Disclaimer:  As you are probably well aware of, I DO NOT own Ranma ½, a bunch of rich people do.  Suing me will result in a gum drop and an overdue phone bill.  You've been warned!

*Author's Notes* A warning to the Akane fans:  She's, um, not going to be very nice for the next couple of chapters.  Just my little way of temporarily adding tension until the other characters are introduced.

So without further ado…

Chapter 3

The Engagement

            Three weeks later

            Nerima, Japan

            The late afternoon sun was powerless to penetrate the thick, gray clouds that hung over Nerima, threatening rain.  However, the dour weather didn't dampen the moods of three individuals.

            They were just glad to be back in Japan.  A place they were familiar with, knew the language, and weren't in danger of an Amazon attack every five minutes.  It was good to be back home.

           

            Genma, who wasn't a panda for once, led the way down the nearly deserted suburban street.  "We should be at Tendo's shortly," he explained, glancing back towards Ranma and Ryouga.  "Soun and I are old friends; we trained together many years ago."

            Ranma nodded, happy that they'd finally be able to sleep under a roof.

            "In my last correspondence with him, I learned he had three daughters…quite lovely I hear."  Her father looked like he wanted to add something, but was carefully choosing his words.  Finally, he spoke.  "Before you were born, Ranma, Tendo and I made a pact- an agreement to unite our families' schools in the future."  He cleared his throat.  "To achieve that, we decided that when the time was right, our children would marry…"

            Ryouga's eyes widened.  Though it was rare, arranged marriages weren't unheard of, even now.  Still, it was a surprise.

            Apparently, Ranma was somewhat surprised as well.  "What?!" she shouted.  "And you're only telling me this now?"

            "I knew you would…disagree…if you knew sooner."

            "Damn right I disagree!  How could-"

            The clouds finally burst, instantly soaking them in the chilly downpour.  Ryouga pulled out the red bamboo umbrella that he always carried and opened it before he got any wetter.  Casually, he stepped closer to Ranma so she'd be under it as well.

            The panda, having perfected his speed writing technique, held up a small wooden sign that read 'It's a matter of honor, boy!'

            Ranma laughed bitterly.  "Like you're one to talk about honor, old man!"  Raising her fists, she prepared to attack him.  However, Ryouga's words held her back.

            "You can't marry them if you're a girl for now, right?"

            She stopped and pondered that for a second before dropping her fists.  Ranma glared back at the panda.  "You're off the hook pops…for now.  There had better not be any other surprises waiting for me!"

            They resumed their walk, the panda disturbed by Ryouga's insight.  'Hmm, he might be right.  Something will have to be done about this…'

***

            The Tendo Dojo consisted of a main living house with a training hall behind it.  The backyard was very large and contained a Koi pond and assorted greenery.  An eight foot high cement wall surrounded the entire compound, with a large wooden gate serving as an entrance.

            Kneeling around a large table in the living room, Kasumi, Nabiki, and Akane sat in silence after hearing their father's announcement.

            Akane was the first to speak.  "Fiancée?" she yelled, obviously angry.  "How could you engage us to some weird stranger?"

            Soun Tendo tried to calm his volatile daughter.  "Now now, I'm sure Ranma is-"  Any further discussion was interrupted by the front door opening.

            "Maybe it's Ranma!" Nabiki said excitedly, running out to the hall.  Everyone followed, even a reluctant Akane.

            They paused at the sight of a huge, soaking wet panda standing in the hallway next to a slightly dryer boy and girl.  Putting the strange animal out of their minds for now, all eyes turned to the only obviously male guest- Ryouga.

            Nabiki examined him critically before she finally passed her judgment.  "He is cute," she noted simply.

            Ranma looked at her father, noticing the panda holding a sign over Ryouga's head that read 'Ranma' with an arrow pointing down at him.  "Cut that out!" she shouted, grabbing the sign and breaking it in half with a loud crack.  "I'm not letting you drag Ryouga into this, too!"

            But it didn't matter.  Soun already believed that the shy young man wearing the bandanna was Ranma, and embraced him in a tight hug.  "It's good to see you, boy.  Welcome! "

            Ryouga squirmed out from the older man's death grip.  "Actually, I'm not Ranma…she is," he said, pointing to the indifferent redhead besides him.

            At hearing that revelation, Soun collapsed, leaving the rest of the family to stare at them in shock.

            Ryouga rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.  "Sorry about this…"

***

            Everyone sat around the table, listening to Genma.  "And then we headed home," he said, wrapping up the events of Jusenkyo. 

            If they hadn't seen Genma's transformation from panda to human with their own eyes, they probably wouldn't have believed any of it.  As it was, it seemed like they were just barely accepting it.

