Jedi Kasumi33 Jedi Kasumi By Jim Robert Bader (Featuring characters and situations created by George Lucas and Rumiko Takahashi. This is purely a work of fiction and is not intended to compromise the copyrights of any other creative persons. I have nothing worth suing me for, so please be gentle...) WARNING---HENTAI ALERT! CONTAINS ADULT MATERIAL THAT MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR THOSE NON-PERVERTS AMONG US. BEWARE LEST YOU ENTER THE LEMON-LIME ZONE, WHERE THE NORMAL RULES OF HUMAN INTERPERSONAL CONDUCT DO NOT APPLY...YOU HAVE BEEN DULY WARNED! Episode Thirty-Three. Cold Shouldered Attempting to repair her damaged relationship with Ukyo and Shampoo, Akane accompanies them to the Kolhotz High School Sporting Arena to act as coach for their upcoming match against the Golden Pair... However, the trio has discovered that Ukyo's old training partner (and fellow Sith apprentice), Ryoga Hibiki, has fallen prey to the acquisitive clutches of Azusa Shiratori and is being held as a school mascot in preparation for the coming match... Meanwhile, Akane's somewhat reluctant "fiancée," Kuno Kodachi, is having problems of her own and is being knowingly stalked by the predatory likes of Pantsaru Taro, yet another Sith Apprentice... All of which is unknown to our intrepid heroes, Ranma and his twin fiancées, Nabiki and Kasumi, who plan on attending the match to cheer their friends and sisters against Kolhotz... Further complicating the matter, the Jedi Mistress, Trieste, has been "persuaded" by her loved ones to put aside her Jedi apparel for an evening and don the garb of an ordinary Earth woman... And as if this were not enough confusion in the works, Ukyo herself is about to discover a few things about her opponent, Mikado Senzenen, which will do more than raise a few eyebrows... "But---but...!" Ukyo sputtered. "But nothing," the older woman admonished, "Were you born in a barn? I don't care how you do things out in the Kansai prefecture, here in Tokyo we at least have a few manners, and for a boy to be standing around in the girl's locker room while his partner gets dressed is quite simply unacceptable! Use the boy's gym or else leave our school and forfeit the match, those are your sole options...am I making myself quite clear, young man?" "But I..." Ukyo started to say, only to wince before the withering stare of the Kolhotz vice principal, who did not at all seem willing to hear out a student from a rival high school. Ukyo briefly entertained the notion of explaining her real sex to the uncomprehending woman then instantly gave it up as the notion that she was a crossdresser was hardly all that preferable to being thought of merely as a typical teenaged boy with the normal pervert inclinations. The fact that she had seen Shampoo naked far more times than she could count over the span of a couple of weeks would also hardly serve to mollify the teacher's suspicions, even exempting that carnal knowledge between two teenaged girls was the sort of behavior more likely to be discouraged than encouraged. At their age the mere act of kissing between opposite genders was considered deeply scandalous, and it was doubtful that Ukyo could make a convincing case of the fact that it had been the Amazon who had first seduced her and not the other way around, not the way that "boys" always came across as the guilty party in the eyes of most parents. So Ukyo grumbled to herself and allowed herself to be shoed into the men's half of the dressing rooms, leaving behind a somewhat bemused Shampoo and irate Akane, who likewise felt a strong reluctance to own up to their own culpability in the matter. Even as she was herded away from her companions she darkly reflected on how---as a Sith---she would never have permitted a head-blind kludge to lay a hand on her, and by rights she ought to have been handing the assistant principal a lightsaber enema for her troubles. But being the corrupted "nice girl" that she had been turned into by her close association with those two perverts had softened her considerably, and so Ukyo found herself in the men's dressing room glancing around somewhat nervously in dread of what she might discover. Not that it was her first time in such a place, of course, not by a long shot, but going into a strange male locker room always felt like she was invading on enemy territory the first time around. It usually took days before she would start to feel at ease in such a place, and only after she had managed to assert herself among the "other boys" in such a place so that they would not probe too closely and discover her real gender. The thought of this bothered Ukyo on several levels, not least because---in a way---her gender pose was a kind of "family curse" she had inherited as the legacy of her late (and much-reviled) father, who quite literally had wanted a son and was even willing to register her as one before kicking off for the great hereafter. Japanese registry laws being as complicated as they were, a father's written preference had the weight of an official mandate, so the only way for Ukyo to function in society without becoming a "non-official" person was to pass herself off as a man...the sole exclusive escape clause for this would be to marry as a woman and become some guy's official wife, and hence her father's other "brilliant" idea of engaging her to the son of Saotome Genma. The mere fact that Ukyo was---in fact---a woman hardly factored at all into this equation. As things stood she could only come into her own as a wife or a man, and---seeing how society seemed to favor boys over girls in most instances---her best business opportunities were in playing along with her father's idiot notions, even though it excluded her from the rest of the Kuonji family, saving only her Aunt Yumi and her crazy clan-lord Grandfather, whom she had not seen in literal ages. The thought of crawling back home to her step-mother and step sisters was quite literally repellant, so she was left to the situation that she was now in, totally beholden to Shampoo's great-grandmother for a place to stay and a means to support herself, at least until she was old enough to inherit what remained of the Kuonji family business. The ten years she had spent with Purge had taught her to see herself beyond mere traditional gender stereotypes, and yet the most surprising thing was how easy she could pull off the pretense of being a boy, having long ago learned to act and adapt her mannerisms to more masculine behavior. Ukyo was quite unselfconsciously "bishonen" in more than just her looks, so much so that other girls came onto her with quite annoying regularity long before she actually found herself responding in kind to their flirtations. Even so, of late Ukyo had started to feel the absence of her own femininity, and a certain longing for what she had lost without truly knowing it was there to begin with. To pass oneself off as a man required more than simply wearing a tight wrap to hide her breasts, it required a methodical mindset that helped her to walk unaffected past other boys when they were stripped down to their shorts, or virtually nothing. The sight of a tight