[ranma][fanfic] The Right Side of the Ledger

[Richard Lawson]

A Ranma 1/2 fanfic, focusing on (guess who) Nabiki.
The Right Side of the Ledger

By Richard Lawson

Comments and criticism welcome!
ste...@sprynet.com

The huntress waited for her prey. Although not in sight, she could almost
smell him. The prey knew she was stalking him, and would try to escape. A
few had tried before. None had yet succeeded.

She saw him scamper to the top of the wall. The prey blanched at the sight
of the ten foot drop. Feh, the huntress thought. She had stalked prey who
would leap over that wall without thinking twice. This prey was definitely
weak, in more ways than one. It didn't diminish her pleasure in the hunt.

As she watched from the shadows of the alley, her prey swung his feet over,
hung from his hands at the top of the wall, and let himself drop. He landed
ungracefully but managed to keep his balance; a small victory. Quickly, he
glanced around and headed down the street.

The huntress knew where he was going. She scampered down the alley, across
a couple of lawns, and through a garden gate, not even acknowledging the
old man tending it. He couldn't touch her; no one could.

She stood in plain sight under a tree, waiting. As she had hoped, the prey
was so busy looking over his shoulder that he wasn't really watching where
he was going. She waited until he drew even with her, then pounced.

"My, my, finally decided to slink out of school, did we, Akihito?" Her tone
was light, almost playful, but with a definite menace.

The prey jumped, and his eyes widened in fear. "Na... Nabiki!"

She shook her head sadly and tsked, her eyes never leaving his. "Did you
think you could escape me? Come, you should know me better than that." She
bore her "evil eye" into him, an expression of superiority and contempt
that she had practiced and applied for years. Properly used, the subject
could do no more than gibber in fear. "Where is the 10,000 yen you owe me,
Akihito?"

To her immense satisfaction, he start gibberring. "I... I... I was g-going
to t-t-talk with you before, I mean after, after school. I g-got held up
b-by Miss Hin-Hinako a-and I was g-g-going to call you after I got
h-home...." He trailed off miserably.

"Uh huh." She intensified the evil eye to let him know she wasn't fooled.
He gasped and took a step back, a reaction she had never gotten before.
It made her feel warm inside.

Finally, she relented. She glanced down into the pocket of her school uniform
and pulled out her ledger. She flipped through several pages and ran her
finger down a list of numbers for effect; she already knew what they said.
"I let you borrow 7,500 yen at 10% interest for two weeks, that interest to
increase one percantage point for each day beyond that time, up to a maximum
of 10,000 yen, at which point the full amount must be paid or substantial
penalties would apply." She looked up at him, a glint in her eyes. "Trust me,
you don't want to know what those penalties are."

He looked very ready to faint. "R-Ranma?"

She pretended to think it over. Having one of the most powerful martial
artists on the planet as a houseguest and future in-law had some advantages,
one of which was the fear he instilled in those who were in awe of his
powers. With seeming reluctance, she shook her head. "No, how would I get
my money from you if you were lying in a broken heap three districts away?"
Akihito flinched. She grinned and continued. "However, wouldn't your mother
be pleased to know you borrowed 7,500 yen to buy that Nintendo game she had
forbidden you to play?"

At this, his jaw dropped open. "How... how...?"

She reached over and patted his cheek. "Akihito-kun, you should learn that
there is - nothing - you - can - hide - from - me." Especially, she thought
to herself, when your sister is my classmate. "So... where's my money?"

He thrust his hands into his pockets and came out with a 1,000 yen bill. He
thrust it at her. "H-here."

She looked at it with disdain, refusing to take it. "That doesn't even cover
today's interest."

"It's all I have!" There was desperation in his voice. "P-please, I'll give
you the rest tomorrow!"

She shook her head slowly. "That was not our arrangement."

"O-okay... 12,000 yen! Tomorrow!" He was frantic now, his eyes wild.

She rested her forefinger alongside her cheek, tilted her head, and made a
great show of considering his offer. She enjoyed watching him sweat out of
the corner of her eye.

When a minute had passed and she had said nothing, he blurted "15,000! After
school tomorrow!"

She smiled, took out her pencil, and made a mark in her ledger. "Right,
15,000. Plus this," she said as she snatched the bill from his slowly
falling hand. "Don't try any more of these childish escape maneuvers, or
I'll let Ranma know about the pictures you bought of him a few weeks back."

