Alex V Morgan
1st January 2003, 03:32 PM
Ranma Nibunnoichi : Reflections
By: A. V. Morgan (avmorgan27@attbi.com)
A continuation of the Two Ranmas manga story arc (V35 P1-4). Sexual
humor and innuendo, nudity and violence. Consider yourself warned.
Disclaimer: Ranma Nibunnoichi, and the associated cast and concepts are
the property of Rumiko Takahashi and those publishers and distributors
to whom she has given official rights. This work, in no way intends to
infringe upon those rights. The ideas explored are those of the author,
and should not be construed to express the opinions or intentions of
the creator or associated agencies.
BOLD Emphasis
~Italics~ Thought/Flashback
*SoundFX* ^_^;
[Sign] O.O [Arrrrgh! Panda's can't TALK!]
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Part Thirty-Four: A Pocket Full of Mischief
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In the brief lull between Ranma declaring herself to be Fa Shen and
Ranko's plaintive call for Happosai's demise, the demented old
master of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts narrowed his
wizened old eyes on Nodoka. Having been the source of the fabled
Togenkyo water used by Genma to sire his son and heir, and having
possessed numerous tomes and treasures stolen from the Tribe of
Heroines, it suddenly became obvious what the restoration of her
natural hair color meant. Curious, and completely indifferent to the
chaos he had already stirred up, he bounced over and proceeded to
pat the woman down. So it was that Happosai was cheerfully molesting
Ranko's mother when the drained girl dropped the gauntlet. The
battle commenced with the woman's shriek of indignity and attempts
by every fighter in the room to separate the old toad from her
person. While Nodoka twisted around, the naked steel in her hands
flashed and whirled, sending everyone diving for cover as quickly as
they dove in to assist. Ryouga tripped over Ranko in his own haste
to escape. Laid out full length on top of her, he stared into her
eyes and blushed furiously.
"Ryouga! Off!!!" Ranko blazed weakly.
"S-sorry! Sorry!" the lost boy bounced up, then proceeded to pick
the girl up and search for a safer place to lay her down. Such a
place did not exist in a world with Happosai, and only his perverse
interest in Nodoka, at the moment, offered Ranko any security.
Ranma and Fa Shen itched to pry the old man off of the Saotome
matriarch, but her own wild weapon was standing them off. The
perverted dwarf inspired her wild swings by bouncing away to offer
her a target, then speeding in to cling and crawl along her limbs
and torso while she lashed out. The old master, briefly detouring
from the delights of Nodoka's luscious form, concluded a quick
search of her pockets and produced a bottle of water labeled in
Chinese. Scampering to a perch on top of her head, he read the label
and pulled the cork with a crow of delight. Everyone tensed in
dread.
"What do you know! After all this time!"
"Oh no!" Nodoka cried, realizing what Happosai had stolen from her.
"What is that?" Ranma and Fa Shen flinched back.
"Oh, Master! Please, be careful with that! You don't know..."
"Be quiet, Soun! I know perfectly well what this is!"
[Run for your life, Boy!] Genma's sign waved, unnoticed.
"Happosai! You mustn't!" Nodoka dropped her sword and reached up
with both hands in vain to grab the bottle. Happosai launched
himself into the air to evade her grasp. Ranma and Fa Shen took one
look at him sailing in their direction with a bottle of water--they
had no idea what it was, or what it could do, but they had both
learned to fear any untested water--and bolted in opposite
directions in terror. Nodoka saw their fear and immediately assumed
they knew what it was. Why else fear mere water? Why fear that water
unless...? "Ranma...?" she caught her breath.
"He doesn't know," Akane hissed.
"Anything that makes Happosai happy is bad news," Nabiki added.
Mousse watched as Happosai turned to pursue Fa Shen, cackling in
glee at the prospect of restoring the resurrected amazon's
femininity, and proceeded to unleash his arsenal. Darts, daggers,
yo-yo's and various deadly implements on the end of long ropes and
chains shot out of his voluminous sleeves to either snare the old
master or disarm him before he could bring the water to bear.
"Oh my!" Kasumi covered her mouth. There was going to be quite a
mess to clean up when this was all over.
Happosai ducked and dodged around the incoming missiles and deftly
evaded the entanglements. His attention focused on Fa Shen, he
shouted, "Hold still, darn it! I just want to test something!" As
quickly as he had forgotten his vow to keep Ranma and Fa Shen's
sexual adventure a secret, he had allowed it to slip his mind WHY
the pair had been compelled to consider it.
"Test what!? What are you tryin' to do to me NOW old man!?"
Seeing that Happosai was ignoring her, Ranma had turned and was now
racing after the old pervert, weaving through the tangled web Mousse
had created in the Tendo living quarters. His efforts to continue
his assault were not making things any easier for her. "Hey!
Happosai! Since when were you into chasing boys!?" she taunted.
"Ranma! He thinks that water will turn him INTO a girl!" Nabiki
warned. That earned her a glare from Nodoka. Nabiki stared back at
her coolly and shrugged. It was all well and good to not cast doubt
on Ranma's manhood, but it was stupid to keep him ignorant of the
danger. The only problem was, the boy was not really Ranma.
Fa Shen stumbled to a halt and gaped at Nabiki. "You're kidding! How
is that..." This distraction was all Happosai had needed. The question
was interrupted by a huge splash as Happosai flung the contents of
the bottle over the boy. "...possible?" Fa Shen concluded her question
in amazement, looking down at herself in surprise.
"Oh no!" Ranma had only an instant to process Nabiki's warning
before witnessing as Ranko gained another twin. Picturing Fa Shen's
full reaction to the return of womanhood, Ranma knew she had
distract her. Straining for greater speed, she rocketed into Fa Shen
before Happosai could complete his assault with a body caressing
glomp, and her momentum carried the pair of them out toward the koi
pond.
"Pretty girl!" Happosai dropped through the restored girl's after-
image and began cursing in frustration. He was so distracted, he did
not notice the insane fury that possessed Nodoka. The woman had
slipped one foot under the sword she had dropped, kicked it into the
air and lunged forward in one motion. Everyone watched, stunned,
their eyes still turned to where the boy had turned into a girl, and
caught full view of Nodoka snatching the sword out of mid-air and
driving it down, point first at Happosai. He turned at the last
instant and saw the blade descending. He gulped loudly. The
explosive splash of Ranma and Fa Shen hitting the pond reached the
room as everyone saw the Saotome honor blade pass through Happosai's
shocked form and sink itself half way into the floor of the Tendo
home with a loud, hard thunk.
"Die!!!" Nodoka cried, tears spilling from her eyes.
Before anyone could react, the old master's body seemed to simply
fade out of existence like a bad memory. A round of gasps was
followed by a gentle pat as the diminutive martial arts master
dropped down from the ceiling to perch on the pommel of the sword.
Nodoka's vicious strike had only caught the man's after image!
"Damn woman! You could have killed me with this thing!" he
complained, clutching his chest in alarm. A drop of blood welled on
the tip of his nose, from where the point of the blade caught him as
he desperately jumped up to escape the fatal strike. His eyes
widened, and he made to leap away again as a huge mallet descended
toward his skull. His second spurt of motion was barely enough to
cause him to squirt out from between the mallet and the sword as
Akane's strike hammered the sword down to its hilt in the floor.
"Die you demented freak!!!" Akane screamed, continuing to slam her
mallet down, pursuing the old man as he crawled between blows to get
away. Her strength soaring from the power of her rage, each meaty
thwack was accompanied by the cracking and crunching of old bones
and the grunts of air expelled from Happosai's lungs. While the
bones of his condensed form were too dense to break, even from this
abuse, his old joints snapped and popped as the violent compressions
dislocated them. The old man had instants for his inhuman healing
factor to wrench his limbs back into proper order before she
clobbered him with a following blow.
While it looked like she might never stop, Happosai eventually
recovered enough to brace himself and meet the descending weapon.
With one finger, he stopped its downward arc. His other hand pulled
the mirror compact out of his gi and snapped it open. Akane stared
in shock, unable to believe the artifact had not been destroyed by
her punishment, and fell victim to its power. With a whoosh she was
sucked into the mirror.
"What have you done with my little girl!?" Soun lunged forward, his
head growing to monstrous proportions as his writhing tongue shot
out and wrapped itself around Happosai's neck.
"Ack! That's enough! I've had it!" Happosai choked. He lobbed a
Happodaikarin at Soun, the blast dispelling the demon-head attack,
and followed it up by flashing the open mirror in his face. Whoosh.
Another Tendo was out of the fight. Happosai twisted in a spiral,
dodging another barrage of implements from Mousse, then leapt onto
the table in the center of the room. Nodoka was tugging on the
handle of her sword, trying to pull it free of the floor, Nabiki was
slinking back into the hall, with Kasumi shielded partially behind
her, and Genma was staring at him with beady panda eyes. Happosai
whipped around and caught Ryouga trying to sneak Ranko away from the
fight. Past him, Ranma and Fa Shen were preparing to rejoin the
fray. Happosai glared at them, knowing they were the greatest
threat.
The girls glared back. It had looked like Akane was keeping
everyone's attention for a bit, but now they needed to return to the
fight. Ranma had forced Fa Shen to trade clothes and braid Ranma's
hair while everyone was distracted by the aftermath of Nodoka's
attack. Ranma had known that, however it happened, once Fa Shen
turned into a girl, Ranma had to trade places with her. She would
not allow Fa Shen to die in her place if her mother did not react
well to the transformation. Having become used to quick changes, the
clothing and identity swap was completed with enough time for them
to witness the trapping of Akane and Soun, as Fa Shen let her hair
down to complete the deception.
"You keep an eye on Ranko, Ryouga," Ranma commanded, passing her
ersatz lover and nemesis. "We'll take care of the old goat."
"Are you sure you two can handle him on you own?" Ryouga frowned,
cradling Ranko in his arms, her head on his shoulder. He wanted to
rip the old man limb from limb, but his first instinct, to keep him
from using the helpless Ranko against them, still gripped him.
"Between us, he doesn't stand a chance," Fa Shen promised. It was a
bitter declaration, since the old man had just restored her to
normal. However, his actions had clearly doomed Ranma. Her anger
over the initial betrayal of trust blossomed into a killing rage,
awakening the maiden of war she had become during the conflict that
ended her life.
While Happosai studied them, Genma-panda slipped up beside his wife
and grasped the hilt of her sword in one massive paw. With a growl
of exertion, and a scream of tortured wood, he drew the blade free
and handed it to Nodoka. She stared back into the frighteningly
intelligent eyes of the cursed beast, before hardening her gaze and
turning once more to face the old master. Genma grunted and took an
offensive stance protectively beside her. A look passed from him to
Ranma, the former son nodding to assert her identity.
"You make a fine young woman, Ranma," Happosai smirked, sensing the
circle closing around him. The enclosed space neatly hampered his
style, forcing him to stand his ground when his normal tactics
involved an exhausting chase through the streets. He shifted his
stance to look at Nodoka and bowed. "I hope you are proud of the
daughter you SHOULD have borne, Nodoka-chan!"
Genma snarled, and Nodoka leveled her blade. "You have meddled for
the last time, Happosai! If you think you have turned me against my
child, you are sadly mistaken! I shall love and cherish MY DAUGHTER
every bit as much as the SON you have slain with this vicious act!"
she spat. How it was possible for her son to become a perfect copy
of Ranko and Ranneko... or Fa Shen--or whoever she really was... she
could wonder at later. For now, it would be enough to stop him from
ever harming another family as he had harmed hers. She blinked her
tears away and lunged in to strike.
