The three rounds went easily to Ukyou and the boy's side. While Ranma could counter Ukyou and her skills fairly handily, the rules of the game and Ukyou's greater proficiency with projectiles kept them on even footing. The rest of Ukyou's team were all Volleyball team hopefuls, however. All Ukyou had to do was keep Ranma busy, and the rest of her team was winning the match for her.

I can't win like this. Ranma thought, eyes flicking over the other team as she probed for a weakness, an opening she could exploit… something.

Ukyou was lazily twirling the ball on her finger again, a smug look on her face. "Ready to give up yet, Ranchan?"

Ranma forced herself to grin confidently, even though she didn't feel it. "Not a chance, Ucchan. You know round two is where I always bounce back and win it."

Ukyou scowled. "Yeah?" She tossed the ball over her shoulder to the team server and got into a ready stance. "Well not this time, sugar."

Ranma's eyes flicked sideways to her own team. They weren't bad, to be fair, but they didn't have the practise or polish of the guy's team, having been picked at random.

Though it's hard to tell. They haven't gotten the ball much. Ranma noted. They were out of their depth, so naturally Ranma had been trying to compensate as much as she could, but…

Wait. Ranma's eyes flicked back to Ukyou. The taller girl's deep blue eyes were studying her, anticipating, flicking from each of Ranma's teammates, then back to her. That's it, isn't it? Ukyou knows I've been covering all the positions, so she's using that to maneuver me into a bad spot so that her team can score a point.

Ranma played with that in her head a bit. Ukyou was wielding her team like a weapon… no… Is this what they mean by teamwork? Ranma had a sudden burst of insight.

Always before when she had worked together with others, it had been chaos, a group of individuals trying to accomplish the same goal. Sometimes they'd roughly coordinate their attacks, but Ranma had never tried weaving the others into her attacks, passing the flow of battle back and forth, taking a secondary role to create an opening for an ally to strike. And to be fair, she had never really fought anyone who fought that way, at least not anyone who was a serious threat. It was typically one-on-one. Ranma had always paid attention to others in a battle, but always as liabilities, always checking to see if she needed to bail them out, mainly because very few of them approached her level of skill. Protecting the weak, and all that. There were a couple of times with Akane, but… Best not to think about that.

None of the others on Ukyou's team approached her skill level either, but rather than being a liability to her, she was using them to devastating effect. Weaving their strengths into her own rather than being burdened by their weakness. Ranma glanced at her team again. Can I do something similar?

Her eyes stopped on Rin, and a small smile tugged at her lips. I think I can.

She leaned over and touched Rin on the shoulder, getting her attention. As soon as their eyes met, she nodded to the other girl and said "Be ready."

There was a bit of confusion in Rin's bright green eyes, but she nodded and took her ready stance.

The setter served. It was a high, easy lob, back near the back of the court. Already Ranma was running through how it had gone the last few times. I run back to get the serve… she thought as she did just that, skidding to a stop under it and raising her hands to set it up. I pop it straight up, so Riko or Yuka could pass it forward, then run to the front to try for a spike… The ball hit Ranma's fingers, and she sent it back into the air in a high arc. Already Ukyou was getting into position on Ranma's side of the net, ready to move to block her as she ran for the spike, eyes flicking back and forth between Yuka and Riko to see who would get it and tell her which side it was going.

She never noticed the ball was not, in fact, going straight up.

Sensing something off, her eyes flicked up, searching for the ball, just in time to see Rin leaping for the descending ball, bringing her closed fist down in a strike against it that would send it to the floor on the opposite side of the court. Her eyes widened, her legs coiled, but it was already too late. She was out of position. Even an amateurish spike would land true this time.

That wasn't what Rin delivered, however. Ranma swore she saw a spark as her fist connected with the ball, and there was a sense of the air warping around the point of impact, everything stopping for just a second.

And then it started again with a BANG as the ball seemed to teleport from her hand to the floor on the opposite side of the court, just in front of one of the male players, exploding in a shower of dust and shredded rubber as the poor abused ball surrendered to forces beyond its endurance. The rapport echoed through the gym like a gunshot, framing the silence that had fallen over the rest of the players and crowd.

Ranma was the first to speak, eyes wide as she looked at Rin, who was glancing around a little sheepishly at the reaction she had elicited. "Holy crap!"

000

Nabiki blinked.

Not that that was unusual. Everyone had basically stopped in their tracks at that shot. The unassuming mousey blonde girl had just spiked the ball with enough force to destroy it, something that had even caused Ranma to pause in surprise. But that wasn't the reason for Nabiki's shock.

Unusual things happening were something she was accustomed to, and could process and react to before most other people were done being shocked. The shot had surprised her, and she had identified the source and delved into her near-photographic memory of all the students in the school to rapidly extract a name and a basic profile of the one responsible, all before everyone else were done letting their jaws hit the floor. Rin Ito, second year, had never purchased any picture packages, cram notes, or event tickets, much less any of the more grey market stuff. Never done anything to pop up on Nabiki's radar.

Which was the reason for her second, more enduring bought of shock, that there was someone with that kind of ability at Furinkan and Nabiki had no idea she existed until now.

She furiously reviewed what she knew about Rin… which was basically nothing, as she had never had reason to, aside from her name and class as listed below her picture in the yearbook.

She glanced over at Himara, and got her second surprise.

Rather than a look of surprise, or possibly even one of joy at finding what might be the most naturally talented striker in Furinkan, her face was twisted in anger.

She knows. Nabiki realized. She knows Rin has this ability, and not only hasn't tapped her for the volleyball team, but isn't happy her talent has been displayed. She doesn't want her on the team.

It didn't take a genius to realize there was history there between them. Possibly one that Rin was unaware of, as she hadn't shown anywhere near that kind of reaction to the other girl. Either that, or Rin was a better actor than Nabiki gave her credit. Either way…

Either way, I really wish I hadn't sent Megumi away so soon. She steepled her fingers again, carefully mentally cataloguing every detail to record later, flagging half a dozen avenues of inquiry. Have I been so out of touch with what's going on at Furinkan that I completely missed a major sports team drama? She scowled a bit. I got too focused on the martial artists. I haven't been watching the teachers, or the other students. She narrowed her eyes, glancing at Himura. Well, I'm watching now.

000

"What the hell was that?!" Yuka demanded as the team huddled in the aftermath of the Spike of Doom.

"I… I just… I'm sorry! I got a little carried away!" Rin pushed her fingers together nervously. "I just wanted to show I could do this…"

"No, no, this is good!" Ranma said, grinning wider than she had all day. Her mind was already combining all the factors. Anything Goes Martial Arts, plus Anything Goes Social Arts plus Volleyball. She put an arm around Rin's shoulders and one around Yuka's and drew them in, motioning the others to get close. "Rin… you did that on purpose, didn't you? I mean… it wasn't an accident, you can actually spike that hard if you want to, right?"

Rin nodded. "It's my Dad's technique. He called it 'Judgement Bolt' when he played on the Olympic circuit…"

"Olympic…" Sayuri choked.

"I'm sorry! You're not supposed to do it so hard you destroy the ball like that! I just…" She flushed. "I have trouble controlling it sometimes…"

"No… don't control it!" Ranma said, grinning as she glanced at each of the girls. "Listen… look at the boys. They're spooked! You turned that ball into a cannonball. Can you do it again? Blow up the ball I mean. Without hurting anyone obviously."

