Chapter 5 - The First Morning (Ranma's POV)
The sun was up when I finished my first set of Tai Chi. I'd been really concentrating on the forms as I went, trying to do the best job that I could. It had been a while since I'd done any Tai Chi, and the best way to acquire some bad habits would be to rush through the first time I did it and make mistakes. Still, it was surprisingly relaxing. I'd forgotten how good it felt.
I wandered over to my towel and wiped my face off. It was going to be hot today. The temperature wasn't that bad, but the humidity... ugh. And that gave me a little shudder, cause where there's heat, there's lots of people with cold water, and where there's cold water, there's me turning into a chick again.
It was about then that I realized that I was being watched. I thought back and figured out that she'd been standing there for most of the set, but I'd been concentrating, and there didn't seem much reason to pay much attention to her.
I turned around and looked at her. She was a real skinny kid with some good muscle tone, and about sixteen or seventeen. Sorta mousey lookin with short, messy black hair. Probably Japanese from her facial features, but who knew for sure? No battle aura though, which was possibly a good thing, but maybe she was just hiding it well. Carrying a hefty paperback as well, which could be a weapon I guess.
She walked over to me a bit hesitant, but looking friendly enough. I figured giving a little smile wouldn't hurt, even if I wasn't totally sure she wasn't going to try and kill me, so I gave her one. Was it weird to wonder if she was after my head? Maybe, but then again, look at my life.
"Bonjour monsieur, vous etes un etudiant de Tai Chi?" she asked me.
"Ummm... yeah, Tai Chi," I mumbled, "Je ne parle pas Francais." I'd memorized that one before I came over as well.
"Oh, sorry," she said, switching to English, "do you speak English then?"
"Yes, I can speak it a little, but I prefer Japanese," I said. Ok, I was hoping real hard she spoke it. It'd been ages since I'd been able to be comfortable talking with someone else. Ok, maybe it'd really only been a few days, but it was rough to not really know what was going on around you.
"Actually, so do I," she said, confirming my suspicions about where she was from by switching again into Japanese.
"Hey yeah?" I said, happily. "You don't know how good it is to hear that. I mean, I'm not too bad at English and all, but I'm totally lost in French. My name's Ranma," I told her, following the custom here of providing my given name. Then I froze, because if she was hunting me, then I'd just given her the info she needed to jump in to attack.
"My name is Kirika," she said, "it's a pleasure to meet you. I was just asking you if studied Tai Chi. You're very good."
"It's been a while since I've done it," I said, "and it's not really my specialty, but I've trained in it a bit."
"I was wondering if I could go through a set or two as well," she asked. "It has been a while since I've practised as well, but if you wouldn't mind..." she trailed off a bit, looking a bit embarrassed for asking.
"Sure, no problem at all," I said. "I was just about to start another set anyway."
"Thank you," she said, and put her book down on the ground.
I'd thought it was a bit strange she wasn't taking her windbreaker off when she came back over, but then I realised that it was because she was wearing a concealed holster. My heart did some sorta bellyflop straight into my guts.
This wasn't normal for France, was it? For a girl that age to be carrying? As she got closer, I was getting jumpier than a mongoose watching a snake, but I read something there in her eyes. I mean, I was watching them so I'd see it before she made her move, but they looked so... tired, sorta. Maybe the same way mine did when I looked in the mirror just before I came here.
Somehow my stomach just unclenched a whole lot, and instead of figuring out exactly which tactic I was going to use to tie up her gun arm while I got in close, I just gave her a smile and settled into the first stance. Dunno why really, but even Nabiki says you can tell a lot from someone's eyes, so maybe I'm not that far off base.
She showed real impressive control through the whole set. All her motions were hard and clinical, sorta like a scalpel. On the other hand, the circular motions seemed to come pretty naturally. That gave me a pretty good idea of which other styles she'd trained in that weren't Tai Chi.
After a couple more sets we sat down in the shade. Not too close to each other, but close enough to talk over the rising noise of the city. It was strangely comfortable.
"I'd forgotten how much work that actually is," she said. "The last time I did Tai Chi was... well a couple years ago when I was seventeen. I guess I haven't been active enough recently either."
