*Rubs hands together and cackles madly* SHOWTIME!
Nerima was a quiet town, for the most part, and quite well known for its higher than average number of martial arts dojos and such. While the people who lived in Nerima were somewhat used to the occasional strange thing that came through town, most of the time it was peaceful, well except for the mornings at Furinkan high school that is.
Of course, said peace was not likely to last much longer, as a young woman, with hair so dark it was nearly black, dressed in a red chinese style shirt and simple black pants, came into town arguing with, of all possible things, a giant panda.
"Dammit Pops! I told you, I told you it was gonna rain. But nooo, you just couldn't wait for it ta pass." The redhead grumbled at her pandafied father, who at least had the small amount of grace to sweat a little from the heated glare he was recieving.
#Sorry boy, but I told my old training buddy that I'd be there today,# Flip. #,and I wanted to get there as soon as possible." While his response did manage to dim the redhead's anger a little bit, Genma was still keeping a close watch on her out of the corner of his eyes. Meanwhile Ranma was having an argument of a different sort.
'So how come I'm not totally freaking out about this again?' Ranma's question was met with a mental sigh. Ever since he had found out about the fact that the original victim of the spring had somehow ended up in his head, and she outright refused to tell him why, he had been pestering her about everything and anything he could think of.
'Because this has already happened to you. Though you are unable to recall it, your subconscious still remembers.'Amaya stated the fact robotically, as she had told Ranma many times before.
'Uhuh, and how come I don't remember any of this? I'm pretty sure something like being turned into a girl would stick in my mind!" Ranma pointed out triumphantly, hoping to score a point against her kind-of friend.
'Its part of the wish you made in the future to go back to past. In order for me to escape the confines of Jusenkyo I had to willingly give up any possiblility of existing separate from you, but in exchange I have your memories and free entertainment.' Amaya's tediously delivered response deflated Ranma quickly.
'I somehow doubt that I wished to end up as a kitsune but there's not much I can do about that. At least I managed to figure out enough about your abilities to hide the ears and tail, no thanks to you.'
'Oh please, you love me and you know it.'Ranma imagined herself sticking her tongue out, causing the former Kyuubi to laugh. 'And its not like I ever needed to disguise myself as a human, so excuse me for not being quite so familiar with transformations like that.'
Ranma heaved an exasperated sigh as she continued following her father. 'I just hope this place were goin to has hot water. The less time I spend, erk, bonding, with you the better.' Amaya rolled her eyes but refused to dignify Ranma's griping with a response, instead settling in to watch the show as Ranma and her father walked around the corner of the street and saw the dojo a little down the way.
"So Pops, what is it were seeing this buddy of yours about anyway?" The question had been bothering Ranma quite a bit since they had left the hotel earlier that morning, as her father hadn't given a single reason for the sudden decision, and Amaya also refused to give her even a hint of what was going on. Whatever was going on though, had a bad feeling worming its way deep in her gut.
#Uh, well... You see many years ago, before you were born.# Another flip of the sign, which Ranma spared a moment to wonder at the origin of, since her father did not possess pockets of any sorts in his current form. #Me and my good friend Soun decided that we would eventually join our two schools of martial arts into one.#
Ranma blinked. That actually seemed kind of... Not so bad of her father. Something was wrong with the picture she was seeing. Frowning, she turned a narrowed eyed glare onto her father, who began sweating again. "Okay... So how exactly are you going to do that again?"
Genma gulped, knowing even as he pulled out another sign that he was in for it. If there was ever a time that he wished he had never sealed his two personal set of techniques, it would be now. #Errr, we agreed that, in order to properly assure the continuation of the schools, we um, decided our children would marry and produce an heir to carry on the school, please don't kill me.#
Ranma read the words on the sign and froze. Eye beginning to twitch, she read through the sign over again, in order to make sure that she hadn't gotten it wrong. Her control slipping slightly as she bared her far sharper than normal teeth and growled at her father. "Old man, I'm gonna-" Ranma was cut off abruptly as her father stuck another sign in her face.
#Look! Halley's Comet!# Ranma opened her mouth to say something but it was shut with a loud click as her father slammed a nearby stop sign into the back of her head. Moving surprisingly quickly for his great bulk, Genma reached down and picked up his son turned daughter, slinging her over his shoulder before running as fast as he could towards his friends dojo. Whatever it was that had drowned in that spring his son had fallen into, it seemed to allow him to heal incredibly fast when in that form.
As he started knocking on the door, he could already feel Ranma beginning to stir on his shoulder. 'Come on Soun, old buddy. Hurry up, hurry up!' Genma relaxed slightly in relief, though he took care to keep his grip on Ranma tight, when the door began to open, revealing his old friend and a young girl with short brown hair standing there with very surprised looks on their faces. As Genma readjusted his grasp on his daughter, the two Tendos panicked and ran back inside. Genma shrugged and followed ponderously after them, his concentration being kept on holding his son-turned-daughter in check.
