A Man Among Women: Compromising Situations
a Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Vince Seifert (seifertv@csus.edu)
Ranma 1/2 characters and situations are copyright 1987, 2002
by Takahashi Rumiko. Publishing rights (Japan) by Shogakukan
Inc. Publishing rights (North America) by Viz Inc. This work
is not intended to infringe those rights.
This story is for Anand Rao, in hopes that it only answers some
of his questions. ;)
These events take place in the A Man Among Women timeline, which
diverges from manga-canon at the beginning of v37: Phoenix
Mountain didn't happen. See
http://www.csus.edu/indiv/s/seifertv/toth/other.htm
Warning: this tale is not light-hearted. More notes at end.
~~~~~
"Auwe!" The principal's cry of dismay was nearly drowned
out by yells from the audience, packed into the Furinkan High
School auditorium for the graduation ceremony.
Saotome Ranma peered down, nodded in satisfaction, and
hopped off the catwalk above the stage. He landed lightly on the
wooden floor, avoiding the debris of combat. A few scattered
cheers rose, but many of the students and parents gathered in the
auditorium were too singed, soaked, or covered with bits of
crushed pineapple to care. Ranma sauntered over to Principal
Kuno where he dangled head-down from a rope above the open trap
door in the floor. "You ready to gimme my diploma yet?" he
asked.
"HahahaHAha! Dream on, buggah!" the principal retorted. "I
have not yet begun to fight, yeah!" He suddenly dropped an inch
and stopped with a jerk. "Eep!"
"Yo, Kuno!" Ranma called across the stage. "Hold still for
a little longer, willya?"
Kuno Tatewaki, strapped to a large tanuki statue a few yards
away by a tangle of ropes, glowered at him. "Knave, how dare you
treat the noble scion of the house of Kuno as a-- a--"
"Counterweight?" Ranma suggested, nodding at the rope that
ran up from Tatewaki-and-tanuki, over a pulley far above, and
down to the principal's ankles.
"Curse thee, Saotome!"
"Yeah, yeah. I dunno why you're even here. You graduated
LAST year." Ranma returned his attention to the elder Kuno.
"Well?"
"You want your da kine diploma, you gotta earn it, keiki!"
the principal maintained, folding his arms and swaying to and fro
a little. He cast a nervous glance downward, though.
Ranma followed the principal's look. In the gloom of the
under-stage storage area, a massive, scale-armored form shifted
hungrily. Its golden slit-pupiled eye shifted from its dangling
prey to Ranma for a moment, but only a moment. "You idiot,"
Ranma observed. "Me an' Midorigame, we made a sort of deal last
time we tangled: he doesn't try to eat me and I don't tie his
tongue in a knot. I guess you didn't know that, or you wouldn't
have stuck him in there--" The giant crocodile gathered itself
for another attempt and launched itself upward. Its toothy jaws
clapped shut a scant foot short of the palm tree adorning the
principal's head, and the audience gasped. A second later the
auditorium shook with the impact of its landing. "Kodachi's
gonna be pissed," Ranma continued, smirking at the sweatdropping
principal.
"Yeah? Well, you gonna be a NON-graduate," Kuno said
defiantly. Tatewaki chose that moment to strain against his
bonds again, and his father dropped another two inches. "Tatchi,
you one BAD keiki!"
"Looks like I can wait longer'n you." Ranma adopted a
casual pose, and suddenly noticed something. "Hey--!" His hand
flashed out and plucked the palm tree from Kuno's head.
"OUCH!"
Ignoring the principal's bellow of pain, Ranma extracted a
rolled-up document from the trunk of the palm tree. "Well, how
about that." He unrolled the paper and read. "Got it!" he
exulted, punching the air with a fist. "I'm outta here!"
"Damn. Hey, Ranma, I'm gonna miss you, keiki," the
principal admitted with a reluctant inverted smile.
"Yeah, well, your aim never was any good." Ranma smirked at
his own quip and turned away. The principal doubled up, trying
to reach the noose around his feet, but the rope was too tight
for him to loosen. Ranma bent and picked up an item from the
debris littering the stage. "Lookin' for this?" he asked,
tossing the hair-clippers to the suspended man.
Kuno caught the clippers and his face brightened. "Yeah!
T'anks, eh?" He doubled up again and swiped the clippers at the
rope. It parted. "Auwe!" Kuno wailed again, making a futile
grab for the edge as he fell through the trapdoor to the waiting
crocodile. Hiss! Snap! "OUCH!"
"Moron," Ranma muttered, turning his back and walking away.
~~~~~
Outside the auditorium, the participants and spectators
attending the graduation milled around after the ceremony. The
crowd thinned slowly as little clumps of people drifted away,
graduates waving goodbye to their friends, parents looking proud.
Ranma's own parents looked proud enough; Genma and Nodoka were
with Soun and Kasumi nearby.
Two fellows Ranma didn't know passed near him, and he
overheard a snatch of their conversation: "I got accepted at
Kyoto U!"
"You lucky dog! I'm going to Sapporo, it was my second
choice...."
Frowning, Ranma looked around automatically for Akane, and
spotted her talking to a few of her school friends.
"It's a strange time, huh?"
Ranma turned. "Oh, hi, Ucchan. Strange how?"
"Happy and sad both. A lot of these folks'll never see each
other again," Ukyo elaborated, "so they're saying goodbye. Some
are goin' off to college, some are getting jobs. A lot of 'em
are staying right here, but somehow they're not going to get
together anymore. Even the ones who hate school are gonna find
themselves missing the place." She grimaced. "Damn sure I won't
miss this, though," she remarked, plucking at the collar of her
boys' school uniform.
Ranma laughed. "I'll bet."
"So," Ukyo asked, eyeing Ranma and moving a little closer,
"what are YOU going to do now, huh?"
"Go home, I guess," Ranma said, shrugging.
"You know what I mean." Ukyo's gaze was intense. She
tilted her head at the crowd without looking away. "We've all
just been going along day to day, but this is a time for big
changes, Ran-chan."
Ranma shrugged again, uncomfortably. "So?"
"So we're expecting things to change--" Ukyo looked past
Ranma and half-smiled. "Hi, Akane-chan."
"Hi, Ukyo." Akane, smiling pleasantly, came up on the other
side of Ranma, stopping just a little closer to him than Ukyo
was. "What things?"
"Well, for example, you're planning to go away to college,
right?"
Ranma rolled his eyes, but Akane didn't notice; she bit her
lip, then nodded. "It's not settled yet, but maybe. What about
you?"
"Oh, Ucchan's is staying right here," Ukyo replied casually,
but her glance at Ranma carried the clear implication that "here"
meant where Ranma was as much as it meant Nerima.
Crossing her arms, Akane smugly pointed out the flaw in
Ukyo's statement. "That's not a change, is it?"
