ShadowSoft Inc. Presents: A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic side-story "Careful Destiny" Part Three by: Todd Hill AKA Shadow Stalker Based on: Be Careful What You Wish For... written by: Richard Beaubien Inspired by the "Ranma 1/2" Manga and Anime by Rumiko Takahashi WARNING! While this story is *NOT* a lemon, it does have some adult situations in it. Read at your own discretion! "Ranma dear, could you go and tell your sister that dinner's ready," Nodoka called out from the kitchen. Ranma turned away from the TV and stood up. `It's about damn time. I'm so hungry I could even eat Akane's cooking,' he declared to himself angrily. He winced as the loose thought set off images of Akane's pretty face, both before and after his wish, in his mind. `Hell, I wonder if she can cook now...' He turned to face the kitchen, yelling "Okay Mom" before heading up the stairs. Reaching the top step, he strode from the staircase and gently knocked on her door. Not getting any response from Ranko, he slid her door open. She lay there with her legs dangling off of the bed; her feet not quite touching the floor. She was snoring softly, and one of her arms was draped loosely across her eyes. He couldn't help but chuckle at her odd sleeping pose. He didn't advance into her room, however, as the smell of ointment was still heavy enough to bother him. Deciding not to disturb her, Ranma turned away from her room and slid the door shut behind himself. He descended the stairs quickly and sat at the table again. His eyes narrowed as he saw that his father had already started eating. "Hey leave some for me!" Ranma shouted indignantly. Genma laughed through a mouthful of food, and continued to eat heartily despite Ranma's protest. Nodoka walked into the room a moment later with another round of food. "My goodness, Genma! I'm glad I made more food tonight, otherwise the children would've starved!" Genma shot her an indignant look over his bowl, but didn't stop eating. Ranma laughed out loud as he sat down at his usual seat at the table. "Where's Ranko? I thought I asked you to go get her, Ranma." Nodoka's face became slightly reprimanding. "I thought you two were supposed to be getting along better now." Ranma swallowed his indignant retort, not wanting to get into an argument with his mother right now. "Mom, I went up there to get her, and saw that she was asleep. I didn't want to bother her, so I let her continue sleeping." Nodoka's stare persisted. "Don't worry, I'll save something for her and carry it up to her after we're done, if that'll make you happy Mom." Nodoka's critical gaze disappeared, to be replaced with a small smile. "Very well, Ranma. I'll expect you to somehow keep some of this food from the human vacuum cleaner over there," she said as she indicated Genma with a shrug of her shoulder. She and Ranma broke out in a fit of laughter as Genma sputtered and coughed. "I am not a vacuum cleaner, Nodoka!" he shouted indignantly. Smiling, he struck a prideful pose, flexing his arms like a bodybuilder. "You have no idea how much effort it takes for me to maintain this figure." He then picked up his chopsticks and resumed eating. Ranma and Nodoka facefaulted at Genma's declaration. Picking themselves up, they both glared at him before continuing to eat. "Whatever, dear," Nodoka said as she picked her bowl up. Ranma just snorted derisively and began shoveling rice into his mouth. Smiling evilly, Ranma began sneaking food from Genma's area while his father's mind was fixated on his rice bowl. Ranma had managed to get six strips of beef before he was caught. He chewed quickly, swallowing the purloined sirloin before Genma could protest. After a few more moments had gone by, all of the food was gone and the table was a disaster area. Nodoka surveyed the damage and clapped a hand to her head, groaning disdainfully. She knew what a chore it would be to recover from one of Genma's all-out eating wars with Ranma. She had watched the eating `brawl' from a distance, keeping her limbs out of striking distance. At one point she was afraid that the two would've come to blows as Ranma had to keep fending his father off to avoid having Ranko's dinner being consumed. Ranma stood up and placed Ranko's meal on a tray. "I'll carry this upstairs now." Nodoka nodded, then smirked as she saw the longing in Genma's eyes as he watched the uneaten food leave the table. With practiced balance, Ranma trotted up the stairs carrying the food in one hand. The two parents watched Ranma ascend the stairs, then Nodoka leveled her gaze at her husband. "Genma, darling, I have a proposition for you." Genma realized what she was going to do, and stood quickly, trying to make it to the door before she could complete her sentence. "Umm, I'm sorry dear. I just remembered that I have to ... ummm..." "... help me clean the table and the kitchen. That *was* what you were going to say, wasn't it dear?" Nodoka smiled grandly, and pointed the way to the kitchen. Genma's shoulders slumped in defeat, and he slowly trudged over towards the kitchen. Nodoka turned to follow him as he walked past her. She patted him on the shoulder. "That's a good boy," she taunted as they disappeared from the dinner area. "I don't know why you're upset about cleaning the table anyway. There's more food on you than there is on the table." He stopped and spun around to face her, almost causing her to collide with him in the process. "Ha ha ha," he replied derisively. "Just don't make me wear that damn panda apron again, Nodoka," Genma growled. Nodoka laughed. "But it suits you so well dear," she said, mirth evident in her eyes. "It's almost like it was *meant* for you." Genma shot her a dark look. Nodoka relented, kissing Genma on the cheek. He suddenly got a sly grin on his face as she turned to leave the kitchen. Reaching down with his right hand, Genma popped her on the behind before she could walk out of swinging distance. Nodoka yelped playfully at the smite. "That was for the apron comment, dear," he said with a gleam in his eye. Nodoka winked at him over her shoulder. "Keep that up and we won't be able to finish the kitchen." Genma smiled at that, thinking, `To hell with the kitchen!' Nodoka caught the lecherous look in his eye. "Let's get the cleaning done first, okay dear?" Genma nodded wildly, then commenced rapid-fire dish cleaning. Nodoka smiled to herself as she knelt down to clean the table. `Perhaps I should write a book. "How to motivate a man," by Nodoka Saotome.' She laughed aloud, shaking her head at her own mischief. **** Ranma slid the door to Ranko's room open a bit and poked his head inside. She was still laying