Mistaken Identity
By M. Zephyr
Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is a trademark of Rumiko Takahashi and VIZ Communications, and its characters have been borrowed without permission. This story was written for non-commercial purposes only.
Ranma x Akane. When Genma needs surgery, Ranma has an identity crisis.
Ranma Saotome, seventeen years old and possibly the most skilled martial artist of his generation, stumbled through the hole in the side of the school building. He collapsed to his knees on the grass, panting heavily. Nabiki Tendo, his fiancée's middle sister, came running around the corner and peeked through the hole. "Did you beat him?" she asked intently.
"Yeah," Ranma replied wearily, a little out of breath. "Pantyhose is on the floor of the boiler room, out cold. Glad I had that idea to knock him through the wall into there. Some pipes got smashed when he landed inside. The hot water changed him back to his human form. After that it was easy." As he stood up, using the wall for support, Ranma winced at the new bruises collected during the fight.
Nabiki grinned with pleased satisfaction, seemingly oblivious to Ranma's battered state. She called over her shoulder to the other observers, waiting cautiously out of sight. "Ranma won! Winners collect at odds of one to five!" She turned back and confided, "I've also called for an ambulance ..."
Before she could complete the sentence, Ranma leaped into the air, looking around frantically. He quickly ran back to where Akane Tendo, his fiancée, lay on the ground. She had insisted on joining in on the fight, being a martial artist in her own right, and not merely the tomboy that Ranma sometimes named her. They had also been joined by Ryoga Hibiki and Ranma's father Genma.
When Akane had attacked Pantyhose Taro, even though his monstrous form towered over her, Ranma's heart had leaped into his throat. However, he had been unable to do anything to prevent her, since he had been pinned under one of the monster's hands at the time. Now his mind screamed in silent panic, fearing how badly she might be hurt.
He reached her side just as she was starting to sit up. He pushed her back down to the ground, exclaiming, "Akane! Don't move!" Face taut with worry, Ranma started running his hands over her body, checking for injuries. "Did he hurt you? Where are you hurt?"
Akane grabbed at his hands, as she tried to suppress the intense feelings they aroused in sensitive areas over which they brushed. "Careful where you put those hands! There are people watching!" She winced as she suddenly realized that her words could be interpreted to mean that she wouldn't mind him touching her like that if people weren't watching. However, she decided it was probably better not to call attention to that slip by attempting to correct it.
Ranma looked around in confusion. "Aren't you injured? Nabiki said she called an ambulance."
Akane climbed to her feet, brushing off her clothes. "I'm not hurt." She paused and thought about these words for a few seconds. "Well, I suppose that's not entirely true. I feel like I've got bruises on top of bruises, so I am kind of sore, but nothing serious." She looked down at her hand, which had bloodied knuckles, and gave a weak giggle. "Oh, and look, I broke a nail." The fingernail on her index finger was torn down into the quick, and was oozing blood.
Nabiki walked over to them. Grabbing Ranma by the shoulder, she turned him ninety degrees. "As I was trying to say," she told him witheringly, "I called an ambulance for your father." Ranma looked and saw that his father was lying on the ground unconscious, trails of blood running from his mouth and nostrils.
He ran over quickly to assess the situation, Akane following close behind. While the old man was an idiot, he was the only father Ranma had. The boy sat back on his heels after his examination and said to the two girls, "He's not bleeding too badly, but there could be other damage inside that we can't see. Thanks for calling the ambulance, Nabiki."
"No problem, Ranma," she said cheerfully. "I'll just put it on your tab."
"What happened to Ryoga?" Akane asked, looking around for the other combatant.
Since Ranma had last seen the other boy flying through the air in the direction of the school's swimming pool, he was not surprised to see a sopping wet black piglet walking across the lawn in their direction. "Dunno, Akane, but take a look over there."
"P-chan!" Akane squealed. "What are you doing here at the school?" She scooped her pet into her arms.
"Yeah, P-chan," Ranma added sarcastically. "What are you doing here? It's not like school ever did you any good." Akane had to turn suddenly to keep the pig from sinking its teeth into Ranma's arm.
The ambulance arrived before Ranma could make any further response to the pig, and the paramedics went to work on Genma Saotome. They had hardly begun when a withered old Chinese woman came bouncing atop her staff onto the scene, followed by a teenage male in long robes and wearing glasses. "I understand you had another run-in with Pantyhose Taro, son-in-law," she cackled. "May I ask where he is?"
Ranma pointed. "He's through that hole there. What's it to you?"
Cologne gave him a measuring look, then admitted, "Whatever your opinion of me, I am not wholly disinclined to worry about other people's safety. Taro is not one of my people, but he does come from our area of China. He is careless, and his attacks have a habit of endangering innocent bystanders." Looking sharply at Akane, she added, "Although some may be less innocent than others."
