In a small apartment in the Juuban area of Tokyo, a phone jarred the 
sole occupant out of bed. Bleary eyes focussed on a clock-radio for a 
moment, showing four thirty. A tall young woman tried to jumpstart her 
brain as she stumbled to the phone. Who would call her at this hour?

"This had better be important. " Kino Makoto told herself as she 
lifted the phone receiver.

"Hello... Who?... Oh, yeah. I remember. Why call me this early? ... 
You talked to Usagi and she told you to call me?"

<Thanks a lot, dumpling brain. Let's see how you like getting a call 
at THREE tomorrow. Well... maybe not. I don't want to wake her folks 
and little brother up too.>

"Yeah we do, every morning at six at Kikuko-chan's... She's the new 
student in our class. Hey, why did you get the martial arts bug all of 
a sudden?... You just had a feeling you should call, but why Usagi?... 
Oh yeah, she's your best friend and all but WHY so early?... Something 
told you HAD to? What on Earth could have made you think that?"

"Okay, Okay, don't get so defensive! Here's how to get to Kiku-chan's 
house..."

On a pre-dawn train from Nerima, two sisters stared sleepily across 
the aisle at the one who pulled them out of bed and dragged them to 
the train station. After a few minutes, the two sisters who didn't 
want to commute to Juuban again began to nod off. The third sister 
hadn't slept a wink since her nightmare was over... Her intuition or 
SOMETHING told her they HAD to be at Ranma's house this morning, and 
not just to practice martial arts.

Back in Juuban, a girl with long blonde hair was also getting ready to 
visit her teammate's home. She wasn't used to getting up this early, 
but if her friend was going to start training, the teenager decided 
she could too. Throwing some sweats over an old P.E. uniform, and then 
stuffing her school uniform in a duffel bag concluded her 
preparations. Usagi was ready to walk to Kikuko's. As she walked to 
the Saotome home, the Moon Princess contacted Haruka, Rei, and even 
got Minako out of bed. She told each of them to meet at the Saotome 
house. Ami would be going there anyway for her martial arts class, so 
Usagi didn't call her.

Haruka went to wake Michiru and Hotaru. Usagi had seemed concerned on 
the phone, so they had all decided to meet at Kikuko's house. The two 
sleepy girls agreed it was a good idea, convinced by the concern on 
their friend's face.

An unremarkable house on an unremarkable block in a remarkable 
district of Tokyo was the destination of all these people. And for one 
morning, that block was going to host something a bit remarkable, at 
least for any other district in the city.

***

Ranma 1/2 Honor and Love
(Yet Another) Ranma/Sailor Moon Crossover 

Episode 06: And Callisto Makes Seven

By Kevin D. Hammel

Ranma 1/2 is property of Rumiko Takahashi. Publication Rights are held 
by Viz in The US and Shogakukan in Japan. Sailor Moon is property of 
Naoko Takeuchi. Publication rights held by Kodansha Ltd. in Japan and 
Mixx Entertainment in the US. My purpose is to honor these creators 
and their works. No infringement intended.

***

On the outskirts of Tokyo, a small cat struggled out of her bedroll. 
She looked over at her great-grandmother with fear plain in her eyes. 
She was a HUMAN girl and an Amazon; not some kind of cat... or was 
she? "Great Grandmother!" She shouted with controlled terror. The cat 
stopped for a few moments, blinking in disbelief at her own voice. 
Cats didn't talk... did they?

A flash of memory flew into her mind. She remembered a pair of cats, 
one black and the other white. Luna and... Artemis. What Artemis EVER 
saw in that black haired floozy... The memories faded as human 
rationality fought with her instincts. She was a human! She couldn't 
think that way about a cat... could she? But was she REALLY a cat? 
What cat talked... or thought? Was this how she was supposed to be?

Cologne heard a plaintive cry from where Shampoo had been sleeping; 
though the voice sounded different from than her great-granddaughter's 
normal voice. Rolling over, she saw a... small cat. The little 
animal's eyes spoke of human intellect, not that of a simple creature.

