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		Song of the Phoenix

		   First Movement: 
		          Aria

					


Ranma 1/2 created by Rumiko Takahashi. (C) Rumiko Takahashi / 
Shogakukan. English version copyright Viz Communications.
Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy VI created by Hironobu Sakaguchi / 
Squaresoft. (C) Square-Enix.

No profit is made from this work of fiction. It is for the entertainment 
of fellow fans only.


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		Part One: Apertura




	Chapter 1:
		Dreaming


First, there was the burning.
	Dancing flames crackled around her, threatening to scorch her 
with their lashing tongues. Like liquid, they flowed through the ether 
of the darkness in which she found herself; blazing serpents slithered 
close to her feet, while angry coronas rose from the ground as the most 
ardent sunfire. Yet, she would only feel welcome in such a place --a 
haven where the fire would only comfort her, as though  it didn't dare 
harm her.
	Akane Tendou had always had strange dreams.
	Everywhere she turned, she saw only fire. It ate away at the 
blackness of her dreamscape, illuminating it and showering it with 
warmth. Eventually, all things around her shone the color of gold and 
ruby, except for one body: the Moon, which hung from the brilliant 
blue skies as bright as a silver star.
	Hesitant at first, she tried to walk through the conflagration; 
she didn't know where she was, but there was something deep in her 
soul which drove her to move, to find a goal amid the gentle inferno. 
She was being called onward, but by whom, she did not know. It was a 
familiar presence, loving and full of tenderness, though she had never 
felt it before.
	Her hand clasped another. The touch was soft and 
unassuming, it insinuated itself into her grip and nestled there 
comfortably.  For a moment, the flames around her flickered and 
sputtered in a commotion, but she smiled at the contact nonetheless. 
There was a girl by her side, with a shining face shaped like a heart 
and framed by a dark pageboy cut, setting off her bright brown eyes. 
She looked sideways at her and Akane returned the glance, amused 
only for a moment. The girl that was her and that walked beside her 
smiled back, squeezed her hand gently, and began to pull her back.
	Akane was surprised. The flames, previously inoffensive, 
roared loudly in response to her other's intrusion. Cold blue sparks, the 
color of cobalt, rose amid the blaze to overwhelm its previous warmth. 
And as the other gripped her hand tightly, struggling against an unseen 
force to pull her away from the fire, a terrible wind swept through her 
body and tossed them off their feet.
	Her head swam. She had fallen face-first on the unyielding 
ground. Crimson hair clung to her face, obscuring her eyes and 
dizzying her as the wind tugged at it every which way. She looked up 
through the fog and saw that the other, the girl that was her and at the 
same time wasn't, was caught helplessly in the fury of the blue flames 
and merciless storm.
	Her plight drove a spear through Akane's mind. She had to 
save her. Damn this wind and this fire, nothing else mattered but 
getting her to safety. Struggling against the gale and her own 
weakness, she tossed her braid over her shoulder and stepped forward.
	The ground gave way under her feet. A strangled yelp came 
from Akane's lips and she fell down, down a long shaft that ended with 
a shock of water, icy and penetrating like death. Her head sank quickly 
beneath the surface, and the fire was there: blue, deep and filled with 
sorrow.
	She thrashed wildly with her arms and legs, and by some 
miracle she managed to bob her face above the water. She saw the 
bamboo, and instinctively clung to it to try and pull herself up from the 
pool.  Akane, the other Akane, was kneeling by the edge of the well 
and kept shouting and screaming at her, trying to stretch her hand 
down for her even though she was too far out of reach. The flames all 
around the pit were gold and lively, but there was an unknowable 
desperation in their dance.
	She pulled herself up with all her might, but the water clung 
to her, made her heavy, and dragged her down like tar. Her hands 
slipped over the shaft of bamboo, and her legs kicked violently under 
the surface. The water burned her, her feet were frozen, and the flame 
in that abominable spring was like a million voices, one hundred and 
forty-four voices that shrieked death and sadness at her. And, all the 
while, Akane's screams and the roar of the fire overhead filled her ears 
with the need to break free.
	The spring was no longer deep, she could almost paddle to 
the edge. Akane was almost in reach of her other. Then, a figure as 
large as a man leapt from a place beyond the golden fire and stepped 
atop the bamboo pole. Akane called out --she knew him! He was going 
to help!
	No. He fell, his black braid whipping venomously behind his 
head. She saw him drop towards her and was prey of immeasurable 
fear, and the cry she let out when he crashed into her was more of 
betrayal and pain than surprise. Pinned beneath his dead weight, she 
was powerless; she felt the spring water, that cold blue flame, rush 
through her nose and mouth and into the deepest recesses of her body. 
However buoyant she had felt earlier, she felt herself sinking instantly 
upon the onrush, and her terror was even greater.
	The spring had no bottom; the bamboo had no substance to 
cling to; the walls were high and unscalable. The water filled both him 
and her, pulling them down to unreachable depths. Her chest ached 
with a pressure she never thought possible, and her limbs had become 
leaden, dead with panic and exhaustion.
	Akane was no stranger to drowning; the impotence and panic 
were more than familiar. But this was much, much worse. She didn't 
sink as much as fall into endless, paralyzing darkness. Instead of the 
muted drone she heard in pools and bathtubs, she could hear nothing 
in this water other than interminable shrieking. And when she at last 
found the strength to open her eyes, she didn't see anyone reaching 
down to pull her out--
	She saw her own braid, flaming red and unraveling in the 
water, and beyond it a pair of eyes that burned as hot and intense as 
embers.
	Then, there was nothing but the dark.
	