A little while earlier...
The Tendo family was sitting around the table, the three daughters still slightly stunned by the bomb their father had just dropped. Akane was feeling more than a little bit angry, after all she had been forced to deal with to escape Kuno and his 'affections' and here her father was handing herself over to another boy. Nabiki was massaging her forehead as she considered the trouble that this would bring the family, although, she brightened imperceptibly, this might work to her advantage, as if the boy was as good as her father thought he was, considering he had been on a ten year training trip, then she could probably make more than a little extra cash somehow.
Kasumi simply sat there as she thought about it, as well as thought over her sisters' reactions to the news. Akane's reaction wasn't too surprising, as Kasumi knew about the trouble she was being forced to go through at school, even after she had tried to talk that poor Kuno boy into stopping. Somehow she was sure that her other sister had something to do with that. And speaking of, she could tell that Nabiki had come to a rather poor, in her opinion, decision regarding the boy. Kasumi was quite familiar with both of her sisters and their respective expressions, easily able to tell the various emotions behind them, even with Nabiki's usual frosty business persona that she wore. That familiarity was telling her that Nabiki was already planning ways that she could make a profit off of the poor boy, and they haven't been introduced yet either. Kasumi sighed quietly, when Nabiki had first begun to gather money, it had been for the family and Kasumi had seen how hard her sister had worked to keep the family financially secure, but she had also seen how her dear sister had begun to change, her motives for getting the money becoming tainted and corrupted over time.
Nabiki broke the silence first, her voice betraying none of the eagerness she felt. "So let me get this straight, you want one of us," She gestured to the herself and her sisters, "to marry a guy we've never met before, because of a promise you and this old training friend of yours made before we were born?" Soun nodded and Nabiki sat back with a smirk. "Eh, fine with me." The somewhat flippant answer caused both her father and younger sister to blink, while Kasumi simply gave another quiet sigh.
Akane looked ready to begin her own, quite loud, protestation towards her father's decision, but was forced to hold her tongue as a loud knocking was heard from down the hallway. Soun and Nabiki both jumped up excitedly and quickly headed towards the door. Akane sat fuming impotently, while Kasumi went into the kitchen to grab the food and tea she had prepared earlier. She made it back just in time to watch her father and sister re-enter the room and hide behind Akane. Kasumi cocked her head to the side, before the source of their fright made itself known in the form of a large panda with a struggling figure slung over one large shoulder.
The panda none to gently let its thrashing burden fall off its shoulder with an indignant squeak before sitting down with a large relieved, at least that's what it sounded like, sigh. The burden sat up and straightened its clothing over her, considering her figure the gender was obvious, figure, before turning and slamming a punch into the panda's gut that forced it to double over in pain. Retrieving her fist from its resting place, the redhead gave the Tendo family a serene smile completely at odds with her previous display of excessive violence.
"I am deeply sorry for the trouble my arrival has caused, my father seems to have a knack for losing his manners in times of excitement. My name is Ranma Saotome." She gave a small bow. "I believe I was expected?" Nabiki opened her mouth to immediately contest the redhead's proposed manner of identification, but was beaten out by her father who had leapt to embrace the redhead. However, he found himself clutching air and his momentum carried him forwards until it was expended with his collision with the wall. As he lay on the ground nursing the growing bump on his scalp, Soun began to cry and sob uncontrollably. Ranma stared at the incredibly embarrasing display, for the Tendo daughters, for several seconds before turning to the daughters with an unreadable expression.
"Your father, I take it?" She gestured vaguely in Soun's direction and was met by nods from the other three young girls. Ranma shared a wince with Kasumi at a particularly loud sob. "My sympathies. May I have some tea?" Kasumi blinked and moved quickly to serve her guest, even if it wasn't the one father had quite been expecting. Ranma took a sip and gave her hostess a beaming smile. "This is wonderful, your own blend?"
Kasumi gave a suprised nod, it wasn't often she came across a guest who actually took an interest in the blends of tea."Why yes, though it's actually my mother's recipe. But how did you know?"
Ranma chuckled." I spent some time a year or two ago with a family in Chiba, the eldest sister made an absolutely heavenly blend of tea." Ranma couldn't help the slight curl of her lips when she mentioned Bell-chan's 'heavenly' tea. Speaking of, she should probably stop in sometime, after all she had promised Urd that she would visit when she could find time away from her father. Kasumi smiled back at Ranma, maybe she could introduce her to her friend sometime. Kasumi's mouth made a small 'o' as she realised something with her last thought.
"Oh my, I just noticed, but we never introduced ourselves. My name is Kasumi Tendo." She gave a small bow before pointing towards Nabiki. "My younger sister Nabiki, and next to her is my youngest sister Akane. And I sincerely apologize for father's behaviour. He's not usually..." Kasumi trailed off as she thought about what she was going to say. "...this bad." She finished. Ranma gave a knowing nod, her own father had his fair share of faults too.
