Sword and Pen - Honor and the Arts

by the Kitsune Magus ( )

Disclaimer: While I do not own Ranma 1/2 or the characters, locales and events associated with the series (those being the explicit property of Rumiko Takahashi and any associated printing/publishing or animation companies); I DO own this twist on the story. There will be some romance elements involved, but I am a fervent opponent of the Ranma-Akane pairing for fanfics, so there will be no "Ranma marries Akane" happy endings here. Any commentary or words of encouragement are appreciated, and flames will be read, and laughed at thoroughly, then used to make a comfy little nest in my fox burrow!

NOTE: A few characters will be OOC for purposes of new 'influences' in their lives, and the timeline will be set AFTER the series has ended, as events will flow from my plot developments. Please be aware that I know mainline, I reference any resources that archive such information regularly as I write, and personally make sure that I am as close to being within mainline as possible. The main change is that I have stepped outside of mainline, and am taking my time to write a story based on my own views on Ranma's life. Again I apologize to any canon 'standard-bearers' for this breach in mainline. Oh wait... there is no breach, as anything beyond the series is 'unwritten'.

" " - spoken words ' ' - thoughts, internal monologues Bold Typeface - foreign languages

- Prologue -

- Timeset, nine months after the first failed wedding; Tendo house (Set more from Nabiki's perspective to cover the initial introduction to 'Current Times')

Nabiki was nervous. More nervous than when her profit margins were drained or when she thought she missed out on a lucrative opportunity. This was 'fear for her life'-type nervousness. The second attempt at Ranma and Akane's wedding was going smoothly, through no small bit of trying on her part. She had found and literally bribed Ryoga to sit in as Ranma's best man. Ryoga, for his credit, held himself in check and even told Ranma, "For this honor, Ranma... I will consider several of your previous 'offenses' wiped clean. But please..." He asked Ranma as an aside, "... please take care of Akane where I can no longer." Ranma, since it was a private moment, hugged Ryoga like a brother and said, "Not a prob', Ryoga... after all, you and I are the best two in the place. How could anyone get hurt with us protectin' everybody!" Little did Ranma know, that those words were all the 'jinx' that was needed. It was his supreme confidence in his belief that, under his watchful eye, no one would be harmed, that made Nabiki nervous. Even though he privately 'comforted her' with a hug, a kiss on the forehead, and a mischievous 'tweak' to her shapely buttocks that made her blush and think that she should have pursued him more fervently as a fiance rather than a 'major investment'.

Nabiki was spending most of her time 'deflecting' attempts by the Fiance Brigade and the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew to court Ranma in either form, assisting in wedding plans, keeping them all from finding out about the wedding, and most importantly (for her): trying to make some money for the Tendo house AND still try and work her way back into Ranma's fullest confidence (as much confidence as he had in her to begin with, anyway). She was getting a first-class lesson in trying to dam up a raging river, during flood season. And to her credit, the 'Ice Queen' was doing well. With only a week left before the wedding day, there was but one detail she hadn't thought of: the only two places that catered to appetites as big as their family were ran by members of the Fiance Brigade. This posed a grave issue, as Ukyo and Shampoo almost detonated the last wedding using exploding food. Fortunately, she could approach Ucchan on 'business terms' and give her a chance to work herself back into Ranma's good graces too. Shampoo and Cologne were on the guest-list; more by Ranma's request than anything, but something nagged at her about even involving them.

Taking a moment to put on her 'business' face, she walked to the okonomiyaki chef's restaurant. "Hello, welcome to Ucchan's... oh, Ms. Nabiki! Please sit!" Konatsu quickly greeted her, and proceeded to bring her to a table, her usual one. "Shall I tell Mistress Ukyo to make your usual?" Nabiki considered it, and replied to the cross-dressing ninja 'waitress', "Sure... and bring me a drink, please. I'm thirsty." After a moment, Ukyo walked out and greeted her, "Well... what brings you here, Nabiki? Ranchan having issues again? Or is this 'business'?" Nabiki smiled as she noted Ukyo was holding a glass of iced tea, with a single lemon wedge. "Why, 'business' of course, Ucchan." Ukyo smiled conspiratorially at that and sat down, presenting Nabiki with the iced tea. "On the house, sugar. Now on to business!" After some rather interesting discourse. Nabiki was eating her okonomiyaki (on the house, due to a business proposition being on the table) and Ukyo had 'closed' the shop. "Alright, let's see if I have this right... Ranchan and the kitchen-wrecking tomboy are giving it another shot, and you thought it best that I cater the event to try and get back on Ranchan's good side? What's in it for me?"

