[FFML] [Fanfic][Ranma][Rewrite] For Better or For Worst-Case Scenario Ch. 6

Note; THe first half is the same as before, but halway through the third
section... forget it. Whole different story there. :)

Ranma 1/2 and all related characters are property of Rumiko Takahashi. No
disrespect intended for this simple fanfic.

For Better or For Worst-Case Scenario
Chapter 6
Windup to Sleep

"Genma, old friend, this has gone too far!" Soun paced around on the porch,
sucking a cigarette down to the filter in one deep drag. He crushed it into
the ashtray on the banister among its half-score of brothers, then snapped his
pack out. A sharp thump against the heel of his hand, and he snagged a fresh
stick of cancer between his lips. Adding flame to the naked tobacco at the
end, he took another heavy drag and exhaled a cobalt plume through his nose.

"I know." For his part, Genma was seated on the steps, looking up at the
sky. Absently, he drummed the fingers of one hand on the wood beneath him while
his other slowly hung limply in his lap.

"And you!" Soun turned on his heel. "You were in the other room; why didn't
you stop the intruder?"

Genma regarded his friend. "I was asleep like everyone else."

"You were supposed to be reconstructing the old room!"

"I finished early. Thank to Ukyo's help this afternoon, we got the bedding
and other furniture out of the dojo sooner, so there was no problem."

Despite everything that was going on, Soun was unable to keep his face free
of a hinted smile. "So, it's truly completed?"

"Yes, it is."

"Mm. How you managed to work these past few nights in that room and not
disturb anyone's sleep, I'll never know." He sat down beside Genma. "I had hoped
to give them that present in a happier time."

"We make due with what we have. After all, we survived the Master."

Soun shuddered. If fortune should ever look in his direction and ask to
grant his one heart's desire, never seeing the Master again would be one of the
top three choices. Then his mind linked back to Cologne and her granddaughter
and the placated anger surged again. "We should strike the Amazons down now."

Genma glanced at Soun. "No, let it be for tonight."

He looked at his friend in open shock. "Are you mad? They tried to kill my
daughter!"

"I don't think that was the intention." He pushed his glasses up on his
nose. "If they really meant harm, would they not have struck her down already and
be done with it?"

Soun frowned; he had to agree. "These Amazons are a complicated lot with
their own damnable rules."

"I know, but look at it this way. It could be some kind of warning, or… or a
strange way of granting good fortune upon her marriage." Another look at Soun
told him exactly what he thought of the last. "Yes, very unlikely."

"Highly," Soun said dryly.

"Hm." Genma folded his arms. "At any rate, let the boy deal with it. His
responsibilities, his future, his call."

Soun scowled. "After tonight, I don't feel so reassured."

"A mistake on his part. He won't make the same one again." The portly man
stood. "Come, let's share a drink. It'll calm your nerves."

"Pardon my rudeness," Soun spoke as he stood beside his friend, his small
eyes cutting towards him. "But how can you be so certain of your son's
capabilities?"

Genma spared a glance back as he walked into the house. "Because he's my
son," he said, one corner of his mouth turning up. "He's too stubborn to lose."

* * * * *
"Tch! I'm going to kill Shampoo!" Akane raged under her breath as she helped
Kasumi clear off the soiled sheets to dispose of them properly. Cuts and
accidents could be repaired or cleaned, but memory would make them reek.

"I'm sure she's only doing what she thinks is right." Kasumi idly commented
as she essayed the damage the swords had caused to the mattress. Her cheek
still ached from Ranma's accidental punch yesterday morning. Thankfully, the
swelling had gone down, and there was no promise of an ugly bruise marking the
site. She hated to think of the results if that blow was intentional and more
powerful.

"Doing what's right? What's right is for her to keep her nose out of my
sister's affairs and not try to kill her!"

"True in different times." The older sister touched her finger to the
incisions. "However, things are more complicated now. There's too much difficulty
in doing the right thing when you feel wronged, so instead, we do what we
think is right." Though she said them aloud to Akane, the words were really meant
for herself.

