Same Time Next Year
By M. Zephyr

Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is a trademark of Rumiko Takahashi and VIZ Communications, and its characters have been borrowed without permission. This story was written for non-commercial purposes only.

Ranma x Akane. What if the old woman was not outdoors on the day that Ranma learned the neko-ken? Akane and Ranma first meet at age ten just after Ranma undergoes the neko-ken training and Akane's mother has died.

Chapter 5. Ranma Returns

February passed, and then March, with no word from Ranma. Kasumi graduated from high school, and Akane completed ninth grade, finishing her tenure in middle school. The youngest Tendo was looking forward to starting high school, but the anticipation was muted by her worries about her friend. This was the year he was to come to stay and she was finding the delay unbearable.

Then April arrived and high school began. Akane found herself a little bothered by all of the attention she was receiving from the boys. One rather tall and handsome boy from Nabiki's class, Tatewaki Kuno by name, approached her one day to ask for a date. Akane attempted to turn him down gently, but he became persistent, refusing to believe that she could not truly wish to date his magnificent self. He first assumed that she had only turned him down out of shyness, but when she persisted in refusing him, his vanity hit upon another explanation.

Recognizing her skill in the martial arts, Kuno arrived at the conclusion that she could not accept the attentions of any boy who had not first demonstrated his own martial proficiency to her. Thus he made an announcement before the school that any boy who wished to date Akane Tendo must prove his own skill by first defeating her in combat. The male students of Furinkan High School, clearly lacking something in the way of intellect, interpreted this to mean that anyone who was able to defeat her would win a date with her. Soon Akane was fighting her way through a horde of boys every day before school.

The month of May began with still no word from Ranma. The situation at school was wearing Akane down, and her temper was becoming frayed. The realization came to her that it was a very good thing that she already knew Ranma. Without his example, she would have long since reached the conclusion that all boys were hopeless perverts. As the days passed, she found herself constantly willing the telephone to ring, desperate to hear his voice again on the other end.

Her sixteenth birthday came and went, with no sign of the pigtailed boy. Akane spent long hours at her martial arts practice, trying to shut out her worries and fears. One technique on which she worked in particular was leaping, following the instructions which Ranma had given her the previous winter. She had long since mastered jumping onto the wall around the yard, and had achieved the laundry room roof shortly before the school term began. Now Akane finally succeeded in jumping from the ground onto the roof above her bedroom. She longed to demonstrate her new skill to Ranma, if only he would make his appearance.

The month of May was well advanced when one day, while Akane was working out in the dojo, she heard her father shouting. "Kasumi! Nabiki! Akane! Wonderful news! Please come quickly!" When the girls assembled in the family room, they found their father kneeling at the table, where he wept while clutching a postcard with a picture of a panda bear. The three girls exchanged curious glances, then looked at him expectantly.

"What is it, daddy?" Kasumi finally asked.

"Oh, how I've longed for this day," he declared through his tears. "A young man will be arriving shortly, who is to be a fiancé for one of you. When that one of you marries him and carries on the dojo, the Tendo family legacy will be secure."

Akane turned white. ‹No! I'm the one who's supposed to carry on the dojo! This can't be happening! Not when Ranma should be coming back any day! I can't be engaged to someone else! I won't!›

Out loud, the youngest girl demanded, or rather yelled, "What do you mean, a fiancé! Don't we have some say in who we marry!"

"Akane's right, daddy," agreed her sister Kasumi, though in a slightly calmer voice. "Who is this boy?"

Nabiki just sat there placidly, sipping at her lemonade through the straw, and watching the raindrops falling outside. She was waiting for more information before entering the debate.

Their father smiled at them. "He is the son of a very good friend of mine, Genma Saotome. The boy's name is Ranma."

