Joketsuzoku


Ranma awoke to silence. Uncertainty kept her still and breathing evenly,
showing no signs of her awakening, as she strained her senses in search of a
threat. Finding none she shifted slightly as she cracked her eyes. She was
in a bedroom, she realized. She winced as her skin complained about the
rough weave of the sheet that covered her.

Glancing down and drawing one hand from her side up to grasp the sheet and
lift it slightly confirmed that her clothing had been removed at some point.
She rolled on to her side to look about the room and the feel of the cloth
sent her eyes back to the sheet covering her slight form. What had they
covered her with, sackcloth? Yet what met her eyes was no rough and poorly
made cloth but a comfortable looking cotton sheet.

Warily she retreated within her mind, thinking that her senses must have
been heightened by the presence of the cat, as the memory of the earlier
events returned to her. To her surprise she realized that she could sense
the cat but that it slept. Furthermore, the ki technique of the Neko-ken lay
equally dormant.

Returning her attention to the room she looked about but saw no sign of her
clothing. Thinking back to her memories she realized that her pack was
probably still lying in that cleft in the rock face, while the clothes she
had been wearing were somewhere in the hands of the women who had found her.

Instead of a logical consideration of where she was and what she should
next do, Ranma found herself unexpectedly overcome by a sense of loss.
She struggled against the startling strength of emotion, tears
collecting in her eyes as a voice in her mind bemoaned the loss of her
clothes, the absence of the soft silks that would feel so much better
against her skin than the harsh cloth of the bedcoverings.

She threw off the covers in a sudden fit of anger, swinging her legs out
over the edge of the bed and sitting up. The anger passed as quickly as the
sense of loss had, though the tears lingered still in her eyes, and left in
its place a sudden longing for the comforting arms of the girl that had held
her. The sudden realization that she could no longer run through the castle
halls and find comfort from Alana or Mairi or any of the other women who had
always been there for him hit her hard and she sank to her knees as a
terrible loneliness swept over her.

The murmur of distant voices caught her ear and she leapt to the door of the
room. It was with a great effort that she held herself from rushing through
the door to find the source of the voices even as she reminded herself that
she was without clothing. She turned from the door, her eyes catching on the
simple dresser that stood against a wall. The room was mostly empty, devoid
of any personalization giving her the sense of a guestroom, but they just
might have provided clothing. She was stopped by the slowly nearing voices
as they came close enough to be discernable and comprehensible.

"I was startled, as you can imagine, when Perfume returned and said that the
Jusenkyou Guide had indeed seen such a person come from the pools." Ranma
recognized the voice as that of the old woman the girls had taken her to.

"But I thought you said that it had been voluntary?" The second voice was
also female though it sounded younger and stronger.

"I think the initial change was voluntary but as she did not change when I
doused her I think she must have run into the Musk and the Chisuiiton, their
locking ladle. That would explain the state she was in when Shampoo found
her; being locked may have made her realize that she was not as ready to be
a woman as she had thought, or it may simply have been too much for her in
too short a time."

"And what of the cat-fist?"

"I do not see what else it could have been, but though the child behaved
in a very feline manner, she reacted to my test with a move that is not
in any description of the cat-fist that I have seen. But come, we'll
speak no more of it for now, we are getting over close and soon we'll be
within hearing distance of the child's room."

Realizing that they were indeed coming to her room Ranma turned away from
the door, ignoring the dresser for now, and climbed back into the bed.
Forcing aside the rough feel of the cloth Ranma managed to scrape together
enough concentration to put herself back to sleep.

Though her intent was merely to remove any suspicions the women might have
of her having been able to hear them, her action had an unexpected and
unintended consequence; the noise of the women entering the room awakened
the cat while she still slept.

Lotion and Cologne had barely entered the room when Ranma sprang from the
bed only to collapse in a heap on the floor, tangled within her sheets.
Without Ranma awake to supply an overwhelming diet of emotion, the cat was
not particularly interested in the people that had just entered the room.
Clawing the sheets away she sat up and proceeded to lick her hand, pointedly
ignoring the women.

When they refused to take the hint and leave, Ranma blurred into motion,
springing out the door and down the hall, her cat self not the least bit
self-conscious about her nudity, which was, after all, a cat's natural
state. The women followed hurriedly behind, noting in passing the blank-eyed
stare of Shampoo's father.

