The next day was a free day for Nabiki. Every student who got captured or enslaved by the local Dungeon Keeper, did not have to go to school or work the following day. That was one of the basic rules in Nerima. So Nabiki was looking forward to a relaxing day after all the craziness of the past few days.
In the morning, Nabiki woke up in her bed with a yawn. She decided not to open her eyes right away and instead just enjoyed the warm sunlight that was shining through her window. She was very glad that for once, she wasn't woken up by the loud sparring noises of Ranma and his father, or the angry voice of her sister. No, it was a very calm and quiet morning. Some birds were chirping, the smell of freshly baked muffins was in the air…
Wait a minute, her brain told her. Muffins? Since when did Kasumi make muffins?
She opened her eyes… and saw a tray of warm muffins right in front of her eyes. It was being held by a smiling, grey-coated pegasus.
"Good morning!" Derpy said cheerfully. "I brought you breakfast in bed!"
Still a bit sleepy, Nabiki rubbed her eyes. "For… for me?" she muttered.
Derpy nodded. "Yep. Fresh from the oven. Miss Kasumi let me use her kitchen in exchange for telling her how to make them. It's my personal recipe!" She smiled. "You were all so nice to me and let me stay here until my wings are grown back and we find a way back through the portal… I just had to do something for you in return."
"That is…" Nabiki was at a loss for words for a moment. She didn't know what surprised her most… the fact that Derpy was able to use an oven without causing a catastrophe, or that someone besides Kasumi was nice enough to bring her breakfast. The unicorn felt something… something within her that she thought had been buried underneath thick layers of coldness, ruthlessness and monetary efficiency. She felt honestly moved by the little pegasus' gift. "That is… very nice of you, Derpy. Thank you."
She was actually glad there was no one else around to hear her. Her first honest thanks in months, or was it years? It was weird and yet it felt… nice.
Derpy simply beamed at her. "You are welcome. Now, are you going to try one? Here, take a blueberry muffin, those are the best. Although I also like the lemon surprise. Do you know there was once a shortage of lemon surprise muffins at Sugarcube Corners and I went on an angry rampage throughout Ponyville?"
Nabiki chuckled to herself and listened to Derpy's flood of words while trying one of the blueberry muffins. It was really, really good.
Nabiki was also intrigued by Derpy's stories about her hometown. She had never met another intelligent pony in her entire life… and suddenly, she learned about this whole new world that was filled with creatures just like her. She felt a certain… kinship towards the walleyes pegasus because of that.
"You wanna join me on my morning walk?" she asked Derpy after she was finished with her muffins.
"I'd love to, but Miss Kasumi offered to teach me some Japanese recipes," Derpy said. "Also, I'd like to get a bit better in the kitchen so I can cook for my little Dinky back home. I just hope Miss Kasumi isn't too impatient… I can be a little clumsy at times." She sheepishly scratched the back of her head.
Nabiki smiled. "You won't have to worry about that. Kasumi has the patience of a saint when it comes to teaching cooking. You should see her when she tries to teach something to Akane… Well, I hope you have fun."
After having breakfast and getting ready in the bathroom, Nabiki went into the dojo, where her father and Genma were instructing their new students. She decided to stay for a moment, watching from a corner as the two fathers gave instructions to the two individuals standing in front of them.
The first one was a small catgirl with light green fur wearing shorts, a leather vest and a red scarf around her neck. Her name was Carol Tea. The second one was a tall, pretty handsome, middle-aged man wearing a full set of medieval armor. His name was Frederick.
Soun stood in front of them. "Welcome to the school of Anything Goes Martial Arts," he said in a stern voice, showing Nabiki that her dad could be authoritative if he wanted to. "My name is Soun Tendo, and this is my friend, Genma Saotome. We are your fighting instructors. I hope you are prepared to train hard and learn the ways of Anything Goes."
"Oh yeah, I can't wait!" Carol said with a grin and fist-pumped. "Let's do this!"
"Indeed, I am prepared as well to acquire a new way of fighting, mylords," Frederick said with a respectful bow of his head.
Soun and Genma exchanged a quick, confused glance. "Um… please don't call us 'mylords'," Soun said "The proper term would be 'sensei'. Now then… has anyone among you any sort of experience in unarmed combat?"
"You bet I have," Carol nodded. "I've learned some awesome kicking moves when I was a member of the Red Scarves, together with my best bud Lilac. But most of the time, I like to use my claws. Oh, and I also know some sick fighting moves on my motorcycle."
