[Ranma][FanFic] Ranma's Fiancees - Part 9
jstai...@earthlink.net
Brooklyn Bridge, the Washington Monument, or the Statue of Liberty, and if any
tourists with deeds to said properties say otherwise, remember that English is
not their native language.
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Ranma 1/2: Ranma's Fiancees
By Lady Tesser and Jack Staik
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Nerima lay sleepily in the golden glow of morning. The still
wet streets reflected the sunrise like mirrors, the air
thick with humidity. The debris of house shingles, trash,
tree limbs, bits of sheds and fences littered the streets.
The only real damage appeared to be a small restaurant
called Ucchan's. The insurance would be taken care of later.
In Tofu's Clinic, the Saotome siblings awoke together with a
start. They looked around in a daze, then focused.
"Tofu-sensei!" Ranko exclaimed.
"Akane-sama!" Ranma cried.
Tofu came in, calm and collected. "Don't worry, Ranma-kun.
Akane-chan is sleeping peacefully in the next room. She-"
<ZOOM!!>
Ranko got up and picked up Tofu-sensei from where he had
fallen, examining the foot-shaped bruise on his face. "You
seem alright." she reported.
"Thank you for your expert consultation, Ranko-sensei." he
said with a good-natured smile.
Ranko found herself smiling, as well as blushing.
"How about the others?"
"Well," Tofu began, "Ryoga and Shampoo only sustained minor
injuries. They're resting in my office until we can get some
hot water. Kodachi and Ukyo are both in the psychiatric ward
for now, until we can find a more suitable location for
them. Kuno is in stable condition, just out of surgery.
"Akane was drained completely by the Heart's Fire that she
employed, and should sleep for another day - and this time
she *must* get a few day's rest!"
Ranko nodded. "I'd reached the same conclusion before. I
know a place where she and Niichan can stay in some peace
and quiet."
"Do you remember what happened to Happosai?" he asked.
Ranko's brow furrowed. "Not exactly. I vaguely recall...
Ranma and I ... did something."
"What you did," Tofu explained, "Was flood him with your
combined imbalanced energies, reverting him to infancy."
Ranko's eyes widened. "We did *WHAT*!?!"
"I examined Chibi-Happosai," Tofu continued, "and he seems
perfectly normal for a six-month-old infant. His memories
and abilities, I believe, are gone, or at least submerged.
Cologne has told me about her family's 'adoption' of him,
and since the only legal existence he has is a police
record, there should be no problems in that regard. Which
means for you, Ranko, no chance of having your ki drained
again."
"Did the combination of our imbalanced ki affect Niichan's
and my ... "
"Apparently so; you both now have the proper balance of male
and female ki within yourselves, only on a more powerful
level than normal," He paused, studying her blue eyes and
energy. "You and Ranma seem to be recovered. Would you like
to have some tea before I send you three home?"
"Three?" she asked. She looked up and noticed his eyes were
resting on her bosom, bursting at the seams of the hospital
scrub shirt she was clad in.
"Oh, pardon me," he blushed down to his hair roots. "You,
Ranma, and Akane."
She met his brown eyes again, and she smiled shyly. "I'd
love to, Tofu-sensei."
* * * * * * * * * *
The Tendo household slept peacefully in the living room.
Nabiki dozed in the armchair, while Kasumi slept across the
couch, her apron wrinkled around her.
Soun barely slept, watching over his daughters and guests.
Nodoka was settled on a mat, the katana at hand. Hibiki-san
slept across the room from her on another mat, his suitcase
under his head, full of his sale wares. Genma slept in the
dojo, afraid to be near his wife for safety reasons
(Allowing their children and future daughter-in-law to be
lost in the typhoon was not a good idea).
The door silently opened, and Soun stood up. He stepped over
bodies and entered the main hallway to find his youngest
daughter sleeping peacefully against her fiance's back as he
climbed the stairs.
"What happened to my daughter?" he whispered.
