Over the next few weeks Ranma and Ryoga spent their time learning from one another; mostly Ryoga. As time had progressed, Ryoga began to understand entire sentences, but slang often escaped him and new things had yet to be introduced to him. One of the most shocking things was that Ranma was about to reveal something to him. The red headed girl he had come to admire was going to enlighten him on something... such as, where did that black haired martial he first saw, go to?

Both Ranma and Ryoga were sitting away from each, on what appeared to be two conveniently placed rocks that were across from each other; their legs crossed. Next to Ranma was a thermos, obviously filled with warm water for what he was about to do. "So, Ryo... you said you'd like me no matter what, right?" Ranma asked.

Ryoga looked to the side and nodded his head, blushing lightly. "Of course not, Ranma."

Ranma lowered her head and reached down to grab the thermos and unscrewing the lid before raising it above her head and dumping the contents of the thermos on her. The shift happened swiftly and caused the loose fitting clothes on the girl to fit much more nicely and her hair color to change completely.

"This is me... I'm that black haired guy ya' remembered from back when we first met," Ranma stated, staring Ryoga in the eyes while at the same time lowering the thermos back to where he picked it up.

Ryoga paused for a moment to register the knowledge that he had just received and much like any teenager that learned about their friends secret... he was shocked. He often remembered hoping those two could be his friends and would do many things together. "S-so... it's like me when I change back to my normal self..."

"Yeah... if you can remember when we fell from that cliff, that I ended up somewhere else? Didn't you think it was weird, dat that I vanished?" Ranma asked, staring at Ryoga and wondering why he hadn't figured that out.

"To be honest Ranma... I didn't know you where gone for a while, all I could think about is being a good servant to her-" Ryoga's eyes widened as he had to adjust to this. "I-I mean you..."

Ranma rubbed the back of his neck and sighed, he wasn't sure what to make of this situation. "Look if you wanna' leave you can... since I know you can handle yourself now, but I was kinda' hopin' you'd stick around, hang wit me and stuff, y'know? ...good ol' friend stuff?"

Ryoga's heart clenched with Ranma's claim about him leaving, "I just have to know something!" Ryoga exclaimed, sitting up and staring the black haired Saotome, locking eyes with him as Ranma looked up to him. "Will I see get to see you..."

"Huh?" Ranma blinked.

"Will I get to see you like that again!" Ryoga asked, hoping to never lose that woman he clung so tightly to. The woman who taught him everything he knew, the one who even taught him to change his clothes and would often times give him bathes, in his piglet form.

Ranma cringed and leaned back, the idea of going back to being a girl so soon after he had just gotten the nerve to show Ryoga his true form, well... to say Ranma was less than willing was an understatement. It also didn't help that Ranma wasn't over the whole, necking session Ryoga's used to do though. He reluctantly decided to throw him a bone, "Y-yeah... ya' can see er' when it's raining."

Ryoga smiled and hugged the other boy, not knowing that men didn't often engage each in deep hugs. "Wha!" Ranma screamed as the other boy was on top of him and holding his. Ranma suppressed his uneasy feelings and patted Ryoga on the back.

Too bad for them Genma wasn't busy being a mascot on this day and had actually been all for Ranma revealing his real form, in order to stop the harassment he had to watch his son endure. "Did you finally get the boy to under-" he stopped short, catching his son in an awkward position, yet again.

"I said told you to tell him to stop that! Don't tell me he goes both ways!" Genma exclaimed, holding his hands out and gritting his teeth.

Ranma's eyes widened, being accused of liking guys was certainly something he didn't want to hear... given everything that's happened to him recently. "N-no! You dirty old man!" Ranma exclaimed, turning to Ryoga.

Ryoga understood what Ranma wanted and moved away from him. "Ranma... what does 'going both ways' mean?"

The pig tailed boy shook his head, planting his hand on his face. "I'll tell ya' some other time..."

Nodoka walked out from the house and raised her hand and slammed it against the head of her rude husbands head. "Dear! What have I told you about implying unmanly things to our son! Ryoga simply doesn't understand everything we do, so stop giving him such a hard time!" Nodoka exclaimed, at this point she had grown to like the fang toothed boy.

"B-but N-nodoka dear!" Genma cried, turning to his wife with a comically huge lump on his head.

Ranma snickered a few time before bursting out on a hearty laugh. "She showed ya' good, pops!"

Ryoga chuckled at Genma's expense as well, something about everything that Genma and Nodoka did tickled him. He understood this as something funny or laughable.

"Enough!" Genma shouted, "Fine... if I can't speak to him that way, I'll train him!" Genma said, now found a legitimate way at getting revenge at the fang toothed boy.

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Ranma's eyes widened and she stopped laughing, this was what he had been hoping for. "Bout' time!"

Ryoga's eyes widened and he wondered what he meant by training, he's heard it mentioned before by Ranma, usually when he mentioned he could return to this so called training. "T-training?"

"Prepare yourself boy!" Genma exclaimed, pointing his finger at Ryoga. "You're going to be in the same class as Ranma... and believe me, I won't be slacking with him anymore either!"

Nodoka blinked and found the idea to be generally good, not only would that help Ryoga with understanding but it would also give him that sort of manly air that she enjoyed seeing, that was always a positive thing for her. The journey of a martial artist was not an easy one and Ryoga would have to endure even more hardships, but these hardships would better mold him into a strong and independent man.

"Is it okay...?" Ryoga asked, turning to Ranma and blinking his eyes, unsure of what to make of the situation. That was obvious by the deer caught staring at the headlights look he was giving Ranma.

