Disclaimer: I own nothing… except the idea and anyone that isn't in another person's published work. Ranma and co. belong to Viz video and Rumiko Takahashi. Dare devil is an affiliate of Marvel Comics and its creator Stan Lee.
"Speech"
Thought
[Signs]
"/Chinese/"
Dare to be Ranma
Ranma groaned flying through the air as his ever-present alarm clock slash annoying father decided he'd slept too long. twisting he let the feel of gravity prepare him for where the ground was. now if he only had some way of knowing where it was; of course the air flying past his ears make everything blank.
"DAMN IT POPS!" he shouted as he hit the water, for once glad for the fat panda's aim as it saved him some injury. Pulling herself from the water he shook his head waiting for the cheap shot from his opponent. "I'm getting tired of this."
"You're getting soft Ranma!" The older man bellowed, "I'm going to have to retrain you from the start!"
"Soft? SOFT!" Ranma shouted his words echoing giving him a view of the area, he was getting better at picking details out of the brief flashes. he rushed the man, "I'M NOT SOFT YOU STUPID MORON! I'M BLIND! THANKS TO THAT UN-CUTE TOMBOY!"
Genma easily blocked and dodged everything the enraged boy sent at him. He was surprised by the ferocity and accuracy of the strikes, the boy was fighting well; Of course that was because HE was the boys teacher. the longer the fight went on the harder it was to dodge everything, like Ranma knew where he was striking at somehow. His musings were cut short as he felt powerful hands grapple an arm and his face meet the outer wall hard.
"Jeez..." Ranma panted heavily, "Can't you just leave me alone you dumb panda."
He turned and started walking back for the house one foot out at a time trying to find obstacles as his hands were held at arms length. Why couldn't life be easy, let him rest some and just get used to being blind. That would just be nice now wouldn't it? But no he was stuck here flailing about trying to find the house because his father couldn't just give him a break. Thankfully he hadn't run into anything yet, hey there was something in his hands. He had no clue what it was as he felt around a bit, it was almost like cloth...
"Y'know Saotome, I should charge you for the feel." Nabiki's smirk illuminated his world a moment and he snatched his hands back.
"Nabiki!" he growled a bit snapping at her, "if you're just trying to have a laugh at the cripple get it over with."
There was a heavy tension between then before he felt a hand take his lifting it up shoulder level. He didn't understand until he felt her shoulder under his fingers.
"What are?" he started before she interrupted him.
"Come on, I'll show you back. first time's free but I expect payment next time." She told him devoid of mirth, he felt the ice as he just nodded and followed letting her get him into the house proper. "Breakfast is ready. here's the table."
"Thanks Nabiki." he said as he felt out the table and sat down. the world feeling empty except the table he held, every vibration giving him sights into his dark existence. Of course as it was Ranma it wouldn't last, this interruption brought to you by Hammer Industries. Hammer! when any other bashing implement just won't do.
"STOP FLIRTING WITH MY SISTER!" was the last thing he heard before he lost consciousness.
He grumbled as he made his way to school, of course he couldn't eat because Akane had knocked him out and his father proceeded to eat everything in sight. now he was walking along, hand on Nabiki's shoulder as Akane hadn't wanted to help him. so there was 500 yen gone. such a good day to be going back to school.
He wasn't even sure he wanted to go back, he didn't know Braille yet; he couldn't read or take notes and tests were pretty much FUBAR till he did learn to read with his fingers. Not to mention...
"HALT!" Kuno's voice shouted out. "The Scion of the house Kuno, the venerable rising star of kendo. Furinkan High's Blue Thunder will not stand for this mockery of education. The Dark Sorcerer Saotome has felt the wrath of the heavens as the Goddess who smiles upon mine person has struck the foul Saotome blind."
"Sorry Ranma, but you know I can't be between you two." Nabiki said slipping from his grasp. he sighed as he knew it was coming; she wasn't a fighter.
"Just shut your trap Kuno. nobody but you wants to hear your voice." he snipped getting into a stance. 'Breathe and let it out slowly. don't listen to everything or it'll all come crashing in.'
