Chapter Ten: For Whom the Bell Tolls

The next few days passed in a flurry of activity as everyone prepared for the upcoming wedding. Ranma smirked as he recalled his father's expression when he and Kasumi had come home that day and announced that they were getting married in a week.

"Yo, oyaji. Call a priest," Ranma had casually tossed into the room. The effect had been immediate. Both Soun and Genma had spilled their sake all over the shogi board and whirled around at the door.

"Who are you and what have you done with my son?" Genma had asked incredulously.

Ranma, for his part, had merely shrugged and grinned. "Left him in a closet this morning. Now, you gonna call that priest and make a reservation, or not?"

"For real?" Genma and Soun broke out into fountains of tears

Nodoka, of course, had gone off into her "my son is so manly" speech as soon as she heard. It had taken a good hour before any of the parents had finally accepted that this was for real – he was getting married, and he was asking them to call for a priest.

Of course, Genma and Soun had wanted to go and call one right away, but one brief glance from Kasumi had them backing down from that idea on the promise of not getting any dinner for the next two weeks.

V----------------V

This being Nerima, however, nothing could go as planned. As usual. Ranma hung his head as Akane duelled Kodachi out in the backyard, Genma and Soun pummeled Kuno for trying to disrupt the wedding plans, and Iori, their temporary houseguest, continued to pester Nabiki to the point where the brunette had practically begged Ranma to knock him out or something.

Geese had shown up, too, somehow having gotten wind of the news. What had surprised Ranma was that he was accompanied by a a pretty blonde woman and an eight-year old child. Geese had looked at him and grinned.

When Ranma had shot the crime lord an inquisitive glance, Geese had shrugged, waited till no one was within earshot, and muttered his reply. "It involved a lot of grovelling."

The newly-reunited Howard family had left shortly thereafter, promising to attend the wedding. Invitations had been sent out, requiring some rather exotic deliveries from the Nerima Post Office, as some of the letters went to far-out remote locations. Of course, them being trained in martial arts speed delivery helped a great deal in making sure the invites got to their destinations in time.

Speaking of mishaps, there were more than a few occasions when Akane had tried to help out cooking when she wasn't warding off one of the Kuno siblings. It had taken Kasumi and Nodoka quite a while to dissuade her from even entering the kitchen, and the youngest Tendo daughter had then taken it upon herself to arrange decorations for the wedding that would – once more – be held in the dojo.

Two weeks after his proposal, Ranma frowned as he entered the dojo for his daily practice. He was glad Akane and Shampoo were getting along, and they had fun decorating the dojo, but this was getting a bit out of hand. He could ignore the traditional white paper streamers that hung from the beams above and around the doors, and he quite liked the blessed sutras that had been placed along the dojo walls – Kami only knew where they had gotten a priest to make them for them.

There were some pink and red and blue streamers and accompanying tinsel that hung from the rafters and in the corners of the roof that were slightly disconcerting. He didn't exactly have much experience with weddings, but he was quite sure tinsel wasn't appropriate. Then there were the light globes that hung from the ceiling that would have been more appropriate in a disco than in a dojo.

And while he liked the fact that the shrine had been moved to the far side of the dojo to act as a sort of altar, and that pictures of Cologne and Ukyo had been added to honor their memory, he was quite certain that the pine tree, complete with full Christmas decorations, was completely out of place.

Ranma wasn't sure whose idea that last one had been, but he made a mental note to talk to the two girls about their decorations. He tugged the rope causing Ryoga to follow him into the dojo. The lost boy had shown up the day before, and Ranma had decided he wouldn't take the chance of his best man being three weeks late to the wedding, hence the rope tied around Ryoga's waist that was permanently attached to some piece of furniture whenever he was in a room. Furniture that was, just as a precaution, bolted down to the floor.

"Is this really necessary?" Ryoga grumbled as he followed Ranma into the dojo. He felt rather ridiculous at being led around by a leash, even if he could acknowledge the fact that he probably needed it. The house had been devoid of people all morning, which was why Ranma had taken the opportunity to drag the lost boy into the dojo for a sparring session. It didn't particularly concern the pigtailed boy, since the wedding was scheduled for the next day, and he assumed everyone was out finishing last-minute preparations. The pigtailed boy wanted to take advantage of not feeling wedding jitters…yet. He was sure they would come tomorrow at the most inopportune time.

