. "So if you *had* to choose one over all the rest, you'd probably go for whichever was closest?"

Ranma groaned. "It's a moot point, but i'd pick whichever i thought liked me the most. Or at least could tolerate me better than the others."

In a house not too many miles away, a woman planned. In a room one floor down and a few meters away, many women sized each other up anew and made plans.

---------

Ranma walked to school and grumbled. The grumbling was nothing new, though it was recognized by all and sundry that it was more his way of acknowledging the problem's existence than a desire to dwell on it. The look as if he had lost a lot of sleep was also nothing new, he was known (through gossip and rumor and spies) to have nightmares quite frequently.

The two girls flanking him were also nothing new. Rei Hino, looking unconcerned on Ranma's right, going so far as to file her nails while walking, was frequently at Ranma's side. Minako Aino, on the left, seemed more interested in her companion than the scenery, but was ready to construct a forcefield that could keep the Fenris Wolf at bay on a moment's notice. As Minako was near "her" Grey any time she could finagle it, this was also not unusual.

Nor was the nearby helpful presence of Ukyo, Nuku Nuku, Setsuna, Shampoo, Ami, or a vast assortment of other characters. Veritech Valkyries on scramble-ready status, not common but not unusual either. Nor the various hidden warriors, skulking mercenaries, enterprising assassins, or supernatural beasts that could be found in his vicinity. All perfectly normal.

The Police and Japanese Self-Defense Force also being on 'alert' was a bit unusual, but quite understandable when dealing with a foreign dignitary now attending school in THEIR district. After all, if the Emperor DIED on THEIR watch! The least they could expect was demotions. The worst case scenario was something that was being discussed via radio and in public forums and in locker rooms all over Japan. And with the near overnight discovery of the space station taking shape in near-Earth orbit, the tales of what China could do to Japan was escalating into the realm of horror that HP Lovecraft would have drawn inspiration from.

But all this was either normal or at least expected.

It was the *school* part that was unusual. Ranma wasn't happy. This was because BAD things happened in school. There were people who went to school and never got mugged, never had people MUCH larger and MUCH fonder of hurting people decide to see how far those joints could rotate, never had teachers hold the little cripple up as a subject of ridicule. Never watched the TV series and KNEW what kind of jerks he'd have to associate with.

This was also about something that had occurred last night.

Rei wondered if she maybe should not have replayed that scene with the not-the-Warner-Brothers-licensed character. She had a feeling that a few guns had been jumped from what Ranma was saying.

"...but at least Haruka and Michiru acted like they were at a job interview. Setsuna, on the other hand," Ranma turned a pleading gaze to the Heavens, "if debate were a martial art she'd be in Kenshiro's class. Not to mention i'd have been splatted. So i try to get a nice hot relaxing soak away from whatever new weirdness is going on. Then someone calls in a threat, and suddenly my nice relaxing bath has got Megumi glaring at Wing and the two are tangled up in the doorway again. Then all these Amazons come rushing in and are talking about how i can't be left alone in such a dangerous time.

"So i leave the bath with what little dignity i can. Then Ukyo gets it into her head that she needs to fix me this late-night okonomiyaki. Well, i can't eat it, but you know what Usagi's like. She pops up and scarfs it, then as she's thanking Ukyo, she starts wrestling with her! i had NO idea that Ukyo and Usagi were like that in this timeline (it *would* explain why Ukyo's still crossdressing)."

Rei winced and made a note to chase Usagi and Ukyo down and make sure that whatever love potion Ukyo had used had run its course.

"Then Misato shows up, drunk, and kept glomping onto me crying about how Kaji had died and now she doesn't have anyone. i finally get her down to the infirmary, only get interrupted four times on the way to my bedroom, and get in. What do i find? Stacey in the closet. Melanie under the bed. Ex-el is IN the bed. i've got pixies hiding in my underwear drawers for crying out loud. Three assassins that i know of show up during the night."

As Ranma groaned, Minako and Rei exchanged a look. Maybe they ought to go to Plan B?

"Great, now the Horde Of Hentais." Ranma looked at the crowd of boys in front of the school. "Well, i don't see Akane, so they'll leave us alone, right?"

Akane chose that moment to step into view and drop into a fighting stance.

The Horde stood stock still. This puzzled both Akane and Ranma.

"That's THEM!" The Captain of the Sumo team.

"Get them!" A large crowd of hormonally crazed boys charged forward.

"All right you!!" Akane was ready for the fight and started swinging. Unfortunately she was being largely ignored and the tide merely parted around her.