He was careful not to let his senses run free like they had those first three days. he had to hold everything in close, only see what he wanted and focus. Of course he'd been holding it all in hoping for more practice but sometimes you had to field test.
"I don't need my eyes to kick your ass."
"The justice of the heavens is swift and sure!" the boy shouted rushing towards his blind opponent boken held above his head for a strike.
`That's right. just keep making noise... show me where you are.` Ranma thought watching the boy barrel forward; the staccato of steps a barrage of light giving him great view of the annoying adversary. `ready... ready...`
He tensed and shot forward, his leg landing square in Kuno's solar plexus. Instantly everything froze, everyone staring at the strike. Nabiki was smiling like a shark; not only had she been glad Ranma wasn't a bloodstain on the ground but also not a single person had bet on Ranma winning. She was going to rake it in, she also had her confirmation that something else was going on.
"I'm going to get to the bottom of this Ranma." she said to herself as her minions ran around gathering the rake.
Class was nearly unbearable for Ranma, well beyond normal at least. He could hear everything, every whisper, every mutter. it was a cacophony of noise bouncing off every surface and each one a hammer blow to the block of sanity he was trying to hold onto.
'Focus! tune it all out,' was his mantra as the noisy class beat against the hold on his senses.
"QUIET class!" Hinako's gratingly high voice didn't help at all but at least the rest of the class quieted down to a dull roar. "Open your books to page one hundred thirty five..." he tried to drone out the lesson like he always did, not like he cared about English since he didn't plan on going anywhere they spoke it any time soon.
Now he had to deal with his newest nemesis, an opponent so bad he'd rather fight Taro alone with both arms behind his back. The horrible terrifying number two pencil. He grit his teeth as the grating scraping of the writing implements were like the drips of a Chinese water torture tank small and ignorable by themselves but quickly stacked to a mind numbingly terrible sound.
Scrape, scratch, snap; everything just kept adding to the headache that had started as soon as he had gotten into the echo chamber that was the school building. he could hear every teacher on the floor. he could hear the office workers gossiping. he could hear the blood and heartbeats of everyone around him. All he wanted was for it to end.
Click. Grind. Click. Snap. He heard every second as the gears of the clock on the wall taunted him, not letting him out of his torture as it governed his obligation to the class. He didn't even notice that he had started covering his ears or that the class had stopped to watch the chaos magnet and favourite gossip topic of the school.
"Mr. Saotome?" Hinako asked shaking his shoulder concerned about her student, "Mr. Saotome what's wrong?"
Akane and Ukyo both watched with concern as Ranma looked like he was in agony and they had no idea why. Ukyo was the first to stand and move over gently putting a hand on his back.
"Ran-Chan?" she asked also trying to get a response from the boy.
"Ms. Kuonji, Ms. Tendo take Mr. Saotome to the nurse's office." the child told them, "there must be something wrong."
The girls nodded each taking one of his arms to help him walk. Ranma didn't know what was going on but he let them lead him out of the class. The barrier helping with the noise as he was led away from the source of his pain. Once at the Nurse they got him to a bed and he collapsed letting the nurse look him over.
By lunch Ranma's ailments had calmed and, after some meditation, he was able to head outside to eat with everyone else. After making his way to the tree he normally ate at with the help of Hiroshi he tuned out the world as he felt around his school bag for Kasumi's bento. Thankfully the day's one true bright point was exactly where he thought it would be.
"Ran-Chan. you want something for lunch?" Ukyo asked worried about him. "a Ran-Chan special?"
"uh... sure Ucchan thanks" he smiled quickly putting the bento into his belly with his usual gusto for food. Akane frowned but didn't say anything as he inhaled the okonomiyaki, his expression of joy at the taste something he'd never done for her food. As she started to get worked up her hands clenching around the non-existent shaft of her ever trusty mallet she was surprised when he perked up and groaned.
"Shampoo really?" he moaned causing confusion as the Amazon hadn't shown up at all and there was no signs of her.
"What are you talking about...?" Akane started when the tell tale ring of the buxom fiance's bike bell wafted over the yard followed quickly by the girl herself hopping the wall with her regular delivery box. That earned Ranma a few strange looks a moment before they got defensive. "What are you doing here Shampoo? no one wants you here."
