'Mirthless'
Ranma woke up, thankful to find himself in warm bedding and under a roof, but irritated at not knowing how long he had been out. Tracing back what he could of his memory, he recalled his father took him to a friend's home, and then dropped the bombshell on the pigtailed young man that he was to choose one of the daughters for his fiancée.
The pigtailed boy quickly found his anger at the situation. What was worse was his father had the audacity to use their recent loss to get his sympathy and go along with this idiotic engagement! Ranma knew his father could be callous sometimes, but this was an all new low for him.
Ranma's ire quelled, as he thought about the youngest girl of the household. He hated to see someone upset. Sure, he could deal with angry people just fine, anger was easier to adjust to and bear than saddened people, but the girl's depression bore at him like a drill. The oldest one, Kasumi, had said that Akane was the one hit hardest by their mother's death, and he himself resolved to do whatever he could to help her out. She was pretty cute, and he didn't think it suited her to be as morose as she was.
But first, Ranma had the snoring sack of insensitivity to pound in, "Hey, Pop, wake up..."
Akane watched out the window, as the father and son were committed to a rather intense battle that seemed more like all out war than a sparring session. She was sure they were only sparring, considering the casual banter they seemed to be trading off. She had to admit that they were excellent, far better than her or what she had even seen her father do at any time.
Akane considered that if she were as good as Ranma, her mother would still be alive. Finding the spectacular match slightly unbearable to watch, the youngest Tendou daughter turned away from the window, preparing for the morning.
Nabiki growled at the obnoxious sounds of combat, recalling one good thing that came from their mother's death, there had not been any more morning bouts. She froze for an instant, as her expression shifted to guilt at such a thought. Quickly pushing it aside, Nabiki finally pulled herself out of bed, and gathered her clothing and bath supplies.
She headed down the stairs to the bathing room, giving only a passing glance towards her sister in the kitchen, and where the general commotion was going on in the back yard. She briefly considered shouting at them for the ruckus they were making, but ultimately decided she wasn't going to waste her breath, and that the bathroom door would shield a good portion of it from her.
Once inside, she set her clothes in the front room, and removed her sleepwear, before stepping into the bathing room main. She filled a bucket with luke warm water, uninterested in the nonsense belief that the cold water would do wonders for her circulation, as well as bring her fully to alertness. If her mother were alive, she would be lightly scolded about not following even such a menial tradition, and provided with many reasons as to why it would be best for her to follow them; healthy skin, excellent physiology, and it makes entering the bath itself all that more pleasant.
Well, her mother was not alive, so that was that.
Her thoughts continued upon the same lines, before she winced, looking down on her arm. She studied it for a moment, unrealizing how hard she had been scrubbing.
Kasumi knew Nabiki had passed by her without greeting, and she had almost greeted her instead, but after the previous night, the eldest Tendou daughter didn't know how to handle a follow up confrontation. Barely, just barely things were holding together, though Kasumi wasn't all too sure how she was managing. Her father was withdrawn, and Akane was the same, but with a tremendous amount of guilt and depression weighing on her. Kasumi kept a close eye on her youngest sibling, thanking God that she hadn't shown any signs that may lead to suicidal tendencies. Another family loss and none of them would be able to keep going.
Nabiki had become disruptive and obnoxious; as if she went out of her way to be intolerable to be around. It was the reason Kasumi knew she had no friends at school anymore; even those Nabiki jokingly used to refer to as her 'subordinates' hesitated to be around her now. Kasumi could only imagine that Nabiki had to be lonely as she was, but she kept up the facade of flippancy that garnered her no sympathy from others, and a barrier of hostility that kept anyone from even getting close to her. While Kasumi knew the best way to contend with Akane was to give her as much love and support as she could manage, she was at a loss at how to deal with Nabiki.
As much as she truly loved Nabiki, she was sure that the middle sister would be the one that potentially ruins things for good. That fact itself was what kept them at odds since their mother's death. Gripping the counter, Kasumi sighed, and shuddered in an attempt to keep the sensation of hopelessness from overwhelming her. She had to do this; she was the only one that could salvage her family. It was something she knew her mother, now in Heaven, was counting on. Taking deep breaths, Kasumi almost managed to calm herself, before the smell of burning fish caught her attention. With her composure falling back into poisoned depths, Kasumi fought back the tears, as she attempted to minimize the damage done to breakfast.
