Jedi Kasumi19


Jedi Kasumi


(A Ranma/Star Wars Crossover)


by
Jim Robert Bader


(Inspired by the works of Rumiko Takahashi
& George Lucas, with further inspiration
provided by Brandon Kelley & Bill Guiroff)


Episode Nineteen.
(Under Seventeen Not Admitted)



The Sound of One Hand Solo



WRNING---LEMONY BITS AHEAD!
NOT CONSIDERED SUITABLE FOR
LOWER LIFE FORMS NOT YET UP
ON THE EVOLUTIONARY CHART
OF BISEXUAL MATING.  CONSIDERED
RISKY BY SOME QUASI-SENTIENT
SPECIES IN YOUR GALACTIC SECTOR.
YOU HAVE BEEN DULY POSTED.



Having been rescued
from her perilous encounter
with Tatewaki Kuno and the Horde
of Hentai by the comely duo of Shampoo
and Akane (man, talk about out of the frying
pan into the Flashfire!), the former Sith Adept
known as Ukyo Kuonji at last relents to a steamy
three-way all-girl encounter (yeah, like they gave 
her any choice about the matter...)


Meanwhile Ranma---
unaware of Ukyo's "perilous"
situation---is spending more time
with the older Tendo sisters, Nabiki
and Kasumi, for some advanced Jedi
training, little suspecting that his own
dire peril is in the offing...






"Don't strain yourself, Ryoga-kun," Kasumi gently chided, 
"Take your time, this sort of thing doesn't come 
automatically on the first attempt.  In fact, it's better 
if you don't strain at all.  This must be without conscious 
effort, without trying to move an object with your mind, 
for it doesn't work the same way that you might move a 
muscle..."


"I got that, Kasumi," Ranma replied, "But this stuff about 
moving stuff with my mind..."


"It will come to you in time," Kasumi reassured him, "The 
Force flows through everything and all things are affected 
by its presence.  There is no part of our environment where 
the Force cannot enter, no place where it cannot be found, 
it is always with you, all around you, flowing in strong 
and weak currents but every near to your touch."


"I dunno," Ranma admitted, "The way you describe it, it 
makes it seem like this Force thing is some kind of god..."


"Not a god, Ranma-kun," Kasumi smiled, "But rather the 
stuff that all gods themselves are made from, the stuff of 
life itself, created by us and yet sustaining us in ways 
you cannot imagine.  With that in mind, think of the rocks 
as being alive and what you are doing isn't pushing them 
around, it is appealing to the spirit of these rocks to 
move in tandem with your mind.  Think of what you're doing 
now...is it any strain for you to be meditating in this 
position?"


"Uh...not really," Ranma admitted as he considered briefly 
the fact that he was standing on his head with his legs 
crossed in a full lotus posture.  It was a position that he 
and his father had practiced many times over the years, and 
it was now so automatic for him that he hardly gave it any 
thought to putting the weight of his body on his head.


"Just relax and think about what you are doing, and then 
feel your way until it becomes entirely second nature," 
Kasumi recommended, "Remember, it's all about feelings and 
trust.  You trust your own abilities, you know that you can 
expand your awareness to work with the elements in order to 
tap into the flow of life and make your wishes happen."


"Okay," Ranma said, "I'll...I'll see what happens," he 
managed to avoid using the word "try," knowing full well 
that word would only earn him another gentle-voiced 
scolding.


Ranma was glad that they were doing this in a secluded 
wilderness spot just beyond the boundaries of Nerima 
proper.  Consenting to go with the elder Tendo sister on a 
two-day training mission---this being a Sunday and thus not 
a schoolday---meant that he was free to concentrate on his 
Jedi training without the distraction of his family, 
friends or other fiancées, and Sensei Trieste had thought 
it good for the two of them to "spend more time together," 
whatever the heck that meant.


Whatever it was, Ranma resolved to put it all out of his 
head so that he could practice the new technique that 
Kasumi had recommended.  Having been pushed around almost 
from day one by Force Masters and their mysterious 
Telekinetic powers had made him all the more determined to 
learn how to harness the Force for his own uses.  He 
already knew that it could be used to obtain knowledge of 
events either happening or yet to happen, but to actually 
apply it to move objects with his mind was something new 
that he had yet to learn beyond the fundamentals.  With 
Kasumi's help he was determined to learn how to both 
harness and counter this ability when fighting with others, 
and for that he had to grasp the means by which he could 
levitate an object using nothing more than his Ki, a feat 
that seemed just beyond his grasp until Kasumi had coached 
him on how to use what he knew in order to achieve this 
simple objective.


Kasumi watched Ranma reach out to once again tap into the 
Force, his face alight with a wonder and an awe that had 
left her years ago. She felt the warmth building in her 
chest as she watched him, scarcely daring to breathe as it 
might disturb the tranquil scene before her. (What is it 
about him), the girl thought to herself, (That makes me 
feel this way? He is extraordinary, in a way that is as 
obvious as it is difficult to define. I don't even mind 
that he's younger that I! Had anyone told me my life would 
have turned out this way, I would have never, ever believed 
them. My life seemed set in stone, but I met Trieste-
Sensei, and a whole new world opened up to me. And now, 
I've met Ranma-kun, and another set of opportunities 
arises. The Force seems to work in mysterious ways), she 
wryly mused.


Even as she reflected on these things she sensed the flow 
of the Force around the target stones alter slightly as 
Ranma began to form a tenuous connection.  She could sense 
him reaching out with his mind and becoming aware of the 
stones themselves, how they "felt" distinctly different 
from the rest of their surroundings, their solidity and 
substance being uniquely "stone-like" in contrast to the 
ground and the wind and the plant-life all around them.  As 
he became aware of this essential difference he also sensed 
how the gravity affected them, how the stone seemed to 
"breathe" ever-so-slightly as its molecules interacted with 
the molecules of the air with the light that surrounded 
them affecting it in a slow chemical evolution that seemed 
as slow as a glacier in the terms of mortal men and yet was 
nonetheless there to be noticed.


And in making this discovery, Kasumi felt Ranma draw back a 
bit so that he could murmur aloud the word, "Whoah..."


