Ranma 1/2
Altered Destinies: A scary thought
What's happened so far: Kasumi Tendo and Ranma
Saotome... errr wait, this is getting too big to handle. Read the
previous chapters if you haven't already, because you'll be totally
lost otherwise. As is though, last chapter we had our first look at
Kasumi's new class, including one Makoto Kino, a.k.a. Sailor
Jupiter, who promptly made a bit of a fool of herself, while at the
same time getting it bad for the teacher, who is, unfortunately for
both parties, Kasumi Tendo, known for now as Kaneda Tendo.
Nabiki was also stretching her financial and informational
empire by doing a little picture developing for one of her new
classmates. Then there is Ryoga, who had a rather disturbing
encounter with Kasumi-kun. And finally Mako, Kasumi, and
Shampoo are going to be opening up a Restaurant together, but
Shampoo has not been informed of Mako's presence yet.
Now, for those getting lost, here's a little program to keep
track of things: Ranma is chasing after Kodachi, who in turn is
after Kasumi-kun. He's also friends with Kuno, who has his
sights set on Kasumi-chan and Akane, but unfortunately hates
the guts of Kasumi-kun. Kodachi is friends with Akane, who is
after Dr. Tofu, but hasn't gotten around to doing anything about
it yet.
Right about here is where we get the mysterious curse
victim C-chan who is Akane's pet and has some interest in both
Kasumi and Shampoo, and the pink wolf Ryouko, who is
actually Ukyo, who loves Ranma and hates Kasumi with a
passion. Then we have Shampoo who is married, yes married, to
Kasumi, with mixed feelings on the whole matter.
Oh, and of course there is poor old Nabiki who through
unfortunate circumstances has ended up with an annoying
attraction to her brother... er, sister, Kasumi-kun. Makoto has
also taken a severe liking of Kasumi-kun giving the poor girl...
well, boy at the moment, even more trouble. Well, I think that
basically covers it for now. On with the story.
%Chapter 15
It was a rare bright day for Nabiki. Well, for a while
there bright days had come by the truck load for her, but lately
they had been getting fewer, and fewer, making them a rare and
valuable commodity. For now though, things were looking up.
She'd managed to get a full night's sleep. A whole new set of
clients had arrived at the school. And, best yet, Kasumi was
moving out.
No more would Nabiki have to endure his presence. No
more would she need to worry about any untimely discoveries.
No, with Kasumi out of the house Nabiki could begin putting her
life back on track. Sure, she still had school to contend with, but
she was sure she could handle it. It was not that she didn't love
her sister, quite the contrary, that was the problem. Yes, it would
be a much better situation with Kasumi not sleeping just down
the hall from her.
The school day over, Nabiki set off to meet up with her
crew. They should have those pictures Yotogi had given me
developed by now, she thought with a pleasant sense of
anticipation. With any luck they contained something
interesting. With any real luck, they contained something
profitable. That would make this already good day even better.
She found them, as usual, by the pool, both girls
laughing hysterically. Definitely something good, she thought as
she saw the sheaf of pictures in their hands. She joined them, an
anticipatory smile on her lips.
"All right, what do you have that's so funny?" Nabiki
asked. With visible difficulty the girls managed to calm their
laughter down to muffled giggles.
"Boss, you're going to love this. Take a look." Yoko
responded, handing over a stack of photos. Nabiki took one look,
and smirked for a moment at the unexpected image, then, looking
at the next picture, her normal reserve broke and she burst into
loud laughter herself.
"Oh, this is great. Did you-" Nabiki said, and Hinichi
held up another stack of photos.
"Already made us copies boss."
"Good, good," Nabiki said with a nod, and barely
repressed a totally out of character giggle. She switched to the
next photo, and burst out once again with laughter. "How many
did she get?"
"Anybody that's anybody, even most of the newbies."
"Yes, I see," Nabiki acknowledged, flipping through the
photos and stopping on one of Ranma. They'd been living with
each other long enough that the image was really nothing new,
but she was sure he'd break into a cold sweat if he caught a look
at it. Not much was left to the imagination, despite the heavy
steam clouding the shot. "She's got an excellent angle too."
"Yeah, no kidding. The girl has real talent. I can't... Be
still my heart, he is so gorgeous." Hinichi said, stopping her
quick scanning to admire one of the copies she was holding.
"I'm going to need a shower myself, a cold one that is." Yoko
looked over and `oo'ed in admiration herself at the picture.
Nabiki, curious at which boy could illicit that strong a
reaction, took a peek and immediately paled. There was no
steam blocking this shot, as was logical, considering the
subject's present condition, and everything was out in plain view.
Unheard to all but herself Nabiki moaned, "why me," and began
estimating the time to the extinction of everything pleasant in her
life.
After a second or two to recover from her initial shock,
Nabiki quickly snatched the copies from her friend's hand.
"Hey," both girls exclaimed in disappointment.
"That's my sis... cousin!" Nabiki exclaimed,
involuntarily taking another peek at the photo, but quickly
averting her eyes.
"Oh come on Nabiki! It's not like-"
"I don't want to hear it! I'm going to make good and sure
these are never seen again!"
"Aw, but boss," the girls pleaded, but Nabiki turned her
back on them and quickly walked off, taking the copies, and
originals with her. After a moment they sighed in unison, then
Yoko looked to Hinichi and said, "she's no fun lately, you notice
that?" Hinichi nodded her agreement.
Nabiki hadn't made it too far before Yotogi caught up
with her, asking for her photos. Nabiki almost burst into a tirade
at the girl, but having had a few minutes to calm down, managed
to stifle that urge. Her friends were no doubt already wondering
about her unusual reaction. Blowing up at a well paying
customer would only cause them to wonder even more.
Fortunately they would likely chalk her present action up
to Kaneda being family or something, but if she escalated the
matter, they would start to wonder just why she was so concerned
about a mere cousin. Ranma was almost family, and Akane
definitely was. Yet she had never shown any reluctance to make
money off of photo's of them, some off them almost as
embarrassing as these. No, the best thing to do was to let the
matter die down. If anybody clued in... Nabiki shivered at the
thought. So, reluctantly she handed over one set of photos and
received her payment. Unfortunately, the image now locked
firmly in her mind made her painfully aware that the money
would not begin to cover the misery she was going to go through
because of this little transaction.
Nabiki headed off to her locker to drop off her books, then
she could dispose of the copies she still had properly. She had
just opened her locker and begun putting in her books inside
when the last person on Earth she wished to see called out.
"Nabiki, you're still here, good." Kaneda said as a he
walked over.
Nabiki winced, then remembering what she had in her
hand, quickly spun around to face Kaneda and hid the offending
photos behind her back. "Ahh, hello Ka...neda." Nabiki
stuttered out, her calm nowhere to be found.