"You were really good though," I said. "I mean, it isn't what you've really trained in, but it still suits you." She looked at me with a bit of surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I've trained in a bunch of other stuff as well, and it just looks like you have too. It's hard to do anything more than concentrate on getting the forms mechanically right when you first get into it, but near the end of the second set, I could see you feeling it more and relaxing into it."
"I'm not sure really what you're saying," she said, "but I did start to feel a bit more relaxed closer to the end."
"Yeah. This sort of soft, non-linear thing probably fits your personality, even if it isn't what you've been trained in," I said.
"I.... I really hope that you're right," she said, really softly. I wasn't really prepared for her reaction. I mean, had I said something wrong?
"Ummm... you don't mind that I said that, do you?" I asked.
"No, not at all," she said with a little smile. "I guess I'm a bit surprised, that's all."
"Look, if you want to drop by, I'll be here just about every morning running through a few sets or something," I said. "I just got here, so I don't really have a routine down, but I do prefer to train for a while every morning." I don't know, martial arts is always more fun for me with a partner. Maybe she'd be up for some sparring some other time.
"I couldn't impose on you like that," she said.
"Ah, no worries. I'll be here anyway, and training is always more fun when there's other people around."
"Really? I think I would enjoy training as well," she said.
"Good." I said, and lay back on the grass for a few seconds. "Mmm, looks like it's going to be a hot day today."
"Yes," she agreed. "You mentioned that you only arrived in Paris recently?"
"Yeah, just two days ago actually, and I've been on the go pretty much since I got here."
"So you haven't had time to explore yet?"
"Nope," I said, squinting up at her.
"I have lived here for more than a year, and I haven't had the chance to look around either," she said.
"You got anything to do today?" I asked.
"No," she said, looking down at her shoes now. They were pink, I noted. Hopefully she wasn't a really girly type or anything.
"You want to sight see a bit then?" I asked.
"That might be interesting," she said, still looking down.
"Ok, ummm... well maybe I should go home and clean up a bit. You want to meet back here in an hour or something?"
"Yes, that would be fine," she said, still not looking at me. "I will be back in one hour from now." She got up, gathered up her book, and walked away without ever really giving me eye contact again.
"Ok... see you then..." I said. That was a bit weird. Maybe I'd freaked her out or something, and she wasn't going to show up again.
"Wait a second," I muttered to myself. I just practically asked a girl I'd just met out on something like... well, maybe a date.
And she was carrying a gun.
Gods, I was a total fool. A complete and total idiot. What was I thinking about her being girly, anyway? She was a trained martial artist, and she was carrying a gun. Girly, my steely buttocks. It was just like I'd gone with some sort of weird gut instinct instead of my brain. I hauled myself to my feet anyway, and got ready to head off home. Probably she wasn't going to show up anyway.
But now there was something hanging at the edge of my consciousness. Something I should have thought of. Ah well, I'd remember it later.
A quick run, shower, change, and two breakfasts was enough to get me ready. So I strolled back to the park, arriving a bit early, and sat down to wait.
To my surprise, the girl showed up again, just on the hour mark. She was dressed in a nice sun dress with a big straw hat, and carrying some sorta backpack thing. The sun shone from behind her for an instant, and suddenly it was like my brain got back into gear with a bang, and I realised what had been hanging on the edge of my thoughts.
Chapter 5 Author's Notes
- ok, it might seem strange that she just walked over and asked to join in, but in some places parks are just full in the mornings of people who just show up to run through a few sets of Tai Chi, no questions asked, so it isn't all that weird.
- Ranma's comment at the end about 'my steely buttocks' is actually from the Viz manga translation, Vol. 13. Although it's Ryoga that says it, I can picture Ranma picking up the phrase or something.
- You might have noted the gratuity of Kirika saying that the last time she did Tai Chi was a couple years ago when she was seventeen. This is just so Ranma knows she's older than he initially assessed her to be.
- I know folks… Ranma and Noir are both action anime, so where's the action, right? Just have a bit of patience… I need to set things up a bit before the shooting starts.
