Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Chasing Destiny ❯ Re-introductions are made. ( Chapter 1 )

Chasing Destiny

Chapter 01 - First Re-introductions are Made.

Aim Mizuno sat waiting. She hated waiting mostly because she was completely bored. In her rush, she had forgotten to bring her school books with her from the apartment, or were they still in the park?

The park. That brought many memories she would rather avoid right now, about the boy who appeared from nowhere to dominate her thoughts and emotions as well as the monster and her own near brush with death. She had nothing to escape thoughts of the fight in the park or holding the dying boy in her arms or her complete helplessness at the situation.

At the time, Ami thought she only had one option open and she had to take it or the boy might die. She carried him home, knowing it was her mother's day off. Transforming back into her normal clothes before reaching her apartment building, she held him close in the ride in the elevator in order to soak her school uniform in his blood. Then dragging him the rest of the way under her own strength, she prayed her mother didn't have some errand to run.

Shocking her mother with such a grizzly arrival, Dr. Mizuno immediately took charge and called the hospital for an ambulance and even a fast motorcycle with a supply of whole blood and plasma. Because of the various monster attacks in the city, it was a full hour before the ambulance arrived, luckily the motorcycle was able to run the sidewalks and they emptied the life giving liquids into the boy's dying form as fast as he could take it.

Ami had wanted to ride in the ambulance to the hospital, but Dr. Mizuno forced her daughter to stay home since they would be likely be many hours in the operating room anyway. So Ami took a shower, changed her clothes and arrived at the hospital in under an hour.

The waiting was driving her crazy. She had no books or homework which could occupy her mind, even the medical journals in her mother's office would have been welcome if only the blasted door wasn't locked. Ami settled for occupying her time going over the morning's events in her head. The boy had obviously known her from the Silver Millennium, and she him. More than that, they had been in love. Love strong enough to attach itself to the memories and make itself painfully known.

So many times she dreamed of finding the right man, usually a doctor or a lawyer or some other highly successful man of good standing. This boy, however, was obviously a fighter and a vagabond. True he was good enough to stand toe to toe with a monstrous killing machine and he was good looking and obviously in great shape, but was he really someone to have a relationship with?

The biggest risk so far had been the boy himself, calling her Princess Mercury, and waxing poetic about how much he loved her as he continued to get weaker. Her mother had thankfully dismissed it as hallucinations due to blood loss.

"Ami?"

The short haired girl looked up, the other senshi were there, her best friends and including all of the Outers as well. Only then did she realize she had completely missed school. She stood up as Makoto and Mina stepped close to give her a quick hug. "When we heard you were in the hospital we were all scared it was as a patient." Mina said.

Behind her two friends, she saw the one she wanted to see least at this moment.

Usagi stood there, her eyes downcast, looking very ashamed. "Ami, I'm so sorr..."

*SWACK!*

Ami's hand had flashed out and struck her friend and leader across the face before she even registered what she was doing. The other senshi reacted at once; Makoto stood in the gap between the two girls as Michiru and Haruka grabbed Ami by the arms and hauled her back. Rei and Mina flanked Usagi while Chibi-usa and Hotaru looked on aghast and Setsuna only watched impassively. Everyone seemed to be talking at once, the two elder outers and Makoto shouting recriminations at Ami while Rei and Mina looked after and protected Usagi.

"Leave her alone." This one voice cut through the mayhem. Usagi pushed herself upright, "Let her go, it's OK. I-I deserved that." She walked back to within striking distance of Ami without fear, "I'm sorry, Ami. I let you down. It might be you in there or worse, if only I hadn't been so stupid. I'm really sorry."

Ami wanted to tell her friend it would be all right and that she was forgiven, but what came out of her mouth was, "He still might die, you know." Tears started to leak from her eyes.

Usagi gathered the short haired girl into a hug. Everyone seemed to let out a collective breath as Ami hugged her back and really started to cry.

"'He' who?" Mina was the first to ask the question on everyone's mind. Some looked at Setsuna for the answer, but she had put on a very firm poker face. Some privately thought it meant that she simply didn't know.

