Greetings all, here's the second part of this little piece of Fanfiction
I'm working on. How do you think it's shaping up so far? Anyways, I'd
appreciate any commentary of course.
Legal: The characters of Ranma 1/2 were created by the great Rumiko
Takahashi.
The characters of Gargoyles are the creations of Disney.
I am using them without permission, hopefully for the purpose of
entertaining someone. If anyone who has a right to sue me has that
desire, I have almost no money.
C&C is appreciated, you can contact me at
brenda02@sprynet.com
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What happened in Chapter one: Ryouga and Ranma got into a fight,
however just as Ryouga was about to fire off a Shishi-Hokodan, Fox
Xanatose stepped into the line of fire with Alexander and in the course
of protecting them Ranma suffered a broken leg which Ryouga quickly
capitalized on before being thrown into the canal by Fox. When Akane
heard about this she decided that she had to put an end to the feud
between Ranma and Ryouga. And it's now visiting hours and all three
FiancÈe's plus Kodachi are coming to visit Ranma in the hospital, and
their all bringing food.
Ranma, The Time of Changes
By Brendan O'Donnell
Chapter two
Ranma was a martial artist of considerable experience and
training. This training had over time coaxed from Ranma an awareness
of his surroundings almost supernatural in it's sensitivity. Now as he lay
in his hospital bed watching the clock tick down the seconds till visiting
hours began he could feel a wave of anger and violence washing over
the hospital. Then from the front of the hospital he heard something that
chilled his blood.
"Shampoo bring Ranma lunch Not stupid Spatula girl!"
"Oh no, Ranchan's going to eat my Okonomiyaki!"
"Ohhhohohohohoho! I'm going to be feeding Ranma-Sama
these cookies baked with all my love!"
"Not mention Poison, crazy girl!"
"How dare you, you Chinese strumpet! Prepare to die!"
Ranma tried to tune out the sounds of violence as he did a quick
assessment of his condition. His right shoulder had no real need of the
bandages on it, he could fight with it no troubles. His Rubs had been
fractured and would require careful movement and controlled breathing
to fight with. Finally his leg was broken just above the knee. The cast
kept his entire leg immobilized, and if he had to move he would have to
keep his weight off it. This was his biggest problem, since his main
concern with the girls he had heard was evasion and escape. *Guess
I'll have to try talking and hope they'll listen.* He decided that
Shampoo and Kodachi had about as much chance of listening to him as
Ryouga.
Suddenly he heard the door open, and a doctor let Akane in.
Ranma looked toward the sounds of fighting which he still heard from
out front.
"I decided it'd be simpler to slip in through the side entrance."
Akane said, seeing Ranma's look. Following it she added "I guess I
was right." with a small smile.
Ranma looked at her, marveling at how cute she looked, the
smiling face, the flower pattern dress, the tin... *That's a cookie tin.*
Ranma thought as he tried to keep the fear he was suddenly feeling from
becoming visible on his face. He almost succeeded.
Akane felt somewhat flushed as she saw Ranma look at her,
something about the look made her feel so good. Then he looked at the
Tin and tensed up. *He must think I made them.* She thought as she
fought down a scowl. Setting the cookie tin on the table she said
"They're Kasumi's."
"Whew!" Ranma exclaimed as he relaxed, then he tensed
again, looking apprehensively at his FiancÈe.
"Don't worry, I'll save that for when your out of here." She
replied in a joking tone. Then she sat in a chair by the head of his bed
and looked at Ranma with a serious expression on her face.
*Uh oh, what's she looking so serious about?*
"Ranma... I need to know just what you and Ryouga were
fighting about. I mean Ryouga wouldn't endanger a woman and her
baby like that unless he was totally consumed with something!"
*Oh boy.* Thought Ranma to himself.
"Now I've respected your desire to keep your personal grudges
personal, but it's gone beyond being just personal. So I want you to tell
me why you and Ryouga hate each other so much!"
Ranma replied "I don't hate Ryouga. I dislike and am really
offended by some things he does, but I always do my best to avoid
hating anyone."
"Then why are you two always fighting!"
"You'd know already if you could see past your nose!" Ranma
responded in an annoyed tone.
Akane clenched her fists, tightened her face into a silent snarl,
then took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. "I'm not going to
be distracted." She said as she closed her eyes
*Hmm, guess she's more serious than usual.* Ranma thought.
*Can't betray Ryouga, though.* "We're always fighting because
Ryouga keeps attacking me!"
"What about those times you've disguised yourself as a girl to
pick on him!" Akane responded.
"That jerk deserved it every time!" Ranma responded angrily.
Then he thought and added quietly "Well, maybe I went overboard on
that FiancÈe thing, but that hentai did try to grope me..."
Akane fought down her angry retaliation, closed her eyes and
took a deep breath. Releasing it she looked at Ranma and said
"Ranma, from what Ryouga said, this has dated back to that first time
he showed up here. Now I know that Bread feud wasn't what you
were fighting over, so what was it!?"
