Foreword: Sorry about the alerts, folks. Shuffling fics around for spring cleaning.
Ranma ½ - Bits of China
Alt Fanfic
By Ozzallos
Part 1
Chapter I
"Stupid ol' man." Ranma Saotome grumbled as they trod down another dirt road somewhere through the interior of China. The training mission had not gone well and there was exactly one person to blame.
The redheaded girl cast another glare at the giant Panda walking beside her and her stomach growled, a not-so-subtle reminder of just how well things hadn't been going. Sure, here's a great idea! Let's swim across the Sea of Japan to find a legendary training ground! And while we're there, let's take in all the sights, sights like 'Spring of Drowned Girl' and 'Spring of Drowned Panda'! Not exciting enough? How about starving to death on the trail because somebody didn't pack enough supplies or bring enough money! Ha ha! No big deal, we can always steal what we need. Think of it as a Martial Arts exercise, Boy!
In fact, 'not gone well' was a serious understatement, Ranma snorted sarcastically. 'Horribly wrong' would be a more accurate assessment of their current situation, which basically consisted of wandering aimlessly down some rugged trail for eight days without food. Oh, and lets not forget that I'm a girl now too. Stupid ol' man. At least he got the panda puddle. Deserved worse. As if bidden by his thoughts, the aforementioned panda stopped suddenly and produced a wooden sign that read:
"Break camp!"
Ranma nodded, and the two ambled off the side of the road, through the dense vegetation and into a small clearing. Ranma unpacked the essentials and lit a fire, slowly warming a pan of water over it. For all of their other problems, water had been in plentiful supply. It was a mixed blessing however. While the frequent rainstorms kept them hydrated- and thus alive -It also had this nasty habit of activating their curse. Cold water 'on', hot water 'off'. Hot water was, of course, the scarcer of the two, which meant both father and son were getting used to their cursed forms quite unwillingly.
Finally the water had reached a suitable temperature and the Panda snatched it off the wire set, dousing himself completely. Before Ranma now sat his old man in a karate gi and glasses, who had considerately left absolutely no hot water for his own curse.
"Thanks a bunch, Pops." Ranma female timber quipped irritably, drawing more water to be heated for his girl's body.
"Hmmf." Genma Saotome shrugged with indifference. "Stop acting like a girl, Ranma. A real martial artist must be ready to endure hardship-"
"Day or night. Yeah, yeah." The girl blew him off. It was a speech she had heard many times to rationalize any number of screw-ups the old man made. Even as she put the pan of water over the fire, thunder rumbled in the distance, causing her to smile. She dumped the water out and stood up. "I'm going to scrounge for food. Enjoy the fire." While it lasts, she added mentally, walking off into the rainforest.
Ranma was ten minutes out from their impromptu campsite when the downpour began, torrential walls of rain soaking anything and everything. Everything included one redheaded martial arts prodigy, but this time she didn't mind. The old man got his, no doubt about it. No way was he going to stay dry in this stuff, she thought, holding an overly large palm leaf overhead. It was a poor excuse for an umbrella, but better than nothing. And better than Pops probably had at the moment, she grinned evilly.
The storm died out quickly as she knew it would, allowing Ranma to continue her hunt for food. She could almost predict them like clockwork after four months in the wild with nothing but the pack on her back, she noted wryly. She did have to give the old man his due on that particular score- It was excellent survival training. Totally unorthodox and completely unnecessary, but there were merits to it. Slim ones. Very, very slim ones.
It was now an hour and a half into her search for food, and the best she had been able to find was some unidentifiable berries. Ranma looked them over, very tempted to pop a few in her mouth, but she wasn't that foolish. They could be anything- including some nasty poisoning -so she stuck them in a little pouch and kept moving. The redhead was just crossing a small stream when she heard the sharp twang! of metal against metal echo up the hillside. Ranma instantly went to high alert, easily recognizing the sound of one blade biting into another. She went to a low crouch now, tuning her senses through the ambient jungle noise and heard more of the sharp sounds. Pitched battle, she thought, as they continued. Still a ways off though. I could head back to camp, no one the wiser. Or I could see just who is having a sword fight in the middle of a stinkin' Chinese rainforest, she smiled, finding that particular option much more appealing than sitting with the Panda. Heck, maybe they'll even have food.
'They' did, as it turned out, and she watched the fight continue from the forests' edge. Ranma spied as a purple haired Chinese girl wielding oversized bambori continued to repel attacker after attacker in a series of one on one duels. She was pretty decent, the redhead observed, but the food was by far more interesting. It was a veritable banquet and nobody was touching it. In fact, nobody was even looking at it. All eyes were on the puffy haired Chinese girl as she proceeded to pound another opponent into submission. I could sneak in, Ranma thought as her entire being began to center around the sucking hole in her stomach. In and out. They'd never notice a few dishes gone.
She began to take a step out of the forests' edge and stopped as a voice echoed from the depths of her skull. "Be a man, Ranma! A real martial artist must be prepared to do whatever it takes to survive!" Wheels began to turn in her brain. Even steal, pops? Where's the honor in that? "But you're starving!" Another voice echoed from the same pit. "Who's gonna notice?"
"Damn you, old man!" She growled softly as she folded to her knees, clutching her head. "Git out of my head!"
"That's just like a girl, Pathetic and weak!" Ranma's fist pounded the dirt. It's your fault, Pops! All of it! I won't steal for you! "Do it! Prove your worth to me, boy!"
"I said NO!" she punched the ground once more, leaving a sizable dent this time. She stared at the dirt and her fist buried into it. The voices were silent. Her breathing finally began to return to normal and she smiled thinly. Take that ol' man. Then she noticed the shadows. Rain shouldn't be here for another- She looked up and into the eyes of one purple haired Chinese girl flanked by two exceptionally masculine women, swords hanging loosely off their belts. The trio was all business. Ranma called upon her exceptional linguistic skills to solve the problem facing her.
"Um, eh… Nihao?"
Chapter II
The redhead was led- with some degree of deference, she noticed -to the center of the village, where a mostly female crowd awaited the arrival of the interloper. It was all Chinese, but Ranma knew insults and heckling when she heard 'em and the mob threw them in earnest. She was prodded into the center where the crowd had opened the space in a loose circle, and from it, the purple Chinese girl appeared on the opposite side, unarmed.
She squeaked something in mandarin. And Ranma simply stared. The dialogue was obviously directed at her but she didn't have a clue as to the content.
"Uh, I don't speak…" More high-pitched mandarin cut her off, and the Chinese girl was looking more than just annoyed now. Ranma shrugged wearily. It wasn't as if she was looking to piss these people off, but she couldn't understand a word-
"She wants to know why you have trespassed on the lands of the Joketsuzoku Amazons." A gravelly female voice came from behind her. Ranma spun around to find an old woman balanced gracefully on the tip of a cane, her large eyes framed by a mane of gray hair that fell behind a green robe. The fact that the other amazons weren't crowding her didn't go unnoticed by Ranma.
Ranma looked from the Chinese girl to the old woman, probably some sort of elder, and answered, "I… I had no idea I was in your land…" Then some survival instinct kicked in at the last moment and she added, "…Honored elder."
The old woman relayed the information to the crowd and the girl, who rippled with angry sentiment. What that sentiment was exactly, Ranma couldn't tell. But the tone was clear enough.
The girl belted out another round of mandarin and Ranma turned back to the Elder for a translation. "She says that you must be a scout from another tribe." The Elder's gaze narrowed on the redhead.
"N-No!" Ranma took a step back. "That's not it at all!"
The Elder didn't bother translating as her physical reaction communicated everything the rest of the tribe needed to know. "Then why are you here?" She prompted.
Ranma sighed. Here it is, the story of her life. It would either make her or break her with these people. "I'm on a martial arts training mission from Japan. I was told," She didn't bother to add who had told her, she thought cynically, "That there were many techniques to be learned in China. As to why I'm here," Ranma set a depressed shrug. "I'm so lost it's not even funny."
The Elder turned to address the Chinese girl and the crowd as a whole, rattling through the translation. Another round of incomprehensible murmurs rippled though the crowd, though the tone wasn't hostility this time much to Ranma's surprise. Respect? Empathy? Even the Chinese girls' face was reflecting those same emotions. What the…?
The Elder saw the confusion in Ranma's face. "You are a Warrior Women among a village of Warrior Women, stranger. We are the Amazons of Joketsuzoku and a training sojourn such as yours is not to be taken lightly." Her gaze narrowed once more on the redhead. "However, all have their place in this village and as a warrior, you are bound by our edict."
"What… does that mean?"
"It means you shall fight for your place among us, redheaded warrior." The Elder answered firmly
"I didn't come here to-"
"It does not matter what you came her to do or not to do." The old lady cut her off decisively. "Win and accept your place as an equal. Lose and become our slave… Or die."
Ranma's eyes widened as The Elder presumably relayed the conversation to the rest of the village, which promptly began cheering raucously. Oh crap, Ranma thought and their circle began to widen for the impending duel. They're serious about this. Well she sure as hell wasn't going to be a slave and dying was the pits too, so…
"Just what are the rules to this duel anyway?" She asked the elder, who had been talking to one of the crowd.
"Anything goes. To the death, depending on the mood of your opponent." The elder stated and was slightly surprised to see a tiny smile creeping across the strangers face for the first time since her capture.
"Anything goes, huh?" Her blue eyes were flashing now with an edge of steel in them. "I think I can handle that."
Ah, a true warrior then, the old woman realized and acknowledged her with a smile in return. "Then your opponent is Shampoo."
Ranma stepped further into the ring and the purple haired Amazon warrior- Shampoo -did likewise. She sized the girl up, remembering the scene as she had spied on the girl from the bushes. Ranma hadn't seen much of her hand-to-hand abilities, but she knew the Amazon was fast. She didn't bother to bow to her opponent, as the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts didn't practice such niceties. Instead Ranma dropped into combat stance to indicate her readiness and the Amazon smiled, doing likewise. The crowd went silent as they waited for the first move.
Shampoo lunged and the duel was joined.
The purple haired Amazon was every bit as fast as Ranma remembered and the arc of her fingers knifed in for the first attack, riding along the girls arm and body in a graceful line. Ranma slid to the left in a trail of dust, allowing the arm to arrow by before bringing her own fist high to deflect the attack skyward. It connected but not at full force because at the same moment, the edge of Shampoo's right palm swept in for hard chop. The redhead pulled away from opening up the Amazon's guard completely and ducked low. Even as the palm chopped away at nothingness, Ranma was already on the way down, turning her low dodge into a spinning sweep which gathered nothing but dust, the Amazon having hopped lightly back. Ranma recovered and flipped back to open the distance. Both combatants dropped back into their stances to consider their next moves.
