All Ranma characters are property of Rumiko Takahashi, first publishedby Shogakugan in Japan and brought over to North America by Viz Communications.
A Different Viewpoint: Curses and Demons
Chapter 22
Usagi and Mamoru had gotten halfway to Usagi's house when it had started raining. They had been walking arm in arm, savoring the last moments they were likely to have together for some time when the change occurred, and Mamoru's sudden transformation caught them both by surprise. Walking so close, Usagi felt the transformation at the same time as her boy/girl friend did, and they came to an abrupt halt. Mamoru stood there in shock, while Usagi turned toward her newly changed girlfriend and stared at the blond bishoten girl that her "Mamo-chan" had become. Mamoru had lost over half a foot in height and was now around Makoto's stature, although noticeably more slender.
Usagi smiled appreciatively after staring at the other girl for several seconds. "Beautiful." She stated sincerely. "Your girl side is beautiful, Mamo-chan." Mamoru blinked and frowned slightly, not sure how to take that, and Usagi noticed her consternation. "Oh no, I am such an idiot!" Usagi bopped herself in the head. "I shouldn't have said anything. You don't want to be a beautiful girl, you want to be a guy."
Mamoru smiled fondly at the pony tailed girl. "It's okay. I don't mind it if YOU think I'm beautiful, Usako." She sighed, glancing down at herself. "But you're right about one thing. I don't want to be a girl... not for you. I'm supposed to be your boyfriend, not your girlfriend."
Usagi giggled. "Poor mom was halfway convinced that I'm a lesbian. If I introduced you to her now, she'd be positive!"
Mamoru frowned. "That's not really all that funny, Usagi-chan."
Usagi sobered. "I'm sorry Mamo-chan, but in a way, she'd be right. When you're like this, you ARE my girlfriend." The odango haired girl reached up to her one true love's face and pulled her down for a kiss. "And right now, I don't care if I AM a lesbian or not." She kissed Mamoru again on the lips to prove her point, holding the kiss far beyond the point that would be considered innocent. Mamoru found herself returning the kiss, but something was off, distracting her, a pressure on her chest that hadn't been there before. Mamoru Chiba broke the kiss and pulled away as she realized the strange sensation had been from Usagi's breasts pressing up against the bottom of her own. She had been able to ignore the sensation at first, but the strangeness of it all had gotten to be too much for the newly christened girl very quickly.
Usagi looked up into Mamoru's face in concern. "Mamo-chan, what is it?"
Mamoru shook her head. "It's nothing... it's just my chest feels... strange." She shrugged helplessly. "I guess it's going to take longer than I thought to get used to this body."
Usagi's eyes went soft. "Oh my poor Mamo-chan." Abruptly she jumped forward to envelop the taller girl in a hug. Rather than serving to comfort, as she had intended, the hug drove home the differences in her body even stronger than before, causing Mamoru Chiba to freeze up completely. It had been either freeze up or squirm loose, and Mamoru was pretty sure that her girlfriend would take trying to escape the wrong way. Not that freezing up was much better. Usagi noticed at once and looked up into Mamoru's eyes questioningly once again. "Mamo-chan?" Her lip quivered slightly. "Can't I... even hug you anymore?"
The lip quiver smashed Mamoru's queasiness to pieces, and she hugged Usagi back tightly, quashing the alien feelings as strongly as she could. "Of course you can, Usako." She told her lady love reassuringly. "Like I said, I'm just not used to this body yet. It doesn't have anything to do with you."
Usagi sighed. "Oh, alright." The shorter girl laid her head down between Mamoru's breasts "innocently" and snuggled there for awhile, while Mamoru did her best not to jump out of her skin. When Usagi's knee "innocently" found its way between her legs, the older girl started to become suspicious.
"Usako...." Mamoru began with an artificially calm voice. "You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?" Usagi stiffened up, her face going red with embarrassment. To Mamoru that was a sure admittance of guilt. "Why? How would you like it if someone did the same thing to you?"
Usagi blushed even brighter red, her face taking on an almost dreamy expression. "If... if you want...."
Mamoru repressed a sigh and gently pulled free of her girlfriend. "Later, Usako." She said gently, kissing the shorter girl on the forehead. "I promise."
Usagi looked up into her eyes innocently. "When?"
Mamoru raised an eyebrow. "What makes me think that "when we're married" isn't going to be enough for you?"
Usagi giggled. "Because you're a mind reader?"
Mamoru didn't conceal her sigh this time. "Come on, Usagi, let's get you home before it's too late. Your parents aren't likely to let you out of the house for a month at the least. Let's not make it worse by waking them up at two in the morning."
Usagi sighed. "I am not looking forward to the lecture I'm going to get." She looked at Mamoru hopefully. "Can't I just stay at your place tonight? My parents will never know...."
Mamoru shook her head. "I'd know, and what if one of my neighbors spotted you spending the night? We're not married yet, you know."
Usagi pouted. "Luna's staying with you. How is that different?"
Mamoru shook her head. "I'm not going to marry Luna. I'm going to marry you. Besides, she doesn't have anywhere else to stay." Usagi frowned, not able to argue that point, and before she could think of another reason she should stay with her Mamo-chan, her communicator beeped at her.
Usagi got it out and spoke into the communicator irritably. "What is it, Rei?"
Rei raised an eyebrow at Usagi's tone. "Is Mamoru there, Usagi? Did you two make it in out of the rain yet?"
Usagi shook her head. "No, why?"
Rei sighed. "I'm worried about Mina and Ami. The Outers are together, but Ami and Mina are on their own. Makoto's gone after Mina. If she's turned into Akane she'll have no idea where she is."
Usagi gasped. "Oh no! I should have realized! And Ami will be a panther! We have to go find them, Mamo-chan!"
Mamoru hesitated. "Usako, you need to get home. I'll go look for Mina and Ami by myself. Your parents will by angry enough at you without having to wake up in the middle of the night."
