The first star was blinking in the sky as Vegeta scanned the city beneath him. He held one hand to the improvised scouter on his ear, watching numbers flash across the small blue screen. There was a small flash, but nothing higher than an above average earthling would give off.
"Uh, Vegeta?"
He turned his head and looked over his shoulder at the brat behind him. "What? Can't you see that I'm busy?"
Gohan broke eye contact and looked at the ant-like people in the town the two men hovered over. "Uh, would you mind explaining why we're here?"
Vegeta regarded the young half-Saiyan for a long, silent moment. He finally turned away and continued his slow span across the town. "I told you. I remembered hearing about a Saiyan couple being exiled to Earth when I was younger. If they survived, as they surely would on a planet of such weaklings, they could have had children."
"You mean there might be more full-blooded Saiyans still alive?"
"Exactly! Now shut up! I think I've found . . . There! C'mon!"
Vegeta took off like a shot and Gohan took a second to follow. They stopped above a nice-looking house that was surrounded by a low wall. There was a boy in the back yard, staring into a small Koi pond. He looked several years older than Gohan, but not really an adult. He had black hair tied into a pigtail, and wore Chinese clothes that were very familiar to young Gohan. He was standing next to the pond with a thoughtful expression, arms crossed over his chest. He cocked his head, but seemed so deep in thought that he hadn't noticed his aerial spectators. Vegeta was fiddling with the controls on the scouter, suddenly letting out a frustrated snarl.
"Grr. I'll have to get closer!"
"Why? Is he the Saiyan?"
"Could be. Bulma made this thing able to detect patterns in Saiyan blood, but I'll have to get a lot closer for a definite reading."
There was another bleep as a new power appeared on the small screen. Vegeta was going to locate the power when a scream ripped through the quiet of the late-spring afternoon.
"Soatome Ranma! Prepare to die!"
Gohan and Vegeta watched as a new boy, this one with no pigtail and yellow clothes, jumped over the wall of the house. He landed in the grass of the backyard, unsheathing a large red umbrella at the same time. As he jumped at the startled boy, this newcomer pulled the umbrella over his head in a firm, two-handed grip.
Vegeta snarled out quickly, "Protect the boy in red!"
Gohan barely thought, nearly absently obeying the older fighter. He shot to the ground, landing directly in front of the pigtailed boy. Vegeta intercepted the umbrella boy mid-air, catching the tip of the umbrella with his left hand. The boy blinked from beneath his shaggy hair and spotted bandanna. His surprise at being interrupted turned to anger as he shouted, "What do you think you're doing? This is a man to man duel!"
He suddenly realized that he'd been in the middle of a jump. He looked above his head, where his hands still gripped the umbrella, and followed his body down to his feet. He blinked once more when he saw his feet hanging uselessly several yards above the ground. There was nothing holding either him, or the strange man in front of him, up. He made brief eye contact with the spiky-haired guy. Then he let go of the umbrella and felt himself dropping to the ground. He did a quick flip, slipping his pack off as he fell. He landed barehanded, unarmed, and in a fighting stance, with his opponent still in the air yards above him.
Ryoga blinked up at the guy, wondering why he was blinking so much. He dismissed it, after all,
it wasn't everyday someone appeared from nowhere and held a teenager, metal-lined umbrella, and a huge travel pack several feet above ground.
"Hey, Ryoga, friends of yours?"
Ryoga glared at Ranma, "I thought they were here to kill you. Everyone else is."
Ranma, with the pigtail, frowned. "Not everyone!"
Ryoga frowned at his rival, thinking of Akane. Then he heard a beep and looked back at the guy with the weird hair. He was poking the thing on his ear and staring at Ryoga through the little blue screen over his left eye.
Vegeta turned to Gohan, "It's not him. I'll try the other one." Ryoga, who wasn't used to being so easily dismissed by anyone but Ranma, visibly slumped. Ranma misunderstood and, looking slightly worried, glanced rapidly between his friend and the guy with the blue thing. When Vegeta tried to settle the screen on Ranma, the boy jumped to the side. He kept evading the man's gaze until he'd worked himself next to Ryoga.
"You okay man?"
Ryoga glared at Ranma, "What are you talking about? He didn't even try to hit me. Not that it would matter, mind you."
