Interesting idea, particularly that Soun's wife hates the Art
because of Soun's death.

She
stood up and went to Kasumi's room.  Her eldest daughter was 
on the phone
talking to a friend about a cute boy she'd met.

Why isn't Kasumi at work?  Or at college?

Her mother never seemed to worry about where their
finances were going to come from...

Very untypical for Japan, where the tradition is for
housewives to control the household funds.  That the Tendos
have less money than canon is conceivable, but Kyouko should
be _very_ good at managing what they have.


Alterverses risk losing their readers very quickly if they
don't cut to the meat of the alteration, and skip the rote
repetition of what everybody knows by heart.  You repeat,
without necessity, scenes many of your readers can repeat
word-for-word in their sleep.  For instance, there's no need
to show the girl and panda's arrival if they still _are_
a girl and a panda.

I've taken the liberty below of illustrating another
approach, one that should attract readers rather than turn
them off.  Feel free to use any of this which you feel is
of use to you; most of it is your own words, excerpted.
The basic technique is to use short pieces of dialog
which convey your alteration, mixed with just enough detail
to let your readers know where you are in the story.
Transition quickly from one scene to another.

- S - A - M - P - L - E -  - Alterverse opening -

"Postcard for Tendou Kyouko!"  The woman, <insert description
here>, held up the panda postcard and read the single line:

	"Bringing Ranma from China."

Fear stabbed through her body.

- - - - -
"Kasumi?"  Kyouko peered into Kasumi's bedroom.  Kasumi
was on the phone with a friend, discussing boys.

"Nabiki?"  Nabiki was also in her room, checking her
stocks on the internet.

"Akane?"  The youngest daughter, however, was not in her
room.  Outside, Akane was returning from an afternoon
jog.  She mimed a few punches at the air, then looked
around guiltily.

- - - - -
The three girls faced their mother across a table.

"It was the last wish of your father before he passed away
that one of you marry the son of Saotome Genma.  One of you
will have a fiancee by the end of the day."

Nabiki frowned.  Two more mouths to feed, and their resources
were already strained.  Her mother never seemed to worry
about money, leaving all that to Nabiki.

Akane smiled.  <A martial artist, to run the dojo!  I
can finally learn martial arts, our family tradition!>

"Unfortunately, we must obey your father's final wishes.
However, this situation does NOT mean that my daughters
will be placed in any danger.  Ranma's wife will not need
to have anything to do with the dojo."

- - - - -
"And this is our dojo," said Akane, gesturing to the spotless
inside of the small building and beckoning the short girl
inside.  In one corner, barbells gathered cobwebs.

"You study kempo, right?  Can you teach me?"  Akane asked
eagerly.

A slow smile spread across Ranma's face.

- - - - -
Kyouko sighed and bowed her head towards respectfully towards
the mysterious gi-clad man.  "As you say, Saotome-san.
The marriage is on."
<Soun, my darling, the arts took your life.  Will they take
my daughters as well?>