Chapter Fourteen
With Akane's revelation no one knew what to think. The biggest question no doubt was how was this even possible. But aside from that, everyone there who had just learned of this had questions to ask. Right now though no one had actually voiced them yet.
But of course, someone was going to start them off.
"Akane, in your vision did you ever marry Ranma?" Soun asked curiously, hoping for the best. His daughter saying she loved Ranma made him wonder how far they had gone in her dream of the future. And if she intended to go that far again soon.
Akane looked a little melancholy. "No, we didn't. But only because I woke up before I could get to that part of the vision." She then gave Nabiki a sharp look. "We would have gotten married before I woke up, but somebody here ruined that for me."
"What? Are you mad at me for something I didn't even do?" Nabiki asked innocently.
"You haven't done it yet, but I intend to see that you don't ever do it." Akane replied.
"What did she do?" Haruna asked.
"Me and Ranma were about to be married. Our 'loving' parents set up a wedding without informing us and had everything prepared. Ranma was caught more by surprise then I was and was a bit reluctant to it, but he had told me he loved me so I was actually willing to go thru with it. Before we could, a bunch of guests showed up with explosives and ruined the place so it had to be postponed. And those guests were given invitations by none other than Nabiki, for a price of course."
All eyes were on Nabiki who looked just as surprised as the others. "I'm... sure I had a good reason for it."
"Yeah, the same reason you do most of the stuff you do." Akane commented.
Nabiki narrowed. "Akane, this is ridiculous. You're mad at me for something I haven't even done and most likely never even will do. For that matter, how do we know you're actually telling us the truth?"
"I already proved I know things that can't be explained any other way."
"Yeah, and now that you have you could easily say anything about us to manipulate us. Prophecy has a lot of power over those that take it too seriously. Every religion is proof of that. You can't tell me the idea of using this knowledge to keep the rest of us in line for what you consider the greater good hasn't crossed your mind."
Akane nodded. "You're right, but you and I have different ideas of what the greater good is or how to get it. But if you agree to not come between me and Ranma then I'll share some information you could profit off of later."
"Alright, but give me something I can use now so I'm more convinced you mean well." The mercenary insisted.
"Something you can use now..." Akane had to think for a moment. "Okay, the gymnastics team is going to be attacked by a girl from Hebereke School named Kodachi Kuno, yes Kuno's sister. I'm sure you can find a profitable way to keep that from happening, and it's definitely important that you ensure they are protected from her."
'If Kodachi never attacks them, then I won't have to take their place in the match and Kodachi won't come here and run into Ranma and fall for him. One less problem for us.' Akane kept to herself.
"Hmm... I'll keep that in mind." Nabiki responded. 'I wonder what it is she's trying to avoid if they weren't protected. And if Kuno's sister is as careless with money as he is, she might pay more to succeed better.'
Akane suddenly remembered something and looked at her father. "Dad, did you ever make a deal with a French family so you wouldn't have to pay for a meal?"
Soun looked nervous as the memory came back to him. "Umm... yes."
"I thought so. Unfortunately they intend to collect on your debt in a few months. I'd advise you to find a way to give them the money, because I will not have a repeat of that incident."
"What happened?" Kasumi asked.
"Oh Dad here racked up a big bill in a restaurant and promised one of his daughter's would marry the heir when we were old enough, though at the time he never expected to actually have daughters. Long story short, said heir showed up demanding the debt be paid and Ranma had to pretend to be the fourth Tendo daughter to help void the deal by beating the heir in martial arts eating."
"Martial arts eating?" Everyone asked.
Akane nodded. "It's harder than it sounds and for Ranma learning to beat an expert in it was very unhealthy for him. He succeeded, but he came close to dying for it."
Genma crossed his arms sagely. "A martial artist's life is full of peril."
Akane frowned at the bald man. "Even so, that is one peril I prefer not to see my fiancee go thru." She turned to Soun. "Dad, do something about that debt. How can we claim to be an honorable family when we expect someone else to shoulder our burdens?"
"Didn't Ranma volunteer to do this?" Soun asked.
"He did, but only because we had a history of twisting his arm to make him do things for us. Ranma shouldn't have to pay rent here per say by taking bullets for us. If we can fix our own problems, we should."
"But... it was a large bill." Soun complained.
Akane looked at Nabiki slyly. "I'm sure Nabiki won't mind finding a way to raise up the money, without using Ranma to do so of course. Unless she'd like to be the one to wed a guy with a mouth big enough to swallow a watermelon whole."
Nabiki sighed. "How much was it?"
"I don't remember the exact amount, but I think 100,000 yen would be a good estimate."
"100,000 yen?" Nabiki yelled, standing up slamming her hands on the table. "You expect me to raise that much money in a few months just to cover his ass?" She pointed to Soun at the end of her question.
Akane smirked. "Would you rather be engaged to a guy whose idea of a kiss is wrapping his lips around your entire head? Because I'm off the market and I'm not letting anyone make Ranma be their stand-in. So it's either that or you or Kasumi get a hippo-mouth husband."