Vegeta was adjusting the scouter when another voice came from the house. "Ranma! Where are you?" Both boys paled, realizing that the two strangers were between them and the house, just as Akane stepped onto the porch. She let the angry frown fade as she studied the two strange men. Ranma and Ryoga yelled as one, "Akane! Look out!" They jumped over the heads of the two weirdos to land between Akane and the two threats. Vegeta and Gohan watched idly, not terribly impressed by the minor acrobatics.
Vegeta frowned and reached for the scouter once more. Ranma tensed and prepared to dodge when he felt another presence come up behind him. There was a loud gasp before Genma rushed past his son and Ryoga. Genma fell to his knees before Vegeta, bowing and scraping. "My lord, at long last you've come. Nodoka and I have waited so long, knowing the exile would be withdrawn!"
Vegeta frowned at the tubby man lying before him. "I take it you are Tomegen who was exiled from Vejitsa for laziness in your training?" Genma sweat-dropped and remained silent with his nose pressed to the grass. Ranma and Ryoga exchanged glances. Sure, Genma was crazy, but he took the art seriously. Ranma stepped forward slightly.
"So you know pop? What's this Tomato name you called him?"
Vegeta frowned once more, turning his attention to the boy. "Tomegen is his proper name. I never will understand why every Saiyan exiled to Earth takes a foolish name. First Kakarot, now Tomegen."
Ryoga seemed extremely puzzled, while Ranma was worried. Every time someone showed up from his or his father's past, it meant trouble for him. Gohan was getting bored, and watched the puzzled Akane since the men in the yard were all boring. Akane frowned and poked Ranma's back to get his attention.
"What have you done now, Ranma?"
Ranma spun around to retort. Vegeta, seeing his chance, began to fiddle with the scouter's controls. "I didn't do anything! This guy just showed up and grabbed Ryoga out of the air before you came out and yelled at me!"
"Oh really? Than why does he know your dad? He isn't going to try and kill you, is he? He doesn't seem to like your dad, and everybody else wants to kill or marry you."
"What's it matter to you? Are you worried or something?"
"No! It just gets annoying when a houseguest is the reason I keep getting kidnapped all the time."
Ranma glared down at her, "Well, I—"
"It's him! He is a full-blooded Saiyan after all!"
Genma looked insulted, "Of course! Why would
Nodoka or I breed with the lowly Earthlings? Of course, my son had no choice, so we had to arrange things for him, but with my Nodoka there—"
"Oh shut up!" Vegeta sent a kick to Genma's side and the man flew over and past the Koi pond to land in a heap. Vegeta turned to look at Ranma with an appraising stare. He took a step toward the youth when Nabiki stepped onto the porch.
"What did you do this time Ranma?"
Ranma shot a glare at Nabiki before looking back at Vegeta. The Saiyan prince smirked and crossed his arms across his chest.
"You're lucky, boy. I've decided to take you with me to train. As the last full Saiyan, it is only right that your prince be in charge of your training."
"Prince? What are you talking about? I'm not going anywhere!"
Genma instantly appeared behind his son, practically throwing him to Vegeta. "Obey Prince Vegeta, son. You are truly honored indeed . . . wait! Last full Saiyan, what do you mean?"
Vegeta caught Ranma by the collar and answered quickly, "The planet and all but six Saiyans was blown up. Two of the six have been killed, leaving you and your wife, Kakarot, and me. Now, we have your son. Do you have any other offspring?"
"Alas, no. I suppose this means Nodoka and I won't be going home then."
Vegeta just gave him an annoyed look and turned to go. Gohan sighed and prepared to leave as well. He wasn't at all happy with how things were going. Nabiki raised one eyebrow and glanced askance at her younger sister. "Are you just going to let him take your fiancé Akane?"
"Nabiki!"
Vegeta whipped around to study the two girls. Ranma squirmed and tried to break free, but only succeeded in nearly choking himself. Vegeta then turned to the slightly battered Genma. "Is the boy truly engaged to the earthling?"
Genma stood taller and tried to muster some dignity. "Nodoka and I felt strongly that our blood needed to be secured as quickly as possible, so I saw to it that he was engaged to a strong Earth bloodline." He somehow managed to finish the entire statement over the gasping and choking sounds from his son.
