Ranma/Hannibal
'Mindgames'
Mousse ran, he ran hard and fast. What he had heard wasn't true, it just couldn't be. It had been almost a fortnight since the supposed events had taken place, and he had finally arrived at the Neichiizu village from his isolated training trip. His sisters had tracked him down, insisting that he needed to hear the news, of what had become of his once love, Xian Pu.
He was spotted rushing down the path that would lead him straight into the center of their humble village, and no one made a move to stop him. Speeding past his tribe members, he ignored the expressions of pity and remorse, because to him, they only told lies.
His beloved Shampoo couldn't have been a killer, it was all a lie.
Mousse swore he would take his beloved away from their slanderous tongues. He would convince her that she needed not stay and suffer their jealousies, their petty attempts at destruction of her character.If he had thought about it, he would have understood how ludicrous it was to presume their word as such. Shampoo had killed over half of her own peers, for that to be a lie, and for anyone to believe it would be sheer idiocy.
Mousse shoved both men and women, peers and elders from his path, making a beeline for his destination. His cries for the one woman he had loved for his entire life echoed throughout the village, shaken the very air as if disturbing the ghosts that lingered for over two weeks. As if his very pleas that were laden in his tone for her innocence insulted and outraged them, thus making it seem that the presence of the village grew thick and unwelcoming.
Even after so long, the acrid tang of blood lingered in the air, stifling his breath. He was assured it was simply his imagination, because the events never occured.
He arrived, never even bothering to stop to properly open the door to the domicile that was shared by one of the cherished elders of their village, and her Great Granddaughter. Mousse was prepared to demand in outrage that Cologne put the atrocious lies to rest, that she punish those who would speak in such a cowardly fashion to one that was a pinnicle of beauty, ferocity, and cunning.
What met his eyes was a tired, elderly woman, sitting in the single chair that occupied the front room, abandoned of all other furniture. Her only posessions left were to be that very chair, and the cup of tea that rested in her hands. After she said what she had to to the young man, they would be given up, and she and Mousse would have to depart, for they no longer had a place, or were welcome in the village of Neichiizu ever again.
"We have much... to discuss," Khun Lon, former cherished elder of the Amazons, stated in a tired, solumn, defeated, and hopeless voice.
____________________
Mu Tzu made no motion towards the pigtailed young man below him, "Saotome."
"So, what brings ya to my neck of the woods?" Ranma enquired in a jovial tone, eliciting a puzzled expression from Akane.
"I have simply come to collect an associate who had wandered off, I did not expect to find your presence just yet."
Akane grew concerned at the cold, nearly mechanical voice of the newcomer. His very contenance matched it, as he stood regarding Ranma with an almost uninterested air about him. "What's wrong with him?"
"I would suppose he's upset about something," Ranma stated, amused.
Mu Tzu's expression didn't crack, though Akane was forced to wrap her arms around herself tighter, as it grew even colder. Ranma wouldn't grant the other young man the satisfaction of any reaction, "It has been a while, old pal."
Mu Tzu simply tilted his head curiously, "Tell me, Saotome, were we truly friends? Or was I simply another distraction for your amusement? Do you intend to use this girl as you did Shampoo?" The Chinese native gestured to Akane, who shifted defensively when the attention was put onto her.
"That's kinda harsh, don't you think?" Ranma replied, allowing a little anger into his voice, "I don't play games like that!"
"Then what other reason did you initiate Shampoo's demise?" Mu Tzu asked, as if he were enquiring about the weather about them.
Ranma's eyes wided, "Shampoo's dead?"
"Yes, she is," Mu Tzu replied, with nary any emotional coloring to his declaration. The Chinese youth turned away, positive that Ranma would not make any motions on him, "I will allow you to continue feigning ignorance, since it is not the time for our confrontation." With that, Mu Tzu lept from the wall.
Akane quickly scrambled onto the barrier, finding the other young man simply walking away, "You're just going to let him go?"
Ranma sighed, "Mousse isn't the most level table around. It's best not to provoke him unless you have the advantage."
"What did he mean, that you had something to do with this Shampoo girl's death?" Akane asked, recalling the conversation. She frowned deeper, and took a step away from Ranma, "Did you kill her?"
Ranma would have laughed, if not for the gravity of how she asked the question. Her seriousness deserved some merit. "Akane," Ranma began, giving Akane a saddened, hurt look, "I swear to you, as a martial artist, and to all I hold dear, I have never killed anyone in my life."
