[Ranma][FanFic] Daigakusei no Ranma - Episode 25

[Saotome Ranma]

I've been waiting
Since the world stood still
A picture in my mind
An image left behind
I love you and always will

All I needed was a miracle
To see that I was wrong
Yeah, all I needed was a miracle
To realize what was going on

'Cause in this world
There is only one
And in this life
Under the sun
In this heart
Is the life of love

In this heart
Is the life of love

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| Daigakusei no Ranma |
| |
| Created by David Tai and Paul Gallegos |
| |
| Based on the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi |
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-= Episode 25: "Oh, the Places Kodachi Will Go!" =-
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Ranma adjusted his gi and grit his teeth. "Okay... let's try that again!" He
launched himself at his opponent, striking furiously with feet and hands.

His opponent dodged most of them, although a few did connect. They were not
enough to prevent Ranma from being sent flying backwards into a tree. "Oof."
Ranma winced and rubbed his back. That had HURT.

Genma grunted. "Better, boy, but not nearly good enough." He struck a pose,
the back of one hand pressed to his forehead, his head tilted up at the sky,
the other hand pressed against his heart. "Where oh where has my son and heir
gone? Before he left me he was a man among men, and no one could better him in
combat. Now he is soft and weak, a shadow of his former self, a mere boy."
Genma put his hands on his cheeks and shook his head sadly. "And not even
that, sometimes."

Ranma growled and jumped at Genma. Another flurry of blows was exchanged.
This time, Ranma's exit trajectory landed him in the pond.

Genma looked disgusted. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. See what I mean, Nodoka? Do you see
a man here?"

Nodoka had just come out onto the porch. She knelt and looked gravely at her
son. "You are right, my husband. I fear my son is losing his manliness.
Perhaps we should dissolve his marriage and find a nice man for him to be wife
to. I know of a young doctor who would be the perfect fit."

Ranma gaped at her mother and then her face turned cold, and her body shook in
anger. She climbed slowly out of the pond, re-adjusting her gi without
thought. "All right, Pop. One more time."

Instead of jumping at him, she stalked up to him, giving him plenty of time to
set up his defenses. She attacked deliberately and methodically, sacrificing
none of her speed but making sure her blows landed where she intended them to
go. Genma met them easily at first, but as she increased the tempo he began to
fall back. Ranma pressed the attack, not rushing in to try and deliver a
knockout blow but instead landing a jab here, a kick there, and not giving her
father time to set up a counter-attack.

Genma backed into the outer wall of the dojo, and was forced to try a feeble
counter-attack. Ranma parried it easily and then beat him into submission with
a punch to the solar plexus, a kick to the side of his head, and an elbow into
his ribs.

Genma collapsed, trying to suck in some air. Ranma stood over him, her anger
not diminished in the slightest. "Manly enough for you, Pop?"

He seemed to be convulsing. For the first time, a bit of concern pricked a
hole in Ranma's fury. She knelt on one knee and rolled Genma on his back,
gently massaging his chest to help him to breathe. He was still expelling
sporadic bursts of air, and it took her a while to realize he was laughing.

"W-well d-d-done, R-Ranma," he finally managed. "Now th-that's m-m-my boy."
He grinned.

"Indeed," Nodoka said from the porch. "That was quite a manly display. No
foolish charge to attack, trying to destroy the enemy in one headlong rush.
This was a methodical, well-executed assault, showing the discipline and
maturity of a true martial artist."

Ranma turned to regard her mother. Nodoka's voice and expression were as grave
as ever, but a bit of humor sparkled in her eyes. "If you can continue to
display these attributes, I would be quite proud to call you my son."

"You guys." Ranma smiled and shook her head. She should have realized that
her mother was just trying to goad her, that she wasn't serious. One of these
days, Ranma thought to herself, I'm really gonna have to learn to stop and
think things through a bit.

Genma had mostly recovered by that point. He slowly climbed to his feet; Ranma
straightened with him. "That WAS well done, Ranma. Nearly at your old form.
Your mother was right; you HAVE been rushing things, trying to recover all the
ground you've lost in one fell swoop. You should know by now that it's a long
process. Keep up the discipline, keep attacking like you did just now, and
you'll be back in shape in no time.

Ranma frowned. "But break's nearly over. I gotta go back to school soon."

"I know. A pity your college is so far away." Genma rubbed his side where
Ranma's elbow had connected, grimacing slightly. "You'll need to find someone
to spar with. Someone much better than Akane, I'm afraid. Perhaps the old hag
could have helped."

Ranma shuddered in spite of herself. "I don't know if I could handle her AND
the lech at the same time."

Genma laughed and began to lead her inside. "We must all make sacrifices for
the art."

"I'm just glad they're gone, so I don't have to make THAT sacrifice." For some
reason, Ranma felt drawn to her mother's gaze. She saw a flare of pain in
Nodoka's eyes, a memory of how much had already been sacrificed. Ranma smiled.
"Thanks, Ma, for helping me with my training. It meant a lot to me."

Nodoka smiled back bravely. "You are welcome, my son. I will always be there
to help when you need it."

They continued to gaze at each other as Ranma walked by her into the house.
Ranma felt her stomach twist slightly as emotions deep and strong waged through
her soul.

The front door banged open, shattering the moment. Ranma looked down the
hallway to see Akane returning from her morning jog. Their eyes met, and Akane
smiled widely. Ranma felt a foolish grin covering her face. What she shared
with Akane maybe wasn't as deep and wasn't as strong as what she shared with
her mother, but it was moving in the right direction. For perhaps the first
time in three years.

"Breakfast everyone!" Kasumi's voice, and the smell drifting from the table,
touched on something even deeper in Ranma: the need for food. Her mouth began
salivating. Kasumi's cooking was always great. Already Ranma was regretting
having to forgo it when she went back to college.

Everyone sat and breakfast began. Akane looked around, frowning. "Where's
Nabiki?"

Soun looked up from the end of the table. "She was up late last night. She
may be sleeping in."

"Oh my." Kasumi put a hand on her cheek. "Is anything the matter?"

Soun shrugged. "Not that I'm aware of."

"That's your problem, Daddy. You're just not aware. You're never aware, and
it gets you into too much damn trouble."

Everyone looked up at Nabiki, shocked. Her eyes were a little red, indicating
to Ranma that she had been up all night. Nabiki looked as angry as her words
had sounded.

"Oneechan!" Akane was the first to find her voice.

"Why do you say such things?" Kasumi wasn't far behind.

Nabiki glared at each of them. "Because everything our family owns - the
house, the dojo, all the assets I so carefully set up for all of us - is gone.
All of it. None of it is ours anymore, because HE -" she pointed a finger at
Soun - "doesn't have any function left in what we euphemistically call his
brain."

Somewhat to Ranma's surprise, Soun didn't begin bawling. He looked very much
like he wanted to, but he was breathing hard in an effort to control it. He
looked very hurt - but, Ranma noted, not very surprised.

"Tendo Nabiki." Nodoka's voice was coldly formal. "I would expect better from
a member of my daughter-in-law's family than this rude, dishonorable behavior.
This is your father, and you must respect him."

Nabiki's eyes bulged out. She actually began spluttering, something Ranma had
never seen her do before. Ranma quickly leapt to her feet and ran over to grab
Nabiki's shoulders and turn her away from Nodoka. "Neechan. Why don't you
tell us what this is about."

Nabiki stared wide-eyed at Ranma for a moment. Then, with a visible effort,
she brought herself under control. She nodded and moved away from Ranma to sit
at the table, avoiding everyone's eyes.

"I saw this in the mail yesterday." Nabiki opened up a folder she'd been
carrying and held up a letter. "I opened it because it looked important. And
it was." She looked at it. "Tendo Soun, blah blah blah, all loans due in full
in seventy-two hours, blah, blah, blah, failure to comply will carry severe
penalties."

She slapped it on the table. "What loans, I wondered. So I went through
Daddy's personal papers and found them." She held up several sheaves of
important-looking documents. "He took out a lot of loans to finance that
stupid election of his. Yeah, he gets to act all learned and wise in front of
a bunch of other people, but he put us - the whole family - in hock to do it."

Akane leaned forward. "But surely... I mean, he didn't spend THAT much money.
How could--"

"Because he's--" Nabiki snapped her mouth shut, obviously before she could say
something caustic. After a few seconds, she continued. "Because our father
was interested in getting the money himself without consulting the person who
set up the family accounts." She tapped herself on the chest. "Because our
father took out a long-term, low-interest loan in the belief that the low
monthly payments would not be a burden. Because our father," and now Nabiki's
voice was trembling with barely-suppressed rage, "does not know anything about
reading the fine print or watching for potential liabilities."

She leafed through one contract. "Lender may, at its option, transfer control
of the debt to other parties without prior notice to the Borrower. Lender
assumes no responsibility for terms imposed by said other parties in the event
of such transfer." She slammed the contracts on top of the letter on the
table. "Well, guess what? They did just that. Someone bought up all of our
loans -- at a tidy profit to the lending agency, I'd guess -- and is imposing
new conditions. All loans due NOW, or all collateral will become their
property. And Daddy used everything we had as collateral."

Soun spoke in a small voice. "They said it would save us money. The more
collateral I could offer, the lower the interest rate."

"Daddy!" Nabiki threw the folder on the table. Papers went flying everywhere.
"Don't -- why didn't you consult anyone? If not me, then someone who knows
something about borrowing money? You were set up, Daddy. And now you're going
to have to pay. We ALL are."

Kasumi looked scared. "How much money are we talking about?"

"A lot." Nabiki sighed. "We could probably pay them off and keep them from
foreclosing if we had the time to sell the house and dojo. But we've only got
two days. Even I can't come up with that kind of money."

"Can't we take out a new loan?" Ranma spoke tentatively. "You could find a
respectable bank, get the money from them to-"

"Ranma, I won't try to teach you to throw a punch. Don't try to teach me about
money." Nabiki looked at her hand, as if hoping something else she could throw
on the table would appear. "We don't have any available collateral. They'd
see how much debt we're in and laugh at us. It's a basic premise of the
lending industry that in order to qualify for a loan you must first prove that
you don't need one." She looked around the table. "We need one. Very badly."

Silence. Everyone looked at each other, waiting for someone to present a
solution. Finally Akane licked her lips and spoke. "Can we talk to whoever
bought up the loan? Surely they can be reasonable."

