[ranma][fanfic] Adjustments

[Richard Lawson]

This is an "aftermath" story. It takes place immediately after the
events in my "Magic" series. You can find "Magic" on my fanfic web page
(URL below).

Let me know what you think.

-Richard
ste...@sprynet.com

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| All of my fanfics can be found on my fanfic web page: |
| http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/sterman/fanfic.htm |
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Adjustments

Magic: Aftermath

by Richard Lawson

Comments & Criticism Welcome!
ste...@sprynet.com

"Minmay, access." Nouma pressed his palm against the door plate.
During his extended absence, he'd put his apartment's security at
the highest level.

His palm tingled for a moment, then the computer answered him.
"Welcome home, Nouma." The door's locks clicked and it swung
open. Nouma walked into the apartment.

Khu Lon followed him in. She was carrying a duffel bag very
similar to the one Nouma had slung over his shoulder. She stepped
past him into the living room, where she stopped and looked
around, her face impassive.

Nouma gave the door a nudge; the motors took over and it swung
shut. He was feeling more than a little awkward. He'd known Khu
Lon for about ten days. He'd kissed her passionately once.
They'd exchanged minor intimacies since then.

And now she was moving in. It seemed a little rushed somehow.

He dumped his duffel bag on the ground and spoke into the air.
"Minmay, messages."

"Three personal messages and seven solicitations."

"Delete solicitations. List personal messages."

"Message one from Yotsuya. Subject: Where the hell are you?"

"Save. Next message."

"Message two from Director Miyagi. Subject: Project Status."

Nouma sighed. He had a big decision to make about his continued
employment at Aunt Nabiki's company. So far, he hadn't figured
out how much of an impact his... current condition would have on
his life, and whether he would be able to meet his obligations as
an employee. "Save. Next message."

"Message three from Ambassador Xian Pu to Khu Lon. Subject:
Greetings and Update."

Khu Lon turned to face Nouma at this. He raised an eyebrow. She
nodded, and he walked over to his vid screen. "Play message."

Shampoo's face appeared on the screen. She was evidently sitting
in an airplane, and her husband was sitting next to her. She
spoke in carefully enunciated Japanese, which Nouma took to mean
that she wanted him to hear the message too.

"Khu Lon, I understand that this will be your new address from now
on." Her eyes sparkled with amusement. Nouma glanced briefly at
Khu Lon, sharing with her a puzzlement over why their relationship
seemed to be a source of humor to the older generation. "I have
finished my work in the United States, and am on my way back to
Joketsuzoku. I anticipate being there for a month. I do hope you
find time to visit. And bring Nouma with you as well. I'd like a
chance to become better acquainted with him.

"I would also like to hear more about what happened in Canada. I
have Kuno Tachi's report, and it is quite thorough, but I want to
hear your perspective as well."

Shampoo looked over at Mousse, then back to the screen. "Nouma,
probably no one can better help you understand what's happened to
you than your father. However, Mousse and I were once cursed as
well. Also, I may know a little more about Jusenkyo than anyone
in Japan does. If we can answer any questions for you, please let
us know."

Mousse nodded. "The period immediately after being cursed can be
quite difficult. People adjust differently; some take to it right
away," he flicked his eyes over to Shampoo, "and some, like your
father, need months to accept it. For each one, the experience is
unique, and sometimes very traumatic. Please know that we can
help, if you need it."

Shampoo flashed a smile at Mousse, then looked forward again.
"That is all for now. Khu Lon, please contact me when you get
settled." She then spoke a phrase that sounded like Mandarin, but
Nouma was unable to figure out what it meant. The screen went
blank.

The house computer's bubbly voice spoke into the silence. "End of
message."

"Erase. That's all for now, Minmay." Nouma looked over to Khu
Lon, to see a look of mild distaste on her face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She turned away and began to walk towards his bedroom,
then stopped. "My parents have run every aspect of my life for
twenty years. They kept me from joining the military, not caring
that it was something I very much wanted to do. Now, even as I
break free, they attempt to reassert their control over me. I
find that... displeasing." She continued on into the bedroom.

Nouma frowned slightly. All he'd seen in the message was two
parents trying to be helpful, and wanting to see their daughter
and her new boyfriend. There were obviously undercurrents here he
was missing. Still, his initial impression was that Khu Lon was
overreacting.

He snorted in amusement; he wasn't about to share that observation
with her yet. He really didn't know her or her parents well
enough to judge such things, and Khu Lon would likely attack him
on the spot if he tried. Best for now to observe silently, and
wait to see if she wanted his opinions.

He went over to the kitchen to prepare himself a sandwich; he was
hungry. "Want anything to eat?" He opened the refrigerator door.
"Um, I've got bread and some lettuce -" He broke off and picked up
the lettuce, which looked a little brown and didn't smell so good.
"Damn." He closed the refrigerator and threw the lettuce into the
garbage. "Well, I've got some frozen stuff. Uh, a couple of
soybean dinners - do you like soybean stuff? - or I've got a
pizza."

"I am not hungry." Nouma jumped at the voice right behind his
head; he hadn't heard her enter the kitchen. He turned, shutting
the freezer as he did so. Khu Lon had her arms crossed and was
eyeing him critically. "You have been focusing on mundane tasks
since we came here. Can you think of no better way to spend your
time?"

Nouma smiled; as usual, Khu Lon cut right through to the heart of
matters. "I'm sorry. I'm a little nervous. This is... so new.
I, I don't know how to act."

Khu Lon raised an eyebrow. "Why not act like yourself?"

"Because 'myself' would either be hacking away at my computer or
working out right now. Neither one is good for entertaining
company."

"Hmm. Am I 'company' then?"

"Er, no, that's not what I meant. Look, I love you, Khu Lon.
Getting to know you is going to be wonderful." He paused to smile
widely at her. "However, right now I feel a little awkward.
It'll get better, I promise."

Khu Lon gazed at him without expression. As good as he usually
was at reading people, he still had problems sometimes trying to
figure out what Khu Lon was thinking. Mostly because she usually
kept her face neutral, and her Japanese, while flawless, didn't
convey a lot of emotion. After a moment, she continued in her
formal tone of voice. "Where do you go to work out?"

"Well, when I don't go home, I just work out here." He walked
past her back into the living room. The walls and floor of one
corner were covered with mats. In the center was a wooden dummy.
He walked up to it and did a couple of half-speed attacks. "I do
this for an hour or two."

Khu Lon had followed him. "It hardly seems sufficient."

"Well, for the past couple of years I haven't really been
interested in staying in top condition." That decision had almost
cost him dearly in his fight with Mikanma.

Khu Lon seemed to follow his unspoken thought. "It is time you
began to develop an interest. If your experiences are going to be
anything like your father's, you'll need to hone all of your
skills to a fine edge."

Nouma looked over at her and nodded. "Yes, I guess you're right.
I suppose I should find a nearby dojo or something like it for
serious workouts."

"That would be good." Khu Lon tilted her head and considered him
for a moment. "Let's practice now."

Nouma frowned slightly. "It's a little late to be looking for a
dojo."

"No need." Khu Lon took a couple of steps backwards towards the
center of the living room, then set herself in a ready position.
"The Amazons have developed a technique for indoor combat. It is
most effective."

Nouma looked around the living room. While his furnishings
weren't nearly on par with Nabiki's, he had no desire to see any
of them destroyed. "Is it safe?"

"The Amazons have practiced this technique for generations and
perfected it. Seldom does anything get broken."

Nouma shrugged. "Okay, let's give it a try." He relaxed into his
ready position, focusing his attention on Khu Lon's body, watching
it for signs of attack. "How does it work?"

Khu Lon gave him a hard smile. "I trust you will figure it out as
we go along."

Nouma chuckled. "A challenge. I like it." He bowed his head to
her. "Let's begin."

***

Nouma lay on his back, completely exhausted. Never had he felt so
drained, and that was saying something considering some of the
workouts his father had put him through. He simply had no energy
at all. Even keeping his eyes open was an effort, but his mind
was in too much of a whirl to permit him to close them just yet.

"Minmay. Take a note."

"Recording."

"Whenever Khu Lon mentions Amazon techniques, make sure that she
explains in detail what exactly is involved. End note. Save as
'Amazon Reminder'. Mail 'Amazon Reminder' as a private message to
myself every Monday."

"Note saved. Mail rule applied."

Khu Lon stirred next to him and made a sound halfway between a
satisfied sigh and a laugh. Nouma looked over at her. She was
lying on her side facing him. Her eyes were closed, but she was
smiling. Her dark red hair covered half her face and arrayed
itself on the pillow. One of her arms rested on his chest. Nouma
spent long minutes watching her face as the smile relaxed and her
breathing became slow and regular.

Nouma gently extricated himself and stood up. He grabbed his robe
and put it on. Quietly, he made his way back into the living
room. It was quite a mess, although nothing was broken. He sat
in the chair at his desk and removed a strip of what had once been
his shirt from the keyboard. Tapping the space bar activated the
computer with a soft hum, and he began to page through his
projects.

He had several pieces of code he was working on, one in particular
of high priority. His mind filled with the ideas he had come up
with... had it only been a week ago? A little more than a week.
It felt like years.

