Chapter 39 A New Teacher in Town
A/N: This chapter rejoins the original timeline from the end of chapter 37. This chapter starts the same night that chapter 37 ended.
Later that night, Nabiki and Mousse made their way back to the Tendo home, walking arm in arm, after enjoying a peaceful dinner at one of Nabiki's favorite restaurants. As they neared the gate, Nabiki turned to Mousse and said, "Mo-chan, thanks for taking me out to dinner and dancing tonight. I really enjoyed your company."
"You're welcome, Nabiki. I had a good time as well. You're a very good dancer, by the way," Mousse replied.
Mousse leaned down and kissed Nabiki, holding her tightly to him. She melted into the kiss, kissing him passionately. As the kiss continued, Nabiki became aware of a feeling of warmth, spreading throughout her body. Finally, they separated, both of them breathing hard. "Mousse," Nabiki purred, "that felt wonderful, and I wish we didn't have to stop, but I'm not ready. You've become very special to me, a very good friend, but I don't want to rush this relationship. I hope you understand."
"Nabiki, I'm not sure where I want us to go either. I know I care for you a great deal, but I'm unsure of myself right now. I don't even know what I want, except for you to be happy," he replied gently.
"Mousse, you make me happy," Nabiki said. She looked at him shyly, and then returned to the hug. Finally, she sighed, and said, "I'm afraid that it's late. I need to go in, and get to sleep. School is going to be entirely too early in the morning." She quickly kissed him, and then entered through the gate. Mousse watched her walk away, and then turned and left. Neither of them had been aware of the on-looker, hiding in the shadows across the street.
Shampoo looked downcast as she watched the two kissing in front of the gate. 'Xian Pu, you have no one to blame but yourself. You told Muu-tsu that you didn't want him, and would never love him. So why are you feeling so bad seeing him kissing Nabiki?' she thought to herself. She forced herself to watch the two of them, wondering where the pang in her heart was coming from.
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Ranma had decided to fix breakfast for the first meal in what was now their home and had banished his mother, Akane and Kasumi to the furo. He brought the breakfast meal into the dining area as Nabiki wearily made her way downstairs. He smiled at the half-asleep Nabiki as she dropped to the floor and sat slumped over. Akane, Kasumi and Nodoka came in from the furo, freshly scrubbed and wide-awake, giggling at something that Ranma decided he didn't want to know about based on the speculative look that Kasumi had sent his direction. Tofu, Soun and Shampoo were already waiting patiently for their meal. After placing the dishes on the platform, Ranma kissed his wife and was rewarded by a comment from Nabiki.
"Ooh, gross, stop that. Some of us are trying to eat," Nabiki said in disgust.
"What's the matter, Biki-chan?" Ranma asked innocently.
Nabiki groaned at him and said, "I didn't get a lot of sleep last night and I don't need to see the two of you start that again this morning."
Akane looked puzzled, and asked, "Why didn't you get a lot of sleep?"
"It was bad enough with Kasumi and Tofu, but you two are extremely loud, Sis. I didn't know that you were a screamer," Nabiki said.
Kasumi said, "Nabiki, that isn't nice!"
Ranma blushed and said, "I don't think that it was Acchan." Akane giggled at the expression on Nabiki's face.
Nabiki stared at them for a long moment, and then banged her head several times on the table. She mumbled, "That was way too much information. I really didn't need to hear that, Ranma."
"Sorry Sis. We'll try to be quieter next time," Akane said, as she blushed.
Once they finished their breakfast, and the dishes were clean, the four teenagers picked up their school bags and bentos and headed off to school. Nabiki and Shampoo pulled away from the slowly moving newlyweds, who were walking hand-in-hand, sneaking kisses when they thought no one was looking. Once they were far enough away from them not to be overheard, Nabiki grinned at Shampoo and said, "I swear, you'd think those two thought they invented sex."
Shampoo giggled as she replied, "I'm just glad the guestroom is as far away as it is. I got plenty of sleep, myself. With as much noise as those two were making though, I'm surprised ya haven't tried ta sneak someone into your room. Nobody would know that ya two were making out."
Nabiki tried to look shocked, as she answered, "I'm not really dating anyone right now, Shampoo."
Shampoo asked hesitantly, "What about Mousse? I thought you two were dating."
Nabiki replied, "Mousse and I are just business partners, that's all, Shampoo."
