Ranma put her right arm around Rei's waist as she stumbled on the sands. She hadn't realized that the battle had ranged as far from the camp as it had. Burns raked the landscape and criss-crossed for hundreds of the meters. Ranma's right arm felt like it was still on fire from the burns on it, but Rei needed her help. She had taken a hit, one that she hadn't even realized until the end of the battle.

As Rei bounded backwards, avoiding a flare strike, it had taken off her foot in the process. The nerves had cauterized instantly and had no time to send the impulses to her brain. Ranma had needed to carry her in order to finish off Gouka. Ranma huffed in the sweltering afternoon heat as she helped Rei back to camp. Rei wasn't exactly the lightest girl she'd ever known, but Ranma figured it probably could be worse. At least she wasn't tall. Ranma cursed her female again. She stopped as Rei begged for a rest. Ranma smiled as she let Rei rest against a shadowy rock.

Rei hadn't complained once since the end of the battle and Ranma thought that she could do no less. Ranma sat down and thought back to the man they had just defeated. Gouka. He hadn't been the nastiest person Ranma had defeated since arriving here, but he had certainly been one of the toughest. Ranma thought about the way he would regenerate from a decent hit. Certainly they were able to eventually beat him back, but she got the edge when she finally realized it was the sun that was giving him his regenerative abilities. It was probably an edge that she wouldn't get twice. She hoped the she had been wrong in telling Rei that he wasn't gone. She hoped his absence would prove her wrong. Spending two years in this world had made her less naive to such thoughts, though.

She had never used the Rumble Seat in that way before though and hadn't been entirely sure that it would work. One of the neat kinds of things he'd learned since coming to this world. One of hundreds of things. Big things too. Some of them bigger than Ranma would really have liked. Like the Star Fire. Too big, if you asked her.

Both of them were panting and sweating as the sun beat down. Ranma looked to the west again. The clouds were closer, but still achingly far. Something was different about these too. Ranma couldn't say what, she was no weatherman. Ranma just knew they looked different.

Ranma got back up and helped Rei to her feet. They both grunted and wheezed with effort trying to get their stability with their injuries. Back to their feet, Ranma looked at Rei. She broke a smile and Rei laughed weakly in response, but neither could talk in the heat.

Over the last dune, they saw that Ikari was helping the blonde to a sitting position. Ranma's heart began to beat faster and she gathered Rei into her arms and jumped against the pain in her body to the camp below. Her knees went out as she landed and buckled under her. Rei went tumbling towards the tent. She sat up and brushed herself off, sighing lightly at Ranma's exuberance, and at her own breaking heart.

"No, Hanasu, it's okay," Ikari said to the blonde, "These are the friends that I was talking about."

Rei looked up and saw the Ranma, bruised and battered that she was, sat in front of the girl that Ikari called Hanasu, holding her hand. Ikari was trying to get a look at Ranma's injuries, but kept getting her hands batted away as all of Ranma's attention was on the girl. Rei could see that she was quite frightened by Ranma's action and Rei put a hand on Ranma's shoulder. Ranma looked back in annoyance, but helped pull Rei the rest of the way onto the tarp.

"Damn Rei, what happened?" Ikari asked ignoring Ranma as she began to babble at the blonde girl.

"Pretty nasty, huh?" Rei asked, examining her burnt limb, "Aw damn. He got my shoe."

"Rei, was he that tough?"

"He was tougher," Rei said, "We outflanked him and he still fought us both off at the same time. This bastard was tough. Not to mention the fact that he was using the sun to regenerate himself. Ranma! Leave her alone for a while, okay?"

Ranma, startled out of her reverie, shot a nasty look towards Rei. She then thought about what she was doing and just smiled sheepishly at the blonde girl. For her part, the blonde girl just backed towards the outer edge of the tent in an odd mix of fear and fascination. She didn't know what to make of these weirdoes. She inched her way over to Ikari. The tall blonde at least seemed to have her shit together intellectually. Not like these two odd ball friends of hers.

They looked like a wagon had just run over them, apparently they were in a big fight with a real nasty. Hanasu didn't know, she had woke up to a rather loud explosion coming from where she had collapsed. Ikari had just finished healing her and calmed her down. It figured that people like this would need a healer along. Picking fights with strong people was dangerous.

Images flashed through Hanasu's head and she grasped the bridge of her nose as the pain pushed towards the front of her head. Ever since she found herself in the desert the other day, she'd been having these weird flashes. Visions of other places. Other people she had no idea about. A man. Flowers. A huge, black and white furry thing.

The images would come and go just as quickly as a passing thought. The pain they left behind lingered though. She felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Ikari. Hanasu smiled at her and waved her off. Ikari certainly did have the healers' touch. The pain was gone a little while later. Hanasu smiled inwardly. Hanasu pulled her bag to her from across the tent. She had been very glad that it had not been separated from her when she was thrown into the desert.