"Minako-chan! I love you!" "Nuku Nuku chan! Make me yours!" "Ukyo!" "That fiend Saotome! How dare he have MY harem!"

If this had been merely one high school student getting beaten on, it wouldn't have been a big deal and the local police wouldn't have done that much if anything. As it was...

The Horde Of Hentais found themselves being quickly overwhelmed and hauled off in nice shiny squad cars. It was quickly determined that these boys were both too stupid and too incompetent to be even acceptable pawns of almost any assassin group.

Akane got a little angry that her fight hadn't materialized, but quickly came to terms with the experience. Especially on remembering that mysterious woman meeting with her father the previous night.

-------

Nodoka had prepared the 'receptacle' in advance, despite what she had told Soun. Ranma was wearing it, as a brief glance at the television confirmed.

The Seal Of Solomon had been prepared, the proper rituals observed. She had learned the arts of the Sha'ir, those go betweens that dealt with the relations between genie and ins. Addressing the two contracts, Nodoka smiled as she spoke. "Where you were, you were unloved. Where you go, you will be fully appreciated, and I am sure there is enough love in my son's heart for both of you. And a few others, I'm hoping."

Kasumi and Nabiki, bound within the parchment, listened but could not reply.

Nodoka spoke at length, going over the terms of the contract. They would be bound to her son's lifeforce. So long as he or his heirs lived, they could not be magically compelled nor bound by another contract such as she had wrought. To love and to cherish, and all the terms of a normal marriage ceremony, through sickness and in health, etc. Then she waited. If they fought at this critical juncture, years of planning and preparation would fail and the two eldest daughters of Soun Tendo could never again be bound by her. And as there was another sha'ir in the area, most likely the two would end up in a lamp (traditional for djinni) and a ring (typical dao prison) and forced to spend their considerable lives as slaves to whomever held their prison.

The contract containing Kasumi crumbled to powder, followed by the one containing Nabiki. Nodoka let out a deep breath. They had accepted their contracts.

Two of the lifeless gems on the Armlet Of Tandel Moor that Ranma was wearing briefly glowed then settled down to a gleaming radiance. One, now a blue-white gem, the other a mottled golden brown. It was perhaps a pity that the mages and psychics were so tired from the efforts of moving multi-ton hunks of rock around, because then at least someone would have noticed.

~Nabiki?~

~I'm here, Kasumi~ Nabiki looked about at the interior of the gem, which resembled some huge cavern. It was oddly comfortable, though she would *have* to get some decorations.

Kasumi drifted in the airy confines of her own gem. ~How long do you suppose we'll be in here?~

~Probably until someone gives our 'Husband' the proper code to release us. Hmmm. That's interesting. Check the 'floor' of your prison.~

~Oh my! That's him? How... Maybe this will work out as you planned after all.~

Nabiki laughed within the confines of her gemstone. ~I just love it when a plan comes together.~

Kasumi smiled. Acceptance, even the possibility of love, these had been fantasies for so long. Now, perhaps, they had been upgraded from fantasies to hopes. And, as Nabiki had said, long odds were better than no odds at all.

------

Ranma stopped, puzzled at something going on he couldn't quite place.

The brief reprieve ended as a blue-clad swordsman stepped out. "Hold! Are you indeed that arch-fiend, that enemy of all women, Ranma Saotome?"

"Well, that depends on who you ask. A lotta people call me that."

"Now I see thy base deception for what it is. Know that you now face the noble Tatewaki Kuno, age 17, rising star of the kendo circuit, a fearsome foe to mine enemies, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High School. Tremble at my approach, O Foolish Gaijin that doth seek to spread thy perversions about the innocent young maids of my school, for I shall end thy evil here."

Mass blinking.

Ranma tried an interpretation. "So... you're after me to free Akane from her affection from my sister Ranko?"

"That as well," confirmed Kuno, rotating his bokken into a ready stance. "Though that not be the main reason any more, foul beast, for I do know of thy evil scheme. You seek to add the gentle and tidy Akane Tendo to thy harem."

Ranma blinked for a few moments before he could react.

"Stop rolling around on the ground laughing, base poltroon!" Kuno snarled in anger, charging forward. "For it is thy time to DIiiiiiieeeee!"

SWAT teams reacted to some crazy person shouting death threats and attacking a foreign dignitary. Various bodyguards threw energy blasts or got in between Kuno and Ranma. Various snipers and assassins waiting for their chance decided this was the perfect opportunity to trim the competition.

