al709382@campus.ccm.itesm.mx
The Caller's Plight, by Jorge Pratt
Fourth Test, part E
A scrambled Christmas
"So, another Christmas Eve party?" Akane asked, during
breakfast.
"Why yes, I think it would be wonderful to have another
reunion with all our friends," said Kasumi with a large, happy
smile, then reached into her apron's pocket and took out the
invitations.
"Wow. Do we know all those people?" Nabiki stared at the
100+ envelopes. "Let's charge admittance."
"I don't think we'd fit them all here anyway..." Akane looked
oddly at them. "Hey, that's right! Herb said we could hold a
Christmas party at _his_ place!"
"But I wouldn't want to impose..." Kasumi said. Like the past
celebration, this party was _her_ baby. She wanted to take care
of it. What good would it make to have somebody else prepare
it? "How far is his house from here?" she asked.
"About two blocks away, I think," Akane replied. "We could
hold the party in both places if you'd like."
"I think we could ask Herb-kun," Kasumi said. "Okay, I'll go
talk to him. Meanwhile, could you and Ranma-kun hand out the
invitations?" she smiled again as she gave the packet to Akane.
"Uh-okay..."
* * *
"An invitation to another Christmas party?" Cologne looked
quizzically at the envelope.
"Aiyaa! I so happy Ranma invite me!" Shampoo shrieked,
glomping onto Ranma.
"Hey, cut that--"
"We'll be waiting," Akane said nonchalantly, pushing Ranma's
nose into his head with her elbow. Raising an eyebrow, Cologne
stopped Shampoo from following them as they exited Nekohanten.
"But hibachan! Violent girl want steal airen!" the Amazon
demanded.
"I shouldn't think so," Cologne smirked evilly. "Shampoo, no
matter what happens, tonight Ranma WILL become your husband..."
Pogoing onto her staff, she snickered, "Now let's go to Herb's
house."
* * *
"I must get her a worthy present," Mousse thought, rubbing
his chin as he examinated the displays of the stores he passed
by. "Hmm...?" he noticed an artistic hand mirror. "She'll love
this..." he smiled, then became aware of another item in the
store...
Coming out, the master of hidden weapons took off his
glasses, sighing. "This is it. If Shampoo doesn't appreciate
this..."
He shook his head. It's best not to think about that sort
of thing until it actually happens. Smirking, he headed towards
the Tendo home...
...too bad there was a lamppost right in front of him.
* * *
"Aaah... I so lucky to come here!" Mink sighed, pressing the
envelope against her chest. "Already I invited to Christmas
party... I wish Shu-- I mean, I wish Melaia was here. She probably
happy with new boyfriend," she giggled. "Boyfriend... If Mousse-
sama likes me, I have to get good gift for him... Ah! Of course!"
* * *
"Ukyou-sama!"
"Hey, _I_ want to give it to her, kupo!"
"No! I want to!"
"No, I'll do it!"
"Will you two CUT IT OUT!?" Ukyou grabbed her spatula,
looming over Konatsu and Mog. "What is it?"
"An invitation to a Christmas party, Ukyou-sama!" Konatsu
said excitedly. Mog fried him with a glare.
"So, another one?" Ukyou took the envelope, reading the
invitation. "Hmm..." she smirked mischievously as a plan formed in
her mind.
"Can we go, kupo?" Mog purred against her.
"Can we? Can we?" Konatsu asked eagerly. He was once more
locked in a sparkling glare with Mog.
"If you're gonna be fighting over me all night, forget..."
Ukyou's voice faded suddenly. "Sure! Of course you can come!"
"Really?!" Mog and Konatsu stared happily at her.
"You _absolutely_ have to be there..." Ukyou smirked.
* * *
"To: Ryouga Hibiki. Event: Christmas Eve Party. Purpose:
Reunion and gift exchange..."
Ryouga sighed as he re-read the invitation, a confident
smile forming on his face. Walking onwards, he thought about the
gift he had already acquired. Ah, this time for sure he would
tell her. That gift alone would be enough to show his emotions.
"But how will you, Ryouga Hibiki, even find the Tendo
training hall?" he wondered. "With the world's worst sense of..."
He stopped at the door. The sign read "Tendo Dojo."
"It happened again!" Ryouga stared widely in happiness. "It
_is_ truly love what guides me onwards!"
He was about to enter when he noticed the gates were
closed, and there was a note on them:
"Sorry! Our party will be at Herb's house, two blocks
south!"
Ryouga bellowed in agony.
"Which way's south!?!?!?!?"
* * *
"Herb-sama!" Lime and Mint called as they entered the
mansion's _VAST_ dining room.
"What is it?" he asked, looking up from the table. "Is
Yuannyan here?"
"She will be, master! And lots of other girls too!" the pair
drooled at the mention of girls. "Look!" they handed him the
envelope.
"...a Christmas Eve party to be held today, at Herb's
house... Hmm..." he analized the invitation. "Very well, let's
prepare to leave for--"
A big drop of sweat rolled down the back of his head.
"WHAT!? A party HERE!?!?!? Why am I always the last one to
find out!?!?!"
"Um, excuse me..." a gentle voice called, "Lime-kun and Mint-
kun let me in, so..."
"Eh?" still shocked, Herb looked up.
"Mind if I take care of the preparations?" Kasumi smiled.
* * *
"Fi-Fiducia..." Raphael looked uneasily at the angel, who was
still sitting exhausted on the floor of room 3.
"I'm... alright..." she smiled briefly, appreciating his concern.
"I think I'm okay now... Just a sudden seizure."
"You sure?" still not certain, Raphael put a hand on her
shoulder. She smiled at him, bringing back his confidence.
"Excuse me?" there was a knock on the door. "One fo your
friends dropped by to deliver an invitation," Kyoko said. Raphael
stood up and opened the door. "Here you go," she handed him the
envelopes, "Oh, are you okay?" she asked at the sight of
Seraphim. Although the angel nodded, Kyoko still said, "Well, let
me know if you need help."
"Thanks," Raphael said, then turned back to Seraphim. "Look,
an invitation to a Christmas party."
"You're really lucky," Kyoko showed a tiny smile, "By the
way, tell your brother that you're invited for our own party,
tomorrow night. See you later!" Smiling, she went back to her
management of the building.
"I'll tell him..." Raphael said, absent yet sad. He and
Seraphim looked at each other, then sighed.
* * *
"Bwa ha ha!"
"Please, master--!"
"OhOHoHohOhoHohOHo!"
"Mistress Kodachi...!"
"At last!" Kuno cackled maniacally, "A chance to win the
hearts of both my beloved!"
"This time _I_ shall be Ranma-sama's one and only!" Kodachi
twirled her ribbon.
"SASUKE!" they both called.
"Yes...?" he shrank visibly.
"Prepare the Christmas gifts!!"
"You don't mean..."
"Yes!" Kuno stood aloof, "Prepare the stallion-powered
chariots!"
"Yes!" Kodachi narrowed her eyes, "Prepare the cake I laced
with love potion..."
* * *
"Who's this from?" a forgetful young man looked puzzled at
the envelope.
"For the tenth time, it's from AKANE!" Shinnosuke's
grandfather yelled.
"Oh, yeah, yeah..." Shinnosuke read the invitation again.
"Who's Akane?"
"AAAAAAARRRGGGHHH!"
* * *
"I think we're done with that," Ranma said, closing his
winter jacket.
"It's a good thing we found Nadir-kun and the others,"
Akane replied, referring to how they met the Espers while
delivering invitations, "They sure helped us hand these out
faster."
"We're gonna trash the place..." Ranma grinned evilly. "We
invited practically everyone we know... and most of them are
martial artists that get angry easily."
"...or guys that have a grudge against one of us," came the
female voice. Looking up, Akane and Ranma saw the large
silhouette of a phoenix as the Esper landed on the snow.
"Hey, where were you?" Ranma eyed his sister.
"Looking over a friend," Ranko smiled innocently, turning to
Phaeron briefly. Noticing how neither even hinted a blush, Akane
blinked and decided not to press the subject further.
"By the way," she said, "We're having a party tonight, at
Herb's house."
"Another one?" Ranko blinked.
"A Christmas eve party..." Phaeron sighed, "It's been a while
since I celebrated one among other humans." He turned to Akane,
"Do we get to give each other presents?"
"Yes, why?"
"Just asking," he smirked.
"Oh yeah..." Ranma turned to the Esper and his sister, "You
two already know what's gonna happen the next three years,
right?"
"Uh, yeah," Ranko replied, still a bit troubled by the
subject.
"What, you want us to tell you about the future?" Phaeron
cocked an eyebrow. But then he smirked evilly, "You should know
what will happen between you and Akane."
"Eh?" Ranma nearly facefaulted.
"Wha..." Akane blushed furiously, "Phaeron-kun...!"
