Author's notes:
Well… I'm almost a week late. I got a little overwhelmed with school. I'm really truly sorry about this.
At the very least, I hope that this chapter doesn't disappoint.
« « ʚ ɞ » »
Nabiki stood on a sidewalk in the crisp morning air. She took a long look at the facade in front of her. The sign above read 'Sushi Place' in Kanji. Sure doesn't look like a black-market magic shop… She mused.
Shrugging, she stepped to open the door. However inconspicuous the shop appeared, she was fairly certain of its dealings. She had her sources, and her sources were backed by money.
A tall man in a white hat greeted her as she walked in. He waved and smiled from behind the bar. "What can I get for you today, Miss?" He asked cheerily.
Nabiki looked around at the antiquated room. The place was mostly empty except for a few customers who sat at a table close by. She took a few steps nearer to the man behind the counter. "I'll have the house special." She spoke plainly.
The man cocked an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, miss… But we don't have a special..."
Nabiki cracked a wry smile. "Oh but you do…"
The man frowned. He removed his hat and placed it on the counter near the register. "Very well." He walked out from behind the counter, making his way towards a door labeled 'staff only.' He opened it and held it for Nabiki. She shuffled past him into a narrow hall. Shutting the door carefully, the man resumed his lead. He passed an office and a few empty rooms before stopping short in front of a dark door.
A jingling sound bounced around the small space while the man reached into his pocket to produce a ring of keys. Selecting one of a copper color, he inserted it into the lock, turned the handle, and put his shoulder into the door.
Nabiki followed him into a shadowy room the size of a large closet. She felt a chill rush down her back as he flicked on the lights. All around, on various shelves, sat a colorful arrangement of packages and shapes. Some looked like toys, and some looked like firecrackers. Others, of a much less flamboyant variety, appeared to be weapons. Guns. Bombs. Ammunition.
Noticing Nabiki's quizzical expression, the man began to explain. "To the left are curses, battle magic, and enchanted items. The rest are party tricks and infatuation spells." He paused, his smile returning slightly. "You aren't here for dark magic… are you?" He asked with hopeful inflection.
Nabiki swallowed the lump in her throat."Not today… no." She spoke curtly, stepping towards a shelf with pink and red packages in the shape of hearts and roses. "Today it's a matter of love."
« « ʚ ɞ » »
Ranma sat at her desk in homeroom, an uncomfortable expression adorning her features. She was wearing the Furinkan High School girl's uniform - a plain blue dress with puffy, white sleeves. She kept her eyes on the chalkboard, doing her best to ignore the awkward stares of her classmates. She could feel the pressure of their eyes on her back. It was all she could do to keep her hands from shaking.
Earlier that morning, everyone had denied their involvement in the disappearance of her go-to outfit. She had almost started crying when Nodoka insisted that she wear the uniform. She had never even worn a school uniform before, let alone a girl's one. She had never attended a full day of school as a girl either, and that prospect alone was pretty frightening. It was the stuff of her worst nightmares.
Ranma felt like the universe must be conspiring against her. So much had gone wrong so quickly that there didn't seem to be any other explanation. First I lose my clothes, then Kasumi calls me 'Ranko'... There's no way this stuff is random!
She could already feel the usual insanity taking root in her mind - That bittersweet longing for surrender that she got whenever she stayed in her cursed form for too long. She knew that surrenders came a little at a time. Today it was the dress. Tomorrow it would be makeup. Before she realized it, she would already be a full-on clone of Kasumi. All she had to do was let go, just a little bit, and the curse would gladly take over.
Ranma shuddered. Ki Lun's words played back in her head. 'it's the closest thing to a cure that you are *ever* going to get.' But Ki Lun was wrong of course. She had to be. Ranma Saotome would never surrender. Not ever.
"Um… Hey… Saotome…" A brown-haired boy interrupted her thoughts, "Do you need some hot water?"
"I have some hot tea in my thermos!" another boy offered.
"Hiroshi… Daisuke… Guys…" Ranma replied. "Don't make this any harder than its gotta be."
"Make what harder?"
Ranma lowered her head in shame. "Mycurseislocked" She mumbled.
"What?" Daisuke asked.
"I said my curse is locked!" Ranma exploded. "I hafta come to school as a stupid girl and wear this stupid girl's uniform! Does that answer your *stupid* question?" The classroom fell quiet. Everyone tuned in to the conversation.
"Geez I… I-I'm sorry Ranma… I d-didn't know the curse worked like that." Daisuke stumbled.