The furrow of Cologne's brow was lost amongst myriad wrinkles as she 
thought. All she could come up with was a simple question, "Shampoo?"

The cat bowed slightly. "Yes, Great Grandmother. Last night I had a 
dream and... Changed."

Cologne nodded as she began to consider WHY Shampoo might have 
changed. "I see." Further thought claimed further speech. Scraps and 
fragments of family history coalesced into a single word, a name. 
"Shanna," the matriarch whispered with reverence. Her family was 
descended from that Amazon heroine. Legend said that she could take 
the form of a cat, and would be reborn when she was needed again. 
Could Shampoo be the one? Could she be Shanna reborn?

Great Grandmother seemed lost in thought. "Please, Great Grandmother. 
Help me," Shampoo begged. She wasn't a cat. Maybe she could escape 
these feelings if... somehow... she could become human again. Tears 
began to fall as she remembered being human. Walking on two legs. 
Fending off Mousse's unwanted advances. Being defeated by her... 
husband, Ryouga. All she wanted to be was a human again. She wished 
with all her heart to be human. The wish gained real substance as a 
warm wave of energy flowed out from her heart and reshaped her into 
what she had been. A girl. A HUMAN girl.

She smiled through renewed tears as she realized her heart held the 
key to both her forms. Fear still colored her voice as she spoke to 
Cologne as a girl again. "I'm a GIRL again, Great grandmother! A HUMAN 
girl!"

"Shampoo, do you remember the tale of Shanna?" Cologne asked her young 
charge.

Shampoo sniffled a bit as she stopped her tears. "Of course, Great 
Grandmother! Every girl knows about Shanna. I was just so scared... I 
still wanted to be human."

Cologne nodded her understanding. "Shanna served the Queen in the 
Silver Millennium and was accepted into our sisterhood." Cologne's 
expression darkened as she though of why Shanna had left the Queen's 
service. "After she escaped the destruction of the Royal Palace." A 
glimmer of a proud smile drove out some of the darkness as she 
continued. "Of course, by then, she had already spent years among the 
Sisters."

"I know all that. I also know that someday, she'll be reborn." Shampoo 
thought of her dream and what Triton had told her. That she was 
Shanna. She closed her eyes and deliberated about whether she should 
tell her elder. At last the girl reached her decision. Suddenly 
Shampoo's eyes snapped open, wordlessly announcing her resolve. 
"Great-grandmother, I had a dream last night. I think I might BE 
Shanna." Her expression became deadly serious as her mouth tightened 
to a thin line. "Actually, I know I am." Some of the fear left her at 
the admission.

Cologne was not so quick to accept what her eyes told her. "But there 
IS a spring at Jusenkyo..."

"I know, the cat-drown spring. But, I just changed just by WANTING to 
be human again. Not by water." Shampoo said in her defense.

"Well, maybe you are Shanna reborn. We'll see." A thoughtful 
expression became commanding. "Come, Shampoo. Your husband awaits us 
in Tokyo."

"Yes, Great-Grandmother."

***

Kikuko began a difficult kata as she waited for her students to 
arrive. It felt good to train at the highest level she knew, to 
stretch herself to her limits. She felt fully alive, totally in tune 
with her body. So absorbed was she in her Art that she failed to 
notice an arrival at the gate. After watching for a few amazed 
moments, the visitor broke the silence.

"Excuse me Miss, are you Saotome Kikuko?"

Kikuko stopped her kata and looked toward the source of the voice. A 
girl a little taller that Usagi, more Ami's height waited at the gate. 
Her short hair was reddish brown and wavy, held in place by a big 
orange bow.  Kikuko's expression couldn't be read as she walked to the 
gate, speaking as she reached it. "Yeah, I'm Kikuko, who're you?"

The girl bowed slightly. "Osaka Naru. My friend Usagi-chan told me 
that you teach martial arts in the morning before school."

Kikuko nodded once, letting a bit of pride show on her face for a 
moment. "Yeah, I do teach the Art to some friends of mine, but I ain't 
sure if we got room for another student." <That's not a Sailor Senshi, 
at least!> She added to herself.