As far as the Tendous could surmise, it was a normal morning training session. Unfortunately for Genma, it didn't seem that way. It was taking a great deal of focus to keep his son from pummeling him into pasty goo, and it also didn't seem as if Ranma was willing to let up.
"Don't you have a heart, old man?" Ranma snapped, trying to force his kick through his father's guard, aiming to probably break an arm in the process.
Genma parried it, but remained wary to counter-attack, "Quit whining like a girl, Ranma! This is about family honor! They're willing to abide by it, so quit using them as an excuse to worm your way out of your duty!"
"WHAT?!?" Ranma screeched, swiping at his father's head with a fierce kick, giving Genma barely any time to dodge, "You think this is about me getting out of it? Did you see the way that girl Akane was? This is the LAST thing they all need!"
Genma deftly landed on the ground, before attempting to leap away for some breathing space, "Boy, if you're so concerned about the girl, then I think you protest too much."
Ranma was upon Genma, not allowing him any slack, "DON'T you get it, you old jerk? We're stressing them out! Their mom just DIED!"
"Oh, how my son complains," Genma lamented, finally finding an opening, "Where had I failed to raise my son to be the man he should be?" Genma grabbed Ranma's ankle, and flipped backwards, tossing the pigtailed boy into the ground at an angle, and causing him to slide on his back and leave a furrow. Genma landed with a snort, "And your skills are slacking, maybe I should have raised you to be a candy striper, Ranma. Maybe you'll be better off cleaning out bedpans than pretending to be a martial artist with that bleeding heart of yours."
For the first time ever, Genma didn't see Ranma's attack coming.
"DAMN YOU, OLD MAN!!!" Almost as if Ranma had teleported, the only thing Genma knew of his son's presence was his fist in his chin. "DON'T YOU THINK ABOUT ANYTHING OTHER THAN YOURSELF?"
Genma fell to the ground, barely managing to break fall, and roll to his feet. Ranma wouldn't give him an inch in his anger, "I would think that you would at least let them GRIEVE before trying to impose on them! And what about my blackouts? You don't even seem interested in my welfare considering those! I could be dying and you're too busy trying to marry me off to your ol' pal's daughter like you two were trying to breed farm animals!" Ranma sent a thrust kick into his father's gut, sending him careening backwards, "What little respect I had for ya Pop is going out the window. If you want me to be a man so much, it's not you who shoulda... raised me."
Ranma blinked, and sighed, watching the panda climb out of the fishpond. The pigtailed boy sighed at his father's curse, and knew he wouldn't be able to respond to him in his state. With a sigh, Ranma willed his anger to the back, and approached the confused panda, "Come on, Pop, let's get you changed back before the Tendous see you."
Ranma reached out his hand, waiting for the giant animal to take it. Fortunately, Ranma realized that the panda still had some recognition of him, and trusted him enough to be led around. This allowed him the convenience of labeling the animal as a pet, whenever Genma's curse hit at peculiar moments.
Ranma began to lead his father behind the training hall, where he hoped the animal would stay until he could procure him some hot water. At that moment, he paused, and turned to the entrance to the house, and baulked at finding Akane in her pajamas and holding bath supplies, looking at them curiously.
"Oh, crap," Ranma whispered to himself, "Hey, Akane, wait a sec, so I can explain." The girl stood where she was, apparently interested in what she had just seen, and an explanation. Once in front of her, Ranma took a deep breath, and chuckled sheepishly, "Uh, I guess you saw the whole thing?"
"Your father... became a panda," Akane responded simply.
Ranma blinked, "Uh... you don't seem all that, um, surprised," Ranma stated, with some suspicion and a little relief. "Look, you mind if we try to keep this a secret? It's difficult as it is to deal with him in this state."
Akane lowered her eyes, but gave a hesitant nod in acknowledgement, "I need to go take my bath."
"Hey, wait!" Ranma called out, but sighed as the girl continued her brisk pace away. Apparently she was a bit shocked. Either that, Ranma considered, or she didn't want to speak with him. "Great," the pigtailed boy mumbled, before going to the kitchen. The girl just didn't want anything to do with him, which was going to make simply trying to be her friend more than a little difficult, "Thanks a lot, Pops."