It was a few minutes before Ami had calmed down enough to sit and tell the others her story of the morning's events, still holding Usagi's hand for comfort. Most were pretty impressed with the boy, taking on that monster and winning, if it weren't for the fact the monster seemed impervious to damage. Everyone was simply glad Ami was not harmed.

Usagi, however, didn't get off so lucky. As several of the senshi whispered scathing rebukes at the Moon Princess, surprisingly it was Chibi-usa who came to her defense the most. Usagi didn't break down and cry though, she simply felt too terrible about what had happened for any sort of theatrics. She did make several promises to try and do better.

Not long after that, Dr. Mizuno walked in to the waiting room with a startled, "Oh." She had not expected all of her daughter's friends to show up. "I suppose Ami has told you everything that's happened." After several nods and affirmation, she continued, "Well, he's going to be fine. He is in remarkable health, even for a teenager, and we expect him to wake up ahead of schedule. Does anyone happen to know his name or where he's from?"

Everyone looked at each other, but all shook their heads. Setsuna made no move at all.

"What will happen to him, mother?" Ami asked.

"He had no identification on him, so until we can find his family I think he will be in our care for the time being. Don't worry, I am certainly not going to leave the boy who saved my daughter's life out on his own. Either way, he won't be going anywhere soon, a couple of weeks in the hospital, soft foods the entire time." Several curious looks prompted her to continue, "We had to remove almost a foot of his intestinal tract due to damage." Usagi visibly flinched at this. "Ami, you can go see him now, if you want."

As soon as Ami and her mother were gone, Setsuna turned to the others, "Why don't we meet up at our house in an hour. I'll make sure Ami gets there." With that, she turned to follow Dr. Mizuno out of the waiting room.

Ami's mother excused herself after she let Ami into the recovery room. Ami stood there and stared at her rescuer, taking in his handsome features as he lay there.

"How's our sleeping prince?"

Ami spun around to find Setsuna standing behind her. "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that."

"You should pay more attention; I've been standing here watching you stare at him with stars in your eyes for ten minutes."

Ami started to blush, "It wasn't that long, was it?" Setsuna only nodded with a grin on her face. Ami decided to change the subject, "Is he really a prince?"

"No, it was only an expression. Though I was beginning to wonder if you going to wake him with a kiss."

"I wasn't!" Ami hissed at her, trying not to make too much noise. The effect was lost as she started blushing more.

The boy stirred in his sleep anyway, "You guys are noisy," he said in a sleepy voice. He looked around and smiled as his eyes finally fell on Ami, "Hello, Princess. Where are we anyway?"

"The hospital in Jubaan." Setsuna said stepping forward. "Can you tell me your name?"

"Ranma, Ranma Saotome," he said, his bleary eyes squinted at her in thought. "Do I know you?"

"Well now. That is the question of the day, isn't it? Do you know me?" Setsuna stepped closer to make sure she was in plain view.

Ranma seemed to think about for a few moments and finally asked, "Wallflower?"

She let out a sigh of resignation, "You should get some sleep, Saotome. Don't worry your princess will be here when you wake up."

Ranma looked like he wanted to fight it, but Ami smiled and nodded so he relented and drifted back to sleep once again.

On the way out, Ami asked, "What did he mean by calling you `Wallflower'?"

Though she tried to hide it, a hint of jealousy still rang through Ami's words. Setsuna settled on the truth to spare the girl any headaches, "It's not a compliment if that's what you think. His full nickname for me was, `Wallflower that holds the Queen's ear.' What can I say? I may have been the Queen's confidant but I never was one for parties."

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Setsuna took Ami back to her place where the others were waiting. The room erupted into questions as soon as they entered.

"All right, settle down," yelled Setsuna trying to restore order. "As you know, there is some new mysterious enemy that has shown up and `no,' I don't know anything about them because for some reason they didn't show up in the time gate. Other than the few scans done by Ami, we know practically nothing about them."

Ami took over at this point, "They seem to have none of the normal signs of the daemons or youma we usually fight, so for now, they're just monsters."

