Chapter 8: Words of Discomfort
When Nabiki announced her return home after school there was a hard edge of anger to her voice, she didn't hear Kasumi's customary response of welcome from the kitchen. Instead her older sister greeted her at the door and with a quick glance up the stairs, informed her that they needed to talk. Then not giving her a chance to respond, asked her to join her in the dojo and left her standing there in confused silence.
Nabiki really wanted to hunt down Akane and give her a piece of her mind. Not only about how much money her little stunt had cost this morning, but also about that worthless Ranma. The boy was gone, the engagement off and it was well past time for everyone to get over it and move on. If their mother was still alive then Nabiki was confident this whole engagement would have been canceled before the Saotomes ever darkened their door.
She decided that would have to wait. Kicking off her shoes she followed Kasumi past the kitchen and out to the dojo.
Kasumi was alone in the dojo and once Nabiki entered the oldest Tendo closed the door, ensuring their privacy. Nabiki started to ask her what was up, but she was shocked into silence by the anger in her older sister's eyes. An angry Kasumi was as rare as hen's teeth and not to be taken lightly.
"Do you know what happened at school today?" Kasumi asked, her voice taut, eyes searing. Being reminded of all the money she lost rekindled Nabiki's own anger, enough to forget this was Kasumi she was talking to.
"Yes I know what happened. Little sister freaked out and ran away like a spoiled brat!"
The sharp sound of flesh striking flesh broke through her icy shell and Nabiki stood there with her hand on her stinging cheek. She couldn't believe Kasumi had slapped her.
"Do you have any idea how much those boys have hurt Akane? Do you even care?" Kasumi was livid and for the first time that she could remember, Nabiki felt unwelcome in her own home.
"Akane came home in tears, her spirit broken. How would you like it if every morning a group of would be rapists attacked you?" Now Kasumi's voice and face added disgust to anger. "How would you like it if your own sister was encouraging it so she could profit from your fear and pain?"
Nabiki didn't take well to being pushed around, she was the pusher not the pushie.
"Who do you think pays the bills around here, Daddy? Without me Akane would have been practicing her ridiculous art in an apartment, while someone else was cooking in mother's kitchen! Don't you dare judge me, I've done what I had too to keep us in house and home with no help from any of you!"
How dare Kasumi treat her this way after all she had done for this family!
Kasumi didn't back down, if anything she became so focused in anger Nabiki started to feel a chill.
"If that is the way you feel little sister, then I'll make this easy for you. Tomorrow I am going to keep Akane home from school. The day after that I will personally escort her to class and if I see one sign of those boys or that arrogant popinjay you like so much, I will take Akane somewhere else to live and you will only have to take care of yourself. Something your very good at."
With an abrupt turn, Kasumi left the dojo.
Nabiki heard her in the kitchen when she reentered the house but she didn't stop to continue their conversation. She didn't even hunt down Akane the way she had originally intended. No, what she felt like was eating an expensive meal at someone else's expense and she knew just who to call. If Kasumi wanted the horde dealt with then fine, she could scatter them easy enough, but Kuno was another matter entirely. The kendoist was too deluded to be swayed by threats or blackmail. He required a different form of handling. If she was going to keep him away from the little princess she would have to distract him and she knew exactly how to do it.
Since Ranma was no longer a part of this household she could deal with the boy.
Let Kuno haunt Suginami's gates instead of Furinkan's, that would fix their problems. Who knows, maybe she could even take bets on the way it would turn out.
Grabbing her shoes and an umbrella, the sky was growing as dark as her mood, she headed out to take care of business.
****(Page Break)
Nodoka and Ranma walked home in silence, hurrying to beat the rain that was now threatening to fall again. Once they entered the Saotome home, Ranma went to her room to change out of her school uniform while Nodoka went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
Dinner passed quietly and afterwards they cleaned up together, Nodoka washed while Ranma dried. It had become a daily ritual for them and like always Nodoka would try to draw her reticent daughter into conversation. Tonight she decided to broach a more difficult subject, she only hoped their visit to Nerima had brought Ranma back far enough that she would tell her mother what she needed to know.
"Ranma dear."
"Yea mom?"
As Ranma reached for the next plate Nodoka took her child's hand in her own, soap bubbles running off of her fingers onto Ranma's. Nodoka lifted her arm up over her daughter's head while still holding her hand. Now she was holding the younger girl from behind, expressing her love and support, while simultaneously ensuring that Ranma couldn't run away.
