Title: Ancestors
Part: Five
Author: Rann Aridorn
Credits: Ranma � is the creation of Rumiko Takahashi, and was then sold 
to various corporations which allowed us fanauthors to drop the 
characters� cute butts into various embarrassing situations. All other 
characters are original and property of Rann Aridorn, but some credit 
must be given for the inspiration provided by The Sinner Dragon ( 
http://sinnerdragon.keenspace.com ).
Warnings: Some more "citrusy" bits in this one, but not quite enough to 
qualify it as a lime. If you don't play Darkstalkers games because 
they're too suggestive, then you probably don't wanna read this.

	The bathroom of Teritha's home was quite large and nicely-furnished, 
with a long mirror along the wall above the two sinks, running water, 
several showers (though they were really mostly places on the floor you 
could stand and have water come down on you), and a large stone tub that 
was sufficiently outfitted that it served the needs of the people used 
to Japanese furos quite nicely. And it was here that Shampoo, Ukyo, and 
Kodachi were lounging early in the morning, the mirror steamed up and 
the girls' skin almost glowing with slick warmth.
	"So, we're gonna be in some big tournament..." Ukyo said thoughtfully, 
swishing her fingers lightly across the surface of the water. Her hair 
was piled atop her head, save for two long tendrils draping over her 
ears to trail in the water just in front of her breasts. "You know, I 
don't think I've ever been in a real martial arts tournament before... I 
mean, one that's not just a fight behind the school, or a theme race, or 
something."
	"Honestly," Kodachi sniffed haughtily, touching her fingers daintily to 
the light indentation on her collarbone, as if it were too gauche for 
words that Ukyo hadn't been in a tournament. "I can't believe I'm going 
to be competing with a member of my party who is a ~virgin~."
	Ukyo bristled at that, her cheeks and the bridge of her nose coloring 
angrily. After a moment, though, she realized she couldn't form a 
comeback to that that made sense, and just sank down in the water 
somewhat sulkily.
	Shampoo had opted not to bind up her hair, and it was swaying through 
the water all around her like some sort of exotic sea plant, the 
Amazon's proud breasts bobbing amidst the strands of wet purple silk 
like nature's own flotation aides. "Shampoo been in enough tournaments 
for both other girls. They all same, no matter how strange other 
fighters. People fight, strongest people move up, strongest person left 
standing at end and win. Is so simple even gymnast girl no can mess up."
	"Your attempts to insult your social superiors notwithstanding," 
Kodachi said with a mild glare towards Shampoo. "I fully intend to win 
the tournament, to prove my worthiness to my Ranma-sama!"
	"First of all, he isn't YOUR Ranma," Ukyo interjected, her own eyes 
narrowing. "And second of all, you CAN'T win the entire tournament. It's 
fought in divisions, and each person can only enter one division."
	"Elf woman say Shampoo perfect for armed combat division," Shampoo said 
rather smugly, giving a flick of her own fingers through the water to 
splash Ukyo playfully. "What she say to other girls?"
	"Well, she didn't say anything to me OR the psycho," Ukyo replied, 
glaring for a moment at Kodachi, who pointedly ignored her. "I guess she 
hasn't decided yet. But I heard her telling Akane something about 'full 
brawl'."
	"Shampoo have hard time imagine Akane in tournament," the Amazon mused, 
then glanced around. "Where Akane at, anyway?"
	"I think Teritha decided to take her under her wing especially, so they 
may already be training..."

