SSD: Konnichiwa, minna-san! Hopefully there won't be any interruptions this ti—
Ranma: Have you guys seen Nabiki around here?
Sasame: I haven't seen her since she left last chapter. Have you checked the Tendo Dojo?
Ranma: I just came from there, no one's seen her there either.
SSD: Ahem, can we move on to the story? I hate being interrupt—
Mousse: Saotome, you fiend! How dare you harm my darling Shampoo! Prepare to die! (lashes out with chains and swords.
SSD: THAT DOES IT! KAMUI! DARK! SUBARU! KOUGA! GET YOUR ASSES IN HERE AND DO YOUR JOB!
K,D,S&K: (barge into the studio smelling like smoke) What? What?
SSD: Your pay is here by cancelled until you can prove that you can do your job correctly, got it! Now get rid of the blind duck!
Kouga: Damn it, now how am I supposed to pay for an engagement ring? (sighs and restrains Mousse)
Ranma: HEY! I could've handled him!
Kouga: I'm just doin' my job, kid. (tosses Mousse into to VORTEX of DOOM)
(security crew start to leave, but SSD blocks their path)
SSD: (crosses arms across her chest and glares) Where do you think you're going? We have some…business…to discuss.
(the security crew shifts nervously, not liking the look in SSD eyes.)
(In the Basement)
(security is tied up to steel chairs that resemble the "electric chair" Everyone is bound hand and foot by steel cords. Their eyes are taped open as SSD stands in front of a 64" TV, an EVIL video tape in her hand.)
SSD: I shall make sure that you do your job with this as punishment. (sticks video in VCR and sticks earplugs in her ears)
TV: Everybody! I love you, you love me! We're a happy family—
Subaru: (actually showing emotion) NOOOO! NOT THE PURPLE DEMON!
Kamui: KOTORI, SAVE ME!
Kouga: ONLY THIS IS MORE EVIL THAN NARAKU!
Dark: KRAD, I WILL ALLOW YOU TO KILL ME IF ONLY TO SAVE MYSELF THIS AGONY!
SSD: (nods head in satisfaction) This should teach you. Sasame, the disclaimer please.
Sasame: (shudders in sympathy for the others) Evil, evil.
Disclaimer: SilverSerpentDragon does not own Pretear or Ranma.
SSD: Oh, poll results are as follows.
Should Ranma and Ranko be separated?
Yes 4 No 5
If not, what should the pairing be?
Ranma/Nabiki 0 Ranko/Sasame 2 Ranma(Ranko)/Nabiki/Sasame 3
SSD: Keep sending your opinion, now on with the show!
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Chapter 3: Broken Ties and Everlasting Friendships
Ranko waved good bye to the Awayuki family as the Rolls Royce drove away. It was so nice of Natsue-san to offer me a ride back to Nerima, Ranko mused as she settled into the cushiony leather seats. As the scenery passed by, the martial artist began to think about the talk she had last night with Mawata.
Mawata led the red haired aquatransexual into her room.
"Mikage left some snacks for me earlier, please help yourself. Can I ask you a question."
Ranko remembered to use the etiquette lessons her mother pounded into her and swallowed the contents in her mouth before answering. "Sure, I don't mind. Friends are supposed to get to know one another, right?"
Mawata smiled slightly. "I suppose. Umm, if you don't mind me asking, why did you ask ME to be your friend?" The aqua haired girl asked in curiosity.
The martial artist set down the tea she was about to drink and sighed. "I saw the same look in your eyes that I've seen before in my brother's and my own eyes. The look of loneliness while being surrounded by others, a look of sadness while you try to please others. I guess, I saw myself in you."
Mawata looked down as her shoulders started to shake. "So you pitied me?" There was a hint of anger to her voice.
Ranko immediately shook her head and made warding gestures. "No, that's not it at all! I meant that I saw a kindred spirit in you; one who tries to fit in but never does, someone who always stands out no matter how normal you try to act. That's what I saw in you, what I see in myself: someone who just needs a friend."