Kasumi felt amused at the way that he responded to his 
discovery, having gone through the exact same thing when 
much, much younger than he was now.  Aloud what she said 
was, "Reach out with your thoughts and feel the flow of the 
Force surrounding these stones, Ranma-kun...and feel how 
they can shift with the slightest change of the force 
vectors..."


"I can feel it!" Ranma said, "I can do this...it's so 
easy..."


And sure enough, as he spoke these words, Kasumi felt the 
stones begin to move and turned to watch as the cantaloupe-
sized rock sitting atop a flattened stone that was much 
larger (she herself had stacked these with her mind in 
order to provide him with both an example and a challenge 
to imitate) began rocking slightly back and forth for 
several seconds, then rose up as if "pushed" by invisible 
hands and tumbled off slightly to the side, only to be 
caught again as Ranma corrected his efforts and prevented 
it from falling.  For several seconds more it hovered about 
a foot in the air before at last it slipped loose from his 
grim and landed with a thump, at which point Ranma opened 
his eyes and stared in disbelief, then almost incredulously 
stated, "I...I did it..."


"Yes you did," Kasumi applauded him brightly, "That was 
very good for a first effort, Ranma-kun.  You see how it is 
done now?  And with further practice you will lift much 
larger bodies without having to struggle for control."


"I think I see what you mean about not having to work at 
it," Ranma said, "It wasn't like moving my Ki or making a 
fist...it was more like I just turned stuff and the way in 
which it was moving and picked it up without touching 
it..."


"Yes, exactly," Kasumi nodded with enthusiasm in her voice, 
"And this is only the beginning of what you can do when you 
learn to use the Force as a tool to achieve your ends."


"Lemme try it again," Ranma said with an eagerness that was 
almost childlike, calming himself down with only mild 
effort and breathing deeply to still his mind so that he 
could achieve the proper inward balance, and then once more 
Kasumi felt him pick up the stone with his mind and watched 
as he carried it over and deposited it back on top of the 
other flattened rock, a feat that caused her to raise an 
eyebrow as she had not imagined that he would master such a 
delicate feat on his second attempt.  It proved once again 
the young man's enormous potential.


"Very good, Ranma-kun," Kasumi turned back to him and said, 
"I think that should be enough for now.  You don't have to 
strain yourself when learning to direct the Force this way.  
It's like any muscle that you exercise...better to use it 
sparingly at first and not overwork it..."


"Yeah, I get what you're saying," Ranma replied, reaching 
out with his hands and flipping himself back into an 
upright position, then uncurling his legs as he stood 
straight again without the kind of wobbling disorientation 
that most people would feel having the blood rush back down 
from his head.  Once again Kasumi marveled at his excellent 
physical...condition...


"That was great," Ranma said cheerfully, "I never thought 
it would be that...huh?  You okay, Kasumi?  Your cheeks 
look a little red..."


"Oh, it's nothing, Ranma-kun," Kasumi looked away, 
marveling at the way she could let her thoughts be 
distracted by contemplating her potential iinazuke, "I'm 
very proud of you...you have done well in your new lessons.  
At this rate you will be working with the Force like a 
Force Adept in no time..."


"Heh, that's good," Ranma said as he reached up and began 
to rub the back of his head, wondering as always why he 
felt so different around this older girl than he did around 
anyone else but her sister, Nabiki, "I was getting to feel 
like I was the only one around here who couldn't do 
nothing.  I mean, even Akane's better at this stuff than 
me..."


"She has spent the better part of her life learning to be a 
Force Master, Ranma-kun," Kasumi replied, "While you have 
been at it for only a small fraction of that time, and who 
knows how far you will go in your training?"


"That's great, Kasumi," Ranma replied, "I guess maybe I 
oughta be glad to get this far...it's just...well...kinda 
frustrating knowing that guys like Mousse and Ryoga can 
still toss me around without me being able to get in close 
enough to hit back."


"There is more to winning a battle than merely hitting 
someone, Ranma-kun," Kasumi said with a hint of mischief in 
her expression, "If you'd like to see how I can deal with 
an opponent, then you may spar with me and I will show 
you."


"Spar with you?" Ranma repeated, "But I thought we already 
did that..."


"That was merely using unarmed fisticuffs to determine our 
relative strengths in the martial arts, Ranma-kun," Kasumi 
revealed, "This will be an excellent test of how much you 
have learned about Force manipulation.  We'll use our 
relative combat techniques and you can grew stronger by 
facing me, and if you can overcome me in a battle, then you 
know that you are truly worthy to be a Jedi."


"If I...?" Ranma blinked, looking up at the tall and 
willowy girl in her odd form of travel dress and recalling 
how formidable she was in a fight, even if she did appear a 
lot more fragile than she actually was as a matter of 
course.


"Come along, Ranma-kun," Kasumi said, "Let's have a walk 
and then we'll talk some more about the Force, and then you 
can test me and see what I'm really capable of in a 
battle."


"Uh...okay," Ranma agreed, not wanting to add that when she 
said the word "capable" something else flashed into his 
mind that was decidedly OTHER than combat, though what 
exactly it was that was making him feel this strange he did 
not truly understand, only that he felt both excited and 
incredibly nervous and had the oddest swelling down below, 
which was bound to make walking less comfortable though he 
supposed it just meant that he had to use the bushes 
sometime soon to relieve the swelling...





"I am so bored," Nabiki complained as she leaned against 
her windowsill and contemplated the distant horizon where 
she sensed Ranma was in training with Kasumi, "Oneechan is 
so lucky..."


"You really do like him, don't you, Nabiki-chan?" her 
mother asked.


"Ah...well..." Nabiki caught herself blushing and furiously 
wished her cheeks to remain unaltered, "I kinda worry about 
him, y'know?  I mean...he's strong and hardy but kind of 
naive about a lot of things in life..."


"You mean like around women?" Kimiko asked with a tiny 
little smile of her own, enjoying the way her daughter was 
clearly wrestling with her own emotions.


