Chapter Twenty
Knowing what was on the line, Ranma immediately started to practice skating. Shampoo wanted to practice with him, but as Akane pointed out in the match to come it would help to have at least one experienced skater on the rink. Plus with Akane's vision she had the best idea regarding what to expect from Mikado and Azusa so she had to be in the match.
As for why Ranma had to be in the match instead of Shampoo, there were two main reasons for that. The first and most obvious reason was that it would look more natural for Akane to be partnered with a man instead of another woman. The second and bigger reason came from Cologne.
-Flashback-
"So I'm told that a man has tried to come between my great-granddaughter and her future husband." Cologne said to Akane while she was walking to school alone. Ranma and Shampoo were going by themselves at her pace to help lift the Chinese girl's spirits.
Akane nodded. "Yeah, it's my fault. I should have warned them sooner, then this whole fight could have been avoided."
"Why would you want to avoid it?" Cologne asked.
Akane stopped in her tracks and looked at the elderly woman accompanying here. "What do you mean? Was I supposed to want it instead?"
"Why not? What was so terrible about this event in your vision?" Cologne calmly questioned.
Akane huffed then sighed in annoyance. "It started when the girl tried to take the pet I had in the vision. She challenged me to a fight over him, and me being who I was at the time thought I could handle it. The boy tried to be Prince Charming and kiss me but Ranma stopped him and the boy took it as a challenge so it became a dual fight. Ranma and I were practicing on the ice to get him to skate, and he was in female form at the time. He couldn't control himself and ended up skating out of control then the boy caught him and... kissed 'her'."
"I can see why that would bother you." Cologne replied.
"It bothered Ranma a lot more. You see, not only had a boy just kissed him, it was his first kiss." Akane confessed, then grew rather mellow. "And... I didn't exactly make it better later. He needed someone to comfort him, and what did I do? I laughed." She got mad at herself and clenched her fist. "I laughed in his face like it was a riot. What the hell was wrong with me? I was adding insult to injury, pouring salt in his wound, and I don't even remember why." She shed a tear at her own memory.
"Then what happened?" Cologne asked.
"Well, somehow the subject came to me and Ranma kissing, and I gave him the opportunity. Honestly, if he had done it I wouldn't have hurt him for it. But I must have been giving off some vibe that made him think I didn't want it. Plus then my family butted in and the moment was ruined completely. After all, the dream just sort of jumped forward to the fight. Ranma and I fought the boy and girl, Ranma got injured, and in a bit of confusion we were switched with Ryoga and female-Ranma without anyone noticing, and they kept fighting even though they were fighting each other too. But in the end they won and we never saw the boy and girl again."
"So the worst thing to happen in all this was Son-in-law being kissed and you being a bit immature about it?" Cologne asked, and Akane nodded. "Okay then, I understand your desire to avoid that part, but why try to avoid the entire fight in the first place?"
"The fight was pointless to begin with. Why would I want Ranma to repeat the parts of my vision that are ultimately pointless?" Akane asked.
"Maybe it wasn't pointless." Cologne interjected. "Akane, how strong was Son-in-law at the end of your vision?"
"He managed to kill Saffron. I'm not sure where that fits on a scale of one to ten."
"And he wasn't that strong when he got here right? How did he get that strong in so short a time?" Cologne added.
Akane quickly grasped the point the old woman was trying to make. "Wait, are you saying what I think you're saying?"
Cologne nodded. "Yes child. Your vision does serve a purpose, but keep in mind you cannot and should not change everything you foresaw. It's one thing to protect your fiancee from the dangers to come, but he's not going to get strong without some challenges once in a while. Maybe this fight does ultimately do little in the long run, but each fight makes Son-in-law become better."
Akane took this all in and nodded. "You're right. Each fight is a step up for Ranma, even if just one step. I can't take that away from him. I should help keep him away from many things, but not every thing. Besides, he wasn't kissed by a boy this time so that's enough for me."
"Too bad Shampoo had to suffer in his place." Cologne lamented.