Ryoga had agreed all too quickly, considering the fact that he had been getting bored stiff all morning, tied to the couch in the living room as it was.

The dojo was dark as Ranma entered, which was strange because the window blinds were shut and the only light fell in from the open door as he slid it aside. Behind him, he didn't notice Ryoga's smug grin even as the pigtailed boy went to flip the light switch. When nothing happened, and he heard Ryoga slide the door shut behind them, he spun around in a combat stance, expanding his senses in preparation for an assault.

Before he could completely figure out what was happening, though, all of the blinds went up in one smooth motion, and a shout of "Surprise!" echoed in the air.

Ranma stared in shock at the people assembled in the dojo. "What's going on here?"

"This is a bachelor's party, silly!" Ryoga knocked him upside the head from behind.

"A what?"

"A bachelor's party! It's what you do the day before you get married! You celebrate your last day of freedom." Mousse poked his head out from behind an enormous cake that looked suspiciously like a certain panda.

"Mousse?" Ranma stared at the myoptic amazon. "I didn't think you'd make it. Last I heard, you were still at the Musk Citadel."

"I was. Herb showed me the invitation, and flew us both over." Mousse grinned. "I wouldn't miss this for the world."

"I'm just glad there's no girls for them to oogle this time around. I'm serious, their behavior is utterly embarassing for me." The ruler of the Musk sighed as he shook Ranma's hand, indicating at Mint and Lime who were flanking him on either side.

Ranma smirked. "Good to see you, Herb."

"What about me, Saotome?"

"Saffron! Man, you came, too?"

"Of course." The phoenix god snorted. "You sent me an invitation, did you not?"

"Hey, fem-boy!"

"You, I could have done without," Ranma jested as he shook Taro's hand. "By the way," he noted, retrieving a scroll from hidden weapons space. "Here. Show it to Happosai whenever you see him and get him to change your name."

"What's this?" Taro took the scroll, unrolling it.

"Just his agreement to change your name to whatever you want, no strings attached." Ranma grinned. "It took me a while, but I managed to 'convince' him that it was better for his health."

"Cool! I might just stop calling you 'fem-boy' for this!" Taro's grin split his face as he pocketed the scroll.

"Speaking of the old pervert…" Ranma turned to Ryoga. "I sure as hell hope you didn't invite him."

"Well…"

"You didn't, did you?"

"Uh…"

"Ryoga…" Ranma's voice took on a dangerous undertone.

"Now wait, Ranma-"

"Did you invite him?"

"I'm your best friend, remember? You don't kill your best friend!" Ryoga's face took on a panicked look.

"No, but I'll seriously maim you if you say what I think you're gonna say."

"Well, he's not here, is he?" Ryoga, knowing that he couldn't lie to save his life, much like his pigtailed rival, sighed in relief when the noncommital answer seemed to pacify the pigtailed martial artist.

A small boom behind all of the men caused them to turn around in surprise, just in time to catch sight of five new arrivals as the smoke parted. "Oh, how cute! A bachelor's party!"

Ranma's eyes widened. "Urd! Belldandy-san, Skuld-san! Keiichi!"

"And lil' old me." Ranma nearly choked as he heard the seductive voice. Hild stepped forward, running a finger along his jawline. "Since it's your last day as a free man, mind indulging lil' me?"

The assembled group broke out into laughter at the Saotome youth's beet-red face. Hild shrugged. "Oh well, can't win them all." She moved on to Ryoga. "How about you, cutie?" Ryoga did what he always did when confronted with an attractive woman – he fainted with a nosebleed.

Ranma glanced down, and snickered. "The more things change…"

"Oh phoey. Why can't I ever get one of the decent guys?" Hild grinned when the rest of the male populace in the room stiffened in indignation. "Oh, calm down you guys. Seriously, kids these days. No sense of humor."

Uncharacteristically, Urd snickered at her mother's joke. "Hey, kiddo," she greeted Ranma softly. He returned the silver-haired goddess's smile.

"Hey, Urd. How ya doing?"

The goddess grinned. "I've been good. So, you finally popped the question, eh?"

Ranma nodded, then turned and offered the remaining two goddesses a curt bow. "Hello, Belldandy-san, Skuld-san."

"It's good to see you, Ranma-kun." Belldandy smiled at him, before nudging her younger sister.

