hello out there.
Well, for a chapter going over an hour and ten minutes of time, it sure took
a lot longer to write... *Sighs* It may have been awhile, but I'm still
going and this fic, and my others, are going along, albeit slowly... also, I
never claimed to be a good fight writer, so be gentle on the comments. You
can always go to my website to refresh yourselves on the old chapters, I
know it's been awhile...
________________________________________________________________________
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-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
-- File: Leav5.txt
Disclaimer :
Ranma 1/2 is not mine.
Slayers is not mine.
Note : This is a Ranma/Slayers fusion, in the sense that the Slayers
characters
and magic system were incorporated in the Ranmaverse, and changed to better
fit
Modern Japan, with a different dynamic between the characters. C&C is
greatly
appreciated and can be sent to ranma_666@hotmail.com or ICQ# 45118495. Thank
you.
*******
What happened before:
Prologue:
Ranma jumps off a cliff in front of everyone, and is thought dead. Akane
finds
out about Ryoga's curse.
Chapter 1:
We find out how Ranma survived the fall. Akane sees Ranma and goes back to
Nerima to get help. Everyone of the normal cast finds out too and goes.
Chapter 2:
We see tidbits of the first week of Ranma's new life. Amongst other things,
Lina
sets Ranma up with a girl in their class who's interested in him, with the
excuse of tutoring.
Chapter 3:
The Nerima gang chases Ranma, with little success as he shows them his new
power. Nabiki gets a taste of her own medecine as she attempts to make a
'deal'
with Lina, forcing her not to tell anything... much.
Chapter 4:
Ranma and Lina try a preemptive strike and fail miserably, another chase
ending
in Ranma lashing out against Akane. He gets home to find his father returned
and
Mei passed out on the couch.
*******
" " spoken
' ' thought
< > Chinese
*******
Leaving, chapter 5
Promblems
Part 1: The Mighty Past
*******
Ranma got out of his Monday math class with a big sigh. "Oh god...
Lucky
the rumor of a pop quiz wasn't true." he said to Lina, going down the hall.
"Damn right." she shot back. "You would failed one through and through.
I
bet you didn't even understand a word of what he said today." She stopped at
her
locker, Ranma going only two over for his.
He sighed. "I didn't even hear what he was saying." he confessed,
whispering to her.
Lina nodded, as if expecting that much. "Worried about Mei, huh?" He
only
looked at her. "Yeah. Kinda obvious." She took out her gym clothes. "You can
always try to talk to her at the tryouts. There's always lots of free
time..."
"Eh... come again?" Ranma asked, confused.
"The tryouts. You know?" He shook his head. "Oh. It's for the finals in
gym
class. The last two days before the finals week are like school Olympics.
Today
we do tryouts to choose 4 sports to compete in." She closed her locker,
waiting
for Ranma. "They didn't do that at Furinkan?"
"Nope." He took his gym clothes and closed his locker, walking with
Lina to
the gym. "So... I'm supposed to choose which sports I want to do?"
"More or less. You get to pick the sports you'd like to compete in, and
if
you do good enough today to qualify, you're in." she explained.
"Hum..." Ranma was still confused. "But I'm the best in every sport."
he
stated matter-of-factly.
Lina rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, sure, Mr. Big-bad-martial-artist."
"Honest!" he replied, sincere. "I've never been beaten at my old
school.
I'm the strongest and fastest around." Somehow, he actually sounded humble.
Still unconvinced, she made no effort to hide it from him. "In that
case,
just don't give it your all, Mr. Big Shot."
Ranma sighed. "It's not that simple, Lina. That damn gym teacher's been
on
my case because he could see I wasn't really trying. He's bound to be even
worse
for this."
"Oh, come on. You're not *that* good."
"Perhaps you forgot what I did this weekend." he replied. Lina got this
wondering look as she thought, and he stopped her, looking her straight in
the
eyes. "Lina, I don't need my full strength to shatter concrete, I can run
faster
than most people on bikes and I can polevault without the damn pole! Just
what
does it take to convince you?!?" he hissed at her.
"Okay, okay, geez!" she shot back, getting his hands off her shoulders.
"You're getting annoying... why the hell you asking me for? Nothing I can do
about it..." She suddenly got an idea. "Why don't you pick the 4 sports you
least excel at, then?"
Ranma blinked. "Like what? I told you--"
"Yeah yeah, you're the best, I know." Like she truly believed that.
"But...
how about kendo. You said your style was mainly hand-to-hand, so maybe
you'll
have to actually try to compete. You know, Gourry made second in the
regional
championships last year. He could give you a run for your money."
Imagination went wild as Ranma tried to think of Gourry actually being
good
at something. "You're talking about Gourry, right? This tall, blond hair,
smart
as a pie and the guy you deny having any feelings for?"
"I do not have feelings for Gourry!" she hissed back at him. "And if
you're
gonna be like that, why should I help you?" She turned and took off for the
gym.
"Oh, geez... why can't she just admit it? It's so obvious her nose
should
grow when she denies it..." He shrugged. "Oh, well. Although she does have a
point..." He continued on his way. "I haven't really studied kendo...
although I
think I fought Kuno enough times to know a few things, and M- Nodoka did
teach
me a little before I finally left h- Nerima..." His head twitched
imperceptibly,
a hand going to it as a little headache came, but faded right off.
He shrugged it off and got into the boys' locker room, sitting down on
the
bench, alone. After one week, all he had gotten in the measure of friends
was
his sister Lina, her pseudo-boyfriend Gourry, Mei, who was now practically
ignoring him, and a bunch of giggling schoolgirls after he had made the
mistake
of taking off his gym shirt to wipe his sweat last Friday. Funny how that
had
never happened back in Furinkan. Maybe it was because of the hanging threat
of
his fiancees for any new competition.
Ranma quickly changed, the silence of the empty locker room getting to
him,
and took off for the gym. He jogged to join the group of guys, sitting down
in
the back as the teacher started his lecture on the tryouts. had Ranma half-
listened as Lina had given him the brunt of it. He found himself chin in
hand,
elbow on a knee, as his gaze slowly turned towards the girls' group, to one
particular long-haired girl specifically, an almost longing look came to his
eyes, as last night's events returned in his mind...
