Bitter Virgins

by Gangsta Spanksta

[Ranma x Bitter Virgin] Ch 1: Posing as a priest, Ranma overhears a confession that he shouldn't.

"Bitter Virgins"

By: Gangsta Spanksta

A Ranma ½ and Bitter Virgin Crossover.

'I– I hate them, – I fear them, – I detest them. – When it comes to men…'

•

Dialog Guide:

Ellipses (…): Shows a long pause (u), or shows that the speaker doesn't change between two quotes (c).
En-dash (–): Shows a short pause (u), or shows that the speaker is interrupted (c).

( (c)onnected to a word , (u)nconnected to a word )

Author Notes: Some events from Bitter Virgin have been rearranged or changed for sake of story.

•

Chapter 1: The Accidental Confessional

"Oh, Saotome-kun…" a gorgeous blond purred out huskily towards him – overly enthusiastic to see him, winking her long, slender eyelashes – while trying to lure him in.

"…How's about challenging lil ol' me to another game of Putt-Putt-Panda tonight?" The blond, Kazuki, queried confidently, knowing she'd win either way if he agreed, especially considering the fun they had last time playing 'anything-goes' golf – as he liked to put it – together on that course with those adorably cute, panda-colored balls on it.

He watched her flutter her eyelashes seductively, enticing him forward, as he replied with a calm and confident smirk. There was no need to say more: they understood each other perfectly. Ranma would agree to go, as long as there was some sort of physical activity involved on the date – something he'd enjoyed doing. He was a hands-on sort of guy, after all, though perhaps not to the extent Zuki-chan wanted, but in that regard, he did enjoy making out on occasion.

When it came to dating, he especially enjoyed that Putt-Putt-Panda place. There was just something gratifying about whacking those panda colored balls about – stress relieving in fact. Ranma would often miss a putt on purpose, just to bean that goofy panda head – the one with the automated mouth – on the nose. The course was so well designed that the panda would complain about it afterwards: its eyes flashing red, while it growfed out angrily, a panda fisted arm, sticking up from out of the ground, shaking to-and-fro – definitely his money's worth.

It all provided a great distraction – not just the miniature golf, mind you, but dating in general – from what was really bothering him. Things ended woefully in Nerima, and those memories still lingered about, haunting him in his sleep, keeping him up at nights, as he visualized those glaring eyes. Reluctantly, he ran a finger along his shirt, feeling through the fabric, while tracing along a scar – not the one that bothered him.

He lived with his mother now and surprisingly, at least for those who used to know him, had an easy time dealing with the women. Of course, this time there was no pressure to marry any of them, nor did they try to murder each other – 'accidentally' taking swipes at him in the process – as he dated casually, while not having a serious relationship with any of them. His life seemed to be happier now, as he turned it around along with his grades. Or at least, he'd like to say it was happier, which in and of itself he was not too sure about. And while life was less hectic now, he still had issues with living in a small town. But before he could get anymore existential about it, he was rudely interrupted out of thought.

"Ranma! don't you dare skip out of cleaning duty, again!" yelled Yuzu, wrinkling her forehead in disgust, as she pointed at him accusingly. She grew extremely tired of having to pick up after him all the time and knew what those two were discussing. It just wasn't fair: he could be so damn inconsiderate at times.

"Alright already! Come off it, I'll do it…" he shot out at her, growing increasingly tired of her incessant nagging, while fighting back the urge of calling her a stupid tomboy.

He had mixed feelings about Yuzu-chan: he enjoyed going out with her, doing fun things together like hiking, or riding their bikes dangerously through the woods, while dodging trees as they sped downhill, but whenever she got like this, the simple fact remained: he couldn't stand her then. He knew he was to blame for it. Since Nerima, he became increasingly less reliable, but there was good cause for it: the whole ordeal had left him a wreck. He had to fight hard just to get back to the state he was in now. Besides that, he figured it was just a phase – something to go through; everyone had those, why couldn't he? He knew he'd eventually turn it around, because, hell, he never gave up. He'd fight this and win – just like any other battle – he swore, before suddenly cheering up, again.

