Journey's End

by Holy Chaos

A year after the failed wedding, the Nerima Wrecking Crew scattered to the winds. Now eight years later they are converging on Nerima once again and matters are going to be resolved, one way or another. Will Nerima survive is the question?

2. Journey's End 2

Ranma:

Journey's End:

Part 2

                The Tendo Dojo awoke to sounds that had not been heard within its walls for quite some time, the sound of a vigorous work out by a martial artist of impressive skill. Kasumi and Tofu, both early risers by inclination, were not that put out with their unusual manner of their waking, but both Kazuma and Soun, neither of who were morning people by preference, still looked half asleep when they had all gathered to find out just who was making the noise. As the only resident of the Tendo dojo not present, it was obvious that Akane was the source of the noise, though it took a few moments for the memories of Akane's return the previous day to percolate through Soun's sleep addled mind. When he finally did remember, he led the way through the house to the dojo to further the investigation.

                What greeted them when they arrived was not quite any of them expected. While none of them doubted Akane's pronouncements about her improved skill, it wasn't until quite that moment that the full reality actually sunk in. In the true spirit of the Anything Goes School, Akane flowed from style as she blazed her way through the forms, a skin tight, blazing red battle aura sheathing her limbs as she went through the motions as close to perfect as was humanly possible. Every so often the performance was punctuated by sharp sound that was somewhere between a hard exhalation and an outright yell, accompanied by a brief flare from her battle aura. Kazuma, Kasumi, Tofu and Soun stood there, entranced for several minutes until Akane came to a blinding halt, her aura blinking to nothing.

                There was an awed silence for several moments till Kazuma made his opinion known with a reverent exclamation of, "Sugoi!!!" That bought a brief round of laughter as Kazuma continued, "Can you teach me how to do that Aunt Akane?"

                "I thought you wanted to be a doctor," Akane said as she walked over to her family, a grin on her face. "You can't be both a doctor and a martial artist."

                "Tou-san is!" Kazuma stated with the certainty that only youth can bring.

                "I'm afraid not Kazuma," Tofu said, shaking his head sadly at his son. "Not to that degree. That requires a dedication too great to work a medical degree around."

                Kazuma looked crestfallen for a moment, but then looked up at Akane again hopefully. "But you can still teach me Aunt Akane?"

                "As much as you're willing to learn," Akane told her nephew solemnly as she crouched down to ruffle his hair.

                Soun smiled at the thought of his grandson helping to carry on the Tendo School, but inside his mind was going over what he had just seen. Even if he was a bit out of practise, he was still a martial artist of no small skill but after that last display, he knew that Akane had surpassed him. If it came to an all out fight, he would probably be able to last a few minutes, since a man does not study under Happosai for years without picking up a few tricks to keep his skin intact, but there was no doubt in Soun's mind that in a fight between himself and his youngest daughter, he would not be the victor. While the thought was somewhat disheartening, it also made him glad, for he knew that whatever happened now, the Tendo School would remain strong for another generation.

                He was broken out of his revere when he heard the words he had been dreading ever since Akane has returned. "Let me help you with breakfast Onee-san."

                Soun, Tofu and Kasumi froze in place, none of them twitching so much as an eye lash. None of them has forgotten Akane's attempts at helping in the kitchen before she left home. That is not something that one forgets easily, no matter how much you want to. The tableau was broken when Akane's face split in a wide grin and she doubled over at clutched at her stomach as gales of laughter shook her body, while Kazuma looked between his aunt, his grandfather and his parents and wondered just what was going on. "You should see the looks on your faces," Akane managed to choke out before going off in another fit of laughter.

                "Come along Kazuma my boy," Soun said, deciding to take pity on his grandson and enlighten him. "Let me tell you about the strange and dangerous things that happen when your Aunt Akane enters the kitchen." That only set Akane of further and Kasumi decided that discretion was the better part of valour and fled to the kitchen, her sanctum sanctorum, to get breakfast, leaving her husband to deal with the still laughing Akane.

                "So Akane," Tofu said conversationally when Akane finally got herself under control. "Tell me, what led to the realisation that Ranma was telling the truth about your cooking, even if his phrasing was a trifle indelicate?"

