This is not a Lemon. Nor is this a Darkfic. I'm not sure what genre this
fits into but I'm absolutely sure that it's _not_ either of those.
Kasumi's Little Secret
Part 1: Kasumi in the Dojo
A Ranma 1/2 FanFiction
Version 1.2
All characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi.
Please don't sue me ; )
It was a fairly normal Friday in Nerima. Ranma was taking the
express route home courtesy of Akane's Hammerspace Airlines. <Well,> he
thought as he crashed into the Tendo's pond, <This is one way to get home
early.>
Ranma-chan slogged out of the pond towards the house. <I need
some hot water to change she ought as she passed the dojo and glanced in.
The dojo looked the same as it always did: blank wooden walls, slightly
dirty floor, newly repaired shoji, Kasumi in a karate-gi moving gracefully
across the room...<wait a sec,> Ranma-chan thought <I didn't just see
_Kasumi_ in a _gi_, did I? Nah, must have been may imagination. Still,
I'd better check...>
Ranma went back to the dojo and looked in. She hadn't been
imagining things. Kasumi was there in her gi moving across the floor in
what looked, at first glance, like a slow, complex, and graceful dance.
<It's not just a dance,> Ranma thought as she watched in amazement. She
recognized several of Kasumi movements as marital arts techniques, there
were a couple of simple kicks and several complex joint locks. Ranma was
simply shocked. He had never imagined _Kasumi_ engaging in martial arts.
Ranma was curious too. She was unaware of any kata that was performed as
slowly as Kasumi was moving. Most kata's were best done slow if you were
just beginning to learn it but Kasumi's movements were graceful and
certain. It was obvious that she was practicing a kata that she had
trained in for a long time. <Why, then, is she moving so slowly?> Ranma
asked herself.
Presently Kasumi finished her kata, bowed to the dojo, and turned
to leave. Only to find Ranma-chan standing in the door way.
"Ranma-kun!" she exclaimed, "what are you doing home so early?"
"Akane sent me on the express route home," Ranma responded dryly.
"Oh my!" she said "Ranma-kun are you all right?"
"Yeah, yeah," she said waving her hand dismisively, "I'll be fine.
What was it that you were doing there a few minutes ago?"
"You saw that?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah, I did," she answered, "I recognized some of what you were
doing, but I didn't recognize the style. And why were you doing so slow?"
"That was a short tai-chi form," Kasumi answered, "it's supposed
to be performed slowly."
"Tai-chi?" Ranma asked, "isn't that an exercise that old people do
in parks?"
"While it may be less...active than Kempo, Tai-chi Chuan is still
an effective style of martial art," Kasumi answered with a slightly
defensive tone in her voice.
"Yeah, right," Ranma smirked.
"Would you like a demonstration Ranma?" Kasumi smiled coldly. <Uh
oh,> Ranma thought.
"All right," she said slowly and bowed as she entered the dojo.
"All right Ranma," said Kasumi after they had bowed to one
another, "take a stance and put out your hands." Ranma stood feet
shoulder width apart, her right heel a couple of inches ahead of her left
toe. Kasumi took a similar stance facing her and put her hands up to
Ranma's. "All you have to do," continued Kasumi, "is push me off balance,
while not moving your feet. Simple ne?"
"Hai."
"Hajime." Their conflict lasted all of ten seconds. Ranma's
hands lashed out only to meet nothing but air as Kasumi deftly twisted her
body out of the way and redirected Ranma's hands. Suddenly, as Ranma
completed one of his strikes with his right hand Kasumi latched on to
Ranma hand with her left while the other reached around to grasp the back
of Ranma's neck. With a slight tug to her left Kasumi sent Ranma
stumbling.
"How'd you do that?" Ranma asked puzzled by her defeat.
"Your momentum was coming toward me with that strike," Kasumi
answered, "I simply redirected it and added a little bit of my own."
"Let's try that again," Ranma challenged. Kasumi merely shrugged.
They tried it again and again and again. Each time Ranma was the one who
lost his balance. After her tenth encounter with the floor Ranma admitted
defeat.
"OK," she admitted, "Tai-Chi is a martial art. But I didn't see
you using any of those techniques you were performing in that kata."
"That's because I didn't," Kasumi said, "it's like the Anything
Goes style. The forms help train your body and help to focus your mind on
the philosophies of the art." Ranma pondered that for a moment, then
smiled as she understood.
