AUTHOR NOTES
Hi everyone! Here we have a new chapter, and I have a clearer image of how the story is going go to reach the finalle, the final conflict. In this chapter you'll see some clues about where the story is heading to. Well, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
As always, please leave a review. I'm dying to know your opinion about the different chapters.
Regards!
Three figures stood still under the sun on the sidewalk while the rest of pedestrians keep on their usual businesses, paying them little attention. Mikado Sanzenin was staring at the young couple of martial artists with a satisfied smile on his face. Shirokuro was barking at him, sensing the wickedness of the guy.
"But why? Why doing this, Mikado?" asked Ranma, her anger barely contained.
Mikado smiled. "Oh, you don't know? Don't worry, I'll tell you why." He paused for a moment. "Do you remember our first combat?"
"Yeah. I pounded you." Replied Ranma dryly.
"You hit me more than 500 times! A little overkill, don't you think?" said Mikado, visibly upset.
"Hey! You kissed me, remember? Without my consent. You had that coming!" Said Ranma, pointing him with her finger.
"I don't need consent to kiss a pretty girl." He said with a malicious smirk, but suddenly his expression turned serious. "But you're not a girl, not a real one at least. Under that gorgeous body you are a guy, and you didn't tell me! How do you think I felt when I found out? When I realized I kissed another guy? Mikado Sanzenin kissing a guy!" Mikado screamed to the pigtailed girl.
"You have a lot of nerve saying that. I never asked you to kiss me. Yet you did it, and it was disgusting, by the way. How do you think I felt myself being kissed by another guy?" Replied Ranma, her patience wearing thin, disgusted with the hypocrisy of Mikado.
"Oh, but you like to kiss guys. You're with one right now. I bet you like to fuck them too, damn pervert." He said, trying to hurt Ranma.
"I've heard enough!" Yelled Ryoga. "Bastard, I'm going to shut your mouth for good!"
"Wait Ryoga!" asked the redhead, grabbing his arm. "Something is fishy here."
"Listen to your boyfriend, Charlotte." Said Mikado mockingly.
"Mikado, so you're telling me that all this is just because you kissed me and because I beat you in fair combat? Are you out of your mind?". Asked Ranma incredulous.
"You just didn't beat me. When you defeated me in the pair-skating contest, you destroyed my reputation. My skating career was turned to dust, because I was beaten by a newbie who barely could skate. Nobody took me seriously anymore. I've been weeks following you trying to find something to ruin your life, the same way you ruined mine." Replied the skater, so much pain and hate in his voice. "And here's my good luck when I see you kissing with another guy and dating him. It just confirmed the faggot you were, so I put it to good use. How does your family or your schoolmates treat you, sissy boy?"
"Son of a bitch!" screamed Ryoga not being able to hold his rage anymore. He loosened the leash attached to Shirokuro and run fast as a bullet to Mikado. As soon as Mikado saw Ryoga release the leash, he took from behind his back a black object that looked like a gun.
"Watch out Ryoga!" Ranma yelled, trying to warn him.
Ryoga stopped abruptly, being threatened by the gun. When he took a better look at the weapon, he noticed that it looked weird for a gun.
"This is a Taser gun. If I hit you, it will run 50,000 volts to your body, and you'll feel the more excruciating pain you have ever felt. It has two shots, so don't think that at least one of you will reach me. Did you think I would face you unprepared?" said the skater.
"You've gone completely nuts Mikado. Are you really going to shoot us?" said to him Ranma, feeling a shiver down her spine.
"Yes, I'm going to shoot you. Now that I destroyed your life, I'm going to make you feel a pain like none other. You'll beg me to stop. And you're going to be the first, Saotome." Said Mikado, pointing the gun to her. She held her breath, waiting to receive the imminent shot and bracing herself for the pain she was going to feel.
As soon as Mikado pointed his gun to Ranma, Ryoga immediately run to him, trying to stop him before he hurt the person he loved. His speed was incredible, not as much as Ranma's, but way faster than any regular human. Sadly, it wasn't enough. Mikado was a martial artist himself, and as soon as he saw Ryoga starting to run towards him, with quick reflexes he pointed the gun at him again. When Ryoga was at a couple of meters from him, Mikado shot the Taser gun to the Lost Boy's body. The two probes nailed to his skin in a fraction of a second and it gave him an impressive electric shock that made him scream in pain, and stopped him in his tracks. The pain, as Mikado said, was unbearable, something he never felt before, and screamed in agony while Mikado continued to shock him.
"Noooo!" Ranma screamed, who run to help him, but Mikado pointed the gun again to the redheaded girl.
"Stop right there Saotome." Mikado threatened her.
Ranma suddenly froze at Mikado's threat, just a few meters away from Ryoga. Her heart was gripped by a fist at the sight of him suffering like that. "Please! Stop that! You're hurting him!" asked Ranma, tears in the corners of her eyes.
"Shut up! You're about to feel that pain too, bitch." Said Mikado, smiling with malice and preparing to shoot Ranma, while Ryoga kept being paralyzed, but still standing due to his inhuman resilience.