                Akane grinned ruefully at that. "The fact that after a week of eating my own cooking, I had to be admitted to hospital for severe toxic shock," she admitted. "The doctor said the contents of my stomach were more like a toxic waste dump instead of human digestive track. He made me swear that the only kitchen utensil I would ever touch again is one I'm using to eat."

                At that it was Tofu's turn to laugh and Akane blushed crimson. When Tofu calmed himself, he decided it was time to get a bit of her own back and grill him about what he had done between leaving Nerima and returning to marry Kasumi. She figured after being pumped for information the previous day that turn about was fair play after all. That was broken up by Kasumi announcing that breakfast was ready.

                After all that was left of breakfast was few scattered grains of rice stuck the edges of the bowls, Tofu readied himself for a brief day at the clinic, Kazuma headed on his way to school and Kasumi headed out to do some shopping, insisting that Akane accompany her. Unbeknownst to them, at that same moment, Ryoga, who had been inventorying his pack and the oversized pockets of his coat, decided that now was as good a time as any to stock up on some of the items he was running low on. He wasn't planning on going anywhere particularly soon, but spending most of his life on the road had taught him that the old saw about mice, men and their plans was all too often accurate. Of course, at the same time Ukyo and Shampoo boarded the train headed for Nerima, the same train that Mousse and Konatsu were on, though the two small groups had no idea of the others presence, being on carriages at the opposite end of the train. It may have been quiet in Nerima for eight years, but that only meant that the kami of chaos that ruled in the ward had eight years of catching up to do and he wasn't going to waste a single minute.

                Saturday being Saturday, the Nerima market was fairly full, but Kasumi had been making her way through the crowded throngs for over a decade and possessed an instinct for the ebb and flow of the crowd, almost like some fishermen have an instinct for the wind and water at their favourite fishing spot. This ensured that the grocery shopping was completed in short order, and after a brief stop back at the dojo to drop the food off, Kasumi and Akane were off again. While helping Akane settle back into her old room, Kasumi had gotten a good look at her youngest sister's minimal wardrobe and insisted on helping Akane expand it. After all, every girl deserved to have something nice and all Akane's clothes were plain and meant for wear rather than show, and all of them were showing the signs of hard living. So will she or nil she, Akane found herself being guided around all the clothing stores that Nerima possessed that might have something suitable for her.

                Of course finding something appropriate proved to be harder than even Kasumi had anticipated. While no one could doubt that Akane was a woman, just by looking at her, over the years of her wandering she had picked up a distinctive, sleek, muscular grace and that was what was causing the problems. The vast majority of women's fashions weren't designed for women who showed the same amount of muscular development that Akane did and everything she tried on just looked wrong somehow. As Kasumi guided Akane to yet another clothing store, she began to wonder if Akane would have to have something specifically tailored if she didn't want to look odd in a dress. She was so focused on her thoughts that she wasn't paying as much attention to her surroundings as she normally did and so bumped into a very solid and immobile slab of muscle as she turned a corner.

                "I'm sorry miss, let me help you up," a deep voice said from that massive chest and Kasumi looked up in surprise as that voice triggered eight year old memories. Her eyes flicked up to the bandanna around Ryoga's forehead and she smiled.

                "It's good to see you again Ryoga-kun," she said as she took his hand and climbed back to her feet.

                "It's good to see you too Kasumi-san," Ryoga said. "And you too Akane," he added, looking up and giving a slight internal sigh at what he felt when looking at the former object of his affections. He had come to realise long ago that he didn't truly love Akane, at least not in the romantic sense and that he had clung to her because she was one of the few people in his lonely existence that had been kind to him. Though he had given up hope of her being his true love, part of him had always wondered, but those questions were answered when he looked at her. What welled up inside him was affection, warmth at seeing a friend one has not seen in a long time, and even a faint hint of lust, for there was no questioning the fact that Akane was a beautiful woman, but no true love.

                Akane nodded in return and smiled slightly, but there was a slightly fixed quality to it, and it didn't entirely reach her eyes. "Ryoga," she said acknowledging his greeting with a nod of her head and though she was cordial enough, Ryoga wondered exactly what she was still angry about from since the last time they had seen each other. If it was what he thought it was, he was most likely in trouble.

                Nothing would come of it then though, for at that moment a cheerful voice called out, "Well, well! If it isn't old home week! Don't tell me you got lost for eight years Ryoga!"

