Bie liao, shifu...
Morning came to the realm, bright and peaceful like on Earth. It was
a pleasant day, and many awoke early to make the most of it.
Particularly, two people were concentrated on taking advantage of
every little minute they had left.
Ranma stood before the rope-wrapped target pole before
him. He was perfectly still, his breathing was all that showed he
wasn't a statue. His eyes were focused, his face rigid. He was fully
concentrated on the target in front of him.
There was a signal. In a split second, his fists curled up and
he flung them forward while throwing his body backwards. The chi
of confidence built up in the blink of an eye; the target was blasted
apart by a large blue sphere and the cry of "Mouko Takabishya!"
Beside him, Phaeron clicked the stopwatch. "Not bad. Your
reaction time has improved. But remember, Sabin's not gonna wait
around for you to charge up."
Ranma wiped his forehead, "I know that. But it's not like
he's gonna catch me off guard or anything. You said he uses Tiger
Claw styles, right? All I gotta do is use Snake or Crane and he's
history."
Phaeron shrugged. "Okay. So, what size?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, for your coffin. What size should it be? Phaeron
ignored Ranma's glare as he said, "You do _not_ want to
underestimate him. Sabin's the _best_ martial artist in the World of
Ruin. He may seem like a bodybuilder, but he's incredibly fast. I mean
_incredibly_. And he once held up an entire house for over two
minutes."
"Must've been a small house," Ranma smirked, and turned
back to his training. Phaeron sighed, "All right, let's continue with the
chi training," he said. He stood in front of Ranma and lit up his aura.
For half an instant, Ranma was impressed by the field of chi coming
from Phaeron.
He never fully understood Espers, and Phaeron in particular.
Even after all of the strange enemies he had fought, like Herb and
Ryuu, Ranma had never imagined meeting someone like the Esper
Phoenix. He knew he could easily wipe the floor ten times over with
Phaeron when it came to real martial arts, but he also knew he could
never beat him in a chi battle. Perhaps that was why his sister was
fascinated by him, even though she had developed her own inner
strength quite a bit.
Ranma smirked at the thought. His sister, who was even
more of a tomboy than Akane, was very much in love with this so-
called Phoenix. Opposites _do_ attract, he thought; Ranko and
Phaeron were very different, not only because of their fighting styles
but because of their personalities. On the other hand, though, if
anyone could... well, keep his sister in check it was Phaeron. Maybe
she had tried to hide her feelings, but nevertheless Ranma could see
the way her eyes would light up when Phaeron was teaching her
something new; also, he could notice the awe and admiration the
Esper held towards Ranko. It was simply because they would never
cease to amaze each other.
But it was precisely because Phaeron had that powerful,
magic chi, which captivated Ranko so much, that Ranma had asked
him to help him train --and also because he knew Phaeron had seen
Sabin's fighting styles many times in the past.
"Now remember," Phaeron said, "Sabin has very potent
special techniques that he calls 'Blitz.' All of them require a great deal
of chi to use, and almost all of them can be countered only by attacks
of the same magnitude." He reared back to a fighting stance, "So...
let's begin." He smirked, "I'll go easy on you for now."
"Yeah, right..." Ranma snorted.
"Now!" Phaeron yelled, "WhiteBird!" He aimed his palms at
Ranma, and a large white bolt came out of them. Ranma pressed his
fists forward, "Mouko Takabishya!" and canceled the blast, then he
leapt straight up and shot towards Phaeron with a dropkick. The
Esper leapt forward to land on his hands and rolled away, then he
swept his arm to the side to knock Ranma away with a gust of hot
wind. Ranma stood against the pressure, then spun in place with his
right fist reared back. Phaeron recognized the motions for the
Hiryuushoutenha and ceased the attack, but almost instantly leapt
forward with the arms-spreading Folding Kick. Changing the attack,
Ranma aimed his palms at Phaeron and yelled, "White Touch!"
Phaeron was pushed away. He landed on his feet and
recoiled with a chi-powered tiger claw. Ranma barely had time to see
it, he dropped sideways on the ground and kicked Phaeron's gut just
as he passed overhead. The Esper jumped up, following the kick, and
landed away from Ranma. He didn't wait to throw a flurry of small
chi shots that Ranma had to counter with his Wind Cracker; but
before the rain of needle-like blasts as over, the Four Birds loomed
over him like charging condors. Ranma had to slither among the bird-
shaped blasts to escape them.
Then he had an idea. Just as the tails of the Birds passed by,
he charged his fist with cold chi and punched forward, right through
them. Phaeron's attack was pulled around Ranma's fist and sent back
at him in a single, massive sphere similar to the Hiryuukourindan.
Phaeron's shield barely withstood the blast.
"Very good," he said, dispersing his shield along with the
remains of the chi bomb.
"You don't need a big aura to win a fight," Ranma said.
"That's how I beat Herb."
"_You_ didn't beat him, did you oniisan?"
"Huh?" Ranma and Phaeron turned to see Ranko come out
of the house, joining them in the garden. "What do you mean I didn't
beat him?! Don't tell me _you_ did!"
"Well, who was it that had the idea for using Herb's chi
against him?" the redhead smirked, knowing that her brother was
very sensitive about his victories.
"Just because I was a girl then doesn't mean _you_ had the
idea," Ranma frowned.
"Well, actually..." Phaeron began to point out.
"Ah, forget it," Ranko snickered. "But _we_ wouldn't have
beaten him without _my_ Hiryuushoutenha."
"Your--" Ranma was about to argue, but he recalled that he
had once heard about the twins and Phaeron developing the dreaded
technique while training in China. Muttering, he decided not to push
the subject.
"So," Ranko said, turning to Phaeron, "Helping him for next
week's match?"
"That's right. But he doesn't believe me about Sabin's
strength."
Ranma seemed annoyed, "Oh, come on. I'm sure I'll handle
him no problem."
Ranko turned to her brother, with a stern look on her face,
"Oniisan, you gotta take Phaeron-kun more seriously here. Last night
I ran into Mirei-chan and she agreed that this Sabin guy's really
strong. If _she_ said that too, you should be more careful."
Ranma stared at his sister for a moment, confused to hearing
her talk like that. After all, he always thought she was just like him;
but lately she had shown to be very different, to the point of scolding
him whenever he acted recklessly or thoughtlessly. Caught off guard
by her, he stammered a little and said, "Don't worry."
She let out an exasperated sigh, "Well, Ucchan said she was
gonna help me find that Yang guy so he can help you two train. I'll
go meet up with her, but you really have to be careful, alright?" She
looked at her brother over her shoulder, and then she left, leaving
Ranma blinking.
"What was that all about?" he asked.
Phaeron shook his head. Ignoring Ranma's insensibility, he
reared back to a fighting posture. The pair was soon sparring once
more.
* * *
Ranko sighed as she walked headed for Ukyou's place. She hadn't
really thought about how conceited her brother was when it came to
martial arts. He should be more careful, she thought. After all, it was
always his recklessness what got him into trouble --aside from the
multiple fianc'es, of course.
On the other hand, she was glad he was sparring with
Phaeron. She knew that Ranma, despite a possible rivalry as a fighter,
considered the Esper one of the few people he could call "friend."
She liked that. She liked to see her brother and her boyfr-- her
brother and _Phaeron_ getting along, especially given how
headstrong both of them could be. She smirked. Perhaps Ranma
would finally benefit from having a friend like that, especially in the
maturity department.
She reached the door to Ukyou's restaurant. She looked up
before knocking --she could hear her friend humming a song, the
voice floating down from the room over the building's entrance.
Puzzled, she blinked and rapped on the door. She heard
Ukyou cease humming and call out, "Just a second!" Then she waited
a few moments until the door slid open. Seeing Ukyou's cheerful
smile Ranko couldn't help but greet her in kind.
"Hi, Ucchan," she said.
"Hi, Ranchan!" Ukyou beamed, "I'll be ready in a sec,
okay?" She pulled the shorter girl into the restaurant, "Just make
yourself at home in the meantime."
"Thanks," Ranko sat down at the grill, watching Ukyou
disappear into the back room. Looking around, she said, "This place's
just like the one back home, isn't it?"
"Sure is," came Ukyou's voice. "Too bad there's no
customers here. Well, not right now anyway." There was a second of
silence, and then her head popped out from behind the doorframe,
"Too bad you weren't here last night, sugar," she said with a grin.
"Huh?"
"Come on, I already heard about it. How you and Phaeron
are getting closer..."
Ranko blushed, "H-how...?"
"Your sister and Herb came here last night for dinner, and
she spilled the beans 'bout how you guys met in China. What's that
about leaving poor Ucchan in the dark, eh?" she said with mock pain.