Rin bit her lower lip, but then nodded. "If I get a set up like that again… Yeah."

"Good. We're gonna do that." Ranma said. She thought a moment, then added "Just once more, 'cuz more than that will piss off the coach." She continued excitedly. "From there, if this plays out like I think it will, I'm pretty sure we can close the gap and win."

"How?" Sayuri asked. "Even if Rin can play, that still means we only got the two of you who are any good!"

Ranma grinned. "No, it just means there are two of us who are scary good. And that means you three are gonna be able to win this!"

Riko shook her head. "I don't understand."

"You'll see, trust me." Ranma said, flushed with anticipation. She glanced at Rin. "Hey Rin? Can you… look intimidating? Like, give 'em a death glare or something when we go back out?"

Rin blushed, looking down, then looked back up, looking sheepish. "Ummm… 'Grrrr'?"

"... We'll work on it later. For now, just put at least one more bomb at the boys' feet."

"O-okay…"

Ranma clapped the two girls on the back and broke the huddle, bouncing on the balls of her feet back to the net. She was grinning in that cocky way she had when she had learned the weak spot of an opponent's technique.

"What are you grinning about, Sugar?" Ukyou said, glaring at her suspiciously across the net.

"Grinning 'cause I've already won, Ucchan." Ranma said cockily.

"Still need two more points to win this round, and then win three more rounds besides. We just need to win one more round and we take the set." Ukyou replied. "Don't see how one good spike changes any of that."

"And that's why I'm better than you." Ranma smirked.

Ukyou raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? We'll see about that Sugar.

The teacher held up a fresh ball and tossed it to Sayuri. "Both sides get ready… начать!"

Sayuri lobbed the ball up for an overhand serve. Ranma thinks we can win. She gritted her teeth and focused, harder than she ever had while she was actually playing on the volleyball team. Hit it just below the centerline, put some backspin on it. She had never been able to get the hang of the higher level serving techniques when she had been on the team, but… if Ranma believed she could win this game…

There was a satisfying smack as she hit the ball right where she had intended, soaring up high, looking like it was going to end up in the back court, then dropping like a deflated balloon after just clearing the net. One of the boys darted forward to bunt it back up, but the backspin caused it to roll off his clasped arms and hit the net instead of going straight up.

Olga blew her whistle. "Point, girl's team!" She held up her arm in favor of the girl's side. "Next is beink match point!"

Sayuri felt an odd giggle bubble up from deep in her belly. She felt all the tiredness leave her as an excited, giddy energy welled up from within her. I did it! She glanced over to see Ranma grinning at her, and giving her the thumbs up. As if she had been expecting this all along. As if she had been certain, even if Sayuri hadn't been herself.

Sayuri grinned back, and returned the thumbs up, brushing a lock of her hair from her face. Can't let Rin be the only one who has a few tricks… She thought. Back when she had been on the volleyball team, she had never expected to go far, and had been told as much. Repeatedly. She was slow. She couldn't serve straight. She couldn't get under the ball. She had no hustle. She just accepted it. After the first week it was clear being on the volleyball team wasn't going to be fun like she thought, so it was okay if she wasn't good enough.

But now? Now she was starting to wonder… If she could pull off that serve again… maybe she could change the spin a little… after all, if Ranma and Rin were going to try, then maybe she should to? If she could fake out the boy's volleyball squad hopefuls like that… maybe she wasn't as hopeless as she was told.

She accepted the ball returned to her by the coach, mind already going over how to build on her previous success. Maybe I am good enough for this? Maybe… She glanced at the other side of the net. Did the boys look… nervous? She felt that excitement well up again. Oooooh, the boys being nervous about mousey, plain little Sayuri, instead of Akane Tendo, or Ranma's girl side, or some Chinese bimbo who kept smashing through the school walls? She liked that. Maybe I can make them a little sorry they cut from the team!

Sher lobbed the ball in the air, eyes steely, focused, her mind already three steps ahead of where she was, planning her next move…

Which is probably why it took her a second to figure out what was wrong when the heel of her hand passed through the air without resistance. However, she had the problem mostly figured out by the time the ball bounced off her head.

The laughter from the bleachers just kind of confirmed it.

"Point boy's team!"

Ranma turned quickly, seeing Sayuri frozen in her service pose, the ball rolling at her feet, her face beet red. No no no no no No NO NO! She wanted to yell at the girl for being stupid, trying to show off when all they needed right now was to get the ball over the net. A few days ago she would have done exactly that.

Ranma clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and let it out. And then she'll get mad and yell back. Or cry and run off. Or something else bad. Damnit, she's already tearing up! Ranma started to feel the panic rise in her throat as she could see Sayuri's eyes get watery.

She darted over and scooped up the ball. What do I do?! What did Pops do when I messed up in training? She winced. Okay, telling her she's bringing shame to the Anything Goes School won't help. Tell her she's cute-NO! Kami no! She shuddered. Okay… honesty? Augh… this isn't gonna work but it's all I got!

"So… uh… you kinda missed there." Ranma said, handing her the ball.

"You think!?" Sayuri hissed at her, snatching it away, her eyes already reddening by the oncoming tears.

Ranma held up her hands. "No, it's cool, okay? Everybody screws up."

"You don't!" Sayuri said, head down as she stiffly took her place again.

"No, no… look…" Ranma swallowed. She was going to have to get into some uncomfortable personal admissions. "I screw up all the time. That's what the Anything Goes style is all about."

Sayuri gave her a confused look.

"It's about rolling with it when you screw up and… and… coming out the other side of it ahead." Ranma tried to expand on the idea. "It's about making a jump without knowing where you're going to land, or getting into a fight you have no idea how to win, or…"

"... Or whiffing when you're trying to serve a volleyball?" Sayuri finished, though there was a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

"Yeah! I mean… You learn to make it all look like part of the plan, so that nobody actually knows what you're up to!"

"Including you?" Sayuri asked, some of her familiar snark leaking back into her voice.

"Especially me." Ranma grinned. "Mebbe I can show you how to apply some of it to your serves when this is all over. For now, though, don't try and be fancy. Just got for solid, like you've been doing. That first serve you did was awesome, but you gotta make sure you can pull that off every time before using it for real." Ranma quietly swept the mental checklist of all the times she had rushed into a fight with a technique she hadn't yet successfully performed under the carpet.

"Do you mean that?" Sayuri asked as Ranma turned to return to her position, the hopeful apprehension in her voice causing Ranma to freeze.

"Mean what?" Ranma turned back, a little worried about what she might have unintentionally agreed to.

"Train with us? Help us get better at this?"

Oh! Ranma blinked. Volleyball wasn't exactly her forte… In fact she couldn't really remember the last time she had played it before that aborted tournament on the beach. It wasn't martial arts, and therefore wasn't interesting, but…

She could see it though. The same way she had seen how social interactions were like a martial art of their own. She could see how the art could apply here. Not as some hybrid Martial Arts Volleyball… but Volleyball as the martial art. Rin's thunderous strikes, and Sayuri's little trick with the backspin. There were tricks and techniques to be found in this, and places where she could apply her own tricks and techniques, and… suddenly it was starting to seem a lot like a challenge.

Ranma gave her a cocky grin, and nodded. "You bet."

Sayuri took a deep breath, lobbed the ball in the air, and performed a simple but serviceable overhand serve, sending it over the net.

