Chapter 11: Lashing Out

It was late afternoon when the Saotomes returned to Hogwarts. Their arrival at the Three Brooms hardly drew a glance from the patrons and to Ranma's relief it wasn't raining in Scotland. They were enjoying the quietly pleasant walk back to the school, their eyes drawn by the vistas of both the castle and the dark waters of the lake, when Akane decided that now would likely be the best opportunity to talk to him about his nocturnal visits.

"Ranma." Her voice was low, her eyes cast down watching her feet. She was nervous about broaching this subject, aware of how wrong it could go.

Ranma turned back from admiring the view of the lake to meet her eyes and was a little annoyed and worried when she refused to respond in kind.

"Yea Akane." His simple response.

Akane bunched her hands into fists, taking hold of her courage. "Why were you in my room last night?"

Ranma's response was strong and immediate. A swell of panic rose up in his breast, washing away his ability to articulate clearly. He took a subconscious step back, increasing the distance between them as his arms raised defensively. He tried to answer but his efforts were hindered by the size seven shoe in his mouth.

"No...why would I...I'm not the old pervert, I mean...why would I peek at a tomboy, I..."

His voice choked off and he didn't seem to be breathing, so she decided she needed to hit reset in the form of a bop on his head. She had been expecting him to say something stupid and she no longer felt threatened by his words, she knew how he really felt, so she didn't reset him very hard. Thus it wasn't so much the hit on the head as his surprise that it didn't hurt that halted Ranma's verbal meltdown.

Giving him a stern look, Akane leaned in close to his face, her hands in fists on her hips and her feet shoulder width apart.

"I know you were in my room and Kasumi told me that you have been doing it since China, so don't try to deny it. I just want to know why."

He stared at her, eyes wide and his mouth opening and closing like one of the koi fish in the pond in the back yard.

She decided that he needed to be reset again, only harder this time.

"Ow!" He finally succeeded in making a sound. "What did ya do that for?" He was rubbing the top of his head, freed from his fugue state.

She relaxed her stance, taking on a less belligerent attitude.

"I'm not angry, I just want to know why."

He wasn't frozen anymore, instead he was nervously rocking around on his heels, looking at anything but her.

"I wasn't doin' nothing perverted..."

She gave a frustrated sigh. He still wasn't answering her question. Akane had her suspicions and decided that it might be more productive if she confronted him with them.

"Ranma..."

He still wasn't looking at her, so she took his face between her hands and forced him to look at her.

"...are you afraid I will leave you?"

The blood rushed from his face, his eyes dropping, roaming restlessly, refusing to look at her face. "No Akane, you wouldn't, I mean you promised and you wouldn't break a promise."

Akane heard his words but she knew from his mannerisms that he was.

She bopped him on the head again. "Is that why you married me, to make me promise not to leave you?" It didn't seem like something Ranma would do, but still...

When she bopped him on the head she had of necessity released it and now he was vehemently shaking it no. He still wasn't answering her. She wished she had some water. Maybe if he wasn't feeling so manly he would be able to tell her.

"Fine. Don't tell me. It's not like it matters." Feeling her anger beginning to get the better of her, Akane turned and started walking towards the castle leaving him behind.

Ranma watched her walk away and he could tell she was angry, but how could he tell her about his fears...

"Ranma Saotome ain't afraid of nothing."

He was a lousy liar.

****

Ranma nearly caught up to her at the school gates but he was waylaid by Filch and his secrets sniffer. The ornery old man seemed to take extra delight in the search and took his sweet time. By the time Ranma made it to their rooms Akane was already gone. The clothes she had been wearing were scattered on the floor and a still opened drawer revealed that her favorite yellow gi was gone.

He knew where she was. Just like back in Nerima he knew she would be down in the dojo breaking bricks.

Stripping out of his own rain gear, he changed into his Chinese tunic and fighting pants. There was a tree outside that he just knew was missing him. Besides, it would make for a good work out.

