AN: In regards to the first scene, I couldn't help myself! I really felt the need to somewhat lighten things up before the soul searching angst-fest. It came out of the blue to me and bitch-slapped me into writing it!
A BLACK HEART STILL BEATS
CHAPTER FIVE
FREEDOM PART THREE
A MOTHER AND DAUGHTERS REUNION
Hild's mansion: seconds later
Hild sighed as she set her drunken daughter Urd out on her couch. Calling out for her other daughter Marller, she exclaimed "Marller I need you over here now!" listening to her reply Hild said "I don't care if you want to go to sleep now, I have a drunk and passed out Urd on my couch, I need you over here right now!" Hild semi-yelled out.
Marller then popped into the house facing Urd and the couch. "Yep, Urd's plastered alright." Turning to her mother, Marller gasped in shock "What, what are you wearing!?!?!" Marller managed to get out.
Hild looked down and said "My nightgown of course." Wondering what the problem with her attire was.
"That is NOT a nightgown! That is the raciest negligee I've ever seen!" Marller shouted at her mother, completely forgetting how she usually acts around Hild in the shock of seeing her mother in an outfit like that.
Hild looked down at it again, looked up, raised her left eyebrow, and dryly said "If that's the case I really must expand your horizons. This is almost my most conservative sleeping outfit." As Marller gasped in her shock at that statement, Hild sighed and said "I think your sister came here to start a conversation that you really should be a part of as well."
"And what conversation would that be?" Marller asked with curious suspicion
"Urd said, and I'm quoting here," and then Hild went into a perfect imitation of Urd's voice, saying "Why mom? Why do you love him so? And why don't you love me?" Hild then shook her head to clear it. "I am tired of both my own daughters thinking I am an evil bitch that doesn't love them, and tonight we're going to clear this up. If only Ranma was…" Then there was a knocking sound at the back door. Since Marller was closer to the door, she answered it. What she found was a female Ranma in a negligee that put Hild's current one to utter shame. As Marller stood in ridged shock at seeing Ranma of all people in an outfit like that, Ranma walked around her saying
"Hey Marller. I felt Urd come here earlier, but her power felt kinda funny. Is she alright?"
"She's just confused and drunk." Hild said shaking her head. "I was about to have a little family meeting, and was wishing you were here for it. Ask and you shall receive I guess." Then, looking at Ranma's state of dress, Hild sighed and asked "Do I even want to know?"
"Mom suggested a sleepover with me as a girl to start proving she could handle it. So I got into one of my female sides night outfits I own." Ranma said with a shrug.
"Were you trying to give your mother a heart attack with that outfit?" Marller almost screeched out.
"No. Sadly this" Ranma hissed out "Is my most conservative female form only sleepwear." Ranma sighed "I got almost all my female sleepwear for a photo shoot with Nabiki to 'Pay off some of my debts'. In other words I bought these things so I could be photographed by Nabiki in them and then she could go and sell them at school or where ever because I was blackmailed into it." Ranma then calmed herself down and asked "But enough about my little problems, what's wrong with Urd?" Ranma asked in worry.
Hild, knowing about the photo shoots, could calm down after a few moments. After getting herself calm enough to answer Ranma, she first thought 'I knew he was blackmailed like that, but if this was his tamest outfit for those photo shoots…' and then she finally cleared her head and said "You know what I've told you about how my daughters feel about me, right Ranma?"
"Yeah." Ranma said sadly. Ranma thought it was an utter shame that the circumstances of their lives had torn what could have been a loving family to shreds, making them all no more then mere work associates.
"Tonight I'm going to fix it." Hild said with steel in her voice.
"And you need me for help, or just for support?" Ranma asked confused as to why Hild had wanted her here.
"Probably both in all honesty." Hild said shrugging.
Marller at this point finally got her self out of her rage, and had missed the entire conversation between Hild and Ranma. "What's going on?" Marller asked confused.
"I'm going to brew some coffee for your sister to help her wake up." Hild said, heading for the kitchen.
"While you do that, I'm going to go to the bathroom to get some hot water," Ranma called out to Hild.
As Hild nodded in her approval, Marller said "But you're wearing…"
"Hidden Weapons Space." Ranma replied with a smirk. "I always carry a change of clothes now a days." And with that, she went in the direction of the nearest bathroom.
