A Ranma 1/2 alternate universe mini-series. A PG rating for language and situations.

This story and a few others can be found on my web page at
http://www.oocities.org/jlfenton65/
jlfenton65@yahoo.com

Ranma 1/2 is a trademark of Viz Communications, Inc. and was created by Rumiko Takahashi.
This story is of my own derivation and is not intended for commercial purposes, so please don't sue me.

Author's Notes: Most folks know the quote is "Home is where the heart is." I can tell you from experience that this is completely false. My family moved all the time due to my dad's military career, and I can assure you that no matter where your heart is, until the refrigerator is plugged in and filled with food, it is NOT home. Home is where you can walk in, stand in front of the refrigerator for ten minutes, then finally drink from the carton. Sure, Mom doesn't like it, but try that anywhere else and you'll get more than a mild rebuke. That is what truly tells one that they are home.

 

Last Chapter: In chapter one, Nodoka would not accept the seppuku pledge to allow Genma to take Ranma on the ten-year training trip by himself; she would accompany them. This led to all sorts of changes: the delay in the trip allowed Genma to receive news of Soun's wife's death; this in turn leads to a meeting of the two families where it is tentatively decided that Akane would be Ranma's fiancée. Nodoka discovers that Soun may not be able to care for all three girls properly with his wife's passing, so it is decided that Nabiki will accompany the Saotomes under Nodoka's care. Ranma and Nabiki travel and train, making friends and enemies. Finally, it is time to return to Nerima.

 

Together

Chapter 2: Home Is Where The Refrigerator Is

by Joe Fenton

     Soun Tendo walked back into his home after retrieving the mail. He set aside the bills, then finally noticed the sender on one of the remaining letters. His hands shook as he opened the latest letter from his middle daughter. Nabiki wrote her family whenever she got the chance; it was much more difficult for her to get any replies due to the nomadic life a training trip entailed. Tears ran down his cheek as he read through the text; one sentence stood out among all the others.

     'We are on our way back; I can't wait to finally be with you all again.'

     He had to tell his other girls. "Kasumi! Akane!" Where were those girls?

     He found Kasumi in the kitchen, working on dinner. "Kasumi? Can you find Akane and bring her to the living room? I have great news!"

     His eldest daughter nodded, turned down the heat on a couple of the pans, then moved past him. She knew where Akane could usually be found this time of day. She headed for the practice hall; she found her sister just outside, preparing to demolish a stack of concrete blocks. She refrained from interrupting the girl's concentration.

     "Hyaahh!" With a sure thrust, Akane shattered the blocks. "Man, this is hardly a work-out. I need to find a good sparring partner." She turned to Kasumi. "What's up?"

     "Daddy has something to tell us."

     She looked at the broken blocks. "Okay, I'll just clean this up then be right in."

     Kasumi nodded and went back inside.

****

     Soun knelt by the low table in the middle of the room. A fan off to one side kept the air circulating. Across the table from him, his two daughters knelt. Akane helped herself to a chip from the bowl Kasumi had brought out for them along with drinks.

     "Girls, your sister is coming home!" Soun was ready to burst into tears again just thinking about seeing his little girl after so many years.

     Akane held the chip. "Really? Wow!" She tried to remember her older sister. She had a vague memory of a brown haired girl, but couldn't bring anything else to mind.

     "That's wonderful! Are the Saotomes coming too?" Kasumi was overjoyed; she remembered her younger sister better than Akane, being nine when Nabiki had left with the Saotomes. She had missed Nabiki considerably the first year she had been gone. Her mind turned to practical matters. "I'll have to prepare her room; if the Saotomes are also staying, I'll have to prepare the guest room as well. Oh! I'll need to go to the market; we're running low on a few things."

     Soun smiled at his eldest daughter; he was so proud of her. She had taken over the household duties after her mother had died. With one less member to care for and a little help from him and Akane, Kasumi had managed to maintain the house and keep her school work up. She was now attending the local junior college while working part-time at a nearby clinic; this brought in a little extra money to help defray the cost of her schooling as well as giving her access to various books about medicine. It also allowed her to see her fiancé, the young Dr. Tofu Ono who worked there.

     It also meant that Kasumi didn't have as much time to spend with her family. It was just as well that Kasumi was able to at least teach Akane the fundamentals of cooking. Soun still shuddered when he remembered some of her early attempts; it was one of the things that had brought them into contact with Kasumi's future fiancé all too often. He knew that sometimes Kasumi felt guilty about not being able to spend more time at home, but he and Akane reassured her whenever they could. He knew that guilty feeling all too well; he had sent his middle daughter off with his best friend's family years back because he thought it was best for her. It didn't mean that he didn't miss her desperately, wondering if it had really been the right thing to do. Her letters home seemed to indicate she was well, and he clung to those letters when the guilt threatened to overwhelm him.

      With the return of the Saotomes, Genma and Ranma would be able to assist in the dojo; Akane made an able assistant, but it took more than one master to run a full complement of classes. This would generate enough money that Kasumi could start attending at a good university full time. He had no doubts that Nodoka could handle the extra house work that would result from the extra people and the departure of his eldest daughter. He turned his attention back to his girls.

     "Yes, the Saotomes are coming too, but you needn't handle it all yourself; Akane and I can take care of the rooms. We'll leave the shopping to you as you know what is needed."

