The following chapters borrow heavily from other fanfics, so I'm not
going to claim that they're entirely original (which they wouldn't be,
in any case), but to preserve the element of surprise, the disclaimers
for which ones will be included in the epilogue.
------------------------------------------------
Descent -- Chapter Two
The Unspoken Message
A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Brian Randall
Disclaimers: The paints, as always, are the property of Takahashi
Rumiko; I'm merely a peasant with an easel.
------------------------------------------------
I can't stop thinking about it. It was a mistake, right?
That's a thought that stays with me. Chases itself in circles around
my head, allowing me to occasionally distract myself. But it always
comes back to me, and this time when it does, I have to fake a cough
to wipe away the tears that come to my eyes.
Because her sister is here. I don't hate Akane. I just hate that
she's between me and Ranchan. The two of us could be great friends,
if she didn't play along with her family and pretend to want to marry
Ranchan. I know she doesn't....
...but maybe that's why Nabiki came? I shouldn't have done that, I
shouldn't have....
"Tendo," I say, thinking that for once I've hidden the quaver in my
voice. "What brings you here?"
Nabiki smirks, taking a seat. "I have some good news for you,
Kuonji," she says after a moment. "I think it'll cheer you up quite a
bit."
"Who says I need to be cheered up?" I ask warily. I don't trust
Nabiki, not further than she could throw me.
"You looked down," Nabiki said with a shrug. "Anyway.... Ranma sent
Shampoo packing. Back to China."
"Really?" But he hasn't come to talk to _me_; he's not trying to
send _me_ away. And if that's the case, then maybe it wasn't such a
mistake after all?
Of course not. It was possibly the stupidest thing I could have
done. Hell, I worked with Shampoo to do it, and Ranchan sent her to
China!
"Really," Nabiki replies coolly. "In fact, to try and set things
straight, I talked to Ranma."
"And?" I realize only after the fact that my face is an easy read to
Nabiki. If she's trying to play me for a fool, she may have me
exactly where she wants me. But it's true ... Ranchan and I haven't
even talked since then. And that was three weeks ago.
My stomach is upset all the time, and I'm always afraid he's going to
tell me how he really feels -- that he hates me for what I've done.
Shampoo being sent away makes that feel like it could be the truth.
Nabiki hesitates for a moment, then shakes her head. "Okay," she
says. "Here." And then she reaches into her purse and produces an
envelope, which she hands to me.
The handwriting spelling out my name is too neat to be his (sorry,
Ranchan), and it looks like a girl's, anyway. "Who wrote this?" I
ask, before opening it. The paper's white, and feels soft. It looks
like high quality, expensive stuff. Very formal, anyway.
"Ranma's mother," Nabiki offers. "Well, you read that. I think I've
delivered enough good cheer for one day."
"Okay. Um, thanks, Nabiki." I watch her out of the corners of my
eyes and pretend to be totally absorbed in the envelope. She looks
hesitant again for a moment, when she thinks I'm not looking, then
gives a tiny shake of her head.
"Don't," she says quietly. "It was nothing, really." Then she's
gone, and I open it.
The letter is beautiful, elegantly written, and Ranchan's mother has
even drawn little bells tied together with a bow. It's an invitation
to an engagement party.
For a minute, I think my heart stops. But when I frantically read
the entire thing, I see that Akane's name isn't mentioned anywhere.
And neither is Ranchan's stupid father's school. It's just got
Ranchan's name on it ... and mine.
My heart stops again, then starts so hard that I sit down heavily.
"I was right?" I mumble. "He...." I swallow and stare, reading it
all over again.
But it's an invitation for me to go to Ranchan's engagement party.
Maybe I just did what Ranma wanted? Maybe I didn't do something
wrong, after all?
***
The party is going to be held at a pretty swanky establishment
uptown; I have to take a train to get there. But before I arrive I've
made sure I look my best. With Konatsu's help, I picked out a new
dress, I put up my hair, and I think I'm ready.
He thinks I'm cute.... He has to, or he wouldn't have invited me!
Then I remember that it was Nabiki who gave me the invitation. I
still haven't actually talked to Ranchan ... so that upset feeling
doesn't go away. What if I'm wrong? Nabiki gave me that invitation
three days ago, and I must have read it a hundred times by now, but it
doesn't tell me any more.
So I arrive early and look it over. Big building, huge, expensive
looking mural on the outside.... Classy. I don't think that Ranchan
picked it out. It doesn't really seem that romantic to me, either.
There's a man in a suit at the door who asks me for my invitation. I
wish my father were still around to take me to this, and not just
because I think he'd be happy. It would reassure me to know I still
had him.
But I don't; all I have is Ranchan.
The invitation gets me sent to the bar to wait for the hall that the
Saotome family is going to be using. That has to be good; if it were
for Ranchan and Akane, her family would pay for it. Ranchan's kind of
poor, though that's never bothered me. I could make enough for both
of us, if I had to.
