Chapter Four
-Splash-
"What'd yaw do that for?" Ranma
"Because this is the easiest way to get you up. Now hurry up or we're going to be late." Akane
"Ok fine. I'm coming." Ranma said and headed downstairs with Akane.
"It shames me to see my boy this way." Genma
"Then go get some hot water to change me back." Ranma
"If you were really a man you would do it yourself." Genma
"Well I plan on changing back but not until after breakfast and our practice. No matter what you would hit me with cold water before I leave. If I just stay this way till its time to leave I don't have to go through the trouble of changing back several times." Ranma
Genma and Ranma practiced out in the courtyard and then Kasumi called out "breakfast is ready"
Ranma kicked Genma in to the pond and out came a panda.
"Rear rare rag rare" Genma-panda
"What's that pop? I cant understand you." Ranma
Genma held up a sign that read 'you didn't have to do that.'
Ranma just shrugged and then they went inside to eat. Kasumi had a kettle of hot water for both Ranma and Genma. They both changed back to their normal forms. They all sat down for a nice quiet breakfast which never happens. Enter Happosai. Happosai splashes Ranma with cold water and then immediately gloats onto Ranma's breasts. Ranma screams.
Ranma wakes up screaming. man that was a strange dream. it started out like old times and well it ended like the old times but still that is a nightmare to have that happen.
There was a knocking at the door.
"Come in." Ranma
"Are you alright?" Monk c
"Yes." Ranma
"I heard a scream" monk c
"Sorry about that." Ranma
"Its quite alright." Monk c
The monk left
I'm awake now I might as well get up now Ranma
Ranma got up and then got dressed. Ranma walked out of his room and down the hall.
-Splash-
"Why me?" Ranma said not expecting an answer
"Sorry about that, I bumped the bucket and it fell. Are you alright?" Monk d
"I'm fine." Ranma it happens to me of all people. Its not even intentional and it still happens. At least they don't react the way they did the first time it happened.
[Flash back]
"So how is your schooling coming along?" Monk a
"I'm doing better now than I use to." Ranma
"That's good. I've heard good things about your teaching in the martial arts." Monk a
"But I only have a few students although I am getting more." Ranma
"Well the ones you have think highly of you." Monk a
"That's good to know. Can you tell me which ones?" Ranma
"You know I cant do that. It isn't..." monk a
-Splash- Ranma then turned to a girl from the glass of water that one of the monks spilled as he was serving everyone dinner.
"I'm sorry about that I didn't mean to...." monk e
All the monks were quiet as they noticed that there friend Ranma was now a girl. There was silence until Ranma broke it by saying "does anyone have some hot water?" Ranma
"Uh... I do. I was going to use it for my tea." Monk f
Ranma took it and poured it on her head and then she became a he.
"Perhaps I should tell you how this happened." Ranma
"Yes. I think you should." monk a
"Well it all started when my father took me on a training trip to china. We came to a place called Jusenkyo. We didn't know of the horrors that would come upon you if you fell into the cursed springs. My father..." Ranma
[Present time]
Ranma helped the monks with some of there morning chores. He helped clean the floor and the tables. It was easier now since he was a girl and didn't have to worry about getting wet. After he helped with the morning chores he got some hot water to change back to normal and then he went to the dinning hall to eat breakfast with the monks. When he finished with breakfast he left the temple and headed to school. When Ranma got to school he saw that Nabiki was just arriving and without Akane and Ryoga. Ranma walked over to Nabiki.
"Nabiki. Where's Akane? And Ryoga? I thought the three of you normally came to school together." Ranma
"We do. But the two of them are running a bit late today. Actually I'm not sure if Ryoga will make it to school today." Nabiki Actually since I didn't bring him and Akane isn't going to then if he tries to make it to school or anywhere else for that matter then he is going to be gone for awhile.
"Why is that?" Ranma asked
"Well Akane finally learned the truth about Ryoga." Nabiki
"Uh oh. This isn't good. So how is Akane taking it?" Ranma
"Take a guess." Nabiki
"She is probably trying to beat the crap out of Ryoga. She is also probably hitting him but not doing any damage to Ryoga." Ranma
"Very good. So are you going to go get Ryoga so he can make it to school." Nabiki
"No." Ranma
"What? I thought that you would be on Ryoga's side since the two of you have gotten buddy buddy and you are no longer engaged to my sister. It would be natural to be that way." Nabiki
"Ryoga is getting what he deserves. He never deserved to be turned into a pig but he could have done something about the way he handled himself." Ranma
"So you do still care about Akane." Nabiki
"Of course I do. She's the one that told me to leave remember. Heck. I even got Ukyo off my back and shampoo wont be a problem soon." Ranma
"So you view my sister as a problem?" Nabiki
"That's not what I said." Ranma
"That's what it sounded like to me." Nabiki
"It wasn't her. It was always the others. Well except for her cooking but that was getting better." Ranma
this is too easy. I already know all this and now I am getting him to say it. And I am getting it all on tape. Nabiki
"So why did you break off the engagement with Ukyo after you had broken it with Akane?" Nabiki now this is what I want to know
"I broke it off with Ukyo because I broke it off with Akane." Nabiki
"Why?" Nabiki
"Well as long as I was engaged to Akane then I didn't have to marry Ukyo." Ranma
"So your saying that you were using Akane to keep from paying off Ukyo or getting married to her." Nabiki
"I wasn't using her. It was a legitimate reason. And as long as I was engaged to Ukyo I couldn't be forced to marry Akane." Ranma
what. I thought he wanted to marry Akane and just didn't have the nerve to say it. Now I'm beginning to think I was wrong. Nabiki
"So you didn't want to marry Akane?" Nabiki
"Not unless she wanted to." Ranma
"So why didn't you just pay off Ukyo and do what you had been doing before Ukyo arrived?" Nabiki
"Well I didn't pay off Ukyo earlier because I didn't want to ruin our friendship which it has done." Ranma
"So you fought your father to be able to have control of your life back and since we all said that we didn't want you, you decided to leave and then you went to break off the engagement with Ukyo because you didn't want to be forced into marriage. And now you have a plan that you think will finally get shampoo to leave you alone. Is that all right?" Nabiki
"Well I didn't really break the engagement with Akane. The engagement was to one of you. It wasn't an absolute that it had to be Akane. But anyway I did leave yes but I didn't really break it because I'm not able to. I did break the engagement with Ukyo because I didn't want her to think this was her chance and force me into marriage and besides I told her that I would rather get married for the right reasons. She seems to think that because I made it so I cant be forced into it that I don't like her. I do like Ukyo but its just as a friend but she would have an easier time convincing me than shampoo would. At least shampoo wont be a problem by the end of the week." Ranma
"Why are you telling me all of this? Don't stop this is really good but I would like to know why you are telling me. Its not like we talk a lot." Nabiki
"I don't know. I just feel like I can trust you with this. and even if you do decide to make money off of this it isn't really going to be bad for me because what I have said is the truth and I haven't been interrupted once so far and you let me explain all the parts that came out wrong." Ranma
"So your saying that since you didn't break the engagement then you could still be forced into a marriage with one of us?" Nabiki said with a smile
"Umm. Yeah. I can still put it off but I am still engaged to one of you. Why?" Ranma
"I was just thinking that it would be nice if you came back home and now I have some leverage." Nabiki
"I don't feel like being the source for cheap laughs. So you'll have to excuse me if I don't come back." Ranma
"But you said the only reason you left was because no one wanted you. Well I want you to come back because I miss having you around." Nabiki said and looked away when she said the last part.