The sun was up when I finished my first set of Tai Chi. I'd been really concentrating on the forms as I went, trying to do the best job that I could. It had been a while since I'd done any Tai Chi, and the best way to acquire some bad habits would be to rush through the first time I did it and make mistakes. Still, it was surprisingly relaxing. I'd forgotten how good it felt.
I wandered over to my towel and wiped my face off. It was going to be hot today. The temperature wasn't that bad, but the humidity... ugh. And that gave me a little shudder, cause where there's heat, there's lots of people with cold water, and where there's cold water, there's me turning into a chick again.
It was about then that I realized that I was being watched. I thought back and figured out that she'd been standing there for most of the set, but I'd been concentrating, and there didn't seem much reason to pay much attention to her.
I turned around and looked at her. She was a real skinny kid with some good muscle tone, and about sixteen or seventeen. Sorta mousey lookin with short, messy black hair. Probably Japanese from her facial features, but who knew for sure? No battle aura though, which was possibly a good thing, but maybe she was just hiding it well. Carrying a hefty paperback as well, which could be a weapon I guess.
She walked over to me a bit hesitant, but looking friendly enough. I figured giving a little smile wouldn't hurt, even if I wasn't totally sure she wasn't going to try and kill me, so I gave her one. Was it weird to wonder if she was after my head? Maybe, but then again, look at my life.
"Bonjour monsieur, vous etes un etudiant de Tai Chi?" she asked me.
"Ummm... yeah, Tai Chi," I mumbled, "Je ne parle pas Francais." I'd memorized that one before I came over as well.
"Oh, sorry," she said, switching to English, "do you speak English then?"
"Yes, I can speak it a little, but I prefer Japanese," I said. Ok, I was hoping real hard she spoke it. It'd been ages since I'd been able to be comfortable talking with someone else. Ok, maybe it'd really only been a few days, but it was rough to not really know what was going on around you.
"Actually, so do I," she said, confirming my suspicions about where she was from by switching again into Japanese.
"Hey yeah?" I said, happily. "You don't know how good it is to hear that. I mean, I'm not too bad at English and all, but I'm totally lost in French. My name's Ranma," I told her, following the custom here of providing my given name. Then I froze, because if she was hunting me, then I'd just given her the info she needed to jump in to attack.
"My name is Kirika," she said, "it's a pleasure to meet you. I was just asking you if studied Tai Chi. You're very good."
"It's been a while since I've done it," I said, "and it's not really my specialty, but I've trained in it a bit."
"I was wondering if I could go through a set or two as well," she asked. "It has been a while since I've practised as well, but if you wouldn't mind..." she trailed off a bit, looking a bit embarrassed for asking.
"Sure, no problem at all," I said. "I was just about to start another set anyway."
"Thank you," she said, and put her book down on the ground.
I'd thought it was a bit strange she wasn't taking her windbreaker off when she came back over, but then I realised that it was because she was wearing a concealed holster. My heart did some sorta bellyflop straight into my guts.
This wasn't normal for France, was it? For a girl that age to be carrying? As she got closer, I was getting jumpier than a mongoose watching a snake, but I read something there in her eyes. I mean, I was watching them so I'd see it before she made her move, but they looked so... tired, sorta. Maybe the same way mine did when I looked in the mirror just before I came here.
Somehow my stomach just unclenched a whole lot, and instead of figuring out exactly which tactic I was going to use to tie up her gun arm while I got in close, I just gave her a smile and settled into the first stance. Dunno why really, but even Nabiki says you can tell a lot from someone's eyes, so maybe I'm not that far off base.
She showed real impressive control through the whole set. All her motions were hard and clinical, sorta like a scalpel. On the other hand, the circular motions seemed to come pretty naturally. That gave me a pretty good idea of which other styles she'd trained in that weren't Tai Chi.
After a couple more sets we sat down in the shade. Not too close to each other, but close enough to talk over the rising noise of the city. It was strangely comfortable.
"I'd forgotten how much work that actually is," she said. "The last time I did Tai Chi was... well a couple years ago when I was seventeen. I guess I haven't been active enough recently either."