Akane opened her mouth, then closed it. She stared at her father, unable to credit what she had just heard. He had spoken Japanese, she had understood each individual word, but collectively the words made no sense. She opened her mouth again, then closed it again, still without having made a sound. She turned to look at Kasumi, who was staring at Akane with a faintly quizzical expression, which her experienced sisters interpreted as shock. Nabiki quickly realized that there was something going on between her sisters, something from which she was excluded. She looked back and forth at the two of them, wondering what in hell was happening. Akane managed to choke out a question, "You ... you said his name is Ranma Saotome?"

Soun Tendo, oblivious to the byplay, answered happily. "Yes, that's right. He and his father have been on a training trip, and recently returned from China."

Akane got to her feet shakily. "I ... I ... fiancé? That's ... I think that I'll go lie down for a bit. This is a bit of a shock, finding out ..." She paused. "Finding out that one of us is going to be engaged."

"I'll come with you," Kasumi said in a trembling voice, and stood as well. Nabiki stared at them both, suspiciously. They obviously knew something more about this than what their father had told them so far, and she was determined to find out what it was.

At that moment a commotion arose outside, and a soprano voice drifted in through the open door. "Dammit pop, lemme down! They can't see me like this! I've gotta have a chance to explain first."

Nabiki said, "Perhaps that's Ranma, now," then watched as Akane unconsciously shook her head. ‹How does she know it's not Ranma just from hearing his voice? Has she met this Ranma before?›

Everyone jumped, startled, as a panda bear strode into the room as if it belonged there. It was carrying a red-haired girl over its shoulder, which it lifted off and placed on her feet in front of them. The girl's blue eyes swept over them all a little wildly. Akane, her mind still firmly focused on Ranma despite the bizarre pair in front of her, couldn't help but think, ‹Her pigtail looks just like Ranma's except for the color. ... Ranma ... engaged? To me? ... Even her eyes are the same color as his. ... I wonder where he is?›

"Er, hello miss, my name is Soun Tendo," the bewildered father introduced himself. "May I help you in some way?"

The redhead's eyes locked on Akane, and she swallowed visibly, looking terrified. In a quiet voice, she replied, "Uh, yeah. Could I have some hot water, please?" The stares which were directed upon her only intensified with this unusual request, but Kasumi, in her usual unflappable way, walked past the panda bear and into the kitchen, returning after a minute with a glass of hot water. She presented it to the strange girl, with one eyebrow very slightly raised.

The redhead took the glass and held it in a shaking hand. "A ... a couple of weeks ago, my ... idiot ... father took me to a remote valley in China, where ... well, I'll explain in more detail later. The short version is, we both ended up cursed." She ignored the skeptical looks which started to appear. "Cold water, like the rain, makes me look like this." She looked down at her body, then back up. "Hot water changes me back." She was looking straight at Akane now. "I'm really, really sorry about this." She then upended the glass of water over her head.

The members of the Tendo family each took a step backward as the girl gained several centimeters in height, her chest flattened, and her hair turned black. It took Soun and Nabiki several seconds to realize that the girl was now a boy. For Akane, however, recognition was instantaneous. "Ranma?" she wailed, then her eyes rolled up and she fell bonelessly. The pigtailed boy leapt forward, and just barely managed to catch her before she hit the floor. He stood there holding Akane in his arms, looking around at the various expressions of bewilderment on every face except for Kasumi's.

"Erm," he struggled to find something to say. "Guess the curse was a bit of a shock. Couldn't let her hit her head on the floor you know. If one of you could show me where her room is, I'll put her down on her bed until she comes to." He was looking hopefully at Kasumi as he made this last suggestion.

Kasumi sighed but nodded, and led the way up the stairs, Nabiki trailing suspiciously behind them. Downstairs the panda strolled into the kitchen and poured itself another glass of hot water, which it then used to transform into the bald and slightly stout, but still muscular, Genma Saotome. He then led the shell shocked Soun Tendo back into his own bedroom for a private discussion.

Ranma carefully laid Akane down on her bed and spent a few minutes making sure that she was arranged as comfortably as he could manage. When he turned around, he found himself looking into the coldest glare he had ever seen, directed at him by the sister to whom he had not yet been introduced. He took an involuntary step backward.

