Chapter 9 Wedding Belles
That evening, Ranma met Tofu at the door to Genma's hospital room. "How much damage did I do to him, Doc?" Ranma asked quietly.
Tofu replied, "You cracked three of his ribs, broke his nose and jaw, and dislocated his shoulder. The rest of his body is one big bruise. They've already reset the nose and immobilized his jaw, taped up his ribs and put his shoulder back where it belongs."
Ranma's eyes filled with a look of self-loathing as he heard the recitation of the injuries he had inflicted on his father. "So much for a martial artist only using his art to protect the weak," Ranma said bitterly, "Is he awake?"
Tofu looked at Ranma compassionately and then answered, "Yes, though the pain medication he is on is making him pretty groggy. You can certainly go in and see him if you want. Shampoo's in there with him right now, by the way."
Ranma looked surprised at that news, but decided to worry about that later. "Thanks, Doc. I do need to see him now. I have to apologize for what I did to him," Ranma said. Then he asked, "Are you gonna be around for a while or are you heading back to the clinic?"
"I need to get back to the clinic," Tofu replied, "I've done everything I can do here."
Ranma hesitated for a second, deciding if this was really the right time or place, but then said, "Doc, Akane and I plan on having our wedding as soon as possible. I'd like you to be my best man. Akane is over at the clinic right now asking Kasumi to be her matron of honor."
"I'd be honored, Ranma," Tofu replied, secretly pleased, "Thanks for asking me. We can talk later about the details of the ceremony. Right now though, I need to get home, and you need to see Genma." Tofu headed toward the elevator, leaving Ranma alone with his thoughts.
Finally, Ranma sighed and opened the door to the room and walked in. His face grew grim as he saw the heavily bandaged face of his father. It grew even grimmer as he saw the look of fear in his father's eyes. Shampoo's eyes narrowed in anger as she saw who had walked in. "What are ya doing here, Ranma? Come ta gloat over what ya did ta my airen?" she asked with a quiet anger in her voice.
"No, Shampoo, I didn't come to gloat," Ranma said quietly, "I came to apologize. I didn't mean for things to get so far out of hand as they did. I thought he could defend himself better. I didn't know I had gotten that much better than he was."
Shampoo relaxed and asked, "So you came to apologize then?"
"Yes. I'm not a warrior like you, Shampoo. I don't enjoy hurting people like this. I needed to beat him to become the master, but I didn't need to brutalize him. The amount of damage I did was unnecessary," Ranma replied. The note of self-reproach in his voice seemed to satisfy something in Shampoo. "I didn't see how much my anger was fueling my attacks. I didn't want to see, I guess," Ranma continued.
He walked over to the bed, wincing again as he saw the look of fear in his father's eyes. "I'm sorry it came to this, Genma. What I did was overkill," Ranma said softly, "You just needed to be beaten, not hurt like this."
Genma scribbled a note and handed it to Ranma. 'You don't really have anything to feel sorry for boy. I've had this coming for a long time. And to be honest, after what I did to you, Akane and Nabiki, I deserved a lot of this,' the note read.
"Maybe so, but I don't feel any better about what I did. I abused my abilities. If I had continued much more, I might have killed you," Ranma replied.
Scribble, scribble, scribble. 'The important thing is that you realize that now. Remember, with great power comes great responsibility. You are one of the best martial artists I know. This may be the last lesson that I teach you, son, but I think you've learned it now. I just wish the lesson wasn't quite so painful!' this note read.
Ranma's face quirked in a lopsided smile and he replied, "A martial artist's life is faced with peril. Heal quickly, Genma."
Ranma turned to Shampoo and asked, "Could you step outside for a minute with me, Shampoo?"
Shampoo nodded and the two of them left the room. "Can I ask why you are here, Shampoo?" Ranma asked.
"Just because Shampoo don't like him much, doesn't mean he isn't my airen. Shampoo come when she hear of injury, this is where honor say wife should be," Shampoo said, a tear rolling down her cheek.
"I understand now, Shampoo," Ranma replied quietly. 'We need to get this burden away from her. She doesn't want to be with Pop, either, but she feels stuck with him,' Ranma thought. "I'll be by tomorrow after school, I'm sure. Akane is looking for you, by the way." He looked one last time at his father, and then headed home, while Shampoo walked back into the room.
