As always, all rights to Ranma 1/2 belong to Rumiko Takahashi and
Shougakukan
Genma's Daughter
Chapter 11: Turning Points
Original concept and sketch by Steve Pardue
Story by Deborah Goldsmith and Steve Pardue
Deborah Goldsmith <dgoldsmith@mac.com>
Steve Pardue <spardue@zebra.net>
http://www.zebra.net/~spardue/anime
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
"Sis? Can I come in?"
After a short pause, a listless voice floated out from inside. "Sure..."
Akane entered, then slid the door shut behind her. Ranko was sitting on her
bed, morose, with her doll Kasumi clutched in her lap. Akane followed
Ranko's gaze over to the desk, where her violin sat. Uh oh...
She went over to sit next to her sister. "What's wrong, Sis? You disappeared
up here as soon as you came home."
Ranko bit her lip. "I can't do it."
Akane was confused. "Can't do what?"
Ranko sighed. "That Bach piece. There's no way I'll be ready in time." She
bowed her head. "Sensei said maybe... maybe it's time to give up on it for
the recital."
Akane put a hand on Ranko's arm. "Sis, you can do it. I've seen you do
things I wouldn't have believed possible if I hadn't seen them myself."
Ranko didn't look up. "I told you, that was Saotome Ranma, not Saotome
Ranko."
Akane found herself getting angry. "Why does that matter? What does that
have to do with it?"
Ranko looked up, her eyes wet and her voice thick, and Akane's anger
evaporated instantly. "I don't know if I have it in me now, Sis. I just
don't know."
Akane felt her heart ache. She was sure Ranko could do this and far more --
but her sister seemed to be her own biggest obstacle at the moment.
Ranko fussed with Kasumi. "Maybe... maybe I should just be happy being a
mother when I get married." A small smile lit her face briefly. "I think I'm
going to like that..."
A chill ran up Akane's spine. "Sis, that... that's something I'm also
looking forward to, but... but you don't have to give up your other dreams,
too!" She was worried; she had never seen her sister with such a defeatist
attitude.
Ranko bit her lip. "But... I'm a girl now... and..."
Akane was shocked; she had thought this issue was long since dealt with. She
tried to find her voice. "You... you think that because you're a girl, you
can't do what you want?!"
Ranko looked Akane in the eye, and Akane flinched; she saw despair in
Ranko's gaze. "Isn't it going to be a problem? Isn't it true?"
Akane wanted to brush aside her sister's objections, but couldn't. Ranko was
right: being a woman was an additional obstacle to any kind of achievement,
especially so in Japan. She tried to find something to say. "It... it's a
problem, yes, but not a reason to give up! You can overcome it!"
Ranko lowered her head again. "Maybe..."
Akane sighed in frustration. She turned her gaze away, and one of the
martial arts posters caught her eye. Bruce Lee; he'd always been one of
Ranma's favorites. She looked at the next poster, then the next, and was
suddenly thunderstruck.
Guys. They're *all* guys. Ranko lives in this room every day, and her
examples of success are *all guys*.
Akane had been surprised at how quickly Ranko had stopped making demeaning
remarks about women and their place in the world after she became a girl
again, which is why her words came as such a shock. As she observed her
morose sister, though, she was convinced that the misogynistic poison Ranko
had listened to for twelve years was still at work -- but on the inside, not
the outside. Instead of telling Akane that she was a weak, stupid girl, she
was telling herself that she was a weak, stupid girl. Maybe not in so many
words, but...
I... I have to find a way for her to see that she can still do whatever she
wants, even though she's a girl now. I have to find some role models for
her. Akane bit her lip as she realized that that was a tall order in Japan.
Let's see... Kasumi is a homemaker. Her mother is a homemaker. I'm still
figuring out what I want to do with my life. Who do we know who is
ambitious, driven, an achiever...
Of course.
*****
Nabiki's eyebrows shot up. "You want me to be a *role model* for her?"
She regarded her little sister, who had asked to speak with her in private
after dinner, with no little incredulity. Nabiki was sitting at her desk
while Akane sat on her big sister's bed.
Akane's eyes pleaded. "Please, Oneechan. She needs someone to show her that
a girl can do whatever she wants. Right now, all that sexist stuff Uncle
told her is making her feel she can't do anything. I'm sure that's what's
holding her back! I don't know if she's even aware of it at a conscious
level, but whenever I tell her she's done so many amazing things, that she
can do anything she wants, she says 'that was Saotome Ranma, not Saotome
Ranko.' It makes me want to strangle her!"
Nabiki ventured a wry smile. "Well, I think I can be more helpful than that,
at least." Akane blushed in embarrassment.
Nabiki's smile faded. "I think you might be right, Akane. I have a hunch
there's something more here, too. She's still recovering from what happened
to her and she still has... problems. Kami-sama, who wouldn't after what
happened to her? Let me think..." Akane watched her sister anxiously as she
pondered the situation for a few minutes.
Finally, Nabiki spoke. "I'm not so sure if *I* can be a role model for her,
but I do have an idea..."
The next morning, after sparring with her father, Ranko wandered into the
kitchen. Kasumi was busy getting breakfast ready.
Ranko looked around. "Hi, Oneechan. Where are Akane and Nabiki-neechan?"
Kasumi turned around and smiled. "They said they had an errand to run
downtown this morning. They ate breakfast early and left." She eyed Ranko.
"Would you like to help me?"
Ranko smiled, and nodded. She enjoyed helping her mother, and helping Kasumi
was just as much fun. She put on an apron and followed Kasumi's direction.
She was pleased at the compliments she got from Uncle Tendou and her father
for her part of breakfast. Maybe being a housewife wouldn't be such a bad
thing...
As lunchtime came and went, and the afternoon dragged on, she was just
starting to wonder what Akane and Nabiki could possibly be up to when Kasumi
called her name.
"Ranko-chan, I have to do the shopping for dinner. Would you like to come
help me?"
"Sure, Oneechan! Just let me get my purse." Ranko scurried up the stairs.
