Legal: The characters of Ranma ½ were created by the great Rumiko Takahashi.
I am using them without permission, hopefully for the purpose of entertaining someone. If anyone who has a right to sue me has that desire, I have almost no money.
C&C is appreciated, you can contact me at brenda02@sprynet.com. And if you want to see the earlier parts of this and my other stories, you can find them at http://home.sprynet.com/~brenda02/Keith/Animeff.htm
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A Ranma ½ Fanfict
Surreal Genius
By Brendan O'Donnell
Part five
Somewhere in the wilds of Japan a solitary figure in a worn and dusty cloak was walking. "Ranma," he whispered to himself as he continued down the road. Hearing a rumbling sound he looked over his shoulder. An enormous boar was charging at him. He scowled and turned around.
The cloaked figure drew his right hand from beneath his cloak and raised it to about chest level, curling the fingers into a claw. His lips curled back as he snarled menacingly. The boar almost fell over stopping it's charge. It looked at it's opponent a moment before turning and running back the way it had come as fast as it's legs could move. The globe of black laced blue fire in the figure's fight hand dissipated as he lowered his hand to his side. Turned back to the way he had been going, the figure walked on, straight past the sign saying "Tokyo, turn right now."
Ranma opened the closet in his new room. From the top shelf he removed the one suitcase he had never unpacked. Taking it down he adjusted the two combinations and opened it. He looked inside closed his eyes and sighed a very tired sigh. "I hope Kasumi will help me get this dress ironed for tomorrow, otherwise I might have to buy another one." He looked at the neatly packed bra and panty. "Or worse." He shuddered.
"Hello Ranma." Kasumi said with a smile as she turned from hanging the laundry to dry.
"Hi Kasumi. I assume Nabiki and Akane told you about tomorrow, do you want to come? I'm sure Mom'd love having you."
"No, I have a few things to do. But it's sweet of you to ask." She smiled. Then she looked at the dress Ranma had slung over his shoulder. "What's that?"
Ranma sighed slightly. "A dress. I packed it away last month, and I was hoping you could help me get it looking presentable for tomorrow." *So Mom doesn't have any excuse to buy me a new one.*
Kasumi took the dress from Ranma. It was a blue dress, very simple design. Looking it over Kasumi's experienced eye deduced two facts by comparing the cut to Ranma's form. First, Ranma had picked this dress because it was neither tight enough to slow her movements, nor loose enough to become tangled when she moved fast. Secondly, "Oh my, this will look absolutely adorable on you."
Ranma winced, then forced himself to smile. "Mom helped me pick it out last month. There are a lot of dresses that you can't kick properly in you know."
Kasumi smiled and replied, "I know, Akane's complained about it to me a few times."
"Ah, I guess she would. Um . . ."
"Don't worry I'll have this all ready for you tomorrow."
"Thanks. Are you sure you wouldn't come with us?"
"This is your time with your mother. I've shopped with her enough this week, and I really do have things to do."
" . . .OK, thanks again." Ranma said as he went back to his room.
Akane sat in her room looking into a mirror as she slowly put on her makeup. Her hair was loosely braided and hung down her back, and she was wearing a nice yellow dress with floral patterns.
"Akane . . ." Nabiki said as she walked into the room, then she trailed off as she looked at her sister. "Getting nice and pretty for your future fiancee and mother in law?" she said with a smirk.
"Nabiki!!" Akane replied, turning to look at her sister. Nabiki was wearing a red skirt, a blue and white striped blouse, and a light orange jacket. "I'm just making sure I look my best."
"Ah, you're scared that Ranko might look better than you." she responded with a grin.
Akane looked at her sister with angry eyes. *Do you have to blurt it out?* "Why should I be scared by anything that fake girl does?!"
"Because he's a better martial artist than you, and you're worried he might be better at being a girl."
Akane glared at her sister, then she turned away with a 'Humph!"
Nabiki shut the door and walked to Ranma's room. *I shouldn't taunt Akane like that, but she did help Ranma with that little joke. Ok when I go in I'll say something like 'Wow, no wonder Kuno's so nuts about you.'* She suppressed a malicious chuckle as she knocked at the door to the room that was now Ranma's.
"Ranko, are you ready?"
"No!" Ranma responded in the most curt and abrupt voice Nabiki had ever heard her use. With a grin she opened the door.
"Do you need any help?" She looked at Ranma dressed in a gorgeous light blue dress her arms contorted around her back. "You need a zip right?"
Ranma ignored her a moment then brought her chopsticks bearing right hand back in front and said "No that should do it."
Nabiki looked at her and grinned slightly, "Creative I see."
"Is there something you want Nabiki?"
"I just want to see if your ready. My you're gonna have to beat the guy's off with a stick."
"A stick?" Ranma replied with a puzzled look on her face. "Anything Goes is primarily unarmed."
Nabiki glared at him a moment then started laughing. Ranma joined her.
"Ranko, Akane, Nabiki." Nodoka called up the stairs.
"Coming mom." Ranma replied as he stepped out of his room followed by Nabiki.
Akane walked out of her room a second later. She stopped to look over Ranma a second. *He does look pretty good, but I'm not going to say anything to him about it.*
"Wow." Ranma commented looking Akane over. "you look great."
*Well, It's better to be polite . . .* "You look pretty good yourself. For a boy in a dress."
Ranma closed her eyes a moment then said "Just for today I'm supposed to forget about being a boy and get in touch with my feminine side." *As if.* She opened his eyes. "Let's go."
"Now that would look absolutely stunning on you Ranko!" Nodoka commented as she looked into the window of the shop.
Ranma looked. Her mother was contemplating a frilly white strapless dress. Ranma pictured herself in the dress for a moment. Very feminine. "It's really not me."
