Chapter 25: Am I Ready?

Flying through the air is generally not the first sensation someone expects to hit them when they wake up. Ranma was certainly disoriented for a split second, but there was only really one probable explanation. Genma had been pouting ever since he'd found out about the date with 'Shui'. While he'd taken some solace the night before when Ranma and Hibari had been telling Tsugumi what happened (Genma had of course been eavesdropping), laughing heartily with Ibari that their "sons" still had some hope yet (going on a date with a 'babe' like Shampoo), Ranma had gotten the impression Genma was still deeply unsettled by the date.

Slamming into the wall, Ranma let out a grunt. Eyes opening reluctantly, Ranma was greeted to the sight of Genma standing and laughing by the bed.

"Come on boy, I've got to work on toughening you up. There's still hope for you. You just need to get back on The Path of Manliness!"

"Listen, Pops, I don't really care... but if ya want a fight, I can give ya one," Ranma replied, standing back up and taking a ready stance.

The two Saotomes lunged at each other ferociously. Genma, however, had warmed up, while Ranma was still half asleep, and the difference in readiness became clear quickly. The pigtailed teen was soon flying out the window, the sound of shattering glass drawing the attention of the few Oozora thugs out on patrol.

Shouts and battle cries followed as Genma and Ranma battled with an intensity neither had brought to bear against the other in some time. The pair bounded across the rooftops of the Oozora compound, meeting in the air to exchange a flurry of kicks and punches faster than most of the household could follow.

And, of course, with how much racket the two were making, the entire household was awake by now. Most had gathered in the courtyard to watch as the two completed yet another lap around the complex. Tsubame had chosen to stay in bed and try to hide from the noise under her pillows (muttering that the sun wasn't even up yet), but the rest of the household found the fights between the two a spectacle worth watching.

Hibari was starting to debate if she should join in when Genma landed a roundhouse into Ranma's gut. The black-haired teen went flying into the courtyard, on a clear trajectory towards the koi pond . That was, of course, no surprise; fights between the two of them generally ended with at least one damp Saotome.

It was only at the last second that Hibari realised Ranma's trajectory was headed directly for—

*Crack*

The sound of Ranma's skull hitting the stone bridge that crossed the pond was sickening. Hibari leapt into the water, pulling the small redhead to shore and checking for blood. With hair so bright red it was hard to tell.

"Hibari, let me," Tsugumi said softly as she produced a first aid kit.

Hibari nodded and backed away. She knew her sister had her fair share of first aid experience.

Hibari was pacing in the hallway as she waited for word on Ranma's condition.

'If he hasn't woken up yet... is he going to? Maybe he's in a coma? I should have intervened,' Hibari thought as she grew ever more worried.

Her pacing stopped as she tried to calm her mind down a bit. There was no use in beating herself up. She took a few more breaths to try to calm down.

Then she heard Ranma's voice.

Bursting into the room Hibari found the small redhead giggling while Tsugumi looked on with confusion written across her face.

"Ranma! Ranma, are you okay?" Hibari asked as she rushed forward. Maybe getting up in Ranma's face wasn't the best thing to do when someone had just regained consciousness, but she'd been worried.

"I'm fiiine," the petite redhead replied cutely, giggling a bit. "There's no need for everybody to be so worried about me."

"B-but you hit your head," Hibari protested. That was when she realised something. "W-why are you using 'atashi'?"

The smaller teen stared at her, innocent confusion dancing across those big blue eyes. "Why wouldn't I? It's cute."

Hibari froze up, not sure how to reply. Luckily Tsugumi was a bit quicker with a response.

"You usually don't want to be called cute or girly," she said.

"Well that's silly. Why wouldn't I? I am a girl, aren't I?" Ranma replied.

Hibari and Tsugumi exchanged glances. Tsugumi was confused, while Hibari was surprised by the speed of this. Surely finding out Shui was Shampoo shouldn't have caused that much of a change.

"Ranma! My boy! You're awake!" Genma shouted happily as he, Ibari, and Seiji hurried into the room.

"Eep!" Ranma squeaked as Seiji's size apparently surprised the petite redhead.