"Are you all right?" Kaneda said in a worried tone,
taking in Nabiki's pale sweating face.
"Fine! Fine, just fine. Why do you ask?"
"Oh, you just... It's not important. I meant to ask you if
you could come over to the restaurant later."
Not today, not today, Nabiki thought in misery, the image
in her mind starting to overlap on the person in front of her. "I...
I can't make it. Sorry, I really can't."
"Oh," Kaneda said in a disappointed tone, "what are you
up to tonight then?" He asked, swallowing his disappointment,
and showing a genuine interest in Nabiki's plans.
You just had to ask, didn't you, Nabiki thought bitterly,
and began racking her mind for an excuse, while at the same time
staving off the thoughts trying to force themselves into her mind.
"Well, I... I have to..." Nabiki began, finally compelled to break
eye contact with Kaneda. To her immense dismay her eye caught
on a photo lying on the floor just behind Kaneda. Worse, even
though it was hard to make out, it was clearly from the collection
she was holding behind her back, and worst yet, it was _that_
one! She must have dropped it earlier without noticing. Nabiki
couldn't help but moan in misery at the discovery.
"Are you sure you're okay-" Kaneda began to ask,
looking behind himself to see what Nabiki was looking at.
"I'M FINE!" Nabiki blurted out, regaining Kaneda's
attention before he could see the photo. "I just have... a... a...
date."
"Date?"
Date, Nabiki asked herself, wondering where her mind
was. "Yeah, and I'm... kinda nervous, you know." Nabiki said,
breaking into a short burst of genuine nervous laughter, if not for
the reason she gave.
"Oh, well then... who's going out with you?" Kaneda
asked, again showing a genuine interest in Nabiki's plans.
Nabiki would have given anything for an indifferent sib right
then. Why couldn't he be more like Ranma, dense as a brick,
and totally uninterested about anyone else but himself.
What a tangled web we weave, Nabiki recited as she tried
to come up with an answer to the new question. Come on, think
Nabiki, _think_. By now she had broken out in a full fledged
cold sweat. The harder she tried to purge the image from her
mind, the more it solidified its presence.
Just then a boy with long brown hair held in pony tail
similar to Ranma's, only longer, and dressed in a standard school
uniform, walked up from an adjoining hall on his way to his
locker. Nabiki recognized him from the class, one of the
newbies. She was just about to dismiss his presence when he
spotted the photo on the floor and reached down to pick it up.
"TSUBASA!" Nabiki called out, rushing forward, past
Kaneda, and quickly relieving Tsubasa of the photo before he
could get a good look. "I was looking for that, thanks." Nabiki
whispered, placing the photo with the rest, and quickly hiding
them as best she could behind her back as Kaneda approached.
"Tsubasa? I didn't know you two knew each other that
well."
"Huh?" Both Nabiki and Tsubasa said in tandem.
"Well then, maybe you can both come to the restaurant
for your date. We'll need to try our new menu on someone, that
is if you want to. It's free."
"Free food, sure!" Tsubasa answered enthusiastically,
then blinked in realization. "Date? Me and Nabiki?" He asked
in confusion, looking over at Nabiki who could only smile
nervously.
"Yeah, you remember Tsubasa, our date." Nabiki said,
saying the last bit through clenched teeth.
"Oh yeah," Tsubasa said with a nod, but of course he
didn't have a clue. He was not one to look a gift date in the
mouth, however. If this good looking senior thought they had a
date, he was not about to argue with her.
"Good then, I'll see you two later then?" Kaneda asked,
looking at them expectantly. After a moment of hesitation Nabiki
reluctantly nodded. "Wonderful." Kaneda enthused, before
turning to leave. "I have to get going. See you at the restaurant.
Bye." With one last wave of his hand he was gone, around the
corner and out of sight.
Nabiki half-heartedly waved in return, then glared at
Tsubasa, who smiled back innocently. After taking a second to
calm herself, Nabiki returned to her locker, tossed the photos
inside, and grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and began
writing. Once finished she put the pen inside, closed her locker
and handed the paper to Tsubasa. "Here, that's the address. Be
there on time, or else." With that, Nabiki marched off, barely
holding on to enough of her composure to keep from crying in
frustration.
Tsubasa watched her leave, then read the paper, and
smiled in overwhelming joy. "I've been here barely 3 days and I
got a date! This is awesome!" For a minute or two he stood
there, savoring the idea, then a startled look crossed his face. "I
got to get ready!" He said, rushing off in the same direction
Kaneda had taken.
Nabiki paced back and forth, every now and then looking
at her watch and muttering to herself. "Where is he? How long
does it take him to get ready?"
It was not that she wanted to go with Tsubasa. It was
just that she was pretty sure she did not want to go without him,
or someone else, and at this late date there was no way she could
rope someone else in for escort duty. Even now, the thought of
being in the same room with Kasumi was doing things to her that
she did _not_ want to think about.
"Nabiki," a familiar voice said behind her, and she
turned, ready to give Tsubasa a piece of her mind for keeping her
waiting. Her words died in her throat as she took in the vision
standing in front of her.
Tsubasa was wearing dark sunglasses, even though the
day was cloudy. His hair was slicked back and tied tightly. A
short sleeved shirt was draped rather loosely over his slender
frame, and a sports coat of some sort was tossed casually over
one shoulder. He had one cigarette dangling from the corner of
his mouth, and another tucked behind his ear. But, the thing that
drew Nabiki's eyes, and made her cringe, was the elaborate, and
very badly drawn tattoos that coiled from his wrists, up his arms,
and under the sleeves of of his shirt. As soon as Tsubasa saw
Nabiki looking at him, he went into a pose, showing off his outfit
with every indication of pride.
"Do you like it?" He asked. "I had to rush, because I
didn't want to keep you waiting on our first date."
Stunned, Nabiki could only stare at him in disbelief,
completely missing the implication of the words `first date'.
Then her eyes narrowed, and she took a step forward. Grabbing
one of his arms, she vigorously rubbed at his tattoo with her
thumb, and was rewarded by seeing the garishly colored lines
blur and smear.
"A fake," she said, not without a little relief in her voice.
"I told you I had to rush." Tsubasa said, in a hurt tone of
voice. "I didn't have time to let the makeup set properly, and
now you've gone and spoiled it." He finished in an aggrieved
tone, looking at the spot on his arm where Nabiki had damaged
his rush job.
