Chapter 2 - School's in Session

Nabiki stopped at the sight of the school gates with a little trepidation. The school was normally a safe place for her, but given the changes the previous night, it may be hostile. She and Ranma walked into the yard and were immediately besieged by several people.

"Are you really engaged to Ranma?"

"I heard that you are carrying Ranma's love child."

"How could you steal Ranma from Akane!"

"How much is he paying you?"

Some of the comments were directed towards Ranma.

"Hey, man. I feel for you."

"Good luck. You are going to need it."

"I hope your wallet never runs out of money."

"Way to go! First Akane, and now her sister!"

Nabiki and Ranma looked at each other, looking for a clue as to how the whole school knew of their new relationship before they even said anything. Just then a piece of paper fluttered by and Ranma caught it. Ranma and Nabiki read it together.

"Official Notice from Akane Tendo. I am no longer engaged to that PERVERT Ranma Saotome. He is now engaged to..." The rest of the paper was illegible, but it was obvious what it said.

The crowd parted when Kuno came to meet Ranma and Nabiki.

"Good morning little brother!"

Ranma looked at Kuno with suspicion while replying, "Little brother? Who..."

Nabiki grinned; this was something she was prepared for. She put her arm around Ranma's, smiled at him with a mischievous look, and said, "Oh, that does make sense!"

Kuno nudged Ranma in a friendly and playful manner. "And so what say you, sister-in-law? Akane shall soon be betrothed to me!"

Ranma looked at Kuno in amusement and realization that he no longer had to defend Akane from him. Now all he and to worry about was his pursuit of "Ranko."

"Come with me, Ranma. We must discant..."

Curious, Ranma followed the bokken wielding upper-classman. This was a situation that would normally have escalated into violence by this point with the know result of Kuno being rendered unconscious. The difference this time was that they had no reason to fight, and Kuno did not challenge him for a fight.

After taking several steps away, just far enough to ensure a modicum of privacy, Kuno faced Ranma and placed his hands on Ranma's shoulders. "Ranma. What you are doing is a brave act."

Ranma looked at taller boy for a moment, trying to decide if he should rip Kuno's arms out his sockets, toss him into the nearby wall, or perhaps simply kick him into next week. When Kuno stepped back and said with tears in his eyes, "You are an honorable man for attempting to redeem the sister of my Fair Akane. If you ever need assistance, please do not hesitate to call! I shall assist you, for I am The BLUE THUNDER!"

Ranma looked at the boy and said the first thing that popped in his head before leaving as the bell rang, "Yeah. Right, Kuno."

* * * * * * * *

In the classroom a few minutes later, Ranma watched Akane take her seat.

"Hi, Akane."

Slap!

"Pervert!"

Ranma sat in his seat and felt the sting on his cheek. He promised Nabiki earlier he would do anything to get into trouble, and specifically was ordered not to say more than two words to Akane. He said two, and any more would be breaking his promise. So he sat in the chair, wondering what was going to happen next.

* * * * * * * *

Ranma managed to stay awake though the first class and was waiting for the next one to begin when a girl he kind of remembered as being in Nabiki's class came running into the room. After a hurried introduction, she told Ranma of the okonomiyaki.

"What! U-chan challenged Nabiki?" Ranma shouted.

"It sure looked a challenge to me..."

"Aw, shit. Nabiki can't defend herself against Ukyo. I have to save her."

In the back of the gymnasium, Nabiki and Ukyo were staring at each other.

"Oh. So you think that beating me up will get you Ranma? You should know it's not going to be that easy?"

"Oh?" Ukyo queried. She charged with her battle spatula and threatened Nabiki, "We'll see about that!"

Nabiki stepped off to the side in hopes of avoiding the spatula. Just as she saw the blade be blocked by a red and black flash, she tripped and fell hard on her hand.

"Uc-chan!"

Ukyo changed from battle-hardened fighter to sugary-sweet fiancée in an instant. "Hi, Ran-chan!"

Ranma was unhappy with his friend at the moment. "What were you trying to do?"

"Oh, we were just discussing your engagement."

Ranma saw that Ukyo's smile had a slight twitch to it, and that indicated that she was not telling the whole truth. Just as he was about to challenge her, the air filled with a flurry of black rose petals and a shrill laughter.

Ranma's face took a ill look to it. "Oh, god. It Kodachi," he said.