With a sigh he moved on. There was the personality he and a
couple of his friends were working on for the android they were
building. So far everything was a spectacular failure, but they
were having fun. True artificial intelligence was still a long
ways off, but they were working on a response system that would
fool someone for a while. Nouma read the notes he had made, and
the responses that had been made to them by his friends. He
smiled and added a couple more notes.

Nouma saved the project and looked through his email. Lots of
things to respond to. He was heavily involved in several
newsgroups; he spent an hour or more each night just keeping up.
Now he was so far behind, he'd need to spend most of a day to
catch up.

He leaned back and switched off the computer. A cold lump was
twisting his stomach. His gaze moved around the room, looking for
what he didn't know. Perhaps his former life. It had been a good
one. Very pleasant. Peaceful.

He hung his head a second, then shook it and stood up again. He
wandered up to look at a painting his paternal grandmother had
done. It was a lovely picture of Mt. Fuji. He read the haiku in
the corner, frowning thoughtfully.

His feet led him back to the bedroom. He looked once again at Khu
Lon. Tantalizing curves lay under the bed sheet. More
importantly, an intriguing mind lay behind those closed eyes. In
his eyes she almost seemed to glow with the love he felt for her.

And yet, for the first time, he felt less than utter joy at the
sight of her.

He crawled gently into bed, extremely tired. He needed sleep.

He didn't get much.

***

Nouma woke abruptly. He blinked and sat up, trying to figure out
what was wrong. There were sounds coming from the living room.
He wondered briefly how they had gotten past the apartment's
security. Then he remembered.

He smiled and got up, realizing that he'd forgotten to take off
his robe last night. He walked into the living room. Khu Lon was
doing a kata as best she could in the padded corner. He watched
her for a moment, then moved around picking up the bits of cloth
that littered the area. He dumped them into the garbage chute,
then began to make some tea.

Khu Lon came into the kitchen, evidently finished with her
exercise. She opened up a cupboard, closed it and opened another.
She took out a glass, then went over to the sink and began to fill
it with water.

Nouma turned to the refrigerator, opening it and wondering what he
could conjure for breakfast. He was still inventorying its
contents when cold water was poured onto his head from behind.

Nouma whirled and glared at Khu Lon. It bothered her quite a bit
that she had to look up to do so.

Khu Lon lowered the glass. "I thought you should perhaps start
getting used to it. You've been female twice, for a total of an
hour. If you're going to accept the magic of Jusenkyo, you need
to adjust to your other form."

Nouma bit back a reply and turned to the tea kettle, which was
whistling. She finished making the tea, pouring a cup and
offering it to Khu Lon before taking one for herself.

Her robe was threatening to fall open. Nouma grimaced and set
down the teacup to rearrange it. She felt so strange. Her
balance was way off. The robe, when tightened across her chest,
pressed against weights that were curiously sensitive. Nouma
tried to ignore it all and picked up her teacup again. She sipped
and stared at the teakettle. There was still hot water inside; it
was probably well below boiling by now.

Nouma finally turned her eyes away and walked over to her desk.
She turned on the computer and called up the morning news.

"Are you going to eat anything?" Khu Lon was looking into the
same refrigerator Nouma had just abandoned.

Nouma shook her head and paged the display.

"You should eat."

Nouma shrugged.

The news was somewhat uninteresting. Nouma smiled wryly; after
having just saved the world, the results of national elections
seemed quite banal. She lost herself in wondering what would have
happened if they'd lost. Either the creature would have begun
conquering Canada (how?), or it would have sought out other
magical power sources and either destroyed them or acquired them
for itself. Nouma would have done the latter. This led her to
another interesting fantasy; how would she conquer the world?

Khu Lon, meantime, had eaten and dressed. She walked up and held
out one of Nouma's pants and shirts. "I believe we should go
shopping and get you some clothes that would suit your present
form."

Nouma grimaced; one couldn't begin the road to global domination
dressed in oversized clothing. She got up and took the clothes
into the bathroom. She washed her face, surprised at how smooth
it was. Even so, it wasn't until after she'd turned on the
electric razor that she realized that it wasn't necessary. There
were some advantages after all, she decided. She wondered what
would happen after she changed back. Would her beard have grown
as if she had been male all along? Would it go back to the length
it had been at the time of the change? Would it be gone, starting
over from scratch, as it were? She hoped the last case proved
true; she hated shaving.

She decided she was ready. She walked out of the bathroom and
nodded at Khu Lon. Putting her shoes on turned out to be a
problem; they didn't fit. She frowned, trying to remember what
Father had done. She didn't remember him having different shoes.
Had his feet been the same size regardless of gender? It seemed
unlikely, given how diminutive his female side had been. Yet his
shoes had never fallen off. She had to ask him. In the meantime,
Nouma got a pair of socks from the bedroom and stuffed the toes of
the shoes with them. While not comfortable or elegant, it was
sufficient to keep them on.

Nouma glanced at Khu Lon, who had been watching her without
comment. She then turned to the computer. "Minmay, reduce
security levels to normal. Begin security procedures to grant Khu
Lon unrestricted access."

The computer buzzed softly. "Insufficient rights."

Nouma blinked. "Minmay, explain."

"User has insufficient rights to change access privileges."

Nouma closed her eyes and muttered an imprecation. Of course; the
computer didn't recognize her voice. She opened her eyes and
walked over to the apartment computer's console. She began
manually changing the access rights, using her password and
palmprint, which fortunately was the same, just smaller. After
granting herself full access, she repeated the procedure for Khu
Lon.

They finally escaped the apartment. Nouma led Khu Lon out into
the street. There she paused, trying to figure out where to go.
She finally decided a mall would be best, although it would
require taking the train. She indicated a direction to Khu Lon,
and they began walking.

They reached the station, and didn't have to wait long for a
train. They boarded and stood, the train being very crowded.

Khu Lon was glaring at the press of people around her, seemingly
taking offense that there should be so many of them. She
eventually caught Nouma's eye. Nouma raised an inquisitive
eyebrow, and Khu Lon made an annoyed sound. "I am not used to so
many people. Everywhere I go with Mother is in chauffeured
transportation to relatively secured areas. These people - all I
see are security risks." She looked a tall teenaged boy up and
down as he gazed back at her.

Nouma reached out and squeezed her arm, smiling at her
reassuringly. Khu Lon only seemed to get more irritated, and
turned to continue to shoot hostile looks at the teenager.

Nouma shook her head. It didn't help that Khu Lon was wearing a
form-hugging bright red outfit. Khu Lon had to know that such
clothing was destined to draw attention. She wondered why Khu Lon
chose to wear it if such attention made her uncomfortable.

They reached their destination, walked to the mall, and began
their shopping spree. Khu Lon took charge, picking out clothing
and offering comments on what would look appropriate for what
occasion. They matched several blouses and pants and even a
couple of skirts. Khu Lon even managed to talk Nouma into a
couple of dresses, arguing that whatever adventures they were
about to undertake might require a complete and convincing female
performance out of Nouma. Ranma had certainly done his share of
"undercover" work "disguised" as a woman, so Nouma saw the wisdom
in that. Nouma's only contribution to the shopping bonanza was to
point out that all clothing they bought should be able to survive
an unexpected drenching with hot water.

The last stop was a lingerie shop. Nouma dug her heels in when
she realized where Khu Lon was leading them. Khu Lon turned and
saw her distaste. "Nouma, we must. Some of your new clothing
just won't work without bras, and mine are too big for you."

Nouma looked down at Khu Lon's chest, for the first time making
size comparisons. Khu Lon was right. Nouma looked down at
herself, wondering where she fit on the spectrum.

"Come on, Nouma. You can ogle yourself any time, although I'd
prefer you didn't do it in public. At least, don't do it when I'm
with you." Khu Lon turned and began walking into the shop.

Nouma followed reluctantly. She was not looking forward to this.

Khu Lon had immediately gone to the bra section and had picked out
bras of several different sizes for Nouma to try on. Nouma was
slightly relieved to note that Khu Lon had chosen strictly
utilitarian designs, without lace or frills. She directed Nouma
to the dressing room to try them on.

Nouma entered the room and winced at the sight of the mirror. She
immediately turned her back on it and took off her shirt. She
tried on the first bra, which was more of a struggle than she'd
thought it would be. She took a breath when she was finished,
surprised at the difference. It seemed more... comfortable,
somehow. She took a couple of steps and decided that a little
restriction made a world of difference. She took it off and tried
another one. This one was tighter, and Nouma tried to figure out
whether it was more comfortable or not. She walked around the
dressing room several times, looking down at the ground, trying to
gauge the difference.

A shriek from the next dressing room made Nouma snap her head up.
The shriek, while loud, was not one of fear. Rather, it was one
of outrage. Someone was very unhappy about something. Before
Nouma could think further on the subject, the door to her dressing
room burst open, and something grabbed for the bra she had just
taken off, cackling gleefully.

In a flash, she reached out and grabbed the intruder - a small,
older man, as it turned out. The man had a cloth tied over his
head and under his nose, and had a bag slung over his shoulder.
He looked at Nouma and his face lit up. "Akane!"

The sound of Mother's name surprised Nouma a little bit. The name
was not unusual, but it was still disconcerting to be called by
it. While she was reeling slightly in shock, the older man
struggled out of Nouma's grasp and grabbed her breasts, burying
his face between them.