They burst from the house to see Cologne's heir staring open-mouthed at the
little redhead, who was leaping about beneath a tree, happily swatting at
falling leaves.

Seeing that they were beginning to attract a crowd, Cologne signaled
Shampoo. When her heir approached, Cologne ordered her to entice the cat
back inside the house. Shampoo dutifully stepped into the open doorway.

"Here kitty, come here kitty," she called. Ranma glanced at her for a moment
before returning to her play. Shampoo felt a presence behind her and glanced
back to see her father. She gratefully accepted the small platter of fish
that he had handed her. Grabbing one of the thin slices, she tossed it,
aiming carefully just as Ranma leapt again. The fish slapped wetly against
Ranma's cheek then fell to the ground.

A jeering comment from one of the bystanders awoke Ranma. She was too
disoriented to be feeling much of anything but she quickly realized that she
was still unclothed and looking about, spied the nice cuddle toy in the door
of the house several meters away. A single powerful leap sent her and
Shampoo tumbling into the house. They fetched up against the far wall even
as Cologne rushed back inside in fear for her great-granddaughter.

Cologne slowed then came to a halt watching as the little redhead licked
Shampoo's face while Shampoo tried to fend her off, with little success.
Once more Cologne received an impression of genuine skill, for the slight
girl was avoiding Shampoo's defensive hands with casual unconcern.

Shampoo finally gave up trying to hold off the girl and simply looked
pleadingly at her great-grandmother, while her father collapsed in
laughter. Cologne shot him a dark glance but said nothing. He was not
familiar with the cat-fist and she had to admit that had she not known
the danger her heir was in, the scene would have been quite amusing.

When Shampoo saw that her great-grandmother was making no move to aid
her she gave in and began stroking the brilliant red hair of the oddly
behaving girl. She was quickly rewarded, for the girl immediately
stopped licking her face, and dropped her head, rubbing it against
Shampoo's belly while Shampoo stroked her hair.

Soon it was obvious that the cat-like girl was falling asleep. Both
Cologne and Shampoo were startled when just after the girl's eyes
finally closed into sleep, she rolled off of Shampoo's lap onto her
knees and bowed low to Shampoo.

"I thank you, kind stranger," the girl said in a high, clear voice.
"Please forgive my behavior, I am not quite myself."

"So I had assumed," replied Cologne. The girl swiveled to face her,
raising her head to meet Cologne's gaze steadily. "Given that you have
so recently suffered the curse of Jusenkyou."

The girl flushed and looked down. "It... it was not that. I... I am on a
journey of self-discovery and the second step on that journey was to
tear down all the barriers I had built up around my emotions." She
raised her head again, her eyes azure pools of sorrow without end.

Cologne nodded. That fit with the Guide's description of a willing
victim, but that also meant... "Why then, child, did you not change when
I splashed you with hot water?"

The girl flushed and looked down again, obviously embarrassed. "You are
right, I'm sorry, I'm still not thinking clearly. The meditation was the
third... no, the fourth step, not the second."

"What's that got to do with her question?" put in Shampoo, frowning in
confusion.

The girl flushed even harder. "Sorry, I... The second... no, I mean, the
third step... was to master the curse... then I broke the barriers."

Cologne felt a shiver race down her spine, a cold chill that settled in
her bones. "Master the curse? What do you mean, child?"

"Well," answered the girl, raising her head, eyes glistening with the
hint of tears, "I can't very well learn to be a woman if I change back
to a man constantly, now can I?"

"You... you have control of your curse?" Cologne's voice shook and
Shampoo stared at her in amazement then turned her attention back to the
little redhead.

The girl nodded. "Yes, I locked myself. I will not leave this form until
I am capable of fulfilling my duty."

"Your duty?"

The girl flushed unaccountably. "I... I cannot speak of it," she said,
her voice quavering, tears beginning to slip down her cheeks and drip to
the floor. She bowed still further. "Please forgive me," she said,
choking back a sob. "I can't..."

She seemed to curl in on herself, shivering suddenly. Before her eyes,
where only she could see, hovered the image of her Lady, suspended,
seemingly lifeless, in the depths of a pool waiting to be freed. "It's
all my fault!" she wailed suddenly, sobbing and rocking back and forth,
"all my fault," she sobbed again.