He swore, hopping around on one foot when he stepped on a hair brush left forgotten on the floor. Its stiff bristles had dug unmercifully into the tender arch of his offended appendage. Picking it up he slammed it down on the dressing table where it belonged. He was so upset he didn't even notice all the little signs that someone had disturbed the contents of their room. Later both he and Akane would each assume that the other was the cause of the little discrepancies, the signs that someone had rifled through their things.

****

Hermoine had spent all of Saturday and now Sunday anxiously awaiting the return of the Saotomes. She stopped by their rooms and dojo several times to see if they were back and even went so far as to cast a simple charm on both doors that would alert her if they were opened. There had been one false alarm. Saturday afternoon while she was at the quid itch tryouts watching Ron compete with that arrogant jerk Cormac McLaggen, the charm on the Saotomes' suite was triggered but by the time she got there no one was around. Deciding that it was a fluke, she recast her spell and returned to her studies. Late Sunday afternoon when the suite door alarm was triggered, followed by the one on the dojo, she knew they were back and took off at a near run.

When she reached their suite knocking drew no response, so figuring they must both be down in the dojo she went to try there next.

Arriving at the hall the Saotomes used as their classroom she found Akane decimating practice dummies at an alarming rate. She watched more than a little awed as the stout wood that made up the human shaped figures gave before the other girl's fists. Stout four by four posts, ones she thought strong enough to stand up to even Hagrid's strength, shattered into kindling before the petite Asian girl.

Hermoine was an intellectual, an academic who placed mental prowess well above the physical. The daughter of two highly educated people she was raised to see the value of a quick mind and a wide breadth of knowledge. Neither of her parents were very physically adept, yet each earned enough to support them in comfort. Which was more than could be said for some of the athletes they attended grammar school with.

When she discovered the existence of magic her opinion shifted even further towards the extreme. The knowledge that a precisely waved wand and properly pronounced word could render even the largest and strongest man an impotent statue gave her a sense of empowerment out of proportion with her own petite frame. The two most powerful and dangerous people she knew of, Dumbledore and Voldimort, were both far from intimidating to look at. Dumbledore looked like everyone's favorite grandfather, hardly threatening. Voldimort was just plain ugly.

She would admit ( with a smile ) that there had been a certain visceral satisfaction in breaking Draco's nose with a well placed punch, but it in no way threatened the supremacy of a sharp intellect backed by the proper spell.

Still the sight of Akane decimating what she would have thought to be stronger than bone was more than a little frightening. When the same girl stopped throwing punches and drew her wand to, with a quick wave and a word, cause the newly chopped firewood to reconstruct itself into intact dummies once more, the combination of magical ability and physical force was terrifying.

Hermoine had never taken the Saotome's class seriously. She still couldn't see herself practicing their art, even after Ranma's demonstrations, but watching the other girl she resolved never to underestimate someone who did.

The dummies restored Akane proceeded to lay into them again. So intent was she on working out her anger and frustration with some harmless destruction, she had yet to notice Hermoine was in the room. Seeing this, Hermoine decided she would have to interrupt. She just hoped doing so didn't make her the target of Akane's wrath.

"Akane...Akane!"

She had to yell to get the dark haired girl's attention and when she did Akane whipped around, hands raised in a defensive posture before recognizing her.

"Hello Hermoine, what brings you here?"

Hermoine stepped forward, chin up and hands behind her back.

"Actually I was looking for Ranma..."

She was cut off when with a sudden shout of anger, Akane spun around striking a dummy with her fist. Breaking the stout post in two and sending the pieces flying.

"I don't know where the baka is. I left him in our room, if he isn't there then he probably went to see one of his..." She stopped mid sentence.

She was about to accuse him of running off to see one of his other fiancées out of habit. She knew it wasn't true, had known for quite some time. If he ran off to see one of them, which he sometimes did when they were fighting, it would be Ukyo and then it would only be to seek the solace of a friend. He never sought more intimate comforts.

Taking deep breaths to center herself, Akane retrieved a towel from the bench by the door, placing herself within arms reach of the English girl. She used it to mop her face and neck, never once making eye contact with Hermoine.

