Hellfire Days and Wild Knights ch11

[Atlan]

I don’t own X-men or Ranma ½. If I did, they would probably suck, and there would be a lot of giant robots involved.

...

Light penetrated the curtains of our room, and I slowly woke up. I could feel two warm bodies curled up next to me, and I sighed contentedly. Even the previous night had been fun- although that was partially because of my martial artist enhanced healing. Otherwise I would have had major rope burn and some serious trouble sitting down for ages. I sighed again, and snuggled forward into Ucchan. She snuggled back. “Mornin’, honey. Nervous?”

I had a brief mind blank, before I caught on to what she was saying. “Nah, not really. Pop’s always wanted me to teach the art, and I got some practice on our training trip, teaching kids.”

She smiled at me, and kissed me. “Good. So, that means you’ll be training me too, huh?”

I winced at that. “Ucchan... I’m sorry you aren’t with me and Shampoo, with a funny chess name an’ all.”

She waved it off. “Hey, I don’t want any of that stuff. I’m no good at teaching, I hate politics, and I’d rather make Okonomiyaki anyway.” She grinned. “And it means I get a little time with just the two of us.”

I felt a stirring behind me. “And I get him during meetings.”

“Hey, I’m not a slice of meat!” I protested. A thought occurred to me. “Well, except last night.”

They snickered at me, and I blushed. I was doing a lot of that now days, but then again I’d never had so much reason to do so. Ucchan ran a hand up from my bellybutton to my neck, making me shiver in a good way. She stroked a piece of string that sat around my neck. A Japanese-style coin hung off it. Something occurred to me. “Oh, I think I’ve made a new friend.”

“Really? Why did he try to kill you?” Shampoo clouted Ucchan lightly.

I huffed. “Hey, not every friend I’ve ever made wanted to kill me at first!” I wracked my brains for an example, and finding none, moved on. “Remember Rahne? It’s one of her friends, Kitty. I gave them a ride home yesterday, and she asked me to give her lessons.”

Ucchans eyes bugged out. “DRIVING lessons?!?”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?!?”

Shampoo clouted her again. “Nothing.” She paused. “Hey- why didn’t you flinch when you said her name?”

I blinked. “Huh?”

“Kitty? Cat? Neko?” The last made me flinch big time.

“Ummm.... no idea?”

Shampoo sighed, and I looked to her for the answer. “I think it’s something to do with the language thing. You know how people who talk in other languages start to think in them eventually?” I nodded. “Well, as a by-product of the way I gave you the language, you shouldn’t be thinking in English at all- still Japanese. Maybe it’s something to do with that. After all, you didn’t learn English- I copied Emma’s language centre of her brain, and gave it to you two. There would have to be some unusual side effects. You probably haven’t noticed, but you both speak perfect English. Not just good, but perfect. You understand puns, figures of speech, and you don’t have trouble pronouncing the letter L.”

I nodded. “That explains how you suddenly got so good at English as well.”

She blushed. “I didn’t mean too, it just happened. Pieces of the information I gave to you are floating around in my head. I did no want for that to happen.”

I’m not exactly the most perceptive person in the world, but even I noticed how nervous she was. I gave her another hug. “Hey, don’t be worried. It’s not cheating, what you did, it’s a technique. Like I’m not cheating when I use the Hiro-Shoten-Ha.”

She smiled at me. “I know.”

“Shampoo...” I looked into her eyes. “Ya don’t need to prove that you can learn it on your own, either. You’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever known. Even smarter than Nabiki.” She blushed.

“It’s true, honey. I’m getting you to do the books when we set up our new cafe.”

Shampoo smiled in a way that lit up the whole room, and I remembered something else. “Remember that top I brought back after I broke into the mansion? The one covered in pudding? I met its owner, and she’s Kitty’s roommate.” I thought back to that car ride. “Man, I was so embarrassed. There I was, driving her home with her friends, and I had to keep telling myself ‘don’t think about her breasts. Don’t think about her breasts.”