"Hi, Ranma," Skuld muttered. She barely remembered the pigtailed boy from when he had stormed the temple four years ago to save her and her sisters from a demon's evil clutches. Of course, things hadn't been quite that melodramatic, but it had been hard to forget him anyway, with Urd going off to fight the battle at Jusenkyo not long afterwards.

"Ranma-san." Keiichi glanced around the room, distinctly reminded of the parties the Nekomi Tech Motor Club usually threw over at Chihiro's place after a competition.

"So, you guys going to be staying till the wedding tomorrow?" Ranma grinned as he went over to a crate in the corner and pitched them all a bottle of water.

"Of course." Urd grinned as she caught her bottle. "Wouldn't miss it for anything, kiddo. What's this?" She glanced down at her catch, and frowned in disgust. "What, no sake?"

"Urd!" Belldandy chastised her.

The elder goddess shrugged. "Hey, this is a party, right? No party's a real party without booze."

"Right." Hild snapped her fingers, and a row of sake caskets appeared at the far wall of the dojo, next to Ranma. "Now," the demoness smirked. "Let's get this party started, right?"

"Boobs!" At the dual shout, Herb began banging his head against the wall.

"So much for good behavior," the Musk prince muttered.

A quick set of lightning bolts left the prince's two retainers twitching on the ground, and Urd kicked the near-unconscious Mint once more for good measure for trying to grope her. Ranma merely shrugged, used to the antics of these two.

"At least it can't get any worse," he muttered.

"SWEETO!"

"Me and my big mouth." Ranma joined Herb in banging his head against the wall.

V----------------V

In the meantime, Kasumi was wondering why Nodoka was dragging her all the way across town to a pub. After all, the wedding was tomorrow, and there were so many things that had to be done until then.

"Auntie, are you sure we have time for this?"

Nodoka smiled at the young woman. "Of course, Kasumi-chan. Relax. Everything's been prepared already, there's no need to worry."

"If you say so." Kasumi frowned. "But are you sure it's proper for us to go out to a bar?"

"Kasumi, Kasumi…" Nodoka sighed. "You've got to loosen up." Of course, Nodoka mused, it took my son and his friends quite a while to convince me to "loosen up," as well.

Kasumi smiled at the older woman, shrugging her shoulders. "All right, I'll try, Auntie."

"Are you nervous?"

Kasumi blinked in surprise at the sudden question. It took her a moment to search her own feelings, and formulate her answer. "No."

"No?" Nodoka arched an eyebrow. She herself had gone through the day before her wedding a nervous wreck, and she had yet to hear of a single woman who wasn't at some point before the wedding. Kasumi, however, had remained perfectly calm throughout the two weeks of preparation for the big day tomorrow, something that utterly confused Nodoka. Maybe she doesn't want to get married to Ranma after all? the Saotome matriarch asked herself.

No. A quick glance at Kasumi revealed that that was, in fact, not the case. She does want to get married to him. "Why not?"

Kasumi shrugged. "Is there something I should be concerned about, Auntie?" When the older woman failed to answer, Kasumi continued. "You said it yourself. Everything's being taken care of. Of course I look forward to tomorrow, and I'm happier than I've felt in my whole life that Ranma-kun asked me to marry him, but I don't fear it. There's nothing to be nervous about. Your son is a wonderful person, and I have absolute confidence that he will do everything in his power to make things go right."

Nodoka saw the utter conviction in Kasumi's eyes, and relented with a smile. "It's heartening to see you place so much trust in my son, Kasumi-chan."

"He has never let me down, Auntie. He won't start now. Besides, nothing much will change once we are married. He will still live with us, and he will still care for us the same as always – the only exception is, that we are now officially bound together."

"Now that you put it like that…you're probably right, Kasumi-chan." Nodoka sighed. "I'm glad to see my son has grown up to be such a good man." The redhead stopped walking when they reached their destination. "In here, Kasumi-chan."

Kasumi entered the dimly lit pub, finding it somewhat different than what she had imagined. Never having gone to an actual pub, she imagined it much like a bar, with hazy air thick with cigarette smoke and drunk patrons passed out over the counter. What she found instead was something that seemed to have been transposed straight out of a local pub in Ireland. A cozy atmosphere with light-hearted music greeted her, and while the light was dim, it was tastefully so. Small booths lined the walls for privacy, a pool table in the center of what she assumed was a dance floor at night, and a clean-shaven bartender behind a polished counter with a friendly smile.