Ranma carefully set down her cup of tea as she cocked her head to the side. She gave a sigh before reaching back down for the tea, only to make an exagerrated slip of her hands and spill the last bit that was in the cup onto her, now his lap. Akane froze and her eyes glazed over, as her mind refused to accept the sight in front of her, while Nabiki's eyes took on a particularly fiendish gleam as she considered the possibilities presented to her. Kasumi cocked her head to the side thoughtfully.
"You, you were a girl?" Ranma blinked at the obvious question, but considering how shocking the transformation was she could understand if more in depth questions were not in mind at the moment.
"Umm, yes. I can explain though. Its a long and terrible story, but..." Ranma drew in a large breath as the Tendos, including a somewhat recovered Soun, leaned in to closer to hear his tale. "It's all my father's fault." And promptly face-palmed, with the exception of Kasumi who instead giggled quietly. Ranma smirked as the panda stood up and grabbed the tea pot before tipping the pot over onto its head. Just before the liquid touched the panda, Ranma's eyes widened and he quickly moved a hand to cover Kasumi's eyes.
Genma began to let out a relieved sigh, but was cut off as the rest of his breath was explosively forced from his lungs by another punch to the gut. As he doubled over in an attempt to recover his breath, his son grabbed him by the neck and tossed him out into the hallway before closing the door. As he lay on the ground in pain, he heard his son say something from behind the door.
"Hey old man, next time you do that, remember to put on your clothes first. Your bag's next to the door." Genma blinked and looked down at himself, before paling as he realized that he indeed was still unclothed and he had just flashed his friend's daughters. Reaching into his bag he grabbed one of his gis and put it on, wincing slightly as he moved it over his bruised ribs. Standing up he pushed aside the screen door and moved to re-enter the room, only to fall backwards as he was hit in the face by a thrown teapot.
Ranma looked over at the steaming Akane as she sat back down from launching her improvised projectile. He gave her nod of appreciation and a polite clap. "Not bad, though your form could use a little work, you overextended a bit too much with the wind-up. " A surprised Akane could only nod in exchange for Ranma's helpful advice, her previous anger muted by the strange behaviour, after her experiences, of the young male teen in front of her. Ranma smirked towards the hallway as his father slowly got to his feet again, one hand covering the large bump from the kettle.
Making his way over to the table, making sure not to fall over from the dizziness caused by the concussion he had suffered, he sat down with a loud thump. He opened his mouth to continue where his son had left off when his son started speaking again, and judging from the smirk the boy wore, it was very much on purpose. Genma wasn't sure if he should be annoyed or proud of his son's mastering of the school's first technique, the Taunting of the Buzzing Bee. In the end, he decided for a mix of both, as he sat quietly glowering towards his son, though with a hint of a smile at the edge of lips.
Ranma simply rolled his eyes at his father's antics, already more than used to them. "As I was saying, it's all my father's fault. You see, one day he came across a tour guide to a number of various training sites in China, and the last one on the list happened to be in the Valley of Jusenkyo. Specifically, the Cursed Springs of Jusenkyo. Each and every one of the springs there possesses its own unique curse, based on whatever drowned in each spring. The curse part of it is that if you happen to fall into a spring, you receive the body of what you would have been had you been born the creature that last landed in the spring. In my father's case, if he had been born a panda. In my case..." Ranma left the sentence open, as he didn't want to tell the family just what exactly he was cursed to transform into.
Ranma shook his head and gave a dismissive wave of the hand before continuing with his tale."Anyway, hot water temporarily returns the victim to their original form, at least until they get hit with cold water again." Soun was immediately at his feet and tried to once more gather Ranma into a tight hug, his attempt meeting with just as much success as the first one, though this time he was kept from impacting the wall or table due to Genma's body, Soun unintentionally wrapping the panda-cursed man in a large bear hug.(1)
Ranma hung his head as the two father's began an animated discussion over the engagement, though the exchanges went by too fast for Ranma to keep track of. Finally the two broke apart, after they eventually noticed that Soun was still holding onto his old friend, and sat down calmly to discuss the matter of the Saotome's presence as mature and responsible adults.
"Not to worry, that curse of yours isn't too bad. Now then, pick one of my daughters and she shall be the one that you are engaged to." Ranma cocked his head to the side, while Nabiki promptly palmed her face at her father's utterly unsubtle delivery. Akane had her anger reignited as its original source was again brought to her mind. Genma sat nodding sagely, as if his friend has spoken some great truth. Inwardly though, he was already working out which of the girl's would be the best for his plans, namely his plan for a happy retirement.