My girls started giggling, and didn’t stop even when I got out of bed and got dressed. I rolled my eyes at them, and went down for breakfast.

...

At the Xaiver institute for gifted youngsters, Katherine Pride, also known as Shaddowcat or Kitty, was preparing nerve gas- or so the other students acted. The younger students had already been smuggled covertly out of the mansion, and now Amara and Kurt were keeping a fearful eye on the happenings in the kitchen. Ororo was attempting damage control, but that was only serving to worsen the situation.

Kitty was cooking.

Kitty was making muffins.

Due to experience, Hank had locked the lab doors, and electrified them. Citing an experiment as a reason, he had warned them not to expect him out for days. The rest of the mansion envied his excuse.

Oblivious to all of this, Kitty was adding extra chocolate happily. “And she just said yes! So that’s why these are so important. I’ve got to show her how thankful I am.” Absently, she added turmeric instead of cocoa. Ororo sweatdropped. “She’s the one who drove Rahne back here. Oh, and she’s a raging lesbian.”

Ororo raised her eyebrow. “Are you trying to ask her out?”

Kitty made a disgusted face. “Um, no!” Her eyes unfocused. “I’m with Lance... I think. We haven’t talked about it much, but since Apocalypse... came for ME. Risked death, fought against one of the strongest mutants in the world, to rescue me!” She sighed happily.

Ororo, however, wasn’t focused on her on-again/off-again boyfriend. “Are you sure that this girl knows that you aren’t asking her out? It sounds like a date to me.”

Kitty poured the mixture into the muffin tray. “I don’t think so. She has two girlfriends, and wasn’t looking at me that way.” She frowned. “But she was looking at Rogue a lot, and blushing...” Kitty wasn’t too sure how to feel about that. On the one hand, Ranma already had two girls. On the other hand, Rogue was lonely; no matter much she tried to hide it. On the other other hand, Rogue couldn’t touch anyone without her mutant power draining them to unconsciousness, or beyond. On the other other other hand, it would mean that she’d be able to borrow Ranma’s car from time to time.

Kitty shrugged. That was another day’s problem. She took a look at the now baking muffins, and nodded. Perfect. The fact that one of them was pulsing in 3/4 beat went unnoticed.

...
“So, how many students am I gonna have again?”

Emma sighed. “Again, five students, plus either one or two depending on how many people you consider the Ivans to be.”

I nodded. “So, where are they gonna stay?”

“They will be living here, on the second floor.” She looked distracted for a moment. “But we need to set out some ground rules for them.”

“We?” I asked in confusion. Surly she meant herself.

“Yes, we. You won’t just be teaching them, you’ll be leading them. We need to start making some decisions- rules, uniforms, allowance.”

I nodded. That made sense. “Well, for allowance, I don’t think they should get much. Let’s make them work for it. With so many people around, they can take it in turns to cook and clean. When Ucchan and Shamps get the cafe open, they can get part-time jobs there.”

“Are you sure? Perhaps it would be wiser to give them a substantial allowance- to encourage loyalty.”

I shook my head so fast my pigtail hit me in the eye. “Uh-uh. Bad idea. I don’t want fat, pampered little brats. I want students who know about hard work.” Emma didn’t look like she agreed, so I put my foot down. “That’s too important to me, Emma. If you won’t agree to this, I don’t think I can teach them.” I’d be damned if I ended up with a bunch of Kuno’s.

She frowned, but nodded. “Very well. What about uniforms?”

“Do we really need them? It’s not like they’d keep our identities secret without a mask, and even they aren’t that useful.” Ok, I was just making shit up- I hate wearing a uniform.

“They encourage teamwork and respectability. Consider it a trade for the allowance.” She was smug, but I had to agree with her logic.

“That’s fair. What about rules? No bullying, try to keep their powers a secret?”

She sighed. “Mingling with the other teams? Curfew? Television? Dating? Sex?”