The Elder was impressed. This redhead was a Warrior. While Shampoo was still young, she was by no means a pushover and considered one of the leading candidates to someday rule the tribe itself. The tournament they had found this stranger at was evidence of that, as most of her opponents went down within the first thirty seconds to a minute. This match might go for considerably long unless she had totally misread the skill of the redhead's opening moves.
The Amazon was smiling now and Ranma recognized it as one of mutual respect. She returned the compliment then went on the offensive, launching herself into a high flip. Ranma completed the first arc and fully extended her right leg on the downward cycle, narrowly missing the Chinese girl who rolled away quickly. The redhead wasn't done yet however, and shifted the momentum around so that leg follow her, meeting the arm Shampoo had thrown up hastily in order to block the kick meant for her head. It was a solid hit, but Shampoo used the force of it to slide back, launching herself back to her feet. Ranma came up as well, but not quite fast enough to retain the initiative and the Amazon began a series of kicks. Ranma was dodging and deflecting each one, but losing ground in the process. The next kick came in as a feint and Shampoo instead used that momentum to spin and thrust two fingers into redhead's shoulder.
Warning blasted through Ranma's mind as she brought up her guard and fell for the feint, now out of position for the incoming attack. She watched the two fingers extend and she knew the attack for what it was- A pressure point, one that would probably render her entire left arm useless if it connected. Instead of backing away, she pushed into the attack and slid sideways. The surprised Amazon had expected a retreat, not a step forward, and it threw her timing off. The fingers connected and Ranma's entire arm screamed with needle sharp pain. Even as her brain registered the agony and deadness, part of it smiled as the Chinese girl's miscalculation left her entire right midsection wide open. Ranma's palm cracked into Shampoo's ribcage with considerable force and the redhead continued her slide in, rounding the strike off with a savage elbow. She jumped skyward for a roundhouse kick but the Amazon had already gone low, rolling away and breaking contact.
Ranma's left arm was now dead, but it had been payed for in cash as Shampoo recovered back into a fighting stance, heavily favoring her right side. There were definitely broken bones in there, Ranma observed coolly. My left arm for her ability to breath well. Not a bad trade all in all.
Both combatants were now grinning ferally through their pain and launched at one another simultaneously, Ranma planting a hand to the earth to launch skyward while Shampoo arced in with knife-like grace. Both warriors came together in a deadly flow, rolling and twisting as their attacks were blocked, countered and renewed. The combat was pure and deserved the complete silence of the Amazons watching over them, one warrior entwined with the other in a dance of death that had become much more.
The redhead had just reversed the Amazon's attacking arm when it hit her- Ranma lost her grip on the girl as her guts twisted inside out with cramps, probably due to severe malnutrition. She knew she had pushed her body too hard in this condition and now was going to pay for it. Even the momentum of her attack faltered as her entire midsection began to explode in pain. Shampoo watched her guard fall and delivered a decisive palm to Ranma's chest, blowing her opponent back ten feet before sliding to a stop at the edge of the Amazon circle. Ranma struggled to right herself as the Chinese girl arced in for her final attack, but her body wouldn't cooperate between the pain and battle damage. She propped herself on a knee as the Chinese girl closed the distance. Ranma knew she wasn't going to make it up in time.
Shampoo covered the final few feet, but slid to halt in a cloud of dust at the last second. She floated back out of range and considered her battered opponent from a defensive guard. After a few more seconds of observation, Ranma watched as she turned to the stick elder and rattled something off in mandarin. The elder responded by hopping into the ring, finally balancing above Ranma. She too made her own observations before turning to turning to the crowd with a proclamation Ranma couldn't hope to understand. She finally made it to her feet, but knew she was probably looking as badly as she felt. The Elder finished her speech and the entire crowd of women- and a scant few man -Burst into applause and cheering.
Again, the old women read the expression of confusion on the girl's face. "You have acquitted yourself quite well, young warrior. You are an Equal among us."
Chapter III
"But… She had me…" She stared at Shampoo, then at the elder. The circle had collapsed as the women intermingled with one another, undoubtedly discussing the most excellent duel they had just witnessed. An uncrowded circle of respect, however, was maintained around them at all times.
"Indeed she did, young one," The elder agreed, "But it would have been a dark stain on her honor to strike one down who hasn't had a meal in over a week or shelter for longer."
An Amazon from the crowd offered Ranma a walking stick and began to look over her wounds. A similar attendant found Shampoo. "That obvious, huh?"
The Elder chuckled. "Not at all. You hide it well. So well that my Grand daughter didn't even notice until the last possible second." A warm smile crept across her face. "And that is an honor that you bestow upon us in and of itself, fighting in that condition and still displaying such prowess without asking quarter."
Ranma winced as the woman she was guessing was a healer spread some whitish salve across one of several open wounds. "Grand daughter?" She looked at the purple haired girl who was having her ribs attended to. The Amazon produced a friendly smile and nodded, apparently aware of the conversation's general direction.
"Yes." The Elder nodded. "And since you have been deemed worthy to receive such, I am named Cologne, an Elder on the Village Council."
Ranma's mental process stopped momentarily as her words sank in. Not just an honored elder, one of the honored elders. She silently thanked whatever had sent that tiny bit of intuition to curb her normally sharp personality that was the result of too much time on the road with Pops, no doubt.
She bowed as best she could through her pain, leaning heavily on the walking stick. "Thank you, Honored Elder. I'm Ranma Saotome." She didn't find it necessary to throw around the fact that she was the heir to the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts just quite yet. Or the fact that she was really a guy. Something told her that would not be a welcome revelation in this village of warrior women.
Cologne considered the young girl in front of her carefully. This one was indeed fine stock. Highly skilled for her age, polite to her elders and without a doubt, the heart of an Amazon Warrior. And some of her moves had been quite exotic, while she could swear she'd seen one or two of them somewhere before. And who knows how that duel would have turned out if the girl had been at her peak and not suffering from malnutrition. Of course, she favored Shampoo, but it would have been a glorious duel regardless.
The Elder began weighing her options. Yes, a way must be found to absorb this one into the tribe. Simply recognizing her as an equal wouldn't be enough. She would continue on her sojourn and be gone from us forever. By the worn look of her gi, she has obviously been on the trail for many weeks, if not months without respite. And nearly ten days without any real food. It probably wasn't the first time, either. Yes. That is the way, she thought. We shall bind her to us. Feed her, clothe her and teach her our ways. She is looking for Chinese techniques, of which we have plenty. We shall adopt her into the tribe and perhaps through my grand daughter and this one, break the back of The Musk for good.
Cologne broke from her scheming to find Ranma and Shampoo laughing at one another as the two compared their injuries, seeing who could produce the most pain with a single poke. Cologne smiled, watching the pair. And that is exactly how I'll do it.
Later that evening, Shampoo invited her new friend to the banquet table that was her prize for winning the Tournament Ranma had watched earlier. It was her right to do so, and Ranma Saotome happily- no, eagerly-accepted. Shampoo smiled as the redhead profusely thanked her and tore into the food.
"I like her, Grandmother." She stated simply in mandarin. "She's a very nice girl. Quite funny too, even if I can't understand a word she says."
Cologne chuckled, watching Ranma as well. "Yes, she is quite animated, isn't she?"
Shampoo giggled. "And an excellent martial artist." Her smile faltered slightly. "She would have been very tough at full power."
Her grandmother nodded. "Indeed. So what say you?"
The Amazon looked from her Grandmother to her new friend. "It would be sad to see her go so soon, but her journey will carry her away from us."
"As I would expect." Cologne looked at her granddaughter with tender concern. Of course there were tactical considerations to be made in binding the redhead to the tribe, but there was an equally valid non-tactical reason as well- Shampoo had a severe deficit of friends. The child was probably one of the best martial artists of her generation born in the village, and that climb to the top hadn't been an easy one. Along the way were bitter duels, rivalries and occasional bodies, but very few friends. Such was the way of the Amazon. But this redhead was not of the Amazon. The same rules did not apply in their entirety and the bond of friendship had already been made through blood. Yes, this will fit every angle perfectly.
She leaned over to Ranma, switching to Japanese. "Saotome, how long do you expect your sojourn to last?"
Ranma paused before taking another bite out of her chicken wing. "Jeez, I'm not sure, wandering around aimlessly like this." She thought about for a second. "Six months. Maybe a year if something interesting turns up or we get lost some more."
"We?"
Cologne watched as two emotions crossed Ranma's face simultaneously: embarrassment and disgust. "Uh, yeah. My old man's camping out in the hills. I left him out there while hunted for food."
The Elder listened and watched Ranma as all pretense of politeness was dropped on the subject of his father. At least she had a healthy grasp of a man's station in the grand scheme of things- Left at home to clean while the female does the hunting. She turned to Shampoo and rattled off something in Chinese, who replied in turn. Ranma looked at the Purple-haired Amazon whose eyes were lit with concern.
"She asks if that was the demon you were wrestling with when you were first captured?" Cologne translated the question. Even Shampoo had seen the change in the redhead's body language.
Ranma looked at Grandmother and daughter. She could easily deny it, but she hadn't lied to them yet and so far she'd come away pretty good on the deal, so why start now? "Yeah. It was."
Another lever, Cologne noted silently, and flipped it just to see what would happen. "You could bring him to the Village here. We have ample-"
"No." Ranma cut the elder off firmly. "He may be my father but that doesn't mean I'll make excuses for him. He'd use me to rob you blind and make off with the goods behind your back."
"If our women caught him stealing, he'd be gutted and left for the buzzards!" Cologne stated with incredulity. "No man would foolish enough to cross an Amazon!"
"All the more reason to keep him out there." Ranma jabbed a thumb back into the wilderness, and took a bite of the wing she'd kept waiting.
Such excellent leverage, Cologne marveled silently. That would come in very handy if needed in the future.
"Then I have a proposition for you, Saotome." The redhead put the wing aside this time, turning her full attention to the elder. "You are on a mission to learn secret Chinese techniques. The Amazon Tribe of Joketsuzoku just happens to be in possession of many such techniques." Shampoo watched the two silently, wondering what grandmother was up to and Ranma leaned closer with interest. "I offer to teach these you these techniques for as long as you want- or are allowed -to stay." She added the last part as a subtle reminder of her father's invisible leash.
"R-Really?" Ranma's eyes widened. Screw the old man, I'll stay here until I learn 'em all!
Cologne watched the anticipation roll off the girl. Ah, she seeks knowledge with an appetite. Even better. And now the lynchpin. "Of course, I would need to make you a formal member of the tribe and teach you our ways. I'm sure you understand we can't teach our techniques to outsiders and only to people we absolutely trust. Would that be a fair and equitable arrangement?"