Shampoo said, "Oh really, that was a pretty passionate kiss you were giving your business partner last night outside the gate. What would ya two be doing if ya liked him?"
Nabiki blushed, and then retorted, "What were you doing watching us? I thought you didn't care what Mousse did?" 'I wonder why she's concerned about Mousse?' she thought. Nabiki wasn't sure, but it sure sounded like Shampoo was a bit jealous
"I was just late coming back from Ucchan's when I saw the two of you. I didn't want to interrupt what you were doing, is all. He certainly doesn't mean anything to me," Shampoo said insincerely.
"That's good to know, Shampoo. Sounds like what we need to do is find you someone to date, especially now that you're free from Saotome," Nabiki said with a smirk. 'Yep, she's jealous,' Nabiki thought, hiding her concern from her friend and now apparent rival.
Shampoo put on her best bimbo expression and said, "Shampoo want date with real man, not pervert boys at high school."
Nabiki and Shampoo giggled the rest of the way to school. As they reached the schoolyard, the two girls separated, Nabiki heading to her classroom, while Shampoo met Ukyo at the steps outside.
As Shampoo and Ukyo headed upstairs, Shampoo asked, "Where's Ryoga, Ukyo? Is he skipping school?"
Ukyo grimaced and replied, "She refused to come to school while she's a girl. I've got a note from Dr. Tofu saying that Ryoga is ill. I'll bring the schoolwork home each day and then bring them back once they are done. She made a good point about how awkward it would be to pass her off as someone else for the next two months."
As Akane entered the schoolyard, with Ranma holding her hand, she overheard some of the boys talking. One of them was asking, "Did you hear? They've hired a new homeroom teacher for the junior class."
Another boy replied, "Yeah, I hear she's some monster of a teacher. She cleaned up three schools full of misbehaving students."
A boy she recognized from homeroom said, "But Daisuke, do we have any delinquents in this school?"
"Not since Ranma and Akane got married, Hiroshi," Daisuke said, "Once that happened, and Kuno was arrested, things seem to have settled down."
"So why would this teacher be coming here then?" Hiroshi wondered.
Daisuke shrugged his shoulders and said, "Maybe the vice principal hadn't figured it out yet."
A very cute young girl, dressed in a knee length dress, wearing a sweater, walked into the schoolyard. She barely looked old enough to be a student at the high school.
"Who's that girl?" Daisuke asked, "Man, she's really cute."
'I wonder if she's a transfer student,' Akane thought, 'She's dressed pretty casually.'
The girl walked up to Akane and Ranma and asked, "Excuse me, could you tell me where the principal's office is? I don't want to be late my first day."
Akane smiled and said, "Ranma and I will take you there. Won't we Ranma?"
"Sure, Akane. Hi, like she said, I'm Ranma Saotome and this is my wife Akane. The principal's office is this way," Ranma said as he led the way into the building, "Are you a new student? To be honest you actually look too young to be in high school."
The young girl giggled, and then said, "Oh, excuse me, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Hinako Ninomayi and I'm the new homeroom teacher for class 2-E."
Akane and Ranma face-faulted. "Uh, now I'm really confused. Aren't you way too young to be a teacher?" Akane asked.
"Appearances can be deceiving. Of course, I was thinking much the same about you two. Aren't you too young to be married," Ms. Ninomayi replied.
Akane blushed prettily, and answered, "Like you said, appearances can be deceiving. We got married last Friday."
"Here's the vice principal's office, Ms. Ninomayi. It sounds like you're supposed to be our homeroom teacher, so we'll wait here and then show you the way," Ranma said, opening the door to the office.
"That's very nice of you, Mr. Saotome," the girl said, "I'll remember your kindness, both of you." She left them, entering the office and closing the door behind her.
Akane asked, "You're being awfully polite to her for some reason, Ranchan. Why is that?"
"I sensed her chi as she walked with us. There's something very strange about it and I was curious. Besides, if those boys were right about her being brought in to improve discipline, it wouldn't hurt for us to be on her good side," Ranma said with a brief smile.
Akane snickered and asked, "What do you mean us? I'm a good girl."
"Right! Who was it who used to have to beat up all of the boys just to get into class?" Ranma said with a laugh.
The two of them stood there laughing together. Finally, Ms. Ninomayi came back out to find the two teens laughing. "Amazing, according to the vice principal, you two are some of the delinquents that I'm supposed to be watching. You two seem to be nice enough. I wonder why he said you two were trouble," she asked the two teens, puzzled.