When Ryoga saw that Mikado was about to shoot Ranma, his depressive ki skyrocketed, and his battle aura inflamed like a wildfire. With an extreme effort, he managed to move his arm to grab the probes pinned to his skin, and ripped them out, suddenly cutting the electric current to his body. Mikado couldn't believe what he was seeing. The Lost Boy regained the control of his body, and before Mikado could even digest what was happening, Ryoga jumped to him and pinned him to the ground, punching his face over and over again.
"Don't you ever dare to hurt her! Bastard! I'm going to kill you!" Ryoga went berserk. Splashes of blood were coming out of Mikado's face from the punishment Ryoga was inflicting on him. Ranma run to the Lost Boy and tried to stop him. She grabbed him by his shoulders and pulled to get him away from the injured skater.
"Ryoga stop! You're going to kill him! Please calm down!" she told him, trying to snap him out of his blood rage state.
When the enraged young man saw her, stopped, and then looked at his hands, splattered with blood. His battle aura disappeared, and he calmed down. Mikado was laying on the ground, his face pretty injured with cuts and bruises everywhere and breathing with difficulty. People around them was staring speechless. Ranma forced Ryoga to look at her, who still had his gaze fixed to his blood stained hands.
"Are you ok? She asked him, concern in her voice.
"Yeah, I'm… I'm ok." He answered, breathing heavily. "He was going to hurt you… and I wanted to kill him. If you hadn't grabbed me, I would have killed this worm."
"But you didn't. It's ok, I'm fine, and thank goodness you're fine too. Luckily, you're as tough as a tank." She smiled, and he smiled back, his breathing more regular now. She embraced him tightly, the anguish of seeing him in agony diminishing now that it was over.
Sometime later, the police arrived and started to take statements from the two martial artists and the witnesses of the fight. Paramedics took Mikado to a hospital in an ambulance. The witnesses confirmed what Ranma and Ryoga told the police, that Mikado taunted them and finally attacked them with a Taser gun, after that Ryoga defended Ranma and himself and pounded the guy. The police seemed satisfied with the statement and let them go home. The couple happily obliged, and returned back to Ryoga's house with Shirokuro, hopping to forget this incident as soon as possible.
The hot water run through his body like a calming remedy. There was still blood on his hands, but was quickly disappearing under the running water of the shower. Ryoga kept staring at his hands. Those hands that not much before were about to kill another man. He had been so close. He had wanted to do it. For the first time, he had wanted to kill another human being. This was nothing like when he screamed to Ranma 'Prepare to die!', because he never really meant it. He realized that during the koi rod incident, when he had Ranma at his mercy, and just couldn't do it. There he realized he would have never killed his then rival. It was all a way to express his anger and the hate he felt by that time. But this one was different. Mikado was going to hurt the person he treasured the most in his life, and just to think that she could experience the same excruciating pain he had suffered, he couldn't forgive himself if he had allowed it to happen. If Ranma wouldn't have stopped him, he would have killed the guy, without hesitation. He felt sorry for her. After the shitty day she had to endure this morning in school, this happens. At least she could always count with him. He would always be with her, he would always protect her. He would always love her.
Ranma was sitting on the bed in their room, looking at the wall but not seeing it, lost in thought. What happened half an hour ago affected her. The image of Ryoga in agonizing pain was tormenting her. And if it weren't for Ryoga's superhuman durability, who knows what more could have done to them that lunatic. At least he would not bother them for a good deal of time, after what Ryoga did to the idiot. He could have killed him though. The consequences of that terrified her, but at the same time, she felt a bit flattered at how protective had been Ryoga with her. She was well capable of taking care of herself, but to have someone that loves you so much, that cares about you so much, it was heart-warming. She sighed. She knew that in their path to have a happy, normal life, might still be more stones in that path.
They decided to leave the task of getting groceries for the next day. They were in no mood to going out again. They would manage with what they already had for dinner. After the meal, they just settled on the couch and watched a couple of movies, cuddled to each other, relieved to being so close to leave behind such a terrible day, and hopping for the next one to be better. At least it would be Saturday, so no school for Ranma, and Ryoga would start to work next Monday, so they had the day off.
Saturday morning finally came, and again, Ryoga was the first to wake up. He yawned and stretched his arms, and looked at the pretty redhead that was still asleep at his side. He stood just there, on the bed, appreciating how lovely she looked while sleeping. She was wearing a nice red bikini panty and, unlike the day before, a sports bra that barely contained her generous bosom. She looked like an angel, Ryoga thought. He heard her breathing, soft and steady, and seeing her there, so relaxed, he felt the irresistible desire to kiss her. He restrained himself though, because he didn't want to wake her up. So he stood up from the bed with great care instead, covered her with the blanket with equal care, and went downstairs to prepare breakfast. On his way to the kitchen, he remembered how short of supplies they were. He wanted to prepare her something special, so he thought that while she was sleeping, he could go to the grocery store and get all they needed and surprise her. He would take Shirokuro of course, to guide him. He remembered that he needed to get a copy of the house keys for Ranma. Now that this was her home, she should have them. He needed to find a hardware and home improvement store though. With a plan set, he put on his usual attire of yellow tunic and black pants, tied his signature bandana around his head and took the leash to bring Shirokuro with him. The dog barked happily when he opened the door to the backyard and saw him, but he ordered her to silence so she wouldn't wake up Ranma.
