Author's Notes: Hey guys! I know it's been long since I updated. To be honest this was done ages ago but I wasn't completely confident about it yet here it is!
Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2!
Chapter 2: The Prince and the Palace
Unseen by the ordinary human eye was a palace made of fine wood and chiseled stones standing three-stories high. Hidden further, was the small village it governs and it's people who are forever grateful for the luscious green forest that conceals them from the likes of mortals, whether man or animal in kind. However this boundary was proved not to be impenetrable by any means. As curious creatures, humans tend to explore bewildering concepts as much as their greedy little hands and cunning minds can hold without prior consultation of the possible consequences. Such concept was magic, as spiritual manifestations of nature themselves, it was the symphony at which both spirit and man share although only a minority of the latter can join in tune.
This was presumably the curious case of the young woman that fought Prince Hakuto earlier that afternoon, who now lays unconscious within the palace walls. It was the Prince's duty to protect his subjects from any harm that may come and to eliminate any competition in nature was one of them. Frankly, it wasn't of the prince's liking as well, but the curse had forced them to resort to extreme the tree of greed was planted, hunters were put down to a minimum. Like wildfire, the forest itself gained a reputation for being unforgiving, lest isolated almost completely from the outside world. They could only speculate that it was the power of destiny that brought about this youth to them, or a force of extreme stupidity.
Tadao looked at the girl closely; Despite her small stature, her toned body resembled that of a warrior with fair-skin ornamented with scars and bruises from previous battles. She was of magic, as the prince had mentioned earlier, but how exactly? She gives no malicious vibes of sorts but surely powerful . Her presence was strong enough to shake everyone in the village. They all anticipated behind the grasses, terrified and anxious while the prince charged at the new intruders. And yet she had evaded eating from the tree and that accounts for something. Perhaps a curse? She looks quite fine to me, the advisor thought to himself.
He was more than thankful for his company in this dilemma. The Tanuki sisters; Taana, Nuie, and Kiyoe, came to his aid and tended the young girl. Forests spirits often need no treatment for their physical injuries, as they are usually done with prayer and intention. Humans, however, can be tricky due to their fragile shells and the triplets , although not really cut as healers, are the best that the village can offer as they were most well acquainted with such creatures. Taana, the one with the pink eyes wringed the last drops of blood from the towel they used to clean Ranma's wounds. The green eyed Nuie, skilled in many forms of crafts, manifested a thread and needle to shut the deep wounds close. And lastly the youngest, the blue eyed Kiyoe, assisted Tadao in finishing with the herbed bandages.
"I can't remember the last time we had a human in the palace." Kiyoe said, adding some finishing touches to the wrappings. "Me either, her guts must've been made of iron to try to challenge the prince." Taana added. "I'm actually more surprised that her GUTS aren't out of body," Nuie exclaimed, receiving a sour response from her sisters and the royal adviser. "Come on," she continued, "have you seen the size of that beast? If the prince wasn't quick, we'd be laces of fruit skin!".
"I'd rather be a fruit skin than a halfling, I miss my powers so much!" Taana said.
Kiyoe delivered a gentle slap on her sister's arm and said, "You sound so bitter Taana, it's not like it's the worst thing ever. Besides, a human has arrived! Maybe she can break the curse-"
Tadao rubbed his chin, "Not quite my dear," he said."The prince's instructions were direct yet his intentions are still unclear."
"Well if she ain't here to break the curse, " Nuie said, closely examining the girl's face, "we could always just eat her."
The moment that consciousness started to return to Ranma, a numb yet stinging pain radiated over her entire body. She couldn't find words in her vocabulary to describe it but should she at least try to; it felt like flat electric eels were embedded half way through her skin, some maybe even deeper. She knew they were somehow sewn shut, thank goodness for that, although she'd wish the bandages were a little more tighter to send a message to her brain that her limbs were still intact. A part of her felt like a book that was forcibly shut, still feeling the gaps where flesh should have been. Her headaches as if a 2-ton boulder laid on top making her mind foggy and her primary senses quite dull and yet was just sharp enough to awaken her senses when a strange bright voice suddenly suggested to have her as a meal.
Ranma bolted right up from the futon, accompanied by an ear shattering shriek. Still filled with adrenalin, the pain subsided shortly and came back just as fast like lightning striking every inch of her back sending her to her knees. "Who are you people? Where's pop?!" she cried, gasping dearly for air.
"Slow down, human. Your wounds will open if you move too much. The panda is alive and has been contained." the bird-like creature said, putting out his hands in an attempt to calm the panicked human.
"You said you were gonna eat me!" Ranma wheezed.
Nuie released a colorful giggle, "That was a joke, have you no sense of humor?"
"It wasn't really that funny," Kiyoe grumbled to her elder sister, "Please forgive her, I am Kiyoe. This is Taana and Nuie. How are you feeling?"