"We were just laughing about that very thing. Last year, one of the upperclassmen said that anyone who wanted to date Akane had to beat her in a fight, so Akane spent several weeks having to fight off a bunch of unwelcome suitors," Ranma said, leading the way to the homeroom.
"And then Ranma came, and interfered with their fun, chasing most of them off. That same upperclassman, named Kuno, took violent exception to him. Kuno fancied himself as a kendo expert, and kept attacking us with his bokken, so the two of us took turns having to beat him up," Akane continued, "Since the school refused to stop the harassment, I guess we got branded as troublemakers. So far this school year Kuno has attacked Ranma with a real sword once and then again yesterday with his bokken. Kuno's in jail now, because of those attacks. Since he's gone, we shouldn't have any more trouble," Akane replied.
"Right, except for those perverted boys who still want to ask questions that I won't answer," Ranma said, under his breath in disgust.
Unfortunately, Ms. Ninomayi had extremely good hearing and asked, "What kind of questions would those be, Mr. Saotome."
Ranma blushed, looking at Akane, and replied, quickly, "I'd rather not say."
"I think I understand, Ranma. You're right, those are questions that you shouldn't have to answer," she replied softly.
Ranma sighed in relief as they reached the classroom. "Here's our classroom, sensei," Akane said, "Again, welcome to our school." Akane opened the door and the three of them entered. Ranma and Akane made their way over to their desks, while Ms. Ninomayi went to the teacher's desk at the head of the classroom.
"Attention, students! My name is Hinako Ninomayi. I'm your new homeroom teacher. Ms. Higurashi left on sabbatical and I have been asked to take her place. Now I'll call the roll. Please answer when I call your name," the young-looking girl began.
The entire room, with the exception of Ranma and Akane, face-faulted. One boy, more foolish and impolite than the rest, laughed out loud, and said, "Who are you trying to kid? You can't possibly be a teacher; you're only twelve or thirteen. You need to go back home to your mommy!" He approached the desk, threateningly.
Ranma stood up, and yelled, "Hiro, sit down. She is too our new teacher. Show her respect, or you'll be learning to fly."
"Thank you, Ranma, but I can handle this! I know how to handle delinquents like this," Ms. Ninomayi said calmly. Pulling a five-yen coin out of thin air, she yelled, "Happo Go-en Satsu!" Suddenly the boy's aura was sucked out of him, leaving him limp, while at the same time, the young girl grew quickly into an attractive, voluptuous, twenty-something young woman, straining at her now suddenly very tight clothing.
"Wow, she transformed!" Akane gasped in disbelief.
"What on earth was that technique?" Ranma said, his eyes wide.
"Have you had enough, naughty boy? You have glimpsed the ultimate technique of the Anything Goes School, Eight Treasures of the Five Yen attack," Ms. Ninomayi purred seductively.
'Anything Goes School?!' Ranma thought.
Ranma could hardly stand class, waiting for it to end. His mind was racing because of what he had seen and heard. He thought, 'Our fathers said that they represented the only two branches of the Anything Goes School. Who is she really, and who taught her that? I have to find out!' During the long morning, he watched carefully as the teacher drained three other students that she decided were acting as delinquents. After seeing how weak they were after it happened, he swore to himself that she would never think of him as a delinquent.
The class bell rang signifying the lunch period was starting. Ranma rushed to the front of the classroom and asked politely, "Sensei, our fathers always swore that they were the only two masters of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. But this morning, you stated that what you did was from that same school. If I could, I'd like to talk to you after school and find out more about where you learned your techniques? I mean if that's all right with you, that is?"
"A private conference?" the still adult teacher asked, "Certainly, we can talk after school. I'd like to thank you for your offer of help as well, even though it wasn't needed."
"Your welcome, sensei. Acchan and I will meet you after school, then," Ranma said as he bowed.
Akane followed Ranma out and asked, "Why did you want to talk to her after school, Ranchan?"
"A couple of reasons, Acchan. One is what she said about her technique being of the Anything Goes School. What she did was not a technique that I've ever heard of, much less seen, before. The other reason is that I noticed something about her chi that really bothers me now. Remember, I told you before that there was something strange about it? When she drained Hiro, and the others, I sensed something wrong. I want to try to convince her to see Doc because I'm not sure how healthy she is," Ranma replied.