The eighth grader raised her head and Ranko saw that she was crying. To her surprise, Mawata leapt across the low table to fling her arms around the martial artist's neck. The aqua haired girl buried her head in Ranko's shoulder as she cried.
"No one, no one has ever understood. No one has tried to be my friend. Thank you, thank you so much."
The smile she gave touched Ranko's soul as she too began to cry. Both had come to an understanding.
"Excuse me, Saotome-san, but we are here," Tanaka's announcement brought Ranko back to reality.
She noticed that she was back in Nerima, meaning she would have to start referring to herself as a guy again. She blinked at that thought, Since when did I start thinking myself as a girl? Ranko shrugged it off and stepped out of the Rolls Royce.
"Thanks for the ride, Tanaka-san. Can you give Natsue-san my thanks also?"
"Will be done at once, Saotome-san!" The short fat and going bald man gave Ranko a salute before driving off.
With dread, Ranko noticed that the Tendos, her parents, and the rest of the NWC were out on the front lawn.
"BOY! What do you think you are doing as girl! I demand you change back this instant! Oh, why have the Kami cursed me with such a worthless—" Genma mouth was clamped shut by a ring of steel that suddenly appeared around his head and over the offending opening in his skull.
Ranko lowered her hand and stared at it in awe with a hint of fear. How, how did I do that? It felt like…Leafe instead of Ki. What's going on?
"Ranko-chan, what have I told you about attacking your father needlessly?" Nodoka frowned.
"Mom, umm, I have to talk to you. Alone." Ranko's voice carried a tint of fear, ignoring her mother's reprimand.
"Ranma no Hentai! I bet you were at one of those floozies places! HENTAI!" Akane walloped Ranko with her mallet. Instead of it hitting her, Ranko dodged out of the way.
"Airen go on date with Shampoo yes?"
"I hope you're hungry, Ranchan. I made some deluxe okonomiyaki for ya."
"I'm Ranko, you bakas! You aren't good enough for my brother!" Ranko then slapped a hand over her mouth in shock. "Wha—What was that? M-Mom, I think I really have to talk to you NOW!"
Nodoka and the others were in shock as well. "I think we should talk as well."
The two walked to the dojo, the only place without cameras or other listening devices. "Would you care to explain what is going on, son?"
Ranko sighed and plopped down on the floor. "Yesterday, when Akane malleted me, she didn't just send me to another place in the district, she sent me all the way to Awayuki Town."
"Isn't that where Awayuki Natsue lives? Didn't she rename the entire town after her new husband?" Nodoka gracefully settled down on the mat of the dojo.
Ranko nodded and sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. "Mawata-chan and Himeno-chan are really nice. Natsue-san also. Kaoru-san is a little eccentric. Mayune is very similar to Kodachi, but her laugh isn't nearly so bad. Mawata-chan was surprised that there was someone with a worse laugh than Mayune. They helped me out since I broke my leg in the landing. Heh heh, Sasame wasn't able to become a complete landing pad. I told them the story we came up with so that they wouldn't freak out. Sasame-kun—um I mean—"
Nodoka held a hand up. "Son, I would like you to know that while bedding girls is manly, to be with a man is not."
"That's not it! It's like—I think Akane's mallet strike did something to me! I mean, I'm thinking like a girl! But when I took a hot shower at the Awayuki-ke and turned back into a guy, I was 'normal'. It's like Akane's mallet has divided my psyche into two halves; my feminine—this side, and my masculine—guy side. I don't know why it's happening, but I'm also starting to hear Ranma whispering in the back of my mind."
Ranko's mother looked thoughtful at this information. "This sounds like a case of split-personality syndrome. There is no cure except for anti-psychotics, but I don't want your fighting skills messed up. What do you remember? From the training trip?"
"Everything, but it's like I'm an outsider looking in. I see myself there also, as a younger Ranko. It's like my memories are changing the more my individuality splits. You won't have Ranma—ME—commit seppuku because he—I seem to be going crazy, will you?"