"Reasonable?" Nabiki laughed somewhat hysterically. Ranma walked up behind
her and grabbed her shoulder tightly, trying to shake her out of it. Nabiki
choked off the laughter and suddenly looked frightened. "Reasonable is not a
word often associated with the new debtholder."

Sudden foreboding twisted Ranma's stomach. "Who? Who's the one calling in our
loan?"

Nabiki dug through the mess of papers in front of her and came up with the
original letter. She showed him the letterhead; behind the writing was a
raised imprint of a single, black rose. "Kodachi. Kuno Kodachi. She's
determined to have you one way or the other, dear brother."

While it is true that Saotome Ranma does get angry sometimes (though not as
much as his wife does) it is usually just a flare-up, a healthy release of
emotions. That was not the case now. The anger he felt burned coldly in his
gut.

"That, that--" Akane sputtered, looking for a suitable term to call Kodachi in
front of her father and in-laws. "She swore to leave us alone!"

"I'm afraid your oath wasn't that comprehensive, Akane-chan," Nabiki said with
a grimace. "'Never come near Ranma again' hardly stops her from foreclosing on
loans." She shook her head. "I will admit I never expected her to do
something like this. It's... unlike her."

"I'll put a stop to this!" Ranma said, leaping to his feet. Without another
word, he dashed out the door, making a beeline for the Kuno mansion.

"Oh, aren't you going to go after him, Akane?" Kasumi asked.

Akane looked down into her lap. "I... I don't think I should. If I go,
Kodachi will attack me and we won't get anything settled. Ranma can handle
it..."

Nodoka, watching this, gave a small nod of approval. Her daughter-in-law was
getting much better at trusting her son. It was a good sign.

Only Nabiki could see Akane's hands in her lap as they snapped her chopsticks
in half.

*****

Ranma vaulted over the wall surrounding the Kuno estate and made his way to the
greenhouse. It was the most likely place to find Kodachi, he knew.

"Kodachi!" he yelled as he flung open the door.

Kuno Kodachi looked up from where she was tending a black rosebush. She was
wearing a gardening smock and had her hair bound in a kerchief. Other than
that, she looked no different from when she had faced Akane several months
ago... except for the scowl on her face as she looked at Ranma.

"Saotome-san, are you so ill-mannered as to not even knock?" she said, contempt
lacing every word.

Ranma froze in shock. His plan, such as it was, had been to distract Kodachi
by pretending to go along with whatever she wanted and then grabbing the loan
papers at the earliest opportunity. But now....

"I just heard about you buying up the Tendo loans, Kodachi. What's this all
about?" he said. Her strange attitude had thrown him off-balance, he knew,
like he had been this morning when facing his father. He thought he had been
going into familiar territory but a mine field had appeared out of nowhere.

"That? Is that why you broke into my home?"

"I didn't break into nothing!"

"I did not invite you here. You are trespassing. I could have you arrested,
you know." She turned to work on her roses.

"I'm not leaving until you tell me why you bought those loans!"

"Why? To make money, of course. The land will be quite valuable, and this was
far cheaper than trying to buy it from your sister-in-law. I think I'll have a
department store built there."

"You can't do that!"

She smiled slowly. It was not her old smile, crazed and wild. This smile was
cold and ugly with hate. "I can do exactly that, Saotome-san. It's all
perfectly legal."

"What's wrong with you? You--"

"You mean, why am I not falling all over you because you deigned to visit me?
Why am I not making a fool of myself by trying to make you LOVE me?" The venom
in the word love would have been enough to eat through stainless steel.
"You've made your feelings clear on that, 'Ranma-sama.' I will not lower
myself any further simply to feed your ego."

"It wasn't like that! YOU--"

"I actually thought you were merely playing hard to get, Saotome-san, until I
saw how you helped that... cow beat me. How could you chose HER over what I
offered you? Money, power, and my love! You SPAT on me and my family's honor
when you rejected all of that. I will NEVER forgive you for what you have
done."

She raised her clippers and began to cut the rosebuds off the bush. "This is
just the beginning, Saotome-san. I will see your family reduced to nothing
before I'm through."

"I never meant to hurt you, Kodachi! I just didn't love you."

"Spare me. I no longer care what you think. Leave now, or I call the police."
She then devoted all of her attention on her rosebush, ignoring Ranma utterly.

Ranma turned and left.

*****

"I tell you, she's even freakier now than she was," Ranma said as he finished
describing his encounter with Kodachi.

"I am not qualified to judge how she was," Nodoka said, "but it seems that she
is quite determined to have her revenge, no matter what her mindset is like."

"Kodachi has always been obsessive," Nabiki added.

The three of them, along with Kasumi and Akane, were clustered around the
table, trying to find a solution to the problem facing them. Soun and Genma
were huddled nearby over their shogi board, discussing and discarding one
unworkable plan after another.

"Well, talking to her didn't help," Nabiki said, "and her new-found hatred of
Ranma has robbed us of our best weapon against her... her 'love' for him." She
raised her hand and ticked off their options. "She's not attacking us, so
martial arts doesn't help. Whoever she's got running her finances hasn't
missed a trick. I can't find a loophole we can use. Does anyone have any
other ideas?"

"Are you sure there isn't anyway we can raise the money, Nabiki?" Kasumi asked.
"If no bank will offer a loan, maybe we can borrow from friends and family."

"Kasumi, I have gone over the figures. Even if we sell everything we can --
and assuming we get anywhere near a decent price for it -- and raiding our
college funds, we're still several hundred thousand yen short."

"Sounds like we may be hitting the road again, Saotome-kun," Soun said to his
friend.

"Looks like it, Tendo-kun," Genma agreed. "I hear China is nice this time of
year."

Everyone glared at Genma.

<SPLASH!>

<I'm just a panda, what do I know?> said the sign that Genma-panda raised as he
rolled around in the yard with a tire.

"Well, we still have to find more money. Who do we know with lots of cash to
spare?" Nabiki said.

Akane frowned, then sighed. "I know someone."

*****

"Ah, Tendo Akane, to what god or spirit does mine humble abode owe the pleasure
of your visit?" Kuno stopped short as another figure stepped inside the entry
hall. "And Osage-no-Onna! Have you both finally thrown off the shackles of
that sorcerer Saotome?"

Akane and Ranma-chan exchanged hidden grimaces and then looked back at Kuno
sadly. "Kuno-sempai, we're here because we desperately need your help!" Ranma
said, batting her eyes in a ridiculously exaggerated manner.

"Ah, I would be only too happy to aid my loves, as my honor and noble blood
requires. Name what you need, and it shall be done. I shall climb mountains,
empty seas, fight whole armies--"

"We need you to stop your sister from foreclosing on my home," Akane broke in.

Kuno stopped in mid-rant. A confused expression crossed his face, then he let
out a heartfelt sigh. "Alas, my loves, such is not within my power."

"But, Kuno-sempai," Ranma-chan wheedled. "Surely you are rich and powerful
enough to do this little-widdle thing for me?"

Akane nearly gagged at the sugary sweetness in Ranma's voice.

"OH!" Kuno cried, raising his hands to tear at his hair. "That one such as I
should be brought to such a course of events. But, my loves, you need not
fear. My sister is but freeing you at last from that sorcerous cur, Saotome.
The cure is harsh, but final. Kodachi explained it to me. Once your dojo is
gone, Tendo Akane, then Saotome will leave, for he will have nothing more to
gain from you. And since my sister too has thrown off his spell, he shall
finally have no recourse or haven!" Kuno laughed loudly until Ranma punched
him in the face.

"Oh, Kuno-sempai! I'm sorry, my hand slipped."

"Ha! 'Tis but a love tap for one such as me," Kuno said, groggily.

"Surely you can do SOMETHING, Kuno-sempai," Akane said. "I grew up in that
home. All my memories of my mother are there. Surely you must feel some
pity."

Kuno looked torn, but before he could speak, a familiar voice interrupted them.

"Oh, brother dear... I hope you weren't thinking of going back on your word,
now."

Conversation ground to a halt as Kodachi strolled into the hallway. She was
dressed in a formal kimono, purple with black roses. She looked over at Ranma
and Akane, and her lip curled. "Come to beg, have we? Has your honor fallen
so low?" She sniffed. "Of course. What AM I thinking of? You never had any
honor to begin with."

Akane clenched her jaw. "You should talk, you inhuman, sadistic-"

Ranma stepped in front of Akane, breaking her eye contact with Kodachi. While
Ranma was herself furious almost beyond words, she maintained just enough
common sense to know that trading insults with Kodachi would get them nowhere.
"Kuno-sempai," she said softly, for if she spoke any louder she'd be yelling.
"What if... what if that horrible Saotome were to face you and defeat you in
combat. What then?"

Kuno seemed taken aback. "Defeat me? 'Tis not possible, with your love
fueling my attacks."

"But you can't foreclose on our -- on my friend Akane's house. Please."

Kuno seemed sorrowful. "Alas, my sister reminds me of my duty. I have made a
promise to her not to interfere as she takes her revenge out on the fiend
Saotome. Once he has been defeated utterly then... then perhaps there is
something I can do."

"You mean," Akane said in a voice still tight with anger, "that you're going to
wait until AFTER she's foreclosed on our house?"

Kuno looked over at Akane. "Fear not. Once my sister has revenged herself
upon the demon, you need not want for anything."

Akane stared at him. "I want my family's house. I want the dojo." She placed
her hand on Ranma's shoulder. "I want..." She trailed off.

Kuno couldn't meet her eyes. "As I said, Tendo Akane, I have given my word.
But I promise on my honor-"

Kodachi cut in. "Please refrain from making promises that might affect
property -I- hold, Oniisama."

Kuno broke off, looking mildly irritated. He looked like he wanted to say
more, then grimaced.

Kodachi nodded once. "Good. Now, if you have no further business, please be
on your way. I shall see you at noon the day after tomorrow. Please have all
of your things out of the house at that time. And don't try any more of these
juvenile tactics."

Ranma clenched her fists. Never in her life had she felt so utterly powerless.
This was no monster she could just blast with her chi and have done with it.
All her martial arts skills, all her ploys of misdirection and using her female
body to whatever advantage it gave her, all the things she had learned in
college, everything she knew meant exactly nothing in this situation.