Nouma went rigid. The sensation was nothing like she had ever
felt before, and decidedly unpleasant. She wanted to throw up,
and swallowed heavily to prevent it. She grabbed the pervert and
flung him into a corner of the dressing room, wondering only after
she did it where he would be seriously hurt.

He merely turned in mid-air, hit the corner with his legs, and
sprung himself back at her, his arms opened wide. "Akane!"

Nouma could only watch in horrified fascination as the pervert
drew nearer. Fortunately, several throwing stars caught his
clothing, carried him to the wall, and pinned him there.

Nouma whirled to see Khu Lon standing in the doorway, another
throwing star in her hand, her eyes glinting murder. Behind her,
several people were peeking curiously into the small room. Nouma
wondered if Khu Lon was always armed, and decided that she already
had her answer.

Khu Lon shot a glance at Nouma. "Put on your shirt."

Nouma felt a little heat rise to her face. She quickly pulled her
shirt over her head, making a mental note to be sure to pay for
the bra she was wearing. She walked out of the dressing room,
then turned to give the pervert her own violent gaze.

Rather than being intimidated, his look was adoring, almost one of
rapture. "Cologne, my sweet! How good to see you again!"

Nouma turned to give Khu Lon a startled look. "You know him?"

Khu Lon seemed flabbergasted. "I've never seen him before." She
made the throwing star disappear, and somehow produced a slim,
deadly-looking knife. She entered the dressing room and put the
knife under the older man's chin. "Who are you and how do you
know me?"

The pervert seemed unaware of the knife at his neck. "Cologne,
the years have been kind to you. Let's spend the night together
like we did all those years ago." He struggled to free himself,
and would have cut himself on the knife if Khu Lon hadn't pulled
it back slightly.

Khu Lon growled. "You're crazy, old man. Where do you live?
We'll take you there and let whoever's present deal with you. It
isn't as easy as killing you, but it's less likely to get me
thrown out of the country." She pushed his chest against the
wall. "Who are you and where do you live?"

The man beamed. "I'm Tendo Soun, and I live at the Tendo Dojo!"

Nouma's jaw dropped open. "You are not my grandfather."

Khu Lon gave the older man a little shake. "The truth. Don't lie
or I'll know. Who are you?"

The old man finally seemed to perceive a bit of the reality of the
situation. His eyes glinted dangerously, and his voice became
menacing. "I am your master!"

Suddenly, somehow, he wiggled out of Khu Lon's grasp. The
throwing stars came loose from the wall as he pulled loose, and he
was up and over her shoulder before she could blink.

Nouma reached out to grab him as he ran past. He ducked as her
fingers stretched for him. She got a hold of something as he got
by her and fled the shop. She turned her hand over to see that
she was holding a yellow ball. A ball that had a small string
sticking out. A string that was burning.

Nouma spent an entire second considering her options. There were
people all around her. No good. Khu Lon was only now twisting
around to look behind her, and didn't see what Nouma was holding.
She wouldn't be able to leap away in time.

Nouma spun away from the press of people and fell to the ground
face down, holding the ball to her chest. At least no one else
would get blasted. She tried to form a chi shield, surrounding
the ball with a protective layer of chi. At the same time, an
errant thought reflected that this was probably the shortest
tenure of any Jusenkyo-cursed office holder.

The ball exploded, ripping through the still-forming chi-shield
and lifting Nouma off the ground. No shrapnel cut through her
body; this was some sort of chi-bomb. The chi still did plenty of
damage, burning her clothes and skin. Nouma fell back to the
ground, stunned, her face pressed flat against the floor. That
had *hurt*.

And yet, she was alive, which she had not expected. That fact
filled her with relief and a bit of joy.

She had also expected to be deafened, so the sound of Khu Lon's
strangled cry was another surprise. A hand felt for a pulse at
Nouma's neck. Then it reached under for her chin and turned her
head to the side a little. "Nouma, are you all right? Say
something."

Nouma flopped onto her back, holding her burned hands carefully
away from her body. She stared at the ceiling for a moment before
focusing on Khu Lon's worried expression.

Khu Lon gingerly lifted away the scraps of Nouma's shirt. "You do
not appear to have taken any shrapnel. What was it, a
firecracker?"

It had been more than a firecracker. The chi-bomb had hammered
her... soul, for lack of a better term. Someone with less
experience handling chi could have been seriously injured. As it
was, Nouma was only now beginning to feel how badly she'd been
shaken up.

She sat up and looked into Khu Lon's eyes. "Happosai."

Khu Lon blinked. "What?"

"I thought he was dead." Nouma stood up, frowned at the remains
of her shirt, removed it, walked back into the dressing room, and
pulled one of the blouses she'd bought earlier out of a bag and
put it on.

Khu Lon frowned. "Who is Happosai?"

Nouma examined the remains of the bra she'd been wearing, noted
the size, then walked out and picked three more like it from a
rack. She walked up to the counter, where a dazed salesperson
eventually came up. Nouma put the three new bras and the fourth
destroyed one out on the counter, and handed the salesperson some
money.

Khu Lon followed her, carrying the packages. Nouma lifted the bag
with the bras off the counter and walked quickly out of the store.

They made their way to the train station. Nouma stopped on the
platform and waited. Khu Lon walked around in front of her, and
turned to face her. Khu Lon's expression was a curious mixture of
anger and hurt. She stared a silent accusation at Nouma. Nouma
looked into her eyes, trying to figure out what she should be
feeling. She didn't know.

The train arrived, breaking the tableau. They stood together
during the ride home.

They walked side by side from the train station. Nouma looked
around, at the familiar sights of her neighborhood, trying to draw
strength from it. She drew a breath. "I hate the sound of my
voice."

Khu Lon turned her head. "You what?"

"I hate the sound of my voice. I open my mouth and words come out
but they're not *me*. It's someone else's voice. It scares the
hell out of me." She took a couple of deep breaths. "That's why
I don't talk much in this form. I'm sorry. You deserved more of
an explanation. You... I should have been... I shouldn't have
shut you out."

"I see." Khu Lon sounded thoughtful. "We need to get you used to
that form."

This irritated Nouma. "Khu Lon. Did you hear me? I apologized."

"Yes, I heard you."

"Then acknowledge it."

"Nouma, there is no need. You've given offense, and subsequently
offered an apology. There is no reason to linger on the subject."

"There *is* a need. I need for you to tell me that you
understand. I don't need a teacher, Khu Lon. I need a friend."
Nouma stopped and turned to face Khu Lon. "More than a friend.
Someone who... who feels my pain with me. Hell, I've got lots of
people who can teach me. My parents, your parents, even my
sister. But you're the only one I've even hinted to about how
much this whole thing frightens me. I don't need lessons. I need
help."

Khu Lon stared evenly back at him. After a moment, she lowered
her eyes. "I don't know if I... can offer you what you're looking
for, Nouma."

Nouma sighed and nodded. She had begun to suspect as much. She
turned and started walking back to the apartment.

Khu Lon wasn't following. Nouma swallowed and continued walking.
If this was her choice, she would respect it. Despite the way it
squeezed her heart.

After a minute, she heard the sounds of someone running up behind
her. Khu Lon dropped the packages she was carrying, grabbed
Nouma's shoulders, stared at her for a second, then pulled her in
for a hug.

Nouma dropped her own packages and hugged Khu Lon back fiercely.
They clutched at each other for a second.

Khu Lon finally pushed Nouma away. Her expression was uncertain,
and a little fearful. "Nouma - I'm sorry. My mother..."

Nouma waited. She squeezed Khu Lon's shoulder reassuringly.

Khu Lon looked down and began picking up packages. "My mother is
an Elder of the Amazons, and the Ambassador to the United States.
She performs both duties admirably. She is strong and dedicated
and wise. Despite all the time she spends on her duties, she has
dedicated herself to my upbringing as well. She has been strict
and demanding in raising me. She has always challenged me to
improve myself, to never be satisfied with complacency. I think
her efforts have been beneficial; I am grateful for what she's
taught me."

Nouma frowned, puzzled. "Weren't you just saying that you didn't
like the fact that she controls your life?"

Khu Lon winced slightly. "I... That is more an issue of when it
is appropriate for my parents to let me lead my own life. I feel
confident enough in my ability to make my own choices, and no
longer appreciate their attempts to steer me in other directions."

Nouma nodded, accepting this at face value.

Khu Lon sighed. "So. My mother is a remarkable person. Destined
to be one of the greats of the Amazon tribe. An example for all
Amazons to admire and attempt to emulate."

Nouma nodded again, wondering where this was all leading.

Khu Lon had finished picking up her share of the shopping bags,
and held them in front of her, her hands clasped together. "And
yet, when she is alone with my father, she changes. She becomes
less serious. Almost playful. She smiles and laughs with him and
holds his arm. She kisses him and teases him and sometimes
engages in mock battles with him, which seem to end with both of
them on the ground laughing together. The great Amazon warrior
and world leader becomes almost a child when she's with my
father."

Suddenly, Nouma understood. "Weak. That seems weak to you."

Khu Lon reddened slightly. "I love my father, and am thankful
that he gave me life. But sometimes I think he drains something
vital from my mother. She becomes less of a person with him
around."