     Akane was quick on the uptake. "Yeah. It's not a problem. Cleaning is the one thing I can actually do best as far as housework goes." She had plenty of practice between the house and the dojo. As an assistant to her father, as well as the most advanced student, it was her responsibility to straighten up after the small classes her father still taught after school.

     Kasumi smiled slightly. "It'll be nice to see little Ranma again."

     Akane gave her a blank look. "Who?"

     Kasumi smiled at her. "You probably don't remember too well. Little boy, black hair in a pony-tail, you chased him around the yard with a board..."

     "Oh yeah! Him. You're right, I don't remember too well. I wouldn't have remembered at all if you hadn't reminded me of our fight. He got me mad for some reason I can't recall." She tried to bring more details to mind, but gave it up; it had just been too long. She had a sip from her drink.

     Soun laughed as he remembered the incident in question. "Well, I'm sure you'll both get along much better now that you're older. After all, I can't my daughter fighting with her fiancé when students are around."

     Akane choked on her drink; Kasumi gave her a few pats on the back until she got her breath back.

     "Fiancé?!"

     Soun nodded, oblivious to the look Akane was giving him. "Of course. Ranma's father and I arranged it when you two were born. With you two married and running the dojo, our houses will be united and the family legacy assured."

     Kasumi beamed at her sister. "Oh! Isn't it wonderful?"

     "Kasumi!" She looked at her happy sister and couldn't say it. She rounded on her father instead. "There is no way I'm marrying some - some - boy! I don't even know what he's like! What if he's some kind of pervert?"

     Soun frowned at his youngest child. "I know you had problems with some boys at your previous school, but that's no reason to think the worst of him. Why, from what Nabiki has written, Ranma is one of the finest young men you could hope to meet."

     Kasumi gave her a reproving look. "You'd know that if you had read your sister's letters. At least wait until you meet the boy before judging him."

     Akane rolled her eyes. "Fine! But if Nabiki thinks he's so great and wonderful, maybe she should be the one to marry him."

****

     Sunday afternoon found many folks out enjoying the day in Nerima. It wasn't too unusual to see families walking down the street, sometimes stopping at the shops or the street vendors. It was unusual to see a beautiful, dignified woman walking next to a giant panda carrying a huge pack, followed by three young girls. The girls weren't in themselves unusual either, but one held a small black pig, and another held the arm of the last, who also carried a huge pack. Then there was the bizarre fact that the pig and the purple-haired girl seemed to have identical expressions of contented happiness, while the other two girls had identical expressions of irritation.

     The brown-haired girl expressed her irritation. "Ranma! How can you let her do that when you're engaged to my sister? Haven't you any sense of decency?"

     That definitely warranted another look from the various bystanders.

     The red-haired girl in question vented her own irritation. "You think I like this? Even Mom can't get her to stop! And I'm not marrying your sister! I don't even know the girl! What if she's ugly? Or stupid?"

     Nabiki stopped in the street, exceedingly angry. "You will not call my sister stupid and ugly!" She pulled out a bokken and stabbed at the red-head.

     Ranma tried dodging; it was quite an effort with Shampoo clinging to her arm. "Hey! Watch it! I only said 'what if!'"

     There was quite a crowd watching by this point.

     Shampoo blocked a slice that would have actually connected with Ranma's head. "Sister, you will leave my husband alone!" Shampoo's Japanese had improved considerably with Nodoka's help in the month it had taken to reach Nerima.

     Half the crowd fell on their faces.

     Ranma tried to pry loose her arm. "I'm not your husband!" She faced the brown-haired girl. "And I'm not gonna marry no one, at least not now!"

     There was much head nodding in the crowd. This girl seemed to be the only one with a sense of propriety.

     The older woman was holding a hand to one temple. It had been a very very long trip.

     The panda decided enough was enough. He faced the crowds on either side. "GRRR! OWRRR!"

     They wisely decided to mind their own business.

     Nodoka spoke to the three girls. "Come along now. Quit this juvenile behavior and act like proper young girls."

     That got the standard outburst from Ranma. "I ain't no girl! I'm a guy, dammit!"

     The number of face-faults that occurred indicated that at least a few people hadn't yet given up on the unexpected entertainment.

     Nodoka spoke to her child sternly. "Ranma! You will watch your language! I will not have my son speaking like a coarse ruffian. Now, you will meet your fiancée and you will be polite to her and her family. This is a matter of family honor and you will not bring shame to our family!"

     The three girls followed the adults once more. The brown-haired girl still shooting the red-haired girl dark looks, the red-haired girl muttering under her breath, and the purple-haired girl looking contented and happy once again.

****

     Soun and Akane knelt on one side of the low table in the living room. Across from them knelt Kasumi and her fiancé, Dr. Ono.

     Tofu addressed his future father-in-law. "Kasumi tells me her sister Nabiki is returning soon. You must be anxious to see her again."

     Soun smiled happily. "Yes. And my old friend and his family are with her. Akane will finally meet her fiancé."

     Akane turned red and gave him a low growl. "Daaadddy!" She had let go of her crush on the doctor after he became engaged to her sister, but still wished to make as good an impression as possible when he was around.

     He laughed gently at her embarrassment. "Don't worry. I'm sure they're not going to make you get married right away."

