How might Nerima change?

[antimatterenergy]

The name Hikaru was not given to him by Viz. It's canon. I knew it long before the series was imported to the US, from back when the only copies of Ranma 1/2 available were raw Japanese imports.

You probably right. English Wikipedia says it was added by VIZ (so does a few other sites) but now I'm thinking that, that wiki is wrong because I checked the Japanese wiki on him and it does list Hikaru http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BA%94% ... 8%E5%85%89

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

That question about Gosunkugi's name was actually answered a while ago, but thanks for your input. Also, good comments about the technology... hmm... if the Kuno family has maintained (or increased) in wealth by buying stock etc into technological companies, perhaps the Neo-Kuno actually uses/relies upon technology instead of (raw) martial arts? Kuno was obsessed with being a samurai, so perhaps his son/daughter is obsessed with the idea of being a "mecha knight" (power armoured warrior, ala the Knights Saber from Bubblegum Crisis)?

And that line of conversation was just a bit of private discussion between me and Jupiah, it's done now and over with. I first got into Ranma with the manga (the aforementioned volumes at the library, plus buying some epistles and volumes 8 & 9 off ebay) before I found the anime, and I just ended up preferring the anime. It's not important.

To get back on topic again, speaking of twins, I've had a few idea about Yemon's twin sisters and I'd just like your opinion on them.
*Firstly, I was thinking of making them identical twins.
*A second thought that came after that was, due to their cherry-red hair and some confusion on the part of the midwife, both girls ended up with the name of "Cherry". When it proved impossible to change it, their parents settled for giving one the Japanese name for Cherry and the other the Mandarin for Cherry. One problem: what are the Japanese/Mandarin names for Cherry?
*Thought number three is that, since identical twins are often claimed to have a mental link, especially in anime/manga, the girls have this ability and have actually made it the basis of their fighting style. In essence, they are so well-attuned to each other/so mentally connected they're less fighting partners and more a single combatant who can be in two places at once. Naturally, this sort of 'bleeds over' into their non-combat behavior and makes them seem rather creepy.

Okay, I had some vague ideas for Taro's kid, but I think it's best to concentrate on finishing off Michiko and her siblings before bringing that up. What do we need to do for Michiko? After that, what details do we need to hammer out for her siblings, who will most likely be relatively secondary characters?

Speaking of Hibikis, what do you think of the idea that their directional curse is the legacy of one really PO'd archmage/deity who had something of great value destroyed by a Hibiki ancestor? Cursed with the classic "May you never have a home!" curse, which basically forces the victim to keep moving (with methods ranging from involuntarily (say, teleporting in your sleep) to something like "sleeping in the same place twice will cause ravenous hordes of demons to materialise to rape/devour your unconscious body"), this weakened as the generations went on to become the "eternal wanderer" curse it is today.

Hmm... if that's the case, perhaps the curse becomes contagious only from Hibiki men to women, and afflicts them when they first become pregnant with the next Hibiki (causing their blood to become "as one)? Either way, perhaps the current format is why Ryoga (and his family) can always seem to turn up in the nick of time? Or maybe that's because of the blessing of a rival archmage/deity, who gave it to that first Hibiki ancestor to "balance out" the original curse?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Guess Jupiah and Heaven are having computer problems or something... ah well, may as well put my thoughts here all the same.

Two thoughts related to the Neo-Kuno: perhaps Mariko's slightly more stable personality actually made him/her less obnoxious than their father? Secondly, if we end up making him a boy, perhaps we could pull a joke based around his father's hankering after Ranma-chan and Akane? This would require Yemon's sisters to be at least thirteen... the vague idea is that they come to Japan to visit their great-great-grandmother and their elder brother, but end up losing to the Neo-Kuno in a match. When they come to, they give him the Kiss of Marriage- their "unique" perspective of themselves means that they see sharing a boyfriend/husband as no biggy. Which, coupled with the Joketsuzoku way of expressing affection, quickly has Neo-Kuno (who, naturally, needs to be more stable than Kuno for this to work) in a panic. Not to mention Yemon, who starts trying to figure out a way to nullify the Kiss of Marriage.

[Jupiah]

More like work and college problems. Sorry for my absence.

Heh, the idea of a (relatively) normal Neo-Kuno is actually quite funny. I can only imagine how utterly embarrassed he/she must be of his/her entire extended family. Having him actually succeed at getting two girls, causing his father all kinds of pride and jealousy, would be particularly ironic if he didn't actually want two girls. Not to mention how embarrassing it would be if the girls were too young for him.

What if, instead of sharing, Yemon's sisters fought over the neo-Kuno? Yemon is distraught that his sister's, who normally are inseperable, are growing apart, and does everthing in his power to help them make up and get them to give up on neo-Kuno. Perhaps the Neo-Kuno, who doesn't want to be chased by them and who feels guilty that they are fighting over him, tries to help Yemon to do this?

I don't know about making Ranma's daughters identical twins though. That's been done an awful lot. I'd probably just make them close siblings. Besides, you're already giving Ryoga two pairs of twins. Twins aren't that common. Having them fight as one in combat would work though. They're just really close and always fight together. Having identical behavior bleed into normal behavior would be wierd though. Maybe you could use that idea for Ryoga's younger twin daughters? It would work well with how they always get lost together, if you use that. Giving them both the alternate languages names for Cherry could work too. Maybe they both had small tufts of red hair when they were born? I have no idea what the Japanese and Mandarin names for cherry are though.

Personally I prefer the idea that the Hibiki curse is just a "balance" for the blessing provided by a kami, but that's probably because it's a much nicer explanation that being a curse from a pissed off mage. I feel sorry enough for Ryoga as it is. The pissed off mage explanation works fine too though.

to something like "sleeping in the same place twice will cause ravenous hordes of demons to materialise to rape/devour your unconscious body"

0_0 Ouch! That's a pretty freakin' mean curse! What the heck did the poor Hibiki ancestor do to deserve that?

perhaps the curse becomes contagious only from Hibiki men to women, and afflicts them when they first become pregnant with the next Hibiki

Heh, that reminds of a crack-fic I once read where the curse was a sexually transmitted disease. Akari loved Ryoga so much that she married him even knowing that she could never sleep with him (because he didn't want her to get lost), trusting him to remain faithful to her. After making a few phone calls and discovering that every female in Nerima is suddenly having problems with getting lost after being seen with Ryoga (Including Ranma!), she begins plotting to make some roast pig for dinner as soon as Ryoga comes home.

Hmmm, Kasumi being an "11th hour bride" is a neat possibility, but I just can't see the shy Ryoga and traditional Kasumi being willing to sleep together before a wedding. I suppose we'd have to make Michiko's older brother a bit younger, maybe 17? Perhaps he graduated a bit early because he's really smart?

Honestly I think Soun would still be around. He'd be damn depressed after Ranma left, but he'd cheer right back up when Ryoga started courting Kasumi I think. Perhaps Soun, in his excitement, he started pushing for a wedding between them like he did with Ranma and Akane? He wouldn't have Genma to help him manipulate the two, but then Ryoga and Kasumi wouldn't resist as much as Ranma and Akane did.