Nouma drew her eyebrows together. "But when he wanted to come to
Canada, you told him that he needed to accompany your mother, that
the two of them worked best together."

Khu Lon's eyes widened, then narrowed. "You were eavesdropping."

It was Nouma's turn to redden slightly. "Yes. I was. I
apologize."

Khu Lon shook her head slightly, and relaxed her features. "Well,
I did say that only sometimes I think he weakens my mother. Other
times, I see them as a team, each working to better the other.
And yet, I have difficulty accepting that interpretation when I
see Mother act silly the way she does sometimes around him."

Nouma sighed and tried to tie it all together. "So... your view of
a relationship is one where a man tries to make a woman dependent
on him, and then leeches vitality from her? When you started our
relationship, you made an effort to take charge of every situation
involving us, so as not to lose control of your independence. And
just now, when I asked you to help me deal with what I was going
through, did you see it as an attempt on my part to suck something
from you? To take something that couldn't be replaced, to weaken
you?" By Khu Lon's expression, Nouma's guesses were very close to
the mark. "And, unless I'm mistaken, that repels you, right?"

Khu Lon stared at her, the blood draining from her face. "When
you walked away from me, hurt, my heart felt that same hurt a
hundred times over." Khu Lon began trembling a little. "I don't
want to see you hurting. But it frightens me to think what might
happen to me if I allow you to... to take... something from me."
Khu Lon hung her head.

Nouma put her finger alongside her nose, trying to organize her
thoughts. After a moment, she nodded to herself, then reached out
to gently lift Khu Lon's chin. "I'm no expert at relationships.
But I've been incredibly blessed to be born into an extremely
loving extended family. I've grown up seeing very different
people in love with each other and sharing that love with everyone
else. It's taught me a few things.

"I think love - *true* love - is not about what you get from
someone else. It's about what you give. Love means being there
*all* the time, helping another person without having to be asked
for help. The nice thing about it is, giving someone your life
and energy doesn't drain you. It enriches you. Makes your life
more complete."

Nouma grinned. "The *really* nice thing is, when two people are
in love with each other, they give each other help all the time,
and thus are continually bettering each other *and* themselves.
It's a cycle that only grows stronger over time. I've seen it in
my parents, and in my aunts and uncles. Your parents are such
great people because they love each other, thus improving
themselves as the years go by."

Khu Lon seemed to be absorbing the words, studying Nouma intently.
"I... but my mother, she acts so..."

"Did it ever occur to you that, as harsh and demanding as your
mother's life is, sometimes she needs an outlet? That your father
knows that, and is there to provide such an outlet?"

It evidently hadn't. Khu Lon's eyes grew wide again.

Nouma smiled. "Sometimes my parents insult each other almost
casually. My mother calls my father an idiot, and he calls her
uncute. But they're really reinforcing their love for each other,
I think. Such behavior may seem cryptic to other people, but to
them, it makes sense. I think the same thing is going on between
your parents as well."

Nouma moved her hands down so that they were lightly clasping Khu
Lon's shoulders. "Do you trust me?"

Khu Lon slowly nodded.

"Good. Then give it a try. Let yourself go. I promise, as long
as we work together on our relationship, the rewards will be
greater than the sacrifices. You'll lose a little of your self-
reliance, but you'll gain immeasurable support in return."

Khu Lon stared off into space for a couple of long minutes.
Finally, she focused on Nouma again. "How can you be so sure?
Have you been in love before?"

Nouma nodded. "Sure. There was this woman in college... well,
the details aren't important. What ended our relationship was
that we couldn't give each other enough of what we needed. I've
learned more about love by watching my mom and dad. They
complement each other nicely. It took them a while to recognize
that. You and I will be spending the next few months learning
about each other, and trying to come to terms with how we can best
help each other."

Nouma shrugged her shoulders. "We may decide that our needs and
wants are incompatible, and choose to end our relationship.
However, if I thought that was going to happen, I wouldn't be here
now. I love you, Khu Lon. I think it's going to work. Give it a
chance. Give *us* a chance."

Khu Lon stared at Nouma for another minute, then seemed to relax.
"I promise to try, Nouma. It... may be difficult at first. Will
you understand if I seem a little hesitant or unsure at times?"

Nouma laughed. "I love you, Khu Lon."

Khu Lon blinked, then smiled slightly. "That's an answer, isn't
it?"

Nouma slapped Khu Lon's shoulders a couple of times. "You *are*
learning. You'll get the hang of it; I have confidence in you."

Khu Lon dropped the packages once again and reached up to grasp
Nouma's shoulders as well. "I love you, Tendo Nouma."

The words sent a thrill up Nouma's spine. She leaned forward and
kissed Khu Lon. A small, tender kiss that went on for some time.
Nouma finally broke it off, a little uncomfortable for some reason
that she didn't feel like exploring right at the moment.

They picked up the packages and headed home.

The computer gave Nouma no problems this time, and let her in.
She dropped the packages and leaned against the closed door. She
was tired. It had been a rough day, physically and emotionally.

Khu Lon seemed to understand. "Go lie down, Nouma. You have some
wounds that need tending to. And I think you need some rest."

Nouma frowned. She looked down at her hands. They still stung
considerably, as did parts of her chest. She'd had worse happen
to her. Still, Khu Lon was right. They needed attention.

She went into the bedroom, turned her back to the bed, and fell
into it. She closed her eyes and replayed the events of the
dressing room altercation in her mind.

She heard Khu Lon come in and sit on the bed. One of her hands
was lifted and carefully washed. Then a lotion was rubbed gently
into her skin. The lotion cooled her hand and made it stop
stinging. Nouma sighed in relief; she could take a lot of pain,
but that didn't mean she didn't appreciate it when it ended. Khu
Lon went on to do the same to her other hand.

Then Khu Lon unbuttoned her blouse. She opened the blouse and
began washing Nouma's chest. And breasts. She then began working
in the lotion.

The sensation was doing... something to Nouma. She frowned.
"Stop that."

"You need to have this lotion applied to all of the burns, Nouma."

"Then splash me with warm water first."

"You know, if you're going to truly come to terms with your female
half, you should learn everything about how it works. I'd be
willing to - "

"Well, I would *not* be willing. This is an aspect I do not wish
to pursue. Nothing Father went through involved ever having sex
as a woman. I do not imagine the curse will require anything of
the sort from me."

"You never know."

"I never want to know. Please, Khu Lon, I'm not ready for this."

Khu Lon had continued her ministrations throughout the
conversation. Her fingers brushed a part of Nouma's chest that
sent a strange jolt right through her. "You seem ready enough to
me."

Nouma opened her eyes and fixed Khu Lon with a steady look.

Khu Lon chuckled. "Very well. As it happens, I'm done. I do
think you shouldn't change back for an hour or so, to give the
lotion a chance to work before you wash it off."

Nouma nodded and closed her eyes, trying to control the strange
sensations. She didn't much succeed. Come to think of it, she
hadn't succeeded too well when she was male, either.

Khu Lon, fortunately, provided a distraction. "Who is Happosai?"

Nouma sighed. "We need to examine Tachi's databases regarding
him. I only know a little bit about him myself."

"Tell me what you do know."

"He's the founder of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts."

"I thought your father was."

"Oh no. He learned the Art from his father, and my mother learned
it from hers. Happosai was the one who taught my grandfathers the
Art."

"He must be very old."

"Yes. Yet he seemed quite capable of evading our attacks and
producing those chi-bombs."

"Hmm." Khu Lon sounded thoughtful. "We'll need to find out all
we can about his abilities and prepare a strategy for facing him.
Perhaps your grandfathers can help."

Nouma opened her eyes. "Why do we need to? It's over. He's
gone."

Khu Lon raised an eyebrow. "Strange, isn't it, how of all the
places in Japan he could have gone to steal underwear, he chose
the store where you were trying on bras for the first time."

Nouma's eyes widened. "You're saying it's the curse?"

"Do you believe in coincidence?"

"I used to. But you're right, this is stretching things." Nouma
stared at the ceiling for a moment. "I'm not sure our job is to
beat him in physical combat. He seemed quite out of touch with
reality. He called me by my mother's name, and seemed convinced
that you and he had once been lovers."

Khu Lon snorted in disgust. "You're right. He *is* deranged."

"Maybe all he needs is help. Someone to guide him back to the
real world. Aunt Kodachi once needed similar help. After she got
it, she became a productive member of society. And a great
person, too. She taught me a lot. Maybe Happosai can follow the
same path to recovery."

"Hmm. Well, either way, we need to learn all we can about this
Happosai."

Nouma nodded and closed her eyes. "I'm going to take a little
nap, then I'll do some research."

"That sounds like a good plan." Khu Lon lay on the bed beside
her. Her hands began removing Nouma's blouse.

Nouma frowned. "I told you I'm not ready for anything like that."

"Are you going to sleep in your brand-new blouse? Really, Nouma,
you'll need to learn to take care of these clothes."

"All right, dammit. Hey!"

"Are you going to sleep in your pants as well?"

"I'm just going to sleep for an hour or two."

"You'll be more comfortable this way. There, better?"

"Yes, now let me sleep."

"You're still too tense. I know a technique that will relax you."

"I'm not falling for that again, Khu Lon."