She turned and started; Akane was on the verge of tears. Ranma quickly went
over to her and held her hand. Akane squeezed it tightly, wiping her eyes with
her free hand.

Ranma spoke over her shoulder. "If you will excuse us," she said listlessly.
She guided Akane out of the house and away from the monster that dwelled
within.

*****

Kuno watched as his sister smiled widely at the just-closed door. Tremendous
satisfaction oozed from her every pore. She sighed in pleasure, looked over at
Kuno, chuckled, and turned away. As she walked down the hallway, the chuckle
turned into laughter that went on and on.

Kuno waited until it was far away. Then he slowly made his way back to the
sitting room.

A woman was pacing rapidly around the room, exuding extreme agitation. She
looked up as he entered. "I told you. I TOLD you, Kuno-chan."

"Indeed." Kuno sat serenely on a chair, trying his best to keep his own
apprehension from showing. "What would you suggest, Tendo Nabiki?"

Nabiki waved her hands in the air as she moved. "It makes no sense. No sense.
What was all that about Ranma leaving Akane? That doesn't add up. Why did she
tell you that Ranma would flee once the dojo was hers? It's not logical. Even
Kodachi admitted that Ranma loved Akane. Why would she try to delude you into
thinking he only married her for her property?" Nabiki stopped in front of
Kuno.

Kuno shook his head. "I know not what spell Saotome put over Akane, or how he
forced her to marry-"

"Never mind. You don't need any help deluding yourself." Nabiki crossed her
arms. "So tell me. What does Kodachi want?"

Kuno considered the question. "I... believe that..."

Nabiki leaned forward, staring into his eyes. "What?"

For some reason, the presence of Nabiki's face very close to his made Kuno
flush slightly. "Um... I believe that Kodachi is not in this for the revenge.
She eliminates obstacles that prevent her from getting what she wants. Once
she loses interest in something, she finds something else of value to focus on.
It is my experience that Kodachi would not be putting this much time and effort
into ruining your family unless she wanted something from you."

Nabiki leaned back and stared at the ceiling for a few seconds. "Ranma."

"Mayhap."

"All that stuff about hating Ranma and no longer caring about him... that may
have been an act. A way to get him to lower his guard." Nabiki thought about
if for a few more moments, then looked back at Kuno. "That works. Now we've
got something to work from." She turned and strode towards the door.

Kuno rose to his feet. "Tendo Nabiki."

She stopped at the door and looked over her shoulder at him.

"If there is any way I might assist you that does not violate my oath to
Kodachi, you have but to state your request and I will fulfill it."

Nabiki stared at him for a few seconds, then slowly nodded. She then left the
room.

Kuno sat back in his chair and clasped his hands in front of his face, a finger
from each hand steeping his nose. For one of the very few times in his life,
he thought deeply.

*****

Ranma stuffed the last of his clothes into his suitcase. Akane's room was
looking very sterile now, with all of her belongings in boxes, ready to go
who-knows-where. Probably Maison Sabaku. He and Akane had offered to give up
their lease but Nodoka had just shook her head.

"Your rent there is still paid up for a while. There's no point in all of us
being homeless," she had said sadly. "We do have some money and Nabiki is
looking for a relatively cheap apartment... it'll be cramped but we'll manage."

Ranma shook his head at the memory of his mother. Somehow, this was all his
fault. If he could have only done something to keep Kodachi from this path.
If only his fiancees hadn't trashed the Saotome home. If only....

Akane stepped quietly into the room, clutching a thin notebook tightly to her
chest.

"Akane?"

Akane looked at him, her eyes red with weeping. "Oh, Ranma... I found this
again..." She held up the notebook and Ranma saw that it was her mother's
cookbook. "And I thought of all the meals Mother cooked here, and all the
times we had... and now...."

What is a husband supposed to do at a time like this? Ranma thought
desperately. He hugged her tight, if a little awkwardly, doing the right thing
almost by accident. Akane sobbed onto his chest.

"It'll be okay, Akane-chan," he said, wishing he believed that as strongly as
he sounded.

*****

Soun slowly swept the walk in front of his house, trying not to think about his
dishonor. For that was what it was. He had put the family in jeopardy for no
reason other than his foolish pride. Strangely, however, he did not feel like
wailing or fainting. He just felt... drained.

"Soun-chan?" came a soft, husky voice.

Turning, he found himself looking at Ninomiya Hinako. "Hinako-san," he bowed
formally.

She stepped closer to him, looking downcast. "Nodoka-chan told me of your
troubles," she began. "It's all my fault. If I had been a better manager--"

"Stop," Soun said. "It was no one's fault but my own." Admitting that aloud
was galling and he was surprised he could say it.

"Soun-chan," she said, "take this." She thrust a small bundle wrapped in brown
paper.

Surprised, he took it from her outstretched hands and unwrapped it, revealing
several bundles of yen of various denominations. "Hinako-chan?" he asked,
startled.

"It's not much, but it's my life savings, plus what I could scrape together by
selling some of my possessions," she said. "I don't know how much you need,
but--"

"I can't take your money," he began.

"Please! Take it! I don't want you to lose your home."

"I'm honored by your concern, but I can't let you bankrupt yourself for me."

"I want to. Take it. Please."

"But why--?"

"Because I l--oh no..." Hinako's sentence suddenly turned into a wail of
protest. Soun watched in horror as she suddenly shrank in size and became a
prepubescent teen. "Nonononononono!" she shrieked. Looking at him, she burst
into tears and ran away, leaving Soun staring after her in shock.

*****

"Hey, little brother, I think we've got another problem."

Ranma was lying on the roof, staring up at the sky as if he could find the
answers to his problems there. Turning toward the sound of the voice, he saw
Nabiki sticking her head over the edge of the gutter.

"What's the matter, Nabiki?"

"It's Daddy and Hinako-sensei."

"What about them?"

"Well, she apparently put herself in hock to help us out, but while she was
giving him the money she lost her whammy or whatever and became a little kid."

"So?" Nabiki just stared at him. "Waitasec, I thought he--"

"My father is not the most perceptive individual in Japan, you know," Nabiki
said wryly. "Remember your arrival here? Anyway, could you and Akane track
her down while Kasumi and I deal with Daddy?"

"Sure, I guess," Ranma said, leaping down off the roof.

*****

"Sister, I would speak with thee," Kuno began. "Your actions of late have been
most passing strange--"

He stopped and regarded the mirror in his room. No, it would not be a good
idea to call Kodachi's actions 'strange.' She did not take such criticisms
well.

"Sister," he tried again, "I would talk to thee of--"

"Of what, brother dear?"

Kuno turned slowly to see his sister watching him from the door to his room,
smiling that malicious grin she had sported of late.

"I do hope you're not going to try and weasel out of your promise, brother,"
she said. "I would hate to waste what little family time we spend together on
such things." She twirled her ever-present ribbon idly as she lounged against
the door, but her eyes stayed sharply focused on Kuno. He felt like those eyes
would gut and fillet him if they could.

"I have been thinking of what you told me," Kuno said, rallying his thoughts,
"and they make little sense to me now. How will depriving the Tendos of home
and livelihood drive off that fiend Saotome?"

Kodachi tightened her grip on the ribbon and Kuno thought she might lash out at
him. "My, my," she said at last. "You HAVE been thinking... or you've had
someone else do it for you. Who? That money-grubbing shrew?"

"Do not speak so of Tendo Nabiki!" Kuno snapped.

"Oh, hit a nerve, did I?" Kodachi said with a cackle. "It matters little,
brother dear, for there is nothing any of you can do. I hold their loans and I
can do what ever I want."

"But how will this truly hurt Saotome? I don't understand--"

"Of course you don't," Kodachi said in a voice that not only dripped but
practically spat sarcasm. "Let me make it perfectly clear, then. I will not
rest until the Tendo family is totally destitute, broken, and dead. I want
their name reviled, I want them considered so low and desperate that
guttersnipes look down upon them. I want to see them beg the kamis to kill
them. THAT is what I want! Hohohohohohohohohohohohoho!"

His sister's laugh had always made Kuno uneasy, but now it truly frightened
him. "But why?" he asked again, trying not to show how rattled he was.

"Because Tendo Akane stole from me the only man I ever loved, brother dear. He
chose her over me, and now I'll make them both see the folly of their choice.
Haven't you heard? All's fair in love and war."

Too late, Kuno realized his mistake. He had told Nabiki that Kodachi did not
seek revenge, that when she lost interest in something, she moved on. But
Kodachi had not lost interest in Ranma, and assuming so had been his mistake.
He had not taken into account how much Kodachi hated to lose. He knew that he
must tell Nabiki soon that all bets were off with Kodachi in her present state
of mind.

However, it was too late for that as well. The bouquet of black roses struck
Kuno square in the face and he took a deep breath before he could help himself.

"A new paralysis gas, brother dear," he heard Kodachi say as he fell. "I don't
think your antidotes and tolerance will help you against it. I can't have you
running to that Tendo bitch with what you know. Don't worry, you'll be fine...
once the loan is closed. Hohohohohohohoho!"

Kuno could only lie on the floor and listen as his sister left, her laughter
lingering on the air like some malignant spirit.

*****

Soun Tendo sat in the dojo, staring blankly at the walls. He wanted it all to
go away, for all his problems to vanish. How fortunate it must be to be
Saotome, he thought. A splash of water and all worries removed except for a
vague wondering of where the next bamboo shoot was coming from. How nice that
would be.

"Daddy?" The voice of his middle daughter, behind him. A reminder that he did
have worries outside of himself.

"Father." His oldest daughter, speaking in that mild but self-assured voice
that indicated that she was assuming her "mother" role. "Hinako-sensei left
here in tears. Can you tell us why?"

"She gave you all her money, too." Nabiki sounded slightly offended. "Why'd
you let her do that? We can take care of ourselves."

Soun waved his arm, indicating the dojo. "I built this with my own hands,
board by board, nail by nail. It was a joy. I was free at last from the
influence of my deranged master. My wife watched from the porch, her belly
continuing to swell as the dojo came closer to completion. At last I put up a
sign and started taking in students. I needed some sort of income to support
the baby. I needed to be a provider."

Kasumi came up and knelt next to him. "Father--"

Soun interrupted her. "These walls echoed in turns with the sound of students
practicing and the happy gurgles of you, Kasumi. Then you were joined by
Nabiki and Akane. Everything was as good as can be. Perfect. Perfect."

