Muyami Academy
What if they ALL went to the same school?
Previous chapters at: http://members.xoom.com/bellchan/
Thanks to my prereaders, T.H. Tiger, Bombadil Goh, Jeffrey Cornish and
William Morse. Also thanks to Jed Hagen and Stardragon for surprise C&C.
Several great lines directly stolen from Jed Hagen's comments. ^_^
DISCLAIMER: Ranma 1/2 characters and stuff, and Inu-Yasha
characters and stuff, not to mention Ursei Yatsura characters and stuff,
copyright 1999 Rumiko Takehashi. Tenchi Muyou characters and stuff,
copyright 1999 Pioneer & AIC. Mamono Hunter Yohko characters and stuff
copyright 1999 AD Vision, NCS, Toho Company, LTD, Mad House, and I don't
know who else. Koko wa Greenwood characters copyright Yuki Nasu. Mint na
Bokura characters copyright Wataru Yoshizume. Other characters and stuff
also copyright the creators and owners.
Chapter Ten
A Day In The Life
Waves rolled over the deck of the Devil Hunter, tossing the tiny
two-mast ship about like a leaf. The wind screamed mockingly at Yohko Mano
and stung her with saltwater rain. She clung to the ropes in desperation,
like a sinner clutching her rosary during confession, and she prayed for
the storm to break and for daylight to arrive.
Captain Ukyo Kuonji had lashed himself to his wheel. Yohko could
see him up on the poopdeck, a darker shadow against the black of night. He
leaned into the wind, and with his First Mate, Ryoga Hibiki, struggled to
keep the ship from foundering.
Out of the slashing rain and darkness a figure appeared, moving
slowly, clinging to the rail and rigging to keep from being washed
overboard. Yohko gave a cry of delight when she recognized one of her best
friends, Ranma Saotome.
"It looks bad!" the redheaded girl shouted over the roar of the
storm. "Do you think we're going to make it?"
Yohko smiled confidently. "I have faith in Captain Ukyo!" she
yelled back. "He'll get us through this, just you watch!"
Ranma nodded in agreement.
"Ranma!" Yohko yelled out. "Do you have a boyfriend?
Ranma looked startled. "What?" she yelled. "No! I've never had a
boyfriend!"
"Too bad," Yohko yelled back. "I was just thinking that First Mate
Hibiki would make a good boyfriend... or perhaps even the dashing Captain
Kuonji. What do you think?"
Whatever Ranma shouted in reply was lost in a sudden crashing,
crushing noise. A massive wave washed over them, chilling them to the bone.
Then, as the water washed over the side, the boat shot up, out of the
water. It spun and rolled over, crashing into the dark seas on its side.
Wood shrieked and split apart. Ropes snapped like dry spaghetti.
Yohko found herself falling, and gasped as she plunged into cold water. For
several moments she struggled in icy blackness, then she shot above the
surface of the sea and, coughing, took a ragged breath of salt-tinged air.
The ship had been shattered into a million pieces. Debris floated
in the water all about her. First Mate Ryoga, balanced on a nearby section
of wood, spotted her and called out, "Yohko, my love! Over here, quickly!
It's the kraken, the demon of the ocean depths!"
Ryoga stretched his hand out. Something shot up out of the ocean in
an explosion of water. Yohko saw ink-black tentacles wrap about Ryoga, and
in a single breath he was pulled under.
"No!" Yohko cried out. Somehow, she found herself standing on a
large piece of floating debris. Water dripped from her red silk dress, and
she held her soulsword before her.
A section of the deck, with the wheel still attached, floated
towards her. Brave Captain Kuonji, still strapped to his wheel, continued
to steer, as if gripping the wheel with a steady hand would somehow allow
him to reach land safely. A wave of confidence washed through Yohko; if the
heroic not to mention handsome Captain could not save her, then what hope
was there?
"Never fear, my darling Yohko!" he called out. "I'll get us out of
this disaster yet! There isn't a kraken alive that has faced me and lived
to tell of it!"
Yohko clasped a hand over her heart. Oh, Ukyo-sama was so brave!
Once they were on dry land, she would weep bitter tears for the loss of
Ryoga Hibiki, but Captain Kuonji would surely be there to comfort her!
Then the kraken rose out of the water before her. It was a
monstrous beast with massive black tentacles and a body well over 200 feet
long. Yohko cried out in shock as she saw a face at the end of that long
body... it was none other than the face of her supposed friend, Ranma
Saotome.
The lifeless body of Ryoga Hibiki was held high by several black
tentacles.
"Surprised?" the beast called out, in Ranma's voice. "I've been
lying to you all along, Yohko! The fact is, I'm engaged to Ryoga here...
and to your lovely Captain as well!"
With a snapping of rope, more tentacles pried Captain Kuonji from
his wheel and held him up high. Without his firm hand, the deck and wheel
sank beneath the waves.
"Forgive me, darling Yohko!" Ukyo called out. "I was blind when I
promised my love to Ranma! Only now do I realize what a monster she is!"
"Bwahahaha!" Ranma-kraken crowed. "So, Demon Hunter, Seal Breaker,
Gate Opener! You'll never have either of your loves, fool that you are!"
The kraken popped both men into its mouth and swallowed.
It let out a massive belch.
"NOOOOO!" Yohko yelled out, lunging forward.
And then, strong arms wrapped about her, and she glanced over her
shoulder into the face of the most handsome boy she'd ever encountered.
"You're safe with me, Yohko-chan," the mysterious man with the
pigtail said.
Yohko was about to ask the stranger his name, when he faded from
her view, along with the kraken.
Everything grew quiet. Yohko no longer saw the dark waves, strewn
with flotsam and jetsam. She no longer heard the roar of the wind, nor did
she feel the water washing over her feet, nor taste the salt spray on her
face. Instead, she felt the warmth of blankets tangled about her feet,
heard the steady breathing of her sleeping roommate, and saw the glowing
number of the digital clock that sat on her dorm room desk.
Yohko blinked for a moment in confusion.
"It was just a dream?" she asked of no one in particular. Then, as
the fog of sleep slowly faded, she laughed at herself. "Well of course it
was a dream... and what a strange dream at that!"
There was a twinge in her lower abdomen, and then a wave of sharp
pain. Yohko doubled over, clutching her stomach. Several moments passed,
and the pain receded like an ocean tide.
"That's right," Yohko whispered, recalling the previous evening
clearly now. "We fought that demon last night, and I found out that Ranma
is engaged to both Ryoga and Ukyo.
"And then I let Akane fix me a late-night snack...."
Yohko clutched her stomach again as another wave of pain washed
over her. Never again, she swore silently. Never again would she eat a meal
prepared by Akane Tendo!
***
It was early morning, and Akane lay awake in her bed, unable to
sleep. In her case, however, it was only a troubled mind that bothered her.
Luckily for Akane, she hadn't eaten any of the food she'd prepared for her
friend Yohko the night before.
She turned the events of the night before over in her mind. In
particular, she thought on the news that Ranma might be engaged to Ukyo
Kuonji.
It didn't really make any sense, but Ranma recognized Ukyo, and
Ukyo seemed convinced that they were engaged. But why would Ranma have a
male fiancee?
More importantly, why did it bother Akane so?
Was she jealous? Akane thought about it, and laughed. The idea was
absurd -- Akane despised boys. She'd never wanted the engagement, and
Ranma, while not as obviously perverted as the average teenage boy, was
still very much a jerk. Even as a girl, Ranma was thoughtless, tactless and
brilliantly stupid, but as a boy all of his bad traits seemed to multiply.
No, Akane did not like being engaged to Ranma, and was happy to have Ranma
attending school as a girl.
What then? Could she possibly be jealous over Ukyo? But that made
no sense... Akane didn't even know the boy. Their whole engagement had been
a sham, cooked up by Ranma before the two had even met. It was true that
Ukyo seemed nice enough, for a boy, but then, Tenchi and Shun were also
abnormally nice, for boys.
Or maybe she was just jealous of the attention? But that was
preposterous -- she'd transfered from Furinkan precisely because she
despised being the center of attention. Having all of those boys
challenging her, watching her, lusting after her... Akane gave an
involuntary shudder. No, that certainly wasn't the problem.
She laughed to herself. After last night, when Yohko, Tenchi, Ryoko
and Ayeka had fought a demon in front of the entire student body -- well,
Akane doubted she would ever be the center of attention at this particular
school. That suited her just fine.
In any case, she thought as she rolled out of bed, there were two
things that she knew she had to do. One was to make certain that Ranma's
story about Akane and Ukyo being engaged spread no further. It was a
stupid, pathetic lie, which was what she got for letting Ranma cover for
her. Hopefully she could manage to defuse the story without having to
reveal her true fiancee's name.
The other thing was to find out what was really going on between
Ukyo and Ranma.
***
The ping, ping, ping of droplets echoed in the tiled room like
water dripping in a deep limestone cave. It was late at night, or early in
the morning, depending on your point of view. Ranma had yet to sleep, but
was taking advantage of the early hour to take a quick shower.
Most of the dormitory slept. Ranma was alone in the girl's
second-floor bathroom, and he'd therefore allowed himself the pleasure of a
hot-water shower, something he'd frequently missed when out in the
wilderness with his father. As the hot water rolled over his flat, muscular
chest, he thought again about his Conversation with Belldandy hours
earlier.
A cure. To never transform again. It was what he wanted, wasn't it?
To be honest, being a girl didn't bother Ranma that much. Not that
he really wanted to be a girl, as such, but it had been nice to be so close
to his mother. However, Ranma was attracted to girls, not boys, and he
preferred the practical clothing of a guy. Most of all, the knowledge that,
at any moment, a splash of water could change his gender -- that bothered
him. So if a cure was offered, he'd take it.
Even if it meant leaving Muyami Academy.
However, Ranma had a few thoughts on that, as well. Now that he
knew there was a girl living in the boy's dorm, the solution to all of his
problems seemed clear. He'd become a guy again, and he and Ukyo would swap
places. Problem solved.
Naturally, it didn't occur to Ranma that nothing had ever turned
out the way he planned it.
Ranma set the water to cold. After a brief shot of icy water, she
shut the water off and retrieved her towel.
Even this early in the morning, even if she were all alone, and
even if she were currently female, Ranma was careful to towel off
completely before stepping from the shower stall, so that she could dress
and leave as quickly as possible. She'd decided to not take any chance of
being discovered. As soon as she was dry, she slipped quickly out of the
stall...
...And stood face to face with Akane.
"Ranma?" Akane asked.
"Eep!" Ranma exclaimed, and spun about. "I didn't see anything,
honest!"
"Baka! You're the only one who's not dressed."
Belatedly, Ranma realized that Akane was right. While Akane wore
yellow pajamas, Ranma was naked as a shorn sheep... provided that sheep had
a towel. Ranma quickly wrapped said towel about herself.
"What are you doing up so late?" Akane asked.
"I could ask you the same thing," Ranma said.
"I couldn't sleep," Akane said. "So I thought I'd take a quick
bath...."
She began to undress. Ranma eeped and again spun around.
"Baka," Akane said. "Are you a girl or aren't you?"
"Only sometimes," Ranma said. "I told you, I'm really a guy."
"Well," Akane said, "then don't look. And get dressed. You really
ought to get some sleep; if you don't, you're going to fall behind in class
before the first week is finished."
"Oh?" Ranma replied, dressing quickly. "And what about you?"
Akane knelt and began to wash. "One day won't hurt me," she said.
"I do well at school, unlike you."
"What's that supposed to mean? You think you're smarter than me?"
"What I think," Akane said, "is that you've spent a long time
travelling around with your father, instead of attending school. I can tell
by your speech that you haven't had a good education."
"Shows what you know," Ranma said. "Pops learned me lots of stuff
himself."
Akane rolled her eyes. Water splashed and echoed off the walls as
she rinsed off and then stepped into the bath.
"That may be true," she said, "but your father is an idiot."
Ranma didn't have a counter for this.
"So when's your roommate showing up?" Akane asked.
Ranma shrugged. "I heard today sometime. Although really it'd be
okay with me if she never showed."
"Should be interesting, you having a girl for a roommate. That is,
if you really are a boy, still."
Ranma glanced at her fiancee. She knew how Akane felt about boys... but
here, Akane was bathing right in front of Ranma. Either Akane really
thought Ranma was a girl, now, or else she desperately wanted Ranma to be a
girl, so she could get out of their engagement. Either way, it was very
clear to Ranma that Akane was a fiancee in name only.
Not that Ranma could actually see anything, with the steam and the
dim lighting and with Akane submerged in water to her neck.
Not that Ranma necessarily wanted to see anything.
"I'll deal with it," Ranma said. Deep down, she was thinking that,
by this time tomorrow, she might be 100% guy again and living in the boy's
dorms. But she didn't want to say anything, for fear of jinxing her plan.
"Anyway," Ranma said, "That's not what you really want to talk
about, is it?"
Akane stared at Ranma, apparently wondering how someone that dense
could also be so observant. Ranma smiled, feeling smug that she'd been
right.
Akane shook her head, and said, "Ranma, why did Ukyo say that you
two are engaged?"