"Why?" Nabiki asked. "What ever possessed you to do
this..." She paused, her mind flashing back to an interview with
one Kitsune Maruda. There had been a lot of gobbly gook in her
information on Tsubasa. Nabiki had to distill down the essence
of it herself. The facts seemed to be that Tsubasa was
disassociated from reality, much like several of the other students
in her class, but Tsubasa's particular method of dealing with his
was disguises, something she had forgotten till this moment. She
should be grateful, the younger boy could have shown up in a pig
costume if he had decided it was appropriate. Which reminded
her.
"Why Yakusa? What ever possessed you to dress as a
Yakusa?"
"Kitsune said..." Tsubasa began, but was halted when
Nabiki held up a hand, the other hand she held to her head. This
is going to be a long day, she thought as she rubbed her forehead.
It had been amusing when she had learned Kitsune was
spreading stories about her connections to organized crime. It
did not seem nearly as funny now.
"Tsubasa," Nabiki said in a firm voice. "I have never
been, and never will be associated with the Yakusa. I'm just a
simple business woman. Got it?!"
Tsubasa looked a little disappointed, but then his
expression brightened and he lay a forefinger along side his nose
and winked at Nabiki. "Got it," he said.
Nabiki sighed once again, but let it drop. She didn't have
time for this. She wanted to make this quick. Into the restaurant,
ooh and ahh at Kasumi's new residence, have a quick bite, and
get out of there.
"Put on your coat," she snapped out. Walking past
Tsubasa, she turned around the corner and headed for the
restaurant. She did not look back to see if he was following, but
she could hear him stumbling along behind, trying to slip into his
jacket while keeping up with her rapid strides.
Reaching the restaurant she walked through the door, and
came to a stop in surprise. She had visited Kasumi's new home
the day before, along with the rest of the family, and while it had
been clean, it had been a half hearted type of clean, suitable for
viewing by prospective buyers, but nothing special. Now it fairly
gleamed, everywhere Nabiki looked the wood and fixtures were
bright and lustrous.
The reason was easily apparent. Directly across from
Nabiki, and facing away from her, Kaneda was on his hands and
knees scrubbing away at the floor, and right beside him, softly
singing to herself in contentment, was Shampoo.
For a second, Nabiki watched the play of muscles so
attractively displayed in front of her, and then swallowed
convulsively as another recently viewed image overlaid the one in
front of her. She wrenched her gaze away from her sister's
current form, and toward the other group of cleaners who were
busily working away, making the restaurant sparkle from their
efforts.
Akane was washing a table with such vigor Nabiki
wondered if it would survive the treatment, not that Akane was
mad or anything. It was just that Akane tended to do most things
at full bore. They were averaging about two cutting boards a
week for a while before Aunty got her to calm down while doing
the vegetable preparation. Near Akane, a rather disgruntled
Ranma was scrubbing walls. The reason for Ranma doing much
despised woman's work, his mother, was working along side her
pride and joy, and keeping an eye on him to make sure he was
not slacking off. Obviously he was still not completely out of
debt for sneaking his furball into the house, and then taking
advantage of the situation with C-chan to keep her. Even said
furball was helping out. As Nabiki watched, Ryouko picked a
brush out of a nearby bucket, and carried it over to Nodoka, who
gave her a pat on the head before resuming her work.
"Hey," Nabiki called out, "who do you have to know to
get some service around here?" All the activity in the restaurant
came to a halt, as every one turned to look at her. Kaneda
jumped to his feet, and looked at her in surprise.
"Nabiki, you're here already?" He turned and looked at
the clock, and grimaced. "Oh my, is that the time? I'm afraid I
lost track of everything." He walked over behind the kitchen
divider, while talking to Shampoo. "Shampoo, why don't you
show Nabiki and... Is Tsubasa here?" Kaneda asked, looking
behind Nabiki. Just then, an out of breath Tsubasa, who had
finally had to stop to get his too tight jacket on, showed up at the
door. "Oh, there he is. Shampoo would you show Nabiki and
Tsubasa to a table while I get the stove going."
Shampoo bounced over to them, causing Tsubasa to stare,
eyes wide in appreciation, and earning himself an elbow in the
ribs from Nabiki. "You come this way please. Shampoo show
you to very good table." Then she frowned and spoke to someone
behind Nabiki. "Shampoo sorry, no open yet, just family. You
come back later, yes?"
Looking behind herself, Nabiki saw Makoto Kino, the
new girl at school, and, unless her sources were wrong, and they
almost never were, Kasumi's and Shampoo's new roommate.
Obviously Kasumi had neglected to inform Shampoo of that fact.
Makoto quickly rectified that lapse.
"That's all right, I'm not a customer. I'm going to be
living here with Mr. Tendo."
Shampoo's friendly demeanor dropped away, replaced by
confusion. "Shampoo no understand. Mr. Tendo not live here.
He have home other side of town." She looked the tall girl in
front of her up and down. "You young, what you want with old
man? You no find young one?"
It was Makoto's turn to look nonplused, but her
expression was nothing compared to Kaneda's as he hurried
across the room. He had obviously not been expecting Makoto,
and was looking quite distressed at her arrival. Unless Nabiki
missed her guess, he had been waiting for just the right time to
break the news to Shampoo. Now fate had thrown that idea right
out the window.
"Shampoo, I'm sorry. I should have let you know earlier.
This is Makoto Kino from my class at school. She's going to be
staying here with us for a while. She's going to be sharing your
room." He looked over at Makoto, and said, "I thought you
weren't moving in till tomorrow?"
"I'm not, I just thought I'd come and check the place out,
and see if maybe you needed a little help getting it ready."
"Actually, we're almost finished. I had a lot more help
then I expected. I just have to make a dinner for Nabiki and her
date. Then, I'll be closing up for the night."
Nabiki, seeing a chance to end the evening early said,
"that's all right Kaneda. I won't keep you, and Tsubasa and I
have plans for the evening."
"We do?"
"Oh, what?"
Tsubasa and Kaneda said simultaneously. Nabiki
thought furiously, looking around the room for inspiration, she
spotted Akane's gym bag by the door, her skates leaning against
it.
"Skating, we're going skating."
"Really?" Akane said, from where she was putting away
some cleaning supplies. "I was going to the sport center to meet
Kodachi myself." Her face suddenly brightened. "Hey, why
don't we all go? We could make a party out of it, to celebrate
Kaneda's new home, and grand opening."
Ranma, who's ears had pricked up at the mention of
Kodachi, quickly said he was in. Kaneda would have demurred,
saying that there was still a little bit more to do, but Nodoka told
him to go, she would shut up for him. As soon as Kaneda
agreed, Makoto said, "sounds like fun, count me in."
Shampoo took a look at Makoto, and noted the look on
her face as she stared at Kaneda, and glowered. "Shampoo come
too," she grated out, her displeasure so obvious, even Kaneda
noticed, and looked at her with a worried frown.
