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Megumi's Wish by mrthou Disclaimer: Based on characters and situations created by Kosuke Fujishima (Oh My Goddess!) and Rumiko Takahashi (Ranma 1/2). They are used here without permission, but without intent of profit. Parties were something that Ranma Saotome didn't like. It's not that he actually had anything against the basic premise: a group of people getting together to have fun was theoretically a good thing. But in practice, a water-triggered transformation curse and a tendency to attract trouble made parties and Ranma incompatible. Not that anyone here knew that. Yet. Still, he'd made a promise, and Ranma Saotome kept his promises. The biggest problem, of course, was the curse. No-one here knew about it, and he'd like to keep it that way, as impractical as that might seem. It wasn't that he hated the curse; not the way he used to, at least. Oh, sure, he'd blustered and complained about turning into a girl, but the truth was, he'd grown used to it, and it really wasn't so bad. At least he was still human. Ranma could still do everything he normally could, and there were even some advantages to it. On the other hand, the curse was a serious annoyance and embarrassment. It had put him in more awkward positions in the last three years than the whole rest of his life taken all at once. He was a cold-water magnet whenever he wished to stay male, and to make matters worse, a hot-water magnet when he tried to stay female -- not that he made a habit of being a girl. Mostly, though, it was the reaction of other people that he worried about. Being seen as a freak by the whole campus was not high on his list of desires. So, to the problem at hand. How to attend a party -- where there was sure to be an abundance of cold liquids -- without changing into a girl in front of everyone. Idea one: go as a girl. Technically, he'd still be attending the party, just like he'd promised the Morisato girl. It had several advantages. First, he'd be less likely to run into hot liquids than cold, thereby sparing the embarrassment of accidental changing. Second, he'd be able to introduce everyone to "Ranko", so no one would be surprised when she showed up later (and show up she most certainly would). On the other hand, it would mean using a fake identity more than he was comfortable with, and being hit on by the male population, which he definitely wasn't comfortable with. Okay, scratch that. Idea two: Water-proof soap. The advantages were clear, but Ranma only had a limited supply of the stuff. It would be best if he could get by without using it. Idea three: go as-is, and avoid people with drinks like the plague. There were numerous problems with that, though. Water didn't set off his danger sense, so someone could still get him from behind. It would also make him seem anti-social, since the proportion of drink-holding people to non-drink-holding people would likely be pretty large. Idea four: screw it all and just go. If an accident happened, he'd deal with it like a man. There was something almost liberating about the idea of doing whatever he liked and the rest of the world be damned. Ranma mulled it over as he prepared his party dish, a spicy yakisoba recipe his mother had taught to him when she'd known him only as "Ranko", the Tendo's female cousin. By the time he'd finished, Ranma hadn't come up with any good plans. So, water-proof soap it was. Ranma finished cleaning up, hopped into the shower for a quick treatment of aqua-block 100 proof. Two minutes later he was dressed and out the door, heading down the stairs to the common room. Now he only had to deal with the inevitable trouble that would show up. The party was going well, Megumi decided. Not that she'd expected any less. All it had taken was a few judiciously placed remarks to the right people. First, she'd mentioned it to Tamiya in passing, guaranteeing the presence of most of the motor club. True, most everyone thought the motor club was strange, but no one denied that they knew how to party. She'd also dropped a few offhand comments to several of the girls from the softball team, and a number of her other friends, to ensure proper mix of males and females. Belldandy seemed to have anticipated the crowd, preparing a huge supply and selection of party foods. Megumi felt a little guilty about that, but Bell had just shrugged it off, saying that she enjoyed cooking. On top of all that, many people, officially invited or not, brought friends. The result was a lively party by almost any standard. The entertainment seemed to be going well, too. The pool table was seeing good use, and karaoke