Vegeta spared Ranma an annoyed glance before hitting the boy on the forehead. Ranma slumped forward, and Vegeta slung him over his shoulder. Akane bit back a gasp, but Vegeta turned to her anyway.
"Gohan, grab the girl. She's coming too."
"What?"
Akane's scream didn't faze Vegeta, but Gohan didn't seem happy about it. He looked between Akane and Vegeta, but the stony glare from the latter spurred him to approach the shocked girl. While she stared angrily at Vegeta, Gohan gathered energy. He flew beneath her, putting one arm behind her shoulders and drawing her knees up with the other.
By the time Akane tried to fight, they were flying above the dojo, Vegeta (who was holding an
unconscious Ranma) hovering next to them. Akane gasped and tightened her grip on the boy's neck,
wondering when she'd grabbed him. Akane looked down to the yard, meeting her sister's eyes. Nabiki realized that her stupid comment had caused her baby sister to be kidnapped. Again. All eyes on the flying people, only Akane noticed the lone tear slip down Nabiki's cheek. Vegeta's strong voice carried to the crowd below.
"I'll train the children for now. When they are able, I'll permit them occasional visits." With that simple statement, Vegeta turned and took off at a blinding speed. Gohan turned and joined him. He pulled up even with the older man, a worried expression on his face.
"Uh, Vegeta? Where are we going exactly?"
"Capsule Corp., where else?"
"Well, since we basically just kidnapped two people, shouldn't we go somewhere outside of Japan?"
Vegeta frowned slightly in thought for a brief moment before changing directions.
"Where are you going now?"
"Your house. China is far enough away for you I hope?" Akane gasped slightly. China? They were flying to China? Any other girl (aside from Ukyo or Shampoo) probably would have fainted, but Akane was too worried about getting away. She watched Ranma's slack face for signs of life; hoping he'd wake up soon.
Ranma scrunched his face up slightly, squeezing his eyes tightly shut until a brief wave of pain passed. He then slowly opened his eyes and looked around. His face was pressed into the short man's (Vegeta?) back. He looked up to see Akane in the arms of the little boy, the two of them flying behind Vegeta and Ranma.
Ranma blinked. They were flying? Then he remembered Vegeta holding the tip of Ryoga's umbrella, the lost boy hanging beneath it by both arms. Okay, a flying opponent. So what? He was Soatome Ranma, and he could handle anything.
He felt them dropping slightly. Good, they were landing. First things first, he and Akane had to get to the ground and get away. He met Akane's relieved eyes and glanced at the boy holding her. Gohan was looking straight ahead with a focused look on his face. Ranma looked back to Akane and made a series of gestures.
First he pointed to himself, then Akane. Then he pointed to the ground. He softly threw a punch into his other hand and pointed to Vegeta. Akane nodded minutely, and he held up one finger, then two, then three.
As one, they moved. Ranma focused ki into a super punch aimed at Vegeta's lower back. Vegeta gave a soft grunt and let his grip loosen slightly. It was just enough, and Ranma felt himself falling after kicking off.
Akane's job was easier. Gohan was so worried about what his mother was going to say, that his grip had been gradually slacking as they flew. Akane merely had to arch her back and push herself over and past his arms. She realized too late that pushing herself backwards like that meant that she was now falling headfirst. She flipped and righted herself. Then she looked down and realized that although they had lowered considerably toward the ground, they were still a ways above the grassy field below. Her eyes widened briefly in fright before she glared at Ranma, who was falling next to her.
"Ranma! You are such an idiot!"
"Hey! You didn't have to jump too." He reached out and grabbed her, tucking her up tightly against him as he watched the ground's fast approach.
Vegeta and Gohan stared as the duo fell to Earth. Gohan looked up to Vegeta and said, "Why aren't they flying yet? He's a Saiyan, shouldn't he be able to fly?" A sudden thought came to Vegeta. Like the boy, he'd been of the mind that a Saiyan that old would assuredly be capable of flight. Then he remembered part of the reason Nodoka and Tomegen had been exiled.
"Argh! I forgot! Tomegen was so lazy, he didn't bother learning to fly!" Vegeta jerked his head down to the two teenagers just as Ranma hit the ground.