Happosai laughed and leapt away from the blade arcing in to cleave
him. As he did, he kicked a hot kettle of tea into Genma's face,
restoring his apprentice's true form. Because the old man had
launched himself in the same direction, Nodoka turned and witnessed
the second startling transformation of this battle. Too angry to
think straight, Genma made no effort to dodge. Out of habit, he
instantly produced and donned his familiar gi and headcloth,
adjusted his glasses, and snapped out a series of kicks and punches
to meet Happosai's assault.
"Genma!" Nodoka gasped, nearly dropping her sword in shock.
"Forgive me, my darling!" Genma wept, driving himself on against the
man who trained him. Fury and desperation granting him the speed to
evade the old man's shiatsu strikes and return a few solid blows.
Happosai, annoyed by the fact that Genma had momentarily overcome
his fear and fought with his true ability, rebounded from the
occasional hit, leading the bigger man around the room. From the
hard, ruthless patterns emerging, Genma was on the verge of
unsealing the Yamasen-ken. Should he unleash that, and the
compliment to his infamous brainchild, the Umisen-ken, Happosai
would be forced to take the man seriously.
"Genma! You're beginning to make me angry!" Happosai threatened.
"Unless you want to feel my wrath, you better cease and apologize!"
His student was well aware of the nature of Happosai's revenge, the
malicious campaign of humiliation and degradation he would unleash
would wreak physical, mental, emotional and financial ruin on the
man.
"Dead men can't take revenge!" Ranma shouted, launching herself into
close combat. She was grateful that her father had kept the troll
occupied long enough for her to work out a strategy with Fa Shen.
The resurrected amazon had proven to be the most effective opponent
Happosai had faced in recent months. All Ranma and Genma had to do
was give her an opening and she could cripple the old man in his
tracks. Ranma effortlessly fell into step with her father. The two
knew each other so well they could fight as one, Ranma providing the
dazzling speed and agility to box Happosai in, while Genma
overwhelmed the old man with superior size and strength.
Happosai was laughing, or rather chuckling, madly. He was being
pressed hard enough that he could not spare the air for outright
laughter, but he was enjoying himself immensely. Ranma was dancing
circles around him, hemming him in, tying him down so Genma could
deliver punishing strikes. At the same time, she was batting away
his Happodaikarin as quickly as he produced them. Mousse was
circling the trio, ferrying the bombs Ranma lobbed at him out into
the yard and acting as back up to keep the old man from getting
away. Occasionally, Ranma would leave an opening for escape, but if
Happosai tried to take it, a pole arm or mace would whip out from
Mousse to intercept the master. Nodoka had quickly realized she
could not bring her sword to bear without endangering her husband or
child, and had rushed out to relieve Ryouga. The lost boy placed
Ranko in her care and raced in to assist those pressing Happosai.
The founder of Anything Goes was almost at his limit just rolling
with the punches.
It seemed inevitable that the four of them would grind the old man
into paste, but after a while it became obvious, as he risked death
again and again to snuggle up to Ranma, that the little charge ups
he was getting from her were boosting his healing and endurance more
than enough to keep from being worn down. Cursing, she had to drift
to the edge of the conflict and let Mousse and Ryouga press him
close. Neither was as fast as Ranma, but they still reacted quickly
enough, when he produced an object, to knock it out of his hands.
This discouraged him from whipping out the compact and trapping
another of them, or using his pipe to grapple with. The amount of
damage the three males delivered the old man would have finished
even Pantyhose Taro, but Happosai took his lumps and kept dancing.
Finally, Fa Shen entered the fray.
In comparison to the pace of the battle, it had seemed to take
forever for her to charge the area with negative ki. Except for
Happosai himself, though, no one present had witnessed her Vengeance
of Heaven, Raking Claws technique. Thus, as she darted in, clawed
hand reaching to intercept Happosai, Mousse attempted to help by
snaring the master in binding chains. Happosai caught the amazons'
movements from the corners of his eyes, and instead of dodging the
chain, leapt up to intercept it. While the center wrapped around
him, he whipped the loose end around Ryouga. The other end was
firmly anchored in Mousse's hand when Fa Shen screamed her attack
and grabbed hold of the man. Grasping the chain in both hands,
Happosai howled under the onslaught of massive electrical discharge
but channeled much of the searing lightening through to Mousse and
Ryouga.
For several seconds the three cried out in pain, dancing the
electric boogaloo, as Genma and Ranma twisted away to shield their
eyes. Fa Shen snarled, realizing too late how her attack had been
turned against her allies, and broke contact. The lightening shifted
from Happosai to her, as she grunted to contain the power she had
unleashed. While she dropped to one knee, Happosai lunged, heaving
on the chain and throwing Ryouga and Mousse out the open shoji and
into the pond. All three of them were blackened and smoking, but
still able to move. Unfortunately, the duck and piglet that emerged
from the pond were no longer much of a threat. Genma turned around,
realizing that the master had bought too much room to breathe, and
lunged in to attack.
"Too slow, Genma!" Happosai grinned, an evil glint in his eye as he
snapped open the compact in his face.
"Ranma! It's all up to yooooooou...!" Genma's cry was swallowed, along
with him, by the mirror. Ranma made the best of her father's
sacrifice to dart in and deliver a snap kick to Happosai's wrist.
The compact went flying out of the old man's grasp, through the
entrance to the hall and skittering off towards the kitchen. In a
flash, Happosai took off after it. Ranma spared one glance at Fa
Shen, who was dragging herself to her feet, her hair standing on end
and crackles of electricity sparking off of her form. She nodded to
indicate she was alright and Ranma raced down the hall. P-Chan
rocketed through the room after her like a black homing missile.
Following Ranma, the porcine projectile made its way into the
kitchen. Now as small, fast and agile as the old master, he streaked
around the room in Happosai's wake. Ranma skidded, losing her
footing on a patch of soup the two hurtling black blurs knocked off
the counter, sliding on her flank to crash into a cabinet.
"Waaah!" Shaking her head, then twisting it around to follow the
ricocheting path of Ryouga and Happosai, she barely noticed what her
fingers brushed against as she braced her arm to stand. "Oh! What
luck!" she cheered, realizing she had come to rest right next to the
mirror. Happosai spotted her plucking the compact up off the floor
and homed in on her. She jerked and whipped around, holding the open
mirror to shield her from the incoming attack she sensed. Happosai
caught the flash of reflected light from the mirror and squinched
his eyes shut, hurdling the top of the mirror as he streaked in, and
planted both feet in Ranma's face. P-Chan, in hot pursuit, gave a
wide eyed squeal of alarm before vanishing into the trap. Ranma's
head snapped back at the blow, cracking hard against the cabinet
frame, and she lost her grip on the compact. Happosai rebounded from
her face, snatched up the trap and raced back out through the Tea
Room.
Fa Shen was ready for him. "Got you!" she shouted. Forming a massive
ball of chi in her hands, she snapped her hands apart, sending a
ring of destruction right at Happosai, "Dragon's Noose!" As
intended, Happosai dove for the open middle as she clapped her hands
back together, "Vengeance of Heaven, Snapping Jaws!" A dark bolt of
chi shot out ahead of a wall of compressed air. It hit Happosai
square in the chest. All the energy in the glowing chi "smoke-ring"
shot in toward that black bolt. There was a thunderous explosion as
Happosai became the hub of a wheel of sheet lightening. The entire
dojo shook from the confined detonation. Ranma raced in from the
kitchen, barely noticing the shocked expressions on Nabiki and
Kasumi's faces as they peered down from the end of the hall, and
screeched to a halt over the blackened form of Happosai.
The old man lay on his face, still and unmoving.
"Did you kill him?" Ranma asked, as Fa Shen dragged herself over to
Ranma's side to examine their foe. Ranma nudged the old man with a
toe, half expecting him to leap up and bite her.
"It's possible," Fa Shen panted. She felt a faint satisfaction at
seeing her special technique actually work properly this time.
Kneeling in front of Ranma, she carefully rolled the old man over
onto his back. As the two girls leaned in, his eyes popped open and
he giggled. As their eyes widened in shock, he flipped open the
mirror in his hand.
"Suckers!" he crowed, watching the pair vanish helplessly into the
mirror. As their cries of dismay evaporated, he snapped the trap
shut and collapsed back, panting. "Damn. I almost didn't make it
through that one!" he complained as he put the compact safely away.
While his eyes closed, he heard the footsteps of Nabiki and Kasumi
approach. He sighed as the two girls knelt next to him, and propped
him up. "Why, thank you girls! I won't forget your kindness!" He
blinked and tried to focus as Kasumi took his chin in one soft hand
and smiled down at him.
"You look like you could use something to liven you up," she smiled,
as Nabiki held the rim of a bowl to his lips.
"Down the hatch!" Nabiki grinned evilly, as Kasumi hit a pressure
point on the old man's neck that caused his mouth to open as wide as
it possibly could. Nabiki then dumped a full bowl of Akane's special
breakfast miso soup down his throat. Kasumi kindly tapped another
point that caused the old man to swallow. "Compliments of Akane!"
Nabiki stared him in the eye hatefully.
"Oh! Nabiki!" the other girl suddenly stiffened. "Are you sure this
was really proper!?" Kasumi looked down and watched as the old man's
bruised and bloodied face proceeded to display every hue found in
the kingdom of fungi, molds and mildew.
"Are you complaining?" Nabiki asked as the small, evil, long
unwanted house-guest choked on his medicine.
"Well..." Kasumi held herself tight as the old man flopped like a fish
out of water on fast forward. "What if we kill him?" she asked in a
small voice.
"Then you will have done the world a favor," Nodoka announced, lured
in by the sudden silence in this symphony of destruction. Ranko,
carried piggyback, looked over her shoulder at Happosai, as his body
arched and finally fell still. She made no sound as her mother
positioned her sword over Happosai's chest and prepared to skewer
the man where he lay. The four women held their breath for several
minutes as Nodoka contemplated murder. They all wanted him to pay
for the damage he had done in their lives. They all suspected that,
even with all the abuse he had taken in this fight, he would recover
and be back to plaguing them again in no time.
Happosai's eyes creaked open and he coughed to muster his voice.
Meeting Nodoka's unforgiving glare, he smiled faintly. In a weak,
but steady voice he proceeded. "Murder is not your style, Nodoka.
But, if you want an excuse not to," he coughed again, "I'd like to
point out that it is rather difficult to recover what a dead man has
tucked away in folds of his shadow."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Nodoka ground her teeth.
"You might have noticed the insane amount of weaponry Mousse pulled
out of his sleeves. Tell me, Nodoka, where does he keep it all?"
Happosai gave a wizened old grin.
The four women stiffened at the question. Then, a certain
bespectacled duck quacked for their attention. Nodoka turned to
stare at the creature, gasping when it pulled a sword out from
between it's feathers. The weapon was larger than the duck itself.
"T-th-the d-duck j-just pulled a SWORD o-out of THIN AIR!" she
stammered in disbelief.
"Mom," Ranko sighed, "I think you have to let him live. Everyone is
trapped in the mirror and he's stuck it where no one can get to it."
Nodoka sighed and shifted her sword to the side. Hanging her head,
she uttered in a low voice, "One of these days, Happosai, you will
pay for your misdeeds." She was about to walk off in defeat when she
straightened in shock. Ranko was so surprised that she slipped off
the tall woman's back and fell on her rear. She looked up in shock
as Nodoka spun and stared at her. "You called me MOM!" the woman
cried, her voice filled with hope and longing.