Hanasu stopped at that thought. Yes, she hadn't been transported or kidnapped. She had been thrown. This rattled her somewhat as she continued to look through her bag. She could hear the dark haired girl, Rei was her name, telling Ikari about the battle. This guy they had been fighting didn't seem so tough, even if he could use the sun to regenerate.

"Well, if you had the chance, why didn't you simply knock him down and bury him with the little Rumble-whatever thingy of yours?"

The red haired girl looked at her and raised an eyebrow in question. Rei rolled her eyes at Hanasu.

"If we could get close enough to knock him down, we would have been fried by the heat his skin was generating," Rei explained, "I mean, look at what happened to Ranma's shoulder when she tried it."

It was true that Ranma's right shoulder was almost as badly burned as her arm. Rei had said it was because she had shouldered the man away in order to protect her. Hanasu thought that it was more like she got careless. Ranma held up her hand and silenced Rei.

"Look Akane," Ranma began, "I know that it's been a long time since we've seen each other, but I've learned so many new things in this world. I've also had some pretty interesting experiences. But Akane, I'm ready to go home and-"

"Why do you keep calling me Akane?"

Ranma looked confused.

"'Cause that's your name?"

Hanasu shook her head.

"Sorry Ranma," she said, "My name is Hanasu Munesanzun."

"But I...You, I mean-" Ranma began to blubber.

"Ranma, that's what I wanted to tell you," Ikari said, working on Ranma's shoulder, "This isn't Akane. Her name is Hanasu and she comes from one of the wealthy trading families in the Eastern Seas. She doesn't know how she got in the desert, but she's only been here for about two days. She's not Akane."

"But, your face..."

"What of it?" Hanasu asked, slightly taken aback.

No one had ever accused her of being ugly, by any means. Her sisters, on the other hand, were no beauty queens in comparison.

"I know she looks like Akane," Ikari continued, "I remember the picture too, you know. It's not Akane, though. I'm sorry Ranma."

Hanasu looked around at the assembled people. Ikari looked tired. That was from all the healing that she'd done recently. Rei looked hopeful for some odd reason. Ranma looked absolutely crestfallen. Ranma began to cast about for something, like her sanity depended on something to be found in the tent or on the sands surrounding. Hanasu sighed. How sad.

She went back to her bag, as she tried to ignore the whimpering that came from Ranma. How this girl could have defeated anyone was really beyond her understanding. She was so weak in showing her feelings like this. It reminded her of her sister Mikan, actually. She was the same way.

Ranma shoved something in Hanasu's face and she backed away suddenly. Hanasu looked at it. It was a little gold ring.

"Here," Ranma gasped through a tear-streaked face, "Look at this. Your wedding ring, look at the inscription. Maybe that will bring your memories back."

Hanasu took the little bauble and looked hesitantly at the inscription on the inside. The little characters were in a language that she couldn't understand. Lots of little straight lines and hard edges, not at all like the fluid, smooth hand of her island. The pain jumped up behind her eyes again as another flash of images hit her.

More of those damned little yellow flowers. And...laughing...

The light reflecting off the metal shone briefly in her eyes. Hanasu lowered the ring and threw it back at Ranma as she rubbed her eyes again.

"There! You see?" Ranma said excitedly, "The memories are trying to return..."

"No, I just...Have a headache. It's probably from the heat," Hanasu spat at her.

"Ranma, don't push her. You've all had a very hard-"

"Shut up Ikari!" Ranma barked at her, "Akane, you've got to remember! You've just got to-"

And Ranma fell to her face in front of Hanasu, unconscious. Ikari picked up the little ring and tossed it back to Rei, who put it back with the machine, where Ranma had been keeping it hidden.

"Wha'?" was all Hanasu could manage.

"A little healer trick for unruly patients," Ikari said, smiling as she pulled Ranma towards the center of the tent, "I can't blame him though. You do look exactly like his wife."

"His-who?"

Ikari looked back at Hanasu.

"Ranma, of course. Who else would I be talking about?"

"But Ranma's a woman."

Ikari looked back to Ranma as if that fact would somehow change with the breezes that were picking up in the desert outside. Ikari's forehead wrinkled in anger and she lightly smacked Ranma on her head.

"It's probably your fault," she said, "Damned pronouns..."

Rei chuckled softly as she lay on the tarp next to Ranma. Hanasu looked confused but decided not to force the issue. These three were too weird, but they were nice people she supposed. And they were going to Kellenel, at least that was what Ikari had told her. At Kellenel, she could contact her father and get passage back to her home country, hopefully.

"Come on Hanasu, you should get some sleep too," Ikari said, "I've got to stay up and continue the healing. Tonight we roll out and Rei says that we should reach Kellenel by day afterward. Sleep during the day, travel at night."

