Grumble…
Splash…
Grumble-mumble…
Splash…
Mumble-grumble…
Splash…
The Jusenkyo Guide stared with flat eyes as the strange young man in front of him made repeated use of a battered kettle, and a small canteen.
He would alternately splash himself with cold water, summoning his feline accessory. Then, he would splash either himself or said accessory with hot water from the kettle, mumbling to himself as the feline disappeared without even a token Bamf.
He had been at it for the past ten minutes, and didn’t show signs of letting up any time soon. His clothes had long since been soaked through by the repeated splashing, clinging wetly to his well-built frame.
A soft, feminine groan took the guide’s attention away from the otherwise preoccupied youth, drawing it instead to the other customer. A customer that still female, thanks to ‘her’ son hogging the kettle, and sporting several painful-looking bruises.
“What a strange dream,” the woman grumbled as she sat up, eyes closed in a wince. “I must have drank a little too much Sake to have a dream about…”
Genma-chan’s eyes opened in painful shock as she felt something… jiggle…
“Oh… no…” Genma-chan whimpered. “Oh no… no no no no no… This can’t be happening… Nodoka’s going to kill me… Wait, no, she’s going to torture me, then kill me…”
Ranma turned around, thermos and kettle still hanging from his hands as his feline body faded and disappeared soundlessly out the open doorway of the hut. Hiding the water implements behind his back, he walked over to his father-turn-mother, that ever-irritating grin on his face.
“I see you’re finally awake, mom,” Ranma stressed. “Sleep well, I hope? You obviously got your beauty rest.”
Genma-chan looked down at her feminine hands in horror, only half-hearing her son’s words in the back of her head. Every part of her mind that spoke of women being weak, incapable of the Art, echoed through her head. Questions about her own manliness then followed as she generally had a complete breakdown of fragile self-image.
“Huh,” Ranma frowned, seeing his father non-responsive. {Hey, Guide… Do you think you can watch my Pops for a bit, and try to keep her away from hot water… he has a lot to think about…}
{Very well,} the Guide replied with a slight frown.
{Thanks.}
And, with that, Ranma walked out of the hut, a wicked glimmer in his eye.
* * *
Ranma frowned slightly to himself as he felt the mind-link to his other body fade, showing lag from the distance they were away from each other. He could just spot his other body at the edge of a cliff some five hundred feet away, red and white fur standing out amongst a backdrop of greens and browns.
Nodding to himself, he had his other body disappear and float back to him, his link strengthening and strengthening until at about a distance of two hundred feet, he could once again see through it’s eyes as well as his own.
It was still slightly disorienting to him, being in two places at once. The two conflicting sets of senses warred in his collective mind for dominance, demanding that he pay nearly all of his attention to either one or the other, or suffer even greater disorientation.
It would obviously take some practice to get used to this new ability but, in the long run, it would give him numerous unaccounted for advantages. Just being able to watch his own back, and be safe from ambushes would be a nice thing. That, and the possibilities for being able to cheat at cards were very tempting.
Finally nodding to himself, he had his feline body leap up to take an invisible perch on his left shoulder, where the division of senses would be greatly lessened.
With a simultaneous nod, Ranma walked back to the hut.
* * *
Genma-chan sat bolt-upright as her son walked back into the hut, a look of mixed hope and despair on her face.
“Tell me, son, can this curse be cured?” Genma-chan begged.
“No,” Ranma replied with a slight shake of his head. “But there is a trigger for it, which can turn you back into a man, if temporarily.”
“R-really?”
“Yes,” Ranma nodded. “Hot water will change you back into a man, until next cold water finds you. And it will. At the most inopportune moments.”
“Yatta!”
“Now, we must be going,” Ranma commanded. “The Guide has told me of a village of warrior women nearby, from whom we might learn more about the Jusenkyo Curse.”
Not that I’m very interested in curing you, but any information that will aid me in controlling this unique ability would be… beneficial…
“Let’s do that!” Genma-chan said with a happy nod.
Ranma grinned.
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(Posted Wed, 03 Nov 2004 06:27)
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