Mamono Hunter Ukyou Chapter 3
Ikari: Roots of Hatred
Part 2
By Edward A. Simons
Based on characters and situations created by Takahashi Rumiko. Ranma 1/2 and characters copyright Shogakukan, Kitty Animation Circle, and Takahashi Rumiko. Devil Hunter Yohko and characters copyright NCS, Toho Company, LTD., and Mad House. This story revised 2004 by Edward Simons.
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"Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody."
Mark Twain
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"Moko Takabisha." A glowing ball of chi smashed into the tree, scattering bark and splinters. The tree detonated. Ryouga watched it fall and tried to decide something.
"Either this is all some strange dream, or Akane smashed P-chan and I'm in some kind of afterlife." He began counting off points on his fingers. "This is almost summer instead of winter. Akane's cooking tastes great. We did things last night that would normally make me faint. Actually, just thinking about them would normally make me faint." He blushed. "I can find Akane whenever I want to and I feel confident enough to summon a Moko Takabisha like Ranma can."
If Ryouga had thought it through, he would have remembered he was almost always able to find Akane when he thought about her, even though he was hopeless at finding any physical location. The Forest of Ryugenzawa was a strange magical place, which explained the bizarre weather and the Water of Life explained Akane's cooking being edible. What he and Akane did helped explain his newfound confidence. So did the fact he thought it was all a dream and even Akane couldn't fully explain why she took their relationship to such a level of intimacy.
The Lost Boy collected the firewood and returned to Akane, cheerfully unaware that everything happening was fully real. More significantly, he didn't see the boy observing them from the shadow of the trees or the fury burning in the that boy's eyes.
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The ghost of a smile crossed Ukyou's face. Ranma had collapsed onto his futon and fallen into slumber immediately. He looked cute when he was asleep, but restless movements betrayed his feelings over Nabiki and Shampoo.
Why can't Ranchan get a break? I know he's blaming himself. I wish I could just make his pain go away. Not that I've ever been any good at getting what I wish for.
Ranma's room was almost spartan in its lack of furnishings. When you spent most of your life on the move, you learned to only keep what you really needed. Ukyou briefly checked his backpack and his dresser drawers.
That left his pockets. Ukyou moved gingerly, imagining him waking in the middle of things and blushing at the possible misunderstanding. She flipped the wallet open and stuffed some money into it. He'd never accept an offer to pay a share of the expenses at the love hotel.
Now to put it back without him thinking I'm trying to grope him.
But something drew her eye. There was one picture, only one, in the wallet. It showed a tiny Ranma being held by a woman.
His mother. She's aged well. Remarkable how much she looks like his cursed form.
For a moment, Ukyou fantasized holding Ranma's child like Nodoka had once held Ranma.
I guess Genma tried to separate Ranchan from all feminine influences. He must have been hiding the photo for most of his life.
No wonder Ranchan's so awkward around girls. His idiot father deliberately deprived him of contact with any members of the opposite sex, even if they were only six-year-old tomboys.
Maybe Dad isn't so bad after all. He was big, gruff, fierce-looking, and he never said much. Maybe he never said he cared about me, but he showed it.
Just like he must have cared about the mother she couldn't remember. Her father never spoke about her mother, but he never looked at any other woman, either.
Maybe I'm more like Dad than I thought; we both seem better at doing than saying things. And I don't think he's ever been in love with anyone but Mom.
She pulled out her own faded ten-year-old picture. It showed a pair of childhood friends sitting next to each other, happily munching okonomiyaki.
All these years, even when I hated him, I really loved him. But could he love an uncute tomboy like me?
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"Stay out of Shampoo's room, Sneaky Ninja Girl. Shampoo not in mood to be killing you now."
"Killing me? I wouldn't blame you," Konatsu replied. "Nothing I can do will make up for what I've done. I don't know what came over me." The ninja paused and winced. "That sounds both false and inadequate, but it's true. I didn't want to hurt you like this. I guess that makes me a pretty lousy ninja."
"Shampoo not be killing you because Shampoo mad. Shampoo be killing you because is Amazon law. If Amazon woman is defeated by outsider woman, Amazon must kill her."
"Yes, Lady Ukyou mentioned that's why you chased Ranma to Japan. So there's no problem."
"But Airen wasn't a real girl."
"Neither am I," Konatsu replied.
"What, you fall in Jusenkyou spring?"
"No, I've always been a boy."
"Shampoo not just fall off back of farm wagon. Tell better story next time, Stupid Ninja Girl."
Konatsu signed and opened the top of his costume.
"Maybe Ninja Girl is late developer." But Shampoo's tone was anything but certain.
"I'm not going to strip for you."
"What? New Airen afraid he not measure up to old Airen?"
"Ai..." Konatsu hesitated, then took a deep breath. "Airen? Husband. More of your stupid Amazon laws." He sighed in exasperation. "So Amazon law allows you to have more than one husband?"
"No, males is vain and proud like roosters, would always be fighting and there be no peace in house. It not supposed to happen like this, law not consider chance of Amazon woman being defeated by two outsider males."
"Three thousand years of Amazon history and nothing like this has ever come up? You can't expect me to believe that."
"Let Shampoo explain, Stupid Ninja Boy. If Amazon woman is defeated by outsider male, she must make him her husband."
"Yes, I know how you used your Amazon laws to try to trap Lord Ranma."
"No, law is trap for Shampoo," she said sadly. "Law say Amazon woman must make man who defeat her be husband. Is great shame to Shampoo and Shampoo's village to be defeated by outsider. Must kill outsider female to erase that shame or be punished. Must not return without killing outsider girl or be punished. When Shampoo return after refuse to kill girl Ranma, she receive punishment at Jusenkyou."
"If Shampoo not marry Airen, get new worse punishment. But law not say what to do if defeated by two outsider males."
