St Catharines VIA Station (15 kilometres north of Welland) (local time: 8:33 AM)…
"«Mùsī, are you sure we should be getting off here?»"
The lavender-haired woman in the lovely qípáo blinked before she looked back and smiled at her companion. "«Relax, Lǎzhōng,»" Mousse stated, speaking in the ancient tones of her village, which used a more ancient version of Mandarin that had been used in the imperial courts of China during the Hàn Dynasty. "«I can speak English and I asked the conductor after we left Toronto. We get off at this station here and ask the clerk for the next intercity train to Welland. Once we're at the station there — it's right in the centre of town — it's not more than a kilometre's walk to Ranma's new school.»"
The other woman, a busty girl with more mauve-shaded hair and a pair of light duelling scars on her right cheek close to her nose, took a deep breath. Like her companions, she was also dressed in the very attractive traditional Chinese women's gown, earning her appraising stares from both men and women alike that passed by her. "«Pity we couldn't learn how to sense out the difference between Avalonian and Terran qì before we left the village to come to this land,»" the weapons-master lamented.
"«Oh, relax, cousin!»" Razor's maternal cousin, Lash, stated with a grin. Like Razor, the pink-haired woman had quite large breasts under her clothes, which the qípáo didn't do much to hide from the stares and gaping jaws of the people around them. "«Once we're at this place Ranma's wife goes to school, we can practice all we want. Almost all the women that attend this school are Avalonians; Ranma told us that herself when she was at the village with that useless fool she was cursed to have as a father.»"
"«Question is, are all the Avalonians there like Ranma's wife,»" Pomade, a woman with more natural-shaded chestnut hair and built the same way as Mousse, mused.
The other three women nodded as they got into the queue leading to a window marked with the sign NIAGARA INTERCITY TRAINS - TRILLIUM RAILWAYS (THOROLD, WELLAND, PORT COLBORNE, FORT ERIE, DUNNVILLE). Soon enough, they got up to the clerk, a smiling woman who found herself gazing wide-eyed at these lovely young ladies of the Middle Kingdom now standing before her. "Good morning," Mousse said in very fluent if accented English. "When is the next commuter train heading to Welland, please? We'll need four tickets."
The clerk nodded as she tapped controls. "Next train will be at 8:51 for the West Canal Train; 8:55 for the East Canal Train. Are you going downtown or Cooks Mills?"
"Downtown, please. Four people."
A nod as she tapped controls to print the tickets. "Platform Two," she then said as the tickets were printed up, and then she quoted the ticket price.
Mousse paid for the tickets, and then waved her friends with her to a nearby empty bench so they could relax. "«We'll be heading out on the 8:51 train; it's called the West Canal Train,»" she advised her friends in their native language.
The others took their seat. "«It'll be nice to see Ranma again,»" Pomade stated.
"«So you can ogle her, right?»" Razor teased.
"«Do you blame me, Lǎzhōng? Who in the name of the Goddesses WOULDN'T want to be the wife or concubine of the great-grandchild of Dàshīfù Jones?»"
The others all laughed as their memories turned back in time…
The mountains of Qīnghǎi, the village of the Nǚjiézú, two months ago…
"So you all turn yourselves into girls using the spring of Jusenkyō to stay that way for at least a month so you can experience a period and thus be accepted as true warriors here?" a wide-eyed Ranma — as girl — asked as she gaped at the other girls.
"Of course," Mousse stated. The four women now seated with the wandering martial artist — like Ranma — had all been born boys; they were Ranma's age. And like Ranma, they had also been immersed in the Niángnìquán spring in the Valley of Sorrows, though in their case, they had all done it willingly. Everyone was speaking Japanese as Ranma was still having some problems learning Mandarin, the least of which being her father's constant, annoying interference when it came to her trying to make friends here. "This is one method we use to help control misunderstandings between the sexes, especially when we marry and have children. At first, even I was a little wary of the idea of spending a whole month and more as a woman, but now that I'm doing it…"
"People tend to get tempted to stay that way for longer periods of time," Pomade stated as she took a cool cloth and moved to wipe down their honoured guest's back with it. It was Ranma's blood-relationship with Indiana Jones through her mother that had saved her from considerable problems when Genma had nearly gorged himself on the winning feast at the martial arts tourney the Jusenkyō guide had invited the visitors from Japan to witness a week before. Of course, Genma hadn't benefitted from that; after he had been identified as one of Happōsai's last students, he had been nearly crippled for life by a very eager Shampoo, not to mention half of the village's council of matriarchs. "In fact, several male-borns eventually chose to bear children themselves and remain as women, rising to high places on the village council over time."