When Ranma returned, properly dressed for his male side, Hild was trying to get a half awake Urd to drink some strong coffee. She also was wearing a high collared floor length bath robe. Probably due to Mara's seeming reluctance to look at her mother in her previous outfit.
Then they all sat down and waited for Urd to collect herself enough that they could all actually have the talk that Hild's been waiting for for too many millennia to count.
Hild's mansion: fifteen minutes later
It was fifteen minutes of angry silence later, and Hild had utterly had it. "Urd," Hild said in an exasperated tone "You came here to start a conversation with me, so when are you going to start it?"
Urd was looking down and whispered almost childishly, "Don't wana."
Hild then started to get angry. Yelling out "I don't care! We're having this conversation NOW! And nobody's leaving the room until we do!" and with that statement, Hild through up a barrier spell around the room, trapping all of them in it. Urd gasped at what her mother had done, and Marller seethed in outrage. Ranma just examined the barrier while thinking 'Huh, this could get ugly.' And then he started looking for bolt holes if and when things got rough between mother and daughters.
"Now why have you always thought I hate you Urd! I keep telling you I love you, and you keep throwing it back in my face! And you," Hild screamed, turning to Marller, "Why have you distanced yourself from me? You know I love you, yet all you do is treat me like I'm an abusive boss!" Hild finished screaming. Hild had finally lost her patience with her daughters, and she was in a small rage. She would finally get her answers on why both her daughters hate her.
Urd responded first screaming "You abandoned me!"
"I did not!" Hild screamed in reply.
"Oh, then just what do you call leaving me to be raised by dad's heavenly host! He didn't have much time for me, but he, at least, made an effort! I saw him every day or so. You, on the other hand, I was lucky if I saw every decade!" Urd yelled out.
"You are a Goddess Urd! I am the Queen of all Demons! I am not welcome in Asgard, just as you are not welcome in Niflheim. That's why I hardly ever saw you Urd, you live in a place I can't go, and the opposite is also true! I could only see you when you were on Midgard, and until about a year ago, that wasn't that often!" Hild yelled back at her daughter.
Turning to Marller, Hild asked "And just what is your problem with me? Why did you distance your self from me all of a sudden?" Hild yelled through just forming tears.
"To protect myself!" Marller finally yelled out after a moment's silence.
That stopped Hild cold. Growling, she asked in a clipped voice "What do you mean?"
"I became one of your agents, and everyone knew I was your daughter! They knew, or thought they did, that you'd give me all the breaks! So I had to make them see that I hated you and you hated me, so that I wasn't in danger, ok? And don't say I should have told you, I had to handle that myself! You couldn't protect me all the time, and I needed to prove to myself I could do it without your help." Looking down, Marller went silent and said "I still love you mom, and I know you love me, and Urd as well, but I needed to prove to my self I could handle things on my own. Maybe I did things wrong, maybe I did them right, who knows, that's all in the past." Looking up, Marller said "I truly had no idea how much I was hurting you, or myself for that matter, now that I think of it."
Hild was in silent shock. Marller still loved her and always had, she just was hiding it to prove something to herself and to try to protect herself. As Hild came out of her slight daze and was about to say something, she saw that Marller was about to speak to Urd, and decided to stay silent for a moment more.
After turning to Urd, Marller said "Urd, you have no idea how many nights I spent growing up listening to mom cry herself to sleep over you. Get your head out of your ass and see the light sister. She loves you, and she always has. It was her position that drove her away from you, just as it was her position that drove me away from her. So stop blaming her for this mess. If anything, blame the fact that she was called upon to be the Queen of all Demons!"
"Well then it's still her fault! She chose being the Queen over her family!" Urd yelled
"Do you really believe that? I had no choice but to take the position!" Hild yelled out in outrage
"Oh, really, and why is that?" Urd sneered
Hild sighed "To explain that is to tell you a story that should never be told aloud to anyone ever." Everyone felt the barrier that Hild had put up strengthen "But I guess I'll have to tell you it for you understand." Hild then took a deep breath, while everyone present felt that their entire world view was about to get a kick in the pants. Then Hild began her story of the death of one world and the birth of another.