     She looked down in mild anger. "You don't know Daddy very well. If he thought he could get away with it, he'd have a priest waiting here for them to arrive."

     Kasumi and Tofu laughed. Kasumi looked at her little sister.

     "Now Akane, you know you're exaggerating."

     "Not by much." Akane mutter under her breath.

     Just then, a commotion was heard at the front entrance.

     Kasumi stood. "Oh! That may be them!"

     Soun stood and moved quickly toward the entry way. "Yes, it must be! Nabiki! Saotome! Is it you?" Much more quickly, he came running back to the living room followed by a giant panda. A young feminine voice was heard behind the panda.

     "Yo, Pop! You're scarin' 'em spitless! Let the human folks past, you big, hairy oaf!"

     A more adult feminine voice was also heard from behind the panda.

     "Ranma! What have I told you about your language? It's not proper for young girls to talk that way. Now, while we are in another's home, you will show your father some respect." Then in a more resigned voice. "Husband, it would perhaps be best to wait to greet your old friend until after you've had the opportunity to change."

     The panda moved to the side, allowing an adult woman and three young girls to move into the living room.

     Soun was uncertain exactly what to do when the brown-haired girl made it all irrelevant. She ran to him and threw her arms around him.

     "Daddy!!"

     He looked the girl over; tears started to run down his cheeks. "Nabiki? Oh, Nabiki! You don't know how much I've missed you!" He hugged her back.

     The girl spoke from against his chest. "Of course I do. Exactly as much as I have missed you." She had tears running down her cheeks as well.

     Soun smiled at Nodoka. "Nodoka, you're looking well. Thank you for looking after my little girl." He looked at the others. "But, where is Genma? And Ranma?"

     Nodoka looked off to the side a moment, then gave the red-haired girl a little push forward. The girl was obviously nervous and a little withdrawn. She gave Nodoka a small frown, then bowed to Soun.

     "I'm Ranma Saotome. Sorry about this."

     There was a small crash as Akane fell over from her position behind the table. She stood up and walked over to the red-head, her focus on the other girl's chest. She gave it an experimental poke, then gave a small eep.

     "Um, I know it's been ten years since we last met, but... weren't you a boy?"

     The girl gave her an angry glare. "I am a boy, dammit!"

     Nodoka just sighed. "Ranma, I don't have to remind you about your language again, do I?"

     The girl gritted her teeth and squeezed out tight reply. "No."

     Akane moved over to her father and sister. "Daddy, why did you send our sister off with these people?"

     He gave her a strained look. "They weren't like this then! Really!"

     Nabiki sighed and stepped away from her father. She looked over to Kasumi. "Kasumi?" Seeing her nod, she continued. "Can you please get us some hot and cold water?"

     Kasumi came over and gave her a hug. "I'm so glad you're home little sister." She let her go and moved towards the kitchen. "I'll be right back." She returned moments later with a kettle she had put on for tea, and a pitcher of cold water. She handed them to Nabiki.

     Nodoka started the explanation. "A little more than a month ago, Genma took us to some training ground in China called Jusenkyo."

     The panda held up a sign. 'The legendary training ground Jusenkyo.' He flipped it around. 'I wouldn't have gone to just any old training ground.'

     The others stared for a moment. Akane whispered softly.

     "How's he do that?"

     Nodoka held a hand to her temple. This was going to be a bad one. "The legendary training ground Jusenkyo, also known as the 'Training Ground of Accursed Springs.' What Genma failed to find out was that anyone who fell into one of the pools there was cursed to take the body of whatever creature drowned there when exposed to cold water. Hot water temporarily reverses the curse."

     At this, Nabiki poured some water from the kettle over the panda. Before everyone's eyes, it became a slightly steaming older man.

     "Ahhhhhh! It doesn't need to be that hot!"

     Nabiki just smiled widely at him. "Oops!"

     Soun took the man's hand and slapped him on the back. "Genma, old friend. It is you! I'm so glad you're okay."

     "Well..."

     Genma didn't have the chance to finish what he was saying as Nabiki poured some cold water from the pitcher over his head. "This should cool you off, Uncle."

     The panda held up a sign as he rounded on her. 'That was totally uncalled for, young lady.'

     Akane took the kettle from Nabiki and approached Ranma. "So hot water turns you into a boy, huh?" She tried to pour the kettle over the girl's head, but she dodged the water.

     "Hot water! Not boiling!"

     Nabiki sighed and took the kettle from her sister. She poured a little of the water from the pitcher into the kettle and swirled it around before handing it to Ranma. Ranma poured some of the water over her head. The others gaped again as the girl changed into a black-haired boy, the chest shrinking as he gained a few inches in height.

     "Astounding." Tofu finally found his voice. "You say this is a curse? Real magic?"

     Ranma nodded. "Unfortunately."

     Nodoka finally tried to get things back to normal. She stepped over to Tofu. "I'm afraid we haven't been introduced."

     Soun looked embarrassed. "Sorry. This is Kasumi's fiancé, Dr. Tofu Ono."

     Where Nabiki would have previously just immediately congratulated her sister, after finding out about the arranged marriage for her younger sister, she looked first to see how Kasumi felt about it. The slight flush on Kasumi's cheeks, the smile Tofu gave her, and the badly concealed jealousy in Akane's eyes told her this was not an arranged marriage, or at least not an unwanted engagement. Nabiki smiled and gave Kasumi a hug. "Oh Kasumi! I'm so happy for you! And a doctor too."

