Scenes
By Thermopyle (thermopyle@tds.net)


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Sneak Fu:

Akane turned and fled from the dojo, sobbing, and Nabiki sighed. This
wasn't supposed to happen. Her father and Mr. Saotome wailed about the
end of their world, and Kasumi stood by eagerly, a feather duster in
hand. Little Miss Housekeeper had never cleaned up after a dead body
before.

The corpse was in the center of the room and its leaking blood soaked
into the varnished floor. A tanto protruded from its messy intestines;
the weapon had been swirled around in energetic circles. A pigtail
jutted off from the boy's head at an unnatural angle. The mouth hung
open, and the front teeth looked strange. Near one hand was a note,
written in Ranma's messy scrawl, which read "I can't take it
anymore!!!!" Nabiki hadn't thought things were that bad for her
sister's fiancé.

Other items in the room included a massive backpack and umbrella, a
stapler, and a metal file. "Ranma" wore a tiger-striped bandanna and
the only clothes Nabiki had ever seen Ryouga dressed in. Suspicious.
Maybe she should say something.

Naa.

#####

Mixed Signals:

Nanami crept up behind the boy she'd known forever, and Shayla moved at
her side. Shayla was just an annoyance: Nanami had a lunchbox, which
put her in a superior position. How could the brash redhead compete
with that? But they were both nervous.

She approached Makoto, who leaned up against the edge of the balcony,
staring out at Roshtaria. What was wrong with the boy? He'd been
depressed and moody lately, for no reason that she could figure out.
Maybe he had realized his love for her, and thought it was hopeless?
He couldn't be pining over that big-breasted bimbo, Ifurita. No, of
course not. What kind of name was that, anyway? Something was
bothering him, though, and she needed to figure out what.

She reached out one hand towards Makoto's shoulder, and Shayla went for
the other. Just as they were about to touch, the boy spoke.

"Fujisawa-sama," he said longingly, with a voice full of heartbreak.

"...WHAT?"

#####

I think this one was suggested by Freelance...

Wondering Why:

My name is Ranma, and I am a victim of abuse. For as long as I can
remember, my father has beat me. I wake to his punches and kicks, or to
find myself breathing water after being flung into a pond. Each day is
filled with pain. His mouth flaps and his face goes angry red, but
I've no idea what he's mad about. He hurts me anyway. Afterwards he
stomps his feet in rage and frustration. Not a clue.

When I was younger I lived with my mom. She taught me the signs, which
my father ignores. During that time he was always gone. Mom told me he
was training with his master. One day when I was six, he came into my
room at night, picked me up, and left the house with me over his
shoulder. We haven't gone back. I wonder how she is, sometimes, but
even if I escape from my father, I don't know where Mom lives. So I
stay.

One day I'll figure out why my father is so angry. I'll figure out why
he dragged me from my mother so long ago. I'll figure out why he does
all that weird posturing. I'll figure out why he hates me.

My name is Ranma, and I am deaf.

#####

Demon Eyes Akari:

I stomped on the cardboard box, my blonde hair flying around angrily. I
crushed "Akari's House" beyond repair, and I would make sure she didn't
make another. I hated the girl. I hated her weakness and inability to
see what a gift she'd been given. Tomoe should have been my mother, not
hers.

"Akari's House" lay flat on the concrete, pounded out of existence. The
folds were warped and twisted out of shape, just to make sure the girl
couldn't tape it back together. Damn her, and her incessant whining.
Her shrieky voice, wailing for me to quit, finally came to a stop. I
smiled in satisfaction, and then was picked up and thrown thirty feet to
crash into a concrete wall. My bones shattered with the impact. I fell
to the ground, limp, and my face hit first as I tried to turn, tried to
soften the blow. My jaw became so many organic splinters.

As my sight began to flood with ink, I saw Akari. But it couldn't be
her. The girl's eyes glowed with crimson light, and her body shone
power, far more than Akari possessed. It couldn't be her.

"That stupid bitch!" the girl ranted. "She made the little brat cry! I
hate it when she cries! She sniffles and sobs and makes those annoying
nasally noises that I know she got from her father and she NEVER SHUTS
UP! Argh!"

Just before everything went black, I wished that I could have met my
idol, if only just once.

#####

Saved by a Dozen:

Mousse ducked under the swung staff, and Cologne sighed.

"Hurry up, part-timer. There's much to be done before we return to the
village."

Yes. Ranma had revealed himself as being unsuitable for marriage, so
they were returning to the village. Imagine, that the transsexual would
do a thing like that. What a disgusting pervert.

Shampoo was heartbroken, of course, but he was sure she'd recover.
Mousse would wait, and she would realize his love, and that she returned
it. After he had rescued her from Ranma's womanizing ways, how could
she not? It was just a matter of time, now.

Still, it was surprising that the solution had been so simple. He'd
found out about Ranma's "wedding" to the duck-Akane, delayed the real
girl's appearance until after the marriage had taken place, and then
done what was necessary before the embarrassed group could get an
annulment the next morning. Shampoo was moping about her Airen, but
she'd get over it. Ranma was a husband now, and expecting. By the time
Saotome got out of the hospital, he would be a loving, responsible
father.

Mousse was happy. Who would have thought that his Jusenkyou curse would
come in handy after all?

#####

The Miracle of Life:

They sat in the waiting room, picking chairs as far away from the other
people as possible. They shouldn't be here, but something was wrong.
It had been seven years. That was a long time, wasn't it? They
couldn't keep hoping, not anymore.

"It's your fault, you know," she muttered.

"I'm sorry."

"You're always sorry! Grow a spine, you idiot!"

He started to apologize again, but caught himself. They sat silently
until the doctor called them in.

The doctor ran them through an exhausting number of tests over the
following weeks. He kept stretching things out, kept delaying his
response, saying that he needed to try something else. They waited
patiently.

The woman trashed their apartment, throwing their possessions at the
walls and the furniture and the man in her frustrated rage. He stayed
home from work to keep an eye on her. That only made things worse.

The doctor told them that everything was fine. They shouldn't be having
the problem. The man and woman were both healthy and fully-functional.
He suggested they keep trying. The man dragged the woman away before
she could pummel the doctor, and took the beating himself.

That night, they tried again.

The army formed up in a circle, surrounding the enemy. Millions of them
united in purpose, with only one thought running through their minds.

"I mustn't run away," was their mantra, their war cry. They stepped
forward hesitantly to attack.

The red egg waved its pitchfork excitedly, eager for battle. "Come on,
you cowards! I'll gut every one of you!"

They broke and fled in terror, screaming apologies to avoid retribution.

One month later, Asuka flushed the stick down the toilet. "I hate you,"
she whispered.

Shinji cringed. "I'm sorry.

"You're always sorry, you idiot."

#####

End.