there, asleep on her bed, so he pushed his way in with the food, and closed the door behind himself. Setting the tray of food down on top of her dresser, he walked to the bed and sat down beside her. "Hey, sis? You awake?" Ranko turned slightly, and grumbled something unintelligible. Ranma shook his head, laughing through his nose. Cautiously, he grabbed Ranko's free arm and shook her lightly. "Hey sis, wake up. I brought you your dinner," he said softly. The mention of food seemed to bring Ranko back to consciousness. Ranma saw her eyes flutter open, so he sat back against the headboard of the bed, his feet resting against her hip. "You hungry sis?" Ranko sat up, stretching and yawning widely. Looking a little bleary eyed, she crawled over to sit next to Ranma, propping herself up against the headboard to keep herself upright. She rubbed her eyes, and looked at the food on the dresser top. Her stomach suddenly bellowed it's appreciation, causing Ranko to blush and Ranma to laugh. "I guess you *are* hungry! Glad I decided to save you some food." He bit his lip to keep from laughing out loud again. Ranko snorted. "I take it the rest of you have already eaten?" "Yup," he nodded, "just finished a few minutes ago. You slept through dinner. And you should've seen it. Pop was in rare form tonight." Ranko shook her head, sighing disgustedly at her father's morose eating habits. "Well, I'm surprised that you escaped alive with my dinner." "I *was* worried there for a moment. I thought that he'd be tackling me before I reached the stairs..." He jumped off of the bed and retrieved the tray from the nearby dresser. Resuming his seat next to his sister, he placed the tray on his lap and handed her a bowl of rice and chopsticks. "Here ya go, sis," he said as he handed over the bowl and eating utensils. Ranko's stomach growled again before she could even open her mouth. Grimacing at the symphony playing in her abdomen, she brought the food to her face and ate quickly. Ranma watched with a smile on his face as his sister quickly inhaled the meal. `Ranko would've given Pop a run for his money today,' he thought, not-unkindly. Dropping the last of the empty dishes on the tray, Ranko reclined on her bed, and gave a very satisfied, albeit dainty, burp. "Excuse me," she said, covering her mouth with a hand. Ranma took the tray from his lap and placed it on the floor. He winced as some of the dishes clattered loudly, having slid off of the tray on it's way down and landing on the floor. Ignoring the mess, he turned to face his sister. "Do you need anything else, sis?" Looking him dead in the eye, she smirked. "Yeah. I want you to finish the discussion that you keep finding interesting ways of avoiding." Ranma started to deny that he'd been avoiding talking to her, but gave that up when he saw the cute/wary look on her face. "Okay okay. I give... What do you want to talk about?" "Akane, dummy!" she said, clouting him on the leg with one of her fists. "I want to know what you're gonna do about her." "Well, there's not much to tell. You already know about my past with `my' Akane. I want to try to get into the same type of relationship with the other Akane, if possible." He sighed as he attempted to calculate the enormity of that task, given what he'd been through today. "I love her, and I'm willing to do just about anything for her, but I want to take it slow. And, if today was any indication, she doesn't really want anything to do with me at the moment." His eyes had a faraway look, as if he were a million miles away. Ranko saw his distant gaze and sighed lowly, knowing that he had to be upset over that fiasco. "Yeah, I guess that little tramp Kinuko really messed things up for you, huh?" Ranma's gaze returned to his sister. "Speaking of Kinuko, I've been meaning to ask you about my past for a while now. I *should've* asked you earlier, since knowing about her could've prevented what happened today, but oh well." Ranko tried to perk up a bit before launching into her storytelling mode. `Ranma's gonna love *this*,' she deadpanned. **** The ringing of the phone forced the two lovers to separate. Genma growled as he sat up, one of Nodoka's arms still clinging to his neck. Reaching over the edge of the couch and swinging wildly with his arm, he managed to bat the receiver off of the hook, causing it to drop into his lap. Nodoka picked up the receiver before Genma could, hoping to avoid the potential loss of a friend. There was no telling what he was going to say over the phone if he got hold of it. Smiling sweetly, she kissed him on the lips. The kiss calmed him greatly. He lay his head back down on the cushioned arm of the couch, and wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her body against his. Nodoka didn't move off of Genma, but instead propped herself up on one of her arms, resting it against his chest. "Saotome residence, hello?" "Nodoka?!" came the hot reply on the other end of the line. "This is Yoshiko Kurosawa!" Nodoka winced at the volume of Yoshiko's voice. `Yikes! Kenji must've been hurt worse than I thought...' "Yes, Yoshiko. What can I do for you?" Nodoka said sweetly. "Don't give me that! You know damn good and well why I'm calling! Your little brat hurt my baby! I want to know what you're going to do about it," Yoshiko demanded angrily. Nodoka dug her fingernails angrily into her support, which unfortunately happened to be Genma's chest. As she seethed over Yoshiko's poor choice of words, Genma's eyes bugged out in anguish. "Nodoka, dear, ss... ss..top that!" he managed in a pained whisper. She looked down at her pleading husband and saw her fingernails buried in his chest and quickly relented. Covering the phone with a hand, she bent down to his ear, "Oops, sorry about that honey." She then sat back up, uncovered the phone, and started speaking into it. "Why should *I* do anything about it, Yoshi? Your son started it." A short pause, then some muffled talking could be heard. Nodoka used the short break in the conversation to calm herself down. "Nodoka, you haven't seen Kenji's injuries. Regardless of who started it, he shouldn't have been treated like *this*!" Nodoka could almost imagine Yoshiko pointing to some injury on her son. "Yoshi, I don't know what Ranko may have done to your son, but I ..." she started. Yoshiko cut her off angrily. "I'll tell you what she did to him..." she yelled abruptly, then launched into a rather detailed and embarrassing list of injuries, topping it off with some comment about two bald spots on either side of Kenji's head. The look on Nodoka's face was priceless as she fought to keep down the mix of anger and humor she was feeling. `Ranko really did work that little bastard over this time. Well, good!' she thought with satisfaction. "Yoshi, let me tell you what your darling little boy did to my daughter, *unprovoked*." She then listed out the details of Ranko's injuries, hotly emphasizing the part about bruise on her daughter's breast. "And that one looked like a planned strike, Yoshi. Not some random swing." Nodoka could only hear muffled sounds after that. Then suddenly an ear-splitting scream blared out from the receiver, the intensity of it causing her to wince involuntarily. An angry voice came across the receiver, but it wasn't speaking to Nodoka. "You little *idiot!