While she was waiting, Kasumi glanced at her watch and bit her lip. Ranko
came back down, and they left. Ranko wondered why Kasumi seemed to be in
such a hurry to get out of the house.
An hour and a half later, they were back with a huge bundle of groceries.
Ranko was a bit surprised; Kasumi had said they were just going for the
dinner shopping, but it seemed that at every store they had visited, she had
seen one thing or another that she had forgotten about but absolutely had to
get. The trip had dragged on forever...
She spied Nabiki's and Akane's coats as she hung up her own; at least they
were back. She helped Kasumi unload and put away the groceries, then excused
herself. "I want to see what Akane and Nabiki-neechan were up to today. I'll
come back later and help with dinner, OK?" Kasumi smiled and nodded.
After a quick tour of the house, Ranko was mystified. Where could they be?
She headed up to her room to put her purse away. She slid open the door...
Akane and Nabiki were in her room, Nabiki at the desk and Akane on the bed.
They were both eyeing her, their arms folded.
Ranko was perplexed. "What's going on? Were you waiting for me?" Something
caught her eye, and she gasped. Her posters! All her martial arts posters
were gone! Instead, the room was full of posters of women, women she didn't
even recognize.
"What... what did you do? Why did you replace all my posters?"
Nabiki swiveled the chair around to face her. "Akane tells me that you have
some doubts about what you can do now that you're a girl." She leaned
forward. "I have a little problem with that point of view."
Suddenly Ranko felt nervous. "Re-really?"
Nabiki nodded. "Really. I happen to believe that a woman can do whatever she
sets her mind to. I know *I* plan to do what I want. I know Akane will,
too." Her gaze intensified. "I think you could, too -- if you would try."
Ranko lowered her head. "I'm... I'm sorry, Oneechan. I guess... I guess I'm
a disappointment to you."
Nabiki leaned back in her chair. "That's not important. What's important is,
are you a disappointment to yourself?"
Ranko stared at Nabiki for a moment, then squeezed her eyes shut; tears
appeared at the corners. She nodded. "Yes..."
Akane moved to get off the bed and go to Ranko, but Nabiki shook her head
and motioned for her to stay put. "Why is that?"
Ranko opened her eyes; they were wet. "I... I just find it hard to believe I
can really succeed. I'm a woman. A Japanese woman." She swallowed. "I mean,
most really successful people are guys, especially in Japan. Why should I be
any different? I should just... face facts." Her lips were a thin line.
Having her suspicions confirmed didn't make Akane feel one bit better. She
would have pounded Ranma for saying things like this about her, but Ranko
was turning this on herself. She wanted to cry, but couldn't let herself.
Nabiki also had a hard time maintaining her neutral expression in the face
of the pain she saw in her little sister's face, but she had to. "Are you
sure? Maybe we should take a look at some of the women who are decorating
your wall now."
Ranko looked at the posters on her wall. Athletes, astronauts, world
leaders. She came to a young woman playing a violin. "Anne-Sophie Mutter?"
Nabiki nodded. "A violinist." She smiled, for the first time. "She's not
Japanese, but she's the only female violinist I could... get a poster of."
Akane giggled, and Nabiki chuckled herself.
Her expression grew serious again. "She plays all over the world, Ranko. She
has dozens of recordings."
Ranko thought. "But she's a Westerner. Women are more respected there."
Nabiki nodded. "A little more, yes. How about the woman next to her?"
Ranko moved to the next poster. A Japanese woman in her late fifties, but
with a youthful air, looked back at her, a cheerful expression on her face.
She looked entirely ordinary, like a neighbor you would meet at the market.
Ranko read the legend. "Tabei Junko?" She screwed up her face. "I don't
think I've ever heard of her... At least she's Japanese. What did she do?"
Nabiki smiled. "She was the first woman to reach the summit of Mount
Everest, Ranko. A Japanese woman."
Ranko's jaw fell open. This ordinary-looking Japanese woman... had climbed
Mount Everest? Had been the first woman to do so?
"And she looks like she's just a housewife..." she whispered. Akane rolled
her eyes, but said nothing.
Nabiki's smile widened. "Speaking of which, she's married and had two kids.
That didn't stop her. She's climbed mountains all over the world, on every
continent."
Ranko, slightly shocked, wandered over to sit on the bed, lost in thought.
She looked up, and her eyes started to wander over the posters on her walls.
Nabiki motioned to Akane with her eyes, and they both got up, Akane moving
to the door. Nabiki walked over to the bed and held something out to Ranko.
Ranko looked at what Nabiki was holding. "CDs?" She took them and looked at
the labels. "Uchida Mitsuko? Nishizaki Takako?" She blinked. "Midori? Just
'Midori'?"
Nabiki nodded. "All female. All Japanese. All classical musicians. A pianist
and two violinists. Why don't you try listening to them -- and see if you
think their being girls means they're not good enough?"
Ranko flinched as if she had been slapped. In essence, that *had* been what
she was saying, hadn't it? "But... Oneechan..." she looked around the room
at the posters, at the CDs in her hand. "These are all really exceptional
women." She lowered her gaze.
Nabiki knelt, took Ranko by the shoulders, and looked her straight in the
eye. "You could be too, Ranko, no matter what you do with your life -- if
you would only let yourself do it. You were exceptional when you were Ranma.
Why should you be any different now?"
"But... but that's just it! That was when I was Ranma." Her voice grew
heavy. "I... I don't want to be Ranma any more." Her eyes brimmed with
tears. "I *can't* be Ranma any more!"
Nabiki's eyebrows shot up. So, there *had* been another issue lurking behind
all this.
Akane just looked confused. "Why would you have to be Ranma again? I don't
understand."
Ranko's eyes lost focus, and she spoke softly. "I was so arrogant, so
cocky... so incredibly egotistical. I had to enter and win every single
contest, no matter how stupid it was, no matter whether it... it hurt the
people I cared about. I dressed up in a *bunny suit* so I could beat Tsubasa
selling okonomiyaki, because I just *had* to win." She shuddered. "You were
right about me, Sis. I *was* a jerk. I can't be Ranma any more. It makes me
feel ill just to think about it."