Ranma went for it hook, line and sinker. I mean, how bad could it possibly be, she thought. Food, a roof and all the techniques you wanna learn. Heck, could probably even spar with Shampoo. She's almost as good as me in my girl body. "Y-Yeah. Sure, what do I have to do?"
The elder nodded at Ranma and hoped to her cane and up onto the table, gaining the attention of the diners. She rattled off a mandarin speech that sounded dreadfully formal. Ranma looked of to her right and watched as Shampoo's eyes continued to widen, a silent 'oh!' forming at her lips. Cologne finished by tapping her cane on the table with a resounding rap, as if to formalize whatever she had just got done saying. With it, the entire table of women jumped up and cheered for Ranma, who was very confused at this point. She looked at Shampoo once more and her wide-eyed trance was broken as she locked onto Ranma. She broke out into a huge smile and bounced onto Ranma to hug her, squeeling wildly.
"What in the world did you say to them?" Ranma paniced, looking up at Cologne.
"I told them from this day forward you and Shampoo are sword maidens, sisters in battle and friendship. Ranma Saotome, you are now Joketsuzoku Amazon."
Chapter IV
It took a couple days before her Amazon doctor pronounced her fit to hike, but when she did, Ranma packed some supplies, food for her father and set out. Those few days had been enough to burn off most of the resentment she had been feeling toward the old man, especially after being well fed and provided new clothing, both which she hadn't seen in a long time. At the moment she was wearing a traditional red silk Chinese shirt and black pants, both courtesy of her new sword-maiden sister, she chuckled at the thought. Sister. Who woulda guessed.
She stepped into the campsite, finding the smoldering campfire and Pops sleeping next to it. "Hey, wake up ol' man!" Genma Saotome yawned obliviously and turned over. Looks pretty well fed for somebody that should be staving for ten days now, she observed dryly. Ranma gave the sleeper a light kick. "I said get up, Pops, or I'll eat all this food myself."
Genma's eyes popped wide open. "Food?" He sat up to see his son holding a basket.
She sat down and shoved it over to him. "Yep. Real stuff, not berries and twigs."
The Father tore the basket open and found that his son had indeed struck pay dirt. Chicken, sausage, rolls, pork buns. "Where in the world did you get all this?"
It was a rhetorical question Ranma realized as he was already stuffing his face with food without care as to the answer. She answered anyway just to see the reaction. "Oh, the Joketsuzoku Amazons."
Genma's eyes widened and he spit half the food out of his mouth, the other half he chocked on. Yep, she smiled inside. That was the reaction she was looking for. "Are you crazy boy? If they catch you stealing from them them…!"
"…I'd be gutted and left for the buzzards, yeah I know." Then Ranma winked. "But I didn't steal it."
"Then how'd you get it, boy?" Genma now sat up, intently curious. The new clothing hadn't gone unnoticed either. Genma plowed a roll into his mouth, awaiting the answer.
"Um, well, I got captured, fought the grand daughter of a council elder and became her friend." She paused momentarily, as if trying to remember it all. "Yep. That's about it."
The father blinked. Yeah. That's it. Then he began turning it all over in his mind. "Hmmm, maybe we can work this to our advantage…"
Saw that one coming, she mentally laughed without humor. "Probably not a good idea, Pops."
"Why not?"
She sniffed dryly. "First and like you said, they'd hunt you to the ends of the Earth and string you up. But thinking that you still might want to try it, you gotta remember they're Amazons. I don't dare let 'em know I'm really a guy, let alone bring another one in there." Ranma looked at her father now intently now. "You heard how they treat their guys?" Genma shook his head and Ranma answered. "Like wives."
With that train of thought shut down, Genma clearly wasn't happy. "Then there's no point in sticking around."
Now all she had to do was convince him… "But they've got those Chinese techniques we've been looking for!"
"Really?"
"Really." Ranma confirmed. "Got the Elder to promise me to teach em since me and her daughter are friends."
"HA!" Genma snorted suddenly. "That's my boy! But I can't stay out here forever while you learn 'em."
Ranma pulled out a piece of paper that had been folded in her pants. "Gotcha covered." She handed it to her Father, who unfolded what looked to be a hand drawn map. "That's the closest civilization, about fifteen miles south. Should be able to stay there."
"Excellent, boy!" Genma complimented. "You learn those techniques and pick me up when you're done!"
"I'll keep you posted!"
Ranma smiled as they both packed up, walking in different directions. Normally she might have felt a twinge of guilt using her father like she just had, but his conscious promptly quieted upon finding the wrapper of a power bar at the perimeter of their campsite. So he was holding out on me… Jerk. She walked off, watching storm clouds form in the distance. Ranma smiled and pulled out the red bamboo umbrella Shampoo had loaned her for the trip. Have fun, Pops.
"Today lesson Amazon law." Shampoo stated as Ranma struggled to keep up with her mandarin. It wasn't that she was speaking like an uncivilized lout; just that Ranma could only catch every other word. In fact, it was Ranma speaking like the uncivilized lout. The last two months had done wonders for her vocabulary as her integration into the Tribe had embarked the redhead on a crash course in language immersion. But whatever her progress in mandarin, her combat studies were proceeding at a fine clip as Shampoo and various members of the tribe began teaching her the subtle arts of pressure points.
"Amazon Law?" Ranma blinked and her sister smiled. She thought she knew Amazon law. She had seen enough of it, after all. The village was a warrior class system that leaned heavily on the concept of 'survival of the fittest' without taking it to its self-destructive conclusion. The female was definitely the dominant sex in the society whereas the men were kept subservient and ignorant, useful for little more than tending the village and mating. Even she couldn't help but to take a poor view of these pathetic excuses that were labeled men. No, not Men, she amended. Males. There was a world of difference between the two. Of course, she dare not expose her curse to anybody in the tribe for that very reason. She was a Man, a real man and not one of these tribe males, but she doubted her friends would make the distinction, as it was hardwired into their brains from birth.
That aside, Ranma had observed that the tribe operated much like a wolf pack. There was a hierarchy maintained through mutual combat and duels, the winner retaining rank and precedence over the loser. It was an easy system to understand, one through which Ranma had established herself as an Alpha Female along side Shampoo several times over since her arrival. After the initial buzz of her duel with Shampoo and subsequent naming as sisters, a few of the other women apparently thought that Ranma was easy pickins. After all, Shampoo had her dead to rights in that duel, so putting her in her place should have been easy, right? With a full belly and a roof over her head for the first time in months, the new redhead corrected that assumption with a vengeance, and it was now going on two weeks since her last challenge. Apparently, the sound thrashing she had given her last opponent had sent a message to the other women. In fact, her self-control slipped during that duel, causing her to ruthlessly pound the Amazon into the dirt. Normally she allowed her challengers some quarter. This one received none and the judges had to call the duel closed before she broke her victim for life. But the message was loud and clear: Don't screw with the new girl. Ironically, the ritual duelings produced very little in the way of hard feelings and Ranma often found herself working with the same tribe members she had only hours ago defeated in battle as if it were a fact of life. It is a fact of life here, she corrected herself. I'd better get used to it.
"Sister know most Amazon Laws," The purple haired girl waved the question aside, knowing her sibling's thoughts well enough by now. After all, the last two month had been a crash course in Amazon language and etiquette for the redhead. "Shampoo teach Kiss of Death."
Kiss of Death…? Ranma mouthed silently. "Sounds…painful."
Shampoo nodded seriously. "If Amazon defeat by outside woman, Kiss of Death only way of honor." Ranma listened intently as she continued. "Only kill outsider restore honor."
Ranma was visibly taken back. That was kind of… Extreme "But…WHY?"
"Amazon rank determined by duel." Shampoo explained and Ranma nodded, well familiar with this particular nuisance of Amazon hierarchy. "If outsider win, put entire tribe at risk. Outsider have opportunity to control. No let happen, seal breach with life if need. Retain personal honor."
Ranma nodded, understanding the concept. Highly extreme, but logical given the structure of Amazon society. Defeat a few key Amazon's and you might just be able to insert yourself into a position of power under the right circumstances. Granted, she couldn't imagine what those circumstances could be for the life of her, but it did make some sort of sense.
"What if Ranma defeat Shampoo in first duel?" She asked tentatively. "Shampoo give kiss of death?"
Ranma's sister shook her head. "No, different. Duel determine Ranma as equal. Honorable, no threat to tribe ranking. Both agree on duel." Shampoo smiled and Ranma smiled back.
Two months had seen both girls grow close, and Ranma absently noted that her friendship was becoming much like that of her childhood friend, Ucchan. The Amazon was quite fun to be around and she didn't have to worry about walking on eggshells around her like most girls she'd met elsewhere. In fact, neither had a problem brutally pounding on one another during their routine sparring, since both were there for a reason, and that was the betterment of The Art. And to have fun. It had been a long, long time since Ranma had somebody she could simply cut loose with in friendship and on the mat.
The lessons continued and Shampoo outlined the various other Kiss protocols, including the Kiss of Marriage, at which Ranma blanched. Both girls laughed and Ranma forced her sister to continue in Japanese. It had been a game they had started, half their conversations would be conducted in Mandarin for Ranma's benefit while she taught Shampoo Japanese for the other half. The results were the same, however, both girls ending up sounding like uncivilized louts much to their mutual amusement.
Shampoo finished the lesson and smiled slyly at her sister. "Tic and Tac plan ambush today."
Ranma smirked knowingly. Shampoo's little cousins were quite taken with Shampoo's new sister, and when they weren't hanging on her, were using her to hone their skills through obscure and unorthodox ambush tactics. "Tic and Tac always ambush. Maybe hang cousins by roof this time."
Shampoo laughed openly, then asked, "Ranma take bath with Shampoo?"
The question had been asked enough times in Ranma's two month stay that she didn't freeze up at the thought. It was an innocent enough question and she was still getting over the embrassement of seeing the Amazon in the nude on occasion, but under no circumstances could she ever permit herself around a sizable amount of hot water. She suspected the curse activated less on the amount of water and more on the surface area it covered, which meant a hot bath with her sister was completely out of the question.
Ranma tried to affect embarrassment and waved Shampoo off politely, but she knew the excuse would only work for so long. After all, six months to a year was a long time for a girl to turn down such an offer from a close friend.
"How are your studies progressing, daughter in-law?" Cologne asked Ranma. She had been called into her hut two weeks later and now the two sat smiling at one another, drinking tea. Cologne's hut was a mystical place, Ranma had long since observed, filled with trinkets, jewelry and scrolls. She couldn't help but to stare everytime she came in, always finding something new on the shelves. If old Pops ever got wind of this place… Ranma thought grimly. She didn't have a fond opinion of her old man, but she'd hate to see him strung up simply because he couldn't control his greed.