I rubbed my chin, once again remembering that I’d never have to shave it again. “Well, for a curfew, I say don’t bother. If they stay up too late and can’t function right the next day, I’ll train them extra hard to make sure they learn their lesson.” We exchanged evil looks. “Television- I don’t care what they watch. Hanging around with other teams- meh. I ain’t gonna tell people who they can be friends with. Dating- um, as long as we keep the property damage down?”

Emma’s eyes bugged out, and I remembered that for normal people, romance doesn’t involve property damage. “And sex?”

I blushed. “Umm. Make sure no one becomes a parent?”

“I would rather we have a compulsory sex-education course. Otherwise, I agree with you. However,” she said as I started to smile- Emma was pretty smart, and I knew I wasn’t. It was nice to have someone accept my decisions. “They must go to school. Starting tomorrow.”

I opened my mouth to complain, but she gave me this look. This look females have- the one which says ‘I’m right. You’re wrong. If you argue, you will regret it.’ I surrendered faster than Pop’s self restraint in front of a bottle of Sake. “Yes Emma.” She smirked, and left.

...

Sometime later, I looked up from my breakfast (third serving) to see Jeeves holding the phone. “Ranma-sama, a Kitty Pride is calling for you.”

I nodded, and took the phone. “Thanks Jeeves.” I leaned back in my chair, careful to balance my breakfast on my lap. “Hey, Kitty. What’s happening?”

“Nothing much. I just wanted to know if you wanted to start today.” She sounded hopeful, and more than a little nervous.

“Hold on a sec.” I covered the phone. “OI! EMMA! What time are my students arriving?!?”

Her response echoed in my head. ‘Two this afternoon.’

I uncovered the phone. “Yup, no problem. I gotta be back by two though.”

“YES!” I winced. “Can we use your car? No one around here will let me borrow one.” She paused for a brief second. “Oh, and I baked some muffins.”

“YES!!! I mean, uh, yup, no problem. I’ll come over a bit later.”

“Thank you! See you soon! Bye!”

I gave the phone back to Jeeves and sighed happily. Mmmmm. Muffins.

...

Half an hour later, I rolled to a halt just outside the mansion gates. A voice came from one of the walls, and a camera mounted at the top of one of the posts pointed at me. “Yeah? Whadda ya want?”

I smiled that smile that makes people stammer (I’ve never been too sure why it does that- I think it makes me look dangerous. Never found out why it only works in girl-form.) “Hi, I’m Ranma. I’m here to take Kitty driving.”

The gates opened, and I drove in. The place was looking better than it had when I broke in (and out) two days before. All the holes had been filled in, and plants had been added. I was briefly reminded of the Tendo place, how Kasumi used to fix the garden after each of my fights. Looking back, I felt a lot less guilty about having caused her so much work.

At the front door, a woman with dark skin and white hair was waiting for me. I remembered her as the one who had been throwing lightning at me. Now that she wasn’t acting like a pissed off kami, she seemed pretty nice. “Hey, I’m Ranma. Is Kitty around?”

She walked closer, and I got out of the car to greet her. “She’s coming soon. So, you’re taking her for driving lessons, I hear. That’s very kind of you.”

I laughed nervously, and scratched my head. “Yeah, well, she wanted to learn, ya know? And it’s a good way to make some friends- I just moved here, and all I know is the people at my place and Rahne.”

She nodded. “Would you like a guide? I think Bobby or Ray would love the chance to show a cute stranger around.”

“Eww! No thanks!” Due to the guys at school trying to ask my girl side out, I’d learned to see a setup from miles away.

Lightning-woman cocked an eyebrow. “What about Rogue?”

I sighed. “Look- I’m not interested in setting up a date, thanks. I’ve got the two most beautiful, wonderful girls in the world, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.” I smiled, thinking of them, of everything we’d been through. “They’ve been there for me through everything. They’ve been there for me at the worst moments of my life. No matter how little I deserve them, how much of a jerk I’ve been to them, they’ve been there. I’m not interested in anyone else!” It was true, I realized. I wouldn’t trade them for anything- or anyone. Not even Akane.

