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Anime/Manga » Ranma » Dragons, Mages and Martial Artists font: B s : A A A . width: full 3/4 1/2
Author: Jerry Unipeg
Fiction Rated: M - English - Adventure/Fantasy - Reviews: 9 - Published: 04-02-08 - Updated: 04-03-08 - id:4172365
Ranma 1/2:
Dragons, Mages, & Martial Artists Crossover: DragonLance By: Dani Yanega (please respond to this e-mail address)
/yanega/index.htm or Visit my Mirror site at:
www.ranko.pwp./index.htm

Chapter Eight

The warriors returned to camp a few moments after Raistlin and Ranma. The mage was tending the fire while Ranma was missing. Ryoga went to where Mousse was helping to set up the camp. He paused as he felt a hard stare at his back. He turned and saw the golden mage watching him with cold golden eyes.

"He's been doing that to me ever since he and Saotome returned." Mousse whispered to his companion.

"What happen Ranma wouldn't say anything and neither would he!" Mousse continued nodding in the general direction of the mage.

"Ranma had nearly all the ogres contained when we arrived. Then they started killing them." Ryoga snarled as he looked back toward the Krynn warriors.

"WHAT?!" Mousse couldn't help it as he shouted, drawing the attention of the others.

"SHH! Keep it down, will ya!" Ryoga made quieting motions with his hands.

"I think they have nearly convinced Ranma to kill the monsters we meet." Mousse looked at Ryoga as if he just grew two horns and a tail.

"You're nuts Saotome may be a lot of things but killing..!" Mousse broke off remembering the battle with Saffron.

"The thing is they made sense." Ryoga said as he hung his head.

"What are you talking about!" Mousse growled in his face as he grabbed the front of Ryoga's shirt.

"What he means is that we explained that leaving those in the dark queen's service alive will cost the lives of innocent people because they will take there loss out on the next village they come to." The two boys turned to face Tanis as he stood behind them.

"But to take a life without good cause..?" Mousse shook his head as he thought about the first fight they had when they arrived.

Mousse looked up his eyes wide with shock. He turned to Ryoga his mouth opening and closing. Ryoga looked at him with a confused look then to Tanis. Tanis knew what he was thinking and walked away.

"Ryoga if that is the case those lizards we fought when we first got here"
Mousse left the thought hanging in the air.

"We left some of them alive!" Ryoga whispered a greenish yellow glow of depression forming around him.

"RANMA THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" The camp turned to Ryoga's outburst and then to the pigtailed girl who just returned to camp with water.

Ranma lowered her head in an effort to keep her emotions hidden. She put the buckets down by the cook fire smiled at Tika who bent under her slightly to look up into Ranma's saddened face.

Ranma then turned and left the camp before Ryoga or Mousse spotted her. She didn't want to deal with them any longer, she didn't want to fight anymore. She left back toward the small spring where she had gotten the water.

When Ranma arrived she jumped up into the branches of the tallest tree. She then sprang lightly to the top most branches. She chuckled as she thought of another reason to like her female side besides ice cream. It allowed her to sit at the top of trees with out worrying about the branches breaking under her reduced weight.

Ranma settled into the a 'V' in the branches and watched the clouds slowly go by for a few minutes before reaching into her hyper storage and pulled out an old tome she had borrowed from Dr. Tofu. She had been copying it into her own notebook.

She pulled out a pin and began transcribing more of the tome. She felt even if she wasn't going back she could send Dr. Tofu's books back to him. She had nearly transcribed all of the books in his library and this was one of the last.
She had only one more to go after this.

Using the speed of the Amiguriken, she finished the last quarter of the book and replaced it and the notebook she copied into back into her storage space. She then pulled out the last book and another blank journal.

This last book was not that thick and should only take her an hour to transcribe. She opened the book and stopped. There staring her in the face was a picture of Ryoga and Akane bare to the waist and kissing each other. They were in a grove of trees familiar to Ranma as she would sometimes go there to get some peace and quite.

Ranma picked up the picture and looked at it trying to figure out when it was taken. She turned it over and saw nothing on the backside of it. Her eyes filled with tears as the image burned into her brain. Ranma let her broken heart wash over her. She snorted as an errant thought traveled through her brain.

Well at least this made it easier for me to stay on this world. After all no one is going to miss me. I just wished it could have been better between us
Ranma looked at he photo with blurred vision as her thumb rubbed over the image of Akane.

Ranma put the picture in her storage space wondering how Dr. Tofu got it? She put her pen to the pages of the blank journal her eyes staring at the text in front of her. The problem was her vision kept blurring for some reason and she couldn't see to write.