Nabiki knelt on his other side. "Daddy, don't--"

"The death of your mother broke me. She was everything to me, and all my life
died with her." He swallowed heavily, determined just this once not to cry.
"I shut myself off from the world, rarely leaving this dojo. There was no
reason to go anywhere. Why should I? No matter where I went, she would never
be with me."

Kasumi spoke in a sad voice. "Father, she never left us. She's still here."

Soun smiled gently at her. "You were the one that kept me connected to the
family. Your tireless devotion kept everything together. Kept me together.
Slowly -- very slowly -- I allowed myself to be brought back to life. I began
living a little. Not much. I know how broken I was. How useless I was to
everyone."

"Daddy!" Nabiki reached out and grabbed his arm. "You weren't useless. You
went back to teaching and earned us some money."

"But not enough." He turned to look at Nabiki. "That's where I am fortunate
to have had a daughter like you. You kept the family solvent even when I could
no longer be the provider I once was. If not for you, this" he indicated the
dojo again, "would have passed away a long time ago."

He put an arm around each of his daughters. "And then you left me, because of
course you had to live your own lives. And I was glad. At last, I thought
myself strong enough to live on my own. I even sought political office, proof
to the world that the broken Soun of days gone past was no more. I was alive
and popular."

"You always were, Father." Kasumi put her head on his shoulder.

Soun shook his head. "I was dead. For a while, I was dead. And then life
began again. And then... then..."

Nabiki spoke tentatively. "And then... Hinako-sensei?"

"She... she was so energetic. Full of life and ambition." Soun sighed. "Full
of ambition for me as well. She seemed... smitten with me. Me. She spent
time in my company and seemed to enjoy herself. No woman has done that
since... since your mother." He looked back at where Hinako had been. "But
she changed... right before my eyes...."

Nabiki looked away. "Well, you can blame that one on the old lech."

Nobody said anything. After a while, Soun continued. "Can you understand,
girls? I... I wanted to prove to her I was a responsible person. A strong,
mature man. So I decided to run for mayor. I took out those loans, thinking
that I could prove that I was able to at last fend for myself." Soun drooped
his head. "I was wrong. I failed you all."

"Daddy." Nabiki couldn't quite mask her irritation with sympathy.
"Responsible people ask others for help when they need it. And..." Nabiki
paused, sounding almost reluctant to continue. "And you don't need to prove to
me you're strong and mature. Remember when Happosai came back? You spent a
lot of time groveling in front of him. But there came a time when you stood up
to him. You were terrified of him, but you still went out and fought of him."
Nabiki paused again, and spoke the next words as if they were being dragged out
of her. "I was proud of you."

"I, too, was proud of you then." Kasumi lifted her head to look at him. "And
when you decided to run for mayor, I told everyone I knew about my father.
What a great man he was. How lucky Nerima would be to have him as their
mayor."

"We just gotta get over this crisis," Nabiki said, her voice firm again. "And
we will, one way or the other. But we could use your help. You have to
straighten things out with Hinako-sensei."

"Yes, Father." Kasumi reached out to turn Soun's head so that they were
looking eye to eye. "You love her, don't you?"

Soun wanted to cringe but couldn't move his eyes from Kasumi's. "I... I cannot
betray your mother."

"It's not a betrayal, Daddy. Mom wants you to be happy. Hinako-sensei...
she's been good for you. I... I..." Nabiki swallowed hard, then continued.
"I think she'd make a good step-mother."

Soun's eyes went wide. Kasumi smiled in gentle humor. "I think so too,
Father."

He couldn't help himself. He began crying. He held his children closed to
him, and they hugged him back. He let a lot of things out during his sobbing.
And some things in.

After a while, he released Kasumi and Nabiki. He wiped his face dry. "I... I
think I need to find Hinako."

"Good." Nabiki rose quickly. "Gotta go talk to Kuno. One way or another,
he's gonna help us beat Kodachi. And we WILL." She turned and almost ran from
the dojo.

Soun blinked after her. Kasumi laughed softly. "You don't know how hard that
was for her, Father. She must really care for you deeply to open herself up
like that."

Soun nodded. "I just hope she can forgive me for all that I've done."

"She already has. She may never admit it to you, or even to herself, but she
could never stay mad at you. She loves you."

Soun looked once more at Kasumi. Kasumi smiled back. "I love you too,
Father."

"Thank you, daughter." They stood up together. "I think I could use some help
finding Hinako."

Kasumi bowed slightly. "It would be my honor."

Soun smiled widely. Together, he and his daughter left the dojo. Somehow,
Soun was sure that, when all was said and done, there would be more memories to
add to its walls.

*****

Ranma and Akane darted through the streets of Nerima, heading for Hinako-
sensei's apartment. Ranma darted from one railing or fence to the next, while
Akane kept up on the ground. The teacher's apartment, however, proved to be
dark and empty (or at least no one was answering after repeated knocks.)

"Where to now, Ranma?" Akane asked.

"I dunno. The school, maybe?"

"Maybe... but the Principal was there the last time I stopped by. Are you sure
you want to risk running into him?"

Ranma shuddered at the thought of crazy head of the Kuno clan... then he
followed that thought through. "Hey, if he is there, maybe HE can help us."

"You've GOT to be kidding."

"No, hear me out. The Principal is Kodachi's father, right? Maybe he can stop
her from foreclosing the loan."

"Ranma, you KNOW what he'd want in return."

"It's not that big a sacrifice," Ranma said, his hand reach back to tug on his
pigtail. "I mean, not next to the dojo and all... Right?"

"I'd rather not have a bald husband, thank you."

"Well, maybe we could bribe him with a trip to Hawaii?"

"We can't even afford a trip across town."

"Beat it out of him?"

"How is he supposed to convince Kodachi, anyway? She and Kuno-sempai don't
exactly listen much to their father."

Ranma sighed. "You're right."

"And another--I'm right?" Akane blinked.

Now it was Ranma's turn to blink in confusion. "I just said that, didn't I?"

Akane blushed. "Sorry... I guess I'm still not used to hearing that from you."

"Well, if you were right more often...."

Akane brandished her mallet. "Are you really that stupid?" she growled.

Ranma decided it would be wiser to shut his mouth before it got him into even
more trouble.

*****

Nabiki ran through the streets of Nerima, a sight that startled many of the
people that knew her. Tendo Nabiki never hurried. She made others hurry. No
one would ever comment on it, however. Gossiping about Nabiki was, as many had
found out, an expensive proposition.

She finally arrived at the Kuno mansion. Looking up at the semi-traditional
castle (traditional castles did not have so many traps) she grimaced. One day,
she would have a LONG talk with Kuno-chan about architectural style. She then
put that thought aside (and all thought of why she was so concerned about
Kuno's sense of style) and went to a side gate. She punched the code Kuno had
given her into the security system and the door slid open.

She hurried through the grounds, paying hardly any attention to the landscaping
as she turned the problems of the last twenty-four hours through her mind,
seeking a solution. As before, the thorny knot resisted all her efforts. The
image of Kuno taking his sword to it in the fashion of Alexander the Great made
her smile slightly.

Then the world fell out from under her.

To be more precise, a stepped into a pit trap that SHOULD have been sealed up.
Kuno had promised her that he had sabotaged the castle's traps so she could get
safely in and out. That was clearly no longer the case as she slid down a
chute. The slick sides offered her no purchase and she acquired several bumps
and bruises as she tumbled down it.

Then there was a sudden sensation of freefall as the chute came to an end and
she hung for a moment in space, and then the ground came up to meet her. It
was not a gentle meeting.

Not having had any lessons in martial arts in years, Nabiki fell badly, taking
most of it on her right shoulder. Pain shot through her arm and she screamed.

"HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO," came a familiar laugh, made tinny by a speaker system.
"Did that hurt, bitch?"

Nabiki bit into her lip in an effort to keep from crying out in pain again,
determined not to give Kodachi the satisfaction. Something was wrong with her
arm, she knew. After the initial shock, the pain dulled a bit, but her arm
felt numb and useless. She looked and saw that her shoulder was... twisted.
However you described it, it certainly did not look right. Memories of
injuries she had seen in the dojo filled her mind. It's dislocated, she
thought. She tried to get to her feet, but her useless arm sent more pain
through her body as it bumped against a wall. She gasped and stood still.

"Welcome to the Kuno dungeons, Tendo Nabiki," Kodachi continued over the
speaker system. Nabiki looked around. She was in a small square room with
corridors leading away on each side. She spotted the speaker in a corner, next
to a video camera. The little red light burning beside it showed it was
active. "I hope you like them, because you're going to be here for a while."

"This is... kidnaping," Nabiki grated out. "I'll make sure you... pay for
this."

"I very much doubt that," Kodachi said. The menace that oozed out of her voice
was clear even through the sound system.

"I think you need to spend more on your toys," Nabiki said, as sarcastically as
she could manage. "You sound like a chipmunk." Her arm was starting to swell
and throb she could tell and she could kill for an aspirin.

"HOHOHOHOHOHO! Is that your best shot? Perhaps I was wrong to consider you a
threat to my plans."

"I'm... honored, truly, by what you think of me."

"It doesn't matter now. You're no more of a threat than my DEAR brother is."

Nabiki jumped to her feet, then fell to her knees as her arm moved and exploded
with pain. "Aaargh!" She gritted her teeth against the pain. "What have you
done to Kuno-chan?"

"My, my... both brother dear and yourself seem to react strongly about the
other. It was amusing to see him defend your honor before I eliminated him."

"You..."

"Now I must be going. I have loans to foreclose, you know." The speaker
clicked off.

"KODACHI!" Nabiki screamed.

*****

"Now, Father, where do you think Hinako-sensei would be?" Kasumi asked.

Soun paused as they walked down the street. He thought of the young (younger
now than he ever thought) woman he had spent so much time with. How could he
claim to know where she might be when he hadn't even learned of her secret. He
would have a long talk with the Master, he thought, whenever Happosai got back
from China.

"I don't know, Kasumi," he admitted. "I thought I would be able to tell, but
now I wonder if I knew her at all."

"I heard Akane telling Ranma once that Hinako-sensei tends to act childishly
when she's in her younger form."

"Kasumi, were you eavesdropping on them?"

