Brian Randall
23rd February 2006, 08:55 PM
Third time's a charm, eh? Hopefully the FFML is sated on all the fics
it's et up already....
Here we go:
Order to Go
Disclaimer: As always, the paints belong to Takahashi, I'm merely
borrowing them for my own easel.
Notes: This is a sequel to Time is Funny (I need a better title.
-_-), which you can find here:
http://www.florestica.com/brandall/oneshot/funny.htm
---------------------------
"Nice day," Hiroshi remarked, looking around the street.
Beside him, Daisuke nodded, hands stuck in his pockets. They both
walked with a relaxed, casual gait, enjoying the last few pleasant
days of spring before the heat came out in force. Ahead of them was
their destination, Okonomiyaki Ucchan's.
"So," Daisuke asked, breaking the silence, "do you think Ranma's
caught the panty-thief by now?"
"Most likely," Hiroshi said after a moment of brooding. "Bet you
fifty yen he's already gotten himself into some other mess, though."
Daisuke raised an eyebrow, glancing at his friend with a grin.
Before he could reply, both teenagers heard the shrill piercing laugh
that usually preceded one of Ranma's more ... enthusiastic suitors.
Both shuddered and glanced up as Ranma appeared at the edge of the
restaurant's roof, backpedaling frantically for a moment before
slipping off and landing before the entrance, narrowly missing the
curtain in front.
"Hold that thought," Daisuke said, his grin widening as the shrill
laugh drew nearer. Ranma blinked at the two boys in front of him and
opened his mouth to say something, but Daisuke simply grabbed his left
shoulder and walked forward. Hiroshi fell into step immediately
beside him and seized the other shoulder. Bemused, Ranma allowed the
two to push him through the door before Kodachi's arcing leap took her
above the street, where she would have spotted him.
"Ranma-sama!" she called, as Hiroshi released Ranma and closed the
door after Daisuke flipped the sign to 'closed'. "Don't hide from me,
I'm perfectly willing, and was merely surprised!"
The two teens shared a high-five, and then turned to the proprietor,
who had observed the entire exchange with an arched eyebrow and a
smirk. "Heya, Ukyou," Hiroshi said cheerfully, as Kodachi's pleas for
Ranma to come out faded into the distance. "Can I get two deluxes to
go?"
"Ah, I'll take two seafood combos," Daisuke contributed.
She snorted as Ranma ambled over to his seat and sat down. "I guess
it's on me," he sighed. "Forgot where I landed. What are you two up
to?"
"Gambling, mostly," Daisuke replied, his grin managing to deepen to
levels that would give Nabiki pause.
"Yutzes," Ukyou opined, but not without a quiet giggle. "On the
house. I'll consider it a delivery fee."
"What?" Ranma protested with mock indignation. "I'm worth a hefty tip, too!"
***
Hiroshi and Daisuke had fled out the back door with their okonomiyaki
in take-out boxes, claiming the need for subterfuge. Ukyou had no
doubts whatsoever that it was an excuse, but played along, deciding to
close the shop early to spend some time with Ranma and try not to
think about what the gambling duo were up to.
For his part, Ranma seemed perfectly content to lounge in his seat,
not moving towards either of the exits. After she'd brought in the
curtain, she frowned, seeing that Ranma had moved behind the grill and
was already in the process of cleaning it.
Shrugging, she put the curtain away and set about sweeping. Then
Ranma washed all the utensils that Ukyou had used.
She raised an eyebrow and asked, "What's up, Ranchan? You seem...."
She was about to say distracted, but that wasn't true. He had been,
if anything, very distracted lately, ever since that kiss some weeks
ago, which the entire school had witnessed. She knew that Akane was
upset, but mostly flustered by Ranma's sudden change in attitude,
seeming distracted and aloof. She'd only hit him once and then Ukyou
was under the impression that neither Akane nor Ranma had discussed it
again.
She certainly hadn't wanted to discuss that moment with Akane.
And now that attitude had gone, and Ranma was ... well, not quite
back to his old self, but she couldn't complain. The sooner the
chores were done, the more time they could spend together. But
distracted wasn't the word.
"I seem?" he asked, grinning.
"Well, I'm just having trouble putting it into words," she said,
shrugging. "You're a lot like that, Ranchan."
"I've just been thinking for a long while," he said, waving a hand
dismissively. "Have a seat, Ucchan, I've got a question for you."
She felt herself suddenly growing dizzy, and her face reddened. Was
that was it about? He'd said he wanted ... well ... her. Was this a
proposal? She sat down, beaming him a hopeful and nervous smile. He
grinned and hopped over the counter, sitting in the seat next to hers.
"Now, like I said," he warned, his smile lighting in his eyes, "I
been thinking about this for a long while. So I mean what I'm
asking."
"Okay," she managed tremulously, her voice quavering with nervous
energy when he didn't ask his question immediately.
"I was gonna ask in a week or two, but you know what happened today?"
"Er...." She furrowed her brow in thought briefly. "Something with Happosai?"
"Well, after that," he said, waving a hand. "Mousse decided to
attack me. Him and Ryouga teamed up with Tatewaki. Not on purpose,
it was really just timing. Kind of ironic; I look up from finishing
off the old pervert in a bath-house, the next thing I know, I got
those three goons bearing down on me screaming bloody murder." He
grimaced. "One splash of cold water later, I run into the women's
side. Perfect escape -- the women throw washbuckets at the thugs, I
make for the exit."
"That doesn't sound so bad," she reasoned.
"I hit the hot water on my way out, on accident," he remarked. "And
for whatever reason, Kodachi decided she was gonna take a bath there.
So I land on her, Tatewaki flips out, and all hell breaks loose. Next
thing I know, I'm running clear across the city, and Happi's laughing
out behind me calling the entire thing his revenge." His frown faded
to a bemused look. "Then I landed here. So ... why wait?"
"Why not?" Ukyou asked cautiously, now entirely clueless as to
wherever Ranma was trying to lead the conversation.
"So ... Ucchan? You wanna elope?"
***
Her reaction wasn't entirely what he'd expected, but he'd had a long
series of weeks to plan out possible scenarios. This one called for
him to be silent and watch her, which he found he was enjoying quite a
bit.
She had first blinked, and then looked incredulous. He couldn't help
but admire the way she showed her emotions; almost as plainly as he
was told he did himself. Openness and honesty....
And then she was delighted. Her eyes glowed with that same spark
that had ignited, however dimly, and then brightened, ever since he'd
called her cute. Devotion and a willingness to forgive....
And then furious. The reaction she had when she thought (however
briefly) that Akane had somehow seduced him during his training for
the Hiryuu Shouten Ha. Ah, he thought to himself. What a great
training trip.
"How the hell do you expect me to sell the shop by tonight?" she
growled. "You are so inconsiderate!"
"So, that's a 'yes,' then?" he drawled, still grinning.
She blinked in surprise and blushed. "Well, duh," she mumbled. "But
I was kind of expecting ... well ... any kind of warning at all!"
"Yeah, but don't worry, I'm not thinking we gotta do it tonight," he
said with a wink. "I was thinking maybe the end of the month. Is two
weeks enough for you?"
***
She stared at him, dumbfounded. "Yeah," she said, shaking her head.
"That's enough time." She paused, then, just staring at her fiancé,
and contemplating not the specifics of the plan, which he had yet to
reveal, but just the essence of it. "We're going to elope?" she
asked, not quite squeaking the question out.
"I sure hope so," he said, raising a hand to brush his fingertips
across her cheek. "So. You wanna hear the plan?"
"Yeah," she replied, nodding vigorously, while images of a tiny
cottage in some secluded village around Kyoto began to fill her head.
A tiny cottage with room for a few children, a nice kitchen....
"First, I'm going to try and figure out how to settle everything
honorably. Well, as honorably as I can," he said slowly. "So....
The way I see it, you're the first girl I was engaged to. And if you
aren't, well, Pop already took your dowry. The dojo's still there,
and it ain't got my name on it, so.... I figure I'm just going to
leave a note telling Tendo that I'm sorry."
"You're serious," she breathed, the enormity of the situation still
leaving her reeling.
"Oh," he said, nodding gravely. "Completely. I hate to do this ...
but I'm asking you to get me out of trouble with a few things, too.
Help me get a clean slate, so to speak."
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"'Fore we do this, I figure we should probably get everything
straight between us," he said, smiling softly. "See ... Saotome Ranma
has a lot of obligations, and like I told you a while back ... I'm
really not that keen on living his life anymore."
"What are you saying?" she wondered. "I mean, you can't mean all of
it if you're leaving with me."
"Well, I'm thinking. Your parents aren't around anymore, so it's
just you, right?"
She nodded.
"Even though she hasn't seen me or the old man in a couple years,
I've got both of mine. I don't see any reason why they can't just
have another kid or twenty to settle Pop's debts -- I'm hoping that I
can just cut to the chase, and keep my promises, and you'll save me
the rest."
"Wait," she said slowly. "Are you saying you want to take my family name?"
"You remember that little contract I signed with my mom?" Ranma
asked, grinning. "Guess which name is on it."
She could feel the grin coming to her own face. "Finally, I get to
rescue you," she murmured.
He snorted. "You've done a better job of managing to avoid trouble
than most people around this crazy town."
Her grin began to fade. "But, Ranchan, you're just going to ignore
your family honor?"
"Do I got a choice, really?" Ranma asked, shrugging. "When you get
right down to it, I don't think there's a way to get this done without
messin' up honor. We can argue about that all day -- I tried thinking
of ways to talk through it. But look at just what's between me and
you!
"So, it's Pop's fault that he accepted the engagement. That's the
family. It's my fault your dowry was stolen-" He broke off with a
frown and gave her a very intent look. "You gotta believe me, I don't
remember choosing okonomiyaki over you when I was a kid. An' that
will never happen again, I promise." Ukyou nodded at the seriousness
in Ranma's voice, and only then did he relax very slightly. "Anyway,
it's also my promise that said I would take care of you forever. Even
that alone ain't getting sorted out. So I broke it down to just the
stuff that's my problem."
"Well, that still leaves you with a lot of issues," Ukyou noted,
frowning. "If you just go by what you did ... you're still in hot
water over that Reversal Jewel incident."
Ranma grimaced, nodding. "And worse, too," he admitted. "But
Akane's said a bunch of times our engagement isn't valid, even if I
did tell the world she was my fiancée. So really, it's just you and
Shampoo that I owe." He hedged for a moment, and admitted, "Cologne's
not that bad. I finally just went and asked her. She told me there's
a way out -- that's part of what let me decide what I wanted, just
before I.... We...." He trailed off, blushing, and looked at the
grill. "Well, you know."
"Nope," Ukyou chirped. "Gonna need specifics, Ranchan!"
His blush deepened. "Before I decided," he said, raising his eyes to
meet hers, ducking his head slightly in bashful nervousness. It was
all she could do to restrain herself from grabbing him right there and
holding on forever. "Ever since before ... our kiss."
