I made this because I wanted to see a Ranma/Fon pairing. I make no excuses. XD

Ranma Saotome was looking in the mirror, a look of tired introspection on his face.

His 'wedding' with Akane was fast approaching, and for the first time Ranma was looking back on his life and coming to conclusions he really didn't like.

Everything he had done until this point was for the Art or to preserve his Honor.

Yet looking back, he could see that perhaps he would need to do something drastic to save what honor he had left as a Martial Artist. Something his "family" as he was almost hesitant to call them, and friends would almost certainly protest at.

Especially Genma and Soun.

He knew this would hurt Akane, but to be honest she would be much happier with someone else. He had thought he loved her, but looking back on it, he realized they were a match made in hell. Too many wrongs on both sides, and too many outside forces had resulted in a relationship that would never last.

Yes, they did care for each other, but the past hurts would inevitably force them apart in the end. Better to make a clean break, once and for all...for both their sakes.

Besides, if he wasn't as tough as he was he would have been dead a thousand times over for his "perversions" after all the times she had attacked him with that thrice damn hammer of hers, or worse that awful excuse for cooking!

With that in mind, Ranma made a decision.

For the sake of his honor and his sanity, he needed to do something.

And he knew the perfect place to start.

"I need to speak to Cologne. Alone," said Ranma flatly when he reached the restaurant.

Kon Lon could sense a change in the boy her granddaughter had been pursuing for almost three years. His aura was tired...but resolved. He had clearly come to a decision. One that would bring many changes.

"What is it?" she asked, smoking her long pipe.

"I have a solution to a few of our problems. One that should preserve Shampoo's honor and mine without forcing me to marry her."

Kon Lon said nothing, and allowed him to get it out.

"I know you more ways to lock someone in their cursed form almost permanently. And to be honest I am sick and tired of fighting to preserve what little honor I have left thanks to Genma's actions. Which is why I've decided to do something drastic that should settle the score between us."

"What do you have in mind?"

"Lock me in my girl form, and adopt me as a sister of the Amazon tribe. This way your secrets stay within the tribes and you'll still have an extra fighter in the event they are threatened."

"And Shampoo?"

"She can hardly marry one of her 'sisters', now can she? You could credit her with helping to train the new addition of the tribes, but the curse remains because she did challenge an outsider and lost."

Kon Lon took a deep puff of her pipe. It was a simple, if elegant solution. By adopting Ranma's girl form as a Sister, it would allow Shampoo to keep her honor intact and avoid forcing the two to marry. Though she would still have to bring in fresh blood.

"What of the Tendo girl?"

Ranma's eyes became exhausted, but still resolute.

"I'm going to explain to Nabiki that the contract was voided long ago by Genma's actions, along with the fact there have simply been too many past wrongs between me and her sister for us to reasonably marry. If I have to, I will remove myself from the Saotome family register entirely."

Odds were Nabiki would help, considering she couldn't have possibly missed the way the two had been acting all this time. Her sister could use a clean slate, just like Ranma.

Besides, odds were that the "rivals" would simply show up and ruin the wedding anyway. They might as well avoid the entire mess.

Kon Lon looked at the tired martial artist before her.

Ranma's solution solved a great many issues, though there would undoubtedly be a good many sore feelings on the matter. This boy had been through hell just to try and keep his honor intact, all because of the stupidity of his family and his father's foolishness.

As a Master in martial arts, he had every right to break away from his original school to try and regain his own life on his own terms. Or her own terms, if they went through with this.

"Give me some time to confer with my fellow Elders. Should they agree, you will take on Xian Pu's last name and be her sister in blood, thus negating the marriage contract between you for good. However any daughters you have will be trained by us and you will obey our laws."

"Agreed," said Ranma.

Two days before the wedding...

Nabiki took very little convincing to get on board with Ranma's plan. To be honest she felt that Akane marrying Ranma was an absolute mistake.

"You sure you want to do this?" she asked.

