[AMG/Ranma][Fanfic] Instruments of Change, Part Seven
Mike Koos
much to protest.
Ryouga's thoughts were largely an unorganized blur. Due perhaps
to some cruel twist of Fate - this couldn't be *Ranma's* fault again,
could it? Then again... - almost an entire day ago he had mistaken
an actual Goddess for his rival Ranma, and hurt her with a fist to
the face. Now, after spending a day resting and recovering, this
particular Goddess had him in her grasp.
As if he needed even more bad luck.
Where was she taking him? Away from the house, away from anyone
who might happen to witness what she was planning to do in
retribution? And what *was* she planning to do?
He'd tried to beat up a Goddess, that's what they would say. He
deserved it.
<What have I done?>
He attempted to scream, to make some kind of noise, at least.
Nothing.
A wave of calmness washed over him.
What? He wasn't supposed to be calm. Frantic. *That* was what
he was supposed to be. Not calm. Not *now*.
Another wave of calmness.
Ryouga wondered why he was feeling so blasted calm as he fought
the sense off. The one good thing - or bad thing, however he wished
to look at it - about a calm state was that one's mind was free to
think clearly.
So. Since he had come to rely on the so-called 'severe'
emotions such as anger, hatred, depression... these instances of calm
couldn't be *his* doing, right?
Then what... who... of course!
Ryouga glanced up at Ranmira's face in time to see her mouth
something he couldn't understand... not that he knew how to read
lips, at any rate. Magic! She was putting some kind of spell or
enchantment on him, wasn't she? Couldn't she have just used her
divine powers directly if she had intended to subdue him without a
fight?
Oh... right. He was supposed to be fighting back. Protesting.
Time for another attempt...
All at once, he fell asleep.
An Aa! Megamisama / Ranma 1/2 Crossover
Instruments of Change
Part Seven
written by Mike Koos
----------------------
Ukyou awoke to the sound of her doorbell chiming... once, twice,
maybe a few more times.
She checked her clock - it was after eleven at night. Who would
be ringing the doorbell at *this* time of night? Nearly stumbling on
the way, she threw aside her covers and fumbled about her bedroom for
her so-called 'giant spatula.' If someone was playing any sort of
prank on her... they would be sorry, to say the least. Maybe even if
they weren't trying to pull a late-night prank - she wasn't happy
about being awakened late at night. Business was supposed to be
taken care of during business hours. *Not* close to midnight.
<What if it's Ranma?> she asked herself. What if Akane had
kicked him out, and he'd come here to see if his U-chan could put him
up for the night?
No. Akane was a 'Goddess candidate' now; she would probably be
nice to him. And Ranma had a Goddess as a part of him, making sure
he behaved properly. There would be little reason for any of the
Tendos to throw Ranma out.
But she could always hope, couldn't she?
Waiting for her on the opposite side of the sliding door that
served as the entrance to both her restaurant and home was a familiar
face - a red-haired girl, her hair braided into an unusually long
pigtail. "Ran--" Ukyou said excitedly, out of habit... but then the
light caught the visitor's slightly different clothing, longer hair,
the jewelry she wore and the amethyst markings on her face. This had
to be the Goddess that was currently a part of Ranma, she realized.
"Ranmira?" Ukyou hazarded.
Ranmira nodded in response. "I apologize for waking you," she
replied, having noted that Ukyou was wearing pajamas. "But there is
something I would like to discuss with you and Ryouga."
Ukyou blinked. "Ryouga?" The Goddess held the sleeping pig she
carried out for her to see. "Oh." Ranmira knew that P-chan was
actually Ryouga? That couldn't be good news for Ryouga. How long
would it be before Akane learned the truth?
Skuld, Akane and Ranma hadn't mentioned the exact reasons why
Ranmira had been unable to make an appearance earlier, though Ukyou
understood Ranmira needed to rest after expending too much of her
power and even more so after being attacked by Ryouga. Well, having
to fend Ryouga off could put a great deal of strain on anyone, she'd
reasoned. Did the fact that the Goddess was holding P-chan *now*
mean Ranmira planned to exact retribution on him? "Should I go heat
some water? It's a bit easier to keep him from breaking things or
getting lost when he's a little pig."