Kuno's bokken whipped around to stop a flight of arrows. Which meant that he did NOT block the energy blasts, missiles, incendiary grenades, chi blasts, shuriken, laser beams, fireballs, or lightning.

The crowd parted around the fallen kendoist, though one was kind enough to put the fire out in his boxer shorts.

---------

"Place your bets here, place your bets!" Fleece was in her element, making a quick yen. "Who will it be? Belle - the Nice Fiancee? Ami - the Smart Fiancee? Minako - the Cute Fiancee? Rei - the Passionate Fiancee? Makoto - the Protective Fiancee? Usagi - the Friendly Fiancee? Setsuna - the Lonely Fiancee? Michiru - the Elegant Fiancee? Hotaru - the Uncertain Fiancee? Haruka- the Fierce Fiancee? Ukyo - Businesswoman Fiancee? Shampoo - Amazon Fiancee? Sash - the Otaku Fiancee? Misato - the Drunk Fiancee? Ayanami - the Albino Half-Angel Fiancee?"

"It's too bad I don't gamble, or I'd put a wager on Queen Serenity from MY timeline," the God of Crossovers said to the God of Thunder.

Thor considered this and put his own bet down. "Twenty on Sasami."

"Isn't she a bit... young?" Jared Saotome, the protector of Senshi and patron of overkill suggested.

"Nah, it isn't about who he'll choose as his fiancee, but who he'll end up with." Thor rubbed his beard as he considered. "I figure Sasami will have gotten her taste of universal travelling and take a 'vacation' from that Tenchiverse she's in. Don't forget that she and Kiyone are still under the effects of that love arrow."

"I thought those were cancelled."

"Aye, lad," a Scottish god of engineering to his right agreed, "but while the compulsion was cancelled there remains the memories of him and his actions, as well as a trace of affection that lingers. Such things happen ye know."

Jared nodded, considering the point. "Who did you place your vote on?"

"That lass Son Usagi was one I was considering. But I put in my wager on Rei and Minako both tracking him down after the merger. Or Usagi, I think. Speaking of which did you see that Edo timeline he visited after he was on your world, where the Scouts were actually warrior maids with none of that there Senshi stuff?"

"The one where Usagi Tsukino is a ronin who has foresaken her family name until she regain her honor, and is now a bodyguard who travels the land with her sister-warriors righting wrongs like in some samurai epic?" Jared nodded. "Usagi Yojimbo, who'd a thought?"

"Fifty on he doesn't end up with anyone," said someone in the crowd.

"What's his next mission?" Jared asked, figuring that this might have some effect.

"Looks like a non-anime timeline. They're looking at one that's had some Demonic Intervention," Sif said from where she was hugging her husband's arm. "There was a possessed Dong Zhou in a China warring states, and a second nudge in 1774 in the 'American Colonies' that saw Ben Franklin and a few of his buddies killed. They're looking for him to go in and see how much he can fix."

"After..." Thor glanced at his wife, waiting for a signal. She shook her head slightly.

"You mean the plan to strand him and whoever on a desert island in a dimensional pocket for six months so they get to know each other without interference?" Jared raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Who did you think came up with that idea?"

A troll spoke up from the crowd surrounding Fleece. "Hiroyuki Ito? Hironobu Sagakuchi?" *BONK*

"Idiot," pronounced Sailor Pluto (she was here with the Pheonix Mage) as she returned her Timestaff to a guard position.

"Agreed," agreed Tezuka, god of manga, wandering by with his nose in a Skysaber manga.

Sailor Pluto excused herself as she didn't have a copy of that issue.

"That wasn't one of the dojinshi, was it?" Jared groaned at the thought of what had happened the LAST time something like that had happened. He'd very quickly explained that he was NOT like that and was not into THAT in the slightest. It had been a good thing he had Dimension Door memorized. Not to mention Wraithform. He shuddered slightly at the memory of when Akane (the Happosai disciple not the student) had gotten ahold of a hentai Skysaber dojinshi and had gone shopping at an adult boutique. He bet that THAT sort of thing never happened to Grey...

"Will it be those three elite marionettes that Sakyo built?" Fleece continued to take bets and suggest possibilities. "Or what of the two genies of the Tendo family? Will the djinn Kasumi merge with her counterpart or stick with the Master she knows? Will Nabiki trade her power as a dao in order to become a minor businesswoman in a timeline where she's human?"

"That reminds me, I saw those element bracers and Nabiki's was Darkness. When did it become Earth?" Jared idly waved a pixie away that was trying to perch on his head.