"Alright, alright," Ranko smiled timidly, "Guess you wanna
hear the story too, huh?"
"Wouldn't miss it for the world, sugar," Ukyou said, walking
towards her with a delivery box in her hand. "Okay, all set."
Ranko looked at the box, already feeling her stomach growl
at the thought of the delicious okonomiyaki that Ukyou had prepared
for the trip. Turning away from the food, she said, "Then let's go find
that Yang guy. C'mon, I'll tell you the story on the way there."
A few hours later, a silver-scaled Kirin approached the large fortress
that sat majestically among misty hills, which were reminiscent of
those in China. Turning to his passengers, Nadir, Esper Kirin, puffed
steam from is nostrils and said, "This is it, we made it."
"This is the place?" Ranko asked, shielding her eyes with her
palm. "I can barely see it."
"You sure that here we can find someone who can help
Ranchan train?" Ukyou turned to Ranko, who was riding behind her
on the Kirin's back.
"That's what Phaeron-kun and Mirei-chan said," the redhead
nodded. "But I wonder if it's true, though. This place doesn't look
like a great warrior lives in it."
"You got it wrong," Nadir said. "I heard of Yang once, and
as far as I know he'd be a good match for your brother." He slowed
down as he began to descend, "Okay, a little background so you
know who we'll be dealing with. A long time ago, there was another
planet just like Earth or Esper World. Remember when we fought
Kefka? Well, one of the creatures he used aside from Chaos was
Zeromus. This Zeromus tried to destroy all human life on the planet,
but as always he was beaten by a group of warriors. And Yang once
was a member of that group."
The dragon-horse passed through the layers of mist,
"You've heard Phaeron talk about how good Sabin is, right? Okay,
but what I've heard of Yang is way beyond that. Yang is very skilled
in hand-to-hand and he's got some vicious chi techniques as well. Of
course, you'd come to expect that once you've heard that he's the
current king of the country of Fabul, back on his homeworld."
"And so Ranchan's going to train with him?" Ukyou asked.
"Apparently, yes. You see, Sabin's like a force of nature on
his planet. He's one of the best fighters I've ever seen, and when he
starts using his Blitz techniques... That's why Phaeron wants Ranma
to train with him and Yang."
Ranko hummed in agreement. At least that was the way
Phaeron had explained it to her last night. Still, she couldn't help but
wonder what kind of fighter Yang would be. For some reason, she
kept imagining an older, stronger Ryuu Kumon --and she knew she
was probably right about that.
With a soft thump the Kirin placed all fours on the ground,
submerging into the knee-high grass that stretched all over the valley;
then he advanced with a light trot towards the draw bridge. As soon
as he reached it, he stopped, allowing his passengers to dismount and
continue on foot while he morphed back to human. The mist wasn't
as thick near the castle, and the trio was suddenly greeted by the four
monumental lion sculptures that stood at either side of the gates.
Ranko and Ukyou looked around in awe. Those lions were
at least as large as elephants, and the stone they were carved in had
such an artistic finish that they seemed to be made of living metal --
like giants frozen in time, protecting the people of the castle from a
vicious enemy, upon whom they would pounce without hesitation.
They finally had to take their eyes off the behemoths, but
they were surprised even further when they looked forward. There
was a pair of soldiers standing guard there, royal guardians
apparently, but their attire seemed to be a mix between Chinese and
Japanese battle armor. In fact, from the brief glimpse they stole from
the interior of the castle, it seemed that it was indeed a cultural cross
between those two countries.
"Welcome to our fortress," one of the guards said. The trio
nodded, and before they could even ask to see the king a tall, stocky
figure stood out from the gates. Nadir's eyes went wide.
"Uhm, girls," he stammered, "I'd like you to meet King
Yang of Fabul..."
The words had barely left his mouth when the figure bowed
and took off his cape. Ranko and Ukyou gasped.
* * *
"So, tired yet?" Phaeron asked.
"Hey, cut it out!" Ranma protested, dodging another rain of
fiery shots, "It's not fair, I tell you!"
"What's not fair about this?" the Esper shrugged. Arms
crossed, he closed his eyes and a ring of tiny orange spheres flared
around him before launching full speed towards Ranma. "I told you I
wouldn't go easy _all_ the time, and you know that you're more than
skilled enough to avoid these. Besides, this is still training."
"You call this training?!" Ranma barely avoided being
scorched by the fastest of those shots.
"You'll thank me when you receive Sabin's Fire Dance,"
Phaeron frowned, then spread his arms and shot full-speed towards
him. Ranma leapt straight up to dodge the first-stage Phoenix Flare.
"All right, you asked for it, you jerk!" he muttered. He
waited for Phaeron to try another Flare, then stood his ground. He
could clearly see his opponent's body through the coat of fire, and he
narrowed his eyes. As soon as he felt the blazing heat near him he
spun in place to pull the fire around his body, reared his right fist
backwards, and ducked low to the ground.
He heard voices yelling at him to stop.
He rose with a massive uppercut, "HIRYUU SHOUTEN-
HA!"
Phaeron realized his mistake too late. Before he knew it he
was receiving a devastating pressure of hot wind straight into his
chest, then he had the vague sensation of his body being tossed a
hundred meters into the air, right through the funnel of a tornado.
With his fist still raised high, Ranma watched as an
unconscious Phaeron began to fall back to earth. But all of a sudden
he heard someone running at him and in the blink of an eye he found
himself being pushed hard to the ground as that someone used him as
a springboard to leap onto the roof, then bounce up to catch the
Esper in mid-flight.
Having Phaeron in her arms, Ranko flipped through the air
before landing next to the pond. She gently placed the Esper across
her lap and held him upright with one arm. As soon as she released
the first glimmers of a cure spell she glared at her brother.
"Oniisan, what the hell are you doing?! This is just
_training_ for crying out loud!"
"H-huh?"
She was already turning away, "Geeze, that blast was on
Ryouga's level. You know Phaeron-kun's not that strong." She
relaxed when she saw Phaeron slowly wake up. "You okay?"
Ranma was still blinking in surprise, "Uh, sis? What are
you..."
"Just let her take care of him, Ranchan," Ukyou said, putting
a hand on his shoulder. He gave her a confused look, but she didn't
say anything. Ukyou knew, from the way her red-haired friend talked
on the way back from the castle, that she was really hoping to see
some change on Ranma's part from the training session. What they
had seen a few seconds ago, though, just showed that he still
wouldn't control himself when anyone proved to be even slightly
better than him.
A new voice was then heard, "Using your opponent's hot
aura to create a wind-breaking temperature difference, hm?
Impressive?"
Ukyou and Ranma turned towards the speaker. "Oh, right,"
she said, "Ranchan, this is the guy Phaeron told you about last night.
This is Yang, king of Fabul," then she whispered, "...which means
you gotta watch you mouth around him."
"A king...?" Ranma cocked an eyebrow. The mountain that
stood before him was no less tall than Kunou, and the sunlight that
shone on his copper skin defined his musculature perfectly. His face
was long and rigid, as if carved from red wood, with thick eyebrows
and a long mustache. He had a long black pigtail, which almost
reached his waist, and sprouted from the top of an otherwise bald
head.
Since he had come for training, he covered his torso with
nothing, although the rest of his attire was similar to Ranma's: white
socks, coupled with black cloth shoes; his baggy, Chinese-style
trousers were turquoise-blue, and the long sash around his waist was
bright scarlet. He also wore a pair of bronze armlets. All in all, he
would have resembled a Chinese brawler --if not for the air of
dignity, of humble majesty that he carried himself with.
Yang smiled, "No need to address me as a king. I've come
to meet a warrior, and among warriors there is no distinction for
royalty." He looked over at Phaeron, who was still wobbling in
dizziness even after having awakened. "I believe I've never seen that
technique before, at least not without using powerful magic. The
'Flying Dragon,' you called it?"
"Something like that, yeah," Ranma said. "I guess I got
carried away a bit..."
"It's interesting how you can handle that much power,"
Yang smirked, "And it shall be even more interesting to test your
mettle for the encounter with Sabin." He took a step forward, "Shall
we?"
"Sure, follow me. The dojo's right this way..."
A few minutes later, with Ukyou, Ranko, Akane and
Phaeron as onlookers, Ranma and Yang faced each other in the dojo.
It seemed that they wouldn't fight for real at first --they would just
show each other their skills so they could work from there.
"I have heard of your feats, little one," Yang said,
addressing Ranma. "It will be an honor to spar with you."
"Uh, thanks..." stammered the pigtailed boy.
"But before I can properly train you, I need to see what
your current level is. Now, if you please..."