			*	*	*

Akane rose from her bed drenched in sweat, still panting from the 
nightmare. To her side, P-chan groggily sat up, half asleep. As her 
heart pounded furiously in her chest, she put her head in her hands, 
trying to calm down. Her face was covered in tears, probably because 
she still remembered the outcome of the dream.
	That had been the fifth time in as many nights Akane had had 
a nightmare related to Ranma in some way or another. Sometimes, it 
involved him dying because of his curse; often, it included the same 
feeling of dread, of helplessness that haunted her now. Every time, 
though, she had been shaken gravely by the end of the dream. But she 
couldn't help being frightened. It was... as if her heart were being rent 
asunder by the horror that came to her in her sleep.
	Trembling, Akane took P-chan in her arms and stood up, 
feeling the hard thumping of her own heart against the body of the 
small piglet. With a sigh, she walked to the door and stepped out to the 
dark hallway, then made her way slowly, on tip-toe, to the Saotomes' 
room. She was hesitant at first, thinking it silly to feel the need to 
check up on its inhabitants, but opened the door nonetheless. And yet, 
while the huge panda within was blocking most of the moonlight, what 
it allowed to see was enough to set her at ease.
	Letting out a deep sigh, she began to walk back to her room.
However, she found it difficult to head in that direction. Her feet made 
their way forward out of their own volition, taking her towards the 
balcony. Akane shivered as she came out into the cool night air. With 
silent steps, she headed towards the railing, grasping it as though it 
were a lifeline.
	The sky was completely clear, a rarity at this time of year. 
The stars were unusually bright as well. Akane took a breath of fresh 
air, waiting for her lungs to fill up completely before releasing it. 
Gently, she placed P-chan on the floor and leaned against the railing. 
The night was so peaceful; it was hard for her troubled heart to 
acknowledge the pain that it had felt just moments ago. Under the pale 
gaze of the moon above everything seemed to disappear... the world 
became, even if just for a few moments, a normal place once more, 
making all the insanity around her life appear to be nothing but a 
fleeting fantasy.
	Suddenly a shooting star, the brightest she had seen in a long 
time, appeared exactly overhead. Quickly, Akane closed her eyes and 
began to make her wish. It was different this time, though. She had 
always wished half-heartedly that Ranma could finally stop being a 
jerk, knowing all the while that it was just a silly superstition. But this 
time, she allowed herself to transcend her rationality. She poured her 
soul into the wish, hoping that, in spite of all reason, it could come 
true. Soon, the strength of her request became so great, so insistent, it 
was more of a prayer than a mere wish.
	Opening her eyes, she followed the shooting star as it 
continued its journey. Oddly enough, it was almost as though it shone 
even brighter than before. Turning away, Akane picked up her pet pig 
and headed back inside. She just stood in the entryway for a moment, 
catching her final glimpse of the star until, with a sigh, she went back 
to her room.
	"Please," she continued, "this time it has to work."


			*	*	*

Lost deep in the rugged peaks of the Bayan Har Shan Mountains, in 
the Tibetan region of China, lay a secluded valley forever shrouded in 
mist. Set at the foot of Mt. Kensei, it shone with a silvery light, 
glittering like a sea of stars to mirror those in the sky above. Bestrewn 
with springs and pools that numbered well over a hundred, the valley 
of Jusenkyou was unusually quiet that night.
	If only the wind could howl, the Guide considered, looking 
over the springs from his doorstep. At least then he could get a decent 
night's sleep. The absolute silence that pervaded the night was far 
more dreadful, and it set his teeth on edge. It seeped into the ground 
and through the walls to still them, and so any sound louder than his 
own breathing would quickly fade away as if embarrassed for making 
such a racket.
	The springs, his constant wards, felt just as alien to him. 
Normally, they would ripple and surge even in the lightest breeze, and 
the bamboo would sway and dance along with them. Tonight, the poles 
were cast in steel, driven through icy mirrors that shone with the very 
same faint, spectral light that ordinary water isn't supposed to have. 
And even though they were haunted springs, and some leeway was to 
be expected, the Guide was familiar enough with Jusenkyou to know 
what passed for normal, and what was definitely not.
	A silence so deep that it extinguished all sound, allowing for a 
sensation of hundreds of voices, wafting wraith-like from every single 
pool... That was not normal. None of the previous Guides had ever 
mentioned them in their journals. And that was because, for all its 
horror and tragedy, Jusenkyou was nothing more than an amazing 
sight at daytime, and a foreboding presence at night. As he closed the 
door shut and tried to return to his cot, the Guide was overcome by the 
feeling that, this night, Jusenkyou had grown infinitely larger --and 
infinitely more fearsome.
	Thus, when he heard the crash, he nearly jumped up out of his 
skin and through the roof of his house.
	Clutching his chest to keep his heart from bursting out, the 
Guide stumbled over to the door. He fumbled with the doorknob, 
rattling it in the wood in his anxiety, but he managed to crack open just 
enough of a gap to peer through.
	There was very little he could see, however. The mist over the 
springs was fainter, as though it had been blown away, but it was 
quickly roiling back into place. He could hear, though, that the springs 
were agitated; the water churned and bubbled as if boiling, and a few 
of their bamboo shoots were slapping noisily against each other. There 
was something shining nearby, though, and that caught his attention: it 
was a bright, pulsing light, which cast flickering shadows across the 
ground. For an instant, he thought that it was a car that a new customer 
had arrived on; he quickly dismissed that thought, knowing that the 
roads leading to and from Jusenkyou were far too rugged and narrow 
for any vehicle larger than a wooden cart. Curious, the Guide armed 
himself with a frying pan and a cowardly disposition, swallowing in 
worry before stepping out of the house and into the countryside. Then 
he found the source of the glow, hanging in the air just above the 
pools, and he decided that the immense, glowing spark of devilish 
light was one of those Jusenkyou things that were _not_ normal.
	He scrambled into his house and under the cot in record time.
	After a few minutes of waiting for another terrible, 
Jusenkyou-created beast to slither or stomp or sweep into his abode, 
the Guide risked a peek from under the cot. The table was still in one 
piece, which was good. The house was still standing, which was better. 
The door was still closed, and the evil light that came in through the 
gaps around the doorframe was quickly fading into darkness. 
Likewise, the trail of smoke coming in through the window was 
weakening from a furious red into a rather ordinary shade of black.
	Wait.
	Slowly, the Guide crawled out from his humble hiding spot 
and peered out the window. Sure enough, there was a faint trail of 
smoke leading into the forest behind his house, where the ground had 
been rent into a wide, deep gash. Low moaning came from the woods 
as well.
	He decided that, finally, enough was enough. Cowardice or 
no cowardice, Jusenkyou beasts or no Jusenkyou beasts, he was fed up 
with customers arriving at the strangest times by the strangest means to 
end up transformed into the strangest things by the cursed waters. 
Especially when they ruined his backyard.
	Running out the door, the Guide raised a lantern over his head 
to light the way along the groove. The strange light above the springs 
had vanished, leaving no traces save whatever it was that had crashed 
through his garden and was currently emitting a pained moaning. After 
reaching the end of the trench, though, the Guide decided that he 
would have preferred to find no traces at all.
	It was an enormous egg, nearly six feet wide and eight feet 
long. Colored bronze, it gave off a metallic glint in the moonlight. 
Sure enough, when the Guide tapped it with a knuckle, he confirmed it 
was metal, and hollow. Also, he noticed, it was extremely cold.
	There was another moan, almost as if in response to his 
knocking. For a moment, he recalled that a tribe from the vicinity of 
Jusenkyou used eggs similar to this for capturing enemies. However, 
even those people didn't use metal ones, much less leave them 
unguarded. Curious, he peered around the shell to try and find a way to 
open it.
	He didn't need to search for long, though. After just a few 
seconds, the egg itself evanesced quietly into thin air. A few purplish-
blue sparks ran across the fading surface, lighting up the forest, until 
finally the shell vanished to leave the Guide staring agape at the figure 
within...
	...and at the wondrous beast that lay beside it.
	Unbeknownst to him, the water of the springs of Jusenkyou 
began to ripple, shedding a faint azure glow, almost like a blue flame, 
into the silent darkness.