"Yes, please," Ranmira answered. "I should be better prepared
for him, this time."
Ukyou allowed a smirk to play across her features. "I'll keep a
few glasses of cold water around just in case." Then she sighed. "I
hope he doesn't cause any damage while he's here. Rebuilding after
things like that is expensive! I don't know how the Tendos or
Cologne can manage to do it all the time."
"They have likely found easier and cheaper ways to rebuild after
having to do it often."
"I guess," Ukyou shrugged. "And what does it matter if the
material or work is low-quality? It's just gonna be trashed by the
next fighter to come along, like *him*," she pointed a single finger
at Ryouga, to which the Goddess didn't say a word.
When the spell keeping Ryouga sedated ultimately wore off, he
awoke to find himself in human form, fully clothed... Ranmira and
Ukyou standing a slight distance away, intently watching him. How
had he... *Ranmira*!? He bolted to his feet and tried to run away -
only to crash straight into an invisible barrier.
The invisible wall had him encircled.
"You really think that's enough to hold him, if he broke through
your barriers earlier...?" whispered Ukyou.
"It should be enough," Ranmira whispered in response. "My
barrier spells might not be as strong as my sister's, but I'm
confident this will do."
"I hope so."
<So do I.>
Panicking, Ryouga thought to try the only apparent route left to
him... the floor. "BAKUSAITENKETSU!" he shouted, prodding the
floorboards with a finger. The bakusaitenketsu hadn't been designed
for use with anything but rock, though after a little practice, he'd
managed to extend the technique to earth and wooden floors as well.
Nothing happened.
Obviously, her invisible wall had the floor covered. Probably
the ceiling, too. There was no escape. They had him, and he was
going to have to accept his fate like a man...
Ranmira approached the 'cell.' "Ryouga-san, please calm down.
I do not want to hurt you. I only wish to speak with you and Ukyou."
Ryouga blinked. "You're not going to hurt me?"
She nodded. "I am not the type to seek revenge. However, if I
*did* wish to return the favor for attacking me earlier, I could
simply turn you over to Urd or Skuld."
Ryouga had no way of knowing what Urd might do to him - there
was something to the platinum-haired Goddess that reminded him of
Nabiki, which meant that Urd was someone to avoid crossing - but he
did know Skuld had both a hammer and bombs, backed by a temper.
Skuld hadn't been all that happy with him at the scene of the fight;
she was liable to become angry the next time she saw him.
"...Or Akane."
The Eternally Lost Boy paled. "She doesn't... she doesn't know,
does she?"
"No," Ranmira told him. "But you must know it is inevitable
that she will learn the truth."
After a brief pause Ryouga slumped within his 'prison.' "Oh."
Then he straightened, meeting the Goddess' gaze. "You want me to
tell her, don't you?"
"That would be the proper thing to do, though it is not my place
to force you to do it. And given that Akane is undergoing a great
deal of emotional stress due to learning the truth about her mothers
and becoming a Goddess candidate, revealing the truth about her pet
to her might worsen that strain exponentially."
Ukyou still had a hand fixed on the shaft of her large spatula.
"I know *I'd* be mad if you tried that with me," she announced.
Ryouga withdrew.
"Which is why I believe it would be best if P-chan were to leave
for a while," concluded Ranmira.
Ryouga sighed. "I think I can manage that."
"I want you to stay, Ryouga-san. Not as P-chan, but yourself."
"Huh?"
Ranmira took a deep breath. "Allow me to explain. Will you
promise to stay here and listen - not run away, attack anyone, or
break things?"
"......I won't. I promise."
She released the barrier and led him to a seat at the counter.
It unnerved him that Ranmira wasn't seeking to pay him back for
hurting her... after all, most of the people he knew or encountered
preferred to hold grudges. But not Ranmira. He had definitely hurt
her, yet... This was reminding him of a dream he'd had once, in which
he'd intentionally fought Kasumi for some reason he couldn't recall.
She'd forgiven him, and for the remainder of the dream he had
nervously jumped at anything, wondering what Kasumi *really* had
planned...
"How did you get me changed back and into my clothes?" Ryouga
asked. "I thought I left my pack miles from here... unless you have
it." These definitely weren't the same clothes he'd lost in the
Tendo koi pond.