set of pecks and deltoids could, quite naturally---affect her, and yet she had learned to "see nothing" and to excuse herself from having to undress before them in kind by claiming a sever skin rash as the clause for dressing while alone rather than in front of others. After all, she might be good as a cross-dresser, but lately the act had become harder to pull off in light of the way her body had begun to round itself off in some rather **interesting** places. She had stopped using the wrap altogether as it was far too uncomfortable to bind her swelling boobs in place, and the halter that Cologne had suggested for her was far more comfortable anyway, so there was more of her showing "up front" these days when wearing a school uniform. Even so she still had not become comfortable enough with the idea of wearing dresses... These thoughts passed through her mind rapidly as Ukyo prowled around the lockers in search of another human presence. She had almost thought that she had lucked out this time as the place seemed remarkably deserted, but then a curious grunting noise brought her attention up to a room far in the back. Curiosity prompted her to investigate, and in short order Ukyo discovered that it was some manner of dressing room for guys, and that it was currently occupied by two---not one---male students. Carefully testing the handle confirmed that the door was locked, but Ukyo was hardly deterred by this and used her Force training to "jiggle" the tumblers on the lock into the open position. She then eased the door slightly and peered in through the crack, her senses keen and her curiosity piqued as she saw what was happening within said chamber, at which point her eyes went wide and she stiffened up in total amazement. There he was, Senzenen Mikado, lady-killer extraordinaire and notorious rake of Kolhotz, standing erect with his pants down and his legs spread wide while someone was clearly "servicing" his cock with an "oral polishing" job that seemed entirely expert. Senzenen clearly appeared to be enjoying the blow job as his head was raised towards the ceiling and a look of ecstasy was plain upon his features, but that was not the amazing thing in all of this. What was amazing, to Ukyo's way of thinking, was the identity of the one giving head to the other boy... A dark haired male student, totally nude and unquestionably NOT female. "Whoah..." Ukyo murmured faintly, too low to be overheard by the room occupants, who clearly had something else on their mind at the moment. The last thing she needed was to give her presence away and compromise both herself and the two boys, which would doubtlessly prove to be an awkward scene no matter how you cared to frame it. The two boys clearly were enjoying what they were doing and had no mind at all for witnesses and the effects their activities might create upon the feminine libido. To Ukyo's considerable surprise she found the sight inexplicably intriguing, even arousing after a fashion. She had never realized before how erotic the sight of a boy giving another boy a blow job might be, which left her curious about what else their activities might involve. The thought that they might carry things further held her rooted to the spot and left with indecision about whether to withdraw or stay and see what next might happen. Apparently, however, she had just come in on the last scene of this rather startling tableau and there would not be much of a show beyond the point where Senzenen came into the other boy's mouth. Ukyo watched with perverse fascination as the dark haired nude boy's mouth filled up with the creamy jet of the other boy's semen, a slight trickle escaping his mouth and drooling down over his chin, leaving Ukyo to stare in mesmerized wonder. The other boy then withdrew as Senzenen urged him to do so, and with a mini-towel passed along with which to clean his face up, the dark haired boy proceeded to swallow that portion that he already had taken in. "That's enough for now, Miki," Senzenen said in a pleasant manner, patting the boy on the head as he might a favorite pet, "Save the rest for later, after my crowning victory. I'll need my energy to put these challenging upstarts in their place..." Ukyo belatedly recalled what she was doing and hastily slid the door back into place and reset the locking mechanisms, but as she did so she listened in as the other boy said---almost plaintively---you sure you'll call on me? I mean...it's been a week since the last time I saw you and everything..." "I know, Miki-kun," Senzenen replied, "But I've been in training, and you know what that entails. I can spare little enough time to care for myself, let alone those whom I care for. You understand how it is, and why it is important that we keep this little secret between ourselves..." "Oh, sure I understand," Miki's tone of jealousy and resentment was unmistakable, "You want to keep up with appearances so no one finds out about us. All those girls you chase and kiss...you're really quite despicable, you know that?" "How true," Senzenen seemed unaffected by the insult, "I am a heartless cad, but what can you do? And besides, you love me for it anyway, true?" "God, I wish I didn't, but I do..." the other boy's sigh was heartfelt, "I just wish you didn't enjoy it so much...the chase and everything, even if those girls who pine over you never do figure out who you actually sleep with." "How can I deny them their fantasies? I am so heartless, and yet...I do appreciate beauty." "Flatterer. So, who do you really like more, them or me?" "You, of course," Senzenen assured the other boy, "But it is a pity that you have so little regard of the charms of the female half of our high school. Take your sister, for example..." "I'd rather you didn't. That bitch is even worse of a whore than I am." "Now, now, that's being way to harsh on the both of you, don't you think?" "You haven't seen the way she flirts with that bastard, Touga," there was a slight pause before Miki's voice became more conciliatory, "I'm sorry...I know he's your friend and all that, but that guy just rubs me the wrong way sometimes...coming on like a prince when he's a worse cad than you could ever be." "Well then, is that jealousy I detect? You needn't worry, I am with you, my friend, and not my cousin Touga." "I don't know why I listen to you, you're such a gilded liar." "Perhaps love makes liars of us all," Senzenen philosophized, "Now...off you go so I can concentrate on making myself ready for my match. I have another beauty whose lips I mean to taste, and a rival whose face I intend to pound into the ice..." "Are you sure you wouldn't rather kiss him? I've seen this opponent of yours, and he's quite the charmer." "Oh, believe me, this is personal," Senzenen replied, "Kuonji has what is coming to him all but delivered signed, sealed and stamped care of yours truly. Now, if only that dimwitted partner of mine can keep her mind straight on winning the match long enough to help me carry out my vengeance..." "Vengeance?" "For the affront he caused me in front of others," Mikado explained, "I've worked hard to cull my reputation as an unbeatable skater, and yet that