"What's the matter with you boy? Shrieking like some girl? I raised you tougher than this," Genma half shouted as he stuck his face up to Ranma. "Haven't I taught you how to be a man?"

Ranma responded by scurrying backwards to hide behind Hibari. From behind the blonde Ranma spoke out with surprising timidity. "Y-you did. And that was a… a very mean thing to do to your daughter."

"D-dau... You!" Genma bellowed, grabbing Hibari by the shirt and pulling her forward. "You did this! Y-your perversion's contagious, isn't it!?"

Hibari was ready with a snappy comeback when the tiny redhead darted forward and hit Genma with an uppercut. Caught totally off guard the solidly built man was knocked from his feet.

"D-don't you hurt her!" Ranma shouted before clinging to Hibari once again. "Eep! I hit daddy... I didn't mean to fight."

Ibari, apparently being smart enough to not risk a punch to the face, decided to take a more welcoming and diplomatic approach. Crouching down to be at about eye level with Ranma he put on a gentle fatherly smile.

"So... you're a girl now, are you?"

Ranma nodded.

"And I see you still like Hibari," the mustachioed father of the Oozoras asked.

Ranma nodded again, whispering, "She's my friend."

Ibari smiled. "Then maybe the engagement's not so bad. You being the wife makes it work much better."

"Excuse me... but shouldn't we be taking Ranma to a hospital? Or at least a clinic? A major blow like that should probably be checked by a doctor!" Hibari announced, shoving herself between this suddenly shy Ranma and her father, and struggling to contain her anger. (Why was her father so quick to accept Ranma being a girl? But not her, no matter what she tried?) "We need to find out if Ranma has amnesia or brain damage or... something."

"Hoho- let's not look a gift horse in the mouth," Ibari replied. "Now you've got yourself a proper fiancée I see no reason to try to change anything."

"Now wait just a minute!" Genma shouted, "I'm not about to give up on my son. He's supposed to carry on my legacy of Saotome Style Anything Goes!"

Hibari and Ranma found themselves being gently led out of the room by Tsugumi as the two fathers argued. She led the pair over to the dining room where Suzume was waiting impatiently.

"Yay! You're alive!" the small blue haired girl shouted as she rushed over and hugged Ranma from the side.

Ranma hugging her back caused her to stiffen a bit. That wasn't usual...

"Are-are you okay, Ranma-chan?" Suzume asked nervously.

"Never better, Suzume-chan," Ranma replied, giving the girl a warm smile. "I... I feel like I'm free of a dark shadow. I'm the real me now."

Suzume backed away a little, unsettled by Ranma's completely changed demeanor. "Hi-Hibari-chan... why is Ranma talking funny?"

Hibari grimaced a bit. "Well, I'm not totally sure. Ranma might still be a little scrambled after hitting the bridge... We'll have to wait and see."

Ranma's face fell as she took a seat at the table. "I... I thought if anyone would be happy for me... that it would be you, Hibari. D-didn't you want me to be one of the girls?"

Hibari hurried over and placed a hand on Ranma's shoulder. "Ranma... I..."

She froze up. For once in her life Hibari had no idea what to say. If Ranma wanted to be a girl... well, she'd suspected it for a while, but this. This was such a sudden change. It didn't feel natural. Hibari had hoped Ranma would talk to her about things before acting too.

Tsugumi used the silence to excuse herself and get to work on breakfast. Suzume, however, stayed, watching her older sister and Ranma with rapt attention, curious as always.

The blonde was preparing to explain her worries when the door to the hallway slammed open. Turning, all three of them were surprised to see Tsubame trembling in rage.

"No! Not you too! You're a guy, Ranma! You too, Hibari! Stop messing around like this," the brown haired Oozora girl shouted. "I refuse to live in a home filled with perverts."

Hibari whipped around, standing up to glare at her sister. "We're not perverts. I don't know how many times I have to tell you... but I'm getting tired of it."

There was something cold in Hibari's voice for a moment that made Tsubame back away. Making an indignant face as she realised there was no one in the room ready to take her side Tsubame frowned and stormed off.

Hibari smiled, glad to have chased Tsubame off, and turned back around to sit beside Ranma. The small girl was fidgeting with her undershirt.

"C-can I change into something more feminine? These clothes are just no good," Ranma whispered.

