Ranma spent the rest of the day searching through Rose Manor. He was certain that when Phantomias lived here, he had left a few surprises behind. And then there were those 'secrets' he had talked about in his diary...
And indeed, Ranma found a couple of interesting things that should come in handy some time.
"A Hypnosis Lamp," he chuckled when looking at what looked like a regular, old oil lamp. "I read about that one in the diary. I know on who I can try this one out."
He then took a closer look at the armchair the diary was hidden in. And he found a black, tight-fitting bodysuit with a yellow belt, a dark mask and a cape.
"Looks like the working clothes of Phantomias," Ranma grinned. "I HAVE to try them on later in the evening..."
It was getting late when Ranma was finished searching through every room of the huge manor, including the garden. And by then, he was sure that he found every little secret the mansion had to offer.
"Akane and the others may think that this is just a run-down shack," he told himself. "But I will make this my own, private domicile... a place I can retreat to when I need to be left alone. And since I'm the only one who knows about its secret, no one will be able to find me if I don't want them to."
He sat down on the floor and took out the diary. "I guess I better note down where all the secret passageways and traps are situated," he murmured. "Damn, I forgot to take a pen... oops!" Suddenly, the glittering pen he got from Harula slipped out of his pocket.
"Oh, I must have forgotten to give it back before I left," he said. "Oh well, I'll just give it to her when I pick up my new bike..." He grinned when he imagined what the vehicle of the new Phantomias would look like. He couldn't wait to try it out.
He picked up the pen and wrote down a few notes on the inside of the diary. As long as no one found the diary, no one would find out about the secrets of Rose Manor.
His gaze fell on the costume of Phantomias that was lying on the floor. "Hopefully, that thing will fit me," he murmured. "I can't really say if I have the same size than a rebellious nobleman who lived a long time before me..."
He held the pen up in front of his face and chuckled. "It's not like this is a magical pen that can transform me. I mean, all I would have to do was to say: 'Transform me into Phantomias', and I wouldn't need..."
Ranma gasped when all of a sudden, an aura of light surrounded him. When it was gone, he looked down at himself... and saw that he was wearing the costume of Phantomias, including the mask and cape.
He looked down at the floor. The costume he found was still lying there, neatly folded next to the armchair.
He felt his new clothes with his hands. "How did this happen?" he murmured. "There's no trace of my old clothes left... and I certainly don't remember putting these on. Could it be that..."
He gasped when he took the pen and looked at it again. "It's gotta be the pen..." he whispered. "I was just joking about it, but... it really has magical powers! And it transformed my clothes into... the costume of Phantomias! Awesome..."
He walked up in front of the dusty mirror. After wiping most of the dust from its surface, he admired his reflection.
"I'm looking good," he smirked. "If I didn't know it better, I wouldn't be able to tell that this was me. Although I might need to tuck my pigtail under the mask... It's not like I can take the Dragon's Whisker off it."
He tried turning himself back, and it worked with no problem. In a flash, the costume turned back into his regular attire. Ranma grinned. "Great! If for some reason, I can't wear this costume at times, I can always use this pen to transform. I wonder what else it can do, though..."
He then thought of something. "Haruka... how did she get her hands on such a thing? Should I ask her? Hmmmm... Well, if she'd ask me if I had it, I would tell her, but... I really wanna wait before telling her about my secret."
He tucked the pen back in his pocket. He also put the diary back under his shirt. It was time to head back home. Before he left, his look fell upon the Hypnosis Lamp.
He grinned. "I'm gonna take this one with me," he said and took it off the shelf it was standing on.
Jumping back across the rooftops, he made his way back to Nerima. Before he returned back to the Tendo's home, though, he made another visit.
Ranma stood in front of the entrance door to another mansion, even if it wasn't as big as Rose Manor. He rang the doorbell.
'Hopefully they don't have installed a trap in the bell,' he thought.
A few seconds after, the door opened and a familiar, buck-teethed face looked out at him.
Sasuke, the little ninja retainer of the Kuno family, was speechless. "R-ranma Saotome?"