But Tendo seems to be wealthy. I mean, he owns that big house and
doesn't work, as far as I can tell. If Ranchan's worried about money,
I may not have as much as Tendo, but I can get us by.
After a few minutes, I glance around. I don't really know much about
this kind of place, but there's a few people around who are all
dressed well. I'm glad I chose a new dress instead of a kimono; no
one else is wearing anything traditional, either. But they do look
nice.
I hope I look good enough for Ranchan.
When the man behind the bar asks me what I want I tell him water. I
don't think I could keep anything else down, right now.
Another man sits next to me. A tall man with his hair slicked back,
wearing an immaculate blue suit. "Hello," he says with a grin, making
a small gesture at the bartender.
The bartender gives the other man a reproachful look, but wordlessly
hands him a glass with some golden liquor in it.
"So, you come here often?"
"This is my first time," I answer. "My fiancee is supposed to meet me here."
"You're in the engagement party?" he asks, his smile widening.
"Congratulations, Tendo-san."
I open my mouth to ask him what he's talking about -- I am most
certainly _not_ a Tendo -- when I look towards the lobby, to one side
of the bar. There's Ranchan!
He's dressed up, too, and for a moment, everything the man was
talking about vanishes from my mind, and all I can see is him. Even
more handsome than he was in the suit at that stupid wedding; he's
wearing something less formal, but still very nice. It's a white silk
shirt with short sleeves, and as I watch he pauses, one hand rubbing
his upper arm.
Just as I'm about to call out to him and jump down from the stool
I've been perched on, I see her and my heart stops again.
There, right behind him, surrounded by her family and his, is Akane.
"No," I gasp out. The man in front of me glances towards Ranchan,
then back, raising an eyebrow.
"...feels like something is missing, is all," Ranchan says, in
response to something I didn't hear.
Oddly, I can't keep my eyes on him. They keep sliding past to stare
at her. Only ... not her, but her _sisters_. Nabiki looks just the
slightest bit tired and worn. Kasumi though.... Kasumi looks upset.
Her mouth is compressed to a thin line, and she tugs on Tendo Soun's
shirtsleeve like a child trying to get her parent's attention. He
dismisses her in the same way, and though I can't hear it, I can see
his lips. "Not now," he says, ignoring her.
"Father," she hisses, loud enough for me to hear. "This is important!"
"It can wait until after the party," Soun says insistently, when
everyone turns to look at Kasumi. "Come, enjoy yourself! The schools
will finally be united!"
"But-"
"No objections," Soun says with a brilliant smile. "Akane and Ranma
are going to be married, and today we're going to celebrate!"
Kasumi looks like she's swallowing something particularly disgusting,
but she manages a stiff nod and says something back that I can't
catch. Probably something like, "If you insist."
Soun does, though, so that's the end of that. "Now," the man says
brusquely, clapping a hand on Ranchan's shoulder, and another on
Genma's, "I think we're all here, aren't we?"
"Nabiki did ask me for one more invitation," Nodoka murmured with a frown.
"What?" Soun looks confused. "I only made reservations for seven."
"We're all here," Akane says quickly. "Come on, Ranma!"
Then she holds out her hand, looking at him expectantly. He smiles
at her, and it feels like time slows down. The blood going through my
heart doesn't stop this time, it just feels like it's turned into
shards of glass.
I cover my mouth and whimper. The man in front of me seems to sense
my discomfort and puts one hand on my back, pushing me towards the
bar. I lean forward and both families vanish behind his coat, just as
Ranma seemed about to glance my way.
"Hey," the man says gently, quietly. "Are you okay?"
I nod, though I think he can tell it's a lie. He offers me his
handkerchief and I take it, realizing that tears are running down my
face. "Hey," he says, nodding at the barkeep. "Double whiskey neat
for the lady here."
The bartender grumbles, but pours the drink
"Thanks," I manage. After I pick up the glass, hand shaking, someone
approaches.
"I'm sorry," the man who had sent me to the bar in the first place
says. "There appears to be some confusion. I'm afraid the Saotome
party has all of their recorded guests." He says it in that, "And you
should go, now," way that I've used on a couple of customers myself.
Before I can say anything else, the man who bought me the drink
snaps, "Leave off," shooting the doorman a dirty look. "She's with
me."
"I'm sorry," the doorman says apologetically, looking at the stranger
with a nervous, sidelong glance. "I misunderstood." Then he's gone,
and I'm alone with my drink and a friendly stranger.
"Kampai," he says softly, raising his glass slightly. I nod and
clink my own glass against his. It must be the same drink ... they
look the same, at least. It tastes foul, but I make myself drink it
down anyway. It's not like Ranchan's going to....
And then the tears start again, and my new friend helps me up, guides
me to a booth in the corner, and glares at everyone who stares. "It's
going to be okay," he assures me, grinning. "Just tell me about it,
huh?"
Before I can stop myself, I'm sobbing out my entire story. But while
I'm talking to him, I feel ... numb. It hurts -- it hurts more than I
thought it could. I realize as I'm talking to him, occasionally
downing another of those nasty drinks, that what hurts the most is
that he never even bothered to tell me about it. That's what I was
worth to him -- less than nothing. Not even worth the time to tell
off.