----------------------
The next morning, as Akane entered into the schoolyard, she was instantly mobbed by all of her friends, separating her from Ranma. Yuka asked, "Are the rumors true? Did you two set a date for your wedding?" All of the other girls clamored for attention, asking many of the same questions. Laughing, Akane allowed herself to be pulled along, smiling apologetically to Ranma as she was swept away by her friends' enthusiasm.
Ranma said over the uproar, "I'll see you in class, Acchan. If you're not there by the time the bell rings, I'll come looking for you." He headed toward the school, inwardly amused at the furor surrounding his fiancée. He though, 'Man, you'd think we were idol stars, or something, from the way they were acting. One good thing for sure, this should kill a lot of the other rumors that were flying around yesterday. Of course, I'm sure it will spawn a whole bunch more that are equally annoying. I bet Nabiki's having fun.' He looked up toward the window of Nabiki's classroom, and sure enough, his future sister-in-law was standing there in the window watching the confusion around Akane. She flashed him a quick smile and a wink, confirming Ranma's suspicions. As he entered the building, he smiled, thinking, 'I was right, she spilled the news as a counter to the stories floating around. One of these days though I need to remind her that it is easy to ride the tiger, the trick is to get off it without getting eaten.'
Akane waited until enough of the chatter had died down around her and answered Yuka's question, "Yes, we set a date for the wedding. It's this Saturday after school. And before any of you ask, it's then because we want to get married, not because we have to. I'm not pregnant, neither one of us is dying, and we aren't quitting school. I think that takes care of most of the really stupid rumors I heard yesterday." That announcement set off another flurry of questions, most of which Akane couldn't hear.
Sayuri asked the next most burning question, "Where is the wedding going to be?"
Akane responded, "It'll be at the dojo, of course, Sayuri. We decided to have a Western ceremony. It's kind of nice; Ranma said he didn't want me to hide under a robe. Of course, I think he'll look more handsome in a tuxedo than in a formal kimono as well. All of you are invited. Nabiki's handling all of that." Akane looked at the time and said, "We'd better hurry to class or we'll all be late, and I for one don't want to hold water buckets today!" With that she forced her way to the mob of girls and headed toward her classroom.
----------------------
Ranma and Akane entered his mother's house, with Akane saying, "Tadaima!" As they entered the living room, they saw that they had guests. Ranma recognized the Amazon Elder Cologne, who was escorted by a young man, about his own age, wearing a white robe with billowing sleeves and long, black hair.
"Akane, this is Elder Cologne. I asked her to come over today to discuss the situation with Genma. The young man with her is her aide Mousse. Cologne, Mousse, this is Akane Tendo, my son's fiancée," Nodoka said.
Good afternoon, Elder Khu Lon, you honor our house with your presence, Ranma said politely, Muu Tse, welcome to our house as well.
Cologne cackled, and said, "Thank you Ranma. Someone's been teaching you some manners, I see. Must be the young lady."
Ranma flashed a quick smile, and replied, "Would you prefer I call you old ghoul still?"
Cologne shook her head in amusement, and answered, "That sounds more like the youngster I knew in the village. Now that we've satisfied all of the courtesies, why did you ask me to visit, Nodoka?"
"I have set in motion several things that affect Genma Saotome, and I wanted to let you know what they are. I'm concerned about the girl Shampoo and how this may impact her," Nodoka replied.
"What things have you done?" Cologne asked.
Nodoka replied, "As of two days ago, Ranma and I were removed from the Saotome clan registers and listed on my families clan, Clan Himura. Yesterday, Ranma challenged him for mastery of the Saotome School, and beat him rather severely. While he stays at the hospital, he is of no concern for Shampoo, though she did visit him last night. I hope that is because of her belief that he is her airen, and not because of any genuine sense of affection." Hearing that, Mousse grew visibly upset.
"Why did you two decide on these actions after so long?" Cologne asked.
