On Thu, 10 Oct 1996 18:05:58 +0100 Marisa Price wrote:
: A Lesson In Love
: By Marisa Price
Hot damn! Finally I've got the time to go over that huge backlog
of mine and what do I find? Yay! You left us with quite a
cliffhanger, last time, Misa-chan, so let's see what you have in
store for us.
: Copyright to Marisa Price, 1996 (All Rights Reserved)
: mdp102@york.ac.uk
Um, I'm not so sure whether you can claim copyright to a work that
already violates the copyrights of others.
: Chapter XII: Betrayal
:
[snip]
: Akane dropped the crushed letter to the floor and stood, striding
: off to her room to prepare for the approaching fight and thinking, "Ukyou,
: prepare to lose Ranma. He is MINE and I am NOT giving him up!"
OK, so far so good. Still as upsetting as the last time - on to
the new stuff!
: "What the...?" Ranma thought, as she finally looked up at the door
: of th Nekohantan.
: It was borded shut, and, painted in red letters in both Chinese and
: Japanese, were the words "Closed: Owners Moved back to China."
Whoah! And she didn't even say goodbye. I wonder whether Cologne
is behind this, but I can't really picture her giving up like
that.
: The girl who had harried Ranma with
: her potions and bonbori and crafty ways for over a year was gone.
What potions?
: Ryouga had to admit that Shampoo had become a friend to all of
: them, as well as being handy person to have in a fight, and suddenly she
: had slipped as quietly out of their lives as a cat in the night, without a
: word of farewell.
Very nice metaphor, that. Yes, she was a nuisance, but she was a
*familiar* nuisance; *Their* nuisance.
: As expected, the sudden appearance of a naked male from a tiny black
: pig caused the usual reaction. Panic ensued, and the screaming customers
: fled from the shop. Ryouga grinned a toothy grin, please that his plan had
: worked. He hopped out of the sink and went over to the dryers and managed
: to find some servicable cloting, even in his size.
What, Ryouga *stealing* other people's clothes? Well, he doesn't
really have too much regard for other people's property, when he
goes into one of his depressive rages, but actual, precalculated
theft?
: The lantern swung, gently, as a breeze stirred.
: She had been gone for awhile then.
The desciption of the abandoned Nekohanten was very good. I could
really picture it and the feelings it must have evoked to see the
familiar building in this state. Nicely done.
: Dear Ranma,
: When you have enough money, come visit us in our
: Village, as I know you know the way (ha ha), and
: Mousse and I will tell you what we have learned
: in the meantime about a cure for our curses. Take
: care Ranma, and always remember me, even though
: I was not always the best of friends to you.
: Your friend,
: Shampoo
:
: P.S. Beware Grandmother- she did not take this
: lightly.
This was very, *very* well done. It was at once sad and hopeful;
A testament of Shampoo's pride, yet showing her care for the boy
she pursued so long. I hope we'll see her again in China. Is
that P.S. a foreshadowing hint at things to come.
: Ranma managed to smile a bit and said, "Well, I am going to try
: to scare off another of my former-fiancees.... this time by trying to
: set her up with YOU!!"
: Ryouga growled and said, "RANNNNNMMMMAAA!"
: And they were off running again.
I like this relationship between Ranma and Ryouga. Very much in
character, I think. Even in the Manga, they were more or less
friends, if rivals, and now that they've admitted it, their
relationship has not changed *that* much, but taken up a more
playful tone. Me like!
: "What the?" Ukyou wondered, and then said aloud, "Um, Akane ? What's
: wrong?"
: "You. How could you?" Akane asked fiercely.
It begins...
: Ukyou started to back away, saying loudly, "Akane! Stop! I don't
: want to fight you! Let's stop this and TALK before someone gets hurt!"
: But, as most people knew well, Akane Tendo had a temper, and,
: once aroused, it could not be halted.
Heh, too right.
: Akane, distracted by Ranma's entrance, turned to look at him,
: just as Ukyou, not having time to realize that Ryouga and Ranma had entered,
: had let go her spatulae. Ukyou cried out in horror, as the previously
: perfectly aimed kife-like spatulae sailed towards the now differently
: positioned Akane.
: Ukyou ran forward, as if she could stop them, but she knew,
: oh God she knew, that it was too late.
: Akane crumpled to the floor, just as both Ukyou and Ranma
: reached her, Ryouga close behind them.
: And, like the paint on the boards at the empty Nekohantan,
: bright red stained the floor of Ucchan's Okonomiyaki.
Brrr. Oh dear, another cliffhanger.
: End of Part XII
:
: More coming soon! You shouldn't have to wait as long this time...
I should hope so! More, more, MORE!
Sebastian