Monlon entered the stream and stopped as soon as the water reached her ankles; she was careful to remain near the shore while enjoying the way the freshwater cleaned her feet.

She smiled and then curled and uncurled her toes a few times, pleased by the relaxing sensation provided by the cool river waters. The woman was glad the weather wasn't that cold yet, because then she would've had to use a wet rag to clean her feet, something that wouldn't have been as refreshing as this.

Once she felt she was clean enough she returned to the camp and dried her feet with a small towel, appreciating that even if she preferred to go barefoot, her feet retained their petite and elegant form, a testament of how well she cared for them. Once satisfied, the musician looked right, to where the twins were silently starting a fire they intended to use to cook them all dinner, just as she had instructed.

'They still don't talk much, do they?' She thought. It was not surprising the twins were still a bit shy when it came to starting a conversation; after all Daikokuse and Daihakuse were not only the youngest members of the Seven, they had also been members of the group for less than two months. 'I'm still amazed they were accepted, but then again their skills impressed him enough to recommend the twins take his position when he was assigned to…'

A good memory of time spent with someone filled her thoughts then, and Monlon looked up at the moon as she recalled this person, wondering where he was and if he was doing well with the special training he was being given.

"We used to spend so much time together, didn't we?" She whispered with a wistful sigh.

"Did you say something?" Daikokuse asked.

"We didn't catch what it was," Daihakuse completed.

"It was nothing important," Monlon said, a bit shy and hoping the twins didn't press the issue as she didn't want to reveal who she was thinking of. "I was... just thinking out loud."

"Oh… well, the fire is ready," Daihakuse commented.

"Which means dinner will be done soon," his twin affirmed.

"Excellent," she told them with a smile. "Would you two like to listen to some music in the meantime?"

"Music would be nice," the twins said at the same time and returned the smile.

With a nod, Monlon reached for her lute and started playing, entertaining both herself and the twins while they waited for their meals.

----------------------------------------

A few minutes later...

"I found a girl in Bao, a waitress with orange-blonde hair, at first I thought she was the one we are looking for, but her hair isn't as red as Herb described it to Lord Kirin," Monlon explained as she placed her now-empty bowl of rice next to the fire; she had finished eating, and thought it was time to share what she had discovered with the twins. "I was ready to leave town and start asking around in the farms, but then I heard that this waitress does know a redhead and where she lives, and considering the leads, I got in Shangjie and the fact there aren't many redheads in the region, I am quite confident that is the girl the Musk are after."

"That's great news!" Daikokuse said, perking up a bit from where he sat near the fire.

"Yeah, that means this job's as good as done!" Daihakuse added, likewise energized.

"I'm afraid it's not so easy, there is a big obstacle," Monlon warned. "The waitress owns an elephant, and the animal is not only quite protective of its master, but it appears to have been trained for combat... that beast can put out a battle aura, unlike anything I've seen."

"How is that a problem?" Both twins asked, scratching their right cheek in unison.

"We could simply ask the girl where the redhead is..." Daihakuse started.

"And avoid any trouble with that elephant of hers." Daikokuse finished.

"Well… yes, that's true, but from what I heard I don't think the waitress will share the information willingly," Monlon observed, hiding the fact she had been so focused on finding the girl she had forgotten they could simply talk to her. "But you do have a point, we will ask her tomorrow and with some luck, she'll agree to tell us what we want to know."

"Good, I don't want to try fighting an elephant, and you Daihakuse?" Said Daikokuse, glancing at his twin.

"I certainly don't, brother," he answered. "Other martial artists I will fight, but an angry elephant? I'd rather not." Daihakuse added, shutting his eyes.

"We must be ready for that possibility," Monlon reminded them. "And because of that, I will need you both to do something for me. I want you two to go to Yakusai and buy me a kilo of Mandragora root dust."

"...Why would you need something like that?" The twins asked.

"I want to make a paralysis bomb," the woman said. "It's the best way to stop the elephant without fighting it because I don't think the three of us could stop that animal; we would need Wu here to have a chance, and I don't think he'll want to leave Nekonron." Monlon outlined.

"Of course, he wouldn't, it's rice harvest season," Daikokuse nodded. "Wu's in charge of supervising it, and he helps out with the harvesting."

"I guess the paralysis bomb really is the only way to avoid fighting the elephant," Daihakuse admitted then. "Our fighting style isn't suitable to fight an animal that big."

"Neither is mine," Monlon admitted and after a moment of silence, she tossed a small bag full of coins at Daikokuse. "Here, use this to buy the dust. You know, it's best that you go now, it's still early so if you hurry you'll reach Yakusai shortly after midnight."

"True, and that'd give us a chance to camp outside town and get some sleep," Daihakuse said.

"That way we can be the first customers and get the mandragora dust early," his brother assured.

"Perfect, I'll gather the other herbs I need while you're gone," Monlon told them. "Make sure to return as quickly as you can."

"We will don't worry," the twins assured and raised their right thumbs. Their promise was made, Daihakuse and Daikokuse got on their feet and quickly vanished into the woods, heading south towards the Herbalist town.

Monlon watched the twins go and once alone she simply sat in silence staring at the fire and listening to the water burbling behind her. This particular situation reminded her of a special moment from a few months before, and her thoughts slowly drifted back to that pleasant afternoon she had spent with the man she had remembered just a few minutes before.

"I do hope you're alright," she whispered, her eyes once again on the dancing flames in front of her. "And I also hope we can meet again, but… no, I can't get distracted thinking about you, not when I have an important job to do first."

----------------------------------------

Meanwhile, far from there...

Two elders of Joketsozuko sat at a table, sharing a smoke and drinking tea. Cologne and Rinse had known each other since childhood, and while they usually met like this to play cards, joke, and chat, this time their mood was far from festive, for they were evaluating the progress the younger warriors in the village had made during the last few days.

"It seems most of our young are responding well to the extra training," Rinse said after sipping tea from her white cup. "Not a single slacker, though there are a few who just don't have enough talent for martial arts."

"That is to be expected, there are always a few like that," Cologne mentioned as she stared at the strands of smoke coming out of her pipe. "We can recommend the Council that the ones who won't fight be taught how to make weapons or how to use herbs to defend themselves."

"On the other hand, your Shampoo, she has made great progress," Rinse pointed out. "I saw she finally mastered the Tamashi no Bakudan Kogeki, and at such a young age!"

"She's making me proud," Cologne smiled. "And her fiancé isn't doing that bad either... I must admit I was fearing that boy would be weak and useless, but he has proven me wrong these last few days."

"His speed, ki detection skills, and talents with multiple weapons make him far more formidable than I expected," Rinse said. "A shame his vision is weakened, but perhaps we can find ways to remedy that."

"I suppose we could ask in Yakusai…"

"If we are attacked by the Musk and that kid survives I'll pay for his medicine myself," Rinse promised with a nod but went serious again almost instantly. "I do hope we don't have to battle the Dynasty. I believe of all the elders only you or I could face Herb if we had to, but I am not confident either of us could defeat him. Herb inherited the blood of dragons, no ki attack we know would work on him."

"And he should be as strong as us both," Cologne concurred. "But he may not even need to fight. I'm sure he'll bring the cat and wolf clans... if Herb has members of the Lion clan with him...I don't even want to think about it."

"Lion clansmen are walking cauldrons full of ki," Rinse recalled with a shiver. "I'm sure just three of them could blast our walls and cause great damage to the village in a matter of minutes."

"... Let's stop talking about that for now," Cologne offered after a moment of silence, understanding that discussing the abilities of the Musk, while necessary, was distracting them from properly evaluating the progress of the next generation of Amazons.

"Agreed," the other elder nodded. "I want to show you this report Zhang Wei gave me."

"Interesting," Cologne said after reading the document. "I didn't imagine Rin Rin and Ran Ran would progress so quickly. If this is correct your great-granddaughters should be ready to leave basic instruction and train under an Amazon warrior, not bad at all considering they're only thirteen."

"They may not be a natural prodigy like Shampoo, but they're both talented and very dedicated," Rinse said with honest pride. "They'll grow stronger, I can assure you that."

"I trust they will," Cologne smiled. "I do want to see how responsible they are if you don't mind."

"I don't," Rinse said. "What do you have in mind?"

"We need more supplies to finish the paralysis bombs we are making," Cologne told her friend. "But we ran out of mandragora root dust this morning. I already called Ginseng and he said he'd have the order ready early tomorrow."

"Good, I still hope we can find Genma Saotome's child soon, but I do believe we should complete those bombs, it's best to be prepared," Rinse opined. "But how does this relate to my great-granddaughters?"

"I want them to go to Yakusai and bring back the supplies I ordered," Cologne said. "That will give the girls a little rest from training and will let us confirm if they're trustworthy with important tasks, do you agree with this little test?"

"I agree, and I'm sure my girls will do this right," Rinse boasted.

----------------------------------------

Not too far away from there...

Three girls walked together down the road that went from the training grounds to the village's main entrance. The oldest was paying close attention to what the other two were so excitedly sharing, and she actually found it quite interesting, as the topic was martial arts, and that was something the three teenagers were very passionate about and could even spend hours discussing special techniques or training methods.

"And that bald Japanese man said he no longer had anything to teach us," Rin Rin said, blinking her blue eyes as she used her index finger to push a strand of her long magenta hair away from her nose.

"We thought a master from Japan would have more complex techniques to show," Ran Ran completed, blinking her green eyes and likewise pushing a strand of her emerald hair, which she also kept unbound, away from her nose, just as her sister had just done.

"You two should really tie your hair into odangos while you train," Shampoo advised. She didn't like the Japanese man that much, as she considered his art was inferior to the Amazon's ancient fighting techniques, so she used this chance to change the topic. "It helps keep it out of your face during and afterward."

"But we want to grow it as long as yours," Ran pouted.

"If we tie our hair it won't grow the way we want it," Rin further explained.

"It will if you brush it every night," the blue-haired amazon indicated. "You are brushing your hair, aren't you?"

"Uh… maybe?" Ran chuckled. "Sorry Shampoo, we sometimes forget."

"But it's just because we're always tired after training so hard," Rin provided. "We first trained with the groups supervised by the elders."

"And then we had to take special training with that Japanese master," the two sisters chorused. "When we get home all we want is a bath and sleep."

"You should bathe with the other girls your age at the training grounds, we do have baths there," Shampoo said. "That way you would have the time to brush your hair when you get home."

"No, we like our privacy," Ran said. "I noticed you did bathe there today, though."

"And you changed clothes," Rin observed. "You're wearing a very short qipao."

"And you're wearing makeup," Ran continued, getting closer to the older teen.

"And is that perfume I'm smelling?" Rin said as she sniffed. "Yep, it is."

"You're going on a date, aren't you?" the twins asked in unison, excitement filling their voices as they flanked Shampoo and stared at her with extreme admiration, as she was the first of their friends who had managed to find a man stronger than she was who was willing to marry her.

"Ah… you really shouldn't ask that, you're too young, and…" Shampoo started, shaking her head in denial while taking a step back.

"She's going to meet Mousse," Ran declared with a mischievous grin. "She always gets like that when we mention her boyfriend."

"Must be nice to have a future husband that is so strong," Rin said, clasping her hands together as she sighed. "Mousse is rumored to be one of the strongest men his age."

"He is the strongest man his age in Joketszuko," Shampoo corrected, feeling the need to make sure the twins knew how strong her Mousse was. "And don't you forget that."

"You're lucky, then," Ran Ran said and kicked a pebble out of the road. "We're the strongest our age… I don't think we'll ever find a boyfriend!"

"My sister is right," Rin Rin nodded. "We've already defeated all the boys thirteen to fifteen in the training groups."

"You'll meet stronger boys as you get older," Shampoo provided with a smile placing one hand over each girl's shoulder. "Besides, you should be focusing on training right now, you'll have enough time to think about boys later!"

"You only say that because you already have a man," the twins pouted.

"I'm sure you'll find men who are perfect for you soon," Shampoo said with a playful wink as she waved the twins goodbye. "Go home and rest, you'll have a busy day tomorrow!"

----------------------------------------

Not too long after that...

Shampoo reached the school that was right outside Joketsozuko and as she expected, found Mousse waiting for her near the empty building. He was standing by the door, the light above him flickering a little every now and then, which made the girl remember how Mousse's father always complained to the town's council about the old wiring in the school building and how nobody in the Amazon village was interested in fixing it.

She also noticed he wasn't wearing his glasses as she approached, but also knew by now that it didn't matter. The wind was in his favor, which meant he had probably already caught the scent of her perfume or felt her ki as well. Shampoo was aware Mousse was capable of doing both.

"I like that perfume," he said as he put on his glasses when she was close enough. "It suits you well."

"I knew you would like it," she said, smiling as she closed the distance between them. "Have you been waiting long?"

"No, just a few minutes," he said, reaching for her hand and smiling once his fingers had intertwined with hers. "My house is just behind the school, remember?"

"I know."

"Why did you want to meet here?" Mousse asked. "We usually meet at the town's square."

"Nobody comes here at this hour," she answered, placing her arms around him and pressing her body against his, silently demanding he hold her. Mousse understood what she wanted and promptly hugged her, combining his warmth with hers. "I wanted to be alone with you somewhere nobody could see us"

"My parents could come, this is their school, remember?" he said, bringing one hand up to caress her face.

"Yes, but…" Shampoo sighed, enjoying the way his hand felt over her skin. "Mousse… can we go inside the school?"

"What?"

"I want to talk, Mousse... but not out here," she whispered on his neck, knowing this would be far more convincing than asking him otherwise. "Just for a little bit, please? We can go have dinner somewhere after that if you want to."

"...Alright, just for a little bit," he said, giving in after debating his options for a moment.