"I want to know what is going on here, and I want to know now," Nabiki hissed at him. "How do the three of you know one another, and what does it have to do with you marrying one of us, and what in hell was that business with the water?"

Ranma started to stammer, but Kasumi came to his rescue. "Please calm down Nabiki. I would like some answers to a few questions as well, but we can surely be civil about it. Akane and Ranma first met a few years ago, and she introduced him to me last year, but none of us knew anything about him marrying anyone." However, there was a hint of a question in her voice as she came to this last point and she cocked an inquiring eyebrow at Ranma. When he shook his head vigorously, she nodded and went on. "Also, he didn't have his little problem with water a year ago. In fact, I believe I heard him tell us downstairs that he received his 'curse' two weeks ago, and I admit that I'm very curious to hear the story behind that. But Akane definitely needs to hear it as well. I think we should delay the inquisition while I go get a damp towel, and try to revive our little sister. Ranma, you stay here. Nabiki, you stay with him."

Nabiki nodded briefly, not taking her eyes off of Ranma. She had no intention of letting him out of her sight before getting the information she wanted. Her older sister's synopsis had only served to whet her interest.

Kasumi immediately did as she had suggested, and was soon back in the room, applying a damp towel to Akane's forehead. Ranma hovered nervously, distressed to see Akane so vulnerable and unsure of what he should do. Nabiki continued to glare, with only marginally diminished intensity, at the young man standing over the bed. After a few more moments, Akane's eyelids fluttered open. She saw her sisters first, but upon catching sight of the boy her eyes lit and she smiled, exclaiming, "Ranma! You're here!" Then memory started to return, and her expression became puzzled. "Um, the business downstairs, that ... that wasn't a dream was it? I mean, you ... you ..."

"Really were a red-haired girl?" Ranma finished for her. He hung his head, ashamed. "Yeah, I'm afraid I was. Am. Sometimes."

"How?" she cried out, then sat up and grabbed hold of one of his hands with both of hers. "What did your father do this time?"

Nabiki frowned, taking in the interaction between the two. She was wholly unaccustomed to the idea of her sister acting like this around any boy. It was obvious that the two were already close, and Kasumi wasn't looking surprised at all. And Nabiki Tendo absolutely hated being out of the loop. She turned her attention back to the strange boy, who had just sat down on the bed beside her sister, with his hand still held in hers.

Ranma sighed heavily, then began speaking quietly, telling his story. "Like I said downstairs, it happened a couple of weeks ago. We traveled way up into the Bayankala Mountains in China, along some paths that would've given a mountain goat pause. Pop refused to say where we were heading, but he clearly had some destination in mind. Finally we came out in this valley and were met by some Chinese guy who said he was the local guide. He told us the valley is named Jusenkyo, which means something like "Pools of Sorrow," and pop nodded like this meant we'd come to the right place. The name seemed to fit, 'cause the floor of the valley is covered by over a hundred small pools of water, and there was this air of ... sadness ... over the whole place."

Ranma stared off into the distance, as if he was once again seeing the valley he described to them. "I wish now I'd never set eyes on the place. Well, pop said that according to his guidebook it was a legendary training ground, and that he brought me there to spar. So he led me out among the pools, and then attacked me. The guide was shouting something at us, but my attention was on pop. I managed to get a good kick in that sent him flying, and he landed in one of the pools of water. When he went under, all of the noise he'd been making suddenly stopped, and I was able to hear the guide saying, 'Oh no! Mister customer fall into spring of drowned panda.' The next thing I knew, instead of the old man, this great big panda bear jumped out of the water."

The girls around him looked like they wanted to be skeptical, but they'd already seen the panda bear downstairs, and seen Ranma change when splashed with water. He continued his story. "Well, as you might expect, I was just a bit startled at that point. I left myself wide open, and pop attacked, despite what had happened to him. He knocked me into one of the pools, and as I surfaced, I heard the guide saying something about 'spring of drowned girl.' I looked down, and pulled the top of my gi open and, well, I'm sure you can guess what I saw. Pop obviously saw something in my eyes, 'cause that panda took off running. Lucky for him, too, 'cause if I'd caught him, there would have been murder done."