Akane replied, wearily, "For many reasons Elder. Ranma and I got engaged several days ago. My sister Nabiki had secretly been in love with Ranma and went crazy with jealousy when she discovered that. She conspired with Genma in an attempt to force Ranma to marry her, fooling both my father and Nodoka into believing her. When that plan backfired, Ranma disowned his father, and Genma drove Nabiki to try to kill herself. Ranma prevented that from happening, and we reconciled with her. Because of Genma's cruelty toward Nabiki, Ranma swore at that time to drive him away from Nerima."
"Once I found out what he had done, that was the final straw for me as well. I had allowed myself to be fooled by that man once more, and that was too much to bear. He almost cost me the love of my son, as well as the love of three girls that I had come to see as my daughters," Nodoka added, "I found that I could not let that continue. For the sake of our two families, we needed to separate ourselves from Genma. I have come to a decision about my husband. After thinking about everything he has done, I realized that whatever I had seen in him had vanished. After his near destruction of my son, his reckless disregard for the feelings of other people and his total contempt for women, I no longer wish to be his wife. I have started the necessary steps to correct that mistake."
Cologne expression grew grim as she pondered what she had heard. She sighed and said, "It appears that he is worse than I thought. But what is it that you need me for?"
"Several things, actually. First and foremost, I ask you to release Shampoo from her kiss of marriage. Obviously, she has no desire to be his wife, either. She shudders every time he comes near her," Nodoka said.
"I see no problem in releasing my great granddaughter from her kiss of marriage. No one should be forced to wed your husband. I see I must visit her and let her know that her ordeal is over," Cologne replied.
Ranma hesitated and then said, "Cologne, Akane and I are being wed this Saturday. We would be honored if you would attend."
Cologne smiled and answered, "Mousse and I would be honored to come, Ranma. You were a worthy student of mine. For now though, we will take our leave. I think I will visit Shampoo on our way to the embassy."
----------------------
As Shampoo opened the door to the Tendo home, she was surprised to see her great grandmother, the Elder Cologne as well as her erstwhile suitor, Mousse. Shampoo gasped and then said, Great grandmother, what are you and Muu Tse doing here? Am I in trouble because I haven't come back with my husband?
No, child, you aren't, Khu Lon said kindly, In fact that is why I am here tonight. May we come in? Xian Pu blushed and stepped out of their way and allowed them entry into the house. She led them into the living room and then sat down.
My airen is in the hospital, where he is recuperating from his injuries. I was intending on heading over there right now, Xian Pu began.
That is not important right now. What I came here for was to ask you a much more important question. Tell me what you have learned from these people, Xian Pu, the Elder asked.
Xian Pu pondered the question carefully. Her great grandmother would not have come all this way to ask that casually. She wasn't sure how she knew, but Xian Pu realized that the answer she gave was extremely important to her great grandmother. Xian Pu answered carefully, I have learned many things, Elder Khu Lon. One is that our culture, our traditions, are not the only way to lead an honorable life. Ranma and his mother, both have shown me that they value honor above all things. In spite of the many issues that fool Saotome created for his son, Ranma attempted to solve them as honorably as he could. His mother has had many long talks with me. She could have easily turned me away but she welcomed me into her family, treating me as an equal, but also as her daughter. She showed me that family and clan are important to her as well. The Tendo women and Ukyo are friends that I cherish. In many ways they would be worthy to be considered Amazon warriors. Another thing they have shown me is that it is possible to follow ancient traditions and yet live in a modern world. Our culture avoids that, and that may yet prove to be a mistake. I'm concerned that we may not be adaptable enough.
The Elder Khu Lon smiled proudly as she said, Well answered, Xian Pu. I too have often thought we were too rigid. While we must hold to our customs and traditions because that defines who we are as a people, we must also be able to survive in the modern age. While our villages are still quite isolated, eventually modern civilization will encroach upon us more and more. We have to be ready for that. What about your Airen?
Xian Pu said simply, Losing to that fool has taught me something as well. One is that even the best martial artist can be beaten if they are too arrogant. I let my anger and my pride blind me and thus fell easy prey to an opponent who is nowhere near my equal. I lost to him before I even stepped on the challenge log. However, he is not worthy of my respect. He is lazy, dishonest, a drunkard and a cheat. He has an extremely poor opinion of women. He has done many dishonorable things in his life. He in no way deserves the honor of becoming an Amazon warrior.