Mousse was a teenager, after all, and the prospect of spending time with his girlfriend and kissing her without interruptions was too alluring to resist it. "Just let me pick the lock and…"

It didn't take him more than a few seconds to have the school's front door open, and the two of them quickly stepped inside.

"I haven't been here in six years," Shampoo said as she followed Mousse to one of the two classrooms in the building.

"I remember, you were sent to the advanced training groups and had to quit school," he said as he closed the classroom's door behind them and turned on the light. "Good thing Cologne and your mother completed your basic education."

"Let's not talk about that," Shampoo told him while she sat on the teacher's desk. "Come here, Mousse, sit with me."

It was then that Mousse adjusted his glasses and finally noticed how short her qipao was, and for an instant was unable to move, lost in awe as he admired Shampoo's shapely, partly open legs, then moving up to the line of her hips and then the curve of her breasts and then her slender, yet powerful arms to finally settle on her pretty face, paying particular attention to her lips. She was so beautiful, he still had trouble believing she was his bride.

"Come, dear," she invited again, lifting her right hand to call him. "Come to me"

And he did.

"You're… bolder than usual," he whispered once he settled between her legs, feeling her knees pressing against both sides of his hips.

"I just want to be with you," Shampoo said, her hands resting on his shoulders. "We've been training so much it's been days since we were alone… I missed you."

"I missed you too," he told her. "I really did."

"I also missed…" Shampoo looked up at him, smiled crookedly, and then brought her lips forward, surprising Mousse with a light kiss, "doing that, and it's your fault."

"How is it my fault?" Mousse asked, keeping his mouth close to hers.

"You made me like kissing you," she whispered at him, closing her eyes and offering him her lips again. "Kiss me again, love, I need you."

Mousse complied, kissing her again, moving her lips a bit so Shampoo opened her mouth to him, allowing him to deepen the kiss as he started caressing her sides with his hands, soon finding the hem of her skirt. He hesitated for a moment, but she kissed him harder, giving him the motivation necessary to slide his hands from her silky dress to her smooth skin, softly running his fingers over her thighs, moving up and down and then to her back holding her, keeping her close to him as they kissed.

Shampoo moaned into his mouth; the kiss was amazing, and the way he was caressing her legs was making her tremble with a sort of desire she had not felt before. It was thrilling, exciting and it made her want him more, to give him all she had, all she was. Feeling an impulse, she closed her legs around his waist and pressed herself on his hard chest, enjoying the way her breasts flattened against him.

"Mousse, you…" she whispered while catching her breath, breaking the kiss, and resting her face on the crook of his neck. "You are… down there…"

"I know… does it bother you?" he asked, trying to move back, but she used her legs to pull him closer.

"No, don't... stay how you are, it's fine," she murmured in his ear, making sure he felt her hot breath on his skin, moving her hips from left to right, analyzing the way this contact between them made her feel and finding it pleasant. "I like it… it feels… feels good."

Mousse was about to answer, but the door behind them violently opened and slammed against the wall freezing both teenagers where they stood.

"Is there a reason why you two are doing this in my school?" Mousse's father, saber in hand, demanded. The man's voice was making it quite clear he was truly upset by what he was seeing. "You… precocious children! And in one of my classrooms!"

"Eh… he-hello, d-dad," Mousse stammered, half turning to meet his father and hoping for the best. "T-this isn't w-what it looks like…"

"Oh? And what am I supposed to think you're doing?" The man exclaimed, still upset but now calm enough to place his sword back inside his long sleeves. "Fighting to the death?"

"Umm… father-in-law, if I may?" Shampoo tried, peeking from behind Mousse's shoulder only enough to show her eyes and nose, as she was too ashamed to actually show her face. "If it helps… we weren't fighting…"

"I can clearly see you weren't!" The man said and then focused on his son. "What were you two thinking? This is a school, and...!" Mousse's father took a deep breath to calm down and after repeating the process three more times felt ready to continue. "We don't talk about this here. I'm going home and I want to see you two there in five minutes! Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir, very," Mousse said, hoping he wouldn't be in too much trouble for this.

"We will be there," Shampoo promised, too nervous to say anything else.

----------------------------------------

Night, later still…

Out in the starry sky, a falling star flew by, catching Ranko and Lychee's attention as they were plopping themselves onto some sitting cushions. "Look, Ranko! Make a wish!" Lychee gawked as the mass of icy majesty faded from view.

Ranko's eyes widened as she didn't seem to get it at first but regardless, who wouldn't want a chance at a free wish? 'Wish I could get my memories back without having a boyfriend!' She then turned to see that Lychee had taken to clasping her hands in prayer, holding her hands together as if she were using prayer beads.

Sighing after a brief time, the orange-blonde dropped her hands, smiling after undoubtedly finishing her wish.

Sensing a need for urgency, Ranko's eyes widened as she repeated her friend's movements, hoping she wasn't doing it wrong, perhaps diminishing her chances by already wishing for it prior to doing it right like her friend.

Looking towards her friend as she copied her, the restaurant employee put her hand over her mouth.

She knew her friend was probably just unsure of how to act, she imagined she might have seen this as a custom or just something to be done, nevertheless, it was quite amusing for her to see. "So, I was thinking maybe since your memories have been hard to see, maybe you would like to ask me a question?" She inquired, hoping that it didn't sound like she was trying to make it all about herself.

Ranko's eyes widened again when she saw that Lychee needed to stifle some laughter; she didn't have to wait long before her pal decided to change the subject. Immediately feeling at ease, the redhead took a calming breath before smiling a little.

"Hmm, alright. Who trained that elephant to go around giving you rides like that?" Ranko asked as she literally picked something off the top of her head, she honestly wondered by the thing on Jasmine's head if she had ever been part of some circus or something.

"Jasmine is a long-time friend, my grandma's elephant training is like training a really big house pet to jump, then rest with mattresses they play with," Lychee smiled warmly as those memories of her younger years with her longtime pet came flooding in.

"Sounds pretty simple, so you just pet them along with giving them rewards and junk?" Ranko analyzed, crossing her arms as she looked up.

"More or less, but I help with everything but Jasmine's wrestling lessons, still, no one can believe Grandmother did that…" she answered, remembering how that whole ordeal came about.

"Whoa! Guessing those lessons was to make sure you were always taken care of, huh?" Ranko said, sounding entirely blown away by the words escaping her mouth, 'Wonder if I'd look like a badass taking down a wrestling elephant or just cruel to animals? Could I really take on an elephant?' her thoughts wandered, her eyes looking off to the side, both scared but oddly intrigued.

Lychee's eyes widened, it looked as though someone had suddenly reminded her of something quite sad. Softening her expression after a while, she nodded her head, catching Ranko's attention as she focused her attention back onto her fellow brightly colored friend.

"Suppose you are right," Lychee paused, eyes widening for about half a second before relaxing them. "Jasmine really does care..." she corrected herself, her voice trailing as before choking up a bit.

Not knowing exactly what she had accidentally prodded, Ranko decided that maybe now was an even better time to change the subject, "So-so!" she cleared her throat, looking concerned for her roomie.

Lychee snapped out of her trance, long enough to remember that she was trying to have a good time with her new friend. "W-who taught you how to cook?" she asked her own question now.

"From what I could tell, whatever I don't know, I try out and if it seems like I know what I'm doing, I go along with it," Ranko answered but from the looks of it, it didn't seem like that was the last thing she had to say on the subject.

"So all I've put together is that I wasn't too bad at martial arts, I can sorta' cook," Ranko explained, counting off two fingers. "Even if Lotion says I cook like I'd been living on the streets but for all I know that can probably be because I met with Ryoga later on," she tacked onto their conversation, thinking for a moment, rolling her eyes until just staring off to the side.

"Then there's," Ranko's tone softened, filling with hesitation.

Lychee wondered what this other third thing could possibly be? 'Did she teach her to summon spirits or something? Decode maps? Make clones out of her shadows-no. That last one is just silly,' her thoughts tried to fathom the possibilities coming from who she perceived to be a powerful warrior.

"Sewing..." Ranko's voice trailed as she finished sheepishly.

Lychee's eyes became cartoonish beady, was Lotion teaching Ranko some valuable life skills? Her first thought was to prod but hesitated only because she needed to make sure her question wouldn't dissuade her friend from telling her more.

"Is she preparing you for motherhood?" Lychee pondered aloud, her eyebrow rising in speculation.

Ranko's face lit up, she knew this was probably the reason but she just didn't like it being brought up so suddenly or at all for that matter. Now she knew why Ryoga would often get so tongue-tied, there were instances where having something to say just felt next to impossible.

"I don't know! Maybe!" Ranko then shook her head, trying to reset her mind. "Maybe she sees me as some sorta' daughter or something, either way, I'm getting something out of it for nearly nothing…" her voice trailed, maybe recognizing how similar Lotion was to something.

"Lotion sounds like family," Lychee commented, holding back some laughter with her hand over her mouth.

"It's not like I got many choices, especially given my memory, I don't know if I even have a family, I never thought about it because, I'd always wanted something to believe in, ya know?" Ranko asked, pulling her legs up and hugging her knees.

"You don't want to think you're alone, I can understand, all I have are my parents and Jasmine," She commented, letting her know that despite having a unique situation, that didn't mean she couldn't relate in some ways.

Ranko at first stared in confusion, then her face transitioned into one of regret, then finally, remorse was where she settled, "Thanks for coming to hang," Ranko began, the emotion in her voice became difficult to read.

Not sure if Ranko was displeased with her, the orange-blonde wondered if she had said anything or if she was about to tell her that she didn't like her enough to come again after this, "Ran-" she tried to say.

"We ought to do this again sometime!" the rust-red ginger suggested with some noticeably kind inflection in her voice.

Letting a breath she didn't even know she was holding, Lychee blinked and nodded her head in agreement. Glad to see that her guess was wrong again. "That's good, I was worried I upset you," she admitted, rubbing the back of her head.

"Nah! If anything ya' helped, so, it's whatever ya' know?" Ranko asked, unknowingly giving her friend a tired smile.

It was as if the need to sleep suddenly dawned on Lychee and Ranko, feeling as though grains of sand filled their eyes.

"I'm glad," Lychee muttered as she looked off to the side.

Ranko reached her hand out instinctively, holding it over her mouth, closing one eye while yawning into her palm.

This wasn't good, Lychee didn't want to end the night without asking the most burning question she had. "Ranko, how did you and Ryoga meet?" she dared to ask, averting her eyes away from Ranko's before they could meet.

Leaning away right before blushing brightly, the redhead released her hands and appeared to be warding evil. "How's about you give a girl some warning before you go and ask sumthin' like that!?" Ranko half screamed, knowing that any louder and she'd draw attention to them, that's the last thing she needed, especially given the question being presented.

Lychee clasped her hands together in prayer, squinting her eyes in a begging sort of way. Her curiosity was consuming her and she needed to sate it, even if the risk was high. "Please, I am dying to know!" she pleaded, unintentionally giving her puppy dog eyes.

Ranko looked like a ghost before swallowing hard and lowering her head, now experiencing literal peer pressure. She decided that if she could have an open talk about Lotion to this strange girl, then, did this really change anything? "Alright, but don't go thinking I ain't gonna do the same when you get yourself a boyfriend too," she warned, letting her know that if she was going to spill about this, that at the least Lychee would have to return the favor; should the day come.

Meeping like a frightened sheep, the orange-blonde blushed and nodded her head, going silent. The uncomfortable silence lasted only for a moment though. Lychee scooted her cushion a little closer to listen closely.

"All I remember is just waking up one day at a river, next thing I knew I was being chased by some purple-haired maniac that goes by the name Shampoo, so, imagine my surprise when I found out that her accent wasn't because she was some foreigner or something but because she knew I spoke Japanese, I'm a foreigner in China running for her life from some crazy chick who instead of y'know, trying to talk to me and tell me what I did, she tried offing me right then and there, so, doing what any sane person would do-" she paused, wondering if this applied to people who woke up an amnesiac one day.

Figuring that maybe it still did, she shrugged and continued. "And ran as far as I could, until I met the first real person like me, looking for someone of all things too…" she chuckled.

Her roommate listened to Ranko's tale with bated breath, hearing that she had been chased, causing her to lean back in horror, then perplexed as Ranko continued until making it quite clear that it must have been quite confusing to wake up speaking Japanese but end up in China. Right after that, there was a look of disgust on her face when hearing that to imagine all that and then have someone trying to kill you? Relaxing as her friend laughed gently.

"How did it happen exactly?" Lychee's hands landed on her lap as she leaned forward a little more.

"After I was done running for my life, his tent was the first thing I saw and without thinking I crawled in," Ranko explained, refusing to make eye contact as she realized how odd that all must've sounded.

"H-how did he take it when he saw you in his tent?" Lychee awkwardly looked over her shoulder, scratching her cheek with her finger again.

"He wanted to help me, the guy was the only one around who I could even talk to so it was nice ya know, not to feel so lonely…" her voice trailed as her smile remained.

"For how long did you know he was interested in you?" Lychee continued to push her luck.

"Since I met the guy I think, I guess I also just sorta' assumed, I mean…" She wanted to at least feign humility but found it was hard to say since it was the truth to her.

"So you thought you were so pretty that he of course fell for someone like you?" Lychee inquired, putting her hands to her hips with a playful smile.

"Maybe, just a little," she admitted to an extent. "That changed when I actually got to know him though," she commented, feeling the urge to tuck her hair behind her ear, her cocky smile only faltering a smidge.

"So ever since that day you two have been by each other's side?" Lychee dug deeper for more information.

"Yeah, the man even helps me escape those Amazonian loons like Shampoo," the redhead proudly confirmed.

"Amazons?" Lychee had of course heard of them but she honestly hadn't known much about them from the sounds of it.

"You know about 'em?" Ranko inquired, tilting her head.

"I only heard that they're a powerful village where women are usually the more highly skilled warriors." She shook her head, saddened by the fact that she didn't have any more than that to say.

