Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi/Shogakukan.
A Not so Simple Wish
by Ebiris (danielmcdonagh@hotmail.com)

Chapter 8

Ranko sipped at her lukewarm tea with a distasteful frown. It was raining rather heavily
and she had been sitting at this kissaten for the better part of the afternoon. It had seemed
like a good idea, today was the day she had arrived in Nerima what was literally a
lifetime ago, so she had decided to stakeout the route she and pop had taken. But there
was no sign of Ranma or Genma.

That worried her. Though intellectually she knew the lack of a curse would change
things - she had made a few detours to various training grounds in order to adjust to the
new body, not to mention going off in random directions for a few days at a time to try
and lose a certain homocidal amazon. Thinking things over, she decided that should
mean Ranma would arrive early, yet she had heard nothing from Nabiki, so what could
be delaying them?

Sighing, she drained the last of her tea and ordered a fresh cup. I'll wait until it gets dark,
she thought.

***

Several hours ago...

"Ah, it's nice to be back in Japan again, right Pop?" A handsome young man with his
hair in a pigtail and dressed in a dirty white gi addressed his companion after they
stepped onto the docks from the cargo freighter they had stowed away on.

[You said it boy.] A large shifty eyed panda produced a wooden sign from nowhere with
it's message written in sloppy hiragana.

"So, what are we gonna do now? Be nice ta settle down in one place for a while..." the
boy trailed off wistfuly.

[We're going to visit an old friend of mine.] quoth the panda.

The boy snorted disdainfuly at this "You've got a friend, Pop? I find that hard ta believe."

***

A while later, on the outskirts of Nerima, Ranma was feeling much less charitably
disposed towards his father. "Picking me fiance for me..." he interrupted the panda's
flurry of punches by grabbing a meaty paw "Without even asking!?" he cried while
tossing Genma over his shoulder. "Screw you old man. I'm outta here." Ranma turned his
back on the downed panda and hefted his backpack. He didn't know where he would go,
but he sure as hell wanted nothing to do with his father right now.

Genma smirked in his own inimitable panda fashion as he uprooted a street sign and
prepared to brain his unsuspecting son. The boy was far too cocky for his own good. He
was unfortunately unprepared for the small redhead who suddenly came flying out of the
nearby kissaten and floored him with a spinning roundhouse kick.

"What the...?!" Ranma turned just in time to see the sign wielding panda hit the deck,
and then watched in amazement as the petite girl proceeded to viciously kick his father
about the ribs and stomach several times. "Uh... I think he's down..." he commented
inanely.

"Heh, Panda's can be tricky." The girl smirked before popping open an umbrella and
holding it above both of them. "He was about to attack you from behind."

Wow... she's really cute... Ranma thought as he took in her appearance. She was rather
short, but exceptionally well formed, with a grace and tone that suggested rigourous
training. She wore a knee length black skirt with a thigh slit that showed off quite a bit of
leg, and a wooly green sweater which offset her beautiful wavy red hair. After taking all
this in, Ranma's brain caught up with what she said and he responded in the only way he
knew how. "Feh, I woulda dodged it easy."

For some reason the girl's previously easygoing smile suddenly became a whole lot more
strained at that comment. Not that Ranma noticed of course...

***

"Feh, I woulda dodged it easy."

That arrogant bastard! Ranko thought furiously, taking his remark as a personal insult
since *she* hadn't been able to dodge that exact same blow in her old life. Before she
could formulate a suitably insulting reply, Genma proved he wasn't a master of Anything
Goes martial arts for nothing, as he rose once more and smacked both teenagers with the
street sign.

Ranma was instantly rendered unconscious, and Genma caught him before he hit the
ground then started hightailing it towards his old buddy Soun's house.

Ranko on the other hand had grown a LOT more resistant to blunt trauma since arriving
in Nerima, and barely stumbled before recovering swiftly. "Not this time, Pop." She
whispered as the familiar yellow aura of confidence formed around her body "Mouko
Takabisha!" The intense blast of ki rocketed from her outstretched hands and slammed
into the fleeing panda with the force of a freight train.