Akane was torn between blushing and protesting, and ended up merely standing there with her mouth slightly open.
Cologne smirked and went on, "Anyway, I promised myself that the next time something of the sort happened, I would take him into custody myself, and personally ship him back to China to be dealt with."
"What will you do with him?" Ranma asked, interested. Nabiki and Akane were also listening in fascination.
"I'll leave that up to the other elders when he arrives," Cologne told them dismissively. "At a guess, they'll probably take him to Jusenkyo and alter his curse. That monstrous form of his is simply too dangerous. Something like a cute little bunny rabbit would probably be much safer."
Ranma and Akane both grinned. Nabiki on the other hand looked a little worried, as she recalled a Monty Python film she had seen a couple of months previously.
Cologne grinned back at Ranma, then turned to the boy who had accompanied her. "Mousse, go in there and tie up young Taro, then carry him back to our café. Hurry up, now." The young man responded obediently, climbing through the hole in the school, though he was grumbling under his breath. Cologne hopped after him, continuing to give him directions and insults as she followed.
Nabiki and Akane watched where the Chinese pair had disappeared inside, but Ranma dismissed the two from his thoughts almost as soon as they were out of sight. He turned to watch the emergency technicians working on his father, his eyes troubled. Eventually the man was lifted onto a gurney and placed in the ambulance, which drove off, siren fading into the distance.
Ranma captured Akane's attention, and they left. He needed to inform his mother of what had happened as soon as possible. The young man was unusually quiet as they hurried home, wondering how his mom would take the news.
Ranma and his mother Nodoka were sitting quietly in a hospital waiting room, wondering when they would receive more information. They were not alone, as the entire Tendo family were also there, both Akane and Nabiki, together with their oldest sister Kasumi and the girls' father Soun. The final member of the party was their family doctor, Tofu Ono, who was keeping his distance from Kasumi so that his brain would remain functional.
A surgeon finally came out to speak to Genma's wife and son. He took a seat beside Nodoka and told them, "The x-rays show that one of your husband's kidneys is damaged and bleeding. He will need to have a partial nephrectomy immediately. That is, we need to remove a portion of the damaged kidney. The other injuries are minor and will heal on their own. I'll need you to sign some standard forms before we can proceed."
He handed the papers to Nodoka, who stared at them in confusion, prompting Tofu to come over and help the surgeon to explain them. As she worked her way through the stack with Tofu's help, Ranma cleared his throat, causing the surgeon to turn toward him. The boy asked, "Is there anything else we can do?"
The man smiled. "Well, it never hurts to pray, although I assure you he's not in any serious danger at the moment. Also, we're getting the blood together for the operation, and if you happen to have a matching type, it wouldn't hurt to donate a pint. Your father's blood type is B negative. Do you happen to know your own?"
Ranma shook his head, and the doctor smiled at him. As he took the papers back from Tofu, he suggested, "Why don't you go down to the clinic where people donate blood and give them a pint? Even if it doesn't match your father's type, we can always use more blood. Doctor Ono can show you the way."
"Yes, certainly," Tofu said. Ranma nodded and they started toward a doorway.
Akane stood and joined them. "We can all donate," she announced firmly. The other family members, feeling either pleased or trapped by this suggestion, also stood and followed.
A short time later, they were all sitting around a room drinking juice. Akane was teasing Ranma mercilessly over the fact that he was the only one of them who had fainted during the procedure. The boy was trying to protest that this was because he had already lost some blood during the fight with Pantyhose. A nurse came into the room and whispered something into Tofu's ear, which appeared to startle him. The young doctor followed her out.
Several minutes later Tofu came back into the room, and over to where Akane and Ranma were sitting. Bending down in front of Ranma, and pitching his voice just loud enough to also be heard by Nodoka, who was sitting closest, he said, "Ranma, could I speak to you and Nodoka-san privately, please?"
Ranma blinked in confusion. The only other people in the room were the Tendo's, who had been like a family to him ever since he arrived in Nerima. For that matter, in many ways, he knew them even better than he knew his mother. He looked at the man and said, "Doc, I don't see any need to be keeping secrets. If you got something to tell my mom and me, especially if it concerns pop, then you can share it with the Tendo's."
Tofu looked around. "Are you sure, Ranma?"
Ranma got a stubborn look in his eyes. "Yeah, 'course I'm sure."
Tofu sighed. "Very well. As the surgeon told you upstairs, your father's blood type is B negative, remember?" Ranma nodded, and so did Nodoka. "Well, they've just finished typing the donated blood, and then they rechecked the work as well while I watched. Nodoka Saotome's blood type is A negative. Your blood type, Ranma, is B positive." He paused, giving the boy a meaningful look.
