The Diamond Sutra - A
Ranma 1/2 Fanfic By Ashoka Roque
All warnings, etc. see Chapter One
C & C appreciated ashoro@excite.com
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Chapter Three:
As the softball game began, the announcer reviewed the starting line-up for both teams over the PA system, then concluded:
.the victor
of this match between cross-town rivals 'Furinkan Tsunami'
and 'Hodakai Shiba Inus' will gain the title of all-city Girl's softball
champion, winning the chance to go up
against the visiting American
club 'Sapho Sluggers' later this month..."
"We'll kick their butts," said Ukyo, swinging her bat menacingly, "After mastering okonomiyaki-style martial arts, I can hit that ball a kilometer any time I want to."
Akane punched her glove violently. Stupid Ranma. He should be here to cheer on me and Ukyo. Instead, he's out for a carefree drive in the mountains.
____________________________________________
With a sickening lurch, the car came to a stop, front end down at a sharp angle, as the engine died.
Both boys sat still for a minute. The only sound was the radio, where John, Paul, George and Ringo where finishing their time-capsule performance.
After a while, Ranma said, "Are you okay, Ryouga-kun?"
"I guess. How about you?"
"Fine, I think. Let's try and start the engine."
Ryouga nodded. Before turning the key, he violently snapped the radio to the 'off' position. The car turned over once, then died. But the rotary engine caught on the second try.
"Well, that's something, at least," said Ranma. "Let's try to back up."
Ryouga grunted, then put the car into reverse. Gently, he eased his right foot off the clutch as he pressed the accelerator with his left. A grinding noise came from the front end, but the car didn't move.
"Shit-shit-shit!" cried Ryouga, banging his head with his fist. "I can't believe I'm so stupid."
Ranma looked a Ryouga with concern. This was usually the point when Ryouga became disgusted with himself and ran away. If he did, he'd be lost again for who knows how long.
Ranma's worries were right on the mark. I can't handle this, thought Ryouga. I just need to get out of here. All I do is screw things up for myself and everyone around me. I thought I was such a big shot - impressing Ranma with my driving. I'm totally worthless.
But this time, another voice spoke in Ryouga's head. If you leave, Ranma is stranded here. Besides, didn't you think his offer to work as a team was a good idea? How can you be on a team if you always run away? Breathing heavily, Ryouga tried to hold his emotions in.
Man, he's really shaking, thought Ranma. Ryouga actually looked as if he wanted to cry. He was so adorable when he was driving - so confident and cocky! But if anything, he's even more attractive now when he's vulnerable. I could just grab him, pull him close...
No! Ranma concluded, sharply, I've given him enough reasons to be suspicious. He's only now starting to trust me. If we could even just stay friends, like we've been today, it would be better. I don't have the right to want anything more.
"Hmm, Ryouga-kun?" said Ranma, "Let's get out and take a look at the car, okay?"
When the boys had carefully exited the tilting vehicle, they saw that the front of the car was in the shallow end of a water-filled gully. Mud was splattered around.
"This is a front wheel drive," said Ryouga. "Maybe the tires just can't get any traction. I'll go in and see if I can push it back a bit."
"You can't do that, Ryouga-kun," said Ranma, shaking his head.
"Why not?"
"Because I can't drive a stick-shift, and neither can P-chan."
"Oh - right," said Ryouga, "I see what you mean."
"I'll get in front and push," suggested Ranma. "You can pull from the back."
"Okay, I'll pop the trunk so I can get a grip on something and pull. And, Ranma-kun?"
"Yes?" said Ranma, peering at the gully with distaste. The water would be cold, and he was not looking forward to going in.
"I'm sorry. This was my fault for not paying attention."
"Don't worry," said Ranma, laughing a little, "I was about to say the same thing. I wasn't watching the road very well, was I?"
With that, Ranma dipped in to the waist-deep - and very cold - water.
The change from male to female was slightly less uncomfortable than usual. It was always less of a shock when Ranma knew it was coming, and very cold water seemed to, well, numb things up. Even so, the feeling that part of him was being ripped up by the roots still brought on a silent sob. He knew in his mind that everything was still there, just tucked away, but that wasn't much comfort. As always, it was mercifully quick.
"Are you ready, Ryouga?" Ranma's voice, half an octave higher than a moment before, called out, "One, two, three..."