"I... sure. I'll go with you," Hibari replied. "I'll help you pick out something cute."

A bitter Genma sat at the kitchen table, staring at the spotless surface. He had to fix this. If Ranma stayed like this... they were both dead. It would take rather a lot more than a kettle to turn Ranma back properly male this time though... or would it?

Shooting up into a dramatic pose of victory Genma let out a cry of joy. "Of course, the jolt of returning male should bring him to his senses!"

"I suppose it might," Tsugumi commented as she finished up the morning dishes.

Genma pulled out a kettle and set it to heat. After a few minutes it began to whistle and he picked it up, heading out of the kitchen to track down his wayward son.

It didn't take long to find Ranma out in the garden, happily smelling flowers. Genma winced. Ranma was giving off a severely feminine air, nearly prancing from flower to flower. Hibari and Suzume sat watching quietly, and to Genma's eyes neither of them seemed nearly as feminine as Ranma was acting.

"Boy, this will be for your own good!" Genma announced as he drew the kettle and charged.

The tiny redhead swerved gracefully, on a constant retreat to avoid Genma's attempts to pour the kettle on her head. Her constant dodging left him turning red in the face.

"Either cooperate or fight like a man!" Genma shouted.

"No. No. No! I hate fighting," Ranma yelped as she dodged another stream of hot water.

"Hates fighting? Ranma?" Hibari whispered under her breath as she watched.

Genma redoubled his efforts to catch Ranma with the hot water, but just as it looked like he was about to succeed his kettle ran dry. A confident smile flashed on Ranma's face before she replaced it with something far more cute and coy.

"I don't know why you wanted to go and do something so mean to-" Ranma began to say to Genma when hot water poured down on her head.

"I've had it with you deviants," Tsubame declared, standing behind Ranma as she finished emptying her kettle on Ranma's head.

"Good work girl, taking advantage of my distraction," Genma boasted.

Ranma however seemed to be in a state of shock, taking in the physical changes that the hot water had produced. After a few moments of silence Ranma ran off into the Oozora home, wearing a look of pure terror. A few seconds later a sound best described as a feminine scream with a masculine voice echoed across the yard.

Tsubame's eye twitched. "Fine, I guess he's keeping up the act... well, I'm going to school. I've had enough."

Genma took on a stiff appearance with a thousand metre stare. Hibari and Suzume both walked over. Hibari waved her hand in front of Genma's face to no response. Suzume then poked him in the side. Several times. With not insignificant force.

"I'm dead," Genma said, apparently not noticing either of them.

The bespectacled Saotome patriarch wandered off, still in his trance.

"What's he talking about?" Suzume asked.

"I have no idea," Hibari replied, shrugging.

Ranma hurried after Hibari down the busy commercial street. The small redhead tried her best to cling to the taller girl, seeming nervous about everything.

"Well, Ranma, if you're a girl now you need better outfits," Hibari explained. "Obviously an emergency of this magnitude warrants a day off school."

Ranma nodded.

"I think we'll start with undergarments. You've got a couple bras, but they are pretty boyish," Hibari said, studying Ranma's face out of the corner of her eye. She saw none of the apprehension she was expecting, which only made her more worried.

The Tendo breakfast table was usually quiet and peaceful. Usually.

"What!?" Akane shouted, slamming her hand onto the table. "Why should I have to train him?"

Kasumi managed to catch the plates that had been jostled toward falling off the table by the force of her youngest sister's blow.

"W-well, a young man living at a dojo like this should really know our school," Soun explained, shrinking behind his newspaper. "Kousaku asked me about it, and I think training him would be a good part of your journey to master status."

"And why can't you train him?" Akane asked, pouting a bit.

"You know I threw my knee out," Soun replied meekly.

"I-if she's that opposed to it, I'll okay with not learning," Kousaku offered nervously, as Akane glared at him.

"No. As a father, and a master of my school, I must insist," Soun replied. Glancing over to see Akane still glaring at him Soun burst into tears. "Oh no... my little girl doesn't respect her father any longer!"

Akane sighed and softened her posture. "Fine daddy... but I won't go easy on him."

