I'm posting this for Nick Casler <betrayal@matnet.com>, as the FFML seems to be
eating his posts. Please send any comments to him or to the FFML -- not to me. -- GK



Happy Birthday
(1/2?)
(1/3?)
(1/????)

My thanks to Gary Kleppe, who is posting this for me because all my posts
go into Hammerspace..  some Ramna fic in the future is gonna go funny when
Akane reaches for a hamme, and comes back with a fistful of paper..

don't worry, this will end up dark..
; )

	Ranma is returning home from school one summers evening, alone. Walking
along the fence with a pair of schoolbooks in one hand, he is concentrating
on the ground in front of him, obviously lost in thought. The jingling
sound of the cheery purple-haired Amazon's approach can be heard, and Ranma
looks up just in time to see Shampoo on a direct course for impact with his
face. Her course terminates it's ballistic trajectory, and Ranma is pinned
to the ground, his books dangling by their strap from one upraised hand.
Shampoo peers over the side of her bike, looking at the crumpled martial
artist.

	"Nihao, Airen! Where Violent Girl?" Shampoo bubbled brightly, her bangs
bouncing in time to her speech.

	"Akane's at home early." Ranma grumbled as he brushed at the bits of dirt
clinging to his clothing. "She had a message from school to come home
early." He concluded, considering the tire tracks across what had been a
clean shirt.

	"Excellent!  Now Ranma have time to go on date with Shampoo!" The Amazon
chimed triumphantly. Ranma looked up from his shirt, an expression of
momentary panic crossing his face.

	"I can't, Shampoo..  I've got to go straight home after school." Ranma
stammered. The look of panic was replaced by one of disgust. "I'm supposed
to have some sort of surprise waiting for me."

	At that, Ranma turned, and resumed trudging towards home, his worry
plainly evident on his face for one who knew where to look. Overhead, the
birds chirped uncaringly, and crickets played a spirited game of Human
across the grass, uncaring of the unknown.

	Ranma arrived at the Tendo Dojo as clouds began to scud overhead,
darkening the cheerful summer sky. He looked up as he stopped in front of
the open gates, then trudged onwards towards the house. As he opened the
door, he called out.

	"Akane, Dad, Kasumi! I'm home from school!" Ranma called out, his voice
stunted in the emptiness of the house. Ranma shuddered, then took his shoes
off, and walked into the kitchen to grab a quick snack. As Ranma walked
into the living room to sit down and study his homework, he recieved a
complete shock. Opening the door to the living room revealed a group of
people. Akane was there, sitting on the couch off to one side, and looking
none to comfortable. His father and Soun were standing behind his mother,
and Kasumi and Nabiki were off to one side, Nabiki holding a camera, and
Kasumi a cake..   

waitaminute. His father and Soun were standing behind his mo.th.er..

	Ranma's mind abruptly stopped processing information, as the crowd in
front of him shouted.

	"Happy Birthday, Ranma!"

Happy birthday (2/?)

	What has gone before:
stuff.

	Ranma remained in a semi-comatose state as his mother ran forward and
threw her arms around him, crying into his shoulder.

	"Oh, my manly son, I've finally got you back>" She cried, wetting his
shirt with her tears. Ranma, for his part, remained nearly motionless, his
mind having fled in terror. 

	"mom? MOM? MOther!?!?!" Ranma finally managed to grate out as his mind
rebooted. He hugged his mom back, finally able to do so after nearly ten
years. He gave up his stuttering and merely held his mother, trying hard to
keep the tears from spilling down his face. He succeeded, and was smiling
sadly when his mother broke the embrace, and moved to arms length, studying
his face as if she hadn't seen it in years. <auth note.  : ) > After she
released him, Nodoka Saotome immeadietly moved to the table, gesturing to
the cake Kasumi had just laid there. 

	Shakily, Ranma kneeled, as indicated, and his mother produced a match, and
lit the seventeen candles on the cake.

	"Six candles for the years you were with me, my son." Nodoka said softly.
"ten for the years you were away, and one for the day which brings us back
together." She finished, coming close to tears. Ranma sat, his shoulders
bowed in a mixture of fear, longing, and sadness. As Nodoka finished
lighting the candles, she moved to stand behind Ranma, her hands on his
shoulders. Ranma reached up a hand to touch one of hers, then leaned
forward to blow out the candles, easily snuffing all of the tiny flames. 

	"You have kept your promise to me, haven't you, Ranma?" Nodoka asked, her
voice velvet over steel. Ranma jolted as if struck, but Kasumi spoke up
before he could say anything.

	"Time for cake and ice cream!" She said brightly, walking into the living
room with a platter with bowls full of ice cream and plates for the cake in
her hands. On the platter was a long, wooden handled knife, which she
swiftly cut and served the cake with, giving Ranma the largest piece, and
Nodoka the second largest. Ranma immeadietly dug in, hiding his face behind
his eating. Nodoka sat primly, watching her son eat with an unreadable
expression on her face.

