Ranma 1/2: Ranma No More Alternate History By: Dani Yanega yanega@mindspring.com (please respond to this e-mail address) Chapter Fifty In three different locations three different women lie awake in their beds going over the meeting they were at earlier that night. Their emotions ranging from confusion, to rage, to sadness. Sleep evades them as they lay staring at their ceilings each going over what they had learned. ***Flashback*** "It has been such a long time! You all have grown up so beautiful, your mother would be proud of you all." Aimeko tells the Tendo sisters, Nabiki and Akane look at her with surprise while Kasumi just stares past her, her eyes hard and unforgiving. "How do you know us and our mother?" Akane asks Aimeko her eyes alight with eager anticipation. "She is mother's twin sister, and she deserted us! She left me..us to fill her shoes!" Kasumi snarls out still refusing to look at her aunt. "What was I to do Kasumi? Ben and I were to be married in a year, we tried to get the courts to allow us to raise you till your father came to his senses but because Ben was American. I couldn't stay Kasumi, your father was trying to replace Kimiko with me! Even while she was still alive in the hospital. I knew if I was still there when she died he would try to make me Kimiko completely." Aimeko tries to explain, tears rolling down her cheeks. "You know it is true Kasumi you walked in on one of his attempts to get me to his bed. I was fixing supper when he came to the kitchen calling me by her name. You must have heard him and thought your mother was home." Aimeko's eyes glazing over as she relates what happen that day, Kasumi looks down at her hands to hide her embarrassment. "You came in to see him try to remove my dress, if it wasn't for you, your father would have raped me! I left after that, I don't blame him to much for wanting me to stay, he was full of grief, _but_ when he tried to force himself on me Ben would not let me return and I didn't want too." Aimeko's tears were flowing in torrents, Akane was glowing blue with rage. "_How dare you!_ How dare you accuse my father of something like that! He loved my mother he would..!" Kasumi puts a hand on Akane's shoulder still refusing to look up. "She is telling the truth Akane, and if you would listen to her words, father had convinced himself that mother was fine back at home taking care of him and us. He wanted to believe she was mother, I think when he realized what he had tried to do, that was the beginning of the end for his mental state." Kasumi tells her sisters her voice cracking while she talks. "I can not and would not replace my sister in your lives but we are still family and I would like to get to know you girls again. I can see your mother in all of you, she would have been so proud of you all. I will not force myself on you but please think about it." She asks them her eyes pleading with them. ***End Flashback*** In three dark rooms, three young women cry into their pillows all three calling for a mother they barely remember. All three wondering if this new woman could fill part of the emptiness that is in their souls. /*\*/*\ The school students leave the Nekohanten and head toward their school. Ryoga looking nervously around. La Si puts a hand on his shoulder and smiles at him lovingly. "What matter with Airen?" She asks him, part of her mind drifting to the ceremony in two days that would see them legally man and wife. "Ran Koh knows! Why didn't you bring Cali? You know I have at least two classes that we are not in together!" Ryoga asks his nervousness growing, La Si looks to Ran Koh with worry on her face. "She refused to come with us she says she wasn't feeling very well don't worry her backup will be meeting up with us soon." Ran Koh smiles at her soul mate with an impish grin. When they turn the last corner and face the gates of Furinkan High, they all sigh when they do not see the crowd of boys waiting for them. They all walk through the gates a scream from Ryoga makes them all turn toward the lost boy. "AAAARRRRGGGGHHH!" When they turn they all start laughing since perched on the top of Ryoga's head, looking down and into his eyes is a large blue gray cat. They all remember his name as being Blue. The cat looks up at the laughing people his eyes narrowing to tiny slits and his tail twitching. Ran Koh stops laughing and looks around. She doesn't see anything so she stretches her senses, her gasp causes the others to stop laughing and take defensive stances, and turning in different directions to protect each others backs. "Don't you guys feel it?" Ran Koh asks her companions, the others begin to reach out with their senses as well. "I feel it now, that isn't the generals is it? Not this soon!" Msu Tsu asks