Nabiki grimaced but sat down. "Fine, I'll find a way. But you better help me find the quickest way to get that amount."
Akane nodded. "Sure, but taking photos of Ranma without permission is off limits. We don't need Kuno becoming a bigger problem than he already is. In my dream he once threatened to rape Ranma."
"What?" Everyone at the table asked in various volumes, none more loud than Ranma himself.
Akane nodded. "Kuno for some reason never figured out you and your girl form were the same person. One time in my dream you two were stuck on a watermelon-filled island for a few hours, and you were in your girl form. He looked at you and said that if he wanted to use force on you then no one was there to stop him. How is that not a rape threat?"
Ranma looked like he wanted to throw up, and quickly left the table and room in case he was actually going to.
"But Akane, this time Kuno doesn't have an interest in girl-type Ranma. That changes a few things." Nabiki pointed out.
"Yeah, now he's out to kill Ranma in both forms. And if you encourage him I'll never forgive you Nabiki." Akane replied.
"C'mon Akane it's just Kuno-baby. How much of a threat can he be?"
"I'm not changing my mind on this Nabiki."
The clock went off reminding everyone of the time. "I should probably get started on dinner." Kasumi said getting up.
"Want me to help?" Haruna offered.
"You don't have to, but I don't refuse it." Kasumi replied before going inside the kitchen.
Haruna smiled and got up, and as she did she saw the rain had not let up yet. "Would I be imposing if I asked to stay the night? I'd really rather not risk going home as a dog. My breed isn't really bred for long walks."
"Why not? If you're part of Ranma's family I don't see why not." Akane said, seeing her still queasy-looking fiancee come back into the room.
"Thanks. And tomorrow if it's not raining I'll try to get Aunt Nodoka to come by."
Genma quickly. "Well I'd say it's time for a quick training trip boy. Go get packed."
"Oh no you don't Mr. Saotome." Akane said with a glare. "If Ranma wants to see his mom you have no right to keep him away from her."
"Stay out of this Akane. This is strictly Saotome business."
Haruna crossed her arms. "Then as a Saotome I vote that Ranma has a chance to see her tomorrow."
"I agree." Ranma added.
Haruna smirked. "Two against one, we win."
Ever the stubborn fool, Genma wasn't going to drop the matter that easily. "This isn't a democracy. I"m the adult and what I say goes end of story. Now boy go get packed we're leaving first thing tomorrow morning."
The next thing Genma knew he was hit with cold water.
"Oh I'm sorry about that. My hand must have slipped while I was getting the water for dinner measured." Kasumi said coming out of the kitchen, holding an empty glass. "Unfortunately the hot water heater isn't working so I'm afraid Mr. Saotome will have to control himself unless he wants to be outside tonight."
Genma reluctantly sat back down, looking disgraced which was rather comical for a mule. Akane meanwhile was smiling on the inside. 'So Kasumi does have a mean streak in her. This could be fun.'
The rain continued all night. No one was out on the streets even before it got late. No one except one person that was. A person holding an umbrella heading for the Tendo dojo.
'So this is where Ranma is staying. He'll never expect an attack at night.' Ryoga thought as he took in the sight of the residence when he reached it. 'The hard part then is getting inside.'
Ryoga got up to the house and checked for an opening that wouldn't risk him getting wet or triggering an alarm. Feeling bold he decided to test the front door, and found it unlocked. 'Heh, idiots.' He thought as he quietly opened the door and wet inside, folding his umbrella as soon as he was certain there was no risk of him getting wet. Getting hot water was so hard when you had no hands.
Ryoga went upstairs, looking for the room that Ranma would be in. Three of the rooms were marked with names so he decided not to look there. There were three rooms unmarked so he checked the one closest to him. By luck that was the room with Ranma and Genma, and even though Ryoga couldn't see her, Shampoo in fox form was sleeping there too in a pet bed that she had bought earlier for these sleep-overs. Genma was in mule form, as he had gotten wet before bedtime and was too tired o bother getting some hot water. Not like it was the first time he had to sleep as an animal anyway.
Ryoga grinned at seeing his rival blissfully unaware and vulnerable. Part of him felt he had to at least make Ranma regain some degree of consciousness so no one could say he attacked a man while he was sleeping, but it only lasted for a moment. Ryoga didn't care if anyone thought his methods were dishonorable; Ranma would always be worse so nothing Ryoga did could be viewed as bad by comparison. Besides, with no witnesses who would talk?
With that Ryoga snickered and readied his umbrella to crush Ranma's skull. He lifted it and then swung it down...
...only to be intercepted by a chui from his left.
"Thought you show up cow boy." Fox-girl Shampoo said with a large degree of warning in her voice. She had been sleeping lightly, allowed in the room at Akane's request to be a guard for Ryoga's soon arrival. Once she heard the door open she was alert, and the moment she saw Ryoga move she transformed and drew her own weapon.
"Where the hell did you come from?" Ryoga asked, louder than he wanted to.