"Well, for me they're a shady bunch of women who want to hurt me, so, if only I could figure out what's got em' so damn ticked off, maybe I could do something about it," Ranko explained after a small pause, reaching her hand up to rub her throat, honestly not putting it past Shampoo or Mousse to try and decapitate her with how far they were willing to go.

"To think you two managed to escape a village as strong as the Joketsuzoku Amazons," Lychee was in utter astonishment, her hands clasped together in front of her.

"And without Ryoga, I wouldn't be here today, feels like I owe the guy something special, ya know?" she asked, not sounding like she was just speculating but honestly pondering what she could even get as a gift for someone like Ryoga.

Lychee's eyes began to sparkle with the excess of tears in her eyes, to think she was seeing what it was like for a girl to be giddy about a guy, 'So this is what it's like to see it in person!' she thought, her monolog being in her native tongue.

"It must be fate!'' The orange-haired girl smacked her hands together and closed her eyes as though she were praying, lost in her own little world for a second, swaying her hands together. "Just like I'm getting a handsome prince!" she nuzzled the side of her face to the back of her palm.

As Ranko was hit with the fate line, she couldn't help but lean back and try to shake her head in denial but stopped once she saw that there was no need for her to do that, given how Lychee wasn't even looking her way anymore.

"How come you're sure you're getting with some prince, huh?" Ranko asked, tilting her head as she recognized a pattern. "This is like the second time you've mentioned it, how about you let me in on whether or not that whole family relic story thing is true or not?" she questioned.

Looking back at her, the orange blonde blinked before smirking, "It's true but it's a secret," Lychee spoke cryptically to entice the redhead.

Ranko scratched the top of her head in confusion, why would she want to keep something that life-changing a secret. "So guess there's no point in askin' then?" the perplexed redhead pondered openly.

Her response was a shaking of Lychee's head, right before she raised a finger in a matter-of-fact sort of way. "I'll let you see the relic if you promise to answer a few more questions for me," she suggested to the oddly hair-colored girl.

"Hm, okay…" Ranko's voice trailed as she agreed, she sounded unsure.

Without saying another word, she stood up and went over to open a drawer, retrieving the shirt she was wearing earlier. Getting back down on her knees she plopped herself down on her cushion, once she was sure Ranko could see, she reached into the folded fabric, folding back the hem of her shirt.

"This has been in Lychee's family for many generations, proof that one-day Lychee's prince will unite the other half!" she exclaimed, holding it out to the redhead.

Doing her best to be as supportive as possible, the redhead couldn't understand how something like this made it a sure thing that she'd be married to some prince, 'A girl can dream right? I mean I dream about having a family, so why can't Lychee hope for a prince?' the martial arts master in training thought.

"Well, I don't know anything about that, but it looks really old and pretty valuable," Ranko advised as she gave it another once over, giving it back to the orange-blonde. "Ya oughta leave things like this back at home," she added.

"I am always carrying it, I have to be ready to meet my prince even if unexpectedly!" she explained, trying to ease her friend's worries.

Ranko felt a nervous sweat begin to break out, reminding herself of what she concluded earlier, 'A girl can dream, a girl can dream,' her memory replayed, acting as both a mantra and a reminder.

Smiling, she closed her eyes and allowed her head, along with her shoulders, shrugging by the end of it all.

"So, what was your question Lychee?" Ranko crossed her arms after shrugging, 'If the prince thing takes too long, I better help her get out there,' she thought, formulating a plan, in case Lychee's happily ever after didn't pan out.

In the time it had taken for Ranko to assure herself of her plan for her friend, Lychee had started grinning from ear to ear, leaning forward.

"What is it like when kissing Ryoga? Did you like it?" Lychee asked with non-existent hesitation.

Flinching back with her hands once again warding evil, this time with the added effect of her pigtail rising up from behind her, much like a cattail would. "Man sure is getting late, guess it's time for-" she closed her eyes and pretended to yawn once more, but when she peeked an eye open to see if she was buying her act, she instead saw a pouting girl.

"Ranko, you made a promise," she said in response to the redhead's attempt at dismissing her question.

Seeing that her ruse had failed, she knew that by her honor, she made a promise. Sighing heavily she lowered her head in defeat, her hands rested on the ground before they clenched, gathering her wits and nerves.

"Kissing Ryoga was really really nice!" she admitted, her face getting redder as she spoke. No longer able to half-shout, the redhead's lips began to wobble in discomfort.

Lychee wanted to be there to put a hand on the other girl's shoulder, but the fact that the shade of Ranko's face was slowly starting to match the shade of her hair was starting to make her crack up a bit

"They-they're really soft and-an an a warm…" The romantic novice shyly explained, completely avoiding eye contact now.

The instant she saw how shy her usually brave friend was, she instead couldn't help but find it adorable. She finally managed to form a supportive smile.

"And I like being with the big guy, I really really like him…" Ranko's voice trailed in pleasant disbelief.

----------------------------------------

At the same time…

In the guestroom with no bed, sat Ryoga atop his sleeping bag. In his hands was still that carpentry book Lotion gave him. His eyes glazed over as his head wobbled from side to side.

Squinting his eyes shut, he put the book down and yawned into one of his hands.

After doing that he looked around in his room, trying to find something else to do. Not instantly finding anything else to do, he looked at his traveling bag.

"It's been a while since I checked on my things," Ryoga muttered as he reached over to it.

He stacked the essentials first, then whatever trinkets he managed to get on his travels, etc. Although halfway through checking his miscellaneous things, he came across what seemed like a golden medallion in the shape of a lion's head.

Humming to himself he then opened it by tugging at its side, revealing it to be a locket with two empty picture slots. A sad sort of smile crossed Ryoga's face, pushing past that, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness I didn't lose it," he commented, letting his smile return to an actual one. "A family heirloom this important should never be lost," he spoke again, feeling the compulsive need to remind himself of what was important, even if it meant talking to himself.

"It's too bad the eyes are missing," he lamented, shutting the locket closed again.

"Grandfather said those eyes used to be tiny diamonds," he remarked, inspecting the empty sockets.

"Maybe one day I could even find a way to earn enough money to have some new diamond eyes attached," Ryoga mused, putting his treasure back into his traveler's backpack.

----------------------------------------

Later still...

Light creaking noises and the clinking of dining ware struck The Lost Boy's ears repeatedly. Stirring in his sleep, Ryoga squinted his eyes and begrudgingly opened them.

"Why'd I have to get the room near the kitchen and the front door?" he questioned no one in particular, more just cursing his bad luck.

"I already miss sharing a room with her," he muttered softly, shortly after he heard something that sounded like running water, 'Guess I better go check,' he thought with a tired inner voice, his worry for the others overriding his need to go back to sleep.

Ryoga's door opened with a barely audible creaking, from it came the fang-toothed teen, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes he reached one of his hands out to touch the walls. There was another creaking noise but Ryoga's door hadn't been moved. From what he could hear, Ryoga was already facing the right direction as he moved along the wall and down the hall. "I wonder if it's Lotion," he mumbled quietly to himself, 'Maybe not either, I doubt she's ever off guard, so if I hear her, it'd be because she wanted me to…' Ryoga thought.

"Couldn't be either of the girls, so then, maybe, a thief?" he pondered aloud, making sure never to be loud enough to be heard.

Reaching the end of the hallway then looking through an archway into the kitchen, he saw that the kitchen light had been turned on, so he looked around until he saw his girlfriend emptying a glass of water.

The first thing that caught his eye was the fact that she was wearing nothing but a sports bra and panties. That alone would have stopped him in his tracks, though to gaze upon Ranko with her hair loose? For Ryoga, it was enough to drive the animal in him to go nuts, 'Even with her hair messy and in mismatched underwear, she's still the most beautiful girl I've ever come across,' Ryoga thought, averting his eyes at the last second, dropping his hand from the wall unconsciously.

Ranko's eyes widened as she froze for a second, her mouth agape as she blushed and found that she didn't have anything to say for the moment. She wanted to scream at him but a little voice in Ranko's head told her that he was her boyfriend and maybe he did deserve to at least see her like this, instead of how they've seen each other in the past.

At the very second her mind tried to use that as an excuse to be more comfortable, she allowed herself to relax but in doing so, she found herself victim to the fact that she wasn't the only one standing around in their unmentionables, 'Man, the guy's so jacked, it-it's like looking at a sculpture or something…' her inner voice trailed while she eyed the chiseled abs before her.

After about a second or so, the redhead snapped back to her senses. She flinched very slightly but quickly, really glad she was wearing a sports bra as of this moment, otherwise, she was sure she would have jiggled more than she would have liked.

"What're you doing here?" she questioned, wanting to cover her arm over her chest, 'This kinda' looks like we're getting ready to,' she thinks to herself, averting her eyes as her blush went up a shade darker than before.

"T-thought I heard noises, so, I came to check if it was a burglar or something," Ryoga answered as he focused his eyes enough to keep them at her eyes, 'Why isn't she covering herself? Does she think she should allow me this because we're together?' he pondered this notion, unsure of how else to see it.

Ranko's eyes widened before she scratched her cheek with her index finger, she sighed in disappointment shortly after, "I was stealthy enough to avoid waking Lychee up, so, I wasn't really expecting you to wake up instead," she explained a bit sheepishly.

"You're fine-" Ryoga let slip before correcting the course. "I-it's fine!" he corrected, waving his hands defensively.

At the moment Ranko was experiencing two conflicting emotions, one was either happy or giddy while the other she could only describe as feeling embarrassed.

"Anyways, it's a warm night so I got thirsty and decided to get some water," she explained, mechanically going over to the fridge to pour herself another glass. "Want some?" she asked, holding up her cup.

Despite how tense the air had gotten, that hadn't changed how utterly stunning Ranko was to Ryoga. He knew that she was struggling but found that his focus was too for better or worse, lost in her beauty. Swallowing finally, he shook his head and shut his eyes, treating this moment as a training session.

"It's okay! I was actually going to bed anyway," he tried to excuse, 'I want to do more but what if I risk never getting what I want by being too eager?' he thought in worry, trying to leave right then and there.

Knowing what that tone and look meant when it came to Ryoga, Ranko would never know if she could show her gratitude in more than just standing around casually half-naked if he left.

"Ryoga! Ya' wanna' come over to this window with me? There's something I wanna show you," she lied but hoped that maybe it'd work, leading him over to it with a gesture of her hand.

Needing to do a double-take, the Lost Teen stopped heading in the wrong direction to see that she still wanted his company; even if he had clearly embarrassed her earlier. Not wasting much time to think about it, he took the bait and proceeded to follow her over.

It took a lot of effort for Ryoga to fight back his urges, even more so when it came to staring at the curvy center of Ranko's hips. Glad to be on her other side, he was able to see what she was pointing to Jasmine.

Ranko took a drink of her water while she guided them over.

"Huh, I always thought they slept standing up," he said, watching as Jasmine slept on her back, looking like a giant dog on its back, stretching her legs in her sleep.

"Jasmine ain't your everyday run-of-the-mill elephant," Ranko remarked as she took another long drink from her cup.

Upon closer inspection, Ryoga swore he could see a European Nightjar making a nest on Jasmine's belly, 'Maybe I should make sure she doesn't accidentally turn and drop them, she's what? A few feet away from the house?' he thought, while Ranko went over to the sink to wash her glass, turning the cold water knob before leaving it to dry when she finished.

Ryoga looked to his side, recognizing Ranko was gone he looked until he spotted her back at the sink, depositing her glass before crossing her arms, 'She looks kinda' nervous? Is this too hard on her?' he pondered before remembering that maybe he should say something he should have earlier.

"Thanks for looking out for me this morning, you know, after Lotion literally blew me away…" His voice trailed as he rubbed the back of his head, feeling stupid for taking so long to tell her this, 'Maybe I should consider telling her the truth about my sense of direction too, the fact I've managed to go this long without losing sight of Ranko, well it can't be anything short of a miracle or possibly, maybe even, true-' Ryoga thought so hard that his heart began to beat wildly, his ears ringing so much that it blocked out all noise.

"I was really worried about you, y'know?" She asked, sounding as though she felt like a fool, almost like it was a bad joke and she was at the other end of that punchline.

Snapping him back to reality, Ryoga blinked then readied himself to respond. "Ranko, I-I'm sorry…" his voice trailed softly as his head dropped, not really watching as Ranko took a few steps closer to him.

"Just try to be a little more considerate, would ja?" Ranko's look of unease turned to a look of disappointment, however, it was somewhat conservative, in the sense her anger and frustration were more passive when it came to Ryoga.

Ryoga remained speechless, he might have preferred it when he was frustrated by his hormones than to have upset his girlfriend. How could he take this?

Seeing no immediate answer but still having heard his apology, the redhead sighed softly and made her way over to him, standing before him now, essentially putting her lovely figure in his downward view, 'Guess he doesn't know whatta' say,' she thought.

His eyes widened as he was reminded that a half-naked warrior goddess was standing before him. He looked up just in time to see her hand in front of his face, lightly tapping him on the forehead with her knuckles.

"Don't go making me worry so much, you're my boyfriend now and since you're mine, ya gotta start trusting me enough to tell me things, you got that lover-boy?" she demanded as she put her hand on his chest.

The instant those words left Ranko's mouth, Ryoga couldn't help but feel his heart thumping repeatedly, 'I'm hers?' he thought briefly, her words echoing in his mind like the remnants of an astonishing dream playing out right before fading from the mind.

He couldn't help but chuckle at this, raising both of his hands as if she were pointing a loaded gun at him, 'I know she's being serious, it's really cute when I think about it,' he thought. "I know that, and you bet I'll keep that in mind too, I just didn't wanna keep you from learning the soul of ice," he explained as calmly as he could, his cheeks lightly dusted pink while doing so.