Ranma saw the ground and timed his landing. He pressed his feet beneath him and kept them loose enough that they wouldn't break, but locked enough that the two of them wouldn't slam into the ground. He hit and rolled, coming out of the roll running with Akane still in his arms. Now that they were safely on the ground, he looked for somewhere to drop Akane so he could fight the flying menaces. Straight-ahead was a house, and Ranma slowed. They had been landing when he and Akane jumped. Was this their destination? If so, they'd find no help there.
Just then, the door of the dome-like house opened, and a woman in a purple dress stepped out. She blinked at Ranma in surprise, and he jerked to a halt. He spun around, prepared to take off again,
but Vegeta and the boy were standing right in front of him.
"Argh! Why do I always get all the bad luck?"
Vegeta frowned at the boy in his usual pose, arms crossed and feet widespread. "If you're quite finished, we can get started." Ranma remembered something about training, and was expecting something tough any second. If this guy was anything like his father, the training would be hard to survive. He half turned to put Akane behind him. Keeping his eyes on Vegeta, he whispered to her.
"Watch the woman in the house, I'll take care of the guy."
She nodded, knowing he wouldn't see it, and took a stance facing the woman with the black hair. That same woman was giving her a curious look before calling out to the boy.
"Gohan? What's going on?"
"UH, hi Mom. Well, Vegeta remembered that there might be more Saiyans on Earth, and took me to help find them. Ranma there is a full-blooded Saiyan."
Chi-chi looked to the pig-tailed boy, but could only see his tense back. She rolled her eyes, "Yea,
another one."
Ranma narrowed his eyes and focused on Vegeta.
"Now do you mind explaining a few things?"
Vegeta raised one brow and gave a casual wave, "Such as?"
Ranma blinked once before figuring out what was most prevalent to know. "Well for starters, what's a Saiyan?"
"I take it your father was as lacking in teaching you your heritage as he was in your training. Very well, you are a Saiyan. The Saiyans were a noble race of warriors until they were nearly wiped out when I was a boy."
"The man that destroyed my people and planet, for I was heir to the throne, has been killed by a fellow survivor named Kakarot."
Gohan nodded and interrupted, "That's my dad. We call him Goku here on Earth though." Vegeta shot the boy an annoyed glance before continuing.
"Until recently we believed that Kakarot and I were the last full-blooded Saiyans alive. Then I remembered hearing about Tomegen and his fiancée being exiled to Earth when I was a boy."
Ranma looked between Vegeta and Gohan carefully, "So being Saiyan lets you two fly?"
Vegeta was getting more annoyed by the moment.
"No! Any truly good fighter can fly once they master their ki. Even some lowly earthlings have learned to fly."
Ranma pointed to Gohan, "And you're not fully Saiyan?"
"Nope. Mom's an earthling." He pointed to Chi-chi helpfully.
"Then why are Akane and I here?"
"So that I can complete your training, where that buffoon you call your father has obviously failed."
"Hey! I happen to be undefeated so far!"
Vegeta scoffed. "You can't even fly boy. Krillin could beat you right now."
Ranma's eyes widened. "Krillin? The Krillin?"
"What do you mean 'the Krillin'?"
Akane added from behind Ranma, "Everyone knows who Krillin is. He's the best fighter on the planet!"
"Maybe the best human on the planet, but not the best fighter. He can't even hit me!" Ranma sent him a disbelieving look before turning to Gohan. "Do you guys really know Krillin?"
"You bet! I think he's coming for dinner tonight. But Vegeta's right, Krillin isn't even close to being as good as him, or even me."
"You can beat Krillin? You're just a kid!"
Vegeta smirked again from beside Gohan. "The kid could beat you with both hands tied behind his back."
Ranma stood tall and jerked a thumb to his chest. "I'd like to see a little kid defeat Soatome Ranma!"
"How about it Gohan, care to spar with him?"
Chi-chi would have protested, but Gohan jumped at the chance. "Sure! After spending the whole day wandering around looking for power readings, I could use a quick fight."
Ranma didn't give his usual confident smirk. He'd seen the little boy flying around easily, and Vegeta was confident of Gohan winning. This could be a challenge after all. He and Gohan separated from the rest of the group, Chi-chi standing by worriedly. Ranma took a loose stance, ready for anything, and going on the offensive in hopes of a quick win.
Gohan turned sideways and lifted his fists, but didn't really take a stance. Ranma's brows drew downward in concentration.