*** Flashback ***
Ranma was practically done telling the events of the weekend to his
father
when a groan interrupted him. Recognizing the voice quickly, he practically
teleported to Mei's side. "Mei!! Are okay???"
The girl slowly sat up on the couch, hand on her forehead. "Ooh..." She
blinked her eyes to the light and she gathered her surroundings. Her eyes
fell
on Ranma and she used him to focus. Said eyes immediately narrowed, eyebrows
coming down, and the targeted boy couldn't help but feel a shiver run down
his
spine at the first negative expression he had ever seen on the girl.
Lina silently distanced herself, letting the upset girl get up. Mei's
eyes
didn't waver from Ranma's as she got up, stood right in front him, reared a
hand
back and wordlessly slapped him. Turning a heigthened nose at his fallen
form,
she grabbed her schoolbag that was on the coffee table and walked out,
closing
the door solidly behind her. Sprawled on the couch, right cheek puffed and
swollen, Ranma looked at her go with wide eyes, blinking as the door
slammed.
*** End Flashback ***
Ranma blinked himself out of it as the door slammed in his mind,
matching
the cry of the coach in front of him.
"Listen up, people! This year, we have 10 events for you all to compete
in!
You have to be in at least 1 of the 5 tracks events; 100m dash, 110m hurdle,
400m relay, high jump and long jump. You have to be in at least 1 of the 3
team
events; baseball, basketball and soccer for boys, softball, volleyball and
tennis for girls. The last two events are kendo and karate." he explained
loud
and clear.
A girl immediately raised her hand, not waiting to talk. "Sensei! Is
there
going to be an extra event for bonus points this year?" she asked, seemingly
very eager for there to be one; Ranma could guess she really needed those
extra
points just by the smallness of her raised arm.
The coach seemed to hesitate to answer. "Erm, yes, well, I still
haven't
decided on that yet. It's nothing certain, but if there is one it'll be
mixed
double tennis." He clapped his hands hard together, taking a more serious
look.
"Alright! Everything's been said, so everybody out!" He motioned to the
exits.
All of the students got up and poured out of the gym, Ranm trailing
behind,
looking longingly at Mei. 'Neither Lina or Father knows what happened... she
was
just found knocked out in front of the house...'
"Inverse!"
'I'd just like to know...' he continued musing.
"Inverse!"
'Whoever did that to her obviously said something to upset her, but
what?'
"INVERSE!"
Ranma jumped, startled, looking around. His brain finally registered he
was
being called upon, and he turned to the yelling coach. "Hum, yes sir?" he
tentatively said.
"Inverse, today you better be trying for real at the tryouts. I don't
know
how you faked that sweat Friday, but you weren't even breathing hard. I want
you
to do your best, understood?!?" the man glowered.
"Humm... Yes sir." Ranma sweatdropped. 'Damn it... I forgot to fake the
breathing...' And he had been so proud of his idea to use chi to heat up
himself
to sweat so much, too.
The coach, aptly named Genki Fujisawa, motioned for Ranma to follow the
others outside, and followed once he started. "Now... what sports do you
have in
mind?" he asked.
"Err..." The sweatdrop behind his head was joined by another. "I'm...
not
sure yet." he said tentatively.
"Yes... with your speed, stamina and strength, I'm sure the choice of
sports to compete in is difficult..." the man agreed.
Ranma now sported about a dozen sweatdrops. "Err... Yeah..." he
hesitated.
'This is not good...' he thought.
"Now, it seems you weren't listening, so I'll repeat the main rule for
these mini-Olympics. No matter how well you do, if you're not trying your
best,
you're flunking my class. Got that, Inverse?" he asked sternly.
The back of Ranma's head was covered in tiny beads of sweat. "Yes,
sir." he
said. 'I am SO screwed...' His father had given him good grades to go along
with
his new identity, but he still had to do well, especially in gym class since
he
wanted to study phys. ed. to be a dojo sensei. But getting the grade he
needed
was entailing risks he wasn't quite willing to take.
Still thinking, Ranma ran to the end of the line for the 100 meter
dash,
which also qualified as a test for the relay event. His thoughts were
ashamble.
'I have to pick 4... the 4 sports I'm less familiar with... let's see... I
have
to pick one track, and speed and jump are out of the question, so it's going
to
be 110 meter hurdle... the team one... baseball and soccer are just hitting
and
running, so it's going to be basketball... and the last two, kendo and
karate.'
He sighed. 'It's not going to be easy...'
"Hey! Inverse! Take your place!" Startled again, Ranma glowered at the
assistant coach before taking a running stance. "On your marks!" Ranma
blinked,
and trying not to look too sheepish imitated the position of the three other
runners. "Ready! Get set!" The starting gun was fired.
Ranma was surprised enough by the bang, not really having heard it
before,
that his response time to it was the same as the other students. Taking off,
not
bothering to hold back, he quickly outdistanced the others and crossed the
finish line when the others were barely passed the halfway point. Stopping
on a
dime, he turned to the assistant coach with the stopwatch, curious about his
time.
The man was staring at the stopwatch, too shocked to have stopped it
for
Ranma. The upset boy nudged him, causing the man to stop the timer about one
second before the other students crossed the line. "Err..." he blinked at
the
result. "11.25 seconds for Inverse Ranma." he called, as the other
assistants
called the times for the other students.
Almost correcting the man, Ranma shrugged, not caring, as it would only
move the spotlight more on himself, and ignoring the half-hearted
congratulations moved on to the next event. Standing bored in the line for
the
110m hurdle, he almost jumped skyhigh when a hand landed on his shoulder.
"Oh, sorry Ranma. I saw you run the 100m dash and I wanted to
congratulate
you." the boy behind him said.
Ranma turned, about to say an angry retort, when he saw who it was.
"Oh!