Now, getting stuffed by Ranma Saotome had no shame in it for the boy's team. Nor did being caught off-guard by some kind of freakish power spike from a complete unknown. But to be hoodwinked by trick serve made by an total amateur girl that you had homeroom with?

No, the pride of the boy's volleyball team would not allow that to stand.

"Hey…!" Ukyou protested as one of the boys shouldered her aside to get under the ball, bunting it back into the air as another of their fellows got into position for the strike, moving like the well oiled competitive machine they were. It was time to show why they were meant for the Furinkan High Boy's Volleyball team!

The strike seemed to float in mid air, his hand coming down in a hammer strike, the floor on the other side of the net completely devoid of opposition. It was a textbook point about to happen.

Needless to say, they had briefly forgotten where they were.

Ranma practically teleported into the path of the ball. She had enough time to smirk at the striker, and then casually tipped the ball back into the air.

As one the boy's team followed the path of the ball as it arced up gracefully into the air, coming down just as a certain diminutive blonde striker leapt upwards to intercept it.

Later reports from the team would universally insist there was a rumble, as if from dark stormclouds about to unleash their fury.

Regardless, one did not survive to be a second-year student at Furinkan without having a keenly developed survival instinct. Which the entire team heeded as they dove for cover.

The second of Rin's thunderbolts was, if anything, even more violent than the first. There was a report, like the crack of gunfire as her hand impacted the ball, forcing it to deform as her hand forced it to accelerate faster than air resistance was entirely willing to allow. The ball struck the floor with so much force it was a wonder the polished surface didn't crack from the impact, rupturing into rubber shrapnel that pelted the team as they cowered on the sidelines.

All but Ukyou, of course, who regarded her team with disgust as she casually shifted her stance slightly to avoid a chunk of rubber flying past her head. "You jackasses are pathetic." she muttered.

"Game point." Olga said, walking over to the boy's side. She nudged one of the boys with her foot. "Match is now 3-2"

"Three two!?" Ukyou protested. "They've only won one round!"

Olga crossed her arms and huffed. "Am docking round for cowardice."

"That's bullshit!" Ukyou snarled, getting up in the gym teacher's face, flushed with fury at the unfairness of having her first real victory over her fiance eroded because of being saddled with a bunch of idiots.

Olga raised an eyebrow. "... 3-3."

"What!? That's… you're…" Ukyou sputtered in incoherent rage, fists clenched and trembling. Seeing the gym teacher wasn't going to budge, and with no way to redress the injustice, she was finally forced to turn and storm back to her position. "Auuuugh!"

Olga nodded, satisfied, then turned to Hiroshi and Daisuke. "You! Cheer team! I am not hearink cheering!"

"We're… we're not actually the cheer team, coach…" Hiroshi said nervously.

"Yeah." Daisuke chipped in. "Proper cheerleading is actually a performance that requires a great deal of skill, and as we've only just been conscripted to the task, we haven't had time to really learn any routines. Maybe if we had a couple of weeks to train and prepare, we could…"

"CHEER. NOW." Olga barked, then blew her whistle once more.

Daisuke deflated a little, his pom poms drooping. "Yes, coach."

"Woo, coach." Hiroshi added, shaking one of his pom poms in the air unenthusiastically.

"Cheer for teams." She gruffed, then turned her back on them.

"Methinks things have started to turn in Ranma's favor." Daisuke said dryly, watching as the teams set up again.

"I don't know. They had the element of surprise, but the boy's team and Ukyou might come back. You know how determined Ukyou can be."

"Yeah, she really wants to win this." Daisuke rubbed his chin. "Either way, we've got to cheer for someone."

"Well…" Hiroshi considered. "I think, given how close this match is, and that our pride and honor as men is literally on the line here, there's really only one course of action we can take and be able to live with ourselves tomorrow."

"Sell out our gender and cheer for the girls' team to earn some quick and easy brownie points?"

Hiroshi nodded. "Yes. Yes exactly."

000

"WHAT'S THE TEAM THAT BRINGS HOME GOLD? THE ONE WITH TWO X CHROMASOMES! GOOOOOOO GIRLS!"

Ranma glanced over at the side as Hiroshi and Daisuke started gyrating and hopping in a reasonable facsimile of a cheerleading routine. "... What?"

There was a roar of approving cheers from the bleachers as the two began their antics. Ranma suddenly realized the bleachers were almost full. Students from other classes had been steadily sneaking into the gym to watch the spectacle.

"YOU CAN HIDE, YOU CAN RUN, BUT IT'S THE GIRLS WHO GET SHIT DONE! GOOOO GIRLS TEAM!"

Ukyou needed a moment to pick her jaw up off the floor. She felt her rage rise again as the two boys posed and bounced in response to cat calls and wolf whistles from the bleachers. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU JACKASSES!?"

The two boys paused, looked at each other, nodded, and after a moment adjusting their tutus, stood tall and put their hands over their hearts, twirling their pompoms in the other hand. "Ucchan, Ucchan, she's our man! If she can't do it GREAT!"

"That's it…" Ukyou said, her voice becoming eerily calm. "I'm going to kill them all. I'll kill them all, and burn down the school."

"Uhhh… Ukyou?" One of the boys team said nervously. They had been hoping for guidance and strategy from their ringer, but from the dangerous aura that was coming off the girl…

"I'll kill them, burn down the school, and nail their corpses to the flaming chunks of wood…"

"... Ukyou?" He tried again nervously as his teammates gave him a shove from behind.

She looked up at him, her eyes shadowed for a moment, though he swore he could see a reddish glow beneath her bangs. The vision faded after a moment, though, and she straightened and smiled sweetly. "Yes, sugar? What can I help you with?" She said in the same tone of voice she used to take orders and cajole tips from her customers.

The boy shuddered, and decided he perhaps wouldn't be eating at Ucchan's as much in the near future. "Well… We were just wondering what the plan is? We're all tied up. Next round wins it."

Ukyou took a deep breath, closing her eyes and centering herself. She had made the mistake of toying with Ranma rather than finishing things quickly, enjoying finally being as good or better than her fiance at something athletic, and made the same dumb mistake all of Ranma's opponents had made. But how was she suppose to predict one of Ranma's team picks would have a nuclear weapon for a right arm? The rest of Ranma's team was getting inspired, with even Sayuri pulling off an impressive score, even if she doffed it on her very next serve. While at the same time, her own team was scattered, demoralized and uncertain.

She glanced over to Ranma. Did she do this… on purpose? Ranchan couldn't lead a horse to water in the middle of a lake! No… Just lucky, but she'll capitalize on that. We should end this quick. It's Ranma's serve to start… if I let her get the ball, she'll want to show off, do something fancy to look good for her team… She silently played out how she thought Ranma might approach things. Ranma didn't know a lot about volleyball, but was brilliant at faking things, given all of the weird themed challenges she got. However, that meant that she always fell back on a certain style. Heavy on aerial maneuvers.

She considered the idea, and then nodded. That'll work for a point, maybe two. Then it'll be up to just plain being better to get the last one. "Okay, I've got a plan." She said to the team, who perked up immediately. "Listen close…"

000

When the boy's team took the court again, they did so with renewed confidence. Ukyou had a smiled on her lips, and her eyes were flashing in that way they did when she was really getting into a challenge.

Ranma smiled in spite of herself. She had to admit, she was enjoying this, too. It reminded her a little of the times she and Ukyou had played together when they were children. Though… Ukyou had taken those times a fair bit more seriously than Ranma had.