Then it is a good thing that you cannot wed him. His prior marriage to Nodoka invalidated the kiss of marriage you gave him. I hereby declare that null and void, Khu Lon said, with a dry chuckle at the look of relief her great granddaughter gave her. However, I had one question. If you dislike your airen that much, why did you go to the hospital last night, and why were you planning on going again tonight?
He was my airen, and beside his hospital bed was were a good wife should be. My honor demanded that of me, even if my personal feelings made me wish otherwise, Xian Pu replied.
Excellent answer, my child. It seems that you have learned many of the lessons that I wished you to learn, Khu Lon stated.
Xian Pu asked, Does this mean I must return to the village?
Only if you wish, Xian Pu. If you wish to stay here to finish your education, that is your choice. I will be returning shortly to the village, but you may stay if that is your desire, Khu Lon replied.
I would like to stay if I could. I have come to love my new family and friends and would miss them greatly. I have even enjoyed school and I would like to go to college, Xian Pu answered.
Then it is decided, child. You have my permission to tell Nodoka and her son about the kiss of marriage. Treat Nodoka as you would treat an Elder of the village. She has much wisdom still to teach you, Khu Lon said, I will see you again before I leave. Ranma has invited me to his wedding with Akane Tendo this Saturday.
Khu Lon got up to leave, but Muu Tse stayed seated. He said, I need to talk to Xian Pu for a few moments in private Elder, if that is acceptable to you?
Khu Lon stared at his inscrutable face, attempting to read him. Finally, she gave up and said, I'll wait outside. Don't be long, Muu Tse. She hopped out of the room.
Muu Tse looked sadly at Xian Pu and asked, When we were younger, we were friends. What did I do to make you dislike me?
You started stalking me. I don't like people who do that. Every time I turned around in the village, you were there saying you loved me. You weren't as good at martial arts as I was, and then your eyes really started to go bad, making you even worse. The rest of the village thought it was beneath me to even allow you near me. While I know it was wrong of me, I let that affect my opinion of you. I need a strong man to love me, a true warrior, and that's not what you were, Xian Pu replied.
That's not true, Muu Tse protested, I am a strong warrior, Xian Pu. I'm a master of the school of Hidden Weapons. They don't make just anyone a master!
True. But we're talking about then, not about now. You know our laws. You first have to beat Airen in combat, and then fight me. You can certainly beat Airen, but I'm a different story. Ranma has continued to train me in his school, so I'm even better than I was back in the village, Xian Pu said.
Muu Tse slumped his shoulders. That's my real problem, Xian Pu. I can't bring myself to hurt you. I couldn't fight you and risk that. he said dejectedly.
Suddenly, Shampoo noticed something that she had somehow missed. "Mousse, where are your glasses?" she asked.
Mousse looked up startled, and then answered, "I went and had laser surgery done. My eyes are fine now. That's where I've been since the last time you saw me. I had to earn the money first, and then heal up afterwards. So no more chasing the wrong person, thinking it is you."
Shampoo looked thoughtful. "Mousse, I won't ever be yours. You need to stop thinking about me that way. However, there isn't any reason why we can't be friends, if you can stop obsessing over me," Shampoo said.
Mousse sighed heavily, and then said, "Shampoo, I'm not sure I can do that. I need to think about it for a while. I'll see you at the wedding, I'm sure. Maybe we can talk some more then." He bowed politely and then left.
----------------------
The afternoon for the wedding was a bright, sunny day, which Akane took as a good omen for the future. Nodoka had been wonderful, making sure everything came together for the wedding. Nabiki had somehow managed to get all of the tuxedos and dresses ready in time. When Akane asked how she had done it, Nabiki just smiled and said, "Consider this part of my wedding present, Sis. I just used some of my connections, don't worry."
Ranma was at the altar waiting for his bride to appear, wondering how the collar of his shirt had gotten so tight. Out of the corner of one eye, he saw Tofu give him an amused, but sympathetic look. Tofu whispered, "Don't worry, Ranma. No groom is ever comfortable at his wedding."
"If that is supposed to make me feel better, it doesn't, Doc. Why do we do this, anyway?" Ranma whispered back.