While the others gathered their things, and got ready to
go, Shampoo stood by the door, an angry frown on her face.
When Kaneda had told her that they were going to be moving
into a place of their own, her stomach had flopped. It had been
so sudden, Kaneda had given every indication that he had no
interest in making their marriage work, now they were to set up
their own household.
It had come so suddenly, she had not been sure of just
how she felt. That she had feeling for Kaneda could not be
denied, but those were from before, before she had discovered the
truth. The thought of living alone with Kaneda had filled her
with anxiety. That anxiety had been muted only slightly by the
discovery that she would not be sharing Kaneda's bed, but would
have her own room. Under the anxiety, however, was a feeling of
excitement that finally, maybe, just maybe, Kaneda had decided
to accept his situation, and Shampoo would regain the husband
she had lost that morning so long ago.
Now, all her happiness had turned to ashes. She glared in
hatred at this girl who had placed herself between Shampoo and
her man. The gangly top heavy little tramp could not take her
eyes off of Kaneda, and Shampoo felt her anger grow at the
thought of sharing a room with this little...
"Shampoo?" Kaneda said.
Shampoo blinked in surprise. She had been so intent on
Makoto, she had completely missed seeing Kaneda approaching
her.
Seeing he had Shampoo's attention, Kaneda continued.
"Makoto does not know about us. I'd appreciate it if you would
not mention the fact that we're married. It could lead to too many
complications later, when I regain my proper form." He smiled
at her sincerely. In the face of that smile, Shampoo, much
against her natural inclination, found herself agreeing to keep
their marriage a secret.
Once Kaneda turned away however, Shampoo found her
anger returning, threefold. How dare he! Did he expect her to
stand idly by while he basked in the adoration of that, that...
"Oohhh," she exclaimed in exasperation. Much as she would
like to, she could not bring herself to believe Kaneda was doing
anything of the sort. It was clear to any observer that the too tall
school girl was infatuated with him, but it was equally clear that
Kaneda had not a clue as to the facts. How anyone could be so
observant and capable in so many ways, and be so clueless in
matters of the heart was beyond her.
Well, if that top heavy little trollop thought she was going
to get anywhere with Kaneda, she was sadly mistaken. Shampoo
would see to that. As she was making her vow, the rest of the
people in the restaurant, with the exception of Nodoka, were
approaching the door. Shampoo stepped aside to let them pass,
and then fell into step beside Kaneda as they made their way
toward wherever they were going. The other girl started to take
up a position on Kaneda's other side, but at Shampoo's glare, she
backed off, and moved forward to talk with Akane.
Makoto fought to keep from looking back at Kaneda, a
troubled look on her face. That purple haired girl had obviously
felt she was trespassing. Normally that would have been enough
to back off Makoto. Despite her slightly obsessive behavior, she
was no home wrecker. But she had to wonder, Mr. Tendo...
Kaneda, surely he wouldn't have agreed to let her come and live
with him and share a room with his girlfriend, not without
mentioning the relationship to her. No, Makoto decided, she
must just be infatuated with him and was trying to drive off the
competition. Well, in that case, he was fair game. So, let the
games begin.
As the group of young people walked into the Arena,
Nabiki spied salvation in the form of her two underlings, Yoko
and Hinichi. They were sitting at the rink side dining area,
spying out the talent on the rink. Currently their attention was on
a very tall brown haired boy who was surrounded by a flock of
younger girls.
Giving a sigh of relief she turned to Tsubasa and said,
"sorry, we're going to have to cut this short. I need to discuss
business with my partners." Nabiki schooled her face carefully
and got in a dig at Tsubasa at the same time. "If you hadn't
taken so long we could have had a longer time together. But as it
is, I'm afraid you'd be bored stiff. We're just going to be
discussing facts and figures. Why don't you go and enjoy
yourself with the others?"
Tsubasa looked disappointed, but then he looked at her
with a determined expression. "No, that's all right. I'll stay with
you. Nothing you do could be boring to me."
Nabiki blinked and started to sweat. Darn, can't this guy
take a hint, she thought to herself. She was over a barrel. If she
made a scene, Kaneda would almost certainly come over and try
and patch things up, and she did _not_ want that. So, she put the
best expression she could manage on her face and said, "all right,
but don't say I didn't warn you!"
Nabiki turned and made her way over to the two girls, not
without a little trepidation. They were not going to be happy to
have her interrupt their time off. She knew that unlike her, they
were in it for the fun as much as the money. Nabiki made it
worth their while in both regards to subordinate themselves to
her. If she started to bore them, they'd strike out on their own, no
matter how much money she offered. The last thing she needed
was to have her carefully built infrastructure at school start
coming apart along with all her other problems.
Well, there was one solution. Get them to work on
something they would enjoy. As she came up to their table, they
looked up at her and she said, "this is Tsubasa. Now, tell me
who the big guy is, and how can we make some money off of
him."
While Nabiki had been dealing with her problems, the
others had spread out. Akane had headed straight for the ice.
Ranma had gone looking for Kodachi, and Mako had headed for
the rental office to get a pair of skates. This was an opportunity
to shine in Kaneda's eyes. She was an excellent skater, and she
looked good on the ice. Meanwhile, Kaneda had seated the
sulking Shampoo and gone off to get some refreshments.
A short time later Kaneda returned to his table at rink
side with a tray full of drinks and sat across from Shampoo,
who's mood hadn't much improved. Kaneda passed her one of
the drinks, but she ignored it. "Come on Shampoo, must you be
like this?"
"Shampoo thought just suppose be us." Shampoo said,
miffed.
Kaneda frowned. Obviously Shampoo was still caught
up in having this so called marriage work out. He had to make
her understand, but without alienating her. He had enough
trouble facing Cologne. Facing off with Shampoo as well would
make his prospects of getting out of this minimal at best. Beyond
that, he really didn't like the thought of having her against him.
"Look, Shampoo, Makoto needs a place a stay, and she's really
interested in the restaurant business. It's not like we'll have no
time together." Kaneda frowned again at the choice of words. It
didn't exactly bring to mind the image he wanted to project.
Shampoo took no notice, and continued staring off at the
various people skating on the rink. Her expression particularly
darkened when Makoto passed into her vision. Kaneda was
about to speak up to distract her when Akane come off the ice
and walked over. "Why aren't you out skating Kaneda?"
"Well, I... haven't been skating in years."
"It's not that hard. Come on." Akane continued, pulling
Kaneda to his feet, and directing him to the skate rental booth.
"What about Shampoo?"
Akane looked back at the Amazon, then shook her head.
"If she wants to mope about, then let her." Akane said quietly,
so as not to be heard by the party in question. "She's not your
responsibility. Now, come on."