Kasumi laughed. "Oh, not that time, Father." Then she frowned slightly.
"They just didn't notice I was there."

Soun winced. "I'm sorry, Kasumi-chan. We've all taken you for granted,
haven't we?"

"Oh, no, Father. I was happy to help the family."

"You kept us a family, Kasumi-chan. We would have fallen apart without you."

"Father," Kasumi said sternly, "you underestimate our family. We would have
made it, regardless." She then smiled. "The house would just have been
messier."

"I'm a lucky man, to have daughters like you and Akane and Nabiki."

"You have Hinako-sensei, too, you know."

Soun sighed. "Kasumi, I don't know about that. After this... she may not ever
want to see me again."

"Do you want to see HER again?" Kasumi asked gently.

He considered the question. "Yes," he said finally.

"Then it will work out." It was a statement of fact.

"But how can you tell?"

"Because you didn't even bring up the fact that she... changes," Kasumi said
serenely.

Soun paused. "You know, after the initial shock, I didn't even think about
it."

"If you can accept playing shogi with a panda, Father, I guess you can accept
anything."

"I wonder if there is a koan* in there somewhere...."

(*A saying that is supposed to force people think in unconventional ways as a
philosophical exercise, like "If you meet Buddha on the road, kill him.")

"We really need to find Hinako-sensei, father."

Soun folded his arms over his chest and bowed his head in thought. When he
looked up again, the first thing he saw was an ice cream store down the street.
"There," he said, pointing at it.

Kasumi looked puzzled. "Why there, Father?"

"I raised three little girls," he said. "What sort of father would I be if I
didn't know how one thought?"

*****

Nodoka paused in her cleaning and looked around the living room with a sigh.
She had come to love this house since she had been reunited with her husband
and son. She had loved her visits even before she had discovered the truth
about "Ranko" and "Mr. Panda." Even in their present circumstances, she had to
smile at all the trouble her visits had caused. She regretted that the oath
she had extracted from Genma so long ago had kept her family separated for so
long, but maybe it was destined to be. Without that oath, maybe her son would
not have married Akane and Nodoka wouldn't have come to know and love the Tendo
daughters as her own family.

Of course, it was also possible that if Ranma had been living with her and not
with the Tendos, his relationship with Akane might have been smoother. Well,
there was no second-guessing fate.

"Dearest," she said to Genma-panda, who was currently fanning himself on the
porch. "Will you miss this place, if we have to leave?"

Genma just growled noncommittally.

Nodoka sighed. "Perhaps you can stay at the zoo when we're homeless."

There was a splash of hot water and a yelp, then Genma was beside her. "Dear,
things aren't that bad. Truly."

"Aren't they?"

"Soun and I will find a solution. Trust us."

Nodoka went back to her cleaning. "Very well. But if you don't, I may have to
talk to my family. You know what that would mean, of course."

<SPLASH!>

Nodoka sighed again at the sight of her husband playing with a beach ball.
"You could at least not spill so much water on the floor, dear."

*****

Nabiki gasped as she tried once again to move her disabled arm, tears streaming
down her eyes. Pain was her whole existence, and her eyesight dimmed as it
washed over her.

After a moment the pain lessened, enough so that she could see again, THINK
again. She stood up and looked at her shoulder. It was swelling and beginning
to turn some interesting colors. That was not good.

Gingerly, she bent down and picked up her discarded blouse. Carefully she used
it to form a crude sling. She had to tear off the sleeves to make it work.
The blouse had been expensive, too. Kodachi would pay for that, along with
everything else. She used thoughts of that to help keep the pain at bay.
Damn, it was awkward, tying it one-handed.

She looked around. Four exits, each leading a different way. Which would be
the exit? The Kuno mansion was in THAT direction. Maybe she should take the
passage leading in the opposite direction. But maybe Kodachi would anticipate
that, and...

Nabiki shook her head before she wasted more time in fruitless second-guessing.
There was an old rule for solving any maze: the right-hand rule. Always follow
the right-hand wall, and it would eventually take her out. It was not always
efficient, but it was usually reliable.

Her shoulder twinged painfully, and she decided to make it a left-hand rule.

She chose a passage at random and took two steps down it. The memory of her
fall made her stop. How many traps would there be in this maze? Maybe she'd
fall again, and maybe she would do more that hurt her shoulder.

But Kuno said he'd disabled all the traps. Kodachi had obviously reactivated
one, but she shouldn't have had time to reactivate them all.

Nabiki just had to trust Kuno on this.

Pain throbbed in her shoulder again, reminding her of what such trust had
gotten her last time. Nevertheless, she continued down the passage, her left
hand trailing the wall.

*****

Hinako Ninomiya liked ice cream. She loved to order a great big hot fudge
sundae and eat it all up. The ice cream was nice and cold, and the fudge was
pleasantly warm, and it was just so yummy. She always saved the cherry for
last. No matter what problems faced her, no matter how icky she felt, by the
time she got to the cherry everything was better.

Now, however, she sat at the counter, pushing her cherry listlessly around the
empty bowl. Something, somewhere, had gone wrong.

It was HIM, she knew. The tall dreamy guy. Tendo-san. Soun. He was supposed
to have been all happy when she gave him her money. And everything was
supposed to be wonderful and his problems were supposed to go away and the
world would be sunny again. Not a place where hot fudge and ice cream didn't
stop her from feeling sad.

"Hello there, miss." The counter person, a short man with a wide, friendly
smile, stood opposite her and smiled. "Can I get you another to put a smile
back on that sad face of yours?"

She looked up at him, wishing she had a five-yen coin. Come to think of it,
she had no money at all. She wondered how she was going to pay. Life was very
bad right now.

"Hinako-chan."

The voice, so sensitive and full of nuance. She looked over her shoulder at
him. Her tummy felt strange. She looked around wildly for an escape. Her
thoughts were a little strange at times like this, and she couldn't stand to
have him see her like this.

Soun smiled gently and walked up to her. Hinako leaned back in her seat,
trembling slightly. Soun stopped and spread his arms. "Please, Hinako-chan,
don't be frightened. Don't run away."

She shook her head. "It's not me, it's not me, I'm not like this, please don't
see me like this."

"It IS you. I know." He lowered himself to his haunches so that their eyes
were level. "Please, come back home with me. We need to talk."

"I... I CAN'T." Her lip began to tremble. "It's all my fault, all the trouble
you're in. I shouldn't have... shouldn't have pushed you." She bawled. "I'm
sorry!"

Large, strong hands reached out to gently cup her face. "Hinako-chan, the
fault is mine. And... and it really doesn't matter. What matters is that we
face our problems and deal with them. Together."

She shook her head. "I can't. Not like this. I'm... I'm... look at me!"

To her surprise, Soun chuckled. "I've got a son-in-law who turns into a woman
and a best friend that turns into a panda, and you think something like THIS is
going to bother me?"

She blinked through her tears. "Your best friend turns into a panda?"

"Yes." Soun took her hand in his. "Would you like to see?"

"O-okay." She lowered herself off the stool. They moved off together. Behind
her, Hinako heard Kasumi paying the counter person.

Hinako stopped at the front door. She looked up - WAY up - at Soun's face. He
was tall and beautiful and he wanted to be together with her.

She ripped her hand away from his, turned, and ran back to the counter. She
grabbed the sundae bowl away from the counter person. She took the cherry out
of the bowl and ate it.

Hinako giggled once, then spun on her heel and ran back towards Soun.

*****

Tatewaki had long practice in recognizing the stages of paralysis. The worst
part was always the beginning, as he felt his muscles lock up, sometimes
painfully. Then, usually, feeling would leave him, and he'd lie there numb.
Over the minutes or hours, prickly sensations would run up and down his arms.
The pain would start to come back, but that was always a good sign. Shortly
thereafter, he would gain a modicum of control over his muscles, enough to
begin to work out the cramps. It would take long minutes more, but eventually
he'd be able to stand up and begin plotting elaborate revenge against Kodachi
that he'd never carry out.

He was her older brother, after all, and he was responsible for her. He had a
duty, no matter how... distressing it was at times.

Right now he was still in the "numb" phase. Kodachi sure wanted him out for a
long time, perhaps days. Long enough to force Akane and her family to move
out. He needed to stop that somehow. But right now, he was so... so...

"My, aren't YOU useless, Kuno-chan."

Kuno tried to turn his head but couldn't. But that voice, and especially its
biting tone, could only belong to one person. "Nuh. Nuh."

"Nabiki, yes, don't strain yourself." He heard footsteps come up behind his
head. Someone knelt over him. A hand reached over him and slapped his cheek.
"Can't move, can you?"

"Uh."

"Y'know, I think I like this mode of speech better than the damn poetry." The
hand grabbed his shoulder and, after a couple of attempts, flopped him onto his
stomach. "Okay, I'm no good at this. I saw Kasumi's old boyfriend do this
once. I know the pressure point's around here somewhere." A finger poked him
in the back hard.

"Nuh."

"Hurts, doesn't it? What's this do?"

"Nuh."

"Hmm. Maybe over HERE."

"Woof!"

"Well, that's interesting. Gotta remember that one. Maybe this'll do it."

Suddenly every nerve in Kuno's body burned like fire. "Gah!" His back arched
and he violently thumped his head on the floor. He convulsed a couple of
times, then subsided, trembling.

"Kuno-chan!" If his head wasn't still ringing, he'd almost think that Nabiki
had some concern in her voice. "Tatewaki! Are you okay?"

"I... I am fine, Tendo Nabiki." He blinked at his own words. He WAS better.
He just needed a moment to recover.

"Oh, that's good." That was definitely relief in her voice. "Maybe I'll leave
that kind of stuff to Tofu and Cologne from now on."

With an effort, Kuno pushed himself off the floor. Still trembling, he assumed
a cross-legged position, using his hands to force his sluggish legs into
position. He looked up at Nabiki. His eyes stopped halfway to her face.

Nabiki wasn't wearing a shirt, only a bra. His view of what filled the bra was
somewhat spoiled by the sling supporting her right arm. Still, what he did see
mesmerized him as no picture of the pig-tailed goddess ever had.

After perhaps thirty seconds, Nabiki cleared her throat. "Kuno-chan, if you
please, I think we have some important matters to attend to than your usual
perversion." Her voice was stern with a touch of amused haughtiness.

