--
-Richard
sterman@sprynet.com
Ranma 1/2: Nodoka's Mistake
A fanfic story by
Katrina Lee Halbred
Edited by Richard Lawson
-----------------------------------------------
Legal Jargon:
Ranma 1/2 and all characters from Ranma 1/2 are copyright by Rumiko
Takahashi, Viz Video, Viz Comics, Pony Canyon, Shogakugan Video, Kitty
Video, and others that I've no clue to.
This is released as PD and is not to be sold.
================================================
Author's Note:
In my opinion,
I don't believe Nodoka would act this way. The only reason I am doing
this is because with all the stories I've seen with Nodoka acting like a
bitch, it usually ends lamely, or in my opinion just doesn't do the
story justice.
At any rate, normally, doing stuff like this is beyond me, however,
there is sufficient reason to do this, I suppose.
My thanks go (again) to Nicholas Leifker for his C&C on this story as
well as his suggestions on getting more emotion in the descriptions.
Thanks also go to the FFML for the input I received.
I am assuming that Genma has been running from Nodoka for several
years and that Ranma has known about the 'promise' for a few
years.
<..> = Someone's thoughts.
[..] Usually used to describe the entering or exiting
song
*..* used for emphasis on words and sarcasm
Change list: I changed the discussion between Nabiki and Ukyo at the end
after further reading and decided that it was indeed to straight forward
for Ukyo.
Please welcome Mr. Richard Lawson on board.
-----------------------------------------------------
"Walking in the footsteps
Of society's lies
I don't like what I see no more
Sometimes I wish I was blind
Sometimes I wait forever
To stand out in the rain
So no one sees me cryin'
Trying to wash away the pain"
-Bon Jovi (lyrics from their song "Keep the Faith")
[Entering song: Keep the Faith by Bon Jovi]
Chapter 1: Tell Me a Little Lie...
"You WHAT!"
The household blinked, and looked upstairs at Nodoka's scream.
Genma-panda started sweating profusely from his seat at the shogi
table. Ranma suddenly came running out of Nodoka's room and down
the stairs, his eyes wide with terror. Nodoka came out of the door a
second later chasing him with her katana blade. Nodoka's eyes were
burning with rage and betrayal.
Reactions were varied. Genma fainted. Nabiki, who had been sitting at
the table, put her head in her hands and begin shaking her head in
disgust. Akane came running from the dojo, her eyes wide and her
expression concerned. "Oh, my!" Kasumi exclaimed.
Ranma finally stopped in the living room. He turned around to look at
his mother. His face was fierce and determined; his gaze on her was
cool and steady. "Mother, please, listen!"
Nabiki noticed a slight, pleading look in Ranma's eyes. <Ranma, I
think she's beyond listening to reason. I'd give real money to
know exactly how you told her about your problem.> Nabiki
thought.
"No, I will
_NOT_! How could you carry on this...deception? You
have lied to me! My own son!" Nodoka, her chest heaving, swung her
sword at Ranma's neck. Ranma dropped to the floor and rolled to the
side. In the blink of an eye, he was back up and in a defensive
stance.
Nabiki looked at Nodoka's face, searching for something that might
explain what was going on. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw
pain in Nodoka's eyes behind the mask of fury. Somehow, Nabiki
didn't think this was specifically about Ranma's curse and being
manly.
"Um, Mrs. Saotome," Soun was put into the uncharacteristic role of
trying to calm someone else down. "If you kill your son, how is he
going to marry Akane and carry on the Anything-Goes School?"
Akane glared at her father, her eyes narrowed in anger as if to say
"Is that all you can think about?" She didn't say anything, though.
She just let her anger build.
<
*SWISH*>
Ranma dodged again as the sword was swung downwards as if to cut him
in half. Ranma flipped over the top of his mother, landing behind
her. She quickly turned and resumed her attack.