Ukyo seemed a bit more difficult than the last few times Nabiki made proposals like this to her. "The chance to show Ranma that you aren't just in it to try and marry him, and that you'll be happy for him regardless of who he winds up with. As any 'friend' should be." Nabiki retorted. Ukyo faltered a bit in her 'tough gal' hard-sell attitude, "I dunno... making okonomiyaki for THAT many mouths, and for those stomachs... that's a hefty tab, Nabiki..." Nabiki slid her an envelope, that was rather plump. Inside were a few 'glamor photos' that Ranma posed for (for just such an occasion) and a large sum of yen. "Will this cover the catering fee, Ucchan?" Nabiki asked almost a bit lustily. She was hoping to keep the pics for herself, but business is business. Ukyo hastily grabbed up the photos and looked them over, "Wow, Nabs... your taste in glamor shots is... is..." Nabiki quickly replied, "I know... I figured you'd like them. We'll need your catering to be done on by this day and time." Nabiki laid down the information and stood up, having already finished her okonomiyaki, and left a generous tip. "As always, Ucchan... it was delicious." With that she started home to finish the preparations and help deflect other fiances and the rest of the Wrecking Crew...

About five days later, everyone was feeling a bit uneasy now. The chaos of Nerima was being held in check, but like any force of Nature, it could only be held in check for so long. Nabiki was made aware that 'uncle' Genma, 'auntie' Nodoka, and her father wanted to 'step up the date'; as a way to throw off everyone that would disrupt the wedding. In effect, it was this decision that ultimately broke the dam. Ukyo was able to juggle it properly, as her 'extra' ingredients had just come in that day, Ryoga just happened to be in town (due in no small part to Ranma keeping tabs on him), and the Nekohanten was closed for 'remodeling' following a fight between Ranma and Mousse. To his credit, Ranma came out as the winner, but he came out of it with more than a few battle scars. Apparently, Mousse had discovered 'laser sharpening' for his bladed implements, and began weighting his blunt instruments more. Ranma was well enough to walk down the aisle, but his fighting ability was blunted considerably. Akane even seemed to give him an inch due to the severity. His 'baka' father, on the other hand, took every liberty and pounded on his son, which caused an already weakened Ranma to be pushed further from his full strength (not that he'd have let anyone notice; but if Nabiki could see it, many others could too). Elder Cologne and Shampoo saw him and made comment about how it looked as though he were 'limping'; Ryoga commented that he actually saw Ranma's hand and arm quiver, like it was weak or tired. But little did Nabiki know that things were only just about to get bad, for all of them.

Ranma was waiting at the altar, with Ryoga and Ranma's parents. Nabiki saw the image and then her cell phone rang. Cursing the ill timing, she ducked outside and answered it, "This had better be good. My sister and Ranma are getting married today. Akane is about to walk the aisle now, and I'm not there to see it! So what is it?" The voice on the other end was one of her informants she had watching all of Nerima for members of the Wrecking Crew or the Fiance Brigade 'catching wind' of the wedding. A shudder and a sudden chill ran down Nabiki's spine as she heard the news. Mousse had caught wind of the wedding (and she had thought she had given instruction for Cologne to burn all traces of the wedding plans), and was on his way to not just disrupt the wedding... but 'kill Ranma, at any cost'! 'This is bad... very bad... I've got to warn Ranma... I've...' Her thoughts were racing just as she entered again and was walking up hastily, only to be stopped short. She saw her sister in the wedding dress, then for a brief moment, she saw herself in Ranma's arms, in a wedding gown and she was smiling and blushing like a June bride. She shook herself free of the pleasurable day-dream in time to hear, "If anyone knows a reason why these two should not be joined together in the bonds of holy matrimony, let them speak now or forever hold their peace."

She was about to raise her hand, but her thoughts were jumbled. She wanted to warn Ranma of Mousse's impending arrival, but at the same token; she wanted to tell Ranma... tell him that after all this time, after all he'd done for their family, after everything she put him through... that she had fallen in love with him, and was willing to put all of her 'Ice Queen' business aside for him. It was then that a loud crash was heard from behind her; and all eyes, hers included, turned that direction. The priest conducting the ceremony's bible slid from nervous fingers and hit the floor with a dull 'Thud'. There he was, Mousse... his eyeglasses not on his face, and he looked angry. "Ranma, you gutless bastard! Today you die for trying to steal my Shampoo from me in such a cowardly way!" With that, Mousse hurled a deluge of his already dangerous hidden weapons with rapid swings of his arms. Swords, axes, maces, rope-javelins, yo-yos (not sure how they kept winding up in there), spiked ball-and-chains, knives, lucky cat statues (another oddity), even shuriken and throwing needles. And sadly enough, Nabiki was in the direct line of fire. Luckily, most of the thrown weapons were passing right by her, but she was frozen like a deer in the headlights of an oncoming Mack truck. Everything was in super-slow motion for her as a few needles collided with a pew, and altered course and grazed her left cheek and her chin, one even finding purchase enough to tear through her bride's-maid gown and gouge the flesh of her shoulder as it ripped on through. But her perceptions all suddenly caught up as she felt something scythe through the front of her gown's bust, and slam home between her breasts, right through her sternum.

