An Honorable Lie
By: Jaqui K
Chapter 7: Cutting The Line

Nodoka and Akane soon arrived at the decent sized Catholic school. Somehow, they managed to make their way to the area where the chapel was without attracting attention, including (as Akane grumbled about most of the way) from any obsessed martial arts gymnasts bent on revenge. However, it was at the entrance itself where they ran into their first obstacle.

"Oh, Shirokuro. You're here," Akane said at the sight of the black and white dog sitting happily in front of the main door of the chapel.

"Yes, we should have known she would side with that boy," Nodoka noted as she walked up. Before she could reach the door, Shirokuro got up and moved in front of her, blocking the way. Undeterred, Nodoka tried to walk around, but the dog quickly went to intercept her path once again.

Nodoka looked down at the current obstruction in her way and gave her most intimidating, yet still proper, expression. "I do not fault your loyalty, misguided though it may be. However, please know that I will do everything in my power to reclaim my daughter, even to one such as yourself. So please understand…it would be in your best interest if you…" she trailed off and her glare faltered at the sight of the everpresent happy expression on the dog's face.

"Here, I got this," Akane said as she stepped up next to Nodoka. She then leaned down and gave a big smile to the dog. "Hey there, girl. I'm sorry, our invitations got lost somehow, but we're here for the wedding. We're the family of the bride."

Shirokuro just stared for a couple of seconds before giving a short bark. She then went over to the doors and opened one with her mouth, holding it open for the two of them.

"Good girl. You're doing a great job," Akane said, giving Shirokuro a pat on the head. As she walked into the chapel, she turned to Nodoka. "You ready?"

Nodoka took a moment to shake off her flabbergasted expression and resteel herself. "Yes. Of course," she said, quickly following behind Akane.

The entrance for this chapel wasn't too dissimilar to the others Nodoka had been in. The dour looking carpets on the floor. The side hallway that went to the priest's office and preparation area. The stairs going down to the kitchen and community area, where so many pancake breakfasts would have been served. The little table with the stacks of hymn sheets for the next mass. The lovely statues. Nodoka felt a blush form on her face as she recalled the times in her youth where she would just stare at the statues and paintings of Mary and wonder just what she looked like underneath those robes…

"Sensei!"

Nodoka turned to Akane standing with her ear pressed up to one of the currently shut doors to the main chapel itself. "I can definitely hear them in there. Hold on…crap! The priest is doing the 'if anyone objects' part. We have to do this now." She tried the doors, only to find them locked in place. "I hope no kamis get mad at me for this."

As she was prepared to charge in, Nodoka took a moment to look back at something, an idea sneaking its way into her mind. It wouldn't really be proper, but considering the circumstances, perhaps-

A loud crash broke her out of her musings and she quickly prepared herself and turned back to see one of the doors to the chapel completely missing now, Akane in the finishing actions of a strong kick. The two quickly went into the chapel area proper and almost immediately stopped dead at the sight.

All the way at the end of the central aisle, standing at the altar, was her daughter. Ranko was still wearing the white dress Nodoka had given to her earlier that evening, although there was an addition of a wedding veil which was currently open. There was also a slight rip in the dress, exposing the accursed mark which started this whole nightmare. Next to her was that boy, currently wearing a white suit. They were facing each other and holding hands, although the very loud crash caused by Akane's entrance drew their attention. The priest that was behind them quickly ducked down and started to sneak away towards the side.

The images of her earlier dream shot through her mind, but she quickly shook them off as she and Akane quickly went up the aisle. Their approach was stopped, however, when Ranko separated from the boy and drew Nodoka's katana, pointing it directly at them with a look of pure fury on her face.

"I should have known you would do this," Ranko growled out. "How dare you try to destroy my happiness!"

"Dammit, you idiot, think for a moment," Akane called back. "Are you really happy?"

"What?" Ranko blinked at the question. "I…of course…I…"

"No! That's the spell affecting you." Akane's voice was pleading at this point. "That isn't real happiness. That isn't real love!"

Ranko froze for a moment, but then her anger returned in full as she scratched at the fish-like mark on her chest. "Oh really?" she scoffed. "And what the hell do you know about love, Tendo. Let's be honest, you've hated me since the first day we met."

"Ranko, that's…" Akane stopped and looked away.

"Don't listen to her, Akane," Nodoka said, carefully watching the two in front of her and waiting for her moment to strike. "We all know that's a lie."