Akane's eyes were flaming. "There's going to be murder done, just as soon as I get my hands on him. I'm in the mood to get a panda skin rug for the family room."

Ranma cleared his throat nervously, not looking at her. "After that, we made our way back across China, to come back to Japan, though not without a few other colorful incidents along the way. But I told pop that the curse was the final straw. I was going to leave him for good as soon as we got back to Japan." Ranma turned sad, almost fearful, eyes on Akane. "After all, I had a promise to keep. Though I can understand why you might want to tell a freak like me to get lost."

Akane looked ready to burst into tears at his last sentence. "Never! And don't you ever let me hear you call yourself that again! It's your father's fault, not yours. I just wish you'd left him years ago when I first begged you to."

Dawning hope was replacing despair in the boy's eyes, and Kasumi's own eyes were glistening. Nabiki's, however, were still hard, and her voice cut through the sentiment. "That's all very interesting, and I'd like to hear a little more about how you and Akane met at some point, but just at the moment I would like to point out that you haven't left your father. He is here with you, and he and our father are talking about an engagement."

"Uh, yeah, well." Ranma was having trouble looking at any of the sisters. "When I got back to Japan, I told him that I was leaving him and heading to Nerima. Pop said he had business of his own in Nerima, and I didn't try to stop him when he tagged along. Then when we got into town, he dropped this little bombshell that I'm supposed to get engaged to one of the daughters of his old friend Soun Tendo. Well, I knew perfectly well that was the name of Akane's father, so I was sorta stunned, temporarily, at this news. I guess pop had decided not to take any chances, 'cause he took advantage of my distraction to whack me over the head with something, and knocked me out. When I woke up, I found myself over his shoulder, and we were just coming through your gate."

A smirk slowly spread itself across Nabiki's face. "At least we know who's the logical choice for the engagement." She was looking pointedly at her younger sister.

Akane blushed, Ranma looked panicked, and they both started stammering denials. They then turned equally hurt looks on one another, and Akane pulled her hands back from Ranma's.

Ranma pulled himself together, and considered his next words carefully, grateful for the lessons his friend had given him a couple of years ago on the meaning of 'tact.' He looked Akane in the eyes, and spoke with conviction. "Look, Akane. You know how much I care about you. You've been my longest, truest friend, and I hope I convinced you last year that you're a bit more than that. None of that's changed. It's just ... we're only sixteen. I'm not ready for engagements, or marriages, or anything like that. And I'd be surprised if you were, either."

Akane took a deep breath, trying to settle her own emotions from their shared outburst. "I know, Ranma. I feel the same way. But can we do anything to get out of it?" She turned pleading eyes toward her oldest sister.

Kasumi thought about it carefully, but then shook her head. Her eyes were sympathetic as she said, "I'm sorry, Akane, but I don't think so. Despite how emotional father has become over the years, he is still capable of being incredibly stubborn over some issues. I am sure that he is going to see this as a matter of family honor, and will insist on one of us being engaged to Ranma. The best choice that I can see is to wring what advantage you can out of it." Despite the gravity of the situation, her eyes twinkled as she added, "Assuming, that is, that you're the one who is going to be engaged to Ranma, and not Nabiki or myself."

Nabiki's own eyes turned mischievous, as she looked Ranma up and down like a piece of meat. "Come to think of it, there might be compensations. Perhaps I should consider it."

Akane growled. "If one of us has to be engaged to Ranma, it's going to be me. What were you saying about advantages, Kasumi?"

The oldest of the sisters smiled. "My first suggestion is to tell father that you are willing to accept the engagement, but only if he accepts a few conditions in turn. One is that there is to be no talk of marriage until after you graduate from high school. The second is that Ranma is to be permitted to stay here, and attend school. Although I meant what I said last year about appropriate behavior. A third condition is that Genma Saotome will not be permitted to stay here." Kasumi stopped smiling, and went on frigidly. "If father attempts to object on that point, hopefully we can convince him by recounting some of the things which Saotome-san has done to Ranma over the years."