Akane was standing far enough from Vegeta to feel safe, but close enough to help Ranma if she had to. She felt someone standing next to her and turned to notice the woman in the purple dress. She wore a worried expression equal to Akane's, so Akane didn't comment. Akane saw the tightly focused expression on Ranma's face and was worried. He was taking this seriously, which was already a bad sign. The two opponents stood regarding each other until an unseen signal sent them into action.
Ranma jumped forward and sent a quick combo that even Shampoo couldn't have dodged. Gohan wove left and right until Ranma pulled back. Ranma faked one way before sending another combination; this one mostly kicks, to the boy's right. Gohan just looked bored.
That's it, Ranma thought, Chestnut Fist it is.
He called out his attack, catching Gohan by surprise. Several hundred blows collided into the boy's chest, sending Gohan flying. Chi-chi gasped as Gohan hit the ground, but he simply stood up smiling.
"Not bad." He dusted a speck of dirt from the front of his purple outfit. "My turn!" Without warning, Gohan's happy demeanor faded into a seriousness that would frighten Ryoga. Ranma dodged several attacks before a kick to his ribs sent him flying toward Akane and Chi-chi. Chi-chi
shoved Akane out of the way, then dodged herself. Ranma sat up almost immediately after landing.
Akane was quickly kneeling beside him.
"That guy packs a harder punch than pig boy!"
"Are you okay Ranma?"
He felt around, wincing as he touched a rib. "Sore rib, that's all though."
He smiled up at Gohan. "Man you're good!"
Gohan blushed and dug at the ground with his toe. As he was about to speak, Vegeta jumped in.
"See how hard you're going to have to work? We'll start training tomorrow."
Vegeta turned to Chi-chi with a demeaning frown. "He'll stay here so her parents don't get any fool ideas about kidnapping."
He then turned and jumped into flight. Ranma and Akane marveled at the amazing aura that flared around him as he flew off. Chi-chi stomped her foot and put her hands on her hips. "Why I never! He could at least ask!"
She turned to study the two teens. "Now, what does he mean kidnapping?"
Akane glanced at Ranma, but he just shrugged, "Well, I guess since my Dad wasn't home when they took us, Vegeta didn't have his permission to bring me here. Dad will get all emotional and call the police if Uncle Soatome and Nabiki don't stop him."
Chi-chi turned to Ranma with a disbelieving look, "Are you really full-blooded Saiyan"
"That's what they tell me. I didn't even know what one was until a few minutes ago"
"Well, I suppose I'd better start dinner. Gohan hit the books! You two might as well come on in and
help me."
Akane and Ranma looked at each other. Ranma suddenly had a frightening thought. "Uh, I don't think—I mean, since we were sort of dropped off on you, why don't I cook for you. You know, sort of paying for room and board and all that."
Akane gave him a strange look, and Chi-chi smiled. "How sweet! But I must warn you, Gohan eats quite a bit, and Krillin doesn't exactly have a supermodel's diet either."
"That's fine, I eat a lot too. Will it just be the five of us then?"
"That's all I'm expecting," she sighed, "But people generally drop by unannounced."
"Alright then. Akane? Why don't you keep Ms.—I didn't catch your name."
She smiled happily. "It's Mrs. Son, but you can just call me Chi-chi. Everyone does."
"Fine then, why don't you keep Chi-chi company while I whip something up, okay Akane?"
Akane nodded slowly in confusion and followed Chi-chi outside. Ranma sighed with relief as Akane left the kitchen. He'd give her some line about hoping she'd make Chi-chi more relaxed so he could find a way out of the whole mess.
He scanned the ingredients spread about the counter and started cooking.
Akane followed the odd woman outside and stood next to her in the grass. The Son family appeared to live in the middle of nowhere. "Why do you guys live so far out?"
Chi-chi smiled softly, "Goku never was very socially inclined. He has the most atrocious manners. Besides, it isn't easy to explain his particular style of workout to people, and hard to hide from a city of them."
"What do you mean, hard to hide?" Akane watched as Chi-chi started weeding a flowerbed, and decided to help.
"Well, he and the boys have a habit of throwing around Ki blasts that would totally destroy a few streets. It would be hard for people not to notice their homes blowing up. Not that Goku or Krillin would hurt anyone, mind you, but accidents do happen."