"Why are you afraid of Hsiao?"
Ranma swallowed hard, struggling to get it past the lump forming in her throat.
"I ain't afraid of nothing, certainly not no old man." The words were bold enough, but her voice lacked it usual conviction. It sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than her mother.
"I don't doubt your courage dear," Nodoka's voice was filled with warmth and pride. "you have more than proven yourself to me. Still, Hsiao made you uncomfortable and I believe it was because he is a priest."
"Honey, did something happen on your training trip? Something involving a priest that...a priest that hurt you in some way?"
Ranma really was rather naive and it never occurred to her what her mother was really asking, or even that such a thing might have happened to anyone. So it was with innocent confusion coloring her voice that she asked "No momma, why would a priest try to hurt me?"
The girl's clear lack of understanding drew a sigh of relief from her mother. If Ranma had no clue what she might have meant then surely nothing had ever happened to him, at least nothing like she heard about in the news. Still, her child had been afraid and there had to be a reason.
"Did Genma teach you that priests are bad or not to be trusted?" If this was her husband's fault...
"Pops, no...sure pop doesn't listen to them when they get all preachy, telling him he shouldn't do this or that but he never said anything worse about them then calling priests a bunch of busy bodies. Why, we stopped at several shrines during our training trip. You can find lots of martial arts secret techniques hidden away or known only to old priests. They almost always shared their food with us too and you know how Pops feels about people who feed him."
She sounded sincere, so why did she have problems now. Could it be Hsiao...
"Ranma, have you ever met Hsiao before today?" Nodoka was afraid of what the answer might be.
"Uh, no mom. Never seen him before in my life." Ranma was noticeably nervous, she didn't want to tell her about her disastrous visit to Hsiao's shrine. She really didn't want the priest to find out, it was bad enough the shrine wanted her it at least couldn't follow her.
Nodoka could sense that Ranma wasn't being totally truthful with her. She decided that she would have to be more blunt if she was going to get the whole story.
"Ranma dear, promise that you will tell me the truth."
Now Ranma was really nervous and she tensed up considerably. If mom kept pushing there was no way she would be able to keep what happened a secret.
"I wouldn't lie to ya momma. Well, at least not now that you know it's me. Even then I wouldn't have told you I was Ranko if I had known you would...that you wouldn't mind."
Nodoka knew Ranma was trying to divert her, trying to avoid making a promise she couldn't break. This was too important to let her hide it, even from herself.
"Ranma, please promise me."
The younger redhead hung her head in resignation.
"Okay mom, I promise."
"Promise to tell me the truth?"
"Yea, I promise to tell ya the truth, no lying."
It hurt Nodoka hearing the despair in her child's voice, but as a parent sometimes you have to do what is necessary. Even when it hurts the child your trying to protect.
"Ranma-Chan, have you ever met Hsiao before today in the Headmaster's office?"
That shouldn't leave Ranma any wiggle room, she hoped.
Ranma sighed in defeat. "No mom, I've never seen him before today. Never even heard his name before."
"Then why are you afraid of priests?"
"I ain't...look momma, I'm not afraid of priests and I'm not afraid of your friend. It's just..."
"Just what dear?"
"It's the kami. They've messed with my life so much, I just don't want to give them anymore chances to do it again. That's all, has nothing to do with no priest."
****(Page Break)
Hsaio returned to the shrine filled with frustration and worry. The frustration was over his meeting with Nodoka Saotome and her daughter. It disturbed him that the child was afraid of him, how could he help her if she wouldn't talk to him?
While some of the worry was due to Ranma and her situation, most of it was centered on an unnamed kami and his dread prediction. If he couldn't even identify the kami how was he supposed to find his 'sister'? Worse, how was he, a humble priest supposed to help stave off a thousand years of darkness?
Passing through the shrine proper, he entered his private rooms, the home he once shared with his dear departed wife and where they raised their own children. It had been years since they ever felt this empty, since Hsiao felt so alone. Retreating to his small office, he made a conference call to his fellows.
Hsiao, like most of his generation, felt lost in the high tech world the Americans had brought to Japan. Fortunately his grandchildren did not share his handicap. It was one of his grandsons, Arata who was the same age as Ranma, who set up his phone to do these conference calls. The boy was a lover of all things technical and his exuberance for the new was contagious, even filling Hsiao's old head with visions of the future. A future that could prove dismal if Hsiao failed.
No pressure, no pressure at all.