Nabiki's eyes narrowed as she wondered what sort of things Ranma's father could have done which would be worse than the curses he led them into in China. Then she noticed how Kasumi's eyes had hardened. At that she shuddered, thinking that perhaps she didn't want to hear the details on something which could make her gentle older sister so coldly furious.

Kasumi continued making her point. "In addition to father, this might be useful to you in handling the situation at school. Perhaps you should take a moment to explain to Ranma what has been going on." She paused while Akane explained to Ranma about Kuno and the hentai horde, at which the boy's eyes narrowed in anger.

Nabiki went very still. She didn't think either of her sisters knew she'd been doing a thriving business selling pictures of Akane to the boys around school. It occurred to her that now might not be a very good time for that particular bit of free trade to be discovered.

Kasumi then went on. "If Ranma were to turn up here as merely a boy in whom you are willing to show interest, I'm not sure that it would make much of an impression on the boys at school. However, if he shows up as your fiancé, then I think it will be much harder for them to ignore it. After all, they could hardly fool themselves into thinking that they can win a date with you, if you were engaged to be married. As Ranma is sufficiently skilled to handle any threat they might make, it could put an end to the problem."

Akane thought this over. "It might at that," she admitted, almost unwillingly. "Or at least, most of the problem. I'm not sure it would penetrate Kuno's head." She turned a questioning gaze on Nabiki.

The middle sister had also been thinking it over, and was ready to answer. Without blushing, despite Kuno being her biggest customer, she agreed with Akane and added her own assessment of his character. "You're probably right. Kuno lives in his own little world, and he'll probably convince himself that you've been forced into the engagement against your wishes, and that surely you must wish for him to rescue you."

Akane looked ill at the thought, but realized that Nabiki was correct. Ranma looked angrier, but was aware that he was too unfamiliar with the fellow in question to offer any useful input.

Nabiki added, "It should also effectively squash some of the uglier rumors which have been circulating. All of those declarations of yours about how you hate all of the boys at school have been leading a few people to speculate on whether you prefer the girls." Akane looked even more ill, but Nabiki shook her head and continued. "Instead, you have this hunk here for a fiancé. If you take my advice, you won't tell anyone until he comes to school, and then you walk in with him the first day arm-in-arm. Hit everybody right between the eyes with it."

An evil smile lit Akane's face. "That should get a beautiful reaction from the hentai horde. Can you get me photographs of their faces when they first see us? Kuno especially? I'll be happy to pay you for them." Nabiki's eyes brightened at this unexpected opportunity for profit.

Nabiki added, "It might also be a good idea to try to avoid letting anyone find out about Ranma's curse, until after everyone has it fixed inside their heads that he's a boy. After all, they're going to find out eventually, but when they do it'll be better if they think you're engaged to a boy with a weird problem, than to have them think you're engaged to some sort of half-boy, half-girl."

Ranma scowled at this description, but Akane just sighed and nodded. She reached over and took hold of Ranma's hand again, and squeezed it gently, smiling at him when he looked over at her.

Kasumi smiled tolerantly at her younger sisters. "In the meantime, if you are both in agreement about these plans, then perhaps it is time for us to go downstairs and speak with father? We don't want to give them time to make any elaborate plans of their own, and it would be best to get Saotome-san on his way as soon as possible."

Akane looked a little nervous. "Um ... could you two give Ranma and me a moment in private first, please?" Kasumi gave Akane a tolerant smile, while Nabiki's expression was more calculating, but they both stepped out into the hall and shut the door behind them.

Akane bit her lower lip, wondering how to say what she wanted to try to say. She knew Ranma well enough to know that this curse must be terribly humiliating for him, not that Akane was too happy about it herself. On top of that, the two of them were being forced into an engagement!