"We'll see, won't we?" Ukyo said lightly.
Ranma looked nervously back and forth between the two girls.
"Uh...."
"Anyway," Ukyo said, turning to Ranma, "if you come by my
place later, I'll treat you to an okonomiyaki or two... in honor
of our graduation, of course."
"Fine," Ranma said, brightening even as Akane clouded over.
"And then maybe we can--"
"AIREN!" Shampoo's happy squeal parted the crowd more
effectively than a bell. Akane and Ukyo flinched back as the
Chinese girl's bicycle flattened Ranma. She hopped off, tossed
the bicycle aside, picked Ranma up, dusted him off, and hugged
him while they were still gaping. "Airen all done with school
now?"
"Uh, yeah," Ranma managed.
"I so happy! Now have lots of free time, yes? I have
number-one good plan how to spend it!"
"I'll just bet you do, honey." Ukyo reached back for her
giant spatula. "Too bad Ran-chan's got other plans."
Shampoo let go of Ranma and turned to face Ukyo, a grim
smile on her face and a fierce glint in her eye. "Shan Pu plan
better." She retrieved her bonbori from the luggage rack of her
bicycle, dropped into a combat stance, and glanced sideways at
Ranma. "Big dinner at Nekohanten tonight to celebrate Ranma end
school-- you be there, Airen, yes?"
"Uh...." Ranma sweatdropped.
Shampoo took it as an affirmative. "See?" she told Ukyo
triumphantly.
"He's not there yet, and if I have anything to say about it,
he won't be," Ukyo grated.
"About time we settle this." Shampoo darted forward,
bonbori whirring. Ukyo's spatula flashed in the sun, deflecting
one, and chopped down at Shampoo's leg. Shampoo somersaulted
over it and spun a kick at Ukyo's midsection.
"Those idiots," Akane muttered, frowning into her hand, but
Ranma wasn't listening to her.
"Look, cut it out," he protested, dodging around the
combatants with his hands waving. "Just take it easy, willya?
Someone could get hurt the way you're goin' at it!" He stopped
and sniffed, noticing a familiar smell. Roses. Black roses.
"Oh, Ranma-sama, there you are!" Kuno Kodachi seized
Ranma's arm and hugged it to her, snuggling against his side. "I
came here directly as soon as the graduation ceremony at St.
Hebereke's ended. I'm finally free of that restrictive place, my
dearest, free to devote all of my attention to you." She pressed
his arm into her cleavage to emphasize her point.
"Urk." Ranma's arm felt red-hot; like Akane, Ukyo and
Shampoo, Kodachi was even more attractive at eighteen than she
had been at sixteen. Fortunately she was still wearing her
school uniform rather than a leotard or a slinky dress.
"Hey, you--!" Ukyo noticed Kodachi and tried to disengage,
but her opponent persisted in her flurry of attacks. "Hold it,
Shampoo, dammit!"
"Keep mind on fight!" Shampoo insisted, but then she spotted
Kodachi too and her eyes widened in dismay. "Aiya!"
"I have a delightful evening prepared for us to celebrate
our adulthood together, Ranma-sama," Kodachi continued, ignoring
the two who stood there panting, clenching their weapons, and
glaring at her.
"Over my dead body," Ukyo declared to Kodachi. Shampoo
nodded firmly.
"Ohohohoho!" Kodachi pealed, letting go of Ranma to cover
her mouth with her hand. "If so you would have it, so it shall
be." She produced a gymnastics ribbon and two clubs from the
recesses of her school uniform and stepped forward.
Akane caught Ranma's arm as the free-for-all resumed.
"Ranma--"
"Huh?" Ranma's attention was split between Akane and the
battle, but she got a little more of his attention when he
noticed the serious way she was looking at him. "What?" He
glanced back at the others and flinched at the sound of an
impact. "Damn--"
"Forget about them for a minute. They're big girls, they
can take care of themselves. Listen, Ranma, I need to talk to
you about... about something important. Come by tonight after
dinner, OK?"
Ranma gave her a twisted smile and a raised eyebrow. "You
got food for me too, then? If ya do--"
"Sure, if you really want me to," Akane replied, brightening
noticeably. "So you'll come, right? Promise?"
Ranma opened his mouth, about to complete his remark by
informing her that he didn't feel like being poisoned, but at
that moment Ukyo tumbled out of the melee. She rolled to her
feet, leaning on her spatula and holding her side. Shampoo and
Kodachi also paused for a moment, breathing hard. Kodachi had a
nasty scrape on her leg, and even Shampoo looked like she'd taken
a few hits. All three were tattered and bruised.
"Hey, how about you, Akane-chan?" Ukyo panted. "I saved a
place for ya."
"Yes, will you not do battle for Ranma-sama's heart?"
Kodachi pressed.
Akane's chin came up and her lips compressed into a thin
line. "Don't be silly," she snapped. She gave Ranma a hard
look, turned on her heel, and stalked off.
"Her loss," Shampoo said lightly.
Ranma glanced after Akane for a moment, but then Kodachi's
ribbon lashed at Ukyo and the renewed battle claimed his
attention. The girls weren't serious... well, not REALLY
serious... well, probably... but they sure weren't fighting for
fun, and he could see that if he didn't do something, someone
might get seriously hurt. Unfortunately, he could only think of
one sure way to keep them from getting hurt.
"Aiya! Airen, get out of way!" Wham!
"Dammit, Ran-chan, quit protecting her!" Clang!
Clonk! "Oh, dear, was that you, Ranma-sama?"
~~~~~
Daisuke, watching the massacre from a safe distance, nodded
to Hiroshi as the other youth came up. "Got the pool disposed
of?"
"Just about. Too bad we couldn't just keep the money.
There was over twenty thousand yen in there."
"Hey, now. That'd be a Nabiki trick." Daisuke winced as
Ranma suffered another sacrificial clobbering. "I know it's hard
to believe, but there's no evidence that ANYone scored with
Saotome. That catfight over there is NOT about who's gonna STOP
screwing him, or I'm as blind as Mousse. So we have to give all
the bets back."
"I know, I know. Speaking of which..." Hiroshi consulted a
notebook, counted out a handful of bills and coins, and handed it
to Daisuke. "There's yours. I see you bet on Shampoo, mostly."
"Yup. So did a lot of people. Man, his willpower must be
incredible. I would hold out... oh... about three seconds. Make
that two."
Hiroshi snickered. "In case you didn't notice, one guy who
shall remain nameless bet a hundred yen on Kuno-sempai."
"Well, Kodachi's pretty hot, too--" Daisuke did a double-
take. "Kuno-sempai? You mean Tatewaki?"
"Bingo... setting the market odds at about two hundred to
one."
Daisuke considered. "Not a bad hedge bet, really."
"Don't let Ranma hear you say that. Well, it was fun while
it lasted...."
"Sure was. See ya 'round, pal."