                The voice triggered many memories and Kasumi, Akane and Ryoga all turned to look at the speaker. That morning Mousse had elected to wear a set of robes identical to his old ones, save for being made of slightly finer, and more durable, material, so despite the eye patch and new hairstyle, it took only a few seconds for him to be recognised.

                "Mousse!" Akane blurted out in surprise, causing several nearby heads to turn and stare, before their owners raced of to spread the news. "What sort of coincidence can this be? You and Ryoga arriving back in Nerima the day after I did."

                "Actually, I arrived yesterday," Ryoga interjected.

                "Details," Akane said, brushing the point away with a wave of her hand. "My point's still valid."

                "I don't believe there is any such thing as a coincidence when it comes to Nerima Akane-san," Konatsu said, causing both Ryoga and Akane to look very closely at her.

                "Hang on," Ryoga said. "Didn't you use to be Ukyo waitress?" he asked. "I'm afraid I've forgotten your name. I don't think we were ever properly introduced."

                "Kenzanin Konatsu," Konatsu supplied.

                "Konatsu?" Akane asked in surprise. "I know you used to cross-dress, but when did you become female?"

                Briefly Konatsu outlined her encounter with the Musk, making Ryoga snicker at the scheme. As she finished a new voice called out from down the street. "Looks like we weren't too late after all!" and heads turned to see Ukyo and Shampoo approaching.

                When they actually made it to easy talking distance, the conversation rapidly degenerated into repeated exclamations of disbelief at how much they were pushing coincidence, even for Nerima, while Kasumi just stood to one side and smiled. At the same time several blocks away Happosai was making one of his occasional visits back to Nerima, his path marked by outraged screams and women who had found themselves divested of one or more items of underwear.

                Grinning Happosai used his pipe to send an incensed boyfriend who tried to stop him forcefully flying into a stone wall. It had been a while since he had been to Nerima and it was better than he remembered it being the last time. Ever since his eventual successor had left things had seemed flat and lifeless and even liberating his silky darlings hadn't been as much fun as it used to be. So he had moved on to greener pastures, returning only occasionally to remind the ward that he was still around. But today, things seemed so much sweeter and he was enjoying himself more than he had in the past few years. He liberated a leopard print pair of panties and headed for the rooftops, deciding that he should stash what he had already collected and then come back for more later, as it was getting awkward to carry. He paused for a moment and that was when he felt them.

                Happosai had been around many years and had refined his skills to incredible degrees and that was the only reason he sensed what he did. Six immensely powerful auras, though damped down and kept under control. Most ki adepts would have only been able to sense six auras, perhaps a little more powerful than most, but nothing really out of the ordinary, but what set Happosai apart from most was that he could since the hidden strength and potential. Five of the six seemed familiar about as well, though he couldn't quite place them. Still three of the individuals were definitely female and a probable fourth was as well. That aura was a little strange, and better shielded than the others, so it was hard to tell, but he decided that a few more silky darlings couldn't hurt, especially when their wearers actually promised to give him a challenge in liberating them. It was a prospect that he just couldn't turn down.

                With a cry of, "SWEETO!!!" he leapt across the rooftops, crying out again every few leaps, looking forward to a bit of excitement to lighten up an old man's life. Just as he crested the roof of one of the building on the street that held his targets, he caught sight of them and instantly realised why the auras were so familiar. He knew almost all of them their, Akane, Ryoga, Mousse, Shampoo and Ukyo and the reason he hadn't recognised their auras was because they were so much powerful than the last time he had sensed them. His grin grew even broader as he leapt down with one final, joyful cry.

                That proved to be a mistake though. Even back when they had been enemies, all of the so called Nerima Wrecking Crew had agreed on one thing. Beating up Happosai was always a good thing, especially when he had just been on one of his raiding sprees. They all remembered his voice quite well too, so the instant they sensed his presence, they had been on guard and when they heard him, five blazing battle auras sprang into existence, blazing, fiery red for Akane, a light, goldish green for Ryoga, a shimmering violet for Shampoo, a hard silvery white for Mousse and a rusty, almost blood red for Ukyo, while Konatsu seemed to turn sideways while standing still and disappear. Half an instant later five ki bolts, all of them aimed for the founding master of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts and Lechery. Happosai hadn't been expecting quite that response to his arrival and was caught off guard, but he recovered quickly. He dodged three of the five ki bolts, but Ryoga's greenish-gold bolt caught the bulging sack of his purloined lingerie, scattering them everywhere and that distracted him just long enough that Shampoo's attack caught him squarely in the chest and sent him flying backwards. He recovered quickly and pushed off the wall as he hit it, but as he reached the top of his arc, Happosai's finely tuned danger sense screamed a warning at him. He looked up just in time to see an orange-gold sphere of ki come hurtling down towards him, accompanied by a cry of "MOKOU TAKABISHA!!!" before he was slammed into the ground and consciousness fled.