Startled, his eyes flew up to hers. Her expression was steel and her eyes
glinted fire at him, but the coloring of her cheeks betrayed another emotion.
Kuno looked deeply into her eyes, and she looked into his, and the outside
world ceased to exist for a few seconds.

Then something finally meandered its way down his neural pathways. A sling?
He looked at her shoulder, and saw that it had turned alarming shades of yellow
and purple and didn't look quite right. Nabiki's face was pale and she was
obviously in a lot of pain.

"Nabiki." He tried to jump up and nearly fell. He caught himself with one
arm, took a moment to recover, and then carefully rose to his feet. "Needs
must we get you to a doctor. You have had serious injury inflicted upon thee,
and all else must be secondary to obtaining treatment for you."

Nabiki looked annoyed. "We don't have time for that now. Kodachi-"

"My sister be damned! You are hurt! That is all that matters at this moment.
No more objections, Tendo Nabiki. Allow me to escort you to a medical
facility. Now."

Nabiki looked at him for a second, then smiled slightly. "All right." She
reached up her left arm, and he pulled her to her feet. "But let's hurry. We
DO have to stop Kodachi, and quickly."

"I... am aware of that. Come." He stood on her left side, put his arm around
her waist, and gently guided her towards the door. Nabiki went rigid at first,
then slowly relaxed. As they left the Kuno Mansion, she leaned into him a
little bit, and Kuno wasn't sure if the sigh came from her lips or his.

*****

Ranma and Akane were surprised to see Kasumi, Soun, and Hinako-chan sitting
around the table when they got back to the Dojo.

"Is everything all right now?" Akane asked hesitantly.

"Everything is fine now," Kasumi said, smiling. "Oh, Ranma-kun, your parents
went out on some errands. They said to tell you that they'd be back soon."

"Thanks, Kasumi."

Hinako-chan leaped to her feet and zoomed over to Ranma. "Saotome-san! Can I
pretty-please drain your aura?"

"Huh?"

"I would appreciate it, son, if you'd do that. Hinako-sensei and I need to
talk about some things."

Ranma looked into Hinako-sensei's pleading eyes, then glanced at Akane. For
her part, Akane was looking at her father. He appeared more self-confident
than she had seen him in a long time. It brought back memories of her
childhood, before her mother died, when her father had been the person she had
looked up to most in the whole world. Seeing Ranma's questioning look, she
nodded.

"OK, teach... but don't take too much. We still got Kodachi to worry about."

"Yay! Thanks, Saotome-san! HAPPOU FIVE-YEN SATSU!"

Ranma fought to stay calm as Hinako pulled a part of his battle aura away from
him. He had only rarely been drained by her. It was like losing a fight to
let her drain him, something he had never liked. Still she stopped short
before draining him fully. Instead of being a drained husk, he merely felt
like he had been fighting Ryouga all night long.

"Thank you, Saotome-san," Hinako said in her husky, adult voice.

"Think... nothing of it," he said, trying not to show any weakness.

Kasumi gracefully rose from her sitting position. "I think it would be best if
we left you two alone, Father," she said. "I need to go and start dinner
before Auntie comes back." She headed toward the kitchen.

"Yes, thank you, Kasumi," Soun said, turning to look at Hinako-sensei. She
looked away, unwilling to meet his eyes. "I think we may be talking for a
while."

Ranma and Akane stepped out into the yard, sliding the door shut behind them.
"So, now what?" Akane asked.

"I dunno," Ranma said. "Before we could have done something, but this new
Kodachi... She freaks me out."

"Now you know how we all felt," Akane muttered.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ranma asked.

"She treated all of us, except you, like that, Ranma. You never noticed
because she was always fawning over you."

"Hey, I didn't like her fawning over me! She always freaked me out! It's
just... different now!"

"Had you the courage to tell me that years ago, things might be very different
now, Saotome-san."

Both of them turned to look at the rear gate. Kodachi was standing just
outside of it. The Black Rose was wearing a black kimono and she was staring
with unmitigated hate at Ranma.

"Kodachi!"

"How DARE you come here!" Akane snapped. "Is this what your honor means to
you?"

"MY honor is unsullied, Tendo Akane," Kodachi said haughtily. "You and your...
husband," she spat, "have both come to ME, so our agreement is null and void.
Besides, as holder of your loans, I have the legal right to examine the
property."

"It's not your property yet, Kodachi, so why don't you just leave?"

"True, I don't own it... yet," Kodachi said. "But I have not stepped foot on
your property. You can hardly force me to leave a public road.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" She covered her mouth with a fan as she laughed.

"We'll find a way to pay the loans," Akane said bravely, "so just leave us
alone!"

"You? Pay the loans? Oh, that is rich. I very much doubt that you will be
even able to pay for a newspaper."

"Holding the loans don't give you the right to insult us, Kodachi," Ranma said.

"Tell me," Kodachi went on, her eyes glinting maliciously, "do you know where
your money-grubbing sister is now?"

Akane suddenly turned pale as a ghost. "N-nabiki?" The shock quickly gave way
to rage. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY SISTER?!"

"HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!" laughed Kodachi. "I'm afraid she suffered a little...
accident when she tried to visit my DEAR brother."

Akane's battle aura sprung to blinding life. "WHY YOU--!!" she screamed, her
mallet at ready.

"AKANE! No!" Ranma tried to grab his angry wife. "That's what she WANTS!"
Ranma knew he was not as perceptive as Nabiki or Kodachi, but he had a innate
sense for combat and he could tell that Kodachi was trying to provoke an
attack. What purpose it served, he wasn't sure, but if she wanted it, he had
to make sure she didn't get it.

Akane almost turned her mallet on Ranma. "I DON'T CARE! She's going to die if
she hurt my sister!"

Ranma dodged the swing of the mallet. Things weren't going well.

"HAPPOU FIVE-YEN SATSU!"

Suddenly Akane's battle aura was siphoned off, swirling behind her to funnel
through Hinako-sensei's coin. Hinako-sensei was already charged, so she
couldn't take too much. She also didn't want to leave Akane helpless with
Kodachi present. The blow to Akane's pride would be too much for the young
woman to bear. It was enough to calm Akane down, however.

Akane glared at Kodachi. "You've insulted my family, threatened our home, and
probably hurt my sister. I will NEVER forgive you!"

The scene grew quiet. The field of battle had suddenly narrowed to just the
two of them.

Kodachi's eyes glittered with haughty contempt. "As if I cared for the opinion
of a baseborn slut like you."

Akane's aura flickered again. Behind her, Ranma could see Hinako-sensei ready
another coin.

But Akane reined in her temper. "Well, just remember that -I- was the one who
beat YOU into the ground last time we fought."

Kodachi's eyes narrowed. "Are you challenging me?"

Akane's smile grew dangerously cold. "No." She faced Kodachi directly. "As
an heir of the Tendo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, I challenge you for
possession of the dojo." She smirked. "THAT was a challenge."

"I accept," Kodachi said quickly. "This time, you will be the one defeated."

"Hold on!" Soun said, having finally recovered from the spell of the scene.
"Ranma should be the one to fight--"

"Oh, Soun-chan, this IS the twentieth century, you know," Hinako said.

"Akane--" Ranma began.

"HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!" Kodachi laughed. "The challenge has been given and
accepted. There's no changing it now."

"Dad, Ranma, I know what I'm doing. I can beat her, even with all her dirty
tricks." She turned to Kodachi. "Since the Dojo is the prize, we'll fight
there, tomorrow, when the loan is due. Is that acceptable?"

"Of course! But, let's make things a little more interesting if I win... after
all, I already have the Dojo."

"Isn't your honor enough of a reason?" Akane asked acerbically.

Kodachi continued as if Akane hadn't spoken. "If I win, then the Tendos and
the Saotomes will come and work for my family, in perpetuity. I can use some
new servants."

"We don't have to accept that!" Akane said. "You've already accepted the
challenge."

"Afraid you'll lose?"

That sent Akane's aura flaring again. "To YOU? All right, we accept!"

"AKANE!" everyone yelled.

"HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! Until tomorrow, then!" Kodachi exulted. She tossed a
black rose at Akane, who dodged it. The rose slammed into the dojo wall and
stuck there, vibrating slightly. Kodachi then leapt away, a truly incredible
feat, given her kimono.

"Um, Akane?" Ranma asked hesitantly.

"WHAT?!" Akane screamed.

"Er... nothing, really..." Ranma said, backing off.

Akane stomped off to the dojo, muttering darkly.

Kasumi came out at that moment. "What was all the shouting about, father?"

A moment later, the eldest Tendo daughter's voice echoed across the yard. "SHE
WHAT?"

*****

Nabiki closed her eyes, blissfully grateful for the absence of feeling in her
arm. The painkillers the doctors had given her were working like a charm. She
was glad she had turned her head while they were resetting the join. The
SOUNDS had been bad enough. No human body should make sounds like that.

She looked up. The Tendo gate was just ahead. "You know, Kuno-chan...?"

"Yes, Tendo Nabiki?"

"You really SHOULD put me down now. Carrying me across the gate would probably
give my father all the wrong ideas."

Kuno put Nabiki down quickly. He had insisted on carrying her, even though she
could walk perfectly well. Somehow, though, she had lacked the strength to
argue with him. It WAS nicer than walking after everything that had happened
today. In fact, she almost fell asleep in his strong arms. She attributed
that to the painkillers.

"I do not doubt my sister has been up to much mischief whilst we were
incapacitated," Kuno said. "I should stay by your side until she is defeated."

"The fact that this means you wouldn't have to return home and get drugged
again has nothing to do with your GENEROUS offer, does it, Kuno-chan?" Nabiki
teased.

Kuno's face turned several interesting shades. "It is my family's fault that
you injured yourself. I must attempt to redress that wrong."

"Oh, Tatewaki..." Nabiki said, shaking her head. "Remember? Twentieth
century?"

"Honor is not ephemeral, to change with the seasons like the leaves on a tree.
It is eternal, like the mountains or the rivers."

"Remind me to tell you about erosion some time, Tate-chan."

They entered the yard and made their way into the house..

"Hello? Anyone home?" Nabiki called.

The sounding of running feet filled the structure. Akane came first, dressed
in her gi, followed soon after by the rest of the Tendos and Saotomes.