I spent a year in love with him, ten chasing him for vengeance, and
another year trying to win his heart. I've spent more than half of my
life on this boy, and what do I get in return? Total indifference.
So I understand why, as much as it hurts, I still feel numb about it.
I finish catching up, somewhere around drink number six, though
things are getting fuzzy then. "I just wanted someone to love me," I
tell my friend. "Someone who cared!"
Everything is dreamy, hard to see. But it's okay, now. My stomach
may still hurt, and my head may be swimming ... but I'm not alone.
"It's not as bad as it could be," my friend says warmly. "And your
life is hardly over. What's happened to you happens to a lot of
girls.... Life is not nearly as pretty as you are. So you fell in
love with a jerk, but it's not the end of things. You still have a
bright future ahead of you!"
"I do!" I say, nodding quickly, and then stopping. The room is
spinning too much for me to keep nodding. "I do?"
"Certainly! Look, I don't normally do this, but I can help you out."
"You can?" I can't remember ... do I need help? I must; Ranchan....
Ranma. Ranma isn't there for me anymore. If he ever was.
"Just let me take care of you," he says, nodding. "I direct movies.
I could make you a star!"
"A star?" I frown at that, then think about it a bit more. A movie
star makes a lot of money. If I were a star, I'd be rich and famous.
And that'd show Ranma what he was missing out on! "Okay," I agree,
risking another nod.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"Alright. Let's drink on it." He motions, and another round is
brought for each of us. After I drink mine, things get dark for a
while. I think my friend is holding my hand. But he can't be,
because I think he's smoking a cigarette. I think I'm walking. For a
while, I think I'm throwing up on the street. I think I'm in a
room.... I don't know. Does it matter?
When things come back, I'm still dizzy, but it's like a dream.... My
friend can take me from a bar to a shower. Bing! Magic.
He's not there -- I guess it's a hotel shower.... I've got something
nasty on my dress. I guess I did lose it. That must be why I'm here.
So, I take it off, and realize I got some in my hair, too.
I take a shower, and leave my dress on the floor. There's a robe on
the back of the door, and I don't care about a dress I bought just for
Ranchan. Ranma.
Doesn't matter. I got a new friend now.
The steam from the shower makes me dizzier, so I open the door and
stumble into a hotel room. My friend is there and leads me to the
bed. "Here," he says, sitting me down. "You rest. I'll be back in a
bit."
The television's on, so I flop down on my back and roll over to watch
it. He's gone, and I hear the shower running. A cigarette he left on
the bedside table's ashtray smokes.... And then I see the television.
Haha! My friend is a pervert! He forgot to change the channel; it's
something naughty. I watch it, unable to keep myself from giggling.
Only, after a minute, it's actually worse than just naughty....
Something about this doesn't feel right, but I'm too dizzy to figure
it out. Then he comes back, steam from the shower emerging in a
billowing cloud, pushing the last of the smoke away. I sit up on the
bed, and it takes a minute to realize my robe fell open. I tug it
back into place, and he sits next to me.
"Are you going to take care of me?" I ask, suddenly nervous.
"I promise," he says with a nod, giving me a warm smile. "I'll help
you reach as high as you think you can."
Then one of his hands pulls open the robe I just tugged back into
place, and the next thing I know he's kissing me, and he's touching
me, and I'm doing it back to him.... Who needs some idiot, when
there's better people? People who know you're worth something?
People who aren't afraid to show that they care?
Then he turns out the lights and our robes fall away. Then it hurts
for a while, but I don't want things to start going wrong so quickly,
so I pretend it's good, and then we do it again, and finally, I fall
asleep.
***
When I wake up, my stomach hurts -- again. But this is a new way to
hurt. The light is too bright. My head hurts. I think I'm going to
be sick.
I get up, go to the bathroom, and throw up in the toilet. After a
shower, I find I've got nothing to wear but my stained dress and the
hotel's robes.
Damn. Damn it all.
Where is my friend now, if he was even a friend at all? Just like me
-- throw everything away in a moment of drunken self-pity. What does
he leave me with? A filthy dress, and a pack of cigarettes.
Someone pounds on the door, yelling, "Your time is up! Either get
out, or pay up!"
"Just a minute!" I yell back. I still have the tiny purse that I got
with my dress, but it's empty. I didn't think I'd need any money
at....
Ran-- Ranma.
What the hell did I do? "Oh, no," I groan. From one screw-up to another....
Whoever he was, all I've got to know him by is a pack of cigarettes
he left on the bedside table. It goes into the purse, and since
there's nothing else to wear, I climb into the damn dress.
Then, since my day has already started off so well, I glance out the
room's window. Fifth floor. No balcony.
"What the hell," I sigh, and open the window. I don't want to deal
with this....
***
By the time I get back to my own place, Konatsu has been freaking out
for a while. He starts crying over me as soon as I show up. "Calm
down," I snap at him. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Ukyou-sama!" he wails. "I was so worried about you!"