a shudder going through his body. "No Xian Pu no think so! Feel more like soldier, no?" She asks the three sect leaders with them. "I think your right Shampoo, the power although strong is to weak for one of the generals. Come on let's get inside we can contact the others from the classroom." Ukyo explains, the group heads inside the building, Blue still riding on Ryoga's head staring behind them. /*\*/*\ The students begin to snicker when the group enters the class, Ryoga snarls at them with a low guttural growl. The class instantly stops and stares at the boy wearing a cat hat with looks of fear. All that is except Akane, she just watches them with narrow angry eyes. They sit down and Blue climbs down into his poppa Ryoga's lap, curling up he begins to purr as Ryoga scratches behind his ears. Blue however does not close his eyes but stares out the window with keen interest. /*\*/*\ The class progresses slowly, the warriors sneaking quick glances out the windows when they hear Blue growl or hiss. They never did see what the cat was seeing, but they know something is out there. The sect leaders were able to contact the other leaders, they and a few of the Amazon warriors made plans to check the area. To protect the innocents near the school. Akane watches the group of friends, not sure what to make of their strange behavior or that of the new cat they brought with them. Her mind also begins to wonder back to the night before and the fact she now has someone new in her life that puts her closer to her mother. The bell rings signaling the end of class. Akane watches as Morboshi-sensei walks over to Ran Koh and her friends she strains to hear their conversation, but they talk in low whispers. She watches as Shampoo hands him a business card, he bows and then heads out of the room. The next instructor enters and beings their next class. She notices the new cat and walks over to find out about the little kitten. She scratches the big blue cat behind the ears. She then nods at what Ryoga tells her and tears herself away from the cat to the front of the room. After class they all move to the next class, Akane follows Ryoga as her next class is next to his. She watches as the blue gray cat rides on top of his head. She notices that several times he went completely in the opposite direction and the cat is the one that redirects him to the correct route. /*\*/*\ Lunch time rolls around and the Light Warriors and Amazons head out of the school campus, under the watchful eye of Akane. She watches the blue gray cat jump from Ryoga's head and disappear over the wall. It has been an uneventful day since Kuno is still _sick_ from his encounter with Ran Koh the day before. "HEY GUYS WAIT UP!" Nabiki runs up to the group who stops and waits for her, Xian Pu and La Si stare daggers at her but she ignores them. "What do you need Nabiki?" Ran Koh asks her with a slight chill in her voice. "I was wondering if I could walk with you a ways. Kuno has been waiting for me at the bus stop trying to get me to get pictures of you and Akane." She looks down slightly this is hard for her to ask for help. "I could really use the money he is offering, but I don't want to lose this chance at a new life either. I was hoping that you might sort of persuade him to leave me alone." She looks up at the group who stares back at her. She notices Ran Koh's eyes are alive with lavender fire, and cringes when she realizes Ran Koh is verifying the truth of her statements. She is hurt they don't believe her but she is also angry at this intrusion. Her eyes narrow as she glares back at the young sorceress, who smiles back at her disarming Nabiki's anger and turning it to confusion. "Don't worry Nabiki, I have gotten quite good at this, I am able to only get the information I want and leave your more private thoughts to you alone." Ran Koh tells her, the group watches when she breaths a sigh of relief. "You are welcome to join us, if Kuno is there we will _talk_ with him, but since he was not in school you too may have a day off." Ran Koh continues, they all turn and head out the gate. Akane follows them to the gate and watches while the group is met by the rest of the Light Warriors and several more of those exotic men like the one that comes for Ran Koh everyday. She watches as they stop and talk, the exotic men pointing to the area around them. The group nods and then continues on their way with their friends following them. Akane's curiosity is in overdrive as she wonders what is happening. She watches while they disappear in the direction of the Nekohanten. "Tendo-san, don't you think you should be heading back to class the bell has rung?" Akane jumps with a start and turns to see Mr. Morboshi standing behind her. "Sorry sensei I