Warning: Adult language.
Yet Another Scary Thought.
Prolog: Homecoming
The ground shook in a steady rhythm. At first, the people thought it was thunder left over from the morning downpour. Though there were still standing puddles of water, the sun was out. That was when they heard the shouting.
"You can forget it, Old Man." the voice of a very angry youth came from the distance. "We are going home and that's final. So you can quit your struggling and your whining and your pathetic begging because this trip is OVER!"
From around the corner stepped the youth, not overly tall, but ruggedly good-looking, and very strong. Each step he took shook the ground as pedestrians clamored out of his path. It wasn't that the boy was overly muscular, which he almost was, or overly large, which he wasn't. What made the ground shake so was the burden he carried across his broad shoulders in the form of a giant panda. Easily 5 times as large as the boy, the panda was curled into a ball, crying and rubbing his hands together in fervent prayer.
The boy thundered on, uncaring and didn't look close to slowing down even as children started running around his legs, shouting.
"Kentaro. Look, it's Kentaro, just like my picture books."
"Kentaro never had a panda."
"Maybe they didn't draw the pictures right."
"Who cares? It's a bear, isn't it?"
*I really wish they'd stop that.* the youth muttered to himself.
On his back porch, Soun Tendo soaked in the tranquility of his back yard. He had built his garden with a Zen-like fervor, centered around his family and extended family. It was perfect moments like this that he wished could last forever. They never did.
Soun's meditations were interrupted by the voice of his second best friend. "Soun, postcard for you." Nodoka said, handing it to him.
Soun looked the card over, on one side was a panda eating bamboo,
on the other was the simple message, "I'm coming home." signed Akane.
Soun's joy at the news died short as he looked into the face of his worried companion. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"I don't know, but something is. Look at the card again. It's not 'WE are coming home,' just 'I'. So what happened to Genma? No mention of when they might be arriving or where they've been, just a Chinese stamp affixed to it. And look at the writing. She practically pushed the pen through the cardboard. No, something is very wrong and the worst thing is we can only wait and see."
Soun gave a worried laugh. "Don't you think your making too much of this, Nodoka? What is it, woman's intuition, motherly doting, or insight to rival Sherlock Holmes?" he asked, trying to make a joke.
"All of the above, dear friend." she said with a tight smile,
letting him know it wasn't the least bit funny, and walked out toward the dojo.
He turned his gaze to the garden thinking back to 11 years ago.
"Then it's agreed, our families will be united one day." Soun and Genma said together, their beer mugs clinking together in a solute to seal the agreement, they drained their mugs together and felt quite satisfied with themselves.
"Ah, Soun, it will be glorious." Genma filled both mugs as he spoke. "One family at the top of the martial arts world, all thanks to us. Now that Ranma will be living here and all..."
Soun nearly choked on his beer, "Now hold on, Genma. You can't mean for me to raise your son."
"Well, why not? I know how much you love your daughters. If you want the perfect man for one of them, what better way to be sure of that than to raise him yourself?"
Soun was about to argue with this, but remembered Genma's own upbringing, practically a street urchin, having no social skills;
martial arts had become his only salvation. He also remembered just how much shear luck was involved with Nodoka's courtship and shivered.
Nevertheless, he tried again. "Genma, my friend, I simply cannot afford another child. Kimiko's medical bills are draining us dry, it's all I can do to keep our heads out of debt." he hiccuped, the beer finally affecting him. "It's not that it isn't a good idea, it's just that it's not possible."
Genma drained the last of his beer and poured himself another.
"Well, how about if I take one of your girls off your hands in return?
That way you still only have three children to worry about. But who should it be?"
Soun put his mug down, wiped the foam from his mustache,
thinking, "Not Kasumi. She is such a help around the house while Mother is in bed. Nabiki may be the one to consider."
"Hmm. Don't you think that if Akane and Ranma grew up together,
they might consider themselves brother and sister?" asked Genma in a flash of alcohol induced insight.