"They do not seem very cunning in of themselves, but there was a tactic to this mornings attack. A group of monsters were sent out as a diversion and then as soon as Ami's computer detected it they sent a single hunter after her."

"So, if they know how Ami's computer operates, then they must know us, somehow, and about the technology we are using," said Michiru.

"Exactly. The only thing I can think of that they are somehow outside of time or out of sync with this dimension. That is why the Time Gate can't detect them or anticipate their attacks. To be on the safe side, Ami will have to keep her computer's scanning turned off for now. This means we will have to rely on our own senses for now. On the bright side, we do have some potential allies coming back to us."

"You mean Ranma?" Ami beamed with the prospect, a site which was not lost on any of the others.

"Is he cute?" Makoto and Mina asked together nearly pouncing on Ami.

"Please," interrupted Setsuna, "save it for later when the boy is actually healthy, ok? The point is I say `potential' because he and his friends have no real ties to us or the Moon Kingdom other than being reincarnated. What you probably don't know is that Queen Serenity sent the souls of everyone on the moon to earth to be reincarnated. Through our magic you have been able to recover at least some of your memories, but because most of the population of the moon had no powers, they will never remember, or if they do, they can't do anything about it and simply dismiss it as a fantasy. Ranma and his friends might be a special case.

"Back in the Silver Millennium, the palace held the Annual Queen's Ball which marked her ascension to the throne. This was a kingdom wide celebration and one of the events was the Master of Arms Open fighting tournament. A year before Beryl's attack, a newcomer to the event literally destroyed the competition and the reigning champion with seeming little effort. As was customary, he was invited to the ball. I think it was to allow for diversity as well as entertainment for the nobles.

"However, this new champion was very outspoken against the noble class and, in particular, the senshi. I remember he got into a particularly heated argument with you, Haruka, and he got everyone's attention when he said that, `you were born into your position, handed power and given authority. You didn't earn it or work for it, and all of the sweat and blood that was sacrificed to put you where you are was never your own.'"

The angry and hurt look on Haruka's and Michiru's face easily told everyone how those words stung even now.

Setsuna raised her hand to forestall any outbursts, "As you might imagine, it went downhill from there. Finally, the Queen requested an audience with you all and declared it a challenge. If this new Champion won then his argument was valid and the senshi were not the soldiers they were meant to be. If he lost, he would make a public apology as well as restitutions.

"The challenge was held in the courtyard and all of the Outer Senshi were technically included, Neptune and Uranus fought together while Saturn held a Silence wall to protect the spectators, while I stood by the Queen's side. The winning condition was the he had to defeat three of the four Outer Senshi. Even though it was a spectacular battle and the Senshi held considerably more power, they could not contend with the Champion's skill and were eventually taken down.

"It was then he realized his mistake as I was standing by the Queen, as a tactical `last defence' and Saturn was on the other side of the Silence wall. He made a few very powerful attacks at the Wall to test it, I guess, but then he put his hands on it and simply walked though it."

"What? How was that possible? Nothing can get through the Silence Wall?" Hotaru asked a bit unnerved.

"He told me later that the silence wall is an energy barrier and will stop anything that makes a sound, and anything traveling through air makes a sound whither it's energy or matter. What he did was to use his chi to dampen the sound around him, then he held his breath and stopped his heart, so even the blood moving through his veins couldn't be heard, then he simply stepped through. That was how much he had trained, to have that level of control over his entire body, but also how brash he was. If he had made a sound, the Wall would have killed him while he was halfway though. After that, he disarmed the young Saturn and she submitted. He then simply walked up to the Queen. The surrounding Senshi moved to cover their queen just in case, but he only bowed down to one knee and pledged his loyalty to the kingdom.

"As you can imagine, this display did not sit well with the nobles. The Senshi were supposed to be the law-keepers in the planetary kingdoms. To see them defeated by an outsider without power shook the very foundations of the Queen's authority.

"Before the assembled nobles, the Queen called on the Champion's loyalty to the Throne and offered him a position as a combat trainer for the Senshi. He would most likely have accepted if the Senshi hadn't opposed the idea out right, his slights against their nobility and their position stung too deeply. The Champion argued that anyone could be trained to overcome the senshi, with enough time. The scouts retaliated, most especially Mars, saying he was unique, an aberration, even a freak." Rei flinched a little at this.