"Hiya, Sasuke!" Ranma grinned. "Please be so kind and tell Kodachi I'm here. I've got something for her."
"R-right away!" the confused ninja stuttered.
Ranma didn't have to wait long. A swirl of black rose petals warned him in time before Kodachi came leaping at him. "MY RANMA-SAMA!" she cried. "You finally came to declare your love!" And she tried to grab him in a massive glomp.
Ranma stepped back in time. "Whoah there, Kodachi!" he said. "You don't wanna break your present, do you?"
"A present? For ME??" The younger Kuno sibling's eyes teared up.
"Yeah, here ya go! I thought you'd like it."
"An oil lamp?" Sasuke, who was still behind his young mistress, frowned.
"Be quiet, Sasuke!" Kodachi commanded. "This present might be antique, but it certainly has its own charm. I'll use it tonight, before I go to bed." She handed it to her servant. "Take it and bring it into my chambers, Sasuke! But be careful! If you break it, I will test my new plant extract on you."
Sasuke shuddered. "I'll be extra careful, Miss Kodachi!" And he carried the lamp away.
"My darling Ranma!" Kodachi shouted and again tried to lunge at her love. "Please, let me repay you for this wonderful present with my undying love!"
Ranma stepped back. "I'm afraid I can't stay for long, Kodachi," he said with a smile. "Will your brother be at home tonight?"
"I'm afraid so," Kodachi sighed, misinterpreting Ranma's question. "He probably won't leave you alone when you come again, and I understand that you want to keep our affair secret from all those other trollops." She batted her eyes at him.
Ranma smirked inwardly. 'Great!' he thought. 'That means everything will proceed as I have planned.'
"Be sure to visit me again some time," Kodachi pleaded.
"I'll see if I can make it next week," Ranma said with another smile. "I really have ta go now."
"I will be looking forward to it every day," Kodachi sighed while her beloved one left.
In her room, Sasuke was putting the Hypnosis Lamp on her night stand...
"Where have you been, Ranma?" Kasumi asked as Ranma came back. "We already ate dinner."
"Sorry, Kasumi, but I'm not hungry."
Nabiki looked up from the book she was reading, as well as Soun and Genma from their Shogi board. It wasn't like Ranma to skip a meal.
"Ranma, my boy, are you sick?" Genma asked as he came and felt his son's forehead. Ranma brushed it off in annoyance. "Of course I ain't! I'm just not hungry, that's all!"
"In that case, maybe you're interested that Ryoga and Akane are sparring in the dojo," Nabiki said with a smirk. "They've been at it the whole day."
Those news made Ranma somewhat upset. He still loved Akane, even though he wouldn't admit it to anyone. But if he started a fight with Ryoga now, he wouldn't be able to put his plan into action."
"Do I look like I care what that tomboy's up to?" he mumbled as he walked out of the room.
Nabiki and Kasumi looked at each other in confusion. That really wasn't like Ranma at all.
Nabiki narrowed her eyes. "Ever since we visited that mansion, Ranma has been acting strangely..." she murmured to herself. "I wonder what he's up to..."
That night, Ranma waited until everybody was fast asleep, then he silently stood up and tiptoed out of the room he shared with his father. Careful not to wake anyone, he went outside, where he searched through one of the bushes. He then pulled a small plastic bag out of it. In it where all the things he had taken with him from Rose Manor - including the costume of the first Phantomias.
"Time to see if these old clothes are my size..." he murmured as he tried them on. To his joy, they fit him very well. That meant he wouldn't have to use the Disguise Pen.
With a single leap, Ranma was on top of the Tendo's roof, where he struck a pose. While his black cape waved behind him in the evening winds, he thought to himself:
'A new era has begun... an era of payback and justice! Look out, all of you annoying rivals, pests and wannabe-fiancees... because there's a NEW Phantomias in town!'
And with those words in mind, Phantomias took off into the night, silently as a shadow.
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(Posted Sat, 24 Nov 2007 18:22)
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