"How's that go?" she asked, feeling her face heat up.
He hesitated for a moment, and then they both moved, joining in a
tentative embrace and sharing another cautious kiss. When he broke
it, he pulled her into his lap, and she put her arms about him, unable
to hold back a cheerful giggle. "I love you, Ranchan," she whispered.
His blush intensified, and he tried not to stare at her. She prodded
his nose with a fingertip, and he flinched, admitting, "I love you
too, Ucchan. Or else I wouldn't be crazy enough to ask you to pull
this off with me."
She thought, briefly, of removing herself from his lap, taking his
hand, and seeing if she could get him all the way to her room before
he asked what she had in mind. She held that temptation in check;
this was the revelation of his plans, and there would be plenty of
time for.... Well.
He looked at her curiously. "You okay, Ucchan? You look like you're
about to catch on fire."
"Gah," she mumbled, covering her face with her hands. "I'm just so
happy!" She controlled herself by the simple process of sliding back
out of his lap and back onto the stool she had been using before. At
his disappointed expression, she said, "Time for that later tonight."
Then his eyes shot very wide, and his face darkened in embarrassment
fit to match what she had felt while being held in his arms.
"Well, um. I wasn't planning on getting started on that right away,"
Ranma managed, his voice cracking once or twice before he got the
entirety of the statement out. "But, Cologne said that married people
aren't subject to the Kiss of Marriage. Though, the only proof of
marriage they care about is ... erm ... havin' kids. I think she
knows what's up, too. I mean, I didn't tell her, but she's not that
dense. She mentioned that if I promised to help out her tribe in
times of need, she might be so busy training Shampoo that she can't
leave the Neko-Hanten for a few months. I think that's her way of
sayin' that if I behave, she'll give us some time to have kids and get
out of this."
Ukyou blinked, raising an eyebrow, and Ranma waved his hands in a
warding gesture.
"I wasn't even thinking about that until we'd had a few years
together, though," he said quickly.
"No cuddling until after marriage?" Ukyou pouted, causing Ranma to flinch.
He looked briefly puzzled, then shook his head, clarifying, "I mean,
if Shampoo can't find us, there's no problem. And if I take your
name, we should have plenty of time before she catches up with us. Um
.... maybe not tonight ... but there's no reason to wait for ... uh ...
some stuff."
"You certain?" Ukyou asked, smirking.
"Totally," Ranma said, nodding. "Anyway. I've got a plan, Ucchan.
Just like I said. There's a lot I haven't figured out yet, like ...
where we're going to go. Or what we're going to do. I figure I can
wait tables anywhere. If you open another restaurant, that'll work,
too. Mostly, I'm just focusing on getting us out of here."
Ukyou nodded contemplatively. "Have you thought," she asked slowly,
"about what this might do to your mother?"
Ranma's smile faded, and he stared at the floor for a long minute.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "I have. But.... I don't know if I can
handle a mother that can turn into an executioner if _I_ get splashed
with cold water," he admitted. "Remember, I want to leave this all
behind. I just want ... well ... me and you, Ucchan. Some day in the
future, once everyone's had a chance to explode and calm down.... But
I don't see a way out of this I really want to deal with. Except for
the one I'm hoping you'll still agree to with me."
She felt her face warm with the glow she was sure it was shedding,
and she stared at her feet, unable to find a word for the moment.
Ranma took one of her hands in his, and offered a reassuring squeeze.
"Are you going to tell her before we leave?" Ukyou asked hesitantly.
Her fiancé nodded slowly as she looked up from the floor. "I'm
leaving her a letter," he mumbled. "It's not perfect. It's even a
gamble, since she might not forgive me. But...." He sighed, and
looked at the grill, as though it might offer a suggestion.
"You're not.... If she decided that you're unmanly, you're not going
to abandon me again, are you?" Ukyou suddenly asked, a spike of
nervous fear shooting through her heart.
"No!" Ranma protested, shaking his head. "Of course not -- that's
part of me taking your name."
"Okay," Ukyou agreed, deciding to focus on more important aspects of
the proposed elopement. "So, then.... You're not twenty yet. How
are we going to be married without your parents' permission?"
"I only need Pop's," Ranma said reassuringly, pulling a sheet of
paper from his schoolbag. "He keeps a dozen of these around. I
spilled his sake on 'em, and when he started filling more out, grabbed
one before Tendo could put his name on it."
Ukyou looked at the marriage certificate in surprise. All she'd need
to do was sign her name twice, as she was her own legal guardian.
Ranma would need to sign it once, since Genma's signature was already
on it.
"Wow," she breathed, considering what the contract in front of her
meant. "Wait a minute," she said with sudden realization, "if you
used this, you'd be taking.... If this was for Akane, you'd be
becoming a Tendo?"
Ranma shrugged uncomfortably. "Yeah," he mumbled. "Don't get to
keep the name Pops trashed the honor of."
"Oh, Ranchan," Ukyou sighed, leaning forward and hugging her fiancé
again. "Two weeks.... I guess we need to be quiet about this whole
thing until we're out of town?"
He hugged her back tightly. "Yeah," he said. "I'm ... sorry I can't
plan a ceremony or anything, but I do my best planning on my feet, and
well.... That'll get me by, and out of here. But it won't really let
me do much else ... yet. I'm hoping once things settle down, that'll
change."
Ukyou snorted, releasing him from the hug, and staring him in the
eyes. "I get you," she said flatly. "That's everything I could ask
for. But once we're out of here, it's not what _you_ can manage, it's
what _we_ can do together. Right?" She smiled as he nodded.
And then he kissed her again, and she had a great deal of trouble
thinking clearly. He seemed to be affected the same way, and broke
the kiss after a moment, mumbling apologetically, "I ... should get
back to the Tendo place before anyone realizes that something's up."
Then he grinned. "I'm supposed to be out of town on a training trip
for the next two days," he whispered. "Tomorrow ... you want me to
come by, so we can talk?"
Ukyou was positive she was going to need medical attention for the
heat her face was putting out, and Ranma looked like he was just short
of bursting into flame himself, his skin matching his girl-side's
hair-color. But she managed to nod and squeak out, "Sure thing,
Ranchan!"
He smiled shakily and stood up. "I'll go out the back," he said.
"See you later, Ucchan."
***
Kasumi hummed happily to herself as Ranma returned from his
after-school activity. She'd asked him a few weeks ago what was
keeping him busy outside of class so often lately. He explained that
it was part of his 'Survival Club', though when Kasumi asked Akane if
she were going to be joining, the younger girl had only laughed.
Nabiki had said that there was no such club, and Kasumi hadn't
remembered one from when she had attended classes herself. She
assumed then that it wasn't a normal club at all, and was instead some
form of martial arts training that Ranma was working on with his
friends. "Are you still practicing your survival, Ranma-kun?" she
asked as he kicked off his shoes in the entryway. Ranma's friends
were so helpful to practice with him during all hours of the day.
"Yep! I'm almost done," he said, nodding. "I figure I'll be ready
for the ultimate move in a week or two. I'll be heading out on a
training trip tomorrow."
"That's nice!" she encouraged him. "Who will you be using your new
technique to fight?"
"Fight?" he asked, blankly. "Oh! Nah, no fighting. If I pull this
one off, I'll just win." He flashed her a bright smile and said,
"Anyway, I've got some homework to finish. I'll be in my room if
anyone needs me."
As he strode up the stairs, Nabiki opened the front door. "Hey,
Kasumi," she greeted, glancing around as she slipped out of her shoes.
"Anything exciting going on?"
"Not for a few weeks, it seems," Kasumi answered.
***
Alone in her room, Ukyou spent a few minutes staring at the papers
Ranma had left her with. She'd signed her name once already, but
paused before sealing the deal.
She knew that Ranma cared about her ever since that Christmas Eve.
She'd known that Ranma actually liked her since that kiss.... But
now, this, more than his words, told her that he really loved her.
Somehow, she simply hadn't expected things to turn out that nicely.
But they had, and best of all, she hadn't had to use scheming or
trickery to get what she wanted. She felt bad enough about the fake
tears when she had moved in with Ranma and the Tendo family briefly.
"I wonder what it'll be like living with Ranchan this time," she
mused, vowing to never use that trick on him again. "Better than
that!" she decided, smiling as she signed her name one last time.
Then she put the papers away in a drawer. Tomorrow, he could sign
it, and then they could take it to the city hall. Until then, she
surveyed her room, calculating what could be stored, what she would
take ... and how much she could get for selling her building with only
two weeks to arrange it.
She frowned slightly at that. Two weeks wasn't much time.... She
brightened immediately when she thought about who it was all for. And
he was certainly worth it.
***
After a slow day at school, thanks in no small part to Ranma's
absence, Ukyou hurried back to her restaurant, somewhat surprised to
see Tsubasa waiting for her. "You," she said in a slow drawl, seeing
the boy in merely a frilly dress, instead of disguising himself as the
sign at her entrance. "I thought you gave up!"
"Oh, I could never forget about you, Ukyou-sama!" Tsubasa chirped,
causing Ukyou to blink. That wasn't Tsubasa's voice ... and come to
think of it, that hair looked like a wig. And Tsubasa hadn't padded
his chest that much, not to mention he'd been the slightest bit
taller. In fact....
Biting down on her tongue to avoid laughing aloud, Ukyou instead
forced a pained sigh. "Let's go inside and talk this over in
private."
"Okay!" 'Tsubasa' cheered, drawing both hands together beneath his
chin and blinking cutely.
After Ukyou unlocked the door, both entered, and she closed it behind
her. "Ranchan?" Ukyou asked cautiously, sighing in relief when the
redhead pulled off her wig. "Nice!"
"Thanks," Ranma said, smirking.
"So, what about your training trip?" Ukyou asked. "Is that how
you're going to hide from everyone?" She couldn't help but snicker at
her fiancé's disguise, as effective as it might be.
"For today," Ranma said with a grin. "Now how much do 'I' owe you
for the damage to your place the last time through?"
Ukyou nodded slowly. "Well, I think you'll probably be working for
me for a day or two to pay it off," she replied.
"I think that works," Ranma said with a wink, putting her wig back
on. "You ready to open?"
"Almost," Ukyou decided, stepping closer to Ranma and inspecting the
disguise critically. "Here," she announced, giving her fiancé a peck
on the lips. "Tsubasa should look stunned when I tell 'him' that he's
working off some debt."
Ranma indeed looked appropriately shocked, but Ukyou opened the door
before she could form a protest beyond, "Aaaaah...."
***
After recovering from the kiss, Ranma tried to pretend to be Tsubasa.
It worked well enough, as no one who would actually recognize Tsubasa
showed up, so Ranma was able to simply wait on Ukyou's customers.
Thankfully, things were busy enough she didn't really need to think
about things until it was time to close.
Then, of course, Ukyou locked the door and grinned at Ranma, and she
felt the slightest bit worried. "Um, Ucchan?" she asked quietly.
Her grin faded, and she looked concerned. "Something wrong,
Ranchan?" she asked, peering at the smaller girl worriedly.