"As a knight, I have learned almost any kind of combat, and I also know how to defend myself with my fists, if the need arises," Frederick explained. "But the weapons I am most comfortable with are swords, axes and lances. Also, I excel at fighting on horseback."
Genma sighed. "So neither of you knows anything about true martial arts. Very well… I guess we'll have to start from the bottom and work our way up."
"Hey dad," Nabiki then said. "Sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to let you know I'm going out for a while."
As soon as he heard her voice, Frederick instantly turned to face Nabiki and gave her a courteous bow. "A good day to you, Lady Tendo."
Both Nabiki and Carol looked at him with irritation. "You, um… don't have to do that," Nabiki said. "And please call me Nabiki."
"Yeah, dude," Carol agreed. "Don't be so stiff all the time. Lighten up a bit."
"But she is the daughter of my host and new fighting instructor," Frederick insisted. "Not showing her the proper respect would be impolite and unbecoming of a knight."
However, Soun was mostly irritated by his own daughter. "You're going out… and decided to inform me about it?" he asked. "That's new… usually, you just leave and come whenever you feel like it."
"Well yeah, I just felt like informing you," Nabiki said with a small frown. "That's all. Now… have a nice spar and everything, I'm out." She turned around and left.
Genma stepped next to Soun. "That is new for her," he agreed. "Do you really think she's going to change for the better?"
"I sure hope so." Soun couldn't help but show a small, but proud smile. "Maybe it is the influence of the little grey pegasus, but maybe we were too quick to judge my little girl…"
"Being a father is a burdening task, my lord," Frederick said. "But in the end, it is definitely worth it. I speak from experience."
Soun sighed. "I suppose… but please don't call me that."
A few minutes later, Nabiki was walking through Nerima's shopping district. Several merchants had put up their carts on the street, so the little pony took a look at the wares they had to offer. Most of it was fresh food and adventuring supplies, but nothing that really caught her interest. She walked past a wandering minstrel who played a beautiful song on his accordion. Nabiki's first impulse was to walk past him… no reason to waste any money on street musicians, right?
Then she wondered what Derpy would do.
Eventually, she floated a coin towards the bird-like minstrel. He took it with his wing-hand and smiled gratefully as he continued to play.
As Nabiki continued on her way, she came along a completely new shop. It looked pretty ordinary from the outside, but the big wooden sign next to the entrance draw her interest.
'June's Class Change Emporium,' it read.
Curious, Nabiki entered the store. A little bell started ringing as she opened the door. Shelves filled with colored orbs aligned the left and right wall. Directly ahead was the counter, supervised by none other than June the dryad.
"Welcome to June's Class Change Emporium," she said with a smile. "My name is June, how can I help you?"
"You're the one who gave those orbs to Ranma and Akane, aren't you?" Nabiki frowned.
"Wrong," June said. "My friends Hiroshi and Daisuke were the ones that gave the orbs to them. I'm just the one who sells them."
"Is that so?" Nabiki took a look around. "A pretty clever business idea, I must say. In a community like ours, lots of adventurers might not be satisfied with their choices in life. And with the Kuno dungeon in the middle of town, you'll be certain to have lots of customers. Did you make all of these yourself? How are they made anyway?"
"Magic," June simply said. "And yes, make them all myself. And no, I can't tell you the procedure. Business secret, you know?"
"Of course I wouldn't expect you to simply tell me the secret," Nabiki smirked. "To be honest, I'm not really interested either."
"Oh?" June raised a green eyebrow. "Then why did you come in? Just out of curiosity? Or is there something you wish to be? Something you can't do but always wanted to do?" The dryad smiled like the cat that got the canary.
Nabiki grimaced. She didn't like it when people managed to read her like an open book. But it was true, she had been thinking about the class changing orbs for a while, ever since she knew about them from Ranma and Akane. And seeing Yuka use magic spells as easy as she did… it was more than enough to make the young unicorn jealous. Sure, she was able to cast some easy spells, but nothing outstanding. Only simple spells such as levitation or paralyzation.
Now, as she stood in the middle of June's shop, she was surrounded by countless orbs that were a big temptation… Orb of Wizard, Orb of Archmage, Orb of Warlock, Orb of Necromancer, Orb of Druid… so many different spellcasting classes. And Nabiki even had enough money, the prices weren't completely unaffordable.