A moment later, dog and master were on the street, walking to the grocery store, with Shirokuro leading. A beautiful day was shining, with a deep blue sky that looked almost like a painting, and Ryoga hoped for today to be a day without incidents. They could use some peace for a change. That led him to think about what they could do to spend the day. He remembered that his father's computer had internet connection. He could navigate the web and see if he could find something special to see. Yep, that looked like a great idea, he thought.
Nearly an hour later, Ryoga was back home with a few bags filled with groceries and a spare set of keys for the house. He left the bags in the kitchen, and went upstairs to check on Ranma. He opened their room's door silently. Yes, she was still sleeping, half covered by the blanket. She must have moved quite a bit while asleep to get uncovered. He draped the warm blanket over her again using the best of his stealth abilities, and after closing again the door, went back downstairs to the kitchen to get ready the special breakfast with which he wanted to surprise her. He opted for the scrambled eggs they couldn't have the day before, but to accompany them, he would prepare some delicious crepes. His mother prepared them for him when he was a kid every weekend, and she used to add strawberry and cream to them. Some years later, he asked her to teach him to make them in one of the few occasions they were together.
The Lost Boy started to gather the ingredients and placed them on the counter. He made a quick check to make sure he had all the necessary, and after a moment, he confirmed that everything was ok. So, he got down to business.
He had the scrambled eggs ready, and while he was adding the strawberries and the cream to the crepes, Ryoga heard some steps on the stairs. She was awake. Luckily he was nearly finished. Ranma appeared in the kitchen's door frame. She was still in underwear, but on top she was only wearing her red Chinese shirt barely buttoned, leaving a generous cleavage. She was sexy as hell, and a drop of sweat rolled down Ryoga's forehead.
"I can smell it from upstairs, and smells really good. What are you preparing?" she asked, looking at him with curiosity.
"Scrambled eggs and crepes with strawberries and cream. My mother used to make them when I was a kid, and I thought they would make for a nice breakfast. They're almost ready." He said smiling.
Ranma walked to him and kissed him lovingly. "Good morning handsome, by the way." She greeted him when they parted lips.
"Good morning beauty." He replied, still tasting her lips.
"This was a nice surprise. You had all this planed, right?" she said, placing her hands on his hips, with Ryoga doing the same.
"More or less. This morning I woke up earlier than you, sleepyhead, and I thought about making something special for breakfast. Suddenly, I remembered my mother's crepes. And since you were still sleeping, it was the perfect opportunity to get out and buy all the supplies we needed plus the extra stuff to make the crepes." He told her.
"Hey, who are you calling sleepyhead? No school today, so it's my chance to get some extra sleep." She replied to him chuckling. "Ok, finish your crepes and let's eat. I'm starving. I hope you've made enough."
"I hope so. There's like fifteen, and we have the scrambled eggs too." He replied, and then gestured as if he suddenly remembered something. "I almost forgot. Here, this is for you." He said handing her the new set of keys.
"Ryoga…" was all she could say.
"Since this is your home now, you need your own keys." The Lost boy said smiling.
It was something trivial. A spare set of keys so she could enter and exit the house without depending on Ryoga's keys, but the meaning moved deeply Ranma's heart. Ryoga was trusting her with the keys to his home. This was now her home as well. "Thank you Ryo." She said, kissing and hugging him.
"You deserve it." He said hugging her back. "C'mon, let's eat, before it gets cold."
They sat in the dining table and chatted animatedly while enjoying the breakfast Ryoga had prepared. Ranma found the crepes delicious, and realized that Ryoga had a gift for cooking. Considering that he's spent years living from canned and dehydrated food, she wondered where did that come from. He said his mother prepared this crepes for him, so she probably taught him, but he barely saw her in the last few years. In any case, it was another nice surprise se discovered of him.
While they were eating, Ryoga explained her his idea of using the internet to find something nice to do today. Ranma was aware of that 'internet' thing. Her friends in school talked about it. But never had a computer, so never used it and didn't have a clue of how it worked.
When they finished their breakfast, and after cleaning up and doing dishes, they went upstairs to his father's office to use his computer. When Ranma saw the computer felt intimidated. To her, their functioning was a mystery. Ryoga on the other hand, had used this computer a few times with his father the few occasions they were together at home, so he had basic knowledge.
He sat down on the office chair, while Ranma grabbed another chair and sat down by his side. He turned the computer on, and waited for the operating system to boot. After a couple of minutes, the OS desktop was ready to use. Ryoga tried to remember which program was the Web Browser, but did nothing more and instead just stared at the screen for nearly a minute.
"Something wrong?" Ranma asked him.
"It's been some time since the last time I used the computer. I'm not sure which one is the internet browser." He commented, trying to explain her his hesitation.
After taking a good look at the icons, using the mouse he made several failed tries, but finally he clicked on the correct one. A window opened and a text box waited for a search input. Ranma was watching him closely, wanting to learn how to use this technology that fascinated her.
Ryoga searched for events and places to visit in Tokyo for this week, and the results appeared after a few seconds.