Akane tried to hold back her own tears. Why did I have to call her so many
names?
Nabiki nodded slightly in understanding. She moved her hands off Ranko's
shoulders and took her hands. "That's true. You can't be that way any more."
Akane looked shocked by Nabiki's statement.
Ranko nodded sadly. "So, you see... I... I... just can't..."
"Ranko, do I seem cocky, or arrogant, or egostistical to you? Does Akane?"
Ranko considered that, for longer than Nabiki was happy with. "Well... not
really, no..."
Not really? "Do you think we have confidence in our own abilities? Are we
sure of ourselves?"
Ranko looked confused. "Of... of course..."
Nabiki nodded. "Ranko, you can't be Ranma any more, it's true. But you still
have the same talents. In fact, you have more: it wasn't Ranma who learned
to play the violin, it was you. You don't have to be Ranma to be
exceptional. You just have to believe you can do it. You weren't successful
as Ranma because of your arrogance and ego -- look at Kunou! -- but because
you have great talent, and you believed in that talent and in yourself.
That's self-confidence, not arrogance."
Her voice softened. "There's nothing wrong with a girl having
self-confidence. In fact, it's even more important for us than for boys,
because everyone is always telling us we can't do things, and... and
sometimes we start to believe that ourselves..." She trailed off, lost in
thought for a moment.
She shook her head and looked around the room. "Do you think all these women
got where they did by worrying about whether they were good enough because
they were girls? They *had* to believe in themselves. You have to, too. You
just have to find a new way to do it, as Ranko, not the way Ranma did."
Ranko gulped and nodded, then looked down.
Nabiki stood and went to join Akane at the door, then turned back. The
gasoline had been poured; time to toss the match. "By the way, I had to have
most of these posters made up special at a custom print shop today."
Ranko looked up, shock on her face. "Wh-what?"
Nabiki looked around. "All of these women accomplished something really
special, but you couldn't find a poster of them anywhere in Tokyo to save
your life, with a few exceptions. I stayed up late last night using my
computer to lay out posters using photos I found on the web, then had them
printed out today." She sighed. "I guess some people don't think women are
worth commemorating with a poster."
She slid the door closed behind Akane and herself, smiling in satisfaction
as she noted Ranko's face contort in anger. We have ignition...
Akane swallowed. "Oneechan, weren't you a little... hard on her in places?"
Nabiki's raised an eyebrow. "This from the woman whose favorite method of
getting her point across was the nearest piece of furniture -- or a mallet?"
Akane had the good grace to blush.
Nabiki sighed and put her hand over her eyes. "This touchy-feely stuff is
hard for me... I'm going to go take a little nap." She moved to go to her
room.
"Oneechan?"
"Mmm?" Nabiki turned back.
Akane smiled broadly. "Thank you. I knew you could help."
Nabiki smiled back. "Anytime, kiddo."
Meanwhile, Ranko was furious. All these women had accomplished things she
only dreamed of, and no one thought they were worth putting on a poster? She
hung her head in shame as she realized that she herself didn't know who most
of these women were.
The CDs in her hand caught her attention. She read aloud: "Butterfly Lover's
Violin Concerto; Six Chinese Violin Pieces... Nishizaki Takako, violin." A
smile flitted across her face for a moment. "Chinese?" She was starting to
appreciate Oneechan's subtle sense of humor.
She got up and went over to the CD player on her desk, and put the CD in. As
it played, she looked over the posters on her walls a little, but mostly she
just sat and listened intently, her brow furrowed.
An hour later, when the CD was over, she got up and went over to look in her
mirror. She regarded the redhead looking back at her with a somber
expression, studying her carefully. Once, her gaze shifted briefly to the
poster of Tabei Junko, then back to her own reflection.
After a couple of minutes, a single word passed her lips, as if in judgment:
"Baka." She shook her head, then turned towards her desk, and gazed at her
violin. Slowly, her face relaxed into a smile.
*****
That night, as the evening drew on, Akane wondered where Ranko was. She had
seemed more cheerful at dinner, so Akane had been surprised when she had
disappeared again as soon as it was over. She hoped that Ranko wasn't moping
in her room again, and went to go check.
She knocked on the door. "Sis?" There was no answer.
She cautiously slid the door open, then turned the light on. Ranko wasn't
here... Where on Earth could she be?
She was about to close the door when she suddenly had the impression that
something about the room was different, had changed from the way it had been
just a few hours ago. She wasn't quite sure just what it was. She mentally
catalogued everything: the furniture, the bed, the dolls and stuffed
animals, Ranko's makeup and jewelry boxes, Ranko's violin... that was it:
Ranko's violin was missing. And so were her music stand and music books.
Akane frowned. Ranko had gone off somewhere, taking her violin with her.
Where could she have gone?
She headed downstairs, back towards the living room. As she passed the door
which led towards the Dojo, she happened to glance out the window, and
noticed there was a light on in the other building. She paused, then walked
over to the door and opened it, shivering in the face of the frigid breeze
that bullied its way in. With the door open, she could now hear the sounds
of Ranko's violin emanating from the Dojo.
She slammed the door shut, and went to get her coat and scarf, then went
back and slipped out. She walked down the connecting walkway to the Dojo,
and as she walked up to the door, she heard the strains of the Bach partita
for solo violin drifting out, ending suddenly in a missed note. There was a
short pause, then Ranko's voice: "Mouuu!"
Akane took advantage of the break and knocked. "Sis? It's me."
Akane heard footsteps; then the door slid open, and she couldn't help
laughing. Ranko stood there, once again bundled up with nothing showing but
her blue eyes between her scarf and hat, her violin and bow in her hand. Her
hands, bare out of necessity, looked white from the cold.
"Hey!" she protested, her eyes smiling. "Can I help it if this place isn't
heated?"