Rei spoke up in agreement. "Mamoru's right, Usagi. You should go home. We'll find Ami and Mina."
Usagi frowned. "I can't go home while my friends are in trouble!"
"I'm sure they'll be fine." Mamoru started reasonably. "Ami is sure to head back to the shrine for some hot water, and Akane knows how to take care of herself."
Rei spoke up over the communicator again. "Yeah, Odango for brains! You're going to be grounded for life as it is, so get your meatballs back home!" Mamoru sighed as Usagi and Rei began a tongue war over the communicator, knowing what the outcome would be.
Over an hour later Mamoru half carried a soaked and exhausted Usagi up to her front door and set her down to sit on the porch. "Are you going to be alright?" She asked her beloved worriedly. "You seem a little pale."
Usagi shook her head. "No... I'm fine. It's just been a long day." She smiled up at her love. "I'll be fine, Mamo-chan. You should go home. I'm sure Luna is waiting up, and it's really late."
Mamoru Chiba nodded. "OK. Call me when you can, alright?"
Usagi giggled. "Of course I will, silly. I love you."
Mamoru smiled. "I love you too, Usako. Goodnight." The two girls shared a quick kiss and Mamoru ran off with a final wave. When the tall girl was out of sight Usagi shakily got to her feet and fumbled for her keys. The ponytailed girl opened the front door and staggered into her home with just a bit of difficulty.
"Ooh...." She moaned quietly. "I don't feel so good." Trying to be as quiet as possible, Usagi snuck along in her best ninja imitation, knocking over a coat rack in the process. She grabbed for it a moment to late and winced at the clatter it made as it hit the tiles of the entranceway. "Maybe no one heard it?" Usagi whispered to herself hopefully, slowly propping the rack back up on its legs. Crossing her fingers, she tiptoed into the living room and was headed for the stairs when the lights suddenly came on. Usagi turned to see her father, wearing his pajama bottoms and holding what looked like her younger brother's baseball bat in a ready position. Her mother and her younger brother Shingo himself were just behind her father, all three of them with various looks of astonishment on their faces.
Shingo recovered the quickest, his look of astonishment becoming one of annoyance. "Ah man, that's no burglar, it's just...."
"USAGI!!!" Ikuko Tsukino's scream cut off her youngest child in mid sentence as she rushed around her husband to reach her daughter. Grabbing her by the arms, Ikuko looked like she wanted to shake the girl till her teeth rattled but was restraining herself. "Usagi! Where have you been? Do you know how worried we've been? You're soaked, and you're shivering. Have you caught a cold?" Laying the back of her hand first against her own forehead, then Usagi's, Ikuko frowned. "You have a fever. What in the world were you thinking, running around in your summer dress in the middle of the night during a rainstorm? You're going to bed right this instant, young lady, but don't think you're going to get away without an explanation of where you've been." Ikuko's eyes softened. "You're dead on your feet, aren't you?"
Usagi nodded slowly, her mind whirling at her mother's abrupt change of pace. "I am a little sleepy."
Ikuko nodded briskly. "Then off to bed. You've had us worried sick, young lady, but we can talk about it in the morning." That said, Mrs. Tsukino escorted her daughter to bed, leaving her husband and son to glance at each other, shrug, and go back to bed themselves.
Minutes later, dry, warm, changed into her pajamas and laying in bed, Usagi heard a quiet knock on her door. "Come in." She said softly. Ikuko came into her room holding a thermometer.
Usagi's mother walked over and sat down on the edge of Usagi's bed and held the thermometer up. "Let's check your temperature properly, alright?" Usagi obediently took the thermometer and put it under her tongue, while her mother watched the clock. The silence was broken only by the light patter of rain, and neither of them seemed anxious to break it. "Alright." Ikuko said finally, turning away from the clock. "That should be long enough. Let me see it." Usagi wordlessly handed her the thermometer and her mother checked it, squinting a bit in the low light from the hall. "You'v got just a slight fever.." She announced after several moments. "Not too serious, I think. How are you feeling?"
Usagi hesitated. "Tired, mostly."
Ikuko nodded. "Alright, get some sleep." She sat there on the bed for half a minute, just looking at her daughter with a strange expression on her face, as if seeing her daughter for the very first time. "Could you tell me about it?" Usagi's mother finally asked softly. "Just a little?" Usagi hesitated again, this time for quite a bit longer than before. Ikuko spoke up again before she could answer. "At first we worried that you had been in an accident, or you had been kidnapped... we didn't know what to think! But you had packed a bag for a trip... so wherever you had gone, it was on purpose." She hesitated. "Coming so soon after our grounding you for that incident with Diana, we thought it might have something to do with her... or perhaps with that boy, Mamoru, but what we couldn't understand was why you didn't say anything at all. You've always been responsible, Usagi-chan, with the exception of your studies, so we finally decided that you must have had a good reason for not telling us where you were. We just didn't know what it could be."
Ikuko sat silently for several long moments. "I was so angry when you came home tonight. Angry, and relieved that you were alright... so I might have said some things in haste... but that doesn't change the fact that I worry about you. Can you tell me... tell me anything?"
Usagi was near tears, torn between her duty to her friends and her love for her mother, but after several seconds she shook her head, her eyes brimming. "I can't, momma. I WANT to, but I can't."
Ikuko was stunned. She had been half suspecting she would get this sort of response, but it didn't make the realization any easier. Her daughter was keeping something from her, something so big it could steal her away for almost a week, then bring her back again soaking wet, sans luggage, in the middle of the night. Numerous frightful possibilities raced through her head before she was able to calm down and get back in control of herself. She was greatly tempted to force her daughter to tell her what had happened, but some parental instinct warned her that her daughter would resist her this time, and that the level of persuasion that would be required might break their relationship irretrievably, if that wasn't already the case.