"Like hell, but a lot better. Did you guys treat my back?"
The triplets gave a warm approving nod and the martial artist suddenly felt more at ease, "Uh, thanks. I am Ranma" she said as she sitted calmly back to the futon.
Slowly getting her vision stable, she began to study the room. It was like one of those ancient castles, albeit more believable than those of the Kunos arguably given by the fact that the room was lit by lamps rather than bulbs. Her 'caretakers' were possibly the most adorable set of triplets she had ever seen in her life. Estimating that they probably reach a little past her waist she found herself amused with the nature of their appearance; short, slightly stout, with identical plump rosy-cheeked faces with their only telling difference was the color of their round, bright, almost distracting eyes that matched the color of their fine floral kimonos under a brown furry coat with a raccoon like tail.
"You're tanukis." she said, patching up the pieces together. Ranma turned her head to the other person in the room who was chuckling softly as he offered her a cup of tea.
"They are and I shan't keep you guessing, I am a pheasant. Please call me Tadao, the prince's advisor." he said.
Ranma took the warm beverage from the advisor's hand, a little confused. It didn't take long for her to figure out what the man meant and he was- something. For one, he wasn't quite as old as she had expected, if he were human, she would have assumed that he was only as old as Mr. Tendo or perhaps younger. He does partly remind her of the butler from the island she was in a few months before. He had a kind face with a short well-kept beard and bright emerald eyes over a scarlet mask. It took Ranma a while to realize that his mask was in fact a part of his face and was not a mere accessory. He wore a flashy emerald green robe (just like his eyes) with feathers lying lowely on its hem.
"So you're like half-humans, what's up with that?" she asked, taking a small sip, feeling less threatened though not still keeping her guard. Might as well tell me what y'all are up to and get this over with, she thought. Ranma found it un-funny, like a repeated prank from the heavens. She was so familiar with pattern of the situation that she had already plainly summarized them into three steps:
First, cause a problem that may or may not be caused by her own stomach (in this case it was her father's that was applicable too); Second, a young man should appear any moment now, most likely that sakura-mochi boy from earlier; and third which earned her most loathing; being asked out as a form of payment. Bonus points should she encounter magical creatures. With the checklist almost ready to be filled, Ranma awaited for an explanation. The only thing that differs were the players and its conditions as to how the game is set. Nevertheless. no matter how annoying these challenges may come, it was her duty as a martial artist to straighten things up. Although if she could stop dealing with hormonally charged boys that would be of big help.
"Half? Maybe one-fourth? possibly less, I don't know-"
As if a bomb just suddenly diffused, the two other members of the triplets immediately sealed their sister's rather blunt mouth.
"You can't just go about like that Nuie!" Taana hushed.
Kiyoe then added, "Prince Hakuto doesn't like it when you talked about the curse openly."
"It's alright, she'll be staying for a while. She ought to know what trouble she's in." Hakuto said coldly as he walked towards them. Heads turned towards the direction of the prince as he entered the room. Not much change was there in his appearance, except perhaps the absence of the white kitsune mask that Ranma first recognized him with. His pink unruly hair was now tied in a bun, making his green eyes more intense, shining brightly in the dimly lit room. His subjects bowed before him briefly and followed behind him.
Ranma was hating the highfalutin demeanor he displayed. He might have saved her but that alone doesn't save him from his earlier sins. "Sorry, but your presence is enough to tell me that I'm not welcomed here. Why not let me and my old man go if we're just such a nuisance to ya." Ranma said crossly.
The prince scoffed at her and said, "I am Prince Hakuto and this is my forest. We're its spirits, if you haven't figured that one already. But unlike what you are familiar with we aren't exactly the ones to interact with humans - we protect this forest and all its creatures from the likes of anything that is destructive. My people are guardians who use their power to keep the balance, guard the cycles. It is my job to make sure that they can carry these responsibilities unbothered." the prince explained, sitting himself in front of the injured martial artist.
"A hundred and forty years ago a curse fell into this village, causing it to lose its magic gradually thus making it harder to keep humans at bay."
"So you planted a killer tree to cut the work for you huh?" Ranma said sharply.
Hakuto narrowed his eyes, "Undesirably, and I don't kill ," he said disbelievingly to Ranma who says it so much like a leisurely sport. "The tree of greed simply reflects the creature their spirit best resembles and transforms them into it. I don't have the time and energy to kill the occasional roach or mice. I only act when it's a threat to my people, which brings me to you."
"Geez, thanks I guess." Ranma said under her breath sarcastically.
"It would've been easier to leave you dead, mind you. I wasn't planning on keeping you for long but I couldn't simply ignore your father's trespassing, given the amount of damage brought to this weakening village." Hakuto replied, his voice slightly raising,"not only did he take a bite from the tree of greed but he also managed to single handedly eat a summer's worth of harvest."