"So you claim."
"Is true. Law assume Amazon woman find and persuade outsider male to become husband. After that, other outsider males must challenge husband if want Amazon woman. Survivor is then husband."
"So you expect Ranma and me to battle to the death over you?"
"No, Shampoo was supposed to make Ranma her Airen, even call him that, but he was not really Shampoo's Airen yet. Law not plan for this," she sighed.
"What about battle? I'm sure there have been Amazon women defeated in battle by more than one man."
"That battle, not challenge," Shampoo replied in the same tone typically used to address a not-especially-clever child. "Battle not have same rules as challenge, no one fight by self on either side. And fate of Amazon womans defeated in battle usually worse than death. Most Amazon womans choose death to fate as slave or worse of enemy."
"So Law say Shampoo must marry both Airens, yet Law say Shampoo cannot marry both Airens. And Shampoo no want to marry you, Pervert Boy."
"So who said I wanted to marry a bossy, manipulative girl like you?"
"Not forget cripple."
Konatsu's head snapped back as if she'd smashed him with a bonbori again. "No, I'll never forget that I crippled you."
"Stupid boy, you no cripple Shampoo. Curse cripple Shampoo. Curse keep Shampoo from Ranma. Now curse kill Shampoo."
"What?"
"Dr. Tofu stupid," she said bitterly. "Waste time on Shampoo. Amazon warriors no allowed to be weak, is shame to Amazon tribe. Shampoo no walk again. Great-grandmother come kill now that Shampoo weak. Is Amazon way."
"Kill her own granddaughter?"
"Great-grandmother," Shampoo sighed, "not have choice. Is law that oldest ancestor punish womans what break Amazon laws. So Shampoo's great-grandmother give curse to Shampoo for failure. Shame to family so great that Great-Grandmother come to make sure Shampoo no fail again, no shame family and tribe even more. And now Great-Grandmother must kill Shampoo. Is Amazon law."
"You told her?" Konatsu gasped.
The girl in the hospital bed remained silent.
"You didn't tell her. You still want to live."
"Shampoo no say that."
"Shampoo no have to. Arrgh, now you've got me talking that way," Konatsu complained. "I'll grab a wheelchair and get you out of here."
"Stupid boy, Shampoo still love Ranma."
"And I still love Lady Ukyou."
"Why you do this, then?"
"Lord Ranma and Lady Ukyou helped me escape from the Kenzan clan even when I was stupid enough to let those women manipulate me into fighting my friends. You obviously don't want to follow your stupid Amazon rules anymore. That's enough."
"Stupid Pervert Boy only make Great-Grandmother angry, not stop her. No reason you get killed, too."
"As a ninja, the clan expected me to complete my tasks even if I died in the attempt. I think saving a life is a lot better reason to risk dying for."
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Kasumi's pulse beat faster just hearing Tofu's voice on the phone. Merely having someone to speak with was a comfort after her father's hysterics and Genma's silence. But she especially wanted to talk to him; she needed his strength so badly now.
"Ranma was too drained to say much," the doctor explained, "but he seems to blame himself for everything that happened. Ukyou told me that Ryouga carried Akane away from the combat."
Kasumi released the breath she didn't realize she was holding, relieved she hadn't become an only child.
"It is odd that they haven't returned by now," he continued.
"With Ryouga's sense of direction, they're probably lost so badly Akane can't find any place she recognizes yet."
"Aren't you worried, Kasumi?"
"Ryouga is used to surviving on his own and he's a superb martial artist. I don't think Akane can get much safer than she is now. He loves her and there's no way he'd let anyone or anything hurt her. And I'm not worried about the two being alone, either. Ryouga's always been a perfect gentleman towards my little sister."
"Does Akane know that he feels that way about her?"
"She has to, only an idiot could miss it. Have you seen the way he looks at her, the way he acts when Akane is near him?"
"Um, he doesn't act like me does he? With his strength..."
Kasumi smiled and almost laughed. "Thank you, Tofu."
"What?"
"You don't need to worry about that. And Akane's not stupid. She has to know how Ryouga feels about her," Kasumi continued. But she wasn't sure anymore. She couldn't remember Ryouga actually telling her sister that he loved her.
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Ukyou busily scrubbed down the okonomiyaki grill. It was a never-ending job, but putting it off would only let things get worse.
Too bad the rest of life isn't that simple. The longer it takes Ranchan to resolve things, the more he's going to hurt people. But that time gives him an opportunity to sort things out in his mind, so he can be sure of his decision. Ukyou still believed she was the best choice, but she wasn't going to force that on him. Ranma was one of the most stubborn people she knew.
Almost as stubborn as a girl who spent ten years pursuing a broken dream.
The bell chimed as the front door opened, interrupting Ukyou's thoughts. Konatsu pushed backwards through the doorway, dragging a wheelchair behind him. Somehow, he looked cute and feminine even doing something that awkward.
"Stupid Boy, Shampoo can still open doors."
Ukyou's eyes narrowed. "I thought you didn't know what they were for," she remarked acidly. "You usually enter rooms by smashing through the nearest wall."
"Lady Ukyou, please. We need to help her."
"Help her?" She almost laughed.
"Her grandmother's going to kill her."
"Sure, Shampoo always tells the truth. Don't tell me you actually believed her." Ukyou picked up the phone, but there was something in Shampoo's eyes.
Ukyou put the phone down and stared at the other girl. Either the Amazon was a superb actress or she believed her grandmother would try it. Even in those circumstances, Shampoo was too proud to ask for help. It took coaxing to even pry the explanation out of her.
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Tofu awoke to the unexpected sight of a tiny wrinkled Amazon hovering over him. Most people would have run screaming and even Tofu was grateful he wasn't wearing his glasses. A blurry Cologne was slightly less unpleasant to look at.
"Where is she?" hissed the Amazon elder.