"Nabiki! You're OK!" Akane exclaimed. Then her eyes narrowed on seeing her
sister's bandaged arm. "Grrrrrr. Kodachi did that, didn't she!?"

"Indirectly, yes. Fortunately, Kuno-chan and I managed to get away from her."
Hmmm, I'll have to charge Tate-chan for covering his butt there, she thought
before dismissing any thoughts of why she would bother.

Nabiki then gasped as her sister hugged her tight. "A-akane! The arm! the
arm!" she squealed.

"Oh! Sorry!" Akane exclaimed, letting go quickly.

"Daughter," Soun interjected. "We have a family crisis we need to discuss."

Nabiki sighed. "Who did what NOW?"

*****

Nabiki slowly lifted a cup of tea to her lips, her mind working furiously as
she considered everything she had been told. Part of her was amazed that Akane
had found some way to make matters worse, the other part tsked at the first
parts naivete. She should have expected SOMETHING to up the ante before this
mess ended. The tea was hot and burned her mouth, but she had too much to do
to make time for pain.

"So, if Akane doesn't beat Kodachi, we're all to be sold into servitude, is
that it?" she asked. Quite calmly, she thought, all things considered.

"Well... yeah," Ranma said, holding his hand behind his head in the
particularly clueless way of his.

"I'm sorry, Nabiki... that was pretty stupid of me, wasn't it?"

Nabiki looked at her little sister and tried to think of a cutting remark that
would succinctly and clearly describe the length, depth, and breadth of the
blunder Akane had made, the colossal nature of her error, but, for once, words
failed the middle Tendo. So she settled for a cold look that would have
sparked an immediate Hiryuu Shouten Ha if anyone had a wisp of battle aura left
to them.

Akane seemed to shrink in on herself, hunching her shoulders and looking down
at her lap.

Nabiki sighed. Akane never did take criticism from family members well. "It's
all right, Akane. You'll beat her. You did the last time. The only problem
now is that we don't have a lot of time before the match. I hope that you
haven't been slacking off, like your husband has." Meanwhile, I'll have to
work fast, see if there's anything at all I can do to help us get out of this
mess, she thought. Kuno-chan told me that Kodachi wanted to see us
humiliated... but I didn't think she was making a lifetime project out of it.

Ranma reddened, but didn't say anything. "I'm going to help Akane get ready,"
he said. Nodoka nodded in approval and reached over to squeeze her son's arm
affectionately.

"Very well, then," Soun said. "Since it has been a long day for everyone, I
think perhaps the best thing for us all would be if you children got some
sleep." He set his cup of tea down and looked over at Hinako.

Nodoka got up, jabbing Genma surreptitiously when he failed to follow her. "I
agree with you. We will be retiring for the night." She looked over them all,
and then her eyes settled on Ranma. "Ranma, my son, would you come with me,
please? There are some things we need to discuss."

"What?" Ranma looked away from Akane and glanced at his mother. He quickly
got to his feet when she gave him an imperious nod that demanded obedience.
"Oh, right. See you in a bit, Akane."

Once the Saotomes left, the three Tendo sisters exchanged a glance. Then
Kasumi spoke. "Father, is there something we should talk about?"

"Eh?" Soun's face reddened and he glanced at Hinako. "Um, no, Kasumi, I think
I can manage."

Kasumi smiled. "Good night, father." She then turned to Hinako. "Welcome to
the family, Hinako-sensei." With that, she left the room, as calmly as she did
everything.

Nabiki glanced at Akane, then at the two red-faced adults. "Well, leave it to
Kasumi to cut to the heart of things. Goodnight, Daddy, Hinako-san." She left
the room, then stuck her head back in. "Oh, Hinako-san, I'll cut you my
special discount in the future." Then she scooted out.

That left Akane alone with the two adults. She looked between them, confused.
Then she looked closely at Hinako and Soun and tried to smile. After a moment,
she ran over and gave them both a big hug that threatened to break both their
ribs. She let go after a few gasps from them indicated their distress, and
then ran out of the room.

"Soun-chan, what's going to happen tomorrow?"

"I don't know, Hinako-chan. Tomorrow night, I might be serving dinner to the
Kunos."

"Don't think like that! I know things will work out!"

"You're right. The Anything Goes School will survive, no matter what."

Hinako stared at him. "I'm not talking about the School, Soun-chan."

Soun looked at her, puzzled. "But what else--?"

Hinako was suddenly pressed against his chest, her lips pressed against his.
His mind went into shock as a woman kissed him for the first time since his
wife had passed away. He was VERY conscious of her proximity, and then his
mind went blank.

Hinako sighed as Soun went limp in her arms. She eased him down on the table.
"Poor man," she said. Then, blue sparks filled the air and her body shrank
back down into a child's. She looked up at the man she loved with wide,
innocent eyes, and then snuggled next to him, laying her head down in his lap
to sleep.

*****

<Bap> <Bap> <Bap> <Bap> <Bap>

A hand reached out to grab Akane's wrist as she pulled her hand back to punch
the straw dummy again. She swiveled her head to glare into the eyes of her
husband.

"Akane." His voice was uncharacteristically calm. "There is such a thing as
being over-prepared. Just relax. Keep your mind open--"

"--and your body ready. I KNOW, Ranma." She blew out a breath and spoke
slightly more calmly. "I know." She gently twisted her hand out of his grip,
turned, and walked over to the pond. She had barely slept the night before and
spent the entire morning working out. She sat at the pond's edge and stared
into the depths. It was serene and tranquil. Akane tried to learn from it and
relax, to let out the nervous energy that filled her.

A koi jumped out of the water, flashed briefly in the late morning sun, then
fell back into the pond with a splash. Akane felt her eyes widen slightly as
she tried to understand its significance.

A rustle from the people standing on the porch told her that Kodachi had
arrived even before the laughter filled the yard. Akane gathered her thoughts
and focused them totally. She stood and turned, feeling each second stretched
out like a minute, noticing every little detail. The fallen leaves on the
grass, the sound of Kasumi's in-drawn breath, the faint smell of roses wafting
from Kodachi.

Kodachi was in her usual fighting costume, a leotard emblazoned with a rose.
Her smile was wide and predatory. She looked as if she was living out a moment
long fantasized about.

"Akane Saotome." Kodachi's voice still had echoes of maniacal laughter in it.
"Your family's loan is due. Time to pay."

Kodachi's words failed to break Akane's concentration. "Are you ready to
accept my challenge?"

"Yes." Kodachi's hands at her side clenched into fists. "Oh my, yes."

Akane nodded. "Then let's begin."

"Yes." This time the word was filled with vengeance, eagerness, and hate.
"Let us begin." Kodachi produced her ribbon and snapped it in Akane's
direction.

Akane reached up and grabbed the ribbon in one hand. It was so simple; she
wondered why she'd never done it before. She couldn't help a small smile.
"Nice try, Kuno."

Kodachi's eyes flashed. With a growl, she dropped the handle and leapt at
Akane. Akane released her end of the ribbon and jumped to meet her in mid-air.
Kodachi threw a punch; Akane tightened her abdominal muscles, absorbed the
punch, and struck Kodachi on the side of her head. Kodachi cried out and fell
to the ground. Akane landed lightly, waiting for Kodachi's next attack.

It was slow in coming, for Kodachi had difficulty regaining her feet. Their
eyes met, and they shared a complete understanding of what this fight meant to
each other. For various reasons, they had their entire lives wrapped up in the
outcome of this match, and no holds would be barred.

Kodachi took out some clubs and stalked towards Akane. Akane eagerly met her
advance.

*****

Ranma watched the battle unfold. It was unlike any he had seen before. There
was very little extraneous movement. Just attack, defend, retreat, regroup,
and attack again. Over and over the women replayed the same dance. Kodachi
wasn't taunting Akane, and Akane wasn't exploding with anger. An intensity
sucked the oxygen out of the air, making it hard for Ranma to breathe.

It was an indication of how important the battle was to each woman. Akane was
fighting for her home and family. Kodachi was fighting for vengeance and honor
- HER definition of honor, anyway. Both would not stop short of victory, and
neither would give anything less than their absolute best.

"This was a methodical, well-executed assault, showing the discipline and
maturity of a true martial artist." What Ranma had to have told to him by his
mother, both Akane and Kodachi seemed to understand implicitly. Ranma could
see no sign of the reckless teenagers he'd met years ago. These were adults
who knew exactly what was at stake and exactly what they'd do.

As Ranma watched, the battle's pace grew more and more frenetic. Something was
going to give, and soon. To Ranma's eyes, it would be Kodachi. Although
little was being given away by either combatant, Akane had been getting in more
blows, and Kodachi was beginning, ever so slightly, to wear down.

He felt someone walk up beside him. Ranma turned and blinked; Kuno stood with
his arms crossed, his visage stern as he looked out on the battle. There was
something in the way that he stood took Ranma aback. As if Kuno was...
PRESENT, in a way he'd never been before.

Kuno flicked a quick look at Ranma out of the corner of his eyes. "How fares
the battle?"

Ranma looked at the yard again. "Akane's winning."

No response. Ranma examined Kuno, and could find no hint of approval or
disapproval. Kuno opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it
again.

Ranma resumed watching the match, unsettled. People were acting so strangely,
and it was a little terrifying. He almost missed the days of Kodachi laughing
and throwing roses, Akane jumping to conclusions and pounding him, Kuno
spouting poetry and wielding his bokken. At least Ranma could count on those
same reactions, over and over again. There was something comforting in waking
up every morning and KNOWING for a fact that he'd get inadvertently splashed by
water before the day was through.

With an incoherent cry of rage, Kodachi began attacking Akane with a blur of
clubs. Akane flipped backwards in an unusually coordinated movement. She
landed, and a red glow appeared around her. Before Kodachi could move, Akane
cried out "HONOU NO EIKYUUNI SHINANAI TORI KOUGEKI!" The red glow around her
took the shape of a phoenix. It rose above her, paused while Kodachi gaped at
it, then tore into her. Kodachi went flying in spray of chi energy and clubs.
She flew across the yard and hit the wall, hard.

Ranma leapt off the porch. He landed in front of Akane, paused a second to see
that, although her shoulders slumped for a second, she was otherwise fine, then
ran towards Kodachi.

She was a mess. She lay in a heap at the foot of the wall, parts of her
leotard torn and burned, her skin red and bruised. Ranma reached out and
gently lay her on her back, examining her body for signs of broken bones or
internal bleeding. She seemed to have avoided serious injury.