Nabiki watched the emotions in Ranma's eyes change for the third
time as they narrowed in anger. Her eyes widened as she thought <My
god! He's going to fight her!>
Tears streamed down the sides of Ranma's face. It looked like he
didn't care. "Damn it, Mother, STOP!" The sword swung downwards
once again at his head. Ranma knelt down and slammed the tops of
his fists to either side of the blade. His face was drawn into a
tight mask of fury, a large frown creasing his face. Nodoka looked
startled as her blade was stopped and she noticed that Ranma's eyes
were flashing with ki.
"I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!" Ranma screamed as he discharged the ki into the
sword blade. The blade glowed briefly before it exploded into fine
dust, leaving Nodoka holding onto a bladeless hilt.
"I am so tired of trying to be the perfect son. I have lived the last
few years of my life in pain and fear trying to figure a way out
where I could be the man you wanted me to be with this stupid curse."
Nabiki could tell that Ranma was losing control of his emotions. He was
crying freely, his fear and pain showing. "If this is how you feel
about me, then I DON'T CARE!"
Ranma grabbed a glass of water that had been sitting on the table next
to Nabiki and splashed himself. Nodoka's eyes widened in surprise and
shock as she watched her son change before her eyes. His body
shrunk in size as his hair turned a fiery red. Breasts grew
from his chest as the contours of his body became feminine.
"Ranma Saotome is dead, Nodoka." A collective gasp arose at this form
of address. "That's what you want, isn't it? My name is Ranko and I
have
_no_ family." She glared at everyone except for Akane and Kasumi,
her eyes piercing the people in the room with a dark and cold stare.
Nabiki trembled under her gaze, noticing that she couldn't read anything
behind the anger she saw.
"Goodbye, Nodoka. I hope living without your son brings happiness to
you and your precious honor." The woman who had been Ranma ran out the
back door and hurdled the pond and wall in one leap.
Akane was the first to recover...and she didn't look pleased. Akane's
blue battle aura flared to life and her face seemed to be frozen in a
mask of fury. She slowly began advancing on Nodoka.
"You heartless bitch." Akane spoke in a voice that was deadlv calm.
"That was your son. Are you aware of what you just did to him?" Akane
was getting angrier by the second as she also began to realize what this
meant. "You may have just KILLED MY FIANCE! I THOUGHT YOU CARED ABOUT
HIM!" Akane seemed to swell, her anger a palpable force permeating the
atmosphere. "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?!"
Nabiki realized that she had never seen her sister this angry before.
She grabbed one of Akane's arms and Soun tried to grab the other one.
His face was covered with shock and fear. He looked like he was about
to lose emotional control and start bawling at any minute.
"LET ME GO!" Akane was screaming at the top of her lungs, now. "IT'S
ABOUT TIME SOMEONE KNOCKED SOME SENSE INTO HER-Ohhhhh..." Akane
collapsed, asleep. Nabiki and Soun both looked behind them to see
Kasumi, standing there and smiling.
"Dr. Tofu's books are quite interesting. Especially the ones about
pressure points." She walked over to the still stunned Nodoka and
removed the sword hilt from her hand. Nodoka was staring straight
ahead, obviously still in shock. Kasumi led her by the hand to the
table and lowered her into her seat. She laid the hilt on the
table in front of Nodoka.
"Dinner will be ready in about an hour." Nabiki and Soun watched Kasumi
walk into the kitchen. Nabiki wondered how Kasumi could stay so calm as
everything around her threatened to fall apart.
Outside, it began to pour.
Nabiki helped her father carry Akane upstairs and put her to bed. As
they left the bedroom, Nabiki looked back at Akane's form and frowned
briefly before hurrying out.
Soun went back downstairs.
Nabiki opened the door to her bedroom, walked inside, and closed the
door softly behind her.
She picked up her cell phone and quickly dialed some numbers. She
waited for someone to pick up on the other end. <I hope this is one of
her less busy days.>
"Ucchan's Okonomiyaki," said a familiar voice on the other end.
"Ukyo? I think we've got a problem."
"Nabiki? What is it?"
"Ranko might be heading your direction so I'd suggest being ready."
"Ranko? You mean Ranma?"