I have no idea how the NWC would respond to the Neo-crew. That sounds like a whole nother fic to work out, and one that one be best answered after we've finished creating the Neo-crew.



I finally finished Michiko's profile. Here's her "Abilities" and "Techniques" sections:

Physical Abilities:
As a Hibiki and as a result of her extremely active lifestyle, Michiko has enormous physical strength and ki reserves, and her stamina is practically inhuman, allowing her to go without sleep for days at a time, and ignore exhaustion and pain for far longer than most people could. She is also incredibly tough, although nowhere near her father’s level as she has never undergone the Bakusai Tenketsu training. Her greatest strength is her incredible ki control, which she uses to her advantage by inventing a number of unique ki techniques.

Her biggest weakness is her lack of agility and speed. In a straight sparring match, most advanced fighters can easily outmaneuver her. She is also relatively unskilled in traditional martial arts, as she spends most of her time training in developing and mastering her ki techniques.

Tactics, Training and Fighting Style:
Michiko compensates for her lack of mobility by using a fighting style that doesn’t require it. She has a number of powerful techniques that usually allow her to dominate a fight at a distance, preventing most opponents from taking advantage of her relatively slow speed with a ranged fighting strategy.

If the opponent tries to combat this strategy by closing in, she also has some powerful defensive techniques to protect her and continue to fight effectively. She is also an expert at using the environment to her advantage, by using her ki seals to set up traps for her opponents.

Techniques:

Hibiki Style Iron Paper Techniques – A modified version of the Hibiki family Iron Cloth techniques. Michiko requires a lot of paper in order to utilize these techniques. She is so skilled at controlling paper charged with her ki that she can literally move such paper around using nothing more than her willpower. This paper telekinesis has an effective range of about 1 meter and she can only do so as long as she continues to feed her ki into the paper, however.
Michiko obviously also knows the Iron Cloth techniques she based this style on, although she isn’t anywhere near as skilled at manipulating cloth as paper, and she cannot telekinetically control it.
Paper Boomerangs – A modified version of Ryoga’s Buzzsaw Bandanna technique. Michiko rips out a number of sheets of paper from a book or notepad, charges them with her ki, and throws them at her opponent as sharpened projectiles. This technique is weaker than Ryoga’s as paper has less mass than cloth, but it’s more versatile, because Michiko can use her superior ki control to put a spin on the blades.
This allows her to purposefully throw them off course, only to have them arc back and surprise her opponent by striking from the side, above, or behind. She can even attack a foe that is hiding behind some kind of cover.
Paper Airplane – A more powerful version of Michiko’s Paper Boomerang technique. By folding the paper into a plane, she can enhance her control of its movements to ridiculous levels. This allows her to add insane arcs, loop-the-loops, dive-bombs, multiple strafing runs and other unpredictable maneuvers to its flight path, making it quite dangerous and very distracting to her opponent. The plane is slightly weaker than the standard boomerang version and Michiko must prepare the paper by folding it ahead of time, however.
Paper Straightjacket – Michiko binds a large amount of pages together edge-to-edge in order to create a large whip-like paper construct charged with her ki. This technique is most useful for wrapping around an opponent and holding them still, so that Michiko can beat on them with her enormous strength without reprisal. The paper is strengthened by her ki, but is still relatively easy to tear (for a martial artist), so this technique is of little use directly against an opponent as strong as or stronger than herself.
Paper Shield Defense Grid – Michiko most advanced technique, it requires her to charge an entire book with a very large amount of her ki. The pages then all rip free and float around her according to her will. The paper can lash out at an opponent that approaches to closely, but their main purpose is to provide a powerful defense for Michiko.
The paper will intercept any attack targeting Michiko, rendering it harmless by slowing or deflecting it. The paper doesn’t block the attacks, as it isn’t nearly strong enough to that, but rather it gives when struck, allowing the kinetic energy of any attack to harmlessly bleed away. For example, the paper will catch a punch a foot before it hits, and will give 10 inches, gradually slowing the punch until it’s harmless rather than stopping it with brute force. For an opponent attempting to hit Michiko, it feels as if she is blocking every blow with a giant pillow or sponge.
The paper will also deflect standard weapon projectiles (like bandannas, shurikens or spatulas) by hardening and intercepting them at a shallow angle, gently throwing them off course. The paper is so effective at this that attempting to strike Michiko with projectile weapons from a distance with anything slower than a bullet is an exercise in futility, unless you can literally throw more of them than she has paper to deflect them with.
The paper shields are far from a perfect defense, however. There is a limit to how much kinetic energy they can absorb. For example, it’s doubtful that Michiko could stop a punch from Lime, Pantyhose Taro’s cursed form or even Ryoga with this technique, although she could at least slow it enough to weaken it a good bit. Also, they have difficulty absorb the kinetic energy of a blow that is very large. Michiko wouldn’t be able to stop a Perfect Shishi Houkoudan, and would only be able to deflect some of a standard one. The paper shields are quite fast, but they can be outrun by an extremely fast opponent. Finally, the paper is almost useless against other forms of energy. Fire, Ice, electricity and most other “elemental” style techniques will tear through the shield fairly easily.

Martial Arts Ki Sealing Techniques – A self-invented style inspired by Martial Arts Calligraphy and ancient styles of magic runes and alchemy. Michiko can “seal” her ki into a design drawn onto a piece of paper using special magic ink, allowing her to use it to fuel a unique effect determined and created by the particular seal design used. The seals remain dormant normally and must be activated by a small burst of ki, preventing them from going off on accident.
Michiko has yet to perfect this style, and as such most of her seals create fairly simple results. Also, the imperfect seals allow the ki within them to slowly leak out, giving most of her seals an effective lifespan of only a few days.
The seals are complicated and must be drawn perfectly, or they risk backfiring. Naturally, this prevents her from using them in battle, requiring her to craft them beforehand. Michiko always keeps at least a few on hand at any time in case of an unexpected fight, and because the ink used to draw them is fairly inexpensive (as far as magic ink goes).
Explosive Seal – Once activated this seal will explode after 4 seconds. The explosive force depends on how much ki was sealed within it, but will usually be on par with a large Happo Fire Burst. Michiko usually hides one of these within a swarm of Paper Boomerangs, disguising it as just another ordinary paper projectile. Another nifty trick is to use several as part of a Paper Defense Grid, forcing the opponent to be very careful not to punch the explosive seals when attacking. Michiko can create versions of this with alternate detonation triggers, such as exploding on impact, when touched by a living creature with a large amount of ki (such as a person), or even when a code word is spoken aloud (although this one is rather difficult to create). Other triggers can easily be invented as needed.
Ki-blocking Seal – Once activated, this seal will take effect when it comes into contact with any person (or animal) other than Michiko herself, or anyone else she specifies when crafting the seal (although the more people protected, the more difficult it is to make). Once it has touched her opponent, the seal forces the modified ki contained within it into that opponent’s body, where it disrupts their own ki. Essentially, this has the effect of temporarily blocking any attempts by that person to utilize their own ki. This will prevent that person from using any advanced ki techniques for several minutes or longer, depending on the strength of the seal and the affected person’s skill at controlling their own ki.
Adhesive Seal – Once activated, this seal will cause the paper it’s drawn on to become extremely sticky after a few seconds, holding tight anything that comes into contact with it. The adhesive is very powerful, and will usually hold even if the material it’s stuck to won’t. The most common uses for this seal is to stick an opponent to the floor or wall, disarm the opponent by sticking their weapon to the floor or wall, or to slow down pursuit or prevent entry into a room by sealing closed windows or doors. The length of time the adhesive lasts is usually an hour, but that time is shortened considerably if the affected objects struggle, forcing the seal to burn the ki faster in order to hold. The seal will generally only hold for a few minutes or less when used to trap a martial artist, assuming said fighter is trying to get free. This seal can also be crafted with a number of alternate triggers like the explosive seal. Michiko occasionally uses this seal outside of battle as a practical joke.