She got a funny look in her eye, and I had the feeling that I’d passed some sort of test. Kitty came skipping out, carrying a basket. “Hey Ranma! Did I keep you too long?”

I shook my head. “Naah. Just getting to know... her. Not very well, I guess.” I blushed, not knowing her name. The other two laughed.

“Ororo. Nice to meet you.”

I ushered Kitty into the driver’s seat, and hopped in next to her. She looked giddy with excitement, and Ororo rushed back into the mansion. I noticed that every window in the place had people looking out at us in fear. “Hey, what’s up with your fellow mansion people?”

Kitty looked confused. “Like, I’m not sure.”

I shook my head. “Oh well. So I take it you know how to turn the car on, right?”

...

“Now, it’s okay to cut as close to another car as you want- as long as you only scrape them.”

...

“See where it says ‘60’? That means that most people will be going a bit less than 60 miles an hour- it’s a warning for fast drivers that other people are going to be in your way. That means that you have to steer extra carefully.”

...

“Huh? Of course you can drive on the pavement. As long as you don’t hit anyone, no one ‘ill mind. It’s easiest if no one’s around, but if there’s only a couple of people, you can usually manage driving it- they should jump out of the way.

...

“Now, pull on the brakes hard and turn hard left.” There was a shriek of tyres squealing as the car spun 180 degrees, sliding into a parking space. “There we go. That’s how you parallel park.”

...

Kurt sat in a tree, outside the Xavier institute. He was holding a pair of binoculars, peering intently at the road. His yellow eyes suddenly widened. “She’s back!” He exclaimed in a German accent, before vanishing in a puff of smoke and brimstone.

Inside the mansion, everyone was waiting breathlessly at the windows. Even the teachers had been seen looking warily towards the gate. There were several running bets- whether Kitty’s cooking killed Ranma, whether Ranma had tried them and wouldn’t teach her (or died on them and couldn’t teach her), whether Ranma would decide that Kitty was unteachable. Bobby and Kurt were acting as the bet takers.

Outside the mansion the car pulled in. It was a little scratched on the corners, one of the wing mirrors was missing, and there was something suspicious on the dented bumper. They watched with disbelief as the resident mutant hugged the Asian girl, who looked embarrassed at the unexpected contact. The red-head then ate a muffin, and drove off with a smile on her face.

Kitty skipped back into the house, not paying attention to the fact that everyone was waiting for her. “That was awesome!!!”

Logan cocked an eyebrow. “So it went well, kid?”

She clapped her hands together. “It, like, could not have been any better! She taught me so much! I can’t wait till next Sunday.”

“How did the muffins go down?”

“She loved them! She at half of them at once, and promised to share the rest with her girlfriends.” Kitty looked in heaven. Considering that it was the first time that anyone had enjoyed her muffins, she had good reason.

Kurt felt someone tap him on the shoulder. He turned around to see Rahne. “I think you owe me some money now.” The blue mutant paled at the realization of how much money she’d won- having been the only person to bet that everything would go well, they’d given her excellent odds. Nightcrawler had the sinking feeling that he’d have to make some serious withdraws from his account to cover the bet.

...

I pulled back in to our mansion, munching contentedly on a muffin. They were, in all honesty, the best damn muffins I’d ever eaten. Of course, my taste buds weren’t exactly normal- considering what I’ve forced myself to eat for Akane (and on that one occasion, Ukyo), and what Kodachi forced down my throat, I’d become pretty resistant to bad food- and most poisons. I could tell that they would be a little hard to digest for a normal person.

As I opened the door, I heard several unfamiliar voices. Wincing, I checked my wrist, only to remember that I didn’t own a watch. I tracked them all down to the living room, where everyone was sitting around chatting. There were lots of faces I didn’t recognise.

“Hello,” I called, only to be ignored over the sound of the chatting. Off in one corner I noticed Tessa and Emma wincing at the volume of it all. “OI!!!”