"Look, it's a long story. Ranma and Nodoka had a falling out. He must
have told her about his curse, and that led to a huge fight. Nodoka...
went a little crazy, and Ranma responded in kind. He poured water over
his head and told Nodoka that Ranma Saotome was dead and that his
name was Ranko. She... 'Ranko' said she had no family."
"Oh, my god...Do you think he meant it?" Ukyo's voice sounded shaky
with worry.
"Yes." She was sure of that. Nabiki remembered the look in Ranma's
eyes when he said it. Pained, angry, and cold. "Keep your eyes out or
we may lose Ranma forever."
"Is there anything you can do from your end?"
"I'll try, but right now, Akane was just stunned by Kasumi - please
don't laugh, Ukyo, I know its funny, but just not now. Akane seemed
like she was about to try and kill Nodoka. I've never seen her
that angry before. This isn't good."
Ukyo snorted. "Tell me something I
_don't_ know."
"Would you rather I had waited before calling you?" The question was
said in a very serious tone.
"No. I'll see what I can do. Will you be able to keep Akane under
control?" Nabiki could hear the worry in Ukyo's voice. Nabiki knew
that it was genuine - Ukyo and Akane had become good friends.
"I hope so. As it is, when she wakes up she will be really pissed. You
just focus on Ranma now. You might be the only one who'll be able to
get through to him at this point."
"OK. Bye Nabiki. And...thanks."
"You're welcome. Bye."
Nabiki hung up and just sat there, motionless. She was glad her door
was closed. Tears began streaking down her face. She couldn't help
it. Sometimes being able to read what people were thinking was a
curse. The pain she saw in Ranma's eyes was...agonizing.
Nabiki covered her face with her hands and tried to console herself.
Things would work out. Everyone would forgive each other and love each
other and they'd all smile and go on a picnic together.
She remembered the last time she'd thought like that. It hadn't worked;
Mother had never gotten better. Nabiki shuddered as fear washed over
her, fear that this situation was just as hopeless.
***
The redheaded woman - Ranko, as she called herself now - ran through the
rain. She didn't know where she was going and she didn't care. She
just wanted to get away. She sobbed as she ran, unable to contain the
pain she felt and not much caring about holding it in anyway.
<I have nothing.> Thoughts flickered through her mind. <Nothing! My
own Mother's honor is more important than me. She doesn't even care
about how I feel. All she cares about is her damn honor! Well, her
honor just lost her a son.> Ranko cried harder. <As if she cared
anyways. She was going to... to kill me.>
She stopped - where, she didn't know, or care. No one was around.
She collapsed against the wall and allowed the grief to claim her,
her body being racked by sob after sob. She probably looked and
acted like a baby. She could not have cared less. She knew only
one thing: she hurt more than she had ever hurt before.
***
Ukyo sighed as she watched for Ranma. Or Ranko. Or whatever her
fiancee was calling himself. She sighed; this was going to be a long
day. She wasn't sure how or why she felt that way, she just knew that
she did.
It had been fairly late before the last customer had finally left her
restaurant, allowing her to close. Instead of closing up, she
had left the building herself, locking it up behind her.
Exasperated, tired of waiting, she had decided to go find 'Ranko'. With
everything that she knew about Ranma, she knew that there was good
reason to be worried about her. Especially considering just how
stubborn she was.
As she locked her restaurant up, she got a strange feeling. She
frowned, unsure and a little frightened of where the impulse was coming
from. Still, anything that led her to Ranko had to be good. She
followed her instincts, and soon found herself in downtown Nerima.
Not too far off she heard the sounds of a teenage girl crying. She knew
who it had to be.
"Ranchan?" She called, hoping Ranko didn't bolt.
"Go away, Ucchan." A voice sobbed.
Ukyo walked over to where the voice was coming from. She looked down at
her fiancee and gasped at what she saw. Ranko's face was a mess, as
were her clothes. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy, and her nose was
red and running. Her clothes, usually nice Chinese-style clothes, were
now torn-style clothes. She had the overall appearance of
someone who had been living on the street for weeks instead of
hours.
"Oh, my God, Ranchan. You've got to come with me." She reached down to
grab her arm.
Ranko slapped Ukyo's hand away. "No, Ucchan. Please, just leave me
alone."