Kasumi and Nabiki both gasped. Akane looked worried, as if she was trying to chase down a memory of something she should know. Ranma, Nodoka and Soun all looked puzzled, not understanding the import of what had just been said.
Ranma sought clarification. "Okay, doc, whatever you say. So what? Are you saying something's wrong with my blood?"
Tofu's features firmed, wishing that there had been someone else, anyone else, present to explain this. "Ranma, there is a property of the blood known as Rh factor, which may or may not be present. When we say that your father's blood is B negative, and your mother's is A negative, the word 'negative' means that this factor is not present. When we say that your blood is B positive, the 'positive' means that it is present." The doctor paused, then went on in his most serious voice. "It is biologically impossible for two parents who both have Rh negative blood, such as Genma and Nodoka Saotome, to have a child with Rh positive blood, such as yourself."
Now Akane and Soun also got it, gasping as Kasumi and Nabiki had done. Nodoka looked like Tofu had kicked her between the eyes. Voice choking, Ranma asked, "Are you trying to tell me that I'm not their son? That my name isn't Saotome?" Tofu took a deep breath, then nodded.
"No!" Nodoka cried out, practically a scream. "He is my son, he must be! I know he is! Your medical tests must be wrong! I only just got him back!"
Tofu gave the woman a look with as much sympathy as his bedside manner could produce. "I am sorry, Saotome-san. I watched them recheck the results myself. It is not possible for Ranma here to be your biological son."
Ranma was getting a lost look in his eyes. Akane saw it and felt a little worried for him. The two of them had been getting along a lot better in the last few weeks since their return from China, despite the disastrous attempt by their fathers to arrange a wedding ceremony for them. Feeling a little daring, she reached over and took his hand in hers. Ranma didn't appear to notice, but his hand held her own in a tight grip.
"No, I refuse to believe it!" Nodoka was shouting. "I know he is my son! Look, I will prove it to you." She reached inside of her kimono, and withdrew a piece of paper. "This is a contract signed by my husband and son, when Ranma was six years old, before they left on their training trip. Those are his handprints, see? When we compare them to Ranma's, it will prove to everyone that he is my son."
Tofu took the paper from her and looked at it, sucking in his breath as he realized that this was a contract for father and son to commit seppuku if the boy was not returned to his mother as the greatest martial artist of his generation and a man among men. He felt rare anger within him that any parent could dare to hold such a contract over a child's head. Setting that thought aside for the moment, he examined the small handprints of a child on the paper.
"Ranma, may I see one of your hands, please?" the doctor asked. Ranma numbly held out the hand which was not gripping Akane's. The doctor turned it over and examined the boy's fingertips. He held the paper up close and looked at the fingerprints on the contract. He then stared grimly at Nodoka. "Determining whether fingerprints match is a job for an expert. An expert is not quite so necessary when they are clearly dissimilar. Ranma's prints do not come close to matching the ones on this paper."
Nodoka turned white. She slowly pulled herself out of her chair, then came over and took the contract back. She took Ranma's hand from the doctor, and stared at both it and the contract until her eyes watered. Her chin trembled, then she let go of both the paper and Ranma at the same time, and collapsed to the floor sobbing. Tofu put his arm around the woman and helped her back to her chair, where she continued crying.
Ranma looked around wildly. Everyone was staring at him. Tofu, Soun Tendo, Kasumi, Nabiki. Everyone except for Akane. She was staring down at her hand, which was still holding his. Suddenly Ranma felt as if he couldn't breathe. "I need some air!" he cried, then jumped up and ran out through the door.
Akane also sprang to her feet, as if to follow him, but then slowly sank back into her chair. She had no idea at the moment what she could say to comfort him, and was also certain he would prefer to be left alone for a while. She held her hands together tightly in her lap, to prevent herself from chewing on her fingernails in worry.
Ranma eventually returned to the hospital, very unsure of himself. When he rejoined the families in the waiting room, he hesitated in the doorway for a moment, then walked over and sat down beside Akane. He made no attempt to speak to anyone, and no one could think of anything to say to him. They sat in uncomfortable silence, and time passed.
The surgeon came in to report that the operation had been a complete success, and that in perhaps an hour, some of them would be able to speak to Genma Saotome for a short time. More waiting followed.
When the nurse came to tell them that Genma could see a few visitors, Ranma and Nodoka stood to follow. Soun also got to his feet and gave Nodoka a questioning look, to which she nodded. As they were about to leave the room, Ranma turned around to look at Akane. He raised an eyebrow, then held one hand out slightly in her direction. The girl smiled, then rose to join them.