Her gaze slowly lowered, to see the hand-guard and handle of a very heavy (and probably very sharp, to have cut through the thick cloth of the gown so neatly) kris dagger buried in his chest. She hadn't realized she was screaming, but her scream for Ranma was cut short by the knife's impact. It was then, as her vision was getting blurry, she saw a bright flash of green, and another of purest blue-white as two ki attacks blasted past her crumpling form. Then, as her consciousness was departing, she felt two strong arms catch her, and suddenly, as her world was going dark, she felt a sudden upward momentum, as though she were being pulled skyward into Heaven. It was then that her eyes closed and her perceptions closed with them. Suddenly, her eyes opened, and she felt a slight pain in her chest that, when she looked, was a rather harsh scar. She saw her reflection in a mirrored wall, and saw she was dressed in a Chinese silk gi with no sleeves, revealing a wide gouge scar on her left shoulder, and two scars on her left cheek and the left side of her chin. Her body was still it's toned physique, but she felt more alive, more energetic. She then saw herself, but... not! The 'Ice Queen' version of herself, always so poised and cold, was laying bleeding on her regal dais... in her own mind? She ran to her other self. 'What happened to you?' She asked her cold self, who replied, 'You should know... you bear... the scars too...' She bit back tears and some considerable venomous anger. Mousse, trying to kill Ranma, had nearly killed her, and Kami-knows who else? 'But wait... you're me! Then who am..?' She started, only to be told by her 'Ice Queen' self, 'You're me... the me that actually cared for "him"... that actually learned the Art. The honorable and loving me. You are the sword... the one... I...' She just placed her hand upon her double's cold, icy lips. 'WE are one... you and I... no more of this separation. If we are to live... and to pursue OUR Ranma... then let's do it together! Both Sword... and Pen!' She felt a rush of loving warmth, like what she'd felt in that daydream of Ranma's arms around her, as she and her Ice Queen self merged, and were being pulled back into the world of the living.

Nabiki's eyes shot open and she tried to sit up, only to curse herself inwardly for trying so quickly. She hurt all over, her head was pounding and swimming, and she was hooked up to several different bags, some being donor blood. She heard voices, and after a bit of focusing, discerned them. First came her 'uncle' Genma, berating Ranma for being sloppy and for allowing one of his fiances to be hurt, and demanding that he make it right. Then came her own father, agreeing with the fat-ass panda-moocher and demanding Ranma take Akane back to the altar and marry her, join the schools and pay to support Nabiki (as well as those two lay-abouts). Then up harped Akane, screaming that Ranma was worthless and couldn't even protect her sister, that he was a disgrace to the Art and to the Dojo, and that she'd never marry him! Finally, the last voice shocked Nabiki to the core, it was Ranma's own mother, decrying that her son was unmanly to have allowed such a 'beautiful girl be harmed during his wedding, after he had vowed that all present would be protected by him' and demanding he either honor his pledge to commit seppuku, or marry Akane and regain his honor by caring for Nabiki. She was wanting to call to Ranma, to let him know she was okay, and to silence any berating. She would later discover that she had been out cold for nearly five hours, Ranma gave her a rather dangerous (for his condition) donation of his own blood, lucky for her they were compatible blood types, and shortly after he had gotten done giving her blood (nearly two hours after getting her there) that their parents arrived and began to berate him, and had not stopped at all. Finally, after what was probably the longest Ranma had ever held his peace while being cornered and yelled at, he did what Nabiki swore she thought he'd never do: Ranma snapped.