Her guest looked concerned for a moment, then bowed politely, "Please, 
would you be able to." Naru knew she NEEDED this training. What could 
she say to convince the girl? "Kikuko-san, I NEED to train. I... uh... 
well..." Suddenly, the glare of bright lights behind her took her 
voice away.

A trio of blue flashes illuminated the street, turning early morning 
into noon for an instant. Dim shadows of a creature Kikuko had seen 
before could be seen within each expanding ball of energy. "Naru-chan, 
RUN! Ya really don't wanna hang around here, ya might get hurt! 
There's gonna be a whole lotta monsters in a minute!"

Naru looked scared, uncertain of what to do. Or was she CERTAIN of 
what to do but unsure how to do it?

Kikuko wasn't surprised to see each flash keep growing from a point to 
a bubble. It looked like who or whatever sent that creature last time 
decided a stronger attack was in order. Already planning an attack 
strategy, the redhead was soon distracted by a familiar symbol on the 
girl's forehead, Jupiter with an orbiting satellite. Kikuko jerked her 
head left than right as a parade of Sailor Senshi came running down 
the street toward the bubbles, one of whom was, "Sailor Jupiter!" the 
girl shouted as Jupiter raced at an impossible speed toward the two of 
them, stopping just as impossibly.

"Yeah?" Jupiter asked, as her friend pointed to the girl's fading 
manifestation. The Jovian Senshi frowned. "Uh, which ARE you? Ganymede 
or..."

"Callisto!" Naru answered with excitement tempered with real fear of 
the horror unfolding on the street. "I'm Sailor Callisto..."

"Great!" Jupiter responded. "You must need this..." She said as she 
handed over Callisto's henshin pen.

Feeling a tap on the shoulder, Naru turned to see Kikuko motion over 
to the side of the house. "It's a good idea to transform out of sight 
of the street, ya know." She whispered.

Naru nodded her head once. "Yeah, I guess so."

The two girls hurried behind a bush in the front yard, colored light 
all that showed of their changes. Kikuko got the first look at 
Callisto's transformation, consisting of a bright orange flash then 
orange flame. Light orange was Callisto's color, reflected in her 
skirt, boots, and a big bow in her hair. Complimenting the rest of her 
outfit were medium green ribbons and bow, with a jade brooch in the 
bow's center.

The newest Neo Senshi looked down at herself, and then up at the 
Sailor Senshi Kikuko had become in green and yellow. "Uh... I may be a 
Sailor Senshi now, but... those monsters look pretty tough."

Io wiped her smile off as her expression became more serious. "Yeah, 
they are. But we gotta do this, Callisto."

Callisto still looked wary, "But..."

Io held out her hand to her newest teammate, "C'mon. You're a Sailor 
Senshi. There ain't nothing they can do to hurt ya." Io replied with 
complete confidence. "By the way, I'm Sailor Io."

"Okay, Sailor Io. I'll do it!" Callisto said as she grabbed hold of 
Io's hand. Most of her doubts had been erased by Io's infectious 
confidence. As they headed for the street, a little of her own 
confidence began to assert itself.

The Nerimans saw the flashes as they walked to Ranma's from the train 
station. The sounds and sights of Sailor Senshi preparing for battle 
told them they needed to transform to help. After diving down an 
alleyway, three Neo Sailor Senshi emerged to race toward the combat 
zone. Charon turned to a now fully awakened Europa. "See, I told you 
we should come over here!"

"But you still haven't told me how YOU found out Big Si... Senshi," 
Europa replied.

"Oh, my. Another battle." Titan commented.

As the three visiting Neo Senshi hurried down the street, they were 
joined by three of the outer Senshi. A girl's voice spoke first. "Are 
you ready to fight again, Sailor Titan?"

"I hope, Saturn-chan. Last time they visited us, it looks like they 
decided to visit Ranma this time. I wonder who they'll visit next?" 
Concern knit Sailor Titan's brow for a moment.

"Visit ain't exactly what I'd call it, Titan." Uranus threw in after a 
double take. Was this girl for real?

