Ranma Nibunnoichi - Reflections
A. V. Morgan
Part Twenty: Provoking the Girl
As the sun dipped toward the horizon, bringing one of the last few days of winter to a close, a fiery streak of scarlet hair and silk cloth bounded across the rooftops. In her wake followed the black blur of Happosai's gi, and the violet furl of Cologne's robes. As the three dropped to the street approaching Dr. Tofu's clinic, they slowed to speeds the eye could manage to resolve into solid forms. Though she was not winded from the exertions demanded to achieve the illusion of flight, the girl took deep breaths to sigh over her troubled thoughts. The old man and woman accompanying her repeatedly looked over at her in curiosity. Both elders had made a point of learning the language of the cursed teen's body, and could not overlook the change in the pitch and tone of her character. For different reasons, this was cause for encouragement and concern. Declaring herself a girl in every move and gesture confirmed the hopes of the Amazon Matriarch of recovering a lost heroine. The effect this had on Happosai, however, was woefully predictable. Bouncing around Ranma-chan as she walked languidly towards the clinic, with large, dewy eyes and trembling hands, he could not contain himself.
"Such a long face," he finally mourned, drawing her attention. He caught her eye an winked impishly, before launching himself toward her ample bosom, "Don't worry, Ranma-chan! Grandpa Happosai will make it all better!"
"Kyaaaa!" she screamed, as he darted effortlessly past her guard and glommed onto her chest. With a flush fueled by the unwanted sensations aroused by his groping hands, she whipped into motion, clapping her hands over his ears to stun him. As he recoiled from the blow to his hearing, she reached out and plucked a huge mallet from thin air and brought it down with righteous, feminine fury. The staggering rain of amagurikan blows pummeled the old pervert into a virtual stain over the asphalt before she could reel back, panting and heaving to complain, sorely, "D-dammit! You sick old man!"
"Child!" Cologne gasped, with eyes like saucers, "Are you still thinking as a girl?" The girl stiffened and stared at the mallet in her hands, wondering where it had come from. Her eyes snapped up to Cologne's, her face growing darker in embarrassment.
"I… I… Uh," she gulped to slow her panting. Unconsciously, she returned the mallet to hammer space. Part of her mind was fighting down the persona the amazon's words provoked. She was not Ranma anymore, so there was no reason to be upset by the question. Right? Glaring she retorted, "Do you think I have a choice!?"
"Ranma!" the old woman reprimanded, sounding disappointed. The answer suggested that there was quite a bit of the old Ranma still in the girl. On the surface, this uncharacteristic behavior could suit her ends, but not if it emerged in such an unhealthy fashion. It seemed that Ranma was not becoming a girl at all, but rather trying to avoid the situation entirely. Finding that unacceptable, she lectured, "Even when there seems to be no options in life, we still have choices. I don't mean to criticize yours, but I confess I never imagined Ranma Saotome would pick this path willingly."
"I didn't choose this as Ranma," she growled, confirming Cologne's suspicions. She hastened to add, as a cunning gleam entered the amazon's eye, "And I'm not Fa Shen, either!"
"Who are you then?"
"Who is anyone, caught between one life and another?"
"That is an interesting philosophical question," Cologne observed, smirking, "but I wonder, can it be that without some outside influence, your choice is to be a girl?" She watched the teen squirm, fighting to keep her masculine identity down. She looked like she might succeed, until Happosai latched onto her thigh and began rubbing his cheek against her leg.
"Ah! If so, you have my unconditional support, Ranma-chan!"
"Wha-! Th-that's… Gaaaah!" Ranma-chan finally snapped. Her posture shifted quickly as she shook the pervert off. Standing with arms and legs cocked in an aggressive pose, huffing in ire, she turned to Cologne and demanded, "How can you say that to me RIGHT NOW!?"
"Feh. Curiosity is one of the few pleasures left to an old woman," she waved the teen's anger off. Satisfied that Ranma's spirit was not broken after all, but simply displaced out of confusion, she offered a little more provocation. "There is a saying, in the West, that behind every great man you will find a great woman. I just wonder if that is particularly true in the case of Son-In-Law."