Bishonen clown made a fool out of me, turning one of my most unbeatable maneuvers into a means for my humiliation. I can neither overlook nor forgive such a thing, and so I will bring him low this day and steal a kiss from his precious companion, lovely thing that she is..." "Are you telling me, Mikado-chan, that there's actually someone out there who is good enough to ruffle your dignity?" "Bah! A mere fluke, a lucky opening that I foolishly allowed him. I will return the favor this day, mark me well, and with my thousandth kiss I will seal my reputation as the greatest ladies man in the history of Kolhotz High School. Then none will doubt that I am a man about the campus, not my peers, not those whisper-mongers who titter behind my back when they think I am not looking, and most certainly not my parents..." "Who might turn you out on your ear if they knew you liked to fool around with boy-toys like me? Is that what I need to fear here, Mikado-chan? That you seek to humble this Kuonji fellow so you can break his spirit and do to him what you did to me by making him your new love slave?" "Miki-chan, is that what is bothering you? Well, never fear that I'm going to turn you out for a new model, and besides...that Kuonji reminds me a little too much of a woman for my tastes..." Ukyo reacted with a start to hearing that comment, backing away with a non- plussed expression and briefly debating the wisdom of storming in there with spatulas blazing. The nerve of the jerk, implying that she was the one who was perverted, when all along he was carrying on a public charade in which women were no more than mere objects to protect his reputation so that no one suspected that he...that he... ...Liked to screw with members of his own gender? The irony of that thought confronted her squarely with a realization of how futile it was to seek to punish the bastard before they had their match. After all, was Senzenen really all that different from, say, Shampoo or Akane, who both had turned her into a virtual love slave within their first few days of open association? If so, then what were they fighting about anyway since a little harmless kissing hardly compared to being bent over backwards in the showers and humped until she was too sore to walk straight. Let the handsome prick have his fun if that was all that he was after, and never mind the threat he had just made against her under the mistaken belief that she was the boy whom she merely pretended to be. It was hardly like Ukyo had never been threatened before, and some who threatened her were considered REAL experts. She was still technically a Sith, after all, and to her the mere notion that someone bore her ill will was only to be expected. She was trained to hurt, maim and kill expertly and could probably take Senzenen down in a dozen different ways that the rake would never imagine. He was so far beneath her notice that it was exceedingly petty to even consider him as a legitimate opponent. So what if he had specialized skills on ice that made him formidable, she was beyond formidable and had nothing to gain by proving herself against him. Her Master was right to consider male pride a foolish human emotion. Let a real man suffer from Testosterone poisoning, Ukyo was much smarter than that and had a better handle on her emotions and... "...And another thing about that fool I find so annoying...he goes around calling him a chef as if it were a gift from the kami that he can competently blend the ingredients for something so base as an okonomiyaki, while everyone knows that real cuisine is of French manufacture..." Ukyo gripped the handle to her combat spatula and was ready to charge in there to flatten heads before she caught herself in time. HOW DARE HE SAY THAT ABOUT HER OKONOMIYAKI? Comparing it to French food was like holding all Japanese foods up to ridicule, as if foreigners had superior tastes buds or... "...For one thing, Japanese food is much too salty, and they tend to make everything taste like tobasco sauce, and they offer nothing for the gentler palate of a true gentleman's taste buds..." "He's going to die..." Ukyo murmured softly with resolute conviction, only held in check by the thought that she could do a more thorough job of pummeling him out in the open where there were witnesses and she could trash his precious reputation and feel honestly good about it. She withdrew from the doorway as she sensed that it was about to open and hid around the corner of the nearest set of lockers, watching as the boy named Miki appeared, calling back over his shoulder, "Well, if I were you, I'd watch myself against this one. He was fast enough to get the better of you the last time, so there's no sense of taking chances that he doesn't have a few tricks of his own in his arsenal that he might use against you." "I am pleased that you care so much for my welfare, Miki-chan," Senzenen called back, "But in this case your fears are misplaced. That fool can barely stand upright on skates, let along pose a serious challenge to the Golden Pair. Wait for me in the usual spot and we'll celebrate my victory when this is all over." "All right," Miki said reluctantly, "Just don't say I didn't try to warn you..." Ukyo waited until the young man had exited the lockers before smiling to herself, counting to ten, then striding into the private dressing room and cheerfully saying, "Well now, if it isn't Mikado the Molester..." Her words half-died on her lips as she stopped in her tracks and stared in disbelief at the mirrored reflection of Senzenen, who was sitting in front of his own vanity set, cheerfully applying makeup to his face, which included a lip gloss that he was trying on as if to test its color, which would be a perfectly understandable gesture had she been dealing with a woman, which was most certainly NOT the case with Senzenen. Her light-haired opponent was startled at being discovered in the act of such an "unmanly" act and barely had time to wipe his lips clean of the gloss with a hand-towel before turning around and sputtering an indignant, "That's Senzenen Mikado, you...you Bishonen freak!" "Well now," Ukyo had to smile at that, her surprise giving way to something more like genuine amusement, "That the best you can come up with, Jackass? Give it up, I've been insulted by experts, and you ain't even in their league." "Is that a fact?" Senzenen's eyes narrowed as he glared at his opponent, "Well, we will see how that boast stands up to the test of honorable combat, once the match between us begins in earnest." Ukyo made a gesture of reaching for her baker's peel without actually unslinging it, "Anytime, anywhere, pal...just you watch that you ain't bitten off more than you can chew, you Poof." "Poof?" Senzenen seemed genuinely puzzled at the reference, "You truly are a fool if you think that you have any sort of chance against me. I am known the world over as the best martial arts combat skater all around, while you'd do well not to humiliate yourself completely within the first eight seconds of our match's beginning." "Think so, huh?" Ukyo's smile took on a particularly nasty connotation, "Just remember you said that when I