[antimatterenergy]

what are the Japanese/Mandarin names for Cherry?

Chery Blossoms is Sakura. The fruit cherry (which comes from a different tree) is sakuranbo or occasionally cheri. Takahashi used cherry as the name of the monk in Urusei Yatsura because of the pun, Sakuranbo using different kanji but keeping the same homophonic reading for the word gives the meaning deranged monk.

Mandarin for cherry is either yīng or yīng táo.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Eh, it was just a possibility, we'll discuss it later when we actually reach such characters. What about my suggestion that, in contrast to Kuno's obsession with being a samurai/delusion of being such, the Neo-Kuno's obsession is with being a "mecha knight", which makes them focus on technological advancement rather than physical training?

They were just random thoughts, so yeah. I'm not trying to convince you to include it or anything, it's just random 'noise' from my head, but it could have been possible for Kasumi to be an 11th hour bride thanks to one factor: the presence of Happosai. No, not *that* way, eesh. I'm referring to Happosai's collection of various magical items and the rather careless way he uses them sometimes.

Kasumi and Ryoga sleeping together on their own is almost completely unbelievable (though a snarky mind might wonder how they managed to have a wedding night if that's the case), as you've pointed out, but throw a little magic into the mix and it's possible. Soun might have actually asked Happosai for some 'help' to try and get them together, as their "passive" nature to relationships meant they would have been going painfully slow to the Tendo patriarch. Happosai might have done it as his sick idea of a joke, or to exact revenge, or even as part of some warped idea to 'help' them. Or he could have left the magic item somewhere he shouldn't and the two accidentally used it on themselves. They wouldn't have been able to even be in the same room without blushing like spotlights afterwards, but all it takes is one time to make a child, yes?

And before you say Happosai wouldn't have left such an item out, keep in mind this is the guy who deliberately stored love-potion/aphrodesiac-soaked bandaids in the first aid box. It's not that great a stretch of character. But, like I said, this is just randomness from my mind, I've no care either way.

Well, what the Hibiki did to deserve that curse (that doesn't neccesarily have to have *been* the curse he got- the "teleport somewhere random when condition X applies" curse seems more likely, given how Ryoga unthinkingly does the same) depends on the personality of the magi/god. Hell, he could have seduced/deflowered their daughter (or seduced and/or impregnanted their wife).

I like the techniques and fighting style you've come up with Michiko: if you can assemble a 'complete' profile from the fragmentary ones you've done, how about we move onto her brothers and sisters? As these are essentially secondary, I think we'd need less information for them. Should I repost the link to the Issendai page with boy's names, or can you find it in the topic (it's around page 6)?

Thanks for the names anti- I knew the freaky monk from Urusei Yatsura had a name that could mean "Cherry" or "Deranged Priest", but I didn't know what the Japanese name actually was. I did know what Sakura meant- the dub of "Here Comes Ranma's Mom" has Happosai explain that "Sakura" means "Cherry Blossom" when he spins that stupid story. And thanks for the Mandarin name as well, though we may not end up needing it.

[Heaven's Deamon]

I tend to wait until I feel I have something to say, I also tend to wait for other people's comments so I can take them into account first.

For the "Cherry" siblings, you could use it without them being twins by matters of coincidence, such as the first one recieving the Japanese name from the parents, then the second one getting her name from a midwife who doesn't know the clan very well, or at least doesn't know Japanese.

Also, Jupiah, you said that her "paper telekinesis" wouldn't extend past a meter, but the way you described the paper airplane tech would require that it did or that she had extreme skills at using paper airplanes.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Potential, Heaven, potential. We'll just wait until we see if Yemon's sister(s) even get used before doing such things.

Alright, we have the other four Hibikis (or is it Hibiki-Tendo's? I don't think that sort of practise exists in Japan, but Soun might have been egotistical enough to require something like that) to do... what do we need to design for them? Names, appearances, basic 'outline' as to their personality and uses... what else?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Hmm... seeing as how Yemon and Michiko are complete, with the familiar semi-complete, perhaps we should do the remaining profiles in terms of their "character rank"? Primary, Secondary, Supporting?

Primaries are the ones of vital importance to the story, the next generation of the Nerima Wrecking Crew:
Yemon (Done)
Michiko (Done)
Kuno's kid
Ukyo & Mousse's kid
Taro's kid

Secondaries often have a role of importance, but they're not as vital as the primaries.
Yemon's familiar (partially done- still needs name and a few more details)
Michiko's twin brother
Neo-Gosunkugi
Yokai Assassin

Supporters are those whose importance is minimal- they generally fill the background and are a good source of 'throw-away' lines or asking for explanations.
Michiko's other siblings
Yemon's siblings
Parents/Adults

Does anyone have any problems with working this way? If not, then who shall we do next? Neo-Kuno, Neo-Taro, or Neo-Kuonji?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Just to step away to a different, but related, topic: I've been doing a bit of thinking about the 'prequel' to this story. One of the important scenes I was thinking of including was Ranma coming too after the fight is over, male and being tended by Shampoo while Cologne sits at the foot of the bed looking at him (insert obvious joke here...) Anyway, the important part here was Cologne suddenly rounding on Shampoo, berating her for her 'treachery' and reminding her (as well as making Ranma aware) of the potential punishments for her actions. The small list of punishments I managed to come up with are:
-Execution
-Exile
-Erasure from the clan registry (which means she not only ceases to exist, but ceases to have *ever* existed; as far as her family are concerned, she is and will always be a stranger)
-Subjection to a special technique that basically mixes Xi Fa Xiang Gao with Ultimate Weakness Moxibustion: it not only erases all of their martial arts abilities & techniques, but creates a mental block so that they will *never* be able to learn martial arts again.

The reason I'm bringing this up now is because I need some input:
*Do you think these punishments sound suitable? If not, why? Too extreme? Not extreme enough (remember, these are the people with the Kiss of Death law)
*Could you suggest a name (translation will do, but 'original' -aka Bakusai Tenketsu, Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken, etc- would be greatly appreciated) for the mentioned "special technique"?

On a more closely related topic... do you think maybe we should consider expanding the Neo-Crew to include "newcomers" as well as 'passed torches'? Martial artists of entirely new creation rather than the offspring of the various 'old guard'? Because two of the suggestions (Nabiki/Picolett's kid & Azusa/Mikado's kid) don't really sound all that interesting.