The pub was currently devoid of patrons, except for the group sitting around the counter. At the sound of the door creaking open, their heads turned around silmultaneously and Kasumi walked into a veritable storm of confetti and paper streamers.

"Surprise!" the combined voices of all present women shouted.

"Shampoo? Nabiki-chan, Akane-chan? Setsuna-san?" Kasumi stood in mute shock, much like her fiancee was standing before a different group, in a different place, at the same time.

"Well, Kasumi, aren't you going to go sit down?" Nodoka asked from behind the eldest Tendo daughter in an amused voice. "This is, after all, your party."

"Party?" Kasumi had never been to one of those outside of her home, and those were usually birthday parties for her sisters and Christmas parties for everyone she knew.

Behind them, the door opened again, and everyone turned to face the new arrival. "Sorry I'm late-" He stared at Kasumi in surprise. "Looks like I'm too late for the surprise."

"Tofu-sensei!" Kasumi beamed at the doctor.

"It's been a while since we've seen each other, Kasumi." The doctor smiled. It had taken some work over the last few years, but he had finally gotten over his issues with the young woman. Of course, in that time, he had also watched as she and Ranma grew closer together, and more than once had he harbored thoughts of moving in and breaking them up.

They had never come to fruition, however, once he had seen how happy Kasumi was with Ranma, and so he had decided – after much consideration – to yield to the better man. Of course, he had ended up giving Ranma the same lecture about not hurting Kasumi ever that everyone else in Nerima had, and there had been a substantial amount of tension between the doctor and the pigtailed martial artist for quite a while, but that had passed a while ago. Honestly, Tofu admitted to himself, he missed the pigtailed boy's company. He was a refreshing change from the rest of his daily routine.

"What is this?" Kasumi stared around her in wonder, taking in the fully decorated pub. Fortunately for her, the decorations were done much more tastefully than those in the dojo.

"It's your bachelorette party, of course." Nabiki smirked as he handed Kasumi a cocktail. "We celebrate your last day as a free woman, get totally wasted, loose your virginity to some random guy in the bar, wake up with a huge hangover, and make it so we have to race to the wedding with five minutes to spare."

Akane elbowed her older sister in the stomach. "Don't listen to her, Kasumi-oneechan. We just wanted you to have fun once, and celebrate the wedding while we're at it."

"Shampoo no think of better reason for party," the perky amazon chimed in. "Well, except maybe Ranma lay Shampoo."

The room erupted into laughter at the joke, and the party was in full swing.

V----------------V

Ranma woke to a strange sensation. He felt as if he was floating, and almost completely detached from his body. The pigtailed martial artist slowly cracked open one eye, only to snap it shut again as the sunlight hit his retina, causing his brain to explode into excruciating pain. Letting out a groan of pain as the headache slowly abated, he propped himself up into a semi-sitting position.

The pigtailed boy's eyes snapped wide open when his hands touched something soft and warm. Ignoring the pain from the sudden burst of light that flooded his eyes, he looked down, already knowing what he was touching. He twitched in exhasperation, before slowly, carefully withdrawing his hand from Urd's cleavage. The silver-haired goddess sighed and shifted, trying to recover the lost touch.

Ranma held his breath as she moved, hoping against hope that the woman wouldn't wake up. When she didn't, he let out a sigh of relief, only to have it turned into horror when she reached over, clamped down on his arm, and snuggled against it. He twisted and turned, trying to get out of her hold, but the eldest Norn held on to his arm with an iron grip.

Suddenly, Ranma noticed something else. He was not wearing a shirt, or pants, or much else for that matter. Neither was, he noted with a deep blush, the silver-haired goddess lying next to him. Actually, now that he looked around the room, most of the inhabitants of the dojo were in various states of undress, and draped over one of the women, with the exception of Keiichi and Belldandy, who were conspiciously absent.

"Oh…what hit me?"

Ranma's attention shot back to the woman holding on to his arm, before his brain caught up and told him she was naked, causing him to look up at the ceiling.

"Hm…comfy." Urd yawned, opening her eyes. "What the-" her gaze wandered up Ranma's naked torso, then around the room, taking in the empty sake bottles that littered the ground.

"Oh."