This was exactly what Ranma had expected Akane to ask. Still, she
wasn't quite certain how to answer it.
"It's kind of complicated," Ranma said.
"Everything with you is complicated, Ranma. But I'm your fian...
your friend. You can tell me."
"I really can't," Ranma said.
"Ranma! More than anyone, I deserve an answer!"
Ranma paused, then nodded.
"Okay," she said, "but you gotta promise to keep this a secret."
Akane nodded. "Go on."
"I'm serious about this," Ranma said. "This isn't even my secret,
but one I promised to never reveal."
Akane nodded somberly. "I understand," she said. "I won't tell a
soul."
Ranma took a deep breath.
"Ukyo was my best friend, when I was young," Ranma said. "In fact,
though we only knew each other a short time, Uchan was just about the best
friend I ever had. We did everything together.
"Somewhere along the line, my pop and Ukyo's decided that we should
be more than just friends, and they arranged for the two of us to be
engaged." The redhead held up her hands. "But I didn't remember anything
about it, I swear! It's all my father's fault!"
Akane was staring at her iinuzake in confusion. "Ranma," she said,
"your father engaged you to a boy? Exactly how long ago was this? I thought
you'd only been a girl for a short time...."
"I have! I have! But Ukyo..." her voice lowered. "This is the part
you gotta keep a secret, Akane, because it would mess Ukyo up if you
didn't. You see, Ukyo is really a girl."
***
Sleep finally came to Ranma. One moment she was lying in bed,
drifting off to sleep and dreaming of becoming a boy again, and the next
moment, she was awakened by the early-morning sounds of birds chirping, of
girl's footsteps and voices echoing down the hall, and the sounds of an
attack helicopter hovering outside her window.
Ranma opened her eyes, then quickly closed them again. For years
she'd been rising before dawn to practice, and her internal clock never
lied to her. So why was her room flooded with light?
As she sat up and wiped the sleep from her eyes, she became aware
the deafening thrumming sound. It really did sound like an attack
helicopter was hovering just outside.
She glanced out the window.
With floodlights, she added. Which would explain the bright light.
"ATSUKO NATSUME!" a voice yelled. It was amplified quite nicely by
the speakers mounted on the helicopter, so that nobody anywhere on the
school campus could help but fail to hear it. From where Ranma sat, less
than 20 feet from ground zero as it were, the voice was loud enough to
still be ringing in her ears several minutes later.
"WE KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE," the voice continued. "YOU HAVE EXACTLY
FIVE SECONDS TO SURRENDER AND COME OUT WHERE WE CAN SHOOT YOU, OR WE'LL
START SHOOTING!
"ONE!"
Over the din of the copter and the shouting voice, Ranma heard an
ominous click. She dove under her comforter just as the window exploded in
a hail of glass. From the corner of her eye, she saw something long and
thin shoot through her room like a... well, like an air-to-surface missile,
not to put too fine a point on it. Wood splintered and steel hinges
screamed as the object blasted through Ranma's door and then the door on
the opposite side of the hallway. Then came another crash of glass as the
window in Ryoko and Ifurita's room disintegrated, followed by a loud
explosion as the missile finally detonated, somewhere between the girl's
and boy's dorms.
"TWO!" the voice called out.
"What the hell is going on here!" Ranma yelled out. But, through
the din of the chopper and the impressive ringing in her ears, she could
make out a lot of other voices shouting the same thing. No doubt the whole
dorm wanted to know.
A girl whom Ranma had only briefly met stuck her head into the
room. She had pink hair and a bubbly personality, and was wearing white
cotton pajamas with pink footprints on them. Cat footprints, a part of
Ranma's mind suggested. Ranma quickly slammed the door on that particular
thought.
Her name, Ranma recalled, was Natsume, although everyone called her
Nuku Nuku. She took one look out the window and her eyes grew very wide.
She clapped her hands together in delight.
"Arisa and Kyouko have come to play!" she exclaimed, then leapt
from the room to the helicopter in a single bound.
"THREE!" the voice called out, and then, "GET OFF OF THERE! LEAVE
THAT ALONE! NO! DON'T POINT THAT AT ME!"
There was a loud explosion, and part of the concrete wall that had
recently held a window disintegrated.
Ryoko, the green-haired demon from across the hall, flew through
Ranma's room and out the window. Her eyes were glowing red with anger.
"Hey! What's the big idea?" Ryoko yelled. "Don't you know that
people are trying to sleep here?"
There was another explosion. The floodlights suddenly swung away,
leaving Ranma in the dark.
"STAY AWAY! I'M WARNING YOU! THIS IS A FULLY FUNCTIONING, TOP OF
THE LINE, EXPERIMENTAL MILITARY ATTACK CRAFT, AND I KNOW HOW TO.... *STOP*
THAT! HEY! LEAVE THAT ALONE! YOU'RE BREAKING IT!"
More explosions and shouting followed, but they faded into the
distance as the helicopter apparently tried to flee. Ranma slid from
beneath the covers and stared out into the predawn night, and watched the
burning chopper spiral down in the direction of the soccer field.
"Glad I showered last night," Ranma muttered. "If this sort of
thing happens often, I'll have a hard time getting up before anyone else."
She stretched and started in on her morning katas, before realizing
that she had an audience. Half the girls on her floor were crowded into the
hallway, staring in amazement at the damage in her and Ryoko/Ifurita's
rooms.
"Ranma?" Akane asked. "Are you okay?"
Ranma shrugged, then nodded.
The babble of multiple conversations ensued. Ranma sat on the bed,
still a bit stunned, and let the jumble of voices wash over her. She almost
completely missed the high-pitched whine of electric machinery or the
deep-voiced cough as someone who was clearly not female cleared their
throat.
The hum of conversation died down as suddenly as it had begun.
Ranma glanced up, noting that two large construction workers, dressed in
orange coveralls and yellow construction hats, were perched on a platform
suspended just outside the hole in the outer wall of her room.
The shorter of the two had a thick cigar in his mouth. He cleared
his throat again, then said, "Excuse me, ladies, but we're here to fix the
hole in the wall."
"Already?" Ranma blurted out.
"Oh my!" Belldandy exclaimed from the doorway. "I can't have you
men working up here while the girls are getting dressed."
"It's best we get an early start, ma'am," the short one said. "In
fact, the Principal insisted on it. He said if we wait, further damage
might threaten the stability of the building itself."
He looked over the damage and whistled. "Musta been cold, sleeping
in here last night."
"Ano," Ranma said, "this wasn't like this five minutes ago. The
hole from last night is three rooms down...."
The construction worker nodded, and pushed his hat back on his
head.
"Smart man, that Principal," he said. "Well, you girls just go
about your business, and don't go making any new holes. We'll have this all
fixed up by evening."
***
"This is stupid," Ranma said under her breath. "I thought your
Grandmother was going to teach me to be a Demon Hunter. Instead I'm stuck
in some lame Martial Arts Club."
The students of the Muyami Academy Martial Arts Club were arranged
in a ragged line on the front lawn of the school. The gray light of predawn
filtered down through fog that hung like a blanket over the campus, and
sounds echoed loudly and unnaturally across the still school ground.
It was cold, and the grass was exceedingly wet.
Ranma stood between Akane and Yohko. The rest of the class
consisted of Shampoo, her Chinese boyfriend Mousse, Ranma's new "boy"
fiancee Ukyo, Tenchi, and Belldandy's roommate, Ayukawa Madoka.
In front of the class stood Cologne and Madoka Ayukawa. The
diminutive Chinese ghoul bounced on her staff pogo-like as she droned on
about the true role of a martial artist, and other things that Ranma didn't
need to hear.
"Are we going to train with your Grandmother when this is done?"
Ranma asked.
"The Kendo Club meets after this," Yohko whispered back. The anger
that flared in her eyes made it clear that she still hadn't forgiven her
red-haired friend.
"And?"
"And? You and I are both in it, you know."
Ranma frowned. "Don't be stupid. I didn't sign up for no Kendo
Club."
"Grandmother signed you up," Yohko whispered fiercely. "If you're
going to be a Demon Hunter, you need to learn to handle a sword. Now shut
up."
She glared at Ranma for a moment, then looked away. Ranma sighed.
Cologne droned on. Ranma stifled a yawn.
Cologne paused and raised an eyebrow. "Are you bored, child?" she
asked, "or just tired?"
"Neither, Ma'am," Akane supplied helpfully. "She's just stupid."
Ranma glared angrily at Akane, who stuck her tongue out playfully,
then glanced back at the waiting Sensei. She blinked for a moment, then
shrugged. "I was just wondering," she said, "are we actually going to do
anything here? Because I was hoping to learn something new, but all this
talk is stuff my dad's said a million times before."
A smile crawled across the old crone's face.
"Naturally," she said, "actions speak louder than words, especially
in a classroom setting. Very well, young lady, let us do something, shall
we? Please step forward."
Ranma grinned and stepped forward, cracking her knuckles. "About
time!" she said, assuming a defensive crouch.
A half-second later, Ranma lay sprawled flat on the grass, a nasty
bump on her head. The others blinked in surprise -- nobody had even seen
Cologne move.
Ranma sat up, rubbing her head. Damn but the old mummy was fast!
She'd seemed quick enough the day before at the fair, but this was an order
of magnitude faster than that.
Ranma raised an eyebrow. Maybe the old crone did have something to
teach, after all.
"Now," Cologne said, "if there are any other questions?"
Akane raised her hand and asked, "Will we always be practicing
outside?"
"Nothing wrong with that," Ranma said. "Me and Pops have always
gone outside to practice."
"Indeed," Cologne added. "When the weather is bad enough, we might
move to the gym, but for the most part we'll be outside. I was actually
hoping we could use the soccer field for practice, but at the moment it's
occupied by the remains of a helicopter, and Mishima Heavy Industries has
slapped a security cordon on the entire area.
"Any other questions?"
Madoka Ayukawa raised her hand. Cologne nodded to her. "Yes,
child?"
"Forgive me, Cologne-Sensei," Madoka said, "but this is a
student-run club. You and Mano-Sensei are advisors only, are you not? Who
is the leader of the club, then?"
Cologne nodded to her granddaughter. The Chinese girl with the long
purple hair leaped forward and turned to face the other students. She
planted herself in the wet grass, feet spread apart, and placed her hands
on her hips.
"Shampoo is leader of club!" she said sharply. "Anyone have
problem, Shampoo fight! Defeat Shampoo, become leader of club! Is clear?"
The girl glared meaningfully at Ranma, but Ranma only glanced away,
feigning disinterest. Club leader? It was only a title. The girl could have
it.
Madoka smiled ever so slightly. "No offense," she said, "but you're
just a first-year student. Don't you think an upper-classman would be
better suited to lead the club?"
Shampoo smiled back. "Have sixteen year of study martial arts," she
said in broken Japanese. "Grandma teach. Grandma best warrior in Joketzu,
and famous in all of China. Shampoo best warrior in Joketzu after Grandma.
You think better? Then fight Shampoo, and see."
Madoka considered this for a moment. But the haughtiness of the
Chinese girl seemed to spark something inside her. Her eyes smoldered
briefly as she stared at Shampoo, then she shrugged, as if it indifferent,
and stepped forward planting her feet.
"Might as well settle this now," she said. "Let's see how good you
really are."
Ranma already had her own opinions on that. She'd watched carefully
as the students had performed some Tai Chi first, stretching and working
through a series of katas. She had already decided that, unarmed, only
Shampoo, Yohko, and potentially Mousse would provide any competition. If
Ryoga were in the club, he might also provide some competition; as she
recalled, he wasn't half-bad. But of course, he'd been missing since last
night.
So Ranma was not surprised at the outcome of the fight. Shampoo was
good -- perhaps even as good as she claimed to be. She was clearly well
trained, while Madoka Ayukawa was more of a talented but untrained street
fighter.
Madoka accepted her defeat gracefully, and stepped back in line.
"Anyone else try Shampoo?" the Chinese girl asked.
After a moment, Yohko stepped forward and assumed a position.
Shampoo smirked, bowed her head slightly in acknowledgment, and attacked.
This fight lasted longer -- Yohko was a much closer match to the
purple-haired girl. For a few moments they seemed an even match. But then,
in a flurry of kicks and blows, Shampoo sent the demon-hunter tumbling
across the wet grass.
Yohko bowed in defeat and rejoined the other students.
"Is anyone else?" Shampoo asked again. She stared intently at Ranma
one more time, but Ranma again looked away.
"Good," Shampoo stated. She walked down the line until she was in
front of Ranma. "Shampoo club leader because Shampoo is best. Is good you
no challenge Shampoo. You no want to get hurt."
This last was spoken directly at Ranma. Ranma's face ticked.
Moments later, she found herself staring into the Chinese girl's eyes, then
she stepped away from the others and placed herself a few feet away from
the girl, standing casually with her arms at her sides.
"You challenge Shampoo?" the purple-haired girl asked. Ranma
nodded. Shampoo smirked, and assumed her own position. "Better," she said.
"Is best you learn first thing that you not strong as Shampoo...."
Ranma lunged forward. Her foot shot up, connecting with the girls'
chin, and Shampoo was laid flat out on the grass.