"You were really good though," I said. "I mean, it isn't what you've really trained in, but it still suits you." She looked at me with a bit of surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I've trained in a bunch of other stuff as well, and it just looks like you have too. It's hard to do anything more than concentrate on getting the forms mechanically right when you first get into it, but near the end of the second set, I could see you feeling it more and relaxing into it."
"I'm not sure really what you're saying," she said, "but I did start to feel a bit more relaxed closer to the end."
"Yeah. This sort of soft, non-linear thing probably fits your personality, even if it isn't what you've been trained in," I said.
"I.... I really hope that you're right," she said, really softly. I wasn't really prepared for her reaction. I mean, had I said something wrong?
"Ummm... you don't mind that I said that, do you?" I asked.
"No, not at all," she said with a little smile. "I guess I'm a bit surprised, that's all."
"Look, if you want to drop by, I'll be here just about every morning running through a few sets or something," I said. "I just got here, so I don't really have a routine down, but I do prefer to train for a while every morning." I don't know, martial arts is always more fun for me with a partner. Maybe she'd be up for some sparring some other time.
"I couldn't impose on you like that," she said.
"Ah, no worries. I'll be here anyway, and training is always more fun when there's other people around."
"Really? I think I would enjoy training as well," she said.
"Good." I said, and lay back on the grass for a few seconds. "Mmm, looks like it's going to be a hot day today."
"Yes," she agreed. "You mentioned that you only arrived in Paris recently?"
"Yeah, just two days ago actually, and I've been on the go pretty much since I got here."
"So you haven't had time to explore yet?"
"Nope," I said, squinting up at her.
"I have lived here for more than a year, and I haven't had the chance to look around either," she said.
"You got anything to do today?" I asked.
"No," she said, looking down at her shoes now. They were pink, I noted. Hopefully she wasn't a really girly type or anything.
"You want to sight see a bit then?" I asked.
"That might be interesting," she said, still looking down.
"Ok, ummm... well maybe I should go home and clean up a bit. You want to meet back here in an hour or something?"
"Yes, that would be fine," she said, still not looking at me. "I will be back in one hour from now." She got up, gathered up her book, and walked away without ever really giving me eye contact again.
"Ok... see you then..." I said. That was a bit weird. Maybe I'd freaked her out or something, and she wasn't going to show up again.
"Wait a second," I muttered to myself. I just practically asked a girl I'd just met out on something like... well, maybe a date.
And she was carrying a gun.
Gods, I was a total fool. A complete and total idiot. What was I thinking about her being girly, anyway? She was a trained martial artist, and she was carrying a gun. Girly, my steely buttocks. It was just like I'd gone with some sort of weird gut instinct instead of my brain. I hauled myself to my feet anyway, and got ready to head off home. Probably she wasn't going to show up anyway.
But now there was something hanging at the edge of my consciousness. Something I should have thought of. Ah well, I'd remember it later.
A quick run, shower, change, and two breakfasts was enough to get me ready. So I strolled back to the park, arriving a bit early, and sat down to wait.
To my surprise, the girl showed up again, just on the hour mark. She was dressed in a nice sun dress with a big straw hat, and carrying some sorta backpack thing. The sun shone from behind her for an instant, and suddenly it was like my brain got back into gear with a bang, and I realised what had been hanging on the edge of my thoughts.
Chapter 5 Author's Notes
- ok, it might seem strange that she just walked over and asked to join in, but in some places parks are just full in the mornings of people who just show up to run through a few sets of Tai Chi, no questions asked, so it isn't all that weird.
- Ranma's comment at the end about 'my steely buttocks' is actually from the Viz manga translation, Vol. 13. Although it's Ryoga that says it, I can picture Ranma picking up the phrase or something.
- You might have noted the gratuity of Kirika saying that the last time she did Tai Chi was a couple years ago when she was seventeen. This is just so Ranma knows she's older than he initially assessed her to be.
- I know folks… Ranma and Noir are both action anime, so where's the action, right? Just have a bit of patience… I need to set things up a bit before the shooting starts.