Project A-Ko Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Vampire Hunter (Darkstalkers) Fan Fiction ❯ Nabiki 1/2 (A Very Scary Thought) ❯ Keiko's Story... ( Chapter 10 )

Nabiki 1/2

(A Very Scary Thought)

Written by Jim Robert Bader

Proofread by Shiva Barnwell

Based Upon the Altered Destinies Storyline

Inspired by the works of such fans as

Wade Tritshler

Richard Lawson

James Jones

And Many Others

Standard Disclaimer: This is inspired by the work of Takahashi Rumiko and is not my original creation. All characters belong to her. This is only a fanfictional work, and is not intended to compromise the rights of the original owners, distributors and publishers of the Ranma series. I have no money to spare and would very much appreciate if no one tries to sue me.

"Knock, knock."

Akane glanced up from her bed and said, "Come on in."

"I'd love to," Keiko grinned as she stepped into the room, "But your sister might have some objections."

Akane looked puzzled for a half a second, then she suddenly looked nervous.

"Hey, it's just a joke, you don't have to look at me that way!" Keiko laughed a bit uneasily, "All right, so maybe I am a bit...unconventional in my values, but I'd never force myself on anyone, so unless I really do make you feel uncomfortable and you'd like me to leave…?"

"I…" Akane tried to decide how best to deal with this situation. On the one hand, Keiko really DID make her feel uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable! On the other hand,…she could not help being just a tiny bit…curious. Maybe more than a little, though she would have belted anyone who suggested such a thing, had anyone been rude enough to do so.

"How far have you come on your history?" Keiko asked her, glancing at the page Akane was on and noting that she had hardly made any progress since Keiko had left her bedroom, "Still locked in the fourteenth century, I see, a pretty turbulent period, if I remember right. Lots of killing and messiness with lots of people following the Samurai code and generally being very rude to one another."

"What is it between you and my big sister?" Akane asked non-sequentially, that obviously being the thing that was foremost in her thoughts.

Keiko smiled that annoying smile of hers and inclined her head, "That's what's got you, has it? Surprised to find out your Oneechan had a life before she came back to her nest egg? You don't have to be shy around me about it…I've never had much use for people who can't speak their own mind. Too damned many people always avoiding saying what they really mean to say…"

"How can you come back here and do what you're doing to her?" Akane asked, "Don't you care that you're causing problems between her and Ranma?"

"Oho," Keiko nodded sagely, "I see that you care. Wasn't he supposed to be your iinazuke before Nabiki showed up and took him away from you?"

"She didn't take him from me!" Akane snapped, "I gave her my blessings! I never wanted to marry that jerk in the first place! It was just some dumb idea his father and my father had about uniting our two families, and now Nabiki's stuck with him, and good riddance!"

"My, you do sound jealous," Keiko raised both crimson eyebrows, then grinned all the more, "You could always fight to win him back, you know. You don't have to accept things as they are…"

"Hah, you'd just like that, wouldn't you!" Akane sat up in her bed, her dark eyes blazing, "Get Ranma away from Nabiki so you'd have a clean playing field, well I…"

She caught herself. What was she talking about? Did she seriously believe for one second that this girl and her sister…?

Keiko's smile was all the confirmation of her suspicion that she needed, but the redheaded girl just continued to insinuate, "Well, why not? Can't blame a girl for trying. After all, I love your sister very much and wouldn't mind having her all to myself, if Ranma-kun weren't in the picture."

Akane's mouth fell open. How could this girl be so brazen about it? Akane would have died of embarrassment if anyone had even suggested that she had an interest in another woman. She just wasn't like that! Yet this girl was not just admitting to being a Hentai, she was bragging about it!

"I've shocked you," Keiko said, no longer smiling, "I'm sorry about that. I promised Nabiki-chan that I wouldn't expose you to too much of my boorish behavior. I was raised to be better than that, but four years of living by my wits doesn't exactly allow a girl to cultivate proper ladylike behavior. I guess I can't blame you for being offended. I'll leave if you want me to..."