"Ok, for today we have a few options that are close, more or less: there's a live concert of a rock band called White Tiger in Toshima. I think I listened a song from them in the radio some time ago and I liked it. Another option is a martial arts exhibition. Three combats in three different styles: Wing Chun, Kickboxing and Sanda. It will be held in Tagara, here in Nerima. Our last option: there's a middle ages festival, something called Teruhime, being held in Shakujii Park, in Nerima too." Ryoga finished summarizing their options. "What do you think? The martial arts exhibition?"
Ranma pondered the decision for a moment. Then talked. "Don't you have enough martial arts in your life?" She asked smiling. "Don't get me wrong, I love them, but for the first time in my life, I want to experience things other than martial arts. And I want to experience them with you. So, I'm thinking that I've never been in a rock concert, and I'd love to be in one."
"Yes, you're right. We have enough, and a rock concert sounds really cool." Ryoga never had had any interest in concerts. From high school until he met Ranma again after China, he had no friends, and his parents were barely with him, so he would have to go alone, and that's something he would never do. Besides, getting constantly lost didn't help either. But now, with Ranma, he could go and enjoy it with her.
"Great. Then we're going to a rock concert!" she said happily, and then embraced her boyfriend and kissed his neck. Ryoga blushed and grabbed and squeezed her hands. He stood up and turned to face the redheaded beauty. Then he grabbed her hips and brought her to him.
"The concert starts at 8:30 p.m., so we have plenty of time. What do you want to do until then?" asked the Lost Boy.
"I have a few ideas." She answered seductively. Ryoga smiled.
"And any of those ideas include us naked, by any chance?" he asked closing the distance between their lips, barely touching hers.
"Yeah, very naked." She replied again using her most sensual voice, brushing her lips against his.
"Then… shall we?" he asked again, kissing her tenderly after that, timidly sliding his tongue into her mouth.
Ranma satisfied him offering her tongue, and they locked in a passionate french kiss, rubbing and tasting each other, all while taking off the clothes they were wearing, little by little, until they ended up naked.
When they separated to breathe, Ryoga lifted his girlfriend and carried her, bridal style, to their room, while she giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. When they entered the room, he put her carefully on the bed, and jumped in to be in front of her, resuming the french kiss they interrupted earlier, while fondling each other's body. The Lost Boy grabbed one of Ranma's breasts and massaged it slowly, caressing with his thumb the little button that it was her nipple, feeling how it was getting harder under his touch. Ranma reached her hand to Ryoga's manhood, which was really stiff by then, and began stroking his length back and forth, slowly but steadily, drawing from him one groan after another. Then the young man used his other hand to reach her sex, sliding his fingers along her folds, rubbing and caressing them, with the beautiful redhead moaning each time he moved his hand along her womanhood.
They lost the track of time. They were young, and the fires of passion burned their insides, making them forget the world around them, only seeing the person in front of them. They took it easy to enjoy the sensuality and the intense pleasure they were giving to each other. There was no hurry. They had plenty of time…
It was nearly 8:30 p.m., and after getting out of the train at Ikebukuro Station, in Ikebukuro district, Toshima ward, the two young martial artists were walking holding hands, looking for the venue where the concert was to be held. Ryoga was wearing a black jean and an Old Navy V-Neck Sweater, and his signature black and yellow bandana tied around his head. Ranma on the other hand, was wearing tech knit slim black pants and a tight blue stripped shirt with long sleeves, all accentuating her slender and petite figure gracefully. They weren't sure if they dressed correctly to attend a concert, considering they had been in none, but hoped for the best. Some passers-by looked at them with admiration, a few others with envy. They made a really good looking couple, and people was noticing.
After asking around, they were able to finally find the place, a discrete 3 stories building made in concrete. There was a double door as entrance, and a big sign on top of it revealed the name of the place: Salamander. A big poster with eye-catching art next to the doors announced the concert. After crossing the doors, there was a passage that led to another door, where a fat guy with glasses next to a tall little table was selling the tickets, and a line was formed there. All the young couple could do was to wait in the line, and after a few minutes, it advanced enough so it was their turn. Ryoga payed the guy for Ranma and him, and they were allowed to enter.
The place was huge, dimly lit, with the stage prepared at the background, but no sign of musicians yet. There were tables and chairs mounted one on top of another at the sides to take less room, leaving the central space of the big room free. They realized that the place was in fact a pub that could host concerts. Maybe two hundred people were already there, drinking beer and other brews and chatting cheerfully, while rock music played as background. The two martial artists noticed that the average age of the people there was a little higher than theirs, but they didn't care. Probably they even weren't allowed to be there, considering that only Ryoga was over 18 and Ranma was still a few months away, but so far no one had stopped them or asked them their IDs.
They approached the bar. Ranma ordered a melon Ramune soda, and Ryoga a bottle of Pokka green tea. The young couple hadn't developed a taste for alcoholic drinks yet, so they preferred non-alcoholic ones. Grabbing their drinks, they walked to the centre of the audience space to wait for the band to appear.
"What do you think of the place?" asked Ryoga approaching his mouth to Ranma's ear and rising his voice to be heard over the music.