Shampoo glanced at her great-grandmother for permission and then for the
first time she deliberately gathered the delicate redhead to her,
comforting her as best she could, stroking the girl's fire-red hair and
rubbing her strongly muscled back. She glanced up at her
great-grandmother, thinking about what she had just heard. "Was boy,
before?" she asked, mouthing the words. She grinned when her
great-grandmother nodded. She wondered what kind of a man it took to
produce such unbelievable beauty from the springs. A slow smirk grew on
her face as she considered it. She had a man that none of her
competitors even knew existed, a martial artist skilled enough to
successfully defend against her great-grandmother while in the depths of
sorrow, who, if what she had understood was correct, had mastered the
curse of Jusenkyou within an hour of being cursed! And when he was ready
to change back, well, then maybe she would have her Airen, and stupid
Mousse would finally see that he would never have her.

"Shhh," she crooned, "it's okay, it's not your fault." She shifted
slightly, pressing the girl's tear-stained cheek against her bosom. The
girl had been a boy such a short time before, she would still be
vulnerable to Shampoo's charms, assuredly. If she became familiar with
them while Shampoo comforted her, what of it? She would remember them,
when she took back her old form.

Her great-grandmother gestured at her and she nodded. Shifting, she
worked her legs under her and then wormed her arms beneath the girl and
lifted, rising easily to her feet. She followed her great-grandmother
down the hall, but when the withered old lady turned into the guest
bedroom, Shampoo shook her head and kept going. Cologne smiled knowingly
as Shampoo laid her burden down upon her own bed, then pulled the silk
sheets from beneath the girl and tucked them back in about her. She
stroked the red hair out of the girl's face to look at it, then turned
and ran back to the front room, where she spun to face her
great-grandmother.

"What a man he must be!" she cried out. "I hope his eyes are that same
blue."

Cologne smirked at her again. "Careful, Shampoo. You don't want your
competition learning the truth about her, now do you?"

Shampoo shook her head, eyes sparkling as she pictured her handsome
soon-to-be husband. "No, but don't you have something that can show me
what he looks like?"

Cologne hmmed, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "I am not sure, Shampoo.
Perhaps. It will take some time to find, if I do... in the meantime, you
must care for the child. She needs affection while she is learning to
deal with her changes. Keep her inside or, if that becomes impossible,
make sure she is clothed before she leaves. She does not need additional
trauma from some foolish male who believes that outsiders have no
rights."

Shampoo nodded and hurried back to her bedroom. The redhead was not
asleep as Shampoo had expected. Her eyes were red from tears but they
had stopped falling and she was sitting up, watching the door. She
offered Shampoo a hesitant smile, which strengthened when Shampoo
responded with a strong smile of her own.

"No worries, we will help you," she said, flouncing over to her dresser
and pulling out a drawer. "But first, since you are awake," and she
tossed a grin and a wink over her shoulder at the other girl, "we should
get you dressed. You don't need to have worry about jealous women coming
after you because you turned their husbands into drooling wrecks with
another show like this morning's." She smirked as she drew out panties
and a bra and tossed them to the bed, waiting for his reaction, which
she expected to be amusing. Men could be so fun to tease.

After a moment she turned around, pouting involuntarily, to see the
little redhead already wearing the panties. Her grin returned as she
watched the neo-girl struggling with the bra. It snapped and the girl
jumped with a yelp then glared at the offending garment. Shampoo giggled
and bounced over, taking it from her and showing her how to put it on
properly, taking the opportunity to rub her bosom against his arm. She
knew she needed to catch his attention and his attraction before he grew
accustomed to his female hormones. She was not planning on letting any
chances of snaring this man pass unheeded, unless Cologne found a way to
show her his male form and it turned out to be ugly. That was so
unlikely as to not even be worth considering.

Stepping back and looking at the result--the blushing and embarrassed
redhead, clad in panties and a bra, her lithe, powerful form otherwise
fully displayed, Shampoo thought about Perfume's earlier comment. Maybe
waiting was not really necessary. Learning that she was actually a man
had led to a frank reappraisal of the girl as husband material. It was
not difficult to take that a step further and consider the girl as a
lover. Definitely something to think about, Shampoo decided. It might
well cement her hold.

