BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING (OVER YOU)

Tofu received copies of the paperwork from the Family Law court and a copy of Ranma's birth certificate. Tofu had given them a cursory glance when a discrepancy involving Ranma's age caught his attention. Ranma wasn't thirteen, he was fourteen. Tofu groaned and rubbed his temples at the realization of how poor information, judgment and well-intentioned actions had royally screwed-up Ranma's life. He had known Ranma's physical age and appearance didn't match a normal thirteen year old, because of Genma stealing food from Ranma stunted his growth. He should have mentioned that to Nodoka ,but, emotions clouded both Tofu's and Nodoka's minds at the time so both had accepted Ranma's statement that he was thirteen at face value. This 'fact' was what led to Nodoka's interrogation, she knew how old her son was and had a general idea of what a fourteen year olds height and weight should be. The hand print caused a momentary hesitation in her rejection of Ranma, but, the 'fact' firmed her determination that this boy was not and couldn't be her son. Tofu would write a letter to Nodoka detailing what happened and ask her to reconsider her position. He realized that Ranma being an emancipated minor and living as his ward was a complication, but, just her accepting him as her son was all Tofu could hope for.

Over the next few months, Tofu and Ranma worked on learning how to get along together. Ranma learned that entering and leaving the apartment by window was frowned upon by society in general and Tofu in particular. Tofu had no problem if Ranma wanted to use the roof of the apartment, he just wanted him to use the outside stairs. Tofu learned that you don't wake a sleeping Ranma suddenly, after being tossed into the wall several times. Regular meals and plentiful sleep allowed Ranma's body to make his next growth spurt bring him closer to average. With hard work, Tofu turned Ranma into a somewhat socially acceptable person. He's still looking for a cure to Ranma's foot-in-mouth problem. Tofu also learned never to mention Ranma's parents by name, Ranma preferred to use the terms sensei and sensei's wife. Grudgingly, Tofu allowed Ranma to call him 'Doc' as well as Tofu. Later he realized that Ranma would call him Tofu when he wanted his 'big brother' and 'Doc' when he needed to speak with his 'Uncle'.

Ranma settled into a comfortable routine that eased his wounded psyche. He would either spar with Tofu or perform katas before breakfast, wash-up, have breakfast, do the dishes, straighten up the small apartment, sweep and mop the clinic before opening, do the laundry, make and have lunch with Tofu,do the dishes, do the shopping, perform his katas or meditate, help Tofu clean up the clinic at closing, have dinner, and then Tofu would talk with Ranma while they did the dishes. Ranma wouldn't have a clue that Tofu was deprogramming a brain-washed child of his abusive sensei's bigoted and sexist mindset. Tofu still didn't have an idea of what to do if Ranma entered the Neko-ken.

One day, Tofu was making lunch while watching Ranma out the corner of his eye. Ranma was working on a test to measure his scholastic level, but, apparently he was distracted by the tantalizing smell just across the counter. Tofu glanced at the test sheet and decided Ranma had completed enough to let him take a meal break. Giving him a plate of food, Tofu used the answer sheet to see how Ranma fared.

"You did very well on the majority of the test, Ranma." Tofu said. "Your math and literature test scores were just below 8th grade average. I'm sure with a little more study, you'll be able to start 9th grade with your peers."

Ranma was of two minds about that. He was used to training 10 to 14 hours a day, sitting idle at a desk for several hours didn't appeal to him at all. On the other hand, Tofu pointed out that he needed an education and to meet and interact with people his age. Maybe he could even have a friend, something he was denied by his sensei as a distraction to training. Something Tofu said puzzled Ranma and he mentioned that to Tofu.

"Won't I be a fourteen year old kid in a class of fifteen year olds?"

"Thanks for reminding me, I meant to tell you earlier and forgot."

"Forgot what?"

"Your birth date and how old you are. You're actually fourteen and a half, you'll have a birthday before school starts, so you'll be fifteen like the rest of your class."

Tofu paused and thought for a moment, he suddenly grinned and snapped his fingers.

"I believe you said you missed having any birthday celebrations. How about we hold a make-up celebration this Saturday?"

"Sounds okay to me,...uh...what do I have to do?"

"Nothing, you're the person the celebration is held for. I'll see about baking a cake and sending out...invitations. Well, don't worry, I'll make all the arrangements."

"Okay," said a grinning Ranma.