"Let's go," Ranma backed up to a fighting stance. Yang just
stood upright, his fists clenched by his sides in a rigid posture. That
meant trouble: if he wouldn't even adopt a battle position, it mean
that he was either a very skilled fighter or just damn cocky. And there
was little room for the latter in Yang's case.
Ranma decided to gamble. He launched a dashing punch
straight towards Yang. It wasn't his strongest, and its speed wasn't
what he always used, but he didn't want to wear himself out so soon.
As predicted, Yang zipped to a side to avoid the fist, but returned to
his standing posture almost immediately. Snorting, Ranma delivered a
full-speed roundhouse straight at him. Yang ducked and caught
Ranma's leg, then just stepped forward and sent him tumbling to the
floor. Ranma bounced to his feet and followed with a lighting-fast
backhand, which Yang blocked with one hand before grasping
Ranma's hand and sending him spinning through the air and to the
floor again.
"Why, you..." Ranma muttered. He stood and traded a series
of short-range blows with Yang for a few minutes, with each warrior
blocking and diverting the other's attacks in perfect coordination. But
something was obvious to the spectators, especially Akane and
Ranko: Ranma was beginning to tire, and it showed. His attacks were
slowing down, and more and more of Yang's counters were
beginning to slip through. A couple of grunts came from Ranma,
while his opponent had the same stone-hard expression he had kept
through the entire match.
Finally, Ranma got fed up and leapt back, bouncing off a
dojo wall with a dropkick spike. Yang smiled for the first time in the
match, and leapt back. He crossed his arms before him.
"Here it comes," Phaeron said.
"ACHOOOO!" Yang shouted before punching the floor of
the dojo.
"Didn't he just sneeze?" Ranko blinked. Yang popped a vein
on his forehead.
"Uh, that's the battle cry of his country's army, Ranko-
chan..." Phaeron said. A big drop of sweat appeared on her head.
"Whoa!" Ranma lost his footing at the force of the punch.
Seizing the chance, Yang initiated his first attack:
"Special Attack: Ricochet Flying Kick!" with that he shot
like an arrow towards Ranma, his body taut and extended for a
massive flying kick. But even Ranko had failed to see him: he had
just leapt so suddenly, so quickly, and from a standing position, no
less. She gasped when the kick made contact and all of a sudden
Ranma glowed red, but then Yang reached the wall of the dojo and
bounced right off it with another kick, only this time he sent Ranma
to the floor.
"Ranma!" "Ranchan!" came the shouts as Akane and Ukyou
dashed to help him. The match had ended, and the winner was
obvious.
"That technique..." Ranko said under her breath.
"Looks familiar?" Phaeron said. The redhead turned to him.
"It should. After all, it has the same origin as your Shooting Star
techniques." He pointed at Ranma, "Did you pick up how there was a
red flash right when Yang kicked him?"
"It was a chi technique?" Ranko guessed.
"Wellll... kind of. I'll let you figure it out." He smirked, "I
know Yang will want your brother to figure it out as well."
Meanwhile, the warrior in question was bowing to a Ranma
that had seen better days, "I'm sorry for using that technique. It was
originally an attack I designed to hit multiple targets at one time --I
never actually used it on a single opponent."
"I see what you mean..." Ranma frowned.
"However..." Yang stood straight, "I've had a chance to test
you. You're pretty good, from what I could tell. But if you are to
face Sabin, you need to be even better. I know exactly what to do: I
will train you all through the week, but only when you can see
through the Ricochet Flying Kick and defeat it, will you be able to
face Sabin Ren' Figaro in combat."
With his usual liking for challenges, Ranma smirked and
nodded, "If I learned the Umisenken from watching it only once, I
can learn and defeat that kick too. Just wait."
Watching her brother grin in defiance, Ranko put a hand on
her forehead and sighed, "Doesn't he _ever_ learn?"
"Maybe he's right this time," Phaeron said. "Or else the kick
hit his head harder than we thought..."
* * *
Nodoka hummed to herself as she walked through the corridors of
their house, carrying Ranma's clothes fresh from the laundry.
Looking down at them, and specially at the dougi, she let out a proud
smile. How strong her son had turned out to be, even though he
hadn't been brought up with the best of examples. Now he was facing
some of the strongest warriors from faraway places.
She was happy with how manly her Ranma was. Of course,
she would like to have a little talk with him about being more mature
one of these days, but for the moment she was just deeply grateful he
hadn't adopted his father's personality.
Now, it wasn't that she didn't love Genma. She would still
remember those happy memories of him inscribing their names on the
trunk of a tree. It was just that sometimes her husband made it nearly
impossible for her to love him. He could be so spineless sometimes,
and the next moment he would rise in a supreme act of egocentrism.
Not to mention his thievery and... Well, even she couldn't understand
how her husband could practically sell off Ranma for food under the
disguise of promising him to Ukyou.
Nodoka sighed. That was something that she would have
Ranma and Genma sit down and discuss with Ukyou, and it was an
important issue now that Akane and Ranma had finally shown clear
signs of their love for each other. While she was glad her son and his
first fianc'e were getting along, it was also a pity. She had come to
know Ukyou fairly well, and the girl's affections needed to be
returned. If Ranma, the object of such affections, would not marry
her, who else would she turn to?
Another sigh. This was all her husband's fault. The
engagement with one of the Tendou sisters --which she didn't
approve at first, and only reluctantly condoned; the second
engagement, this time with Ukyou; simply creating those dreadful
techniques, Yamasenken and Umisenken, which caused all that
suffering afterwards. But maybe that wasn't entirely his fault: with a
master like Happousai, it was hard not to become a spineless,
sniveling coward.
She shook her head. Happousai might have caused some of
Genma's shortcomings, but the rest were her husband's entirely. She
would have to have a serious talk with him someday.
Nodoka was brought out from her thoughts by a short red
blur that zipped through the corridor in front of her.
"Calm down, Yuan-chan," she said, "What's the hurry?"
"Huh? Oh, hi mom," the younger of the twins said, "I just
want to see Ranma-oniisan train with that warrior that arrived
yesterday. Oneechan said he was pretty good."
Nodoka smiled, "All right, but remember that you wanted
me to teach you about the tea ceremony tonight."
With an eager smile, Yuannyan nodded and went off to the
dojo. Nodoka snickered slightly at her before returning to her chores.
She heard a voice say, "She's quite strange, isn't she?"
Nodoka smiled even before turning around, "I don't really
think she's strange. She's just being herself." She added a smirk, "All
three of you are like that, Cordis."
The angel of the bright halo shrugged, "If you say so,
mother. But she didn't act like this during our years in China."
"Oh, yes, she and Ranko-chan were telling us about that,"
Nodoka said. "They told us how they and Phaeron-kun first met."
Cordis chuckled, "I remember that. But what happened
_later_ is the important part."
They were sitting by the dojo's door, watching the rays of sunlight
grow more intense in the morning sky. Every once in a while, they
would hear shouts and grunts coming from the dojo itself, and both
of them would take a look inside to see Ranma's serious expression
as he sparred with master Yang. Looking at the differences between
those fighters, Cordis was reminded of something and giggled.
"What is it?" Nodoka asked.
"I just remembered those training sessions during our time in
China. Hasn't Ranko brought them up yet?"
"No, not yet," Cordis' mother said, with an obvious interest
in being told what had happened. After all, even though she had seen
from afar what her daughters went through during those years, she
had barely caught brief glimpses, which didn't really tell her about
how they could have felt or what they experienced. And given Cordis
had been with the twins all the time, she had the insight on every little
thing that had happened then.
"Well, as I can remember..."
After the encounter with the barbarians (who, by the way, were
promptly chased out of China), a steady friendship began to form
between Lael and the twins. It wasn't surprising, after all, they had
already grown very fond of each other and the fact that they saved
each other helped break the ice. But even in the beginning it was
obvious that what Zhaodi and Lael felt would soon outgrow simple
friendship.
At first, Cordis thought it amusing to see how both of them
showed they cared. Lael would be right on time for every one of their
training sessions, and Zhaodi showed more patience than she ever did
by slowly teaching him the basics, with a little help from Zhae from
time to time. During the first few days, though, she only taught him
conditioning exercises --she didn't want to push him too hard
considering he was barely a beginner. On the other hand, though, it
was easy to see how eager the young girl was about teaching her new
friend the techniques she liked, and whenever Zhae taught her
something she would almost instantly run off and show off to Lael --
especially since she knew that the foreign boy was fascinated by her
fighting abilities.
"Tell you what," she would say on occasions, once the class
was over, "I'll race you to that river over there. If you catch me, I'll
teach you that White Palm technique you want to learn. All right?"