"I..." Kaneda began to protest once again, but after
taking another look back, gave into Akane's directions. "All
right then." After getting his skates on, Kaneda headed out onto
the ice with Akane's help, and despite that nearly fell on his face.
He managed to recover with a little help, then cautiously began a
slow circle of the rink to get his balance back. After several
minutes Kaneda finally had enough confidence to skate off on his
own. Before too long, he was actually beginning to enjoy himself
for once, the recent troubles out of mind for the moment.
Shampoo watched this from the side, watched as Kaneda
seemingly forgot her, more interested in Makoto's various feats
of skill that impressed nearly everyone there. Show off, Shampoo
thought in anger, but her bitterness gradually changed to
dejection. Finally she turned her eyes to the table top, unwilling
to watch the scene any longer. I should be out there, she thought.
She looked back up, and quickly remembered exactly why she
wasn't. Put her one on one with this blasted girl. Challenge her
to a race, or even a swim. Anything, but skating.
She'd never been skating in her whole life. Next to that
show off she'd look like a completely incompetent fool.
Shampoo eyed the girl as she rushed to Kaneda's rescue after
another near fall, and wished she could go out there and give her
a good beating. Yet, she was still sitting here, watching. Every
time a thought came near to pushing her to act, her mind shied
away, instead content with just thinking about it.
Back out on the rink Kaneda was feeling relaxed for once.
Sure, this didn't solve anything, but his troubles were out of his
mind for the moment. His reprieve didn't last long. One quick
glance reminded him of Shampoo present mood, and it drained
most of the recently built up energy right out of him.
Akane was also looking, taking note of the shifting
moods of her sister. She looked back over at Shampoo with a
glare. "Why can't she be miserable on her own time?" Akane
asked as she stopped next to Ranma, who had finally joined them
on the ice. Ranma looked at her quizzically, forcing Akane to
elaborate. "Shampoo, she's sitting there moping and dragging
Kasumi down with her."
Ranma shrugged, and turned his attention to Shampoo as
well. "Well, she is stuck in a marriage with a woman. Like you
would be happy."
Akane scowled, but then countered. "Doesn't stop her
from trying to force this marriage on Kasumi, does it?"
"No, I suppose not." Ranma consented. "Not much we
can do about it right now though."
Akane turned her glare on Ranma. "Gees Ranma, don't
you care at all about how Kasumi feels?!"
"Of course I do." Ranma countered. "But what do you
expect me to do about it? I don't have a magical cure up my
sleeve you know." Akane nodded in reluctant agreement.
"Look, all you need to do is get Kasumi's mind off of Shampoo,
so why don't you go distract Shampoo then? Get her doing
something so she doesn't have time to mope." Ranma suggested.
Akane turned back to look at the Amazon in consideration, then
nodded.
Shampoo was suddenly shocked out of her stupor when a
pair of skates dropped down on the table in front of her with a
loud clatter. She looked up to see Akane frowning at her. "What
you want?" Shampoo asked, looking back at the rink.
"Put those on." Akane ordered, much to Shampoo's
surprise. When Shampoo didn't instantly react, Akane grabbed
the skates back up, and the took the seat next to Shampoo.
"Look, if you want to feel sorry for yourself, fine, but you're
ruining Kasumi's mood at the same time and that's not fine.
Now, you can either put these on, and _try_ to relax, or I'll sit
here pestering you. So, which will it be?"
Shampoo scowled, infuriated at being ordered around.
Her fist balled up, but she let it relax after a second. Akane was
now family, and it would do her no good to attack her. Plus, she
had to admit, she was sitting around like a lump. She took a long
look at the skates, then back out at Kaneda. With a determined
look, she finally grabbed the skates off of her sister in law and
began putting them on. Akane nodded in satisfaction, and
waited till Shampoo was finished. "Have you ever skated
before?" Akane asked, and Shampoo shook her head in
response. "Okay then, I'll help."
Getting to her feet, Akane lead Shampoo out to the ice,
and had almost identical results as she had with Kaneda's first
try. "This is stupid." Shampoo mumbled, looking around to
ensure her slip hadn't been seen.
"Wait until you get the hang of it, then you can call it
stupid." Akane commented, and continued leading Shampoo
onto the ice.
Across the rink, immersed in a crowd of women, Mikado
Sanzenin was considering his present tally. Hmmm, 998. Just
two more and he'd make the thousand mark, he thought with a
smile. Problem was, he had exhausted all the girls... Well, all
the decent ones that is. The man of his caliber had to have some
standards. What he really needed was someone fresh. Someone
who was vulnerable, and most importantly, beautiful.
He didn't have to look very long before several prospects
skated into view. One was skating about like an accomplished
master, pulling off double axles like they were child's play. She
certainly had the looks, and she was new, but not really
vulnerable. However, there was a certain other two, one less
accomplished, although still fair, and the other barely able to
stand on her own. The last one fit the bill perfectly, and given a
little work he could probably get both, maybe even all three, but
that was probably pushing it. Besides, there was always
tomorrow. Best to start small, then work on getting the other
two. Now all he needed was a little accident...
Mikado eyed the other skaters for someone appropriate,
and one particular boy, obviously an amateur, looked just right.
With a smile Mikado excused himself from his fan club and
skated leisurely off, his demeanor perfectly innocent.
"Oh, there he goes. I told you he'd try for her." Yoko
said with a nod. "How much do you want to bet he'll use some
unfortunate shmuck as a distraction?"
"Nothing, thank you." Nabiki replied. "Question is,
what do you think his chances are?"
Hinichi and Yoko examined their target in detail,
considering, while Nabiki sat back sipping at her drink that
Tsubasa had just gotten for her. His attention was also now on
the ice, in an apparent attempt to try and add something to the
discussion. Wasn't much chance at that. Yoko and Hinichi were
probably the best observers around, save herself.
"An Amazon, not exactly in the best of moods, I say she
clobbers him before he even gets close." Hinichi finally
concluded, but Yoko shook her head in disagreement.
"No, she's got other targets for her anger right now.
Looks like she's got an interest in your cousin Nabiki? What's
up with that anyway?"
"Unfortunately private family business, but you're
warm." Nabiki replied.
"Well, then I say she'll might just go along with him as
long as he doesn't get too fresh. Mikado's not a total idiot. He'll
keep it low key for the first few minutes, playing on her lack
luster skating ability to try an win her confidence."
"Really?" Tsubasa asked, intrigued.
"Oh yeah, just look at her. She's just dying to get some
of Kaneda's attention. Jealousy is a lovely technique. Of course,
it counts on the subject being interested..." Yoko said, giving
Nabiki a questioning look, but Nabiki gave no reply. "Well,
anyway, that probably will only last till he tries something
serious, at which times he's a goner."