"Nodoka. It's time you got a few things straight," Happosai sat up,
clutching his stomach in agony. He winced and then let out a
prolonged burp. For all the world, it looked as if a cloud of toxic
gas streamed out of his mouth and then scampered away from the old
man in search of a place to hide. He shuddered and continued.
"Seeing as I have most of your family hostage for the moment, maybe
it's time we started negotiations."
-------------------------
While Nodoka stood watch over the incapacitated Happosai, Kasumi and
Nabiki called in reinforcements. Nabiki was able to get herself,
Akane and Ukyo excused from school on account of a "family
emergency". It was the first time that Ukyo's status as a fiancée
had proved particularly useful. To have another fighter on hand in
case Happosai recovered, Nabiki was willing to risk this public
acknowledgement. Further calls rounded up Dr. Tofu, Cologne and
Shampoo. The good doctor arrived first, and proceeded to examine the
old man while Kasumi busied herself out of sight cleaning the
kitchen. By the time the amazons and Ukyo arrived, Tofu had
diagnosed Happosai and concluded that he was sufficiently injured to
require several days of bed rest. If not for the residual female ki
in Fa Shen's final attack, the old man would have died. However, it
was Akane's cooking that had truly laid him up. Even Happosai's
constitution was severely taxed by a full serving of toxic waste.
Cologne provided a purgative and prescribed some herbal remedies
that had the pleasant side effect of making the old man as weak and
uncoordinated as a baby.
Unfortunately, while they assured he could not fight for the
immediate future, the old man did indeed hold half the Tendo and
most of the Saotome families hostage.
"If you keep poisoning me, I am not going to bring any of them
back!" Happosai threatened grumpily, after recovering from the
purgative. In his worn and weakened state, projectile vomiting
induced by Cologne's remedy was violently painful.
"You are a stubborn old man, Happi," Cologne sneered, "but a few
days in your condition, subjected to my ministrations, and you would
have no choice but to hand over the compact. Not even you are immune
to compulsion." She wrung out a towel soaked in hot water and laid
it over his forehead. "Now, after you have had a few minutes to
recover, we will get to these negotiations you demanded."
Leaving the old man in his room with Dr. Tofu, Cologne returned to
the Tea Room where a shell shocked Nodoka had retired once the good
doctor had taken Happosai in hand. She had remained passive through
most of Nabiki's earlier recap of the battle for Cologne, Shampoo
and Ukyo--apart from snagging a heated kettle and dousing the duck
to restore Mousse's proper form, when Nabiki mentioned Genma's
transformation. There had been a brief, reluctant lecture from
Cologne to explain the curses of Jusenkyo, but Nodoka failed to
voice the suspicion everyone dreaded. Perhaps, in her mind, the
transformation of her son was attributed to the altogether different
powers of Togenkyo. When Nodoka said nothing, Nabiki continued
describing the battle. When Cologne excused herself to assist Tofu,
the two fiancées were absolutely floored by the fact that Nodoka had
witnessed Fa Shen's restoration. Nabiki had used meaningful looks
and careful phrasing to confirm the unspoken assumption that Fa Shen
had been forced to pose as Nodoka's son. It did not take genius to
realize that in Nodoka's mind she no longer had a son.
Fortunately, Ranma was trapped with several people who could all
assure her that Nodoka had no intentions of having Ranma commit
seppuku because of this revelation. Unfortunately, she would also
learn that Nodoka intended to make a real woman out of her and get
her married to fulfill Nodoka's secret family obligation. Nabiki
would not lay odds on the chance of that going over well. Ranma may
have been subtly infected by the former Ranko's quest to get in
touch with her femininity, but it went without saying that she would
fight to be a man again. No one wanted to guess how Nodoka would
take that.
"Happosai will be strong enough to talk in a moment," Cologne
informed everyone as she perched on the table among them. Taking a
deep breath, she decided to return to the cause of the battle, since
Nabiki had glossed over it so far. "Can anyone explain how this
conflict was started?"
Nabiki sighed and looked at Mousse. "I think part of the blame lies
with feather brain here," she scowled. Fixing him with a stern eye,
she prompted, "I think you know what that was really about. Happosai
was taunting Ranma, and aroused Nodoka's suspicion, but I am still
not sure what he was getting at. You said Ranma had to sleep with Fa
Shen to heal Ranko. Do you care to explain that?" The implications
were obvious, and certainly enough to cause chaos in the families,
but the reasons simply eluded the mercenary girl.
"The only reason I said what I did was because I could see that
Ranma was about to cave in and tell," Mousse noted carefully,
pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Composing himself, he
went on, "We all know about Ranma's gift with words. On such a
delicate subject, it seemed difficult enough for people to hear, but
if Ranma told it, things might have gone much worse. The simple
explanation is, sex generates loose ki. That energy normally
contributes to the conception of new life. Without conception, the
energy eventually returns to its source, but for a short period of
time it lingers and can be channeled to other uses. Since Ranko..." he
paused and looked at Nodoka. Burying his face in his hands for a
moment, he groaned. There was no way around it.
"Ranko was bound to Ranma and Fa Shen by the curse. Because of this,
she could absorb ki from Ranma or Fa Shen to replace what she lost
through the cure," he modified. Hoping Nodoka did not question why
this was true, he pressed on. "In order to heal Ranko, it seemed
obvious that Ranma and Fa Shen would have to have sex, and the
simplest arrangement would have been for them to do it with each
other."
Nodoka listened to this. It certainly was not a light thing for her
son to have contemplated. He was engaged to Akane, and several other
girls it seemed, though she had never been entirely clear on that
count, so it did pose a threat to the Tendo family honor. However,
"I find this a little confusing. First, I thought the curse made
such a thing fatal for them to risk doing. Second, Ranneko... er, Fa
Shen..." she shook her head. "I do wish someone would explain why
Ranko's 'twin' isn't her twin, or how she could be, as she put it,
the 'curse'. Whoever she is, she stressed that what Ranma had to do
to heal Ranko would be a stain on his manhood. I know it is a bit
scandalous, for an engaged man to take a lover--a lover who might be
a Tendo herself, if she is truly Ranko's sister--but one cannot deny
it would be manly."
"To put it simply, Nodoka," coughed Happosai, as he limped into the
room, "no one has told you the full truth yet. Which brings me to
the first point of our negotiations." He made his way to the table
and then perched next to Cologne and cleared his throat. Dr. Tofu
followed and took a seat in silence next to Ukyo. When everyone's
attention was on him, Happosai announced, "It is time you learned
the truth, Nodoka. However, the reason we had this little fracas
this morning is because it's never quite safe to confront you with
the naked truth. So, before I dare, I must have your word of honor
that you will listen to and comprehend all I have to say, and that
you will not act until you do. Secondly, on the matter of Ranma's
manhood, I expect you to heed the opinions of those who know him
best, especially Ranma himself, before passing judgment."
"There is no need for judgment. You've made it quite clear that SHE
was not intended to be a man," Nodoka grated. Shampoo and Ukyo bit
their lips and clenched their fists in their laps. They could see
that the hurt and hateful look Nodoka gave Happosai was in some part
directed at herself. It was torturing her that the fates had taken
her two greatest wishes and twisted them in such a cruel fashion.
All the sacrifices she had made for her son were wasted, her dream
of a daughter destroyed by an obligation that stopped nature from
taking its course.
"Again, you don't know the facts. Just give me your word, Nodoka-
chan. Heed my words and answer my questions, and you will learn,"
Happosai huffed.
"Fine. You have my word."
"Excellent! Now, before I begin, please tell me, why was it
necessary for you to have a son? More importantly, why was it so
important for him to be a pinnacle of manhood?" he prompted. The
others turned to the matron in interest. When Nodoka repeated her
earlier claim of a promise to her father, and her family obligation,
he waved it off. "I know about the promise. Genma went on about it
for hours when he begged for my assistance in conceiving his heir.
What I am asking is, did you ever bother to learn why your father
placed this obligation on you? Do you know what purpose Ranma was
supposed to serve?"
Nodoka blinked. Folding her hands in her lap and staring at them,
she confessed, "I tried many times to pry that information out of my
father. I first learned of the obligation when my marriage to Genma
was arranged. Initially, he said he would confide in us when I gave
birth to a son, but before that happened a thief broke into his
house and got into his personal papers. Father claimed the thief was
obviously searching for information on the family legacy that Ranma
was supposed to fulfill. Because of this intrusion, Father decided
it could be dangerous to reveal anything more until Ranma was of age
to assume his obligation. Because of my father's sudden death, I
feared the knowledge was lost, but in his will he stated that all
the pertinent information was entrusted to an old friend of the
family." She sighed and wiped an unshed tear from her eyelashes.
"Ranma is old enough now that, had he been the boy he appeared to
be, we could have gone to this man to learn what Ranma was to do. I...
I don't know what to do now."
"I see. I take it then that this man would be the one to pass final
judgment on Ranma's manhood then?" Happosai pressed.
"I know only that Ranma was to be tested, initially by my father,
but in this case no doubt by his friend," Nodoka shrugged.
Happosai nodded. "Well, as I see it, it is not unlikely that if
Ranma became male again, he might pass whatever test awaits. I would
think that's enough reason not to act hastily," Happosai pointed
out. "So, that settled, it is time to tell you the truth about
Ranma, Fa Shen and the curse."
Everyone in the room tensed. This was not what any of them expected
when Happosai spoke of "negotiations". Cologne smirked, realizing
that Happosai took the matter at hand seriously enough to play wise
old elder. Even though it suddenly sounded as if he had appointed
himself Ranma's advocate, she was suspicious of his intentions. Even
she would hesitate before daring to present Ranma's mother with the
truth. In spite of her reputed haste in passing judgment, she
honestly felt she needed to hear this tale from her son, not a third
party. "Is it fair to have this discussion when they cannot be
present?" Cologne demanded.
"Certainly, because most of what I have to say concerns Nodoka's
daughter," Happosai crossed his arms and turned to look at the
remaining pig-tailed girl. "Ranko," he nodded to her. The girl
sitting beside Nodoka stiffened in surprise. The other teens in the
room gaped at Happosai, bug eyed.
"What are you talking about?" Ranko demanded uncomfortably.
"My... daughter?" Nodoka looked at her.
"Yes. Your daughter," Happosai scowled. "The person who should have
been born if not for my meddling. A person who sits here today as
the result of Ranma's curse."
"I don't understand..." Nodoka frowned, pulling the girl close to her
side. Unable to fathom where Happosai was going, most of the
witnesses suddenly felt as removed as poor Kasumi, who listened from
the hall to avoid Tofu.
"How do you come up with that?" Ranko challenged. She knew he was
about to explain about Jusenkyo, but she could not see how he was
getting around to it.
"Taking the things we've learned recently, it's not that hard to
see," Happosai insisted. Pulling out a video cassette and handing it
to Nabiki, he instructed, "You should have known if you taped
something like this, it would eventually find its way into the wrong
hands. Still, it's useful now. Why don't you play this for Nodoka."
Nabiki checked the label and noticed her own hand writing. She knew
at once what the tape was. She had made it thinking it could be used
to convince Kuno that Ranma and the Pig-Tailed-Girl were the same
person. Deciding he would probably dismiss the tape, she had kept it
for personal amusement. When it disappeared, she had assumed Ranma
had found it and destroyed it. While she turned on the television
and prepared to play it, Happosai finally mentioned Jusenkyo.