"Which one? Kasumi? Hinako? Ukyou? Aka...?"
The voice that interrupted sounded full of menace. "Do not play these games. Where is my great-granddaughter?"
"She should be at the hospital."
"Many things are not as they should be, far too many. I ask you again, Doctor, where is my great-granddaughter?"
"If she's not at the hospital, I have no idea where she is."
"If you are attempting to hide her from me..."
"Why would she need to hide from her own great-grandmother?"
"Fool! You know nothing of our ways. It would have been better for her if you had let her die."
Confusion showed in Tofu's eyes.
"Yes, the Law says an Amazon woman who can no longer be a warrior is fit only to be given a quick merciful death. A helpless cripple is of no use to herself or her tribe."
Tofu had become a Doctor because he believed life was valuable. Now this fossilized mummy with her fossilized ideas intended to end a life he had struggled so hard to save. He practically spit the words back at her.
"You disgust me. You wield your Amazon laws like a spoiled child holding a deadly weapon. You don't care who you hurt; you only enjoy the power it gives you. Now you would destroy your own great-granddaughter. Age is supposed to bring wisdom, but all I hear from you is blind obedience to a set of stupid laws that should never have been created in the first place."
"Is that all you know how to do anymore, cause pain and suffering? If that's all your culture has to offer, then you should let it die. It deserves extinction more than your own flesh and blood does."
Cologne's face remained unchanged. "How dare you question the ways of your betters, you insolent child. My life will be destroyed as much as hers. Perhaps I should show you what I am truly capable of, perhaps I should destroy all that you hold dear. It would be far too easy..."
Tofu interrupted angrily, all trace of his normal gentle cheerfulness erased. "If there are any functioning brain cells left in that senile old head of yours they'll warn you that would be your final mistake."
"I'm not afraid of any man," Cologne replied dryly.
Tofu never got a chance to reply; the wizened Amazon had disappeared. The Doctor was left seething at the threat made toward such a gentle, innocent girl. Tofu had believed he was incapable of hating anyone. He was wrong.
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The boy went through the motions of preparing for school.
"Ranma, it's not your fault," Tofu reassured.
"Yeah," he replied listlessly.
"Your chi attacks have never burned someone before."
"Nope."
"You had no way of knowing there was a person inside that armor, let alone that they'd be hurt by the Moko Takabisha."
"Thanks for trying, Doc, but it still feels like it's my fault. Then there's Shampoo. If I hadn't hesitated..."
"You don't know that."
"And Ucchan..."
"But Ukyou's fine."
"I nearly...I screwed up. I coulda hurt her real bad. Seems like anyone close to me gets hurt."
"Ranma." Tofu caught the boy's attention with how softly he spoke. "Ranma, don't do something stupid. In a way, it's good that you're hurting. It means you really do care. But you sound like you're going to push everyone away because you're afraid you'll hurt them, too."
The boy's eyes widened. That was exactly what he had planned on doing.
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Sake was far too weak, but it would have to do for now. In a darkened restaurant, a tired old woman slumped at the table. She lifted a veined and wrinkled hand and stared at it. She held such power in that hand. With her martial arts skills, she could kill effortlessly. She could inflict horrible damage.
What good is that power when I can't even save one girl's life? Shampoo...Shampoo, I'm sorry. I wanted to protect you, but all I seem to do is hurt you. I'd rather have cut my arm off than push you into that Jusenkyou pool, but if I had refused the punishment would have been worse.
Then I blundered about Ranma. He ran when faced with the kiss of death, and this stupid old woman made the mistake of thinking he was a coward and tried to intimidate him into marrying you.
So he proved himself worthy of you, even as I drove him farther away. And now I've blundered again, said something foolish, let my anger turn Tofu into an enemy.
And now I have to do this.
She couldn't do it sober. After the loss of her daughter and granddaughter, it had fallen to Cologne to raise Shampoo. Well, the girl's father still lived, but that pathetic cipher was as useless at child raising as he was at everything else. He'd actually suggested his daughter might want to become something other than a warrior.
Three thousand years of Amazon tradition said otherwise. Those traditions also said Cologne must kill her last descendant. She drained another cup.
Occasionally, a Chinese male contributed a few words of wisdom - "What is happiness? Father dies, son dies, grandson dies."
It was harsh, but changes to that natural order always brought unhappiness. No one should have to grow old alone. No one should have to see three generations of descendants die young with no opportunity to reach their full potential. It would have hurt far less if Cologne had been childless. Instead, after decades of hope, her life was as empty as the cup she had drained.
For a moment, Cologne had the urge to shatter the cup against the wall.
What am I supposed to do? The laws hold our society together. If an elder starts disobeying them, the village will fragment and fade away, absorbed in the paternalist sea of the rest of the world.
Cologne drained another cup.
Why can't these stupid Japanese make something strong enough?
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The day was cold, though the sun insisted on showing itself. Its feeble efforts brought no noticeable warmth.
They'd put the funeral off as long as possible, hoping Akane would return. After a week and a half, even Soun was persuaded that waiting longer would be useless. He'd become a stiff mechanical thing, moving like a broken puppet.
Kasumi was grateful for the support and encouragement Tofu provided. She needed someone to lean on; she was tired of being the one others always depended on for strength. She didn't really hear the words spoken at the graveside, but most of them were lies anyway. Someone that was a beloved friend and relative would have more mourners, but the only ones near the grave were Soun, Genma, Kasumi and Tofu.
Farther back, a lone teen wearing a Furinkan school uniform seemed more focused on writing things in her notebook than the actual ceremony. Kasumi also noticed a woman with long dark hair who appeared to be in her mid to late twenties, hanging back from the graveside. The woman seemed hauntingly familiar, but Kasumi couldn't place her.