Ranma was speechless
"Well? Say something." Nabiki
"Why didn't you say something before now?" Ranma
"Well I was waiting for Akane to say something because for one she likes you and you seem to like her. I was waiting on Akane because I thought she would eventually say something. If I didn't conclude at the beginning that you weren't worth having then I could have been the one you were engaged to." Nabiki
"Well technically you are." Ranma
"I know, its just that I always assumed that the two of you would eventually get married. After you had gotten past the fact that it had been arranged." Nabiki
"I'll think about it. I wont come back till the problem with shampoo has been solved. And it will be solved by the end of the week. But I'm not promising I will come back. You've tricked me in the past and I'm not sure if what you are telling me is the truth." Ranma
"I'm not trying to rush you. Its just I thought you would have come back by now and I thought that I would give you a reason to come back." Nabiki
"Well I'll talk to you later." Ranma
"Ok. Oh one more thing. How would you like it if I helped patch things up between you and Ukyo." Nabiki
"That would be fine if you could get her to believe you and not think that I wanted to marry her." Ranma
"Can do." Nabiki
With that Nabiki left
that was strange. I never would have thought that Nabiki had a thing for me. I always thought that she had something for Kuno. Hmm. Should I go back. This could be a trick. But why would she want me to come back unless there was a real reason. She wouldn't have me come back just to be tricking me. She still might trick me if I go back but that is just the way she is. I think I will go back. After all, I did leave once already, I can always leave again. And things might be better this time. Mousse better win this time. Ranma
Ranma went to the men's locker room and took a shower. When he was finished he went to his first period class. When he got there he took his seat and noticed that Akane and Ryoga weren't there. Ukyo also wasn't there but she normally didn't get there till close to when the class started. A little while later Ukyo came in and took her seat. She was still ignoring Ranma. Surprisingly she didn't splash him with water that morning. Class started and Akane and Ryoga still weren't there. Ranma didn't really think anything of this because he himself had been late several times. Akane and Ryoga later showed up and they had to go stand outside in the hall for the remainder of the class. Lunch came quickly and he was going to go buy his lunch when he heard.
"Nihao Ranma. Shampoo bring lunch for husband." Shampoo
"No thanks shampoo." Ranma
"Is strange. Mousse cook lunch and ask shampoo to deliver." Shampoo
"Did he poison it so that he would call that a win against me?" Ranma
"Shampoo no think so. Shampoo no see Mousse put anything in lunch." Shampoo
"I still don't think I'll eat it." Ranma
"ok." shampoo said and threw the lunch behind her where someone caught it.
"Since shampoo here. Ranma take shampoo on date." Shampoo
"Not today shampoo." Ranma
"Is ok. Shampoo date Ranma other time." Shampoo
With that shampoo left
Ranma went to get his lunch and came back to the classroom and ate with Ryoga.
"So Ryoga. I hear that Akane finally figured it out that you're cursed. How'd that happen?" Ranma
"She came into my room this morning and yelled at me to get up and then threw water on me and your father and well you can imagine what happened." Ryoga
"Ha ha ha. That's how she always woke me up. Now you see what it was like." Ranma
"Its not funny. Normally when she sees me as p-chan she is real happy to see me but this time she just froze up. She then started trying to kill me while she was yelling 'no wonder you and Ranma always fought.' She chased me around all morning. Somewhere along the way Kasumi pored some hot water on me and I changed back to normal. When Akane caught up with me I convinced her to bring me to school and continue to let me stay at the dojo. She also said something about that she was going to make me pay." Ryoga
"Well now she knows. Something you always wanted to tell her." Ranma
"Well the good news is that I no longer have to pay Nabiki's blackmail." Ryoga
When lunch ended everyone went back to there classes. The afternoon classes went quickly. And when Ranma was finished with his 6th period class he disappointed the girls in the class because he didn't stay after for help in his classes. Ranma was finally doing well in his classes and he felt that he could start doing it on his own again and just stay up to speed. Ranma was just getting ready to leave when Akane approached him.