"Hmm. How's that phrase go? Your mouth says no but your body
says yes."

"I can make my body say no quite forcefully. Don't make me do
that."

"For someone who hates the sound of her voice, you're using it a
lot."

"I'm being especially motivated to do so. Move your hand."

"Like this?"

"Stop that!"

"Are you saying that you don't want me to continue?"

"I'm saying you're about five seconds away from having your
stomach shoved - oh my."

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"D-damn you, Khu Lon."

"Maybe later. First... there we go. How's that?"

"Don't. Stop."

"What was that?"

"Don't. S-stop."

"Say it one more time."

"Don't stop..."

***

Nouma dragged herself into a state of awareness. She had needed
the sleep, she knew, but she was also anxious to begin dealing
with her first case. She smiled a little at her own phrasing.
She felt a bit like a detective from the old American movies. The
case - Happosai - had appeared from nowhere, but it was somehow
her responsibility. The police certainly wouldn't be up to the
task. It was her duty to deal with the panty-pilfering perverted
palooka. Or something like that.

She got up and put on her robe. She walked into the living room,
noting that Khu Lon was intently studying the computer screen.
Nouma smiled; it was probably in her own best interests not to
even think about Khu Lon as her ditzy blonde secretary.

Nouma went into the bathroom and took a hot shower. He sighed
after the change. Khu Lon had had valid reasons for turning him
female this morning. He *did* need to get used to it. But he was
a man, and would always feel most comfortable in his male form.
The only reason he was able to accept being female at all was the
knowledge that he was only a bucketful of warm water away from
being male again.

He finished his shower and felt his face, pleased to note that it
was quite smooth. No more shaving unless he wanted to; he was
ecstatic.

After putting on fresh clothes, he came up behind Khu Lon. "Been
keeping yourself busy?"

"Yes." She turned and gave him a somewhat mischievous smile.
"You look... relaxed."

He sighed and decided this was as good a segue he could hope for.
He swiveled Khu Lon's chair around and sat on his haunches, his
eyes slightly below hers. "We need to have yet another serious
talk."

Khu Lon's smile faded. "What is it?"

"Everything good in my life has happened to me without my
consent."

A puzzled look came over Khu Lon's face. "What?"

"My father began teaching me martial arts almost as soon as I was
born. I am grateful for the skills he taught me. But I was never
given a choice about whether I wanted to learn the Art.

"When I graduated college, Aunt Nabiki offered me a job. A very
good job, doing stuff I'd dreamed about and making good money,
too. I took it, of course. But I never applied, never asked her
for a job. She just gave it to me."

Khu Lon thinned her lips slightly. "I pushed you into the pool.
Even if you knew it was the right thing to do, you didn't choose
to do it."

Nouma nodded.

Khu Lon looked down. "I'm sorry."

"I told you before, don't be. It needed to happen. I needed it
to happen to me. I think that eventually I would have gone to
China. I would have talked to the Guide, and she probably would
have told me that it was necessary to be cursed. I would have
done it to myself. I think. It might have taken a while, but it
would have happened."

Khu Lon looked up again, and this time her face was soft with
understanding. "But it would have been better that way.
Everything's better if it's something you choose, rather than
something that's forced upon you."

Nouma nodded again. "That's why I hope you won't repeat what you
did earlier. I asked you not to do it, and you did it anyway. I
enjoyed it, don't get me wrong. But in the future, wait for me to
consent to it. Please."

Khu Lon drew a deep breath. "I... I've always been so sure I knew
what was best for everyone. I get impatient when I see people
unable to make what I think is the correct decision. So
sometimes... I make it for them. It's gotten me in trouble
before." She leaned forward and clasped Nouma's hands. "I
promise, I will not make any decisions without your consent."

Nouma frowned. "That's a fairly blanket statement. This isn't a
game of power; neither one of us has sole responsibility for
making decisions. If our life is going to be as adventurous as I
think it is, then sometimes you will need to think and act
quickly, make decisions that affect us both. All I'm asking for
is a little judgement on your part. And... when I say 'no', I
mean 'no'. You can try to talk me into 'yes', but please don't
force the issue."

Khu Lon looked at him thoughtfully. "I used poor judgement
earlier. I apologize."

Nouma smiled. "Thank you. I accept your apology. What have you
found out about Happosai?"

Khu Lon smiled back, squeezed his hands, then turned back to the
computer screen. "Quite a lot and not enough. I think I can
explain some of his actions."

"Oh?"

"He was sealed inside a cave for many years. He must have used
some sort of chi technique to put himself in a state of
hibernation. Tendo Ranma has some theories on how it was
accomplished, but he has not wanted to try it himself for fear of
the consequences.

"When Happosai freed himself from the cave, he went around calling
all young women he met 'Akane', thinking they were your mother.
Evidently he has reverted to the behavior."

Nouma grunted. "I remember that now. He even fondled my father
while calling out my mother's name."

"Yes. Now, as to why he called me 'Cologne'," Khu Lon's voice
became disgusted as she spoke the mispronunciation, "he had a...
relationship with my great-great-grandmother a long time ago.
Evidently he mistook me for her."

Nouma frowned. "But you look nothing like her. At least, not
based on the descriptions I read in Tachi's notes."

Khu Lon shrugged. "Perhaps he saw I was young and Chinese, and
decided that was reason enough to call me 'Cologne'. As you say,
he is not entirely sane."

"Well, true. What do we know about his fighting technique?"

"Those 'chi-bombs' you described were something he used quite
often, but he had many different techniques. As you said, he was
the creator of the Anything Goes School. He doesn't rely on a
single set of moves. He can draw an enormous amount of chi, more
so than even your father. He appears to derive his strength from
harassing young women. Why that would be, no one knows. That is
at the same time his weakness. He will leave a fight to ogle or
fondle nearby women. Your father would use his female body to
great advantage when dealing with Happosai."

"But he'd never enjoy it." More and more things about Happosai
were coming to Nouma's mind. "They had a big fight once, for
control of the School."

"Yes. Your father, in consultation with Tendo Soun, Tendo Akane,
Saotome Genma, Saotome Nodoka, Ono Tofu, and Ono Kasumi, changed
many of the precepts of the School to make them more honorable.
They developed a code that was consistent with duty and honor, and
moved the emphasis away from winning at all costs to betterment of
the spirit and body. Happosai was unhappy with that, and
challenged your father over the acceptance of the new code."

Nouma nodded. His father had spoken often about the fight. It
had raged on for four hours, which was truly remarkable given that
most of Ranma's fights lasted less then five minutes. The dojo
had been destroyed and the house had been heavily damaged.
Finally, Ranma had dumped Happosai's unconscious body on the
ground and collapsed into Akane's arms. Ranma's arm and three of
his ribs had been broken, and the rest of his body covered with
deep bruises. He had spent a week recovering in the hospital.

Happosai had bounced back almost immediately, but his spirit had
been broken. He had spent the week moping on the roof, not
speaking to anyone. When Ranma had returned from the hospital,
Happosai had fled.

"Has anyone seen Happosai since that fight with my father?"

"No. Not until today."

Nouma stood and put his finger alongside his nose. "We need to
know more."

Khu Lon nodded. "That was my thought as well. I called your
father and arranged for us to come over for dinner and speak with
him and your grandfathers."

"Good thinking. When is dinner?"

"We should leave now." Khu Lon stood and gazed at him steadily.

Nouma smiled and prepared to leave.

***

Nouma came up to the front gate and frowned at it. He stretched
his senses to the limit, then opened it.

The sound of Khu Lon's voice nearly made him whirl and attack.
"What's wrong, Nouma?"

"Nothing. Wait here a second, please." He took a step into the
yard and looked around.

As usual, he couldn't find her. He ran over the pattern of her
attacks, trying to figure out where this one was likely to come
from. He took a step towards the front door and stopped. Nothing
happened, so he took another step.

He didn't know what, but something made him look up. Mikanma was
descending on him from above. Where she came from, he had no
idea. He dove to the side, rolled in a somersault, then sprang to
his feet facing Mikanma.

She smiled and nodded her head, acknowledging his success in
avoiding her first attack. She moved towards him, making no
effort to be cautious. She was getting bolder and bolder.

Nouma jumped at her, feinting an attack at her head, double-
feinting to her body, and then trying to give her an old-fashioned
uppercut. It came very close to connecting; Mikanma snapped her
head back to avoid it and left herself open. Nouma grabbed her
shirt.

Unfortunately, it was a trap. He realized that as soon as he
somehow found his arm grabbed and twisted behind his back. She
moved so *fast*, as if the rest of the world was frozen in amber.
She wrapped an arm around his neck and bent him backwards.

Nouma grunted and gasped for air. He put his free hand on her
wrist and applied a pain hold, hoping she'd let go. In the
meantime he tried to think of something he could do with his feet.
Perhaps, if he pushed up hard enough, he could flip over and
perhaps bear Mikanma to the ground. If he didn't twist his arm
out of its socket first.

He was about to attempt it when Mikanma unexpectedly let him go.
He drew in a deep breath and whirled around to face her again.

What he saw made him blink his eyes rapidly. Khu Lon had a very
good sleeper hold on Mikanma's neck. In fact, Mikanma was turning
a nice shade of red.