Akane entered the Dojo, sliding the door shut behind her. "Why are you
practicing out here?"
Ranko turned and walked back to her music stand. "I wanted to practice, a
lot. I didn't want to bother everyone. And I wanted to be able to make lots
of mistakes without having everyone hear them." She looked around. "Besides,
I'm used to training in a place like this." She giggled.
Akane smiled and walked over to join her. "You've decided to practice more?"
Ranko nodded. "Yes. I... I don't want to quit. Not now. I want to play this
piece at the recital." She looked off into a corner of the Dojo, and seemed
to have something more on her mind. Akane waited patiently.
Ranko sighed. "I'm still really just starting out. When I was Ranma, when I
lived for martial arts, I was one of the best. I... after Nabiki's, ummm,
lecture" she smiled, "I can say that now, without feeling like a braggart. I
was really, really good, and... and I could be again -- if I wanted to. Even
though I'm a weak, stupid, silly girl now." Her eyes laughed, and Akane
laughed with her.
She paused for a moment. "I don't know if I'll ever be as good with the
violin as I was with martial arts. But I want to find out. If I can be even
half as good a violinist as I was a martial artist, I'll be happy, because
the violin makes me happy in a way that martial arts can't. Because...
because when I play the violin... I use my heart." Akane nodded in
understanding.
She looked down. "If I give up now, if I just make it a 'hobby', I'll never
know what I could have done with it." She looked up at Akane. "Do you know
what the idea of giving up made me think of?" Akane shook her head. "It made
me think of Miki."
"Miki? Who is Miki?"
"A baby I met on the way home yesterday. She's just starting out. No one
knows what she's going to be like, what she can do, what her potential is."
Ranko's eyes grew serious. "My talent for violin reminds me of her. I... I
want to help it grow up, to see just what it can be, just as if it were *my*
baby. In a way, my martial arts skill was Father's baby, but my violin is
mine."
She paused for a while, lost in thought. "And... I feel like I owe it to
Miki to try my best to succeed as a girl, so that when she's trying to find
her own talent, she... she doesn't have to fight herself quite as hard as I
have." Her eyes crinkled, and Akane could almost see the grin behind the
scarf. "Maybe I can be a poster on *her* wall."
Her gaze turned serious. "Thanks, Sis. You and Nabiki-neechan helped me
straighten out my head, just a little." She giggled. "It still needs work,
though." She and Akane just looked at each other for a few moments,
communicating without words.
Akane was smiling broadly, and had tears in her eyes. "You're welcome." She
thought a moment. "I think I'd like to meet this Miki."
Ranko nodded. "I did promise her a visit."
Akane smiled, and turned to leave, then stopped and turned back. "Do you
mind if I watch you practice?" Ranko shook her head, and Akane went over to
sit against the wall.
She turned back to Ranko as she sat down. She shivered; the mats on the
floor could get awfully cold. "So, how is the Bach piece coming?"
Ranko giggled. "It's awful."
Akane was confused. "And you're happy about that?"
Ranko lifted her violin to her scarf, and raised her bow. "Yes. Because it's
not as awful as it was right after dinner."
*****
Kobayakawa-sensei smiled and called out goodbyes as the students filed out
of her classroom. She started to pack her things into her briefcase; she was
finished at Shakuji High School for the day. She sighed; she was tired of
teaching at two different high schools every week, but there just weren't
enough high school students interested in music as an elective to justify a
full-time teacher at either Shakuji or Fuurinkan. If she wanted to go back
to teaching elementary school kids, that was a different story, but she
liked working with older teens.
Tomorrow was Tuesday, a Fuurinkan day. That thought made her think of her
favorite pupil, and she shook her head. She wondered what shape the Bach
piece would be in when Ranko came for her lesson on Friday.
As she was packing, a movement in the corner of her eye caught her
attention, and she turned to the door.
"Ranko-chan!" she gasped. "What are you doing here?" She noted the serious
expression on the girl's face, and the violin case in her hand. Oh,
Kami-sama, please tell me she's not here to give it back...
Ranko walked into the classroom. "I'm sorry to bother you, Sensei. I... I
didn't want to wait until you were at Fuurinkan tomorrow to talk to you. The
office told me that you taught here on Mondays."
Sensei nodded uncertainly. "What... what did you want to talk about that
couldn't wait until tomorrow?"
Ranko bit her lip. "I... I practiced some more this weekend, and I wanted
to... to see if you thought I w-would be ready to play the Bach piece."
Sensei sagged in relief, and a smile came to her face. "Of course,
Ranko-chan! Why don't I sit down, and you can play it for me." She sat at
one of the desks.
Ranko got out her violin and sheet music, placing the latter on one of the
music stands that dotted the room. She spent a minute tuning, then lifted
the violin to her chin. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her nerves.
After a few moments, she was at peace, and she launched into the Gavotte en
Rondeau. Sensei listened intently as she made her way through it. Her gaze
never wavered in the three minutes or so that Ranko took to finish.
Ranko sighed, and lowered her violin. She was still making mistakes, still
tripping over the challenging parts. She knew it was better, but it was
nowhere near ready for a public performance. She looked up at Sensei...
Who was staring at her, eyes wide. "How much did you practice this weekend?"
she whispered.
"About... about three hours on Saturday, and three and a half on Sunday."
She sagged a little. "I wish it were better. I worked really hard, but it's
hard to tell."
Sensei smiled, and felt tears coming. Three hours a day? "Ranko-chan, you
don't understand. When you played this on Friday, it was a set of
disconnected passages. When you played it just now, it was the Gavotte en
Rondeau of the Bach Partita for solo violin in E major. There were still
lots of mistakes and rough parts, true, but you've made tremendous
progress."
Hope lit Ranko's eyes. "Is... is there enough time? Before the recital?"
Sensei nodded, tears in her eyes.