Akane hesitated to say what she thought next. "Before my vision, little would have made me happier than to have Shampoo forced to leave Ranma alone."
"But now...?" Cologne fished.
Akane didn't look at the old woman. "But now... it doesn't. Don't know how else to put it."
-End Flashback-
'I wonder what they would say if they knew the real reason having Shampoo around didn't bother me this time.' Akane thought before shaking the thought from her head. 'No, no one's going to know about that.'
"Ready Ranma?" She asked as she handed him a pair of rented roller skates. She intended to work on his skating first this way so he'd be able to practice better, plus this way the odds of avoiding another Mikado-kiss were much greater.
"Ready as I'll ever be." He said as he put the skates on.
"Is something wrong Ranma?" Akane asked, sensing from his voice that he had no enthusiasm for this.
"Let's just say that if Shampoo didn't need this, I wouldn't be the least bit interested in doing this." Ranma mildly complained.
"Ranma, what exactly is so bad about skating?"
"It's for kids and girls." He insisted.
"Let me guess, your father said that? Ranma, why is it you have no respect for that man yet you still believe whatever he tells you to believe?" Akane pressed.
"What? I do not."
"You dislike skating before you even really try it just because he says you should dislike it. How is that not believing something simply because he told you to believe it?" She justified.
Ranma sighed. "This reminds me of something the Doc told me, how I'm not my old man's ventriloquist dummy and shouldn't say something just because it's what he'd expect me to say."
Akane nodded. "That's true Ranma."
"But still Akane, I've never seen a guy my age do something like this. Skateboard yes, but not roller skate. Besides, kiddish or not I don't think I'd ever want to do this without being required to. It's just not my thing."
Akane took his hand in hers. "That's okay Ranma, you don't have to like this and after the fight you'll never have to skate again if you really can't stand the idea. But for now, Shampoo needs you to win, and you can't win if you can't skate. So stop making this about you and make it about her instead like it's supposed to be."
Ranma sighed. "You're right, this isn't about whether or not I have fun fighting. This time, it's about the win."
Akane smiled. "Isn't it always about the win for you Ranma?"
"More than usual this time." Ranma retorted.
After some practice Ranma was getting the hang of skating. He couldn't move as fast as Akane yet, but he at least could balance on his own. The desire to move faster sparked a sort of race between them, which helped Ranma learn more and even though he was reluctant to admit it, that helped him have fun in this. Fun he assumed he wasn't going to have in this.
'Maybe Akane's right, maybe there's more to training than just finding new ways to win.' He told himself as he relaxed in his room. He had some privacy since Genma was with Soun, Akane was with Kasumi, and Shampoo was working at the restaurant.
'When was the last time I actually had fun in martial arts? I mean, I've been doing it for so long it stopped being a hobby long ago. But at the same time it's so... routine that I guess I don't it for fun, but because I don't feel right not doing it anymore. If that keeps up, I might actually get bored of it and fall in a rut because I wouldn't be trying anymore, just going thru the motions.'
He allowed himself a small grin. 'At least with Akane around I know I have lots of excitement coming my way.'
Downstairs Genma and Soun were seated on the veranda watching the sunset and playing some shogi.
"Saotome, according to my daughter, she and Ranma were about to get married before she woke up." Soun started, moving one of his pieces.
"True Tendo, but how long did it take for our children to get that far in her vision?" Genma asked while moving one of his own pieces, putting Soun in a tight spot.
"From what I gathered, she said it took well over a year. A year filled with a lot of strife that we helped create." Soun replied, trying to think of his next move.
Genma rolled his eyes. "She's a teenager Tendo, as far as she's concerned you simply being there causes her strife. I recall you were quite moody to your own parents on more than one occasion at that age."
"I won't argue that, but I wasn't in an arranged engagement." Soun commented before moving a piece, putting him back in the lead. "Akane says that while what we did wasn't the biggest problem she faced in her vision, it is at least a problem we can resolve."
"And what problem was that?" Genma asked, moving a piece that put Soun back on the defensive.