After about twenty minutes, the boy and the girl had gotten Dr. Tofu's car out of the gully. Ranma use a bucket from the car's trunk and some clean water from upstream to rinse off most of the soft mud. Fortunately, it looked as if the car was none the worse for wear.
The sun was getting lower, and was only strong enough to get Ranma partly dry. She sat in the car and hopped she didn't get the seat too damp. The two drove the final few kilometers to their destination in silence - with no hint of radio.
Ranma and Ryouga reached Himura-san's shop just before closing. The mechanic, a man in his mid-sixties with only as few remaining strands of graying, greasy hair, eyed the couple with a leering grin as he took the car keys.
"Sooo...Ono-kun has the pair of you staying at his dad's cabin, eh?"
It took a few moments for it to register that "Ono-kun" must be Dr. Tofu. I didn't even know he had a first name! thought Ranma.
"Uh, yes," said Ryouga, "We will be back to pick up the car tomorrow."
"It should be ready by noon," said Himura, actually looking at the car for the first time. "Hmm, better make that 2 pm - looks like his front-end alignment is out pretty badly. Funny, he hadn't mentioned that."
A single large bead of sweat formed on the back of Ryouga's head- a xerox copy formed on Ranma's.
"Anyway," continued Himura, "I'm sure you two will find plenty to keep you busy until then, hey??" Poking Ryouga in the side with his elbow, he held up his right hand with his pinky extended, and gave a leering wink in Ranma's direction.
Dr. Tofu's instructions said that the cabin was a three-kilometer hike up the mountain road, nothing the two martial artists couldn't easily handle. The pair started off, a change of clothes for tomorrow stowed safely in Ryouga's backpack. The road was fairly well used, so the two travelers stuck to the shoulder.
About halfway to the cabin, Ryouga stopped, "Uh, Ranma-kun, I really need to go!"
Why in the hell is he going to run away now? thought Ranma, Oh, wait...he's gotta pee.
This seemed to be a pretty good guess, as Ryouga was bouncing lightly, yet somewhat frantically, on the balls of his feet. And Ranma could see that his need had given him a noticeable erection, which was outlined in his drawstring pants. Ranma turned her head away, flushed.
"Well, go already," she said, testily, "Do you need my permission?"
"But I can't" said Ryouga, "The road's too busy. I'd have to go off into the bushes. You gotta come with me."
Ranma paused. If she went into the bushes with Ryouga in this state, she'd be tempted to look - or, Ryouga might accuse her of looking. Either way, it was just too likely to turn into an incident...
"Look, I'm a girl right now - I can't go rushing off into the bushes to watch you pee! Just go, do your thing, and call me when you're done. I'll come get you."
"Why do you have to be so difficult?" cried Ryouga, grabbing his crotch tightly with his left hand.
"JUST GO!" screamed Ranma, turning her head away while she still had the power to do so.
Baka Ranma! thought Ryouga, as he dashed into the thicket, Why's she's being so stubborn?
After walking a few meters into the bushes - enough distance to place a good screen between himself and any passing cars- Ryouga wrestled his stiff penis out of his pants and unclenched his groin muscles, allowing the pent-up pressure to finally be released.
I mean, it's not as if Ranma hasn't seen it before, thought Ryouga. But as the urgency of his distress abated, blood that had been temporarily re-assigned to his crotch rushed back into his brain, and nudged a receptive neuron.
Oh... this is about the other day. When I accused Ranma of looking at me in the bath. Well, it's true! Ryouga thought defensively. But I guess that explains why Ranma is acting so weird. Man, I really opened my mouth that time.
Adjusting his pants, Ryouga was just about to call Ranma's name, but stopped himself. Hell, I only walked like, maybe ten steps into the thicket. I can get back to the road without Ranma's help. I'll show her I didn't need her anyway!
Ryouga took three steps before falling into the stream. The change to P-chan was almost instantaneous, but Ryouga still had time to feel the sickening shrinking sensation, and the nauseating feeling of disorientation as human senses of sight, hearing, and smell changed to those of a pig. But, unlike Ranma, Ryouga also felt the utter panic of losing part of his mind, as the brain of a pig was simply not capable of supporting the higher thought processes of a human being.
After waiting for several minutes, Ranma began to fidget. "Ryouga! What's taking you so damn long. You...uh...didn't have to do more than pee, right? 'Cause if you actually asked me to follow you out into the woods to watch you take a dump, you're in for some serious trouble when you get back!"