"Uh ... I just ... wasn't expecting you to kiss me when I was a
girl," Ranma mumbled, looking at the floor.
Ukyou waved a hand dismissively. "Your curse has never bothered me,
Ranchan," she said. "I know you're a guy on the inside. Now it's
late, and we were busy today. Why don't we clean up and then go to
sleep in my room?"
Ranma twitched slightly at that.
"Silly!" Ukyou chastised, swatting Ranma's shoulder playfully. "If
you're so worried about it, just sign that marriage contract, and we
can turn it in tomorrow."
Ranma felt her face blushing deeper red, but she nodded. "Okay," she
managed shakily.
"Until then, we can just both be girls. Then it won't bother you, right?"
"Yeah," Ranma said, relaxing. "Nothing can happen between two girls."
Ukyou snickered and shook her head. "Sure, Ranchan. Where's your
stuff, anyway?"
"On the roof," Ranma answered, her blush only just beginning to fade.
"Um, I should probably get it."
"Use the back door if you're still worried about the sneaky part,"
Ukyou warned, winking.
***
Another boring day at school, though Ukyou was hard-pressed to keep
her enthusiasm in check. This time, she knew, Ranma would be waiting
for her when she got back. And when she opened her restaurant, there
she was, sitting at the grill dressed as Tsubasa, writing a letter.
"You haven't finished those already?" Ukyou asked, closing the door behind her.
"Nah," Ranma said, shaking her head. "Didn't want anyone to find
'em, so I only had time to start writing today."
Nodding, Ukyou sat down next to her, just watching the other girl
write. After a minute or so, Ranma looked up curiously. "Something
wrong?"
"Nah. I'm just thinking about what we're going to do next."
"Well, there are other jobs I can do, too," Ranma said, shrugging as
she organized a small pile of loose papers into a tidy stack. "I
doubt I can cook nearly as well as you, but...." She shrugged again.
"I could do something, I'm sure. The point is, I won't just do
nothin'. This whole marriage thing is a partnership, right? You get
me out of Nerima, I stick with you for the rest of my life?"
"You don't need to worry about that!" Ukyou protested. "I can take
care of both of us!"
"That don't seem to be what I promised," the redhead countered with a
grin. "If we're gonna have a family, I ain't gonna be like Pops."
Nodding to herself, Ukyou allowed, "I think I understand. Okay, if
we both work, maybe...." She trailed off and smiled. "We'll be able
to buy a house faster that way."
"And the sooner we finish that, the sooner we can work on a dojo,"
Ranma said with a grin.
"We're going to need a lot of land to fit a house, an okonomiyaki-ya,
and a dojo," Ukyou mused. "That's not going to be cheap." The rest
of the evening was spent in rumination over the future they would
build together. Somehow, all of the problems that Ukyou knew lay
ahead seemed something to look forward to instead of an obstacle.
***
Ranma woke slowly, the unfamiliar yet comforting weight of Ukyou's
arm across her chest rousing her some time after the sun rose. The
room was about the same size as the one she usually shared with her
father, but the futon was much more comfortable ... and quite a bit
warmer, too.
Ukyou made a noise in her sleep, and then a face, and pulled Ranma
closer. The redhead blinked, not quite sure how to react until the
alarm clock began to buzz a moment later. Ukyou sat up like a shot,
dragging Ranma with her. "Whaza..." she mumbled, then looking at the
slightly smaller girl in her arms. "Oh, er...." She blushed, and let
Ranma go. "Hehe.... Sorry, Ranchan."
She turned the alarm off and stretched while Ranma yawned and climbed
to her feet. "Didn't you used to have two futons?" she asked her
fiancée suspiciously.
Ukyou nodded and smiled.
"So we could have each had our own bed last night?"
Smile widening, Ukyou nodded again. "Are you complaining?"
Ranma thought about that for a moment. "Not really," she admitted.
"Well, I was too tired last night, so let's go to the bath down the
street," Ukyou said, smiling.
Ranma shook her head. "I can't," she said apologetically. "You've
got school today, and I need to write some letters."
"You mean the letters you're planning on leaving behind when you
vanish aren't even finished yet?" Ukyou asked in surprise. "I thought
you had this covered!"
"Hey, the last thing I want is to have evidence that blows everything
away lying around," Ranma protested.
Ukyou blinked. "Point," she acquiesced. "Okay, then. Why not stay
here? You can hide in the shop while I'm closed."
Ranma nodded, and then on a sudden impulse, hugged Ukyou. The taller
girl hugged her back without reservation, and then gave her a brief
kiss. Then she made a face and said, "Time to brush my teeth."
Giggling, Ranma nodded her agreement. After the two had finished the
morning cleansing, Ukyou splashed Ranma with warm water from the sink,
and swept him into a much deeper kiss. "Bwah," he managed, once she
released him. "Wow. That's going to take a long time to get used
to."
"Good!" Ukyou said, blushing brightly. "Since you're still going to
be here, I'm going to shower instead of going to the bathhouse." He
fled from the bathroom, even though she hadn't said anything about him
leaving. After he got to her room, he quickly folded up the futon and
blankets before looking around.
His plan wasn't very complete, just dealing with the trickier issues
of escaping the life he'd let himself get trapped in. Ukyou's
additions rounded out the escape with a nice follow-up. His vague
ideas were given concrete foundations, and his hopes for a dojo had
become a promise that both of them would work together for it. Life
without a dojo was something he could deal with; adaptation was the
name of the game, and he did want to escape the insanity of Nerima.
But that didn't mean he wanted to forget about martial arts
completely.
While he was ruminating, he heard the squeal of pipes as water
pressure surged, and then a yelped curse before a quiet giggle. He
froze, listening intently, and was able to make out the sound of
running water and soft singing. Try as he might, he couldn't keep the
grin off his face at that. Heading down the stairs to the
restaurant's first floor, he quickly splashed herself and put on her
Tsubasa disguise.
A few minutes later Ukyou came down the stairs in her school uniform,
no longer singing, but humming to herself. "Ah!" she said, snapping
her fingers after she finished tying the ribbon in her hair. "Sign
this." She reached into a drawer and pulled out the marriage
contract, setting it and a pen before Ranma on the cold grill.
"Alright," Ranma agreed, taking up the pen and setting it to paper.
She hesitated, looking at the document, and rethinking what it all
meant.... And then she smiled and signed it anyway. "Hey, Ucchan.
Guess what?" Ranma said, handing the paper to her fiancée.
"What's that?" Ukyou asked, accepting the paper and glancing over it
to see that everything was in order.
"I think we just broke the law, since I was a girl when I signed it."
Ukyou snorted and rolled her eyes. "Just for that, you can file this
for me," she said, handing the paper back. "You owe me, 'Tsubasa.'"
"I will do as you command, my Ukyou-sama!" Ranma chirped in a falsely
higher voice. Then she winked and fled out the door, paper in hand.
***
After he'd come back from his training trip, he'd been chuckling to
himself and sporting a wide grin. Akane thought it was suspicious,
but he'd been so quiet and careful to watch his words that she wasn't
certain if she should be upset.
Maybe he was just in a good mood.
Clearing her throat loudly, she called his attention, and he broke
off mid-kata, turning to look at her from the center of the dojo. She
stepped in through the entrance and slid it shut behind her. "So,"
she began mildly, "how was your training trip?"
"Awesome," he replied, flashing that same grin at her again.
"Can you show me what you learned?"
His smile vanished instantly and he gave her a thoughtful look.
"Maybe. I'd like to, but.... Well, I've got the basics of my new
technique perfected. I need to work on the follow-through."
"What is it?" she pressed, frowning. For his smile to fade so
quickly, he must be hiding something.
"You remember how Pops created those two schools 'for living'?" he
asked with a smirk.
"Yes. But that was thievery. You're not...." She sighed. "Will
you just tell me what it is you're up to?"
"It's a surprise," he assured her. "Just give me ... oh ... two
weeks. Then you'll see."
"Will I?" she asked skeptically.
His voice was full of conviction when he replied, "I'll make sure of it."
***
Hiroshi glanced at the trees as a passing breeze rattled their
branches. "Something's up," he said. "You can smell it in the air."
Nodding thoughtfully, Daisuke flipped a fifty-yen coin into the air.
"What's good?"
"Heads!"
Snatching the coin out of the air, Daisuke slapped it onto the back
of his left hand, covered with his right. "Uh-oh," he murmured,
separating his hands and showing that the coin had caught between two
fingers.
"Mixed blessing." Hiroshi contemplated, and then decided, "That
coin's destined to end up in a pachinko parlor. Might as well help it
along."
"And then?"
"Look for the fight."
"What fight?"
"This is Furinkan, Dai, there's always a fight. And if there isn't,
we'll ask Ranma why not and he'll fix it."
Daisuke nodded. "I can't disagree with the truth of that statement.
Pachinko, then the fight. Onward!"
***
"Tomorrow," Ukyou murmured to herself. She'd let the stocks for her
restaurant run low in preparation of abandoning it, but had tried her
best to leave no obvious signs that she wouldn't be there shortly.
Her room was neatly packed, but no customer would see that.
Ranma straggled in through the entry, yawning. "Heya, Ucchan," he
called in greeting.
"Ranchan!" she replied, a quick glance showing the coast was clear.
"Ooh, you got something on you."
He froze before the grill and looked down at his clothing in dismay.
"I do? Where?"
"Here," she said, stepping around the counter and brushing at his
cheek with her fingertips. He waited patiently until she planted a
swift kiss on his lips. Then he fell backwards, blinking in surprise.
She released a giggle, which died in her throat as she saw Daisuke
and Hiroshi in the doorway.
"Oh, no," Ranma said, turning around to look at the pair.
"Well, this situation seems to have a clear two-point response plan,"
Hiroshi said, though his eyes were wider than usual.
"Agreed," Daisuke added, his eyes equally wide. "First of all: Dude!
You told us you didn't get it on with your girls!"
"I don't!" Ranma protested. "It's just.... Er.... I'm really in
trouble, aren't I?"
"Which brings us to point two," Hiroshi said with a smirk, turning
his gaze to Ukyou. "Which is ... free okonomiyaki for life!"
"Me and my impulses," Ukyou sighed. She stamped one foot irritably
and grumbled, "I should have closed the door!"
"You won't tell anyone, will you?" Ranma asked.
"Nah," Daisuke said with a shake of his head. "Well, I won't, anyway."
Hiroshi looked mildly affronted. "I won't either!" he protested.
"Probably. On an entirely unrelated note, recent studies show that
seafood okonomiyaki is highly successful at quashing rumors."
Snorting, Ukyou shook her head and began pouring batter. "So, were
you just stopping by for the food?"
"Well, if you must know," Daisuke said with a sigh, "we're here
looking for a fight."
Ranma raised an eyebrow and cracked his knuckles menacingly.
"Not for us," Hiroshi added quickly. "And not against either of you.
It's just that the fights seem to follow you, and my gambling-senses
tell me that the big bet is coming up."