"You're laughing at me!"
"I try to find humor in all situations. It sweetens the bitterness of life," Cologne deflected with elderly drama. Putting a little seriousness back into her gaze, she met Ranma-chan's eye, "So, do you have an answer to my question?"
"I don't know how to stop bein' a girl without tryin' to be Ranma," she deflated, quickly retreating back into her adopted manner with an uneasy look. "I don't think I can do that without tryin' to rip the other one's face off!"
"So, you're hiding."
"Strategic retreat," she corrected quickly. Her face became more thoughtful as she settled the emotions Cologne had stirred up. Finding some center, she spoke with greater composure and authority, cutting straight to the point she had been focused on. "Right now I have more important problems, like surviving. There's no time to worry about who and what you are in the middle of a fight. I can sort that all out later."
"Ran-chan!" a familiar voice intruded.
"Ucchan?" she turned and saw the okonomiyaki chef running towards them from the far end of the street. She had a look of relief and determination at seeing her fiancé. She rushed forward with renewed intent, as she saw Ranma-chan pause in surprise and wait.
"It looks like she has something on her mind," Cologne noted, sighing. A glance at Ranma-chan was enough to determine that she had pushed her concern as far as necessary at the moment. Suspecting that the approaching girl would be less than pleased to face Ranma-chan in her present state, she decided it might be good to give them time to speak alone. Nothing else seemed to discourage the stubborn and independent girl. Clearing her throat, she volunteered, "Happi and I can go inform Dr. Tofu of our plans, and bring him up to speed. Once he knows what to do, we will split up to watch over the other two."
"Sure," Ranma-chan shrugged, realizing the elders were excusing themselves. As much as she valued their help, the old woman's probing questions—not to mention the kind of probing she got from the old pervert—got quite wearying and upsetting. It would be nice to just talk to a friend. As she caught up, Ranma-chan smiled warmly in greeting, "Hey, Ucchan!"
"Ran-chan! I'm so glad I finally caught up to you," she came to a stop and bent over to pant a few times in exaggeration of her haste and relief. With a smile, she straightened and quickly spelled out the nature of the obstacles she had faced to reach him, "I stopped at the dojo and I swear it's become impossible to tell your copies from you!"
"Uh, that's cuz they're not just copies, Ucchan."
"I don't understand," Ukyo puzzled at Ranma-chan's frown.
"I thought Akane was tellin' you everything?" Ranma scowled, in an eerie echo of Ranko. "I dunno if I can really explain it, but different bodies and forms aside, we all have the same mind, spirit and soul. We're all the same person."
"So you're still Ranma?" Ukyo pressed, with a hopeful, searching look. Seeing the red-head hesitate, she quickly clarified, "I mean, you're just pretending to be a girl to fool the others, right?"
"Uh, not exactly," she looked away, uncomfortably.
"What do you mean, not exactly!?" Ukyo glared threateningly.
"Ranma's an identity, a part of me," Ranma-chan wondered if it was possible to explain the strange dichotomy she had experienced since the last visit to the cursed mirror. Remembering when she first noticed it, after the exorcism, she elaborated, "I look inside of myself and it- he's there. At the same time, I look around and he's right there next to me. Well, not at the moment, but he's already out there. So, I am still Ranma, just… not right here, right now."
"What!? You can read his mind?" her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Can't you read yours?" Ranma-chan challenged.
"No! I mean, can you hear what he is thinking right now?"
"Uh…" the distinction Ukyo was making suddenly became clear. She shared the same mind as the reflections, no question. They way they fell into synch proved that. It had not occurred to her to ask if, somehow, their minds were linked similar to their ki. She turned her attention towards the "Ranma" in the back of her mind and tried to "listen" in on him. At the same time, if felt like a giant hole suddenly opened up and the whole world might tip over and fall into it! Gasping she wrenched her mind away from that precipice and clutched a hand over her heart. "Geez! Don't ask me that! That's like jumpin' off a cliff!"
"I've seen you do that lots of times, Ran-chan."