didn't hear it, thank you." Akane looks one last time over her shoulder and out the gate then turns and heads for her next class. When she reaches the doors to the school she opens it and stands back to let her teacher through but he isn't there. She turns in time to see his figure disappear around the corner toward the direction the others went a few moments earlier. /*\*/*\ The students return to the Nekohanten with the group they net outside the school. Samuel comes up and gives Ran Koh a hug and kiss on the cheek, one of the Indians present raises an eyebrow at this gesture. "Well child, what is the verdict?" Li Ly asks when she enters the main room from the kitchen. "I will let Red Cloud-san tell you he led the search party." Ran Koh tells the elder and steps back to allow the young man to come forward. Tomas Red Cloud steps forward his brow knitted in thought. He looks much like his younger brother Samuel, he is 6' 2" with black hair and dark brown eyes. Although he is not as muscular as Samuel he still has an athletic physique. His hair is shorter then his younger brother's also. Tomas wears it to his shoulders. He has the same ruddy complexion, but he is twenty five instead of Samuel's nineteen. "The Shaman of the Thunderbird were able to detect the residue of the evil we felt the night the evil attacked the elder shamen. It was not as strong as that evil but it was similar. We however arrived to late to do battle." Tomas tells the elder, she nods as the other two elders join them, and hear his report. "We will have to be on guard now. It seems 'He Who Devours the Light' is sending his minions to torment us, keep us off balance until he is ready." The newest elder comments absently, as she places an arm around the shoulder of her grandson. "Well let us continue our training then, we will want to be ready for our _guest_ when he arrives." Mas Cra tells the group, they follow them out to the lot behind the restaurant. Msu Tsu follows slowly his head down watching the floor while he walks. His grandmother watching him closely. She walks up to him and lifts his chin so that he is looking at her. She smiles lovingly at him, then frowns at the anger she sees in his late mothers gray eyes. "What is it grandson? Why are you angry?" She asks him but she can guess why. "Why grandmother why did you vote to exile me! I loved _you_, I trusted _you_ and _you_ betrayed me!" He snarls at her jerking away from her touch. "Yes _grandmother_ why don't you tell my brother _why_ you chose to abandon him as you did me!" They both turn to see a lone monk in gray robes standing behind them. "It was not her choice to make Tal Kom, the counsel forced her hand, either she comply or they would have _executed_ your brother. As for you that was your mother's decision, and was made to placate your father." The group looks behind them and sees Ku Lon and Ran Koh standing there. "_She_ should not be here this is a _family_ matter!" Li Ly growls while pointing at the young sorceress. "Then this concerns her as she is _my_ family now." Msu Tsu tells her, his eyes narrowing to tiny slits. Tal Kom comes up to stand next to his brother. He lowers his cowl and looks from Ran Koh to his grandmother. Placing his hand on Msu Tsu's shoulder he smiles slyly at his brother. He then turns and faces his grandmother. "I am afraid that I must agree with Msu Tsu, as one of the leaders of the Light Warriors, she will stay." Tal Kom tells Li Ly while walking up to Ran Koh and taking her hand in his with a small smile. Tal Kom then turns to Ku Lon and Li Ly his gray eyes growing dark, it is almost like watching a storm move in from the sea. Msu Tsu moves up to stand next to his brother his gray eyes mimicking that of his twin. "_Why?_" Was all he asks of them, the two elders stare at the young men, indecision present on their faces. "Do _not_ make me ask the Tiger Sect sorceress to get us the information we seek, elders!" Tal Kom growls, at the elders, while his grip tightens slightly on Ran Koh's hand. Ran Koh looks at him with a raised eyebrow, as she tries to pull her hand free. Tal Kom refuses to let her hand go, while he stares down the elders. Msu Tsu looks to his brother and then to Ran Koh with a look that tells her he is 'sorry that she is in the middle of this'. "So that is why you want her here, not as some loyalty to the Light Warriors or the Amazons." Ku Lon tells him with narrowing eyes. "Why should I or Msu Tsu show you Amazons any loyalty? She is the only one who did what she could to protect my brother from the Amazons. Now are you going to explain your comments?" Tal Kom asks still holding Ran Koh's hand in his. The two elders look at each other but turn quickly back to the twins at a grunt. Tal Kom is kneeling on the