"No." The katana wielder whispered. "Ranma…Ranko, there is something I must tell you. You were supposed to have a twin, but something during conception made it so that the second zygote was absorbed into you. You have two strands of DNA in you, yours and your twin's. Your twin, from what the doctors could tell from the second set of DNA, was to be a girl."
"So that's why my memories could be changing? It's my other DNA copying everything I learned as Ranma? My landing in the Spring of Drowned Girl could have been my ki trying to balance itself out because I had the ki of two people?"
"I would assume so. But what is it you meant by Akane is not good enough for y—Ranma?"
"Mom, she hits him—ME—at the slightest provocation. She never listens to what Ran—I—have to say. She—"
"I think it would be easier for you to continue talking as if Ranma is another person seeing how technically he is. You are two people who are finally separating from the other through this 'curse'. Now, you were saying?"
"Right. Akane is always defending Ryouga and P-chan and telling Ranma to stop picking on them when he hasn't started a fight with 'em. Ranma killed for her and she still continues on like a rage demon! I can hear him, Mom, he is screaming on the inside from the pressure Pops and Tendo-san push on him to marry Akane. You may think she's a nice girl, Mom, but she only puts that up around you. She wants to go into theatre, don't you think that's a major clue that Akane is acting?"
Nodoka had an epiphany. She remembered that during their talks, Akane would constantly say that while she was a "martial artist" she wanted to be an actress on stage. She had quoted some lines from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night and Nodoka had been impressed with the girl's performance. Could it be that Akane had been playing her as a fool? "I…see."
"Plus, she's always trying to poison Ranma by forcing that nuclear sludge she calls food down his throat. She's been playing everyone, Mom. I doubt that even Nabiki realizes that she's being suckered. Akane's definitely smarter than she appears."
Nodoka's lips pursed like she had sucked on a lemon. "I see. I will declare Akane as unfit for my son once we return to the others. What of the other fiancés?"
"Ukyo is out of the question for Ranma, she makes a good friend though. The reason why I see her unfit is that she wants to chain Ranma down to an okonomiyaki restaurant with him doing martial arts as a hobby only. Ranma can't do that, he lives for the Art. If that's taken away from him, he's like a fish washed up on shore that can't get back into the water. That is also why Shampoo is eliminated as a good candidate. The males in the Joketsuzoku cannot actively practice the art. Mousse is an exception because he is not in China at the moment. Were Ranma to marry Shampoo, he would die on the inside and become nothing but a shell. I am not even going to explain why Kodachi is a bad choice for him……" Ranko paused for a long time, her eyes out of focus. Clarity made a sudden appearance when she blinked. "Ranma's voice is stronger now. He says that he would be better off with Nabiki than any of the others."
"Why not Kasumi?" Nodoka asked with a frown. She knew that Nabiki brought in the money for the Tendos along with what little insurance money was left from when Tendo Kimiko died. Nabiki was a very shrewd person, mercenary-like.
Ranko's eyes unfocused once more. "Ranma says that Kasumi already likes someone and he doesn't want to destroy her happiness. Also, once Nabiki finds out that Ranma and I are friends with Awayuki family, she won't question the engagement if it's switched to her. She won't hit Ranma and she won't try to swindle us out of our money because she'll be trying to get into the good graces of the Awayukis."
Nodoka nodded in approval of her daughter's reasoning. "Your explanations are very sound. Shall we go and announce our decisions. Oh, you may want to change into Ranma."
"Okay, Mom."
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Ranko went to the kitchen for some hot water while Nodoka herded the others into the dining room. As the neo-Pretear passed Akane, she noticed that the tomboy bitch had P-chan in her arms. Ranko filled a glass with water and put it into the microwave. As she waited for the water to finish heating, she thought back to what Sasame said to her when he came to check up on the newest Pretear.
"Hello."