Akane gave her sister the odd eye. "What are you talking about?"

Slowly, Kasumi withdrew from the mattress, though her eyes never left it. It
should have been a simple thing two weeks ago. How did things get so out of
hand? All she wanted was for Nabiki to have respect for relationships and
marriage. Just hearing how her sister toyed with Ranma and Akane before made her
blood boil; she let the matter slide, then, figuring that things would work
themselves out in the end.

However, the situation escalated rapidly with Ranma and Nabiki announcing
their wedding for the next day, and their fathers racing to get everything set
up in time. Akane was crushed to hear the news, and the bride-to-be was
flippant to concern. Then she overheard Nabiki setting the pieces to ruin her own
wedding and collect on the resulting proceeds.

Quiet, patient Kasumi snapped under the weight of the last straw. She made
up her mind to humble her younger sister if it was the last thing she would
ever do. And to work she went. Surprisingly, everything she needed came to her,
no questions asked and at no charge. It was completely effortless the way she
pulled it all together, getting in touch with the right people at the right
time, coming across as earnestly and compelling as anyone else… Even now, it
astonished her how well her plan succeeded.

And yet, she ultimately failed. What should have been a moment of humility
and newfound respect turned into a day of disbelief and celebration. Kasumi
could do nothing to stop the monster she birthed - too dumbstruck by the
incomprehensible to even fathom that outcome - and it was all downhill from there.
She felt stupid and ashamed of what she helped bring about, but that paled in
comparison to Akane. She was numb the night of the wedding and most of the
next day. It was late at night when the broken girl came to her in private,
wanting to know what should she do next. The sight of her defeated and lost
youngest sibling made her heart ache and twist even more, so Kasumi prescribed
something that, even now, she didn't know why she said it: help the newlyweds
celebrate.

In that moment, it felt like the right thing to do, the only that could have
been done. Now, she felt like an idiot. What started out as an indirect
lesson evolved into a very direct threat on Nabiki's life. "I caused so much
trouble…" she mumbled to herself, her hand going to her mouth.

Akane felt the heavy shift in mood. Looking up, she closely regarded her
older sister. "Hey, sis… cheer up; Nabiki's safe, and, well, Ranma will get-"

"It'll always be difficult seeing Ranma now, won't it, little sister?"

"Huh?" She mentally tripped over herself. "Um... yeah. It'll be pretty
rough, you know, since we were engaged like three days before he got married to N
abiki…" She glanced towards one corner of the room.

The older girl bit her lip, then looked at her little sister. Akane had
every right to know what she did. She felt that she deserves any and all
consequences to befall her. Perhaps someday she'll be forgiven for her transgression.
"Akane, I'm-"

"But," she continued in a suddenly louder voice. They both blinked in
surprise at the change in tone, but Akane continued speaking, this time at regular
volume. "But it gets easier everyday. And…" She sat on the very foot of the
bed, her eyes unfocused on the floor. "Truth be told, I think when you get
down to it, Nabiki really could use him in her life."

Kasumi was wide eyed in surprise. "Akane…"

"I'm not saying it's right or fair…" She balled up her hands. "But
sometimes, things just happen some way, and… and we get caught up in everything, and…
well…" Akane tried suppressing the wetness of her eyes with the back of her
hand. "It's kind of like what you said. We go and do what we think is right,
even if it's not..."

The young woman took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. "Sorry, sis,
I'm babbling."

"No, it's all right," Kasumi smiled at her little sister. "Truthfully, I
wish I had some of your inner strength."

The comment left Akane confused as well as blushing a little. "What? No, I'm
not really strong…" She held the back of her neck as she stood up again.
"All I do lately is cry and wonder about why people do the things they do…"

Reaching out, Kasumi hugged her firmly, catching her target off guard and
embarrassing her even more. "Believe me, you're perhaps the strongest one here."
She pinched her eyes shut, a few tears freely rolling down her cheeks.