machine, for good or ill, was running full-tilt. While it was true most people enjoyed karaoke, it was equally true that most people did not enjoy listening to Tamiya's and Ootaki's singing -- or rather, their not so reasonable approximations of it. Yes, it was a most successful party. Still, there was one person Megumi noticed who definitely was not having a good time, although almost any other man in his position would be extremely happy to be surrounded by half a dozen attractive women. She noticed him looking about distractedly, as if he was waiting for someone to bail him out. He caught her gaze, and gave her a look that clearly said, "Help!" Megumi walked over to the little cluster, which seemed to be migrating toward the snack table. "Hey, Saotome, what's up?" "Oh, hi Morisato. Nice party you've got, here." Megumi smiled at the compliment. "It does seem to be going rather well. Everyone here having a good time?" They all said that they were. "Well, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I've got to borrow Mr. Saotome here for a minute." "Can't it wait?" One of the girls asked. "Well, it probably could," Megumi admitted, "but I'd like to do it now before I forget. So if you'll excuse us?" There was some general grumbling, but none of the women actually moved to stop them as they moved out of the rec room. "That's twice I've bailed you out now, Saotome," Megumi said. "Yeah, well, thanks. Those girls were starting to get a little annoying." "You don't seem to be having a good time." He looked away. "I guess parties just aren't my thing." "Seems to me like maybe pretty girls aren't your thing." "Hey," Saotome protested, "I like girls just fine. It's just... I'm not really interested in any of... them." He made a vague gesture in the direction of the main party group. "Already have someone, huh?" Megumi didn't really think that was the case, for some reason, but she decided to ask anyway. "No, not really," Saotome mumbled. His voice took on that same depressed quality she'd heard from him before. "I'm just not really interested at the moment." "Well, if you say so," Megumi replied. "You know what you need to do?" "What?" "You need to relax a little. You're too tense. Eat, drink, sing. If you're too nervous to sing, drink some more, until you're not. Try to have a good time. And if you keep getting crowded, just go hang out with some of the motor club guys." "Huh?" "It'll work, trust me." Megumi turned to walk a way. "Oh, and by the way, you're on clean-up duty tonight." He groaned. "Gee, thanks." "You're welcome." If there was one social activity that the goddess Urd truly enjoyed, it was that curious custom called a party. Urd made a habit of attending at least one party every week, even if it meant crashing. There was simply no better place for Urd to practice her chosen craft, that of leading mortals into the holy bonds of love. Megumi was quite nice to have invited Urd to this party. She'd have to do a favor for her in return. Contrary to Keiichi's opinion, Urd was not really obsessed with sex. Sex was only one aspect of love, and not necessarily the most important. The only reason she teased her sister's boyfriend so blatantly was because he was completely hopeless when it came to physical intimacies. Flirting was probably Urd's favorite aspect of love. It was such an enjoyable past-time, and one she was extremely skilled at. She was, as usual, having a great deal of success. But in this case, it was a bit boring: she already had most of the motor club boys wrapped around her fingers, so only a routine maintenance was required to encourage their behavior. There were a few new faces around, but only one really caught her eye. A young man with blue eyes and a pig-tail had rejected her advances three times already, something she was unaccustomed to. In fact, she found it almost insulting. The boy -- he'd said his name was Ranma -- seemed oblivious to her verbal and physical charms. If he were gay, it might be understandable, but by watching where his eyes lingered, Urd could tell that wasn't the case. Urd was mildly amused by the young man's reaction to Keiichi's sister. He seemed to treat most of the women who approached him with thinly-veiled hostility, but Megumi was treated with friendliness. It had to do with body language, she decided. Megumi suppressed her attraction to the boy, which unconsciously made him relax. Belldandy, who didn't have any attraction to Ranma whatsoever, provoked the same reaction. Urd was a master of controlling her own actions. Normally, she made it perfectly clear through a combination of body language, voice, and pheromones that she was an