"It's cool. I've never been in a place like this before. Didn't expected it to be this big. I like the music, and the ambience." she almost yelled, doing the same as Ryoga, talking to his ear.
"My first time too. To be honest, I didn't have any idea of what we may find here." Ryoga yelled.
"Yeah, me neither." she said with a smile. "What I'm wondering is when this band is gonna show up. I bet it's close to 9:00 p.m."
The Lost Boy took a look at his wrist watch, and saw that in fact it said 9:07 p.m.
"Don't worry, they'll show up." He tried to reassure her.
A couple of minutes later Ranma could see people jumping to the stage carrying electric guitars and a bass guitar. Another guy who only carried a couple of drum sticks sat on the stool behind the drums set. People started to gather close to the stage, and Ranma and Ryoga got closer, but not too close. She feared that inside that crowd, someone would try and grope her, and she wasn't in the mood to punch some pervert.
The band started to test the instruments, and the young couple felt thrilled in anticipation. After a few minutes, the singer spoke to the audience.
"Thank you for coming people!" the singer yelled to the crowd. "I hope you're ready to rock! Because tonight… is rock night!" The audience roared in response, and clapped enthusiastically.
The band started to play, and the first song began with a fast riff with distorted guitars, the beat heavily marked by the drums. The style was very energetic, and it infected the audience, that started to jump with their hands raised. To the two young martial artists this was a bit crazy, but assumed that every rock concert should look like this. A minute later, they were jumping too, letting themselves go with the music and the mood of the crowd.
One song after another, they jumped, sang and enjoyed every bit of it. They could feel the energy in the crowd, and how they were imbued by it. Then the band changed the pace and started to play a slow song, using a clean tone for the guitars. The audience calmed down and listened mesmerized to the sad and romantic ballad. Ryoga turned to face Ranma, and they stared at each other while listening to the song, its lyrics sang by the frontman with deep emotion. The Lost Boy touched his girlfriend's cheek, caressing it with tenderness, appreciating the incredible beauty of the girl in front of him. Even in that dim light, he could see it. She smiled sheepishly, and reached her arms to Ryoga's neck, wrapping them around it, and he reached his arms to place his hands on her hips. She kept staring at her boyfriend's eyes, swaying her body to the music, the young man not being able to avert his gaze from her. Ryoga started to sway as well with the music, and the two bodies moved in sync, a slow dance of two lovers. He closed the distance between them and claimed her lips, touching them with his, caressing them with his tongue. She tasted of melon, delicious and full of sensuality. It was like a spell was cast on them, and they could only see each other. Everything around them disappeared, and they kept moving slowly, not worrying in that moment about any problem they could have. They just focused of the kissing, with memories of how they met, all they had been through, and how they fell in love with each other coming to their minds. How everything they shared had driven them to be together. Then the song ended and they parted lips, breaking the spell, realizing the magical moment they had shared, and smiled, content, happy and feeling lucky to have each other.
After the ballad, the band returned to their more aggressive tone and speed, and the audience jumped again to the music. Song after song, everyone was enjoying the experience, specially the two first timers in the back of the audience. When the last song finished, the people clapped like crazy and whistled, along with the two young martial artists, who loved what they had witnessed, and had no doubt they would repeat the experience. The singer thanked the audience for their attendance and said goodbye, with the band leaving the stage to have a few drinks at the bar and chat with their fans. For the two lovers, they had had enough fun for one night, and decided to leave.
The young couple exited the pub, feeling the soft breeze of the spring night. At this hour, the streets were crowded, with lots of people returning home after a shopping day or after having dinner at any restaurant. Ranma and Ryoga walked relaxed to Ikebukuro Station to catch the train that would take them back home, enjoying the night and the life of the streets, and chatting about their impressions on the concert. The experience for them had been thrilling and invigorating, being still shocked at the energy the band transmitted to the audience. They weren't used to this kind of event, and it was a nice change of scenery from their routine.
They could see the station now, and a train was entering the platform in that moment. They were tempted to run to catch it, but finally decided against it. The truth was that a train was arriving every 5 minutes, so they didn't hurry. They could catch the next one.
It was Sunday, early in the morning, not too early though. The day was sunny with few clouds, and the forecast predicted that the weather would remain calm throughout the afternoon. This time Ranma had woken up before Ryoga, and wanting to return yesterday's gesture when he prepared those delicious crepes, she wanted to make for him something special too. Luckily, Ryoga had bought lots of supplies, which offered her enough options for a breakfast. She braided her hair, and while still wearing female underwear from yesterday, she only put on her red chinese shirt on top. She took a look at the sleeping young man on the bed. He was lying face up, half his body covered by the blankets. He had a serene, peaceful expression, with his long bangs covering part of his eyes, his chiselled chest moving up and down softly with his breath, and his muscular arms spread to his sides. She found him so handsome and attractive that Ranma blushed, still not totally accustomed to think in that way of another man. She snapped from her trance, and closed the room's door carefully to avoid waking up Ryoga. Then she went downstairs to the kitchen, getting down to work with the breakfast. Several minutes later, a sweet and enticing aroma spread through the house, reaching every room.