                Ranma landed lightly on his feet to one side of the now somnolent old panty thief, a wide grin on his face as he spread his arms and said cheerfully, "Well, did you miss me?"

                Cologne pogoed along the streets of Nerima for all she was worth. She had just gotten word from the suddenly resurrected rumour mill that not only had Ryoga returned, but so had Akane, Shampoo, Mousse, Ukyo and Konatsu, but most importantly of all, Ranma was back. The person who had informed her had also said that all of them were headed to the Tendo Dojo, though he had not overheard the reasons. Still, Cologne saw no reason not to go. She had closed up the shop and hung a sign that had not seen use for a long time. 'Closed due to Ranma.' It was highly likely that all those gathered at the Tendo Dojo had improved their skills in the martial arts during their long absence and there was great potential for an outbreak of fighting in the situation. Cologne had been bored ever since Shampoo left and with the opportunity to view a battle like that one, she would fight her way through all the gods of China and the kami of Japan to view it.

                Of course when she got there, it proved to be rather anti climactic. She exchanged brief greetings with Kasumi and was ushered into the living room where the various returnees were not engaged in heated arguments or displays of athletic violence as had been expected, but were sitting down calmly drinking tea. There was tension there of course, obvious to those who were expecting it, but no where near as bad as she had expected. What also took Cologne back were the changes in some of their physical appearances, especially Mousse, Akane and Shampoo. It took her several seconds to recognise the youngest Tendo and Mousse, as Akane's tan and sun bleached hair and Mousse's new hairstyle and eye patch altered their appearances in subtle, but striking ways, but Cologne's mind took several seconds to accept what she saw with Shampoo. A Joketsu warrior, even the rare males like Mousse, never cut their hair except in times of great dishonour (or the beginning of split ends, but then only as little as possible) and Shampoo's neat, close clipped locks just refused to register with Cologne's mental image of her great-granddaughter.

                Ranma was the first to notice Cologne's entrance, which was fairly impressive, as his back was to her and she had entered silently out of long habit. Without turning around he raised one hand in a casual greeting. "Yo! Long time know see Old Ghoul!"

                Despite herself Cologne had to laugh as everyone turned their heads to look at her. No matter how much changed, it seemed certain things would always remain the same. "Eight years to be more exact. Actually, I'll have to check, but I think it's almost to the day."

                "Almost," Ranma agreed, still not turning around. "So what brings you here this fine day?"

                A thousand things ran through Cologne's mind as she tried to decide on an answer to that. She was aware of Ukyo, Akane and Konatsu's casual interest, which caused the question of where Konatsu had gotten Nyannichaun water from to flit through her mind, Mousse's more intent scrutiny and the way Shampoo was not quite looking directly at her. Then she thought about her village back in China, the house she had lived in for nearly a century before coming to Japan, the reactions of her fellow elders on the council and many, many other things. Finally after a pause that seemed like an eternity, but in reality was probably little more than a few seconds, she said, "Actually, I came to ask if you would care to talk. We have much that needs to be discussed and thought that you might want to get it out of the way before dealing with… other matters."

                "Sounds like a good idea," Ranma admitted after a few moments thought. "Is there anything that you need to do right now?"

                "Nothing that can't keep," she said. "Though if it is inconvenient for you, I'm sure another time can be arranged."

                Ranma paused again, obviously thinking and inwardly Cologne cheered. She knew that Ranma had a brain but she had despaired of him ever learning to use it, at least before opening his mouth and just blurting things out. It was a problem many martial artists she knew had, to one degree or another. In combat they were trained to act and react as fast as possible, not sit around and think things through and that often carried over into other aspects of their life, which in some instances could be a good thing, but it could also be a bad thing, as in Ranma's case. He was still thinking when he caught a both Akane and Mousse nodding almost imperceptibly, joined a little later by Ukyo. This encouragement seemed to make up his mind and he replied. "Now is a good as time as any I suppose."

