the following is a brief look at an idea. this
ain't Art, folks, just an attempt to amuse. if
judge you must, do so as such.
 The large headed individual intoned solemnly. "I
am Uatu, known to some as The Watcher."

 A relatively shorter being blinked at this. "No
you're not, you're Toltiir using a puppet."

 The large headed individual paused and a really
big cartoon anvil came down on the critic.

 An arm poked out from underneath the anvil and
waved. "They did it better on that Star Trek
episode, too. 'Corbomite Manuever' or some such."

 Another anvil came down, forcing the first anvil
even further into the ground.

 The large headed individual paused, then gave a
totally out-of-character grin before settling back
into his role. "Ahem, I am Uatu, the Watcher Of
Worlds, and among the timelines are many where
Genma Saotome sold his child. Sold him to gypsies,
sold him for two fish and a pickle, sold him to a
okonomiyaki chef, or sold him to the Nymphomaniac
Amazons of Planet Playtex."

 The Watcher blinked at that, pulled a cue card
out of nowhere, confirmed that that was indeed
what it said, then shrugged and went on. The card
he tossed off to the right where it sliced into a
Sopwith Camel, causing the beagle flying it to
curse the stupid cat.

 "And yet, things could have been different. Genma
Saotome had lost most of his scruples and any
fiber of morality slaving underneath the evil
Master Happosai!"

 "...now I am the Master, Genma!" said a little
black-armored Happosai marionette hanging from the
Watcher's right hand.

 "Only a Master of Lingerie!" a little robed Genma
marionette countered, hanging from the left hand.

 "Well, I _do_ have my priorities," admitted the
chibi-Happosai before the two puppets were
banished back to stuffspace.

 From underneath two anvils, the demon raged.
"Would you just bloody get on with it. Besides,
Takahashi owns the Ranma 1/2 concepts, Marvel
Comics owns the Watcher and the 'What If' title,
and the anvils are on loan from Warner Brothers.
Least you can do is come up with a different take
on it."

 A third anvil dropped down with a mighty clang,
causing all three to become buried in the ground.

 "So WHAT IF, instead of Genma being an amoral,
lying, thieving, stinking, misbegotton excuse for
a father, he'd rebelled against the depravity and
immoral behavior of his former master. Turning
instead to become as UNLIKE Happosai as he
possibly could."

 "MMMmMmmmRRRGG MmmmmRRR." (translation: "I'm sure
someone's done this, hang on while i send the idea
out before i add it to my stack. this would be in
quickfics of 40-100k at most.)
=============================
RANMA 1/2: GENMA TAISEN
============================
 Genma went into the little Shrine, head bowed and
feeling miserable. He tugged on the rope, being
answered by the clatter of the bells overhead. In
the required manner, he clapped his hands three
times before bowing his head.

 "Hear me, o spirits of this shrine. Today I have
stolen again. One thing different has occurred
though, and now I find myself wondering if perhaps
I. . ."

 Genma started and stopped again. Not that he
believed that any spirits or anything was
listening, but it was a way to sort this out in
his mind. "I was running out of the village with a
load of food and clothing over my shoulder, and
one of the villagers yelled out that he recognized
me. That I was with the thief Happosai, and that
the pupil had returned to resemble his master even
more.

 "I needed food! But, to think that I could
resemble the Demon was enough to enrage me. Then
to shame me. Have I become like the Master? Have I
followed his road too long?"

 The image came, of Genma chuckling at the
absurdity of the notion, and walking back to his
camp. From there he'd get drunk, eventually meet
and marry Nodoka - whose idea of a manly man was
very similar to Happosai, and raise his young son
in a rather bizarre manner.

 A second ghostly image of a Genma who sat and
took the idea seriously began to firm. "Well
then," said Genma after a few minutes of
contemplation. "Remembering what hell he put me
through, I'll just have to make sure that doesn't
happen. I REFUSE to be ANYTHING like the Master!
Instead I shall surpass him in every way save his
perversity. Let the Anything Goes style stand for
something besides debauchery and panty raids!"