"Oh but at least try it on first. You might be surprised." Nabiki commented with a smile on her face.
Ranma paused as she saw the boutique three stores to the right. Se stepped up to his mother. Nodoka glanced at her and she said "If you so much as say the word lingerie I'm going to start using the house as a testing ground for chemical weapons."
Nodoka looked at Ranma, but her response was cut off.
"Pig Tailed Girl!" Screamed Kuno as he ran down the mall, arms extended right into Ranma's foot. He shook his head a moment than continued, "How wonderful that fate has brought us together this day!" He grabbed Akane's hands. "And it has also guided the vital huntress Akane to my side as well. If fate has decreed I shall not oppose her generosity, I SHALL DATE YOU BOTH!" This time he was shut up by Ranma and Akane's combined kicks.
"Who is this boy Ranko?" Nodoka asked as she looked at Kuno's form lying on the ground in front of them.
"Mom, that is Tatewaki Kuno."
"Mother?" Kuno said as he rose again. "Greetings then, fair woman. Had I not now been told of your relationship to the fair Pig-Tailed Girl it would have been obvious for you share her beauty. Indeed I am happy to finally meet the woman who shall one day become my mother in law." He grabbed at Nodoka's hands, which she yanked out of the way.
Looking at Kuno with a very bored expression Nodoka said. "Well Ranko, I see you weren't exaggerating when you said he was more arrogant than your brother." Ranma's eye twitched a second.
"Ranko? That is the true name of the Pig-Tailed Girl?" He pulled out a very old fashioned writing set and knelt on the ground. "I must prepare the ink lest I forget!"
Ranma looked at Kuno. She looked up and glanced at the shops. With a grin she stepped forward and kicked Kuno's inkstone. Kuno grabbed his other writing supplies and ran after it. Right into the "Sanshiro Marital Arts Boutique."
Akane commented "Ranko that's cruel!" Then started laughing.
Nabiki said "Wait here, I've got to see this." Pulling Noriko's camcorder from her purse she entered the store.
"Then he decided he should write a poem while he was 'inspired by your love' and started ranting, first he'd say something about Ranko then about Akane, and then he was screaming about how he loved you both." Nabiki ate the forkful of Spaghetti and looked at the others. "So there he was kneeling in front of that shelf of silk panties ranting about how he couldn't choose. He seemed so out of it that I decided to see just how much." She took a sip from her glass of water. "So I grabbed this black lacy panty and slipped it on his head. He didn't even blink!" The four women all giggled together.
"If it was anyone but Kuno I'd think you were being excessively nasty." Ranma commented.
Nabiki looked at her. "Say Ranko, Noriko says that computer of yours can get pictures from these tapes?"
"It's a simple function." Ranma replied.
"Well do you think you could make a few pictures for me? A lot of kids at school would love to see Kuno in that sort of position." She grinned as the thought of the potential profits.
"No trouble."
The party was siting in a booth at a ice-cream Parlor. Ranma was looking her parfait over, tapping the glass with her spoon a few times before scooping a small spoonful into her mouth. "MMMM!!" she commented. "I didn't know parfaits tasted so good." She commented as she sank her spoon deep into the dish, then pulled it out and scooped another small bite.
Nodoka dropped her warning glare to comment, "You haven't had one before?"
"Well I only have so much time to visit shops like this, and when I'm with dad he's constantly going on about what guy's should and shouldn't do." Ranma stopped talking to scoop herself another small spoon of ice-cream, this one catching part of the peppermint stick in the parfait.
"Noriko said you and your father went on a lot of training trips." Nabiki commented
"Yeah, I started training when I was little, and Dad always made a point about Mom not 'coddling' me too much. Of course dad being such a moron . . ."
"Ranko! You know you shouldn't talk that way about your father!" Nodoka said. "Even if it is true," she added.
"I'm not saying anything that's not obvious." Ranma replied. Turning to Akane she said, "When I was about eight I took over most of the logistical work on the training trips. Dad didn't mind in general but ever so often he'd start ranting about how I didn't trust him. Well I'd generally let him plan a training trip, and every single one was totally botched. The only reason I'm cursed is because I decided I could trust pop to pick one item on our itinerary. Naturally that was Jusenkyo. He didn't speak a word of Chinese and we all knew it, but he'd rather go somewhere he didn't know anything about than ask for help translating the pamphlet."
"Wow, your father sounds really . . ." Akane trailed off glancing at Nodoka.
Genma sneezed. Soun looked at him from across the shoji board and asked, "Are you feeling well Saotome?"
"I'm fine Tendo." He picked up a piece and slapped it onto the board. "You're minds not on the game."
"Of course not!" Soun replied. "This is a perfect opportunity for us to bring our children together to unite our families and we're sitting here playing shogi! We should be following them and helping Ranma discover how much he loves Akane! Or Nabiki!"
Genma looked at him and commented, "You've never seen my wife when she's angry have you." Soun looked at him with a confused expression. Genma continued, "The master himself was scared of her."
Soun blanched. Looking at the board he commented, "Perhaps some things are better left unknown." He set a piece on the board.
Genma placed another piece of his own. "Check."
"Wait let's start over."
"You know what I don't understand is how you managed to do so well in school despite all those training trips." Nabiki said.
"Well . . ." Ranma commented thinking to herself. "Actually when I started kindergarten I did really bad. C's and D's pretty much. Dad alternated between being mad about the grades and loudly declaring how much more important the Art was. Mom was just supportive. Anyway I decided to approach the situation like any martial arts problem, and take a step back to examine it."
"You looked at school as a martial arts problem." Nabiki stated looking at her half lidded.