"Uh…did we…you know?" Ranma stammered, praying to whatever god would listen. Kasumi was going to kill him.

"Hm…" Urd placed a finger under her chin contemplatively. "I don't remember. From the amount of booze around here, I'd probably say there's a good chance that a lot of people got laid."

"Urk!"

She grinned, placing a hand on his shoulder, and cast a quick spell that placed them both in their trademark clothing. "No worries, kiddo. You didn't do anything. Well, except give us all quite the show when you stripped."

"Wha-?" Ranma glared at her, causing the goddess to chuckle.

"Don't worry about it, we were all drunk. I doubt anyone even remembers." Urd shrugged, hiding a smile behind her hand.

"Except for you, obviously," Ranma remaked dryly.

"Here, let me sober you up." She muttered another spell that rid them both of the effects of the hangover, and Ranma's eyes snapped wide open when the refreshing spell kicked in.

"What time is it?" His voice took a panicked tinge when he remembered the date.

"Hmm…" Urd glanced around the dojo, looking for a clock even as the people around them stirred from their alcohol-induced slumber. Unable to find one, she snapped her fingers and an antique pocket watch appeared in her hands. "Eleven fourty-five."

"Bloody hell!" Ranma bolted to his feet as he raced around the room, shaking the men awake. Urd took a moment to realize why he was in such a hurry, then she went off to wake the other two women in the room.

"Screw this, I gotta go get changed!" Ranma gave up shaking Ryoga awake, racing from the dojo to change into a tuxedo.

Urd was about to give up waking her sister and mother, as well, when two people appeared behind her. "Got some trouble there, Urd?" Mara grinned. "You had a party and didn't invite me? I'm hurt!"

"C'est la vie," Peorth muttered. "Why not just cast a refreshing spell over zis cabin?"

Urd shot her fellow goddess a dirty glance. "And you reckon you can come up with a strong enough refreshing spell to wake them all, including the runt and my mother, and fix this place up in…" she glanced at her pocket watch. "Eleven minutes?"

"Sacre bleu! Mistress Hild is here?" Peorth glanced around the room. "And zis room is a mess!"

Mara giggled. "Well, you always did know how to throw parties. And after all, like daughter, like mother, right?"

"All four of us can do it." Belldandy smiled at the two new arrivals from the door. "Keiichi and I ran into Ranma-kun in the guest room. Kasumi-san and her party are not back yet, either, but we should hurry."

Urd nodded, and together, the three goddesses began their song. Mara stared at them in surprise; the melody was wonderful, and even though each sang in her own distinctive way, Belldandy's ever-present happiness, Peorth's passion, and Urd's harmony melded together into a song capable of wiping away all anger, all fear, and leave behind nothing but contentment. It took her a moment, but at Urd's beckon, Mara joined her half-sister and her fellow goddesses in the spell. Together, the quartet only took a minute to finish the spell, and when the song ended, Mara felt she knew why Belldandy smiled so often and so brilliantly.

All over the room, people began to stir. Urd, despite the fact that she would have loved to see their reactions when they woke, had had the foresight to hex them all into clothes first.

"Are they awa-" Ranma stopped dead in his tracks when almost the whole room surged to its feet, rushing out the door and trampling the pigtailed martial artist under their feet. Keiichi, who had been walking behind Ranma, wisely moved out of the way of the mob.

He reached down, helping Ranma back to his feet while the Saotome youth dusted off his clothes, trying to rid the tuxedo of the numerous footprints on it.

"Here, let me take care of that." Urd reached over, snapped her fingers, and his tuxedo was once more pristine.

"Thanks, Urd." Ranma glanced around the newly refurnished dojo. "How in the world did you manage to wake them all? And how the heck did you guys fix up the dojo so quickly?"

Urd grinned, casually flicking her long silver hair over her shoulder. "Not hard, with three goddesses and a demon first class."

"M-Mara?" Keiichi took one look at the demoness and dashed behind Belldandy.

"Sheesh, calm down, kid," the blonde demoness grumbled. "I don't always cause trouble, you know."

"I remember you, I think," Ranma noted as he stared at Mara. He dug through his memory. "Hey, weren't you at the temple that one time? You're the chick with the warhammer!"

Lightning crackled in Mara's hands as she glared at the pigtailed boy. "What did you call me?"