The effect was instant. The entire room went quiet, and everyone turned to face me. There was Ivan and Ivanovitch again, along with four new faces, three of them girls. Emma was the one to break the silence. “Ranma. How good of you to show. I was debating sending someone out to search for you.”

I blushed, and a few people snickered. “Well, there was a little trouble with the cops.” I noticed Ucchan give me a look. “Hey, they never put a sign out against doing it. It’s not my fault that they have a stick up their ass about driving up stairs!” More quietly I muttered to myself, “Or that rabbit.” From the startled looks I got, I hadn’t muttered quietly enough.


Emma and Tessa got up, along with Shampoo, and walked out of the room. Shampoo gave me a quick hug. ‘They know about the Hellfire Club, and mostly about the Hellions. You DO have to make a speech though.’ She left, groping me lightly in the process.

As the door shut, I realized that it was time to begin this whole thing. “Um, ok guys. I’m Ranma Saotome. Sorry about being late. Why don’t you all tell me a bit about your selves?” I noticed a few roll their eyes. “Hey, I’ve never done this before! I’m going off what we did in school, and what I’ve seen on TV.” They all laughed good naturedly.

Ucchan, prompted by my look, was the first to speak. “Hi everyone. I’m Ukyo Kuonji. I’m 18, blood type A positive, and I’m from Japan. I like to cook Okonomiyaki.” There was a roomful of blank stares. She sighed. “It’s a Japanese food, kinda like a pancake-pizza. I’m opening a restaurant with Shampoo, so you’ll all get a chance to try some another time.”

She had obviously finished, and a blond girl spoke up. “Are you a mutant?”

My cute fiancée smacked her head. “Right, sorry. I’m a martial artist, and my style uses a giant spatula- it’s Okonomiyaki based. But my spatula got lost a few weeks ago, so you won’t be able to see me practice until I get a new one.” She cleared her throat. “As for my mutant power- watch.”

Before our eyes, all her skin, hair and eyes turned chrome silver. She looked like an unusually life-like statue. “I can turn into liquid metal. If I get hurt, it’s kinda like hurting the evil Terminator from Terminator 2- I just form back together. Like him, I can make blades and stuff.” She matched action to words, turning her right arm into a long blade. “Unlike him, I can’t change color. It’s like I’m made outa Mercury, only not poisonous. If I get seriously hurt, I turn into metal and then I’m fine.”

She sat down again. Next Bishop got up. “Hey. I’m Lucas Bishop- call me Bishop. I’ve got some military training- my dad, before he died, was a soldier. He taught me a lot of what they taught him. My mutant power is to absorb energy that’s used against me. That includes mutant powers that involve shooting some kind of energy, lasers, and even fire. I can use it to make myself stronger, or shoot it out as a blast.”

Next was the blond girl who had spoken up earlier. Her hair came down to her waist, and she had this… bearing. I’d seen it before. She was a fighter- not necessarily a martial artist, but definitely used to fighting. “I’m Carol Denvers. I’m from Massachusetts, and I spent the last six months using my powers to fight crime as Ms Marvel.” That name didn’t mean a thing to me, but the Ivans and one of the new girls was impressed. “I’m super strong, invulnerable enough to have bullets bounce off me, and I can fly.”

Next to stand were the twins. “Hey, I’m Ivan Goratschin. I’m the older of us- we’re 17. We’re from Russia.”

The other head took his turn to speak. “I’m Ivanovitch Goratschin. I’m the exact same age, since we share a fricken body!” One arm punched him in the head. “Ow! Anyway, as you can tell, we’re green, and we’re conjoined twins. Our power is that we can blow stuff up by looking at it.”

No-one else wanted to volunteer, so I pointed to the only remaining guy. He had a blond mullet, which wouldn’t have looked out of place in the 70’s. There was a star-shaped tattoo around his left eye. His skin looked a little leathery, and he had this aura of cheerful trust. “Hi everyone. I’m called Longshot. I’m not sure what my name is- I don’t have any memories past a month or two ago. My power is good luck.”

“Good luck?!?” Ucchan was more than a little skeptical.