            After a long stretch of silence, Genma turned to the recently revived Soun Tendo.  "Ranma's little problem will be cured eventually.  This shouldn't stop the engagement…"

            That brought Soun out of his stupor.  "I will not have any of my daughters marry a girl!"

            Ranma spoke up.  "Hey, I'm a-"

            Akane, who had been mostly silent up to this point, finally spoke her mind.  "Especially a pervert like her!"

            Ranma looked upset after her outburst.  "Wha- why am I a pervert?" 

            The raven haired girl glared at Ranma.  "You're a boy who changed into a girl.  That's an automatic perversion!"

            Ranma growled at her.  "You're just jealous that I'm better built than you!"  Standing up, she looked at Ryouga.  "I'll meet you in the dojo if you want to spar, Ryouga."  Throwing one last glare at Akane, she left the room.

            "So Ryouga," Akane asked, her anger evaporating completely now that Ranma was gone.  "Tell us some more about China!"

            And so Ryouga spent the next twenty minutes telling them about the other adventures they had on their way home.

            "Wow," Akane said in awe.  "So you leapt in front of a charging Amazon?"

            Kasumi had brought some more tea from the kitchen to refill everyone's cups.  "Oh, how romantic." 

            "Oh, well, it was nothing," Ryouga said, embarrassed.  "Ranma's my best friend; she's saved me plenty of times, too."  All the attention the family was giving him had left Ryouga feeling somewhat unsettled.  He wasn't used to it, after so many years as a lone wanderer.  "Um, well, I'm sure Ranma's wondering what's taking me so long.  Excuse me."  Bowing, he left the room.

            Akane and Nabiki, glancing at each other briefly, got up and followed him out to the dojo.

            Exiting the kitchen, Kasumi brought a small platter of snacks out and placed them on the table between the adults.  Genma thanked her before digging into the delicacies.

            Soun just watched him for a moment, irritated that he could think of food at a time like this.  "Saotome, what were you thinking taking Ranma to such a dangerous place?  Do you realize that the schools can't be joined now?  Do you!" he yelled frantically, on the verge of tears as he shook the other man by his collar.

            Genma carefully removed himself from Soun's grip.  "Remember Tendo, the path of a true martial artist is fraught with peril."  Noticing his friend's continued sadness, he patted him on the back.  "Don't worry- I'll think of something.  I always do!"

            Soun, remembering a few of Genma's 'great ideas' in the past, slumped his shoulders further.

           At that moment, Nabiki jogged back into the living room.  "Daddy, you have got to see this."

            Curious, the fathers and Kasumi followed her to the dojo where Ranma and Ryouga were sparring.

            Genma wasn't surprised, since he had seen it almost every morning, but the Tendo's were in awe at their skill.  Ranma was practically an invisible blur, and Ryouga's fists crackled with an almost tangible power.  Even though they seemed fully capable of killing each other at anytime, they wore huge grins.  It was obvious they respected each other's talents highly.

            "Wow, Ryouga's really good," Akane breathed.  She looked at Ranma.  "I guess Ranma's pretty good, too," she conceded with a hint of jealousy.

            Soun observed the fight with a trained eye.  It immediately dawned on the Tendo patriarch that Ryouga was using techniques from the Anything Goes school, and commented this to Genma.

            He nodded solemnly.  "Ranma trained him on the way home.  Imagine, the nerve of the boy divulging our school's most precious secrets."

            Soun gasped.  "Even…?"

            Genma knew what his old friend was referring to.  "No," he said, breathing a sigh of relief.  "The 'Crouch of the Wild Tiger' is safe…for now."

            Soun seemed relieved as well, turning his attention back to the match.  "Nevertheless, Ryouga is quite good.  And he picked up those techniques in less then a month?  Astounding." 

            "He's not as good as my Ranma, but the Hibiki boy does show great promise.  He'd do our school proud."  Suddenly, a thought popped into Genma's head as he considered something. 

            'Hmm…Ryouga's a handsome, virile young man- I assume, not that I would know that sort of thing…extremely knowledgeable in the martial arts, already getting along with the rest of the Tendo's…I've got it!'

            Quietly, he pulled Soun away to tell him his plan.

***

            Ranma and Ryouga finished and bowed to each other.  Grabbing a towel, they went to go get cleaned up.  However, Soun and Genma held Ryouga back for a moment, and Ranma went off ahead.

            Ryouga looked up nervously at the adults that now surrounded him.  "Um, yes?"

            "Ryouga," Genma said seriously, crossing his arms.  "Do you remember your debt to the Saotome clan for Ranma saving your life?"

            "Yeah…" he replied hesitantly.  He knew he owed Ranma big time.  If that meant he had a debt to the clan, so be it.