Ranko smiled. "I... I want to do this. I want to play this piece at the
recital." Suddenly, Sensei saw fire in her eyes. "And I want to play it
perfectly. I want to nail it. I'll practice however long it takes. And..."
she trailed off. "Sensei? Why are you crying?"
Kobayakawa-sensei surprised Ranko by rushing over to hug her. Ranko held her
bow and violin out to either side, not having a hand free to hug her sensei
back. Sensei pulled away, her hands on Ranko's shoulders.
"Sensei, what's wrong?"
Sensei shook her head. "Nothing is wrong, Ranko-chan, nothing at all. I'm
happy. I'm so happy for you." She wiped her eyes.
Ranko nodded uncertainly.
Sensei smiled. "If you become a mother, or if you ever become a teacher,
you'll understand."
Ranko thought of Miki, and smiled timidly. "I... I think I might know what
you mean."
Sensei nodded. "I'm at Fuurinkan on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Can
you meet me after school all three days?"
Ranko grinned. "I sure can."
Sensei grinned, too.
*****
Ranko and Akane looked over the faded white concrete apartment building.
Each floor had rows of evenly spaced balconies, each with a sliding glass
door; most of them had laundry hung out to dry or futons being aired. In
between the balconies were tiny windows, many with air conditioners in them.
The place was indistinguishable from its concrete brethren which carpeted
all of Tokyo.
Ranko pulled out the name card once more and looked at it, then back at the
building. "I think this is the place."
"The stairs must be on the other side."
Ranko nodded, and the two of them circled around the building. Sure enough,
there was a flight of stairs, and they climbed to the third floor, which
matched the address on the card. After wandering past several of the gray
metal doors, Ranko stopped. "Here it is. Kobuchizawa." She reached out and
rang the doorbell.
"Hai!" rang out from inside, and a few moments later, the door opened. Akane
looked over the attractive young woman who had answered: she looked more
than a little frazzled. Hanging in a baby carrier on her chest was a baby of
five or six months, who had to be Miki. Akane smiled; she is awfully cute...
Noriko's eyes lit up. "Ranko-chan! How nice of you to come visit! And you
brought a friend!"
Meanwhile, Miki's eyes rapidly scanned the two girls in front of her, a wary
expression on her face all the while. The eyes stopped suddenly on Ranko's
red hair, widened, then lit up to match her mothers'. She squealed in
delight. "Gaaaaaaahhh!!"
Ranko laughed. "I guess she remembers me."
Noriko smiled. "That red hair is hard to forget, Ranko-chan." She turned to
Akane. "I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met."
Akane bowed. "I'm Tendou Akane, Ma'am."
"Oh, of course, Ranko-chan lives with your family, after all. I'm
Kobuchizawa Noriko, Akane-chan. And this is Miki."
"Aaaaaaaa..." said Miki, by way of self-introduction.
Akane smiled. She was starting to see why Miki had made such an impression
on Ranko.
"Why don't you come in, girls?" They stepped inside, and changed into
slippers before following Noriko into the interior of the apartment. It was
cramped as such apartments usually were, and baby paraphernalia were
everywhere. "You can leave your school things next to the bookcase."
Noriko's eyes darted here and there, ending with a sheepish look to go with
her sigh of resignation. "I'm sorry about the mess. This little lady keeps
me hopping." She shrugged her shoulders. "I was trying to clean up the
kitchen, but she is just giving me no rest today. I was going to take her
out to the park, it being such a nice day for December, but I have so many
chores piled up..."
Ranko thought for a moment. "Is there anything we can do?" Akane nodded.
Miki's mother smiled. "How nice of you! Thank you so much!"
Ranko, to her delight, was assigned the duty of keeping Miki entertained
while Akane helped Noriko clean up her kitchen. While she was a kitchen
menace when cooking, cleaning was something she could do just fine. She
certainly had enough practice cleaning up after her own disasters...
As they worked, they both smiled at the baby talk and the squeals of joy
drifting in from the living room.
Two people without a baby to distract them made short work of the kitchen,
and they went back into the living room to watch Ranko play with Miki for a
while. Noriko smiled; the two seemed to have a natural rapport. Ranko seemed
to be very patient, too, dealing with Miki's occasional protestations
calmly. Finally, Miki seemed to get upset about something, and Ranko picked
her up and tried to comfort her, holding her with her head over her
shoulder. The baby seemed to calm down a little, but was still obviously
upset.
Ranko turned to the baby's mother, worried. "What am I doing wrong?"
Noriko took the baby, who if anything seemed upset at leaving Ranko, but
calmed down a little for her mother. Ranko stared as Noriko lifted the baby
up and sniffed her. "Oho, I know what *your* problem is, Missy! We'll take
care of you in a moment."
She looked back to the redhead. Normally, she would want to get to know a
babysitter a little better before doing this, but she thought herself a good
judge of people, and Ranko was clearly a responsible, level-headed girl. And
Miki was crazy about her. "You know, I have a little bit more cleaning I
could do. How would you girls like to take Miki to the park on your own?
I'll get her ready for you, and you can just bring her back in a half hour
or so, or earlier if she gets upset."
Akane and Ranko looked at each other, and grinned as they thought the same
thought. "We'd love to!"
Noriko smiled broadly. "This is just what I needed: *two* more potential
babysitters." She winked, and the girls laughed.
Ranko looked on with interest as Noriko shuttled to and fro, assembling a
stroller, clothes, toys, and so on. "There, I think that's everything." Miki
whimpered. "Oh, yes, that's right. I'd better change you before you go,
young lady.""
Akane nodded, and turned to say something to Ranko, but stopped short. Ranko
was as white as a sheet, and was staring at Miki with very wide eyes. Miki
matched her, stare for stare. "Gaaaaahhh?"
"Ch-change her?!" Ranko swallowed. "Oh... oh, you poor thing... and
you're... you're just a baby!" She looked up at Noriko, who had no idea what
the girl was going on about. "How did it happen? What... what does she
change into?"
Akane rolled her eyes. "Her diaper, Sis! Change her *diaper*!"