The others stared at Ranma in shock. They were all good martial
artists -- some of them very good -- but it was beginning to dawn on them
that Ranma was on another level.
Ranma flipped her pigtail over her shoulder and glared down at
Shampoo. Shampoo sat up, one hand rubbing her head, and stared angrily at
the redhead.
Cologne gave the red-haired girl an appraising look. "You're quite
good," she said.
Shampoo stood and stepped forward, but Cologne raised her hand.
"This is not China, child," she said. "Remember the conditions we agreed to
when we came here. Our laws do not apply."
The anger in Shampoo's eyes faded, and she looked away. "Yes,
Grandmother," she said. Then she glanced back at Ranma.
"Red-haired girl win. You is club leader now."
"No thanks," Ranma said.
The Chinese girl frowned, and her eyes began to smolder again.
"What you say?"
"I'm not interested in being no dumb club leader," Ranma said. "I'm
not here to teach anyone. I'm only here to learn -- if you have anything to
teach me, that is."
Cologne blinked. "My, aren't we the confident one...."
"Cut the crap!" Ranma snarled. "I've spent my entire life learning
to be the best damned fighter I can possibly be, and I thought I was, but I
can probably name ten people at this school alone who can apparently beat
the shit outta me. I'm surrounded by demons, demon hunters, alien
princesses, cyborgs, goddesses... and they're all fighting on a level that
I can't even touch!"
Cologne merely nodded; the statement could hardly be denied. "Your
point, child?" she asked.
"My point?" Ranma repeated. "My point is -- do you have anything to
teach me that can give me an edge in a fight with a demon? Because if not,
then I'm wasting my time."
"Funny you should ask that," Cologne said. "Because that is exactly
what I'm here to teach."
She paused, then added, "but show a little patience, child. This is
only the first day. I still need to get a good idea of everyone's skill
level. I want to see some light and intermediate sparring, while
Mano-Sensei and I observe. Shampoo, you spar with Ukyo, Yohko with Ranma,
Mousse with Tenchi, and Madoka with Akane.
"But before we begin," she said, then paused to stare back at
Ranma. "Child, do you call that a workout outfit? What do you think this
is?"
Ranma glanced down at her clothing. With her favorite Chinese silk
outfits either at home with her other boy clothing or thrown away, she'd
searched through her girl clothing in vain for something appropriate. After
all the excitement of the morning, she'd been too rushed to borrow anything
from Akane or one of the other girls.
Which explained the black slacks and teal blouse, a nice enough
outfit but not especially suited to kenpo.
"Um," Ranma stammered, "a... a demon ate my clothes...."
***
The crackle and pop of electricity filled the air in Belldandy's
room, and she turned in time to see her dark-skinned older sister emerge
from the television screen.
"Urd!" Belldandy said, her eyes lighting up. She gave her sister a
warm hug, then pulled back. "You really should be more careful, Urd. What
if my roommate were here?"
Urd laughed. "Is Keiichi still worried about people finding out
about you? Bell, this school has a cyborg cat girl, a demon hunter, a few
alien princesses, and I'm not sure what else yet."
"But only one goddess," Belldandy said, "although you're right,
there are a lot of talented people here, and I don't really like to be
secretive or deceptive... but I promised Keiichi to be careful, so... if
you and Skuld could please also be more considerate, I'm sure Keiichi would
apprecite it."
"Sure sis, whatever."
"So?" Belldandy said. "Can you help poor Ranma, or not?"
Urd held up a small aqua-colored pill. "Of course!" she said
smugly. "It was a little tricky, but...."
There was a knock on the door. Urd raised her eyebrows, then
instantly shrank to the size of Malibu Barbie (although of course, Urd was
far more beautiful) and hid herself behind a flowerpot on one of the desks.
Belldandy smiled and opened the door.
"Miss Morinomiya, and Maria Minamino! Good morning!"
Miss Shizuko Morinomiya of Registration smiled and stepped into
Belldandy's room. "Good morning yourself, Belldandy," she said. Behind her
followed a young girl in a school uniform -- Maria Minamino, by all
appearances.
Belldandy had liked Miss Morinomiya from the moment they'd met. The
older woman had seemed reserved and business-like at first, but she was
actually very kind-hearted. Her gray eyes always seemed to be smiling, and
she was always willing to listen to other's problems, despite her busy
schedule. She was, Belldandy had quickly realized, the hub around which the
school turned; she was neither Principal nor Vice Principal, but she was
the one that made sure things got done.
"How is your second day as dorm President?" Miss Morinomiya asked.
"Are you having any problems so far? Are the construction workers a
problem?"
"No, they've been very helpful," Belldandy said. "I was worried
about them being here so early, with all the girls getting ready, but
they've been perfect gentlemen."
Miss Morinomiya nodded. "No other problems, I hope?"
"No, nothing we can't handle," Belldandy said. "Madoka has been a
big help."
"Very good indeed! Is she around, by the way?"
"She's with the martial arts club, I believe," Belldandy replied.
"Ah. That is all well and good since what I have to say is for your
ears only, and not to leave this room."
Belldandy's expression slowly changed from a bright smile to a look
of polite confusion.
"Belldandy," Miss Morinomiya said, and turned to the student who
had accompanied her. "This is not, as you think, Maria Minamino. I would
like to introduce you to Noel Minamino, Maria's twin."
Belldandy's confused expression lasted a moment longer, then her
eyes lit up and she clapped her hands together. "Oh! Identical twins! You
look just like Maria!"
Noel shuffled her feet nervously. "Not identical, no," she said.
"Fraternal."
"Noel has something to show you," Miss Morinomiya said.
Reluctantly, Noel grasped her hair and pulled. Long brown hair
tumbled forward, revealing short hair underneath. The long hair was only a
wig.
"You see," Miss Morinomiya said, "Noel is Maria's twin brother."
Belldandy's eyes went wide. The boy's face flushed with
embarrassment as he stared down at the floor.
"Noel desperately wished to follow his sister to Muyami Academy,"
Miss Morinomiya said. "I spoke with Noel's parents, and explained to them
that the boy's dorm was completely full. However, if Noel wished to
register as a girl...."
"Oh, but Miss Morinomiya, that's not right! It's being
deceptive...."
The older woman smiled warmly. "Nevertheless, Belldandy, it is the
only way for Noel to attend school here," she said. "I didn't really expect
that Noel would accept the offer, but he's very determined to stay close to
his sister. He'll be rooming with Ranma Saotome."
"That doesn't seem very fair to Miss Ranma," Belldandy said. "What
if she learns that her roommate is a boy?"
Miss Morinomiya's smile grew to a grin.
"I see that you have not yet learned Ranma's secret."
"Secret?" Belldandy said. "I know that she has a curse...."
Miss Morinomiya nodded. "You know of the curse? Good, good. Then
you know why Ranma won't be terribly upset at these arrangements...."
Belldandy frowned.
"But, Miss Morinomiya," Belldandy said, "Ranma isn't a boy
pretending to be a girl... Ranma is a girl."
"Yes, I suppose that's true, most of the time."
"Well, not all the time, certainly," Belldandy said, "but still...
and surely you don't suggest that Noel use the girl's toilet?"
"If nobody knows, it shouldn't be a problem," Miss Morinomiya said.
"But it doesn't seem right...."
"...And Noel can bathe late at night, so as not to disturb the
other residents." Seeing Belldandy's uncertain expression, Miss Morinomiya
added, "Alternatively, he can use the small restroom in the nurse's office,
and you could let him use your private shower...."
Belldandy continued to frown.
Miss Morinomiya sighed. "I know this is unusual, Belldandy," she
said, "but I've said that Noel could attend school as a girl, and he's
agreed to do so. We just have to make the best of the situation from here.
I do think Ranma is the best choice of roommates for him, but if you don't
agree then perhaps you could talk to his sister Maria. In any case, Noel
will live in the girl's dorm, and will attend school as a girl. Exactly how
you work out the details I'll leave in your hands, but I certainly want to
stress that Noel's secret should remain a secret."
Belldandy sighed. "Yes, Miss Morinomiya. I understand."
***
Ten minutes later Ranma, now wearing loose Chinese silk pants and a
top borrowed from Shampoo, faced off on the lawn opposite Yohko Mano. The
clothing was lavender with a pattern of dark purple flowers and clearly
designed for a girl, but were otherwise similar enough to Ranma's favored
outfits to please her. She felt much more comfortable and ready for a good
workout.
She'd seen Yohko fight several times now, and had a healthy respect
for her friend's abilities. This would be the first time they fought each
other. Still, Ranma did not recognize anyone as her equal.
"I hope you realize," Yohko said, "that I cried myself to sleep
last night."
"Really?" Ranma replied, blinking in confusion. "Why's that?"
"Don't play games with me!" Yohko shot back. "I can't believe you!
The two best available boys I've been able to find, and my best friend is
engaged to both of them!"
"Oh, that," Ranma said.
"How could you be engaged and not tell me? And twice, no less."
"Listen," Ranma said, "I knew nothing about being engaged to Ukyo,
I swear. Our fathers arranged it when we were young, and I never knew. As
for Ryoga...."
"I don't want to hear your lame excuses," Yohko said. "It doesn't
even bother me that you're engaged to the only two attractive and
apparently unattached boys I've met at this school. Who cares about them?
I've barely known either of them two days, and I've yet to date either of
them. But you -- Ranma, I thought we were friends!"
"We are friends," Ranma said.
"No we're not!" Yohko shouted. "I thought I could trust you, but
you've been lying to me and hiding the truth... how can I trust you now?
How do I know what else you're hiding from me?"
Ranma looked down at her feet. "Yohko," she said, "I didn't mean to
hurt you...."
"Just shut up and let me pound you!" Yohko growled.
Ranma looked back up. Now here was a way of dealing with emotion
that she understood. She dropped into a defensive crouch. "Okay," she said.
"Whenever you're ready."
"I'm warning you," Yohko said. "I'm not going to go easy on you.
I'm going full out, and not showing any mercy!"
Ranma nodded her head. "Hai. But, I have to warn you too. I don't
like to hit girls."
Yohko smirked. "You like to beat up your boyfriends then?"
Before Ranma could respond, she attacked.
***
Matsukata Hall janitor Happosai sat down on the front steps of the
dorm and carefully filled and lit his pipe. The fog slowly drifted away and
the sun was ready to peek over the horizon at any moment, and a bevy of
beautiful schoolgirls were sparring on the nearby lawn. Who could ask for a
more beautiful morning?
He inhaled the warm, sweet smoke and released a series of light
gray rings that sailed up into the fog.
The senior advisor to the martial arts club, who coincidentally
happened to be his wife, pogoed over on her staff.
"Good morning, Happy," she said.
"Good morning, Cologne," he replied.
"Enjoying an early morning smoke?"
"With such beautiful scenery, how could I not?"
Cologne frowned.
"Isn't there something else you should be attending to?" she asked,
a trifle irritated.
"It can wait," Happosai said. "Besides, I'm not just here to stare
at beautiful girls, you know. I get to do that all day, every day. But it's
not every day I get to watch the daughters of my two former students
working out."
Cologne raised an eyebrow. "Shall I point Akane and Ranma out for
you?"
"You don't have to," the small balding man said. "The one with the
black hair and the yellow gi is Tendo's girl. Akane, wasn't it? And the
redhead in the Chinese outfit must be Genma's daughter Ranma."
"Very good," Cologne said. "She's not bad is she?"
"I suppose she isn't," the old man said non-committaly.
" Madoka Mano plans to train her in Devil Hunting. She could make a
very good one, I think."
"Perhaps," Happosai said. After a moment's pause, he added, "You're
not teaching any of the Joketzu secrets, are you?"
"I will if any of them can learn," Cologne said.
"Really?" Happosai looked surprised. "That's not very much like
you, Cologne."
"Oh? How so?"
"I've never known you to do anything that was not for the good of
the amazon tribe."
Cologne chuckled softly. "Well," she said, "perhaps it is."
"What are they paying you?"
"Happy," Cologne said, "you're not suggesting that I can be bribed,
are you?"
"No," Happosai said. "No. I'm sure you'd never call it bribery. A
mutually beneficial agreement, perhaps."
Cologne smirked.
"Let's just say that the Joketzu tribe's immediate as well as
long-term financial concerns are well taken care of."
Happosai chuckled, then blew several more smoke rings. He took one
last puff on his pipe, then dumped the ashes into the grass and set about
cleaning it.
"She's Genma's girl, all right," he said. "I can see his handprints
in her every move. Genma was always my most promising student, weasely
coward though he was. But he was never quite good enough, and knew it. But
his daughter... hmm, maybe, maybe."
"The new heir to your anything-goes school?"
"What? A girl? Of course not."
"And what is wrong with a woman martial artist?"
Happosai laughed. "This is Japan, woman!" he said. "I may be
Joketzu by marriage, but that doesn't mean I run my own school by your
rules. But that's not the point anyway... sure, this Ranma is good, but I'm
sure her brother is even better! He will be the heir to the school!"
"Her brother? Why do you think there's a brother?"
"Because I know how Genma thinks," Happosai said. "He always saw
himself as the true heir to my school, and the one who would father its
future heir. It would be the Saotome School of anything-goes martial arts,
one way or another. He would do anything to achieve that goal... anything.
