[FFML] [Ranma]Choose your own adventure 4!

Hi everyone! Here we are with the next installment of my Ranma "Choose your own Adventure" story.

****** YOU CAN CHOOSE!!! YOU HAVE THE POWER!!! ****

Basically, you the reader, submit what YOU think should happen in the next
segment of the story. I'll either pick the one that is IMHO the best or
more likely combine several ideas into one.

Disclaimer: If you think I own Ranma, send me a cheque. I don't really,
but if you believe it please, please, please send me a cheque! Otherwise
send the cheque to Viz Video and/or Rumiko Takahashi, whom without which, we
would all be Ranma-less.

Special thanks to contributors like Getzeye Dragon, Janet, Myron, and Matt a.k.a. Bastet's Chosen for their contributions to the story. I hope you all see some of your ideas in here, and if you don't, be patient, the story's not over yet.

I'd especially like to thank Matt for his idea about Ukyo. The end result wasn't exactly what he was asking for, but it sure started on heck of a plotline!

C&C is, of course, appreciated.

Chapter 4

"Good afternoon and welcome to Ukyo's-" Konatsu stopped and
stared at the latest customer.
"Hey Konatsu."
"Ranma," he whispered. "What are you doing here?" the cross-
dressing ninja demanded quietly.
"I want to talk to Ukyo."
Kontsu tensed. "You think I've forgiven how you hurt Ukyo with
that wedding stunt?"
Rolling his eyes, Ranma sighed. "I'm not looking for trouble,
Konatsu. I just want to talk."
"Konatsu, who is-" Ukyo walked in from the back with a retarder
full of cucumber. Seeing Ranma she froze in stunned surprise.
"Don't worry, Ukyo. He was just leaving."
"Now wait just a minute-!"
"No, it's okay Konatsu," interrupted Ukyo. Scowling, Konatsu
stepped aside and let Ranma through. Walking to the grill, Ranma sat
down. Ukyo began cooking one of her special deluxe okanomiaki. In the
main dining area, Konatsu managed to watch even while serving the busy
crowd. For several long moments, neither of them spoke, or even met the
other's eye.
Finally, Ranma managed to summon up some small talk. "Uh...I
see you finally got air conditioning."
Ukyo made a face. "Yeah. I had to take out a loan to do it,
but I'm telling you it's worth every penny. Business is expected to
double with this heat wave."
"That's good, Ukyo. I'm happy for you." Again the silence came
between them.
"Here you go, sugar." Ukyo served up the okanomiaki.
"Thanks, Ukyo." Ranma began to dig in but stopped. Putting his
chopsticks down, he stared at the food like it was some alien object.
Noting his expression, Ukyo bent close to him. "Are you okay?
Is something wrong with the food? You're not still mad about the
wedding, are you?"
Ranma shook his head. "No, I'm not. Akane is, and my parents
are really mad." Ranma looked up. "You destroyed our house, Ukyo."
Ukyo flinched. Looking away she pulled back. "I'm sorry. It's
just...after all I've been through with you and this engagement
thing...everything I've invested into trying to get us together..."
"Hey, I said I wasn't mad, okay? Mom managed to get it rebuilt
with the insurance money."
Ukyo nodded. After a slight pause she asked, "Why aren't you
eating, Ranma? Akane force-feed you some of her cooking?"
Ranma shook his head. "Ukyo, have you ever felt used? By me, I
mean. Have I...ever taken advantage of you?"
Surprised, Ukyo scrambled for words. "N-no, of course not! I
mean, it hasn't been easy, you having two other fianc�s an some crazy
chick trying to drug you every time we turn around, but no, I don't feel
used by you."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah." She watched as Ranma continued eating his food. "What
brought on that question?"
"Nabiki," he replied around a mouthful of food.
"What'd she say?"
"She called me an asshole."
Blink. "Really?"
Ranma nodded. "She also called me a user. That I did it
unconsciously for some reason."
"Wow. She's usually not so explicit. She usually couches what
she says. How did you feel?"
"Well, I was surprised at first. And hurt, but I got to
thinking. Why don't I make a decision about the three of you? Or why
don't I just break the engagements? I mean all this fighting about it
is just making us miserable."
Ukyo felt a stab of ice in her gut. She did not like it when he
talked about breaking the engagement. "Have...have you decided anything
yet?" she asked tentatively.
Ranma shook his head. "No, not yet. I've got a lot of thinking
to do." He pushed himself away from the counter. "Thanks, Ukyo, that
was great."
"No problem, Ran-chan!" replied Ukyo with a false brightness.
Her insides were now twisted into knots. What was going on? What
caused Nabiki to say something like that?
She did not notice until after Ranma had left that he paid for
the okanomiaki.