Akane blinked and watched in shock as Chi-chi calmly continued to weed. After several long seconds of silence, Akane started to tug the weeds out by the roots.
Ranma studied the table laid out with a large variety of food, all made by him. He nodded once before turning and stepping out the door. Akane and Chi-chi were walking toward the house, laughing and talking like old friends despite the age difference. Akane looked up and smiled at Ranma. He found himself smiling in return, and waved toward the table inside the odd house. "Dinner's ready whenever everyone shows up."
Akane turned and looked down the road. "I don't see anyone, so we probably have awhile." The long straight dirt road gave a lot of visibility, and they'd see any travelers from miles away.
Chi-chi waved nonchalantly, "Oh no, they'll be here any minute now." She cocked her head as if listening for something. "In fact, I think I hear someone right now."
Ranma and Akane shared a glance just as they both noticed the odd whooshing sound in the distance. They spun around to face the sound. They stood open-mouthed in shock as the well-known martial artist came into view.
Krillin landed next to Chi-chi, barely glancing at the teens. "Hiya Chi-chi. Sorry I'm late."
"That's alright Krillin. Meet Ranma and Akane. Ranma is supposedly a full Saiyan."
Krillin whipped around and stared wide-eyed at Ranma. He blinked and shuddered. "Just great,
another one."
Ranma glared at the considerably shorter man. "Hey! And what is that supposed to mean?" Krillin scratched the back of his head and studied the ground. "Oh, sorry. I've just had some bad experiences with you guys."
"What do ya mean, 'you guys'? I just wish someone would explain what's going on!"
"The Saiyans were a warrior race on the planet Vegeta." Everyone turned to see Gohan come out of the house. "Freeza came and blew the planet up after kidnapping a very young Prince Vegeta. The only survivors were your parents, my father (who was sent here as a baby), Dad's brother (Who's now dead), Nappa (who was sent to the next dimension by Vegeta), and Vegeta himself."
"Then why are people so nervous about us?"
Gohan sighed, "The Saiyans are notoriously violent maniacs. Vegeta and Nappa came to Earth for the soul purpose of overthrowing the planet and—"
"Hey!" Akane was suddenly the center of attention. "Wasn't there something about that on TV? You know Ranma, that big publicity thing out in the desert with all the explosions and stuff."
Krillin gave her a stern look. "That was no publicity stunt. We could have been killed out there, and would have been if Goku hadn't shown up."
Ranma frowned, "If this guy's so great, where is he?"
Everyone suddenly got depressed. Gohan whispered, "We don't know. After Namek blew up, we wished everyone safe. But Dad didn't want to come supposedly, and said he'd meet us later. That was the last we heard from him."
Chi-chi was close to tears as she broke the subject. "So Ranma, what did you cook for us?" Krillin looked crestfallen, "You didn't cook Chi-chi?"
"Don't worry Krillin, I'm sure Ranma's a great cook."
They all piled into the oddly shaped house and sat around the table. Chi-chi and Krillin took the ends, with Gohan sitting on one side. Ranma and Akane took the other side, and both watched in amazement as Gohan ate with an appetite similar to Ranma's. When Krillin joined Gohan's peculiar dining habits, Ranma smiled.
"Alright!" He was soon digging in, causing Chi- chi and Akane to share an exasperated look.
"That was great Ranma!" Krillin pushed away from the table, rubbing his full stomach in
contentment.
Ranma stared at the famed fighter. "Thanks."
He just couldn't get over it. Sure, he was short, but he was the best fighter in the world. Well, the best human at least. Well, perhaps the best full-blooded human was the proper title. Chi-chi stood to clear the table when they all heard a familiar sound outside. Akane looked out in the general direction of the noise.
"Someone around here has an aircar?"
Chi-chi smiled at the younger girl. "Oh, it's probably Bulma. She comes by pretty often when she has the time."
"Oh." Aircars were pretty common in bigger cities, along with capsules that Capsule Corp.
manufactured, but not in cramped little villages or old-fashioned places like Nerima. Sure, she'd seen them before and even rode in a couple aircars from capsules, but the Tendos didn't actually own any.
Chi-chi was already headed for the door with Krillin and Gohan, so Ranma and Akane followed.
Just as they stepped outside, a small plane landed. The hatch opened and a young woman with short blue hair walked down the ramp.
