Locket 2 of 2

Izuma looked over the dojo with appraising eyes.  It was 
much like the one at home, except theirs was smaller and hadn�t 
had near as much damage done to it.  She was suddenly reminded 
of passing through parts of Nemira on the way there.  �What causes 
all of this damage?� She wondered.
	Akane had run upstairs and come down dressed in a white 
gi that looked as if it had seen a lot of use.  She had offered Izuma 
one of her spares since she had admitted to not bringing one, but 
she doubted it would fit since she was a head taller than Akane.  
She stood in the middle of the dojo grinning like a madman, 
waiting for the match to begin.  This combined with what she had 
done to Ranma made Izuma feel a little apprehensive.  Could she 
actually be mentally imbalanced and everyone was either too afraid 
or too stupid to admit it?  Izuma looked around.  Ranma lounged 
by the door, feigning disinterest.  Probably worried I�ll hurt his 
girlfriend, Izuma thought.  Nabiki also watched but with a much 
more calculating look.  Izuma had a feeling that if this was a more 
public fight she�d be taking bets.
	Early into the fight Izuma realized that while Akane was 
one of the more skilled opponents she had faced, she was still not 
really in Izuma�s league.  Akane couldn�t match Ryoga�s strength, 
much less Izuma�s, and she lacked the natural-looking grace a 
lifetime of training had given the all weather martial artist.  She 
was able to block and dodge with ease, while tagging Akane with 
pulled punches.  Still, Akane was faster especially the further they 
got into the match and was able to get a few good shots in past 
Izuma�s defenses.  It wasn�t long before Akane wiped the sweat 
from her forehead and conceded defeat, each bowing formally to 
each other.  It had been a good match, but Akane would have to 
train much harder to reach Izuma�s skill level.
	Nabiki was giving Izuma a look that she couldn�t place.  
Izuma glanced over to Ranma, who was still leaning against the 
wall, the look he was giving clearly wasn�t impressed with either 
her or Akane�s performance.  A little irritated by his superior 
attitude, Izuma said to him, �Think you could take me, eh?  You�re 
next.�
	Ranma shook his head.  �I don�t fight girls.�
Nabiki flinched, guessing what Izuma reaction would be.  
They had talked quite a bit since their business association had 
begun and she knew that if there was one thing that Izuma hated 
was to be thought inferior because she was a woman.
	Wrong answer, thought Izuma immediately.  �If there is 
one thing that I can�t stand its macho sexist bullshit like that!!�  she 
shouted right in his face, causing him to flatten himself against the 
wall, both from surprise and sheer force of her anger.  Akane 
looked at her in shock since the girl hadn�t shown even a hint of 
hostility during their match.  �I�ve been training in martial arts 
since I could walk and the last thing I need is a sex changing freak 
like you to refuse to fight me because of my gender!  You think 
only men have exclusive rights on fighting?  I�m both a woman 
and martial artist, damn proud of both, and I�m not going to let you 
or anyone else tell me I have to be one or the other!
	�So you won�t fight me, fine. I challenge you to a arm 
wrestling match, best two out of three wins.  If I win you will spar 
with me, despite the �I don�t fight girls� crap.  If you win, I�ll buy 
you lunch tomorrow.  Or are you too much of a wimp to face me?�
	Izuma�s face was red with anger, but she was smiling on 
the inside.  She really hated it when guys would only treat her as a 
woman or a fighter, but she could tell Ranma wasn�t really like 
them.  Despite being a sharp martial artist, he was easy to read and 
manipulate, just like Nabiki had said.  She also knew that since she 
could beat Ryoga at arm wrestling, that Ranma didn�t have a 
chance.
	Ranma thought about it.  This girl claimed to be stronger 
than Ryoga, but she only seemed a little stronger than Akane, who 
he could beat arm wrestling easily.  A free meal without having to 
deal with one of his fianc�es was a great incentive.  Even if he lost, 
he could just spar with her like he does with Akane so it didn�t take 
him long to decide.  �I�ll face you challenge.�
	Ranma, Nabiki realized, is an idiot.  She knew it before, but 
this time he proved it.  Nabiki was no martial artist, but she had 
developed an eye to judge them as it often helped in setting up 
odds to her benefit.  She had been studying Izuma closely and it 
was clear to her in the fight with Akane that Izuma was holding 
back, especially when she struck.  Izuma had pulled every one of 
her punches, but it was clear that Akane felt them as if they hadn�t 
been.  Ranma would have known this if he had been paying 
attention to their fight.  That combined with the fact that she 
carried an umbrella one-handed that Nabiki couldn�t even budge 
showed that she must be incredibly strong, perhaps stronger than 
Ryoga.