"Why?" I ask closing and locking the door behind me. I don't think I
want to open today.
"You...." He trails off. "You didn't come home last night," he
says, forcing himself to still and kneeling in the corner like some
dutiful servant, bowing his head. A servant is the _last_ thing I
need right now.
"And what, you're my mother?" I ask. "Leave me alone."
He doesn't say anything, just bowing his head lower. In my room, I
shut the blinds, change into a clean robe, and flop down onto my
futon. I just want the whole world to go away.
I get dumped by Ranma.... And now, _after_ I've managed to let some
idiot get me drunk and take advantage of me -- it really starts to
hurt. He's out of my reach, and if he weren't, I'd be too dirty for
him anyway.
Shit.
I hope that jackass didn't knock me up.
Just thinking about it makes me tremble. But can I really blame
Ranma? He didn't hate me. He didn't even dislike me.
He just didn't care. Didn't even notice.
So I did this to myself.
"Ukyou-sama," Konatsu murmurs through the door. "If.... If you want
to talk about this--"
"Go away!" I yell. "I don't! And not to you! Leave me alone!"
He protests through the door, "But-"
"Leave me the hell alone, you moron!" I snarl. "You don't know
what's going on, so go away!"
"Ukyou-sama," Konatsu says, his voice near tears. He thinks he's got
something to cry about? "I'm worried about you. I saw the way that
you.... I mean...."
My face goes cold. He can tell just by the way I walked? I'd heard
that, somewhere. That some people could tell, just by that. So now
the whole world knows what I did?
"Go away!" I scream. "I never want to talk to you again!"
"But-"
I throw open the door and Konatsu's kneeling there at the top of the
stairs. One good kick sends him all the way down to the floor. "Go
away and die, for all I care! I just want to be alone!"
The door slams on him and I throw myself onto the futon again,
crying. Stupid, useless tears. Stupid, useless words. Stupid,
useless Konatsu.
Stupid, stupid, useless Ukyou.
***
I feel a little better when I wake up. I've had time to rest, I
suppose. But I'd give anything to go back in time just twenty-four
hours, and undo them.
Anything.
When I get downstairs, I'm alone. My shop is quiet and empty.
Konatsu is gone. Konatsu's things are gone. Not that he had many.
"Oh, damn," I whisper. "Konatsu?"
Something else I did wrong. Now that I think about it, I seem to be
really good at that.
I don't want to talk to strangers. I don't have many friends. It's
not like I can talk about this to the other okonomiyaki chefs I know,
either. They don't even know I'm a girl, except for Occhan, and he
moved to Hawaii last month.
Now that I think about it, I don't have any friends except for
Konatsu. And Ranma and Akane.
I guess that means I really don't have any friends, now.
And of course, I get to blame myself for that one, too. If it wasn't
for me thinking that someone as stupid as Ranma could care.... But of
course, he couldn't.
Idiot.
Then again, I believed in him, so who's the bigger fool?
Hands shaking, I collect the dress and the purse and the underwear I
wore.... Then I toss them into the fire barrel in the alley behind my
shop. Foom.
But not before I take those cigarettes from the purse.
I spend a little time after sunset thinking about it.
Why not add one more mistake to my collection?
***
Cigarettes taste bad. At least, these did. And I don't know if
there's an art to smoking, or anything like that. But it can't really
be that bad for you. I mean, Happosai and Cologne have to be a
hundred at least, and they both smoke.
And it makes me feel dizzy, too, but not like drinking did. And for
a while, once I learn to ignore the taste, it makes me feel a little
better. For a while, anyway.
But it's too late to open. And I don't want to deal with people.
So I sit behind my grill, in my empty little shop, and think.
And think.
But I can't think of what I should do. I can only think of what I did wrong.
***
A lot of time to think can be a bad thing. Thoughts eat away at you,
when you let them.
I don't know why people say smoking is bad for you. It gives you
something, when you don't have friends. It reminds you that it's easy
to feel good, and that feeling good doesn't actually mean anything.
And a pack of cigarettes doesn't leave you in the lurch the next morning.
But thinking....
So I had a few days to think things over. I tried opening the shop
for a bit, but it was different. I used to have a drive to be a great
okonomiyaki chef. I used to want to marry Ranma, too.
Once, I chose learning how to make good okonomiyaki over Ranma.
Until I could both be a great woman _and_ a great okonomiyaki chef.
Now I'm not sure I care.
I'm an okay chef, and I guess I'm okay at being a girl -- I slept
with someone. But what does it matter?
So now I'm looking out at the city. And maybe I've had something to
drink -- it's not hard to get alcohol even underage, really. You
could just find a shady shopkeeper, or you could go to a vending
machine.
Or if you run a restaurant like I did, you could just order it.
Deliverymen assume you're someone's daughter, and don't mind letting
you sign for whatever you order, even if it's a large case of potent
sake.
I don't like cooking okonomiyaki anymore. It used to be for myself,
but I gave that away. To someone, whoever he is.