"The Queen relented, but not completely. If the Senshi required proof, then it was up to the Champion to provide it. She commissioned him to find skilled warriors and train them. In one year's time, if they could defeat the Inner Senshi in one on one combat, then he and they would become the Senshi's trainers.

"Over the next 2 months, he found several, but all from the inner planets. The Outer Senshi banned him outright from their planets, as had Earth. Worse yet, they were all chosen from "common" blood. I suspect he planned it that way, just to rub it in the face of the nobles, still, some had tried to curry his favor but to no avail.

Mercury was the only one who had not objected to the Queen's idea, able to see past her noble pride that this was a way to not only strengthen the senshi but also to keep them humble. She offered her lands for the Champion to train."

"I fell in love with him," Ami interrupted, shocking her gathered friends. "I wasn't allowed to train with him, but I made sure nobody interfered and we just sort of ... happened."

"Wooh!" "Way to go, Ami." "You go, girl." The other senshi cat-called to the blushing Senshi of Mercury.

"So, what happened after that?" Hotaru asked.

"Hmmm?" Setsuna blinked, still smiling at Ami before snapping back to answer the question, "Oh. Nothing. It was the during the week long celebration that Beryl attacked but before the tournament could take place. All of the participants were there on the moon, however. We fought side by side and they gave a good showing of themselves, for what it was worth."

"So then we still don't know who was better?" Rei asked.

"No, but I do like to think something good would have come out of it." Setsuna finished.

Makoto spoke up, "Then the boy in the hospital..."

"Is the Champion from long ago. He stood toe to toe against the monster trying to kill Ami this morning and took a deathblow meant for her."

"How romantic," sighed Mina.

Ami jumped up and got into Mina's face, "No! It wasn't! That thing killed him. It reached right into his armor and pulled his guts out and I had to sit there and watch it. You have no idea..."

"Woah, Ami. Chill out." Makoto got up and placed herself between the two as Mina was cringing back from the explosive Ami. "Hey, are you ok? This isn't like you."

Ami allowed her friend to comfort her as she struggled to regain control of her emotions. "No, I'm not. It was like reliving the past, watching him die all over again." She wiped away a tear, "I'm sorry Mina, I'm just trying to deal my emotions, both old and new."

Mina gave a shaky smile, "Yah, it's OK, water under the turnpike and all that."

Usagi walked up to them, "We're all here for you, Ami. Please don't forget that." Ami gave her friend another hug.

"Let's call an end to this meeting for now," Setsuna said, "I'm sure Ami could use a good rest. In the meantime, try not to go anywhere alone if you can help it."

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The next day after school Ami went directly to the Hospital. She barely even spared her mother a glance when she teased her in the hall, "He's been asking about you." Her mother just shook her head and continued with her work. Her daughter had it bad, she even had flowers.

Ami stood outside Ranma's hospital room composing herself, practicing the greeting she would give. Finally, she poked her head into the room, "Hello?" She grimaced, even after practicing it, she still sounded lame.

Ranma looked up from his book, "Oh, Princess. I'm glad you finally made it."

*He's mad I'm late.* she admonished herself. "I brought you some flowers. I thought they might cheer up your room a little."

"Thanks. Um, it's Ami, right?"

"What? Oh. I mean, yes. That's right. I suppose my mom told you."

"Actually, no. Plu... I mean, Ms. Meioh stopped in last night and told me not to mention anything about... well, you know, to the doctors and such, and especially your Mom. She even brought me my stuff," he indicated the backpack and camping gear under the bed.

Ami just smiled at him, "She seems to think you can help us." She lapsed into silence and wished she could think of something more to say that didn't make her sound like an idiot.

Ranma just shrugged. Finally he said, "Can I ask you something, Ami? Why don't you want your mom to know what you do? I mean don't you think she would be proud that her daughter is out there saving the world and fighting evil?"