Quickly walking over to the downed father and son pair, she inspected the singed Genma
and confirmed he really was out of it this time. Then she hefted the unconscious Ranma
over her shoulders "Well... looks like you didn't dodge that one too well didja, tough
guy?" she remarked sarcastically before grabbing Ranma's pack and heading home.

After arriving at her apartment she set him down on the futon in her now sparsely
decorated room. "Wonder why he's wearin' a gi?" She mused, before remembering that
she had only stopped wearing those herself because her breasts kept popping out all the
time, which was really embarassing. Making sure Ranma was comfortable, she put a
damp cloth on his head (she didn't know why, but it seemed to be the appropriate thing in
such situations) and went to start making dinner for the both of them. This might not
have been how she planned their first meeting, but she was sure that waking up to a cute
girl nursing him back to health with a delicious meal would put her in a good light.

She was just tying her apron on when she noticed a light on her phone was blinking.
Guessing she had a message, she went over and hit play to hear Nabiki's voice coming
through and idly wondered how she had discovered her phone number.

"Ranko-san, it's Nabiki. Daddy got a postcard today from a Genma Saotome saying that
he's bringing his son Ranma here for an arranged marriage to either me or one of my
sisters. Don't know when the Saotomes will arrive, but I'll call you when they do. Ja ne."

"Heh, the fat panda will probably show up within an hour or so and scare the livin' shit
outta them." She chuckled, wondering how Genma-panda would gain entrance to the
Tendou home without Ranma there to smooth things along.

***

Ranma came to with a groan. "Ugh... dammit what hit me?" He sat up and took in his
surroundings. He was on a futon in a fairly bare room, and his pack was nearby, which
was a relief.

"Ara, you're awake?" The redhead from earlier entered the room and smiled at him.

"Uh, yeah... where am I?" He asked dumbly.

"You're in my apartment." She suddenly blushed and put both hands over her cheeks
"Oh! It's the first time a boy has been in my room. I'm so embarassed!" She shook her
head back and forth rapidly.

Had Ranma been paying attention he would have noted that the girl seemed to take
definite amusement in her own words, alas his focus was captivated by what her sudden
movements did to her chest and found himself momentarily speechless.

The girl noted his gaze, but rather than getting upset, she seemed rather pleased. "Oh, I
don't even know your name. I am Ranko Xiawang." She bowed formally towards him
"Welcome to my home."

"Aheh..." Ranma chuckled nervously and scratched the base of his pigtail. "I'm Ranma
Saotome, pleased ta meetcha." He was about to get up and bow when Ranko's
surprisingly strong hands forced him down again.

"No need to get up, that horrible panda knocked you out, so you should rest." She
remonstrated him gently. "Dinner is almost ready, I made enough for both of us. It's
ginger seasoned sukiyaki."

"Wow! I love sukiyaki!" Ranma said eagerly, already picking up the scent beginning to
waft into the room.

"Then it's a good thing I made lots, isn't it?" She smirked at him "Just lay there and I'll
give you a shout when it's ready, okay?"

"Sure!" Ranma nodded happily as Ranko glided out the room. Boy, what a nice girl!

***

[Tendou old buddy! So good to see you!] Proclaimed the sign held aloft by the enormous
panda taking up the engwa of the Tendou home.

"Father... your friend is a... panda?" Kasumi hesitantly asked while cowering behind
Soun.

"Does this mean one of us has to marry a panda? I know they're endangered and all, but I
don't think that's the right way to go about increasing the population." Nabiki quipped,
trying to mask her fear with humour.

Soun shook his head so fast he ran the risk of whiplash injuries.

The panda browfed and spun the wooden sign around to reveal a different message [If I
could get some hot water, I can explain.]