* I can't believe you hit a girl on the *breast*. Don't you ever, *EVER* do that again!" The voice became clearer as Yoshiko put the receiver to her mouth again. "I'm sorry to have bothered you Nodoka. And please give my apologies to your daughter." Some more screams could be heard before the connection was abruptly lost. Nodoka hung the phone up carefully, then lost all composure as she gave in to body shaking laughter. Genma had gotten the gist of the phone call from listening to Nodoka. He liked the outcome of the call too. That boy's girlish screams were hard to miss. He smiled up at the beautiful face of his wife. "I take it that was Kenji's family, eh?" "Yes, dear." she managed to say over peals of laughter. "It appears that things have been taken care of." Genma chortled at Nodoka's generalization of Kenji's punishment. "What was she using on him anyway, a cat-of- nine-tails?" Nodoka shook her head, still laughing. "I don't know, but whatever it was, it sure felt good to hear it." Genma looked at her strangely. "Nodoka, that doesn't sound like you." "I'm just kidding dear, although I have to admit I was glad to hear he got punished. You should've seen what he did to her." At seeing a flash of anger cross Genma's features, she reversed course. "On the other hand, maybe you better not." Seeing the insistence in his eyes, she added, "Don't worry dear, it's been taken care of." `Whew! Almost started a blood feud... I'm glad he listened to me,' she thought in relief. She wrapped her arms around Genma's neck, and slid down a bit so they were face to face. "Now then, where were we?" she purred. Genma grinned like a schoolboy at the inviting tone of her voice. He hoped the kids would stay upstairs because while he and his wife still had their clothes on, he wasn't sure that would remain the case for long. He then studiously ignored his nagging conscience as his wife's lips met his. **** Ranko slid down further on the bed, so her head was resting against the pillow. "Well, I don't know where to begin bro. I got fifteen years of experience, so I won't be able to tell it all in one day." Ranma snorted, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "That's okay, Sis. I don't expect you to give me a book report or nothin'. I just need the heavy stuff. You know, things that may surprise me, like Kinuko." "Well, bro, here's what I know about you and Kinuko. At the beginning of your second year at Furinkan, you and Hikaru took a liking to Kinuko. Since she was a junior, you both had no chance of dating her..." She stopped at seeing Ranma wave his hands. `Whoa! Who is `Hikaru?' " Ranma asked warily. "Oh, sorry. Hikaru's your best friend." Ranma's mind was a blank, and it showed. Ranko pressed on. "You know, Hikaru Gosunkugi?" Ranma blanched at the name, and immediately looked for a mallet-wielding guy carrying voodoo dolls. "Gos?! No *WAY*!! That guy's creepy!" Ranko could only stare in shock at Ranma's reaction. `I wonder what the hell Hikaru was like in Ranma's other life...' she wondered absently. Ranma's ranting soon answered her unspoken question. "God, he was scary! Throwing those damn voodoo dolls around, and nailing them to just about anything. Weird chants and rituals. And that little twerp wouldn't leave Akane alone." Ranma's hands balled into fists reflexively as he said that last part. "What right did he think he had trying to take her away from me?" Ranko listened, surprised that the Hikaru of now would be so different from the one that Ranma knew. Ranma kept on ranting about him, and she was tiring of it. "How the hell did I ever get along with that ... that... weirdo?" he asked, thunderstruck. Ranko's look turned angry. She'd heard enough, and wanted him to stop before she got any angrier. "Ranma, stop saying that! Hikaru's a cool person. You and he have been friends for as long as I can remember. You always did things together; in fact you two were inseparable. He's nothing like what you've been saying. Black magic?!" She scoffed at the idea. "Marijuana on occasion, maybe. Blood sacrifices and chanting? I don't think so." He lay there with a dumbfounded look on his face. "You have no idea what kind of crap I had to put up with from him. I can't just *ignore* all of that!" Ranko rested a hand on Ranma's chest to calm him. "Ranma, what you're saying doesn't make sense. And honestly, it isn't fair, either. You're comparing your knowledge of the Hikaru you knew with the one that I know. They're completely different people. I think you're being a bit too harsh." "But I can't even conceive of him being my *best friend*, much less talking to me casually. Geez, this is weirding me out!" "Well, I say you give him a chance before you dismiss him out of hand. He's not a devil worshipper, or anything like that. And he *won't* be out to get Akane away from you either." She emphasized that last part, makingt sure he heard her clearly.. Ranma shut up, and sat still for a moment. "Okay, I guess I'll have to learn to deal with that. But back to Kinuko, you said that Gos and I both liked Kinuko. But why did *I* wind up with Kinuko instead of him?" Ranko's look changed to something unreadable. "Well, from what you told me, you and Gos agreed that he would help you get Kinuko in the sack if you would help him get *me* in the sack." She suppressed a wave of anger, telling herself that he wasn't the same Ranma that struck that deal. Ranma look thunderstruck at the notion of pawning off Ranko on someone, regardless of why. "God, Ranko. I'm sorry. Geez, how could I ..." Ranko put a hand on his. "It's okay bro. Don't worry, we didn't do anything." Ranma sighed loudly, relieved that she wasn't victimized by Gos. He couldn't help but think of Gos in any other was than the way he remembered him, regardless of what Ranko had told him about the `new' Gos. Ranko continued her story. "He and I did go out on the date you arranged. Early into the date, he tried to force himself on me, but after I told him that he would wind up walking