"Oh, we're going to talk about lies now, Nodoka?" Ranko practically spat the name out of her mouth. "Why don't we start with all the ones you spouted out about supporting me, yet here you are, ready to try and make me split my belly open. I see now how you could marry a piece of trash like Pops. You're just like him."

"Ranko, that's…" Nodoka tried to push forward, but found her resolve once more faltering.

"Ah, and I see Tendo is just as much of a hypocrite," Ranko continued as her eyes fell to the fishing rod in Nodoka's hands. "After all your posturing, you're going to use that and do the same thing."

"No, I would never do that to you!" Akane yelled back. "We're just using it to take that thing off your chest to remove the spell!"

"Wait, that can…" Ranko paused, then put a hand up to fully cover the mark.

Akane took a step back and blinked. "Oh. I probably shouldn't have told them that…"

Nodoka held the rod closer, but otherwise didn't move. "Yes, Ranko. I intend to free you from this spell of false love that's affecting you."

"No! Stop calling our love false!" Ranko yelled back. "No one has ever loved me like my darling Ryo."

"That's not true, Ranko," Akane called out. "I know it because…" She paused, looking over to Nodoka for a moment, before sighing and lowering her weapon, turning back to Ranko with an apologetic expression. "Ranma, I'm sorry. When you first came into my life, I was so happy that there was this girl who also knew martial arts. I thought we could train together and take on the world. That smile you gave when I asked if you wanted to be friends warmed my heart so much. But then…" She glanced back to Nodoka again. "Um…well…"

"Oh, don't stop now, Tendo." Ranko said with a sneer. "Let your precious sensei know about your reaction to that 'pervert' in the bath."

"I…yes, it's true." Akane lowered her head, staring at the ground beneath her feet. "When I saw you there, my mind just went back to Kuno and all those boys from school, and I so took that out on you. Then, every time you did something amazing, every time you looked so…so beautiful, all I let myself see was a boy trying to show me up. Being a better girl than I could ever hope to become."

She then lifted her head back up, her gaze towards Ranko a mix of determination and adoration. "And I was wrong. I was wrong to see you like that. I was wrong to never go past my judgments and past that harsh exterior you gave yourself to truly see the person that's underneath. The person that cares so much. The person that did so much to protect me. The person that always managed to find ways to make me smile. The person I…that I fell in love with."

Ranko's eyes widened in shock and a small bit of red appeared on her cheeks as she lowered her katana slightly. "What? Ten…Akane? You…"

Akane continued her stare, although her eyes softened somewhat and a glowing smile formed on her face. "Yes, this is the truth. Ranma, Ranko, whatever you wish to be called. I accept you for who you are, and…I love you!"

"You…you…Akane…I…" Ranko collapsed down onto one knee, her hand clutching at the mark on her chest, her face twisted up, as if in pain. "Ryoga…Akane…what do…who do I…"

Nodoka immediately moved forward to help her struggling daughter, but stopped when a figure then stepped in front of the girl. That boy, who Nodoka somehow managed to completely forget about until that point, gave a harsh warning glare to her. His expression softened slightly however when he turned towards Akane.

"Is it true?" he asked, an almost pleading tone in his voice. "Do you really…"

Akane looked at the boy for a few moments before giving a nod. "Yes, Ryoga. I do."

"Well…well you can't," he countered. "Ranma's a girl. She told me that she would be a girl forever for me. Since you're a girl too, you can't be with her. Only I can."

"Didn't you hear me before?" Akane said with narrowed eyes. "That doesn't matter to me. I still accept her for who she is. I still love her."

"You still…" The boy looked downwards, his eyes flickering like he was trying to work out a slightly more complicated than expected riddle. After several seconds of that, he brought his gaze back up to Akane, a shadow of what almost appeared to be hurt in his eyes. "That means…we're rivals."

"Rivals?" Akane looked to be working out her own internal puzzle. "I guess so."

"Then I have no choice." There was little emotion in the boy's words and his face bore a grim expression as he pointed to Akane. "Akane Tendo, I challenge you to a match. The one who loses must give up Ranma forever."

Akane gasped, her eyes now filled with worry as she brought her naginata back up into a defensive position. "Ryoga. I…I don't want to fight over Ranko like that."

"I'm sorry, Akane, but it must be done. Don't worry," the boy said as he took another menacing step forward. "I'll make sure it's quick and painless for you."