"She cast some kind of spell to pour the hot water on you behind
the counter and put your clothes on while we were out here. Nobody
looked," Ukyou said, taking a seat beside him.
"Oh." Ryouga was relieved. Ukyou briefly wondered if Ranmira
knew about Ryouga's shyness toward members of the opposite gender.
"First," Ranmira began, choosing to remain on her feet, "I would
like to apologize for not being able to speak to either of you at an
earlier time, but..." Her voice trailed away.
Ryouga shrank under Ukyou's glare.
Their host cleared her throat to break the tension. "I would
like both of you - Hibiki Ryouga and Kuonji Ukyou - to secretly join
Ranma in acting as Akane's guardians."
"What!?" From Ukyou and Ryouga both.
"As I mentioned, Akane is in the process of trying to become a
Goddess. Until she becomes a full Goddess, or returns to being a
Mortal, she is unfortunately quite vulnerable. That is why I would
prefer if you, her friends, were in her corner protecting her from
the additional dangers she may have to face."
Ukyou gasped. "She... thinks of us as friends? Even though
we're always doing whatever we can to split Ranma and Akane apart?"
Ryouga opened his mouth to add a comment of his own, but nothing
emerged. <Akane... thinks of me as...>
"She knows she can count on both of you when necessary."
"S-she only thinks of me as a friend..."
"Would you rather she found out you're her pet and hate you?"
Ukyou snapped, turning on Ryouga. Fine time for the sap to let his
emotions sway him...
He inhaled. "N-no, of course not!"
"Events might not necessarily turn out that way, Ukyou-san,"
Ranmira offered her a knowing nod. "Believe me, I know." Change and
Chance could work together to lead to unexpected turns of events...
Ukyou pursed her lips. "Maybe. But why ask HIM to be her
guardian?" she asked, indicating the boy. "I'm sure you know how
easily he gets lost!"
"I do not! And besides, you'd probably just agree to help Akane
to get close to Ranma!"
Ukyou's voice was oddly, suddenly solemn. "No. There's no
chance of anything like that happening." There, in her eyes, Ryouga
saw a measure of sadness. He'd known that particular emotion far too
long not to recognize it in others. Why would Ukyou be sad?
He hesitated. "Uh, I'll do it." A decision he'd come to
regret, no doubt, but he *had* pledged his life to protect Akane's.
Even if it meant she might wind up hating him for all eternity... now
there was a thought. What if people really could be reincarnated?
Akane could carry a grudge against him across the span of several
lives!
"Me, too," Ukyou affirmed. Ranmira had been right; despite
their rivalry for Ranma's affections, Akane *was* a friend. One who
was - interestingly enough - becoming a Goddess. She had to admit,
she found the idea intriguing.
"Very well." Ranmira fixed them both with an unemotional gaze.
"You should know that I have no way of knowing what you might or
might not face, however. This particular situation doesn't happen
that often."
<I'll bet,> thought Ukyou.
"Also, I ask that you do not tell Ranma or Akane that I have
asked you to watch over Akane. I don't want either of them to think
I am interfering, or have little faith in Akane."
An uncomfortable silence fell upon the trio.
"...Okay. But isn't there something you can do about his sense
of direction?" Ukyou inquired. Ryouga frowned. Why did people
always make comments about his sense of direction? It wasn't *his*
fault he hardly ever found his way to wherever it was he wanted to go
whenever he wanted to be there, was it?
Ranmira gave the question a bit of thought. "There is." She
concentrated; the marks on her face glowed faintly, and then a small,
unassuming golden ring flashed into existence within the open palm of
her hand. A few soft words in a language neither Ukyou nor Ryouga
understood caused the aura surrounding the ring to increase in
intensity - at the same time, Ryouga felt an odd sensation take hold
of him and refuse to release him from its influence.
She placed the ring in Ryouga's hands. "Wear this ring, and
never take it off."
The boy merely stared at the ring in confusion. "A ring?"
Ukyou spluttered. "What will *that* do?" She wondered how Ranmira
could retain her calm demeanor through seemingly anything. Although
Ranmira was a part of the Ranma she knew, the Goddess was quite
different...