 Lightning crackled and a stiff wind blew through
what had been still air a moment ago. The last
rays of the sun seemed to spotlight down on the
old cabinet at the back of the shrine.

 "A fine oath," said a gruff voice.

 Genma jumped slightly at the voice, someone had
managed to sneak up on HIM?!

 It was the shrine's priest from the look of him.
The man seemed to look deep into Genma's soul and
find much he disliked, but there was a flame
burning there now. Yes, there was a chance.

 "As I said, a fine oath. If you can walk that
path, you will always be welcome at the Masaki
Shrine."

 "It is my intention." Genma stared back for a
moment. "The 'how' is another difficult thing. The
training I've had at the hands of the Master was
not conducive to a path of virtue."

 A ghost of a smile played on he old man's face.
"Well then, perhaps there's a chance you can stay
the night and we shall speak of many things."

 "Many things?"

 "Of virtue and honor, of heroism and glory, of
life and death and what comes after. Of bushido
and of the Code of the Shih or Chinese Martial
Artists. Of rebirth and salvation."

 Genma nodded. At least it would get him indoors
before the rains hit, and maybe the priest's
ramblings would give him an idea on how to proceed
in this new path.
---------------------------------
 A year after Genma had left the Masaki Shrine, he
found his wanderings had taken him afar. To a
village of women warriors, where he could consult
with the Elders.

 "What do you seek here, far from your homeland,
outsider male?" A tough-looking, heavily scarred
woman demanded of Genma near where an old woman
blinked owlishly from atop her cane.

 "I seek to see if the wisdom of your Elders can
help me?"

 "Why should we help some Jap scum..." The scarred
woman held her tongue. A simple glare from the
woman standing on her own cane was sufficient to
stop the woman from speaking. In fact, from where
Genma could see, it looked as if the woman were
trying hard not to breathe.

 The old woman regarded Genma briefly. "What
wisdom do you seek here, among the Joketsuzoku?
And how would you pay for it?"

 Genma frowned slightly. "I seek to put horrors of
my past behind me. I seek to walk a path of virtue
and enlightenment. I seek to know how to improve
myself beyond my Master's teachings. I shall pay
any reasonable cost you name."

 Cologne blinked and translated this for the crowd
that gathered. Finally she regarded Genma again.
"You seek something very old and not known to
many. We shall have to discuss this, wait and you
will be sent for."

 A year passed before  Genma left again, having
worked for that year under the Amazons. This time,
however, he was not alone.

 The mother, as sometimes occurred within the
Amazons, had decided to relinquish the son's
custody to his father. Especially in the cases
where no formal challenge, defeat, or marriage had
been issued.
---------------------------------
 <Cue: Raiders of the Lost Ark soundtrack>
 A montage of scenes passed in the scrying field.

 Genma carrying the bundled baby  into hidden
Tibetan monastaries./Genma hacking his way through
deep jungle foliage, followed by a small
boy./Genma swinging over a deep gorge, a little
boy catching it and swinging after his
father./Genma entering the Amazon Village, and
presenting the little boy to his mother./The boy
learning martial arts from his great grandmother
and playing with his purple-haired cousin./The boy
surrounded by books in an English library while
Genma discussed matters of importance with some
official-looking fellows./

 /An okonomiyaki cart, where an engagement is
refused. A tale of a dead mother and a dying
father, leaving a child alone and unloved is
sufficient that cart and child are quickly
adopted./

 /An eleven year old boy, challenging the Elders
for his birthright as an Amazon. Three Trials that
he succeeds at. Acceptence into the tribe, though
he could not stay./At the controls of the plane,
while the pilot watches with amusement as Ranma
starts studying the controls and
instruments./Joining a noble cause and opposing a
tyrant, just because it is the right thing to do,
surrounded by partisans./Victory, with a much
smaller group of partisans, their arms raised in
victory that freedom was at last theirs.
------------------------------------
 The rain came down in a drizzle as they entered
the village. Genma seperated from Ranma almost
instantly. Even though he had lived here, even
though Ranma was now accepted, Genma was still
considered an outsider by most.