Nodoka brought a hand to the hilt of the sword at her waist, when two quick flashes caught the corner of her eye. The flashes shot across the room and landed in front of the boy, stopping him in his tracks and revealing themselves to be…two metal spatulas that were now embedded in the ground.

"Hold it right there, ya jackass!"

From a side entrance a little ways behind them, the Ukyo girl appeared. In her hands was that oversized kitchen weapon, now held together by a quite large amount of duct tape. "I was the first one ta know Ranchan, and I was the first one ta love her, so if ya want her, ya gotta go through me first. Plus, I still gotta score ta settle with ya, dontcha forget that!"

The boy looked over to Ukyo with a sneer which merged into a smirk as he cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, I can live with that."

Ukyo gave a smirk of her own. "Then follow me. I got the perfect spot all set up for us." She then left through the side door.

The boy gave a grunt in acknowledgement and started to follow Ukyo, but then hesitated.

"It's okay, Ryo," came a voice behind him. Ranko slowly got to her feet, one hand still over that mark on her chest. "I can handle myself here. Go on and win, you big lug."

The boy turned to Ranko and gave a smile and a nod before running off, although in the opposite direction.

"Other way, Ryo," Ranko said. The boy stopped, then turned around and headed out the door Ukyo left from.

Nodoka blinked at the interaction, then debated on whether she should go help Ukyo. However, before she could make a decision, Ranko spoke up again.

"Akane," she said with a warmness in her voice, "I promise that I will not interfere in your martial arts fight with Ryo, and I will accept the outcome, whatever it may be."

"Oh. Th…thank you, Ranko," Akane responded, a combination of shock and happiness on her face. Although her gaze kept flicking to the door that the boy and Ukyo left from.

"However…" Ranko's warmth was suddenly replaced by an icy aura as she turned to Nodoka. "In turn, I must ask you to not interfere with what I'm about to do." She then pointed the katana in her hand at the older woman. "Give me the fishing rod."

Nodoka ignored the deadly blade, instead focusing purely on her daughter's eyes. While the anger and coldness were still there, she could also make out hints of hesitation within.

She gave a deep breath and drew her own weapon, taking up a defensive stance to guard the magical object in her right hand with the sword in her left. "I challenge you, Ranko. A duel for this fishing rod as well as that mark on your chest."

"Sensei, you can't!"

Nodoka shook her head at Akane's cries of protest. "I must. It is the proper way of things." She then addressed her daughter once more. "You want this?" she asked, her tone indicating that she wasn't only referring to the fishing rod. "Then prove to me that you are worthy."

Ranko's momentary expression of shock faded as she narrowed her eyes and gave the slightest of nods. "As you wish."

The battle commenced in earnest as Ranko immediately charged forward with a quick slash of her katana which Nodoka deftly deflected as she leapt back slightly. Ranko followed up with another strike and Nodoka dodged to the side, jumping into a row and landing on the wooden pew. She was quickly joined by the younger redhead who continued to push her attack, forcing her to continue to fall back.

As the two leapt all around the large room, it was quite clear that it wasn't going to be a long, drawn out fight. Still, with how long she had been out of practice, Nodoka found herself impressed with how well she was keeping her own even if she was constantly on the defensive. Although it was also quite clear that Ranko wasn't going as hard as she could. Not only was she using a katana one handed, but the girl was definitely not left-handed. Still, as the two leapt back into the central aisle again, Nodoka could admit to herself that she was holding back a little as well.

After all, she was not left-handed either.

The perfect moment presented itself right then as Nodoka was able to parry Ranko's latest strike causing the girl's arms to be knocked back and leaving her chest wide open. That was when the older woman made her move with the object in her dominant hand. She quickly dug deep within herself to pull out that special training she undertook back in high school. The training she did in order to teach a lesson to the stuck up girl from her rival school that dared to make her Kimiko cry. That strange type of martial arts training working with hoops, clubs, balls…

…and ribbons.

With a skillful flick of her wrist, she shot out the line of the fishing rod, causing the suction cup at the end to fly perfectly at the accursed mark on her daughter's chest. It was over. It took almost everything she had, but she was able to save-

With speeds Nodoka had never seen before, Ranko's right hand shot forward and caught the suction cup millimeters away from making contact. Nodoka's shock at this meant she was caught unprepared when the girl quickly pulled on the fishing line. Still holding onto the bamboo rod, the elder redhead was pulled forward, causing her to stumble slightly. She was barely able to get her sword up to block Ranko's strong follow up strike, which caused her to lose her grip on both items in her hands as she fell back and hit the ground hard.