She gave a little sigh, and started. "Ranma? It ... it's really good to see you again, I've been looking forward so much to you coming back. I know this isn't quite the way you imagined it. It certainly isn't the way I did. But ... I'm glad you're back."

"Even with this curse?" he asked hoarsely.

Akane felt a tear in the corner of each eye, but whispered, "Even with the curse, yes. I'll take you any way I can get you."

Ranma looked away quickly, but not before she saw the moisture in his own eyes. She knew how much he disliked showing when he was hurt or sad, so just waited patiently while he got himself back under control. "Thanks, Akane," he finally said, his voice cracking. "I can't tell you how much that means to me."

He took a deep breath, then went on a little more calmly. "What about this business of the two of us being engaged?"

She looked him in the eyes. "Like you said, we're not ready for it, but I don't think we're going to get a choice. We've both had to deal with problems in our lives before. This is just another problem. No ... not a problem. It's a challenge. And we'll face it together. Right?"

"Right." Ranma's smile was a little more genuine now. "If I have to be engaged to someone, then I'm sure glad it's you."

Akane leaned forward and hugged him tightly, then drew back a little to kiss him. Reluctantly she broke the kiss and said, "Kasumi's right. We need to get downstairs before our fathers screw things up even worse. Are you ready?" Ranma nodded, and they stood and opened the bedroom door to find the two older sisters standing out in the hall, pretending not to be eavesdropping.

The three sisters and the young man went back down the stairs and into the family room, where they found the two fathers waiting for them. Even Genma Saotome could not fail to see how unwelcome his presence was to the three daughters of his old friend. All four representatives of the next generation, including his own son, were looking at him as if he were a particularly disgusting biological specimen to be dissected. Soun looked the youngsters over, and spoke, "I'm glad to see you looking better, Akane. So, Ranma-kun, I hope that you have had a chance to meet each of my daughters. Now it is time for you to choose the one whom you will marry."

"You will insist on going through with this, then, father?" Kasumi asked him.

"I'm afraid I must, my daughter," he replied. "It is a matter of family honor. Besides, it is my fondest wish to see the two schools of Anything Goes Martial Arts united."

After a brief glance to each of her sisters, Kasumi then asked, "And was this also our mother's wish for us?"

Her father gave a weak laugh, and refused to look at them, as he mumbled something which couldn't be heard and scratched the back of his head in a nervous gesture. Looking over toward Ranma, he essentially repeated himself, "Our honor requires this of us. One of you must marry him."

Akane stepped forward, then knelt down across the table from her father and looked him directly in the eyes. In a quiet and level voice which he barely recognized as that of his youngest, she declared, "Father, I am conditionally willing to accept Ranma Saotome as my fiancé. Conditionally!" The last word was quickly added at a louder volume as Soun started to show an unseemly amount of joy over her statement. "If you are willing to meet the conditions I have, we can formalize the engagement immediately. If you are not, then I will refuse the engagement, no matter how much it stains our honor."

Nabiki wasn't too sure about this Ranma character yet, and that curse of his was downright weird. On the other hand, the hentai horde had been getting out of control, and the recent rumors about her sister threatened the reputation of the entire family, herself included. For the time being, at least, it seemed reasonable to throw her support behind her sister's decision.

"If I may add my own weight to this, daddy? No way will I even consider marrying this ..." She quickly rejected the word 'freak' as it occurred to her that Akane might brain her if she used it, and substituted the more neutral, "... boy. Further, if you refuse to meet Akane's conditions, you had better be prepared to start handling your investments by yourself. You might also find food not appearing at your place at the table, and your laundry remaining undone. With a little thought, other similar inconveniences may suggest themselves to you. And to us."

The Tendo father turned his head to look at his eldest, and most dutiful, daughter. There was no smile upon Kasumi's lips, and she gave a very small shake of her head to convey a negative response to his unasked question. He felt shock to realize that she also would refuse to accept the engagement, despite the requirement of honor.