	The match was brief.  Izuma brought Ranma�s arm down 
like he hadn�t offered any resistance.  Ranma claimed not to be 
ready so they did it over, but with little difference in results.  
Ranma clearly strained on the next one, but he still didn�t last more 
than ten seconds.
	Ranma shrugged off the loss.  �So you�re strong as a 
gorilla, that doesn�t make you a good martial artist.�
	Izuma, not reacting at all to the insult, gave him a 
particularly nasty smile and said, �Try me.�
	Izuma waited a few seconds to see if he would make the 
first move, but after he only stood there she went on the offensive.
	Nabiki observed Ranma go through his typical dodge all the 
strikes routine he used against Akane whenever she convinced him 
to spar.  It seemed to be working at first, but Ranma was missing 
getting tagged by a much narrower margin.  Izuma also didn�t get 
infuriated like Akane often did, instead keeping her cool and even 
improving on her attacks after seeing how he moved.  After having 
watched him fight so many times, Nabiki noticed a shift in 
Ranma�s body language that meant he was getting to taunt his 
opponent with a barrage of insults instead of his fists.  The shift 
slowed him down just enough for Izuma to clip him on the arm.  
He managed to block it, but it was clear to Nabiki that he had felt 
the sting of her strike.  Izuma didn�t seem to be pulling her punches 
in this fight.  She was out to teach Ranma a lesson.
	Insults forgotten, Ranma concentrated wholly on dodging.  
His arm still stung from Izuma�s punch and he wasn�t going to risk 
another one like it.  All he had to do was wear her down and he 
could win a free meal without landing a blow.  The only problem 
was despite the lateness of the hour and the previous match, Izuma 
didn�t seem to be tired while he knew that he couldn�t keep up his 
dodging forever.
	While not physically tired, the match was starting to wear 
on Izuma.  Frankly, she was bored.  She had expected more from 
Ranma.  They were going through a dance like automatons, strike, 
dodge, strike, dodge, and Izuma for one was tired of the monotony 
of it all as she was sure Ranma was as well.  Sensing an advantage 
there, she lured him into a predictable pattern, then suddenly 
exchanged a punch for a snap kick to the gut.  Ranma was so 
unprepared for it that he was left wide open, unable to dodge or 
even block the kick that hit him with enough force to slam him into 
the dojo wall.
	Ranma groaned from the floor.  He could still feel the kick 
on his stomach, even more painful than one of Akane�s mallet 
strikes.  There was definitely going to be a bruise in the morning.  
Akane rushed over to him to see if he was okay, but once she was 
sure no lasting damage had been done, she slapped him on the back 
of the head and said, �Baka! You got what you deserved.�  And 
then stormed off to her room.
	Izuma stood over him for a few minutes, waiting for him to 
look up at her.  When he did he saw a Nabiki-like grin and she told 
him, as if there were any doubt, �You lost Ranma, to a girl, 
because you wouldn�t fight back.  If I used my full strength on that 
kick you�d be on your way to the hospital right now.  Holding back 
because of someone�s gender is a sure way to loose.�  And with 
that departing shot, she follow Nabiki to her room.

	Izuma made herself comfortable on the spar futon as Nabiki 
got ready for bed.  The mercenary girl was actually giggling from 
Izuma�s final taunt against Ranma.  It had to be one of Ranma�s 
most humiliating defeats yet, beaten by a girl with a single kick.  
And the way she turned it around so the whole loss was his fault 
was just priceless.  The only saving grace for Ranma was it hadn�t 
happened in public.  She was glad she went with her instincts and 
didn�t refuse this girl when she had come to her for help.  Over the 
months of phone conversations Nabiki and Izuma had developed a 
tentative friendship and Nabiki had few friends as it was. �You 
really put Ranma in his place tonight,� she finally told the girl, �I 
don�t think that I could have done better.�
	�Thanks for the compliment,� Izuma replied with a grin, 
�but his �I don�t fight girls� line inspired my creativity.  Almost 
feel sorry for doing it, he didn�t seem nearly as much as a jerk on 
the way here.�
	�Oh,� Nabiki said with one raised eyebrow, not resisting 
teasing, �and just what did you two do on the way here?  From the 
way you were falling down laughing it must have been something 
interesting.�
	�It was nothing like that,� Izuma replied, picking up on 
Nabiki�s insuation, �We basically swapped stories about how 
strange our lives have been, especially about my cousin Ryoga.  He 
talked a little about his fianc� problem and I talked a little about 
the problems I had at my school.  It was all completely innocent.�
	Nabiki gave her a �yea right� look and changed the subject.  