"Well, okay. Just keep that lesbian over there sedated okay? I don't want her-"

Hanasu heard the sound of a blade being drawn almost immediately before the blade was at her throat. Rei's cold eyes stared into her own and she realized that Rei could and probably would kill her if she so desired.

"You will NOT call Ranma that again," she said softly above the blowing sands, "Do you understand?"

Hanasu nodded slightly as Ikari gently plucked Rei and her blade away from her throat. Rei settled back, keeping her cold stare on Hanasu. Hanasu began to shake as Ikari looked to the small cut on her throat. Her mind raced and the pain came back as more images flooded into her vision. Ikari had healed the little cut, but couldn't stop the shaking as Hanasu lay down, her back to Rei. She didn't want to see the cold gaze.

She could hear Ikari argue softly with Rei, but she didn’t care. The blood pounding in her ears was more than enough to cover whatever argument went on behind her. As the images muttered to a halt in her brain, Hanasu quieted into sleep. A little patter of rain on the edges of her hearing, awakening the desert beyond.

***

The man stirred, so she stuck the knife in him again. The naked girl on the bed squeaked as he gasped his last breath towards her. The light went from his eyes as the taller woman turned the knife sideways in his back. The girl on the bed sighed as he slumped silently to the floor and began to gather her clothes together. The taller woman took out her knife and wiped it clean. She looked at the girl and gave her an inquisitive eyebrow.

"What?" the girl asked as she laced her leggings, "It wasn't my fault the poison didn't work fast enough for you. It wasn't supposed to kill him anyway, it was only supposed to erase his memory."

"And what would happen if you used that kind of thing on Shiro?" Kowaku asked, "You know that those powders of yours don't work on the Senshuken."

"The Senshuken…" the girl said softly adjusting her tunic, "Kowaku-san? What should I do then, if I can't use my powders?"

Kowaku smiled as she rifled through the dead man's pockets. Kowaku would have to talk to her about her choice of colors as far as clothing went. The smile faded quickly when Kowaku thought back to the castle. Akuji had this little tart in his chambers…Kowaku swallowed her anger. She was here to put this girl in Shiro's group and she would be the last person to go against her lords' wishes.

"Yoko," Kowaku said softly, "There are powders that will work. You know them. You've been taught by the best, all you have to do is find something that will work."

"But-"

"Yoko!" Kowaku snapped.

The girl shrank back under the assault, but said nothing.

"Yoko," Kowaku repeated softly, "You must learn to complete what you begin. Take this little project of yours…"

Kowaku tapped the flat of her blade on the dead man's scalp.

"This man would have killed you had I not intervened," Kowaku flipped the little blade that the man had along his wrist toward Yoko.

Yoko caught it lazily along its' edge and examined the glint of poison that was readily apparent to her. He HAD been planning to kill her. Yoko wondered to herself why she hadn't noticed it before. Certainly she chose him because of the money that he readily carried. Kowaku had the same aims in her prey. Yoko couldn't help it that she naturally took longer. She supposed it was the reason that Ten'imuhou-sama chose her to get into Shiro's group. To take her time in taking him out. She flipped the knife across the room, sticking it in the wall adjacent.

Yoko also knew that Kowaku wasn't all that pleased with his choice, but that she wouldn't go against his wishes and neither would Yoko. Yoko ruffled her short, ash blonde hair and set her hands on her hips. Kowaku finished with the rifling and gave another questioning look towards the youngster. Yoko sighed. She hated this part of her job.

Job. It was beginning to be more like a career. She didn't mind it though. All these lovely men making Yoko feel so good inside. Too bad she had killed them all. They really were lovely little men. She swallowed a giggle as she searched through her backpack. Some of them weren't all that little. There it was. Yoko took out two small black bags. One was wrapped with a green piece of string, the other with a red string. Kowaku turned and left the room to let her trainee do her appointed duties. She would get rid of the body and meet her outside as was agreed upon earlier. All things done nice and neat.

The door shut behind Yoko, who sighed at the sound. It sounded so lonely and she hated to be lonely. She opened one of the bags and sprinkled the silver powder across the mans' body. She tied the bag away and began to chant. The little magic dust began to heat and smoke through the mans' corpse, eating away at all the layers of flesh and bone. Yoko wrinkled her pert little nose at the stink, this was always the worst part.

She opened the other bag and shouted the command word as she threw a handful of dust on the man. The activation cycle took place and the second powder threw the first into high gear, eating the man down to his base components. After a few seconds of stinky smoke, the salt that outlined the floor was the only thing remaining of her once-lover. Too bad too. This one had lasted nearly forty-five minutes, which was vastly longer than most.

Well, that was until the powder took affect. Then he…well, impotence was one of the shortcomings of her powders. Ten'imuhou said that Shiro would not be affected in that way, which thrilled her to no end. It also scared her somewhat because it was the powders that made her victims susceptible to her will. Victims? She shook her head. They all walked into her arms willingly. Kowaku was right, all she had to do was find the right combination. She hadn't been thrilled with the idea that Shiro was a woman either, but so be it. Sometimes women were better anyway.