"She may have been exaggerating a bit, since Akane does tend to do that without realizing it, but the way she puts it, we were trying to get the two of them to fall in love too soon. We were working on our schedule and not giving them a chance to grow closer naturally, at a pace that worked for them."
"Well obviously they weren't trying hard enough if we had to give them a little push." Genma commented.
"Maybe, but my daughter brought up some good points Saotome." Soun stated and made his move. "The fact is our children are only sixteen years old, it's kind of unrealistic to expect them to want to be married so soon. Not to mention that we sort of made a problem for them."
"And what would that be Tendo?" Genma asked, eyeing the board.
"We've been planning on having our children wed since before we had them. So to ensure that was a guarantee we both limited their opportunities to find alternative romantic partners. You more than me, since you kept Ranma devoid of virtually all interaction with girls before Shampoo. I discouraged my daughters from dating, because if one could then the other two would want to as well. Yet despite the fact we knew full well they had virtually no knowledge in handling a relationship, we put them together and pretty much expected them to fall in love on sight. In retrospect that was not our smartest idea."
"Everything we do is for the good of the school." Genma insisted, as if that resolved any dilemma about their actions.
"That may be Saotome, but nothing we do for the school will be any good if we don't think realistically nor take our children's feelings into account. As much as I care for the school and the dojo Saotome, I care for my daughters more. And I am not going to make them miserable just to ensure I don't have to sell the house someday. Are you saying the school means more to you than Ranma does?"
"Our children will learn to be happy together, they just need to get over their hesitation." Genma answered.
"With all due respect Saotome, that wasn't what I asked. If you have to choose between preserving the school or making Ranma happy, which would you choose?"
"I just don't see why we can't have both." Genma stated.
"We can, but maybe we shouldn't try to force such an outcome. After all Akane already wants to marry Ranma, that's half the problem solved right there. And if she knows Ranma as well as she does, it will be easy for her to earn his love without our interference."
"So you're saying we should just sit back and do nothing?" Genma asked indignantly, which was very weird considering the very thing he was opposed to now was what he most loved doing.
"Yes. What's the harm in doing so?" Soun replied.
"What if Ranma decides he'd rather marry someone else like Shampoo or that third girl who's going to show up?" Genma claimed.
Soun lightly narrowed his eyes. "Saotome, you might want to reconsider what you're saying, because it sounds like you're saying your son isn't allowed to be happy unless it's to your liking. And I doubt Nodoka will be happy to hear such an attitude from you when she shows up." At that the bald martial artist tensed but the Tendo patriarch wasn't finished just yet. "Now, you're my friend and I intend to support you, but if it turns out that Ranma is more of a meal ticket than a son to you, then I'm afraid our agreement therefore has no honor and cannot be upheld any longer. I will not base my daughter's marriage on your happiness more than hers."
A few more days of practice and then it was finally time for the match. Ranma had gotten the hang of skating and then Akane made him try it on ice. That was yesterday, and it was harder than he anticipated. But they both had to hope it was enough.
Like in Akane's dream, this match was being held at Kohkotz High School at their ice rink, which was really a frozen over indoor pool, and apparently Mikado and Azusa decided to again make this a spectacle with an audience, calling it the "Charlene Cup" this time. There was even a group of girls in the audience holding up a banner reading 'We Live For Sanzenin' and a group of boys holding a banner saying 'Lovely Azusa'.
Akane was not amused, but even less so when Azusa tried to make another grab for her scarf earlier.
"Charlene needs to be put in a neutral place so the winner can claim her." Azusa insisted, briefly dropping her overly cute act.
"Normally yes, but this scarf is still my property and I don't trust you to not try and take it from me once I let it go." Akane refuted, keeping her scarf hidden securely. Even going as far as avoiding the girl in the changing room.
Ranma and Mikado briefly interacted while getting ready as well. "Best of luck to you in this upcoming duel, though I should warn you no one has ever defeated me before." Mikado said to Ranma while looking at himself in the mirror.
"You know, that might have actually intimidated me if you weren't putting on girl's make-up right now." Ranma responded.