"Ranma?" Akane
"Akane?" Ranma
"Did you know about Ryoga's curse?" Akane
"Yes." Ranma
"I thought so. How long have you know?" Akane
"Since you first came across p-chan." Ranma
"Why didn't you tell me." Akane
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you but I promised Ryoga that I wouldn't tell anyone." Ranma
"That's what Ryoga said." Akane
"Why did Ryoga say something like that?" Ranma
"I think he wanted me to know that even though you knew and lied to me you were still being honorable." Akane
"Actually I think that he was trying to blame it on me. You finding out that is." Ranma
"Why would you say that about Ryoga? What has he ever done to you?" Akane
"I'm just saying that he might have been trying to blame this on me since he blames everything else on me. That's just the way he is." Ranma
"Quit picking on Ryoga." Akane
"I'm not picking on him. He does always blame things on me. And besides I thought that you were trying to kill him this morning, not that I blame you or anything." Ranma
"He deserved that. He deserves more." Akane
"Well I'm kinda busy today so I'll talk to you later unless you have something important to talk about." Ranma
Ranma then walked off leaving Akane where she was.
"RANMA YOU JERK! WE WERE TALKING! DON'T YOU WALK AWAY FROM ME!" Akane
Ranma stopped and turned to face Akane "do you have anything you need to tell me?"
"WHAT?" Akane
"Do you have anything you need to tell me? I'm busy and if you don't have anything you want to say then I am going to leave so I'll ask again. Is there anything you want to tell me?" Ranma
"YOU'RE A JERK AND A PERVERT!" Akane
"I guess not." Ranma said and started to walk off again
HOW DARE HE. HOW DARE HE IGNORE ME. WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS?! Well he's not going to get away with this! Akane
Akane started running at Ranma and went to punt him into low orbit but Ranma moved. Akane just stood there and looked at where Ranma had been I missed? But I've never missed him before. Akane then looked at Ranma who was already down the hall and looked as if she had never taken a swing at him.
Ranma headed for the temple and when he got there Mousse was waiting for him. "I'll be back in a minute. I'm just going to put my stuff in my room." Ranma. Ranma then headed to his room and put down his bag. He then joined Mousse outside in the courtyard.
"So will I be training with or without my hidden weapons today?" Mousse
"You'll be fighting both ways today or at least you will issue your challenge today." Ranma
"Really? You mean I am ready to fight shampoo?" Mousse
"Yes. And you better not fail this time." Ranma
"I wont I promise. I'll make sure I win this time." Mousse
"Good. Do you want me to come along." Ranma
"I thought you would anyway." Mousse
"I guess I'll come along. Well lets go." Ranma
Ranma and Mousse headed for the cat cafe. They meet Ryoga, Akane, Nabiki, and Ukyo on there way.
"Ranma. Mousse." Ryoga
"What are you doing here?" Akane
"Yes. Do tell." Nabiki
"We're headed to the cat cafe." Ranma
"Why? Have you chosen to be with shampoo?" Akane
"WHAT?! You've been leading me on thinking you were helping me get ready to challenge shampoo and you were just trying to decide weather you wanted her or not. RANMA I CHALLENGE Y..." Mousse
Ranma punched Mousse and he doubled over.
"Mousse I have no intention of marrying shampoo. If I could get her to leave me alone with words only I would have done it a long time ago. The only way for me to get out of this is for you to beat her." Ranma
"I expected something like this." Nabiki
"So you're going to challenge her again? Do you think you'll do better this time?" Ryoga
"Yes, I am going to challenge my shampoo and I have every intention of winning this fight." Mousse
"Do you mind if I come along?" Ryoga
"I don't see why not." Mousse
"Well lets get moving." Ranma
"I think I'll come along too." Nabiki
"Why?" Ranma
"I might be able to make some money off of this. And besides even if they don't fight today then I can still get something good to eat." Nabiki
"Nabiki!" Akane
"What?" Nabiki
"You know that tonight is my turn to cook." Akane
"Really. But you must admit that it is nice to eat out every once and a while." Nabiki
"Mum. Ok." Akane said
"I guess I'll come too." Ukyo
The group started on its way to the cat cafe. Ranma naturally took the lead and Ryoga and Mousse were on either side of him. They talked quietly amongst themselves while Akane, Nabiki, and Ukyo talked.
"Ranma, is Mousse ready this time?" Ryoga
"Yes. Unless shampoo has improved a lot since the last fight. If its only some then there wont be a problem but if its a lot then Mousse may have trouble but even then he should still win." Ranma
"And when I win I will marry shampoo." Mousse
"The sooner you do the sooner my problems disappear." Ranma
"So how do you think Mousse would do against one of us." Ryoga
"He might have a chance now. Since his skills had pretty much leveled off while ours continued to increase but he reduced that gap by quite a bit." Ranma
"I don't care if the two of you are stronger or not. Just as long as I get shampoo." Mousse
"You can have her." Ranma and Ryoga chorused
"I've never seen those three get along so well together." Ukyo
"Neither have I. I wonder what they are talking about." Akane
"Do you want to know?" Nabiki
"Not enough to pay for it." Akane
"Don't look at me. I don't care anymore." Ukyo
When they finally arrived everyone except Mousse sat down at a table. Mousse walked into the back.
"I wonder how they will react to this?" Ranma
"WHAT? Stupid Mousse. Mousse already lost to shampoo. Mousse no know when should stop." Shampoo
"Do you except my challenge?" Mousse
"Yes shampoo fight stupid Mousse again." Shampoo
"When?" Mousse
"Shampoo fight Mousse right now." Shampoo
"SHAMPOO! Have you learned nothing?" Cologne
"Shampoo won before. Shampoo win again." Shampoo
"I'm sure you will but that's not the point. Think before you except a challenge next time." Cologne
"So you're saying this is a fair fight this time." Mousse
"Of course not. You're a male, shampoo beat you before, and shampoo will be better this time." Cologne
"Well I'm still willing to fight." Mousse
"Very good. Lets move this outside then." Cologne
They started to move outside when cologne noticed the group sitting at the table. "So son-in-law would you like to see this fight?" Cologne
"Yeah sure." Ranma
Ranma got up to go see the fight followed by the rest of the group.
They were all outside watching as shampoo and Mousse squared off again.
Shampoo charged Mousse who dodged and turned to face shampoo again.
Shampoo was surprised by this. She attacked again and this time Mousse had to start blocking. They continued on this way for a while.