"Where is he?" She didn't seem terribly happy to be visiting friends. She stopped at the bottom of the ramp, hands on hips, and frowned at the assembled group. Her hair was slightly rumpled and she had dark circles under her eyes.
Chi-chi cocked her head and frowned in confusion. "Where's who, Bulma?"
"Who else? That no good Saiyan wakes me up in the middle of the night and makes me build him a special scouter, then he disappears all day! I want to know what's going on here!"
Krillin raised one eyebrow and gave the newest arrival a long-suffering look. "Well, Bulma, if you'd stop yelling we might tell ya."
She blinked down at him, "You know what Vegeta's up to?"
Krillin smiled and gestured at Ranma. "Of course! He remembered more Saiyans and went looking for more pure breeds, so to speak."
"Hey! Quit talking about me like I'm some kind of dog or something."
Bulma looked at Ranma in a brief moment of confusion. "Wait a sec. You're a Saiyan?"
"That's what they tell me." Ranma sounded anything but pleased. "There I was minding my own business when Ryoga attacked. Before I knew it, Vegeta was holding Ryoga, his whole pack, and that heavy umbrella up in the air."
Bulma pulled back and studied him. "Well, you've got the customary black hair, but the blue eyes are new. And they found you in the middle of a fight. I never knew anyone but Goku to attract so much trouble. Did my scouter say you were Saiyan?"
Gohan nodded excitedly, "That's what Vegeta said. He tried it on that Ryoga guy too, but he was only human."
Ranma snorted, "It wouldn't surprise me if he was half elephant the way he lifts all that heavy gear halfway around the world."
Gohan gave him a questioning look. "What's wrong with a little weight training?"
Akane nudged Ranma when he started to make an annoying comment about poor Ryoga. "Nothing, but he has a tendency to get lost, so he does a lot of extra traveling."
Bulma held out a hand to stop the sideline conversations. "That explains why he woke me up,
but why are you here? Where are you two from?"
Ranma pointed to his chest, "I've been traveling around and training my whole life. Akane's from Nerima, which is where I've been staying for awhile."
Bulma looked vaguely confused, "Then why are you here? Vegeta could have brought you to Capsule Corp. and it would have been a lot closer."
"Oh," Akane explained, "He kidnapped me and thought it would be safer to take me out of the country. Wait a sec, why Capsule Corp.?"
"My Dad and I run Capsule Corp. and that's where Vegeta is staying since his planet blew up and everything."
Akane blinked before shooting Bulma a conspiratorial glance. "Boy would my sister love to meet you! She's obsessed with money and business matters."
Ranma muttered about extortion and his wallet, causing Akane to sweatdrop. "Hee hee, anyway, I doubt it would have mattered. Genma seemed to want us to go with Vegeta, and Vegeta just dropped us off without even consulting Chi-chi. I don't think he cares who he inconveniences."
Gohan frowned in thought. "But why was he worried about the police anyway? It's not like they'd give him much trouble."
Bulma shrugged with an indifferent look. "Oh, he probably doesn't want his training interrupted.
He's had Dad working on training aids ever since we let him move in."
Ranma and Akane glanced at each other, wondering what sorts of training aids these people would use.
Bulma sighed. "Oh well. Mind if I hang out for awhile?"
Chi-chi smiled. "Of course not! I was just going to get to know our new friends and—wait! You two didn't bring anything at all with you, did you?"
Ranma shook his head, "Nah. Doesn't really matter though. I don't have much aside from a few more sets of clothes."
Akane frowned. "Maybe you don't, but I can't do any training in my school uniform! I may not be an alien, but I do know some martial arts."
Gohan smiled at her. "You're a fighter too?"
She blushed a little, "Well, I'm nowhere near as good as Ranma or any of our local champs, but I've done some training."
Ranma waved a hand at her. "She's being modest so she'll look better later. For someone who hasn't spent their whole life from morning till night training, she ain't bad."
Chi-chi gave Ranma a thoughtful look, missing the odd look his fiancée was giving him. "So Ranma,
you lived like that? Training every day and all, so you didn't do much else?"
"Just about. I went to school when we stuck around the same place for any length of time, but the rest of the time the old man was training me constantly."