"Everyone has an internal compass of a sort which is attuned to
the Earth's magnetic core," Ranmira stated, as though she were a
teacher giving a science lesson. Which, in a sense, she was.
"So Ryouga's internal compass..."
"...Is slightly out of tune with the Earth. Several members of
his family also share this misalignment. There are reasons I cannot
fix Ryouga's problem directly, particularly without knowing why he
and his family share this 'misdirection curse,' but that ring will
reset his internal compass to its proper attunement for as long as he
wears it."
The expression on Ryouga's face brightened. "It will?"
Ranmira nodded. "Yes. The ring is specifically keyed to you
and has no effect on anything or anyone else. Do not lose it."
"But..."
The Goddess drifted toward an electrical outlet. "I really must
be going now," she exhaled. "Tomorrow *is* a school day... correct,
Ukyou-san?"
"Er... yeah." Ukyou settled back against the edge of the
counter. She had no real love for school, and when she compared her
classes with the concerns of the Goddesses... how important could
school be?
Important enough, if Akane, Ranma and Skuld remained in school.
Guess being a Goddess *didn't* get you out of school after all.
By the time she looked up, Ranmira was gone - leaving two
stunned people behind.
"Uh... do you have any idea what we do now?"
Ukyou glared at Ryouga. <I've gotta be a guardian and work with
THIS idiot?> Wasn't *Ryouga* supposed to be the one getting punished
here? she muttered to herself.
"What?"
"Nothing," she lied. "I'm going to bed. Let yourself out,
okay?"
He watched her walk back up the stairs to her room, then decided
he would do as she asked. <If what she said is right, I don't have
to worry about getting lost anymore.>
The ring was on his right-hand ring finger now. <"Wear this
ring, and never take it off."> But was that actually the right thing
to do? Maybe Ranmira had been lying. Maybe this ring was part of an
inventive scheme for revenge the Goddess had created just for him.
Ryouga closed the sliding door behind him. Why would a Goddess
lie to him? Even Ranmira, who struck him as behaving more like
*Kasumi* than Ranma.
Of course, that thought made him feel even more guilty about
having punched her. If it wasn't one curse, it was another...
He stopped to bang his head against a nearby telephone pole.
"Argh! I forgot to ask her if she could remove my curse!"
In the room of the Tendo home given over for Ranma and Genma to
use as their own, Ranmira emerged from a field of electricity that
arced about one of the electrical outlets. For a full moment she
leaned against the wall, catching her breath and attempting to calm
her overactive pulse.
She sighed. <I can't believe I did that.> Climbing back into
Ranma's bedroll, she shifted to the sleeping form of Ranma.
Nabiki entered the command for her computer to start the process
of shutting down. Oh, she'd had some interesting information to
store in the online notebook this night. The only question was...
what, exactly, to do with it?
Until she had a suitable enough plan of action, the information
would be safe on disk. She did keep a regular paper notebook filled
with random data to throw snooping people off the trail, but computer
files were so much more easier to secure and bury than a paper
product. A computer file could be encoded and then compressed in
several different ways - or more than once! - to be hidden away on a
hard drive for family, friends or enemies never to find. Not that
anyone had dared to mess with her computer... there was no evidence
of that in the logs. But it was always better to be safe than sorry,
as she liked to believe. Such practices were almost a necessity in
this neighborhood...
Now, then. What kind of plan would put this new information to
its best use? Nabiki turned off the light atop her nightstand and
eased herself backward onto the bed. There were times when it helped
the imagination greatly to simply lie in the darkness and stare up
into that pseudo-infinity. Would it help tonight, for such an
important plan?
She hoped that none of the Goddesses or Akane were able to read
her mind.
** ** **
Skuld, Keiichi and Belldandy were waiting for them when they
entered the temple's kitchen through their mediums.
Ranmira carefully levitated away from the wall and the
electrical outlet she had just emerged from, then descended until the
soles of her boots noiselessly rested upon the ground. Akane,
however, had yet to reach a similar level of control over her
'entrances and exits.' To her credit she had established more
control over the process than her attempts the day before, helplessly
flailing her arms about far less, but she continued to react
impulsively to each situation. That was understandable; Akane was
approaching her Goddess training as a martial artist, taught to react
on instinct and impulse.