"You know, you beat an opponent by understanding the opponent. Anyway I decided to visit the library to try to get some outside perspective. I identified the subjects I was having trouble with, checked out every relevant book, and read them cover to cover twice each. By third grade I was getting straight A's and skipped straight to fifth."
Ranma scooped the last of his parfait into her mouth. "Ok, how about the chocolate one next?"
"Girls have to watch their figure's Ranko. Still you haven't had parfaits before and you are very active." Nodoka said smiling.
"Arigato Mom." Ranma responded, before glancing at the TV set by the counter. "Hey isn't that?"
"I do believe it is, Ranma." Nodoka responded. "I wonder how your friends are?"
"Well I sent them a letter after I got back but I haven't gotten a reply yet. You know how it is with snail mail."
Nodoka suppressed her confused look and replied. "Uh, yes . . ." She blinked a moment, looking past Ranma toward the door to the restaurant.
Ranma was turning her head to see what she was looking at when a pair of arms grabbed him from behind. She caught a glimpse of purple hair as a voice she hadn't heard in months proclaimed "Nihau Ranma!"
"Shampoo!"
"It good to see Ranma again!" Shampoo released Ranma and looked her over. Her happy expression turned puzzled. "Why Ranma wearing dress?"
"Could you call me Ranko for today." Ranma responded rubbing her forehead with her right hand. She dropped the hand and looked straight at Shampoo. In the dialect of Shampoo's prefecture she said, "Mom decide I spend day every month pretend be twin sister Ranko. Touch in with feminine side and that."
"Ah, Shampoo understand. And Ranko talk Japanese. Shampoo need practice to speak better."
"So who's your friend?" Akane asked in a neutral voice.
"Oh sorry. Akane, Nabiki, this is Shampoo of Joketsuzok, rightful heir of 3000 years of marital arts mastery. Shampoo, these are Akane and Nabiki Tendo, Akane is the heir of the Tendo school of Anything Goes Martial Arts."
"Tendo school not Saotome school, yes?"
Nodoka responded, "Genma and Soun both studied under the same sensei. After they . . . left him their schools can be considered to have diverged."
"Ah, Shampoo understand. Shampoo happy meet Ranko's friends Akane and Nabiki!"
"We're pleased to meet you, Shampoo." Nabiki said calmly, Akane nodding her agreement.
"So what are you doing here anyway?" Ranma asked.
"Great-Grandmother decided that Shampoo should learn ways outside village. Shampoo is enrolled in Furinkan starting this week!"
Ranma blinked. His expression showed confusion for a second then he sighed and looked resigned. "She's still trying for that engagement."
"Engagement?" Asked Nabiki.
Nodoka responded, "Shampoo's great grandmother thought that Ranma and Shampoo made a good match and was very . . . determined to make them agree with her."
"She couldn't accept that I don't intend to throw away everything I've done with my life up to now and move to the Chinese countryside to become part of an old Eugenics program." Ranma said. He glanced at the Tendo sisters. "Maybe I should start at the beginning."
Flashback:
The Saotome family is trudging through China behind the guide. Ranma and Genma are both in their cursed forms, and all four of them are looking tired.
"I'm hungry," Noriko commented.
"So am I," Ranma responded.
"Don't worry, we can restock in the next village." Nodoka replied
"Oh sirs, here we come to Amazon village, we lucky yearly tournament is in progress."
Ranma stepped forward looking at the fight raging on a suspended log in the middle of the village. Banishing her thoughts of hunger she examined the style of the two combatants. One, a very large incredibly masculine looking woman was using a large spiked polearm to attack her opponent. Her opponent, a rather attractive purple haired girl, was countering with a pair of ornate bonbori maces. As she watched the purple haired girl used one mace to knock the polearm aside while stepping in to thrust the other into her opponent who was knocked high into the air by the force of the blow.
"Serious power," Ranma said to herself. Her sister handed her a bun and she popped it into her mouth and continued contemplating the contest. Then she saw everyone in the village was looking at her. Glancing back she saw Noriko and Genma eating items picked up from the table with the sign before it saying 'First Prize'. "Hold it you two." A bonbori smashed into the ground right in front of her sister.
The winner of the contest followed her weapon. "Who are you and why are you stealing my prize?" She asked in an angry voice.
Ranma looked at Noriko who had stepped back with an expression of well hidden fear and stepped forward. In a very cold voice she said, "Girl sister. Not read Chinese well enough read sign."
"Who are you?"
"Ranma Saotome, one doesn't enjoy attack children."
She fixed her with a very dangerous look. "My name is Shampoo. Every year there is a contest. I won this year, so that is my prize she was eating. It's for the winner not weaklings like yourself."
"Confident," Ranma replied.
"Get on the tree. If you can give me a decent fight I'll only have you and yours thrown out of the village."
"Be careful what you ask for," Ranma responded as she walked over to the tree and hoisted herself up. Shampoo jumped onto the tree easily and looked her over with disdain. *That's right, think she's no threat.* Ranma stood casually, her arms folded across her chest.
Shampoo charged across the log. Just before reaching her opponent she saw a subtle shift in her weight. She shifted her own weight, and thus was only sent stumbling back by Ranma's kick instead of being knocked off the log.
Shampoo narrowed her eyes and shifted into a more defensive stance and approached Ranma.
Ranma stepped back into a defensive stance of his own and watched Shampoo carefully.
Shampoo stepped foreword, thrusting straight at Ranma with one bonbori. Ranma ducked under it, then stepped back to avoid her follow up kick. Shampoo spun from her roundhouse into a back spin kick which caught Ranma in the side. Shampoo looked at Ranma, raised a bonbori for a downward slash, while dropping the other to block the kick she clearly read as targeting her hip area. She staggered back as the kick smashed into her right shoulder, throwing her back.