	"You're a good fighter taking on groups, Akane," Teritha said as she 
led the young woman into the armory. The elf woman, despite having shown 
an amazing ability to endure cold without wearing much in the way of 
warm clothing, had at least conceded enough to the snow outside to pull 
on a long, loose black coat over her usual tight black leather pants and 
halter top. "But we're going to have to give you a little something 
extra and find a weapon suited to you."
	"Why can't I just use my bare hands?" Akane had been provided with a 
sturdier, more cold-resistant version of her gi, also black and with a 
red sash around the middle to hold it closed. Despite the mild protest, 
she looked around the dim, cluttered room with interest, trying to 
mentally sort out the jumbled blades and other equipment.
	"Because, with the exclusion of certain types, weapons are allowed in 
the Full Brawl division, and there'll be some that just aren't that easy 
to deal with bare-handed." Teritha picked up a pair of sturdy wooden 
sticks, each about a foot and a half long and capped at either end with 
metal, then shook her head and set them back down. "Ideally, we want 
something that won't take much adaptation of your usual style to get 
used to. Oh! I didn't know I still had these, these'll be perfect!"
	Akane blinked at the pair of black-lacquered wooden instruments Teritha 
was holding out to her. "Are those... police batons?"
	"Almost every martial art and culture has had similar weapons to these 
at some point," the elf said, grinning. "So they probably look very 
similar. They're easy to use... but I'm betting you can not only use 
them, but really master them. I think you'll find they suit you."
	A little dubiously, the short-haired girl reached out and grasped the 
handles of the weapons, pulling them back and gripping them a little 
more firmly, feeling the long portions press against her forearms. After 
a moment, she looked up at the older woman. "... Do you really think I 
can do well in this tournament?"
	"Hey, listen." Teritha rested her hands on Akane's shoulders, looking 
the raven-haired girl in the eyes. "If I didn't think you had a chance 
of WINNING, I wouldn't be telling you to enter. I fully intend to kick 
your ass for two months to make sure you DO win. Got me?"
	Teritha blinked as she finished, seeing that Akane was actually close 
to being in tears. But far from seeming sad or angry, the girl nodded 
exuberantly. "I got it! I won't let you down, Teritha!"
	Grinning now, the elf snagged a staff from nearby and walked out, the 
human girl following on her heels like a happy puppy. "It will be 
difficult to train you for group brawling without a group suited to it, 
but we'll manage. The New Years' Tournament is a very prestigious 
gathering, so there's a lot to win if you go all the way, or even place 
in the top three."
	"Why New Years'?" Akane asked with a little blink as the two of them 
went out the door to the back yard. "Japanese New Year is in January, 
same as in the West, and I think Chinese New Year is sometime this month 
this year. I never heard of celebrating it in April."
	"A lot of people here still worship under old gods, Akane." Teritha 
smiled a little, pausing and looking up, smiling a little as her breath 
misted in the cold mountain air. "April First was once regarded as the 
time of the new year by many old religions."
	"April First... don't westerners call that April Fools Day, and play a 
lot of pranks?" Akane shifted around a little, feeling chilly, but not 
as bad as she might... she also knew that she'd probably be feeling like 
it was the middle of summer, soon.
	"That's because the 'civilized' people came up with a new calendar that 
said the new year began in January." Teritha turned to face her pupil, 
rolling her head lightly. "They mocked the 'poor, simple folk' that 
clung to the old ways. A lot of people still stick to the old ways 
here... hell, we're more modern than most in this house, we watch some 
of the movies from your world, we buy products made there, like the 
paper you wrote on and the pens you wrote with. There's plenty of 
people, even entire races, that won't touch anything these days if it 
came from First Earth."
	"I wish that included me," Akane grumbled quietly.
	"Yeah, you need to watch out for that." Teritha's expression became 
serious. "Until you can beef up your fighting skills, especially your 
one-on-one, make sure you stay close to me or Shel all the time. It's 
not just temples that want human girls... they're prized as sex slaves."
	Akane flushed. "Why...? I mean, what's so special about us?"
	"Other than that here, you're a little more rare than other races?" 
Teritha sighed some. "There are humans on Second Earth, sure, but for 
some reason most of 'em are men, and it's rare to see a pure human 
anymore. And even though elves are generally better looking and... in 
other ways desirable..." The blue-haired woman settled her staff on her 
shoulders, draping her arms over it. "They tend to break under hard use. 
The kind of hard use others would put them to, anyway. Humans are more 
durable, that way." Teritha shook her head, a bitter expression touching 
her face. "Human girls last longer than elves when they're mistreated, 
plain and simple. I might live forever if I'm left free, stay here in my 
comfy home and get loving treatment. But if I were locked away, given 
bad food and no light, and treated poorly? I might survive... two years. 
Maybe five. A strong human girl like you? Hell, twenty years if you 
weren't beaten too badly."
	Akane was silent for long moments, biting her lower lip. After a 
minute, she murmured, "Okay. So, let's get to training, huh?"
	"Yeah, yeah." Teritha shook her head, unslinging her staff. "Sorry, 
kid, went off on a tangent. Let's get to work." The elf woman rolled her 
shoulders lightly. "You already do your limbering exercises?"
	"When I got up this morning."
	"Alright then." Teritha raised the staff above her head and began 
twirling it, quickly moving from a slow spin into a high-speed gyre that 
left the weapon a blur. "I'm gonna come at you fast and from a lot of 
directions, which is about the closest we can get to me simulating a 
group of fighters. Ready?"
	Akane settled down into a low crouch, holding one arm up and forward, 
the other brought in close to her side and level. "Ready!"
	Actually, she didn't think she'd ever been less ready in her life. At 
least that's what she was thinking ten minutes later as she pushed 
herself up out of the snow (again) and winced at a new pocket of 
soreness on her body (again). But without complaint, she raised her 
hands, tightening her grip on the nightsticks. "Again."
	Teritha moved in again, sweeping the staff down towards Akane's right 
shoulder, the hard *KLAK* of wood-on-wood signaling that the 
short-haired girl had managed to block, though the force of it staggered 
her a little. Akane quickly swung her other arm down to block the blow 
aimed at her left thigh, and gave a yelp as the impact jarred the 
nightstick from her hand and left her fingers stinging. The next impact 
was on the back of her right thigh, knocking her leg out from underneath 
her and sending Akane sprawling on her back in the snow.
	"Well, you're getting better," Teritha mused, ceasing the spin of her 
staff and resting one end on the ground. "You actually blocked two 
strikes that time, even if you dropped one of your weapons."
	Akane sat up a bit more slowly this time, wincing. "Yeah... thanks..." 
She reached over to pick up the dropped nightstick and began getting to 
her feet.
	"Akane should stay down little longer. Sometimes only rest one get 
during training."
	The short-haired human glanced over, seeing that Shampoo, Ukyo, 
Kodachi, and Shel had emerged from the house, and were making their way 
over.
	"I'm not interested in resting," Akane grunted, leveraging herself up 
out of the snow. She did take a moment to draw back some, favoring her 
leg, then looked over at Ukyo. "Where're the boys?"
	"They're training inside," Ukyo answered, shrugging. She too was 
carrying a staff, her battle spatula having been left behind on First 
Earth, and apparently she had taken the (currently) closest substitute. 
"I guess Ranma didn't want to train as a girl."
	"What madness do you speak?" Kodachi interjected, looking aside at Ukyo 
as if the chef were insane.
	"... Just... nevermind. They've got that cave of a room up there, they 
should be set."
	"Akane, take a short breather, then start doing some katas," Teritha 
instructed. "Try and get a feel for using those nightsticks. It's 
probably best if you work out for yourself how best to use them. I'm 
going to practice with Shampoo for a bit." The elf turned, inclining her 
head lightly. "Those bonbori working out for you, Chinadoll?"
	"They is very nice," Shampoo commented, giving the basketball-sized 
weapons a light backward spin on the lengths of their handles. "Is not 
Shampoo's own, but is good enough."
	"C'mon, then... Shel, take Ukyo off into the trees, I'm sure she's 
interested to know what she'll be doing. Kodachi... you just... go 
inside and stay there until you develop the sense to wear something more 
than just a jacket over that leotard."
	"Hmph. The nerve," Kodachi said with a haughty sniff, wheeling about on 
one foot and walking back towards the house, certain parts of her 
preceding other parts of her more than would have been the case in a 
warmer climate.

	"So what's 'forest combat'?" Ukyo said as she and the currently 
human-form werewolf made their way into the trees.
	"It's one of the more interesting divisions in the New Years' 
Tournament." Shel paused and turned to look at the young woman. "It's 
combat among the trees, but you�re not only rated on taking out your 
opponent, but the style with which you do so. The way you move through 
the forest may gain or lose you points, the attacks you use... you could 
knock out the other fighter, but still lose if you do so without flair. 
I've noticed, watching you in the Chalice, that you generally do put a 
lot of effort into the presentation of your fights... like that giant 
griddle arena."
	"Eheh, heh," Ukyo chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head. 
"Well, part of cooking okonomiyaki professionally isn't just making it 
taste good... it's providing a good show for the customers." She paused 
for a moment, considering her weapon. "I'll need to get a new battle 
spatula, and some more for throwing, if I'm gonna be at my best." Then 
she looked up at Shel. "Are you sure there's not a marksmanship division 
or something? I'm a pretty good shot with my throwing spatulas..."
	Shel chuckled lightly. "Teritha will be entering the marksmanship 
division, Ukyo. Her record's pretty good in it, too."
	"Yeah, I've heard that stuff about all elves being great archers... 
kinda thought that was just fantasy or something."
	"No..." Shel settled down on a log, seeming to consider for a moment 
before continuing. "Elves have, in comparison to a human, painfully 
acute hearing. So good that, as you heard Teritha explain, they can 
interpret the faint echoes of music coming off of distant mountains. 
They also have slightly better sight, and a very perceptive sense of touch."
	"Er, okay, the sight I can see helping you shoot an arrow," Ukyo 
murmured, tapping on a tree with her staff. "Not clear on the hearing, 
and definitely not clear on how a good sense of touch would help."
	"Mm. Well, sound factors into things more than you might think... in 
judging any gusts of wind that might alter an arrow's flight, perhaps 
even in judging the distance and speed of a moving target... experienced 
elven archers have been known to aim blind, but simply shoot for a 
target's heartbeat. The easiest way to go for a fatal strike, certainly."
	The werewolf rose, wandering about the area a bit as he continued. "Of 
course, that's not as easy with a still target that makes no sounds of 
its own, but elves are remarkably quick and agile studies, for the most 
part, and every time they fire a good shot, they learn from it, and the 
next is just a little bit better. So, the more experience an elf has 
with various kinds of shooting, the better they are. It's not a hard and 
fast rule, but generally, the older the elf, the better the archer."
	"Wow, and Teritha's over 2000," Ukyo whispered, eyes widening a little.
	"Not terribly old for an elf. To be honest, I've never asked her actual 
age. It's a touchy subject for most women, and honestly doesn't affect 
the way I care for her one way or the other, and thus is an incidental." 
Shel waved one large hand dismissively. "But she's been in quite a 
number of battles and not a few wars. She's become very good."
	"I believe it. Well... guess I better start getting the hang of this."
	"I'll leave you to your own devices, for the moment, then come back in 
a bit and see how you're doing. I'll try to offer suggestions then. 
Sound good?"
	"Sounds reasonable to me! Later, Shel!"
	"Train well, Ukyo." Grinning, the large man turned and made his way 
back towards the house.