Soun Tendo swallowed as he looked upon the stony faces of all three of his daughters, and the unreadable expression of his potential son-in-law. He was prepared to be intransigent about the need to honor the agreement to engage Ranma to one of his daughters. He was ready to do whatever it took to get his way in this matter. However, it appeared that his daughters were also prepared to be stubborn, and it seemed that the easiest way to achieve his goal might be to hear these mysterious conditions. This was especially so since he believed his youngest daughter to be the best choice for the match, given that the avowed purpose was to unite the two schools and she was by far the most devoted martial artist of the three. Furthermore, given Akane's recent attitude concerning the boys at her school, it was a near miracle that she was willing to accept the engagement under any conditions.

Genma Saotome looked over at his old friend, wondering what was going through the other man's head. Their agreement had to be kept, regardless of any foolishness these girls might have in mind. He hoped Soun wasn't going to allow himself to be backed down from the engagement, if any of these 'conditions' turned out to be preposterous.

"Very well, Akane," her father said benevolently, "I am willing to listen to your conditions. If they truly are reasonable, I may even be willing to meet them."

Akane nodded, taking a deep breath to start. "First, Ranma will move in with us; he will be given a room here. He and I will train together, and we will help him to get admitted to Furinkan High School."

Genma burst out with a hearty laugh. He and Soun had already decided to do all of that. Roughly, he said, "Is that all you want? This is easier than I thought it would be." Turning to his old friend, he suggested, "Agree with her and let's get on with it."

"That's not all!" Akane responded angrily, while her father tried to silence his friend with a sharp look.

Soun turned back to his youngest. "Of course, daughter. I feel that is an eminently sensible suggestion. I will be more than happy to agree to that."

Akane stopped scowling at Genma in order to give her father a happy smile, then frowned as she recalled that there was more to be said. "Second, although Ranma and I will be engaged immediately, there will be no attempt to push us into a marriage before we graduate from high school. We are both too young, and that will be more than soon enough to fulfill the terms of the agreement between the families."

Soun looked thoughtful, but once more Genma was quick to speak, registering an immediate and uncompromising protest. "Nonsense! No time like the present. What possible point could there be to waiting almost three years? The sooner you're married, the sooner the schools can be united! Besides, that way you can get started on producing an heir right away." He grinned at his cleverness at making this last point. Girls liked babies, right? Also, if his son were to father a child, that would be even greater proof of his manliness.

The three Tendo daughters looked at the man as if he were insane, while Ranma just hid his face in his hand. Even Soun Tendo looked shocked, as it dawned on him that if his baby were to marry immediately, then she and this Ranma would ... no, he couldn't even think it. Clearing his throat, and refusing to look at Genma, he quickly said, "Er, yes, no rush at all, ha ha. A nice long engagement sounds like an excellent idea. I agree absolutely." Genma looked upon his friend as he would a traitor.

Akane responded demurely, "Thank you, daddy. I will accept your word of honor on that. There is one last condition, and it is one on which all of us absolutely insist. If you cannot agree to it, then there will be no engagement with any of us, no matter how much you demand it or carry on about it."

Soun Tendo looked in his daughter's eyes, and saw something which made him shiver. He had seen that look before, in the eyes of his late wife, and it had always meant that she was making a statement on which she would not be budged. He found himself unable to meet that gaze, and instead looked down and requested, "Tell me what it is you wish daughter."

Akane looked over at Ranma's father, and the disgust in her eyes was unmistakable. "Saotome-san will not be made welcome at our house. He will not be permitted to stay here even one night. As soon as we have formalized the engagement, he will take his pack and leave."

Her father reared back in shock at this demand, and Genma emitted a strangled "What?" The latter felt the first twinge of panic, worrying over his planned retirement, but held onto the thought that his old friend would surely not turn him out so casually. He turned to Soun and suggested, "This is ridiculous, Tendo. It is time for this farce to end and for you to remind these girls whose house this is."