"Oh-ho, ho, ho! So the rumors are true! My darling Ranma is no longer engaged to the lowborn Akane! That must mean that he is free to enjoy my passionate embraces!"

Ranma and Nabiki looked at each other, both knowing where this was going to lead.

"Ranma is not going home with you. He's my fiancée, and he's coming home with me!"

Nabiki pulled out a bag of popcorn, Ranma handed her a can of Calpis, and they both watched the battle begin.

"You spent half your life being confused as to whether or not you are a man or a woman. How could you ever know what true love and desire for man is?"

"Oh, this is great. That comes from a psychotic that thinks nothing of drugging anybody within a hundred meters. You have no idea of what love is!"

"You street peddler! I, a Kuno, am willing to sacrifice my station for such a man. What will you ever do? Raise yourself from the sludge of the streets? Oh, how foul you must smell!"

Ranma held up a sign that said, "9.1" Nabiki's sign held up "9.3". The both took a handful of popcorn and munched.

Ukyo's response dripped with sarcasm, "Oh? Would such an esteemed Lady such as you resort to assistance in fair competition? Would such a Dame employ the use of drugs and potions when her own feminine wiles fail? Hah! You have no honor; you are beneath a disease ridden rat!"

Ranma looked at Nabiki in puzzlement. She held up a sign that said, "8.9" Ranma thought a second more and held up his sign that said, "9.0".

As Ranma reached for a new handful of popcorn, he suddenly felt that something was wrong in the air. Reacting solely on instinct, he grabbed Nabiki and pulled her to his other side just in time to see a large Chinese mace come smashing down where Nabiki was sitting just moments earlier.

"Shampoo!" Nabiki called out.

Shampoo took an offensive posture next to Kodachi. "I married to Ranma! Other girl obstacle. Obstacle for killing!"

Kodachi took out her trademark ribbon and agreed, "Well, someone else that sees my view point!"

Ranma and grabbed Nabiki and he ran. Ranma kept Nabiki in front of him so the flying spatulas, ribbons and other assorted projectiles, would not hit her. When he thought they were out of immediate danger, he put Nabiki on the ground.

Shampoo's cry of "Nabiki! Die!" was just enough warning for Ranma to pull her aside and to take the blow that was meant for her. Ranma, half dazed, picked Nabiki up again and ran to the tennis courts where he put her down again.

"That hurt." He said.

Nabiki scanned the area. "That was close." She looked at Ranma and saw the spatulas imbedded in hair and the bruises on his face. "Come on Ranma. Let's get you to the doctor."

At Tofu's, Nabiki explained the changes in the Tendo-Saotome relationships while they both treated Ranma's injuries. When they were done, Tofu asked her to wait in the lobby while he talked to Ranma alone for a moment.

"What'cha thinking about, Doc?" Ranma felt the bandages on his head. He had to admit that Nabiki knew what she was doing and had a real nice touch. "Perhaps," he thought, "it was because of all the practice she got on Kuno."

"On a scale of one to ten Ranma," he asked, "how angry do you think Akane was last night?"

Ranma responded without any hesitation, "Eleven."

Tofu watched Ranma for a moment, looking at his body language. "What do you think about Nabiki?"

Ranma shrugged his shoulders and stretched. "I guess she's okay. She hasn't hit me yet. And she hasn't charged me for anything yet." Ranma thought about that for a moment -- saving her life a few times today should be worth something.

Tofu looked at Ranma for a moment and then started writing something down. "Okay, Ranma. You are free to go."

Ranma left the examination room wondering if Tofu intended to say more. It probably didn't matter, but he was a little curious as to what the doctor was thinking.

On the way home, the two teenagers were quiet. Nabiki was at a loss for words, for Ranma has saved her life twice that day. It was a strange feeling being indebted to someone, and she found it amazing how selfless he was about the whole situation. That unnerved her a little because she wasn't sure if she would be the same way if they switched places.

She found herself worrying about what he thought of her. In the past, his opinion did not matter very much, since it was her sister that was going to marry and live with him. She could take advantage of him with impunity; she had no consequences to pay as long as Ranma and Akane were together. But now she is in the fiancée position, and found it to be an awkward one to be in. Whatever she did from here on out, she would have to live with the consequences of her actions.

Somewhere inside of her, a little seed of insecurity took root. She wanted some sort of assurance that he will be there for her if she was in another danger again.