After greeting his brothers, Hsiao told Kasuo and Minori about his second near encounter with his visitor. He then went on to tell all of them about his second vision and the task the unnamed kami had laid upon him.
Among his brethren Kasuo was the expert on ancient history, Minori was the most in touch with the modern world and Takumi knew the most about the West. Hsiao's gift was for understanding the hearts of those around him. While all had their theories about Hsiao's visions, it was Kasuo who offered a possible identity for the kami from his dream.
"Hsiao, given your description of the kami in your dream, his appearance, comments about giving his sister sons vs. daughters, the presence of an empty scabbard, not to mention the preponderance of rain, I think maybe the dragon you saw might just be the eight headed Orochi Dragon. I hesitate to give name to your kami as it gives question to some of our long held beliefs, but his comments added to your vision, the one kami who best fits what you have seen is the kami of storms himself, Susanoo."
"How could that be?" Hsiao asked in disbelief. "You all know who Susanoo's sister is."
"Yes." Kasuo responded. "No less than the sun, which you saw fall to earth."
The priests fell silent, each considering the ramifications of what the visions might mean if Kasuo was correct.
It was Takumi and his dry sense of humor that first broke the silence. "It would fit with the fall of darkness, not to mention Susanoo's unusual relationship with his sister. They did have children together after all."
A fearful shudder went up and down Hsiao's spine, not only at the possible importance of the kami's calling for him but also Takumi's statement bordered on the irreverent. It wasn't a good idea to offend the kami, especially if they had a tendency to visit personally.
"Impossible." Minori said. "How could something as significant as Amaterasu falling from heaven not be in our histories? That is not the sort of thing that would just be forgotten."
"Isn't it?" Kasuo asked. "Remember, much of what we know of Shinto history was shaped by the Meiji Emperor's refocusing of it on the Emperor's own descent from Amaterasu and his subsequent divine right to rule. Telling the people that she no longer ruled in heaven could undermine his right to rule on Earth, don't you think?"
"This is starting to sound like a bad movie. All we need now are killer albinos." Clearly Minori wasn't comfortable with the direction such speculation was taking them.
An argument wasn't going to get them anywhere, so Hsiao interrupted with a more immediate concern than the identity of the kami.
"It is not his identity that concerns me, but the whereabouts of his sister. How are we going to help her if we can't even find her. Even if I do stumble across her path again I doubt I can catch her. She might not even be in Suginami anymore, she was last headed towards Nerima."
Surprisingly it was Takumi who offered words of reassurance.
"Be calm brother. I seriously doubt this kami, who ever he may be, would tell you that she was part of your flock if he didn't believe she would return to Suginami. In all likely hood she will probably come to you. It may not be necessary for you to seek her out."
Hsiao let out a deep sigh. "I hope your right, today seems to be my day for failing. Perhaps it would be best if we each meditate more upon this. Maybe tomorrow we will be better able to ascertain the truth of things."
The others agreed and each said goodbye before hanging up. All but Takumi, he told Hsiao that he had news about Soun Tendo of Nerima.
"Have you learned anything that might help me connect with young Ranma?" Hsiao asked.
"I'm afraid not. In fact what I have learned doesn't fit with what you have been told. Could it be possible that the Saotomes have misrepresented themselves to you?"
"No." Hsiao answered without hesitation. "I have known Nodoka Saotome for most of her life and she would never knowingly try to mislead me. As for Ranma, I can assure you that her pain is genuine. I fear the headmaster is right, given time I believe she will seek to end her life."
"If that is so then I must be looking at the wrong Soun Tendo."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because while the Soun Tendo who is on the city council does own a dojo, he doesn't have any sons only daughters. You did say that Ranma Saotome was engaged to marry his son didn't you?"
Hsiao frowned in frustration. "That is what the headmaster told me, I haven't yet heard the story directly from Nodoka or her daughter. I have an appointment to join them for dinner in their home tomorrow, I will ask them then." More frustration, he didn't let it show to his friend. "Thank you for trying brother, I appreciate your help."
"I am honored to help brother. Call me tomorrow with anything you learn. In the mean time I will try to find another Tendo who might fit what we know. Good night Hsiao."
Hsiao hung up the phone, his heart heavy. He didn't know if he should hope the kami would visit him again tonight, or fear his displeasure. These are concerns for tomorrow, he told himself. Tonight he still had a shrine to maintain and he had neglected his duties too long already.