"Well… the more you freakin' know." Ranma quipped.
"Try to look at the bright side..." Daisuke searched his mind for encouraging words. He was Ranma's friend after all. He had to do something to cheer her up. "You're pretty cute at least!" He blurted.
Ranma glared. "Not. Helping."
A mischievous grin came to Hiroshi's face. "Hey… So... Since you're a girl now… Does that mean you aren't engaged to Akane anymore?" He asked.
Ranma simmered.
"S-sorry..." Hiroshi backed down.
"My pop is the baka who arranged it." She grumbled. "Why don't ya ask him. Tell him to get his butt back here while you're at it."
Ranma turned back towards the chalkboard, narrowly missing Hiroshi's optimistic expression. If Ranma and Akane didn't choose to be engaged then that meant they weren't in love. If Akane wasn't in love then Hiroshi might have the chance to win her heart.
Akane was the most beautiful and caring girl that Hiroshi had ever met. He had been crushing on her ever since the first grade. He would do anything for just one date with her.
Daisuke met Hiroshi's eyes with a look that said he knew what his friend was thinking. "Good luck, man." He whispered.
"Thanks, man." Hiroshi mouthed back.
Just then, a tall woman wearing a ruffled blouse and a pencil skirt walked briskly through the classroom door. She looked out over the classroom as she made her way towards the desk, eyes catching on a certain redhead in the second chair of the middle row. Ranma fidgeted, desperately avoiding eye contact.
"Ranma Saotome," The woman began sternly, "I will have none of your pranks in my classroom…"
"B-but Hinako-sensei…"
"Uh-uh, save it. You can explain to principal Kuno. In his office. Now."
Ranma rose gloomily from her desk and sauntered into the empty hallway. The universe definitely has it out for me. She thought.
« « ʚ ɞ » »
Nodoka crossed the threshold of the sparsely furnished office. The nameplate on the desk immediately caught her attention. 'Big Kahuna' it read. A rather large pineapple sat next to it.
"Ah, Saotome-san!" A Hawaiian-shirt-clad man spoke, leaning back in his desk chair. "Me was just talking about you with this keke." He turned towards the ginger girl sitting near the window. "She say that she be Ranma Saotome… But me remember that keke..."
Nodoka took a seat in the open chair next to Ranma. She cleared her throat rather loudly, "Kuno-san, this is my daughter, Ranko Saotome." Ranma's eyes bulged. "I am here to properly enroll her as a transfer student. If you would be so kind as to provide the necessary paperwork, I will gladly fill it out here."
"H-hey… hold on a sec..." Ranma tried to cut in.
"Okay! That be no problem!" Principal Kuno spoke over the redhead. "We just be needing the keke's transcripts... And you also be needing to speak to the guidance counselor."
"My daughter was homeschooled until now. I have her gradebook here with me." Nodoka reached into her purse and produced a small booklet. She flipped it open and thumbed through its number-laden pages.
"W-where'd you get that?" Ranma asked. Slowly, she began to put the pieces together. Wait a minute... that's Nabiki's handwriting! Nabiki's in cahoots with mom! They must've planned this!
"No worry, Saotome-san..." the principal said, rising from his chair. "Me come back with guidance counselor." He bumbled out of the office, shutting the door behind him.
The temperature in the room dropped a few degrees. Ranma looked petrified. "Mom… I… I'm gonna find a cure… You know that... Right?"
Nodoka's eyes softened as she turned towards the redhead. "Oh, pumpkin…" She said sympathetically, "Of course I know that! But, until you do, you need to learn to live a little. Going to school as 'Ranko' will help you..." She paused in reflection, "Think of it as a fresh start! No one has to know."
"But they do know!" Ranma shot back. "The whole school saw me change when I competed for best cheerleader!" She blushed when she realized how girly she had just sounded. "I-it ain't what it sounds like..." She backtracked. "I-I-I did it for the competition!" She looked away, waiting for nodoka's grin to subside. It didn't. "Oh whatever. Look, the point is... They know."
Nodoka watched her daughter patiently with a gleam of adoration in her eyes. "Well, dear… No one gets to choose their role in life. We all have to make the best of what we have." Her expression grew serious. "And if your classmates pick on you... Then they'll have me to deal with."
« « ʚ ɞ » »
Ranma sat at the lunch table across from the bathroom, boring a hole into the women's sign with her unwavering gaze. A brunette, spatula-toting girl sat next to her.