"Uh...yeah, among other things," Nabiki tried to sound less 
interested than she was, even knowing that her mother could 
read her like the proverbial book, "I mean, what with that 
idiot father of his teaching him nothing about live but the 
martial arts...he seems to have kind of...neglected the 
elements of sex education.  I mean...to not even know what 
a period is, or what happens when a girl goes through 
puberty..."


"You've sounded him out on this, I see," Kimiko mused with 
motherly understanding.


"Er...yeah, kind of," Nabiki swallowed, "I mean...when it 
came up the other day...I mean...when he thought I'd 
injured myself because he found out I was using a rag to 
clean off the space between my legs...I had to kind of tell 
him about what girls do every month when they're not having 
babies, and you should have seen the look on his face..."


"Priceless?" Kimiko asked.


"Try scared out of his wits that he'll have to go through 
something like that in his cursed form," Nabiki replied 
with a sniff, "Serve him right if he does...I think every 
boy oughta have at least one period every other month to 
let them know what it feels like.  Of course, then I had to 
explain to him about pregnancy and childbirth and---
OOOOHHH!  If I weren't Jedi trained I'd swear I'd kill his 
father for leaving him that ignorant!"


"You would have to get in the back of a very long line, I 
suspect," Kimiko replied, "And I have seniority, but I must 
defer to Nodoka-chan...if anyone has the right to punish 
him, it is her."


"Yeah, and she wanted that idiot to teach Ranma how to be 
manly," Nabiki huffed, then smiled as she added, "Of 
course...if that means that the task must fall to me, I 
could think of worse ways to spent time coaching the boy 
into a greater...sexual awareness..."


"And naturally you want to give him a full, live 
demonstration."


"Mom!" even Nabiki was shocked at her mother's bluntness.


"Relax, Child," Kimiko chuckled, "I was young once, and I 
had to go through pretty much the same thing with your 
father, and do you honestly believe that he was any 
more...educated on this subject than you future husband?"


"Gah..." Nabiki glanced away, this time her cheeks flushing 
crimson beyond her ability to hold back, "You...ah...really 
mean that daddy...?"


"He and Genma trained under Master Happosai," Kimiko 
explained, "Whose unorthodox training methods were intended 
to pass along to them a taste of his own perversion.  
Unfortunately it had the opposite effect of traumatizing 
both men so that the mere hint of anything sexual could 
cause them to have panic reactions.  Why do you think that 
they were so determined to be rid of him, and why 
afterwards they trained their children to be the opposite 
of what they imagined to be Happosai's evil..."


"What?  You mean daddy and Uncle Saotome tried to teach us 
to be a bunch of prudes?" Nabiki sniffed, "Didn't take much 
on our side, huh?"


"That's because I've been around to insure that you do not 
grow up without knowing that men and women exist in the 
world to have the pleasure of each other's company, and to 
make babies so that there can be more people in the 
future," Kimiko explained, "In each case I have made sure 
my little girls were comfortable and aware of the nature of 
their own bodies, and to not feel shame at having natural 
impulses in the company of those you find attractive."


"Ah...well..." Nabiki paused before carefully asking, 
"...Then how do you explain Akane?"


"Ah..." Kimiko sighed, showing faint exasperation, "Your 
sister...I am glad that she takes great pleasure in the 
company of her friends, but...I would be lying if I didn't 
admit that I was hoping to see her give me grandchildren.  
I have no qualms about her preference for other girls...I 
was young once in that capacity too, you know..."


"Uh...you were?" Nabiki blinked.


"...But most young girls have flings growing up, then they 
settle down and find husbands," Kimiko continued, 
"Only...that doesn't seem likely to happen in Akane's case, 
which means she has set her sites in another direction."


"You mean Ukyo and Shampoo?" Nabiki sniffed, "Well...I 
suppose that's better than her taking an interest in Ranma-
kun, and considering what the boys in our school have put 
her through, especially that Kuno..."


"Tell me something...honestly, Child," her mother looked at 
Nabiki frankly, "Have you ever felt tempted to 
explore...alternative options?  I ask because you need not 
fear that I will disapprove of you having such...latent 
tendencies..."


"Ah...no...I don't think so, Mom," Nabiki reluctantly 
replied, "Ranma-kun's the first guy I've really felt that 
way about...and I've had lots of opportunities to...look 
around, believe me..."


"No other boys come close to him, eh?" Kimiko sounded 
amused.


"Mom," Nabiki said with complete honesty, "Next to Ranma-
kun, there ARE no other boys in our school...just 
overactive hormonally charged idiots and droolers.  Believe 
me, I'm not picking from a lengthy cast of potential 
players here..."


"And no girls have ever caught your eye?" Kimiko asked with 
a hint of mischief in her voice.


"MOM!" Nabiki reacted.


"Well, you have to admit that the boy you're after does 
have a problem in that regard," Kimiko said practically, 
"And how do you feel towards him when he is in his girl-
type body?"


"Ah..." Nabiki started to say when she thought the better 
of it, actually pausing to think about the matter long and 
hard before reluctantly admitting, "...I...feel the same 
towards her, regardless of which body he or she's wearing.  
I don't like her any less than I like him...but that 
doesn't make me a Lesbian!" she hastily added as if wanting 
to establish this point outright.


"And how would liking your fiancé's female half make you a 
Lesbian?" Kimiko wondered, "At worse it would only make you 
bisexual, which is a lot closer to being normal than you 
imagine."


"Not for me," Nabiki insisted, "I want a man in my bed, not 
a girl.  Hell...I can't even get my mind around the fact 
that Kasumi..."


"Yes, that was a bit of an eye-opener for me as well," 
Kimiko admitted, "But don't be so quick to dismiss the 
idea.  It is folly to categorize people and put them into 
boxes as though you could classify them the way you might 
different kinds of stones.  People are not that easy to 
define, let alone to set limits on what is and is not 
acceptable lifestyle behavior..."


"You've got to be kidding me," Nabiki said, "Mom...are you 
actually encouraging me to explore alternate lifestyle 
choices with another girl?"


"I'm just saying you obviously feel a connection with 
Ranma-kun when he's Ranma-chan," Kimiko replied, "And 
that's very important when you contemplate making a long-
term commitment with either of his or her incarnations.  
Your sister, Kasumi, has obviously decided that she could 
live with him on either terms, and would you be any less 
generous than her?"