She knew, rather than saw, that Ranma and Ukyou were hidden much farther back. Now was not the time for Soun to see the boy he blamed for Nabiki's death. Her father stared silently at the grave, trying to will his daughter back to him.
It was too late for that. Soun was too distracted by grief after his wife's loss to realize what had happened to Nabiki. Kasumi was too young to understand it. After their mother's death, none of the family had dealt with it well and it wasn't till much later that Kasumi understood how poorly Nabiki had managed.
After that day, Nabiki began acting like no one really mattered much to her. After all, if no one really mattered to you, you couldn't get hurt if you lost them. But not caring hurt even more than caring did. It slowly eroded Nabiki's soul leaving her cold and hard and empty as the armor of the Mamono that had possessed her.
People had become mere tools to Nabiki, tools to be manipulated for profit. No boy dared to ask her out. Her body might have been beautiful, her soul wasn't anymore. Nabiki had no friends, merely business associates. But money never loved you back and the quest for profit became an empty meaningless game. It certainly wasn't worth living for and ultimately Nabiki had so distanced herself from family, from friendship, from love, that there was nothing left for her to care about anymore, not even herself.
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Ikari, the Mamono of Hatred, was growing frustrated. The gymnast had put up no resistance, neither had the boy in the robes. The old madman would be a waste of time, though Ikari approved of the small tree growing atop his head. At least one human had some sense of style. Then again, he had access to the Mamono Hunter's school. The midget was useless as a combatant, though he might make a good decoy. But the boy with the wooden sword was a tantalizing lesson in failure.
Tatewaki Kuno overflowed with hatred and though Ikari punctured him with thorns several times, the boy continued to throw off the effects of the venom. Ironically, he owed his resistance to his sister's repeated use of him as an experimental subject for her poisons and potions.
Ikari was tempted to kill the boy, but his mere presence brought such delightful responses from the others. Ikari couldn't have predicted that one of its most useful tools would be someone else it couldn't affect.
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Meyoko had drawn the short straw and ended up having to attend Nabiki's funeral. She'd taught them there could be a profit in anything, so Meyoko busily recorded who attended and what they did. She wasn't sure how this information would be valuable, but some of the other girls would.
They better. I still owe money on the new dress and we haven't been bringing in as much lately.
Meyoko was so busy taking notes she didn't notice someone's silent approach. She almost panicked. What if they know why I'm really here? She imagined angry shouting, perhaps even violence directed towards her.
Trying to calm her racing heart, Meyoko snapped shut her notebook and looked up into the eyes of a woman she knew from her notes to be Nabiki's older sister. To her surprise, there was no anger in Kasumi's eyes.
"Excuse me, what's your name?"
"Me...Meyoko," the younger girl stammered.
"Thank you for coming, then. It's good to know Nabiki had one true friend."
Meyoko froze.
Nabiki a friend? She was a boss, a business associate, not a friend. Meyoko's shock deepened as she realized she didn't have any friends, at least not any real friends, either.
What am I doing? What have I become? Is that what I want, a life as cold and empty as Nabiki's?
She didn't realize she was crying until Kasumi offered her a handkerchief. Meyoko shook her head and ran. Running from this place, running from herself, just running.
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"Ryouga, don't you think it's strange we can't find Shinnosuke or his grandfather? And I'd swear the trees are moving. The paths never seem the same twice."
To Ryouga all paths seemed that way, but that's not what he said. "Maybe it means I don't want to wake up."
"Wake up?"
"Of course, this has to be a dream. After the way I treated you there's no way you'd really do what...um...well you know..." The Lost Boy blushed a deep crimson.
"You think this is a dream? You mean you dreamed about doing that with me before?"
"Umm...yes, of course...I mean no! No! Of course not!" Ryouga stammered nervously.
"You mean you have a good enough imagination to imagine..." Akane pretended she was going to peel off her tunic again.
Ryouga stammered in embarrassment. "That was real. This is real. You're really real. We really..."
Akane started giggling, but stopped when Ryouga's eyes rolled back in his head and he fainted.
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Soun stood alone at the graveside, hands opening and closing subconsciously, reaching for the child he could never reach again, wanting to hold her close and tell her everything would be alright, that she was his precious little girl. Genma had tried to budge his friend, but eventually gave up and trudged off.
Soun heard the crunch of feet in the snow behind him and turned, hoping it was Akane. Disappointment showed on his face and the pretty brunette took half a step backwards.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. I'm Miss Hinako from Furinkan High."
Soun was puzzled. The Hinako he knew was an intimidatingly over-endowed and aggressive woman. This Hinako was slender, with a softer, gentler beauty. In many ways she reminded Soun of his dead wife, Kumori, even though Hinako looked very little like her.
"No, no, you aren't intruding. I just hoped Akane had returned. It's good you came. It's good to see someone from the school."
There was a sorrow in Hinako's eyes that mirrored his own, but he didn't know what else to say. She reached up and gently touched his cheek. Soun felt some of the sorrow drain out of him, but he didn't realize that was more than just his imagination.
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A serious-looking pair of teenagers stared down at the grave. The girl shivered and grabbed the boy's hand. The warmth of her touch broke him out of his thoughts and he looked up to see her crying.
"Akane?"
"Sorry, Ryouga. So much for me being tough, huh? I barely knew Shinnosuke's grandfather. He seemed so energetic when we fought the Orochi. I guess I thought he was faking it when he claimed he was ill."
Ryouga knelt and brushed the stone clear with his free hand. "This says he lasted less than a month after the fight. He used the last of his strength, he gave up any chance of a cure to make sure Shinnosuke would live."
"If he'd just told us, we could have gotten more moss for him."
"But you almost died here. I don't think he wanted to risk anyone else's life. He was just glad his grandson would live."
"We should get some moss for Nabiki."
"I can't do it, Akane."
"What?"