The pensive look on Usagi's face was proof enough that she'd have to tread carefully. Ikuko was suddenly tempted to just leave things till the morning, but at this point she realized neither she or Usagi would be able to sleep unless things were at least somewhat resolved. But what could she say at this point? Was there any decision that could be made that would let them both sleep tonight?
"I don't know what to do about this, Usagi." Ikuko finally admitted, feeling uncharacteristically vulnerable at the admission. "I want to help you, if I can, but I don't know how. I should punish you for leaving without telling us about it. I wish you would tell me what is going on! I can't protect you from something I don't know about. Can you at least tell me WHY you can't tell me? Are you in some sort of trouble? Is it something to do with Diana, or Chiba-san?"
Usagi shook her head immediately. "It's... it's nothing like that, mother."
Ikuko's hands shook. "Are you pregnant? On drugs? Running from the law? I don't care what you've done, Usagi. I'm your mother. I'll do anything to protect you, anything. I'll... I'll even protect your secrets, if that's the only way you'll trust me. I won't tell anyone else, not even your father if that's what you want. I'll do whatever I can, but I must help you!" Ikuko forced herself to stop as she finally realized just how hysterical she sounded. Usagi's mother shuddered and lowered her head. "I... won't force you to tell me, Usagi, but I worry about you."
Usagi shivered, then sat up slowly to look her mother in the eyes. "Mother." She said quietly, almost reproachfully. "I'm not pregnant, or taking drugs, or on the run from the law. I'm not in any kind of trouble at all. I... I just can't tell you why I left."
Ikuko sat back in bewilderment. "You're not in any trouble... you just can't tell me why you left?" She blinked, sitting back with a thoughtful expression. After half a minute she spoke again, her voice lighter, as if a great weight had been lifted from her. "It's not about you at all, is it? You're keeping this secret for someone else... someone you want to help?" She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. If you're keeping a secret for someone else I won't force you to tell me what it is." Usagi's mother raised an eyebrow. "As long as this secret doesn't put you in any danger?"
Usagi shook her head quickly. "It doesn't!" < Directly.>
Ikuko sighed, then nodded. "Very well, I believe you, Usagi. I know you wouldn't lie about something like this." She shot her daughter a look. "However, there is still the matter of where you were. You could have at least let us know you were alright!" She raised an eyebrow. "Unless wherever you were there weren't any phones?" Usagi shook her head, not willing to lie to her mother directly. Ikuko sighed. "Then you still have something to learn about being responsible, Usagi. As this is a first offense I'm only grounding you for one week. Don't let it happen again or I'll go much harder on you."
Usagi was astonished. "One week? That's all?"
Her mother raised her eyebrow again. "Do you think it should be more?"
Usagi started to protest, then stopped herself, much to her own surprise. "It's not that I want to be grounded any longer, but... this is the worst thing I've ever done... even if it was for a good reason. Why only a week?"
Ikuko looked at her daughter seriously. "Because you're growing up, Usagi-chan. You didn't try to lie or make up a story about what happened, you were willing to be punished to protect someone else, and because I'm so relieved you're back safe." She shook her head. "But I suppose this would set a bad example for your brother if I let you off so lightly. Let's say one month... two weeks with good behavior."
Usagi couldn't help but wince, but nodded. "That's fair."
Ikuko leaned over and kissed her daughter gently on the forehead. "Now get some sleep. You have school the day after tomorrow, and you need to get better before then." She stood and left, pausing to close the door behind her. "Goodnight, Usagi."
"Goodnight, momma."
As she walked down the hall to her own room, Ikuko fumed. Usagi wasn't the problem. If there was one thing Ikuko knew about her daughter, it was that she had a pure and loving heart. She would never have gotten in such a mess on her own. She wouldn't dishonor her daughter by forcing her to reveal who she was protecting, but nothing was keeping her from finding out for herself. Whoever it was, for what they had done to her daughter, they would pay!
**********************
Keichi woke up that morning with a headache. He had been waiting up for the goddesses to return the night before, but when they had finally returned, teleporting into the bathroom, courtesy of Skuld, Urd and Skuld had kept him from going in to see Belldandy.
Urd had simply stood in his path holding up a hand. "Better not go in there, Keichi." She had warned with a wink. "My younger sister's clothing was all destroyed in a magical explosion and she's too embarrassed to let you see her right now." She hesitated. < More because she's a giantess right now than because she's not wearing much.> Urd suddenly shrugged with a grin and stepped aside. "On second thought, go right in."
Keichi had hesitated for only a moment, weighing the embarrassment of a naked Belldandy vs. the possibility that she might have been hurt. He had started forward again, and the last thing he remembered was Skuld yelling at him and something hard striking him on top of his head. He had woken up in bed, so either Belldandy or Urd, probably Belldandy, had put him to bed after Skuld had knocked him out. Remembering what Urd had said, Keichi sat up with a start, putting a hand to his nose as an image of a naked Belldandy came into his head. He couldn't help but imagine the light skinned goddess being caught in a bright explosion, her clothing being blown away as she cried out....
"Belldandy!" Keichi jumped out of bed, hurriedly getting dressed. < What if she was hurt? I've got to see if she's alright!> Keichi rushed out of his room and nearly tripped on the reddish brown fox that was laying in front of his doorway. "What in the...?" He regarded the fox cautiously and it looked back at him with calm blue eyes. "Oh, you must be one of Belldandy's friends?" Keichi asked. The fox appeared to think about that for a moment, then nodded. "Do you know where she is?" The fox nodded again and started down the hall, looking back at him expectantly to see if he was following. Keichi followed the fox into the living room, where Urd was laying back restfully against a large Bengal tiger while watching TV.
"Hiya kiddo." Urd said with a wave as he came in. "What's up?" Keichi stopped in mid stride as he realized exactly what Urd was so comfortably curled up with on the living room floor. The fox stopped as well, looking back at him patiently, waiting for him to continue following.