Ranko eeped in surprise and whirled around to face the intruder. It was none other than the Knight of Sound.
"What're you doing here?" She hissed and held a hand to her chest so as to calm her racing heart.
"I came to check up on you and answer any questions you may have," the violet eyed DJ replied.
"Oh." Ranko walked to her temporary bed and sat down. "Pull up a chair, I get the feeling you might be here for a while." Sasame did as she suggested and strode over to the desk chair. He carried it over to Ranko's bedside and set it down. He then sat down. "How am I a Pretear? That Takako woman seemed shocked that there would be two."
Sasame leaned back, a puzzled look on his face. "In the past, the Pretear has always been a girl with a pure heart and high spirituality. I seem to recall once when Takako got angered, she had a visible aura of red around her. I remember it well because she was normally a calm woman."
"A battle aura." Ranko whispered.
As the Knight of Sound, Sasame easily heard what she said. "A battle aura?" He repeated.
Ranko's storm grey eyes met his. "A battle aura is ki generated by one certain emotion that appears in the visible spectrum." She concentrated slightly and an aura of blue sprung up around her. Sasame nearly fell out of his chair in shock. "That was my battle aura based on confidence. My brother can produce the same aura. A…friend of ours uses depression as his power source so his battle aura is green. Is that what you meant by spirituality?"
Sasame numbly nodded still shocked at the almost casual display of power. "That is what Takako was able to do. I think I've seen Himeno do the same trick once or twice on Hayate."
"I'm surprised. She seems like the happy-go-lucky type. I know plenty of other girls who can generate a battle aura, but I wouldn't exactly call them pure hearted."
Sasame nodded in contemplation. 'It would only make sense that such pure hearts are rare.' "Now that your questions have been answered, is your leg healing well?"
The microwave beeped and snapped Ranko back to reality. She took the cup out of the electric appliance and upended it over head. As Ranko shifted into Ranma, HE could feel the change wash over him as Ranko was pushed to the back of his hand. Ranma also noticed that he seemed to be left handed while Ranko was right handed. Very strange, he thought as he headed out to the awaiting mass in the dining room.
Chaos started once he entered the room. The Fiancé Brigade began to yell insults at him about "how dare you call me a baka" and the like. The fathers were wailing about him being dishonorable; Genma's "muzzle" seemed to have faded from existence during Ranma's time in the kitchen. Cologne demanded that he act as an Amazon husband—translation: how dare you call your own Amazon wife a baka; do as you are told, stupid male; etc. The rivals were insulting him for insulting their loves.
"Enough!" Nodoka stated as she drew her katana. The ringing of steel unsheathed silenced the arguing NWC. "We are here to discuss my son's engagement to several of these young ladies. Due to infallible evidence that I have witnessed just now, it seems as though my son is treated as no more than a prize to be won. I will not tolerate this. My son is a man amongst men, not a toy for all of you to fight over. As of now, by my decree as Head of the Saotome clan, all engagements except the Tendo-Saotome pact are void. Even then, the engagement to Akane is—at my son's bequest—switched to Nabiki."
"WHAT!"
"No outsider law better than Amazon law! Ranma is Shampoo's Airen!" Shampoo turned on Nabiki with a maniacal glint in her eyes. "Obstacle for killing!" She leapt at the mercenary girl.
Ranma lashed his hand out and caused the bonbori Shampoo held to fly out of her hand. The weapons hovered in the air, suspended by Ranma's will. He glared at the Amazon.
"You will not hurt my fiancé. Nabiki is a better choice than all of you because she will not tie me down to any simpleton dreams of a restaurant, a beginner instructor, or a slave! I am not a thing but a person! I used to be able to count my true friends on one hand, NONE! The only people who came close to being friends were Kasumi and Tofu-sensei," Ranma glared at the ones he could have called friends.
"Used to, Saotome? And don't think I'll go easy on you because we're engaged," Nabiki coolly stated.