"I can't let you risk your life. I don't know what I'd do if something happened. We barely succeeded last time, but now there's only two of us. I'm afraid, not for me, for you. P-chan isn't strong enough to pry you free from the Orochi's grasp and pull you to safety."
Ryouga noticed he was gripping Akane's hand a bit too tightly and eased the pressure. She kept her fingers interlaced with his.
"I hate being helpless, Ryouga. I have to do something. It's like when I lost my mom. There was nothing I could do. If only you could understand."
Akane stopped. Of course he understood. In a way, he'd already lost both his parents and anyone who turned into P-chan understood feeling weak and helpless. She gave Ryouga a hug.
"What was that for?"
"For being smart enough to tell me I'm being stupid without telling me I'm being stupid."
"Huh?"
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"He's gone now and I'm alone again. I should hate you. I should hate both of you, for the way you kept me from him."
Only the low moan of the wind replied.
"But I can't hate anyone he loves," Hinako whispered as she looked down at the graves. One was new, the earth freshly turned, a reminder of a life cut short. Nabiki. One was old, but still well tended, the grave of someone gone but definitely not forgotten.
I don't even know Mrs. Tendo's name, but when I touched him, I felt the pain he felt over losing her. The pain he still feels. I don't know if this ability is a curse or a gift.
Hinako looked down at herself, at a body not as emphatically adult as it used to be, but one that wouldn't revert to childlike form, and realized she didn't need to ask the question. She looked back up at the older gravestone, then reached forward, touching the cold stone, tracing the carved letters of the name.
"I love him, too, Mrs. Tendo. I see what he must have been when you were with him, what he could be, what he should be again. I won't try to make him forget you, I promise, but he has to accept this if he's ever going to be whole again. You know it's too soon for him to join you, just like it was too soon for your daughter. I'm sorry Nabiki never had a chance to do so many things."
"I nearly didn't get that chance myself, if it weren't for Happo..." Hinako's voice trailed away.
"Just what kind of man is Happosai?" Hinako growled as something dark festered inside. "He taught me a technique that let me borrow strength from others until I was strong enough to survive on my own, but he never taught it to you. He never did anything to save you." Hinako glanced at the newer grave. "He never even tried to save your daughter."
Again, only the wind answered.
Hinako turned and slowly walked away, carrying her own and other's sorrows.
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Ukyou looked up at a clock that seemed to have slowed to a tenth its normal pace. There were no customers in her restaurant; the closed sign had hung in the window all day. It was a mistake. The bustle of the evening crowd might have distracted them from their thoughts instead of leaving this unending agony until they could sleep. Konatsu's attempts to fill the silence with cheerful words had seemed grating and hollow and he finally lapsed into silence.
She stared down at the grill.
I don't know what I feel. Somehow, it doesn't seem real yet. I've only been to one funeral before.
It was her mother's and it had been in winter, too.
I didn't understand. I was two, maybe three. I wish I remembered her. Daddy held my hand so tight, but he never cried. I saw the pain in his eyes and I wished I could make it go away.
She gazed at her fingers.
Ranchan's grip felt just as strong and his eyes looked just as hollow.
They still did. He sat at the counter, aimlessly pushing pieces of okonomiyaki around on his plate. Ukyou couldn't bring herself to eat either.
I wish I could make his pain go away, too. It's not Ranchan's fault. We did the best we could.
She had told him that several times and while his mind accepted it, she knew his heart didn't.
"Come on guys, cheer up," Ukyou forced a smile on her face even as she winced at the hollow words. All she got in return were blank stares. She wished that someone, anyone would do something to break the feeling of gloom. Unfortunately, she got her wish.
The door banged open and a short and annoyingly perky brunette to bounced in. "Does Ukyou Kuonji live here?"
The okonomiyaki chef glanced at the door. "I thought I left that locked." She turned back towards the shorter girl, but before she could answer, the newcomer gave a shriek of delight and glomped Konatsu.
"Pierre, I thought I'd never see you again! Are you a Mamono Hunter in training, too?
The clang of a dropped spatula echoed off the walls. Ukyou stared at the shorter girl, while Ranma made warding motions with his hands. The kitchen door burst open and Shampoo wheeled into main room.
"Leave Airen alone, Pipsqueak Girl." She brandished a bonbori menacingly.
Azusa yeeped and dodged behind Konatsu. Ranma's eyes bulged in confusion. Ukyou dropped another spatula. There were a few heartbeats of silence and then everyone started talking.
"I thought I was your Airen and what are you doing at Ucchan's?"
"I'm nobody's Airen and my name is not Pierre.""Pipsqueak Girl prepare for death."
"Who are you and what do you mean by Mamono Hunter in training?"
"Leave my darling Pierre alone, you aren't nearly cute enough for him."
After that, things got a little confusing for a while, but eventually Ukyou got an explanation from her visitor.
"Let me see if I have this straight. Your name is Azusa and my grandmother wants you to be some sort of assistant Mamono Hunter."
The shorter girl beamed and showed off the bracelet she'd named Babette.
"According to this letter you got from Grandma, my cousin Yohko has an assistant named Azusa. Yohko's cousin Ayako is also a Mamono Hunter and also has an assistant named Azusa. Is the only requirement for being an assistant that your name happens to be Azusa?"
"Nope, you also have to be cute like me."
"Not forget short, stupid, and annoying," added Shampoo.
"I wonder if the others try to swipe anything they think is cute," muttered Ranma.
"Help me, Lady Ukyou. I don't want to look this cute." In the span of a few seconds, Konatsu had been inflicted with an amazing amount of lace and bows he wasn't wearing before.
"If I catch grandmother, she's going to regret this," Ukyou groaned.
Ranma, Shampoo, and Konatsu offered to assist her.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
They had located the empty house right after they found the grave. There was a little dust, but it looked like someone had just left. It felt strange...wrong. Neither Ryouga nor Akane voiced their fear that something might have happened to Shinnosuke.