	Chapter 2:
		Family

Akane looked on wistfully as the landscape slid at high speeds outside 
the window. Far in the distance, the mountains slowly rolled past her, 
disguising the swift pace of the train as it hurried onwards.
	She had always enjoyed train rides. They gave her a chance to 
see much more of her country than she usually had the chance. And, 
unlike training trips, they allowed her to sit in her own, peaceful world 
while the rest of the world blurred in and out of existence. However, 
she was much too distraught at the moment to bask in her personal 
pleasure.
	That dream had come again last night, much more intense 
than ever. This time, though she hadn't had anything as distinctly 
horrifying as the nightmare about drowning, it had flooded her heart 
with such deep melancholy she found it hard to enjoy even such a 
simple pleasure.
	She had been standing outside the Dojo, with Mrs. Saotome 
and another, unfamiliar woman behind her. In the distance, she beheld 
an enormous tree, taller than even the Tokyo Tower. She knew she 
was crying: her cheeks were red and wet, and her eyes were dry. 
Beyond the tree, the sun glowed brightly, its rays falling like golden 
columns amid the thick foliage.
	Ranma was running away from her. Akane could still feel her 
heart twist horribly in her chest at the sight of the slender, almost 
wispy redhead leaving home, her hair waving freely like a solar flare. 
Akane reached out; she tried to stop Ranma from going towards that 
tree, but her fiance would only turn back at her, smile, and continue to 
run. Then, when the petite figure had faded from sight, there would be 
a great burst of light at the root of the tree, and a gigantic, armored 
creature would rise and let out a bellow as frightening and powerful as 
the roar of the earth itself.
	She shook her head, wishing away those images before they 
could bring about more tears, and concentrating on the panorama 
outside her window. It had been two months since she had had a dream 
as appalling as this; but as terrible as the images of the fire and 
drowning in the spring had been back then, even they hadn't conjured 
the awful heartache that last night had left her with. It was as if a part 
of her soul were being ripped from her, even now.
	Turning around, Akane peeked through the gap between the 
seats to glimpse at the back of Ranma's head, his attention barely 
caught by a martial arts magazine someone had abandoned on the 
train. Uncle Saotome, in the opposite seat, was snoring the trip away, a 
snot bubble in his nostril being the only indication that he wasn't a 
particularly lumpy mannequin.
	With a sigh, she dumped herself on her seat and closed her 
eyes. They were just nightmares, she told herself. Maybe... maybe 
something in her heart was trying to give her a warning; the visions 
always ended with Ranma and her being torn apart in one way or 
another.
	But... she had not had those dreams in a while. She had seen 
the beginning of summer, and the trips to the beach and to that villa by 
the lake without the slightest image in her sleep. Then again, maybe 
the business with that gigantic jellyfish, and what Ryouga-kun and 
Akari had gone through yesterday had reminded her that she wouldn't 
be able to deny her true feelings for much longer... hence the dreams 
about Ranma leaving. 
	Nonsense, she told herself. True, she and Ranma had been 
getting along much better now, and maybe they did feel something... 
but it was certainly not _that_. Why, the pervert still held on to those 
other girls and kept insulting her like the immature jerk he was. 
Especially that last time Auntie Saotome visited... Oo, the idiot was 
actually glad his breasts were bigger than Akane's own! And then that 
mirror-copy last month...
	She stood up and slapped her hands to her cheeks a couple of 
times. There she was, trying to avoid getting upset at the dreams, and 
she ends up angry anyway. Stop, think about school, think about 
martial arts, think about that lady with the long wrapped bundle over 
her shoulder, very much like Mrs. Sao--
	Akane froze, her hands on her cheeks, in a pose that could 
have inspired Edvard Munch.
	Mrs. Saotome! But what was she doing here? Had Auntie 
heard that Ranma and Uncle would be going to the beach along with 
the Tendous? Was she visiting relatives? Why was she still carrying 
that stupid sword around?
	At least she was walking away, towards the restroom at the 
front of the car. Otherwise... No, wait. Ranma! Gotta warn Ranma that 
his mother was here!
	Ducking behind the seats until Mrs. Saotome entered the 
lavatory, Akane suddenly pulled herself around and whirled to face 
Ranma straight on. Across the isle, her father had a newspaper draped 
over his face while Kasumi contentedly read a book. Only Nabiki had 
taken notice of what had surprised Akane, and was smirking devilishly 
as if questioning her ability to get out of this mess.
	"Ranma!" she whispered fiercely, earning a wide yawn from 
the pigtailed boy. "Get up, stupid! Your mother is here!"
	With the trained reflexes of a life on the run, Genma blew out 
his snot bubble, grabbed his son and leapt out the nearest open 
window --realizing a second too late he was on a moving train rather 
than in the Tendou living room. Akane and Nabiki nearly fell over in 
surprise.
	"YOU STUPID IDIOT!" a rather angry male voice fought 
over the loud roar of the wind outside. "What the hell are you doing?!"
	"A martial artist must... ungh! ...always be ready for 
anything!" contested another voice, and a large hand clamped itself 
over the edge of the window. Akane immediately grabbed hold of it 
and pulled --taking Genma back into the train. He wasted no time in 
dashing towards the restroom at their end of the car and hiding himself 
inside.
	Meanwhile, a farmer and his cow were somewhat surprised to 
see a train speed by in the distance, a red and black, human-shaped 
banner hanging from the side of one of its windows. The cow mooed 
appreciatively.
	"Ranma!" Akane cried, leaning out the window. "What are 
you DOING?! Get back in here!"
	"Thought I'd get some fresh air, you idiot, what do you 
THINK I'm doing!" He managed to pull his torso back into the car, his 
limbs flailing at any handholds and finding none. "Gimme your hand!"
	"Oh? Why, hello, Akane-chan!"
	Both teens froze at the voice --a decidedly stupid thing to do 
when your lower body is flapping like a flag outside a fast-moving 
vehicle-- and Akane shut the window, trying to hide her fiance from 
the also fast-moving mother that had spotted her and was rapidly 
approaching.
	"A-auntie Saotome!" Akane's eyes had taken that deer-in-the-
headlights look again. "Wh-what a coincidence to meet you here!"
	"Indeed. Are you on vacation too?" was Mrs. Saotome's 
cheery reply. The matriarch seemed even more spirited than ever, and 
her smile was dazzling. All of Akane's anxieties were allayed at the 
sight.
	Even those related to her fiance cum windsock, unfortunately.
	"Y-yes, we're going to an inn by the beach," Akane said, 
smiling back at the older woman. "And you, obasama?"
	Mrs. Saotome shifted her wrapped sword to the other arm, 
"I'm visiting some relatives. I also wanted to drop by the memorial of 
the Saotome family to ask my ancestors for advice regarding my son." 