"If Ranma isn't in our room then I don't know where he is, probably working out somewhere. It's what he usually does." The last was said under her breath. "Why, what do you need him for?"

Hermoine looked askance at the other girl. She could be intrusive, bossy and sometimes overly judgmental but Hermoine wasn't insensitive to the feelings of others, unlike a certain red headed Weasly and it wasn't Ginny.

"Is something wrong Akane? Did something happen while you were in London?"

Akane was torn between the need to preserve face and her own desire for the solace found in a friend. Treading a tightrope of words, she tried to achieve both.

"Nothing big, Ranma just did something...nothing bad mind you, and when I asked him why he refused to tell me. Couldn't even talk the baka."

Hermoine didn't know what the word 'baka' meant, but listening to how Akane applied it to Ranma made it easy to guess it wasn't praise for his sharp wit and keen intellect.

"While we were in London I found out that he hasn't been sleeping very well when we...aren't together."

The last was almost too soft to hear and not very informative, but the blush of embarrassment spreading across Akane's neck and face was enough to clue Hermoine in. Mention of the other girl's married life brought a blush to her own cheeks.

"I'm pretty sure I know what is wrong but when I tried to get him to talk to me about it, he brushed me off. I'm supposed to be his wife and he still won't let me help. Not that either of us is ready to be married, we didn't even get a chance to date or be a couple."

Her voice dropped to a barely audible whisper.

"We haven't even kissed really, not even at the wedding. Stupid Kuno."

Hermoine had no idea what a 'Kuno' was, Akane never spoke of her past, barely mentioning anything about her home. Their conversations were almost exclusively composed of the study of magic, something they both found endlessly fascinating. She was pretty sure that Cho and Ranma talked about more, but...wait a minute! They had never been a couple, or even kissed?

"If you weren't a couple then why are you married?!"

Hermoine hadn't meant to ask that, but she was so carried away by disbelief that she blurted it out without thinking.

Akane's face was still red, but now it was a mixture of embarrassment and anger.

"Our baka fathers arranged it before we were even born. Before they were even married themselves. The first time I met Ranma was when my father told me I was engaged to him. I didn't even get an omai, much less a choice in who I would marry."

Arranged marriages...omai? Hermoine didn't know what an omai was, but arranged marriages were something noble families used to do for political reasons. Long ago, as in the distant past. People didn't do that anymore...at least she didn't think they did. She decided that she would write her mother and request some books on Japanese culture, past and present. That was for later, right now Akane was hurting and Hermoine wasn't the kind of person who would stand by while a friend was hurting. This would require careful handling.

"Akane, are you saying that you don't love Ranma?"

"No! I mean...at first we never got a chance too...there was always another rival, or some crazy challenger. Then throw in the occasional Chinese prince seeking a bride...we never had a moment alone too...you know. If that wasn't bad enough then every time we seemed to be getting along our fathers would call a priest. There was so much pressure. We were only sixteen and they would have turned a kiss into a life long commitment. We weren't...I wasn't ready to be a bride. Thanks to Kuno I had never even been on a date."

Hermoine was staring at her, mouth open in horrified disbelief.

Akane winced. "The boys at my school were all perverts."

As Akane continued she began to pace, her movement growing more forceful as she grew more and more upset.

"Then came China and that disastrous wedding...then Kuno's crazy father kicked us out of school!"

Akane stopped pacing, just standing in place, shaking, her hands clenched into fists, head back and eyes closed as she drew deep shuddering breaths.

Hermoine was stunned, to say the least. What Akane was describing sounded like a skit from the Benny Hill show. All that was missing was the dirty old man and the guy in the gorilla suit ( she didn't know about Happosai...or Tsubasa ).

"That sounds..." She had to stop to swallow, her mouth was dry from all the time she spent catching flies while Akane ranted. "That sounds crazy. How did you ever put up with it?"

Akane chuckled darkly. "It wasn't easy."