But… did she really want to do it?
"Using an orb doesn't just give you the skills, right?" she asked. "You're exchanging your previous 'class' for the new one."
"That's right," June nodded. "But I can't really tell you what skills the orbs would take away from you. That is different for every orb and every person. The only thing I can assure you that some of your skills will be different."
What would her current class be, Nabiki wondered. High school student? Financier? Magic novice? Ice Queen of Furinkan? And more importantly… what skills would she lose?
It was a very big risk. One that Nabiki was not ready to take. Worst case scenario, she would lose all of her financial and manipulative capabilities… and weren't those the things that defined her as Nabiki Tendo?
"I won't deny that I was tempted to try out one of those orbs," she finally said. "But I decided against it. If I really want to learn more magic… I will have to learn it the long, hard way. Risk-free."
June chuckled. "Well, it's your decision. If you don't want to buy an orb, that's too bad. But how about a refreshing drink on the way?" She gestured towards a small rack filled with colorful bottles.
Before Nabiki could response, the door opened again. "Excuse me? Can you tell me the way to the Unryu pig farm?"
"Hello, Ryoga," Nabiki said, even before turning around to face him. And indeed, it was the eternally lost boy and rival of Ranma, Ryoga Hibiki.
"Nabiki?" The bandana-clad boy blinked in confusion. "What are you doing in a brothel?"
June's eyes twitched when she heard that. "This is NOT a brothel!" she snarled.
"Are you sure?" Ryoga wondered. "Your outfit looks like it…"
Before June could get really mad at Ryoga, Nabiki quickly explained: "This is a store in Nerima's shopping district. Did you get yourself lost again, Ryoga?" She shook her head. "Sometimes I feel really bad for Akari."
"It wasn't my fault," Ryoga protested. "I just stepped behind a tree to… take care of some business, and when I turned around, the Unryu farm was gone."
Nabiki chuckled and sighed. "Same old Ryoga. Well, are you going to stop by at our place to say hi?"
"This time, I'd rather not," Ryoga frowned. "I didn't really want to get lost in the first place… and Akari promised to make dinner. I really need to find my way back… somehow. And I can't let myself be distracted by Ranma again."
"It's just as well, we just finished repairing the dojo," Nabiki said. "All of Daisuke's hard work would have been for nothing if you two wrecked it again."
"Would you like to take a class change orb along on the way, stranger?" June asked with a smile. "We have a wide variety to offer, so I'm sure there's one here for you."
"Sorry, not really interested," Ryoga replied. "Although… all this wandering around I'm doing usually gets me pretty thirsty, and those drinks you have there look appetizing. Can I get a couple of those before I leave?"
June grinned, filled with satisfaction. "Most certainly, sir."
She helped Ryoga choose and pack a few of the essences, which he stuffed inside his backpack. After paying, he quickly left.
"Now, to find my way back to Akari," he muttered. "But which way was the Unryu pig farm again?"
He got lost several times on his way to find Akari's place. And every time, he had to ask for directions. Sometimes, he gave the helpful people one of the drinks he bought as thanks. He wasn't thirsty enough to drink something himself, at least not yet.
Ryoga was surprised himself, but in the evening, he finally managed to find his way back to the farm. Akari welcomed him with open arms.
"I was so worried," she said as she gave him a welcoming hug. "I knew I should have accompanied you when you went behind that tree."
Ryoga turned a bit red from her words. "Akari… there are certain things a man needs to take care of himself." He then smiled at her. "But I'm glad I'm back." He looked over to where Akari's prize sumo pig, Katsunishiki was lying. "Heya, buddy."
The sumo pig snorted in greeting.
Ryoga smirked and looked back at Akari. "I'm not too late for dinner, am I?"
"Of course not," she smiled. "Come on in, I've prepared a nice feast for the two of us. No pork, of course."
"And I even brought something refreshing to drink," he smirked as he pulled the last remaining bottle out of his backpack.
She looked at it curiously. "What is it? It looks so… green."
Ryoga shrugged. "Dunno. Some vegetable juice, maybe? We won't know until we try it, right?"
"I guess that's true," she said. They went inside the house and sat down at the table. Ryoga's stomach started rumbling when he saw all the tasty food, lots of rice and vegetables, together with a bit of fish. "Sure looks great."