Akane's cry rang out as Nodoka tried to get back up, only to find the point of her family's katana centimeters from her face. Past that she could see the cold expression of her daughter.

"Now do the right thing and just give up."

Nodoka glanced over to Akane, trying to plead with her eyes that her own life was inconsequential to her daughter's free will, but the girl was just frozen in shock. She looked back and felt her heart pounding in her ears as she fought with herself about her next move. There was one more thing she could try, but she already swore that there would be no more lies. It wouldn't be proper, so she couldn't-

"Okay, we got Ryoga subdued. Well, Ukyo's still working on chasing him…down…"

Nodoka blinked at the new voice and dared to turn her head to see Nabiki standing in the main entrance with a confused look on her face that shifted to annoyance when she turned towards Akane's direction.

"Come on, Sis, just hurry up and confess your true love already, so we can use the rod when she's all stunned and flustered."

Akane for her part just blushed and looked slightly away. "Uh, I already told her."

Nabiki's annoyed expression instantly dropped as she looked back at Ranko. "Oh."

Nodoka turned back to see pure shock, disbelief, and rage formed on her daughter's face directed towards the youngest Tendo girl.

"That's what that was? Everything you said was just…" Ranko then turned back and pointed her katana in Nabiki's direction. "Where is my Ryo? What did you do to him?!"

Nabiki froze for a moment before giving a half hearted shrug. "Holy water…?"

Ranko stared back before giving a tiny nod. "Should have figured. Fine then. Here's what is going to happen. First, I will go and get my Ryo. Then, the two of us will finish getting married with no one interfering! Finally, we will leave and never see any of you ever again!"

"Wait." Nodoka tried to cry the word out, but only managed barely a whisper. No, this couldn't be happening. How? How, after everything she did. How could it go all wrong?

Ranko stopped and looked down at her. "Hmm, you have a point." The words lifted Nodoka's heart slightly, only to come crashing down again as her daughter's attention went to the fishing rod that was now in her hand. "The proper thing to do would be to first take care of this thing."

A specific word shot through Nodoka's mind like a thunderbolt. Proper. For so long she tried so hard to be proper. To follow along with what the world expected of her. To be the proper friend, the proper wife, the proper mother. And in the end, what did that get her?

That damned contract and not seeing her child for so long.

Needing to hide the truth after finally seeing her child again.

Kimiko…

Well, if that was the result for her…

…then fuck being proper.

"Hold it!" Nodoka called out, reaching into her sleeve and pulling out the piece of paper hidden within. "You forgot about this."

Ranko paused only momentarily at the sight of the paper Nodoka made sure to keep well out of her reach. A calm smile then appeared on her face. "You really are a fool if you think I care about that damned contract anymore. I'm not going to let anyone try to control me ever-"

Her declaration was cut off by a loud tearing sound as Nodoka promptly tore the paper in half.

"You're right. I was a fool," Nodoka said, getting to her feet as she continued to rip the paper into smaller pieces, her determined face a contrast to Ranko's now shocked one. "I was a damned fool to accept the vow of a complete idiot of a man for a son that never actually existed." She then allowed the bits of newly made confetti to float slowly to the ground.

"I…what?" Ranko blinked in confusion.

"Yes, Ranko. You're my daughter. You've always been my daughter. And I accept you for who you are." Nodoka gave a smile and took a moment to let her words sink in before she continued with a now disapproving glare on her face. "What I will not accept is for my daughter to let herself lose to a goddamned piece of bamboo!"

"Lose?" Ranko's expression immediately shifted to one of indignation. "I don't lose!"

"Oh?" Nodoka responded with the tone of a Mother reprimanding a misbehaving child. "You mentioned not letting anyone control you, yet you seem to be perfectly fine being under the control of that fishing rod there. As your mother, I am not going to stand here and allow that type of behavior, young lady."

"Hey, I ain't being controlled at all!" Ranko's voice now managed to match up with said misbehaving child. "This love I'm feeling is real!"

"I don't know, Saotome," Nabiki joined in. "That sounds exactly what that little fish on your chest would say."

