Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2. (Boo hoo hoo!)
It was a dark and stormy night... The clock struck eleven, a time when most of Furinkan's residents were sound asleep. In a shoddy little apartment across town, however, Hikaru Gosenkugi was very much awake. The disgruntled student held in one hand a picture of his beloved Akane Tendo, and in the other a much-abused voodoo doll with a distinctive pigtail.
"That cursed Ranma Saotome!" Gosenkugi growled. "Not only does he continually make my life a living hell, but he keeps Akane, who is too good for the likes of him, to himself!" With rage consuming him, he yelled, "Don't worry, my sweet Akane! I, Hikaru Gosenkugi, will free you from his evil clutches!" In a quieter tone he muttered, "I just wish I knew how..."
Suddenly, the silence was shattered by a shout of "DELIVERY!" outside the door. After his heartbeat slowed down to normal levels, Gosenkugi slowly stepped forward and opened the door. In front of him was a package marked "Special Delivery" and addressed "Port-au-Prince, Haiti."
"I can't believe that it's already here!" he rejoiced. "It's as if Heaven itself was responding to my plea! Soon, Saotome, I will have you and those other thugs who torment me right where I want you! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The boy's disturbed laughter rang out and echoed deep into the night...
-------------------------
"DING, DONG, DING, DONG..."
The school bell at Furinkan High School was chiming as its students were let out for lunch. Under the shadow of the bell tower, a pretty girl with bluish-black hair was pacing back and forth. Akane picked up and reread the letter she had found in her locker:
"Dear Akane,
Meet me in front of the school at lunch. It's urgent!
-Ranma"
(Meanwhile, on the other side of the school)
A puzzled pigtailed martial artist named Ranma Saotome walked toward his rendevous in the gardener's shack. "What is that stupid girl up to now?" he wondered as he walked along. He reached the shack and was about to open the door when he heard shouting on the other side...
"What are you two doing here?! Akane wanted to meet with me on a private matter. Get out!"
"Not on your life! Shampoo made arrangements to meet me HERE. Find your own meeting place!"
"You insolent louts! I know not why you wish to meddle in our affairs, but you shall not interfere with my double-date with the pigtailed girl and the sweet Akane Tendo. Begone!"
Ranma opened the door abruptly, cutting off the quarrel inside. The voices belonged to his three greatest rivals: Ryoga Hibiki, Mousse, and Tatewaki Kuno. They were not happy to see him!
"What do you want, Ranma?" Mousse sneered.
"I got a letter that said to come here at lunch, the same as you guys." He sarcastically added, "Don't you think that it's kind of strange that we're ALL meeting somebody right here, right now?"
The other three darkened as they realized that they'd been had.
"It isn't much fun to be made a fool of, is it?" a voice from behind them asked. They all jumped with suprise and turned around to see Hikaru Gosenkugi emerge from the shadows.
"Why you!" Ryoga shouted. "How dare you make a fool out of me?!"
"I shall make you rue this day!" Kuno threatened.
"I don't think so. Your days of tormenting me are over," Gosenkugi solemly replied. "Saotome, you and your friends--"
"THEY'RE NOT MY FRIENDS!!!"
A sweatdrop rolled down Gosenkugi's head. "You and your associates have made my life a pit of misery. Here's where I return the favor!!!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a smoke bomb. With a yell, he hurled it at them and hightailed it toward the door!
"What the--?!"
BOOM!
Ranma was cut off by the explosion that rocked the little building and sent dust flying everywhere! Outside, Gosenkugi was busy ranting and raving to himself:
"GYHEHEHEHEHE! Now I have that Don Juan-abee right where I want him! If they ever want to live a normal life again, Ranma and those other guys will have to obey my every whim!!! I just have to take a peek!"
With a maniacal grin on his face, Gosenkugi slid the door open and peered inside. Looking back at him were 4 pissed-off martial artists, dusty, but otherwise unchanged. Gosenkugi's triumphant smile quickly turned to a look of fearful bewilderment.
"B-but this doesn't make sense!" he feebly protested. "You should all be..."; words failed him.
Ryoga spoke in a strained voice, "Your name is Gosenkugi, right? (Gosenkugi gave a weak nod) And you sent us these letters in a plot to attack us with that cherry bomb? (He gave a weaker nod) Good. I just wanted to be clear on all points. Now I want you to understand something!" Anger rose in Ryoga's voice as his restraint gave way. "If you think you can humiliate us and get away with it, then you are SADLY mistaken!!!"
Ranma, Ryoga, Kuno, and Mousse took a menacing step toward Gosenkugi.
"Fellas, please, you don't understand!" he pleaded.
Ranma glared and cracked his knuckles. "Oh, we understand, all right."
POW!!!
"GYAAAAAAAAAH!" Hurled skyward by four powerful punches, Gosenkugi quickly passed out of sight; only a human-shaped hole in the shed's ceiling remained.
-----------------------
As the sun set, the shadows of everyday objects and buildings at Furinkan High School became enlongated, distorted, and bizzare. In this surreal twilight landscape, no figure looked more melancholy than Hikaru Gosenkugi. He had regained consciousness 10 minutes ago inside a sizable crater by the gym, and he had a knot on his head the size of a volleyball. This painful lump, howver, wasn't bothering him nearly as badly as the question that kept vexing him as he walked along.
"Why didn't it work?! I followed the instructions exactly... the instructions...!" In a sudden flutter of inspiration, he tore open his backpack, snatched out a small piece of paper, and started reading it like a man possessed. He finally found what he had been looking for on the 14th line of the fine print:
"WARNING- Curse may take up to 8 hours to take effect. Condition is permanent after first sunrise seen by the victim once curse is enacted."
Gosenkugi chuckled quietly.
"My plan may still work after all..."
END OF CHAPTER 1
----------------------------------------
Hey, there! What you are reading is actually my first fanfic, even if it isn't my first posted one. I started writing it around Halloween 2003, and have worked on it off and on since then. One of my New Year's resolutions last year was to get this sucker published, and I'll be darned if I don't do just that!
(Even if it is the night of December 31...)
I've been pretty busy lately, but I'll try to update soon. Please review, and have a happy New Year!