Kasumi rushed off to get a kettle, and promptly returned. "Here you are, Panda-san." She
didn't seem as scared now, rather she was amused by the antics of what was apparently a
well trained circus animal. The Saotome's must be very interesting to have such a pet!

"That's better." Genma said after pouring the kettle over himself and reverting to a
heavyset Japanese man in a gi.

Yes... very interesting indeed... was Kasumi's last thought before fainting.

Genma took in the sight of the entire Tendou family sprawled across the floor in
unconsciousness. "This could take a while..." he mused.

***

"Ranma, dinner's ready!" Ranko called out as she finished setting the table.

"Hey, it smells great." Ranma said admiringly as he came into the living room and
kneeled at the kotatsu opposite his hostess.

Ranko smiled genially at his compliment. Everything was going according to plan.
"Itadakimas." She said before digging in, Ranma following suit.

Ranma was making an honest effort to watch his manners while eating, but it was still far
from civilized and he knew it. A glance at Ranko, however, showed she was devouring
the meal with just as much gusto. "So, Ranko..." he began, trying to make conversation
inbetween eating "What happened to my pop?"

"Your father?" Ranko paused with her chopsticks just touching her lips and blinked in
apparent confusion "I didn't see you were with anyone apart from that panda..."

"Oh... hehe... right. I meant what happened to the panda..." Ranma corrected himself
nervously.

"Well..." Ranko tapped her chopsticks against her pouty lips as she seemed to be
considering things "After that mean old panda knocked you out, it picked you up and ran
off. I shudder to think of what it was planning to do to you..." She said in mock horror
"But then it tripped and fell over." She sighed and shook her head sadly "After that I took
you here so you could recover."

Ranma grumbled something unintelligible about stupid fiances before raising his voice
and asking "Didn't it do anything after it fell over?"

"Oh no." Ranko's smile had a hint of cruel humour "He fell and couldn't get up."

Ranma snorted "Good. I hope the zoo finds him... useless old man..." he grumbled before
finishing off the last of the rice and sukiyaki and brightening "That was a great, thanks!
You're a wonderful cook, Ranko." he patted his stomach cheerfully.

Ranko had also finished her food and swiftly gathered up the dishes and placed them in
the sink "Thankyou," she blushed demurely "I enjoy cooking." sitting back at the
kotatsu, she changed the subject "So, are you a martial artist?" she made a show of
looking up and down at his gi, although it really just looked like she was checking him
out.

Ranma puffed himself up pridefuly "Sure am. I'm the heir to the Saotome school of
Anything Goes martial arts. I noticed from the way you move," and the kick you gave
Pop "that you musta had some trainin' too."

"Anything Goes? What a surprise, I practice that school too!"

"Huh, you do?" Ranma eyed her mistrustfuly "You don't have anything to do with the
Tendou school do you?"

Ranko made a dismissive wave "That joke of a dojo? Don't be ridiculous! I defeated both
the heir and master of the Tendou school last month. They can't even take on students
now that I have their sign." She pointed to the sign which she had prominently placed
next to the television set just for this conversation "Not that they've actually had any
students in years anyway."

Ranma lost his suspicion and grinned at her "I guess the Tendou school can't be any good
if they lost to a girl!" He wondered why on earth Pop would want him to unite the
Saotome school with such an obviously weak dojo.

To her credit, Ranko didn't so much as twitch, although she decided a subject change was
in order. "Yes well... oh! I just realised something, if you are the heir to the Saotome
school, that must mean you're Nodoka's son!"

"Nodoka?" Ranma repeated, confused by this new topic.

"Yes! Your father is Genma Saotome right? You've been on a ten year training trip too,
right?" Ranko had suddenly teleported from across the kotatsu so she was now kneeling
right next to him, looking up at Ranma with an expression of earnest hope in her liquid
blue eyes as she fired the questions at him.

"Uh... yeah...?" Ranma backed off a little, slightly alarmed at the sudden proximity of
such a really cute girl.

"Oh, this is so wonderful!" Ranko gushed ecstaticly "I have to take you to meet her, I
know she's been dying you see you again!"