pound you flatter than one of my okonomiyaki." "I am quite serious," Senzenen's smile became genuinely condescending, "In fact, just to make things more interesting, I won't outright obliterate you. Rather I shall humble you before your lovely lady companion and then seal my victory with a kiss of her sweet lips while you gaze on helplessly, knowing that you never stood a chance in hell against me." Ukyo's smile lost some of its cockiness as she glared at the young man and said, "You wanna try your luck with Shampoo-chan, go ahead, but don't say I didn't warn you, Jackass." "Oho, is that a note of jealousy I detect?" Senzenen smiled all the more deeply, "All the better, it will make my victory sweet to know that I have proven to you who is the true champion on both the ice and with the ladies." "Yeah, whatever you say," Ukyo pretended to sound indifferent as she turned around and headed back towards the regular lockers so that she could get suited up in the outfit that Cologne had provided for her, adding on the sly, "Oh, and for your information, I whip up a meaner okonomiyaki than that French crap you were praising any day. Just try me if you need convincing." She hid the smile that crossed her lips as she heard Senzenen sputter with indignant realization. This was going to be a far more interesting match than either of them had anticipated, and Ukyo found that she was actually eager to get her skates as the sooner she was ready the sooner she would tear that jerk a new hole where it really mattered... * * * Akane's lips caressed the mouth of an ardent Shampoo and the two of them held on to one another sharing the warmth of an embrace that was passionate and full of longing. Their mouths felt soft and inviting as their tongues playfully wrestled with one another while their hands roved freely over the covered portions of their mutual anatomy, fondling through the thin silk material of Shampoos shirt and the cotton fibers of Akane's robes in search of familiar pleasure centers in desperate need of a good caressing. As delightful as the moment of passion was, however, Shampoo reluctantly broke it off with a gentle sigh, easing back from Akane so that they could touch their foreheads together, neither one of them requiring words to convey their mood as both knew that this was neither the time nor the place for them to continue where such actions might inevitably lead them. "Kami, I've missed you so," Akane said with conviction, "It's been a week already, don't you think we could maybe...y'know, after the match...?" "Perhaps," Shampoo softly conceded, "But this is no time for pleasures. Is battle Shampoo must be ready for, yes? And must be properly dressed for beating frilly haired thief girl senseless." "Oh ko," Akane pouted, "I almost forgot, that jerk's got that Ryoga guy in a cage somewhere. Ukyo's gonna want him back, though I frankly don't see what she sees in that morose tusked loser." "You only say because you think maybe she like him," Shampoo informed her with a coy smile "But Spatula girl no even know that much about what she want. Is sure think that pig-faced boy have fancy for Ukyo, just too shy to say so outright." "You really think so?" Akane looked startled at the suggestion, "You mean he's got a crush on her and Ukyo doesn't even know it?" "Is what this one just say, no?" Shampoo mused, "But no worry, no think Ucchan tire of us just yet. Shampoo very sure she still like this one and Akane, and-- -as you say---Pig boy no have nerve to say what he want outright. Maybe he get lost thinking about Ucchan, and frilly haired girl take advantage while he distracted." "Yeah, that sounds about right for that clown," Akane sighed, "Well, guess there's nothing to do for it but to get you suited up so you can pound her face in, then maybe we'll get her to cough up what she did with the Hibiki guy, then Ucchan can stop worrying about him and we can all have a make-up party to celebrate after." "Is you no forgetting something?" Shampoo gently reminded, "You have other girl to worry about, one you promise to marry." "Hey, that was Dad's idea, not mine!" Akane protested, "I don't even think Kodachi likes me all that much, though I kind of do like her, if you want to know the truth about it. I mean, she's hot and she's got this real aloof way about her, like she thinks she's better than us, but I know deep down that it's all act and that she's really nothing like that beneath the surface." "Is so, eh?" Shampoo studied the dark haired Japanese girl closely, "So maybe you like her, you go marry her and forget about this one and Ucchan?" "Not a chance," Akane hugged the Amazon back, "You're definitely one of a kind, Sham-chan, and the same goes with Ucchan, and there's no way I'm giving either one of you up for some aristocratic floozy..." "How flattering that you think of me in such base terms, Tendo-san," a familiar voice noted, calling the attention of the two girls to her nearby position. Akane caught herself in the act of moving away from her purple haired lover and stopped herself, turning to frown at Kodachi, wondering what business it was of the dark haired gymnast who Akane hand her arms around, even as she wondered at the curious look of unreadable emotions that she saw on display on the features of her aristocratic iinazuke. "Didn't know I had an audience," Akane frowned, wondering why she had not sensed Kodachi's nearness prior to this instant. "Obviously," Kodachi said with dry, toneless humor, "Not two days engaged to you and already I find you flirting with other women. However, that is not why I have come to seek you out. I..." she hesitated, frowned a bit as though attempting to force the words past her lips then said, "I...need a favor from you, if you're not too busy at the moment." "A favor?" Akane exchanged looks with Shampoo, then both of them turned their focus towards Kodachi, "What kind of a favor?" The self-described Black Rose looked nervous and apprehensive, glancing back over her shoulder once as though afraid that she was being followed, then turned back to say, "I think...I may be having a problem. A friend of your friend's..." she winced slightly, "...has taken an interest in me, and...I do not know what to about it." "Someone take interest in you, Rose girl?" Shampoo asked with the customary lifting of a lavender eyebrow. "Who is that?" Akane asked, then tried to second-guess her own question, "You don't mean that Mousse guy...?" "No," Kodachi started to say, then stopped herself and seemed to reconsider her action, "Never mind...I don't know why I even bothered coming here, you obviously have no interest..." "Hey, who says?" Akane immediately responded, "Just tell me who the creep is and why you can't deal with him by yourself since I know you're tough enough to send most guys packing." "But this...is not just anyone," Kodachi stood where she was and seemed to chew the point over as if debating the wisdom of further elaboration. To her surprise Shampoo said, "Is monster-boy named Taro, yes? He is one who you no think you can discourage?" "Yes," Kodachi said with a mildly surprised expression, "I believe that is his name...Taro. I...I think