They ate dinner in silence and went to bed early.
Several hours later, Ryouga woke suddenly. Years of being on his own, often in dangerous situations, had heightened his instinct for sensing them. It never worked against Ranma, but the pigtailed boy never really intended to hurt him. Something was out there in the darkness, and Ryouga sensed its hatred.
He gently touched Akane's shoulder.
"Mmm, wha...?" She stopped, seeing him motion for silence. She heard the gentle rhythmic tapping of branches against the windows. Goosebumps formed on Akane's skin. None of the trees were close enough for their branches to touch the house even during a strong wind and there was no wind that night.
Akane gave a short involuntary scream when the windows shattered. Ryouga deflected most of the flying glass with his umbrella. The door made an unpleasant groaning noise as its boards warped and twisted. Ryouga placed himself between Akane and the door, and held his tattered umbrella in front of him. To anyone who hadn't seen Ryouga use it as a weapon, his actions would have appeared ludicrous.
"You see anything through the windows, Akane?"
"Leaves and branches. They're moving. They shouldn't be, but they're moving."
"Keep watching, but I think the monster is about to come through the door."
Ryouga was almost right, but when the door shattered the form that entered was clearly human. Shinnosuke's movements were stiff and jerky like a badly manipulated marionette. His eyes glowed with a strange greenish light. The broom he wielded had sprouted loathsome black vines that snaked backwards to connect directly into the veins of his arms.
He gave a high-pitched yell and launched himself at Ryouga. Shinnosuke's movements might appear awkward, but they were blindingly fast. If Ryouga hadn't faced Ranma's Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken he wouldn't have had a prayer of blocking the blows. As it was, he barely managed to parry the twirling broom with his umbrella. For a few moments the only sounds were the clack of the wooden weapons against each other and the breathing of the combatants. Ryouga knew he couldn't maintain this speed forever and advanced to lock their weapons together.
He expected to easily force the broom out of Shinnosuke's hands, but the Mamono seemed to be giving the boy added strength. But it was only the semblance of actual strength. Fueled by an inhuman rage, Shinnosuke was pushing bone and muscle past their normal limits. The bones in the boy's forearms cracked like dry sticks threatening to snap at any moment, but he didn't scream or flinch or reduce the effort he put into the fight. A strange feral grimace crossed Shinnosuke's face and Ryouga pulled back in shock. If he kept this up his opponent would cripple himself.
Shinnosuke used Ryouga's hesitation to hammer a series of blows to the other boy's face. The Lost Boy was much too tough for this to stop him, but the blows were brutal enough to stun him momentarily. As he flew backwards, Ryouga saw Akane step between them.
He had time to scream "No!" before he slammed into the wall and crashed to the floor.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
"Shinnosuke, it's me, Akane." She managed to keep the trembling out of her voice if not out of her knees. She prayed this would work. "You remember me. I first came here when I was a little girl. You saved me from the giant animals. You gave me the horn whistle so I'd be safe."
The boy's eyes flickered and some hint of recognition crossed his face. "Akane...I asked...if you could love me...you said...you said...but you chose him."
A green fire re-ignited in Shinnosuke's eyes as he remembered the last few nights, the sight of bodies intertwined, of the girl he loved joined with someone else.
"I'm sorry, Shinnosuke. I never wanted to hurt you."
He screamed in rage and the broom spun towards her head. Akane never found out if Shinnosuke could have resisted Ikari's control like Ryouga had resisted Aijou's. Several bandanas flew though the air. Hardened by the force of Ryouga's chi, the first pair sliced effortlessly through the vines binding Shinnosuke to his broom. The second pair diced the broom itself. Pieces of wooden weapon clattered to the floor and the boy slumped to his knees. The green fire in his eyes faded, but didn't disappear.
"Go," he whispered hoarsely, "Go now, while you still can. I can't fight this for long, but I don't want to hurt you, Akane. You have to go now."
The door and windows were still blocked by slowly writhing branches, but Ryouga knew what to do. He called "Bakusai Tenketsu" and touched the floor. The ground shattered thanks to the Breaking Point Technique, but Ryouga shielded the others from flying fragments with his own body. After a few repetitions, Ryouga stood in a chest deep hole.
"Akane, we have to go." He held out a hand towards the girl.
"But we have to help Shinnosuke."
"We can't banish the Mamono, we have to get help."
"You mean Ukyou," Akane replied with a bitter edge in her voice.
"Please...go...now...can't...fight..." Shinnosuke rasped.
Ryouga grabbed Akane and dragged her into the tunnel. There were the muffled sounds of detonating rock and Akane's protests and then Shinnosuke was alone.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
"The old ghoul wants to do what!"
"Is Amazon way, Ranma. If Shampoo can not be warrior then is time to die according to law."
"That...that's stupid."
"Would Ranma want live if no could fight? No martial arts ever."
That made him pause.
What would I do if that happened to me? Everything I've done, my whole life is based around martial arts. Could I go on without the most important thing in my life?
"Ranchan wouldn't quit that easy. When Happosai used that pressure point to make him weak, Ranchan kept trying till he found a way to get his strength back. He never quit, he never will."
"Is easy to say when you not in wheelchair, Spatula Girl. Shampoo no want to die, but old life is gone. Now Shampoo helpless and useless. Would be simple to let Great-Grandmother finish job."
"Thanks, Ucchan, but I don't know what I'd do. I hope I'd be strong enough to keep going. I got pretty desperate when Happosai did that to me. I couldn't have made it without all that help."
He paused for a moment.
"All that help learning the Hiryu Shouten Ha and getting my strength back and I was so happy I barely thanked anyone. I wouldn't have made it without you, Ucchan, or Ryouga and Akane and Pops and Tofu and even the old ghoul herself. I didn't even thank all you guys."