"Very well, Honored Grandmother." Ranma replied, inclining her head in deference. While the elder was subject to the same rigid code of dueling and honor as the rest, it had become quite obvious that Cologne's skill easily eclipsed her own through teaching and the occasional sparring match. She was a hard, but fair instructor, something Ranma could respect. "I have mastered five ranks of pressure points and their counters, and am progressing through the sixth. Shampoo has been very helpful in that area of The Art."
Cologne nodded, taking another sip of tea. "You are hungry for techniques, daughter in-law. It will not be long before we will begin advanced training." She watched the girl's eyes shine brightly. "But we are here to discuss another matter, however." Ranma waited patiently for the elder to continue. "Why do you not take a bath with my granddaughter, Saotome? She is very concerned."
Ranma's well masked facade of control faltered visibly this time. She knew. How much remained to be seen, but she suspected at very least and Ranma knew that her body language had just confirmed that suspicion.
She looked down at her clay mug of tea. "I… I can't say."
"Jyusenkyou." The Elder stated with certainty and Ranma's head snapped up, eyes wide. Just how much did she know?
"Y-Yes. Jyusenkyou." Lying wasn't even an option at this point. Now it was all damage control.
'Tell me, daughter in-law, which spring did you fall into?" Cologne asked, leaning across the table. Ranma simple stared at her mug in silence. Cologne now considered her next move very carefully.
For all her openness and honesty toward the tribe, she had finally stumbled on the one secret the redhead was not willing to share. She could, of course, simply splash her with the hot tea in her hand and find out, but if she was to be bound to the tribe, her next steps would have to be taken very carefully indeed. Were Ranma of lesser ability, she might very well consider that approach- pride be damned -but she was obviously a martial arts prodigy. Cologne wasn't prepared to risk that future on the simple splash of a cup, and today she decided to take the high road.
"The springs of Jyusenkyou bear any number of strange and disgusting creatures, Daughter in-law. You are not the first nor will you be the last to fall victim to its curse." She explained, and the redhead slowly turned her eyes back upon the elder. "I understand your fears and will keep your confidence until you yourself are ready, Saotome." She paused before continuing, "Shampoo, however, deserves to at least know why you remain evasive on the topic."
Ranma nodded slowly. "She does, Honored Grandmother. I will tell her as much."
Chapter V
The boy was getting strange, Genma Saotome noticed as she stopped by the village of Xing Zhao for her monthly status report. He could understand better than anybody why he wore the female persona more often than not, as an ill-timed rain shower would blow his son's cover, but there were subtle things that were beginning to disturb him. The girl at the restaurant table in front of him was not the same one that had come up with this cockamamie scheme six months ago.
Ranma's external appearance was telling enough, which had moved from a traditional silk shirt and pants, to a feminine silk vest and a matching bottom, while the loose ponytail tied into her hair had been allowed to grow out to about the middle of her back. For all her external changes, the ones to her personality were more worrisome. The girl gained a frosty exterior in mixed company and if Genma wasn't mistaken, an air of superiority beyond the usual Ranma. That same frosty exterior was far quicker to displease than the Ranma who had began this journey, and he had seen how decisively she dealt with displeasure on the last guy who had made a pass at on the way into town. Thankfully, not that many were foolish enough to do so since her entire presence practically screamed 'Amazon'.
"Oh, and let's see… Grandmother has started to us the Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken technique." Ranma smiled as she continued her status report, brining Genma's mind back to the table. That was another disturbing thing, he noted. Why was she referring to this tribe of savages with such familiarity? Unless he missed his count, Ranma had mentioned a sister, two cousins and this grandmother throughout the numerous reports he had received. "It has the potential to-"
A patron of the restaurant bumped into her chair and Ranma's head whirled around. Genma watched the icy exterior snap into place and the offending man froze as she made eye contact. The girl's cold blue eyes demanded quick redress with the promise of consequences if it wasn't received promptly. Fortunately, the patron had well honed survival instincts, as the Amazons were well known in this area.
"Um… Uh… My humble apologize!" he sputtered and the girl turned back to her father, the man no longer an item of interest or even worthy of a reply once etiquette was satisfied.
Genma continuted to watch as the frosty exterior snapped away and was replace by something closer to his son's personality.
"Hmmm, now where was I…" She began as if the incident had never took place. It would have never occurred to the father that in the last six months, Ranma had been fully immersed in Amazon politics, their ways of honor and had seen over twenty ritual duels that would challenge her ranking within the tribe and thus her ability to learn her new techniques. It had been a hard school, one that demanded immediate satisfaction to insult, and Ranma had received enough of those from her contemporaries that continued to treat her as an outsider. Cologne and Shampoo had coached her early on that such action could not be tolerated by her or it would become worse. Needless to say, Ranma was quick study and it was becoming second nature to correct any and all trespasses with the use of liberal amounts of force.
Genma frowned. "Y'know boy, maybe this wasn't such a good idea." Ranma stopped and looked at his father curiously. "I mean, we can learn techniques from anywhere without nearly this much hassle."
"Whaddya mean? It's better than the trail, y'know?" The father considered this. Ranma was right on that account. "And I'm actually learning new stuff every day. It's better than falling into another spring or something." Genma mumbled in agreement. "Let me buy you some sake and we can talk it over."
Which sounded like a damn good idea, he thought, totally unaware that he was being ruthlessly manipulated.
Month eight had seen the ritual duels drop to next to nothing as she went about her daily business of helping the Tribe, her standing in it all but solidified. Shampoo and herself had mastered the Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken- Chestnut Fist -and grandmother was promising an even more spectacular technique once she and her granddaughter returned from a training exercise today. Cologne had called it the Hiryu Shoten Haand Ranma eagerly awaited her return so that they could get started.
She heard footsteps crunch behind her at a run and turned to find a white robed Chinese boy with long raven hair bound up to her, past her and over to a dead wooden stump nearby.
"Ranma!" He exclaimed, catching his breath. "Did you ask her for me?" The wooden stump didn't reply.
"Glasses, Mousse." She ordered in passable mandarin.
The boy whipped around as Ranma's voice came from a direction he wasn't expecting and he promptly donned a pair of thick glasses. He blinked. "Oh! Sorry about that Ranma!"
She stared at the boy in front of her with amusement. Normally mistaking her for a tree trunk would have been grounds for a duel by anybody else, but Mousse was one of the few exceptions she made to that rule because of his 'handicap'. In fact, he was on of the few males she could stand among the tribe, if only because that despite his bumbling, he was reasonable skilled. At least he was trying to be a Man. That, and he has a serious crush on my sister, Ranma chuckled inwardly. He would ask her out, get shot down, rinse, repeat. It was an endlessly amusing process.
"Did you ask her, Ranma?" Mousse had learned early that Ranma was a direct conduit to Shampoo's ear and was always seeking the redhead's favor in his quest. Now she held his ego in her hands. Ah, what do…?
"She said she'll think about it."
Mousse took her hand and shook it profusely before running off in ignorant bliss. Ignorant because Shampoo had said no such thing. Her words had been closer to 'Not a chance in hell' if she remembered correctly. Honestly, I shouldn't lead the boy on like that, she thought wistfully, and continued to walk through the village and back to her hut.
She stopped at the door, hearing a soft crying from within. Ranma stepped in and found her purple haired sister sobbing at the table, face buried in her arms. She looked up to see who the intruder was, finding Ranma. Positively identified, she got up and flug herself around the redhead, crying into her shoulder.
"Wha-What's wrong, Sis?" Ranma flashed with concern and wrapped her arms around the trembling Amazon.
"Stu-Stupid Grandmother!" She looked up, anger burning through her teary eyes.
Now Ranma was very concerned. Shampoo hardly ever went off on their grandmother and never without good reason. She had learned that the woman could be tricky and devious, and Ranma had seen that trait hurt those around her before, both intentionally and unintentionally.
"She took me to Jyusenkyou to train!" Shampoo had now disengaged from their embrace and her anger was climbing higher.
"You've got to be kidding…" Ranma breathed in disbelief. Why couldn't these people just dig their own stupid bamboo playground to train on!
Shampoo nodded, "Grandmother got too aggressive and…"
"…Knocked you in." Ranma shook her head. How could she be that careless with her own grand daughter?
Shampoo sat back down at the table and thumped it with a hard fist. "Maybe she just wanted both her daughters cursed." She said with angry spite. "Maybe we cab throw Tic and Tac in next!"
Ranma pulled out a chair and sat down next to her. "God, and I thought my old man was the only one with a monopoly on stupidity of that magnitude." She wrapped an arm around her sister, having long since been immune to the embarrassment of close personal contact with her, especially as a girl. Especially this girl. "Don't worry. It's not the end of the world… I should know." Ranma winked.
Shampoo's mood broke with the encouragement and suddenly she smiled. Ranma had always marveled at how quickly her moods were prone to change. "I have an idea!" She ran over to the heating kettle and poured out one glass of hot water and drew some cold water from a bucket. She set them on the table with a mischievous grin. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours!"
Ranma frowned. "I'm not sure that's such a good-"
Ranma never got to finish as Shampoo dumped a glass of cold water on her person. Ranma's eyes went wide and she froze.
"AAAAAHHHHAaaaaaARRRAAAHH!"
The first clue that Cologne knew something had gone wrong was the desperate high pitched scream from across the village. The next came shortly thereafter and she thought she heard the enraged howl of a cat. Her self-loathing over the day's events broken temporarily, she hopped out the door and pogo'd across the village to find…
…A warzone. The place that had once been Shampoo and Ranma's hut was no more. In its place remained shredded debris as dust and bits of wood floated away with the wind. The rest of the tribe had gathered now, weapons out, marveling at the degree of the devastation. What enemy had done such a thing? The final cloud of dust cleared and in the middle of the gutted hut sat one little pink and purple kitten completely unharmed. Cologne barked an order to a nearby warrior and she promptly retrieved a glass of hot water and towl for the Elder. The elder hopped over to the waiting kitten and dumped hot water on it, producing a nude, purple haired Chinese girl who took the towl she was offered to cover herself.
"Quickly child, what happened?" Cologne urged.
"Ra- Ranma went insane!" Shampoo reported, as if unable to believe it herself. "I.. I showed her my cursed self and she screamed, then changed…"
"Changed into what?" The alarmed elder prompted. She scanned the wreckage for any sign of the redhead but found none.
"A… A cat!" Shampoo stated, still in disbelief. "It was the body of Ranma, but she was a cat inside! I didn't mean to scare her!" Shampoo was on the verge of crying for her sister.