"Ready to go out strong, Ucchan?" Ranma asked, typical confident smirk riding her lips.

"Oh, I'm not going out this time, Sugar." She put a hand on her hip, her posture full of a confidence that gave Ranma a momentary pause. "You gave it a good try, but at the end of the day you're just out of your league. Figuratively and literally."

"IF THE OTHER TEAM WILL FIGHT, RIN WILL SPIKE THEM INTO THE AFTERLIFE! GOOOOOOO GIRLS!" Horishi and Daisuke were getting more confident in their routine now, for all of it's blatant ridiculousness.

Ukyou winced.

"Izzat so?" Ranma grinned wider, a dangerous look entering her eyes. It's time for Ucchan to eat those words! And maybe the ball!

Sayuri served the ball. Ranma tensed, preparing herself for whatever scheme Ukyou had in mind, eyes following it carefully…

"Oops!" Ukyou seemed to stumble, a bit off balance, and swatted the ball awkwardly upwards. It lobbed back up over the net lazily, slow and high, perfectly set up for a spike right in front of Ranma.

The grin on Ranma's face spread as she leapt to take full advantage of Ukyou's blunder. Looks like this is gonna be a shorter round than you thought, Ucchan! She crowed mentally as she brought the hammer down on the ball. She might not be able to spike with the kind of force that Rin could, but with such a coincidentally perfect setup…

Ranma's triumph turned to ashes before she even landed. One of the boys team slid under the ball with almost prescient fluidity, somehow predicting where it was going to go even before it fully left Ranma's hand. Unable to stop the spike, Ranma was forced to watch as the masterfully executed smash struck clasped hands instead of the floor. Her gaze followed it up just in time to see a certain Okonomiyaki chef rising right behind it.

She had just enough time for a very small "oh."

The savage spike drove the ball right into her face, pitching her over backwards while still in mid-air, and sending the ball careening off across the gym as Ranma slammed into the floor head first.

Olga blasted her whistle. "Point, boys!"

"Senpai!" Rin yelped and ran over to her, along with the rest of the girl's team, kneeling next to the stricken neo-girl.

Ukyou grinned, hand on her hip. Part of her felt a pang of guilt for being quite so forceful with her fiance, but if she was going to be a good husband, she needed to learn a little humility now and then. Besides, she thought, I can make it up to her later with a special meal… and maybe kiss her boo-boos better too!

"Ranma, are you okay?" Rin asked, peering down at the redhead, her visage a blur of double images and blinding pot lights, all slowly swirling counterclockwise.

"That… depends…" Ranma muttered. "Did I end up engaged to anyone new while I was out?"

Rin blinked. "I… what?"

"No, Ranma." Yuka supplied helpfully. "Just the usual four."

"Three." Ranma corrected, sitting up and holding her head. "Ouch… Kodachi doesn't count."

"Four fiances?" Rin boggled. "You're engaged for four different guys?! In high school?!"

"Three!" Ranma snapped, then winced again as her head protested. "And I'm engaged to girls. I'm a guy, remember?"

Rin winced. "Sorry. I only transferred in this year, and I only saw you change once. A lot of the stories kinda contradict each other, too."

"Well, I…" Ranma trailed off. "Wait, what stories contradict?"

"Well…" Rin ticked off her fingers. "There's the one that you're really a girl with a boy curse, and you just say you're a boy because you'd Dad's forcing you to…"

"That's one's popular." Sayuri chipped in.

"... Then there's the one that says you're actually two people, and your female half is really an alien space cop, which is why you have red hair and super powers… Then there's the one where your whole family is shapeshifters… then there's the one where an alien spaceship crashed on you, remade your crushed body as a girl because it didn't know what it was doing, and your male side is just a hologram that shorts out whenever you get wet… Oooh, then there's the one where you're an alien shapeshifting robot…"

"I… no, no… no…" Ranma felt the pounding in her head getting worse. "Just… stop. I'm not an alien. I'm not a robot. I'm definitely not a robot alien. I'm just a boring old human."

"With an ancient chinese curse, who occasionally fights gods and dragons." Yuka supplied helpfully.

"I… Yeah, that." Ranma finished, deflating.

"Oh… Well… you're still cool, Senpai!" Rin asserted with a sharp nod of her head. "You can't let not being an alien robot superhero get you down!"

The other four girls silently stared at Rin for a moment.

"Okay… right!" Ranma flipped back onto her feet. "Nevermind that! Right now, a certain bunch o' jerks are about to get some cold, rubbery payback!"

"Yeah, definitely not cool enough to be a robot alien superhero." Yuka said dryly.

"Wait, senpai! I forgot to tell you…" Rin tried to stop Ranma, but the other team was already serving the ball.

Ranma narrowed her eyes. Okay, whatever the heck happened there, it's not happening twice! She took her stance, this time carefully watching Ukyou for treachery.

This time, it was one of the boys who lopped the shot high and over the net. It almost looked like he was trying to set it up for Ukyou to smash, but accidentally set it up perfectly for Ranma instead.

Okay, again! But this time… She leapt for it, eyes already tracking, trying to find an opening, somewhere they wouldn't expect. She quickly spotted it midcourt and put everything she had into the spike…

Only to have a hand shoot up from the bottom of her peripheral vision and block the shot, sending it up in a slow arc, right to where Ukyou was waiting.

"Oh n-" Ranma managed.

Yuka and Riko watched as Ranma skidded on her back to the mid-court, the imprint of the volleyball's texture visible on her face, the ball bouncing next to her as she came to a stop.

"Point boy's team! Next point beink match point!" Olga announced.

"Okay… I'm ready to hear what I'm doing wrong now…" Ranma muttered, slowly, sitting up.

"Sorry, Senpai!" Rin said, crouching next to her, looking sheepish. "I tried to tell you… They're baiting you."

Ranma sighed. "Well, yeah, I'm getting that." She rubbed her face. "But I don't get how they seem to know where I'm gonna put the ball?"

"Oh, it's actually kind of clever." Rin said brightly. "They're creating intentional gaps in their defense, so that you'll strike in those spots, and they can be ready to close up the gap in an instant."

"Oh! I think I saw that in one of my sports mangas!" Riko said suddenly, smacking her hand into her palm.

Ranma frowned. She knew that trick. She had used that trick in fights before. She hadn't recognized it in this setting though. Ukyou is really pulling out all the stops!

Of course… A smile spread across her face. It's REAL easy to get in trouble if your opponent figures out you're doing it. "Okay, I know what we're gonna do. Yuka? C'mere, you're gonna be part of this…"

000

Ukyou smirked as she watched Ranma pick herself up off the ground, idly spinning the ball on her finger again. She watched as Ranma took her position again, that same determined look on her face. "Ready to give up yet, Sugar?" She grinned. "Not that I'll let you. One more point is all I need."

"You're not gonna get it, Ucchan." Ranma said. "Serve the ball."

Ukyou smirked. Yeah, you figured it out, didn't you? You're probably expecting me to just keep using the same trick over and over, aren'tcha? She tossed the ball back to her server, giving her team a nod to let them know the plan changed. Sorry, Ranma, not going to wait for you to figure out a counter before I change tactics.