"I think we're there." Europa said as the group of six Sailor Senshi 
made it to the drop zone and stopped to access the situation.

"Great, Europa. Your grasp of the obvious is simply astonishing." 
Charon added with a cocked eyebrow.

Europa considered for a moment what sort of mallet a Sailor Senshi 
might summon. She'd have to look into it, later. Waving a fist she 
replied, "To Europa, Charon!"

"Hey!" Io shouted in greeting to her guests. "We've gotta stop meetin' 
like this!"

"Hello," Callisto said to the six recently new arrivals. "I'm Sailor 
Callisto."

Charon felt a twinge of regret then smiled. Callisto HAD found a 
Senshi of her own. "I'm Sailor Charon."

The neo-Neo Senshi winked. "Callisto told me ALL about you, Charon."

Charon big sweated as she considered just what the Moon Spirit might 
have told her new teammate.

Pleasantries were tossed aside as every one of the bubbles disgorged a 
monster. Each was identical to the horror they had dispatched in 
Nerima... Excepting the fact there were three this time.

In a blur from the other direction, Moon, Mars, Mercury and Venus 
arrived at the scene just in time.

Io turned to her new teammate, "Got an attack technique? Let's go for 
a double team on the middle one!"

Io leapt into the air with a shout of "Tempest Flare!" As she hit the 
apogee of her jump, wind and flames shot from her outstretched arms.

Callisto executed a pirouette in a miniature snowstorm, shouting 
"Meteor Swarm!" as she came to a stop pointing at the creature. Both 
attacks impacted simultaneously. The creature reacted by striking at 
the nearest Senshi, in this case swatting at Io, who somehow executed 
a midair dodge to avoid the tentacle. The Senshi continued the dodge 
into a backflip away from the creature, landing next to Callisto.

"Wanna try that one-two again?" Io asked her new teammate.

"Okay!" Callisto replied, as some confidence began to overshadow her 
wariness. Her teammate leapt up to try the double teamed attack a 
second time.

Uranus, Saturn, Neptune, and Titan squared off against one of the 
creatures on the end as Charon and Europa hurried over to help 
Callisto and Io.

Arrayed against the third creature were the original Inner Senshi: 
Mercury, Venus, Moon, Mars, and Jupiter.

"Why aren't you helping out Sailor Io, Jupiter? After all, she looks 
just like your old boyfriend, right?" Mars asked wit a smirk before 
she pirouetted and launched a "Burning Mandalla!" straight at the 
creature.

Joined by Charon and Europa, Io prepared to charge the creature. 
"Ready for some hand to hand action?" She asked, looking at Europa.

"Well, let's try a combo attack, my Pressure Wave, your Tempest Flare, 
and uh... your Meteor Swarm, Callisto! We know Charon's sitting this 
one out..." Europa said, gazing from face to face as she asked, 
lingering on her sister.

"Okay." Callisto replied, eager to try her powers again.

"Well so I'm not big for frontal attacks, Europa. I've gotta THINK 
about what I'm doing. I'm not some baka running around with a loaded 
gun!"

"Oh yeah?" Europa asked, anger brewing. She turned to face off with 
Charon, only to be struck from behind by a tentacle.

Charon dove as her sister and teammate was thrown back, to impact 
against a wall with a sickening thud. The Neo Senshi ran to her 
sister's side to see if she could offer aid.

Io realized she had to do something to protect her friends. With a cry 
of rage, she leapt on top of the creature as it prepared another 
strike to finish off the wounded warrior. As she landed, Io shot off a 
Tempest Flare then shouted "Kachu Tenshen Amaguriken!" Her fists 
became a blur, digging into the creature's soft flesh.

Callisto hurried over to see how Europa was faring. Though bleeding 
from a gash on her forehead, she was sitting up. "You Okay?" She asked 
with a concerned look.

"Yeah... Did ya get the license plate of that tentacle?" Europa 
replied with a pained smile.

The creature didn't take kindly to the pain on its head. It had an 
itch that needed to be scratched, and an irritation to be removed. 
Three tentacles snaked out to grab the enraged Senshi and begin to 
squeeze.