"Yeah, well, it's different when you can't see the bottom…"
"Hmmm," Ukyo did not think Ranma's panic attack was just a joke. Who knew what it did to someone to be in several places at once. It was so hard to believe, she still struggled with his assertion that the copies were really him. Still, she was his friend, and she wanted to believe him. If Copy-chan really was Ranma, that might explain how she was acting earlier. Or, Ranko, she corrected. What a headache! She tried again. If Ranko was really Ranma, and not Copy-chan… Ukyo swallowed. She sensed she might have insulted the girl. Shaking her head, she told herself to deal with it later. Right now, the problem was with Ran-cha… cursed Ran-chan. "Alright, so, if that's the case then—all of you being Ranma—what's with you acting like a girl? I mean, shouldn't that be Ranko?"
"Ranko hasn't gotten there yet," the girl sighed and shrugged. How did she explain that she was hiding in the one safe corner of her psyche that she had found, and that just happened to bring out the girl in her? This conversation was turning into the same conversation she just had with Cologne. "It's not that I'm tryin' to act like a girl, but, I'm tryin' NOT to act like Ranma. Besides, there seems to be more than one girl in me…"
"That doesn't sound fair, Ranma."
"Who said life was fair?" Ranma-chan waved her arms angrily, pacing around in a circle as she ranted. "My life has never been fair! If I let it get to me, I'd have turned into Ryouga and blown up Nerima in a fit of depression!"
"I- I suppose you have a point. But still…" The hurt and confusion finally surfaced and flowed across Ukyo's face, as she demanded, "Why can't there be two Ranma's?"
"I've already asked that, and as far as I can see, the world isn't big enough for two Ranmas," she stopped pacing and turned to face Ukyo, sadly. She closed her eyes and tried to explain what she'd realized the first time it really hit her what she had lost, as she considered taking it back. "We'd kill each other tryin' to prove who was really the best martial artist. Ranma Saotome never loses, but in Ranma vs. Ranma, it isn't possible for Ranma to win."
"Is that all that matters to you!?"
"It's what bein' Ranma is all about, Ucchan. I thought you'd understand that." Ranma-chan folded her arms and looked at her friend with a little disappointment. It was sort of ironic, that she would be the one to point out just how shallow Ranma was, when it came right down to basics.
"I thought you'd realize that Ranma Saotome has more than one future to consider," Ukyo snapped back, finally getting angry. It seemed that her worst fear had been proven. Ranma had not given her a single thought during all of this. Not even to strengthen his own position and hold onto his manhood! She had the urge to take her frustration and anger and shove it down the throat of this impertinent girl who had taken her Ran-chan's place. Glaring, she roared, "Hell, a second Ranma has a much better chance at happiness."
"How?" Ranma-chan blinked in honest confusion.
"A second Ranma could marry me!" she shouted. Ranma-chan gaped at her in complete surprise, as it finally penetrated. Suddenly, the whole confrontation made sense, and Ranma-chan had all but thrown her contempt of her friend, as a potential mate, in Ukyo's face. While Ranma honestly did not care for any of the engagements and entanglements that had come up, and tended to dismiss all of them in favor of trying to hold onto the threads of real friendship they supplanted, Ukyo took the matter quite seriously. Ranma's habit of letting that slide, and thinking about it as little as possible, had seriously screwed things up this time! Before Ranma-chan could think of a thing to say, in the instant she realized this, another familiar figure burst through a near-by sound wall.
"That where Spatula Girl wrong!" the Amazon growled, thrusting a bonbori at the okonomiyaki chef. Ranma-chan and Ukyo both jumped in surprise.
"Shampoo!" Ranma-chan gasped.
"What are you doing here!?" Ukyo demanded angrily, composing herself. By pure reflex, she had drawn her huge spatula and a handful of mini-spats, taking a guard position against the purple-haired amazon.
"I come go on date with Airen," Shampoo smirked in challenge.
"Well, sorry to disappoint you, but your 'Airen' is too busy trying to be a girl right now! Why don't you go chase after a 'real' man." Though she was facing Shampoo, and issuing these remarks in direct challenge to her, she was deliberately lashing out at Ranma-chan too. Unfortunately, neither girl twitched. Ranma-chan in her current frame of mind was almost immune to the usual jabs at her manhood, but Shampoo's sneer came as a surprise.