"Kasumi?" Nabiki blinked, then frowned, "I don't understand 
the attraction between them.  He's not old enough or mature 
enough for her, and she's always said that she wants a 
mature man for a husband.  That's why she's so turned off 
by Doctor Tofu's behavior..."


"Your sister is concerned that the effect that she has on 
Tofu-Sensei is not helpful," Kimiko replied, "But the 
attraction to Ranma is much more elemental.  Like it or 
not, child, she is your primary rival."


"I don't want to fight against Oneechan over which of us 
get a boyfriend," Nabiki complained, "Isn't there someway 
that I can convince her to try somebody else?"


"You could try asking her," Kimiko replied, "But I doubt 
that it would be that simple.  She has grown very fond of 
Ranma-kun, and yet she is aware that you are even closer to 
him and you two spend more time together.  Ranma trusts you 
and respects you as both a friend and a potential fiancée.  
You know that he would never act in such a way as to 
actually and willingly hurt you..."


"But he's too naive to know what he's doing!" Nabiki 
protested, "And if some...floozy who knows her stuff were 
to get her hooks into him..."


"You mean like Kuonji?" Kimiko asked.


"Give me a break!" Nabiki threw up her hands, "That 
Tomboy's even more clueless about sex than Ranma...or she 
used to be, before...well..."


"I had heard that there was some trouble at your high 
school," Kimiko said, "Akane was rather sparing in the 
details, but as I know you tend to keep your ear closer to 
the ground..."


"I don't know what to tell you, Mom," Nabiki sighed, "I 
heard some guys ganged up on Kuonji and that Tachi was 
leading the pack when Shampoo and Akane broke things 
up...and that whatever happened between them seems to have 
affected her pretty bad...like...she wasn't the same person 
the last time I saw her, which was when Akane and Shampoo 
were walking her back home..."


"Home to that restaurant that Shampoo's great-grandmother 
has been setting up?" Kimiko asked.


"Yeah," Nabiki sighed, "And I hear that she hasn't been 
quite the same ever since, like...not so angry with a chip 
on her shoulder, almost...nice...or at least that's what 
Ryo-chan told me..."


"You've had your friend spy on her, have you?" Kimiko asked 
in more amusement than accusation.


"Mom, when it comes to those Sith characters, you'd better 
believe that I've been keeping tabs..." Nabiki started to 
explain when she glanced off sharply to her right and said, 
"What's he doing here?"


"Who?" Kimiko turned her mind and sensed the presence that 
was approaching, "Tatewaki?"


"He's got a lot of nerve showing up after what I hear he 
pulled," Nabiki growled, then shrugged, "Oh well...Sensei's 
downstairs, let her deal with the blockhead.  He's more 
than welcome to explain himself to her..."


"Oh yes," Kimiko agreed, "I suspect he is going to have to 
make a proper accounting to his former teacher..."





"Ah..." Kuno had taken great care to compose himself before 
presenting himself on the doorstep of the Tendo household, 
but when the person greeting him at the door proved to be 
none other than Trieste he found his carefully rehearsed 
lines deserting him completely.


"May I help you, Tatewaki-san?" Trieste asked with a 
deceptively calm expression.


"Ah...Sensei," Kuno considered different strategies but 
decided the direct approach was best.  He bowed to her and 
held his head down, not looking up at her as he addressed 
his former teacher, "I have come to bed forgiveness, and to 
ask if I may address myself to one Kuonji Ukyo..."


"Is this in regard to the incident that took place upon 
your campus?" Trieste asked him.


Kuno winced as he replied, "H-Hai."


"Where you encouraged some fellow students to confront 
Kuonji over the issue of her earlier exploits on behalf of 
the Sith?" Kimiko continued.


"Hai."


"And you now regret that matters turned out 
rather...differently than you had expected," Trieste 
further noted, then added sternly, "I must say, Tatewaki-
san, that I am very disappointed to learn of your 
involvement in this rather sordid matter."


"Please," Kuno replied, "The shame of it haunts me even 
now..."


"And well it should," Trieste gently chided, "It was an act 
unworthy of the young man that I remember.  Your mother 
would be very disappointed to learn that you have used her 
teachings and mine in such an ill-advised manner."


"If I could take it back, I would," Tatewaki replied 
without looking up, "I only wanted to impress upon Kuonji-
san that there would be...consequences if she made a move 
against Kasumi..."


"And you didn't even take into consideration the fact that 
Ukyo has been cast out by her former master?" Trieste asked 
softly.


"I...beg your pardon?" Kuno asked.


"You didn't know, did you?" Trieste sighed, "You thought 
that she was still with the enemy camp, and in many ways 
she still was when you confronted her.  You might have 
checked a bit before you acted.  It might surprise you to 
learn that Kuonji-san has shown evidence of a...shift in 
her attitude away from the Dark side..."


"If this is the case, then I am even more remorseful that 
my actions were wrongly directed towards her," Kuno 
earnestly responded, "I cannot rest until I seek her 
forgiveness.  If I could atone for her dishonor with my 
life..."


"Your mother would be deeply wounded if you use Seppuku to 
expiate your guilt, Tachi-chan," Trieste said with more 
affection in her voice, "And you are man enough to know 
that it would be the coward's way of coping with your 
actions."


"I merely state that I am committed to making restitution 
for my actions," Kuno replied, "Is Kuonji-san in 
residence?"


"No," Trieste replied, "She doesn't sleep here, she is in 
another part of town, a restaurant that has just recently 
been opened by the Amazon Elder known as Kho-Lon of the 
Joketsuzoku..."


"A Chinese Amazon Elder?" Kuno asked, "In Nerima?"


"In the Furinkan financial district," Trieste replied, "I 
can give you the address, but I cannot say for certain if 
Kuonji-san will hear your apology.  She is presently in the 
custody of Elder Cologne, who has become her self-
designated trainer."


"Then it will be enough if I may petition her new Sensei 
and see if Kuonji-san will receive me," Kuno replied, 
bowing again, "I thank you for this favor, Sensei.  I 
regret that I abused the secret techniques that you taught 
me long ago and will try to atone for my actions by mending 
my behavior in the future."