attractive, interesting (and interested) woman. It was equally easy using the same techniques, to make herself entirely unobtrusive. Doing so, she approached Ranma once again. "Oh. You're back," he said. Urd was somewhat surprised by his reaction. Usually, humans would simply ignore her, or react in a manner that showed only a basic awareness of her presence when she used this trick. It was true even if she started the process directly in front of them. Ranma must be very aware of his surroundings. "Yes, I'm back," Urd replied. "Don't worry, though. I can take a hint. You're not interested." Ranma cracked half a smile. "You got that right. Most of these other girls don't seem to get it, though. How'd you do that, by the way?" "Do what?" "You tried to sneak up on me. It was kinda weird, like you were trying to make me ignore you. Actually, you're still doing it." This startled Urd even more. She readjusted her posture and pheromone levels back to normal. "Better?" "Yeah," Ranma answered, seeming suddenly uncomfortable. Urd toned down her presence a bit, and he unconsciously relaxed. "So, how'd you do that?" "It's a matter of body language, mostly." Urd saw no reason to lie about it. "You just adjust your posture and motion in such a way that people think you don't matter." "Hiding in plain sight?" "Nicely put," Urd said. "That describes it quite well. C'mon, let's get a drink. I can't stand talking and not drinking." She grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the refreshments. Ranma allowed himself to be led. Urd was a master of more than just love potions. In fact, for the most part she only used love potions when she required a few laughs, as things never went as intended. She could still recall that time Tamiya had chased Aoshima around campus, proclaiming his undying affection. No, love potions were dangerous. Much more useful were truth serums, emotional exhibitors, and several delightful concoction that loosened inhibitions while leaving the user in complete command of their mental facilities. Urd poured a couple of drinks, adding a small quantity of her favorite truth serum to one cup while Ranma wasn't looking. The two drops she'd added to one of Keiichi's drinks earlier were enough to remove emotional inhibitions. Five drops would turn a person into a blathering idiot who did nothing but tell the absolute truth as they saw it, to whoever happened to pass by. A single drop would loosen the tongue slightly, causing a person to drop their defenses and answer questions they normally wouldn't, which was the effect she wanted to achieve. With practiced ease and slight of hand, Urd carefully dosed a glass, and handed it to Ranma. They chatted for a bit about inconsequential things, and after a short while, Ranma's answers became longer and more detailed. The potion was working its magic. "So, Ranma, tell me about yourself." Ranma rambled on for a bit about martial arts; it seemed to be his purpose in life. He talked about his childhood, about the training trip that he went on with his father for ten years. He told Urd about falling into a spring called Jusenkyou, and how he'd obtained a curse to turn into a girl. Urd wasn't familiar with Chinese curses, but she knew several ways to achieve similar affects using potions. He talked for a while about his sixteenth year of life, and how he'd had four beautiful girls chasing him. When she tried asking about them, he promptly shut up. "I don't want to talk about it," he told her. "I won't ask again, then." Urd asked several more questions, probing around the outside edges of the emotional block. But she never got far before he'd stop talking. She managed to coax names out of him --Ukyo, Shampoo, Kodachi, and Akane --, but nothing else. He never said anything directly; but Urd suspected that he'd had a break-up with one of them. Perhaps worse. Whatever it was, it had hurt him deeply. Ranma was beginning to get irritated. "Look, none of this matters. It's all in the past, and I don't wanna talk about it anymore." "Alright, then, if you don't want to talk about the past, then how about the present?" "What about it?" "Well, since you asked, I want to know why you aren't dating anyone. You seem to be rather popular with the ladies." Urd knew she wasn't being subtle. But then, that was why she used the truth potion in the first place. It spared a lot of effort. "Umm... Well, it's just... I'm just not interested, alright? They're all being irritating." Ranma sullenly gulped down the remainder of his drink. "All of them?" She prompted. "Yeah. You included. Well, maybe not Belldandy, but she's got a boyfriend, so she don't have a reason