After a few more minutes, Ranma became more concerned. "Ryouga! I'm coming in to get you. Let me know if you aren't done, okay?"
Ranma took only a few steps into the brush before she realized what had happened to Ryouga. There was P-chan, shivering next to Ryouga's backpack and umbrella on the bank of the cold stream.
"P-..uh..Ryouga, come on, I'll lead you out."
While Ryouga's mind was still his own, it was hampered by the physical limitations of P-chan's body. Upon seeing Ranma-chan, his first reaction was panic. She's come to kill me this time! This was all a trap, just to get me out here. If something happens now, no one will ever know! P-chan's heartbeat increased, as the typical Ryouga flight response started to kick in.
Ranma saw the pig's distress. "Hey, don't be scared of me," she said, in her softest girl voice. Man, he really is helpless as P-chan! No wonder he always clings to Akane when he's like this. "Ryouga...P-chan - I won't hurt you. We're a team now, remember?"
Ryouga's psyche wrestled for control of P-chan's body, finally calming it down and allowing Ranma to pick him up.
"There we go!" said Ranma, scratching P-chan under the chin. "We'll get you into a hot bath in no time." Ranma picked up Ryouga's things and started to head toward the road.
Just as she was about to leave the thicket, an unpleasant reality occurred to Ranma. Damn - now I gotta pee!
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Akane gathered her equipment from the dug-out. Though there had been a few close moments, there had never been any doubt that Furinkan High would take the girls' softball championship.
Especially with Ukyo on our team, thought Akane. After handling that giant spatula for so long, she's a natural heavy hitter.
Looking up from her duffle bag, she saw Ukyo leave a group of their team-mates. "Go on ahead - I'll catch up with you in a little while." Ukyo turned, then, noticing Akane, walked back to the dugout. "Need a hand with anything?"
"Uh.. no Ukyo-chan, I'm fine. Congratulations, by the way. That home run you hit really won the game for us."
"Thank you, Akane-chan. But don't forget that triple play you made in the fifth inning. That's when I knew there was no way we could lose."
The two girls looked at each other for a moment. Ukyo started to say something, then hesitated.
"Anything wrong, Ukyo-chan?" asked Akane.
"Oh..no.no..not at all. I'm a little tired, maybe," replied Ukyo, face slightly flushed. "But not too tired to celebrate this evening! Let's go get cleaned up."
On their way back down to the locker room, Akane felt another familiar wave of resentment wash over her. That Ranma. He's been Ukyo's friend since they were children, yet he missed her big day. And, knowing him, he probably has that nice Ryouga boy involved in some type of mischief.
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Ranma-chan and P-chan arrived at the Tofu family cabin just as the last rays of the sun faded from the western sky. The first order of business was to get everyone back to normal. Ranma slipped her shoes off at the door, put Ryouga's things on the table and began her search for the tub.
"Wow!" cried Ranma, as she stepped out onto the deck that ran behind the cabin. The porch was built to take advantage of the stunning mountainside view. At the edge of the deck was a Swedish style hot spa. Ranma removed the top from the tub and saw that the water was clear, and slightly warm. "I don't know how much Tofu-sensei pays that caretaker, but he definitely deserves a raise!"
"Kwee!"
Looking down at P-chan, Ranma smiled. "Just a minute, buddy, you'll be yourself again in no time." After playing with the spa controls for a few minutes, Ranma set the temperature and timer so that the water would be nice and warm. "Even a modern spa like this will take a while to heat up. Let's go look around."
The cabin was small, and built in the exotic style of a European ski cottage. The main room had a leather sofa and two large chairs. The hardwood floor was partially covered by a sheepskin rug, which rested directly in front of the central fireplace. Belatedly realizing that they had forgotten to pick up food, Ranma rummaged through the kitchen.
"Well, Ryouga buddy, looks like we can have whatever we want to eat as long as it's Cup Ramen -at least there's plenty of that stored away -ah! Juyondai!" Ranma picked up the bottle of sake. "Well, Tofu-san did say help ourselves. Perhaps dinner won't be a total loss, after all!"
Ranma drew tap water into two Cup Ramen and set them in the microwave to cook. In a couple of minutes, Ranma was able to set one cup of steaming noodles on the floor for P-chan, while she a happily slurped her own serving.