Keichi put his hand behind his head, trying not to appear too nervous at the sight of the large predator with Urd. "Er... I was just looking for Belldandy.... Why is there a tiger in our living room?"
Urd grinned wickedly at him, producing a steaming kettle from thin air and holding it up to show him. "I can answer both those questions at the same time if you like."
Keichi blinked. "With a kettle?"
Urd nodded mischievously. "Yup. Just remember, you asked!" With that, Urd poured a healthy dose of hot water over the tiger she was resting on, causing the huge animal to shrink down into a naked Belldandy. Urd continued to rest on her now completely embarrassed sibling, rolling over a bit to lay on top of her like a picture out of a hentai magazine. "Well, Keichi?" Urd asked smugly. "Which do you like best? The lady, or the tiger?"
As Keichi gaped in astonishment, the fox he had been following went over to Urd and started to bark at her, sounding rather annoyed. The Belldandy underneath Urd was too busy being embarrassed to scold her older sibling and lay still, trying to think of a way to get up without exposing herself fully to Keichi. As Urd was currently the only thing preserving her modesty, however poorly, she couldn't think of a way to yell at her without causing her older sister to relinquish that protection. The fox, however, not quite sharing her perspective, continued to berated Urd for her thoughtlessness, knowing full well that Urd could understand her if she listened carefully.
Urd, however, pretended not to understand. "What is that, Bell-vixen-chan? You feel left out? You'd like some hot water too?" The fox's eyes widened and she started to back away, but Urd splashed her before she got out of range, causing the vixen to grow into another naked Belldandy, this one on all fours.
Keichi staggered back, his hand going up to his nose to stop an incipient nose bleed. "What in the... two Belldandys? Urd... what did you do?"
"I'm so sorry, Keichi." Belldandy-tiger began. "I had meant to explain this all a little slower...."
"Urd!" Belldandy-vixen glared at her older sister while covering herself up as best as she could with her hands. "You know perfectly well I wasn't asking for hot water! How could you pull such an irresponsible prank!"
"You see..." Bell-tiger went on. "There was a bit of an accident at Jusenkyo...."
Urd shrugged at her ex-vixen sibling. "I just can't help myself. How can I make it up to you?"
Bell-vixen sighed. "Well, you could loan us some clothing. Bell-one has most of our power today, as she's gone up with Skuld to help debug the system."
Keichi had one hand over his eyes. (although he couldn't help but peek out a bit between his fingers) "An accident? What kind of accident? Why are there two of you, and why were you a fox and a tiger?"
Urd shrugged to Bell-vixen. "Sure, if you want." The bronze skinned goddess started to pull her dress up over her head. When she had gotten it up past her waist Belldandy-vixen gasped in shock and grabbed the hem to tug it back down. His eyes caught by the sudden movement, Keichi couldn't help but notice that Urd's platinum blond hair color was perfectly natural before Bell-vixen was able to tug Urd's dress back down again.
"Urd!" Belldandy-vixen scolded. "You're not wearing any underwear?"
Urd shrugged again. "Nope. Did you want to borrow my underwear too?"
Belldandy-vixen sighed. "Never mind, Urd. Just leave your dress on."
Belldandy-tiger was still trying to explain to Keichi. "Well you see, Keichi, Jusenkyo is filled with magical springs... um Keichi... Keichi?"
Keichi forced his eyes back on Bell-tiger's face with an act of will. "Eep! Sorry Belldandy I was... um... a little distracted."
Bell-tiger smiled just slightly, then shook her head. "It's perfectly alright, Keichi. Now, as I was saying...."
"Excuse me, what's going on?" A pleasant, familiar voice called from the direction of the kitchen, and yet another Belldandy, this one fully clothed, poked her head into the room. "Oh my!" Taking in the scene in moments, she walked over to Bell-vixen while taking off her apron, handed the apron to her, then started to undo the buttons on her jumper. "I hope you don't mind too much, Keichi-san, if I disrobe...?" She sounded nervous, smiling faintly when Keichi shook his head silently. "Thank you, Keichi, I do apologize if this disturbs you." Keichi shook his head again, not able to speak, and trying not to choke in surprise as the new Belldandy removed her jumper and handed it to her twin laying under Urd.
Belldandy stood up, still moderately decent in her blouse and white socks and looked at Urd, who was still holding the incriminating kettle. "Urd. Is this your doing?" A gold and black banded hawk flew into the room about then, landing on the still partially dressed Belldandy's shoulder, and chirping inquisitively. Belldandy nodded to what the hawk was saying. "Yes, just what HAVE you been doing, Urd?"
Urd held up the kettle and poured its remaining contents over the hawk in one smooth motion. "This." She explained, grinning as yet another naked Belldandy appeared, this one perched awkwardly on her twin's shoulder. Hawk Belldandy windmilled her arms frantically then toppled backwards. Throwing off his shock Keichi leaped forward to catch her, managing to get himself underneath her just in time to break her fall. Laying there under just over a hundred pounds of warm, slightly damp and naked girl, Keichi was tempted to faint, but by this time he had gotten so used to weird things happening on a regular basis that all he could manage was a mild gibber.
Bell-hawk turned over in concern, inadvertently giving Keichi a close up look at everything her other selves had been trying to cover up. "Keichi!" She cried worriedly. "Are you alright?"
Keichi focused on her face, pulling his eyes away from the rest of her with a truly commendable amount of willpower. "I'm... I'm alright, Belldandy. I'm just... a little confused." Bell-hawk sat up slowly, belatedly covering up as best as she could with her hands.
The Belldandy from the kitchen silently placed her blouse over Bell-hawk's shoulders, then turned to Urd, now wearing only her socks and white cotton underwear. "I think you've had enough fun for today, Urd-san." She said in her stiffest voice.
Urd raised an eyebrow, glancing at her now empty kettle. "Well, I DO need more hot water." She winked at Keichi. "So, care to join me? We can find some more animals to pour hot water on...?"
All four Belldandys' protested loudly. "URD!!!"
