Nodoka's face lit up in realization. "Now I remember.  That contract
wasn't my idea, it was your father's.  I was against the thing because I
thought it would put too much stress on you.  But your father kept 
badgering
me to agree to it.  I finally gave in because I thought it would keep your
father's more foolish ideas in check.  Apparently, I was wrong."

I find Nodoka's version of events totally unbelievable.  Why would Genma
insist on a contract that requires him to commit suicide and keep badgering
her to accept it?

Perhaps because Genma was so confident in his own schemes he didn't think he 
would ever have to commit seppuku.  He has been shown to be rather 
thoughtless in that regard.

    Finally Nodoka spoke.  "Ranma...there is nothing to forgive. 
Everything
you've done, you've done because you felt you had no choice.  You hid 
behind
the identity of Ranko because of your father's lies.  It took great 
courage
for you to reveal your curse to me.  You felt I had a right to know my son
was alive.  You also believed you had to do this because of your changing
relationship with Akane.  You needed to reveal your relationship with 
Akane
to fully clear the air between us.  You had many tough decisions to make,
and each time you did what your heart and mind told you to.  For that I am
very proud of you...daughter."

Well, isn't that conveeeeenient.  <gag>

Admittedly there are a few people on Earth who could be that open-minded,
even laudatory about their son living as a lesbian woman for the rest of 
his
life even though most mothers flip when their kid gets a tattoo.  But
has Nodoka no concerns about why Ranma is doing this?  Akane is
demanding that Ranma take on a subordinate role in their relationship, and
insisting that he live publicly and all the time as a member of a minority
who attract significant prejudice from the public at large.  Is she not
at all worried about Ranma hooking up with such an uncompromisingly
self-serving life partner?

Yes well, Genma has already apparently abandoned Ranma.  I wasn't going to 
have both parents turn their backs on her.  Genma will be back to cause 
trouble later



<snip>

Easy is boring.

An interesting story is one that has conflict and difficulty in it.
Read a romance novel and you'll note that the loving couple doesn't get
together harmoniously and wander around as various people applaud their
relationship, tell them how good they look together, and give them gifts
of lingerie and kitchen appliances. Fanfic authors often make the mistake
of making things easy for the characters when they should be straining
their brains to make life as difficult as possible for them right up until
the happy ending.

Apparently, you haven't been reading too closely.  Soun is barely tolerating 
this. As I said before Genma has run off.  He will be causing conflict 
later.  Not to mention the other fiances when they find out about this.  
Consider also, that at the moment nobody but the rest of the family knows 
about the change in Ranma and Akane's relationship.  I never said there 
wouldn't be any conflict.

However, the primary flavoring of the Ranma series is comedy, which I will 
be trying to adhere to.  I don't really like the angsty stuff and try not to 
write that way.  If you don't like what I'm doing with this, you don't have 
to read the story.


C-Ya ='P

Jon Osborne


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