"Sis…" She responded in kind, holding onto her oldest sister/mother figure,
shredding a few silent tears of her own.

* * * * *
Karma. The word echoed inside of Nabiki's head over and over again as she
laid in the bathtub, staring though the ceiling as if to try and find the gods
laughing at her in the clouds. Right now, she couldn't fault them for all
that had happened in the last few weeks. In fact, on some level, she even felt
that she got what she deserved - she gingerly touched the gauze pads taped to
either side of her neck in memory of tonight - if not more.

She should have never done the things she did to Ranma and Akane. She should
have been smart enough to refuse her sister's impassioned outburst of
transferring the engagement over to her. She should have not made Ranma get so
involved in her little game. She should have let things be.

Worse yet, she should have listened to Kasumi. She closed her eyes and
sighed deeply. Kasumi was right all the time, and Nabiki snubbed her for her own
amusement. In the end, any anger, past or present, towards older sister had no
leg to stand on. She couldn't blame her for ruining the wedding sabotages she
crafted. She couldn't blame her at all…

Languidly, she turned her head towards the bath entrance. Ranma sat nearby
on the bath stool with his back to her. It was funny; the very person she
wronged most was also the one to come to her rescue when she needed it. Normally,
she would call such a guy a sap, and two weeks ago, that would have fit
Ranma perfectly. Lately, though, she had to wonder if she was really the sap here.

She studied him for a few minutes. Crass, arrogant, immature, egotistical…
Nabiki could think of more words to describe his flaws and failings in detail.
And yet, there was something about him that had been drawing her into his
life. At one point, she would have said his heroics were the culprit, but now…

"Ranma."

"Hm?" He tilted his head, but didn't look at her.

Unexpectedly, she felt her heart twist at the action, and it derailed her
line of questions. "Are you angry with me?" Inwardly, she cringed as the words
came unbidden out of her mouth.

The question had the same kind of effect on him, though for a different
reason altogether. "Angry? Why would I be angry?"

"I don't know. But if you're not angry, why won't you look at me?"

"Because you're taking a bath."

The clenching feeling ebbed at the new revelation. Nabiki felt relieved.
"We're married; you have the right."

"No."

"Huh?" She could feel her heart being squeezed again, and his response
confused her even more. "What? Don't you find me attractive?" Again, she wanted to
dunk herself under the bath water as her mouth made another automatic
response without consulting her.

"…What does that have to do with anything?" Ranma had almost turned around
in shock. A last second reminder of where he was kept him at bay.

"Were you lying when you said I was cute?" It was obvious some alien entity
had taken over her mouth, because she wasn't thinking about any of this, let
alone wanting to talk about it.

"Of course not! Some days you're more than cute."

Even without seeing his face, she could tell he was getting frustrated and
annoyed with this line of talk. However, she was beyond control here. "Don't
lie to me."

"I'm not lying!"

"Then why won't you look at me?"

"I'm trying to respect your privacy!"

A jolt went through Nabiki's body. Amazed, she gazed at him. "'Respect my
privacy'? But Ranma, we're-"

"That doesn't mean anything."

Her heart skipped a few beats. "B, but-"

"I don't wanna to do something just because I 'have the right.' If you want
me to look at you, that's a different story, but I'm not gonna do something
you're not cool with. Understand?"

It was a while before Nabiki said anything. Mainly because she had never
been so attracted to anyone in her whole life. Opening her mouth would betray
her utterly in both words and action. She tried to fight down the urge to seduce
Ranma, or let him seduce her. Hell, she was already lost to him, she knew.
All he had to do was beckon her over, and he would own her completely. She
didn't like the idea of surrendering all her power to him, but strangely, she
felt relieved at the same time.

She could trust him, heart and soul. He could do whatever he wanted with
her, and she wouldn't care because she knows that he wouldn't try to abuse her,
or take advantage of her. Even when she wanted him to do so sometimes, like
right now. I am so in love with you, Ranma.