She suddenly looked hopeful, "Did he come with you? Is he here?"
	The dreaded question had finally come again. Akane could 
only sigh ruefully and shake her head, "I'm sorry, Auntie. He, um, he 
and Uncle Saotome had to stay home to take care of the Dojo. And, 
uh..." she added as an afterthought, "...they said they would probably 
leave soon anyway on another training trip."
	Nodoka let out a sad breath. "I thought so. Really, I must 
have the worst timing. They never seem to be around when I visit..." 
She suddenly brightened, and said, "Well, it doesn't matter. I finally 
caught up with him last time, even if I didn't see his face. Tell me, 
Akane-chan, are you enjoying the summer?"
	Akane thought she had nodded; her mind had finally recalled 
her fiance's predicament, and she devoted little attention to the twenty 
minutes of small talk that followed. She winced in particular when the 
train went inside a tunnel almost two minutes long.
	Of course, the thunderstorm that waited for them outside the 
tunnel was quite bad too.
	Then, almost in passing, she recalled how resourceful her 
fiance was. By now, he had most certainly climbed down the cars and 
gotten back in through another window. Yes, he must be inside 
already, and he would probably sneak up behind her in a few minutes, 
all disheveled and wind-swept but otherwise fine. Thus relieved, it was 
until she and Nodoka had had some tea, talked about school and 
debated about the finer points of a good curry, that Mrs. Saotome left 
to bring over her baggage --and Akane finally noticed the red fabric 
caught in the window frame.
	When she finally composed herself and managed to pull in a 
ghastly, soot and mud-covered redhead whose skin was making an 
excellent impression of polished marble, Akane realized that cats were 
probably no longer Ranma's only fear.
	"F-fa-fast..." Ranma mumbled, her eyes bloodshot, "T-too fa-
faast... Big tunnel... Light at the end..."
	Akane grimaced, then tried to push her frozen fiance towards 
the back of the car, trying to find a hiding place before Mrs. Saotome 
could--
	"Dear goodness! Ranko-chan, what happened to you?!"
	"S-so... co-coold... Everything... dark..." chattered the girl. 
Akane flinched, and tried to distract Nodoka with a nervous grin while 
trying to pull Ranma away.
	"Sh-she just slipped in the bathroom and got wet, right, 
Ranko-chan?" she tried, laughing foolishly.
	The matriarch would have none of that, though. "But look at 
you! Your clothes are all dirty, and look at your hair!" She easily took 
Ranma from Akane's grip and pulled her along to the lavatory, all 
while bringing along one of her bags with her other hand. With a 
motherly tone, she soothed the tottering girl while leading her away to 
the end of the car. "It's a shame we only have cold water in that tiny 
restroom," she said, "but we can't have you dripping mud all over the 
train, now, can we?"
	"W-wait, Auntie...!" Akane reached out, but there was no 
getting through to Nodoka while she was in full-blown Protective 
Mom mode. She could only watch and wait as mother and "daughter" 
disappeared behind the restroom door.
	A few minutes later, they reemerged --to Akane's great 
surprise.
	Nodoka smiled at her charge, "There, now. Don't you feel 
better in those clean clothes?"
	Akane stared, and bit her lip to suppress a wry giggle. Ranma 
was wearing a flowing white sundress, tight as a glove at the torso but 
with a skirt that flared widely below the hips, with a revealing off-the-
shoulder neckline that exposed just enough cleavage to boast of 
healthy femininity while remaining decent. Even her hair, still moist 
and heavy, had been rearranged to a more feminine style, though it still 
sported its usual braid. Matching white shoes and a bow at the end of 
her new ponytail completed the ensemble. The only thing that marred 
the look was the mortified grimace cast on the face of a very 
conscious, and very red-faced redhead.
	"You look so cute and feminine, Ranko-chan!" praised 
Nodoka happily.
	Akane was having a very hard time keeping herself from 
exploding in laughter. As crimson-cheeked as her fiancee, she asked, 
"Uh, um... Auntie? Where did you get the dress?"
	"This?" Nodoka smiled, leading a rather reluctant Ranko back 
to their seats. "It's something I wore when I was your age. It fits 
Ranko-chan very well, don't you think?"
	Akane regarded her for an instant, trying to reconcile the 
tight, almost risque outfit with her kimono-clad mother-in-law. A 
raised eyebrow was all she could manage. For her part, Ranma was 
trying her damndest not to gag.
	"So, um, you were saying you were visiting relatives, 
Auntie?"
	Ranma perked up visibly, and turned upwards to glance at her 
mother. Relatives? She had never heard of her family save for the 
immediate one, and she realized, to her surprise, that she had not 
worried much about this fact either. Her curiosity piqued, she listened 
attentively to Nodoka's words.
	"Yes, I am," the Saotome matriarch nodded and sat, followed 
by the two girls, who sat opposite to her. "I'm visiting my sister, 
Mayumi." She reached forward and patted Akane's hand. "You might 
want to come along, Akane-chan. Ranma's uncle has been wanting to 
meet you for some time now." Turning to the redhead, she added, 
"And I'm sure you would love to meet Ranma's cousin, Ranko-chan. I 
think you two would get along nicely."
	Ranma winced, hoping to the nearest available deities that her 
mother wasn't trying to set her up with her own cousin. Nevertheless, 
the wistful look on Nodoka's face, combined with her own aroused 
curiosity, pushed her forth with a question. "A-auntie, can we go with 
you?"
	"Of course, Ranko-chan!" Mrs. Saotome replied cheerily, 
then blinked as Akane suddenly grabbed the redhead's pigtail and 
pulled her towards the back of the car. "Akane-chan?"
	"Would you excuse us for a second, Auntie?" Akane smiled 
sweetly and dragged a protesting Ranma along.
	"What's the big idea?" screeched the shorter girl, out of 
earshot, as she rubbed her abused scalp.
	"Didn't you say you'd show yourself as a man the next time 
Auntie came over?" Akane said. "Now you'll get your relatives into 
this whole mess too!"
	Ranma sighed, and slumped her shoulders. "I know, I know. I 
just didn't think we'd run into her so soon, and... well... Pop never said 
anything about me having a cousin..." She looked up at Akane with an 
odd, yearning expression that the Tendou girl had never seen in her 
fiance.
	"Fine, I guess it's all right," Akane finally conceded. "But do 
you really want your relatives to meet you as 'Ranko'?"
	"I'll think of something," Ranma said. "I dunno, I'll tell them 
the truth when Mom's not around. Who knows, maybe they'll help me 
out," she finished with a smirk.
	Though she was still dubious, Akane agreed. Perhaps Ranma 
was right for once; if his relatives learned of his curse, and heard his 
side of the story, they might help him become reunited with his 
mother. But still, even if they weren't so inclined, this was nevertheless 
a chance for Ranma and Nodoka to become closer, and maybe allow 
him to reveal himself to her. 
	Whatever the outcome, Akane was sure that this would be a 
very, very awkward holiday all the same. She just hoped it wouldn't be 
as disastrous as Mrs. Saotome's last visit?