Ranko looked blankly at Akane, then back to Miki. "Oh..." She sagged visibly
in relief, letting out a sigh in the process. Almost immediately, her face
turned bright red, and she studied the floor intently, deeply embarrassed.
Noriko shook her head. "My, you really haven't been around babies at all,
have you?" Ranko shook her head, her eyes still on the floor. Noriko smiled.
"Well, we'll have to rectify that, won't we?" Ranko finally looked up and
smiled sheepishly.
The young woman seemed struck by a thought. "Are you girls sisters?
Akane-chan, you called her 'Sis'."
Ranko and Akane looked at each other. Akane said, "It's a little
complicated, Ma'am. We're not really blood relatives, but we do feel almost
like we are. Ranko and I were raised together from the time we were born,
though we were separated for many years, too."
Ranko nodded. "I'm an only child, but Akane is my twin sister." She giggled.
Noriko smiled. "I think I understand." She looked down at Miki, who had been
following the entire conversation intently. "I think it's time to get you
ready for your outing, young lady."
She proceeded to lay the little girl down on a blanket, and Ranko and Akane
looked on as Miki was given a clean diaper and "suited up" for her sojourn
outside. Ranko turned a little pasty as she saw for the first time what was
involved in changing a baby's diaper.
In due course, Miki was ensconced in her stroller, gleefully banging both
arms up and down on the retainer bar, over and over. Her mother laughed.
"She knows what this routine means. I think this is just what we both
needed! Maybe the place will be a little less of a trash heap when you get
back." She bowed to the girls. "Thank you."
Akane and Ranko bowed back, and were soon on their way, leaving their school
things to pick up after bringing Miki home. After carrying the stroller down
three flights of stairs, they set off for the park. Akane insisted that
Ranko push the stroller, knowing she would enjoy it. Every few steps, Ranko
would turn to Akane, a blush and a goofy grin on her face, then turn her
eyes forward again. Akane was enjoying watching Ranko as much as she was
enjoying Miki.
They reached the park right away, since Miki's family lived right next to
it. Miki watched, rapt, as her stroller rolled along the path; she was
eagerly taking in all the people who were enjoying the weather, which was
relatively warm for December.
They found a bench that was facing the playground, and Miki seemed
particularly keen on watching the younger children at play there, so Ranko
and Akane parked themselves on the bench and turned the stroller to face the
show. Miki leaned forward, intent, and Ranko and Akane couldn't help
laughing.
They sat for a long time, enjoying the scenery. Akane finally turned to
Ranko. "How is your Bach piece coming along, Sis?"
Ranko smiled. "I've been working on it pretty hard for ten days now. Sensei
says she thinks it'll be ready in time. I really want it to be perfect,
exactly right. I... I can't stand the idea of playing something in front of
all those people unless it's really good." She blushed and looked down.
Akane smiled warmly. "I haven't heard it for a few days. I think I'll come
keep you company in the Dojo again tonight." Ranko nodded and smiled.
Akane looked idly about. "This is probably the last day I'll get to just
laze around for a while. The drama club is starting rehearsals for our
talent show production."
"What are you doing?"
"We're going to try Romeo and Juliet. Again." She sighed. "This time we're
just going to do the scene where they meet, because it has a lot of
characters." She brightened. "At least I get another chance to be Juliet!"
Ranko's eyebrows went up. "Isn't that kind of... dangerous? Is there a kiss
in that scene?"
Akane nodded and smiled.
"But... aren't you just going to have the same kind of mess you did last
time? With guys crashing to try to get a chance to kiss you?"
Akane grinned. "You mean like you?" Ranko blushed crimson and looked down.
Akane laughed, and put a hand on her shoulder. "I know you weren't doing it
to try to kiss me." Ranko nodded, still blushing.
Akane leaned back against the bench and smiled. "Besides, we have a solution
to that problem this time."
Ranko looked up, her face still tinged pink. "What?"
A wicked grin split Akane's face. "Only girls were allowed to try out for
Romeo this time. That nipped *that* problem in the bud." Ranko boggled.
"Hey, if *I* had to play Romeo so many times, let someone else have a turn!"
She started to laugh, and Ranko joined her.
They were interrupted by an irritated cry from Miki. Ranko turned the
stroller around to face the bench. The little girl was in tears. Ranko and
Akane looked at each other. "What's wrong, honey?" asked Ranko. Miki looked
up at her with big eyes and continued to whimper.
"Maybe you should pick her up, Sis?"
Ranko nodded, and disentangled Miki from the stroller, putting the baby over
her shoulder. Her crying grew louder. "That doesn't seem to be what she
wants," said Ranko nervously.
She brought Miki back around to her front, and cradled her in her arms,
holding her close. The little girl looked up into Ranko's face, and her cry
faded back to a whimper. Suddenly, she opened her mouth in an enormous yawn.
"Ah ha!" said Akane. "She's tired."
Ranko smiled, and cuddled the baby closer. She stopped whimpering, she
sighed, and her eyelids started to flutter, then close. She turned her head
towards Ranko, and nestled her face into Ranko's chest. Her mouth made some
halfhearted sucking motions, and then she was asleep.
Ranko turned to Akane, confused. "Do you know what that was that she did
with her mouth just now?"
"I didn't see, Sis. What did she do?"
"She made some motions with her mouth, as she was falling asleep. Like
this." Ranko demonstrated.
Akane burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?"
Akane tried to control herself. "You know how when you first arrived at our
home, you bragged that you have a better figure than I do?"
Ranko blushed. "I remember. I'm sorry about that."
Akane shook her head. "It's OK." She leaned forward in a conspiratorial way,
still grinning. "In fact, Miki was just agreeing with you. She was trying to
nurse."
Ranko frowned. "Nurse?" Suddenly, her eyes got very wide, and she turned
beet red, as Akane burst into laughter again. Ranko didn't know a lot about
babies, but she and her father had traveled through many rural areas, and
she knew about this from firsthand observation. She stared at the ground,
trying desperately to fight down her blush.