After starting a fire in the large stone fireplace, Ranma was back on the deck - P-chan under her left arm, bottle of sake in her right hand. Ranma placed the sake in a foam floater at the edge of the hot tub, then lifted up P-chan and set him on the side of the spa.
"You're clean enough to jump in now, and I'm sure you don't want to stay a pig any longer than you have to. I need to wash up before I get in, though. You just jump in when you're ready, and I'll be out in a while." Ranma looked up at the last fading threads of twilight. "It will be dark by the time I get out, so you won't have to worry about your privacy if we share the tub."
As soon as Ranma went into the cabin, P-chan dove into the water.
Damn, she sure has gotten self-conscious, thought Ryouga, when the last piggy cobwebs had cleared from his brain. It's not like I ever said Ranma couldn't look at me, just that I noticed he had been. But even Ryouga realized that sounded pretty lame. He took off his dirty bandana and wrung it out over the edge of the tub, finally draping it over the balcony ledge to dry. He settled in a corner of the spa, just his head and shoulders above the waterline, to wait for Ranma.
Ranma cleaned up in the bathroom shower. The hot water seemed to shrink her breasts like melting ice, while his testicles and penis emerged like a snail from its shell, and his entire body grew more muscular and angular. It's disgustingly compelling - almost like picking off a big scab, he thought, once the transformation was completed and the discomfort had subsided.
Ranma emerged from the house, one towel wrapped around his waist and several others draped over his arm. These he placed on a deck chair beside the spa. Unwrapping himself, he stepped into the hot tub, at the opposite corner as far away from Ryouga as possible.
"Feeling better, Ryouga-kun?"
"I'll say," said Ryouga, smiling, "Yourself?"
"Much better. Feeling - - myself again, I guess."
"Do you think that sake is warm enough, Ranma-kun?"
"Well, we'll just have to taste it and see."
There really is nothing like a nice, warm sake while soaking in a hot tub at the end of a long and eventful day. Both boys soon felt themselves relax, as sore muscles began to unwind, releasing hours of stored tension.
"Hey," said Ryouga, "That sake is good, kinda sweet."
"I think I'll have some more - here, pass me your cup."
While neither Ranma nor Ryouga was a sake virgin, one couldn't say either of them was an experienced drinker, either. By the second cup, both were feeling quite light-headed.
Ryouga moved to a corner of the tub that looked out over the edge of the balcony. He turned around and rested him arms on the edge of the spa, so that he could look at the breathtaking view, well lit by a full moon. Ranma took up a similar position in the adjacent corner.
Though it was unseasonably chill up in the mountains, the water was warm, and steamed slightly in the thin air. Ryouga's body above the waterline was cool, and the occasional wisps of mist rising from the tub made him shiver just a little when they brushed against his skin. But the sake warmed him on the inside, while the water warmed most of him on the outside, so it wasn't at all a bad feeling.
Ranma looked up at the autumn constellations, and recited:
When fall
leaves turn gold
Moon and bright stars move closer
Diamonds shine above!
Yeah, they do look like diamonds, tonight, for sure, thought Ryouga. It reminded him of the letter from Ti-Sensei, about being strong, but showing your hidden feelings.
Ryouga turned his head, to look at the boy sitting next to him as they both leaned against the edge of the tub. "That's a beautiful haiku, Ranma-kun. Where did you learn that?"
"Uh, well," said Ranma, scratching the back of his head with his hand, "I wrote it myself...for a class."
Ryouga made a decision. I am trusting you on this, Ti-sensei.
"You know, Ranma-kun, about the other day...well... I know you look at me because...because I look at you, too." Ryouga guessed this was true - he hadn't really thought about it until a few moments before. Whether is was actually true or not, it felt like the right thing to say, and Ryouga wanted to say it, realizing where this might lead. "In the bath, I mean..."
"I know what you meant," replied Ranma, quietly.
"I'm looking at you now," said Ryouga, even more quietly, his voice slightly husky.
"That's the sake talking."
"Hmm - and if I get a nosebleed, I guess it's just because of the altitude, huh?"
Ranma turned to look at Ryouga, who had moved closer to him with this last statement. "Hibiki Ryouga, I wish I could believe you were serious."
Ryouga reached under the water, and took Ranma's hand.
"Saotome Ranma, I've never been more serious."
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Diamond Sutra concludes in Chapter Four: Resolutions
C&C Welcome - ashoro@excite.com