Sailor Io went for offensive to defensive in a matter of moments. All 
she could think of was pushing with her arms against the enveloping, 
crushing force that surrounded her. She was strong enough to keep from 
getting crushed, but breathing was difficult. A misty gray began to 
creep into the fringes of her consciousness.

Sailor Europa screamed, forgetting her own wounds when she saw the 
creature grab Io. The small Senshi's face was all that was visible, 
deep red from her struggles. Standing quickly, Europa pointed at the 
bottom half of the creature and shouted "Pressure Wave!" then watched 
her attack impact on the side of the monster.

Callisto joined in with her "Meteor Swarm" for the third time against 
the horror. She didn't know if she had another to throw. Being a 
Sailor Senshi was hard work she thought as she tried to catch her 
breath.

Io felt the tentacles relax for an instant, then tighten even more 
before she could react.

Charon realized that the most important thing she could do right now 
was get someone with a sharp pointy object to slice the creature up a 
bit, especially those nasty tentacles. She ran over to the site of the 
Outer Senshi's battle.

Down the street a bit, things were going much better. With a final, 
"Flash Point," from Sailor Titan, their opponent dissolved, just as a 
scream was heard from one of the other battles.

Sailor Charon came running up. "Hey, could one of you with a weapon 
help us out? That thing's got Io!"

Uranus and Saturn took off running.

Sailor Europa decided now was the time to find out what kind of mallet 
a Sailor Senshi could summon. This creature was an insult to all 
Sailor Senshi and needed to be taught a lesson. Her righteous anger 
materialized in her hands as a huge mallet with a tempered steel head. 
She ran toward the creature, with a battle cry of: "Take THIS you 
baka!" echoing through the neighborhood.

The two outer Senshi with weapons saw an enraged Europa run at the 
creature wielding a gigantic mallet. The Neo Senshi then drew back and 
hit the tentacles that held Io captive.

The monster had a new threat. Throwing the irritant aside, it lashed 
out at the creature that had just cased it pain, hurling the attacker 
across the street. That was the last thing it ever did, as 
simultaneous strikes from the Silence Glaive and Space Sword cleaved 
it into 3 non-viable pieces.

The inner Senshi had dispatched their opponent and hustled over to see 
if the rookies needed help, only to see the creature fall under Uranus 
and Saturn's blows. The battle was over, the three blue spheres shrank 
to points again and were gone, leaving Sailors Io and Europa 
unconscious and looking a bit banged up.

***

Ranma found himself coming to consciousness. Blinking his eyes a 
couple of times, he noticed he was still a she and Sailor Senshi. 
Events recently concluded came into focus. Sailor Io looked around and 
saw a glow from Sailor Saturn's hands surround Europa, who looked 
unconscious. As the glow faded, the injured girl awoke and struggled 
to sit up. A distant sound of sirens told the Senshi that it would be 
a good idea to leave the area immediately.

"Our place!" Sailor Uranus shouted as she scooped up her duffel bag on 
the run. Several Senshi followed her lead, including Callisto who 
wasn't really sure WHAT to do, but decided to play along. Left behind 
were Europa, who was being helped up by Charon and Titan; Io, who was 
being helped up by Jupiter; and a very tired Saturn.

Hearing the advancing patrol cars, Io shouted "Over there!" She dived 
behind a bush at the Saotome home and de-transformed. Soon a girl in a 
Juuban High School uniform, two girls in Furinkan High School 
uniforms, a girl in an Elementary School uniform, and a young woman 
wearing a long skirt and white blouse joined the girl dressed in a gi. 
"Let's go inside." Kikuko said, inviting her friends in.

The six girls hurried into the Saotome house a minute before the 
police and fire trucks arrived.

***

As the tight pack of assorted mixed Sailor Senshi sprinted near Haruka 
and Michiru's home, Uranus ran into an alley, followed by the other 
five girls. When she realized Callisto had followed them, Uranus took 
off. Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Neptune followed her.

Callisto looked shocked, then sadly said, "I guess they don't want me 
to know."

