Just in case nobody had seen the prologue...
In My Life
----------
by Florencio B. de la Merced, Jr. (fmerced@pworld.net.ph)
A Fanfic inspired by the anime Ranma 1/2 created and copyrighted by Rumiko
Takahashi
---------
Prologue
Another day was just another excuse for life to drag its boring self into
self-destruction. Well, at least that was what Ranma thought about his
life, as he still lay on his bed even after his mother had already thrown
him of the futon that morning. Ranma looked around his room, his desk was
filled with books and notes that he still had to read and memorize, the cork
board hanging on the door still had reminders that he again forgot to do,
and his cabinet was a mess. Ranma was depressed, and for quite some time
now, but he didn't let it get the better of him, for he knew better than to
lament over such things. And also because he didn't know what was making
him so unhappy.
Finally, Ranma convinced himself to step out of the slump and again face the
world. The consolation, he thought, was he can always sleep if he didn't
like what the day held for him. Ranma scoured through the pile of neatly
folded clothes on his cabinet, and he chose a blue outfit and a pair of
black loose pants. He stepped out of his room and promptly proceeded to the
bath, which was a couple of doors away. Ranma reached out for the door but
quickly stopped himself upon hearing the noise coming from within. "Ucchan!
Are you still in there?!" Ranma slammed his palm several times on the door,
hoping the ruckus he's making will be heard over the faint radio music
that's coming from inside. "Feh!" Ranma leaned back on the wall and
patiently waited for his turn, as he was convinced that nothing he could do
would get over his sister's Billy Joel tapes. A minute later Ukyou stepped
out of the bath.
Ranma only exchanged pouts with Ukyou before entering the bath.
-----
"Gee...Ranma. You look blue." Ukyou couldn’t help notice the dismal
enthusiasm her brother was displaying at the breakfast table. "You still
angry about the bath?" Ranma finally looked up from the table.
"Nah...But you should know that other people need the bath, Ucchan." Ukyou
giggled and promptly nodded in agreement. Genma and Nodoka were not paying
attention though, as their parents were discussing something else.
"Well, I'm going now." Genma picked up the suitcase that lay ready on the
table near the door. "I hope I can finalize everything about the dojo
today." Genma waved goodbye to his children while giving a blissful kiss to
his beautiful wife.
"Why is father insistent on building a dojo? I thought he had all but given
up on that." Ukyou asked the rest of the Saotome family while she cleaned up
the breakfast table.
"I guess he feels obligated to build one." Ranma helped clear the table and
handed over the dirty dishes to Ukyou. "Remember, he's supposed to carry on
the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts." Ranma chuckled as he recalled the
family joke about his father and his martial arts pursuits.
"Don't be rude about your father like that, Ranma." Nodoka was still sitting
down and had a small piece of paper that she was reading. "You know that it
still breaks your father's heart whenever he recalls how he was passed over
the responsibility of carrying the name of the Anything Goes Martial Arts."
Nodoka scribbled a few more lines on the short list she was browsing.
"That's just the point. Why would he care for Anything Goes Martial Arts,
when what we've learned from Cologne is much better?" Ukyou finished
rinsing the dishes and quickly handed them back to Ranma for him to place
them on the top cabinet.
"You know, if you only grew a few more inches, then you wouldn't need me
whenever you have to wash the dishes." Ranma's playful jest wasn't ignored.
"Just stock them, Ranma." Ukyou walked up to one corner where a weighing
scale and height-measuring device was located. "Ha! I gained 1/2 of an
inch...looks like I'm taller, Ranma."
Ranma walked up to his sister and tried to verify Ukyou's claim. "Half-an
inch doesn't make a difference. But, those five pounds do." Ranma left the
kitchen laughing out loud at Ukyou.
"Ah! I've gained five pounds! Gawk...now I'm fat! What am I going to do?!"
Ukyou stormed out of the kitchen in a frenzied hurry.
-----
Ranma was busily reading his books when Ukyou knocked at his door. He
turned around only to find an angry sister glaring at him. "Falsely
calibrating my weighing scale is not funny, Ranma!" Ranma grinned back at
Ukyou before returning his attention to the work on his desk. "If you mess
with my things again, I swear I'll kill you! I may be your adopted sister,
but I'm part of the family, Ok!" The door forcefully slammed shut. Ranma's
concentration was again disrupted as he couldn't help smirk from the little
practical joke, but he knew he had so many things to do so he looked out the
window for a minute in order to calm down, before going back to his studies.