to be. And maybe not those girls over there, since I haven't talked to them. And Megumi, 'cause she's not flirting with me, just being a friend, even if she is making me do clean-up duty." Urd had to exert a considerable amount of self-control to prevent laughter from escaping her lips. This boy was too easy to manipulate. "Ah. So you don't like people who flirt with you." "Yeah, something like that." "Well, I'll try to restrain myself, then." Urd almost laughed. "Does that mean you like girls who don't flirt with you?" "Um... I guess." Ranma reached back and tugged nervously on his pig-tail. "So, you must really like my sister and Megumi, since they haven't flirted with you all night." "Um... I don't know," Ranma stammered. "Who's you're sister?" "Belldandy," Urd replied. "Really? You two don't look anything alike. Except for those weird tattoos you have." Urd was startled. This Saotome guy was full of surprises. Most people were encouraged to not notice the goddess markings. "But anyway, I guess I like them okay." "Well, I'm sure they'll be glad to hear that. But my sister's already taken. So you'll just have to settle for Keiichi's sister." "Morisato?" "Well, that is her name. But if you have any intentions, you should consider calling her Megumi. It gets ever so confusing when you say 'Morisato'. I mean, who are you referring to? Keiichi? Megumi?" "Uh, I guess." Ranma tried to take a drink from his cup, but it was empty, so he started back toward the table where the beer was set up. "I think I need a refill." "Well, have a good time." And with that, Urd became invisible once again, wandering off to ponder her findings. "Urd?" It was Belldandy. Of course, Bell was probably the only one who noticed her at the moment, except for Ranma. "Yeah, sis?" "What did you give to Keiichi?" Belldandy asked. She didn't sound angry, just curious. "Just a few drops of a truth potion. It's harmless, and wears out in a couple of hours." "Well, perhaps you should give it to him more often," Bell suggested. Urd was shocked. Her sister, encouraging her to drug Keiichi? "Why do you say that?" "He's much more honest with himself this way. Much more affectionate." "Why, sister, there is a selfish bone in your body. I'm shocked, really." Belldandy looked away, obviously suppressing a blush. "He needs to lose his nervousness. If you were to continue using this truth serum on him occasionally, it might help him to gain confidence." Urd smirked. "Yes, it probably will. Especially with encouragement from you, little sister." Belldandy's face turned pink. "Yes, well, I'll leave you to your thoughts, Sister." So saying, she returned to the side of her somewhat drunken boyfriend. "Well, I didn't see that one coming." It was sometime later, as the party was finally winding down, that Megumi approached Urd. "What did you talk to him about?" she asked, gesturing to Ranma, who was helping Belldandy and Keiichi clean up a bit. "Various things. He's actually got a rather fascinating story to tell, if you can coax it out of him." "How did you manage to get him to talk at all? Megumi asked. "You didn't seem to be having much success earlier." "I'm a master at conversation," Urd bragged. "Actually, it was rather simple. I just told him that I'd given up, and had no romantic interest in him whatsoever. After that, he talked a lot more." "Do you know why he seems so unhappy?" "No," Urd replied. "He wouldn't talk about it, and I wasn't going to ask him outright." Megumi sighed. "You know, I just wish he could be happy." Urd choked. Had Megumi just said what she thought she'd said? "What?" Megumi looked at her curiously. "I said, I wish Saotome could be happy. Well, I'm going to help clean up." Damn. She'd said the magic words. "I wish," she'd said. Urd was not required to grant wishes; it wasn't in her contract. But like every deity, she felt a nearly overwhelming compulsion to help. It was piece of genetic code that God Himself had programmed into the lesser divinity. And Megumi had just triggered that directive. To make matters worse, she'd made a reasonable, heart-felt wish, making the compulsion even stronger. Urd had been caught off guard by the statement, though the sentiment didn't surprise her. The truth was, Megumi and her brother were very similar. They were both gifted with a selfless nature, willing and wanting to help others. It was a quality Belldandy had, as well. Urd really did not, and was somewhat envious. Well, Urd thought, I was planning to do something nice for her. So I'll make sure she gets her wish. Urd smiled. Wish granting would look good on her record. And if she could match up Megumi and the Saotome