He actually let out a little sob. Slowly, he backed away, as if afraid to
leave without her express permission. When it became clear she was going to
let him go, he turned and ran down the street.

The thrill of the hunt accomplished filled Nabiki. She had pummelled him
nearly into unconsciousness, without ever laying a finger on him. Ranma
could never do that, she thought with tremendous satisfaction.

She walked home, still full of her victory. Her technique had been flawless;
the thought of not paying her the money he owed would not occur to him again.
A few other students had tried similar ploys, and had been punished
appropriately, until the word had gotten around that Nabiki was not one to
be crossed. Some, though, still needed to learn the hard way.

She slipped off her shoes as she entered the house. Hearing the rest of the
family in the dining room, she padded down the hall and joined them.

Kasumi had just sat down after placing the dinner dishes on the table. She
looked over at Nabiki. "We were worried about you Nabiki-chan. I'm so glad
you made it home in time for dinner. Did you wash your hands?"

Nabiki glowered at her. Sometimes Kasumi carried the mothering thing a bit
too far. Still, the smile and slightly vacuous expression on Kasumi's face
took the sting out of her words. Grumbling, Nabiki went into the kitchen,
washed her hands, and rejoined the table.

"Nabiki, why were you late?" Father had a stern look on his face. "Your
sister works so hard to make you a delicious dinner, the least you can do
is to be home in time to enjoy it."

Nabiki bit back a growl. She had just completed a successful hunt; the last
thing she needed was grief from her family. She could deal with her father,
though. Nabiki knew that his stern look was all bluff; Father had no backbone
at all. All she had to do was to put the slightest bit of irritation into her
tone. "I wasn't late, Daddy. I'm here now, eating. No need to yell at me."

As she predicted, his stern look fell off his face. "I... I was only trying
to...." He trailed off, looking vaguely hurt.

At least he's not crying, Nabiki thought to herself, satisfied with the
results. He could be such a baby sometimes. Akane was giving her a reproachful
look, which Nabiki chose to ignore. She concentrated on her dinner, which
*was* delicious. Kasumi certainly did know how to cook them.

After dinner Nabiki left Kasumi to the dishes, Ranma and Akane to their
fighting, and Father and Uncle to their game of shogi. She went upstairs
and turned on her computer. She waited while the blue clouds went by, then
started up her spreadsheet program. She scrolled through the list of
spreadsheets until she found the one marked "Debts to be Collected -
Personal". She opened it up, found Akihito's name, and began entering the
details of the day's business.

She went on to do her homework, balance the family books, and do some
aerobics to the sound of music pounding from her CD. Panting a little, she
flopped into her chair and opened up her spreadsheets again, just for fun.
She opened up the "Debts to be Collected - Family" spreadsheet and scrolled
through the names of the dojo students. Everyone was more or less up to date,
she was disappointed to note. Half the fun of the job was the collections.

She amused herself by using her abacus to confirm the computer's totals. Her
skills on her abacus were second to none in this day and age. Her fingers
flew effortlessly over the tokens, flipping them to and fro and confirming
that the computer had, indeed, gotten it right. She smiled; if there had
been a discrepancy, she would have begun by doubting the computer.

She leaned back in her chair, put her hands behind her head, and closed her
eyes. She was extremely gratified with the day's events. She replayed the
scene with Akihito in her mind over and over again, savoring his reactions,
his obvious fear of the power she held over him.

She smiled, exultant. She was Tendo Nabiki. No one could touch her.

"Nabiki-chan?"

Nabiki looked over her shoulder. A familiar figure was standing behind her.
She struggled to recall who it was. Pleasure washed over her when she
remembered. "Hi, Mother." She frowned; Mother didn't look right. Her face
was a little blurry, and she had her long hair tied in a pony tail and hung
over her shoulder. When had she grown all that hair? Nabiki couldn't remember.

"Nabiki, beloved, be warned."

Be warned about what? Nabiki looked back over at the spreadsheets, at the
wonderful job she had done with the finances. The family wasn't exactly
rolling in money, but they were a far sight better off than a few months ago,
when they didn't have the money to buy food. Nabiki had guided them through
that storm and was well prepared for another, should it arise.

"Are you sure about all of your spreadsheets, Nabiki-chan?"