The goddess of the past laughed and took off. "OK, OK, I know when I'm not wanted." She paused just as she left the room. "Have fun with your harem, Keichi!" Urd vanished and Keichi couldn't help but glance around, swallowing hard. Four Belldandys', sharing one outfit, made for an incredibly appealing picture, but the one on his lap was bound to notice how much this was effecting him any moment now. If she noticed, however, Belldandy-hawk gave no sign.
Belldandy-fox spoke up first, standing up and smoothing out her borrowed apron. "I am so very sorry about this, Keichi." The other Belldandy's nodded in agreement.
Bell-tiger finished putting on the jumper, noting that it was sufficient, if barely, to cover her chest, and sat up. "As I was saying earlier, due to our exposure to the springs of Jusenkyo, we... Belldandy that is, picked up seven different Jusenkyo curses."
Keichi blinked. "What exactly is a Jusenkyo curse?"
Bell-tiger explained as concisely as she could. "Jusenkyo is a valley full of springs. Each one has had something, or someone drown there at one time or another. Whenever someone falls into such a spring, they take on the body of whatever drowned there. Hot water will change a cursed person back to normal, but only until the next time they are splashed with cold water, which reactivates the curse."
Keichi blinked. "Okay... but why are there so many of you?"
Bell-tiger sighed. "The first pool I fell into was the spring of drowned twins. I reacted... poorly upon falling into it and overloaded it, causing instead of just one duplicate of me, eleven extra Belldandys to be created."
Keichi's eyes were wide. "You mean there are a dozen of you?" He gulped. "And the other six curses?"
Bell-fox spoke up. "The explosion caused by our falling into and overloading the spring of drowned twins caused the rest of us to go flying. Six of us fell into other springs, Bengal tiger, deer, fox, ferret, cat, and gold and black banded hawk. The other five of us landed between the pools, and did not receive a second curse."
Keichi hesitated for several seconds before speaking. "I think I've got it. You got split into twelve Belldandys, and half of you turn into animals when you get splashed with cold water, right?"
All the Belldandys nodded, looking pleased. "That's right, Keichi." Belldandy-tiger answered for the group. "There's a bit more to it, but that's generally it."
Keichi nodded, then hesitated. "Um... so what do I call you all?"
Belldandy-fox spoke up. "Urd has been calling us by our animal curses. I'm Belldandy-fox, or Bell-fox, for example."
"The rest of us having been going by number." The Belldandy from the kitchen chimed in. "The original Belldandy is Belldandy-one, I'm Belldandy three."
Keichi nodded slowly. "Hello Bell-three. So... where are all the rest of you?"
Belldandy-three blinked. "Oh. Well Bell-ferret, Bell-deer, and Bell-cat are out practicing with their cursed forms outside. Bell-two is out shopping right now. Bell-one, four, five and six are helping Skuld with debugging. A large number of bugs cropped up after our trip to Jusenkyo, as much from our accident, I think, as from all of the Senshi that were cursed."
Keichi blinked. "The Senshi got cursed too?"
Belldandy-three nodded. "Several of them. It may make things difficult for them in the future. We may have to intercede on their behalf again." Seeming to notice her state of undress as if for the first time, Belldandy-three blushed slightly. "I think we should go change, just in case company shows up unexpectedly."
Keichi nodded quickly. "That's a good idea."
The four Belldandys smiled at him. "We'll be right back." Together they headed for their bedroom. Keichi stayed in the living room, sitting where he had fallen, a bemused look on his face.
Images of naked and half dressed Belldandys wafted through his mind's eye, and he allowed himself to indulge in fantasy for several moments before shaking his head sharply. "What am I thinking? Belldandy's not that kind of girl. She's not doing it on purpose." He blew out a breath, remembering once again Belldandy-hawk sitting in his lap, a silly grin plastered on his face. He was so distracted that he didn't even notice the cat that had slipped into the living room until it was right in front of him. Keichi blinked, glancing down at the small brown cat sitting patiently in front of him. This time he recognized the eyes and the goddess symbol on its forehead immediately, and he smiled in welcome. "Hello Bell-cat. The other Belldandys explained what happened to you." Bell-cat nodded, then quirked her head sideways slightly, as if asking a question.
Keichi scratched his head. "Um, can I help you with something?" Belldandy-cat seemed to consider that, then nodded. Keichi hesitated. "Er... would you like some hot water?" He blushed and punched himself in the head. "Idiot. I'm sorry, Belldandy, I'm not thinking straight. If I poured hot water on you, you wouldn't... er... you know." Bell-cat nodded again and her eyes seemed to twinkle in amusement. She put a paw up on his leg and looked questioningly at him again. "Um... would you like me to pick you up?" Bell-cat nodded. Keichi complied, reaching down and carefully gathering her up and placing her on his lap. "So soft..." He whispered to himself, and Bell-cat looked pleased and embarrassed at the same time. Keichi started to stroke her fur automatically, not thinking about what he was doing for several seconds.
When he did notice Keichi gulped and pulled his hands away. "Ach! I'm sorry Belldandy, I didn't mean...." Bell-cat was looking up at him with a slightly disappointed expression. She stood up on her hind legs and butted the top of her head against his hand. Keichi blinked. "You want me to pet you?" Bell-cat hesitated, then nodded, looking embarrassed. Keichi swallowed, then went back to stroking the cat's soft fur.
As Bell-cat luxuriated in the unfamiliar but extremely pleasurable sensations of being thoroughly petted, the other Belldandys were finishing getting dressed in their bedroom. Bell-hawk was relating to her other selves, blushing as she did so, what it had been like to be in such a very intimate situation with Keichi.
"He was... aroused...." Bell-hawk related with a huge, pleased blush. "He was... I could feel him... pressing against my thigh...." She blushed even brighter, not able to keep the silly grin off her face, now that she was talking about it.