"Oh, yes, Genma Saotome has a son, all right. I just have to find
him."
***
In a dark room at the head of a long black conference table,
Principal Gendo Ikari sat in a high-backed chair. He leaned forward, his
white-gloved hands interlocked before him, obscuring his face except for
the round, reflective lenses that covered his eyes. He stared out over his
hands at the others gathered around the table -- scientists, school staff,
and representatives from the Muyami Academy Board of Directors.
The school's board of directors was, of course, composed of people
from Mishima Heavy Industries.
"The student who was possessed?" Principal Ikari asked.
"Ryoga Hibiki," one of the others said. "He no longer appears to be
in the immediate vicinity. We are widening our search, and concentrating to
the North, which is where he seems to have gone."
"Notify me as soon as he's found," the Principal said.
"Yes, sir. We will try to capture the entity as well."
"Of course. What of the high school incident in Shinjuku?"
"We've interviewed witnesses," another said. "The girl who was
possessed appears to be a normal Japanese girl with no special powers. Of
the two that fought the demon, the boy claimed to be an immortal zombie,
and reportedly bears the mark of Wu upon his forehead. The girl is said to
be a powerful demon with three eyes. Her given name is Pai, but we've been
unable to gather any other data on her or her background. However, the boy
is Yakumo Fujii, the son of the late Professor Satoru Fujii, who spent his
life searching for...."
"The Sanji-yanunkara," Principal Ikari said. "An ancient race of
powerful, three-eyed demonic humanoids, yes. I'm well aware of the
Professor's research. Supposedly the Sanjiyan have all died out, but this
does not appear to be the case. And the boy is her Wu? Interesting indeed."
"Unfortunately," the other said, "we tracked them to Hong Kong, but
they've since disappeared."
"The Sanjiyan are reportedly the most powerful of demon kind," said
the Principal. "We could use that power, but proceed with caution."
"Yes sir. Now, about the incident that was in the news last week...
it appears that you were correct, and that it was an actual event, and not
just trick photography. We tracked the boy to the Aotsuki Temple West of
here. His name is Ushio Aotsuki, son of Shigure Aotsuki, the temple
priest."
"He has the spear, then?"
"Yes, sir. He appears to carry the Beast Spear with him at all
times. His hair is very short, but that could easily be explained by a
simple metaphysical transformation. As for the cat-like demon in the film,
it's not clear what relationship he may have with the boy, and no trace of
him has been discovered."
"Not surprising," the Principal said. "He is a demon."
"Apparently," said the man. "We've talked to the boy and his
father, but he's refused to transfer. It's a long commute, and he doesn't
want to leave his friends behind. Also, as you know, the campus dorms here
are full."
"More housing can be built," Ikari said. "Although after the
incidents of last night and this morning, I've already had a few students
expressing a desire to transfer somewhere else."
"Even so, the boy refuses to transfer."
"Talk with Masaki of the Masaki Shrine and Ikeda of the Kohryu
Temple," the Principal said. "One or both may know Aotsuki well. Also, the
boy's current school may need funding to rebuild after this incident, which
we can provide under the right conditions. As for his friends... if
transferring them as well will make him happy, then do it. He who wields
the Beast Spear is a demon-killer on par with a Devil Hunter herself. He is
not the sort we can afford to overlook."
***
"Feeling better?" Ranma asked.
Akane, Ranma, and Yohko walked back to the girl's dorm, tired from
their workout. The first rays of sunlight streamed across the campus and
students were headed to the cafeteria for breakfast. The sound of birds
chirping in the trees and of construction workers repairing dormitory walls
mixed with the echoes of half-heard conversations. Ranma caught more than
one reference to the demon attack of the night before.
She'd actually let Yohko tag her a few times during practice, to
let her friend blow off some steam, although some of those blows were a bit
harder than Ranma had anticipated. As the two headed back to the dorm,
along with Akane, Ranma could still feel a couple of those bruises.
"Yeah, a little," Yohko replied. "You were holding back against me,
though, weren't you?"
"Well," Ranma said, "a little, I guess."
"You're good," Yohko said. "You're going to make a pretty decent
Devil Hunter. But don't forget, we've got kendo practice next, and if you
try to hold back on me there you're going to get your butt kicked."
Ranma frowned.
"Look, Yohko," Ranma said, "about Ukyo... I honestly just found out
about our engagement last night, and to be honest, I'm not sure if I'll
really believe it until I talk to my Pop."
For several moments they walked in silence, then Ukyo spoke.
"Okay," she said, "but what about Ryoga? How can you be engaged to him as
well? And I heard that Akane and Ukyo are fiancees! Surely you don't have
two fiancees, or share Ukyo as a fiancee?"
"Well," Ranma said, "it's kinda complicated...."
"It was just a joke," Akane said. "We were playing a joke on my
cousin Tenchi, that's all."
Yohko's eyes widened. "Really? Is that all?"
Ranma nodded her head. "Yeah, I guess. Akane's not really engaged
to Ukyo, and I'm not really engaged to Ryoga... thank goodness."
"Well, you might have warned me," Ukyo said. "I wouldn't have
gotten so worked up otherwise. But that's good to hear. I guess that means
Ryoga's still unattached... but I'm worried about him. With the demon
possessing him...."
"Don't worry about Ryoga," Ranma said. "He's a pretty tough
guy...."
"Anyway," Yohko said, "I don't think it's going to work out between
the two of us. I can't even depend on him to arrive on time for a date. But
there's another boy I've met, who has the most dreamy eyes...."
"Oh?" Akane asked. "What's his name?"
"I don't actually know," Yohko said. "I only saw him last night. In
the fight, I got knocked back, and he was there to catch me. He was very
strong, and concerned for me. He even knew my name! He had thick black
hair, tied back into a pigtail...." Her voice trailed off. "That's all I
know right now," she finally added. "Have either of you seen anyone like
that? I need to find out his name!"
Akane and Ranma exchanged glances.
"Can't say that I have," Ranma said truthfully.
"Baka," Akane said under her breath.
***
Noel placed his bags near the desk and looked over his room.
It was a very nice room -- apart from the large hole in the outside
wall. Two construction workers, standing just outside the wall on a
scaffold, were slowly rebricking the missing section. The smiled and nodded
at Noel as they worked.
Living with a girl, as a girl. What would it be like? He hoped she
never found out the truth! That would be embarrassing, to say the least.
He glanced at himself again in the mirror on the back of the door,
and smiled. He did look just like his sister, though! With the supatsu
(biker shorts) he was wearing under his skirt, who would ever know? His
disguise was perfect!
Belldandy sat down on the bed nearby and smoothed out her skirt.
Noel stole another sidelong glance before looking away. She was so
beautiful! If only she weren't clearly older than him....
He stared back at his reflection, and frowned. Now was not the time
to become infatuated with anyone. He was here for a reason -- to break up
his sister's relationship with that basketball player and convince her to
come back home with him! They were twins, they belonged together! How dare
she leave him behind for some strange guy?
"It still doesn't seem right, having a boy in the girl's dorm,"
Belldandy said yet again.
Noel shrugged. "I'm sorry if it causes any problems, Miss
Belldandy," he said. "But I won't let anyone find out, trust me! I won't
cause any problems at all!"
Belldandy's older sister Urd stepped into the room. Noel wasn't
sure exactly when she'd arrived, but the sexy, dark-skinned, white-haired
woman -- she was hardly a girl, Noel reasoned -- set him on edge. There was
something vaguely predatory about her, something sinister and dangerous.
Not that he thought she was evil, per se, and she seemed friendly enough,
but he was quite certain she was the sort of girl who enjoyed practical
jokes at another's expense.
"Fake hair, huh?" the dark-skinned girl said. She reached out and
snatched his wig from his head.
"Oh, Urd!" Belldandy said.
Urd held the wig up. "Kind of inconvenient, isn't it?" she said.
"Only a little," Noel replied. He shut and locked the door, feeling
a little exposed. If someone walked in right now, his secret would be
discovered practically before he'd settled in.
He glanced back at the two construction workers and grimaced. But
they continued to work as if he, Urd, and Belldandy weren't even present.
"I mean, the hairband is a nice touch," Urd said, "it helps to keep
the wig in place, but you don't really expect to sleep with it on, do you?
What about when you shower? It's not going to be easy to hide like this,
you know."
"No one said it would be easy," Noel replied defensively. "But
don't worry, I'm not going to screw up."
"Believe it or not, kid, I can help you with that," Urd said. She
produced a small round pill, with a goofy looking face on it. "Here," she
said, handing it and a glass of water to Noel. "Swallow this."
Noel looked at Belldandy. Belldandy smiled and nodded. Noel
shrugged and swallowed the pill.
For a moment nothing happened. Then Noel's skin began to crawl. His
head throbbed, and his hands shook. He grabbed his head and bent over.
"What...?" he started to say, when there was a huge whoosh and a loud
rustling sound....
Ten seconds later, his hair had grown several feet.
Noel stood up. His hair now hung past his waist. He looked over his
shoulder, then back into the mirror.
"It's... it's long," he said.
"Viola!" Urd crowed. "No more need for a wig!"
Belldandy clapped her hands. "Oh Urd, that's perfect!" She produced
a pair of scissors, and added, "Come over here, Noel, and let me trim it.
It should be the same length as your sister's."
"Please," Noel said. He pulled the desk chair over and sat down in
front of Belldandy.
"Is this permanent?" he asked, as Belldandy snipped away.
Urd laughed. "It's hair, kid. All I did was make it grow. It'll
stay long until you cut it short again."
Noel smiled shyly. "Well, I've never had long hair before; it'll
take some getting used to. But... thanks."
"No problem at all," Urd said. "Now, as for your other problem...."
"My other problem?"
"...I think I can solve that one too."
"What problem is that?" Noel asked.
"Well, you're still a boy pretending to be a girl, right?" Noel
nodded. "So you don't think that's a problem, living in a girl's dorm, and
with another girl? You plan to take regular baths don't you?"
"Yes, of course," Noel said. "Miss Morinomiya said I could take my
showers late at night, or use the private shower in Belldandy's room...."
Urd smirked. "And that solves all of your problems, does it?"
Belldandy finished cutting his hair, and Noel stood and stared into
the mirror. Once again, he looked just like his sister, only this time
without a wig. He ran his hands through his hair and wondered how difficult
it would be to take care of this way. It was still very long, hanging
nearly to his waist. The weight and pull of natural hair that long was
different from when it was just a wig.
"In fact," Urd continued, "this problem is far easier to solve than
Ranma's."
Belldandy gasped. "Urd! Surely you're not thinking of...."
Urd laughed wickedly. "You got it!" She produced an aluminum soda
can and held it up. It was all white, with no logo or lettering, but with a
pattern of pink and blue symbols in various sizes -- the symbols for male
and female, in fact.
"Ta-Da!" Urd exclaimed. "Hormonga, Talruuto-kun's special hormone
cola!" She stared at the can and added, "That little twerp magician owed me
big-time and this is how he repaid me -- by giving me tons of this stuff.
I've got something like 70 cases of it right now." Then she brightened up.
"But it's certainly something little Noel could use, don't you think? And
if that's not enough," she produced another bottle of pills, "here we have
Urd's special all-day version of the same thing, in a handy pill form! Did
I come prepared, or what?"
"Urd! That's deceptive and... and just plain wrong!"
Urd smirked impishly. "Isn't it, though?" she said. She laughed,
shrugged, and added, "But as you've already pointed out, Bell, so is having
a boy living among the girls. Think of it as the lesser of two deceptions,
if you like."
"What are you talking about?" Noel asked.
"But, Urd...."
"No buts, sister dear. I listened carefully to what that woman
said. Noel is going to live and attend school as a girl, but the details
are up to you. So? The fact that he isn't a girl is a pretty big detail,
don't you think? What's your solution?"
Belldandy frowned, then nodded reluctantly.
"What?" Noel asked. "What are you talking about?"
"Noel," Belldandy said, "are you certain you want to attend school
as a girl?"
Noel nodded his head. "I wouldn't be here, dressed like this, if I
weren't."
"Well then," Belldandy continued, "my sister has something that
will make it a lot easier for you to do that."
Urd pulled the tab on the cola can. It popped and then fizzed
quietly. "Here, kid," she said. "Drink up."
Noel glanced at Belldandy, who again nodded encouragingly. He took
the can, sniffed it, stared into its depths, noting a clear liquid like
Sprite or a seltzer.
He shrugged, and drank it.
It tasted wonderful.
Moments later, Noel began to tremble and shake. His whole body felt
boneless and rubbery, as if he were made of jello instead of flesh and
bone. He felt a little queasy too, but the feeling passed, and in moments
he felt perfectly normal again.
Well, almost normal. His shirt brushed against his chest in a way
that felt different, and when he glanced down the reason for this was
obvious.
"I've got breasts!" she exclaimed.
"That's not all you've got," Urd said with a snicker. "Just call me
pharmacist to the gender challenged."
"But... but this is impossible!"
"You think? One demonstration is worth a thousand words, kid."
