Featherbrite's Tale, the Bet. Rough version
by Gregg Sharp based on Rumiko Takahashi's situations/char
other char TM other authors. 
Metroanime@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/greggsharp/index.html
4c: Ah No! Chigau!
-------------Faerie Realm, Outer Wanders----------
	Shampoo and Nabiki stared at the glowing
winged shape of Featherbrite who was laughing as she
sat on Kasumi's shoulder and pointed out a trail off to
the side.

	"So..." Nabiki managed as she looked around.
"Where exactly are we? And how come we can see you
now?" Nabiki noted that Kasumi was her usual unflappable
self, while she had her "Ice Queen" persona on. Shampoo,
on the other hand, looked like she had gone into defensive
mode and was hanging nearer the eldest Tendo. Nabiki 
thought this interesting for several reasons.

	"This is the Faerie Realm, Nabiki, even if it IS
one of the outlying regions. Naturally you can see me here,
as that you can't in your mortal realm because of the 
restrictions laid upon faerie interaction with that world."
Featherbrite shrugged. She didn't know much beyond that,
it simply WAS, and faerie generally didn't question such
things. That which was, was, that was the faerie view.

	Shampoo tore her eyes away from the little 
figure to take in some of the odd sights around her. A
grassy plain, with a number of trees. A four winged bird
hovered briefly far above before proving it was a predator
by making a dive at something off in the grass to her 
right. "Where we go?"

	Nabiki noted that the plants weren't varieties
she was familiar with. She started collecting samples as
surreptiously as she could, sure that the Botany Club 
would pay through the nose for these.

	"A friend of mine is not too far off," Featherbrite
answered. "We're getting supplies for the celebration of 
your victory over the vampire."

	"Free?" Nabiki asked hopefully. She wasn't
sure she wanted to know what kind of currency was used
here. Maybe a free lunch was too much to hope for.
-------Near Bumblebee Park, Furinkan Ward----------
	Shammi charged and brought her nunchaku
into a sweeping double strike that should have caught
the boy on both sides of the head.

	Ryouga blocked both. "HEY! Knock it off!"

	Rei Ga flipped through her translation book.
"Knock? <Ah, to strike a light blow! He's threatening to
fight you!>"

	"<Tell him that he's already fighting me!>"
Shammi whipped the nunchaku back and produced a 
broom out of nowhere.

	Ryouga almost laughed until Shammi started 
using bo staff manuevers with it. "HEY!"

	"He is tougher than he appears," Vanilla raised
an eyebrow without any other outward show of emotion.

	"Oh, to heck with it." Ryouga lashed out, grabbing
the broom and flinging it off to the side. "Now what are you 
going to do...uh oh."

	Shammi pulled out a set of Ginsu knives. "<Very
well, male, you have earned enough of my respect that now
I shall use my ultimate attack, the Sashimi Sendoff! Pray to
your ancestors that you...>"

	At that moment the broom returned at high speed,
having been accidently flipped in a manner that he had been
practicing with his umbrella. Eventually he might be able to 
throw his umbrella and have it return to his hand should he
miss. He still tended to be a little off on the return. That it 
worked with a broom was not something that he'd have 
expected anyway.

	The broom struck Shammi right between the eyes,
and she dropped without a sound.
-------------Holly's Wood, Faerie Realm------
	Kasumi, Nabiki, and Shampoo watched a
laughing reunion between a four foot tall wood nymph
and a six inch tall pixie. Kasumi was amused. Nabiki 
and Shampoo were...startled by seeing a naked
woman with green hair and skin the color of birch bark.

	"Shampoo not going to ask."

	Nabiki almost asked what Shampoo was
talking about, but decided she'd rather not know.

	"But of course, Bri'te! I have plenty
of such things available to me, but what are you 
giving me in return?" Holly arched an eyebrow, 
knowing that the pixie wouldn't give up that male
changeling of hers, but she felt she should be polite
and at least make the try. 

	"You can't have Ranma," Featherbrite
folded her arms and huffed as well as she could
considering her stature. "These three are also 
under my protection and are only here to help me
carry stuff back."

	Nabiki and Shampoo instinctively moved
a little closer to Kasumi. All three noted that Holly
was interested in Ranma, but apparently couldn't
have it. All three came to the conclusion that less
competition was a good thing.

	"No doubt," Holly nodded. She saw
her opportunity for a little mischief and excitement.
"So, if I make a request..."

	Featherbrite groaned, she had a feeling
the bargaining on this was going to be a problem...
-------------------Bumblebee Park, Nerima------
	Ryouga ran. He didn't care where, at
present. Just as long as it was AWAY.

	"Wo ai ni! Wo da airen!" Shammi
bounced along behind Ryouga, using a number
of phrases she remembered from watching a 
similar scene in a cartoon years ago. "Wait, bay-bee,
wait for your lil' Shammi!"

	"AAAAAaaaaaaaaa!" Ryouga went
THROUGH a set of stacked construction drainpipes,
leaving a little trail of dust in the air behind him as
he attempted to break the sound barrier.