Her eyes grew wide as she realized what she was admitting. She hastily tried
to amend herself, but it sounded a little hollow. A lot, really. With barely
a thought more, she stuck with her original message.

Of course, she didn't have to tell him that… at least, not right now. She
was in love with him, but Ranma was still being… Ranma. He probably was taking
pity on her right now. He found her in was would be - if not the, at least
one of the top three - most humiliating positions in her life. Pity would be
her natural response well before Ranma hit the scene.

No big deal, really. If he didn't feel the same, she could live with that.
As long as he was true to her, Nabiki didn't much care what happened after this
point. Her spirit rose high above her depression.

"You better love me…" she mumbled, smiling.

The small, happy smile turned into a look of mortification. She realized her
mouth just tossed out yet another inadvertent comment. Perhaps she should go
find someone to sew her mouth shut instead of Ranma's. Her eyes focused on
said person again, and her heart stopped beating.

Ranma was very rigid in posture. His head was almost turned around again,
but stopped just shy of looking at her in the tub. But she could see his face in
profile. That was why her heart stopped. He definitely heard her slip of
tongue. And the anger crossing his face made it clear what he thought about it.

"Ah…" Nabiki wanted to apologize. She didn't mean it like how it sounded in
her own ears. Hell, she didn't even know where the words came from. Like a
gust of wind, they breezed out of her mouth. Apparently, that same wind managed
to steal the rest of her vocabulary when it left. She literally couldn't
think of something to say.

"Hurry up. You're going to turn into a prune at this rate."

Ranma's words brought her mind back to the present. He wasn't looking at her
now, but his posture was still rigid, unyielding.

Definitely heard her. Definitely angry.

She found her voice. "I didn't mean it that way."

"Mean what?" A hint of venom in his voice. It made her inwardly shudder.

"What I said a second ago."

"Oh, so you didn't mean to sound like you're using me." He paused. "Again."

"No! It's nothing like that at all. I was just-"

"Being yourself. I understand. Perfectly."

Nabiki held the tub rim tightly. "You don't understand…"

"No, I understand perfectly."

"You don't know a damn thing."

"I know you pretty well. That's more than enough."

"Enough!" Fuming, she pulled herself out of the tub. "Listen here, Ranma!
I've dealt with more than enough shit tonight; I don't want anymore for the next
few minutes!"

He whirled around on the stool to stare her in the eye. "Oh, yeah? Could've
fooled me there. Here I am worried about you dying, and you're plotting some
way you can milk this for all it's worth!"

"Oh, fuck you!" Her eyes teared up, but she angrily suppressed them. "You
think I want your problems following me around? I almost died because of some
floozy you didn't have the balls to tell off and send her packing a long time
comes after me just because I'm in love with you! She wants you so bad, I'll
damn well give you to her!"

Ranma's eyes snapped wide. "What did you say?"

"You heard me! I'm in love with you, and you can't even handle one stupid
obsessed bitch! I almost died less than an hour ago, and-"

As Nabiki was quick to discover, passionate kisses and impassioned tirades
did not mix. Both demanded full attention, and when push comes to shove, the
path of greater resistance rarely won. Add to the fact that Ranma initiated the
former of the two, and it was a foregone conclusion she would be lucky to
remember her name the moments afterward, let alone continue her venting.

The kiss broke off too early for her. Way, way too early for her. Blood
pounded in her ears, flowing through her body like lightning. She was acutely
aware of her wet nakedness, but she certainly didn't care. Gasping for air, her
lips tried to snap back to Ranma's, but he held her a short distance away.
Looking at her for the first time. Just watching his face told her that he
definitely liked what he was seeing, and it made her burn for him all the more.

"Um…" Ranma looked her up and down for a moment, then stepped backwards and
towards the door. "Finish cleaning up, Nabiki. I'll… I'll be just outside
here."