"Shampoo?" The shy question brought Shampoo's attention back to the here
and now and she fought back a blush as she realized that she had been
staring. She nodded as if she had simply been making a decision, and
turned to her dresser, pulling out a silk cheongsam and silk pants to
wear beneath it.

"Here, I think these will fit you," she said, holding out the garments
with a smirk. The little redhead did not rise to the bait. She rose from
the bed in silence and taking the clothes, began to put them on. Shampoo
sighed as she moved to help the girl put them on properly. It would be
more fun if she realized she was being teased, or at least reacted to
it. How can she be so stoic about it, when she was so emotional before?

When the girl was properly attired, she sat back down on the silk sheets
of Shampoo's bed. Shampoo sat beside her. "So, do you have a name? Or
should I just call you Little Redhead, hmm?"

The girl blushed, looking down. "Sorry about that," she apologized, then
paused as if considering what name to give. 

"Worry about a girl's name later," Shampoo laughed, guessing her
quandry, "What is your given name?"

"Ranma," the redhead replied. "Fey Ranma."

"Xiao," Shampoo said, "Spirited Horse... or Chang Ma, maybe... but I
don't know what Fey means."

"But it's still a guy's name," protested Ranma softly, smoothing out a
wrinkle in her cheongsam as if to emphasize her current femininity,
though the gesture was perhaps marred by the way it widened the thigh
high slit, revealing the concealing silk pants beneath.

"We could call you Lie Fa," Shampoo offered, "Fiery Hair is close enough
to little redhead, don't you think?"

Ranma nodded, raising her head and grinning, and though her eyes were still
reddened from the tears she had shed earlier, they were dry, and
sparkling with amusement. "That'll do, I guess, Shampoo. Thanks." Then
she sighed, her shoulders hunching in as she clutched her elbows. "I...
uhm... I kinda didn't wake up until just before I jumped on you out
there... Would... would you mind telling me what I did? I didn't hurt
anyone, did I?"

Shampoo shook her head slowly, not knowing what to make of Leaf's
curious statement. "No, you just ran out of the bedroom, outside, until
you got distracted by the leaves falling from a tree, and started
batting at them."

Ranma, now Leaf, breathed out a sigh of relief. "I'm so glad. I hate
waking up from that, never knowing what I've done, whether I've
killed . . ." Her voice trailed off, her eyes becoming shadowed and
unfocused. A chill ran down Shampoo's spine, as she considered Leaf's
words. It sounded to her like Leaf had, at least once, awakened to
discover she had killed someone. 

Shampoo knew, from her lessons, that her first kill of another person,
which she had not yet made, would have a profound effect on her.
Everyone spoke in hushed, pained tones of their first, and she had seen
the effect it had on one of the girls two years ahead of her, though
generally the girls going through that trauma were brought quickly and
silently into the village and isolated from their unblooded peers until
they were emotionally balanced again.

She remembered the fear for her she had seen in her grandmother's eyes
several times around Leaf, as well as Leaf's curious words. She had
clearly been awake from the moment she left her room, so what did it
mean when she said she woke up just before she had pounced on Shampoo
like a cat on a mouse?

She felt a presence behind her and glanced over her shoulder. Her
great-grandmother was in the doorway, balanced on her staff, looking
at Leaf with what looked startlingly like compassion in her eyes. 

"You know the Neko-ken," Cologne said, stating it as a fact.

Leaf nodded, raising one hand and looking at it with a strange
expression in her eyes. "Yes, I know it. I had mastered it, years ago,
mastered the fear and been able to use the technique at will, the spirit
of the cat kept locked within no matter what happened." She sounded
contemplative, as if she were speaking more to herself than to anyone
else that might be hearing her. "But when I tore down the walls of ice
in my mind, my emotions were too much. I think I lost myself for a while
there. Whatever the reason, I broke the barriers around the cat, as well."

She looked up then, meeting Cologne's eyes. "I don't think I'm terribly
dangerous that way right now, though. I'm not sure, but..." She heaved a
sigh again. "I think, maybe, that the cat's reputation is partly due to
the way it only got let out after a bout of intense fear. Right now, it
is like it is just sleeping, and waking, not quite in sync with me."

