Chapter 1:

The Black Prince

Rain continued to pour heavily, as it had most of the day. Now, after all that had happened it seemed rather fitting. As a crack of lightning struck the ground some miles off, it illuminated the ghastly scene of a young redhead with a fist through a man's chest, and the man slumped against her. She cradled the dying man with her other arm, and even through th rain-soaking her face, tears could be seen. She refused to remove her arm from his chest so long as he was still alive, she wanted to do everything to let him live one moment longer, to get every last word out if possible.

"L-listen Ranma. You must return to Japan." The man's eyes rolled back slightly in his head as he coughed, blood coming from his mouth and splattering against the red-headed girl's shirt. "Find the Tendo dojo, ask for Soun. He'll know what to do if you tell him who your father is. M-make me proud my boy."

"Come on Pop's don't say that. You can't leave me like this, not at my hand!" The girl screamed as she felt the body against her go a bit more limp, as she felt more weight against her. She looked into the old man's eyes, tears streaming freely from her own as the rain continued to wash them from her face.

"Find Soun, you h-have to unite the schools." The old man wheezed slightly, and gasped for air. Then as his body went completely limp and his final breath came out, his last words escaped. "I love you Ranma, this was all my fault... Please don't blame..."

The red-head pulled her fist from the older man's chest, looked him in the eye as she wrapped her other arm around him and screamed out in agony at the top of her lungs. "Not like this Pop's, you can't die like this, not here!!!" She settled the old man against the ground and rested her head against his chest just below the fatal wound, tears streaming against his shirt. "I, I can't go on without you, you're the only thing I have, please, don't leave me like this!"

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Several weeks had passed since her father's death, the red-head had vowed to carry out her father's last request, and that had brought her back home, to the Nerima district of Tokyo, Japan. It had taken a few days since her arrival, but she'd finally found the right place, the Tendo Training Hall. Without hesitation, without second thought, she rang the doorbell and awaited an answer.

The one to answer was a tall girl, about nineteen years old, with long brown hair. She looked as though she was very mature, almost enough to make her seem older then she was. In every respect of the word, she had the appearence of a young newlywed woman who was perfectly serving her husband's every needs. "Oh, hello. Who might you be miss?"

The red-head took a deep breath, she could still feel her father's blood on her hands, she could still hear the echo of his voice, his final words. As the scene replayed in her mind over and over again, she hesitated to respond. Finally she found the courage, and spoke, almost timidly. "I, I'm here to see a Soun Tendo."

"Oh, you know father?" The older, rather mature looking young woman beemed a heart-warming smile and stepped aside. "Please, come in, shall I prepare some tea while you wait for father?"

"No, that'll be fine, I just need to speak with Soun Tendo." She felt a lump forming in her throat, a nervous, icy chill along her spine. She felt a sense of forboding, as if the worst had yet to come. She'd already suffered immensely, losing her father, in fact, it was her own hand that pierced his heart. That night, that horrid night, it still haunted her. She could still feel his blood trickling along her arm, the rain on her face, the last beat of his heart as he spoke his final words. She quietly followed the other young woman, as her memories continued to race, and replay that night in vividly lifelike detail, over and over again. She took a seat at a dining table, reliving her father's death again.

"It's not often that I get any visitors young lady, who might you be?"

That voice snapped her back to reality, drew her away from those painful memories just in time to save her from the insanity that was soon to come, for that she was grateful. She looked up at th eman from whom the voice had come from. He was tall, powerfully built, wore his black hair fairly long, and had a tell-tale moustache across his lips. She could only imagine that he had to be Soun Tendo. "Y-you must be Soun Tendo." Her voice shook a bit, her nerves started to flare up slightly, she could feel that same moment coming again, the moment that led to her father's death, as she wobbled, she put a hand to her eyes and hid her terror slightly. "R-Ranma Saotome. It was my f-father's dying wish that I find you."

The older man had a look of shock across his face, then slumped down to his knees as he looked at the red-head in disbelief. "My old friend, Genma is dead?" His left hand rested on the dining table, his right across his eyes. "That can't be, oh Genma, you were like a brother to me. How did this happen?"

"It just happened. What did my father mean? He said you'd know what to do, he told me to unite the schools." The red-head had cleared her thoughts of doubt and nervousness for the moment, she was more curious, lost in her father's final words, lost in what his true meaning had been.

"What was he thinking, that old fool. Sending a girl to me, when he knew I expected his son." Soun sighed, shook his head, then sat back and looked at Ranma for a moment. "We had planned that one of my daughters marry his son, and join our schools as one. But, that fool sends me a daughter. I can't... How does he expect me to marry off my daughters to a woman."

"There's a reason for this Mr. Tendo. I am Ranma Saotome, Genma's only son." She shivered slightly, as if she expected the disbelief to come. She watched the older man closely for a moment, wincing as he paused to think. She felt a deep desire to fulfill her father's dying wish, no matter the cost, she owed him that much. "If you have any hot water, I can prove it, and explain everything."

"Very well Ranma, I'll believe you as it is now, but tell me, why have you arrived here as a girl?"

"It started in China, Pop's and I were training at the Legendary Training Grounds, the Cursed Springs of Juusenkyou. While training, I lost my balance, and fell into one of the springs, when cold water touches me, I take on the body of the person who drowned in that spring, in my case, a young girl." She left out many details, including how her father had been the first to fall in, and it was his counter attack that put her in the drink. She neglected to include that her father had been cursed at all. Lastly, she neglected to include the circumstances of his death. She'd come up with a story for that later if the need arose.

"Juusenkyou, so the legends are true then, I see, then that means you really are Genma's son. This could prove to be good news afterall." Soun smiled slightly as he looked at Ranma. "You do turn back into a boy, right?"

"Yes, with warm water." She sighed a bit as she looked at Soun, holding back her emotions, attempting to remain stoic. Something still felt uneasy, she was waiting for the other foot to fall, so to speak.

"Good, good, then please, do take a warm bath upstairs, I'll gather my daughters. In spite of the tragic loss of my good friend, your father, we shall celebrate tonight, and the engagement shall go on. I'll allow you to choose among them which you wish to marry." Soun was elated as he stood. He'd neglected to tell Ranma where the bath was, but that seemed a minor point.

Ranma lowered her head as she stood and allowed a few tears to fall. So this was what her father had meant. She couldn't back out, she had vowed to fulfill his final wish, to unite the schools. She would marry one of Soun's daughters no matter what it took, no matter how much it could hurt her in the end. She was the one responsible for her father's death, she would be the one to fulfill his dream. She headed slowly up the stairs, found the obvious bathroom quickly, closed herself in, and proceeded to start cleaning herself. By the end of the night, perhaps she'd be able to move past her father's death. With that hope in mind she slowly lowered herself into the warm bath water.