boy while she was at it, well, then, so much the better. And if that didn't work out, at least she would be entertained. Hiding in plain sight, Urd walked out of the common room and looked for a television set to teleport through. She needed to get home -- there was a lot of research to be done. It felt good to be back in business. Overall, the party hadn't been too bad, Ranma thought as he meandered back toward his room. Three people had spilled drinks in his general direction, but out of longstanding habit he'd managed to avoid getting wet. Of course, after using the waterproof soap he didn't really need to worry about it, but it was still rather unpleasant to have beer spilled on one's self. Sure, the girls had been a bit of a pain at first -- he still didn't understand why they all gravitated towards him --, but after a while most of them had given up. And Morisato had bailed him out twice -- not that he needed help, of course, but it made things easier. He'd even taken her advice, and managed to relax a bit. The women seemed much less persistent once he actually started socializing a little, although he had no idea why. He'd never understand women, even if he did turn into one. Navigating the stairs carefully -- he was a little drunk, so he took it slow, only three at a time -- Ranma wondered what was up with the Asgards. Both Urd and Belldandy scared him on some level that he couldn't quite understand, Urd more so than her younger sister. They both made him feel nervous, like he was about to be attacked. Urd's flirting had made him uncomfortable, but that sneaking trick she did could be better described as terrifying. There was something unusual about the two of them. Arriving at the third floor, he staggered through the stairwell door and down the hall, exaggerating his sway slightly out of habitual showmanship. Actually, for a while there, he'd been happy. It had been... nice. Happiness wasn't something he was accustomed to, recently. "Oh, hey Megumi," he greeted as he passed. "Nice party. Thanks for inviting me." "Ranma..." Ranma stopped. He turned to face her. "Yeah?" "Why are you up here? This is the fourth floor." Ranma blinked. "It is?" "Yes. It is." "Uh. Oops," Ranma replied intelligently. "Well, um, guess I'll be going downstairs now." He started heading back. Megumi's arm stopped him. "You okay?" Megumi asked. "Looks like you took my advice a little too far." "Huh?" Ranma was having a hard time concentrating on what she was saying. There was something strangely alluring about her arm... "You're drunk, Saotome." "Yeah, pleasantly so." He looked her up and down, transfixed in his somewhat drunken stupor. She blushed, but didn't look away. She did lower her arm, though. His eyes traced the contour of that arm, following the line up to her shoulder, along the side of her neck, to her ear, and finally, her eyes. "Um, Saotome?" "Yeah?" "You okay? You don't seem quite... with it..." Megumi looked him straight in the eyes, forcing his gaze to lock with hers. Ranma looked away. "Um, sorry." Geez, why the hell had he done that? It wasn't like she was that much to look at. Sure, she was on the attractive side of average, but he'd seen a lot more of better. Hell, sometimes he had better. All that weird stuff Urd had been saying was starting to get to him. "Well, I think maybe you need to sleep," She offered with a half-smile. "I'd say you'll feel better in the morning, but you won't." Ranma didn't reply, but nodded, and started heading back down the hall. Megumi followed. Megumi put hand to her face, and felt heat. Well, that had been embarrassing. A little flattering, too, she supposed. But very uncomfortable. At least he seemed happier. She'd been right, a party was just the thing to cheer him up. "So, what were you doing up here, anyway?" Ranma asked. "I mean, this isn't your floor, either." Megumi pulled out a set of keys from her pocket, shaking them. "Had to unlock a door. Someone forgot their key." "Oh. Well, just wondering." They made their way down the hall in silence. As they approached the door to Saotome's apartment, he patted at his hip pockets, then his rear ones, prompting a few thoughts that Megumi quickly squashed. "Um, Megumi, I think I forgot my keys, too." Megumi pulled her master keys, finding the one for the third floor. She unlocked the door. "There you go, Saotome. Have a good night." "Thanks. You too. Oh, and Megumi?" "Yeah?" "Call me Ranma. I don't like to hear 'Saotome' from my friends, okay?" Megumi smiled. "No problem. Well, good night, Ranma." "Good night." Author's notes: June 25, 2002. Chapter 2 draft is finally complete! I actually got somewhere! |