Hey Gourry!" He smiled embarrassedly. "Yeah, well, it was nothing, really. I
just run fast."
"Oh, don't be modest, Ranma, you're the fastest in school, easily! Are
you
going to compete next week?" Gourry asked.
He shook his head. "Nah, it'd be too easy. I'm gonna choose sports that
are
at least a little challenging to me." he replied.
"I hear that, but why'd you run the 100m dash then? You only have to
try
for the events you want to participate in, if you're sure to get in." he
explained.
Ranma blinked less than intelligently. "I do?" He sighed, shrugging.
"Well,
if we only have an hour for the tryouts, it makes sense, I guess. Thanks."
He
patted Gourry's shoulder.
"Hey, no problem. So are you trying out for the hurdles? I'm going to
in
case I don't make it in the 100m dash. There are some really fast people in
school, you know." he commented.
"Err, yeah, I guess." Ranma moved up in line. "So, what else are you
trying?"
"Well, kendo of course, basketball and soccer. What about you?" Gourry
explained, wincing with Ranma as one guy only half-succeeded at jumping one
hurdle. "I thought those were supposed to fall when you hit them." he
commented.
"Me too." he replied. "Ouch. Anyway, I'm trying for kendo and
basketball
too, with karate." He grinned. "I hope we end up facing each other." 'I'd
like
to know what my sister's boyfriend is made of.' he added in his head.
"Yeah, me too." Gourry replied in his usual way. "So, kendo and karate?
Lina mentioned you liked martial arts." he stated.
Repressing a snort, Ranma only nodded, looking at two other students
making
a run for it over the hurdles, noting the technique and trying to figure out
the
details; he had never really bothered with Olympic sports, as his fa-- as
Genma
had said, those athletes only trained for one sport, while martial arts
necessitated a complete physical training for all possibilities.
Thinking he had it down, Ranma was wearing a smirk when it came to be
his
turn. No longer taken off guard by the gun fire, he was off in a flash,
taking
care to barely skim the hurdles as he ran, knowing speed was gained when his
feet were on the ground. He tried not to think of the part of him that was
squeezed each time he jumped a hurdle, and quickly made it to the finish,
ahead
of the other student by two hurdles.
Taking a few walking steps to stop, Ranma made sure to look like he was
breathing hard. He also made his chi flare for a few seconds, still
invisible to
the untrained eye, heating his body so he would come to sweat in time. A few
curses passed through his head as he thought of why he had to do that, then
he
looked around, not caring about his time. He blatantly ignored the group of
giggling girls that sporadically glanced his way, and having spotted the
basketball courts, waited for Gourry to have his run.
Seeing the two runners come his way from fifteen feet past the finish
line,
Ranma got big eyes and looked away, now knowing why those girls had been
giggling at him. And BOYS were supposed to be perverts?!?
Trying to put those thoughts away -- girls in general, and one in
particular -- he calmly waited for Gourry. It didn't take long for the man
to
barrel past him, slowing down to a walk, breathing slightly hard at the run.
Ranma joined the boy. "Not bad." he commented.
"Thanks." He took a deep breath and let it out to return to normal
breathing. "So, where are you going next?" he asked.
Ranma took a good look around. At first there had been a semblance of
organization on the school grounds, but now there were students scattered
here
and there, talking and looking at others as they tried for the events, girls
looking and giggling at boys and boys looking and checking out the girls --
there was many a male observer of the girl volleyball tryouts, for reasons
Ranma
didn't quite understand. What was so interesting about a bunch of girls
running
around after a ball? This was one thing that made his travels with his fa--
Genma not so bad; he may lack some social skills, but at least he didn't
have
the odd and stupid behaviors that seemed to come with them. If being raised
'normally' had him do something as pointless and uninteresting as watching
girls
play volleyball, he was glad to have been raised on the road.
"Well, Gourry, looks to me that basketball and kendo tryouts are next
to
each other over there," he pointed, "so I guess that'd be a good place to
go,
since we're both trying for those." He started on his way, Gourry matching
his
pace.
Gourry diverted his gaze from the volleyball fields as they passed it.
"I
don't have to try for kendo, Ranma. I'm automatically in since I'm the
captain
of the kendo team." he said.
"You are?" Ranma replied, surprised. Then he shrugged. "Guess it makes
sense. No point in having you try when it's proven you're the best in
school."
he nodded knowingly. He counted Gourry lucky. Sometimes recognition of skill
gave pass-bys, sometimes it gave constant questioning. He had gotten the
latter
most of his life, Gourry had gotten the former. Ranma just gave that thought
a
mental shrug, not one to bother over things people can't actually control.
The two arrived to the basketball tryouts, entering the fenced
perimeter to
stand in line. Ranma observed the one-on-one between the student and his
opponent, unwillingly tuning out the sounds, and Gourry's voice, as he noted
the
moves of the game. By the time it was his turn, he only did a quick
left-right-
left feint to pass on his opponent's left and slam the ball in the net with
an
easy small jump, hanging from the rim for a second before returning to the
ground.
"N- not bad, Inverse." the assistant coach said, marking his opinion on
his
clipboard. He glanced at the captain of the basketball team, who had been
Ranma's testing opponent, and was looking back, a baffled look on his face.
Giving a nervous smile, Ranma got out of the court area, leaning on a
fence, waiting to see Gourry in action. He didn't get to, however. "You're
good." a soft voice stated from behind him.
Twirling around, knowing that voice, he practically slammed head first
in
the fence. "Mei!" His hands went against the chainlink, fingers squeezing
the
metal, bending it to his fingers' form.
Not at all bothered by his ouburst, she continued. One finger tapped a
link
next to Ranma's hand, indicating she had noticed. "You really are the
world's
greatest martial artist. So do you really bring trouble wherever you go?"
she
asked, her voice still soft and gentle, almost still stating fact like
before.
Ranma blinked, confused. "What? Mei, what are you talking about? What
happened to you last night?" he asked, enerved, pressing against the fence.