Ukyou followed the ball as it soured over the net to mid court on the other side. Yuka and Rin are the weak points. All we have to do is keep lobbing to them. Ranma will either move to mid court to cover them and give us a big old hole, or they'll eventually flub. Either way, Ranchan loses this one.

Ukyou smirked a bit as sure enough, Ranma moved back to the mid court to intercept the lob, freeing Ukyou to block Rin. it's all about controlling what moves you can make, Ranchan. Now you'll pass it forward for Rin…

Sure enough, Ranma set the ball up for their striker, who moved for another thunderbolt. But Ukyou was already in the air, hands up to deflect the shot. Rin's eyes widened, and she pulled the hit, trying to change the angle, but it wasn't enough, the ball deflecting off Ukyou's hands back over to their side of the net, right towards the position Ranma had vacated.

Game, set and ma- Ukyou thought smugly, watching the ball as it… was set up by Yuka?

CRAP! She scrambled, but it was too late. Ranma made a leap from mid court that would have made a professional basketball player jealous as she flew in and enthusiastically spiked the ball right in the middle of the court, hitting the ground with a resounding ~smack~

"YESSS! Finally!" Ranma shouted, bouncing in victory.

"TWO FOUR SIX EIGHT! THE BOYS WILL CHOKE 'CUZ UCCHAN'S LATE!" Hiroshi and Daisuke cried out, doing their best impression of cheering poses, having gotten the rest of the girls into it with them.

"Nice trick, but you still need two more, sugar!" Ukyou shot back, growling as she tossed them the ball. She noticed Ranma returning to mid court, leaving Yuka in the forward position. What is she doing?!

Ranma gave Yuka a thumbs up, then turned to Sayuri. "Hey, Sayuri? Remember what I said about not doing anything fancy if you're not sure you can pull it off?"

"Yeah?"

Ranma shook her head. "Ignore me. Go for it."

Sayuri glanced to the bleachers, going pale. "Ranma, are you nuts?!" She squeaked.

"I've got a finisher for this, but I've still got a point gap to close, and I've got nothing else that Ukyou won't be ready for." Ranma said. "You're our only hope."

"But if I flub it we're done!" She hissed.

"Yeah, well, if you just lob it we're done, too. We need an ace or nothing right now."

"This isn't how you win a match, Ranma!" She protested.

"Are you kidding?" Ranma grinned. "This is how I win every match. You did it before, I know you can do it again. Get this point, and I can finish this for us, okay?"

Sayuri ducked her head, muttering curses to a certain pigtailed martial artist under her breath. She sized up the net, the confident glare of the boys team, with Ukyou at the head. No pressure or anything, eh Saotome? I swear I'm going to ask Akane to mallet you extra hard next time I see her, just for me! She grit her teeth, lifted the ball in the air, and just for a moment, the din of the crowd, Hiroshi and Daisuke's inane cheering, and even the other team faded out.

I don't care if I do flub this. She lied to herself as the ball left her fingers. I don't… I don't care if the whole school sees me flub it again. I don't care if we win. I never really wanted to play volleyball. I don't care if I'm special like Ranma or Ukyou! I just don't… want… their… PITY!

There was a moment, a flash of something like inspiration that told her to turn her wrist slightly at the last second, hitting the ball from below at a slightly different angle than before. She felt all of her anger and frustration flow into the ball, and then she violently flung it away, not caring where it went as it left her hand as if fired from a cannon. "I DON'T CARE!"

The strike hadn't just imparted force onto the ball, but a wobbling spin that caused it to curve through the air, arcing over the net on one side and curving around to the other side. The boys dove for the ball, but it was a one-in a million shot, impossible to predict and get under. It hit the ground just inside the court line on the far side from where it had crossed over the net and skittered off crazily as it sputtered away whatever bizarre spin momentum Sayuri had unwittingly imparted onto it.

No one on the girl's side moved.

Olga's whistle blew. "Point, girl's side! All beink tied up! Next point wins!"

"Sayuri…?" Yuka said. "What have you not been telling me?"

"W-what?" Sayuri stammered, looking to where the ball had finally touched down, and then back to her best friend. "I mean… I just got lucky with the spin, right?"

"I'm fairly certain what you did was physically impossible."

Sayuri laughed weakly. "No… that's not… I mean, it's just… It's like that gyroscope we messed with in science class, right?"

Everyone was looking at her now. Except Ranma. Ranma was studying her. That was worse.

"Ranma if you keep staring at me like that I'm gonna tell Akane!" Sayuri growled.

"You ever studied martial arts?" Ranma asked, unconcerned about the threat, rubbing her chin as she looked the girl over. She definitely put some ki into that, whether she knows it or not. Maybe she picked it up from all the fights she's seen?

"No! I never… Yuka, tell her!"

"Well, she does read a lot of manga with martials arts in it… A lot of doujins, too."

"Yuka!" She hissed, sensing betrayal.

"... Like that one with the two really buff guys in it… one of 'em with long hair, and they always lose their shirts when they fight…"

"Yuka!"

"... I've still got to get that back to you, don't I?" Yuka continued, oblivious, until Sayuri stomped up to her and clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Really? They show any good techniques in it?" Ranma asked, obviously pondering the idea of drawing inspiration from a martial arts manga.

"Uhh…" Sayuri blushed a bit, the 'techniques' that were so prevalent in the manga not having anything to do with martial arts.

"Neat. Maybe you can let me borrow it after Yuka is done?" Ranma grinned. "If it's what showed you how to pull off a serve like that, I wonder what else it could teach me!"

Things that would put your fights with all those bare-chested guys you attract into a completely different context. Sayuri thought. Just being able to see Ranma's expression alone might be worth it. "I'll… uhh… we'll see?"

"Okay, next one just make it an easy lob." Ranma said. "We want it to go to a rally for that one." She glanced at Riko and Rin. "Are you two ready?"

"I've only done this a few times before." Riko admitted sheepishly, fidgeting.

"I know, but I can't do it. I need to keep Ukyou focused on me, and if she sees this coming she'll put a stop to it." Ranma said. "You were on the gymnastics team for a reason, right?"

Riko sighed. "Yeah, but I'm not tough like you or Akane. I couldn't hack it against Kodachi or her cronies."

Ranma gave her that confident grin. "You don't gotta. You just gotta do a move you did in your basic training."

"Yeah… with me." Rin said nervously. "I was never in gymnastics!"

"Just worry about getting in position to do what you do. I'll take care of the landing. That's kinda what I've been training in in the last two years." Ranma replied. "I know you guys can do this." She held out her fist. "Come on, Ranma Saotome never loses, and right now you're on Ranma Saotome's team."

Rin was the first one to put her hand on top of Ranma's. "If Senpai thinks we can do this, then we can do this. Just one more point, right?"

Ranma finally realized that at some point during the game Rin had started calling her 'senpai', and she wasn't entirely sure she was comfortable with that. Thankfully she wasn't getting potential fiancee warning vibes from the girl, but still..

Yuka put her hand on top next. "Well, I think this is probably going to go horribly. But…" She smiled. "... It was kinda cool being in the middle of one of your capers for once, Ranma. Thanks for bringing us along."

Ranma blushed a little. She didn't get many compliments out of Akane's friends. Especially with how things had been lately.

Sayuri put her hand on next. "What Yuka said. Plus making me feel like I'm actually any good at this…"

Riko put her own hand on top of Sayuri's. "You are good at this, Sayuri! I've never seen anyone make a serve like that before! I'm just here to fill a spot, but you… you and Rin… and yeah, Ranma obviously… you guys could really make a go of this!"