Ranma fell silent, staring at the cold uneaten okonomiyaki on his plate.
And what did I ever give any of them back, except for those few words?
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
Shinnosuke was alone, but he was always alone, ever since his grandfather left him.
It's good she left with...with...I can't remember his name.
He loved Akane, but he felt the hatred flowing through his veins, too. She had left him alone again and he couldn't even recall if he told her he loved her. It didn't matter anymore. All that mattered was that he stop the Mamono before it regained control.
His limbs were weak and trembling and agony flared through his abused muscles. Blood oozed from the torn places where the vines had grafted themselves to his arms. In spite of that, Shinnosuke made a pile of the remains of his broom, the umbrella Ryouga abandoned, stray bits of furniture, anything flammable that came easily to hand. He hoped the shreds of the umbrella would work as kindling. Shinnosuke struck one of the matches Ryouga left behind and held it to a strip of fabric. As it smoldered, he glanced at the intertwined branches blocking the windows and door. He didn't have enough strength to fight his way through anymore.
A small bitter laugh escaped his lips, a sound almost hidden by the crackling of the flames. Smoke began to fill the tiny house and the weary boy slumped in one of the corners. He was coughing now and his voice was low and rasping.
"Sorry...grandfather...sorry...Akane...too late..."
His eyes were burning and he pretended the flowing tears were because of the rising smoke.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
Azusa was busy trying to steal anything small and cute. As soon as she was distracted, Konatsu used his ninja skills to steal it back. Their pace kept increasing and Konatsu found himself enjoying the battle of skill. For a moment, it distracted him from his problems.
Azusa's talent impressed him. She was definitely better at this than his stepmother and stepsisters. For a moment, he imagined Azusa in a bright pink ninja costume covered with bows and other frills.
He almost laughed out loud, it was actually fun. They were too busy to notice the other occupants of the restaurant. The tension that usually existed between Ukyou and Shampoo was subdued, for the moment at least, and Ranma remained strangely quiet. They discussed the threat Cologne might be to all of them. Shampoo insisted the others shouldn't endanger themselves, but that didn't stop them from offering help.
It wasn't till later Ukyou remembered Ranma hadn't boasted about how he would defeat the old ghoul. She did notice something else odd.
"Shampoo, you're actually calling Ranchan by his name, instead of constantly claiming him as your Airen."
Ukyou's heart beat faster.
Did she finally give up on Ranchan?
At the same time, Ukyou was concerned. She didn't want Konatsu forced into an unwanted marriage, either.
"Amazon law no allow more than one Airen, but no say what to do if Amazon defeated twice. If other outsider male show up they fight to the death. Winner is Airen then. Shampoo no can ask great-grandmother now. This not supposed to happen." Sadness plainly showed in Shampoo's face.
"You didn't answer my question, Shampoo."
Ukyou didn't think the girl would answer and she was almost right. Shampoo's voice sounded quiet and hesitant, a strong contrast to her usual brash confidence.
"Konatsu visit Shampoo in hospital. Worry about Shampoo. Help Shampoo even when she tell him not to. Maybe he do more to earn being Airen."
Neither girl noticed Ranma wince. He had excuses, good ones, but he didn't use them. He had saved Ukyou and Hinako and both times he'd been left exhausted. Instead, Ranma said nothing and maintained his silence the rest of the night.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
There was a thunderous crash and debris flew everywhere. Ryouga jumped out of the hole and turned to help Akane out. Even the Lost Boy's endurance had limits. He had tunneled farther than ever before and the flying rock fragments had hammered him the whole way. Ryouga had continued on willpower, ignoring pain and exhaustion. Now he more fell than knelt and the arm he used to pull Akane from the crater was trembling. Ryouga rolled on to his back and lay still. He barely had the strength to wipe away the sweat pouring into his eyes.
It was dark, but Akane saw lights beginning to flicker on. She didn't know how Ryouga managed to find her home but she was glad to be back. She heard people moving inside the house and froze for a moment. The only thing she wore was Ryouga's tunic, he wore no shirt, and her father would ask a lot of questions she wasn't very eager to answer.
She cupped some water from the koi pond and poured it over Ryouga's bare chest.
"Sorry." She frantically whipped on his pants, scooped up P-chan, cradled him in her arms and rushed towards the house. If she could make it inside, she wouldn't have to explain her lack of shoes.
She almost reached the door when Kasumi slid it open. Before Akane could say anything, Kasumi gripped her little sister in a crushing hug. Poor P-chan nearly suffocated.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
By the end of the evening, Ukyou had noticed Ranma's silence and suspected she knew why, but she failed to coax any real answers out of him. Now she sat alone in her room staring out into the night. She'd spent most of her life on her own and it wasn't till she'd found Ranma that she realized how lonely she was.
I wasted all those years hating him and now I don't even know how to act like a girl any more. If I did, I could help Ranchan with what's eating away inside. He needs someone who can help him and I don't even know what to do, what to say.
If I really was a guy, I could tough it out and pretend it didn't matter, but it does. Every time he hurts, I hurt, too. I want him to be happy. What kind of fiancée am I if I don't even know how to make him stop hurting?
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
Ranma lay on his futon and stared at the ceiling.
They'd be better off without me. Ucchan, Akane, all of them. All I can do is fight and I'm not even good enough at that to keep people from getting hurt. They'd be better off if they never met me.
It was easy, almost comforting to fall into the cycle of blame. His father never accepted responsibility for his own failures so the blame passed to Ranma. If the technique failed it was Ranma's fault for not trying hard enough. If they were caught stealing food, it was Ranma's fault for not being quick enough or quiet enough. Genma taught his son nothing about women, but when Ranma blundered verbally, his father blamed him for upsetting the woman.