                He rose with his feet with what Cologne knew to be deliberate casualness and turned to face her. He was very little changed from the young man that Cologne had known eight years ago, physically at least. He was a little taller, and had acquired a slight tan, though not to the same degree as Akane and his blue eyes were as bright and piercing as ever. His shirt was a little fancier than those he had favoured back when he left, with a thin border of intricate embroidery on the cuff and down the front, but it was the same basic style. "Shall we go?" he asked.

                "After you," Cologne said, letting Ranma lead the way out. Once they were on the footpath, Ranma looked longingly at the fences, but refrained from jumping up on them. Both were silent as they walked, Ranma taking a random, meandering route through the streets. Finally Ranma broke the silence. "Do you still mean for me to marry Shampoo?" he asked, his tone quiet and serious.

                Cologne had been expecting that question in one form or another. "Were the choice mine to make, I would tell you that the choice is yours to make, though if you do choose to wed my great-granddaughter, I would certainly have no objection."

                "You said, if the choice were your's," Ranma replied. "That implies a but lurking somewhere at the end of the statement."

                "Very true. My position as Elder allows some leeway in offering incentives to encourage you, 'sweetening the pot' so to speak, but my position also means that I must uphold the laws of the tribe and those same laws demand that you marry Shampoo."

                "I would have thought that an Elder would have more choice in the matter, Ranma said, his voice tinted with surprise.

                "Most would," Cologne confirmed, "but unfortunately, the exact opposite pertains. Our people have never been large in number, but we have survived throughout millennia, with very little influence by the tides of change, but that is coming to a close. Until the twentieth century our skills as warriors and the secret techniques of our tribe meant that even if we could not beat back an invading army, any victory they achieved would by Pyrrhic at best and the presence of the Musk would doom any army that badly depleted. Little as we like them, the mutual proximity of we and the Musk has played a large part in the survival of both groups. But now there are modern weapons that would allow the government in Beijing to wipe us out as an effective fighting force with the push of a button. Between that and the lure of the comforts that modern technology offers, comfort that is sadly lacking in Qinghai Province, the tribe threatens to simply… dissolve and it is only be keeping to our laws that can be stopped and as an elder it is my duty to set an example by upholding the law. If I were to so openly disregard it, that would send the Joketsu on a downhill slide that would see us scattered to the winds and lucky to be even a footnote in history and I will not knowingly be party to doing that. So I am more constrained by our laws than even the lowliest male back in the village."

                "A point I hadn't considered," Ranma admitted. "But do you not also make the law? Old laws can change and new laws made and I doubt that the Jokestu survived as long as you say they have without changing with the times when necessary."

                "True," Cologne admitted. "The records are almost indecipherable and the scribes are in a running battle to render them in more modern script before they are complete lost to the ravages of time, but if you are willing to put in the care and effort, you can read records detailing laws being changed, and even overturned entirely, throughout our history. However, I am but one Elder, and it takes the majority of the council to agree to change or repeal a law. If I encounter a situation that is not covered by the law, I do have the authority to set an interim law on my own, but that is subject to ratification and modification by the council. I have also argued that the law should be changed, but my fellow elders will not even consider it. It is true of many people that the faster the world around them changes, the more they hold on to the old and familiar, and the older one becomes, the truer that is."

                "Then I must ask this question," Ranma said solemnly, his voice gaining a slight edge to it. "By what authority do your laws apply to me? I am not Joketsu, I'm not even Chinese! So what gives you the right to tell me I must obey your laws?!" Though on a tight leash, the anger in Ranma's voice was quite clear at this point, but it was equally clear that he wasn't directing it at Cologne. Rather his anger was with the situation that they were both in and Cologne made sure to keep that in mine when she answered him.