"So, what, you think you're going to hang around and I'll start
fightin' someone?" Ranma asked doubtfully.
"In fewer words: Yes!"
Ukyou sighed. "You know, you two-"
"Could really help me out," Ranma interjected with a grin. "As it
turns out, there is a big mix-up planned for tomorrow. You two could
pass messages to some people for me ... that'd give you a front-row
seat."
"Not something I'm sure I want," Hiroshi said slowly.
"But something we can do for our friend, whom we owe," Daisuke said
pointedly, kicking his classmate's shin. "Especially since we really
do want that front-row seat. Will there be seating? I know there's
usually Chinese food or okonomiyaki, but seating isn't a given."
"Furinkan's field," Ranma replied absently. "No special seating."
"Aw, man.... Will you use your girl-body and mud-wrestle someone?"
"I think it's time for you two to be on your way," Ukyou said primly,
serving the okonomiyaki directly into take-out containers and handing
them over. "Now, take care of yourselves."
The two boys chuckled good-naturedly and accepted their boxes,
quickly dashing out of sight.
"Are we busted?" she asked Ranma worriedly.
"Coulda been," he said thoughtfully. "But they'll keep their word
'til at least tomorrow."
***
Shampoo balanced precariously on a bamboo pole, though the end was
only resting flat on the ground, not planted or otherwise anchored.
"How much longer am I going to do this?" she asked, her arms rising
from her sides briefly to adjust as a low breeze picked up.
"Until you learn it," Cologne answered, peering upwards. "You think
this is just for show?" She hopped up to balance on her staff and
snorted. "You'll learn the value sooner or later, so why not get it
taken care of now?"
Shampoo sighed, nodding absently and then shifting her footing to
rest on a single toe.
"Good," Cologne murmured, hopping to the ground and scurrying through
the alley to the side of the Neko-Hanten, halting just before Ranma.
The boy had been about to enter the restaurant and blinked at her in
surprise. "Ah, I was wondering when you would show up."
"Er.... Yeah," the boy mumbled, scratching the back of his head
nervously. "Um, listen ... I wanted to talk to you about-"
"I'm not an idiot," she replied, cutting him off. "I know you don't
plan on marrying Shampoo. I know you'll eventually find a way to try
and do the honorable thing, too. I feel sorry for that Kuonji girl,
once you marry Akane, but you're an easy read."
"Uh," he answered after a moment. "Yeah. That's it."
She rolled her eyes again. "Did you think it was going to be that simple?"
He shifted his shoulders and looked away. "I kinda ... kinda hoped
that, yeah."
"Hah," Cologne snorted. "I know what you're planning. You know what
I'll tell everyone else I thought. Now, how do you repay this and
your other debts?"
"I don't want to live in China, but you said if I promised to help
you out whenever ... if ... you know ... I had to," he said, shrugging
his shoulders and looking away. "But how can I do that without
Shampoo knowing where I am?"
"That's the catch," she replied with a grimace. "So tell me where
you go -- or I'll find you. I won't let Shampoo know where you are
.... but if you don't assist when summoned, I'll tell her. Behave, and
I'll convince her to want to be your friend by the time she catches up
with you and your okonomiyaki girl.
He sighed in relief, practically sagging in place. "Okay," he said.
"That sounds good. I.... I know I owe you for this...."
She raised an eyebrow.
Swallowing, he added, "And I know I owe Shampoo worse."
"Good," she answered. "Otherwise I'd have beaten you. Now run along
and leave a forwarding address when you leave. Shampoo hasn't
properly talked to you in weeks. Don't give her a chance to make this
more painful than you must."
"Gotcha. Thanks ... Cologne."
"You won't be thanking me when I call in those favors, Boy," she
warned. "You remember that much."
"We'll see," he said with a grin. "If I get enough out of life,
maybe I will thank you. Later!" With a cheerful wave he shot down
the street, swiftly vanishing from sight.
"Maybe he isn't as dense as I thought," the old woman mused thoughtfully.
***
"I honestly didn't think that Ranma would ever write this much,"
Hiroshi said to himself slowly, flipping through the stack of
envelopes in his hands.
Daisuke cocked his head to one side and considered before glancing
across the yard. "You're right. Now, we're not going to open the
things on point of beatdown, so let's parcel them out and see what
destruction Ranma has wrought."
Hiroshi raised an eyebrow and glanced sidelong at his friend. "That
word-a-day calendar is turning you into Kuno."
"Thusly have you named the first of our targets," Daisuke decided
with a grin. "Once more unto the breach!"
"Have I mentioned lately that I hate you?"
"Not as much as you will once we watch Kuno melt down from whatever's
inside this envelope. I bet you it's good."
"You're on -- five hundred yen for an explosion and a fight."
"Four to one in my favor, and I'll bet you're wrong."
"Done deal."
The two boys took a simultaneous breath and shared a decisive nod.
"Kuno! Saotome sent you a letter."
***
Akane set the letter down and glanced across the school yard. In the
ensuing panic that Ranma's ... unexpected departure ... had put the
students in, she had been overlooked. For the moment, she was glad
for that, as she didn't particularly feel like discussing it with the
regular gossips.
Nabiki drew near, a handful of papers clutched tightly in one fist.
Her expression was decidedly upset. "Akane," she said tightly,
nodding and coming to a halt. "So."
"So," Akane said back, picking up the pieces of paper and carefully
folding them back into their envelope. "It's a nice day out today.
Warm. Gentle breeze."
"Ah...." Nabiki shook her head. "Well, I can only guess what he
wrote to you, but my letter was somewhat less than flattering. Do you
want to talk about this at all?"
"Not really," Akane said with a shrug. "But if you'd like."
"If I'd like?" Nabiki asked, raising an eyebrow. "You know ... your
fiancé just.... Well, he ran off with another girl."
"Signed the letter with her name, too," Akane noted. "I think
really, if you want to talk about it, the worst part is that I'm just
not surprised."
"You...." Shaking her head quickly, Nabiki glanced around to make
sure no other students were in earshot. "Are you saying you expected
this?"
"Well, it seemed obvious to me," Akane said with a shrug. "He'd been
acting a little weird since Christmas, when he went to go see Ukyou.
I pretty much was waiting for it since he kissed her. I'm just glad
we can stop pretending now."
"Pretending? But Akane, Ranma.... He...." The elder sister paused,
considering for a moment. "I thought I could read people. But I got
him wrong, so I guess if you're really not bothered by this, I should
just ignore it. It's not like we're going to see him again, are we?"
"Oh, maybe," Akane murmured quietly, turning to look at the gathering
storm clouds on the horizon, the last sweeping rains before summer
claimed the calendar. Shrugging, she tossed the letter into a rubbish
bin. "Let's ditch school and get some ice cream."
Nabiki turned to watch Tatewaki come out of his letter-induced shock,
bellowing, "The vile Kuonji Ranma has absconded with the lovely
pigtailed goddess! I must away to Hokkaido in pursuit immediately!"
"Well," she murmured, "he threw up that distraction for you, at
least. Sure. I have a two-for-one coupon for sundaes."
***
"Kuonji!"
He jerked upright from where he had been dozing, sitting cross-legged
on one of the massive upright pylons on the pier, looking out across
the sea. "Yeah?" he asked, turning to look at a man in a clean blue
worker's uniform and hard-hat. "Sorry. Was just waiting for another
shipment. What's up, Boss?"
"Just wanted to say thanks for the good work," the foreman said,
smirking. "I keep tellin' you, we don't got any bonus, so don't work
yourself so hard. But thanks all the same, you know?"
"Oh," Ranma said, shaking his head and climbing down to the slats of
the dock's surface to stretch. "Well, a job's a job, and you gotta
take care of your family. In my mind, that's the test of being a real
man, ain't it?"
The foreman nodded, frowning slightly. "You work on the docks
because you want to be manly?"
Snorting, Ranma shook his head again. "I just want to work for my
family," he clarified. "My ... well, my mom had a thing about me
provin' my manliness. I maybe didn't do what she was expecting, but I
think...." He trailed off. "Ah, it's about time for lunch, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Ah, Ucchan said she'd come by."
"Oh! Will she bring-"
"She always does," Ranma laughed, walking sedately away from the
pier's end, towards the small office that the workers crowded around
to enjoy their meals. "She loves it when the guys come in for the
evenings."
"Oh, well, dinner's good, but I'm tellin' you, the boys are all there
'cause they got a thing for your sister."
Ranma snorted with another wry shake of his head. "Anyway, the
reason I mention that thing with my mother is that I'm thinkin' of
seeing her in a few months. Might need some time off."
"Ah," the foreman said, falling into step behind Ranma and nodding
wisely. "So that's what this is about. Well, how soon will this be?"
Another voice broke into the conversation. "Ranchan!"
Ranma grinned, throwing his arms wide and catching his wife in an
embrace as she charged from the crowd around her portable grill. He
spun around to throw off the excess force from the impact. "Careful,"
he admonished with a grin, setting her down gently.
"Humph," she sniffed, looking away. "I'm not made of glass, Ranchan.
I'm just pregnant."
The foreman missed his next step and went down in an untidy pile.
"Right," he said weakly from where he landed. "I'm guessing you'll
want some time for paternity leave?"
"Er ... yeah," he chuckled, scratching the back of his head nervously
with one hand, the other slipping to a comfortable position around his
wife's waist. It would probably be another month or two before she
started to show.
"Ah," the foreman sighed. "You know, for a couple that married so
young, you two sure seem to have things worked out pretty good."
"Thanks," Ranma said brightly. "We worked at it pretty hard."
"Ranchan got it started, really," Ukyou giggled.
"Well, until we got this far that's about all I could do," he
admitted. "But things are working out great!"
"Almost," the foreman agreed. "Say, if you two ever need privacy as
a young couple, don't be afraid to ask my wife to watch over the baby
for a while."
"Er.... Thanks," Ranma said, blushing slightly.
"And I'm sure that any of the other boys would be more than willing
to take care of your sister, if you know what I mean, Ranma."
"Oh...." Ukyou frowned. "Well, that's something to keep in mind,"
she said after a moment. Winking, she added, "But I think I can keep
her occupied on my own."
Ranma nodded, waving to the crowd of his coworkers as Ukyou returned
to the grill she'd briefly abandoned.
"Heh," the foreman chuckled. "Too bad your wife has an entirely
different idea of what it means to take care of a girl."
Ranma looked away, blushing intently, but remained carefully silent.
Sometimes, things really did work out in the end, he thought, smiling.
---------------------------
Author's notes:
--
Brian Randall
--
I write fanfiction. Too much of it. You can read it here, thanks to a
kind grant from the Larry F foundation:
http://www.florestica.com/brandall/
--
Together. Allegiance or death. BIGFIRE!
--
Haiku of my lament:
Forgive my spelling,
my U.S. education,
is the source of blame.
.---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----.
| Administrators - ffml-admins (AT) anifics (DOT) com |
| Unsubscribing - ffml-request (AT) anifics (DOT) com |
| Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject |
`---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'
it's et up already....