Ranma nodded, and then she sighed as she looked down at the small pools of cold water in the palms of her hands. "You're still worried about your wife?" Razor asked.
A nod. "Yeah." A deep sigh. "I mean, she's an Avalonian and they're all bisexual, but she was born here on Earth and was a normal Terran girl for a decade before she crossed over. And she's very religious; her vows of marriage mean a lot to her."
The others hummed. "Well, if she's like the space-women we've met from the Ministry of Social Restructuring who've come here looking for people who would be willing to move to the new colony planets, she should see your curse as a blessing," Mousse then mused. The MSR was the Chinese government agency — mostly manned by Avalonians but quite loyal to the central government in Běijīng — that was in charge of preparing future colonists to accept new lives on the six worlds that had been set aside for Earth's most populous nation: Qínxīng (known to English-speakers as "New China"), Hànxīng (or "Hanaurum"), Wèixīng ("Aman"), Shǔxīng ("Hanyu"), Wúxīng ("East Tigris") and Jìnxīng ("Caballus"). It was interacting with the agents of the MSR that the Nǚjiézú learned of their "star sisters;" elders like Ranma's current host, Cologne, were actually debating the merits of allowing a colony of their tribe to be established on Hànxīng.
"I hope so," Ranma admitted, and then she gazed on Mousse. "What are you going to do?"
A sigh. "I don't know, Ranma. I mean, I still love her, but…"
A hand reached over to squeeze the weapons-master's shoulder. "There are loads of other nice girls in this village. Sugar, Spice, Lotion, Shan's cousins…"
The others nodded. "It would be nice, but many of them are rather traditional when it comes to accepting a potential husband into bed," Razor admitted. "And none of us are really interested in fighting for a potential wife. Yes, be strong against potential outside invasion…" — they had explained to Ranma about the Musk and the inhabitants of Mount Phoenix — "…but love is the power that unites."
"Do Avalonians fight for their mates?" Lash asked.
"Oh, hell, no!" Ranma stated. She then laughed. "Actually, Avalonian girls do it this way: if two or more of them find a guy they think is the right sort to be the dad of their kids, they all get together and discuss ways of sharing him. If they're not bonded, they might consider bonding to make it easier to accept, but that has its problems, too. 'Marriage' as we'd see it really doesn't exist amongst their kind."
The others nodded. "No wonder the elders are considering accepting the chance to move to Kansei and erect a new village there," Pomade mused; "Kansei" was the Japanese way of reading the characters that went into "Hànxīng." "I wonder what'd be like."
"Be a few years to find out," Ranma mused, and then she smiled. "Hey, I got an idea!"
The others looked at her. "What?" Mousse asked.
"Hiibā-chan and the others wouldn't mind it if you travelled abroad, would they?"
"Of course not; how do you think we keep abreast of events elsewhere?" Razor mused.
"Not to mention help people get their anime fix," Pomade added.
The others laughed, and then they gazed on their new friend. "Are you proposing we come to Canada after you reunite with your wife?" Lash asked.
Ranma nodded. "Sure! There're a thousand girls going to the Academy Shinobu goes to. Most are single. Maybe you'll find a wife there. Hiibā-chan says that if I got a DNA-transfusion from Kanami…" — she had told her friends about her new sister — "…it won't affect my curse. So if you meet someone if you got to Canada…!"
"But you said most of the women attending this Academy are reserve military soldiers," Razor stated. "Wouldn't that cause problems?"
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean they'll serve in the military forever!"
The others hummed. "Good point," Lash mused…
"Excuse me?"
The four travellers from Qīnghǎi all jolted, and then they turned. "Yes?" Mousse asked in English as she focused her eyes — in her cursed body, she didn't suffer from the near-blindness that affected her birth body — on the person that just spoke to her.
She then found herself staring at a very pretty girl about their age, currently dressed in stylish yet not too flashy Western clothes. Her sable-black hair was done up in two buns on the sides of her head, tied off with pretty tartan-pattern ribbons that made her look very cute. She had sparkling chestnut brown eyes that were full of warmth and friendliness. There was also a knowing look on her face. "I hope I'm not being rude, but the train to Welland's here now," she said in Japanese as she indicated the sleek Bombardier Talent three-car, electrically-powered intercity commuter train now on the outer tracks beyond the station's doors leading onto the boarding platforms.