"Last spring, Genma was concluding Ranma's training in China and
decided to take his son to a legendary training ground known as
Jusenkyo," he began. After Cologne's lecture, Nodoka was properly
disturbed and suspicious of what would follow. He described the
events so familiar to the rest of the crowd, focusing on the images
beginning to play on the screen. It showed the Tendo furo, where a
naked Ranma had just entered and squatted down on a stool in
preparation to bathe. "...Genma jumped out of the spring Ranma knocked
him into and continued to fight, unaware that anything special had
occurred. However, Ranma was quite startled by the sight of his
father turned into a panda and was knocked into another spring. The
Nyanniichaun," he named it as the boy on the screen picked up a
bucket of cold water and poured it over his head. Quicker than the
camera could pick up, his form shrank and altered.
"R-Ranko!" Nodoka gasped, watching the boy turned girl shiver at the
cold and begin to wash herself. Ranko just blushed and hunched in on
herself. She found herself praying that this was not a record of one
of the few times during her stay at the dojo where she had "tension"
to burn off during her bath.
"This was your son's curse. Whenever he was splashed with cold
water, he would become a she," Happosai nodded, smirking at the
image. "Because of the contract Genma made, he forced Ranma to hide
his true identity until they could find a cure, and that is where
Ranko came into the picture."
"I don't understand. I... Ranko and Ranma... even that other girl, they
were all here in the same place. How can that..." she pointed at the
screen, where the girl was rinsing off and proceeding to climb into
the heated tub, "...be both Ranma and Ranko?"
Ranko just sighed as she saw the girl on screen become a boy again.
She had not been caught indulging in immodest behavior on tape.
Seeing Happosai looking at her expectantly, and knowing that finally
the truth was at hand, she spoke. "That's actually me," she stated
meekly. "Ranma and Fa Shen were split off from me by the cure. Until
last week, we were all one person." She bit her lip and turned
impulsively to Cologne, "What I don't understand is, the mirror
never copied the curse; why did your antidote change Fa Shen back
into a girl when she ended up stuck in the male copy of me?"
Nodoka froze.
"As I explained to you, Ranko, your male form was just a mask. It
was enough for the curse to latch onto, but when the mirror copied
you it had to catch the underlying truth to make that copy real. In
a funny way, it made the reflections more equal, since one was a
girl turned into a boy and the other was a boy turned into a girl. I
suppose if you had discovered and shown your true form to the
mirror, you could have produced another reflection," Cologne
hypothesized.
"What are you talking about?" Nodoka finally pleaded.
"Ranko's cure was mostly an accident," Cologne turned to the mother.
She proceeded to explain the legend of the Mirror of Broken Souls
and what had happened when "Ranma" had stumbled across it. From
there it was easy enough to simply describe everything that had
happened up to the previous evening. "Fa Shen, you see, was the
original victim of the Nyannichaun. The template of the curse, but
since Ranma was a reincarnation of her, he was able to free her from
her grave. Her awakening last night was completely unexpected, but,
it did cause Ranko to figure out who she was and free Ranma and Fa
Shen from inside of her."
Nodoka was struggling to take it all in. She turned to Ranko and
tried to puzzle it all out, "So, you took my son's place and thought
you were Ranma from the moment he was cursed until last night?"
Ranko nodded. "You... this... is the body of the child I actually gave
birth to?" she touched Ranko on the shoulder hesitantly and got
another nod.
"Also, we didn't know about Pops using Togenkyo water to have a son
until this morning," Ranko added.
"And Ranma and this Fa Shen--they both 'woke up' in the wrong
bodies, which was why 'Ranko' from the date was suddenly changed to
'Ranneko' when we got home..."
"Because it would have been too confusing to call her Fa Shen and I
wasn't going to give up my identity again," Ranko concluded,
shuddering. "It was hard enough to give up being Ranma and Ranma had
never really been Ranko. That's me. If I was really Ranma, then the
whole time I was being Ranko, I'd have been lying to you, but now it
turns out it was the only time I was really me."
Nodoka closed her eyes and sorted things out in her head some more.
She had seen so many impossible things that morning; more than she
had ever imagined possible. It had been a stretch to consider the
warped version of the curse that boy Kuno had described. Now, she
had seen people change sexes and species before her very eyes. She
had witnessed her own personal transformation with the restoration
of her hair. Magic had always seemed the most elusive thing in the
universe, but here she was facing a daughter she had never known she
had and SHE was practically stewing in it.
Ranko was also rehashing details in her mind, trying to see if they
had covered all the angles yet, when something flashed across her
mind. The only question that seemed unanswered was how healing her
was a threat to Ranma's manhood. She turned slowly toward Mousse,
remembering both what he had revealed and the surge of energy that
had passed from Ranma to her. It could not escape Nodoka's mind, now
that she knew Ranma had awoken in the female reflection, what Ranma
had been prepared to do. That was the threat to manhood, but Ranko
now understood that the threat had already been realized. All of
Ranma's actions the previous night suddenly made sense. She could
see in Mousse's eyes that he knew. There was no question Ryouga
knew, and no doubt Fa Shen had been informed. The question was, did
Nodoka have enough clues to figure this out for herself? Before she
could look, her mother's voice intruded plaintively. Clearly, she
was already on the right track!
"Oh! Ranma was going to...!" Nodoka covered her mouth in shock.
"Indeed," Happosai studied her passively. "If Fa Shen had remained
male, Ranma would have sacrificed his manhood in order to heal
Ranko. Personally," he smirked, "I find it ironic that such a noble
gesture, such a selfless sacrifice, would no doubt have inspired you
to hold your son to that ridiculous contract. If not for this
conversation. Of course there remains a problem, doesn't there?"
"I..." Nodoka looked up at him. She swallowed. "She t... HE tried to
warn me in the bath last night. I- I- I may have actually pushed him
to do it. But," she paused, reflectively. "You... prevented that. By
splashing Fa Shen, you made it so they cannot... well, not as a man
and a woman."
"Not unless one of them becomes male again. The question is, Nodoka,
do you have any intention of allowing Ranma to be a man, or would
you condemn him to remain female because of some imperfection in his
manhood or how he attained it?" Happosai pressed. "I remind you that
Ranko is in just as great a need now as she was when your son put
his manhood and his life at risk to inform Fa Shen of his
intentions."
"Do... Do you have any more of that To-Togenkyo water?" Nodoka asked,
mentally kicking herself for forgetting that Ranma's manhood could
indeed be restored. But Happosai shook his head. "Then... how could
either of them become male again?"
"One of them would have to take a curse, a Nanniichaun curse," he
clarified, describing it as the compliment to the nyanniichaun. "I
should point out, however, that Fa Shen is not inclined to be a man.
No, it is Ranma who would wish that. Now, he could lock that curse,
hide the girl he is now forever, but there would always be the risk
of something unlocking it, revealing the girl inside." He smiled in
thoughtful appreciation of that inner girl. He shrugged, "It is in
the nature of such a curse to leave its victim half a man, but even
so, it is more than man enough to save Ranko. Can your definitions
of manhood survive what your son might become?"
Nodoka was not sure how to answer. The only clue she had of what
sort of person he would become, subject to living as both sexes, was
the girl beside her. On second thought, if she understood what she
had been told, Ranko was a perfect example. For all intents and
purposes, she was a female version of her son, a product of the
exact same upbringing. Taking her hand, Nodoka asked, "Ranko, are
you a boy or a girl? Not... not physically. I mean, if you've been
both, can you really be one or the other?"
"Uh," Ranko scratched her head with her other hand, trying to decide
how honest she should be. "Being a girl is sort of what separates me
from being Ranma. It's sort of the way I was born. I'm not much of a
girl, I suppose, but it's kinda how I see myself. But... I kinda like
bein' a boy, too, I suppose. It's kinda strange to think I'm not
one--can't be one--anymore. I feel like somethin's missin'. Like,
I'm also a boy. I never liked flippin' back and forth 'cuz of the
curse, 'cuz I don't like havin' no... not having any control over it.
There's just a part of the that only works if I am a boy, so I guess
that's why I miss it. I'll miss it more the longer I am like this."
"Oh dear," Nodoka bit her lip, but forced herself to see the earnest
look in the girl's eye as she struggled to explain. "How... how do you
think Ranma will feel?" she prompted in dread.
Ranko cocked her head in thought. It was not that hard to answer,
since that was who she had been for most of what she could remember.
"At heart, he's a guy. I think, because of me, he's figured out what
it is to be a girl--I think he understands and can be a girl, like I
can be a boy. Bein' a boy or a girl changes the people around you
more than it changes you, though. You stay the same, but the way
people look at you and act around you changes. I can't describe all
the things you have to give up to just be one. That's what makes it
so hard. I don't think anyone who has been both could give up one
and not feel half dead," she confessed.
This surprised everyone, most especially Nodoka. "You are saying
that Ranma--even you yourself--NEED to go back to being cursed like
this? But, if that's so, why did you go through with this cure?" she
demanded, thinking back to the part of the story where the cursed
teen chose to exploit the mirror for a cure.
Ranko shrugged. "I really wasn't expecting to be cured. I planned to
survive and keep the curse. The only reason I am cured is because of
the stuff with the Togenkyo water. The only reason I let the mirror
thing go on was because I thought you deserved to have a normal
daughter and son," she explained. With a heavy sigh she added, "Just
'cuz I was comfortable with how I was, more or less, doesn't mean it
works all that well for the people around me."
"So, you and Ranma will both want to get cursed again," Nodoka
concluded in dismay. "You both feel it's better to be both."
Ranko nodded, ashamed. Then she firmed and corrected, "I am thinking
about getting a boy curse, but what I really want to do is see if I
can master it. Fa Shen said that's what people used to do. Get
cursed and master it so they could control the transformation and
use the advantages they gained from the curse. I already know I can
deal with the curse the way it was, but I don't like the idea that I
could have mastered it and didn't try. I can't back down from a
challenge like that!"
"Now that sounds like Ranma," Nabiki grinned, shaking her head.
------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Part Thirty-Four
------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: Reflections is quickly coming to a close, and quite clearly has
become something quite different than I had originally intended.
>From the kind of feedback I was getting from my more vocal readers,
a divergence from the original series was welcomed eagerly, so I
allowed the story to go where it would, rather than force it down
the original path of a "missing episode". This process started with
the first intrusion by Fa Shen during the writing of this story,
when I had already heard strong suggestions to make this a
divergence. Rather than remove the Fa Shen thread, I decided to see
how people reacted to where it took the story and I am pleased by
the result. I know I let things drift in an entirely original
direction before acknowledging this as a divergence, but up until
the awakening of Ranma and Fa Shen in their new bodies, it had been
possible to still jerk things back into line and smooth things down
before the end of the story. Ultimately, I decided it would be more
interesting to see where things would go on their own. What I
learned from this story taught me what I needed to know to write
what I originally had in mind, so a different version of Reflections
that fits into the original series is entirely possible. In the
future. For now, I am focusing on the end of this story and what
will unfold in its sequel. I hope my readers find this an
interesting way for Nodoka to learn of Ranma's curse. It naturally
evolved into the central crisis of the story. How she deals with a
daughter determined to recover her manhood, and a son who is
intimately in touch with his womanhood ought to be something of an
adventure! Tune in next time as Ranma, Fa Shen and the others are
released from the mirror trap and discover the mess Happosai has
created for them!