"Would you teach me Kasumi-san?"
"You want me to teach you?" Kasumi asked, mildly surprised.
"Yeah," she said, "I mean, the Anything Goes school teaches that
anythin' goes, right? So if Tai-chi works, I might as well learn it
right?"
"All right Ranma-kun," Kasumi sighed, "on one condition."
"What is it?" Ranma asked.
"Don't tell _anyone_ that I know martial arts, _especially_ my
family."
"Uh, yeah, sure," Ranma answered. "So you're gonna train me?"
"Hai, Ranma-kun," she answered, "but right now I've got to change,
bathe, and get dinner started." With a bow Kasumi left the dojo to her
tasks. Ranma-chan also left the dojo, smiling to herself. <Who would
have thought,> she thought, <Kasumi, a martial artist.> Ranma was so lost
in her thoughts that she ran into Akane on her way to the kitchen for some
hot water.
"Ranma no baka!" Akane exclaimed, "watch where you're going!"
"Why don't you kawaikunee tomboy!"
"Who are you calling a tomboy you sex-changing hentai"
***
Kasumi sighed as she eased herself into the bath tub. She'd had a
good workout today, and it wasn't often that she had someone to practice
Push-Hands with. <Even though Ranma had no idea what he was doing,> she
thought with a sigh. He was strong and fast, but he had no patience.
As the Ranma and Akane's fight made itself heard in the bathroom
Kasumi sighed again. <Some self control would help a little too,> she
thought, <Maybe, just maybe, I can train some of these things into him.>
Kasumi relaxed in the tub with a smile. It was going to be an interesting
experience.
Kasumi's Little Secret
Part 2: Day 1
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
Version 2.1
Insert standard fanfic disclaimer here
The sun was in the process of rising when Ranma's alarm went off.
Ranma's eyes cracked open as he peered out the window. Instinctively he
reached out to pound the alarm into silence as he realized that the sun
had not yet risen. <Why's my alarm goin' off at this time anyway?> he
asked himself as his fist began it's decent. <It's not like I have t'get
up for nothin', right?> As Ranma's hand touched the clock he remembered
why he had set his alarm to go off early...
<Begin Flashback
"So when are ya goin' to start trainin' me Kasumi?" Ranma asked.
"How about tomorrow Ranma-kun?" Kasumi replied.
"But I got school tomorrow..."
"Oh my," Kasumi said. "Well since you have school and I am far
too busy once every one gets home...how about tomorrow morning?"
"I've got trainin' with Pop in the mornin'," Ranma sighed glumly.
"How about before your training with your father," Kasumi
suggested.
"Ain't that kinda early?" he protested.
"Did you want to learn or not?"
"All right," he grumbled, "what time?"
"How about six?"
End Flashback>
"The things I put up with for martial arts trainin'," Ranma
grumbled as he made his way into the bathroom.
***
Akane's eyes slowly cracked open as she heard a loud crashing from
the bathroom. She was about to get up to investigate when she hear a
familiar female voice swearing loudly. Akane glanced at the alarm clock
in her room. It read 5:45.
"Ranma no baka," she groaned as she flopped onto her back, and
tried to get back to sleep.
***
"Explain to me again why I'm standin' here Kasumi?" Ranma, now in
his male form, asked.
"Because it's part of your training Ranma-kun," Kasumi said.
Ranma was wearing his usual balck pants and red silk shirt; while Kasumi
was wearing her white karate-gi. The two of them were standing on the
fence surrounding the Tendo residence, balancing on one leg. Ranma was
constantly fidgiting, shifting from one stance to another. Kasumi simply
stood there, her foot tucked neatly behind her knee and her hands pressed
together as if praying.
"But I don't need any balance training," Ranma protested.
"I'm not training your balance, Ranma," Kasumi said.
"Then what are you doing?" he asked.
"Patience Ranma," Kasumi smiled, "think of it as an exercise for
your mind. When you figure out what I'm training I won't need to train it
anymore."
"But..."
"Please stop asking questions Ranma-kun," Kasumi interrupted,
"just watch the sunrise." Kasumi smiled as she remembered when someone
had said those exact same words to her.