Cologne examined the wreckage, noting the clean slices through even the thick stumps that supported their hut. "You did not do this, grandchild. Something far more sinister is responsible." She looked at Shampoo now. "Your form may have been the catalyst, but this is the work of the Neko-ken."
"Cat fist?"
"Indeed." The elder responded. "It is a High Art, exceedingly hard to master and even harder to defeat. It is, however, a rare form for one reason and one reason only," Shampoo looked at her with plaintiff eyes so that she could know why her sister had gone berserk. "Those that survive the training are invariably driven insane."
"But Ranma is sane!" Then Shampoo began looking at the structure that was once their hut. "…Or was."
Cologne nodded thoughtfully. "The fact that she survived the training is a miracle in and of itself, but the fact that she is still sane…" She looked at the ruin. On average, she added mentally, "is quite impressive."
She turned to the Amazons that had gathered. "Fan out. If you find Saotome, do not challenge her unless you feel it necessary to lose your life this day. She is not in control and will likely kill any she perceives as a threat. Report her position back to me. Go."
The warriors disappeared into the rainforest, and Cologne was left alone with her thoughts. So the redhead holds two secrets. I was wise to bind her to the tribe but this… This was totally unexpected. How much potential does Ranma Saotome hold? Any woman that can be trained in the Neko-ken, survive and remain as sane as she has thus far is exceptional stock.
She must be found at any and all costs.
Enough was enough, Genma decided, packing up and heading out of the village with a lot on his mind. He was as eager for his son to learn new techniques as the next person, but the effects it was having on him… And having to remain a girl almost one hundred percent of the time… And in the care of those Amazons. Yes, he had come to a decisive conclusion- Manhood first, techniques second. Besides, if Do-chan ever found out… Genma Saotome shivered at the visage of his wife angrily wielding the family honor blade.
He never was able to get an exact location of the village out of the boy, but he knew the general direction as he hiked along the hillside. He would use their original campsite as a baseline and work his way outward from there. It couldn't be more than a half a day in one direction of the other. Once the village was-
"RRrrrrEERRROOOOWWWW!"
Genma froze as the sound echoed throughout the hills. He knew that sound because it was ingrained into his very soul. The father slowly turned around to find Ranma Saotome perched on a high tree branch staring down at him with feral eyes. Her body was arched and poised to strike. Stupid Amazons showed the boy a cat! Genma realized. His brain raced. Ranma was a handful when he learned the technique at five, let alone now!
Genma snatched a leafy branch from a nearby bush and began to waggle it back and forth. "Heeerrree kitty-kitty-kitty!" Neko-Ranma's eye shifted from their narrow slits to wide-eyed curiosity as she tracked the branch. "Oooh yess! Come and git it kitty!" The father's other hand slowly grasped the steel pan in his pack. Thoroughly intrigued, the cat-girl jumped down from her fifteen-foot high perch and pounced onto the branch with a smile. Genma smiled too.
"THWaaNG!"
Genma Saotome considered his unconscious son, who was now growing a huge knot on the back of his head. The father shook his own head and sighed, dragging her by the ponytail down a dirt path.
"Come on, Boy, let's get you away from those Amazons."
Author's notes:
Kiss of Death: The original series has little to say on the matter beyond those who receive the kiss of death must die to restore an Amazon's honor. By itself, this would seem to be an exceptionally stupid rule, even for some backwater tribe in China, so I actually gave them a reason why they were forced into such extreme measures to restore their honor. Sure, there's no basis for it in the series, but it's a dang sight better than 'just because' in my opinion.
Timeline: Ranma's stay with the Amazon's has set him back nearly eight month, months they would have been spent being pursued by Shampoo in the original series. With the Amazons, Ranma does not yet sport her trademark pigtail since she hadn't encountered the guy with the dragon whisker, but will (by some bizarre space-time freak of nature known as my keyboard) when Ranma and Genma finally move on. Likewise, she is far more skilled by the time she arrives at the Tendo Dojo than in the original timeline because the trip to China actually amounted to something other than a quick dip in the cursed springs.
Dialogue: I hate it when fanfics simply text-dump the manga dialogue into a story as just a series of quotes with no supporting framework as to the circumstances and conditions they're being spoken in. It's why I've tried so hard to embellish the original script as much as possible so you're not simply reading what would basically be a manga with no pictures.
Why Shampoo? I don't think she gets a lot of press (other than the lemon sort) because she was so dang easy in the series. All Ranma would have had to do was say 'ok' and it'd be all over. Not much of a story there, so I'll try to carve one out of it.
Ranma ½ - Bits of China
Alt Fanfic
By Ozzallos
Part 2
Forward: Part 2 is incomplete and will likely stay that way. You have been warned :p
Chapter VI
"YO! Cut that out!"
A crowd had gathered to watch the bizarre pair that had been running up and down the wet streets of Nerima, Japan. 'Gawk' was probably a more accurate description, as it wasn't everyday you saw a giant Panda trying to make a meal of petite redheaded girl. Some of the bystanders were even thinking about intervening on the girl's behalf when she spun into air and nailed the Panda with a roundhouse kick, sending the offending bear sliding across the street. The Panda's 'victim' landed gracefully and slid into a defense stance.
"Your move."
The crowd continued to gawk. Was she talking to the Panda? As if to answer their question, the giant animal was up again and barreling back down the street, attempting to hit the young combatant with a volley of massive paws. The redhead dodged gracefully, but her icy mask told the crowd that her patience was wearing thin
"Well I still say this say this whole thing sucks!" The next paw cam in and she grabbed it, locking it in place with both arms. "…Picking my fiancée for me without even asking!"
The Panda's momentum did the rest. It was huge, but the redhead was pissed, and she flipped it down into the waiting concrete brutally. The 'No U-Turn" sign beneath the Panda's impact didn't stand a chance. She glared angrily at the defeated bear, catching her breath.
"I'm going back to China." The fuming redhead stated in no uncertain terms. "So suck on that, Old man!" Without another word she hoisted her hiking pack and began to walk off.
KlonG!
The girl sank to the concrete unconscious, a victim of the Giant Panda's Anything Goes School of Martial Arts final attack No U-Turn Fu. The Panda dropped the mangled sign with a clatter and hefted the girl over its shoulders.
All in all, it was just another really rotten day for one Ranma Saotome. It had been one month since waking up at her father's campsite with no memory as to how she'd gotten there or where she was. She had known it was the cat-fist rage and the only thing Father had told her was that this was where he'd tracked her to… Which was in the middle of exactly nowhere, China. Her first thoughts had been for the village and the condition she'd had probably left it in given her destructive cat tendencies, but they were once again well and truly lost and the old man had insisted they needed to return to Japan for a matter of family honor.
If he'd have said anything else, she would have just left right there on the spot to finish training. Maybe even find a cure if she was lucky. But if there was one thing the Amazon's had honed for Ranma in her eight month stay, it was a razor sharp edge of honor and she acquiesced for the time being. Along the way back to Japan, they had starved some more and Ranma managed to pick up a new curse. This one caused the male Ranma's hair to grow at an unbelievable rate. While it wasn't quite as insidious as the Jyusenkyou curses, it seemed as if life was forcing him into that female body at every turn. Fortunately, he had obtained a countermeasure- The Dragon Whisker -to bind the hair that he and she now wore in a pigtail at all times.
And then only hours ago, he found out just what the matter of family honor was: An arranged marriage with the Tendos', a friend of his father. The plan was to engage Ranma to one of his daughters, thereby joining the Tendo Dojo School of Indiscriminate Grappling and the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts under one banner. Needless to say, the young boy/girl was livid. THAT was the matter of family honor? He was barely sixteen! Marriage could wait! Finishing grandmother's training took precedence. Then he could safely find a cure for the Jyusenkyou curse. Then maybe… Just maybe, he could think about a date. But an arranged marrige! HA!
Unfortunately, Genma Saotome had other plans as he carted the unconscious redhead the last few miles to the Tendo family Dojo.
Six miles away, three daughters sat at their dining room table as their father explained the good news. "Ranma and his father have been on a voyage of training." The raven-haired father with a well groomed mustache spoke, "Recently it seems they crossed into China."
"Wow! China!" The middle sister, Nabiki Tendo exclaimed, clearly enamored with the idea of going out with a man of the world. The excited expression framed by her short brown hair was obvious.
"What's so great about walking to China?" Akane Tendo grumbled and brushed a lock of her long cobalt blue hair aside in annoyance.
Nabiki ignored her. "Is he cute?"
"How old is he?" The eldest sister, Kasumi Tendo finally joined in with of mild irritation. She did have better things to be doing right now, after all. "Younger men bore me."
Niether sister could stand it any longer. "What kind of guy is this Ranma?" Both Nabiki and Kasumi asked simultaneously.
Soun Tendo shrugged. "No idea."
Nabiki leaned forward, trying to confirm what she had just heard. "No Idea?"
"I've never met him." The father had indeed said it.
All three sisters were about ready to protest when the sounds of close quartered combat erupted from outside, followed by somebody saying something about letting go of something. It was obviously a brawl and the family leapt from the table to get a better view.
"Ooooh! It must be Ranma!" Nabiki ran outside with anticipation, the father following close behind.
He instinctively knew who it was. "Saotome, my friend, we've been waiting!"
Even as Kasumi and Akane reluctantly joined their sister and daughter, they were surprised to find them retreating just as fast, Giant Panda in hot pursuit.
"Hey! YO!" the redhead slung over its shoulder exclaimed suddenly. "You're scaring 'em spitless!"
Chaos erupted from the Tendo sisters as they press their father for information, who clearly hadn't been expecting a Panda to take up residence in their dojo. The bear stopped short, planting the redheaded stranger promptly in front of the four.
After a few seconds, Soun Tendo pointed. "You …wouldn't be…"
"Ranma Saotome." The newcomer confirmed shyly, then a look of irritation passed through her eyes. "This is all his fault," jerking a thumb back to the panda.
Soun had no idea what the boy had meant by that last comment but was clearly overjoyed regardless, grasping Ranma by the shoulders. "At last! You've come!"
Nabiki leaned forward. "Ooo! He's cute!"
Soun pulled his future son in-law into a hug and suddenly froze. He was remarkably soft in the chest area. The father pushed him back to confirm what was becoming a growing sense of horror. Soun looked the boy over, as did the daughters upon seen his reaction.
Nabiki poked at the boy's ample chest as if to believe it herself.
"Um, could you please stop that?"
For Nabiki, there was only one inescapable conclusion. "He' Is a GIRL."
Soun Tendo simply passed out.