funny for the rest of the night, he didn't bother me again. In fact, after that he was a really nice guy. So it wasn't such a bad thing after all." Ranma slid down on the bed so that his head was also resting on a pillow. He put his arm around her shoulder and hugged her to him. "I know *I* wasn't the one who did that, but I can't help but feel bad about it." Ranko reciprocated, hooking her arm around Ranma's neck and pulling his head towards hers. "Don't worry about it. Hikaru and I get along okay now. We've gone out a couple of times after that, but nothing serious has ever happened. That's how I knew that Hikaru wouldn't be chasing after Akane. He's been too busy chasing after me!" She grinned broadly, not disliking the attention she was getting from him, but she wasn't too sure about falling in love with him. Although, she had to admit that she liked the effect she had on Hikaru when she teased him. "Well, that explains why I was stuck with Kinuko..." he deadpanned. Ranma repressed the shudders he felt at imagining his sister dating Gos, and instead urged her to continue her story. "Yeah, although Hikaru never said how he helped you get your date with her. And you never said how, either. It was a minor miracle, that's for sure. But somehow you managed to get her attention, and not long after the school year began, you two were a regular item." Ranko pursed her lips, trying to recall the events in order. "It was funny, though. Not too many people paid attention to the two of you. It should've been ground-breaking news, being that she was the most popular girl in school and all..." "Hell, the only reason *I* paid attention to your relationship with her was that you were constantly in awe with yourself for getting together with her in the first place." She laughed to herself. "In fact, you wouldn't stop talking about it." Ranko giggled, remembering the shit- eating grin on her brothers' face the first day he got back from school. He had just asked Kinuko out, and was surprised at getting a yes response. "You looked like you won a ton of money, that day. In fact, I'd never seen you happier. Before the wish, that is." Ranma felt the humor of the situation, but couldn't help but frown. As neat as the beginning of `his' relationship with Kinuko may seem, she stood in the way of his quest for Akane. He knew that he harbored no interest for Kinuko, regardless of how attractive she was. In all earnestness, he hoped that she would go away, and quickly. Then he remembered something Ranko had told him earlier today. "Ranko, you said that I told you about Kinuko and I ... doing it. But, you never told me why." He closed his eyes, afraid of the answer. Ranko turned on her side, resting her head on Ranma's chest and hooking one of her legs over his. Ranma instinctively brought his arm up and across her back, resting his hand above her waist. "Well, I wasn't sure how you'd take this," she began warily. He grit his teeth, but told her to continue. "Well, you came to me one night about five weeks ago. It was just after you got back from your last date with Kinuko, and you were in a state of total panic..." Ranko's mind drifted back to that day: <* Ranko shifted in her bed, a noise disturbing her sleep. The noise got louder, and she finally awoke enough to realize that someone was knocking at her door. She glanced over at the clock on her dresser. `Geez! It's one- thirty in the frigging morning. Who the hell... Nevermind, it could only be one person...' "Go away Ranma!" she half-yelled, half-mumbled to the door. Ranma took that as a cue to come in. He quickly opened her door and stepped inside, closing the door before Ranko could get up. That didn't stop her from letting him know she was pissed off, however. "Ranma, get the hell out of my room before I stomp your ass!" she hissed angrily. Ranma held his hands up, trying to keep his butch sister at bay. He had a hard time finding his footing in the dark, having been in her room so infrequently. Once he got to her bed, he sat on the edge, right next to her. He knew he was chancing a royal beating from her, but he really didn't care at the moment. He *had* to talk to someone. "Ranko, please listen to me for a minute. It's important that I talk to you, okay?" Ranko sat up in her bed, blowing out an exasperated sigh. "Okay, you have five minutes, then I hurt you." "Fair enough," he said as he shifted position, trying to get comfortable on her bed. "Something terrible happened to me tonight, and I don't know what to do. I was hoping that I could get some help, okay?" *That* got her attention. Ranko forgot about the intrusion, and sat up some more to bring herself fully awake. "Whoa! What happened, bro?" "I just got back from a date with Kinuko, and she told me something I never wanted to hear," Ranma said sadly. "What... Did she dump you?" Ranko asked curiously. "No, something worse..." he tried to continue, but couldn't and broke down in tears. Ranko watched with an odd detachment as her older brother cried in front of her. She never really got along with Ranma, but even that couldn't keep her from feeling some compassion over her brother's plight. She sat back against the headboard in silence, trying to puzzle out what could've happened to him to make him so upset. After a few minutes of hearing nothing, she grew impatient. "C'mon bro, spill it. What did she tell you?" "She told me... she... she's *pregnant!*" ... *> "*WHAT!!!!????*" Ranma screamed at the top of his lungs. Ranko winced at the volume of Ranma's voice. "I told you you wouldn't like it, Ranma," she said softly, hugging her terrified brother tightly. Ranma's mind was in a state of absolute terror. He'd wished himself into fatherhood! "My God! I'm going to be a father!" he said, his face ashen. "Mom and Pop are gonna kill me! Akane's gonna kill me! *I* should kill me!" he yelled hysterically. Ranko quickly became fed up with Ranma's hysterics. "Ranma hush! You want our parents to hear? Besides there's..." Ranma was ignoring her, still going on about the cost of raising a child; how he never even had the opportunity of enjoying having sex with Kinuko, so why should he be burdened with a child he technically didn't father; and how his life was ruined, etc. Ranko had enough, and sat atop her brother, placing one hand against his shoulder to pin him down against the bed, and covering his mouth with the other. "Will you shut up?!" she hissed. "Stop moving and listen to me! That's not the whole story!" Ranma stopped his complaining and thrashing, and nodded slowly to her. She slowly pulled her hand from Ranma's mouth, not quite sure that he wasn't going to yell anymore. "This