            Soun chose that moment to speak.  "You see Ryouga, our dojo needs to undergo a little…reorganizing." 

            Ryouga looked confused.  "You want me to help you move the furniture?"

            Genma laughed.  "Nothing like that," he said, handing Ryouga a sheet of yellowed parchment with a pen.  "Just sign your name along the bottom and all will become clear."

           The print was so small, it hurt Ryouga's eyes to look at it.  Shrugging, he signed his name along the bottom.  "Oh, ok- what's it for?" he asked as he finished. 

            Tendo gently took the paper from him.  "You've now been officially adopted into the Tendo clan!"

            "Now you can marry Ranma and unite our schools!" Genma added.

            Ryouga's eyes grew as wide as saucers.  "What?!  But-but-but-but-" 

            At hearing the news, the three sisters all reacted differently.  Kasumi mentally redid her grocery lists for the next five years to compensate for another family member.

            Akane was thinking she'd now have some worthy sparring partners to increase her skills with.

            And Nabiki, who had been having impure thoughts about their young male guest since he arrived, was slightly upset to find that those impure thoughts were about her brother now. 

            Come now, it's not like he's really my brother.  Satisfied with that line of reasoning, she resumed her fantasies.

            Soun hugged Ryouga.  "Welcome to the family…Son!"  He began crying a river of tears.  "My little boy is engaged!  Oh, how quickly they grow up!"

            "But-but-but-"

            "Now now, boy," Genma said.  "You'll understand when you get older." 

            "But-but-but-"

            "Great idea, Saotome," Soun said, wiping his tears away as he praised his friend.  "You truly are a genius." 

            Genma stood stoically, nodding in agreement.  "I know, Tendo, I know.  I'm just glad you happened to have adoption papers lying around."

            "Yes, a door-to-door salesman sold some to me the other day.  'Always Be Prepared', you know!"

            "Right as always, Tendo.  Now let's break out the Sake!" he said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

***

            Ranma returned to the dojo to tell Ryouga that the bath was free now.  Sliding open the door, she was greeted with the sight of the 'adults' with their arms locked together, Sake bottle in each hand, singing loudly while dancing a jig.  She also noticed a stuttering Ryouga, who looked like a deer caught in the headlights of a speeding bullet train.

            Soun's tears began anew when Ranma entered.  "There's the lucky girl now!"

            Her blue eyes narrowed in suspicion, focusing on her father.  "What's going on here, pop?"

            The Tendo sisters, on seeing Ranma's return, suddenly realized they had something else to do at the moment.  All three quietly excused themselves in hopes of avoiding the inevitable explosion.

            Ranma repeated her question, louder.  "What is going on here?"  Suddenly, she found her father hugging her, something he hadn't done in years.  Not knowing how to react, she just stood there, frozen.

            After a moment, he pulled away to rest his hands on her shoulder.  "Don't worry, Ranma.  I've resolved this whole mess," he said, handing her the document.  "You don't have to marry the Tendo daughters!"

            "Well, that's a relief," she replied happily, taking the paper.  She couldn't make out the extremely fine print on the yellowed document, but Ryouga's signature at the bottom caught her eye.  For some reason, her danger sense started screaming at her.  "Um, what is this?"

            Genma smiled brightly.  "Ryouga has been adopted into the Tendo clan.  You're now engaged to him so that our schools may finally be united!"

            Her blood boiled.  "WHAT?!  You can't do this!"  She tried tearing the paper up, but after several tries, found the task impossible.

            Soun quickly snatched the document back and stuffed it into his gi.  "The parchment is interwoven with steel fibers.  I was a little hesitant to pay the extra expense, but that salesman assured me it would come in handy someday.  Now I don't feel so bad about the purchase!" he added cheerfully.

            Her disbelief was evident.  'Interwoven steel?  What the…'

            Genma took advantage of Ranma's silence.  "The families honor is at stake here, boy.  Besides, Ryouga doesn't seem to mind."

            By now, Ryouga was balled up in the corner, still chanting his new mantra.  Unfortunately, his brain was beyond higher thought and was now caught in an endless feedback loop that he couldn't escape from.

            She pointed an accusing finger at her father.  "Why didn't you adopt him and engage him to one of the Tendo daughters?"

            Genma and Soun looked at each other for almost a full minute before they shrugged.  "Oh well," the Saotome patriarch said, taking a large gulp of Sake.  "Too late now!"

            There was a moment of complete and utter silence; a delightfully peaceful calm before the storm.  And then the stillness of the night was pierced by a scream of frustration that caused dogs to howl, windows to break, and a shiver of fear to run up the spine of every resident in Nerima.