She only managed to blink at the sudden turn of direction. Worse, his action
made her even hotter for him. Her hand reached out for him, grasping at
invisible strings, trying to will him to stay. But the final clicking of the bath
door severed the connection. "No fair…" Nabiki complained in a dazed, tiny
voice. "You get me so hot… then leave? Meanie…"

She was in the bath room five minutes longer than normal for her. Once she
came out in her bath robe, Nabiki's eyes were slightly glazed, her face
flushed. Ranma started to ask her if she was feeling well, but she silenced him with
a kiss of her own. Then she groped him blatantly, much to his shock.

"Don't you ever leave me like that again," she practically purred against
his ear. "Or, you'll regret it…"

He could only nod dumbly, his face turning a bright shade of scarlet.

"Good." She smiled and withdrew her hand. "Now, let's find some place to
sleep."

Ranma found himself reviewing several kata under his breath as he followed
Nabiki. He also tried not to get distracted with the sway in her hips. Or the
heady, womanly scent that drifted behind her.

* * * * *
There was a knock at the remains of Nabiki's door. Akane glanced over her
shoulder and saw Ranma through one large jagged hole. "Come in."

Ranma poked his head through. "Coast is clear?"

"Yeah." She smiled faintly. "No Amazons coming this way tonight."

"Heh…" He slinked into the room like a cat. "I'll be just a minute."

"What are you doing?"

"Grabbing a few things," he said as he knelt down and rolled up his bed mat.
"Nabiki and I are gonna sleep in the dojo tonight."

"Oh! About that…"

"Hm?"

"Kasumi wanted me to tell you two to go into the family room. I think Dad
has something to say."

"At this hour? Can't it wait till morning?"

"Don't think so. Kasumi sounded really pleased when she told me."

"Huh." Ranma tucked the bed roll under his arm. "Well, okay. I'll just go
put my- Hey, where's my backpack?"

Akane frowned. "I don't know. Dad and your father were in here helping
Kasumi throw out Nabiki's bed. Maybe it was put in the closet."

He cocked an eyebrow. "My old man's still here? I thought he went home
already."

She shrugged. "Beats me. No one's really told me much aside from go down to
the family room soon as you can." Her lips pursed and she huffed a little. "No
one tells me much of anything lately."

"Um… look-"

"Don't worry about it, Ranma." Akane flashed him a well-meaning smile. "Do
the right thing, and don't worry about what you think is right."

He paused for a few seconds. "Uh, yeah… exactly." Bed roll still under his
arm, he padded over to Nabiki's dresser, pulled out a clean pair of pajamas,
and left without another word.

Once he was in the stairwell, where Nabiki was waiting for him, he asked
her, "Has Akane been reading a lot of philosophy lately?"

"Not that I know of," she responded, taking the pajamas gratefully. "Why?"

He started to open his mouth, then thought better of it. "Forget it. Kasumi
wants us in the family room. Mr. Ten-Father wants to say something."

" Wonder what Daddy wants?"

"Dunno. Probably something about Shampoo."

Nabiki reached over and squeezed his clenched hand. "I'm not going to stay
up all night bandaging your hand."

He gave her a wry smile. "Yeah… Let's just get this over with."

Taking a few moments for Nabiki to slip into clean clothes, the couple
entered the family room, where Soun and Genma sat. The warm aroma of sake wafted
through the air. However, neither man looked like they were partaking of the
alcohol deeply.

"Where's sis?"

"Disposing of the remains of your bedding," Soun stated, toying with his
small cup of sake. "Please, sit down. This is important news."

The two sat down before their respective patriarchs. They glanced at each
man, and at each other, wondering what was going on now. Family meetings usually
involve the whole family.

"I had hoped to give this to you in the next few days. However, matters and
priorities have become complicated, and being that this is an irregular kind
of gift-"

Nabiki furrowed her brows together, glancing sidelong to Ranma. He
demonstrated no visible reaction. However, he looked at her out of the corner of his
eye, and she felt a little fuzzy in her middle.