Ukyou came back into the room. "By the way. Where are the rest of our
things? I haven't unpacked much." Ranma stared at the boxes scattered
around the room before answering his sister. "Thanks." Ukyou's exit was as
swift as her entrance.
-----
Soun Tendo cast a strong and powerful gaze at the twenty or more of his
pupils that were breathing hard and were visibly weary and tired from the
morning training. "Dismiss." Like a pack of furry critters, the students
of the Tendo Dojo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts scattered out and ran
towards the nearest exit. Only three of the students stayed behind.
"Oww...my arm hurts." Nabiki massaged her left limb and checked if she had
pulled a muscle or if it was cramps that she was feeling. Kasumi handed
some towels to her sisters so they can wipe the perspiration of the training
away. "Thanks."
"Now, wasn't that a nice work-out." Her two sisters didn't receive Kasumi's
enthusiasm that warmly.
"Gee...daddy. Aren't we too old for this kind of thing?" Akane didn't
hesitate to speak out her mind, especially in matters that she didn't like.
"And, why are we doing this anyway?"
"Why, to carry on the name of the Tendo school...."
"Yeah...we heard that one before, daddy." Nabiki walked past her father and
flung the towel over Soun's head.
"Let's not question father's intentions. I'm sure there is a purpose for
all our training. Isn't that right, father?" Soun was dumbfounded when he
finally got the towel off his head. "Is there?"
"Um...Of course there is Kasumi." Kasumi was satisfied and quickly left
with Nabiki. "Er...you believe me, Akane? Right?" Akane only crossed her
arms in disagreement. "But, you're..."
"Oh, don't worry about us daddy. We'll take care and carry on the dojo."
Soun relaxed a bit. "Of course, until someone stronger finally shows up and
beats me." Akane's parting words made Soun wince.
------
Chapter 1
"So then, we are agreed?" Genma was delighted at the prospect of finally
having his own dojo and the huge premises that he was eyeing to buy was
simply like what he had dreamed of for years. Though the property used to
be a religious temple, it didn't matter to Genma. For years, he had
traveled across Japan and China, looking for someplace that would be
suitable for his dream to finally take form. And it was here in Nerima that
he had stumbled on this bargain of a property. "You'll be receiving
payments from me within two days." Genma profusely shook the hand of the
man that made the deal possible to him.
"So tell me Mr. Saotome, what are you going to do to this place? It seems a
bit out of place since it's quite far from the main district. I don't think
you can build a shopping mall here because this area seems quite secluded."
Genma's eyes lit up.
"I'm going to set up my very own dojo here, Mr. Kuno. This place is just
perfect. It has lots of room, decent surroundings, and it's quite secluded,
as you say." Genma breathed deeply, taking in the cool gentle air.
"Perfect, just perfect."
"A martial arts dojo? Why I never considered you to be a martial artist,
Mr. Saotome? Well, at least this place won't go to waste after all." Genma
lead his seller towards the gates. "Well, I have to get back to my school
now."
"School? You own a school, Mr. Kuno?" Genma shook Kuno's hand in parting.
"Oh, no. I'm just a principal, of Furinkan High. It's a great school, and
we produce the best minds and athletes in Nerima."
"Really? Then I must ask a favor from you." Kuno smiled and nodded in
agreement to Genma's request. "I have two seventeen year olds that..."
------
"Ranma!" Ukyou couldn't have chosen a better time to scream at her brother.
Ranma almost choked when he was rudely surprised by his sister's scream
while eating a sandwich he made in the kitchen.
"Ugh! What now?" Ranma wasn't as appreciative as Ukyou was about the news.
"So when will he arrive?" Ranma finished off the little snack he made.
"Well, Ryoga said he finally finished Cologne's training, and he's coming
home soon." Ranma cleaned up the table, placed the dishes on the sink, and
sat back to continue listening to her sister.
"Home? Since when did he consider our house as home?" Ranma was enjoying
the reaction on his sister's face knowing full well how Ukyou couldn't stand
teases about Ryoga. "Ok! Stop that already!" Ukyou stopped punching
Ranma's arm and continued to tell about the phone conversation she had a
while ago.
"Anyway...Ryoga's coming tomorrow, and he said he can't wait to see me
again." Ukyou stood up, showing off a bratty smirk intended to make Ranma a
bit jealous. "At least someone cares for me!" Ukyou quickly headed out the
door. Ranma frowned, as if something made him feel more miserable. Ukyou
darted her head back into the kitchen. "Oh, by the way. Shampoo's coming
with him, so you better get ready for her." Ranma sank deeper in his chair
upon hearing the news.