Here we go:
Order to Go
Disclaimer: As always, the paints belong to Takahashi, I'm merely
borrowing them for my own easel.
Notes: This is a sequel to Time is Funny (I need a better title.
-_-), which you can find here:
http://www.florestica.com/brandall/oneshot/funny.htm
---------------------------
"Nice day," Hiroshi remarked, looking around the street.
Beside him, Daisuke nodded, hands stuck in his pockets. They both
walked with a relaxed, casual gait, enjoying the last few pleasant
days of spring before the heat came out in force. Ahead of them was
their destination, Okonomiyaki Ucchan's.
"So," Daisuke asked, breaking the silence, "do you think Ranma's
caught the panty-thief by now?"
"Most likely," Hiroshi said after a moment of brooding. "Bet you
fifty yen he's already gotten himself into some other mess, though."
Daisuke raised an eyebrow, glancing at his friend with a grin.
Before he could reply, both teenagers heard the shrill piercing laugh
that usually preceded one of Ranma's more ... enthusiastic suitors.
Both shuddered and glanced up as Ranma appeared at the edge of the
restaurant's roof, backpedaling frantically for a moment before
slipping off and landing before the entrance, narrowly missing the
curtain in front.
"Hold that thought," Daisuke said, his grin widening as the shrill
laugh drew nearer. Ranma blinked at the two boys in front of him and
opened his mouth to say something, but Daisuke simply grabbed his left
shoulder and walked forward. Hiroshi fell into step immediately
beside him and seized the other shoulder. Bemused, Ranma allowed the
two to push him through the door before Kodachi's arcing leap took her
above the street, where she would have spotted him.
"Ranma-sama!" she called, as Hiroshi released Ranma and closed the
door after Daisuke flipped the sign to 'closed'. "Don't hide from me,
I'm perfectly willing, and was merely surprised!"
The two teens shared a high-five, and then turned to the proprietor,
who had observed the entire exchange with an arched eyebrow and a
smirk. "Heya, Ukyou," Hiroshi said cheerfully, as Kodachi's pleas for
Ranma to come out faded into the distance. "Can I get two deluxes to
go?"
"Ah, I'll take two seafood combos," Daisuke contributed.
She snorted as Ranma ambled over to his seat and sat down. "I guess
it's on me," he sighed. "Forgot where I landed. What are you two up
to?"
"Gambling, mostly," Daisuke replied, his grin managing to deepen to
levels that would give Nabiki pause.
"Yutzes," Ukyou opined, but not without a quiet giggle. "On the
house. I'll consider it a delivery fee."
"What?" Ranma protested with mock indignation. "I'm worth a hefty tip, too!"
***
Hiroshi and Daisuke had fled out the back door with their okonomiyaki
in take-out boxes, claiming the need for subterfuge. Ukyou had no
doubts whatsoever that it was an excuse, but played along, deciding to
close the shop early to spend some time with Ranma and try not to
think about what the gambling duo were up to.
For his part, Ranma seemed perfectly content to lounge in his seat,
not moving towards either of the exits. After she'd brought in the
curtain, she frowned, seeing that Ranma had moved behind the grill and
was already in the process of cleaning it.
Shrugging, she put the curtain away and set about sweeping. Then
Ranma washed all the utensils that Ukyou had used.
She raised an eyebrow and asked, "What's up, Ranchan? You seem...."
She was about to say distracted, but that wasn't true. He had been,
if anything, very distracted lately, ever since that kiss some weeks
ago, which the entire school had witnessed. She knew that Akane was
upset, but mostly flustered by Ranma's sudden change in attitude,
seeming distracted and aloof. She'd only hit him once and then Ukyou
was under the impression that neither Akane nor Ranma had discussed it
again.
She certainly hadn't wanted to discuss that moment with Akane.
And now that attitude had gone, and Ranma was ... well, not quite
back to his old self, but she couldn't complain. The sooner the
chores were done, the more time they could spend together. But
distracted wasn't the word.
"I seem?" he asked, grinning.
"Well, I'm just having trouble putting it into words," she said,
shrugging. "You're a lot like that, Ranchan."
"I've just been thinking for a long while," he said, waving a hand
dismissively. "Have a seat, Ucchan, I've got a question for you."
She felt herself suddenly growing dizzy, and her face reddened. Was
that was it about? He'd said he wanted ... well ... her. Was this a
proposal? She sat down, beaming him a hopeful and nervous smile. He
grinned and hopped over the counter, sitting in the seat next to hers.
"Now, like I said," he warned, his smile lighting in his eyes, "I
been thinking about this for a long while. So I mean what I'm
asking."
"Okay," she managed tremulously, her voice quavering with nervous
energy when he didn't ask his question immediately.
"I was gonna ask in a week or two, but you know what happened today?"
"Er...." She furrowed her brow in thought briefly. "Something with Happosai?"
"Well, after that," he said, waving a hand. "Mousse decided to
attack me. Him and Ryouga teamed up with Tatewaki. Not on purpose,
it was really just timing. Kind of ironic; I look up from finishing
off the old pervert in a bath-house, the next thing I know, I got
those three goons bearing down on me screaming bloody murder." He
grimaced. "One splash of cold water later, I run into the women's
side. Perfect escape -- the women throw washbuckets at the thugs, I
make for the exit."
"That doesn't sound so bad," she reasoned.
"I hit the hot water on my way out, on accident," he remarked. "And
for whatever reason, Kodachi decided she was gonna take a bath there.
So I land on her, Tatewaki flips out, and all hell breaks loose. Next
thing I know, I'm running clear across the city, and Happi's laughing
out behind me calling the entire thing his revenge." His frown faded
to a bemused look. "Then I landed here. So ... why wait?"
"Why not?" Ukyou asked cautiously, now entirely clueless as to
wherever Ranma was trying to lead the conversation.
"So ... Ucchan? You wanna elope?"
***
Her reaction wasn't entirely what he'd expected, but he'd had a long
series of weeks to plan out possible scenarios. This one called for
him to be silent and watch her, which he found he was enjoying quite a
bit.
She had first blinked, and then looked incredulous. He couldn't help
but admire the way she showed her emotions; almost as plainly as he
was told he did himself. Openness and honesty....
And then she was delighted. Her eyes glowed with that same spark
that had ignited, however dimly, and then brightened, ever since he'd
called her cute. Devotion and a willingness to forgive....
And then furious. The reaction she had when she thought (however
briefly) that Akane had somehow seduced him during his training for
the Hiryuu Shouten Ha. Ah, he thought to himself. What a great
training trip.
"How the hell do you expect me to sell the shop by tonight?" she
growled. "You are so inconsiderate!"
"So, that's a 'yes,' then?" he drawled, still grinning.
She blinked in surprise and blushed. "Well, duh," she mumbled. "But
I was kind of expecting ... well ... any kind of warning at all!"
"Yeah, but don't worry, I'm not thinking we gotta do it tonight," he
said with a wink. "I was thinking maybe the end of the month. Is two
weeks enough for you?"
***
She stared at him, dumbfounded. "Yeah," she said, shaking her head.
"That's enough time." She paused, then, just staring at her fiancé,
and contemplating not the specifics of the plan, which he had yet to
reveal, but just the essence of it. "We're going to elope?" she
asked, not quite squeaking the question out.
"I sure hope so," he said, raising a hand to brush his fingertips
across her cheek. "So. You wanna hear the plan?"
"Yeah," she replied, nodding vigorously, while images of a tiny
cottage in some secluded village around Kyoto began to fill her head.
A tiny cottage with room for a few children, a nice kitchen....
"First, I'm going to try and figure out how to settle everything
honorably. Well, as honorably as I can," he said slowly. "So....
The way I see it, you're the first girl I was engaged to. And if you
aren't, well, Pop already took your dowry. The dojo's still there,
and it ain't got my name on it, so.... I figure I'm just going to
leave a note telling Tendo that I'm sorry."
"You're serious," she breathed, the enormity of the situation still
leaving her reeling.
"Oh," he said, nodding gravely. "Completely. I hate to do this ...
but I'm asking you to get me out of trouble with a few things, too.
Help me get a clean slate, so to speak."
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"'Fore we do this, I figure we should probably get everything
straight between us," he said, smiling softly. "See ... Saotome Ranma
has a lot of obligations, and like I told you a while back ... I'm
really not that keen on living his life anymore."
"What are you saying?" she wondered. "I mean, you can't mean all of
it if you're leaving with me."
"Well, I'm thinking. Your parents aren't around anymore, so it's
just you, right?"
She nodded.
"Even though she hasn't seen me or the old man in a couple years,
I've got both of mine. I don't see any reason why they can't just
have another kid or twenty to settle Pop's debts -- I'm hoping that I
can just cut to the chase, and keep my promises, and you'll save me
the rest."
"Wait," she said slowly. "Are you saying you want to take my family name?"
"You remember that little contract I signed with my mom?" Ranma
asked, grinning. "Guess which name is on it."
She could feel the grin coming to her own face. "Finally, I get to
rescue you," she murmured.
He snorted. "You've done a better job of managing to avoid trouble
than most people around this crazy town."
Her grin began to fade. "But, Ranchan, you're just going to ignore
your family honor?"
"Do I got a choice, really?" Ranma asked, shrugging. "When you get
right down to it, I don't think there's a way to get this done without
messin' up honor. We can argue about that all day -- I tried thinking
of ways to talk through it. But look at just what's between me and
you!
"So, it's Pop's fault that he accepted the engagement. That's the
family. It's my fault your dowry was stolen-" He broke off with a
frown and gave her a very intent look. "You gotta believe me, I don't
remember choosing okonomiyaki over you when I was a kid. An' that
will never happen again, I promise." Ukyou nodded at the seriousness
in Ranma's voice, and only then did he relax very slightly. "Anyway,
it's also my promise that said I would take care of you forever. Even
that alone ain't getting sorted out. So I broke it down to just the
stuff that's my problem."
"Well, that still leaves you with a lot of issues," Ukyou noted,
frowning. "If you just go by what you did ... you're still in hot
water over that Reversal Jewel incident."
Ranma grimaced, nodding. "And worse, too," he admitted. "But
Akane's said a bunch of times our engagement isn't valid, even if I
did tell the world she was my fiancée. So really, it's just you and
Shampoo that I owe." He hedged for a moment, and admitted, "Cologne's
not that bad. I finally just went and asked her. She told me there's
a way out -- that's part of what let me decide what I wanted, just
before I.... We...." He trailed off, blushing, and looked at the
grill. "Well, you know."
"Nope," Ukyou chirped. "Gonna need specifics, Ranchan!"
His blush deepened. "Before I decided," he said, raising his eyes to
meet hers, ducking his head slightly in bashful nervousness. It was
all she could do to restrain herself from grabbing him right there and
holding on forever. "Ever since before ... our kiss."
"How's that go?" she asked, feeling her face heat up.