**********************
Later
**********************
	As Ranma sat on top of the house, listening to his parents talking,
reconciling ten years of absence (and, surprisingly, faithfulnesson both
_Genma_ and Nodoka's part) Ranma considered the situation.

Nodoka, his _mother_ had returned.
She required him to fulfill the promise his father had made for him.
She didn't know he was cursed. 
Sooner or later, she would find out.

	Ranma's mind, not used to logical thought, ground these concepts into
submission for hours, until, as the sun set on Nerima, he came to a
conclusion. Leaping to his feet, Ranma spoke in a loud, clear voice,
presenting his decision to the heavens.

	"I'll do it myself. I'll take the honorable path, and tell my mother about
my curse. On _my_ terms!" Ranm finished triumphantly, raising his fist in
defiance at the setting sun. To his side, along the peak of the roof, a
noise shattered his dramatic reverie. A bird, some sort of pigeon, looked
angrily at him for disturbing it's nap on the warm tiles. Ranma grinned
bashfully, and jumped down from the roof, bouncing off of the wall, Master
Happosai on his way out for an evening's raid, and a rock by the koi pond,
before coming to rest on the ground outside the Dojo.

	Hearing the sounds of sparring coming from the Dojo, Ranma walked through
the door, holding it open behind him. Sillouhetted in the setting sun,
Ranma watched as his mother and father danced their love for each other in
the delicate, savage motions of a pair kata in Kenpo, the smooth lines of
the bokkens they weilded shining and flashing in the flickering torchlight
that was their only illumination. As they finished, Genma brought his
bokken up into a French swordfighter's salute to a lady, and Nodoka bowed,
accepting his salute as her due. Ranma applauded, in awe at the fluid grace
and consumate skill the two had displayed. Nodoka looked over at Ranma, her
bokken coming to bear in a guard position momentarily, before relaxing at
her side. Ranma was startled at the defensive movement, but dismissed the
thought with a shake of his head. 

	"Master Happosai is going out for a raid, Pop. I think you and Soun should
go at least try and stop him." Ranma said sarcastically, earning a
disapproving glance from his mother. Genma nodded and headed towards the
door, notably avoiding the bucket of water that stood beside the door, for
washing or cooling down. Ranma glanced at that same bucket, and grimaced.
Now was his time.

***********************
end part 2
***********************

	"M- Mom..  I'm a manly man, right?" Ranma asked nervously.

	"As far as I've seen so far, son. You have a lovely fiance, with a fiery
spirit. I'm sure you'll have lots of lovely children. Your father has kept
up his training, so I've got to assume you've been as well educated in the
Art as he promised.." Nodoka trailed off, tilting her head to one side in
an inquisitive look. "Would you like to spar?" Nodoka asked hesitantly.
Ranma started, then nodded his head.

	"I don't hit girls, though. especailly my own mother!" Ranma stated,
shifting into a loose defensive stance. "Whenever you're ready, mom!" Ranma
said confidently. Nodoka looked startled, then shifted into a battle ready
stance, her form exact, her movements perfectly balanced. She approached
Ranma, who remained in his relaxed posture. When she closed to a good
striking distance, Nodoka brought her feet together, her sword at ease, and
bowed to Ranma, who returned her bow, his eyes never leaving hers. As she
straightened, Nodoka snapped into her battle stance, immeadietly launching
a pattern of attacks that more than doubled Kuno's impressive speed, and
Ranma could feel the air moving past him, hard enough to shred his skin,
and break his bones had he not been out of the way of the strikes.

	As he vaulted through the air over his mother, Ranma almost laughed out
loud. Her skill with a bokken was unmatched! Ranma had never fought against
an opponent this skilled with the blade, and it was the most fun he'd had
in a long time. As Ranma lost himself in the battle, The grin of wild
enjoyment on his face widened, showing his inner joy as he dodged around
the dojo at lightning speed, avoiding the attacks his mother unceasingly
pressed, unsucsessfully searching for an opening in her defenses, for any
pattern which to exploit. As he finally discovered one, Ranma waited for an
opening, his face bearing a clean, pure expression of joy. As the opening
he waited for appeared, Ranma darted forward, and placed the tip of one
finger to his mother's forehead, leaving her blocking a strike which he had
not made. 

	"Point." He said, his voice happy, even though he was panting for breath.
Nodoka's eye's flared with some emotion for a second before her face broke
into a smile, and Nodoka bowed to her son, accepting her defeat. Again,
Ranma returned her bow, a smile still on his face. After he straightened,
he looked quizically at his mother, and they both spoke simultaneously.

	"You were holding back!"