"It woke up first," Shampoo interjected, not knowing a tithe of what her
great-grandmother knew about the Neko-ken, but able to put Leaf's words
together with what she herself had observed to come quite close to
understanding, "that's what you meant when you said you didn't wake up
until you jumped on me... and when I," she blushed unaccountably,
looking at the top of Leaf's head to keep from meeting her
great-grandmother's gaze, "when I stroked your hair, it put the cat to
sleep, not you."

"Only because I was trying to stay awake, I think," Leaf replied. She
looked at Cologne. "When we're both awake, it's like... it's like the
cat's thoughts are on top of me, or underneath mine." She flushed. "The
cat...," her eyes dropped unwilling to meet Colognes as she continued,
"the cat thinks of you like a toy, Cologne-san... uhm... inedible, but
fun to play with." Shampoo giggled, putting her hand to her mouth and
glancing at Cologne as if fearing retribution, but unable to stop
herself.

"And Shampoo?" Cologne asked, setting aside her irritation at the
redhead's characterization of her in favor of her own concern and
curiousity about her great-granddaughter's safety around the redhead.
Promising though the child might be as both a martial artist, and a
marriage prospect for Shampoo, if her great-granddaughter was in genuine
danger, she would do whatever it took to ensure her safety.

Leaf's flush deepened and she snuck a glance at Shampoo before looking
down again. "Uh... it uh... kinda thinks of her like a pet... someone to
cuddle and stroke it."

Cologne cackled as both girls' faces flamed.

---

A tremor ran through the photograph in Cologne's hand and it was only
the old woman's iron will that kept tears from her eyes. "Oh, my poor
Shampoo," she thought sadly, "this will devastate her." There was no
choice though, no alternative. The law was as clear as the photograph.
The beautiful and skillful and delightfully easy to teach girl that
Cologne had taken into her home was not only in fact a male, as they
already knew... she was a werecreature. A weretiger, from the looks of it.

"I should have pushed that change in the laws through when I first
learned of the werecheetahs, and their ideals. Not all were-creatures
are evil, and I knew it. If I had only... but it is too late now. I am
so sorry, my child." Cologne said nothing aloud but raised her eyes from
the picture and passed it to the elder to her left.

She offered no reaction to the gleeful, malicious look of her primary
political rival amongst the council. There was little doubt in her mind
who to blame for this. She did not know who had taken the photograph but
there was little doubt in her mind that the original accusation stemmed
from Mousse, the frequent victim of Shampoo's protective instincts for
Ranma, and Ranma's for Shampoo.

When the last elder held the photograph in her hand, Cologne's rival did
not waste any time on asking for a concensus. The lack of an objection
from Cologne had already sealed Ranma's fate, and they both knew it. She
moved immediately on to the next piece of her plot.

"The accusation has been made," the elder said, calming her face to at
least the appearance of disinterested objectivity, "that the warrior,
Shampoo, has already fallen under the influence of the vile beast,
coming to love it by its arts." 

Cologne shook with fury but said nothing, already knowing what was
coming and knowing too that there was little now that she could do about
it. "I am sorry, Shampoo," she thought sadly.

"Therefore let that warrior prove herself by dispatching the beast
before the assembled council!"

---

Shampoo stared at her grandmother in abject horror and disbelief. "No,
no, it cannot be," she protested. "She is kind, and..." 

Her grandmother cut her off. "You must make no protests, child. We have
no choice now. If you defend her, they will only see it as evidence that
they are correct, that you are in her thrall and must be exiled yourself."

Shampoo opened her mouth and shut it again, her eyes wide, her hands
trembling. Finally she gave a tremulous nod.

When the elders gathered, they found Cologne and Shampoo already in the
werebeast's room, Cologne just stepping back from having placed one of
the Amazon's artifacts on the delicate redhead's stomach. A small jade
figurine, when activated by a trickle of ki, it would paralyze anyone
that touched it except the one who charged it, and would not accept a
new charge until it fully drained, after several weeks.

When the elders were fully assembled, one of them stepped forward,
holding out on hands covered by a single cloth, a sword of surpassing
beauty, gleaming silver. Shampoo recognized it at once, from their
legends. It was a weapon of power, wielded in times of demon resurgences
by the strongest warrior of their people. She accepted it with no sign
of emotion, but inwardly she was weeping, for it was also a blade of
judgement. Against demons, it would cast them back into the pits.
Against a normal opponent, so it was said, it would cast out their soul,
removing them from the cycle of reincarnation and ascendance, sentencing
them to wander as spirits.