Ami looked around, scared that someone might be listening in. "Well, she works a lot and she has so many things to worry about already. I mean being a doctor is a huge responsibility and Mom's good at it. If she knew, it might distract her and her patients would suffer for it. Besides, the more people that know, the greater the chance of my cover being blown completely, then she might be put in danger also."

"Oh, well that makes sense, I guess. But still, she might just support you in this. I mean she saves lives too, just in a different way."

"Well, let me put it to you this way. Ranma, who were you? I mean you must have had a life before you started remembering."

"Well, no, not really. I started having those dreams when I was about six when my dad died. I never really stayed in once place, but those dreams and the memories, they helped me when I had no experience on what to do. So, I trained in martial arts, not just because it was what Pop wanted, but because I... well..."

"...You wanted to show up the Senshi and the other nobles?"

"Well, *ahem* yeah, that. But mostly I wanted to escape from being a third class citizen. I know we don't have much a class structure here now, but traveling on the road, it's almost the same thing."

"Well, unlike you, I only came into my memories not too long ago, so it is important to me to keep what remains of that old life, not to mention protecting my mother and friends. That is why I keep it a secret and I need you to keep it secret too."

"I will, for you." Ranma seemed to think of something else, "Ami, what happened back then? I mean, why are we here?"

"You mean, why are we remembering?" Ami asked. Ranma nodded. "I don't know how much you remember, but the castle was overrun and everyone inside was massacred. The queen used the last of her life force to send the souls of everyone there to Earth to be reincarnated, but only the Senshi would remember in case we were needed again. Logically, you shouldn't even be here."

Ranma snorted disdainfully.

"But I'm glad you are. And I'm glad you found me." She blushed as her hands folded in her lap.

"Hey, I made you a promise, didn't I?" he said with a smile.

"'And the Wild Horse always keeps his promise.'" Ami intoned.

"That's right." Ranma's smile slowly faded. "So, what happens now?"

"You're asking me?" Ami asked with mock incredulousness.

"Hey, I'm just the muscle in this partnership. You're supposed to be the beauty and the brains, remember?"

Ami smiled. Sure, Ranma seemed to be taking it for granted that they would be together, but she simply didn't feel like correcting him. No awkward first dates or getting-to-know-you period, simply jump halfway into a relationship. It worked for her.

"I- I don't know about the beauty part. I mean I'm not all that pretty."

"Hello, Bookworm, focus a little." She huffed and pouted a bit at the nickname. "Seriously, we need a plan."

Ami crossed her arms and pouted, "Not until you say you're sorry."

"For what?"

"For calling me bookworm, you know I hate that name."

"All right, I'm sorry." Ami didn't seem ready to accept, though. "I'll make it up to you over some ice cream as soon as I'm outta here. How `bout that?"

"Well, ok. Just remember you promised," she said smiling at him again before turning serious. "I guess that depends on what you were doing before you found me."

"Well, I was... I mean, I was looking... for you."

Ami pretended to take no notice of his embarrassment, "Is that all?"

"And training."

"Some things never change." Ami said to the ceiling. She didn't notice Ranma flinch a little at that. "And you still live on the road, I suppose."

"Yes." He said curtly.

"Well then we'll just have to get you a permanent address here in Jubaan. Of course that means you'll have to enroll in school and possibly get a part time job. You'll have to meet my friends. Oh, they're just dying to meet you. And then..."

Ranma started to laugh, "Hold it, wait. Ooh. That hurts."

"Are you ok?" asked Ami.

Ranma waved it off, "It only hurts when I laugh. You have no idea what it's like to hear you talk like that again, but you're getting ahead of yourself. Let's start from where we are now, like how I am going pay for this hospital bill I'm racking up here."

"Oh, Mom's paying for it. After you saved my life, she though it was the least she could do."

"Oh, well, OK then. Nothing in that story you told your mom about us working together to destroy that monster, is there?" After a stern look from Ami, "No, I thought not. Well, I'm in no position to refuse, but I'll have to make it up to her somehow. Now, what about a place to stay?"

"You'll live with us." Ami replied without hesitation, then began to blush furiously at her slip.