Kousaku swallowed nervously. This was going to be a long day... why did they have to shut the school today due to 'structural precautions' or whatever after that earthquake…? Looking at the smile on Akane's face as she thought up lessons Kousaku was certain he'd be safer in a condemned building than in the Tendo Dojo today.

Kousaku's thoughts about his imminent demise were interrupted by knocking at the front door.

"I'll get it," Kousaku announced while hurrying out of the family room.

Opening the front door he was met with the face of a broken man. Genma's eyes were aimless as he stared ahead.

"U-uh... Uncle Soun? Sir? It's... it's your friend Saotome," Kousaku called out.

Soun hurried forth, accompanied by Akane.

"Saotome-kun, what's happened to you?" Soun asked as he walked up to his friend.

Genma seemed to revive at the sound of his old friend's voice. "Tendo-kun... you know how I haven't been wanting to talk about the situation with Ranma and the engagement much? Well, I've changed my mind. Let's find a bar... I have a lot to say."

Soun looked his friend in the eyes and saw the distress there. "Of course, of course. I'll just tell Kasumi I'll be gone today, won't be a moment."

As Soun headed into the kitchen Genma found himself under the concerned eyes of Kousaku and the judgemental eyes of Akane. The youngest Tendo girl could tell the man was in too much distress to confront right now, but she still had questions for him about that red haired girl she had talked to. She compromised by giving him an unapproving stare.

"Alright, Saotome, old friend, let's go," Soun said as he emerged from the kitchen.

Ranma's stomach grumbling signalled it was time for lunch. Honestly the only surprise was that it had taken this long for Ranma's stomach to protest having not been fed. The bags of clothing both girls were carrying and the cute dress Ranma wore showed how long and productive their shopping expedition had been. Still, Ranma felt it appropriate to apologise for the noise.

Hibari smiled weakly and checked her watch. There was still a good hour left to kill...

"Ranma, I'll take the bags and you go get some food for us. There's a couple street vendors just down the block," Hibari said as they walked towards the stalls in question.

Ranma gave a warm and wide smile. "Sure thing. I could really go for tamagoyaki right now."

"Sounds good," Hibari replied.

Watching Ranma hurry up to the stall Hibari smiled. Sure, Ranma was acting strange, but scamming free food, that was something Ranma could never resist, she was sure.

"There you go miss, and I must say, for a girl as cute as you I think it should be half off today," the vendor said as he handed the food over. He was clearly trying to flirt, despite realising the gorgeous redhead before him was way out of his league.

"Oh no sir, I couldn't do that. You have bills to pay. I insist on full price," Ranma replied as she fished out the bills.

Hibari struggled to keep footing as Ranma's smiling face turned to her.

"You know, we've walked a long way today," Ranma mentioned as the pair walked along beside a park. "We have to be half way across Nerima by now."

"Not quite, but close," Hibari replied as their destination at last came into sight. "We just have a little visit to make."

"Oh? Where-" Ranma began to ask before she recognised the building up ahead.

Dr. Tofu's clinic. She'd only been there once before, but it had been a memorable trip.

"Tsugumi booked an appointment. We really should get your bump checked out, but dad told our family doctor not to see you," Hibari explained. "Plus, if there's anything weird with your curse Dr. Tofu is probably about the only one around who would notice."

Ranma grimaced. "I told you, I feel fine. We don't need to go see any doctors."

"It would make Tsugumi feel better," Hibari replied softly.

"Okay, okay," Ranma relented.

Hibari smiled and led the smaller girl by the hand off to the clinic. Entering they found the waiting room surprisingly empty, and Dr. Tofu smiling happily and staring into space while holding a small stack of books. Both girls were taken a bit aback by his state, though the sound of Hibari clearing her throat broke him out of it.

"Oh! Oozora-chan and Saotome-kun, it's good to see you," he said happily, setting the books down on the counter. "Now, if I remember correctly... Ranma, you bumped your head, yes?"

The redhead nodded.

"Mhm, come follow me to the examination room," Tofu instructed.

Ranma went ahead, with Hibari following behind Tofu. The blonde was unsure if she would be allowed in, and was quite happy when Dr. Tofu waited for her to enter the room before closing the door. Tofu then led Ranma over to the examination bed, while Hibari took a seat in an open chair.