She jumped up with her feet and grabbed Khu Lon's waist with her
legs. She reached up her hands to grab Khu Lon's head, and
somehow jerked herself forward. Khu Lon was lifted off her feet
and pitched forward. Mikanma fell gracelessly, but she was free
from Khu Lon.

Nouma rushed in before she could recover. Mikanma was lying on
her stomach; Nouma sat on her back facing her feet and grabbed her
legs, hooking them over his shoulders. She now had no leverage,
and was not going to rise without his consent.

She tried for a while anyway, but eventually conceded. "All
right, Nouma, you win."

Nouma basked in his success; this was the first time since she was
fourteen that she had said those words to him. He released her
legs, stood up, and helped her to her feet.

Mikanma glared at him, then at Khu Lon. "You cheated."

Khu Lon shrugged. "I merely saw my partner under attack, and came
to his aid."

Mikanma scowled. "This is between me and Nouma."

"You should understand this very clearly, Tendo Mikanma." Khu Lon
moved so that she was standing next to Nouma. "Nouma is no longer
alone. Whatever threats he faces, I face with him. Whoever
attacks him has to defend themselves against my attacks. That is
the way it will be from this point forward. Get used to it."

Mikanma stared at her with narrowed eyes. After a moment, she
laughed. "Well, that will make it more interesting. Anyone can
surprise me once. Next time, I'll be prepared." She looked at
Nouma. "One for you, Brother." She turned and walked into the
house.

Nouma smiled after her. "She took that pretty well. Still, next
time won't be so easy."

Khu Lon sounded surprised. "Shouldn't she just concede future
battles as well? What's the point?"

Taking Khu Lon's arm, he led her to the house. "You don't
understand. I'm not sure if the two of us together could take
Mikanma if she's on her guard. We'll have to come up with a
strategy for next time."

Khu Lon looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "An
interesting family you have."

"Oh yeah. Interesting." Nouma grinned as he stepped inside.

Akane met them inside. She greeted them politely before encasing
Nouma in one of her famous bear hugs.

Nouma suffered it a moment before gently breaking it, smiling.
"Should you be doing that, Mother?"

Akane snorted. "I once fought when I was seven months pregnant
with you, Nouma. A few hugs aren't going to hurt me."

"Of course not. Forgive me, Mother." Nouma chuckled briefly,
then turned to escort Khu Lon to the dining room. Straightening
from setting the last of the dinner dishes on the table, Ranma
smiled and indicated they should sit. Nouma's grandparents were
already sitting, along with Mikanma.

Dinner proceeded pleasantly. Conversation started with general
comments about Akane's pregnancy, and the prospect of yet another
practitioner of the School of Anything Goes. After a while,
Mikanma asked Khu Lon a question about her martial arts technique.
Then the cross-examination began in earnest. Some of the fiercest
came from Soun and Genma, who seemed determined to find out
everything about Khu Lon they could ferret out.

Khu Lon took it pretty well, answering all of the questions coolly
and rationally. Nouma thought that she was rather enjoying the
challenge. He learned a couple of things himself; it reinforced
how much he still didn't know about her.

Akane finally brought a halt to the proceedings. "Enough; she
passes. As if we had any say in it anyway." She smiled at Khu
Lon. "Welcome to the family."

Nouma bristled slightly. "Mother! We are - "

" - *not* engaged." Ranma finished for him. "Give it up, Son.
Didn't work for me, either."

Everyone laughed while Nouma felt his face turning a little red.
He looked over to Khu Lon; her expression was a mixture of
embarrassment and amusement.

Nodoka stood up and smiled. "You all have business to discuss.
Let me clean up so you can get started."

"Mother-in-law! Don't; let me do it." Akane jumped up and gently
clasped Nodoka's arm.

Nodoka smiled. "I am not as fragile as you might think, Daughter-
in-law. I've been cleaning up after both of our husbands on and
off for almost fifty years; I've developed a bit of a talent for
it."

"I'd say that means you've earned a break, Grandma." Mikanma
grimaced and stood up. "Ain't nothin' I can contribute to Nouma's
meeting that'll be super useful. Let me do it."

Nodoka laughed gently. "Ah, you both touch my heart. The three
of us will do it. That way you needn't be overly concerned about
any strain on my part. And Mikanma and I can have a little talk
on proper language use."

Everyone chuckled including, to Nouma's surprise, Mikanma. Soun
led everyone else to the dojo as Nodoka, Akane, and Mikanma began
to clear away the dishes.

They knelt in a loose circle. Ranma looked quickly around, then
nodded to Nouma. "You want to take it, Son?"

Nouma related the tale of what had happened in the lingerie shop,
including his and Khu Lon's speculations on Happosai's state of
mind. And how the whole thing seemed to be curse-driven.

After he finished, he looked around for reactions. Father looked
thoughtful, and both of his Grandfathers seemed puzzled.

Ranma finally spoke. "This is very strange."

"I'll say." Genma peered at Nouma. "You were buying a bra?"

"Pop!" Ranma shot him a disgusted look.

"I was sure the Master had passed on." Soun managed to remain
focused on the topic at hand. "He has to be... what, over a
hundred?"

Genma, not looking the least bit abashed at his son's upbraiding,
offered his opinion. "I'd say he went into another chi-trance for
a while, like the one he used in the cave."

Ranma frowned. "But why?"

Genma shrugged. "Who knows why the Master does what he does? His
only thoughts are those of self-gratification."

Soun snorted. "That would make you the most likely one to
understand him."

"At least I was able to provide him a male heir. And, as I
recall, I was the only one of us who could fight him to a
standstill."

"After your son and I softened him up. I recall someone trying to
convince the Master that they were of animal, not human,
derivation."

"And I seem to recall someone pretending deathly illness at the
mere mention of the Master's indiscretions."

"Coward!"

"Wimp!"

A hands-only battle broke out between them. Khu Lon turned to
face Nouma, looking slightly concerned. "Do they hate each other
that much? Shouldn't we stop them?"

Nouma grinned. "Nah, they're best friends. Let them work it out
for a bit. They'll be okay."

Khu Lon shook her head and muttered in Mandarin. All Nouma could
make out was "weird" and something about heredity.

Finally, Soun and Genma slowed down, stopped, and turned their
backs on each other. Ranma looked at them for a moment, then
turned back to Nouma. "Your Grandfather Tendo makes a good point.
All of our victories against Happosai came when we teamed up and
distracted him."

"He is easy to distract." Soun turned his head to look at Nouma.
"Young female flesh works best."

Genma faced Nouma as well. "I'd recommend that you turn yourself
female, and wear a shirt that parts easily in front. Oh, and
leave your bras at home."

Ranma nodded reluctantly. "He will attempt to attach himself to
any pair of breasts he sees, no matter whatever else he's doing.
I think you can use that to your advantage. Really, it should be
easy for the two of you. One is the bait while the other attacks
when he attempts to glomp. You can do this several times; he'll
never fail to rise to the bait."

Nouma frowned. "But what then? I'm not sure just beating him up
will accomplish anything. I was thinking that we should get him
some help. Take him to a doctor or something."

Shocked silence met his words. Nouma glanced at each of his
elders, seeing nearly identical expressions of bewilderment.
Clearly, such a thought had never occurred to any of them.

Soun was the first to recover. "He's a monster!"

Genma followed on the heels of Soun's words. "A devil in human
form!"

Ranma wasn't far behind. "A pervert!"

"Degenerate!"

"Despicable!"

"A pervert!"

"Unrepentant!"

"Irredeemable!"

"A pervert!"

Genma frowned at his son. "You keep saying that."

"You never had him fondle *your* breasts." Ranma shuddered.

"Guys." Nouma gathered their eyes. "He will continue to be these
things if no one offers to help him. I plan to do that."

"Grandson." Genma sighed. "I happen to know that Happosai is
almost one hundred fifty years old. He's spent part of that time
in chi-trances, true, but he's lived a great deal of it. He is
set in patterns that he *cannot* change, no matter how much
therapy he gets. Indeed, his very strength relies on satiating
his lusts. He is who he is; changing him is not only impossible,
but the attempt would likely kill him."

Soun nodded vigorously. "I agree. There is no spark of anything
human in him; he is nothing but a perverted old lecher."

Khu Lon leaned forward, frowning. "Didn't he save your wife's
life when she was young?"

Soun blushed and looked away. "What he did for my wife was only
so he could continue his lecherous ways while she drained those
who pursued him."

"And yet he found a way for her to live. He's shown himself to be
perfectly capable of being perverted without her help."

Soun stayed silent and didn't meet her eyes.

Ranma sighed. "You're right, Khu Lon. He does the occasional
good deed. Not very often, and he usually finds a way to turn it
so that it helps him continue to be a pervert. But maybe it's
worth trying to reach that part of him." Ranma shook his head.
"Frankly, I don't think your chances are good. Miniscule, I'd
say. But if there's anyone who can pull it off, it'd be you
guys."

Nouma smiled at the compliment. "We could use your help, Father."

Ranma shook his head again. "He'd likely run away at the sight of
me. He's too ashamed to face someone who's beaten him in a
serious fight." Ranma thinned his lips and lowered his eyes.
"And... this is your affair. Your fight. I'm not the one cursed
any more. You two are. Best that you face it without my
interference."