Ranma put her other hand on top of the pile. She was grinning like a madwoman, and didn't know why. All she knew was that this was the most fun she had had in years. "Let's all make of a go of this."

They broke and trotted back to their positions. Sayuri accepted the ball from Olga, and took a deep breath. She tossed the ball, and made a serviceable, if ordinary serve, right to the opposing team mid court.

They were ready, one of the boys bunting the ball, another setting it up for Ukyou, moving by the numbers now that their win was on the line. Ukyou took her shot for the far back corner of the court, forcing Sayuri to scramble for it to keep it in play. Two of the boys moved up closer to the net, ready to block any attempts by Rin at a windup smash.

Ranma set the ball up, but for Yuka instead. Despite the girl's attempt at a spike being weak, the boys still had to scramble to fill the hole. Ranma nodded to Riko and rushed the net as if to block the oncoming spike.

Ukyou spotted her coming, forcing her to redirect to make the shot faster, unable to precisely control the angle of the ball this time as she focused on power, hoping to simply smash through the defense.

Ranma dropped to her knees, bowed her head and clasped her hands together in an unorthodox behind-the-head bunt, absorbing most of the fury and sending it back to Sayuri, who set it back to the front of the net, in perfect position for Ranma to spike. Again Ukyou and her two guards closed in for the block.

There was a moment's confusion when Ranma set the ball instead, sending it higher than normal.

It was then they noticed what Riko and rin were up to. Riko hand laced her fingers together, and Rin made a running start at her, stepping into her hands and getting a literal step up, just enough to give her a bit of extra lift, just in time for her to meet the ball at the top of Ranma's set.

With the extra height, there was no way to block, and Rin's thunderbolt could strike anywhere in the court she wished.

There was almost a crackling in the air, not unlike when a certain kendoist was around, as the entire boy's team stared up in helpless horror at the visage of their doom hovering above them.

The strike came as a literal thunderclap, as Rin threw everything she had into it. Then was an explosion and a cloud of dust and debris as this time the ball actually did break the floor, sending the boy's team sprawling in all directions.

"Point, girl's team! Winner is girls team!" Olga blew her whistle three times.

Ranma darted in, catching Rin as she fell back down, cutting off her abortive yelp as she dropped suddenly. She grinned at the girl, then self consciously set her back on her feet before anyone got any wrong ideas. "That was great!"

"We did it! We won!" Sayuri ran in, laughing and hugging both girls. "We actually pulled it off!"

Riko and Yuka crowded in, and Ranma laughed nervously, part of her half expecting to get mashed into the floor any second by an angry fiancee.

"Ranma!"

Ah, there she is now. Ranma peered over Rin's head nervously as Ukyou stalked towards her. Fortunately, it wasn't Akane, but Ukyou did get temperamental when it seemed like Ranma was paying too much attention to another female, much less four, and she had just taken a big hit to her ego at her hands, and technically she could actually hit harder than Akane could…

… Wait, why was it fortunate it was Ukyou, not Akane?

Ukyou surprised her, however, by sticking out her hand. "Good match." She said, grinning.

Ranma blinked, then smiled. A few weeks ago, she probably would have rubbed it in by gloating, but she was starting to learn when and where to switch off the rival banter. If you didn't crush your opponent, the would rise to challenge you again… and Ranma liked repeat challenges. "Thanks, Ucchan. That was a lot of fun! We gotta do this sorta stuff more often."

"R-really?" Ukyou smiled, uncharacteristically shyly as she let her own game face slip in favor of her usual 'cute fiancee' demeanor.

"That might not be such a good idea." Rin said sheepishly, kicking at a broken floorboard. "Not sure the school's maintenance budget could handle it."

Sayuri patted her on the back. "You are new around here, aren't you?"

A slow clapping caught their attention, and they all turned to see a tall blonde girl walking towards them, seemingly unconcerned by the destruction. She smiled and made a slight but formal bow. "Please forgive my intrusion. I see your reputations are well earned, Saotome-san, Kuonji-san."

"Oh." Sayuri said flatly. "Hello Himura."

Himura Tanaka smirked and brushed a few errant strands of her golden blonde hair back behind her ear. "Kamei-san! I must admit, you put on quite the display as well. Such a shame you didn't feel the need to reveal such talents while you were part of the team."

"What do you want?" Ranma crossed her arms, getting a distinctly Kodachi-esque vibe from the girl.

"I simply wished to congratulate you on your magnificent victory!" Himura explained, beaming once more. "Especially in the light of such…" She shot Yuka and Riko a sideways glance, her expression shifting momentarily as if she had spied something distasteful. "... 'handicaps'. As the Captain of the girl's championship volleyball team here at Furinkan, I am pleased to offer you both positions as starters for this year's team."

"We've been through this before, Himura." Ukyou said tiredly. "Pass."

Himura clucked her tongue and took on a exaggerated sympathetic tone. "Tch, yes, of course. Your obligation to that quaint little… food stand of yours. Commendable, I suppose. A tad disappointing that your ambitions don't appear to extend beyond it, but admirable work ethic all the same. Do come and see me if you change your mind." She patted Ukyou on the shoulder, ignoring as the other girl bristled and sputtered.

She spread her arms and beamed again at Ranma. "Now, Saotome-san! I understand you have no such obligations, correct? And I noticed your schedule was definitely lacking in extra-curriculars, which are so important these days in order to get good placements in work and college alike! Shall I pen you in to join us for Tuesday's practise?"

"No, thanks." Ranma muttered, hoping the girl took the hint before Ukyou went thermonuclear.

"Oh? Friday, perhaps?" She pulled out a little black book. "This early in the season we can afford to miss a few, but it's never too early to build team cohesion, hmmm?"

"No, as in 'No. Thanks.'" Ranma repeated. "Not interested."

"Oh. Well, what a pity. Such a remarkable performance, and all for naught." She clucked her tongue again as she tucked away her little black book. "Well, hopefully I can think of some way to persuade you. Until then, I suppose I will just have to accept defeat, like our… rather disappointing crop of male hopefuls this year. Ah well, the boy's team hasn't seen a championship in years anyway." She turned to leave.

"Hold on." Yuka interrupted. "Aren't you going to ask Sayuri? Or Rin? They're the ones who won this match!"

Himura turned, raising an eyebrow skeptically at Yuka, as if regarding some lower form of life. "Kamei-san had her opportunity. A shame she didn't display such talents while under my tutelage, but I haven't the time to try and coax greatness out of those who aren't willing to give 100% the first time around. As for Ito-san…" Her gaze slipped over to the diminutive girl, who was nervously studying the floor. "Yes, well, do call me if you change your mind, Saotome-san. Ta ta!" She waved imperiously and sauntered away.

"What a bitch…" Ukyou muttered under her breath.

"Ukyou! Don't mutter curses at people under your breath!" Yuka admonished her. "Say them out loud. WHAT A BITCH!"

Himura hesitated a moment, twitched, then kept walking out of the gymnasium.

000

Nabiki watched Himura walk out the the Gymnasium. She had hung by close enough to hear the conversation, but far enough to look like she wasn't listening in. She hadn't dealt with the Volleyball Captain much in day-to-day life, which was probably a good thing.

At least for Himura. Nabiki thought darkly. She's exactly the sort of stuck up...

"... BITCH!"