"…Anyway, Kazuki-chan, Yuzu-chan, I'll – see ya'll later," he said in a friendly manner, smiling, as he watched them say their goodbyes, before waving farewell himself. It was nice: either one could get on his nerves sometimes, but in the end there were no hurt feelings – no bitterness. He was about to go himself, when an arm draped around him.

"So, Ranma-kun, which one do you like?" Asked the inquisitor. Somehow, it seemed no matter where he went, his natural coolness attracted a pair of slightly perverted friends, who'd plague him incessantly with questions about his social life, while hanging around him with dreams of catching girls via association. Not that he minded of course, he enjoyed the company, as long as they left his girl side alone if they ever found out that is.

"While, I suppose, – they're both fun tah hang around with and date, – I gotta say neither, man…" he answered honestly, briefly considering the matter, as he gave each girl one last admiring glance, appreciating what he saw, before pausing and contemplating.

"…But to tell ya the truth, Hinako-san's prolly the only one I'd pass on–" he said, turning his head around, looking at her, as he felt a bit awkward, seeing her stare sadly out the window, before being interrupted by his other friend.

"I dunno, Saotome, I would've figured her to be your type," he speculated, looking at her with great interest, almost drooling, as he inspected her a bit more closely, before suddenly being popped on the side of the arm by his other friend, who gave him a stern look, warning him not to encourage the guy. Obviously, if there was a girl – any girl for that matter – that Saotome wasn't interested in, then it was a good thing. Some people were just such armatures!

"Nah, I mean – that girl just reminds me too much of my ex-fiancée: the short hair, that whole I'm-a-sweet-and-innocent virgin act. But you know? Underneath it all, I can tell she's just another man hating psycho. Just don't need that kinda trauma, ya know," Ranma concluded regretfully. Sure he liked short-haired girls, and this one was prettier than the tomboy – with such smooth, silky hair that he longed to run his fingers through – but she reminded him too much of 'her', so much so that he felt bitterness whenever he looked at her.

"Come on Saotome, don't you think you're being a little – too hard?" Ranma's friend interposed, as the other one crossed his arms and shook his head in disgust, looking at him.

"Maybe," he relented, falling into silence, feeling somewhat guilty for being so judgmental – especially considering that he wasn't impartial – as he continued to watch the girl by the window, recalling his prior run-ins.

•

"Just great, … I'm gonna be late again," Ranma groaned, as the urgency of the situation sunk in. He reluctantly broke out of the armlock of two admirers, while standing in the middle of a group of girls whose conversation he'd stopped listening to, long ago. Suddenly, breaking into a run, he tried to make it to class. Today was test day, and good grades were his ticket out of here.

Running recklessly, he quickly slid beneath a pair of intertwined hands connected to a couple blocking his path who were taking up too much space as if they were the only ones out there. Getting up from the slide, he slowed down, turning himself sideways, to squeeze by a talkative crowd, pushing his way through on occasion, before bursting off into a run, again. He bit down on his lips, a bit worried: his teacher had a nasty habit of locking out tardy students. If he missed this class, he'd fail, and that wasn't an option considering he'd been held back last year due to circumstance. So taking a chance, he leapt into the air, over the school's water fountain, flipping midair, before eventually landing on the edge of its stone barrier and losing his balance.

As luck would have it, his foot slipped, and he shot forward, plowing down hard into the new girl, Hinako Aikawa, who was walking perpendicular to him before turning herself around in abject horror when she heard him yell. With a big 'umpf', their bodies collided – him falling on top of her – as he pushed her down hard onto the ground, scraping his elbows in the process, as he slid. Still moving and on top of her, his hand shot forward, its fingers running through her hair, letting him temporarily enjoy the soft, silky feel, before painfully scraping his knuckles against the gravel. His other hand accidentally brushed up against her breast, causing them both to stiffen – pale faced and wide eyed – with dread and embarrassment on their faces, before he eventually forced himself up – feeling horrible.