"-it is decided that perhaps now is not such a bad time to present this to
you. I cannot allow my own family to go without a proper room for sleep."

Now Ranma frowned, but he didn't say anything.

Soun cast his eyes directly at Ranma. "This will serve as a temporary
matter, though it may be for a long period of time."

"'Temporary?' What is this thing you're talking about, anyway?"

Soun straightened his posture, smiling at him, then to Genma, who crossed
his arms over his chest and nodded in that smug, confident way. Obviously, Ranma
gained his arrogance from his father. "Thanks to my old friend, we have
constructed for you a more fitting bedroom to share with my daughter."

* * * * *
"Ranma?"

The only response Nabiki got was a light snore as the two slept in the
newly-remade room. Carpet the shade of amber had been laid across the wooden
floor. A bookcase meshed against the far corner of the room, directly abreast of
the headboard of the oversized bed neatly centered under the windowsill.
Honey-hued curtains - something that was never worried about when Ranma and his
father slept in the one-time guest room - were drawn closed. A night stand sat
close by to Nabiki's side of the bed, a small electronic clock face glowing
turquoise luminance.

She rolled over in the firm and unyielding bed, pushing back the slate blue
bedcovers as she sat upright in bed, then looked down at Ranma. He was lying
face-up, eyes closed, arms slightly spread apart from his head. For a moment,
she had a rude image of sharply pushing him out of bed and onto the floor.
The thought had been suppressed with little effort. After all, this was their
room now.

Their own room.

She sighed, shaking her head, a wry smile on her lips. It was a pain in the
ass convincing Ranma that it was for the best they slept in the same bed. He
finally bowed to her superior logic once she made it a point to mention that
if someone were to come for her again, he may be too late to act from the bed
roll that had remained unfolded in the opposite corner of the room. Sometimes
she wondered just why did he feel so moved to being chivalrous at the oddest
times.

Sighing again softly, Nabiki laid her head on his chest, drawing one arm
around his waist. She remained this way, trying to get her thoughts to swirl
into complacency. Shampoo had attacked her. Ranma and their fathers were going
to deal with it in the morning. Shampoo will never bother them again.

It should have given her piece of mind that it was under control, but it
didn't. The trinity of weapons encasing her head still made Nabiki shudder, but
something about it didn't make sense. She could have been slain whenever; why
do it that-

Ranma suddenly shifted, startling Nabiki. His arm began to move, and she
started to lift up and let it go on. However, against the weight of Nabiki's
body, it ended up pulling around her shoulders, drawing her closer.

Her eyes were wide for a few moments as Ranma held her firmly in place. She
reached up and pinched his nose closed for an instant. He didn't stir.

"Still asleep…" Her voice was noticeably depressed.

Then Nabiki mentally slapped herself. Just because she was ready to admit
love didn't mean he felt the same. Hell, there was still a chance that he only
behaves a certain way because of a situation. His adaptability skills would be
legendary had he taken to being a socialite instead of a martial artist.

Whatever the reason, she shouldn't expect him to love her back. Nabiki
didn't even feel the need to obligate him for that. So long as he stayed with her,
that would be enough for her. At least for now.

On that thought, she let all worries slide into nothingness. She cuddled
with him, feeling his warmth transferring over to her. She smiled a little, k
issing his shoulder very lightly.

"I love you…" Nabiki spoke, as the need for sleep pounced upon her. She
yawned, covering her mouth with her hand.

"It's okay… " Her eyes closed.

"…if you don't feel…" Her hand balled into the hem of his pajamas.

"…the same way." Soon, her snores found their own voice.

In the illuminated dark, one of Ranma's eyes cracked open, the iris rolling
down to look at the sleeping young woman. It drifted over her slumbering form
from head to foot, then back to her face. His eye closed to sleep again, his
hand tightening ever so slightly on her shoulder.

TBC

Adrian Moten

"Falling in love is something that happens to you, like getting run over by
a truck."
-Amy Alkon, the Advice Goddess