She stopped, holding still and Hermoine could see the tension leaving her stiff body."Then...it was like the kami decided that enough was enough and everything changed. After the wedding, I mean the first one, our fathers backed off and let us alone. The others stopped intruding on every quiet moment." She was chuckling again but this time it was in genuine amusement. "Even the princes left us alone, not even trying to marry Ranma."

That confused Hermoine, why would a prince want to marry Ranma? Then she remembered why she was looking for the Saotomes in the first place. She had been so overwhelmed by Akane's story that she had totally forgotten. Now she wasn't sure she dared to bring up more bad news.

Akane was oblivious to Hermoine's plight, caught up in her own drama.

Now Akane was openly smiling.

"We entered the tournament and Ranma helped me train. I learned more in the last three months then in the previous six years. When Mei Lin asked us to come here and teach, it was like a fairy tale ending."

Akane stopped, a warm glow spreading through her as she thought of all the wonderful things that had happened this summer. Not the least of which being the chance to learn more about her mother.

Hermoine felt good herself, seeing how happy Akane was now after being so upset before. She really hated to ruin the moment by sharing bad news, but the threat Draco represented was too great to ignore.

"I'm happy for you Akane and I hope your marriage to Ranma proves a good one, but...I really hate to bring you down with bad news..."

Hermoine didn't know of any way to sugar coat this, so she just said it.

"Professor Snape taught a lesson on Jusenkyo."

Akane's brain screeched to a hard stop... "What?"

Hermoine hated this and it showed on her face and in her voice.

"I'm sorry Akane, but Snape taught a lesson about Jusenkyo and I'm pretty sure Draco knows about Ranma's curse."

"He...why would...wait, you know about Ranma's curse? How?"

For one of the few times in her life Hermoine didn't feel so good about being so smart.

"Professor Snape taught a lesson about Jusenkyo and though he didn't actually say Ranma had a curse, he repeatedly connected it to you and Ranma. Knowing that it was possible, it was only a matter of connecting the dots to realize that...that Ranma is the red haired girl that arrived on first night. Really Akane, if he wanted to keep it a secret he wasn't doing a very good job of it."

Akane couldn't argue with that. No matter how hard Ranma tried the curse always found a way to come out. It was just a matter of time. She just hoped it wouldn't prove too painful this time, not for Ranma and not for the other students. They had a good thing here, for the first time their future really was bright. She didn't want to lose that over hurt feelings and wounded pride.

****

It was nearly time for the evening meal so Akane thanked Hermoine for the warning, then went in search of her wayward husband.

She started by returning to their room where, like Ranma, she missed the signs of an earlier intrusion.

Not finding him there she used her wand to leave a magically scribed message on the dressing table mirror, warning him not to leave their suite. Then casting her own charm on the door, she set out to search the rest of the school.

First she double checked their dojo and office, casting charms on those doors as well (magic sure is handy, isn't it). She didn't know where the kitchen was and she was sure Ranma didn't either, so she decided to try Hagrid's hut.

Ranma wasn't there and Hagrid hadn't seen him since before the weekend. He did offer to help her search, so reinforced by the gentle giant Akane headed out into the grounds in search of her wayward husband.

****

Tom Marvolo Riddle, better known as Lord Voldimort, sat comfortably in a plush leather captain's chair behind a desk made from beautiful carved mahogany. The study in which he and the desk were located was well appointed, the walls covered in cherry wood paneling.

One entire wall was taken up by a large bookshelf that held titles more magical than mundane.

There was a glass curio cabinet, seven feet tall and three wide. It was filled with miscellaneous awards and magical knick knacks. On the bottom shelf, as if to highlight the rest with the oddity of their presence, were a row of tall plastic cups. Each bore the portrait of a different individual, not all of whom were human. The cups also bore what appeared to be paired yellow arches and the label 'Star Wars'. Voldimort had no idea what they were about, figuring they were some disgusting muggle trash.

On the walls were several portraits of angry individuals, all staring at him with venom filled ire.