************************
end part 3
************************

	Ranma and Nodoka both broke into laughter, and Nodoka stepped forward,
putting her arms around her son in a vigorous hug. Ranma was unused to such
displays of affection, but still nervously returned his mother's embrace.
Nodoka drew back, again holding Ranma at arm's length, and smiled broadly.

	"I'm so proud of you, son. You've taken control of your life, using the
teachings of your father. I was wrong when I made him sign that contract,
Ranma. You've grown up into a strong, manly young man." Nodoka sniffed away
a burgeoning tear, and was about to continue when she was interrupted, by
the arrival of a vivacious Amazon, bursting through the wall.

	"Nihao, Airen! Shampoo ready go on date, yes?" The bonbori-wielding girl
asked cheerfully. "Who lady with bad look on face?" She continued, noticing
Ranma's mother. 

	"That's my mother, Shampoo..  now, GO AWAY!" Ranma yelled, hoping to avert
disaster.  Nodoka turned and looked at Ranma, then returned her gaze to
Shampoo, who was now standing nervously, her bonbori behind her back.

	"Son, that woman just addressed you as 'future-husband' and asked to go on
a date with you..   Do you have an explanation for this??" Nodoka asked
quietly, her voice firm and intense. Ranma closed his eyes, trying to hide
the hot tears of frustration welling from them, and bolted from the dojo,
bowling over Shampoo and escaping into the twilight of the evening. 

	"Aii-yah." Shampoo said quietly, sitting on the floor where she had been
knocked by Ranma's escape. "Way Ranma run, it look like Airen, he escaping
death.." She stated, hanging her head sadly to see her Ranma in such a state. 

	"He is." Nodoka said. Discarding her bokken, she drew her Katana from the
sheath on her back, and darted forward. In a single swipe, she beheaded
Shampoo, and was out of the Dojo and gone into the night before her head
fell off her shoulders to hit the warm, smooth wood of the floor. 

***************************
Kerthump
***************************

	Ranma fled across rooftops, not even noticing when he would alight briefly
on a less-than-stable support on his escape. Ranma's mind stopped gibbering
in fear, allowing Ranma to come back to his senses, realizing just whose
roof he was currently sitting on, tucked neatly behind a sign, with
odoriferous enamanations of okonomiyaki wafting up to his nose. His stomach
growled, and Ranma belatedly realized that it had been several hours since
dinner, and he had been sparring for some of that time. In search of food,
Ranma slipped off the roof, moving down the wall till he reached a window.
Peering in, Ranma grunted, seeing the familiar smooth, white curves, and
strong, flat surfaces..

	Of Ukkyou's bathroom. 

<Auth note: Gotcha!>

	Moving to a different window, Ranma grinned in satisfaction as he saw
Ukkyou herself, seated on a futon in a Hello Kitty shirt, playing Final
Fantasy 5 on her Super Famicom <auth. Note: I've played it, it's great!>.
Tapping on the window, Ranm succeeded in scaring the hell out of Ucchan,
who soon came over to the window and opened it, letting Ranma in out of the
rapidly cooling night.

	"T-Thanks Ukkyou, I'm S-Sorry to be B-b-b-bothering you this late, but
it's C-C-Cold, and I'm H-H-Hungry, and I C-c-can't go H-H-Home an-"

	"Hush, Sugar." Ukkyou cut Ranma off, leading him to her futon, where she
grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around the shaking shoulders of her
fiance. Ranma slumped onto the futon, staring off into space. On the
screen, the chocobo being ridden by the character Butz warked at him
questioningly. Ukkyou left to make him something to eat, and returned to
find him curled into a ball, fast asleep with her blanket wrapped around
his shoulders.

	"What could have done this to my fiance?" Ukkyou muttered, tucking the
blanket a little more securely around the sleeping Ranma. As she rose from
her kneeling position, she heard the whickering sound of a katana being
swung, and then nothing.

**************************
kerthump
**************************

	Nodoka arrived back at the Tendo Dojo, slightly weary, and carrying an
unconcious Ranma across her shoulders. She knocked on the door, and Kasumi,
a cheerful, empty smile on her face, helped her drag the depply asleep
Ranma into the living room, where he was palced gently on the couch.

	"Kasumi, who are Shampoo? And Ukkyou?" Nodoka asked, concern knitting her
brow. 

	"They are two of Ranma's fiances, Mrs. Saotome. Why do you ask?"

	"And, what of a girl named Kodachi? Who is she to my son?" Nodoka queried,
her face woven into a dark scowl.

	"Sh-She's another of Ranma's fiances, Mrs. Saotome." Kasumi said, her
usually even composure rattled. "Why? What has she done now?" 

	"She died dishonorably." Nodoka said flatly. 

	"Oh, my."
			"Holy wow!"
						-Some kid named Evan

						-/\/
						Nick Casler
						Matnet Tech Support