Speaking of Nabiki, what do you think of the idea that her husband is, perhaps instead, Prince Toma of Togenkyo? She doesn't have any qualms about marrying him in the movie, so maybe if Togenkyo happened in this scenario, without Akane there to catch the boy-king's eye, perhaps she did end up marrying him? Come to think of it, perhaps it was Togenkyo where Ukyo & Mousse finally admitted to themselves they'd come to love each other? And, seeing as there was no Akane to fall into it (Akane having been gone on her training journey during the whole affair), perhaps the spring survived and thusly Ryoga and Mousse were able to cure themselves?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Okay, I know I really should wait for you guys to catch up, but this is just one last vague idea for when we reach Ukyo & Mousse's kid: now, I can't remember if I described it thusly myself or I saw it used elsewhere, but Ukyo's style is basically ninjitsu with okomiyaki cooking trappings and with weapon (greatclub & greataxe) techniques. Given this, what do you think of the idea that her child has basically "abandoned" the school for a purer form of ninjitsu? How does Mousse affect this? Well, I may have Guilty Gear on the brain, but the idea I had was that the "Neo-Kuonji" also incorporated weapons techniques into their style- specifically, a form of weapon that would normally go against the basic idea of ninjitsu. Something big and heavy, like an executioner's axe for example. The kid has incorporated/adapted Mousse's Hidden Weapons style to make it feasible to blend such weapons with the stealth-orientated style they use- basically, rather than hiding lots of weapons, they practise the style so they can make their single big weapon appear and disappear.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Okay, I know I'm probably just being paranoid, but I felt I should post here anyway. Just out of curiosity, I believe we were aiming for Taro's child as a girl? I have some ideas for her so I thought I'd put them up here.

*I know you dislike the anime Jupiah, but have you seen the anime's take on the panda scribble storyline? If yes, there's a scene where the panda assumes the form of a (presumably) Chinese girl- do you think we might be able to recycle her appearance for Taro's daughter (if a daughter she is)?

*We decided Taro cursed his child soon after they were born, correct? Well, he would likely have chosen a particularly powerful creature for his childs curse, yes? I presume we don't want to simply recycle the "yeti-ox-crane-eel" spring for them, so I think I might have some ideas for a more unique curse. The basic idea stems from the fact that, in the anime canon this was based from, Jusenkyo's water stems from an underground source: what do you think of the idea that Taro managed to somehow acquire some of this "pure water" and bartered somehow with a magic-user of some stripe to create a unique and powerful form to afflict his child with?

*If the above idea is usable, what do you think of the idea that the wizard/witch/whatever "cheated" Taro? Basically, instead of gaining the powers 'inherent' to the form by default whenever they change, they need to actively train and practise with that form in order for its powers to develop. In other words, unless they train their cursed form, it's nothing more than a "skin change", making them look different but leaving them just as helpless as they were before. This makes them a bit more "balanced", as it means they aren't going to start off all-powerful, and makes them different from their slacker, short-cut to power-seeking father. It might be a bit too reminiscent of the various "battle monster" shows though.

*Do you think it's unlikely that Taro's wife (if she was ever married to him) left him after he cursed the kid? If yes, or even if no, do you think his kid might resent him? Kinda like Ranma of the anime does Genma (at best) or Kuno does his father (at worst)?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Just thought I'd post the completed profiles we've come up with so far, so we can find them more easily. And see if they need any alterations/changes.

Michiko Hibiki:

Intelligent & a Bookworm – started studying on her own to avoid falling behind in school when she gets lost, and took to it. Got so smart that she now only attends school enough to get her assignments, turn in homework, and take her tests, which her teachers allow her to take whenever she shows up, as she rarely makes it to class on time. Her principal allows her low attendance to slide because he knows of her curse and because she is otherwise a perfect student. She’s something of an urban legend at her school - the phantom student that almost never comes to class, but somehow gets better grades than all of them. There’s a betting pool on whether she actually exists.
Calm and Accepting – due to her mother’s influence, Michiko calmly accepts thing she cannot change, and instead works to make the best of what she does have. She does her best to work around her direction difficulties by always carrying a cell phone so that she can talk to her friends and relatives whenever she wants, and by making extensive use of taxi cabs to get around without getting lost.
Solitary & Outdoorsy – Like all Hibikis, she is used to being alone, but she actually enjoys it. It gives her plenty of time to study and practice her martial arts, and she likes travelling and spending time outdoors with nature. She is uncomfortable is crowded or noisy places.
Quiet & Wise – not out of shyness, but more because she’s used to being alone. Usually speaks up only when she has something important to say, so everyone listens when she does.
Hidden Aggressiveness – She likes to fight, but denies it out of embarrassment and thinking it’s unladylike, and because her mother disapproves. Enjoys competition and finding opportunities to apply her intelligence.
Take-Charge Attitude – despite her quiet and seemingly passive personality, she actually enjoys taking a leadership role and will step up if she feels no one else is up to the task.
Condescending – although she tries her best to be polite to everyone she meets because her mother expects it, she can unintentionally come off as condescending to others because of her intelligence and experience (she’s seen and learned a lot of things due to her direction curse).

Interests & Hobbies
Reading and studying books about almost any subject or field of knowledge. She prefers reading textbooks and manuals, and rarely indulges in manga or other fiction, except for the occasional romance novel. Her favorite subjects are spiritual martial arts (such as ki theory and meditation), geography, history, mathematics, and medicine (both modern and traditional shiatsu and moxibustion). She’ll read just about anything out of boredom or curiosity however, so she often will surprise others with random facts or bits of knowledge on the strangest subjects.

She also enjoys collecting bookmarks, and has a massive collection of thousands of them. Most of them are unique, many of them can be considered works of art, and some are quite rare and valuable. She is very protective of her bookmarks, and is prone to snapping at anyone that tries to touch one without permission.

Her knowledge of martial arts is considerable, although she prefers to focus on the more spiritual side of the art, rather than the physical. As a result, her skill at meditation and ki manipulation is excellent. She tends to treat her abilities more as a science than an art, which is why she developed her ki-seal techniques, rather than learn more traditional ki attacks.

Her knowledge of geography is vast. Unlike her father, who stubbornly refused to admit he had a problem, and tried to compensate by drawing his own maps (which gave him a very skewed understanding of geography), Michiko studies maps and globes almost fanatically, to try and compensate for her direction curse. Unfortunately, this knowledge doesn’t help her much during the day, unless she has someone with her that can use her knowledge to guide her. However, she can actually travel fairly accurately (for a Hibiki) at night, because she has taught herself how to navigate using the stars as a guide.

Her knowledge of Japanese history, culture and folklore is also extensive. Because she actually enjoys travelling, she always tries to learn the local history as well as the myths and legends of any town or village she visits. As a result she has become quite the tourist, and is also an excellent storyteller. Like her father, she enjoys collecting postcards and souveniers from the many unusual places she visits.