Nabiki smirked, noticing Himura's stride stutter at the bold announcement. Thank you Yuka… She's exactly the sort of stuck up bitch I would take down a few pegs as a freebie.

She pushed off from the wall and made her way over to Ranma. She noticed Hiroshi and Daisuke making their way over as well, still wearing their tutus. I really hope Hana got some pics of that.

"Well, that was epic!" Hiroshi stated, grinning.

"Inspired, of course, by our magnificent cheering efforts." Daisuke added, and the two fist bumped each other in celebration.

"So, is this going to be your new 'thing' now?" Yuka asked, crossing her arms.

"I thought you were aiming to be detectives or something?" Sayuri added.

"We can do both!" Hiroshi said defensively.

"Actually… 'Male Cheerleader Detectives' sounds almost marketable." Daisuke replied, rubbing his chin. "I could see a successful manga series based on something like that."

"We'd need more source material to base the manga on." Hiroshi said.

"Then not only can we be both detectives and cheerleaders…" Daisuke began.

"... We must!" Hiroshi finished, his fist clenched in determination.

"It is our duty as true men!" They cried together, solemnly thrusting their pompoms skyward.

"It is your duty as morons more likely." Yuka muttered, though there was a grin threatening to escape her control tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"So, what're we having for lunch to celebrate?" Riko asked, noting the time as the group started walking towards the exit.

"From what I saw them bringing in this morning, it's a banquet of day-old curry bread and instant top ramen." Daisuke said, falling in step with them.

"Seriously?! School just started! How can they already be serving day old bread?!"

"See? That's why this school needs detectives!"

Ranma hung back as she spotted Nabiki. She noted Nabiki had a sly smile on her face that told her she had most likely taken a bunch of pictures of the event and expected to make a decent profit off it. "I guess business went well?"

"I'll run the pictures by you once they're developed to make sure they meet your approval, partner." Nabiki said, her smile not cracking. "If Hana did her job right… and she alwaysdoes her job right… They'll be actions shots. Nothing eyebrow raising."

Ranma was a bit taken aback. Nowhere in her agreement with Nabiki had they discussed getting Ranma's approval for her photo business. "Why are you being nice all of a sudden?"

Nabiki smirked. "I'm not being nice, Saotome. I'm being fair. You're a business partner now… even if technically our venture is destined to be a bottomless pit consuming all our time and money…" Her smirk faltered a moment, then recovered. "And partners get due consideration in things like this. It fosters a trusting and respectful working relationship."

"Until the deal is done and you've gotten what you want." Ranma muttered.

"Exactly! Then all bets are off." She sighed. "No questionable pics for the duration. Unless you okay them."

"Why would I…!?"

Nabiki held up a finger. "You'll get a percentage."

"Nabiki, there isn't enough money in the world to…"

Nabiki pulled out a small calculator, punched in a few numbers, then handed it over to the diminutive redhead.

Ranma stared at the figure. "No… not enough… You can't be serious?"

"That's Kuno-baby alone, Ranma." She grinned and took the calculator back. "Properly staged and framed shots? Triple that."

Ranma considered a moment, then shook her head violently. "No. Nuh uh! I'm not gonna become the school's sex object!"

"Suit yourself." Nabiki shrugged. "Go take a shower. Stay a girl though. Kasumi made us lunch so we can avoid the cafeteria nastiness. We can gauge how successful our little social engineering attempt was."

"I wish you wouldn't call it that." Ranma muttered. "It sounds so… manipulative."

"Ranma, Ranma, Ranma…" Nabiki rested her arm on her shoulder. "The difference between manipulative and popular is how successful you are at it."

000

Nabiki staked out her usual spot beneath the oak tree as she waited for Ranma. She was flipping through the folder Megumi has delivered to her.

Himura Tanaka. Third year. Age 18. Birthdate… don't care… don't care… She flipped through a page or two of mundane statistics. Hmmm… Father Minoru Tanaka, Mother Sachi Tanaka… hold on… She found a sticky note appended to the parental information, and a newspaper clipping about the Olympic volleyball team. Huh, her Dad was an Olympic hopeful? Didn't make the cut, though. Explains why she's so obsessed with the sport. She tucked that back into place. Not a lot to go in in the 'white' file. Gonna need to start a 'black' file on our good Captain, just in case.

She looked up to see Ranma returning. She noted with some amusement that her entourage had returned: Her teammates seemed to have rushed through the line to get what food they could. Even Hiroshi and Daisuke had tagged along, though Nabiki suspected that might have more to do with the high concentration of reasonably cute girls in the vicinity.

"Look, I don't know what you guys think happened, but it was just a fluke hit, okay?" Sayuri said. "The ball just flew… weird."

"I dunno Sayuri. You could have super powers." Hiroshi ribbed her gently.

"Around here? No thanks!" Sayuri cut that notion off with a sweep of her hand. "I've seen the nonsense that leads to. I'll sick with being plain and ordinary, thanks."

"I don't think any of you are plain or ordinary." Rin said, hugging a bento box to her chest. She was slightly blushing and wearing a mile wide grin. "I've never had so much fun in my life, and you all just act like it's normal!"

"Well, we are all rather remarkable. My humble self included." Daisuke said grandly. "Perhaps after school we could discuss it furthow ow ow ow ow OW!" Daisuke trailed off into a stream of pained whimpers, most likely caused by Yuka firmly pulling on his earlobe.

"No lecherous nonsense with the new girl until she gets settled in!" Yuka said, finally releasing him. "Don't traumatize her before she's even dealt with her first panty raid."

"Ow. Unkind of you, Yuka." Daisuke rubbed his ear. "Unkind and cruel."

"And judgemental." Hiroshi piped in.

"Yes. Presuming I had perverted intentions." Daisuke added.

"Besides, knowing her arm, if she slapped you, your head would probably pop like a rotten watermelon." Yuka remarked slyly.

"But wise." Hiroshi added quickly.

"Gracious and wise." Daisuke agreed, putting an extra foot or so between him and Rin.

Rin blushed and covered her face with her bento box. "You guuuuys! I-I… I would never…"

Ranma patted her on the shoulder. "Don't take these jokers too serious, Rin. Hey Nabiki!" She waved to Nabiki and trotted over, plunking down next to her under the tree.

Nabiki handed over one of the two bento boxes she had with her, smirking a bit as Ranma dug into the meal with gusto. She opened her own and started in somewhat more daintily.

"So… you're Ranma's fiancee?" Rin asked.

Nabiki paused, pondering how best to correct the notion. It was already public knowledge, of course, but it didn't hurt to tack on some qualifications. "Placeholder fiancee. Think of it as a temporary legal arrangement to keep certain other contracts from being fulfilled before all available options have been explored."

"Huh?" Rin cocked her head.

"She means Ranma has three other crazy fiancees…"

"TRwo! Kodablchi doesbn't cRount!" Ranma corrected through a large mouthful, somehow managing to avoid spraying it all over everyone present.

"Chew, Saotome. Taste. Swallow. Honestly, Kasumi's cooking is so wasted on you." Nabiki snorted. "But… essentially yes. Ranma's father has a tendency to rack up debt, and then offer up Ranma as marriage material as payment."

"Seriously?!" Rin said, eyes wide. "H-how many? I mean… if it's okay to…"

"Forty-seven, at the last count." Nabiki said dryly.