“Yup. As long as my heart is pure, my luck is good.” There was a sudden ray of sunshine illuminating him, and a shower of rose petals fell from nowhere. We all sweatdropped. “Ms Frost says that I have hollow bones too- all I know about that is that I’m pretty acrobatic. Oh, and I only have three fingers per hand.” He held them up to show us, and I wondered why I hadn’t noticed before.

“Nice and flexible, huh?” Leered another girl, with short blond hair. It went right over his head, but most of the rest of us blushed. Carol and the other girl just joined in leering.

I rolled my eyes. “Ok, you’re next,” I said, pointing at her. She stuck her tongue out at me.

“I’m Alison, Alison Blaire. I wanna be a popstar!” We all sweatdropped. “Ms Frost’s getting me vocal and instrument training. My stage name is Dazzler! My mutant power lets me take sound and turn it into light. Like, laser beams and stuff.” She bowed.

The last person left was a girl with lavender hair. She had a bearing like Kodachi- not the insanity, but the grace and elegance. I was fairly sure that she came from money. “I’m Sharon Smith. I can turn into a cat- either house cat sized, or tiger sized. I also have enhanced senses, and a healing factor.”

That name was disturbingly familiar, and I filed it away for further thought. “I’m Ranma Saotome of the Saotome school of Anything Goes Martial arts. I’m a lesbian.” There was a gasp from Alison and Sharon. Carol raised her eyebrow, and it went straight over Longshot’s head. The twins and Bishop already knew, of course. It felt weird saying that- after all, I’m a guy. “I’m happily engaged to Ukyo.” She sighed happily. “I’m also married to Shampoo.” This made the entire lot of them gasp.

“You’re cheating on Ukyo?”
“You’re cheating on Shampoo?”

I waved my hands around in panic. “Gah! It ain’t like that!”

Ucchan snickered. “It isn’t cheating if the three of us share a bed!”

They all gasped again. I got irritated. “Get over it! Yes, I’m sleeping with the two best girls in the world. I’m not gonna try drag you into our bed.”

“Damn,” Ucchan muttered. I threw a muffin at her- there was a distinct clang as it hit her head. Carol and Bishop gave her a strange look at that, with good reason- not many muffins ‘clang’ when they bounce off metal.

“Moving on- I’m a martial artist. I’ve spent my whole life training, and I’m one of the best in the world.”

Ucchan cracked an evil grin. “And what is your mutant power, honey?”

I glared at her. “No-one wants to know that.”

“I do!” Came from the rest of the room. I glared at her again.

“I...” I took a deep breath. “I kiss people.”

You could hear the crickets chirping outside. “Huh?”

“I kiss people- and then there’s this pink smoke, and they do whatever I want. It seems to last until they’ve slept it off.” I was blushing furiously, remembering when I’d learnt how to do that- let’s just say that with two beautiful girls and a small, almost airtight space, I’d learnt just how effective it could be. They’d jumped my bones on the spot. “I think it’s got something to do with hormones or pheromones or something.”

“Her mutant name is Temptress,” Ucchan added unhelpfully.

I glared at her some more. “Well yours is Mercury- shall I tell them why?” She blushed and shook her head. I knew she didn’t want people to know that she’d named herself after a children’s anime character.

“Now, as you probably know, I’m gonna be training you. Partly in your powers, but mostly in martial arts.” I patted my oversized chest. “See these? I’ve trained all my life and they’re still here. Amateurs train until they disappear, and they’re left flat as a board, and not much stronger. I’m gonna show you how to build strength, and not come out of it lookin’ all gross and muscle bound. Heck, you girls might even gain a cup size or two. I should warn you though, I’m gonna make your bodies into power plants- they’ll take in all the food you give them, and turn it into useful energy, not store it in fat.” The girls looked at me like I’d promised them the Holy Grail, which confused me- that meant they’d have to eat a lot, and I thought girls didn’t like eating- the number of times I’d seen Nabiki or one of the girls at school turn down good food was insane. Maybe it was a western thing. “Starting tommorow, I’m gonna want to see what each of you can do.”