It only made sense, this wasn't Voldimort's study or house. The real owner's body was currently cooling in a flower bed out back, alongside his disgusting muggle wife. Voldimort would have placed the man's mud blood children beside them if the two weren't safely ensconced behind Hogwarts' protective walls.

They wouldn't be coming home for Christmas.

He was enjoying a glass of the house's finest brandy, one of the few things he felt the muggles could get right.

His solitude was interrupted by the opening of the study's single door. His snake familiar, Nagini, slithered its way through the door and across the floor towards the desk. Behind the giant serpent came the witch Bellatrix Lestrange. Careful not to step on the snake, she led three other figures into the room.

The first was a bear of a man, the Crabbe patriarch. He wasn't exceptionally tall but more than made up for it with his girth. It didn't hurt that he wore a perpetual scowl. He was like a pit bull who's brain had grown too big for its skull. Most Death Eaters were ready to kill on command. With Crabbe it was more a matter of holding him back. Voldimort could only guess how the rabid murderer managed to stay out of Azkaban during his absence.

The second was a tall man, with broad shoulders and powerful arms. His face always looked like he was waiting, the vacancy in his eyes saying he didn't know what for. He was the patriarch of the Goyle family and one of Voldimort's favorites. Unlike the bloodthirsty Crabbe or the arrogant and ambitious Malfoy, Goyle lived to serve, a useful trait.

The third man was neither great of height or broad of shoulder. His build, while not scrawny, did not speak of great strength. In fact he walked funny, as if something was wrong with his left hip, and Voldimort knew that vigorous exercise or physical effort caused the man great pain. His face was pockmarked by childhood acne, gaunt and sallow. His name was Ezekiel and he was related to another of Voldimort's followers, Parkinson's wife Patricia. They weren't on speaking terms. The one thing about Ezekiel that was intimidating were his eyes, they were as cold and lifeless as Nagini's own.

It was easy to see the others were not happy with his presence. Crabbe, and thus Goyle, found it an insult to their own ability. Something Crabbe was all to quick to point out.

"We can deal with this barbarian rabble my lord." Crabbe's voice was gruff and scratchy, hard to hear. It was the result of an injury to his vocal cords, one Voldimort knew the man was himself responsible for. Like his son's, Crabbe's voice had been high pitched for his size, not appropriate for someone of his stature and size. So he took steps to 'fix' it. His current growl he felt was far more fitting.

"Give Goyle and I a chance, we will lay this foreign scum before you." His pug face twisted into a leer that though lacking Bellatrix's madness, was far more malevolent. "We can even bring them back for your pleasure, if you wish it."

Voldimort didn't correct the man about his own taste in 'pleasures', Crabbe's appetites are what made him so usable.

"I am here to serve, my lord." Broke in a clear tenor. Hearing that melodious and pure voice coming from Ezekiel's lips was perhaps more intimidating than Crabbe's rasping threats. It was just wrong that such beauty could come from something so rough and ugly.

"And serve you shall, all of you, as I see fit." Like Ezekiel, Voldimort's voice didn't belong with his inhuman face.

The dark lord sipped at his glass, slited eyes measuring the men before him, judging their worth.

"Crabbe, Goyle, you have your chance to prove yourselves. I give you until the New Year to eliminate these hedge wizards from the East. Do it as you see fit, but make sure there is no doubt it was done at my will. I want everyone to know what happens to those who stand in my way. Crabbe..."

"Yes my lord."

"You are given leave to...enjoy yourself."

When he saw the lust grow in the bullish man's eyes, Voldimort felt the need to make one thing clear. "Do not allow your...hunger to interfere. If you fail I will place you alongside Lucious. There is no room for the weak at my side."

The leer and some of the blood left Crabbe's face. The Dark Lord did not make idol threats.

"You can count on us my Lord. After we are finished no one will doubt our strength."

Voldimort leaned back in his chair, dismissing them with a wave.

"Then go and do not fail me. Bellatrix, Ezekiel abide with me, there is other business that awaits our attention."