The subject seemed up for debate.

Unknown to both of them, Usagi leaned back from the door where she was listening. She couldn't remember Ami ever really acting so... different, almost giddy. It must be love. She wasn't sure, but she could swear they didn't even know they were holding hands.

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Rei Hino sat in front of the sacred fire, chanting, delving into secrets few knew.

Like who exactly was Ami's new boyfriend.

Well, she had already tried to find information on their new enemy, but she got nothing back on the subject. It made sense; if the Time Gate couldn't see them then they certainly had no contact with the spirits of this world.

Besides, her friend's love life was much more interesting.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.

"Granddaughter, I have a visitor for you," the old man at the door said. "Go right in, young man."

The boy was not overly tall but was very solidly built and wore a tiger stripe bandana around his head. He also carried a backpack with an umbrella and his clothes looked like they had more than a few days of travel in them. He was fairly handsome however.

"I'll be out to get some cigarettes and I'll be gone for a while, Rei. Be a good girl while I'm gone, eh?" Rei's grandfather backed out the door and closed it, muttering about young love with a chuckle. Rei could only glare at the door as it closed.

"Er, hi," the boy said nervously, scratching the back of his head.

"How can this humble temple be of service to you?" Rei asked, putting on her best priestess air.

"I understand that you find things."

"Yes, of course. What is it that you've lost?

"Um... first can you tell me where I am?" he asked with a nervous giggle.

"You are at the Hino Family Shrine." Seeing the boy still had a blank look on his face she continued, "... in Jubaan." Still the same look. "Just outside of Tokyo."

Recognition finally set in, "Oh. I see. Thank goodness. When that ship captain said we were going across the Tokyo Bay, I was afraid we might end up in Sidney."

Rei sweatdropped, "Just where were you trying to get to anyway?"

"Japan. I mean I know I was already in Japan, but when you get on a ship, you just never know, you know?" He laughed again nervously.

"Oh." She shook her head, "please have a seat there and tell me your name."

"Ryoga Hibiki," he said, making himself comfortable.

"Well, Mr. Hibiki, what is it that you were looking for?"

"I've lost a friend of mine, I was hoping you might give me a clue to where he is."

"Oh." Rei smiled, sounded a bit more challenging than finding some lost trinket. "What happened to him?" *And thank god it's a `him'.*

"We got separated once we entered Japan, so I'm not really sure. He has a bad habit of going off on his own without warning me first."

"I see." Rei deadpanned. "What is his name?"

"Ranma Saotome. He's about my height, likes to wear Chinese clothes and has a pigtail."

She recognized the name from this morning, but was reluctant to give anything out. Even she hadn't really seen the guy, but she knew where he was.

"OK, let's see what the Sacred Fire can tell us." She stoked the fire a bit and began to chant. The words flowed from her as the fire blazed hotter. In the fire she saw the handsome pigtailed boy fighting the monster. She watched as the monster rammed it's claws into the boy's abdomen.

"Your friend has been in a battle. He's been hurt."

Ryoga gathered up his backpack, "I'm sorry for wasting your time, but thank you anyway."

"What? I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"

"Ranma's better fighter than that, nobody alive could beat him that bad. This is obviously a fake."

"I never said his opponent was human," she countered. In the fire, the monster dropped the figure of the boy to the ground, but instead of looking at Sailor Mercury, it looked directly at Rei. "We are in danger."

The wall exploded in as an identical creature stood looking into the room.

"What the hell is that?" Ryoga exclaimed, drawing his umbrella.

"'That' is what hurt your friend." Wondering what the boy thought he could do with a bamboo umbrella.

The monster stepped into the room and took no notice of the boy, but quickly pounced at Rei. She leapt backwards as Ryoga intercepted it, swinging his umbrella like a baseball bat. The monster tore a second hole in the wall and landed in a heap on the back lawn.

Rei stood wide eyed, looking at the umbrella; it wasn't even bent. And how could a boy have that much strength to do knock a creature that far?

"Sorry about the wall." Ryoga said, as he jumped out the hole. "All right demon, you may have had your shot at Ranma but now it's time for you to learn the name of Ryoga Hibiki!" He took off several bandannas and started twirling them.