End flashback
"We kept fighting for almost half an hour. It was one of the hardest fights I've had in a long time." Ranma said. "I had to dip into every dirty trick and cheap shot Dad ever taught me, and Shampoo still beat me."
"Shampoo was just lucky. She never fight any opponent as good as Ranma."
"Your being modest, you did have me outclassed in speed and strength."
"That only reason Shampoo not lose. Shampoo thought she good fighter, but Ranmas moves either unreadable till they hit you, or they read as one attack while they actually something else."
"Ahem, anyway when Shampoo won she made this big announcement about me being a friend and publicly offered to share her prize with me and my family. She also apologized to Noriko for scaring her."
"So where does this fiancee thing fit in?" Nabiki asked.
"Well that was when we met her great grandmother Cologne, and she learned about the curse. Like I said they've been trying to maintain this sort of crude eugenics program. Whenever an Amazon gets beaten by an outsider, if the outsider's a woman she has to be killed, and if it's a man, the Amazon has to marry him."
"So if you had beaten her . . ." Akane mused.
Shampoo sighed and looked a little sad. "If Ranma win whole village would seen Shampoo loose to outside woman. Shampoo glad Ranma not beat Shampoo, and happier Ranma not truly woman so Kiss of Death never need."
"Shampoo's great grandmother Cologne showed up the next day. I had explained about Jusenkyo the previous night, and Shampoo had told me about the Marriage/kill law. Anyway Cologne offered to train me, and since we didn't need to get back for about two months I accepted."
Shampoo added, "Great Grandmother try to make Ranma fight Shampoo when she think he good enough to win, but Ranma sister realize and warn Ranma. Ranma talk with Shampoo and decide that he was not going to live in village no matter what great grandmother do. So Ranma and Shampoo work out ways to keep law of marriage from being invoked."
Ranma shrugged, "A month and a half later we left the village. Cologne was furious about Shampoo not becoming engaged with me, but with a little help from Noriko Shampoo and I had made sure she couldn't do anything about it."
Shampoo added, "Shampoo not mind marrying Ranma, but he strongly planned his life outside Village so marriage no good idea. Shampoo glad to have Ranma for friend."
Ranma grinned. "It's good to have you as a friend too Shampoo."
"PIGTAILED GIRL!!"
As Ranma heard the cry from the entrance to the shop he closed his eyes a moment.
"It has been too long since I so foolishly allowed the crowds to separate us. But now they have parted as before the radiant light of true love." Ranma glanced at Kuno, who was advancing across the restaurant, the black panty still covering the top of his head. "Come let us commence on our double date!"
Kuno's speech was interrupted when Akane stood, picked up a nearby table, and knocked Kuno through the ceiling with a quick underhanded swing. "That felt good." Akane commented as she sat and grinned at Shampoo.
Shampoo looked at Akane, traced Kuno's path from the store with her eyes then asked "Who that?"
Nabiki responded, "Local idiot, thinks there's some grand romance between himself, Ranko, and Akane."
"Real idiot." Ranma added. "He's a decent swordsman but you're better than he is easily."
Nodoka looked at Shampoo a moment then asked, "So Shampoo, have you picked up your uniform yet?"
Shampoo looked at Nodoka in confusion. "Uniform?"
Nodoka smiled at her then said, "You will have to wear a uniform at Furinkan, Shampoo. Don't worry we were heading in the direction of a store that sells them. Just come with us and I'll help you get what you need."
Shampoo looked at herself in the mirror. She pivoted quickly, watching the skirt of the girls uniform she was wearing flutter in response to her movement. Then she kicked at a high and low point in the air, then leaped backward, Curling into a triple roll in the air and coming out of it to land solidly. She smiled and nodded. "This work."
"For you." Ranma grumbled as she stood to one side in an identical school dress. She was scowling, much to Nabiki and Akane's delight.
"You know Ranko, you might be right." Nabiki commented with a wide grin. "Fortunately this store has a few different uniform styles, and you can try them all on!"
"So where are you staying, Shampoo?" Nodoka mentioned as the walked away from the shop.
Shampoo shifted the bag with her purchases to her left hand and replied, "Shampoo not sure. She finding Hotel room after done with shop, and look for apartment tomorrow."
"No need for that, you can stay in Ranma's room." Nodoka replied.
Shampoo stopped, blinked twice, then glanced at Ranma. "Ranma no mind?"
"I'm staying at the Tendo house so my rooms unoccupied now."
Shampoo nodded. "But Shampoo no want be trouble for . . ."
"Trouble?" Nodoka responded. "I've taken care of Ranma for sixteen years, and Noriko for ten. Trust me, you're no trouble."
Shampoo thought a moment then smiled. "Shampoo be good guest with Ranma mother! Shampoo thank Nodoka help Shampoo."
"That was fun." Nabiki commented as she sat on her sister Akane's bed.
"You think anything's fun if you get the chance to spend someone else's money" Akane responded from her desk as she wiped off her makeup. She sat back a moment and added, "Still it was a lot more fun than I thought. I hope Shampoo'll take up Ranma's offer to train here."
"Didn't Ranma say she was better than you?" Nabiki calmly added.
Akane scowled. "That's just his opinion. Besides whichever one of us is better it'll be fun to talk to someone who understands what I'm talking about when I talk about martial arts." She stood. "Could you unzip me?"
Ranma put down the kettle of hot water and sat at his desk. Opening his laptop he turned it on and started typing.
Shampoo looked around the spartanly decorated room. Then she undressed and slipped into Ranma's bed. She was asleep in seconds.
I am using them without permission, hopefully for the purpose of entertaining someone. If anyone who has a right to sue me has that desire, I have almost no money.
C&C is appreciated, you can contact me at brenda02@sprynet.com. And if you want to see the earlier parts of this and my other stories, you can find them at http://home.sprynet.com/~brenda02/Keith/Animeff.htm
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A Ranma ½ Fanfict
Surreal Genius
By Brendan O'Donnell
Part five
Somewhere in the wilds of Japan a solitary figure in a worn and dusty cloak was walking. "Ranma," he whispered to himself as he continued down the road. Hearing a rumbling sound he looked over his shoulder. An enormous boar was charging at him. He scowled and turned around.
The cloaked figure drew his right hand from beneath his cloak and raised it to about chest level, curling the fingers into a claw. His lips curled back as he snarled menacingly. The boar almost fell over stopping it's charge. It looked at it's opponent a moment before turning and running back the way it had come as fast as it's legs could move. The globe of black laced blue fire in the figure's fight hand dissipated as he lowered his hand to his side. Turned back to the way he had been going, the figure walked on, straight past the sign saying "Tokyo, turn right now."
Ranma opened the closet in his new room. From the top shelf he removed the one suitcase he had never unpacked. Taking it down he adjusted the two combinations and opened it. He looked inside closed his eyes and sighed a very tired sigh. "I hope Kasumi will help me get this dress ironed for tomorrow, otherwise I might have to buy another one." He looked at the neatly packed bra and panty. "Or worse." He shuddered.
"Hello Ranma." Kasumi said with a smile as she turned from hanging the laundry to dry.
"Hi Kasumi. I assume Nabiki and Akane told you about tomorrow, do you want to come? I'm sure Mom'd love having you."
"No, I have a few things to do. But it's sweet of you to ask." She smiled. Then she looked at the dress Ranma had slung over his shoulder. "What's that?"
Ranma sighed slightly. "A dress. I packed it away last month, and I was hoping you could help me get it looking presentable for tomorrow." *So Mom doesn't have any excuse to buy me a new one.*
Kasumi took the dress from Ranma. It was a blue dress, very simple design. Looking it over Kasumi's experienced eye deduced two facts by comparing the cut to Ranma's form. First, Ranma had picked this dress because it was neither tight enough to slow her movements, nor loose enough to become tangled when she moved fast. Secondly, "Oh my, this will look absolutely adorable on you."
Ranma winced, then forced himself to smile. "Mom helped me pick it out last month. There are a lot of dresses that you can't kick properly in you know."
Kasumi smiled and replied, "I know, Akane's complained about it to me a few times."
"Ah, I guess she would. Um . . ."
"Don't worry I'll have this all ready for you tomorrow."
"Thanks. Are you sure you wouldn't come with us?"
"This is your time with your mother. I've shopped with her enough this week, and I really do have things to do."
" . . .OK, thanks again." Ranma said as he went back to his room.
Akane sat in her room looking into a mirror as she slowly put on her makeup. Her hair was loosely braided and hung down her back, and she was wearing a nice yellow dress with floral patterns.
"Akane . . ." Nabiki said as she walked into the room, then she trailed off as she looked at her sister. "Getting nice and pretty for your future fiancee and mother in law?" she said with a smirk.
"Nabiki!!" Akane replied, turning to look at her sister. Nabiki was wearing a red skirt, a blue and white striped blouse, and a light orange jacket. "I'm just making sure I look my best."
"Ah, you're scared that Ranko might look better than you." she responded with a grin.
Akane looked at her sister with angry eyes. *Do you have to blurt it out?* "Why should I be scared by anything that fake girl does?!"
"Because he's a better martial artist than you, and you're worried he might be better at being a girl."
Akane glared at her sister, then she turned away with a 'Humph!"
Nabiki shut the door and walked to Ranma's room. *I shouldn't taunt Akane like that, but she did help Ranma with that little joke. Ok when I go in I'll say something like 'Wow, no wonder Kuno's so nuts about you.'* She suppressed a malicious chuckle as she knocked at the door to the room that was now Ranma's.
"Ranko, are you ready?"
"No!" Ranma responded in the most curt and abrupt voice Nabiki had ever heard her use. With a grin she opened the door.
"Do you need any help?" She looked at Ranma dressed in a gorgeous light blue dress her arms contorted around her back. "You need a zip right?"
Ranma ignored her a moment then brought her chopsticks bearing right hand back in front and said "No that should do it."
Nabiki looked at her and grinned slightly, "Creative I see."
"Is there something you want Nabiki?"
"I just want to see if your ready. My you're gonna have to beat the guy's off with a stick."
"A stick?" Ranma replied with a puzzled look on her face. "Anything Goes is primarily unarmed."
Nabiki glared at him a moment then started laughing. Ranma joined her.
"Ranko, Akane, Nabiki." Nodoka called up the stairs.
"Coming mom." Ranma replied as he stepped out of his room followed by Nabiki.
Akane walked out of her room a second later. She stopped to look over Ranma a second. *He does look pretty good, but I'm not going to say anything to him about it.*
"Wow." Ranma commented looking Akane over. "you look great."
*Well, It's better to be polite . . .* "You look pretty good yourself. For a boy in a dress."
Ranma closed her eyes a moment then said "Just for today I'm supposed to forget about being a boy and get in touch with my feminine side." *As if.* She opened his eyes. "Let's go."
"Now that would look absolutely stunning on you Ranko!" Nodoka commented as she looked into the window of the shop.
Ranma looked. Her mother was contemplating a frilly white strapless dress. Ranma pictured herself in the dress for a moment. Very feminine. "It's really not me."
"Oh but at least try it on first. You might be surprised." Nabiki commented with a smile on her face.
Ranma paused as she saw the boutique three stores to the right. Se stepped up to his mother. Nodoka glanced at her and she said "If you so much as say the word lingerie I'm going to start using the house as a testing ground for chemical weapons."
Nodoka looked at Ranma, but her response was cut off.
"Pig Tailed Girl!" Screamed Kuno as he ran down the mall, arms extended right into Ranma's foot. He shook his head a moment than continued, "How wonderful that fate has brought us together this day!" He grabbed Akane's hands. "And it has also guided the vital huntress Akane to my side as well. If fate has decreed I shall not oppose her generosity, I SHALL DATE YOU BOTH!" This time he was shut up by Ranma and Akane's combined kicks.
"Who is this boy Ranko?" Nodoka asked as she looked at Kuno's form lying on the ground in front of them.
"Mom, that is Tatewaki Kuno."
"Mother?" Kuno said as he rose again. "Greetings then, fair woman. Had I not now been told of your relationship to the fair Pig-Tailed Girl it would have been obvious for you share her beauty. Indeed I am happy to finally meet the woman who shall one day become my mother in law." He grabbed at Nodoka's hands, which she yanked out of the way.
Looking at Kuno with a very bored expression Nodoka said. "Well Ranko, I see you weren't exaggerating when you said he was more arrogant than your brother." Ranma's eye twitched a second.
"Ranko? That is the true name of the Pig-Tailed Girl?" He pulled out a very old fashioned writing set and knelt on the ground. "I must prepare the ink lest I forget!"
Ranma looked at Kuno. She looked up and glanced at the shops. With a grin she stepped forward and kicked Kuno's inkstone. Kuno grabbed his other writing supplies and ran after it. Right into the "Sanshiro Marital Arts Boutique."
Akane commented "Ranko that's cruel!" Then started laughing.
Nabiki said "Wait here, I've got to see this." Pulling Noriko's camcorder from her purse she entered the store.
"Then he decided he should write a poem while he was 'inspired by your love' and started ranting, first he'd say something about Ranko then about Akane, and then he was screaming about how he loved you both." Nabiki ate the forkful of Spaghetti and looked at the others. "So there he was kneeling in front of that shelf of silk panties ranting about how he couldn't choose. He seemed so out of it that I decided to see just how much." She took a sip from her glass of water. "So I grabbed this black lacy panty and slipped it on his head. He didn't even blink!" The four women all giggled together.
"If it was anyone but Kuno I'd think you were being excessively nasty." Ranma commented.
Nabiki looked at her. "Say Ranko, Noriko says that computer of yours can get pictures from these tapes?"
"It's a simple function." Ranma replied.
"Well do you think you could make a few pictures for me? A lot of kids at school would love to see Kuno in that sort of position." She grinned as the thought of the potential profits.
"No trouble."
The party was siting in a booth at a ice-cream Parlor. Ranma was looking her parfait over, tapping the glass with her spoon a few times before scooping a small spoonful into her mouth. "MMMM!!" she commented. "I didn't know parfaits tasted so good." She commented as she sank her spoon deep into the dish, then pulled it out and scooped another small bite.
Nodoka dropped her warning glare to comment, "You haven't had one before?"
"Well I only have so much time to visit shops like this, and when I'm with dad he's constantly going on about what guy's should and shouldn't do." Ranma stopped talking to scoop herself another small spoon of ice-cream, this one catching part of the peppermint stick in the parfait.
"Noriko said you and your father went on a lot of training trips." Nabiki commented
"Yeah, I started training when I was little, and Dad always made a point about Mom not 'coddling' me too much. Of course dad being such a moron . . ."
"Ranko! You know you shouldn't talk that way about your father!" Nodoka said. "Even if it is true," she added.
"I'm not saying anything that's not obvious." Ranma replied. Turning to Akane she said, "When I was about eight I took over most of the logistical work on the training trips. Dad didn't mind in general but ever so often he'd start ranting about how I didn't trust him. Well I'd generally let him plan a training trip, and every single one was totally botched. The only reason I'm cursed is because I decided I could trust pop to pick one item on our itinerary. Naturally that was Jusenkyo. He didn't speak a word of Chinese and we all knew it, but he'd rather go somewhere he didn't know anything about than ask for help translating the pamphlet."
"Wow, your father sounds really . . ." Akane trailed off glancing at Nodoka.
Genma sneezed. Soun looked at him from across the shoji board and asked, "Are you feeling well Saotome?"
"I'm fine Tendo." He picked up a piece and slapped it onto the board. "You're minds not on the game."
"Of course not!" Soun replied. "This is a perfect opportunity for us to bring our children together to unite our families and we're sitting here playing shogi! We should be following them and helping Ranma discover how much he loves Akane! Or Nabiki!"
Genma looked at him and commented, "You've never seen my wife when she's angry have you." Soun looked at him with a confused expression. Genma continued, "The master himself was scared of her."
Soun blanched. Looking at the board he commented, "Perhaps some things are better left unknown." He set a piece on the board.
Genma placed another piece of his own. "Check."
"Wait let's start over."
"You know what I don't understand is how you managed to do so well in school despite all those training trips." Nabiki said.
"Well . . ." Ranma commented thinking to herself. "Actually when I started kindergarten I did really bad. C's and D's pretty much. Dad alternated between being mad about the grades and loudly declaring how much more important the Art was. Mom was just supportive. Anyway I decided to approach the situation like any martial arts problem, and take a step back to examine it."
"You looked at school as a martial arts problem." Nabiki stated looking at her half lidded.