	Vanilla noted that Shammi was making 
progress in what looked like a lazy bouncing gait,
where Ryouga was running flat out and destroying
obstacles in his way. Shammi was somehow managing
to close the distance with Ryouga despite the apparent 
differences in their velocity. Interesting.

	"I am coming for you, my little studmuffin!"

	"I am NOT your studmuffin!" Ryouga  went
through a wall, the backyard of some old man who was
busy with bonsai, and out the front gate. Stopping when
he saw that Shammi had gotten there first.

	Shammi looked up, having used her Martial
Arts Housekeeping skills to produce a cafe table, two
chairs, two glasses, a nice (but not pretentious) bottle
of red wine, and a loaf of french (of course) bread. "Ah,
a jug of wine, a loaf of bread, .... and me?"

	Ryouga screamed, turned, and fled. In that
order. It had to be a trick. There was a pretty girl interested
in him. It just HAD to be a trick. It would take several days
for Ryouga to realize that it _wasn't_ a trick.

	By then, he'd managed to pique Shammi's interest.
--------------Faerie Realm, Holly's Wood---------
	"WHAT?!" Nabiki blinked as she listened 
to the offer. She wondered what all this had to do with
party supplies. "No! Absolutely not! I am NOT the
daughter that hates boys! You want Akane!"

	"Nabiki!" Kasumi managed to sound both
startled and disapproving at the same time.

	"Oh, well then, maybe someone else?"

	"Shampoo not think so."

	"Oh my. No. No, definitely not."

	Featherbrite understood that this was
the opening salvo of negotiations that could easily
take a mortal decade. "Holly, my dear old friend, 
could we 'cut to the chase scene' as mortals say?
What is it that you REALLY want?"

	Holly blinked and began to slowly 
smile. "Well, since you put it THAT way."

	"Shampoo no like that smile," the
amazon whispered to Kasumi. "Dryad not strike
me as bad sort, but not Shampoo's type."

	Kasumi nodded. She quite agreed. Nabiki
noted the opinions and had also figured out this was
just the opening salvo of negotiations. The wood nymph
was throwing out requests that she knew would be 
refused.

	"I want," Holly said brightly, "a changeling
of my own!"

	"Sorry, they're not THAT common, y'know."

	"Oh," Holly mused. "Don't know anyone who
was abused as a child who could use a long period of
healing in the Faerie Realm?"

	Nabiki stepped forward. "Excuse me, but I
happen to know someone who fits the bill, but you're
gonna have to get his agreement to come here."

	"Really?!" Holly brightened by three degrees.
Just the thing to put off the tedium and refresh the spirit.
"He? You distinctly used the male pronoun. Where is he?"

	Nabiki smirked. "I'll give you the details, but...
there's something I want thrown into the deal." That the
dryad wanted this so badly proved that Nabiki would be
the superior negotiator here.

	"Oh dear," said Shampoo and Kasumi in an
eerie unison.
------------------
	A few hours later, Shampoo,  Kasumi, and 
Nabiki (the last whistling cheerfully) were marching 
along with large bulging satchels. Nabiki was clutching
one in particular close to herself.

	They arrived home in time to put out the
fire in the kitchen. Akane had been cooking.

	Shampoo, for once ignoring the signals her
"big sister" was sending her way, had one of the 
cookies that Akane had made especially for her.

	By the next morning,  Shampoo had recovered 
from her NDE (Near Death Experience). Thanking her
mother for her Amazon constitution and powers of 
recovery, Shampoo decided to avoid the youngest
Tendo daughter rather than tempt fate. After all, she
might make something else as an apology. 

	Akane wasn't quite sure why her sugar
cookies had THAT sort of reaction. After all, they
couldn't be too bland after she added the tabasco
and blackstrap molasses. She was hoping that the
oregano was counterbalanced by the subtle mango
flavoring she'd added, and it had turned out this
nice purple color that had matched Shampoo's hair...

	As for the next few days, nothing much
really occurred. Nabiki spent quite a bit of time with
her new reading material. (Symple Spellcraft For The
Apprentice, Divinations & Protective Magicks)

	Ranma had a long talk with his imaginary
friend, which made Akane wonder if she was the only 
sane person in the household.

	Unknown to almost anyone else, the MiB
agent M left on Thursday as he was relatively certain
that this fell outside his jurisdiction.

	Jazz, special agent of Interpol, discovered
a dryad operating a tree-based dimensional gate, and
arranged for it to be shut down. Besides, he had to go
investigate something weird going on over at Nekomi
Technical Institute.

	Ryouga managed to get lost, while Shammi
considered this level of resistance to possibly mean
that: a) he wasn't interested in guys, or b) he was
already married. Ryouga continued to wander while
Shammi continued to track him. Rei Ga continued to
follow Shammi, as she felt that this particular soap
opera was of more interest than a quick return to the
village.

	Vanilla and Di Na went on to find
the Tendo residence and Shampoo. Di Na wondered
why her magic jar had "Vlasic Pickles" written on it,
and seemed not to be working. She wondered about
this for an entire ten seconds before starting off on a
tirade about little girls messing with their betters.

	Vanilla calmly and quietly interviewed one
of the household who was out jogging, reasoning that
since the girl in question seemed to be something of a
warrior (judging by the punches and kicks she threw 
while jogging) that she'd be the most calm and reasoned
member of the family.