Crabbe didn't want to leave, he didn't like leaving the little man at his back. He especially didn't like him staying with the Dark Lord, working toward an unknown purpose. Ezekiel hadn't even been a Death Eater twelve years ago, he didn't deserve to stand at his side. The glory belonged to those who had stood the crusade from the beginning. Not daring to argue, he left the room, the silent Goyle treading on his heels.

Once they were gone, Voldimort turned to the two who remained.

Bellatrix was anxious to serve and it showed, shinning in her eyes alongside the madness.

Ezekiel was cold and indifferent. Voldimort knew that the only time the twisted little man showed emotion was when he was playing with the children. Like Voldimort he was a true sociopath. The Dark Lord didn't care what the man did with muggle children, once they finished seizing power he could even have the mud bloods.

"It is time we turn our eyes to the ministry. Soon we will emerge from the shadows."

****

After changing into his Chinese tang, Ranma left his and Akane's rooms and made his way through the old castle. His unfamiliar clothing drew the attention of the students he passed, the memory of his demonstration and the stories of his duel with the Malfoy heir kept it focused on him. Since that day in the arena he was getting a lot of it, most of it positive.

Except for the members of house Slytherin.

The older members of the house that had the option chose to boycott their class since the incident with Draco. The younger members came because they had to, but they made an effort not to learn anything.

Right now, here at Hogwarts, Ranma found their attention a prize to be treasured. Not because of what it was, but because of what it meant. He and by extension his art, had won the respect of the students. Even House Slytherin, the fact they were putting an effort into avoiding him instead of attacking showed their fear which was just another form of respect.

Now all he needed to do was win the respect of the other professors, something he doubted he could do without facing one of them in combat. That, he knew, wasn't likely to happen. Not if he didn't want to get Akane and himself tossed out on their ears.

He paused mid stride, 'I wonder where this Voldemort is? Yea, that would do it.'

He didn't know anything about him, but as scared as everyone seemed to be of this faceless boogeyman beating him should win the respect of every witch and wizard in England. Look what it did for that Potter kid and he only managed to survive.

After the demonstration he had overheard a few of the younger students debating his skills against this Potter's. He wondered if Potter would be interested in sparing. It would be his first real chance to try his art against theirs.

By the time he reached the Whomping Willow his steps were lighter, thoughts of the fight with Akane lost behind the excitement he felt planning the strategies he would use against Potter. He just hoped the kid would be willing and that he wasn't overrated.

The Willow started swinging its branches as soon has he entered its reach, but this time he was expecting it and when it drew its first branch back, Ranma was riding atop it. He lost himself dancing among its branches. It wasn't as good as fighting Pantyhose Taro, in spite of its strength the tree lacked the Chinese boy's skill and mobility. Also, striking wood just wasn't as satisfying as hitting Taro. It was all he had, he would have to make due. At least by limiting himself to remain within its branches he was able to make it a workout and a little challenging.

****

Hagrid was the one to find Ranma. Telling the pig tailed boy that Akane was looking for him and that she said it was important, he was surprised that the boy who was so anxious to see her the last time they were here at this tree, seemed rather reluctant to now.

"Er' Now," he said. "what's eatin at ya?"

Ranma didn't understand what the giant meant, instead giving himself a quick inspection for ticks.

"Is there something on my skin? A bug of some sort."

"No, no." Hagrid waved his arms, dismissing the smaller fellows concerns. "That's not what I mean...What's wrong? Ya look like there's something botherin you. If ya need, I have a friendly ear."

Ranma looked pensive and Hagrid knew that whatever was bothering him, he wasn't comfortable speaking about it.

"Ranma, sometimes it helps to talk about what's botherin ya. Ya know, with your mates."

"Mates?" Ranma questioned, looking first confused then alarmed. "No! There aren't any...I mean, I'm only married to Akane. The others are just..."

Hagrid cut him off, not really understanding what the boy meant but realizing he was confused by his choice of terms.

"Not yer wife. I mean yer friends, people you trust."