"This is all your fault, Daddy!" Nabiki laid into her now conscious father, clearly upset that her cute guy had turned into a cute girl. "You should have made sure!"
"Well he said he had a SON!" The father protested from his futon where he'd been dragged after passing out.
Nabiki grasped one of Ranma's breast and gave it a few good squeezes to prove her point. "Do you see a son here? Hmmm? DO you?"
The redhead was clearly uncomfortable now. In fact, she was fighting eight months of Amazon code that would demand instant action over such an affront. "You really need to stop that."
Fortunately, the younger sister intervened before she could take the matter to the next level. "Hey, join me in the practice hall." She smiled. "I'm Akane. You want to be friends?"
A practice hall. An honest to god practice hall, Ranma mused silently as she followed Akane out to the dojo. Now how long has it been since I've seen one of these, let alone dueled in one? Ranma didn't even take note of her mental terminology, as simple 'sparring' hadn't been in her vocabulary for over a year now. Most of those duels had been fought outside, in the elements as no holds barred style combat. In fact, the only rules she abided by in that combat was the longest standing one-Don't break your fellow Amazon sister so much as to compromise the safety of the entire tribe. Which still left Ranma a lot of room to inflict considerable pain and suffering.
"You do karate, don't you?" Akane pressed the rhetorical question as they stepped onto the mat.
"A little."
"Then let's have a little match, Okay?" Akane smiled. "Just for fun. Don't worry, I won't hurt you."
Ranma simply nodded. Even as she charged, Akane couldn't have known exactly what she was getting into as Ranma's mind clicked fully into Amazon mode. The girl had issued a challenge and Ranma was the Alpha Female. Everything in her village had been a test or some matter of honor and even 'little matches' such as these had a tendency to be brutal, despite the 'little' tag. Her brain made a rapid series of adjustments. She was a Joketsuzoku Amazon being challenged by another female warrior. Save her sister, there could only be one response.
Akane stepped in and threw her first attack. Anything after that however, was a hazy memory as Ranma's arms spun in a windmill fashion. The next thing she saw or felt was the jarring impact of the dojo floor. The world snapped back into focus and Akane's eyes widened. She twisted around to look up at the redhead, who was simply standing above her, observing the fallen girl with cool eyes. There was next to no emotion in those eyes, Akane realized with a start and began to debate whether she should even attempt another attack.
For the Amazon in Ranma, the situation was obvious from the moment the girl had assumed her fighting stance. This female was so hopelessly outclassed as to not even warrant dodging, let alone waste the energy to move. And from the look in her eyes, Ranma noted that her credentials as Alpha Female had been firmly established. With her Amazon satisfied, a more human Ranma smiled and lent Akane a hand up.
Akane took the hand as if it were a snake or some other venomous creature, that is to say very carefully. "You're really THAT good…" She breathed as if not believing it herself
Ranma pulled her up and smiled lightly. "I had better be," then her smile faded slightly. "After what I've-" She stopped herself, but the smile returned.
Akane watched the girls' expression flicker and those same emotionless eyes were now alive with them now. It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize she had endured… Something. Something unpleasant. And that was probably an understatement, Akane realized. Maybe I can cheer her up…
"Well, I'm just glad you're a girl." Akane smiled and the redheaded girl gave her a questioning look. "It's just… I'd really hate to lose to a boy!" Her good deed done for the for the day, Akane walked out of the dojo, leaving Ranma in uneasy silence as two sets of emotions raked her. The first was from Ranma Saotome, who sizzled with resentment at being the aforementioned boy she just lost to. The second was the Amazon, who resonated with the comment as if she had just found a tiny bit of home.
"EEEEeeeEEEEEEEYAAAAAHHHH!"
Akane bolted past her sisters wearing nothing but a small bathrobe and a furious expression on her face. They watched curiously as she lifted the heavy stone head of their birdbath off its foundation with some effort.
"I'll weigh him down!" She huffed, bringing the stone around. "I'll drown him in the bathtube!"
Now Nabiki had to ask. "Akane what is it? What's that for?"
"THERE'S A PERVERT IN THE BATHROOM!"
Nabiki and her sister debated the issue a bit longer before Kasumi came to a realization, "That's odd. Ranma was in the bath just now."
As if on cue, the sisters heard silent footsteps and turned to find an approaching boy who they had never seen before and did not belong in the dojo.
"Who… Who… " Nabiki found her voice first, but had a hard time plying coherent thoughts to it. "Who are you?"
The black hair pigtailed boy looked embarrassed. "I'm Ranma Saotome." Then, with a look of irritation, "And this is all Pop's fault."
The entire family now sat in the family room, the Tendo sisters facing the two Saotomes. Soun made introductions.
"I'll explain it once more." He began, sitting beside the newcomers themselves. "This is my dear old friend…"
"Genma Saotome." The older man with glasses and a white handkerchief around his bald head supplied. "And this is my son…"
"Ranma." The boy rounded out the introductions.
Akane was visibly fuming now and the two older sisters questioned the pair in disbelief. Genma decided a visual aid was in order and expertly grabbed his son and flipped him into the coy pond outside. What broke the surface was quite female and quite upset. Not only that, but she took offense to his expressions of humiliation over his son's condition, which promptly earned him a one way kick to the coy pond courtesy of the girl herself. The resulting splash produced one giant, irritated panda. It took several minutes and two cups of hot water for things to settle down enough so that a reasonable explanation could be had.
That explanation was Jyusenkyou and its cursed springs as Ranma's father detailed the salient points of their adventures abroad in China. What should have been a fifteen minute tale lasted a half an hour as the recounted story opened some not so old wounds. The ensuing battle turned father to Panda and Son to girl. Having straitened things out, Soun Tendo turned the panda back into his old friend with a kettle of boiling hot water while Ranma declined the invitation to second degree burns.
"No sweat." Soun Tendo declared, having a firm grasp of the situation now. "Your problem isn't so terrible after all!" Ranma looked at the Tendo with doubt as he presented his daughters. "My daughter Kasumi. Ninteen. Nabiki, Seventeen and Akane, Sixteen. Pick the one you want and she's your fiancée."
vThe situation was just too bizarre for the daughters, and two opted out immediately by pushing their youngest forward as the sacrificial lamb.
"Me?" Akane began in shock. "Marry that Pervert? Never!"
Ranma, who was content to remain a spectator, was drawn into the debate rather forcefully. "Say-Whaddya mean 'PERVERT'!"
"You looked at my body, pervert!" Akane retorted testily.
"Hold it!" Ranma stopped her short. "You walked in on me!"
"It's different when a girl sees a boy!" Akane rationalized while their parents laughed at the cute couples' first spat, to which Akane mentioned something about Ranma being a couple by himself. She was just about to continue her tantrum when the redhead simply turned her back on the sister.
"Goodbye!"
"Where you going, boy?" Genma asked forcefully.
"Back to Joketsuzoku!" His female son declared with finality. "…To finish my training and maybe find a way to change back for good! This is no time for 'fiancées'."
Then the Amazon stirred, absolutely certain in her superiority. "By the way… You took a pretty good look at me too. Besides, it's no big deal for me to see a naked girl. I mean I've been around plenty of naked women as a woman." It was true too. After eight months in the hands of the Joketsuzoku Amazons, the female body held little mystery for Ranma. That was when the Amazon decided to thrust the knife home with a condescending laugh.
"And I'm built better to boot!"
Akane boiled over, lifting the dining room table high into the air and down on Ranma. It never hit its target. The whirlwind spun around and the table connected with a fist, splitting it cleanly in two. The pieces fell harmlessly off to the side of Ranma and Akane now stared at those cold eyes once again, realizing that she may have just made a slight error. The Amazon within began to consider several tactical options with which to deal with this trespass when a voice interrupted its calculations.
"Ranma!" Genma barked, and her eyes swiveled onto him like a vice. It was a look he had seen all to many times and he knew what it meant for Akane if left to it's own devices. "Remember your family honor!"
The redhead blinked as her Amazon psyche shuddered. Honor. It was one of the few things she had left from this shambling nightmare. She blinked once more and the Amazon withdrew, it's only consolation being that the girl in front of her named Akane represented absolutely no threat to her in rank or physical prowess. Wasting the time to discipline her would almost be too effortless.
Ranma gave her father one last glare. "One day you'll flip that switch once too often, old man." Then she was gone out into the courtyard.
With the redhead gone, all eyes turned to Genma for an explanation, who in turn looked to Soun. "Old friend, we're going to have to have a talk about the Boy."
"So your saying when he's a boy Ranma is…" Soun began, as if not quite grasping the concept.
"Is Ranma." Genma nodded. "More or less. But when he's a girl there's something else behind those eyes."
"From the curse?" His friend offered.
"No, from the Amazons."
His friend tensed. Every accomplished martial artist knew something of the Amazons of China. Even his master had recounted several tales about them. They were independent, ruthless and occasionally cute. They were also above all, accomplished martial artists in their own right. "But, I thought the Amazons were… More legend than fact?"
Genma shook his head. "No. They're real and we found 'em. The boy infiltrated the tribe to learn their techniques and came out… Changed. I'm sure they brainwashed him somehow." Or simply provided him with everything that he couldn't, but that thought never crossed his mind.
"What does that mean for the engagement?" Soun asked with a slight edge of panic.
"I'm not sure," He rolled the question around in his brain. "But watch your daughters around the girl-type, especially with that Akane's temper. That's when she's the most ruthless."
"But… Why?"
Now this was a question Ranma's father had put some thought into himself. "The Amazon's are a female dominated clan. Something tells me Ranma had to do more to learn their secrets than just smile nicely to the elders and it must have been pretty heavy stuff to put that noticeable of a dent in my son's attitude."
Soun nodded, understanding, but not. "Alright. I'll try and coach my Akane to keep her temper in check." Then he considered the situation for a moment. "Maybe this isn't such a bad thing after all."
Genma shot a queer look at his longtime friend.
"After all, she's a fireball, which makes the two a perfect match!"
"I'm telling you Kas-chan, they're going to be trouble."
Ranma snapped out of her rooftop stargazing as the voices floated softly through the night air. It had been the Nabiki voice, Ranma recognized, and a sliver of Amazon awareness brought a threat assessment to her conscious. Physically she was nothing, it decided. Those eyes, however… She was a predator and bore watching. The majority in standing, currently Ranma, thought she was fairly attractive, though the breast poking had been a little much. The sliver agreed but otherwise refused to call forth the remainder of its Amazon host. The action could be… Overlooked.
"Why do you say that, Nabs?"
Kasumi, both Ranma and the sliver agreed. No threat in any way shape or form, which automatically shuffled her into a different class: Protection. Both portions agreed that the first duty of a Martial Artist was to protect those who could not protect themselves, and Kasumi was mentally filed away into that watch list.