By: A. V. Morgan (avmorgan27@attbi.com)
A continuation of the Two Ranmas manga story arc (V35 P1-4). Sexual
humor and innuendo, nudity and violence. Consider yourself warned.
Disclaimer: Ranma Nibunnoichi, and the associated cast and concepts are
the property of Rumiko Takahashi and those publishers and distributors
to whom she has given official rights. This work, in no way intends to
infringe upon those rights. The ideas explored are those of the author,
and should not be construed to express the opinions or intentions of
the creator or associated agencies.
BOLD Emphasis
~Italics~ Thought/Flashback
*SoundFX* ^_^;
[Sign] O.O [Arrrrgh! Panda's can't TALK!]
------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Thirty-Four: A Pocket Full of Mischief
------------------------------------------------------------------
In the brief lull between Ranma declaring herself to be Fa Shen and
Ranko's plaintive call for Happosai's demise, the demented old
master of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts narrowed his
wizened old eyes on Nodoka. Having been the source of the fabled
Togenkyo water used by Genma to sire his son and heir, and having
possessed numerous tomes and treasures stolen from the Tribe of
Heroines, it suddenly became obvious what the restoration of her
natural hair color meant. Curious, and completely indifferent to the
chaos he had already stirred up, he bounced over and proceeded to
pat the woman down. So it was that Happosai was cheerfully molesting
Ranko's mother when the drained girl dropped the gauntlet. The
battle commenced with the woman's shriek of indignity and attempts
by every fighter in the room to separate the old toad from her
person. While Nodoka twisted around, the naked steel in her hands
flashed and whirled, sending everyone diving for cover as quickly as
they dove in to assist. Ryouga tripped over Ranko in his own haste
to escape. Laid out full length on top of her, he stared into her
eyes and blushed furiously.
"Ryouga! Off!!!" Ranko blazed weakly.
"S-sorry! Sorry!" the lost boy bounced up, then proceeded to pick
the girl up and search for a safer place to lay her down. Such a
place did not exist in a world with Happosai, and only his perverse
interest in Nodoka, at the moment, offered Ranko any security.
Ranma and Fa Shen itched to pry the old man off of the Saotome
matriarch, but her own wild weapon was standing them off. The
perverted dwarf inspired her wild swings by bouncing away to offer
her a target, then speeding in to cling and crawl along her limbs
and torso while she lashed out. The old master, briefly detouring
from the delights of Nodoka's luscious form, concluded a quick
search of her pockets and produced a bottle of water labeled in
Chinese. Scampering to a perch on top of her head, he read the label
and pulled the cork with a crow of delight. Everyone tensed in
dread.
"What do you know! After all this time!"
"Oh no!" Nodoka cried, realizing what Happosai had stolen from her.
"What is that?" Ranma and Fa Shen flinched back.
"Oh, Master! Please, be careful with that! You don't know..."
"Be quiet, Soun! I know perfectly well what this is!"
[Run for your life, Boy!] Genma's sign waved, unnoticed.
"Happosai! You mustn't!" Nodoka dropped her sword and reached up
with both hands in vain to grab the bottle. Happosai launched
himself into the air to evade her grasp. Ranma and Fa Shen took one
look at him sailing in their direction with a bottle of water--they
had no idea what it was, or what it could do, but they had both
learned to fear any untested water--and bolted in opposite
directions in terror. Nodoka saw their fear and immediately assumed
they knew what it was. Why else fear mere water? Why fear that water
unless...? "Ranma...?" she caught her breath.
"He doesn't know," Akane hissed.
"Anything that makes Happosai happy is bad news," Nabiki added.
Mousse watched as Happosai turned to pursue Fa Shen, cackling in
glee at the prospect of restoring the resurrected amazon's
femininity, and proceeded to unleash his arsenal. Darts, daggers,
yo-yo's and various deadly implements on the end of long ropes and
chains shot out of his voluminous sleeves to either snare the old
master or disarm him before he could bring the water to bear.
"Oh my!" Kasumi covered her mouth. There was going to be quite a
mess to clean up when this was all over.
Happosai ducked and dodged around the incoming missiles and deftly
evaded the entanglements. His attention focused on Fa Shen, he
shouted, "Hold still, darn it! I just want to test something!" As
quickly as he had forgotten his vow to keep Ranma and Fa Shen's
sexual adventure a secret, he had allowed it to slip his mind WHY
the pair had been compelled to consider it.
"Test what!? What are you tryin' to do to me NOW old man!?"
Seeing that Happosai was ignoring her, Ranma had turned and was now
racing after the old pervert, weaving through the tangled web Mousse
had created in the Tendo living quarters. His efforts to continue
his assault were not making things any easier for her. "Hey!
Happosai! Since when were you into chasing boys!?" she taunted.
"Ranma! He thinks that water will turn him INTO a girl!" Nabiki
warned. That earned her a glare from Nodoka. Nabiki stared back at
her coolly and shrugged. It was all well and good to not cast doubt
on Ranma's manhood, but it was stupid to keep him ignorant of the
danger. The only problem was, the boy was not really Ranma.
Fa Shen stumbled to a halt and gaped at Nabiki. "You're kidding! How
is that..." This distraction was all Happosai had needed. The question
was interrupted by a huge splash as Happosai flung the contents of
the bottle over the boy. "...possible?" Fa Shen concluded her question
in amazement, looking down at herself in surprise.
"Oh no!" Ranma had only an instant to process Nabiki's warning
before witnessing as Ranko gained another twin. Picturing Fa Shen's
full reaction to the return of womanhood, Ranma knew she had
distract her. Straining for greater speed, she rocketed into Fa Shen
before Happosai could complete his assault with a body caressing
glomp, and her momentum carried the pair of them out toward the koi
pond.
"Pretty girl!" Happosai dropped through the restored girl's after-
image and began cursing in frustration. He was so distracted, he did
not notice the insane fury that possessed Nodoka. The woman had
slipped one foot under the sword she had dropped, kicked it into the
air and lunged forward in one motion. Everyone watched, stunned,
their eyes still turned to where the boy had turned into a girl, and
caught full view of Nodoka snatching the sword out of mid-air and
driving it down, point first at Happosai. He turned at the last
instant and saw the blade descending. He gulped loudly. The
explosive splash of Ranma and Fa Shen hitting the pond reached the
room as everyone saw the Saotome honor blade pass through Happosai's
shocked form and sink itself half way into the floor of the Tendo
home with a loud, hard thunk.
"Die!!!" Nodoka cried, tears spilling from her eyes.
Before anyone could react, the old master's body seemed to simply
fade out of existence like a bad memory. A round of gasps was
followed by a gentle pat as the diminutive martial arts master
dropped down from the ceiling to perch on the pommel of the sword.
Nodoka's vicious strike had only caught the man's after image!
"Damn woman! You could have killed me with this thing!" he
complained, clutching his chest in alarm. A drop of blood welled on
the tip of his nose, from where the point of the blade caught him as
he desperately jumped up to escape the fatal strike. His eyes
widened, and he made to leap away again as a huge mallet descended
toward his skull. His second spurt of motion was barely enough to
cause him to squirt out from between the mallet and the sword as
Akane's strike hammered the sword down to its hilt in the floor.
"Die you demented freak!!!" Akane screamed, continuing to slam her
mallet down, pursuing the old man as he crawled between blows to get
away. Her strength soaring from the power of her rage, each meaty
thwack was accompanied by the cracking and crunching of old bones
and the grunts of air expelled from Happosai's lungs. While the
bones of his condensed form were too dense to break, even from this
abuse, his old joints snapped and popped as the violent compressions
dislocated them. The old man had instants for his inhuman healing
factor to wrench his limbs back into proper order before she
clobbered him with a following blow.
While it looked like she might never stop, Happosai eventually
recovered enough to brace himself and meet the descending weapon.
With one finger, he stopped its downward arc. His other hand pulled
the mirror compact out of his gi and snapped it open. Akane stared
in shock, unable to believe the artifact had not been destroyed by
her punishment, and fell victim to its power. With a whoosh she was
sucked into the mirror.
"What have you done with my little girl!?" Soun lunged forward, his
head growing to monstrous proportions as his writhing tongue shot
out and wrapped itself around Happosai's neck.
"Ack! That's enough! I've had it!" Happosai choked. He lobbed a
Happodaikarin at Soun, the blast dispelling the demon-head attack,
and followed it up by flashing the open mirror in his face. Whoosh.
Another Tendo was out of the fight. Happosai twisted in a spiral,
dodging another barrage of implements from Mousse, then leapt onto
the table in the center of the room. Nodoka was tugging on the
handle of her sword, trying to pull it free of the floor, Nabiki was
slinking back into the hall, with Kasumi shielded partially behind
her, and Genma was staring at him with beady panda eyes. Happosai
whipped around and caught Ryouga trying to sneak Ranko away from the
fight. Past him, Ranma and Fa Shen were preparing to rejoin the
fray. Happosai glared at them, knowing they were the greatest
threat.
The girls glared back. It had looked like Akane was keeping
everyone's attention for a bit, but now they needed to return to the
fight. Ranma had forced Fa Shen to trade clothes and braid Ranma's
hair while everyone was distracted by the aftermath of Nodoka's
attack. Ranma had known that, however it happened, once Fa Shen
turned into a girl, Ranma had to trade places with her. She would
not allow Fa Shen to die in her place if her mother did not react
well to the transformation. Having become used to quick changes, the
clothing and identity swap was completed with enough time for them
to witness the trapping of Akane and Soun, as Fa Shen let her hair
down to complete the deception.
"You keep an eye on Ranko, Ryouga," Ranma commanded, passing her
ersatz lover and nemesis. "We'll take care of the old goat."
"Are you sure you two can handle him on you own?" Ryouga frowned,
cradling Ranko in his arms, her head on his shoulder. He wanted to
rip the old man limb from limb, but his first instinct, to keep him
from using the helpless Ranko against them, still gripped him.
"Between us, he doesn't stand a chance," Fa Shen promised. It was a
bitter declaration, since the old man had just restored her to
normal. However, his actions had clearly doomed Ranma. Her anger
over the initial betrayal of trust blossomed into a killing rage,
awakening the maiden of war she had become during the conflict that
ended her life.
While Happosai studied them, Genma-panda slipped up beside his wife
and grasped the hilt of her sword in one massive paw. With a growl
of exertion, and a scream of tortured wood, he drew the blade free
and handed it to Nodoka. She stared back into the frighteningly
intelligent eyes of the cursed beast, before hardening her gaze and
turning once more to face the old master. Genma grunted and took an
offensive stance protectively beside her. A look passed from him to
Ranma, the former son nodding to assert her identity.
"You make a fine young woman, Ranma," Happosai smirked, sensing the
circle closing around him. The enclosed space neatly hampered his
style, forcing him to stand his ground when his normal tactics
involved an exhausting chase through the streets. He shifted his
stance to look at Nodoka and bowed. "I hope you are proud of the
daughter you SHOULD have borne, Nodoka-chan!"
Genma snarled, and Nodoka leveled her blade. "You have meddled for
the last time, Happosai! If you think you have turned me against my
child, you are sadly mistaken! I shall love and cherish MY DAUGHTER
every bit as much as the SON you have slain with this vicious act!"
she spat. How it was possible for her son to become a perfect copy
of Ranko and Ranneko... or Fa Shen--or whoever she really was... she
could wonder at later. For now, it would be enough to stop him from
ever harming another family as he had harmed hers. She blinked her
tears away and lunged in to strike.