Tofu just smiled and said, "For them of course, Ranma. We do it for our women."
Ranma gazed out over the crowd, seeing the many familiar faces. Most of their classmates had come to see them wed. His mother was already seated, at the front of the room, smiling calmly at her son, with her ever-present katana next to her. Cologne and Mousse were sitting on the aisle about halfway back, Mousse with a bemused look on his face, while the Elder was gently smiling. Finally, the door to the dojo opened, and the bridesmaids began to appear. Shampoo started walking slowly down the aisle, the color of her dress matching quite nicely her lavender hair. Mousse's eyes gained a wistful look as she appeared, then grew calm. Shampoo met them at the altar and then walked over a few paces to stand opposite Ukyo, who looked quite handsome in her tuxedo. Nabiki appeared and began walking down the aisle, her face mysterious, with a hint of mischief. She turned at the altar and then stood opposite of Ryoga, who seemed to have the same problem with his collar as Ranma did. Finally, Kasumi came walking down the aisle, her air of calm radiating out from around her. When she got to the altar, she gave Ranma a quick smile, and then stood opposite her husband.
Ranma swallowed, his throat dry, as the door opened again, and a vision in white walked in, escorted by her father. Akane was simply stunning, and suddenly Ranma realized what Tofu had meant. Seeing her, looking this radiant, made the tux and every thing else worthwhile. Akane and Soun slowly approached, the crowd rising to their feet as they walked down the aisle. Stopping before she got to the altar, Akane hugged Nodoka, who beamed her approval. Stopping at the altar, Soun gave Akane's hand to Ranma to hold. He smiled at them both, and then sat down. As she joined him, Ranma looked over and whispered "Kawaii." Akane's eyes got even brighter, if that was possible, and then she blushed. The two of them turned to face the minister, waiting for him to start.
The minister began to speak, words that Ranma couldn't hear, or remember, lost as he was in his bride's glorious eyes. Suddenly the door slammed open, and Kodachi stormed in, wearing a black bridal gown. "Ranma darling, I've come to save you from this peasant," she cried as she ran down the aisle, holding a bouquet of black roses.
Ranma turned, stepped in front of Akane and glared at Kodachi. He said, in an angry voice, "Kodachi, get out of here. I am marrying Akane. She is the woman I love. I only feel disgust for you!"
"How dare you interrupt my wedding, you bitch!" Akane said from behind him. Ranma noted with quiet amusement, that Ryoga had stepped in front of Ukyo to protect her, which made Ukyo fume. Tofu had stepped over and was protecting Kasumi.
As she was about to throw the roses at Akane, suddenly a set of chains came flying from nowhere, wrapping around Kodachi and pulling her to the ground. The roses exploded, and the gas emitted by them paralyzed Kodachi. Ranma bowed in thanks to Mousse, who gravely bowed back in response. Then Mousse got up and slung Kodachi over one shoulder and left the dojo. The minister cleared his throat and then continued the ceremony.
The minister said to Ranma "Ranma Saotome, will you have Akane Tendo to be your wedded wife, to live together in the holy estate of matrimony; will you love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, keep yourself only unto her, so long as you both shall live?"
"I do," he managed to say, just barely loud enough to be heard. Akane smiled.
Then the minister asked Akane, "Akane Tendo, will you have Ranma Saotome to be your wedded husband to live together in the holy estate of matrimony; will you love him, comfort him, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, keep yourself only unto him, so long as you both shall live?"
"I most certainly do," she replied in a ringing voice. Ranma looked stunned for a second at the assurance in her voice, 'It's really happening,' he thought.
Then the minister asked him, "What pledge do you give of the sincerity of your vows?"
"A ring."
The minister asked Akane, "Do you accept this ring as a pledge of the sincerity of Ranma's vows?
She answered, "I do."
Ranma said with a little prompting, "With this ring I thee wed. And with all my worldly goods I thee endow."
Then the minister responded, "And may this circlet of pure gold which has no end, be henceforth the chaste and changeless symbol of your evermore pure and changeless affection."
Then he asked Akane, "What pledge do you give of the sincerity of your vows?"
"A ring."