How could someone who was known for a less-than-moderate amount
of patience be expected to teach another who clearly would have to
work hard to counter her existing conditioning? Skuld had wondered.
Being a martial artist was indeed a plus when it came to certain
aspects of being a Goddess - Akane would undoubtedly be able to
sustain her use of power for longer periods of time than one would
expect, for example - though in many other aspects, it was more of a
hindrance than an aid.
In entering and leaving her medium, Akane needed to learn to 'go
with the flow,' as per the old Mortal saying. The more she concerned
herself with every detail, not to mention her reaction to each of
those details, the more likely she was to do something unexpected.
Skuld supposed that was true. She rarely thought about her
'travels' at all, and could barely remember the lessons she had been
taught in regard to the process. That meant none of her sisters were
likely to recall the exact lessons, either.
<Does it really matter?> she asked herself. Given some time,
Akane would learn the proper way of doing things as a Goddess. The
only parts of the training left to worry about, then, was the tests of
the spirit. And if someone like *Urd* could pass her tests of the
spirit - though *how* Urd had, Skuld didn't know - her apprentice had
a good chance of doing the same.
Ranmira shifted into Ranma while Skuld helped Akane to her feet.
Today was the day on which they would test portions of Akane's power
and teach her a spell or two, at the same time giving Ranma a chance
to visit the temple. They'd come directly from the school so as not
to waste any time... Akane was quite eager to learn her first spell.
Ranma seemed to waver slightly. "Are you all right, Ranma-san?"
Belldandy asked him.
"Just trying to get my bearings," the martial artist answered.
"These location shifts can be a little confusing."
<I wouldn't doubt it.> Skuld took on a pensive look. "Oh,
that's right. For you the change would be instantaneous, as if you'd
been removed from one point in Time and placed in another."
"If you put it that way... I like the sound of that more. You
know? Time travel and all that, instead of me being stored away."
Ranma shrugged. Images of being stored in a meat locker or placed in
a box on some shelf somewhere always came to mind when he thought
about it, even after Ranmira had assured him the storage procedure
involved nothing of the sort.
"Ranma." Akane decided it was an ideal time to introduce Ranma
to the members of the 'family' he hadn't met. "This is Belldandy,
and that's Keiichi," she said, gesturing to each of them in turn.
Belldandy had an unmistakably angelic quality to her, from her
features to the grace of her movements. Her long, sandy-brown hair
was worn in a markedly different hairstyle, and her bluish-gray eyes
were almost of a lambent quality... yet Ranma's thoughts insisted on
comparing Belldandy to another person.
Kasumi.
Why? Belldandy did have a voice eerily identical to Kasumi's,
he recalled. Aside from that, her behavior and the air she
projected... those also resembled the same traits in Kasumi. Or was
that the other way around?
"Ranma-san? Is something the matter?"
That voice, again. Had he not been watching Belldandy speak, he
could easily have believed Kasumi was with them. "Not really..." he
fumbled. "No. I... er, I just felt like I already know all of you
very well."
"Gee, I wonder why?" Urd spoke up from behind him, startling
him.
Thankfully, Skuld intervened before Urd could continue. "Maybe,
maybe not. Can we drop this? We really should get started with
Akane's next lessons, 'cause this might take a while."
"You do have a point, Skuld," Belldandy admitted. And so the
lesson began. Urd took a seat on the deck a few feet apart from
where Keiichi and Ranma sat. "Akane? We will start with a basic
restoration spell. From what we have been told of the situations you
commonly face, you may find it useful."
She drew a breath. "Since you aren't yet familiar with the
languages of the heavens, I will instruct Yggdrasil to allow you to
visualize the spell..." Closing her eyes, she called on her link with
Yggdrasil to issue the necessary commands.
Suddenly, a new voice rang out. "So THIS is where everyone is!"
Everyone brought their heads up as one to see who the visitor to
the temple's yard happened to be. A girl wearing a softball uniform
with the letters "N.I.T." and "S.B.C." sewn across the front of her
jacket - the Nekomi Institute of Technology Softball Club, Akane
assumed - was striding up to them. <Must be on her way to a game,>
Akane noted the presence of a bat-sized canvas case slung across one
shoulder alongside the girl's sports bag.