I beckoned to Sharon. “Sharon, can you come with me? The rest of you, do whatever. We’re gonna be a while. Wander around the mansion, or scrounge some food off Jeeves.”

Sharon and I walked out of the room. She looked nervous. I opened my mouth, but she spoke up first. “Um... Miss Ranma?”

I winced. “It’s just Ranma. I’m not that much older than you are.”

“Ranma. Do... I’m sorry.”

I blinked. That wasn’t what I was expecting. “Sorry? For what?”

She looked down. “We met before. In the Dark Hand facility. I tried to kill you.”

I scratched my head, before snapping my fingers. “Hey, I remember that!” Then I shivered. “We’re gonna have a little problem. I... don’t like cats.”

Sharon smiled slightly. “I noticed. I’m really sorry about what happened. I was under their control. My parents gave me to them a couple of years ago, when they noticed I wasn’t exactly normal any more, and the military put some mind controlling collar on me.”

My fists clenched. How could parents do that to their child?!? I vowed to make them pay. “Meh. The first time we met, you tried to kill me. Story of my life.” I hesitated. “But I may not be able to train you- I really don’t like cats.”

“..ok,” The lavender haired girl said in a small voice.

“But Ucchan or Shampoo could train you instead!” I tried to cheer her up. That didn’t work, but something else happened. I finally made the connection of where I’d heard her name before. “”Sharon...”

“Yes?”

“You wouldn’t happen to know any girls named Rahne Sinclair would you?” I asked carefully. The response wasn’t what I expected. She burst into tears and she glomped me. I was painfully aware of how short my body... my girl body was. “Ummm.... sorry?”

“R..R..Rahne?!? Sinclair?!?” She asked desperately.

“Yup, I think so.” I awkwardly wrapped my arms around her. “She was a hitchhiker we picked up on the way here. She didn’t talk much about herself, but she said she was looking for someone- her old best friend, Sharon Smith. She said she went to boarding school, and when she tried to phone you your parents hung up on her.” My soothing voice seemed to calm her down. “Then six months ago, she left the school and went looking for you. She couldn’t find her, and she’s been looking ever since.”

She cried a little more, and hugged me even harder. “Thank you. Thank you.”

I blushed. I wasn’t used to people being this emotional- at least not without violence involved. “Come on. I wanna talk to Emma.”

We found Emma with Sage and Shampoo, sitting in the lounge talking quietly. I pointed to Sharon. “Emma. How in hell did you miss this?”

She looked blank. “What are you talking about?”

I rolled my eyes. “Cat? Me? N-n-neko-ken? Ring any bells?”

She looked completely confused, before her face settled on irritated. “Evidently, Nabiki omitted some things from her reports.”

Sage looked equally confused, while Shampoo seemed to have an idea. “Is she a cat-mutant?”

“Yes, I am. You met me at that Black Hand base- I was being forced to kill you three.” She sounded depressed. I swatted the back of her head. “OW! Hey!”

“No angsting!” I scolded. “But seriously Emma, we’re gonna have to do something. I really, really don’t like cats.”

“I’ll think on that problem,” Emma said. “But there isn’t much that I can do right now.”

...

A few hours later found the three of us lying on the roof, catching the last of the afternoon sun. I was cuddled in-between my fiancée and my wife.

“And they all lived happily ever after,” Ucchan said out of nowhere.

“Huh?”

She smiled warmly. “It’s like a fairy tale. The three of us, overcoming adversity and other suitors, and finding true love together. Everything’s coming together.” She put her arm around me, and hugged me closer. “Now, I’m getting the shop I always wanted, sharing it with the man I want to spend the rest of my life with, and a gorgeous woman who won’t sue me for sexual harassment. You’ve got your students. We’re rich, and we’re working to save the world. This is our happily ever after.”