	"Your fault I'm stuck training inside!" Ranma grumped as he twisted his 
upper body to the side, turning his head to look away along his 
shoulder, Ryoga's fist passing within a centimeter of his cheek. 
"Everyone else gets to go out and train, and I'm stuck in this cave of a 
room because my sparring partner turns into a pig!"
	"Shut up, Ranma!" Ryoga snarled back, swinging his other fist in a 
haymaker that Ranma easily ducked under. The pigtailed boy popped back 
up and slammed a palm against the lost boy's forehead, snapping Ryoga's 
head back, but earning only a little grunt that sounded more like 
annoyance than pain. "If I could help it, I wouldn't train with you at 
all!" Ryoga brought a knee up to slam it towards Ranma's side, but the 
other boy simply danced to one side and back, gaining space.
	"Yeah right, who else would you train with?" Ranma snorted, his spine 
bending and twisting like it was made of a plumber's snake rather than 
bone and sinew as he dodged more of Ryoga's punches. "Like anyone else 
would bother, pigboy!"
	"RANMAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Ryoga roared, clasping his hands together and 
swinging them down at the top of the other boy's head.
	"Ranmaaaaaaa-samaaaaaaaaaa!" came a much sweeter voice over the cry, a 
pair of feet rather abruptly landing atop Ryoga's hands. The additional 
weight of a whole person combined with the force of the swing sent Ryoga 
sprawling downward, his feet flying out from under him comically as his 
face and fists impacted the floor, one causing a slightly shallower dent 
than the other.
	"Uh, Kodachi," Ranma acknowledged, taking a half-step back, arms drawn 
up guardedly, expression dubious.
	"Oh, Ranma-sama! At last we are alone!" Kodachi crowed ecstatically, 
moving one foot back to rest on Ryoga's head as she struck a pose, her 
hands clasped together in front of her, expression rapt.
	"Lemme help ya with that being alone part," Ranma muttered, edging 
towards the door.
	Sensing an attempt at escape, Kodachi leapt towards Ranma with a burst 
of her trademark laughter. As she jumped, Ryoga regained his wits enough 
to grab at whatever had hit him, one of his hands wrapping around one of 
Kodachi's ankles. Ranma tried to back up, but the gymnast's arms snagged 
around his hips, sending him thudding down onto his back, with Kodachi's 
face pressed into his crotch, and her breasts pressed up against his thighs.
	"Oh, Ranma-sama... so forward," Kodachi sighed happily, if muffledly.
	Ranma emitted a sound not unlike a squeezed squirrel, his face turning 
red and his pigtail levitating as if the end were attached to a string. 
Ryoga raised his head and gave it a shake, blinking as he took in the 
scene, a small trickle of blood running down from his nose, especially 
considering the view he was being provided of Kodachi's derriere. But 
after a moment, his instinct to be angry took over. "RANMA! How dare you 
dishonor Akane like this?!"
	Ryoga lurched forward, intent on strangling his rival, but found it 
rather difficult to leap from the stomach-down position, and succeeded 
only in flopping forward atop Kodachi in a manner that caused certain 
portions of anatomy to align. Realization dawned slowly but steadily on 
the lost boy, his eyes growing wider and wider as various sensations 
made their way into his brain and chiseled their reports on the inside 
of his skull.
	Kodachi gave a low *mph*, then raised her head, looking coldly over her 
shoulder at Ryoga. "Excuse me. That position is reserved for Ranma-sama."
	That was just too much, and with a voluminous gush of blood from his 
nose, Ryoga toppled back and off to the side. Kodachi shrieked loudly 
and leapt to her feet, shaking her head wildly and whapping her hands at 
her neck. "You horrid, HORRID boy! You got your unworthy commoner blood 
all over me! How dare you?!" Pouting despondently, Kodachi turned 
forward again. "Ranma-sama, you must forgive me, I..." She trailed off, 
blinking at the empty place on the floor. "Ranma-sama?" She darted 
around the room, peeking in the shadowy corners, under the covers, in 
the desk drawers. "Ranma-sama? Ranma-sama? Ran-ma-sa-maaaa?"
	Sighing, she rested her hands on her hips. "Ranma-sama obviously felt 
the mood was ruined by that horrid boy bleeding all over me. Whatever 
shall I do? He is probably pining away for our lost opportunity." 
Walking towards the door, Kodachi pouted again as she touched a hand to 
her neck. "Now I'm all sticky..."

	Akane thudded heavily on her back in the snow, and simply lay there for 
a moment, waiting for her head to stop spinning. She heard a few 
wood-on-wood impacts that seemed to come from a great distance, then 
gave a loud *WHUFF* as what breath she had left was knocked out of her 
by Shampoo's rear end impacting on her stomach, the Amazon laying out 
much as Akane was, the two of them forming a rather bruised and lumpy X.
	"Honestly, how you two survived all that crap you've been through, I'll 
never know." Teritha, who still looked as fresh as when they'd begun 
several hours earlier, leaned to one side on her staff, shaking her head.
	"In their defense, their opponents were usually close to their own age, 
and often had some rather silly, if effective, fighting techniques," 
Shel commented from nearby. The werewolf had shifted back to his large 
lupine form, and was curled up lightly, watching the sparring with dark 
eyes. "You're a bit more experienced and a bit more serious, love."
	"You two better get serious," Teritha admonished the girls as they 
began clambering to their feet, trying to sort out the tangle of limbs 
and various contradictions that occurred from one having fallen atop the 
other. "By sponsoring you in this tournament, I'm associating myself 
with you lot, and I don't want to be embarrassed by you not even making 
it through the first round!"
	"And she doesn't want you getting killed, either," Shel prompted.
	"And I don't want you getting killed, either!" Teritha continued, as if 
her husband had not spoken. After a moment, she sighed and gave a swing 
of her staff. "Alright, you two practice together for a little while."
	Shampoo and Akane both gave slightly abashed nods, then moved off a 
little ways and began to gingerly spar, both of them sore and, at the 
moment, rather unenthusiastic about the task. Teritha sighed again, then 
walked over to her huge wolf of a husband and pressed against his side, 
putting her arms around him. After a few moments, she began to smile, 
closing her eyes and rubbing her cheek against his fur, gently 
scratching at his chest and shoulder. "Mmm, puppy."
	"I am most certainly not," Shel protested lightly, though unable to 
summon up much indignation, since he was fighting the urge to grin like 
an idiot and let his tongue loll out.
	"Puppy," Teritha insisted playfully, moving around in front of Shel and 
resting her hands on his cheeks, leaning in to place a light kiss on the 
wet pad of his nose.
	"Incorrigible elf," the werewolf huffed, before giving a rumbling 
chuckle and giving the blue-haired woman a lick on the cheek.