Nabiki frowned, opening up the list again and scrolling through it. She
stopped about halfway down; there in the list was a spreadsheet she had
never seen before. It was called "NABIKI". The letters of the name seemed
to glow brighter than the other spreadsheet names. Hesitantly, Nabiki
double-clicked on her name.

The spreadsheet that opened up was simple enough. It had two columns. The
left had normal, black letters that somehow seemed darker than usual. The
right column had silvery letters.

Nabiki tried to focus on the column headings. The right seemed to say "Good
Things Nabiki Has Done". The left said "Bad Things Nabiki Has Done."

She concentrated on the entries under each heading. They seemed to be more
images than words. Under the right side, she could see herself working on the
family bills; sitting by Kasumi's side while she was sick; helping Ranma buy
Akane a Christmas present. On the left side she could see herself selling
pictures of Ranma; teasing Akane about her engagement; forcing Ranma to spend
time alone with Ukyo, Kodachi, and Shampoo while Nabiki collected fees from
them. The last entry on the left side was of Akihito sobbing as he ran.

Suddenly the entries of the spreadsheet changed. The black entries shaped
themselves into hulking, frightening, growling wolves. The silver entries
turned into little samurai carrying fearsome swords. The two sides attacked
each other across her monitor, each side fighting ferociously. The wolves
pounced and snapped and howled. The samurai fought valiantly and skillfully.

Unfortunately, it was soon apparent that the wolves outnumbered the samurai.
Although the samurai never gave up and dispatched a large number of the
wolves, they were eventually overwhelmed. The last samurai fell, still
hacking with his sword as a wolf consumed him.

The remaining wolves flowed together, forming one giant wolf. It turned to
stare with red, glowing eyes at Nabiki. Nabiki shook in her chair, trying
to get up but somehow unable to move. The wolf's face filled the screen,
its tongue hanging out over its long sharp teeth. It lifted its chin and
howled.

Terror filled Nabiki. She tried to reach over and shut off the computer,
but her hand wouldn't move.

The wolf seemed to sense her helplessness. She could feel its amusement over
her fear. It slowly came out of the screen, its body growing as it emerged.
Its huge front paws came down squarely on her chest, making it impossible
for her to breathe. It panted over her, its hot breath filling her nose and
mouth.

Nabiki wanted to scream, to run, to move, to close her eyes so she wouldn't
see the wolf laughing at her. All she could do was stare at the wolf as
terror filled her.

The wolf gave one final howl, this one so full of hate and triumph that
what remained of Nabiki's sanity fled. It bent and licked her neck, its
rough tongue scratching like sandpaper. With a growl, it opened its jaws
wide and clamped down on her neck. She could feel its teeth penetrating her;
she could feel her own blood filling her throat. It began to shake her like
a doll, and she could feel her flesh giving way. Tears of helpless fear
streamed down her face; feebly, she managed to raise one of her arms an inch.
The wolf laughed at her, somehow. In its eyes, she could see it promise that
the terror would never end; she would never die and never stop feeling its
teeth.

Nabiki screamed and fell out of her chair. She thrashed and cried but it
was no use; the wolf had her, would always have her. She screamed, her
scream full of denial and despair. Then she saw the woman with the long
pony tail, and the woman was trying to talk to her. Nabiki cried out
"Mother!" and hugged the woman tightly. The woman rocked her gently and
spoke soothing, comforting words. And the wolf was gone.

Rationality returned gradually to Nabiki. She slowed her sobbing and let
Kasumi continue to rock her while she considered what had happened. She
must have dozed off in front of the computer and had a dream. More than a
dream; the worst nightmare she had ever had. She must have screamed at the
end and Kasumi had heard and been there as she woke up. Thankfully.

She stopped Kasumi's rocking and slowly brought herself into a kneeling
position. She was sniffling uncontrollably, and found a box of tissue
thrust in front of her face. She looked up to see Akane looking scared
and worried, and that was somehow comforting. She took the tissue and
blew her nose and dried her tears. After a few moments she was relatively
clean and she gave Akane a weak smile.

Everyone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Nabiki looked around, aware for
the first time that the whole family was in her room. They all had expressions
of worry on their faces. Father looked almost as terrified as Nabiki had been
moments ago. She reached out, took his hand and gave it a little shake,
showing him a stronger smile to convince him that she was all right.

"What happened, Nabiki?" Ranma was wet, and Nabiki wondered what could have
caused Ranma to assume her current form. Any number of things, Nabiki knew,
Akane being the most likely source.