Ranma woke up, thankful to find himself in warm bedding and under a roof, but irritated at not knowing how long he had been out. Tracing back what he could of his memory, he recalled his father took him to a friend's home, and then dropped the bombshell on the pigtailed young man that he was to choose one of the daughters for his fiancée.
The pigtailed boy quickly found his anger at the situation. What was worse was his father had the audacity to use their recent loss to get his sympathy and go along with this idiotic engagement! Ranma knew his father could be callous sometimes, but this was an all new low for him.
Ranma's ire quelled, as he thought about the youngest girl of the household. He hated to see someone upset. Sure, he could deal with angry people just fine, anger was easier to adjust to and bear than saddened people, but the girl's depression bore at him like a drill. The oldest one, Kasumi, had said that Akane was the one hit hardest by their mother's death, and he himself resolved to do whatever he could to help her out. She was pretty cute, and he didn't think it suited her to be as morose as she was.
But first, Ranma had the snoring sack of insensitivity to pound in, "Hey, Pop, wake up..."
Akane watched out the window, as the father and son were committed to a rather intense battle that seemed more like all out war than a sparring session. She was sure they were only sparring, considering the casual banter they seemed to be trading off. She had to admit that they were excellent, far better than her or what she had even seen her father do at any time.
Akane considered that if she were as good as Ranma, her mother would still be alive. Finding the spectacular match slightly unbearable to watch, the youngest Tendou daughter turned away from the window, preparing for the morning.
Nabiki growled at the obnoxious sounds of combat, recalling one good thing that came from their mother's death, there had not been any more morning bouts. She froze for an instant, as her expression shifted to guilt at such a thought. Quickly pushing it aside, Nabiki finally pulled herself out of bed, and gathered her clothing and bath supplies.
She headed down the stairs to the bathing room, giving only a passing glance towards her sister in the kitchen, and where the general commotion was going on in the back yard. She briefly considered shouting at them for the ruckus they were making, but ultimately decided she wasn't going to waste her breath, and that the bathroom door would shield a good portion of it from her.
Once inside, she set her clothes in the front room, and removed her sleepwear, before stepping into the bathing room main. She filled a bucket with luke warm water, uninterested in the nonsense belief that the cold water would do wonders for her circulation, as well as bring her fully to alertness. If her mother were alive, she would be lightly scolded about not following even such a menial tradition, and provided with many reasons as to why it would be best for her to follow them; healthy skin, excellent physiology, and it makes entering the bath itself all that more pleasant.
Well, her mother was not alive, so that was that.
Her thoughts continued upon the same lines, before she winced, looking down on her arm. She studied it for a moment, unrealizing how hard she had been scrubbing.
Kasumi knew Nabiki had passed by her without greeting, and she had almost greeted her instead, but after the previous night, the eldest Tendou daughter didn't know how to handle a follow up confrontation. Barely, just barely things were holding together, though Kasumi wasn't all too sure how she was managing. Her father was withdrawn, and Akane was the same, but with a tremendous amount of guilt and depression weighing on her. Kasumi kept a close eye on her youngest sibling, thanking God that she hadn't shown any signs that may lead to suicidal tendencies. Another family loss and none of them would be able to keep going.
Nabiki had become disruptive and obnoxious; as if she went out of her way to be intolerable to be around. It was the reason Kasumi knew she had no friends at school anymore; even those Nabiki jokingly used to refer to as her 'subordinates' hesitated to be around her now. Kasumi could only imagine that Nabiki had to be lonely as she was, but she kept up the facade of flippancy that garnered her no sympathy from others, and a barrier of hostility that kept anyone from even getting close to her. While Kasumi knew the best way to contend with Akane was to give her as much love and support as she could manage, she was at a loss at how to deal with Nabiki.
As much as she truly loved Nabiki, she was sure that the middle sister would be the one that potentially ruins things for good. That fact itself was what kept them at odds since their mother's death. Gripping the counter, Kasumi sighed, and shuddered in an attempt to keep the sensation of hopelessness from overwhelming her. She had to do this; she was the only one that could salvage her family. It was something she knew her mother, now in Heaven, was counting on. Taking deep breaths, Kasumi almost managed to calm herself, before the smell of burning fish caught her attention. With her composure falling back into poisoned depths, Kasumi fought back the tears, as she attempted to minimize the damage done to breakfast.