Ranko blinked, not having expected that 'Figured he'd fumble around a bit more before answering,' she thought with a smile, relaxing her expression along with her hands as it rested atop his rock solid… defense.

Both exhaled deeply and quietly enough for the other to have wondered if they even heard one another, though the fact that they had done all this at nearly the same time, made it too hard to know for certain if any had done what the other assumed.

They simply met in the middle, cautiously it felt as though Ranko would retract her hand but instead of doing that, it gently glided across the marble-like surface, starting with her opening her hand to feel her fingertips stroke across his pecs, pulling her digits inward as she was just above his abdominals, the backs of her fingers took in the sensation now, her hand tilted up as she stopped at his navel, her thumb stopped right above it, touching it loosely but still delicately.

Ryoga's eyes widened, he hadn't expected this turn of events, and given the look on Ranko's face, whatever she was doing, may have just been her curiosity getting the better of her.

It was usually the guy that started these things and thus, his need to apologize to solve the situation wasn't necessary, nor was it a possible thought for him. Given the fact that before he could think this through any longer, he felt himself being stimulated by the stern but also gentle hands of his gorgeous redheaded maiden.

At first, Ranko was a nervous mess but as she was allowed to explore, Ryoga's face relaxed the moment her hands were above his abs. That in turn caused her to continue, blushing just as deeply as her fang-toothed boy toy was starting to.

One thing that was apparent between the two was that they were breathing heavily and noticeably. Composing herself long enough to try and ease the tension a little, "You're right, thanks for supporting me through my training, especially for all those times you had to put me out…" her voice trailed, eventually breaking into a small laugh.

Thrilled to finally be intimate in some way, the Lost Boy's hands lowered until they relaxed to his sides, 'I want her to do more but I shouldn't push her if she's not ready, although now I'm feeling really weird, I feel like my nose is gonna' explode and like my chest is gonna' burst from lack of air-and-and,' Ryoga thought in dismay, trying to keep his nose from resembling Old Faithful from Yellowstone national park.

"Sorry we didn't get a chance to get close yesterday," Ranko apologized, lowering her head and allowing her hand to move away from the lower portion of his sculpted physique.

Broken free from the touch of her spell, the half-naked fang-toothed teen opened his eyes to see that she had really wanted to do something to get 'close'. His expression softened as he wanted to do something for her, anything! He quite literally didn't care! He just wanted her to be happy.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"I think I need a hug or some-" she got as far as saying before feeling herself enveloped in Ryoga's strong arms.

"Is this good?" he asks softly.

"It is," Ranko said then paused. "But we could make it better…" her voice trailed nervously.

"How's that?' he asked, finding it hard to believe it could get any better than what they were doing.

Ranko's eyes narrowed in determination while also trying to come off as sexy, which she knew the Lost Boy thought she was. Thinking it was better to lead by example, she closed her eyes and pressed her lips to his gently, closing the entire gap between them.

"That's how," her voice became a little raspy, finding it harder to breathe thanks to how suggestive their current situation might've been perceived.

Closing his eyes the moment he could feel Ranko steal a kiss, although, given she was his girlfriend, was it more like she took a kiss? Not getting much time to think that through all the way, he opened his eyes to gaze at the vibrant red-headed beauty in his arms.

She looked away shyly, looking as though she was unsure of what he thought about her actions, not wanting to let her hold onto that notion. He closed his eyes and stole a kiss as well, although his kiss brought her body against his.

As Ryoga took control of the reins, she felt him advance their kissing into a full-blown make-out session. One hand was at the small of her back while the other perched itself on her back.

The two retreaded old grounds but they kissed as if they had always known how.

Ranko's tongue was much like the girl herself, despite even getting surprised by Ryoga she was already trying to meet the boy with the same passion. She wanted him to know that even when it came to being a girlfriend, she would always find a way to step her game up!

Though as their kissing became more and more heated the redhead felt the Lost Teen start to plant kisses on her neck, noticing that Ranko grit her teeth before inhaling deeply from the stimulation. Even though her senses were being overwhelmed she could still feel his intention and the lower half of Ryoga that was pressing up against her.

That wasn't the thing occupying her mind the most, what was doing that was the fact that his hand kept hovering above her firm, bikini-style panties-covered ass. Ranko had one hand on his chest and the other holding him by the back of his neck.

"Quit teasin' and just take it," she mumbled with a hitched voice, her eyes filled with lust.

As if giving some primal grunt as a form of confirmation, both of the fang-toothed man animal's hands reached down to grope the thing that had only ever really seen. Both grit their teeth together, feeling as though static coursed through their points of contact, pushing their arousal to even further heights.

Once regaining some of their focus they opened their eyes, staring into each other with looks that could only be best described as 'I wanna' do you so hard!', their breaths even looked synchronized.

As if pouncing at each other, they went back to kissing as intensely as they had moments ago.

Sucking on her tongue before pulling his head back, the Lost Boy was probably better off as the Lost Man now, especially given how his hand had managed to sneak under her thin garment and grope the girl in his arms bare ass.

Getting an even stronger shock than before to her system, Ranko's eyes widened as she felt unable to breathe. In that timeframe, she quickly stopped Ryoga from going any further by pushing him back, the hand that had been on his chest being used to grab Ryoga's wrist. The other then kept his mouth from touching hers.

"We gotta' stop and get to bed," Ranko warned, panting a little as her hand dropped from his lips.

Ryoga's eyes opened like saucers, looking as though his brain had just been fried. "Bed… together?" his voice trailed before repeating the last thing she said into a question, mistaking her suggestion as something far more engaging.

Conking him on the forehead she closed her eyes, her cheeks tinted pink now. "I meant, I go back to my room and you get back to yours, ya' pig-headed dope," she clarified. "Now if you want, I can walk you to yours," she laid out the plan, crossing her arms in the process.

Glad that Ranko wasn't looking down and had taken steps away from him, the Lost Teen blushed and looked down, cringing inwardly from how that must have made him seem. He looked up to see that she was ushering for him to follow with a swaying of her head; instructing him to follow.

Once they reached Ryoga's door, the redhead turned around to see that Ryoga had kept his head down the entire time, choosing now to cover his shame with both hands, 'He's such a damn spaz sometimes, but he's my 'spaz' now…' her inner voice trailed in slight delight, a smile slowly crossing her face.

"Ryoga!" she called out in a half-shouting way, remembering to keep her voice-controlled.

Ryoga finally noticed the familiar underside of his door, glad to see it, he made his way over to it. That was until he heard Ranko calling him by his name again. He looked up and over his shoulder, only to be reminded that he was with a girl who could be just as engaging as another guy when it came to expressing her affection.

She was kissing him again! His heartfelt like it was going to pop again, even when the situation felt tense or that he had pushed her to some uncomfortable levels, he was reminded that at the end of it all, she was still his.

"That was just a good night kiss, Romeo, so just cool your jets for now, okay?" she asked, putting her hand to his cheek, looking as though she were asking him to be patient with her.

"Okay, for you Ranko, I'll wait as long as it takes," he answered, putting his hand on top of hers.

Rather than answering him, she smiled softly and shook her head. "Get some sleep, handsome," she playfully responded, closing her eyes before opening them and winking at him once, turning around, putting her hands behind her back to cover her alluring backside, for however little that did, given how she wasn't even putting her all into it, 'Feeling sexy ain't so bad, maybe we could get creative l-later on in our-' she thought but was unable to finish as the giddy feeling in her chest proved too overwhelming.

Ryoga looked as though he had found the meaning of life, his mouth slightly agape as he held his hand out to her departing form. He didn't have anything to say, he just reached out for her with a look of longing.

After a moment he reached for the doorknob to his room, taking it in his hand he twisted it before opening the door. Looking to where he last saw the girl of his dreams, he thought the following.

'I should get that locket fixed as soon as possible, because, Mom, Dad, I think, I found the one I hope to marry someday…'

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Early the following day…

Ranko sat by the window, looking at how Jasmine went to the farm's pond to drink water and how once satisfied, moved so she was standing under some trees to avoid the morning sun.

The beast was clever, and quite well trained to be able to think of something like that on its own. Not that the redhead was paying any real attention to the animal, her mind was busy recalling the steamy events from the previous night.

'That was… intense,' she thought, bringing her fingers up so she could trace the line of her lips while remembering the way she and Ryoga had kissed. 'Very intense… and I even asked him to grab my ass… what was I thinking?'

She pressed her forehead to the cool window and sighed. The truth was, she hadn't been thinking much. But she couldn't be blamed, could she? Because that moment in the kitchen had felt… better than ever before. Even now she could still feel his lips on hers and also his warm, strong hands touching her. That ghostly sensation was still strong enough to make her want to be close to him again. 'I even felt his… thing… pressing against me,' Ranko flushed and had to swallow at the thought and found she couldn't summon the actual word for what she had noticed.

'But that meant he was also feeling really good… right?' She thought with a slight grimace.

Ranko blinked as she remembered when Lotion explained a little bit about motherhood when she had her period, and going by what she had told her, what she felt pressing against her stomach meant that Ryoga was indeed feeling extremely good when they were making out.

Realizing that, however, brought back memories of her own arousal at the time. Her body had responded to him in ways she hadn't experienced before. She had felt warm all over and, the redhead's face reddened further at the thought, she became moist between the legs.

'It's a good thing Lotion didn't hear us,' she decided, placing the memory of her personal… agitation, aside. 'I'm sure she'd have kicked us out of her farm on the spot.' she thought further.

But in reality, it had been a good thing they had stopped when they did, if they hadn't stopped… would they have gone all the way and made a baby there? Lotion had superficially mentioned some of the steps that would lead to what she had called conception but had not been too specific. Ranko felt it was for the better, as the idea of Lotion of all people, explaining human reproduction to her in full detail, absolutely terrified her.

"But still… having Ryoga's baby…" Ranko's voice trailed with a soft whisper, her hand pressed against her faint reflection on the window as she welcomed the idea, finding it much more pleasant than listening to an ancient woman instructing her on human biology. "No, not just Ryoga's baby… mine too, his and mine… our baby."

The fact she found the thought so appealing perplexed her a little. It was as if… as if her very being wanted to reassert its femininity by becoming a mother and giving a child to the man she loved, or at least that's how she felt, but in reality, she found it particularly confusing and she could not understand why her emotions leaned on that direction so strongly.

'I mean… how could I ever be more of a woman than this?' She thought, lowering her gaze to look at her generous, perky breasts. 'This… this is getting too weird, maybe I oughta try thinking about something else, but…'

"Ranko, do you want to help make breakfast? Lotion said that…" Lychee asked from the door.

She had woken up earlier and was clearly a morning person judging by how active she already was, probably the result of helping her parents in the family business. "Are you ok? You look like you're trying to solve a thousand-year-old puzzle." She commented.

"I'm fine, and I think I'd rather be doing that," the redhead answered with a small smile, turning to meet her friend and feeling glad about the interruption, as that would allow her to focus on other things that weren't Ryoga and their possible future children. "Just let me tie my hair, it's gotten too long and it gets in the way."

"I think it looks better loose, why don't you try to leave it like that for today?" Lychee suggested while approaching Ranko so she could use her fingers to comb her friend's scarlet mane, finding it was even softer than it looked.

The girl chuckled as she finished what she was doing, proud of her work as now Ranko looked much better, without a single trace of bed hair. "What shampoo do you use? Your hair is so silky, it's like… like magic." Lychee trailed in a bewildered tone.

"I don't use anything in particular, my hair's always been like this as far as I know," Ranko said, wondering briefly if there was something strange about it.

"You're lucky, then," Lychee smiled. "I wish my hair was as soft as yours on its own, I have to brush it and take good care of it just to make sure it doesn't frizz. Anyway, breakfast…" She reminded her redheaded friend bashfully, rubbing the back of her neck with an adorably awkward smile.

"I know, I know," Ranko nodded. "Let's go, don't wanna have Lotion yelling at us for taking too long, right?"

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Later…

Breakfast had been interesting.

Ryoga had tried conversation, but all Ranko could think of when he talked to her was the way he had kissed her in the kitchen the night before, and if it weren't for Lotion and Lychee changing topics frequently enough, the redhead was certain she would have ended excusing herself to go outside and put a bit of distance between herself and her boyfriend.

That didn't mean she was angry at him, quite the contrary, she just had to come to terms with the idea of the possibility of them having children on her own before she could talk to him again without feeling confused and perplexed.

And that was the reason why, as soon as breakfast was over, she took the chance to ride Jasmine the moment Lychee mentioned it. They would ride the elephant together until they reached the main road, a few miles up north from Lotion's farm.

After that, Ranko would walk back home on her own, giving her what she imagined would be a little over an hour to be alone with her thoughts. Plenty of time to sort out the way she was feeling, she believed.

Because there was something strange going on with her, something she couldn't really understand.

And she was completely sure it was not the way she felt for Ryoga.

This odd sensation was something else.

Or perhaps it was not something.

But someone else.

"What are you thinking about?" Lychee asked, taking Ranko out of her meditations for the second time that morning. "You're not feeling well?"

"I'm ok, it's just that… I didn't sleep much last night," Ranko said. "I got up in the middle of the night to go for some water and after that, it took me a long time to fall asleep again."

"Oh, I see," the other girl said, then turned to face her friend and placed a friendly hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry for asking so many questions, but I worry for you, I… don't have many friends, you know?"

"You don't?" Ranko asked, curious about such personal admission.

"No, most girls my age in Bao don't talk to me much," Lychee said with a sigh. "They're not mean or anything but…"

"They can't relate to you, I imagine?" Ranko guessed as she imagined other girls wouldn't understand her orange-blonde friend fixation with waiting for a prince that may never come.

"Yes, I heard they're afraid I'll send Jasmine after them if they make me angry, and avoid me because of that," Lychee sighed. "I wouldn't do that, and Jasmine is such a sweet girl, we would never hurt anyone who doesn't truly deserve it."