"Have you seen how much they fight?" Nabiki replied. "They're gonna break stuff left and right, I tell you. That table was only the beginning."
"Oh my." Kasumi said thoughtfully. "You might be right. And the way our father's friend ate…"
"…Is going to mean a much bigger food bill." Nabiki agreed with her sister's realization. "Especially if Ranma is like his father in any way." She sighed. "I'm going to have to find a way to make money off them one way or the other if we're going to pay the bills…"
Ranma blanched at that one. Being compared to her father was… Was… An affront. It was an affront that stirred the Amazon fully, but not to violence. Ranma sat up and hopped off the roof, walking back inside the house and past the parents. Both parts agreed. It was an insult, but not the kind that would demand the restoration of honor in a physical manner. It merely required… Correction. Immediate correction. She padded up the steps and found Nabiki's room, murmurs still coming from it. Ranma rapped sharply on the door.
Nabiki stood up from her bed, looking at Kasumi quietly. Nobody knocked in the household and Akane was in the bath, which meant either Ranma or his Father. Last she saw, his father was talk to their father, which probably meant… "Come in, Ranma."
Ranma increased Nabiki's threat potential by another notch with a thin smile and slid the door open. She walked boldly into the center of her room, the Alpha Female purposely invading their space in its entirety. Nabiki recognized those cool eyes and mental stood on guard. They were the same ones she' d seen split a table in half, though nowhere nearly as intense now. That, and she had overheared- read: spied on -the two fathers and their discussion on Ranma's Amazon troubles. This would be a delicate tightrope to walk, she realized.
"What can we do for you, Saotome?"
Ranma's thin smile grew slightly at the sisters no-nonsense manner and the Amazon began adding points to her threat assessment left and right just on how she felt. No physical threat to be sure, but her mind would be the deadly weapon here. Much like Grandmother, she thought with no small amusement. She could be friends with this one if things turned out right. Not equals, but friends would do.
"The question is what can I do for you." Ranma corrected the sister. "I overheard at least part of your conversation."
Kasumi, content with staying on the sidelines, looked at her sister with concern. She knew it too and if this was the Amazon talking…
"You compared to my old man and that is not acceptable." She frowned, eyes glinting. "You're right Nabiki Tendo… With us around things are likely to become worse than better. I've lost a lot on that stupid martial arts trip, but one thing I haven't lost is my honor." She considered them both now, eyes softening further. "I've got no love for this engagement, but I'll help however I can as a guest."
Nabiki opened her mouth, then closed it, staring at the redhead thoughtfully. She was sure that the Amazon was in there right now, watching, but contrary to what she had heard from the girl- er, boy's father, it wasn't an uncontrolled whirlwind temper. It was… Strict. She was going to have to do a bit of research at the library on Amazon etiquette just to see what hot buttons they could avoid pushing with her. Call it 'know thy enemy'. One thing was for certain; there was no doubting her sincerity.
"Ok, I'll take you're word on that," She replied. Because it would be very bad not to take your word for it, Nabiki suspected silently. "But what about your father?"
Ranma laughed with a mild snort and it was the first not so tightly controlled emotion to break through the icy exterior. "He won't lift a finger to help you. In fact, he'll try and take advantage of everything he can here."
"I see." Nabiki stared at Ranma's matter-of-fact summary of her own father. "Then we'll just have to find a way to use him some-" Nabiki stoped suddenly, realizing she was detailing vital tactical information to the son of the victim. Instead of the glower she was expecting, a wide smile was plastered on the face of Ranma Saotome.
"Count me in."
It was high time to get out of this body, Ranma thought as she undressed for a bath. Not that she wasn't used to it by now. Nearly a year wandering around in the rainforest of China and among the Amazons had all but erased that particular gender sensitivity, but it could get… Tedious. Not all the time, but there were days when she could feel it pull at her very being. Staying in it for too long was not necessarily conducive to her masculinity, she decided. Especially with my Amazon. Even she could see it from a third person viewpoint if she really focused, but it had become harder as of late and she knew it was affecting her behavior, sometimes radically. It was like a combat stance, Ranma had long since rationalized because it was the only way she could even describe it to herself. She had gotten used to a certain behavior set over the last year in female form and after prolonged exposure, had inadvertently adopted the Amazon persona as his girl-type 'stance'. Female meant Amazon, and his mind and body had gotten quite used to that fact, especially when there was usually so much at stake. If it had just been eight months of casual contact, things would probably be different. But it had been in-depth, up close and personal every single day.
It was another disturbing fact that combat was now beginning to feel more comfortable in his girl type than the boy, which wasn't necessarily a huge surprise given her activities over the last year and a half. Water, water everywhere and not a drop of it warm, she mused darkly. And that was the double-edged sword she faced with the tribe. There was a price to staying and learning those secret arts, and that price was one-hundred percent girl, one-hundred percent of the time. And she was actually beginning to like it there, Ranma thought with a hint of sadness. Shampoo was a great friend and it was a simple life. Cologne was a hard but fair instructor. A lot simpler than all the twisted schemes I'll have to deal with here, that's for sure. Why do I always lose the good friends? Ucchan… Shampoo…
Ranma sighed and tossed the last article of clothing into the basket. Now completely nude, she slid the bath door open to find herself face to face with a shocked and equally nude Akane Tendo. After a moment of quiet turmoil, Ranma could feel the anger building within the sister, and the Amazon snapped into place in response. Akane's rise to anger stopped short of blowing as she looked into those cool blue orbs once more. They dared her to throw an insult.
The door to the house slid open and Nabiki poked her head in. "A-chan, are you almost- Oh." She watched the two nude women stare one another down in the bath doorway. If Akane lost it or Ranma tried to press forward… Either way, it would be Akane on the losing end, she was sure of it.
"Ranma…" The redhead blinked once as Nabiki carefully used her name. Akane watched as the cold eyes flickered momentarily. "Helping us out means not eating my little sister." She wanted to avoid the word fiancée if at all possible, as it probably meant next to nothing in Ranma's book. Ranma looked back at Nabiki and a thin smile cracked the ice. Amazingly enough, she stepped aside, allowing her sister to pass. She really needed to find out more about the Amazons, Nabiki decided in earnest. This game was just too touch and go for comfort. Besides, I thought I was a mercenary, not a negotiator.
As if bidden by her thoughts, she watched Akane's face contort with anger. That wouldn't do at all. "Akane!" The face faultered. "You're done. Let it go." Akane's eyes flicked one last time over to Ranma and she gathered her robe on the way out with a contemptuous sniff. Now alone, Nabiki looked over Ranma who in turn looked her over. She nodded with silent thanks and slid the bathroom door shut.
The middle sister sighed, amazed enough that she had successfully defused the situation when two observations came to mind. First, no feminine modesty whatsoever with that girl. I could have probably stared all day without her flinching. What kind of life had she led? And second, what she had said earlier was no boast.
She was better built to boot.
Chapter VII
School, Ranma snorted with contempt as he walked lightly on a chain-linked fence. It was a new day and he was going to… School. When was the last time he had been to one of those, he wondered. Five? Six? For all his gripes, he had to admit one thing-It was a damn sight better than wandering around lost in a rain forest with no food or shelter. So yeah, I can stand school, Ranma decided, then looked down at the girl he had been following to school. Now that is something I can't stand. Macho chicks. They had been trading witty retorts all morning long about how neither was actually engaged or even wanted to be in the presence of the other, which was fine by Ranma. Besides, the Amazon was displeased with her at the moment, so being as far from her as possible was probably the best thing anyway. He could feel her grumbling beneath the surface. She'd stay there as long as he was a guy, Ranma knew, but he was as close as he wanted to get to that particular disaster waiting to happen. Cold water plus Akane plus insult minus anybody to intervene equaled a painful lesson in Amazon etiquette, Ranma was certain. Well, I'll try and hold myself back if it comes down to it. Try to convince myself she's not worth the effort. But as a girl, he'd know there'd be no guarantees.
Now granted, there were plenty of macho chicks that were her village sisters, and he liked most of them well enough, but they also followed the same code he did. Or she did, rather. Sometimes keeping it all strait was a royal pain. But this one was self-centered, had no code and could not even begin to satisfy the multiple breaches in etiquette Ranma had endured. He consciously forced the bubbling Amazon down, which was a much easier task as a guy. In fact, he preferred it that way. The less overlap between sexes, the better.
The stick-boy wanted to fight again, Ranma sighed inwardly. Upperclassman Kuno was nowhere near his level and yet he insisted on dueling him. Frankly, he was lucky it was he the senior had challenged and not the girl, Ranma observed. I'll happily play around with the buffoon. The Amazon would have broken him, being an official challenge and a boy. That was a serious infraction. Boys just didn't challenge Amazon girls. It was the way of things, and that way of things was enforced quite brutally.
Their arrival at school had been… Eventful. Apparently Akane had a fan club, Ranma noted and watched as she proceed to beat the tar out of half the male student body. Now that was impressive and the sliver of Amazon awareness made a note of it. Quite a bit like home, it noted and Ranma had smiled in spite of himself. Obviously the men were battling for the affections of the female and while it wasn't quite Amazon, it'd been the closest thing he'd seen yet to home. Apparently it happened every morning too, and that's where Kuno came in. The student had taken instant offense to him living under the same roof as Akane and after a small scuffle had taken larger offense to the fact that they were engaged, however unwillingly. Not that either Ranma or Akane explaining the matter to him helped, so they took the fight outside.
Off the third story.
With the gym pool right below them.
"Yow!" Ranma exclaimed and cursed himself mentally as he realized his error. Yet for all of his problems, Kuno was on the worse end of the stick as he hadn't been expecting the jump. Or the Pool. And if he played his cards right, one angry little redhead.
SPLAaaSH!
The duel could wait, Ranma decided and the Amazon grudgingly agreed as his body shifted into a girl on contact with the pool water. Right now the priority was to maintain her cover because the last thing she needed right now was more complications in her already complicated life. She was just imagining what the entire school would do when it found out they had gender changing student in their midst. God, life was so much simpler back at the village she sniffed and glided beneath the water, only to find Kuno floating on the surface face down. His eyes were open but the boy was clearly senseless.
The Amazon grumbled. Boys challenging girls was one thing and while she'd normally be happy to let him drowned here, she then wouldn't have the satisfaction of beating him into the ground later. Besides, it'd be a mark against her honor if she simply let him drown before the duel even began. So she grabbed the upperclassman to float him to the side and much to her surprise, was promptly grabbed- groped, she amended -back by the student.