Ranma sighed, Amaya had warned him that this was likely how things would go, though her information was off by quite a bit, but at the very least he had a good idea on how to handle the current situation. Clearing his throat, he stared Soun straight into the eyes. "Mr. Tendo, while your enthusiasm," Ranma made a note to thank Amaya later for her work in upgrading his vocabulary, "is most, eh, refreshing, I think that it would be best if I took some time to get to know your daughters first, before making such an important decision. After all, to arbitrarily choose one of your daughters now, well I would be forced to choose base mostly upon looks, as I don't know anything about them. And that is not fair for your daughters, now is it?"
Soun froze, his desire for the marriage and assured continuance of his school warring against his love for his daughters. In the end his love won out and he gave a respectful incline of the head towards Ranma. "I suppose that is only fair. Well, since we won't be discussing that anymore this evening, why don't you join us for dinner? You can use the furo upstairs to wash up, after all I'm sure that after so long on the road a nice hot bath would be appreciated." Soun shared a laugh with his old friend, it had been many a time when he and Genma had stumbled back into their homes after a grueling amount of 'training' from the Old Master, Soun shuddered at the thought of his old sensei, only to be greeted by a wonderfully soothing bath that helped to wash away their aches and pains.
Kasumi frowned thoughtfully as she decided to interject. "Father, have you forgotten already?" Soun cocked his head to the side, confused. Kasumi gave a sigh, she had told him just this morning too. "The hot water heater is broken, you said you would call a repair man to come by." Kasumi turned to her guests with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, but you will either have to wait until tomorrow or you will have to do with a cold bath instead."
Ranma gave a shrug of his shoulders. "I don't mind, sides most of the time I had to make do with bathing in a mountain stream or under a waterfall, so it shouldn't be too bad." Kasumi gave Ranma a smile, glad that he didn't seem to unduly mind the lack of hot water, a smile that Ranma easily returned. 'And, I have a few questions that need some answers. And I will be getting those answers, right Amaya?'
Within Ranma's mindscape, Amaya couldn't resist a roll of her eyes. She was fond of the boy, she saw something of herself in him, and not just in his reflection after he had been doused with cold water, but he could be a bit trying at times. She was just happy that he had taken well to the changes she had done while he was returning to Japan, if he had been the same boy as the one that had first arrived at the Tendo's, she would have probably ended up driving him insane, and herself too, in the process.
'You will, just like with every other question you've asked me. But you do bring up a good point, and I have something for you once you're alone.'
Ranma blinked, but nodded anyway, his eyes dancing with well concealed curiousity. He gave his head a slight shake as he refocused on the scene in front of him, noticing the elder sister standing over by the stairs with an expectant expression. Taking in the unspoken words, Ranma followed behind her as she led him to the bath.
Once he was out of the room, Nabiki stood up and gave a shallow bow towards Genma, before turning to her father. "Well, it was nice meeting you, but I have homework that I need to finish before tomorrow." With that said she hurried upstairs to her own room, only pausing to make sure Ranma was in the bathroom before turning on her bugs, microphones only though, as Kasumi would have gotten upset with her otherwise. (2) Putting on her earphones, she turned up the volume in the hopes of hearing something juicy that she could turn to her advantage.
Within the bathroom, Ranma had already undressed and begun to lather up. Meanwhile, he was holding a rather interesting conversation within his head with his, passenger.
'So, you said you had something for me?' Amaya snickered, amused by the eagerness in Ranma's voice.
'Yep! Here you go!'That was all the warning Ranma had, as his mind was assaulted by a massive barrage of images and feelings that left him reeling and breathless.
'W-what the hell was that?' Even his mental voice sounded strained to his mind, which was a strange idea that he decided best not to dwell upon.
'That, was one of Hild-sama's gifts to me, and in turn mine to you. When I think you've earned it, I'll give you the secrets to a martial arts style or technique lost to time. That, as my first gift is a relatively simple one, the secrets behind the use of your Ki, or when you are in my form, your Mana, in order to improve your body.'
"Woah," Ranma let out a breath, his mind already at work dissecting the information he had been given and finding ways to improve upon the presented foundations. While he let his mind do his thing, Ranma decided that he had put it off enough, and slipped into the furo, his skin shivering as the cold water slid over his quickly changing body.
Ranma leaned forwards until she rested her head on the tiles at the edge of the furo, giving a loud sigh as she let the disguise technique that hid her tails fade, allowing them freely float behind her. "Ah, it feels good to let you guys go unconcealed." With eyes closed in a dream-like expression, Ranma reached behind herself and began to stroke her tails, small moans occaisonally slipping free of her lips as she caught a particularly sensitive spot. Ranma had come across that little secret of his, her, new body while she and her father were heading back to the coast of China before heading towards Japan.
Hearing something, Ranma opened her eyes only for her entire body to lock up in shock as she saw that she was not alone. Standing in the now open doorway, Kasumi held a towel in one hand, her own eyes wide and her mouth dropped open in surprise. "I-I forgot to set out a towel." Moving stiffly she moved to put the towel on the floor near the furo, but far enough that it wouldn't get wet with any possible splashing. " I'll leave you alone now." With that she turned to head back out, but Ranma's voice caused her to stop.