"Who?"

"Your mother!"

"I have a mother?"

***

Chapter 9

"Of course, right away I sensed there was something fishy about this 'training ground',
and I tried to impress that fact upon my idiot son. But the foolish boy just leaped onto
one of the poles and started goading me..." Genma adopted a stricken look as he related
his tale of woe to the assembled Tendou's who had now recovered from their shock at his
transformation "I tried to keep a level head, but what kind of father would I be to allow
my son to show such disrespect without disciplining him?"

"Quite so, Saotome-kun." Soun interjected sagely, a stern look upon his features.

"Indeed, Tendou-kun." Genma nodded appreciateivly at being shown some support.
"Anyway, the boy does have some small skill in the art, only due to my dedicated
training rather than any natural ability, so I fully intended to teach him the error of his
ways and get away from this obviously cursed place. Alas he distracted me using
cowardly and dishonourable tactics to-"

Genma's rant was cut off as Nabiki decided to interject "Y'know, this Ranma really
doesn't sound like much of a marriage prospect if what half of what you told us is true,
Saotome-san" Not that she believed much of it anyway, mind you.

Genma blinked at that. He was so much in the habit of making himself look good at the
expense of his son that he had completely forgotten that one of these girls would need to
want to marry Ranma for his plans to bear fruit. Coughing into his hand as he collected
himself, Genma resumed his story "Um... yes... well... I went easy on the boy since he
obviously couldn't be blamed for the overeagerness of youth, and he was able to knock
me into one of the springs using some superb tactical awareness and flawless technique
that I so painstakingly drilled into him over the years, truly he is a credit to the Saotome
school." Genma paused and took a deep breath for effect "It was then that the true horror
of Jusenkyo was made known to me."

"So that's when you became a panda?" Kasumi asked.

Genma nodded sollemnly "The shock of the change took the fight right out of me, luckily
the guide explained that hot water would revert me to my original body."

"So where is this 'Ranma'?" Akane asked acidly, before huffing "Not that I care since I'm
not marrying him."

Genma sweated nervously "We er... got seperated... but I'm sure he'll turn up, either that
or I'll find him soon enough..."

"Why aren't you looking for him now, Saotome-kun?" Soun asked "Then we can get a
priest in here and he'll marry one of my girls and inherit the dojo!"

"WHAT?!" Amazingly enough, that scream came from all three of Soun's daughters,
who were less than impressed at this latest revalation.

"I thought I was the heir to the dojo?!" Akane got right in her father's face as she
furiously made her displeasure known.

"Excuse me, but who is it that has kept us solvent all these years while you just sit in the
dojo breaking bricks? If anyone is going to inherit the dojo it should be me." Nabiki
cooly interjected after calming herself from the previous joint outburst.

"Oh my, so I suppose all these years I've spent looking after the three of you and giving
up on my education counts for nothing?" Kasumi's everpresent smile was in serious
danger of slipping at this point.

Soun whimpered like a whipped puppy at his daughters' collective anger "But if I give
the dojo as a wedding gift to whichever one of you marries Saotome-kun's son, then we
don't have to pay inheritance tax..."

Nabiki seemed somewhat mollified by this argument, Akane and Kasumi however were
not, so Soun tried a different tack "Well you can't all inherit it! Surely it's more fair to
give it to whichever of you marries Ranma?" The last came out as a trembling whisper as
he cringed at the awful sight of Kasumi and Akane's combined glare (actually in
Kasumi's case it was her usual smile with just a little teeth shown and her left eyebrow
twitching up a storm).

Nabiki just sighed and excused herself. She had a phonecall to make.

***

"So, are you nervous?" Ranko looked up at her companion with a cheerful grin as they
walked to the Saotome residence on the outskirts of Nerima.