And then they would run full speed towards said river,
which always resulted in Zhaodi leaping over its width and Lael
splashing right into it from exhaustion. She would fish him out, then
give him a half hour-long speech about how he needed to be faster,
and that running helped him gain stamina and endurance, and that
even if he never caught her she would teach him until he finally did.
Slowly, Zhaodi showed him how to use his body as a living
weapon. Her way of showing him the diverse martial arts techniques
mesmerized him; the grace of a bird in flight, the striking snake, the
ferocious tiger --he found it hard to believe she was barely a fourteen
year-old girl. And Pandi wasn't that far behind either: during the first
training sessions, the younger of the twins would ask Zhaodi to test
what Lael had learned by sparring with him, knowing that if her sister
tried to test him instead the poor boy would end up with the village's
medic. It was then, because of Zhaodi's apparent jealousy of seeing
Lael spar with her, that Pandi's suspicions began to become more
solid.
But it wasn't all sparring and learning for Lael, either. He
was more than happy to teach the twins how to handle their chi.
Thanks to Zhae's help, Lael finally understood how he was able to
produce his aura and he passed that down to the girls. He began by
teaching them how chi was made, and how to use it to put more
power into their attacks. He said that they needed to channel their
inner strength from its lowest point --the Ching-- to its highest --the
Shen. And, although they couldn't reach his level, they couldn't stop
asking him to teach them more --Zhaodi, especially.
"Okay, but if I teach you about those blue blasts, will you
teach me the White Palm?"
"Not until you catch me, remember?"
And he would try harder the next time she raced him, just
because he loved the way her face shone whenever he showed her a
chi blast.
There was a slight problem, though. Namely, Hidama.
Although he was still their friend, it was very obvious how jealous he
was of Lael's relationship with Zhaodi. Sometimes, he would leave
the village for days, saying that he needed time alone to meditate and
improve his skills, but those who believed that were few.
Then, on one day...
"All right," Zhaodi said, standing before her student. "I'm
going to teach you something called 'Butterfly Kick.' It's an advanced
technique, but I think you should manage."
That made Lael feel a warm tingle in his chest. She was
considering him an advanced fighter! He _had_ to show her he could
do it!
Rearing back, Zhaodi stood with her right foot forward and
her torso upright. She closed her eyes for a second, and all of a
sudden she stepped forward to plant her left foot on the ground and
tossed her shoulders downwards, bringing her right leg upwards. The
momentum was the same as in a cartwheel spin and she delivered a
second kick with her left leg, landing in a position that mirrored her
starting posture.
"This is how I beat you the first time, remember?" she
beamed. He smiled nervously, recalling how Coldfire had been
knocked out by the spinning back-kick. Snickering a little, she said,
"Okay, let's see how you do it."
Lael thought about how she had done it. All right, imagine a
cartwheel, but don't put your hands on the ground. Easy.
After concentrating, he clenched his fists and ran forward to
gain momentum. He then stepped firmly with his left foot and
mimicked Zhaodi's motions --unfortunately, he barely raised his left
foot at the second kick, which made him lose balance and stumble to
the ground when he tried to land. He hit his shoulder hard on the
ground.
"Lael-san!" Zhaodi rushed up to meet him, worry in her
face. He groaned and sat up, rubbing his head, and then his shoulder.
"Damn, I shouldn't have hesitated..." he said to himself.
"That was my fault," Zhaodi kneeled by him, "I shouldn't
have pushed you so quickly." She glanced at his shoulder. "Here, let
me," she said, moving his hand out of the way. She rolled up his
sleeve so she could see the shoulder, "Oh, great, look at that bruise.
And the rock cut right through the skin, too. You almost got your
arm shoved out of its socket."
She took a small vial she carried for emergencies, and took
out a bit of ointment. She dipped her fingers in it and gently began to
smear in across the bruise, paying no attention to the rest of the
world.
Lael, for his part, was still trying to understand what was
happening. Zhaodi rarely showed this kind of concern towards
anyone except her sister. She seemed very worried about him,
though. It made him feel strange inside. Her touch was warm on his
skin, it sent tingles right down from his shoulder to all of his body, in
a way he had never felt before. But as he tried to figure it out, his
eyes widened when she took off the bandanna that kept her hair tied
in a ponytail. He barely noticed how she tied it around his shoulder,
since he was looking at the way the sun shone golden highlights on
her long, flaming hair.
Shaking his head out of the vision, he swallowed hard and
looked at the makeshift bandage on his shoulder. Unconsciously, he
lifted a hand to touch it, but Zhaodi intercepted it with her own hand.
"Did I tell you to take it off?" she said, with a slight frown.
But then she realized she was holding his hand, and she was surprised
to discover a warm blush lighting up her cheeks. She let him go,
slowly, and looking away as if confused by something that she
couldn't recognize, something that she felt in her chest. She gulped,
then stood up and cleared her throat, "O-okay, that's it for today. We
better go back so Zhae-sama can see that shoulder of yours."
"W-wait," Lael said, standing up, "Aren't we going to race
today?"
"I don't think it'd be a good idea, Lael-san," Zhaodi said.
"But once we go back, Zhae will want to bandage my whole
arm! How will I race you tomorrow if that happens?"
Zhaodi's lips drew a smile on her face, "You really want to
do it?"
"Yes!" he said. He didn't know why, but inside him he felt
full of energy. Whereas he had felt exhausted before his attempt at
the Butterfly Kick, right now he was going to start leaping around if
he didn't put this second wind to good use. Besides, he was
beginning to feel a potent warmth in his hands...
"All right," she said, "But this time, don't try to follow me
over the river, okay?" she winked at him. The warmth became
stronger.
They walked over to the usual starting point. Zhaodi was
smiling at him, and it was a proud smile: she liked to see this kind of
spirit in Lael-san, especially since he was barely awake by the end of
most of their classes. Maybe she would slow down her speed a bit
today. Maybe.
Lael, for his part, wasn't really thinking about the race. He
was thinking about that warmth in his hands. It felt just like the times
when Coldfire made him use the Bird of Prey, only those times his
hands felt cold and heavy. It was because the Bird of Prey was
usually powered by hatred, or some other negative emotions.
Wait a second. According to Zhae's scroll, chi can be fueled
by emotions, right? And right now he was feeling something very
special towards Zhaodi. It was a very pleasant sensation, one that
sparked a fire inside him. A fire that just _had_ to be expressed, in
one way or another...
"Ready?" Zhaodi asked.
"Ready," he replied. She nodded, and looked forward.
Okay, maybe it would be a good idea to let him catch her this time.
"Okay... GO!" she yelled as she dashed forward, not as fast
as she usually did though. But Lael didn't take advantage of that. He
ran after her while shaping a ball with his palms. A bright red aura
appeared around him, and then it was sucked into a glowing spark
between his palms. He suddenly stopped, and with a smile on his face
he threw his palms forward and shouted, "Red Fire Bird!"
Zhaodi nearly came to a halt after hearing the shout, but just
as she looked back she saw a huge, majestic bird of pure red chi that
sped past her and flew off into the distance. She stopped on her
tracks to see the being rise up towards the clouds.
A look of detached wonder appeared on her face. The bird
was so... beautiful...
Slowly, she turned back to see Lael. His hair and clothing
were still flowing with the wind that his blast had caused, and his
hands were still releasing a few tiny glimmers that looked like ruby
dust. Then she realized it: he had created that bird. That bird, so
different from the one that Coldfire had attacked her with. Lael-san,
_her_ Lael-san, had made it...
"A-amazing... Lael-sa--" she started to whisper, but all of a
sudden she saw him running right at her. It took her a full second to
realize the race was still on. Out of reflex, she shot forward at full
speed, but it was too late. Lael was already stretching his hand to
catch her. She pressed on, and he lunged for her sash. She pushed her
hips forward, then ducked as he tried to grab her by the shoulder.
With a final pounce, Lael flailed at her with his hand and caught her
sash into his fist.
"Hey, leggo!" she shrieked, trying hard not to laugh.
"No!" he replied, already beaming. "I'll never let go!"
"Oh yeah?" she smirked, and hastened her pace. But
somehow Lael was able to keep up with her.
"I told you I'm not letting go!" he said, pulling her in.
"Let's see about that!" she giggled, "Hang on if you can!"
She leapt up, trying to use the force to make Lael release
her. Fortunately for both, his grip was too strong --her sash came
loose from her waist, and it ensnared her feet. She lost her
momentum and plummeted back to earth. Trying to cushion her fall,
Lael leapt forward to catch her in his arms, but he too misjudged the
leap. He caught her, all right, but as soon as he did they fell in a heap
and rolled down all the way to the river, splashing into it.
After a few seconds, they resurfaced again, with Lael still
carrying the redhead in his arms. He placed her against the side of the
river, still hanging on tight.