he followed me here, but...I am uncertain..." "That creep?" Akane frowned, "What does he want with you? No, scratch that, dumb question! He's a guy, and they're all perverts. Probably wants to get you alone to himself so he can have his way with you. Well, nothing doing! I'm not standing for that crap! He may think he's a big bad Sith and all that, but I know how to cut guys like him down a peg or two, just watch me!" "Ah, actually," Kodachi said with more haste than even she would have expected, "I wanted to speak with our mentor, Sensei Trieste. Since...we are both now her students...thanks to the insistence of my parents..." she arched the words very sourly before she continued, "...it would only seem right to ask our Sensei if she might be able to...teach me enough in order not to be at such a disadvantage. Understand, I did not come here to ask you to fight my own battles, I wanted to discover a means of...equalizing the odds since I seem to be at something of a disadvantage, not having been Force trained to the same extent as my mother and brother." "You no think they could help?" Shampoo asked, then added, "Is not right for warrior to depend upon a man, but you brother is very strong fighter..." "He's also quite delusional and thinks he can sway your sister, Kasumi, to be his paramour," Kodachi twisted her smile slightly before glancing back at Akane, "I haven't had the heart to inform him that his chances of achieving aught with that are slightly better than being elected to the Diet. Besides, I do not think even his skills would be sufficient to deter this Taro person. I fought with him but briefly, yet that single encounter was enough to convince me that he is more dangerous than even you seem to imagine." Shampoo turned back to Akane, "He is student to Darth Purge, that is reason enough to worry. Maybe Rose girl have point after all, maybe best to speak with Elder Trieste and great-grandmother, get boy to stop chasing after you Airen." "She's not my Airen, Shampoo," Akane complained a bit weakly, "Kodachi...you don't have to worry about a thing. I can handle this by myself if I have to, but for now why don't you stick with us and we'll keep each other company just in case this Taro baka makes an appearance." Kodachi shuffled a bit before saying, "Are you sure that would be wise? I mean...your Ukyo might not take kind to the sight of me at the moment..." "Ucchan?" Akane blinked, "Why would you think that?" "Because she might have the somewhat silly idea that we...um..." Kodachi looked even more uncomfortable before forcing herself to say, "...that this silly notion of our parents has any more validity to it than a verbal contract without witnesses. I mean, we both know that it is a farce, but if people heard about the whole perverted matter they might get entirely the wrong impression..." "Oh, right," Akane caught the suggested meaning of the gymnast's words and responded in kind with an equally concerned expression, "Wouldn't want people thinking that, now would we?" Shampoo looked from one dark haired Japanese girl to the other and back again and suddenly had a sense of unease, as if sensing that there was more to this picture than even her Force Mistress senses could unravel. She was not certain what the outcome of these events might be, but her sensitivity to the possible alternate futures they might portend left her murmuring a very faint, "Aiyaa..." that promised portentous things in the romantic travails of her beloved friend Akane... Kasumi walked with careful strides as she approached the Kolhotz campus. All day long her senses had been cautioning her that significant things were in the works and that very soon her skills would be tested in ways that she had previously never imagined, but for all her efforts at defining what the nature of the impending danger might be she still had no clearer image than a vague sense of unease for the very near future. Her attempts at meditation had been largely fruitless of late, and for the past two nights she had not slept well, that owing to her lingering sense of guilt over the way things had turned out between her and Nabiki during their too-brief night of passion with Ranma. Although her younger sister had assured Kasumi that matters had been resolved and no negative feelings were extended over the matter, Kasumi still felt acutely embarrassed over her part in roping Nabiki into a three-way with their mutual iinazuke, especially when it was clear that her sister was not emotionally prepared for the outcome. It still stung her deeply to know how she had behaved over the matter, like a shameless wanton eager to seduce her own sister, and what poor Ranma must have thought of her behavior. It was almost more than she could endure having to replay the events and images that passed through her mind as memories had gradually returned, and the effects of the Siege Perilous were brought home to her with the stark clarity worthy of motion picture. In truth, she had discovered within herself not so much a sense of shame over what happened as a guilty sense of relief to have some of her feelings expressed out in the open. It now was plain to her that the thought of making love to Nabiki had been in her mind a long time before encountering Ranma, deeply suppressed underneath a sense of filial propriety that masked her baser lust beneath the benevolent balm of sisterly affection. Nabiki had matured so much over the past three years that Kasumi could not have avoided **noticing,** and after her experiences with Shampoo it was only natural that she feel a certain...attraction. Knowing that Nabiki did not return her ardor in quite the same manner had held her in check until now, as had a lifetime of conditioning in the **proper** ways that a young woman her age was supposed to conduct herself in the proximity of a close family member. Incest taboos were hardly the only restriction that had been willfully violated on that night, gone too was a certain naive trust on Nabiki's part where it came to Kasumi. She definitely had tarnished her halo in her younger sister's eyes while behaving like an older version of Akane. It would take real effort on her part to repair the gulf that had been created in one evening, yet Kasumi wanted desperately to erase that separation, to go back to the way things were, where she had Nabiki's affection (if not her body) to rely upon. They had so much making up to do, and Kasumi found that she was missing the friend whom she had always relied upon in her mercurial sister. She wanted to be close to Nabiki once again, and not just in the sense of sharing the same bedroom. And there was Ranma to consider, their mutual iinazuke. Their ties to him were as strong as ever, even if Nabiki had been less than thrilled about sharing him from the beginning. Kasumi remembered very well what it had been like to spend a night within the arms of the younger man and very much yearned to do so once again in the near future. His vibrant spirit and naively boyish charms still were a source of deep fascination for her, and she found she missed his strength as much as she did the support of loving him without reservation. He