                "The right given by hubris, arrogance and fear," she replied, deadly serious, making Ranma deflate slightly when he realised that, though she might not be on his side, she at least sympathised with his position. "For centuries we thought of ourselves as superior to all other humans in the land, equalled only by the Musk, who by their breeding practices aren't purely human anymore and the Houzanjin, who are more clearly not human. Their inability to conquer us fuelled a belief that we were somehow better than they and could impose our laws on them by the philosophy of might makes right. Now that the tables are turned and they can wipe us off the face of the Earth, it has only fuelled that belief, that somehow these powerful weapons make them less than us. And so we insist even more strongly that outsiders follow out laws than we used to."

                Ranma whistled. "You've given this a lot of thought," he said admiringly. "You never mentioned any of this eight years ago."

                "Would you have listened?"

                "To be truthful almost certainly not. I didn't have the patience for this sort of thing," Ranma said with a shrug.

                "Then I will also be truthful and admit that though the idea had occurred to me, I had not given it such careful thought then," Cologne said. "The sheer culture shock of coming from our tiny village in the mountains to one of the largest metropolises in the world is what made it occur to me, but one does not question how they have lived their entire life easily or quickly. Though I do take it from all these question that you don't plan to marry my great-granddaughter?"

                Ranma shook his head. "No offence intended to Shampoo, but we just never clicked, not like that. Of course, things could be different. We haven't talked much, but she's changed a lot since last I saw her."

                "As have you Ranma," Cologne said, causing Ranma to blush.

                "All I did was learn to keep my mouth shut and listen occasionally. But still, I cannot accept the terms you offer, no matter how much you 'sweeten the pot.' Even if I'm accepted as a male warrior, can you honestly tell me that I won't always be second to the women, no matter how skilled I am?"

                "Truthfully, no."

                "And that I cannot accept. I once made the mistake of thinking women always second to men, then fate goes around and makes me one half of the time. I've learned that lesson, but I cannot accept that sort of situation."

                "I fear that leaves us with few options then," Cologne said. "I can think of only one other thing that would allow for all concerned to escape with their honour intact, though I fear it would do little good in this situation."

                "You never know," Ranma said with a shrug. "Even if we can't think of something, we could always Doc Tofu or Kasumi for help. What is it?"

                "The Trial of Refusal. When a member of the tribe disagrees with a decision of the council, it is their right to challenge one of the elders to one on combat and should they prove victorious, the decision is over turned. It also has the added benefit of having already being extended to outsiders who have fallen within what the Council sees as our sphere of influence, such as yourself. It has only ever been used once, but the precedent does exist." She turned to face Ranma and was dismayed to see that his eyes had suddenly come to life, burning with eagerness.

                "It sounds like an option," he said with a grin.

                Cologne frowned at him reprovingly. "You have not seen all that I am capable of Ranma. You and I know both know you've seen only a fraction of what I know. If you lose, you will have no choice to return to China and become Shampoo's husband and there is nothing I will be able to do to help you."

                Ranma's eyes were now positively glowing. "No disrespect Elder, I have beaten you once before, even if it was under the influence of the Neko-ken and I have not been idle the past eight years. You yourself taught me the Amiguriken and Hiryu Shoten Ha and you saw me develop the Mouko Takabisha, all in the space of less than a year. You may have the advantage of experience, but I would have the advantages of height, weight and reach and the adaptability of the Anything Goes School. I doubt the outcome would be as forgone as you believe."

                Cologne narrowed her eyes and glared at Ranma, who met her stare levelly. In anyone else, she would have dismissed those statements as youthful arrogance, but despite what many others thought, Ranma had never been truly arrogant. Justifiably proud of his accomplishments and abilities, but the problem was that those were great indeed for someone as young as him and it was the same now. It was not pride or ego that made Ranma speak those words, but a sincere belief in their truth and that made Cologne pause. All too often she had seen Ranma not merely surpass, but transcend his limitations and the memory came unbidden of how shaken Herb, Dragon Prince of the Musk had been at his defeat by Ranma and the awesome shock that she had felt herself when she discovered that Ranma had not merely bested Saffron, but actually killed the Phoenix King. With eight years more experience behind him, he might just very well have a point.

                That wasn't the only consideration thought. As much as she tried to ignore that small part of herself, Cologne was a martial artist at heart herself and that part of her hungered at the thought of a challenge. Teaching had been a rewarding experience, but it had been too long since Cologne had done that seriously for many years either and she found herself longing for the thrill of battle. "Are you really willing to accept the risk?" she asked.

