/lurk off
Konnichi wa.
First word of warning:
This is my first fanfic, as well as my first attempt to return to
writing in many years. I am vary out of practice, and probably was not
vary good back then either. However, I now am attempting to recover
that lost voice I had once held in writing; if not improve upon it.
And since I have enjoyed may of the different stories and views over
the time, I felt that I would try to repay some of it in kind. Please
please, C&C are not only wanted, but desired and surely needed.
This is the prelude, Part One to follow vary shortly. Depending
upon the response I get from that, I will either continue it here,
taking what suggestions I can into the story, or fade back into lurker
mode working on other ideas I have.
Second word of warning:
None of the characters in this story belong to me. That being
said. Please don't tell Nabiki, as I really can not afford any price
she might set. All of what is set forth here, is meant as honor and
praise those stories that have meant so much to me. Thank you
Takahashi, for without your fun and wonderful stories, I would have
had fewer reasons to laugh and smile.
Third, a hint of background: You may want to want to skip this.
This is not as SI fanfic. It is a subtle x-over. I had originally
intended to submit as my first fanfic, an all together different work.
One that I thought had some promise, but try as I might, still feels
vary contrived. Then along came this vary dark idea. One that would
most definetly destroy just about everyone involved. Not the type of
story I really wanted to write, but when the muse hits. So I let it
play out in my mind to its conclusion, hoping then to return to my
original thought. Then a new thought occured to me. One that blended
some of my first story with elements of the second. Other than some
early allusions to this earlier and almost forgotten adventure, I do
not beleive the details of the previous story are really important.
Then again, I am not sure if this story really reads better on its
own, or if my knowledge of the origin of the story gives me too great
of an insight. Although this will have a darker tone that the original
Canon, I tried to keep most of the characters as IC as I could (for a
first attempt,) and still have them develop some. Once again, helpful
suggestions and pointers are most welcome.
Now, on with the show.
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'It had all been for you,' Nabiki thought to herself. She
looked out the windows and sighed. It had been a clear sunny day,
completely opposite what she had been feeling all week.
Akane had cried her self to sleep the first three nights after
the failed wedding. All Nabiki could due was lay in her bed and listen
to Akane through the wall. Feeling helpless, it wasn't like there was
anything she could do now; even after a full week she still wasn't
talking to her. Well, not quite true, she would respond if Nabiki
spoke directly to her. However, even then she only responded in an
honorific way, emphasizing a growing distance between them. 'I did it
for you . . . didn't I?'
She looked down at the tortured remains of a calculator. Its
parts scattered all over her desk and floor. For three nights it had
taken the brunt of her emotions. On that final night, she had even
almost destroyed her ledger, but it had been too important. She felt a
little sick at that thought. That a simple book, filled with useless
scribblings, could be more important to her than her own sister.
She felt guilty for forcing Ranma on her. Truthfully, it had
been daddy and Mr. Saotome, but she and Kasumi had played their parts.
Not that she had wanted to be engaged to some weird cross gender
freak, but in that instant, she had let all the other girls at school
get to her.
She had known Akane had a crush on Dr. Tofu, sheesh even she
had had one briefly. Although she had come to her senses a lot quicker
than Akane had. Idly, she had wondered if she hadn't held onto that
little secret, but sold it as she had done with so many others since
then, would things have been any different, any better. Some boys at
school, smitten by her rejection, had insinuated that she was not
interested in them because she liked girls. This of course, like so
many other rumors, raced across the school. Everyone, it seemed, had
an opinion. That was when every boy at school had started throwing
himself at her. Trying to make her see the light, show her how a real
relationship was suppose to work.
It had taken her several days to trace the rumors back to
their source, but by then it was too late. It wasn't until after
Ranma, that her network of information had become the lean machine
that it was now. There just wasn't that much to sell back then.
Now with all the boys crowding her, it was easy to see why she
always turned them all down. However, this only made them come back
for more, while further convincing most of the other girls of that the
rumors were true. Nabiki had tried talking to Kuno. Most of the boys
had respected, or at least feared him. She had tried to get him to
call off the hound pack by pointing out to him that there was no way
she could choose anyone from the mob by the way they crowded her. She
thought he had understood, and he had promised he would take care of
it the next time his turn came of at speech and debate. That had
proven a disaster.