Suddenly, they both became aware that someone was standing nearby, and
looked up.
Ryouga looked from Ranko to Akane, then back again. "Let me guess. I'm not
on Okinawa, am I?"
Both girls shook their heads.
*****
Miki had stirred and whimpered when they tried to put her back in the
stroller, so Ranko continued to cuddle her as they took her home. Akane
pushed the empty stroller.
Ryouga smiled warmly as he watched Ranko with the baby. "So who is this?"
Ranko looked up and smiled. "Kobuchizawa Miki. She's a new friend of mine. I
met her a week or so ago when I ran into her. Literally." She looked
sheepish. Miki whimpered again, and Ranko turned her attention back to the
baby, rocking her gently and murmuring softly.
Ryouga found himself drifting off into fantasy...
"Congratulations, Hibiki-san! It's a girl!"
Ryouga looked at his daughter, his heart in his throat. She had red hair,
just like her mother, and little fangs, just like her father. The
obstetrician placed the baby in Ranko's arms, and she cradled their daughter
tenderly, then looked up at her husband with glistening eyes. "Oh Ryouga...
she's so beautiful." She looked down at their daughter again, her face
glowing with a mother's love, then back up at him. "Oh, Ryouga... Ryouga...
Ryouga! Earth to Ryouga!"
Ryouga snapped out of his daydream, and looked around. Akane and Ranko were
standing at a flight of stairs about ten paces back, staring at him. He
grinned sheepishly. "Sorry."
Akane started to bump the stroller up the stairs, when Ryouga said "Allow
me." He picked it up with one hand, and they proceeded to the third floor.
Akane rang the doorbell.
"Hai!" echoed from inside, and moments later Miki's mother opened the door.
She took a look at Miki in Ranko's arms, then smiled apologetically. "I'm
sorry, I forgot to tell you: she hates falling asleep in the stroller for
some reason. I see you figured it out." Ranko nodded and smiled. Noriko
reached out, and Ranko hesitated a moment, then wistfully handed Miki over.
The baby sighed and nestled against her mother.
Noriko had noticed Ranko's reluctance. "You know, if you come babysit for
me, you'll reach the point where you'll be a little more eager to get rid of
her." She winked, and the two girls laughed. "Come on in."
When they reached the living room, Miki's mother said "Wait a moment while I
put her down," and continued down the hallway. Ranko and Akane looked
around; the apartment was far neater than it had been when they left. They
looked at each other and smiled.
Noriko returned a minute later, smiling. "I see you brought another friend."
She bowed slightly. "I'm Kobuchizawa Noriko." She looked expectantly at
Ryouga.
Ryouga bowed. "Hibiki Ryouga, Ma'am." He straightened up, and put an arm
around Ranko. "I'm Ranko's boyfriend."
Ranko smiled uncertainly. Boyfriend? I thought we were just dating...
Akane knew exactly what the look on Ranko's face meant, but said nothing.
Miki's mother insisted on serving them some tea, "to warm you up," but a
half hour later they were finally on their way home to the Tendou Dojo.
Ryouga and Ranko were holding hands, a practical necessity to keep him on
course.
After a short walk, they turned in the gate, and from there through the
front door. "Tadaima!"
Kasumi hurried down the hall. "O-kaeri... Oh, Ryouga-kun! You've come for a
visit. How nice!"
Ryouga smiled and nodded. Kasumi made every visit to the Tendou home a
pleasure.
They walked back down the hall together, and greeted the family where they
sat in the living room. Nabiki rose from the chair where she had been
reading. "About time you showed up again. Come on, we have some business to
attend to." And with that, she grabbed Ryouga and dragged him off.
Akane turned to Ranko, perplexed. "What was that all about?" Ranko shook her
head, equally confused.
Ryouga and Nabiki returned an hour later, just in time for dinner. Everyone
settled in around the dinner table; Ranko sat between Akane and Ryouga. She
was nervous, for she was starting to get the feeling that her relationship
with Ryouga was going farther and faster than she wanted. Weren't they just
supposed to try dating, to see if they liked it? Why was Ryouga now saying
he was her boyfriend?
She relaxed as dinner began, and everyone started to chat about what had
happened that day. Nabiki and Kasumi grinned as Ranko and Akane talked about
their experience babysitting Miki. Ryouga smiled as he heard about the parts
he hadn't seen himself, and about how Ranko had met Miki for the first time.
Ranko was silently grateful to Akane for not bringing up Miki's attempt to
nurse.
They were almost done with dinner when it happened. Souun had gone into the
kitchen for a glass of water. As he came back to the table, he tripped, and
the water glass went flying. Straight at Ryouga.
Time seemed to slow down, and Ranko felt her heart pounding in slow motion.
She surged up and over, reaching out, but her speed was not what it had
been. Her hand was only in time to touch the edge of the glass, which set it
spinning, spewing water everywhere. Ranko fell forward onto the table,
closed her eyes, and waited for doomsday.
There was an agonizingly long pause.
She heard Akane's voice. "R-Ryouga? You... you have a Jusenkyou curse?!"
Ranko cringed. "Why didn't you tell me? And... and Ranko... you were trying
to stop the water! You must have known about it! You were hiding it from me,
too!"
Ranko started to cry. "I'm sorry, Sis. I'm so sorry. I... I couldn't tell
you. I promised him not to tell, on my honor! I'm so sorry about the whole
thing! Please forgive me!" She was sobbing.
Ranko heard nothing, and imagined a mallet was on its way to mete out divine
punishment. She started when she felt Akane's hand on her back, rubbing it
gently.
"Sis, it's OK. Please don't cry. Really, I understand. If you promised, you
had to honor that promise." Ranko couldn't believe that Akane could be so
forgiving about this. "But what I don't understand is... Ryouga, why did you
make her promise not to tell?"
Ranko heard a strangely familiar soprano voice. "Well, I was just too
embarrassed about it. You know how we guys are about our manhood."