She sighed and kept walking alongside Ranma. She watched the cracks in the sidewalk pass by for a few dozen steps before speaking. "Ranma. Thank you for saving my life back there."

Ranma almost tripped at what he heard. "Uhm. Yeah. You're welcome."

* * * * * * * *

At home, the two went their separate ways, Ranma to the dojo, and Nabiki to the kitchen.

There, Nabiki reached into the freezer for an ice cube. She felt a bruise develop on her palm where she caught her fall before Ranma rescued her from the other fiancées and she wanted to reduce the swelling a little. With the cold on her hands, she sighed in relief from the pain and closed the door with her elbow.

"Gah! You startled me!"

Kasumi entered the kitchen with a new bag of groceries. "Nabiki, what are you doing home so early?"

"I needed an ice cube for my bruise." Nabiki held up her slightly swollen palm for Kasumi to see. "My first day as Ranma's fiancee went about as well as I expected. Once the other girls found out I was engaged to Ranma, they went on the hunt."

Kasumi looked at Nabki with alarm. "Are you hurt?"

"Nah. Ranma came and rescued me before anything really happened. I fell when tried to avoid getting hit." Nabiki walked over to the sink and let the water from the melting ice cube drip down the drain. "I need to find a way to control those three. Ranma can't save me all the time."

Kasumi started the stove and placed two kettles of water on the burners. "Well, the other girls are a little aggressive."

"A little aggressive? They wanted to kill me. That is a whole lot aggressive."

"Oh, my. Isn't that a little drastic?"

"Those three? Drastic? No, I'd say that pretty much their normal way of doing things."

"Perhaps you could practice a little. Just enough so you'll be good enough to get away."

Nabiki looked at her sister in disbelief. Nabiki hated martial arts. She didn't like to practice. She didn't like to get sweaty. She didn't like pain. But most of all, she hated the stupid maxims that were constantly spouted insulted her intelligence.

But her sister did have a point; if she was going to run with the herd, she was going to have to learn how to protect herself from the herd.

Nabiki walked into the tea room and plopped in front of the television. With the remote control in her hands, she began looking for something to take her mind off the day. After deciding to watch the news she heard the front door slam followed by loud footsteps in the hallway.

Nabiki turned and saw Akane at the entryway. "Oh. You're still here," Akane said icily before she turned around and left the room.

Nabiki contemplated her day, and everything finally fit together. She turned off the television and went upstairs thinking, "It wasn't coincidence that all three of Ranma's fiancées showed up when they did. Akane arranged the whole thing."

* * * * * * * *

At dinner, Nabiki sat between her father and Ranma. "Daddy," she started, "I've been thinking." Nabiki used a small bit of her "little girl" approach; it usually worked in getting what she wanted with the least amount of questions or fuss.

"Yes, Nabiki," Soun said as he looked up from his dinner plate.

"If I'm engaged to Ranma," Nabiki said as she wrapped her arm around Ranma's. She felt him flinch when she touched him, but he quickly relaxed. She continued, "I think I should learn a little more of the art. Don't you think?"

"Why, ahem." Soun took up airs as he wiped his face with a napkin, "Of course, I think that's a wonderful idea."

"Can you teach me, Daddy?"

"Certainly. But I think your fiancee would be better suited than I am." He looked over to his partner in the dirty white gi, "Don't you think so, Saotome?"

Genma Saotome pressed his glasses higher on his nose. "It is the duty of every married martial artist to ensure that his spouse understands the basics of his art."

"Oh, no. I'm not training her. No way." Ranma started to back away from the table.

Nabiki dropped the little girl act, and challenged Ranma. "And why not?"

"Because I don't hit girls."

"I'm not asking you to hit me. I'm not asking you to spar with me. I'm asking you to teach me."

"I'm not going to hit you."

"Don't hit me. Teach me. Teach me without hitting me, Mr. Hot-Shot-Martial- Artist. I don't want to get hit."

"Nope. I can't teach you without hitting you."

"What's the matter? You afraid you can't teach your art to someone without hitting them once or twice? Or are you just afraid?"

"I'm not afraid. I just..."

"Then teach me."

Nabiki and Ranma glowered at each other. Finally Ranma acceded to Nabiki's demands, "Okay. We'll start after school tomorrow."