"She rescued Niichan from those crazy girls," Ranko replied,
patting his head. "Unfortunately, it drained her energy, so
she's just resting up. Tofu-sensei says she needs plenty of
rest."
"That means no pressure to get married," Ranma added,
halfway up the staircase. "Got it, Tendo?"
Ranko took one step toward Soun.
Soun quickly nodded his head in agreement, only because
Ranko was closest to him, and he didn't like the thought of
singing soprano the rest of his days.
"You look exhausted, Tendo-san," she smiled. "Why don't you
get some sleep? Kasumi-chan and I can look after
everything."
He nodded and followed Ranma up the stairs, watching him lay
Akane gently on her bed and smooth her hair from her
forehead. Soun smiled; his little girl was taken care of at
last. Which was, in the end, more important than anything
else.
Ranko entered the living room, finding the rest of the
family asleep. It *had* been a long day yesterday. Her eyes
rested on the woman who gave birth to Ranma, and she sighed.
Nabiki slitted her eyes open, seeing the redhead.
"About time you got home," she yawned. "Daddy was worried
sick about sis."
Ranko nodded. "Don't blame him. So what happened while we
were gone?"
Nabiki grinned amid another yawn and said, "Orange juice
first, then we'll talk."
* * * * * * * * * *
"You've *got* to be kidding!"
Nabiki and Kasumi gazed at her across the table, seeing and
hearing the uncanny resemblance to Ranma.
"No, we're not. I owe you five-hundred yen."
"Forget it, Kasumi-chan," Ranko stared into the juice in
front of her. "So Ryoga's father is really Niichan's father,
too?"
"Yep," the middle Tendo daughter replied. "It seems that
Hibiki-otosan doesn't have the 'lost' gene, he's just a
travelling salesman. Ryoga's mother is the one with the
'lost' gene."
"But why Nodoka?"
"You're about as thick-headed as Ranma-kun, you know that?"
Nabiki leaned over and tapped her on top of the head. "If
you're any indication, Nodoka was quite an attractive girl
back then. Being just married to Genma and him gone, bet you
anything she was never satisfied and always lonely. When the
younger and more handsome Ichiro Hibiki shows up ... "
Kasumi blushed. "Sounds almost like one of my romance
novels."
"Got it."
Ranko continued to stare into the juice, studying her
reflection.
"It explains a lot, doesn't it?" she mused. "I mean, why
Niichan and I don't look like Genma at all, and why Ryoga
bears a passing resemblence to us ... and why he and Ryoga
have the same eyes."
Kasumi sighed, swirling the milky bath of her tea-and-cream
around with her finger. "What do we do?"
"Be interesting for Genma to find out Nodoka-obachan didn't
give birth to his son."
"Be serious, Biki," the redhead looked up. "You know how
Akane-chan still wants to beat Ryoga into a mass of ground
pork for fooling her when he was P-chan."
The eldest Tendo daughter nodded. "Yes. We can't tell Akane.
If it were known that Ryoga is going to be her future
brother-in-law, she'd still try to hurt him anyway."
"And best not to tell Ranma, either," Ranko added. "He'll go
berserk." She held up her hand and ticked it off. "One:
Ryoga is his brother by blood. Two: Genma isn't his father,
thereby making him not a Saotome. Three: his mother cheated
on his father, that's rather dishonorable. Four: the
agreement of the Saotome and Tendo families to be united and
carry on the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts will be
invalid. Five: do we really want Ryoga as a member of the
family?"
"So we keep this secret?" Kasumi asked.
"Exactly, Oneechan," Ranko confirmed. "Ranma and Akane need
only know what is best for them. It's how I lived inside
Ranma's head. He'd have been overwhelmed by everything that
happened when I was in control of his body."
"So, how much are you going to pay me to keep this under
wraps, Ko-chan?"
"Nabiki!" her older sister scolded her sharply. "I don't
think you should be doing that to them!"
"Yeah!" Ranko added, raising a fist.