"After that first attack I thought that Mousse might have improved but he is still weak. He is still forced on the defensive." Cologne
-Whisper- (hey Ranma?) Ryoga
(Yeah) Ranma
(I thought you said that Mousse was going to win.) Ryoga
(I did.) Ranma
(But this looks like a repeat of last time.) Ryoga
(Shampoo is a little better but Mousse is still better. Look. Shampoo is starting to tire while Mousse is still fine. Shampoo has never been big into doing long drawn-out fights. She likes to get them done with quickly. This means that she never trains for endurance or not as much as she should.) Ranma
(But what good will endurance do Mousse if he losses before shampoo tires out?) Ryoga
(He wont loss if he keeps this up because he is able to defend himself against shampoo although he cant counter yet. When she starts to tire then he will be able to counter because her attacks will be slower and his will be the same speed. And because shampoo will already be tired when Mousse finally does counter shampoo wont be able to block it.) Ranma
Shampoo was continuing her onslaught of attacks and then all of a sudden Mousse threw a punch at her. This caught shampoo of guard because she didn't think moose could throw a punch at her much less would. They broke from the exchange but before shampoo could attack again Mousse was attacking her.
"Alright." Ryoga "looks like you were right, Ranma."
"You had something to do with didn't you son-in-law." Cologne
"What do you mean old ghoul?" Ranma
"You did something that made Mousse stronger." Cologne
"I just helped him train some. Using his techniques. Nothing new. No special tricks." Ranma
"You tricked shampoo." Cologne
"I did no such thing." Ranma
"Then why is shampoo fighting Mousse?" Cologne
"Because Mousse challenged her and she thought she could win so she excepted it." Ranma
"Do you have any idea what it will do to her if she losses to Mousse?" Cologne
"She'll have to marry him." Ranma
"That's right. Why should she have to marry Mousse when she should have been married to you already?" Cologne
"Don't try to pin this on me. Its your own stupid rules." Ranma
"No one does this to the amazons." Cologne
"But Mousse is from your own tribe. If he can win against shampoo doesn't he deserve to marry her by you laws?" Ranma
"Yes. But you would make a much better husband." Cologne
"No I wouldn't. I don't want to marry shampoo and Mousse does. I would never have allowed myself to marry shampoo. This way works out for both of us because it allows shampoo, you, and Mousse to go home and it gets me out of the marriage." Ranma
Cologne was silent.
"Nabiki. Is this for real. Can Ranma really pull this off?" Akane
"Well Ranma has been training Mousse every day for the last month. And Ranma is sure of mousse's skill. Also it looks like cologne thinks shampoo is going to lose and she normally knows what's going to happen so it is a safe bet to say that Ranma really can pull this off." Nabiki
Shampoo continued to block mousse's attacks but his attacks kept shampoo in s defensive position. Then Mousse got a hit in. Just one and it didn't really have an effect on shampoo but as the fight continued that one hit turned into two and then three and four and it became apparent that Mousse was winning.
"He's pulling his punches." Ranma
"What are you talking about? He's hitting shampoo left and right." Akane
"He's right. Mousse is pulling his punches." Ryoga
"Just because shampoo is a girl doesn't mean that she cant take a few hits." Akane
"I know that shampoo can take hits. She is an Amazon and they train there warriors to be tough. Its just that because Mousse loves her, he doesn't want to hurt her." Ranma
"Well if he didn't want to hurt her then why did he challenge shampoo?" Akane
"Haven't you been listening? Mousse challenged her so that he can marry shampoo. And he is pulling his punches." Ukyo
"Mousse quit toying with her. If you think you can win then just go ahead and finish her." Cologne
Everyone was shocked by this. Mousse stopped his attack and shampoo took the opportunity to attack. The attack caught Mousse by surprise and he didn't have time to think about it being shampoo that was attacking him. He just reacted the way any martial artist would. By reflex and his reflex was to dodge and throw several large objects. After he threw them he tried to pull the attack but it was already to late. Shampoo was struck full force and she dropped like a ton of bricks. Mousse just stood there. He couldn't believe that he had actually hit shampoo.
No one moved because everyone expected shampoo to get up.
Cologne was the first to move. She hopped over to shampoo on her staff. Cologne checked to make sure that shampoo was alright. Then she said in a non-thrilled voice "Mousse is the winner. Ranma is released from the marriage with shampoo unless he wishes to challenge Mousse for shampoo's hand."
"I have no intention of fighting Mousse." Ranma
"Very well. We will be leaving in the morning. I'm sorry but you'll have to go somewhere else to eat because I am closing the cat cafe immediately." Cologne
"Ok. Ok everyone lets go." Ranma
"Ranma can I talk to you for a moment." Mousse
"Sure." Ranma
Ranma walked over to Mousse. "What's on your mind?" Ranma
"I wanted to thank you for helping me." Mousse
"Don't mention it." Ranma
"If there is ever anything I can do for you then just ask." Mousse
"Ok. Well I think we should be leaving now. I'll see you later." Ranma
Ranma, Ryoga, Akane, Nabiki, and Ukyo all left the cat cafe.
"I'll see y'all at school tomorrow." Ranma
"Don't you want to eat with us tonight." Akane
"I have homework I need to do. And besides I'm teaching a class in a little while so I really need to get back." Ranma
Ranma left and the other just watched him leave.
"Teach? What is he teaching? How to be a jerk." Akane
"No he's teaching anything goes martial arts." Ryoga
"What? Since when?" Akane
"Since he left the dojo." Ryoga
"Why didn't he ever teach here." Akane
"Maybe because he didn't have to. he has to have a way to eat now that he is on his own and he has made it so that he cant get a free meal and most of the money that he had he gave to me and Nabiki." Ukyo
"Oh." Akane
"So Ukyo. Dinner at your place?" Nabiki
"Sounds good." Ukyo
"HEY!" Akane
Ryoga started to follow Nabiki and Ukyo.
"Oh no you don't. You still owe me. Your going to eat my cooking." Akane
Ryoga got a sick look on his face but couldn't get out of this and he also knew that he deserved this and more.