The redhead nodded and smiled, finding it funny she hadn't guessed correctly. "Hey, don't worry about that, those girls're just being silly. I mean, I agree that Jasmine can be kinda intimidating, but she's pretty cool if you ask me. They just need a chance to see that for themselves is all!"

"You think so?" Lychee inquired.

"Yeah, maybe if you can try letting them touch Jasmine so they can try to relax around her?" Ranko offered, hoping her advice would be useful.

"I don't know…" said Lychee, who then leaned forward and affectionately patted the elephant on the head. "What do you say, Jasmine, would you let the other girls in Bao pet you?"

The elephant lifted its long trunk and puffed while fanning its ears, showing it was not thrilled by the idea at all.

"Guess not," Lychee chuckled. "She doesn't like it when other people touch her or ride her, she normally only lets me and mom do that." Lychee explained.

"Then that means I'm lucky, right?" Ranko asked.

"Yes, I didn't think she'd let you ride her at first," Lychee told her. "I think Jasmine likes you too."

Jasmine trumpeted loudly when she heard that and brought the tip of its trunk up in what was a clear affirmative gesture.

"See, she does like you!" the orange-haired girl said with a giggle.

"Right back at 'er," Ranko said with a smile. "She's a very smart girl!"

The elephant flapped its ears pridefully after listening to the praise, earning a laugh from the girls, who responded by gently petting the beast.

"I'm glad we're friends, Hóng fā," Lychee said then, risking a look at Ranko to see if she'd be upset at the nickname she had just given her.

"Eh… I'm glad too, but… what was that?" Ranko asked, one eyebrow up as she scratched her neck. "You know I can't speak Chinese."

Lychee giggled. "I know, that's what makes it better. It means red hair, I think it suits you, Hóng fā."

"I guess it does," Ranko said, finding she didn't mind. "It sounds kind of cool… but, what's Chinese for orange hair then?"

"Why do you want to know?" the other girl asked, knowing what Ranko wanted to do.

"Hey, it's only fair!" The redhead chuckled and then turned her face into a pout. "C'mon, tell me, or I'll keep asking until you do, and you know damn well I will."

Lychee laughed. "Chéng fā, happy?"

"Yep, very," Ranko nodded and then pointed at Lychee's hair and then at her own. "So, Chéng fā, and Hóng fā, huh? I guess we make quite a pair."

Lychee's only response was a good-humored laugh, and it didn't take long for Ranko to join her.

They continued like this, chatting about nothing in particular until they reached the edge of Lotion's forest.

The main road opened ahead, and that meant it was time for them to separate. Ranko jumped off Jasmine and landed gracefully next to the elephant, looking up so she could properly say goodbye to her friend.

"It was nice having you around, Lychee," she said with a beaming, honest smile. "I really enjoyed talking to you and playing that board game with you was really fun."

"I had fun too," Lychee answered. "We can play again next time, ok?"

"Sure, just call me and we'll see when you can visit again."

"I was thinking you could come to Bao instead," the elephant tamer invited with a smile. "We can have another sleepover, and if you stay for a couple of days we can even go camping near the river, what do you say?"

"I say…" Ranko chuckled. "I say it sounds awesome! It'll have to wait for a bit, though, Ryoga and I still have to do some errands for Lotion, but I'll call you as soon as we're back, how's that sound?"

"Sounds great," Lychee smiled back. "I'll be waiting for your call, Ranko."

"Don't worry, I'll call you soon," the redhead said and waved as she started walking back into the forest. "See you soon, Lychee!"

"Bye, Hóng fā!" the orange blonde girl said giggling and waving back. "Take care on your way back!"

"You know I will, Chéng fā!" Ranko answered with one last look before entering the woods.

----------------------------------------

Not too long after that…

Ranko took the long way back to the farm, going between the trees instead of through the small path that went straight to Lotion's house. She could lie to herself and think all she wanted was to avoid whatever chores the old ghoul had in store for her, but the reality, and she knew it quite well, was that she wanted to avoid Ryoga for a bit longer.

Now that Lychee wasn't around to provide a convenient distraction, her emotional turmoil had returned, and she was having a somewhat difficult time dealing with the conflicting emotions that filled her chest. 'I just don't understand this,' she thought, ducking as she walked under a low branch. 'Being with Ryoga is the best thing in my life right now, just spending time with the big guy is enough to make me happy, then why…?' She stopped and looked up at the branches as a sudden thought entered her mind.

A thought that explained well how she was feeling and why her body felt such a strong need to have something that would always keep Ryoga near her.

'I could forget about him if my memory comes back,' she realized and sat on a large root, bringing her hands up to her face. 'If I remember my past… then my feelings for him could vanish… it would be like if we never met.'

But that couldn't be, could it? Surely her new memories would merge with the old ones and she would remember Ryoga and her family.

'My family… what if they don't like him?' She wondered, a hint of fear rising from her belly all the way to her throat, because what if her parents didn't approve of Ryoga? What if her siblings, if she had them, didn't like her boyfriend either?

"He certainly wouldn't like Ryoga, I'm sure of that," Ranko muttered, remembering the black-haired boy from her dreams, the one who tried to catch her and lock her in that house.

At least she had not seen that mysterious boy in her dreams anymore, and for that Ranko was grateful. Because she knew, she just knew that something terrible could happen to her if she ever met that boy again.

'He'd try to take me away… to take me away and lock me up forever…' the redhead decided as she started walking again, suddenly needing to have Ryoga's arms around her, she brought her hands to her shoulders as though she had been shivering after feeling a cold breeze around her.

And she didn't want to be taken away.

She didn't want that at all.

----------------------------------------

Not too far from there…

Four bald, diminutive men walked in silence as they traversed the forest. They had spent the night in the woods, having taken a shortcut to Bao, where they expected to find the person they were looking for; that rude redhead who had stolen their magic porridge!

"We won't stop until we find her!" Niku-man said, his fist up to rally his comrades.

"She stole our cure!" An-man recalled. "She must pay with hair for such hair-esy!"

"She'll pay with a bun!" Curry-man declared. "A full bun of hair!"

"Do you guys hear something?" Pizza-man asked, forgetting about his own statement of revenge. "I think someone's coming this way."

"It may be a dangerous animal," Niku-man guessed. "Quick, hide behind those rocks and get your weapons ready!"

Quickly, the four bald men ducked behind the nearby rocks, noticing that behind them was a rather large clearing surrounded by tall trees that kept it well hidden, explaining why they didn't see it the night before, a pity since that would've been a better location to set up camp, but there was nothing they could do about it now.

"I think the animal went the other way…" An-man said, but…

"Look, it's her!" Curry-man whispered anxiously. "The porridge thief!"

"Incredible, she came to us!" Pizza-man gasped.

"It seems she'll enter the clearing," Niku-man observed. "Let's follow her carefully now, we need to catch her by surprise, you hear?"

And paying close attention not to disturb even the tiniest leaf, the four bald men started stalking the pretty redhead, their shears and scissors at the ready, preparing to cut as much of the girl's hair as they could.

----------------------------------------

A few steps ahead…

Even in her mortified state, Ranko was able to perceive the presence of four figures approaching her. Training with Lotion had ensured that she was always on guard, no matter how she was feeling. She couldn't tell where the four strangers were coming from, but she would be ready if they tried something.

They were the reason why she had entered the clearing, she had seen it and had been curious so she approached it, but hadn't been sure about entering it until she noticed four creepy figures prowling around her. Well, if they thought she was an easy mark, they had another thing coming.

"I know you're there somewhere, come out and face me!" she challenged once she was a few steps into the clearing. For an instant, it seemed nothing would happen but then…

Four small figures jumped at her from different directions all at once!

Two of them, armed with rather large scissors, aimed high, while the others, one carrying a spear and the other a sword, tried to trip her. It was a sound strategy, and it would have worked on someone less skilled than Ranko.

The redhead simply backflipped out of harm's way, managing to deliver two solid kicks that caught the four attackers in the head, sending them tumbling both left and right. She didn't hit them too hard, as she had held back in order to better see who was challenging her.

"Oh, man, it's you four creeps!" Ranko said as she recognized the little baldies, feeling baffled and annoyed by these persistent morons. "Didn't Ryoga teach you enough of a lesson?"

"Your friend isn't here to save you, we'll have our revenge!" Niku-man declared angrily. "And your hair!"

"My… hair?" the redhead blinked in confusion. "Why? All I did was eat your stupid soup, are you nuts or something?"

But she received no answer, the Niku-men instead replied by attacking her again, this time paying attention and keeping their distance as best as they could while still aiming their blades at the girl's head.

"Stop dodging, you!" Curry-man growled in frustration.

"Yeah, stand still so we can get that hair!" An-man agreed, also fuming with rage.

'These baldies sure are pissed…' Ranko thought as she ducked and rolled to the right, avoiding a pair of scissors that almost got her. It was then that she noticed it. 'Their ki's almost boiling, they really are mad…'

Hot ki plus a group of angry opponents? Ranko grinned as she realized this was the perfect opportunity to complete her Hiryu Shoten Ha training. All she had to do was to rile up these four idiots a little more and she'd show Lotion she could master the technique on her own!

"What's the matter, pork buns?" The girl mocked while preparing to enter the soul of ice state she had acquired after practicing in that terrible, terrible circle of fire. "You can't even do something as simple as a haircut?"

"Shut up and stop moving!" Pizza-man demanded, furiously attacking with his weapon.

"We'll win in the end so just give up!" Niku-man shouted, not noticing he and his three friends were following the redhead along the lines of a perfect spiral…

And then it finally happened, the girl stopped and crouched, as if giving up.

"Come for it, creeps, just a bit more…" Ranko said with a smirk, feeling the chilly soul of ice rise from her feet as it started to circulate all around her. "That's it…Hiryu…Shoten…"

The Niku-men gang, too excited at their apparent victory, rushed all at once, grabbing and waving their weapons, blindly aiming to shave all the hair from the girl's hair. And that's when they felt it.

A freezing wind that bit all the way through their bones.

"HA!" Ranko screamed, rising with the fist, unleashing, at last, the full force of her deadly attack, creating a tornado of cold wind that caught the Niku-Men and launched them spinning high into the sky. And as she looked at her defeated adversaries, a grin born of victory adorning her lips, the girl noticed that despite being caught in the fierce cold spiral one of the men was laughing, waving his arms while holding something red in his hand. Some of her hair.

"Those creeps!" She yelled, bringing her hands up and noticing that all the four baldies had managed to do was to take less than a fourth of her hair's length.

The icy tornado finally dissipating around her, Ranko's smile slowly returned to her. It didn't matter that the four baldies had taken some of her hair, she had been planning on cutting it a little anyway, and a handful of hair was a very small price to pay in exchange for mastering the technique that had placed her at the same level as Ryoga if not outright surpassing him at this point.

Their martial arts skills were no longer apart; she had closed the gap between them.

She could now stand by his side again as an equal.

"I did it!" Ranko whispered, still smiling. "With this Ryoga and I can defeat anyone together, even that weirdo from my dreams if he ever tries to separate us…" She inhaled sharply while blushing, positively giddy at this point.

Yes, knowing she would be able to protect Ryoga if he ever needed it, and not just that, but to defend herself from anyone who would try to separate her from him helped her to finally forget the unease that had been bothering her all morning.

"Wait 'till Ryoga and Lotion get a load of this!" She exclaimed almost gleefully, rushing back to the farm with a happy stride in her steps.

----------------------------------------

The early morning sun bathed the rooftops of Yakusai village, going about its usual routines, people either trading or selling their wares. Tensions were high as the populace whispered warnings among themselves.

Walking down the main business street at the entrance were Rin Rin and Ran Ran. From the looks of it, both were completely oblivious to the looks of the herbalist people.

"Sister is it not a great honor to have the Elders task us with gathering these ingredients?" Ran Ran questioned while lowering her head, looking quite proud.

"It is indeed, but-" Rin Rin mumbled her reply, looking to her right and away from her sister.

"But what?" Ran Ran asked incredulously. "We're the whole reason the village will get the preparations they need." she finished, crossing her arms with her polearm tucked between them.

"We're magnificent, in that there can be no doubt, but remember that we should try and be modest about it too," Rin Rin tossed into the conversation, a little less boastfully than her sister might have.

A sound similar to a donkey's but also with the whinnying characteristics of a horse echoed just outside Yukusai.

Link held the reins while Pink rested with her hands behind her back, her feet kicked up and propped against the front of the cart. "Sister, I wonder if Shampoo and Mousse will be the ones waiting for the Merchandise," the blue kanji sister commented casually while looking off into the nearby farmlands.

"Sister, I wish Ginseng hadn't placed us in charge of delivering goods to the Amazons," Link revealed as she yawned a little.

"Move you stupid donkeys!" Pink ordered as she sat up, trying to mush the mules, hoping to instill some fear and maybe vigor in their steps.

"They're mules, try and remember, try not to mock donkeys by comparing them to these, if you please," Link corrected and looked at the animals that couldn't understand them.

"Ugh, I'm starting to wonder if it'd be faster to walk," Pink complained openly, it's not like her complaint could be heard by anyone, or by anyone that mattered to her, so, she figured, why not complain?

Sadly their cargo was much too large for them to carry in their hands and thus they were forced to wait on their mighty half-horse half-donkey champions.

Arriving later than they would have liked, Pink and Link were finally on the main street. Both appeared to be quite annoyed that their mules didn't like going faster. They looked around with bored eyes until Pink caught sight of two bite-sized Amazons.

"Sister! If you please! Look!" the poison user alerted her sibling while pointing, covering her mouth with her hand, trying to hold back her laughter.

Link wanted to laugh a little but she was more blown away by how small and adorable these representatives were. "They remind me of those nesting dolls but with different hairstyles!" the red kanji nurse replied lowly enough that only she and her sister could hear since they were closing the distance between them and the oddly colored duo.