Akane gasped and asked, "What do you mean by that, Ranchan?"
Ranma answered somberly, "I'm not real sure. While she's in her adult form, her aura looks normal, but when she is a child, her chi seems to show that she is ill, maybe even dying."
"That's not good, Ranchan," Akane said, "But what can we do to help?"
Ranma said thoughtfully, "I don't know, dear. That's why I want to talk to her to find out more about the technique she used and where she learned it. If it is indeed part of our schools' lore, than maybe your father will know about it. I'm sure what ever causes her to revert to being a child is what is causing the imbalance in her chi. Maybe he knows how to fix it."
"This is my father you're talking about, Ranchan. I doubt he knows anything," Akane said sadly.
"There's got to be something we can do. Doc knows more about this stuff than I do, maybe he'll come up with something," Ranma said.
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After school, Ranma and Akane met their teacher back in their classroom. "Sensei," Ranma began, "How did you learn that technique? Akane and I have never heard about it before, and I'm now the master of the Saotome branch of the school, so I would have thought that I should have."
The teacher hesitated for a long moment while she considered his question. "About twenty years ago, when I was around eight or nine, I was in the hospital. I was very ill, with no strength, possibly even dying. While I was there, a funny old man appeared at my bedside. He talked to me and found out about my problem. I guess he took pity on me, because he taught me several techniques. He said that they were a part of an ultimate fitness regimen that he had created and that it would make my body stronger and cure me of my illness," Ms. Ninomayi recalled.
"But what does that have to do with the school of Anything Goes?" Akane asked puzzled.
Ms. Ninomayi replied, "He said his name was Happosai, and that he was the grandmaster of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. The techniques he taught me did make me strong, and cure me of my illness, but over the years, I've come to see them as a mixed blessing. I revert back to this child-like body and can't stay my true age for very long. Also, while he was with me, I came to discover that he was a very perverted old man. He would go on raids, stealing the nurses' underwear and then use me to drain their battle aura out of them, allowing him to escape from their just retribution. Once I realized that, I swore to have nothing further to do with him, but by that time it was too late."
Ranma mused, "So what he taught you is sort of a double-edged sword. While it may have saved your life, it has also caused you a great deal of problems as well."
"Yes, you're correct. I don't really like having to drain the chi out of someone to regain my true form, a sort of chi vampire, if you will. It makes me feel a bit dirty, as a matter of fact," the child-like teacher replied, a hint of moisture in her eyes.
"What ever happened to that pervert who taught you?" Akane asked.
"I'm not really sure. I believe he ended up being killed on one of his raids. I overheard some nurses saying he got what he deserved when he ran afoul of a party of Amazon women. I do know that all of his belongings were boxed up and shipped to one of his disciples here in Tokyo, but I never knew the name of the disciple," Ms. Ninomayi replied.
Seeing the young girl looking a bit distressed, Ranma felt sorry for her. "Sensei, I apologize for asking these questions. It appears that we may be causing you some pain. I want to thank you for talking with us about all of this," Ranma said quietly.
"Thank you for your concern, Ranma. Thank you as well for treating me as a human, not some kind of freak, or monster," she answered.
Ranma smiled briefly, and replied, "Sensei, neither one of us would ever consider you either a freak, or a monster, believe me. If you ever need someone to talk to, please visit our family. If you need a friend, the Tendo family is a good place to start. Our brother-in-law, Tofu Ono, is also a good person to know. Please, feel free to visit us there anytime."
"Again, thank you for making me feel welcome. However, I still expect you to do your schoolwork," Ms. Ninomayi said, with a giggle. Ranma and Akane smiled back at her.
"We've taken up enough of your time, Ms. Ninomayi. We'd better get home, Ranchan. Remember, it's my night to cook, and you promised Father that you would try to play shogi tonight," Akane said. The three of them left the room together, with Ranma and Akane heading downstairs and on home, and Ms. Ninomayi making her way to her lonely apartment.
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Nabiki had worried all day long about the conversation that she had had with Shampoo on the way to school. Something about what she said didn't strike Nabiki as true. 'For someone who didn't care about what Mousse did, she seemed to be a little upset to see us kissing,' Nabiki thought.
"Hello, Mo-chan," Nabiki said, a little subdued as Mousse walked up, "We don't really have any business today. But I feel like a walk in the park, how does that sound to you?"