	Ukyo crouched slightly, then launched herself in the air, twisting a 
bit to avoid the ends of a few branches, then throwing her arms out, 
striking at the pinecone her eyes were fixed on. The edge of the long 
wooden weapon brushed across the underside of the cone, setting it to 
wobbling wildly, but not quite enough to dislodge it. Ukyo realized she 
was overextended, and yelped as she flailed wildly, trying to bring her 
jump back under control. She was only partially successful, and the 
brown-haired girl landed on her feet, only to immediately stumble 
backwards and fall butt-first in a snow bank.
	"This... sucks," the chef muttered, brushing some snow off her shoulders.
	"Tell me about it."
	Ukyo blinked, scrambling to her feet and looking around. "Zek?!"
	"Yeah. I'm over here." The red-haired man stepped out from behind a 
tree, hands tucked in his jacket pockets. He was still shirtless beneath 
it, his hair just as wild as ever, moving lightly in the soft but 
chilling winter breeze.
	Ukyo stared at him a little. Until now, she had only seen him with a 
grin on his face and a joke on his lips. Now he seemed almost deadly 
serious, his eyes narrow and intense, his mouth set in a thin, grim line 
that showed just a small hint of one of his fangs. The expression, the 
way he held himself, it seemed to make everything more striking, from 
the smooth curve of his jaw to the small points atop his ears.
	"Uh..." Ukyo swallowed a bit and quickly lipped her lips, which had 
suddenly gone dry for some reason. "Something wrong, Zek?"
	"Tear's being very... stubborn." The mixed-blood approached Ukyo 
slowly, and she fought the urge to back away. "I don't think you kids 
are ready for this. But she's throwing you into the fray anyway."
	"Hey, I can be ready!" Ukyo protested, stepping forward and frowning, 
her pride overcoming her shock. "Don't you count me out, sugar!"
	"..." Zek looked at her for a few long moments, the forest utterly 
silent save for the gentle whisper of the wind. Then, smirking a bit 
wryly, he tilted his head to one side, closing his eyes and flicking his 
bangs out of his eyes. "Heh. Maybe I shouldn't, after all." He opened 
his eyes and looked levelly at her, mouth settling into a lopsided 
smirk. "Fine. But you're not going to do it on your own. Shel and Tear 
don't have any experience in this category. I do. So I guess I can 
salvage at least one of you..." He gave his head a little toss, smooth 
voice filled with amusement. "That is, if you'll accept some lessons 
from a drunken mongrel."
	"... Of course I would. Uh, I mean..." Ukyo flushed slightly. "... It's 
good of you to offer." She stood up straight and glanced down and to the 
side, rubbing the back of her head a bit. "I was wondering how I was 
ever going to manage. And I don't think you're a, uh... a drunken mongrel."
	"Yeah, well I'm at least one of those things." Zek chuckled, then 
glanced around. "Well, you may as well put that silly thing down, you're 
never going to get anywhere with a weapon that's not your own. You'll 
just have to hope Teritha replaces that spatula of yours soon..."


	"No! Get away from me! Stoppit!"
	That exclamation, along with a lot of thumping, let everyone know just 
where onna-Ranma was upstairs. The entire group, minus Ranma, Teritha, 
and Zek (whom had asked Ukyo not to reveal his involvement), was 
gathered in the living area, most of them trying to look like they 
weren't paying attention to what was going on upstairs. It had been a 
week, a week of hard training, a week of slumping to the dinner table 
with arms that had barely enough strength in them to lift the food, a 
week of Ranma frantically trying to avoid Kodachi's affections.
	"Get back here! It won't hurt at all! Might sting a bit!"
	"No no no no no no no!"
	Sweatdrops rolled down the sides of everyone's heads. Akane looked over 
at Shel, who was in human form at the moment. "What's all this about, 
again?"
	"Teritha did some bragging to friends of hers in town about her 
descendants," the werewolf murmured, shaking his head. "Now she's 
worried about how many generations have been between them, and wants at 
least one of them to look a little like her."
	"Why didn't she pick me?" Ryoga grumped.
	"Would you have really wanted her to?"
	"... Well, no."
	"Then don't gripe about it."
	"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAAAAA!" >_<
	"Quit whining, you baby!"
	"Do you think the long-eared woman is torturing the red-headed 
harridan?" Kodachi whispered to Shampoo.
	"Shampoo doubt that," the Chinese girl whispered back.
	"Pity," Kodachi said, disappointment etched on her face.
	Everything was suddenly very silent from above, and as one, everyone 
tilted their heads back to look at the ceiling. Then, still 
unintentionally moving in concert, they looked at the hallway as Teritha 
emerged, nudging Ranma ahead of her. More than one jaw dropped.
	"Ranma, is that YOU?!" Akane gasped, her eyes wide.
	Ranma pouted, turning her head off to the side a bit. Her ears had been 
lengthened into backswept points, not quite as long as Teritha's, but 
still quite noticeable. Her hair had also been altered into the same 
brilliant shade of blue, and was tied off in a regular ponytail instead 
of a pigtail. Sulkily, she rubbed her upper arm. "Yeah."
	"Of course that's not Ranma-sama, are you all insane?" Kodachi looked 
around at the rest of them, blinking. "It barely even looks like the 
redheaded harridan."
	"Would someone PLEASE get it through her head?" Ukyo groaned, putting 
her hands over her face.
	"Now's not the time," Akane muttered, shaking her head. "Especially 
considering... that." She waved a hand at the transformed Ranma, 
starting to stare a bit again, herself.
	"Oh, don't all of you look like that," Teritha cut in, rolling her 
eyes. "It's not permanent, and she looks GOOD." She came around to one 
side, looking down at Ranma and resting a hand atop the shorter girl's 
head. "You look good. Indulge me just a little bit, okay? I was bragging 
to everyone what an active and able pair of descendents I had, all I 
want to do is bask in at least ONE of them looking like me."
	"You were bragging about me?" Ranma blinked, looking up at Teritha, 
seeming a little confused.
	"Hey, she said she was bragging about US, Ranma!" Ryoga interjected, 
scowling.
	Teritha gave Ranma a gentle push on the back, and the transformed girl 
took a few steps forward. She glanced over her shoulder at the actual 
elf for a moment, then turned around and moved to join the rest of the 
group.
	"You really do look kinda neat, sugar," Ukyo said comfortingly, 
reaching out to pat her friend's shoulder.
	"Aiya... Ranma is actually look very attractive, Shampoo thinks," the 
Amazon added, smiling and moving in to run a gentle finger along the 
slope of one of Ranma's ears.
	Ranma's eyes shot wide open from the first moment Shampoo's fingertip 
touched her ear, her cheeks gaining a light dusting of pink. But as the 
finger moved along its relatively short trip, the pink turned into a 
flush across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose as red as her hair 
had formerly been. By the time Shampoo drew her hand back, the 
ponytailed girl felt like she might fall over at any moment, her knees 
actually wobbling a little, luckily hidden by the bagginess of her pants.
	Akane blinked, expression concerned. "Ranma? Are you alright? Is the 
spell making you feel sick?"
	"No!" Ranma said quickly, her voice coming out in a bit of a squeak. 
Clearing her throat, she repeated, "No, no, I'm fine." She quickly 
stepped away from Shampoo, backing up a few steps and keeping her face 
to the entire group. The girls and Ryoga were looking at her curiously, 
while Shel looked like he was only a few moments from bursting out laughing.
	Teritha came over to stand beside Ranma, looking quite amused herself. 
"Okay, you lot, an orderly line to get your coats and go down to the 
gondola." She rested her hands on Ranma's shoulders, grinning down and 
whispering, in a voice that was now quite clear to the other female, but 
that carried no further. "You might want to avoid that, while the 
enchantment's still on you, dear. It... can be a bit much."
	Ranma nodded emphatically, which just had the others staring at her in 
more confusion than before. But after a moment everyone began the 
shuffle for the front door, splitting up to grab coats that had been 
left in various parts of the house, sitting down to pull on boots, and 
making their way down the outside steps.
	"Alright!" Teritha called as they all boarded the conveyance, a 
different one than had been there last time. "THIS time, remember that 
there's a reason we have these little sacks in here. And when we get 
there, stick with either me or Shel. No scampering off!" She pulled the 
door closed and twisted the handle to the locked position, then reached 
up to yank down on a lever just above it, the gondola giving a little 
lurch and then starting to move along its cable, rocking back and forth 
very slightly.
	"The town where we're going, Bolsterlang, is much smaller than 
Lebodala, and is a fair bit safer," Shel explained. "You probably won't 
see any soot elf 'procurers' there. But there are few places in the 
world that are truly 'safe', so watch yourselves, even when you're with us."
	"You make it sound like it's dangerous to step out the door," Akane 
muttered, looking a little miffed.
	"Of course it is," Teritha replied, looking at her blandly. "It was in 
your world, too. You could step out the door and a hubcap could fly off 
of a speeding truck and decapitate you."
	"..." Akane touched her throat gingerly and gulped.
	"We're just telling you to be more aware of the possible dangers around 
you," Shel said in a gentle tone, patting Akane's shoulder with one 
large hand. "Not overly cautious, but just simply cautious enough."
	"Is this the scary version of 'look both ways before you cross the 
street'?" Akane managed wryly after a moment.
	"Pretty much," Shel chuckled, nodding his shaggy head.
	Things were fairly quiet for a few minutes, before someone cleared 
their throat.
	"... I gotta pee."
	"Oh lord," Teritha groaned, putting a hand to her face. "Kids."