****(Page Break)
After dinner Ranma went outside to practice in defiance of the threatening clouds above. While her daughter was busy, Nodoka decided to take the opportunity to call the Tendos and invite them to dinner. Leaving the rear veranda where she usually watched Ranma practice, she took up the phone in the hall and dialed the Tendo home. She wasn't surprised when Kasumi answered.
"Kasumi dear, this is Nodoka Saotome. I have a favor to ask of you...Thank you, I appreciate your willingness to help...Yes, Ranma and I love you too. That is in fact why I'm calling you now. I have asked an old friend, a Shinto priest to join Ranma and I for dinner tomorrow night. I'm hoping that he might be able to help her accept the changes in her life. He helped me when I was struggling, but Ranma is uncomfortable being around a priest...No Kasumi, I don't know of any reason why she would be. Ranma told me she was just afraid of inviting the kami into her life, afraid they would cause her more pain. I was hoping that you and your sisters could join us for dinner as well. Perhaps if you are here Ranma will relax enough for my friend to speak with her. I know I am placing a great burden upon your family, but...Thank you, I can never repay your kindness...I look forward to seeing you. Tomorrow night then. Good night dear."
Hanging up the phone and returning to the main room, Nodoka's eyes fell upon the Saotome honor sword where it rested upon the wall. She was ashamed that she had left it lying in the mud at the park, but at the time, seeing her child baring her neck to its blade, she had wanted nothing more than to be rid of it and all it represented. The city groundskeeper found it, along with the tanto and Ranma's letter. Ranma was well known in that part of Nerima and the groundskeeper had taken the sword and the other things to the Tendo's. Kasumi's young man, Tofu Ono had returned them to Nodoka at her home. They each pretended not to recognize the significance of the accompanying letter and knife.
The letter was still sealed, Nodoka hadn't been able to bring herself to read it. The memory of that day was too fresh, the pain too great to risk revisiting the moment in her mind. Perhaps now it was time to read what her son had written in his death poem. In Nodoka's mind that day in the park was the day her son died, the day she accepted her daughter into her heart. The words he wrote in that letter were his last as a man, if she understood how he felt at that moment then maybe she would better understand the woman Ranma had become.
She had placed the letter and tanto in her drawer hidden under her panties, the one place Ranma would never find them even by accident. Decision made, she retreated to the solitude of her room and the painful task before her.
****(Page Break)
Ranma was in her mother's back yard struggling to perform a kata he had mastered when he was ten, when she felt someone watching her. At first fear flooded through her, she felt very helpless without her chi, but looking around she relaxed as her eyes fell upon the sorriest looking duck she had ever seen. There was only one duck she knew of that would be watching her through coke bottle lenses.
"Hey Mousse, what'cha doing here? Shampoo ain't around if that's who you're looking for, she..." Ranma couldn't say it out loud, couldn't give voice to the knowledge that the Chinese girl didn't want her anymore. That maybe nobody did. It was at that moment the rain started to fall.
Running to the shelter of the veranda, she looked back at the forlorn duck.
"Hey Mousse, you want to come in out of the rain. I can heat up some water, I know how much you want to be a...boy again." She gave a twinge from the emotional pain that one line embodied for her.
Mousse looked at the girl, considering his options. His first response was dictated by long habit, to denounce his rival and attack even as a duck. His second was to flee, hiding his shameful affliction. Neither course would achieve his goal though, so he discarded them. He had come hoping Ranma would...forgive him. He hoped that if she did the kami might see fit to let him change. Mousse didn't hate his curse the way the others did, he loved being able to fly, but he had no desire to finish his life with feathers on his back.
Gripping tight to his determination, with a flap and a hop he landed beside Ranma on the veranda. Leaving the sound of rain behind, he followed her across the main room and into the kitchen.
Retrieving a kettle, Ranma filled it with water then set it on the stove to heat. The two sat in uneasy silence, watching and waiting for the kettle to boil. Mousse would have said something, plead his case or spouted accusations but quacking just didn't have the desired affect. After several minutes and a couple of checks, Ranma decided the water was warm enough. Taking up the kettle she turned and poured its contents on the silent duck, watching as the water splashed and flowed across Mousse's feathers. When he didn't change she stared in stunned silence. As the truth of Mousse's situation sank in, Ranma's shock changed to horror.
"No..." Her voice was little more than a whisper.
Being trapped in her curse, losing almost everything she valued because of it, the thought of someone, anyone else suffering the same was...to Ranma it felt like it was happening to her all over again.