The first rays of the sun peeked above the horizon, pushing back
the darkness of the rapidly fading night. Kasumi stood, enchanted by the
wonderful sight. The light of the sun turned the sky from midnight blue
to a warm pink and it seemed to glow with life. Slowly the pink faded
into a bright blue as the birds cried out their welcome to the new day,
their songs telling of the freedom of flight in that wonderous blue
canvas. The sun itself was an ascending disk of pure light. Kasumi could
only watch it for a short time before she had to turn away. Kasumi
blinked back the tears in her eyes, hoping that Ranma would just think
that it was the sun.
"All right Ranma," Kasumi said, "you can get down now. Let's go
into the dojo."
***
Ranma spent the next hour learning the first few techniques of the
most basic Tai-chi form that Kasumi knew. <Basic she calls it!> Ranma
thought afterwards, <hah! Most Kempo katas I know are shorter and simpler
than that one! And that's the _easiest_! What am I getting myself
into?!> Most of the time was spent watching Kasumi perform the kata and
asking questions about the techniques. Some of them had seemed purely
ornamental but Kasumi had demonstrated how each technique could be used in
both attack and/or defense. After Ranma had watched the entire kata,
Kasumi started teaching teaching him the beginnings of the form. They
stopped only when they heard Genma calling for Ranma. Ranma's eyes had
widened in surprise as he said, "Oh boy! I completely lost track of time!
Sorry, Kasumi, I gotta go!" Kasumi had smiled as he raced out the door.
<Having a student is more stressful than I thought,> she sighed, <but if
Master Huang could teach me, than I can certainly teach Ranma. After all,
he's no worse than I was when I started.>
<Wait,> Kasumi thought, <if Ranma's father is already up...>
"Oh my," she said aloud, "I'm late! I've got to change, get
washed up, and make breakfast!" With that she shot out of the dojo and
into the house.
Kasumi's Little Secret
Part 3: Goin' Slow
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
Version 1.0
Insert standard fic disclaimer here
Ranma groaned as he crawled out of bed. An entire two weeks of
watching the sunrise and he still hadn't gotten the hang of waking up that
early. <Just my luck that Kasumi's a mornin' person,> he thought with a
moan as he dragged himself to the bathroom to wash before his morning
training session.
***
Akane groaned and rolled over onto her stomach as she heard Ranma
clattering in the bathroom again. <That baka's been waking me up for the
last two weeks,> she thought as she tried to muffle the sounds by covering
her head with her pillow. It didn't work. <What the hell is he doing up
this early in the morning anyway,> she thought as another round of
swearing rose from the bathroom.
***
"Leg strength," Ranma said as he and Kasumi stood on the fence
watching the sun rise.
"What was that Ranma?" Kasumi asked without taking her eyes off of
the rapidly brightening horizon.
"You're trainin' is buildin' up my leg strength," he said. Kasumi
turned to look at him, her eyes glittering with amusement.
"Do you really think you need to build your leg strength Ranma?"
she asked.
"Well, no," he admitted.
"Neither do I," she said turning back to watch the sunrise. This
had become a dayly ritual for the two of them as they stood up on the
fence. Ranma would come up with a reason why they were standing on the
fence watching the sunrise and Kasumi would tell him that he was wrong.
Ranma's answers ranged from the simple to the bizzare. Today was one of
his more mundane answers; once he suggested that she was trying to improve
his posture, Kasumi almost fell off the fence laughing that morning.
Often Ranma would get so caught up in his pondering of the problem that he
would stop fidgiting and stand still for the entire exercise. He was so
caught up in his contemplations that he never noticed Kasumi glancing at
him and smiling.
"So what _are_ you trainin' by standin' up here?" Ranma asked.
"Patence Ranma," she said with a smile, "when you figure it out
you won't have to train it anymore." Ranma simply sighed and returned to
watching the sunrise.
***
"Alright Ranma," Kasumi said as the two of them entered the dojo
after watching the sunrise, "let's see what you remember of the form."
"You want me to tell you what I'm supposed to do?" he asked.
"No," Kasumi responed, "I want you to follow me as I do it."
"Alright," he said. <Shouldn't be too hard,> he thought, <the way
I've been practicing, following her should be a breeze.>
"Ready?" she asked looking at Ranma.
"Yup," he replied.
"Then let's begin," she said. Kasumi watched Ranma out of the
corner of her eye as they moved through the form. This particular form
came naturally to her, it was the first one that Sifu Huang had taught her
and when she practiced it she'd remember his rough voice and his gentle
motions. Kasumi could do this one in her sleep, perfectly; so she had
some attention to spare to observe Ranma's technique. It
was...unimpressive. <Horrible would be a better word for it,> she
thought, <if I was that bad, I don't know how Sifu put up with me!>
Ranma's entire body was tense and his motions were jerky. It was as if he
was trying hard to restrain himself. For someone who knew the kata
intimately it was painful to watch.