	Bolsterlang was much as Teritha had said... quite a bit smaller than 
Lebodala, and it FELT safer. Though the streets were lightly bustling 
with people, they were not the wide array of races and the utter density 
that had packed the large city where they had arrived. Most of the 
people here were elves, and there was a general sense among the people 
that everyone who was there belonged there, had gone about these chores 
many times before, whether they lived in town or merely visited from 
time-to-time.
	Akane noticed a number of people casting sidelong glances at their 
party, seeming to barely move their lips as they whispered to one 
another. She shifted a little nervously, uncomfortably aware of Kodachi 
walking around in her skimpy leotard and thin jacket next to her, and of 
Ranma and Ukyo gawking like tourists. 'I'm so embarrassed.' Then she was 
distracted, and began doing a bit of her own gawking at the sight of a 
small street shop with a number of hanging cages that contained 
impossibly brightly-colored birds more vibrant than any parrot.
	"Um... what to do first...?" Teritha glanced around, tapping the nail 
of her index finger against her teeth. "I need to force the crazy 
gymnast to get something else to wear..."
	"Not likely," Kodachi sniffed.
	"I need to take Ukyo to the weaponsmith and get her a spatula made..."
	"Do that first!" Ukyo cried, waving a hand wildly.
	"Gotta show off my brats to my pals..."
	"We're not your brats! ... WE'RE NOT BRATS!" Ranma and Ryoga chorused.
	"And I've got to take Akane to a tavern and get her drunk."
	"WHAT?!" everyone but Shel yelped.
	"Oy, everyone be quiet! Okay, Shel, chaperone the group, I'm gonna take 
the nutso first." Teritha snagged Kodachi around the upper arm and 
started tugging her along, the gymnast cooperating, but looking 
extremely offended at being manhandled. "Why don't you go ahead and take 
Ukyo over to the weaponsmith, too? Everyone else go with Shel, too."
	"DOES THE WEAPONSMITH HAVE A BATHROOM?!"
	"... Yes."
	"I absolutely refuse to be shoved into some commoner's garb," Kodachi 
snapped as Teritha propelled her along the packed-earth street.
	"Trust me, I'll get you something made that you'll like."

	The weaponsmith's shop was dim, filled with reddish light from the 
forge in the corner. The small group practically filled the actual shop 
area at the front, even those of the group who didn't typically use 
weapons examining the swords, knives, and arrows in their cases and 
hanging on the walls.
	"Neren, you here?" Shel called above the thunderous, yet sonorous sound 
of hammer striking metal, the squat, compact figure moving about in the 
work area of the shop giving three more quick strikes before setting the 
hammer aside and turning.
	"Shel, been awhile," the dwarf grunted, giving her head a toss, her 
long, tangled hair swaying, a few of the many thin braids populating it 
swaying across her cheeks. Ranma blinked at Neren, surprised; he'd 
somehow expected female dwarves to be as ugly and squat and maybe even 
bearded as the dwarf men he'd seen in Lebodala. But Neren, though only 
about half the height of his male form, and though she was 
broad-shouldered and muscular, was actually a fairly handsome female, 
with a feminine, if rather weathered and grimy face, and fiery red hair. 
The dwarf came over to the counter, stepping up onto a stool to be at 
the proper height to see her customers. "An' what can I be doin' for ya 
today?"
	"This young lady here has a special request," Shel rumbled, setting one 
huge hand on Ukyo's shoulder and urging her forward.
	"Aye, lass, an' what might that be?" Neren turned mildly-interested 
green eyes towards the human teenager.
	"Well... um... I fight with a giant..." Ukyo sighed. She could never 
help but feel a bit silly when she told people this. "... Spatula."
	"A spatula, now?" Neren repeated, thick but well-shaped eyebrows lifting.
	"Well, obviously not a normal spatula," Ukyo amended, forging onward. 
"It's special."
	"An' sure I am that it is, lass." The dwarf reached beneath the counter 
and drew out a wrinkled, dark piece of parchment, definitely no 
machine-made sheet of paper from First Earth. She set a crude, 
thick-leaded pencil next to it. "Think ya can be showin' me th' ways 
it's special, now?"
	"Sure!" Ukyo bent over the paper and began to scribble. Within minutes, 
the two of them were chattering back and forth at a high rate, Ukyo's 
faintly Japanese-accented English from the translator spell Teritha had 
used on them all before they left the house mingling with Neren's thick 
Irish/Scottish brogue.
	"Why don't we wander around, kids?" Shel chuckled. "Looks like Ukyo and 
her new friend can take care of themselves..."

	Kodachi preened in front of the three-way mirror, twisting this way and 
that atop the small podium set up in front of them. She had worn her 
school uniform only because she had to to attend school. She had 
sometimes worn a kimono because it was proper to do so. But her 
gymnast's leotard and variants thereof had been the only clothes she had 
ever truly loved to wear, and had rarely worn anything else if she could 
manage. Now, it finally seemed as if she had indeed found something 
else... albeit similar... she loved even more.
	The bodysuit was as black as midnight, but threaded throughout with the 
tiniest strands of silver, giving the material a slick gleam in certain 
lights. The material looked and felt like silk, but fit as tightly 
against her body and moved as easily as a thin layer of paint. It had a 
high collar, the lines of her throat still easily outlined, a V-shaped 
opening with inward-curved sides beginning just below her throat, baring 
the smooth swath of skin between her breasts as well as the middle of 
her collarbone, showing small slivers of the upper curves of her breasts 
as well. There was also a faint shimmer over that bare area as well, 
like tiny filaments drifting over the skin. The lower arms of the 
bodysuit were absolutely covered with embroidered green rose vines, 
rendered intricately with shading and detail on each leaf and thorn, 
coming down to tapering strips of cloth over the backs of her hands and 
palms, where the tiny black rose blooms themselves were rendered, the 
strips connecting to a ring of material around her middle fingers.
	The material hugged all the way down over her midriff, down to where 
two ellipses showed the bare sides of her hips and a bit of the sides of 
her thighs, the showing skin again seeming as if it were overlaid by 
spider webs with the faintest light of morning catching them. Over the 
length of Kodachi's curvaceous legs the black material went, joining 
almost seamlessly with boots that were seemingly of the same material, 
only a bit thicker, and as she twisted up onto the ball of one foot and 
turned on the other, her hands resting on her waist, Kodachi found that 
she could move in them as easily as her slippers, if not better.
	"So, do you like it?" Teritha inquired, her tone already a bit smug.
	Kodachi's only answer was a veritable purr as she stroked her hands 
from her collarbone and over the curves of her chest, down the smooth 
line of her stomach, and across the front of her thighs.
	"Sounds like a yes to me." She turned to one side and tossed a small 
bag to the seamstress, who caught it with one hand... one of six. "You 
do good work as always, Gretchen."
	The seamstress, whose skin was as black as Kodachi's new garment and 
gleamed slickly, gave only a small nod of appreciation at the praise, 
her face hidden in the shadows of a hood, though the rest of her own 
rather voluptuous form was covered only by a white sash tied around her 
chest and a sarong around her waist.
	"Okay, Narcissus, time to go," Teritha chuckled, snagging one of 
Kodachi's hands and tugging her gently towards the door. Kodachi 
followed only reluctantly, attempting to twist her head 180 degrees in 
an attempt to keep watching the mirrors. "Yes, sweetie, your ass looks 
fabulous, don't give yourself neck strain. Don't forget your jacket."
	Pouting some not only at being pulled away from the mirrors, but at 
having to put her jacket on over her wonderful new outfit, Kodachi 
nevertheless did as she was told.
	"Cheer up. I just don't want to carry it around, you won't really need 
it anymore."
	Becoming chipper at that, Kodachi suddenly pressed her body against 
Teritha's side, wrapping both of her arms around one of the elf woman's, 
resting her head on Teritha's shoulder, again giving a pretty good 
approximation of a purr.
	"You REALLY love that new outfit, don't you?" Teritha murmured a bit 
nervously, grinning sheepishly and rubbing the back of her head.