Her knowledge of mathematics is also considerable. Originally she took it up simply because she enjoys solving problems and puzzles, but later began studying it earnestly in order to help her invent her ki-seal techniques, which incorporate many mathematical principles into their designs (sort of a combination of Fullmetal Alchemest style alchemy circles and Naruto style Chakra seals). She has also begun trying to develop her own branch of mathematics to explain the principles of ki in a scientific manner, as the scientific community has yet to gain any real understanding of exactly how ki works. She has had little success so far.

At the encouragement of her mother, she also took up medicine, both modern and traditional shiatsu and moxibustion. Her understanding of theory is great, but she has never been formally trained and has almost no practical experience in anything beyond common first-aid. As a result, she doesn’t trust herself to try and perform any advanced techniques or procedures.

Despite her confidence in her knowledge and abilities, and her confidence in many social situations, she is actually quite shy and insecure when it comes to romance. Due to her direction curse, her monstrous (to normal people) strength, and her incredible intellect, few men are willing to aproach her in a romantic manner. As a result she is insecure about her own attractiveness, and typically avoids thinking about relationships at all, out of a fear of rejection. This is part of the reason she tries to emulate her mother's serene nature (she thinks men are attracted to that trait), although she's not very good at duplicating it as she really isn't the passive or nurturing type (she takes more after her father in that regard). It is mostly due to this insecurity about her own attractiveness that she is completely oblivious to Yemon's rather obvious attraction to her (to much comedic effect).


Relatives
Ryoga Hibiki (Father)
Kasumi Hibiki (Mother)
Ryoga’s Parents (names unknown) (Grandparents)
Soun Tendo (Grandfather)
Akane Tendo (Aunt)
Nabiki Tendo (Aunt)
Akane’s Child? (Cousin?)
Nabiki’s Child? (Cousin?) *will Nabiki's chid(ren) play any role in this fic?*
Twin Brother, Elder Brother, Younger Identical Twin Sisters (Siblings)

Friends/Rivals/Love-interests
Yemon Saotome
Ukyo & Mousse’s Child
Gosunkugi & Miyo’s Child

Physical Abilities:
As a Hibiki and as a result of her extremely active lifestyle, Michiko has enormous physical strength and ki reserves, and her stamina is practically inhuman, allowing her to go without sleep for days at a time, and ignore exhaustion and pain for far longer than most people could. She is also incredibly tough, although nowhere near her father’s level as she has never undergone the Bakusai Tenketsu training. Her greatest strength is her incredible ki control, which she uses to her advantage by inventing a number of unique ki techniques.

Her biggest weakness is her lack of agility and speed. In a straight sparring match, most advanced fighters can easily outmaneuver her. She is also relatively unskilled in traditional martial arts, as she spends most of her time training in developing and mastering her ki techniques.

Tactics, Training and Fighting Style:
Michiko compensates for her lack of mobility by using a fighting style that doesn’t require it. She has a number of powerful techniques that usually allow her to dominate a fight at a distance, preventing most opponents from taking advantage of her relatively slow speed with a ranged fighting strategy.

If the opponent tries to combat this strategy by closing in, she also has some powerful defensive techniques to protect her and continue to fight effectively. She is also an expert at using the environment to her advantage, by using her ki seals to set up traps for her opponents.

Techniques:

Hibiki Style Iron Paper Techniques – A modified version of the Hibiki family Iron Cloth techniques. Michiko requires a lot of paper in order to utilize these techniques. She is so skilled at controlling paper charged with her ki that she can literally move such paper around using nothing more than her willpower. This paper telekinesis has an effective range of about 1 meter and she can only do so as long as she continues to feed her ki into the paper, however.
Michiko obviously also knows the Iron Cloth techniques she based this style on, although she isn’t anywhere near as skilled at manipulating cloth as paper, and she cannot telekinetically control it.
Paper Boomerangs – A modified version of Ryoga’s Buzzsaw Bandanna technique. Michiko rips out a number of sheets of paper from a book or notepad, charges them with her ki, and throws them at her opponent as sharpened projectiles. This technique is weaker than Ryoga’s as paper has less mass than cloth, but it’s more versatile, because Michiko can use her superior ki control to put a spin on the blades.
This allows her to purposefully throw them off course, only to have them arc back and surprise her opponent by striking from the side, above, or behind. She can even attack a foe that is hiding behind some kind of cover.
Paper Airplane – A more powerful version of Michiko’s Paper Boomerang technique. By folding the paper into a plane, she can enhance her control of its movements to ridiculous levels. This allows her to add insane arcs, loop-the-loops, dive-bombs, multiple strafing runs and other unpredictable maneuvers to its flight path, making it quite dangerous and very distracting to her opponent. The plane is slightly weaker than the standard boomerang version and Michiko must prepare the paper by folding it ahead of time, however.
Paper Straightjacket – Michiko binds a large amount of pages together edge-to-edge in order to create a large whip-like paper construct charged with her ki. This technique is most useful for wrapping around an opponent and holding them still, so that Michiko can beat on them with her enormous strength without reprisal. The paper is strengthened by her ki, but is still relatively easy to tear (for a martial artist), so this technique is of little use directly against an opponent as strong as or stronger than herself.
Paper Shield Defense Grid – Michiko most advanced technique, it requires her to charge an entire book with a very large amount of her ki. The pages then all rip free and float around her according to her will. The paper can lash out at an opponent that approaches to closely, but their main purpose is to provide a powerful defense for Michiko.
The paper will intercept any attack targeting Michiko, rendering it harmless by slowing or deflecting it. The paper doesn’t block the attacks, as it isn’t nearly strong enough to that, but rather it gives when struck, allowing the kinetic energy of any attack to harmlessly bleed away. For example, the paper will catch a punch a foot before it hits, and will give 10 inches, gradually slowing the punch until it’s harmless rather than stopping it with brute force. For an opponent attempting to hit Michiko, it feels as if she is blocking every blow with a giant pillow or sponge.
The paper will also deflect standard weapon projectiles (like bandannas, shurikens or spatulas) by hardening and intercepting them at a shallow angle, gently throwing them off course. The paper is so effective at this that attempting to strike Michiko with projectile weapons from a distance with anything slower than a bullet is an exercise in futility, unless you can literally throw more of them than she has paper to deflect them with.
The paper shields are far from a perfect defense, however. There is a limit to how much kinetic energy they can absorb. For example, it’s doubtful that Michiko could stop a punch from Lime, Pantyhose Taro’s cursed form or even Ryoga with this technique, although she could at least slow it enough to weaken it a good bit. Also, they have difficulty absorb the kinetic energy of a blow that is very large. Michiko wouldn’t be able to stop a Perfect Shishi Houkoudan, and would only be able to deflect some of a standard one. The paper shields are quite fast, but they can be outrun by an extremely fast opponent. Finally, the paper is almost useless against other forms of energy. Fire, Ice, electricity and most other “elemental” style techniques will tear through the shield fairly easily.