"If you do that then I will forgive you, Tachi-chan," 
Trieste replied, "But the one whose forgiveness you must 
seek is neither me nor Kuonji-san.  You carry the weight of 
this guilt upon yourself, not that I can entirely blame you 
since I know that you acted out of the affection you feel 
towards my padawan, Kasumi."


"I yearn to one day be worthy of her affections," Kuno 
replied, receiving the address as Trieste gave it to him, 
and then he bowed again and moved away with a heartfelt, 
"Forgive me for disturbing the harmony of your school.  I 
will attempt to be more respectful towards your charges in 
the future.  I thank you for the kindness that you have 
shown me and hope to meet with you again when I have 
redeemed my tarnished honor."


Trieste bade him well as she watched the young man head 
towards the gates surrounding their compound, but once Kuno 
was beyond the range of her vision she felt a sudden shift 
in the force regarding him and instinctively glanced off in 
the distance, frowning slightly as she murmured, "Purge..."





The tall lizard man smiled down from his perch as he sensed 
the Jedi was aware of his looming presence.  He all but 
dared her with his presence to come ahead and challenge him 
and what he intended, then dismissed her with a shrug as he 
turned his reptilian eyes upon his real prey, Tatewaki.


The boy was in turmoil, this much was palpably evident, and 
his recent actions demonstrated that he indeed had much 
potential, possibly even more than Ukyo or Taro.  Yes 
indeed, he would do nicely, and all it took would be to 
push him a little in the direction of the Dark side, and 
then the boy would do the rest for himself, and then Purge 
would truly have an apprentice worthy of his teachings.


He slipped from concealment and followed the tall boy 
discretely, keeping his senses alert in case the Jedi tried 
to intercept him.  They would have their showdown one day 
soon, but for now he did not need the interference.  He had 
a new apprentice to recruit, and for that he wanted only 
the chance opportunity to appear, and then this Kuno 
Tatewaki would know the true terror of the Darkside...and 
tremble.


At the very least he hoped this boy would become a pure and 
proper avatar of evil, unlike his former apprentice, who 
was more and more disappointing him as he sensed that her 
mood was currently anything but evil...





Ukyo knew that she really ought to avoid handing her new 
roommate direct challenges and ultimatums because the 
penalty for losing the bet was proving to be far more 
strenuous than the challenge itself had been.  As usual 
Shampoo had won the test of unarmed combat, and the prize 
she named for victory was Ukyo herself, which had let to 
yet another steamy encounter in the shower where the two 
girls were now going at it with equal parts of ardor and 
frenzy.


Ukyo had never known that there were so many positions in 
which a girl might find herself sexually entwined with 
another girl...heck, until a few days ago she had not even 
understood the concept of what being with another girl 
could mean.  How here she was standing up with her pack to 
the shower wall and hot water flowing over their steamy 
bodies while her right leg was bent up at a nearly 180 
degree angle, her foot projecting somewhere over the 
shoulder of her purple-haired lover as Shampoo pressed her 
groin against the soft muff of the brown haired okonomiyaki 
chef, Shampoo's own leg stretched high with her foot just 
to the left of Ukyo's face as they rubbed their clits 
together while kissing with both their mouths and labia, 
their hands gently fondling each other's breathes while 
their tongues darted in a wrestling match together.


Ukyo could not believe that she was actually doing this, 
that she was submitting to the affections of another girl, 
and that she was actually enjoying this every bit as much 
as Shampoo obviously was, their wet bodies proving to be so 
lithe and sensual that they begged to be pleasured, just as 
they yearned themselves to be pleasured by one another.  It 
was the oddest thing in Ukyo's young life to be doing this 
with a girl she had regarded as an enemy only days ago, a 
foreign and exotic beauty with an oddly pitched sing-song 
voice whose baby-doll quality made one suspect that she had 
been dreamed up as a male fantasy figure, yet one given 
vibrant life and a boundless capacity for passionate 
embraces.  The Chinese girl positively seemed to live for 
the act of love and she made every moment seem incredible, 
the fulfillment of unknown passions that Ukyo had never 
heretofore even suspected herself of possessing.  As her 
mind began to swim and her body started to clench in the 
now-familiar pattern of an impending orgasm she knew that 
she was putty in the hands of the other girl, totally 
unable to refuse her anything and willing to go the 
distance if it meant gaining one more instant of naughty 
little pleasure.


It was not that she was in love with Shampoo---that she 
would insist was impossible---and yet she had grown oddly 
fond of being around the other girl, even putting up with 
her occasional pranks and teasing behavior.  Shampoo was a 
very good sparring partner and certainly a capable martial 
artist.  In most respects they seemed evenly matched for 
speed and raw power. Ukyo was, of course, a couple inches 
taller than the other girl, but Shampoo was even more 
limber and could do thing with her body that utterly defied 
description...


...Which came back to the situation that Ukyo kept finding 
herself in, the ready play-toy of an uninhibited wanton who 
seemed intent on driving the chef to literal distraction, 
as in the case right now where Shampoo fell down to her 
knees painting kisses all down the length of Ukyo's lean 
body, pausing just long enough to tease the other woman's 
groin so that Ukyo had some sense of what was impending.  
Try as she might to steel herself for the inevitable, it 
still came as a shock every time Shampoo stuck her tongue 
up into one of Ukyo's openings and swirled it around, 
finding every nerve and crevice that she possibly could 
that could send hot and cold jolts up and down Ukyo's spine 
and cause her to lubricate in preparation for a second 
wrenching climax.  When at last she did jism she felt the 
Amazon hungrily devour her sex, her tongue and lips all 
over Ukyo's loins lapping up every drop she could find 
until the chef felt as though she had been totally cleaned 
out and had nothing left to give...and even then Shampoo 
found a way to cause her to orgasm again, yielding yet more 
of her own womanly nectar.