"Thank you," Akari blushed. "Now please pour me some of that juice, my dear little piggy."
Ryoga suppressed his urge to flinch at her nickname. Even after a long time as Akari's boyfriend, he still wasn't quite used to the fact that she adored his cursed form, something he grew to loathe before meeting her.
'That Jusenkyo curse really messed up my life,' he thought to himself. 'I just hope Akari will never have to deal with a weird transformation such as mine.'
He poured some of the essence into Akari's glass, and some into his own. They crossed arms and clinked glasses, smiling at each other lovingly.
"To a lovely evening with the most charming boyfriend I could ever hope for," Akari smiled.
Ryoga smiled right back at her. "To a wonderful life where I never have to leave your side again."
And then, they both started drinking at the same time.
While the essence was pouring down their throats, their skin slowly began to turn as green as the liquid they were consuming. Their bodies started to grow taller and their arms and legs started to expand with muscle. Ryoga's small fangs grew longer than ever before, turning into prominent tusks that were visible even when he closed his mouth. At the same time, Akari grew her own set of smaller, much cuter tusks. Their ears grew a bit pointy, and their hair grew long and shaggy.
Their clothes transformed as well, turning into matching sets made of sturdy leather and fur, with bits of metal here and there. Akari got an impressive pauldron on her right shoulder, while Ryoga's bandana turned into a protective piece of headgear, which was just as yellow and spotted as the bandana was.
While this was happening, other things around them changed as well. Several pieces of farming equipment turned into dangerous-looking weapons, huge axes and spears with spiked blades at their end. In one corner of the room, a huge pile of wolf pelts appeared. And Katsunishiki himself grew even bigger and shaggier than before, while he grew a pair of tusks that were as big and dangerous as daggers.
The two orcs put the skull-shaped cups they were drinking out of down on the table with a pair of guttural grunts. "By the ancestors… that was refreshing," Ryoga grunted in a much deeper voice.
"I guess I can be thankful that my mate got lost and brought home such a tasty beverage for our feast," Akari spoke in a voice that was deeper than before, but could still be considered lovely.
"True, but now I want to see what my lovely mate has prepared to eat," the young orc grinned as he looked at the food. Piles of meat where everywhere on the table: Beef, roasted wolf, even some rabbit and deer meat. Still no pork though.
The orc couple grabbed whatever food was closest to them and started gnawing on it, no plates or cutlery needed. Their big, sharp teeth were more than enough to tear into the meat. And whatever they couldn't gnaw through, they washed down with some mead. If any onlooker would happen to be watching, they would believe this to be feeding time for a pack of hungry animals, not a romantic dinner for a couple of orcs in love.
But for Ryoga and Akari, nothing could be more romantic… well, almost.
After most of the food was devoured, and only a single haunch of beef was left lying in front of them, the two orcs stared at it intently.
"I saw it first!" Ryoga shouted and dove for it.
"No way, that last piece is mine!" Akari roared and tackled her boyfriend from the side.
"Hey, I'm the one who was running around all day, so I deserve it more," Ryoga argued as he tried to push his girlfriend away from the meat.
"But I'm the one who prepared the feast in the first place, so I deserve it more," Akari grunted. She pushed Ryoga down onto the table.
For a while, the two orcs wrestled as they each tried to get closer to their prize. Then they stared at each other.
"How 'bout a nice fighting match, sweetie? Winner gets the haunch," Ryoga suggested.
She grinned and gave him a kiss. "Nothing would be more romantic."
Ryoga armed himself with a pair of clawed gauntlets, while Akari grabbed a huge hunting spear. Together, they went outside, to a small fighting ring filled with mud. This was the training spot for the sumo pigs, but also for the young couple.
Ryoga and Akari raised their weapons above their heads and roared.
"Lok'thar ogar!" Ryoga shouted.
"Blood and thunder!" Akari yelled back.
And then, the traditional battle for the feast between young, mated orcs began.
Their love was even stronger after they were finished.
Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.
The Dryad (NPC) and everything Terraria belongs to Re-Logic.
Derpy Hooves and My little Pony belongs to Hasbro.
Wonder Woman belongs to DC Comics.
World of Warcraft belongs to Blizzard.
The Legend of Zelda belongs to Nintendo.
The Horned Reaper and Dungeon Keeper belong to Bullfrog Productions.
Freedom Planet belongs to GalaxyTrail.
Fire Emblem belongs to Nintendo.