had better be good, Sis," he said stiffly, the effort of keeping his panic in check visible. Ranko sighed in relief, glad that Ranma's yelling hadn't attracted their parents. She didn't want them eavesdropping on her. Not while she was talking about Kinuko, at least. "Yes, it does get a little bit better, bro." Ranma slumped back against the pillow, his body visibly relaxing. He looked up to his sister's face as she resumed telling her story. "After you told me about her pregnancy, you said you were never going to go out with her again. I didn't blame you, because I was immediately suspicious of Kinuko. But didn't know how to prove she was lying. The next day I asked around at school, and found out from a friend of mine in gym that she's been on birth control pills for over a year." Ranma's panic suddenly became anger as he realized what Ranko was driving at. "It gets worse Ranma. I also heard from a couple of guys in the junior class that she pulls this stunt a lot when she wants to dump someone. So there's a good chance that she was never pregnant in the first place..." "That ... bitch!" Ranma spat angrily. "She's worse than Nabiki! At least Nabiki has standards when it comes to manipulation..." Ranko's face clouded with uncertainty. "Well, I've not been able to prove it yet Ranma. I'd be willing to believe the stories, but with Kinuko, you never really know." She shrugged her shoulders. "You seemed to want to vent that night, because you spilled all the details of your relationship with her. You told me that you and she had sex on the first date, in the training hall." Ranma grimaced, knowing how upset his father would've been had they been caught doing *that* in *there*. "The other two times, I don't know where you did it. I should've known at the time that you two were getting it on, though." "What do you mean `you should have known?' " he asked, his worry never waning. "Well, apparently the last time you came back after doing it with her, you had her bra in your pocket. Mom found it when she was washing clothes, and thought it was one of mine." Ranko leaned over to her dresser, and pulled open the top drawer. "Here it is," she said, fishing out and handing over the garment. "I know it's not mine because it's too damn small. Although at the time I didn't even think to look at it when I took it out of that drawer. I didn't realize it wasn't mine until I tried to put it on. I swear, it pinched like hell!" She winced, remembering the pain. Ranma took the bra in his hand absently, but said nothing. "I think Mom was under the impression that you were going to burn it, since she thought it was one of mine. That's why she didn't ask you about having the bra, in case you were wondering," Ranko said, hoping to assuage any further panic from her brother. Ranma's big sigh of relief told her that he'd worried about what his Mom thought of him having a bra in his pants pocket. "I had no idea where it came from, since it wouldn't have fit Mom either. I didn't think to associate that bra with Kinuko until that night you and I talked. But it was obvious whose it was after our discussion, since it looked like it would fit her. But anyway, that's all I know about you and Kinuko. You broke up after that day, and didn't see each other until today. Then again, she'd left a couple of days after the breakup to go on that field trip, so you and she didn't have much of a chance to talk." She lowered her head, turning slightly to avoid Ranma's gaze. "And ... there is something ... else I have to tell you. Something I'm ashamed of." Ranma brought his hand up and turned her face so that she was looking at him again. He focused his gaze on her, and saw how upset she was. Gently he grabbed one of her hands, holding onto it tenderly. "Go ahead and tell me, Ranko. It's okay. I'm sure it couldn't be worse than what I've already heard." Ranko shook her head. `I'm not so sure he'd agree after he hears this...' she thought worriedly. "Well, I did find out all of that stuff about Kinuko a couple of days after `the other you' talked to me. But I... well ..." She started fidgeting. "I waited almost two weeks before I told you." Ranma's face clearly registered the shock he felt. "Ranko... , why?" Tears formed at the corners of her eyes. "Ranma, we'd had a really bad fight a week before we talked, and I was feeling spiteful. So I decided to make you sweat it out before I told you. I... I'm sorry." She collapsed on his chest, burying her head in his shoulder and crying loudly. Ranma put his arms around her, but didn't say anything for a couple of minutes. He simply stroked her back as she cried on his shoulder. `Geez. My life here was a real mess. What Kinuko may have done to me, and what the other me did to Ranko were both inexcusable.' He tightened his embrace of Ranko, hoping to calm his sister down. "Shh, Sis. It's okay. I guess I understand why you didn't tell the other me about Kinuko sooner." `It's plain that we didn't get along before, but that doesn't mean we don't get along now,' he added to himself. Ranko's sobs lightened. She answered him in a thick voice. "But I felt very guilty about it Ranma. You were on the brink of a nervous breakdown that whole time. You wound up dropping out of band because of it, and you stopped seeing your friends. In fact you pretty much stayed in the attic every day after school for those two weeks. If I hadn't been so spiteful, then you wouldn't have had the messy life that you arrived in." Ranma lifted Ranko up by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "Hey, Sis. It's okay, honestly. The only things that matter to me right now are my martial arts, getting back together with Akane, and," he caressed Ranko's uninjured cheek with one of his hands, "getting to know my sister and mother better." Ranko smiled, the tears starting to well up once more. She lay down again, nestling her head under Ranma's chin, and moving her arms underneath his back to hold onto him. "Thank you, Ranma. I... I'm so sorry I did that to you." He placed his hand on her again, letting it roam aimlessly across Ranko's T-shirt clad back as he tried to console her. "Ranko, you can stop apologizing. It's cool. Besides, I probably deserved it. Although I now have to find out for sure whether or not she's really pregnant..." `Sounds like I'll be owing Nabiki something after all...' Ranma thought sourly. Ranko kept quiet for awhile, as she reigned in her emotions. During the silence, he ran through the story she had just told him. One weird part stuck out in his mind. "Uhh, sis. Why did I hide in the attic?" "Well, that's where you keep your Anime collection." She laughed