Hinichi pointed out to the ice. "Oh, here he goes..."
Kaneda was finally back in semi-high spirits, and silently
thanking Akane. Today had turned out fairly well after all. Now
if only- His thought was cut off abruptly, when a sudden bump
from behind sent him reeling off balance, right toward Akane and
Shampoo. He barely had time to call out a warning before he
smashed directly into Akane, sending both her and himself to the
ice. Shampoo, meanwhile, was sent sliding backwards.
Shampoo wind milled her arms desperately to keep her
balance. Of course, being occupied with that meant she'd didn't
have the concentration to spare on stopping her uncontrolled slid.
Fortunately that proved unnecessary, as she was brought to a
sudden halt and found herself held by a strange boy, who was
smiling at her.
"You seemed to be having some difficulty." He said,
lifting her off the ice and into his arms. "I hope that you are
well."
Shampoo looked the boy in the face, momentarily caught
up in his smile. "Shampoo fine." She said after a couple
seconds, then finally noticing her present position, released
herself from his grip and dropped to the ice, where she once more
slipped and fell onto her behind. She snarled silently to herself in
frustration, imagining just what kind of an embarrassing display
she was putting on, but then found the boy taking her by the hand
and helping her back to her feet.
"There now, you really shouldn't feel embarrassed. Ice
skating is like any other skill, it takes time to learn, and a few
bumps. Perhaps you would allow me the honor of instructing
you in some of the finer points of skating." He continued, never
for an instant losing his smile, but Shampoo felt something was a
bit off here. Her suspicions were tossed aside at seeing Makoto
at Kaneda's side once more, helping him to regain his footing.
The effort seemed to involve a lot more close contact then
Shampoo felt was really called for. She felt a wave of jealousy
flood over herself.
"Okay," She responded, looking back at the boy. His
eyes seemed to gleam with the response and he started leading
her around the ice.
"See, what did I tell you." Yoko said in triumph.
"Lucky guess," Hinichi countered. "Not like this is doing
us much good anyway. Hey, do you think Kaneda would beat
him in a fight?"
Nabiki shook her head. "Kaneda's a darn good martial
artist, but a lousy skater. He'd probably lose unless Mikado is
stupid enough to fight him off the ice. Of course, my cousin
would probably never start a fight deliberately... Oh, ready your
books girls because we just may have a real fight on our hands."
Nabiki said, spotting a particular girl entering the rink side area.
Across the way Ranma had skated over to lend a hand,
and he and Makoto were helping Akane and Kaneda back to
their feet. "Where's Shampoo?" Kaneda asked with some
concern, scanning the crowd on the ice.
"That jerk who knocked into you is with her." Makoto
said, pointing out the pair at the other end of the rink. "I bet he
did it on purpose too. Some people can be so low." She looked
back at Kaneda and noticed him staring at the pair intently for a
moment. "Do you know him or something?"
Kaneda broke the look and addressed Mako. "No, I-"
"Hey, Akane, isn't that the guy that was with Azusa at
the Vet's?" Ranma asked.
Akane took a long look, then nodded. "Yes, I think
you're right. Maybe he's her brother... Speaking of the party in
question." Akane said, spotting Azusa skating up to the pair.
Azusa jumped into the air, and smashed Mikado across the head
with a fist as she passed, knocking him to the ice. Without the
added support Shampoo soon followed. Azusa then spun around
and moved in to confront Shampoo.
Seeing this Kaneda skated off to intervene, while Ranma
just glared at Azusa. "Akane, go over there and hit her for me."
He said after a second.
"What? Why should I? It was your dog. You do it."
Ranma considered, then shook his head. "I don't hit
girls... As much as I'd like to in this case." He let out a low
growl then skated slowly after Kaneda. "But I can give her a
piece of my mind."
"Careful, you don't have a lot to spare," Akane called
after him.
"Ha, ha, very funny." Ranma said dryly in reply.
"What did she do to his dog?" Makoto asked, and Akane
started explaining as events unfolded before them.
"Where is Azusa's Charolette you mean girl?!" Azusa
demanded of Shampoo who was still prone on the ice. "Azusa
wants her back."
"Was not your dog. Go away, before get hurt." Shampoo
shot back, but realized she was not quite in the position to make
threats. Azusa was no less aware of this, and giggled.
"You hurt Azusa!?" She said derisively, "Azusa doesn't
think so, not this time. You can't even stand up. Maybe Azusa
should show you how to really skate." She said, and began
circling around Shampoo like a shark, making Shampoo all the
more angry at her predicament.
Before anything could happen though Kaneda arrived and
placed himself between Azusa and Shampoo. Azusa stopped and
briefly glared at Kaneda for interfering. "Who are you?" Azusa
asked then examined him more intently. "You were there too,
weren't you? You mean people, stealing Azusa's little
Charolette. Azusa wants her back!"
"Hey you, you're the one that stole her, not us!" Ranma
yelled as he came up.
"Azusa did no such thing. Azusa just answered your ad."
"Yeah, and you expect me to believe she was your pet?
Yeah, right."
Mikado, now recovered, was the next to come in, going
behind Kaneda to snatch up Shampoo. Kaneda looked behind
him to see what was going on and Azusa took advantage of this,
quickly knocking one of Kaneda's feet out from under him, and
then as she was racing after her partner, elbowing Kaneda in the
abdomen as he fell for good measure. Ranma rushed to his side
to help.
"Why that little..." He growled out while helping Kaneda
back to his feet.
"My dearest apologies for the interruption. My partner-"
Mikado began to say, bringing the surprised Shampoo in
uncomfortably close, when Azusa cut in, grabbing him by the
hair.
"Mikey! How could you?! She and her nasty friends
stole Azusa's Charolette, and she even hit poor Azusa. She's a
mean girl!"
"Not like I haven't thought about doing the same thing a
few times." Mikado mumbled, pulling his hair free of Azusa's
grasp, not noticing Shampoo's eyes narrowing angrily at being
held so close. "Do you mind, I'm trying-" He began before
stopping Shampoo's fist with his face.
Shampoo managed to maintain her footing this time as
Mikado crumpled to the ground, and turned on Azusa, fury in her
eyes. This was really too much. First that blasted girl at the
restaurant barging in where she wasn't wanted, then Shampoo
being forced to look like a fool on these stupid skates, and finally
that jerk getting fresh with her. Well, she needed to blow off
some steam, and Azusa had just offered herself up.
Shampoo pointed an accusing finger at the figure skater.