Twenty nine hours later, Nabiki was lying on the floor of her bedroom while Ranma gently worked the muscles in her back and legs. The school day went better than the day before; she wasn't attacked, but she did have to deal with several offers to "buy" or "rent" Ranma. It was hard to refuse most of the offers, and she agreed to only one -- the Martial Arts club wanted to practice against Ranma. Ranma was angry with her when she told him of his obligation, but seemed to have forgotten all about it when he came back from the practice.

Ranma's hands were working like magic on her. She relaxed and felt the stress fade away as he made the pain go away. When he stopped, she felt like a limp rag.

"You did very well today, Nabiki. You're a lot better than I thought you would be."

"Meaning..." Nabiki knew what he was saying, but she wanted to hear the compliment.

"For someone who hasn't done anything for a long time, you remembered the basics really quick. I think in a couple of weeks, you might even be as good as you were when you stopped practicing."

Ranma surprised her. She thought she did a terrible job. She couldn't keep her balance, she felt slow, and she couldn't remember even the most basic katas. What did not surprise her was that Ranma was a gentle teacher. She had a feeling that he was going to be a good instructor after her first thirty seconds with him. He never berated or insulted her. When she fell, he always helped her up. When she couldn't remember something, he prodded her memory until she either remembered or was able to figure out what she forgot. And whenever she wasn't sure of what she was doing, he's smile and tried to boost her confidence.

He was very different than his father. Or that mattered, her own father as well.

Nabiki thought about her past. When she quit years ago, she was better than Akane. In fact, much better than Akane, and it wasn't because she was a year older than her younger sister. Instead, it was because she never used martial arts as a way to work out her anger and aggression. She was able to focus and concentrate on the big things while letting the small things happen as they should. What did her in at the end was that it was impossible for her to become excited about practice or the tests she had to take to advance.

Ranma straddled her thighs and started to give a full back rub. It felt wonderful, and she closed her eyes an occasionally let out a moan of pleasure.

"Perverts!" came the cry from the hall.

"Sounds like Akane's home."

* * * * * * * ** * * * * * * ** * * * * * * ** * * * * * * ** * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * Chapter 3 - Settling Down

Nabiki sat at the table with her father and Kasumi. Ranma and woken up early that morning and insisted on going for a run. When she complained of sore muscles, he pulled out two asprin and a glass of water. It was hard going at first, but Ranma stayed beside her, extorting her to take the next step.

An hour later, and after taking a soak, she had to admit that the run did loosen her muscles and relieved her soreness. She still hurt, though. Most excruciating was bending over to reach her cup of tea.

"Are you alright, Nabiki?" Kasumi mothered.

Nabiki put her cup down on the table and winced in pain.

Her father looked up from the newspaper. "Are you sure about this, Nabiki?" he asked. He put the paper down and looked at his daughter and continued. "You know it doesn't matter to me which of my daughters marry Ranma. I only want you to be happy with your decision."

"I..." Nabiki started to answer before Kasumi interrupted.

"Father, Nabiki has said that she wants to sell the Dojo and live off the profits."

Soun Tendo rushed to Nabiki and grabbed her shoulders and looked her sternly in her eyes. "Nabiki! You must renounce your engagement to Ranma!"

"No, Father. I won't. I am going to marry Ranma."

"I forbid you! If you sell the Dojo, the school will disappear! That must never happen!"

Nabiki looked into her father's eyes and saw fear and terror in his eyes. She tried to remember when she said she'd sell the dojo, and failed. It wasn't like Kasumi to bring something like that up unless she did make such a statement in the past, so she reasoned that she really might have said that she would sell the Dojo. The circumstances now are certainly different than that of the time she made the offending statement; now she was engaged to a top martial artist who would need the Dojo, and she had just started training after a many year absence. For the moment, she needed it.

She was certain that Ranma would never sell the Dojo unless there was something to replace it. And even then, she doubted that he would sell it even in that case; more than once he called the Tendo compound "home." No, he wouldn't want to sell it, and she doubted that she could convince him if his roots set any deeper.

"Daddy, I'm not going to sell the Dojo. Ranma needs it, and so do I. And if we are ever to start teaching again, we'll need it."

Soun took his arms off his daughter's shoulders and looked at her. "You sure."

"Yes, Father. I promise I will not sell the Dojo." She was happy she left the loop-hole of Ranma possibly selling the Dojo if it became absolutely necessary.

Soun sat back down in his place and grabbed the newspaper. "Good."