Cologne stepped forward then, tapping a tsubo to bring the child to full
consciousness. Reaching out, knowing that Ranma could not move, she
gently brushed the girl's eyelids, opening her eyes so that she could
face her accusers, even though she would be given no opportunity to
present a defense.

She stepped back and another crone moved forward, holding a scroll, from
which she read in a thin, high voice. "Outsider, evidence has been
presented proving you to be a werebeast. Know that for such an accursed
creature to cross the boundaries of our land, there is only one
punishment." She looked up with a wicked smile. "Death!"

Ranma could not see everyone in the room, being unable to move her eyes.
It was with shock and sudden despair that she saw Shampoo step into her
vision bearing a sword, her face stoic, showing no signs of distress.
She wanted to cry out to her. "You know me, Shampoo! I'm your friend,
I'm not some beastly thing like Krall! It's just a technique." But she
could say nothing.

Ranma stared up her eyes burning, tears of disbelief and pain
collecting. How could they so easily believe this of her? Did the
friendship she had offered mean nothing? She tried to summon up the
energy to destroy them, thinking that a single unfocused burst of ki
should probably undo whatever pressure point they used to freeze her.
She might not make it out alive, knowing the years upon years of
experience held by the ancient warriors facing her, but she could take
some of them with her at least.

She could not find it in herself, though, to harm Shampoo nor Cologne,
both of whom she had come to love as family. She could scarcely credit
that they were going along with this, but she knew of Krall, and what he
had done to her people. If they had been similarly treated by
werebeasts... she wondered how it would have felt if Krall had been a
trusted advisor when his depradations were uncovered, and imagined they
must be feeling no less pain right now, no less a sense of betrayal. She
gave herself over to the coming death, resigning herself to it with the
realization that at least her beloved Alana would finally be freed.

She tried but failed to catch Shampoo's eyes, for her own would not move
to meet them. "At least, then," she decided, "let me make it easier for
her, for she has not seen it."

The collected elders gasped as one, as even as Shampoo's sword pierced
into Ranma's breast, slicing cleanly through on a hard thrust that would
spear her heart, she grew, swelling into a felinoid form, causing the
sword to cut a gash down her chest, ending with it piercing her stomach.
The jade statue shivered and toppled. Even as the elders rushed forward
to prevent the beast's escape, two things occurred simultaneously.
Ranma's soul was ripped out, cast from his body, and the flare of ki at
the unexpected pain cutting beyond his physical body triggered the next
stage. They stared in aghast wonder at the lifeless body of the slain
female dragon, realization coming all too late.

Shampoo lost it then, staring at the unbelievably beautiful body of the
one that should have been her husband, blatantly more powerful than any
male brought into the tribe in the last century, now lifeless, dead at
her hand. She threw herself across it, sobbing uncontrollably. Cologne's
face turned grim as her rival saw her advantage waver and vanish like
mist.

---

Ranma's spirit was torn from her body with terrible force. She finally
came to rest, her spiritual flesh seeming to hang in rents from her
battered frame, only a few feet from an unimprinted spring in Jusenkyou.
Even as she struggled to stand upright, she could feel the waters
pulling at her, eager to take her, to imprison her forever. Shivering in
fear and pain, she stumbled away, avoiding the water solely by the
hungry feel of it, shambling through a white haze that obscured
everything.

"I'm dead," she muttered in dismay. "So why does it hurt so much?" She
stumbled, a cold metallic chill freezing her skin, pain radiating from
ragged cuts and bone-deep bruises. An ominous clanking sound echoed her
fall and she stared down at herself. Her eyes widened, filling with
tears, as her hands slowly rose to clasp the frigid chains that wrapped
around her, searing her skin with a cold beyond that of ice or snow. For
the barest instant she had hope that this was merely some form of
punishment, but as her eyes followed their course, she could see the
chains vanishing into the distance.

"I'm dead, she should be free!" she screamed, pounding her fist against
the ground. She grabbed at the chains and tried to pull them away then
screamed in agony as they reacted, freezing her hands. The pain was
intense beyond anything she could remember. Screaming still, she jerked
back and her hands shattered like fragile crystal. She stared at the
white on white stumps, her voice failing her, and she collapsed in a
dead faint.