 The first thing Ranma did, of course, was try to
look up his old friends.

 "<RANMA SAOTOME!>"

 "<Who? Oh, it's you, Mousse. Have you seen Ucchan
or Shamchan?>"

 "<For Shampoo's hand, I challenge you to a
duel!>"

 "<Shampoo's my second cousin or somethin', are
you nuts? Shouldn't you be challenging her, or her
legal guardian at least?>"

 "<Enough! Are you a man or aren't you?>"

 "<Geez, Mousse, what flew up your butt? I know
we've never gotten along, but still. . .>"

 "<You'll meet me at the Cursed Springs in a half
hour, or you'll never see your friend Ucchan
again.>"
-----------------------------------
 "YOU?!" Ranma stared at Mousse's ally and tried
to picture how this could have happened. He'd only
been twelve when their paths had crossed the last
time.

 "You and your father have caused me considerable
problems, boy." The middle aged man flicked a
cigarette stub away. "This is where you  get paid
back in full."

 "Where's Ucchan and Shampoo?" Ranma's eyes swept
the area, not spotting them anywhere nearby. There
was only the small hut where they could have been
held out of the late evening chill.

 "Your sister and cousin are safe, for the moment,
boy." Scarumanga sneered at the boy before him. In
the deepening shadows, the tsuba tied as an
eyepatch was an dark blob on the pale face. "Do
you know how much embarrassment you caused me,
boy? The oyabun was not pleased. However, if I
bring you in front of him as a new pet, he may
relent and restore me to my previous position."

 "It was your own doing," Ranma pointed out. "Me
and Pop were hired by one of the parents of the
missing girls. Pachinko, minor gambling, the
occasional robbery are all tolerated by the police
from the Yakuza. Going off on your own initiative
with a slave ring, that pushed the boundaries."

 "Enough talk, get up there and fight." Scarumanga
pointed to where Mousse rested easily on one of
the poles.

 "How do I know Shampoo and Ucchan are okay?"

 Scarumanga whistled. A movement on a clifftop
brought Ranma's attention to it. Two figures,
surrounded by four others.

 "Don't worry, they're alive. Just drugged."

 Ranma nodded, probably the same stuff that had
been used on the girls that Scarumanga had been
involved with earlier. He didn't even glance at
the pocket of his vest that had the transceiver.
"Okay, now get them back away from the edge of the
cliff, whatever you're planning doesn't concern
them."

 "No profit, true." Scarumanga whistled twice and
the figures disappeared. "Now, get your a$$ up
there, little boy."

 Grumbling slightly, Ranma removed his shoes
before leaping to the top of one of the bamboo
poles. "So, I'm supposed to fight Mousse like
this? This ain't so bad, I've seen similar setups
in Thailand and Okinawa."

 Scarumanga grinned. "Why do you think they call
it the 'Cursed Springs'?"

 Ranma shrugged, paying less attention to
Scarumanga than to Mousse who was taking a 'Crane'
stance. Mousse had some fair strength and speed,
but it had been a few years since Ranma had faced
him in combat. Mousse had always resented this
outsider who had come in out of nowhere to be so
friendly with 'his Shampoo' and apparently time
had not made the heart grow fonder.

 Mousse leapt to the attack, using his long legs
to good effect with a series of kicks.

 Ranma dodged and flipped, noting that the uneven
spacing of the poles made judging distances a
little difficult.

 Mousse continued to press the attack until Ranma
was on a particular pole. "Now, Saotome, our
rivalry is OVER!" From the sleeves of his robes
erupted chain a set of bladed chains.