~~~~~
"I'm goin' out!" Ranma called that evening, pausing inside
the front door of the Saotome house.
"Just a moment, Ranma, please," his mother's voice drifted
back. It was only a few moments before she came around the
corner, noiseless in her tabi slippers, and stopped to look her
son up and down. "Splendid," she pronounced.
Ranma looked down at himself. "Aw, Momma, it's just what I
usually wear."
"I wasn't talking about your clothes, Ranma." She came
closer and looked up at him. "I won't ask where you're going or
how late you're staying out. You're not a schoolboy anymore."
"Huh? You weren't asking that before."
"Well, that's because I knew where you were going and what
you were doing... in a general way, at least." Nodoka lowered
her voice to a confidential tone. "Ranma... I admire your
thoughtfulness, I really do. It was so considerate of you not to
get any of your girlfriends in a family way while-- are you all
right, dear?"
"Uh, frog in my throat," Ranma croaked.
"Wait, I'll get you a cup of tea with honey...."
"That's all right, Momma, I swallowed it."
"Oh, good. Well, as I was saying, I'm sure they appreciated
being able to finish high school, um, unencumbered. But maybe
you could...." Nodoka paused delicately. "I mean to say, that's
not a problem now. So if it should happen that any of your
companions present us with a baby, well, arrangements could be
made. Would gladly be made. You do understand, don't you?"
Finishing her speech without so much as a blush, she regarded him
expectantly.
Ranma pasted a #3 smile (Knowing & Worldly) on his face.
"Sure, Momma, I understand."
Nodoka nodded, smiling proudly. "Well, I'll just wish you a
pleasant evening, then."
"Thanks, Momma." Feeling it was expected of him, Ranma
dared a roguish wink, then casually fled from the house. Safely
out of sight, he sagged against a convenient wall for a moment
and wiped his brow. He could clearly imagine the consequences of
his mother's notions....
Shampoo: "Look! Shampoo knocked up!"
Akane, Ukyo, Kodachi, Mousse: "RANMA!"
WHAM! CLANG! POW! JINGLE!
Ukyo: "Look! Ranchan's and my kid!"
Shampoo, Akane, Kodachi: "RANMA!!"
GONG! WHAM! POW!
Kodachi: "Lo! I bear the fruit of Ranma-sama's loins!"
Ukyo, Shampoo, Akane, Tatewaki: "RANMA!!!"
CLANG! GONG! WHAM! SLICE!
Akane: "Look what that baka did to me!"
Akane, Kodachi, Ukyo, Shampoo, Ryoga, Tatewaki: "RANMA!!!!"
WHAM! POW! CLANG! GONG! BOOOM! SLICE!
"Oh, jeez," Ranma muttered to himself, trembling a little.
He counted on his fingers. "Hmm, it'd hurt the least if it was
Ucchan--" He gripped his head in his hands. "WHAT AM I
SAYING?!" Glancing back at the Saotome house, he delivered his
final decision: "Sorry, Momma. Not gonna happen."
~~~~~
Pacing to and fro in the dojo, the soles of her bare feet
squeaking a little on the polished wood, Akane rehearsed what she
wanted to say. There was room for over a dozen long, leisurely,
contemplative strides between the walls, but she was only using a
fraction of the space available, making four tense and anxious
steps before each turn.
"How did your college placement exams come out?" I kept
trying to talk to you about them, but you always just brushed the
whole thing off like everything was taken care of. "My exams
were pretty good." Better than I thought they'd be. It felt so
good to finally do well at something. Aren't you proud of me?
"After that, I passed the entrance exams for a couple of good
schools... and I suppose you know one even offered me a
scholarship." I've always been lucky at lotteries and things, of
course, but this just floored me! "I want to go to college."
It'll open up possibilities, things I can't even imagine now.
"It means going away for a long time." Away from the silly
fights, away from being embarrassed every time I turn around,
away from sudden hope and crushing disappointment, away from the
same stuff day in and day out.
Away from those other girls.
It wasn't that life was so bad, of course. It was
aggravating and silly, but she couldn't deny that it was also
exciting and fun. But Ukyo had put her finger on it: things
couldn't go on like this forever, and when they changed, someone
would be happy, and some other people... wouldn't be. So Akane
had a plan.
"Have you been making plans yourself?" I've hardly been
keeping mine a secret, so if you wanted to, you could easily have
been applying to the same universities that I did, and taking
their entrance exams too. Were you? Even trying would mean that
you wanted to be with me....
Akane took a deep breath and steeled herself for the words
that were so hard to say, even to an empty dojo. "I'd be so
happy if--" If it mattered to you that I was planning to go away
to college. If you planned and studied and passed in secret so
we could be together. If you wanted things to be... better.
Then words that she couldn't say at all, words she barely
dared think, because if he heard, if he knew... if he didn't feel
the same way, if he made fun of her... she'd just shatter: I
really want things to be better. More than anything. I want...
I lo--
She couldn't manage to even think that, but it lay behind
everything she did and said to him, a secret vulnerability
armored in insults and denials.
A dog howled not far away, and Akane noticed with a frown
that evening was over; night had fallen while she waited with her
plate of snacks and her urgent questions. "Where is that baka?"
she muttered to herself. "When I said 'after dinner', I meant
right after dinner, not hours and hours after dinner."
~~~~~
It'd been a pretty good evening, Ranma thought with
satisfaction. Two meals, a fight he'd won handily, and a chase
he'd eluded without having to make any concessions; no sudden
cats, no inconvenient cold water. Just one more stop to make and
he could call it a night.
The roof of the Tendo Dojo came into view, looming out of
the suburban twilight that was as close as Nerima nights ever got
to true darkness. Ranma sailed from one rooftop to the next and
ran along the peak, practicing running silently so he wouldn't
alarm the residents... well, mostly so they wouldn't yell at him.
Two more rooftops to go.
He had a bad feeling about this particular rendezvous; Akane
being serious when he wasn't in trouble usually meant he was
about to be in trouble. He really hadn't meant to be this late,
but that was just how it went sometimes. The temptation to just
skip this stop and keep running free through the night was
strong. The knowledge that it would only delay and intensify the
punishment was stronger, though, and there was something else,
too. Akane'd been awfully tense lately, probably about that dumb
college stuff... well, maybe a good fight would make her feel
better. He made the long jump over the Tendos' wall to the dojo
roof, dropped into the back garden, and headed for the house at a
leisurely pace.
The dojo door slid open before he got there. "Ranma?"
"Yeah," he called back, reversing his steps and sauntering
over to where Akane waited impatiently in the doorway,
silhouetted in the light streaming out from the dojo.
"Well, it's about time. Where've you been?" Akane stepped
aside to let him pass through the doorway. He couldn't see her
backlit expression, but he didn't have to; by the tone of her
voice he was in for it, all right.