			*	*	*

It seemed only a few minutes had passed before they arrived at the 
station. Having decided to accompany Nodoka, Akane and Ranma 
went to claim their baggage while the elder Saotome hailed a taxi --
causing her to completely miss a panda wearing a straw hat and 
sunglasses inconspicuously prancing out of the train station. The rest 
of the Tendous followed, leaving the two girls in Mrs. Saotome's care 
while they left for their beachside inn.
	For their part, the three women were headed for an inn 
themselves: the Hisame Hotel, owned and maintained by Nodoka's 
sister Mayumi and her husband Ryousei. Ranma's mother had 
refrained from saying much about it, or about her sister's family, and 
Akane was left with the impression that it was a sensitive subject even 
for someone with Nodoka's frank demeanor. All that she revealed was 
that Mayumi, unlike her older sister, had married into her husband's 
family, and that he was a doctor while she was a part-time teacher at a 
local grade-school.
	When the cab arrived at their destination, a resort set on a 
cliff overlooking the ocean, she began to understand Nodoka's 
diffidence
	The Hisame Hotel was relatively large for its type, a dozen 
bungalows arranged between the precipice and a large manor, all built 
in a grove of lush and humid broadleaf trees, which were clumped 
together so tight it was difficult to see more than two cabins at once for 
all the thick foliage. And while said bungalows were built in an 
eclectic variety of styles --from Caribbean palapas to wooden villas 
and even an adobe hut-- the manor itself was distinctly Japanese, a 
two-story rectangular building enclosing a beautiful garden, which was 
visible through the front gates.
	Sadly, Akane noticed, there were tell-tale signs of neglect all 
around the property. There were wide cracks in the plaster, more than 
a few rotted floorboards, missing roof tiles, and a noticeable amount of 
undergrowth which obscured the roads and walkways across the 
grounds, giving the impression that the inn had been all but 
abandoned. There were gardening and construction tools leaning 
against the outside wall, but even those were rusted and cobwebbed.
	"Geez, what a dump," Ranma muttered under her breath. 
Akane silenced her with a precise elbow to the gut.
	Nodoka didn't appear to have heard her, though. Her 
expression, though projecting an outwards smile, was completely 
unreadable, and was so out of character for her it bothered Akane.
	Before she could try to understand Nodoka's attitude, 
however, a tall, auburn-haired woman stepped out of the manor to call, 
"Nono-neechan, hello!"
	"Good morning, Mayu-chan," replied Nodoka with an honest, 
filial smile, while the two girls stared at her oddly over the "Nono" 
moniker. "I brought along two more guests that wanted to meet you, if 
that's all right..."
	Mayumi faltered for a moment, but quickly returned the smile 
with equal fervor. "Of course it is, now come in, come in! Ryo will 
come down shortly too."
	Nodoka agreed, and pulled Akane and Ranma forth to 
introduce them. "Mayumi, these are Akane-chan, Ranma's fiancee, and 
Ranko-chan, her cousin. Girls, this is my little sister, Mayumi 
Hisame."
	No sooner had the introductions finished that Mayumi all but 
squealed in delight, gushing over both girls incessantly. They both 
grinned nervously at her reaction.
	"N-nice to meet you, Hisame-san," Akane croaked out.
	"I finally met my nephew's fiance!" Mayumi said. With a 
knowing smile, she turned to Nodoka. "And you were so worried 
about the agreement between Genma and Tendou-san. Oh, I can just 
tell she'll be perfect for Ranma."
	Akane blushed, while Ranma suddenly became fascinated 
with the caterpillar crawling across her foot. Her thorough zoological 
analysis was interrupted when Mayumi took her by the shoulders and 
fixed a critical eye on her.
	"So this is Ranko-chan, hm?" she said with a hint of 
amusement. "I see what you mean, Nono-neechan. She and Rui-chan 
would get along wonderfully." Pointing at Ranma's pigtail, she 
snickered and added, "They'd be a perfect match, ne?" Nodoka 
giggled, setting Ranma even further on edge. 
	At that point, the redhead gazed up at her aunt, the briefest 
hint of recognition crossing her face. A hair shorter than her elder, 
Mayumi was clearly Nodoka's sister, with seawater eyes and copper-
colored hair that hung freely down her back. Her style of dress was 
also much less formal, however, consisting of an ordinary pastel 
blouse and loose slacks.
	For her part, Akane instantly saw the resemblance. Between 
Ranma, Nodoka and Mayumi, it was obvious where the dominant 
genes went. Ranma's cousin was probably a younger version of her 
fiance's male form.
	Mayumi led them into the manor proper for a quick tour of 
the facilities. As she had thought initially, Akane saw that the manor 
was indeed built like a rectangular enclosure: the first floor contained 
the utility rooms, kitchen, individual rooms for the Hisame family, and 
a large open-air bath, built around the central garden. Guest rooms 
were located in the upper floor. A rather spacious hall, fashioned as 
the hotel's recreation room, dominated the center of the manor directly 
opposite to the gates. Both floors of the manor had wooden walkways 
--with handrails to prevent people from falling into the garden's koi 
ponds-- that ran all along the interior of the compound. Though the 
corridors and the rooms weren't as decayed as the rest of the inn, and 
