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All original Ranma1/2 Characters and Backstory Copyright
Rumiko Takahashi, and are used without permission.
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Coutuva.
Goodbye Is Not Forever - Part Two
------------------------------------------------------------------
Ranma sat in the middle of the Dojo, unable to stop
staring at the picture in his hand. It had been three days since
the 'experiment', but the image still gave him the creeps. So
much so that he'd carefully avoided becoming female, and was
starting to have trouble sleeping.
There hadn't been any new discoveries or incidents, but
that supposedly good news only gave him the uncomfortable feeling
there was a reason why. He was worried that everything that was
going to occur already had - and that he was perhaps only
experiencing the leftovers.
Which only made him feel worse.
And added to his discomfort was the fact that he couldn't
even work off his frustration. He was still on the mend, and
would be for at least a few more days. Tofuu had just finished
telling him that he was healing in his usual remarkable fashion,
but the area was still very weak.
Just as he drew a frustrated sigh, his depressing reverie
was disturbed by the sound of Kasumi calling the family to supper.
With a last frowning look at the picture, he shoved it in his
waistband and rose, only to stop in his tracks at a sound he'd
been too preoccupied to notice sooner.
"Kuso... Rain."
At the table, she ate in silence, her mood made darker by
her current gender. When she finished, she rose with a
respectful nod to Kasumi, and strode off to the bath.
Tossing aside her still damp clothes, she started the
furo filling and walked over to the shower, anxious to get the
process over with. As she passed the mirror, she stopped and
looked herself over, having not seen herself nude since
everything started happening.
She was dismayed to see what looked like a very slight
roll on her tummy, but assumed it was a result of her injury.
She also noticed some tiny, jagged lines that were arrayed
vertically across the same area, but off to either side and just
below her belly button.
"Kuso... Never saw those while I was a guy," she
grumbled, running her fingers over the area gingerly.
As she continued her inspection, her attention fell to
her hips, which she noticed seemed different. She couldn't
quite put a finger on it, but there was definitely something
odd about their shape.
Upon looking more closely, she realized that it looked
as if everything had shifted down - including her butt. The
change was just barely perceptible, but to her, it was very
obvious.
That confusing discovery redirected her examination to
her breasts, where she saw something even more surprising.
Her nipples were larger. And not only that, but the
dark areas around them seemed bigger. Shocked, she cupped one
in her hand and stepped closer to the mirror, only to end up
confirming what she'd seen.
Just as her face darkened, she began to notice how the
breast itself seemed heavy, and had a distinctly different
consistency. Her frown deepening, she let go of the breast and
stepped toward the vanity, there to retrieve an eyeliner pencil.
Back at the mirror, she lifted the same one and
positioned the pencil under it, then let the breast settle back.
She almost yelped as the pencil stayed in place.
It had only been a couple of weeks since Akane had
announced that her bust only just barely held a pencil up,
which had made Ranma check hers. She could still remember the
malleting she got when she told Akane there was nowhere for
her to hold one.
Just as she started to panic, however, Kasumi's comments
about the affair came back to her. In an effort to calm Akane,
she'd pointed out that such things were likely just a symptom
of age, or 'unrestrained' physical activity.
With a huge sigh of relief, she tossed the pencil back
on the vanity, then turned and headed for the shower. She'd
freaked herself out enough for one day.
The cloud hovering over Ranma's head was dark enough to
block the sun as he strode home, still grumbling about his
'discussion' with Akane. She'd noticed his sullen mood, and had
been pestering him all day to tell her about it.
Since he wasn't willing to discuss the rather 'sensitive'
nature of his latest discoveries, he had tried to blow her off.
Unfortunately, she took offense to being told to mind her own
business for once, and things had gone downhill from there.
"Well, hello there son-in-law," a certain voice suddenly
greeted, at which his heart sank.
"Oh, it's you. I thought you were in China or something."
"I was, but that's all over with now. And just in case
you were wondering, my great granddaughter should be returning
shortly from her deliveries," she responded, a very obvious hint
in her tone.
"Feh. I'm goin' home, and that's where I'm stayin'."
The expected response never came. Instead, the old ghoul
hopped closer to him, a strange look in her eyes. Despite being
at a severe disadvantage, he subtly took a stance.
"Have you been feeling all right lately?" she asked, her
brow furrowing even more than usual.
"Huh?"
"I mean have you noticed anything unusual... Odd
feelings - disorientation perhaps?"
His first reaction was to say he hadn't, but he
reconsidered when he saw the look in the woman's eyes. "Well...
There has been some weird crap happening..."
"I thought so. Come with me, son-in-law - I would like
to read your Chi."
When they arrived at the Nekohanten, Ranma's trepidation
was edging on fearfulness. He didn't need any more surprises.
The old ghoul seemed to notice, and quickly directed him to a
chair.