Ranma put the tome and journal away and leaned back into the tree. She stared up at the darkening blue sky, as that picture returned to haunt her mind. She ignored the tears as the hot liquid streamed down her face, burning their salty tracks into her face.

It was dark when Ranma heard her name being called. She opened her eyes realizing she had fallen asleep. She wiped her face then jumped down from the tree to land in front of Mousse and Ryoga. She glared at the lost boy then pushed past both of them and headed back to camp.

Mousse and Ryoga looked at each other confused, then shrugged their shoulders and followed the redhead back to camp. When Ranma entered the camp she was swamped by three frantic women. Mousse and Ryoga came in moments later both glaring at Ranma.

"Ranma where have you been we were worried when you didn't return for the evening meal?" Goldmoon chided the young girl.

"I..I am sorry I fell asleep in a tree." Ranma told them as she scratched the back of her head a sheepish smile.

"Well next time let someone know where you are going to be, it is to dangerous to be wondering around by yourself!" Tika scolded as she took the petite martial artists arm and lead her to the fire.

"Laurana saved you some of the meal, come lets get you feed." Tika led her toward the fire when Ranma broke away.

"That's alright Tika let someone else have it I ain't that hungry. I need to do some thinking so if you don't mind I am just going to go back down the spring,
ok." Ranma didn't wait for a response as she disappeared into toward the small water source.

"Ranma not eating, oh man something ain't right!" Ryoga said as he shook his head, Mousse nodded his agreement.

"What did you do to her!" The three women turned on the two boys their rage glowing in their eyes.

"We didn't do anything, honest!" Ryoga and Mousse both stated as they backed up from the angry females.

This whole incident played out in front of the other companions and like the women they too believed that Ryoga and Mousse were behind Ranma's strange behavior. They watched as the women tried to get them to confess to what they had done. Raistlin rose to leave, deciding the information would be best coming from the person in question. Since he felt any answers from those two would be tainted by their feelings for the cursed boy.

Raistlin started to leave toward the spring, he moved only a few feet. He turned at the familiar presence next to him. Caramon stood next to him his eyes gazing ahead. Raistlin tried to get angry but somehow being around Ranma made him glad his brother was always there for him sometimes.

"There is no need for you to come brother. I fear Ranma will not open up if you are with me. You are the warrior he is suppose to be and you there will keep him from talking." Raistlin placed his overly hot hands on his brother's shoulder.

Then turned and left the camp, being watched by all the male companions. Their faces in an array of confusion. The Raistlin before them is someone they do not know. For one though he is someone long thought dead.

"Shirak!" The glob on Raistlin's staff began to glow and eerie green as he walked out of the camp.

"I really don't feel like talking right now Raistlin." Raistlin looked around for the body that went with the soprano voice he had just heard.

Raistlin turned at the rustle of leaves and looked up the tree he was standing under. The light from his staff barely reached the height Ranma was at. In the darkness he could just make out the silhouette of Ranma's female form. She was back in the 'V' from before her one leg hanging down and swinging slightly. The other drawn up against her chest.

Ranma had her arms wrapped around that knee her chin resting on the top of it.
Raistlin stared up at her waiting for his eyes to become accustom to the darker area he was now looking into. In the light of Solinari Ranma's blue eyes glowed like red embers.

"You know there is no way I can come up there so would you please come down here to talk to me." It wasn't a question but more like a statement to the redhead.

Raistlin waited for a moment or two a wry smile on his face. He listened as the leaves rustled again and could hear the soft whispered curses of the young girl in the tree, A several minutes had past when he turned to come face to face with the sad face of Ranma.

Her face cast in the greenish glow of Raistlin's staff gave the young girl a ghostly quality. Ranma looked at Raistlin then his staff her eyes staring in awed wonder.

"One of the many things a magical staff can do." Raistlin told her as he sat on the ground under the tree.

Ranma sighed heavily and sat down next to him. She leaned her head back against the tree but said nothing. Raistlin relaxed against the tree for some reason he couldn't explain he was drawn to this child. He didn't need to talk with her,
he just wanted to be where he/she was.

Raistlin pondered this as he sat staring up the darken sky Solinari and Lunitari shining down on him and Ranma. While they sat in the quite darkness since Raistlin had turned off his staff's light spell.

"Have you ever been betrayed by someone you cared a lot for?" The question was asked so quietly that Raistlin was not sure he had heard it in the first place.