Asshole.
At least it wasn't Ranma.
Not that it'd make a difference; if it was him, and then he left me
for her, I'd still be here.
The city lights below are like stars, which is good. It's cloudy,
and I don't see any real stars. No moon to look down on me.
Screw it.
Screw everything.
I jump.
The wind rushes past me and I close my eyes.
I hope you're happy, Ranma. It may be my fault more than yours, but
you had a role in this, too.
Jackass.
------------------------------------------------
[Descent -- Chapter two -- END]
------------------------------------------------
Descent -- Chapter Three
A Relative Distance
A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Brian Randall
Disclaimers: The paints, as always, are the property of Takahashi
Rumiko; I'm merely a peasant with an easel.
------------------------------------------------
I don't know if there's such a thing as a 'danger sense', but it
seems to me that you can end up telling when things are going to go
wrong. Pops says that a martial artist constantly surveys his
surroundings and lets himself know on an unconscious level that
something's wrong.
So I wasn't exactly surprised.
The thing of it is, just 'cause you can tell something's wrong
doesn't mean you know what it is. I mean, there were enough things
that didn't add up to tip me off, but I didn't know what it was. I
could tell it was going to be big, though.
Sending Shampoo off to China.... I think I handled that as best I
could. I felt good about it, too. I mean, she kissed me, she
smiled.... That's all the way it should be, right?
Sure, Cologne's pissed at me, and I'm cursed forever. But I've
gotten used to it. I mean, I wouldn't mind, but it's not like it's
the end of the world. Just hot water.
An easy fix, and an easy adjustment. Now, anyway.
But I was worried about Ucchan. Still, me and Nabiki made an
agreement, and I figure, Nabiki's way better at talking to people than
I am, so I might as well trust her. But I kinda hoped that Ucchan
would be there. I asked Mom, and she said that she'd written up an
invitation special, just for her. Said Nabiki delivered it.
Only, the thing is when we get there, she ain't around. Maybe she's
still upset? Maybe Nabiki forgot? But I don't want to mention it
around Akane. She gets angry enough when I try to talk about Shampoo
-- so that's out.
Nabiki's all quiet and distracted, like she's looking out for
someone. And that makes me think that maybe Ucchan's just late. But
I don't ask. Pops told me how important this whole thing was for
Akane, so I don't want to blow it by upsetting her.
Old-man-Tendo seems cool enough, and I don't think I've ever seen him
so happy. Akane's quiet and radiant....
But yeah, I can feel something's wrong. The giveaway is the fact
that Kasumi looks like she's been sucking on lemons all day. I hardly
ever see her not smile, but today she's unhappy.
Mom and Pops are fine, though. Akane looks happy.
So I try not to worry about it.
It's when we get home that I feel something's really wrong. Akane
and Kasumi go with Old-man-Tendo into the dojo, and leave us hanging
in the living room. I watch the T.V. while Nabiki and Mom small talk
about the wedding. Pops seems ready to drift off, which is way too
relaxed for me. But I guess it's all jitters, or something. I heard
about those.
Then Old-man-Tendo comes in with Kasumi behind him -- Akane's not
there -- and he says that he's gotten us a place to stay. We'll be
better off there, and can go and have more space right away. He hopes
we'll be happy with that. And honestly, I don't care what he says, or
how he feels -- I'm trying to figure out what's actually wrong. What
gets me here is something I think would get anyone.
See, halfway through his spiel, Mom interrupts him and holds up a
hand. Pops wakes up from his nap, and she says, "Excuse me, Tendo-san
... what is this all about?"
Kasumi looks sick. Old-man-Tendo looks sick. Nabiki just looks
confused, like she hasn't figured it out yet. And if she doesn't know
what's going on, I'm clueless. So I sit there on the floor and wait.
While I'm waiting, Akane peeks through the back door, but doesn't come
in. And she looks sad, and I want to look at her, but my eyes keep
going back to Mom, and anyway, Akane won't look at _me_.
Finally, Kasumi says, "We firmly believe in what is proper,
Saotome-san. And, as is proper, before Akane or Ranma-san could
possibly be wed, we had an investigation -- a proper one this time,
since Father's rush prevented it last time."
She leaves it hanging there like that. I don't get it.
"Investigated what?" I ask, feeling stupid.
"Well," Kasumi says, looking at me with a kind of pitying look ...
and believe me, a pitying look from Kasumi leaves you feeling lower
than a worm. "Ranma-san, you are descendant from.... That is.... It
would be most proper to say that you are mura-no-mono. I'm sure you
understand-"
And that's as far as she gets. 'Cause that's when Mom totally flips
out. I got reflexes, so I owe Pops for this one. When the sword is
out and swinging for me, I roll out of the way. "What the hell?" I
manage to ask.
And Mom looks pissed. Her eyes are practically _glowing_ with fury.
I feel like part of my whole world just got ripped away. Me? An eta?
No one ever told me! Maybe it was just some mistake? This was crazy
-- things were happening too fast.