"Shampoo here to bring Airen lunch. unlike kitchen-destroyer Shampoo knows how to please a man" she said striking a pose much to the rage of the young Tendo. Akane just clenched her fists as Ukyo got her battle spatula ready.
"Sorry to disappoint sugar but Ran-Chan's already eaten." she said moving to stand between the two.
"Ara! Airen must feel horrible after spatula-girl's nasty food." she returned in challenge getting ready for a brawl with the other fiances. "He feel much better with Shampoo's ramen."
"ENOUGH! If you're all going to fight just take it somewhere else." an irritated Ranma shouted as their shouting had reawakened his headache and he stood and turned trying to make his way to the school needing a few corrections as he left the stunned girls behind.
The rest of the school day was uneventful and he wished for the monotony of math class as he walked along the halls. not that he had any particular love of academics it was more that... Braille was hard. It didn't help to be in the special education class and not in his familiar room with it's familiar desk. The walk home was filled with tension as he felt Akane run the gambit of emotions from anger to uncertainty to anger to worry to anger to angry worrying to.
His musings were cut short by a shout, something about not paying attention or other, and his face meeting the pavement as his fiance grabbed an arm and threw him over her shoulder.
"What the hell's the big idea?" he asked as he rolled to his feet only to bash his head into something wooden. 'Owww, who knew Ryoga's head would be there...'
"Humph. Pervert." The concise and lackluster rebuttal followed by the sound of her stomping off down the road.
"Akane?" he asked the air getting a bit worried at that point. The world was suddenly a void, he was an island in space and the last lifeline holding him to earth had just decided to go home and leave him drifting. It had taken him a solid hour before lunch to get everything under control and now he had to open himself to the world again.
"It's okay Ranma, you can do this. just a little bit at a time." his own voice brought little reassurance as the iron grip he had on the senses slackened. The fencepost slowly forming under his finger tips as the skin slid over the weather polished wood. "good... just a little bit more."
Now there were flashes as birds flew through the air, chirping and he could hear cars in the distance; the hum and grind of rubber on asphalt bearable. Next were the people, he could see as if thousands of pebbles were thrown into a lake to batter the shore with waves. Disorienting as much as helpful, even as they painted a picture of the world slowly he still wished to just curl up and put the blocks back in place.
Slowly he started walking, hand on the fence to keep an orientation as he started his voyage home.
"Oh my, wasn't Ranma supposed to come home with you Akane?" Kasumi inquired as she opened Akane's bedroom door. "it's almost dinner."
"The freak can make his own way home for all I care." she spat back still angry at the boy for... a very good reason she couldn't quite remember but she was sure he deserved it.
"It's okay Kasumi, I'm sure one of the other fiances would love to help him home." Nabiki butted in.
"Oh? that's good." The two elder sisters walked off talking over the sound of Akane's pencil snapping as she fumed.
"I don't know what your problem is," Akane said as she walked in the door.
"You left me on the street, How am I supposed to feel?" Indignant reply, check.
"Well maybe if you weren't such a jerk I wouldn't do that." Raised voice, check. "Besides I came back."
"Two hours later and only to be sure 'The pervert isn't with his hussies'."
"Ranma you Idiot!" she shouted and the sound of skin on skin ended the tiff; sending the boy through the hall to sprawl on the floor.
"Hmmmm They seem to be fighting a lot Saotome." The Tendo patriarch commented to his furry friend receiving only a nod and grunt. "There can only be one thing this could mean."
The panda turned and nodded, blurring into motion with a sign reading `It's Genma's...`
"And Soun's..." The moustachioed man said striking his own pose. "Operation Early Morning Alter Affair!"
Had he been able to see Ranma might have commented on the choreography before teaching the men a lesson in meddling. Instead he could just lay there and shiver as the feeling of dread fall over him.
Author's notes:
Back again, been another 4 years. Crazy how the time flies, Hope to get more chapters out but I can't make any promises as life is too unpredictable.
Thanks to everyone who enjoys my writing.