-Splash-
"What'd yaw do that for?" Ranma
"Because this is the easiest way to get you up. Now hurry up or we're going to be late." Akane
"Ok fine. I'm coming." Ranma said and headed downstairs with Akane.
"It shames me to see my boy this way." Genma
"Then go get some hot water to change me back." Ranma
"If you were really a man you would do it yourself." Genma
"Well I plan on changing back but not until after breakfast and our practice. No matter what you would hit me with cold water before I leave. If I just stay this way till its time to leave I don't have to go through the trouble of changing back several times." Ranma
Genma and Ranma practiced out in the courtyard and then Kasumi called out "breakfast is ready"
Ranma kicked Genma in to the pond and out came a panda.
"Rear rare rag rare" Genma-panda
"What's that pop? I cant understand you." Ranma
Genma held up a sign that read 'you didn't have to do that.'
Ranma just shrugged and then they went inside to eat. Kasumi had a kettle of hot water for both Ranma and Genma. They both changed back to their normal forms. They all sat down for a nice quiet breakfast which never happens. Enter Happosai. Happosai splashes Ranma with cold water and then immediately gloats onto Ranma's breasts. Ranma screams.
Ranma wakes up screaming. man that was a strange dream. it started out like old times and well it ended like the old times but still that is a nightmare to have that happen.
There was a knocking at the door.
"Come in." Ranma
"Are you alright?" Monk c
"Yes." Ranma
"I heard a scream" monk c
"Sorry about that." Ranma
"Its quite alright." Monk c
The monk left
I'm awake now I might as well get up now Ranma
Ranma got up and then got dressed. Ranma walked out of his room and down the hall.
-Splash-
"Why me?" Ranma said not expecting an answer
"Sorry about that, I bumped the bucket and it fell. Are you alright?" Monk d
"I'm fine." Ranma it happens to me of all people. Its not even intentional and it still happens. At least they don't react the way they did the first time it happened.
[Flash back]
"So how is your schooling coming along?" Monk a
"I'm doing better now than I use to." Ranma
"That's good. I've heard good things about your teaching in the martial arts." Monk a
"But I only have a few students although I am getting more." Ranma
"Well the ones you have think highly of you." Monk a
"That's good to know. Can you tell me which ones?" Ranma
"You know I cant do that. It isn't..." monk a
-Splash- Ranma then turned to a girl from the glass of water that one of the monks spilled as he was serving everyone dinner.
"I'm sorry about that I didn't mean to...." monk e
All the monks were quiet as they noticed that there friend Ranma was now a girl. There was silence until Ranma broke it by saying "does anyone have some hot water?" Ranma
"Uh... I do. I was going to use it for my tea." Monk f
Ranma took it and poured it on her head and then she became a he.
"Perhaps I should tell you how this happened." Ranma
"Yes. I think you should." monk a
"Well it all started when my father took me on a training trip to china. We came to a place called Jusenkyo. We didn't know of the horrors that would come upon you if you fell into the cursed springs. My father..." Ranma
[Present time]
Ranma helped the monks with some of there morning chores. He helped clean the floor and the tables. It was easier now since he was a girl and didn't have to worry about getting wet. After he helped with the morning chores he got some hot water to change back to normal and then he went to the dinning hall to eat breakfast with the monks. When he finished with breakfast he left the temple and headed to school. When Ranma got to school he saw that Nabiki was just arriving and without Akane and Ryoga. Ranma walked over to Nabiki.
"Nabiki. Where's Akane? And Ryoga? I thought the three of you normally came to school together." Ranma
"We do. But the two of them are running a bit late today. Actually I'm not sure if Ryoga will make it to school today." Nabiki Actually since I didn't bring him and Akane isn't going to then if he tries to make it to school or anywhere else for that matter then he is going to be gone for awhile.
"Why is that?" Ranma asked
"Well Akane finally learned the truth about Ryoga." Nabiki
"Uh oh. This isn't good. So how is Akane taking it?" Ranma
"Take a guess." Nabiki
"She is probably trying to beat the crap out of Ryoga. She is also probably hitting him but not doing any damage to Ryoga." Ranma
"Very good. So are you going to go get Ryoga so he can make it to school." Nabiki
"No." Ranma
"What? I thought that you would be on Ryoga's side since the two of you have gotten buddy buddy and you are no longer engaged to my sister. It would be natural to be that way." Nabiki
"Ryoga is getting what he deserves. He never deserved to be turned into a pig but he could have done something about the way he handled himself." Ranma
"So you do still care about Akane." Nabiki
"Of course I do. She's the one that told me to leave remember. Heck. I even got Ukyo off my back and shampoo wont be a problem soon." Ranma
"So you view my sister as a problem?" Nabiki
"That's not what I said." Ranma
"That's what it sounded like to me." Nabiki
"It wasn't her. It was always the others. Well except for her cooking but that was getting better." Ranma
this is too easy. I already know all this and now I am getting him to say it. And I am getting it all on tape. Nabiki
"So why did you break off the engagement with Ukyo after you had broken it with Akane?" Nabiki now this is what I want to know
"I broke it off with Ukyo because I broke it off with Akane." Nabiki
"Why?" Nabiki
"Well as long as I was engaged to Akane then I didn't have to marry Ukyo." Ranma
"So your saying that you were using Akane to keep from paying off Ukyo or getting married to her." Nabiki
"I wasn't using her. It was a legitimate reason. And as long as I was engaged to Ukyo I couldn't be forced to marry Akane." Ranma
what. I thought he wanted to marry Akane and just didn't have the nerve to say it. Now I'm beginning to think I was wrong. Nabiki
"So you didn't want to marry Akane?" Nabiki
"Not unless she wanted to." Ranma
"So why didn't you just pay off Ukyo and do what you had been doing before Ukyo arrived?" Nabiki
"Well I didn't pay off Ukyo earlier because I didn't want to ruin our friendship which it has done." Ranma
"So you fought your father to be able to have control of your life back and since we all said that we didn't want you, you decided to leave and then you went to break off the engagement with Ukyo because you didn't want to be forced into marriage. And now you have a plan that you think will finally get shampoo to leave you alone. Is that all right?" Nabiki
"Well I didn't really break the engagement with Akane. The engagement was to one of you. It wasn't an absolute that it had to be Akane. But anyway I did leave yes but I didn't really break it because I'm not able to. I did break the engagement with Ukyo because I didn't want her to think this was her chance and force me into marriage and besides I told her that I would rather get married for the right reasons. She seems to think that because I made it so I cant be forced into it that I don't like her. I do like Ukyo but its just as a friend but she would have an easier time convincing me than shampoo would. At least shampoo wont be a problem by the end of the week." Ranma
"Why are you telling me all of this? Don't stop this is really good but I would like to know why you are telling me. Its not like we talk a lot." Nabiki
"I don't know. I just feel like I can trust you with this. and even if you do decide to make money off of this it isn't really going to be bad for me because what I have said is the truth and I haven't been interrupted once so far and you let me explain all the parts that came out wrong." Ranma
"So your saying that since you didn't break the engagement then you could still be forced into a marriage with one of us?" Nabiki said with a smile
"Umm. Yeah. I can still put it off but I am still engaged to one of you. Why?" Ranma
"I was just thinking that it would be nice if you came back home and now I have some leverage." Nabiki
"I don't feel like being the source for cheap laughs. So you'll have to excuse me if I don't come back." Ranma
"But you said the only reason you left was because no one wanted you. Well I want you to come back because I miss having you around." Nabiki said and looked away when she said the last part.
