Standing still, not a sound,
enemies all around.
Faster than your opponent,
protecting every friend.
These are things that matter in the end.
The purple bottle flew through the air in a high arc, nearly hitting the floor before Ranma's hands caught it.
-Is this the same as the last time?
--
Kasumi trotted down the stairs. (Genma is in the furo. I threw out those horrible little birds. All I need to do now is reheat the food so that everyone can eat when they're ready) She smiled and picked up the larger of the plates that she had prepared. (I wonder what is taking Dad and Akane so long)
Standing by the door, she drew her hand alongside it. Petting it as it were. (MY kitchen)
She slid the door aside and saw...
--
Shampoo groaned. The pink thing in the chair was still angry at her. She couldn't care less of course. She tried shaking her head but she was still too weak. (Don't want that dream) A trickle of blood ran along her skin. Getting weaker still it seemed. She let go of consciousness. (Ranko)
( The sky was blue, the birds twittered in the trees, lovers
) spoke of endearment towards each other. (What more could
( make this a perfect day?)
)
( -Ranko I'll kill you! (Ah, the clarion cry of death, forever
) faithful. No big wonder why I didn't catch on to Ranko sooner
( than I did) The purple hair disappeared through the smoke of
) another building falling to pieces. Another wall crumbled at
( the touch of a bonbori. Shampoo stepped over the rubble.
)
( -Wait, Shampoo! Can't we talk this over like elders?
)
( -I refuse to talk to people with a death sentence on them.
) (Even if I have feelings for them)
(
) -But Shampoo! Isn't there some way to get around that?
( (Not likely that I'd tell you yet)
)
( -Prepare to die!
) Two bonboris headed straight for the little redhaired girl's
( head. Ranko ducked and they crashed through the wall behind
) her. A waterpipe burst and sprayed its contents to the left
( of the two. (I wonder why the water avoid us, not normal?)
) Ranko blew a raspberry at her and bounced away from her.
( Ranko looked back and suddenly bounded towards her instead.
) Something heavy hit her and the everything blacked out.
(
) -Shampoo? You okay?
(
) -Unh!
(
) -Shampoo!
(
) She curled up in a ball and let the tears flow. It didn't
( matter anymore.
) -Why can't I at least beat you, so we can be equals?
( -Huh?
) -If we were equals we can become bloodsisters and then I
( wouldn't have to kill you.
) -Okay, let's!
( Ranko cut her arm and let the blood drip on Shampoo's
) forehead, moving it down to her mouth... (WAIT, wait! This
( not the way things happen!)
)
( The temporary fountain swayed towards the two and filled
) everything you could see with flowing water. Eventually the
( water subsided, leaving everything as it was a few seconds
) earlier with Ranko standing close to the fallen Shampoo.
(
) -Why can't I at least beat you, so we can be equals?
( -Huh?
) -If we were equals we can become bloodsisters and then I
( wouldn't have to kill you.
) -W -wh -what are you talking about?
( -I don't want to kill you.
) (That's closer)
(
) -Shampoo you've got to stop with this killing nonsense.
( Can't you think of any alternatives?
) In response Shampoo takes out a small vial with water.
( -Pour this over your head and then we can marry instead.
)
( Ranko took the vial and eyed it carefully, she frowned and
) threw it away. The vial passed through the water flowing
( from the broken pipe and broke when it hit the concrete
) on the other side.
( -Stupid Ranko why did you do that?
) -I've had it up to here with magic and potions and I'm NOT
( going to marry you just to stay alive.
)
( -Aaargh, you imbecile that was nannichuan water, I can't use
) it, but you can; you would be my husband by law.
( Ranko's face paled.
) -N-a-n-n-i-c-h-u-a-n water!
(
) Immediately she jumped through the hot water,
( sprouting from the pipe, to get the vial. (I remember this
) very good. I never got worse shock!) From the water
( emerged, not a girl as Shampoo expected, but a boy.
)
( -Airen! She exclaimed and glomped him. (Things couldn't
) have been more perfect, airen was already cursed. If only...)