"Stupid! Shampoo know truth, cursed Ranma heart and soul of all Ranmas," she declared authoritatively, waving a bonbori in Ranma-chan's direction. She pointed it back at Ukyo, "You wasting time try take Airen. You too stupid, not understand you already lost again! Akane already have Second Ranma, no more is obstacle to Shampoo. Spatula Girl maybe compete with Pig Boy, try date girl Ranma. Make perfect couple, two girls both wish they be boys!" Shampoo finished with a mocking laugh.
"Hah! I don't need you to tell me who the real Ranma is, and if you want to talk about who has a stronger claim, I've been promised to him for almost ten years! I know Ranma will chose me, because I won't try and turn him into an 'ancient amazon heroine' like you and your crazy tribe!" Ukyo retorted, nonplussed, lunging forward to engage her arrogant opponent. Shampoo eagerly joined the battle, swinging her bonbori in a coordinated pattern to confound the single weapon in Ukyo's hands.
"Uh, excuse me…" Ranma-chan tried to draw their attention, as they began to bound along the perimeter of the street seeking an advantage.
"You stay quiet, Airen. Shampoo take care of nuisance," she shifted and lunged as Ukyo paused. Ukyo squirted away from the thrust, which smashed down another privacy wall and created a sizeable crater where she had been standing.
"That nuisance happens to be my friend!" Ranma-chan shouted.
"Yeah!" Ukyo grinned, happy to hear some support from her fiancé. As soon as this intrusion was taken care of, she and Ran-chan could work out the misunderstanding they had been having. There was no way she was going to let the amazons get their hands on him! As she rushed in to slice at Shampoo, she promised, "Don't worry, Ran-chan. I'll save you from becoming Fa Shen."
"Uh, I don't know how you can do that," Ranma-chan staggered, distracted from her effort to jump in and stop the fight by the suddenly absurd declaration. She turned to track the chef as she twisted through a series of thrusts and feints, driving Shampoo back, and shouted the clarification, "I AM Fa Shen, regardless of if I remember it all or not." As the words left her mouth, she had to throw out her arms for balance and shake her head. She glanced around, rubbing her head to see if she had taken a glancing blow, to suddenly become dizzy like that. She was distracted by Shampoo's retort.
"No worry, Airen! Shampoo not like others in tribe. Want strong husband more than other womans to compete with!" she declared, pausing to offer a smile and nod of assurance to her statement. Ukyo sprung to take advantage of the opening. Shampoo was forced to block hastily, and stared as the sharpened end of the giant spatula sheared the head of one of her bonbori clean off. Tossing the shaft aside, she growled and retaliated with the remaining weapon.
"Would you two stop fighting for a minute!" Ranma-chan bellowed in alarm as her vision began to grey out. Terrified that this was because of the bleeding, she shut the fight out of her mind and reached inward to focus on the vital matrix of her ki. To her surprise, her reserves were full, perfectly contained by the barriers she had spent the day weaving into place. Blinking, trying to bring the world into focus, she felt a presence closing in on her from an uncertain direction.
"Shampoo promise help defend Airen from threat during vun- vul- broken time." The amazon continued to shout over her shoulder to her beloved, unaware of the strange convulsions that suddenly gripped her body. She jerked as if gravity had flicked off and on, then turned to stare at the battling girls.
"You're kidding! You're just the type he needs to be protected from!" Ukyo retorted, equally ignorant of the fit that had passed through Ranma-chan. She was as shocked as Shampoo when Ranma-chan's voice barked out in Mandarin. To Ukyo, it made no sense at all, but she could see the amazon's face pale in comprehension.
"Warrior Maiden! Cease this insult at once!" the red-head commanded, in direct address to Shampoo. There was a stern and angry glare to back her words up. Seeing the purple-haired amazon freeze in shock, Ranma-chan continued, fluently, "This outsider is protected under my bond of friendship, and thus an ally of the tribe."