"I– I'm sorry! Was in ah hurry, – and shoulda watched – where I was going. Here let me help ya up…" he apologized contritely, somewhat out of breath, offering the girl a hand, which she reluctantly took after a brief hesitation. Looking into her wild eyes, he began to stare, watching them dodge about, as she looked at him. Slightly trembling, she paled more, as she notice him staring back, before quickly turning around, running off, not giving him another chance to speak.

'…I said, I was sorry…' he thought, feeling guilty for scaring her, desperately wondering how he could make it up to her, before turning his head and looking up at the third story window.

'…Wonder how I'm gonna make it on time now,' he contemplated – his eyes jumping around calculatingly with desperation.

•

The next morning, during homeroom period, Ranma studied Hinako curiously, hoping for a chance of redemption. He absolutely despised the fact that he had hurt a girl and couldn't live with himself unless he found someway of making it up to her. As he watched her, the teacher suddenly called on her to solve an equation, forcing the girl to get up reluctantly, timidly walking over to the board as if on death row, before shyly writing on it. Shaking his head at what he saw, the teacher looked over her solution, before smiling. As he leaned over to correct the problem, he caused the nervous girl to flinch away, before babbling on sagely, not at all noticing her reaction.

'Ah man! – Guess I really shook her up – pretty badly, yesterday,' Ranma concluded, grimacing, while phasing out the background noise of the teacher, as his determination grew.

After homeroom period, he found Hinako struggling, trying to carry a huge stack of papers, on route to the teacher's office. Quickly rushing over – his guilt spiking – he saw that she was barely able to balance the stack – a few sheets threatening to blow off the top. Taking his chance to atone, he gallantly walked over to her – from behind, giving her a smile – and spoke.

"Here let me help ya…" he offered nicely, lowering his arms – ready to accept – while positioning them to hold the stack, as he looked at her – bright faced.

The reaction he got wasn't what he expected, as her breath cut off – her eyes growing wide – as she trembled. He stood there agape, not understanding what was going on, looking at her face for a clue – any clue – trying desperately to understand. Focusing into her eyes, his smile dropped, as he stood there, staring into the windows of her soul, pleading desperately with his own eyes, as he looked deeper, seeing her emotions shift from being distraught, to her not knowing what to do, to a feeling of utter helplessness; there was distrust there, directed towards him, a sense of betrayal – her trembling eyes accusing him. It all reminded him too much of someone, someone who betrayed him, someone who he hated passionately, and the more he looked at Hinako the more he came to associate her with that other person, steadily growing to despise her, before bitting down onto his teeth, hard, feeling stabbed through the heart, as his face grew stern and his eyes hard.

"…Fine then! Go carry them yourself, for all I care," he yelled out harshly, deeply hurt, as he turned around and stormed off.

"I – I'm sor – ry," Hinako whispered.

•

It wasn't really the country side, she decided, more like a small, quiet town quite some distance from Tokyo, or more specifically Nerima. Ranma moved here with her mother, to escape from her problems, but she didn't know if she was any happier. Sure he had become more outgoing, finally dating girls like he had always planned to once the training trip had ended, though perhaps less meaningfully than he expected. But she couldn't help but feel like her life was wasting away in front of her. The move avoided much pain and conflict, but that didn't mean she wanted to move because of it, nor did she run away from a fight. Worst of all, this new life hindered her advancement in the art. Just about the only consolation she could see was that she was with her mother now – the one woman she loved.

Currently, Ranma was in the kitchen, closing her eyes, squeezing them tightly – along with her fingers and toes – pushing out any negative feelings that lingered within her. Taking a deep breath, she paused, before achieving the desired state of tranquility she sought. Raising one eye while keeping the other shut, she suddenly altered mindsets, before exhaling swiftly. Breathing heavily now, her blood pumped quickly, coursing through her veins, as she felt an adrenalin rush while psyching herself up to cook.