Keiichi found his voice. "Me-Megumi! Don't do that!" he
protested.
His sister laughed, her short-cropped brown hair making an
attempt to follow the movement of her head. "You're such a wet
blanket, Kei-chan. Why do you think I try to surprise you so much?"
"Megumi..."
But she was already walking out into the yard to where Akane,
Belldandy and Skuld stood. "Hello! I'm Morisato Megumi, Keiichi's
little sister. Who are you?" she asked Akane, while Keiichi simply
rolled his eyes and sighed.
Belldandy smiled. "This is Akane, a cousin of ours," she placed
a hand on Akane's shoulder, "and the young man seated next to Keiichi
is her friend, Saotome Ranma."
Both Ranma and Akane were inwardly grateful that Belldandy
hadn't chosen to introduce them as an engaged couple.
Megumi studied Akane, then glanced peripherally at Belldandy.
<Belldandy never mentioned anything about having a cousin before...
but then, I've never heard her talk much about anyone in her family
but her sisters.> "Pleased to meet you, Akane-chan!" She offered
one of her infamous grins. "Are you here for a visit?" It was a
valid question, despite lacking a slight amount of tact; Megumi
wouldn't have been surprised at all if more members of Belldandy's
family came to stay at the temple for a while. There was certainly
more than enough room, and Megumi couldn't help but like Belldandy
and her sisters.
Akane nodded in response, remembering her manners. "Yes. We
were in the area and thought we should drop by."
Ranma leaned closer to Keiichi in order to whisper an aside.
"Does she know?"
"That Belldandy and her sisters are Goddesses?" guessed
Keiichi. "No. We're trying to keep it a secret."
"Oh. Isn't that hard to do? I bet it's gotta be as hard as
trying to keep my curse a secret."
Keiichi shrugged. How hard could it be to avoid cold water if
you were determined enough? "Maybe. But yeah, it isn't easy."
"What are you two talking about over here, hmm?" Megumi was
inching closer to them. "You're not talking about me... are you?"
"N-no! It's nothing! Honest!"
Megumi shook her head. "You've got to stop making it so easy
for me, big brother." She turned her attention to Ranma. "You're
Ranma, right? Kinda cute..." The blush that rose in the younger
boy's cheeks only added to the effect.
"*Ranma*!"
<Akane's jealous. Why would that be, unless... ah!> Megumi
giggled.
"Don't mind her, Akane," her brother was saying. "She just
likes to torment people."
Megumi feigned a hurt look. "Kei-chan, how could you say such a
thing about your dear little sister?" she scolded him.
"All right, what do you want, Megumi? Don't you have a game
today?" Keiichi asked, tired of the act. Megumi had already proven
long ago that she could carry the back-and-forth game as long as he
could.
She offered him an indifferent shrug. "I thought I'd return the
6510 reference book I borrowed before going." Pulling the book from
her sports bag, Megumi handed it to him.
"Don't worry, Kei-chan," she whispered once close enough for
Keiichi to hear. A feline grin crept into her features. "I'll be
going soon. I know how you prefer to spend time alone with
Belldandy--"
"Megumi!"
"Just kidding," Megumi giggled once more.
Ranma idly watched the exchange from his seat on the deck, as
did Urd. He'd been told beforehand how Keiichi and Belldandy came to
be together, and that they truly cared for each other, but Keiichi
was having difficulty admitting it to his younger sister. He
supposed Keiichi might not have told his younger sister about his
true relationship with Belldandy, either.
As he thought about it, his relationship with Akane did have a
parallel or two with the relationship between Keiichi and Belldandy.
Not that he was sure he or Akane cared for each other anywhere near
as much as Belldandy or Keiichi, yet they *were* linked... a Mortal
linked to a Goddess. Or a Goddess candidate, anyway.
Both Belldandy and Akane were immortal and had access to the
wonders of the heavens. Why would either of them want to carry on a
relationship with a Mortal?
Well, perhaps the best way to find out - aside from asking
Belldandy, of course - would be to ask Keiichi. Though... what to
ask? The direct approach was out as long as Megumi was lurking in
the yard - he would only succeed in inspiring her to torment her
brother more, and further embarrass Keiichi.