"Ah…" Akane's anger deflated. There was just something about Keiko's self-depreciating manner that made it very hard to stay angry, "Just…how did you get to be this way? I mean, I don't want to pry or anything…"

"You are a good little girl," Keiko smiled, and somehow made it sound less condescending than Akane would have believed possible, "I guess no one's ever felt like exposing you to the dark and seamy side of life, and I'm envious as hell about it. I never had much choice, unfortunately. Not my fault that I turned out to be the girl no one feels like bringing home to mother."

She secured the door to Akane's room, then walked up to stand in front of the mirror, removing her shirt, which made Akane tense suddenly as if expecting something she might otherwise not have expected. Then her tension melted into a one-word exclamation, "Nani…?"

Keiko's back had pink stripes, largely faded scars, and other marks that implied harsh treatment. The long-healed welts and angry looking stripes extended all the way to the rim of her shorts, and probably a good deal farther down, had Keiko exposed herself completely.

"Pirates," Keiko explained, "And later on slavers. I've endured a lot of things I hope and pray you can't even imagine, Akane-chan, and never have to again. I'm a proven survivor, but survival of the body doesn't necessarily mean you get away intact. I carry much deeper scars inside me than you can ever know, but I'm not telling you this to gain your pity or anything like that. I just want you to know…I've paid my dues, so I feel I'm entitled a few favors."

She slipped her T-shirt back on, then turned around and smiled, "Hey, life hasn't always been a bed of roses, but there's no sense crying about it. I've learned to look at the bright side of things, to take what pleasure I can out of life and not complain about the bad things that happen."

"H-How?" Akane's voice shook. Never in her life had she ever seen someone act so brave, having made such an admission.

Keiko paused, then glanced towards the window before responding, "A few years ago, before I turned fourteen, my mother and I were sailing with some friends on their yacht off the coast of Okinawa. There was a storm coming, so we headed for the nearest port and unfortunately got too close to the mainland, and before we knew it we were boarded by Pirates."

"Pirates?" Akane repeated, almost disbelieving.

"Don't think there are any around in this day and age?" Keiko smirked without humor, "Neither did I, but I found out the hard way that outlaw bands still survive who pray on unwary travelers and boat people. I don't know what happened to everybody…especially not mother. Maybe she was luckier than me…" her smile faded briefly, and there was sadness in her eyes before she continued, "Good thing those guys thought I was worth more to them alive than just for their amusement, because they turned me over to their Chief, a lady Pirate named Lao Khan, who took a fancy to me and decided to keep me."

"Keep you?" Akane asked faintly.

"As a pet," Keiko's smile was difficult to interpret, "For her own personal amusement."

"Nani?" Akane faintly whispered.

"Turns out Lao Khan was a renegade Amazon, kicked out of her tribe for some kind of scandalous behavior," Keiko noted, "She was a rogue and a thief, a calculated killer and a lot of nasty things I won't bother telling you about, but in a way I kind of liked her, and when she found out that I was a Kickboxer she took an interest in me for other reasons than just her amusement. She taught me a lot of things, not the least was how to speak Chinese, and something about the Amazon code, though she wasn't much on traditions. We…got along pretty well for two years…sort of a Master/Pet situation, but in the end she wound up selling me to a rival for a favor."

"She sold you?" Akane could not believe that Keiko's tone had no bitterness about describing such a tacit betrayal.

"Wasn't like she had a lot of choice in the matter," Keiko shrugged, "I can't really blame her, though the pig she sold me to was not the kind of guy I'd have wished on an enemy. Good thing I'd already proven myself several times in the Mu Tai arena or I'd probably have been in for a lot worse than I got. His name was Chu Wan Phat, and if I ever see him again I'll be sure to redecorate his insides."

Akane did not know what to say to that. She had been angry many times, at Ranma, at Kuno, at the numerous idiots who thought attacking her every morning was some kind of courtship routine, but she had never in her life been mad enough at anyone to consider actual murder. That Keiko could discuss it with such casual bitterness implied a lot of things that she did not even want to consider.

"Well, anyway," Keiko smiled, "Nabiki-chan helped me get away from all that, and I'm grateful and everything, but that's not the reason I want so much to be with her now. The fact is that she means a lot to me, more than just an old friend I happened to run into in very unusual circumstances. I won't lie to you about it, I was hoping for a warmer greeting and I did not anticipate this iinazuke business."

"Ah, you…did she…?" Akane stumbled.