Yoko coughed lightly as the smoke began to get to her. This one had been kind of fatty. The smoke cleared as Yoko dug out a small brush from her pack. She knelt to the layer of salt and hummed happily to herself as she swept up as much as she could into an empty bag. There. Nice and tidy. Yoko had checked her monies before she went after this one and found that they would have enough to set up a small shop here, waiting for Shiro to arrive.

Perhaps she could even set back a little nest egg in the meantime…

***

Rei sighed again. It was wet. Not the kind of wet to make one say 'Oh, perhaps we should get indoors.' or 'Hmm, I think I need an umbrella this afternoon.' No, this kind of wet permeated you down to your bones. It waterlogged bits that you never even knew you had. For the sake of the gods, even her etameran jumpsuit was soaked through, and she had no idea how that was even possible!

Rei had always had the impression that the storms in the desert were supposed to be quick and dangerous. Heat lightening, tornadoes, flash floods and the such. Not like this. Not this huge amount of rain. Just rain and more rain. Rei didn't understand it. She looked to the rear of the other seat at Hanasu, who just stared ahead out into the desert.

She hadn't wanted to scare the girl like she did, but there was no other way around getting respect from her. Talking certainly wasn't working, and Ranma wasn't being any kind of help. She had accepted Rei's apology, but still seemed reluctant to talk to her. Rei supposed that wouldn't be likely to change. Rei didn't care actually. Hanasu was a brat. That little 'lesbian' line did nothing to endear her to Rei by any means. If this person was Akane, she needed a good scare to straighten her out.

Ranma was still asleep in the back. As was Ikari, though she had been up for the rest of the day. They had been able to create a makeshift tent inside the wagon that allowed the water to flow off the sides. Quite ingenious, if she did say so herself. Since the tarp was etameran as well, it made it all the better. Unfortunately, the tent only covered the wagon itself and didn't extend up to the drivers' seat. Rei was just glad that the rain wasn't cold.

Rei tried to concentrate on the road ahead of her once more. It was not only wet, it was dark. Real dark. She could hear Yuubi ahead of her grunting in the darkness, but couldn't see the pecarico's head in the inky blackness of the desert night. She cursed silently to herself. If they came across Tsute's body, she'd have to get out and cross out a line of text she had written on him.

He had left them something of use. Rei checked the little lamp again. The compass needle on top still pointed towards Kellenel. The little lamp was ideal for night travel that Tsute had apparently been used to. The crystals in the lamp itself gathered ambient and direct light during the day and gave it off at night, and it lasted until well past dawn. On the top of the lamp was a magic compass. Not magic in that it had magic in it, but that it always pointed to the strongest, nearest source of magic. Which happened to be Kellenel. Never mind that most of the magic compasses in the southern continent pointed to Kellenel, that wasn't the point.

There were slight murmurings from the back that signaled to Rei that Ranma was waking up from another one of her dreams. Rei sighed. She wished that Ranma would talk about them with her. Perhaps she could even help.

Ranma yelped as she sat up. The visions flooded back to where they had come from. The dream. They were always there. Ranma wiped her eyes and looked at her hands. Feminine once more. She hated that part of her dreams the most. Coming back to this reality. Ranma pulled her coat around her and moved forward toward Rei, who was guiding the wagon towards the distant city.

Ranma sat behind Rei, who offered her hand back to Ranma. It was cooler and wet, so Ranma let her brush her hand across Ranma's forehead. It cooled her off and the touch comforted the visions away. Well, most of them anyway. Ranma patted her hand in silent thanks and sat forward. She realized that Hanasu had been watching her from across the wagon. Ranma pulled her coat around her bare top and tried to ignore the looks from Hanasu.

Ranma had given up her robe in order to cover Yuubi's head out in the rain. Yuubi seemed happy enough to have the cover, but Ranma's coat was a little heavier than she would have liked for desert travel. In fact, it was damned hot. Ranma pulled the pouch with the machine out of it's hiding spot in her coat. She fished Akanes' ring out of the little side pocket.

The little gold ring sparkled in the flashes of lightening that raged outside. Ranma wiped off the water with the cloth from the pouch. She sighed as it just got wet again. Ranma could see the inscription on the inside and she felt it with her finger. Ranma knew what the inscription read. It was the same thing that Ranma said on their wedding day. Just something impromptu that Ranma thought was romantic.

Ranma sat back in the wagon and closed her eyes. It felt good to remember. Ranma absently slipped the ring on her thumb. She smiled. This was Akane's ring, which was too big for her own ring finger. It fit on her thumb though. Ranma smiled again. It was good to remember.