Ranma grimaced and swallowed mightily. "Forty-eight." Ranma corrected. "There was that Nigerian Prince thing a couple of months ago."

"Right, right… that's what we get letting Genma Saotome have an e-mail account." Nabiki muttered.

"O-Oh my…" Rin said. "Were… were any of those engagements to men, or all to girls?"

Ranma looked a little ill. "Seventeen of 'em were guys."

Nabiki cleared her throat. "Nigerian Prince."

Ranma sighed and deflated a bit more. "... Eighteen."

"That's rough! Eighteen guys, all in the couple of years you've had the curse?" Riko said, chewing thoughtfully on her curry bread.

"Three of 'em were before the curse." Ranma added glumly.

Ranma, Hiroshi and Daisuke all shuddered in unison.

"B-but… but that's horrible!" Rin said. "How could a father do that to their child?!"

"Oh, he never intended to honor any of those engagements. They were just scams." Nabiki said. "We've dissuaded most of them, but there are three that are persistent…

"Two!" Ranma hissed. "Don't go giving Kodachi any leverage t'think she's got a real claim!"

"All right. Two and an obsessed yandere." Nabiki corrected herself. "One is Ukyou, who you all met. Genma swindled her Dad out of their family yatai, and she spent most of her life tracking Ranma down. Mostly to get revenge, but when they finally met up, Ranma sweet talked her…"

"Reasoned with her." Ranma corrected.

"... Shamelessly sweet talked her into being his fiancee again, rather than murdering him."

"That's… actually kind of romantic." Rin said. "She searched for him for so long, and then after all those trials, she finally found him, but instead of vengeance, she fell in love all over again."

"Uhh… yeah…" Ranma blushed a little, scratching the back of her head. It didn't seem so romantic at the time…

"The second is a girl from China. From a tribe of Amazons there called the Joketsuzoku." Nabiki continued. "Ranma beat her in a duel over Genma eating Shampoo's victory feast."

"And then she fell in love with him?" Rin asked, leaning forward.

"No, then she tried to kill me." Ranma muttered darkly.

"See, Ranma was a girl when all this went down." Nabiki smirked. "Shampoo was humiliated in front of her entire tribe, so she gave Ranma the Kiss of Death, which meant she was honor bound to hunt her to the ends of the earth until she had finally found and killed her."

"O-oh." Rin deflated a little. "But… but if she was trying to kill Ranma, why…?"

"The law has a fun flipside." Ranma interrupted. "If an Outsider female beats an Amazon? Kiss of Death." She dragged her thumb across her throat, making a cutting sound. "But, should an Outsider male beat an Amazon in combat?"

"Kiss of Marriage." Nabiki finished. "Shampoo found out Ranma is really male, and that was that."

Rin frowned, looking like she didn't quite accept the story. "But… nobody falls in love just because some law tells them to…"

"Tell that to Shampoo." Ranma sighed. "It was like a light switch with her."

"O-okay… I guess…" Rin mumbled, still looking doubtful. "So… what about your engagement?"

"Well, see, Mr. Saotome and Daddy used to know each other when they were our age. They trained together a lot, and decided when they had kids, they'd marry them to each other so that 'their schools could be joined.' It was the only engagement Ranma's Dad had any intention of honoring. So, one day he decides to drag his kid over to the Tendo Dojo to make it official."

"Except Pops is an idiot, so not only does he get us both cursed, but he decides to do this when it's pouring rain out." Ranma snorted. "So instead of Genma Saotome and son showing up on the Tendo doorstep…"

"... We get adorable redheaded girl and a panda." Nabiki finished. She noticed Ranma blushed a little at the compliment, which was unusual because Ranma was usually impervious to flattery about her female side. Interesting.

Mine.

Shush!

"That… eventually got sorted out…"

"Awww, Ranma baby, you're not gonna let me tell them how we learned about the curse?" Nabiki said in her most saccharine voice.

"Don't you dare." Ranma growled.

"Fine, fine…"

"It got sorted out." Ranma started again. "And so Mr. Tendo told me to pick which of his daughters to be engaged to. 'Cept… It kinda got picked for me. And…" She trailed off a bit.

Shit. Nabiki swore, cursing herself for not stopping things sooner.

"And so you ended up engaged to Nabiki?" Rin asked, oblivious to how Ranma's face had fallen.

"Not… quite…" Sayuri said, wincing.

"Actually it was Nabiki's younger sister Akane, who Ranma's been engaged to for almost two years now," Daisuke helpfully supplied. "Right up until mmmph mmmrrr mmnnh!"

"Shutting up now." Yuka hissed, her hand over his mouth, until he nodded slowly. She carefully released him.

"... So yeah, huge break up. Explosions and everything. Real ones." Daisuke quickly finished.

"Daisuke!"

"O-oh…" Rin said, slumping a little as well, finally getting the picture. "I'm sorry, Senpai."

"Don't be, it's…" She choked on the words 'it's nothing' "... in the past. Look, I'm gonna go see if they have any of those ice cream bars they had a few days ago in the cafeteria. I'll see you guys in class, okay?" Sher quickly stood up, dusted herself off, then trotted away, with a little more than justifiable urgency, given how slim the chance of anything edible being left in the cafeteria was at this point.

Nabiki sighed. Looks like I'm in for damage control. Was hoping to delay the mope fest at least until Akane got back. I need Ranma functional, damnit!

Rin noticed her annoyance and shrank a little more. "I'm… I'm sorry! I didn't mean to…"

"It's not your fault." Nabiki reassured her, packing up the remains of her lunch and Ranma's. She noticed with some dismay that Ranma's lunch had been left unfinished. Bad sign. "It's still a sore point. And it'll probably only get worse when my sister comes home in a few days."

"I-is there anything I can do to help?" Rin asked, her green eyes suddenly bright with determination. "I owe Senpai for giving me my chance to get seen by the volleyball captain, even if they decided they didn't want me. I want to do anything I can!"

"Don't try and marry her." Hiroshi said dryly.

"Yeah, basically that." Sayuri chipped in.

"Actually…" Nabiki leaned forward. "Why did Ms. Tanaka turn her nose up at you? Strikers who can do what you can aren't exactly common, I would think. Do you two have a history?"

Rin shook her head. "Not that I know of. I mean, I tried applying for the volleyball team when I first transferred here, and I got turned down flat. They wouldn't even let me participate in the tryouts. I've been trying to catch Tanaka-san alone to try and find out if there is anything I can do, but…" She sighed. "Today was the first day she's even acknowledged I exist. Most times she just walks right past me like I'm not there."

Looks like I'll need that file on Rin sooner rather than later. Nabiki thought. She had a hunch that whatever was going on with Himura, Rin was tied to it somehow.

000

(So, I kinda messed up and posted a version of this with all of my story notes appended at the end. To those who saw that version... SHUSH! I will buy your silence with cookies!

I'm sorry about how long it took to get to this. I hit a pretty massive writer's block, and only just now worked my way through it. My pre-readers tell me it was worth the effort though.

for those of you worried about how I might treat the other fiancees given how they are referenced here? I don't believe in turning any of the character into caricatures in order to justify them losing because they 'deserve it'. Shampoo's feelings for Ranma are not as simple as Ranma believes. Akane's feelings are not as blunt or heartless as they might initially seem, and that will hopefully be shown in the story. Even Kodachi, if I do this right, will have her sympathetic elements.

Basically... Resolving this is going to be HARD, because it should be.)