"Azusa Shiritori, prepare to meet your maker!" Shampoo blinked
at the words, not having said a one of the them, then she was
once again knocked to the ice as the real culprit rushed by, giant
battle spatula at the ready. Azusa was caught equally off guard
by the new attacker, and barely managed to dodge as Ukyo
brought down her spatula for an attack. It was a good thing too,
for where the spatula impacted, not only the ice cracked and
shattered, but the concrete below it too.
"Who are you?" Azusa shouted in surprise, and not
without a little fear, as she retreated to a safe distance, but Ukyo
replied only with another attack. Azusa dodged this one as well,
and began to retreat once more with Ukyo in hot pursuit.
"All right! Go get that brat Ukyo!" Ranma cheered as
the others skated over.
"What does Ukyo have against Azusa?" Akane asked,
pulling Shampoo up straight.
"Beats me, but I'm lov'in it!" Ranma replied, and
continued to cheer on Ukyo.
"What Azusa ever do to you?" Azusa shouted over her
shoulder, avoiding another downward slice from Ukyo spatula,
some fear showing through her usual girlishly happy expression.
"Never mind that! Stand still!" Ukyo yelled out angrily
after another swing and miss. She had been doing a fairly good
job of keeping her footing, but finally the slick surface got the
better of her and she slid to the ground and into the boards, barely
managing to keep her hat on in the collision. Azusa took the
momentary reprieve to stand up Mikado and hide behind him.
"Mikey, you have to save Azusa from that crazy girl."
Azusa pleaded, shaking her partner frantically.
"What? What? What's going on?" Mikado asked,
trying to clear out the cobwebs, then took in his partner's
attacker. "Well, well, well, I seem to be having real luck today."
"Get out of the way if you know what's good for you."
Ukyo ordered as she approached.
"Now, now, perhaps we can work this out like calm-"
"Shut up!" Ukyo said in exasperation. "I got a score to
settle with your girlfriend, so move it!"
"Girlfriend?! Oh please, she is but my partner. However,
being my partner I cannot allow you to hurt her." Mikado
replied, saying the last without much enthusiasm.
"Come on man! Get the hell out of the way!" Ranma
said, skating up next to Ukyo, causing her to finally notice his
presence and radically shift from infuriated to nervous. "It's no
business of yours."
"Ah, but it is. Perhaps if you would tell me of the wrong
she has done you."
"I... Well..." Ukyo began, but fortunately Ranma spoke
up.
"That little brat not only stole my dog, and drugged her,
but she also dyed her fur PINK! She deserves what she gets!"
"Ah... Yeah!" Ukyo added, some of her anger returning.
Azusa regained some of her composure, and came out
from behind her partner. "That was Azusa's little Charolette.
You give her back to Azusa!"
"Like hell lady!" Ranma snapped back. "If you weren't
a girl..."
"Azusa is not afraid of you." Azusa said, then stuck out
her tongue, causing Ranma and Ukyo to ball up their fists.
Mikado held up his hands in a peacemaking gesture, but
clearly wasn't much moved by Ranma's accusation. "A great
tragedy indeed, but what is done is done." Ranma growled at the
dismissal and started skating in a circle to keep himself from
attacking. Ukyo was far less reserved.
"I'll show you what's done!" Ukyo shouted, raising her
battle spatula for an attack but Azusa quickly lost her nerve and
once again retreated behind Mikado. "Stop using him as your
shield you coward! Get out here and face me!"
Azusa vigorously shook her head, and pleaded with her
partner. "Mikey!"
"All right, all right." Mikado moaned out, then
addressed Ukyo. "Well miss, if you insist on a battle, then
perhaps you would be willing to make a formal challenge to meet
us in a Martial Arts Figure Skating match."
Ukyo growled out in frustration. "Whatever, let's get on
with it!"
"Wait, this is paired skating. You'll need a partner."
Ukyo slammed her spatula onto the ice in annoyance,
then without looking shot her hand out to the side to grab Ranma.
"He'll be my partner. Now, let's go!"
"This is to be a formal duel. We'll have it in one week's
time at Kolholz highschool. Agreed."
"Yeah, yeah, fine." Ukyo reluctantly agreed. She really
wanted to take out her frustrations right now, but she'd just have
to wait.
"Very well then... Hmm, perhaps we should have a
prize."
"Prize! What do we need some stupid prize for."
"Well, a duel is really meaningless without some kind of
prize for the victor. You name what you want, and we shall
name what we want. Fair."
Ukyo glared at the pair for a long moment, then grinned
evilly. "Fair." Ukyo quickly produced an okonomiyaki, wrote
her demands, and tossed it to Mikado. "That's what I want."
Mikado scanned the script, raising an eyebrow at the end
then tossed it over his shoulder into an unsuspecting spectator's
face before Azusa could see. "Very well, but if we win, then you
must grant me a kiss."
Ukyo withdrew slightly at the idea. "Kiss?"
"Why yes. A kiss from such a fine young woman as
yourself would be worth more than any mere possession."
Ukyo frown, but finally nodded. "Yeah, whatever, fine, a
kiss."
"What about Azusa's little Charolette?!" Azusa
interjected.
"Isn't it that other-" Mikado began to explain.
"Charolette!"
"Fine, fine, and the dog too." Mikado added.
This time Ukyo had to consider hard. Being stuck with
that nutcase would be a living hell. But, then again, there was no
way she was going to lose, and she so wanted her prize. And
besides, she could promise to give herself, but that did not mean
she had to stay afterwards. "All right."
Mikado was a little surprised at the answer, but then
nodded. "Good, then it's settled. We will meet again in one
week. Till then." With that Mikado turned and skated off,
Azusa following close behind him.
"Just you wait." Ukyo muttered, then turned to her
partner, and nearly had puppies. Instead of Ranma, she had
somehow managed to grab Kaneda, who was now sheepishly
smiling at her. Ukyo quickly released her grip and started
yelling. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"I didn't do anything." Kaneda protested. "I was just
coming up to stop the fight when you grabbed me. Honest."
Ukyo cast a glance at the others, who shrugged, then
looked down at the ice in anger. "Great, just bloody great." She
muttered once more then looked back up at her new partner.
"Just... Just... Stay out of this. This is my fight, and I swear if
you mess it up, I'll... I'll..."
"I won't, I promise." Kaneda quickly said, raising his
hands to ward off Ukyo's anger. Ukyo glared at him for a
moment longer then turned and stalked off the rink, or at least
tried to. She ended up looking a little like an offended penguin
as she gingerly made her way off the slippery ice. Just as she left
the ice Kaneda shouted. "Do you even know how to skate?"
Ukyo winced, but continued off without answering. "Oh dear."
"Ah, would someone mind telling me why the hell Ukyo
agreed to give away Ryouko!?" Ranma asked in a loud voice.