Running upstairs to get ready for bed, Ranma almost stumbled because his eyes had clouded over with tears. Finally, he was going to have a birthday, with a real cake, because someone cared. Tofu sat at the counter, drumming his fingers, thinking about invitations. Ranma has met other kids at the park or the marketplace, but, they were casual acquaintances. Did Ranma know their full names or their addresses? Maybe he should keep it a small party, Kasumi wouldn't mind coming to the party, she was friends with Ranma after all. Ranma probably wouldn't expect more then the two of them, so Kasumi would be a surprise. He'll have to give her an early call tomorrow to see if she can come.

The next morning, Kasumi had to try several times before she hung up the phone correctly. She looked around to see if anyone was watching her, seeing no-one, she wrapped her arms around herself and gave a squeal. Tofu Ono had asked her out, well, sorta, it was a birthday party for Ranma, but, he asked her! She realized he thought she was too young for him, well, she was only seventeen and a half, still, just you wait Tofu Ono, I'll be eighteen before you know it. She went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for her family and bentos for school. Sitting down for breakfast, Kasumi asked Nabiki if she had anything planned for Saturday. Turns out she had plans to take bets at the local ball-field where two school teams were going to play a grudge match. While she would take bets on who will win and in what inning, she was also taking bets on when the fight will breakout and who will start it and who will finish it. Kasumi looked at Akane and realized she was going to have to adjust her school uniform again. Akane was at that coltish stage where it looked like she was just arms and legs. It was a good thing Kasumi had raised the skirt hem and shortened the sleeve length. Auntie Nodoka had shown her the trick of how to fold the sleeve backwards then return the cuff to the length needed and tack it in place. Kasumi considered asking Akane if she would come to the party, it would give her something to do besides getting frustrated and angry trying to train by herself.

"Akane, Doctor Ono is giving a birthday party for the boy that's staying with him. I thought it might be nice to have someone his own age to attend also."

His name is Ranma, right? Ranma Saotome? The Oh SO GREAT, MANLY Ranma that Auntie Nodoka goes on and on about? No, I'll just go to the park and train."

"He was the one Auntie talked of, but, now he isn't."

"Uh...Kasumi...that doesn't make much sense. How can someone be something and then change into something else. [Dun dun daaaaaaaah!] He's the same person, right?" [Oh, the irony!]

"It's not really my story to tell and I'm a bit confused how it came about. Why don't we stop by the clinic and tell Doctor Ono we'll come to the party, maybe he'll explain Ranma's situation to us."

Nabiki asked, "What will you do about a gift? We don't have any money to spend on ourselves, let alone someone else."

Akane bit her lip and suggested, "I have some manga that I haven't read in some time. I could bundle them up and gift-wrap it."

Nabiki gave her a grin and asked, "What genre? Wouldn't want him to get the wrong impression, now would you?"

Akane said a bit heatedly, "Adventure! Inuyasha, if you must know!" [Insert standard disclaimer here]

Nabiki and Kasumi shared a look and a thought, 'She didn't catch the romantic theme, at all!?'

Kasumi shrugged and said, "It will have to do. Now, lets finish up and get to school."

After school, the three girls stopped at Tofu's clinic, Nabiki had sensed a secret and invited herself to sit in. They waited in various stages of patience for Tofu to finish with a patient, finally he called them into his office. He wondered what the visit was about and then noticed Akane fidgeting in her chair. Assuming he knew what the visit was about, he reached to a display on the counter and handed her a pamphlet on the onset of periods. When Akane's face flushed as red as her name, Nabiki covered her mouth to stifle her laughter and Kasumi gave a big disappointed sigh, Tofu figured he made a wrong assumption.[And you know what happens when someone assumes, right?]

"Ah...sorry...sorry...I thought...well...I didn't really...ahem...what brings you girls here today?...not that I don't mind you visiting...I'll shut up now." Tofu said weakly.

The three girls giggled at Doctor Tofu trying to regain his professional dignity. Nabiki had been watching Akane from the corner of her eye and threw in some extra giggles when Akane slipped the pamphlet into her bookbag. Kasumi started the conversation.

"Doctor Ono, Akane and I would like to attend the party, but, we are curious about your guest."

Tofu rubbed his chin and said, "My guest is actually my ward. I have guardianship until he reaches his majority."

Nabiki stuck her oar in, "Your ward. If he is Ranma Saotome, shouldn't he be living with his mother?"