 Caught by surprise, Ranma still nearly made it to
another pole. His hand clawed the air within an
inch of salvation. Another moment and he'd have
been able to free himself, another inch and he'd
have had that moment.

 Oddly enough, his thought as he fell was not of
himself or how much this would hurt. He was
instead apologizing to Shampoo and Ukyou for
failing them.
-------------------------
 "<...Shampoo will be mine at last.>"

 Shampoo kept her eyes closed as she slowly
regained consciousness. It took all her will not
to react when she realized that she had just been
handed to Mousse and that he had cupped one of her
breasts as he took her from these drug users.

 "What about this Ranma, boss?" A gruff voice
speaking in Ranma's native language. Shampoo had
picked some of it up from his sister Ukyou.

 "Little Miss Saotome will be no problem. Make
sure that she's paralyzed but conscious, then
'play' with her a bit. In fact, you've all done so
well, why don't you pass her around a couple
times?"

 "Gee, thanks boss."

 "You dirty bastards, if I could get loose. . ."

 "Look, Saotome, see that pan over there? You and
your dad are into experiments, ain't ya? Well,
I've thought about this ever since I heard about
these 'Cursed Springs of Jusenkyo.' You fell into
Spring of Drowned Girl, so now cold water turns
you from an annoying boy to a pretty young girl.
Hot water turns you back. Since the Spring you
fell into was a cold one, it might be reasonably
assumed that this is why it is cold water that
activates the curse, right?"

 "Yeah, I get it. So you're heating up some of the
Girl water so that you can lock me into this form.
Cheez, don't you ever tire of this crap,
Scarumanga? What is it with you and the slave
trader routine?"

 "It's a highly lucrative business, girl. Carries
plenty of side benefits, and the finished product
is in high demand in a number of locations. Even
'as is' you could be sold to a Thai brothel or
cage-bar, where you'd be strung out on so many
drugs even you wouldn't know your own name. The
really high prices go to the 'trained' models,
though. If the oyabun doesn't want you, hell, I
may have my friends put you through their training
regimen and then keep you myself."

 "Go to Hell, Scarumanga."

 Scarumanga smiled a cruel little smile. "You'll
be there far ahead of me, girl."

 Shampoo finished figuring out the opposition and
the situation. Two men with guns, one near her,
one further away. Three without guns. Mousse was
setting her down on the ground. Ukyou was silent,
probably still unconscious. Ranma was over there,
bound from the sound of it. Her cousin was now a
girl and about to become permanently a member of
the warrior gender. Shampoo waited until she could
be sure of when to move. She had other plans for
cousin Ranma. So did his "sister" but that could
be settled later.

 "Hey boss, this Cursed Springwater stuff?"

 "Yeah, Tiny?"

 "If it hits you on the outside, your outside
changes, right? This boy got turned into a girl,
but he still THINKS like a boy so his insides
ain't changed, right?"

 "Yes, Tiny," Scarumanga sounded weary.

 "So if you got this Cursed Water stuff INSIDE
'em, would it change them inside as well as out?"

 There was a sudden pause going through the group.

 "Hmmm," Scarumanga hmmed. "Tiny, for a moron,
you're a genius."

 "Gee, thanks, boss. I think..."

 "Let's try this out, first. Drill?"

 The unsavory type with the leer nodded, uncapped
a small flask, then turned on Mousse and threw it.
A moment later Mousse found herself lifted and
pinned by Tiny.

 "What the hell are you doing?! We had a deal!"

 "C'mon, kid, we've got to try this idea out, and
you ain't going to be able to rejoin your village
with the girl there. I promised you a place in our
organization, remember? Well..."

 Heated Cursewater was poured over Mousse's head.
That she remained a she was duly noted by everyone
watching.

 "Damnit, stop this right now, or..." Mousse
learned the hard way that trying to yell meant
that you had to open your mouth, and this was not
the smartest thing to be doing at the moment. She
spit and choked but Yag held Mousse's nose while
forcing a bottle into her mouth.