Martial Arts Ki Sealing Techniques – A self-invented style inspired by Martial Arts Calligraphy and ancient styles of magic runes and alchemy. Michiko can “seal” her ki into a design drawn onto a piece of paper using special magic ink, allowing her to use it to fuel a unique effect determined and created by the particular seal design used. The seals remain dormant normally and must be activated by a small burst of ki, preventing them from going off on accident.
Michiko has yet to perfect this style, and as such most of her seals create fairly simple results. Also, the imperfect seals allow the ki within them to slowly leak out, giving most of her seals an effective lifespan of only a few days.
The seals are complicated and must be drawn perfectly, or they risk backfiring. Naturally, this prevents her from using them in battle, requiring her to craft them beforehand. Michiko always keeps at least a few on hand at any time in case of an unexpected fight, and because the ink used to draw them is fairly inexpensive (as far as magic ink goes).
Explosive Seal – Once activated this seal will explode after 4 seconds. The explosive force depends on how much ki was sealed within it, but will usually be on par with a large Happo Fire Burst. Michiko usually hides one of these within a swarm of Paper Boomerangs, disguising it as just another ordinary paper projectile. Another nifty trick is to use several as part of a Paper Defense Grid, forcing the opponent to be very careful not to punch the explosive seals when attacking. Michiko can create versions of this with alternate detonation triggers, such as exploding on impact, when touched by a living creature with a large amount of ki (such as a person), or even when a code word is spoken aloud (although this one is rather difficult to create). Other triggers can easily be invented as needed.
Ki-blocking Seal – Once activated, this seal will take effect when it comes into contact with any person (or animal) other than Michiko herself, or anyone else she specifies when crafting the seal (although the more people protected, the more difficult it is to make). Once it has touched her opponent, the seal forces the modified ki contained within it into that opponent’s body, where it disrupts their own ki. Essentially, this has the effect of temporarily blocking any attempts by that person to utilize their own ki. This will prevent that person from using any advanced ki techniques for several minutes or longer, depending on the strength of the seal and the affected person’s skill at controlling their own ki.
Adhesive Seal – Once activated, this seal will cause the paper it’s drawn on to become extremely sticky after a few seconds, holding tight anything that comes into contact with it. The adhesive is very powerful, and will usually hold even if the material it’s stuck to won’t. The most common uses for this seal is to stick an opponent to the floor or wall, disarm the opponent by sticking their weapon to the floor or wall, or to slow down pursuit or prevent entry into a room by sealing closed windows or doors. The length of time the adhesive lasts is usually an hour, but that time is shortened considerably if the affected objects struggle, forcing the seal to burn the ki faster in order to hold. The seal will generally only hold for a few minutes or less when used to trap a martial artist, assuming said fighter is trying to get free. This seal can also be crafted with a number of alternate triggers like the explosive seal. Michiko occasionally uses this seal outside of battle as a practical joke.[/b]

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Yemon “Mir Ru” Saotome

Age:
16

Appearance:
5’4” inches tall. Hair is thick and wild, kept in a long mid-back length pigtail. Hair is Eggplant color (a dark violet-red, RGB: 90, 50, 70). Eyes are violet colored. Sharp, chiseled facial features. Average-sized, but muscular build.

Eyes are somewhat slitted, and ears are slightly elongated beyond the norm, but not enough to appear inhuman. These traits are a result of his soul-link with a powerful yokai lord.

Typically wears Chinese style Kung-fu outfits, similar to Ranma’s, but is also willing to wear standard Joketsuzoku armor during a fight due to his warrior upbringing.

Personality:
Yemon’s personality is largely a combination of many of his parents opposed character traits, resulting in an individual that is more socially balanced than either, and not possessing many of their negative traits.

He is intelligent and stubborn, optimistic and curious. His ego is healthy, nowhere near as inflated as his parents, largely due to being raised by very powerful martial artists. He often feels like he cannot live up to the legacy of his father, who has become famous for his skills throughout much of China (on par with powerhouses such as Herb and Saffron). Although he is the champion of his generation in the village, he often feels this is not enough due to others constantly comparing him to his father, and he strives to one day surpass him.

Like his father, he is quick to forgive others and quick to offer help to those that need it. However, he has been spoiled growing up due to his status as the son of the village hero and her famous husband, and is used to getting his way. Fortunately, he is not a selfish or malicious person, but he occasionally offends others by assuming that they will agree with his plans or requests without actually asking first, because he is used to having others agree with him. This can cause him a great of trouble when he borrows other’s property without getting permission first, even though he always intends to return it.

Largely due to the influence of his mother, Yemon is a very outgoing and friendly individual. He is very forward and has a forceful personality, which makes him a natural leader, but may push away those that are more passive.

When he was a child, he was unable to control the flow of demonic ki through his link with his familiar, and this would often cause him to lash out at others when the yokai energy fed off of and enhanced his negative emotions. Cologne quickly taught him the Soul of Ice, a meditation technique used to suppress emotions, which he became very skilled with in order to control his outbursts. As a result, if he ever becomes very enraged, annoyed, frustrated, saddened, etcetera, he activates the technique and immediately becomes detached from his feelings, giving others the impression that he is cold and aloof. When combined with his tendency of being very outspoken with his positive emotions, he can appear to be unstable or schizophrenic, which can be disturbing to those who don’t know about his condition (which is most people, as he doesn’t want his status as being life-linked to a demon to become common knowledge).

Due to his incredible martial arts skill, association with a very manipulative ferret, and his strange habit of flipping between extremes of happiness and emotionlessness, he has had a difficult time making friends. He has many admirers, rivals, and even a few lackeys, but no close friends, and as a result he will latch onto any friendship offered to him, even going to extremes to please and accommodate his friends. He is very loyal to those who earn his trust, but he is no fool. If you take advantage of his desire for friendship and abuse his trust, you will pay for it.

He views combat as the best and preferred method for solving disputes, although he is unlikely to attack or threaten those unable or unwilling to defend themselves, and is willing (though unhappy) to use nonviolent methods to bargain with noncombatants. It is mostly due to the influence of his more honorable and compassionate father that he did not inherit his mother’s ‘obstacles are for killing’ ideology.

At the same time, he has had a much more normal upbringing than Ranma, and as a result is better equipped to deal with social interactions. In particular, due to Joketsuzoku’s relaxed views on sexuality, he is far better able to handle sexual advances without getting flustered or embarrassed. He is used to casual nudity.

Interests/Hobbies:
Martial arts, eating, & studying tactics and history. Cooking and horticulture. Quite knowledgable in occultic studie such as magic and curse theory, demonology, and spiritual sealing and exorcism.
Motivations:
To be the best at martial arts. To support his village and family. To travel and experience new things. To learn more of his father’s homeland. To make as many friends and rivals as possible. To meet and get to know his father’s estranged friends and family in Japan. To find a way to break free from the soul-link, and possibly to restore the familiar’s body (depending on how friendly you want to write the two as being). Possibly to aid the familiar’s devastated tribe (if you want to introduce such a plot-line).