Sailor Moon walked over to the girl, "Don't worry, Sailor... Uh..."

"Callisto, " The neo-Neo Senshi replied.

"We're all a bit concerned about too many people knowing out secret 
identities. The others are just being cautious. I'm sure YOU don't 
want everyone to know who Sailor Callisto is, right?"

After thinking for a moment, the new Senshi shook her head. "No, I 
guess you're right. Will YOU show me who YOU are?"

"Sure!" Sailor Moon replied with a smile. With a thought and a few 
lights, she blurred and become someone Naru knew well.

Sailor Callisto blinked, then blinked again. "Usagi-chan?" She asked.

Usagi hoped her warm smile would let the new Sailor Senshi know 
everything was okay. "It's easy to reverse the transformation magic, 
you know. Don't worry about me telling anyone who you are, your 
secret's safe with ME, I promise."

Callisto blushed for a moment, "Sorry, I guess I need to change back 
too," In a flash, she became...

"Naru?" A surprised, Usagi asked. Her face began to show real delight 
as she continued. "This is so cool, Naru-chan! So, how do you like 
being a Sailor Senshi?"

"It's a LOT harder than I thought. It's a little dangerous, but it 
seems to be very exciting."

Usagi looked grim for just a moment, "Naru-chan, it's a LOT dangerous. 
All of us have been badly hurt, but... It does feel good to REALLY 
make a difference."

"Yeah, it really does. Wanna walk to school with me?"

Usagi came to a decision quickly. "Sure Naru-chan. Let's get going!"

"Okay!"

As the two girls left the alley and walked toward school, they didn't 
notice a knot of classmates and a friend staring in their wake.

Ami spoke first, "Well, it seems Sailor Callisto is Naru-chan."

"Wonder why SHE got picked?" Haruka asked. "She's not much of a 
fighter."

"She's got a big heart, that's why." Minako said with a smile.

Michiru looked concerned. "Excuse me! I've got to call the Saotome's 
and check on Hotaru-chan." She left the group then hurried over her 
house across the street.

"Well, I've got to get to MY school. See ya!" Rei said before rushing 
off to her bus stop.

"See you at school Michiru-san!" Haruka hollered, to be answered with 
a wave as Michiru unlocked the door.

With that, Haruka, Ami, and Minako started their walk to school.

***

Nodoka greeted the six arrivals to the Saotome home. "That was quite a 
bit of commotion out there. I'm glad you girls are safe!"

Kikuko looked a bit sheepish. "Yeah... uh... we hid out when those 
things appeared."

Nabiki tried hard to rein in the sarcasm as she continued the tale. 
"It's sure lucky the Sailor Senshi came in to clean things up."

Akane finished, with a special thought for her big sister. "Yeah, but 
that one Senshi seemed pretty useless. You know, the one in black with 
orange bows." She concluded with a smug smile for Nabiki.

Nodoka played along, smiling at her child. "Well, I'm just glad that 
you girls are okay. Would you like something to eat?"

Nabiki weighed the consequences of being late for school against going 
hungry. After that workout they just went through, she was starving. 
"Thanks, Mrs. Saotome. I'd love to have a bite to eat."

Akane looked a little miffed, they had to get to school and Big Sister 
wasn't helping. "Nabiki!" A growl from her stomach put things in 
perspective, "Excuse me! Uh... Breakfast would be great." The red-
faced girl concluded.

"Thank you, Mrs. Saotome. You are most kind." Kasumi replied.

After calling her parents to let them know where she was, Hotaru 
joined her friends for breakfast.

***

Setting the phone down, Michiru left her home then started for the 
Saotome's. As she crossed the street, she watched the other three 
girls walk toward school, then Michiru turned toward her destination. 
A glance at her watch showed there would be plenty of time to get 
Hotaru and herself to school. Fifteen minutes of uneventful travel 
brought her back to Kikuko's home. She walked up to the door to fetch 
her young charge.

A knock at the door brought Kikuko, who greeted her guest with a 
slightly tired smile. "Hello, Michiru-san. Here to pick up Hotaru-
chan?"