 Shampoo chanced opening her eyes a slit, noticed
the gun-wielders weren't paying attention and did
what came natural. The ones with the guns were the
most dangerous, so they were the target of choice.

 A gun started swinging up to cover her, but a
spear ended that attempt. The lack of attention of
those with guns had been duly noted by other eyes.
The Amazons descended in force, having been
listening to Genma's transceiver.

 During the fight, Scarumanga fled using a
smokebomb to cover his exit.

 Tiny proved that while he was an idiot, he wasn't
completely hopeless, and he surrendered after
being surrounded by a lot of women with very sharp
objects. He ended up being a slave-farmer, and
though often verbally abused and struck by the
women (at least at first) - it was still better
than he was used to.

 Yag, on the other hand, tried to use butterfly
knives to cut his way to freedom. He met with
Spring Of Drowned Pigeon a few moments later. Yag
later discovered that a number of Amazons
practiced the ancient art of falconry.

 Mousse was still coughing up water, but the looks
she was being given were enough to indicate that
the girl was going to have a very hard time in
front of the Elders later.
-------------------------------
 A week later, Ranma found himself back in Japan.
It was drizzling again, however the umbrella was
quite sufficient for the task. "Are you sure about
this, father? The Guide says that it only takes a
year for the Curse to stabilize enough for me to
use the 'Spring Of Drowned Man' and change back
for good."

 Genma nodded, but was proud of how Ranma took the
curse more-or-less in stride. Even now, with quite
obvious reservations about the task in front of
them, he reasoned calmly and clearly. He had done
well in raising his son. Happosai could never have
managed such a feat.

 "This is it," Genma winced as a car went by and
water flew everywhere. A quick glance revealed his
daughter sighing, eyes closed, and allowing
herself a quick grumble about the only car in
sight and of course it would have to splash her.
"Well, I'm sure they'll have hot water at least."

 The knocking door brought a girl with short hair
in a kimono out. "Oooo. Are you Ranma?"

 "Yeah, kinda. Sorry, but I just got splashed. Got
any hot water? Please?"

 "Saotome, my old friend. You look well."

 "Soun, you're looking fairly well yourself."
Genma motioned. "May we? The weather keeps turning
chilly and this drizzle is most uncomfortable."

 "This is Ranma!" Soun grabbed the short boy. "Oh,
at last, you've come! It's so good to finally meet
you! I..."

 "Hot water, please," repeated Ranma as Soun Tendo
let him go.

 "What? What? You..." Soun backed away with a
shocked expression.

 Nabiki frowned and gave one of the odd bulges in
Ranma's shirt a squeeze.

 "I'd *really* appreciate some hot water. Please?"
Ranma closed her eyes. "And can you please not do
that."

 Nabiki squeezed and checked the shape and
firmness. Confirming what she thought that was.
"'He' is a girl."

 Soun fainted.

 "I told you we should have waited. Would
*someone* please get me some hot water?"

 "There's hot water in the furo," said Nabiki
angrily. Why did this girl keep talking about
getting hot water? Why did Daddy arrange one of
his girls to marry another girl?

 "Actually, I can explain." Genma sighed. This was
not going nearly how he planned it.

 "Well, at least THAT nonsense is over with,"
another girl said. "I'd better go show that girl
where the bath things are."

 "Oh my, father must be so disappointed."

 "HE'S disappointed! Some fiance that is!"

 "As I said, I can explain..."

 "This is all your fault, Daddy, you should have
made sure!"

 "But Saotome said he had a son!"

 "I DO have a son. Let me explain, you see..."

 "Some son, she's a D cup!"

 "It's quite simple, really..."

 "aaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The youngest girl ran
by, grabbed a table, and prepared to run back the
way she came.

 "What NOW, Akane?" Nabiki rubbed her head.

 "There's a pervert in the bathtub!"

 "So, shouldn't you have just beaten him up?"