	Vanilla was quite surprised to be attacked,
and was still trying to find a better translation dictionary
as the one she had was quite obviously flawed.

	Akane woke up shortly thereafter, knowing that
with those red eyes and pale skin, that she was being 
hunted by yet another vampire. How this one managed to
survive being out on a sunless day, she had no idea,  but
she would be ready THIS time.

	Everyone else tended to avoid her room due to
the large amount of garlic hanging from all available 
surfaces.
-------------------Tendo-ke, Nerima--------------
	Three days after the vampire attack, Genma 
and Soun exchanged a glance with raised eyebrows. 
Their plan had gone a little offtrack, but was otherwise
still viable.

	One keg of sake sat at their end of the table.
It was holding up quite well, as the two had merely been
sipping for most of the night.

	There had been some reluctance from the
various others, which had gradually eroded. Between
Shampoo and Kasumi, there had been considerable
amounts of food made, which had required something
to wash it down with.

	Kasumi had been sipping at some warm
sake, but was now spending a lot of time with a little
smile on her face and staring at some point in midair.

	Nabiki had protested at first but was 
currently flushed and had loosened her top as if she
were quite warm. She was also leaning against 
Ranma in what Genma viewed as a promising manner.

	Akane had passed out, which had 
disappointed Soun considerably.

	Shampoo was refilling cups again, and
looked like she would be joining Akane at any
moment.

	"Well, Saotome," Soun said to his
longtime friend. "I think we probably ought to go
check out that new bar, don't you?"

	"Quite right, Tendo." Genma smirked.
"We probably won't be back until morning."

	"Karaoke?" Nabiki's eyes tried to focus
on her father. She hadn't drunk THAT much, why
was her head so fuzzy? She felt her body relax itself
against Ranma. She felt SO warm.

	Featherbrite watched all this with some
satisfaction, now if the fathers would just get out
of the way, she could get on with her main task.

	Ranma excused himself, gently moved
Akane and Nabiki off of him, and made his way to
the toilet.

	Soun noted the way Ranma wobbled and
smiled. Everything was going as planned.

	"Aiyaaa, Shampoo need to get something
to eat. Not used to drinking this much..." Shampoo 
realized that maybe she should take a nap first.

	Genma waved his friend  into the back yard
where they could have a more private conversation.

	"The drugged sake is working," Genma
whispered to Soun.

	"If we put Nabiki and Ranma to bed, surely
the boy's shyness will be overwhelmed."

	"Then, with grandchildren on the way, they'll
HAVE to be married, and our plan to train the grandchild
as the Anything Goes Heir will be assured."
---------Kuno Estate, Nerima------------------
	Kodachi watched from the shadows as her
brother snuck off, wearing  his usual kendo outfit, to
the tree. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Did he have
some supply of drugs hidden within the tree?

	Tatewaki glanced around, then walked
confidently into the tree.

	Kodachi's jaw dropped. She knew there were
no hollows that could possibly conceal someone of her
brother's mass. She leapt the distance from her vantage
point to the ground, then towards the tree. No, there was
not a trace of anything amiss...

	Her hand passed into the solid wood of the tree,
and Kodachi managed a startled shriek as she was pulled
within.

	Sasuke came out a few minutes later but could
not find any trace of either.
---------Bar District, Nerima--------------------
	Genma came to a stop as a shape appeared
out of nowhere before him. The shock cleared most of the
sake-induced haze from his mind.

	"Mister Saotome, I have a business proposition
for you." The man lit a cigarette and placed his back against
a lightpost, calmly gazing at the martial artist in front of him.

	"Business? I don't know what you're talking about."

	"It's quite simple, Mister Saotome. Your son is a 
minor, under YOUR authority. I represent a group of people
who are...interested in some of the properties of that cursed
form of his."

	"So what's that got to do with me?" Genma tried to
clear the rest of the haze from his mind. He had the feeling 
that this was something important. He was also aware of 
others surrounding him. This many, while he was impaired
by the alcohol, might be more than he could handle.

	"I have here a contract, Mister Saotome. You
sign your son over to us, assist in his capture, and you get
a considerable sum of money. In addition, we'll assist you
with some of the costs involved in child raising as this is
something else we're quite...interested in seeing."

	"I don't know, the boy's my only heir, I..."

	Isao smirked at the man before him. "We're
not that Hisakawa person. Ranma is worth FAR more to
us alive and unharmed than vivisected. We want to do
this legally, however, at least as much as possible."

	"Hisakawa?" Genma couldn't remember the
name. Taking the contract he scanned over the first 
page but was having trouble focussing on the packed
text. It looked okay, he'd sign over his parental rights to
Ranma for the next two years, and he'd get...

	Genma looked up at the businessman before
him and licked suddenly dry lips. "Is this...accurate?"

	"Yes," Isao said with a nod. His eyes never
left Genma's own gaze. "Twenty million yen now, plus
we assist in the childbearing and childrearing costs,
even throw in something for the happy couple when they
marry in two years."

	Genma blinked. "Do you have a pen?"
=======================================



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