softly, sniffling away the last of her tears. "I forgot, you haven't been up there since the wish, so you wouldn't know about it. Many years ago, you converted the attic into what you called your `shrine to Anime'." Ranma's eyebrows lifted slightly in surprise. He'd never been too keen on Anime, although it suited him sometimes to watch it, or read some of Nabiki's tamer manga. "Well, I guess I was a real fan, huh?" "You don't know the half of it bro. You've been spending yourself into bankruptcy for years collecting all sorts of Anime, manga, toys, models, soundtracks, and figurines. You even went out and bought a new TV and LaserDisc player a couple of years ago." Ranma grimaced at the cost involved in getting and maintaining such a collection, but when he thought about it, it didn't really surprise him. He guessed that the Ranma of before had been as passionate about collecting Anime as he was about martial arts. Still, one thing nagged at him. "How did I afford all of that stuff, Sis?" "Mom gave you all the money for it. I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but her family is loaded. So she's never had any problem with giving either of us money for things." That news did come as a mild shock to him. Since he'd spent so little time with his mother prior to the wish, he'd never gotten to much information on her. Instead, he'd been going under the assumption that his father had been providing most of the wealth for the family with that job of his, whatever that job was. "Uhh, sis. What does Pop do? I mean, I keep hearing him say that he'll be at work, but I've never been told what that work is." Ranko hmmphed. "He works at a public dojo in town, acting as an assistant trainer. It was an insult if you ask me, for him to have been training all those rich wimps in martial arts. At least he only teaches them basic karate, instead of Anything Goes." Ranma's scowl matched his sister's. "Why the hell did he take a job doing that if Mom's so wealthy?" "Well, to hear Pop tell it, he did it so that he could teach me Anything Goes. Mom was against me learning martial arts, and when Pop wanted to build a training hall in the back yard, she said she wasn't going to pay for it. So Pop got the job so that he could pay for the training hall and all the equipment. That's where all of his money has gone, really. Every cent he's made he sunk into the hall and me." Ranko's shoulders tensed as she said that. She knew from the start that the debt she owed her father was great, and once she started training with her father, she had intended to live up to his expectations, regardless of her mother's objections. And she had done so, becoming the best martial artist her father could make her. "Once I began doing well with my training, I'd even won Mom over. She started to approve of my training, and stopped complaining about how un-ladylike I was acting." "Anyway, Pop could've quit his job a couple of years ago if he wanted to. The training hall had been paid off by that time. And after I won first place in a tournament, Mom *insisted* on paying for the training equipment from that point on." Ranko was smiling broadly, very proud of her achievements. Ranma was smiling as well; and while Ranko couldn't see it, she could tell that her brother was proud of her too. "But instead of quitting, he decided to continue working at the job. He's been saving all the money he's made from the job recently, for some reason. He never told us why, though. I guess he's just being cautious." Ranma laughed inwardly. His father, Genma Saotome, cautious? No way... `There has to be a reason why he's doing this, and why he's not talking. I have no idea what it could be, though. Being sneaky and finding out things like that had always been Nabiki's talent.' He digressed on that point. He felt sure he'd get back to it sometime. Ranko kept on talking. "Mom even suggested that I expand my training by joining the Kendo club." She snorted derisively. "But after what happened today, I don't think I'll take her up on that." "I don't blame you, Sis. Being in the same place with Kuno for more than five minutes would be enough to drive me out of my mind." Ranma laughed at the notion of his sister clobbering Kuno, enjoying the visuals it was conjuring up in his mind. He sighed lightly, his panic having dissipated for the most part. Life wouldn't be that bad once he and Ranko proved that Kinuko wasn't pregnant. He just hoped that they would be able to do that. The consequences otherwise would be too dire to consider. "I don't doubt that Ranma. After seeing him in action today, I'd rather keep my distance from him." She brought a hand to her face, a yawn overtaking her suddenly. "Anyway, I'm not interested in Kendo. I think weapons are unneccessary, so why learn them?" She moved her head slightly, getting comfortable on Ranma's chest. "Anything else, bro?" Ranma couldn't think of anything else to ask her at the moment. He wasn't sure he could handle any other big surprises right at the moment. "No, nothing right now, Sis." Not getting a response from her, he repeated himself. "Nothing right at the moment, Sis." he was answered by a loud sigh, then a light snore. `Geez, she's asleep! I must be comfortable, or something,' he mused to himself. He looked around, trying to think of a discreet way of getting Ranko off of him without disturbing her. `She was really tired, so I don't blame her for falling asleep. She needs the rest.' Not finding any immediate way to disengage her from him, Ranma stopped moving about and lay there. Sighing in exasperation, he closed his eyes, trying to think of a way to get out from under her. He was asleep a moment later. **** "Hey, K-chan. What was that big scene about at school today?" Kinuko poked her head out of her closet, "What was that Ami? I didn't hear you." Ami stood up from Kinuko's bed and walked to the closet. She looked inside to see Kinuko trying on several different items from her endless array of clothing. Kinuko sighed dramatically and dropped another blouse to the floor, revealing her braless chest. Ami sighed, a wistful look on her face, wishing she had the clothes and the *attributes* of her popular friend. "I can't seem to find the right thing to wear!" Kinuko complained, extending her lower lip perfectly in an ultra- cute pout. Ami ignored the whining of her older best-friend. "I asked you what that scene with you and Akane was about today." Kinuko dropped her armfuls of clothing and closed the closet door, not bothering to cover herself. Even though she should have been used to it by now, Ami blushed at seeing Kinuko parade around in just her thong panties. `Kinuko's