"It is real!" Ranko cried out again. "And I'll prove it!" Before anyone could 'stop' her, she took the suction cup and pressed it against the mark on her chest, then pulled. "There! I…" Katana and fishing pole both clattered to the ground, the fish-shaped mark now attached to the suction cup dissolving away. Ranko stared off into the distance, slowly blinking, like a sleepwalker that was just starting to wake up. "I…what…what was I…"

Before Nodoka could approach, a large blur shot by her and then latched onto her daughter.

"Oh, my beloved Ranma. Soon we'll be married and free of all this!"

"Wha…Ryoga? What are you…" Ranko's dazed state quickly broke as she, along with everyone else in the room, quickly realized that the boy closely hugging her was not currently wearing anything at all.

Two loud noises could then be heard in quick succession. The first being Ranko's fist colliding with the boy's face. The second was the boy colliding with the far wall of the church as he then slumped down, unconscious.

"Ryoga!" Ranko yelled out, a slight hint of red in her cheeks. "What the hell were you…" Her eyes widened slightly as she looked down at the enchanted fishing pole at her feet. "...oh. Right." She bent down and picked up the rod, the blush on her cheeks deepening further. "Uh, guess I should go and cure him, huh."

"Here, I'll take care of it," Nabiki said, walking up to Ranko and taking the fishing pole from her. "I can handle a little bit of pork. You on the other hand, little missy, need to go and hug your mother right now."

"Mom?" Ranko seemed to finally notice the person standing in front of her. "M-mom. You…do you really…" Ranko took a step forward, but then stopped as she got a closer look at the torn up pieces of the lyric sheet Nodoka took earlier.

Nodoka gave an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, dear, but I didn't have time to get the real contract. Don't worry. We can go and destroy it together."

"We can?" Hope now showed in the girl's eyes. "Does that mean…"

A small smile and nod was all Nodoka was able to do before she was tackled to the ground by her daughter. Ranko proceeded to hug her tightly, tears starting to go down her face.

"Mom!"

Nodoka didn't say anything back. She simply returned the hug and started to soothingly rub the back of her daughter's head. The two of them remained this way for several minutes, even as Nodoka heard the sound of the Ukyo girl coming in and asking what happened followed by Nabiki quickly shushing the girl. Eventually, Ranko spoke up again.

"Mom. When did you figure out it was me?"

Nodoka smiled and slowly brought them both into a sitting position. She released the hug, but then held onto her daughter's hands. "It was when you saved me from that water geyser. It's a little funny, but as I was passing out, I swore I could see the grown up version of the son I expected. But then of course I woke up and saw you there, as the beautiful young woman you have become."

"Oh." Ranko suddenly looked ashamed as she turned her head away. "Mom, I can explain."

"No, Ranko. You do not need to explain yourself to me. I already told you that I fully accept you as my daughter."

"You…" Ranko looked back at Nodoka, but the shame was still there on her face. "Mom, I…I'm not really…"

"Oh, stop trying to hide it already, Saotome," Nabiki called out. "We all fully accept you as a girl. Right, Akane?"

Ranko's eyes went wide again and she turned towards the youngest Tendo girl. "Akane? What you said. Did…did you really mean…"

"Of course I do, dummy," Akane said with a bit of anger that quickly melted away and she turned her gaze to the ground. "I mean…yeah. For you, I'm okay with being a pervert."

"Hey, I was fine with being a pervert from the very start!" Ukyo interjected.

"Now now," Nodoka said with a light chastising in her voice. "There is nothing perverted about young women loving each other."

All the girls turned to look at Nodoka. Ranma then looked around at everyone else, before looking down at herself. "Mom…I…I do like being a girl. Really, I do. It's just that…"

Nodoka pulled her daughter into a strong embrace, cutting her off. "No Ranko. I want you to forget about what your father tried to force on you. In fact, I want you to never even think about that whole Man Among Men thing ever again!"

Ranko froze for several moments in her arms, not saying anything. Eventually, she returned the hug. "Okay, Mom. Um, there's some things you need to know though."

"Yes, dear, I'm aware," Nodoka replied. "And I do want to hear all about it, I promise. Just, not right now though. Right now, I just want to hold onto my baby girl."

There was another beat of silence before Ranko replied back. "Alright. Later then. I promise I'll tell you everything."

"Thank you." Nodoka could feel the tears start to fall down her own cheeks. "And I promise to be totally honest with you from now on. There will be no more lies between us."

"Right," Ranko said, her voice barely above a whisper now. "No more lies."