Ranma was speechless
"Well? Say something." Nabiki
"Why didn't you say something before now?" Ranma
"Well I was waiting for Akane to say something because for one she likes you and you seem to like her. I was waiting on Akane because I thought she would eventually say something. If I didn't conclude at the beginning that you weren't worth having then I could have been the one you were engaged to." Nabiki
"Well technically you are." Ranma
"I know, its just that I always assumed that the two of you would eventually get married. After you had gotten past the fact that it had been arranged." Nabiki
"I'll think about it. I wont come back till the problem with shampoo has been solved. And it will be solved by the end of the week. But I'm not promising I will come back. You've tricked me in the past and I'm not sure if what you are telling me is the truth." Ranma
"I'm not trying to rush you. Its just I thought you would have come back by now and I thought that I would give you a reason to come back." Nabiki
"Well I'll talk to you later." Ranma
"Ok. Oh one more thing. How would you like it if I helped patch things up between you and Ukyo." Nabiki
"That would be fine if you could get her to believe you and not think that I wanted to marry her." Ranma
"Can do." Nabiki
With that Nabiki left
that was strange. I never would have thought that Nabiki had a thing for me. I always thought that she had something for Kuno. Hmm. Should I go back. This could be a trick. But why would she want me to come back unless there was a real reason. She wouldn't have me come back just to be tricking me. She still might trick me if I go back but that is just the way she is. I think I will go back. After all, I did leave once already, I can always leave again. And things might be better this time. Mousse better win this time. Ranma
Ranma went to the men's locker room and took a shower. When he was finished he went to his first period class. When he got there he took his seat and noticed that Akane and Ryoga weren't there. Ukyo also wasn't there but she normally didn't get there till close to when the class started. A little while later Ukyo came in and took her seat. She was still ignoring Ranma. Surprisingly she didn't splash him with water that morning. Class started and Akane and Ryoga still weren't there. Ranma didn't really think anything of this because he himself had been late several times. Akane and Ryoga later showed up and they had to go stand outside in the hall for the remainder of the class. Lunch came quickly and he was going to go buy his lunch when he heard.
"Nihao Ranma. Shampoo bring lunch for husband." Shampoo
"No thanks shampoo." Ranma
"Is strange. Mousse cook lunch and ask shampoo to deliver." Shampoo
"Did he poison it so that he would call that a win against me?" Ranma
"Shampoo no think so. Shampoo no see Mousse put anything in lunch." Shampoo
"I still don't think I'll eat it." Ranma
"ok." shampoo said and threw the lunch behind her where someone caught it.
"Since shampoo here. Ranma take shampoo on date." Shampoo
"Not today shampoo." Ranma
"Is ok. Shampoo date Ranma other time." Shampoo
With that shampoo left
Ranma went to get his lunch and came back to the classroom and ate with Ryoga.
"So Ryoga. I hear that Akane finally figured it out that you're cursed. How'd that happen?" Ranma
"She came into my room this morning and yelled at me to get up and then threw water on me and your father and well you can imagine what happened." Ryoga
"Ha ha ha. That's how she always woke me up. Now you see what it was like." Ranma
"Its not funny. Normally when she sees me as p-chan she is real happy to see me but this time she just froze up. She then started trying to kill me while she was yelling 'no wonder you and Ranma always fought.' She chased me around all morning. Somewhere along the way Kasumi pored some hot water on me and I changed back to normal. When Akane caught up with me I convinced her to bring me to school and continue to let me stay at the dojo. She also said something about that she was going to make me pay." Ryoga
"Well now she knows. Something you always wanted to tell her." Ranma
"Well the good news is that I no longer have to pay Nabiki's blackmail." Ryoga
When lunch ended everyone went back to there classes. The afternoon classes went quickly. And when Ranma was finished with his 6th period class he disappointed the girls in the class because he didn't stay after for help in his classes. Ranma was finally doing well in his classes and he felt that he could start doing it on his own again and just stay up to speed. Ranma was just getting ready to leave when Akane approached him.