     Kasumi turned red in embarrassment. She turned to the final member of the Saotome party. "I'm sorry, but who are you?"

     Shampoo bowed. "It is not a problem. I am Ranma's wife, Shampoo."

     The word was amplified by the number of voices saying it together. "WIFE?!"

     Nodoka just rubbed her temples. "Due to a - problem - Genma got himself into, Ranma had to fight Shampoo; he defeated her. Unfortunately, Shampoo's people are Amazons, and their law is that if an outside male defeats an Amazon woman, she must marry him." She forestalled any outbursts. "They are not married at this point. They are not married until Ranma acknowledges the marriage, which he has not done."

     Akane turned to her father. "Daddy, there is no way I am marrying this pervert!"

     Shampoo faced off against her. "You will not call my husband a pervert!"

     Akane turned to her father again. "Daaaadddddy!"

     He gave her a stern look. "Akane, this is a matter of family honor. Saotome and I arranged this marriage to unite the houses and preserve the family legacy. There is no choice in the matter. Nodoka says the boy is not married, and since his curse is not his fault and reversible, I do not see any reason not to continue the engagement."

     Akane looked ready to fight him, then burst into tears and ran up the stairs to her room.

     Kasumi sighed as she her her sister's door slam. "I'll go speak with her."

     Nabiki put up a hand. "Let me. I haven't had a chance to talk with her in ten years. Please, I'd like to talk with my sister."

     Kasumi smiled and nodded. She watched her sister go up the stairs, then moved back by her fiancé. He gave her a quick hug.

     The panda gave a loud growl to get someone's attention. He was holding another sign. 'Can someone... anyone please get me some hot water!'

     Soun stared at his old friend a moment, then turned gray. "Nabiki! My little girl... she isn't... she didn't..."

     Nodoka placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. "No, Nabiki and I are just fine. Ranma and Genma were the ones training there and were the only ones cursed."

     Ranma choked, then looked away quickly. There wasn't any need to mention Ryoga; the little pig had gotten lost as they arrived at the Tendo residence anyway. With Ryoga's sense of direction, he suspected it would be some time before he found his way back. Ranma had spent several minutes comforting Nabiki, trying to reassure her that her pet would be okay before Nodoka had finally made them all enter the compound. Only Nabiki's desire to see her family again kept her from rushing off to look for P-chan.

****

     Nabiki stopped before the bedroom with a duck embossed with the name 'Akane' on the door. She knocked lightly. "Akane? Can we talk?"

     Akane opened the door. She waved Nabiki in, then closed the door. Nabiki sat in the chair in front of the desk while Akane sat on her bed.

     She gave Nabiki an angry glare. "I'm not marrying that jerk!"

     Nabiki sighed. "That's not why I came up here." She moved to the bed next to Akane. "It's been ten years - I miss my little sister. I was hoping we could do something to get reacquainted. This engagement thing can be dealt with later."

     Akane smiled and hugged her. "I'm sorry! Here you are home again for the first time in ten years and I bite your head off over something that isn't even your fault." She looked Nabiki over, noticing the fine muscle tone for the first time. "Do you do any martial arts?"

     Nabiki smiled genuinely. "Being with the Saotomes for ten years, how could I not? Auntie's been instructing me in kenjutsu for the last six years, so I'm pretty handy with a blade." She waved a hand dismissively. "Uncle thinks weapons are a handicap, but he has me spar with Ranma when he isn't doing anything else." Her smile turned slightly evil. "I have to remind little brother every now and then that you can't dismiss a weapon user lightly."

     Akane stood. "Daddy's trained me to use the bo staff and the family yari." She extended a hand. "Shall we continue our talk in the dojo?"

     Nabiki accepted the hand up, then gestured for her to lead the way.

****

     Akane took a bo staff from the rack along one wall of the dojo. She moved to the center of the training hall where Nabiki waited with her bokken. Ranma and Shampoo sat next to the wall near the sliding doors.

     Nabiki watched Akane approach. They bowed and faced off. Nabiki noticed Akane held the staff close to her side. As she expected, Akane launched into a sweeping pattern that moved from high to low... classic jumonju school of spear. Nabiki had seen it at a dozen different dojos on their trip. She deflected several strikes with the back of her bokken and backed off.

     Akane grinned. "That was pretty good, but I thought kenjutsu didn't specifically teach defense."

     Nabiki shrugged. "It doesn't. Ranma used to take advantage of that in our spars, but decided to help me out there when I got hurt in a match at a dojo we stopped at a few years back." She made a set of strikes Akane was hard pressed to parry. "Since most defense in kenjutsu depends on improvised parries, Ranma helped me out with a few speed training exercises."

     Akane used the longer reach of the bo staff to keep Nabiki at a distance. "I noticed. I don't think I've seen anyone that fast with a bokken."

     Nabiki smiled and leapt in close. A quick thrust and twist left Akane without her staff. "I have to be quick to keep up with Ranma. If you think I'm fast, you don't even want to see him."

     Akane grabbed Nabiki's arm at the wrist and deftly tossed her. Nabiki rolled to her feet.