                "Ready, willing and able," Ranma replied, a slight grin on his face. "If you can see no other way, then this has to be it."

                "Then, Saotome Ranma, Heir to the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, I, Cologne, Warrior and Matriarch of the Jokusetzoku, accept your challenge to the Trial of Refusal."

                The assembled martial artists watched Ranma and Cologne leave in solemn silence. No one had to say anything to know that the departing pair had just taken an important first step in resolving all the issues that had brought them back to Nerima. Finally when they heard the front door close, Ryoga spoke up and broke the silence. "Shouldn't you be going with them Shampoo?" he asked.

                Shampoo smiled sadly. "I don't think so. Ranma must make his choice for himself and what is still between us is a matter of tribal law and that is rightly the province of an Elder. He and Great Grandmother must work this out between themselves, without my interference. I do hope that Great Grandmother can figure out a way to free him from tribal law."

                Everyone simply turned and looked at Shampoo with disbelieving stares. "Does this mean that you intend to give up on Ranma-san, Shampoo-san," Konatsu asked in a small voice, which earned the kunoichi a quelling glare.

                "Do I look that silly?" she asked with a hint of heat to her voice. "There is no way I am letting a catch like him get away without even making an attempt!"

                "But you just said you don't want Ranma to be your husband by tribal law anymore," Akane objected, a little confused.

                "I don't," Shampoo said. "If I get Ranma, I want it to be of his own free will. I want him to choose me because he loves me, not because he's forced to."

                "Now there's a sentiment I can agree with," Ukyo said enthusiastically. "Among other things I've been doing, I've had a long talk with my father and he's agreed to dissolve my engagement to Ranma, on the condition that Genma provide some form of restitution for the stolen yattai. Anyone got any idea what a panda skin rug goes for these days?"

                That earned a round of laughter and an offer of aid in collecting said item from Mousse. When the laughter died down, an uncomfortable silence once again descended over the room. Finally Akane decided to break it and cleared her throat. "Um, Ryoga, could you come with me into the dojo? There's something I'd like to discuss with you. In private."

                "Okay," Ryoga said, a little uncertainly, as there was a slightly fixed quality to Akane's voice that suggested he wasn't going to enjoy the conversation. He also has a sinking feeling in his gut what the conversation was going to be about. It was something he had been dreading but it was also something that had to be done, so he got to his feet and followed Akane to the dojo. She opened the door and waved him in.

                He walked in and surveyed the dojo, noting that it had changed little, merely that the repairs weren't as obviously new as they had been last time he was there. He heard the door slide shut behind him and he turned to face Akane and his danger sense gave him less than a split second's warning before the ki charged backhand caught him across the face, knocking him backwards and actually lifting his feet off the floor with the force of the blow. "You perverted bastard!" Akane yelled at him, her battle aura a fiery red as a forward kick caught him in the ribs, knocking him back down and sliding along the floor. "You little swine! I should have had you neutered like Nabiki suggested!" Much as Ryoga admitted he was wrong for what he had done as P-chan, there was a limit to how much physical abuse he was willing to take and he blocked the uppercut that would have put him through the roof, his arms tingling with the discharged ki from the strike. Still having her physical attack halted didn't stop Akane's verbal tirade. "And to play on Ranma's honour by making him keep your dirty little secret!" Even blocking didn't stop Ryoga from skidding back nearly a metre from the kick that accompanied the statement.

                Akane continued in that vein for sometime, and to Ryoga it seemed to dredge up every single of the moments that shamed him most. He made no attempt to defend himself, verbally at least as though her language may have been slightly intemperate; everything Akane said was the truth. Physically was another matter entirely and by the time Akane calmed down Ryoga's forearms were aching from so many repeated blocks and his right cheek was throbbing in time to his heartbeat from the first blow, though it didn't feel like anything was broken. Finally Akane expended her fury with a driving elbow that slipped through his defences and sent him flying back once again and a shout of, "If you ever think of doing something like that again, I'm going to tear of your balls, carve them into rosettes and serve them to you on a silver platter!" That said she went and flopped down in a corner tried to catch her breath.

                "I am sorry," Ryoga said softy, as he pulled himself back up off the floor and into a position. "I did many things that I am ashamed of, but none more than that, save perhaps forcing Ranma to keep my secret."