"Saotome residence."
Ranma felt a thrill of joy hearing his mother on the other end
of the line. "Hi mom! It's Ranma."
"Ranma! It's so good to hear from you! How are you doing?"
"I'm okay. Pop's...well you know him."
"That bad?"
"What?"
"Oh, nothing! So, how are you and Akane getting along?"
"Uhh..." Ranma did not want to talk about this but... "Well, we
had another fight last night at the prom dance."
"The usual? What did you supposedly do?"
"I just danced with Ukyo and Shampoo. Just one dance each, and
Akane exploded."
"Oh, Ranma. I see you have yet to learn that there is no woman
more dangerous than a woman scorned. Why don't you just marry her?"
"Mom! Can't we talk about something else?"
He heard her sigh. "Very well."
"Good. Do...do you know about Ukyo?"
"Know what?"
"That she and I...that Pop...we're engaged too?"
"Oh, of course! She told me herself. I think she'd make a fine
mistress for you Ranma. She makes up for all of Akane's weaknesses.
She's sweet, a good cook-"
Ranma prayed that Akane wasn't listening in. "Yeah, luck was
really with us when we met her."
"How did you meet her? You're father never told me."
Ranma gaped. "He didn't?"
"No."
"Uh...well, Ukyo and I met and became friends when we were about
eight. Our dad's became friends, and Ukyo's dad eventually offered to
engage Ukyo to me. Pop didn't want to, but after being offered the
family business as a dowry, he accepted."
"That sounds wonderful! How did Ukyo like traveling with you
for the last eight years? You know I should really talk to her.
Perhaps she could tell me more of your trip than you father has."
"Mom, Ukyo didn't travel with us. Pop left and took the cart
with him."
There was a moment of long silence.
"He did what?" Her voice was flat and toneless.
"Pop left Ukyo and took the cart. She only found us recently."
In a deceptively sweet voice she asked. "Ranma, could you get
your father? I'd like to speak with him." Ranma gulped. He had not
spent much time with his mother recently, but even he knew that voice.
A major fight was brewing, and he did not want to be anywhere near when
things got started. Ranma remembered that Izuki's Arcade had a new
dance video game.
"Hey Pop!" Genma stuck his head around the corner to the main
room. "Mom wants to talk to you."
"Ah, what a nice surprise." Smiling, Genma picked up the
receiver.