***

The cherry blossoms had all fallen off by the time the decision had been made. Really, it surprised Ranma how easily they both agreed to the ceremony. After all that had gone on, from the failed wedding the year before, to all the hushed rumors in the halls of Furinkan that fall.

Ranma had tried to quell as many rumors as he could. Akane had done the same, but some rumors were more persistent than others. Especially the one that said that Ranma had his own harem. It was a rumor that neither Shampoo, nor Ukyou seemed overly eager to dispel. Early on in the year, Akane took Ryouga aside after one of her play performances and talked to him.

Ranma felt bad for the man. He wasn't seen around Nerima for the next few months. Not really until Christmas, when he came back for the party at the dojo. She had told him that the wedding was going to happen no matter what he would do, and she still wanted to be friends and other things. The sort of thing that made the hearts of most men crumble away. Ranma couldn't blame him for going off for a time, he just hoped that Ryouga wouldn't try to crash the second wedding.

Of course, Nodoka made sure that the only thing Nabiki had her hand in this time was catering the reception. Nabiki was upset and hurt by the whole thing, but realized that she was the only one to blame. Akane tried to help her through it by helping her with the cooking. It lightened the mood by the banter that ensued between them. Nodoka had also thought that it was a good thing that her son hadn't been there. Having an extreme case of someone else's foot in his mouth and all.

The list of guests had been short and sweet. All the parents, Kasumi and Doctor Tofu. Nabiki would be one of the bridesmaids. Ranma was highly shocked when Akane told him that Ukyou would be the other one. He had reminded her about what happened the last time and Akane had told him that it was up to him to make sure it didn't happen a second time.

He mulled the problem around in his head until he couldn't see any other way around it. He went to Ucchan's and talked to her. It had been bad. Really bad. Well, really bad for Ranma. She had cried and cried. Then she beat the shit out of him and cried some more. Ranma thought she took it much better than he expected. In the end, she would agree only if he promised to remain her friend. Ranma immediately promised, as that was what he wanted in the first place. He hated it when any woman cried, especially when he was to blame.

There was one final thing that would make the whole party complete. A best man. Tofu had volunteered, but Ranma knew that there was really only one man that he wanted to back him up in all this. Of course, it was the same man that would be most likely to stick a knife in it.

It wasn't until Christmas that Ranma talked to Ryouga. He had been with Akari for the last month and Ranma could see that there was a change about him. He could tell that it still pained him to give up on the ideal that Akane was for him, but said that Akari was his future now and he'd be glad to be the best man. Akari was busy with raising some of Katsunishiki's brood, so she couldn't come, but Ryouga would be glad to make it. Ranma was so happy. Not just because Ryouga said he'd do it, but also because it was much less painful.

The months went by and the end of February rolled around. The snows melted and spring was breathed back into the land. The ceremony itself was set for early March. Spring break from Furinkan. Akane also agreed that they would leave for their honeymoon as soon as classes were over, which was in May.

Their fathers, of course, had wanted to ship them off for a quick weekend in Okinawa, but Nodoka had other ideas and the Saotome family katana backed up her words. She asked Akane where she wanted the honeymoon and Akane had no idea. She knew that she wanted to get out of Japan for the short time at the beginning of the summer. Probably a good idea since carnage would ensue when word got out.

The days of April rolled past like so much honey against a tree. Slow and painstaking were the preparations. Ukyou and Ryouga, when he was around, were better than their words. They kept their mouths shut and played along, though Ranma suspected that Ukyou enjoyed playing along a little more than she should.

About two weeks before the wedding, Ryouga disappeared. This wasn't unusual, but as the wedding drew near, Ranma began to worry as no one had seen him. Two days before the wedding, a little package arrived from a small village west of Kyoto. Akane opened it and began to cry. Showing it around, she read aloud the small card from Ryouga. It read that he wasn't able to make it back for the wedding, but hoped that, at least his present would somehow make up for his absence.

Ranma felt an unusual surge of sadness as he looked at the little bank. It was a little piggy bank. A salt glazed, black piggy bank. Ryouga had tied one of his bandanas around the neck, which made the little bank look very much like P-chan. Ranma smiled. He supposed that it was Ryouga's way of saying goodbye.

March came and the cherry blossoms were back on the trees when the time came. Akane looked radiant in her white kimono. Soun had told her that it had been her mothers' when she married. Akane had to take it into the next room in order to keep it dry, but she enjoyed it anyway. Nodoka had asked Genma where his tuxedo was, but Ranma intervened before there was any blood shed over it. He got his own tuxedo and was glad that it still fit him, after a couple years he hadn't been sure.

Even with Akane in a kimono, the ceremony itself remained western. They had decided on the western version for the same reasons that they chose it the first time around, the speed. Ranma had wanted a more formal wedding, but Akane convinced him that speed was more important than formality.