She slowly shook her head, a few hairs freeing themselves from the rest
and
coming in front of her face softly. One hand gently came up to replace them
behind her ear. "I--" she began, but was interrupted as three very happy and
cheerful girls shoved her aside to stand in front of Ranma.
"Hiii!!!" the three chorused, huddled next to each other and their arms
to
their sides, having the effect of forwarding the part of their anatomy that
found itself squeezed between the arms. Ranma blinked and froze, not used to
cheery girls coming on to him, and was glad there was a fence between him
and
them.
"Err... hi." he returned, weakly motioning with one hand. He turned to
look
at Mei, who was now walking away. "Mei!" he called, pressing himself against
the
fence, but she just continued on her way.
"Hey, you were really good there." the first one, on the left, said.
"Yeah, are you on a team or something?" the one in the middle added.
"You must be a professional!" the third continued, getting glares from
the
two others, angry and envious.
Ranma's eyes darted from one girl to another, bigsweating as despite
his
usual cluelessness he was getting the message quite clearly from those
girls. He
slowly removed his hands from the chainlink fence, half-taking a step back.
"I,
uh... just practice, is all...I, um..." His eyes darted from one girl to
another, more and more scared by the warm and inviting smiles with the
mischievous gleaming eyes of each girl, and he didn't need to read their
body
language to know what was in their mind.
A hand on his shoulder saved his twisted tongue; Gourry, who had seen
Ranma's predicament after beating the basketball team captain, had decided
to
save him from the energetic and forward trio. "Hey, Ranma, you coming for
the
next tryout?" he asked.
Looking up, Ranma sighed as he saw who saved him. "Yeah, sure, no
prob." he
replied, turning around. He turned a weak smile to the girls, "See ya
later." he
felt he had to say, even if he knew it was a mistake. A deep mistake.
Thankful
the entrance to the fenced basketball court was the opposite of where the
girls
were, he hurried out and towards the kendo tryout.
"Thanks, Gourry." he said once at a safe distance.
"Hey, no problem, Ranma." the tall blonde cheerily returned. "You're
not
the first guy I've seen fall to pieces in front of girls, especially those
three." he chuckled.
"I did not--" Ranma started to deny, but let out his breath in a long
sigh.
"Yeah, I guess I do, sometimes." he admitted. "Who were those three, anyway?
I
don't remember them in my class..." he trailed, looking over his shoulder,
but
not seeing the girls.
Gourry shrugged. "They're in 5-C like me." he said. "The tall one with
the
long purple hair is Nana, the shortest one with the brown hair is Saki, and
the
green-haired girl is Mio." he explained.
"Ah." Ranma replied. And promptly didn't ask more, focusing himself on
more
positive thoughts as he approached the crowds surrounding the tatami mats
where
the kendo tryouts were held.
*******
On the other side of the courtyard, three girls were talking together,
one
leaning on the perimeter fence. "He's mine." that one said, in a tone not
very
appropriate for a young girl, dark and serious.
"HA!" the shortest one scoffed. "If anyone's, he's mine! Just because
he's
with that girl doesn't mean you have any right on him!" she argued.
"You're both delusional!" the tallest one said, flipping a strand of
her
long hair over her shoulder. "I can't see such a man being with harridans
like
you two! It's obvious he's interested in me..." She fanned herself with a
hand,
eyes closed, thus missing the scowl for her short companion.
The third, on the other hand, only smiled confidently, head a little
lowered as she leaned on the fence, one finger coming up to adjust her
glasses
from the side of the frame. "Well, in that case, I say may the best girl
win."
She smiled to her competition.
The brunette glowered to her. "Damn right... and I'm gonna win." She
turned
around. "Gotta go to kendo tryouts... see ya later." she said, losing her
angry
tone for a second before leaving.
"Hmph!" the other exclaimed, turning around as well, lowering one hand
rapidly and letting down her yo-yo. It steadily spinned at the end of its
cord.
"You shouldn't even try, you know I'll win." she said to the remaining girl
before leaving.
Not leaving her post on the fence, the last girl left merely smiled,
confident and mysterious, raising one hand holding a tiny wire, a small
spark of
electricity running down its path.
*******
Ranma had actually wondered if he could do it when he was told the
rules of
the kendo tryout; disarm your opponent without hurting him. Being quicker
and
more agile than his adversary helped absorb his strikes so not to loose his
grip, being stronger gave a good advantage, but to simply disarm his
opponent
took a good deal of actual skill. Which was, Ranma reasoned, the reason the
coach had made it the tryout test.
Still, the basics he had learned from his mo- from Nodoka had come in
handy, allowing him not to fall for a number of tricks, long enough to get
his
bearings of his opponent's speed and skill, as well as picking up a few
things.
Yet, his edge in speed barely made up for his lack in skill, and even though
Ranma was sure his display so far had gotten him qualified, he was
determined
not to lose.
Feint, strike, block, counter, dodge, block, duck, strike, strike,
block.
'Gotta find a weakness.' Block, push away, strike, strike, block, dodge,
counter, block. 'Gotta try something...' Side attack, blocked, twist of the
wrist, counterclock twirl of the bokkens, ended with a upward swipe; the
bokken
didn't go flying like in the movies. 'Darn... he can really hold unto-
waitasec!
Let's try this again!' he thought, realizing something.
Attack on the other side, blocked, twist, clockwise twirl, swipe.
Ranma's
eyes widened a bit. 'That's it! I know how he holds his bokken now!' Strike,
strike, strike, all blocked, but used to put his opponent's weapon in the
right
position, and a hit just above the guard with a slight twist disarmed his
adversary, bokken flying to the side. Ranma quickly leveled the tip of his
weapon to the boy's throat, whom held his hands up in defeat.
And the seriousness of the moment was destroyed when the surrounding
crowd
started applauding.
The assistant coach came towards the challenger, who was currently
rubbing
the back of his head in discomfort, bokken down. "Very good, Inverse." he
complimented, writing on his clipboard. "You make up your lack of skill
beautifully, but I wonder if you'll be as lucky when it's time to actually
hit
your opponent." He turned around, not letting Ranma reply. "Consider
yourself
in. Good luck." he added before leaving the mats.