"Good afternoon and welcome to Ukyo's-" Konatsu stopped and
stared at the latest customer.
"Good afternoon."
"Mr. Saotome! What are you doing here?"
"I wish to speak to Ukyo." This time, anticipating Ukyo's
response, Konatsu nodded and let Genma pass.
Ukyo glared at the elder Saotome as he made his way to the
counter and sat at the exact same seat Ranma had occupied ealier. "Oh,
it's you," she said. "What do you want, old man?" Inside, she was
panicking. First Ranma, and now Genma? She fought to keep an even
expression on her face.
Forcing a smile, Genma answered, "Ukyo, I have some happy news."
"What?" Her tone was full of suspicion.
"At the behest of my wife, I'm canceling the engagement between
you and Ranma."
"You're what?!"
Ignoring her outburst, Genma continued. "Also, the legal
proceedings Nodoka was bringing against you for destroying our home has
been ended."
"Legal proceedings?!"
"Finally, if you're in need for anything, if our family can
help, just ask and we will. You're free, Ukyo."
Her chest felt like it was being squeezed by a vise. She could
not seem to get enough air into her lungs. Her breath came rapidly, and
she struggled to remain upright against a swoon that threatened to
overwhelm her.
"Cancelling...legal...wha...what..." Ukyo strained and managed
to take a deep breath. "What's going on?"
"Nodoka disapproved of the circumstance surrounding your
engagement to Ranma. She felt that I took unfair advantage of your
family."
"Well, duh! That's why I wanted to kill you and Ranma when I
first got here!" Ukyo had her battle spatula out. The unspoken
thought, 'And I still want to," hovered between them.
"Nodoka felt ashamed, and decided that we should cancel the
engagement and free you from any obligation. You're free to live your
own life now."
"Ranma put you up to this, right? He's decided to marry Akane
now that Shampoo's out of town, and you needed to get me out of the
way!"
"On the contrary, my wife believed that you would make a fine
mistress for Ranma."
"Mistress?!"
"As for Ranma, I haven't spoken to him yet. He doesn't know
about our decision."
"Liar! Ranma was here earlier, talking about breaking the
engagement! This was a setup! You and him planned this together."
Genma stood and backed away, raising his hands in a placating
gesture. "Ukyo, I assure you that Ranma was not behind this and he
still hasn't decided to marry, Akane-"
"Liar! I'll kill you!" Leaping over the counter, Ukyo swung at
Genma who narrowly managed to skip out of the way. Spinning around for
another swing, Ukyo's eyes suddenly widened. They glazed over, and she
collapsed to the floor, unconscious. Konatsu stood behind her, a sad
expression on his face. In Ukyo's back was a small dart. Looking up,
he glared at the elder Saotome.
"You'd better leave."
"If she has any questions, she can call my wife at this number."
Konatsu took the proffered slip of paper. Giving Ukyo a pitying glance,
Genma left the restaurant.

Genma and Soun were celebrating when Ranma came back early in
the evening.
"Well, my friend that was handled brilliantly!"
"Haven't I told you time and time again what a wonderful woman
my wife is?" answered Genma. "To think, all it took was one bit of
information, and we were honorably able to break Ukyo's engagement.
Now, we've only got Shampoo to worry about."
"And they're hundreds of miles away in China!" gloated Soun.
In unison they shouted, "Our victory is assured!"
"Victory over what?" Ranma landed at the edge of the koi pond.
Noting the beers in Soun's and Genma's hands, he asked, "What are you
celebrating?"
Grinning like a fool, Genma went to Ranma and draped an arm
around his shoulders. "Son, something wonderful has happened!"
Ranma's eyes narrowed. When something good happened to his
father, it usually meant something bad for his son. "What happened?"
"Nodoka cancelled the engagement between you and Ukyo! The way
is clear for you and Akane to be married!"
"She did what?!"
"Isn't it wonderful?" gushed Soun. "Finally our two families
will be united!"
"Oh happy day!" chorused Genma.
"Hey, wait a minute!" interrupted Ranma angrily. "Why the hell
did you do a thing like that? This'll really hurt her feelings!"
Akane, who was sitting in the background listening, entered the
fray. "Does that mean you want to marry her?" she asked in a
dangerously quiet voice.
"I...I'm not...What I'm saying is that I'm getting tired of
these two idiots making decisions about my life without asking!"
"But Ranma," replied Genma. "We didn't make the decision, your
mother did."
That stopped Ranma cold. Genma was one thing, but Nodoka was
another. She was supposed to be everything his father was not. Smart,
thoughtful, compassionate, the list went on and on. And she had decided
to end the engagement? What the hell was going on?
Running to the phone, Ranma dialed his mother.
"Saotome residence."
Trying to keep his voice light he said, "Hi Mom, it's Ranma."
"Hi Ranma, how are you doing?"
"Actually, I got a little bit of a shock. Pop says that you
cancelled Ukyo's engagement."
"Yes that's right."
He tried, but could not keep some of the anger out of his voice.
"Why?"
"Ranma, I know she was your friend, but I had a...long
conversation you're your father about what happened and I decided that
it was best if Ukyo was free to pursue other opportunities. She's sad
right now, but I'm sure she'll get over it."
"But why?"
"The way that Genma treated her, and then with the incident both
at our house and the wedding, I think that Ukyo's suffered enough. She
needed to be set free, to be given a chance to be happy."
"She is happy! She likes me, and I li-" The words on his lips
froze as he saw Akane's angry glare.
"I don't think she is, son. First she was fixated on getting
revenge, then on getting married. I'll imagine she probably want
revenge again. She's obsessed with your Ranma. She needs some time
away from you and gain some perspective about her situation. We haven't
abandoned her, Ranma. I acknowledge that your father treated her
horribly and our family owes her a debt of honor. If she needs
anything, all she has to do is ask."
"But you don't underst-"
"Please, just trust me, dear. Mother knows best."
Ranma's mouth opened and closed several times, but nothing came
out. She was his mother, and he did trust her. "Okay, Mom," he said
quietly.
"Thank you, son. You're unhappy now, but you'll understand when
you're older."
In the same subdued voice. "Sure. Thanks, Mom."
"You're welcome dear. Good night. I love you."
"Good night Mom." He hung up.
"So now what?" asked Nabiki. "You two getting married?"
"No!" came the violent reply from both Akane and Ranma. They
stared at each other, surprised by the vehemence of each other's
response. Turning, Ranma left the house.
"Where are you going?" called Akane.
"To see Ukyo."
Genma ran up to Ranma. "You can't do that! You heard what your
Mother said!"
Spinning around Ranma faced is father. "I don't care what you
and Mom says! She's still my friend!" Turning back, he leapt up to the
rooftops faster than anyone could follow.