Happosai laughed and leapt away from the blade arcing in to cleave
him. As he did, he kicked a hot kettle of tea into Genma's face,
restoring his apprentice's true form. Because the old man had
launched himself in the same direction, Nodoka turned and witnessed
the second startling transformation of this battle. Too angry to
think straight, Genma made no effort to dodge. Out of habit, he
instantly produced and donned his familiar gi and headcloth,
adjusted his glasses, and snapped out a series of kicks and punches
to meet Happosai's assault.
"Genma!" Nodoka gasped, nearly dropping her sword in shock.
"Forgive me, my darling!" Genma wept, driving himself on against the
man who trained him. Fury and desperation granting him the speed to
evade the old man's shiatsu strikes and return a few solid blows.
Happosai, annoyed by the fact that Genma had momentarily overcome
his fear and fought with his true ability, rebounded from the
occasional hit, leading the bigger man around the room. From the
hard, ruthless patterns emerging, Genma was on the verge of
unsealing the Yamasen-ken. Should he unleash that, and the
compliment to his infamous brainchild, the Umisen-ken, Happosai
would be forced to take the man seriously.
"Genma! You're beginning to make me angry!" Happosai threatened.
"Unless you want to feel my wrath, you better cease and apologize!"
His student was well aware of the nature of Happosai's revenge, the
malicious campaign of humiliation and degradation he would unleash
would wreak physical, mental, emotional and financial ruin on the
man.
"Dead men can't take revenge!" Ranma shouted, launching herself into
close combat. She was grateful that her father had kept the troll
occupied long enough for her to work out a strategy with Fa Shen.
The resurrected amazon had proven to be the most effective opponent
Happosai had faced in recent months. All Ranma and Genma had to do
was give her an opening and she could cripple the old man in his
tracks. Ranma effortlessly fell into step with her father. The two
knew each other so well they could fight as one, Ranma providing the
dazzling speed and agility to box Happosai in, while Genma
overwhelmed the old man with superior size and strength.
Happosai was laughing, or rather chuckling, madly. He was being
pressed hard enough that he could not spare the air for outright
laughter, but he was enjoying himself immensely. Ranma was dancing
circles around him, hemming him in, tying him down so Genma could
deliver punishing strikes. At the same time, she was batting away
his Happodaikarin as quickly as he produced them. Mousse was
circling the trio, ferrying the bombs Ranma lobbed at him out into
the yard and acting as back up to keep the old man from getting
away. Occasionally, Ranma would leave an opening for escape, but if
Happosai tried to take it, a pole arm or mace would whip out from
Mousse to intercept the master. Nodoka had quickly realized she
could not bring her sword to bear without endangering her husband or
child, and had rushed out to relieve Ryouga. The lost boy placed
Ranko in her care and raced in to assist those pressing Happosai.
The founder of Anything Goes was almost at his limit just rolling
with the punches.
It seemed inevitable that the four of them would grind the old man
into paste, but after a while it became obvious, as he risked death
again and again to snuggle up to Ranma, that the little charge ups
he was getting from her were boosting his healing and endurance more
than enough to keep from being worn down. Cursing, she had to drift
to the edge of the conflict and let Mousse and Ryouga press him
close. Neither was as fast as Ranma, but they still reacted quickly
enough, when he produced an object, to knock it out of his hands.
This discouraged him from whipping out the compact and trapping
another of them, or using his pipe to grapple with. The amount of
damage the three males delivered the old man would have finished
even Pantyhose Taro, but Happosai took his lumps and kept dancing.
Finally, Fa Shen entered the fray.
In comparison to the pace of the battle, it had seemed to take
forever for her to charge the area with negative ki. Except for
Happosai himself, though, no one present had witnessed her Vengeance
of Heaven, Raking Claws technique. Thus, as she darted in, clawed
hand reaching to intercept Happosai, Mousse attempted to help by
snaring the master in binding chains. Happosai caught the amazons'
movements from the corners of his eyes, and instead of dodging the
chain, leapt up to intercept it. While the center wrapped around
him, he whipped the loose end around Ryouga. The other end was
firmly anchored in Mousse's hand when Fa Shen screamed her attack
and grabbed hold of the man. Grasping the chain in both hands,
Happosai howled under the onslaught of massive electrical discharge
but channeled much of the searing lightening through to Mousse and
Ryouga.
For several seconds the three cried out in pain, dancing the
electric boogaloo, as Genma and Ranma twisted away to shield their
eyes. Fa Shen snarled, realizing too late how her attack had been
turned against her allies, and broke contact. The lightening shifted
from Happosai to her, as she grunted to contain the power she had
unleashed. While she dropped to one knee, Happosai lunged, heaving
on the chain and throwing Ryouga and Mousse out the open shoji and
into the pond. All three of them were blackened and smoking, but
still able to move. Unfortunately, the duck and piglet that emerged
from the pond were no longer much of a threat. Genma turned around,
realizing that the master had bought too much room to breathe, and
lunged in to attack.
"Too slow, Genma!" Happosai grinned, an evil glint in his eye as he
snapped open the compact in his face.
"Ranma! It's all up to yooooooou...!" Genma's cry was swallowed, along
with him, by the mirror. Ranma made the best of her father's
sacrifice to dart in and deliver a snap kick to Happosai's wrist.
The compact went flying out of the old man's grasp, through the
entrance to the hall and skittering off towards the kitchen. In a
flash, Happosai took off after it. Ranma spared one glance at Fa
Shen, who was dragging herself to her feet, her hair standing on end
and crackles of electricity sparking off of her form. She nodded to
indicate she was alright and Ranma raced down the hall. P-Chan
rocketed through the room after her like a black homing missile.
Following Ranma, the porcine projectile made its way into the
kitchen. Now as small, fast and agile as the old master, he streaked
around the room in Happosai's wake. Ranma skidded, losing her
footing on a patch of soup the two hurtling black blurs knocked off
the counter, sliding on her flank to crash into a cabinet.
"Waaah!" Shaking her head, then twisting it around to follow the
ricocheting path of Ryouga and Happosai, she barely noticed what her
fingers brushed against as she braced her arm to stand. "Oh! What
luck!" she cheered, realizing she had come to rest right next to the
mirror. Happosai spotted her plucking the compact up off the floor
and homed in on her. She jerked and whipped around, holding the open
mirror to shield her from the incoming attack she sensed. Happosai
caught the flash of reflected light from the mirror and squinched
his eyes shut, hurdling the top of the mirror as he streaked in, and
planted both feet in Ranma's face. P-Chan, in hot pursuit, gave a
wide eyed squeal of alarm before vanishing into the trap. Ranma's
head snapped back at the blow, cracking hard against the cabinet
frame, and she lost her grip on the compact. Happosai rebounded from
her face, snatched up the trap and raced back out through the Tea
Room.
Fa Shen was ready for him. "Got you!" she shouted. Forming a massive
ball of chi in her hands, she snapped her hands apart, sending a
ring of destruction right at Happosai, "Dragon's Noose!" As
intended, Happosai dove for the open middle as she clapped her hands
back together, "Vengeance of Heaven, Snapping Jaws!" A dark bolt of
chi shot out ahead of a wall of compressed air. It hit Happosai
square in the chest. All the energy in the glowing chi "smoke-ring"
shot in toward that black bolt. There was a thunderous explosion as
Happosai became the hub of a wheel of sheet lightening. The entire
dojo shook from the confined detonation. Ranma raced in from the
kitchen, barely noticing the shocked expressions on Nabiki and
Kasumi's faces as they peered down from the end of the hall, and
screeched to a halt over the blackened form of Happosai.
The old man lay on his face, still and unmoving.
"Did you kill him?" Ranma asked, as Fa Shen dragged herself over to
Ranma's side to examine their foe. Ranma nudged the old man with a
toe, half expecting him to leap up and bite her.
"It's possible," Fa Shen panted. She felt a faint satisfaction at
seeing her special technique actually work properly this time.
Kneeling in front of Ranma, she carefully rolled the old man over
onto his back. As the two girls leaned in, his eyes popped open and
he giggled. As their eyes widened in shock, he flipped open the
mirror in his hand.
"Suckers!" he crowed, watching the pair vanish helplessly into the
mirror. As their cries of dismay evaporated, he snapped the trap
shut and collapsed back, panting. "Damn. I almost didn't make it
through that one!" he complained as he put the compact safely away.
While his eyes closed, he heard the footsteps of Nabiki and Kasumi
approach. He sighed as the two girls knelt next to him, and propped
him up. "Why, thank you girls! I won't forget your kindness!" He
blinked and tried to focus as Kasumi took his chin in one soft hand
and smiled down at him.
"You look like you could use something to liven you up," she smiled,
as Nabiki held the rim of a bowl to his lips.
"Down the hatch!" Nabiki grinned evilly, as Kasumi hit a pressure
point on the old man's neck that caused his mouth to open as wide as
it possibly could. Nabiki then dumped a full bowl of Akane's special
breakfast miso soup down his throat. Kasumi kindly tapped another
point that caused the old man to swallow. "Compliments of Akane!"
Nabiki stared him in the eye hatefully.
"Oh! Nabiki!" the other girl suddenly stiffened. "Are you sure this
was really proper!?" Kasumi looked down and watched as the old man's
bruised and bloodied face proceeded to display every hue found in
the kingdom of fungi, molds and mildew.
"Are you complaining?" Nabiki asked as the small, evil, long
unwanted house-guest choked on his medicine.
"Well..." Kasumi held herself tight as the old man flopped like a fish
out of water on fast forward. "What if we kill him?" she asked in a
small voice.
"Then you will have done the world a favor," Nodoka announced, lured
in by the sudden silence in this symphony of destruction. Ranko,
carried piggyback, looked over her shoulder at Happosai, as his body
arched and finally fell still. She made no sound as her mother
positioned her sword over Happosai's chest and prepared to skewer
the man where he lay. The four women held their breath for several
minutes as Nodoka contemplated murder. They all wanted him to pay
for the damage he had done in their lives. They all suspected that,
even with all the abuse he had taken in this fight, he would recover
and be back to plaguing them again in no time.
Happosai's eyes creaked open and he coughed to muster his voice.
Meeting Nodoka's unforgiving glare, he smiled faintly. In a weak,
but steady voice he proceeded. "Murder is not your style, Nodoka.
But, if you want an excuse not to," he coughed again, "I'd like to
point out that it is rather difficult to recover what a dead man has
tucked away in folds of his shadow."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Nodoka ground her teeth.
"You might have noticed the insane amount of weaponry Mousse pulled
out of his sleeves. Tell me, Nodoka, where does he keep it all?"
Happosai gave a wizened old grin.
The four women stiffened at the question. Then, a certain
bespectacled duck quacked for their attention. Nodoka turned to
stare at the creature, gasping when it pulled a sword out from
between it's feathers. The weapon was larger than the duck itself.
"T-th-the d-duck j-just pulled a SWORD o-out of THIN AIR!" she
stammered in disbelief.
"Mom," Ranko sighed, "I think you have to let him live. Everyone is
trapped in the mirror and he's stuck it where no one can get to it."
Nodoka sighed and shifted her sword to the side. Hanging her head,
she uttered in a low voice, "One of these days, Happosai, you will
pay for your misdeeds." She was about to walk off in defeat when she
straightened in shock. Ranko was so surprised that she slipped off
the tall woman's back and fell on her rear. She looked up in shock
as Nodoka spun and stared at her. "You called me MOM!" the woman
cried, her voice filled with hope and longing.