*Uh oh, what do I say?* Ranma thought for a moment then
concluded *I guess it's gotta be the truth* "I can't tell you."
"What! Why not!?"
Ranma looked her in the eye. "Look Akane, Ryouga's got two
big reasons for attacking me all the time. One of them you really ought
to know, but since I'm partially responsible for inflicting it on Ryouga I
have to keep it a secret. The other reason is Ryouga's own business,
and it'd be wrong for me to talk about it."
Akane glared at him and replied "That's not an acceptable
answer Ranma."
"If I break the trust and tell you Ryouga's secrets I'm no better
than my father." Ranma said, so quietly Akane almost couldn't hear
him.
That's when the door opened and the three girls who had
stopped fighting out front about three minutes ago walked in. Ranma
and Akane looked at them in surprise.
"What uncute tomboy doing here?" Shampoo asked in an
angry tone.
"I didn't want to fight by the hospital so I came in the side
entrance." Akane replied with a voice filled with annoyance.
Shampoo pulled out a pair of Bonbori, when a voice behind the
trio cleared it's throat.
Shampoo looked back to see Owen shielding a cough with his
stone fist. Letting the appendage drop to his side Owen said "You did
agree to a truce, right?"
Shampoo sighed and put her maces away. She made for the
seat opposite Akane, as did the other three. When Kodachi leaped
over the bed to land in the chair, Shampoo grabbed at her to pull her
away. Ukyo pulled out a pair of small throwing spatula, then slipped
them away and pulled up a chair at the foot of the bed next to Akane.
"No fighting in the hospital, Right?" Ukyo said to the pair on the
opposite side of the bed. Shampoo and Kodachi looked at her and
took their hands off each other. Kodachi dropped into the chair with a
look of smug satisfaction while Shampoo glared at her before pulling up
a chair of her own, pushing it so close to Kodachi's it touched. With a
glare she sat down.
Ranma stared at the trio, feeling like someone had changed a
law of nature and forgotten to tell him about it. Clearing his throat he
said "Hey, your not fighting, that's great."
"Oh, Ranma-Sama" responded Kodachi before the others
could start. "You are here because your nobility of spirit brought you to
the defense of the helpless and weak. How could I not likewise accept
the pain of these common scullery maids presence to shield the people
confined to this place?"
In the back of Owens mind Puck thought *Helpless and
weak... FOX!!* and started laughing uncontrollably. Owens mouth
twisted into something about a millimeter short of being a smile
Shampoo and Ukyo glared at Kodachi a moment, then Ukyo
added "A truce sounded right."
"Truce important." Shampoo said.
Ranma looked at the girls, then glanced at Owen who had a
barely perceptible smile on his face. "Thanks, it means a lot to me."
Owen glanced at the three girls who were all looking much
more cheerful and relaxed at Ranma's approval, and in the back of his
mind Puck's raucous laughter at Ranma's situation increased in intensity.
Owen's smile increased by about six angstroms.
Akane sighed to herself as she walked home. With the other
two fiancÈe's and Kodachi present she hadn't felt right pressing Ranma
for details on the mysterious two grudges Ryouga had against him. And
she felt even less comfortable even thinking about his final remark
before their solitude was shattered. *'If I break the trust and tell you
Ryouga's secret I'm no better than my father.'* Just casually thinking
about Genma she could see his tendency to completely forget honor
whenever it was inconvenient. She was glad that Ranma was refusing
to emulate this in his father, and yet...
*I'd better try to avoid thinking about this.* Akane thought to
herself. *I don't even know why this upsets me, I mean everything I've
seen or heard about Genma doing is probably just a fragment of what
Ranma's personally witnessed.* She picked up her pace and focused
her eyes ahead of her. *Anyway, I don't think I can get Ranma to tell
me. However I know a little more about it so I can find out from
Ryouga the next time I see him.*
"Hello Akane, how was your visit with Ranma?" Kasumi asked
as her sister entered the house.
"Well, I haven't gotten my answers yet, but I will." Akane
replied.
"Oh yes." Kasumi replied, "Ryouga was by earlier and he
asked me to give you this." Kasumi said as she pulled a letter from her
apron.
Several hours ago, Ryouga had stepped from the Tendo's bath,
dressed in the spare set of clothing he had hidden there and tried to
decide on a plan of action.
*What will I do!* Ryouga thought for the seven hundred and
eighty seventh time that hour. *I've got to tell her how I feel about her!
Maybe she was embarrassed to admit that she likes me to her sister,
maybe once she knows my feelings she'll decide that I'm a better choice
than Ranma.* Ryouga had a hopeful look on his face, which then
collapsed. *No, she's mad at me now, she wouldn't take the news of
my real feelings well.* Ryouga thought. *But how can I not tell her
now, if I try to put it off she'll just get stew so that she'll be madder at
our next meeting. Wait, suppose I leave now put leave her a letter...*
Ryouga sat down and pulled a piece of paper and a ball-point pen from
his backpack. He thought a moment then began to write.