"Kinda..." Ranma chuckled nervously, he was now dressed in a Chinese style red shirt
and silk trousers which he had recently purchased but kept in his pack until now since he
could still get away with wearing a gi. "I mean, I haven't seen her in ten years, I don't
even remember her. Will she even like me?" He asked, sounding rather lost and unsure
of himself.

"Don't worry, you have nothing to worry about..." Ranko's happy smile turned into a
frown as she trailed off sullenly, thinking about her mother back in her old life. She still
had nightmares about the time Nodoka had acted out making her commit seppuku in her
sleep while staying over at the Tendou's. At least this Ranma wouldn't have the image of
his mother forever tainted in such a horrible manner.

Ranma, of course, failed to notice anything, too wrapped up in his own concerns.

After walking in silence for a while, the pair finally reached Nodoka's house, and Ranko
knocked on the door while Ranma started to fidget nervously. "You'll be fine." she gave
him a reassuring smile which he reciprocated just before Nodoka answered the door.

"Ranko-chan!" The kimono-clad woman exclaimed happily at seeing her guest "What a
surprise. Who's your..." she looked at Ranma and trailed off, an expression of earnest
hope on her face.

"M... mom?" Ranma choked out, his emotions overwhelming him at the sight of the
woman forgotten to his memory, but not to his heart.

"Ranma?" Nodoka breathed, raising a hand up to his cheek almost as if to check he were
real and not a mirage.

Ranma clasped her hand and nodded, finding speech beyond him at this point.

"Oh Ranma! My baby boy has come back!" Nodoka cried, forgetting decorum as she
dove forward and enveloped her son in a massive hug, tears streaming down her cheeks
"My son, I've waited so long for this day!"

"Mom... I've missed you so much..." Ranma whispered as he awkwardly returned the
hug, feeling totally blown away by the unconditional love he was feeling from his long
lost mother.

Ranko sniffed as she turned away from the heartwarming reunion. That was how it
should have been for her, she thought while wiping at her eyes, cursing the dust that must
have somehow flown into them.

Eventually, Nodoka withdrew from the hug, but kept her hands on Ranma's shoulders
"Let me look at you, son." she gushed "Oh, I knew you'd grow up to be a handsome,
manly young man! I'm so proud!"

Ranma blushed and fiddled with his pigtail under her glowing appraisal "Thanks
mom..." he muttered, slightly embarrased.

Nodoka seemed to collect herself as she recalled her other guest "Ranko-chan, are you...
crying?"

Ranma snapped out of his daze and turned his attention to the petite redhead who was
shirking from their combined gazes.

"I... I'm just so happy seeing you two finally reunited is all..." Ranko brushed at her face,
wishing a hole in the ground would swallow her up rather than have them continue to
stare at her when she was acting so weak and pathetic. Even if she was trying to be
feminine, she still had her standards.

Nodoka smiled understandingly while Ranma just looked on awkwardly, not knowing
what to do or say.

"Oh, why are we standing out here in the cold! Come in you two, come in!" Nodoka
stepped back into the house and ushered the two teenagers in. "I haven't eaten yet so I'll
make dinner for all of us. Is stewed daikon okay?"

Neither Ranma or Ranko mentioned that they had just eaten, and both shared a secretive
smile as they realised their thoughts were on the same wavelength.

***

Nabiki hung up the phone after leaving a message telling Ranko that Genma had arrived,
while leaving out the more unbelievable aspects of his arrival. Who'd have thought a
man could turn into a panda? It certainly rocked Nabiki's world view.

Then there was the question of Genma's missing son coupled with Ranko's interest in the
Saotome's. Given what Ranko had done to the Tendou dojo, perhaps she had waylaid
and attacked Ranma and that was why he wasn't here?

Nabiki shook her head to clear away such thoughts. She had too little information to
make such wild guesses. Instead she returned to the foyer and was surprised to see Akane
and Kasumi arguing.

"Well I thought you were going to marry Tofu-sensei anyway?" Akane cried bitterly,
distraught that her big sister had the love of the man she wanted, and was now trying to
take the dojo that should rightfuly go to the school's heir; Akane.