Putting some fish into the fryer, she smiled, before grabbing two razor-sharp knives with one hand, holding their blades between her fingers, while rapidly tossing up vegetables with her other hand. As the last vegetable left, she flipped the knives into the air, catching one with each hand, before leaping into the air – a crazed look in her eyes – as she let out a battle cry, while wildly going to work in the air.

"Cha– cha– cha– cha– cha…" went the crazed redhead, slicing and dicing, while defying gravity, seemingly suspended in the air, as she wowed the spectators, before gently landing on the tips of her toes – the vegetables perfectly arranging themselves in a pattern on the platter behind her. Cheering, the patrons adored her, clapping at her display of skill, laughing at her antics, as they watched her breathtaking performance, with knives flying through the air, while they occasionally took in a bite.

Ranma on the other hand, felt cooking sure beat waitressing. Unfortunately, every town had its perverts: lecherous old men trying to feel her up. She had to constantly avoid gropes, swaying her hips to the sides, letting a hand pass by, while slapping away any she couldn't dodge. On the bright side, this was great practice for the ancient art of Waitress Fu: a style she had to master while working for the likes of the old ghoul and Ukyo. She supposed if it ever became unbearable, she could lug around a katana like her mother, which seemed to be the perfect man repellent. But whatever the case, be it waitressing or cheffing, Ranma became the cornerstone for success for their little, hole-in-the-wall, small-town restaurant.

As a guy though, she felt more akin to Mu Tsu – his responsibilities being all menial – be it washing dishes, mopping the floors, or occasionally having to demean himself by cleaning the toilets. With all those responsibilities combined, she lived an active life, keeping herself busy, on the verge of exhaustion, with very little time for anything else like training or having fun, which led to her occasional rebellion against her mother – something which Yuzu-chan would bitch endlessly on about.

"Voilà!" Exclaimed the redhead proudly, as she spun around, holding out a fish platter, while leaning forward and standing on one foot with the other raised behind her. Double blinking, her expression changed to one of extreme annoyance, when she overheard her kimono-clad mother casually conversing instead of waitressing.

"Oh, I do so hope he'll impregnate a local girl soon, so they'll take over the restaurant, and I'll have lots of, lots of grandbabies to watch and play with, while they work," Nodoka chimed in happily to an old man, as Ranma-chan turned beet red out of embarrassment, wishing she could just shrink away and croak: anything was better than this humiliation.

"Hey!" The redhead interjected forcefully to no avail – completely ignored – as her mother continued to chat, while the rest of the customers watched on with amusement, whispers flying through the air.

"Oh my! You know that I would be willing to, No-chan," singsonged a middle-aged, overweight patron, showing her interest by lustfully licking her lips with eager anticipation.

"Ah!…" The redhead said, jumping back in fright, almost landing into the fryer as she hit the counter, sending the fish spiraling through the air, which landed back on its original spot on the platter, as she stood there, looking on in horror, shivering, wanting to bite her nails but couldn't due to her holding the platter.

"…Buh– but but but you're married, – Missus Yamamoto." Ranma helpfully pointed out, hoping the older lady would listen to reason, as shivers spiked through her body from having to fight off unwanted imagery of how Missis Yamamoto would look like naked. A lobotomy sounded good right about now, she thought, grimacing, as her eye twitched.

"Now, now, Ranko, it's not too healthy to be so obsessive over your own brother, … dear…" Yamamoto-san chided the younger girl. She had her suspicions about Ranko. After all, the flat upstairs had only two bedrooms, and didn't Nodoka-chan say something about sleeping alone? She certainly wouldn't put it past her friend to allow it, especially considering how obsessive she was over Ranma's manliness.