Relationships:
Relatives
Ranma “Luan Ma” Saotome (Father)
Xian Pu Saotome (assuming Joketsuzoku women practice the custom of taking their husband’s family name) (Mother)
Khu Lon (Great-great grandmother)
Xian Pu's Father (name is unknown) (Grandfather)
Genma Saotome (Grandfather)
Nodoka Saotome (Grandmother)

Friends/Rivals/Love-interests/Enemies
The Familiar
Happosai
Pantyhose Taro’s Child
Ryoga & Kasumi’s Child
Akane’s Child
Mouse & Ukyo’s Child
Gosunkugi & Miyo’s Child
Nabiki & Picolet’s Child?
Mikado and Azusa's Child?
Kuno and Mariko's Child?
Hinako?

Physical Abilities:
His speed, strength, adaptively and willpower are roughly equal to Ranma’s (at the beginning of canon). Has very advanced ki control and reserves, and a variety of powerful ki techniques due to his focus on spiritual training in order to control and utilize the demonic ki of his familiar. Unfortunately, due to this specialization, his toughness, stamina and fighting skill have suffered considerably.

Due to his soul-link with a yokai lord, he also has greatly increased regenerative powers, and moderately enhanced senses of night-vision, smell, and hearing.

Tactics, Training and Fighting Style:
Due to his low toughness and stamina, Yemon is a very offense-oriented combatant and tends to go all out when fighting, trying to quickly overwhelm his opponent with pure speed and powerful ki techniques. If this approach is ineffective, he will retreat and use ki blasts to attack from a distance.

His fighting style is influenced heavily by his father’s, focusing a great deal on speed, distractions, feints, aerial combat, adaptability, improvised weaponry, and attacking weak points that other fighters might consider to be “cheap shots”. He is less willing to anger his opponents with insults than his father, however.

Due to his mother's training, he is also proficient in the use of all traditional Joketsuzoku weapons, and is particularly skilled with a duel set of ‘arm-scythes’, long blades mounted on his forearms that curves back and inward towards his shoulders. He usually uses a pair with dull blades, that he can give a temporary cutting edge by infusing them with his ki (like Kuno does with his bokken) if needed.

He is at a great advantage if fighting an opponent who is slower, has a weak defense, or doesn’t know any ki techniques. He is at a disadvantage when facing an opponent that is faster, skilled enough to get in close and grapple with him, or has a strong enough defense to survive his assault and attack him when he tires. For example, Yemon would have a much easier time fighting Pantyhose Taro or Mousse than Ranma ever did, but have a harder time fighting Ryoga or Happosai.

He is also fairly knowledgeable about Shinto and Buddhist demon exorcism and sealing rituals, due to many run-ins with priests and demon-hunters that sensed the demonic ki of his familiar and mistook him for a yokai. Although he is somewhat vulnerable to spiritual seals (they cut him off from his Demon-fist techniques and cause him great discomfort), he is largely immune to more powerful spiritual techniques, because he is not the source of the yokai energy. Yemon has actually allowed several priests to examine the familiar in hopes of breaking the life-link, but, to date, no priest has ever been able to do without endangering Yemon's life, so none have attempted it.

Techniques:
Iron Cloth - a technique which infuses ki into material objects (usually to be used as weapons), enhancing the object's physical properties beyond its normal abilities and tolerances. Yemon is only a beginner with this technique, and typically only uses it to give his blunt training blades a cutting edge.
Hidden Weapons - The Chinese black magic of hiding impossibly large objects in one's clothing, without being hindered in the slightest by their size or weight. Like his mother, Yemon is only a novice at this difficult-to-master style, and can only hide his arm-scythes and about a square foot of other belongings.
Soul of Ice - A technique that allows the user to suppress all emotions and eliminate his battle aura. A prerequisite to learning the Body of Ice, Hiryuu Shouten Ha and the Umisenken.
Body of Ice - An advanced version of the Soul of Ice, this technique allows the user to generate cold ki. Normally useless on it's own for anything except setting up a Hiryuu Shouten Ha, although Yemon sees a lot of potential in this technique and is currently experimenting with several advanced original cold ki techniques based upon it.
Hiryuu Shouten Ha - An advanced ki manipulation technique that creates a tornado that traps an opponent and feeds off of their battle aura. Requires the user to set up a spiral of hot and cold ki around the target. A powerful, but predictable technique. Ranma has invented numerous variations of this attack, and it is not inconcievable that Yemon may be able to recreate some of them.
One-man Hiryuu Shouten Ha - A variation of the HSH that allows the user to create a tornado from a stand-still, without setting up a spiral, entirely under his own power. It is much weaker and lasts a for a far shorter period of time than the original technique, however. This makes it more useful for knocking away attackers and clearing a large area around the user than as an attack.
Demonic Aura - By willingly drawing demonic ki through the link with his familiar, Yemon can increase the power of his battle aura several fold, greatly increasing his strength and speed. The malevolent aura is also capable of intimidating most foes. The downside of this technique is that it is extremely draining to use, and Yemon must be careful not to let the energy consume his will and send him into a berserker rage until it runs out.
Demonic Bolts - Yemon can also draw on the demonic ki to throw very powerful bolts of yokai energy at his opponent. Like the Demon Aura, this technique is very draining, and both techniques are most efficient went used in conjunction.

Note that these are just his starting techniques, feel free to add more as the story progresses.

Plot Role:
Yemon is the main protagonist, and therefore the plot largely focuses on him and his journey. He is the focus of a lot of attention, from love-sick admirers to jealous rivals, which leads him to have a very chaotic and adventurous life. Fortunately, he thrives on adversity, and the constant challenges only help him to grow as a martial artist and a person.


Yemon's Familiar (as-yet unnamed)
Body - I'd make the critter an animal that's small, sneaky, and cute, so it can move around easily and con people with it's innocent looks. Maybe a rabbit if you want to embarrass it. A cat if you want to make Nekoken jokes. A bird if you want to give it some serious mobility. Personally, I'm partial to a ferret. I just like ferrets.

Gender - male. Not sure why, I just think their bickering would be more natural that way. And the kid is gonna have enough sexual tension from multiple love interests without the familiar messing with him too. That would just be weird anyway, with it being an animal and all.

Personality - Generally calm, sarcastic, lazy, intelligent, patient, arrogant and manipulative. Not truly evil, because that kind of personality isn't very conductive to comedy, but definitely completely amoral and selfish. Loves to cause mischief and confusion. Goes out of his way to to cause trouble for the spawn out of bitterness, but tries to not to let that trouble excalate to physical danger. His life is linked to the spawn's afterall. Sometimes he just doesn't know when to quit, however, and when the trouble he causes gets out of hand, he regretfully will aid the spawn, out of self-interest. When he's not causing trouble, I imagine he would spend most of his time lounging about, maybe reading or watching tv. As a previously immortal being, he's probably very patient and lazy. He hates Cologne, because she was the one who caused him to be reborn as an animal, and constantly insults her and tries to send real danger at her - of course, Cologne is wise to most of his tricks, so he is often frustrated when she outmaneuvers him to escape or benefit from his attempts at vengeance. About the only time the familiar will truly lose his cool is if he hears of a possible 'cure' for his weak animal form, in which cases he becomes completely obsessed with obtaining it, and often his impatience and greed will hurt his efforts to do so.