Kasumi gagged "Akane! He's thirty two years old! I'm still a teenager, I think I can do
better than that, thank you very much."

Nabiki raised an eyebrow as she listened in. She agreed with Kasumi about the age
difference, but it was still a surprise to hear her normally placid big sister spell things out
so bluntly.

Akane blinked in surprise "But you're always so nice to him, and he acts funny whenever
he sees you or even hears your name!"

Kasumi threw up her hands in exasparation, this whole engagement business was
destroying her usual meek facade "I'm nice to everybody!" Kasumi yelled in frustration
"And don't you think I know about his 'acting funny'? Why do you think I have to study
all those medical books? He nearly twisted my ankle off last time I went in for a
checkup!"

Soun and Genma were just looking on in shock as the girls argued back and forth.
Eventually a grin spread across Soun's face "Just look, Saotome-kun, all of my daughters
are eager to marry your boy!"

"Haha, of course Tendou-kun! It's that old Saotome charm! The ladies can't resist!"

"Now the schools will be joined for sure!"

***

Ranko had a bittersweet smile after sharing dinner with Ranma and Nodoka. Not once
had the topic of seppuku pledges come up, nor had Nodoka so much as glanced at her
katana. It really was a world of difference from what she knew.

Now she was listening to Ranma detail his training over the years to a rapt audience of
one. Ranko wasn't that impressed since she knew Ranma was actually toning it down for
his mother's benefit, but she made the appropriate impressed noises when she felt it
necessary.

"So Ranma, where is your father?" Nodoka asked after Ranma had finished his tale.

Ranma shrugged "Probably at his friends place. Tendou something or other."

Nodoka looked distant for a moment as if she was trying to remember something before
she slapped her fist into an open palm "Oh, I remember! Soun Tendou, that boy who was
always hanging around with Genma before we got married. But why is he there instead
of here?" She asked with a definite tone of disapproval.

"Well, he wanted me ta marry one of Tendou's daughters, so I beat him up then bumped
into Ranko here," he hooked a thumb at the redhead "and then she took me to see you."

Nodoka grinned widely as she nodded "Of course, so you're going to marry Ranko-chan
aren't you?"

Ranma did a classic spit take with his tea and turned to look at Ranko who was giggling
nervously "What?!"

Nodoka looked puzzled "Didn't Ranko tell you? We agreed that she would marry you
when you returned from your training trip."

"I ain't got no time for fiances!" Ranma yelled in a panicked voice before composing
himself (slightly) "Besides, girls are a distraction from the art!"

"Well, Ranko has an interest in the art, and I think she's a lovely girl. Is there something
wrong with her?" Nodoka asked, frowning.

Ranma waved his hands in a a panicked gesture "No no no! She's real nice and all, but I
just met her." He turned a betrayed look towards Ranko "And why didn't you tell me
you're my fiance?!"

Ranko was starting to panic herself, things were suddenly going badly for her when she'd
thought it was all under control. She was so used to just blithely accepting new fiances
turning up that she'd forgotten how against the engagements she'd been at the very
beginning. "Um... I... I..." shit, shit, think of something genius! she mentally remonstrated
herself "I wanted to surprise you?" she finished lamely.

"Well mission accomplished!" Ranma yelled angrily.

"Ranma!" Nodoka interjected in a steely voice "Even if you don't accept the engagement,
that is still no way to talk to a young lady."

"Sorry mom..." Ranma mumbled.

Nodoka massaged her temples "Yes well, things obviously aren't going to be resolved
easily. I suppose we should visit the Tendou's and see what my husband has to say about
all this. Do either of you know where their home is?"

"I go to school with two of the Tendou's, I know where it is." Ranko piped up miserably,
not knowing how she had screwed up so badly.

"Good, we'd best be off then." Nodoka gathered up her katana before leaving.

Nope, that sure isn't a good sign, Ranko thought glumly as she fell in step behind the
Saotomes.

***