"Wait! It's not what it looks like!" Kasumi hesitated, but the abject honesty in Ranma's voice caused her to turn around once more, this time leaving her facing her guest. As she stood there, she took in Ranma's new, at least to her, appearance. She looked a bit older, taller and thinner, with a more well defined face lacking the baby fat that Ranma's previous female form possessed. Her hair was a darker, deeper crimson, and her eyes seemed to be the most unusual amethyst colour. And then there were of course to most obvious differences, the luminescent silver tails and fox-like ears perched atop her head. The two stared quietly at each other, while the awkwardness of the situation weighed down heavily on their shoulders, until it became to much and Kasumi broke the silence.
"So, this is what your cursed form really looks like?" Ranma, blinked, the question wasn't exactly the first one he would have asked if the positions were reversed, but it was an easy enough one to answer.
"Yeah, I normally keep them hidden with a transformation technique, otherwise I'd cause a riot everywhere I went." Kasumi nodded, she could definitely see the sense in that. While she was pretty sure she knew the answer to her next question, she still couldn't help but ask it anyway, if only to see Ranma's reaction.
"Oh good, then you aren't a sex demon out to steal father's soul?" She delivered her question so casually that it took Ranma a moment to actually register the question, but when she did she began to sputter and blush uncontrollably, her manic splashing covering the sounds of Kasumi's giggling. Once Ranma managed to calm down slightly, and catch sight of the expression on Kasumi's face, she decided to try a little payback.
"Well, sorry to disappoint, but I prefer soul's of a rather different flavour." Now it was Kasumi's turn to blush, as she registered the innuendo all too easily. Deciding to change the subject before things got too far out of hand she pointed towards Ranma's tails.
"They're so, so big. Can I touch them?" Ranma cocked her head to the side, before tentatively nodding her acquiescence. Smiling, Kasumi reached out and began to stroke Ranma's tails in a manner similar to how she was doing herself earlier, though Kasumi's much lighter and gentle touch prompted much louder moaning. "Ooh, they're so soft. Are you okay Ranma? I'm not pulling too hard am I?"
Ranma bit her lip as she tried to keep in a particularly loud moan before responding. "Nah, you're pulling just right. But slow down, cause they're really sensitive, oka-aay!" Ranma shuddered as Kasumi managed to hit one of the most sensitives spots and that particular tail, Ranma's body practically melting into a blushing Kasumi's arms.
Kasumi continued her gentle stroking until Ranma recovered enough to slip more fully into the furo, her entire body flushed scarlet. "Umm, I'll see once I'm done, okay?" Ranma's voice squeaked, which caused her to blush in the face harder. Kasumi gave a nod before getting to her feet and noiselessly leaving the room. Ranma continued to stay in the cold water until her face no longer felt like it was being shoved against the Sun.
Meanwhile, Nabiki stared at the wall opposite her without truly seeing it, her mind still overwhelmed with the discoveries and revelations about her guest and her own sister. Although, it did explain several things about Kasumi that had bothered her, such as why the eldest sister had never once been out on a date, even during her school years, and it also certainly explained why her sister seemed oblivious to the good doctor's attentions.
What made things possibly worse for her was all those rumours from when she had first started school, of her being 'Kasumi's sister' suddenly came back to haunt her with disturbing new connotations. Maybe she should try a little bit harder in stopping the morning fights too, as the rumours that had spawned from that monstrosity would surely damage her own reputation when the word got out that Ranma was potentially engaged to her, at least that was if someone found out about his curse.
Slowly, Nabiki removed her headphones with trembling hands, gently setting them down on her desk as she tried not to fall out of her chair. Quietly she got up and moved over to her bed before lying down and pulling the covers over her head. As she flicked off the light, she could only hope that tomorrow would be better for her sanity. She also made a mental note to keep Ranma's curse and the potential engagement to herself, at least until someone else found out about them.
Ranma blinked as his, thanks to some easily accepted hot water from Kasumi, mind tried to process the information it had just been presented, and failing to find the rationale behind the decision. "So, now you want me to go school? Why's that? Because I'm pretty sure I can remember you telling off those truant officers a while back with, 'school can't teach the boy anything I can't, all it'll do is make him soft', and I'm pretty sure you said a few other things, but considering there's a lady present I don't think it would be wise of me to repeat them."
Genma shivered as the eyes of the Tendo daughters, Kasumi not included, turned dark glares onto the man. But what really caused him to sweat was the frown on the eldest's face. Though he had only just met the girl, somehow the sight of the expression on her face just seemed wrong, and it caused his stomach to twist into knots. "Well, that was while we were on the training trip boy. Obviously we've settled down for a while and there's no reason for you not to go."