"Nodoka. It's time you got a few things straight," Happosai sat up,
clutching his stomach in agony. He winced and then let out a
prolonged burp. For all the world, it looked as if a cloud of toxic
gas streamed out of his mouth and then scampered away from the old
man in search of a place to hide. He shuddered and continued.
"Seeing as I have most of your family hostage for the moment, maybe
it's time we started negotiations."
-------------------------
While Nodoka stood watch over the incapacitated Happosai, Kasumi and
Nabiki called in reinforcements. Nabiki was able to get herself,
Akane and Ukyo excused from school on account of a "family
emergency". It was the first time that Ukyo's status as a fiancée
had proved particularly useful. To have another fighter on hand in
case Happosai recovered, Nabiki was willing to risk this public
acknowledgement. Further calls rounded up Dr. Tofu, Cologne and
Shampoo. The good doctor arrived first, and proceeded to examine the
old man while Kasumi busied herself out of sight cleaning the
kitchen. By the time the amazons and Ukyo arrived, Tofu had
diagnosed Happosai and concluded that he was sufficiently injured to
require several days of bed rest. If not for the residual female ki
in Fa Shen's final attack, the old man would have died. However, it
was Akane's cooking that had truly laid him up. Even Happosai's
constitution was severely taxed by a full serving of toxic waste.
Cologne provided a purgative and prescribed some herbal remedies
that had the pleasant side effect of making the old man as weak and
uncoordinated as a baby.
Unfortunately, while they assured he could not fight for the
immediate future, the old man did indeed hold half the Tendo and
most of the Saotome families hostage.
"If you keep poisoning me, I am not going to bring any of them
back!" Happosai threatened grumpily, after recovering from the
purgative. In his worn and weakened state, projectile vomiting
induced by Cologne's remedy was violently painful.
"You are a stubborn old man, Happi," Cologne sneered, "but a few
days in your condition, subjected to my ministrations, and you would
have no choice but to hand over the compact. Not even you are immune
to compulsion." She wrung out a towel soaked in hot water and laid
it over his forehead. "Now, after you have had a few minutes to
recover, we will get to these negotiations you demanded."
Leaving the old man in his room with Dr. Tofu, Cologne returned to
the Tea Room where a shell shocked Nodoka had retired once the good
doctor had taken Happosai in hand. She had remained passive through
most of Nabiki's earlier recap of the battle for Cologne, Shampoo
and Ukyo--apart from snagging a heated kettle and dousing the duck
to restore Mousse's proper form, when Nabiki mentioned Genma's
transformation. There had been a brief, reluctant lecture from
Cologne to explain the curses of Jusenkyo, but Nodoka failed to
voice the suspicion everyone dreaded. Perhaps, in her mind, the
transformation of her son was attributed to the altogether different
powers of Togenkyo. When Nodoka said nothing, Nabiki continued
describing the battle. When Cologne excused herself to assist Tofu,
the two fiancées were absolutely floored by the fact that Nodoka had
witnessed Fa Shen's restoration. Nabiki had used meaningful looks
and careful phrasing to confirm the unspoken assumption that Fa Shen
had been forced to pose as Nodoka's son. It did not take genius to
realize that in Nodoka's mind she no longer had a son.
Fortunately, Ranma was trapped with several people who could all
assure her that Nodoka had no intentions of having Ranma commit
seppuku because of this revelation. Unfortunately, she would also
learn that Nodoka intended to make a real woman out of her and get
her married to fulfill Nodoka's secret family obligation. Nabiki
would not lay odds on the chance of that going over well. Ranma may
have been subtly infected by the former Ranko's quest to get in
touch with her femininity, but it went without saying that she would
fight to be a man again. No one wanted to guess how Nodoka would
take that.
"Happosai will be strong enough to talk in a moment," Cologne
informed everyone as she perched on the table among them. Taking a
deep breath, she decided to return to the cause of the battle, since
Nabiki had glossed over it so far. "Can anyone explain how this
conflict was started?"
Nabiki sighed and looked at Mousse. "I think part of the blame lies
with feather brain here," she scowled. Fixing him with a stern eye,
she prompted, "I think you know what that was really about. Happosai
was taunting Ranma, and aroused Nodoka's suspicion, but I am still
not sure what he was getting at. You said Ranma had to sleep with Fa
Shen to heal Ranko. Do you care to explain that?" The implications
were obvious, and certainly enough to cause chaos in the families,
but the reasons simply eluded the mercenary girl.
"The only reason I said what I did was because I could see that
Ranma was about to cave in and tell," Mousse noted carefully,
pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Composing himself, he
went on, "We all know about Ranma's gift with words. On such a
delicate subject, it seemed difficult enough for people to hear, but
if Ranma told it, things might have gone much worse. The simple
explanation is, sex generates loose ki. That energy normally
contributes to the conception of new life. Without conception, the
energy eventually returns to its source, but for a short period of
time it lingers and can be channeled to other uses. Since Ranko..." he
paused and looked at Nodoka. Burying his face in his hands for a
moment, he groaned. There was no way around it.
"Ranko was bound to Ranma and Fa Shen by the curse. Because of this,
she could absorb ki from Ranma or Fa Shen to replace what she lost
through the cure," he modified. Hoping Nodoka did not question why
this was true, he pressed on. "In order to heal Ranko, it seemed
obvious that Ranma and Fa Shen would have to have sex, and the
simplest arrangement would have been for them to do it with each
other."
Nodoka listened to this. It certainly was not a light thing for her
son to have contemplated. He was engaged to Akane, and several other
girls it seemed, though she had never been entirely clear on that
count, so it did pose a threat to the Tendo family honor. However,
"I find this a little confusing. First, I thought the curse made
such a thing fatal for them to risk doing. Second, Ranneko... er, Fa
Shen..." she shook her head. "I do wish someone would explain why
Ranko's 'twin' isn't her twin, or how she could be, as she put it,
the 'curse'. Whoever she is, she stressed that what Ranma had to do
to heal Ranko would be a stain on his manhood. I know it is a bit
scandalous, for an engaged man to take a lover--a lover who might be
a Tendo herself, if she is truly Ranko's sister--but one cannot deny
it would be manly."
"To put it simply, Nodoka," coughed Happosai, as he limped into the
room, "no one has told you the full truth yet. Which brings me to
the first point of our negotiations." He made his way to the table
and then perched next to Cologne and cleared his throat. Dr. Tofu
followed and took a seat in silence next to Ukyo. When everyone's
attention was on him, Happosai announced, "It is time you learned
the truth, Nodoka. However, the reason we had this little fracas
this morning is because it's never quite safe to confront you with
the naked truth. So, before I dare, I must have your word of honor
that you will listen to and comprehend all I have to say, and that
you will not act until you do. Secondly, on the matter of Ranma's
manhood, I expect you to heed the opinions of those who know him
best, especially Ranma himself, before passing judgment."
"There is no need for judgment. You've made it quite clear that SHE
was not intended to be a man," Nodoka grated. Shampoo and Ukyo bit
their lips and clenched their fists in their laps. They could see
that the hurt and hateful look Nodoka gave Happosai was in some part
directed at herself. It was torturing her that the fates had taken
her two greatest wishes and twisted them in such a cruel fashion.
All the sacrifices she had made for her son were wasted, her dream
of a daughter destroyed by an obligation that stopped nature from
taking its course.
"Again, you don't know the facts. Just give me your word, Nodoka-
chan. Heed my words and answer my questions, and you will learn,"
Happosai huffed.
"Fine. You have my word."
"Excellent! Now, before I begin, please tell me, why was it
necessary for you to have a son? More importantly, why was it so
important for him to be a pinnacle of manhood?" he prompted. The
others turned to the matron in interest. When Nodoka repeated her
earlier claim of a promise to her father, and her family obligation,
he waved it off. "I know about the promise. Genma went on about it
for hours when he begged for my assistance in conceiving his heir.
What I am asking is, did you ever bother to learn why your father
placed this obligation on you? Do you know what purpose Ranma was
supposed to serve?"
Nodoka blinked. Folding her hands in her lap and staring at them,
she confessed, "I tried many times to pry that information out of my
father. I first learned of the obligation when my marriage to Genma
was arranged. Initially, he said he would confide in us when I gave
birth to a son, but before that happened a thief broke into his
house and got into his personal papers. Father claimed the thief was
obviously searching for information on the family legacy that Ranma
was supposed to fulfill. Because of this intrusion, Father decided
it could be dangerous to reveal anything more until Ranma was of age
to assume his obligation. Because of my father's sudden death, I
feared the knowledge was lost, but in his will he stated that all
the pertinent information was entrusted to an old friend of the
family." She sighed and wiped an unshed tear from her eyelashes.
"Ranma is old enough now that, had he been the boy he appeared to
be, we could have gone to this man to learn what Ranma was to do. I...
I don't know what to do now."
"I see. I take it then that this man would be the one to pass final
judgment on Ranma's manhood then?" Happosai pressed.
"I know only that Ranma was to be tested, initially by my father,
but in this case no doubt by his friend," Nodoka shrugged.
Happosai nodded. "Well, as I see it, it is not unlikely that if
Ranma became male again, he might pass whatever test awaits. I would
think that's enough reason not to act hastily," Happosai pointed
out. "So, that settled, it is time to tell you the truth about
Ranma, Fa Shen and the curse."
Everyone in the room tensed. This was not what any of them expected
when Happosai spoke of "negotiations". Cologne smirked, realizing
that Happosai took the matter at hand seriously enough to play wise
old elder. Even though it suddenly sounded as if he had appointed
himself Ranma's advocate, she was suspicious of his intentions. Even
she would hesitate before daring to present Ranma's mother with the
truth. In spite of her reputed haste in passing judgment, she
honestly felt she needed to hear this tale from her son, not a third
party. "Is it fair to have this discussion when they cannot be
present?" Cologne demanded.
"Certainly, because most of what I have to say concerns Nodoka's
daughter," Happosai crossed his arms and turned to look at the
remaining pig-tailed girl. "Ranko," he nodded to her. The girl
sitting beside Nodoka stiffened in surprise. The other teens in the
room gaped at Happosai, bug eyed.
"What are you talking about?" Ranko demanded uncomfortably.
"My... daughter?" Nodoka looked at her.
"Yes. Your daughter," Happosai scowled. "The person who should have
been born if not for my meddling. A person who sits here today as
the result of Ranma's curse."
"I don't understand..." Nodoka frowned, pulling the girl close to her
side. Unable to fathom where Happosai was going, most of the
witnesses suddenly felt as removed as poor Kasumi, who listened from
the hall to avoid Tofu.
"How do you come up with that?" Ranko challenged. She knew he was
about to explain about Jusenkyo, but she could not see how he was
getting around to it.
"Taking the things we've learned recently, it's not that hard to
see," Happosai insisted. Pulling out a video cassette and handing it
to Nabiki, he instructed, "You should have known if you taped
something like this, it would eventually find its way into the wrong
hands. Still, it's useful now. Why don't you play this for Nodoka."
Nabiki checked the label and noticed her own hand writing. She knew
at once what the tape was. She had made it thinking it could be used
to convince Kuno that Ranma and the Pig-Tailed-Girl were the same
person. Deciding he would probably dismiss the tape, she had kept it
for personal amusement. When it disappeared, she had assumed Ranma
had found it and destroyed it. While she turned on the television
and prepared to play it, Happosai finally mentioned Jusenkyo.