Noel placed a hand between her legs, confirming the rest of Urd's
statement.
Belldandy smiled. "There, Noel," she said. "Now you really can
attend school as a girl."
"But..." Noel said. "But I don't want...."
"Don't worry, kid," Urd said. "The effects of the cola wear off in
an hour or two at most. It's just for those situations, like a hot bath,
where your actual gender is more of a problem. Now, these pills here are a
24-hour version, if needed. Of course, if you want to be like that for a
full year, I can come up with something...."
"No!"
"Well then," Urd said, and handed over the bottle. "I'll have a
case or two of Hormonga delivered to your dorm by this afternoon. Kamisama
knows, I've got enough of the stuff. In the meantime, be careful with these
pills -- never mix them with Hormonga for starters, and the dosage should
never exceed one pill every 24 hours, you know! Otherwise, I can't
guarantee what might happen!"
***
Once again Yohko scored a direct hit with her bokken, driving Ranma
to her knees on the mat. The red-haired girl winced at the blow, but
scrambled to her feet and fell into a ready stance, holding her wooden
blade before her. From the safety of the stands Akane laughed and clapped,
cheering Yohko on.
"Guess it's time to get serious," Ranma said through gritted teeth.
Yohko laughed out loud.
"Serious?" she said. "You've been 'trying to get serious' for the
last ten minutes, Ranma! Maybe you were holding back when we sparred hand
to hand, but you've been going all out here and have yet to score a hit on
me! Could it be that the great Ranma Saotome is not such a great
swordswoman?"
Ranma growled low in her throat, apparently having no better
comeback. She leaped forward with another good -- but not great -- attack.
Ranma wasn't exactly clumsy with the bokken -- Ranma was rarely
clumsy with anything physical, Yohko realized -- but neither was she well
versed in swordsmanship. Despite her high calling as a martial artist and
her years of travelling and training, it was primarily unarmed combat that
Ranma had learned. With a sword in hand, she was good, but no match for a
real swordswoman. And if Yohko Mano knew anything, it was how to swing a
sword.
Not that she was necessarily the best in the class. Cologne's
granddaughter Shampoo was as good with a sword as she was unarmed, and
another redhead, Hikaru Shidou, was very good as well. But there were only
four present that Yohko thought could really give her a run for her money.
The first, Tatewaki Kuno, had tried to declare himself head of the club.
After some raving about his proposed rules for dating Akane Tendo -- Yohko
had no idea what that was about, but would ask Akane later -- he'd been
beaten in a tightly-fought battle with Tenchi Masaaki. Yohko was quite
impressed with both of their skills, although Kuno seemed remarkably
skilled on offense and remarkably careless on defense, making him dangerous
but not entirely difficult to defeat.
The third student that caught Yohko's eye was Utena Tenjou. She
seemed more of a natural talent than a disciplined student, but that talent
was immense. Yohko wasn't entirely sure if even Tenchi could defeat her in
a given match, but Utena had not challenged him for leadership of the club.
The fourth formidable opponent was, of course, the advisor,
Masaaki-Sensei. Yohko had not yet seen him fight, but she assumed that
Tenchi's grandfather and teacher was the most skilled swordsman present.
Yohko again struck Ranma hard, driving her back. Swearing loudly,
Ranma angrily tossed her weapon aside.
"Is there a problem, Ranma-chan?" Masaaki-Sempai asked.
"It's this stupid weapon!" Ranma growled. "It only gets in the way!
I'm faster without it -- with just my bare hands, I can take on anyone no
matter what weapon they wield!"
The elder Masaaki raised an eyebrow. "Well, you certainly sound
confident enough. Perhaps you could demonstrate this ability to me?" He
spread his arms, bokken gripped casually in his right.
Ranma looked a little less certain, then shrugged. "Sure, okay,"
she said. She stalked towards the advisor and took up a battle-ready
stance. "Whenever you're ready, Sensei," she said.
Yohko sighed. Her friend was such an idiot sometimes.
Mr. Masaaki just stood there watching her. After a moment he raised
his hand and motioned her forward, inviting her to make the first move. For
several moments Ranma continued to wait, but finally grew impatient. With a
snarl she sprung up and forward, snapping her foot out in a viscous flying
kick....
...And was knocked back to the mats. She rolled with the fall and
landed on her feet, and immediately launched another attack.
After being knocked down for the sixth time without landing a blow,
Ranma stood and regarded Tenchi's grandfather appraisingly. The point had
been made -- Yosho Masaaki was a brilliant martial artist in his own right,
and his weapon gave him considerable reach over an opponent like Ranma. Of
course, Mr. Masaaki had considerable reach over the rather petite redhead
even barehanded, but Yohko's friend rarely seemed to recognize her own
weaknesses.
"You're not bad, old man," Ranma said.
"Indeed?" Masaaki-Sempai replied. He scratched his chin idly with
the tip of his bokken. "Perhaps that's the reason I'm the advisor of this
club? I thought they were just being kind to me in my old age....
"Now then," he continued, turning back to the class, "this is the
Kendo Club, and although I am only advisor, I really must insist that
students practice armed combat, with bokkens, rather than unarmed combat.
Now, if everyone is ready, I'd like to start with some basic moves. Is
Kuno-kun conscious yet?"
"Not yet, sir," Utena called out. "Tenchi clobbered him pretty good
I think."
"Indeed?" the advisor replied. "I assumed he had a thicker skull
than that. Well then, Tenchi? From the top, as I've taught you...."
Ranma retrieved her bokken and fell in step beside Yohko, watching
Tenchi carefully. Yohko grinned, noting the intense concentration in her
friend's eyes. The girl had an ego the size of Tokyo, but she also worked
hard and learned quickly, which was good. If Ranma was going to hunt demons
along side Yohko Mano, then she needed to learn fast.
***
Karasumaro wiped the sweat from his forehead and paused to look at
their handiwork. The dorm wall, which had been a complete mess only hours
ago, was now nearly as good as new. All that was left was to let the cement
set and then install a new window.
"Not bad for a few hour's work, eh, Fujitsune?" he said to his
companion. The other man shoved his yellow construction hat up on his head
and chomped on his cigar, then took a quick drink of soda before setting
the can back down.
"Not bad at all," Fujitsune replied. "Don't forget we got that hole
on the other side to take care of. If we hurry, we can get it done before
lunch."
"No sweat," Karasumaro replied. "Speaking of sweating, I'm getting
thirsty. Mind sharing that soda of yours?"
Fujitsune shrugged and handed the can over. There wasn't much left,
and Karasumaro downed it in one swift gulp. He blinked, and looked at the
can in surprise.
"What is this stuff?" he asked. "It's pretty damn good!"
A wave of near-nausea washed over him. For a moment his skin
crawled, and then the feeling passed.
Karasumaro glanced down at his chest. There seemed to be a great
deal more of it, all of a sudden. He glanced at the large, muscular female
next to him, still wearing a construction hat and chomping on a cigar. Then
he inspected the soda can a little more carefully.
"Found this on the desk just inside the room, did you?" he -- or
rather she -- asked. Her voice was not quite as deep and husky as she was
used to it being.
Fujitsune nodded. "Sorry," she said. "Wasn't really thinking, I
guess."
"What did the dark-skinned one say? Only good for a few hours?"
Fujitsune nodded, and chomped on her cigar a moment in thought.
"Lucky thing too," she said. "I'd hate to have to explain this to the
missus."
Karasumaro began to gather her tools together. "I tell ya," she
said, "sometimes this place gives me the creeps. If it weren't for the
money...."
"I hear you, buddy, I hear you."
***
The rest of the morning passed uneventfully. Ranma slept through
English with Hinako-Sensei, their childlike homeroom teacher. She dozed
during a drunken math session with Fujisawa-Sensei, then continued to snore
as Cologne-Sensei launched into her class on Chinese Literature. By the
time noon arrived, Ranma was feeling refreshed and ready for lunch.
"You're going to flunk all of your classes if you make a habit of
that," Chigako stated as they sat down in the cafeteria. Yohko and Akane
sat across from them. Meanwhile, at the far end of the table, Tenchi was
being force-fed food hand-made by Ryoko and Ayeka. While the two alien
girls bickered and threatened each other, Akane's cousin looked quite ill.
Ranma sympathized with poor Tenchi. Under other circumstances, she
would be eating Akane's cooking right now, and feeling just as sick.
Ranma glanced back to Chigako and shrugged. "If demons keep me up
every night, and attack helicopters wake me up every morning, then perhaps
I will," she said. "But I doubt that that will happen."
"You know, Ranma," Chigako added, staring down at the end of the
table. "You should probably make a lunch for Ukyo-kun."
"Excuse me?"
"Well, he's your fiancee isn't he? You should fix a nice lunch box
for him. There's no better way to show your love, you know."
"What a great idea, Ranma!" Akane exclaimed. There was just the
hint of laughter in her eyes. "After all, you don't want people to think
you're weird or something, do you?"
Ranma growled something under her breath and went back to eating.
In the background, half-heard conversations about Tenchi and Yohko and the
demon from last night drifted across the cafeteria.
"Everyone's talking about that demon," Chigako said. "Have you
heard them? Right now, Tenchi, Ryoko, Ayeka and Yohko have more notoriety
at the school than Nuku Nuku! If you play your cards right, Yohko, who
knows where this could lead? You might wind up world-famous!"
Yohko laughed nervously. "Chigako, that's the last thing I'd want,"
she said. "By the way, Akane, what was with Kuno-kun this morning? All that
shouting about having to defeat you in order to date you...."
A dark look washed over Akane's face. "I'd rather not talk about
it," she said.
"He's some idiot from her old school," Ranma said. "She used to
fight half the male population of Furinkan High every morning, because of
him. What?" she added, as Akane flashed an angry look at her. "You told me
about it when we first met, remember? Not that I really believed you at the
time...."
"Was I so unbelievable then?" Akane asked.
"Well it's not like you believed my story either!" Ranma shot back.
"What story was that?" Chigako asked.
"Er... um..." Ranma fumbled. "That is... you know, about Yohko, and
the demon. That's all it was."
"Speaking of demons," Yohko said, "Chi, did you get that picture I
asked for?"
"I sure did!" Chigako grinned and laid a photo print on the table.
Although dark and blurry, it clearly showed a group of students from the
big fight last night. In the foreground stood Yohko in her Devil Hunter
outfit, soulsword in hand. In the background, among the other students, was
a boy wearing a white shirt and tight shorts.
A boy with black hair, tied back in a pigtail.
"There! You see?" Yohko exclaimed. "That's the boyfriend for me! If
I can only find out who he is...."
"This is the best shot I got," Chigako said. "The strange thing is,
he's wearing a school uniform shirt, but those shorts... don't they look
like girl's shorts? In fact, I'm certain you have a pair like them, Akane."
"I-I do?" Akane squeaked. "Y-you don't say...."
***
"No! No way! Absolutely not!"
Ranma had managed to corner Ukyo in the hallway right after lunch.
It hadn't really been that difficult -- Ukyo was overjoyed to see her, or
at least, until Ranma had popped the question.
"But why?" Ranma asked. "It makes perfect sense! I'm a boy...."
"Half the time," Ukyo replied. "The other half, you're stacked
better than I am!"
"And you're a girl...." Ranma continued.
"Nobody knows that," Ukyo countered, "and I'd just as soon they
don't find out."
"And the only reason I'm in the girl's dorm at all is that boy's
dorm was full," Ranma added.
"Not to mention that you're a girl," Ukyo said. "Anyway, it's
hardly my fault."
"And the only reason you're in the boy's dorm is because of this
silly idea you have of rejecting your girl half."
"It's not silly!" Ukyo snapped. "And I'm not half a girl, Ranchan,
I'm a girl all of the time!"
"Then why not act like one? We can exchange rooms. We can even
exchange uniforms...."
"Never!" Ukyo said with a grimace. "You'll never catch me wearing a
tiny skirt like that!"
Ranma glanced down at her short brown skirt. It was short. Strange
that, in only two days, Ranma was almost used to it. Given a choice, of
course, Ranma would wear something else....
"What's wrong with it?" she asked. "It's what girls wear. I'm
wearing it, and I'm a guy...."
Ukyo stifled a laugh. "Ranchan," she said, "you've got the most
stunning figure of any guy I've ever known. It looks good on you! But it's
not my style. Anyway," she added, "I'm registered as a guy, and you're
registered as a girl, so the whole thing is out of the question."
"All of that will be fixed," Ranma said with certainty. "Come on,
Uchan. Please? I'm begging you! I really don't want to attend school as a
girl!"
"Too late," Ukyo said, but then she paused and sucked in her
breath.
The truth was, she would like nothing better than to move out of
the boy's dorm, abandon her lifelong disguise, and act and be treated as a
normal girl again. Aside from wearing that silly skirt, she'd be happy to
trade places with Ranma. And she didn't want Ranma to leave school just
because he couldn't find a room in the boy's dormitory -- she wanted him
here, where she was.
But before she could embrace her femininity again, she needed
something from Ranma. A promise....
"Ranchan," she said, "if I do this for you...."
"Yes?" Ranma asked, her voice filled with hope.