"Just kidding," she grinned.
The redhead sighed and leaned back, closing her eyes to
think about the revelation. Damn, Ryoga was her brother. If
he ever got over his depression and hatred, he would be an
honored relation. Up to him, and the little piglet inside
him.And Akane forgiving him, of course.
Nodoka had an affair out of loneliness and need. From this
affair, Ranma was born. Ranko felt closer to her brother
more than ever before. She was born from his loneliness as
he was born from his mother's. He was conceived in love, in
passion, like all children should be born from.
Nodoka did love Ranma, and it broke her heart to let him go.
She gave up her one piece of happiness to honor and
tradition, to appease her family and her husband. Her life
was no longer happy, only having those first few years with
her much-beloved son. Would a mother's love spoil her child?
Or make the child stronger, knowing that he is loved and
cherished and never be starved for affection?
All this she had told Kasumi and Nabiki. Who had told Ranko.
<Maybe I was a bit harsh on the old bitch.> she thought.
<That katana goes, though.>
Ranko wiped her eyes. Better late than never, as the gajin
say. Ranma was loved at last, more than she herself was able
to love him. No more nightmares to make him scream in the
silent night. His warrioress, Akane, was now at his back,
fighting the demons and darkness away, and he fights hers
away. As it should be.
* * * * * * * * * *
That evening ...
"Do you have everything?" Ranko asked.
"I think so." Ranma confirmed. "Are you sure it'll be safe?"
"Of course it will. Now get going before everyone wakes up."
"Thanks, Ko-chan. Akane-sama really needs this."
"I know. Tofu-sensei and I both agreed it was the only way
for her to rest."
"Good. But you will visit?"
"We'll see, Ranma-kun. Oneechan ... "
"Arigato, Ko-chan. For everything." Ranma whispered as he
hugged his sister.
"That's what sisters are for." Ranko released him and hugged
Akane. "Make sure Niichan doesn't get into any fights."
"I'm not going to let him leave!" Akane said, a lilt in her
voice.
<giggle> "Good girl. Ja ne!"
Ranko watched as the forms of Akane and Ranma leapt over the
rooftops of Nerima in the crystal moonlight, heading toward
the school. The secret attic was the safest, most secret
place the three knew.
Nabiki placed her hand on her shoulder, looking out the
window after her retreating sister.
"Think they'll be all right, Ko-chan?"
Ranko smiled. "I think so, Biki. Love is the best medicine;
heals hearts and souls."
Nabiki nodded and turned to go back to her room.
Ranko continued to gaze out to the softly moonlit night,
watching the two loves of her life fly to their peace and
fulfillment at last. She ignored the ache in her soul, the
one that had been beating on the door of her heart.
"Please look after my Ranma and Akane-chan. Keep them safe
and in happiness," she paused, glancing back up at the moon,
letting the ache slide into her consciousness. "And ...
please ... don't let me be alone."
* * * * * * * * * *
"Did we make a mistake, O-Kuni-Nushi-san?"
The God turned around to face the younger Goddess. She bowed
her head low, dipping her body slightly.
"How did we make a mistake, Benzaiten-san? The love of the
two has birthed the face of Fate to all around them." He
smiled in a good-natured way. "I commend you for altering
the old hentai back to infancy. Very clever of you."
"Fate," she smiled, basking in his compliment. "as you had
said. A debt had to be paid and the Amazons to be appeased."
"What mistake, though?"
She blushed, lowering her eyes to her wringing hands. "The
girl is alone. She has no one close to her. I know she is
powerful, and strong-willed. A handicap for her to find a
... a man to love. I feel she begins to question her own
love."
O-Kuni-Nushi chuckled. "You have underestimated the men of
Nerima, Goddess, as well as her attraction to one of my
own."
"My apologies. I have no place to question your decisions.
But I still question who this man is."
"Trust to the Fates, Benzaiten-san. All will fall into
proper place."
She nodded. "Hai."