After a few moments of prodding and massaging Ranma's head Dr. Tofu stepped back. "Hm, yes. It does look like you suffered a concussion. You don't seem to have any bleeding or neck injury. Have you been nauseous at any point?"

"No, not really."

"Glad to hear it. I'd say it looks like a mild concussion, but you should be able to stay at home. Tsugumi seems to understand medical matters enough I trust her to observe you," Tofu explained.

"What about Ranma's behaviour? Does it have to do with the curse?" Hibari asked.

Ranma seemed ready to protest, but was interrupted by Tofu.

"I-oh yes, Tsugumi mentioned that on the phone. I'm not detecting anything that should cause a shift in behaviour. In fact, Ranma's chi feels much the same as his last visit," Tofu replied.

Hibari deflated a bit and grew lost in thought. Her one explanation for Ranma's sudden shift in personality had just been pulled out from under her.

Tofu noticed both Hibari's sudden withdrawal and Ranma's look of guilty concern watching her. "I have a bit of paperwork to do, I'll leave you two be for now."

Ranma watched him leave, and winced slightly as the doctor shut the door behind him. It was clear the intention was for the two of them to talk. After a few moments to gather her thoughts Ranma spoke up.

"You don't like me anymore, do you?"

Hibari blinked and her eyes rose from examining the floor to look the redhead over. "I... I don't know you anymore. I'm still finding out if I like this you or not."

"I thought you wanted me to go girl," Ranma half mumbled, it was her turn to study the linoleum.

"My plan wasn't to make you do anything, it was to help you find yourself. Well, no... my plan to help Ranma find themself. This new you... You're someone totally different. You're soft and fragile and... and some sort of perfect daughter. We might be able to become friends, but I don't like that being at the cost of the Ranma I love," Hibari replied. As she talked she pulled her feet up from the floor to hug her knees, and as she finished up she began to cry.

Ranma looked back up at her with guilty eyes, though Ranma kept her own tears in her eyes. "I guess I was kinda layin' it on a little too thick. Sorry."

Hibari stopped crying to stare at Ranma. "Pardon?"

"Well, after I woke up my brain was all jumbled up. I did honestly forget who I was for a minute or two. An' when I was piecin' things together I landed on the obvious conclusion I was a girl. Even after things got back in order it didn't really feel wrong exactly, an' so I figured if somethin' like a little bump on the head could scramble me up maybe I wasn't that much of a guy," the redhead confessed.

Hibari stared at Ranma with her jaw hanging open, but no words escaping.

"An' when I thought about how bein' a man was something my pops stressed so much... an' how ignorin' him about you had been a smart thing... I figured 'why not pretend I'd been totally scrambled'. An' so I tried to act the opposite of everythin' he told me to be," Ranma explained, scratching the back of her head nervously.

Hibari took a few seconds to piece together a reply as she stared in shock. "You mean the whole thing was an act?"

"Heh, yeah, I figured I'd go all in. Ya know?"

"Why didn't you tell me!?" Hibari half shouted, jumping to her feet. "I was so worried about you! I thought I'd lost you to some new personality!"

Ranma shrank back a bit. "I didn't really have a chance ta at home, and once we were out... I dunno, I wanted ta see how long I could keep it up convincin'ly."

Hibari's face scrunched up in rage as she stomped over to Ranma. Unconsciously she raised a balled fist, though caught herself before she could lash out. Her father's constant use of violence may have left an impression on how her body wanted to respond to anger, but she wasn't going down that route. Instead she broke the fist by extending a finger to jab Ranma accusatively.

"Never do that again! Got it? I... I... Just talk to me, okay? I can't be there for you if you don't tell me things first," Hibari shouted, struggling to hold back tears.

Ranma straightened her back and prepared an angry retort, but found herself struggling to actually use it. Objectively she had messed up. Yet... she was realising she needed to better understand who she was. Which felt like something she wouldn't always be able to talk about. Stuck between pride and love she ended up settling on pouting.

"Fine. I'll try next time," Ranma grumbled.

Hibari continued to stand over her, waiting impatiently for an apology that wasn't coming. After a few moments the blonde broke away, deeply unimpressed. "Whatever, let's go home."