"Sit here, relax, and try to clear your mind. This won't
take long," she indicated, then placed a withered hand on his
forehead and closed her eyes. About five minutes later, her
face darkened and she moved back, then slid down her stick and
placed a hand on the floor. After a few more moments, she rose
and sighed.
"What is it? Somethin' wrong?"
"Not wrong, perhaps, but certainly very strange. I can't
explain why, but it seems your Chi is out of harmony with the
Earth."
"What?"
She sighed. "Every living thing is in harmony with the
aura of the Earth. For example, even though a flower may only
live a few months, its life force is still on the same rhythm.
Time passes for it as it does for you, no faster and no slower.
Do you understand that?"
"Well, yeah, but..."
"Very good. There are, however, certain cases where
people have changed their relation to this rhythm - such as myself
and Happosai. We have slowed ours, which makes us seem to age
slower. Are you still with me?"
He shot her an annoyed look. "Yeah; so what's that got
to do with me?"
"When I met you in the street, I sensed a difference in
your life aura, Ranma. What I have just done is compare it to
the aura of the Earth itself, and that has told me something I
truly do not understand. Your Chi is out of harmony -- like
mine - but in the opposite direction. In short, you're about two
years *older* than the rest of the planet."
Before he could stop himself, Ranma shuddered. "Chikusho..."
"Oh, you needn't worry. It won't hurt you in any way,
other than to make you older than your years - which could turn
out to be good for you."
"Yeah? Then how'd it happen? I never did nothing to
cause this."
"Oh, yes you have. As in my case, how you live your
life can affect it, and you do have a very unusual one,
son-in-law."
He had to smirk at her. "And whose fault is that, huh?"
"I wonder. I seem to recall a certain red-haired girl
that invited herself to a feast..."
"No! No way. I ain't getting into that again. I'm
outta here," he blurted, then made a beeline for the door. Just
as he went to open it, however, he stopped. "You sure this
ain't gonna bug me?"
"I'm sure - just look at me. Although, if you're really
worried, there are springs around our village that are said to
make one feel young again," the old ghoul smiled, with a hinting
wink.
"And I'll bet you'd just love to show 'em to me, right?"
he huffed, then headed out the door. At first, he'd been
concerned that the old ghoul had found something serious, but
after her last remark, he was certain it was just another trick.
As he headed down the street grumbling about it all, he
happened to catch sight of a clock on the wall of a stand, and
cursed to himself as picked up his pace.
He was late for supper.
After what turned out to be another fitful, sleepless
night, Ranma strode through the house enroute to the door, only
to stop as he heard the television. Since he knew Kasumi didn't
like it left on, he started into the room, intent on shutting
it off. As he reached down to hit the power button, the screen
changed from a news reporter at his desk to a live shot, in the
corner of which was a picture of a gaijin man.
An unnervingly familiar gaijin man.
"It was here, on this ordinary corner in downtown
Vancouver, that the world's most intelligent man met his untimely
end. According to local Police sources, the car driven by 25 year
old Elliott Hadridge was broadsided by a delivery truck, killing
him instantly. Mr. Hadridge, who had no family, was reputed to
have the highest intelligence quotient of any man alive. His
abilities were so incredible that he was at one time thought
capable of reading minds and predicting the future. The accident
that claimed his life came at the height of rush hour, when the
truck is reported to have run a light. Mr. Hadridge had been
on his way home from Bayles University, where he held the
position of Dean of Mathematics. His passing will be felt
deeply by the scientific community, which had been anticipating
the results of his groundbreaking research on human intelligence.
For CDON News Japantown Vancouver, I'm Sakijadori Ito."
Numbly, he reached down and turned off the set. When
he'd first seen the picture, he knew the man's face. When he
heard the name, he said it to himself in synch with the
reporter.
And he knew it well enough that he actually felt
saddened at the man's passing.
He couldn't understand it. He was certain he'd never
met anyone like that, and most especially since the guy was a
westerner. The only ones he knew were students his age, and he
barely spoke to them.
A shiver ran his back as he felt his wall of denial
staring to crumble. Things had just graduated from weird to
downright scary, which was suddenly becoming a pattern.
"What the hell is going on?" he breathed, as he backed
away from the now silent television, turned, and beat a hasty
retreat.
It had taken all day and everything he could muster, but
he had finally managed to fight down the confusion and fear that
gnawed at his gut. Never in his life had he been so intimidated,
and that fact scared him as much as the reason.
Near as he could figure, someone was trying very hard to
drive him crazy. He didn't know why, or even how they were doing
it, but was certain that if he didn't fight back, he'd be
visiting Kodachi at her 'vacation home'.
Using every concentration technique he knew, he forced
the entire matter from his thoughts, and kept it sealed in the
back of his head. He'd found that by not thinking about any of
it, and by keeping his focus sharp, he could stay in control.