Not knowing weither he had just been complimented or insulted, Ranma
wordlessly stepped off the tryout area, handing his bokken to the next in
line.
Giving a brief nod to all the guys congratulating him, brushing off the
slaps on
the shoulders, Ranma made his way to the high blond spot a bit distant from
the
crowd.
"Come on, Gourry." he told the tall boy, tone of voice rather
disinterested. "I have another tryout to go to." He didn't even pause as he
passed him, only kept his steady walk towards the karate tryout.
Slightly puzzled, not really understanding Ranma's lack of enthusiasm,
Gourry nevertheless followed. Having already performed his soccer tryout
while
Ranma had been waiting for kendo, he didn't have anything else to do for the
rest of the period, and while lunch was next, they weren't allowed to go
yet.
And even though he was curious as to how Lina was doing, having seen Ranma
perform so admirably against the kendo club's second, he was more tempted to
witness Ranma's skills in karate.
That very thing was on Ranma's thoughts, as well. 'Karate... I haven't
done
pure karate since I was a kid. Those moves are so far ago that I don't use
them
or they're melded into everything else...' He looked up ahead; thankfully,
the
line for trying against the karate captain was long, and he'd have a chance
to
get a refresher's course in the moves.
"Say, Gourry," he wondered, eyes not leaving the opponents, "how come
it
wasn't you testing the students at the kendo tryout?" Those kicks and moves
were
beginning to feel familiar, but...
"Well, Ranma, the other captains aren't seniors... I'm the only one,
and I
have to do the other tryouts anyway." he answered.
He nodded. "I guess that makes sense..." Punch, punch, block... all
coming
back, slowly. "See ya in a bit." he said, going to the rack to get a
standard
gi, mandatory even for only a tryout. Ranma had never understood the utility
of
the thing; after all, unless you planned to wear a gi all the time like po-
Genma, what were the chances of being attacked only when you're wearing a
gi? It
was better to learn to fight in an outfit that was more practical and you
could
wear in more situations. But, he supposed, it wasn't everyone who expected a
fight around every corner. Tightening his belt, making sure his movements
weren't too restricted, Ranma made his way to the edge of the tatami mats,
waiting his turn.
Which didn't take long; after a student's rather brief defeat, the two
following boys, apparently friends of his, decided upon the safe route and
left
with him. 'Oh well,' Ranma shrugged, 'the faster this is over, the faster I
can
stop attracting attention.' Without further ado, he gave his name to the
assistant coach and stepped in front of his adversary. He gave a quick bow
and
he copied the captain's ready stance.
'Nothing to it... just focus on using pure karate.' Block, punch,
counterblock, block, step back. 'Harder than I thought... gotta fight the
urge
to cream this guy with other martial arts.' Dodge, dodge, block, counter.
'He's
pretty quick... come on, memory, do your thing.' Kick, block, pushing the
foot
aside, but his opponent was already regaining his balance.
Blocking a fist with an open palm, Ranma had to restrain himself from
simply grabbing the fist, twisting his hand to grab the wrist and throwing
his
opponent into the wall twenty feet away. Throwing him on the mat would
probably
count as a judo throw; the wall, Ranma was mostly sure, was pretty much off-
limits.
Ranma threw a quick kick to his opponent's chest, while his fist was
still
extended; the block came, barely in time, from the other arm. Unsure if it
counted as karate, but thinking he might as well try it, Ranma twisted on
himself, foot still on his adversary's arm, letting his upper body fall, one
hand coming down, rising his other foot to swipe at the boy's chest. The
karate
club captain leaned back in time, letting his arms be pushed to the side as
the
kick continued its spin, knowing he had time to recover while his challenger
got
back up.
Hand pushing on the ground to back him up, Ranma twisted to get back on
his
feet, then took a step back to return to his ready stance, avoiding barely
the
quick kick/punch combo in time. He raised an arm for a pre-emptive block of
the
punch he knew was following and took the half-second it gained him to launch
a
punch of his own to his opponent's midsection; it hadn't connected yet when
Ranma looked up to the boy's eyes, seeing the brief moment of confusion in
them
that precedes realization, allowing the smallest of arrogant smiles on his
lips
as his punch connected, part of him enjoying the shock he could see
displayed in
the round slightly dilated irises, the karate club captain's body rising a
few
inches in the air from the blow, bits of saliva escaping opening lips.
A blink of an eye, and the world seemed to return to normal speed,
Ranma's
adversary falling on hand and knees, holding his hurting stomach with a
groan.
He retracted his arms, relaxing to a simple stand, and reaching down offered
a
hand to his fallen foe.
The boy took it, pulling himself up. He grimly noted that Ranma's hand
and
arm didn't strain, even less move, as he did so. Eyes narrowing the
slightest
bit as he stood, the karate club captain regarded his adversary with a new
eye,
wondering just what the boy who had hit him so hard was truly capable of,
outside of a karate tryout. And how much he had been holding back.
Offering a weak smile, Ranma stepped back and bowed, waiting for the
captain to bow and raise before rising himself, showing a bit of respect. He
then left the mats, undoing his belt as he approached the assistant coach.
"That move wasn't exactly conventional, Inverse," the man warned,
writing
on his clipboard, "but since it didn't do any real harm, I can overlook it
for
the moment." He hooked his pen inside the clip. "The way things are going,
it's
a good bet you're in, Inverse, but I'd brush up on my karate moves if I were
you." he suggested, waving a raised finger around.
Ranma nodded. "Was already planning to," he said honestly, "but thanks
for
the warning." Receiving a quick nod from the man, Ranma went to the rack and
quickly returned the gi, happy to step out of the thing. 'Done... here's to
hoping that I didn't go too much out of normal bounds...' Sighing, he went
back
to find Gourry, easily spotted, as usual.
"Hey! Way to go, Ranma! You really got him with that trick of yours!"
the
tall boy complimented.
"Huh?" Ranma replied less than intelligently, blinking.