"I just had a bad dream." Nabiki's voice sounded much too tremulous for her
tastes, and she forced herself to continue in a stronger voice. "I'm okay,
it's over, everyone out of my room. Especially you, Ranma, you're dripping
all over my things."

At the return of her normal acerbity, the worry went out of most of their
faces. Father gave her hand a quick squeeze, more to reassure himself than
her, before he joined the others in shuffling out of her room.

All but Kasumi, who was still kneeling on the floor with Nabiki. The look of
worry was still on her face. That scared Nabiki a little; she hadn't realized
how much she depended on Kasumi's constant smile and seeming obliviousness.
Now there was no trace of either; rather, Kasumi looked sad and concerned.

"Nabiki, tell me. What happened?" There was a tone of command there that
Nabiki hadn't heard since her mother had died.

Nabiki adopted a tactic which had always worked with Mother, which was to
assume a sober expression and stare Kasumi in the eye. "It was just a bad
dream. It scared me and I screamed, but it's over and I'll be fine."

Slowly, reluctantly, Kasumi nodded and stood up. After a long, probing look
at Nabiki, she turned towards the door.

"Older sister," Nabiki blurted out. Kasumi turned her head back towards
Nabiki. "Thank you."

Kasumi's smile returned. Giving a slight bow of her head and shoulders,
Kasumi left the room.

Nabiki stood up, glad that Kasumi wouldn't see how much her legs were
shaking. She straightened the chair. Without looking at the computer, she
shut it off. Cross-linked files be damned; she just couldn't deal with it
right now.

Nabiki took off her clothes, put on her pajamas, turned out the lights, and
got into bed. After a few seconds, she reached over and turned on her desk
lamp.

It didn't help. Nabiki spent all night staring at the ceiling.

***

Nabiki sat under a tree, the lunch Kasumi had made resting by her side. It
didn't particularly interest her. Her normal lunchmates had fled her
presence after she made it pointedly clear how unwelcome their company
would be.

Her thoughts were a complete mess. She couldn't bring any order to them, and
that troubled her deeply. She didn't remember a thing that her teacher had
said that morning. She couldn't seem to recall what Kasumi had made her for
lunch, even though she had opened the tin a minute ago. She stared at the
statue of the prinicpal in front of her, its laughing face seeming to taunt
her. She watched it closely to see if it would grow fangs.

A shadow fell over her. Annoyed, she looked up, ready to bite someone's head
off. She was in no mood for any conversation.

Her annoyance grew when she saw it was Tatewaki, holding his bokken as
always. Yet, somehow, the scathing tirade she had prepared died on her lips.
She scowled at him; he looked down at her, bemused. That made her angrier.
"What do you want, Kuno?" she growled.

It didn't ruffle him. He could go from one emotional extreme to the next,
but it often took a lot for him to change. Most of the world seemed to flow
by him, and he chose what was significant and what was to be ignored. Nabiki
had always envied and admired that quality.

"I believe, Tendo Nabiki-san, that you were to obtain for me some more
pictures of my beloved pig-tail goddess?"

Damn, Nabiki thought, I forgot about the property taxes. Gotta pay that by
the end of the week. Yet, she couldn't bring herself to worry about it too
much. If necessary, she could cover the expense out of her own earnings,
and she wasn't particularly inclined to deal with Tatewaki right now.

"Sorry, Kuno, I don't have them. Lost them, sorry. I'll let you know when I
have more."

She could see the confusion on his face. The very concept of her losing
anything seemed alien to him. Her fault, she supposed, for building a
reputation for ruthless efficiency.

To her absolute shock and irritation, Tatewaki sat down beside her. He put
his bokken across his legs and sat facing her. "Something troubles you
deeply, Nabiki-san. Others have mentioned this also. If I can be of service,
please command me."

She regarded him skeptically. She tried to form the evil eye but it got
lost somewhere in his stern features and even expression.

She opened her mouth to 'command' him to go jump into the pool. "Kuno, have
you ever needed money?"

The words hung there and she couldn't take them back.

His expression remained even, but he took a while to answer. "Does it bother
you that I have so much to spend, while you have much less?"