"Will you swear to me," Ukyo said, "that you will honor our
engagement, and abandon your engagement to Akane Tendo? Will you promise to
marry me, and only me?"
Ranma faltered, then looked away. She was silent for a very long
time.
"Ranchan?" Ukyo asked.
"Uchan," Ranma said, her voice dry. "You know I can't do that.
Family honor...."
"This is about my honor too," Ukyo replied hotly. "Until you can
satisfy my honor, Ranchan, you can't expect me to abandon my own vows to
myself. I can't become a girl again, unless it's as your one and only
fiancee...."
Ranma nodded. "I... I understand," she said.
"And?"
"I can't make that promise, Uchan." She glanced back at the
okonomiyaki chef. "I just can't! You have to understand...."
Ukyo sighed. "Sure, Ranchan," she said. "I understand. If you
really like being a girl...."
"No!"
"Ranchan, it's almost time for P.E., and naturally I have to go to
my dorm room to change, so... if you'll excuse me...."
Ranma watched her go, her mind in a whirl. There was no way she
could ignore the engagement arranged by her parents, even if it was clear
that Akane wasn't in favor of it. She thought she'd had the perfect
solution to her problems with being stuck at school as a girl, but if she
couldn't force Ukyo to change her mind....
She sighed. There was still the cure that Belldandy had promised.
She'd take it, even if it meant leaving school. Her mother would be upset,
but surely she'd understand, once she explained it all. To really be rid of
the curse would be worth any problems that might arise afterwards.
So engrossed in her thoughts was Ranma that for a moment Akane's
words didn't even register. She turned, suddenly realizing that her "other"
finacee was standing nearby and holding something out to her.
"Come again?" she asked.
"I said," Akane repeated, "that I already picked up your uniform
for P.E. class. Here." She handed the small stack of clothing to Ranma.
Ranma stared at the girl's top and shorts. "P.E.?" she repeated.
"Of course," Akane said. "It's right after lunch. Come on, we're
going to be late."
"But I don't..." Ranma began. Akane rolled her eyes.
"Geez, Ranma, you didn't really think you could avoid it, did you?"
"Well, no," Ranma said. "But geez, you'd think martial arts and
kendo would be enough exercise that I don't gotta do soccer or baseball or
whatever too...."
"Those are club activities," Akane said. "You know that. Anyway, it
will more likely be volleyball or softball, you know...."
Ranma sighed, and followed Akane across the campus. But as they
entered the gymnasium and headed for the girl's locker room, Ranma
hesitated.
Akane grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. "Come on, you big
baby! You're a girl, aren't you? It's nothing you haven't seen before,
right?"
Ranma frowned, then followed Akane into the locker room. Akane
seemed determined to treat Ranma as a girl in all circumstances. But Ranma
was still determined to take Belldandy's cure. How would Akane react to
that?
For that matter, how would Yohko react, when she discovered that
her best friend and her dream boyfriend were one and the same?
***
As Ukyo left her room, she ran into Dorm President Mitsuru Ikeda.
"Mitsuru-Sempai!" she exclaimed.
"Good afternoon," the senior returned. He eyed her loose boy's P.E.
clothing and raised an eyebrow. "Changing for P.E. in your room, Ukyo-kun?"
"Naturally," Ukyo said defensively. "You know the reasons why,
Sempai. And as a matter of fact, I'm a bit late...."
Mitsuru moved to block her path. "But won't the other boys think it
a little strange?" he prodded.
Ukyo scowled at her senior. "What if they do? Who cares what they
think?"
Mitsuru had the hint of a smile on his lips. Ukyo had been told
that Shinobu Tezuka was the one who liked to tease and play jokes upon
others, but clearly some of that had rubbed off on his roommate.
"They don't call you names, or try to bully you?" Mitsuru asked.
"Some try," Ukyo said, "but only once." She grinned wickedly, and
Mitsuru laughed.
"Ah. And where do you shower afterwards?"
"Why would you want to know?"
"Not with the other boys, I hope?"
"I can go without, if necessary," Ukyo sniffed. "I take my showers
late at night, or early in the morning, so that I'm not disturbed."
"I see," Mitsuru said. "You know, of course, that my room has a
private shower? One of the perks of his being Dorm President, you see."
"How very convenient," Ukyo said sourly. "Now really, Sempai, I'm
in a hurry, so if you don't mind...." She shouldered past him and headed
for the stairs.
"I only mention it," Mitsuru said, "because it might be handy for
you. You're welcome to use it, when needed."
Ukyo paused then glanced back over her shoulder.
"Really?" she asked. Mitsuru nodded. "It wouldn't be a bother to
you?"
"Not at all," he said with a warm smile.
Ukyo grinned back at him. "Thanks, Mitsuru, that's very kind of
you."
"Think nothing of it," Mitsuru said. "It's the least we can do,
under the circumstances.
"But you'd better hurry along. The Coach does not appreciate those
who are tardy, you know. The least you can expect is a handful of laps
around the field and if you aren't careful, you might get pressed into
taking one of his mountaineering trips. Some students never return from
those..."
Ukyo groaned and hurried down the stairs.
***
The local library wasn't much to speak of, but Chief of Police
Daisuke Ido felt he had to start somewhere. And the important thing about
an investigation wasn't where you started, but where you ended up.
Therefore, early in the morning, just after the library doors had opened,
Chief Ido had showed up and asked to see everything that they had on devils
and demons.
There was, surprisingly enough, quite a lot. But after several
hours of reading, he was no closer to understanding what he'd seen the
night before.
Chief Ido shuffled through the books in front of him. Most were
historical works that detailed legends and old beliefs. These were written
by people who knew that real demons didn't exist. There were also some
books written by people who did believe in demons, but these invariably
involved new-age mumbo jumbo. What he really needed was a book written by
someone who'd actually met demons first-hand, but those people apparently
didn't write about their encounters. Perhaps because they didn't normally
survive those encounters, a part of his mind suggested.
He picked up yet another book and flipped through it. It was called
The Universe of the Four Gods, and as far as he could tell was some sort of
old Chinese fantasy. He set the book aside and frowned.
"Finding what you're looking for?" someone asked. Chief Ido looked
up into the kindly face of the head librarian, an old man named Mr. Maeno.
"Not really," the Chief said.
"You're looking for a demon, are you?" the librarian asked.
Daisuke's eyebrows shot up.
"How did you know that?" he asked.
The librarian smiled and sat down, then pointed to the stack of
books labeled "demonology".
"The sign says, 'keep quiet', but the people who come here talk
anyway," he said. "I've heard the stories of what happened at Mr. Jihara's
restaurant. Terrible thing to happen, Mr. Jihara was a really nice man.
Always returned his books on time, Mr. Jihara did. Anyway... where was I?
Oh yes. I've heard people talk. This morning, it's been all about a second
demon attack, right on the campus of Muyami Academy last night. It's all
that the students are talking about, you know. So when you came in here...
well, it wasn't hard to put two and two together."
Chief Ido smiled. "The problem," he said, "is that none of these
books were written by anyone who's actually seen a demon...." He ran a hand
through his short blond hair. "I guess I'm just wasting my time coming
here...."
"I've lived in this area a long time," the librarian said. "Long
enough to remember when you arrived as a hot-shot officer, straight out of
the academy. I know a lot of the history and legend of this area."
"I suppose you must," the Chief said.
"Tell me, Chief Ido, have you ever heard the legend of the demon on
the hill?"
***
Maria Minamino stared at her brother and ground her teeth together.
Only a few minutes ago, a new student had been introduced to her class --
Noel Minamino. Only he was sporting long hair and a girl's school uniform,
and had been introduced as her twin sister. She'd immediately drug him out
of the classroom and onto the lawn to find out what was going on.
"So?" she demanded. "Explain!"
"What's to explain?" Noel shot back. "You selfishly transferred
without me, so I followed you."
"As a girl? My little sister? You're my little brother, Noel!"
"Keep it down!" Noel exclaimed. He placed his hand over Maria's
mouth and looked about. "Someone might hear you! Do you want to get me in
trouble?"
"And take off that stupid wig!" Maria growled, yanking on his hair.
"Ow! Ow, stop that! It's not a wig! It's real!"
"How can that be? You can't have grown that in only two months!"
"I took a hair growth tonic," Noel said. "Something like that, at
least. It worked really well -- really well!"
Maria frowned and crossed her arms. "How disgusting. You look like
a pervert in those clothes!"
"I look just like you!" Noel snapped, then flopped down in the
grass. "Anyway, I'm doing this for you, Maria." He stared off into the
distance, and for a moment both were quiet. "When father and I went off to
Hawaii," he finally said, "I was really sad that you didn't come with us.
It wasn't half as much fun without you there, but I understood that you had
to support your team in the basketball tournament. But to come back and
find out that you'd enrolled in a boarding school without me... Maria, how
could you?"
"Because I'm in love," Maria replied. "Didn't I say so in my
letter?"
"But we've been together since we've been born! You've always been
my other half! We were always close... how could you be so selfish?"
"Selfish?" Maria countered. "Who's being selfish here?" She
frowned, looking him over again, and placed her hands on her hips. "Anyway,
Noel, that still doesn't explain the stupid clothes. Why are you dressed as
a girl?"
"Because," Noel said, "when father called registration, they said
the only room left was in the girl's dorm. They said I couldn't attend here
unless I could pass as a girl. But, Maria, you know that since we were
kids, people often thought I was your sister! So I knew I could do it." He
stood up and lifted the skirt of his uniform. "See? I have biker shorts
under the skirt, in case anyone looks under it. Belldandy-Sempai helped me
with my hair, so I don't have to wear a wig, and her sister also gave me
some pills and soft drinks that... well, I really need to show you that
part, it's a little hard to believe. I'm even wearing a bra -- because it
wouldn't look right if I didn't have small breasts, at least."
"You bought girl's underwear?"
"Of course not," Noel replied. "I got it from your room...."
Maria's fist crashed down on her brother's head. "Pervert! You
fool! I can't believe you!" Noel rubbed his head, and his sister added,
"How could you do all this? It's insane!"
"Don't you see, Maria? I had to come here! I have to break you and
your boyfriend up, so that you'll come back with me!"
"Baka! That's just stupid!" Maria said. She crossed her arms and
glared at her brother. "Why would you go to all this trouble just to
interfere with me? I don't believe you! Stop being an idiot and go back
home."
"No way!" Noel exclaimed. "I'm not going back without you, Maria.
You're precious to me!"
That caught Maria short, and she turned away, her heart confused.
Of course her little brother loved her -- she knew that. But Noel wanted
things to stay the same, to never change, and that just wasn't the way the
world worked.
"Noel," she said, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the transfer.
You're my precious little brother, and I'll always love you. I really want
to have you near to me, but... we can't exist in our own world, just the
two of us, forever. I need my independence, and you'll need yours soon too.
When you find a girl that you love, maybe you can understand... until then,
try to understand how I feel. Please?"
She glanced up at her brother, who was staring off into the
distance, eyes unfocused, as if he weren't even listening. She felt the
irritation rising again.
"Look, Noel, you're my brother and I feel sorry for you, so I'm not
going to give away your secret. Anyway, I doubt you can keep this up for
very long, having to hide your true self every hour of the day. Someone's
going to find out, or else you're going to get sick of it and head back
home.
"Anyway, I still have class, so... I'll talk to you later."
As she walked off, Maria was almost certain she could hear her
brother muttering to himself, "Never! I'll never give you up! I'll never
let you go!" She sighed. Her poor, stupid brother. When he got an idea in
his head, it was almost impossible to dislodge it....
***
Ranma sat on the bed in her room and looked down at the pill in her
hand.
If Belldandy and Urd were to be believed, this pill had the power
to cure curses. It was exactly what she and her father had spent months
searching all over China for. A cure, at long last. To never transform into
a girl again....
Ranma glanced up. Gathered around her were Urd, Belldandy, and
Akane, all waiting for her to swallow it. A teakettle was beginning to stir
on a nearby hotplate. Ranma's inner voice was screaming at her, telling her
that the transformation itself was not the curse, but instead the lack of
control over that transformation. However, Ranma's inner voice spoke a
foreign tongue that she'd never bothered to study.
She swallowed the pill greedily, washing it down with a glass of
water.
It was done. She was afraid to believe it just yet, but she was
apparently cured.
She wanted some hot water, now.
"Ranma!" Akane said, "what about...."
"School?" Ranma said. "Akane, I hate to say it, but this is more
important that school. If I can be cured of my curse...."
"Well," Urd said, "it's not a permanent cure, mind you. But it
should last a full year."
Belldandy clapped her hands together. "That's wonderful, Urd! That
will solve all of Ranma's problems!"
The kettle began to whistle. Akane stood and poured hot water into
a large cup.
Urd flashed a victory sign. "Am I a genius, or what?" She
exclaimed. "All I did was create a variant off of a standard lycanthropy
fix." When she saw some of the others blinking in confusion, she added,
"Lycanthropy -- you know -- werewolves and such, people who are cursed to
transform whenever the moon is full. So, if you had a werewolf curse, but
you didn't like turning into a nasty old wolf, you'd just take one of these
pills, and just like that," she snapped her fingers, "you'd be locked into
your current form for a full year."