"No..." She said again, a little louder. Then a third time, only this time it came out as a pain filled scream.
****(Page Break)
A short time before Mousse joined Ranma in the kitchen, Nodoka entered the bedroom where she had slept alone for more than ten years. Opening her dresser drawer she pushed her unmentionables aside and consciously ignoring the knife at the bottom, withdrew a sealed letter. The paper bore light water stains, splatter from the rain falling that day. Written across its front, in her child's best handwriting, was the name 'Ranma Saotome'. Sitting on the foot of her bed, with trembling hands Nodoka broke the seal opening the letter. There on the paper, in her son's own hand, were scrawled several lines in progressively worsening print. There were also a couple of water stains, one of which had caused part of the ink to run, drops that hadn't come from the rain. Fighting to contain the tears escaping from her own eyes, Nodoka read her son's final words:
All of my life I have worked to improve in the art and prove my worth.
Always I have done my best to keep my honor intact, no matter how hard it was.
My failures have caused pain, I am sorry.
Many have reason to hate me, I deserve it.
I have suffered setbacks and humiliation.
I have been forced to retreat before stronger fighters.
Every time I returned stronger.
Every fight I ultimately won. Sometimes to my regret.
Father gave me someone worth more than the art.
Fate made me sacrifice everything but honor to save her.
I have no regrets.
I have nothing.
Better to die with honor, my spirit warmed by victory, by the knowledge that she will live on without me.
Better to die with honor, then to live with the cold ashes of what might have been.
I cannot live as a man.
I choose to die like one.
Nodoka stared at her son's letter, unable to see the words anymore through her tears. 'Did I do the right thing?' She wondered. 'Was it unfair to ask Ranma to live as my daughter, to force her to live a life she hates because of my regrets?'
She was saved from the despair of self doubt by a pain filled cry. Recognizing Ranma's voice she raced out the door and down the stairs, the letter laying forgotten on the floor.
****(Page Break)
Ranma hadn't meant to trap Mousse in his cursed form, she just wanted him to be a harmless duck. She also didn't mean for him to share her fate and again without realizing it, she drew on the latent manna within her to make her will reality.
When Ranma poured the hot water across his back to no effect, Mousse tried to think of a way to convey what he needed from her, a way to win her forgiveness. He hadn't expected her to respond the way she did. After all their fights and the shameless way Ranma kept him from Shampoo, he never expected her to be pained by his suffering. An even bigger surprise was when, well after his feathers had shed the water she poured upon him, he felt the tingling of Jusenkyo's magic. The change back to a man was so unexpected he hadn't even brought the clothing he normally carried hidden among his feathers.
When Nodoka raced into the kitchen in search of her daughter, she found her face to face with a naked boy. She can be forgiven for jumping to conclusions.
Nodoka had carried the Saotome honor sword for so long it was instinct to retrieve it when faced with the sight of her daughter being accosted by a naked young man. After ten years she didn't have to think about where the blade was, she knew and forgetting her earlier abhorrence at the sight of the sword, she snatched it up from its place of honor. Running back into the kitchen, she struggled to draw the blade free of its scabbard.
Ranma was so relieved when Mousse turned into a boy that she missed her mother's first entrance into the kitchen. Fortunately for the Chinese boy, she didn't miss her second, nor the presence of the sword in her mother's hands. She also didn't miss the outrage on her mother's face or the violent intent in her movements.
Mousse, being blinded by the shock of the change, failed to notice her entirely.
"No momma!" Ranma cried, rushing to place herself in Nodoka's path. Taking hold of the hilt and scabbard with her own small hands, she used all of her natural strength to stop the other woman from drawing the blade free of its safe confinement.
Nodoka was so surprised by Ranma's interference that she continued to struggle to draw the blade for several moments. Then when it finally caught up with her that Ranma was protecting the boy, it flashed across her mind that maybe Ranma was welcoming the boy's attention. Would she get to be a grandmother after all?
When Nodoka stopped fighting to draw her sword Ranma relaxed, shuddering in emotional release.
"Mom, this is Mousse, he's a Chinese Amazon and he..." While explaining to her mother, Ranma allowed her eyes to drift back over her shoulder to the boy in question. She had been so upset thinking him locked that she hadn't registered the fact that he was naked. Why would she? After all they were both guys...err, at least they had been.
Suddenly realizing what this looked like, what her mother was thinking, she turned bright red. Sputtering, she averted her eyes. "Mousse! The furo is down the hall! Go there, now!"