As far as the Tendous could surmise, it was a normal morning training session. Unfortunately for Genma, it didn't seem that way. It was taking a great deal of focus to keep his son from pummeling him into pasty goo, and it also didn't seem as if Ranma was willing to let up.
"Don't you have a heart, old man?" Ranma snapped, trying to force his kick through his father's guard, aiming to probably break an arm in the process.
Genma parried it, but remained wary to counter-attack, "Quit whining like a girl, Ranma! This is about family honor! They're willing to abide by it, so quit using them as an excuse to worm your way out of your duty!"
"WHAT?!?" Ranma screeched, swiping at his father's head with a fierce kick, giving Genma barely any time to dodge, "You think this is about me getting out of it? Did you see the way that girl Akane was? This is the LAST thing they all need!"
Genma deftly landed on the ground, before attempting to leap away for some breathing space, "Boy, if you're so concerned about the girl, then I think you protest too much."
Ranma was upon Genma, not allowing him any slack, "DON'T you get it, you old jerk? We're stressing them out! Their mom just DIED!"
"Oh, how my son complains," Genma lamented, finally finding an opening, "Where had I failed to raise my son to be the man he should be?" Genma grabbed Ranma's ankle, and flipped backwards, tossing the pigtailed boy into the ground at an angle, and causing him to slide on his back and leave a furrow. Genma landed with a snort, "And your skills are slacking, maybe I should have raised you to be a candy striper, Ranma. Maybe you'll be better off cleaning out bedpans than pretending to be a martial artist with that bleeding heart of yours."
For the first time ever, Genma didn't see Ranma's attack coming.
"DAMN YOU, OLD MAN!!!" Almost as if Ranma had teleported, the only thing Genma knew of his son's presence was his fist in his chin. "DON'T YOU THINK ABOUT ANYTHING OTHER THAN YOURSELF?"
Genma fell to the ground, barely managing to break fall, and roll to his feet. Ranma wouldn't give him an inch in his anger, "I would think that you would at least let them GRIEVE before trying to impose on them! And what about my blackouts? You don't even seem interested in my welfare considering those! I could be dying and you're too busy trying to marry me off to your ol' pal's daughter like you two were trying to breed farm animals!" Ranma sent a thrust kick into his father's gut, sending him careening backwards, "What little respect I had for ya Pop is going out the window. If you want me to be a man so much, it's not you who shoulda... raised me."
Ranma blinked, and sighed, watching the panda climb out of the fishpond. The pigtailed boy sighed at his father's curse, and knew he wouldn't be able to respond to him in his state. With a sigh, Ranma willed his anger to the back, and approached the confused panda, "Come on, Pop, let's get you changed back before the Tendous see you."
Ranma reached out his hand, waiting for the giant animal to take it. Fortunately, Ranma realized that the panda still had some recognition of him, and trusted him enough to be led around. This allowed him the convenience of labeling the animal as a pet, whenever Genma's curse hit at peculiar moments.
Ranma began to lead his father behind the training hall, where he hoped the animal would stay until he could procure him some hot water. At that moment, he paused, and turned to the entrance to the house, and baulked at finding Akane in her pajamas and holding bath supplies, looking at them curiously.
"Oh, crap," Ranma whispered to himself, "Hey, Akane, wait a sec, so I can explain." The girl stood where she was, apparently interested in what she had just seen, and an explanation. Once in front of her, Ranma took a deep breath, and chuckled sheepishly, "Uh, I guess you saw the whole thing?"
"Your father... became a panda," Akane responded simply.
Ranma blinked, "Uh... you don't seem all that, um, surprised," Ranma stated, with some suspicion and a little relief. "Look, you mind if we try to keep this a secret? It's difficult as it is to deal with him in this state."
Akane lowered her eyes, but gave a hesitant nod in acknowledgement, "I need to go take my bath."
"Hey, wait!" Ranma called out, but sighed as the girl continued her brisk pace away. Apparently she was a bit shocked. Either that, Ranma considered, or she didn't want to speak with him. "Great," the pigtailed boy mumbled, before going to the kitchen. The girl just didn't want anything to do with him, which was going to make simply trying to be her friend more than a little difficult, "Thanks a lot, Pops."