"If I want to regain my honor and not have to deal with this crap again, yes."

Nabiki lead Ranma into the discreet office in Tokyo. They couldn't do this in Nerima...too many people knew who he was and would inevitably blow the whole thing wide open before he made his escape.

In two hours, Ranma Saotome didn't exist anymore. Now he was simply Ranma.

It felt like a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Now he just had to complete the ceremony with Kon Lon and he would be done with this forever.

Nabiki was planning to leave as well for Law School. Odds were Kon Lon would help since it meant having a lawyer on their side if they ever needed one.

Ranma went to the cafe and managed to hide until the day was over.

Mousse looked torn between upset and thrilled.

Upset because he knew exactly what a drastic measure this was for the pig-tailed martial artist, and thrilled because it meant he now had a proper chance to be with Shampoo since Ranma would be her sister, not her fiancee anymore.

Kon Lon started speaking in really old Chinese. It was doubtful anyone even used it anymore save for ceremonies like this.

Ranma felt the water on him and the familiar shift.

"Welcome to the Amazon tribe, Sister," said Shampoo. There was a lot of feelings in her eyes...many of the unhappy ones, but she could understand why Ranma had done this.

Kon Lon took something out of her sleeve.

"These are special soaps that will allow you to stay in your cursed form, even when in warm water. I'll give you our contact information when you're running out of them. Unlike the previous methods, there are no obscure or esoteric ways to revert to your true gender... just wait for the effects to properly wear off and you can switch back and forth."

"I'll probably stay in girl form anyway. At least then I won't have to explain my curse as much," sighed Ranma.

"Where are you going to go now?" asked Kon Lon.

"I was thinking back to China. Not the area of the Amazon tribes, but one of the more populated ones. That way I can hide and still be of use," said Ranma.

Kon Lon took out her familiar pipe.

"We can set you up in one of our shops in the mainland. I will teach you how to speak and read Chinese properly, because your accent is atrocious. You will be on the lookout for skilled male martial artists that can be used to further the bloodline. Agreed?"

Ranma nodded. It was a small price to pay for his...no, her freedom.

Ranko of the Amazon tribe was bored. But she wasn't complaining.

Her life could honestly be worse.

Spotting a new customer (good thing she was used to being a waitress from all the shifts she took at the cafe in Nerima), she put on a smile and calmly went up to the table.

"Welcome honored customer! Here is our menu and I will be your waitress for the day. What would you like to drink?"

"Tea, please," said the man pleasantly.

Ranko could sense a great deal of Chi coming from him... it lazily coiled around his body, and he had the aura of a true Martial Artist. He had a quiet confidence, with a long black braid that flowed down his back. His eyes were sharp and black as night. She couldn't recognize which discipline he practiced, but she could tell he was a true Master of his Art.

He more than fit the usual requirements she had for men she sent towards her sisters. Kon Lon had nothing but praise for her... she of all people recognized those truly dedicated to the Art, and thanks to her several of her sisters had found suitable husbands. There had been a slight boom in the population thanks to her efforts, more than a good few of them little girls.

She kept her smile on her face as she waited for him to order... and when it came time to pay the check she left a discreet map on the back of his receipt that would direct him to the general area of the Amazon tribe. There was enough cryptic clues on the map itself to pique the interest of most martial artists into at least visiting.

It was a shame, but female martial artists who could further the Arts were a rarity. Well, outside of the tribes anyway.

Some time later...

He was back again.

"Welcome honored customer. What would you like to drink?" she asked politely.

"Tea, please."

Ranko went and brought back the tea pot. They changed the tea every other day, using different varieties to keep things interesting. If the customer wanted a specific one they would have to order it.

"What would you like to order, sir?"

"Ah. Do you have any Mapo Tofu?" he asked hopefully.

"Indeed. Anything else?"

"Gyoza and Mapo Tofu then," he said pleasantly.