"R-Ranma-sama..." Her voice was soft and weak. Ranma looked at her face, to
see tears running from her eyes.

He leaned down so that his head was just over hers. "Yes, Kodachi?"

She smiled wanly and reached up to caress his cheek. "The battle... is not...
yet... over."

Ranma had perhaps a second to respond to that before he felt a pinprick on his
cheek. Realization dawned in him at the same time Kodachi's smile turned
malicious.

Then blackness claimed him.

*****

Akane felt time slow to a crawl as Ranma fell limply beside Kodachi. He
dropped like a puppet's whose strings had been cut, but ever so slowly to her
distorted sense of time. When he reached the ground, he lay very still.

Kodachi rolled to her feet and grinned malevolently. "Now, shall we continue,
Akane Saotome?"

"What did you do?" Akane asked. Her question was quiet, almost calm, but the
atmosphere suddenly grew very tense. The tension rolled outward from her,
stilling the air and filling the observers with a crackling feeling, like
static electricity on a cold day. Only Kodachi was unaffected.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! It does not matter, does it? You have a match of honor
to fight!"

Akane's red aura flared again, brighter than before. The strange light plunged
her face into shadow, her features unreadable. Her voice, however, conveyed
all the emotion that was needed. It was low, growling, and stalked like a
beast of prey, slinking out toward Kodachi and then pouncing. "WHAT... DID..
YOU... DO?"

"A simple poison, but oh so quick. It will run its course long before he could
get to a hospital. But you'd have to forfeit the fight to do that, wouldn't
you? I'll make it easy on you. Surrender and I'll give him the antidote."

Akane stood still. Then she spoke. "I can't believe you. All your talk of
honor, of family, and you stoop to this?"

Kodachi spat at Akane's feet. "Honor? Honor is an excuse people give for
their weaknesses, when they refuse to do what ever is necessary to win. Now,
will YOU do what is necessary?"

Akane's aura now snapped and flared like a bonfire. tendrils of it flung out,
like a living thing, searching, questing for its prey. "I could beat the
antidote out of you."

"It would be too late for it, then."

Akane walked over to Ranma. Each step felt like she was mired in concrete.
She didn't want to look at his limp form. She wanted to lash out, flay Kodachi
with the power she felt filling her form. It was like during her visit to that
strange world Sato had showed them. Then, the power had come by instinct.
Now, it slunk around her like a pet, ready to respond to her anger, to smash
down her enemies. Kodachi hovered in front of her, a dark blob in her vision.
An evil smudge to be scoured away, like that stuff left on her pots from her
last major cooking attempt.

Cooking. Ranma always ate her cooking. Even when it was so bad that the smell
caused paint to peel.

The power flickered, guttering out as she lost her anger. Frantically, she
reached for it, but then recoiled as she felt what it really felt like. It was
not warm, like the power she had released on the evil spirit. It was fire,
burning, raging, destructive.

Akane screamed and threw that power away. Running to Ranma, she held him in
her arms, crying out his name. "Ranma! Ranma! Don't die! Please don't die!"

Kodachi laughed. "So, you yield?"

Akane looked up, tears glittering in her eyes. The anger rose again, choking
her. Behind it lurked the power, she knew. She did not know what she had
summoned up in her fight, but she could not use it. Somehow, she realized that
its price was far higher than anything she was willing to pay.

"Kodachi... I--"

"HOLD!"

Kodachi and Akane turned to face an angry Tatewaki Kuno. He pointed his bokken
at Kodachi. "Sister, stop this treachery!"

Kodachi's face twisted from a malevolent smile to a hate-filled mask. "This is
NO concern of yours, Brother DEAR."

Kuno spared his sister no more attention and went over to examine Ranma. He
noted Ranma's color, pulse, and even examined his pupils. "Sister, have you no
sense of honor at all?"

"YOU should have the sense to stay OUT of my affairs!"

"Saotome Akane," Kuno said, ignoring his sister, "you have nothing to fear. I
recognize the poison's effects. It is not fatal."

Akane turned toward the crazed gymnast. "You LIED?"

"I told you the absolute truth. Is it MY fault you misunderstood?" Kodachi
laughed, long and hard. "It matters little. You left the fight. I WIN!"

"No, you don't."

All eyes turned to the speaker. Nabiki stood there, holding a sheaf of papers
in her hand and smiling a grin that would not have looked out of place on a cat
with an alibi for when the canary disappeared.

"Have a care, Nabiki Tendo. I--"

"--can do nothing, Kodachi. Kuno-chan showed me the family books. You know,
isn't it an amazing coincidence that the amount of money you used to buy up our
loan is exactly the same as an amount you... borrowed from his accounts?"

"What do you speak of, Nabiki Tendo?" Kuno asked, surprised.

Nabiki sighed. "Later, Kuno-chan. Just accept it. YOU own the loan, not
Kodachi. She used your money and name with your accountants."

Kuno stood. "Then I give it to you, in payment for the harm my family hath
caused yours."

"NO! THEY ARE MINE!" Kodachi screamed, leaping at Kuno. She was stopped only
by a restraining hand on her shoulder. Looking back, she beheld a smiling
Akane.

"Kodachi... SHUT UP!" her fist connected with Kodachi's chin, sending the
psychotic Kuno to slumberland.

As the black-clad gymnast fell, Ranma groaned, as if a spell were lifted.
Akane quickly knelt by his side. Everyone else looked around in confusion.

"Everything happened so fast... did we win?" Soun asked.

Genma slapped him on his back. "Was there ever any doubt? Hahahah!"

"Husband," Nodoka said warningly.

<Splash!>

Nodoka sighed.

*****

Tatewaki Kuno felt good. For the first time in a long time.

He'd done it. He'd confronted his sister, and survived. Kodachi had been
forced to give way before his righteousness. And, what's more, for once the
crowd gathered around him had been on HIS side. They'd appreciated his help,
even that cur Ranma. And... perhaps Ranma wasn't so bad.

Perhaps having the approval of the Tendo/Saotome clan wasn't so bad, either.
Certainly theirs was a more tight-knit family than his was. Perhaps being a
part of this family wouldn't be so bad.

He looked around and found her, standing by herself next to the pool, staring
down into its depths, her arm still in a sling. With a familiar surge of
self-confidence and an unfamiliar feeling of certain success, he walked regally
up to her.

Nabiki didn't look up at him. She continued to stare at the water, her face a
stony mask.

Kuno fought off a sudden apprehension. "Tendo Nabiki. Thank you for your aid.
I was grateful for the information you provided about my sister."

Nabiki nodded sharply, once. She remained unmoving otherwise.

Something was wrong. In a sudden rush, words spilled off his lips.
"There's... I know of a fine eating establishment not far from here. I... it
would be my greatest honor if you would accompany me there."

Nabiki didn't react. Kuno had to watch her blink in order to be convinced she
was alive. He drew another breath. "If... if it would please you."

Nabiki opened her mouth and spoke using as little breath as possible. "Not a
chance, Kuno-chan."

His jaw dropped open for a moment. "But... I, I thought that maybe..."

She turned her head and looked into his eyes. Kuno blanched at her furious
stare. "You thought what?"

"That... that maybe we--"

"There is no 'we', Kuno-chan." Her voice was low and angry, as if she was on
the verge of shouting and was barely keeping it in. "There never will be a
'we'. Get that stupid notion out of your head right now."

"But..." Kuno couldn't believe what he was hearing. Very much didn't want
what he was hearing to be real. "You... it seemed like you were..." He
couldn't finish.

Nabiki looked down. "Maybe I was. Maybe for a moment." She lifted her gaze
back up. "That was before the fight today. Before I saw your sister. Did you
see how insane she was? How much she enjoyed torturing my sister?"

Nabiki's voice rose a decibel. "Do you know why her bluff worked? Because
everyone -- including me -- thought that she was perfectly capable of killing
Ranma. It's all games with her, games backed by incapacitating and possibly
lethal drugs, traps, and animals."

"But--"

"AND SHE'S YOUR SISTER!" Nabiki paused a moment while the shout echoed off the
walls. "She's your family, your flesh and blood. I've seen you, Kuno-SAN.
You don't act quite like her, but close enough to scare the hell out of me.
You're blind and obsessive and you've got the potential for madness in you,
same as what's in your sister and father."

Nabiki swallowed. "I want no part of it, not now, not ever. The sooner that
all Kunos are out of my life, the more secure I'll feel."

Kuno tried to put moisture into his mouth. "Nabiki, I-"

She cut him off. "What that means, Kuno-chan, is: thank you for the help, and
get out. Now."

Kuno looked at Nabiki's stone face and cold eyes and found nothing to say. He
turned and walked regally away. The further he got from Nabiki, the more his
chest squeezed, until he could barely stand the pain.

A single tear fell from his eye. He wiped it away and made sure his mask was
in place. He WAS a Kuno, after all, and he had to maintain the proper
appearance to the outside world. No matter what it cost him.

*****

Nabiki slumped down on her bed. Her hands were shaking as she buried her face
in her hands. There, all alone, where no one could see her, Nabiki Tendo
cried.

===============================================================================
finis.
===============================================================================

There's a dark cloud ahead +---------------------------------------+
A place we can't see | Writers: ............. Jeff Hosmer |
We don't know what tomorrow holds | .......... Richard Lawson |
But believe you me | ............... David Tai |
| ........... Paul Gallegos |
Take it one day at a time | ....... John Walter Biles |
Don't try to hide +---------------------------------------+
Take the reins of your life | Artist: .......... Jong Man Hwang |
Make a choice - gotta decide 'cause +---------------------------------------+
| DnR Companion: Mike "Nelson" Gulick |
You get one chance +---------------------------------------+
One chance to get it right | Special Thanks to: ............ J., |
That's what I was told | Tucson Animation Screening Society, |
But after all this time | and of course Rumiko Takahashi |
I'm living my life +---------------------------------------+
And now I know | Copyright (c) 1998 |
There's always a second chance | Digital Knight Communications |
Take it one day at a time +---------------------------------------+

===============================================================================
"Ranma 1/2" and its characters Copyright (c) 1998
Viz Communications, Inc., Shogakukan, Kitty Animation
and Rumiko Takahashi
===============================================================================