When she had finished, several dishes were served on the dining table: tamagoyaki made with 4 eggs, onigiri stuffed with tuna and salmon and finally, sweet banana bread. She had learned the recipes from Kasumi, and she had a talent for cooking, so all the dishes smelled and looked delicious. She went upstairs to wake up her still sleeping boyfriend, and did it in the best way she knew, with some nice kissing, which he thanked effusively kissing her back. Then he got out of bed and put some pants on, together with a t-shirt.
"What's that smell?" Ryoga asked her.
"You'll have to come with me downstairs to find out." She answered with a playful smile.
Ryoga obliged, and when they were in front of the dining table, he saw all those dishes presented in impeccable fashion and couldn't stop smiling. He gave her a quick kiss and they sat down. When the Lost Boy tasted the food, he didn't expect it to be this good. It reminded him of Kasumi's cooking.
"Ranma, you excelled yourself with this. Everything is delicious, especially the banana bread. Did you learn from Kasumi?" He asked curious.
"Yeah, Kasumi. She taught me a lot of recipes, and I like cooking. It's relaxing." She answered with a satisfied face. "Akane never took very well that I could cook when she found impossible to make something at least edible."
"I always wondered why she had so much trouble with cooking, why it was so hard for her to learn to do it right." Ryoga reflected.
"I don't know. It almost bordered the absurd. It's like your directional problem. It has no explanation, right? Maybe it's another kind of curse." She said with a bit of unintended sarcasm.
Ryoga looked pensive for a moment, taking seriously her last phrase. "Yeah, I wondered that myself about my problem. I don't know about Akane, but in my case it could perfectly be that, because my parents have this problem too. And they didn't always were like this. We were a pretty normal family when I was a kid." He remembered. "The weird thing is that they never mentioned being cursed, not to me at least. But it makes a lot of sense."
"You could ask your parents the next time you see them. It could exist a cure Ryoga." Said Ranma, resting her hand on his shoulder, but the Lost Boy negated with his head.
"I've tried to find one in many occasions, during my travels, to no avail. It looks like no one have ever heard of our problem." Ryoga said hopeless.
Ranma lowered her head with sadness. She could feel the frustration and hopelessness within her boyfriend. Suddenly, the doorbell rang a couple of times. The two youngsters looked at each other confused.
"Do you expect someone Ryoga?" asked the redheaded girl.
"No." he answered, scratching his chin. Then his face illuminated. "Maybe it's my parents!" he said cheerfully, not considering that his parents would have keys. He rushed to open the door, and when he opened it, his shock was huge.
"Mrs. Saotome…" he was able to say.
"Mother!" Ranma exclaimed, almost choking with her banana bread.
"Good morning Ryoga. May I come in?" she asked very politely with a nervous expression in her face.
"Yeah, of course Mrs. Saotome. Please, come in." He said with an inviting gesture and stepping away from the door.
Ranma walked to the door to receive her mother, who was already inside.
"Hello Mom." She greeted her sheepishly.
"Hello dear." She greeted back, and took a look at her child and saw that she wasn't wearing pants. She was even more startled noticing that she was wearing panties. "I can come any other time if now is not the right moment."
Ranma noticed her look, and realized why she was saying that. She blushed. "Ups. No, it's perfectly right. We were just having breakfast. Hold on a sec. I'll put on some pants." And she run upstairs, leaving Nodoka and Ryoga alone.
A minute passed, and there was an awkward silence between them. Ryoga tried to break the ice and bring some conversation.
"How are things… eh… with everybody?" He asked, struggling to find the right words.
She sighed and looked at the floor. "Not really good I'm afraid. They're still trying to accept all this situation."
"They? So… you do, Mom?" Ranma said, who just came back, wearing her usual black pants along with her Chinese shirt. "Let's sit down." She offered.
"Yeah, we better sit down." Said Ryoga. "Do you want some tea, Mrs. Saotome?"
"Yes, that would be delightful. Thank you dear. And call me Nodoka. please" She said, and sat down on the couch.
"Ok, Nodoka." Said Ryoga smiling. He had a good feeling about this, at least concerning Ranma's mother.
Ranma brought a couple of chairs, placed them in front of the couch, and sat down in one of them. Meanwhile, Ryoga went to the kitchen to prepare some tea.
When Ranma sat down, Nodoka started answering Ranma's question. "I already lost you for ten years, because of your father foolishness and my own weakness. Weakness to realize that there are things more important than tradition, weakness for not foreseeing what would be like to lose a child for so many years. I don't want to lose you again, Ranma. Not for our supposed family honour, and less even when your father, the main interested in joining the two schools and keeping the marriage with Akane, has little honour himself. I love you dear, and nothing will change that. And I realized that if this is what you really want, what makes you happy, I, as your mother, must respect your decision and accept it. I'm sorry I didn't do earlier and tried to force you into something you didn't want." Nodoka told lowering her gaze, tears rolling down her cheeks, not able to contain her emotion.
Ranma was crying too, moved by her mother's words. She stood up and went to embrace her. Nodoka did the same, and they fused in a warm hug. This gave Ranma a great feeling of completeness, knowing that her mother finally accepted her just the way she was.