"Ranma?" Akane
"Akane?" Ranma
"Did you know about Ryoga's curse?" Akane
"Yes." Ranma
"I thought so. How long have you know?" Akane
"Since you first came across p-chan." Ranma
"Why didn't you tell me." Akane
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you but I promised Ryoga that I wouldn't tell anyone." Ranma
"That's what Ryoga said." Akane
"Why did Ryoga say something like that?" Ranma
"I think he wanted me to know that even though you knew and lied to me you were still being honorable." Akane
"Actually I think that he was trying to blame it on me. You finding out that is." Ranma
"Why would you say that about Ryoga? What has he ever done to you?" Akane
"I'm just saying that he might have been trying to blame this on me since he blames everything else on me. That's just the way he is." Ranma
"Quit picking on Ryoga." Akane
"I'm not picking on him. He does always blame things on me. And besides I thought that you were trying to kill him this morning, not that I blame you or anything." Ranma
"He deserved that. He deserves more." Akane
"Well I'm kinda busy today so I'll talk to you later unless you have something important to talk about." Ranma
Ranma then walked off leaving Akane where she was.
"RANMA YOU JERK! WE WERE TALKING! DON'T YOU WALK AWAY FROM ME!" Akane
Ranma stopped and turned to face Akane "do you have anything you need to tell me?"
"WHAT?" Akane
"Do you have anything you need to tell me? I'm busy and if you don't have anything you want to say then I am going to leave so I'll ask again. Is there anything you want to tell me?" Ranma
"YOU'RE A JERK AND A PERVERT!" Akane
"I guess not." Ranma said and started to walk off again
HOW DARE HE. HOW DARE HE IGNORE ME. WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS?! Well he's not going to get away with this! Akane
Akane started running at Ranma and went to punt him into low orbit but Ranma moved. Akane just stood there and looked at where Ranma had been I missed? But I've never missed him before. Akane then looked at Ranma who was already down the hall and looked as if she had never taken a swing at him.
Ranma headed for the temple and when he got there Mousse was waiting for him. "I'll be back in a minute. I'm just going to put my stuff in my room." Ranma. Ranma then headed to his room and put down his bag. He then joined Mousse outside in the courtyard.
"So will I be training with or without my hidden weapons today?" Mousse
"You'll be fighting both ways today or at least you will issue your challenge today." Ranma
"Really? You mean I am ready to fight shampoo?" Mousse
"Yes. And you better not fail this time." Ranma
"I wont I promise. I'll make sure I win this time." Mousse
"Good. Do you want me to come along." Ranma
"I thought you would anyway." Mousse
"I guess I'll come along. Well lets go." Ranma
Ranma and Mousse headed for the cat cafe. They meet Ryoga, Akane, Nabiki, and Ukyo on there way.
"Ranma. Mousse." Ryoga
"What are you doing here?" Akane
"Yes. Do tell." Nabiki
"We're headed to the cat cafe." Ranma
"Why? Have you chosen to be with shampoo?" Akane
"WHAT?! You've been leading me on thinking you were helping me get ready to challenge shampoo and you were just trying to decide weather you wanted her or not. RANMA I CHALLENGE Y..." Mousse
Ranma punched Mousse and he doubled over.
"Mousse I have no intention of marrying shampoo. If I could get her to leave me alone with words only I would have done it a long time ago. The only way for me to get out of this is for you to beat her." Ranma
"I expected something like this." Nabiki
"So you're going to challenge her again? Do you think you'll do better this time?" Ryoga
"Yes, I am going to challenge my shampoo and I have every intention of winning this fight." Mousse
"Do you mind if I come along?" Ryoga
"I don't see why not." Mousse
"Well lets get moving." Ranma
"I think I'll come along too." Nabiki
"Why?" Ranma
"I might be able to make some money off of this. And besides even if they don't fight today then I can still get something good to eat." Nabiki
"Nabiki!" Akane
"What?" Nabiki
"You know that tonight is my turn to cook." Akane
"Really. But you must admit that it is nice to eat out every once and a while." Nabiki
"Mum. Ok." Akane said
"I guess I'll come too." Ukyo
The group started on its way to the cat cafe. Ranma naturally took the lead and Ryoga and Mousse were on either side of him. They talked quietly amongst themselves while Akane, Nabiki, and Ukyo talked.
"Ranma, is Mousse ready this time?" Ryoga
"Yes. Unless shampoo has improved a lot since the last fight. If its only some then there wont be a problem but if its a lot then Mousse may have trouble but even then he should still win." Ranma
"And when I win I will marry shampoo." Mousse
"The sooner you do the sooner my problems disappear." Ranma
"So how do you think Mousse would do against one of us." Ryoga
"He might have a chance now. Since his skills had pretty much leveled off while ours continued to increase but he reduced that gap by quite a bit." Ranma
"I don't care if the two of you are stronger or not. Just as long as I get shampoo." Mousse
"You can have her." Ranma and Ryoga chorused
"I've never seen those three get along so well together." Ukyo
"Neither have I. I wonder what they are talking about." Akane
"Do you want to know?" Nabiki
"Not enough to pay for it." Akane
"Don't look at me. I don't care anymore." Ukyo
When they finally arrived everyone except Mousse sat down at a table. Mousse walked into the back.
"I wonder how they will react to this?" Ranma
"WHAT? Stupid Mousse. Mousse already lost to shampoo. Mousse no know when should stop." Shampoo
"Do you except my challenge?" Mousse
"Yes shampoo fight stupid Mousse again." Shampoo
"When?" Mousse
"Shampoo fight Mousse right now." Shampoo
"SHAMPOO! Have you learned nothing?" Cologne
"Shampoo won before. Shampoo win again." Shampoo
"I'm sure you will but that's not the point. Think before you except a challenge next time." Cologne
"So you're saying this is a fair fight this time." Mousse
"Of course not. You're a male, shampoo beat you before, and shampoo will be better this time." Cologne
"Well I'm still willing to fight." Mousse
"Very good. Lets move this outside then." Cologne
They started to move outside when cologne noticed the group sitting at the table. "So son-in-law would you like to see this fight?" Cologne
"Yeah sure." Ranma
Ranma got up to go see the fight followed by the rest of the group.
They were all outside watching as shampoo and Mousse squared off again.
Shampoo charged Mousse who dodged and turned to face shampoo again.
Shampoo was surprised by this. She attacked again and this time Mousse had to start blocking. They continued on this way for a while.