Then came Ranma. She would have laughed the whole thing off,
if it hadn't been about to happen to her. Then the idea hit her, and
Akane was volunteered. She had even privately entertained the thought
that if she really did like girls, then perhaps Ranma was the answer.
A chance to look normal, and follower her heart. Moreover, despite
their rough start, it seemed like it might even work out. At least he
seemed to have ended the debacle that even she could not undo. Not
that Nabiki would ever admit to that.
Nevertheless, she couldn't ignore the continuous bickering and
argument between them. Neither of them seemed happy. She didn't fully
understand Ranma's problem, but she always felt a little guilty for
her part in putting Akane in that place. Engaged to a man, who from
moment to moment was either a jerk or a woman, and usually managed to
be both at the same time.
Still he had thrown himself into danger to save her time and
again. And it seemed at times like he might really did like her. And
maybe Akane did see something special in him. To Nabiki, however, he
was definitely the same male-jock egocentric jerk weither he was a he
or she. Then again there had been those fleeting glimpses she caught
of him. Hints that there might be something more to him. And time and
again, he had proven himself the shallow jerk she had come to think of
him as. She had wanted to believe he cared for Akane.
Now she was not surprised when they all returned from Jusenkyo
still cursed. She had started believing that perhaps fate itself was
wrapped up in their curse. Still, she doubted that the same waters
that had ushered in their curse would remove it so easily. After all,
why didn't they just cure themselves when they first got cursed? Why
didn't Shampoo's Great Grandmother not return quickly to the springs
to cure Shampoo once it was obvious that her cursed form provided a
giant wall between her and Ranma ever getting together. She knew
Shampoo had to be aware of how her chances were hurt because she was a
cat, and she never seemed to share in the great desire that Ranma and
mouse shared in becoming cured.
Then she had caught her father trying to hide the barrel of
Nannichaun. He even asked her to help with the wedding plans. As if
the only reason to get married would be so that Ranma would have his
cure. That was too much. I would be happy for them both if Akane found
in Ranma what ever it was that she thought she saw, and then they got
married. However, to force Ranma to marry her just so he could receive
the cure. If that was the only thing driving this marriage, there were
a few people who might want a say.
'I goofed,' was all Nabiki could think at that moment. She had
failed to think it though fully. Take into account the full mess it
would make. How it would forever scare what, to Akane, even if she had
to marry that jerk, it should have been the most beautiful day of her
life. The day they had all dreamed about for themselves, even if
Nabiki would never admit to it. Her wedding day.
She knew they both had changed from their trip to China.
Something had happened there. None of them had delivered the full
story yet. Which was strange in and of itself for Ranma. He had
clearly vanquished yet another rival in the arts. But unlike before,
he wasn't bragging about it. He seemed somber about it. It wasn't like
he killed anyone or anything. 'Besides, how was I suppose to know,
that daddy wasn't going to tell Ranma until after the wedding?'
Excuses, she knew. She looked long out the window. There wasn'
t anything she could do now to take it back. Laughingly, "If only
could have but one wish," she spoke aloud. Maybe, if I could arrange
for everyone to be gone. A week maybe, at least a few days. If
anything could be salvaged.
She stopped mid thought. She could see two people down the
street. Which in and of itself was not strange. The taller figure was
that of a man in his early to mid thirties, with an average build.
Still not really enough to grab her attention. The other was a girl,
all of maybe sixteen. Probably his daughter, she thought. Still not
the thing that was nibbling at the back of her mind as she stood at
her window. Hmmm. Both of them were dressed vary warmly. While it was
cool out, it was definitely not that cold. Still, not really that odd.
That they had standing there for at least the last five or so minutes
staring at their house; that brought her attention to them. Something
else though was nibbling at the back of her mind. She was sure she
didn't notice them come from any particular direction. Not that she
had been paying that much attention, but something about that gnawed
at her as they finally started the walk down the street toward their
house. Great, another Ranma mess to clean up. I knew I was too easy on
him. She turned and walked out toward the living room. 'Might as well
catch this one from the beginning.'