"Matte," Kasumi said after a another moment. Immediately Ranma
stopped and turned to look at her.
"What is it Kasumi?" he asked confused.
"Ranma-kun have you been practicing outside our training
sessions?" she asked.
"Of course I've been practicin'," he said, "I'm not going to slack
off trainin'!"
"That's what I was afraid of," Kasumi sighed. "All right," she
said after a moment, "show me how you've been practicing." Ranma took a
step back and began the form. Ten minutes later he was done. Kasumi just
looked at him in disbelief. The kata was almost unrecognizable. Yes, he
had performed each of the techniques she had taught him almost perfectly.
But each technique was separate and distinct, there was little fluidity as
he moved from one technique to the next. <And by the kami he did that
fast,> she thought, <I don't know what that was but it _certainly_ was not
Tai-chi!>
"Ranma," she said, "that was very good. Now, do it about three
times slower."
"Huh?"
"You heard me," she said, "you did it too fast."
"Aren't I supposed to do it fast?" he asked.
"No Ranma, this isn't Kempo. This is Tai-chi. I'm not looking
for speed and strength. I'm looking for fluidity and grace."
"Huh?"
"Ranma, what happens when you punch a rock?"
"It breaks," he said, confusion evident on his face, "but what-"
"Now what happens when you punch water?" Kasumi interrupted.
"Not much, I get a little wet but that's it," he said, still
confused, "but what-"
"Tai-chi is a soft martial art," she said, "that means it's like
water, it flows smoothly."
"What does that mean?" Ranma asked, still rather confused. <How
can I explain it to him?> Kasumi thought frantically, <wait, Sifu never
explained it to me, he just told me...>
"Ranma I want you to think about this: 'What hurt do you cause by
punching the water? How much damage can you do by kicking the wind?'"
"The answer is none but-" he trailed off as Kasumi interrupted
him.
"Ranma do you remember what it was like doing Push-hands that
first day?"
"Yeah, it was like..." he trailed off as his eyes widened.
"Attacking thin air," he said with wonder.
"Exactly," Kasumi said with a smile, "now do the form again,
slowly." Ranma began again, but it was a repition of when they were
practicing the kata together. His movements were jerky and his body was
tense.
"Ranma," Kasumi said. Ranma's head snapped to look at her.
"Nani?" he said nervously.
"Relax," she said gently, "you're too tense. Take a breath a
relax a little." Obediently Ranma inhaled, filling his lungs with air,
then he exhaled slowly.
"Hajime," Kasumi said softly. And Ranma began. His movements
were hesitant and jerky at first but as he continued Kasumi saw her
student relax and the techniques came with more fluidity. His body began
flowing with the form, moving with grace and precision. When he had
finished Ranma looked at Kasumi.
"Wow," was all he said. Kasumi simply smiled at him before he
rushed off to his training session with his father. <He's no master,>
Kasumi thought, <but he is learning. I wonder how Sifu would have taught
him?> With that thought Kasumi smiled. <Probably the same way he taught
me,> she thought as she glanced at her watch. <It looks like breakfast'll
be late again,> she thought as she dashed into the house, <I hope no one's
in the bathroom yet. It would be tough to explain what I'm doing in a gi
without revealing that I _didn't_ give up martial arts like everyone
thought.> Kasumi breathed a sigh of relief as she closed the door of the
empty bathroom. <It's a good thing I put a set of my normal clothes in
here before Ranma's lessons, otherwise I'd really be in trouble.>
Glossary:
Hajime: Begin
Sifu: Teacher. Used for instructors of Chinese martial arts (e.g. Kung
Fu, Tai-chi) rather than sensei which is used for Japanese martial arts
(e.g. Karate, Jujitsu, Aikido)
Author's Note: For those of you who are wondering why I'm reposting this
fic, again, it's because I made some minor changes in the first two
chapters (no more than four extra lines each). Those minor changes will
definitely play a major part in the next few chapters (watching Ranma
trying to learn Tai-chi is only entertaining for so long then it gets
pointless.)
Does anyone have a better title for Pt 3? It really sucks.
C & C welcome
Thanx for listening to me rant and rave.
AJ