was the man whom she had yearned for all of her young life, and now that she had found him she was not about to surrender him, not even for the sake of domestic harmony with her sister. Just thinking about what it had felt like to be **filled** by his love, to take a part of him inside her body and to nurture his ardor while grinding his face into her chest and holding on while the tide crashed all around her like a crescendo, the blood rushing in her ears as she opened her senses to embrace the entire Universe, a point of light in a sea of infinite gray, merged with two other lights that shone just as brightly... "Kasumi, yo! Wait up a minute, where you going in such a rush, girlfriend?" "Eh?" Kasumi asked, pausing in mid-stride to turn a glance over her shoulder. "Where are you going off in such a hurry?" asked a familiar girl roughly Kasumi's own age, dressed like a college student and hurrying to catch up with her at a quickened pace, her long legs eating up ground with a stride that was quick and lively. She had long blonde hair and decidedly Western features with the bushiest set of eyebrows that she had ever encountered on a woman who seemed to be approximately the same age as Kasumi, and yet her Japanese was flawless and she spoke with only the slightest of accents. Something about her rang a bell in Kasumi's memory, though for a moment she was at a loss to place the stranger, who was smiling back at her with a friendly, intimate expression. "Excuse me?" Kasumi asked rather uneasily, "Do I know you?" "Hey, it's only been, what, three years? Four at the most," the blonde stranger replied, "Don't you remember me from middle school? Ursula Negumo, at your service." "Oh," recognition belatedly came to Kasumi and she smiled at the blonde with a warmth of memory flooding back in a rush, "Ursula...it has been that long? Oh my...I'd quite forgotten the time. So much has happened..." "Yeah, tell me about it," Ursula grinned, "And look at you, all grown up and dressed like a monk, just like always. Kind of reminds me of the way things were back during our junior year at Crossroads, you, me, the old gang, especially Madoka, Haruka and Michiru..." "Three years," Kasumi shook her head, looking her friend up and down and appreciating the startling manner in which the blonde had definite "filled out" to quite athletic and attractive proportions, "What have you been doing with yourself? You look...quite healthy." "Hey, I was going to say the same thing about you," the blonde replied with an infectious smile that also brought back memories of their girlhood shared together, "You look like you've been out in the sun a lot, and there's definitely something travel-warn about your features. What did you do, go on one of those long walks with that mysterious Sensei of yours to the wilds of the provinces?" "Something like that," Kasumi replied, "Actually, I've returned home after a three year sojourn with my Mistress, and we have been to some rather interesting parts of the world at that." "Lucky you," Ursula nudged Kasumi on the elbow, "I hardly ever get to go anywhere unless I'm tagging along with my uncle when he gets assigned to a different high school. These days I'm kind of like a teaching assistant, can you believe that? Though I'm hoping to get my Masters degree in a few more years, at which point I'll be applying for the same position." "Oh?" Kasumi asked with an arched eyebrow, "You mean...you are an assistant to your uncle?" "More like I run errands for him to earn myself a paycheck," Ursula balled her fists and made a few mock swings at the empty air before saying, "But mostly I'm studying for my third Dan black belt in Kempo Karate and Tae Kwon Do. I hope to compete in the Inter-murals championship in a couple of months, so playing at being Assistant Coach is kind of my way of keeping in shape while training. You know how it is, if you don't keep the body limber it turns to flab in short order." "I wouldn't know, really," Kasumi admitted, "I've never had the option." "Yeah, I can imagine with that Sensei of yours," Ursula grinned, "My uncle has a crush on her, you know. She's practically his ideal of what it means to be a woman." "Oh?" Kasumi said in surprise, remembering the handsome and athletic Coach Negumo from her times attending his gym class...so very long ago... Ursula gave Kasumi a wry look and said, "I seem to recall that you had a crush on my uncle yourself for at least one semester." "I did?" Kasumi asked in surprise, "Oh my...I don't remember that, though...come to think of it, when I do think about your uncle all I seem to recall was that it involves a lot of running." Ursula laughed at that, "Oh yeah, Uncle loves to run, and if you can't keep up with him, then you'll probably be in for one of his lectures about the importance of youth and running. Well, anyway, it's good to see you again after all this time. I've been wondering what you would be up to, and just where were you headed in such a hurry?" "Oh," Kasumi recalled herself, "I was going to attend the ice skating match being held on the Kolhotz arena. One of my sisters is coaching two of her friends in a match..." "That was your sister?" Ursula asked in surprise, "I was wondering about that. Just as soon as I heard the name of Tendo I felt sure you were involved in some way, and now here you are, isn't that curious?" "I suppose that it is," Kasumi replied, "Akane's friends are the ones competing against the champions of this school, although one of them is also a very good friend of mine, and I want to give them my support and wish them the best..." "Against the Golden Pair?" Ursula raised an eyebrow, "They're gonna need all the help and support they can get. Those two are invincible, and I ought to know, I helped to train them." "You did?" Kasumi asked in surprise. "Yeah," Ursula looked faintly disgusted rather than proud about the matter, "Not as their actual coach, but I was in training as one of their sparring partners for a couple of weeks...before my partner got banged up and had to take time off to recover. Senzenen almost put him into the hospital on account of a slight to his ego that poor Nakamura bruised with an off-hand comment. Frankly, I don't much care for the class champions of our high school. An unbeaten string of success has gone to both of their heads, making them arrogant and cocky. Take Senzenen...do you know that he actually takes pride over the fact that he's kissed close to a thousand women, including yours truly?" "Oh my," Kasumi said, "He...kissed you?" "Yeah, but it's mostly an act on his part so people don't figure out that he's really a boy lover," Ursula explained, "Way I hear it, he stands to lose his inheritance if his folks ever find out he crosses the fence and swings both ways. The fop thinks he's some kind of divine gift to all the ladies on campus, but as soon as a cute thing crosses his eye he's got to have him for his own, sure as clockwork." Kasumi took a moment to figure all of that out, then her eyes went round and she said, "Oh my..." "Yeah, and Azusa's even worse than him, if you can believe it," Ursula snorted, "Uncle Negumo won't even approach