(
) Unfortunately she had run through a puddle to get to Ranko
( and so had turned into a cat. Ranko froze, looked down and
) let out a scream filled with a horror that Shampoo couldn't
( start to imagine. There were claws and teeth in that scream,
) darkness and eyes in the night, bones scraped bare of living
( tissue and that was just the things she could name. The rest
) didn't need words or pictures, for there was no equivalent in
( the living world to describe them.
--
Akane lowered her head and sighed. Beside her was an unconscious man. Namely her father, Soun Tendo.
-Geez. He could at least have been a little bit quieter.
She picked him up and threw him over her shoulder. The dust didn't move when she walked. Nor was she lit up in a strange way. But per request, we will say that it the dust did move. We will also say that she was walking into a setting sunset. Even if she really was walking out of the reach of the streetlight in a dark foggy alley. We will still say that thing about the sunset.
And so the camera should pan out slowly, to leave this picture the as was earlier described.
--
The door slid open quietly. Revealing an impossible scene. Pots and pans were overthrown. The table was cut in half. The stove was stuck halfway in the ceiling. In short, total carnage. In the middle was a large werewolf, looking rather meekly at the woman who had just opened the door.
-My kitchen?
Kasumi's voice was hollow, almost void of emotion.
-Erk. I can explain! The werewolf exclaimed, scratching the backside of its hands.
*Thunk*
The werewolf blinked and then rushed forward to help her.
-Hello? Are you okay?
--
-Ooooh! My head.
Genma sank down into the warm bath. (What in the nine hells did that woman do to me? The headache isn't supposed to come now. It's supposed to come in the morning after a good long rest) He raised his hand to his head. Caressing the pain slowly.
-And I don't even feel drunk anymore.
*Knirp*
The window slid open. A voice tried to whisper outside--to Genma's ears it sounded like shouting.
-Slowly now. Don't want to wake that oaf in the bath, do you? Do what I say and we'll have you back to normal in no time.
The voice was answered by a lot of cawing
-What do you mean "look away"? There's no real difference between now and after the hot water. You'll still be naked.
Genma didn't react to any of this. He just sank deeper into the water and closed his eyes. (All is okay with the world. The headache will soon be gone. Those hallucinations will go away just as soon as I feel better. Just relax.) The hot water erased some of the headache. This was good.
What was not good was that the hallucination continued. A lot of scuffling could be heard from the windowsill and suddenly a loud thud from the outside. A little bit more scuffling from the windowsill and then a splash from the other side of the furo. The terrible part came when a naked Nabiki emerged from the hot water. That's when the headache increased. After that Genma wouldn't have noticed his wife waving a katana in front of his face.
--
Ryo-chan jumped to the side as Nodoka dove for him.
-Get back here you annoying pig! You do not bite me and think that you can get away with it.
She grabbed for him again, and again Ryo-chan jumped to the side.
-Get back here!
As Nodoka and Ryo-chan rushed out the door Ranma and Cologne went back to staring at each other.
In the other room Mouse was being used as a a footrug for Ryo-chan and Nodoka when they ran around the room.
*Oouf*
*Dosh,dosh,dosh,dosh*
*Oouf*
*Dosh,dosh,dosh,dosh*
*Oouf*
-Aaaargh! Mouse vaulted away. He didn't notice the little black pig passing between his legs after he had landed.
-Stop running over me!
*Kadunk* Nodoka and Mouse collided.
--
Kodachi plushed the pillow and put it on the bed. She shook the sheets thoroughly, folded them and placed them on the pillow. Taking a large can of manure, she sprinkled some on the bed.
-There, Master, all is prepared.
-(*!*)
She nodded and sprinkled more dirt over the manure. Then she picked the flower up and placed it vertically on the dirtbed. She plucked up the sheets, placed the head of the flower on the pillow and spread the sheets over it. After all that, she curled up in a fetal position on the floor beside the bed.
-Soon, Master, soon!
When she closed her eyes she was already asleep.
--
Down in the basement a red parrot was holding a monkeywrench in its beak, trying to turn a large knob on a pipe. Surprisingly enough, this didn't hinder his ability to speak. (That beak of his must be a freakin' miracle)
-Nosiree, no one's goin' to change while I'm around. No splashes of any kind is gonna surprise me or woffie nor anyone else for that matter. Not one drop of water is gonna pass into this house. Nope, nada, zero chance, not while I'm on the job.