     Nabiki backed off. "That's enough for me!" She laughed good-naturedly. "I don't do hand-to-hand beyond self-defense. You'll have to continue this dance with the master." She glanced back at where Ranma was sitting. "Your turn, Ranma."

     Shampoo frowned. "You aren't Amazons, right?"

     Akane looked puzzled. "What would that have to do with my fighting Ranma?"

     Nabiki laughed. "She's worried that if Ranma won, you'd have to marry him."

     Akane flared in anger. "I'm not going to marry him!"

     Ranma rolled his eyes. "Like I'd marry you in the first place." He looked over at Shampoo as he stood. "No, we don't do things that way here in Japan."

     Shampoo looked relieved. "That's good. I have no need of a co-wife at this point."

     Ranma stumbled and almost fell as Akane glowered. He crossed the room to stand opposite the glaring girl. He sighed and shook his head. His only memories of the girl was of her pounding him on the head with a board. He had the sinking feeling that things hadn't changed in the least since then.

     Nabiki moved off to the side. She waited until Akane moved into a basic kenpo stance. She knew Ranma would just stand there like normal. Given her fight against her sister, Nabiki knew Ranma would have to treat this a little more seriously than his normal fights.

     "Ready - fight!"

     Akane stuck to straight kenpo as Ranma dodged the various kicks and punches. She nodded, then backed off.

     "Daddy and I teach kenpo classes evenings and weekends. I can see that you weren't just checking out the scenery on your training trip." She grinned - this was the best fight she'd had since she passed Tatewaki's level. "Let's move on to our school of fighting."

     Akane sifted to a stance quite similar to Ranma's. Ranma grinned as he noticed. It had been boring fighting at most dojos. They mostly used kenpo or some other standard style. Some mixed a couple styles, but none came close to the mix that defined the School of Indiscriminate Grappling. Their training trip had managed to expose Ranma to many more styles than he would have normally learned. He was looking forward to seeing what Akane had learned here in Tokyo.

     Akane lashed out in a series of feints flowing into a strike that Ranma actually had to block. Akane and Ranma had matching smiles as they traded blows, neither taking a definitive lead in the fight. Akane completed a flip with a full rotation and disengaged once again.

     She gave him a questioning look. "You're not fighting your best."

     Ranma shrugged. "It's the best fight I've had in months. I was just trying to enjoy myself while I can."

     Akane leaped back in with a flurry of strikes. Ranma blocked all of them, then counterattacked. This time, he didn't hold back. Akane was forced on the defensive almost immediately. She dodged everything she could, and tried to block everything she couldn't, but more and more blows were getting through. Ranma stopped with his foot a hairs breath from the bridge of her nose. She bowed as she conceded the match.

     Ranma bowed. "You're really good! I haven't had to fight at that level against anyone but Pop for some time."

     Akane smiled at the praise. She still wasn't going to marry him, but it looked like she would finally have someone above her level with whom she could spar.

     Shampoo frowned at the pair. She knew that fighting together could lead to them getting along better. "You would make a good Amazon. I look forward to trying my skills against you." Shampoo figured she would stick with the pair. She could make sure nothing happened between them, and she could learn some more of this art that allowed Ranma to fight like he did.

     Ranma looked between the pair, sure more was being said that he wasn't picking up. "As long as it's just sparring. I don't want you giving anyone the 'Kiss of Death' while you're here."

     Akane looked shocked. "Kiss of Death?!"

     Nabiki nodded. "If a male outsider defeats an Amazon, she has to give him the 'Kiss of Marriage' and marry him, but if a female outsider defeats her - outside of a friendly match - she has to give her the 'Kiss of Death,' hunt her down, and kill her."

     Akane backed off a few steps. "That's pretty harsh."

     Shampoo gave her a firm look. "I come from a pretty harsh region of China. These laws have kept us alive and independent for more than three thousand years."

     "But they have also limited your ability to deal with outsiders."

     The teens all turned to see Nodoka at the door.

     She continued. "Your people will need to come up with other ways to deal with outsiders now that travel is so much easier. You can't fight everyone who will turn up at your village. There is always someone better out there."

     Shampoo nodded after a moment. "That is part of the reason Great-Grandmother sent me along with you."

     Ranma waited a second before asking. "What's up?"

     Nodoka put on a stern look. "It's getting close to dinner time. You all need to get cleaned up."

     Nabiki smiled. At last - a real bath! No more streams and lakes. No more crowed public baths. She turned to Ranma. "You go first, and be quick about it! I want a good soak before dinner."

     Ranma rolled his eyes and left grumbling.

     Akane watched him go, then turned to her sister. "Mind a little company?"

     Nabiki smiled. "Of course not. I was hoping we could talk some more." She grabbed Shampoo's arm as the Amazon turned to leave. "Where are you going?" She knew full well what the answer would be.

     "I'm going to join Ranma."

     Akane and Nabiki exchanged a look while Nodoka shook her head.

     Nodoka addressed the girl. "You are not married to Ranma yet, and such an action would cause a disturbance to this home. You'll bathe with Akane and Nabiki."

     Shampoo gave a frustrated sigh. "Yes Mother."

     Akane and Nabiki exchanged another look, then headed for the door.

     Akane took the lead and motioned to the other girls. "Come on. We can get ready in my room. I have plenty of bath supplies. We'll wait until Ranma finishes."