floor holding his wrist, Msu Tsu kneeling next to him. Ran Koh standing away from them both her auras glowing around her. "She doesn't like to be man handled brother even if it is just holding her hand." He tells Tal Kom with a small smirk, Tal Kom glares up at his brother then at Ran Koh. Ran Koh reaches down and presses several pressure points. Tal Kom rubs his arm and lets his brother help him to his feet. The twins then turn back to the elders and wait for what they want to know. Ku Lon jesters for the three young people to sit at a secluded table. "We will start with you Tal Kom, if we knew what was going to happen we would have stopped your mother. Neither of you boys knew your father, but he was an outsider. Tal Kom he was a gray monk. What none of the elders knew until after your disappearance was that at his death he made your mother promise to give his eldest son over to the monks on his sixth birthday." Ku Lon sighs deeply, then smiles up at Ran Koh as she returns with a tray of tea, she serves everyone the elders first then the twins and finally herself. "Your father died in an avalanche he had saved his pregnant wife but was unable to save himself. She stayed with him until he died in her arms it was at this time that he made her promise him on her Amazon ancestors that if their child is a boy that when he turns six she would turn him over to the gray monks. She gave her word to him." Ku Lon takes a sip of tea, she looks from each of the twins, then to Ran Koh. She notices Ran Koh's attention is directed at Li Ly. Ku Lon turns and sees the tears rolling down the cheeks of her sister Amazon. Ku Lon shakes her head remembering the effect this all had on Li Ly when she found out. "When the two of you were born we could not understand why your mother doted on Msu Tsu and pretty much ignored Tal Kom. We later learned why when on your sixth birthday she took Tal Kom on a training trip, she came back without you." She takes another sip of tea, to wet her throat. "She told the counsel that she promised her dying husband to give over his son to the gray monks for training. That is why she was so distant from you Tal Kom she knew she was going to lose you and couldn't bare the pain. Our problem at that time was Msu Tsu, where your mother went to one extreme we went to the other. The counsel thought it would be better for him to think you died on that training trip." Ku Lon starts to choke up slightly and Li Ly continues for her. "Your mother did not do as good a job as she thought in not becoming attached to you Tal Kom, for when she came back she went into a deep depression, and became very violent. The problem was that anger was turn toward the one innocent in this fiasco." Li Ly looks directly at Msu Tsu her eyes shining with more unshed tears. "She took her guilt out on the one constant reminder that she had another son, his twin. That is how your eye sight became damaged she caused it in one of her fits of rage. That is when the counsel stepped in. They gave you over to me to raise. This put your mother over the edge and several months later she was dead of a broken heart." Li Ly could not hold back her tears any longer, as she stares into her tea the tears drop into the cup. Ran Koh sits stone face her eyes alight with lavender fire. Her tears being dried by the fire blazing in her eyes. She watches the memories of Msu Tsu and Tal Kom from the minds of Ku Lon and Li Ly, her heart wrenching at pain she feels from the two women. "What about Msu Tsu? Why was he exiled?" Tal Kom asks anger still raging through him, as the only memories of his life with the Amazons was that of his brother giving him the love he so badly wanted from his mother. "Well the damage done by your mother could not be repaired at that time, but I didn't care I loved you and raised you as my own son. I am afraid though your attachment to Xian Pu is what pushed you from the tribe. When Xian Pu reached fifteen and became village champion she petitioned the counsel to fulfill the laws pertaining to Amazons that were not _healthy!_ Ku Lon and I fought saying that law was dead since it had not be used in nearly six hundred years." Li Ly looks at her two grandsons, they see the war of emotions, between love and hate that rages in her eyes. "I tried to argue about our way of life dying out and that we could not afford to just kill off our future, but those on the counsel that believed in the old ways made it clear that Msu Tsu would not be allowed to have children because no warrior would have him. We knew we were fighting a losing battle, that was the only time I actually _hated_ my granddaughter and her arrogance, I am afraid I still do on some level." Ku Lon tells them bowing her head in shame. "Ku Lon got them to agree to exile instead of death, because of a dream I had during the trials. The first time I had it I just ignored it as wishful thinking, but a week into the proceedings they came every night." Li Ly tells the young people who perk up at this bit of information. "What were the dreams about?" Msu Tsu asks his grandmother the storm still raging in his eyes. "A large fiery red Phoenix with copper highlights would fly over the village, it would swoop down and carry Msu Tsu away. As it lifted you from my grasp a female voice boomed and the whole village would shake. 