* * * * * * * *

Nabiki and Ranma were in her room. Ranma was replacing the bandage on her forehead and making sure there weren't any signs of infection.

"So that whole thing yesterday was set up by Akane?" Ranma asked.

"I think so. I'm almost positive she created the flyers, and I'll bet she made sure that Kodachi and Shampoo knew of Ukyo's challenge."

Nabiki looked at him and saw that he had a crushed look on his face. "You liked her, didn't you?"

"What?!" He paused a moment. "That tomboy? No way!"

Nabiki noticed that Ranma wasn't as vehement as he normally was. "That's okay Ranma, I think I know how you feel."

Ranma put a band-aid on her forehead and back away a little. Nabiki brushed a lock of hair away and curious, leaned up and peered into the mirror. Satisfied that the bruise wasn't too visible and that the band-aid didn't make her look too much like a misfit, she sat down again.

"Ranma, what do you think about our engagement?"

"I dunno. I was engaged to Akane for so long, I guess it hasn't really sat in yet." He looked at the older girl and continued after a pause. "You haven't hit me yet. This is the longest time I think I've ever gone without being hit by a fiancée."

Nabiki smiled.

"And you haven't yet taken all the money I have."

Nabiki looked at him with a hurt face. When Ranma panicked, she smiled at him. "Well, I think that would be pointless. Once we're married, I'll have it all anyway."

"Huh?"

"Oh, come on Ranma. You did know that the wife is responsible for all financial matters in the household, didn't you?"

Ranma scratched the top of head. "Uh. I guess I do now," he said. Ranma finished putting the first-aid kit back together and then asked, "You're serious aren't you?"

Nabiki captured his eyes, "Didn't my getting you up in the middle of the night for a talk convince you? Or the fact that I'm actually practiced the art for one day mean anything?"

Meekly, Ranma responded with, "I guess you are."

Nabiki grabbed a towel and stood up. "Come on Ranma. You said you were going to show me how to kick this morning."

* * * * * * * *

Bored in class the following Monday, Ranma tossed a note to Akane that simply said, "You still mad?" A moment later it came back to him. He unwrapped it, and read the one word reply, "Idiot!" Being trained that an insult requires a response, he scribbled his response of, "Who's the idiot, idiot?"

The return message was a book thrown at Ranma's face. Inside the book was her reply, "Idiot!" written several times inside its cover.

Ranma slammed the book on his desk and shouted, "Damn it, Akane! Will you quit being so stubborn!"

Akane stood and answered the challenge, "So what! You want to fight about this?"

A moment later, they both found themselves standing the hallway, holding buckets of water. Neither of them looked at each other.

"This is stupid," Ranma said. "You're the one with the hate thing going on."

Akane kept her eyes on the far wall as she responded. "What's wrong? Don't you like Nabiki?"

Ranma looked at Akane as he considered his answer. It was not only what she said, but also how she said it. It almost sounded as a challenge, so he responded in kind, "As a matter of fact, I do like her. She's been nice to me so far, and she isn't prone to strange mood swings. And now that I think about it, she's kinda pretty."

Akane turned to see Ranma looking at her, and he continued, "So still want to fight about it?"

The expression on Akane's face softened a little. "No. It's not worth fighting over."

Ranma thought the expression on Akane's face was kind of cute. "So, are you going to make up with her?"

Akane's face hardened a little for a second and then it relaxed into sadness. "I don't know if I can. What I did was pretty harsh."

"I think Nabiki would forgive you if you asked."

"Me forgive her? She should give me the apology! She took what is mine!"

"But you took them all back. And she promised not to do it again."

"Augh!" Akane threw her bucket at Ranma. "You IDIOT!"

Ranma, now a girl, watched a tear form in Akane's eye. Akane turned and dashed down the hallway.

* * * * * * * *

Ranma met Nabiki under a Sakura tree at the end of lunch. "What did you say to Akane?"

Ranma turned around in embarrassment. "Um, well..." He tried to collect his thoughts for the moment. Nabiki's question meant that Akane ran up to her. "I asked her to apologize to you."

"You mean when you told her that you like me?" The whole school either head Akane calling Ranma an idiot, or had heard about it via an incredibly accurate grapevine.