"Thank you Mom. You don't know how much this means to me. I love you." Ranma said, her cheeks wet with tears.
"I love you dear. I won't never lose you again." Said Nodoka, squeezing her child.
"No, you won't Mom. I promise." Replied the pigtailed girl.
Ryoga was witnessing all from the kitchen, and couldn't help to shed a few tears himself. He thanked Kami Sama for making Ranma's mother to finally accept their relationship, and felt relieved. He hoped that this was the first step to a sought after normal life.
A moment later, mother and son (daughter in this moment) separated, and sat down again. Ryoga came back with the tea, and gave Nodoka a filled cup on a little dish, and placed the kettle on the dining table. Then he sat down on the free chair. Nodoka took a little sip from the cup and closed her eyes, aware of the big step they had taken. She felt as if a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
There was one thing that Ranma was dying to ask her mother, so she did. "How is Akane, Mom? Is she still mad at me?" she asked, fearing the answer.
"I think she is not." Was Nodoka's answer, which made Ranma feel relieved and happy. "But I don't think she's ready to accept your relationship with Ryoga yet."
Ranma's happiness turned to sadness. She still needs more time, the redhead thought.
Then Nodoka continued. "She still loves you, and she believes she can bring things back to the way they were before, but I know they won't. I saw that day in the Tendo's the way you looked at Ryoga, I see you now, and I know you love him deeply. There's no turning back from that."
Ranma and Ryoga blushed at Nodoka's words. "Do you think she'd be willing to talk to me?" asked Ranma, thinking that she could try and talk to her tomorrow at school, provided Akane was willing to listen to her.
"I think so Ranma. She's as stubborn as you are, but I'm sure she'll listen to you now. You have to try. I hate this situation, and I want us to be a family again. It can't go on like this." She said with watery eyes.
"I'll try Mom. I'll talk to her in school. Hopefully she'll listen to me." Said Ranma, and Nodoka nodded.
"What about Pops? Asked Ranma again, knowing too well the answer.
"You know your father and his pride. He feels humiliated, and can't accept that his son loves another man. I couldn't accept it neither at the beginning, but I realized of my mistake. Your father on the other hand has that stupid pride of the old sensei, doesn't want to admit that you aren't what he wants you to be, and can't bear the fact that you won't join the schools." Explained Nodoka with sadness.
"Yeah, I feared he would be like that. He will never accept what we've done." The pigtailed girl said lowering her gaze.
"Give him time. This is being really hard for him, but I think that with enough time, he will finally see the absurd of his attitude." Nodoka tried to comfort her child.
"I hope you're right Mom. "
"And the rest of the Tendo, Nodoka?" asked Ryoga, curious to know if his hunch about Kasumi, Nabiki and Soun was right.
"About Soun, he's not angry with you, but he had high hopes in your marriage with Akane," she said looking at Ranma. "so he's disappointed that it finally won't happen. I have the feeling that he will eventually come to terms with it. Soun's disposition has always been a lot kinder than your father's." she explained, and then she took a sip of tea. "Nabiki, I'm not sure. She hasn't said anything about it since that day, but she doesn't seem upset. It's hard to know what that girl is thinking. However, Kasumi understands your decision and she doesn't blame you. She told me that she hoped to see you again soon."
"Yeah, she was very kind with us that day, and very understanding. She's Kasumi after all." Said Ryoga smiling.
Nodoka nodded. For a few seconds she looked like thinking deeply about something, and then she talked.
"Ranma, there's something I want to ask you, and I need you to answer me honestly. Rest assured that I won't judge you. As I said, I'll respect and accept what makes you happy." Said Nodoka, making Ranma fear what she was going to ask. "You're in female form and I noticed earlier that you are wearing female underwear. Tell me dear, do you like to be a girl?"
Ranma blushed furiously at the question and Ryoga swallowed a big lump in his throat. She knew that one day she had to answer these questions, but how she could explain to her mother? She thought for a moment, and decided that a direct answer was the better choice.
"Yes Mom, I like it. I feel comfortable being a girl, even wearing girl's clothes. It doesn't bother me anymore. But I like to be a guy too, so it's really confusing to me, how I can like being both, but that's the way I feel." Ranma explained with her cheeks pink.
Her mother smiled, like in understanding. "I see. I guess that being forced the last years to live as a girl half the time has made you to accustom to your female body, even accept it. You don't have to feel shame dear. You're happy this way, so don't trouble yourself with doubts." She assured her with a warm smile.
"Thank you mother. Your understanding means a lot." Ranma said returning the smile.
"You've had to live your life under extraordinary circumstances, thus you are an extraordinary boy, and girl. I see now the bravery needed to live under such conditions. Know that you'll always have my support, my help and my love." Said Nodoka, reaching her hand to grab and squeeze Ranma's. The pigtailed girl felt encouraged by her mother's words, watery eyes from the emotion. She stared at her mother and squeezed her hand back.
Then, the Saotome matriarch seemed to ponder something in her mind. Then she spoke again.
"I'm thinking about arranging a dinner this week, at my home. I'll invite the Tendo, and we'll work things out. I'm not so sure about Genma though, but I'll try to talk to him. What do you say?" she asked the young couple.