Shampoo gaped at her for several rapid breaths. She knew at once what had happened, but she did not want to believe it. It had to be a bluff, it was so Ranma's style to rattle her like that. She frowned and glared back. Impersonating an amazon warrior was a serious offense, and she had to correct her Airen at once, else he make that mistake again! "Aiyaa! What you do! You no can invoke tribal law!"
"Why do you question me in this broken tongue?" the resurrected amazon demanded suspiciously, continuing to speak in Mandarin, beginning to doubt her first impression of Shampoo. Her attention was focused on the two girls, but elements of their surroundings were beginning to crystallize in her mind. She called up a protective aura as she noticed how alien her environment seemed. This unconscious display of power finally cowed Shampoo.
"Is Great Grandmother orders," she bowed her head in acknowledged shame. A true amazon would realize the punitive nature of such a directive. "She Matriarch of tribe. Shampoo no can speak Mandarin without permission."
"I see," the girl frowned in guarded concern. She felt instant sympathy for the disgraced amazon, but understood the necessity of such strict policies. It did not take a genius to realize that there was probably a reason to use this foreign language, and she was thankful she was somehow familiar with it. It seemed safe to cover her own confusion about her circumstances by using Shampoo's prohibition as an excuse to follow suit. Switching to the strange language, she made it a gesture of respect, "Then I shall also speak the outsiders' tongue."
"What the hell is going on here?" Ukyo finally interrupted, thankful to understand the words coming from Ranma-chan again, if not necessarily what she was talking about.
Shampoo ignored Ukyo and carefully approached Ranma-chan. "Are you Fa Shen?" she asked cautiously.
"Who do I look like?" Fa Shen retorted, with a confused smirk.
"Fa Shen? What happened to Ran-chan?" Ukyo babbled.
"What you do with Airen?" Shampoo demanded.
"I don't know who you are talking about," Fa Shen frowned in confusion. She could not miss the glare Ukyo shot at Shampoo for using that term of endearment. She raised an eyebrow in understanding, looking between them. Trusting her instinct, and sighing inwardly over the endless trouble that came from associating with males, she inquired gently, "Is this husband of yours the reason you two were fighting?" The girls both scowled, but did not reply. Fa Shen looked around and rubbed her head. She was quite disoriented, but that had happened before. Some facts seemed intact, if incomplete. The rest was total confusion. The other amazon had not declared a kiss of death in response to her own assertion, so that was not the reason for them being in a foreign land. If they were fighting over a man, though, another thing seemed plausible. "Is he the reason we have come to this strange land?"
"Uh. Do you have any idea where you are?" Ukyo asked her suddenly.
"Mmmm. No clue," Fa Shen admitted, with a half smile.
"Do you have any idea how you got here?"
"I- I think I might have taken a blow to the head or something. My memory is kind of… confused."
"You claim bond of friendship with Spatula Girl. Why that?"
"Her name is Ukyo, and… How odd." Fa Shen frowned in thought. She was positive that she knew Ukyo, but her mind held no details to explain why. "I know she's my friend, but I don't remember where from." She turned to study the okonomiyaki chef intently, frowning in concentration. With a hopeful look she met the girl's eyes and asked, "We are friends, right?"
"This is kinda scary!" Ukyo was stepping back in distress, edging away from what was happening. She turned to look at Shampoo and found a similar look of unease on her delicate face.
"We need talk to Great Grandmother! She figure out what happen to Airen!" she insisted, grabbing Fa Shen by the arm and leading her into Tofu's clinic. Ukyo followed, praying silently that there was an explanation, and hopefully a remedy!
Akane had wondered why Ranma wanted to meet in the park to start their date, until she arrived at sunset. For a moment, she walked through the trees, stunned by the natural glory. Gold gilded every leaf, bringing out each one in sharp detail. The sky itself was a vast tapestry of scarlet, orange, gold and pink clouds transformed into bizarre and breathtaking landscapes. The spectacle quickly took her mind off of the strange scene she had found herself in earlier. From the awkwardness of sharing a bath with Ranko and her mother, who added salts and oils to the hot water to enhance the natural scent and softness of their skin, to the strangeness of watching Ranko being dressed and made up for all she was worth. Akane grimaced. She was well aware of the girl's natural assets, but had never imagined the impact of skillfully applied cosmetics and proper wardrobe. Neither she, nor Ryouga had recognized her when she finally came downstairs.