He hesitated for a moment, and then they both moved, joining in a
tentative embrace and sharing another cautious kiss. When he broke
it, he pulled her into his lap, and she put her arms about him, unable
to hold back a cheerful giggle. "I love you, Ranchan," she whispered.
His blush intensified, and he tried not to stare at her. She prodded
his nose with a fingertip, and he flinched, admitting, "I love you
too, Ucchan. Or else I wouldn't be crazy enough to ask you to pull
this off with me."
She thought, briefly, of removing herself from his lap, taking his
hand, and seeing if she could get him all the way to her room before
he asked what she had in mind. She held that temptation in check;
this was the revelation of his plans, and there would be plenty of
time for.... Well.
He looked at her curiously. "You okay, Ucchan? You look like you're
about to catch on fire."
"Gah," she mumbled, covering her face with her hands. "I'm just so
happy!" She controlled herself by the simple process of sliding back
out of his lap and back onto the stool she had been using before. At
his disappointed expression, she said, "Time for that later tonight."
Then his eyes shot very wide, and his face darkened in embarrassment
fit to match what she had felt while being held in his arms.
"Well, um. I wasn't planning on getting started on that right away,"
Ranma managed, his voice cracking once or twice before he got the
entirety of the statement out. "But, Cologne said that married people
aren't subject to the Kiss of Marriage. Though, the only proof of
marriage they care about is ... erm ... havin' kids. I think she
knows what's up, too. I mean, I didn't tell her, but she's not that
dense. She mentioned that if I promised to help out her tribe in
times of need, she might be so busy training Shampoo that she can't
leave the Neko-Hanten for a few months. I think that's her way of
sayin' that if I behave, she'll give us some time to have kids and get
out of this."
Ukyou blinked, raising an eyebrow, and Ranma waved his hands in a
warding gesture.
"I wasn't even thinking about that until we'd had a few years
together, though," he said quickly.
"No cuddling until after marriage?" Ukyou pouted, causing Ranma to flinch.
He looked briefly puzzled, then shook his head, clarifying, "I mean,
if Shampoo can't find us, there's no problem. And if I take your
name, we should have plenty of time before she catches up with us. Um
.... maybe not tonight ... but there's no reason to wait for ... uh ...
some stuff."
"You certain?" Ukyou asked, smirking.
"Totally," Ranma said, nodding. "Anyway. I've got a plan, Ucchan.
Just like I said. There's a lot I haven't figured out yet, like ...
where we're going to go. Or what we're going to do. I figure I can
wait tables anywhere. If you open another restaurant, that'll work,
too. Mostly, I'm just focusing on getting us out of here."
Ukyou nodded contemplatively. "Have you thought," she asked slowly,
"about what this might do to your mother?"
Ranma's smile faded, and he stared at the floor for a long minute.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "I have. But.... I don't know if I can
handle a mother that can turn into an executioner if _I_ get splashed
with cold water," he admitted. "Remember, I want to leave this all
behind. I just want ... well ... me and you, Ucchan. Some day in the
future, once everyone's had a chance to explode and calm down.... But
I don't see a way out of this I really want to deal with. Except for
the one I'm hoping you'll still agree to with me."
She felt her face warm with the glow she was sure it was shedding,
and she stared at her feet, unable to find a word for the moment.
Ranma took one of her hands in his, and offered a reassuring squeeze.
"Are you going to tell her before we leave?" Ukyou asked hesitantly.
Her fiancé nodded slowly as she looked up from the floor. "I'm
leaving her a letter," he mumbled. "It's not perfect. It's even a
gamble, since she might not forgive me. But...." He sighed, and
looked at the grill, as though it might offer a suggestion.
"You're not.... If she decided that you're unmanly, you're not going
to abandon me again, are you?" Ukyou suddenly asked, a spike of
nervous fear shooting through her heart.
"No!" Ranma protested, shaking his head. "Of course not -- that's
part of me taking your name."
"Okay," Ukyou agreed, deciding to focus on more important aspects of
the proposed elopement. "So, then.... You're not twenty yet. How
are we going to be married without your parents' permission?"
"I only need Pop's," Ranma said reassuringly, pulling a sheet of
paper from his schoolbag. "He keeps a dozen of these around. I
spilled his sake on 'em, and when he started filling more out, grabbed
one before Tendo could put his name on it."
Ukyou looked at the marriage certificate in surprise. All she'd need
to do was sign her name twice, as she was her own legal guardian.
Ranma would need to sign it once, since Genma's signature was already
on it.
"Wow," she breathed, considering what the contract in front of her
meant. "Wait a minute," she said with sudden realization, "if you
used this, you'd be taking.... If this was for Akane, you'd be
becoming a Tendo?"
Ranma shrugged uncomfortably. "Yeah," he mumbled. "Don't get to
keep the name Pops trashed the honor of."
"Oh, Ranchan," Ukyou sighed, leaning forward and hugging her fiancé
again. "Two weeks.... I guess we need to be quiet about this whole
thing until we're out of town?"
He hugged her back tightly. "Yeah," he said. "I'm ... sorry I can't
plan a ceremony or anything, but I do my best planning on my feet, and
well.... That'll get me by, and out of here. But it won't really let
me do much else ... yet. I'm hoping once things settle down, that'll
change."
Ukyou snorted, releasing him from the hug, and staring him in the
eyes. "I get you," she said flatly. "That's everything I could ask
for. But once we're out of here, it's not what _you_ can manage, it's
what _we_ can do together. Right?" She smiled as he nodded.
And then he kissed her again, and she had a great deal of trouble
thinking clearly. He seemed to be affected the same way, and broke
the kiss after a moment, mumbling apologetically, "I ... should get
back to the Tendo place before anyone realizes that something's up."
Then he grinned. "I'm supposed to be out of town on a training trip
for the next two days," he whispered. "Tomorrow ... you want me to
come by, so we can talk?"
Ukyou was positive she was going to need medical attention for the
heat her face was putting out, and Ranma looked like he was just short
of bursting into flame himself, his skin matching his girl-side's
hair-color. But she managed to nod and squeak out, "Sure thing,
Ranchan!"
He smiled shakily and stood up. "I'll go out the back," he said.
"See you later, Ucchan."
***
Kasumi hummed happily to herself as Ranma returned from his
after-school activity. She'd asked him a few weeks ago what was
keeping him busy outside of class so often lately. He explained that
it was part of his 'Survival Club', though when Kasumi asked Akane if
she were going to be joining, the younger girl had only laughed.
Nabiki had said that there was no such club, and Kasumi hadn't
remembered one from when she had attended classes herself. She
assumed then that it wasn't a normal club at all, and was instead some
form of martial arts training that Ranma was working on with his
friends. "Are you still practicing your survival, Ranma-kun?" she
asked as he kicked off his shoes in the entryway. Ranma's friends
were so helpful to practice with him during all hours of the day.
"Yep! I'm almost done," he said, nodding. "I figure I'll be ready
for the ultimate move in a week or two. I'll be heading out on a
training trip tomorrow."
"That's nice!" she encouraged him. "Who will you be using your new
technique to fight?"
"Fight?" he asked, blankly. "Oh! Nah, no fighting. If I pull this
one off, I'll just win." He flashed her a bright smile and said,
"Anyway, I've got some homework to finish. I'll be in my room if
anyone needs me."
As he strode up the stairs, Nabiki opened the front door. "Hey,
Kasumi," she greeted, glancing around as she slipped out of her shoes.
"Anything exciting going on?"
"Not for a few weeks, it seems," Kasumi answered.
***
Alone in her room, Ukyou spent a few minutes staring at the papers
Ranma had left her with. She'd signed her name once already, but
paused before sealing the deal.
She knew that Ranma cared about her ever since that Christmas Eve.
She'd known that Ranma actually liked her since that kiss.... But
now, this, more than his words, told her that he really loved her.
Somehow, she simply hadn't expected things to turn out that nicely.
But they had, and best of all, she hadn't had to use scheming or
trickery to get what she wanted. She felt bad enough about the fake
tears when she had moved in with Ranma and the Tendo family briefly.
"I wonder what it'll be like living with Ranchan this time," she
mused, vowing to never use that trick on him again. "Better than
that!" she decided, smiling as she signed her name one last time.
Then she put the papers away in a drawer. Tomorrow, he could sign
it, and then they could take it to the city hall. Until then, she
surveyed her room, calculating what could be stored, what she would
take ... and how much she could get for selling her building with only
two weeks to arrange it.
She frowned slightly at that. Two weeks wasn't much time.... She
brightened immediately when she thought about who it was all for. And
he was certainly worth it.
***
After a slow day at school, thanks in no small part to Ranma's
absence, Ukyou hurried back to her restaurant, somewhat surprised to
see Tsubasa waiting for her. "You," she said in a slow drawl, seeing
the boy in merely a frilly dress, instead of disguising himself as the
sign at her entrance. "I thought you gave up!"
"Oh, I could never forget about you, Ukyou-sama!" Tsubasa chirped,
causing Ukyou to blink. That wasn't Tsubasa's voice ... and come to
think of it, that hair looked like a wig. And Tsubasa hadn't padded
his chest that much, not to mention he'd been the slightest bit
taller. In fact....
Biting down on her tongue to avoid laughing aloud, Ukyou instead
forced a pained sigh. "Let's go inside and talk this over in
private."
"Okay!" 'Tsubasa' cheered, drawing both hands together beneath his
chin and blinking cutely.
After Ukyou unlocked the door, both entered, and she closed it behind
her. "Ranchan?" Ukyou asked cautiously, sighing in relief when the
redhead pulled off her wig. "Nice!"
"Thanks," Ranma said, smirking.
"So, what about your training trip?" Ukyou asked. "Is that how
you're going to hide from everyone?" She couldn't help but snicker at
her fiancé's disguise, as effective as it might be.
"For today," Ranma said with a grin. "Now how much do 'I' owe you
for the damage to your place the last time through?"
Ukyou nodded slowly. "Well, I think you'll probably be working for
me for a day or two to pay it off," she replied.
"I think that works," Ranma said with a wink, putting her wig back
on. "You ready to open?"
"Almost," Ukyou decided, stepping closer to Ranma and inspecting the
disguise critically. "Here," she announced, giving her fiancé a peck
on the lips. "Tsubasa should look stunned when I tell 'him' that he's
working off some debt."
Ranma indeed looked appropriately shocked, but Ukyou opened the door
before she could form a protest beyond, "Aaaaah...."
***
After recovering from the kiss, Ranma tried to pretend to be Tsubasa.
It worked well enough, as no one who would actually recognize Tsubasa
showed up, so Ranma was able to simply wait on Ukyou's customers.
Thankfully, things were busy enough she didn't really need to think
about things until it was time to close.
Then, of course, Ukyou locked the door and grinned at Ranma, and she
felt the slightest bit worried. "Um, Ucchan?" she asked quietly.
Her grin faded, and she looked concerned. "Something wrong,
Ranchan?" she asked, peering at the smaller girl worriedly.