____________________
"Nabiki, do you feel like eating anything?" Kasumi asked, knocking at the door of her sister's room. For the longest time, there was no responce, spurring concern within Kasumi. The eldest daughter of the Tendou Clan pulled the house skeleton key out of her pocket, ready to break her sister's privacy out of prudence and worry. The rustling from the other side of the door alerted Kasumi that it wasn't necessary. "Nabiki?"
On the other side of the door, Nabiki stared out her window. She watched the front yard, awaiting signs of Ranma's return. Heh, waiting for Ranma, it was him who did this to her, she knew intellectually. Even so, she greatly feared the consequences of going against his word, of attempting to defy him any. Because, she knew the consequences would be to withdraw that thick blanket of protection he awarded her. Ranma had nearly destroyed her, and by his 'good graces' that was the only reason Nabiki still remained sane, or even alive.
And now, after a prolongued separation from him, she could hear the low, deep growls, the sounds of sharpened nails scraping against concrete. She could see the flashes of yellow, predatory eyes just escaping her vision, as if their owners were trying to sneak up on her, stalking her like helpless, delicious prey. Her nose still sensed hints of spore from a dangerous animal, her animalistic fear heightening her senses, ironically serving to aggrivate her further. Her right hand traced the faint, almost invisible scar on her right forearm, and she could feel their desperate grasps onto her delicate skin, barely fended off by the one who held her in the nightmare she had exprience, and haunted her since.
Ranma had assured her, yes he had, that they would always be lurking, just waiting for a chance when she was not alert, when her false sense of safety would prove deadly. He protected her from the claws that begged to rend themselves through skin and muscle, the angry teeth that yearned to tear at her flesh. It was only her sound grasp upon herself, that arrogance that she had developed to protect her from the ails of the world since her mother had passed away, that kept her from breaking down the instant Ranma would leave her. Leave her alone to fend for herself. To abandon her to fates without his protection, just like her mother had.
Intellectually, she knew they weren't there, just as someone intellectually knew ghosts would not harm them, or the night would not swallow them. But instinct was a far more powerful aspect of the psyche, and her urges of terror were far more potent, once true experience had been interwoven for a powerful trauma. Without Ranma, Nabiki was sure she would go insane. Because of Ranma, she still would, yet.
The appearance of the pigtailed young man with her sister within the gates of her home. Akane trailing behind the bastard brought out feelings of panic and desperation within Nabiki, but they proved weak compared to her own selfish need for self preservation. She wanted to warn both Akane and Kasumi, she wanted to demand her father throw him out, she wanted the police to take him away, and lock him in the deepest hole within the worst of hells. But she did not, and could not, because if she wanted to keep her sense of self, if she wanted any sembalence of safety, she would belong to Ranma.
"We're home!" Ranma called out, when he and Akane entered.
"Welcome home, Akane, Ranma," Kasumi greeted, though missing a fraction of her usual cheer. Her expression when they met it further shown how distressed the eldest Tendou daughter was.
"Is... is Nabiki okay?" Akane asked, feeling the anxiety well up further, stacking upon the stress she was already experiencing.
Kasumi shook her head, "I don't know. She had woken up at some time and locked me out of her room. I know she hasn't done anything drastic." Kasumi began to wring her ponytail out with her hands, a sign of her compounding nervousness. "She also has a scar... I don't think I've ever seen it on her before. I'm worried about it."
Ranma frowned slightly, and tilted his head, "Did she tell you where she had gotten it from?"
"Excuse me?" Kasumi enquired, "I... she was so upset when I saw her this morning, I didn't ask."
"Hmmm," Ranma mused, before nodding, "I guess it's best if I go see her, then. By the way, I ran into a friend of mine from China, so don't be surprised if he shows up. Com'on, Akane."
The youngest Tendou daughter obeyed, more out of concern for her sister Nabiki than any obedience to the boy she vowed to be a proper friend to. She came up beside Ranma on the staircase, before whispering to him, "A 'friend'? The jerk attacked you from behind!"
Ranma shrugged, "I'm sure he has his reasons."
"He did, he blamed you for the death of that Shampoo person!"
Ranma sighed, as he came to a stop before Nabiki's door, and poised his hand to knock, "That is simply a subject we will have to clarify, the next time we meet."
"What's going to happen?" Akane asked, becoming frightened for Ranma, as he was taking such a threat with a cavalier attitude.
"Nabiki? It's Ranma, do you want to talk?" The pigtailed young man questioned, not answering Akane's question.