"Akane and Ranma would be the preferred match, being closest in age." Soun considered as he drained his mug. "That is a good idea,
though. If you take Akane, you can raise her to be the perfect young woman you want for your son."
"While you raise the perfect young man for your daughter." Genma laughed.
"It's decided!" they said together in another toast, draining their mugs again.
"Hey, Uncle Soun!"
Startled out of his revere, Soun spun around to look for the source, but Ranma had already went past him bounding up the stairs, as he had done everyday after school. By the time Nabiki arrived from school, Ranma was already changed and out in the dojo.
"You look worried, Daddy. What's up?"
"I have got some good news for everyone." he said, "I think."
"You mean you don't know?"
"No, it is good news, but I'd rather tell everyone together."
"Hello, Father. Hello, Nabiki." Said Kasumi coming up behind them.
"Oh, hello, Kasumi. How was classes?"
"Good, I have an anatomy test tomorrow, so I will be studying before I help with dinner." she said going up the stairs.
"Hmm. Dinner is the perfect chance to tell everyone." Soun said to himself.
"Tell us what?" Nabiki asked. She was still hovering over him,
eager to get an early jump on the news.
"You may be right, no use in putting it off." Soun sent Nabiki to fetch Kasumi, knowing it would annoy her, while he went out to the dojo.
He stood in the doorway watching Ranma and his mother move through an agonizingly slow katta with their wooden swords, a perfect mirror of each other, if a mismatched pair. Ranma was in his white gi,
while his mother in full kendo armor. When his mother insisted on teaching him to use a sword, in addition to Soun's kempo and 'anything goes' training, Ranma had somehow come to the conclusion that the armor was feminine. When he was first able to, he started fighting without armor, despite his mother's protests. "A man should make his own decisions," she'd said, "and live with the consequences." So she did not go easy on her son, the scars and bruises he'd received only served to help him learn faster until it was his mother that was hard pressed to keep up. As they finished, they turned to face each other, swords at the ready.
"Excuse me," Soun interrupted, "could you both come inside, I have an announcement to make."
"Of course." Nodoka put her bokken down and followed. Taking the face-guard off, she gave her son a look he couldn't read.
Everyone gathered in the living room where Kasumi was busy pouring tea for her father, Nodoka, and herself.
After sipping the tea, Soun straightens up. "I have some good news. It seems Akane is coming back very soon."
"Oh, that's wonderful, Father." Said Kasumi.
"'Seems'? What's the catch?" asked the ever-cynical Nabiki.
"Well, we don't know when, actually." He handed the postcard to Nabiki.
As Nabiki examined the card, Nodoka pressed forward, "This is good news. Now we can begin to truly fulfill the promise to unite our families."
"This is about the engagement, again, isn't it?" said Ranma.
"Mom, I thought we talked about this..." Shouting and the crash of something large at the front gate cut off whatever he was going to say.
"I'll see who it is." Nodoka said quickly, grateful for the interruption.
When Nodoka opened the door, she wasn't sure what to expect, but the site of a blond haired, well muscled, handsome young man depositing a giant panda on the ground like it were a mere sack of rice was certainly not it. The boy turned toward her.
"Mom?"
Nodoka took a step back, unsure how to handle this. The boy was obviously mistaken, but he was also on the verge of tears. Handling this would take some care and...
"MOM!"
Nodoka was caught up in a fierce embrace. All protests died as the air was expelled from her lungs. Being crushed against a very manly chest, she couldn't get the air needed to demand an explanation.
"Here now. What's this all about?" Soun came around the corner closely followed by Ranma.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing?"
The rest of the household residents came around the corner.
Ranma was about to jump on the intruder when the tall boy looked up tears running down his face. "Kasumi?" he said to the oldest girl, who only blinked. "Nabiki?" to the girl shifting her weight to the other foot. "Dad?"
"'Dad'?!" Kasumi and Nabiki said together looking at their father.