 "I got scared, okay?!"

 "Uhm, excuse me." Ranma stepped forward, bowing
slightly in apology. "I'm really sorry about..."

 There was an opening. Akane was a trained martial
artist. She took it. The table impacted the young
man rather suddenly and brutally.

 Genma sighed. Well, there were still other
possibilities. Shampoo had declared her interest.
Ukyou was quite obviously not satisfied with her
relationship to Ranma as a sister. He had gotten
along well with Ami over in Juuban when they'd
gone to the same juku. There was Melissa in
London, Sasha of the Norwegian Amazons, and a few
others that Ranma had seemed to hit it off with.
There was even that young woman who was now at the
Palace, a girl of the rebels that had fought
alongside Ranma during that year with the
partisans. If the Tendo arrangement was
unworkable, then he was sure that Ranma could find
someone he could be happy with.

 Genma started explaining the curse to the three
girls and their father. How Ranma had been trying
to save a friend's life when he'd gotten cursed.
How in a year, there was a chance that he could
enter the waters of another spring and be cured of
his curse.

 Seeing some disbelief, Genma demonstrated on the
unconscious Ranma then got directions to the
kitchen so that he could fix some hot water.

 "Ungh. Why me?" Ranma began to stir. "Oh crap,
I'm a girl again? When did that happen?"

 "You were cursed while you were trying to save
your friends?" Kasumi felt some sympathy, this
never happened in her romance manga. Well, hardly
ever.

 "Yeah, my cousin and my sister." Ranma groaned as
she moved to a sitting position. "Oh man, what hit
me?"

 Genma walked in with a kettle and quickly
returned his daughter to being his son.

 "Cold water turns you into a girl, but hot water
restores you?" Soun nodded. "Well, that's not so
bad. The life of a martial artist is fraught with
peril."

 "Tell me about it," murmurred Genma and Ranma in
eerie unison.

 Soun motioned towards where all three girls were
standing and looking dubiously at the new boy. "My
daughter Kasumi, she's nineteen. My daughter
Nabiki, she's seventeen. My daughter Akane, she's
sixteen. Pick the one you want, she'll be your new
fiancee."

 "Akane seems the wisest choice," Kasumi said,
proving that either her mind had gone on vacation
or that there were limits to her selflessness.

 "Couldn't agree more," said Nabiki as she got
behind her youngest sister.

 "ME?! Why should I!"

 "Uhm, you needn't act like I'm a leper, y'know,"
Ranma mumbled. "It's not contagious."

 "Because you hate boys, Akane." Nabiki nodded and
continued with the pressure, shoving Akane towards
Ranma. Akane wasn't having anything to do with it.

 "Well, you're in luck, Akane. Ranma is half
girl."

 "Excuse me?" Ranma blinked.

 "Me? Marry that pervert? NO WAY!"

 "EXCUSE ME!" Ranma began to raise his voice.
Being polite was obviously not being considered by
anyone else at the moment. "Would you care to
explain that pervert crack?"

 "You looked at me in the nude, you lech!"

 Feeling at least a little satisfaction that he
wasn't being ignored, Ranma continued trying to be
reasonable. "If you would recall,  I clearly
placed the Occupied sign out and my clothes were
left in the changing room. Since you walked in on
me, wouldn't that indicate..."

 "It's different when a girl sees a boy! PERVERT!
PEEPING TOM!"

 "They're already a perfect couple," laughed Soun
Tendo.

 "Well..." Genma winced. It sounded like Soun was
really set on this idea after all.

 "Father, this obviously will not work out. Since
the limo's in the area anyway, I'll just give them
a ring and we can be done with this." Ranma half
turned to his father. "This girl hates me already,
and for inadequate reason. The other two quite
obviously want nothing to do with me. I'm back at
college tomorrow anyway."

 "Limo," repeated Nabiki. She stopped pushing
Akane forward.