Mousse blinked, and then glanced at the time. "Oh, darn! Train's here, everyone!" she said, following the other woman's example and speaking Japanese to her companions.
They all got up, presented their tickets to the person manning the boarding gate, and then proceeded out of the station building to board the awaiting electric train. "Thanks for doing that for us," Razor stated as they moved to take over a booth set of seats in the first car. "We were just remembering a friend of ours…!"
A wink. "Saotome Ranma, right?"
The people from China all gaped. "You know Ranma?!" Lash asked.
A giggle. "I was one of the maids of honour at his wedding," she confessed as they relaxed and set aside their travel luggage. She herself only had a large shoulder bag, which she put onto the rack above their seats. "I'm Narusawa Yui. Grade 11 at the Aqueduct Montessori Academy of Welland. Ranma's wife's my classmate and friend."
The girls from China all nodded, glad that some good luck had blessed on them on their long trip to this land. "I'm Liào Mùsī. You can call me 'Mousse,'" the weapons-master stated as she waved to herself, and then she indicated the others. "These are my friends, Liú Lǎzhōng or 'Razor;' Liú Lǎozǐ or 'Lash;' and Sūn Pàomǎ or 'Pomade.'"
Everyone shook hands. "You really do like to mangle your names, don't you?" Yui asked as the train began to move eastward, passing under the bridge that carried Saint Paul Street over the twin tracks that connected Saint Catharines with Niagara Falls to the east and Hamilton to the west. "It's easier for me to pronounce your proper names than those nicknames," she then mused as she relaxed in her chair. "Um…I have a question and I hope you don't find this rude, but are all of you really boys?"
"You're an Avalonian, I take it," Pomade said as she gave her a knowing look.
A nod. "Keep it down," Yui then whispered. "Even if many of the people on the train are sisters or those in the know about us — and we are speaking Japanese, which a lot of people here wouldn't understand — there are those who don't know."
An understanding nod. "I apologise."
"And yes, we are," Mousse added as the train shifted tracks after passing over the gorge of the Twelve Mile Creek, now moving on the southerly track, which would branch off in a couple of kilometres onto the Trillium Railway mainline that ran up the west side of the Welland Canal beside the famous Twin Flight Locks, where the Thorold train stop was located, just above where the line would branch in half, with one line crossing Bridge 10 over the Canal to go down to Port Colborne parallel to the east bank of the Canal and the other branch would proceed south-southwest and south into Welland itself. "How much are you aware of what's recently happened to Ranma?" she then asked.
"Well, Okā-san — she's the medical officer assigned to Shinobu's ship — sent a message to me concerning about a 'curse' that Ranma picked up while he was travelling with his father in China after he and Shinobu got married," Yui explained.
The four women from the highlands of the Middle Kingdom all smiled. "It's not a curse if you don't let it be a curse," Pomade stated. "Here's what it's about…"
Welland Station (on East Main Street east of downtown) (local time 9:53 AM)…
"You just live right beside the train station?" Mousse asked.
Yui giggled as she waited for the others to pass through the exit gate. "It makes it convenient whenever I want to travel somewhere else," she admitted as Pomade got through the gates, and then all five moved to walk out of the simple building located on the east side of the tracks, just across East Main Street from the former lot that held the southern buildings of the bankrupt Atlas Steel works.
In the wake of the demolition of the factory bordering East Main Street in recent years, the growing Avalonian population in the Rose City had rehabilitated and cleaned out the quarter-kilometre block of property, transforming it into affordable housing for low-income residents of the city, especially those close to retirement and those with children that needed daycare. The Narusawa family owned the detached bungalow at the northwest corner of East Main and Patterson Avenue, with a closed Chinese restaurant on the northeast corner. Mousse and the others were quick to see that as they turned up Patterson, and moved to walk inside. "How can we learn about property ownership here?" the weapons-master then asked as she gazed on the boarded up shop.
"It should be easy," Yui noted. "Okā-san is seen as the 'elder mother' of all Avalonians living in Welland; she has a good working relationship with the mayor and city council, so we could find out if we can get the property rented to you." She then gazed at her visitors. "Will you be running it as a restaurant or something more?"