Michiru returned a tired smile of her own. "Yes, Kikuko-chan. Is she 
ready to leave?"

"Uhh... I guess so. Why don't you ask her yourself? Come on in."

Michiru bowed, then replied, "Thanks." She followed her hostess 
inside.

***

Hotaru played with her food, seemingly uninterested, while everyone 
else ate hungrily. Kasumi looked at the young girl, HER Sensei, with 
concern. "Hotaru-chan aren't you hungry? Mrs. Saotome fixed a 
wonderful meal for us."

The girl offered the eldest Tendou daughter an apologetic smile, 
"Sorry, Kasumi-san. I'm kind of tired and I seem to have lost my 
appetite."

A voice came from the living room. "Are you alright, Hotaru-chan?"

Several people seated at the table turned to see a young woman with 
turquoise hair accompanied by Kikuko. Upon entering the kitchen, the 
teenager offered a polite bow, then introduced herself. "Hello, I am 
Kaioh Michiru; Hotaru-chan's adoptive mother." Focussing a concerned 
gaze on her child, she continued. "Did I hear you say you aren't 
hungry Hotaru-chan? Do you feel ill?" Michiru asked as she walked to 
her daughter's side, checking for a fever with a hand to the girl's 
forehead.

"I'm not sick, Michiru-mama, I just feel tired after..." Realizing 
Nodoka was in the room, she clamped her mouth shut.

Kasumi spoke, resting a hand on one of Hotaru's, "I'm sure you'll be 
fine with some rest, Hotaru-chan." Looking at Michiru with concern, 
Kasumi continued. "I would be happy to care for your daughter today, 
Michiru-san." Kasumi offered, finishing with a polite bow.

Michiru's brow creased for a moment as she considered the offer. She 
had heard from Haruka and Hotaru that Kasumi was the Senshi of Titan. 
The young mother also knew how much Hotaru already thought of Kasumi. 
With an almost imperceptible nod, she reached her decision. Turning to 
Kasumi, she replied, "Thank you, Kasumi. That would be very kind of 
you." Turning to Hotaru, Michiru continued. "Can you make it home 
Hotaru-chan?"

Hotaru radiated what confidence she could after her exertions. "Sure, 
mama... I can do it!"

"Don't worry, Michiru-san. I will make sure Hotaru-chan doesn't tire 
herself... Even if I must carry her myself."

Akane and Nabiki exchanged a smile. Perhaps this was the first step 
for Kasumi in finding her own life. Nabiki turned to her sister, 
shielding her voice with a hand. She spoke in a whisper, this was for 
Akane's ears alone, "I'm sure daddy can survive for a day on take-
out."

Akane smiled at her older sister. "Yeah, Kasumi. Maybe I'll get to 
cook dinner tonight!"

Nabiki's jaw almost hit the floor. "Akane, did I mention that I was 
going to go out for... uh... hamburgers tonight?"

Akane gave her sister a knowing glare. "No, you didn't..."

"Let's get to school!" Kikuko said to close the conversation. As her 
guests began to leave, Kikuko cleared the table for her mother, then 
joined her fellow students in front of the house.

***

Cologne looked at the notes she had taken back home in Joketsuzoku. 
Good, getting to Ranma's house would be easier than she had imagined. 
Mass transit was the one advantage this city had over hers.

Turning to look at her Great Granddaughter, the matriarch felt both 
excitement and dread. Shanna was revered in Amazon legends, and 
Cologne knew that she and Shampoo were descendants of the legendary 
warrior. Shampoo had described her dream in detail, including her 
supposition that Ranma might hold the key to Shampoo's destiny. 
Cologne smiled as she recalled the Sailor Senshi and their place in 
Amazon history. Perhaps an Amazon might, at long last, be among their 
number soon.

A few hours later, Cologne realized another fact about the Tokyo 
transit system... it was easy to get anywhere, but especially simple 
was getting lost. It was early afternoon before the two of them 
figured out how to get to the Saotome home. As then approached a large 
complex, a number of identically dressed teens Shampoo's age poured 
out onto the street. By providence, or destiny, Ranma walked out the 
gate, followed closely by a group of girls.