Shampoo smiled at that, but I shook my head. “Sure, we’re happy. But come on- we’re mutants. The entire world wants us dead on principle. There’s a lunatic billionaire out there who’s hunting us down, and his cyborg-psycho sister who was built to kill us. We’ve got a house filled with super powered teenagers, and my curse is still locked.”

I looked off into the distance. “This isn’t the end. This is just the calm before the storm.”

...

Yay! Another chapter!

This is the end of Arc 1:New Beginnings of Hellfire Days and Wild Knights. Watch out for Arc 2: New Nerima!

This has actually been ready for a month and a half, but I had another 4k words, and couldn’t see an end in sight. So that’ll go towards making sure the next chapter hurries up- I’m gonna aim to have it up for Christmas.

[Spokavriel]

A couple small catches. I wonder if X-avier will be briefing his mansion on the dangers of Temptress any time soon.

Of course you can drive on the pavement.

Pavement more or less counts for the street and parking lots. Sidewalk might be what the question is about.

She at half of them at once, and promised to share the rest with her girlfriends.

I think you wanted ate where you have at.

[Atlan]

Pavement more or less counts for the street and parking lots. Sidewalk might be what the question is about.

Heh... I always make that mistake- Pavement is the english word for sidewalk, like crisps is to chips. Thanks for pointing that one out.

[Spokavriel]

I keep it strait remembering Cobble stone roads. The stones were also called pavers not just cobbles. Although since the creation of asfault(sp) you tend to find pavers in the garden rather than the roadways.

[TerraBull]

For Kitty, passing the test to get a permit then full licence, it does not look good, unless Ranma was there to meet the instructor, and apply a kiss for her friend? Just had the thought that after making it back to the station, he jumps out to go to the bathroom, Ranma follows to make sure the score is good?

Will there be a reserved spot at the Mechanics for Ranma's Car, and more crying scenes every time it comes back?

What was the fate of this muffin mentioned?

The fact that one of them was pulsing in 3/4 beat went unnoticed.

Was that the one that hit Mercury at the Mansion?

I laughed at the part where all of the girls were enthuastic about trainning, would any of them be uncomfortable if they wore revealing clothes or had to go swimming in front of the confirmed lesbian?

The part about School, was it covered if Ranma and the others had to go as well, if so, in what form?

About Ivan and Ivanovitch Goratschin, they are green, how will they go to school? Does Emma have access to technology to disguise people?

About Ranma's powers, what other tests could be done to discover the full extent of them? Good and Bad?

The Same for Ukyo and Mercury, as Mercury, is she able to be detected magnetically or immune to the effects?

Did Emma join any of the town's functions? Becomming a Pillar of the Community, and able to influence a Department or Two? Maybe buy a Warehouse and make a NightClub to Hang out at? As a benefit, they can go there for free?

I liked it, and just asked the questions because I was unsure.

[Atlan]

Was that the one that hit Mercury at the Mansion?

No.

In the cartoon, Kitty's muffins were a running gag. Every time someone ate one, they'd have stomach aches so bad they thought they were dieing. In one instance, one was dropped on the floor and it bounced right back up to the same level it was dropped from. Another time, one broke the table.

I plan to take that a little further....

I laughed at the part where all of the girls were enthuastic about trainning, would any of them be uncomfortable if they wore revealing clothes or had to go swimming in front of the confirmed lesbian?

That... hadn't occoured to me. Hmmm. I see potential for chaos in that... espicially as Ranma is still a guy inside, he'd be more at home in a guy's locker room...
The other points you made, wait and see...

[TerraBull]

Does that mean, even though Ranma does not care what they wear, would be there when the costumes were personally tailored to fit? Combat Function and Durability? As their trainner suggesting that clothes of a certain fabric, design or cut would be better, even if a bit more revealing?

Just had that image pop up, especially if Shampoo and Ukyo were there as well to give their oppinions?

*LOL* Just had a idea of how uncomfortable it may make some of them with the Trio there?

[Spokavriel]

I could see Xian-pu and U-chan adding in suggestions making clothes as revealing as possible without losing the defensive qualities just to see who could make Ran-chan blush the deepest shade of red.