"Oh, that's right," Ranko joined him, "I can remember it
_very_ clearly..."
"W-What the heck are you talking about!?" Ranma yelled.
"You don't _think_ we..." Akane protested.
"Well, I can remember two people crying their eyes out at a
certain fortress..." Ranko looked up as if recalling.
"Hey!" Akane tried to silence her with a glare. Ranma was
about to retort as well, but a memory surfaced in his mind.
"You're right, Ranko-chan. Too bad we didn't have a camera
back then," Phaeron snickered.
"Feh," Ranma smirked nonchalantly, "Yeah, right. As if I
didn't have enough with that stupid old man taking pictures of me
with a tomboy like th-- ugh!"
"And who'd want to be in a picture with you!?" Akane punted
him into the distance.
"Hah. Score one," Ranko and Phaeron high-fived, ending with
a thumbs-up. "Now we're even, oneechan," the redhead smirked.
"Why, you... you... you..." Akane scowled at her.
"So, you're going to Herb's house?" Phaeron asked, stepping
away.
"That's where I'll go. Guess she'll follow me," Ranko pointed
at a glowing Akane.
"See you there, then!" Phaeron leapt away, towards another
street. Rearing back, the redhead began to gather speed. Akane
finally took her ordinary megamallet.
"Ranko no baka!" she yelled, pursuing a snickering redhead
towards Herb's house.
* * *
A large gathering occurred at the old mansion. Odd people
from various regions began to arrive at Herb's estate, most of
them gasping in awe at the gigantic lobby. Under Kasumi's
supervision, many of the Musk's servants and subjects prepared
the decorations for the house, both inside and outside, and the
dojo --where the party itself would be carried out.
"Now, put those paper chains over there... No, no, the
lanterns go there! Yes? Oh, those go in the living room..."
The eldest Tendo sister was truly in her element.
Decorations, especially for parties, were always her strong suit
aside from cooking. And this mansion just _screamed_ for her
taste.
"Okay, now just leave those in the oven for twenty
minutes," Nodoka said, coming out of the kitchen. "Do you need
help?" she asked to Kasumi.
"Hm? Oh, no, thank you. We're doing wonderfully here," she
smiled. Looking out the window, she called, "Lime-kun, could you
put those boulders over there, please? Mint-kun, those lanterns
are a bit off center. Would you be so kind as to fix them?"
"Aaaaaaah..." they both sighed, grinning idiotically, "A girl
is calling me by my name..."
"Hm?" Kasumi and Nodoka looked up, hearing a low whistle...
"...aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa... Ugh!" Ranma
crashed in through the roof, landing face-first onto the floor. A
Musk servant immediately lifted him, swept the dust and rubble
from underneath him, and dropped him again, all this while
another one fixed the roof. Kasumi giggled at how well-trained
these servants were.
"Ranma, where's Akane-chan?" Nodoka asked.
"Right here! Right here!" Ranko leapt through the door,
avoiding a thrown mallet. "Keep it up! You'll be a hammer-thrower
someday!"
Infuriated further by the remark, Akane fumed and sent out
a large ball of Earth towards the redhead. It crashed in the
wall, all the dirt was immediately swept away by the servants.
"They're almost like sisters," Nodoka and Kasumi giggled.
"But since you're here..." Nodoka simply put her hands on Ranko
and Akane's shoulders, "Will you help us in the kitchen?"
"Ack!" Ranma suddenly lifted himself from the floor, "NO!
Don't let her cook!"
"It's not like we asked you," Akane idly crushed his head
with her foot. "I'd love to help, auntie, but I want to go help
prepare the dojo."
"Thank goodness," Ranko sighed in relief before being
elbowed in the gut.
"Okay, then, Ranko-chan, will you come when you have
recovered?" Nodoka smiled, going back to the kitchen.
"S-sure..." she groaned, then they were all startled by a
loud blast of wind that came from outdoors.
"What the..." Ranma managed to squirm from under Akane's
foot.
"What was that?" Akane asked, blinking.
"Who knows, but we better go see!" Ranko said as the trio
went outside.
"NO! I will NOT move it!"
"Do you dare challenge the mighty prince of Nekonron?"
"And dost thou dare challenge the Nightmare's fianc�?"
"Your impudence will not be tolerated, wench!"
"Uh-oh..." Ranma, Akane and Ranko sweated visibly.
"For the last time..." Ebiten drew out his fishing pole,
"Move that strange airship! Don't you know this is prince Kirin!?"
"'Kirin'!?" Nadir was outraged, "_I'm_ the Kirin! And _we_
arrived first! Go look for another place where to land that
stupid boat!"
"Master Kirin will not stand for this!" Bishamonten
brandished his trident menacingly towards the green-haired
Esper.
"Don't be foolish, human," Mireillia simply burned the weapon
on the spot. Bishamonten blinked, then took out a naginata from
Hyperspace.
"Well, they still argue..." Terion, Esper of Unicorn,
snickered.
"...but at least it's not among themselves," his fianc�e
Andellia finished.
"What is the meaning of this?" Kirin descended from his
flying barge. "And what is that odd vehicle?" he pointed
despectively at the Big Whale with his chopsticks.
"That's our spaceship and we're not moving it!" Nadir
challenged.
"Oh, so you lout dare stand against the mighty Kirin?" the
Chinese warrior smirked.
"No, _you're_ challenging the Kirin!" Nadir retorted.
"Kirin doesn't challenge himself, cad. Now stand aside or
Kirin shall make you regret it."
"That's right. _The_ Kirin will make you regret it, alright!"
Nadir threw his hands downwards, morphing into the _Esper_ Kirin.
The Seven Lucky God's Martial Artists were frozen in shock.
"It... I'ts a _real_ Kirin...!" Ebiten stared widely.
"Who're you calling 'it'!?" the Kirin flared his nostrils,
exhaling smoke.
"Impossible..." Monron dropped her lute.
"It... can't be!" the Go twins stammered.
Kirin just stared in silence at his namesake. His hands
shook, threatening to drop the rice bowl and chopsticks. Large
beads of sweat formed on his forehead despite the cold air of
winter. He was truly astonished.
"The contest is over," Mireillia smirked.
"No..." Kirin narrowed his eyes. "The prince of Nekonron is
Kirin! This beast is no proof of the name it bears!"
"He needs more proof than _that_!?" Ranko pointed at the
dragon-horse.
"Now Kirin shall prove his words..."
"If you wish," Nadir's antlers glowed.
"Muu!"
"Hah!"
A giant blast and a bolt of lightning crashed between the
raging Kirins, ending their battle before it even started.
"What the..." Ranma repeated as he looked upwards.
Taro and Rouge continued to fight in the sky, hurling
blasts of power like mad. The people below sweated visibly.
"Happo-goen satsu!"
Everyone stared at the long-haired woman.
"Hmph. Delinquents," Hinako just walked past the drained
minotaur and Hindu goddess, going indoors.
"I think we better follow..." Akane said nervously, trying to
lead the Seven and the Espers into the house.
"Where--" a figure suddenly popped up from the ground.
"AAAAH! I made it!" Ryouga bawled over in happiness.
"Huh?" Ranma suddenly saw a large cloud of dust coming in
through the front door. A cloud headed straight for him.
"Uh-oh..."
"RAAANMAAA!" three girls suddenly glomped onto him, knocking
him to the floor.
"Ukyou-sama!" Konatsu and Mog came running behind, then
scowled at Ranma.
"Shamp--" Mousse _also_ came running, but he missed the
door and crashed into the wall.
"Mistress Kodachi!" Sasuke came too, "Please get Midorigame
away from meeeeeee!" he ran away as the giant alligator pursued
him.
"Pigtailed girl! Akane Tendo!" Kuno suddenly appeared
_around_ them.
"Stop that!" Ryouga landed on his head, knocking him down
and out.
"Mousse-sama!" Mink blindly glomped onto Ryouga. Poor kid,
he fainted with a large foolish grin.
"Yes, that room over there," Kasumi pointed down the hall,
showing the new arrivals where to wait. "There. Now everything
is back to normal." Indeed, only the regulars were creating chaos
in the lobby. All other supporting characters were waiting in
other rooms... except for _one_.
"DON'T MOVE!!!"
"Huh?" everyone turned to the door, recognizing the shout...
"Moko kaimon-ha!" the door blew inside, pushed by an
incredibly-strong front-kick.
"Who...?" Herb stared widely.
"You!" the Saotomes and Akane stared at the new guest.
"Who's that?" Yuannyan followed Herb, coming out of the
living room.
"Ryuu Kumon, of the Kumon School of Martial Arts," the
young man in combat fatigues fastened his gloves.
"Ah!" Nodoka stared at him in surprise. "You're the one!"
"Don't remind me," Ranma glared mildly, recalling how Ryuu
had impersonated him before Nodoka knew about his curse.