�Speaking of school, are you sure you want to attend Furikan while 
you�re here?  With all the problems you�ve had the past, you�d 
think you�d want to take a vacation from school.�
	Izuma sighed.  �If only I could.  With my quest nearly 
complete I�ve decided to take it easy and search for the final piece 
over the weekends.  But pops will only allow me to stay here a 
month if I attend school, since I�ve missed so much of it during this 
quest already.  It�s better than going back to my old school.�
	Izuma had told Nabiki a lot of the problems she had with 
her old school and decided to change the subject once again.  �I�ve 
already drawn up a list of probable locations, but unfortunately 
there are quite a few spots in Nerima that fit your criteria.  It will 
take you at least a month to search them all on the weekends and 
for some reason the piece is usually in the last place on my lists.�
	�Unless I follow the list backwards and then its in the first 
place.  I know its weird, but there�s probably some mystical reason 
for it all.  I don�t mind staying here a while, you all seem like nice 
people and the food here is great.�
	Nabiki snorted.  �You�ll be singing a different tune by the 
end of the week.  Ranma seems like a vortex for trouble and 
anybody who isn�t careful gets sucked in with him.  There are a 
number of powerful martial artists around here, likely to try to kill 
you or date you, sometimes both, not to mention the occasional 
appearance of a remote prince or a long lost rival.  Ranma gets into 
at least a few fights each day, not counting the rounds he goes with 
my sister.  You can bet he�ll want a rematch with you after beating 
him today and I�m sure you�ll end up in fights with the other local 
martial artists whether you want to or not.�
	But then Nabiki changed her tone as she settled into bed, 
looking down on Izuma from the edge.  �Though from what I saw 
in the dojo and the other obstacles you�ve handled in your quest it 
shouldn�t be too hard for you here.  And since I�ve put so much 
time and effort into helping you on this honorable quest, could I 
finally see the object of all this effort?�
	Izuma thought about it for a moment.  On one hand she had 
never shown it to anyone, not even her own father, but on the other 
hand Nabiki had a point, she�d put nearly as much effort into this 
quest as Izuma had and had the right to see it.
	Undoing the chain around her neck, Izuma held up a 
beautiful golden locket to catch the moonlight.  It was shaped like 
the sun, with eleven sunbeams radiating out from it.  Its only flaw 
was a missing piece, cut out like a pie slice.  Nabiki leaned in close 
to take a good look, knowing that Izuma was too protective of the 
locket to let her touch it.  �Wow, I can�t believe that this was once 
in eleven pieces, I can�t see a single seam.�
	�When I fit a new piece in, the seams disappear in a flash of 
light.  So I know that it�s magical, but I still don�t have a clue what 
it does or what will happen when I find all of the pieces.�
	�Your grandmother didn�t tell you?�
	�Not so much as a hint, though she was on her deathbed at 
the time and pretty out of it.  She only told me that it was very old, 
had been in the family for generations, and it was my solemn duty 
to collect all of the scattered pieces and make it whole once more.�
	�Why you?  If its been in pieces all this time, why bother 
putting it together now?�
	Izuma shrugged.  �I think my grandmother wanted to do it, 
but never had the time.  For some reason it has to be done by a girl, 
so that leaves my father and brother out. I could have just kept it 
and passed it on, but I�ve always wanted an adventure and I really 
had nothing better to do but train in martial arts.�

	Nabiki awoke the next morning to the sounds of Ranma 
and his father locked in mortal combat, or morning sparring as they 
called it.  Nabiki didn�t have a problem with Ranma constantly 
training, it kept more challengers coming his way and she always 
made a substantial profit off of the resulting betting pools, but she 
wished that he could find a quieter way to go about it.
	She looked down, expecting Izuma to already be up and off 
training herself, and was instead surprised to see the girl still out 
cold with the sheets pulled up around her neck and snoring softly.  
She looked so unbearably cute and so unlike her tough girl image 
with her long hair all in disarray that Nabiki had already reached 
for her camera and snapped off a picture without even thinking.  
She had no plans to sell the picture nor use it as blackmail, but it 
would make great teasing material for a girl whose wits were 
almost as sharp as hers.
Nabiki struggled in vain to wake her new houseguest.  She 
was shaking Izuma hard, but the only result was a slurred request 
for five more minutes.  Trying to get the sheets off her was a vain 
effort, she had an iron grip even in sleep.  �Geez, she�s harder to 
wake up than Ranma,� thought Nabiki, �What is it about martial 
artists and sleeping late?  Aren�t they supposed to rise with the 
dawn or something?�
	�Hey, martial arts takes a lot of energy you know,� Izuma 
replied, sitting up and wiping the sleepiness from her eyes.  Nabiki 
was surprised that she had been speaking out loud.  �A martial 
artist that doesn�t get a good night�s sleep isn�t going to win any 
challenges.�
	�Well, if you don�t get up now you�ll be late for breakfast.  