Pink snickered a little at the idea of seeing those two stacked into each other, fighting it back she cleared her throat and called out to them. "Excuse me!" she shouted and waved an arm in their direction.

Annoyed with the lack of formality coming from her sister, the gentle sister simply opted to bow her head with a smile when they came to a stop.

Rin Rin and Ran Ran both stopped walking forward when they heard a girl calling out to them. Looking over their shoulders they saw what looked like two fifteen-year-olds dressed in fancy herbalist clothes... arriving in a cart pulled by two stubby mules?

They froze with their mouths agape, they looked offended even but regardless they trusted in their leaders' choices so in their minds there must have been more to this than what they were seeing. They looked to one another briefly before sighing, turning around fully, and returning Link's bow with one of their own.

"Greetings, are you two the ones who are picking up the Elder Council member's order?" Link inquired, gesturing to the back of their cart filled with the rather large order.

"I think we have the list," Pink commented as she hopped off the cart, walking to the back as she reached into her shirt, pulling out a list as she rummaged through the back of the cart.

"Where are my manners?" Link asked herself, blinking and clearing her throat. "I'm Link and the girl in blue is my sister, Pink." She introduced herself as well as her sister.

"I'm Rin Rin," she introduced herself with a clanking of her bamboo staff.

"And I'm Ran Ran," her sister also clanked her weapon onto the ground.

"That should be everything," Pink confirmed as she walked back with the list in hand, rubbing the back of her neck with a smile.

"Even got the sack of mandragora dust requested, good timing too, that was the last sack in Yakusai for the whole season." Link mentioned, letting them know how lucky they were to have requested these at this time of year.

When Pink was close enough Ran Ran took the list from her and read through it. She took out one she had kept in her own secret pocket, comparing the two sheets.

Link looked to Rin Rin and wanted to say something to be polite but when she looked to her, she saw that her mind was focused simply at the task at hand, 'She's even more serious than Mint was,' she thought for a second, blushing as she put her hand over her mouth, so shocked by that, that she feared the off chance that she said that out loud.

Ran Ran closed her eyes before opening them with a smile and handing it back, "Thank you, this is most excellent," she thanked, her lisp in her tone becoming much more noticeable.

"Thank you and the Joketsuzoku Elders, we hope your trip back is a pleasant and uneventful one! Also! If you please, send the cart back with someone you can trust If you can't!" Pink outlined as she read her pre-rehearsed line written on her palm before closing her hand, putting it behind her, and offering a smile.

Link and the other two girls rolled their eyes, obviously recognizing that the herbalist in blue had written that all down to reduce time spent on the job.

"Sister, if you please-" the older, more logical twin began.

Only to be surprised to find two boys leaping down from a rooftop. landing behind Pink and Link's cart.

The two younger-looking males landed on their feet, hunched over from the fall they straightened themselves out.

"You two! We're really in need of a kilo of mandragora root dust!" Daikokuse exclaimed as he pointed at Pink and then Link's back as they looked over their shoulders.

"We're more than willing to pay for it," His twin brother Daihakuse added, smiling as he too faced the herbalist twins.

The two oldest twins saw that another pair of twins ended up coming out of the woodwork. First, the pint-sized Amazons in battle Cheongsams, now two boys dressed in long-sleeved Changsha stood before them.

"Sister, if you please, am I seeing doubles?" Pink asked, the irony completely flying over her head.

"No, it's true. I'm seeing it too…" Link's voice concurred before looking at her sister. "Should I or you, Pink?" she asked.

Pink held out her hand, telling her that she needn't say more, "A thousand apologies, we're all out of Mandragora root dust, we are so sorry for the inconvenience!" she explained in a way that sounded intentionally rushed.

"Sold the last of it to these girls right here," Link said, then gestured to them with an open palm you'd use to gesture to something grand for the first time.

After an uncomfortable second of silence, the twins looked at each other, Daikokuse gave his brother a nod shortly after. The brother with the black circle on his chest approached Rin Rin and Ran Ran, going up to the cart brought by Pink and Link.

Most notably about Rin Rin and Ran Ran was that they didn't see this as a good thing, since the moment he began walking over, annoyed looks started occupying their faces.

"Is there any way we can convince you two lovely ladies to sell us that little bag there?" Daikokuse inquired in what he thought was a shrewd way, crossing his arms before casually leaning against the cart.

Unimpressed by his attempt at posing for his headshot photo, Ran Ran couldn't help but fight back some laughter, doing her best not to crack a smile she placed her hand over her mouth, only managing to stave it off to a chuckle.

Rin Rin, on the other hand, couldn't help but quirk a brow in intrigue, even smiling a little, 'I like the strong air to him, maybe he's a warrior? And at the very least, he's pretty cute,' she pondered the notion of letting him advance, despite the little voice in the back of her head reminding her to do as tradition instructed, perhaps she wanted a strong and confident man?

Daihakuse decided that now would be the best time for him to step in, putting both hands in his sleeves as the teen moved to stand next to his brother. "Please forgive my brother's brash behavior, but we would be ever so grateful if you two would consider selling us that bag of mandragora root dust," he apologized, hoping to recover what little ground their brother might have lost them.

Ran Ran this time couldn't help but find herself gazing at the more well-mannered twin, 'He sounds nice, warm and kinda' handsome, maybe I can ask him to a fight? Wait! Why am I saying it like that!?' The green-haired girl was somewhat new to this feeling, she may have been boastful before but now when faced with a rather cute boy with gentle eyes she found herself tongue-tied.

Rin Rin rolled her eyes in response to Daihakuse's kind words and soft voice, so her study went back over to the boy with the black circle.

She noticed him smirking at her, then winking as if it were the most casual thing in the world.

It looked as though they were sizing one another up how intensely they were having their unannounced staring contest.

They knew what their duty was and what it belonged to, so they answered the only way they could.

"We're not permitted to sell anything we have," Rin Rin answered with a sigh, shaking her head with a look of annoyed disappointment.

"It's much too important for our village," Ran Ran explained, expressing some frustration since this meant they were more than likely to leave now.

Turning around as if they had to immediately leave, leaning down a little to look at each other, they whispered among themselves.

"The one called Daihakuse is cute," Ran Ran whispered, leaning the side of her head closer to her side.

"Really? I think Daikokuse is much, much cuter!" Rin Rin replied, containing her excitement before smiling and looking over her shoulder at the handsome but confident face of said male twin.

"I wonder if they're strong," Ran Ran said, speaking normally now.

"I don't know sister, they look much too weak," Rin Rin countered, putting her finger to her bottom lip and turning away from them.

"Weak? Ha! I wouldn't call us weak," Daihakuse exclaimed, closing his eyes as if saying he didn't have to worry about dropping his guard.

"Though my brother lacks humility, what he says is true and we can prove it if you let us," Daikokuse implored them, smiling confidently, although, with much less arrogance painted on his face than his brother.

It was then that the two contrasting but otherwise similar-looking twins hummed at the same time. Their interest sated for the moment, they paused, looking at one another before adjusting their heads so they were staring at their would-be challengers.

"If you're both so sure of your strength then we should all have a duel to prove it!" Ran Ran declared as she turned around and lifted her trident spear, pointing it at the male twins.

"If you win then we'll happily give you the dust you want," Rin Rin added, getting a look from her sister to which she only grinned in confidence.

Ran Ran looked to think it over for a minute before stopping and nodding along with her sister.

"For both of your sakes, It would be wise of you two to reconsider…" Rin Rin's voice trailed as she bluffed, clearly looking forward to a fight.

The Nekonronian twins smiled, clearly unfazed by Rin Rin's advice and Ran Ran's declaration. Closing their eyes and lowering their heads, they shook them to the side before opening their eyes together.

"I think you girls will be pleasantly surprised," Daikokuse started with confidence that seemed to never leave him.

"We accept your challenge, though, but know that…" Daihakuse started but paused for dramatic effect.

"We are both proud members of the Seven Lucky Gods of Nekonron! And we won't be so easily defeated!" They both proclaimed with their heads held high.

"We're the strongest of our class in our village!" Ran Ran proclaimed, matching their pride with her head held just as high.

"We will teach you what we can do!" The two female twins exclaimed at the same time.

With wide eyes, the two temporary merchants watched the brewing conflict between the two Amazons and from what they heard Nekonronians. "I think we should watch sister," Pink suggested as she crossed her arms.

"Just in case someone gets poisoned or something," Link agreed, eyes darting from right to left, waiting for anyone to throw the first blow.

"How about we watch at a safe distance if you please?" Pink asked as a nervous sweat drop formed on her head, sensing the strong auras trying to overpower the other.

"For once you are right Pink!" Link exclaimed as they moved back to Yakusai's entrance.

"Hey! I'm right more often than you think dear sister!" Pink responded as they were still trying to get to a safe viewing distance.

Out on the main road, the other two sets of twins were facing each other down. That was until Rin Rin closed her eyes, with a flick of her wrist she extended her retractable staff to its full length.

Ran Ran narrowed her eyes and tightened her grip on her polearm, taking three practice strikes in the air to ready herself for the battle to come, from the sounds of it, the weapon was designed to resist more wind pressure than the typical polearm.

Daikokuse adopted a defensive posture, narrowing his eyes softly, a knowing look in his eye as his legs parted, his flats scraping across the ground and then seizing when his desired form was reached.

Daihakuse moved at the same time, however, his posture was more suited for a better offense than defense. Despite that difference in style, he never moved from his spot next to his fellow member of the Seven.

Silence befalls the group as even the nearby people that would normally mind their own business, stopped doing said business long enough to know something was going down.

Leaving nothing to chance, Rin Rin and Ran Ran saw it fit to engage the two male twins first! Standing side by side they charged with their weapons at the ready, once within jabbing range they immediately tried to end their battles in what they'd call a quick by surprising manner.

It was then that Daihakuse quickly sidestepped the pole stab, now within range he swiftly took a step forward, crashing his open palm into the dark magenta-haired girl's solar plexus.

Ran Ran gasped, falling on her back and clenching her torso.

The same could almost be said for Daikokuse, however, he managed to not only dodge but grab her weapon by the shaft then yanked it towards himself so quickly she barely had time to react.

Rin Rin's eyes went wide as the black circled teen struck her in the same spot as her sister had been hit.

As if thinking several steps ahead, Daikokuse grabbed the still recoiling girl and flung her over his shoulder, watching her tumble while Ran Ran grabbed her abdomen, looking like she was struggling to breathe.

The Amazonian twin's weapons clanked onto the ground when Daihakuse and Daikokuse finished, the two relaxed after their apparent win.

"Did you see what we meant?" Daikokuse asked kindly but also kinda' mockingly, given the complete victory over them.

Deep breaths were the only things the girls could offer as a response at first, they were hurt but both looked to each other as they gathered themselves. They squint their eyes shut while seemingly trembling for a moment. It was then that their disgruntled faces shifted to those of pleasant surprise and even giggling?

"Do you know what this means, sister?" Ran Ran asked her sibling confidently and almost proudly.

Rin Rin simply managed to compose herself before nodding in agreement. Following the defeat they rose to their feet, smiling they each moved to the twin that bested them.

Another staredown commenced, the two members of the Seven Lucky Gods smiled in return. Daikokuse shut his eyes and lowered his head, about to ask them to uphold their part of the wager.

"We can finally get married!" the two junior Amazons declared, both of them clasping their intended Nekonronian.

With slack jaws and eyes, the size of dinner plates the two guy twins gawked at the girls. Did they just say they were getting married? Were they to be beaten before they could wed who they wanted or were they demanding they marry the ones they overcame in the battle to marry them?

"What's going-" Daihakuse began but stopped when he felt Ran Ran embracing him, burying her face into his chest with a nuzzle.

"Are they getting married after losing or-" Daikokuse tried to ask, not getting much further until he too, felt an Amazonian beauty cuddling up to him.

Finally coming out from their hiding spot, Pink and Link approached with looks of clear dissatisfaction, hands resting on their hips while shaking their heads.

"Fight was too short," Pink said, sighing while shaking her head.

"Much too short," Link agreed, also shaking her head.

"Anyways, I'll do you two a favor and explain what these two girls are saying, you see, these two are Joketsuzoku Amazons, and whenever one falls in battle by a man outside their tribe they marry the one who beats them in battle," Pink announced.

"I feel bad for you two, sorry, but you two really should have known better," Link expressed her condolences, hands behind her back.

Rin Rin released Daikokuse, Ran Ran did the same with Daihakuse, going over to the cart, opening the bag with the mandragora dust.

"We were bested in battle, so you can take what you need," Rin Rin and Ran Ran stated in unison.

In all this confusion, they blushed when they stumbled onto the subject of marriage; of all things. They ceased all thoughts of betrothment when they were released and allowed to inspect the bag, inside there was indeed the dust they requested.

Link retrieved a scale from the back of the cart, holding it out to the two recently engaged Amazons. Measuring it, she waited until the scale evened out at about a kilo, all the while, her sister Pink holding out a bag to store said dust.

Daikokuse was one who was given the sack, swearing there was a storm of question marks hovering over his head or something, still, he took it without question. His brother only stole a passing glance, still so confused as to why a woman would willingly throw themselves at a man after losing to them in a fight, "Huh!?" They both gasped when they felt that one of their arms was enveloped by the girls.

"We all must go to Joketsuzuko and announce our engagement to the Great Elders!" Ran Ran declared triumphantly.

Immediately after the words 'engagement' left the short magenta-haired girl's lips, the two youngest of the Seven attempted to free themselves of the girls' grip, sheer embarrassment and fear motivating them. However, the girls were much stronger than accounted for, in fact, they were so much stronger, physically speaking, that they couldn't easily break free from their vice-like grips.

"We're only fifteen!" Daihakuse vehemently cried out in panic.