"Here and there," Ranma said casually, stretching with his
arms behind his head. "Had a little snack at Ucchan's, dropped
by the Nekohanten afterwards."
"While I was cooling my heels here. Honestly!"
Ranma shrugged. "Hey, Ucchan invited me before you did, and
so did Shampoo. Just bein' fair," he maintained defensively.
"What about Kodachi?" Akane asked with an edge in her voice.
"She had plans for you tonight too, didn't she?"
"Yeah, right," Ranma snorted. "I skipped her and her loony
plans."
"Well, why didn't you skip Ukyo and Shampoo, then?"
"'Cause they don't put poison in my food." Ranma punctuated
this with a you-dummy look. "Speakin' of which... what's that?"
Akane followed his gesture at the plate on the floor, and
her demeanor softened. "Um... something new. Spicy fried
chicken wings."
"Meanin' they're supposed to burn my lips off, instead of
doin' it by accident?" Ranma picked up the plate and took a
cautious sniff. "I'll pass." He flicked a sly glance at Akane
to see her reaction.
"Now you know you're not getting away with that!" Akane
huffed. "I made them especially for you. Try one!"
Ranma prodded one with his finger. "They look like little
burned turds. Bet they taste like 'em, too."
"What? Nonsense. How could you know what burned, uh, poop
tastes like anyway, huh?" Akane asked in triumph.
It was too easy. "Hey, you been forcing your cooking on me
for years."
Akane's smirk vanished as she clouded over. "Try one. Or
else," she grated.
That was about right; now if they were merely bad, his
reactions might be acceptable by contrast. Ranma picked up one
of the morsels and bit into it with trepidation. Crunchy.
Definitely burnt, but he'd built up a tolerance for the taste of
carbon. He chewed... and then the other tastes hit. "Glaargh!"
Eyes bulging and watering, he dropped the wing and the plate and
grabbed his own throat, but some of the chewed mouthful went the
wrong way.
Akane caught the falling plate before it could shatter on
the floor, but lost a couple of chicken wings. "Stop it, you big
baby! It can't be that bad!"
"Oh, yes it can," Ranma contradicted her hoarsely. Damn.
It was a lot worse than just 'bad'. Way too much tabasco, no
surprise there, and she'd abused mayonnaise again, but what was
that other stuff? It couldn't be dish soap... could it? He
could see why Kasumi-san kept it in the kitchen, of course, but
you'd think she'd know to put an Akane-proof cap on it. "Try one
yourself. I dare you."
Akane didn't take up the challenge. To his surprise, she
didn't clobber him, but just gave him an exasperated glare. "Oh,
never mind. I should expect this from you by now." She puffed
out a breath and ran her fingers through her bangs.
Ranma watched her control and center herself, and just
before she was focused, said, "So, what didja want to talk to me
about?"
"Well...." Akane bit her lip. "Um, how did you do-- I
mean, how did your college placement exams come out?"
Uh oh. "College placement exams?" Ranma stalled.
Akane was focused now, on him, and it was like facing
spears. "Yes. The exams we took a few months ago. To see which
colleges we should apply to. They call those 'college placement
exams'. How were your scores?"
Ranma snapped his fingers. "Gee, I knew I forgot something.
Heh-heh...."
"What?" Akane's look was appalled. "You didn't even TAKE
them?"
"Look, it wasn't my fault! That was the day Ryoga got all
pissed about I-forget-what and wouldn't take 'buzz off' for an
answer, wasn't it? You should be glad I took him outside to
pound him, or nobody woulda gotten to take their exams!"
"Oh, right, blame Ryoga-kun for it!" Akane snapped, balanced
between distress and anger. Distress won. "Ranma, those exams
were important! They affect the rest of your life!"
"Don't see why," Ranma muttered petulantly.
"The exam results tell you which colleges you have a chance
of being accepted to! Then you take THEIR entrance exams...."
Akane trailed off with a horrified look. "Did you pass any
entrance exams?"
"Nope," Ranma said, trying to make it cheerful.
"Did you even TAKE any entrance exams?"
Ranma looked up at the ceiling of the dojo, feigning
pensiveness as best he could. "Umm... well, I took about half of
one for this place the counselor recommended, and then the fire
sprinklers went off for some strange reason... the test wasn't at
Furinkan, so nobody knew about the curse. Things got a little,
uh, confused."
"I can't believe it." Akane had her face buried in her
hands. "Ranma, do you WANT to be a ronin, struggling against
impossible odds?"
The image that came to his mind was not of a student bent
over a table under a single light bulb, surrounded by books, but
of a warrior standing tall on a lonely road, ringed by faceless
enemies. "Hey, sounds like fun."
"Honestly, you are such a flake! Well, at least you have a
chance of getting into college eventually that way. But--"
"Huh? Why would I want to get into college? I just took
that one test 'cause the counselor was buggin' me to. I'm done
with school. Crazy principals, wacko teachers, useless classes,
pervert students... good riddance."
"What are you saying?" Akane exclaimed with another appalled
look. "I was hop-- I mean, some of us might think going to
college is a pretty good idea, you know! It might even take a
guy who came out of high school an ignorant jerk and make him
a... a... an educated jerk!"
Ranma frowned. "Hey. Sounds more like it'd take an uncute
chick and turn her into a snobby uncute chick."
Akane bit her lip and calmed down again, with considerable
effort. "It's too late to make up any entrance exams. This
means you can't go to college this year."
"Yeah, so? I wasn't gonna anyway, like I said."
She didn't rise to that. "My exams were pretty good," she
said without emphasis. She gritted her teeth at Ranma's
dismissing shrug and continued. "I got a scholarship, you know."
"Get to the point, willya?"
"It means I can go to college. But it's north of Sendai.
That's over four hundred kilometers from here. Too far to go
back and forth every day, or even every weekend. It means going
away for a long time." Akane, who had been holding Ranma's gaze,
looked down. "I want to go, Ranma."
The sinking feeling in Ranma's gut hit bottom. This was
worse than being harangued for missing the exams, or anything
else he could think of. Akane was telling him she wanted to go
to college, and that he couldn't. She wanted to leave, not just
Nerima, but him. She was trying to make the "sayonara" speech.
There was only one answer he could give. "So, go. What's
stoppin' ya?" he said coolly, manfully concealing his distress.
Akane's mouth snapped shut on whatever she was about to say.
"What?" she said.
"I said, go ahead an' leave if you wanna." Was she
expecting him to beg her to stay or something? Fat chance.
Anyway, it couldn't be as bad as that. No way she'd leave for
real if he just stood firm.
"How can you just say that?" Akane demanded. "Don't you
care?"
"Look, you got no business talkin' about caring when you're
the one who's talkin' about leaving," Ranma stated, feeling he'd
turned the tables neatly. "Besides, why should I care?" Just
give me a reason....