Nouma sighed silently at the pain in Father's voice. He obviously
missed the life, no matter how much he talked about looking
forward to the baby and a curse-free existence. Nouma knew this
was going to be difficult for him.

Khu Lon, meanwhile, was concentrating on another part of Ranma's
words. "What do you mean, 'you two are'? I'm not cursed."

Ranma looked up at her. "Oh, sorry, I guess I never mentioned it.
Maybe because I'm not sure it's true. But don't forget, you fell
into the pool with Nouma. I think you may be cursed too. You
turn into a woman when splashed with cold water. The fact that
you're already a woman is irrelevant; the magic is inside of you."

Nouma glanced at Khu Lon in surprise. She was frowning
thoughtfully. Nouma could understand. He wasn't sure he bought
it, but he couldn't dismiss it out of hand, either.

Ranma shrugged. "I could be wrong. And it doesn't matter right
now anyway. Let's concentrating on getting you two prepared for
Happosai."

Nouma gave himself a mental shake and concentrated on Father's
words. He could think of other things later; right now Happosai
was all that mattered.

***

Nouma examined his newly-acquired female clothing, trying to
figure out which one was the easiest to open and close. That
hadn't exactly been a priority when he and Khu Lon had picked them
out.

He hung a blouse back in his closet and turned to Khu Lon. "Maybe
it'd be best if I just put on a gi. I could pull it open and then
tighten it up again."

Khu Lon nodded. "Logical. I will do the same."

Nouma lifted his eyebrows. "There's no need for you to do that.
I can be the bait."

"None of your chauvinistic attitudes, Nouma. It's best that we be
prepared for all contingencies."

Nouma accepted the rebuke. He turned, took his gi out of the
closet, and went into the bathroom to change.

Khu Lon was in the kitchen filling a strange-looking thermos with
water when Nouma came out. She walked up to Khu Lon and looked at
it curiously. "What's that?"

"I had it specially made." She pointed to the controls. "It can
heat up or cool down water. Cold water can be turned to hot water
in twenty seconds. Hot water can be cooled down in about three
minutes. We could significantly reduce those times if we could
find out the exact temperature required to trigger your changes."

Nouma winced. "Let's experiment some other time. For now, that's
good enough." She gave Khu Lon a smile. "Excellent idea, this."

"Yes, I know. Are you ready?"

Nouma chuckled at the display of the famous Amazon humility. She
picked up her handheld computer - given to her by Nabiki after the
end of their Canadian trip - and headed towards the door. "Yes.
Let's go."

Khu Lon followed him out of the apartment. "Any idea where to
find him?"

"Well, I figured we could just go around to lingerie shops until
we run into him again. Plus, I've got my computer monitoring
police bands for reports of short older men terrorizing the
populace."

Khu Lon spoke uncertainly. "That's not the most efficient way to
go about this. We could spend days - weeks - futilely searching."

"Well, yeah. Got any better ideas?"

This seemed to bring Khu Lon short. "Er, no."

"Then we'll do it this way. Besides, I'm counting on the curse to
bring us all together."

"Nouma, relying on something as unpredictable as the curse strikes
me as the height of foolish - "

"What a haul! What a haul!"

Happosai zoomed past, carrying a huge bag over his shoulder.
Screams of outrage could be heard in the distance.

Nouma decided the 'I told you so' could wait for later. "C'mon."

They ran after Happosai. He was amazingly agile, darting around
people and through traffic effortlessly. Nouma and Khu Lon had to
struggle to keep up.

Fortunately, he stopped at a noodle vendor's. He whipped a bowl
from a flabbergasted customer's hands and gulped down the
contents. "Thank you, my good man!"

Nouma caught him as he turned to run again. "Gotcha!"

Happosai twisted around to face her. "Akane!" He wiggled out of
Nouma's grasp and glomped her.

Yesterday, the strange sensations had shocked Nouma and filled her
with revulsion. Today, they were merely annoying. Nouma
reluctantly admitted to herself that Khu Lon's efforts to...
familiarize her with her body had been beneficial. In more ways
than one.

The noodle customer was just beginning to react. "Hey!"

Nouma sighed and turned to Khu Lon. "Would you mind?"

Khu Lon lifted her eyes from the sight of Happosai attached to
Nouma's chest. She waved her hands and produced two 1000 yen
bills, which she gave to the bewildered customer.

Nouma started walking back to the apartment, doing her best to
ignore the strange looks she was getting. Thankfully, she was
soon inside.

She sat on the couch. Khu Lon stood opposite her a couple of
meters away, eyeing Happosai warily. Happosai, for his part,
seemed perfectly content to remain where he was.

Nouma cleared her throat. "Happosai."

He made no response other than to snuggle deeper.

Nouma reached down and gently tugged at him. It took a couple of
attempts, each of greater force, but she was able to separate him
from her chest. She held him at arm's length. "I'd like to talk
to you, Happosai."

"Of course! Talk all you want, Akane!" He reached for her
breasts, just out of reach.

Nouma carefully controlled her reactions. "I am not my mother.
My name's Nouma. Tendo Nouma."

This seemed to get his attention a little. "Tendo?" He examined
her face closely, for the first time lifting his eyes from her
breasts. "You're a Tendo?"

Nouma suddenly wondered if this was a good idea. She decided to
see it through, not wanting to lie to him anyway. "Yes. My
mother is Tendo Akane. My father is Tendo Ranma."

That definitely produced a reaction. Happosai went rigid at the
mention of Ranma's name. "Ranma. Ranma. Must hide, Ranma is
coming. He beat me. Beat me!" Happosai shuddered. "No one
beats me. Not when I mean it. No one. Ever. Ranma beat me.
Must hide."

The rambling was not improving Nouma's confidence that she had any
control over the situation. She looked up. Khu Lon shook her
head; she had no idea what to do either. Their plan had been to
talk to Happosai, but such plans were meaningless if Happosai
couldn't communicate coherently.

"Must hide. Hid for twenty years. Slept for twenty years. Then
Ranma would be gone. Or he'd be old, easy to beat. Genma was
easy to beat when he got older. He got fat, sloppy. Surely Ranma
would too. I'd be on top again."

Happosai hugged himself, his eyes wide in fear. He spoke rapidly,
feverishly. "Woke up, went to find him. To beat him. But he was
young. Young!" Happosai was breathing heavily. "Twenty years
and he was *still* young. Strong. Vital. I wouldn't be able to
beat him. Never will be able to, never will."

Happosai covered his face with his hands. "I'm old, decrepit,
second-best. There's someone better than me. I can't take it.
I... s-simply c-can't take it." Tears streamed down his cheeks.

Nouma spoke gently, softly. "I'd like to help you if I could. We
can help you find a way past the pain."

"Of course you can!" Happosai's voice instantly changed back to a
bright, cheerful tone. "Just let me cry in your bosom!" He
wiggled free to apply his glomp again.

Nouma grit her teeth, beginning to understand her father's and
grandfathers' reactions in the dojo.

Khu Lon strode forward and snatched Happosai from Nouma's chest.
She held him in front of her at eye level. "Listen, old man,
we're trying to help you! Stop taking advantage of Tendo Nouma's
sympathy and use it instead to rid yourself of these disgusting
impulses."

Happosai merely leered at her. "Cologne! You're young too!
Remember that shiatsu spot I showed you?"

Nouma could see Khu Lon trembling in an effort to control her
anger. "Is there nothing in you but lust? I see nothing of the
man who founded the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts."

"The School." Happosai sounded almost wistful. "Those were the
good days, creating the School and teaching it to my two favorite
students. I was the best. The best!" He shuddered and his voice
turned petulant. "Until Ranma beat me. He beat me!"

Nouma jumped in and tried to move Happosai's mind back to where it
had been nearly coherent. "But the School started with you. The
techniques, the brilliant, innovative ways of using chi... you're
the one who thought them up. We all owe you a lot, Master
Happosai."

Happosai twisted around to look at Nouma. "Yes, you do. Although
I don't know what a mere girl is doing learning the Art."

Nouma looked at Khu Lon in a panic. Sure enough, her face was red
with fury. A knife appeared in her hand. She held it so tightly
her whole arm was trembling, but she wasn't trying to attack
Happosai. Yet.

Nouma felt her the situation slipping beyond her control again.
She tried to defuse the issue. "I'm not a girl. I've just got
the same curse that my father had."

"Oh! That's why I keep running into you." Happosai smiled. "You
must be my next student."

Nouma tried her best to keep the shock and dread off her face.
This was something that had simply not occurred to her. Happosai
had justified a lot of his excesses in the name of 'training'
Ranma. Nouma thought it over quickly. Happosai would probably
stay near if not in the apartment. He'd continue to find ways to
terrorize the local populace. If nothing else, the strange
adventures with Happosai *had* improved Ranma's martial arts
abilities, so Nouma could probably expect the same. And Happosai
would be in a position to listen to Nouma. It might take a long
time, but perhaps Nouma could get through to him.

She looked over at Khu Lon and nearly flinched. The Amazon was
boring her eyes into Nouma, anger giving her gaze a nearly
physical component. She appeared to know what Nouma was thinking,
and was letting Nouma know very clearly what she thought of it.