No, he needed to ask a more subtle question. Ranma knew full
well that he had a problem discussing things like relationships with
anyone else, which was the primary reason he hadn't been able to come
to any conclusion as far as Ukyou or Shampoo were concerned. It
wasn't entirely his fault that he had never been taught anything but
fighting... "Say, uh, Keiichi? You ever thought about training in
the martial arts?"
Keiichi studied him for a second, wondering if Ranma was trying
to start conversation or change the subject. "I'm... not really much
of a fighter. I don't really have any need to learn how to fight..."
Though, Keiichi had to admit, such skills would have probably been
useful in some of the situations he'd had to face.
"Well, I think it'd be cool to train to be a martial artist!"
Megumi said. After noticing the disbelieving stares nearly everyone
gave her, she added, "I don't have the time to devote to learning the
martial arts, though. You're a martial artist, Ranma?"
"Er... yeah. And so is Akane."
<Why does he have to go around announcing it to everyone?>
Akane grimaced. <Every time he does that, it isn't long before
*someone* shows up wanting to challenge us.>
"Really?" Megumi was impressed. "Wow. Maybe you two could
show us what martial artists can do in a fight later, huh?"
"Just come to our neighborhood and you'll see a fight
eventually," Akane muttered under her breath, too low for anyone to
hear.
The gleam of sunlight playing off the plastic face of Megumi's
wristwatch caused her to glance at the watch. Her eyes widened.
"Oops! I'd better get going before they come to get me." She took a
moment to grab her sports bag, then sprinted toward the temple gates.
"Bye! See you later!"
Belldandy and Skuld waited a few minutes to make sure Megumi was
safely out of visual and audial range before returning to Akane's
lesson. "Akane," Belldandy asked. "You should be able to visualize
the restoration spell through your link with Yggdrasil. I would like
you to access the system and place the spell into your mind's eye."
As Akane concentrated on what she was hoping to do, the triad of
markings on her face began to glow stronger, with more intensity.
Yggdrasil was a vast system with an infinite amount of data to offer
her; it was incredibly difficult to avoid the temptation to let her
mind wander, to become lost among all that knowledge...
Akane caught herself. She resolved never to access the system
unless she was sure of what she wanted to find.
Was this a test? Why give a novice such as herself, someone who
might not even become a Goddess, what appeared to be full access to
Yggdrasil?
She found that the spell stood out like a beacon where Belldandy
had placed it for her to grasp. Akane welcomed the spell into her
mind. It *was* definitely in a language she could not understand,
but Yggdrasil had the information necessary for her to learn it if
need be.
Spells such as this restoration spell were in fact like computer
programs, in that they called upon Yggdrasil to aid in changing or
restructuring the environment.
Finally, she understood the spell, and how to use it. Akane
glanced at Belldandy and Skuld to check their reactions.
"Very good, Akane." Belldandy drew her attention to a small
patch of dry grass next to one of the dirt trails leading through the
temple's yard. "Cast the spell on that patch of grass."
Akane concentrated on the task. How could she cast spells in a
language she had yet to learn? a part of her mind inquired. Still,
if it wasn't within her power to do so, would Belldandy have asked
her to try?
She reached past the words to find the spell itself. Magic
wasn't precisely about words; the function of the words in a spell
were to *guide* the caster so that he or she placed the proper power
into the spell. That was the reason why spells were often kept in
their original language - if the transcriber was not careful, the
spell would be diluted or worse, ineffective.
Though the power did not truly lie in the words, she would need
their aid. She asked Yggdrasil to help her channel the spell into
existence.
Her mouth formed the words. A translation had already passed
through her mind, making the goal of the spell clear. All she had to
do was combine the elements of the spell and...
Dead grass returned to life before her eyes.
She'd done it. She'd learned a spell of the Gods and Goddesses.
Akane felt both the sense of her joy at succeeding and the trace
of powers which had combined to restore the grass... Nature's power,
Yggdrasil's and her own. The feeling *that* left her was
indescribable! She turned to look at Ranma. Ranma did not have
access to the kind of magic she had, but why couldn't he share in her
accomplishment?