"That was so cool! You gotta teach me how to do that sometime!" Ranma smiled at her. "But please, don't let Akane see that!"

"Huh?" The fight left Mara as quickly as it had come as she stared at him in confusion.

"Don't worry," Urd told her. "You'll get used to it. He doesn't mean the 'chick' thing that way, you know. He's never been taught otherwise, but he's getting better."

Belldandy pulled Peorth to the front. "Oh, how rude, let me introduce you." She indicated her fellow goddess. "Ranma-kun, this is Peorth. She's a friend of ours. Peorth, this is Ranma-kun."

"Pleasure ta meetcha." Ranma shook her hand.

"Ze pleasure is all mine," Peorth grinned.

"Come to think of it, what are the two of you doing here, anyway?" Urd asked the two newcomers.

"No one was at the temple, and H-sama mentioned there being a party somewhere, so I just followed her." Mara shrugged. "Hey, even I need a vacation sometime. Maybe we should hit the hotsprings again. We had a ton of fun last time."

"I remember the karaoke duel." Urd grinned.

"I beat your ass flat in that one." Mara copied her half-sister's grin.

"In your dreams, sister."

"My dreams, your nightmare."

"You're on!"

"Bring it!"

Ranma stared at the two for a moment, before turning to Belldandy. "Are they always like this?"

"Yes." The brunette smiled as she leaned into Keiichi. "They're very good friends, though, despite what it looks like."

"I can believe that," Ranma shook his head. "Me and Ryoga are exactly the same."

"Speaking of Ryoga…" Keiichi glanced down at his watch. "Isn't it about time everyone got here? It's noon already."

As if on cue, the dojo doors slid open, and Genma and Soun rushed in carrying the priest. Nodoka was close behind, ushering in all the guests, while Skuld was trying to keep Ryoga walking in a straight line towards Ranma.

Genma set the flustered priest down at the makeshift altar and Soun handed him a well-worn scroll that contained the prayer text he had tried so many times to finish before. The two fathers took their places with the remainder of the guests as the dojo filled up and everyone finally took their seats on chairs that had magically appeared out of thin air.

Ranma took absent notice of this fact, and made a mental note to thank whichever goddess or demon had had the foresight to provide sitting implements. Digging his hand into his hidden weapons space, he withdrew a matched set of rings he had been saving for the last few years. The pigtailed boy handed them to the priest, who nodded, stared the Saotome youth in the eye as if to ask him "are you sure you're going through with it this time?" and placed them on the shrine after he had apparently read a satisfactory answer in Ranma's eyes.

The room was silent for a few moments as everyone awaited the arrival of the bride. Soun had left to look for his daughter. Minutes ticked by, and still no one walked through the dojo doors. The priest cast Ranma an inquisitive glance, only to find that the pigtailed martial artist was in no condition to answer any questions. The groom was locked up with anxiety, and had his fists clenched until his knuckles were white.

Ranma sent a desperate glance at his mother. Nodoka shrugged helplessly, trying to send her son a calming look. It wasn't quite necessary when the dojo doors slid open again and Soun walked through, Kasumi on his arm.

Every head in the assembled crowd turned to look at the bride as her father led her through the rows of seats, and Ranma's jaw dropped in shock. He'd always known Kasumi was beautiful, but seeing her in the white gown, with her long brown hair freely flowing down her back, reminded him of something beyond earthly beauty.

Soun stopped before the priest, letting his daughter take her place across from Ranma. The priest smiled and nodded, proceeding to offer a stick of burning incense to both Ranma and Kasumi. He turned around, reading the words on the scroll in his prayer for their ceremonial purification.

Ranma didn't hear a word of what the man was saying. All he could see, all he could stare at, were his soon-to-be wife's dark brown eyes. She was smiling, seeming not at all nervous, but he could see the almost overwhelming happiness in her eyes. He didn't know how he'd done it, but in that moment, he offered a prayer to the gods himself. Please, whatever I've done to make her happy, let me continue doing it.

He snapped out of his thoughts when the priest appeared before him, holding a small cup filled with sake. It took the pigtailed young man a while to gather his wits, and he took the cup, taking a sip of the sake before offering it to Kasumi.