"What she we do about it?" Bell fox wondered, blushing almost as badly as Bell-hawk.
"You want to know what you should do about it?!?" Urd burst in incredulously. "You've got to be kidding me!" The four Belldandys turned to look at Urd, who had been standing in their doorway, listening in on their conversation.
As one they protested. "Urd!"
The older goddess raised an eyebrow. "What, no thanks? Now you know how he really feels about you, right? So go for it! Jump his bones! Rock his world, do the horizontal mombo!"
All four Belldandys were aghast. "I couldn't! It's not my place to.... But how can I...?" They all began at the same time.
"Of course you can." Urd assured her. "You just have to go in there and seduce...." She frowned. "On second thought, you'd just screw that up." The bronze skinned goddess walked over to Belldandy's bed. "OK, lets try a little role playing. I'll be Keichi, and you...." She pointed to Bell-hawk. "You'll be Belldandy... yourself, that is." She patted the bed next to her. "Go ahead, sit down. I'll talk you through it."
Bell-hawk sat down next to Urd nervously. "So you're going to pretend to be Keichi?"
Urd nodded. "You bet. I've got him pretty much figured out by now. I can tell you just how he'll react."
The Belldandys looked skeptical. "Really?"
Urd blinked. "Whoa. This stereo thing is going to take some getting used to." She nodded. "Yes, with a 91% accuracy, at least in the latest tests."
Bell-hawk sighed. "But... what do I say?"
"Well..." Urd mused. "Why not just tell him how YOU feel, and ask him how he feels?" She looked thoughtful. "Or even better, just keep it casual. Ask him what he'd LIKE. Make a statement about how well your relationship is going, and that you wouldn't object to taking the next step, then ask him what he'd like."
"What he'd like?" Belldandy-hawk asked questioningly.
Urd nodded. "Yep. Then just let him know that you'd welcome anything he offers."
Belldandy blinked. "Well of course I would."
Urd sighed. "But you have to let him know that! Trust me, unless he knows that it's something you want too, he won't make a single solitary move! This is the most important part, Belldandy. You've got to make it absolutely clear that it's OK with you for him to do... well, to do anything he wants to with you, am I right?" All four Belldandys nodded shyly. Urd shook her head. "Kids. You make things too complicated." She gave Belldandy-hawk an appraising look. "Keichi can be pretty dense about this stuff, so if he doesn't start things "on the next level" right away, it's because he still doesn't get it. So if that happens you'll have to hint at what you'd like, and keep hinting until he gets it." Urd nodded. "OK, go ahead, I'll be Keichi. Talk to me."
Belldandy-hawk hesitated, then nodded. "Alright." She looked at Urd with warmth, obviously thinking of her beloved. "Keichi-san, things have been going very well between us, haven't they?"
Urd nodded, a soft smile lighting up her face, having gotten fully into the role. "It has been nice, Bell-hawk-san."
Belldandy-hawk smiled back. "I wouldn't mind if we had an even closer relationship, Keichi. What about you? What would you like?"
Urd looked like she was taken aback. "Me? I don't know, Belldandy. What more could I possibly ask for? I can't imagine how things could be better."
Bell-hawk blinked. "Wait a moment Urd. I thought you said that Keichi would want me too... well... to take our relationship to the next level, but now you're saying he's happy with things as they are."
Urd sighed. "Is this why it's been taking you two so long? Sure he's happy, but he won't admit that he might want more, because he's afraid he'll lose what he's already got."
Belldandy looked shocked. "Does he really think that?"
Urd nodded. "Didn't you know? He's scared he'll lose you, so he'll take things slow forever unless you encourage things. So stick to the script. Let him know that you're not going anywhere, and that you'll do anything he wants, or let him do anything he like to you for that matter." Belldandy-hawk hesitated, unsure how to proceed. Urd waited patiently, going back into character, although she was seething in impatience inside.
Finally Belldandy-hawk acted. "Are you sure, Keichi-san? I would like it very much if I could... if we could... get even closer than we are."
Urd blinked in faked confusion. "Closer? What do you mean, Belldandy?"
Belldandy-hawk, fully into character herself, smiled gently. "Closer, Keichi-san, as in physically, mentally closer."
Urd, playing Keichi to the hilt, gasped in confusion. "Belldandy...?"
Belldandy-hawk put action to her words and slowly slid closer to Urd until their hips met. "I... love... you." She said slowly, emphasizing each word. "Do you understand? My heart is yours, my mind is yours..." She slowly pressed herself against her older sister. "My BODY is yours." Belldandy-hawk emphasized. "Because I love you so... and I wouldn't wish it any other way." Slowly she moved in even closer, then kissed Urd on the lips. Urd, surprised by the turn in their "rehearsal" sat there and let herself be kissed. After a moment, however, she got back into character and responded, kissing back fervently. They were both so busy playing out the scene that they missed the sound of Belldandy's door opening.
"Belldandy!" Came a shocked voice. "What in the world are you doing kissing Urd?"
Bell-hawk broke away from her older sister instantly, blushing red in embarrassment. "Oh my. This isn't what it looks like, really." She looked at the towel clad Belldandy standing in the doorway in concern. "You see, Urd is just helping us to rehearse."
The towel clad Belldandy raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Rehearse?" She blushed. "Oh... for Keichi." She glanced down the hallway and sighed. "Oh dear." She walked out of sight of the others. "Keichi?"
Keichi, who had, unfortunately been in hearing range when Bell-cat had walked in on Bell-hawk and Urd rehearsing, blinked in confusion. "Er... did you just say that... um... that Urd and one of you were... rehearsing... kissing?" He blushed. "For me?" Keichi twiddled his fingers. "Well... if you wanted to practice... kissing I mean... I wouldn't mind... practicing with you."
Belldandy-cat smiled happily. "That sounds like a wonderful idea, Keichi! She stepped up to him and put her arms around his waist. "Why don't we start practicing right now?"