Akane didn't hear his unvoiced plea. Her stunned look only
lasted a moment before her eyebrows drew together and her chin
came up. "So that's how you feel, then? Well, fine!"
"Fine!" Ranma matched her hauteur, folding his arms and
turning away.
"Hmpf!" Akane scooped up the plate of chicken wings a la
carbon and marched out of the dojo, nose in the air.
"Stupid snobby college-exam-crazy tomboy," Ranma grumbled,
punting the spilled chicken wings out the door with a flick of
his foot, but careful to miss the koi pond; the fish didn't
deserve that kind of torture. With any luck a cat would try to
eat them.
~~~~~
Akane stopped on the walkway from the dojo to the house.
Her blood was boiling with the need to clobber something or
someone, but it struggled with her dismay at the shambles into
which her careful plans had collapsed. She couldn't ask him what
she wanted to ask. Not now, not after what he'd said. She just
couldn't... but she couldn't walk away, either.
While she was trying to talk herself into it, the chance
escaped; she heard Ranma stomp out of the dojo, snort something
uncomplimentary in her general direction, and take to the
rooftops. She managed to restrain the urge to hurl the plate of
chicken wings after him, but it was hard. If it hadn't been one
of the good plates... if he hadn't been undeserving of the
delicious food she'd made with her own hands... if she hadn't
been unwilling to give him the satisfaction... oooh!
"Why does he have to make me so MAAAAAD?" Akane asked the
night peevishly. She'd show him. She'd go away to college, and
she'd have a great time, and he'd miss her, and then he'd be
sorry.
Or maybe tomorrow he'd be more reasonable. Maybe he'd sleep
on it and realize this was serious. Maybe he'd realize what
she'd been just about to ask him and he'd say he was sorry for
being such a jerk and ask if he could come along, not to go to
college himself, but just to be with her.
Maybe P-chan would grow wings and fly to the moon.
Not that she cared one way or the other.
She glared down at the slightly-- but not excessively-- over-
browned chicken wings, picked one up, and took a vicious bite out
of it.
"Glaaaargh!"
~~~~~
Akane was helping out by drying dishes after breakfast the
next morning when Kasumi asked, "So how did the spicy chicken
wings go over?"
Akane grimaced. "They didn't."
"Oh, dear...."
"I really don't know what went wrong," Akane said, putting
down a dry bowl and picking up a wet one. "The recipe said it
was easy, and I followed it exactly. Well, there was obviously a
typo in the amount of tabasco, so I fixed that. And I had to
convert grams to tablespoons, 'cause the scale wasn't working
right. The directions didn't mention flambe, but you know how
they leave obvious things out. They should have come out fine."
Kasumi rinsed a cup and put it in the drainer. "Strange,
isn't it."
"Maybe I should have asked you for help after all."
"Well, I would have been glad to, of course."
"I just wanted to prove I could do it myself, though. One
of these days I'll show that jerk. I can too cook." Frowning,
Akane slapped the bowl onto the stack. It clattered loudly, but
fortunately didn't break.
"Akane," Kasumi ventured, watching her hands moving in the
soapsuds, "now that you and Ranma-kun are out of school, you know
they'll bring up marriage again...."
Akane groaned. "Good grief. You'd think they'd have
learned by now."
"You're not still opposed to it after all this time, are
you?"
"Of course I'm still opposed to it! Nothing's changed!
He's still half a man and all pervert, he still chases other
girls instead of behaving like a proper fiance, and he doesn't
appreciate it when I try to do something nice for him." Worst of
all, he's opposed to it, she thought. I can't say I'll marry
someone who won't say he'll marry me....
"I really don't think he's as bad as all that, Akane."
"He's worse," Akane said grimly. "Last night I found out he
didn't take any college entrance exams." He hadn't been planning
and working to go with her after all; he'd just been goofing off.
Maybe he really didn't care that she was leaving.... "He doesn't
even WANT to go to college. Well, I do."
Kasumi sighed. "We can't all have what we want, you know."
"Sorry, Oneechan," Akane said with a remorseful look. "I
know you wanted to go, and your exam scores were good enough to,
but, well.... Nabiki's been going for this last year, though.
And I got that scholarship, even, so money's not a problem. I
can't pass this chance up."
"But what about your engagement to Ranma-kun?"
Akane shrugged. "It wasn't my idea in the first place. But
I suppose we can pick up where we left off when I get back," she
allowed. "Maybe." Maybe if she really went away, Ranma would
follow her. That would certainly prove something... and if he
didn't, that would prove something else.
"Oh, Akane... do you really think he'll wait four years for
you? Maybe more?"
"If he takes the engagement seriously, he will." Akane
liked her idea better the more she thought about it. She could
find out how he really felt without having to risk disclosing her
own feelings. "If he doesn't, why should I?" It was a win-win
situation... wasn't it?
After Akane had dried the last dish and gone, Kasumi
continued to stand there for some time, gazing at her unsmiling
reflection in the window over the sink.
~~~~~
Lazing on the engawa of his home, Ranma contemplated a
completely uncommitted day. Workout, check. Morning bath etc.,
check. Breakfast, check.
"Oh, Ranma...."
Ranma raised his voice in reply. "Yeah, Momma?"
"Oh, good, you're still here," Nodoka said, coming to the
doorway to the tearoom. "You don't have any plans for tonight,
do you? Ones you can't put off, I mean? I know some lucky girl
will be disappointed...."
Ranma managed not to roll his eyes. "No big deal. What's
up?"
"We-- you, your father, and I-- are going to the Tendos'
after supper, all right?"
"I guess." Ranma eyed his mother with suspicion. "What
for?"
"A meeting of the families," Nodoka said. "We have some
things to discuss. I'm sure you can guess what."
"Oh, jeez," Ranma sighed.
Nodoka smiled indulgently. "Now, dear, it won't be that
bad." She went back into the house.
Well, a mostly uncommitted day, anyway. He'd been thinking
about going over to the Tendos' to try to annoy Akane into
getting over her snit about that silly college stuff, though, and
now it probably wouldn't do any good; she always got so cranky
when anyone brought up marriage. Let's see, where were we:
breakfast, check--
"Nihao, Ranma!"
--violent, persistent, cute chick from China, check.
"Mornin', Shampoo. Little early for you, isn't it?"
Shampoo giggled, smoothing down her short dress. "I happy
you notice. Come by before Nekohanten open. Bring treats."
"Treats?" Ranma said with interest. "What kind?"
Shampoo presented a parcel with a flourish. "Special dim
sum."
"Special how?" Ranma eyed the parcel with suspicion. It
sure smelled good, though. "No tricks?"
"Is treat, is not trick," Shampoo said, pouting a little.
"Special ingredient only for, how you say, vigor."