     Nodoka just sighed as the three moved into the house. Why did things have to be so complicated?

****

     Ranma, Nabiki, and Shampoo were up early the next morning. They had to get to the school early to fill out the paperwork and take placement exams. They were going to the nearby high school. Curiously, Akane wasn't.

     Akane was dressed in a more formal looking school uniform and grumbling about having to leave early everyday to go across the district.

     Nabiki finally had to ask. "Why don't you go to Furinkan?"

     Akane looked angry for a moment before getting control over her emotions. "I used to go to Furinkan... for about two weeks. One of the juniors decided we were meant to be together and started bugging me for a date. I wanted nothing to do with him, so he proclaimed that no one could date me unless they defeated me in combat."

     Shampoo gave Ranma an accusing look. "I thought you said things weren't done this way in Japan?"

     Ranma gave her a bewildered shrug. "They aren't... at least I thought they weren't."

     Akane glared at the pair. "They aren't! This jerk just didn't want anyone else to date me if he couldn't!" She sighed. "So anyway, every morning after that, about twenty to thirty boys would attack me when I got to school."

     Shampoo shook her head. "No - that isn't like our way... challenges must be made individually. Attacking in a group is cowardly and shameful. An Amazon would be sure to put those men in their place."

     Akane frowned. "I did! But these idiots just wouldn't give up. I finally lost my temper and really hurt a few of them." She looked down. "When Daddy found out what had been going on, he made a big fuss, so they transferred me to a girls' school a ways from here. Now I have to leave early every morning to get to school on time."

     Ranma nodded in sympathy. "At least you're away from those jerks."

     Akane looked ready to cry. "That's just the thing - the idiot who started this whole mess has a sister who attends the same school. She's just as crazy, and in my class! Not to mention, Kuno still comes over after school to pester me while claiming he's just looking after his sister." She gave a long-suffering sigh and left.

     Ranma shook his head. "Man! I'm glad I don't have her problems!"

     Nabiki patted him on the cheek. "Don't worry little brother. I'm sure you'll create plenty of your own before the week is over."

     Ranma glared at her. "I hope this Kuno jerk asks you out."

     Nabiki gave him a big smile. "Maybe I'd go out with him." She smiled wider as Ranma sputtered. "Or maybe I'd tell him about this cute red-head who's just dying to go out with him."

     Nodoka felt it time to step in before Ranma exploded. "Don't tease about his curse Nabiki. It's below your station, not to mention cruel. You know how Ranma feels about his curse."

     Nabiki looked chagrined. "Sorry Ranma." She thought about it a moment. "What are we going to do about Ranma's curse at school? He can't exactly use the boy's facilities now, can he?"

     Nodoka thought about it. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll be able to handle this."

     Ranma rolled his eyes. "This is the same school that let twenty to thirty guys fight Akane every morning for a couple weeks." He made sure the sarcasm was easily heard. "I'm sure they'll handle it just fine."

     Nodoka frowned at her son's tone, but couldn't dispute his words.

     Nabiki decided she could get away with a little more teasing. "Well, you could always go to Akane's girls' school."

     Nodoka closed her eyes. She could feel the migraine building.

****

     The secretary looked over the results of the placement tests. She glanced at Nodoka in approval. "For having missed as much school as they have, Ranma and Nabiki did quite well. They easily qualify for their present grade levels."

     Nodoka smiled in pride. "Yes. I made sure that both understood the value of a good education. We made the best of whatever resources were on hand wherever we stopped."

     The secretary flipped back a few pages. "Yes. They both did exceptionally well on foreign languages and Japanese and World History." She shuffled the papers. "That Chinese national also scored fairly well." She frowned. "Despite her atrocious accent, her language scores were fairly high. With her educational visa, she'll be accepted to the sophomore class."

     Nodoka frowned at the woman's obvious bias, but let it slide. Nothing she could say would make it easier at the school for Shampoo. She decided it was time to broach Ranma's problem. "There is a problem that must be dealt with concerning my son."

     The other lady frowned. "Oh? He's not a trouble-maker or something, is he? We don't tolerate that here."

     Nodoka rolled her eyes. The lady obviously had no idea what the school was actually like. Nodoka had met people like her before - they tended to ignore anything that conflicted with their own view of reality. "No, he's not. He's got a - condition - that prevents him from being able to use the boys' facilities."

     The secretary flipped back to the physical reports. "It says here, he's a boy. Why can't he use the boys' facilities? He certainly can't use the girls'."

     Nodoka sighed. "Sometimes Ranma is a girl. It's a curse he picked up in China."

     The lady frowned. "That is patently absurd! There's no such thing as curses. Ranma is either a boy, or a girl."

     Nodoka really hoped the secretary didn't freak out. She went to the door. "Ranma? Come here a moment."

     The secretary stared as a red-headed girl entered.

     Nodoka rubbed her temple. "What was it this time?"

     Ranma hooked a thumb over her shoulder. "Mop bucket outside the room where they had us taking the test."

     The secretary glared at the pair. "This is not amusing! I don't know who you are young lady, but you're going to get detention for this little stunt."

     Ranma sighed. "Not even signed up yet and already getting detention..."

     Nodoka motioned at Ranma. "This is my son, or rather, his cursed form."