Ranma rolled his eyes as he watched his father sit up straighter, thanks to what he no doubt thought was a convincing lie. "Right," The Tendo girls' attentions moved over to Ranma as he began to speak, "and what happened to, 'settling down will only to lead to weakness, remember that and always keep moving boy', hmm? Besides, I don't even know where this school is, and I don't have any supplies either, or did you think I could do well without them?"
Once again the eyes switched targets, this time to a bitter faced Genma, his brow twitching in frustrated anger at being called out. Luckily for him, his old friend noticed his foundering and decided to take the opportunity to interject and diffuse the situation. "I'm sure they'll give you the necessary supplies once you are registered, and the school is easy enough to find, its the same one my daughters attend."
Soun and Genma both brightened as an idea came to them, which caused Ranma to groan under his breath. "In fact, why not go with my daughters to school, that way you can get to know them better." As the pair began to congratulate each other on what was, in their minds, a brilliant and surefire plan for success, Ranma turned his attention to the food on the table, noticing to his pleasant surprise that his plate seemed to possess more food than the others. Shrugging it off, he lifted some to his mouth and nearly collapsed as the taste exploded across his tongue.
With a speed much greater than that which any of the Tendo's could ever manage to reach, yet still a far cry from the speed he had possessed in his past, Ranma dug in with gusto. It had taken more than a month of constant nagging and sniping comments, but Amaya had managed to drill some basic manners into Ranma, including taking the time to enjoy the food he was eating. Every once in a while, Ranma would turn a beaming smile Kasumi's direction, a smile she easily returned, after all it was nice to have someone outside of her family show such appreciation towards her cooking.
Nabiki had been watching things carefully as she ate, easily noticing the glances that Ranma and her sister exchanged, and for once in her life drew the wrong conclusions from what she was seeing. Once she finished her plate, surprisingly enough before Ranma managed to do so, due to the fact that after the first bite he had slowed down even more than usual for him, she uttered a soft thanks to her sister before grabbing her book bag and the prepared lunch. She contemplated grabbing her sister so that she could talk to her about the engagement before school started, but considering the way the fathers were behaving she would probably be better off waiting until lunch.
With that in mind she ducked outside before anyone noticed. Already her mind was working on how to work the Tendo family's guest into her various arrangements and under the table gambling, especially once Ranma got wind of the morning fights. That thought caused Nabiki to pause in the street. How would Ranma react? Considering what she knew of him, it probably wouldn't be good for the males of Furinkan at all, and that was good for her, very good for her.
Ranma sighed as he lackadaisically balanced himself along the fence that lined the street. Akane walked down the street next to him, her mind focused on the circus of idiots that was probably already getting revved up by the ringmaster at school. The jangling of the chainlink fence though, snapped her attention to a more pressing issue.
"I hope you know that I'm not going to marry you. The rumours about me are bad enough already, I can't even imagine what they'd be like if someone found out about that curse of yours." She snapped angrily at Ranma, the anger partly from her frustration at her current routine, and partly from the idea of being forced into marriage, any marriage let alone one with someone like him.
Ranma rolled his eyes, he had no desire to get married to her either, but she didn't hear him complaining about it like that. At least he had some idea of what kind of person each of the girl's was, thanks to Amaya, and from she had told him, he didn't want to be involved with Akane, at all. Still, he couldn't help but scoff at her statement, because honestly, she'd be lucky to get a guy like him.
"Did you hear me?" And there was her irritating voice again, knocking him out of his pleasant self-aggrandizing. He turned his eyes towards where Akane was trudging down the street, her own eyes focused on some distant point along their path.
"Oh, and what made you think I wanted anything to do with you, hmm? I mean-hey!" Akane's eyes snapped up to watch with surprise as Ranma was forced to dodge a blow from his father, ducking under the first swing before quickly knocking out the older man's feet from under him, sending him straight into the waterway that ran next to the road. Ranma turned to smirk at his defeated father, before back-flipping off the fence to avoid getting sprayed by water from his sopping wet father.
"You're too old and too slow to be pulling that kind of stuff on me now pops, so why don't ya go back to the old folks home where you belong." Still smirking, Ranma swiftly ducked under another of his father's blows, this one ridiculously easy to dodge, due to the slight reduction of speed presented by his panda form, before slamming an uppercut to the jaw that sent his father flying back into the water.
"Oh, and by the way, you remember last night?" He asked as he turned back to Akane, a mischievous grin tugging at his mouth. Akane cocked her head to the side and gave a tentative nod. "Then you remember what your father said?" The grin grew wide at the confused look on her face. "I get to pick which one of you I'm to be engaged with, remember that?"
If the sudden paling of her face was anything to go by, then she most certainly did remember. "Then you can relax, because there is no way in hell I'm gonna choose you, I mean, who would want to date a tomboy like you anyways?" As soon as the last word left his mouth Ranma felt like palming his face, Amaya had warned him about Akane's triggers, and he had just smacked the big red button.