Ranma and his father are almost finished their morning sparring 
and believe me you want to get to the table before they do.  
Otherwise there won�t be anything left to eat.�
	�I�m going, I�m going,� Izuma mumbled as she started to 
awaken, �Just let me take a quick bath first, ok?�
	As Izuma was getting her bath things together, Nabiki 
asked her, �So why do you wake up so late anyway?  Don�t you 
practice martial arts every morning?�  Just about every martial 
artist Nabiki knew practiced every morning.
	�Naw,� she replied, �I mean I used to do that, but then I 
was always tired in school.  When my pop saw my grades, he 
decided that it would be better if I practiced after school so I�d 
have energy to focus on my studies.  Usually I train right before I 
go to bed, to tire myself out so I have a good night�s sleep, you 
know?  That�s why I didn�t mind taking on Ranma and your sister 
last night, because I would have used that time for training 
anyway.�
	Nabiki nodded and thought about this as Izuma left for the 
bath.  She had always assumed that the reason Ranma was always 
sleeping in class was that he was lazy, after all none of the other 
martial artists dozed off in school, but then none of then worked 
nearly as hard as Ranma.  She wondered if Ranma�s grades would 
improve if he altered his training schedule.
	Izuma found the bath so relaxing that she started to fall 
asleep again and almost didn�t hear the door of the furo opening.  
�Hey, there�s someone in here,� she said without opening her eyes, 
just in case one of the males of the household had walked in.
	�Oh hi Izuma,� said a voice which she recognized as 
Akane, �Is it okay for me to join you?�
	With her eyes still closed, she removed the locket from its 
chain and hid it in the palm of her hand.  If she saw it, it would 
only lead to questions that Izuma didn�t want anyone but Nabiki 
asking.  �Sure, we�re both girls and it is your bath after all.  I just 
didn�t want Ranma or one of the fathers to walk in on me, that�s 
all.�
	�Oh,� Akane replied as she stepped into the furo and closed 
the door behind her.  �You don�t have to worry.  Everyone around 
here is pretty careful about things like that.  I only came in because 
I saw your clothes.�  Akane sat down and began to lather herself 
up.
	Without opening her eyes, Izuma turned her head in the 
direction of Akane�s voice and said, �And what happened to make 
everyone so cautious?  Ranma doesn�t strike me as the type to look 
before he leaps.�
	Akane put her head down in embarrassment and mumbled 
something that Izuma couldn�t catch.
	�What was that?�
	�I said that I sort of accidentally walked in on him in the 
furo.�
	Izuma burst out laughing and then asked, �Are you sure it 
was an accident?�
	�Well, he came to our house as a girl and we didn�t even 
know he was a guy until then.�
	�Something you found out pretty quickly.�
	Akane tried to ignore this remark.  �Yea, well, then after 
this he has the nerve to walk in on me.  Then there was the times 
that Amazon hussy Shampoo would pop into the furo when Ranma 
was there.  So we�ve all been pretty careful around the furo since 
then.  It saves wear and tear on the place.�
	Izuma nodded, the warm waters making her feel sleepy 
once more.  She had things to do that day, but wasn�t in any kind of 
rush.
	For a while the two sat in silence and Akane used this time 
to study their new boarder.  What she saw made her wince with 
envy.  Not only was Izuma a better martial artist that she was, but 
she had a body more beautiful than her own.  All of the un-cute 
taunts of Ranma made her painfully aware of her own attributes or 
lack there of.  Izuma was nearly as tall as Kasumi, but a body better 
toned than Shampoo�s and better built than Ranma�s girl form.  
The only thing that marred her perfection was a substantial scar 
under the right breast.
	�Where did you get that scar?� Akane asked, breaking the 
silence.
	�This one?� said Izuma, touching the one that Akane had 
noticed.  �A momento from my quest.  It wasn�t as bad as it looks 
and it was my own stupid fault anyway.  I was climbing in a cave 
and got sliced up when I fell.  It was over six months ago so the 
only thing that still hurts is my pride.  But we�re martial artists 
right?  Scars are part of art, I�m sure you have a few yourself.�
	Akane nodded, even though Izuma couldn�t see the gesture 
with her eyes closed.
**
I don't know if this has enough story or appeal to stand on its own.  May be written into my No Need for Ranma! universe, of which I'm hard at work on the next chapters.  I welcome all opinions on 
this story.

Ammadeau

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