Gourry slapped him on the shoulder. "Oh, come on! I saw through that
easily! Starting on the defensive to make him overconfident, doing that kick
to
test his reflexes, then falling back to make him reach too far as he
followed
you. I saw you start that block early, you knew exactly what he was going to
do!
It was brilliant!" he said, clapping Ranma on the shoulder again.
"It was?" Ranma blinked again. That wasn't how he remembered it. Then
again, his subconscious was capable of great battle planning, which he
realized
only after the fact. Or maybe it was just Gourry seeing things. "Well,
maybe,
but I still need to brush up on my karate." he replied.
He shrugged. "I dunno about that, Ranma, but I can help you with kendo
if
you want. You're good, but you won't beat Shiro again with only basics." he
warned.
Ranma sighed. "I suppose..." He wasn't about to say he needed help, but
he'd be damned before he'd let himself be beaten if he could avoid it. Even
if
the outcome wasn't as important as fights in his old life used to be. He
shook
his head to prevent stirring up unwanted memories. "Hey, I wonder how Lina's
doing." he asked Gourry.
The kendoist pointed. "I think I see a spot of red hair at the tennis
courts, could be her." he replied.
"Well, let's go." Up ahead, the redhaired girl was difficult to make
out,
although she seemed to be winning the match. Ranma could hardly imagine Lina
playing tennis, but if the way the girl wielded her racket was any
indication,
it couldn't be anyone but her.
It was 15-40. Lina was one point away from winning the match. All she
had
to do was return the serve with her traditional powerful swing, and her
opponent
would never know what went by her. Eyes focused on the ball, completely
concentrated as the girl threw it upwards, ready to serve, she was psyched
up,
ready to go, nothing could get to her, nothing could--
"Go Lina!"
"Huh?"
*POW*
Ranma and Gourry watched Lina slowly fall backwards, the right side of
her
face red from the tennis ball that had hit it.
"Ranma, I am seriously very afraid for your life right now." Gourry
said.
"So am I, Gourry," Ranma replied, "so am I."
Red-faced, and not because of the tennis ball, Lina Inverse slowly got
up,
giving a glare that would put Death to shame, directed straight at her
brother.
Slowly, ever-so-slowly, she turned to face her adversary, returning to a
ready
position.
On the other side of the court, the poor girl, already shaken up by
hitting
someone in the face with her serve, was even more afraid by Lina's glare and
angry face turned her way, and could not shake more if someone had put an
enormous tarantulas on her shoulder and it was crawling up her face. Barely
holding unto her tennis racket, she slowly reached for another ball, readied
herself and, after taking a steadying breath, let it fly. And saw it fly
back
past her before she could blink.
"Point, match, Inverse!" the referee called, raising one arm towards
the
winner's side of the court.
Lina's head immediately swiveled to look at Ranma.
Who offered a weak smile in apology. "Hey, good going, sis, you won..."
he
tried. And could almost hear a growl in return. 'Uh oh...' Ranma raised his
hands in defense, taking a step back even with the chainlink fence between
him
and her. He was rather glad the door out of the courts was away on one side,
but
even the detour wouldn't deter Lina from coming to get him. The chainlink
fence
wouldn't stop Lina either, for that matter. Nor would anyone or anything,
short
of Father himself, and he was a bit too far away to be of any help, sadly.
And then, the unthinkable happened. Lina seemingly calmed down,
standing
somehow relaxed, one hand on her hip, the other brushing back her hair as
she
lowered her head a bit, eyes closed with a small smile. "Oh, no harm done,
brother," she started, rubbing off her right cheek - Ranma could feel the
tingle
of magic being used, probably Lina hiding an healing spell under her hand -
"you
were only trying to cheer me on, after all. How could I be mad at you for
that,
I did win, didn't I?" she said, ending with a dazzling smile.
Which scared Ranma to no end. "S-s-sis, what are you doing?" he
stammered,
taking another step back for good measure.
Lina removed her hand, putting it on her hip as well, putting more
weight
on one foot. "Come on, Ranma, aren't you listening? I'm saying that it's no
big
deal, forget about it, okay?" She smiled again, looking even nicer.
And making Ranma even more scared. "Y-y-you really sure about this?" he
asked shakily, gulping.
"Sure I'm sure." she answered. "Now, if you'll excuse me, dear brother,
Gourry, I have another tryout to go to. See ya!" She did a little wave
before
leaving the courts, still smiling.
After a small moment of contemplation, Gourry put a hand on Ranma's
shoulder. "It's been nice knowing you." he said solemnly.
Ranma stood still for another moment. There was no denying it; for Lina
to
act like that, her revenge would be more than he had ever suffered his whole
two
and a half years in Nerima. It'd probably be just acting sweet for a good
time
just to make him sweat and afraid of her impending revenge, too. Lina
*could* be
that cruel.
"Yeah, it's been nice knowing me too." he replied, almost longingly.
"Better enjoy what little life I have left before Lina takes it." He turned
around, going back to the gym. "I'm hungry, let's go for lunch..." he
offered.
Gourry ran the few steps to be back next to him. "But, Ranma, there's
still
a bit over 5 minutes before the period is over, and we can't leave before
that."
he argued, sounding worried, eyes looking for the coach.
He shrugged in reply, getting to the table next to the gym entrance. "I
don't know about you, Gourry, but I don't think the coach could be more on
my
case than he already is." he said, taking a paper on the table and filling
it
with his name and choice of events, not bothering to write more than the
four he
wanted to. "Whadya think, Gourry?" he asked, turning to face the boy.
"Gourry?"
He blinked, puzzled. "Why do you look nervous like that?" Only receiving a
finger pointing behind him as an answer, Ranma turned around.
"I would think it is because of me." coach Fujisawa said, standing
right in
front of Ranma, looking down on him. Ranma copied Gourry and added a
sweatdrop
to the back of his head. "And contrary to what you believe, I am not, as you
say, 'on your case'. I was merely encouraging you to do your best, and I
must
say I was not disappointed." he smiled. "Very few athletes can boast being
this
good in so many different sports. And that is why I would ask a service of
you,
but before, I'd like to ask you a question; do you know how to play tennis?"
the
man asked, putting a hand on Ranma's shoulder to guide him back towards the
tennis courts.