the garden appeared impeccably cared for, there were still more than a 
few signs that the manor itself had seen better times.
	It was when they returned to the recreation room that 
Mayumi's husband, Ryousei, came out of what seemed to be the inn's 
staffroom, wearing drawstring pants and a T-shirt and wiping his 
hands on a towel. Akane noticed immediately that he was about her 
father's age, also dark-haired and with a fairly unassuming expression. 
His stride, and the manner with which he carried himself, however, 
denoted confidence and aplomb. After introductions had been made, 
her impression was reinforced, and she recalled the comments Mrs. 
Saotome had made, during the cab ride over, about her sister and 
brother-in-law.
	"So, Neechan, have you met Ranma yet?" asked Ryousei, 
honestly curious, while he and Mayumi served tea for their guests.
	"No, not yet," Nodoka replied, and added with a glimmer of 
hope in her eyes, "But I finally caught up with him the other day. I 
have a feeling I will meet him soon." She turned to Akane, "And I 
know I can count on Akane-chan to keep him in place when that 
happens."
	Oblivious to the nervous sweat rolling down Akane's 
forehead, Ryousei continued. "It's too bad Rui's not here yet. 
Something to do with training, I think." He then turned to the Tendou 
girl and, with a knowing grin, asked, "So, Akane-chan, how's your 
father? Did he finally get rid of He-Who-Musn't-Be-Named?"
	"Er, no, not yet..." Akane stuttered, "Um, so it's true you 
trained with my father and Mr. Saotome?"
	A wistful look crossed his eyes, "I tried to, anyway. We were 
pretty close back in school. But then they went on to train with the Old 
Master and I somehow lost track of them..."
	"'Somehow' being that he wasn't fast enough to escape from 
all the girls they stole panties from," Mayumi quipped helpfully. 
Ryousei slapped his forehead while the others laughed.
	"Uh, yeah," he admitted. "But that's the way I met Mayu-
chan."
	"He stole your underwear?" Ranma asked her aunt.
	"And right out of the laundry basket!" Mayumi smiled, and 
added with half-lidded eyes, "Maybe he was peeking at me at the 
time...!"
	She and Nodoka giggled, with the latter adding a couple 
"How manly!" every now and then. Akane and Ryousei forced smiles 
while Ranma just stared in shock --realizing with each passing second 
that her father might actually be the sane one in the family.
	Further small-talk followed, letting Ranma see a side of 
Nodoka she had never imagined. In this environment, with her sister 
and her brother-in-law chatting animatedly with her, Mrs. Saotome 
nearly became a different person --one that was far stronger of mind 
and heart than what she had seen during those brief visits to the 
Tendous'. Ranma could easily tell what her father had seen in Nodoka, 
aside from her family name: she was very energetic, controlling all 
conversations and with a fleetness of mind uncharacteristic of the 
Saotomes that Ranma knew, both in attention (which she easily 
diverted from one topic to another) and in thought (it wasn't rare to see 
even Ryousei bow down to comments or suggestions made to him by 
his sister-in-law.)
	Akane, for her part, watched in fascination as Ranma became 
engrossed with her mother's revealed personality. She had to admit --
she had never seen Mrs. Saotome unfold so smoothly, even 
considering that this was her close family. But the way Ranma hung to 
her every word, no matter the topic at hand, let her know that things 
were not as bad as they had seemed; indeed, under this new light, Mrs. 
Saotome appeared perfectly capable of understanding, and likely even 
accepting, Ranma's curse.
	Unwittingly, Ranma smiled. Akane reached out and held her 
hand for reassurance, startling the redhead but without interrupting her 
smile.
	The remainder of the day was spent quickly and in the cheer 
of a close-knit family, leaving both teens lighthearted and astounded at 
how different the Saotome/Hisame branch was from their own. 
Unfortunately, Ranma's cousin had not yet arrived, and she silently 
dreaded the idea that her uncle might pull a Soun Tendou and fix her 
up with him. All she had heard of this mysterious cousin was that 
"Rui" was fond of rough contact sports, had more than a few 
unrequited suitors at school, and, most notably, was a bit of a martial 
artist as well.
	Thus it came as no surprise when, by nightfall, she and 
Nodoka entered the room only to be assaulted by a Bruce Lee/Jackie 
Chan tag-team.
	Actually, it was only in poster and wallscroll form --nearly 
every available surface in Rui's room was covered in some sort of 
martial arts or Chinese paraphernalia. Aside from said posters, there 
were pictures of tournaments, magazine clippings and the occasional 
yin-yang lithograph. As she squinted at a framed photo on top of a 
dresser, Ranma guessed that his cousin was the guy standing on the 
third-place platform, along with that blonde on second-place and the 
chubby old man on first.
	So her cousin was a decent, if normal, martial artist. Must run 
in the family, she figured. On the other hand, the countless books on 
meditation, mythology and... locksmithing? Those threw her off 
somewhat.
	"You'll be sleeping here tonight, Ranko-chan," Nodoka said. 
Ranma eeped and stared at her in shock.
	"B-but, but, but..."
	"It'll be all right, dear," her mother reassured. "Akane-chan 
and I will take the guest room, but if Rui-chan comes back you two 
will have to share the bed..."
	A look of sheer horror was Ranma's only reply.
	