"Well, at least I'm going to get a decent training partner." Ranma stood up
and headed to his room to sleep.
"I heard that!" Ukyou chased Ranma, all the way to her brother's room.
-----
Nodoka was still getting used to the new surroundings. Although the move
to Nerima would constitute the tenth or more times that they have changed
addresses. She always had a hard time breaking in into a new neighborhood.
"Morning. How much are those?" Nodoka was browsing through the vegetable
section of the market when a woman caught her attention. "Kimiko?" Nodoka
quickly finished her transaction with the vendor before approaching the
woman standing near the fruit section. She carefully glanced to the woman's
way and tried to verify if indeed the stranger was indeed her old best
friend who she hasn't seen in years. "It is you!"
The apples Kimiko Tendo were carrying juggled up and out of her hands for a
second as she was startled a bit the short outburst from a woman standing
almost next to her. "Huh?" She turned to the strange woman out of curiosity
and was modestly greeted with a friendly hug. "Nodoka? Is that you?" Her
best friend since childhood cheerfully smiled and there was nothing Kimiko
could do but react in similar fashion. "I can't believe it! It is you!"
"Um, excuse me for interrupting this reunion, but that'll be 1000 yen." The
two women blinked before they turned around to look at the slightly annoyed
vendor. "Um, that's for the apples and tangerines, miss."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Kimiko handed over a bill to the relief of the vendor.
-----
Akane sat under her favorite tree that was conveniently located in a
secluded portion of the quadrangle. She always liked being left alone, away
from the ruckus and commotion that often accompanied the chatting of friends
and students of Furinkan High. Most especially she hated hearing rumors
about her. Things that she knew only too well were not true. But, somehow
they did feel true, even for a brief moment she felt too alone.
"Don't let those rumors get to you Akane. I'm here for you." Sayuri smiled
hoping to cheer her best friend.
"Am I a tomboy, Sayuri?" Akane felt awkward asking her best friend to
verify the same rumors she hated. "I know I don't go out on dates often as
the other girls do, and things like that. But it doesn't mean I hate boys."
Akane pulled up her knees up to her chin, resting her crossed arms in
between. "Do I?"
"Maybe because you excel too much in martial arts, that's why the boys don’t
see you as who you really are." Those words came to Akane quite differently
that what Sayuri had intended them to mean. "I wouldn't worry about it,
though. Someone will be just right for you, Akane. You'll see." Sayuri
looked impatiently at her watch. "Damn, he's late again."
Akane frowned a bit, seeing Hiroshi's figure slowly walking across the
schoolyard and heading towards them. "Well, he's coming. Your knight in
shinning amour, I mean." Akane found it hard to giggle as she usually does
whenever she teases her best friend.
"I better get going." Sayuri patted Akane on the shoulder before standing up
to meet Hiroshi halfway across the quadrangle.
Akane looked strangely at the two, as Sayuri was eating Hiroshi up alive for
being late for their little date. Somehow she had mixed feelings fighting
within her. She didn't know if it was the food she ate at the cafeteria or
if it was her being too depressed that morning. Akane closed her eyes for a
second, breathed deeply, then, convinced that it must have been the fish she
had for lunch, she reopened her eyes and brought out from her backpack the
reading assignment she still had to finish.
-----
Kimiko Tendo allowed her best friend to start the story telling, most on
what Nodoka had been up to the past ten years. They had a lot of catching
up to do, and over lunch was a perfect place and time for it.
"I've been to China and most of Honshu and Hokkaido, really Kimiko,
traveling around has been what's constant in our lives." The waiter served
Nodoka's meal just about when she was finishing telling her life story.
"I envy you, Nodoka. Soun hasn't been that well traveled like Genma.
Although we do take a family vacation every year." The two conversed
throughout the meal. "By the way, how is Genma?"
"Oh, that's right. I've got great news. We might be staying permanently in
Nerima." Kimiko stopped short in eating the tempura she had on her
chopstick.
"Um, I suppose you've found a nice place in Nerima?" Kimiko was visibly
worried what answer Nodoka had to her simple yet inquisitive question.
Nodoka didn't notice her friend's worried look.