But then she turns on Pops. "You bastard!" she screeches. "You
promised me! You swore a contract on your _life_ that no one would
find out!" Then she goes after him, and all I can do is stand there.
I mean, seriously.
This kind of crap can't happen to anyone else. I just won't believe
it -- somehow, I got the bad-luck magnet to end all bad-luck magnets.
Then again, I'm good about rolling with the punches. It could be
worse. Pops ducks out of the way, and I turn to him, thinking, 'Hey,
he's gotten us into tight spots before, but usually he gets us out of
'em, not too much worse for wear.'
Only this time, he just says, "Run for it, Boy!"
So ... we run.
Upstairs, he grabs his pack, I grab mine ... sure. Why not? An
escape until this all blows over -- that's the perfect thing. The
ultimate technique, and this is damn sure the time to use it. No
reason to hang around someone who's swinging a sword at you, even if
it is your own mother. There's crazy, and there's stupid.
Just, is this something that _can_ blow over? It has to -- Pops will
know who set us up and how we can fix this.
A few minutes later we stop beneath a bridge, and Pops sighs and
starts setting up camp. Like it was nothing to worry about. So, why
should I worry about it that much? He's got to have a plan. We ate
fine at the reception, so we just set up and sit there for a bit in
the quiet, listening to the water.
We don't usually talk that much when we're alone. No need to.
"Well," he says, standing up and dusting his hands off on his pants.
"We should get some sleep."
"Wait," I complain. "You're not going to say anything about that
crap? Whoever it is that set us up?"
Pops just shrugs like it's no big deal. "I wouldn't worry about the
Tendo family or your mother anymore," he says confidently.
Now, I know Pops, and I know he's a champion liar. But I also know
enough to tell when he's really worried, and the thing that blows my
mind about this is that he doesn't look upset at all. Perfectly calm,
not worried ... got everything under control.
So he's got to have a plan, and he won't let me in on it. Sometimes
Pops can be a real jerk.
But this is Akane we're talking about -- and.... Hell, after
everything else I did for Akane already, the last thing I need is this
garbage, even if it is temporary. What about my reputation? How am I
supposed to get students for the dojo once I inherit it with something
like that on my record? "I want to know what's going on here!" I yell
at him, grabbing the front of his gi. "Come on, Pops! Akane's got to
be all kinds of freaked out about--"
He stops me not by attacking me, or trying to start a fight -- right
then I'm tense enough I would have leapt for it. "Boy," he says, in
that 'calm down, I'm going to say something smart for once' tone I've
got from him maybe five times in the last three years. "I want you to
think about what Akane _did_ when she heard."
And that kills the conversation for the night. I spend a lot of time
stewing it over, and don't get to sleep until late. At least Pops
didn't snore that night.
***
In the morning, when Pops is gone, I start thinking about things some more.
He left me all of my stuff, which was pretty decent of him.
And he left me a message, though, it wasn't written or anything. I
could just tell. He said....
It's not a setup. It wasn't a mistake.
If it were a fluke, he wouldn't have ditched me.
So I spend the rest of the day beneath the bridge, just sitting there
and thinking. Pops always did move around a lot. He always seemed
happier when we were traveling. When we went on our trip, I think he
liked leaving Japan the best.
He was almost always laughing when we got to Korea. Russia didn't
dampen his spirits too much either, though he always loved China best.
I figured it out. Because there, no one could know we were
mura-no-mono. He never told me, so I couldn't screw it up -- I guess
he made the right choice there, even if everything did get screwed up
in the end.
That's just a hell of a thing to find out. Figuring out what to do
is even harder.
Around the time the sun is setting, I've spent the entire day pacing
around beneath the bridge, just thinking. Trying to think. It's a
lot to wrap your head around.
But, hell. I killed Saffron for Akane. Then this comes up and,
what, Pops ditches me overnight? My stomach starts to hurt, and I
realize I haven't eaten all day. I start thinking of the Neko-Hanten,
before I remember. That's out, and if everything goes to hell,
China's out too.
Ucchan's got to know by now, so that's no good. And that means I got
nothing left at all.
Except Akane, right? So, tired, hungry, and feeling pretty damn
lousy in general, I go over to check things out. I guess her family
doesn't want much to do with me, but Akane's got to feel different.
***
When I get there, it's full dark. The Umisen-ken may be sealed, but
if I'm mura-no-mono, I don't think a little thing like my word should
slow me down. No one else will value it, so why should I?
I came up with a plan, working my way to the dojo. First, I'll find
Akane, and we'll talk. I'll square things away, and then we'll blow
the whole damn country off. No real reason to stay anyway, right?
Only, it doesn't work that way. I spend ten minutes just sitting on
the wall outside of the house, trying to think about what the hell I'm
going to say. It doesn't help that from where I'm sitting I can see
her. And she doesn't look broken up, or upset, or anything but tired
and bored. Maybe a little disappointed.