"Restaurant for now; we'll see what happens afterward," Mousse said, and then she took a deep breath. "Yui, thank you so much for offering us a place to stay while we're settling in here. While we had some general ideas of what to do when we first came here, we were starting to worry about the details…"
The raven-haired woman made a dismissive wave of her hand. "Don't mention it," she said. "The advantage of being an empath and telepath. You're not here to cause trouble for Ranma-kun or Shinobu-san, you're actually hoping to meet potential wives that wouldn't make such harsh demands of all of you as women native to your village seem to do…" She then giggled. "And you all are willing to earn your stay, which certainly speaks very much about you." She then hummed. "Would you consider applying for citizenship if that eventually comes your way?"
"We might," Razor noted. "The elders who are the heads of our families in the village all understand what motivated us to come out here. They're hoping that this sort of 'exodus of eligible males' might make the more conservative elders finally move to change some of the laws there. While the good laws and traditions make sense…"
"We're not interested in being party to a suicide pact, which is where the bad laws might ultimately lead us if people aren't careful," Lash finished for her cousin.
A nod. "Oh, one other thing. Will you be staying as girls full-time or will you frequently switch back to being boys again?" Yui wondered.
"I'm considering staying as a girl," Mousse admitted. "My vision is near-perfect in this body; in my birth-form, I'm practically next to blind and I haven't really taught myself how to keep my glasses over my eyes since they can be knocked off in a fight." She then chuckled. "Of course, that depends on the type of lady I meet…"
The others laughed, and then they perked on hearing the doorbell. Yui hummed as she gazed on her watch, and then she shook her head. "Right on time. You can set your clock to her," she muttered as she walked over to open the door.
"Why, thank you very much for that compliment, Yui," Sugimoto Sakurako mused as she gazed knowingly at her friend. Sure enough, two brown boxes were in hand.
The visitors from China all blinked…
Aboard H.M.C.S. Fort Erie (local time: 11:01 AM)…
"Hey, Mousse, guys! How're you all doing?!"
"We're quite alright, Ranma," Mousse replied as the four transformed Chinese warriors, their host and her friend stared at the captain's husband from the living room of the Narusawa residence; Ranma was currently in the corvette's wardroom, seated beside Yui's mother Misako, who was currently enjoying tea. "Just arrived in town an hour ago; Yui was more than happy to let us stay with her for the time being while we settle in." She then turned to gaze on Misako. "Thank you for allowing this, Healer Misako."
The doctor made a dismissive wave of her hand. "It's quite alright, Mùsī. I've long been worried about my daughter not finding a nice person either to bond with or to date, so if one of you will be nice enough to light her fire…"
Yui turned a deep red as all the Chinese warriors coughed into her fists and Sakurako politely held back a giggle. "Okā-san, please stop trying to marry me off!"
Misako sighed. "He's been missing for years, Yui…"
"I won't give up hope," Yui vowed.
Noting the questions crossing her new houseguest's faces, the doctor took a deep breath. "Yui and I were created at the same time by a person from Phentax Twelve who wanted have both a surrogate mother for his son and provide a lover for his son as well. Days before the Liberation, our former 'master' and his son left the planet to go off somewhere. We have no idea what happened to them."
"I thought most Avalonians despised being treated as slaves," Razor noted.
"There were the people who did see much of the logic Elder Ganzo espoused about us even if they didn't openly speak of such things for fear of being accused of heresy and facing execution by starvation," Misako noted, which made the four visitors from China all blanch in horror as she described the normal punishment the Church of Lum unleashed on those they considered Enemies of the One True Faith. "Yui and our owner's son, Konth, were very close to each other, behaving like a normal couple anywhere in the local cluster." She gave Yui a sad look; the latter had her eyes closed and was allowing Sakurako to rub her shoulders. "She misses him very much, but I really doubt that he, much less any other kind-hearted former master of any of us, would be willing to risk trying to travel to Earth when there are nearly two thousand warships standing in the way with standing orders to attack and destroy anything Niphentaxian that crosses the Ceres orbit line, much less enters the heliopauses of our colony worlds."
"Then let us pray to the Goddesses that Yui's beloved is alive and well. And is now trying to find some way to communicate what happened to him to her as we speak so she can have some sort of closure," Lash then stated. "Healer Misako, we will try to not impose on your household more than we have to. Since you're now busy aboard ship for the period your people are standing gate guard for us all, is there someone here in Welland now we can speak to so that we can acquire the property across the street from your home and being renovating it as soon as possible?"
A nod. "Katagiri Mirei. She's a teacher at Yui's school. She lives a few doors down from where you're at now; either Yui or Sakurako could guide you there after she comes home from school, which should be around five o'clock this afternoon."
"You have our thanks," Mousse stated as we…
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