	The remainder of the main group had gathered in front of the 
seamstress' shop when Teritha emerged with Kodachi on her arm.
	"So, hey, did you get new cloOOOTHES!" Ranma had been turning around as 
she'd spoken, and as she actually saw what Kodachi was wearing, her jaw 
fell open. Everyone else followed suit almost immediately, if not before.
	'I need to hit Ranma for staring,' Akane thought. 'I need to take out 
my mallet and hit Ranma for staring at Kodachi. To make it clear WHY I 
am hitting him, I need to shout "HENTAI!" as I do. I need to hit Ranma. 
If I can just... get my eyes... off Kodachi...'
	"That... some set of clothes," Shampoo managed, her eyes wide.
	"Yes, isn't it?" Kodachi cooed, stepping away from Teritha and giving a 
small twirl, which caused a few nosebleeds among the group and the 
surrounding crowd... even the ones who weren't really interested in 
women. Kodachi was apparently turning people on just on general principle.
	"Isn't that," Akane tried, before her voice floundered. She cleared her 
throat and tried again. "Isn't that just as cold as before?"
	"My dear little Tendo girl, I have never been more comfortable in my 
life!" Kodachi declared exultantly, resting her hands on her hips.
	'Well, looks like she's telling the truth about that, for once,' Akane 
mused, slowly regaining her wits. 'Her cold weather indicators aren't 
flashing. Though I guess maybe that thing could somehow hide them... who 
am I kidding? That thing would show it if she had a FRECKLE.'
	"Ukyo still over at Neren's? Okay, guess I'll take my brats over to 
Elsa's."
	"We're not," Ranma began a bit distantly, blue eyes a little glazed.
	"Your... something..." Ryoga murmured, looking a little dizzy from the 
blood loss.
	Sighing, Teritha rested her hands on Ranma and Ryoga's shoulders, 
turning the unresisting teens in one direction and guiding them along. 
"Ah, the young. So many hormones, so little skill in bed..."
	'... I wonder if Ranma would ever be struck dumb by seeing ME in 
something like that?' Akane thought a little morosely as she looked 
down, pulling her coat a bit closer around her. Then she scowled 
angrily. 'Like he NEEDS to be struck to be dumb! That jerk!'
	"Why don't we four take a walk along the commercial lane, eh?" Shel 
suggested, patting Akane on the back in a covert gesture of comfort.
	"That sounds delightful," Kodachi chirped, turning and sashaying off 
along the street.
	"... Lord, Teritha's created a succubus," Shel breathed.
	'I will not have impure thoughts about the psychotic ribbon-bitch, I 
will not have impure thoughts about the psychotic ribbon bitch,' Shampoo 
chanted mentally, closing her eyes tightly and following the others on 
sound and feel. 'I will save my impure thoughts for my husband. Or at 
least someone who doesn't think sleeping pills are part of a balanced 
breakfast.'