"I won," he grinned.
"Uh... uh-huh..."she nodded, a little timidly, and then they
both realized the position they were in. They blushed brightly before
Lael gently lifted her and placed her on the shore, so she was sitting
down on it with her feet submerged in the water. Still without saying
a word, he looked away and blinked oddly a couple of times.
All of a sudden he was hit by water. He turned around to
see that Zhaodi had kicked it to splash his face. He looked up, and he
instantly saw the reddish tinge on the girl's frozen face.
"La... Lael-san," she stammered, "Did I, ah, did I... Did I tell
you... Did I tell you that.... that you could let go...?"
He stepped backwards, already forgetting he was chest-deep
in the water, and came up with something bright to say: "Ah, uhm...
Y-you... didn't... Did you...?" He then swallowed so hard that it
seemed he was trying to gulp down a whole apple, "D-do you want
me to...?"
She silently shook her head. Looking at the ground, she
stood up and picked up her sash, then tied it around her waist. She
wrung the water out of her hair, then hesitated for a second. She sent
a brief glance at Phaeron before tying her hair. She tied it in a way
she had never done it before, though. It was a tight, slightly rigid
pigtail. She looked away.
"I'll..." she cleared her throat. "I'll see you at tomorrow's
session, Lael-ch... I mean, Lael-san." She began to walk away, "Don't
be late, okay?"
And he stayed inside the river, watching in silence as the
pigtailed girl slowly headed back to the village of the Joketsuzoku,
and wondering just why he felt so... whole...
* * *
"Tokkan Ryuusei-kyaku!"
There was a flash of white as Ranma shot straight towards a
practice dummy, right foot extended and glowing for the devastating
chi kick. He smashed into the straw figure, which collapsed on the
ground, then recoiled off a nearby wall and delivered a second kick
to the broken post that remained. After landing, Ranma hurried
towards the battered targets and placed his hands on them, expecting
to feel warmth.
"Damn!" he frowned, acknowledging that no chi had been
transmitted. "No good."
"Don't be so hard on yourself, Ranma," Akane said.
"How does he pull off that trick anyway?" he wondered.
"What Ranma want to do?" Shampoo, who was also
watching him practice, asked.
"I gotta figure out how Yang kicks like that," he said. So
far, he knew that there was chi involved in it --when he first received
the kick, the initial blow felt like being hit by a pillow made of hot
lead. The second hit was similar to walking through boiling water: it
wasn't a hard, solid smash, but it was dense enough to make itself
felt.
"Have you asked Phaeron how he does that?" Akane said,
"Ranko-chan said he knows about Yang's techniques also."
"Heh, yeah, right. I'm not gonna ask him how to beat Yang.
This is something I have to do myself, you know."
Shampoo nodded emphatically, "Husband right. Real
warrior never ask for help."
"Then I'm not surprised you can't speak Japanese yet,"
Akane said under her breath.
As Ranma continued to train, two more onlookers joined
Akane and Shampoo. Yuannyan had already told her fianc'e about
the warrior that her brother would be facing, and Herb was obviously
interested in watching the show.
"A Chinese-like king, you say?" the Musk prince asked,
turning to Akane.
"That's right. Ranma has been training with him for some
four days now." She sighed, "The baka doesn't want to admit he
needs help."
Although said baka didn't hear the comment, his self-
appointed wife was not pleased, "Ranma no need help! He beat
anyone, like he beat Shampoo!"
"And I can tell you're sooo glad he did that..." Akane glared
at her.
"Shampoo -is- glad. Shampoo defeated by good warrior.
Shampoo no like if she defeated by bad warrior. Bad warrior makes
bad husband."
"And good female warrior makes good victim too?" Akane
snorted.
"Akane no make fun of Amazon laws! They ancient heritage
from founders of Joketsuzoku!"
"Well... actually..." Yuannyan smiled nervously, "The
founders never thought up those laws."
"They didn't?" Akane blinked, "Then who did?"
"Ah..." the redhead wondered just how quick Akane would
be to draw out The Mallet. "It's a long story... Didn't oneechan ever
tell you...?"
* * *
"You did what?!"
"I..."
"Why did you let her walk away?" Pandi questioned a
sheepish Lael as they waited for Zhaodi to come to class. "Couldn't
you just tell what she felt?"
"I guess... I wasn't thinking straight," the boy shrunk under
the shorter girl's gaze.
She snickered, "You don't have to tell me that. But I can't
believe you just stood there in the river while she left! I mean, you
both noticed, didn't you?"
"I... I don't know. You think she..."
Pandi sighed and put a hand on his shoulder, "Lael-kun,
trust me. I'm her twin sister. I _know_ she likes you. Besides,
yesterday, when she came home, I asked her what had happened and
all she did was smile and say everything was all right." She noticed
how Lael's mouth curled into a faint smile. "So, Lael-kun... how do
_you_ feel...?"
The foreign boy just smiled nervously.
Meanwhile, at Zhae's house...
"It's getting late," the old woman said, "Isn't it time for your
class with Lael yet?"
"Huh?" Zhaodi blinked, as if brought out from her thoughts.
She looked down, then tugged at her new pigtail a little. "M...maybe
I _should_ get going."
"What's wrong?" Tangbei asked, leaning against the wall as
she looked at the fourteen year-old. "Are you avoiding that boy by
any chance?"
"What makes you say that?"
"Well, it's been one hour since you and Zhae stopped
training. You usually run to meet up with him after every lesson."
"Uhm..." Zhaodi looked down again. "Isn't it going to rain
soon, anyway?"
"You _are_ avoiding him," Zhae cocked an eyebrow, "What
happened yesterday, Zhaodi? You've been acting awfully calm today,
considering it's _you_, and now it seems you don't want to go train
Lael."
"O-of course I want to... to go and..." her voice became
inaudible as she trailed off. But she didn't know what to say anymore.
She knew she wanted to see him again, but for the first time in her
life she was just too nervous. She couldn't believe herself. What was
happening with her? Why was she feeling so strange?
"Well, I don't know what happened between you two," Zhae
said, "But, if you please, I have to discuss some issues with Tangbei,
so..."
"All right, all right," Zhaodi said and headed for the door,
When she opened it, she couldn't help lifting a hand to feel the base
of her pigtail, as it was still strange to have her hair braided so
tightly. Also, deep inside, she wondered if...
"In case you're wondering," Tangbei smirked mischievously,
"I'm sure Lael likes your hair no matter how you wear it."
Zhaodi nearly facefaulted, "W-what are you talking about?!"
she turned around with roseated cheeks and a nervous sweat. After
glowering at the snickering Tangbei, she stormed out of the house
and slammed the door.
"Say what you want," Tangbei said," But Xingyi..."
"...acted the same way when she first met her husband
Wenquing, I know," Zhae smiled in amusement.
Pandi and Lael saw Zhaodi hurriedly walking --or stomping,
more like it-- towards them.
"Okay, here's your chance!" Pandi gently shoved Lael in
Zhaodi's direction.
"She looks angry..." he stammered, "Maybe I better..."
"Oo, that nosy...!" Zhaodi thought. "Who's she think she is,
butting into my business..." She called out, practically yelling, "Hey,
Lael!"
"Here you go!" Pandi pushed him towards her.
"Uh... H-hi, Zhaodi," he was forced to say, his face red. She
was caught off guard and dropped her anger like a rock, blushing as
much as Lael.
"H-hi... Lael-san. How is.... how's your shoulder?"
He absently looked at it, and the bandanna that Zhaodi had
bandaged it with, "Fine, I guess... thanks..."
"Oh." She looked down for a second or two, but then she
cleared her throat and looked around, "S-so, how about we get
started? We already lost an hour and we have a lot to see today."
Lael hurriedly followed her example, leaving Pandi
bewildered and blinking several times. "Wha... wha... Hey, wait a
second!" she said, "Aren't you two going to..."
The embarrassed look they gave her made Pandi share their
red hue and shut up. But she kept watching them all through the
class, though. She didn't miss one of the sidelong glances they shared
when they thought the other wasn't looking, nor the way they moved
around each other. If their attraction was obvious before, what had
happened yesterday broke down the few barriers that still existed
between them.
"Well..." Zhaodi said, brushing her hands, "I think that's
enough for today." She sent another brief glance at Lael, who was
still picking himself up from his round of pushups.
"W-what?" he stood up hurriedly, "But what about what
happened yesterday?"
He saw her shoulders rise and how her body was suddenly
tensed. He immediately continued, "I mean, weren't you going to...
teach me the White Palm...?"
When she heard the second part of his speech she let her
shoulders slump and sighed in relief. Turning around slowly, she said,
"R-right, I forgot. " She walked back towards him, "Then, let's get
started on that."