Nabiki turned to Kasumi with a frown. "When did they start acting like a couple?" she asked.
"Oh, Nabiki," Kasumi answered with a tranquil smile, "they've always been a couple. The only change is that now they're starting to realize it."
In the recovery room, Soun and Nodoka were standing on one side of Genma's bed, while Ranma and Akane were standing on the other. In a weak but cheerful voice, Genma told them, "Well, I guess we took care of that monster, eh? The boy here was even able to give me some help while I fought him."
Akane and Ranma both rolled their eyes. "As I recall," Ranma sneered, "it was Akane and Ryoga who distracted him long enough for me to kick him through the wall into the boiler room. I believe that you were already unconscious."
"Don't contradict your father, boy," the man said haughtily.
Ranma snorted. "Yeah, well, that's rather the question of the moment, ain't it?"
"Huh, whaddya mean?"
Nodoka looked Genma in the eye. "Husband, is this or is this not my son Ranma?"
Genma looked suddenly afraid. He answered gruffly, "What are you talking about? Of course it's Ranma?"
Ranma laughed, bitterly. "That ain't what the blood tests say, old man. And it's a funny thing, but the fingerprints on that seppuku contract don't seem to match the ones on my fingers. Got some explanation for that?"
Nodoka pulled the silk-wrapped katana off of her back, bringing it around to her front to draw her husband's eye. "I would very much appreciate the truth, husband. I would hate to have to render all of the doctor's good work pointless."
Genma was sliding over into sheer terror, breathing hard. Ranma cleared his throat to regain the man's attention, then asked, "Who am I, Saotome-san?"
Soun spoke up, menacingly. "I also would like to know whom you brought into my house to fulfill the pact between us, if it wasn't your son as we had agreed."
Pain clouded Ranma's eyes at this pronouncement. Akane was starting to seriously worry about what her father might do, although she tried not to allow such concerns to show on her face.
Genma was sweating heavily, but was unable to think of any way out of this other than the truth. "Er ... uh ... uh ... well, it happened back when the boy was seven. It was 1995, and we happened to be in Kobe."
Nodoka paled. She whispered, "You had my son Ranma in Kobe at the time of the earthquake?"
"Er, yes. But it wasn't my fault," the man blustered. "It's not like I could predict that an earthquake would hit."
"What happened?" Soun pressed.
"The building we were in collapsed," Genma explained. "Ranma and I had just entered it, behind another family. By some freak coincidence, some beams fell in a tangled fashion that kept most of the rubble off of me. Aside from some bruises, I just had a sprained ankle and a fractured shoulder blade. I landed mostly on top of the other family's son, and he survived as well. Ranma, er, ..." Genma's eyes screwed up, showing a little pain at the memory. "I'm afraid that he was completely crushed."
Nodoka wailed, "My only son has been dead for ten years or more and you never told me!" She then collapsed. Soun caught her and helped her to sit in a chair.
"Who am I, then?" the boy who had thought of himself as Ranma asked in a hoarse whisper. "What happened to my family? What's my name?"
The look which Genma gave him might possibly have contained a drop of sympathy. "The parents both died. I think there may have been a sister, too. If so, she also died. It was ... very disturbing. We were trapped there for hours, with our only company the corpses of my son and your family. By the time they dug us out, I had decided to tell everyone that you were my son, and that the boy who had died belonged to the other family."
The young man squinted his eyes shut in pain, his hand squeezing convulsively on Akane's. He hadn't even remembered taking hold of her hand. "My name, old man!"
"I never knew it," Genma told him without remorse. "You suffered some trauma. You never remembered the earthquake or anything that happened before it. I told you some things about my son's life from before that time, and let you read the journal he had been keeping to practice his writing. You seemed to take what you heard and read as if they were memories of your own. 'Ranma Saotome' is all the name you've ever had since then."
Ranma clenched his free hand into a fist and ground his teeth. "I do not fucking believe this!" he shouted. "You screw up my life every way that you can possibly think of, and then I find out you're not even my father! That you never had a right to do any of it!"
Genma tried to look noble. "You should be grateful, boy. I made you into the greatest martial artist of your age."
His voice dripping in sarcasm, Ranma replied, "Well, gee, thanks pop! I'm ever so grateful to you for torturing me, starving me, screwing up my head, getting me cursed! Whatever can I do to thank you for all of that?"
"Don't take that tone with me, boy!" Genma growled menacingly.
"Why not?" Ranma replied heatedly. "You're not my father! You don't have any right to tell me what to do! What'll you do about it, anyway? Threaten me for not acting manly enough? That seppuku contract has someone else's handprints on it, not mine!"
Ranma paused in thought, then went on hesitantly. "For that matter, your agreement with Tendo-san and Ukyo's dad were also made for the real Ranma. I don't have to honor them. They weren't about me."