A bit overwhelmed and confused, Ranma took a second to answer. "Yeah,
I'm
pretty good." he answered, mouth working faster than his brain once again.
Tennis was, actually, one of the few sports outside martial arts he had
learned,
and not of his own volition. That one, he had learned because of Nabiki; her
hobby of playing tennis to stay fit got her a rival on the inside courts of
Tokyo U., and since the girl couldn't beat Nabiki one-on-one, she challenged
her
to a double match. And guess who was caught as Nabiki's partner, since the
challenger took her regional champ boyfriend?
"Oh, really?" the coach replied, acting a bit surprised, but
interested.
"Well, since we still have about five minutes before the end of the period,
how
about a little match? I'm curious as to how versatile you can be..." he
said,
opening the door to the tennis courts.
Having been lead this far, Ranma stopped before entering. "Umm... can I
ask
why?" he wondered, curious.
The man turned to face him. "Truth be told, I need someone to replace
the
assistant coach who's supposed to teach tennis, and if you're as good at it
as
you seem to be in other sports, you're gonna be it." he smiled, pointing at
him.
"Me?!?" Ranma's eyes went wide. "I can't teach tennis! I'm supposed to
be a
student here, not a teacher!" he protested.
"I was under the impression you wanted to be a dojo sensei, Ranma, and
you
can't teach?" The coach's smile grew at Ranma's scowl. "Plus, you get a
boost on
your final GPA. Small, but nothing to sneeze at. But first, you have to be
good
enough at tennis." he said, in a way that let believe he didn't think Ranma
had
what it took.
'Just how does this guy knows this stuff about me?' he wondered to
himself,
trying to restrain his impulse reply of "Alright, you're on!" that his ego
wanted to get out.
"Good, here's your racket." the coach replied, handing him one. "I'll
take
the other side, you can serve first." He turned to go at his place.
'... ... Did I say that aloud? Damn...' Sighing, Ranma looked at his
racket, turning it to find the best grip as he entered the court. Nabiki's
challenge had been some six months ago, but he had kept going to the Tokyo
U.
courts about every two weeks, for a number of reasons. Besides getting away
from
Nerima, and working for Nabiki the rest of the weekend, it allowed him to
make
some extra money from the various bets, as well as answer the various
challenges
he had received after beating the regional champ's ass with what had become
his
trademark move.
Sighing again, dribbling the ball a few times to gather his resolve,
Ranma
set his mind towards the art of tennis. He stopped, grabbing the ball tight,
noting the fuzzyness telling it to be new, and looked up to the coach, now
his
adversary, who gave him a quick nod of readiness. Ranma allowed himself a
slight
smirk. Well, if the man had asked for it, he'd get it, beginning with his
trademark move.
Instead of the traditional serve, swinging the ball into the air to hit
it
as it went down, Ranma used his reflexes, speed training and coordination to
hit
the ball as it went up; that had been his first question. Why bother waiting
for
the ball to get down if he was good enough to hit it as it went up? It gave
an
incredible advantage of surprise, especially with his strength.
So, after a few seconds of staring, Ranma launched his trademark serve
with
his usual speed, the ball barely rising high enough before the racket
slammed
into it; the tennis ball squeezed itself to half its normal height as it
sped
towards the other side of the court, leaving a bit of its fuzz in the corner
of
opposite rectangle as well as making the green ground a bit darker, before
whistling past the coach and hitting the fence, going straight through a
hole to
continue its trek on the other side.
Barely having seen the ball, with even less time to register its
trajectory, the referee looked at the court, spotting the small patch of
fuzz,
and seeing that it was within the perimeter Ranma had to hit inside of,
declared
a point for him.
"That was... humm... you surprised me there, Inverse." the coach
managed,
the hand holding his racket scratching the back of his head, as he looked
between where the ball hit the court and where it went through the fence,
the
chainlink visibly stretched apart. 'She told me he had a mean fast serve,
but
this is practically impossible!' Turning back to face Ranma, he dug a ball
out
of his right pocket. "Why don't I serve next?" he offered, already dribbling
the
ball.
Ranma shrugged, getting ready on his side. "Go ahead." The serve came,
swift and powerful, yet Ranma easily sidestepped away from its path in time
to
have the room to swing, sending the ball speeding in a straight line to the
other side. Fujisawa rushed to run left, and with a wide swing returned the
ball
to Ranma, who had taken the few seconds to get closer to the net, and was
thus
in an excellent position to send the ball back in the far corner, scoring
another point.
Genki Fujisawa stopped in mid-turn, lowering his racket and rubbing the
back of his neck. 'Either his sister didn't exagerate enough his talent, or
I'm
getting a bit too rusty.' Looking at Ranma again, he decided on the former.
Even
if he didn't have any skill, he certainly had the edge in speed and
strength,
multiple fold. He held up one hand to signal to stop. "I think you've proven
yourself, Inverse." he said, walking over to him. "The job's yours, if you
want
it."
Ranma walked a few steps to join him, returning the racket. "Well... I
dunno... how big a boost are we talking about?" he asked, thinking it might
not
be so bad, especially if it was worth it.
"Oh, half a letter grade, I think, if you do a good job." he answered.
He blinked. "Meaning?"
The coach smirked. "Meaning that if you get a high B+, for example,
it'll
go up to a low A-. As I said, it's small, but it can make a difference. I'm
sure
you can use it." he smiled, putting the rackets on the rack.
Biting down the outburst about his grades not being that low, Ranma
reasoned with himself that that remark could be said to anyone, even the
best of
students. "Well, as long as it don't make me work more, sure." he agreed.
"Great! And no, it won't. Only during the remaining gym classes. And--"
he
stopped, interrupted by the bell. "I guess we can continue later. You can
go."
he said.