Pandi watched amused as Zhaodi first approached Lael,
both of them still showing signs of uncertainty. "Okay, now, since
you shoot blasts all the time, this should be easy for you," Zhaodi
said. "Now, put your hand on a rock, like this..." He did as indicated,
all the time watching her. "N-now..." she realized he was looking at
her and felt nervous again, "T-try to push it with your chi."
He swallowed hard and tried to push the rock, but
apparently he wasn't very concentrated at the moment. "Okay, I'll
show you," she said, then closed her eyes. Her hand glowed faint
white for a second, and then the rock slowly advanced as if pulled
away from her, although her hand never even moved. Since she
continued to push, he assumed it was time for him to follow the
example. He set his eyes on the rock and concentrated. But nothing
happened. He wondered what was wrong --he never had any
difficulty using his chi before. Puzzled, he looked over at Zhaodi
again. His eyes were frozen when he saw how the ghostly aura had
outgrown her hand and was making her hair wave slightly. With her
eyes closed, together with the light of the aura around her face, the
overall effect was stunning.
He felt his hands heat up again.
Suddenly realizing what was going on, he was unable to
stop the buildup and the next thing he knew the rock was blasted
away by a glowing bird of red chi. Zhaodi opened her eyes in time to
see the bird fly off, showering the ground beneath it with gravel.
"Wow..." Pandi gasped, astonished.
"You..." Zhaodi turned to him, "You did that again..."
"But this time I didn't..." he said to himself. He looked at
Zhaodi, who was still showing her smile of wonder. Their eyes met,
just like they had the previous day, and they looked away for a few
seconds.
"Maybe we should continue tomorrow," they said
simultaneously. Then Zhaodi noticed that the bandanna had fallen off
of Lael's shoulder, probably because of the blast. Curious, she peered
over to his shoulder and realized his wound had already healed.
Caught in fraganti, he hurriedly took the bandanna and
offered it to her, "H-here. I... guess I don't need it anymore."
She looked at it for a moment, but then she smiled and took
his hands, curling his fingers around the bandanna so he wouldn't let
go. "Keep it. Besides, I like my hair better this way."
She stood up, and he stayed behind a moment. But then his
brain shouted at him, "You idiot! Don't just sit there like you did
yesterday! Say something!"
He gulped, and he found himself standing up to follow
Zhaodi. Out the corner of his eye he saw Pandi holding her breath
expectantly to hear his words. "Zh-Zhaodi..."
She turned around, "Huh?"
He began to sweat profusely, "Th-thanks... and..."
"Go on!" his brain yelled.
"And I... like that... pigtail, too..."
At his words, she felt a great flame engulf her rapidly. She
smiled, a little, and felt the heat in her cheeks. "Ah... thanks..."
Suddenly aware of what she was saying, she desperately followed it
up, "I... I like it too, because this way it doesn't mess up when I
practice."
The speed of her reply, the way she had avoided thanking
him for the compliment, made him and Pandi believe she had only
sought a way to escape and walk away. But she stayed. She just
stood there, in front of Lael, with her fingertips still clutching the
wispy end of her pigtail.
The pressure was too much for Lael. He knew he had to say
_something_, to try to converse with her, but his mind was a blank
slate. The worst part was that he knew he would later think up things
he could have said, but by then it would be too late. No, if he was to
say something he would have to do it now.
"That... that's not what I meant."
"Huh?" it was Pandi who was surprised.
"I mean..." Lael continued. Zhaodi was blinking, baffled, but
slowly realizing what he was going to say. She didn't know why she
was doing it, but she found herself clinging to his every word: she
wanted to hear him say it. She wanted him to say it, even though she
was fully conscious of what she was thinking. But she wasn't Pandi!
She was a warrior, or at least she wished to be one; she was_not_ a
little sentimental girl that could be melted so easily! She... she...
Why the hell was she blushing so hard?!
"I mean..." Lael repeated, "You... you look very... The
pigtail... You look..."
Come on, say it.
"You... you're..."
Say it.
"You're..."
SAY IT.
"You're very... pretty."
Pandi clenched a small fist in triumph. She just _knew_ Lael
was falling in love with her sister, but finally he was making progress!
Satisfied, she watched them from the side, waiting for her
sister's reaction. Zhaodi was still looking up at him, although her
fingers were sliding down from her hair before letting go abruptly,
making her hand fall back to her side.
What was that supposed to mean, she wondered. She... well,
she _knew_ she was pretty: why, practically everyone in the village
kept saying that the twins would grow to be very beautiful. But she
never really cared about that. She _was_ a warrior, after all, and she
wasn't interested in looking "pretty." Even if she did, and someone
mentioned it, she would always shrug it off and say it was just a
coincidence, since she never made any effort to improve her looks.
She had certainly received this kind of compliments many times
before.
So why did it mean so much now?
A low breeze swept through the training ground, picking up
a host of leaves and making her pigtail flutter around. Almost
instantly she noticed how his own ponytail --his hair had grown
enough these last few weeks for him to have a ponytail-- waved like
a standard in the wind. Who was this boy? Why did he enter her life
to make her feel so strange? Why was it that she was so independent,
so confident about everything in her life _except_ how she felt for
him?
She didn't know why it was, or how it was. But deep down,
she was waking up to that realization. She was... surprised, and
intrigued. Did he... No, of course not. She had heard other men from
the village say she was pretty. Just because Lael had never said it
before didn't mean that he... Or did it?
But then she noticed the deep hue of his face. His red eyes
shimmered as if made out of very fragile glass.
It did...
Unable to repress a smile, Zhaodi gave a light blush and, in a
clear and soft voice, said, "A-arigato, Lael-chan."
He, of course, had no idea what that meant --he had learned
Chinese, not Japanese-- but the tone of her voice, the pleasant way
she had sung out the first four syllables of those words, let him know
that he had just done something he would forever be thankful for.
She took his hand, giving it a light squeeze, before letting
go. She took a few steps forward, then looked back with a gaze that
meant, "Race you back to the town!" And she left, not running but
walking with a light trot that made her pigtail bounce on her back.
Lael, smiling absently, followed a few meters behind.
Left alone, ignored and practically abandoned, Pandi could
only snicker. Her twin sister and Lael...
This would be so much _fun_.
It really didn't take much for Lael and Zhaodi to become closer and
closer. After just a few days after the incident at the river, the sight of
them walking around in each other's company --and sometimes, when
they shed their nervousness, even holding hands-- was a common one
in the village and its vicinity. Even outsiders that had just arrived to
learn the Arts would instantly recognize the language spoken by the
couple's eyes. They rarely left each other's company, not caring
anymore about what Zhae, Tangbei, Hidama or anyone would have
to say about that. They were together --the rest of the world could
do whatever it pleased for all they cared.
And yet, although it was clear that it wasn't just friendship
what bonded them, not once did anyone, even Pandi, dared say that
they were in love. It was still too soon to tell, anyway. They _were_
the best of friends; they confided each other with their innermost
secrets, true; they couldn't stand being apart, granted; but it wasn't
love yet, or at least that's what most people believed. Of course, since
neither Zhaodi nor Lael ever said anything that implied that word, it
was a natural assumption.
Though sometimes an entire town can be mistaken...
It wasn't until two more months that Lael finally began to
learn Japanese. When questioned why, he argued that he could
someday be interested in traveling to Japan, and search for martial
arts masters to train under. Zhaodi, though, wasn't fooled (even if
Pandi believed him at first.) She knew he wanted to learn Japanese
because it was _her_ language. She appreciated the effort he made in
learning, which was almost as much as what he put into martial arts.
He loved her. It that wasn't enough proof yet, nothing
would be.
Then there was the way he reacted when he learned to add a
suffix to a name. At first he had no trouble, since he had heard Pandi
call him Lael-kun and Zhaodi Lael-san. But for the last months she
had called him Lael-chan.
She tried not to snicker, but in the end she had to ask Pandi
to explain why she used that. As Pandi put it, you should use that
suffix to address small children, and girls often use it for addressing
each other. When a girl uses it after a male friend's name, though, it
has another meaning. Neither of the twins said what the special
meaning was, but from the way Zhaodi avoided his gaze when he
figured it out he had to struggle to keep himself conscious.
And he immediately began to call her Zhaodi-chan.
He never forgot about what it meant, and he swore not to.
However, whenever someone from the village asked him what it
meant he'd just play the fool and say he didn't know, and if that
didn't work he would try to mess up so he wouldn't be asked about it
again. He would repeat that strategy almost all of his life.
However, he soon wondered why she called him that, given
the meaning of that suffix. And he tied loose ends. And he made
accurate assumptions. And he asked around. And he found out.