"Who?" all other characters looked oddly at him. After all,
they weren't in Ryuu's story arc.
"Ugh... please help..." Gosunkugi's flattened voice came from
beneath the door.
"I think we're all complete," Ranko sweated visibly, also
seeing the red and the gray phoeni landing.
* * *
And so, after only an hour of waiting, the party began. The
Musk people were already taking care of service, in both the
house and the dojo, so there was no need for the others to
engage in battle over who would cook --or who should definitely
_NOT_ cook.
The party itself was held, as usual, in the dojo, which was
about three times larger than the Tendos'. Everyone was there,
and for once they put aside grudges and rivalities to favor
friendship and camaraderie. And luckily, Chupon and Ultros had
properly disposed of Happosai before he could get near the
mansion.
"Yeah, sure," Taro crossed his arms nonchalantly, boasting,
"I defeated him at least twice as many times as you did. And I'd
surely defeat _you_ also."
"I don't think so," Ryuu cocked an eye, "The Yamasen-ken is
a hundred times more powerful than any winged minotaur that
shoots ki bolts."
"Ah, but the Ken-in-jutsu from the Kimen school is even
mightier! It makes you the strongest man alive!" an old man with
a massive ink brush sneered.
"And have that stupid drawing on my stomach again? Forget
it!" Ryouga complained.
"So, how many times did _you_ beat Ranma?" Taro and Ryuu
asked.
"Heh. I can't keep track of them all," Ryouga gloated.
"You can't keep track of two times?" Ukyou glared at him.
Ryouga shrank visibly as the other two snickered.
"Spatula girl right for once! Husband is best fighter!"
Shampoo said happily.
"Surely his victories come through cowardice and
treachery," Kuno said, indifferent.
"How dare you speak about my Ranma-sama that way?"
Kodachi glared at her brother. "Midorigame! Get him!"
"Hmph. In the end it matters not who's better skilled. It's
defeating the enemy what counts," Mireillia said, stepping aside
as a giant alligator seized Kuno.
"Sure, you say that because you can fire off energy like
it's free," Ukyou said.
"But even Espers can be defeated by humans," Mousse
smirked.
"Mousse-sama right! He beat anyone!" Mink said cheerfully.
"...anyone who's even more blind than he is, of course"
Cologne snickered.
"Don't talk like that about our cousin's boyfriend, over,"
Pink and Link glared at the old troll.
"B-Boyfriend???" Mousse was frozen in surprise. He quickly
turned to Shampoo, but the Amazon just looked away, miffled.
"Hmph. If Mink hawk and Mousse duck, they perfect couple,"
Shampoo said angrily, before standig up to head for the dressing
room.
"At least it's better than turning into a pig..." Ryouga
looked downwards.
"Did you say something, Ryouga-kun?" Akane passed by,
overhearing.
"Ahh! No! Nothing, Akane-san!!"
"Aww, widdle P-chan wants to stay hidden?" Ranko appeared
behind him, pulling his cheeks. He grinned despite the pain.
"Pigtailed girl!" Kuno leapt for her, arms open.
"Growl!" Midorigame leapt for _him_, jaws open.
"Fetch!" Phaeron suddenly grabbed Kuno and tossed him out.
Midorigame followed in pursuit.
"I shall punish youuuuuuuu..." Kuno's voice trailed away.
After a brief skirmish with Kodachi's alligator, he leapt out of
the cloud of dust and engaged in battle with the staff-wielding
Esper.
"Midorigame!!" Kodachi shrieked at the sight of a brand-new
set of luggage.
"Huh?" Terion and Andellia saw her in a state of shock. "Oh,
that's ours! Don't worry, it's only an imitation."
"Oh..." Kodachi still glared at her brother, seeing a
knocked-out gator on the floor. "Brother dear!" she ensnared him
and Phaeron with her ribbon, then tossed them out to the frozen
pool.
"Thank God I'm only a travelling martial artist," Ryuu held
his head, trying to comprehend _some_ of this madness.
"Don't worry," Herb said, snickering. "Once you've witnessed
it, you shall be relentlessly pulled inside. And it will never let
go... Not even death would free you from this insanity."
"We know," Lime and Mint glared.
"Death... sure..." Raphael snickered sadly, "You don't know
the half of it."
"Hm?" Ranko blinked at him. "You okay?" she asked.
"Eh? Oh, right." He slumped down, "It's just that I thought..."
"_You_ actually thought?" Mireillia mocked him, but he
wasn't in the mood to come up with a retort.
"It's okay," Ranko said soothingly, "We already know it's
gonna happen." She smiled, looking around, "But at least we got
to spend Christmas, right?"
"Maybe not..." Raphael said to himself, a bit too loud. Ranko
looked oddly at him, "What do you mean?"
"It's Fiducia. She hasn't been feeling very well. Maybe
tonight she'll..." his voice faded as he realized he had said
_WAY_ too much.
Ranko stared silently at him, eyes wide. She couldn't have
heard that. Otherwise, it would mean he would die... tonight?!
"Tell me you're kidding," she glanced seriously at Raphael.
But he needn't say anything, she knew just from the look in his
eyes. Feeling a pressing pain in her chest, she quickly stood up
and hurried out, not saying a word to anyone.
"Stupid!" Raphael punched himself in the gut. "Couldn't keep
quiet..."
"What... what difference would it have made?" Mireillia said
sternly, overhearing. The pain was almost unbearable, but the
Nightmare would not show it.
"H-Hey, w-what's g-going onn...?" a phoenix popsicle trudged
into the dojo, still dripping a bit from the pond's icy water.
Looking at each other, Raphael and Mireillia sweated nervously
and suddenly used their magic to vanish amid the shadows.
Phaeron blinked in confusion.
"Hey, guys!" Ranma came to the group, then sweated visibly
when he noticed most of the people had been his enemies at one
time or another. "Uh, they're gonna begin any moment, you know...
Just... get ready," he nervously edged away, seeing how everyone
followed his movements. "Jeeze," he thought to himself, "Don't you
dare do anything stupid or this'll be your last Christmas."
The various groups moved to the middle of the dojo, sitting
at the chairs that were placed there. Many of the people,
including the Espers, remained standing to the sides, waiting for
the announcer to come out on stage.
"Heh. We sure got a full house tonight," Nabiki said, peeking
out between the stage's curtains. Turning back, she counted only
three more girls. "Hm?"
"Where is she?" Akane looked around.
"Ranma sister missing?" Shampoo blinked.
"She said she probably couldn't sing with us," Kasumi said,
"She looked sad for some reason."
"Great," Nabiki grimaced, "Well, looks like we'll have to begin
without her." Looking up, she motioned for the Go-playing twins
to draw the curtains. The girls quickly made a last-minute check
of their elegant outfits.
The lights were turned off. Slowly, the recint's constant
murmur died down, the people looked intently towards the stage.
A pair of spotlights aimed at the middle of the curtain, signaling
that the show was about to begin.
* * *
Yuannyan hurried through the extense corridors of Herb's
house, looking for her sister. She had seen her leave the group
earlier, and thought she had simply gone to change for the
concert. But it was almost as if she had disappeared, and when
Yuannyan asked Kasumi about her sister she began to worry.
Deep down, she knew exacly why her sister had suddenly
disappeared like that. It had been exactly two weeks since Ranko
told the truth to Phaeron, and that could only mean one thing...
"Oneechan?" Yuannyan peeked into a dark room, scanning the
interior. It was pitch-black inside, but there was a large bay
window which let in an abundant moonlight. She looked silently at
the silhouette that was sitting on the window's seat, a nearly-
black pigtailed figure.
"Can I..." Yuannyan began, but almost instantly saw her
sister nod silently. Stepping into the room, she quietly took a
chair and sat by the window, next to her twin. "What's wrong?"
"You know what's wrong," Ranko replied. She turned to
Yuannyan, "So, how come you're not downstairs? You like singing,
so this is your chance."
Yuannyan sighed, saying nothing in reply.
"I just..." Ranko began once more, "It hurts."
"Nobody ever said it shouldn't hurt, oneechan."
"I know, but it's... different. I mean, we'd already settled
this. We had decided to just accept what was gonna happen. But
now..." she looked out the window, "Now that it's _really_ going
to happen, it hurst more than before."
"Oneechan, it's all right," Yuannyan reached out to take her
hand, "You two have been very strong these last couple of
weeks. If he's going to die tonight it's normal for you to be
sad." She looked down, "I know I am. Phaeron-kun is one of my
best friends. And he helped save both of us from Jusenkyo's
curse."
"But it's not the same..." Ranko insisted. "I... Yuan-chan, I..."
she turned to her sister. Although her face was completely
obscured, the tiny, watery glimmers were still very visible in
her eyes.
"I... I understand, oneechan," Yuannyan hugged her sister,
truly realizing her deepest emotions. "I understand..."