"Yes! W-we're much too young to be married!" Daikokuse's words mirrored his brother's underlined panic.

"That's not a problem! Both Rin Rin and I are almost fourteen, so it's alright," Ran Ran said, hoping to ease their tension; she did not.

"If you two want, we can postpone our marriage for a few years but we demand we at least start living together!" Rin Rin outlined some more than likely non-negotiable conditions of their marriage.

The two male twins' expressions were best described as a deer caught in the headlights look. Letting the idea of being married so suddenly spur them, they forced their arms through the grips of their would-be Las Vegas-style drive-thru marriage brides.

With incredible speeds they vanished from sight, darting to the nearest rooftops, making their escape.

"No, wait!" Rin Rin called out.

"Please, don't go!" Ran Ran held her hand out and lowered her head.

In the background behind them were Pink and Link, hands over their mouths as they almost looked to double over in laughter.

"Should we give chase?" Ran Ran asked with a shadow cast over her eyes.

"I think so," Rin Rin concurred, looking to where the two had been before sighing sadly.

"Remember, you two have a delivery to make to the Amazon village," Pink reminded them tenderly, hoping to maybe calm down the recently rejected girls.

"Y-yes! I also believe they mentioned they were from Nekoron, I'm sure you two can always go look for them there!" Link advised, clapping her hands together.

Letting themselves fight the heartache for the moment, they figured that maybe they were right. The two looked at one another and now both were sighing sadly.

It was then that Pink was reminded of Lime, the look on Ran Ran's more particularly, 'They haven't even known them that long! T-they're barely even teens! Being with a man takes real connection! Real connection-like-like!' she pondered before remembering the look of delight in Lime's face and the sensation she felt when she rested against him so openly.

"They're right," Ran Ran confirmed, nodding her head, maintaining her stern role as the leader of the two, she made her way back over to the cart.

"Let's go, Rin Rin." Ran Ran suggested as they went over to their newly acquired cart.

Getting snapped out of her thoughts, Pink watched as the two boarded their cart and began making their way back out of Yakusai.

"Sister, we need to plan a trip to Nekonron," Ran Ran said as soon as their cart was out of earshot.

"After the whole dilemma with the Musk Dynasty is dealt with, sister," Rin Rin responded, not a hint of fear or worry in her voice.

"No doubt the Amazon village will stay standing…" Ran Ran agreed, adding her own two cents to the current conversation.

Hearing no objections from Rin Rin, they continued on their way with their newly obtained, fully loaded, mule-powered cart.

----------------------------------------

Later…

Sitting atop a log with her leg crossed over the other, Monlon calmly began adjusting her lute, tuning it for the next time she had an audience or needed to think. In front of her was a campfire, positioned above the fire was a make-shift wooden kettle stand.

Monlon hummed with her eyes closed before smiling softly, twisting a tuning peg all the while. The wind picked up a bit, thus the tree's nearby began to rustle in the breeze.

"There you two are," she commented, looking over her shoulder, the stretching of her chord echoed before she tested it with a pluck.

It was then that the sounds of two people landing on their feet hit Monlon's ears.

"We brought the mandragora dust," Daikokuse held the bag out, blushing for a moment before looking as though he was about to say something but just couldn't bring himself to, so he looked away.

"Excellent work, Daikokuse, Daihakuse, with this I can finally get to work on the paralysis bomb." Monlon outlined calmly, looking forward and opening her eyes.

"Sorry we had to intrude on your lute tuning," Daihakuse apologized, arms tucked into his sleeves as he couldn't bring himself to look in Monlon's direction.

Monlon may not have been too old but she was wise enough to know there was something in the way the two spoke, 'What happened out there?' she thought, turning to face them as she stood up. What she saw was two awkward teens who more than likely wouldn't want to discuss what happened until later, much later.

"If something is wrong, you two can discuss it with me, I swear not to poke fun at you," she offered a sympathetic look, waiting as they locked eyes with her before nodding their heads.

"If and when we're ready!" Daikokuse replied, handing the bag of dust over to the teal-headed girl.

"Good then, I have a bomb that needs assembling to attend to." Monlon said, excusing herself when she got what she needed, giving them a warm smile before departing; her back facing them.

"I take it that's for the pachyderm you've mentioned before?" Daihakuse asked his comrade.

"That's right! You could even call this our plan B if you so desired," she spoke up a bit as she took the bag to her equipment.

The sounds of running water filled the air as the twins of the Seven Lucky Gods sat by a river. Sure there were other natural wonders and beauties around them, but they meant nothing to the two with the black and white dots on their chests.

Both sat cross-legged while their hands were tucked into their sleeves, looking as some fish leaped from the water, catching an insect in its mouth. Even when the fish dunked back in, it sounded natural just like the rest of the world around them.

"I can't help but think about Rin Rin…" The more mild-mannered one of the brothers said, casting his gaze onto the stones beneath his feet.

"Nor can I, except it's for Ran Ran," Daihakuse mumbled, lowering his head.

"Perhaps being engaged may not be so bad, brother," Daikokuse suggested as he looked up, rolling his eyes in a way that made it seem like the idea should be no big deal.

Daihakuse's back stiffened as he stared out directly in front of him. He didn't seem for this nor did he seem opposed to it either.

"They're strong and pretty cute," Daikokuse continued in a soft tone, remembering how Rin Rin felt with her arms around him.

"I'm certain they'd grow into magnificent beauties," Daihakuse said, assuring himself that this wasn't a bad idea, just another option their lives could take them down.

Allowing these thoughts to ferment, warm smiles eventually spread across their faces.

"Perhaps our luck wasn't so bad this morning," The twins' voices trailed as they spoke together in unison.

----------------------------------------

A bit later…

Arming the dust bomb, Monlon inspected her work for a moment, putting her hand to her chin before nodding in conformation. "Boys! We're going to Bao!" she called out, one hand holding her creation while the other was placed to the side of her mouth to help her call out to her fellow members of The Seven.

Faint silhouettes came from the river before the two appeared before Monlon, hands up to their sleeves, stern frowns on their faces.

"We see you've finished," Daikokuse commented, blinking as he leaned in a little and admired her work.

"I'll try speaking to the girl before I have the need for this, for the moment it's best to avoid conflict with her," she informed the two younger males.

"Sounds like the best option to me," Daihakuse put one of his hands to his chin, thinking Monlon made some good sense.

"Agreed, is there anything else, Monlon?" Daikokuse pressed for any additional caveats.

"Yes." she nodded her head and put away her Plan B. "Go ahead and call Ebiten, ask him to send the Airship to Bao, we're going to need it…" her voice trailed, narrowing her eyes slightly.

----------------------------------------

Back at Lotion's farm…

Ryoga, sitting by the living room's window, closed the carpentry book he was studying from and placed it on his lap. For a brief moment he wondered how Lotion got her hands on a Japanese book, but his gaze soon wandered beyond the window, hoping to see Ranko entering the farm.

She had been gone for a considerable amount of time already, and the only reason why he had not gone looking for her was that he didn't want to get lost because even with the new tricks he had developed to find his way around the farm, going out to the forest was entirely different and the last thing he wanted was to end up in Taiwan and never seeing Ranko again.

"She'll return soon," Lotion offered as she entered the living room. "You worry too much, boy."

"Something might have happened to her, you never know," he said, not looking away from the window.

"She's not going to get lost if that's what you're fearing," the old woman said with a tone of voice that made Ryoga sweat.

"What do you mean by that?" The boy asked nervously, fearing the old woman was aware of his most shameful secret.

"That I know about your sense of direction," Lotion said with a shrug. "Or your lack of it, to be more precise."

"But… how?" The young Hibiki asked. "I've… I've been careful not to…"

"Your ki imbalance," Lotion interrupted, raising one hand to stop the boy from talking. "I've been paying attention to you, child; it was the only way to determine how it's affecting you. It didn't hurt your sight or hearing and it certainly didn't affect your ability to harness it during combat. Then I noticed the way you go around the farm, and how you seemed to have trouble telling left from right. You have no sense of direction."

"I… I guess if someone here would notice it was you," Ryoga sighed. "You're right, I… get lost all the time, it makes my life very difficult."

"Are you the only one in your family with this condition?"

Ryoga shook his head no. "My parents have it too, and my grandparents also had this problem. My family's always been like this as far as I know."

"Hm… interesting," the old amazon said, scratching her chin and closing her eyes as she considered this information. "Did both your parents have this problem before they married?"

"Now that you mention it, my mother didn't," Ryoga said, recalling his mother could find his way around but eventually started getting lost. "She walked me to school and was there to pick me up until junior high."

"She lost her sense of direction then?"

"Yes, one day I woke up and… she just wasn't there so I decided to stay home and wait for her to come back, it took her several days," he recalled, sadness filling his voice as that painful memory returned. "She told me she suddenly couldn't find her way home, like dad."

The ancient amazon started pacing around the living room, hands hidden under her sleeves as she appeared to be deeply in thought, meditating about Ryoga's problem and trying to find a solution for it.

"It must be a curse," she said, stopping to look straight at the boy.

"You're telling me," Ryoga sighed. "It's a life-destroying one! You have no idea how much I've suffered because of it, I…"

"No, child, you don't understand," Lotion told him, accusingly pointing her little, bony right index finger at him. "You and your whole family are cursed."

"You mean… cursed as in… magic?"

Lotion nodded and then proceeded to explain. "If your father had this problem and then your mother started getting lost after a few years, then that means this condition that ruins your family's sense of direction is not natural. A ki imbalance can't be passed on from one person to another, it's not contagious unless magic is involved."

"Then that means…"

"It means someone or something cursed your family a long time ago," the old amazon sighed, obviously worried about this development. "And I can't offer you a cure unless I know the origins of the curse or how it works."

"But you said…"

"I can give you a temporary cure for your ki imbalance," Lotion reassured him. "And that should fix your sense of direction for a few hours, maybe even a full day. But if magic is involved then that's the best I can do until we find a permanent solution."

"A full day without getting lost?" Ryoga murmured, blinking as he struggled to imagine how that would feel.

A normal day to do as he wished, not having problems going where he wanted to go, and… he blinked as he realized something that took the wind out of his sails. The curse was contagious. That meant he would pass it on to Ranko… maybe that was even the reason why she was late!

"Something wrong, boy?"

"Ranko, what if I already gave her the curse?"

"Impossible. I do believe it will happen the longer you are together," Lotion said gravely. "But it's too soon, it didn't affect your mother immediately, so that means Ranko should still have at least ten years before she starts getting lost, plenty of time for you to find a cure now that you know what the problem is."

"I promise I'll find it!" Ryoga swore with full determination. "I won't let Ranko get cursed!"

"A noble sentiment," the ancient amazon praised. "Oh, and don't worry, this conversation will remain a secret between us; I won't tell her about your problem, it's best if she…"

Whatever Lotion was going to say was interrupted by a sudden vibration on the windows, as if a strong wind had rattled them for an instant. The old woman jumped to the windowsill and could do nothing but stare agape at what she saw as if she couldn't believe what was happening outside.

Also feeling something strange was happening, Ryoga followed Lotion's gaze and saw a twister rising somewhere in the distance just to dissipate in a matter of seconds.

"What was that?" he asked, still having trouble believing his eyes. "Is it…?"

"Yes, my boy," Lotion started, "That is what a complete Hiryu Shoten Ha looks like, and I pity anyone who was just hit by it."

"It must have been Ranko, she finally mastered it!" Ryoga guessed, getting on his feet and rushing for the door. "If she used it that means someone attacked her, I've got to go see her!"

"Stay where you are, do you want to get lost?" Lotion warned, stopping the boy the moment his hand touched the door.

"No… no, I don't," he said, understanding Lotion was right. "But then what should we do?"

"We wait for her outside," the ancient master said. "I'm quite certain Ranko won the battle, try to have some faith in her."

----------------------------------------

Not too long after…

Ranko entered the farm with a prideful stride and a grin that radiated happiness; still feeling incredibly pleased by what she had accomplished only a few minutes earlier. It didn't take her long to reach the house, and her smile grew when she saw Ryoga was already waiting for her.

Lotion was out there too, but the redhead's main focus was her boyfriend, he was the one she wanted to tell about it the most.

"Ryoga, guess who just mastered the Hiryu Shoten Ha?" She asked, stopping when she was in front of him, smiling and pointing her right thumb at herself. "I did, all by myself!"

"We both saw it. I must congratulate you, child." Lotion interjected before Ryoga could find the words to speak, as the boy was clearly mesmerized by the redhead's smile.

"Yes, Ranko, congratulations!" Ryoga finally managed to say, his smile a reflection of the girl's own; he really was that proud. "I knew you could do it!"

"Of course, I could, Ryo!" she chuckled. "Am I great or what?"

"Modesty, Ranko," Lotion chided with a sigh as she disciplined her boastful disciple, "is a trait that suits a martial artist best."

"Hey, I'm modest enough!" Ranko disputed and then shook her head and smiled. "Ok, ok, but there's nothing wrong with celebrating; I worked hard for this, I should be getting a prize!"

"I know you did," Lotion conceded with a smile of her own. "I guess we could have some dessert for a change; I should have some chocolate in the pantry, let's make a chocolate pie, would you like that?"

"You bet I would!" the redhead said and grabbed Ryoga by the arm. "Let's go to the kitchen Ryo, before she changes her mind!"

Watching as both her students rushed into the house, Lotion could do nothing but chuckle as she followed them. Perhaps these children were making her soft, but she didn't really mind, they had made her life interesting again, and she was thankful for that.

----------------------------------------

Meanwhile, in the Amazon village…

Rin Rin and Ran Ran waited in the town's main warehouse for Cologne and Rinse to meet them; they had arrived a few minutes before, and after notifying they had completed their mission and brought the requested supplies, were told to wait there for the two elders.