As Nouma continued to meet her gaze, it softened and turned into
an almost pleading look. The knife disappeared and she set
Happosai gently on the coffee table, her eyes never leaving
Nouma's.

Nouma swallowed. She could understand her point. Life would
likely be a living hell with Happosai around. She and Khu Lon
might not get a chance to establish their relationship.

And yet, how else was she going to get through to Happosai?

She focused on him again, noting that his eyes were staring at her
breasts again. "Master, I do not require instruction in the Art.
I am not the heir to the School."

Happosai looked at her in puzzlement. Khu Lon let out a none-too-
silent sigh of relief.

"However." Nouma flicked her eyes over to Khu Lon and back to
Happosai. "I would like your company. I'm sure you have many
stories to tell that would be interesting. Why don't you stay for
dinner? And come over for dinner whenever you want; you'd always
be welcome. We could eat and talk."

Happosai frowned, and for the first time looked almost serious.
"Nouma, is it? Why are you doing this, m'boy?"

"Because... because I want to help you. My family does owe you
something for what you've taught us. We could learn from you, and
maybe you could learn from us as well."

Happosai cackled. "You're trying to change me! You think you can
*talk* me out of what I do? Nouma!" Happosai leapt from the
table and attached himself yet again to Nouma's breasts. "I will
*never* change."

Nouma rubbed her eyebrows. "At least maybe you won't have to
steal food anymore. And... I'd still like to try."

"Happosai." Khu Lon walked up, crouched in front of Nouma,
grabbed Happosai's head and turned it to the side so that he could
see her. "My great-great-grandmother - 'Cologne', as you call her
- died before her time because she could not change. In the end
the people she loved and who loved her in return turned against
her. She was so set in her ways, so convinced that there was no
other way to live then the way she knew, that she refused the help
of her family and tribe. She died horribly, separated from my
mother and father by vengeful spirits, not allowed to say goodbye
and denied the deathrights of the Amazons because of her dishonor.
Happosai." Khu Lon leaned forward. "Do not continue on a path
that will leave you hated and alone when it is your turn to pass
on to the next life. Let us help."

Happosai looked at her for a long moment, then looked up at Nouma.
Slowly, he detached himself from Nouma - the first time, as far as
Nouma knew, that he had ended a glomp voluntarily - and jumped to
the ground. "I will be here for dinner tonight. On one
condition." He leered at Nouma. "That you wear a dress. The
lower cut, the better."

Nouma fought down the irritation and disgust. If Happosai was
willing to try, Nouma had to meet him halfway. "Yes, Master."

Happosai nodded happily. "Now, I think I'll go find the heir to
the School. Surely *he* needs my instruction. I need to find out
how good he is myself. Only the best should inherit the School of
Anything Goes Martial Arts."

Nouma kept herself from chuckling. Happosai was in for a rude
shock. Mikanma would certainly not put up with any chest-
glomping, and would be much more of a martial-arts challenge than
Happosai had bargained for. "Very well, Master. Dinner will be
at six."

Happosai grinned and nodded. He turned to Khu Lon. "Cologne, you
were always the only one who could make me listen, when you really
wanted to. And you're as attractive as ever, which helps."

Khu Lon looked merely irritated, which was a vast improvement from
previous moments. "I am *not* my great-great-grandmother,
Happosai. Try to get that fact through your clouded brain."

Happosai cackled again. "Genma tried to fool me, too. Tried to
hide in his panda form, but I knew his soul. I know the souls of
all of my students - and loves. I look forward to seeing you grow
up all over again. Maybe this time you won't be so... close-
minded." He grinned, ran to the window, opened it, and jumped
outside.

Nouma and Khu Lon stared at each other. Khu Lon's expression was
completely blank. Nouma felt that a tap on the shoulder would
knock her over.

Nouma licked her lips. "He is a little out of touch with reality,
don't forget."

Khu Lon nodded uncertainly. "He called you Akane."

"Right. And I'm not my mother. Don't worry."

"Of course I won't. Why should I listen to the ramblings of a
deranged mind?"

"You shouldn't."

"Okay then."

Neither of them spoke or moved for a long time.

***

Nouma sat at his computer, relaxing, catching up on his
correspondence. He was saying his good-byes to the newsgroups he
regularly contributed to, and it was a more painful process than
he had anticipated. He was also drafting his resignation from his
job at Nabiki's company. He'd finish his projects but not start
any new ones. Khu Lon, as it turned out, had lots of money
available to her, certainly enough to support them. And Nouma
suspected that Nabiki would offer to keep him on as a
'consultant'. That would allow her to continue to pay him as he
settled into the life of the curse. When he'd adjusted, he could
maybe take on some free-lance programming projects.

He took a sip of tea and sighed in contentment. As it turned out,
Happosai had not appeared for dinner. Apparently a major battle
had taken place at the Tendo Dojo, which had somehow ended with
Mikanma boiling mad, Ranma trying to calm her down, and Happosai,
Soun, and Genma going out on the town to get drunk. Ranma had
passed on a message to Nouma that Happosai would be coming to
visit soon. Nouma found that he believed it.

He'd been glad for the chance to turn himself male and eat a quiet
dinner. Now he was relaxing in front of his computer, almost like
old times.

Nouma glanced over to Khu Lon. She had the handheld computer in
front of her and was staring intently at it, her expression quite
studious. Nouma grimaced, pretty certain he knew what she was
reading.

He went back to his tasks. Soon he had everything in order. He
sent off his farewell letters and printed his resignation. He'd
meet with his boss in the morning and deliver it to him face-to-
face; he owed him that much.

Nouma closed down his computer, picked up his tea, and moved over
to look at the painting of Mt. Fuji again. Khu Lon's voice spoke
from the sofa. "Who painted that?"

"Grandmother Saotome. It's about the curse of Jusenkyo."

"Hmm. It must have affected her deeply to have both her son and
husband touched by magic."

"Well, there were other things. My paternal grandparents had
quite a tumultuous relationship. I'll tell you their story
sometime. They're at peace now, and she wrote this haiku when she
was pregnant with Aunt Ranko."

"What does it say?"

Nouma read from the corner of the painting:

"Fuji-san asks me:
'Is outward form all I am?'
I smile in reply."

Khu Lon was silent for a moment. "I think I like that."

"I think I like it, too." Nouma turned away from the painting,
walked over to the sofa, and sat next to Khu Lon. She closed down
a window on the computer's display as he sat. Nouma mentally
nodded, understanding what she was going through and deciding not
to press. She'd talk when she was ready.

He reached over and put his arm around her shoulders. "How are
you doing?"

A little to his surprise, she leaned into him, resting her head
against his shoulder. "I'm a little shaken up. Will it always be
like this?"

"I don't know."

"Of course you don't." She didn't sound irritated, just tired.
"This seems... unusual for a first-time adventure."

"It could have been worse. Dad's first adventure involved meeting
your mother and having her chase him all over China."

"Hmm. I'd forgotten that was just after he'd been cursed. And
that adventure did accomplish much. It got mother out of the
village and led her to Japan. Mother always said that she
considers her life to have truly begun after meeting your father."
Khu Lon sighed. "It's just different than I thought it would be."

"Yeah, I know. I mean, of all the things I was expecting, having
an old man continually fondling my breasts was not among them."

Khu Lon laughed quietly. "You took it well. Like a warrior."

Nouma smiled. "I thought a true warrior would have slit his
throat for the affront."

"But that was not what you were trying to accomplish. You were
not trying to defeat him, you were trying to save his soul. You
did not allow him to distract you, and indeed used the tools you
had to your advantage."

"You did well, too. He was just humoring me, but he *listened* to
you."

"I would never have even considered trying to help him if it
hadn't been for you." Khu Lon turned her head and looked into his
eyes. "I'm proud of you, Tendo Nouma. I'm glad I know you."

"I'm overjoyed that you chose to let me share your life. I think
we make a good team, Khu Lon."

Khu Lon smiled, reached up, and drew his head down to hers. They
kissed slowly, not passionately and not tenderly but somewhere in-
between.

Khu Lon finally broke it off. "I can't believe how much I've
changed in the past week. In the past day."

Nouma grinned. "I have a bit of an idea of what you're talking
about. I've had to make some pretty radical adjustments
recently."

"I, too, have adjusted much in myself that I thought would never
change. And yet, I am not unhappy."

Nouma's grin faded a bit, remembering how much she'd been bothered
by Happosai's ramblings. "Really?"

"Yes." Her tone was firm. "Who I was before I met you is
irrelevant. I'm happy with who I am now, and who I'm becoming.
Mostly, I'm glad that my life is intertwined with yours. Nowhere
could I have found a better... mate. Truly, my soul has found its
partner, and is richer and better because of it."

Nouma smiled widely, deciding to share with her later about how
her words reminded him of Uncle Tatewaki. "I, too, am much the
better for your companionship. I love you, Khu Lon."

"And I you, Nouma. Have I shown you the special technique Amazons
use for indoor combat?"

Nouma laughed. "Yes, and it makes me think that Amazons must go
through a lot of clothing during the course of a relationship.
Let me show you *my* technique. It's not as... energetic as yours
is, but I find it to be equally effective."

"Truly? You will need to show me before I believe it."

Nouma demonstrated. Khu Lon believed.

~*~