Motivations - To annoy the spawn for his own amusement. To get revenge on Cologne for trapping him in an animal body. To regain his true form, at almost any cost. Beyond those, to relax and enjoy life.

Role - The familiar would be a nonviolent antagonist for the spawn, sort of a smarter combination of Nabiki and Genma. he would cause trouble for the spawn for his own amusement. And the most common form this trouble will take will be encouraging his love-interests, antagonizing his rivals, and giving both ideas and plans. He would spend a lot of his time finding people that will annoy the spawn and sending them his way. Also, he spends a lot of time with the spawn and talks to him a lot, with their conversations mostly consisting of wise-ass comments, sarcastic remarks, and mostly goodnatured insults. He is impressed that the kid has learned how to use his power to a degree, at how well he takes being bound to a demon, and at the kid's intelligence and perseverance. As a result, he has gained a grudging respect for the spawn, and will actually help him out occasionally (by sarcastically pointing out all of the flaws in the spawn's plans). He would betray the spawn in an instant for a way to regain his true power, but since he actually likes the kid a little, he would try to spare the kid's life if he could. Also, if a dangerous rival ever discovers the life link the familiar and spawn share, he may try to kidnap the familiar for leverage against the spawn, and the spawn will have to rescue the familiar from the rivals clutches.

Link Qualities - The spawns life is linked to the familiars, which forces them both to reluctantly aid and protect each other when either's life is endangered. A proximity requirement, that cause both of them to weaken and eventually die if they spend more than a few days apart. The spawn can take the familiar's ki for himself through the link, although this is not easy to do. Other than that, perhaps they both can feel any extreme emotions the other experiences, and they can also sense the general direction that the other is at in relation to himself. I'm undecided on whether telepathy through the link would be a good idea or not.

[Jupiah]

Sorry for the long wait. I've been very busy with schoolwork lately. In fact, I should probably be working on a research paper right now....

Oh, well, I can't concentrate on it right now anyway, so I'll brainstorm for you some more.

Kasumi and Ryoga sleeping together on their own is almost completely unbelievable (though a snarky mind might wonder how they managed to have a wedding night if that's the case), as you've pointed out, but throw a little magic into the mix and it's possible.

I didn't say that Kasumi and Ryoga sleeping together was unbelievable, I said that I can't see them having pre-marital sex. Not with Kasumi being so traditional. Get them married first and I don't see a problem with them pumping out kids though. Honestly, I think it would be rather funny if Kasumi was a bit of a nympho. It could be explained as her making up for lost time, or desperately wanting kids, or even just her way of rebelling against being forced to act as her sisters' mother for so long. And the affection-starved Ryoga would hardly resist, although he may need a few blood-infusions before he could actually 'perform'.

I can't really see Happosai interfering. He never tried to play matchmaker in canon, so why would he do so for Ryoga and Kasumi? I suppose the two might come across a magical aphrodesiac on accident, but I wouldn't write that. The whole "love-magic-creating-an-unusual-couple" trope is way overdone in Ranma fanfiction. Besides, love magic in Ranma 1/2 has a habit of backfiring spectacularly on the users. Based on past occurences, it would be far more likely to hurt their relationship than help it.

Also, Jupiah, you said that her "paper telekinesis" wouldn't extend past a meter, but the way you described the paper airplane tech would require that it did or that she had extreme skills at using paper airplanes.

Heh, she does have extreme skills at using paper airplanes! But joking aside, I was thinking that Michiko 'programmed' the flight path into the plane when she charged it with ki, allowing her to 'fire-and-forget' rather than having to consciously control it. Of course, this means that she would have to accurately predict the opponent's movements for this to work.

To account for an unpredictable foe, she can also give the planes a homing ability by expending even more ki when charging it, allowing them to 'lock-on' to the opponent. However, she must be able to sense the opponent's ki clearly to do so - this ability would be only moderately effective against an opponent trying to restrain his battle aura (by using the Soul of Ice, for example) and useless against those that can outright hide it (such as by using the Umisenken).

I just thought up a new ki-seal for Michiko:
Indestructable Seal - This seal, once activated, causes the paper it's written on to become so durable that it is virtually impossible to destroy with martial arts or even modern firearms. It can even resist fire and other elemental attacks. On its own, this invincibility last for only a few minutes, but this particular seal is unique in that Michiko can continue to feed it ki as long as she is with a meter of it or is contact with it through a chain of her ki-charged pages, allowing her to power it for up to several hours as long as nothing breaks her concentration and she doesn't run out of ki.

One possible use for this seal is for her to impliment a few of them in a Paper Defense grid, to vastly improve her defense, or in a Paper Straightjacket, to allow her to bind even the strongest martial artist. She could give them to her allies to use as improvised shields, giving them a large temporary boost in defense. I'm certain you could think of a few others ways to use them, SpaceKnight.

The weaknesses of this seal is that it requires a lot of ki to create and the seal is extremely complex and therefore time-consuming to draw, limiting Michiko to creating only 2-3 of them a day. As a result, she normally doesn't carry any, and will only make some if she knows ahead of time that she is going to get into a tough fight.

I know you dislike the anime Jupiah, but have you seen the anime's take on the panda scribble storyline? If yes, there's a scene where the panda assumes the form of a (presumably) Chinese girl- do you think we might be able to recycle her appearance for Taro's daughter (if a daughter she is)?

Sure, if you liked her appearance I don't see why not.

All of your ideas for Taro's kid are good. I especially like the idea that the cursed form must be trained. Perhaps she trains in both her forms, and as a result activating the curse is more like changing her fighting style rather than getting a powerup. Essentially, each form has a very distinct and seemingly incompatable way of fighting, so she can use whichever one is more more suitable for her current needs or to confuse an opponent that may have adapted to one form or discovered a weakness in it.

I don't see a problem with having Taro's wife leave him. Not many people could put up with that arrogant bastard for too long. You'd have to come up with a good reason as for why Taro is raising their child, rather than the mother though.

I can easily see the child being angry with her father for cursing her, but for another reason than her mother leaving (or in addition to that reason). She could be rather bitter with her father because he overlooked one effect of Jusenkyo curses that is rarely ever mentioned; getting a curse will most likely make a woman unable to ever have children. Unlike cursed men, who only have to stay in their uncursed form for a single night to make a child, it's very doubtful that a cursed woman could avoid cold water for 9 months.

The only known ways to lock a person in their uncursed form are the instant-Jusenkyo water and the Waterproof soap. The instant stuff, if it's the same kind as the "cure" for the cursed user (instant-man for a man or instant-woman for a woman), will prevent him or her from changing with cold water, but only for a few minutes or hours (exact time is unknown, but it's definetely short). Not very practical. And the waterproof soap must have a downside or they wouldn't have abandoned it in canon; my guess is that it's probably expensive, and because it prevents water from touching the user, it actually has the opposite effect of normal soap. Someone who uses waterproof soap for a couple of days would probably smell pretty ripe. And please don't give me that "Jusenkyo respects the sanctity of motherhood and will lock the victim if she gets pregnant" crap - the Musk wouldn't need (and presumable have created) the locking ladle if that were true.