Ranko had paused, timid and nervous as she smoothed down her dress. Her hair had hung loose and free, parted to one side and styled to fall away from her face. Her mother had dismissed the wildly sexy outfits Nabiki had suggested, finding something surprisingly elegant in the back of her closet. The dress was a full length, black cotton tube that clung to Ranko's curves, with a matching, black bolero jacket. Black heels and elbow length gloves, a black hair ribbon and a borrowed black purse completed the ensemble, with silver accents provided by a multi strand necklace, a belt of interlocking silver loops, clip-on earrings, and bangle bracelets. Ryouga had suddenly been grateful for the understated tux Soun had forced him into. He was also grateful to hear that Nodoka had made reservations at a classy Tokyo restaurant, when she heard about his little direction problem, and volunteered to act as chaperone and guide there and back. Nabiki had almost blinded everyone taking pictures of Ranko and her date, and Akane had proceeded out the door to meet Ranma largely by feel. The image of Ranko, looking both lost and determined, was burned into her retinas for a good two blocks.
Akane was so lost in contemplation, she was unprepared for the silhouette that emerged on the path ahead of her. For an instant, her heart was in her throat and cold sweat popped out on her skin. Shaking herself, and grumbling inwardly for her inattention, she took a few more hesitant steps and asked timidly, "Ranma?"
"Akane!" he turned around and smiled at her. "You got here quicker than I expected!" His eyes took in the length of her dress, admiring the way it clung to and enhanced her form. He had expected her to show up in a pantsuit, ready to fight the expected rivals. He noted that the pleated skirt concealed high slits that would allow her to fight if necessary, as well as the low heeled boots. Practical and pretty, he concluded in silent appreciation.
Akane smiled back and quickly closed the distance. Once she stepped out of the shade of the trees, she turned to look him in the eyes. Unable to think of a reply, she said the first thing that came to her, a question posed as a statement. "Ranko told me to meet you here."
"I'm glad she remembered," Ranma sighed. He had been worried that the message would be forgotten and that Akane would get mad at him for never coming to get her. He quickly explained his dad's insistence on dragging him off to the public baths. Expecting some delays, he had arranged to meet in the park to save time. Akane sighed as she realized that the timing of the sunset was just an accident. Uncertain of her reaction, Ranma asked hesitantly, "Are you ready to uh, start our, um, date?"
"I- I guess so. First, I have to warn you."
"What?" he swallowed nervously at her serious expression.
"Your mother showed up and plans to stay for the night," she announced, unsurprised as a flash of panic crossed his face. She related Kasumi's efforts to discourage her, backed by Nabiki, claiming that there were too many guests to accommodate the Saotome matriarch. Unfortunately, "She twisted Dad's arm until he overrode Kasumi and Nabiki."
"Oh no!"
"You have no idea!" Akane rolled her eyes and gestured for them to start walking together. "She started mothering Ranko as soon as she learned about the date, and now she feels she needs to stick around to talk to her and Ryouga afterwards."
"But, this means I can't come home tonight!"
"I am glad you see that," Akane glared sarcastically, not the least impressed with how slow he was to get the point. Shaking her head, she gave him a moment to digest her warning. There was, however, a bright side for her, she smiled and confided impishly, "At least I get my room to myself tonight. Ranko and Mrs. Saotome will take the guest room, as usual, with 'Mr. Panda'. Poor Ryouga has to sleep in the dojo." Ranma chuckled at his rival's fate, dismissing his concern about the pig being alone in the house with Ranko. The odds of him making it inside from the dojo were too slim to worry about. Akane sniffed at his reaction, and remembered suddenly. Grabbing Ranma's arm and turning to face him in alarm, she insisted, "We have to go and warn the other Ranma and see if Dr. Tofu, or someone, can find a place to put you two for the night."