"Well, I personally haven't seen it yet. The apartment we've been living
the past few days is decent enough. But, Genma had shown me some beautiful
pictures of the place...." Kimiko quietly smiled at everything Nodoka was
excitedly imparting to her. Underneath was a growing sense of urgency and
some foresight into troubles ahead.
"Kimiko, you haven't touched your shrimp." Nodoka giggled a bit, catching
her long time friend quite off guard and eliciting several blinks, a
startle, and a sudden flush reddening of Kimiko Tendo's face. But, the slow
turning away of Kimiko's face, immediately shifting her happy tone into an
instantaneous concerned for her lunch date. "Is there something wrong? Is
the shrimp bad?" Kimiko stared back at Nodoka and burst into several small
laughs.
"It's not the shrimps that's bad, Nodoka." Nodoka snapped out of her
cheerful trance and only stared inquisitively at her friend, intent in
listening for answers to the some problem she has not yet fully realized.
They began to talk a bit more seriously, and it continued throughout the
rest of lunch.
-----
"Hi pop." Ranma hollered to his father as he was climbing down the stairs
just as Genma had entered through the front door. "How was your business
trip?" Ranma opened the refrigerator door and dug into some snacks he
surprisingly discovered and thought were available. "Hmm." Ranma chose a
piece of blueberry pie that was wrapped in translucent cellophane and tucked
away behind everything else that was stocked in the middle tray. He
inspected the pie and was soon convinced that it was an edible feast, a
proper reward for his morning long study marathon. But all of a sudden the
door to the refrigerator shut closed in front of him and the hand that had
done it belonged to his sister, Ukyou. "Huh?"
"That's it! I told you not to mess with my things!"
Ranma awkwardly took a few steps back as Ukyou's face was breathing down his
neck in an obvious irritated reaction. "I suppose this is yours?" No sooner
had Ranma pointed to the piece of pie, that Ukyou swiftly snatched it out of
his hands. "Hey!" Ukyou had not a care in the world as she returned her
blueberry pie back to the confines of the ref. "Well, excuse me." Like
children fighting in a sandbox, Ranma took hold of the door of the
refrigerator and pushed his sister a bit aside. "What about this." Ranma
pointed to a cheesecake.
"That's mine." Ranma looked again. Pointed to some oranges. "Those are
also mine." Ranma's belly growled in pure agitation, and his teeth were
grinding in frustration. He pointed to a bottle of prune juice, and Ukyou
just giggled at the same time swayed her head in disapproval.
"Darn, is there anything in this ref that's not yours!" Genma parted the
two apart and quickly inserted himself in the middle. He quickly rose back
up with a piece of mango fruit in one hand, and a can of soda in the other.
Ranma only blinked and Ukyou further intensifying her tittering. "Looks
like father got them...unless, of course, you like something frozen." Ranma
sighed in surrender before grabbing a small apple and a pitcher of water.
Ukyou didn't stop her brother this time.
Ranma brought out two glasses from the dish cabinet and poured water on one,
while Ukyou poured some prune juice on the other. They both joined their
father, who was already seated on the table and was reading the morning
newspaper. No one talked because everyone looked too busy to say anything.
Genma was looking up the stock market, Ukyou was browsing through the
fashion section, and Ranma, although he has the sports section up and in
front of him, his thoughts were somewhere else.
"Hello everyone." Nodoka laid down on the kitchen tabletop the loads of
groceries she had bought earlier in the day. Ukyou helped stock away the
items into the refrigerator, often announcing to everyone that something
from the grocery bag was hers. Ranma cleared the table and helped his
mother in placing several items in the pantry. When Ukyou announced that
the six-pack of soda was hers, Ranma declared his objection.
"Gee...Ok, you don't have to yell at me." Ukyou finished up one bag, and
proceeded to stock up the rest of the foodstuff.
-----
"And now, for my final trick," Gosunkugi waved a white handkerchief in air,
"I shall turn this cloth into...doves." He crumpled the handkerchief in his
two hands and in the process of opening it up, two white doves rose from
within his hands. Applause and laughter all came from the crowd that had
gathered in the classroom. "Thank you." Gosunkugi bowed to his captive
audience.
Finally the teacher clapped his hands. "Magnificent performance, Mr.
Hikaru. But what has all of that got to do with my question?" The laughter
quickly muffled the applause and soon everyone was looking at the young man
standing in front of class. "Well, what has all of that got to do with
Magnetism?" Gosunkugi, though faced with the worst of humiliation, was
unfazed.