"Trust." Ranma found the concept laughable. "Most of my friends would take my words as an advantage, an opportunity to come between Akane and me. As for the rest, while...their kinda perverts. All they ever want to know is if...how far we've gone, or if we've...you know, done it as girls or something. It would be too embarrassing to tell them."

Now it was Hagrid's turn to be confused.

"Perverts! That must've been hard...what, with yer curse and all."

"Yea, well, let's just say the boy's showers aren't one of my favorite places and leave it at that." While saying that, Ranma crossed his arms over his chest, subconsciously covering something that wasn't there.

Hagrid wasn't the brightest of wizards, but he knew teenagers and he easily read between the lines. 'Dumbledore will be wantin to know about this.'

Out loud he said "I can't say for yer friends, but I won't betray yer confidence. What ever you say ta me stays between us. I promise."

Ranma was touched by the giant's sincerity. He just wasn't sure what to do with it.

"Akane's made cause I did something...nothing bad, I mean...she just doesn't understand."

"So why don't ya explain it to her? If'n she understood she wouldn't be angry. At least if ya did nothing bad that is."

"I can't, you see..." Ranma dropped his arms, recognizing his having crossed them as a defensive gesture. Clasping his hands behind his back, his spine stiff and his head held up, he continued in a voice of conviction. "A real man, a martial artist doesn't show weakness. He isn't controlled by his emotions."

Hagrid stared at the marionette beside him in disbelief.

"Where'd ya get that rubbish. What would yer father say?"

The look Ranma gave him in return wasn't one of his more diplomatic. It said 'what, are you stupid'.

"He would say; a real man doesn't show..."

Hagrid waved his explanation off. He was starting to understand the boy's problem and where it came from.

"Then what of yer mom? Surely she would have something different to say."

Ranma bowed in shame. "I don't really know. See, dad took me on a training trip when I was little."

The height he held his hand above the ground let Hagrid know just how little he was at the time.

"I didn't know her until two years ago. I...she's harder to talk to then Akane."

Hagrid put his massive hand on the smaller man's shoulder in a gesture of comfort and support.

"Ranma, trust me when I say a real man ain't afraid of his feelings. Nor of confiding them to those he loves."

Ranma looked up a little timidly, still a child when it came to expressing himself.

"But pops says..."

Again, Hagrid cut him off.

"Ranma. I don't rightly know yer father and I don't mean to upset ya, but...Ranma, it sounds to me like yer father is an idiot."

Hagrid cringed, expecting the boy to become defensive. He was surprised when instead his response was a look of 'well, duh'.

"Well, yea. Everyone knows pops isn't too smart, but..." He didn't know how to continue without sounding weak.

Hagrid tightened his grip on Ranma's shoulder, pulling him to a stop.

"Ranma, I'm gonna give ya some advice because I'm yer friend and that's what friends do for each other. Now, I'm not a pervert and I would never try to hurt ya, so listen ta what I tell ya. Ranma, yer married now. Akane is yer wife and that means...it means that what yer a feelin ain't just yours anymore. If'n it affects you, then it affects her too. If ya try to keep her out yer just gonna hurt her. Do ya understand what I'm sayin?"

The pig tailed boy looked up at him with big eyes, just like the small child he appeared to be standing next to the half giant.

"I...a...no."

Hagrid brought his other hand up to his forehead, feeling a tension headache coming on. How could the boy be so frustratingly naive?

"Ranma, tell her what ya feel. If ya don't...if ya don't she might one day leave ya."

Ranma didn't really understand the big man's warning, but he did understand the threat implied. Knew it intimately.

****

Next chapter: Ranma Exposed

Author's Notes:

I am discovering a deficiency in my writing, namely people not understanding what I am trying to convey. It's a classic example of what I think is obvious, isn't. Most of the time it seems to happen when I'm trying to make a joke. Apparently I don't do humor very well.