'Mindgames'
Mousse ran, he ran hard and fast. What he had heard wasn't true, it just couldn't be. It had been almost a fortnight since the supposed events had taken place, and he had finally arrived at the Neichiizu village from his isolated training trip. His sisters had tracked him down, insisting that he needed to hear the news, of what had become of his once love, Xian Pu.
He was spotted rushing down the path that would lead him straight into the center of their humble village, and no one made a move to stop him. Speeding past his tribe members, he ignored the expressions of pity and remorse, because to him, they only told lies.
His beloved Shampoo couldn't have been a killer, it was all a lie.
Mousse swore he would take his beloved away from their slanderous tongues. He would convince her that she needed not stay and suffer their jealousies, their petty attempts at destruction of her character.If he had thought about it, he would have understood how ludicrous it was to presume their word as such. Shampoo had killed over half of her own peers, for that to be a lie, and for anyone to believe it would be sheer idiocy.
Mousse shoved both men and women, peers and elders from his path, making a beeline for his destination. His cries for the one woman he had loved for his entire life echoed throughout the village, shaken the very air as if disturbing the ghosts that lingered for over two weeks. As if his very pleas that were laden in his tone for her innocence insulted and outraged them, thus making it seem that the presence of the village grew thick and unwelcoming.
Even after so long, the acrid tang of blood lingered in the air, stifling his breath. He was assured it was simply his imagination, because the events never occured.
He arrived, never even bothering to stop to properly open the door to the domicile that was shared by one of the cherished elders of their village, and her Great Granddaughter. Mousse was prepared to demand in outrage that Cologne put the atrocious lies to rest, that she punish those who would speak in such a cowardly fashion to one that was a pinnicle of beauty, ferocity, and cunning.
What met his eyes was a tired, elderly woman, sitting in the single chair that occupied the front room, abandoned of all other furniture. Her only posessions left were to be that very chair, and the cup of tea that rested in her hands. After she said what she had to to the young man, they would be given up, and she and Mousse would have to depart, for they no longer had a place, or were welcome in the village of Neichiizu ever again.
"We have much... to discuss," Khun Lon, former cherished elder of the Amazons, stated in a tired, solumn, defeated, and hopeless voice.
____________________
Mu Tzu made no motion towards the pigtailed young man below him, "Saotome."
"So, what brings ya to my neck of the woods?" Ranma enquired in a jovial tone, eliciting a puzzled expression from Akane.
"I have simply come to collect an associate who had wandered off, I did not expect to find your presence just yet."
Akane grew concerned at the cold, nearly mechanical voice of the newcomer. His very contenance matched it, as he stood regarding Ranma with an almost uninterested air about him. "What's wrong with him?"
"I would suppose he's upset about something," Ranma stated, amused.
Mu Tzu's expression didn't crack, though Akane was forced to wrap her arms around herself tighter, as it grew even colder. Ranma wouldn't grant the other young man the satisfaction of any reaction, "It has been a while, old pal."
Mu Tzu simply tilted his head curiously, "Tell me, Saotome, were we truly friends? Or was I simply another distraction for your amusement? Do you intend to use this girl as you did Shampoo?" The Chinese native gestured to Akane, who shifted defensively when the attention was put onto her.
"That's kinda harsh, don't you think?" Ranma replied, allowing a little anger into his voice, "I don't play games like that!"
"Then what other reason did you initiate Shampoo's demise?" Mu Tzu asked, as if he were enquiring about the weather about them.
Ranma's eyes wided, "Shampoo's dead?"
"Yes, she is," Mu Tzu replied, with nary any emotional coloring to his declaration. The Chinese youth turned away, positive that Ranma would not make any motions on him, "I will allow you to continue feigning ignorance, since it is not the time for our confrontation." With that, Mu Tzu lept from the wall.
Akane quickly scrambled onto the barrier, finding the other young man simply walking away, "You're just going to let him go?"
Ranma sighed, "Mousse isn't the most level table around. It's best not to provoke him unless you have the advantage."
"What did he mean, that you had something to do with this Shampoo girl's death?" Akane asked, recalling the conversation. She frowned deeper, and took a step away from Ranma, "Did you kill her?"
Ranma would have laughed, if not for the gravity of how she asked the question. Her seriousness deserved some merit. "Akane," Ranma began, giving Akane a saddened, hurt look, "I swear to you, as a martial artist, and to all I hold dear, I have never killed anyone in my life."