"You *do* care for her, don't you?" she heard Keiichi ask.
Akane frowned, her euphoria waning. Ranma hadn't even been paying
attention!
The boy in question inhaled sharply. Whenever someone
confronted him at point-blank range with the issue of whether he
loved Akane or not, the first impulse his mind triggered was the
instinct for survival. He had to distance himself from Akane, or
else he would regret the consequences. "What!? No! I don't...
she's a kawaikunee clumsy tomboy and--"
Akane's standard procedure for events like this was to let her
anger prove to Ranma exactly how wrong he was. "*RAN*-MA!!" she
yelled, leveling a fist at him from where she stood.
To her utter surprise a tight spiral of wind took shape there.
The miniature tornado shot from her fist toward Ranma.
Keiichi, having been in the line of fire far more times than he
would prefer, had had the sense to dive out of the way when he saw
the energies build around Akane's fist. But Ranma... Ranma remained
frozen in place, dumbfounded. Since when had Akane been given a
power like that? was the last thought that crossed his mind as the
tornado slammed him through the stone wall behind him.
Akane paled. "*Ranma*!" She ran into the temple to find the
spot where Ranma had been thrown.
He lay unconscious in the wreckage of the outer wall. "Ranma,"
Akane repeated her cry, softer this time. <I-I... did I kill him?
Please, don't let him die!> If Ranma died, it would be all her
fault. She had blasted him from a distance with some kind of
elemental power and sent him flying through a stone wall. <He'll be
alive. I know it! Ranma can survive anything!>
Akane stopped to collect herself. <I have to know.> Being
careful not to move Ranma, she checked his pulse.
His pulse was - thankfully - moderately strong.
<He's going to be all right!>
She made a quick scan for injuries while Belldandy and the
others joined them. Outwardly, Ranma was bleeding from a few cuts
and scrapes, though beyond that, she couldn't tell if he had any
internal injuries.
"Belldandy," she spoke haltingly, aware of the other's presence
behind her. "Is there a way to see whether or not he's hurt
internally?"
"He will be fine," came the answer.
"But how do--" Akane started to ask, but was silenced by
Belldandy.
"Akane, we will discuss your temper later. For now, I want you
to cast the restoration spell on Ranma and the wall."
Akane forcefully swallowed the lump in her throat. "Y-yes."
She called once more upon the words and the power. Unknown to
her, they linked with fragments of her guilt, desperation and
hopefulness, changing the spell...
The rubble from the wall stirred from around and underneath
Ranma. Within seconds, the stone wall was reassembling itself from
those fragments. Ranma's body, meanwhile, took on an unusual glow.
Akane could feel the power undoing the damage to his body. The
damage *she* had caused in anger.
One of the reasons Akane had developed the habit of hitting him
- whether with bare hands or assorted 'weapons' - or punting him to
end an argument was because she knew Ranma could easily weather the
'attacks.' But could he withstand the power of a Goddess? True,
Ranma did have Ranmira within him to help, but despite that Ranma was
only a Mortal. He could be hurt.
He could die.
Provided they didn't end her candidacy over this instance, she
was going to have to change some aspects of who she was.
Akane felt the spell finish the task she had asked of it and
opened her eyes. The glow enveloping Ranma's body was leaving him.
Except... she could see that something unexpected had happened, as
could the others.
Ranma now had the body of a seven-year-old.
<...to be continued...>
------------
Credits:
Written by: Mike Koos
Prereaders: Richard Beaubien, Kevin D. Hammel, Jonathan Ng,
Shadowmane, Tom Williams, David Wills
Special thanks to Christopher Angel for letting me discuss a few
things with him. :)
With apologies to Takahashi Rumiko and Fujishima Kosuke...
All parts of this series are available at the RAAC archives at
ftp://ftp.cs.ubc.ca/pub/archive/anime-fan-works
or from my WWW pages at
http://www.anime.usacomputers.net/~makoto/index.htm
Comments and questions welcome.
*****************************
* Mike ('Kino Makoto') Koos * "I can do nothing to stop you.
*---------------------------* Your background music is too
* email: mak...@mother.com * strong for me."
***************************** - Whose Line is it Anyway?
www: http://www.anime.usacomputers.net/~makoto/index.htm