The ceremony proceeded smoothly, all along until the point where several of the fiancés burst in before. Akane glanced sidelong at Ukyou, who was crying heavily. Ukyou shook her head in negation and Akane mouthed a thanks to her. Ranma smiled, which made her cry even more, and the ceremony continued towards the end.

Akane stopped the priest before the end in order to give her own vows.

"My love will forever be yours," Akane said, the solemn love in her eyes, "Ranma Saotome, I love you."

"For you, Akane Tendo, there is but my love…For you, forever," Ranma replied returning her look, "I love you, Akane."

The priest nodded and finished the ceremony. Ranma remembered his first real kiss with her as if it was just yesterday. The softness of her lips as they met with his. It startled him because she was so...warm. He didn't really know what to expect, but knew that the tenderness that she showed him was what she truly felt. And, at last, he could express them in return.

They ignored their fathers, dancing and acting like fools in the background. They ignored Ukyou's continued sobs, especially when Akane tossed her bouquet behind her, right into Ukyou's hands. They ignored the looks of longing that Tofu and Kasumi gave each other. And it wasn't until everything settled down and all of them cleared their throats at once did they break their kiss. Ranma remembered the laughter and joking of it all. The sheer happiness.

The happiness...

***

Rei snorted as she awoke in the waning light of the second day. She looked next to her and slightly forward, in the drivers seat. Ikari was snoring at the reins and in danger of slipping forward under the wagon itself. It was second time Rei saw her like that and every time Ikari swore it wouldn't happen again. She was so damned stubborn. Rei looked towards the back of the wagon. Just like Ranma.

Rei moved forward and took the reins from Ikari, which startled her awake. She rubbed the sleep at her eyes and sheepishly helped Rei into the drivers' seat. Rei could have done it herself, but it was still nice to get some help, having only one good foot and all. Yuubi churtled a greeting from the front and Rei reached forward to pat the animal on the rump. Somehow Yuubi always knew when Rei was at the reins.

Rei looked down and studied her foot, which had grown in about halfway since the battle in the desert with Gouka. It was still tender all over and would it probably take another week before she could walk on it again. Rei sighed and straightened in the seat. She looked down at the compass and corrected their course slightly to the east. Ikari always seemed westbound when she slept.

Rei's tribe believed that a person's true direction in life could always be ascertained when they slept. There were a couple of somnambulant spells that could be cast on the person, which would make them get up and walk around. Most people walked in one direction. Some disturbed people walked in circles. Rei always walked to Ranma's room, which angered her grandfather. Ikari had begun to walk west. Both Ikari and Ranma were really honked off that grandfather had cast them, but when he explained himself, it seemed to calm Ikari.

Ranma wasn't too thrilled with idea though. Kept muttering something about 'gools', whatever 'gools' were. Odd though, grandfather never told Ranma what happened to her. Rei didn't see the big deal of it. It was just something else that proved Ranma wasn't from this world. Ranma began to glow with chi as she slept. The chi was so strong; it forced Ranma's body up and held it aloft for several minutes before dissipating. Grandfather did that twice with Ranma and always the same result. Grandfather had called Ranma 'genkimono', which he told her had something to do with being a 'conduit', whatever 'conduits' were. Grandfather had some strange notions sometimes.

The rain had let up and was now little more than a drab drizzle sprinkling down on them. Just enough to keep them wet. Ranma had recovered her robe from Yuubi's head and was curled up in the back with Hanasu. Rei didn't understand how they didn't wake each other up with all that snoring. It certainly kept her awake.

Ikari muttered something and Rei noticed that she'd taken up her spot behind the passenger seat. She had dug into Rei's bag and swiped a molin, which she ate despite her disgust of them. Rei smiled inwardly. She knew that molins weren't the tastiest survival foods in the world, but they were just that. Survival foods. One molin was enough for a normal person for up to twelve hours. And they packed down nice and tight.

"Hey, could you hand me one of those?" Rei asked lightly.

Ikari muttered something and handed one up to Rei.

Ranma snorted and turned over, smacking Hanasu with his arm. She muttered something in return, shoved the arm away and kept sleeping. About an hour later Hanasu would return the favor, smacking Ranma. This strange ballet had been going on since mid afternoon and would probably continue until about midnight or so, when Ranma got up.

"They do make a cute couple," Ikari said, finishing her molin.

"I'd rather not think about it," Rei said, adjusting course slightly.

Ikari thought on that for a second as she drank a bit of rainwater. They had set the barrels out as they were packing the wagon and while the water wasn't exactly the purest they could hope for, it was still drinkable. Ikari purified it as much as she could. They were only able to load three barrels onto the wagon, but Ranma and Rei both figured that this would be more than enough to get them to Kellenel.

"I thought you would've killed her back at camp," Ikari said carefully.

"No," Rei said softly, "Just frighten her into respecting us."

"Don't you think it would be easier and a lot less…scary…if you just made friends with her?"