For the first time since coming in the room, Akane spoke, and there was pain in her voice. "Ranma? Are you saying ... what are you saying?"
Ranma looked at her in surprise, suddenly realizing what he had been saying. "I ... I ... I'm not sure what I'm saying Akane. I need time to think. I don't even know who I am! How am I supposed to know what I want?" With a look of anguish on his face, he turned and bolted from the room. Nabiki, eavesdropping behind the door, was knocked on her rump by his passage.
Hours had passed and darkness had fallen. Akane finally spotted the one she had been looking for, sitting in the park on a bench up ahead, looking forlorn. As expected, Ranma had changed to his cursed, female form. He always felt better able to deal with emotional issues in that body. The red-haired girl didn't even react as Akane approached.
"Hi. Mind if I join you?" she asked. Ranma's shoulders shrugged ever so slightly. Akane sat down, then held out the thermos she had brought. Ranma stared at it for almost a minute before taking it. Slowly unscrewing the cap, he raised it over his head and poured the hot water over himself, returning to his normal male body.
Akane spoke to him, calmly. "It must have really been a shock. I don't know what I'd do if I found out something like that. But it doesn't change who you are. Not really. You're the same guy I knew yesterday."
"I don't know who I am anymore," he whispered.
"The same person you always were," she told him. "You're still the same arrogant, macho jerk who can't stand to lose, and who'd kill himself trying to help anyone who needs help. The guy who can't tell me how he feels, but who would try to kill a god for my sake. You're you. You don't have to be anyone else."
"What's my name?" he asked her, sounding lost.
"Ranma," she answered simply. "You're Ranma. Who you are is what I was telling you a moment ago, all of the things that make you yourself, good traits and bad. A name is just how we address the person who's the sum of all those properties. I've always used the name 'Ranma' for the person that you are, so Ranma is your name."
"And Saotome?" He sounded curious.
"That's up to you," Akane replied. "Do you still want to be Saotome?"
Ranma shook his head. "I don't know. I don't think so. I stopped thinking of him as my father a long time ago. Around the time of the neko-ken. But there were still ties of honor, a sense of duty. Now ... those ties have been cut. I don't think I want them back."
Akane's voice was softer. "And your mother? I mean, Nodoka Saotome?"
After a little thought, Ranma responded, "That one's harder. I mean, I thought I had gotten my mother back, someone who would care about me, not the martial artist. But it was all a lie. I doubt she'd be interested in me anymore. She wanted her own son. I'm not him. She and I don't really have anything in common, y'know. I was prepared to get to know her, to love her, because of the blood relationship. There doesn't seem to be a point anymore." Akane thought she had never heard him sound so despondent.
Ranma turned to look into the face of the girl beside him. "Why are you here anyway? Your dad is probably furious with pop ... uh, Saotome-san, for tricking him. I'm sure he won't try to force you to go through with that old agreement any longer. Why are you hanging around a cursed freak like me who doesn't even have a name?"
Akane reached up and put a hand on each side of the boy's face. "Ranma, do you imagine that my daddy could possibly have forced me to stay engaged to you, to try to marry you, if the only reason was his old agreement with Saotome-san? Don't you realize that there must be something more? Also, I don't think of you as a freak. A little strange maybe ..." She gave him a gamine grin. "But not a freak."
Ranma was searching her eyes, seeking clues. "You ... you don't? What ... what's the something more?"
Akane sighed, and smiled at him tenderly. "There are some things that a girl likes for the boy to say first, baka." She bit her lower lip. "Ranma, I asked you on the day of the wedding attempt, but you wouldn't give me a straight answer. At Jusendo when I almost died, just before I opened my eyes, I heard something. I heard you. What was it? What did you say, or think, or, or ... whatever? What were the words that I know I heard?"
Ranma swallowed, hard. He felt drained by the day's discovery, too tired to fight, too tired for denials, too tired for anything but the truth, wherever it might lead. He whispered, "You were lying in my arms, and I was sure you were dead. Inside my head I was screaming at myself, because I had lost you, and I'd never had the chance to tell you that I love you."
She continued to gaze at him, eyes shining. "Well, you have the chance now."
Ranma couldn't help himself. He chuckled. It was a weak sound, but it was real. With wetness starting to glisten in his own eyes, he told her, "I love you, Akane Tendo."
She leaned toward him, still holding his face, and pressed her lips softly to his. After a moment, he started kissing her back. When she drew back, Akane said to him, "I love you, too." She touched a fingertip to his nose. "You, the person behind this face. I love the totality of everything that makes you who you are. Whatever name you decide to use, know that I love you."