Ukyo tsked, trying to look irritated. "I can't do that, Ran- Ranko. I
need to get you inside before you catch a cold." She ignored the fact
that she was cold and wet from the rain as she tried to get Ranko to
listen to her.
As if on cue, Ranko sneezed. Some sort of bizarre maternal instinct had
Ukyo concerned about possible pneumonia. She fought to keep rational
control of herself as confusion turned to worry and almost panic at what
to do.
"I don't care, Ucchan," Ranko sobbed. "Why should I? All the talk
about honor and honesty must've been a lie. I tried to be honest with
my mother and this is what she does!" Ranko stood up, as if presenting
the sorry state she was in as proof.
"Ranko, please, come with me." Ukyo hated the sound of the name she was
using. Ukyo started to reach a hand out to Ranko when she heard a voice
behind her. A voice she definitely didn't need to hear.
"Prepare to die, Ranma!" Ryoga came running towards Ukyo and Ranko,
holding his umbrella to ward off the rain.
"Back off, Mister!" Ukyo put herself between Ranko and Ryoga, glaring
at him furiously. This was
*not* the time or place for Ryoga's petty
squabbles.
"Get out of the way, Ukyo. My quarrel is with him, not you."
Ukyo drew a breath. "For your information, this is Ranko. Not Ranma."
Her attempt to explain was cut off by Ryoga. "Lies! Quit trying to
hide him. Come out and fight, coward!"
Ukyo suddenly felt herself forcefully moved out of the way. A glowing
Ranko advanced on Ryoga. Ranko's face was twisted into a mask of pain
and anger. She snarled. "RYOGA! I am not in the mood to play. I lost
everything today and I am beyond caring at this point!" Ranko was
glowing even more brightly.
Ryoga gulped as realization came over him - the realization that this
was someone suffering from a heavy loss. He looked as if he wished that
he hadn't found Ranma this day.
Ranko's battle aura was flaring so brightly it hurt Ukyo to look at her.
Ranko began to hold her hands out in front of her, a ball of energy
forming in the air between her palms.
<
*KLONG*>
Ranko collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Her battle aura faded with
her consciousness.
Ukyo re-shouldered her battle spatula with a grimace. She bent over
and picked up Ranko, draping her over her shoulder. <At least she's
lighter than me.>
She turned to Ryoga. "I'd suggest getting out of here. You're lucky
I'm feeling generous today." She glared at him, almost as angry as
Ranma had been but still in control. "You've never listened to Ranma
when he tried to explain things. You ignore the signs that he considers
you to be a friend." Her voice became cruel and sarcastic. "It's nice
to see you
_return_ that affection just when he needs it the most." She
shook her head. "By all rights, I should've let Ranko blast you."
"Um..." Ryoga's face turned red in shame and embarrassment. He licked
his lips and spoke hesitantly. "Why do you keep calling him 'Ranko'?"
"If you'd only let me finish explaining earlier... Look, Ranko has
declared that Ranma is dead. She's just 'Ranko' now. No family name."
Ryoga's jaw hit the floor. Ukyo saw that he got the point. No last
name, by choice? That was one of the ultimate dishonors. It was
like being thrown out of her family heritage.
"B-But why?" He managed to stutter out.
"Haven't you ever wondered why Ranma always went by Ranko Tendo whenever
his mother was around? It's because she doesn't know about his curse.
Well, obviously she knows now. And from what I understand, she tried to
kill Ranma. So Ranko killed Ranma to satisfy his mother."
She turned around and started walking back to her shop without another
word. She had had enough; her patience for giving explanations had worn
out. She had bigger concerns slung over her shoulder right now.
***
Ryoga watched the diminishing form of Ukyo fade into the haze of the
rain. His mouth was hung open; shock ruled his face and mind.
"His mother...tried to kill him? Ranma... I just wanted to beat you
up for all the times you've tormented me... I never wanted this to
happen..."
Ryoga suddenly felt as if this might partially be his fault. He
remembered the many times he had wished hell on Ranma. It seemed his
wish had come true. And it wasn't what he wanted.