		*	*	*
	
The first rays of dawn greeted Akane with an orchestra of crashing 
waves as accompaniment. A hundred feet above, in the house atop the 
cliff, the adults still enjoyed the sleep of the dead. Ranma, clad in a 
simple one-piece swimsuit stood in the water, stretching both hands 
out to her; an amused smile adorned the redhead's face, irritating yet 
endearing at once.
	"Okay, this is it!" Akane said to herself, "Now or never!"
	"What, the complete ruin of any fashion sense you coulda 
ever had?" Ranma quipped.
	"Shut up and give me your hands!"
	Akane fumed at her snickering fiancee and waddled over to 
her. However, the huge flippers on her feet, the pair of inner tubes 
around her waist, the inflatable pads on her arms, the life-vest and 
scuba tanks on her torso, and the visor on her face made her stride 
rather... gauche.
	"I *will* learn to swim today, and that's that! And stop 
laughing, Ranma!" With a vein nearly popping on her forehead, Akane 
forcefully grasped Ranma's hands and let herself flop down into the 
water. The redhead just rolled her eyes and played along.
	This lighthearted game (or test of fire, in Akane's eyes) served 
perfectly to set them at ease. Night at the Hisames' had proved itself a 
memorable affair. The wind chimes had been a nice touch, at least 
until the ferret knocked them down and turned their breaths into 
wailing choirs. But at least the feline philharmonic that followed was 
right on tune outside Ranma's window. And the trees outside Akane's 
performed a delightful shadowplay of twisted fingers that scratched 
silently at her and Mrs. Saotome's faces.
	In hindsight, the tofu man shouldn't have blown his horn at 
full blast when he came by in the morning. He barely escaped alive 
from the two girls with the bloodshot eyes.
	At least, it wasn't as bad as it could have been --or so Ranma 
thought. The (in)famous cousin she kept hearing about hadn't shown 
up yet. Due to the lack of worry from his parents' side, she assumed he 
was as fond of long training trips as she was.
	Finding herself unusually calm, Ranma looked up at the violet 
and pink clouds and smiled. Pulling Akane along only halfheartedly, 
she considered the revelations of the previous day. Meeting not only 
relatives she didn't know she had, but also a Nodoka Saotome that was 
very different from the traditional, oblivious one she was used to.
	Briefly, she remembered the incident of Ryuu Kumon --the 
warrior that, by impersonating Ranma Saotome, had made his way into 
Nodoka's heart. Now that she thought about it, it was then that her 
mother first showed hints of this revealed personality. Despite her 
happiness at having found her "son," Nodoka had remained very close 
and protective of her extended family, and eventually discovered the 
ruse while leaving no room for reproach towards Ryuu.
	The person Ranma had seen last night was far beyond that, 
imbuing her with the warmth of a great pride and love for her mother. 
It even washed over the shock of realizing what Nodoka's definition of 
"manly" was.
	A grunt and the spatter of legs in the water brought her down 
to earth, and for a few instants Ranma glanced wistfully at her fiancee. 
Akane wouldn't be able to experience these feelings, and all of a 
sudden it saddened her.
	"Brr... the water's pretty cold here," Akane said.
	Absentminded, Ranma continued to pull her along. How old 
had Akane been when her mother passed away? At least she still 
remembered her...
	"Uh, Ranma? It's getting deep and cold in the part. We can go 
back now."
	Had Mrs. Tendou been like her own mother? Maybe Akane 
took after her, what with her strong personality and all. What would 
things be like--
	Hmm, the water was deeper there than at the beginning. She 
could barely stand on her toes anymore. And it was freezing, too!
	Anyway... what would things be like now, if Mrs. Tendou was 
still alive...?
	"Ranma!"
	The surprising fright in Akane's voice ripped her back into 
reality. Ranma barely had enough time to listen to the deafening crash 
of the wave that loomed above them, finding herself tossed forcefully 
at the cliffside, after which all was silent.