He stopped, let go of the wrench and looked dreamily at the ceiling.
-She's gonna be so proud!
--
Mouse shook his head and glared at Nodoka's back.
-Couldn't you at least have stoped chasing that pig? He took out a katana and poked her with it for emphasis. Nodoka turned around to face him. Her face was totally red, she looked ready to kill.
*Gulp*
-No need to get angry. He he he.
He backed away slowly from her.
-Yipe!
She grabbed his throat.
-You took my Ukyo! Where is she?
*Splash* Nodoka was wet and she was holding a very wet duck. A little further down Ryo-chan was smiling evily with an empty bowl in his mouth.
Nodoka blinked.
--
*knirk*
A trapdoor opened in an odd place. It was green and it had pigs sticking out of it. Out from the door fell a young... female-looking person.
-Unghhh. Huh? No, Mom, this is my sleepytime, get your own. I need beauty sleep too!
She... he... it... Tsubasa curled up and tried to go back to sleep. If it hadn't been for the cold floor Tsubasa would have succeeded. As it was, Tsubasa's dress wasn't warm enough in and of itself. So... Tsubasa was forced to get up and get to the bedroom.
If this had been another reality, Tsubasa would have had a little sister running around, getting into his stuff, annoying hrim*, leaving small balls of light in all the dark places**, being cuter than he could be*** and she would have been taking a midnight sandwich from the fridge.
IF it had been another reality. Since it isn't, there was a little boy there instead. The boy was about one year older than the girl would have been.****
He didn't eat a sandwich, he drank juice.*****
-Good morning Tsu.
Tsubasa looked outside.
-It's not morning. Tsubasa answered irritably.
-No, but in a few hours it will be anyway so what's the difference?
-Go to bed, Chi!
-It's not late enough for that yet. Your girlfriend hasn't come back, you know; she usually shows up to hassle you some more before she goes away.
Tsubasa woke up from halfsleep.
-Nabiki! I promised I would capture him!
Tsubasa ran back to the closet.
--
*HeR+hIM=HRIM. She never thought of him as a guy or as a girl. She went for the middle part. This was what she usually called him if he did what he usually did and she was who she usually was. Different realities, keet in mind.
**She had two things in common with herself everywhere. She didn't like the dark and...
***This was always what annoyed him the most.
****The reason for the difference being that, in this world Tsubasa's parents saw two kids battling on their roof, thereby ruining the mood for the two of them. One year later, the kids weren't there.
*****He didn't call Tsubasa a hrim either, he called Tsubasa a sibling.
--
(Mmmm… ooooooh! How nice.) Nabiki was lying on her bed, still very naked, alternating between stretching, hugging and just generally feeling her legs.
At the moment she was hugging them. (I'm human again. I have real legs again. Oh, what a wonderful feeling! I am not going to lose you ever again) She was back to feeling her legs when something unexpected happened.
*Rumble*
(What?) Nabiki drew her hands over her belly. (That's right, I barely got to any of the food) She drew her hands along her thighs one last time and got out of bed to put some clothes on.
(Let's see... what will I wear to show off my beautiful _human_ legs now?)
She walked over to the closet and looked in. After careful consideration she pulled out some jeans with the legs cut off and a t-shirt. (Now that I am human again I should show off my great figure. There is something I've been neglecting lately. It should go "Money, boys and soda-pop". I've kept mostly with the money for a while. It's time I enjoyed the others as well--but I won't forget the money part) *Grumble* Nabiki felt her stomach again.
-Why am I suddenly so hungry? Oh well, there's more food downstairs.
She trotted down the stairs, skipping every second step.
--
-Is it the same?
-It will cure you of your curse.
-But... whatever. Ranma pocketed the bottle. Where is Ukyou?
Cologne blinked and then smiled.
-I sugest you ask Mouse, daughter-in-law.
At that moment a certain four-eyed duck rolled up between them, chased by a black pig with a blue collar and a furious woman with a katana. The woman seemed equally happy to hit either of the two.