"…How about my Yuzu-chan then?" She suggested, with a glimmer in her eyes, thinking of her daughters happiness, while also pondering if marrying into the family meant free meals. It should, she thought, and to her, it sounded like a win-win situation: Nodoka would have her grandbabies, Yuzu her Ranma, while she would never have to worry about cooking another meal, again. Yup, it certainly was win-win alright.

"Marvelous," Nodoka approved. She already loved the girl like a daughter – the two of them having bonded. Yuzu worked there part-time, didn't mind Ranma's curse, and was a hard, intelligent worker, someone who Nodoka could rely on. She was even there when Ranma wasn't, that is, whenever he decided to have one of his fits, which gave both women ample time to get to know each other. Yes, she definitely wouldn't mind having that goodhearted child as her daughter: Yuzu was a winner in her eyes.

"Gah, not another engagement…" Ranma snarled, extremely upset, while glaring at her mother, as she put the dish down on the counter, before storming off upstairs, in a huff, mumbling underneath her breath. Moments later, a door slammed upstairs, followed by a short pause, before the door slammed, again, as Ranma-kun stormed back downstairs, still wearing his apron and scowl.

"…That's it! I've had it. I'm outta here," he yelled out, emphasizing each point, giving the appearance that he had just been informed.

"Just where do you think you're going, – Ranma? You can't just up and leave, whenever you feel like it, just because your mad, especially when your sister bailed out on me too," Nodoka fussed, feeling very disappointed that Ranma would leave her in the lurch like that. At this time of day, the restaurant was next to impossible to run by herself.

"Out! – And don'tcha go thinkin' for one moment that I'm gonna take over this dump for ya either, one day," he told her coldly, before slamming the entrance to the restaurant shut as he left – the customers once again whispering among themselves.

"But Ranma, … you're not the only one who had to make sacrifices – here…" Nodoka thought glumly, as she watched her son's shadow disappear through the translucent door. She couldn't blame him. She knew how he felt: when she was younger, she felt the same way, swearing to never return here, to her parents' place of business. She always detested growing up in a small town, longing instead for the excitement of the big city, but she came back just for him and tried to put a positive spin on it. He needed a place to start over, far away from his worries. Now, she couldn't leave: she had a commitment that she couldn't break. So, she prayed to Kami-sama that she made the right choice.

Nodoka worried for her son and daughter, and although she knew they were the same person, she came to realize that they saw the world in a slightly different perspective. Before the fallout, her son used to be the quiet, cool, confident, laidback one, while the side she came to know and love as 'Ranko' was the cheerful, outgoing, playful, chatty one. The events in Nerima changed everything. 'Ranko' withdrew into herself, becoming more introverted, while only coming out of her shell when she was either cooking or waitressing for the restaurant, which Nodoka thought was good therapy for the girl. Ranma on the other hand dealt with his problems differently. He became more extroverted, which was a side effect of him overcompensating by becoming a real ladies man, causing him to go through scores of girls, in a vain attempt to distract himself from the pain he felt. While a part of her thought it was very manly, she knew it wasn't very healthy.

"…Maybe, I really should marry him off – to Yuzu-chan," she contemplated, pressing a finger to her mouth, as she thought, thinking that it could help.

•

Awhile later, after walking aimlessly around the neighborhood, with his fists balled, he was still furious at his mother and slightly annoyed that he was wearing an apron, while mentally going over the same things over and over again.

'If I really wanted this kinda life, … I coulda just married Ucchan…' he concluded sadly, feeling as if he lost both a sister and a friend. It all begged to ask the question: is love really that important in a relationship? He knew the kind he wanted was hard to find, and the loneliness he felt was overwhelming sometimes, enough to make someone consider settling for second best. But whatever the case, Ucchan most certainly was out of the question: her romantic fantasies always involved the couple suffering through hardship, struggling to survive, and he just wasn't that much of a masochist. He hoped she would find someone who was into that sort of thing, someday, so she could be happy.