"She's not hers." Kaneda looked at Ranma, considering how to
respond, but the topic of conversation was sharply changed when
a pair of arms wrapped around Kaneda neck from behind.
"Darling, it's so wonderful to see you!" Kodachi gushed
and she hugged Kaneda in close from behind.
Although there was a variety of various reactions to this,
Ranma's was the most pronounced. "Kodachi, what do you
think you're doing?!"
"Oh, Ranma, you're here too." Kodachi droned out with
a frown, then smiled and hugged Kaneda, who was noticeably
disturbed by this, even tighter. "I'm just saying hello to my new
boyfriend."
"I am not-" Kaneda began, grabbing hold of Kodachi's
arms and removing himself from her hold, but got drowned out
by Ranma.
"BOYFRIEND?!! But, she... she's a girl!" Ranma
blurted out, not thinking.
"Idiot," Akane mumbled, as this information gained
Ranma some very odd looks from both Kodachi and Makoto.
"Girl? What kind of a fool are you Ranma?" Kodachi
asked. "I had thought you at least knew the difference between
boys and girls by now."
"Yeah, what are you talking about?" Makoto added,
casting a angry glance Kodachi's way.
Ranma opened his mouth to explain, but his brain finally
kicked into gear to inform him of a slight difficulty when it came
to proof. He struggled to recover, but finally sighed in
frustration. "Oh, never mind," he said, then skated off.
"Sometimes he can be such a fool. Now, Kaneda, where
were we?" Kodachi said.
"No where. I thought I told you... Where's Shampoo?"
Kaneda asked, looking frantically around for the Amazon. He
spotted her angrily taking off her skates and marching out of the
rink, passing by Nabiki and her friends who were busy counting
money recently gained from various people rink side much to
Tsubasa's amazement. "Shampoo, wait!" Kaneda called out,
but once more found Kodachi draped all over him.
"Oh, don't worry about her darling. Besides, we have so
much to tell one an other."
"Kodachi, let go!" Kaneda pleaded, again trying to
release himself from her embrace but encountered more
resistance this time. Makoto watched this with a confused
expression, that changed to a slight scowl as she witnessed
Kaneda's efforts to free himself.
Shampoo paid no mind to Kaneda's cry. She knew if she
stayed a moment longer she would make a fool of herself. To
fight over a man was bad enough. To fight over a man who was
not even a man was worse, but to fight over someone and lose
because you were so out of control that you gave up all the
advantage to your opponent was the mark of a fool.
She had no chance of winning in this setting. Not in
anything less then a death match, and mad as she was, she knew
that was not truly an option here. Later she would discuss his
actions with Kaneda. Like it or not, he was her husband, and a
husband did not humiliate his wife in public. She would also
make time to discuss appropriate behavior with Kodachi. She
smiled to herself. If she was not looking forward to the
confrontation with Kaneda, she most definitely was looking
forward to the one with Kodachi.
Outside the rink, and on the way back to the Tendos',
Ukyo was slowly beating her head against the broad surface of
her giant spatula. Why did these things always happen to her?
She was doomed. She knew it. Kasumi simply couldn't be
trusted. No doubt he'd sabotage the match, engineer it so Ukyo
was trapped into giving that jerk his stupid kiss, and then was
obliged to give herself over to the wacko for God knows what
kind of treatment. Knowing Kasumi, he'd also make it look all
perfectly innocent, and get off without any blame, as usual. Then
there was the fact she'd never skated before in her whole life.
Yep, she was doomed.
"You really shouldn't do that. It's not good for your
head." An old woman's voice said from Ukyo's side, causing
her to stop her self inflicted beating and look to the side, to see
Cologne balanced on her staff a few feet away.
"What do you want?"
"I want many things, but only a few concern you. I've
been keeping a careful watch of the Tendos, and son-in-law, and
have seen a couple things, if you know what I mean." Ukyo
immediately paled at the implication. Cologne smiled. "Fear
not, I have no intention of revealing your little secret. If you are
interested in the boy, that is your concern. Mine is Kasumi
Tendo, and his marriage to my great granddaughter."
"Okay, what about it?" Ukyo asked, relieved but
suspicious.
"You made a certain promise I believe, to keep Kasumi
as he is."
"Yes I did."
"Well, if you were sincere about that promise I may have
use for you."
Ukyo scowled. "Look... what should I call you?"
"Cologne will do."
"Cologne, look, I'm not someone's lackey, you got that?
I don't care if our interests are the same-"
"You misunderstand me. I do not wish for you to serve
me. I wish merely an exchange of sorts. You supply your efforts
to ensure Kasumi stays a man, and I shall provide you with a
little training to make that easier."
Ukyo interest suddenly peaked. "Training?"
"Yes, I know a few tricks that might help you. As I see
it, you're almost as good as he is."
"I am-" Ukyo began to reply in anger, but Cologne cut
off the protest.
"Yes, yes, but in any case, with my training you will have
a definite edge on him. Isn't that what you want?"
Ukyo felt suddenly giddy with excitement. This was just
too good to be true. She'd finally be able to get that parasite for
good, and prove that she was better. Finally there would be no
doubt about who was the superior. Even this stupid skating
match would be hers to win. And, on top of that, she would get
Kasumi away from Ranma for good. "I think you have yourself a
deal."
%End Chapter 15
Okay, I'm done. If you're wondering why this is so slow
lately, I shall by saying `do you have any idea how swamped I
am at school?' Anyhew, I shall endeavor to keep some decent
pace up, but that won't be too fast. C&C is, as always, very
welcome, even flames. Come on people! I mean it! Anything is
good! I'm open to suggestions and ideas you know. The plot is
fairly dynamic.
Special thanks to T. H. Tiger for his creative assistance
which has been and continues to be extraordinarily helpful.
Mental torment is our game. Everyone better watch out.
Cross-over spoilers: Artemis, Mako, Usagi, Rei, Minako,
Ami, and Luna are of course from Sailor Moon. Sakura is from
street fighter, and Kitsune... well, she's not really from anywhere,
but she does have a basis in an xtremely odd show. Ahem,
anyway, all other students to date are just weirdos either from
Ranma 1/2 or from our twisted imaginations
If you wish to check out my other works look at:
http://www.mala.bc.ca/~tritscwa/ranma/fanfic.htm
All previous chapters can be found there for your reading
pleasure.
Another thing. I know people have a nasty knack of not
reading this stuff, but I'll try and gain a response anyhow.
Obviously I'm having a restaurant opening here. Problem is, I'm
still really low on names for it. Any suggestions would be
appreciated. They may be basically anything (it's not going to be
purely a Chinese restaurant like the Nekohanten was).
Okay, this is the end, stop reading.