-Stop, heel sit. HOLD STILL SO I CAN HIT YOU!
The odd line rushed up the stairs. Ranma immediately followed, as did Cologne.
--
An eye opened. She looked around carefully, careful not to move her head. That would alert whoever held her that she was awake. (Nothing on this side) She closed her eye and turned over to the other side. (I hope that looked like I was sleeping) She opened her eye again and looked around. There was nothing there either. (Where are the cameras or the guards? They must be watching me in some way... Maybe they're asleep)
She sat up in the bed, held the covers close to her and looked over the room once more. (There is no way for anyone to know I'm awake! I might as well try now) She tossed the covers away and jumped out of the bed. The plant beside the door didn't stir.
She tip-toed up to the door, rolling on the balls of her feet in an attempt to make as little sound as possible. Tentatively she pushed at it. To her great surprise, it slid open. Just as silently as she had walked to the door, she left the room.
--
*Shush* The door slid open. A wet dog looked at Nabiki as she entered the kitchen. He looked down at Kasumi, who still was unconscious, and began licking her cautiously again.
Nabiki blinked. The kitchen was virtually destroyed. There was a huge hole in one wall, lots of tears in another and the table was smashed to bits. A tray with foodstuffs had fallen on the floor beside her sister and had been left alone by the dog. (What happened here?) She bent down to Kasumi to look closer.
-Kasumi? What happened? Are you listening? Can you hear me? HELLO?
(She's as much under as Ranma is when she is asleep) She walked over to the tap to get some water. (Remember, hot water, don't want to change) She turned on the water but none came out.
-Phew, I don't know if that's a relief or something to worry about. But I should wake her up quickly.
Looking around, Nabiki spotted a waterskin.
-That'll do, she said and picked it up. Why are there several pockets in this thing? Oh well, I'll just pick one and...
The dog saw what she was doing and growled menacingly. Before Nabiki could put the waterskin away, the dog took a snipe at her leg. She tried to jump to the side but she dropped the waterskin, on Kasumi. The dog whimpered and looked at the result. Nabiki just stared.
-WHAT HAVE I DONE!!? KASUMI!
--
---
Can you see the red thread,
the yellow or the blue?
Can you see the green one
in between the two?
Take a look at all of it.
Can you see it too?
It all forms a tapestry.
A tapestry for you
(Dewin Duvae)
--- ---
Author's Notes: Never EVER let your own characters look at your story before you submit it. It's not the fact that you're crazy, it's the fact that they get so annoying. "Couldn't we do this instead of that" or "I want it to end THIS way" can only be heard so many times before you feel nausea rising up from the bowels of your stomach.
Anyway, please C&C. Anyone got ideas for Kasumi? What do you think is in her clothes?
That said, let's greet today's guest.
-Takahashi is the queen. She is original with loads of money. She does not make garbage. But this is inbetween. None of this is mine own I have not the means. All of it is borrowed. Think of it a freindly jest that imitates the queen's. TrallaLAA!
*Brrrm, Fwosh*
You just HAD to sing didn't you!
-Hmph! Everybody's a critique. Uncouth barbarians!
*Sigh* Does it always rain when you try to sing?
-Only lately. I'm telling you, nature is barbaric! It probably can't tell the difference between a good tune and the mating call of a moose.
I don't understand how it can rain indoors though.
-It's a conspiracy I tell you! It's all natures fault.
Anyway... What do you think of the story?
-What do you think of my singing?
Ah, I see. That bad huh?
-You... you... BARBARIAN!
*Badoing*
Yow! Watch where you swing that thing.
-I have never been so insulted!
Don't be like that. All I want to know is what you think of my story.
-You'll get nothing out of me.
What if I said that your singing can be likened to Akane's or C-ko's cooking?
-It won't work. They're probably the worst cooks in known history.
Well... they are famous for their cooking.
-So, they are good?
As good as world renowned!
-That's good then!
So... what do you think of my story?
-What story?
Nevermind!
Freemage's Notes
Three up tonight, and I'm done--although Chapter 18 will be up VERY soon. You might want to take advantage of the lull tomail Dewin with some C&C, you know what I mean?
Click according to the thread you wish to follow:
