Chapter # 11
Tokyo,
mid 1800's-
An awkward silence had settled
into the room. Or was it a solemn
silence? Hot tea sat on the short table
letting off steam while no one was drinking it. A swish broke in followed by another with a thud announced a
newcomer to the room. Walking from the
doorway, a ray of light hit Ranma's boyish face. Shortly after,
Sanosuke also entered not knowing why the gumi called a meeting. It was odd that Misao and Aoshi both would
pay a visit without some good reason.
Nerima
District, 1990's-
It was a typical day in
Nerima: the sun was shining, birds were
singing, and the girl squad was on patrol for a certain fiancée.
"Oh my!" Kasumi's face lit up when she walked into
the dining area. She looked about and
said meekly, "Ranma, did you do all this?"
"Huh?" Kenshin stuck his red
head out of the kitchen looking cute with his wide, blue eyes. There on the table was a full meal including
rice, soup, fish, fruits, and assorted dumplings.
She wandered to where he was
standing saying, "Why Ranma, I didn't know you wanted to cook this
morning! You don't normally get up this
early." She looked at the clock. It was five forty-five. "I was just about to start breakfast but it
looks like—Oh my!" The kitchen was sparkling clean! The counters were wiped, the dishes were washed, and the floors
were mopped. Turning around she asked
inquisitively, "Ranma, are you feeling all right?" The site evoked a gasp from the young lady.
Outside, Kenshin was finishing
putting laundry on a clothesline. He
had a pin in his mouth but he managed to muffle, "Oh, I didn't think you should
have to do all the chores all the time, so I did some of them for you." He then
went back to hanging the wet clothes. On the ground beside him lay an old antique tub with a washboard filled
with soapy water.
Raising a finger Kasumi was
about to inquire further when a stampede of footsteps and voices made their way
to the table. Clamoring over each other
Genma and Soun led the procession with Akane and Nabiki tailing along. The four stopped to gawk at this morning's
feast. It was set up so perfectly it
almost seemed to shine!
Genma couldn't help but comment,
"Well, well, Kasumi! Looks like another
fine meal you've made for us!"
"Oh," she replied, "you should
be thanking Ranma. He cooked today."
Simultaneously she and Kenshin added a serene smile.
Everyone's jaw dropped. Nabiki asked in a cynical tone, "Ranma, you
cooked this? All of this?"
"Yes." He replied with a nod.
Eyeing the food with more
suspicion Genma questioned, "Boy, you had a hand in this? This better not be your new found
passion! You are a martial artist, not
a culinary artist!"
To that, Kenshin knew not how to answer. But he didn't have to because Soun grabbed
him by the collar and whispered, "Son, you know I love you, but you can't be
showing up Akane like this! I know she's not the best cook, but she is my little girl and you can't insult her like
this!"
"But I didn't mean to offend anybody!"
Suddenly Akane came up from behind and punched
Kenshin on the head leaving him on the floor. She stormed, "I heard that! So
you're trying to outstage me with cooking, aye? We'll see about that!" With a new determination she picked up a
dumpling and ate it. Everyone watched
for her reaction. She chewed vigorously
and swallowed.
"Well?" asked Nabiki.
Akane's eyes lit up and she said astonished, "It's
good! It's really good!"
Not far off in the Cat Café, pots boiled furiously
and steam plumed out of the kitchen. A
purple haired girl stirred a seething pot containing odds and ends making it
look very much like mud soup. A small
alarm beeped breaking the hum from the pots. Shampoo immediately lifted the cooking pot off the stove and exclaimed,
"Haiya! Finally Ranma love
Shampoo! No can resist with special
love potion dumpling mix!"
A creak at the entrance made Shampoo jerk
around. There, balancing on a cane, was
Cologne. She suspiciously sniffed the
air and said hopping over, "What are you cooking child? I'd swear I smelled oni root in here."
A drop of perspiration appeared on the girl's cute
head. She shook her hand vigorously and
denied, "No! No such thing! Shampoo just preparing meat for steamed
dumpling!"
It was obvious that something was wrong in the
normally confident child's demeanor. She was hiding something…Oh well. Cologne gave one last dubious look at her granddaughter and proceeded to
the door. Shampoo let out a sigh of
relief and turned back around to her pot. Unexpectedly, the old familiar voice of the Amazon matriarch called
again, "Shampoo, be very careful. If
the oni root's accidentally slipped into a pot, the consequences would be
disastrous."
Not turning around, Shampoo bit her lower lip. There
on the counter she'd been working on was an empty glass jar marked "ONI."
A short trip from the Cat Café was Ucchan's
restaurant. Inside the small building
bustled the normal lunch crowd. People
sat around the fryers waiting for a speedy meal of okonomiyaki. It was the best in Japan, actually.
Behind the counter Ukyo worked furiously to whip out
the okonomiyaki as fast as she could. It was a busy day today! But she
found the wealth of demand welcome. Soon, very soon, she would not be the only one working there, but her
dear Ranchan as well! That is, with the
help of an ancient sauce that had been fermenting for hundreds of years. It was the Kuonji family secret! A super love sauce you could call it! One bite of it and Ranma would be hers
forever!
Then a little walk away was the Kuno Mansion. Deep in the bowels of the large estate a
clamor of noise arose waking the entire household. In the dark recesses of an old kitchen a fresh batch of cookies
were taken out of the oven. The sweetly
baked smell was enough to bring the cows home. The door suddenly whammed open as Kuno thrust his way inside.
He raised his proud head inhaling the wonderful
sent. "Aaah. And what scrumptious confectionary has been bestowed upon me?"
"Hohohohohohohoho!" Kodachi extended her mitted hand
to her cheek and laughed. "Not for you,
brother dear. But for my love!" she
said dancing around the room waving her full cookie sheet about. Reaching the table she bounced on her heals
while slipping each cookie from the pan into a dainty handkerchief. A red ribbon was used as a tie sealing the
treats in the pretty sack. With one
swift movement, Kodachi threw off her cooking grab. Under it lay her green gymnast leotard with the signature black
rose in the center. Taking the cookies
she looked back to Kuno, "Brother dear, I wouldn't dare let you touch these
cookies. I doubt you'd want me to hurt
you in your current condition." She motioned to the fact he was still covered
with bandages from his fight with Kenshin. "So stay clear away!" She leaped out of an open window leaving
Kuno by himself.
The brown haired boy watched her leave in a swirl of black rose petals. A curt look passed his face and he muttered, "Hmp. I suppose my twisted sister has laced her cookies with a potion again." Disappointed, he limped off.