And he was in paradise.
Zhaodi would never know how important that day was. Lael
changed for the better the day he found out. She noticed how all of a
sudden he did more than yearn for her --he strove to be by her side,
everything he did was in one way or another for her sake. It pleased
her, confused her... frightened her. She didn't know if she was ready.
She was still a young girl!
Oh, _now_ you're a young girl, a part of her mind would
say. Aren't you're always saying you're a warrior?
Well, yes, she dreamed of someday being a warrior like
Tangbei and Zhae-sama, so she could make her parents proud and so
she could look over Pandi-chan. But then there was that new guy
who appeared out of nowhere, changing her plans so radically,
fascinating and confusing all at once. She knew he was in love with
her, and she knew his love wasn't unrequited --although, she had to
admit, she had never said the three words and probably never would.
Then there was Hidama. She had no interest in him
whatsoever, but she knew that he and Lael-chan were close.
Although there was a part of her that couldn't care less what the Mt.
Phoenix boy intended, another part didn't want to be the reason for
them becoming enemies.
With such thoughts in her mind, she approached Lael one
day. They talked, although the conversation never brought up the
subject of whether they loved each other or not --this saved her again
from saying those words. They agreed that some time spent away
from the village would be beneficial. Thus, they met up with Pandi
and headed for Zhae's house.
"A training trip?"
"Yes," Zhaodi said. "We've decided that it's time to teach
Lael-kun more advanced techniques. And going out to the country
would help us with harder training." She was careful to call him
"Lael-kun" while she spoke, although it was almost a reflex to do
otherwise; she rarely ever called him "Lael-chan" unless they were
alone, or with Pandi.
"Harder training, then," Zhae said, her brow knit in thought.
"That's right. So far, we've only taught him basic techniques,
and the endurance exercises have gotten soft for him..."
"They have?" he thought, rubbing his sore abdomen.
"...which is why we want to take him on a training trip."
"I see..." Zhae nodded, taking a sip from her pipe. "Then I
assume you will do the same thing we did when I took you and Pandi
to Jusenkyo for training." Zhaodi nodded. "And will your training trip
cover the same routines and exercises we used a year ago?"
"Yes."
"Maybe you should wait a few months," Zhae said,
"Remember what level you were in when I took you there. I have
faith in Lael, but I doubt he can endure the journey."
"Huh?" he was puzzled, "How come?"
Zhae snickered, "Haven't the twins ever shown you their real
strength?" She turned to Zhaodi, "Go outside and show him, will
you?"
"Er..." she was caught off guard. She liked to show off
before him, but at least she liked to be able to surprise him from time
to time. Oh, well, he would have found out sooner or later anyway...
"Okay, I'll show him in a little while," she said, "But do we
have your permission?"
Zhae eyed her carefully, "He's _your_ student. If _you_
think he's ready, then by all means go. I'll leave the decision up to
you."
Grateful, the trio stood up and bowed to her, then they left
the house.
"Well, that wasn't so hard," Pandi said. "She never even
asked about the other reasons for the trip."
"She already knows," Zhaodi frowned, "She's just keeping
to herself to see if she's right." She then began to pull Pandi towards
their house, "Well, we have to prepare to leave tomorrow. See you,
Lael-chan."
"Wait!" he said, "Weren't you going to show me
something?"
"Uh..." Zhaodi stammered. "All right."
She lead them towards a large boulder by the side of the
road. She looked around and said, "This is something that me and
Pandi-chan, and I guess everyone in the village, have thanks to Zhae-
sama. Ever hear of the Blasting Point-Hole technique?"
"No, what is it?"
"It's a technique that shatters rock with just one finger. It's
not that useful, but it can sure help you build up endurance and
strength. Now, since you've never really seen anyone from this village
fight for real, you probably won't believe it."
He smiled, "There's a lot of things about you that I can't
believe."
She shrugged, "Okay, I warned you..."
They stood back. Zhaodi and Pandi nodded to each other,
and all of a sudden the twin with the pigtail took off towards the
boulder. She leapt up, and when she came down she delivered a
massive dropkick. The boulder was split open like a walnut.
But if Lael was left speechless by that attack, he almost
passed out when he saw her _lifting_ each half of the boulder at a
time, to toss it up into the air. Each fragment must have weighed two
hundred pounds! And she tossed them up like they were apples! And
what's more, after that she jumped up between the rocks and sent out
a spin-kick to each of them, shattering them into a million pieces with
the greatest of ease.
She landed, and just wiped her hands. Lael was staring at
her with very wide eyes.
"Like I said, since Zhae-sama has taught everyone here,
they're all very strong."
"Oh my God..." he whispered, astonished. Why, he'd
probably break his back if he tried to do that, or at least break his
legs if he tried to pull off a kick like that!
"And _this_ is what I mean by 'hard' training," Zhaodi said,
smirking mischievously at him. Since he was already aghast, she just
passed by him and petted his shoulder.
"And I'm supposed to do that...?" he whimpered, looking at
the rock pieces.
The next day...
"Be careful," Xingyi said to the twins as she helped them
pack the few bundles of clothes they would take.
"Don't worry, Xingyi-san," Pandi said, "Lael-kun will be
with us."
"That's why I'm worried..." Xingyi said in a lower tone of
voice, "I know he's a good young man, but..."
"He won't try anything," Zhaodi smiled, "I know him. He's
too nice to even think about that."
"Well, there _are_ rumors flying around..." Tangbei said.
"What kind of rumors?" Pandi asked.
"You know. Everyone knows he's more than just attracted
to your sister."
"Yes, so?"
"So he might..."
Zhaodi felt somewhat angry at her friends speaking of Lael-
chan that way, but on the other hand... "Yeah, right. Like he would
even stand a chance if he tried anything."
"So you could stop him, then?"
"I did once, and back then he..." she shut herself up. She
knew Lael didn't like having people find out about his possession by
Coldfire. "Never mind. The point is, he'd never do anything, and even
if he did I would stop him. The guy is barely a beginner anyway. I'd
take him down in two seconds flat if he tried to fight me."
"And if he defeats you?"
Zhaodi snorted, "That'll never happen."
"Even if, I don't know, you were apart for some time, and
he learned more powerful techniques at a faraway land, say, magic
and that sort of thing?"
She chuckled, "Tangbei, don't poke into Zhae-sama's spice
collection. You're imagining things."
"Okay, okay, so maybe him traveling to another land where
he could learn magic and powerful techniques was a bit far-fetched.
But how do you know he'll never defeat you?"
"I'll put it this way: the day he beats me, I'll marry him.
How's that?"
"Come again?"
"I said, that if Lael-kun, who's not even from this village,
defeats me, one of the Joketsuzoku, I'll marry him."
"Isn't that a little extreme?" Pandi asked. "I mean, you two
like each other a lot, and..."
"Oh, I don't think that's what she meant," Tangbei smirked,
"I think she means that, since she's oh so strong and skilled, she
wants to marry someone who's just as good as her, so he can beat her
just in case if, I don't know, if she loses her temper and goes berserk.
Isn't that right?"
Zhaodi grimaced, "Not exactly what I had in mind,
though..."
Pandi shook her head, "You spend too much time with
Zhae-sama, oneechan."
"But then, what if he never defeats you?" Xingyi said, "What
if he waits so long for you that he just gets tired and goes off with
someone else?"
"Nah," Zhaodi dismissed with her hand. "He doesn't like
anyone else from this village."
"And if it's someone from outside? What if an outsider beats
you to him?"
"She'd kill the little tramp," Tangbei said.
Zhaodi was shocked, "What?! I'd never..."
"So," Xingyi was trying to process what had been said, "If
Lael, beats you, you'll marry him. But if a girl from outside beats you
to him, you'd kill her?"
Zhaodi stared wide-eyed at the elder Amazons, "What in the
world are you talking about?! I'd never do anything like--"
"Wait, wait, Zhaodi is bringing up very important points..."
Tangbei said, "If someone beats a Joketsuzoku, it means he or she is
very strong. If he's male, then she could marry him and bring strong
blood to the clan, but if she's female then she would be a threat: she
could steal our husbands or break up the village, which is why she
would have to be killed." She thought about it while Zhaodi sweated
nervously. "Maybe I better inform Zhae about this... Or better yet,
since I'll be her successor, I'll just make that a law for Amazons!"
"Now wait just a minute--!"
"Of course!" Tangbei said triumphantly, "Zhaodi, you're a
genius! Have a good trip, I'll go write that down right now!"
"Waaaaaait!"
* * *
"Oh, Ranko-chan..." Akane called, brandishing The Mallet.