"Akane ..." His voice choked, unable to go on. She saw the unshed tears in his eyes, all of the pain and despair which had threatened to overwhelm him, that he didn't know how to release. She pulled him in close and hugged him tightly. She said nothing as he began to cry into her shoulder. Nothing needed to be said, she was there for him and that was what was important.
Nabiki tracked them down a little before midnight. She didn't usually like anyone to see her softer side, or to even admit to anyone that she had a softer side. Therefore she paused for a moment while she took in the view of her sister sitting on the bench and holding Ranma against her shoulder while he slept. After a minute she had her normal persona firmly in place again and walked up to them.
"Hello little sister, Ranma," she greeted them loudly.
"Huh? Whazzat?" Ranma complained sleepily. Akane looked at Nabiki in annoyance.
"Wake up sleepyhead," Nabiki said cheerily. "Don't you think you two should be heading home? Or are you planning to stay here in the park all night?"
Ranma flushed, glad for the cover of darkness. "I don't have a home. Do you imagine your dad will let me stay at your house any longer? The boy who was suppose to fulfill his precious agreement died ten years ago."
Nabiki cocked her head to the side. "Oh, I think he'll let you stay, under the circumstances. He saw reason with remarkable speed when Kasumi threatened him."
Akane looked shocked. "How did Kasumi threaten him?"
Nabiki smiled at the memory. "Sorry, Akane, but that's information. You'll need to pay if you want to know." Akane growled but held her tongue.
"What about my ... Nodoka?" Ranma asked.
"Your Nodoka? What a funny way of putting it," Nabiki teased. "Tell you what, I'll give you a bargain tonight just because I'm feeling nice. One thousand yen and I'll tell you everything I know."
Ranma sighed. "Okay."
Nabiki smirked. "Nodoka Saotome went straight back to our house, then packed up all of her and Genma's belongings. She drafted Doctor Tofu into helping her, and took it all back to her house. Genma Saotome won't be coming back to our house. Daddy's furious with him. They left all of your stuff alone, so it's all still in the guest room.
"I thought about tracking down your real identity, and selling the information to you. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like it'll be possible. Saotome doesn't even remember the neighborhood, let alone the address, of the building you were in when the earthquake hit. Since the real Ranma was seven at the time, I suppose we can guess that you were between six and eight. With a death toll of over five thousand in that quake, there were probably well over a hundred boys that age who died that day, most of whom would have been with their parents at the time. No doubt we could narrow it down some more, but there would probably be dozens of possibilities remaining."
Nabiki shrugged. "I'm sorry, but I really don't think it's ever going to be possible to find out what your real name was, or who your family was."
Ranma grimaced. "Not what I wanted to hear, but I guess wishing won't change anything. Thanks for telling me the truth." He looked at Akane. "I, uh, guess we should be getting ... home." Akane nodded. They stood up, and the three of them left the park together.
The next day, Ukyo Kuonji looked up from her grill as the bell over her restaurant door rang, and grinned broadly as Ranma stepped inside. "Hey, Ranma honey, it's good to see you. Step up to the counter and I'll have a special ready for you right away!"
Ranma shook his head. "Sorry, Ukyo, but I won't be staying long. Just got something I gotta tell you."
Ukyo felt little alarms starting to go off inside of her. Ranma looked and sounded very grim. It was worse than the day after the disastrous wedding attempt between him and Akane, when he had come in to talk to her about her decision to throw bombs at the ceremony. On that occasion, though, his grimness had been mixed with a leavening of embarrassment. So he hadn't been quite as forceful as he could have been.
"What's the matter, Ran-chan? You look like you've received some really bad news."
Ranma nodded. "To begin with, I'm not Ran-chan. The boy you met when you were six, the one you nicknamed Ran-chan, that boy wasn't me."
Ukyo was staring at him now, puzzled. "What are you talking about?"
Ranma tried to explain, his voice emotionless. "After the fight yesterday - you heard about it, right? - Genma Saotome needed surgery. When they checked the blood types, they found out I couldn't be his son. We finally got the story from him, and it turns out the real Ranma died at age seven. I was conveniently available, so the fool had me take the real one's place. The guy you knew when you were six, the boy to whom you were engaged, that boy died ten years ago."
Ukyo gave a nervous laugh. "Oh come on! You don't expect me to believe that, do you?"
Ranma stood back up and shrugged. "Ask Doctor Tofu about it, he'll tell you. I'm sorry Ukyo. I hope we can stay friends, but I'm afraid that we were never engaged." He walked out the door, leaving the chef staring blankly in the direction he had gone. He had figured it was best to hit her with the shock, let her confirm it with someone else once she recovered, then talk to her about it at school tomorrow.