Considering how spicy that dish was, it was probably a good thing they didn't deliberately advertise it except as a special. He probably caught the scent of it from the streets.

She stuck around to see if he would actually eat the dish. She could tolerate it to an extent, but she wasn't exactly fond of it.

Seeing the obvious enjoyment he had from the spicy dish, she shook her head in amusement. Once again she left directions and cryptic clues to the Amazon village. Sometimes it took a few tries before they visited out of curiosity.

Two months later...

Ranko was heading back to her small apartment when she was accosted by five idiots who clearly belonged to the Triads. She also sensed the odd customer that kept coming back, and seemed to be ignoring her subtle hints to visit the village.

"What do you losers want?" she asked annoyed. She was cranky because of 'that time of the month' and wanted a nice long bath before she took a nap.

She almost missed Nerima, if only because she had someone decent to spar with. Almost.

"You're coming with us. Our boss wants to see you," sneered the 'leader' of the group.

"And if I refuse?"

"You ain't got a choice bitch."

Ranko sighed, before putting her bag in a more comfortable position.

"And you just made the worst mistake of your short lives."

What happened next was short, brutal, and in the case of the men, very painful.

She didn't kill them, though they would soon wish she had considering some of the places she hit would take forever to heal. If they pressed the issue she would not hesitate to go lethal.

"It would seem my intervention was not necessary after all."

Ranko turned and gave the guy a look.

"Yeah, well they shouldn't have pissed off an Amazon by accosting me in the street like that," she said flippantly.

The man chuckled, hiding a smile behind his sleeve.

"I had a feeling you were one of the tribes," he said amused. He had recognized the location pretty quick, because it wasn't the first time someone had tried to 'direct' him that way.

Though she was definitely discreet about it, which was a pleasant change of pace.

"Why are you following me?"

"I may have caught wind that some of the Triads were planning to 'visit' you soon. I mostly wanted to confirm you were one of the Amazons though," he admitted.

Ranko made a face.

"There is no way in Enma's fiery hell I am going to join any of the Triads. I barely managed to salvage what was left of my honor after what my father pulled," she said annoyed.

She completely missed the look of interest in the older man's eyes.

"May I at least have your name?"

"It's Ranko."

"I am called Fon," he said pleasantly. Considering the mess of the five idiots she had just left in her wake, the two went different ways.

Ranko twitched in annoyance.

This was the third assassin after her ass in the past WEEK. It was starting to get annoying, tossing their bodies in a heap outside her apartment.

She heard a knock at the door, and didn't even bother opening it. Only an idiot did that.

Instead she used the mirror she rigged outside her front door after the second attempt on her life, and looked.

Yep, another idiot Triad after her.

She stood to the side and threw the door open, attacking with superior speed in snapping the man's neck.

"And that makes number four. This is getting really annoying."

She hauled the body up with one arm and tossed him over the railing onto the street below, making sure to stay out of any open sight lines. A smart move considering a bolt hit into the dead assassin from across the street.

Oh that was it.

She had had enough of this crap! At this rate she wouldn't be able to work, much less pay rent. To say nothing of practicing her katas so that her skills wouldn't get rusty!

Growling in annoyance, she went to the faucet and waited for the water to get hot enough, and then dumped an entire glass of water over her head.

Where a tiny red haired Amazon stood was a Japanese male with an annoyed expression on his face.

He quickly packed his bags of anything he felt like keeping, and threw a duffel over his shoulder with practiced ease. Hopefully the Kon Lon could direct him to a new area with an Amazon presence, if only so he could get some peace. The special soap went into a plastic bag that he zipped up and put in his pocket.

He slipped out the back, using the techniques he got from Genma to avoid detection...unaware of a pair of eyes that saw through it with some surprise that a man came out of an Amazon's apartment. A pair of eyes that quickly slipped in to check on the girl, only to find the place having been practically stripped bare in a matter of minutes, and no sign of the former occupant.

That figure slipped off after the first.