"Current form?" Ranma repeated.
Urd nodded.
Ranma glanced down at herself.
"What if you're in your cursed form when you take the pill?" she
asked.
Urd looked thoughtful. "I've heard of people doing that," she said.
"People that like being wolves." She shrugged. "It works either way," she
said. "Whatever form you're in when you take the pill... that's what you're
stuck with for the next year."
Ranma's eyes grew wide. She looked at Akane, whose eyes were also
very wide.
Slowly, Akane reached out and upended her cup of steaming water
over Ranma's head. The liquid matted Ranma's hair, ran down her face, and
soaked the top of her blouse.
Nothing more happened.
"Oh, Ranma, how wonderful for you!" Belldandy exclaimed. "Now
you'll remain a girl no matter what happens!"
***
In the fading light of evening, framed against the fiery orange
Western sky, a dark shadow moved along the rooftop of the girl's dorm. It
was small and lithe, with long hair that swung about as the figure danced
and twirled. The shadow held a long pole in each hand and at the end of
these poles were large round balls. Those familiar with Chinese fighting
styles might have recognized the weapons as bonburi, and the movements as
those of a Joketzu Amazon warrior.
Two more shadows, much shorter and more squat, appeared. One of
them balanced easily and even "walked" around on the end of a long staff.
Shampoo completed her kata, sighed, and set the bonburi down. She
turned to face her great-grandmother, and the strange man who was with her.
Shampoo recognized him as the janitor of the building.
"What do you think so far, child?" Cologne asked. "We've been here
two days already."
"Great-grandmother is right," the purple-haired girl replied. "Is
many good opponent at this school. Devil Hunter girl and red pigtailed girl
make good opponent for fighting. Shampoo think fighting with wooden sword
is stupid, but teacher and grandson very good sword fighter, also one or
two other in class. Shampoo also meet cyborg cat girl, alien princess, and
girl that alien princess call dried up mummy, and all very strong, too
strong for Shampoo. Also girl that say is normal, but is strong as cyborg
girl."
Cologne nodded her head. "I'm very glad we came, Shampoo," she
said. "You may never get to train against people like this again."
"Shampoo want rematch with pig-tailed girl," Shampoo said. "Shampoo
caught off guard. Not lose second time."
"Perhaps," her great-grandmother replied. "Now, child, come over
here. I have someone I want you to meet."
Shampoo obediently stepped forward, then frowned at the shrunken
old man in coveralls. "Is janitor of girl dorm, yes? Shampoo already meet."
"Indeed, he is that," Cologne said, "but he is also more. Shampoo,
I'd like you to meet Happosai -- your great-grandfather."
"My my, ain't she a beauty?" the old man said with a leer. He
rushed forward, throwing his arms wide. "Here, Shampoo, give your ol'
great-granddaddy a big hug...."
*BAFF!*
"Whaaaaaaaaaaa..." Happosai called out as his body sailed off into
the distance. Shampoo glanced down at her fist and then back out across the
campus.
"Kiya!" she exclaimed. "Shampoo not know why she hit
great-grandfather! Shampoo sorry!"
"Don't be," Cologne said with a smirk. "It's a perfectly natural
reaction. Why, I did the same when I first met him, and if I know that old
fool at all, it won't be the last time you send him flying."
***
"Ohmygod," Ranma said. "Ohmygod. Mom's gonna kill me!"
Akane was philosophical. "Well," she said, "you wanted to stay in
school, even if it meant being a girl. Certainly you couldn't have expected
to hide your curse forever, so... I don't see what the big deal is."
The two of them sat alone in Ranma's room, Urd and Belldandy having
already left. Ranma lay on her bed listlessly, staring up at the underside
of the bunk above her. Akane sat on one of the desk chairs, watching Ranma
carefully.
"Are you kidding?" Ranma said. "How can I go home as a girl? Mom
and Pop are gonna kill me!"
Akane rolled her eyes. "Ranma, you didn't really think you could
attend school as a girl and your parents would never find out?"
But one look into Ranma's eyes told Akane that yes, she really had
thought she could pull it off. Akane sighed. "Ranma, you are such a dope
sometimes."
"You don't understand, Akane," Ranma said. "If I can't turn back
into a guy, I'll, I'll...."
"You brought this upon yourself, you know," Akane said. Honestly,
she couldn't for the life of her figure her supposed fiancee out. Did Ranma
want to be a girl? By her actions it certainly seemed so, but she
continually protested otherwise. But if Ranma didn't want to be a girl,
then why was she attending school as a girl? Why did she only bring girl's
clothing? Why had she agreed to Devil Hunter training, knowing that Devil
Hunters were always female? Why was she willing to let the entire school
think that she was engaged to a boy?
And now she really was a girl, 100% of the time, at least for the
next 365 days. It seemed to Akane that all of Ranma's problems were solved,
except for the part where she explained it all to her parents. Of course,
it meant that Ranma couldn't officially be engaged to Akane -- explaining
that to her own father wouldn't be fun -- but overall Akane was relieved.
And it also meant that Ranma couldn't really be engaged to Ukyo, either.
For some reason, that made Akane happy too, although she wasn't sure why.
Now if only the baka would realize how many problems this solved,
everyone could be happy. Well, except for her father, and Mr. and Mrs.
Saotome, and Ukyo, of course.
"What am I going to do?" Ranma moaned. "I can't stay stuck as a
girl! I can't."
"Why not?" Akane asked. "It works for half the human population,
you know."
"But I'm not a girl!" Ranma said vehemently.
Akane sighed heavily, then stood up. "I could certainly argue the
point," she said, "but if you really feel that way, then perhaps you should
start by telling Belldandy the truth."
"You mean... tell her that I'm really a guy?"
"Well of course, stupid. If you want to be a guy again," Akane
said, "at least, within the next year, then you need to tell her."
***
"Bwahahahahahahaha!"
Belldandy looked at Ranma with concern, while Urd rolled on the
floor, laughing uncontrollably.
"Oh, dear," Belldandy said. "You really should have said something
earlier, Ranma."
Urd pounded the floor, tears streaming down her face. "You mean
you're really a boy? And you let me fix you in your cursed form... oh,
that's too rich!"
"But you can change it back, can't you?" Akane asked. She really
wasn't sure why she was the one doing the asking, but Ranma was just
standing there, staring at the floor, blushing furiously. "I mean -- change
her back to the way she was?"
"Her?" Urd asked. "Don't you mean him?" She sat up and tried to
look Ranma in the eye, but the serious look on her face crumbled into a
goofy grin. She burst out laughing and fell back onto the floor.
"Bwahahahahaha! Oh, Kamisama, it's too funny! She's a boy, hahaha! Just
look at her!"
"But, Ranma," Belldandy said, "if you're really a boy then why are
you attending school as a girl?"
"'S a long story," Ranma mumbled.
Belldandy placed her hand on Ranma's shoulder and smiled brightly.
"Well, don't worry, Ranma," she said, "Oneechan is very talented with pills
and potions. I'm sure she'll find a way to reverse the effects of the
pill."
Ranma nodded solemnly. "How long will that take?" she asked.
"Well," Urd said, sitting up again and wiping the tears from her
eyes. "Not too long, I think. I'll need to experiment -- I've never tried
reversing a spell like this before -- but I figure just a few..." she
paused, looked at Ranma, and again burst into uncontrollable laughter.
"Why don't you check back in a day or two," Belldandy said
pleasantly. "You can wait that long, I assume?"
***
Ryoko floated across the darkening campus, aimlessly looking for
something to do. She desperately wanted to drop in on Tenchi, but as angry
as he was right now, it was better to leave him alone for a while. In any
case, that prissy bitch princess had her two guardians watching his room,
ready to call her at a moment's notice. Drawing the heir to the Juraian
throne into another knock-down, drag-out battle might be personally
satisfying, but it would only make Tenchi even angrier with her. Best to
lay low for a few days, she reasoned.
However, staying in her room with Ifurita, who had all the emotions
and conversational abilities of a carrot, just wasn't cutting it. Ryoko was
bored, bored, bored. She considered finding Princess Lum and badgering her
into a short battle, but that just wasn't half as much fun as provoking
Ayeka. In any case the Oni Princess was probably in Tenchi-sama's room,
hanging all over that disgusting roommate of his. Ryoko made a face. At
least Ayeka had good taste in men.
Down below, coming out of one of the buildings that was neither
dormitory, school office, study hall or gymnasium, were the android girl
Nuku Nuku and her "Papa-san", Professor Kyuusaku Natsume. Ryoko knew little
about the strange man in the lab coat, other than he was still young,
smoked a lot, and that his long bangs perpetually hid his eyes, but she
already had a healthy respect for his genius. This whole planet was
technologically primitive, but Nuku Nuku was an exceptionally well built
android, with surprising strength and power, not to mention incredibly
cute. She and Ryoko had been on the same volleyball team this afternoon
during P.E. (Ryoko had decided that attending class was less boring than
hanging around school doing nothing), and despite competition from the
likes of Ayeka, Ranma, and that very powerful girl Aiko, their team had won
easily. Ryoko snickered. She'd felt a little sorry for the normal girls --
even Ranma and Shampoo were so much more athletic and graceful it wasn't
even funny, and the coach had started drooling when he talked of fielding
an inter-league team with the likes of Ranma, Shampoo, Aiko, Ryoko and Nuku
Nuku on it.
She glanced back at the building that the professor and android
girl had just left. What was that building used for, anyway? Perhaps the
professor had his laboratories in there, she thought. Considering what he'd
created in Nuku-Nuku, his lab was probably an interesting place indeed.
On a whim, Ryoko pivoted in the air and dove gracefully through the
roof of the building.
The ground floor consisted of several primitive laboratories and
operating theaters, and a very large conference room. One room in
particular caught her eye, as it was built for complete surveillance of the
school campus. It was the only room that was occupied, so Ryoko did no more
than poke her head in and take in the rows of video screens, blinking
lights and LED's, and the four black-clad security types who were
monitoring everything. Then she quickly sunk through the floor.
The first sub-level was a lot more interesting. Professor Natsume,
or whoever was at work here, was far more than a school professor, and was
being funded by someone with an awful lot of cash to throw about. Huge
machines, menacing cyborgs, exotic vehicles, and weapons of destruction
were everywhere, although many were in a half-finished state. Many rooms
were the size of small warehouses and one led to another until Ryoko
realized that the complex extended beneath the entire campus.
And there was a second sub-level, and a third. Ryoko blinked. Where
had all of this come from?
She eventually found herself in a long, thin room lit by an eerie
green glow. A path led through the center of the room, while on each side,
lined up along the walls, were large round containers, like giant upright
aqua-lungs or tubular coffins of stainless steel, with glass windows in
front. She walked among them, noting the many wires and tubes connected to
each one. They were like the cryogenic sleep chambers that you found in
ancient space ships, except for the ice and frost.
Curious, she levitated up and peered into the glass window on one.
Inside, floating in a murky gelatinous green liquid, was a young girl with
blue hair.
Ryoko frowned. Were these incubation tubes, then?
Sensory-deprivation units? Artificial wombs? What was going on here?
She floated to the next one, and then the next. There were well
over a dozen of them, all told. In each one was a young blue-haired girl
exactly like the first.
Clones? They must be, Ryoko thought.
Did these people know that clone technology was regulated on a
galactic scale? Likely not, Ryoko reasoned; this planet was far too
backwards for that.
But, informed or not, someone was clearly engaged in a massive
project to clone multiple copies one specific young girl.
***
There was a knock at the door, which was open, and then Ukyo
stepped into Ranma and Noel's dorm room. She looked about. Ranma was
flopped onto the lower bunk bed, aimlessly staring at a text book without
actually reading it, while her new roommate was finishing moving in.
"Nice room," Ukyo said. "This is your roommate, Ranma?"
Ranma, who'd only met her roommate an hour ago herself, nodded her
head. "Noel, this is my friend Ukyo."
"Your friend?" Ukyo said. "I'm your fiancee, you know!"
The slender girl with the long black hair faced Ukyo and bowed.
"Noel Minamino," she said. "Pleased to meet you!"
Noel headed for the door. Ranma sat up and put the book aside.
"Going somewhere?" she asked.
"I have to meet my sister, down at the gym," Noel called out over
her shoulder, and was gone.
Ukyo sat in one of the desk chairs and crossed her arms. "So?" she
said. "What did you want to talk about, Ranma?"
Ranma glanced away. "I was just kind of hoping you'd change your
mind," she said. "About switching dorm rooms, I mean."
Ukyo frowned. "Is that all? Ranma, I already told you: If you
promise to uphold our engagement and ours alone, then fine. Otherwise, no
thanks."
Ranma sighed. "I figured you'd say that," she said. "Anyway, it
hardly matters at the moment. Belldandy's sister offered me a cure, but it
didn't work quite right, so... for the moment, I'm stuck as a girl."
Ukyo sat up. "You're what?" From somewhere she produced a kettle of
hot water and poured it over Ranma's head, then poked the girl's chest
experimentally.
"You're still a girl!" she exclaimed. "You don't change into a
guy!"
"Didn't I just say that?" Ranma exclaimed irritably.