"Huh." Vigor was always a good thing, wasn't it? Ranma
took the proffered package, unwrapped it, and devoured its
content, which tasted even better than it smelled. "Just one?"
he asked, licking his fingers. "Thought you said 'treats'."
"Shan Pu have plenty treats. Ranma see something he like,
just say word," Shampoo purred, posing provocatively.
"Urk." Ranma recoiled, but his eyes couldn't help giving
Shampoo's curves a once-over. Noticing, she preened happily.
"Ran-chan! Get away from that slut!"
Cross-dressing childhood friend, check-- wait a minute, were
those bandages on Ucchan? Oh, boy. And Shampoo was moving a
little stiffly, now that he came to think of it. Good thing
Kodachi wasn't a morning person--
"Ranma, you have a visitor!"
"Coming, Momma!" he called automatically.
"Good morning, Ranma-sama! When you didn't come by last
night, I knew you must have been taken suddenly ill, so I brought
you some home remedies-- curses! You two!"
--well, she wasn't usually. Crazy spoiled rich girl, check.
"Ranma, don't let them fight here!" Nodoka hissed urgently.
Ranma blinked. Sure enough, they were squaring off again, with
him at the fourth corner, which meant the house was about to
become an innocent bystander. He dismissed the first idea to pop
into his head-- calm reason would get nowhere with these gals--
and acted on the second. Scooping Kodachi up in his arms, he
bounced to the top of the wall and kept going.
"Aiya! Ranma, you wait!"
"Ranchan, come back here!"
"Ah, to be swept away in your strong embrace! How happy I
am!" Kodachi enthused over the rush of the wind.
"Yeah, right." Ranma dodged a spray of little spatulas
without stopping. I grabbed one so the others would follow, he
thought, and I grabbed YOU 'cause you'd gain the least by it. He
noticed something smeared on his sleeve where it brushed
Kodachi's arm. "What the hell?" The smear was the color of
aristocratic skin.
"Alas, you have penetrated my disguise," Kodachi mourned,
following his glance. "I sought to conceal my injuries with
makeup, but of course I should have known it would not fool you."
"Injuries?" Now he could see the colorful marks of a bruise
where the makeup had rubbed off. Damn.
"Oh, nothing terribly serious. I would suffer far greater
pains for your sake," Kodachi said, biting her lip dramatically.
"Whatever." What to do, what to do... Shampoo would have to
go to work pretty soon, probably, but unless Ucchan had changed
her hours her place wouldn't open until afternoon, and Kodachi
could do whatever she wanted. Time to complicate things by
getting Mousse and Kuno involved, and maybe Konatsu. Too bad
Ryoga was never around when he'd be useful.
~~~~~
Ranma returned home at suppertime, dragging herself along on
a staff, covered with lumps, bruises, and scrapes. She could
easily imagine himself a hundred years old, short and wizened
like Happosai, but with white hair braided into a pigtail and
without underwear... er, anybody else's underwear, that is.
Ucchan would still be swinging a spatula, but it'd be taller than
her; Shampoo would be a lot like Cologne, except maybe not quite
so dried up; Kodachi would have an old lady's elegance, but her
laugh would be as loopy as ever. And Akane, gray-haired and
spry, would still be pounding him flat and calling him a jerk.
It would be great.
She really couldn't understand why her friends were out to
hurt or maybe even kill each other... and why some of them were
out for HER blood, come to that. Couldn't they see it was all a
big game, and she was way ahead on points?
Time for big changes, hell. The only change her life needed
was for some people to lighten up. And to get rid of this stupid
curse, of course.
"I'm home!" Ranma called, setting her staff aside and
wearily dropping the shoes that fit his feet but didn't fit hers
inside the front door.
"Welcome back, Ranma," Nodoka called back. "Did you have a
good day? Oh, dear," she added, coming around the corner and
catching sight of Ranma's dishevelment.
"Better'n some," Ranma said with satisfaction. "I'm fine,
Momma, really."
"Oh, good. Some of those stains will be hard to get out,
though. And I'm not sure how much more mending that poor shirt
can take."
Ranma shrugged. "Sorry, Momma. Such is the life of a
martial artist's, uh, mother," she said, adapting one of Nodoka's
sayings.
"I suppose," Nodoka said with a reluctant smile. "Go on,
you just have time to bathe and change before supper."
~~~~~
Nodoka had chosen a kimono with a subdued, almost severe
pattern for the visit to the Tendos', Ranma saw as he met his
parents in the entryway of the Saotome house, but it was Genma
who was really a surprise: his ol' man was dressed in a five-
crested kimono himself rather than his usual ratty way-off-white
gi. "Nice threads, Pops," Ranma remarked. "How come you didn't
pawn 'em?"
"I did," Genma replied with dignity. "They rested safe and
sound at the pawnshop until I needed them, and then I redeemed
them. Oh, what a trial it is to have such a foolish son!"
"Listen, you--!"
"Now, now, Ranma, you can fight later." Nodoka's smile
faded, and she regarded him seriously. "You know why we're going
to the Tendos', don't you?"
"Yeah, yeah." Ranma shifted uncomfortably. "It's about the
engagement, right?"
"Yes."
"Aw, jeez. Look, I don't mind bein' engaged too much, but
every time you guys try to get me an' Akane married, things go
all to hell. Can'tcha just give it a rest?"
Gratifyingly, Nodoka didn't dismiss his concerns. "I know
you have strong feelings about it, of course. That's one of the
reasons we're meeting with the Tendos tonight: to try to resolve
your objections."
"Well, good," Ranma said, taken a little aback.
"But, for your part, I hope you'll understand that an
engagement isn't supposed to last forever. It's just a phase you
go through on the way to marriage."
"Yeah, but, y'know..." Ranma just couldn't maintain his
rebelliousness in the face of his mother, so he switched targets.
"This is all Pops' fault," he grumbled, glaring at his father.
Genma, his arms crossed and his face stern, lifted his head
a little so that his glasses glinted at Ranma, but he held his
peace. Nodoka nodded gravely. "I know you've suffered because I
wasn't there to help your father with those arrangements, but
Ranma, you do realize that everything he's done, he's done for
your sake, don't you? I know some of those things may seem a
little harsh, but you can't fault his motives, can you?"
"Well...." Ranma trailed off, examining his feet.
"We both have your best interests in mind, Ranma, always,"
Nodoka said with feeling, taking a step nearer and reaching out
to touch Ranma's arm. "We truly want what's best for you, and
we're using all of our experience to try to find it. This
time... well, your father and Tendo-san have tried several times
to hold a wedding, but they just can't seem to get it to work.
So this time, they've agreed to give me a chance to solve this my
way. Please trust me, Ranma, won't you?"
"All right, Momma," Ranma sighed, unable to resist his
mother's gentle coaxing.
"That's my strong son," Nodoka said warmly, patting Ranma's
arm and lowering her hand. "Now let's go, shall we? It's a nice
evening for a walk."