"Okay," he nodded, taking the next turn on the path to head roughly back the way Akane had come. "I guess we should do that before we start the date."
"Yeah."
The couple walked along in companionable silence as the sky darkened gradually. This was what they did best together, really. If neither of them spoke, and they just took in the sights as they wandered from one place to another, they were truly able to enjoy each other's company. Usually, the sight of them just being together, without fighting, was enough to keep their father's from interfering. It was common enough for them to wander the streets of Nerima together that it rarely set off any of the rivals. Occasionally, they could reach out and hold hands, if they were alone. The usual danger was that they might start talking and end up in one of their fights. Still, that never stopped them, and for once there was always a lot to talk about. Ranma cleared his throat, and organized his thoughts. He had drifted back to the bit between his mother and his female counterpart and found it hard to imagine how it had gone. His curiosity finally forced him to ask.
"So, how was Ranko taking it?"
Akane glanced at him, and smiled. She wondered how long it would take him to ask. "She seemed sort of dazed, but little happy too. She kind of dropped her guard and even asked her mother for advice on dating."
"You're kidding!" Ranma stared at her with wide eyes.
"Well, she was afraid she would have to kiss Ryouga at the end of her date." That too brought a funny look from him. Nabiki would have killed to see his reactions. More so to have been the one to drop the bombs on him. It was kind of fun! Ranma shook his head after a second and sighed.
"Ah, well, I can understand her fear then. Thanks to Copy-chan, she has a lot to live up to in that, uh, relationship." That got an odd look from Akane, who visibly twitched.
"At least you don't have that problem," she teased.
"What do you mean by that?" he huffed in confusion.
"Well, for one thing, the only girl Copy-kun kissed was you, so to speak." Akane grinned as he squirmed. She knew it must burn him to know that he had inherited the body that had figured prominently in certain intimacies. With the memories to go with it, he had shown his inner, perverted nature and could not deny it to her any more.
"I'm never gonna live that down, am I?" he glared uncomfortably.
"It's okay, Ranma. I know you're too terrified to kiss someone on your own. You always let other people start that!" she could not resist tightening the screws a little more. When he reared up and began to steam, she forced herself to suppress a smile.
"I don't LET them!" he raged.
"What?" she stared in mock surprise and disbelief. "You mean the great martial artist keeps dropping his guard like that!?"
"Heh," he suddenly realized she was just trying to get a rise out of him, and he responded, without thinking, in kind. "Well, I'd like to see a clumsy tomboy like you try and get through my guard!" Without warning, a large, speeding mallet planted itself in his face, knocking him onto his rear. She stood over him, hefting her mallet in one hand and smirked.
"I don't see the difficulty."
"That was a cheap shot," he complained, bouncing to his feet.
"Sure, keep making excuses." She refused to back down as he got into her face. He scowled and stared indignantly.
"You weren't tryin' to kiss me!" he clarified.
"Oh? Is that what you wanted?" she asked with sudden interest.
"W- wait, I- I didn't mean…" he immediately backpedaled, arms wind milling in characteristic panic.
"Of course not," she aired, with narrow eyes. She stalked along, ignoring his attempts to nerve himself up to another round of what passed for them as flirtation. Before he could come up with something to say, they rounded a corner and she announced, "There's the clinic, come on!"
The clinic was rarely busy after dark, and usually the only lights came from the apartment above it where Tofu Ono resided. This evening, there seemed to be a lot of activity inside. Just coming in the door, the presence of a half a dozen people could be detected by Ranma's heightened senses. Wondering who, besides Ranma-chan and Tofu were visiting, he pushed through the waiting area and entered the examination rooms ahead of Akane. He spotted Ranma-chan sitting on an examination table in the center of a group consisting of the two elders, the doctor and a pair of rival fiancées. They were so absorbed in conversation with the red-haired girl, none of them seemed to notice the arrivals. The first to look up at the presence of Ranma and Akane was Ranma-chan. She took one look at them and narrowed her gaze on Ranma. With unexpected fury, she exploded towards Ranma with a guttural cry.
"YOU!"