	Elsa turned out to be an absolutely stunningly beautiful elf woman with 
skin almost as pale as porcelain and hair as blonde as purest gold, 
hanging down her back almost to the floor in a lustrous, shining, smooth 
wave, her willowy form garbed in a flowing white gown that seemed to be 
made of spun snow. She looked at the three guests standing on her 
doorstep with eyes as blue as the clearest, most cloudless summer day.
	Then she seized Ranma in a bearhug that made the transformed girl's 
eyes bug.
	"So CUTE!"
	"Ackpth!"
	Elsa actually lifted Ranma off her feet by tilting back, Ranma flailing 
about a bit, her arms trapped, before she staggered backwards and was 
caught by Ryoga when the blonde elf set her back down. Ranma put a hand 
to her chest, gasping for air.
	"Ooooo, and so handsome!" Elsa zipped forward to wrap her arms around 
Ryoga's neck in a hug, the bandannaed boy going wild-eyed and looking 
back and forth for escape. No escape came as Elsa began swinging her 
upper body back and forth, Ryoga's body flinging about like a banner, 
Ranma sent tumbling off to the side and into a small snowbank beside the 
porch. "You have such good geeeenes, Terithaaaa!"
	"Thanks, Else," Teritha murmured with a bemused grin, resting a hand on 
her hip and rubbing a finger under her nose. "Um, go ahead and put 'im 
down, why doncha?"
	"If I must." Elsa sighed heavily, then abruptly spread her arms, Ryoga 
collapsing to the ground in a swirly-eyed heap. "Come in, come in! 
Everyone's waiting!"
	Ranma stood up, wincing and touching a hand to her side, her elongated 
ears lowered a bit. She glanced over at Ryoga. "... Azusa?"
	"Definitely Azusa's ancestor," Ryoga rasped, sitting up and rubbing his 
throat.
	"Was that the freaky little skater girl? The one that had a pasta 
fetish or something?" Teritha asked as she helped Ryoga to his feet.
	"... Something like that."
	"Nah, Elsa's not that bad. She's just enthusiastic. C'mon in, guys."
	They made their way inside the house, which seemed to have a rather 
Victorian feel to it. Ranma and Ryoga followed Teritha through a hallway 
and into what looked like a formal sitting room, with intricately-carved 
furniture of dark wood, with deep crimson cushions. Elsa had apparently 
already drifted over to a love seat where several other women were 
gathered around, while the men were standing in a clump near the fireplace.
	"See?! Didn't I tell you they were adorable?!" Elsa yipped, clasping 
her hands together and looking back at Ranma and Ryoga with large, 
sparkling eyes.
	The two groups converged on the teens, who looked back and forth in a 
bit of confusion. The small crowd around them varied pretty wildly, and 
most of them were talking all at once, paying compliments, asking 
questions, trying to offer hugs or handshakes.
	"Whoa, whoa, back up, everybody!" Teritha waved a hand around, urging 
the others to back away from her charges slightly. "Introductions first, 
at least. Okay?"
	At a general noise of assent, Teritha put her hands on the youngsters' 
shoulders. "These are my descendants from First Earth. This handsome 
young man is Ryoga Hibiki, and this charming young... fighter is Ranma 
Saotome."
	"Good to meet all of you," Ryoga murmured, bowing formally at the waist.
	"Yeah, likewise," Ranma added flippantly, giving a much sketchier bow.
	"She looks so much like you, Teritha," one of the women murmured. "Were 
there some other elves in her lineage?"
	"Could be," Teritha said breezily, smiling. She drew away from Ranma 
and Ryoga. "You two already met Elsa of Bolsterlang. This..." She 
touched the arm of an elf woman with platinum-blonde hair cut in a 
straight line at shoulder-level, bangs brushed back from her face, her 
clothes much like Teritha's. "Is an old army buddy of mine, Annala."
	"Hey," Annala acknowledged, grinning and tilting her head.
	"This is Elsa's sister, Ennowa of Olven's Keep," Teritha continued, 
gesturing to another elf, this one with extremely long, flowing vibrant 
brown hair, wearing a scarlet gown with white lace trim. Ennowa's green 
eyes rather coolly took in the image of Ranma and Ryoga, before she gave 
a slight nod.
	"And this," Teritha finished, with an obvious note of pleasure in her 
voice, clapping a hand on the shoulder of a very tall woman beside 
Ennowa. "Is my sister-in-law."
	"I'm Kira. Good to meet you," the last woman said with a wolfish grin. 
Though she looked as if she were only in her mid-to-late twenties, her 
hair was dark grey, spilling down past her waist in thick, wild tangles, 
a few thin braids bound with blue and green beads at the ends falling 
around her ears. Her eyes were a bright, striking yellow, her face very 
pretty but with that same wild look to it. She was dressed in a light 
garb made of mismatched furs, forming a long-sleeved shirt and pants, 
and very hairy-looking boots.
	"You're... Shel's sister?" Ranma queried, blinking in surprise.
	"Yeah, but if anyone else asks, I plan to deny it," Kira murmured 
conspiratorially, glancing about as if checking for spies.
	"The men are Rannen, Elsa's husband." A fair-haired elf man, tall and 
handsome and dressed in a white shirt, green tunic, and grey pants 
nodded. "Kenza, Annala's brother." Another tall and handsome fair-haired 
elf, but wearing a tight blue shirt, loose black pants, and a long, 
voluminous black coat, and with a dark black goatee encircling his 
mouth. "And Irin, Ennowa's husband." The third elf could have been 
Rannen's twin, save with dark brown hair and green eyes instead of fair 
blonde and blue.
	"Well, now that we've been introduced," Kenza spoke up, sweeping 
forward. "Why don't we take this guy here and retire to where we won't 
be tortured by girltalk, hm?"
	"You could at least let them take their coats off," Ennowa protested 
evenly, her tone rather frosty. "And perhaps remove your own."
	"Let 'em keep or leave the coats as they like," Kenza answered easily, 
waving a hand in dismissal.
	Ranma and Ryoga, perhaps sensing a brewing conflict, both quickly 
shimmied out of their coats and handed them to a cheerful-looking 
Rannen, who draped them over the back of a chair.
	"Probably a good idea, though," Teritha acknowledged. "Well, go on 
then, spirit him away to your den and do whatever it is you do in there 
to reinforce your masculinity."
	"Plan to," Kenza chuckled, leading the way with another dynamic sweep 
of his coat.
	'I bet he practices that in the mirror,' Ranma thought, eyeing the 
group of men rather longingly as they left the room. SHE should be with 
them! She should be a he, for that matter! Why wasn't she cured yet?! 
Teritha kept saying that her friend hadn't written back, and Ranma was 
getting impatient!
	She was distracted as Elsa and Annala bundled her over to the love seat 
and sat her down, both hovering close at hand, while Kira stood close in 
the background, grinning. Ennowa maintained a discreet distance, face 
schooled into an impassive mask.
	"We heard you're capable of quite amazing acrobatic feats," Annala 
prompted, settling herself on the arm of the love seat. "Jumping higher 
than buildings, as a matter of fact."
	"Um, well, yeah, midair combat is a specialty of the Saotome school."
	"You fight while jumping about through the air?" Ennowa commented with 
calm disbelief.
	"Sure." Ranma blinked. "It's a combination of using the air displaced 
by your strikes and manipulating your ki that allows you to stay up for 
longer."
	"How amazing!" Elsa cooed, settling into place beside Ranma.
	"Heheh, yeah." Ranma smiled brightly, eyes closing as she rubbed the 
back of her head. 'Hey, this might not be so bad after all.'
	Kira shot Teritha an amused glance, showing that she had seen through 
the appearance-altering enchantment the other woman had used. Teritha 
had the good grace to look abashed, but said nothing as she sank into a 
nearby chair. "You thought I exaggerated all those stories, didn't you, 
Else?"
	"Of course I did, you exaggerate everything," Elsa scoffed, waving a hand.
	"Doesn't sound like she exaggerated the kid here," Annala chuckled, 
folding her arms over her chest. "C'mon, kid, tell us a story..."

	"You smoke, Ryoga?" Rannen inquired cheerfully as he poured brandy into 
several glasses.
	"Um, just a little, a pipe sometimes," Ryoga admitted, shifting 
uncomfortably in his seat. The chair was comfortable, but he felt out of 
place. The den was almost overwhelmingly a man's place, looking like 
some stereotype of a gentleman's den brought to life, complete with 
fireplace, liquor cabinet, bookshelves, and it even had a beagle laying 
contentedly at the foot of his master's chair. "... I don't really drink."
	"Eh, just hold it, then," Kenza chuckled from where he was leaning an 
elbow on the fireplace's mantle. He accepted his own port glass, eyeing 
the liquor within. "Rannen's got his whole image going here, you'll ruin 
it if you're not holding one of these damn things."
	"And I presume you would rather be out carousing at bars," Irin 
murmured coolly.
	"I like carousing anywhere," Kenza chuckled. "But visiting friends is 
just as good."
	Ryoga eyed the pipe he'd been handed dubiously. He was used to his 
extremely long-stemmed, crudely-carved pipe that was currently buried 
somewhere deep in his backpack. This thing looked like it should be in 
the hands of Sean Connery in some movie where he was playing someone 
extremely rich and smooth. Between it and the glass of brandy, he felt 
like he should be wearing a broad-lapelled robe and calling somebody 
'Jeeves'.
	"So, how goes things on First Earth?" Rannen said, still utterly 
amiable as he sat down in his chair, the beagle lifting its head only 
enough to set it atop one of the elf's feet.
	"Um... ups and downs, I guess." Ryoga glanced away uncomfortably. "I 
really don't keep very current."
	"Yes, something of a wanderer, Teritha mentioned that," Rannen replied 
loftily, clutching his own pipe between his teeth and grinning.
	"Yo, Lord Thistlebottom, want your monocle?" Kenza chuckled, rolling 
his eyes.
	"No, not right now," Rannen answered thoughtfully, then blinked. "Hey, 
'Lord Thistlebottom', I kind of like that."
	Irin snorted quietly over the rim of his glass.
	"Yeah. Wanderer. I guess that's it. Pretty much," Ryoga agreed, eager 
to get off the subject.
	"What about that utterly smashing James Bond fellow?" Rannen asked, 
eyes brightening. "Has he put out another autobiographical film yet?"
	"..."