"Oh, I made the substitute," Amaterasu said with a wink. "Dao gives her a greater chance for happiness after all. The earth can be warm and fertile, after all. I'm also the one who put in the dragonform seed in a few of those I favored. After all their lives are already linked."

"So that if they do choose him, if he's a dragon so will they be." Jared had a sudden image of Minako as a golden dragon. "If they don't they'll merge with the ones in MY universe. Would I notice a difference?"

"No. The only thing that'll be noticeable will be that orbital colony," Amaterasu checked a pocket watch. "Looks like its time for me to get back to work."

-------

A shimmer of magic had passed unnoticed over the Chinese Embassy several hours ago. Unnoticed, that is, unless one was of those rare individuals who could see the magic or the extradimensional field of its origin. Or you were one of the individuals directly affected.

As all the magical geas and compulsions were abruptly switched off, a LARGE number of women had gone into a private meeting. Kasumi and Nabiki had both come to their own conclusions and had left the meeting within the first hour.

Ranma checked his watch, noting that the meeting had been going on for four hours, then turned his attention back to the flitting shape of Kasumi in the courtyard below. He'd found the two, and been rather surprised both by Nabiki now being a dao and of Nodoka's accomplishments as a sha'ir.

He'd found out about THEM when two other gems had burst into life shortly after school. The fire gem and the water gem. It turned out that Ukyo's mother and Shampoo's father had been geniekind as well. Now, by the laws of geniekind, and a contract - those four were married to him. However, the marriage would never be consummated as in less than twelve hours this timeline would merge with Skysaber's. (Providing they didn't use one of those three backups. He understood from another brief conversation with Botan that it was being hotly contested still.)

He turned, noticing three girls coming out onto the roof with him. Ranma let out a long sigh. This Labor had been a rough one, not so much dangerous or physically trying, but rough on his nerves at least. They were all free of the geases so he expected they were here to kill him, or would they simply retreat from his presence to never want to see him again? Still, it had taken them nearly till midnight to decide, so maybe they had come up with some Fate Worse Than Death.

He heard the three step closer and let his head drop slightly. Well, it wasn't exactly unexpected. He had never taken advantage of the mind control deliberately, but the girls had all been so NICE to him that he'd found himself beginning to relax. Now he'd just have to...

*SLAP!* "Ouch!"

Ranma blinked and half turned so he regard Minako holding her hand as if it had hurt her to slap him. Judging from the redness, perhaps it *had.*

Rei stepped forward, looking angry. "How dare you?!"

Ranma let out another sigh, looking away. ~Hatred, recriminations, misunderstandings. As usual, my luck with women runs from bad to worse. If i try to defend myself and point out nothing happened, they've already made up their minds and won't listen.~

Rei grabbed him by the shirt and yanked him up until his face was inches from hers. "STOP THAT!"

"Huh?" Not the reaction he had been expecting.

"Don't discount us that easily! It's REALLY insulting to us and our feelings!" Rei closed the distance till their eyes were less than an inch apart.

"Nuku Nuku not like it when Master run himself down." Nuku pouted.

"Huh?" repeated Ranma. ~...but the geas is removed...~

"Knock it off already!" Rei shook him by the collar. Unfortunately she was still holding him that close and their heads butted together.

Ranma reached out and kept Rei from falling off the roof by grabbing the belt of her hakima. Reeling her in, he noticed her eyes had gone all swirly. No answers there, obviously.

"Orion!" Minako waved a finger on the uninjured hand at him. "errr. Grey. Ranma? Whatever. We stuck with you through thick and thin, conquered China together, what makes you think we're all going to abandon you just because..."

The scene flickered and Grey was standing in between the arches surrounding Mimir's Well.

Grey tried to smile and addressed the scene in the pool. "You already have, and you're happier for it..."

-------

Xun Pi is a POV character, to provide a reference for what the average Chinese is doing in the Empire. Though a textiles manufacterer could get by no matter who's in power.

Hmmm. Speaking of strange fusions, can one picture Shinji Ikari in Ash Ketchum's role? "Oh, I'm never going to be good at this anyway..." Or Usagi... in either's role (the Evangelion gets knocked down and starts crying, or throws the pokeball and trips as she's doing so.)

Or, to be *really* Different: Ryo ("City Hunter") Saeba in Shinji's role, negotiating mokkori from various female cast members in order to go out and fight the angel.

Usagi Yojimbo? Each of the Senshi actually being a warrior in some samurai epic?

There's a difference between love and obsession, though i think you have to have gone through it to understand this point. Certainly a lot of writing i see indicates this isn't a common concept, and that's not restricted to fanfics.

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