"Why you-you boy!" Full of rage, Akane swung wildly towards Ranma with her schoolbag, and was caught of guard when Ranma slipped around her. He grabbed her outstretched arm, and with infuriating ease, used it to swing her around, letting her go just in time to get soaked by the little old ladle lady. Ranma happily dashed off as Akane stood there sputtering.
"And don't be late!" Ranma smiled widely at the sound of unintelligible rage that could only have come from one source. As he, once he was sure he was clear from Akane, calmly walked down the street, he decided to talk with Amaya to see if there was anything to look out for once he got to school.
"Well, anything to be worried about?"
"Not too much, though there is a group of students who have decided, or rather have been decided for, that in order to date the young Tendo, they must first defeat her in combat. Personally, I suggest staying out of it, it won't earn you any favours, though, I must say, I would very much enjoy seeing you deal with the instigator."
"Oh come on, it can't be that bad, can it?" Amaya's boisterous laughter at Ranma's question failed to inspire any confidence within him as to the veracity of his statement-cum-question.
"Heh, I'll let you find out on your own about that. But I have another proposition for you, one that will save you a lot of time and effort down the line too."
Ranma cocked his head to the side. "Oh? What is it?"
"Simple, do well in school, and I'll give you some more 'gifts'. Deal?"Ranma frowned, his brow furrowed in deep thought. It wasn't that he was opposed to the idea of doing well in school, it was just that to do so would take a lot more effort than he wanted to give. On the other hand, there was a potential fortune in new techniques easily in his reach.
"Fine, I'll do it. But they had better be some damn good techniques." Amaya smirked in victory, if there was one thing she knew, it was how to get people to dance to her tune. Ranma sighed at his 'guest's' triumphant laughter. As he turned the corner, he caught sight of the front gates of the school, and to his surprise he could hear the sounds of fighting coming from within the grounds.
With a burst of speed, he easily leapt to the top of the wall, only to nearly fall off his perch when he saw what was going on. Somehow, she had managed to dry off and still make it to the school ahead of him, he was also pretty sure that she had on a different uniform too.
He couldn't help but laugh at how absolutely inept the various martial artists were, especially considering how badly they were doing against Akane. If there had been at least one half-way decent fighter down there, then things may have been different, as Akane possessed so many holes in defense, and left so many openings with her attacks that Ranma could have leveled her more times than he could count, and that was just from watching a few short seconds of her fighting.
With a derisive snort, he hopped off the wall and strode through field of desolation, not bothering to avoid stepping on any of the various injured and occasionally unconscious bodies that littered his path. He was just stepping past Akane, who had finally finished off the last of the mob, when something smacked into his cheek. Pausing, he looked down to see a small rose lying fallen at his feet.
With a raised brow, he turned to face the source of the projectile. He barely noticed Amaya muttering something decidedly uncouth under her breath. He did notice the pain caused by another brief influx of images and information. Working quickly, his mind processed the information, and once it was finished assimilating, he couldn't help but close his eyes in pain and let out a groan.
On opening them, he already knew who was going to be standing in front of him, and thus wasn't surprised when a young man dressed in a hakama stepped out from behind a nearby tree. He couldn't help but cringe at the assualt on his ears as Kuno began to speak.
"Hold knave!" He shouted at Ranma, who had already stopped after getting hit by the rose. "Who are you to intercept my declaration of love for the beauteous Akane Tendo?"
Ranma cursed under his breath as he held his head in hands. "Why, tell me why does this shit have to happen to me?" Akane, who stood close enough to overhear him, couldn't help the snicker that escaped her mouth at his words. Kuno, on the other hand, didn't hear Ranma's words, but he did see Akane's reaction to them.
Seeing that someone, other than him of course, was capable of getting a positive response out of the youngest Tendo, considering the fact that she always seemed to be happier after pounding on him for a bit, Kuno was infuriated. In his mind, it was his sole singular duty to ensure Akane's happiness, something that he absolutely believed involved himself and her in one manner or another, something he took to the point of insanity.
Angrily, he lifted his blade towards Ranma. "I ask again, what is your name peasant?" Ranma sighed as he turned to face his current headache.
"Ranma Saotome, and I can't stand arrogant pricks like you." Kuno's face purpled with indignant rage, his mouth opening to yell some form of obscenity towards Ranma, only to have the air in his lungs forcibly and quite explosively removed. He stumbled backwards, his mouth gaping like a fish as he tried to regain his breath.
Ranma simply stood watching, looking almost bored with the whole thing, his arm still in the position of having punched Kuno. As soon as Kuno had managed to regain some form of control of himself, Ranma launched himself at him, his body blurring into motion, leaving those watching stunned and in awe. Kuno's eyes widened and he barely raised his bokken in time to block the first blow directed towards him, but he failed to block any of the subsequent blows.