'…I'm wasting away here, losing my edge,' he reminded himself despondently. The art was his life, not running some damn kitchen, he thought, feeling like he was falling further and further behind his peers the longer he stayed here.

"Ranma-kun," Kazuki greeted him – barely able to speak, being somewhat out of breath, huffing and puffing from trying to catch up to him – as she waved her hand, overjoyed at finally having caught him.

"Uh, ain't it kinda late – for ya to be out?" He questioned nervously, somewhat reluctant to speak, and while he liked hanging out, he just wasn't in the mood for it right now. Maybe, he should have left home as a girl.

"I– I just wanted to see you," she admitted, going from unsure to confident as she spoke.

'I– I … could just user her – to try an' forget,' he thought guiltily, smiling at her, watching her curious face study him, before leaning in for a kiss, as she closed her eyes. There was no harm done, he figured: they both enjoyed this, and he wouldn't take things too far. Besides, it wasn't as if they were in a serious relationship to begin with: they both saw other people, so there shouldn't be any hurt feelings.

"Ranma! You! You skipped out on cleaning duties, – again!" yelled Yuzu furiously, as she steamed, causing Kazuki to turn around abruptly, baring her fangs, as she bit down harshly, looking like she was about to slug someone.

"Yuzu? – Who the hell do you think you are? His fucking wife or what?" Kazuki shot out, looking like a prized fighter – ready to defend her man – causing Yuzu to step back in surprise, not expecting it.

"I'm just tired of having to pick up his slack all the time. Today was supposed to be my off day, you know," she said exasperatedly: she had other things to do; it was as simple as that. Quite frankly, she was shocked at the other girl's reaction. She hadn't come to fight and at first wanted to calm Kazuki down, but the more she thought about it – that girl claiming Ranma as hers – the more determined she became to stake her own claim, while increasingly becoming willing to fight herself.

"Uhm, ah, I'm outta here, – got some delivery dishes tah pick up, you know?" he lied: not being one to get into the middle of a cat fight, having been a victim of 'friendly' fire before.

"Well, I'm coming along," insisted one girl, causing Ranma's eye to twitch slightly.

"Me too," put in the other, causing it to twitch sporadically a few more times.

"But– but – it's this church," he quickly improvised, sweating profusely, while thoughtlessly pointing towards the infamous, abandoned church, instantaneously draining the life out of both girls, as they stood there in stunned silence – mouths gapping – as a tumbleweed rolled past them.

"Saint Anne's church?!" Both girls screamed out loud in horror – wide eyed and mesmerized – as they continued to stare at the church – which was named after the mother of the Virgin Mary – while completely ignoring the minuscule detail that such an abandoned place wasn't likely to order takeout.

"Uhm – Yeah?" He responded dumbly, with mocked confusion in his eyes, as he scratched his head, before tugging on his pigtail, thinking, 'Good old Annie.'

"Bu– But thi– this place is haunted – by a blood drenched bride, – who has gouged out eyes, and soaks a trail of blood, which slowly vanishes behind her who– who– who was jilted at the alter by her lover, and took her own life by plunging a rusty, old cake knife into her gut, biting off her tongue in the process," Kazuki helpfully pointed out, hoping to educate Ranma by repeating the local legend, before she placed the tips of her fingers near the side of her gapping mouth – an expression of fear – shivering, as she continued to stare. Ranma, on the other hand, had always wondered if the bride's eyes were gouged before or after she plunged that knife into her stomach; it was definitely something worth finding out.

"Th– They say, … i– if you go in there, blood starts bubbling up from out of the floor, pooling, until a large puddle is formed, fro– from which her body slowly rises out of, drenched, dripping; and she'll call out her lover's name, asking you, 'Why? – Why?' Before going after you, … with her ethereal cake knife, slashing and dashing, thinking you're her lover who– who'd … betrayed her," Yuzu broke off into a whisper, on the verge of tears; she always felt sad for what happened to that jilted bride, and like all women – she believed – could justify her actions. The story itself was so romantic – in a dark sort of twisted sort of way – she thought, sighing, as Kazuki nodded. Ranma should really know these things; this was important stuff.