"Yes, used to. I now have four guy friends and Ranko has two girl friends," Ranma stated.
"Pervert!" Akane yelled as she attempted to mallet him. No one seemed to notice how he referred to his girl half as another person, except two.
Instead of the mallet hitting him, Ranma fired a Ki blast at the offending weapon, vaporizing it. "As you are not my fiancé anymore, I don't have to sit around and let you mallet me whenever you want. And I don't see how it's perverted that my sister has friends that are girls."
"SISTER!" Even Nabiki was surprised, there were no records on Ranma having a sister let alone one named Ranko when she checked a month ago.
Ranma smirked. "My girl half is actually my twin sister, Ranko. Mom, what was the condition called?"
"It is called Chimera Syndrome where there are two strands of separate DNA in the same body. The condition is rare and happens when twins do not develop properly and one 'absorbs' the other into it," Nodoka explained as she shifted her katana in her lap. She had sheathed it shortly after Ranma began talking.
Cologne stood up abruptly. "Come, Shampoo, we are leaving."
Shampoo looked bewildered and shot a curious glance at her great-grandmother. "Why we go?" The purple haired Amazon was still trying to free her bonbori from Ranma's mental grip.
"Son-in-law—no, Ranma is a Chimera. He has the strength of not one but two people. While his Ki is strong on its own, with the added Ki of Ranko I have no doubt that SHE would try to destroy the Joketsuzoku if we continue trying to force Ranma into our tribe. The fact that Ranma is Chimera and Jusenkyo cursed to a girl form makes him—and Ranko—immune to the Kisses of Death and Marriage. This is especially so now as Ranma and Ranko seem to have two separate personalities now if Ranma's indication was anything to go by," The Amazon matriarch explained to her fellow Amazon.
Ranma chuckled and released the hold on Shampoo's bonbori. "Got that right, old ghoul and right now, Ranko is laughing at you. Whatever I see and hear, she sees and hears also. One body, two minds. We have the same bond that normal twins have, but we share the same body through the Jusenkyo curse," he explained to the benefit of others who couldn't understand (cough Akane cough)
"Before Akane interrupted about you and your…sister's friends, I believe you were going to tell us who they are?" Nabiki attempted to get the conversation back on track.
"Right! My friends are Hikari Kei, Bouchoudo Sasame—"
"Wait a minute! Are you talking about THE Bouchoudo Sasame, the radio DJ?" Ranma's new fiancé asked in shock.
"Yeah, that's him. Umm, then there's Kazeyotaka Hayate and Bakuchiku Go. There's also three kids that hang with them, I think they're cousins or something. Umm, Hyouketsu Mannen, Mizuno Hajime, and Chichuukouki Shintaku, or Shin as everyone calls him. Ranko's friends with Awayuki Himeno and Mawata."
"You—Ranko's friends with the Awayuki family!" Nabiki's eyes bugged and she began to formulate plans. "I take it back, I am DEFINITELY going to be easy on you." If I marry Ranma and he's a friend of the Awayukis, I can get into any college of my choice if they just pull a few strings. Tendo Nabiki, you are one lucky girl!
Ranma smiled as he knew what was going through Nabiki's head. "I think that about does it for this meeting. Ukyo, If you want, Ranko and I are willing to be your friends. Besides, I think your father won't mind the broken engagement seeing how I am a medical freak."
"But-but why is t-the Tendo en-engagement still i-in e-effect?" Ukyo asked through her sobs.
"Because Kimiko and I made that promise long before Genma and Soun came up with their 'unite the schools' pledge. As I am the Clan Head of the Saotome House, it is within my authority, not Genma's, that engagements are voided or validated," Nodoka explained. "I will compensate you for your lost dowry, of course."
Ukyo nodded and her crying began to subside. "I-I would like to b-be your friend, Ra-Ranchan."