 "College?" Kasumi looked up and blinked.

 "Leaving?" Soun blinked.

 "Yes, well, Ranma," Genma sighed. "Soun and I
made this pledge while we were serving under a
horrible Master, to join the two houses. It was a
dream that kept us going through some dark times."

 "That's right, the houses MUST be joined. It is a
matter of honor."

 "Is it honor to inflict a lifetime of misery upon
your daughters?" Ranma shrugged. "Besides, Father,
there are other claims at least the equal of
that."

 "WHAT?! Genma, what is the meaning of this?"

 "Limo?" Nabiki repeated again, wanting
confirmation.

 "You needn't worry, Miss Tendo. I'll have the
driver pull up in front of the house and we can
leave, and with any luck we'll never darken your
door again."

 "Excuse me?" Nabiki watched as Ranma pulled out a
flip-style cellular phone.

 "Reginald? Ranma. Pull the limo around. We won't
be staying after all."

 Kasumi excused herself to go see this.

 "What about our pledge?!"

 "Well, there are others with claims too. And some
have more ramifications than just two families."
Genma looked uncomfortable. "Since none of your
daughters are willing, we'll just have to go to
the next claim."

 "Oh my, such a big car."

 Ranma shrugged and looked a little embarrassed.
"Wasn't my idea. After all, the money could be
better invested in a wide variety of ways."

 "Money?" Nabiki blinked, scooting in front of
Akane to ask of Ranma's back as he left the house.
"What kind of money are we talking about?"

 Akane opened her mouth to protest this engagement
further when she realized she was alone in the
house.

 "But the pledge..."

 "It isn't that big a car, Kasumi, though it *is*
a Bentley."

 "Even then, it's the property of the Embassy.
Still, you'd think something more economical would
be more prudent." Ranma sighed at the waste of so
many resources.

 "Economical? Prudent? *EMBASSY?*" Nabiki frowned,
she felt like she were a page behind in the
script.

 "Saotome? How did you get wealthy?"

 "Oh, we helped some rebel forces put down a
tyrannic despot, managed to save one of the Royal
Family, discovered that there were mineral
desposits that nobody had correctly identified."
Ranma snorted, and some people had thought that
his geology courses had been wasted. They didn't
think that now, of course.

 "Rebels. Waitaminute, not?!" Nabiki felt faint,
she'd read about this. A small mountain nation
where a battle had taken place and the vastly
outnumbered rebel forces (that should have been
wiped out without even being a historical
footnote) had somehow succeeded in retaking their
country from some organization called Shadowlaw.
The nation had changed its name, there was one of
the war heroes designated as the next Heir, and
*diamonds* had been discovered on this relatively
worthless rock by that same war hero. She licked
suddenly dry lips. "Would that be the nation of
Fenwick?"

 Genma looked embarrassed. "I told them, no reward
was necessary, but I suppose the symbolism was
good for the people."

 Ranma paused at the door of the limo. "And I keep
tellin' 'em, invest in the infrastructure and
bring the standard of living up, but they keep
pulling stuff like this. Like anybody listens to
the Heir anyway, it's just a damn figurehead
position."

 Nabiki paused, finger up. A little voice started
going over the economic projections she'd seen for
the Grand Duchy of Fenwick and came crashing down
at the end with a *and you blew it, you dummy!*

 Kasumi caught Nabiki before her little sister hit
the ground. "Oh my."
------------------------
 "Well, father?" Ranma looked askance at Genma as
the chauffer headed towards their plane.

 "I *had* hopes, but as you pointed out, his
daughters just would not be happy with an arranged
marriage. Too bad." Genma sulked a bit. "Well,
maybe something will turn up."

 "You're such an optimist, father." Ranma smirked
and leaned back. He wasn't entirely unhappy with
the situation. After all, now he concentrate on
the important stuff. College.
 =============================================
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"still searching, still dreaming, still alone."
                         -N.Brazil, "Midnight at
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