For the record; I am not trying to make Ranma accept or become a girl. The acceptance part of his story is recognizing that the others still accept him when he becomes a girl. The only feminizing on Ranma's part will be that once he no longer feels he has to prove he is a man even when he's a girl, he'll stop trying to by acting macho. In the manga the insensitive jerk didn't appear until the entire Tendo family acted to reject him.

Little details like the unicorn wand are supposed to be funny because he isn't a girl. Rather like when an unwitting Nodoka complimented 'Ranko' by telling her she would make someone a wonderful wife one day.

Nodoka dresses 'Ranko' up as a girl for two reasons; One, a traditional woman like herself won't accept what others see as her daughter behaving in a fashion that is embarrassing and unacceptable in the eyes of society. Two, because as she told Kasumi "she makes the cutest faces." Nodoka (and I) find it funny. Ranma does what she tells him because he still fears disappointing her. Her efforts to help him accept his curse are not about her creating a daughter, but about her trying to help him become comfortable with himself. If he found a cure (which he won't, that's like werewolves eating wolf's bane and being cured, not much of a curse) she would be happy with him, even if a part of her might miss playing dress up.

Any actual differences in Ranma and 'Ranko' are purely physical, including the whole girls and chocolate thing. Any psychological differences are based on Ranma's belief that the rules are different for girls. His "guys don't eat ice cream" thing. Sometimes this mental loop hole will allow him to do things he wouldn't be able to otherwise, like accepting intimacy or expressing his emotions. It isn't intended to make 'Ranko' a separate person, it's just one of his hang ups care of Genma's training.

Regarding the curse and Ranma using a wand:

The curse does affect his use of magic, same as it would for any of the other curse victims. I can't imagine a person having that much magic tied to them without it bleeding over. Remember the unicorn wand was intended to be funny, not important to the story.

Ranma's real difficulty with using a wand is based on his being conditioned to see magic in only one way and this isn't it. If he wasn't so indoctrinated in the martial arts he wouldn't be having these problems, might even prove to be just as good with a wand as he is in the art.

Nadrek pointed out to me how ludicrous it would be to invite the Saotomes to the school to teach combat, a school were any physical injury can be healed almost instantly, and then get on their case about hurting their students. I agree, it is ludicrous. It is also based on two real world facts. The first is that most of the other professors don't take them or their class seriously. The second is that while it is perfectly acceptable for a student to be injured in the course of training, it is not acceptable if the injury comes from the hand of a teacher. High school football players get injured while training all the time, it's just part of the game, but if that bruise came from the hands of a teacher then lawyers get involved. It doesn't help any that there are individuals like Snape who are looking for any excuse to get rid of them.

Daniel Stack asked me to provide a back story for Newt calling Ranma "momma". Newt is a two year old with a nursing baby brother. She associates breasts with nursing, so when she calls Ranma momma it isn't because she thinks he is her mother. It's more the two year old equivalent of giggling and saying "boobies". Ranma's embarrassment was intended to be funny.

Jewel, thanks for filling my review list, it's nice to feel appreciated. I hope I managed to answer the concern you and others have expressed about my handling of Ranma-Chan, now I'll try to deal with some others you listed.

A central theme of this story is the separation and differences between the East and West. Dumbledore and the others don't already know about Jusenkyo because they have ignored the magic of China and the East. Only the few who spent time in far off Hong Kong have any interest or clue about that half of the world.

As far as Ranma and the Tendo sisters not receiving letters inviting them to attend a school of witchcraft and wizardry, I was under the impression that Hogwarts catered to the commonwealth of which only Hong Kong is part. The reason they didn't receive a letter from the Japanese equivalent is because in my world the school of Anything Goes martial arts is the Japanese equivalent.

Normally Akane wouldn't be the kind of person to put things off until the first day of school. She returned to Nerima for the sign. If I was writing this again I would mention Soun calling Watford to tell her it was ready. He prepared it at the last minute because he spent the summer away on his own training trip ( viva Las Vegas ).

If you see something you don't understand or agree with, tell me. If possible I will provide an explanation but more importantly, I'll take what you say and try to improve my writing.