"You see, sensei. These love birds," Gosunkugi heldsthe two fowls up and
towards the rest of the class, "are naturally attracted to each other."
Gosunkugi finally releases the two, and the lovebirds naturally flew all
over the room one after the other, instantly creating temporary chaos. "So
much like the poles of a magnet." The teacher was visibly impressed. "The
lovebirds are attracted to each other because they are very similar to each
other. Just like magnets." Gosunkugi turned towards his teacher and
gracefully bowed, expecting the adoration and admiration of his sensei.
Unfortunately, a whack from a meter stick was what he got. "Oww!"
"Similar poles don't attract each other, Mr. Hikaru! The opposites
attract!" The fervor of the laughter intensified anew.
Gosunkugi Hikaru only felt his head as he slowly went back to his seat.
"Are you sure?" More projectiles flew in his direction.
One of the lovebirds landed on Akane's desk. The bird looked straight into
Akane's eyes and she did the same to the lovely fowl. "Hello there. Want
to be my friend?" Akane held out her hand and the dove, as if it was
trained, perched on it instinctively. Akane was delighted to see the
fondness of the dove towards her. "Maybe I can keep you?"
Oblivious to everyone, who were having fun nailing the poor amateur
magician, the other love bird landed on an open window sill, and before
anyone saw it there, the bird flew off.
-----
Ranma and Ukyou sat opposite to their parents in the small living room of
their apartment. "I've enrolled the two of you at Mr. Kuno's Furinkan High
School, and in the afternoon, Ranma, you can help me clean up and prepare
the dojo." Genma was extremely happy in announcing his good news to the
rest of the family.
"Gee...Another school. Well, I guess since we are finally staying put here
in Nerima, Furinkan High can't be that bad an idea." Ukyou looked at Ranma
who seems to feel comfortable with the idea too.
"What will happen to this apartment?" Ranma asked a few more questions
before he finally got everything straightened out with his father. His
duties now where outlined for him and he was accommodating to what his
father wanted him to do in the next few days. He liked this setup more than
the direction less life he had been living the past few years.
Nodoka was unusually silent throughout the family talk. Although she was
receptive to the ideas, she felt she had something to tell her husband, but
was being held back by her conscience. She thought that if she doesn't say
anything, fate might still intervene, and make the predicament smooth out
for everyone, including for her husband, whose life long dream was finally
taking shape. Nodoka couldn't take that away from Genma, no one should.
-----
"Wow, this place is huge!" Ranma ran into the rather large courtyard that
was in the center of the old temple. He admired the vast space that was
opening up in his mind as practice grounds for his martial arts training.
"You've really done it this time, pop." Ranma ran towards the central hall
and made his way towards the smaller hallways that circled around the whole
premises.
Ukyou was admiring the beautiful tapestries and painting that literally
flooded the hallways of her new home. She loved the place instantly and she
was also finding it hard to believe that they were going to live in such
grand accommodations. "I can't believe were going to live here?"
Genma and Nodoka was just happy to see how much their children was
appreciating the soon to be Saotome School of Anything Goes School of
Martial Arts. The future seems so bright and prosperous for them.
Ukyou was the first to notice the white dove perching on top of the central
hall's roof. "Hey, Ranma look at that. Isn't that wonderful." Ukyou walked
up closer to the bird, hoping not to scare it away."
"I just bet you want to keep it, and make it your pet." His sister didn't
disappoint Ranma as Ukyou leapt up to the roof and landed just a grasp away
from the dove. Unfortunately the bird flew off just as Ukyou leapt forward
to grab hold of it. She was losing her balance so Ukyou jumped off the roof
and skillfully landed near where Ranma was standing. "Dumb bird." Ukyou
turned around and was awestruck, as the dove she leapt up the roof for was
handsomely perched on her brother's shoulder.
"Looks like this one's mine, Ucchan." Ranma extended his arm, and as if on
cue, the dove changed places and settled itself on Ranma's extended hand.
"I hope you like okonomiyaki my little friend." Ranma left Ukyou standing
in the middle of the courtyard still in disbelief.
"Show off!" Ukyou followed Ranma inside the dojo.
-----
NOTE:
No Curses, No Fiancees
C&C's are greatly appreciated
SPAM reroute to the SPAM ML
Special thanks to...
Krista Perry
Jeff Shelton
Mark Premo
Dave Eddy
Terrence Marks
Rumiko Takahashi, of course
And where are the rest?
Signing out