	"-so then I'm just sort of left standing there, with hair down to my 
ankles, the entire park covered by the stuff that had already grown out 
and come off."
	"That's GREAT!" Kira laughed, slapping a hand against the back of the 
love seat.
	"Ridiculous," Ennowa scoffed, leaning back in her chair and frowning 
delicately.
	"Ridiculous or not, it's quite an amusing story," Elsa chirped.
	"Tear, I like her. Can I keep her?" Annala chuckled, looking over at 
her friend.
	"Ask me when she's not behaving," Teritha said with a chuckle of her own.
	"I think I'd take her even then."
	Teritha stood after a moment, and stretched. "Guys, I gotta finish up 
another errand in town. Ranma, stay out of trouble with this bunch for 
awhile, alright?"
	"Um, okay, I guess."
	"Else, Kira, Nala... Ennowa." Teritha nodded to everyone, then 
sauntered out, calling back, "I'll sit down and talk more when I get back!"
	"So, tell me more about this 'Kuno' fellow," Elsa said brightly, 
drawing Ranma's attention back to her. "Is he as scrumptious-looking as 
he sounds?"
	"..."

	Akane was feeling a good deal better by the time they'd finished 
window-shopping along the main strip of Bolsterlang, and was even 
learning to ignore both Kodachi's provocatively-clad body and peoples' 
reactions to it. Shampoo also seemed to be faring better, and Akane was 
surprised to find that she was enjoying the Amazon's company, as well as 
Shel's and even, when she could bring her jealousy and moral indignation 
under control, Kodachi's a little bit.
	"Hey, guys," Teritha called as she hurried up, grinning and clapping an 
arm around Akane's shoulders. "C'mon, 'Kane, let's go."
	"Eh? What? You MEANT it about the tavern, earlier?" Akane squeaked, 
eyes getting wide.
	"Yeah, kiddo. Aw, c'mon, one drink, okay?" Teritha held up a hand with 
her index finger extended. "I've been beating the crap out of you for a 
week, I just wanna buy you one drink as a friend."
	"Have been beating crap out of Shampoo, too," the Amazon sniffed, as if 
offended.
	"Later, later," Teritha said with an impatient wave. "Shel, take these 
two and snag them some lunch or something, okay?" With that, she led a 
very nervous and confused Akane Tendo away.

	The bar was full of smoke, and Akane coughed a little as Teritha led 
her over to a small table and directed her to a seat. Flopping down in 
the opposite chair, the elf woman looked up at the tavern maid, who 
seemed to be of indiscriminate race. "Yeah, I'll have an ale, give the 
kid a shot of Klerestoof."
	"Of whaaat?" Akane's eyes widened a little as the tavern maid flumped away.
	"Don't worry, it's pretty mild stuff," Teritha answered airily. It only 
took a minute or so before the server was back, setting a mug in front 
of Teritha and a mildly dingy-looking shot glass full of a colorless 
liquid in front of Akane. "G'wan, kid, belt it back."
	Akane picked up the shot glass and stared at it, as if it were an alien 
life form that had asked her for directions to Palm Springs because it 
had missed a left at Albuquerque.
	"Trust me, it's good if you just take it all in one quick gulp."
	Swallowing hard, the short-haired human gave a small nod, then threw 
her head back, thrusting the shot glass towards her lips. The stuff 
burned all the way down, and seemed like it exploded when it hit her 
stomach. Akane coughed and almost gagged, leaning over the table, 
feeling like her nasal passages were on fire, her eyes watering and lips 
tingling. "Ackakakakak!"
	"Not bad for a first-timer," Teritha commented, grinning.
	"Wha...?" Akane looked up at Teritha in confusion. She was already 
feeling the stuff start to take effect. She didn't feel dizzy or slow, 
so at least she probably wasn't drunk. At least, not entirely. ... Maybe 
a little. It was hard to think clearly...
	"Look, you just hang onto these." Teritha took something from under her 
coat and set it on the table. "I'm gonna go get us some refills."
	"... My sticks?" Akane said rather stupidly, staring at the wooden 
weapons, then up at Teritha.
	"Yeah, you shouldn't have left home without those." Teritha rose from 
the table and patted Akane on the shoulder. "They're yours, keep 'em 
close at hand all the time. Good lesson."
	"Okay, yeah," Akane rasped, blinking and turning to look back at the 
nightsticks.
	Teritha strode over to the bar. "Hey, two more shots, wouldja?" she 
said to the bartender, holding up two fingers just to make sure. Then 
she turned around and leaned her elbows back on the bar. "Damn, kid's 
got a big mouth on her for a human."
	"Eh?" The man sitting nearby at the bar looked up. He seemed like he 
was probably half or two-thirds orc, wearing a battered leather tunic 
with various stains on it. "Whotcha mean?"
	"Hell, the kid's done nothin' but badmouth mixed-bloods ever since we 
sat down."
	Now at least six of the toughs at the bar were paying attention, many 
of them glancing murderously over at Akane's table.
	"Saying they can't fight, saying they can't think..." Teritha paused 
heavily, then lifted her eyebrows. "Saying they can't fuck."
	Immediately, feet hit the floor from barstools, and three chairs 
scraped angrily across the floor. Knives and short clubs came out, and 
at least ten pissed-off mixed-blood thugs started making their way over 
to Akane's table.
	Akane wrapped her hands around the handles of the nightsticks. Okay, 
maybe that would clear her head. Her head still felt a little fuzzy. Hm, 
the sawed-off tree branch coming at it probably wouldn't help...
	She threw her upper body forward across the surface of the table and 
kicked the chair backward, knocking it into the man's legs and 
staggering him for a moment. Akane shoved herself back up, blocked a 
punch at her face with the shaft of her nightstick, then immediately 
wrapped her arms around the extended punching hand and flung the second 
thug at the first, sending them both crashing to the floor.
	Three more came at her, two with knives, one with something that looked 
like brass knuckles. Akane let the two with knives come in, their swings 
jumbled from being too close to one another, letting her easily move 
back and swing a hand out in a long arc, spinning the nightstick so that 
the long part of the shaft smacked against the side of the third's head. 
He stumbled in front of the second briefly, letting Akane bring a knee 
up hard against his stomach and then shove him against the second when 
he bent over. She leapt up and forward, kneeing the second in the face 
while he was still off-balance.
	Another two, coming at her from both sides. One had tusklike teeth 
jutting up from the lower part of his mouth, and Akane swung a 
nightstick in her hand, the long end striking a tooth and cracking it 
off, causing the thug to howl in pain. At the same time, Akane was 
snapping her leg out to the other side, driving the sole of her foot 
into the area just under the second tough's rib cage. Both of them 
staggered back, and Akane thrust a quick kick to the face to one to put 
him down, then spun and slammed her shin against the side of the other's 
head to send him flying.
	She was working purely on reflexes developed back when she had to fight 
off almost every boy in school every morning, coupled with what she'd 
learned from Teritha's smooth, focused attacks of the past weeks. A 
bunch of half-drunk, angry tough guys with no style didn't stand a chance.
	'In other words,' Teritha thought as she watched more and more of the 
bar's denizens getting interested and trying themselves against the 
human girl, only to be taken out two or three or four at a time. 'She's 
not cluttering it up with thoughts of how good she should be compared to 
Ranma. She's not convincing herself that she should be doing something 
else.' She slugged back one of the shots she'd ordered as if it were 
water. 'The winner's just buried a bit below the surface.'
	The elf woman casually took a half-step to the side as a pair of 
toughs, limbs tangled with one another's, flew over the bar and crashed 
against the already cracked and dented mirror behind it. 'The trick is,' 
she mused, picking up the second shot. 'How to dig it out without 
regularly getting her buzzed and tossing a bunch of incompetent pukes at 
her?'

-End Part Five-



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