~~~~~
The Tendos' tearoom looked about the same as it had three
years before, but the atmosphere was rather more formal than it
had been the evening Soun had said "Choose whichever one you
like; she'll be your fiancee." On the other side of the extended
table, from right to left, sat Soun, Kasumi, Nabiki, and Akane.
There was one more person present than there had been before:
Nodoka, to Ranma's left. Ranma caught Akane's eye; she frowned,
looked away, and stuck her nose in the air with a "hmph!" of
irritation, and he matched it.
"It's so nice that we can all meet here like this," Nodoka
began, smiling graciously. "I suppose we've all guessed why
we're here, so since we're almost like family already, I'll get
right to the point. Now that Ranma has graduated from high
school, it's time he took the next major step in a man's life."
Both Ranma and Akane jumped a little and looked apprehensive.
"Jeez, Momma--" Ranma began to protest, but Nodoka patted
him on the thigh without looking at him and he subsided.
"We've managed to save up enough money for another wedding;
the last four attempts cost us more than we could really afford,
you know. So please forgive me for putting you on the spot like
this, Akane-chan, but I have to ask you: will you marry Ranma
this time?"
"You must be joking, Oba-sama!" Akane exclaimed. She darted
a quick glance at Ranma. "And anyway, isn't HE supposed to ask
me that?"
"Yeah, like I would!" Ranma burst out.
Nodoka ignored him, instead giving Akane a puzzled look.
"It's an arranged marriage, Akane-chan. Your fathers arranged
it, and now I'm trying to make it happen. All either of you has
to do is allow it to proceed. Will you?"
"Why don't you ask HIM, then?" Akane demanded.
"I intend to, but I wanted to give you the chance to speak
your mind first."
Akane glanced at Ranma again, saw what looked like impatient
disinterest, and plunged ahead. "Well, I won't. Do you realize
this is the first time anyone has even asked me? None of this
was my idea. You all just pushed me into it and expected me to
go along with it."
Nodoka nodded; clearly Akane's response came as no surprise
to her.
Ranma still appeared indifferent, so Akane continued, "It
doesn't help that he's a girl half the time."
"Oh, I settled that. Despite his curse, he's still a man
among men," Nodoka replied calmly.
"And that's another thing! He's chasing other girls all the
time instead of paying attention to his fiancee!"
"Now that is a serious matter," Nodoka said, quelling
Ranma's indignant response. "Ranma, is this true?"
Ranma, suddenly on the spot, recoiled. "Huh? No!" He
collected himself. "I don't have to chase them," he boasted,
watching with satisfaction as Akane fumed.
"I'm sure you don't, Ranma, but that's not what I was
asking. I mean, are you giving the same, ah, attentions to Akane-
chan that you are to your other companions?"
Ranma's brow furrowed. "Uh... pretty much, I guess--" He
blanched suddenly. "You're asking if I did THAT, with HER?
Hell, no!"
"Ah, I see. You were saving something for marriage, of
course," Nodoka said, nodding.
"Like I would do THAT with that unsex--"
"Please, Ranma. Akane-chan," Nodoka continued, "you really
can't blame my son for being so attractive."
"What she said." Ranma stuck his tongue out at Akane.
Akane's lip curled back in the beginning of a snarl and she took
a grip on the edge of the table, but Nodoka placed her hand on
the tabletop in a warning gesture.
"Also, I've got a chance to go away to college, and HE
can't," Akane said through gritted teeth. "He didn't pass his
exams. He didn't even take his exams!"
"Hey, you callin' me stupid?"
"Arrangements could be made to allow that, Akane-chan."
"Could they? I don't see him making them! As far as I can
tell, he doesn't even care!"
Nodoka paused for a moment to let out a sigh, then said
sadly, "Well, it's a pity. I really had hoped... I mean,
obviously you seemed like the best match for Ranma at the time.
Why, if I'd been here, I probably would have done the same. But
I see that you have good reason to be reluctant."
"Of course I do," Akane agreed, flashing a triumphant look
at Ranma. Ranma didn't respond; his attention was on his mother.
"So it's clear that the best thing to do is to release you
from the engagement to my son."
"Great-- what?" Akane's eyes widened.
"Gee, you must be really happy now," Ranma observed without
enthusiasm.
"Yes... happy...." Akane smiled stiffly. "Yes, of course,
happy. Thanks so much for understanding, Oba-sama." She bit her
lip and lowered her gaze.
"So I'm off the hook, then?" Ranma asked, looking slightly
stunned.
"Oh, no, of course not. The agreement was for the Saotome
and Tendo families to be joined by marriage. You're our only
son, but Tendo-san has three daughters."
Fastest on the uptake, Nabiki was waving her hands in front
of her before Nodoka had finished her sentence. "Now wait just a
second here!"
"Oh, I wasn't thinking of you, Nabiki-chan."
Nabiki blinked in surprise. "You weren't? Why not?"
"Do you want to marry my son?" Nodoka said, regarding the
middle Tendo soberly.
"Hardly," Nabiki snorted. "But nobody likes to be skipped
over like that."
"Well, you've been engaged to Ranma once already... and,
from what I've heard, it, er, didn't work out well."
"That's a delicate way to put it." Nabiki's eyes narrowed.
"But whose side of the story did you hear?"
"Oh, Kasumi-chan told me all about it," Nodoka said,
gesturing to where the eldest Tendo daughter sat on her shins,
staring at her hands folded in her lap.
Three sets of eyes followed her gesture, and three minds
subtracted two from three and got the same answer:
"Kasumi-oneechan?" "Kasumi-oneechan?" "Kasumi-san?"
"Hold it!" Akane protested. "You can't possibly be thinking
of doing that to-- to Kasumi-oneechan! Father, say something!"
Soun, who had sat immobile opposite Genma with his arms
folded and a grave, downcast expression up until then, turned and
looked down the table at his youngest daughter. "It would
fulfill the agreement to join the families, Akane."
"But you CAN'T! He's three years younger than she is, for
goodness' sake! He's a sex-changing, womanizing pervert!"
"Hey, you--!"
"He's not NICE!"
"And you ARE, you uncute tomboy?"
"Why on Earth would you think Kasumi-oneechan would agree to
marry him, anyway?"
"Um... I will."
"Better her than YOU!"
"How could you put her in the same spot you shoved me into,
without even asking... her...." Akane trailed off and her jaw
dropped. "WHAT did you say?!"
"Uh...." Ranma looked like he had trouble believing he'd
said it himself.
"Not you, you blockhead." Akane's attention was focused on
her sister.
"I'm willing to marry Ranma-kun," Kasumi said softly without
raising her head, "if he is willing."
The ensuing silence was broken by an awed "Holy shit."
"Language, dear," Nodoka murmured.
"Fine!" Akane snapped, recovering from her astonishment.