Kasumi looked at Nabiki and said in exasperation, "Learn to be diplomatic and courteous, Nabiki!"

Tofu scowled at them all, "I am not going to provide you with material for gossip and I expected better behavior from you."

Kasumi contritely said, "I apologize, Doctor Ono, if it appears that we have a base motive for asking. Auntie Nodoka has been telling us how proud she is of her son and then we find he is living with you."

Tofu nodded and said, "Understandable, but, there are issues involved that you needn't concern yourselves with. [Wrong thing to say to Nabiki, doc.] Suffice it to say, Ranma is his own person, separate from the person Nodoka is speaking of. If he wishes to tell you of these issues, that is his concern, my concern is keeping his privacy, private."

Kasumi nodded and said, "We will promise, of course, to respect his privacy. [And Nabiki crosses her fingers!] Akane and I will attend the party this Saturday afternoon."

All through the conversation, Akane's attention had been alternating between the room and the window. In the enclosed backyard, she saw a boy sitting in meditation and gazed in wonder as an azure aura began to manifest around him. A nudge of an elbow brought her back to the room, Kasumi and Nabiki were ready to leave. Kasumi had seen Akane staring at the boy, when she looked at him, all she saw was a boy sitting on the ground. Leaving the clinic, Akane stated her intention of training in the park and began walking in that direction. Nabiki said she had some research to take care of at the library, so Kasumi walked home alone. Nabiki's research was going to involve looking through the legal notices in the local papers. Akane's walk meandered a bit, finally stopping in the clinic's backyard. Ranma gradually became aware of someone's presence nearby, it was a presence he was not familiar with, so as he began to come out of his meditation, he readied himself for an attack. He was not ready for what came.

A girl's voice softly asked, "Could you teach me to do that?"

He shifted to a standing stance and looked around. Off to the side, an attractive girl with black hair sat on the backyard bench. Ranma hadn't much experience talking to girls, let alone attractive girls and he had no idea what he did that she would want to learn.

"Uh...what that?"

He winced when he said that, expecting her to laugh at him. She just looked at him with a look of mild exasperation.

"Meditation?"

Now she was looking at him with a look of moderate exasperation. He began desperately thinking of what he had been doing. He didn't want to see what full-blown exasperation would do.

"Aura projection?"

She nodded and smiled. Ranma felt like he was staring at the sun, her expression was so radiant.

He felt sad that he would have to tell her no, only martial artists can learn it and girls can't be...

He shook himself and remembered, sensei's martial arts training was fine, if arduous, it was his attitudes and comments that sucked. Tofu had been helping him reject those things that would keep him an outsider, someone socially inferior, a laughingstock. Akane's smile began to dim, the expressions racing across Ranma's face were letting her know she was going to be rejected again. She began to get up to leave when Ranma shook himself and gave her a grin.

"Sure! Are you a martial artist?"

Akane was on the verge of stating that she was, then slumped forward, elbows on her knees, head resting on her joined hands. Ranma was startled to say the least, she had looked so proud a second ago, now she looked like she had lost a part of herself. Ranma cast about desperately, wondering what to do, when he realized he hadn't introduced himself.

"Hi! I'm Ranma, want to be friends?"

Akane raised her head and looked at Ranma. He was smiling and holding his hand out to her.

She thought to herself, 'He probably doesn't have many or any friends yet, and you can never have too many friends.'

Holding her hand out for Ranma to take, she stood and said, "Sure, I'm Akane, I'll be your friend."

Ranma stood there holding and looking at her hand. Akane was starting to feel awkward and thinking about yanking her hand out of his grasp, when he released it. He stood staring off into space for a few seconds, then studied her body by circling around her. She was just starting to reach for Mr. Mallet, when he sat at one end of the bench and motioned for her to sit at the opposite end.

"Okay, you've had dojo training, but, not recently. You've continued training on your own, but, you need a sensei to correct your mistakes and train you in more advanced katas. That about it?"

"Yeah, Dad taught me til I was ten and then stopped. My sister, Kasumi, figured out he didn't want to hit me during sparring. I suppose you're gonna tell me you'll be my sensei and magically fix everything." Akane said somewhat sarcastically. His answer surprised her greatly.

"Hell, no! I have enough troubles training on my own. I can work out with you, you know spar, help you with your katas, things like that. Tofu has been my sensei...since my last sensei stopped...training me. I thought you might ask him to become your sensei."

