Draft version for those who wanted an early taste.
version 1.02
A Colliding SYmphonies production for ENtertainment purposes only.
Cast Not Such Dreary Countenance
By TJ hamilton.
C&C welcome, but an 'I read it' message will be welcomed warmly as well.
Part 3
The three of them stood dumbfounded, Ranma still standing on the edge of the tub
with one leg, Akane haunched against the sliding door frome, holding an entirely
too small towel to herself, and Nabiki in the middle, the top-half of her body
suit down to her waist. Ranma kept passing looks between the two stunned girls.
(Oh, man. . .)
Nabiki's voice cut the silence. "Who the hell are you!" she yelled, her voice
snapping the two of them out of their daze. Akane hid behind the door and Ranma
sunk back into the water. "What the hell do you think you're doing!?"
"Taking a bath!" he yelled back, looking away from her. She hadn't bothered to
make an effort to cover herself. "I acn explain! Just go out and let me come
back out!"
"Explain!? You pervert! You want us to get out of our own bathroom!? You get
out!" Akane had snaked an arm aorund the door and grabbed her sister's arm.
"C'mon, Nabiki, He could be dangerous, lets get out of here quick," she
whispered harshly.
"NO! I want him out! NOW!" Nabiki screeched tugging hard enough to pull Akane
back to he entrance.
Soun burst through the half open door, seized Akane(who still had Nabiki) and
dragged them both from the bathroom. "Come quickly now!"
"Daddy, there's a burgler in the bathroom!" Nabiki yelled while being dragged
down the hall. After atrip around the corner, he released them both. Akane
shrank down and covered herself with the towel, embarrased and depressed at
being manhandled so. Nabiki re-cinched the soulders to her body suit. "Aren't
you going to kill him!?" She yelled in Soun's face.
"He's not a burgler, he is one of the guests," he corrected, his tone calm.
"S'cuse me," a weak male voice said from down the hall. Ranma was wearing is
tunics(thouhg a bit wet) and holding out a robe while looking the other way.
Soun took it and offered it to Akane.
"So who the hell is he?"
He scratched the back of his head. "I'm Ranma Saotome. . .Sorry. . "
====
Genma and Ranma sat with thier backs to the open door to the garden. Soun sat at
the head, beside Genma. Nabiki, now wearing pajamas, and Akane, back in her
short skirt and a male's shirt, both sat across from the Saotomes.
The wind howled gently, causing the oversixed weeds in the gard to rustle
noisily. Akane and Nabiki scoweled at the opposing males of the table.
"I can explain," Soun began from the side. "This is my best friend," he said,
presenting a hand to his side.
"Genma Saotome," he bowed. "And this is my son."
"Ranma." More dagger-type expressions were yeilded when he spoke.
After a sedate moment, Nabiki slanked over the table, propping her elbow on the
top. "So you're supposed to be that short girl from earlier."
"Uh-huh."
"Yeah, your full of it." Ranma only looked down in embarrasment.
Genma grabbed his son. "It's so hard to start, maybe we should go with a little
demostration," Genma said, manhandling Ranma.
"What the urgh. . ! Leggo! WAHHHH!" Ranma was thrown outside in the direction of
the pond, but upon seeing the muck, managed to grab a piece of the rock to
handspring off of. "I ain't going in that sludge pool!"
SPLOOSH
CLONG
Genma had followed Ranma out into the garden and drenched him with a bucket by
throwing the pail at him. Ranm fell, struck by the bucket. Nabiki and Akane
peered careful at the exchange when Ranma sat up rather quickly. No, wait, Ranma
was standing, but he shrunk. Nabiki's jaw dropped and Akane could barely breath.
"Such a pathetic diversion, Ranma. You break your father's heart with such
slop," he grumbled, clenching his fist at his side. He failed to notice Ranma's
advance when suddenly the small form hurled the massive man out of immediate
view to the left.
"You're one to talk, old fool!" a distinct crash noise was heard from the left,
followed by the spraying of water. Nabiki and Akane almost face-faulted when the
black and white Panda came back with a slothful walk on its hind legs.
Soun could only shake his head at the mis-fortune that lay before him. Nabiki,
however decided otherwise. "You sure keep interesting company daddy. Why Aren't
they in a cricus or something?"
"Nabiki!" Akane yelled.
"Well how often do you see a small girl manhandling a Panda 8 times her size?"
"They weren't always like this, daughters," he interrupted as Ranma and Genam
continued to fight. "They had a terrible accident in China. Something went
terribly wrong during their training. They probably need a few minutes to calm
themselves," he said, standing and walking towards the kitchen.
(I can't believe this. Since when did this become a half-way house for the side
show?) Nabiki thought, unbuttoning the tob of her PJ's.
(God it makes me sick when she does this,) Akane thought. (How weird, though.)
She glanced back at the two . .things fighting in her garden.
=======
"It began a few months ago when Ranma and I left for China," Genma began,
sipping his tea. "Lacking funds, we were forced to swim the roughs of the Sea of
Japan for many days before we reached mainland."
(Yeah, you swam almost 2000 kilometers. Right,) Nabiki pondered skeptically,
eyeing the man suspiciously.
"It was deep in the mountains when we finally came across our destination. . ."
====
Jyusenkyou guide taps his flip book of signs against his chin(s) as he regards
his newest guests. "Ah welcome, sirs. You speak Cantonese, no?"
"We come and train," the larger main said in very bad basic chinese. Jyu-guide
immediately recognised the accent and switched to Japanese.
"You have come to Curse Training ground, Okyaku-san. Jyuzengkyo."
"Are you ready Ranma?"
"Is this it? Just some balance practise? Lame."