Ranko returned the hug, letting herself remain like that
for a few moments. Right now, she needed this more than
anything. For the first time, Ranko needed a shoulder to cry on,
although she never released a tear.
"Oneechan..." Yuannyan started, "Please, just a little longer,
keep yourself together." She tightened the hug, "You can't break
down now. You're one of the strongest people I know..." Ranko
grimaced a bit at that comment. "If he's really gonna die tonight,
then help him go through it. You wouldn't want him to leave if
he's worried about you. Just... help him enjoy these last moments.
I know you can do it." Yuannyan showed a sad smile, "We endured
being trapped in Jusenkyo, oneechan. For this last time, be
strong... for him."
Yuannyan could feel her sister nodding. Very slowly, she
released her, cupping Ranko's face in her hands. Yuannyan could
feel the sorrow in those eyes, a sorrow she found contagious.
Silently, she stood up, sighing as she headed for the door.
Suddenly, she heard a loud sigh. It was a soothing sound, more
like a liberation. A thousand griefs were relieved by that sigh,
the room suddenly began to lose its darkness. Yuannyan smiled.
"I better go back," Ranko said, standing next to her sister.
"Okay, but first..." Yuannyan smirked, taking a large flat box
from Hyperspace. Ranko opened it, gazing silently at the white
dress her mother had rearranged for her. Sighing as she began
to undo her clothes, Ranko suddenly smirked when she felt her
sister pull her hair free from the braid.
* * *
"Hello! Is everyone having a good time?" Nabiki called into
the microphone. The crowd cheered.
"Welcome to our Christmas Eve party," Kasumi followed, "We
hope you're enjoying it."
"We, the cast of DoCo, would like to say 'Merry Christmas'
our own way!" Nabiki said.
"Hm?" Phaeron blinked, seeing four girls standing on the
stage, "Where is she?"
"We're one member short," Nabiki continued, "but we'll--"
"Wait, wait! I'm here already," Ranko came running from the
side of the stage, taking her place between Akane and Shampoo.
The girls blinked at her, while the audience stared widely.
Nodoka smiled as she saw her daughter wearing the long dress,
acknowledging a victory. The dress was still one-piece, with
horizontal straps that held on to the arms while leaving the
shoulders and collar bare. At Yuannyan's suggestion, Ranko had
loosened her hair, while the emerald necklace and gold bracelet
glimmered in the lights.
"..." was all that Phaeron could say at the sight of her.
"..." was all that Ryouga could say, also.
"..." was all that Kuno could say as everyone knocked him
unconscious before he did anything stupid.
"Uh, looks like we're complete now," Nabiki said, then quickly
whispered to the rest of DoCo, "Okay, guys, 'Pure and honest
Christmas,' then 'Full of Memories.' Got it?" the quintet agreed,
then turned back to the audience and began...
The audience cheered loudly when the two songs ended.
Bowing as they heard calls for an encore, the girls smiled and
remained in the stage. Snickering, they nodded to each other.
"We'd like to thank you," Akane said into the microphone,
"But now each of us will sing by herself!" The crowd cheered yet
again. "Now, we'll begin with Shampoo and..." she grumbled for a
moment, "...and her song, 'Woda airen'!" Shrieking happily, Shampoo
rearranged the tiara on her forehead and sang.
Mousse would have cried if Mink weren't right next to him.
"Son-in-law, wouldn't you step over there?" Cologne pointed
to an available place in the dojo. Ranma looked oddly at her,
"What for...?"
"AAAAH! Shampoo-sama!" a guy who was standing in that place
was suddenly trapped by the magic gaze of Shampoo's tiara. Not
even his girlfriend's slapping brought him back.
"Oh, I get it. You're trying to trick me!" Ranma smirked, "I'm
not gonna fall for that!"
"Whatever you say, son-in-law," Cologne snickered, thinking
to herself, "But by night's end, you _will_ be Shampoo's husband."
"Okay, now here's Kasumi!" Nabiki announced. Dr. Tofu idly
grabbed an innocent bystander and began to fold him into quite
artistic shapes. Gosunkugi just whimpered as his bones were
neatly rearranged.
By the song's end, Tofu blinked oddly at the human pretzel
that used to be Gosunkugi. But Furinkan's favorite stepping-
stone suddenly came back to life as Akane started to sing
"Platonic." Recalling his relationship with her, Ryouga nearly
cried.
"By the way, Ranma," Nodoka asked, "Have you come to a
decision about your engagement?"
"Erk..." he swallowed hard. "Er... No, I haven't! Besides, who'd
even need to decide about having a tomboy fianc�e?!"
"...friends for NOW!" Akane ended the song by tossing the
microphone _and_ its base at Ranma's head, having overheard his
words.
"Um, now here's Nabiki," Kasumi said, oblivious to the
squirming body under the microphone's base.
"Hmph. Nabiki Tendo..." Kinnosuke smirked, brushing his hair.
"Master, do you still love her?" he asked himself through
his "butler" puppet.
"Ah, so I do... Yet she was the only one to ever defeat
me... She wouldn't give me another chance."
"I'm sure she would, master."
"And people call _me_ weird," Konatsu stared as Kinnosuke
began to argue with his hand-puppet.
"You _are_ weird," Raphael said, coming back, "It's just that
he's even weirder."
"Thank you, thank you!" Nabiki bowed as her song, "Positive,"
ended. "Now let's listen to Ranko and..." she turned to the
redhead, "What'll you sing, anyway?"
"'Hill with a rainbow and sun,'" she said plainly. The others
blinked at her, expecting a more "active" song instead, but from
the smile she suddenly showed, they quietly stepped aside.
Just as the first piano keys were heard, most of the
audience was surprised at her choice. But during the four
minutes it lasted, the rest of the world vanished for two of the
people in the audience.
But the real feeling was in the interpreter. Ranko could
feel an odd cold begin to spread within her, despite the words
she pronounced. Pressing on at the last verses, she closed her
eyes and rose her voice to its limits. Ryouga fainted.
The song ended. Waiting for the music to stop, she dropped
her hands and hung her head, still not strong enough to look
forward. With a sigh, she suddenly lifted her face, her eyes
slightly glazed as she sent a smile towards an Esper in the
sidelines.
"Wow," Raphael said, impressed. "Eh?" he turned to his twin.
Even the Phoenix of Gray was greatly surprised. Phaeron was
crying.
The lights came on again, illuminating the entire hall. All
of DoCo came forward, bowing. "Thank you!" Nabiki said, "From all
the members of DoCo, we wish you a merry Christmas!" The dojo
came alive once more, nearly being demolished by the cheerful
shouts. Bowing again, the quintet left the stage to change into
more normal clothing.
"You okay?" Raphael turned to Phaeron.
"Huh?" he came back to reality, still unable to remove his
smile. "Oh, sure," he smirked, "Especially after that," he said
under his breath. "What the..."
"Oh, good grief," Raphael glared at the unconscious Ryouga
next to them. Pulling him up, the phoeni twins brought him back
to the real world.
"What happened...?"
Phaeron looked sternly at him. Putting his hand on Ryouga's
shoulder, he pushed him along, "I need to talk to you for a sec."
"Huh?" Ryouga blinked.
"It's something important."
* * *
"Where's Ranma?" Akane thought, later in the party, as she
searched the dojo. "He's not here, but those three _are_, so
Nabiki couldn't have auctioned him off again..."
"Where _is_ the son-in-law?" Cologne muttered, looking up
to make sure her plan was still safe. "We'll have to move fast
when he comes back. The other rivals seem ready to do something
big as well."
"Ukyou-sama..." Konatsu and Mog followed her as she also
looked for Ranma, "Is something wrong, kupo?"
"Why that... Where'd he go?" she thought, shuddering as she
heard Kodachi call Ranma's name between cackles.
"Okay!" Nabiki was stage announcer once more, "Is everyone's
ready for the gift exchange?"
Genma and Soun sweated visibly, recalling two shredded
costumes and Nodoka looming over them as they planned Operation
Matchmaker: part 2. No more horned pandas, it seemed.
"That jerk. Taking off just like that," Akane fumed, dropping
the search.
"So, let's begin!" Nabiki called, hurriedly coming down frm
the stage before being left out.
"Kyaa! Thank you, Mousse-sama!" Mink squeaked happily as
she saw herself in the expensive hand-mirror. He turned beet-red
when she flung herself at him.
"Who this from?" Shampoo looked at the anonymous card she
suddenly found. "Stupid Mousse," she recognized the handwriting
on it, nonchalantly tossing it aside. Cocking an eye, Cologne
caught the card and stared widely at its message. "M-Mousse
wrote _this_?!" she stammered. Maybe she had underestimated him
after all.
"Akane Tendo!" Kuno materialized in front of her, "I present
you with the greatest of treasures... the Blue Thunder of
Furinkan High! Bwa ha ha ha ha h--"
"Sorry, I really can't accept it," she punted him through
the roof.