"I'm not out here to make friends, Ikari," Rei said as she took another bite.

"Ya, whatever," Ikari tried again, "You know, you could be a little nicer."

Rei said nothing. The silence penetrated only by the turning of the wagon wheels. The squish into the rain soaked earth. The almost silent huffs from Yuubi up ahead of them. The desert coming alive as it surveyed the storm damage.

"I mean," Ikari continued, "What if she really is Akane…"

"She's not!" Rei snapped.

Rei softened her expression; "She's already explained who she was but not where she came from. And I don't buy this crap that she just appeared in the desert. She won't tell us what's in that damned bag of hers either."

"Rei," Ikari tried to explain, "If you were carrying all your worldly possessions in a bag, would you be so anxious to share it with strangers?"

"But-"

"Rei!" Ikari said a little too loudly.

"Rei…" Ranma mumbled softly from the back.

Ikari and Rei exchanged glances as they settled their attentions back towards the distant horizon.

"I know you love Ranma and while it personally grosses me out, it's your life," Ikari said, "But you knew what would happen when we found-"

"If."

"No Rei, when. I've been travelling with Ranma for over a year now and I can tell you there's no one else in this world, or I think any other, that has more single-minded, painstakingly idiotic, dogged determination as Ranma Saotome," Ikari continued, "When she sets her mind to something, it gets done. Period."

"Period…"

"Shut up Ranma," Ikari said towards the back.

"Okay…"

"And when exactly were you going to tell him you're ageless as well?" Ikari said as she turned back to Rei.

"I'm not ageless, Ikari."

"But-" Ikari was confused now, "The immortality-?"

Rei giggled as she realized what Ikari was saying.

"Just because I'm immortal doesn't mean I don't age. It just means that I can't die," Rei thought about what she just said, "That sounds odd, doesn't it?"

"So…You can die by…?"

"Old age," Rei smiled, "Naturally, we live quite a bit longer than your average person. I think great-grandfather was twelve hundred when he died."

"So what were you going to do when Ranma died after about a hundred years or so?"

Rei remained silent as she stared forward. She bit slowly into her molin.

"Yeah…I thought so…"

***

Ranma yawned once as she checked the compass. Rei had gone ahead and come back with good news. They weren't all that far from Kellenel. The light from the third day was waning in the distance. Ranma had been driving Yuubi for nearly six hours and both of them were ready for breaks. She pulled the reins to a halt and Yuubi gurgled her assent. Ranma looked in the back at all the sleeping girls and huffed to herself. The more things changed…

Ranma jumped down and made her way to the side of the wagon. She uncovered one of the barrels and put it over her shoulder. Sure it was heavy, but she wasn't taking it far. She set it down in front of Yuubi and undid the binding on the top of the barrel. Yuubi happily nuzzled Ranma and began to drink. Rei had a real attachment to Yuubi for some reason, but Ranma couldn't argue that she also had a soft spot for the pecarico. She patted Yuubi on her neck and walked a little forward into the desert.

The ground was firm, but not quite dry in some spots. Ranma could see the little puddles here and there that marked the storm that had finally stopped just a few hours before. Ranma could hear the creatures pitter and patter about, trying to take advantage of the unusual surplus while it lasted. Ranma watched as a family of beetle-like things rolled stones into a carefully arranged semi-circle around its burrow. She could see that the other beetle, the mate perhaps, clearing out the hole of excess dirt. The dirt occasionally pushed one of the stones out of alignment, to which the beetle in charge of the stones would simply stop and realign them.

Ranma watched this little dance, lost in her thoughts of home and Akane. The Akane she knew. Two years ago. Would the two years apart create a rift between them? Would she have fallen in love with someone else in this world, having given Ranma up? Ranma didn't know. She hoped that the love they built in the couple of short months before being pulled here would be enough to hold them through this strange time.

But two years. Ranma didn't know. She sighed to herself. She had been so used to the time that she thought they had together. Their marriage meant a lifetime together, a lifetime where she could make up for everything that had happened before they married. All the hurtful things…Ranma closed her eyes against the pain in her heart. Two years hadn't done anything to diminish the pain. The loneliness hadn't lasted long as she found a friend in the travelling sisterhood. Esu had been the only one to believe Ranma's incredible story. Esu trusted and believed in Ranma when she didn't believe in herself. And it was just the thing that Ranma needed. No, the loneliness was long gone, but the pain was still there.

Darkness quickly set as the sun made it's way below the horizon. Ranma didn't care. The coolness of the desert would help as they made their last leg to Kellenel. Then they could all rest as they tried to figure out where to go next. Ranma had a couple ideas, and perhaps one would pan out in Kellenel, but she didn't know.

"Ranma?"