The minister asked, "Ranma do you accept this ring as a pledge of the sincerity of Akane's vows?
Ranma replied, "I do."
Akane said in a vibrant voice, "This ring I give you in token and pledge of my constant faithfulness and abiding love."
The minister said, "And may these rings given and received, be the outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual bond which unites your two hearts in love that has no end. Forasmuch as Ranma and Akane have consented in holy wedlock, and have thereto confirmed the same by giving and receiving each one a ring; by the authority committed unto me, I now declare you husband and wife." The minister paused, and then said, "You may kiss the bride."
Ranma blushed, and then proceeded to kiss his wife for the first time. He looked at Akane, and lost himself in her glorious eyes. He hesitated, and then bent down and kissed her. She reached up and held him in place as he attempted to back away, embarrassed to be kissing in public.
Finally, Nabiki snickered and said, "Why don't you two get a room?" Blushing, the newlywed couple broke apart, and turned to face the crowd.
The minister said, "May I now introduce Ranma and Akane Tendo." The audience applauded as the couple held each other's hand. Then they walked down the aisle, and out the door. Slowly the rest of the bridal party made their way out of the dojo and on into the yard for the reception.
Nabiki disappeared into the house to find what had happened to Kodachi. She found her in the living room, tied up with a gag over her mouth. The tall, young good-looking man who had captured her was standing over Kodachi, with an amused look on his face. Nabiki said, "Thank you for your quick reaction. I'm Nabiki Tendo, I don't believe we've met before."
The young man bowed and said, "My name is Mousse. I'm an old acquaintance of Shampoo. Ranma and Akane invited Elder Cologne to the ceremony and I am her aide."
"Welcome to our home, Mousse. Aide to an Amazon Elder, that sounds very important," Nabiki replied.
Mousse smiled easily and said, "It means I mostly fetch things for her, is all. The title is much loftier than the actual job." He hesitated and then said, "I took the liberty of calling your police over this incident. They should be arriving shortly."
Nodoka entered the living room, carrying her katana. She said, "Thank you for doing that Mousse. It's time we put an end to the harassment that the Kuno family has been doing."
Nodoka walked over to Kodachi and removed her gag. "As for you, young lady, I believe my son has told you on more than one occasion he has absolutely no interest in you. What you attempted to do today is inexcusable," Nodoka said sternly.
Kasumi showed a police officer into the living room. Nodoka smiled pleasantly at him and said, "Thank you for coming, officer. My name is Nodoka Himura. This woman attempted to stop the wedding of my son. She has this delusion that he loves her, in spite of the innumerable times he has told her otherwise."
"Ranma darling is mine! If I can't have him, then no one will!" Kodachi said wildly, still struggling against her bonds.
"I am Lieutenant Saito. What is this young woman's name?" the officer asked.
"She is Kodachi Kuno," Nabiki replied.
The officer stiffened and asked, "Is she related to Tatewaki Kuno, who is in jail for attempting to murder a Ranma Saotome?"
"Yes. She is his sister. Ranma is my son," Nodoka replied.
Saito cursed under his breath, and said, "Would it be possible for me to talk to your son and his new wife? I apologize for the inconvenience this will cause, but it is necessary."
"Of course, Lieutenant. Kasumi, would you be so kind? I'm sure Ranma is ready to escape from the attention anyway," Nodoka asked. Kasumi nodded and left the room.
"If it wasn't for Mousse, things could have gotten a bit ugly," Nabiki said, "He's the one that stopped her from attacking us."
Mousse said, "It is the duty of a martial artist to protect others. Ranma, Tofu and Ryoga did the same when they stepped in front of their women."
"Yeah, and I bet Ukyo still hasn't forgiven Ryoga for doing that. I had to hide behind Shampoo, myself," Nabiki added.
Ranma and Akane entered the room, still dressed in their wedding attire. "Officer, I am Ranma and this is my wife Akane. Kasumi said that you wished to speak to us," he asked.
"Ranma darling, there you are. Have you come to rescue me from this boorish lot?" Kodachi asked.
"Kodachi, I am not now nor have I ever been your Ranma darling. I've told you that many times," Ranma answered, angered by her presence, "Why is she still here? She tried to assault us during the wedding ceremony. If it weren't for the quick action of Mousse, she would have hurt someone. Thank you again for that, Mousse, by the way. We are in your debt."