"Go ahead and be engaged to him, then, and see how you like it.
It suits me just fine. I wash my hands of the whole mess."
"Yeah, just like your cooking," Ranma snorted. "At least
Kasumi-san's is fit to eat. In fact, it's delicious."
"You-- you JERK!"
"Hey, this might not be so bad," Ranma continued inexorably.
"Kasumi-san won't hit me every five minutes for things that
aren't my fault, either."
"What?!"
"And she's a looker, too. Stands to reason the first one
out would get it all."
Nabiki shook her head in disgust. "Ranma-kun, you jerk."
"See? See what you're getting?" Akane demanded of Kasumi.
"I feel for you, really, but don't come crying to me when you
finally figure it out. I never wanted to be engaged to him, and
I wouldn't marry him if he were the last man-- make that half-
man-- on Earth!"
Akane's words hung in the silence for a long moment.
Ranma's face twitched twice, as though stuck between expressions,
and then-- "Is that so?" Ranma retorted angrily. "That's how it
is, is it? Well, bein' engaged to Kasumi-san 'stead of you is
fine with me too! Good riddance! 'Bout time I had a fiancee who
wants to be one!"
"Hmph." Akane turned away, folding her arms. "As if. I
give this stupid engagement a week at the most."
"That will be more than enough time," Nodoka put in.
"What?"
"The wedding will take place tomorrow afternoon, here in the
dojo," said Soun. Genma nodded in confirmation.
"Tomorrow?" said Akane, Ranma, and Nabiki in unison. Akane
shot Ranma a brief glance filled with dismay, but Ranma was still
looking at Soun with surprise. When Ranma darted a remarkably
similar glance at Akane an instant later, she appeared to be
furious with the ceiling, and his expression closed up again.
"We tried a long engagement, and ended up just wasting your
time," Nodoka explained, "so now we'll have a nice short one.
Oh, by the way, it seems fair that since Kasumi-chan is the
eldest daughter and my husband and I could, in theory, have
another son, Ranma will take the name of Tendo. Kasumi-chan has
already said she's willing. Ranma, you will marry Kasumi-chan,
won't you?"
"I, uh...." Ranma dithered for a moment, his eyes darting
around the room, but there was no escape from his mother's
expectant look. Then his gaze was caught by Kasumi's as her face
came up at last. She wasn't smiling. Her expression was serious
and vulnerable... and fetching. The others watched with bated
breath as he stared into her eyes. "Yeah," he said finally, and
his shoulders slumped.
Akane uttered a small sound and sat back down hard on her
heels with a shocked look. Nabiki had her hand over her own
mouth. Kasumi lowered her head again. Soun and Genma exchanged
triumphant looks and grunts. "Well done, Ranma," Nodoka said.
"Everything will turn out for the best, you'll see."
"Yeah... sure..." Ranma said in a faraway voice. "'Scuse,
please." He got up quickly and left by the hallway. The sound
of the front door opening and closing came into the tearoom much
sooner than anyone there expected.
~~~~~
Perched atop a power pole, Ranma stared out over Nerima's
night-mantled rooftops, unseeing. It had taken a while to sink
in, and it was still sinking. Akane really didn't love him. The
knowledge was a hot, jagged mass in his chest, making his breath
come in shallow gasps. The sensation was not unfamiliar; he'd
felt this way once before, when it seemed that Akane had chosen
Shinnosuke, but this time it was much worse. Then, he could at
least cling to the thought that Akane still liked him, but liked
Shinnosuke more, galling though the loss in a competition was;
now, there was no one else. It was just him. Even the damn
curse was only part of it. Akane didn't want to marry him,
didn't want to be engaged to him, didn't even particularly want
to be in the same town as him-- she actually thought more school,
a fate only a little better than death, was preferable! There
was nothing between them.
Well, that wasn't true... there was something, just not
enough. Akane liked him a little. She was nice to him,
sometimes. But Akane was nice to everyone, even assholes like
Pantyhose-Taro. Even Kuno got politeness, at least when he
wasn't grabbing her; when he grabbed her, he got clobbered, as
was only right and proper. Akane clobbered Ranma himself with
less provocation, but that was all right too; she didn't really
mean it, she was just roughhousing with him like Ryoga and all
his other friends did.
Friends. Ranma smiled wryly at the darkness, a smile which
didn't reach his eyes. Akane thought of him as a friend:
somebody to hang around with, someone to let off steam by
clobbering, a companion on wacky adventures. But "friends"
wasn't a reason to marry somebody, to say "I will" the way Kasumi
had--
Could Kasumi-san... love me? The thought was
startling. Kasumi liked him, sure, but Kasumi liked everyone.
Even Hinako-sensei got the pleasant smile, at least when she
wasn't trying to get Soun's attention. But he'd thought that
Kasumi wanted him to get together with Akane. The only times
they'd ever talked about anything other than routine please-pass-
the-shoyu stuff, she was chiding him gently to be nicer to Akane
in one way or another. Well, maybe she'd known for a while what
he'd just figured out-- that Akane didn't want him-- and decided
this was her chance. The look she'd given him... he couldn't
have said "no" to that look without a really good reason to hold
out.
Like the reason he didn't have any more.
At any rate, something had given her a reason to agree to
marry him, which was more than Akane had ever done. It might be
love, or it might be the same reason he'd agreed to marry Kasumi.
Duty. Akane didn't want him. He couldn't have what he
wanted, and it was only now, too late, that he understood how
much he wanted it. Akane was lost to him. To pursue her would
make him as pathetic as Mousse, or even Kuno. All that was left
was duty to his mother, and the promise to unite the families,
and the prospect of making Kasumi happy, at least.
The thoughts coiled slowly through his mind as the night
deepened, but their tracks didn't change. Finally he let out a
deep sigh and scrubbed wearily at his face with his hands.
"Goodbye," he said softly, looking back at the Tendo house.
By chance or some unconscious design, the pole he'd chosen for
his retreat was easily visible from there; if anyone had come
out, wanting to talk him out of something, or into something, she
would have spotted him right away. But no one had, and now he'd
made his decision. Duty was all that remained to him. He would
marry Kasumi tomorrow, and that was all there was to it.
Ranma grimaced suddenly. They're not gonna like this. His
mind's eye saw Kasumi, working in the kitchen, or hanging
laundry, or walking with a shopping basket... and he saw Shampoo
enter the kitchen with a sword in her hand and a glint in her
eye, or Ukyo vault the wall with her spatula ready to swing, or
Kodachi drop from a rooftop, her ribbon twirling. Two of the
scenarios ended with a short scream and a splash of crimson, and
the third wasn't much better.
His duty was clear, and his thought clearer: I can't let
that happen. Ranma dropped from the pole and sped away, his
movements decisive, his expression determined.
~~~~~ end part 1/3
Vince Seifert Fanfic Analyst FFIRC Frog
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