"Eh... Kyaa!" Nabiki stepped away as a box fell in front of
her. Noticing her name on it, she curiously opened it and found
a hand-puppet, shaped like a maid. On the puppet's hands were a
single white rose, and a 10-yen coin. Attached to the coin, by a
string, was the message, "From K, to NT."
"'K'?" she wondered, then shuddered mightily as the first
name that popped up in her mind was "Kuno."
"Haaah!" a gigantic present box leapt towards Ukyou. She
flattened it with her spatula before Tsubasa could get out of
the stupid costume.
"Gimme a K! Gimme a U! Gimme an N! Gimme an O!" Mariko
cheered with her pompons in front of a knocked out Kuno, trying
to get his attention so he could give her a present.
"Here," Rouge showed Taro a small box. "Pain relievers. So
you stop bothering me."
"Hmph. I know that. Like I would even be interested in a
monster like you." Fuming, Rouge gave him the box. Indifferent,
Taro reached out to take it, accidentally taking her hand. Both
gulped, then turned to each other. Glimmers began to float
around them as Pantyhose Taro and Rouge looked into each
other's eyes.
"For you," Herb gave Yuannyan a large box, which had holes
on its surface. Eager to make sure it was a pet, she unwrapped
the gift.
"Ah! A little monkey!" Yuannyan held the baby spider monkey
in her arms, "Thanks, Herb-chan!"
Meanwhile, Yuannyan's twin searched around the dojo, "Where
are those two?" she wondered.
"Yes, I understand," Ryouga's voice came as he and Phaeron
came back to the dojo. "I'll do it."
"So, here you are," Ranko walked over to them. Dubious,
Phaeron turned to Ryouga. He nodded, then left to look for
Akane.
"What were you guys doing?" Ranko asked, catching a glimpse
of a box behind the Esper.
"I just asked him for something," Phaeron said, turning to
see how easily Ryouga talked to Akane and gave her a present.
Also looking, Ranko was surprised by _not_ seeing Ryouga act
foolishly around Akane, especially while giving her a gift. "So..."
Phaeron turned back to her, "I know you love that Rayearth
thing, so you're gonna like this..." he gave her the box.
It was light, she thought, despite its size. Showing a tiny
smile, she unwrapped it. What she found was an odd plush toy,
like an egg-shaped white creature with large bunny ears and
feet, tiny arms and squinted eyes, with a bright red circle on
its brow.
"Very funny," she glared, but also smiled at him. Snickering,
she took out the plush creature and hugged it. The "Mokona" doll
made a light "puu" when squeezed.
From afar, Akane snickered when she saw the redhead hold
the plush toy, then noticed how Ryouga was also looking absently
at her. She blinked, but only looked oddly at him.
"So, let's get on with the rest of the party!" Nabiki stood
by the microphone again, speaking through the maid puppet she
had been given. Somewhere, Kinnosuke smirked in satisfaction
before silently parting into the night.
"Let's dance!"
"Oh boy..." Ranko and Phaeron sweated visibly as practically
everyone began to pair up. Turning bright red, they both looked
at each other and nodded, then squashed the plush toy when they
tried to begin. They both laughed at the sound it made.
"That idiot..." Akane fumed again, seeing that Ranma hadn't
come back yet. "Shall we, Ryouga-kun?" she asked. "Huh? Ryouga-
kun?" she looked around, but he was gone.
The lights dimmed mildly as the dance went on into the
night, with soft music playing in the background. All four of
Ranma's fianc�es, self-appointed or otherwise, fumed angrily.
Finally giving in, Ukyou danced with Konatsu. The male kunoichi
reached Paradise despite being incinerated by Mog's glare.
"So, you okay now?" Phaeron asked.
"What do you mean?" Ranko blinked.
"You looked different a while ago. Is something wrong?"
"Oh, that... It's just..."
"Oh." He realized what she meant, and decided not to press
it further. "Well, you're okay now, right?"
"Yeah," she smiled, "Yuan-chan really helped me." She
recalled what she had seen earlier, "But what's with Ryouga?
What did you ask him?"
"I asked for a favor," Phaeron replied, "Something for him
to do when I'm gone."
"Oh."
"It's okay, though," he smiled, "I mean, these last few days
alone have been enough for me." He squeezed her hand a little,
"Thanks, Ranko-chan."
She blushed suddenly, "Uh, don't worry. Friends have to look
out for each other, right?"
He smiled. But when he squeezed her hand he felt something
in it. Blinking, he noticed the crystalline glimmer on her finger.
"Hey, you kept it," he looked at the Wall Ring.
"Uh, yeah..." she smiled briefly.
"By the way, did you show 'it' to them?"
"What... Oh, that's right," she smirked, "Nope, not yet.
Besides, I told you I don't wanna tear up all my clothes when
changing to that body."
"You should get a suit like Kiima's."
"Who?" she blinked, "Oh, right. That woman from Mt. Phoenix,
right?"
"Do you think we changed history too much?" Phaeron asked.
"From all the skills everyone got, those bird-men will probably
have a hard time when they arrive here."
"That's not all we changed. Remember all those strange
enemies we're supposed to meet in the next three years? Guess
it won't be the same now."
"Too bad I can't stay here," Phaeron sighed, "I'd love to go
through all that with the rest of you." Sighing also, Ranko
nodded.
Suddenly, the background music changed to "Eternal Flame."
Phaeron and Ranko gulped.
"C'mon, let's get out of here before that song gets us
depressed again," Ranko snickered, pulling Phaeron out to the
street.
* * *
Akane sighed as she sat at the dojo's entrance, holding her
knees in her arms to fight off the cold winter night. That stupid
Ranma. Running off without a word to anyone. And here she had
spent all that time making a present for him. And on top of that,
they still had to decide whether or not to keep that stupid
engagement!
She punched the ground, feeling the snow soak through her
mitten. That stupid Ranma.
"Hey."
She whipped her head upwards at the voice.
"You jerk! Where have you been!?" she kicked the nearby
tree, shaking it.
"Whoa!" Ranma leapt down before all the snow fell off the
foliage. "Yep, it's you alright."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Jeeze, can't a guy meet somebody in private without
dying?" he glared at her.
"In private...?" Akane blinked, containing her anger. Finally
looking clearly at him, she stared widely at realizing he was
wearing the scarf she had made for him last Christmas.
"Anyway, here," he tossed her a flat box. She caught it,
silently looking at him. "Go on, open it."
"Y-yes..." she nervously reached into the box, feeling her
hand submerge into warm wool. Her eyes widened once more when
she took out a red wool sweater. A bit inexpensive, as she
noticed since the price tags were still attached, but she could
feel a pleasant warmth spread in her chest just by touching it.
"R-Ranma..." she smiled softly, "Thank you."
"I knew you'd like it," he smirked, "Loose sweaters always
fit shapeless tomboys."
She would have fumed, but from looking at the gift she
suddenly realized he was joking. For the first time since she met
him, she actually _knew_ he wasn't serious.
"I... And I got something for stupid, macho perverts," she
snickered, motioning for him to follow into the house. Reaching
the lobby, she told him to wait and quickly headed for the
wardrobe.
"Remember when your mother made a winter jacket for you?"
she asked, a bit of nervousness in her voice.
He fumed, "Yeah, the old man put it on a monkey and it ran
off. Stupid old man."
"W-well..." she came back to the lobby, carrying a dotera
exactly like the one Ranma had lost. But the name on its back
was sown with little skill, the kanji were almost falling off the
jacket. To Ranma, it still made him turn mild red.
"You like it?" Akane asked, "I... I still have to learn a lot
about sewing, but..."
"Man, it's practically falling apart," Ranma pulled a bit of
the upper kanji, nearly tearing it off. "First I put a fishing net
around my neck and now a potato sack?"
"If you don't like it, I..." Akane stopped herself when she
realized Ranma was snickering. With just a needle and thread, he
quickly fixed the rest of the name on the dotera's back.
"Ranma..." Akane looked oddly at him, "Why... Why are you
acting like this all of a sudden?"
"Akane..." he stood up, his face serious. "Do you remember
what happened at Kefka's tower?"
"Yes, why?"
"Well, _I_ should have remembered," he turned away. "What
Ranko said a while ago made me remember." He paused, "I didn't
tell you this... in fact I never told anyone, but..."
"Ranma, what's..."
"When I was turned to ice," he said, "Akane... I was
conscious. I saw everything that happened around me." He turned
to her, the darkness of the unlit lobby hiding his hue,
"Everything."
Akane fell silent as quickly as she blushed, recalling what
she had done when she thought Merton would kill both of them.
And Ranma had seen that. He knew about it.
"R-Ranma..."
"Akane..." he walked towards her, "Here."