"China." Shampoo said before using her free hand to hit Ryoga in the face. He was strong but so was she so the attack did hurt him though it didn't knock him off his feet.
'Looks like Ranma will have to wait, I'll get this bitch first then him.' Ryoga thought. 'But how do I avoid taking this fight outside while not alerting the entire house of what's going on?'
Rather than wait for him to act Shampoo did, and he was forced to block her chui with his umbrella. He tried to push her back but she returned the gesture and so a proverbial tug-of-war between them started. All the while Genma was roused by the noise and was not in a good mood from being woken up. So without bothering to really see his targets he just kicked them both outside like the mule he was.
Umbrella-handy already Ryoga used it to shield himself from the rain he would otherwise be exposed to. Shampoo wasn't as lucky but she was already in her primary cursed form so she wasn't worried about getting wet. They landed in the yard among the broken glass of the window, looking ready to keep fighting.
'Damn, I'm at a disadvantage with the rain going on.' Ryoga thought. 'I can't fight her and keep the rain away at the same time for long, and if I go inside the odds are likely I'll run into somebody else now before I can get back to Ranma.'
"I'll be back. You can't guard Ranma forever." Ryoga declared before attempting to jump over the wall and out of the yard.
Unfortunately for the lost boy Akane was up and alert and ready to reenact a scene from her dream by throwing a weight at him, which connected with the back of his head. And like in the dream the impact made him drop his umbrella, exposing him to the rain. Knowing he had only seconds before the rain, being a slow trigger for the course compared to lots of water all at once, Ryoga jumped over the wall, trying to get away while he still had the chance.
Not five feet away from the wall on the other side Ryoga finished transforming, becoming the kind of cow you'd expect to see on any farm. He tried to run but Shampoo was faster, having climbed on his back and taken his short horns to redirect him.
"Shampoo handle bad cows back home. You no match for me." She said while making him head back to the Tendo home. He tried to stop rather than go back, but she whipped him with her palm to keep him going.
At the front door Akane was waiting for them. "I knew he'd appear."
"What we do with him?" Shampoo asked.
"Tie him up. In the morning we'll send him to one of those dairy farms. Let them deal with him."
Ryoga panicked at the idea of spending the rest of his days as a cow, being milked and likely forced to breed more cows, maybe even made into beef. With a 'Oh hell no!' attitude he reared up all of a sudden disrupting Shampoo's balance before bucking like a rodeo bull to get her to fall off.
Unfortunately Shampoo could only hold on for so long without some kind of rope or restraint to give her leverage. Fortunately she didn't need to for her great-grandmother had taught her a simple trick to stopping rowdy cattle. She swiftly poked the back of Ryoga's head, hitting the cow version of the shiatsu sleep spot, forcing Ryoga to halt and collapse, eyes swirling before he closed them.
"That take care of that." Shampoo exclaimed as she stepped off the lost boy, or maybe lost bovine at the moment.
"But where do we put him now?" Akane asked, still standing in the doorway to avoid getting wet.
Shampoo put a hand on her chin as she thought it over, then snapped her fingers. "Got any rope?"
'Where am I?' Ryoga asked himself when he woke up, the one thing he couldn't go a day without asking himself. "Mooo..." He said when he tried to speak. 'Great, I'm still a cow.'
Ryoga climbed up on his feet, or hooves to be precise, and immediately noticed he had been laying in muddy grass, his supply pack and umbrella next to him. After getting his eyes to focus he saw the Tendo house in front of him, but it was the backside meaning he was in their backyard. 'I'm still here? Well not for long.' He tried to walk off but felt a choking sensation around his neck. 'What the hell?' Turning around, he discovered he was roped to a tree.
"So you're awake." Akane's voice was heard. He turned and saw her in her jogging outfit holding a kettle. "Here's the deal Hibiki, you quietly leave and never come back here uninvited again and I'll allow you to do so as a human. I'll even sweeten the deal and promise that in the future if you show up by accident you'll be treated civilly and given hot water if you need it. Refuse, and you'll stay right there until after we make some calls to Kobe. What's it going to be?"
Ryoga snorted, flaring his nostrils, but ultimately he bowed his head.
"Good boy. Now remember, if you want to fight Ranma you're not doing it here. And if you ever actually try to kill him you better get lost for good because I'll turn you into steaks myself once I catch you." Akane threatened, knowing that Ryoga couldn't actually kill her fiancee but she felt she had to make that threat clear. The whole 'Stop picking on Ryoga' mentality had done a 180 and became 'Stop picking on Ranma', and like in the dream she was not afraid to act on it.
Ryoga snorted again which Akane took as confirmation. "Good. I hope you've got clothes in your pack because there's only one guy I want to see naked and you're not him." She said before pouring the hot water on his head then turning around before the change started.
Akane went back inside and changed into her school uniform. When she came back downstairs she saw Ryoga, human and clothed, wandering around inside. "You're still here?"
"Where's the front door?"
Akane facefaulted.