And ... Pops' words kind of haunt me. So I just sit there and think,
and watch Akane. I spent my entire day thinking about her, and the
first thing I hear her say from where I am is, "What's the weather
tomorrow, Kasumi?"
Damn it. I ran after the wrong person, didn't I? Just like me....
All I got is nothing -- except for an urge to find Pops and beat the
snot out of him. I may be mura-no-mono, but if I got it from him,
where the hell does he get off ditching me?
Hey, mura-no-mono means 'people of the village', right? So if this
place isn't my home, maybe I'd better find where it is.
***
Pops didn't leave many clues behind, but when I packed up what he
left me with, I did find a small stack of cash. Not a ton, but with
the sen-kens, I guess it'll never be a big issue anyway. So for the
first week, I try and remember the way we went when I was little.
The long trek away from Tokyo.... It's funny. The first part I
remember really clearly is meeting Ucchan. I guess I should probably
call her Ukyou, now. Or maybe Kuonji-san.
That feels way too formal, and it's not like she's talking to me.
But hell, if the Tendo family and Mom get so worked up about it,
someone from western Japan would probably flip out way worse.
So after a while I find myself wandering through the fields where I
used to duel for okonomiyaki with Ucchan.... Ukyou.... Ah, whatever.
I guess to me she'll always be Ucchan, no matter what she'd call me
if we talked. She lived around here when I met her, so I guess she
probably came back after she found out about me.
And I guess, I'm kind of hoping that I'll run into her and it won't
be a big deal. But I'm not hoping enough to go after her, either.
Then again, it's not like I even tried to talk to Akane. First things
first -- finding Pops.
I end up wandering for a long while, all over. I find the spot where
Ucchan and I used to play as kids. Where Pops watched over us, or
sometimes her dad, when he was off.... Off where, now that I think
about it? He did leave me with her dad a few times. He always left
to the north, so that's where I head.
Sure enough, a few miles out I find a whole buraka village. Looks
like it's left over from one of those government reformation projects,
only someone gave up halfway. Not a single building in the lot of
maybe a hundred isn't seriously messed up from where I stand. Holes
in the walls, broken windows, doors busted completely off....
Depressing as all hell to realize that these are _my_ people. I'm
one of them. But then again, I've seen other buraka villages, and
they aren't all as messed up as this one. Pops came here, though. Or
I think he did. I _hope_ he did.
Anyway, most of the town's set up in a big circle, and everyone looks
at me like I'm an outsider. Some part of me isn't ready to say, "Hey,
brothers and sisters, I'm dirty too," so I just look away and walk on.
When I think about it, that makes me a huge asshole. But I don't
care about these people, even if they _are_ really my people. I just
care about Pops. And Akane, I guess. I mean, I got to talk to him
before I can talk to her. And I do plan on talking to her.
But in the middle of the town is a couple of dirty buildings, and one
of them lets me know that Pop's inside. Whoever it is he was fighting
flies out and slides past me in the dirt, and then I hear him laugh.
So I know I'm in the right place.
When I get in, he's sitting at a table against the back wall, with at
least fifty empty bottles scattered around. They're not all his, I
can tell he's being free with 'em and all the guys and girls sitting
around, cheering him on. So I storm over, and I'm ready to give Pops
hell and tear him a new one, and none of these people have even
noticed that I'm there, and then some girl that's leaning over Pops
says, "Are you going to _stay_ home this time, Daddy?"
"Yeah," he says, setting down his bottle of sake and looking me in
the eye. "You looking for my son, stranger?"
And it's the damdest thing ... that girl is younger than me by about
five years, I'm guessing. And she's just a kid ... so who am I to
say, "Sorry, I need Pops back, and it looks like he's only going to
help one of us out," you know? She's still a person, and she's got
her own family ... Pops, I mean. Genma, I guess, if that's how this
is going to play out. And maybe he did the right thing choosing her
over me.
Damn.
"Looks that way," I answer. "I heard...." And then I pause, because
everyone looks at me like I don't fit in -- like these _aren't_ my
people after all, and I see what Pops is really up to.
"You heard he was a living legend," Genma says proudly, grinning.
"He went to China and fooled those 'clean' people in Tokyo for the
better part of a year! Lived the good life, learned a lot ... and now
he's going out to do it again, huh?"
"I didn't hear all of that," I say dryly. "Just the first part."
"Well, he isn't here," Genma says with a shrug. "This isn't his home."
"Oh."
Then there's nothing to say for a minute, and he tosses an unopened
bottle at me. "You won't drink sake that's been through my hands," he
says, "but give this to my son when you find him."
"Yeah," I say, nodding. "I think I'll do that."
And that ... is the last time I plan on talking to my father.
Don't that just beat all?
***
So I spent a while wandering.... A quick trip down to Sasebo, which
is about as far south as you can wander casually. It was also where
Pops and I originally left to China from, which pretty much means I
can't go much further west, either. Anywhere else is going to take a
boat or a long swim, and I don't feel like losing myself in the
Ryu-Kyu islands for a few years right now. Maybe later.
So that's when I loop back to the north along the coast, running a
big lap around the island. Super endurance training, I guess.