'THIS CHILD IS MINE, DO NOT TAKE FROM ME WHAT I CLAIM OR IT WILL BE YOUR DESTRUCTION!' Ku Lon and I did not know what to make of it, but we knew that if something happened to Msu Tsu the village would be completely destroyed. So we started pushing for exile and those on the counsel that really didn't want to see Msu Tsu dead, but also did not want him there any longer jumped at the suggestion. There were still hold outs for your death though, but it was ten elders against three." Li Ly tells them her eyes staring blankly past her grandsons. "Mas Cra being one of the three, yes I know that and Xian Pu sided with her, I found that out the night Ran Koh got them to agree to the fact that _all_ the light warriors were Amazons of the Japanese tribe." Msu Tsu smiles with a sardonic grin and a wink at Ran Koh who smiles back at him with the same gleam. "Why was that not told to the counsel?" They all turn to see Mas Cra standing in the doorway her eyes blazing. "You were so bent on killing the only grandson I had left, that you and your compatriots would not have believed me. You would have claimed I was making it up to save his life. So we did not mention it and began to push for exile." She told her fellow elder with cold narrowing eyes. "Omens about Amazons are to always be brought before the counsel, they will determine if they mean anything! We should have been told!" Mas Cra growls back at the younger elder, Ran Koh who has been quite till then speaks softly but her voice carries great power. "You would not have cared elder, you would have used the information as proof of elder Li Ly's attempt to save her grandson from the rightful conclusion of his _deformity_, and thus dooming the Amazons to oblivion. For the spirit of the original Light Warrior came to Li Ly in those dreams and she would have made good on her threat. There is much about the original Light Warriors that we do not know, even the monks do not know it all. I can tell you this though they are not dead, reading Li Ly's memory of that dream confirms it. They are still alive and they choose the Light Warriors and protect them till they come into their powers." Ran Koh's eyes glow brighter as she stares at Msu Tsu's grandmother. "That is not right Ran Koh we choose the champions for these battles!" Tal Kom tells her indignation written on his face. "Your order did the first time he returned, yes, but they chose so poorly that the Light Warriors feared for the safety of this world. So after that, they would visit the leaders of gray monks each going to their high priest and in a dream show them who the next warriors were to be and who was to be the leaders." The group watches Ran Koh with awe as her golden white aura flairs around her and the pendant given to the magic users glows just as brightly as the Tao symbol embedded in it flashes the three Sects colors. "I see, I remember the dreams where my sect was brought before me, I always wondered why, we had to take the chosen ones from the dreams even if we did not agree with the choice, now I know." Tal Kom mentions absently as he rubs the back of his neck. "_DO NOT_ tell your brethren, they do not want them to know, but felt you needed to hear this to understand why your grandmother and Ku Lon pushed so hard to get Msu Tsu exiled from the Amazons. It was as much to save the village as it was to save the child she loves so much." Ran Koh tells them while she stares deep into the eyes of Li Ly. "There is much more that needs to be discussed, but now is not the time and the rest should be between my brother, grandmother and myself. I will keep the counsel of the Tiger Sect leader and not divulge the true nature behind our dreams." Tal Kom rises he places a hand on Msu Tsu's shoulder and squeezes gently. "Thank you for loving me, brother!" With that gray smoke fills the small area when it is gone so is Tal Kom, Li Ly breaks down. Msu Tsu rises and leaves the restaurant. The group watches him as he leaves the complex and heads off down the street. Li Ly's sobs are the only thing that fills the room. Ran Koh rises she stops and faces Mas Cra, her eyes blazing with anger, but says nothing and follows Msu Tsu out of the complex.