those two any more. It's about the only subject on which he loses his usual cheerful optimism, despairing over how they turned out. Of course, their real coach is a Russian champion who's all pro at martial arts ice skating, and she's the one who put them up to being a pair of genuine pricks. I tell you, sometimes I wish someone would come along who could put them in their place and give those two a reality check. Too bad for your friends, I sounds like the rumor mill has the odds stacked 20-to-1 against them." "Oh really?" Kasumi gave her old friend a slightly bemused look, "You should speak with my sister, Nabiki. She is good at rating odds like that, but I've never been that much inclined to gamble." "Life itself is a gamble," Ursula responded, "Which reminds me, what exactly have you been doing while traveling abroad? You left school during your sixteenth year, and I never did hear if you graduated." "Um...actually, I fulfilled my lesson plans and obligations through correspondence," Kasumi noted, "My real education was on the road itself, so I didn't actually attend classes for the most part, but I did earn my high school equivalent degree." "No high school?" Ursula was surprised, "I know it's not compulsive, like in the States, but...didn't you miss being around other girls your own age?" "Not particularly," Kasumi answered, "I had quite a lot to do, and many fascinating things to learn from my Mistress, and there were enough people to make my acquaintance on the road that I did not actually miss being in class, though I suppose I did miss having my old friends around me." "You always were the quiet, introverted type," Ursula smiled, "In all our group you were always the most polite, the least likely to get into trouble, and yet you had such strange abilities, most of the rest of us never really understood it. Even with my training in the martial arts I doubt I could do even half the things you used to do by sheer reflex." Kasumi smiled at that, "It's the nature of my training. I really can't talk about it with someone who isn't a part of our order, suffice to say that I am...well versed in the Jedi arts that my Mistress has taught me, and someday soon I may even graduate and face my trials, at which point I will at last be acknowledged a full Jedi." "Well, that sounds appropriately auspicious all right," Ursula noted with the raising of golden eyebrows, "But don't worry, I won't press for details. My Sensei has a lot of his own special secret techniques that he keeps telling me are not for outsiders. Anyway, it's good to see you again, and if you're looking for the sporting arena, it's over this way, and I'll be happy to show you to some good seats." Kasumi nodded, "I would be grateful for that, and for your company, Ursula-chan. It has been many years and I am curious to know what has become of my old friends. What are Haruka and Michiru up to these days? Are they still...?" "Going together?" Ursula chuckled, "Are they ever! I mean, you should see them these days, they're almost like a married couple, and you know how Haruka could always flaunt it in your face with that cool-as-ice sophisticated air of hers. Never knew any girl who could pass as easily for a guy and still look sharp in boy's clothing, but Michiru...well, you know how feminine she was even back then, and she's even more beautiful these days, about the only one who can make Haruka's head turn with a smile or a glance. You gotta admire that sort of commitment, and having the balls to stand for what you are without pretending to be something else more socially acceptable." "Er...yes, of course," Kasumi responded with a somewhat uneasy expression. "And what about you?" Ursula asked rather suddenly, "Are you seeing anyone special these days? Anyone in your life who chimes your bells and rocks your world to the very roots?" Kasumi paused to think on how to respond to this, but before she could frame an adequate reply she heard the familiar words of someone else intimately connected to that question say, "Yo, Kasumi! Wait up a minute, we wanna join you!" "Oh, Ranma-kun...Nabiki?" Kasumi asked as she turned around with a mixture of relief and nervous anticipation. "Yo, Sis," Nabiki acknowledged Kasumi with a look that suggested more than she was willing to say upon the surface, a look that did nothing to set Kasumi's mind at ease nor reassure her that a reconciliation was pending in the near future. "Good thing we caught up with you, Kasumi," Ranma said before turning a look towards Ursula and asking, "Who's your friend?" in a mildly suspicious manner. "Oh," Kasumi belatedly recalled her manners, "Ranma-kun, Imotochan, this is a very old friend of mine from my school days, Negumo Ursula. She is a teaching assistant here at Kolhotz high school." "Yeah, but don't expect me to be rooting for the home favorites," Ursula said as she turned and bowed towards Ranma and Nabiki, "Senzenen and Shiratori aren't exactly my favorite sorts of people, if you know what I mean. Pleasure to meet you both, and...Nabiki is it? I've heard a lot about you from your sister." "Oh really?" Nabiki wore a stoical expression while trying not to glance towards her sister, "Sure you don't want to hear my side of it first?" Ursula chuckled, missing the way Kasumi's cheeks flushed crimson at that comment, "She said I'd like you, and I'm starting to see why. So...this hunk your boyfriend or just a fellow classmate?" "H-Huh?" Ranma blinked his eyes, "Boyfriend?" "Ah...something like that," Nabiki revealed, risking a glance towards Kasumi before studying the blonde haired and bushy-eye-browed older woman, "Um...what exactly has oneechan told you about me?" "That you're smart, pretty and have a head for figures and a love of gambling...oh yeah, and that you love to tinker around with gadgets and stuff, and you're also a pretty fair fighter from what I can see by the way you shake that tight little fanny of yours." It was Nabiki's turn to blink at that baldly stated comment while Ranma just looked confused for a few moments before he belatedly caught on then colored briefly in silent agreement. His poorly shielded thoughts were easily picked up by his two iinazuke, and Nabiki had to fight to control her reaction as the rather vivid imagery flooded into her mind of Ranma's appraisal of her pert derriere, with the side-comment agreements of Kasumi adding color to her own observations. "So, anyway," Ursula continued, "You've all come to watch the match against the Golden Pair, so who are these friends of yours, and have you notified their next of kin already?' "You rate their chances that badly, huh?" Nabiki asked, visibly grateful for the chance to change the subject. "I won't kid you, guys," the bushy-browed blonde replied with a frank expression, "The Golden Pair are unbeaten for a reason, but if your friends can manage to achieve the impossible, there will be some of those on this campus who won't shed too many crocodile tears. Problem is, Senzenen and Shiratori have sent their last five couples either into the hospital or therapy...so what have your pals got that could help them break their nearly perfect record?" "Hey, Shampoo and Ucchan