"Last spring, Genma was concluding Ranma's training in China and
decided to take his son to a legendary training ground known as
Jusenkyo," he began. After Cologne's lecture, Nodoka was properly
disturbed and suspicious of what would follow. He described the
events so familiar to the rest of the crowd, focusing on the images
beginning to play on the screen. It showed the Tendo furo, where a
naked Ranma had just entered and squatted down on a stool in
preparation to bathe. "...Genma jumped out of the spring Ranma knocked
him into and continued to fight, unaware that anything special had
occurred. However, Ranma was quite startled by the sight of his
father turned into a panda and was knocked into another spring. The
Nyanniichaun," he named it as the boy on the screen picked up a
bucket of cold water and poured it over his head. Quicker than the
camera could pick up, his form shrank and altered.
"R-Ranko!" Nodoka gasped, watching the boy turned girl shiver at the
cold and begin to wash herself. Ranko just blushed and hunched in on
herself. She found herself praying that this was not a record of one
of the few times during her stay at the dojo where she had "tension"
to burn off during her bath.
"This was your son's curse. Whenever he was splashed with cold
water, he would become a she," Happosai nodded, smirking at the
image. "Because of the contract Genma made, he forced Ranma to hide
his true identity until they could find a cure, and that is where
Ranko came into the picture."
"I don't understand. I... Ranko and Ranma... even that other girl, they
were all here in the same place. How can that..." she pointed at the
screen, where the girl was rinsing off and proceeding to climb into
the heated tub, "...be both Ranma and Ranko?"
Ranko just sighed as she saw the girl on screen become a boy again.
She had not been caught indulging in immodest behavior on tape.
Seeing Happosai looking at her expectantly, and knowing that finally
the truth was at hand, she spoke. "That's actually me," she stated
meekly. "Ranma and Fa Shen were split off from me by the cure. Until
last week, we were all one person." She bit her lip and turned
impulsively to Cologne, "What I don't understand is, the mirror
never copied the curse; why did your antidote change Fa Shen back
into a girl when she ended up stuck in the male copy of me?"
Nodoka froze.
"As I explained to you, Ranko, your male form was just a mask. It
was enough for the curse to latch onto, but when the mirror copied
you it had to catch the underlying truth to make that copy real. In
a funny way, it made the reflections more equal, since one was a
girl turned into a boy and the other was a boy turned into a girl. I
suppose if you had discovered and shown your true form to the
mirror, you could have produced another reflection," Cologne
hypothesized.
"What are you talking about?" Nodoka finally pleaded.
"Ranko's cure was mostly an accident," Cologne turned to the mother.
She proceeded to explain the legend of the Mirror of Broken Souls
and what had happened when "Ranma" had stumbled across it. From
there it was easy enough to simply describe everything that had
happened up to the previous evening. "Fa Shen, you see, was the
original victim of the Nyannichaun. The template of the curse, but
since Ranma was a reincarnation of her, he was able to free her from
her grave. Her awakening last night was completely unexpected, but,
it did cause Ranko to figure out who she was and free Ranma and Fa
Shen from inside of her."
Nodoka was struggling to take it all in. She turned to Ranko and
tried to puzzle it all out, "So, you took my son's place and thought
you were Ranma from the moment he was cursed until last night?"
Ranko nodded. "You... this... is the body of the child I actually gave
birth to?" she touched Ranko on the shoulder hesitantly and got
another nod.
"Also, we didn't know about Pops using Togenkyo water to have a son
until this morning," Ranko added.
"And Ranma and this Fa Shen--they both 'woke up' in the wrong
bodies, which was why 'Ranko' from the date was suddenly changed to
'Ranneko' when we got home..."
"Because it would have been too confusing to call her Fa Shen and I
wasn't going to give up my identity again," Ranko concluded,
shuddering. "It was hard enough to give up being Ranma and Ranma had
never really been Ranko. That's me. If I was really Ranma, then the
whole time I was being Ranko, I'd have been lying to you, but now it
turns out it was the only time I was really me."
Nodoka closed her eyes and sorted things out in her head some more.
She had seen so many impossible things that morning; more than she
had ever imagined possible. It had been a stretch to consider the
warped version of the curse that boy Kuno had described. Now, she
had seen people change sexes and species before her very eyes. She
had witnessed her own personal transformation with the restoration
of her hair. Magic had always seemed the most elusive thing in the
universe, but here she was facing a daughter she had never known she
had and SHE was practically stewing in it.
Ranko was also rehashing details in her mind, trying to see if they
had covered all the angles yet, when something flashed across her
mind. The only question that seemed unanswered was how healing her
was a threat to Ranma's manhood. She turned slowly toward Mousse,
remembering both what he had revealed and the surge of energy that
had passed from Ranma to her. It could not escape Nodoka's mind, now
that she knew Ranma had awoken in the female reflection, what Ranma
had been prepared to do. That was the threat to manhood, but Ranko
now understood that the threat had already been realized. All of
Ranma's actions the previous night suddenly made sense. She could
see in Mousse's eyes that he knew. There was no question Ryouga
knew, and no doubt Fa Shen had been informed. The question was, did
Nodoka have enough clues to figure this out for herself? Before she
could look, her mother's voice intruded plaintively. Clearly, she
was already on the right track!
"Oh! Ranma was going to...!" Nodoka covered her mouth in shock.
"Indeed," Happosai studied her passively. "If Fa Shen had remained
male, Ranma would have sacrificed his manhood in order to heal
Ranko. Personally," he smirked, "I find it ironic that such a noble
gesture, such a selfless sacrifice, would no doubt have inspired you
to hold your son to that ridiculous contract. If not for this
conversation. Of course there remains a problem, doesn't there?"
"I..." Nodoka looked up at him. She swallowed. "She t... HE tried to
warn me in the bath last night. I- I- I may have actually pushed him
to do it. But," she paused, reflectively. "You... prevented that. By
splashing Fa Shen, you made it so they cannot... well, not as a man
and a woman."
"Not unless one of them becomes male again. The question is, Nodoka,
do you have any intention of allowing Ranma to be a man, or would
you condemn him to remain female because of some imperfection in his
manhood or how he attained it?" Happosai pressed. "I remind you that
Ranko is in just as great a need now as she was when your son put
his manhood and his life at risk to inform Fa Shen of his
intentions."
"Do... Do you have any more of that To-Togenkyo water?" Nodoka asked,
mentally kicking herself for forgetting that Ranma's manhood could
indeed be restored. But Happosai shook his head. "Then... how could
either of them become male again?"
"One of them would have to take a curse, a Nanniichaun curse," he
clarified, describing it as the compliment to the nyanniichaun. "I
should point out, however, that Fa Shen is not inclined to be a man.
No, it is Ranma who would wish that. Now, he could lock that curse,
hide the girl he is now forever, but there would always be the risk
of something unlocking it, revealing the girl inside." He smiled in
thoughtful appreciation of that inner girl. He shrugged, "It is in
the nature of such a curse to leave its victim half a man, but even
so, it is more than man enough to save Ranko. Can your definitions
of manhood survive what your son might become?"
Nodoka was not sure how to answer. The only clue she had of what
sort of person he would become, subject to living as both sexes, was
the girl beside her. On second thought, if she understood what she
had been told, Ranko was a perfect example. For all intents and
purposes, she was a female version of her son, a product of the
exact same upbringing. Taking her hand, Nodoka asked, "Ranko, are
you a boy or a girl? Not... not physically. I mean, if you've been
both, can you really be one or the other?"
"Uh," Ranko scratched her head with her other hand, trying to decide
how honest she should be. "Being a girl is sort of what separates me
from being Ranma. It's sort of the way I was born. I'm not much of a
girl, I suppose, but it's kinda how I see myself. But... I kinda like
bein' a boy, too, I suppose. It's kinda strange to think I'm not
one--can't be one--anymore. I feel like somethin's missin'. Like,
I'm also a boy. I never liked flippin' back and forth 'cuz of the
curse, 'cuz I don't like havin' no... not having any control over it.
There's just a part of the that only works if I am a boy, so I guess
that's why I miss it. I'll miss it more the longer I am like this."
"Oh dear," Nodoka bit her lip, but forced herself to see the earnest
look in the girl's eye as she struggled to explain. "How... how do you
think Ranma will feel?" she prompted in dread.
Ranko cocked her head in thought. It was not that hard to answer,
since that was who she had been for most of what she could remember.
"At heart, he's a guy. I think, because of me, he's figured out what
it is to be a girl--I think he understands and can be a girl, like I
can be a boy. Bein' a boy or a girl changes the people around you
more than it changes you, though. You stay the same, but the way
people look at you and act around you changes. I can't describe all
the things you have to give up to just be one. That's what makes it
so hard. I don't think anyone who has been both could give up one
and not feel half dead," she confessed.
This surprised everyone, most especially Nodoka. "You are saying
that Ranma--even you yourself--NEED to go back to being cursed like
this? But, if that's so, why did you go through with this cure?" she
demanded, thinking back to the part of the story where the cursed
teen chose to exploit the mirror for a cure.
Ranko shrugged. "I really wasn't expecting to be cured. I planned to
survive and keep the curse. The only reason I am cured is because of
the stuff with the Togenkyo water. The only reason I let the mirror
thing go on was because I thought you deserved to have a normal
daughter and son," she explained. With a heavy sigh she added, "Just
'cuz I was comfortable with how I was, more or less, doesn't mean it
works all that well for the people around me."
"So, you and Ranma will both want to get cursed again," Nodoka
concluded in dismay. "You both feel it's better to be both."
Ranko nodded, ashamed. Then she firmed and corrected, "I am thinking
about getting a boy curse, but what I really want to do is see if I
can master it. Fa Shen said that's what people used to do. Get
cursed and master it so they could control the transformation and
use the advantages they gained from the curse. I already know I can
deal with the curse the way it was, but I don't like the idea that I
could have mastered it and didn't try. I can't back down from a
challenge like that!"
"Now that sounds like Ranma," Nabiki grinned, shaking her head.
------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Part Thirty-Four
------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: Reflections is quickly coming to a close, and quite clearly has
become something quite different than I had originally intended.
>From the kind of feedback I was getting from my more vocal readers,
a divergence from the original series was welcomed eagerly, so I
allowed the story to go where it would, rather than force it down
the original path of a "missing episode". This process started with
the first intrusion by Fa Shen during the writing of this story,
when I had already heard strong suggestions to make this a
divergence. Rather than remove the Fa Shen thread, I decided to see
how people reacted to where it took the story and I am pleased by
the result. I know I let things drift in an entirely original
direction before acknowledging this as a divergence, but up until
the awakening of Ranma and Fa Shen in their new bodies, it had been
possible to still jerk things back into line and smooth things down
before the end of the story. Ultimately, I decided it would be more
interesting to see where things would go on their own. What I
learned from this story taught me what I needed to know to write
what I originally had in mind, so a different version of Reflections
that fits into the original series is entirely possible. In the
future. For now, I am focusing on the end of this story and what
will unfold in its sequel. I hope my readers find this an
interesting way for Nodoka to learn of Ranma's curse. It naturally
evolved into the central crisis of the story. How she deals with a
daughter determined to recover her manhood, and a son who is
intimately in touch with his womanhood ought to be something of an
adventure! Tune in next time as Ranma, Fa Shen and the others are
released from the mirror trap and discover the mess Happosai has
created for them!