"I couldn't do that, he's much too busy and important to train me."

Tofu spoke up from behind them, "Let me be the judge of that, Akane. If I have ample time to train Ranma, then adding you as a student is not a problem. Two students? When many dojos have a dozen or more? Pfft...tish tosh...especially since the senior student assists in training any junior students."

Ranma was giving a good impression of a koi, while Akane wasn't sure if she should be giggling or fuming. Tofu relented and explained.

"Akane, Ranma has already offered to workout with you and help with your katas. Ranma has taught himself a bit of chi manipulation, so he will work with you on that when your chi reserves are built up. I'll keep an eye on both of you and step-in if either of you are having a problem."

"Sensei, she already has reserves...I...mean...her mallet." said a nervous Ranma.

"Akane, did you reach for Mr. Mallet?"

Akane squirmed a bit and said, "I was about to...I...he..."

Tofu looked at Ranma and raised an eyebrow in question.

Ranma shuffled his feet, then mumbled. "Erm...it was when I was checking out her body...I mean...looking at her figure...muscles...tone."

Tofu coughed into his closed fist to muffle a laugh. Akane's right hand fingers were clenching and unclenching around a ghostly mallet handle. Tofu looked calmly at Akane until she settled down.

"Akane, Ranma, like so many boys his age, has a problem speaking to girls. [says the pot about the kettle.] They develop what is called Foot-in-Mouth disease. What they mean to say and what comes out are many times quite opposite. I believe what Ranma meant to say was that he was looking at your muscle tone. This gives an indication of fitness so we know what level to train you at."

Akane looked over at a wide-eyed Ranma to see him nodding rapidly. He was watching her hand to be sure Mr. Mallet wasn't going to appear. Tofu frowned slightly and thought about his daily schedule. His expression cleared and a slight smile appeared, maybe he had found a tutor for Ranma's scholastic needs.

"Akane, isn't the school year about over?'

"Yes, there's just one week left."

"Do you have any after school activities?"

"No, the clubs and all the athletic programs have been halted for break."

"Do you wish to be my student?"

"YES!...I mean, yes sensei. Please accept me as your student."

"Very well, I'll notify your father that I have accepted you as a student. Now, I have a request for you. Would you be willing to tutor Ranma in some subjects he needs help with? This is not a condition to be my student, but, it is a way to help both Ranma and I. You're more familiar with the current curriculum and the teachers than I am and it would benefit Ranma to have uninterrupted study sessions during clinic hours."

Ranma was once again imitating a koi and this time Akane was giggling.

"So, I'll be the senior student teaching the junior student. I can do that. Can I use Mr. Mallet to keep his mind on his studies?"

Now, Ranma was looking wild-eyed at Tofu in panic, Tofu chuckled as Akane gave a low sinister laugh and tried to put Ranma's fears to rest.

"Akane, show Ranma what mallet you're talking about and don't bring out Maximus Mallet either."

"Aw, you spoiled my fun. Okay, this is my attention getter mallet."

Akane reached out and tapped Ranma lightly on the head with a gavel-sized mallet. Ranma sighed in relief and relaxed.

"Whew! That's not so bad, although, you know you could just give me a dope slap..."

Akane gave him one.

"Ow! What was that for?"

With an innocent look on her face, Akane said, "You asked me to."

To curtail an impeding argument, a straight-faced Tofu decided to bring the conversation back to a sensei/student level by asking Akane one simple question.

"What is your goal in becoming my student?"

"I want...no, I need to complete my training in the school of Tendo Anything Goes. I am the heiress of the Tendo Dojo and must have my mastery to continue my school."

Ranma looked over at her with a brooding expression. Tofu saw Ranma's expression and rather than guess about his frame of mind he decided to ask him what was bothering him.

"Ranma, what Akane said about her goal seems to be bothering you. Would you mind telling us what it is?"

"I'm beginning to wonder if the Anything Goes School is worth it, if she's another example of it's sensei."

Akane face-faulted and began stammering at Ranma. She had, as usual, misunderstood what someone had said and believed it was personal assault. She couldn't believe this boy was saying HER school wasn't worthy. That meant he thought SHE wasn't worthy. Suddenly, there was a touch on the back of her neck and it was like a bucket of water quenched the growing fury. Dispassionately, she listened to Tofu and Ranma talk.