"You know, you beat an opponent by understanding the opponent. Anyway I decided to visit the library to try to get some outside perspective. I identified the subjects I was having trouble with, checked out every relevant book, and read them cover to cover twice each. By third grade I was getting straight A's and skipped straight to fifth."
Ranma scooped the last of his parfait into her mouth. "Ok, how about the chocolate one next?"
"Girls have to watch their figure's Ranko. Still you haven't had parfaits before and you are very active." Nodoka said smiling.
"Arigato Mom." Ranma responded, before glancing at the TV set by the counter. "Hey isn't that?"
"I do believe it is, Ranma." Nodoka responded. "I wonder how your friends are?"
"Well I sent them a letter after I got back but I haven't gotten a reply yet. You know how it is with snail mail."
Nodoka suppressed her confused look and replied. "Uh, yes . . ." She blinked a moment, looking past Ranma toward the door to the restaurant.
Ranma was turning her head to see what she was looking at when a pair of arms grabbed him from behind. She caught a glimpse of purple hair as a voice she hadn't heard in months proclaimed "Nihau Ranma!"
"Shampoo!"
"It good to see Ranma again!" Shampoo released Ranma and looked her over. Her happy expression turned puzzled. "Why Ranma wearing dress?"
"Could you call me Ranko for today." Ranma responded rubbing her forehead with her right hand. She dropped the hand and looked straight at Shampoo. In the dialect of Shampoo's prefecture she said, "Mom decide I spend day every month pretend be twin sister Ranko. Touch in with feminine side and that."
"Ah, Shampoo understand. And Ranko talk Japanese. Shampoo need practice to speak better."
"So who's your friend?" Akane asked in a neutral voice.
"Oh sorry. Akane, Nabiki, this is Shampoo of Joketsuzok, rightful heir of 3000 years of marital arts mastery. Shampoo, these are Akane and Nabiki Tendo, Akane is the heir of the Tendo school of Anything Goes Martial Arts."
"Tendo school not Saotome school, yes?"
Nodoka responded, "Genma and Soun both studied under the same sensei. After they . . . left him their schools can be considered to have diverged."
"Ah, Shampoo understand. Shampoo happy meet Ranko's friends Akane and Nabiki!"
"We're pleased to meet you, Shampoo." Nabiki said calmly, Akane nodding her agreement.
"So what are you doing here anyway?" Ranma asked.
"Great-Grandmother decided that Shampoo should learn ways outside village. Shampoo is enrolled in Furinkan starting this week!"
Ranma blinked. His expression showed confusion for a second then he sighed and looked resigned. "She's still trying for that engagement."
"Engagement?" Asked Nabiki.
Nodoka responded, "Shampoo's great grandmother thought that Ranma and Shampoo made a good match and was very . . . determined to make them agree with her."
"She couldn't accept that I don't intend to throw away everything I've done with my life up to now and move to the Chinese countryside to become part of an old Eugenics program." Ranma said. He glanced at the Tendo sisters. "Maybe I should start at the beginning."
Flashback:
The Saotome family is trudging through China behind the guide. Ranma and Genma are both in their cursed forms, and all four of them are looking tired.
"I'm hungry," Noriko commented.
"So am I," Ranma responded.
"Don't worry, we can restock in the next village." Nodoka replied
"Oh sirs, here we come to Amazon village, we lucky yearly tournament is in progress."
Ranma stepped forward looking at the fight raging on a suspended log in the middle of the village. Banishing her thoughts of hunger she examined the style of the two combatants. One, a very large incredibly masculine looking woman was using a large spiked polearm to attack her opponent. Her opponent, a rather attractive purple haired girl, was countering with a pair of ornate bonbori maces. As she watched the purple haired girl used one mace to knock the polearm aside while stepping in to thrust the other into her opponent who was knocked high into the air by the force of the blow.
"Serious power," Ranma said to herself. Her sister handed her a bun and she popped it into her mouth and continued contemplating the contest. Then she saw everyone in the village was looking at her. Glancing back she saw Noriko and Genma eating items picked up from the table with the sign before it saying 'First Prize'. "Hold it you two." A bonbori smashed into the ground right in front of her sister.
The winner of the contest followed her weapon. "Who are you and why are you stealing my prize?" She asked in an angry voice.
Ranma looked at Noriko who had stepped back with an expression of well hidden fear and stepped forward. In a very cold voice she said, "Girl sister. Not read Chinese well enough read sign."
"Who are you?"
"Ranma Saotome, one doesn't enjoy attack children."
She fixed her with a very dangerous look. "My name is Shampoo. Every year there is a contest. I won this year, so that is my prize she was eating. It's for the winner not weaklings like yourself."
"Confident," Ranma replied.
"Get on the tree. If you can give me a decent fight I'll only have you and yours thrown out of the village."
"Be careful what you ask for," Ranma responded as she walked over to the tree and hoisted herself up. Shampoo jumped onto the tree easily and looked her over with disdain. *That's right, think she's no threat.* Ranma stood casually, her arms folded across her chest.
Shampoo charged across the log. Just before reaching her opponent she saw a subtle shift in her weight. She shifted her own weight, and thus was only sent stumbling back by Ranma's kick instead of being knocked off the log.
Shampoo narrowed her eyes and shifted into a more defensive stance and approached Ranma.
Ranma stepped back into a defensive stance of his own and watched Shampoo carefully.
Shampoo stepped foreword, thrusting straight at Ranma with one bonbori. Ranma ducked under it, then stepped back to avoid her follow up kick. Shampoo spun from her roundhouse into a back spin kick which caught Ranma in the side. Shampoo looked at Ranma, raised a bonbori for a downward slash, while dropping the other to block the kick she clearly read as targeting her hip area. She staggered back as the kick smashed into her right shoulder, throwing her back.