got a very pretty body, but she's obviously proud of it. She can be such an exhibitionist!' Ami thought with a tinge of jealousy. She lowereg her gaze and sighed again before moving to follow her friend to the bed and sit beside her. "I saw that bitch Akane making moves on my Ranchan! So I ... intervened." Kinuko smiled, tossing her hair back and thrusting her chest out proudly. Ami shook her head. Kinuko and Akane had been at each other's throats for months now. Ever since that day Kuno had announced his intention to the entire school that he would date with Akane, Kinuko had been insanely jealous. She'd raged on about how unfair it was that every boy in school was paying their undivided attention to that `nobody Akane Tendo' instead of her. Akane getting engaged to Kuno later on hadn't helped matters at all, making Kinuko obsess over ways to make Akane's life a living hell. Ami understood that Kinuko wanted to be the most popular girl in school, but that didn't mean that she had to pull some of the nasty stunts she did to get rid of her competition. She'd been shocked on more than one occasion when she'd heard what her friend had done to thin the popularity pool at Furinkan. Sometimes she wondered how they became friends at all, much less how they could tolerate each other now. Ami didn't want to anger Kinuko, but she couldn't help but press Kinuko to see if she was telling the truth. "Are you sure that Akane was making moves on Ranma? I mean, after what happened between him and Kuno today, you think Akane'd want to kill him for what he did to her fiancee." Kinuko shook her head. "Nope, I was right there. My Ranchan asked Akane out on a date. I heard it with these two ears." She pointed to them for added effect. "I thought you just said that Akane made moves on Ranma, not the other way around." Ami countered quickly. Too quickly, given the look that Kinuko leveled at her. Ami recoiled slightly away from Kinuko, laughing nervously. "Either way it doesn't matter. Akane had to have done something to get my Ranchan's attention away from me," Kinuko declared simply. She couldn't see it any other way. She knew that Ranma was utterly devoted to her, and that she had him wrapped around her little finger. "Didn't you already dump Ranma with that false- pregnancy scam of yours?" Ami frowned, not caring to hide her dislike for that little practice of Kinuko's. Although she had to admit that it worked great at getting rid of unwanted guys. "Yeah, so what? It's not like he's should be getting attention from anyone else, does it? I mean, after all, once he's had me, he should be spoiled." She laughed haughtily, looking at herself in one of her full length mirrors as she swayed her breasts seductively. "Akane's no competition. And Ranchan knows that he doesn't have a chance of getting together with another girl anyway." Ami could only shake her head. She loved her friend, but when Kinuko got jealous, there was no reasoning with her. "Why did you even date him anyway. He's such a ... geek." She shuddered at even saying the word. Kinuko's eyes flashed lustily. "I don't know what came over me when I agreed to go out with him that first time. But if you'd seen him that night when we... you know, then you'd understand." Ami blushed. "You mean he's..." "... like a horse." She finished happily. Ami looked practically scandalized, shuffling uncomfortably on Kinuko's bed. Kinuko, meanwhile, was drooling over Ranma's physique. "He may act like a geek, but he's got a great... well.. you know..." She blushed slightly, lewd thoughts dancing through her head. Ami meanwhile was fighting off the impulse to call her friend a perv. `Kinuko's really a lemonhead. I've never met anyone as insatiable as she is. If Ranma's everything she's hinting at, he must be a girls *dream!*' But the more she thought about that, the more she realized that something didn't quite gel with Kinuko's story. "If he's so great, why did you dump him, K-Chan?" Kinuko leaned forward so she was face to face with her friend. She eyed Ami critically. "You're asking a lot of questions tonight, Ami-chan. You wouldn't be thinking of going after my Ranchan would you?" Ami couldn't hide the angry look that surfaced on her face. "That's a hell of a thing to ask your best friend. What the hell's gotten into you, K-Chan?" Ami placed her hands on her hips and adopted an angered look. Kinuko blink-blinked at Ami's unanticipated ire. She realized that it took a lot to piss Ami off. Ami's ability to remain cool under fire was one of the things that she admired in her best friend. "I'm sorry, Ami. This whole day's just been unreal. I mean, I come back from band camp to find out that Ranchan's become some sort of martial artist god. He defeats Kuno openly in combat," Kinuko clasped her hands together wantingly, "and his body looks like a million bucks!" Ami handed Kinuko a washcloth. "Wipe the drool off of your face, K-Chan," she deadpanned. Kinuko stuck her tongue out at Ami and giggled. Then taking the proffered washcloth from her friend, she mopped her sweaty brow. Ami leaned forward, touching noses with Kinuko. "You never answered my question K-Chan. Why did you dump Ranma if he was such a hot item?" Kinuko's eyes began to shimmer as sadness entered her expression. Sadly she sat back against the headboard of her bed, crossing her arms under her chest. "You'll laugh at me if I tell you." Ami lay down on her stomach at the end of the bed, her legs sticking up in the air. She looked Kinuko straight in the eyes, and put a hand on one of Kinuko's legs. "No I won't. We're best friends, remember? We can tell each other anything, right?" Kinuko smiled, the humor breaking through some of her sadness. "Well, I did it because... I .. well it's kinda hard to explain. I broke up with him because I was falling in love with him," she finished in a rush. Ami answered Kinuko's sad expression with a dumbfounded one. "You actually fell in love with one of your boyfriends?" A genuine smile made it's way onto Ami's face. "Kinuko, that's great! You actually fell in love!" Kinuko wasn't able to hide the smile coming to her face. "Yeah, I did. I mean, I do love my Ranchan. Stupid as it sounds, I dumped him because I love him." "That is stupid. Care to explain that one to me?" "Well, I don't know if I really can. I guess... well you know how much trouble I had getting boyfriends before high school. Then after I started developing, I had no problem getting boys to go out with me, but they never really appealed to me. You understand what I'm saying, Ami- chan?" "Yeah, actually I do. I've seen how you treated your boyfriends before you started going out with