"Yeah, so ya coming, or what?" Ranma questioned impatiently, rolling his eyes after listening, as they stood behind him. One thing was for sure, he'd never understand women, or how they could romanticize everything they heard; it wasn't something he had experience doing, even while in girl form.

•

Once inside, he broke out into a manic laugh, before suddenly springing forward in a crazed dash, as he slid himself across the aisle in a pose marking his ingenious victory over those girls: one fisted arm pointed forward, forearm slightly bent upwards, while the other arm was bent back, it fist resting on the back of his head, as his lower body halfway kneeled on one leg. Coming to a stop, he turned sideway, and jumped up upon the backrest of a row of benches, before casually strolling across it. This was his favorite hideout in town, replacing that spot under the bridge: a place to think, uninterrupted, whenever he felt like escaping.

"Ah geez, I swear. These small-town hicks will buy just about anything…" Ranma said in disbelief, disappointed in such stupidity, yet glad it was there, as he plopped himself down onto the bench, before pushing down the knee-rest, kneeling down into a mock prayer, as he held his hands together in front of his mouth.

"…Dear Lord, my family is burdened with a terrible secret that weighs heavily upon my shoulders. O heavenly father, to thee I confess, this shame and disgrace, this lie, this slander upon your church, is something my mother concocted when she was my age…" he blasphemed out loud, using grammar he knew but rarely used, thankful for his mother's sins, even if Kasumi wouldn't approve of it. The lie was one of the reasons this abandoned church still stood, becoming one of the towns few attractions, thanks to the backing of the historical society, of course. Still his mother had some explaining to do, like answering questions about gouged out eyes.

"…And there's one more thing: like mom before me, I'm gettin' tha hell outta this godforsaken town tha first chance that I get…" he vowed impiously, before hearing the front door creak open, sending him into a fright, as he ducked down low, and started crawling his way towards the confessional.

'…Oh God! – Don't tell me those girls followed me. … Did they?…' He wondered, as he slowly crawled into the confessional, not making a sound, before standing up, and stealthily peeking out, trying to see who it was.

'…Who– who is it? – Hinako!…' he realized in shock: her being the last person he'd expect.

'…What she doing here? … Oh yeah, she's new to tha neighborhood, Don't know 'bout local legends. … But what's she lookin' at right now?' Ranma wondered, finding it a bit odd for her to be out here at this time of night. As he leaned forward, he tried to see what she was doing, accidentally moving the door a bit, causing it to creak.

"Who– who's there?!" she shrieked out, spinning around to approximately where she thought the sound came from.

"Uh, I'm ah Father – Hiroshi," he said in a low voice, using the first name that popped into his head, while twisting his face when he thought about it, before slowly closing the confessional, locking it.

"A priest?" Hinako piped up with interest, causing Ranma to frown, as he heard the tone of her voice.

"I'm sorry miss, but you've missed today's services. It's probably best if you went home, – unless you have something to confess," he spoke convincingly, watching his grammar, while acting, using the Soul of Ice to pull it off. Silently, he actually did start praying that she'd leave, but much to his dismay, the door closed on the other side.

"Father, … I am not a – Christian, – but would you please hear my confession?" She asked sadly, as Ranma gulped on the other side, nervously sweating away. Obviously, his mouth got him into trouble, again, dispelling any notion he had of being smart enough to pull off such a scam. He really didn't know what else to do, so he accepted reluctantly.

"You may confess," he replied, breaking off into an awkward silence, nervously hoping that she wasn't going to tell him anything too personal or embarrassing.

"When I was in Junior High, … I was sexually molested by my father…" Hinako confessed, as the embarrassment of doing so stung her in the chest. She took short gulps of air, suffering, as she spoke, while being scared beyond belief, before pausing in speech.