"RANMA SAOTOME!" Kuno erupted from his unconscious stupor with a gasp. "I FIGHT ON!"
Enough was enough. She oughta just give this fool a Kiss of Death and be done with it, but that would require her to lose and that would be, of course, impossible for her to do. Ranma toyed with idea of throwing any future fights just so she could enact the protocol, but personal honor was more important than personal vengeance at the moment so she settled grabbing the upperclassman head and flipped him onto the dry concrete. Hard. The move also had the advantage of catapulting Ranma up and away from the prying eyes of the other students above.
"Upperclassman, I challenge you!"
Ranma smiled from her tree branch. She may not like the girl, but this was the proper way of things.
Akane had found Ranma in her treetop perch half nude and ringing out her wet clothes. After a few insults, she taunted her with a kettle of hot water, much to the redhead's annoyance. She was really going to have to teach that girl a lesson one of these days. But then Kuno arrived and she immediately redeemed herself in a most Amazon fashion. Maybe Akane wasn't a total write-off after all, Ranma speculated.
"So be it!" Kuno exclaimed, "If you win… I shall let you go out with me! Thus I shall lose with all my might!"
The guy was insufferable! Ranma grumbled as she struggled to pull in the kettle Akane had hastily thrown just before the upperclassman arrived. Kuno stepped in with his bokken for a high overhead strike and Akane slapped the blade between her hands, instantly brining it to a halt. The momentum brought him in and she fell backwards smoothly, planting a solid foot into his chest. The move pushed him skyward…
KLONG!
…And into Ranma's kettle, much to her irritation. Recognition flashed through the student's eyes as he found Ranma waiting on the tree branch. It was the girl from the pool. "So. Did you see where that boy in the pigtail went?"
The fool didn't know about the curse yet? "Uh-uh."
"That coward!" Kuno fumed. "Running away from a fight! No doubt he feared my prowess! Bah! He is no man! He is no man!"
The Amazon awoke fully and she dropped the kettle with Kuno attatched to the ground below. She jumped down as well. "I can take you any time! Come on!"
"Heh! Amusing." The upperclassman retrieved his wooden sword from Akane. "Well should you win… I will allow you to go out with me!"
The strike came in as a blur, but Ranma was already in the air. Akane could only watched as she observed those familiar eyes slip into place. Ranma had become… Cold. Like their sparring. And the table. She hadn't overheard their parents on Ranma's Amazon like Nabiki had, but she knew the eyes.
"And who's asking to go out with YOU?" The Amazon slid down the reverse edge of the bokken and planted a powerful foot into the side of his face. She knew that that hit alone would have been sufficient to put Kuno down, but she wasn't done. He was a boy and she was an Amazon girl. Boys didn't challenge Amazon girls. Period. End of story. Mousse she could tolerate. He knew the Code. This one however… This one was going to get hurt.
Even as Kuno began to lose his balance, Ranma landed lightly herself and shot two more kicks into his gut, sending him into her tree with a shattering thud. She stepped forward and unleashed a roundhouse kick to his dazed head, smashing his other cheek. The stick-boy fell away, crumbling under his own weight. Ranma grabbed the sword before he hit the ground, noting the boy still retained some kernel of awareness.
Akane watched horrified as those eyes of ice bore into Kuno. "Know this, Kuno… I own you. Challenge me again and I will break you." As if to provide an object lesson, she snapped the wooden sword in half with a hand and it fell to the earth by his body. Lesson done for the day, Ranma walked off across the school property, leaving Akane and the stricken Kuno looking on after the girl.
"And then he just tore into Kuno!" Akane explained with an edge of panic to her sister later that night. Nabiki sat on her sister's bed reading a book as she listened. "The first kick would have done the job, but three more after that was… Overkill!"
"He?" Nabiki queried with an arched eyebrow.
"Okay, she."
"That's because Kuno's a boy," Nabiki replied cryptically.
"What do you mean by that?"
Nabiki waggled the book she was reading for Akane's benefit. "Ancient Customs of the Chinese Amazon." She recited the title, looking at her sister. "Had a hell of a time find it at the library today." Now Akane was thoroughly confused. "You were already gone so you didn't hear about Ranma's… Adventures in China. She ate, lived and breathed Amazon culture for the better part of a year."
Akane shrugged. "So?"
"They're a warrior based society ruled by women." Nabiki explained. "Ranking is determined in no small part by prowess in combat. If you want to move up in rank within an Amazon village, you challenge the person above you in the form of a ritual duel." She flipped the page, continuing her summary. "Insults and physical threats demand immediate action by the recipient. If honor is not satisfied, the member will have no choice but to engage in physical combat to restore her honor."
Nabiki watched as dread crept into Akane's face "…Oh crap."
"'Oh crap' indeed." Nibiki nodded. "According to the rules I'm reading here, she's been very patient with you so far."
Akane paled. After what she'd done to Kuno… "Um, where does Kuno tie into this?"
Nabiki smiled. "Like I said, he's a boy. Boys are second class citizens to the Amazon women." The smile faded and she pointed to the book. "According to this, she'd be well within her rights to take his life for even thinking of challenging her."
Akane's cheek twitched. "But Ranma's a boy…"
"Which might be the only reason he's still alive." Nabiki shrugged. "Beats me. I can't even begin to comprehend how Saotome's juggling all the different aspects of his life, such as it is." She paused, then looked at Akane. "And if the book is right and what you told me about Kuno today is accurate, you should be receiving a visit any time now."
As if she had timed it such, there was a sharp rap on Akane Tendo's bedroom door. She looked at Nabiki with wide eyes and she simply shrugged.
"Um, come in?"
The door slid open and a female Ranma stepped in. Both sisters immediately checked the eyes and found they maintained a temperature above freezing.
"What can we do for you, Saotome?" Nabiki asked then smiled at her little joke. A thin smile crept across the redheads face, but promptly disappeared.
"I'm here to address a matter of honor with Akane."
Akane shuddered internally. Oh crap, she's not actually going to enforce that stupid code is she! I'm gonna get my butt-
"It was not my place to interfere with your duel with Kuno." She stated in a voice considerably closer to room tempreture. "Please accept my apology." The redhead bowed formally, much to Akane's surprise. She looked from Ranma, then over to Nabiki. What the-!
"You were already engaged in a duel with Kuno, A-chan. If I'm reading this correctly…" She watched as Ranma's eyes flicked from her to the book she was holding. "She had no right to interrupt such a duel… Especially when the boy was yours to do with as you will."
Ranma took a step forward, cocking her head to read the title of the book Nabiki held. "Ancient Customs of the Chinese… Huh!" She sniffed in surprise. "How'd ya know?"
"Your Daddy blabbed about it to our Daddy." She explained. "Anything he knows, we know." Then she looked at Ranma seriously. She had to ask. "If you don't mind me asking, why are you apologizing in your girl form?"
Ranma looked as if to be considering her answer carefully. "Because it satisfies Honor."
"And your boy form wouldn't?" It was more a statement than a question.
Again, Ranma hesitated. "It's more… 'Appropriate' this way."
"Because of all the time you spent with the Amazons."
Ranma nodded slowly. It wasn't often she had the duality of her thought process called into question. It was a curiosity in itself for her as well.
"Yes. I…" She looked as if she weren't about ready to continued, but pushed on. "I was forced to remain a girl nearly one-hundred percent of the time in their company. All their values, the honor and Code fell to this body to be carried out…" She paused once more. "…It just wouldn't mean the same thing… In the other body."
That's some heavy-duty compartmentalization Ranma's got going on up there, Nabiki noted silently. That could wait, she decided and turned to Akane. "Don't you have something to tell her as well?"
The sister looked at Nabiki curiously, then mouthied a silent "Oh!" in surprise. She promptly got up and produced her own bow. "I… Uh… Sorry I… Didin't realize…" She looked at the book, which was explaining everything she had missed. "Let's just call it even, Okay?"
Ranma looked at the girl for a second longer and nodded.
"I'm still not going to be your fiancée." She stated firmly. Nabiki looked at her in disbelief. The girl just did not know when to keep her mouth-
"Likewise." Ranma smiled. It was a mutual understanding. As long as the girl didn't go off and continue to poke at her honor with a stick, things might actually turn out okay. It was obvious she was one of the Alpha Females at her school and even her behavior in regards to the boys there reflected that fact. Yes. This would do until she found an honorable way out of the twisted mess her father had tied her into.
"And no offense, Ranma," Nabiki began tentatively, "But you do kinda need to lighten up on the whole Amazon thing."
Ranma looked at her more sharply than she meant to, then softened. "I… I know. It's just… They gave me back… the only thing I have left in the world."
Akane now observed the girl in front of her with a new sense of revelation. This was the girl she's seen after their match… The girl that had lost something… Something big. And it was obvious the Amazons didn't restore her manhood, so…?
"What did you… Lose?" Akane asked with some hesitation. But she couldn't help it. The eyes flicked over to her, but there was no anger.
"Everything that mattered." She settled in and told them the whole story. Being sold for rice and two pickles, thrown repeatedly into a pit of starving cats, swimming to China. On the trail for months with little food or shelter. Forced to beg and steal. And to top it off, barely remembering what his mother looked like. The sister's disbelief deepened with every word.
"By the time I stumbled across the Amazons, the curse was beginning to take a backseat to everthing else," She continued. "It became just another thing, y'know? Sure, a big thing, but after everything else even the big things just become things." Then she looked up at the pair with a warm smile. "But the Amazons gave me some of those things back, but especially my pride and honor. I learned that this curse is a small thing compared to losing that." Ranma sighed. "I miss my sister."
"Sister?" Akane questioned with an arched eyebrow.
"Daddy said you were an only child." Nabiki chimed in.
"Uh… In China." Ranma corrected herself with a shade of pink on her face. "I was adopted into the tribe and she's been my best friend…"
Ranma's voice trailed off and both sisters looked on her thoughtfully. Even Akane, who was dead set against marrying- let alone marrying a gender cursed guy -wasn't immune to the plight of the girl in front of them now that the facts in their fullest measure were known. Ranma had everyone and everything taken from him- and her -and was now being forced into an arrangement nobody in their right mind would have concocted… Which said a lot about their parents.
Author's notes: See, I told you it was unfinished. Not sure if I will finish it at this point. The story seems a tad too moody for what I was aiming for, though part one had promise. After that, it just got too far away from "Ranma" for my tastes. That and I really just don't feel like a complete rewrite of the series with Amazon Ranma all the way up to his meeting with Shampoo (which is where I planned on wrapping the this series up originally). A clear case of lack of vision :p As an example, I blasted the two parts of "Exact Change" in a fraction of the time while this was in progress. Somebody is definitely going to have to bug me to get this completed :p