			*	*	*
	
The constant crashing of the surf was softer now, even though it had 
been unbearable a few minutes ago. That was good, because the 
cavern was a magnificent resonance box --all sounds, even the 
rhythmic dripping of limewater onto the ground, were amplified 
tenfold by the solid granite walls.
	Now all that remained of the powerful wave-breaking was a 
soothing, almost lethargic breath that pulled the sea breeze into the 
darkened hall. It was almost as if the previous watery assault had been 
intended, or so Akane thought.
	Turning away from the mouth of the cave, through which 
light surged with blinding intensity, she faced her fiance as well as 
their savior, who had finished wrapping Ranma in a fluffy white towel.
	"Really, thanks for helping us out there," Akane said.
	The girl in the white swimsuit waved her off, smiling, "Told 
ya already it's okay. But y'were lucky I was 'round 'n' saw ya." She 
placed her hand on Ranma's forehead, and paused for a second before 
leaning away and sitting on her heels. Akane, for her part, stepped 
around the unconscious redhead and sat behind her, lifting Ranma's 
head to let it rest on her own lap.
	"How did you do that, anyway?" Akane asked, fixing her eyes 
on the girl opposite her. "It was... incredible."
	Said girl faltered for a moment, as if embarrassed. "Oh, that? 
Uh... that's... that's sum'thin' I came up with a couple of months ago. 
Never thought it'd actually be useful." She scratched her head in 
discomfort.
	Akane stared at her for a few instants, trying to understand 
why this girl was uncomfortable. The way she had caught them, and 
how she had rescued them from the raging waves, had left her 
speechless. And where had she come from, anyhow?
	But at least she was sure of one thing: her earlier suspicions 
had been correct. Why, bearing in mind that this girl was two years 
younger, only the hair and eyes were different.
	"Uhh..." came a low groan.
	"She's waking up!" the girl said.
	At first, Ranma knew nothing but darkness. All of her body 
felt numb, frozen. She could remember nothing of what had happened, 
aside from a sensation of dread that blanketed her mind.
	Then, slowly, a vague source of light appeared before her, 
along with a soft murmur, as if that of a crowd. She let out a groan, 
and tried to open her eyes.
	"It's all right... you're okay now..." she heard a distant 
whisper.
	Her entire being felt heavy, but after a brief struggle she 
managed to open her eyes. And when she did, she stared in silence at 
the sight. A dark, long tunnel stretched beyond her, filled with 
chanting voices. She wore pristine robes of white, and she could feel 
warmth around her still form. But before her, was a creature that let 
her know exactly where she was.
	It was an angel, she thought. Golden hair, crystalline, yet with 
a reddish hue that turned it into a cascade of flames. Eyes like twin 
sapphires, of such depth it seemed she might fall inside them. It also 
wore white robes, but of such a substance that it was alive with soaring 
birds. And it had an ethereal, enigmatic beauty that shone further still 
with the round halo that framed its figure.
	"I-I'm..." she managed to stutter. Her thoughts then completed 
the words, "I'm dead. It-it really happened this time. It's not like the 
train. I'm really dead now. I-it can't be..."
	"You'll be safe now," the angel said. "Everything's okay."
	No wonder her body felt cold; it was probably a remnant of 
what having a body had felt like. And the warmth must be coming 
from this angel. But... funny. She had always thought that these guys 
showed up only in girl's comics and on the weird books and rituals of 
foreigners. If anything, it should have been a family spirit or 
something who welcomed her.
	The angel just stared at her, quizzically.
	She was about to try to speak again when she became 
alarmed. What had happened? Where was Akane? Would... would she 
never see Akane again? H-how was she supposed to deal with that? 
Did this mean she would not get to tell her that... that she...
	"Akane..." Ranma whispered, the name flowing unbidden 
from her lips.
	"Ranko-chan? Are you okay?" responded said fiancee's voice.
	Ranma suddenly rose to her feet in shock, spinning around to 
find Akane sitting in the darkness of the tunnel. She also wore white, 
her skin pale and cold. "Akane?!" she yelped. "A-Akane?! W-what are 
you..." Her face then became white as a sheet. "Oh n-- Akane, don't 
tell me you're... that you also..."
	"Uh, yes..." Akane replied, as if confused. "We ended up here 
together, remember?"
	If it had been possible, Ranma would have paled even further. 
"Then it was my... fault...?"
	A look of annoyance crossed Akane's brow. "Well I kept 
telling you to go back! You just kept on going until wham! We got 
hit!"
	Seeing Ranma pause, Akane thought she was going to 
retaliate with the usual barrage of insults. That jerk! Acting like it 
wasn't his fault, like he didn't know what happened! However, she was 
more than slightly surprised to see the redhead drop to her knees and 
yell out a shrill "Nooo!"
	"What's going on?" the blonde girl was severely confused.
	At the sound of her own voice, Ranma looked down --only to 
discover she wore a female body. She screamed even louder this time.
	"Aaaah! Why am I still like this?!"
	"Ranko, calm down!" Akane said, covering her ears.
	Ranma turned around, and saw the angel again.
	"Aaaah!"
	"Ranko!"
	And Akane was dead too!
	"Aaah!"
	"You'd think she saw a ghost," quipped the angel.
	"AAAAAH!"
	A mallet fell, and so did silence. Ranma now lay, face down, 
on the hard stone of the cavern. Akane quietly fumed while the blonde 
tried to figure out what had just happened.
	"O...uch..." uttered the redhead as she gingerly touched the 
bump on her head. "That... hurt... wasn't supposed to... up here..."
	"What the hell was that all about, Ranko?!" Akane pulled her 
up by the pigtail and shouted in her face.
	"I'm sorry! I'm sorry I got you dead, Akane! Don't kill me 
again!"
	"_What_ are you talking about?! I'm not dead! Now tell me 
what that was supposed to mean before I kill you!"
	Ranma calmed down somewhat, and blinked. "You're not 
dead?" Akane shook her head. "B-but what are you doing here? Ain't I 
dead?"
	"Not yet, anyway," Akane said, irritated, and almost reaching 
for a handy stalactite to smash Ranma with.
	"Um, did I miss something here?" asked the remaining girl.
	Ranma whirled to face her, and at long last her eyes focused; 
her resulting facefault resounded all throughout the cavern. What she 
thought of as an angel was actually a very cute girl, about fourteen or 
fifteen, wearing a one-piece white swimsuit with a phoenix design 
printed across the chest and stomach so that its tail went around to her 
back. The white robes were also actually towels, the tunnel was a cave 
cut into the cliffside, and the round halo was just the light coming in 
from outside.
	Oh, and the choir was simply the surf that came into the cave.
	Blushing the same color of her hair, Ranma sat up and rubbed 
the back of her head, grinning stupidly in embarrassment. "Uh, guess 
I'm not dead, then, huh?"
	The blonde chuckled, comprehension dawning on her, and 
she said, "No, but you almost were. I had to take ya out of the water 
before y'drowned."
	"She saved our lives, _Ranko-chan_," Akane said, poking the 
redhead in the ribs as she emphasized the name.
	"Why do you keep callin' me that?" Ranma said. "Mom's not 
around here, is she?"
	"Anyway," the other girl said. She wiped her hand with the 
towel, and extended it. "I'm Ruiko Hisame! Nice to meetcha, Ranko-
chan!"
	

					(tbc)

Jorge A. Pratt 
jorgepratt@prodigy.net.mx
terbril@rocketmail.com