"Yes!" The vehemence surprised her, but she rushed on before she could stop
herself. "Our family used to be well off. Not rich, but never wanting.
Father had a good practice and a steady income. Then Mother got sick, and
all our money disappeared. I took over the finances because Father couldn't
function and Kasumi had too much else to do. And I was good!" She grabbed
her ledger from her uniform and shook it at Tatewaki. "We survived even
though most of Father's students left. We had food and clothes, but not much
else. I scraped together what I could, and I soon found other ways to raise
money."

She stopped to wipe her sleeve across her eyes. "I discovered that I could
sell things. I could lend money to people and make them pay me more back.
I found out information that was embarrassing to people, and used that
knowledge to make them give me money. I found out what people desired, and
became a way of fulfilling that desire, at a cost."

She stopped, realizing what she had just said, wondering if he would be
offended. When he said nothing, when he did nothing but continue to look at
her, she went on.

"It... it became a fun thing to do. I was good at it, and was soon making
almost as much money as Father. Making money became the most important thing
in the world to me. More, though, I found that I enjoyed dealing with people
when I was making money. I enjoyed making them happy...." She trailed off,
unwilling to say the next part out loud. But she had to, she needed this out
of her. "I enjoyed making them afraid, too. I liked seeing them suffer
because they didn't have money. It was nice to see someone scrabbling for
money like our family always is."

She got up on her knees and leaned forward to look into his eyes. "Is that
wrong? Our family needs the money! We'd have lost the dojo and been living
in a small apartment if it weren't for me. We'd never have been able to
take in the Saotome's, and they might have bumped into Auntie Saotome too
soon and been forced to kill themselves." Tears were pouring from her eyes
now, but that was less important to her than getting an answer from
Tatewaki. "Is it wrong? If I made money for the family and kept Ranma and
his father alive, does it matter what methods I used to get the money?"

Tatewaki looked up from her eyes and stared at something off to the side.
Following his eyes, she saw that he was staring at the statue of the
principal. His father, Nabiki remembered with a start. It was still
difficult to accept that they were from the same family.

"My father was a businessman," Tatewaki said with an even tone, his words
less flowerly than usual. "A very good one. He spent all his time on the
business and made for the family a substantial sum of money. My sister and
I grew up never knowing him. Our mother was very unhappy and she took out
that unhappiness on us."

Tatewaki paused, the pain of some memory evident in his eyes. "It was almost
a relief when she... died. Father took time off from his business to take
care of the family. It was his duty." For the first time Nabiki could recall,
the word "duty" sounded like an epithet on his lips.

"He discovered a house full of strangers. We didn't know him and didn't want
to know him. My sister and I were barely civil to each other. She found her
solace in horticulture and raising dangerous animals." He grabbed his bokken
in one hand and gripped it tightly. "I found this... and the Bard." His hand
relaxed, and his tone took on a softer, almost wistful tone.

"Such and so finely bolted didst thou seem:
And thus thy fall hath left a kind of blot
To mark the full-fraught man and best indued
With some suspicion. I will weep for thee;
For this revolt of thine, methinks, is like
Another fall of man."

Nabiki drew a sharp breath. She reached out and rested her hand on his
forearm. Tatewaki glanced down at it, then looked back at his father's
statue and continued.

"My father could not handle the death of my mother and the uncaring of his
children. He provided for us, left us servants and money, quit his business,
and disappeared. It made little difference to Kodachi and I; we had gotten
along very well without him before. We preferred his absence to his presence.
He eventually returned and he... was different.

"The body's delicate: the tempest in my mind
Doth from my senses take all feeling else
Save what beats there. Filial ingratitude!
Is it not as this mouth should tear this hand
For lifting food to't? But I will punish home:
No, I will weep no more. In such a night
To shut me out! Pour on; I will endure.
In such a night as this! O Regan, Goneril!
Your old kind father, whose frank heart gave all,--
O, that way madness lies; let me shun that;
No more of that."

Tatewaki turned his head back to face Nabiki, and his eyes bored into hers.
"I would give all the money I had, Tendo Nabiki-san, to be in a family such
as yours."

The tears returned to Nabiki's eyes. She had lived all her life in a loving,
supportive family. To hear that others didn't know such love shocked her to
the core of her being. She had thought Tatewaki obsessive and Kodachi
deranged; she now saw that it was not so simple as that.

She looked down at the ledger, and a sudden loathing came over her. She got
up, anger filling her, and grabbed the ledger in both hands, preparing to
rip it in half.