"Ranma, I believe Akane was beginning taking it as an insult to her and her school. Did you mean to insult her?"

"Huh! I just met her, why would I insult her? I was just thinking how similar our situations are. We were both abandoned by our sensei. Our training is incomplete and we needed to find another sensei. If it had happened to just me, I wouldn't think too much about it, but, to have both sensei of the Anything Goes school treat their students like this. Doesn't that seem like the school has something wrong with it? I mean, we're both suppose to carry on the schools after all, shouldn't a sensei want to see his school continued?"

Listening dispassionately, Akane could see Ranma's point. It wasn't a personal attack on her, but, it was an accurate attack on both their schools. She suddenly realized that she was angry at her father for the wrong reason. Her sensei should have explained why he could no longer train her and place her with another sensei to complete her training. She needs to be angry at the sensei, not the parent. She felt another touch on the back of her neck.

"I apologize for pressing that shiatsu point, Akane. I needed you to clearly hear what Ranma was saying uncolored by emotion."

"It's okay, sensei. You just proved that I need to listen before acting. Ranma didn't say anything that isn't true for both schools."

Tofu had been watching Akane's aura while Ranma spoke. He could see that she had an epiphany and a fiery core of anger she had for years died to smoldering embers. He knew from speaking with her that she was angry with her father for not being there when she needed him after her mother died. She also was resentful for his failure to finish her training, while proclaiming she had a duty to be the next master of the Tendo school of Anything Goes. As he would be her sensei, he needed to speak to her about any issues that might affect her focus on training, but, he can wait for another day to do that.

"Well, I've been away from the clinic long enough, I need to see if any patients have showed up. Ranma, how about you walk Akane to her house, maybe if you're nice and polite, she'll show you the dojo."

"Doc, it's almost closing time! Shouldn't I stay and help with clean-up?"

Tofu struggled to keep a straight face. Ranma was looking a little wild-eyed at the prospect of having to walk the volatile girl anywhere. Ranma was getting used to being around other people, but, he was still unsure of how to interact with them. He was very confident in situations he was familiar with, but, put him into unfamiliar situations and he would go all macho to cover up his shyness and insecurity. Tofu knew what he was doing was the equivalent of pushing a baby duck into an alligator infested swamp, but, Ranma needed to begin stepping outside his comfort zone.

"It'll be alright, Ranma. I have cleaned up the clinic by myself before, you know. Akane, Ranma has had limited experience being around other people or living in town, so things you take for granted might be unfamiliar to him. Treat him gently and with patience."

"No mallets?"

'No mallets."

Akane let out a sigh and motioned a wary Ranma to follow her. Both Akane and Ranma bowed to their sensei and then left the backyard of the clinic. Tofu watched as the teenagers walked down the street, a careful arms-length apart. Ranma had walked around the local area before and had a nodding acquaintance with some of the residents. Those residents, young and old, hadn't made any overtures of a more personal nature because they were wary of the outsider. They were cutting him some slack because he was living with the doctor, but, they would wait for him to introduce himself. This social stalemate would have continued if a third party hadn't intervened. Akane was a local and knew many of the people they met on the walk to her house, frequently she was asked about her companion and she introduced Ranma to them. Ranma was becoming more relaxed as the walk progressed, he hadn't realized how comforting it could be to be accepted by the neighborhood. In the past, he and his sensei would enter a town and the residents were so wary of them, he could feel their distrustful eyes watching their every move until they left.

Akane had been watching Ranma out of the corner of her eye since they began walking to her house. Not having the 'benefit' of his years of experience of being attacked unexpectedly, she didn't realize why he was so uptight about walking down the street. When they first started out, he had been tense and constantly scanning the surroundings for threats. Gradually, he seemed to relax and was taking an interest in the walk to her house. Unconsciously, he had begun walking by her side at a comfortable distance for conversation. She didn't know what to think of his behavior, it was her neighborhood and her neighbors after all, it's not like ninjas would suddenly attack. Ranma noticed that Akane had been keeping an eye on him as they walked down the street. Previous to his abandonment, his ego would've convinced him it was due to his charm and good looks. Now, he recognized it as prudence on her part as he was still a stranger to her. Tofu had vouched for him, but, she would make her own judgment of him, just as he'd make his judgment of her. He just hoped he wouldn't make a mistake and lose a friend.