"Er... I... That is..." Soun stammered.
At last the visitor shifted his gaze to Ranma. "Who are you?"
"That's my question. Who do you think you are coming in here and mauling my mother like that?"
"Your mother? Then she's not...?"
Soun interjected. "This is the wife of a very dear friend of mine." No one noticed the panda flinch a little.
"I'm sorry. It's just that I've looking forward to coming home for a long time now."
"You must be mistaken, I have never had a son."
"No, Dad. It's me Akane."
"I'm sorry, Akane was a girl."
"But, I..."
"Look," Ranma said, cutting the boy off. "let's save this discussion for later."
"Why should we?" the boy said angrily.
"Because your panda is about to get loose on the city." Ranma gestured toward the gate. The spot where should have been a panda now only had a sign stuck into the ground that read, [Sorry 'bout this.]
The boy sprinted tot he gate with Ranma close on his heals. "Get back here, Old Man." He caught up to the panda only 10 feet from the gate. "You are coming back to help me explain..." He stopped as the sound of gate being locked came to his ears. "T-that utter and complete... ASSHOLE!"
Ranma slipped the bolt into place and turned back to the house,
clapping his hands together. "That takes care of that."
"I don't think so, son." Nodoka said, "If that boy knew something about Akane, we should have heard him out."
"Come on, Mom. The guy was a loon. Even I know Akane is a girl.
He was probably some circus escapee looking for a free ride."
Ranma jumped several feet to the side as a thousand pounds of giant panda landed ungracefully in the yard next to him. The new boy jumped up to the top of the wall.
Ranma glared at him, "You got a lot of nerve throwing your pets into our yard like that, buddy. Who are you, anyway?"
Without sitting up, the panda whipped out a sign reading, [I am not a pet.]
"My name is Akane Tendo, I live here."
"Akane Tendo is a girl, you half wit."
"Listen, jerk. I don't even know you and already I've had up to here with you..."
"That's enough, you two." Nodoka stepped forward. To the boy,
she said, "Please, come inside, let's see if we can straighten this out."
The boy jumped from the wall, kicked the panda in front of him as they entered the house. Ranma entered last, glaring at the new boy all the way in.
Inside, Soun and Nodoka were already seated. The panda made one last desperate break for the back yard. The boy sprang forward,
grabbing the teakettle still on the table, and whipped it at the panda,
catching him unerringly on the back of the head. "Got 'im." he muttered, still holding the pitchers pose. Everyone got up to look for the panda in the back yard.
Instead, they found a man in an off-white gi and glasses with an empty teakettle on his head. He sat up, chuckled nervously, "Ah, heh,
heh... Hello, Soun. Nodoka. Long time no see."
"Genma..." started Nodoka.
"Saotome..." finished Soun.
Realizing what had just happened, the pair dealt with it the best they could. They both promptly and efficiently fainted in unison.
Ranma looked from the bald man in the yard, to his mother, to the new boy, and back again. Kasumi went to the kitchen for some cold compresses. Nabiki was taking her time examining the boy from all angles.
"Nabiki," he said, "I know it's strange, but believe me. I really am... Wah-ha-HOO!"
"...A guy." said Nabiki, having just cupped the boy to check for gender.
"Nabiki. Don't be rude." said Kasumi coming back in.
"A big guy." she whispered, staring at her hand.
"Oh, my." Kasumi said, stopping in mid-step.
"That was totally uncalled for!" the boy shouted.
"Listen," Nabiki said, taking a step toward the boy, who was now wide eyed and pressing himself back against the wall. "It's going to be a while before our parents wake up, so why don't you take time for a bath. You know, wash the road off you."
"Th-that sounds pretty good." he said, edging his way around Nabiki.
"And don't worry about the panda, I'm sure Ranma will help keep an eye on him."
"Right. Thanks." He turned and sprinted to the bathroom.