And as long as he was in control, he was winning the battle for
his sanity.
The hardest part of it all however, was trying to convince
Akane and the rest of the family that nothing was really wrong.
Akane had been unusually concerned, especially after he had not
gone to school, and the rest were all still expecting an attack
of some kind. Shampoo and Ukyou had also dropped by to find out
what happened, and he'd found himself buoyed up by the fact that
Shampoo said nothing about the old ghoul's 'discovery'. That
led him to completely dismiss it, which was one less thing to
worry about.
Once supper had been dispensed with, he'd retired to the
Dojo in an attempt to work through some Tai Chi, but Akane had
followed him and insisted on working at his side. He'd kept the
conversation light and to a minimum, and had managed to get
through without incident. He'd been able to tell, however, that
Akane knew he was stalling her off, and it wasn't going to be
long before she forced the issue. Her patience was even more
limited than his.
There was, however, one unexpected benefit to his
struggle. The effort it was taking to keep up appearances was
as tiring as fighting a pitched battle.
As he finally stretched out and closed his eyes, he
anticipated getting his best sleep in days.
Unfortunately, his hope turned out to be in vain.
Soon after he felt himself drifting, his mind filled
with random, fleeting images; images of his 'made up' girl form,
the man on the television, and scattered scenes he didn't
recognize at all.
However, as the tableau continued, a sense of
familiarity began to build within him - one that made him feel
very anxious and agitated.
Just as he considered opening his eyes to chase them
out of his thoughts, they all suddenly faded away. But before
he even had time to register the occurrence, they came back;
this time in an unreadable blur.
He tried concentrating on them, and after a moment, it
worked. Gradually, they began to slow down, and come in a bit
clearer.
He concentrated harder. At first, there was no change,
then, in the middle of it all, a small point of light rapidly
grew into a bright flash.
When it faded, the images started to clear.
And as soon as he was able to make them out, his heart
stopped.
"Ranma...? What are you doing out in the yard at this
hour?" Akane asked, her unusually timid voice penetrating the
fog shrouding his brain.
He stopped punching the dummy and glanced down at his
hands, not surprised to see the blood trickling from his
knuckles. At about the same time, he felt the ripping ache in
his abdomen.
He turned and looked back at her, about to tell her to
go back in - until he met her worried, frightened eyes. The
last of his resolve crumbled like so much drying sand.
"Akane... I think I'm going nuts..."
The next few hours seemed like a blur as he recounted
his sad tale to Akane, Kasumi, and even Nabiki. After they
each looked back at him with horrified expressions, Kasumi
called Tofuu, and he now found himself sitting on an examining
table in the clinic.
He'd just finished relating his tale to the disheveled
Doctor, at which Tofuu excused himself, saying he had a friend
who would be better qualified to assess the situation.
For his part, he didn't care any more. With pouring
out his heart to Akane, he had allowed his guard to drop, and
with it went the last of his arrogant pride. He was ready to
take help from anyone who'd give it.
After what felt like a lifetime had finally passed,
Tofuu stepped back in the door, accompanied by a rumpled but
professional-looking woman.
She was about the Doc's age, and clad in a lab coat.
She carried a large bag with her, which she set down on the
caddy near the table.
After a quick introduction, she surprised him with her
first statement.
"All right then, Mr. Saotome -- for this examination,
I'll need you to change to a girl," she indicated with a
pleasant smile, and popped open the large bag.
The tension in the waiting room was dense enough to
stop a shuriken, as the gathered families awaited some word.
Akane held Kasumi's hand, Soun was breathing into a bag, while
Genma was sitting beside him in stony silence. Nabiki was
using the opportunity to sort out her markers, and bore a
thoughtful mask.
The sudden sound of the exam room door opening hit
them with the impact of a gunshot.
Tofuu was the first through, his face looking tired
and drained. He was followed closely by the woman doctor, who
looked somewhat shocked. Ranma did not come out.
"I... See no point in sugar-coating this," Tofuu began,
to a collective intake of breath. "My colleague, Doctor
Ishibara, is an OB/GYN. I called upon her services because
the nature of Ranma's complaints seemed to point to an area
outside my scope. And I also felt that having a 'discreet'
third party confirm my suspicions would lend credence to them,"
he explained, then paused to draw a breath. "And as I expected,
Doctor Ishibara has made a rather stunning and indisputable
determination, based on a thorough physical examination of
Ranma's girl form," he continued, then set himself.
"Ranma... Has had a baby. Due to the healing ability, it's
hard to be accurate, but we estimate hi -- her to be
approximately three weeks post-partum."
The ensuing silence was deafening.
===================================================================
END - Goodbye Is Not Forever - Part 2 A Ranma1/2 Fanfic by Coutuva
Comments Welcomed - Flames Extinguished!
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