This time Keiko's smile was neither cynical nor bitter, "Have you ever been in love, Akane-chan? I mean really, truly in love? The kind of love that just hits you between the eyes like spinning back kick and knocks you senseless? Right after Nabiki and Genma busted me out of that place, we took shelter in a little used hut in one of the seedier quarters of town. Genma stood watch, too scared to sleep and eager to get started on his journey. Nabiki and I were left alone, and we just came together like a couple of kids on their first date, laughing and hugging and everything that two people might do who were just happy to still be alive and able to do it. I took advantage of the opening and seduced her, using techniques Madam Lao had taught me during our time together, and the result for me was pure magic. I actually saw Nabiki smile without once contemplating monetary figures, and then she wept with happiness…I guess I read too much into that. The next morning I woke late and she was gone, along with Genma. They left a note, and I spent the rest of the day crying."

Akane breathed a very fervent, "Kami…" unable to fully assimilate what Keiko had just revealed to her. There was so much about this strange girl that went beyond her experience, even more so than with Nabiki. What a contradiction in terms: Polite and differential one minute, so brazen and outgoing the next. She could not imagine anyone living such a life and still managing somehow to remain so cheerful!

"Well, anyway," Keiko said tightly, "I got myself together the next day, decided I'd better do something about my problems and took the cash they'd left for me and used it to buy my way out of Hong Kong. It wasn't easy following their trail, but I'd heard Genma mention Jusenkyo, so that was good enough to use for a reference. I almost caught up to them many months later when they sort of surprised me and knocked me into that spring. Good thing Madam Lao had told me something about the curse and how to reverse it, but finding hot water without winding up as someone's dinner proved a little more difficult than I would have imagined. At least I was able to pick up their trail again, only a few days old, and followed the path that led to the Amazon village of Joketsuzoku."

"You keep saying Amazon," Akane asked, "I can't believe a society of women warriors could exist outside of mythology!'

"Oh, they're real enough," Keiko replied, "The original Amazons were a nomadic people who lived on the plains of central Asia…Sythians, I believe they were called. Supposedly they were descended from some people who lived along the Black Sea near Europe and had a city called Themiscrya, somewhere north of modern day Istanbul. Allegedly they were forced into exile and fled east to escape barbarian invaders. The branch I know about settled near the Cursed Springs because of its remoteness and relative lack of strategic value to the overlords of China. Some even say the Springs themselves were a vital part of their defenses in the days before the first Emperor of China, something about the ability for warriors to take on animal shapes before going into battle, I suppose. Anyway, the Amazons largely still survive because they worked out a deal with the Communist government to remain nominally independent, which is not the typical pattern in China. The Amazon village is something of a little-known tourist attraction, like Jusenkyo itself, and while they're not exactly crazy about outsiders, they are very polite to people who don't make the mistake of getting on their bad side."

"Are they just a society of women?" Akane asked, then wondered how such a society could survive beyond a single generation.

"Oh no," Keiko assured her, "They have men in their society, too, and pretty well treated from what I was able to notice. Just about everybody in the village practices one kind of Martial art or other, even the very old, who have to be pretty good just to survive into retirement. Women are the dominant sex, make no mistake about it, but the men aren't exactly an inferior species. In point of fact, they welcome new blood whenever they can find it. Probably something about avoiding recessive traits from inbreeding, or some such stuff like that."

"Oh," Akane said, finding herself actually curious about this place she was describing. It sounded like a woman could earn a place of respect there, and maybe guys would not always be hitting on her all of the time.

"Anyway," Keiko continued, "I picked up the trail right away. Seems like everyone in the village was pretty agitated over something that had happened a few days before I showed up, and it involved a boy with a panda. Seemed the boy had challenged their local champion to a fight, which was definitely not a very good idea if you know anything about Joketsuzoku. The boy won, of course, which meant that the girl he defeated became his wife…"

"Nani?" Akane blurted.

"That's the custom over there," Keiko explained, "When an Outsider Male defeats an Amazon in battle she is required to marry him…probably because of what I said about needing fresh blood to keep them from too much inbreeding.'

"NANI?" Akane said with greater emphasis.