The thought of eating out another girl would once have 
disgusted Ukyo, but after an experience like that she felt 
the need to reciprocate, and so she went down on Shampoo 
without hesitation the moment the other girl propped 
herself up and parted her thighs with a look of open 
invitation.  As bizarre as it seemed to perform the act of 
cunnalingus, Ukyo realized that she was becoming quite 
adept at the art, even delighting at the flavor of the 
Amazon's love juices as she stimulated and probed her with 
a tongue as refined as any gourmand.  Shampoo was quite 
generous in yielding up her bounty, and when at last the 
moment came her loins clenched up and sucked Ukyo's tongue 
into her moistened depths, only to shoot a wad of clear 
sweet jism onto her face and into her mouth as Ukyo moved 
to catch as much of it as she could savor.  Shampoo's high-
noted squeals were like music in her ears as she tormented 
the Amazon and drank her deep until she yielded yet again 
with another bounteous climax.


Rather than exhaust them this double-ended climax only 
served to stoke the fires of their ardor, and so Shampoo 
sank down into the tub and all but attacked Ukyo in a 
frenzy of limbs, hands, fingers, mouths, tongues and digits 
until a casual observer would have been hard pressed to say 
if they were making love or having a catfight.  As it was 
they made enough noise upstairs that down below on the 
first floor a certain Amazon matriarch paused to glance 
disparaging at the ceiling, then in a withered old voice 
remark, "Girls these days...in my day we had a lot more 
decorum about such things..."


"What's that?" Ryoga asked as he paused in the act of 
setting up the tables for the morning shift.


"Oh, nevermind," Cologne responded, knowing better than to 
enlighten the clueless lost boy as the last thing she 
needed was for him to become all moody and depressed for 
the rest of the day.  The kid was nursing a bad case of the 
unrequited towards the Okonomiyaki chef, and it was obvious 
to anyone to see except Kuonji herself.  Honestly, she had 
never met a more mercurial and easily upset walking engine 
of potentially lethal destruction in her life---and that 
said a lot considering what passed for her relations!


Instead, to take the boy's mind off his trouble with being 
tongue-tied and rather blunt about his budding affections 
towards his fellow former Sith apprentice, Cologne gave 
instructions on what to do to get the restaurant ready for 
the customers and thus too busy to brood on his own 
hopeless situation.  Although the boy needed frequently to 
be steered in the right direction, he was generally very 
attentive and obedient, and unusually polite for a young 
man of his tender years.  If you told him to do a simple 
task he would usually do it without much fuss or 
hesitation, provided it was not too demeaning for a male 
with an ego as easily bruised as himself.  He really would 
make a fine apprentice for some aspects of the art which 
Cologne intended to teach him, and his deferential 
character made her even wonder briefly if he might make a 
suitable husband for an Amazon, having the qualities of 
respect that her people usually sought out in the male of 
the species.


Of course Shampoo would not agree to the deal, not unless 
Ryoga were provoked to challenge her and win, a feat that 
Cologne rather doubted that he was yet up to speed to 
accomplish.  Besides, her amorous great-granddaughter had 
already elected to forge her own ties with the people of 
this place called Nerima in Japan, most particularly with 
the okonomiyaki chef and a certain Tendo sister (the 
younger this time, not the older as before).  Then too 
there was her infatuation with a MAN (of all things) named 
Doctor Tofu Ono, yet another surprising catch whom Cologne 
had recently discovered when she had paid a visit to the 
Shiatsu-trained healer.  Now there was a man who had 
everything an Amazon would want in a mate...good looks, a 
kind heart, and great dexterity with his hands.  Why, if 
Cologne herself were only a century or two younger...


She smiled to herself, nurturing a secret even Shampoo was 
not aware of, knowing that to yield to this temptation 
might permanently alienate her from her beloved great-
grandchild, and for all that Shampoo sometimes did add to 
the gray hairs that she was wearing she certainly loved her 
ward and potential successor to the Matriarch title.  
Shampoo might have her faults (an overactive libido for one 
thing being the most obvious failing) but she was a dear to 
have around and was such a ready, quick and able mind when 
it came to exploring new techniques and new potential.


Which, of course, brought Cologne around full circle as she 
contemplated the effect that the former Sith Adept named 
Kuonji Ukyo was having on the structural integrity of her 
new restaurant.  She doubted the place could hold up for 
long to the strain of having two healthy, active teenagers 
bouncing around on the bed or coming up with new ways in 
which to explore each others bodies.  Shampoo had taken to 
her new prize with great delight, clearly reveling in the 
company of a girl so near to being her equal that the two 
of them might well have been oath sisters.  It reminded 
Cologne rather much of that passionate affair her great-
granddaughter had enjoyed with other girls back in their 
village, particularly with Perfume and Ambergris, to say 
nothing of that gentle apprenticed Healer named Lotion.  
Although Cologne rather doubted that their relationship 
would lead to anything permanent, it was nice to see 
Shampoo smile these days with such a light heart that was 
devoid of any shadows.  Much too was the way she responded 
to that other girl who had become so much of a part of her 
new life, Akane, who really was like an oath sister to 
Shampoo, and who also shared a deep abiding passion for 
exploring the ways of womanly pleasure with Ukyo herself, 
making them a rather odd-yet-oddly-suitable threesome...


"Hello, are you busy at the moment, Grandmother?"


Cologne smiled slyly.  Think of the She-Fox and she will 
appear.  Cologne effected a somewhat more indifferent 
expression by the time she turned around, then gave the 
Tendo girl a kindly nod and said, "Shampoo is upstairs 
cleaning up with Kuonji-san.  If you would like to go up 
there and announce yourself..."


"Thanks," Akane grinned, pausing to nod to the other person 
present in the restaurant, "Hi, Hibiki-san.  Nice morning."


Ryoga shrugged indifferently.  To him one day was just the 
same as another, unless it happened to be raining, in which 
case it was even worse.


Cologne could not avoid a soft chuckle as she watched the 
speed with which Akane vaulted the steps leading up to the 
second floor then sighed, "They'll grow out of it soon 
enough, but I wonder if the place will still be standing by 
the time that happens?"


"Pardon me?" Ryoga turned around with a puzzled look.


"Never you mind, Boy," Cologne said briskly, "Do a good job 
setting up the tables and maybe I'll show you a trick or 
two that will make you an even more formidable fighter than 
you are now."