He flung her a tiny black box.
Akane could feel her heart grow to twice its size. It
seemed about to burst out from how hard it beat, how fast it
pumped. Not a single coherent word formed in her mind, as she
knew what was in the box without even opening it.
"D-don't open it yet," Ranma stammered, fiddling with his
hands. "You don't want the others to kill us."
"R-Right," she smiled timidly. "But we should go back."
"Okay," he returned the smile. Hesitant for an instant,
Akane took off her jacket and sweater, then pulled her new
sweater over her head. It fit perfectly. She snickered at seeing
how Ranma's dotera was about two sizes too big for him.
"It's alright," he said, smiling.
Hand in hand, they left the house, headed for the dojo. But
apparently the other three were still looking for him, "Eternal
Flame" was being constantly interrupted by high-pitched Amazon
cat-calls, insane cackles or simply calls for his name.
"I don't think it'd be a good idea to go in," Akane sweated
nervously.
"Didn't you want to dance?" Ranma asked.
"Yeah, but..."
"Then let's dance."
"Out here? There's no place to stand!" she pointed to the
snow-covered ground.
"Yes, there is," Ranma clutched his fist, using his Wind
magic to create a small platform, about a meter wide, floating a
foot and a half over the ground. Hesitant at first, Akane stood
on it, followed by Ranma. Every move they made was followed by
the platform, which lengthened or shortened as needed. And very
slowly, Ranma and Akane smiled to each other.
"This can't be really happening," Akane thought. Then she
leaned her head against him, "Ranma..."
He blushed mightily at her actions, but slowly gave in as
he felt her warmth.
"Akane..."
* * *
"What a haul, what a haul!"
"Huh?" Phaeron and Ranko looked up, trying to see where
the yell came from.
"Aah! What a lovely!" Happy suddenly sailed over them,
lunging for a bra that he saw through a window... and he smashed
face-first into an aura shield.
"Oww..." he rubbed his nose. "You again?!"
"Hey, old freak! You're still at it?!" Ranko grabbed and
shook him.
"I thought Ultros had taken care of him," Phaeron blinked.
"Hah! That stupid octopus is no match for me! I sure taught
him a lesson!"
"What did you do?"
"I agreed to split the haul with him and that stupid
balloon," Happy slumped down in defeat.
"Oh, so?" the redhead cracked her knuckles.
"But at least there's a bosom I can cry on..." he suddenly
appeared clingign to her chest. She yelped in disgust.
"You per--" Phaeron was about to blast him away when
suddenly Ranko grabbed him and tossed him upwards, "GoldBird!"
she yelled, receiving him with a tremendous blast that sent him
flying south for the winter.
"Why that..." she shuddered, crossing her arms over her
chest.
"Hey, not bad..." Phaeron looked into the distance, seeing
the speeding glimmer vanish. "But..." he smirked," you can do
better..."
"Shut up!" she bounced up with a jumpkick which he
sidestepped from. "Hey come back here!" she yelled as she saw
him run away.
"Ha! Make me!" he replied, planting his feet on the ground
to become a Phoenix.
"You bet I will!" she crossed her arms, then spread them
again and was covered by her flying aura. Reaching a rooftop,
she landed and leapt from building to building in pursuit of the
snickering bird.
"Come on, can't you go faster?" he taunted, "Hurry up!"
"I'll get you!" she reared her hand backwards, forming a
small fireball in her palm. "Hah!"
"Yow!" the phoenix twisted to avoid the searing fireball.
"Gotcha!" Ranko suddenly dropped on top of him, catching the
bird in her arms and sending both down to earth.
"I don't think so!" he quickly grabbed hold of the edge of
the roof with his claws, morphed back and twisted around. "Now
who has whom?" he snickered, carrying her in his arms as he
leapt away.
"Gray Touch!" she called, using all her body to drain him.
His aura fizzled, both plummeted to the empty lot that was near
the Tendos'. Each fell into a mound of snow.
"Brrrrr!" they came out, rubbing their arms to defend from
the cold.
"Wak!" Phaeron was suddenly hit by a snowball, then another,
as Ranko quickly formed a snow fort out of her mound. "So,
that's how you wanna play, eh?" Phaeron kneeled into his mound,
then suddenly sprung up, "Haa!"
"Agh!" Ranko stared at the dozen fireballs that sped for
her. Leaping out of the snow fort, she suddenly smirked and
punched a fireball with her left fist. The Wall Ring glowed,
bouncing the attack. With the Chestnut Fist she managed to send
back all the other fireballs.
"Oh yeah, bounce this!" Phaeron smirked as he joined both
palms to send a wide globe of flames. Snickering, she created an
aura shield in her left arm and batted the sphere away, straight
for Phaeron's face.
She laughed loudly at seeing the Esper's charred face, his
eyes large and blank. Narrowing them, he shook off the ashes and
pounced for her. She received him and rolled on her back,
tossing him away. He aimed his hand for her, pulling her along
for the ride.
They crashed into a small hill, in the park. Rolling down in
the snow, they created a massive ball that sped towards an
unsuspecting couple...
"Ms. Noodle, I must tell you something..."
"Oh, Mr. Soup! Will you finally--"
They were both bowled by the snowball.
"Marry me!" Mr. Soup said, absently, to a tree.
"What are you doing!?" Ms. Noodle bonked him with her purse.
Finally, the snowball crashed into a tree, falling apart. The
snow slowly parted, leaving two figures laughing good-heartedly
while lying on the pure snow. Calming down a bit, Phaeron got up
on one elbow and turned to the redhead, snickering at how her
head was white from all the snow. He brushed it away with his
hand, making her close her eyes briefly. But before he finished,
she took his hand and looked at him, smiling. Neither said
anything, they didn't even turn red, but they stayed like that
for unmeasurable time.
"C'mon, you're gonna catch a cold," Phaeron said as he
kneeled and took her hands, pulling her to her feet while he
stood up.
"Huh?" she looked up, feeling a wet tingle in her nose.
"Look! It's snowing!"
"So it is," he also looked up, not realizing he was still
holding her hands. Looking at him, Ranko smiled. There was no way
he could die tonight. This day was just too perfect. In fact...
"This..." she thought, "I've never felt like this before..." she
smiled absently. She looked at him again, but this time he
noticed and smiled back. "I can't remember feeling so happy."
"Phaeron-kun..." she sighed, her eyes glittering in the
moonlight.
"Let's go back," he said. She was cut short, but nodded and
intertwined her fingers between his. Walking hand in hand, they
headed back to Herb's house.
* * *
Nodoka smiled as she saw the couple from the window. Ranma
and Akane were still dancing, despite the snowflakes that slowly
covered them. She wouldn't ask about the decision ever again:
she knew what both would say.
Sighing happily as she let them have their privacy, she
went back to the kitchen to prepare herself a cup of tea.
Everything would be so much more complicated... but also so very
simple. And nobody even had to interfere, to prod them into
getting together.
"Hm?" she suddenly felt a presence in the house. Looking
around, she realized this wasn't a human presence. Quietly, she
headed for the living room.
"Ah..." she couldn't help gasping, "Seraphim..."
"I'm so sorry..." the angel said, crying.
The fated hour
Tears didn't become her. Neither did the black armlet she
now wore on her right arm. But it was her face what told Nodoka
exactly what Seraphim was going to do.
"No..." Nodoka nearly whispered. "Please, Seraphim, not now..."
"Please forgive me..." Seraphim said through the tears, "I
really wish I didn't have to... But it's my duty! It's my cursed
duty!" she clenched her fists, shutting her eyes.
"Seraphim, dear..." Nodoka quickly sat by her, placing her
arms around the younger angel. "This is not your fault..." She
was almost surprised as Seraphim buried her face in her
shoulder, as if hiding from the world. Sighing, Nodoka closed her
eyes and used her Brindstone to turn into an angel, hugging
Seraphim with her wings as if she were another of her daughters.
"Can't we do something to stop this?" Nodoka asked.
Seraphim shook her head, "We don't even know where brother
Dysithal is... It's almost like he vanished... If only we found him
and cast him to the Shadows, we could restore the balance..."
"Seraphim, exactly how did you bring Phaeron-kun back?"
"Huh?" she looked up at Nodoka.
"I'm going to talk with the Light. I want to be responsible
for this." She closed her eyes, "I'll do whatever it takes to
make sure he lives to old age."
"No, please!" Seraphim looked at her in shock, "You'd have
to surrender your soul to do that!"
"But it would be even worse for me to see my daughter
suffer," Nodoka replied. "I abandoned Cordis... I'd never do that
to Ranko-chan."
* * *
Ranko sighed as they approached Herb's house, feeling the
warm aura of Phaeron as he used it to keep the snowflakes from
freezing them. She liked being in that aura. And from the look on
Phaeron's face when she turned to him, he probably enjoyed using
it as well.