In Akane's arms, P-chan was very confused. Does this mean that when Ranma is in girl form, it's really his sister? Or is it just recently that he's formed a split personality? Wait, he's not engaged to Akane anymore? This is my chance, she is free to be pursued! Oh, my sweet Akane, we can finally be together! Of course, this came out in a series of squeals, oinks, and snorts. This means I don't have to fight Ranma anymore. He's actually done something right for once. Maybe…we can be friends after all.
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SSD: Whew, that's all for this chapter. Oops, I left the guys in the basement during all this. Be right back. (goes into the basement)
(security crew's eyes are blood shot and they're mumbling incoherently)
SSD: (sweat drop) I think I broke them. (frees the security crew) Sasame! Ranma! Sesshoumaru! Hayate! Take them to the rehabilitation center. Hmm? (turns to corner of the room as the guys carry security to the rehabilitation room. Sees Nabiki huddled in the corner rocking back and forth.) What's wrong with you?
Nabiki: I love you, you love me. We're a happy family hehehehehahhahah! (starts to act insane.
SSD: Woah! (transports Nabiki to the rehabilitation room with her restricted authoress powers) I hate being a Category 5 Class 4 Authoress. WHEN DO I GET MY PROMOTION?
Kami-sama: YOU WILL BE PROMOTED WHEN YOU REACH 50 REVIEWS FOR ONE OF YOUR STORIES, THAT IS A MARK OF CATEGORY 4 AUTHORS.
SSD: Damn, please review my stories guys, I really want that promotion! See ya!
Responses:
goku90504: Thanks for the review. I may end up canceling the poll because most people don't want Ranma and Ranko separated. It sucks because I have the perfect explanation on how to do that. Hope you will review this chapter as well.
Darkepyon: Thanks for the review. But the more I think about it, the harder it becomes for me to keep Ranma and Ranko together.
Crimson Yrael: Actually, as you found out in this chapter, the curse is not the reason for Ranma/Ranko's split personality, it was merely the catalyst. Ranma's training in Ki also accelerated the process of mental division. If I decide to, Ranma and Ranko will separate in the last or second to last chapter. Sorry, but I'm a fan of Nabiki/Ranma so it will end up that pairing one way or another. Don't expect it to go smoothly though, they will have their arguments and Ranma will develop a crush on someone else (no, it's not another guy; that's Ranko's job.)
Mee-ow: I must thank you for pointing out my errors, I really appreciate it. I have the problem to become so absorbed in the story I'm writing that I tend to leave out some phrases that I meant to put in and didn't it. If you will go back, you'll see that I did fix that chapter up and added some description of the Awayuki estate hopefully to yours and Crimson Yraels satisfaction. I also added a bit on the Opening Theme/Prologue chapter. I hope that this chapter satisfies you in regards to why Ranko is a Pretear and why Nabiki and Ranma will be together with no qualms. I also hope that my explanations on why each fiancé is not acceptable to Ranma are satisfactory.
Inverness: Thanks for the review, but I am starting to think of canceling the separation poll.
Saini Casina: Thank you for the review, you're one of the only people who voted for separation. And you do raise a question, I completely forgot about the Neko-Ken! I'm not too sure now on how I'm going to resolve that screw up, but be assured that it will be resolved.
Dumbledork: Actually, if you notice in this chapter, it's not the curse that makes Ranma Ranma, but the fact that he has his own sister's DNA in him. That DNA has now been transferred over to his "cursed" form. That form is what Ranko would have been like had she not been absorbed by Ranma. And there has been a Pretear/Ranma crossover, it's just in the Pretear section and hasn't been updated for a while. Also, I'm thinking that despite the poll, I'm going to separate Ranma and Ranko anyway. I just wanted to see the popular consensus.
Blitz1775: Ranma and Nabiki are NOT going to immediately like each other as I've seen in other Nabiki/Ranma pairings. Nabiki is only going to stay engaged to Ranma for the chance to associate with people higher on the social ladder than the Tendos. Since Ranma—or rather Ranko—is friends with two of the Awayuki daughters, that puts him in a higher social standing. Nabiki thinks that if she becomes friends with the Awayuki girls, she'll have a better chance to get into the college of her choice. Afterwards, some feelings will begin to develop.