Ranma finished with an exaggerated flourish, for those watching the fight, if it could be called such, as Kuno had long since fallen unconscious, slowing down enough so that everyone could see, he slammed both of his palms into Kuno's upper torso, the impact rocketing him backwards into the school wall. As he slumped bonelessly to the ground, Ranma couldn't resist smirking as he turned and offered a bow to his audience, before striding triumphantly through the doors.
Outside, Akane and the few students still conscious, which made up only a small number of the students outside at the time, were still staring at the fallen figure of Kuno in slack-jawed disbelief. The loud crash of thunder shook them from their respective reveries, each of them hustling to get themselves inside as the rain began to fall, a few here and there trying to drag the body of one of their friends inside with them before they could catch a cold.
Inside, Ranma chuckled darkly to himself as he wove his way through the crowds of students that filled the hallways, the rumors an knowledge of what just happened visibly spreading through them like ripples on a formerly still pond. As he stepped in to the administration office, he decided that maybe school wouldn't be so bad after all.
Then again, he had been wrong before. Ranma winced as yet another small folded note landed on his desk, joining the other dozen or so that were already there. It certainly didn't help that every time another one landed on his desk Akane would shoot him a particularly dirty look, mainly due to the fact that the writer's of said notes were made up solely of the female portion of the class.
Their current teacher, a relatively elderly man with white hair, who's area of expertise was Japanese history, was just about to enter into a short lecture on Nobunaga's fall and the reason's leading up to it, when a remarkably well healed Kuno burst into the classroom, bellowing at the top of his lungs.
"Never Saotome! I will never accept you eng-urk!" Kuno stumbled backwards as Ranma's expertly flicked eraser hit him in the throat. Ranma slowly stood up from his seat and looked apologetically at the teacher.
"Excuse me Takeda-sensei, but if you'll excuse me for a moment, I have a problem that needs solving." Blinking, Takeda nodded, and then watched as Ranma purposefully walked over to the hallway, before he closed the door quietly behind him. The class leaned towards the wall, but were unable to make out the brief muffled exchange that occurred between the two students.
What they were able to make out, and it was so easy to do that pretty much every class could hear it, were Kuno's loud screams of pain. The screaming went on for several seconds, before it cut off rather abruptly. The class winced as one as Ranma stepped back into the room, a wide smile on his face. He sighed as went and sat back down at his seat, the eyes of the class following him unerringly as walked over from the door.
Sheepishly, as was his tendency, he scratched the back of his head. "Sorry about that, I had no idea he'd follow me to class, normally if you beat them like that, most animals learn to stay away from ya." The class stared wordlessly at him, while he muttered under his breath something about wolves and steaks. Shaking his head, and thinking amusingly of the wonders of youth, Takeda loudly cleared his throat, the noise gathering the attention of the class just as intended.
"Now I trust there will be no further interruptions, correct?" Seeing no-one moving to argue, Shingen Takeda (3) let himself smile as he thought back to the good old days, while he fingered the tassel on the gunbai that rested on his desk. "Wonderful. Back on topic then. One of the biggest factors in Nobunaga's defeat was of course..."
And as Ranma sat back in his seat, one hand making short concise notes every once in a while, he decided that he had been right on his first thought, school definitely wouldn't be boring, and who knows, he just might end up learning something useful. The fact that his teacher was discussing a subject that held interest for him, history concerning some of the greatest warriors and leaders the world had ever seen, may have had more than a little to do with that decision, but everyone has their faults.
(1) I'm sorry. Truly, I am.
(2) An upset Kasumi is equal to an upset Belldandy, and an upset Belldandy is a scary thing.
(3) Yes it is that Shingen Takeda, for those of you who know Japanese history. I figured Furinkan deserved some badass teachers, aside from Hinako of course, to deal with its rough student population. This particular version is inspired by Samurai Warriors 3, a majorly awesome game for the Wii. Speaking of, Bayonetta 2 is going to be a Wii U exclusive. HELL YEAH! And before you start bitching about that, consider this; it was either the Wii U, or there would never be a sequel.
Some of you are probably thinking, 'What the hell has this guy done to Kasumi? She's not like that at all!'. And you'd be right, but Nabiki doesn't know that. It's all a matter of perception, and with the lack of context, well she's not the only one who would jump to conclusions.
Things to cover, as I said up top.
Number One: No Perm Ranma-chan. That's Ozzallos' shtick. Not to say I don't enjoy it or dabble in it, because I do on both counts, and Ozzallos is the best at that, but because it leaves me with more story options. But to help calm your nerves, no Ranma X Male pairing will be in any of my stories. Although, depending on the crossover there might be an exception, such as Kampfer or Nyotai-ka, because those ones possess a character with a nature similar to Ranma's.
Number Two: To Rimshooter, the reference is that Manaka used the same move on a group of men who were going to rape him/her, (To those who haven't read it, read the manga for the reason I included the slash there, be careful though, the manga is definitely NSFW. XD ) his girlfriend who's name escapes me and his stalker-ish landlord.