"Good evening and welcome to Ukyo's-" Konatsu stopped and
stared at the latest customer.
"I'm here to talk to-AHHHH!" Ranma barely managed to duck the
small spatula thrown at his head. The spatula instead embedded itself
in the wood frame of the door.
"I'll kill you, Ranma," shouted Ukyo, her face ablaze with
anger. "Both you and you're rotten father!"
"Ukyo, I didn't-eep!" Jumping over a kick from Konatsu, Ranma
landed in the middle of the restaurant. With a loud battlecry, Ukyo
launched herself at Ranma, battle spatula in hand.
Sidestepping the downward slash, Ranma did a tumble-roll over
the spatula as she slid it along the ground in an attempt to squash him
between her weapon and the counter. His danger sense screaming like
mad, he picked up a table and barely stopped the half dozen shuriken
thrown by Konatsu. They stuck to the wooden table with sharp thunking
sounds.
The table did not stop Ukyo's large spatula. She sliced about a
fifth of the top, causing Ranma to stumble backwards. She slashed away
the left side before Ranma finally got his footing. Pushing forward, he
rammed Ukyo with the table. His intention was to give him enough room
to jump over Ukyo and race out the door, not to hurt her, which was why
he was surprised when she cried out in pain when he struck.
Ukyo stumbled away from him, pierced by four of the shuriken
stuck in the table, including a long cut in her scalp.
"Ukyo!" cried both men. The stepped towards the injured girl,
but hesitated, eyeing one another suspiciously.
"You'd better go," growled Konatsu.
"I can't leave her, she's my friend!"
"Friends don't try to kill you!"
"Apparently you haven't met Ryoga. He-"
"Get out of here, Ranma," whispered Ukyo through gritted teeth.
Ranma stared at her in disbelief. "Ukyo, I didn't-"
"I said get out! Now! Or I'll call the police!"
Ranma turned pale. He stared at her for a moment long then
angrily stormed out.
"I hate him, Konatsu!" she cried hoarsely as Konatsu bent down
beside her and began tending her wounds.
"I know," he replied softly.
"I hate him!" She bowed her head in misery. "And I love him
too."