Ranma spun at the word. It was Hanasu. Ranma cursed herself at being so careless. Not hearing this girl as she snuck up on her. Well, she didn't really sneak. Ranma had just been so lost in thought that Yuubi could probably have snuck up on her and Ranma wouldn't have noticed. Ranma turned back to the open desert.

"Yeah, I know we need to get underway, I was just resting Yuubi for a second."

"No…I…" Hanasu folded her arms around her against the chill in the air.

Ranma noticed this and took off her coat. She folded it around the blonde girl and returned to her thought. Hanasu smiled and pulled the coat close.

"I never got a chance to thank all of you…And to say I'm sorry," Hanasu said, looking towards the distant horizon, "I know that Ikari could have left me out there, but that she risked herself to get me. I know that you and Rei risked your lives against that monster for me. I guess I've been a terrible guest in the meantime."

Ranma laughed softly as she picked up some stones.

"That's okay…Hanasu," Ranma had difficulty not calling her Akane, "I was so sure that you were my wife. I guess I got a little out of hand. I've been looking for her for almost two years now and I'm becoming a little desperate."

"Uh…Ranma?" Hanasu asked quietly, "Can I ask a personal question?"

Ranma nodded, more to herself than to Hanasu. She even sounded like Akane…

"What family would let two women marry?" Hanasu asked, not hiding the disgust in her voice, "I mean, the reason to marry is for children, isn't it?"

Ranma looked at Hanasu; a little shocked at the vehemence she had in her voice. Ranma began to smile, then giggled and finally couldn't contain her laughter any more.

"What's so funny about it?"

"I'm not a woman," Ranma laughed, pointing to her chest.

Hanasu began to laugh at the absurdity of what Ranma just said and pointed to Ranma's chest.

"Then what do you call those?"

Ranma stopped laughing as her hands went to her chest. She turned back towards the desert once more.

"I…" Ranma muttered, "I forgot."

How can you forget that you're female? Hanasu thought, What an idiot…

Ranma sighed heavily and tossed one of the stones into the air. The stone lit briefly it the air and faded out as Ranma caught it. Ranma examined it. It looked like an ordinary little stone in the light of the two moons.

"Oh!" Hanasu exclaimed, "Aerials! I didn't know they came down this far west."

"What are aerials?" Ranma asked.

"These stones…" Hanasu picked one out of Ranma's palm, "Are aerials."

She tossed one up into the air, watching it's path light and fade in the air between them.

"I don't really know how they work, nor where they come from. All I know is that they come down over the Sea of Merinin to the southwest of my families' estate," Hanasu looked at the stone in her hand, "The House Meri use them as long distance communications device. A kind of code."

She held the rock in her palm and blew on it. The stone lit under even the gentlest breath. Hanasu varied her breath and the stone responded, growing brighter and dimmer. Hanasu said something lightly on the stone, which brightened with her voice. Ranma couldn't make out what she said, but the twilight beheld to her that it could be used in the way she described. Ranma sighed. So many more alien things in this world. So many more ways that she realized she didn't belong.

Hanasu noticed the cloud that set across Ranma. She wondered if she had said something that caused it. Hanasu also wondered what could weigh so heavily on a girls' mind. Ranma had some good qualities, especially her body. Hanasu bet she could even land one of the princes from the Outer Islands. They usually didn't care about lineage and it was apparent to Hanasu that Ranma's wasn't exactly stellar.

But despite her questionable breeding, Ranma still struck a chord in Hanasu. Something buried that she hadn't even realized was there. Hanasu would call it attraction, but for the fact that Ranma was a woman, even if she claimed otherwise. She didn't know, maybe it was Ranma's unstable mental condition. Hanasu was always a sucker for hard luck cases. These three were no exception. Hanasu sighed. She tossed the stone out into the desert, watching the trail as it sailed into the distance.

Ranma laughed slightly. She wondered…

"Watch this," Ranma said.

She charged one of the larger stones with a small amount of chi. She wound up and tossed it high into the air. The stone shined brightly into the night sky, mingling briefly among her sister stars. The chi released at the perihelion of the stones' flight and shattered it into a shower of dust. The dust sparkled down in a rain that covered the area around them. Ranma turned as more laughter fluttered in from the wagon. Rei had her hands outstretched, while Ikari rubbed her eyes in annoyance. Ranma looked to Hanasu, who was laughing and twirling in the artificial light rain.

Laughing and twirling. Like in a field of golden flowers, Ranma thought to herself, Oh Akane…

Ranma bit back her tears and walked back to the wagon. Hanasu stopped her dancing and watched Ranma as she wound the binding on Yuubi's barrel and dragged it to the rear of the wagon. Hanasu got aboard as Ranma took the driver's seat once again. Ranma shrugged off any attempt at explanation and Rei shrugged. Sometimes Ranma got like that. Rei looked to Hanasu, who sat in the back looking up at the remaining dust that drifted down.

The wagon got underway towards the far off lights. And each one wondered what it would take…to get home.