Ranma looked at Ryoga for a moment, asking without words, and her boyfriend nodded. Then she looked at her mother. "Yeah, we'll go Mom. We'll try to fix things with them."
"Good. Well, I think it's time for me to leave. I'll call you this week and I'll tell you which day we'll have dinner." Nodoka said and stood up, with the two youngsters doing the same.
"Ok Mom. We can go to your home earlier and help you to prepare everything." Ranma offered, not wanting all the work to rest on her mother's shoulders.
"Oh sweetheart, that would be great. Thank you." She said smiling to her child. "Ryoga dear, can you please give me the phone number of this house?" she asked.
"Of course Mrs. Sao… Nodoka" replied Ryoga, who went to get a piece of paper and a pen, and a moment later gave Nodoka what she asked.
"Take care of yourself dear. I love you." Nodoka said, hugging Ranma one last time.
"I love you Mom." Said Ranma, returning the hug.
Nodoka then said goodbye to Ryoga and left the house. The young man looked at Ranma smiling, still assimilating the visit they had. She smiled back and sat on the couch, so happy that her mother came to terms with their relationship, and willing to help them to fix things with the Tendo. Even with her father.
"Well, this was unexpected. Happily unexpected." Royga said after sitting down beside Ranma on the couch.
"I had hopes that my mother would end up understanding it. I saw conflict in her the night they found out. I just wished that her love for me would win over her traditional beliefs and her sense of honour, and thank Kami it did." Said Ranma while she leaned back on the couch.
"Will you talk with Akane tomorrow?" asked Ryoga.
"Yeah. I'll try at least." Answered the redheaded girl. The possibility that her ex-fiancée wouldn't even give her the chance to speak to her was worrisome to the martial artist. "Ok, what now?" asked the redheaded beauty.
"We can finish our cold breakfast…" said Ryoga playfully, to which his girlfriend grimaced. "Or we can clean up and do some sparring."
"Sparring sounds good to me." She said smiling. "I'll do the clean-up and you'll do the dishes."
"Hey, I did the dishes yesterday." Said Ryoga pretending indignation.
"Oh, c'mon, I'll let you win in the sparring." Ranma said with a mischievous smile.
"You've got some nerve Ranma." Ryoga said chuckling.
She stuck her tongue out at him as she winked, to which Ryoga couldn't help but laugh. Then they started to clear the table and take the dishes to the kitchen. They felt their mood lighten thanks to Nodoka's visit, and their hope that things could return to the way they used to be with the Tendo was renewed. There were still people they would have to deal with, such as Mousse, Shampoo and her great-grandmother. They had no idea how they would react when they heard the news. They may even have already known.
The rest of the day was fairly uneventful for the young couple. In the afternoon they went for a walk with Shirokuro, something relaxing where they could just enjoy each other's company and the fresh air of the sunny day in Nerima. Being Sunday, many people had the same idea, and couples, families and individuals were enjoying the wonderful day, taking a nice walk. Our young couple spent some time in a nearby park, releasing Shirokuro so she could wander the place freely. When the dog had enough running and playing, they went for some window shopping. After an hour or so, they called it a day, and returned home. Ryoga had to wake up very early for his first day at work, and Ranma had to go to school. The challenges of a new week and a new life awaited them.
The sun had long since hidden below the horizon, and the artificial light of the street lamps took its place. The activity in Nishiarai district, Adachi ward, was still intense. The last places to visit had closed half an hour ago, but people was looking for a good place to have dinner, and many others were just taking a walk, enjoying a beautiful night in Tokyo.
Noriko Shibuya had spent the afternoon with some friends, visiting the Adachi City Museum. They had relaxed in its beautiful gardens and imbued themselves in the history of Adachi with the various exhibitions the museum offered. When they finished their visit, her friends had parted to their homes, and Noriko was doing the same, walking to Kita-ayase metro station.
She was a beautiful 21-year-old young woman, studying Economics and she loved to visit museums and exhibitions on almost any subject. She wore her black hair in a ponytail, and sported a nice red floral print sundress that accentuated her slim figure. She opened her beige shoulder bag to grab the phone and check the time. It said 9:10 p.m. It was a bit late for her. She and her friends had lost track of time when they exited the museum and initiated a conversation about her friend Yoko and her new boyfriend. She tried to hurry up and took a shortcut through a narrow street that was deserted.
When she was half way through the street a sudden noise startled her. She froze, and listened carefully. It was like some leaves dragged by the wind, but she couldn't see any, and there was no wind, just a soft breeze. She resumed walking, hurrying now. She heard the noise again and looked everywhere trying to find the source. Then she saw a big round shadow on the asphalt moving directly to her. It was impossible. Nothing was casting that shadow, and it was getting closer. She cried for help and run away as fast as her high heels allowed her, but it wasn't enough. The shadow reached her and she was swallowed by it, gasping out a choked cry from her throat. She had disappeared. The shadow moved to a dark zone and could not be seen anymore. A couple of neighbours opened their windows and took a look, startled by the scream of the girl, but they could not see her anywhere. They called for her, but no one responded. The street was dead silent. There was nothing out there…