     The secretary frowned at her. "I don't appreciate being made a fool of. This is not your son - or anyone's son for that matter!"

     Nodoka pulled out a thermos and handed it to Ranma. The girl unscrewed the top, poured out some hot water into the cap, then dumped it over her head. There was a thud as the secretary fainted.

     Ranma screwed the top back on and handed it back to his mother. "I'm getting used to that reaction."

     Nodoka shook her head. "This might take some time." She leaned over the woman and started patting her face until she stirred.

     The secretary pulled herself back up into her chair. "I - I - I don't think I can make any kind of decision on this. You'll have to speak with the Vice Principal."

     The pair followed the woman to another room and waited for her to confer with her superior. She finally motioned them to enter.

     The Vice Principal clapped a hand on Ranma's shoulder. "Ranma here looks like a strapping young lad. He shouldn't have any trouble with our fine upstanding boys!"

     Nodoka handed Ranma a bottle of drinking water. Ranma gave her a beseeching look before upending the bottle over his head.

     The Vice Principal's eyes grew wide as Ranma changed into a young busty red-head. "You can't use the boys' facilities like this! The boys here are compete and utter perverts! There's no telling what would happen!"

     Ranma glared at the older man. "What happened to those fine upstanding boys you were talking about?"

     The Vice Principal gave her an irritated look. "It's a matter of perspective. They would have been fine and upstanding if not for your little problem." He started pacing back and forth. "Maybe you can wait until the other boys are done, then use the facilities. You should be safe enough."

     Ranma growled a little. "It's not me you should be worried about."

     The older man continued as if he didn't hear Ranma. "No, that wouldn't work. The moment the boys learned of this, they would just wait and ambush her... er - him." He tugged at what little hair he had remaining. He turned to Ranma. "What controls the change?"

     "The temperature of the water. Cold water changes me to this form, and hot water returns me to my normal form."

     The Vice Principal thought a moment. "Maybe if we just shut off the cold water in the boys facilities..."

     Ranma held up the water bottle.

     The older man shook is head. "Right, right. Outside sources of water can't be controlled." He sat in his chair and buried his face in his hands. "I haven't had this much trouble since the Tendo girl."

     Nodoka sighed. "You can't transfer Ranma as you did Akane. His father would never agree to the commute time needed to reach another school."

     "Why not? Children commute as much as two hours to get to better schools." He was truly puzzled.

     She tried to explain. "Ranma is heir to the family school of martial arts. I am fortunate enough to get his father to agree to the amount of time school takes away from his training as it is. He'd sooner have Ranma drop out than 'waste' two to four hours commuting to school. Besides, he would still have this problem anywhere he were to go."

     The Vice Principle sat back. "Yes, but it wouldn't be my problem." He sighed. "Well... we do have a separate shower facility for the coaches; it has a lock to prevent unauthorized use. It was the only facilities we had before the new gymnasium was built. The best I can do is provide Ranma a key and have him work something out with the coaches."

     Ranma smiled evilly and cracked her knuckles. "No problem."

     Nodoka shook her head at her child. "At least try talking with them first."

     Ranma pouted for a moment. "If I gotta."

     The Vice Principal looked at Nodoka with some hope in his eyes. "Now, if there isn't anything else?"

     Nodoka shook her head. "Nothing else beyond the normal problems of entering school late in the term."

     He smiled. "All right then. We'll get -" he glanced at the papers he'd taken from the secretary, "Ranma, Nabiki, and -" he did a double-take at the forms. "Shampoo?" He shook his head. He should have taken early retirement when he had the chance. "We'll get the children to their classes. Thank you for coming by." He bowed to Nodoka.

****

     Ranma, Nabiki, and Shampoo met by the gates after school before heading home.

     Nabiki started the conversation. "So Ranma. How did you make out with the coaches?"

     Ranma smirked. "We took it to the mats, best two out of three falls."

     Nabiki took note of his expression. "I take it from your expression that they didn't even get a fall?"

     Ranma nodded. "Yep! So they agreed that I would have ten minutes uncontested in the coaches' shower after class, on one condition."

     "And that is?"

     Ranma looked embarrassed. "I gotta give them some lessons." He laughed nervously. "It seems they're looking for any edge they can get on the students here. It seems they didn't break up those morning fights with Akane because they weren't sure they could take that many opponents at once."

     Shampoo grabbed an arm. "That seems like a good deal. You get your privacy while they get free lessons." She leaned her head against his shoulder as Nabiki frowned. "At least you had a better day than me. Stupid boy with bokken attacked me at lunch. He was babbling about defeating me for a date."

     Ranma frowned at Nabiki. "You didn't tell anyone Shampoo was an Amazon, did you?"

     Nabiki looked irritated. "Of course not!" She sighed. "From the description, it sounds like Tatewaki Kuno, the lunatic who made trouble for Akane earlier in the term. His challenge to Shampoo is the same one he made to Akane. At least I'm not stuck in his class. Heavens forbid he discovers Akane is my sister."

     All three teens frowned and walked a while in silence.

     Ranma finally broke the silence. "So, we headed back to the Tendo - uh - your place?"

     Nabiki smiled. "You can call it home, Ranma."

     Ranma looked slightly forlorn. "It's been such a long time. We haven't really had anyplace we could call home."