"I think Daikokuse is cute," Rin said, having memorized the name of her would-be husband it was easy for her to recall her Nekonron twin. "And that move he made against me was incredible, he really is skilled!"

"Daihakuse is just as cute," Ran smiled, as she had also memorized the name and all the little details she could about her own Nekonron twin. "His style was so elegant, I think he's just as skilled."

"They'll be very handsome when they're older!" Rin squealed with a blush.

"Handsome and strong!" Ran completed the observation, also blushing as she imagined an older Daihakuse.

"I think we got really lucky," Rin said with a smirk.

"Agreed, sister, we've got ourselves engaged to great future husbands!"

"What's that about you two being engaged?" Elder Rinse asked from behind the twins. "We sent you to pick up our supplies, not to flirt with the first two boys you met."

"It seems some mandragora root dust is missing," Cologne said then while lifting the mandragora bag to evaluate its weight. "Did you not pay attention when they filled this bag because you were busy flirting?"

"No, we promise we weren't flirting!" Rin said, hands up and backing up a step as she was terrified of angering the elders.

"We weren't, we swear!" Ran said a bit more nervous than necessary.

"We actually had all the mandragora dust you asked for, but…" Rin made a pause and lowered her head in shame. "But two boys wanted a kilo, we wouldn't sell it to them so we decided to fight for it."

"I take it that you two lost," Rinse sighed.

"We tried our best!" The twins said at the same time, hands clasped and an expression of fear adorning their faces. "But those twins from Nekonron were just too strong."

"Nekonron you say?" Cologne asked once the name was mentioned.

"Did these twins of yours mention why they were in Yakusai?" Rinse asked.

"They didn't, they just wanted some mandragora root dust," Ran provided. "That's all we know, they had to leave in a hurry right away and didn't say anything else."

"I hope we're not in trouble for losing the fight," Rin continued. "They defeated us, but they're almost two years older and they said they're members of the Seven Lucky Gods…"

Cologne shook her head and then spared a quick glance to check how Rinse was faring with this new information. "No, you are not in trouble, children, I think you did a good job given the circumstances. Go to the training grounds, we'll call you if we need you."

Rin and Ran nodded and after bowing to signal their respect for the elders, walked out of the warehouse, chatting about the Nekonron twins once they were on their way.

"Fighters from Nekonron, and members of the Seven, no less," Cologne said, musing on the words as she evaluated the situation. "They hardly ever leave their territory, I don't like it."

"Neither do I," Rinse agreed." Still, it should be nothing but a coincidence, I don't think the Seven are also looking for that Ranma kid."

"I hope you are right, because dealing with the Nekonronians on top of the Musk dynasty is something we don't need," Cologne answered.

"I'm sure it was just a coincidence," Rinse repeated.

But deep down, both elders felt this was not just some dumb coincidence, and that something else had happened.

All they could do was to hope whatever it was, it wouldn't cause further trouble to their village.

----------------------------------------

Later, in the afternoon…

Monlon stood atop a thick tree branch, hand resting on the tree's trunk while the other reached for the back of her neck, tugging her hood over her head. She assumed the identity she had the last time she had visited Bao.

Standing on different branches but by her sides were her twin compatriots. Daihakuse was to her left, Daikokuse to her right. With their arms crossed, backs to their trees, they looked out towards the village.

"Let's go," she commanded, taking the first leap.

Dashing from tree to tree until eventually getting onto the first set of homes, faster than the typical person silhouettes traveled on the rooftops. All three reunited at the top of a large three-story building, their intense speeds reduced to regular running.

"From here on out, follow my exact path onward!" Monlon instructed, looking to each of her sides once, meeting the twins eyes once to make sure they were on the same page.

With no hesitation in their actions, the twins did as she said, maintaining the course by staying by her side and by her still unchanging speed.

"Anything else, Miss Monlon?" Daikokuse asked as they leaped onto another building, this one being a story shorter than the last.

"Be ready to call the airship!" she exclaimed right before kicking out some wind and the boy's clothes as she vanished.

Narrowing their eyes for a second the twins vanished behind her in the blink of an eye, doing their best to keep up with the blurry image of Monlon. Their leaps and bounds were as gentle and as quiet as they could be, whenever there was a chance of someone spotting them the trio would either pause or wait as Monlon would raise her hand, signaling for them to stop before continuing to a restaurant with the sign "Han Restaurant" written over it.

Stopping at a building about two stories tall, the trio of the Lucky Seven Gods surveyed their surroundings. Glad to find that the streets nearby were nearly empty, Lychee hummed a delightful tune while sweeping the entrance.

"This could be her last chance," Monlon muttered from her bird's eye view of the orange-blonde.

"How would you like-" Daihakuse was about to ask but stopped when he saw her lift a finger upward.

"Just leave this to me, you know what to do if things don't go as planned…" her voice trailed as she leaped to the corner of some building with no windows or people present.

"She is much too kind," Daihakuse commented, chuckling quietly to himself as he put his sleeve over his mouth.

"Let's hope fortune smiles on this girl, then, it's always such a shame to see someone so gentle looking get involved…" Daikokuse added his own thoughts, looking uncertain but a little hopeful.

Rounding the bend of the corner a woman in a white robe calmly approached Lychee. "Excuse me?" she called out in the same way she had approached the happy little restaurant worker.

Lychee stopped humming to herself, her eyes opening as she blinked for a moment. Clenching her broom closer to her chest she looked to who had supposedly sought her attention.

What she was was the woman with the white robe from before, serving many customers in various robes she couldn't exactly recall which one she was until after a second it hit her.

"Y-yes?" she asked, tilting her head to one side, 'She didn't end up ordering and left before she could,' Lychee reminisced of the day prior.

Putting her hand over her chest and then bowing slightly, "I'm Monlon of the Seven Lucky Gods, forgive me for leaving the day before without ordering anything. You see, Lychee, we know about the other redhead and we were hoping we could 'persuade' you into telling us where she lives," she explained, pausing and closing her eyes when emphasizing that one word.

Finding the way Monlon's introduced herself to be strange, Lychee frowned. Monlon wanted to know about her redheaded friend, all while wearing a very mysterious-looking white cloak? 'They're a shady bunch of women who want to hurt me,' a segment of Ranko's advice echoed in her mind.

With those words in mind, she figured she was one of those people out to get her friend, this one seemed more willing to talk but it still looked as though hurting Ranko was her objective.

"She has to be one of them," she muttered to herself, holding her broom closer to her chest.

"It would be best for everyone if you just told me where she is," Monlon insisted, locking her stern gaze to Lychee's insecure one.

"I can't share that information, please leave!" she exclaimed, trying her best to leave discreetly.

"I don't think so," Monlon said as she disappeared, then came back into sight, blocking Lychee's way back inside. "I don't have time for these little games, tell me where she is…" Her voice trailed dangerously, crossing her arms during her warning.

"I won't tell you no matter what you do!" Lychee shouted her reply as loudly as she could.

"Why would you risk-" Monlon tried to say but figured that the damage was done, she lowered her head and looked over her shoulder as much as she could while still keeping her eyes on her intended target.

A pair of feet could be heard running around the inside of the restaurant, kicking the door open was the redheaded man and father of Lychee. "What's going on!?" Han demanded to know.

Taking this as her opportunity, the orange-haired waitress made a mad dash over to her parents. Lychee's first course of action was to embrace her mother from the side.

The blonde woman hugged Lychee closely, "It's okay, we're here." She tried to comfort her, patting her head once before looking back at Monlon.

"Ranko told me about mysterious women who want to hurt her! They want to know where she lives but I can't let them hurt my one and only friend!" Lychee revealed as quickly as she could to her parents, looking towards her father.

"Anyone who dares to hurt my daughter's friend isn't welcome in our restaurant!" The wife of the owner vehemently warned.

"So you better leave," the redheaded father strongly recommended she take the advice.

"I did-" Monlon began.

"Bahruuuuuuhhhhaaaaa!"

Jasmine lowered her trunk as she came from behind the restaurant, red crackling streaks of ki surrounding her form. Her eyes focused on the invader who would dare threaten her Lychee and family, the invading woman looked quite annoyed after the elephant interrupted.

"I really didn't want to do things this way but if I must," the teal-haired woman grabbed at her robes. "But I'm in quite the hurry so since you refuse to cooperate then I'm afraid I'll have to play rough!" she exclaimed loudly and clearly, her expression that of someone burning with determination in her eyes.

Her attacker charged onward, only pausing to roar, manifesting her black aura, becoming an unrelenting force of nature.

Pulling her robe as the beast charged, she revealed her elegant and otherworldly dress; paired along with it was her mystical wooden lute and angled lute pick.

With Monlon's right hand she held her lute while the other reached behind her to retrieve a mandragora root dust bomb.

Jasmine was rather big so she could have been comparable to aiming at the broadside of a barn. Monlon could not risk it though, this was her duty and she would see it through to the end. She quickly threw the peculiar bomb straight into the pachyderm's face, causing it to explode on impact.

Crying out once more the mighty circus animal and longtime friend fell to her side, with her face stuck in shock, she at most, managed to defiantly twitch once before becoming as still as a statue; frozen in time.

The living incarnation of Benzaiten held her lute out in front of her, spinning around, striking elegant poses akin to what one might imagine a figure skater to do. In her case, however, when she finished she thrust the lower half of her lute forward, lute strings shooting out like high-speed spider webs.

"Lychee!" Both of her parents cried out as the only one the living musical wires took was their orange-blonde daughter.

"The more she struggles the tighter the wire becomes!" Monlon exclaimed as she pulled her now too frightened to move captive towards her.

A strike of lightning and the beating of ceremonial drums echoed in the land as the clouds above them parted. From the clearing was a boat, above it was a giant balloon in the shape of a blimp. Their flag, along with the blimp, was a bright yellow color.

"Bring the airship down!" she ordered as Lychee landed next to her on her feet, moved as though she were some puppet.

A teen in a blue Changsha with a white circle in the center suddenly appeared from a nearby rooftop, aligning a mirror to reflect the sun's beams towards the blimp-ship.

"I'll get my rifle!" Han declared, not taking this sitting down.

"I don't think so!" Daihakuse mockingly rebutted, jumping down as he threw a large net over the two rightfully concerned parents.

"Lychee!" Both her parents cried out to her, seeing that only now, could some people see that their daughter was being abducted.

Less than a minute passed before soldiers inside the vessel threw a rope ladder. Being the highest up and nearest by, Daikokuse was the first to toss his mirror aside and run over to the rope ladder, grabbing it then proceeding to smile, waving them goodbye.

Following him was Daihakuse as he leaped from anything he could until he reached the rooftops and eventually the rope ladder his brother had also taken.

For Monlon, however, she had taken Lychee and flung her over her shoulder, moving as quickly as she could, grabbing it while it just started leaving.

"I, Monlon of the Seven Lucky Gods, will release your daughter on the condition that the other redhead goes to meet our Prince of Nekonron!"

Han grit his teeth as he had fallen on his rear, he slammed his right hand onto the ground, cursing this sort of twisted luck.

"You'd better do it quickly!" she advised as loudly as she could, her voice sounding like a faint whisper by now.

----------------------------------------

"Now that we've gathered most of the ingredients for Ryoga's cure, we just need some special vinegar from Nekonron," Lotion explained.

"Vinegar?" Ryoga asked.

"The very kind they use to pickle vegetables, yes," Lotion answered, nodding her head in confirmation.

"What's so special bout it?" Ranko asked, crossing her arms, looking skeptical.

"The vinegar includes water from the region, water with special properties that will give the corly weed and others the potency they need to counter Ryoga's imbalance, even if only for a few hours per day." Lotion continued.

"Now we're talking!" Ranko comments excitedly then look to her boyfriend. "Isn't that cool?"

"Yeah, it is!" Ryoga replied to Ranko with the same energy as she had, smiling all the while.

'Even if it's just for a little while I'll be able to spend time with Ranko without losing sight of her, so, that means, I have to find a way to make this permanent! I can't let the same thing happen to her like what happened to Mom!' he thought with an emotionally heavy voice, his eyes softening as the mention of his own mother came into his mind.

Right after Ryoga answered, the redhead shut her eyes and smiled. It hadn't been too long when she opened them again, this time, when she opened her eyes she saw that Ryoga's smile had faltered, 'The guy looks more lost than usual, guess this is where I step up as a girlfriend!' she thought to herself, reaching her hand out and pinching his arm to catch his attention.

"Look, Ryo, I'm happy for you and you should be happy for you as well, okay? So, cheer up, would ya?" she asked.

"I'm glad my condition is going to be cured, I'm just at a loss for words, so it's hard for me to express everything I'm feeling…" Ryoga's voice trailed, his voice now sounding more genuine, his smile returned but this time, it was much more honest, no doubt he was emboldened by Ranko's words.

Ranko paid attention to the way he spoke, listening to the way he answered her, she could tell that despite some complications, he was being earnest with her but still there was a slight hitch in his voice.

"I'm happy, I'm happier than I've ever been in fact!" he continued, the hitch in his voice becoming much more pronounced now.

There was something wrong, the only problem was, Ranko didn't know what she had to do to get any answers out of Ryoga, 'What's bugging him? It's not me, is it?' she pondered.

Suddenly the phone began to ring, catching Lotion's attention while she was looking off to the side. Finding a good reason to excuse herself from the romantic tension, she went over to the phone and answered.

"Hello?" she asked, pausing before her eyes widened. "Ranko! Ryoga!" she cried out, lowering the phone from her ear.

"What's wrong!?" Ryoga looked around after asking.

"Who's attacking!?" Ranko demanded to know, doing the same as Ryoga and looking around.

"I'm afraid your friend Lychee has been kidnapped, I'm sorry…" her voice trailed in regret.

Ranko's eyes widened as she stared at the exiled elder, too shocked to speak for once.