Hild's mansion: hours later
After Hild finished telling her tale, everyone was silent for a while. Then Urd spoke up, saying "Mom," Hild's heart lifted at hearing that "You've never been a true mother to me, but I think I see now that that was because of the fact that you never had the opportunity to." Urd steadied herself and said "You at least deserve the opportunity to be a mother to me, even so late in my life. I'm willing to try to be a daughter to you, if you'll be a mother to me."
As Hild's heart soared, Marller said "Even if I pushed you away, I always saw you as my mother. I just didn't realize how much I was hurting the both of us like this. If you'll have me back, I'll be your daughter again." Marller said, slightly teary-eyed
Hild was still for a moment, and then had both of her daughters in a double hug before anyone could blink. She was crying hard, and all anyone could make out of her tearful words were "My babies came back to me."
After Hild had cried herself out and was calm again, Urd said "You know, there's still one thing left to talk about."
"What?" Hild asked while cleaning her face off
"Just why you're after Ranma." Marller said as Urd nodded
"I think Kami-Sama said it best. He makes me feel like Freya again." Hild started off with as everyone stared at her. "But really, does one ever truly know what triggers attraction or love?" Hild asked shaking her head. Then, with her head dropping, she said "Girls, Ranma, I'm suddenly very tired. Maybe we could go to lunch tomorrow and discuses this more then?"
Looking around the room, Ranma said "Every here looks exhausted. I think Hild's right, we should continue this tomorrow."
Urd and Marller nodded in their agreement, and then Hild dropped her barriers. They then immediately teleported directly to their beds, where they fell asleep with in moments. Hild then started to walk to her room and her bed, while Ranma left out the rear door.
A small café in downtown Tokyo, near Hild's law offices: about one thirty in the after noon on the next day
Ranma didn't know just why he was here. He had spent the last few hours in this little café with Hild and her daughters as they started to patch things up between themselves, but he was feeling like a fifth wheel. Or was that a fourth? No matter. He just came to the conclusion that Hild wanted him here for emotional support or something like that. And he was willing to help her with that.
It seemed the conversation was winding down, and Urd was inviting her mother and sister over for dinner at her place, some kinda temple, when Hild's phone rang. Answering it, she said "Hello? Uh-ha, ok, well I'll be there in person to pick her up. What time? Ok seven tonight got you. Thanks Reiko, good bye."
Putting her phone back in her purse, it rang yet again. "Yes? That's good news Hikaru. No, no, just leave it with Reiko and I'll pick it up. If I remember correctly you wanted to go home early for your son's birthday party? Well far be it from me to stop a father from keeping a promise to their son. Just leave it with Reiko and go on home, you did great."
Then Hild's phone went back into her purse. She stared at her purse for a moment, like she was daring her phone to ring again. After she looked up she said "Well it seems that Shower is coming in today at seven. She wrapped things up faster then she expected. We're to meet her and her party at the airport tonight, so maybe tomorrow at your place Urd?" Hild asked.
"Sure. It gives us more time to prepare that way." Urd said nodding.
"And the second call was from the lawyer I put in charge of looking in to the Kuonji claim. I know that you said she already had lost the cart to the Gambling King Ranma, but that is your word against hers. And besides, even after she supposedly lost it, her father still managed to retain possession of it, at least until your father left with it." Hild shook her head. "Well Hikaru said he found something important that could help you case against her, but I just had him leave it with Reiko because he wanted to go to his sons birthday party today. Any way, if he left something out of the report, I can always ask him about it tomorrow." She signaled for the check and then said "Well do you girls want to continue to stay with me today as I work, or do you need to go?" Hild asked.
"I guess we could help." Urd said flatly, but with amused eyes.
"Sure, why not?" Marller said "It is my job to help you." She said in a content tone of voice.
"Well then," Hild said as she got handed the bill, "Let's get going then."
EAN: Well in the next chapter you'll see the start of Ukyo's disengagement from Ranma, and the arrival of Shower the head matriarch of the Amazon Village and Ranma's new mentor. This was no where near the length I said I would be aiming for, but oh well, I got everything covered that I wanted to cover. And gee, I think this was next day delivery, wasn't it?