                "I should hope so," Akane shot back, but most of the heat was gone out of her voice.

                "I just hope you can forgive me for what I did? It was inexcusable and I don't know how to make it up to you. All I can do is offer you my most sincere forgiveness."

                "I forgave you along time ago Ryoga," Akane said after a few moments of silence. "A wise man told me that to hold onto a grudge for so long can only bring unhappiness to myself and sorrow to everyone around me." She looked up. "Though I think that you came to that conclusion yourself."

                Ryoga shrugged. "If I hadn't I probably would have wind up creating a Perfect Shi Shi Hokodan that would have left me little more than a greasy smear on some rock. But if you weren't holding a grudge, what was that just about?"

                "I needed to get the last of it out of my system and I wanted to make my feelings on the matter perfectly clear. If I had been really mad, you would have been going through the walls, whether you blocked or not."

                "Well, I wouldn't be able to do it again, even if I wanted. My curse is cured."

                Akane's voice was very soft and serious when she replied. "You'll forgive me if I asked for proof. I'm did forgive you Ryoga, but I cannot forget what you did either." She raised her head and looked directly into Ryoga's eyes. "I trusted you Ryoga, and you betrayed that trust. My mind believes that you have changed and truly do regret what you did, but my heart does not. It will be a long time before I can trust you again Ryoga, if ever."

                With that she got up and left the dojo and it was only because she always kept her senses enhanced with her ki that she heard the soft, "I understand," as she slid the door shut after herself.

                Akane thought about rejoining the others briefly, but her nerves were still a little too jangled for that and she decided to tryout Ranma's favourite place for solitude while he was at the Tendo Dojo. She slipped out the front door, and turned a standing jump into a three hundred and sixty degree back flip that landed her lightly on the roof. It gave her an excellent vantage point to watch the coming and goings in the surrounding streets and she looked on with interest as people went about their business. She felt her heart start to beat a little faster when she recognised Ranma returning, without Cologne.

                Her grin upon seeing him took on an appearance that wasn't entirely innocent. She would freely admit that whatever else she thought about Ranma, his body was enough to send thrills of excitement down her spine and she had also borrowed some of the negatives from Nabiki's collection so she could have a few choice photos to take with her. The years had been kind to Ranma as well. Though his physical appearance was less drastically changed than many of the others, there were subtle signs of how time and training had refined his already impressive physique. Akane was also honest enough, though only to herself, that she was curious as to what changes time had wrought to his female form and that not all of those photos had been of Ranma's male form.

                Turning away before her thoughts became to laviscious, Akane looked the down the other direction and her eyes widened in surprise. That hair colour was too rare in Japan to leave many other options, and Akane didn't know any other women in Nerima who always wore a kimono and carried a cloth wrapped katana everywhere with them. Apparently she wasn't the only one to recognise Saotome Nodoka and she snuck a quick glance at Ranma who was frozen dead in his tracks with surprise as the Saotome Matriarch walked calmly up to the door of the Tendo Dojo. Just as she was about to push open the gate, Ranma shook off his paralysis and sprinted forward, with a cry of, "Kaa-san!"

                Nodoka turned around and gasped in surprise, hands flying to her mouth as her katana clattered to the ground and Akane decided it was time to head back down off the roof. Things were about to get interesting again.

Authors Notes:

That was an evil place to leave it, wasn't it? ^_^

I'd like to thank everyone for the comments on the first chapter. I'm glad you liked it and I hope you like this one just as much. I'd also like to thank Takahashi-sensei for creating such a wonderful series and then giving us fanfic writers so much room to play around with. Domo Arigatou!

Also a few things I'd like to add that I probably should have said after the first chapter. On a note of spelling, as it says in my profile, I'm Australian and our spelling conventions are actually a mix of British English and American English, so if you note a British spelling, such as c-o-l-o-u-r and an American spelling such as r-e-c-o-g-n-i-z-e in the same work, neither is a typo, they're both accepted here. As for the frequency of updates, I'll try to make it as often as possible, but that is both contingent on outside conditions and my muse.

Next time: Ranma gets reaccquainted with his parents as everyone else tries to settle back into Nerima. And the old saw, 'The more things change, the more they stay the same,' is proved correct as the Kuno Siblings make their reapperance, as deluded and crazy ever. Hope to see you there!