"Everyone has at one time or another, Ranma. It is a part of life. We must learn from what it taught us and grow. To let it control your future though is to allow those that betrayed you to win." Raistlin told him in just as quiet a tone.

The two sat quietly for nearly a half an hour the night noise around them as if they were not even there. Ranma stared up into the strange sky comparing it to the sky of her youth. She wished she had never return from that training trip,
then she would not be feeling this pain.

"Do you ever wish you could change a part of your life, so that the betrayal an pain it caused never happened?" She asked innocently as if it was hard for her to get the questions out.

"Yes, I do but that can't happen. There are things that happen and they can't be changed. You need to grow from those experiences and don't look back. I know this doesn't help right now but the pain will go away eventually. It will one day be a distant memory that means nothing to you." Raistlin told the girl next to him, as he watched her profile out of the corner of his eyes.

The white and red glow of the moons caressed her body brightening the red of her hair and making her already pale skin translucent. Raistlin was even surprised that he could see the black light of Nuitari in the mix of the moon light. He turned and scanned the sky but did not see the smallest of the three moons.

He sat staring at the sky and then turned as he heard Ranma shift. He looked over and found the young girl had curled up into a ball on the ground and had fallen into a fitful sleep. He sat with her for an awhile. He looked down at her, her chest rising and lowering in slumber.

Raistlin reached out and caressed her cheek softly wondering what her life had bee like back on her world. He knew of the last few years but he is sure she did not tell them everything. He wondered what happened before she was forcibly engaged to a spoiled brat. In a family where blackmail was an everyday occurrence.

Raistlin looked down at the girl when he felt her shudder under his hand. He watched as she swiped at the air like that of a cat. He stiffened when she yowled like a cat. His eyes widened when her last swipe caused a tree some thirty feet from them, to crash to the ground in four pieces.

Raistlin stared at the fallen tree, he did not hear the footsteps that came from the camp. He did not hear his brother's voice as he ran into the clearing.
Raistlin looked down at the sleeping girl then back at the tree, his mind in shock.

"RAISTLIN!" The shout got through Raistlin's fog as he turned and glared at his brother.

"What do you want brother I told you not to come here." Raistlin snarled as he turned to check on Ranma who was now in a deep sleep.

"We heard a crash and thought something happened." Caramon told him as he looked around the clearing.

"We are fine brother just a little trick Ranma was showing me." Raistlin looked down at the girl then up at his brother.

Caramon looked at the two his face filled with confusion as to how a sleeping girl could do a trick. Raistlin just shook his head and directed his brother to lift Ranma. He put his hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Gently brother she has been through a lot and needs to sleep." Caramon nodded he understood and gently picked her up.

The two men headed back to camp Raistlin lighting the way with the Staff of Magius. Neither of the men spoke although Caramon was dying of curiosity but he knew his brother better then anyone. If Raistlin wanted to tell you what he knew he would.

Caramon looked down into the face of the child he carried. He expected to see the peaceful face of a sleeping child. What he saw made him stop short and gulp loudly. Raistlin turned and saw the pained look on his brother's face and looked to where he was staring.

Raistlin's eyes narrowed to slits as his eyes flashed with anger. In his brother's arms Ranma laid asleep but her face contorted in a fear so great it hurt to look at her. He watched as her eyes snapped open and stared unseeing at the sky above her. He then watched as her eyes fluttered closed and she drifted into a deeper sleep.

"Raist, what happen to her?" Caramon whispered not wanting to wake the small bundle he carried up.

"I don't know brother but I intend to find out." Raistlin snarled as he turned and started toward camp Caramon following close behind him.

Raistlin and Caramon were beseeched by the women the minute they entered the camp. Goldmoon took the young girl from Caramon and carried her over to where they were sleeping. The two men stared in awe as the women seemed to forget that Ranma was born a man.

Tika returned her face white, as she walked up to the two men. Raistlin stared at her then in the direction of Ranma worry on his face. The other companions came up worry crossing their faces.

Ryoga and Mousse just followed more curious then worried about anything wrong with their most hated foe. They stood back slightly as they tended to get blamed when something happened to the pigtailed martial artist.

"What happen to her?" Tika demanded of the two Majere men.

"Nothing happened to him!" Raistlin emphasizing that Ranma's true gender is male.

"She is meowing like a kitten, and when she lashed out she cut a boulder into four parts." Tika told them still shaking with fear.

All the men looked at her as if she were crazy but Raistlin. He walked over to where Ranma was and pushed the woman from around her. He then leaned down and scooped her up in his one arm. Her body nestled in his arm as if sitting in a chair.