Kikuko was looking forward to meeting with Haruka and Michiru at the 
ice-cream parlor tonight. She turned to Makoto to see if her friend 
was interested in going too when a shrill cry of "Ranma!" followed by 
a hurtling Amazon in a pink pantsuit interrupted her thoughts.

In an instant, Kikuko was encircled in a familiar embrace. The redhead 
stopped for a moment. "Hey, Shampoo!" She shouted, wrapping her own 
arms around the girl.

Makoto looked at the two obviously familiar girls with a bit of 
jealousy. Who was this girl? And how did she know Ranma's name?

"Ranma! Is you! Shampoo miss friend Ranma. Ranma find mother now?" She 
asked sweetly.

"Yeah, I found my mom. Wanna come visit my house?" Kikuko's face 
brightened, "I'm gonna meet some friends at an ice cream shop... Wanna 
go with me... us?"

"Yes, Ranma. Shampoo like. But..." She looked around then whispered in 
the redhead's ear, "Ranma know about Sailor Neptune? Shampoo must 
meet, get stick. Also, Ranma know moon cats? Shampoo must meet." She 
let out a small sigh. "Cats very very old friend." <Well at least 
ONE,> She added to herself.

Shrugging her way out of Shampoo's embrace, Kikuko went over to 
whisper in Makoto's ear. "Mako-chan, my friend's askin' about Sailor 
Neptune and the ... cats ..." Kikuko swallowed for a moment before 
continuing. "Shampoo's a friend of mine from China. What should we 
do?"

Makoto looked thoughtful for a moment, then returned Kikuko's whisper. 
"Simple, Kiku-chan. You take her in your house for a moment, then I'll 
get in touch with Michiru." As she finished, Makoto stole a glance at 
the beautiful girl who walked close to Kikuko. Why did she feel a 
little jealous? Makoto flushed slightly as she thought about Kikuko's 
male aspect, Ranma. With a small smile she realized that she might 
have to take the lead if they were to have a relationship. But did she 
want one? Well... maybe. But why did this gaijin girl ask about 
Neptune AND the cats... and how did she become a friend of Ranma's?

***

School was out for the day in Kyoto, as well. Hurrying home, Ukyou 
checked a backpack sitting alone in his tiny apartment. He glanced at 
his watch, then the tickets. Realizing he needed to hustle to catch 
the next train to Tokyo, he hurriedly searched the two rooms for 
anything he might have left behind, then shouldered his pack. With a 
sigh, he closed the door on the second chapter of his life. But he did 
intend to add an epilogue... describing how he beat some honor into 
two jerks.

***

Back at Michiru's home, Kasumi checked the dinner she was fixing one 
more time, then went to check on Hotaru-chan. Carefully opening the 
young girl's door; she was happy to see little Hotaru still asleep. 
She had really enjoyed her day; it brought back all the memories of 
raising Akane and Nabiki when they were younger.

The creak of a door opening and conversation about school announced 
the return of Hotaru's parents. Kasumi went to greet them.

***

Somewhere in Japan, Ryouga was lost. Sitting down for a moment on a 
bench, he looked around to get his bearings. Unable to figure out his 
location, he contented himself watching passers by for a while. Being 
lost wasn't nearly as bad as he thought with those Amazons on his 
tail. Somehow that big iron tower should give him a clue where he was, 
but Ryouga was drawing a blank. To someone less directionally 
challenged, Tokyo Tower would identify the location as Juuban, Tokyo. 
With a sigh, Ryouga decided to start hunting again. Somehow, Ranma was 
going to pay for all the pain he had caused Ryouga... When he found 
him.

***

Sorry for the delay! Mike Koos had some excellent suggestions that 
really improved the story, which I received in July... Anyway, things 
are back on track again. As always, C&C welcomed!

My sincere thanks for reading!

Kevin D. Hammel
October 02, 1999
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khammel@mail.anime.sobhrach.com
kevinsff@pacbell.net
http://www.anime.sobhrach.com/~khammel/
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