Mikado was at the moment wearing lipstick, mascara, blush, and several other components on his face. Ones he himself had willing put on. "Perhaps you have a valid point." He said before wiping his face clean and looked back at his reflection. "I'm much more beautiful unadorned."
Ranma narrowed his eyes. "By the way, no one's ever defeated me before either."
Mikado smirked and combed his hair for a moment. "Then today one of us has met his match."
In no time both duos were ready to get out on the ice. Shampoo was there in the audience, not willing to miss this match for anything. Cologne was there too in order to determine how genuine the outcome would be. As much as she'd love to just say Shampoo could be with Ranma again, she didn't get to be a leader of her tribe by ignoring the rules when they didn't suit her. The law had to be followed even when you wanted to break it instead, otherwise civilization was just a farce.
An announcer at a desk got their microphone ready and began an announcement. "Thank you for waiting ladies and gentlemen. The competition between Kohkotz High and Furinkan High is about to begin."
"What the heck is he talking about? This has nothing to do with our schools." Akane wondered when she heard this. She wore a red leotard with lavender sleeves and a butterfly emblem right over her heart, along with mid-calf red skates and a yellow flower in her hair above her right ear.
"Someone probably told him otherwise." Ranma suggested. He wore a red fighters shirt with a green dragon snaking around it on both sides, black pants, and regular skates. The effect was based entirely on giving Ranma the ability to fight in the way he was most comfortable doing so as long as he avoided kicks.
"This is the Charlene Cup, a martial arts ice skating duel between the two schools. It will be a one-round match with no time limit." The announcer continued. "First, let's introduce the competitors." The lights started to dim out. "Presenting the Martial Arts Golden Pair..." A couple of lights went back on to create a spotlight. "Azusa Shiratori and Mikado Sanzenin."
From one of the corners the aforementioned duo skated onto the ice in perfect sync. Mikado wore an aqua blue outfit that looked like a mix between a jumpsuit and a tuxedo with a violet bowtie. Azusa wore a pink leotard with puffed up shoulders and several frills resembling flower petals adorning her hips and mid-calf pink skates. For flare after a bit Azusa was lifted up and they posed while gliding, arms outstretched as if asking for applause. Which they got in spades.
Mikado threw a kiss to his fanclub and the girls practically had hearts in their eyes. Azusa playfully winked at her fanclub and the boys howled her name. The two stopped and Azusa was let down, with them standing in the center of the ice rink in a spotlight still.
"Show-offs." Ranma muttered.
"That they are." Akane agreed. "But now there's an unspoken challenge to make yourselves as presentable as them. Otherwise why would anyone care about our side?"
"I'm not doing this for the audience." Ranma claimed.
Akane took his hand into her own. "I agree, but they are here so we might as well give them something worth seeing."
A spotlight came on them this time. "Opposing them is the team from Furinkan High, Akane Tendo and Ranma Saotome." The announcer declared.
"Ready?" Ranma asked.
"I was about to ask you the same." Akane replied, then was surprised by Ranma lifting her up. "Hey! What the-?" He placed her on his right shoulder as if she was seated there.
"Something worth seeing right?" Ranma quoted before heading out onto the ice with her atop him.
Fortunately some people from Furinkan were there too to cheer them on, none with more enthusiasm then Shampoo. Nabiki, in the audience too, was declaring the betting pool now closed and all bets locked in.
'This time sister you better come thru with your predictions.' Nabiki warned, still a little upset over Akane interfering with the betting pool regarding Kodachi's match.
Ranma was unsteady on his feet, still not an expert skater, but thanks to Akane's lessons and practice, he managed to avoid falling down or dropping Akane. They stopped near the center as well and let the audience finish cheering while Ranma let Akane down.
Azusa gave a smug smile to Akane. "You better have Charlene ready for me."
"Trust me, there's no way you're winning today." Akane said, feeling too certain to bother being angry over the girl's attitude.
"The all-out battle begins now! Defeat will be only in the event of knock-out or withdrawal." The announcer proclaimed and then a bell was rung, making the fight now officially started.