Keichi's eyes went warm and he nodded. The two of them melded together in a kiss so naturally that it appeared they had been lovers for years.
Urd, who had slipped out into the hallway to watch, sighed. "It figures. After all that work they don't need my help after all." She glanced around at the other Belldandys standing around her in dismay. They were all smiling warmly at Bell-cat and Keichi, looking blissfully content. Urd almost groaned. < If it gets any more warm and fuzzy in here I'll suffocate! Oh well, might as well give Keichi a present before I vamoose.> Urd slipped over to the TV and turned it on, getting ready to step through. As she passed through the glass, however, she made a pulling motion with one hand. Bell-cat's towel promptly fell off, pooling around her ankles. Locked in the kiss, neither she or Keichi appeared to notice. The other Belldandys, however, certainly did, and they all went pink in embarrassment at the same time. Urd winked at them, putting a finger to her lips. "Don't interrupt the love birds now!" With a giggle she was gone.
The Belldandys glanced at each other and sighed.
*********************
Kasumi, as usual, was the first one awake at the Tendo home that morning. It had been a late night for all of them, and she hadn't slept as well as she normally would. It was as much due to her worry for the new Akane, Minako's cursed form, and Ranma, who hadn't returned by the time she had finally went to sleep that night, as from the cramped conditions of the bed she shared with her husband and Misty. Before her marriage it had seemed luxurious in size. Shared with Johnathon it was cozy, but with three adults it was cramped. By mutual agreement, Misty and she had taken opposite sides of the bed, on either side of their husband, but it had left her feeling like she might fall out of bed at any moment. Nevertheless, bleary eyed or not, the morning sun peeking in her window was a clarion wake up call she could not ignore.
As she rose, Kasumi noticed Misty waking up as well and reached carefully over Johnathon to lay a hand on her furred twin's arm. Misty looked over at Kasumi, who smiled reassuringly at her and silently mouthed at her to stay with their husband. Misty nodded, equally silent, and lay back down carefully next to Johnathon. Their husband started to stir awake as Kasumi got dressed, but Misty wrapped herself around him from the side, and he sank back into unconsciousness with a contented sigh. Kasumi smiled brightly at her twin, grateful that Johnathon would be able to get a bit more sleep, then slipped out of their room, still pulling on her clothing.
After bathing, Kasumi started on breakfast, then checked the time. Her father had not been present when they had arrived home late the night before, having most likely went over to stay with the Saotomes while their house was empty. By now he would be awake, having breakfast with the Saotomes, probably. Kasumi went to the phone and started dialing.
"Auntie Nodoka? Yes, it's Kasumi. Well yes, it is a good connection. Actually we're not in China any longer, we're home. We arrived last night. It was quite late when we returned...." Kasumi winced, suddenly remembering that Ranma hadn't gotten back by the time she had gone to bed, then reasoned that Akane would have probably been up before now if he had still been missing. "Hmm? I'm sorry, Auntie, what was that? Oh, how did we get back so quickly?" Kasumi hesitated. "It's quite a long story, Auntie. Why don't you bring father and Genma-san with you for lunch this afternoon, and we'll tell you the whole story all at once." Kasumi listened for several moments. "Yes, that would be very nice of you, Auntie. Alright... yes, we'll expect you around noon. Good-bye."
Kasumi hung up the phone and sighed. She felt slightly guilty about delaying the inevitable confrontation. It wasn't as if Nodoka-san, Genma-san or her father wouldn't be supportive and understanding, but the emotional scene that would follow the telling of their tale was not something she was looking forward to. They hadn't really fared that badly, Kasumi reasoned. Things would have been much worse if Clio and Mara had accomplished their plan, but as it was they were not all that badly off. The only one who had gotten cursed was herself, and the addition of a pair of wings and clawed and taloned hands and feet was not an exceedingly terrible curse, as curses went. Being stuck as a cat had been considerably worse. Of course, Misty was still stuck in her cursed form, but being stuck as a cat girl was in many ways an improvement over being stuck as a cat.
There were still some problems, of course, but nothing they hadn't planned on. It was the Senshi that had paid the true price of Mara and Cliopatra's attack. Her own curse she could deal with, but Kasumi felt horrible that Mamoru, Mina, Haruka, Ami and Setsuna-san had all been cursed while helping them. Checking the stove, Kasumi noted that breakfast would be ready in just under twenty minutes at the slow simmer she had it at. She decided to go upstairs to let everyone know, so they could wake up for breakfast if they wished.
There was some faint giggling coming from Ranma's old room, where Ranko and Ukyo had gone to sleep the night before, so Kasumi went to that door first. "Breakfast will be ready in twenty minutes."
The giggling petered out and Ukyo's voice came back after a moment. "OK, Kasumi, we'll be there."
Smiling to herself, Kasumi went to Akane's room and knocked. "Akane? Ranma? Breakfast in twenty minutes!"
"Alright Kasumi." Akane answered back in a sleepy voice. Kasumi went to Nabiki's room and repeated the procedure. She got another sleepy acknowledgment and moved on to her own room. From the faint noises coming from inside her room it seemed that Johnathon and Misty were already awake, and apparently active. Kasumi hesitated, debating whether or not to interrupt.
< How should I handle this?> She wondered. < Misty and Johnathon certainly have every right to... do what they're doing, and it would be rude to interrupt... wouldn't it?> She frowned slightly in thought. < If Misty walked in on Johnathon and me, how would I feel?> Kasumi was so preoccupied with that question that she failed to notice the sounds from the bedroom had stopped, and she was startled when the door opened up a crack.
"Kasumi?" Misty peeked out shyly. "Why don't you come in?"
Kasumi blinked. "Oh my... I didn't interrupt anything, I hope?"
Misty shook her head. "No Kasumi, we were just... practicing, really. We were just wondering why you didn't come in."
Kasumi hesitated, then shook her head. "I didn't want to intrude."