won't lose," Ranma said confidently, "They're the best around, except for me, and if those golden creeps try anything it'll be their bad luck, especially that Senzenen creep." "Oooh, cocky, I like that in a man," Ursula grinned, giving Nabiki a wink, "I can see why you like him, he's quite the charmer. Of course, I kind of wonder about those names, Shampoo and Ucchan?" "Xian-Pu," Kasumi reflexively corrected, "It means Mountain Girl in Mandarin Chinese..." "No fooling?" Ursula arched one of her bushy eyebrows, eyeing Ranma with special curiosity, "Must've earned her a lot of teasing in grade school, but I'm kind of curious about why a guy refers to another guy as 'chan...'" "Huh?" Ranma blinked again, then once more belatedly caught the reference, "Hey, I'm not...I mean...it's not...Ukyo ain't a guy!" he sputtered indignantly. "He's not?" Ursula raised her other eyebrow. "Ukyo is a girl, Ursula-chan," Kasumi explained, "She dresses as a boy and is legally registered as one, but that is as much the fault of her late father, who wanted a boy, as anything else in Ukyo's life, other than the force of ingrained habit." "A girl?" Ursula whistled, "Well, cover me in chocolate and throw me to the lesbians, if that don't beat all. And here I was all unsuspecting. Have to say, she covers it pretty good, but I guess that explains why she's so ticked off with Senzenen." "Excuse me?" it was Nabiki's turn to arch both of her eyebrows. "Mind you, you don't have to be gay to get ticked off with the rake for trying to smooch your girlfriend..." the blonde persisted, oblivious to the odd looks that she was receiving from Kasumi and the others. "Say what?" Ranma asked, even more bewildered now than ever. "Of course, I've got nothing wrong with that myself," Ursula shrugged, "I've munched a rug or two in my time, mostly just experimenting, but there was this one girl...well, never mind about that flirt. It's like they say, after all, if God didn't intend for us to eat pussy, then why did she shape it to look like a taco?" Ranma looked even more puzzled than before as he leaned in close to Nabiki and murmured, "What's a taco?" "Um," Nabiki coughed to clear her throat then turned a look towards Kasumi and mentally protected the thought, **Where did you find this one again, Oneechan?** **I'm starting to wonder the same thing myself,** Kasumi telepathed back, taking note of the substantial changes that had obviously come over her former classmate. "Well, time enough to chat later, the match is about to start up at any minute, so hurry along and we might still find some decent seating," Ursula cheerfully noted as she lead the way towards the school sporting arena, compelling Kasumi and her loved ones to follow in her wake while collectively eyeing the blonde as though she had come from some other planet. Nabiki broached the question that had the others guessing by venturing to say, "You're partly American, aren't you?" "Does it show that much?" Ursula replied, "My mom's from America but my Dad's Japanese, and I spent part of my childhood in Hawaii where my mom used to be a lifeguard." "I lifeguard, huh?" Ranma remarked, as much to make up for his end of the communication in this very strange dialogue that they were having. "I was just wondering about something," Nabiki observed, "Ursula means 'Little Bear,' right? And Negumo..." "Means bear in Japanese," Ursula mused, "Yeah, mom loved the irony of that, but my Uncle's the Big Bear in the family, as you'll find out if you happen to meet him." "Oh my," Kasumi murmured to herself, wondering if her encounter with an old classmate might account for the curious unease that she had been feeling since early morning, though some warning instinct disinclined her from that notion. Besides, Ursula might be a rather forward speaking girl lacking in the normal restraints that society might expect in a woman, but she was hardly all that threatening, no matter what unsettling things she might say in passing... No sooner had this thought passed through her mind then Kasumi belatedly became aware of the fact that Ursula was leaning a bit closer to her than normal personal space considerations would allow, and before the Jedi padawan had time to process that thought she felt a hand slip around behind her back and cop a feel under her robes. Kasumi was so startled that she almost yelped aloud in protest, but she sensed no malice or ill intent in the gesture, and Ursula had stepped back away just as swiftly as she had seemingly rubbed shoulders with Kasumi, leaving the latter to stare in disconcerted surprise as she eyed the blonde with an alarm that had nothing to do with thoughts of personal danger. Nabiki was not slow to catch the gesture and her eyes narrowed sharply, while Ranma just stared at the blonde as if wondering what to make of her, and as such they were much too distracted to perceive the shadow that was observing them as they passed it by. Slitted reptilian eyes eyed the curious party as they vanished into the sporting arena, then a soft, sibilant voice hissed out, "Mammals...why does it always have to be thus with mammals?" "Hey, we're not all out to rut like sweating pigs, Boss," the youth huddled in the shadow of the dark Sith Lord softly protested. "Perhaps," Darth Purge hissed dubiously, "But you had best move ahead with your part of the mission. I will remain here until the time to strike is at hand. Just do not allow yourself to be distracted by the female you are pursuing." "I'm hurt," Taro sniffed, "I thought I made it plain, she's just a frail I mean to toy with. I wouldn't forget the plan over her sake, even if she is a nice piece of tail in need of a good taming." "So you say," Purge remarked, watching as the youth moved out from concealment and headed off for the rear of the building, then the Dark Lord permitted himself a confident moment to savor the sweet flavor of his impending vengeance, to which he felt a surge of pride at having crafted so intricate a web of deceits that were certain to ensnare his prey, and with that the impending doom of the Jedi was at hand. All he needed was to bide his time and be patient for a little while further, and then he would have his reckoning with Trieste and her wayward children. The key to it all would be his former apprentice, and she did not even suspect her own part in the matter, which---to his way of thinking- --made his pending triumph that much sweeter to anticipate... Continued. Comments/Criticisms/Blunt Speaking Hentai Gym Teachers: shadowmane@ridgenet.net At long last the match between the Golden Pair and our intrepid Force Masters gets under way, but will Ukyo and Shampoo have the right stuff, or are their chances for victory equal to a snowflake in a blowtorch? Find out next time in: "Ice Follies," or, "Life as a Dish of Frosted Okonomiyaki!" Be there! X -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- If you wish to check out my other works, Please check out my Fanfiction webpage at: http://jimbader.web1000.com/jimbader.html or it's Mirror page at http://s11.sexshare.com/~jbader/jimbader.html All related chapters of this series can be found there along with my other works.