"Oh you strange ones, no? This place cursed by vere very powerful magic. More
than one-hundred spring rest here and each have legacy of tragedy!" Jyu-guide
faltered as he saw his guests rocket to the bamboo supports. "No sir! Wait. You
mus no go there!"
The two collided in mid-air before they both landing on opposing poles.
Jyu-guide gulped so hard he thought he swallowed his tounge. "Very Bad you fall
in spring!"
Sploosh
=====
"Unfortunately, as it turned out, the curse was indeed powerful. Each of the
springs had something drown and the bambo poles marked each of their watery
graves. The curse was that whosoever fell into the spring would be dragged down
by its magic, drown, and be reborn with the last victim's body."
"Thats a real load, buddy. Magic and curses and hexes. Nonsense. Clever
trickery. She's your sister, right? You rigged it up so you'd trade places?"
"Then what about the Panda, Nabiki?" Akane shot at her sister.
"They're animal trainers! They always come from China! And why aren't they still
a girl and a bear?"
Ranma held out the pail, now full of water, to Nabiki. "I'm sorry for being a
bad guest n`all. But you really need to believe me. Soak me." Ranma set the
bucket down on the table and knelt again. "Go ahead."
"Why?"
"We change when we get hit by alot of cold water," Ranma said, loosening the top
of his shirt by two notches. Nabiki, still a bit stiff in movement, stood up,
grabbed the bucket, walked around the table. After a breath, she truned the
bucket on Ranma.
There was no denying Ranma's sudden shrikage downward and the now goodly bit of
cleavage shown from the open shirt. Nabiki dropped the bucket, holding her hands
to her face. "How did. ."
"Open your eyes, girl! I'm not a madman! The power and the magic is real, even
as you see it before you!" Soun concluded his dialogue with raising a kettle to
Ranma's head and pouring the steamy contents.
"See it before you!?" Ranma yelled, slapping away the kettle. "WHat the hell
would you know about it!? This is your fault," he began, turnig on his father, "
you goof. What's the idea dragging me to a freaky place like that, huh?" Genma
responded by grabbing Ranma, and slamming him into the damp spot where he sat a
moment ago.
"You whine like a girl, Ranma! You have a great fortune to be able to come away
from Jyuzengkyo alive!"
Ranma grabbed his father's legs and slammed him down into a boston crab. "I
didn't care about my life. My manhood is another story!"
"Ahhh! NO no ! Break! Break! Break!"
Soun slammed an empty hand on the table, startling both saotome's and tendo's.
"I won't have such a ruckus in my house. Now then, Ranma. Your problem is rather
small for how much you have been through." He leaned over to Ranma and draped an
arm around his shoulder. "My eldest, Nabiki is 19. My youngest, Akane, is 17.
Pick either one you'd like to be your fiancee`."
"Now wait a min. .." Ranma began but was over spoken by both girls.
"You've gottas be kidding me!"
"Marry!? Now?"
"Me and that couple of his own? Three's a crowd, thanx!"
"That screwball pervert?"
"HEY!" Ranma roared, stopping them all. "Who said I wanna marry any of ya
anyways? Who would want a run down house like this for dowry anyways? None of
you care about anything around here but yourselves!"
"How the hell would you know about it you peeping tom?"
Ranma groweled. "Look at the garden," he said calmly. "I see the way you talk to
your father and mine. What make ya think I wanna hang around selfish slackers
like you two?" The two girls only glared at him, when he suddenly turned his
back.
"Ranma, where are you going?" Genma demanded.
"Back to China. This Arranged marriage crap is gettin us no closer to a cure, so
why doncha come on?" Genma grumbled at his son's own disrespect. He was
embarrassing him in front of his old friend. Ranma suddenly whirled. "And its
not like you two didn't look away from me neither! I know it may be hard to look
anywhere but down on someone for you two but. . ."
"How dare you!?" Screamed Nabiki. "You think you've got something to prove
here?" she said storming up to him and moving to slap him, but her caught her
hand. Nabiki stared at Ranma hard enough to put a hole in him. he slung her hand
back harshly.
"I don't fight -girls-," he said tightly.
"Nabiki, sit down. Now," soun demanded. Nabiki glare at her father, but his
tightening grip on the table made her wary and she decided to sit down. "Ranma,
I apologise for my daughters behavior, however let us not be hasty. We are in
the heat of confusion from our misunderstanding from before. Please re- think.
I'm sorry the house is not to your taste," he said rather venemously.
"I didn't mean it like that Mister Tendo, it's just I don't want nuthin to do
with comittment now, ya know? I didn't mean to say that about your house."
Soun chuckled. "I know it is not in the best of shpae, but maybe a bit of living
can fill the void, eh? Please, Ranma."
"Daddy!? Why are you being so nice to this jerk?" Nabiki demanded while AKane
seemed to silently support her.
"Jerk, daughter? What has he said that is not true?" He asked quietly. "When are
you both not selfish and looking down on everyone? It is your own foolish pride
that makes you think you have a right to be mad."
"But he is invading our house! Can't you see that?"
"I -invited- him to -my- house, Nabiki. Remember?" Nabiki fumed as she returned
to her place at the table while Akane apperaed to be digesting it all.
Ranma was shocked at how calm Mr.tendo was keeping in the face of his angry
kids. (pop woulda decked me by now.)
"Beside's Ranma. I'm sure you and Genma are weary. Stay the night at least."
Ranma looked back at his father, whom nodded silently.
"Well, okay, Mr. Tendo. But I ain't marryin` either of ya!"
"And I ain't given you another peep show!" Nabiki yelled as she stood and
stormed off towards the stairs.
====
C&C welcome
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| TJ-"Let's do something." |
| GT-"I thought we were. . ." |
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