Gohan got a worried look at the determined gleam in his mother's eye. "I guess it will be better when we can get Akane's Dad to understand that she wasn't really truly kidnapped, so you two can go back to Japan and stay at Capsule Corp. Then you'll be close enough for Vegeta's 'training' and to keep going to school."
He glanced sideways to his mother, who lost a little of the spark in her dark eyes. He nearly sighed in relief as Ranma started to answer.
"I'd rather just train, but my Mom would have a cow if she found out that I passed up school." Chi-
chi wondered at the sympathetic look that Akane shot him and the odd shudder that Ranma gave as he
mentioned his mother.
Ranma and Akane followed Chi-chi down the hall.
"You can stay with Gohan, Ranma, and Akane can take the guestroom. Is that alright"
They both nodded, and Chi-chi pointed out the rooms with a smile before heading back to the
kitchen. Ranma followed Akane into the house's single guestroom and shut the door, leaving it open
the barest of cracks.
"So what are we supposed to do Akane?"
She sat on the bed and looked up at him. "What are we supposed to do? Your dad wants you here.
And, it will be easy to convince my dad when he realizes that your other fiancées won't be anywhere
near us."
Ranma frowned. "I hadn't thought of that. I guess it's up to us then. I'd love to get the special training, but we don't know anything about any of these people."
Akane hid a smirk. "Except that they fly and a little boy beat you easily in a spar."
Ranma glared at her. "Gee thanks. But seriously, don't you think we should get out of here?" He sure did, if only to get her safe.
She shrugged, "Sure, but how? They'd just fly after us and drag us back."
An idea suddenly came to Ranma. "Not if they let us walk away!"
She scoffed and lay down, propping her head on her hands. "Sure Ranma, and how do plan to do that?"
In whispered tones, he moved closer and told her his idea. "They don't know about the curse. I'll sneak outside and change. Then I'll run back in and start yelling about how sick Mr. Tendo is and that I need to take you back quick."
She sat up and leaned closer. "That's not bad, but what if they offer to fly us back"
Ranma thought quickly, "We'll wait until Krillin leaves and Gohan's asleep. Chi-chi won't wake him
up if we tell her not to bother."
She smiled, "This just might work! By the time she realizes you're not here anymore, we can get some distance between us and find a good hiding spot! Actually, I remember seeing a town not far down that road outside."
"Perfect! Then all we have to do is kill some time." He cocked his ear and listened. "I think they're all downstairs talking still. Man, I'm thirsty."
It was almost eleven when Chi-chi finished her housework. She'd have been done a lot sooner, but
she, Bulma, and Krillin had spent a long time discussing Ranma. She pitied the boy really. How
awful to be living a perfectly normal childhood only to find out you're the descendent of aliens!
She went to the living room to turn off a light and paused to stare out the window. She sighed at
the sight of all those twinkling stars. Where was Goku?
Ranma listened carefully at the door to Gohan's room. The boy looked up sleepily.
"What's going on?"
Ranma waved his hands in front of his chest. "Nothing! Nothing, just go back to sleep. I'm getting a drink of water, that's all. See ya in the morning!" He quickly and quietly opened the door just wide enough to slip out. He closed the door and stared at it for a moment, but Gohan didn't follow. He sighed and crept down to the kitchen for a glass of water. All he had to do was take the glass just outside the front door long enough to change. Then it was easy enough to pound on the door, yelling for Akane. He half-filled a glass and took a careful sip to test the temperature. He nodded in satisfaction and turned to the door.
What followed wasn't all that clear to Ranma, but he thought that Chi-chi turned the corner and entered the kitchen, eyes on her clenched hands. Ranma was so surprised that she'd snuck up on him that he jerked, spilling a few drops of water on his arm.
Now a she, Ranma stared in horror as Chi-chi looked up and spotted him. Chi-chi gasped and her
mouth opened and closed slightly before she gathered breath and let out a long scream.
Ranma looked about in panic. He finally slumped his shoulders and groaned. "Why me"
Before he knew it, Gohan was in the doorway, eyes following his mother's gaze. When the boy saw
Ranma, he glared and gave a small growl. Ranma's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to explain.
Gohan's fist collided with Ranma's chest before Ranma saw the younger boy move. He flew backwards
into the cabinets, landing with a soft thud on the floor. Then there was a scream, and that's all he
remembered.