Nabiki walked to her room to gather some equipment, when it occurred to her, *How did he know where the bathroom was?*
"Pop?... er... Father? Is that really you?" Ranma was finally coming out of his trance, stepping into the back yard.
Genma squared his shoulders and straightened hi gi. "Yes, Son.
It's me. Not exactly the home-coming you imagined, is it?"
"You could say that. Where did you go? What happened? Who..."
"Son." Genma interrupted, "Those are all good questions, and they deserve answers. But I would rather wait and explain it to everyone at once. Help me with your mother, will you?"
"Sure, Father."
"I think I like 'Pop' better, Ranma." as they picked up Nodoka and took her into the living room.
The boy dumped the cold water over himself. *This sucks. It wasn't supposed to be this way. I'm not home ten minutes, already I've been insulted, rejected, and groped." He poured shampoo on his head and lathered up. *That woman is married to the Old Man, I wonder how that happened. Hard to imagine him making time with any woman let alone
getting married. She's definitely not my mom, though. Maybe she's just
out shopping or something.*
Nabiki clicked the shutter on the camera once again as the boy rinsed his hair, picked up the soap, stood and began lathering himself.
*This is too easy. The guy is practically posing for me.* click
*God, there is just something about soap on a man that can make impure woman of you.* click *This is going to go over big at school.*
click *Mmm, I do mean big.* click *Gotta remember to keep a little something for myself as well.* click *Woopsie. It's behind you. Pick up the soap. Pick up the soap!* click *Thank you.*
The boy picked up the showerhead to rinse the lather off his body. *Kasumi seems nice. Nabiki, though. I don't know what's up with her.* He stepped into the warmth of the tub, feeling his body begin to shift and reform. *Then that jerk. Who the hell was...?*
A sound came from just outside the door, as if something was tipped over and someone scrambling for a hasty retreat.
"Who would DARE...?"
With Soun and his Mom comfortable in the living room, Ranma was on his way to his room to get change out of his gi. Nabiki suddenly burst out of the bathroom and sprinted past him to her room. As she passed him, she clapped him on the shoulder and whispered, "Tag." It was an old sign between them, meaning she was in trouble and Ranma had to clean it up. *Spying on the guy already. Can't say that is too surprising.* he laughed as he watched her jump into her room, but still have the presence of mind to close the door quietly.
The bathroom door sprang open again. A dripping wet girl wrapped in a towel stormed out. Her muscular physique stood out against her smooth skin. She could easily be considered cute, if she didn't appear to be looking for somebody to kill. Ranma stepped back as he realized she was looking directly at him.
"PERVERT!"
He didn't even see blow that spun him around and embedded his face in the wall. The bathroom door slammed closed again as he pulled his face out of the hole he'd just made. *She's fast. Who was she?*
he was thinking as he checked his jaw. *Strong, too. *
He walked over to Nabiki's door and knocked. She opened it a crack and said with a shaky voice, "I am not dealing with this right now, Ranma." and moved to close it.
"Ahem." He turned his face to show her the side that was red and already beginning to swell a little.
"All right. Ten thousand off your debt." and moved to close the door.
"Not yet." He stopped the door again, pointing to the impression in the wall.
"Damn. All right, fifteen thousand. Now just go." and she closed the door.
"I'll make a note of it. he said to the door and left, wondering what could have shaken Nabiki up like that. He shrugged and decided to let someone else deal with the naked girl in the bath.
Genma sat next to the sleeping forms of his best friend and his beautiful wife, wishing them happy dreams while he could. He did not look forward to them waking up. He thought of his son. By all appearances, he was the man Nodoka had wanted him to be.
His thoughts were interrupted as she began to stir.
"Husband. It's true. You're home. But... the panda... I saw..."
"There is time enough for that later. Let's wait until everyone is here."
"And Akane?" asked Soun, sitting up suddenly His face suddenly two inches away.
"Taking a bath. You two rest a little longer. We have plenty of time."
A voice came from behind him. "Father?"