Ryoga's eyes brightened as he heard this, and automatically 
he said, "Good enough to beat Ranma?"


"We'll take this one step at a time, shall we?" Cologne 
urged, "First you learn what I teach you, then we'll decide 
if you're good enough to provide Ranma with a decent 
fighting partner.  Lady above knows the boy does need 
someone as good as you to train with..."


"I don't want to train with him," Ryoga glowered, "I want 
to kill him!"


"It's good to see you have the proper motivation, but it 
will take more than that to convince me that you have what 
it takes, Sonnyboy," Cologne mused dryly.


"Just you wait, I'll show you that I have more than what it 
takes!" Ryoga balled his fist and looked ready to hit 
something.


Good old Hibiki, Cologne mused, a one-track mind with an 
attitude, just the sort of young man who could give Ranma 
the fighting edge he needed, with just a bit more 
training...





As the evening mist slowly gave way to morning, Ranma faced 
the eldest of his fiancée's across a forest clearing still 
wet with dew.  Kasumi watched with a small smile on her 
face as the newest Jedi Adept attempted to center himself 
in preparation for the instruction she was about to impart.  
Silence blanketed their surroundings, broken only by the 
faint sound of animals and bird sound, the stirring of the 
wind through the leaves, the faint buzz of insects and the 
beating of their hearts as each reached out and became more 
aware of one another.


Eventually, that too faded away, and Kasumi and Ranma stood 
opposite one another in the small clearing, neither 
speaking, nor feeling the need to disturb the peace 
currently between them.  It was enough to hear their own 
breathing coming in steady, gentle rhythm as they 
contemplated the wonder of it all and found their center in 
harmony with their surroundings.


Then Kasumi was pulled from her own thoughts, by a soft 
"Hum," from the boy who was learning from her.  She looked 
his way with a gentle smile and asked, "What is it, Ranma-
kun?"


Her pigtailed apprentice frowned thoughtfully, then spoke 
in an oddly detached tone, "The Force feels different out 
here, not like back at the Tendo place..." he added as if 
still trying to figure out just where the difference lay.


Kasumi nodded, "Hai. The Force is a product of life, Ranma-
kun.  It is everywhere, but out here, where the trappings 
of civilization do not reach, the Force is less muted, as 
everything around you is alive."


Ranma looked puzzled, "So because cities aren't as alive as 
forests, the Force isn't as strong there?"


Kasumi smiled at him again, wider this time, "Yes, although 
since cities are high concentrations of living things as 
well, the force is also present there," she said, nodding 
back towards Nerima.
 
"So why do Jedi even bother living in towns when their 
power is stronger on the road?" he wondered.
 
"Cities are alive too, Ranma-kun," Kasumi explained, "But 
rather than the power of the planet, the unifying force, 
which is ageless and universal, as you feel out here, the 
Force within a city is more of the living force, that of 
sentient beings, connected to the here and now. Some Jedi 
are more attuned to the living force, and they prefer to 
live amongst people, in whom the living force is the 
strongest."


Ranma blinked.  "It really is like T'ai Chi," he murmured. 
"With a little bit of Feng Shui mixed in."


 Kasumi laughed, and Ranma grinned.  She really was 
beautiful when she smiled.  Well, she was beautiful all the 
time, but more so when she favored him with one of those 
ten-thousand-watt smiles.  He was badly confused by this 
whole fiancée business and even more by the feelings that 
each of these girls aroused in him, but he had given up 
trying to figure it all out now. 


"So which kind of the force are you connected to?" he asked 
abruptly.


Kasumi regarded him for a moment, her smile never wavering.


        "Tell me what you think," she instructed him.


Ranma looked at the ground a moment, gathering his 
thoughts, "Well," he began tentatively, "By the way you 
described it, I bet it's the, um, unifying force, huh?"


Kasumi looked surprised. "Yes, that's right.  How did you 
come to that conclusion?"


Ranma looked down, sheepishly scratching his head, "Well, 
You said the unifying force was ageless and universal, 
right?"  Kasumi nodded, interested in his reasoning, "So, 
hum...I figured that since you seem so quiet around lots of 
people, and you can see into the future, and the past 
really well, like you explained to me about how you knew 
about the c-c-cat-fist training, so that seems more like 
the unifying force...right?"


He trailed off for a moment, looking up at her.  Kasumi 
felt the familiar flush of anger when she was reminded of 
that particular aspect of her 'Uncle Genma's' teaching, but 
she forcibly expelled it from her thoughts, nodding in 
agreement.  Ranma still had trouble articulating complex 
thoughts, but he seemed to have grasped the general idea of 
what she had been trying to get across.  His learning curve 
was frankly astonishing, and he had studied under her for a 
little under a month and was father along than she had been 
after six.  Despite the mastery of the force she had 
attained to date, she was unable to suppress the slightest 
twinge of jealousy, an emotion with which she had even less 
familiarity than anger.


Envy is a product of the Dark Side, she told herself wryly. 
Besides, I wouldn't want to go through what he has to 
achieve what he has both in the art and in the force.


        "Yes," she said calmly, schooling her expression so 
as not to let her thoughts show. "I have no aversion 
to...people, Ranma-kun, but I do prefer the company of few 
to being in a crowd."


Ranma nodded hurriedly, "Gomen, I ah...didn't mean that the 
way it sounded, Kasumi-chan, I just meant...."


The rest of Ranma's hurried apology was lost on Kasumi, 
though she nodded as he spoke. Did he just...he just call 
me Kasumi-chan! Oh MY!! She turned slightly to hide the 
blush creeping up on her features. This boy, he had a knack 
for taking her carefully crafted opinions, attitudes and 
feelings, (And by the force, SUCH feelings) and turning 
them on their ear.


        "No need to apologize, Ranma-kun," she managed to 
say as she looked for the objects she needed for moment, 
trying to hide her confused stated of mind.  After a 
moment, she turned back to Ranma, calm and composed once 
more, "Are you ready to begin?"


Ranma grinned, "Heh, I was born ready, Kasumi," he 
asserted, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet. 
She smiled, wanting to laugh at his inexhaustible supply of 
energy. "Whenever you're ready."