He liked all the Tendo girls, but he actually said he liked Nabiki, and the whole school knows he said it. He didn't like her in a romantic sort of way, and he certainly wouldn't call her a "best friend". But he did like her. Could he fall in love with Nabiki? Could she be a good wife? He didn't know, but now that he was engaged to her, he had the opportunity to find out. From his point of view, he was still very leery of Nabiki and her mercenary and Machiavellian view of the world, but that was the public persona she had; she may (he hoped) had a more personable side to her in private. At least this time, he had the experience of making mistakes with Akane.

Akane. A pang of regret washed over him when he thought of her. He really did like her, but if his father or her father ever heard that, they would have been married within hours of his admission. He acknowledged his feelings but soldiered on. His father taught him that regrets don't fix the past and that it's better to do better in the future. Eventually, he intellectually knew, he'd get over it.

He quickly looked at Nabiki from the corner of his eye and turned away again. Ranma at the ground and rubbed his hands together in nervousness. He moved his mouth, but he couldn't get his vocal cords to work.

"I didn't hear you, Ranma."

Ranma peeked back towards Nabiki and saw that she was looking away. He guessed by her body language that she had an emotional investment in his answer. Ranma started sweating. "Yeah. I said I like you."

Nabiki came up to Ranma and stood very close to him. She peered up at his face stared into his eyes and asked, "You like me?"

"Yeah. Uh, I like you...."

Nabiki's eyes brightened and she broke into a smile. "Oh! I'm so happy! Nobody ever said they liked me before!"

Ranma stood there, afraid that she was going to give him an Amazon style hug, but when she stood there with a goofy smile on her face and her hands holding her cheeks, he figured he was safe for the moment. The expression on her face changed to something a little more serious, but she still smiled.

"Stay here for a moment, Ranma. I'll be right back."

Ranma leaned against the tree and watched Nabiki run off to a group of boys under a nearby tree. He was trying to make sense of what he said earlier when he made his confession to Akane. It was amazing how so few words could change a person's life. He started to worry that his comment was going to taken out of context. He did like Nabiki, and he hoped that Nabiki wouldn't turn into another Ukyo, Shampoo, or Kodachi.

He turned around and saw Nabiki standing next to him with her hands behind her back. "Hey, um, Nabiki?"

"Yeah?"

Ranma saw some papers drop behind Nabiki. "Oops!" she said

It was easy to see that they were photographs of his girl form. He picked up a few and looked at them. "What are these, exactly?"

Nabiki closed her eyes as she responded, "Oh, Ranma. How would it look if I didn't carry pictures of my fiancée?"

Ranma looked at Nabiki and wasn't fooled. She had a long history of selling pictures of him half naked. He became angry and called her out, "You were selling them."

Nabiki put on a hurt look. "Only the duplicates."

Ranma looked at the photos. On one level, he didn't consider that the girl in the pictures was really him. Ranma Saotome was a male, and the female part was just a curse he had to bear until he could find way to get rid of the damn thing. But, it was him. Everything that happened to her was in his memories. Her life was his. This was one of those situations where he had to accept his curse and deal with his feminine side.

Many of the pictures were of him running around the house, a few were of him in some fight with an unseen opponent. He noted that most of the pictures were of him without a top on, but that didn't bother him, as modesty wasn't something he cared much for. What bothered him was that Nabiki was now his fiancée, and this was something he didn't think that his fiancée should be doing. When Nabiki was the sister of his fiancée, it wasn't an issue; Nabiki was Nabiki, and at best, a future sister-in-law. He wasn't going to have to live with her for the rest of his life.

He didn't mind it when she "rented" him to the Martial Arts team on Friday, but there had to be a limit.

Being engaged to her changed his perspective. He wasn't sure if he wanted a wife that worked, much less one that worked in a darker side of society. He was going to have to come to an agreement with her if they were going to get married.

Get married. It wasn't even a week yet, and he was already thinking about being married to her. She sure had a way of drilling in a simple concept into his head.

"Nabiki..."

Nabiki crossed her arms and put on a stern face. "How am I going to make a little spending money? Do you know how much money those pictures bring in?"

Ranma knew. He had overheard many different negotiations. It was astounding how much money she could bring in when she tried. It was still wrong to do it.

"Nabiki..."

Nabiki relaxed and broke her eye contact with Ranma. "Ranma, we need to work this out."

The bell rang, and lunch was over. Everyone, including Ranma and Nabiki, started walking back to the school.

Nabiki continued as they walked in. "We'll talk about this at home. Okay?"

"Yeah. I guess."