Raistlin then started to leave the women's section of the camp. His progress hindered by Laurana and Goldmoon as they blocked his path. Their faces contorted in deep scowls. They gulped and stepped back slightly at the cold gaze of the mage before them.

"Where do you think you are taking her!" Laurana hissed at the red mage, the women behaving like mothers protecting their young.

"Ranma is not a she, he is a boy, and to have him wake up surround by you ladies will send him into the Abyss. Not to mention what those two would try to do to him." Raistlin nodded toward the other two Nerimaians who were already glowing in anger.

"I saw her do that to a tree in the woods I think it would be safer for everyone concerned if she stayed with me. I will weave a spell of protection around her so she can not hurt anyone." Raistlin pushed past the woman and headed for his and Caramon's campsite.

The woman watched the mage walk toward his camp Caramon running up behind him trying to help him with his burden. They watched as Raistlin shook his head and instead of scowling or insulting his brother turned and walked on. Caramon watched for a moment confused and unsure. Then followed behind to help his brother settle their guest.

"What is wrong with her?" Tika asked Ryoga and Mousse the other women coming up behind them.

"From what it sounds like Ranma has gone into the Neko-ken in her sleep. I didn't know she did that." Ryoga stated flatly then turned to walk away.

"Wait what is the Neko-ken?" Laurana asked as she watched Caramon help Raistlin put Ranma in a bed roll next to his.

"You will need to ask Ranma about that. It is not my place or Mousse's to tell that part of his life." The two boys turned and walked back to their small section of camp.

"It seems young Ranma is full of many secrets." Flint's gruff voice spoke from the gathered friends.

"We all have secrets we don't want to share, but this might be one we need to know about." Sturm answered as he watched Raistlin cast a spell over the sleeping Ranma.

The companions wake to the sounds of battle. This time instead of charging in they look around and see Ranma, Ryoga and Mousse practicing their art. Ranma was still in female form as there was no hot water to change her back. Sturm stood near the battle area and watched with warrior's keen eye.

"Com'on Ranma you can do it! YEAH FOR RANMA!" The group now waking looked over at the small shrill voice to find Tasslehoff standing on a boulder. He was jumping up and down as he cheered on Ranma-chan.

The others rose to find the cook fires burning and water on the boil. In one of the cooking pots had some kind of stew simmering most likely rabbit. Another bucket near by wild berries and nuts. The companions headed toward the warmth of the fire.

Tanis stirred the pot, it smelled wonderful. He looked to Sturm with a raised eyebrow. He decided it must have been one of the boys as Strum was not one to cook. Tanis stood up at a wild cheer from the kender.

He and the others looked to see the petite redhead as she threw Ryoga into Mousse with a flick of her wrist. She then powered up her aura and readied a blast if they wouldn't stay down. The two other Nerimaians decided they had,
had enough.

"We give Ranma besides the others are up and we should eat." Mousse explained,
as Ryoga growled not liking to have to give in.

"Don't worry my friend we will have the last laugh." Mousse whispered to Ryoga as they headed for breakfast, Ryoga nodded his agreement.

The group sat around the fire eating their fill of the stew, berries and nuts.
All were surprised Ranma had made it. When asked about it, she just shrugged.

"It was either, learn to cook or starve!" They looked at the boy turned girl with wide eyes but Ranma was not paying attention.

"What are we doing today?" Ranma asked as she helped clean up, Mousse and Ryoga watching with confusion.

"We are two days outside a small city called Kadesh (Mine or Klingon take your pick). It is along the way. We can pick up more supplies and since it is a magical haven I should be able to find a way to cure your curses." Raistlin told the Nerima visitors.

"ALRIGHT!" Both Ryoga and Mousse jumped up and gave each other a high fives twenty feet in the air..

Ranma just shrugged and walked away to gather up her sleeping gear. Though there had been enough water to change her back Ranma declined instead she filled several thermos bottles with it including several Mousse carried for emergencies.

"They'll need it more then me." Was all Ranma said as the thermos bottles disappeared into her storage space.

Tass watched as a sad Ranma-chan went about packing up the others sleeping gear.
He watched as a greenish yellow light formed around her small frame. He started toward her, wanting to cheer her up when a hand on his topknot stopped him.

"Com'on ya fool kender we got work to do!" Flint's gruff voice could be heard behind the kender.

As the dwarf dragged a struggling Tasslehoff Burrfoot behind him. Ranma paused and watched with a keen eye the commotion caused by the two. The small smile that appeared had an effect on the aura of depression surrounding her and it lightened just slightly. Ranma went back to work never noticing her visible aura or its color.



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