"That sounds good to me, Nabiki. It's a pretty day for a walk," Mousse replied, as he offered her his arm.
After accepting his offer to escort her, the two of them headed slowly over to the park. Once they arrived, Nabiki led them over to a park bench, underneath a gazebo overlooking the small lake in the center of the park. Nabiki sat there in silence for a while, pondering how best to approach Mousse. Finally, she decided to just be blunt and ask, "Mousse, why aren't you still chasing Shampoo? After all, you had been doing that since you were three. You aren't just using me to make her jealous, are you?"
Mousse stared at the lake for a while, and then replied, "I won't lie to you and tell you that I don't still have feelings for her. I do care for her, maybe even love her still. But Shampoo made it pretty clear the last time that I talked to her that she wasn't interested in me that way. I'm not sure I want to waste the rest of my life chasing after someone who at best thinks of me as a friend, and at worst as a stalker. But as to using you, no, I'm no more using you to make Shampoo jealous than you are trying to use me to make Ranma jealous. Not that it would work if we wanted it to."
"What would you think if I told you that she is jealous?" Nabiki said quietly.
Mousse froze in consternation. He sighed as he answered, "Nabiki, I don't know how to answer you. I don't know what to think. I had convinced myself that there was no future with her for me, so I set out to forget about her. I didn't have any intention of falling for another woman, but I have. I can honestly say that I'm extremely attracted to you. But I don't know if I love you. I do know that the thought of hurting you scares me. How do feel about me?"
"Mo-chan, I'm in the same situation, I guess. I didn't set out to find someone to help me get over Ranma. And I certainly wasn't trying to get him jealous. He's oblivious to that kind of thing, anyway. You intrigued me, and I wanted to get to know more about you because of that. That and the fact that you probably saved my life twice gave me an incentive to like you. The more I found out about you, and the more we hung out together, the more interesting you became. I care about you a great deal, and it would hurt if you left me for someone else, I know that. Does that mean I've fallen in love with you? Maybe, or it might mean that I can fall in love with you. I just don't know," she said.
"So, what are we? Two lonely people, maybe pining over a lost love, who may be falling for each other, is that what we are?" he asked.
"I don't know how to answer that, either," Nabiki said in a small voice. She began to weep. Mousse awkwardly held her in his arms, trying to comfort her, yet not really sure why this beautiful, usually self-possessed, woman was crying on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Mo-chan. I don't want to lose you, just when we might be finding each other," Nabiki said into his shoulder as she stopped crying.
Mousse gently raised her head and began kissing the tears from her face; the salt from her tears burning his lips. She hungrily sought his lips with hers and kissed him desperately, trying to drive her fears from her.
Mousse's feelings for the woman in his arms suddenly became clear as crystal in his mind. "Don't worry, darling," he said, huskily, "I won't ever leave you."
Nabiki's entire face lit up upon hearing those words, as she said, "I like the sound of you calling me 'darling'. It just sent little shivers up and down my spine when you did. Oh Mousse, dear sweet Mousse, where do we go now?"
"I'd like us to get to know each other better and hope our relationship gets stronger, darling Nabiki," he said fondly, "I don't know what the future may hold, but I want to face it together. Now, unfortunately, however, it's getting late, so I need to get back to the embassy, and you need to go home." They kissed once more, and then reluctantly parted. Mousse walked Nabiki home, and then at the gate, held her close to him. As they kissed, Nabiki felt little sparks shooting out from the parts of her body in contact with Mousse.
They sprang apart as they heard a soft giggle coming from behind them. Whirling, they saw Ranma and Akane standing there. Ranma was covering his mouth in an unsuccessful attempt to hide his grinning face, while Akane was giggling up a storm.
"Sorry, Sis. But you were sure giving us a hard time this morning at breakfast," Akane said.
Ranma waited for the girls to leave and then he quietly said to Mousse, "I think you're good for her. She needs someone like you. Please, take good care of her, okay? She means a lot to Akane and I."
"Or else you'll hurt me, I suppose?" Mousse said, bristling slightly.
Ranma shook his head in annoyance and replied, "No, I didn't mean it that way. Besides, if you hurt her, she'll take care of it without needing my help. She'd b pretty offended if I offered to hurt you, anyway. No, I just meant what I said, is all." He bowed to Mousse and entered the Tendo compound.
Mousse stared thoughtfully into space and then left.