The Chinese boy was so elated at having changed back he also forgot he was naked, or that there were two women watching him. Well, one and a half women anyway. Mousse may have poor eyesight and he may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he was trained to act quickly and without hesitation and that is what he did. Careful to avoid getting too close to Ranma or her mother, Mousse disappeared down the hall and into the furo.
After the denuded Amazon disappeared from sight, Ranma turned back to her mother. There was a strange gleam in Nodoka's eye that sent an instinctive shiver down the girl's spine. What could her mother be thinking?
"Ranma," Nodoka asked, her voice devoid of emotion. "why was there a naked boy in our kitchen?"
"It's not what it looks like, I can explain!"
Ranma licked her lips nervously, the speculative look on her mother's face was scaring her.
"That was Mousse, he followed Shampoo and the old ghoul from China."
Nodoka looked at her daughter, one eyebrow arched in question.
"That explains who he is, but why was he naked?"
"Uh, well he has a Jusenkyo curse and he just changed back."
"Oh, were you always naked when you changed back?"
"No, not always..." Ranma realized how that sounded and quickly tried to head off her mother's imagination. "Mom, when I change I'm still human. My clothes don't fit very well but I can still wear them. Mousse changes into a duck, you know, a small bird. He can't wear clothes when he changes so when he turns back he's naked."
Nodoka was trying to be patient but it had been an emotionally trying day and the effort was starting to show in her voice and manner.
"Then why did he change in front of you? Why didn't he go into the other room first?"
Now Ranma looked puzzled.
"Why would he mom? We're both guys..."
Ranma's voice trailed off, discomforted by the reminder of her current state.
"I'm still a guy." She muttered under her breath, not looking her mother in the eye.
Nodoka drew her distraught child into a comforting hug.
"I know dear, but...it's not appropriate for you to be alone with a naked boy anymore."
Holding her daughter at arms length, she placed her hand under the girl's chin, lifting her face to look her in the eye.
"Ranma, I know you still think of yourself as a man, but you're not. You are a young lady now and you're going to have to get used to that."
Ranma gave her a sour look, but held her tongue. She didn't want to get used to it.
****(Page Break)
Mousse was standing in the furo of the Saotome home with a serious problem weighing upon his mind. He was human again and that made him happier than he could have ever expected, but he was also naked and for the first time since acquiring his curse he was without clothing. What was he going to do now?
It crossed his mind that with a quick splash of water he could be a duck again, winging his way back to the cafe but after having been trapped and fearing it might be forever, he faced the prospect of being a duck again with an inordinate amount of fear.
He searched the room for anything he might wear but all he found was a stack of towels, small towels at that.
At a loss for what to do he just stood there naked, his eyes occasionally falling upon the cold water tap, sending a shiver down his spine.
****(Page Break)
Nodoka and Ranma were in the kitchen waiting for the Amazon boy's return, when after some ten minutes of wondering what was taking him so long Nodoka finally voiced a thought.
"Ranma-Chan, did your friend bring anything to wear? I mean now that he isn't a duck."
Ranma just stared at her mother for a moment, then a moment longer. The lights going on in her head she uttered a silent curse as she realized the boy was probably standing naked in the furo.
Nodoka gave her daughter a stern look.
"Ranma, it is not proper for a young lady to curse."
"Sorry momma." Ranma unthinkingly responded, her thoughts still focused on Mousse's problem.
After watching her daughter flounder in confusion for several more minutes, Nodoka threw her a rope.
"Dear, maybe you could offer your friend some of your old clothes to wear."
Ranma was filled with relief at the possibility of such an easy way of dealing with the problem.
"Yes momma." Excited, she disappeared up stairs to retrieve some clothing for the Amazon.
Sighing, Nodoka prepared tea for their unexpected guest.
When Mousse returned to the Neko-Hanten, human and wearing Ranma's red tunic and black pants, Khu Lon felt a wave of relief wash through her. 'If Ranma has forgiven the fool for attacking her,' She thought 'then hopefully whatever kami has taken an interest in her will prove just as forgiving.'
Author's Notes:
I had intended to be posting the next chapter of Hogwarts first, but it is only one third done. The next chapter of Kal'Ex is almost finished, but not quite. So instead I am posting this, the second to last chapter I have previously written up of Fallen. This means that if the rain doesn't stop and allergy season end soon…my postings will likely grow even further apart.
On a side note, I will apologize now for Ranma's death poem. I can't write poetry, much less Haiku.