     Shampoo looked back and forth between the pair. "I guess I am fortunate I was able to grow up in the village with my family and friends. This is my first major trip away from home."

     Nabiki moved ahead slightly, then stopped and waved over her shoulder. "Come on. Auntie will have dinner ready in a couple hours."

     Ranma smiled - a genuine smile. "Now you're talking. Let's go home."

 

End Chapter Two

 

Next time, Ryoga returns, Kuno attacks, and Akane is forced to fight her old school chums.

 

More Author's Notes: Japanese schools often don't have showers in the gyms. The coaches may have a shower they can use since they have to teach several classes, but the students merely have a changing room and cubbies for their phys-ed shoes. This leads to large amounts of perfume being used by the girls after phys-ed class until they can go home and bathe. Given the scenes of the girls' changing room in the manga, it appears that Furinkan is one of those schools that doesn't have showers. Most fanfiction writers, me included, usually have shower facilities at Furinkan simply because Americans are used to such things and take them for granted. It's also a useful plot device.

 

Chapter Two Omake Scenes - these are all currently my own ideas.

~~~~

     Kasumi smiled slightly. "It'll be nice to see little Ranma again."

     Akane gave her a blank look. "Who?"

     Kasumi smiled at her. "You probably don't remember too well. Little boy, black hair in a pony-tail, you chased him around the yard with a board..."

     "Oh yeah! Him. You're right, I don't remember too well. I wouldn't have remembered at all if you hadn't reminded me of our fight. He got me mad for some reason I can't recall." She tried to bring more details to mind, but gave it up; it had just been too long. She had a sip from her drink.

     Soun thought about it a moment. "Didn't he get mud on your stuffed rabbit?"

     Kasumi shook her head. "No, that was Shinji from next door."

     Akane laughed. "Yeah. I made him eat mud for that!"

     Kasumi shook her head. "You shouldn't have done that." She thought a second. "I believe he shoved Akane down the stairs while his folks were here visiting."

     Soun shook his head. "I believe that was Mrs. Nogoya's boy."

     Kasumi rapped her head with her knuckles. "Silly me! That's right. The PTA was most displeased over that incident."

     Akane looked embarrassed. "Uh - yeah. I had to spend a week in detention. Stupid school administrator's kid." She tried to remember that incident with Ranma, but it had been so long ago. "Hmm, didn't Ranma pour tea over my head?"

     Kasumi shook her head. "No, that was little Hiro. His brother was taking lessons."

     Soun nodded. "Yes. He quit after you beat him black and blue for trying to keep you from stomping his little brother."

     Akane went from embarrassed to mortified. "Do we really need to be bringing this back up?"

     Kasumi laughed. "You are taking your medication, right?"

~~~~

     Kasumi turned red in embarrassment. She turned to the final member of the Saotome party. "I'm sorry, but who are you?"

     Shampoo bowed. "It is not a problem. I am Ranma's wife, Shampoo."

     The word was amplified by the number of voices saying it together. "WIFE?!"

     Nodoka just rubbed her temples. "Due to a - problem - Genma got himself into, Ranma had to fight Shampoo; he defeated her. Unfortunately, Shampoo's people are Amazons, and their law is that if an outside male defeats an Amazon woman, she must marry him." She forestalled any outbursts. "The Japanese government doesn't recognize their marriage, and their own laws allow for polygamous marriages, so there shouldn't be any problems having Ranma marry Akane under Japanese law."

     Akane turned to her father. "Daddy, there is no way I am marrying this pervert!"

     Shampoo faced off against her. "You will not call my husband a pervert!"

     Akane turned to her father again. "Daaaadddddy!"

     He gave her a stern look. "Akane, this is a matter of family honor. Saotome and I arranged this marriage to unite the houses and preserve the family legacy. There is no choice in the matter. Nodoka says you can still legally marry Ranma, and Shampoo here doesn't look too much different than that girl you were dating from your girls' school last month, so I do not see any reason not to continue the engagement."

~~~~

     Ranma stumbled and almost fell as Akane glowered. He crossed the room to stand opposite the glaring girl. He sighed and shook his head. His only memories of the girl was of her pounding him on the head with a board. He had the sinking feeling that things hadn't changed in the least since then.

     Nabiki moved off to the side. She waited until Akane moved into a basic kenpo stance. She knew Ranma would just stand there like normal. Given her fight against her sister, Nabiki knew Ranma would have to treat this a little more seriously than his normal fights.

     "Ready - fight!"

     A short while later, Ranma came running out of the dojo with Akane right on his heels. She had a long board in her hands and proceeded to whack Ranma over the head with it as she got the opportunity.

     "Ah geez Akane! Didn't you ever learn more than hitting people with a board?!"

~~~~

     Nabiki started the conversation. "So Ranma. How did you make out with the coaches?"

     Ranma smirked. "We took it to the mats, best two out of three falls."

     Nabiki took note of his expression. "I take it from your expression that they didn't even get a fall?"

     Ranma nodded. "Yep! So they agreed that I would have ten minutes uncontested in the coaches' shower after class, on one condition."

     "And that is?"

     Ranma looked embarrassed. "I gotta pose as the fiancée for one of them while his mother's in town. Seems he told her he was engaged to keep her from match-making. Now she's here to meet her future daughter-in-law."

~~~~

End Chapter Two Omake Scenes