"Actually it does kind of make sense from their way of thinking," Keiko smiled, "Amazons value strength and fighting ability over nearly all other virtues, so your place in their social hierarchy is determined by your worth as a fighter. Only somebody who is very good could hope to beat an Amazon, so the boy who beat their Champion had to be an exceptional fighter, somebody they'd every much rather have on their side than the other way around."

"Oh," Akane said, then the alarm bells started sounding, "The boy…?"

"Wasn't hard for me to figure out," Keiko nodded, "I was just getting used to turning into a vulture, and I'd been chasing a boy and a panda who I knew had to be Nabiki and Genma. The boy apparently defeated their champion pretty easily, and that could only mean one person I knew who was that good in a Tai fight. When I heard the rest of the story I knew right away that it was Nabiki, and she had just gotten herself into a whole lot of trouble."

"Kami-sama," Akane whispered, realizing at once how that was a ridiculous understatement.

"It's worse than you think," Keiko informed her, "The other part of that tribal Law holds that when an outsider female defeats an Amazon, that Amazon loses face until she can hunt the outsider down and kill her, and only then does she deserve recognition among her peers. Most villagers weren't exactly sure what had happened between Nabiki and their Champion, but it seems they spent one night together, and then the boy disappeared without a trace, along with the panda. I guess somebody told Nabiki she's was either going to have to stay in male form for the rest of her life or have a very ticked off Amazon out to get her."

"Oboy," Akane murmured, or words to that effect, "Poor Nabiki…"

"It gets worse," Keiko informed her, "Their Champion was staying pretty much out of sight the first two days, but then one of the Elders of the Village, who just happened to be her Great Grandmother, showed up and seems to have gone ballistic. That Champion was her best student, and to be disgraced this way was an insult to all the Amazons of Joketsuzoku. I don't know what all she said to the girl, but the next day she was decked out in full warrior apparel, armed to the teeth with traditional weapons that she'd studied and mastered. She took off after Nabiki and the gods only know where she is today. Probably out chasing over half of China for a boy with a panda, and I don't envy anyone who gets in her way. Amazons aren't too subtle about dishing out their retribution."

"I guess it's a good thing she's still in China, then," Akane said, then saw a shadowy look about Keiko's eyes and said, "What?"

"Um," Keiko looked somewhat sheepish, "That's…the part I didn't want to have to bring up. Normally the Amazons are quite congenial company around outsiders, but they were feeling pretty ticked off and confused about the whole situation I just described. I showed up at the wrong place at the wrong time and wound up being challenged by one of the local girls. Now this was very bad for me because it either meant I was going to wind up getting beat up by the girl, or I was going to have to kill her. Turns out I didn't really have much of a choice about it either way because this girl had been personally trained by the senior Elder of the village, and she was the Champion's cousin and felt like her family pride had been stepped on by an outsider. I was the target of her rage, and as good as I am, she turned out to be a whole lot better."

"She beat you up?" Akane asked in surprise.

"More like she kicked my ass butt solid," Keiko winced, "Glad I never fought anybody like her in a Tai fight. Turns out she was the local village Enforcer, the left-hand hit-girl for the Elder I mentioned. She never competed with the others, and most of the villagers just stayed the hell out of her way. The only one she ever fought regularly against was the Champion I mentioned, so I guess in a way her singling me out was kind of like an honor. An honor I would very much gladly have done without, thank you."

"But she let you live?" Akane marveled.

"Guess she wasn't that badly ticked off, or she might have chopped me into sukiyaki with those axes she was wielding. Turns out she does have one rather significant weakness, and if I'd known about it at the time I might have stood a chance, but as it was I got off lightly, because she might have crippled me had it not been for the Elder.

"That lady was…strange. Ancient. The most formidable fighter in the entire village, and she claimed to be something like three hundred years old. Somehow, I can believe it. She called the girl off of me, then asked me my name and had me taken to her hut for an interrogation. The girl remained at her side the whole time, so I didn't feel like putting up much resistance and answered her questions as truthfully as I could manage. She was surprised that I could speak Chinese with a local accent and I explained to her about my time with Madam Lao. She forbade me to speak her name again, but understood my situation and explained that she had recognized a part of my fighting style because Lao had been one of her foremost pupils, before her great granddaughter was old enough to walk. I found out that Lao had a different name in the village, but no one would talk about her, so I didn't feel like pushing my luck. After I got cleaned up and rested, the Elder said that she thought I had potential and offered to train me in advanced Amazon techniques. I stayed for a month and learned a lot in that time, but in the end I wanted to find Nabiki, to explain what had happened, and the Elder actually sympathized and gave me her blessing.