The monster leapt at him. Ryoga's bandanna's hit it in several places but all had no effect. He leapt back just as landed where he'd been standing just out of striking range and attacked. Ryoga wielded his umbrella like a sword, jabbing and swinging it as the monster staggered under the brutal onslaught. Ryoga smashed the umbrella down on top of the monster's head, driving it into the ground.

"Heh, that was easy." He turned back to the temple to check on the priestess.

"Mars Fire Soul!" The attack hit behind him as the monster shrieked. "Don't take your eyes of the enemy!" the girl in the short, red trimmed sailor suit shouted from the top of the temple.

The monster stood wreathed in flames, but started to move as though it took no notice after the initial attack.

Ryoga threw his umbrella like a spear smashing the monster in it's worm-like head, but other thank knocking it backwards a few steps, it took no damage. It leapt at him again.

"Baksai Tenketsu." Ryoga jabbed his finger into the ground which exploded as though a grenade had gone off. The monster was hit by the debris, and the area was obscured by the dust. Sailor Mars worried about the boy as he was hidden from sight in the dust cloud with the monster.

Ryoga was ejected from the dust cloud backwards. Mars jumped from the temple roof, and picked up the umbrella. Even with her enhanced strength, she had to carry it in her arms like a load of firewood and duck-walked to Ryoga just has he got up. His shirt was shredded but the cuts in his skin didn't look to deep. Logically, he should have been gutted.

"That thing is indestructible. We have to keep it contained until the others get here, but what can we do?" she asked.

He looked at her strangely, "Ever feel like we've done this before?"

"What?" She asked, incredible that this lunk head could be distracted from a death battle by dejavu.

"Never mind. We need to stop this thing. Can you get it to stop moving for a moment?

"I think so."

"Good, when you see your target, concentrate all your fire at into one point. Got it?"

"Yeah." She waited for the monster to clear the dust, "Fire Soul Bird!" The flames circled the monster, it's brightness caused it pause for a moment.

Ryoga snapped the umbrella open and and threw it spinning like a buzz saw at the creature. It caught the creature on its back shoulder and seemed to spin in place, cutting a large gash in it's armor before it fell away. "Now!" the boy shouted.

"Mars Flame Sniper!" The arrow made of fire penetrated the fresh wound and wouldn't die out. The monster writhed in torment as it was cooked from the inside, and finally lie still.

The two approached it cautiously. Ryoga poked at it with his umbrella, and jumped back as the head disintegrated in a cloud of ash. They both let out a breath they had been holding.

Mars looked at the impossibly strong boy in front of her. He was cute, even if he was covered in sweat and grime. "Um, maybe you should check on the shrine maiden in the temple. I'm sure she would like to know you were worried about her."

"Huh? Oh yeah. Thanks for your help, by the way. My name is Ryoga Hibiki." He held out his hand for a handshake.

"Sailor Mars." She responded taking his hand.

"Are you sure we haven't met before? I know I travel a lot, but I could swear I know you."

Mars laughed nervously, "You probably say that to all the beautiful warriors of love and justice you meet." Then winced, thinking how much like Mina she sounded.

"No, I don't," he said seriously.

"Well, good luck to you, Ryoga Hibiki." With that, she jumped over the temple and out of sight.

Ryoga smacked himself in the face. "Don't get a nosebleed over white bloomers, idiot," he admonished himself, then headed into the temple to let the nice shrine maiden know that the demon was dead. Perhaps he would do a good deed and offer to help clean it up.

Sailor Mars transformed back into her priestess garb, radioed the other Senshi to let them know that the situation was handled, and was waiting for Ryoga to return so she might play the part of the helpless maiden and fall into his broad chest as he wrapped her in his mighty arms as he whispered assurances that she would be safe. Then perhaps take him to where Ranma was so they could spend the rest of the evening together.

And so she waited. ...and she waited. ...and she waited.

"Where the hell is he?"

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So far, I've been working without a pre-reader, so any comments and suggestions would be welcome.

dbattley@rural-net.com