On the walk back toward the Tendo house, Ranma saw Cologne standing in front of him, near the gate into a temple. As he drew close to her, she said to him, "Join me inside?"
Ranma sighed, but followed her through the gate. She leaned on her staff, while Ranma sat on a bench. In a weary voice, Ranma asked her, "So what do you want today, old ghoul?" He didn't even react when she whacked him over the head for impertinence.
She squinted at him, then nodded to herself. "First, I thought you might like to know that Pantyhose is on his way back to China. We loaded him on board a ship last night. The captain knows me, and he promised me that his crew would keep cold water away from the boy. One of our people will be meeting the ship when it reaches Shanghai."
Ranma nodded listlessly, happy for the news but having trouble showing the proper enthusiasm.
Cologne continued. "I have also heard a tale that Genma and Nodoka Saotome are not, in fact, your parents. May I assume from your cheerful demeanor that this is in fact the case?"
Ranma's lips curved upward slightly without becoming an actual smile, and he nodded once more.
Cologne made her voice as persuasive as she could. "Ranma, the Joketsuzoku do not care about your parentage. Come to live with us and you will be honored as a blooded warrior, with skills which are worthy of our respect. I am even willing to discuss ways to get out of the marriage to Shampoo, if you are truly opposed to it."
Ranma stared at Cologne, unable to credit what she had just said. Ever since the old woman had come to Japan, they had been trying to pressure him into being Shampoo's husband. He considered her offer, but for no more than a moment. "Thanks, elder, but no thanks. Maybe you mean that honestly, but that culture of yours is something that I ain't ever gonna fit into. Besides, the girl that I love is here in Japan."
Cologne gazed at him steadily. She had not expected it to happen any time soon, but apparently the boy was finally ready to admit that he loved the Tendo girl. She sighed. For the good of her people, a warrior of his caliber should not be brought back unwillingly. Given what he had just said, she could no longer hope that he would voluntarily decide to join her tribe.
She caught his eye and spoke to him seriously. "Very well, Ranma of Nerima. Then hear my words. You must start training Akane Tendo seriously, and make sure that you train her well indeed. By the laws of my people, you will not be permitted to wed that girl until the Kiss of Marriage which Shampoo gave to you has been revoked. In order to do that, you will need to publicly declare your love for the Tendo girl, who must then defeat Shampoo by her own skill."
Cologne sighed again. "I will tell you honestly that I believe she can do so. Young Akane has a great deal of potential. However, it will be up to you to see to it that she fulfills that potential. If you do not ..."
Ranma swallowed hard. "I guess I got no choice then. I'll see to it that she's ready when the time comes."
Cologne gave him a rueful smile. "So be it. I'll keep Shampoo busy for the next several weeks. Then maybe she and I could take a trip back to the village for a visit. I can stretch that out a bit. That should give you several months, half a year, say. I suggest that you make the most of the time." With that advice, she left.
Ranma sat where he was for a while, thinking about what he had just heard. He was working up his nerve for what was coming. Akane was going to be ecstatic, but his own nerves were going to have a tough time of it. He thought over the training required for some of the school's techniques and imagined himself putting Akane through that training. The image made him shudder. By now he knew Akane well enough to know that she wanted this, that she would not hold the training against him, that she would grit her teeth and persevere until she succeeded. It was still going to be very hard to watch the suffering in her face as she did so.
Six months later ...
With a great deal of difficulty, Akane stilled the trembling in her legs. They were only barely managing to hold her up. With the ease of long practice she ignored the pain and soreness from her various injuries and bruises. She tilted her head to look down with her right eye; the left one was swelling, and in any case was covered by blood from the cut above it.
On the ground at her feet lay Shampoo, unconscious.
Ranma walked into her field of vision. He was smiling, and holding a thumb up. A great thrill of pride rushed through her as he congratulated her on her victory, mixed with the love she felt for this young man. It was less than fifteen minutes since he had publicly announced his love for her in front of the crowd of people who had gathered, the first time in the last half year that he had ever said the words in the hearing of anyone other than herself.
Ranma was holding a damp towel, and he started wiping the blood away from her left eye. She felt cold chi emanating from that hand, as he sought to reduce the swelling. His other arm slid around her, an apparent gesture of affection to those who were watching, but Akane knew that he was providing her with support to help her remain standing.
The last half year had been very hard. For the first couple of months they had to ignore Shampoo's continued attempts to win Ranma, infrequent though they were. Then the Chinese girl had returned to her home for a visit, a trip which had ended up taking much longer than Shampoo had anticipated.
Through all of that time Ranma trained Akane mercilessly, to a degree which she could not have imagined beforehand. It had thrilled and elated her, although it had also dawned on her quite quickly just how rough a ride she had been in for. She had also finally realized just why Ranma had been so hesitant to help her train in more advanced techniques, to reach a higher level of skill. Still, the massages he had started giving her had almost made the suffering bearable.