"Course!" Ranma said, dusting himself as he got up and held his hand out in front of Ryoga. "You'll get to train wit me and we both know how good I am!"

Ryoga wasn't much for thinking about anything so his mind decided to follow and do anything to be close to his master, which happened to be someone who can change gender and assume the roles of two very important people to him. Though maybe the red headed Ranma was more of his preference, since memories of her were all over his mind. "I guess." he said, taking Ranma hand and raising to his feet.

Genma smirked and crossed his arms. "Today is your lucky day cause I've got no work today... so you're gonna' start training right now!" Genma exclaimed before pointing his index finger at Ryoga. "And do you know what's best for a growing boy like you?"

Nodoka looked to the side, the reason Genma didn't have any work on this day was because Cologne told him that no one would be serving anything this day. Cologne only mentioned that she had a meeting to attend and didn't trust her great grand daughter with the nekohaten. And although she had scolded him for using his curse as a mascot in no doubt another one of his hair brained schemes to earn money. Though having two people with frequent jobs wa better than one... still... she would have prefered it if he had discussed this with her before.

Ryoga directed his attention to Genma, blinking every so lightly as he waited for his first training exercise to be commanded. "You're gonna' have to get in shape boy..."

Ranma placed his hand on Ryoga's shoulder. "No need old man... I already taught him how to keep in shape, just because he's a pig doesn't doesn't mean his human side has to be one too," Ranma commented.

Genma raised a brow and pressed his glasses up by, hazing them over once again. "I suppose you should bring him up to speed with you Ranma, m'boy."

"You've got sometime before he's ready and I do intend for him to be ready... because if he isn't, I promise that I won't let you keep him around..." Genma declared, earning a horrified look on Ranma's and Ryoga's face.

Nodoka's eyes widened, seeing the distressed looks on Ranma and Ryoga's faces, this wasn't going to happen while she was still alive and breathing. "Genma dear... I do hope you were planning on discussing this with me first, right?" Nodoka asked, her eyebrow twitching in annoyance.

She wasn't going to allow her husband to make such arrogant decisions anymore, especially that one time he suggested that Ranma and him go on an extremely long training trip, one that would take several years to mo;d him into a man amongst men.

Genma gulped and realized that maybe he should have waited to suggest this idea. "Y-you have to understand dear!" he exclaimed turning around to the mother of the Saotome son. "He can't freeload off of us forever!"

"I can't believe you think he's freeloading, Genma!" Nodoka exclaimed. "He's been helping around the house and preparing firewood and everything for us! To him we're his only family and YOUR shunning him away because you care too much about our expenses, that's horrible! And you're not one to talk dear! You're the one who eats the most!"

Genma blushed and leaned back, knowing to some degree, that Nodoka was correct. There was a reason she was his better half, because she better have her way. "I couldn't imagine life without 'our' Ryoga, he's almost like a second son to me!"

Ranma stared at Nodoka for a moment, her entire speech having touched him as well but what did Ryoga have to say about all of this?

Ryoga stared at Nodoka for a moment and seemed to tear up from everything she said, he was glad that he never really met his real mother, because this woman had a better motherly image than any other swine could have, besides Ranma. "T-thank you... mis Nodoka!" he bowed his head, while holding his hands together in a prying like fashion.

Nodoka smiled and turned to her husband, "See dear, he's grateful and who knows... he might be more pleasant, I know how you often have arguments with Ranma."

"Hey!" Ranma whined, crossing his arms and looking to the side, not wanting to be labeled as a problem child.

"You know I don't mean anything by that, Ranma dear..." Nodoka said, feeling an anime sweat drop come down her face.

Genma sighed and looked away, "Perhaps..." he added, then turned back to Ranma and Ryoga. "You two will begin with a few basics..." with that he marched over to the two boys and placed his hands on his hips.

"Nodoka... care to watch?" Genma asked, turning to his wife and offering an apologetic expression.

"Of course... but perhaps after I've finished launch, will you still be training till then?" Nodoka asked.

"Believe me... they will..." Genma nodded, just all around serious about the moment. Though the idea of accepting Ryoga like a second son seemed to trouble him ever so much. But hey... if his wife saw something in Ryoga... she must have been able to see the best in people, she did after all... agree to marry him.

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Cologne

The ancient woman stood before the council of the amazonian elders. They all seemed hidden in the shadows, but from what could be seen. Anyone would guess that they're short and long haired while holding what appeared to be staffs to the left sides of their bodies.

Cologne happened to be standing in the center of the group, a light making her the only clearly visible person in the room. "I'd like to discuss the case of that piglet and the boy who was foolish enough to fall in the spring of drowned girl..."

One of the elders turned her head to her, "I can see why you wish to address this to us... because the piglet is of no concern, he'll live the rest of his natural piglet life so he is no cause for concern, but the boy might get in over his head if he thinks becoming a woman will make him equal in our ranks."

"Indeed... the cursed piglet shall die in about fourteen years, so the Jusenkyo guards don't have to worry about it, but what should I do about the boy?" Cologne asked.

"At the moment none of us are sure..." whispered one of the elders. "All we have to do is make sure is doesn't cause any mischief in the village," one of the elders commented.

"Hm... indeed, but we must monitor them within the shadows, ladies."

Each one of them nodded their heads, agreeing with her.

'That boy shouldn't become too attached to that pig... people tend to be disappointed with cursed animals when they perish..."