"After that first attack I thought that Mousse might have improved but he is still weak. He is still forced on the defensive." Cologne
-Whisper- (hey Ranma?) Ryoga
(Yeah) Ranma
(I thought you said that Mousse was going to win.) Ryoga
(I did.) Ranma
(But this looks like a repeat of last time.) Ryoga
(Shampoo is a little better but Mousse is still better. Look. Shampoo is starting to tire while Mousse is still fine. Shampoo has never been big into doing long drawn-out fights. She likes to get them done with quickly. This means that she never trains for endurance or not as much as she should.) Ranma
(But what good will endurance do Mousse if he losses before shampoo tires out?) Ryoga
(He wont loss if he keeps this up because he is able to defend himself against shampoo although he cant counter yet. When she starts to tire then he will be able to counter because her attacks will be slower and his will be the same speed. And because shampoo will already be tired when Mousse finally does counter shampoo wont be able to block it.) Ranma
Shampoo was continuing her onslaught of attacks and then all of a sudden Mousse threw a punch at her. This caught shampoo of guard because she didn't think moose could throw a punch at her much less would. They broke from the exchange but before shampoo could attack again Mousse was attacking her.
"Alright." Ryoga "looks like you were right, Ranma."
"You had something to do with didn't you son-in-law." Cologne
"What do you mean old ghoul?" Ranma
"You did something that made Mousse stronger." Cologne
"I just helped him train some. Using his techniques. Nothing new. No special tricks." Ranma
"You tricked shampoo." Cologne
"I did no such thing." Ranma
"Then why is shampoo fighting Mousse?" Cologne
"Because Mousse challenged her and she thought she could win so she excepted it." Ranma
"Do you have any idea what it will do to her if she losses to Mousse?" Cologne
"She'll have to marry him." Ranma
"That's right. Why should she have to marry Mousse when she should have been married to you already?" Cologne
"Don't try to pin this on me. Its your own stupid rules." Ranma
"No one does this to the amazons." Cologne
"But Mousse is from your own tribe. If he can win against shampoo doesn't he deserve to marry her by you laws?" Ranma
"Yes. But you would make a much better husband." Cologne
"No I wouldn't. I don't want to marry shampoo and Mousse does. I would never have allowed myself to marry shampoo. This way works out for both of us because it allows shampoo, you, and Mousse to go home and it gets me out of the marriage." Ranma
Cologne was silent.
"Nabiki. Is this for real. Can Ranma really pull this off?" Akane
"Well Ranma has been training Mousse every day for the last month. And Ranma is sure of mousse's skill. Also it looks like cologne thinks shampoo is going to lose and she normally knows what's going to happen so it is a safe bet to say that Ranma really can pull this off." Nabiki
Shampoo continued to block mousse's attacks but his attacks kept shampoo in s defensive position. Then Mousse got a hit in. Just one and it didn't really have an effect on shampoo but as the fight continued that one hit turned into two and then three and four and it became apparent that Mousse was winning.
"He's pulling his punches." Ranma
"What are you talking about? He's hitting shampoo left and right." Akane
"He's right. Mousse is pulling his punches." Ryoga
"Just because shampoo is a girl doesn't mean that she cant take a few hits." Akane
"I know that shampoo can take hits. She is an Amazon and they train there warriors to be tough. Its just that because Mousse loves her, he doesn't want to hurt her." Ranma
"Well if he didn't want to hurt her then why did he challenge shampoo?" Akane
"Haven't you been listening? Mousse challenged her so that he can marry shampoo. And he is pulling his punches." Ukyo
"Mousse quit toying with her. If you think you can win then just go ahead and finish her." Cologne
Everyone was shocked by this. Mousse stopped his attack and shampoo took the opportunity to attack. The attack caught Mousse by surprise and he didn't have time to think about it being shampoo that was attacking him. He just reacted the way any martial artist would. By reflex and his reflex was to dodge and throw several large objects. After he threw them he tried to pull the attack but it was already to late. Shampoo was struck full force and she dropped like a ton of bricks. Mousse just stood there. He couldn't believe that he had actually hit shampoo.
No one moved because everyone expected shampoo to get up.
Cologne was the first to move. She hopped over to shampoo on her staff. Cologne checked to make sure that shampoo was alright. Then she said in a non-thrilled voice "Mousse is the winner. Ranma is released from the marriage with shampoo unless he wishes to challenge Mousse for shampoo's hand."
"I have no intention of fighting Mousse." Ranma
"Very well. We will be leaving in the morning. I'm sorry but you'll have to go somewhere else to eat because I am closing the cat cafe immediately." Cologne
"Ok. Ok everyone lets go." Ranma
"Ranma can I talk to you for a moment." Mousse
"Sure." Ranma
Ranma walked over to Mousse. "What's on your mind?" Ranma
"I wanted to thank you for helping me." Mousse
"Don't mention it." Ranma
"If there is ever anything I can do for you then just ask." Mousse
"Ok. Well I think we should be leaving now. I'll see you later." Ranma
Ranma, Ryoga, Akane, Nabiki, and Ukyo all left the cat cafe.
"I'll see y'all at school tomorrow." Ranma
"Don't you want to eat with us tonight." Akane
"I have homework I need to do. And besides I'm teaching a class in a little while so I really need to get back." Ranma
Ranma left and the other just watched him leave.
"Teach? What is he teaching? How to be a jerk." Akane
"No he's teaching anything goes martial arts." Ryoga
"What? Since when?" Akane
"Since he left the dojo." Ryoga
"Why didn't he ever teach here." Akane
"Maybe because he didn't have to. he has to have a way to eat now that he is on his own and he has made it so that he cant get a free meal and most of the money that he had he gave to me and Nabiki." Ukyo
"Oh." Akane
"So Ukyo. Dinner at your place?" Nabiki
"Sounds good." Ukyo
"HEY!" Akane
Ryoga started to follow Nabiki and Ukyo.
"Oh no you don't. You still owe me. Your going to eat my cooking." Akane
Ryoga got a sick look on his face but couldn't get out of this and he also knew that he deserved this and more.