"Akane? Is that my little girl?" Soun got out of the bedroll,
looking at the beautiful girl dressed in Chinese clothes with her hair cropped short.
She went to embrace him. "It is. I'm home." After a few seconds, she let go and turned to Nodoka. "I'm sorry about the misunderstanding earlier." Nodoka only looked back at the girl questioningly. "So where's Mo..."
Genma cleared his throat. "We should get everyone in here so we can get the show on the road, eh?"
Soun called everyone into the living room. Ranma now dressed in loose slacks and a Tokyo Dragons T-shirt, sporting an ice pack for his chin. He only glanced at the girl in Chinese clothes, as she was glaring at him with a promise of enduring pain at her hands.
After a few moments of silence, Genma started to sweat, "It's difficult to know where to begin."
"Let's start by clearing the confusion." Akane said as she came up behind Genma, grabbing him by the gi. Genma quickly reversed the hold, hauling the girl over his shoulder and depositing her into carp pond.
"Genma!" Nodoka admonished, but it was too late. A tall, blond haired boy stepped out of the pond, fairly shaking with anger.
"Akane is a guy now." said Kasumi.
"A... big... guy." said Nabiki, turning slightly pale.
Genma hung his head, tears streaming down his face. "Thus begins my road to shame." A spin kick later and a splash later, a giant panda stands in the pond.
"If this is your shame, why am I the one paying for it?" Akane roared and swung his fist, hitting the panda with enough force to lift him out of the pond and into the yard. The two continued to battle,
neither gaining the upper hand.
Everyone watched, stunned, as the martial arts panda fought against a boy who was suppose to be a girl, no one noticed Nodoka leave the living room, taking some very determined steps as she left.
"That's quite a daughter you've got there, Uncle." said Ranma.
He looked around only to find Soun on the floor again.
"Oh, my." Kasumi said, drawing everyone's attention to what she was looking at.
Nodoka stepped back into the living room brandishing her family honor sword. Never hesitating or looking around she headed out to the back yard. The panda suddenly broke off fighting and was starting to backpedal as fast as it could. Akane watched in horror as Nodoka's eyes burned, never leaving her black and white target. Now she understood why Genma had insisted on staying away.
"Wha...? Woah, woah..." Ranma hurried to step in front of his mother. "Woah! Mom! Wait." She looked at him. "Please."
"Get out of my way, Son. Whatever the reason, this goes way beyond what we agreed to."
"Mrs. Saotome," Akane stepped forward. "as much as I am angry about this it was only an accident. It's not worth killing someone over."
"There, Mom. You see? You wouldn't let somebody die before you get the full explanation, would you?"
Nodoka nodded slowly, "Very well. I will listen. I suppose the hot water will work just as well a second time, won't it?"
"Yes. It will." Akane let out a sigh and headed back to the house.
After everyone's was humanity and proper gender were restored and the story of Jusenkyo told, a moment of silence filled the room.
Soun broke into tears, wailing, "Oh, my poor little girl."
Sill massaging her temples, Nodoka spoke up. "Genma, what were you thinking?!"
"It's listed right here in this guidebook." he said producing the pamphlet.
Nabiki picked it up and leafed through it. "Let me guess, you don't read a bit of Chinese."
"Not a word."
"That's why this is all your fault!" shouted Akane.
"Oh, my poor little girl!" Soun wailed again.
"You really did go too far, Mr. Saotome." Kasumi said.
"Genma, how could you be so careless?!" Nodoka stood up again,
picking up the honor sword.
Genma big-sweated, "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
"Wait! I got it!" shouted Ranma, who had been reading over Nabiki's shoulder. "Pop, how many of these training grounds did you visit?"
"'Pop'?!" Nodoka looked at her son.
Genma smiled catching on. "We've visited several hundred training sites before Jusenkyo. We've beaten them all. We would have visited several hundred more, if it wasn't for these curses. I didn't have any reason to expect this one to be any different. With a name like 'the Cursed Springs' I expected it to test the limits of our training."