She sighed again. It was probably just a test from
Seraphim, or the Light, to tell her that Phaeron would die. In
fact, she could vaguely remember something about "Five Tests"
from the time she used the Caller. Everything was so perfect...
She had so much faith, she just couldn't believe that he would
be taken away... taken away from _her_.
"Go on, I'll just close the door," Phaeron said as he stayed
behind, once they were past the main gates. Holding her hands,
she smiled as she looked onwards. But suddenly she caught a
glimpse of a powerful, calm light emanating from the living room.
Standing on tiptoe to get a better look, she nearly felt herself
fall apart when she saw Nodoka holding a teary-eyed Seraphim.
And there was a black armlet on the latter's arm.
"My God, please no..." Ranko stared in complete shock. "No...
Just a little longer..."
"What's up?" Phaeron saw her frozen in place, "You oka--"
"No time!" she suddenly grabbed his hand and jerked him
forward, "We gotta find a place to hide you and fast!" she said
as she ran around the house, pulling him along.
"What for..." he started, but he suddenly saw what caused
Ranko to become shocked. "Seraphim..."
"Phaeron-kun, I won't let you die on me!" Ranko narrowed
her eyes. There was never so much determination in her voice.
* * *
Ranma and Akane laughed lightly, realizing they were
covered in white. Shaking off the snow, they sneezed in synch
and laughed again.
"We really should go back inside," Akane said, rubbing her
nose.
"Oh, man, they're gonna kill me," Ranma groaned, thinking
about Kodachi, Shampoo and Ukyou... and Kuno, Gosunkugi, Ryouga...
They let go of each other, not daring walk hand in hand.
But it was until they entered the dojo that they recalled the
dotera and sweater they now wore.
"AIREN!" Shampoo yelled.
"Ranchan..." Ukyou glared at him.
"You hussy! What have you done with Ranma-sama!?" Kodachi
aimed a spiked club at Akane.
"Ranchan!" Ukyou suddenly flung herself at him.
"No! Spatula girl get away!" Shampoo leapt to attack,
bonbori at the ready.
"You won't hurt her!" Konatsu seized the Amazon while Mog's
halberd cleaved her maces.
"Shampoo!" Mousse leapt in for her defense.
"Mousse-sama! Watch out!" Mink called as a volley of
shuriken sped for him, being deflected by a massive wok.
"You're mine!" Kodachi challenged as she ensnared Akane in
her ribbon, then forced Ranma's mouth open and took her cake.
"Shampoo, now!" Cologne called, batting away the cake with
her staff.
"SilverStrike!" she aimed her palms upwards. Suddenly, the
mirror-ball used in the dance gave away, crashing into the floor
and releasing a love powder into the air around Ranma.
"Ak! Cough! Cough!"
"Ranma! Look at Shampoo!"
"No, look at me!" Ukyou fanned out the dust with her
spatula.
"At me!" Kodachi trapped him with her rope, pinning him to
the floor.
"Help!" Ranma called, not daring open his eyes.
"Shampoo, second phase!" Cologne signaled. Nodding, Shampoo
jumpkicked an empty picture frame on the wall. Suddenly many
water-filled balloons dropped from the ceiling.
"Jusenkyo water!" Mousse yelled, seeing how a fly was hit
and suddenly transformed into a six-legged frog.
"Why you...!" Ukyou scowled at Shampoo. "Water magic!" she
aimed her hands upwards. All of the water was frozen in place.
Akane immediately evaporated it.
"We're not done yet!" Cologne herself leapt into the fray,
knocking Ukyou unconscious with a pressure-point strike.
"Stop, you!" Mink sent a small ki blast at her, but Cologne
bounced it back.
"You'll pay for that, over!" Pink and Link threatened,
sending out a storm of Mandragora seeds.
"Wak!" Akane stared at them, then burned them to ash
before they hit anyone.
"Hey, watch it!" Taro was accidentally hit by the fire, then
doused himself with a bucket of water. "MUUUU!" he began to
charge up a Saiyajin blast.
"FREEZE!!" Ryuu called. Everyone froze. "Kijin raishu-dan!"
"Hey!" Herb yelled as Ryuu began to send arcs of vacuum to
cancel Taro's blast. "Hito ryuuzan-ha!" he sent out his own ki-
blades to cancel out Ryuu's Fierce Gods' Shots and the chimera's
blast.
"Ha!" Akane was freed from the ribbon by one of the blades.
"Ranma!"
"Don't touch!" Shampoo jumpkicked towards her.
"Akane Tendo!" Kuno leapt in the way, receiving the attack
in the head. He wasn't hurt in the least.
"It true! He have nothing in head!" Shampoo stared in shock.
"You old monster!" Konatsu sent a wave of shuriken towards
Cologne, who evaded them with her staff. But suddenly she was
faced with Mog.
"Fight somebody your own size, kupo!" he called, pulling out
his Aura Lance, halberd, naginata, spear and crescent-bladed
halberd all at the same time. He toppled under the weight,
"Oww..."
"Angeline!" Azusa SHRIEKED. Cologne suddenly found herself
before an enraged sugar-filled girl.
"Ukyou-sama!" Tsubasa suddenly came out of hiding, only to
find her sleeping, "I shall awake you with a kiss!"
"Bleah! Disgusting!" she was shocked back to consciousness,
flattening him with her spatula before he got close.
"Why must it always be like this..." Soun cried. "Wait a
minute. This isn't my dojo, so why am I crying?"
"We must do something to stop this madness," Genma said
sternly. "Jigoku no yurikago!" he crushed Ranma.
"HEY!" Ranma yelled, "What'd you do _THAT_ for! I didn't do
anything!!"
"Eh?" all the girls stared at him.
"He... he opened his eyes!"
"The love powder wore off!"
"Ranma!" Shampoo leapt for him. He blinked at her, but did
nothing else.
"Ranma-sama!" Kodachi pulled him with her rope. He gagged
at her, but that was it.
"Ranchan!" Ukyou pulled him by the collar. He sweated
nervously, yet nothing else happened.
"Ranma...!" Akane glared at him.
He sweated visibly.
"This is all YOUR fault!"
Almost everyone else in the dojo agreed. And they cracked
their knuckles.
"...help..."
* * *
"Dammit, where to!?" Ranko muttered as she tried to find a
hiding place, having already gone all around the house.
"Ranko-chan, wait!" Phaeron called, trying to stop her.
"No way! I'm not gonna let you die!"
"Please, stop!"
"Huh?" she was surprised by the adding of that word.
"Phaeron-kun, I..."
"Don't run anymore," he said. "We can't go on like this." He
looked seriously at her. She slowed down, finally coming to a
stop next to the garden door. Beside them, the large pond was
kept liquid by a heater, while all around everything was white.
"But I... I can't let you die, Phaeron-kun," she looked up at
him.
"Ranko-chan..." he took her hand. Slowly, tired of running,
they kneeled on the snow. "I appreciate this, I really do. But we
can't keep running from this." He sighed sadly, "Even if it means
that my time is up."
"How... How can you say that!? Don't you want to live!?"
"Of course I do, but running from death is no way to live,"
he gently stroked her hand. "I can't keep hiding anymore.
Otherwise I'll cause all of you a worse pain." He looked straight
into her eyes, "Ranko-chan, you understand, don't you?"
"Phaeron-kun..." she stared at him, feeling a knot begin to
close in her throat.
"Please, don't be sad," he said, smiling, "Just like last
time, I'll make sure I can look over you."
The knot closed itself even further. But Ranko wouldn't
speak even if she could. Tears began to gather.
"I... I'll always look over you, Ranko-chan," Phaeron said
with complete sincerity.
"Phaeron-kun..." she nearly whimpered. "I'll... never forget
you... But please, don't die..."
"Ranko-chan..." he reached for her other hand. But all of a
sudden she stood and stepped away, pulling her other hand out
of his hold. He looked silently as she turned away.
The cold outside could not compare to what she felt. But
there was no denying this. Seraphim was here, and Phaeron would
die. But she couldn't let herself break down, especially not in
front of him. With a deep sigh, she recovered her breath and
turned back, kneeling in front of him again. He was about to take
her hands again when she put her palms on the back of her head.
"Pha... Phaeron-kun..." she started. She grabbed her pigtail
with her left hand, while putting her right on the back of her
neck, just below. "I... I don't know what's gonna happen..." she shut
her eyes, not letting a single tear run down. "But... But..."
"What are you..."
She clenched her eyes and teeth, preparing to endure a
flash of pain. Suddenly, she whipped her right hand upwards.
There was a loud shearing sound.
Phaeron stared in shock as several delicate threads of red
floated down to the ground.
Ranko had cut off her pigtail.
"T-take this," she said, on the verge of tears, "Wherever
you're going... I want you to have it."