"…I got pregnant – and so father made me get an abortion…" she expressed shamefully, looking down at where she kneeled, as Ranma felt his heart stop on the other side, growing pale, as he listened to her attentively.

"…Mother refused to do anything. She was useless: just ignoring the situation, – letting it continue. So, he continued to force himself on me, – and … I got pregnant again…" she continued. Ranma trembled on the other side, tears forming on the side of his eyes, as all became surreal.

"…But this time the strain on my body was too much: … the doctor said that I might never be able to bear children again, if I got another abortion. Not being able to have children, continuing on with my existence, while nobody would help tha– that would've been the death sentence for me…" Hinako admitted – her voice revealing panic.

"…And one year ago, today, … I gave birth to a baby boy, and gave him up for – adoption," she sniffed out, reluctantly, before dropping off into silence, seemingly thinking about something.

'One year ago, she gave birth to – a son…' Ranma silently repeated to himself.

'…No– No wonder, she can no longer trust men: just look at what she had tah go through – being raped, getting pregnant, then being forced to abort, only to have the abuse continue, getting pregnant again, but this time forced to bear a child…' he ran through his mind, his heart pounding heavily, as he felt helpless himself, lost, while the distance to the confessional window grew – the room distorting.

'…And to think, – I've misjudged her so. – Me who should know – better,' he realized in horror, guilt seeping in, as he grew ashamed, blaming himself for their past misunderstandings and the negative feelings he had for her, until Hinako continued talking.

"I– I must admit, I wasn't too happy having that child growing within my womb. … I know it wasn't his fault, but I was terrified, loathing the situation, my luck. It was a great relief to finally give him up for adoption. And yet … though I've never seen him, … is it alright to celebrate his birthday?…" she pleaded desperately with him, as he remained silent, so caught up in his own emotional turmoil that her words didn't register.

"…Father, … Please!" She begged him, causing Ranma to flinch: that statement sounding dirty to him.

"Uh … You've done nothing wrong. It ain'tcha fault, at all. You– you have the support of God. It's oh– okay tah–" he struggled to get out – a bit shaken up and looking sick – while Hinako wiped her tears away – a smile forming on her face – as there was hope – something long lost – shining in her eyes.

"Thank you Father," she interrupted, happy, before making her way out the confessional and slowly walking to the church doors. She opened a door and stood there for awhile – the wind blowing in – as she looked off into the night, holding it, before sadly looking down at her feet and all of the sudden running off into the night. Ranma, meanwhile, waited in silence, making sure she was far away so not to catch him, before slowly and cautiously getting out of the confessional, exhaling a deep breath of air, as he made his way out of the church.

•

As she walked down the streets sadly – now a girl thanks to being hit by a spray of water, as a car hit a puddle – she thought about her own past, her face now covered with tears.

To be continued…

•

Extra Special Thanks:

Innortal, Lisa Grey, Kadunta, Shudder.

Author Notes:

Heyas, this is my attempt to get back into fan fiction. I apologize for Continuance of the Bloodline. I pretty much finished Chapter 3, when work got the best of me, and I always came home too tired to write. Somewhere in between then and now, I had a crash, and the only thing I had left was a pre-first-draft version. It's a bit discouraging to start over from the top, and I haven't been inspired enough to try.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this fiction. I only plan to follow the manga loosely. In fact, I've choose to go with possible misinterpretations people might have at certain areas, changed the order around of some things for the sake of story. Also, Ranma is a different person from the original main character, and he will do things differently, especially considering he has a girl side. Ranma is also a bit out of character in the first chapter, and it is done on purpose. He'll act more like his old self the more he gets involved with Hinako. Anyway, all this should be fairly obvious, but I don't want someone who's kind of slow and not picking up on these things, to point out the obvious in review.

– v1.09 –

- EoF -