Doesn't take long, and I make sure to only steal from jerks and
people who won't notice -- usually they're the same ones, anyway. So
by the time Tokyo rolls back around in front of me, I've had some time
and space to burn off my anger. And it's not like I could take it out
on Genma. He spent his entire life ... well.
He spent my entire life looking out for me, if I realized it or not.
And the real kicker about it all is that I can't really complain too
much about the curse, either, 'cause that just makes it easier to
hide. 'Course, I still got problems. I don't know who I am anymore.
I'm not Genma's son.
I'm _not_ a burakamin. So I'm just some homeless wandering martial
artist. Who happened to return to Tokyo, the one place I probably
shouldn't ever have gone to.
But I figure, as long as I'm there, I'll just hide all the time --
stick with the Umisen-ken. And that's mostly what I do. But I'm not
stupid. I don't go to Furinkan. I don't go looking for Akane. I
know that wouldn't do any good now, anyway.
And while me and Genma traveled a lot, we never met that many people.
I do wonder what the old pervert's take on this whole thing would be,
but I figure it's probably best not to ask. It'd be way too easy for
him to screw me over, and he can be malicious enough sometimes to do
it. Not worth the risk.
The plan is to avoid anyone I know at all.
After that, I'm the freest person in the world.
So ... why am I here?
Only, I know that. It's 'cause I'd give it all away if I could just
have had Akane. And that's when the tears hit me.
Saotome Ranma, man among men, doesn't cry.
And he can go screw himself, because whoever I am, I sure hurt when
it all comes together for me.
***
So by the time I wake up, I'm thinking that first, I gotta get out of
town. Second, I've got to throw away that bottle that Genma gave me.
Still unopened, but I can't bring myself to drink it.
Then I realize there's someone sitting next to me. I figured, hey,
who's going to find me on the top of a twenty story building? I'll
tell you who.
Konatsu.
"What do you want?" I ask him, rubbing my eyes and fumbling around
for my canteen.
"I need to ask you for help," he says tiredly.
And once I finish waking up, I have to say: he looks like I feel.
"You look like crap."
"Ranma-sama," he says, bowing low, kneeling on the ground with his
forehead pressed against that cruddy roofing stuff they put on
high-rises. "I have to beg you for help!"
"You don't got to beg me for nothing," I tell him back with a growl.
"And stand up. You're a man, aren't you? And anyway, I'm not...." A
pause. Gotta think about this for a second. "What do you know about
what's going on right now?"
Konatsu sits up and kneels, while I'm packing up my stuff. "I know
about your ancestry," he says bluntly. "But I still need to ask you
for help."
Heh. Konatsu seems like a good kid, I guess. "I'd love to, really,
but I gotta skip town."
"Ukyou-sama needs you," he insists.
"Yeah, she needs me like she needs a hole in the head," I tell him
back, giving him a dirty look. "I'm no good for anyone." And the
last thing I need is someone who used to be my best friend telling me
off. Akane's distance was bad enough, but Ucchan's got a temper, too.
"Ranma-sama," Konatsu says, sounding like he's about to cry,
"Ukyou-sama has rejected me. I can't help her anymore ... and she
needs someone."
"I'm sorry. She was my friend, Konatsu. She was. But honestly?
She's a hell of a lot better off without me dragging her down."
Konatsu doesn't say anything for a moment, then he sighs. "I can't
do anything to convince you? If I thought it would do any good,
I'd...." And then he puts on a girly act that makes me want to gag --
mostly because after you think about it, he's good at it. And that's
creepy, because while I can turn into a girl, he's still a guy.
Anyway, he's all making like to get undressed, and he says, "I would
give you my body, Ranma-sama."
"Don't want it," I say quickly, waving a hand to stop him. "I'm
sorry, Konatsu, I don't think you know how much trouble I'd cause if I
tried to talk to Ucchan right now."
"If...." Konatsu stops pulling off his kimono and sighs. "Well,
there's an abandoned construction site a few blocks from Furinkan.
They ran out of money. If you're looking for a place to stay for a
while, and be hidden, it may work."
And then Konatsu stands up and walks to the edge of the roof. He
looks back at me and says, "Good luck, Ranma-sama."
"You too, kid," I say.
Where the hell did that come from? 'Kid'?
But he smiles, then jumps off. For a second, I feel sick -- Ukyou
just told him off, and I said I wouldn't talk to her. He didn't take
it _too_ hard, did he? But no, when I look over the edge of the
building, he's running down the street.
That's why, when the sun sets, I find myself huddled for warmth at
the base of the building Konatsu told me about. The walls they use to
keep people out block the wind pretty well, so it makes for decent
shelter -- but you gotta get up early to avoid the people who show up
in the morning.
So it's not a bad place to camp, and it is pretty out-of-sight. But
why am I there?
It's the kind of thing you wonder about after the fact, but even when
I was going there I kept telling myself there was no point to it....
Then I hear someone I recognize cry, and I know. And that's why I'm there.
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