Cologne had walked up and examined her great-granddaughter while Akane was reflecting on these memories. She nodded, satisfied, then stood up again and stepped in front of the Japanese couple. Motioning for them to bend down, she kissed each of them once on the forehead. "As elder of the Joketsuzoku, I acknowledge your victory, and take back the kisses which were given to you by the warrior Shampoo. You are free now." She turned away and opened a cage, releasing a duck on which she threw hot water. "Pick Shampoo up, Mousse, and let's take her home."
Akane continued to reflect on the changes in the last half year. Her family had been quick to pick up on the shift in her relationship with Ranma. She smiled as she remembered that her father had been baffled as to how to respond to it. There had no longer been any requirement for Ranma to marry one of the Tendo sisters, and she and Ranma had fought it for so long, that Soun Tendo just couldn't quite wrap his mind around the idea that now they wanted to be together.
Ranma had met with Nodoka Saotome once, a few days after Genma's operation, but the two of them had found they had almost nothing to say to one another. He hadn't seen her since. He hadn't seen Genma Saotome even once.
Ranma had made no attempt to legally change his name, although Akane knew it still bothered him a great deal. At school he had gradually weaned the teachers and other students away from calling him Saotome-kun. Now everyone called him Ranma-kun, or just plain Ranma. Even Kuno and his nutty father had done so, though that had become less of an issue since Kuno had graduated.
Ranma had finished cleaning what he could, and checking her injuries. He smiled at her again. "Ready to go home, tomboy?"
Akane smiled, despite the pain which she was finding it harder to ignore. "Yeah, I definitely want a soak in the furo and a chance to lie down for a while. Unfortunately, I don't think my legs can walk that far."
"No problem," Ranma replied chivalrously. He scooped her up into his arms, being careful of the sore spots, then started walking toward the Tendo house. "You did great today, Akane. Really great. Remind me to work with you on blocking high kicks to your left side though."
Akane giggled, then winced in pain. "Yes, sensei."
Ranma sighed. "I've told you not to call me that. It's hard to believe it's over with. You and me engaged by our own choice. Ryoga engaged to Akari. Shampoo going back to China. Ukyo cheerful again - man that was a tough few months at first when she was walking around everywhere so depressed." He paused, then went on. "I suppose that Kuno and Kodachi are still a minor problem, but they're no more than pests, especially now that Kuno graduated and isn't being allowed to hang around the school."
"I'd really rather not talk about them," Akane told him primly. Then she grimaced as one of her sore spots twinged.
Ranma gave her a look of concern. "You gonna be all right, Akane?"
She gave him an exasperated smile. "Of course, baka. You've been banged up worse than this in fights before. Stop acting like I'm made of porcelain." She got a faraway look in her eye, and in a deeper, softer voice told him, "On the other hand, I wouldn't say no to one of your massages after I've bathed."
Ranma looked pleased, although he tried not to show it too obviously. Akane reached up and ran light fingertips across the back of his neck, making him shiver. She asked him, "So now that Shampoo is finally out of the way, do you think we can set a date?"
The expression on the face of the young man carrying her became serious. "Yeah. I'm done with waiting. We'll discuss it once you're cleaned up and rested, though I'd like to have Kasumi's advice when we do. I just wish ... Nabiki's finally given up, you know. She said there aren't any leads left to follow. Whoever my family was, they were apparently among those who were never identified, and whom nobody ever reported as missing."
"I'm sorry, Ranma," Akane told him compassionately. "I know it bothers you a great deal. Just be sure you know that I'll always love you the same, regardless."
Ranma smiled down at her. "Thanks, Akane." His gaze became thoughtful. "I don't mind being known as Ranma. It's as much my name as anything could be. But I don't want to be known as Saotome. I don't want anything that ties me to the man I used to call 'pop.' I've continued to use it so far, 'cause I had to use something, but I'd been hoping that Nabiki could turn up my original name. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do now."
They had entered the house by this time, and Ranma set her down on a bench in the changing room of the furoba. Akane ran a hand through Ranma's hair. "I've got a suggestion for a name. Care to hear it?"
Ranma nodded. "Sure."
"Ranma Tendo. How about we get married as soon as possible, and get you added to the Tendo clan rolls?" She leaned over and kissed him soundly.
Ranma drew back, smiling. "Ranma Tendo," he repeated, letting his tongue feel the sounds. He smiled broadly at her. "Sounds perfect," he told her, then leaned in and kissed her once more. He felt content at last, as if a space inside him which had been hollow for months had finally been filled.
THE END