End flashback
"We kept fighting for almost half an hour. It was one of the hardest fights I've had in a long time." Ranma said. "I had to dip into every dirty trick and cheap shot Dad ever taught me, and Shampoo still beat me."
"Shampoo was just lucky. She never fight any opponent as good as Ranma."
"Your being modest, you did have me outclassed in speed and strength."
"That only reason Shampoo not lose. Shampoo thought she good fighter, but Ranmas moves either unreadable till they hit you, or they read as one attack while they actually something else."
"Ahem, anyway when Shampoo won she made this big announcement about me being a friend and publicly offered to share her prize with me and my family. She also apologized to Noriko for scaring her."
"So where does this fiancee thing fit in?" Nabiki asked.
"Well that was when we met her great grandmother Cologne, and she learned about the curse. Like I said they've been trying to maintain this sort of crude eugenics program. Whenever an Amazon gets beaten by an outsider, if the outsider's a woman she has to be killed, and if it's a man, the Amazon has to marry him."
"So if you had beaten her . . ." Akane mused.
Shampoo sighed and looked a little sad. "If Ranma win whole village would seen Shampoo loose to outside woman. Shampoo glad Ranma not beat Shampoo, and happier Ranma not truly woman so Kiss of Death never need."
"Shampoo's great grandmother Cologne showed up the next day. I had explained about Jusenkyo the previous night, and Shampoo had told me about the Marriage/kill law. Anyway Cologne offered to train me, and since we didn't need to get back for about two months I accepted."
Shampoo added, "Great Grandmother try to make Ranma fight Shampoo when she think he good enough to win, but Ranma sister realize and warn Ranma. Ranma talk with Shampoo and decide that he was not going to live in village no matter what great grandmother do. So Ranma and Shampoo work out ways to keep law of marriage from being invoked."
Ranma shrugged, "A month and a half later we left the village. Cologne was furious about Shampoo not becoming engaged with me, but with a little help from Noriko Shampoo and I had made sure she couldn't do anything about it."
Shampoo added, "Shampoo not mind marrying Ranma, but he strongly planned his life outside Village so marriage no good idea. Shampoo glad to have Ranma for friend."
Ranma grinned. "It's good to have you as a friend too Shampoo."
"PIGTAILED GIRL!!"
As Ranma heard the cry from the entrance to the shop he closed his eyes a moment.
"It has been too long since I so foolishly allowed the crowds to separate us. But now they have parted as before the radiant light of true love." Ranma glanced at Kuno, who was advancing across the restaurant, the black panty still covering the top of his head. "Come let us commence on our double date!"
Kuno's speech was interrupted when Akane stood, picked up a nearby table, and knocked Kuno through the ceiling with a quick underhanded swing. "That felt good." Akane commented as she sat and grinned at Shampoo.
Shampoo looked at Akane, traced Kuno's path from the store with her eyes then asked "Who that?"
Nabiki responded, "Local idiot, thinks there's some grand romance between himself, Ranko, and Akane."
"Real idiot." Ranma added. "He's a decent swordsman but you're better than he is easily."
Nodoka looked at Shampoo a moment then asked, "So Shampoo, have you picked up your uniform yet?"
Shampoo looked at Nodoka in confusion. "Uniform?"
Nodoka smiled at her then said, "You will have to wear a uniform at Furinkan, Shampoo. Don't worry we were heading in the direction of a store that sells them. Just come with us and I'll help you get what you need."
Shampoo looked at herself in the mirror. She pivoted quickly, watching the skirt of the girls uniform she was wearing flutter in response to her movement. Then she kicked at a high and low point in the air, then leaped backward, Curling into a triple roll in the air and coming out of it to land solidly. She smiled and nodded. "This work."
"For you." Ranma grumbled as she stood to one side in an identical school dress. She was scowling, much to Nabiki and Akane's delight.
"You know Ranko, you might be right." Nabiki commented with a wide grin. "Fortunately this store has a few different uniform styles, and you can try them all on!"
"So where are you staying, Shampoo?" Nodoka mentioned as the walked away from the shop.
Shampoo shifted the bag with her purchases to her left hand and replied, "Shampoo not sure. She finding Hotel room after done with shop, and look for apartment tomorrow."
"No need for that, you can stay in Ranma's room." Nodoka replied.
Shampoo stopped, blinked twice, then glanced at Ranma. "Ranma no mind?"
"I'm staying at the Tendo house so my rooms unoccupied now."
Shampoo nodded. "But Shampoo no want be trouble for . . ."
"Trouble?" Nodoka responded. "I've taken care of Ranma for sixteen years, and Noriko for ten. Trust me, you're no trouble."
Shampoo thought a moment then smiled. "Shampoo be good guest with Ranma mother! Shampoo thank Nodoka help Shampoo."
"That was fun." Nabiki commented as she sat on her sister Akane's bed.
"You think anything's fun if you get the chance to spend someone else's money" Akane responded from her desk as she wiped off her makeup. She sat back a moment and added, "Still it was a lot more fun than I thought. I hope Shampoo'll take up Ranma's offer to train here."
"Didn't Ranma say she was better than you?" Nabiki calmly added.
Akane scowled. "That's just his opinion. Besides whichever one of us is better it'll be fun to talk to someone who understands what I'm talking about when I talk about martial arts." She stood. "Could you unzip me?"
Ranma put down the kettle of hot water and sat at his desk. Opening his laptop he turned it on and started typing.
Shampoo looked around the spartanly decorated room. Then she undressed and slipped into Ranma's bed. She was asleep in seconds.