Nice one pops. If Ranma wasn't holding a cup of tea at the moment, she would've planted her palm on her face so deeply that it would've turned and stayed red for weeks. It was no doubt that his father could as much inhale a village's worth of food specially in a rampaged state. No surprises there but the disappointment was incredibly stupid. "So what are you suggesting, that I pay his bill then bid you adieu?"
"Adieu?" Hakuto asked in confusion, raising an eyebrow unfamiliar with such a word.
"Oh" Ranma exclaimed, realizing that the prince may have heard it,"it means farewell in fre- in a different language."
This human is more interesting than I thought, Hakuto said to himself. "Well then, "he continued, "I suppose you already understand the terms."
"What's the price?"
"A series of tasks. All of which is to collect whatever else can be saved or stored. You have until the next full moon to finish them. Then I shall let you and the panda go-"
"Hold on a sec, he ain't acting right. That tree of yours made him feral, you should at least give him a cure or something."
"Maybe you should let me finish. There is a cure and it's going to take weeks to make, you might as well take your time for the tasks given to you."
Great, I'm gonna play farmer for the rest of the summer.Ranma collected herself and weighed in her options. It wasn't like this was the first time her old man did something like this. Growing up, she (or he, more often) had been fashioned as some sort of monetary value. Yet aside from its length, the challenge seems rather too easy from anything she had before. No proposals? No dates? No random engagements? Reading the prince, Ranma could tell he was being honest, although annoyingly cold and conceited. Then again she agrees bitterly, leaving her dead would've been less of a bother.
"Alright. I'll clean up after this mess and when I'm done, you're gonna fix 'im and let us go."
"Good,"Hakuto smirked, "You really are something aren' t you? I haven't met someone as head strong as you are in centuries. The triplets shall aid you in your tasks. You may be skilled, but I pray that you do not take them lightly." he said as he stood up. He waved his upwards with a finger pointing to the sky and a small apple tree emerged from the tatami mats just beside Ranma's futon. "Eat then rest and let those wounds heal properly. You won't want them opening up."
"H-Hey!" Ranma called as the prince approached the exit.
"The curse of your village, is that all?, isn't there something more that I need to know?"
Hakuto kept his back turned as he replied dimly, "It's none of your concern. Be gentle to the creatures you're working with, they're time is so much more precious than you think. Tadao, I shall leave her to you" and left without another word.
"Unbelievable." the martial artist said dejectedly, as she picked the closest apple from the tree "Is he always like this?"
"Not really, he just happens to be incredibly stern. If time allows his true colors shall unravel to you." Tadao said.
"Right." Irritable, the first word that came into her head when she asked herself how she felt at her current situation. It was similar to the feeling when she first entered the deeper parts of the woods that afternoon, lost and confused, making her feel antsy.
Ranma turned to the sisters, "You guys can't tell me about this curse, can't you?"
The triplets shook their heads sadly. Ranma looked towards Tadao, expecting a response.
"As much I would like to tell you, young lady, I'm afraid it is not in my place."
Rats. In the many things she hated, one of them was being kept in the dark. But on the other hand it might be best that she keep herself far from any more problems. A curse? She has had enough to deal with anyways. But she was Ranma Saotome isn't she? She was gonna get to the bottom of this, but a heavy feeling in her chest is telling her that it won't be easy.
"I'm gonna hate this so much, I can tell." Ranma said, resting her chin on her hand.
"It will be over before you know it," the old man reassured her, dimming the lights from the lamp that lit up the room.
"You may see your father first thing in the morning. In the meantime, please do as the prince had suggested. Rest."
The triplets easily read through her discomfort and with Tadao's permission each of them made her a few things that could at least make her feel a little better. In true Tanuki fashion, Nuie made her some clothes that she may use for the following day, which all were tailored close enough to Ranma's taste; Taana gave her a pellet supposedly to help subside the pain which wasn't as effective as she hoped for but there really was no other option; and lastly Kiyoe, made her a small bowl that didn't ran out of water for her to drink that changes to the temperature of her liking. After a few more adjustments and apples shared, they all cleared the room, picked up the seeds and left, leaving Ranma now alone.
"Man, where is a bowl like this when I need one," she said as she took a sip of cool water. Although, I can't turn back into a guy just yet can't I? she thought. Ranma groaned painfully as she felt the deep wounds of her back pulsate sharply. If she would transform herself at this moment, she might as well swim in her blood. She laid herself carefully on to the futon, a little annoyed that she had yet to stay in this form until who knows when. Her wounds usually heal quickly, but those were shallow ones that only take about a day or two. She then closed her eyes, and finally fell asleep.
-End of Chapter 2 -