____________________
"Nabiki, do you feel like eating anything?" Kasumi asked, knocking at the door of her sister's room. For the longest time, there was no responce, spurring concern within Kasumi. The eldest daughter of the Tendou Clan pulled the house skeleton key out of her pocket, ready to break her sister's privacy out of prudence and worry. The rustling from the other side of the door alerted Kasumi that it wasn't necessary. "Nabiki?"
On the other side of the door, Nabiki stared out her window. She watched the front yard, awaiting signs of Ranma's return. Heh, waiting for Ranma, it was him who did this to her, she knew intellectually. Even so, she greatly feared the consequences of going against his word, of attempting to defy him any. Because, she knew the consequences would be to withdraw that thick blanket of protection he awarded her. Ranma had nearly destroyed her, and by his 'good graces' that was the only reason Nabiki still remained sane, or even alive.
And now, after a prolongued separation from him, she could hear the low, deep growls, the sounds of sharpened nails scraping against concrete. She could see the flashes of yellow, predatory eyes just escaping her vision, as if their owners were trying to sneak up on her, stalking her like helpless, delicious prey. Her nose still sensed hints of spore from a dangerous animal, her animalistic fear heightening her senses, ironically serving to aggrivate her further. Her right hand traced the faint, almost invisible scar on her right forearm, and she could feel their desperate grasps onto her delicate skin, barely fended off by the one who held her in the nightmare she had exprience, and haunted her since.
Ranma had assured her, yes he had, that they would always be lurking, just waiting for a chance when she was not alert, when her false sense of safety would prove deadly. He protected her from the claws that begged to rend themselves through skin and muscle, the angry teeth that yearned to tear at her flesh. It was only her sound grasp upon herself, that arrogance that she had developed to protect her from the ails of the world since her mother had passed away, that kept her from breaking down the instant Ranma would leave her. Leave her alone to fend for herself. To abandon her to fates without his protection, just like her mother had.
Intellectually, she knew they weren't there, just as someone intellectually knew ghosts would not harm them, or the night would not swallow them. But instinct was a far more powerful aspect of the psyche, and her urges of terror were far more potent, once true experience had been interwoven for a powerful trauma. Without Ranma, Nabiki was sure she would go insane. Because of Ranma, she still would, yet.
The appearance of the pigtailed young man with her sister within the gates of her home. Akane trailing behind the bastard brought out feelings of panic and desperation within Nabiki, but they proved weak compared to her own selfish need for self preservation. She wanted to warn both Akane and Kasumi, she wanted to demand her father throw him out, she wanted the police to take him away, and lock him in the deepest hole within the worst of hells. But she did not, and could not, because if she wanted to keep her sense of self, if she wanted any sembalence of safety, she would belong to Ranma.
"We're home!" Ranma called out, when he and Akane entered.
"Welcome home, Akane, Ranma," Kasumi greeted, though missing a fraction of her usual cheer. Her expression when they met it further shown how distressed the eldest Tendou daughter was.
"Is... is Nabiki okay?" Akane asked, feeling the anxiety well up further, stacking upon the stress she was already experiencing.
Kasumi shook her head, "I don't know. She had woken up at some time and locked me out of her room. I know she hasn't done anything drastic." Kasumi began to wring her ponytail out with her hands, a sign of her compounding nervousness. "She also has a scar... I don't think I've ever seen it on her before. I'm worried about it."
Ranma frowned slightly, and tilted his head, "Did she tell you where she had gotten it from?"
"Excuse me?" Kasumi enquired, "I... she was so upset when I saw her this morning, I didn't ask."
"Hmmm," Ranma mused, before nodding, "I guess it's best if I go see her, then. By the way, I ran into a friend of mine from China, so don't be surprised if he shows up. Com'on, Akane."
The youngest Tendou daughter obeyed, more out of concern for her sister Nabiki than any obedience to the boy she vowed to be a proper friend to. She came up beside Ranma on the staircase, before whispering to him, "A 'friend'? The jerk attacked you from behind!"
Ranma shrugged, "I'm sure he has his reasons."
"He did, he blamed you for the death of that Shampoo person!"
Ranma sighed, as he came to a stop before Nabiki's door, and poised his hand to knock, "That is simply a subject we will have to clarify, the next time we meet."
"What's going to happen?" Akane asked, becoming frightened for Ranma, as he was taking such a threat with a cavalier attitude.
"Nabiki? It's Ranma, do you want to talk?" The pigtailed young man questioned, not answering Akane's question.