"S-so..." Herb stammered, unable to repress his laughter,
"Your sister helped create the original idea for the two most
important Amazon laws?"
"I think I'm going to have a little chat with my little sister..."
Ranma said. He had that weird glint in his eye again...
"Why you all so angry?" Shampoo looked at Akane and
Ranma. "Ranma sister right about creation of laws. That why
Shampoo no want to kill Ranko --she Joketsuzoku, just like
Shampoo! And if she create laws, she agree with Ranma being
Shampoo's husband!"
"We'll see about that..." Akane's Mallet glistened
dangerously.
"What? What will you see?" asked Phaeron as he arrived at
the scene.
"You! You're the reason she thought up those laws!"
"Eh?" the Esper stared nervously at Ranma and Akane, who
were glowering menacingly at him. "Did I... interrupt something...?
Did I come at a bad time?"
"Did you know that Ranko helped create those stupid
Amazon laws?" Akane said. Then everyone noticed who had
followed Phaeron into the garden.
"Wha? What did I do?" Ranko asked innocently. She looked
at Akane's Mallet and Ranma's glare, "Uh-oh..."
"Ranko no baka!" came the angry yell followed by a mad
swipe of The Mallet. Ranko eeped and dodged the blows one after
another.
"What the heck did I do?!"
"Ranko help Shampoo find husband!" the Amazon said
happily, clinging to Ranma's arm.
"Hey, wait a minute..."
"I did what?!"
"Your <swish> sister <swing> told us <swipe> how you
<crash> created those <Hulk Smash!> Amazon laws!" Akane said
through her attacks.
"Huh?" Ranko blinked, but then caught The Mallet and
stopped Akane, "Where did you get that idea, Yuan-chan?!"
"Well, remember that day in China, before we left on a
training trip...?" She quickly summarized what Ranko --then Zhaodi--
had said to Xingyi and Tangbei. When she was finished, she saw
Ranko stare at her in shock.
"You idiot!" she said, "You twisted what I said completely!"
"I did?" Yuannyan blinked cutely.
"Yeah!" Ranko yelled, but then she lost her grip on The
Mallet and had to leap away to avoid the smash. "Uh, Phaeron-kun,
maybe we better..."
"I know..." he morphed into a Phoenix and flew towards
her, catching her belt in his claws and carrying her away from the
insanity.
"Just you wait, you baka!" Akane called out. Fuming, she
dropped the weapon and shook her fists in anger.
"Shampoo not know why everyone so angry at Ranma
sister. Joketsuzoku live by those laws for ages."
"Oh, easy for you to say!" Akane glared at her, "That's just
your excuse for going after Ranma!"
"Shampoo no have to go after. She already Ranma's wife."
To prove her point, she grabbed Ranma and hugged him. "But then
violent girl jealous of Shampoo."
Ranma realized what was about to happen, "Uh, Akane...
don't..."
"I am not jealous! And you get your hands off her, Ranma!"
she malleted them both into the nearby pond.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Ranma came out, flailing
about with his arms, "CAAAAAAAAT!"
"Oh. Oops."
"Guess I spoke a wee bit too much," Yuannyan said, smiling
nervously.
"Not at all," Herb snickered, "I haven't laughed this much in
years!"
At the same time, the other redhead was riding on Phoenix' back,
wondering what had just happened.
"What in the world was that all about?"
"I think they said something about Amazon laws," Phoenix
said.
"Yeah, but I don't get it. I never... Oh, wait, I remember."
"Don't tell me you did..."
"Of course not, baka," she gave a light swipe at his head,
messing up his crest. "What happened is that they misunderstood
what I said."
"And what _did_ you say?"
"Well..." she began to blush slightly. "Remember that day
when we left on a training trip near the village? Well, I was talking
with Tangbei and Xingyi, and they said that they were worried about
you trying to take advantage of us."
He frowned, "What a good concept they had of me."
"Never mind that. The point is, I said that in the _remote_
case you wanted to try something, I'd stop you, because you wouldn't
beat me..."
The frown turned into a smirk, "Will I ever?"
"Anyway, things drifted off from that, and I ended up saying
that if you could beat me, I'd..." her voice became almost a whisper,
"I'd marry you."
"Ranko-chan..." he looked up.
"Phaeron... This is _very_ important. There's a reason why I
said that." She looked around. "Y'think you could land somewhere?"
"Okay..." he slowly descended towards the shore of a river,
letting himself glide down while his tail diminished his speed. Once
they were a few meters above the ground, Ranko dropped from his
back and waited for him to touch down. After a brief flash of light, he
stood up in his human shape and walked towards her.
"So..."
"So..." she stood beside him, not looking up at his face.
Deciding to cut the prelude she went right to the point and looked up
at him with a serious expression. "I said that because... well, because
of what I felt for you back then..." He sighed a little. She _still_
wouldn't say the three words. "Since I was teaching you, then, if you
could beat me... I don't know what I was thinking, but I said that
because..." her gaze slowly came back down, avoiding his eyes,
"...because...if you _did_ beat me, it would mean that you were
putting all your effort into it, and that would've made me feel..." She
paused for a second. Without a word, she looked up at him.
"Huh?" he suddenly looked straight into those big blue eyes,
in which he saw something very, very deep.
Then, slumping her shoulders, she said, "Phaeron... kun...
You know how I feel after seeing you pull off some technique that I
taught you?" He didn't answer, because he knew she would like to
continue herself. "I feel... I feel so proud of you," she smiled, "I think
I also feel happy for you. I get the idea that as long as I teach you,
you can learn everything. So, I guess that what I meant back then
was... If you could beat me, I'd be so proud... so happy for you, that
I'd marry you..." He heard her sigh, but there was nothing he could
say in reply. After a moment, she said, "It was just a figure of speech
back then. I didn't know they'd take it so seriously... or twist it so
badly."
He cleared his throat, "Then you didn't mean it?"
"Of course not," she said, but then noticed a slight slump of
his shoulders, "No, I didn't say that! It's just... well, I don't want to
have to fight you for that."
She didn't notice, but Phaeron nearly burst into flames at
those words. She had said she didn't want to fight him so they could
marry! Then she might... she _had_ considered marrying him! No,
maybe she even _wanted_ to!
"Huh?" Ranko blinked, feeling the air warm up slightly.
"What's wrong? You have a fever?" she gently caressed his forehead.
"No, it's not a fever," he said, smiling as broadly as his
mouth allowed, "Say... want to watch the sunset?"
She shrugged, "Sure." She smiled, and placed a hand on his
shoulder. As they walked away from the river, she wondered what he
was thinking now that she had told him about the "Amazon law."
Heh, knowing how much he liked to tease her, maybe someday his
idea of proposing to her would be to challenge her, just to poke fun
at what she had said. Then they would both laugh and...
Ranko sighed, "By the way... You never did tell me what
happened later."
"Before leaving?" he asked, "Or you mean what happened at
that waterfall?"
"Well, I was asking about what happened with Hidama, but
now that you mention it..."
Phaeron sighed. "Before we left, I had an argument with
him. He practically had me skewered with that sword. You know
how infatuated he was with you, after all."
"He was?" she wondered, "I thought he just liked me."
"It was more than that. When he heard I was going on a trip
with you and Yuannyan, he got very angry. I mean, I had never seen
him like that, since he was always very calm and peaceful. I guess he
was jealous."
"Or overprotective," Ranko said, "Just like someone I
know."
"Maybe. But in the end, that's the reason why he left the
village."
"So that's it?" she grimaced. "Damn, we could've used his
help against Coldfire." After a few instants, she shook her head, "We
should've never gone on that trip."
"Why?"
"First Hidama leaves, then there's that accident you had at
the waterfall, and then we go back to the village and find out about
Coldfire. Sometimes I think that if we hadn't visited Jusenkyo that
time..."
"Ranko-chan, please..."
"Sorry," she said. She had forgotten how much it hurt him
to hear her speak that way, since he had spent fifteen hundred years
blaming himself for everything. Although it was all in the past now,
and they were finally together, to speak of Jusenkyo was to reopen
old wounds.
"But I'm curious," she asked, "What _did_ happen at that
waterfall, anyway? You never told us how you got there, or what
you were doing. We were very worried about you when it
happened."
He cleared his throat. "Well, _you_ were the one that found
me. I can't really remember what happened there..."
She didn't blame him. She knew Jusenkyo had made her
block out her most painful memories for a long time before she could
recover them. Whatever had happened to Phaeron back then must
have been as psychologically strong as the cursed imprisonment in
order to wipe out his memories of it. Also, now that she thought
about it, the accident at the waterfall was the beginning of their
battles...
--To be continued--
The Zephyr
al709382@campus.ccm.itesm.mx