With a single graceful movement, Tatewaki rose and gently put his bokken in
between her arms in such a manner that she couldn't complete her ripping
motion. "She that wants for money, means and content is without three good
friends. It is not the search for money, Nabiki-san, that condemns thee, but
rather the manner you use to obtain it.

"Though you and all the kings of Christendom
Are led so grossly by this meddling priest,
Dreading the curse that money may buy out;
And by the merit of vile gold, dross, dust,
Purchase corrupted pardon of a man,
Who in that sale sells pardon from himself,
Though you and all the rest so grossly led
This juggling witchcraft with revenue cherish,
Yet I alone, alone do me oppose."

Nabiki blinked and tried to work it out. Shakespeare was not her specialty.
Tatewaki saw the puzzlement on her face and smiled. "Do you make money,
Nabiki-san, because you feel a guilt that you believe money will assuage, or
do you make money so that others will not be wanting?"

She stood there, resisting the urge to give the easy, safe answer. She let
the feelings and thoughts troubling her soul roil about and show her the
truth. The answer finally came in a form she did not expect. "I love my
family."

Tatewaki extracted his bokken. "Then do not deprive them of your labors.
Instead, make certain the labors do not become a means unto themselves. She
who hunts to feed her family is a better person than she who hunts for the
pleasure of the kill."

Nabiki stared at her ledger, then slowly put it back into her uniform. She
looked over at Tatewaki, who for once didn't look either stern, superior,
obsessive, or angry; rather, he seemed pleased, relieved, and almost happy.

Very similar, Nabiki decided, to the way she was feeling right at this moment.

Nabiki sat down next to her lunch. All of a sudden, she was famished. She
took her chopsticks and lifted some sushi from her box. She paused and looked
up at Tatewaki. "C'mon, Kuno-baby, siddown."

He looked a little surprised at this, but sat down across from her. She
waggled the sushi in front of him. "You want some? Kasumi makes the best."

He looked around. "I did not bring my chopsticks, Nabiki-san."

She smiled. "Open."

He looked almost amused at her tone. He leaned forward and allowed her to
put the sushi in his mouth. He chewed and nodded his appreciation.

Nabiki took a bite herself. "Tomorrow," she said after swallowing, "I'll
ask Kasumi to make you a lunch as well. I'm sure she would love to."

Tatewaki looked over at her, a strange look on his face. "I would like that
very much, Tendo Nabiki-san."

They finished lunch together in comfortable silence.

***

Nabiki watched as Akihito looked nervously around the front of the school.
To his credit, he wasn't trying to escape her this time. She grimaced; she
had certainly scared him enough to make sure he wouldn't.

He saw her and approached with extreme trepidation. He reached a trembling
arm into his pocket and pulled out some bills. "I-I could only come up with
8,000 yen." He flinched, as if expecting she'd hit him. "Just g-give me a
little more time and I'll g-get the rest."

He looked so desparate and afraid; Nabiki wondered how she could ever have
found this fun. She ignored his handful of yen and reached into her pocket.
She held out a 1,000 yen bill towards him.

He looked at her, confused.

Nabiki snorted. "I had a computer glitch last night. My files were damaged;
I lost all records of your loan. All I had on the ledger was the 1,000 yen
you loaned me." She took his hand and pressed the 1,000 yen bill in with the
rest he was holding. "I always repay my debts."

Akihito stared at her, not daring to believe what he was hearing. "B-but I
borrowed 7,500 yen...."

Nabiki gave him the evil eye. "If you believe you owe me anything,
Akihito-kun, repay me by never disobeying your mother again as long
as you live in her house."

Slowly, a smile came over his face. He put the bills back in his pocket. He
walked backwards, bowing deeply. "Thank you very much, Nabiki-san. Yes,
certainly, I'll obey. I'm very sorry to have troubled you, Nabiki-san.
Thank you."

He was babbling. With a mischievous smile and a playful air, she shouted
"Get out of here! Go home!"

Akihito started, smiled, and ran off, slowing once to wave at her over his
shoulder.

Nabiki continued to smile after him. Now *this* felt good.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out her ledger. She opened it and
turned to a newly-created balance sheet towards the back.

With her pencil, she moved one entry from the left side to the right side.

Spying Akane and Ranma walking together in the distance, she ran to join
them on the way home.

Comments and criticism welcome!
ste...@sprynet.com