Ranma nodded. "Thanks. Later, sensei!" He turned and ran off to get
inside,
rushing to be at the cafeteria in time to have the good food.
Watching him run off, the man wondered how things would be with the boy
if
he had had him all through high school, and not the three weeks at the end
of
his senior year. 'I guess I'll never know...' he told himself.
His musings interrupted by a tap on his arm, he turned to face the
student.
"Yes?"
"So, did he accept?" Lina asked, her confident smile saying she already
knew the answer.
Fujisawa nodded. "He did. How did you know he'd fall for that teaching
comment?" he asked her.
Lina's smirk grew as she raised a finger, one eye closing. "I *am* his
sister, after all." she said, touch of amusement in her voice. "Now, if
you'll
excuse me, I have an announcement to make." she added quickly before running
off.
The coach raised an eyebrow, looking at her go. "I didn't know she was
in
the school radio..."
Lina could not be more happy that Ranma had agreed; she had been
expecting
it, but it still felt so good that her brother was walking so blindly and
readily into her plan.
***Tiny Flashback***
"Sure I'm sure." Lina answered Ranma's stuttering question, already
getting
some twisted pleasure out of seeing him so nervous. "Now, if you'll excuse
me,
dear brother, Gourry, I have another tryout to go to. See ya!" Waving
goodbye,
Lina kept her facade smile as she left the courts.
It was all she could do not to explode in laughters. What Ranma had
done
wasn't that bad, but she'd be damned if she just let it go. Hitting him
wouldn't
be quite appropriate, not to mention useless, so that left only another
option;
messing with his head. And she already had what seemed like a good start.
"Inverse!" a loud voice called.
Startled, Lina turned on herself quickly, ready to glare to death
whoever
disturbed her. Then quickly stopped. "Sensei?" she asked the man, looking up
embarrassedly.
"That was a good match you played there, Inverse." he complimented,
sticking a thumb back to the tennis courts. "You've got talent, even if you
got
disturbed, there." he said.
Lina blushed ever so. "Well, I've had lessons." she replied.
The man nodded. "Well, that's good, since I've been looking for someone
good enough in tennis to coach the other students. Interested?" he offered.
"Me?" she blinked. She didn't think herself able to teach, and even
less to
her 'fellow students'. She wasn't exactly liked by the other teenagers. Not
hated, but not liked either. Her fancy personality, less than mild temper
and
the fact that she was a shrine priest's daughter tended to make people
uneasy
around her, and only few were easy-going enough to get along with her. Not
to
mention... "I don't think I have the patience to teach, sensei." she
replied. "I
can barely put up with my brother when I help him with his homework." Her
eyebrow twitched once at one of many bad memories.
"I see... well, that's too bad." he sighed. Then got an idea. "Say, is
anyone else here a student of your tennis instructor, or that you know is
good
at tennis?" he pressed.
Lina thought quickly. "Well, hum... are you sure it's okay to get a
student
to do this?" she wondered.
"Oh, the board doesn't agree with hiring a new teacher only for the
four
remaining classes of the year, but I just think they're short on the budget.
And
since it's only for a few days, they deemed the thing unimportant and let me
give extra credit to any student I see fit." he explained. "You sure you
can't
think of anyone?"
She shook her head. "Sorry. Like I said, just helping my broth--" she
stopped and blinked to herself, not believing she hadn't remembered before.
And
it would be perfect for revenge, too! Ranma would never know what hit him.
"I
don't know why I didn't think of it before!" she exclaimed, trying to sound
oblivious and innocent. "It's my brother who first taught me tennis. I
haven't
seen him play in awhile, but he says he's really good and beat a regional
champ
that was playing at Tokyo U. I'm sure he'd appreciate the opportunity, since
he
wants to be a dojo sensei and all, so if he's unsure ask him about knowing
how
to teach." she said, smiling widely all the while.
The man nodded. "Good, I'll ask him." A quick look around told him that
Ranma was about to leave the grounds, and early at that. "I'll go catch him.
Thanks." With good pace, he made his way to the boy.
With a smirk, Lina hurried to her last tryout.
***End Flashback***
Hurrying out of the girls' locker room, Lina made her way to the radio
room, in time to see the student announcer in the soundproof booth start his
big
announcement.
"Attention, all seniors. In spite of the rumor of lack of funds even
with
your contribution, over the course of this weekend, the board has managed to
find the money necessary for us to have a prom, and a decent one at that, in
the
reception hall of the biggest hotel in town. It'll be at 7 pm on the
Saturday
after the finals, in less than three weeks, and don't forget, as tradition
states, the girls ask the boys, so have fun!"
Just as he was about to turn the mic off, Lina burst into the booth,
distracting him long enough to grab his arm before he hit the button.
Pushing
him aside, rolling to the other side on his chair with a shocked, mute
expression, Lina grabbed the mic and took a breath.
"Listen up, people! I'd like to congratulate my brother, Ranma Inverse,
for
becoming the new temporary tennis coach for the rest of the year for the
senior
class. Fujisawa-sensei said he was really impressed with his ability and
athletic skills." While that wasn't exactly true, it wasn't exactly false,
either. Now for revenge. "And for the girls interested out there, I would
like
to add that my brother is new to town and single. Thank you!" Done, she
stepped
back from the mic, letting the real announcer click it off. Only smiling to
his
angry scowl, she left the booth, almost skipping to the cafeteria, where she
knew her brother was.
Oh, she knew that the kind of situation that she had just sparked was
more
or less the reason that Ranma had left his previous life, but unlike that
one,
there was considerably less chance of things running out of control, of
powerful
martial artists beating the crap out of each other and of people getting
terribly hurt. No, there would only be a lot of embarrassment, especially
for
Ranma, and even though it would only last the three short weeks until the
prom,
and could be stopped anytime by Ranma accepting a girl's proposal, it was
one
hell of a payback.
Still, she was terribly glad she wasn't in Ranma's shoes right now.
*******
To be continued in Part 2: Same Old, New Twist
Anyone care to imagine Ranma's situation?