<Be careful what you wish for.>
Ryoga sank slowly to his knees as he realized what it meant. In the
process, his umbrella fell to the ground, leaving a wet pig sitting next
to some clothes and a pack.
***
Nabiki sat at the table with the rest of the family. Genma-panda was
lying on the porch, still out cold. Kasumi was in the kitchen,
preparing some snacks and smiling as usual. Soun had a hard look on his
face. Nabiki and Akane had nearly identical expressions of anger,
although they both kept cool. While this was usual for Nabiki, it was
quite an accomplishment for Akane. Nabiki turned to glare at Nodoka.
"Well,
_Auntie Saotome_, you've really done it this time. I've only one
question for you: Will that be Bon-bori, Spatula, or Mallet?"
Nodoka started, as if snapping out of a trance. It was obvious that she
was still in shock. "W-what do you mean, Nabiki?"
"Well, I don't think you realize what you just did." Nabiki watched
Nodoka's expression, carefully. <Heartless wench,> she thought. She
looked at Akane and winced as she saw her eyes, burning with anger.
Violence was just below the surface, waiting to explode. Nabiki quickly
turned back to look at Nodoka. "You may have just killed Ranma, you
know. His fiancees are
_not_ going to be pleased. What the hell were
you thinking, anyway?"
"Now, now, Nabiki. Mrs. Saotome is still our guest so we must treat her
as such. Please do not dishonor the family." Soun didn't look too
happy either.
Nabiki pulled her head back in shock; Father was being unusually calm,
trying to take control of a volatile situation instead of sitting and
bawling into Kasumi's shoulder like he usually did. Nabiki hadn't seen
him like this since the death of her mother, and didn't know what to
make of it.
Akane didn't notice. Her control began to crack, and some of her
seething fury found voice. "Forget honor! Look at what honor just did!
Ranma may not exist anymore!" Her voice caught, and she seemed to be
struggling to keep from throwing herself bodily at Nodoka.
Nabiki could almost read Akane's thoughts. <That stupid idiot. Why
couldn't he have let me tell him how I felt before doing something like
this?> Akane's face fell a little, and Nabiki could guess which
direction her thoughts had turned. <How I feel? I...don't even know.
I think you are very important to me. I...ARRGGHH...You aren't
_here_. I don't even know if you feel the same way...>
Nabiki shook her head slightly, feeling almost helpless. <Dammit, sis.
Why can't you just admit you love him?>
She tried to focus on other topics, topics that worried her deeply.
"Are you aware, Auntie Saotomie, that your life may now be in danger?"
"I... was just mad at him for lying to me. I lost a daughter because of
his lying to me. I... didn't think about his feelings on the matter. I
wonder where his father went? Maybe he could tell me what is
_really_
going on."
Nabiki blinked. "What? Don't you know?"
Nodoka frowned slightly. "Know? Know what?"
"Umm... he didn't tell you about Uncle Saotome's curse?"
"No, All Ranma was able to do was tell me that he was cursed and he
showed me by changing into a man. At that, I lost it." Nodoka looked a
bit sheepish. Then she frowned again. "Genma is cursed, too? Who does
he change into?" She looked at each of the women around the table, as
if trying to find her husband amongst them.
Genma-panda, who'd evidently regained consciousness somewhere along the
way, pulled a pack from somewhere and started to sneak out of the house.
Fortunately, Kasumi was just bringing some tea in. Nabiki growled and
grabbed the teapot. She stood and threw it at Genma-panda. "No, no
more lies! I have had it with this!" She pointed at the now-wet,
now-human form of Genma. "There's your husband! He's the reason why
Ranma lived as 'Ranko' whenever you came around."
<
*WHUMP*>
Genma passed out as Nodoka's look suddenly became hard.
"Nabiki, I want to know everything..." Nodoka began. She began to fish
some money out of her kimono, knowing well how Nabiki worked, but was
stopped by Nabiki's hand.
"This one is on me, Auntie." Nabiki ignored Akane's shocked expression
and continued. "Have you ever heard of a place called Jusenkyo?"
-[End Chapter 1]-