Slade13: As you've probably read, Ranko is NOT the spirit of the pool. She is Ranma's twin sister who he absorbed as a zygote. Chimera is an actual medical term, there are people with two sets of DNA instead of one. Their blood and sexual fluids have a different DNA code than their other cells. Again, I am not making it up, there are Chimeras out there. Also, Akane's mallet strike hit a pressure point on Ranma's head that gave Ranko the chance to leak out. Eventually, Ranma won't be able to control his girl form at all, Ranko will be the one who holds the reins to that body.
Rignach: I appreciate the reviews, but as I said before, I may just split Ranma and Ranko anyway. I am not comfortable with threesomes, though technically it is two couples. It just seems wrong to me.
Cylon One: Thanks for the review.
anss123: Ranma/Ranko doesn't really have a split personality. Ranko's mind inhabits Ranma's "cursed" form while Ranma controls his "birth" form. Both forms of Ranma/Ranko are their birth forms as Ranma's "cursed" form isn't what he would look like if he were born a girl, it is what Ranko would look like had she not been "absorbed" by Ranma. I think I said this before. I am going to follow your advise, but they will split at the end of the story so there are not two main characters (physically, mentally is another matter entirely). Ranma is going to be friends with the Leafe Knights as I plan to make him one in the end. I've already given hints to his element in this chapter.
Piemur1: Thanks for the review, and I can understand your fixation with Narnia, it was a great movie. Anyway, due to the "spirit of the spring" being very common place and over used, I decided to use this theory of Chimera and the resulting combination of Ki. I have to say that it causes a very interesting situation, don't you? I don't think I'll curse the knights, I have no idea on how to work that into this story with a plausible reason.
Howard Russell: I thank you for the review, but do you know how difficult it is to keep Ranma and Ranko now that I have most of the story plotted in my head? I'm most likely going to split them up eventually so will get your "split personality threesome" for a long while.
Jerry Unipeg: Thanks for the compliment. Ranko and Mawata will have a long and fulfilling friendship if I have anything to say about it. I thought they'd make good friends because of their similarities: Ranma/Ranko has plenty of people he/she calls "friend" but they aren't really friends, Mawata is surrounded by plenty of people who know her name but aren't her friends. The two will get into some conflicts though because of Mawata's crush on Sasame and Ranko's growing attraction towards him.
Mega Shadow: I agree, Ranma and Ranko's separation will cause mass confusion. In fact, just the fact that they are two people in the same body right now is going to cause problems for the NWC. Those problems just haven't shown themselves yet.
RubberNeck: Okay, the whole Ranko's decision part will be explained WHEN the story reaches that point. I can only say that her decision will be based on Nabiki and Nodoka. And about Ranma and Ranko immediately becoming two different people? They have been slowly separating before this, but with the courses of action taken lately, the separation process speeded up. They are not yet two individuals, Ranma and Ranko are still somewhat meshed together. You may not notice that right now, but trust me, when the twins' personality fully separates, you will see DRASTIC differences in Ranma and Ranko's mannerisms. Don't worry though, Ranma's still going to be the Ranma we all know and love, he'll just be a bit more knowledgeable with the occasional case of foot-in-mouth syndrome.
Poll:
Side pairings:
Kasumi/Tofu (definite)
Mawata/Ryouga
Akane/Go
Akane/Ryouga
Mawata/Mousse
Shampoo/Mousse
Mawata/Kei
Nodoka/Kei (will be explained later)
Akane/Mannen (again, will be explained later)
SSD: Okay, I said I would explain those last two pairings and I will now. Nodoka will learn the extent to Genma's idiocy and divorce him. Akane will accidentally eat one of those aging mushrooms and shrink to the age of twelve. How she will get a hold of those, I don't know. Remember to vote on the side pairings! This is bye for real.