Soun shook his head, feeling as if he were unable to clear it. He looked back and forth from his old friend, whose company he had expected to enjoy in the coming days, to his future son-in-law, who was staring with unconcealed disdain at his own father. His eyes wandered over Nabiki, who was watching the proceedings with a detached air of amusement, to Kasumi, who was looking at his old friend as if she had found something unpleasant under a rock in the garden and was too polite to comment upon it. Finally, he looked across the table at Akane, who still had that expression he remembered so clearly belonging to his wife, the one which spoke clearly to his memories of an absolute refusal to yield. Her eyes upon Genma showed nothing but loathing. In a plaintive tone, he requested enlightenment with a single word. "Why?"

Akane proceeded to enlighten him. She began with the neko-ken training and went on from there. As she continued without pause, detailing one heinous, despicable or foolish act after another, her father's head drooped lower and lower. Genma stared at her, wondering how in hell the boy had managed to tell her about so much in so little time. Nabiki, face pale, turned around shortly into the tale in order to preserve her reputation; she didn't want anyone to see how Akane's descriptions were affecting her.

When Akane wound down, she looked at her father expectantly. Unable to meet anyone's eyes, he asked quietly, "Saotome?"

Genma shook himself, throwing off the near paralysis which had afflicted him. "Tendo! You know very well that the life of a martial artist is fraught with peril! I had to be hard on the boy, or he would never have become the young man he is! Everything that I did was in his own best interest!"

Soun winced at this declaration. Once upon a time, while training under their old master, he might even have believed such a statement. That was before he had met his wife Kimiko, and she had opened his eyes to a wider world. Thinking of their master, Soun realized how similar Genma's 'training' methods had been to that evil old man's. He remembered standing on a mountainside with Genma, euphoric that they had sealed away the old man forever. The time when they decided to join their families. When had Genma decided to become a lesser shadow of Master Happosai, at least in his approach to training?

Soun realized that Genma was still speaking, ranting really. He struggled to bring the words into focus. "... the boy. He's the finest martial artist his age in the world! And that is due solely to my training! Naturally, a female would not understand this. ..."

Kasumi cleared her throat, and somehow the quiet sound cut across the man's rant, silencing him. Soun looked toward his eldest daughter, trying to overcome the confusion in his mind. "Father, Akane has told you that this condition is an absolute requirement, and I am fully in agreement with her. This ... man will not be welcomed as a guest into the house which holds our mother's memory. If he stays, then I will leave, and I will take our mother's shrine with me."

Soun blanched. Somehow he heard the echo of his wife's voice in Kasumi's speech, and wondered that he had never noticed how much his daughters reminded him of his late wife. He thought of Kimiko's likely reaction to what Akane had told him of how Saotome had raised his son. In a whisper which could barely be heard, he surrendered. "I accept your conditions, daughters. It shall be as you have requested."

Genma stared in shock, seeing his dreams shattered of a retirement of ease at the Tendo home. "But ... but ..." he sputtered, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Thank you, daddy," Akane responded, and everyone could hear the quiet triumph in her voice. "Then I willingly accept my engagement to Ranma. I suggest that we hold the omiai immediately, so that Saotome-san may be on his way."

This was done, and far sooner than he could have believed possible, Genma Saotome found himself stepping out of the gate of the Tendo home, his back bent once more under the weight of his pack. He looked at the house again in confusion, trying to piece together how things had come to this pass. He was sincerely and completely bewildered, with no idea of what to do next. Even before coming to the Tendo's, he had decided against contacting his wife, given the danger should she learn of the boy's curse. He certainly did not dare to return to her without their son. Further, he had made himself persona non grata at most of the dojos throughout Japan. Hesitantly, his feet turned toward the distant mountains, where he could at least camp for a time, while he tried to work out what he should do.

END

Author's note:

The above is the end of the story.

As I warned in the author's note before chapter 1, this is all of the story I intended to tell. The next "chapter" is an appendix summarizing a few events from over the next few years, for those who are interested in such details, but doesn't go into any great depth.