"Ranma, honey..." the girl spoke reassuringly, "You're gonna have to do it sooner or later. Why not just get it over with?"
The ginger shook her head slowly. "Uh-uh, no way, Ucchan. I'm a guy."
After leaving the principles office, Ranma had been asked to choose a student to shadow. The first person to pop into her head was Ukyo Kuonji. She figured that if she had to be around someone all day, it should at least be someone with gender problems of their own. And Ukyo had plenty of experience in that area.
Ukyo had taken the news about Ranma's curse surprisingly well. She seemed to believe that Ranma would find a cure almost as much as Ranma did herself. After all, Ukyo couldn't give up on her true love and future husband. However, as someone who had passed as the opposite sex before, Ukyo knew that there were certain expectations to uphold. One of them being the use of the appropriate bathroom.
"I'll go with you." Ukyo's features took on an admonishing expression. "Come on, sugar... Don't pee yourself."
Ranma bit her lip. "Alright... Fine!" She rose from the lunch table and strode toward the restrooms. Ukyo followed up until the point at which she realized Ranma was headed for the men's side.
She froze in her tracks.
"Wait… Ranma! Don't go in there!" She shouted.
But it was too late. Ranma had already entered, and the weighted door had closed behind her.
Ukyo stood guard, ready to keep out any boys who approached. Seriously Ranchan… what were you thinking? She thought furiously. You can't go into the guys bathroom as a girl!
The door squeaked open behind her and she spun on her heels in anticipation of her fiancé-to-be. Instead, she came face-to-face with two snickering boys. They darted away when they saw her. She made a small 'humpf' noise and resumed her post.
A moment later, a soaking-wet Ranma came running through the door, smacking straight into Ukyo's backside. Ukyo turned around quickly. Tears were streaming down Ranma's face and she shrank back in embarrassment.
"T-they… they…" she stuttered through a sniffle.
Ukyo had never seen her future-fiancé look so small before. She had always been so confident and proud, but now she seemed so weak... So hurt. Ukyo did the only thing she could think to do. She wrapped the smaller girl in a hug.
"Hey now… hey... It's okay, Ranma. I'm here." She said comfortingly. Whatever they did… They'll pay for it.
« « ʚ ɞ » »
Ranma stood alone at the front of the ferry, looking out over miles of turquoise waves that spread to the horizon. She placed a light hand on the cold, iron railing. She fought back the queasiness that came to her stomach as she thought of all of the people and places that she would miss. She had traveled a lot in her life. Enough to know that leaving never gets any easier.
At any rate, she had made a decision. She had ditched school to purchase a one way ticket to China with the change left in her pack. There was just no way that she could stay in Nerima in her current condition. Not after everything that had happened recently.
Her mother somehow expected her to adjust to life as a girl. And, as if that wasn't horrifying enough, Kasumi and Nabiki seemed to agree with her. They're all acting like it's some kind of joke! But it's not! It's my *life*!
Then there was the matter of her fiancé. How could she ever marry Akane as a girl? As much as she hated them, Akane only seemed to have romantic interest in men. Furthermore, Ranma only liked girls from a male perspective. She couldn't stand the thought of being with a girl without changing back into a guy first.
Ranma didn't think that she *loved* Akane, but she definitely cared about her. She wasn't ready to lose her any more than she was ready to lose her manhood.
Finally, Ranma drew the line at bullying. All of her life she had been a fighter. She had kept people at a distance with her god-like skills and toughness. In the past, no one would have dared to cause her any trouble. At least, no one but the famously insane Tatewaki Kuno and his sister Kodachi. But now, things were different. Her enemies knew that she was weak, and they were already taking advantage of that fact.
The boys in the bathroom hadn't come at her with a bokken. They hadn't charged with a predictable attack. Instead, they had dumped a bucket of water over the stall and peered at her through the cracks in the door. They shouted names when she didn't change. Names that she had never heard before.
Nothing that she had learned in all of her years of training could have ever prepared her for this kind of attack. She had no defense, no comeback. Just a tangled mess of sharp emotions that had grown around her heart like a rose vine - A humiliating and painful side effect of being trapped in a female body.
Watching the foamy wake fold under the rippled blue, Ranma vowed to find a cure before returning to Japan.
Her words drowned amidst the steady drone of the engines.
« « ʚ ɞ » »
Songs that inspired this chapter are:
"Choking" - Angus and Julia Stone
"Graceless" - The National