"But... but Ranma, is this... is this permanent?"
"Gods, I hope not!" Ranma said. "It's supposed to last a year, but
Urd said she could probably reverse it in a few days."
Ukyo sighed and sat back, obviously relieved. Ranma couldn't help
but notice that her supposed friend and fiancee seemed a little more
concerned about being engaged to a girl than about Ranma herself. She
frowned.
"Hey, Ranma!" a girl called out. Yohko bounced into the room, then
came to an abrupt halt. "Ukyo-sama! I didn't know you were here!" She
glanced from Ukyo to Ranma, and said, "If this is a bad time...."
"Don't worry," Ranma said. "We weren't discussing anything
important."
"Are you sure? I mean, Ukyo is your fiancee. If you two want to be
alone, I'd certainly understand...."
"No!" both said a little too quickly. Ukyo laughed nervously and
added, "It's not like that, we were just... talking. Like Ranma said. About
nothing. Really."
"Oh?" Yohko flopped down in the other desk chair and said, "Ranma,
guess what? Your new roommate is my roommate's twin sister. I bet we could
talk them into switching, so that you and I can room together. Whatcha
think?"
Ranma's eyes grew wide. "Oh... ah... is that what you want to do?"
"Well of course! We're friends, right? Why wouldn't we want to room
together?"
"I... ah... can't think of a reason... I guess...."
Ranma stared at the floor, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
Ukyo rolled her eyes expressively, but said nothing. She glanced over at a
large box on Noel's desk, then got up to inspect it. "What's this?" she
asked. "Oh! Some kind of drink?"
"It's my roommate's," Ranma said. "I've got no idea what it is.
Calpis? Pocari Sweat?"
"No, something different," Ukyo said. She pulled out a can and
studied it critically. "No label. How odd. Well, she's got a whole case of
the stuff so she must like it. I wonder if it's any good? I could sell it
at my restaurant." She glanced up and her face broke into a grin. "Did I
tell you that? Registration said I could open a restaurant in the corner of
the cafeteria! They're going to set up a little food court there. Cologne
and Shampoo will have a ramen shop, and Nanami Jinnai is going to have a
booth too!"
"That's nice," Ranma said noncommittally.
"So should I move in with you, or do you want to move in with me?"
Yohko asked.
"What?" Ranma said. "Oh... um, Yohko, maybe we should, you know,
think about this a bit first. I mean, sometimes people who are really good
friends start to hate each other when they live together, right?"
Yohko blinked, then frowned. "Well, I suppose that's true. Is there
something you want to say, Ranma? Some reason you don't think we'd be good
roommates?"
"No, no! I just think... we should be cautious, you know?"
"Well," Yohko said, "I just assumed that Noel and Maria would like
rooming together, since they're twins... and that you and I would make
great roommates, since we're both into martial arts and since you'll be
training to be a Devil Hunter too...."
Yohko popped up. "I'll tell you what, Ranma. I'll talk to Noel and
Maria and see what they think. If they want to room together, then we'll do
it. And I promise I'll be a good roommate! Really, you've got nothing to
worry about!"
Ranma watched as her friend bounced out of the room, not quite sure
how to respond. Room with Yohko? She knew that was a bad idea, but how
could she stop her friend without hurting her feelings?
Ukyo popped open the can in her hand and took a drink. Ranma looked
at her, and she shrugged. "I was thirsty," she said. She took another long
sip, then paused. She seemed to tremble for a moment, then she stared at
the can in amazement.
"What is this stuff?" she asked. "Wow! It packs quite a wallop! Are
you certain this stuff is just soda?"
"I told you," Ranma said, "I don't know what it is. I really doubt
it's alcoholic, though."
"I kinda like it," Ukyo said. "Kind of a sweet, fruity flavor, but
not syrupy. Think it'll be okay if I borrow another can or two? I mean
there is an awful lot of it here, and I'll pay Noel back of course."
Ranma shrugged. "Help yourself."
As the door closed behind Ukyo, Ranma frowned. Was it just her, or
had Ukyo's voice sounded remarkably deep all of a sudden?
She shrugged it off, then rolled out of bed. She'd just remembered
something else that she'd wanted to accomplish today, and considering how
badly her expected cure had failed -- why had she thought it would do
otherwise? -- it was doubly important that she speak to Nabiki as soon as
possible.
***
"A boy's uniform?"
Ranma nodded her head vigorously. "I know how expensive a uniform
is," she said. "Well, I don't know exactly, only that it is expensive.
Travelling with my pop all these years, I've never had much money, so
there's no way I could afford it, and I can't go to Mom of course, that
would involve too much explanation, but you always seem to have money,
so...."
"So you thought I could lend you the money you needed," Nabiki
finished.
"Yeah. And while we're at it, I could use a couple of Chinese
outfits, for training and such."
"Sorry, but no," Nabiki replied.
Ranma stared at her a moment in confusion. "What do you mean, no?
Nabiki, you're my only hope! And we're practically related...."
Nabiki looked Ranma up and down and raised an eyebrow. "Forgive me,
Ranma-chan," she said, "but at the moment you hardly look like my future
brother-in-law."
Ranma glanced down at the uniform she was still wearing. "That's
just it!" she exclaimed. "I feel like an idiot in this getup!"
"Ranma-chan," Nabiki said, "I think we've been over this already.
You're registered as a girl and assigned to the girls' dorm... you can't
attend school as a boy. In fact, at the moment you couldn't become a boy if
you wanted to." Nabiki paused a moment to openly smirk -- she'd laughed
nearly as hard as Urd when she'd heard the news from Akane. "So anyway,
what could you possibly want with a boy's uniform?"
Ranma's face flushed red, and she glanced away.
"I just want something that's not so overtly feminine," she said.
"I hate this skirt!"
"Ranma," Nabiki said, "every girl wears that skirt. We've all got
the same uniform."
"Not Utena Tenjou."
Nabiki smirked. "Well," she said, "if you want to look like
Utena...."
"Yes," Ranma said, spinning about. "That's exactly what I want."
Nabiki leaned back in her chair and sighed.
"It's not that easy, Ranma," she said. "I'm just a poor high school
student too you know."
"But you've always got money!"
Nabiki nodded. "That's right. I've always got just enough," she
said, "but never more than that. I don't have tons of extra cash just
laying around." She paused, and tapped her face with her pen in thought.
"Perhaps..." she said, then paused.
"Yes?"
"Well," Nabiki said, "even if I had the money to lend you, I have
no idea how you'd ever pay me back. You don't have a job yet, do you?"
"Ah, c'mon, Nabiki. You know I'm training morning and night! And if
I'm not training, then I'd better be studying...."
"Exactly," Nabiki said. "And you're going to pay me back? I think
not."
"Nabiki..." Ranma began.
"Now, now," Nabiki said, holding up her hands. "There is a way,
perhaps, that could work. If you agree to help me raise the money...."
"Anything!" Ranma exclaimed. "You name it, and I'll do it for you!"
Nabiki grinned like a lawyer at a support group for wealthy
victims. "Anything?" she repeated. "I'm so very glad to hear you say that,
Ranma-chan...."
***
Ranma sank slowly into the water, letting the heat soak into her
limbs. It had been another one of those days. Not that she'd fought with a
demon today, mind you, but all her dreams for escaping her curse and
escaping life as a schoolgirl had unraveled and backfired on her. In some
ways, she'd rather have faced a demon, instead of dealing with the mess
that was her life.
"You know, Ranma," Yohko said, "We've been friends for a while now,
but I think this is the first time we've actually been in a bath together."
"Yeah," Ranma said. "Imagine that." Her voice was tinged with a
barely perceptible hint of melancholy, and she he sunk lower into the
water, glad that the steam and the dim lighting helped obscure things
around her. The shapes of the other girls were indistinct at best.
Still, Ranma thought, it wasn't the presence of naked girls that
made her uncomfortable. She'd long ago grown used to her own female body,
and from there it was not a great leap to being comfortable around other
girls.
No, what made her uncomfortable was the fact that she was soaking
up to her neck in steaming hot water, and was still a girl. She wasn't
turning into a guy. That fact sat in her stomach like a bad meal made by
Akane. And, at the same time, she was couldn't shake the terror that she
might transform, at any moment, and be a naked boy in a bath full of naked
girls.
It didn't even occur to her that this was the fantasy of a good
portion of the school's male population. Perhaps, once upon a time, Ranma
had entertained fantasies of being among naked girls, but she now knew from
experience not only what it was like to be one of those naked girls, but
also what happened when you were a boy among a bunch of naked girls. It
mostly involved screams and a lot of pummeling with bathroom appliances.
She glanced down at her body -- what she could see of it through
the steam and gloom and dark water. It was strange how natural it felt. The
social aspects she would never get used to, but physically, being a girl
was not really a curse, any more than being a boy was. The curse was simply
the transformation process, and her lack of control over it.
Well, she had control over it now, she thought bitterly. Not quite
in the way she'd wanted, of course.
"I was really mad at you, last night," Yohko said. "To find someone
as amazingly beautiful as Ukyo-sama, and then to find out that he's engaged
to you... well, I'm still pretty jealous."
"I'm... I'm sorry, Yohko," Ranma said. "I didn't know. Ukyo says we
were engaged when we were little, but I don't really remember it."
"That's okay," Yohko said. "You already explained it. I should have
suspected it, really; these things always seem to happen to me. And I'm
really excited for you. To have a dreamy fiancee like that... his arms
about you, his lips on yours...."
Ranma's stomach turned, as she was reminded what parts of being a
girl were not easy to deal with. Only the knowledge that Ukyo was really a
girl kept her from being very sick. The prospect of being stuck as a girl
for a full year fairly terrified her.
"I just hope I can find my mystery prince," Yohko said with a sigh.
"Mystery prince?"
"You know -- the boy with the pigtail, the one in the picture from
last night?"
Ranma gulped and sank further into the water. "Oh," she said. "Him.
I wouldn't get your hopes up too much, Yohko; you might never see him
again."
The gloom in Ranma's voice was almost palpable. Yohko raised an
eyebrow. "Why? Do you know something I don't?"
Ranma gulped again. "What? Me? No!" she said. "I mean -- I've never
met him."
"Nobody said that you had," Yohko replied, suspiciously. "No, wait,
don't tell me: you're engaged to him, too?"
"Of course not!" Ranma snapped. In the far corner, Akane stifled a
laugh. "Look, Yohko, if I could tell you who he was then I would. You know
that. But I can't, because I've never met him."
Yohko sighed. "Yes, I know," she said. "We are friends, after
all...." Her voice trailed off, and then she added, "but it does seem
strange. Chigako's gone through all the registered students, and nobody
seems to know who he is."
"Maybe he's not a student here," Akane said.
"Maybe," Yohko agreed with a sigh. "Maybe you're right, Ranma.
Maybe I'll never see him again."
Ranma relaxed, glad that the sweat running down her forehead was
only to be expected while soaking in the furo.
"Speaking of which... I wonder where Ryoyo's disappeared to. I
really am worried about him."
"I told ya, you don't gotta worry about him," Ranma said. "He's a
pretty tough guy. He'll turn up eventually."
***
Somewhere on the island of Hokkaido, a running boy came to a halt.
He had black pants and a buff top, with a stripped bandana holding back a
thick mane of black hair.
He glanced about, noting the sloping, grass-covered hillside. Sea
birds flew overhead, and the sea sparkled in the distance. It was evening,
with the sun sinking in... well, whatever direction it was that suns
typically sunk in. The boy had absolutely no idea where he was.
"This is absolutely hopeless!" the boy screamed out loud, and his voice
sounded like a hundred voices all speaking in unison. "How can any mortal
have such a phenomenally bad sense of direction?"
The boy laughed humorlessly, then shrugged. "Oh well," he muttered.
"Back to the drawing board... again."
And then, the boy's shadow seemed to expand, to swell up... and
part of it broke away.
Ryoga blinked. He looked about, completely confused as to where he
was. Being lost was nothing new, but he usually remembered how he'd got
there.
From the corner of his eye, he saw a shadow moving swiftly across
the grass. He watched as it moved down the hill, and then stared into the
sky, vainly looking for the object that surely was casting the shadow.
The skies, save for a few small birds and some clouds on the
distant horizon, were empty.
***
Chief of Police Daisuke Ido stood with his hands in his pockets and
stared out into the night. The wind whipped his trenchcoat about, and
threatened to rip the hat from his head, but Ido didn't move a muscle. He
gazed into the blackness with a strange intensity, as if, by sheer
willpower alone, he could look into all the nooks and crannies of the night
and know every evil thing that the darkness hid.
Somewhere, up on the hill above the town, a demon lurked. This
much, Ido knew. And he was bound and determined to flush it out and end its
reign of terror once and for all.
*to be continued*
The following brilliant lines blatantly stolen from Jed Hagen's
private C&C of my story:
"Neither, Ma'am," Akane supplied helpfully. "She's just stupid."
Urd smirked impishly. "Isn't it, though?"
"If you aren't careful, you might get pressed into taking one of
his mountaineering trips. Some students never return from those..."
He pointed to the stack of books labeled "demonology".
Muyami Academy Chapter 11
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