Saito asked, "Has she been stalking you long, Saotome?"
Ranma said irritably, "Sorry, the name's Tendo now. And to answer your question, yes. Ever since I saved her when she fell off the roof of this house several months ago, she has been obsessed with me."
"Sorry, I didn't realize you had taken your wife's name," Saito said. Ranma waved off the apology, as Saito continued, "What was she doing up on the roof in the first place?"
"She had come to attack me. She is the captain of the St. Hebereke Martial Arts Gymnastics team, and our school was having a match with hers. She believed in preempting the match by taking out all of the opposing team prior to the match, and I was her opponent. We ended up on the roof during her attack, and she slipped off. Ranma saved her by catching her before she hit the ground," Akane said.
"Do you intend to press charges this time?" Saito asked, "It sounds like before you didn't wish to bring the authorities in."
"Yes, I think it's time. Before, my son and his friends tried to take care of it themselves because of their martial arts code. Now, however, she crossed the line and could have hurt other people. I want her arrested, and held over for a medical exam. I think she is crazy," Nodoka answered.
"I'll take her away now. I'll have some more questions for all of you later, but they can wait. I've taken you away from the reception long enough," Saito said. He placed a set of handcuffs on Kodachi and untied her.
Kodachi glared at him and said, "My family will have you broken, Lieutenant."
He merely said, "I've heard that before." He bowed politely to the rest of the party and led Kodachi out of the house.
Ranma, Akane and Nodoka headed back to the reception, leaving Mousse alone with Nabiki. She said, "I'd like to add my thanks for your intervention, Mousse. More than likely the one you saved from getting seriously hurt was me. The rest of the wedding party were martial artists. I've been slowly regaining my old skills, but I am not in their class. Ranma is not the only person who owes you a debt. I feel that I do as well."
"Your welcome, Nabiki. I'm just glad I was able to help. I've only met Ranma and Akane once, but from what the Elder has said, he is someone that I will be honored to know," Mousse replied.
"I could use an escort to the reception. Could I impose on you?" Nabiki asked.
"Gladly," Mousse said, allowing her to take his arm and lead him into the backyard.
As they entered the backyard, Akane saw them and said, "Just in time, Nabiki. I'm about ready to toss the bouquet. Go get with all of the other single girls. Remember, it's bad luck for it to hit the ground." Protesting mildly, Nabiki allowed herself to be bullied into joining the small mob of giggling girls. Akane turned around and threw the bouquet over her shoulder. To Nabiki's shock and dismay, none of the other girls made a serious attempt at catching the bouquet as it came straight at her and landed in her arms.
"Why do I think I was set up?" Nabiki growled at her sister as Akane came to congratulate her for catching the bouquet.
Akane gave her best 'Who me' look and said, saccharinely, "Why sister, what would ever have given you that idea? Would I do that to you?" She went back up to where Ranma was, and sat down in a chair so he could attempt to take off her garter.
"Stupid gaigan custom, like I'm going to be the next one to get married," Nabiki grumbled as she was led away by the other girls so that the single men could attempt to catch the garter. Soon, however, she was laughing at Ranma as a blush slowly crawled across his face, especially considering some of the ribald comments he was getting.
Ranma stood up, after successfully removing the garter off of his giggling wife and turned around. He stretched the garter, and shot it up into the air. The garter landed in the hands of a very surprised Mousse, who hadn't even been in the crowd of single men, and had been standing towards the back talking to Cologne. If Cologne hadn't said, "Catch this!" he wouldn't have even had his hands out.
"What's this for?" Mousse asked.
Nabiki answered, "It's a silly Western custom. Kasumi insisted we do it. She gets that way sometimes, because Ranma and Akane wanted a Western ceremony, we have to do everything that goes with it. Supposedly, the girl who catches the bouquet is the next woman to get married. Same thing with the garter, since you caught it, you're supposed to be the next groom." Their eyes met as they both laughed at how ridiculous sounding that was. Privately she thought, 'Even if it is a silly gaigan custom, maybe there is someone out there for me!'