Ranma. They were like property to you. Kind of like an `I told you so' to all the girls that taunted you in primary school." It hurt to hear, but Kinuko knew her friend was right. "But Ranchan was different from all of those guys, to me at least. Well, he wanted to get in my pants like all the other guys..." "Which he did several times..." Ami deadpanned. Kinuko glared at her. "ANYway, Ranchan was something that the other guys weren't. He was a romantic, Ami-chan. He'd sit there and listen to me, and do the sweetest things for me. He cherished me. You know how good that makes a girl feel to know that she's loved *that much*?" Kinuko got a wistful look in her eyes as she imagined herself together with Ranma. "Ranchan was a woman's dream hidden behind all that anime-stuff. I'm glad I found a way to notice him." Ami rolled over onto her back, staring at the ceiling. "So that explains why you were so upset today after school. What are your plans now, K-Chan?" Kinuko stepped off of her bed and walked back to her closet, her long hair flowing like silk behind her. She stepped in and soon a new blizzard of clothes was seen flying out of it. "I'm going to find an outfit that sure to knock Ranchan off his feet. He told me the day before we broke up that his parents were going away for a weekend together to celebrate their anniversary. That's *next* weekend. And I intend to use that time alone with Ranchan at his place to my advantage." Ami cringed at the possessive tone in Kinuko's voice. She cried out in shock a moment later when Kinuko emerged from her closet wearing a sheer black teddy and a wicked grin on her face. "I'm gonna take back from Akane what's rightfully mine, by force if necessary!" She declared, laughing maniacally. `Ranma, wherever you are, may God have mercy on your soul," Ami thought as she watched her friend pose in various sexually explicit ways in front of her mirror. After a couple of minutes of this, Ami gave up on trying to reason with Kinuko, and went downstairs to raid the refrigerator before they watched a movie. **** Author's notes: Well, here I go again. ^_^ (those of you who've read "The Prince and the Lecher" will understand that remark...) I was simply minding my own business, and reading the first two sections of the story "Be Careful What you Wish For" by Richard Beaubien. After completing that, I re-read part one, and said to myself "What if *this* happened instead of *that.*" Well I shouldn't have done that, because here I am clattering away at my IBM keyboard like a man possessed. Some people may wonder about the content (boy *that* was obtuse!). Well, as of this writing: (3/4/96): Released the first alpha of part three for reader input. (3/5/96): Boy! Did I get reader input! ^_^ Several things were immediately changed after I submitted the story to the list. The majority of that was changes in grammatical content and spelling. David Bateson and Kevin Eav get kudos for helping me with the continuity on the story, and the de-lemonization of the bath between Nabiki and Kasumi (although that's always been a dream scene for me @_@ ). I'm still under the influence of this damned cold, so I can't always trust my judgment. Thanks for keeping me on track people! I added some more angst to Kasumi's speech in the bath. (probably *too* much angst). I also added my first flashback scene. (3/27/96): This was a difficult chapter to write. Most of the past that I had to create for the "other Ranma" did not come to me easily. Most of it was on the fly, and some of it may contradict existing parts of the story because I haven't had time to cross-check with my other parts of Careful Destiny. Sorry to disappoint all of those people who expected Kinuko to actually be pregnant. Kudos go to PhoneyNT and David Bateson for helping me try to work through Ranma's angst after finding out he's a daddy (^_^ to quote BugsB. `Ain't I a stinker?' ). Although it isn't the case, I have to admit I was tempted to make her pregnancy a reality. But even though he's not going to be making child support payments, he's out of the woods yet. As was evident at the end of this part, Kinuko has decided that she really loves her Ranchan, and will do *anything* to get him to love her. This could mean very bad things for our intrepid wish-maker. And the sparks will fly if she ever finds out that Ranma's actively pursuing Akane . Also, strange developments will be afoot in part four as the dojo repair party gets underway. The additions in the story from the past time marker to now are too numerous to list. The best way to list them would be to say "look past the second paragraph at the top. That's where the additions begin. ^_^;; " Thanks to all the people who wrote or commented on this part. I appreciate the honest criticism, and the encouraging words. I enjoy writing this, and I hope you continue to enjoy reading it. Acknowledgments: I'd like to thank Richard Beaubien first and foremost for granting me the permission to write this side-story based on his. Prior to writing this thing, he's never even heard of me. I understand that he's continuing the mother- story from which this one is based. All I have to say is, "Go for it man!" ^_^ It's been a real treat writing this thing and playing around in his dimension (so to speak). It wouldn't have been possible without his work as the base. So to him, I say Domo Arigato Gozaimashita! Bert Van Vliet. You're the one who gave me the writing bug . Prior to picking up my first BubbleGum Zone printout, I was clueless as to the ways of writing fanfic. What a difference a year makes. You're a good friend, and I thank you for the support. Hail SkyKnight! ^_^ Izzy-chan for inspiring the now infamous bathroom scene in part one Wing/Nagisa for being an invaluable proofer for part one. Your contributions helped make part one what it is today. Thank you! Thank You for tolerating my unusual style of writing. I'll get better, I promise ^_^ My music library, for inspiring me in times of need: * Robotech 10th Anniversary Perfect Soundtrack Album * Char's Counterattack Soundtrack * Gundam 0083 Soundtrack * Gundam Singles History Soundtrack * Entire BubbleGum Crisis Soundtrack set * The Macross Complete Soundtrack * Macross II Soundtrack * Macross Plus Soundtrack * Vampire Princess Miyu Soundtrack * Ranma 1/2 Calendar CD `94 * Project A-ko #1 Soundtrack * Megazone Two-Three part 2 Soundtrack * Babylon 5 Soundtrack * Mortal Kombat Soundtrack * The Collected works of John Tesh and Bob James And now for my .sig! Later, Shadow Stalker (Protoculture Addict) (Moderator: The Robotech Echo) sstalker@delphi.com -or- sysop@newberry.edu <--- try this address first!