"She did warn me about one thing, though: she wanted me to stay out of the way of her Great Granddaughter, and I was not to press my suit until the matter was settled between her and Nabiki. I've been looking for the right opportunity to bring it up, but Nabiki's been avoiding me for some silly reason…" she smiled, "Guess she really is hung up on this Ranma. I just hope Xian Pu never finds out or there'll be a world of trouble."

"Shampoo?" Akane blinked.

"I guess that's another way of saying her name," Keiko smiled, "It means Mountain Girl in Chinese, but I suppose in Japanese it does sound more like 'Coral' or 'Herbal Potion.'"

"I never realized that you and Oneechan had such difficult adventures," Akane whispered at the last, finding it much easier to look at Keiko without feeling discomfort.

"It wasn't all bad," Keiko shrugged, "But I wouldn't recommend it. Anyway, even though I like girls and would rather date Nabiki than her boyfriend, I'm not exactly as extreme about it as the Amazons. I'd never want to force Nabiki into something that she didn't want, like an arranged marriage. If I thought she was in any way uncomfortable about the whole iinazuke affair between her and Ranma, I'd do everything in my power to break it up, and to hell with the consequences."

"Where were you when I was Ranma's betrothed?" Akane snorted.

"That's something I've been wanting to ask you," Keiko inclined her head, "If you don't mind me asking, that is. Nabiki says you don't much like boys your own age, but you do have a thing about…older men…?"

Akane suddenly felt very irritable, "I wish she hadn't told you about that…"

"Don't worry," Keiko smiled, "I wasn't teasing. I was just wondering if you ever thought about being with a girl that way? I'm not offering myself, mind you, but the way you flinched when I told you about my feelings…"

"Ah…sorry," Akane blurted, "Gomen nasai. I just don't feel that way around girls…I mean, I don't think I could ever be like that…"

"So sure of that are we?" Keiko chuckled, "Before I met Madam Lao I might have felt the same way, but the idea of any man touching me now…" she shuddered, "…Maybe they're not all like that, and I'm pretty sure this Ranma's a nice guy, but guys in general…well…if you're not interested in them, maybe you should consider other options. You're a very pretty girl, after all, and I've no doubt you'll grow into a raging beauty, a real heart-stopper."

"Thank you, but…I'll pass," Akane replied, but somehow found herself smiling. Keiko was interesting to listen to, even if her behavior was both shocking and explicit. To deflect the redhead's charming insinuation she forced herself to say, with some reluctance, "Maybe I just need to meet the right guy…somebody who doesn't act like a jerk all the time, somebody nice who will treat me with respect and won't try to force themselves on me and make me have to beat them up all the time and…"

"Akane-chan!" Kasumi said as she suddenly knocked on their door, "Please come outside quickly! Ranma is fighting with another boy in the garden, and Nabiki is with them."

"Who's Ranma fighting, Oneechan?" Akane called back.

"I have no idea," Kasumi replied, "But I think Nabiki-chan called him Ryoga…"

"Ryoga?" Keiko reacted, "Oboy! This is not good! Ranma could be in trouble!"

"Is Ryoga dangerous?" Akane looked at her in alarm.

"Only if he likes you," Keiko replied without elaborating, already out the door with Akane close behind as they ran for the stairs and vaulted them in one great leap.

Outside they found Genma, Nodoka, and Soun all gathered on the porch looking out to a scene of mass destruction and unbelievable property damage. There was a big hole in one wall, and lots of evidence of a pretty intense fight, but no sign at all of either Ranma or Nabiki.

"What happened?" Akane instantly demanded, receiving only blank looks from the assembled adults.

"No time!" Keiko cried out, already sprinting for the newly created exit. She could not believe that neither one of them had heard the sounds of the fight until now, but it might have happened very quickly, and with Ryoga involved most of the damage was undoubtedly caused in a very mindless and methodical fashion.

Akane only spared one look towards the fleet-footed redhead, then found her sandals and hurried to follow…

Continued

Comments/Criticisms/Essays: Shadowmane@msn.com