Ranma's natural store of confidence had kept him going, but there were limits to it. He had never matched Ryouga's power, but Ranma was capable of the Shishi Hokoudan, the burst of chi energy powered by sorrow and depression. He pretended his father's words didn't matter, but they hurt worse than any beating he received in a fight.
Akane's words hurt, too. She'd been the one friendly face when he first reached the Tendo home, the first friendly face since Ucchan, and then she'd hurt him twice. The first was an accident after their sparring, when she told him she was glad she'd been beaten by a girl, and wounded him worse than she ever meant.
The stupid curse had just happened. I almost screamed that I was a boy and ran.
He didn't know it, but that was the root of his need to criticize Akane's looks and cooking and everything else. He was raised to be a man among men, and it had cost him so much and now he wasn't even a man half the time. Pain, anger, and confusion had twisted Akane's innocent remark into an attack on who he was and Ranma had fought back verbally.
The second verbal wound was when Akane called him a pervert after she walked in on him in the bath.
It ain't like I coulda stopped my body from reacting.
And since then she continued to use the word and it hurt because her opinion did matter to him. She used that word if another girl glomped him or even offered him lunch.
She even calls me a pervert sometimes when I try to be nice to her. And she's gotta hate me.
She had told him as much and Ranma had lost count of the times she rejected him or the engagement.
Not that I treat her any better. I told her she was cute when she smiled, but all I do is make Akane angry or sad and I take everybody else for granted. Akane's right, what happened to Shampoo, what happened to Nabiki, what I nearly did to Ucchan, it is all my fault.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
It should have been comforting being in her own bed, in her own house, wearing her own pajamas. It should have felt warm and safe. It felt cold and empty and lonely.
I can't believe she's gone.
Akane couldn't remember a time when Nabiki wasn't around. Her older sister kept to herself, but she'd always been there.
P-chan bweed sadly, hoping to distract Akane.
"Tha...thanks P-chan," she smiled sadly, "Guess I should call you R-chan, huh." She laughed, but it wasn't a happy laugh.
"I...I never even visited her in the hospital. I was too scared. It...it reminded me too much of when I lost Mom. I was afraid and now it's too late to visit, too late to ever see her again. We take people for granted, we assume they'll always be there, and then we find out too late that we're wrong."
Holding a pet for comfort was no longer enough. Akane pulled out a thermos of hot water. Black hide shifted, changing to tanned skin and she held Ryouga in her arms.
"A...A...Akane, I...I haven't got any clothes on."
"Shh, you want my dad to hear that?"
Ryouga eeped and fell silent.
"Hold me, Ryouga, please just hold me."
He wrapped his arms around her and wished she could be happy again.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
Breakfast at the Tendo house was unpleasantly quiet. Only Genma ate heartily and without the distraction of Ranma's squabbles it was obvious just how big of a glutton the man could be.
In the past, Kasumi had managed to distract people from their problems with a silly comment or something. This time she couldn't think of anything to say. She decided to turn on the television to drown out the noises of Genma's eating binge.
That was one of her worse ideas.
Akane tensed as soon as she saw the screen. Behind the reporter, blackened tree trunks thrust out of the earth like twisted claws trying to tear the clouds and clutch the sky.
"...can see, the fire is still burning. We do not yet have a full estimate of the damage done to the forest. Fortunately, Ryugenzawa is uninhabited, and the nearby villages..."
While the reporter droned on, Akane bolted for the bathroom. Kasumi followed and heard the noise of retching through the door.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
The next few weeks at Furinkan High were oddly quiet.
Hinako returned to teaching, but she acted much quieter and somewhat withdrawn. She was neither the aggressive disciplinarian nor the silly child the students were used to.
Kuno still attempted an occasional attack on Ranma, but those ended in moments and there wasn't much sport in betting how long the fight would last. Kuno was a superb swordsman and his first fight with Ranma had been his best. Since then, his performance against Ranma had deteriorated noticeably. It almost felt like the Blue Thunder wasn't trying anymore.
Akane began carrying P-chan with her everywhere. She was far too skilled a martial artist for the school administration to stop her. She also ignored Ranma and Ukyou, refusing to even admit their existence anymore. The only times you saw behind her mask of indifference were the few times her pet wandered off.
Ranma almost sleepwalked through his days. He built an invisible wall around his emotions and he wouldn't let anyone inside. Ukyou continued trying to reach him, but discouragement showed on her face. Still, she kept beating herself against that wall.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo
The fire had been inconvenient, but Ikari wasn't concerned. It couldn't sense the part of it that had infested Ryugenzawa, but so long as any bit of it survived, Ikari could reclaim the forest later. Of more concern were the ones it had almost had in its power.
It intended to learn from the mistakes of the other Mamonos. Aijou had controlled people, too, but it had made so many mistakes. It badly underestimated it opponents, it barely used the ones it controlled, but its worst mistake was letting the Mamono Hunter and her guardian get close enough to harm it.
Haradachi had done better, showing more patience, and being smart enough to flee when the battle turned against it. It made only made one mistake, but that was enough for it to fail.
Ikari had no intention of repeating those errors. It would have to stay close to maintain control of its puppets, for some of them hated themselves as much as they did other people and that required extra effort to keep them in line. But it could use them as a living shield, keeping the Mamono Hunter and her allies far enough away that they could not harm Ikari.
Unlike the previous Mamonos, this one had a plan to finish off the Mamono Hunter. Unfortunately, it would need to leave the enjoyable warmth of the greenhouse and face the winter cold that slowed, but did not harm the creature.
It would be like a game of shogi. Pieces captured by either side could be brought back into play under the new owner's control. The enemy controlled some of the most powerful pieces, but that could and would be changed, plus Ikari had the advantage of numbers and would be choosing the place of battle. It had even found a use for the one Kuno it couldn't control directly.
oooooooooooooooooooooooo