Ranma blinked expecting 10 or 20, 50 at the most. "Is it true?" he turned to Akane.
"I guess so." she said, "It did look a little too easy. I mean it was just a test a balance and coordination. The guide tried to warn us that the water below wasn't just for cushioning your fall. I shouldn't have let my guard down, anyway." She practically whispered that last part, in self-admonishment.
Nodoka lowered the sword and turned, "Akane, dear. Answer me truthfully. Would you still be out training if it wasn't for your curse?"
"I... well... probably. I mean, I've been wanting to come home for a while now. Yeah, I guess we would have beaten a few more sites before coming home or at least the ones on the way home."
"All right, I'm convinced." Nodoka sheathed the katana again.
"As much as it could have been avoided, it was an accident. Anything more, you will have to answer to Soun."
Genma turned to his best friend and waited.
"If you were not cursed as well, I would have never forgiven you." Soun said at last. "But as you suffer along with Akane,
sacrificing so much for the sake of the art... I can forgive you."
"Thank you, old friend."
"But how could you do this to my little girl!?" he wailed,
braking into tears again.
Nodoka sighed. "Now with that's out of the way, we can proceed with the next order of business."
"Right." said Ranma. He turned to face Soun. "I am sorry, Mr.
Tendo. Our family will...
"...Go though with the engagement, of course." finished Nodoka.
"...what?" said Ranma, blankly.
Soun stood up, pulled out the Japanese fan, "Happy day! This is truly a joyous occasion."
Akane blinked at her father's sudden emotional reversal. What was said started to register and she was getting that old sinking feeling. She raised her hand. "Um, excuse me. What engagement?"
"Why, your engagement to Ranma." Soun immediately embraced his youngest girl. "Aren't you happy, Akane?"
"My WHAT?!"
"You didn't tell her?" Nodoka asked her husband.
"I thought it would be best if we trained without any silly distractions. There's was always plenty of time to discuss it later."
he replied.
Nodoka went back to massaging her temples.
"I don't believe this!" Akane shouted at her father. "I'm not even back a whole day and your already trying to get rid of me again?!"
"No!" Nodoka's head snapped up. "Akane, dear, no. You must never say that. You mustn't ever think it. This is your home. You belong here. We are only trying to ensure your future as well as the future of the noble and honorable school of Anything Goes Martial Arts."
"Wait a second, Mom." Ranma pitched in. "If she feels she is not ready to get married, you shouldn't force her. Maybe this was a bad idea."
"Our families are the last two practitioners of the Anything Goes school. Honor demands it be united under one roof. You know this,
Ranma. The Saotome and the Tendo clans must be joined."
Ranma lowered his head in defeat. Ranma knew it was useless to argue with his mother when it came to matters of honor. Finally he looked out of the corner of his eye. "Nabiki, you free?"
"Not in your lifetime, Romeo." Nabiki said without hesitating.
Ranma looked over, "Kasumi?"
"I have homework to do." she said, excusing herself from the table.
"Then it's decided, you shall marry Akane." stated Nodoka.
"Mom, wait. There has to be some way around this. I mean, yes,
I was ready to marry some ugly chick for the sake of honor..."
"Ranma!" Nodoka admonished.
"Hey!" Shouted Akane.
"This is serious, Mom. Could you imagine the wedding night? You didn't raise me to be some limp-wristed, cake-boy. I can't marry some guy."
"She is a girl, Ranma. We've already established that."
"Not anymore, she isn't. She's a violent tomboy when she is a girl, and if what Nabiki says is true, when she's a guy, she's a greater man than me."
Nabiki spit out the tea she'd been drinking. "Don't drag me into this, Saotome."
"That's it." Akane marched over and stood in front of Ranma.
"Like you're such a freekin' prize. You lock me out of my own home,
peek on me in the bathroom when I'm a guy..."
"Ranma!" Nodoka said again.
"On top of that, you insult me. You have to be the biggest, most perverted, insensitive jerk I have ever met."