"All of ya, Shut the fuck up and let me alone! Jeez, I know... I fucked up by not protectin' Nabs!" Ranma began, and Nabiki could feel the heat of his battle aura all the way in her room. "I know it's 'A Martial Artist's duty to protect those that cannot defend themselves'. But ya know what, you three INGRATES? The 'honor and duty' pendulum swings both ways! You three didn't even lift a finger! Not you, Pop... who drilled it into me to protect the weak, yet all you do is sit around, growing fatter on stolen food, sake, and playing Shogi! Not you, Soun... who's own daughter was nearly impaled on a damn knife while you were mooning over your youngest in her wedding dress, yet all you do is drink sake, and play Shogi with my Pop and not even teach your own daughters the Art anymore! And especially not you, Akane! You just stood there frozen, like a deer in the headlights, fuming that someone would interrupt 'your wedding'... not caring that your sister was possibly DEAD... just that 'your day was ruined'. Give me a break, ya self-absorbed, conceited little heartless BITCH!" Just as Nodoka began to chastise her son, he whirled on her, and with a suddenly icier tone than even Nabiki could muster at her most ruthless, Ranma shut his mother up, "And don't you even start, you witch of a mother! You allowed me to be taken from you, and have been holding me to an ill-written, ass-backward honor pledge that NO MOTHER in her right mind would have ever taken seriously from a two-year old son. Yet you use it to control and manipulate my every move! So if that's what 'honor' means to all of you, just something to use to control or browbeat someone with... then fuck Honor! Ranma SAOTOME died, donating blood to save Nabiki Tendo's life... because too many bloodsuckers in his life took all the rest from him! Goodbye!"

Ranma started to leave, as Nabiki caught a glimpse of his back, with two tear-marks in his shirt where two bloodied gauze pads could be seen. She heard her father, Akane, Nodoka and Genma getting ready to move to stop Ranma's leaving. Nabiki herself was crying, as it reached her first that she had inadvertently caused Ranma to do one thing that she'd have never thought he'd do at his worst. Even three months ago, when she and he were out for ice cream alone, and they talked about how Ranma would handle things if they really blew up, she thought he was kidding when he told her, "Eh, I was just thinkin'... it'd be so much easier to just up and drop it all. Ya know... my ties to Mom and Pop... heck, just completely ditch the Saotome name altogether! They just use my sense of honor and my compassion against me... I'm starting to think that I should... be more like you, Nabs." Nabiki remembered talking Ranma out of it then, telling him that she was actually quite lonely, and that very few people wanted to open up to her. It was then that Ranma, seemingly reminded of 'who' he was talking to, asked reflexively, "How much, Nabs... to keep this from spreading?" She remembered, and it was the first time she truly felt warmth and caring for Ranma, that he'd opened up to her so soon after she had completely trashed his and Akane's first wedding for little more than her own gain, and she said, "Let's just say you'll owe me, Ranma-kun." Ranma had blushed and looked surprised at the term of endearment she had used, but quickly smiled and nodded affirmation.

As Ranma was about to get blindsided by the four; Ryoga, Ukyo, Shampoo, and Cologne all stepped in the way. Ryoga, having halted Akane's approach turned slightly and said, "Ranma... go on... I'll catch up to you later. You look like you need to put some things behind you, I was just thinking I would be leaving too. Akane-'chan' (Ryoga said the honorific so sarcastically it made Akane wince like it was a punch) has just made me realize you were right all along." Ukyo, staring Genma down with eyes like sharp daggers, added, "Don't worry, Ranchan... I'll just take my honor-debt out of your father's fat ass, and hopefully that will appease my family's honor enough to let me stay as I am, and maybe still be your friend." Shampoo, not to be outdone, was staring down Nodoka and said, "Shampoo think Airen's mother need lesson. Airen's mother too too backward for being such nice lady." Cologne was smiling at her Great-granddaughter's words and said, "Agreed, great-granddaughter, but she is not the only parent in need of a good 'parenting' lesson. Soun here is so far gone, his three girls should have been given to social services due to his ineptitude and complete disregard for them after his wife's passing." The four were staring at a literally impassable wall, to which Genma tried to shout and goad Ranma to charge back through those barring their way, so they could give the boy what-for. "Ungrateful boy! After all I've done for you... you walk out on your responsibilities like a coward? You are no son of mine!" To his surprise, she saw Ranma hold up something (a... tape-recorder?) and click it off, turn and bowed, saying, "You are absolutely right, Saotome-ojisan... or should I say, Saotome-sensei... I am no son of yours... not any longer." With that, he just kept walking...

Author's notes - Whew! There it is... the prologue to what is guaranteed to be a roller-coaster ride from Hell for Ranma & Co. Hope you enjoyed it, and remember... Read and Review is always appreciated, but flames with be used to make a comfy little nest in my fox burrow. Other than that, Chapter One will probably continue where this leaves us, setting the stage for Ranma 'growing' in ways apart from the norm. Not sure where I will go with it from here... but hope you will stick around for the ride! ;)