"Uh ... I just ... wasn't expecting you to kiss me when I was a
girl," Ranma mumbled, looking at the floor.
Ukyou waved a hand dismissively. "Your curse has never bothered me,
Ranchan," she said. "I know you're a guy on the inside. Now it's
late, and we were busy today. Why don't we clean up and then go to
sleep in my room?"
Ranma twitched slightly at that.
"Silly!" Ukyou chastised, swatting Ranma's shoulder playfully. "If
you're so worried about it, just sign that marriage contract, and we
can turn it in tomorrow."
Ranma felt her face blushing deeper red, but she nodded. "Okay," she
managed shakily.
"Until then, we can just both be girls. Then it won't bother you, right?"
"Yeah," Ranma said, relaxing. "Nothing can happen between two girls."
Ukyou snickered and shook her head. "Sure, Ranchan. Where's your
stuff, anyway?"
"On the roof," Ranma answered, her blush only just beginning to fade.
"Um, I should probably get it."
"Use the back door if you're still worried about the sneaky part,"
Ukyou warned, winking.
***
Another boring day at school, though Ukyou was hard-pressed to keep
her enthusiasm in check. This time, she knew, Ranma would be waiting
for her when she got back. And when she opened her restaurant, there
she was, sitting at the grill dressed as Tsubasa, writing a letter.
"You haven't finished those already?" Ukyou asked, closing the door behind her.
"Nah," Ranma said, shaking her head. "Didn't want anyone to find
'em, so I only had time to start writing today."
Nodding, Ukyou sat down next to her, just watching the other girl
write. After a minute or so, Ranma looked up curiously. "Something
wrong?"
"Nah. I'm just thinking about what we're going to do next."
"Well, there are other jobs I can do, too," Ranma said, shrugging as
she organized a small pile of loose papers into a tidy stack. "I
doubt I can cook nearly as well as you, but...." She shrugged again.
"I could do something, I'm sure. The point is, I won't just do
nothin'. This whole marriage thing is a partnership, right? You get
me out of Nerima, I stick with you for the rest of my life?"
"You don't need to worry about that!" Ukyou protested. "I can take
care of both of us!"
"That don't seem to be what I promised," the redhead countered with a
grin. "If we're gonna have a family, I ain't gonna be like Pops."
Nodding to herself, Ukyou allowed, "I think I understand. Okay, if
we both work, maybe...." She trailed off and smiled. "We'll be able
to buy a house faster that way."
"And the sooner we finish that, the sooner we can work on a dojo,"
Ranma said with a grin.
"We're going to need a lot of land to fit a house, an okonomiyaki-ya,
and a dojo," Ukyou mused. "That's not going to be cheap." The rest
of the evening was spent in rumination over the future they would
build together. Somehow, all of the problems that Ukyou knew lay
ahead seemed something to look forward to instead of an obstacle.
***
Ranma woke slowly, the unfamiliar yet comforting weight of Ukyou's
arm across her chest rousing her some time after the sun rose. The
room was about the same size as the one she usually shared with her
father, but the futon was much more comfortable ... and quite a bit
warmer, too.
Ukyou made a noise in her sleep, and then a face, and pulled Ranma
closer. The redhead blinked, not quite sure how to react until the
alarm clock began to buzz a moment later. Ukyou sat up like a shot,
dragging Ranma with her. "Whaza..." she mumbled, then looking at the
slightly smaller girl in her arms. "Oh, er...." She blushed, and let
Ranma go. "Hehe.... Sorry, Ranchan."
She turned the alarm off and stretched while Ranma yawned and climbed
to her feet. "Didn't you used to have two futons?" she asked her
fiancée suspiciously.
Ukyou nodded and smiled.
"So we could have each had our own bed last night?"
Smile widening, Ukyou nodded again. "Are you complaining?"
Ranma thought about that for a moment. "Not really," she admitted.
"Well, I was too tired last night, so let's go to the bath down the
street," Ukyou said, smiling.
Ranma shook her head. "I can't," she said apologetically. "You've
got school today, and I need to write some letters."
"You mean the letters you're planning on leaving behind when you
vanish aren't even finished yet?" Ukyou asked in surprise. "I thought
you had this covered!"
"Hey, the last thing I want is to have evidence that blows everything
away lying around," Ranma protested.
Ukyou blinked. "Point," she acquiesced. "Okay, then. Why not stay
here? You can hide in the shop while I'm closed."
Ranma nodded, and then on a sudden impulse, hugged Ukyou. The taller
girl hugged her back without reservation, and then gave her a brief
kiss. Then she made a face and said, "Time to brush my teeth."
Giggling, Ranma nodded her agreement. After the two had finished the
morning cleansing, Ukyou splashed Ranma with warm water from the sink,
and swept him into a much deeper kiss. "Bwah," he managed, once she
released him. "Wow. That's going to take a long time to get used
to."
"Good!" Ukyou said, blushing brightly. "Since you're still going to
be here, I'm going to shower instead of going to the bathhouse." He
fled from the bathroom, even though she hadn't said anything about him
leaving. After he got to her room, he quickly folded up the futon and
blankets before looking around.
His plan wasn't very complete, just dealing with the trickier issues
of escaping the life he'd let himself get trapped in. Ukyou's
additions rounded out the escape with a nice follow-up. His vague
ideas were given concrete foundations, and his hopes for a dojo had
become a promise that both of them would work together for it. Life
without a dojo was something he could deal with; adaptation was the
name of the game, and he did want to escape the insanity of Nerima.
But that didn't mean he wanted to forget about martial arts
completely.
While he was ruminating, he heard the squeal of pipes as water
pressure surged, and then a yelped curse before a quiet giggle. He
froze, listening intently, and was able to make out the sound of
running water and soft singing. Try as he might, he couldn't keep the
grin off his face at that. Heading down the stairs to the
restaurant's first floor, he quickly splashed herself and put on her
Tsubasa disguise.
A few minutes later Ukyou came down the stairs in her school uniform,
no longer singing, but humming to herself. "Ah!" she said, snapping
her fingers after she finished tying the ribbon in her hair. "Sign
this." She reached into a drawer and pulled out the marriage
contract, setting it and a pen before Ranma on the cold grill.
"Alright," Ranma agreed, taking up the pen and setting it to paper.
She hesitated, looking at the document, and rethinking what it all
meant.... And then she smiled and signed it anyway. "Hey, Ucchan.
Guess what?" Ranma said, handing the paper to her fiancée.
"What's that?" Ukyou asked, accepting the paper and glancing over it
to see that everything was in order.
"I think we just broke the law, since I was a girl when I signed it."
Ukyou snorted and rolled her eyes. "Just for that, you can file this
for me," she said, handing the paper back. "You owe me, 'Tsubasa.'"
"I will do as you command, my Ukyou-sama!" Ranma chirped in a falsely
higher voice. Then she winked and fled out the door, paper in hand.
***
After he'd come back from his training trip, he'd been chuckling to
himself and sporting a wide grin. Akane thought it was suspicious,
but he'd been so quiet and careful to watch his words that she wasn't
certain if she should be upset.
Maybe he was just in a good mood.
Clearing her throat loudly, she called his attention, and he broke
off mid-kata, turning to look at her from the center of the dojo. She
stepped in through the entrance and slid it shut behind her. "So,"
she began mildly, "how was your training trip?"
"Awesome," he replied, flashing that same grin at her again.
"Can you show me what you learned?"
His smile vanished instantly and he gave her a thoughtful look.
"Maybe. I'd like to, but.... Well, I've got the basics of my new
technique perfected. I need to work on the follow-through."
"What is it?" she pressed, frowning. For his smile to fade so
quickly, he must be hiding something.
"You remember how Pops created those two schools 'for living'?" he
asked with a smirk.
"Yes. But that was thievery. You're not...." She sighed. "Will
you just tell me what it is you're up to?"
"It's a surprise," he assured her. "Just give me ... oh ... two
weeks. Then you'll see."
"Will I?" she asked skeptically.
His voice was full of conviction when he replied, "I'll make sure of it."
***
Hiroshi glanced at the trees as a passing breeze rattled their
branches. "Something's up," he said. "You can smell it in the air."
Nodding thoughtfully, Daisuke flipped a fifty-yen coin into the air.
"What's good?"
"Heads!"
Snatching the coin out of the air, Daisuke slapped it onto the back
of his left hand, covered with his right. "Uh-oh," he murmured,
separating his hands and showing that the coin had caught between two
fingers.
"Mixed blessing." Hiroshi contemplated, and then decided, "That
coin's destined to end up in a pachinko parlor. Might as well help it
along."
"And then?"
"Look for the fight."
"What fight?"
"This is Furinkan, Dai, there's always a fight. And if there isn't,
we'll ask Ranma why not and he'll fix it."
Daisuke nodded. "I can't disagree with the truth of that statement.
Pachinko, then the fight. Onward!"
***
"Tomorrow," Ukyou murmured to herself. She'd let the stocks for her
restaurant run low in preparation of abandoning it, but had tried her
best to leave no obvious signs that she wouldn't be there shortly.
Her room was neatly packed, but no customer would see that.
Ranma straggled in through the entry, yawning. "Heya, Ucchan," he
called in greeting.
"Ranchan!" she replied, a quick glance showing the coast was clear.
"Ooh, you got something on you."
He froze before the grill and looked down at his clothing in dismay.
"I do? Where?"
"Here," she said, stepping around the counter and brushing at his
cheek with her fingertips. He waited patiently until she planted a
swift kiss on his lips. Then he fell backwards, blinking in surprise.
She released a giggle, which died in her throat as she saw Daisuke
and Hiroshi in the doorway.
"Oh, no," Ranma said, turning around to look at the pair.
"Well, this situation seems to have a clear two-point response plan,"
Hiroshi said, though his eyes were wider than usual.
"Agreed," Daisuke added, his eyes equally wide. "First of all: Dude!
You told us you didn't get it on with your girls!"
"I don't!" Ranma protested. "It's just.... Er.... I'm really in
trouble, aren't I?"
"Which brings us to point two," Hiroshi said with a smirk, turning
his gaze to Ukyou. "Which is ... free okonomiyaki for life!"
"Me and my impulses," Ukyou sighed. She stamped one foot irritably
and grumbled, "I should have closed the door!"
"You won't tell anyone, will you?" Ranma asked.
"Nah," Daisuke said with a shake of his head. "Well, I won't, anyway."
Hiroshi looked mildly affronted. "I won't either!" he protested.
"Probably. On an entirely unrelated note, recent studies show that
seafood okonomiyaki is highly successful at quashing rumors."
Snorting, Ukyou shook her head and began pouring batter. "So, were
you just stopping by for the food?"
"Well, if you must know," Daisuke said with a sigh, "we're here
looking for a fight."
Ranma raised an eyebrow and cracked his knuckles menacingly.
"Not for us," Hiroshi added quickly. "And not against either of you.
It's just that the fights seem to follow you, and my gambling-senses
tell me that the big bet is coming up."