Dear Akane:
Recent events have caused me to fear that I might be a
danger to others, and I am going off to train so that this fear of
mine shall never become a reality. When I return I have
something I want to discuss with you. Please allow me to
discuss it with you over a meal at Ukchan's. I hope you will
allow me this.
Ryouga Hibiki.
Akane looked up from the note. *Well, looks like Ryouga
wants to solve this too.* She thought, then frowned. *But training not
the answer, he has to end the feud with Ranma.* Then she smiled
*Well, at least Ryouga wouldn't try to weasel out of this.* Then she
looked puzzled as she thought, *But I wonder what those two reasons
for the vendetta Ranma mentioned are?*
Akane thought back to just after the meeting when she had told
them about what Ranma had said about Ryouga's reasons for fighting
him, and asked them if they knew what they were. Kodachi had gone
on a diatribe about how Ryouga was obviously jealous of Ranma, Ukyo
had looked her over grinned and professed ignorance, and Shampoo
had laughed at her and said "Uncute tomboy to stupid to see
bandanna!" No need to recall the fight, except that it ended with her
and Shampoo falling into a drainage ditch full of water.
Ryouga Hibiki was trying to get lost. However being a Hibiki
the one place he could never reach easily was his destination. *Argh!*
he thought to himself as he passed Ukchan's for the fifth time *Why
can't I find my way out of Nerima! I left Akane that note, so all I have
to do is go to China and get find the Nanichuan and I can come back
and tell her how I feel. I hope she feels the same way... Stop that, fear
is the only thing that's kept me from telling her the truth a long time ago.
I just need to get rid of P-chan and I can face her without shame!*
"Ryouga?" Came Ukyo's voice from the doorway he had just
passed. Turning around Ryouga saw that she had just taken down her
shops exterior curtains and was looking at him.
"Oh, hi Ukyo." Ryouga responded. *Hey, maybe she can help
me! But if I tell her what I want to do she'll want to know why I want
to go to Jusenkyo. Wait I can say I'm trying to get some Nanichuan
water as a peace gesture for Ranma.*
"Hey I was just closing up, but if you're hungry I can make you
up something." Ukyo said "Besides I wanted to talk to you about
something." she added.
"Well, OK." Ryouga responded.
Ryouga sat at the seat before the large griddle, on which Ukyo
was rapidly assembling one of her perfect Okonomiyaki. "Now before
I say anything else I should mention that if you ever hurt my Ranchan
again I'll feel compelled break you in half." She said, pausing to glare at
him.
Ryouga tensed up and reviewed his possible exits. He knew
that he could easily outfight her, but fighting a girl felt so wrong...
"But I'm willing to let you off the hook this time." Ukyo added,
at which Ryouga relaxed. Pleased that Ryouga was afraid of her, Ukyo
flipped the Okonomiyaki onto the plate before him and continued "You
know Akane's looking for you, I mean when we were leaving the
hospital she was asking us about you."
"I know." Ryouga responded. "I'm going on a little trip to take
care of some personal business, but when I'm done... could you help
me tell Akane how I feel?"
"Finally!" Ukyo responded as she turned off her grill. "Don't
worry I'll help you set up the right mood. Why wait though? Akane's
really intense about finding out what's behind your rivalry with Ranma,
and you're being gone is only going to annoy her."
"No, I can't talk to her about it, not yet anyway. That's why I
need to take this trip." Ryouga responded, picking up his Okonomiyaki
and taking a bite out of it.
"Ok. One thing though, what is that second reason behind why
you're always fighting with Ranchan?"
Ryouga froze. His Okonomiyaki fell to his plate which quivered
a second than went still. Ukyo looked into Ryouga's eyes. She raised
her hand and waved it before those eyes. Ryouga swallowed the bite
of Okonomiyaki in his mouth.
"Ryouga?"
"S-second r-reason?"
Ukyo looked at Ryouga with intense curiosity. "Akane said that
according to Ranchan there were two reasons why you attack him, one
which he couldn't talk about because it wasn't his business, and one that
he couldn't talk about because it was partially his fault.
"I'd say that you being in love with Akane is what's none of his
business, so what's partially his fault?"
*OH NO!!! I can't not tell Akane about Jusenkyo now, but if I
tell her she'll never forgive me, and could I think up something to tell
her? Argh, if I try to invent anything Ranma will just tell her it's not true,
and I'm a really rotten liar anyway she'll see right through me, WHAT
AM I GOING TO DO!!*
"Ryouga?" Ukyo said in a worried tone as she watched
Ryouga's face distort through at least seven distinct panicked
expressions. *No eight, his eyes just rolled up in his head and... oh he's
passed out.* With a sigh she looked him over, and upon dismissing the
possibility that he was injured she started cleaning up her restaurant.
When she was done she looked at Ryouga again, and seeing he showed
no sign of waking up, she dragged him to the spare room. After
slipping one of her extra blankets over him she went to her room and
prepared for sleep herself.
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In part three, Akane's search for the Truth continues, Ranma checks
himself out of the
hospital, and Ranma and Ryouga sit down and make nice with each other.