"Listen, you muscle-headed..."
"That will be quite enough, Ranma Saotome!" Nodoka said,
leveling an even stare at her son.
Ranma gritted his teeth and let out a sigh. When his mother used his full name, he knew he had pushed a little too far. He turned to Akane and bowed, "I'm sorry I insulted you. I'm sorry I locked you out of your own house. As far as peeking in the bath," he glanced at Nabiki, "I tripped on the steps, so if you assumed I was peeking, then that's you're own fault." He stood up straight, again. "But, there is still no way this marriage is going to happen." He turned and marched up to his room.
"You're right," Soun said to Genma in a stage whisper, "they do make a perfect couple."
"Dad!" Akane stamped her foot. "I can't believe you are all so set on this. What does Mom say about it? Where is she anyway?"
The three adults looked at each other as Nabiki stopped in mid-
bite of her cracker.
"What?" Akane, said, beginning to feel uneasy.
"You didn't tell her." Nodoka said to Genma, more as a statement than a question.
"The subject never came up." He was beginning to sweat again.
"GENMA!"
"She made such great improvements in the beginning, I was so proud of her. It seemed a shame to waste that kind of progress."
"What are you guys talking about?" Akane interrupted. Soun broke into tears again. Genma was doing his best impression of a statue.
Nodoka told the story. "When you were very young, we agreed to unite the houses as well as pairing you with Ranma. We also agreed to raise you to be the perfect young woman we would want our son. Soun,
in turn, would do the likewise with Ranma. When your mother took ill,
you were so very young, we didn't know what her illness would do to you. Genma took you on that training trip, while I moved here to help with the household. When she died...
"No..." said Akane in a very small voice.
"...we were already training." Genma finished.
"... you bastard."
"Akane?" said Nodoka.
Akane launched herself past Nodoka, tackling Genma. "Why!?" she asked twice, bouncing his head off the floor each time. He never fought back. She lifted him off the floor by his gi, slamming him into the wall. "Why did you keep me from her!? I should have been here!
I could have..."
"... could have what? What could you have done? Nothing! It was cancer. There was nothing any of us could have done. If you had been here, you would have watched a good woman slowly and very painfully waste away until it was a blessing that she died. Think,
girl. What would that have done to you? What does that do to any child that age? I tried to spare you that pain."
Akane slowly let go of his gi. "This was the cruelest..." her voice caught in her throat. "I don't know if I can forgive you for this." she said in a whisper letting him drop to the floor.
"Akane, dear. Come with me. I'll show you to your room."
Nodoka led her by the arm, she followed automatically.
Once they were in her room, Nodoka said, "I know how you feel."
"How?! How can you possibly know how I feel?"
"She was my best friend. She was the one who introduced me to Genma. We were all changed by her passing. He was right, in a way.
It was painful, for everyone. He may not have been right for not telling you, but he had his reasons. Did you know he was an orphan at your age? So, he does know about that kind of pain. If you must blame anyone for what you are feeling right now, blame me. I promised your mother I would look after all her daughters, always. I may have failed you before, but never again."
She put her arms around the girl, Akane broke down crying on the older woman's shoulder, "It's not fair. It's just not fair." After she cried herself to sleep, Nodoka tucked her into her bed, and quietly left.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
end prolog.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
For the rundown on the legend of Kentaro, watch the first few tapes Urusei Yatsura. If that's not available, think of him as a Japanese Daniel Boone. And if you don't know who Daniel Boone is, read a book.
And for those that don't know, the Tokyo Dragons are a baseball team.
For all you Akane fans out there expecting her to be the main focus of attention, I'll tell you right now, I'm not planning on it. She is only one player in the whole scheme of Nerima, a major one, true, but by no means the only one.
Questions and comments always welcome. I know this ended on a dark note, but don't always expect it to be this way. I am planning an epic.
Thanks to T. H. Tiger for pre-reading.
-David Battley dbattley