"So, what, you think you're going to hang around and I'll start
fightin' someone?" Ranma asked doubtfully.
"In fewer words: Yes!"
Ukyou sighed. "You know, you two-"
"Could really help me out," Ranma interjected with a grin. "As it
turns out, there is a big mix-up planned for tomorrow. You two could
pass messages to some people for me ... that'd give you a front-row
seat."
"Not something I'm sure I want," Hiroshi said slowly.
"But something we can do for our friend, whom we owe," Daisuke said
pointedly, kicking his classmate's shin. "Especially since we really
do want that front-row seat. Will there be seating? I know there's
usually Chinese food or okonomiyaki, but seating isn't a given."
"Furinkan's field," Ranma replied absently. "No special seating."
"Aw, man.... Will you use your girl-body and mud-wrestle someone?"
"I think it's time for you two to be on your way," Ukyou said primly,
serving the okonomiyaki directly into take-out containers and handing
them over. "Now, take care of yourselves."
The two boys chuckled good-naturedly and accepted their boxes,
quickly dashing out of sight.
"Are we busted?" she asked Ranma worriedly.
"Coulda been," he said thoughtfully. "But they'll keep their word
'til at least tomorrow."
***
Shampoo balanced precariously on a bamboo pole, though the end was
only resting flat on the ground, not planted or otherwise anchored.
"How much longer am I going to do this?" she asked, her arms rising
from her sides briefly to adjust as a low breeze picked up.
"Until you learn it," Cologne answered, peering upwards. "You think
this is just for show?" She hopped up to balance on her staff and
snorted. "You'll learn the value sooner or later, so why not get it
taken care of now?"
Shampoo sighed, nodding absently and then shifting her footing to
rest on a single toe.
"Good," Cologne murmured, hopping to the ground and scurrying through
the alley to the side of the Neko-Hanten, halting just before Ranma.
The boy had been about to enter the restaurant and blinked at her in
surprise. "Ah, I was wondering when you would show up."
"Er.... Yeah," the boy mumbled, scratching the back of his head
nervously. "Um, listen ... I wanted to talk to you about-"
"I'm not an idiot," she replied, cutting him off. "I know you don't
plan on marrying Shampoo. I know you'll eventually find a way to try
and do the honorable thing, too. I feel sorry for that Kuonji girl,
once you marry Akane, but you're an easy read."
"Uh," he answered after a moment. "Yeah. That's it."
She rolled her eyes again. "Did you think it was going to be that simple?"
He shifted his shoulders and looked away. "I kinda ... kinda hoped
that, yeah."
"Hah," Cologne snorted. "I know what you're planning. You know what
I'll tell everyone else I thought. Now, how do you repay this and
your other debts?"
"I don't want to live in China, but you said if I promised to help
you out whenever ... if ... you know ... I had to," he said, shrugging
his shoulders and looking away. "But how can I do that without
Shampoo knowing where I am?"
"That's the catch," she replied with a grimace. "So tell me where
you go -- or I'll find you. I won't let Shampoo know where you are
.... but if you don't assist when summoned, I'll tell her. Behave, and
I'll convince her to want to be your friend by the time she catches up
with you and your okonomiyaki girl.
He sighed in relief, practically sagging in place. "Okay," he said.
"That sounds good. I.... I know I owe you for this...."
She raised an eyebrow.
Swallowing, he added, "And I know I owe Shampoo worse."
"Good," she answered. "Otherwise I'd have beaten you. Now run along
and leave a forwarding address when you leave. Shampoo hasn't
properly talked to you in weeks. Don't give her a chance to make this
more painful than you must."
"Gotcha. Thanks ... Cologne."
"You won't be thanking me when I call in those favors, Boy," she
warned. "You remember that much."
"We'll see," he said with a grin. "If I get enough out of life,
maybe I will thank you. Later!" With a cheerful wave he shot down
the street, swiftly vanishing from sight.
"Maybe he isn't as dense as I thought," the old woman mused thoughtfully.
***
"I honestly didn't think that Ranma would ever write this much,"
Hiroshi said to himself slowly, flipping through the stack of
envelopes in his hands.
Daisuke cocked his head to one side and considered before glancing
across the yard. "You're right. Now, we're not going to open the
things on point of beatdown, so let's parcel them out and see what
destruction Ranma has wrought."
Hiroshi raised an eyebrow and glanced sidelong at his friend. "That
word-a-day calendar is turning you into Kuno."
"Thusly have you named the first of our targets," Daisuke decided
with a grin. "Once more unto the breach!"
"Have I mentioned lately that I hate you?"
"Not as much as you will once we watch Kuno melt down from whatever's
inside this envelope. I bet you it's good."
"You're on -- five hundred yen for an explosion and a fight."
"Four to one in my favor, and I'll bet you're wrong."
"Done deal."
The two boys took a simultaneous breath and shared a decisive nod.
"Kuno! Saotome sent you a letter."
***
Akane set the letter down and glanced across the school yard. In the
ensuing panic that Ranma's ... unexpected departure ... had put the
students in, she had been overlooked. For the moment, she was glad
for that, as she didn't particularly feel like discussing it with the
regular gossips.
Nabiki drew near, a handful of papers clutched tightly in one fist.
Her expression was decidedly upset. "Akane," she said tightly,
nodding and coming to a halt. "So."
"So," Akane said back, picking up the pieces of paper and carefully
folding them back into their envelope. "It's a nice day out today.
Warm. Gentle breeze."
"Ah...." Nabiki shook her head. "Well, I can only guess what he
wrote to you, but my letter was somewhat less than flattering. Do you
want to talk about this at all?"
"Not really," Akane said with a shrug. "But if you'd like."
"If I'd like?" Nabiki asked, raising an eyebrow. "You know ... your
fiancé just.... Well, he ran off with another girl."
"Signed the letter with her name, too," Akane noted. "I think
really, if you want to talk about it, the worst part is that I'm just
not surprised."
"You...." Shaking her head quickly, Nabiki glanced around to make
sure no other students were in earshot. "Are you saying you expected
this?"
"Well, it seemed obvious to me," Akane said with a shrug. "He'd been
acting a little weird since Christmas, when he went to go see Ukyou.
I pretty much was waiting for it since he kissed her. I'm just glad
we can stop pretending now."
"Pretending? But Akane, Ranma.... He...." The elder sister paused,
considering for a moment. "I thought I could read people. But I got
him wrong, so I guess if you're really not bothered by this, I should
just ignore it. It's not like we're going to see him again, are we?"
"Oh, maybe," Akane murmured quietly, turning to look at the gathering
storm clouds on the horizon, the last sweeping rains before summer
claimed the calendar. Shrugging, she tossed the letter into a rubbish
bin. "Let's ditch school and get some ice cream."
Nabiki turned to watch Tatewaki come out of his letter-induced shock,
bellowing, "The vile Kuonji Ranma has absconded with the lovely
pigtailed goddess! I must away to Hokkaido in pursuit immediately!"
"Well," she murmured, "he threw up that distraction for you, at
least. Sure. I have a two-for-one coupon for sundaes."
***
"Kuonji!"
He jerked upright from where he had been dozing, sitting cross-legged
on one of the massive upright pylons on the pier, looking out across
the sea. "Yeah?" he asked, turning to look at a man in a clean blue
worker's uniform and hard-hat. "Sorry. Was just waiting for another
shipment. What's up, Boss?"
"Just wanted to say thanks for the good work," the foreman said,
smirking. "I keep tellin' you, we don't got any bonus, so don't work
yourself so hard. But thanks all the same, you know?"
"Oh," Ranma said, shaking his head and climbing down to the slats of
the dock's surface to stretch. "Well, a job's a job, and you gotta
take care of your family. In my mind, that's the test of being a real
man, ain't it?"
The foreman nodded, frowning slightly. "You work on the docks
because you want to be manly?"
Snorting, Ranma shook his head again. "I just want to work for my
family," he clarified. "My ... well, my mom had a thing about me
provin' my manliness. I maybe didn't do what she was expecting, but I
think...." He trailed off. "Ah, it's about time for lunch, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Ah, Ucchan said she'd come by."
"Oh! Will she bring-"
"She always does," Ranma laughed, walking sedately away from the
pier's end, towards the small office that the workers crowded around
to enjoy their meals. "She loves it when the guys come in for the
evenings."
"Oh, well, dinner's good, but I'm tellin' you, the boys are all there
'cause they got a thing for your sister."
Ranma snorted with another wry shake of his head. "Anyway, the
reason I mention that thing with my mother is that I'm thinkin' of
seeing her in a few months. Might need some time off."
"Ah," the foreman said, falling into step behind Ranma and nodding
wisely. "So that's what this is about. Well, how soon will this be?"
Another voice broke into the conversation. "Ranchan!"
Ranma grinned, throwing his arms wide and catching his wife in an
embrace as she charged from the crowd around her portable grill. He
spun around to throw off the excess force from the impact. "Careful,"
he admonished with a grin, setting her down gently.
"Humph," she sniffed, looking away. "I'm not made of glass, Ranchan.
I'm just pregnant."
The foreman missed his next step and went down in an untidy pile.
"Right," he said weakly from where he landed. "I'm guessing you'll
want some time for paternity leave?"
"Er ... yeah," he chuckled, scratching the back of his head nervously
with one hand, the other slipping to a comfortable position around his
wife's waist. It would probably be another month or two before she
started to show.
"Ah," the foreman sighed. "You know, for a couple that married so
young, you two sure seem to have things worked out pretty good."
"Thanks," Ranma said brightly. "We worked at it pretty hard."
"Ranchan got it started, really," Ukyou giggled.
"Well, until we got this far that's about all I could do," he
admitted. "But things are working out great!"
"Almost," the foreman agreed. "Say, if you two ever need privacy as
a young couple, don't be afraid to ask my wife to watch over the baby
for a while."
"Er.... Thanks," Ranma said, blushing slightly.
"And I'm sure that any of the other boys would be more than willing
to take care of your sister, if you know what I mean, Ranma."
"Oh...." Ukyou frowned. "Well, that's something to keep in mind,"
she said after a moment. Winking, she added, "But I think I can keep
her occupied on my own."
Ranma nodded, waving to the crowd of his coworkers as Ukyou returned
to the grill she'd briefly abandoned.
"Heh," the foreman chuckled. "Too bad your wife has an entirely
different idea of what it means to take care of a girl."
Ranma looked away, blushing intently, but remained carefully silent.
Sometimes, things really did work out in the end, he thought, smiling.
---------------------------
Author's notes:
--
Brian Randall
--
I write fanfiction. Too much of it. You can read it here, thanks to a
kind grant from the Larry F foundation:
http://www.florestica.com/brandall/
--
Together. Allegiance or death. BIGFIRE!
--
Haiku of my lament:
Forgive my spelling,
my U.S. education,
is the source of blame.
.---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----.
| Administrators - ffml-admins (AT) anifics (DOT) com |
| Unsubscribing - ffml-request (AT) anifics (DOT) com |
| Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject |
`---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'