Misty reached out a hand and took one of Kasumi's hands in her own. "Don't be silly. How could you be intruding?" Gently she pulled Kasumi into the room. "We're both married to Johnathon. I wouldn't want any of us to feel uncomfortable about..." She hesitated. "About being with one another."
Kasumi nodded. "I agree, but how should we handle this exactly? Should I just... walk in... no matter what you happen to be doing?"
Misty hesitated. "Well... I don't think I would mind, Kasumi. I have no secrets from you, after all."
Kasumi nodded again. "I suppose it would be alright with me too. What do you think, Johnathon?"
Johnathon Dwire-Tendo frowned just slightly, tapping a claw lightly against the bedpost. "Well, in theory it sounds good, but... there are some times when an interruption would be... well... unfortunate." He held up a furred hand to moderate his statement. "Not that either of you would EVER be unwelcome, but a surprise at the wrong moment could be slightly unpleasant."
Both Kasumi and Misty's faces lit up in sudden understanding. "Oh!" They said together. Kasumi nodded to Misty, who continued. "I do understand, Johnathon." She couldn't blush, but Kasumi did it for her as she continued. "It... requires a great deal of concentration, doesn't it?"
Johnathon coughed. "Well, not so much that one of you coming in would... distract me... unless it was by surprise." He shook his head wryly. "This is not a normal conversation, I think." The half-cat man shrugged. "I don't want either of you to feel like you can't join us at any time... just... try not to do so by surprise, at least not when things are... er... especially intense."
Kasumi and Misty exchanged another glance, then nodded. "That sounds like a very reasonable compromise, Johnathon." Kasumi said, speaking for the pair. "Don't you think so, Misty?"
The cat girl nodded. "I agree completely." She went over to the bed and sat down next to their husband. "Now that that's settled, would you... care to join us, Kasumi? We were just... exploring... the changes in my body. It's quite remarkable how alike Johnathon and I are now."
Kasumi blinked, noticing all of a sudden how very similar they did look. Johnathon hadn't bothered to change back to his human form before going to bed, but Kasumi had grown so used to his transformation that she had hardly noticed the difference. When she considered it, however, Johnathon and Misty looked almost like siblings, unmistakably the same species. Something tugged at the back of her mind at that thought, but she couldn't quite grasp what it was that had disturbed her.
Pushing the errant thought away, Kasumi smiled brightly. "That does sound like fun, but I still have to let Ryoga know about breakfast, and get everything ready...." She hesitated, suddenly looking slightly disappointed. Her disappointment immediately became a look of mild confusion before she concealed both emotions with another quick smile. The look of disappointment had been quick, and Johnathon might have missed it if he hadn't been watching Kasumi closely for just such a look, but the look of confusion lasted long enough for Misty to notice as well.
"Kasumi?" Both half-cats spoke at once. "Wait... What's wrong?" They said together. They turned to each other, then Misty gestured for Johnathon to speak. He did so, turning to Kasumi in concern. "Why don't we get up and help you fix breakfast, Kasumi?"
Misty broke in. "Or I could go and you could stay here with Johnathon until it's time to eat...?"
Kasumi, slightly alarmed by their sudden distress, shook her head wildly. "No!" She blushed bright red. "Oh dear, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to yell." She shook her head again. "I'm not jealous. I'm not!" Kasumi clenched her hands into fists, more upset with herself than Johnathon had seen her ever get with anyone, save Cliopatra.
"Whoa." He raised his hands placatingly. "Slow down, Kasumi-chan." Johnathon got out of bed and went to her side, gathering her up in a hug. "It's okay, it's okay."
Misty was only a hair behind him and she grabbed on to Kasumi every bit as tightly as their husband did. "It is okay." Misty emphasized. "It's okay to be jealous, Kasumi. I was... I was jealous too. It doesn't mean you love any less, just that you're human."
Kasumi pulled back slightly and shook her head, her eyes still showing confusion. "No... it's not that I'm jealous. It's not like that at all." She frowned slightly. "It's hard to explain, but I know that's not it." She had both Johnathon and Misty's rapt attention from several inches away and Kasumi tried not to blush as she explained. "The thought of you two together... making love... that only makes me happy!" Her eyes were bright and Kasumi smiled with a great affection. "You don't know how wonderful it is to hear your joy with each other. I couldn't possibly be jealous of that."
Johnathon quirked his head in confusion. "Then why? Maybe I was reading too much into it, but you looked.... I don't know, unhappy? Confused? Was I wrong?"
Misty shook her head. "I saw it too, Kasumi, and I think I know you pretty well. Something was definitely bothering you. Please don't hide it from us."
Kasumi hesitated, eyes turning up slightly in thought. "I... I was confused. All of a sudden I felt a sense of loss... and I didn't know why. I felt disappointed... and for a moment I was frightened, but now I know why I was feeling the way I did. I had just realized that you're exploring... well, your sexuality in your new body for the first time. It... it won't ever be like this again for you... and I... I wanted to experience this with you... very much so."
Misty's eyes went wide, and it was obvious that if she could have been blushing she would have. "Oh... Oh my."
Kasumi pursed her lips, looking hesitant. "That is... if it's alright would you if I mind my being here...?"
Misty looked up into Kasumi's eyes with love. "Oh yes! It is more than alright. I'd love it if you were with me!" Misty swallowed. "I really would... I'm just a bit nervous about... losing my virginity again... in a sense, at least."
Johnathon smiled. "We'd both be happy to have you share this with us, Kasumi. Why don't we postpone things till after breakfast, though. We should take our time with this. Best not to rush things."
Kasumi and Misty nodded. "Good idea, husband." They said together, then giggled.
"Johnathon and I will clean up." Misty decided.
"And I'll finish getting breakfast ready." Kasumi replied. "I still need to wake Ryoga-kun up."
Johnathon smiled in anticipation. "Now I'm really looking forward to breakfast." He winked. "We're all going to need our strength."
End of Chapter 22
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