The eldest Tendo daughter watched serenely as the priest read through his ritualistic prayers. Much like Ranma, she had tuned him out in favor of looking at her future husband. She barely suppressed a giggle at how nervous Ranma seemed to be – it was an eandearing quality to him she found quite cute, much like his naivete. Nodoka's words came back to her. Are you nervous? Kasumi mentally shook her head. No, I'm not. This is what I've been waiting so long for. I'm glad he finally asked me.

When the priest offered her the ceremonial cup of sake, she took it, touching her lips to it, and offered it to Ranma. They exchanged the cups, draining the remainder of the sake. All the while, Kasumi smiled at Ranma, hoping he could see the love she had for him. They repeated the process three times, and three times again with another cup, and yet three times again for the final time, in the spirit of sansankudo.

Placing the six cups away, the priest removed the two rings from their place in the shrine and placed them before the couple.

Ranma forced air into his lungs as he reached out and picked one up. This is it. For real, this time. He glanced up at Kasumi. I wonder if she has any reservations about it? He mentally shook his head. No, she doesn't. Their eyes met, and even as he realized she had noticed his hesitation, he could see that she wasn't at all disturbed by the fact that he was taking his time.

She's giving me time, instead of demanding things to go on. She trusts me this much. The Saotome heir realized with a start that this was, indeed, it. If Kasumi loved him enough to commit herself to him for life, then he could do no less. He opened his mouth, the well-practiced words forgotten as he spoke his heart.

"Kasumi…when I came to Nerima, I was a child. You were the first to show me kindness in a long time – you gave me a place to call home for the first time in ten years. It could have ended there, but you did so much more for me than that. You listened to my words and healed my soul. You helped me grow up from a child into a man. Somehow, I've always known that it would be you…that I'd fall in love with you. When I realized I did, you didn't demand I give you an answer right away. Instead, you waited for me, waited until I was ready to say it." Ranma looked up fully and smiled at her.

"I know I've made you wait, and you don't know how grateful I am that you did, but I am finally ready to say it. I love you, Tendo Kasumi, and I swear that I'll always be by your side. My life is yours, if you would accept it." He gently took hold of her hand, looking for permission in her eyes. When she smiled at him and gave an almost imperceptible nod, his eyes lit up in joy, and he slipped the ring on her finger.

Kasumi barely managed to hold back the tears as she felt his hands slide the ring on her left hand. She picked up its twin, her eyes never leaving Ranma's as she spoke.

"Saotome Ranma, when I met you, I believed you were immature and childish. Yet as I watched you live and battle, I realized that you were also good at heart, and brave, and loyal. Never once have I seen you take the easy way out, and never once have I seen you act selfishly when more than your pride was at stake. You forgave those who wronged you, and helped friends and enemies alike. And when I listened to you, I realized the burden that is on your shoulders. It seemed impossibly heavy to me, but you kept bearing it day after day, and the only thing I could do to help was offer you a friendly word here and there. Somewhere along the way I fell in love with you, like most of the other girls." Kasumi sniffled, holding his gaze.

"When you told me you were falling in love with me, I was the happiest person in the world. I realized that I want to be there with you, there for you, and lighten the load you bear. I love you, Saotome Ranma, and I swear that I'll always be by your side. My life is yours, if you would accept it." She took hold of his left hand, and slowly slid the ring onto his finger.

The two of them stood, taking the twigs the priest offered them, and placed them at the altar as their offerings to the gods, before turning to face each other. Kasumi smiled at him, and Ranma could see his own happiness reflected in her eyes as he leaned down and kissed her. The two looked up in surprise, never breaking their kiss, when Urd and Skuld stood from their seats, standing behind Ranma, while Belldandy and Peorth moved to stand behind Kasumi. Together, the four goddesses prayed for a moment before their combined voices filled the dojo for the second time that day.

Briefly, the couple glowed brilliantly. Ranma, realizing what was happening, flared his aura, letting the bright gold wash around him. In his arms, Kasumi was bathed in an ethereal silver light as their the visual manifestation of their lifeforces intermingled.

It took less than a minute for the blessing to be complete, and when the song faded, the dojo broke out with thunderous applause. Urd gave Ranma a quick wink as he broke the kiss for air, and gave him a thumbs-up. Ranma smiled back.

"Oh my, it's not everyday we get a blessed wedding," Kasumi murmured into his ear.

"Nevermind by four actual goddesses," Ranma whispered back.

Urd produced a sake bottle from nowhere. "Let's party!"