"R-Ranko-chan..." he stared silently as she took his hand
and put her braid on his palm. "This... it meant so much to you..."
he looked up to meet her eyes. "Why? Why me?"
She shuddered in sorrow, "'Why'?" She looked down, "You
stupid jerk... Why the hell do you think!?" she suddenly looked at
him with flaming eyes, "Why do you think I'm giving this to you?!
Why do you think I care about you?! Why... Why do you think I
brought you back?! You bastard... Can't you tell?!" she breathed
heavily for a moment, "Because I... Because I..." the tears could
no longer be contained. She suddenly fell on his chest, pounding
him, "Idiot! Why did you have to use Ultima! Why!?" she cried into
his chest, feeling his arms slowly embrace her. "Why did you have
to save me from the Caller... We could have been...We could've..."
her words were muffled by his chest, as she buried her face in
it. Slowly, her breathing slowed down, it became calmer. Phaeron
no longer felt desperate beats coming from her chest. Slowly,
she pushed herself away, wiping the tears with her sleeve.
"I... I'm sorry," she apologized. "It's just... I don't want you
to go..." she let herself fall in his arms again.
"And I don't want to leave you, Ranko-chan..." Phaeron
whispered.
They remained like that for a few moments, relieving each
other of the sorrows they contained; trying to prepare for the
sorrows they had yet to endure. The snow continued to fall, but
neither minded. Eventually, they detached from each other again,
holding hands. But Phaeron noticed a tiny crystalline glimmer
right on top of her right cheek. But before the tear ran down,
he put his left hand on her cheek, wiping away the tear with his
thumb. Ranko closed her eyes at the touch, resting her face on
his hand. Opening them slightly again, she took his other hand
and placed it on her left cheek, making him cup her face in his
hands. Very slowly, she closed her eyes completely and leaned
forward, opening her mouth slightly...
Phaeron was surprised beyond measure. But all of a sudden,
he _knew_. And it filled him with indescribable warmth.
He looked at the girl in front of him. She couldn't lean
forward anymore. Closing his eyes, he also leaned, pulling her
face closer and closer to his own. At first, only their lips
brushed against the others', but then...
* * *
"Ouch..."
"Baka," Akane glared at Ranma while Tofu placed the
unwilling contortionist on a table.
"This... was not... my fault..."
"Sure it wasn't," Genma bonked him, "And how did you get all
those fianc�es?"
Everyone glared at Genma. Then bashed him.
"Nice going, Pop," Ranma tried to snicker as his father was
also anatomically remodelled.
"Silly Ranma. If he marry Shampoo from beginning he avoid
all trouble."
"Or get twice as much of it!" Ukyou scowled at the Amazon.
"I think he already has four times more troubles," Yuannyan
blinked at her brother.
"And where's my present?" Ukyou glared at Ranma, then
looked up and down at Akane. "Why you..."
"Ulp," Akane sweated visibly when the other three girls
loomed over her, all setting their sights on the sweater. She
was saved as a bright white light illuminated the garden outside.
"What the..." Ukyou said.
"That light..." Shampoo followed.
"It looked like Seraphim-chan..." Yuannyan gulped. Suddenly,
all the regular characters left the dojo.
"Hey, what about me!?" Ranma called.
"Oh, we could rearrange you again," Ryuu and Taro smirked.
"Oh, boy..."
* * *
An astounding number of images flashed before her eyes,
Images of training in China. Images of meeting a certain ki-
master. Endless memories, previously washed away by the cursed
waters of Jusenkyo, were restored by this contact. And Ranko
understood every bit of them.
And she remembered.
Ranko and Phaeron slowly detached from each other, already
missing the contact they had. Both were fully aware of the
other's real emotions. And both were afraid.
"If... If you leave me now, I'll kill you," Ranko said, holding
back her tears.
"Ranko-chan..." Phaeron held her again, then they stood up,
never releasing each other. They held each other so tightly it
seemed they wanted to meld with the other. And, at least in
heart and spirit, they did.
Through his closed eyes, Phaeron could discern a powerful
light before him. When he looked forward, he nodded in
acceptance.
"I'm sorry."
"Seraphim-chan?" Ranko suddenly opened her eyes, and
quickly turned back to the angel. She immediately stood in front
of Phaeron, as if defending, but looked up at him and gulped,
then meekly stepped aside.
"What was the... eh?" Akane and the others came around the
house, opposite to Seraphim and behind Phaeron. Ranma came
sailing through the air, landing next to them and straightening
his bones at the same time.
"Hey, what do you know? I'm cured!" he cheered, but then
noticed Seraphim and shut himself up.
"Mom..." Ranko thought, seeing her mother stand behind
Seraphim with a sad look on her face.
"So..." Phaeron began, "this is it, eh?"
Seraphim nodded shamefully.
"I... understand," he replied, looking downwards. All the
others gasped in shock.
"Please, forgive me," Seraphim said.
"It's not your fault," Phaeron replied. "You risked yourself
by bringing me back to life." He sighed, "But before we go, I have
to do something."
He turned back to the others, who were shocked into
silence. "Guys... I thank you. You gave me the chance to meet the
most wonderful people in the world. All of you have helped me,
and I'll always be grateful..." he looked among them, "Ukyou,
Mousse, Shampoo, Kuno, Herb, Mog, Konatsu... I'll always think of
you as my friends."
He then turned to the rest, "Yuannyan, thank you for
helping out while we were in China. Mr. and Mrs. Saotome... thank
you for admitting me into your lives. Ranma, you're one of my
best friends. Take care of your sister. Akane... Akane, you're my
best friend. Thank you for helping me so much."
"Oh, Phaeron-kun..." she looked at him with teary eyes.
"Raphael, wherever you are..." Phaeron said under his
breath, "Be careful. And Ryouga, please do me that favor... Take
very good care of her."
He then turned to Ranko, but neither spoke a word. All that
had to be said had been spoken already, she knew all that she
needed from him. Sighing, Phaeron looked at the braid in his hand
and tightened his fist around it.
"Wait," Ranma said, seeing Phaeron was about to leave, "I
want you to know... I haven't had many real friends other than
Ucchan. But... you're my friend, Phaeron. Don't forget that."
He smiled, "I won't."
"Phaeron-kun..." Ranko whispered, hesitantly taking his hand.
"I... I..."
"I know, Ranko-chan," he held her hand. "Don't be afraid. I'll
always be here," he put his hand on her chest, just below the
neck. She nearly gave away, but she'd be damned if she let his
last memory of her be a sad one. Gathering all her strength, she
showed him a smile.
Phaeron turned to Seraphim briefly, nodding. While the angel
slowly walked towards him, he gazed into the redhead's eyes.
Ranko slowly saw Seraphim walk towards them, gradually
lifting her glowing hand to touch Phaeron. But she didn't dare
cry.
"Goodbye," Phaeron mouthed.
He felt a hand touch his shoulder. He fell asleep, toppling
to the ground. Seraphim quickly caught him, setting his peaceful
form on her lap. Oblivious to the world, Ranko kneeled and took
his hand.
Slightly brought awake by her touch, he opened his eyes a
little. Suddenly his body started glowing. Bit by bit, small
glimmers detached from him, all of them being scattered in all
directions. His own eyes saw the glimmers disappear. Feeling a
knot in her throat, Ranko took in a deep breath and lifted her
other hand towards his face.
It took all of eternity for her hand to reach his eyes.
Every inch she moved it seemed to break another pillar of her
strength. Every inch was filled with sorrow. But after what
resembled a lifetime of pain, her hand settled on his brow. With
a nearly inaudible whimper, she closed his eyes. He fell asleep
with a smile on his face.
Slowly, the Esper began to fade away, until Ranko could no
longer hold his hand. A powerful void appeared inside her, a void
that crushed her heart. She quickly brought back her other hand,
clenching both fists over her chest.
Seeing her in pain, Nodoka quietly walked over to her
daughter and put her hand on the redhead. Ranko fell asleep
immediately, landing on Seraphim's lap as well. Just as the last
glimmers evanesced into the distance, the final ball of light
hovered around her, then slowly phased into Ranko's chest. All
over the city, the small bits of light flashed and shot upwards.
His ruby and gold necklace fell idly on the snow.
Phaeron of Fenix died.
With tears streaming down her eyes, Seraphim looked up at
Nodoka. She kneeled by the younger angel, taking her daughter in
her lap while Seraphim herself disappeared into the ether.
"Phaeron-kun..." Akane's eyes were flooded.
Nodoka looked at her, then at Ranko. It was for the best
to make her sleep. Sighing, Nodoka stroked her daughter's head.
The sorrow was infinite. Too much pain had been endured.
Too many tears had been shed.
End of the Fourth Test
...and Dysmerc has arrived.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Bwaaaaaaaaah!
The TerBril
(who thinks he _was_ a bit too cruel with that... no wonder the guys
wanted revenge...)