"Then let us begin," Kasumi replied, and without seeming to 
move at all she flowed across the grass, coming at Ranma 
with such speed that he barely had time to blink before she 
was upon him.


Her hands moved with even greater speed than the Chestnut 
Fist that he had studied under Cologne back in China.  Her 
movements were so fluid and well coordinated that she 
hardly seemed to be moving at all, more like dancing with 
her total body in motion as she struck Ranma a dozen times 
and laid him out on his back within two seconds.


"Are you all right, Ranma-kun?" she asked as she paused to 
look down at him with some concern, "I did try to be 
gentle..."


"W-what did you do?" Ranma asked.


"I fought with the Force," Kasumi replied, "It is a 
powerful ally that can amplify your natural abilities in 
ways that you are only beginning to grasp.  If you wish to 
be the equal to any Force Master that you meet you will 
have to work on maintaining your focus and allowing the 
Force to flow through you even in the middle of a battle."


"Easy for you to say," Ranma winced as he started to sit 
up, only to look at the hand that was suddenly proffered to 
him, Kasumi offering her assistance with that gentle smile 
that did funny things to the middle of his tummy.


"Shall we try again?" she asked.


"S-Sure," he responded as he reluctantly accepted her hand, 
again surprised at how soft and fragile it felt between his 
fingers, "Why not?"


Fifteen minutes later he was deeply regretting the rashness 
of those words, feeling battered and bruised like he had 
gone five rounds with Ryoga Hibiki.


"Hmm," Kasumi said with mild amusement, "Perhaps we should 
try something a little more basic before working on 
furthering your fighting technique, Ranma-kun."


"Uh...sure," Ranma agreed, silently making a note to never 
again refer to Kasumi as "fragile."  As he straightened out 
and shrugged his shoulders in an attempt at bravado he 
said, "So, what are ya gonna teach me now?"


        "Conditioning," she said simply.


Ranma blinked at that, then smirked, "In that case, bring 
it on, Sensei. I'm in pretty good shape," he said wryly.


Kasumi silently agreed with that statement, but shook her 
head as she smiling and said, "By ordinary standards, 
Ranma-kun, you are in excellent shape, but, for a Jedi, the 
body is a tool of the mind, and the level of awareness a 
Jedi can reach, requires levels of endurance that even the 
most fit man on earth would have difficulty attaining."


Ranma tilted his head slightly, considering her words, then 
he smiled ruefully after a moment, looking at her 
sheepishly, "That makes sense, I guess.  I guess I should 
stop thinking I know everything about training, huh?" he 
offered.


Kasumi smiled brightly at that, "Admitting you do not know 
is the first stage of wisdom, Ranma-kun.  You DO have a 
great deal of experience, but as you pointed out before, 
this is the next level.  Are you ready to meet the 
challenge?"


Ranma stiffened unconsciously, as Kasumi pushed the mental 
'challenge response' button in his mind.  He looked at his 
teacher seriously, "Yeah. What's the game, Sensei?" he 
asked gravely.


Kasumi's expression grew sly, "Tag," she replied.


Ranma gaped incredulously, "Tag???"


Kasumi nodded.  She raised a hand, and four leather weights 
flew from her nearby backpack and affixed themselves to his 
wrists and ankles.  Ranma blinked, and when they had 
finished, he flexed his arms and legs experimentally.  He 
looked at Kasumi in surprise.


"Geez, these' r heavy, y' know, for leather weights," he 
commented.


Kasumi smiled, "I'm not finished yet," she smiled.  She 
walked over to her backpack itself and placed it around his 
shoulders.  Ranma's erect posture slouched slightly, then 
he consciously straightened, and gawked at Kasumi.


        "How much is in here?" he asked, shocked.  He knew 
he was extremely strong, but this was staggering.


Kasumi smiled mischievously, "If I've guessed correctly, 
about three times your body weight, I imagine." 


He gaped, "Nani???" he exclaimed.


Kasumi had carried the pack the whole way up here, and she 
wasn't even sweating!!!  A look of amused determination 
settled on his face.  It was just a small thing, but it 
showed how much he had to learn.  They had been repeatedly 
telling him that with the Force's aid, the possibilities 
were limitless, and he was beginning to understand that it 
wasn't just a pep talk.


        "Are you ready?" his sensei asked, her brilliant 
smile settling into her serene, 'sensei' face.


Ranma nodded sharply, a competitive grin forming, "Hai!" 
with that, Kasumi darted into the forest. After a moment, 
Ranma tore after her. At the best speed his restrictions 
would allow, of course...





Much Later...


        Kasumi turned to Ranma, stifling a smile as he 
abruptly stopped panting when she turned in his direction. 


"I think that's enough for now, Ranma-kun," she said 
kindly.


He eagerly slipped the pack off and set to work on the 
weights on his wrists and legs.  She couldn't help but 
giggle at his unabashed sigh of pleasure.


"Man," he groaned, "I thought Pop was a tough Sensei, but 
he ain't got nothing on you, Kasumi."


A shadow flickered across Kasumi's face at the mention of 
the current number one on her list of least favorite 
people.  Ranma freed his arms and legs of the weights and 
stretched, closing his eyes and breathing deeply.


Suddenly, his eyes snapped open,  "Kasumi! Can you feel 
that?!"


        Kasumi blinked, and reached into the force, and 
immediately encountered a heart-wrenching cry of pain.  Her 
eyes snapped open, and she began to run.  "This way," she 
said shortly, and Ranma was right behind her. 




Continued.


Comments/Criticisms/Cavity Fighting Dental Hygiene: 
shadowmane@ridgenet.net


What has attracted the attention of Kasumi and Ranma?  What 
will Nabiki decide if she learns about how close these two 
are coming to one another, and what does Ukyo make of all 
the hot and heavy action she's been getting from Shampoo 
and Akane?  And will Ryoga get a terminal nosebleed if he 
ever figures out what those three are doing together?  Find 
out in the next exciting installment: "This Old Gang," or, 
"Three Girls, a Pig and a Poke!"  Be there!






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