Ranko sat up with a start, opening her eyes. She turned her head to the
side, and found herself face to face with a pretty, black-haired girl
wearing a yellow and black bandanna. Her jaw dropped open.
The girl grinned a fang-toothed grin, which made her look quite cute,
actually. "Hi."
*****
Half an hour and a kettle of hot water later, Ranko and Ryouga were sitting
on the roof.
"Why Nyanniichuan?"
Ryouga snorted. "Cologne didn't exactly have a big selection. She said,
'Where do you think you are, Sonny? Curses'R'Us?' She had some Nyanniichuan
for when Shampoo's punishment was over, and she had some Yaazuniichuan, left
over from when Mousse threatened to use it on Akane. That was it." He
sighed. "A duck didn't seem like a big improvement over a pig. I wanted to
move up the food chain." He laughed. "Besides, think about how lost I would
get if I could *fly*."
She chuckled, then stopped. "There was some left for Shampoo, wasn't there?"
He nodded. "Plenty."
"So that's it? P-chan is gone?"
"Yup. Nabiki was thinking about buying a piglet, putting one of my bandannas
on it, and... and staging a traffic accident or something..." He gulped. "We
decided neither of us had the heart to go through with that." He paused a
moment, a little pale, then grinned. "You know, underneath your big sister's
diamond-hard corporate raider exterior lurks the heart of a softy."
She smiled. "I know." She paused a moment. "So P-chan just never shows up
again?"
He nodded. "I think it'll be easier on Akane that way. She can hope that
he's just found a new home somewhere." He sighed. "She'll still be pretty
sad, though."
Ranko nodded thoughtfully. "You know, I think... I think I'm actually going
to miss him, too. You were kind of cute that way." She giggled. Ryouga just
rolled his eyes.
She thought a while, then sighed and looked at her feet. "I hope you know
what you're getting yourself into. When you're the opposite sex, people
expect you to act accordingly. They get flustered or even angry if you
don't. It's... hard."
He shook his head. "Anything has to be better than being a pig."
She looked up. "Are you sure? Doesn't being a girl bother you? Having... the
wrong body parts? People expecting you to be feminine when you're really a
man?"
He nodded. "Of course it bothers me. But being a small animal is even worse.
You have no hands, you have no voice, you're helpless... and people keep
trying to eat you." He shivered. "I'll take being the wrong sex any day."
She stared at him, then nodded. "I... I guess you're right. I guess I had it
easy..." She blushed and looked down. She hugged herself and started to
shiver; it was getting quite cold.
Ryouga reached an arm around her and drew her in, and she sighed and lay her
head on his shoulder. She shivered once more as she started to warm up.
He shook his head. "No, you didn't have it it easy. I was never a pig for
more than a few days. You were a boy for twelve years. And I never actually
tried to *be* a pig. I never thought I *was* a pig." He shook his head. "You
didn't have it easy at all."
She nodded, and suddenly tears were running down her face. He squeezed her a
little harder.
"I'm sorry, hon. It still hurts to think about it, doesn't it?" She nodded
again, grateful that he was holding her, even as her head spun a little from
being called "hon." He's... he's going so *fast*... Still, she leaned into
him a little more, even as she worried. It was so overwhelming, to have
someone care about you *that much*, to worry over your every tear, your
every sigh... to want to protect you... I... I don't want to hurt him... But
I'm just getting in deeper all the time...
They sat there for a long time. Ranko finally sat up. "Ryouga, I need to go
practice."
He smiled and stood up. "Can I listen?"
She smiled back. "Of course, silly."
A short while later Ranko stood in the Tendou living room, her music stand
and violin ready. She had been planning to practice in the Dojo again, but
it seemed like half the family had wanted to listen tonight, and it seemed
unkind to drag everyone out there to freeze.
It had been many days since anyone had heard Ranko play the piece she was
working on, and everyone was electrified by the progress she had made. The
fathers' shogi game ground to a halt, and everyone else stopped what they
were doing to listen. She still stumbled in places, but she had mastered
others, and in those passages the full beauty of the Bach composition came
to the fore. The music was vibrant and alive as Ranko poured her skill and
heart into it.
Nabiki closed her eyes and smiled with pleasure; Kasumi and Akane looked on
with pride. Genma and Souun watched intently, as if Ranko were sparring and
they were evaluating her.
Ryouga noted new emotions which had joined the others on Ranko's face:
self-assurance and satisfaction. He drifted off into fantasy again...
<And now, for her New York debut, the talented young Japanese violinist
Ranko Hibiki will play the Bach partita for solo violin in E major...>
Shio screwed up her face as she watched the TV. "What are they saying,
Daddy? I don't understand the words." She brightened. "I heard Mommy's name,
but they got it backwards! I thought the people on TV were smarter than
that."
Ryouga laughed. "It's English, sweetheart, they do names backwards from us.
Mommy is in America, in New York. We couldn't go along this time, so we're
going to watch her on TV. Look, there she is!"
"Mommy!" shrieked Shio, as her mother walked onto the TV screen from the
wings. She was carrying her violin and bow, and dressed in an elegant gown;
the audience applauded enthusiastically. She bowed deeply, Japanese-style,
then lifted her violin to her chin, and began to play. Her bow flew crisply
back and forth; her body moved in counterpoint. Her fiery red tresses swayed
in time with the music. The audience was spellbound, captivated by the
beauty of the young Japanese woman and the even greater beauty of her music.
Shio and her father watched with pride...
Until Ranko missed a note and exclaimed "Mouuu!", jerking Ryouga back to
reality. He shook his head, disoriented.
"I can't believe I messed that up! I've played it a hundred times. Oh well."
She grinned sheepishly, and started in again.
Since she was working on the same three minutes of music over and over
again, everyone began to drift back to their prior pursuits, letting the
music become a pleasant background. Everyone was quiet and spoke in hushed
tones to avoid distracting her.
And Ryouga watched in wonder, awed by just how much of his heart Ranko was
occupying.
*****
End Chapter 11